Utility Perspective Research Articles

Cadmium exposure-triggered growth retardation in Hyphantria cunea larvae involves disturbances in food utilization and energy metabolism

Serious environmental pollution in the ecosystem makes phytophagous insects face a great risk of exposure to pollutants, especially heavy metals. This study aims to understand the effects of Cd exposure on the growth and development of Hyphantria cunea and to elucidate the mechanism of growth toxicity induced by Cd from the perspective of food utilization and energy metabolism. Our results showed that the larval basal growth data, growth index, fitness index, and standard growth index were significantly decreased after feeding on Cd-containing artificial diets. The Cd-treated larvae had significantly higher digestibility than the untreated larvae. However, the food consumption, efficiency of conversion of digested food, and efficiency of conversion of ingested food were significantly lower than those of untreated larvae. Eight key metabolites in the glycolysis pathway and six key metabolites in the tricarboxylic acid cycle pathway were significantly reduced in Cd-treated larvae. The mRNA expression levels of two regulatory genes (6-phosphofructokinase 1 and hexokinase-1) belonging to two key enzymes in the glycolysis pathway and four regulatory genes (isocitrate dehydrogenase-1, isocitrate dehydrogenase-3, citrate synthase, and oxoglutarate dehydrogenase) belonging to three key enzymes in the tricarboxylic acid cycle pathway were significantly lower in the Cd-treated group than in the control group. Furthermore, most fitness-related traits were significantly and positively correlated with food utilization (except approximate digestibility) or energy metabolism parameters. Taken together, Cd exposure-triggered growth retardation of H. cunea larvae is a consequence of disturbances in food utilization and energy metabolism, thereby emphasizing the toxicity of heavy metals.

Achieving sustainable development by reducing income inequality: The differential impact of industrial land expansion in urban agglomerations

AbstractReducing inequality is essential to achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs). This study aims to clarify the relationship between industrial land expansion, which is closely related to global urban expansion, and inequality reductions and propose strategies to reduce inequality from the perspective of resource utilization. A geographically and temporally weighted regression (GTWR) model is to analyze the impact of industrial land expansion on the urban–rural income gap using data from 215 cities in 19 urban agglomerations in China from 2007 to 2018. The estimation results show that the scale and structure of industrial land expansion differently impact the urban–rural income gap: the expansion scale and structure mainly have a shrinking and expanding effect, respectively. The stage differences of impacts are obvious, with 2013 as the turning point. Finally, there are significant differences between urban agglomerations. The shrinking effect of the expansion scale is smaller in the mature stage than in the development and cultivation stage, while the expanding effect of the expansion structure is more apparent in the cultivation stage. Thus, the differential characteristics and laws of urban agglomeration development can provide useful insights for policymakers as they help to understand the characteristics of industrial land use in urban agglomeration at different stages of development and to reasonably allocate industrial land resources, giving full play to their important role in achieving SDGs.

A multi-angle analysis of injury induced by supplementation of soybean meal in Litopenaeus vannamei diets

Soybean meal is considered as one of the major components of Litopenaeus vannamei diets. However, most previous studies have focused on evaluating the effects of soybean meal on L. vannamei from the perspective of growth, physiology, and feed utilization; information regarding the analysis of serum metabolites, antioxidant and immune response, and intestinal microbiota is limited. Five diets were prepared, comprising 20% (T20), 28% (T28), 35% (T35), 42% (T42), and 50% (T50) soybean meal. A total of 600 shrimp were randomly distributed into 20 tanks (i.e., 30 shrimp per tank), with four tanks assigned to each dietary group. Shrimp were fed to apparent satiation during the 42-day feeding trial. The results showed that levels of serum globulin, alanine aminotransferase, and aspartate aminotransferase linearly increased (p < 0.01), but levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol linearly decreased (p < 0.001) as the proportion of soybean meal in the diet increased. Supplementation of shrimp diets with soybean meal linearly and quadratically increased (p < 0.05) serum total antioxidant capacity, levels of malondialdehyde, and activities of catalase, nitric oxide synthase and phenoloxidase. Hepatocytes in T35, T42, and T50 were shown to have different degrees of vacuolar degeneration, hepatic corpuscle atrophy, and star-like lumen loss. Dietary inclusion of soybean meal altered the composition of intestinal bacterial microbiota at phylum level, especially increasing the abundance of on other bacterial genera, whereas it had minimal impact on other bacterial genera and had no significant influence on the bacterial diversity. This study suggests that dietary supplementation of L. vannamei diets with soybean meal at concentrations exceeding 28% induces inflammation and oxidant damage of the hepatopancreas, and increases the risk of intestinal disease.

