In this article, an analysis of system loss and depolarization in body area networks (BANs) for body-to-infrastructure (B2I) communications based on a measurement campaign in the 5.8 GHz band in an indoor environment is performed. Measurements were performed with an off-body antenna transmitting linearly polarized signals and dual-polarized receiving antennas carried by the user on the body. A normal distribution with a mean of 2.0 dB and a standard deviation of 4.3 dB is found to be the best fit for modeling cross-polarization (XP) discrimination. The average correlation between the signals received by the orthogonally polarized antennas is below 0.5, showing that polarization diversity can be used. A model for the average value of the standard deviation of the XP discrimination ratio as a function of the transmitted polarization, the mobility of users, and the link dynamics is presented, together with a detailed description of the methodology being used.

Objective: This comprehensive research aimed to thoroughly examine the effectiveness of a diode laser (445 nm) in combination with non-surgical treatment in patients with chronic periodontitis (CP) by evaluating a wide range of clinical and microbiological parameters. Materials and methods: Thirty-one subjects diagnosed with CP were included in this study. The total number of treated periodontal pockets was 862. The subjects were randomly assigned to group 1, which underwent scaling and root planing and laser therapy (SRP+L), and group 2, which underwent scaling and root planing (SRP) only. All respondents underwent a periodontal diagnostic protocol. The parameters plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), bleeding on probing index (BOP), probing depth (PD), clinical attachment level (CAL), and tooth mobility (TM) were registered. Clinical periodontal measurements were performed at baseline and one and three months after therapy. Microbiological analysis was conducted on Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans (Aa), Porphyromonas gingivalis (Pg), and Tannerella forsythia (Tf) using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). For microbiological analysis, samples were taken at baseline, immediately after therapy, and after three months. Laser irradiation was performed immediately after SRP. Results: All clinical parameters improved statistically from baseline to three months after therapy. For all examined clinical parameters, better results were achieved in group 1 than in group 2. This study showed a more significant reduction in Pg and Tf from baseline to three months in group 1 compared to group 2. Conclusion: These results showed that the diode laser wavelength 445 nm was also usable in treating periodontal diseases as an additional method to SRP.

Visual Abstract The auditory brainstem response (ABR) is a measure of subcortical activity in response to auditory stimuli. The wave V peak of the ABR depends on the stimulus intensity level, and has been widely used for clinical hearing assessment. Conventional methods estimate the ABR average electroencephalography (EEG) responses to short unnatural stimuli such as clicks. Recent work has moved toward more ecologically relevant continuous speech stimuli using linear deconvolution models called temporal response functions (TRFs). Investigating whether the TRF waveform changes with stimulus intensity is a crucial step toward the use of natural speech stimuli for hearing assessments involving subcortical responses. Here, we develop methods to estimate level-dependent subcortical TRFs using EEG data collected from 21 participants listening to continuous speech presented at 4 different intensity levels. We find that level-dependent changes can be detected in the wave V peak of the subcortical TRF for almost all participants, and are consistent with level-dependent changes in click-ABR wave V. We also investigate the most suitable peripheral auditory model to generate predictors for level-dependent subcortical TRFs and find that simple gammatone filterbanks perform the best. Additionally, around 6 min of data may be sufficient for detecting level-dependent effects and wave V peaks above the noise floor for speech segments with higher intensity. Finally, we show a proof-of-concept that level-dependent subcortical TRFs can be detected even for the inherent intensity fluctuations in natural continuous speech.

Aim To assess the relationship between the attitudes of general practitioners/family medicine doctors (GP/FD) and of their patients toward industry-sponsored clinical research. Methods A cross-sectional survey included volunteer GPs/FDs who then enrolled and interviewed their patients. Data were analyzed in hierarchical models (patients nested in GPs/FDs, nested in countries/regions). Results A total of 201 GPs/FDs from nine European countries responded to the invitation and enrolled 995 of their patients. We observed mild associations between some of the GPs/FDs’ attitudes (general opinion on sponsored clinical studies, appreciation of the general values of such studies, views about the importance of participant protection/privacy) and some of the patients’ attitudes (appreciation of the general values and of risks associated with sponsored clinical studies, importance assigned to potential personal benefits from participation). We observed no association between GPs/FDs’ attitudes and patients’ willingness to participate in such studies. However, willingness to participate increased with higher patients’ appreciation of the general values of sponsored studies, decreased with higher patients’ appreciation of associated risks, and showed a quadratic trend across the levels of importance assigned by patients to potential personal benefits (willingness was higher when the assigned importance was very low or very high). More importance to GP/FD’s advice in this respect was assigned by patients who assigned more importance to potential personal benefits, who were better educated, and who resided in rural/suburban dwellings. Conclusions In the present convenience sample, lay-person attitudes about and willingness to participate in industry-sponsored clinical studies were associated with the attitudes of their GPs/FDs.

