PeerJ
type: channel
link: https://peerj.com/articles/
description: Articles published in PeerJ
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
publication name: PeerJ
issn: 2167-8359
items: Spatiotemporal changes of eutrophication and heavy metal pollution in the inflow river system of Baiyangdian after the establishment of Xiongan New Area
items: Impact of length and width of footwear on foot structure of preschool-aged children
items: Integrated lipidomics and RNA sequencing analysis reveal novel changes during 3T3-L1 cell adipogenesis
items: Unified system describing factors related to the eradication of an alien plant species
items: Alleviation of cadmium stress in rice by inoculation of Bacillus cereus
items: A new spatiotemporal two-stage standardized weighted procedure for regional drought analysis
items: Fungal communities represent the majority of root-specific transcripts in the transcriptomes of Agave plants grown in semiarid regions
items: Assessment of the readiness of restorations manufactured by CAD/CAM in terms of marginal fit (Part I)
items: Stress coping strategies used by nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic
items: Comparison between hydroxyapatite and polycaprolactone in inducing osteogenic differentiation and augmenting maxillary bone regeneration in rats

Spatiotemporal changes of eutrophication and heavy metal pollution in the inflow river system of Baiyangdian after the establishment of Xiongan New Area
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Pollution in inflow rivers seriously endangers the water environment in downstream lakes. In this study, an inflow river system of the Baiyangdian–Fuhe river system (FRS) was investigated to display timely pollution patterns of eutrophication and heavy metals after the establishment of Xiongan New Area, aiming to reveal the weak parts in current pollution treatments and guide the further water quality management. The results showed that the pollution of eutrophication was worse than the heavy metals in FRS, with serious eutrophic parameters of ammonia nitrogen (NH4+-N) and chemical oxygen demand (COD). There were greatly spatiotemporal variations of the pollution in FRS. (1) Concentrations of NH4+-N and total phosphorus were all higher in summer and autumn, whereas, COD contents were higher in spring; the water quality index (WQI) of eutrophication linearly increased along FRS in summer and autumn, with pollution hotspots around the estuary area. (2) The pollution levels of plumbum exceeded cadmium (Cd) and chromium (Cr) but without strongly spatiotemporal changes; however, Cd and Cr in the town area and Cd in spring showed higher concentrations; the WQI of heavy metals showed single peak curves along FRS, with significantly higher values around the town area. Additionally, the four potential pollution sources: domestic sewage, traffic pollution, agricultural wastewater and polluted sediments were identified based on the pollution patterns and pollutant associations. These findings demonstrated current treatments failed to eliminate the pollution in some hotspots and periods, and the in-depth understanding of the pollution spatiotemporal patterns in this study, especially the pollution hotspots, serious periods and potential sources, are crucial to furtherly develop spatiotemporally flexible pollution treatment strategies.
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Yibing Wang
creator: Yang Wang
creator: Wenjie Zhang
creator: Xu Yao
creator: Bo Wang
creator: Zheng Wang
subject: Aquatic and Marine Chemistry
subject: Environmental Contamination and Remediation
subject: Environmental Impacts
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.13400
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2022 Wang et al.
abstract: Pollution in inflow rivers seriously endangers the water environment in downstream lakes. In this study, an inflow river system of the Baiyangdian–Fuhe river system (FRS) was investigated to display timely pollution patterns of eutrophication and heavy metals after the establishment of Xiongan New Area, aiming to reveal the weak parts in current pollution treatments and guide the further water quality management. The results showed that the pollution of eutrophication was worse than the heavy metals in FRS, with serious eutrophic parameters of ammonia nitrogen (NH4+-N) and chemical oxygen demand (COD). There were greatly spatiotemporal variations of the pollution in FRS. (1) Concentrations of NH4+-N and total phosphorus were all higher in summer and autumn, whereas, COD contents were higher in spring; the water quality index (WQI) of eutrophication linearly increased along FRS in summer and autumn, with pollution hotspots around the estuary area. (2) The pollution levels of plumbum exceeded cadmium (Cd) and chromium (Cr) but without strongly spatiotemporal changes; however, Cd and Cr in the town area and Cd in spring showed higher concentrations; the WQI of heavy metals showed single peak curves along FRS, with significantly higher values around the town area. Additionally, the four potential pollution sources: domestic sewage, traffic pollution, agricultural wastewater and polluted sediments were identified based on the pollution patterns and pollutant associations. These findings demonstrated current treatments failed to eliminate the pollution in some hotspots and periods, and the in-depth understanding of the pollution spatiotemporal patterns in this study, especially the pollution hotspots, serious periods and potential sources, are crucial to furtherly develop spatiotemporally flexible pollution treatment strategies.
bibliographic citation: Wang et al. (2022) Spatiotemporal changes of eutrophication and heavy metal pollution in the inflow river system of Baiyangdian after the establishment of Xiongan New Area. PeerJ 10:e13400 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.13400
date submitted: 2022-01-10
date accepted: 2022-04-17
issued: 2022-05-03
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Wang
  given name: Yibing
author list: Agent
  family name: Wang
  given name: Yang
author list: Agent
  family name: Zhang
  given name: Wenjie
author list: Agent
  family name: Yao
  given name: Xu
author list: Agent
  family name: Wang
  given name: Bo
author list: Agent
  family name: Wang
  given name: Zheng
doi: 10.7717/peerj.13400
volume: 10
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2022-05-03
copyright: ©2022 Wang et al.
attribution name: Wang et al.