Application of concrete and cement slurry based on waste recycling in fast consolidation of engineering rock mass

The cement-based rock materials and cement slurry used in the fast repair and reinforcement of engineering surrounding rock mass are generally not environmentally friendly and have a slow setting time. From the perspective of environmental protection and waste utilization, this study adopts a variety of domestic wastes, considers the fast condensation of materials, and comprehensively and systematically develops environmentally friendly high-similarity concrete and cement slurry through the Taguchi grey correlation analysis method. The damage constitutive equations, the constitutive equations after water saturation and after immersion in corrosive liquid are deduced. Combined with DIEM, VOCM and UDEC software, the effects BG and AG under various engineering site situation are analyzed. Research indicates that both rock-like materials and cement slurry have good performance. The research results are widely used in the rapid repair and reinforcement of damaged rock mass on the basis of environmental protection and waste recycling.

Effects of harpin and carbendazim on antioxidant accumulation in young jujube leaves

Abstract Jujube leaf tea is a functional beverage that soothes the nerves. In this study, we evaluated the effects of carbendazim and harpin on disease index, biomass accumulation, H2O2, antioxidant contents, and phenyl alanine ammonia lyase (PAL) activity in young jujube leaves. Compared to harpin, carbendazim decreased the disease index and induced higher H2O2 content. Additionally, the pesticide reduced young leaf biomass accumulation. In contrast, harpin increased vitamin C, glutathione, total phenolics, and total antioxidant capacity in young leaves compared to carbendazim. Compared with the control, harpin enhanced the PAL activity. Carbendazim residues were present in treated leaves for 14 days. Our study findings provide a method for improving jujube leaf tea quality from a pesticide utilization perspective.

Preface to the special issue dedicated to the Hydrogen Power Theoretical and Engineering Solutions International Symposium (HYPOTHESIS) – XVI Edition

The “Green Deal”, that most of the countries all of around the world are planning for the near future, represents the biggest challenge and opportunity of this century to change the approach of producing energy for promoting ever more the sustainable development, the environmental friendly processes and renewable sources exploitation. Hydrogen will be part of this revolution and it is expected that it will represent, together with electricity from renewable energy sources, the green energy carrier of the future. Currently, the role and the perspectives of the hydrogen utilization as energy vector may be resumed by the concepts of the so-called “hydrogen economy”, which is driving the creation of new energy infrastructures, able to exploit renewable feedstocks instead of the derived of the fossil fuels. The aforementioned scopes seem to be particularly ambitious, especially in the countries in which the utilization of derived of fossil fuels is quite impressive. Nevertheless, the transition from a fossil fuel-based to a sustainable and green society is already started and it will allow safer and cleaner industrial processes and improve the quality of the human life as well.

Winter Dietary Analysis Reveals the Foraging Differences of Wild Boar (Sus scrofa) in Different Regions of a Karst Mountainous Area

Wild boars (Sus scrofa) are extremely common in southern China, but little study has been conducted regarding reporting the dietary habits of wild boars using high-throughput sequencing technology, especially in karst areas, due to the difficulty in obtaining stomach contents of wild boars. In our study, the stomach contents of 14 wild boars in southern China were analyzed by DNA metabarcoding. The results showed that there were 153 genera, 93 families, and 48 orders of plant food sources for wild boars. The main plant food component were Cissus, Dioscorea, Quercus, Actinidia, and Houttuynia. The most numerous taxa of animal food sources were Elaphodus, Amynthas, Chonaphe, Rattus, and Tanytarsus. It is noteworthy that Elaphodus cephalophus were detected in most of the stomach samples, accounting for a large portion of animal food sources. The results showed that there were significant differences in the diets of wild boars in different regions; however, no significant differences were noted between male and female wild boars. Our study revealed the dietary preference of wild boars under the special forest conditions in the mountainous area of southwest China, as well as the relationship between the dietary habits of wild boars and their habitats from the perspective of resource utilization, thus providing a key scientific basis for the prevention and control of wild boars, along with resource protection.

