Purpose：The primary objective of this study was to comprehensively evaluate and compare the therapeutic efficacy of trastuzumab in combination with capecitabine plus cisplatin versus capecitabine plus cisplatin in the management of patients diagnosed with advanced human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive gastric cancer. Aiming to facilitate clinical decision-making and ultimately improving treatment outcomes for this specific patient population. Methods：A comprehensive computerized search was conducted across multiple databases, including Cochrane Library, Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, CNKI, CBM, VIP, and Wanfang to identify domestic and foreign clinical randomized controlled trials (RCTs), investigating the efficacy of trastuzumab in combination with capecitabine plus cisplatin for the treatment of patients with advanced HER2-positive gastric cancer. The search encompassed articles published from the inception of the databases until July 1, 2022. Results：This meta-analysis comprised 12 studies involving a total of 1199 patients diagnosed with advanced HER2-positive gastric cancer. The results revealed that the experimental group exhibited significantly higher rates of total effectiveness and control compared to the control group. Moreover, the experimental group showed a significant increase in median survival time compared to the control group. Additionally, the experimental group exhibited a significantly higher quality of life score and demonstrated improved prognosis in terms of carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9) levels, with a lower recurrence rate. The experimental group showed a decrease in the stage of gastric cancer based on carbohydrate antigen 72-4 (CA72-4) levels and (CEA) levels compared to the control group.. Furthermore, the experimental group exhibited a notable enhancement in the therapeutic efficacy of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and a superior prognosis compared to the control group. Conclusion：Trastuzumab in combination with capecitabine plus cisplatin can be a preferred first-line treatment option for advanced HER2-positive gastric cancer, accompanying by a promising therapeutic efficacy.

Yuanjiang dry-hot valley is a poorly vegetated area and a fragile arid ecosystem. Although, in the past the valley was lushly forested, it has become a tropical montane savannah in recent decades. Nonetheless, it is unclear what controls plant species distribution in these kinds of dry-hot valleys. Clarifying this will be beneficial to sustainable ecosystem management in dry-hot valleys. This study explored the relationship between plant species and their living environments in the low land of this dry-hot valley. To achieve this, transects and plots were arranged along the river channel while alpha and beta indices were employed to observe the biodiversity change between species and environments. Estimated species, rarity, and abundance indices were also subscribed to examine the correlation among species, population size, and their living circumstances in terms of Species_estimated, Singletons, Uniques, ACE, ICE, and Chao2. Fifty years of meteorological records including temperature and precipitation were collected for environmental reference . The results indicated that: (1) alpha diversity is higher when located closer to the river channel than from afar whereas beta diversity increases from the upper stream to the lower stream with Bray-Curtis < 0.500, but this condition is reversed in the transect perpendicular to the river; (2) total phosphorous (TP) and total potassium (TK) are increased when slope is declined, tending to be in the same direction as the total increase of nitrogen (TN) and organic matters (OM); (3) all measured nutrients are aggregated to the lower stream along with river flows, corresponding to an increased number of species; (4) water supply is the determinant factor for plant distribution while soil condition is the key decisive factor for water retention; (5) estimated species, rarity and abundance indices are significant on the sites that are closer to the river, thus strongly indicating heterogeneous of habitats and soil condition. (6) Fern species is screened as an indicator, thus representing the xeric environment in Yuanjiang dry-hot valley. Conclusively, plants are not flourished at low altitudes which are ascribed to high temperatures and low water supply. Therefore, attention and policy on microhabitat protection and environment management should be drawn and enforced exclusively for this valley.

Background. Patient engagement is seen as a fundamental strategy for achieving quality patient-centred care, especially in community-based primary healthcare (OMS2023, Haesebaert et al. 2018). Despite growing interest in patient engagement in Sub-Saharan Africa, few patient engagement initiatives have been identified, and those often are limited to lower-levels of engagement, in participation in health research or in health system improvement (Gogovor et al. 2023). With the aim of giving a voice to under-represented community groups in healthcare governance, the ASSK project supported the implementation of primary health services user committees in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), designed to enable the representation of two user groups with specific unmet sexual and reproductive health (SRH) needs: women and adolescents. Aims and Methods. Using a mixed-method case study design combining quantitative secondary data (DHIS2) and qualitative data from two research World Cafés (WC1:Women user committees (WUC) n=55; WC2: Adolescents user committee (AUC) n=63)(Schield et al. 2022), this paper looks at the implementation facilitators and barriers, and at the results of this initiative. Results. Women and adolescent members of the user committees highlighted that their participation resulted in increased knowledge of SRH and their related rights, as well as in their “soft skills” such as communication and leadership. In addition, participants reported greater transparency and accountability on the part of the community primary health centers (e.g. by displaying fees for procedures to counter over-billing). Ultimately, WUC and AUC were associated with improved health practices in the community such as increased use of sexual and reproductive health services, including adolescent family planning and assisted childbirth (15-49 years old). Conclusions. Patient user committees for specific marginalized or under-represented groups appear to be an effective way of improving the quality of primary health care services. Further research is needed to better understand how to maximize its potential.

