Single Entity Research Articles

The incremental value of non-necrosis biomarkers to risk stratification in acute chest pain, with MI excluded: the first prospective long term cohort study in the high sensitive troponin era

Abstract Background Approximately 90% of patients presenting to ED (Emergency Department) with suspected Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS) have Myocardial Infarction (MI) excluded. Long term outcome and risk stratification for this cohort has rarely been studied. Purpose To study long term cardiovascular outcomes in patients with acute Chest Pain (CP) in whom MI is excluded, and to investigate the incremental value of biomarkers of inflammation, myocardial ischaemia and stress, for risk stratification, to that of existing methods of stratifying risk including absolute values of two high sensitive troponins below the 99th percentile. Methods A prospective observational study in a large university teaching hospital with a median follow-up of 5.8-year. Cardiovascular outcomes studied included adjudicated type 1 MI (to 4th universal definition), unstable angina requiring urgent revascularisation and cardiovascular death. Inclusion criteria included CP with features of ischaemia but with MI excluded (High sensitive cardiac troponin [hs-cTn] T ≤99th percentile). Exclusion criteria included non-cardiac chest pain, chronic atrial fibrillation, heart failure and recent ACS. The biomarkers HFABP, GDF-15, NT-proBNP, Galectin-3, HS-CRP taken on first venepuncture for high sensitive cardiac troponins were investigated using univariable and multivariable backward stepwise elimination logistic modelling, receiver operator characteristic (ROC) analysis, and Net Reclassification Indices (NRI). They were compared to absolute values of both sub-99th percentile hs-cTnT (Roche Elecsys) and hs-cTnI (Abbot Architect) both as a single entity or when the troponin values were incorporated with HEART and TIMI scores. Results 487 consented patients were enrolled. The mean age of the population was 56 years (SD 11.8), 44% were female, 16.2% were diabetic, 20.9% had a previous MI, 13.8% previous PCI and 5.1% coronary artery bypass grafting. 100% follow-up was achieved. There were 48 events in follow-up. (event rate 9.9%). Multivariable Cox Proportional Hazards analysis including hs-cTnT or hs-cTnI (below 99th percentile) demonstrated incremental improvement in risk stratification with absolute values of either hs-cTn below the 99th percentile when added to either TIMI or HEART risk score. The results were consistent with NRI analysis. Only GDF-15 demonstrated significance in multivariable analysis when analysed with the HEART score regardless of troponin assay and the TIMI score with HS-cTnI but not with HS-cTnT. Conclusion Absolute values of hs-cTnT or I, below 99th percentiles, significantly improve risk modelling for cardiovascular outcomes in acute CP patients, presenting to ED, who have MI excluded. No other biomarker retains independent risk with the exception of GDF-15. Effective dichotomisation of sub99th percentile hstnT or I, used alone or incorporated into risk scores, could allow improved targeting of resources for investigation and management for this large pool of patients.

