Search Results (45)

With the rapid advancement of aerospace technology, the maneuverability of spacecraft has increasingly improved, creating a pressing demand for star sensors with a high attitude update rate and high precision. Star identification, as the most complex and time-consuming algorithm of star sensors, faces stringent requirements for enhanced identification speed and an enhanced identification rate. Furthermore, as the space environment is becoming more complex, the need for star sensors with heightened detection sensitivity is growing to facilitate real-time and accurate alerts for various non-cooperative targets, which has led to a sharp increase in the number of high-magnitude navigation stars in the star catalog, significantly impeding the speed and rate of star identification. Traditional methods are no longer adequate to meet the current demand for star sensors with high identification speed and a high identification rate. Addressing these challenges, a voting-based star identification algorithm using a partitioned star catalog is proposed. Initially, a uniform partitioning method for the star catalog is introduced. Building on this, a navigation feature library using partitioned catalog neighborhoods as a basic unit is constructed. During star identification, a method based on a voting decision is employed for feature matching in the basic unit. Compared to conventional methods, the proposed algorithm significantly simplifies the navigation feature library and narrows the retrieval region during star identification, markedly enhancing identification speed while effectively reducing the probability of redundant and false matching. The performance of the proposed algorithm is validated through a simulation experiment and nighttime star observation experiment. Experimental results indicate an average identification rate of 99.760% and an average identification time of 8.861 milliseconds, exhibiting high robustness against position errors, magnitude errors, and false stars. The proposed algorithm presents a clear advantage over other common star identification methods, meeting the current requirement for star sensors with high star identification speed and a high identification rate. Full article

So far, most of the about 5700 exoplanets have been discovered mainly with radial velocity and transit methods. These techniques are sensitive to planets in close orbits, not being able to probearge star–planet separations. μ-lensing is the indirect method that allows us to probe the planetary systems at the snow-line and beyond, but it is not a repeatable observation. On the contrary, direct imaging (DI) allows for the detection and characterization ofow mass companions at wide separation (≤5–6 au). The main challenge of DI is that a typical planet–star contrast ranges from 10⁻⁶, for a young Jupiter in emittedight, to 10⁻⁹ for Earth in reflectedight. In theast two decades, aot of efforts have been dedicated to combiningarge (D ≥ 5 m) telescopes (to reduce the impact of diffraction) with coronagraphs and high-order adaptive optics (to correct phase errors induced by atmospheric turbulence), with sophisticated image post-processing, to reach such a contrast between the star and the planet in order to detect and characterize cooler and closer companions to nearby stars. Building on the first pioneering instrumentation, the second generation of high-contrast imagers, SPHERE, GPI, and SCExAO, allowed us to probe hundreds of stars (e.g., 500–600 stars using SHINE and GPIES), contributing to a better understanding of the demography and the occurrence of planetary systems. The DI offers a possible clear vision for studying the formation and physical properties of gas giant planets and brown dwarfs, and the future DI (space and ground-based) instruments with deeper detectionimits will enhance this vision. In this paper, we briefly review the methods, the instruments, the main sample of targeted stars, the remarkable results, and the perspective of this rising technique. Full article

This article is about the detection of a partial inter-turn short-circuit fault in a brushless motor with permanent magnets (BLPMM). The detection of a single inter-turn short circuit is a difficult issue. The authors of this article tested the sensitivity of the tested powertrain damage detection method. The diagnostic method developed for BLPMM allows for any configuration of the motor winding. A number of analysed configurations have been applied for the combined star–delta connection (YΔ). For the combined star–delta connection Y/Δ, the problem of partial short circuit at two locations was analysed. In the first case, this was the short-circuit winding phenomena in the star part (SC1). In the second case, the short circuit was connected in part to the delta (SC2). A mathematical model has been developed that takes into account both the type of connection and the chance of a partial short circuit of the coil. Based on numerical calculations, the sensitivity of diagnostic methods is designated for both cases. Furthermore, the impact of partial short circuits on motor performance was also examined. The effect of a partial inter-turn short-circuit fault on motor parameters was also determined. Laboratory verification was carried out. Full article

