Accurate classification of wheat freeze injury severity from the color information in digital canopy images.

This paper explores whether it is feasible to use the RGB color information in images of wheat canopies that were exposed to low temperatures during the growth season to achieve fast, non-destructive, and accurate determination of the severity of any freeze injury it may have incurred. For the study presented in this paper, we compared the accuracy of a number of algorithmic classification models using either meteorological data reported by weather services or the color gradation skewness-distribution from high-definition digital canopy images acquired in situ as inputs against a reference obtained by manually assessing the severity of the freeze injury inflicted upon wheat populations at three experimental stations in Shandong, China. The algorithms we used to construct the models included in our study were based on either K-means clustering, systematic clustering, or naïve Bayesian classification. When analyzing the reliability of our models, we found that, at more than 85%, the accuracy of the Bayesian model, which used the color information as inputs and involved the use of prior data in the form of the reference data we had obtained through manual classification, was significantly higher than that of the models based on systematic or the K-means clustering, which did not involve the use of prior data. It was interesting to note that the determination accuracy of algorithms using meteorological factors as inputs was significantly lower than that of those using color information. We also noted that the determination accuracy of the Bayesian model had some potential for optimization, which prompted us to subject the inputs of the model to a factor analysis in order to identify the key independent leaf color distribution parameters characterizing wheat freeze injury severity. This optimization allowed us to improve the determination accuracy of the model to over 90%, even in environments comprising several different ecological zones, as was the case at one of our experimental sites. In conclusion, our naïve Bayesian classification algorithm, which uses six key color gradation skewness-distribution parameters as inputs and involves the use of prior data in the form of manual assessments, qualifies as a contender for the development of commercial-grade wheat freeze injury severity monitoring systems supporting post-freeze management measures aimed at ensuring food security.

Soy Peptide Supplementation Mitigates Undernutrition through Reprogramming Hepatic Metabolism in a Novel Undernourished Non-Human Primate Model.

In spite of recent advances in the field of undernutrition, current dietary therapy relying on the supply of high protein high calorie formulas is still plagued with transient recovery of impaired organs resulting in significant relapse of cases. This is partly attributed to the inadequacy of current research models in recapitulating clinical undernutrition for mechanistic exploration. Using 1636 Macaca fascicularis monkeys, a human-relevant criterion for determining undernutrition weight-for-age z-score (WAZ), with a cutoff point of ≤ -1.83 is established as the benchmark for identifying undernourished nonhuman primates (U-NHPs). In U-NHPs, pathological anomalies in multi-organs are revealed. In particular, severe dysregulation of hepatic lipid metabolism characterized by impaired fatty acid oxidation due to mitochondria dysfunction, but unlikely peroxisome disorder, is identified as the anchor metabolic aberration in U-NHPs. Mitochondria dysfunction is typified by reduced mito-number, accumulated long-chain fatty acids, and disruption of OXPHOS complexes. Soy peptide-treated U-NHPs increase in WAZ scores, in addition to attenuated mitochondria dysfunction and restored OXPHOS complex levels. Herein, innovative criteria for identifying U-NHPs are developed, and unknown molecular mechanisms of undernutrition are revealed hitherto, and it is further proved that soypeptide supplementation reprogramed mitochondrial function to re-establish lipid metabolism balance and mitigated undernutrition.