Right heart remodeling and outcomes of patients with tricuspid regurgitation

Abstract Background Albeit long neglected, significant (at least moderate, ≥ 2+) tricuspid regurgitation (TR) is currently known to be associated with increased mortality, and has thus become a relevant therapeutic target [1-3]. Recent and somewhat preliminary evidence has shown, however, that different subtypes of TR might respond differently to current therapeutic options [4-5]. In fact, secondary TR, rather than being a single entity, can develop because of either right ventricular (RV) remodelling (i.e functional TR) or tricuspid annulus (TA) dilation secondary to right atrial (RA) dilation (i.e isolated TR). Purpose The aim of this meta-analysis was to study the association between right heart remodeling and long-term all-cause mortality in a population of patients with significant TR, independent of the treatment option. Methods MEDLINE, ISI Web of Science, and SCOPUS databases were searched for studies published up to July 2022. Studies reporting data on at least one echocardiographic RV anatomic and/or functional parameter and outcome in patients with significant TR were included. This study was designed according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) requirements. The primary endpoint was long-term all-cause mortality. Results Out of 3152 studies, a total of 14 were included in the final analytic synthesis, enrolling 4394 subjects. The median follow-up was 33 [24–51] months. Overall, long-term all-cause mortality was 31% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 20-41%, p = <0.001; Figure 1); however, a significant difference was noted in the medical subgroup vs. the surgery subgroup (43% [32-53%] vs 11% [20-41%]). By means of a meta-regression analysis, a significant and inverse relation was found between tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE), RV fractional area change (RV-FAC) and mortality (11 studies enrolling 3551 subjects, coefficient -0.063 [-0.111 to -0.014], p = 0.011; 9 studies, 2975 subjects, coefficient -0.044 [-0.059 to -0.029], p < 0.001, respectively; Figure 2A and 2B), whereas a significant and concordant relation was found between TA dimension, RA area and mortality (7 studies, 2986 subjects, coefficient 0.003 [0.002 to 0.005], p < 0.001; 6 studies, 1920 subjects, coefficient -0.019 [-0.025 to -0.013], p < 0.001, respectively; Figure 2C and 2D). Conclusions The higher mortality associated with right ventricular dysfunction and reduced mortality with increasing right atrial dilatation suggest a better prognostic outcome for isolated TR than functional TR. Careful assessment of right heart anatomy and function is warranted, as it might foster the identification of different subtypes of TR with unique prognoses.Forest plot all-cause mortalityResult of the meta-regression analysis

Dual spherical-spherical aromaticity in [M(η2-P4)2]+ (M = Cu, Ag, Au) and [P(P4)2]+. Evaluation of bonding nature and spherical aromatic character of the P4 aggregates from DFT calculations

The favorable coordination of two P4 units to a coinage metal center, given by [M(η2–P4)2]+ and [P(P4)2]+ clusters, offers an interesting template for evaluating how two spherical aromatic units interact when bridged by either a metal or a main-group element center. Our results indicate a M+–(P4)2 stabilization trend in the order Au > Cu > Ag, involving mainly electrostatic character, followed by a sizable contribution from covalent (orbital) character, with a slight London dispersion type stabilization. The coordination scheme is based on a σ- M+←(η2-P4)2 charge transfer, followed by σ-metal-to-ligand backbonding, in addition to a set of two σ-ligand-to-metal and π-ligand-to-metal charge transfer bonds. Such structural features bring together two spherical aromatic P4 units, leading to the formation of a dual aromatic cluster mediated by a coinage metal center, i.e. two independent aromatic units within the same cluster. However, in [P(P4)2]+ involving stronger covalent P4–P bonds, the spherical aromatic character decreases, owing to the larger distortion of the P4 units, as result of the larger bonding interaction towards the central P atom. Hence, the coordination towards a coinage metal center of the P4 unit incorporates multiple aromatic units into a single molecular entity. This provides a model to envisage larger connected spherical-aromatic species serving as building blocks while retaining their inherent characteristics.

Polarization and motility of one-dimensional multi-cellular trains

Collective cell migration, whereby cells adhere to form multi-cellular clusters that move as a single entity, play an important role in numerous biological processes, such as during development and cancer progression. Recent experimental work focused on migration of one-dimensional cellular clusters, confined to move along adhesive lanes, as a simple geometry in which to systematically study this complex system. One-dimensional migration also arises in the body when cells migrate along blood vessels, axonal projections, and narrow cavities between tissues. We explore here the modes of one-dimensional migration of cellular clusters (“trains”) by implementing cell-cell interactions in a model of cell migration that contains a mechanism for spontaneous cell polarization. We go beyond simple phenomenological models of the cells as self-propelled particles by having the internal polarization of each cell depend on its interactions with the neighboring cells that directly affect the actin polymerization activity at the cell’s leading edges. Both contact inhibition of locomotion and cryptic lamellipodia interactions between neighboring cells are introduced. We find that this model predicts multiple motility modes of the cell trains, which can have several different speeds for the same polarization pattern. Compared to experimental data, we find that MDCK cells are poised along the transition region where contact inhibition of locomotion and cryptic lamellipodia roughly balance each other, where collective migration speed is most sensitive to the values of the cell-cell interaction strength.