Background/Objectives: The Star Excursion Balance Test (SEBT) is a simple and feasible tool for assessing dynamic balance in individuals with knee osteoarthritis (KOA). It has an advantage as it replicates dynamic balance better than other static balance tools. This study aims to determine how reliable SEBT is among people with end-stage KOA, as well as how responsive it is and how well it correlates with performance-based outcome measures after TKA. Methods: Patients on the waiting list for TKA performed SEBT in the anterior, posteromedial and posteriorlateral directions twice within 7 days. The measurements were repeated 6 and 12 months after TKA. The participants completed performance-based outcome measurements (PBOMs) and the Oxford Knee Score (OKS) before and after TKA to estimate correlation. Results: In all directions, the intraclass correlation coefficient range (ICC) was 0.998–0.993, and there were no significant differences between the test and re-test mean SEBT scores. The standard error of measurement (SEM) ranged from 0.37% to 0.68%, and the minimum detectable change (MDC) ranged from 1.02% to 1.89%. The post TKA SEBT results show significant improvement, with a large effect size. There were large-to-medium correlations between SEBT and PBOMs before and after TKA, while OKS correlated only before surgery. The magnitude of change in SEBT, PBOMs and OKS did not correlate. Conclusions: SEBT is an extremely reliable tool for assessing dynamic balance in all three directions of severe KOA patients. It is sensitive enough to detect balance changes at 6 and 12 months post TKA. SEBT cannot be used to reflect the change in functional outcome improvement after TKA. Full article

Stored products, such as grains and processed foods, are susceptible to infestation by various insects. The early detection of insects in the supply chain is crucial, as introducing invasive pests to new environments may cause disproportionate harm. The STAR Center at Stevens Institute of Technology developed the Acoustic Stored Product Insect Detection System (A-SPIDS) to detect pests in stored products. The system, which comprises a sound-insulated container for product samples with a built-in internal array of piezoelectric sensors and additional electret microphones to record outside noise, was used to conduct numerous measurements of the vibroacoustic signatures of various insects, including the Callosobruchus maculatus, Tribolium confusum, and Tenebrio molitor, in different materials. A normalization method was implemented using the ambient noise of the sensors as a reference, to accommodate for the proprietary, non-calibrated sensors and allowing to set relative detection thresholds for unknown sensitivities. The normalized envelope of the filtered signals was used to characterize and compare the insect signals by estimating the Normalized Signal Pulse Amplitude (NSPA) and the Normalized Spectral Energy Level (NSEL). These parameters characterize the insect detection Signal Noise Ratio (SNR) for pulse-based detection (NSPA) and averaged energy-based detection (NSEL). These metrics provided an initial step towards the design of a reliable detection algorithm. In the conducted tests NSPA was significantly larger than NSEL. The NSPA reached 70 $\mathrm{d}$$\mathrm{B}$ for T. molitor in corn flakes. The insect signals were lower in flour where the averaged NSPA and NSEL values were around 40 dB and 11 $\mathrm{d}$$\mathrm{B}$ to 16 $\mathrm{d}$$\mathrm{B}$, respectively. Full article

Ongoing improvements in the sensitivity of sub-mm- and mm-range interferometers and single-dish radio telescopes allow for the increasingly detailed study of AGB and post-AGB objects in molecular species other than ${}^{12}\mathrm{CO}$ and ${}^{13}\mathrm{CO}$. With a new update introduced in the modelling tool SHAPE + shapemol, we can now create morpho-kinematical models to reproduce observations of these AGB and post-AGB circumstellar shells in different molecular species, allowing for an accurate description of their physical features as well as their molecular abundances and isotopic ratios. The pre-planetary nebula M1-92 (Minkowski’s Footprint) is one of the most complex objects of this kind, with a wide range of physical conditions and more than 20 molecular species detected. We model this nebula, reproducing the observational data from IRAM-30m and HSO/HiFi spectra and NOEMA interferometric maps, trying to understand the unusual evolution of its central star in the last phases of its life. The results show interesting features that tell us the story of its death. According to standard evolution models, a ${}^{17}\mathrm{O}$/${}^{18}\mathrm{O}$ isotopic ratio of 1.6 implies a stellar initial mass of ∼1.7$M_{\odot }$. Such a star should have turned C-rich by the end of the AGB phase, in striking contrast to the O-rich nature of the nebula. The most plausible way of reconciling this discrepancy is that M1-92 resulted from a sudden massive ejection event, interrupting the AGB evolution of the central source and preventing its transformation into a C-rich star. We also detect a changing ${}^{12}\mathrm{C}$/${}^{13}\mathrm{C}$ ratio across the nebula, which is particularly relevant in the inner equatorial region traced by ${\mathrm{HCO}}^{+}$ and ${\mathrm{H}}^{13}$${\mathrm{CO}}^{+}$, indicating an isotopic ratio variation taking place at some point during the last 1200 yr. Full article

