Bücher veröffentlicht von Mdpi AG

This book presents the latest research published in the Special Issue Preventing the Adverse Effects of SARS-CoV-2 Infection and COVID-19 through Diet, Supplements, and Lifestyle in the journal Nutrients. In this book, we explore the role of supplements, lifestyle choices, and nutritional status on COVID-19 patient outcomes and risk reduction.

Composites have increasingly been used in various structural components in the aerospace, marine, automotive, and wind energy sectors. The material characterization of composites is a vital part of the product development and production process. Physical, mechanical, and chemical characterization helps developers to further their understanding of products and materials, thus ensuring quality control. Achieving an in-depth understanding and consequent improvement of the general performance of these materials, however, still requires complex material modeling and simulation tools, which are often multiscale and encompass multiphysics.This Special Issue aims to solicit papers concerning promising, recent developments in composite modeling, simulation, and characterization, in both design and manufacturing areas, including experimental as well as industrial-scale case studies. All submitted manuscripts will undergo a rigorous review process and will only be considered for publication if they meet journal standards. Selected top articles may have their processing charges waived at the recommendation of reviewers and the Guest Editor.

Wind diesel power systems (WDPSs) are isolated microgrids that combine diesel generators (DGs) with wind turbine generators (WTGs). Often, WDPS are the result of adding WTGs to a previous existing diesel power plant located in a remote place where there is an available wind resource. By means of power supplied by WTGs, fuel consumption and CO2 emissions are reduced. WDPSs are isolated power systems with low inertia where important system frequency and voltage variations occur. WDPS dynamic modeling and simulation allows short-term simulations to be carried out to obtain detailed electrical variable transients so that WDPS stability and power quality can be tested. This book includes papers on several subjects regarding WDPSs: the main topic of interest is WDPS dynamic modeling and simulation, but related areas such as the sizing of the different WDPS components, studies concerning the control of WDPSs or the use of energy storage systems (ESSs) in WDPSs and the benefits that ESSs provide to WDPS are also discussed. The book also deals with related AC isolated microgrids, such as wind-hydro microgrids or wind-photovoltaic-diesel microgrids.

This Special Issue book covers a wide scope in the research field of 3D-printing, including: the use of 3D printing in system design; AM with binding jetting; powder manufacturing technologies in 3D printing; fatigue performance of additively manufactured metals, such as the Ti-6Al-4V alloy; 3D-printing methods with metallic powder and a laser-based 3D printer; 3D-printed custom-made implants; laser-directed energy deposition (LDED) process of TiC-TMC coatings; Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing; cranial implant fabrication without supports in electron beam melting (EBM) additive manufacturing; the influence of material properties and characteristics in laser powder bed fusion; Design For Additive Manufacturing (DFAM); porosity evaluation of additively manufactured parts; fabrication of coatings by laser additive manufacturing; laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing; plasma metal deposition (PMD); as-metal-arc (GMA) additive manufacturing process; and spreading process maps for powder-bed additive manufacturing derived from physics model-based machine learning.

This Special Issue will compile recent developments in the field of metal oxide thin film deposition. The articles presented in this Special Issue will cover various topics, ranging from, but not limited to, the optimization of deposition methods, thin film preparations, the functionalization of surfaces with targeted applications, nanosensors, catalysis, electronic devices, biocidal coating, and the synthesis of nanostructures via the accurate control of thin film deposition methods, among others. Topics are open to metal oxide thin film deposition and characterization for the development of applications.

Overall, the 19 contributions in this Special Issue "Plant Responses and Tolerance to Salt Stress: Physiological and Molecular Interventions" discuss the various aspects of salt stress responses in plants. It also discusses various mechanisms and approaches to conferring salt tolerance on plants. These types of research studies provide further directions in the development of crop plants for the saline environment in the era of climate change.

Gastrointestinal tract disorders are a wide group of diseases involving both the gastrointestinal tube (esophagus, stomach, small and large intestine) and related organs (liver, pancreas, and gallbladder). These dysfunctions may differ by site, etiology, and severity, going from simple malfunctions to mere diseases. Because of their variety and heterogeneity, gastrointestinal disorders can affect many people and are widespread throughout the population. Therefore, scientific research in this area is facing a great challenge. Better knowledge of gastrointestinal disorders in terms of their pathophysiology, clinical features, and possible complications is necessary for the development of new diagnostic methods and therapeutic strategies. During the last several decades, some scientific developments have already been made, giving more opportunities to these patients. However, much remains to be discovered and to be done to help physicians in their everyday work and to give patients a better prognosis.The present Special Issue aims to highlight recent advances in gastrointestinal tract disorders, focusing on their diagnostic and therapeutic path, evolution, and complications.