The integration of precise landing capabilities into UAVs is crucial for enabling autonomous operations, particularly in challenging environments such as the offshore scenarios. This work proposes a heterogeneous perception system that incorporates a multimodal fiducial marker, designed to improve the accuracy and robustness of autonomous landing of UAVs in both daytime and nighttime operations. This work presents ViTAL-TAPE, a visual transformer-based model, that enhance the detection reliability of the landing target and overcomes the changes in the illumination conditions and viewpoint positions, where traditional methods fail. VITAL-TAPE is an end-to-end model that combines multimodal perceptual information, including photometric and radiometric data, to detect landing targets defined by a fiducial marker with 6 degrees-of-freedom. Extensive experiments have proved the ability of VITAL-TAPE to detect fiducial markers with an error of 0.01 m. Moreover, experiments using the RAVEN UAV, designed to endure the challenging weather conditions of offshore scenarios, demonstrated that the autonomous landing technology proposed in this work achieved an accuracy up to 0.1 m. This research also presents the first successful autonomous operation of a UAV in a commercial offshore wind farm with floating foundations installed in the Atlantic Ocean. These experiments showcased the system's accuracy, resilience and robustness, resulting in a precise landing technology that extends mission capabilities of UAVs, enabling autonomous and Beyond Visual Line of Sight offshore operations.

A series of unexpected semi-saturated fused multicyclic iminosugars were synthesized by one-pot stereoselective three-components reactions of D-ribose tosylate, aniline and cycloketenes at heating condition. The N-aryl enamine derived from iminium-ion is the key intermediate for the reaction. As a result, several novel complex fused iminosugars 3a/4a were obtained through aza hetero Diels-Alder mechanism at 80 oC. This strategy will help to prepare the bioactive iminosugar analogues with structural diversity.

Background: Concomitant Wilms tumor (WT) and autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is exceedingly rare, presenting a diagnostic and technical challenge to pediatric surgical oncologists. The simultaneous workup and management of these disease processes is incompletely described. Procedure: We performed a retrospective analysis of patients treated at our institution with concomitant diagnoses of WT and ADPKD. We also review the literature on the underlying biology and management principles of these conditions. Results: We present three diverse cases of concomitant unilateral WT and ADPKD who underwent nephrectomy. One patient had preoperative imaging consistent with ADPKD with confirmatory testing postoperatively, one was found to have contralateral renal cysts intraoperatively with confirmatory imaging post-nephrectomy, and one was diagnosed in childhood post-nephrectomy. All patients are alive at last follow-up, and the patient with longest follow-up has progressed to end-stage kidney failure requiring transplantation and dialysis in adulthood. All patients underwent germline testing and were found to have no cancer predisposition syndrome or pathogenic or likely-pathogenic variants for WT. Conclusion: Concomitant inheritance of ADPKD and development of WT is extremely rare, and manifestations of ADPKD may not present until late childhood or adulthood. ADPKD is not a known predisposing condition for WT. When ADPKD diagnosis is made by family history, imaging, and/or genetic testing before WT diagnosis and treatment, the need for extensive preoperative characterization of cystic kidney lesions in children and increased risk of post-nephrectomy kidney failure warrant further discussion of surgical approach and peri-operative management strategies.