Impact of length and width of footwear on foot structure of preschool-aged children
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Background Due to the dynamics of developmental changes, the preschool age is of crucial importance for the later health and efficiency of the feet. The aim of this study was the analysis of the fitting of indoor footwear and its impact on the features of the foot structure in 6-year-old children. Methods The study group consisted of 100 children, including 50 girls and 50 boys at the age of 6 years. The applied device was the CQ-ST podoscope and the Clevermess. The data were analyzed based on Mann-Whitney U test, Chi-square test and regression analysis. Results About 60% of children wore correctly fitted shoes in terms of length and width. Multiple regression models with two variables explaining the variance of the Clarke’s angle were statistically significant for girls (right foot: p < 0.001 and left foot: p = 0.009), and boys (right foot: p < 0.001 and left foot: p < 0.001). The influence of predictive variables on the values of the heel angle (γ) was statistically significant for girls (right foot: p < 0.001 and left foot: p < 0.001) and boys (right foot p < 0.001 and left foot: p < 0.001). Conclusions Both in the case of girls and boys, the frequency of using too long and too wide shoes was higher in relation to the frequency of using too short and too narrow shoes. The length and width of the shoes affected the length and width of the footwear both in girls and boys. The longer and wider the shoes, the lower the height of the arch. Longer shoes are accompanied by a greater transverse arch, and wider ones with a lower transverse arch of the foot.
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Ewa Puszczalowska-Lizis
creator: Sabina Lizis
creator: Magdalena Prusak
creator: Jaroslaw Omorczyk
subject: Kinesiology
subject: Orthopedics
subject: Pediatrics
subject: Public Health
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.13403
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2022 Puszczalowska-Lizis et al.
abstract: Background Due to the dynamics of developmental changes, the preschool age is of crucial importance for the later health and efficiency of the feet. The aim of this study was the analysis of the fitting of indoor footwear and its impact on the features of the foot structure in 6-year-old children. Methods The study group consisted of 100 children, including 50 girls and 50 boys at the age of 6 years. The applied device was the CQ-ST podoscope and the Clevermess. The data were analyzed based on Mann-Whitney U test, Chi-square test and regression analysis. Results About 60% of children wore correctly fitted shoes in terms of length and width. Multiple regression models with two variables explaining the variance of the Clarke’s angle were statistically significant for girls (right foot: p < 0.001 and left foot: p = 0.009), and boys (right foot: p < 0.001 and left foot: p < 0.001). The influence of predictive variables on the values of the heel angle (γ) was statistically significant for girls (right foot: p < 0.001 and left foot: p < 0.001) and boys (right foot p < 0.001 and left foot: p < 0.001). Conclusions Both in the case of girls and boys, the frequency of using too long and too wide shoes was higher in relation to the frequency of using too short and too narrow shoes. The length and width of the shoes affected the length and width of the footwear both in girls and boys. The longer and wider the shoes, the lower the height of the arch. Longer shoes are accompanied by a greater transverse arch, and wider ones with a lower transverse arch of the foot.
bibliographic citation: Puszczalowska-Lizis et al. (2022) Impact of length and width of footwear on foot structure of preschool-aged children. PeerJ 10:e13403 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.13403
date submitted: 2021-10-25
date accepted: 2022-04-17
issued: 2022-05-03
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Puszczalowska-Lizis
  given name: Ewa
author list: Agent
  family name: Lizis
  given name: Sabina
author list: Agent
  family name: Prusak
  given name: Magdalena
author list: Agent
  family name: Omorczyk
  given name: Jaroslaw
doi: 10.7717/peerj.13403
volume: 10
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2022-05-03
copyright: ©2022 Puszczalowska-Lizis et al.
attribution name: Puszczalowska-Lizis et al.

Integrated lipidomics and RNA sequencing analysis reveal novel changes during 3T3-L1 cell adipogenesis
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: After adipogenic differentiation, key regulators of adipogenesis are stimulated and cells begin to accumulate lipids. To identify specific changes in lipid composition and gene expression patterns during 3T3-L1 cell adipogenesis, we carried out lipidomics and RNA sequencing analysis of undifferentiated and differentiated 3T3-L1 cells. The analysis revealed significant changes in lipid content and gene expression patterns during adipogenesis. Slc2a4 was up-regulated, which may enhance glucose transport; Gpat3, Agpat2, Lipin1 and Dgat were also up-regulated, potentially to enrich intracellular triacylglycerol (TG). Increased expression levels of Pnpla2, Lipe, Acsl1 and Lpl likely increase intracellular free fatty acids, which can then be used for subsequent synthesis of other lipids, such as sphingomyelin (SM) and ceramide (Cer). Enriched intracellular diacylglycerol (DG) can also provide more raw materials for the synthesis of phosphatidylinositol (PI), phosphatidylcholine (PC), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), ether-PE, and ether-PC, whereas high expression of Pla3 may enhance the formation of lysophophatidylcholine (LPC) and lysophosphatidylethanolamine (LPE). Therefore, in the process of adipogenesis of 3T3-L1 cells, a series of genes are activated, resulting in large changes in the contents of various lipid metabolites in the cells, especially TG, DG, SM, Cer, PI, PC, PE, etherPE, etherPC, LPC and LPE. These findings provide a theoretical basis for our understanding the pathophysiology of obesity.