Role of Ayurveda Modalities in the Management of Parinam Shool (Peptic Ulcer Disease)

One of India's oldest and most well-established medical systems is ayurveda. The basic goal of Ayurveda is "to preserve health and to heal the sick one." People are more susceptible to illnesses because of changing dietary practices, a hectic lifestyle, Dinacharya, Ritucharya, etc. The disorders that are most upsetting are Annadrava shoola and Parinama shoola, while many different diseases have been discussed in the context of Annavaha Srotas. The most frequent cause of GIT illnesses today is changed eating habits. One of them is a peptic ulcer. It is a kind of acid gastritis in which the stomach wall becomes ulcerated as a result of an excessive quantity of HCL. Due to their comparable symptoms, Annadravashoola and Parinamashoola can both be referred to as peptic ulcer disease. Madhava Nidana is the first to explain a specific chapter pertaining to Shoola, while Maharishi Sushruta is the first to define many varieties of Shoola in Uttara-tantra. He divided Shoola into 8 categories; two other categories, Annadravashoola and Parinama shoola, were left out. The defining characteristics of Annadravashoola include discomfort prior to, during, and following vomiting, a burning feeling in the epigastrium, belching, etc., as well as Parinama shoola, which develops after food has been digested. Because their symptoms are similar, peptic ulcer illness can be used to refer to both Parinama shoola and Annadravashoola as a single entity.

Sulfated liposome-based artificial cell membrane glycocalyx nanodecoys for coronavirus inactivation by membrane fusion

As a broad-spectrum antiviral nanoparticle, the cell membrane nanodecoy is a promising strategy for preventing viral infections. However, most of the cell membrane nanodecoys can only catch virus and cannot induce inactivation, which may bring about a considerably high risk of re-infection owing to the possible viral escape from the nanodecoys. To tackle this challenge, sulfated liposomes are employed to mimic the cell membrane glycocalyx for constructing an artificial cell membrane glycocalyx nanodecoy that exhibits excellent anti-coronavirus activity against HCoV-OC43, wild-type SARS-CoV-2, Alpha and Delta variant SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirus. In addition, this nanodecoy, loaded with surface sulfate groups as SARS-CoV-2 receptor arrays, can enhance the antiviral capability to virus inactivation through destroying the virus membrane structure and transfer the spike protein to postfusion conformation. Integrating bio-inspired recognition and inactivation of viruses in a single supramolecular entity, the artificial cell membrane nanodecoy opens a new avenue for the development of theranostic antiviral nanosystems, whose mass production is favored due to the facile engineering of sulfated liposomes.

A Consensus-Based Distributed Secondary Control Optimization Strategy for Hybrid Microgrids

In this paper, a new consensus-based distributed secondary control (DSC) strategy is proposed for frequency control, dc-voltage regulation, and optimal dispatch (OD) in isolated hybrid ac/dc-microgrids (HMGs). At the same time, all the units are maintained within limits. The proposed control scheme dispatches the distributed generators (DGs) within the microgrid in compliance with the Karush-Kuhn-Tucker (KKT) conditions of a linear optimal power flow (OPF) formulation. Furthermore, the power through the interlinking converters (ICs) is also dispatched to help minimize the total operation cost of the microgrid. The controllers rely on local measurements and information from neighbouring devices at both sides of the microgrid (DGs and ICs). Thus, unlike conventional methods, the microgrid is considered a single entity and not as three independent systems interacting with one another, and the OD is calculated considering both the ac-DGs and dc-DGs. Extensive simulations demonstrate a good performance of the controller amid load step changes and unit congestion, driving the system to an optimal economic operation.

Team Approach: Organizing and Empowering Multidisciplinary Teams in Postfragility Fracture Care.

» Numerous healthcare roles can be valuable and effective participants in postfracture care programs (PFCPs) and can also serve effectively as program liaisons/champions.» Greatest success seems to have been achieved when a single entity provides cohesive and consistent training, coordination, shared goals, and accountability for program sites and site leaders.» Few PFCPs have solved what seems to be the fundamental challenge of such programs: how to maintain program effectiveness and cohesion when the patient makes the inevitable transition from acute care to primary care? Creating a partnership with shared goals with primary care providers is a challenge for every program in every location.» Programs located in the United States, with its predominantly "open" healthcare system, seem to lag other parts of the world in overcoming this fundamental challenge.» It is hoped that all PFCPs in all systems can learn from the successes of other programs in managing this critical transition from acute to primary care.