Introduction: The Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) has been applied to detect challenging-to-isolate pathogenic microorganisms from food or clinical samples. However, inhibitors or inherent elements of the samples can impact its efficiency. The quantity and quality of extracted DNA are crucial. Objective: To compare two extraction methods for obtaining PCR-amplifiable DNA in real-time PCR (qPCR). Methodology: DNA was extracted using the Phenol-Chloroform-Isoamyl Alcohol (PC) and Chelex® 100 (Chlx) methods from stool samples inoculated with Salmonella spp. previously cultured in selective Selenite Cystine (SC) and Tetrationate (T) broths. Results: DNA was quantified by spectrophotometry and amplified by qPCR to detect Salmonella spp. The average DNA purity value using the PC method from SC culture was 1.61 ± 0.21, while from T culture it was 1.56 ± 0.21. The Chlx method from SC culture resulted in a purity of 1.57 ± 0.24, while from T culture it was 1.79 ± 0.20. However, better amplification was achieved using the PC extraction method from SC culture. Conclusions: It was determined that the PC extraction method from SC culture provides PCR-amplifiable DNA in Real-Time PCR, and pre-PCR culturing is advantageous as it enhances the bacterial target and dilutes inhibitors.

Four supervised machine learning algorithms were used in building social engineering attack prevention models i.e. Support Vector machines, Logistic Regression, Bayesian Network and Random Forest. The efficacy of the models was ascertained by the help of three datasets (one synthetic and two real-life). The performances of the machine learning methods were compared using F1-score, accuracy, Matthew’s Correlation Coefficient, Precision and Sensitivity. The usefulness of each dataset was also compared per machine learning technique to draw relevant conclusions. Results from the experimental set-up showed that SVM demonstrates greater resilience in preventing mobile money fraud attacks as compared to the other algorithms. Again, even though real datasets are complex and utilize greater system resources during model training and testing, they help in building more effective social engineering attack prevention models than other datasets that are obtained from synthetic sources.

More than half of CRSwNP patients treated with dupilumab experience olfactory improvement within 28 days To the Editor,Olfactory dysfunction is one of the main complaints of patients suffering from Chronic Rhinosinusitis with Nasal Polyps, significantly affecting their quality of life. Dupilumab has proven to effectively enhance olfactory function within six months of treatment (1-3). However, the speed and efficacy of this effect on olfactory function improvement within the initial weeks of treatment has yet to be determined.The data reported in this letter stem from a prospective observational cohort (PolyREG) aimed to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of biological therapy in chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps. Eligible patients from this cohort were treated with dupilumab subcutaneously (300mg 1x/2 weeks) for chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps in our tertiary centre. Patients were asked to use the Galenus Health App reporting Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) scores of their complaints in their Health Diary (4, 5). With special regard to olfaction, the question ‘How much does your smell loss bother you today?’ was answered with a VAS score ranging from 0 to 10 (cm) (0 being not bothersome at all, 10 the most bothersome thinkable) with a cut-off of >5.2 for olfactory dysfunction (hyposmia or anosmia) (6). In total, 72 patients filled out a VAS score on olfactory dysfunction at baseline and at least one other day during the first 28 days of dupilumab treatment. Also, the outcomes of the Sniffin’ Sticks-12 Identification test were collected at baseline and after 28 days of treatment.Baseline demographics of these 72 patients were comparable to the complete prospective cohort described by van der Lans et al (1) (data not shown). At baseline, the median Sniffin’ Sticks-12 Identification Test score was 3 (IQR 2) indicating anosmia. After 28 days, the median Sniffin’ Sticks-12 Identification Test score was 6 (IQR 6, Wilcoxon signed-rank test: p<0.001). 93.7% of patients reported a Visual Analogue Scale score on olfaction of >5.2, indicating olfactory dysfunction. Over the subsequent 28 days of treatment, this percentage significantly declined to 44.2% (Figure 1A: Pearson Correlation r=0.924, p<0.001). 50% of the patients scored >6, indicating hyposmia or normosmia (Figure 1B). The mean VAS score in the first week of treatment significantly predicted the outcome of the Sniffin’ Sticks-12 Identification Test after four weeks of treatment (linear regression F(1,97)= 6.7, p=0.012). As such, the data show a rapid olfactory function improvement in more than half of the patients treated with dupilumab, starting after 1-2 injections.Lastly, a retrospective analysis of these 72 patients’ medical records was conducted to see if olfactory function improvement was previously reported during a course of oral corticosteroids prior to the initiation of dupilumab treatment. Subsequently, data was available for 63 of 72 patients. These patients were categorized into either the oral corticosteroid-responsive (n=51) or oral corticosteroid-unresponsive (n=12) group. Stratifying for oral corticosteroid-responsiveness showed enhanced results of dupilumab treatment in the oral corticosteroid-responsive group (Figures 1A and 1B). At best, 70.8% of patients in the oral corticosteroid-responsive group had a VAS score of ≤5.2 compared to 16.7% in the oral corticosteroid-unresponsive group and 55.8% of the total cohort.While acknowledging the limitations of the study, including a relatively small patient group, missing data in the Health Diary, a cut-off corresponding not directly to Sniffin’ Sticks-12 Identification Test and the setting in a tertiary medical center, the implications of our findings are profound. Dupilumab emerges as a fast and efficacious treatment option for improving olfactory function in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps. Our data also suggest a potential need for stratification of treatment response based on oral corticosteroid responsiveness, as more patients experience olfactory function improvement if they ever had olfactory function improvement upon oral corticosteroids.(600 words)