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Yangli Pei
creator: Yuxin Song
creator: Bingyuan Wang
creator: Chenghong Lin
creator: Ying Yang
creator: Hua Li
creator: Zheng Feng
subject: Biochemistry
subject: Cell Biology
subject: Molecular Biology
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.13417
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2022 Pei et al.
abstract: After adipogenic differentiation, key regulators of adipogenesis are stimulated and cells begin to accumulate lipids. To identify specific changes in lipid composition and gene expression patterns during 3T3-L1 cell adipogenesis, we carried out lipidomics and RNA sequencing analysis of undifferentiated and differentiated 3T3-L1 cells. The analysis revealed significant changes in lipid content and gene expression patterns during adipogenesis. Slc2a4 was up-regulated, which may enhance glucose transport; Gpat3, Agpat2, Lipin1 and Dgat were also up-regulated, potentially to enrich intracellular triacylglycerol (TG). Increased expression levels of Pnpla2, Lipe, Acsl1 and Lpl likely increase intracellular free fatty acids, which can then be used for subsequent synthesis of other lipids, such as sphingomyelin (SM) and ceramide (Cer). Enriched intracellular diacylglycerol (DG) can also provide more raw materials for the synthesis of phosphatidylinositol (PI), phosphatidylcholine (PC), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), ether-PE, and ether-PC, whereas high expression of Pla3 may enhance the formation of lysophophatidylcholine (LPC) and lysophosphatidylethanolamine (LPE). Therefore, in the process of adipogenesis of 3T3-L1 cells, a series of genes are activated, resulting in large changes in the contents of various lipid metabolites in the cells, especially TG, DG, SM, Cer, PI, PC, PE, etherPE, etherPC, LPC and LPE. These findings provide a theoretical basis for our understanding the pathophysiology of obesity.
bibliographic citation: Pei et al. (2022) Integrated lipidomics and RNA sequencing analysis reveal novel changes during 3T3-L1 cell adipogenesis. PeerJ 10:e13417 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.13417
date submitted: 2022-01-21
date accepted: 2022-04-19
issued: 2022-05-03
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Pei
  given name: Yangli
author list: Agent
  family name: Song
  given name: Yuxin
author list: Agent
  family name: Wang
  given name: Bingyuan
author list: Agent
  family name: Lin
  given name: Chenghong
author list: Agent
  family name: Yang
  given name: Ying
author list: Agent
  family name: Li
  given name: Hua
author list: Agent
  family name: Feng
  given name: Zheng
doi: 10.7717/peerj.13417
volume: 10
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2022-05-03
copyright: ©2022 Pei et al.
attribution name: Pei et al.

Unified system describing factors related to the eradication of an alien plant species
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Background In the field of biological invasions science, a problem of many overlapping terms arose among eradication assessment frameworks. Additionally there is a need to construct a universally applicable eradication evaluation system. To unify the terminology and propose an eradication feasibility assessment scale we created the Unified System for assessing Eradication Feasibility (USEF) as a complex tool of factors for the analysis of eradications of alien (both invasive and candidate) plant species. It compiles 24 factors related to eradication success probability reported earlier in the literature and arranges them in a hierarchical system (context/group/factor/component) with a possibility to score their influence on eradication success. Methodology After a literature survey we analyzed, rearranged and defined each factor giving it an intuitive name along with the list of its synonyms and similar and/or related terms from the literature. Each factor influencing eradication feasibility is ascribed into one of four groups depending on the context that best matches the factor: location context (size and location of infestation, ease of access), species context (fitness and fecundity, detectability), human context (knowledge, cognition and resources to act) and reinvasion context (invasion pathways). We also devised a simple ordinal scale to assess each factor’s influence on eradication feasibility. Conclusions The system may be used to report and analyze eradication campaign data in order to (i) prioritize alien species for eradication, (ii) create the strategy for controlling invasive plants, (iii) compare efficiency of different eradication actions, (iv) find gaps in knowledge disabling a sound eradication campaign assessment. The main advantage of using our system is unification of reporting eradication experience data used by researchers performing different eradication actions in different systems.
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Halina Galera
creator: Agnieszka Rudak
creator: Maciej Wódkiewicz
subject: Conservation Biology
subject: Plant Science
subject: Population Biology
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.13027
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2022 Galera et al.
abstract: Background In the field of biological invasions science, a problem of many overlapping terms arose among eradication assessment frameworks. Additionally there is a need to construct a universally applicable eradication evaluation system. To unify the terminology and propose an eradication feasibility assessment scale we created the Unified System for assessing Eradication Feasibility (USEF) as a complex tool of factors for the analysis of eradications of alien (both invasive and candidate) plant species. It compiles 24 factors related to eradication success probability reported earlier in the literature and arranges them in a hierarchical system (context/group/factor/component) with a possibility to score their influence on eradication success. Methodology After a literature survey we analyzed, rearranged and defined each factor giving it an intuitive name along with the list of its synonyms and similar and/or related terms from the literature. Each factor influencing eradication feasibility is ascribed into one of four groups depending on the context that best matches the factor: location context (size and location of infestation, ease of access), species context (fitness and fecundity, detectability), human context (knowledge, cognition and resources to act) and reinvasion context (invasion pathways). We also devised a simple ordinal scale to assess each factor’s influence on eradication feasibility. Conclusions The system may be used to report and analyze eradication campaign data in order to (i) prioritize alien species for eradication, (ii) create the strategy for controlling invasive plants, (iii) compare efficiency of different eradication actions, (iv) find gaps in knowledge disabling a sound eradication campaign assessment. The main advantage of using our system is unification of reporting eradication experience data used by researchers performing different eradication actions in different systems.
