ACR Appropriateness Criteria® Imaging of Suspected Intracranial Hypotension.

The clinical syndrome of intracranial hypotension refers to the symptoms caused by cerebrospinal fluid hypovolemia and is primarily characterized by postural headaches, but can be associated with a multitude of other neurological symptoms. Imaging plays a critical role in helping to establish a diagnosis of intracranial hypotension, localize the source of cerebrospinal fluid leak, and assist in directing targeted treatments. Using the best available evidence, this document provides diagnostic imaging recommendations for the workup of intracranial hypotension across various clinical presentations. The American College of Radiology Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed annually by a multidisciplinary expert panel. The guideline development and revision process support the systematic analysis of the medical literature from peer reviewed journals. Established methodology principles such as Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation or GRADE are adapted to evaluate the evidence. The RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method User Manual provides the methodology to determine the appropriateness of imaging and treatment procedures for specific clinical scenarios. In those instances where peer reviewed literature is lacking or equivocal, experts may be the primary evidentiary source available to formulate a recommendation.

ACR Appropriateness Criteria® Thoracic Back Pain.

Thoracic back pain is a common site for inflammatory, neoplastic, metabolic, infectious, and degenerative conditions, and may be associated with significant disability and morbidity. Uncomplicated acute thoracic back pain and/or radiculopathy does not typically warrant imaging. Imaging may be considered in those patients who have persistent pain despite 6 weeks of conservative treatment. Early imaging may also be warranted in patients presenting with "red flag" history or symptoms, including those with a known or suspected history of cancer, infection, immunosuppression, or trauma; in myelopathic patients; or in those with a history of prior thoracic spine fusion. The American College of Radiology Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed annually by a multidisciplinary expert panel. The guideline development and revision process support the systematic analysis of the medical literature from peer reviewed journals. Established methodology principles such as Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation or GRADE are adapted to evaluate the evidence. The RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method User Manual provides the methodology to determine the appropriateness of imaging and treatment procedures for specific clinical scenarios. In those instances where peer reviewed literature is lacking or equivocal, experts may be the primary evidentiary source available to formulate a recommendation.

Novel anti-tumor effect of natural products from Aloe vera resin and their in-vitro/in-silico targeting mechanism of carbonic anhydrase-II and IX.

Human carbonic anhydrase (hCA) plays a vital role in the development and progression of tumors in hypoxic conditions. Herein we report the hCA-II and hCA-IX activities of natural products isolated from Aloe vera (L.) Burm.f., to know their potential in tumors. These isolated compounds (1-10) displayed varying degrees of inhibition against hCA-II and hCA-IX. All the compounds showed potent activity against hCA-IX with IC50 values in the range of 2.9 - 29.1 µM. While for hCA-II, compounds 1, 2, 5-10 exhibited IC50 in the range of 4.7 - 23.4 µM. The most effective hCA IX and II inhibitors, 2 and 5, were chosen for in vitro mechanism studies, revealing that they are competitive inhibitors. Furthermore, when tested for their cytotoxic effect on BJ (normal) cell line, all the compounds showed no cytotoxic behavior, while on Prostate cancer cells (PC-3), compounds 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 exhibited significant antiproliferative activity. Molecular docking was also conducted within the hCA IX and hCA-II active sites to observe their binding capability. Compounds 1, 5, 7, and 9 were active against both isozymes of hCA and in the PC-3 cell line, therefore these are the best choices for further in vivo studies..

Babesia bigemina and Theileria annulata infections in cattle: molecular detection, phylogenetic analysis, and assessment of risk factors.