Polyphenols are abundant natural plant micronutrients that commonly contribute to human health due to their anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiviral, anti-carcinogenic, anti-aging, anti-allergic, and other biological activities. Their therapeutic benefits mainly depend on the structure, stability, chemical interactions, and absorption, which ultimately affect the bioavailability of these compounds. The bioactivity of polyphenols is evaluated by in vitro and in vivo studies, sometimes yielding inconsistent results due to numerous differences between used models. Among the main differences is the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in cultured cell models, potentially leading to misinterpretation of the effects of polyphenolic compounds. Little attention is paid to the polyphenol stability in cell culture medium and the potential generation of artifacts due to their chemical instability. Stability tests of polyphenols are strongly advised to be performed in parallel with cell culture, to help avoid misleading conclusions. This review highlights the existing challenges with cell-based research, focusing on polyphenols' stability in the cell culture media. We also emphasize that new methods analyzing the molecular interactions of compounds with cell culture media supplements are essential to provide a comprehensive understanding of the polyphenols in in vitro models.

In this research is presented a new method for determining the weights of criteria called simple weight calculation (SIWEC) method. The steps of this method are presented in the practical example of determining the importance of criteria for the needs of sales of agricultural products in the Semberija region. During the presentation of this method two methods are elaborated the simple SIWEC method which includes numerical ratings and the fuzzy SIWEC method which includes ratings in the form of linguistic value. In the selected example is presented how to use this method in order to determine the importance of criteria and in both cases the criterion of sales reliability is given the greatest weight. The contribution SIWEC method is reflected in its simplicity, which facilitates decision-making.• The method presented in this research apart from others is that it uses the evaluation of the criteria by decision makers, so the criteria should not be ranked and compared, but simply evaluated.• Unlike similar methods, the presented method uses the adjusted steps of the method for ranking the alternatives, and decision makers are given a different importance in the decision-making.

Abstract Energy production, supply and consumption are global issue with many economic, environmental and social implications. Mentioned issue is even more expressed in remote rural areas, in particular in developing countries, as are the countries of the Western Balkans (WB). Renewable energy sources (RES) could represent optimal energy alternative for sustainable performing of agricultural and other activities, as well as for improving the current state of living conditions in rural communities. The main goal of research is to mark the most suitable RES alternative (six alternatives) for wider implementation in rural space of WB. The applied methodology framework implies experts’ opinion (engagement of eight experts) and the use of multi-criteria decision-making methods (MCDM), (specifically fuzzy-rough LMWA and fuzzy-rough CRADIS methods) under the predefined criteria (nine criteria). Derived results show that the implementation of the solar energy plants could play an optimal solution, while as the relatively unsuitable alternative could be marked the use of energy potential of watercourses. Gained final result, i.e. ranking order of the considered alternatives is additionally verified by the appliance of other MCDM methods, while the sensitivity analysis was also performed.

Carnassial teeth, as one of the most important teeth in dogs, are commonly affected by different types of injuries and pathological disorders, which require endodontic treatment. Lateral canals, which leave the main root canal, and apical deltas are present in the root canal system of dogs. These canals represent small branches that leave the main root canal at a sharp angle and terminate in a region of the periodontal ligament on the external root surface. In this study, 200 teeth were included, of which 100 were superior fourth premolars and 100 were inferior first molars. Lateral canals were present in a total of 30 roots of superior fourth premolar teeth, whereas in inferior first molars, these canals were found in 3% of roots. In superior fourth premolars, lateral canals were mostly present in the apical third, 86%, while 14% were present in the middle third of the root. In inferior first molars, lateral canals were found in 3% of the roots, 2% in the apical third and 1% in the middle third of the roots. The knowledge of the complex root canal morphology is essential for any endodontic treatment. Due to the presence and frequency of lateral canals, it is imperative to perform more thorough cleaning and instrumentation while performing endodontic treatment on superior fourth premolars compared to inferior first molars.