Value Of Factor Research Articles

Urinary tissue factor (uTF), tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) and plasmin as novel biomarkers in early diagnosis of lupus nephritis

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune inflammatory disease, with multi systematic affection. Lupus nephritis (LN) is the most frequent cause of renal damage in SLE patients with variable presentations that may progress to end stage renal failure. Coagulation disorders are frequently reported in SLE and LN with higher mortality rates. Renal biopsy is an invasive process, and the existing indicators for LN diagnosis and activity are unreliable. New urinary biomarkers with significant validity, safety, and accuracy are the current focus of most studies. Our study sought to assess the value of urinary tissue factor (uTF), tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI), and plasmin as biomarkers for the early identification and detection of LN and its activity. This was a cross-sectional study, included 100 subjects (80 SLE patients, and 20 healthy controls), they were recruited from the Internal Medicine department, Rheumatology and Nephrology units and outpatient’s clinics at Assiut University hospital between the period of 2020 and 2022. All patients underwent full history taking, clinical evaluation, and activity scoring calculation and laboratory investigations. The results showed that the best diagnostic accuracy of LN was observed with TFPI (90% accuracy, sensitivity 80% and specificity 95% with p<0.001 at cutoff point of >193.2 ng/ml), followed by uTF (75.4% overall accuracy at cut off point of >12.6 ng/ml, sensitivity 90% and specificity 68% with p< 0.001) and plasmin (70.3% accuracy at cut off point of >30.5 ng/ml, sensitivity 55% and specificity 78% with p< 0.001). Urinary TFPI was the best predictor of LN occurrence with odd ratio of 4.34, (p< 0.001). In conclusion urinary TFPI could be used as a diagnostic marker for LN with high accuracy and an early predictor of LN.

Critical role of dopant in NiOx hole transport layer for mitigating redox reactivity at NiOx/absorber interface in mixed cation perovskite solar cells.

Redox chemistry transpiring at the interface of NiOx hole transport layer (HTL) and perovskite absorber is a critical phenomenon leading to relatively low values of open circuit voltage (VOC) and fill factor (FF), in turn hampering the overall device performance and stability. In this work, for the first time, the hard acid electronic nature of vanadium (V) dopant in nickel oxide HTL is opportunely exploited to mitigate the undesirable Lewis acid-base reactions occurring at the HTL/mixed-cation perovskite interface. The findings of the study show that vanadium doping results in improved interfacial energetics along with decreased VOC loss, confirming that despite the increase in Ni3+/Ni2+ ratio with the vanadium dopant, the redox reaction catalyzed by Ni3+ ions is kept under check. Vanadium doping also aided in the realization of superior perovskite films with lower Urbach energy, which translated into one order increase in maximum photoinduced carrier generation rate per unit volume. Carrier dynamics investigations show fewer defect states (lower VTFL) and trap-assisted recombination (lower diode ideality factor), which optimize the devices' photovoltaic performance. These benefits collectively contribute to low-loss charge transfer across the NiOx/mixed-cation perovskite interface, which increases the relative efficiency by ∼30% for 5 wt% V-doped NiOx devices compared to pristine NiOx devices, augmented by an increase in device J-V parameters like open circuit voltage (VOC), short circuit current density (JSC), and fill factor (FF).

Clinical and radiological differentiation between Trousseau syndrome and cardiogenic embolism: a retrospective case-control study.

Trousseau syndrome (TS) is a thromboembolic event in cancer patients caused by abnormalities in coagulation and fibrinolytic mechanisms. Acute multiple cerebral infarction (AMCI) is a rare form of TS. This study aimed to discuss the differentiation of clinical and radiographic characteristics between TS and cardiogenic embolism (CE) with AMCI as the main manifestation. We retrospectively analyzed 69 patients with TS-AMCI and 105 patients with CE-AMCI who were treated at Shandong Provincial Hospital between August 2018 and October 2022. The clinical baseline data, laboratory indices, and imaging characteristics of the two groups were compared. A logistic regression was used to analyze the risk factors of TS-AMCI, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to analyze the predictive value of the risk factors. In relation to the clinical data, there were statistically significant differences between the two groups of patients in terms of the lipid and coagulation indices. D-dimer [odds ratio (OR) =4.459, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.871-10.625; P=0.001] and triglyceride (OR =6.001, 95% CI: 2.375-15.165; P<0.001) were independent risk factors for TS-AMCI. In relation to the radiographic characteristics, the infarctions in the TS-AMCI group were widely distributed in multiple arterial supply areas [23 (33.3%) vs. 10 (9.5%); P<0.001]. More importantly, bilateral anterior + posterior circulation was also an independent risk factor for TS-AMCI (OR =15.005, 95% CI: 1.757-128.17; P=0.013). Unexplained AMCI in the cancer-prone age group, abnormalities in the lipid and D-dimer levels, and infarction foci involving multiple arterial blood supply areas suggested a high probability of TS.

