The multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas fluorescens strain: a hidden threat in boar semen preservation

Although the bacterial composition of boar ejaculate has been extensively studied, the bacterial composition of extended boar semen is often overlooked, despite the potential risks these microorganisms may pose to the long-term preservation of extended boar semen at 15–17°C. In this study, we characterized the bacterial community composition of extended semen and discovered that Pseudomonas spp. was the dominant flora. The dominant strains were further isolated and identified as a potential new species in the Pseudomonas fluorescens group and named GXZC strain, which had adverse effects on sperm quality and was better adapted to growth at 17°C. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing showed that the GXZC strain was resistant to all commonly used veterinary antibiotics. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and genome annotation revealed the large genetic structure and function [7,253,751 base pairs and 6,790 coding sequences (CDSs)]. Comparative genomic analysis with the closest type strains showed that the GXZC strain predicted more diversity of intrinsic and acquired resistance genes to multi-antimicrobial agents. Taken together, our study highlights a problem associated with the long-term storage of extended boar semen caused by a P. fluorescens group strain with unique biological characteristics. It is essential to develop a new antibacterial solution for the long-term preservation of boar semen

Study on Dynamic Load of Air-Conditioning System in Subway Station Based on Hourly Passenger Flow

The research focuses on the air-conditioning system in a public area of a subway station. To address this, an optimization model based on the grid time segmentation method was constructed, specifically a GM (1,1) model. We explored the influence of the hourly passenger flow fluctuation on the load of the subway air-conditioning system, obtained the dynamic change law of the air conditioning system load in the subway station, and then dynamically adjusted the air conditioning system according to the dynamic change law to reduce the operation energy consumption of the system. Through the analysis of the simulation results, the model predicted that compared with the actual passenger flow data, the average maximum relative error was 14.97%. On this basis, the change law of the dynamic load of the subway air-conditioning system which caused by the change in passenger flow from time to time could be calculated and analyzed. Compared with the calculated load of the air conditioning system, the working day load was decreased by 1469.77 kW, or 22.00%. The findings indicate that in response to the dynamic load of fluctuations, timely adjustment of the air supply parameter of the air-conditioning system offers a significant reference point for optimizing energy efficiency in subway stations

Applying Enterprises’ Frugal Innovation in Ecologically Vulnerable Areas: A Fuzzy-Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis of the Influence Paths

Frugal innovation has become popular in ecologically vulnerable areas in the past decade, as it was initiated under a resource-constrained innovation paradigm. However, there has been limited research on its influence factors and fundamental operating mechanisms in such areas. This paper aims to address this gap by using qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) to analyze unique datasets from three ecologically vulnerable areas in China. Based on the theory of planned behavior, the study identifies three key influence factors in frugal innovation: behavioral attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavior control. The relationships among these factors and pathways are also described. The study’s findings suggest: (1) frugal innovation is an integrated product of multiple influence factors and pathways, where the same goal can be achieved through different pathways; (2) Three pathways for conducting high-level frugal innovation are identified: attitude-oriented, norm-oriented, and attitude-norm-oriented pathways. Behavioral attitudes and subjective norms are the two dominant factors that influence enterprises to carry out frugal innovation. (3) Perceived behavior control does not play a leading role in frugal innovation as the resource-constrained environment in ecologically vulnerable areas and the characteristics of enterprises heavily influence frugal innovation. (4) The lack of behavioral attitudes and subjective norms are the main causes leading to the low-level frugal innovation of enterprises. In conclusion, this study systematically investigates the different influence factors and pathways of frugal innovation in ecologically vulnerable areas. The findings enrich the frugal theory and promote the effective development strategy of innovation for enterprises in such areas

Fc-Mediated E2-Dimer Subunit Vaccines of Atypical Porcine Pestivirus Induce Efficient Humoral and Cellular Immune Responses in Piglets

Congenital tremor (CT) type A-II in piglets is caused by an emerging atypical porcine pestivirus (APPV), which is prevalent in swine herds and a serious threat to the pig production industry. This study aimed to construct APPV E2 subunit vaccines fused with Fc fragments and evaluate their immunogenicity in piglets. Here, APPV E2Fc and E2ΔFc fusion proteins expressed in Drosophila Schneider 2 (S2) cells were demonstrated to form stable dimers in SDS-PAGE and western blotting assays. Functional analysis revealed that aE2Fc and aE2ΔFc fusion proteins could bind to FcγRI on antigen-presenting cells (APCs), with the affinity of aE2Fc to FcγRI being higher than that of aE2ΔFc. Moreover, subunit vaccines based on aE2, aE2Fc, and aE2ΔFc fusion proteins were prepared, and their immunogenicity was evaluated in piglets. The results showed that the Fc fusion proteins emulsified with the ISA 201VG adjuvant elicited stronger humoral and cellular immune responses than the IMS 1313VG adjuvant. These findings suggest that APPV E2 subunit vaccines fused with Fc fragments may be a promising vaccine candidate against APPV

A Method of Short Text Representation Fusion with Weighted Word Embeddings and Extended Topic Information

Short text representation is one of the basic and key tasks of NLP. The traditional method is to simply merge the bag-of-words model and the topic model, which may lead to the problem of ambiguity in semantic information, and leave topic information sparse. We propose an unsupervised text representation method that involves fusing word embeddings and extended topic information. Following this, two fusion strategies of weighted word embeddings and extended topic information are designed: static linear fusion and dynamic fusion. This method can highlight important semantic information, flexibly fuse topic information, and improve the capabilities of short text representation. We use classification and prediction tasks to verify the effectiveness of the method. The testing results show that the method is valid