Background and Objectives: The steady spread of dengue virus (DENV) poses a profound public health threat worldwide. Reverse transcription real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT2-PCR) has been increasingly recognized as a reference method for the diagnosis of acute dengue infection. The goal of this study was to assess the diagnostic accuracy of five different RT2-PCR kits for the detection of DENV in a historically processed set of sera samples. Materials and Methods: In this retrospective study, 25 sera samples from routinely processed unique adult patients with a known DENV status (previously tested in both molecular and serological assays) were tested in parallel using four conventional (RealStar Dengue PCR Kit 3.0, Clonit’ngo Zika, Dengue & Chikungunya, BioPerfectus Zika Virus/Dengue Virus/Chikungunya Virus Real Time PCR Kit and Novaplex Tropical fever virus) and one sample-to-result (STANDARD M10 Arbovirus Panel) RT2-PCR assays. Additionally, an end-point dilution analysis was conducted in quintuplicate on six serial dilutions of an RNA preparation obtained from a culture-grown DENV serotype 1 strain for a total of 150 tests. Results: The overall accuracy of the evaluated tests ranged from 84% to 100%. In particular, the sensitivity of three conventional RT2-PCR assays (RealStar, Clonit’ngo and Novaplex) was 100% (95% CI: 79.6–100%), while it was lower (73.3%; 95% CI: 48.1–89.1%) for the BioPerfectus kit. The sample-to-result STANDARD M10 panel performed comparatively well, showing a sensitivity of 92.9% (95% CI: 68.5–98.7%). No false positive results were registered in any assay. The end-point dilution analysis suggested that the RealStar kit had the lowest limit of detection. Conclusions: Available RT2-PCR kits for the detection of DENV are highly specific and generally sensitive and, therefore, their implementation in diagnostic pathways is advisable. Full article

Lyme disease is the most commonly reported vector-borne disease in the United States. Bartonella constitute an additional zoonotic pathogen whose public health impact and diversity continue to emerge. Rapid, sensitive, and specific detection of these and other vector-borne pathogens remains challenging, especially for patients with persistent infections. This report describes an approach for DNA extraction and PCR testing for the detection of Bartonella spp. and Borreliella spp. from dry blood spot (DBS) specimens from human patients. The present study included extraction of DNA and PCR testing of DBS samples from 105 patients with poorly defined, chronic symptoms labeled as Lyme-Like Syndromic Illness (LLSI). Bartonella spp. DNA was detected in 20/105 (19%) and Borreliella spp. DNA was detected in 41/105 (39%) patients with LLSI. Neither group of organisms was detected in DBS samples from 42 healthy control subjects. Bartonella spp. 16S–23S rRNA internal transcribed spacer sequences were highly similar to ones previously identified in yellow flies, lone star ticks, a human patient from Florida, mosquitoes in Europe, or B. apihabitans and choladocola strains from honeybees. These human strains may represent new genetic strains or groups of human pathogenic species of Bartonella. The 41 Borreliella spp. flaB gene sequences obtained from human patients suggested the presence of four different species, including B. burgdorferi, B. americana, B. andersonii, and B. bissettiae/carolinensis-like strains. These results suggest that specific aspects of the DBS DNA extraction and PCR approach enabled the detection of Bartonella spp. and Borreliella spp. DNA from very small amounts of human whole blood from some patients, including specimens stored on filter paper for 17 years. Full article