Study on Dissociation and Chemical Structural Characteristics of Areca Nut Husk.

From the perspective of full-component utilization of woody fiber biomass resources, areca nut husk is an excellent woody fiber biomass feedstock because of its fast regeneration, significant regeneration ability, sustainability, low cost, and easy availability. In this study, fiber cell morphologies, chemical compositions, lignin structures, and carbohydrate contents of areca nut husks were analyzed and compared with those of rice straw, and the application potentials of these two materials as biomass resources were compared. We found that areca nut husk fibers were shorter and wider than those of rice straw; areca nut husk contained more lignin and less ash, as well as less holocellulose than rice straw; areca nut husk and rice straw lignin were obtained by ball milling and phase separation, and areca nut husk lignin was found to be a typical GHS-type lignin. Herein, the yield of lignocresol was higher than that of milled wood lignin for both raw materials, and the molecular size was more homogeneous. Tricin structural monomers were discovered in the lignin of areca nut husk, similar to those present in other types of herbaceous plants. Structures of areca nut husk MWL (AHMWL) and AHLC were comprehensively characterized by quantitative NMR techniques (that is, 1H NMR, 31P NMR, and 2D NMR). The molecular structure of AHLC was found to be closer to the linear structure with more functional groups exposed on the molecular surface, and the hydroxyl-rich p-cresol grafting structure was successfully introduced into the lignin structure. In addition, the carbohydrate content in the aqueous layer of the phase separation system was close to the carbohydrate content in the raw material, indicating that the phase separation method can precisely separate lignin from carbohydrates. These experimental results indicate that the phase separation method as a method for lignin utilization and structure study has outstanding advantages in lignin structure regulation and yield, and areca nut husk lignin is suitable for application in the same phase separation systems as short-period herbs, such as rice straw and wheat grass, and has the advantages of low ash content and high lignification degree, which will provide guidance for the high-value utilization of areca nut husk in the future.

Antibiofilm Potential of Coelomic Fluid and Paste of Earthworm Pheretima posthuma (Clitellata, Megascolecidae) against Pathogenic Bacteria

Antibiotic drug resistance is a global public health issue that demands new and novel therapeutic molecules. To develop new agents, animal secretions or products are used as an alternative agent to overcome this problem. In this study, earthworm (Pheretima posthuma) coelomic fluid (PCF), and body paste (PBP) were used to analyze their effects as antibiofilm agents against four bacterial isolates MH1 (Pseudomonas aeruginosa MT448672), MH2 (Escherichia coli MT448673), MH3 (Staphylococcus aureus MT448675), and MH4 (Klebsiella pneumoniae MT448676). Coelomic fluid extraction and body paste formation were followed by minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs), biofilm formation time kinetics, and an antibiofilm assay, using heat and cold shock, sunlight exposure auto-digestion, and test tube methods. The results showed that the MIC values of PCF and PBP against S. aureus, P. aeruginosa, K. pneumoniae, and E. coli bacterial isolates ranged from 50 to 100 μg/mL, while, the results related to biofilm formation for P. aeruginosa, S. aureus, and K. pneumoniae strains were observed to be highly significantly increased (p < 0.005) after 72 h. E. coli produced a significant (p < 0.004) amount of biofilm after 48 h. Following time kinetics, the antibiofilm activity of PCF and PBP was tested at different concentrations (i.e., 25-200 μg/mL) against the aforementioned four strains (MH1-MH4). The findings of this study revealed that both PBP (5.61 ± 1.0%) and PCF (5.23 ± 1.5%) at the lowest concentration (25 μg/mL) showed non-significant (p > 0.05) antibiofilm activity against all the selected strains (MH1-MH4). At 50 μg/mL concentration, both PCF and PBP showed significant (p < 0.05) biofilm inhibition (<40%) for all isolates. Further, the biofilm inhibitory potential was also found to be more significant (p < 0.01) at 100 μg/mL of PCF and PBP, while it showed highly significant (p < 0.001) biofilm inhibition at 150 and 200 μg/mL concentrations. Moreover, more than 90% biofilm inhibition was observed at 200 μg/mL of PCF, while in the case of the PBP, <96% biofilm reduction (i.e., 100%) was also observed by all selected strains at 200 μg/mL. In conclusion, earthworm body fluid and paste have biologically active components that inhibit biofilm formation by various pathogenic bacterial strains. For future investigations, there is a need for further study to explore the potential bioactive components and investigate in depth their molecular mechanisms from a pharmaceutical perspective for effective clinical utilization.