The motion of micro-swimmers over a cavity in a micro-channel.

This article combines the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) with the squirmer model to investigate the motion of micro-swimmers in a channel-cavity system. The study analyses various influential factors, including the value of the squirmer-type factor (β), the swimming Reynolds number (Rep), the size of the cavity, initial position and particle size on the movement of micro-swimmers within the channel-cavity system. We simultaneously studied three types of squirmer models, Puller (β > 0), Pusher (β < 0), and Neutral (β = 0) swimmers. The findings reveal that the motion of micro-swimmers is determined by the value of β and Rep, which can be classified into six distinct motion modes. For Puller and Pusher, when the β value is constant, an increase in Rep will lead to transition in the motion mode. Moreover, the appropriate depth of cavity within the channel-cavity system plays a crucial role in capturing and separating Neutral swimmers. This study, for the first time, explores the effect of complex channel-cavity systems on the behaviour of micro-swimmers and highlights their separation and capture ability. These findings offer novel insights for the design and enhancement of micro-channel structures in achieving efficient separation and capture of micro-swimmers.

Research on the Application of Traditional Culture in Modern Landscape Architecture Design under the Background of Artificial Intelligence

Abstract In this paper, the deep generative model and stochastic backpropagation method are used to innovate the modern landscape garden design, and at the same time, traditional cultural elements are integrated in the design process. By constructing generative adversarial networks and utilizing diffusion models, this study improves the diversity of design samples and enhances the display of cultural flavor. The comprehensive evaluation test shows that the modern landscape garden integrating traditional cultural elements exceeds the mean value in 17 evaluation indexes, especially the value of the evaluation factor of artistic flavor display reaches 0.0476, which is 460% higher than the mean value. The survey of tourists shows that the overall evaluation score of modern landscape garden is 76.4015, and the evaluation grade reaches “good”, which effectively verifies the practicality and effect of the design method of this paper.

Features of localization of remaining oil in terrigenous reservoirs and potential for their recovery at the final stage of field development

The paper considers one of the unique fields in terms of geological reserves. The paper also analyzes the development of the D3ps formation sections of the Devonian terrigenous layer of the studied field. A detailed geological and hydrodynamic model was constructed based on the consolidation of all available information. An integrated analysis of actual well performance data, field geophysical tests, geological and technical measures, results of infill drilling, as well as geological and hydrodynamic modeling confirmed the localization of reserves primarily in the upper bed of D3ps.1. The analysis of all performed studies revealed higher values of current oil saturation in the upper bed – up to 0.8 unit fractions and lower values in the lower bed – up to 0.68 unit fractions. Similar results were obtained from 87 sidetracks. Drilling of wells and sidetracks is proposed in areas with no well stock. Despite the final stage and high degree of field development, the proposed strategy will support oil production levels, increase remaining recoverable reserves, increase the efficiency of reserve recovery and improve the economic performance of field development. The introduction of modern development technologies, approaches to the analysis and monitoring of development will increase the target value of the final recovery factor from 0.608 to 0.613 unit fractions, which, with a significant amount of in-place reserves, made it possible to increase the remaining recoverable reserves by 35%. The strategy will make it possible to achieve higher oil recovery rates. The approaches used to solve the tasks set in the study can be applied to the fields of the Volga region.

Determination of mercury in soil and water from a gold mining area in Karang Jaya Sub-district, Musi Rawas Utara, Indonesia

The present study focuses on the assessment of Hg distribution in both soil and water samples from the small-scale gold mining region of Karang Jaya Sub-district, Musi Rawas Utara Regency, South Sumatra Province. For over 30 years, this region has witnessed persistent utilization of mercury as an amalgam for gold extraction. The investigation encompasses an analysis of total mercury levels in soil samples obtained from Sukamenang, Muara Batang Empu, and Terusan Villages. As a comparative reference point devoid of gold mining activities, the neighboring Muara Lakitan Village was selected. The obtained results indicate a moderate to strong contamination level across the 30 sampled locations based on the Geoaccumulation Index (Igeo), with an average Igeo value of 2.6. Furthermore, Pollution Load Index (PLI) and Contamination Factor (CF) values demonstrate high contamination. Conversely, analysis of river water samples from 30 stations along the Rupit River reveals that most of the samples comply with quality standards (&lt;0.0005 mg/L), with an average value at 0.000322 mg/L; only four stations exhibit total Hg concentrations surpassing regulatory thresholds. All soil and river water samples from the control area (10 stations) exhibited no signs of pollution. Appropriate investments in technology, finance, and technical skills are needed to reduce mercury pollution due to small-scale gold mining activities.