bibliographic citation: Galera et al. (2022) Unified system describing factors related to the eradication of an alien plant species. PeerJ 10:e13027 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.13027
date submitted: 2021-09-24
date accepted: 2022-02-08
issued: 2022-05-02
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Galera
  given name: Halina
author list: Agent
  family name: Rudak
  given name: Agnieszka
author list: Agent
  family name: Wódkiewicz
  given name: Maciej
doi: 10.7717/peerj.13027
volume: 10
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2022-05-02
copyright: ©2022 Galera et al.
attribution name: Galera et al.

Alleviation of cadmium stress in rice by inoculation of Bacillus cereus
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Heavy metal resistant bacteria are of great importance because they play a crucial role in bioremediation. In the present study, 11 bacterial strains isolated from industrial waste were screened under different concentrations of cadmium (Cd) (100 µM and 200 µM). Among 11 strains, the Cd tolerant Bacillus cereus (S6D1–105) strain was selected for in vitro and in vivo studies. B. cereus was able to solubilize potassium, and phosphate as well as produce protease and siderophores during plate essays. Moreover, we observed the response of hydroponically grown rice plants, inoculated with B. cereus which was able to promote plant growth, by increasing plant biomass, chlorophyll contents, relative water content, different antioxidant enzymatic activity such as catalase, superoxide dismutase, ascorbate peroxidase, polyphenol oxidase and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase and reducing malondialdehyde content in both roots and leaves of rice plants under Cd stress. Our results showed that the B. cereus can be used as a biofertilizer which might be beneficial for rice cultivation in Cd contaminated soils.
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Zahra Jabeen
creator: Faiza Irshad
creator: Ayesha Habib
creator: Nazim Hussain
creator: Muhammad Sajjad
creator: Saqib Mumtaz
creator: Sidra Rehman
creator: Waseem Haider
creator: Muhammad Nadeem Hassan
subject: Agricultural Science
subject: Microbiology
subject: Plant Science
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.13131
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2022 Jabeen et al.
abstract: Heavy metal resistant bacteria are of great importance because they play a crucial role in bioremediation. In the present study, 11 bacterial strains isolated from industrial waste were screened under different concentrations of cadmium (Cd) (100 µM and 200 µM). Among 11 strains, the Cd tolerant Bacillus cereus (S6D1–105) strain was selected for in vitro and in vivo studies. B. cereus was able to solubilize potassium, and phosphate as well as produce protease and siderophores during plate essays. Moreover, we observed the response of hydroponically grown rice plants, inoculated with B. cereus which was able to promote plant growth, by increasing plant biomass, chlorophyll contents, relative water content, different antioxidant enzymatic activity such as catalase, superoxide dismutase, ascorbate peroxidase, polyphenol oxidase and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase and reducing malondialdehyde content in both roots and leaves of rice plants under Cd stress. Our results showed that the B. cereus can be used as a biofertilizer which might be beneficial for rice cultivation in Cd contaminated soils.
bibliographic citation: Jabeen et al. (2022) Alleviation of cadmium stress in rice by inoculation of Bacillus cereus. PeerJ 10:e13131 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.13131
date submitted: 2021-10-06
date accepted: 2022-02-25
issued: 2022-05-02
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Jabeen
  given name: Zahra
author list: Agent
  family name: Irshad
  given name: Faiza
author list: Agent
  family name: Habib
  given name: Ayesha
author list: Agent
  family name: Hussain
  given name: Nazim
author list: Agent
  family name: Sajjad
  given name: Muhammad
author list: Agent
  family name: Mumtaz
  given name: Saqib
author list: Agent
  family name: Rehman
  given name: Sidra
author list: Agent
  family name: Haider
  given name: Waseem
author list: Agent
  family name: Hassan
  given name: Muhammad Nadeem
doi: 10.7717/peerj.13131
volume: 10
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2022-05-02
copyright: © 2022 Jabeen et al.
attribution name: Jabeen et al.