What Procedural Ethics Can Learn from the Quest for Moral Justification for the "Rule of Rescue".

In this issue, Sirrs and colleagues (2023) provide a very informative picture of the value and cost of policies to promote orphan drug development. They examine the influence of these policies on pharmaceutical research and development, the proliferation of rare diseases, the prohibitive costs and the loopholes of these policies. One section of the paper identifies the ethical issues and proposes a response to the challenge of integrating the utility perspectives of pharmacoeconomic analyses with those of treatment access claims formulated from a deontological perspective. Their proposal is essentially that of procedural ethics. I enter the ethical debate obliquely by looking at the rule of rescue phenomenon observed by Albert R. Jonsen (Jonsen 1986). I explore the twists and turns of the discussion on this subject and assume the perspective of authors who give significant weight to the symbolic value of respecting it. In conclusion, I take up the symbolic question by arguing that the challenge of preserving the aura of legitimacy that must surround political decisions sometimes requires distancing oneself from sound recommendations, which, even if they are the result of an ideal procedure, will nevertheless be perceived as unjust and insensitive.

Two-Step Enzymolysis of Antarctic Krill for Simultaneous Preparation of Value-Added Oil and Enzymolysate

Antarctic krill is a crucial marine resource containing plenty of high-valued nutrients. However, krill oil as a single product has been developed by the current solvent extraction with high cost. From the perspective of comprehensive utilization of Antarctic krill, this study proposed a novel two-step enzymolysis-assisted extraction in attempt to produce value-added oil and enzymolysate simultaneously. After two-step chitinase/protease hydrolysis, the lipid yield increased from 2.09% to 4.18%, reaching 112% of Soxhlet extraction. The method greatly improved the yields of main components while reducing the impurity content without further refining. After optimization, the oil contained 246.05 mg/g of phospholipid, 80.96 mg/g of free eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and 0.82 mg/g of astaxanthin. The by-product enzymolysate was abundant in water-soluble proteins (34.35 mg/g), oligopeptides (13.92 mg/g), amino acids (34.24 mg/g), and carbohydrates (5.79 mg/g), which was a good source of functional nutrients. In addition, both oil and enzymolysate showed high antioxidant capacity. This novel method could simultaneously provide oil and enzymolysate amounting for 58.61% of dried krill.

Redox enhanced membraneless electrochemical capacitor with CO2-derived hierarchical porous carbon electrodes

Aqueous redox electrochemical capacitors (redox ECs) generally suffer from low energy density and uncontrolled cross-diffusion of soluble redox components, causing serious self-discharge and capacity fade. We have designed a membraneless potassium bromide electrochemical capacitor (ML-PBEC) single cell generating high energy density with reduced self-discharge. From the perspective of CO2 utilization, highly porous carbon with a hierarchical structure was synthesized from CO2 gas and the change of the electrochemical performance by doping nitrogen on the CO2-derived carbon materials was investigated. Using the synthesized carbon as electrodes with a Br−/Br3− redox active aqueous electrolyte, the designed ML-PBEC single cell produced enhanced energy density due to suppressed cross-diffusion of soluble bromine molecules through electrostatic interaction between the protons of N-doped sites and polybromide anions even without membrane. The designed single cell provided a high energy density equivalent to the highest energy density of membrane contained aqueous electrochemical capacitors, 14.3 Wh kg−1 at 2 A g−1 over 10,000 cycles.