In order to address the challenges of complex process and low precision in traditional device modeling, based on the double hidden layer conjugate gradient back propagation neural network (CG-BPNN) and the double hidden layer Levenberg-Marquardt back propagation neural network (LM-BPNN), two small signal models are proposed and analyzed for the gallium arsenide (GaAs) pseudomorphic high electron mobility transistor (pHEMT) here. At first, the scattering parameters (S-parameters) of GaAs pHEMT are divided into training set and test set randomly. Experimental results show that the CG-BPNN is better than another S-parameters when predicting ImS12 with mean square error (MSE) of 1.0449e-05, while LM-BPNN predicts ImS12 with MSE of 3.0954e-06. Meanwhile, the MSE of CG-BPNN is higher than LM-BPNN when predicting all the S-parameters. In addition, it shows a smaller fluctuation range for the error curve of LM-BPNN, which is more stable than the CG-BPNN. Therefore, the double hidden layer LM-BPNN is the better choice to model the small signal of GaAs pHEMT.

Poly-NHC-based organometallic assemblies 3-PF6, 3-SbF6 and 3-OTf were obtained and verified by NMR spectroscopy, ESI mass spec-trometry and single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses. Controllable structural interconversion was observed between the poly-NHC-based organometallic assemblies and their self-aggregated dimers in solution affected by concentration, solvent and metal ion. 1H NMR spectra of assembly 3-PF6 in CD3CN at different concentrations demonstrated controllable structural interconversion, and 19F NMR spectrum of assembly 3-PF6 at high concentration further evidenced the presence of the free hexafluorophosphate anion and en-capsulated hexafluorophosphate anion for its two sets of signals. In addition, single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis provided clear evi-dence that in the solid state, two assemblies 3-PF6 were vertically stuck, forming a self-aggregated dimer with an encapsulated hex-afluorophosphate anion. Investigating the reversible structural interconversion is beneficial for revealing the intrinsic nature on the atom level and paving the way to design the stimuli-responsive functional system.