Collective nouns are conceptually plural: Evidence from the grammatical SNARC effect.

To develop theories of how comprehenders extract the message from a linguistic stream, it is critical to understand how they conceptually represent referents. The experiments reported here focus on singular collective nouns (e.g., committee, team), which introduce a single group into the discourse and test whether they nonetheless are conceptually plural (i.e., construed as consisting of multiple entities) by using the spatial-numerical association of response codes (SNARC) paradigm (Dehaene & Changeux, 1993). In this paradigm, participants are typically faster to respond to smaller numbers or numerical stimuli when making a response on their left and faster to respond to larger numbers or numerical stimuli when making a response on their right. In three experiments, participants saw German words on a computer screen and decided whether each one described a single entity or something that could be subdivided into multiple entities (Experiment 1) or whether they would use "ist" or "sind" ("is" or "are") in combination with the word if it were the subject of a sentence (Experiments 2 and 3). The mapping of responses to participants' left and right hands was counterbalanced. Experiment 1 failed to show a grammatical SNARC effect. Experiments 2 and 3 showed a grammatical SNARC effect that extended to collective noun phrases. The results of these experiments suggest that collective noun phrases are instantiated as conceptually plural in comprehenders' minds. We discuss the differential task effects and the implications of these data on theories of language comprehension. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

The economy–employment–environmental health transfer and embedded inequities of China's capital metropolitan area: a mixed-methods study

Metropolitan areas have complex trade linkages internally and externally. This complexity stimulates the unequal spatial transfer of environmental health consequences, economy, and employment embodied in internal trade or trade with the outside regions, resulting in unequal exchange. Existing research has rarely discussed this issue at a refined scale, hindering targeted inequity alleviation policies. We conducted a mixed-methods study, focusing on the most polluted metropolitan area in the world, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region of China, and developed an integrated modelling framework to downscale the analysis of the trade-driven unequal transfer of PM2·5- related premature deaths, value added, and job opportunities to the city scale within Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei. The study couples a nested Multi-Regional Input-Output model table containing data from 13 Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cities and 28 outer provinces in 2017 with a bottom-up emission inventory, value added and employment statistical data, the Weather Research and Forecasting-Comprehensive Air Quality Model with Extensions, the Global Exposure Mortality Model, and human capital methods. We also constructed two indices measuring unequal exchanges between PM2·5-related deaths and economic and employment gains embodied in trades between cities in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei and trades with outside regions. The Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region as a single entity shifted 14 985 (95% CI 12 800-16 948) net deaths to regions outside the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei through trade, most of which occurred in the central region of China. The industrial-based peripheral Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cities suffered the most serious inequities when trading with other Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cities and outside regions. While gaining equivalent local jobs, these industrial-based peripheral cities had 250% higher PM2·5-related deaths (10·2 PM2·5-related deaths for obtaining 1000 local jobs) than core cities (2·9 PM2·5-related deaths for obtaining 1000 local jobs) and 57·7% higher PM2·5-related deaths than agricultural-based peripheral cities (6·5 PM2·5-related deaths for obtaining 1000 local jobs). While gaining equivalent value added, industrial-based peripheral cities had 50·6% higher PM2·5-related deaths (¥13·9 of reduced human capital due to PM2·5-related premature deaths to obtain ¥1000 local value added) than core cities (¥9·2 of reduced human capital due to PM2·5-related premature deaths to obtain ¥1000 local value added) and 67·4% higher PM2·5-related deaths than agricultural-based peripheral cities (¥8·3 of reduced human capital due to PM2·5-related premature deaths to obtain ¥1000 local value added). Treating metropolitan areas as a single entity obscured internal heterogeneity, potentially misleading policy makers into imposing strict regulations on the whole metropolitan area to alleviate the inequities it posed on outside regions. However, several peripheral Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cities were disadvantaged in their trade with core Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cities and outside regions. Therefore, policies should be tailored for particular cities within metropolitan areas. Future targeted policies should include, but not be limited to, making ecological compensations and incorporating the environment and health costs into the price of pollution-intensive goods and services. National Key Research and Devlopment Program of China, National Natural Science Foundation of China, and Jiangsu Natural Science Foundation.