Biological properties and surgical applications of the human amniotic membrane.

The amniotic membrane (AM) is the inner part of the placenta. It has been used therapeutically for the last century. The biological proprieties of AM include immunomodulatory, anti-scarring, anti-microbial, pro or anti-angiogenic (surface dependent), and tissue growth promotion. Because of these, AM is a functional tissue for the treatment of different pathologies. The AM is today part of the treatment for various conditions such as wounds, ulcers, burns, adhesions, and skin injury, among others, with surgical resolution. This review focuses on the current surgical areas, including gynecology, plastic surgery, gastrointestinal, traumatology, neurosurgery, and ophthalmology, among others, that use AM as a therapeutic option to increase the success rate of surgical procedures. Currently there are articles describing the mechanisms of action of AM, some therapeutic implications and the use in surgeries of specific surgical areas, this prevents knowing the therapeutic response of AM when used in surgeries of different organs or tissues. Therefore, we described the use of AM in various surgical specialties along with the mechanisms of action, helping to improve the understanding of the therapeutic targets and achieving an adequate perspective of the surgical utility of AM with a particular emphasis on regenerative medicine.

From pilot knowledge via integrated reservoir characterization to utilization perspectives of deep geothermal reservoirs: the 3D model of Groß Schönebeck (North German Basin)

The Groß Schönebeck site in the North German Basin serves as research platform to study the geothermal potential of deeply buried Permian reservoir rocks and the technical feasibility of heat extraction. The structural setting of the site was investigated in more detail by a newly acquired 3D-seismic survey to improve the former conceptual model that was based on several old 2D seismic lines. The new data allow a revision of the geological interpretation, enabling the setup of a new reservoir model and providing base information for a possible further site development of Permo-Carboniferous targets. The 3D seismic allows for the first time a consistent geological interpretation and model parameterization of the well-studied geothermal site. Main reflector horizons and the corresponding stratigraphic units were mapped and the structural pattern of the subsurface presented in the 8 km × 8 km × 4 km large seismic volume. Attribute analysis revealed some fracture and fault patterns in the upper Zechstein and post-Permian units, while formerly hypothesized large offset faults are not present in the Rotliegend reservoir. However, a well-established graben-like structure at the top of the Zechstein succession is most likely related to broken anhydritic brittle intra-salt layers of some meter of thickness. Most reflectors above the salt show a rather undisturbed pattern. The main reservoir sandstone of the Dethlingen Formation (Rotliegend) was mapped and characterized. The base of the underlying Permo-Carboniferous volcanic rock sequence and hence its thickness could not be depicted reliably from the geophysical data. Based on the seismic data and the available reconnaissance drilling, logging, and laboratory data of the Groß Schönebeck research site, the thickness and distribution of the sedimentary Rotliegend (with emphasis of the sandy reservoir section) and of the volcanic rock sequence was modelled and stochastically parameterized with petrophysical properties guided by seismic facies pattern correlation, providing a more realistic reservoir description. Properties include total and effective porosity, permeability, bulk density, thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity, and specific heat capacity. The data and interpretation constitute the basis for a better understanding of the thermo and hydromechanical processes at the site and for future measures. Further site development could include a deepening of one well to provide evidence on the volcanic rock sequence and consider deviated wells into favourable zones and the design of a fracture-dominated utilization approach.

CARACTERIZAÇÃO DE RESÍDUOS SÓLIDOS INDUSTRIAIS POR ANÁLISE TÉRMICA: PERSPECTIVAS DE USO COMO MATERIAL FILTRANTE PARA ÁGUAS RESIDUÁRIAS