A new spatiotemporal two-stage standardized weighted procedure for regional drought analysis
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Drought is a complex phenomenon that occurs due to insufficient precipitation. It does not have immediate effects, but sustained drought can affect the hydrological, agriculture, economic sectors of the country. Therefore, there is a need for efficient methods and techniques that properly determine drought and its effects. Considering the significance and importance of drought monitoring methodologies, a new drought assessment procedure is proposed in the current study, known as the Maximum Spatio-Temporal Two-Stage Standardized Weighted Index (MSTTSSWI). The proposed MSTTSSWI is based on the weighting scheme, known as the Spatio-Temporal Two-Stage Standardized Weighting Scheme (STTSSWS). The potential of the weighting scheme is based on the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI), Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI), and the steady-state probabilities. Further, the STTSSWS computes spatiotemporal weights in two stages for various drought categories and stations. In the first stage of the STTSSWS, the SPI, SPEI, and the steady-state probabilities are calculated for each station at a 1-month time scale to assign weights for varying drought categories. However, in the second stage, these weights are further propagated based on spatiotemporal characteristics to obtain new weights for the various drought categories in the selected region. The STTSSWS is applied to the six meteorological stations of the Northern area, Pakistan. Moreover, the spatiotemporal weights obtained from STTSSWS are used to calculate MSTTSSWI for regional drought characterization. The MSTTSSWI may accurately provide regional spatiotemporal characteristics for the drought in the selected region and motivates researchers and policymakers to use the more comprehensive and accurate spatiotemporal characterization of drought in the selected region.
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Rizwan Niaz
creator: Nouman Iqbal
creator: Nadhir Al-Ansari
creator: Ijaz Hussain
creator: Elsayed Elsherbini Elashkar
creator: Sadaf Shamshoddin Soudagar
creator: Showkat Hussain Gani
creator: Alaa Mohamd Shoukry
creator: Saad Sh. Sammen
subject: Ecosystem Science
subject: Statistics
subject: Spatial and Geographic Information Science
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.13249
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2022 Niaz et al.
abstract: Drought is a complex phenomenon that occurs due to insufficient precipitation. It does not have immediate effects, but sustained drought can affect the hydrological, agriculture, economic sectors of the country. Therefore, there is a need for efficient methods and techniques that properly determine drought and its effects. Considering the significance and importance of drought monitoring methodologies, a new drought assessment procedure is proposed in the current study, known as the Maximum Spatio-Temporal Two-Stage Standardized Weighted Index (MSTTSSWI). The proposed MSTTSSWI is based on the weighting scheme, known as the Spatio-Temporal Two-Stage Standardized Weighting Scheme (STTSSWS). The potential of the weighting scheme is based on the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI), Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI), and the steady-state probabilities. Further, the STTSSWS computes spatiotemporal weights in two stages for various drought categories and stations. In the first stage of the STTSSWS, the SPI, SPEI, and the steady-state probabilities are calculated for each station at a 1-month time scale to assign weights for varying drought categories. However, in the second stage, these weights are further propagated based on spatiotemporal characteristics to obtain new weights for the various drought categories in the selected region. The STTSSWS is applied to the six meteorological stations of the Northern area, Pakistan. Moreover, the spatiotemporal weights obtained from STTSSWS are used to calculate MSTTSSWI for regional drought characterization. The MSTTSSWI may accurately provide regional spatiotemporal characteristics for the drought in the selected region and motivates researchers and policymakers to use the more comprehensive and accurate spatiotemporal characterization of drought in the selected region.
bibliographic citation: Niaz et al. (2022) A new spatiotemporal two-stage standardized weighted procedure for regional drought analysis. PeerJ 10:e13249 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.13249
date submitted: 2021-09-02
date accepted: 2022-03-21
issued: 2022-05-02
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Niaz
  given name: Rizwan
author list: Agent
  family name: Iqbal
  given name: Nouman
author list: Agent
  family name: Al-Ansari
  given name: Nadhir
author list: Agent
  family name: Hussain
  given name: Ijaz
author list: Agent
  family name: Elsherbini Elashkar
  given name: Elsayed
author list: Agent
  family name: Shamshoddin Soudagar
  given name: Sadaf
author list: Agent
  family name: Gani
  given name: Showkat Hussain
author list: Agent
  family name: Mohamd Shoukry
  given name: Alaa
author list: Agent
  family name: Sh. Sammen
  given name: Saad
doi: 10.7717/peerj.13249
volume: 10
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2022-05-02
copyright: © 2022 Niaz et al.
attribution name: Niaz et al.

Fungal communities represent the majority of root-specific transcripts in the transcriptomes of Agave plants grown in semiarid regions
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Agave plants present drought resistance mechanisms, commercial applications, and potential for bioenergy production. Currently, Agave species are used to produce alcoholic beverages and sisal fibers in semi-arid regions, mainly in Mexico and Brazil. Because of their high productivities, low lignin content, and high shoot-to-root ratio, agaves show potential as biomass feedstock to bioenergy production in marginal areas. Plants host many microorganisms and understanding their metabolism can inform biotechnological purposes. Here, we identify and characterize fungal transcripts found in three fiber-producing agave cultivars (Agave fourcroydes, A. sisalana, and hybrid 11648). We used leaf, stem, and root samples collected from the agave germplasm bank located in the state of Paraiba, in the Brazilian semiarid region, which has faced irregular precipitation periods. We used data from a de novo assembled transcriptome assembly (all tissues together). Regardless of the cultivar, around 10% of the transcripts mapped to fungi. Surprisingly, most root-specific transcripts were fungal (58%); of these around 64% were identified as Ascomycota and 28% as Basidiomycota in the three communities. Transcripts that code for heat shock proteins (HSPs) and enzymes involved in transport across the membrane in Ascomycota and Basidiomycota, abounded in libraries generated from the three cultivars. Indeed, among the most expressed transcripts, many were annotated as HSPs, which appear involved in abiotic stress resistance. Most HSPs expressed by Ascomycota are small HSPs, highly related to dealing with temperature stresses. Also, some KEGG pathways suggest interaction with the roots, related to transport to outside the cell, such as exosome (present in the three Ascomycota communities) and membrane trafficking, which were further investigated. We also found chitinases among secreted CAZymes, that can be related to pathogen control. We anticipate that our results can provide a starting poin…
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Marina Püpke Marone
creator: Maria Fernanda Zaneli Campanari
creator: Fabio Trigo Raya
creator: Gonçalo Amarante Guimarães Pereira
creator: Marcelo Falsarella Carazzolle
subject: Bioinformatics
subject: Ecology
subject: Genetics
subject: Mycology
subject: Plant Science
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.13252
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2022 Marone et al.