Citation Count Is Not Enough: Citation’s Context-Based Scientific Impact Evaluation

Qualitative analysis of citations received by a scientific manuscript is a challenging task in the field of citation analysis. In most cases, the existing approaches that involve citations for the scientific impact evaluation normally employ a quantitative parameter, such as the number of received citations, while ignoring the qualitative feature, such as the context of citations, while, in reality, a received citation might hold positive feedback and negative or neutral feedback. In this study, a measure is purposed for the scientific evaluation of the articles based on the context of the citations named the context-based article impact factor (CBAIF). CBAIF not only considers the positive, negative, or neutral context of the citations but also involves the citing and cited author&#x2019;s conflict-of-interest relationship for the evaluation of their scientific impact. With the help of experimentation, it is observed that CBAIF performs a fair ranking of articles based on citation&#x2019;s context, whether it is cited positively or being criticized by some authors. Experimental results show that the CBAIF value with the context of citations revealed accurate results rather than the article impact factor (AIF) value without the context of citations.

Numerical investigation of thermal fatigue crack growth behavior in SAC305 BGA solder joints

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the reliability issues of microvoid cracks in solder joint packages exposed to thermal cycling fatigue.Design/methodology/approachThe specimens are subjected to JEDEC preconditioning level 1 (85 °C/85%RH/168 h) with five times reflow at 270°C. This is followed by thermal cycling from 0°C to 100°C, per IPC-7351B standards. The specimens' cross-sections are inspected for crack growth and propagation under backscattered scanning electronic microscopy. The decoupled thermomechanical simulation technique is applied to investigate the thermal fatigue behavior. The impacts of crack length on the stress and fatigue behavior of the package are investigated.FindingsCracks are initiated from the ball grid array corner of the solder joint, propagating through the transverse section of the solder ball. The crack growth increases continuously up to 0.25-mm crack length, then slows down afterward. The J-integral and stress intensity factor (SIF) values at the crack tip decrease with increased crack length. Before 0.15-mm crack length, J-integral and SIF reduce slightly with crack length and are comparatively higher, resulting in a rapid increase in crack mouth opening displacement (CMOD). Beyond 0.25-mm crack length, the values significantly decline, that there is not much possibility of crack growth, resulting in a negligible change in CMOD value. This explains the crack growth arrest obtained after 0.25-mm crack length.Practical implicationsThis work's contribution is expected to reduce the additional manufacturing cost and lead time incurred in investigating reliability issues in solder joints.Originality/valueThe work investigates crack propagation mechanisms of microvoid cracks in solder joints exposed to moisture and thermal fatigue, which is still limited in the literature. The parametric variation of the crack length on stress and fatigue characteristics of solder joints, which has never been conducted, is also studied.

Preoperative risk factors for nonsatisfaction after lumbar interbody fusion

IntroductionLow back pain (LBP) is a common cause of impaired quality of life and disability and studies regarding surgical management of patients with LBP show a high variation in patient-reported success rate. Research questionTo find valuable preoperative clinical risk factors and variables associated with a non-satisfactory patient-reported outcome following surgery. Materials and methodsThe Danish surgical spine database (DaneSpine) was used to collect eight years of pre- and postoperative data on patients undergoing single-level fusions with either posterior- (PLIF) or transforaminal lumbar interbody fusions (TLIF). The primary outcome was patient nonsatisfaction. We collected data on European Quality of Life–5 Dimensions (EQ-5D), visual analogue scale (VAS), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) score, pain intensity, duration of back pain, previous discectomy, and expectations regarding return to work after surgery at 2-year follow-up. ResultsThe cohort included 453 patients of which 19% reported treatment nonsatisfaction. The nonsatisfaction group demonstrated higher preoperative VAS scores for back pain (75 ± 19 vs. 68 ± 21, p = 0.006) and leg pain (65 ± 25 vs. 58 ± 28, p = 0.004). The preoperative EQ-5D score was significantly lower in the nonsatisfaction group (0.203 + 0.262 vs. 0.291 ± 0.312, p = 0.016). There was no statistical significance between patient nonsatisfaction and preoperative ODI score, age, body mass index, duration of back pain or expectations regarding return to work after surgery. Discussion and conclusionLow preoperative EQ-5D scores and high VAS leg and back pain scores were statistically significant with patient nonsatisfaction following surgery and may prove to be valuable tools in the preoperative screening and alignment of patient expectations.