A semantic data framework to support data-driven demand forecasting

This paper presents a prototype semantic data framework for integrating heterogeneous data inputs for data-driven demand forecasting. This framework will be a core feature of a data exchange platform to improve the access and exchange of data between stakeholders involved in the operation and planning of energy systems. Surveys revealed that these stakeholders require reliable data on expected energy production and consumption for strategic and real-time decision-making. A core feature of the framework is the application of semantic technologies for comprehending spatial and temporal data requirements of energy demand forecasting. This paper demonstrates an approach to meeting these semantic requirements through established data standards and models. The conceptual design process followed the following stages: surveying stakeholders, researching digital technologies’ capability, and systematically evaluating the available data. In this paper, we present a prototype based on simulated data. Inputs and results from the simulation model, extracted from open datasets, were structured and stored in a knowledge graph comprised of virtual entities of buildings and geospatial regions. Multiple virtual entities can be linked to a single real-world entity to provide a flexible and adaptable approach to data-driven demand forecasting.

FORMATION OF MOTIVATION AND VALUE ORIENTATIONS IN TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL SPORTS ATHLETES

The article highlights the problems of forming motivational and value orientations among team and individual sports athletes. It showed that in the majority of scientific works devoted to the study of sports motivation, consideration of individual motivational variables, mainly the main sports motives of activity, prevails. Three main aspects of the study of motivation in general and sports motivation are highlighted, in particular: the topological (content) aspect, which involves consideration of the content of the main motives of activity; the structural aspect, which focuses attention on the internal structural characteristics of motivation and assumes the presence of a certain structure of interdependent motivational variables as a single entity, which, in fact, is motivation; dynamic aspect, which includes the entire complex of factors that ensure the process of formation, development, extinction of motivation, as well as the development of demotivation. Motivational variables have been studied that will allow to consider and characterize the structure of sports motivation in a socio-psychological context, in representatives of team and individual sports, in which the fact of having a team can determine the uniqueness of the combination and the degree of manifestation of these motivational variables: external and internal motives of sports activity, valuable orientations, types of orientation of the athleteʼs personality, as well as jealousy as one of the motives that ensure success in a competitive situation. It was revealed that the structure of sports motivation is a system of interrelated internal and external motives that ensure the desire to achieve high results in sports of higher achievements, which is determined by the social and psychological context ‒ the presence or absence of a team as a group (“a single whole”), factors, that determine the specifics of the professional development of athletes. We see the prospect of further research in the development of programs that provide training for professional athletes to perform at national and international competitions.
 Keywords: formation; motivation; motives; values; orientations; motivational variables; young athletes; interaction team and individual sports; team.

Speaking of sepsis: semantics, syntax, and slang.

Medical language is in a constant state of evolution. Its grammar and vocabulary are not fixed by rigid rules. The interdisciplinary field of sepsis has become a meeting point for new insights arising from advances in systems biology, epidemiology, mechanistic understandings of disease process and antimicrobial interventions. This convergence has gained from our recent experience of SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 and possibilities inferred from emerging information technology. Biomedical descriptors have diverged along disciplinary lines creating an unfortunate disconnect between clinical and laboratory-based terminology. The resulting confusion between clinically determined sepsis and laboratory verified bloodstream infection raises practical questions that affect daily operational processes in the ward, clinic and laboratory. There is an urgent need to understand how the clinical sepsis pathway and corresponding clinical laboratory workflow can be better aligned as a single coherent entity. There is also an implicit need to understand how this process should produce actionable information in a timely and orderly manner, and identify residual obselete terminology that has crept into common usage. A widely accepted sepsis epistemology, ontology and heuristic will help us improve our clinical management of sepsis.

Updates in the Classification of T-cell Lymphomas and Lymphoproliferative Disorders.