In this Special Issue of the journal, advancements in the treatment of liver diseases are illustrated by international experts in the field. New treatment options for primary biliary cirrhosis and, hopefully, primary sclerosing cholangitis are discussed. Up-to-date pharmacological therapy for preventing liver cirrhosis decompensation and treating acute-on-chronic liver failure is highlighted. Furthermore, new treatments for cholangiocarcinoma, based on biological and tissue markers, will be available in the near future, aiming to surpass the current unsatisfactory results of traditional therapies. Immunotherapy has been applied to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The new first-line treatment, combining atezolizumab plus bevacizumab for HCC in the intermediate and advanced stages, will allow for an increase in patient survival in the near future. Liver transplantation (LT) remains the preferred treatment for many patients with end-stage liver diseases and HCC. The selection criteria for LT in patients with HCC moved from morphological to dynamic criteria, such as those derived from the assessment of tumor responses to locoregional and/or systemic treatments before transplantation. This allowed many patients who would have been excluded from a transplantation with the old selection criteria to access one. Finally, a very interesting issue regarding new indications for liver transplantation is illustrated.

As the most prominent and complicated terrain on the globe, the Tibetan Plateau (TP) is often called the "Roof of the World", "Third Pole" or "Asian Water Tower". The energy and water cycles in the Third Pole have great impacts on the atmospheric circulation, Asian monsoon system and global climate change. On the other hand, the TP and the surrounding higher elevation area are also experiencing evident and rapid environmental changes under the background of global warming. As the headwater area of major rivers in Asia, the TP's environmental changes-such as glacial retreat, snow melting, lake expanding and permafrost degradation-pose potential long-term threats to water resources of the local and surrounding regions. To promote quantitative understanding of energy and water cycles of the TP, several field campaigns, including GAME/Tibet, CAMP/Tibet and TORP, have been carried out. A large amount of data have been collected to gain a better understanding of the atmospheric boundary layer structure, turbulent heat fluxes and their coupling with atmospheric circulation and hydrological processes. The focus of this reprint is to present recent advances in quantifying land-atmosphere interactions, the water cycle and its components, energy balance components, climate change and hydrological feedbacks by in situ measurements, remote sensing or numerical modelling approaches in the "Third Pole" region.

This book includes recent research activities in the field of food quality assurance and shelf-life extension. The goal is to broaden our current knowledge of advanced approaches to guaranteeing the maintenance of the properties of packaged products during storage. Preservation strategies based on vacuum packaging, innovative active packaging, emerging technologies, and horticultural by-products are widely discussed in specific chapters. Taken together, these research studies constitute clear evidence that achieving food shelf-life extension is still a complex and multifaceted process. The book reflects advances made in the field and, with the addition of a chapter also covering the secondary shelf-life topic, it will provide the latest research for academics working in the field of novel processing, antimicrobial/antioxidant substances, by-product recycling and active packaging. The research collected in this book is ideal for those working in the food quality industry.

Natural polysaccharides, such as cellulose and chitin, possess unique hierarchical nanoarchitectures that can never be artificially reconstructed, and their nano-organized structures are involved in the hidden materials functions with great potential. Pioneering the emerging functions of nano-organized polysaccharides will break through to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

This reprint presents advances in operation and maintenance in solar plants, wind farms and microgrids. This compendium of scientific articles will help clarify the current advances in this subject, so it is expected that it will please the reader.

This Special Issue contains some recently experimental and theoretical advances in hydrogen evolution reaction, oxygen evolution reaction, and oxygen reduction reaction, and the applications in water splitting, proton exchange membrane fuel cells, and lithium-ion batteries.

This reprint contains original research and review articles describing recent advances in our understanding of the transcriptional regulation of cardiac development and disease mechanisms. All articles were originally published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences (IJMS).

This Special Issue of the International Journal of Molecular Science comprises a comprehensive study on "Antimicrobial Materials with Medical Applications". The Special Issue has been inspired by the great progress made in the development of new antimicrobial materials that go beyond the resistance of microbes to modern antibiotics. It covers a selection of recent research and review articles in the field of antimicrobial materials and their medical applications. Moreover, it also provides an overview of this increasingly diverse field, presenting recent developments and the latest research, with particular emphasis on new antimicrobial surfaces, medical devices, contact lens, package materials, etc.