Salinomycin is a coccidiostat approved as a feed additive for the prevention of coccidiosis in poultry. Official control of its residues is set by the Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/1644. The aim of our study was to assess the suitability of three microbial inhibition tests (MITs), Premi^®Test, Explorer 2.0, and the Screening Test for Antibiotic Residues (STAR) linked to the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), for the screening of salinomycin residues in the tissues of broiler chickens (breast and thigh muscle, heart, liver, gizzard, kidneys, lungs, spleen, skin, and fat) fed commercially produced feed containing 70 mg.kg⁻¹ of salinomycin in the complete feed. The first residue screening (Sampling A) was performed on the last day of administration of the salinomycin-medicated feed (day 30), and the second screening (Sampling B) was performed on the day of slaughter (day 37) after the expiry of the withdrawal period with the feeding of non-medicated feed. Based on the quantitative confirmation of salinomycin residues in the examined chicken tissues by the ELISA method (Sampling A from 0.025 to 0.241 mg.kg⁻¹; Sampling B from 0.003 to 0.076 mg.kg⁻¹), all the MITs with the preference of the bacterial strain Bacillus stearothermophilus var. calidolactis ATCC 10149 demonstrated the ability to detect the residues of salinomycin in the examined tissues of broiler chickens at the level of the maximum residue limits set from 0.015 to 0.150 mg.kg⁻¹ by Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/1914 and confirmed the relevance of their sensitivity to the coccidiostat salinomycin. Full article

In this paper, we investigate the benefits of teaming up data from the radio to the far-infrared (FIR) regime for the characterization of dusty star-forming galaxies (DSFGs). These galaxies are thought to be the star-forming progenitors of local massive quiescent galaxies and to play a pivotal role in the reconstruction of the cosmic star formation rate density up to high redshift. Due to their dust-enshrouded nature, DSFGs are often invisible in the near-infrared/optical/UV bands. Therefore, they necessitate observations at longer wavelengths, primarily the FIR band, where dust emission occurs, and the radio band, which is not affected by dust absorption. Combining data from these two spectral windows makes it possible to characterize even the dustiest objects, enabling the retrieval of information about their age, dust temperature, and star-formation status, and facilitates the differentiation between various galaxy populations that evolve throughout cosmic history. Despite the detection of faint radio sources being a challenging task, this study demonstrates that an effective strategy to build statistically relevant samples of DSFGs would be reaching deep sensitivities in the radio band, even restricted to smaller areas, and then combining these radio observations with FIR/submm data. Additionally, this paper quantifies the improvement in the spectral energy distribution (SED) reconstruction of DSFGs by incorporating ALMA band measurements, in particular, in its upgraded status thanks to the anticipated Wideband Sensitivity Upgrade. Full article

In 2022–23, the human monkeypox virus (MPXV) caused a global outbreak in several non-endemic countries. Here, we evaluated the diagnostic performance of four real-time qualitative PCR assays for the laboratory diagnosis of mpox (monkeypox) monkeypox disease. From July to August 2022, 27 positive and 10 negative specimens (lesion, crust and exudate swabs) were tested in the laboratory of the Hygiene Unit of the San Martino Hospital (Genoa, Italy) by using home-made real-time PCR to detect MPXV generic G2R_G DNA. According to the manufacturer’s instructions, we also retrospectively analyzed these specimens using RealCycler MONK-UX/-GX (Progenie Molecular), STANDARD M10 MPX/OPX (SD Biosensor), Novaplex MPXV (Seegene Inc.) and RealStar Orthopoxvirus PCR Kit 1.0 (Altona Diagnostics) assays, recognized as research-use-only tests. The diagnostic accuracy and sensitivity of these assays ranged from 97.3% (95% CI: 86.2–99.5%) to 100% (95% CI: 90.6–100%) and 96.3% (95% CI: 81.72–99.34%) to 100% (95% CI: 72.2–100%), respectively. The RealCycler MONK-UX and STANDARD M10 MPX/OPX did not detect one positive sample with a cycle threshold of 36. The overall specificity was 100% (95% CI: 72.2–100%), and Cohen’s Kappa values ranged from 1 (95% CI: 0.67–1) to 0.93 (95% CI: 0.61–1). As they are highly accurate, reliable and user-friendly, these tests should be recommended for the routine or rapid laboratory discrimination of mpox from other rash illnesses. Full article

DECIGO is a future Japanese project for the detection of gravitational waves in space. To conduct various scientific missions, including the verification of cosmic inflation through the detection of primordial gravitational waves as the main objective, DECIGO is designed to have high sensitivity in the frequency band from $0.1$ to 10 Hz, with arms of length 1000 km. Furthermore, the use of the Fabry-Perotcavity in these arms has been established for the DECIGO project. In this paper, we scrutinize the significance of the Fabry-Perot cavity for promoting this project, with a focus on the possibility of observing gravitational waves from cosmic inflation and binary compact star systems as indicators. The results show that using the Fabry-Perot cavity is extremely beneficial for detecting them, and it is anticipated to enable the opening of a new window in gravitational wave astronomy. Full article