CHARACTERIZATION OF SOLID RESIDUES THROUGH THERMAL ANALYSIS: UTILIZATION PERSPECTIVE AS FILTER MATERIAL FOR WASTEWATER TREATMENT. Metallurgical waste and vermiculite are solid residues that have potential of utilization as filtering material. Nevertheless, they are commonly discarded. These materials have chemical sites like Si-O, Si-O-Si in vermiculite or have good ionic exchange properties like iron oxide compounds that can be used in adsorption processes. When these materials are combined with a synthetic blanket (OH, C=C, CO and C-H groups), it composes a filter layer with potential to be used in wastewater treatment. In this article, these materials were chemically treated and characterized by Thermogravimetry (TG), Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and coupled TG-FTIR. The results suggest that organic compound contamination was not found after chemical treatment, which could have remained over the unity operations in the Metallurgical processes. The thermal and acid treatments influenced a major formation of iron oxide formation, but its oxidation degree (FeO, Fe2O3, or Fe2O3.FeO) were dependent on the sample granulometry. The Vermiculite shows an irreversible chemical modification after thermal treatment. The characterization of these residues shows its potential use as material in filter construction. Hence, it is fundamental to minimize the environmental impacts as well as to diminish the production costs in wastewater treatment.

Metabolic regulation and antihyperglycemic properties of diet-derived PGG through transcriptomic and metabolomic profiling.

Diabetes has become a significant disease threatening human health and social development. Food intervention is considered an essential strategy to prevent early diabetes development sustainably. The natural product, 1,2,3,4,6-penta-O-galloyl-β-D-glucose (PGG), commonly found in fruits and diets, has many potential antihypoglycemic, antibacterial, and antitumor activities. We found that PGG can promote glucose uptake in whole-organism zebrafish screening, which help in downregulating the glucose levels. We investigated the metabolome and transcriptome changes in zebrafish exposed to high glucose and PGG intervention. The differential genes and metabolites were screened out based on the comparisons of blank, hyperglycemic, and the PGG-exposed groups of zebrafish larvae. Combined with RT-qPCR validation, we found that PGG mainly restored four genes (fthl27, LOC110438965, plat, and aacs) and six metabolites abnormally invoked by high glucose. These validated genes are related with the key metabolites sphingosine and (R)-3-hydroxybutanoate involving the pathways of apelin, apoptosis, necroptosis, and butanoate metabolism. Our findings provided a new mechanistic basis for understanding the hypoglycaemic function of the commonly present dietary molecule (PGG) and offered a new perspective for the rational utilization of PGG to regulate metabolic disorders.

Content Service Oriented Resource Allocation for Space–Air–Ground Integrated 6G Networks: A Three-Sided Cyclic Matching Approach

Since the existing terrestrial fifth generation (5G) network has limited coverage, it is difficult to meet the growing demand for seamless network connection. Meanwhile, current network resource allocation methods mainly research on how to improve system performance only from the perspective of resource utilization, but rarely take users’ specific needs for network content into consideration. This brings severe challenges to efficient network service and flexible resource allocation. Therefore, we construct the content service-oriented resource allocation model for space–air–ground integrated sixth generation networks (SAGIN 6G), and formulate the three-sided matching issue among the space–air–ground integrated network equipment (SAGINE), content sources, and users. In this model, users request to establish connection with SAGIN which forwards users’ request to content service provider (CSP). CSP manages the creation of content data, and finally returns the requested content to users through SAGIN. For the content service-oriented resource allocation in SAGIN, finding the optimal stable three-sided matching with the largest cardinality is an NP-complete problem. Therefore, to efficiently solve the above issue, we design some reasonable restrictions and convert it to a restricted three-sided matching problem with size and cycle preferences. We further develop the content-oriented resource allocation algorithm (COR2A) and the user-oriented resource allocation algorithm (UOR2A) in a distributed manner. Extensive simulations verify our approach outperforms traditional benchmark resource allocation schemes in terms of system throughput, CSP revenue, and user experience.