Babesia bigemina and Theileria annulata are tick-borne protozoans that cause piroplasmosis in cattle, resulting in huge damages to the livestock industry. The prevalence of these infections depends on various intrinsic and extrinsic risk factors. In Pakistan, there is no information regarding the molecular characterization of Babesia bigemina and the risk factors associated with piroplasmosis. This study aimed to molecularly characterize Babesia spp. and Theileria spp. infecting various cattle breeds in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, and to shed light on risk factors associated with these infections. Altogether, 219 blood samples were collected from various symptomatic cattle breeds, including Holstein Friesian (65.3%; 143/219), Jersey (21.5%; 47/219) and Sahiwal (13.2%; 29/219). Isolated genomic DNA from these blood samples was used in PCR for the amplification of the 18S rRNA fragment of apicomplexan parasites. Obtained 18S rDNA sequences from cattle hosts showed 99.5% identity with B. bigemina, or 100% with T. annulata. Having an overall infection rate of 61.6% (135/219), the highest infection rate was recorded for T. annulata (43.8%; 95/219), followed by B. bigemina (18.3%; 40/219). Phylogenetic analysis of 18S rDNA sequences revealed that B. bigemina clustered with corresponding species reported from Bolivia, and South Africa, while T. annulata grouped with same species from Italy, India, and Turkey. Among the different risk factors, the breed, season, and tick infestation were found to have a significant (P < 0.05) association with the piroplasmid infections. The information obtained in this study can be employed for effective surveillance and control of babesiosis and theileriosis in Pakistan. In addition to confirming our previous molecular detection of T. annulata in cattle, this study provides the first molecular surveillance and phylogenetic position of B. bigemina and associated risk factors in the study region.

Protonation State-Induced Unfolding of Protein Secondary Structure in the Gas Phase.

The combination of infrared spectroscopy (IR) and ion mobility mass spectrometry (IM-MS) has revealed that protein secondary structures are retained upon transformation from aqueous solution to the gas phase under gentle conditions. Yet the details about where and how these structural elements are embedded in the gas phase remain elusive. In this study, we employ long time scale molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to examine the extent to which proteins retain their solution structures and the impact of protonation state on the stability of secondary structures in the gas phase. Our investigation focuses on two well-studied proteins, myoglobin and ß-lactoglobulin, representing typical helical and ß-sheet proteins, respectively. Our simulations accurately reproduce the experimental collision cross section (CCS) data measured by IM-MS. Based on accurately reproducing previous experimental collision cross section data and dominant secondary structural species obtained from IM-MS and IR, we confirm that both proteins largely retain their native secondary structural components upon passing from aqueous solution to the gas phase. However, we observe significant reductions in secondary structure contents (19.2 ± 1.2% for myoglobin and 7.3 ± 0.6% for ß-lactoglobulin) in specific regions predominantly composed of ionizable residues. Further mechanistic analysis suggests that alterations in protonation states of these residues after phase transition induce changes in their local interaction networks and backbone dihedral angles, which potentially promote the unfolding of secondary structures in the gas phase. We anticipate that similar protonation state induced unfolding may be observed in other proteins possessing distinct secondary structures. Further studies on a broader array of proteins will be essential to refine our understanding of protein structural behavior during the transition to the gas phase.

PatCen: A blockchain-based patient-centric mechanism for the granular access control of infectious disease-related test records.

The recent global outbreaks of infectious diseases such as COVID-19, yellow fever, and Ebola have highlighted the critical need for robust health data management systems that can rapidly adapt to and mitigate public health emergencies. In contrast to traditional systems, this study introduces an innovative blockchain-based Electronic Health Record (EHR) access control mechanism that effectively safeguards patient data integrity and privacy. The proposed approach uniquely integrates granular data access control mechanism within a blockchain framework, ensuring that patient data is only accessible to explicitly authorized users and thereby enhancing patient consent and privacy. This system addresses key challenges in healthcare data management, including preventing unauthorized access and overcoming the inefficiencies inherent in traditional access mechanisms. Since the latency is a sensitive factor in healthcare data management, the simulations of the proposed model reveal substantial improvements over existing benchmarks in terms of reduced computing overhead, increased throughput, minimized latency, and strengthened overall security. By demonstrating these advantages, the study contributes significantly to the evolution of health data management, offering a scalable, secure solution that prioritizes patient autonomy and privacy in an increasingly digital healthcare landscape.

Navigating ambiguity: A novel neutrosophic cubic shapley normalized weighted Bonferroni Mean aggregation operator with application in the investment environment.