The effective detection of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) in different environments and, above all, in biological media, is an important practical issue. To this end, we designed a novel electrochemical sensor for H₂O₂ detection by introducing gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) into the porous poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) matrix formed by the thermally activated crosslinking of amino- and epoxy-decorated STAR-PEG precursors. The respective composite PEG-AuNP films could be readily prepared on oxidized Si substrates, separated from them as free-standing nanosheets, and transferred as H₂O₂ sensing elements onto the working electrode of the electrochemical cell, with the performance of the sensing element relied on the established catalytic activity of AuNPs with respect to H₂O₂ decomposition. The sensitivity, detection limit, and the operation range of the composite PEG-AuNP sensors were estimated at ~3.4 × 10² μA mM⁻¹ cm⁻², 0.17 μM of H₂O₂, and 20 μM–3.5 mM of H₂O₂, respectively, which are well comparable with the best values for other types of H₂O₂ sensors reported recently in literature. The particular advantages of the composite PEG-AuNP sensors are commercial source materials, a simple fabrication procedure, the bioinert character of the PEG matrix, the 3D character of the AuNP assembly, and the possibility of transferring the nanosheet sensing element to any secondary substrate, including the glassy carbon electrode of the electrochemical cell. In particular, the bioinert character of the PEG matrix can be of importance for potential biological and biomedical applications of the designed sensing platform. Full article

(1) Background: This study aims to evaluate the image quality of abnormal cervical lymph nodes in head and neck cancer and the diagnostic performance of detecting extranodal extension (ENE) using free-breathing StarVIBE. (2) Methods: In this retrospective analysis, 80 consecutive head and neck cancer patients underwent StarVIBE before neck dissection at an academic center. Image quality was compared with conventional VIBE available for 28 of these patients. A total of 73 suspicious metastatic lymph nodes from 40 patients were found based on morphology and enhancement pattern on StarVIBE. Sensitivity (SN), specificity (SP), and odds ratios were calculated for each MR feature from StarVIBE to predict pathologic ENE. (3) Results: StarVIBE showed significantly superior image quality, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) for enlarged lymph nodes compared to VIBE. The MR findings of “invading adjacent planes” (SN, 0.54; SP, 1.00) and “matted nodes” (SN, 0.72; SP, 0.89) emerged as notable observations. The highest diagnostic performance was attained by combining these two features (SN, 0.93; SP, 0.89). (4) Conclusions: This study confirms that StarVIBE offers superior image quality for abnormal lymph nodes compared to VIBE, and it can accurately diagnose ENE by utilizing a composite MR criterion in head and neck cancer. Full article

B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (B-ALL) is characterised by diverse genomic alterations, the most frequent being gene fusions detected via transcriptomic analysis (mRNA-seq). Due to its hypervariable nature, gene fusions involving the Immunoglobulin Heavy Chain (IGH) locus can be difficult to detect with standard gene fusion calling algorithms and significant computational resources and analysis times are required. We aimed to optimize a gene fusion calling workflow to achieve best-case sensitivity for IGH gene fusion detection. Using Nextflow, we developed a simplified workflow containing the algorithms FusionCatcher, Arriba, and STAR-Fusion. We analysed samples from 35 patients harbouring IGH fusions (IGH::CRLF2 n = 17, IGH::DUX4 n = 15, IGH::EPOR n = 3) and assessed the detection rates for each caller, before optimizing the parameters to enhance sensitivity for IGH fusions. Initial results showed that FusionCatcher and Arriba outperformed STAR-Fusion (85–89% vs. 29% of IGH fusions reported). We found that extensive filtering in STAR-Fusion hindered IGH reporting. By adjusting specific filtering steps (e.g., read support, fusion fragments per million total reads), we achieved a 94% reporting rate for IGH fusions with STAR-Fusion. This analysis highlights the importance of filtering optimization for IGH gene fusion events, offering alternative workflows for difficult-to-detect high-risk B-ALL subtypes. Full article