abstract: Agave plants present drought resistance mechanisms, commercial applications, and potential for bioenergy production. Currently, Agave species are used to produce alcoholic beverages and sisal fibers in semi-arid regions, mainly in Mexico and Brazil. Because of their high productivities, low lignin content, and high shoot-to-root ratio, agaves show potential as biomass feedstock to bioenergy production in marginal areas. Plants host many microorganisms and understanding their metabolism can inform biotechnological purposes. Here, we identify and characterize fungal transcripts found in three fiber-producing agave cultivars (Agave fourcroydes, A. sisalana, and hybrid 11648). We used leaf, stem, and root samples collected from the agave germplasm bank located in the state of Paraiba, in the Brazilian semiarid region, which has faced irregular precipitation periods. We used data from a de novo assembled transcriptome assembly (all tissues together). Regardless of the cultivar, around 10% of the transcripts mapped to fungi. Surprisingly, most root-specific transcripts were fungal (58%); of these around 64% were identified as Ascomycota and 28% as Basidiomycota in the three communities. Transcripts that code for heat shock proteins (HSPs) and enzymes involved in transport across the membrane in Ascomycota and Basidiomycota, abounded in libraries generated from the three cultivars. Indeed, among the most expressed transcripts, many were annotated as HSPs, which appear involved in abiotic stress resistance. Most HSPs expressed by Ascomycota are small HSPs, highly related to dealing with temperature stresses. Also, some KEGG pathways suggest interaction with the roots, related to transport to outside the cell, such as exosome (present in the three Ascomycota communities) and membrane trafficking, which were further investigated. We also found chitinases among secreted CAZymes, that can be related to pathogen control. We anticipate that our results can provide a starting poin…
bibliographic citation: Marone et al. (2022) Fungal communities represent the majority of root-specific transcripts in the transcriptomes of Agave plants grown in semiarid regions. PeerJ 10:e13252 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.13252
date submitted: 2021-09-29
date accepted: 2022-03-21
issued: 2022-05-02
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Marone
  given name: Marina Püpke
author list: Agent
  family name: Campanari
  given name: Maria Fernanda Zaneli
author list: Agent
  family name: Raya
  given name: Fabio Trigo
author list: Agent
  family name: Pereira
  given name: Gonçalo Amarante Guimarães
author list: Agent
  family name: Carazzolle
  given name: Marcelo Falsarella
doi: 10.7717/peerj.13252
volume: 10
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2022-05-02
copyright: ©2022 Marone et al.
attribution name: Marone et al.

Assessment of the readiness of restorations manufactured by CAD/CAM in terms of marginal fit (Part I)
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Background The master cast is the gold standard for the control and eventual adjustment of restorations produced by conventional procedures. Some digital workflow bypasses the master cast and relies completely on the precision of the CAD/CAM restoration. Aim To examine the reproducibility of the margins of CAD/CAM restorations generated from a single digital scan. Also, to check the readiness of these restorations for delivery directly after fabrication without adjustment on a master cast and thereby eliminate the need for the master cast. Methods A total of 18 metal substructures made from cobalt chrome alloy were fabricated utilizing a single STL file. The circumference was divided into eight zones. The vertical marginal discrepancy (VMD) was measured at each zone of each metal substructure, with optical microscopy at ×200 magnification. Results Measurements of vertical marginal discrepancy were in a range of (−94: 300) with a mean of 62 ± 60 μm. A one-way ANOVA test revealed that the mean VMD is significantly different among the 18 substructures (F17, 1,134 = 63.948, p < 0.001). Conclusion Although all the received substructures were fabricated from the same scan file, they were not identical and varied widely, and they were going outside the acceptable range in some zones. Within the limitations of this study, the marginal fit can be improved by extraoral adjustments on the master cast. Thus, skipping the master cast deprives the dentist of delivering a restoration of higher quality.