The Neutrosophic Cubic Shapley Normalized Bonferroni (NC-SNWBM) method represents a cutting-edge approach to decision making theory, combining three distinct mathematical frameworks the neutrosophic cubic sets (NCS), Shapley values, and the Bonferroni aggregation operator. This innovative method addresses the challenges posed by uncertainty, vagueness, and imprecision in decision-making (DM) processes, offering a comprehensive and versatile tool for handling complex and dynamic scenarios. Neutrosophic cubic sets offers a strong platform to handle ambiguous and vague data due to three components Membership Grade (MG), Non-Membership Grade (NMG) and Indeterminancy Grade (IG) in data. By adding Shapley Fuzzy Measures (SFM), which come from cooperative game theory, distribute values among cooperative agents equally and to account for each agent's contributions to all potential coalitions. The Bonferroni aggregation operator-a statistical aggregative tool that regulates the likelihood of many types in error in statistical tests and the interdependence of the input arguments by allowing different values to parameters involved. These values are further improved by normalization in the framework of the NC-SNWBM approach in order to consider the various degrees of impact that agents exert in various circumstances. This operator is smoothly combined with normalized Shapley values and neutrosophic cubic sets in the NC-SNWBM approach to enable the aggregation of data with different levels of imprecision and uncertainty from various sources using NCS. The MG, NMG and IG connected to NCS are important elements of the NC-SNWBM approach. To evaluate each element's contribution to the overall value distribution SFM are used, and the Bonferroni aggregation operator maintains a careful balance between conservatism and significance. Together, these components provide a thorough framework that successfully tackles the problems caused by ambiguity, imprecision, and uncertainty in scenarios involving decision-making. The NC-SNWBM operator is applied to a numerical problem as an application in investment environment and sensitive and comparative analysis are conducted. The recommendation based on sensitive and comparative analysis proposed.

Molecular detection of Rickettsia aeschlimannii, Candidatus Rickettsia shennongii, Rickettsia sp. and Coxiella burnetii in ticks collected from camels.

Tick-borne bacteria of the genera Rickettsia and Coxiella cause several emerging veterinary and human infectious diseases. Ticks of the genus Hyalomma are medically important vectors due to their potential role in the transmission of pathogens to vertebrate hosts. There is an inadequate knowledge on tick-borne Rickettsia spp. and Coxiella spp. in ticks infesting transhumant camels in Pakistan. In this study, we conducted a molecular survey for screening of Rickettsia spp. and Coxiella spp. in ticks infesting camels. Seven hard tick species including Hyalomma dromedarii, Hyalomma anatolicum, Hyalomma scupense, Hyalomma isaaci, Hyalomma turanicum, Hyalomma asiaticum, and Rhipicephalus sanguineus s.l were confirmed on camels in three distinct physiographic regions of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. A subset of morphologically identified ticks were subjected to molecular assays for the genetic characterization of ticks and the detection and genetic characterization of Rickettsia and Coxiella species using standard genetic markers. Ticks screened for pathogens resulted in the detection of Rickettsia aeschlimannii and Candidatus Rickettsia shennongii and Coxiella burnetii. The molecular analysis further reveals the presences of an undetermined Rickettsia aeschlimannii-like species, that is making a distinct phylogenetic clade with R. aeschlimannii. The detection of pathogens in camel ticks poses potential health hazards as these ticks frequently bites humans. Molecular screening of Rickettsia spp. and Coxiella spp. associated with camel ticks is a preliminary step toward the surveillance of evaluating their zoonotic threats in the region.

Dorsal intercostal artery flap; A reliable option for coverage of myelomeningocele defects: A case series.

Meningomyelocele is a common congenital condition and its reconstruction poses a challenge for surgeons. The dorsal intercostal artery (DICA) flap offers a one-stage tension-free closure with adequate results. This study, spanning from January 2019 to September 2022, analyses the outcome of nine DICA flaps for meningomyelocele reconstruction, where the average size of the DICA flap was 6.8 x 4.6 cm for an average defect of 6.33 x 4 cm. Notably, no post-operative blood transfusion was required, nor any complications occurred except for one patient's septic shock-related death. Two had post-operative cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leak, repaired primarily with one requiring VP shunt. Based on our experience, the DICA flap, with its consistent anatomy, is a reliable option for the reconstruction of meningomyelocele defects.

Synthesis, in vitro, and in silico study of novel pyridine based 1,3-diphenylurea derivatives as tyrosinase inhibitors.