The production and supply of raw materials is a basic ecosystem service, the origin of multiple production value chains. In 2011, the European Union elaborated a list of critical raw materials (CRMs), taking the economic and strategic importance for the European economy and the supply risk. Although focused mainly on the energy sector, the USA, Canada, and other countries took recently similar steps. Despite the great inertia characterising the mineral raw materials sector, some steps towards the Industry 4.0 paradigm can be envisaged. Significant challenges to the mining sector are the appropriate process design using the best available technologies; the increase in energy efficiency; the responsible use of water and handling of mining wastes; the social acceptance of the activity; and the digitalisation challenge. This book aims to propose strategies that can help face those challenges, especially in increasing energy efficiency in comminution operations.

Biological membranes are essential components of the living systems and processes occurring with their participation are related mainly to electric phenomena, such as signal transduction, the existence of membrane potentials, and transport through the membrane. It is well known that the universal model of the cell membrane structure is the lipid bilayer, which constitutes the environment for integral and surface membrane proteins. Thus, much attention has been given to the study of the organization and properties of these structures concerning both experimental and theoretical aspects. As systematic examinations are impeded by the complexity of the natural membranes, the best approach to conducting detailed physical and chemical studies of biological membranes is to use simplified well-defined model lipid membranes. Among the most commonly used are liposomes, planar lipid membranes, membranes on solid substrates, and lipid monolayers on the free surface.Studies of the electrical properties of model lipid membranes have been carried out for many years. However, there are still many issues that have not been verified experimentally and for which the existing results are incomplete or inconsistent. Therefore, the main objective of this book was to collect recent scientific and review articles on the electrical properties of model lipid membranes. This objective has been successfully achieved, for which I express heartfelt appreciation to all authors and reviewers for their excellent contributions.

Modern societies demand high and varied mobility, which in turn requires a complex transport system adapted to social needs that guarantees the movement of people and goods in an economically efficient and safe way, but all are subject to a new environmental rationality and the new logic of the paradigm of sustainability. From this perspective, an efficient and flexible transport system that provides intelligent and sustainable mobility patterns is essential to our economy and our quality of life. The current transport system poses growing and significant challenges for the environment, human health, and sustainability, while current mobility schemes have focused much more on the private vehicle that has conditioned both the lifestyles of citizens and cities, as well as urban and territorial sustainability. Transport has a very considerable weight in the framework of sustainable development due to environmental pressures, associated social and economic effects, and interrelations with other sectors. The continuous growth that this sector has experienced over the last few years and its foreseeable increase, even considering the change in trends due to the current situation of generalized crisis, make the challenge of sustainable transport a strategic priority at local, national, European, and global levels. This Special Issue will pay attention to all those research approaches focused on the relationship between evolution in the area of transport with a high incidence in the environment from the perspective of efficiency.

Phospholipases are a ubiquitous group of enzymes that hydrolyze ester bonds within membrane phospholipids. These enzymes serve multiple biological functions that go far beyond a mere membrane remodeling role in cellular homeostasis; they also play key functions in nutrient digestion and the regulated formation of bioactive lipids involved in cell signaling. It is to the latter function, critical to life, that this book is primarily concerned with. All the chapters are written by renowned experts in the area, and provide forefront information on the role phospholipases in a number of physiological and pathophysiological settings.

Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) are a common cause of infections in both community and healthcare settings and have become an increasing threat to public health worldwide. The focus of this Special Issue includes aspects concerning plasmid-mediated antimicrobial resistance along with other carbapenem resistance mechanisms. Understanding the prevalence and routes of transmission of CRE is important in developing specific interventions for healthcare facilities, as well as the general impact of CRE circulation on the environment. Attention has also been focused on carbapenemase testing in order to provide advanced phenotypic and molecular assays for the identification of CRE, as a valid tool for active global surveillance, and from this perspective, the study of resistance mechanisms can provide significant support for the development of new and appropriate antimicrobial molecules. For all of these reasons, the phenomenon of carbapenem resistance deserves more attention, for the sake of public health.

This Special Issue aims to attract the latest research and findings in the design, development and experimentation of healthcare-related technologies. This includes, but is not limited to, using novel sensing, imaging, data processing, machine learning, and artificially intelligent devices and algorithms to assist/monitor the elderly, patients, and the disabled population.