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Radek Mounajjed
creator: Thomas Taylor
creator: Omar Hamadah
creator: Iva Voborná
creator: Marwan Al-akkad
subject: Dentistry
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.13280
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2022 Mounajjed et al.
abstract: Background The master cast is the gold standard for the control and eventual adjustment of restorations produced by conventional procedures. Some digital workflow bypasses the master cast and relies completely on the precision of the CAD/CAM restoration. Aim To examine the reproducibility of the margins of CAD/CAM restorations generated from a single digital scan. Also, to check the readiness of these restorations for delivery directly after fabrication without adjustment on a master cast and thereby eliminate the need for the master cast. Methods A total of 18 metal substructures made from cobalt chrome alloy were fabricated utilizing a single STL file. The circumference was divided into eight zones. The vertical marginal discrepancy (VMD) was measured at each zone of each metal substructure, with optical microscopy at ×200 magnification. Results Measurements of vertical marginal discrepancy were in a range of (−94: 300) with a mean of 62 ± 60 μm. A one-way ANOVA test revealed that the mean VMD is significantly different among the 18 substructures (F17, 1,134 = 63.948, p < 0.001). Conclusion Although all the received substructures were fabricated from the same scan file, they were not identical and varied widely, and they were going outside the acceptable range in some zones. Within the limitations of this study, the marginal fit can be improved by extraoral adjustments on the master cast. Thus, skipping the master cast deprives the dentist of delivering a restoration of higher quality.
bibliographic citation: Mounajjed et al. (2022) Assessment of the readiness of restorations manufactured by CAD/CAM in terms of marginal fit (Part I). PeerJ 10:e13280 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.13280
date submitted: 2021-09-22
date accepted: 2022-03-24
issued: 2022-05-02
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Mounajjed
  given name: Radek
author list: Agent
  family name: Taylor
  given name: Thomas
author list: Agent
  family name: Hamadah
  given name: Omar
author list: Agent
  family name: Voborná
  given name: Iva
author list: Agent
  family name: Al-akkad
  given name: Marwan
doi: 10.7717/peerj.13280
volume: 10
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2022-05-02
copyright: © 2022 Mounajjed et al.
attribution name: Mounajjed et al.

Stress coping strategies used by nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Introduction The risk of getting SARS-CoV-2 infection, worries about exposing loved ones, anxiety and frustration, emotional and physical exhaustion, burn out, a feeling of being overwhelmed, and struggles and challenges with parenting are a few among many factors that affect nurses’ personal lives and professional functioning. The aim of the research is to assess nurses’ level of stress during the COVID-19 pandemic and their sense of self-efficacy, and to learn what coping strategies they use. Methodology/Methods The study was carried out online and based on the diagnostic poll method, using an original survey questionnaire, the General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES 10–40), the Mini-COPE questionnaire (0–3), and the Perceived Stress Scale PSS-10 (0–40). The respondent group was made up of nurses (n = 220) who provide health services in inpatient and outpatient health care institutions in the northeastern region of Poland. The statistical analysis was performed using the STATISTICA 13.0 package (StatSoft). The distribution of variables was checked with Shapiro-Wilk tests. The Mann–Whitney U test was used to compare two independent samples, while the Kruskal–Wallis test was used to compare more samples. The adopted statistical significance level was p < 0.05. Multivariate regression analysis was applied to determine which factors were related to the level of stress. Results The mean age of the participants was 43.3 years. The vast majority were women (96.4). The mean work experience of the nurses was over 20 years (58.2%). A total of 62.3% worked directly with patients in hospitals, including 11.8% respondents working at COVID-19 units and 37.7% working at primary care institutions. The analyses show that the respondents represented a high level of stress (PSS-10 – 20.9), related to their work experience as a nurse (β −0.250, p = 0.014), the number of hours worked a month (β 0.156, p = 0.015), and self-assessed health status (β −0.145, p = 0.037). They declared an averag…
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Matylda Sierakowska
creator: Halina Doroszkiewicz
subject: Nursing
subject: Mental Health
subject: COVID-19
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.13288
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2022 Sierakowska and Doroszkiewicz
abstract: Introduction The risk of getting SARS-CoV-2 infection, worries about exposing loved ones, anxiety and frustration, emotional and physical exhaustion, burn out, a feeling of being overwhelmed, and struggles and challenges with parenting are a few among many factors that affect nurses’ personal lives and professional functioning. The aim of the research is to assess nurses’ level of stress during the COVID-19 pandemic and their sense of self-efficacy, and to learn what coping strategies they use. Methodology/Methods The study was carried out online and based on the diagnostic poll method, using an original survey questionnaire, the General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES 10–40), the Mini-COPE questionnaire (0–3), and the Perceived Stress Scale PSS-10 (0–40). The respondent group was made up of nurses (n = 220) who provide health services in inpatient and outpatient health care institutions in the northeastern region of Poland. The statistical analysis was performed using the STATISTICA 13.0 package (StatSoft). The distribution of variables was checked with Shapiro-Wilk tests. The Mann–Whitney U test was used to compare two independent samples, while the Kruskal–Wallis test was used to compare more samples. The adopted statistical significance level was p < 0.05. Multivariate regression analysis was applied to determine which factors were related to the level of stress. Results The mean age of the participants was 43.3 years. The vast majority were women (96.4). The mean work experience of the nurses was over 20 years (58.2%). A total of 62.3% worked directly with patients in hospitals, including 11.8% respondents working at COVID-19 units and 37.7% working at primary care institutions. The analyses show that the respondents represented a high level of stress (PSS-10 – 20.9), related to their work experience as a nurse (β −0.250, p = 0.014), the number of hours worked a month (β 0.156, p = 0.015), and self-assessed health status (β −0.145, p = 0.037). They declared an averag…