TITLE PAGE:Title:Letter to the Editor: Human papillomavirus 16 infection in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma undergoing chemoradiotherapyAuthors:Shih-Kuei Peng1James Cheng-Chung Wei2Qi Mei3,4Affiliations:1Department of Anesthesiology, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan2Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan3Cancer Center, Shanxi Bethune Hospital, Shanxi Academy of Medical Sciences, Tongji Shanxi Hospital, Third Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, People’s Republic of China4Department of Oncology，Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Hubei, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China.CorrespondenceShih-Kuei Department of Anesthesiology, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, 40201 Taichung, Taiwan.Email: peng.kuei@gmail.comEmail address of the corresponding author:James Cheng-Chung Wei: wei3228@gmail.comQi Mei: borismq@163.comORCIDShih-Kuei Penghttps://orcid.org/0009-0002-2038-8594Letter to the Editor: Human papillomavirus 16 infection in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma undergoing chemoradiotherapyDear Editor,We are writing to express our appreciation and to discuss the recent study published in your journal titled ”Survival benefits of human papillomavirus 16 infection in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma undergoing chemoradiotherapy.1” This study provides insightful data into the prognostic impact of HPV 16 on ESCC treated with chemoradiotherapy, emphasizing its potential role in personalized treatment strategies. While the findings are promising, showing that HPV 16-positive patients had significantly longer overall survival, we would like to raise some concerns regarding the study’s limitations which might affect the interpretation of these results.Firstly, the retrospective nature of the study may contribute to inherent biases such as selection and recall bias2-4. Additionally, the study’s single-center design may not reflect a broader demographic, which could limit the generalizability of the findings.Furthermore, it is crucial to consider the external validation of these results to strengthen the study’s conclusions. The impact of HPV 16 on survival seems substantial, but without validation from external cohorts, the findings remain provisional. HPV virus infection can sometimes have local variation on genotypes, serotypes, and clinical phenotypes.Finally, while the study offers valuable insights into the role of HPV 16 in ESCC, further prospective studies with diverse and larger populations are necessary to confirm these findings and to consider them in clinical applications5,6. We appreciate the efforts of the authors and look forward to future research that may expand on these initial findings.CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENTThe authors declare no conflict of interest.Shih-Kuei Peng1James Cheng-Chung Wei2Qi Mei3,41Department of Anesthesiology, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan2Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan3Cancer Center, Shanxi Bethune Hospital, Shanxi Academy of Medical Sciences, Tongji Shanxi Hospital, Third Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, People’s Republic of China4Department of Oncology，Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Hubei, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China.Correspondence: James Cheng-Chung Wei and Qi Mei contribute equallyORCIDShih-Kuei Penghttps://orcid.org/0009-0002-2038-8594REFERENCESQu F, Ji C, Wang Y, et al. Survival benefits of human papillomavirus 16 infection in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma undergoing chemoradiotherapy: A retrospective cohort study. J Med Virol. 2024;96(4): e29592. doi: 10.1002/jmv.29592.Morgan E, Soerjomataram I, Rumgay H, et al. The global landscape of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and esophageal adenocarcinoma incidence and mortality in 2020 and projections to 2040: new estimates from GLOBOCAN 2020. Gastroenterology. 2022;163(3):649‐658.e2.Sung H, Ferlay J, Siegel RL, et al. Global cancer statistics 2020: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J Clin. 2021;71(3):209‐249.Lagergren J, Smyth E, Cunningham D, Lagergren P. Oesophageal cancer.Lancet. 2017;390(10110):2383‐2396.Spiotto MT, Taniguchi CM, Klopp AH, et al. Biology of the radio‐ and Chemo‐Responsiveness in HPV malignancies. Semin Radiat Oncol.2021;31(4):274‐285.Wang WL, Wang YC, Lee CT, et al. The impact of human papillomavirus infection on the survival and treatment response of patients with esophageal cancers. J Dig Dis. 2015;16(5):256‐263.

In this work we investigate a viscoelastic wave equation involving a logarithmic nonlinearity and acoustic boundary conditions. Making some assumptions on the memory kernel function g, which is not necessarily decreasing and using Lyapunov method, we establish a general decay estimate of the solution.

Venetoclax use in Patient with Ataxia Telangiectasia and Early-T-Cell Precursor Acute Lymphoblastic LeukemiaShaikha Alqahtani1, Ramya Ramakrishnan1, Shuyu E2 , Sa A. Wang2, Cesar Nunez1, David McCall1, Miriam B., Garcia1, Michael E. Roth1, Branko Cuglievan1, Amber Gibson1Department of Pediatrics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USADepartment of Hematopathology, Division of Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA

Case Report

In this study, a framework for predicting the gas-sensitive properties of gas-sensitive materials by combining machine learning and density functional theory (DFT) has been proposed. The framework rapidly predicts the gas response of materials by establishing relationships between multi-source physical parameters and gas-sensitive properties. In order to prove its effectiveness, the perovskite Cs3Cu2I5 has been selected as the representative material. The physical parameters before and after the adsorption of various gases have been calculated using DFT, and then a machine learning model has been trained based on these parameters. Previous studies have shown that a single physical parameter alone is not enough to accurately predict the gas sensitivity of materials. Therefore, a variety of physical parameters have been selected for machine learning, and the final machine learning model achieved 92% accuracy in predicting gas sensitivity. It is important to note that although there have been no previous reports on the response of Cs3Cu2I5 to hydrogen sulfide, the resulting model predicts the gas response of H2S, which is subsequently confirmed experimentally. This method not only enhances the understanding of the gas sensing mechanism, but also has a universal nature, making it suitable for the development of various new gas-sensitive materials.