Exposition Of Green Energy Development Integration In Mantang Village Area Bintan Regency

Green Energy from the perspective of energy processing and utilization is fundamental in sustainable regional expansion. This research gathered 12 hamlets in the coordinate area of Mantang Island in Bintan Regency as representatives for realizing the Lagrange and Laplace transform method used is determining utilization targets, regulations regarding the selection of types of energy sources and regulations regarding the use of technology in the form of indicators of extensive evolution. based on proportional accumulation of the observation area from 2020 to 2023, this research implements a form of affiliate quality improvement version and performance calculations, and extensively utilizes economic constraints and technology indicator study patterns, to examine Lagrange and Laplace transform patterns and spatial dissemination of green energy development in the testing area. the results show the following. (1) the causes influencing the development of green energy in the research area indicate that the gradation of impact of the three aspects is growing, and the gradation of impact of one of the qualities is shrinking, and the percentage of divergence is gradually decreasing, which shows the concept of infrastructure versus environmental preferences. (2) Large Mantang and Small Mantang in the current conditions and the tendency to use green energy and changes in the islands need to be taken into account. Mantang Besar, Bintan Regency is in a good status, while Mantang Kecil has little green energy exploitation potential and it is hoped that this will be explored. (3) The sample area shows “high-high” or “low-low” agglomeration, the result is special treatment in the form of a subsidy on the selling priceelectricity produced using renewable energy and subsidies for the purchase price of fuel originating from renewable energy, utilization of bioenergy for electricity generation reached 1,717.9 MW

Low-Cost and Highly Accurate Behavioral Modeling of Antenna Structures by Means of Knowledge-Based Domain-Constrained Deep Learning Surrogates

The awareness and practical benefits of behavioral modeling methods have been steadily growing in the antenna engineering community over the last decade or so. Undoubtedly, the most important advantage thereof is a possibility of a dramatic reduction of computational expenses associated with computer-aided design procedures, especially those relying on full-wave electromagnetic (EM) simulations. In particular, the employment of fast replacement models (surrogates) allows for repetitive evaluations of the antenna structure at negligible cost, thereby accelerating processes such as parametric optimization, multi-criterial design, or uncertainty quantification. Notwithstanding, a construction of reliable data-driven surrogates is seriously hindered by the curse of dimensionality and the need for covering broad ranges of geometry/material parameters, which is imperative from the perspective of design utility. A recently proposed constrained modeling approach with knowledge-based stochastic determination of the model domain addresses this issue to a large extent and has been demonstrated to enable quasi-global modeling capability while maintaining a low setup cost. This work introduces a novel technique that capitalizes on the domain confinement paradigm and incorporates deep-learning-based regression modeling to facilitate handling of highly-nonlinear antenna characteristics. The presented framework is demonstrated using three microstrip antennas and favorably compared to several state-of-the-art techniques. The predictive power of our models reaches remarkable 2% of a relative rms error (averaged over the considered antenna structures), which is a significant improvement over all benchmark methods.

Metagenomic analysis reveals hidden links between gut microbes and habitat adaptation among cave and surface dwelling Sinocyclocheilus species.

Intestinal microbes are closely related to vital host functions such as digestion and nutrient absorption, which play important roles in enhancing host adaptability. As a natural "laboratory", caves provide an outstanding model for understanding the significance of gut microbes and feeding habits in the habitat adaptability of hosts. However, research on the relationship between gut microbes, feeding habits, and the adaptability of troglobites remains insufficient. In this study, we compared the characteristics of the intestinal microbes of Sinocyclocheilus cavefish and surface fish and further established the relationship between intestinal and habitat microbes. Furthermore, we conducted environmental DNA (eDNA) (metabarcoding) analysis of environmental samples to clarify the composition of potential food resources in the habitats of the Sinocyclocheilus cavefish and surface fish. Results showed that the structure of the Sinocyclocheilus gut microbes was more related to ecological type (habitat type) than phylogenetic relationships. While horizontal transfer of habitat microbes was a source of gut microbes, hosts also showed strong selection for inherent microbes as dominant microorganisms. Differences in the composition and structure of gut microbes, especially dominant microbes, may enhance the adaptability of the two Sinocyclocheilus fish types from the perspectives of food intake, nutrient utilization, and harmful substance metabolism, suggesting that food resources, predation patterns, intestinal flora, digestive and absorptive capacity, and feeding habits and preferences are linked to habitat adaptability. These results should facilitate our understanding of the significance of fish gut microbes to habitat adaptation and provide a new perspective for studying the adaptive mechanisms of cavefish.