bibliographic citation: Sierakowska et al. (2022) Stress coping strategies used by nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic. PeerJ 10:e13288 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.13288
date submitted: 2021-11-15
date accepted: 2022-03-28
issued: 2022-05-02
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Sierakowska
  given name: Matylda
author list: Agent
  family name: Doroszkiewicz
  given name: Halina
doi: 10.7717/peerj.13288
volume: 10
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2022-05-02
copyright: ©2022 Sierakowska and Doroszkiewicz
attribution name: Sierakowska and Doroszkiewicz

Comparison between hydroxyapatite and polycaprolactone in inducing osteogenic differentiation and augmenting maxillary bone regeneration in rats
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Background The selection of appropriate scaffold plays an important role in ensuring the success of bone regeneration. The use of scaffolds with different materials and their effect on the osteogenic performance of cells is not well studied and this can affect the selection of suitable scaffolds for transplantation. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the comparative ability of two different synthetic scaffolds, mainly hydroxyapatite (HA) and polycaprolactone (PCL) scaffolds in promoting in vitro and in vivo bone regeneration. Method In vitro cell viability, morphology, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity of MC3T3-E1 cells on HA and PCL scaffolds were determined in comparison to the accepted model outlined for two-dimensional systems. An in vivo study involving the transplantation of MC3T3-E1 cells with scaffolds into an artificial bone defect of 4 mm length and 1.5 mm depth in the rat’s left maxilla was conducted. Three-dimensional analysis using micro-computed tomography (micro-CT), hematoxylin and eosin (H&E), and immunohistochemistry analyses evaluation were performed after six weeks of transplantation. Results MC3T3-E1 cells on the HA scaffold showed the highest cell viability. The cell viability on both scaffolds decreased after 14 days of culture, which reflects the dominant occurrence of osteoblast differentiation. An early sign of osteoblast differentiation can be detected on the PCL scaffold. However, cells on the HA scaffold showed more prominent results with intense mineralized nodules and significantly (p < 0.05) high levels of ALP activity with prolonged osteoblast induction. Micro-CT and H&E analyses confirmed the in vitro results with bone formation were significantly (p < 0.05) greater in HA scaffold and was supported by IHC analysis which confirmed stronger expression of osteogenic markers ALP and osteocalcin. Conclusion Different scaffold materials of HA and PCL might have influenced the bone regeneration ability of MC3T3-E1. Regardless, in…
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Nur Atmaliya Luchman
creator: Rohaya Megat Abdul Wahab
creator: Shahrul Hisham Zainal Ariffin
creator: Nurrul Shaqinah Nasruddin
creator: Seng Fong Lau
creator: Farinawati Yazid
subject: Biochemistry
subject: Biotechnology
subject: Cell Biology
subject: Orthopedics
subject: Histology
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.13356
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2022 Luchman et al.
abstract: Background The selection of appropriate scaffold plays an important role in ensuring the success of bone regeneration. The use of scaffolds with different materials and their effect on the osteogenic performance of cells is not well studied and this can affect the selection of suitable scaffolds for transplantation. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the comparative ability of two different synthetic scaffolds, mainly hydroxyapatite (HA) and polycaprolactone (PCL) scaffolds in promoting in vitro and in vivo bone regeneration. Method In vitro cell viability, morphology, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity of MC3T3-E1 cells on HA and PCL scaffolds were determined in comparison to the accepted model outlined for two-dimensional systems. An in vivo study involving the transplantation of MC3T3-E1 cells with scaffolds into an artificial bone defect of 4 mm length and 1.5 mm depth in the rat’s left maxilla was conducted. Three-dimensional analysis using micro-computed tomography (micro-CT), hematoxylin and eosin (H&E), and immunohistochemistry analyses evaluation were performed after six weeks of transplantation. Results MC3T3-E1 cells on the HA scaffold showed the highest cell viability. The cell viability on both scaffolds decreased after 14 days of culture, which reflects the dominant occurrence of osteoblast differentiation. An early sign of osteoblast differentiation can be detected on the PCL scaffold. However, cells on the HA scaffold showed more prominent results with intense mineralized nodules and significantly (p < 0.05) high levels of ALP activity with prolonged osteoblast induction. Micro-CT and H&E analyses confirmed the in vitro results with bone formation were significantly (p < 0.05) greater in HA scaffold and was supported by IHC analysis which confirmed stronger expression of osteogenic markers ALP and osteocalcin. Conclusion Different scaffold materials of HA and PCL might have influenced the bone regeneration ability of MC3T3-E1. Regardless, in…
bibliographic citation: Luchman et al. (2022) Comparison between hydroxyapatite and polycaprolactone in inducing osteogenic differentiation and augmenting maxillary bone regeneration in rats. PeerJ 10:e13356 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.13356
date submitted: 2021-10-25
date accepted: 2022-04-08
issued: 2022-05-02
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Luchman
  given name: Nur Atmaliya
author list: Agent
  family name: Megat Abdul Wahab
  given name: Rohaya
author list: Agent
  family name: Zainal Ariffin
  given name: Shahrul Hisham
author list: Agent
  family name: Nasruddin
  given name: Nurrul Shaqinah
author list: Agent
  family name: Lau
  given name: Seng Fong
author list: Agent
  family name: Yazid
  given name: Farinawati
doi: 10.7717/peerj.13356
volume: 10
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2022-05-02
copyright: ©2022 Luchman et al.
attribution name: Luchman et al.

PeerJ
type: Periodical
uri: PeerJ
issn: 2167-8359