Quantitative Stock Selection Strategy Analysis Based on Multi-factor Model Under the Epidemic Situation

Contemporarily, COVID-19 undoubtedly had a profound impact on the current Chinese economy, as well as presented various challenges and opportunities for different industries in China. As a matter of fact, these changes may profoundly affect the future development trends and competitive landscape of industries. In recent years, the number of stock investors had continued to increase, surpassing 200 million in 2022. In a highly competitive market, the ability to select high-quality stocks often determines the final returns. This study selected the constituent stocks of the “CSI 500” as the “stock pool” for stock selection between 2020 and 2023. By analysing the degree of factor exposure, the correlation between factors, and IC values of factors, suitable and effective factor combinations were selected, and an evaluation model was established using multiple regression analysis to obtain a trading strategy. To ensure its feasibility and rationality, the strategy was simulated using backtesting before actual trading, ultimately aiming to achieve excess alpha returns.

Mitigating Information Interruptions by COVID-19 Face Masks: A Three-Stage Speech Enhancement Scheme

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) preventive measures have resulted in significant lifestyle changes. One of the COVID-19 new normal is the usage of face masks for protection against airborne aerosol which creates distractions and interruptions in voice communication. It has a different influence on speech than the standard concept of noise affecting speech communication. Furthermore, it has varied effects on speech in different frequency bands. To provide a solution to this problem, a three-stage adaptive speech enhancement (SE) scheme is developed in this article. In the first stage, the tunable <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$Q$</tex-math> </inline-formula> -factor wavelet transform (TQWT) features are extracted by properly setting the quality factor values and the number of levels from the input speech signal. In the second stage, the adjustable parameters of the preemphasis filter and modified multiband spectral subtraction (MBSS) are determined using bio-inspired techniques for different masking and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) conditions. In the third stage, the weights, center values, standard deviation of the Gaussian radial basis functions, and input patterns of the radial basis function neural networks (RBFNNs) are updated to predict the optimized parameters from the input TQWT-based cepstral features (TQCFs). In the end, the performance of the proposed algorithm is compared with the standard SE algorithms using two speech datasets.

Comprehensive study of nanostructured Bi2Te3 thermoelectric materials - insights from synchrotron radiation XRD, XAFS, and XRF techniques.

In this contribution, a comprehensive study of nanostructured Bi2Te3 (BT) thermoelectric material was performed using a combination of synchrotron radiation-based techniques such as XAFS, and XRF, along with some other laboratory techniques such as XRD, XPS, FESEM, and HRTEM. This study aims to track the change in morphological, compositional, average and local/electronic structures of Bi2Te3 of two different phases; nanostructure (thin film) and nanopowders (NPs). Bi2Te3 nanomaterial was fabricated as pellets using zone melting process in a one step process, while Bi2Te3 thin film was deposited on sodalime glass substrate using a vacuum thermal evaporation technique. Synchrotron radiation-based Bi LIII-edge fluorescence-mode X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) technique was performed to probe locally the electronic and fine structures of BT thin film around the Bi atom, while transmission-mode XAFS was used for BT NPs distributed in the PVP matrix. The structural features of the collected Bi LIII XANES spectra of thin film and powder samples of BT are compared with the simulated XANES spectrum of BT calculated using FDMNES code at 5 Å cluster size. Combining different off-line structural characterization techniques (XRD, FESEM, XPS, and HRTEM), along with those of synchrotron radiation-based techniques (XAFS and XRF) is necessary for complementary and supported average crystal, chemical, morphological and local electronic structural analyses for unveiling the variation between Bi2Te3 in the nanostructure/thin film and nanopowder morphology, and then connecting between the structural features and functions of BT in two different morphologies. After that, we measured the Seebeck coefficient and the power factor values for both the BT nanopowder and thin film.