Tyrosinase inhibitors are studied in the cosmetics and pharmaceutical sectors as tyrosinase enzyme is involved in the biosynthesis and regulation of melanin, hence these inhibitors are beneficial for the management of melanogenesis and hyperpigmentation-related disorders. In the current work, a novel series of diphenyl urea derivatives containing a halo-pyridine moiety (5a-t) was synthesized via a multi-step synthesis. In vitro, tyrosinase inhibitory assay results showed that, except for two compounds, the derivatives were excellent inhibitors of human tyrosinase. The average IC50 value of the inhibitors (15.78 µM) is lower than that of kojic acid (17.3 µM) used as the reference compound, indicating that, on average, these molecules are more potent than the reference. Derivative 5a was identified as the most potent human tyrosinase inhibitor of the series, with an IC50 value of 3.5 ± 1.2  µM, approximately 5 times more potent than kojic acid. To get further insights into the nature of binding site interactions, molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation studies were carried out. Moreover, the evaluation of in silico ADME properties showed a highly favorable profile for the synthesized compounds. These findings suggested that the further development of this class of compounds could be useful to get potent drug-like compounds that can target hyperpigmentation-related disorders.

The Mechanisms of Cadmium Stress Mitigation by Fungal Endophytes from Maize Grains.

Maize is a crucial staple crop that ensures global food security by supplying essential nutrients. However, heavy metal (HM) contamination inhibits maize growth, reduces output, and affects food security. Some endophytic fungi (EFs) in maize seeds have the potential to enhance growth and increase dry biomass, offering a solution to mitigate the negative effect of HM contamination. Using these functional EFs could help maintain crop production and ensure food safety in HM-contaminated areas. In the present study, the diversity of EFs in corn grains from various HM-contaminated areas in China was studied through culture-dependent and culture-independent methods. We tested the plant growth-promoting (PGP) traits of several dominant culturable isolates and evaluated the growth-promoting effects of these twenty-one isolates through pot experiments. Both studies showed that HM contamination increased the diversity and richness of corn grain EFs and affected the most dominant endophytes. Nigrospora and Fusarium were the most prevalent culturable endophytes in HM-contaminated areas. Conversely, Cladosporium spp. were the most isolated endophytes in non-contaminated areas. Different from this, Saccharomycopsis and Fusarium were the dominant EFs in HM-contaminated sites, while Neofusicoccum and Sarocladium were dominant in non-contaminated sites, according to a culture-independent analysis. PGP trait tests indicated that 70% of the tested isolates (forty-two) exhibited phosphorus solubilization, IAA production, or siderophore production activity. Specifically, 90% of the tested isolates from HM-contaminated sites showed better PGP results than 45% of the isolates from non-contaminated sites. The benefit of the twenty-one isolates on host plant growth was further studied through pot experiments, which showed that all the isolates could improve host plant growth. Among them, strains derived from HM-contaminated sites, including AK18 (Nigrospora), AK32 (Beauveria), SD93 (Gibberellia), and SD64 (Fusarium), had notable effects on enhancing the dry biomass of shoots and roots of maize under Cd stress. We speculate that the higher ratio of PGP EFs in corn grains from HM-contaminated areas may explain their competitiveness in such extreme environments. Fusarium and Cladosporium isolates show high PGP properties, but they can also be phytopathogenic. Therefore, it is essential to evaluate their pathogenic properties and safety for crops before considering their practical use in agriculture.

African swine fever; insights into genomic aspects, reservoirs and transmission patterns of virus.

African swine fever is a hemorrhagic disease of pigs with high mortality rates. Since its first characterization in 1921, there has been sufficient information about African swine fever virus (ASFV) and related diseases. The virus has been found and maintained in the sylvatic cycle involving ticks and domestic and wild boars in affected regions. The ASFV is spread through direct and indirect contact with infected pigs, their products and carrier vectors especially Ornithodoros ticks. Severe economic losses and a decline in pig production have been observed in ASFV affected countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and Europe. At the end of 2018, the ASFV adversely affected China, the world's leading pork-producer. Control strategies for the disease remained challenging due to the unavailability of effective vaccines and the lack of successful therapeutic measures. However, considerable efforts have been made in recent years to understand the biology of the virus, surveillance and effective control measures. This review emphasizes and summarizes the current state of information regarding the knowledge of etiology, epidemiology, transmission, and vaccine-based control measures against ASFV.