When hermit crabs recognize the risk of predation, they generally hide inside their shells or flee from the area, and little is known about their abandonment of the shells for escape. We discovered that the hermit crab Pagurus filholi abandons its shell and attempts to flee when captured by the predatory crab Charybdis japonica, and we examined the effectiveness of this behavior in laboratory experiments. We fed captive C. japonica with P. filholi occupying gastropod shells. When the C. japonica could not break the shell even a little, it gave up and the P. filholi neither abandoned its shell nor was eaten. However, when the predator succeeded in partially breaking the shell, the hermit crab often abandoned the shell, and when it did so, it often survived. Once the predator had completely broken the shell open, all hermit crabs that remained in the shell were consumed, and those that abandoned the shell were also often consumed. Therefore, hermit crabs do not need to abandon their shells if a predator is unable to break the shell even slightly, but if a predator begins to break the shell, they have a better chance of survival if they abandon their shells at an early stage.

metastatic melanoma, radiotherapy, immune checkpoint inhibitors, combination therapy, abscopal effect

A document by Abdus Ansari. Click on the document to view its contents.

Invasive species are considered as the chief global change drivers having the potential to change the functioning of ecosystem and biodiversity. Although, soil organic carbon dynamics is affected by plant invasion, very few studies have focused on the impact of an invasive shrub, Lantana camara L. on the soil organic carbon storage mainly in India, in spite of the extensive invasion of the shrub in the country. The main objective of the present study is to consider the impact of Lantana camara L on soil organic carbon stocks in tropical dry deciduous forests of Madhya Pradesh, Central India. It was found that the soil organic carbon was significantly influenced by the invasion of Lantana camara predominantly at the depth of 0-10 cm depth and its values were 10.4% higher as compared to that of uninvaded site. On an average, the percentage of soil organic carbon at the soil depths of 0–10, 10.1–30, and 30.1–50 cm were reported to be 29.8, 37.3, and 32.9 % in Lantana invaded sites and 27.0, 38.4 and 34.6 % in uninvaded sites, respectively. Also, higher soil moisture content, higher soil pH and lower soil bulk density were reported in Lantana invaded sites at all the depths as compared to uninvaded sites. Current study reports the alteration of soil organic carbon stocks by Lantana invasion which can be helpful in understanding the impact of invasive plant species on soil organic carbon stocks in tropical forests and to forecast the changes in ecosystem functioning.

A document by Natalia Fraga-Pena. Click on the document to view its contents.

Northeast India, with its variety of geographical features and topography, provides a plethora of niches for species to evolve and thrive. Among a multitude of factors, past climate change is one of the important factors influencing primate speciation in this region. Populations of various species could have risen or declined in response to these climatic fluctuations. Recent advances in climate modelling as well as genomic data analysis has paved the way for understanding how species accumulate at a particular geographic region. We utilized these methods to explore the primate diversity in the unique region of northeast India. To ascertain these population level changes, we inferred demographic history of nine species of primates found in northeast India with MSMC2 and compared it with species distribution models using past climate data of Pliocene and Pleistocene period. Through this study, we are able to give a detailed picture of how past climatic changes have affected the present species diversity and we show that the primate diversity in northeast India is a mix of species either originated there or have dispersed from mainland southeast Asia. We observe that effective population size has decreased for all the species, but distributions are different for all the four genera, Macaca, Trachypithecus, Hoolock and Nycticebus, and this provides important insights pertaining to present primate diversity in the region. It also gives an idea about how each species is affected differently by climate change, and why it should be given emphasis in framing species-wise conservation models for future climate change.

The current-voltage (I-V) curves of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems have been widely used as a tool to determine their electrical operation. Usually, I-V curves are described employing three cardinal points: the short-circuit point (0, I sc), the open-circuit point (V oc , 0), and the maximum power point (V mp , I mp). In this context, to study the I-V curves, the single-diode model (SDM) is often used. In this manuscript, we present a practical approach for determining the parameters domain of the SDM given a set of cardinal points. An in-depth mathematical analysis showed that the SDM must satisfy the following inequalities Voc /2 < V mp < V oc and Isc /2 < I mp < I sc. Then, it is possible to implicitly represent the SDM by a single parameter and, consequently, to determine its domain. For this purpose, a fast open-source computational algorithm for the single parameter domain of the SDM is presented. The algorithm has been computer-tested using 40 000 synthetically generated maximum power points which are processed in about one minute of the CPU time on a standard laptop computer. Moreover, as practical applications, the databases from the California Energy Commission and the NREL are analyzed using the presented algorithm.

The Cherruault decomposition method is proposed as a means to introduce modifications to Newton's iterative scheme, aiming to enhance efficiency and improve convergence order. Regarded as superior, this technique boasts applicability across a variety of numerical problems. It is noteworthy to mention that algorithms due to Weerakoon and Fernando [13], Homeier [7] and Özban [12] are actually attributed to Traub [12].