Metaheuristic Algorithms in Artificial Intelligence with Applications to Bioinformatics, Biostatistics, Ecology and, the Manufacturing Industries

Nature-inspired metaheuristic algorithms are important components of artificial intelligence, and are increasingly used across disciplines to tackle various types of challenging optimization problems. We apply a newly proposed nature-inspired metaheuristic algorithm called competitive swarm optimizer with mutated agents (CSO-MA) and demonstrate its flexibility and out-performance relative to its competitors in a variety of optimization problems in the statistical sciences. In particular, we show the algorithm is efficient and can incorporate various cost structures or multiple user-specified nonlinear constraints. Our applications include (i) finding maximum likelihood estimates of parameters in a single cell generalized trend model to study pseudotime in bioinformatics, (ii) estimating parameters in a commonly used Rasch model in education research, (iii) finding M-estimates for a Cox regression in a Markov renewal model and (iv) matrix completion to impute missing values in a two compartment model. In addition we discuss applications to (v) select variables optimally in an ecology problem and (vi) design a car refueling experiment for the auto industry using a logistic model with multiple interacting factors

Elevated diversity of the supply chain boosts global food system resilience

Food supply shock is defined as a drastic shortage in food supply, which would likely threaten the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals 2: zero hunger. Traditionally, highly-connected global food supply system was deemed to help overcome shortages easily in response to food supply shock. However, recent studies suggested that overconnected trade networks potentially increase exposure to external shocks and amplify shocks. Here, we develop an empirical–statistical method to quantitatively and meticulously measure the diversity of international food supply chain. Our results show that boosting a country’s food supply chain diversity will increase the resistance of the country to food shocks. The global diversity of food supply chain increased gradually during 1986–2021; correspondingly, the intensity of food shocks decreased, the recovery speed after a shock increased. The food supply chain diversity in high-income countries is significantly higher than that in other countries, although it has improved greatly in the least developed regions, like Africa and Middle East. International emergencies and geopolitical events like the Russia–Ukraine conflict could potentially threaten global food security and impact low-income countries the most. Our study provides a reference for measuring resilience of national food system, thus helping managers or policymakers mitigate the risk of food supply shocks

All-trans retinoic acid regulates the expression of the extracellular matrix protein fibulin-1 in the guinea pig sclera and human scleral fibroblasts

Purpose: Fibulin-1 (FBLN1) mRNA is expressed in human sclera and is an important adhesion modulatory protein that can affect cell-matrix interactions and tissue remodeling. Scleral remodeling is influenced by all-trans retinoic acid (RA). Our purpose was to confirm the presence of fibulin-1 protein in guinea pig sclera and investigate the effect of RA on the expression of fibulin-1 in guinea pig sclera in vivo and in cultured human scleral fibroblasts (HSFs). Methods: Confocal fluorescence microscopy was used to study fibulin-1 and aggrecan expression and localization in sclera from control guinea pigs and in animals given RA by daily gavage from 4 to 8 days of age. The effects of RA (from 10⁻⁹ to 10⁻⁵ M) on fibulin-1 expression in HSFs were observed by immunohistochemistry and assayed by real-time PCR and western blot analysis. Results: Fibulin-1 protein expression was detected by confocal fluorescence microscopy in guinea pig sclera and in cultured HSFs. Upregulation of fibulin-1 in scleral tissue was observed after feeding with RA. In vitro, the level of Fbln1 mRNA was increased after treatment of HSFs with RA (at concentrations of 10⁻⁸ to 10⁻⁶ M; p<0.001), with a maximum effect at 10⁻⁷ M. Fibulin-1 protein levels were significantly increased after treatment of HSFs with 10⁻⁷ M of RA for 24 or 48 h (p<0.05). Conclusions: Fibulin-1 protein was expressed in guinea pig sclera and cultured HSFs. Expression was regulated by RA, a molecule known to be involved in the regulation of eye growth. Further studies on the role of fibulin-1 in the regulation of eye growth, including during the development of myopia, are therefore warranted

Content analysis of systematic reviews on the effectiveness of Traditional Chinese Medicine

AbstractObjectiveTo evaluate evidence for the efficacy of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in systematic reviews.MethodsChinese (TCMPeriodical Literature Database, Chinese Biological Medicine database, Chinese Medical Current Contents, China Hospital Knowledge Database journal fulltext database, Virtual Machining and Inspection System, and Wanfang) and English (Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, PubMed and Embase) databases were searched.ResultsThree thousand, nine hundred and fifty-five articles were initially identified, 606 of which met the inclusion criteria, including 251 in English (83 from the Cochrane Database) and 355 in Chinese. The number of articles published each year increased between 1989 and 2009. Cardiocerebrovascular disease was the most studied target disease. Intervention measures includedTCM preparations (177 articles), acupuncture (133 articles) and combinations of TCM and western medicine (38 articles). Control measures included positive medical (177 articles), basic treatment (100 articles), placebo (219 articles), and blank and mutual (107 articles). All articles included at least one reference; the greatest number was 268. Six of 10 articles with high quality references demonstrated curative effectsagainst target diseasesincludingupper respiratory tract infection, dementia and depression. Interventions that were not recommendedwere tripterygium for rheumatoid arthritis andTCM syndrome differentiation for pediatric nocturia. In 10.4% of the studies, the authors concluded that the intervention had a curative effect. The assessors agreed with the authors' conclusions in 88.32% of cases, but rejected 8.94% (54 articles).Conclusion1) Training in systematic review methods, including topic selection, study design, methods and technology, should be improved. 2) Upper respiratory tract infection, dementia and depression may become the predominant diseases treatedby TCM, and the corresponding interventions could be developed into practical applications. 3) Use of non-recommended interventions should be controlled, and there should be more research on side effects

County-level intensity of carbon emissions from crop farming in China during 2000–2019

Agriculture is an important contributor to global carbon emissions. With the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations and China’s carbon neutral strategy, accurate estimation of carbon emissions from crop farming is essential to reduce agricultural carbon emissions and promote sustainable food production systems in China. However, previous long-term time series estimates in China have mainly focused on the national and provincial levels, which are insufficient to characterize regional heterogeneity. Here, we selected the county-level administrative district as the basic geographical unit and then generated a county-level dataset on the intensity of carbon emissions from crop farming in China during 2000–2019, using random forest regression with multi-source data. This dataset can be used to delineate spatio-temporal changes in carbon emissions from crop farming in China, providing an important basis for decision makers and researchers to design agricultural carbon reduction strategies in China