Percutaneous treatment of lumbar synovial cysts with bleomycin: A case report.

Lumbar synovial cysts (LSC) that protrude into the spinal canal can cause lower back pain, neurogenic claudication, and radiculopathy. Often diagnosed in the elderly population (typically ∼60 years of age) with a slight preponderance for females, their underlying etiology is thought to be due to degeneration of the adjacent facet joint, with the most common location at the level of L4-L5. Treatment of LSC can be conservative (with NSAIDs and physical therapy), percutaneous (with rupture), or surgically (with decompression with or without fusion). Percutaneous treatment of LSC involves rupturing the cyst by injecting it with steroids and local anesthetics. Although this option is less invasive than surgery, multiple studies have documented recurrence with this method and patients eventually undergoing surgical intervention. In this report, we document a case where a patient who presented with a symptomatic LSC underwent successful percutaneous treatment with bleomycin.

Outcomes After Definitive Surgery for Spinal and Sacral Chordoma in 101 Patients Over 20 Years.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Spinal chordomas are primary bone tumors where surgery remains the primary treatment. However, their low incidence, lack of evidence, and late disease presentation make them challenging to manage. Here, we report the postoperative outcomes of a large cohort of patients after surgical resection, investigate predictors for overall survival (OS) and local recurrence-free survival (LRFS) times, and trend functional outcomes over multiple time periods. METHODS: Retrospective review of all patients followed for spinal chordoma at a quaternary spinal oncology center from 2003 to 2023 was included. Data were collected regarding demographics, preoperative and perioperative management, and follow-up since initial definitive surgery. Primary outcomes were OS and LRFS, whereas secondary outcomes were functional deficits. RESULTS: One hundred one patients had an average follow-up of 6.0 ± 4.2 years. At the time of census, 25/101 (24.8%) had experienced a recurrence and 10/101 (9.9%) had died. After surgery, patients experienced a significant decrease in pain over time, but rates of sensory deficits, weakness, and bowel/bladder dysfunction remained static. Tumors ≥100 cm3 (hazard ratio (HR) = 5.89, 95% CI 1.72-20.18, P = .005) and mobile spine chordomas (HR = 7.73, 95% CI 2.09-28.59, P = .002) are related to worse LRFS, whereas having neoadjuvant radiotherapy is associated with improved LRFS (HR = 0.09, 95% CI 0.01-0.88, P = .038). On the other hand, being age ≥65 years was associated with decreased OS (HR = 16.70, 95% CI 1.54-181.28, P = .021). CONCLUSION: Surgeons must often weigh the pros and cons of en bloc resection and sacrificing important but affected native tissues. Our findings can provide a benchmark for counseling patients with spinal chordoma. Tumors ≥100 cm3 appear to have a 5.89-times higher risk of recurrence, mobile spine chordomas have a 7.73 times higher risk, and neoadjuvant radiotherapy confers an 11.1 times lower risk for local recurrence. Patients age ≥65 years at surgery have a 16.70 times higher risk of mortality than those <65 years.

Synthesis of 2,4-dihydroxyacetophenone derivatives as potent PDE-1 and -3 inhibitors: in vitro and in silico insights.

Aim: Synthesis of novel bis-Schiff bases having potent inhibitory activity against phosphodiesterase (PDE-1 and -3) enzymes, potentially offering therapeutic implications for various conditions. Methods: Bis-Schiff bases were synthesized by refluxing 2,4-dihydroxyacetophenone with hydrazine hydrate, followed by treatment of substituted aldehydes with the resulting hydrazone to obtain the product compounds. After structural confirmation, the compounds were screened for their in vitro PDE-1 and -3 inhibitory activities. Results: The prepared compounds exhibited noteworthy inhibitory efficacy against PDE-1 and -3 enzymes by comparing with suramin standard. To clarify the binding interactions between the drugs, PDE-1 and -3 active sites, molecular docking studies were carried out. Conclusion: The potent compounds discovered in this study may be good candidates for drug development.

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Collective chiroptical activity through the interplay of excitonic and charge-transfer effects in localized plasmonic fields.