Mature T/NK-cell neoplasms comprise a heterogeneous group of diseases with diverse clinical, histopathologic, immunophenotypic, and molecular features. A clinically relevant, comprehensive, and reproducible classification system for T/NK-cell neoplasms is essential for optimal management, risk stratification, and advancing understanding of these diseases. Two classification systems for lymphoid neoplasms were recently introduced: the 5th edition of World Health Organization classification (WHO-HAEM5) and the 2022 International Consensus Classification (ICC). In this review, we summarize the basic framework and updates in the classification of mature T/NK-cell neoplasms. WHO-HAEM5 and ICC share basic concepts in classification of T/NK-cell neoplasms, emphasizing integration of clinical presentation, pathology, immunophenotype, and genetics. Major updates in both classifications include unifying nodal T-follicular helper-cell lymphomas into a single entity and establishing EBV-positive nodal T/NK-cell lymphoma as a distinct entity. However, some differences exist in taxonomy, terminology, and disease definitions. The recent classifications of mature T/NK-cell neoplasms are largely similar and provide new insights into taxonomy based on integrated clinicopathologic features.

Electrochemical and electroluminescent behaviors of single meldola’s blue-ruthenium (II) bipyridine composite nanoparticles colliding onto an ultramicroelectrode

Stochastic collision nanoelectrochemistry (SCNEC) of single nanoparticles (NPs) is an emerging electrochemical method with significant potential. Herein, we synthesized a new kind of NPs, named Meldola’s Blue-ruthenium(II) bipyridine (MDB-Ru) for the first time with the help of ultrasonic energy, and investigated the properties of the single NPs by SCNEC. The quantitative relationship between the concentration of MDB-Ru NPs and the collision frequency was obtained by optimizing collision experimental conditions. By comparing the theoretical calculation with the experimental value, it is speculated that signal loss may be caused by the aggregation of NPs or the large background currents. Furthermore, the electrochemiluminescence (ECL) performance of MDB-Ru NPs colliding in the presence of different co-reactants (TPrA/DBAE) was thoroughly discussed. The results demonstrated that the MDB-Ru NPs can produce a higher current response, and with respect to TPrA, using DBAE generated a higher ECL intensity (∼2 times). Moreover, electrochemical and ECL were employed to simultaneously investigate the collision behavior of MDB-NPs, in which demonstrated a strong correlation between the two techniques. This research has broad implications for studying fundamental aspects of SCNEC in organic dyes and provides a foundation for developing analytical sensor techniques using single entity electrochemistry and ECL.

Effect of cell settlement on the electrochemical collision behaviors of single microbes

Electrochemical collision technique has emerged as a powerful approach to detect the intrinsic properties of single entities. The diffusion model, together with migration and convection processes are generally used to describe the transport and collision processes of single entities. However, things become more complicated concerning microbes because of their relatively large size, inherent motility and biological activities. In this work, the electrochemical collision behaviors of four different microorganisms: Escherichia coli (Gram-negative bacteria), Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis (Gram-positive bacteria) and Saccharomyces cerevisiae (fungus) were systematically detected and compared using a blocking strategy. By using K4Fe(CN)6 as redox probe, the downwards step-like signals were recorded in the collision process of all the three bacteria, whereas the collision of S. cerevisiae was rarely detected. To further investigate the underlying reason for the abnormal collision behavior of S. cerevisiae, the effect of cell settlement was discussed. The results indicated that ellipsoidal S. cerevisiae with a cell size larger than 2 μm exhibited a cell sedimentation rate of 261.759 nm s−1, which is dozens of times higher than the other three bacteria. By further enhanced convection near the microelectrode or positioned the microelectrode at the bottom of electrochemical cell, the collision signals of S. cerevisiae were successfully detected, indicating cell sedimentation is a nonnegligible force in large cell transport. This study fully addressed the effect of cell settlement on the transport of microbial cells and provided two strategies to counteract this effect, which benefit for the deeper understanding and further application of electrochemical collision technique in single-cell detection.