Increase in Safety Factor Value in Existing Conditions and Reinforcement of Gabion Type Retaining Wall Pt. Medco E&amp;P Malaka Block A

Indonesia is an archipelagic country with 34 provinces, which has a diverse soil profile and geological structure. This condition is an area where a slope is formed. The slope is a sloping land surface and forms a certain angle and has no force in resisting the occurrence of a slide. Landslide is a disaster that can cause casualties. Collapse (slide) occurs as a result of a driving force greater than the opposite force originating from the shear strength of the soil. The slide occurred at PT. Medco E&amp;P Malaka Block A, Ranto Perlak District, East Aceh Regency, Aceh Province in the Siwah flow ROW STA 2+400. Landslides occur as a result of high rain intensity resulting in landslides. The safety factor analysis on the slopes was carried out using the Strength Reduction Method (SRM). In the existing conditions, the slope experienced a collapse (slide) with an SF value of 1.15, which did not meet the requirements of the safety factor value (SF≥ 1.25). Therefore, reinforcement was carried out on this slope by constructing a Gabion type retaining wall construction with a height of 3 m and a width of 1.5 m. From the analysis with Gabion type retaining wall reinforcement, the SF value was 1.51 which fulfilled the requirements of the Safety factor when strengthening (SF≥ 1.5). From this analysis, it was found that the SF value was different in the existing conditions, the SF value was 1.15 and in the strengthening condition, the SF value was 1.51. Where the SF value increases by 0.36 or 32%.

Optimization of Protease Activity by Bacillus haynesii BK1H Using Response Surface Methodology

Proteases are enzymes that catalyze the hydrolysis of peptide bonds into oligopeptides and amino acids. Previous bacterial studies reported that eight proteolytic isolates had been isolated from Bledug Kuwu mud, Central Java. One of these isolates is BK1H which has a proteolytic index of 2.960 making it possible to be studied further. In this study, optimization of the protease activity of BK1H was carried out using 3 factors namely temperature, pH, and divalent metal cations. This research was conducted through several stages, (1) Bacterial culture regeneration, (2) Protease fermentation using the SmF method, (3) Determination of the type of protease, (4) One Factor at a Time (OFAT), (5) Plackett-Burman Design (PBD), (6) Response Surface Methodology-Central Composite Design (RSM-CCD), and (7) Confirmation of RSM-CCD optimization results on experimental results. OFAT experiment results showed the lowest activity and the highest activity was obtained at 37°C and 57°C; pH 6 and 8; and CaCl2 0.5 and 1.0 mM. The significance test of the 2 factors namely temperature and pH has a p value &lt;0.05, which indicates that these factors have a significant effect on protease activity. The optimum factor value in the RSM-CCD has a temperature of 63.10°C and pH 10.82, with the predicted activity of 149.910 U/mL, while the experimental results have activity of 157.630 ± 16.240 U/mL.

TVDO: Tchebycheff Value-Decomposition Optimization for Multiagent Reinforcement Learning.

In cooperative multiagent reinforcement learning (MARL), centralized training with decentralized execution (CTDE) has recently attracted more attention due to the physical demand. However, the most dilemma therein is the inconsistency between jointly-trained policies and individually executed actions. In this article, we propose a factorized Tchebycheff value-decomposition optimization (TVDO) method to overcome the trouble of inconsistency. In particular, a nonlinear Tchebycheff aggregation function is formulated to realize the global optimum by tightly constraining the upper bound of individual action-value bias, which is inspired by the Tchebycheff method of multiobjective optimization (MOO). We theoretically prove that, under no extra limitations, the factorized value decomposition with Tchebycheff aggregation satisfies the sufficiency and necessity of individual-global-max (IGM), which guarantees the consistency between the global and individual optimal action-value function. Empirically, in the climb and penalty game, we verify that TVDO precisely expresses the global-to-individual value decomposition with a guarantee of policy consistency. Meanwhile, we evaluate TVDO in the StarCraft multiagent challenge (SMAC) benchmark, and extensive experiments demonstrate that TVDO achieves a significant performance superiority over some SOTA MARL baselines.