The collective light-matter interaction of chiral supramolecular aggregates or molecular ensembles with confined light fields remains a mystery beyond the current theoretical description. Here, we programmably and accurately build models of chiral plasmonic complexes, aiming to uncover the entangled effects of excitonic correlations, intra- and intermolecular charge transfer, and localized surface plasmon resonances. The intricate interplay of multiple chirality origins has proven to be strongly dependent on the site-specificity of chiral molecules on plasmonic nanoparticle surfaces spanning the nanometer to sub-nanometer scale. This dependence is manifested as a distinct circular dichroism response that varies in spectral asymmetry/splitting, signal intensity, and internal ratio of intensity. The inhomogeneity of the surface-localized plasmonic field is revealed to affect excitonic and charge-transfer mixed intermolecular couplings, which are inherent to chirality generation and amplification. Our findings contribute to the development of hybrid classical-quantum theoretical frameworks and the harnessing of spin-charge transport for emergent applications.

General Practitioners' Experience of Remote Consultations by Telephone in the General Practice Setting during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID 19) pandemic brought substantial changes in the way doctors used to interact with patients. In the general practice, consultation over the phone has become a norm now. However, it is not well known how this new mode of consultation affected clinicians' practices. Objective of this study was to find out if doctors working in the general practices were trained enough for telephonic consultation and how this new mode of consultation affected their clinical practice in general. It was an online survey. Information was gathered by using an online questionnaire which was sent electronically to general practitioners (GPs) and general practitioner speciality trainees (GPSTs) working in the general practices based in Leicestershire. Data were analyzed by using software SPSS. Descriptive characteristics of participants were reported in terms of numbers and percentages, whereas Chi square test was run to assess if there is a difference between GPs and GPSTs in terms of their experience of remote consultations by telephone. The questionnaire response rate was 69.3% (n = 133/192). Of the total, 54.1% (n = 72/133) of participants were women. About 36% (n = 48/133) of the participants were GPSTs, whereas 64% (n = 85/133) were qualified GPs. Not having enough training for phone consultation, technical issues during consultation, inadequate supervision framework, difficulties in building therapeutic alliance with patients, making diagnosis and risk assessment, and increased duration of consultation were identified as issues. Similarly, concerns around patients' confidentiality and medico legal issues were highlighted. GPs and GPSTs reported similar difficulties. In conclusion, lack of training for the telephonic consultation has been identified as a unanimous issue along with other challenges to phone consultations. There is an urgent need to take measures to make telephone consultation more successful, enjoyable, and safe for patient care by addressing identified issues. Larger studies with representative samples are needed to increase generalizability of our findings.

Comparative analysis of various machine learning algorithms to predict strength properties of sustainable green concrete containing waste foundry sand.

The use of waste foundry sand (WFS) in concrete production has gained attention as an eco-friendly approach to waste reduction and enhancing cementitious materials. However, testing the impact of WFS in concrete through experiments is costly and time-consuming. Therefore, this study employs machine learning (ML) models, including support vector regression (SVR), decision tree (DT), and AdaBoost regressor (AR) ensemble model to predict concrete properties accurately. Moreover, SVR was employed in conjunction with three robust optimization algorithms: the firefly algorithm (FFA), particle swarm optimization (PSO), and grey wolf optimization (GWO), to construct hybrid models. Using 397 experimental data points for compressive strength (CS), 146 for elastic modulus (E), and 242 for split tensile strength (STS), the models were evaluated with statistical metrics and interpreted using the SHapley Additive exPlanation (SHAP) technique. The SVR-GWO hybrid model demonstrated exceptional accuracy in predicting waste foundry sand concrete (WFSC) strength characteristics. The SVR-GWO hybrid model exhibited correlation coefficient values (R) of 0.999 for CS and E, and 0.998 for STS. Age was found to be a significant factor influencing WFSC properties. The ensemble model (AR) also exhibited comparable prediction accuracy to the SVR-GWO model. In addition, SHAP analysis revealed an optimal content of input variables in the concrete mix. Overall, the hybrid and ensemble models showed exceptional prediction accuracy compared to individual models. The application of these sophisticated soft computing prediction techniques holds the potential to stimulate the widespread adoption of WFS in sustainable concrete production, thereby fostering waste reduction and bolstering the adoption of environmentally conscious construction practices.