Analytical DC-side stabilizing conditions for hybrid HVDC links based on dominant frequency model reduction

Incorporating the advantages of line commutated converters (LCCs) and voltage-source converters (VSCs), hybrid high voltage DC (HVDC) links have bright prospects in bulk power transmission. For this new technique, however, there is a risk of oscillatory instability in the DC link, and the mechanism behind the instability is still unclear. This paper derives analytical DC-side stabilizing conditions for hybrid HVDC links by using dominant frequency model reduction. The small-signal model of the LCC-VSC link is first truncated by reserving only the state variables highly relevant to the dominant mode so that the expression of the dominant oscillation frequency can be obtained. Dynamics of other state variables are reintroduced and then simplified while leaving their properties nearby the dominant frequency intact. Based on the reduced model, an analytical stability criterion is obtained, which reveals that the DC-side stability of hybrid HVDC links will deteriorate with reduced DC voltage operation, a heavy load, a small DC-link capacitor, slow inner loop dynamics, a small proportional and a large integral gain of the DC voltage regulator. In addition, simplified sufficient stabilizing conditions of hybrid HVDC links are further derived for control parameter design. Case studies validate the accuracy of dominant frequency model reduction and the derived stabilizing conditions

Association between Obesity and Puberty Timing: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

This systematic review and meta-analysis examined the associations between obesity and puberty timing based on scientific evidence. Eight electronic databases were searched up to February 2017 for eligible studies, and two reviewers screened the articles and extracted the data independently. A total of 11 cohort studies with 4841 subjects met the inclusion criteria. Compared with the group of normal-weight girls, the obese group had more girls with menarche (RR: 1.87, 95% CI: 1.59–2.19, 2 studies). The number of girls with early puberty was significantly higher in the obese group than the normal weight group (RR: 2.44, 95% CI: 1.32–4.52, 5 studies). However, no differences were detected between girls who were obese or normal weight at age of menarche (WMD: −0.53 years, 95% CI: −1.24–0.19, 2 studies). There is no consistent result in the relationship between obesity and timing of pubertal onset in boys. Obesity may contribute to early onset of puberty in girls, while in boys, there is insufficient data. Given the limited number of cohort studies included in this meta-analysis, high-quality studies with strong markers of puberty onset, as well as standardized criteria for defining obesity are needed

Association between Small Fetuses and Puberty Timing: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Epidemiological studies reporting the effect of small fetuses (SF) on puberty development have shown inconsistent results. Objective: To examine current study evidence and determine the strength and direction of the association between SF and puberty timing. Methods: PubMed, OVID, Web of Science, EBSCO, and four Chinese databases were searched from their date of inception to February 2016. All cohort studies that examined the association between SF and puberty timing in children were identified. Two reviewers independently screened the studies, assessed the quality of included studies, and extracted the data. The quality of the included cohort studies was assessed by the Newcastle–Ottawa Scale. Risk ratio (RR), Weighted Mean Difference (WMD), and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated and pooled by RevMan5.3 (Cochrane Collaboration, London, UK). Results: A total of 10 cohort studies involving 2366 subjects was included in the final analysis. The pooled estimates showed that SF did not significantly increase the number of pubertal children in boys (RR: 0.97; 95% CI: 0.82 to 1.15), or in girls (RR: 0.91; 95% CI: 0.79 to 1.04). Compared with the control group, the SF group had an earlier onset of puberty in girls (WMD: −0.64; 95% CI: −1.21 to −0.06), and in precocious pubarche (PP) girls (WMD: −0.10; 95% CI: −0.13 to −0.07). There was no difference in the onset of puberty in boys (WMD: −0.48; 95% CI: −1.45 to 0.50) between SF and control groups. The pooled result indicated an earlier age at menarche in girls born small for gestational age (WMD: −0.30; 95% CI: −0.58 to −0.03), but no difference in the age at menarche in the SF group of PP girls. Conclusions: SF may be associated with an earlier age of onset of puberty, especially among girls, as well as earlier age at menarche for girls. Well-designed studies with larger sample sizes and long-term follow-up among different countries and ethnicities are needed

Cloning the Horse RNA Polymerase I Promoter and Its Application to Studying Influenza Virus Polymerase Activity

An influenza virus polymerase reconstitution assay based on the human, dog, or chicken RNA polymerase I (PolI) promoter has been developed and widely used to study the polymerase activity of the influenza virus in corresponding cell types. Although it is an important member of the influenza virus family and has been known for sixty years, no studies have been performed to clone the horse PolI promoter or to study the polymerase activity of equine influenza virus (EIV) in horse cells. In our study, the horse RNA PolI promoter was cloned from fetal equine lung cells. Using the luciferase assay, it was found that a 500 bp horse RNA PolI promoter sequence was required for efficient transcription. Then, using the developed polymerase reconstitution assay based on the horse RNA PolI promoter, the polymerase activity of two EIV strains was compared, and equine myxovirus resistance A protein was identified as having the inhibiting EIV polymerase activity function in horse cells. Our study enriches our knowledge of the RNA PolI promoter of eukaryotic species and provides a useful tool for the study of influenza virus polymerase activity in horse cells