Optimization of formulation ratios of geopolymer mortar based on metakaolin and biomass fly ash

This study investigated the factors affecting the properties of geopolymer (GP) mortars through a two-stage experimental program created through central composite design of experiments. Stage I focused on the effects of SiO₂/Al₂O₃, H₂O/Na₂O, and total water-to-total solids (W/S) ratios on mortars formulated using metakaolin (MK) as the only geopolymerization precursor, while Stage II evaluated the impact of introducing biomass fly ash (BFA) as a second precursor. Most importantly, the SiO₂/Al₂O₃ ratio was defined based on raw materials’ dissolution tests rather than on their starting chemical composition, setting this study apart from most published literature. The mortars’ properties of interest, taken as response variables, were the flow test spreading diameter, and the efflorescence level and compressive strength after 7 days of curing under ambient conditions. The results of Stage I, regarding GP mortars based on MK only, show that SiO₂/Al₂O₃, H₂O/Na₂O, and W/S all had a statistically significant effect on compressive strength. Regarding the efflorescence level, SiO₂/Al₂O₃ had the most significant effect, H₂O/Na₂O showed a small contribution, and W/S effect was not statistically significant. In stage II, the incorporation of BFA led to (MK + BFA)-based mortars with lower spreading diameter and compressive strength, and higher efflorescence levels, with % BFA being the most important factor affecting these three response variables. Based on the developed models, appropriate combinations of factor values that simultaneously maximize the compressive strength while maintaining the spreading diameter and efflorescence levels within suitable limits were found: GP mortars based only on MK with SiO₂/Al₂O₃ = 4.5, H₂O/Na₂O = 19.0, and W/S = 0.17 are expected to achieve 53MPa of compressive strength at 7 days; (MK + BFA)-based GP mortars with % BFA = 39.0, H₂O/Na₂O = 15.5, SiO₂/Al₂O₃ = 4.5 and W/S = 0.17 are expected to achieve 30MPa. These results provide valuable insights into the factors affecting the properties of GP mortars and can be useful for optimizing formulations for different applications.

Augmented near-room-temperature power factor of homogenously grown thermoelectric ZnO films

Future applications in power generation for wearable and portable electronics or active cooling for chips will benefit from near-room-temperature thermoelectric performance enhancement. Ga-doped ZnO (GZO) thin films are potential thermoelectric materials as they have the advantages of high cost-effectiveness, low toxicity, excellent stability, and high optical transparency. Inserting a ZnO buffer layer between the sapphire substrate and GZO thin films could contribute to optimizing carrier mobility and further improving electrical transport properties. However, thermoelectric performance at near-room-temperature ranges still needs to be promoted for practical applications. In this present study, ZnO single-crystal slices were directly selected as substrates for homogenously growing GZO thin films to further modify the substrate–film interface. The high Hall mobility of 47 cm2 V−1 s−1 and weighted mobility of 75 cm2 V−1 s−1 could be realized, resulting in better electrical transport performance. Consequently, the homogenously grown GZO thin films possessed competitively prominent power factor values of 333 μW m−1 K−2 at 300 K and 391 μW m−1 K−2 at 373 K. This work offers an effective avenue for optimizing the thermoelectric properties of oxide-based thin films via homogenous growth.

Effect of organic fertilisation on yield and soil factor values of extensive grassland

The effect of different rates of organic fertilizer was investigated on a natural grassland with solonyec soil conditions at the Karcag Research Institute in the second year after application. Of the mature sheep manure treatments applied at 0-10-15-20 t/ha, the 20 t/ha dose was shown to result in higher dry matter yields. In addition, the 20 t/ha dose of organic manure was shown to stimulate soil life, as supported by measurements of carbon dioxide emissions, and to help better conserve soil moisture.

Effects of dietary β-glucans on the productive performance, blood parameters, and intestinal microbiota of angelfish (Pterophyllum scalare) juveniles.

Among the potential feed additives, β-glucans are known to positively affect the growth performance, blood parameters, and intestinal microbiota of fish, even the ornamental species. Therefore, the present study evaluated the effects of the dietary supplementation of different Saccharomyces cerevisiae β-glucans concentrations (0, 0.05, 0.1, and 0.2%) in juvenile angelfish (Pterophyllum scalare) over a 42-day period. Regarding growth performance, no effects were observed on most parameters. However, 0.2% β-glucans supplementation produced higher condition factor values, indicating a better nutritional status. Furthermore, β-glucans supplementation did not affect blood parameters. Regarding intestinal microbiota, β-glucans supplementation increased the abundance of the potentially beneficial bacterial genus Phascolarctobacterium. The high abundance of bacteria from the phylum Bacteroidetes, which can degrade β-glucans, may be attributed to the increased abundance of Phascolarctobacterium spp. In addition, 0.2% β-glucans supplementation produced more operational taxonomic units and higher Sobs (observed species richness), indicating effects on the overall bacterial community structure. These results demonstrate the potential application of β-glucans as a dietary supplement to improve the performance and modulate the intestinal microbiota of angelfish.