In recent years, new and emerging digital technologies applied to food science have been gaining attention and increased interest from researchers and the food/beverage industries. In particular, those digital technologies that can be used throughout the food value chain are accurate, easy to implement, affordable, and user-friendly. Hence, this Special Issue (SI) is dedicated to novel technology based on sensor technology and machine/deep learning modeling strategies to implement artificial intelligence (AI) into food and beverage production and for consumer assessment. This SI published quality papers from researchers in Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Spain, and Mexico, including food and beverage products, such as grapes and wine, chocolate, honey, whiskey, avocado pulp, and a variety of other food products.

This collection of review articles describes the structure, function and mechanism of individual protein methyltransferase enzymes including protein lysine methyltransferases, protein arginine methyltransferases, and also the less abundant protein histidine methyltransferases and protein N-terminal end methyltransferases. The topics covered in the individual reviews include structural aspects (domain architecture, homologs and paralogs, and structure), biochemical properties (mechanism, sequence specificity, product specificity, regulation, and histone and non-histone substrates), cellular features (subcellular localization, expression patterns, cellular roles and function, biological effects of substrate protein methylation, connection to cell signaling pathways, and connection to chromatin regulation) and their role in diseases. This review book is a useful resource for scientists working on protein methylation and protein methyltransferases and those interested in joining this emerging research field.

Albumin is playing an increasing role as a versatile, biodegradable drug carrier in clinical theranostics. By applying different techniques, smart drug-delivery systems can be developed from albumin in order to improve drug delivery of different active pharmaceutical ingredients, even small-molecule drugs, peptides or enzymes. Principally, three drug delivery technologies can be distinguished for binding small-molecule or peptide drugs through the charged amino acids, carboxyl, and amino groups of albumin: physical or covalent binding of the drug to albumin through a ligand- or protein-binding group, the fusion of drug with albumin or the encapsulation of drugs into albumin nanoparticles. The accumulation of albumin in inflamed tissues and solid tumours forms the rationale for developing albumin-based drug delivery systems for targeted drug delivery. Besides tumour therapy, albumin-based drug delivery systems can be successfully applied as anti-inflammatory and anti-thrombotic coating for medical devices. The development and optimization of albumin nanoparticles may also be a rational and promising tool for conventional or alternative administration routes in order to improve therapy. This collection provides an overview of the significant scientific research works in this field, which may inspire researchers towards further development and utilization of these smart drug delivery systems.

This reprint, which was edited by Prof. Dr. Nazar R. Ikhsanov, Prof. Dr. Galina L. Klimchitskaya, and Prof. Dr. Vladimir M. Mostepanenko, contains research and review articles published in a Special Issue of the journal Universe in memory of outstanding astrophysicist Prof. Dr. Yuri N. Gnedin, who organized and led the Department of Astrophysics at the famous Pulkovo Observatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences for several decades. In these articles, the reader will find new and intriguing ideas in several topical problems of astrophysics as well as comprehensive and readily accessible sketches of a few recently performed investigations.

Protein import into the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the first step in the biogenesis of approximately 10,000 different soluble and membrane proteins of human cells, which amounts to about 30% of the proteome. Most of these proteins fulfill their functions either in the membrane or lumen of the ER plus the nuclear envelope, in one of the organelles of the pathways for endo- and exocytosis (ERGIC, Golgi apparatus, endosome, lysosome, and trafficking vesicles), or at the cell surface as plasma membrane or secreted proteins. An increasing number of membrane proteins destined to lipid droplets, peroxisomes or mitochondria are first targeted to and inserted into the ER membrane prior to their integration into budding lipid droplets or peroxisomes or prior to their delivery to mitochondria via the ER-SURF pathway. ER protein import involves two stages, ER targeting, which guarantees membrane specificity, and the insertion of nascent membrane proteins into or translocation of soluble precursor polypeptides across the ER membrane. In most cases, both processes depend on amino-terminal signal peptides or transmembrane helices, which serve as signal peptide equivalents. However, the targeting reaction can also involve the ER targeting of specific mRNAs or ribosome-nascent chain complexes. Both processes may occur co- or post-translationally and are facilitated by various sophisticated machineries, which reside in the cytosol and the ER membrane, respectively. Except for resident ER and mitochondrial membrane proteins, the mature proteins are delivered to their functional locations by vesicular transport.