Regulation of Group of Companies in Ethiopia: A Comparative Overview

Companies that are organized in a group aim at leveraging the market share, mitigate liability or facilitate long-term management efficiency. The reasons that make group establishment attractive for the parent company can be a basis for concern to other stakeholders, mainly, minority shareholders and creditors of the subsidiary company. The strict application of separate existence of a company and directors’ fiduciary duties towards their companies –applicable in cases of single entity companies– may be difficult in the case of group companies. States, therefore, devise regulatory mechanisms to protect the subsidiary company and its minority shareholders and creditors while at the same time protecting corporate freedom and entrepreneurial reality. Ethiopia has introduced regulatory rules regarding group company (Parent-Subsidiary Company). The objective of this article is to discuss the nature and regulation of Group Company as specified under the new commercial code and in comparison, with other countries’ laws. The article argues that the rules stipulated are not designed to adequately protect the interests of the subsidiary and its stakeholders. It also argues that the liberal interpretation of the provisions governing group companies to include the application of rules governing single company can contribute to potential protection rules missing under the sections in the group company.

Multi-objective test selection of smart contract and blockchain applications.

The ability to create decentralized applications without the authority of a single entity has attracted numerous developers to build applications using blockchain technology. However, ensuring the correctness of such applications poses significant challenges, as it can result in financial losses or, even worse, a loss of user trust. Testing smart contracts introduces a unique set of challenges due to the additional restrictions and costs imposed by blockchain platforms during test case execution. Therefore, it remains uncertain whether testing techniques developed for traditional software can effectively be adapted to smart contracts. In this study, we propose a multi-objective test selection technique for smart contracts that aims to balance three objectives: time, coverage, and gas usage. We evaluated our approach using a comprehensive selection of real-world smart contracts and compared the results with various test selection methods employed in traditional software systems. Statistical analysis of our experiments, which utilized benchmark Solidity smart contract case studies, demonstrates that our approach significantly reduces the testing cost while still maintaining acceptable fault detection capabilities. This is in comparison to random search, mono-objective search, and the traditional re-testing method that does not employ heuristic search.

Modeling of blockchain with encryption based secure education record management system

Blockchain technology can be employed in the education sector by building a decentralized system to store and share student records. The records can be encrypted to guarantee their confidentiality and security. With a blockchain-based system, student records can be saved in blocks that are linked and secured via cryptography. The records are decentralized and not controlled by any single entity, making them less susceptible to hacking or tampering. By using blockchain technology, educational institutions can create a more secure and efficient system for storing and sharing student records. This can streamline the process of transferring records between schools, and provide a secure and transparent way for students to access their own records. In this study, we provide a novel Merkle tree-based strategy for preserving the accuracy of student records and outline how to put it into practice. The software architecture resembled blockchain technology and was developed for private network deployment. The key components of our strategy are replacing conventional audit trails with their cryptographically secure equivalent and simplifying the Blockchain framework by avoiding mining. The cryptography system's framework is presented, and the new five dimensions of chaotic map academic records are proposed. Our study utilizes deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) sequences and operations and the chaotic system to strengthen the cryptosystem in the blockchain authentication and authorization process. The significant advantage of this method is enhancing the generation of the hash function, which is the most critical challenge in the blockchain concept. The experimental outcomes and security analysis demonstrated that the proposed method works well in terms of different aspects. The suggested hash function's hash value distribution, sensitivity to tiny message modifications, confusion and diffusion qualities, resilience against birthday attacks, keyspace analysis, collision resistance, efficiency, and flexibility were all considered throughout the study.

Metabolic Syndrome: An Overview on Its Genetic Associations and Gene-Diet Interactions.

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a cluster of cardiometabolic risk factors that includes central obesity, hyperglycemia, hypertension, and dyslipidemias and whose inter-related occurrence may increase the odds of developing type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. MetS has become one of the most studied conditions, nevertheless, due to its complex etiology, this has not been fully elucidated. Recent evidence describes that both genetic and environmental factors play an important role on its development. With the advent of genomic-wide association studies, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have gained special importance. In this review, we present an update of the genetics surrounding MetS as a single entity as well as its corresponding risk factors, considering SNPs and gene-diet interactions related to cardiometabolic markers. In this study, we focus on the conceptual aspects, diagnostic criteria, as well as the role of genetics, particularly on SNPs and polygenic risk scores (PRS) for interindividual analysis. In addition, this review highlights future perspectives of personalized nutrition with regard to the approach of MetS and how individualized multiomics approaches could improve the current outlook.