Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of Danggui Sini Decoction on the Behaviour and Dorsal Root Ganglion TRP Channel of Neuropathic Pain in CCI Rats

Danggui Sini decoction, a traditional Chinese medicine formula, has been extensively used as a remedy for neuropathic pain and other diseases in recent years. To explore whether Danggui Sini decoction can alleviate mechanical pain, thermal hyperalgesia, and cold pain at the same time, the role of temperature-sensitive transient receptor potential channel in neuropathic pain and the therapeutic effect of Danggui Sini decoction on neuropathic pain as well as the impact on the transient receptor potential pathway were explored in the present study. One hundred and twentyeight Sprague Dawley rats were separated randomly into 4 groups; the sham-operated group, chronic constriction injury of sciatic nerve model group, pregabalin group, and Danggui Sini decoction-treated group. The rats in the sham-operated group underwent surgery, but no nerve was ligated. The rest of the rats were subjected to sciatic nerve ligation. Rats in Danggui Sini decoction-treated group could be irrigated to Danggui Sini decoction. Rats in the sham-operated group and chronic constriction injury model group were gavaged with saline. Rats in pregabalin group were given pregabalin. Behavioral tests conducted were, acetone test and cold plate, hot plate experiment, and von Frey filaments on 4, 7, 14, 21st day, and then dorsal root ganglion neurons were take out. Nerve ligation from the ipsilateral L4-6 dorsal root ganglion were measured TRPM8, TRPA1, TRPV1, TRPV2, TRPV3, and TRPV4 proteins expression by immunofluorescence staining and Western-blot method. Danggui Sini decoction could significantly inhibit the cold allodynia and the mechanical allodynia. The immunofluorescence studies showed that the model group of dorsal root ganglia on TRPM8, TRPA1, TRPV1, TRPV2, TRPV3, and TRPV4 proteins were decreased. Western-blot results showed the the expression of TRPM8, TRPA1, TRPV1, TRPV2, TRPV3, and TRPV4 proteins in Danggui Sini decoction-treated group was reduced. Danggui Sini decoction could not only suppress the cold allodynia, but also alleviate mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia. Danggui Sini decoction could down-regulate abnormally high expression of temperature-dependent transient receptor potential channel protein.
Innovative Use of Point-of-Care Testing for Chronic Kidney Disease Screening

Abstract In 2008, Kidney Health Australia conducted a targeted community-based screening program for chronic kidney disease called Kidney Evaluation for You. Point-of-care testing was an integral part of the screening process, along with a lifestyle assessment and an exit interview with a qualified renal nurse. The point-of-care tests performed were creatinine (with calculation of the estimated glomerular filtration rate), glucose, hemoglobin A1c, total cholesterol, hemoglobin, and urine albumin-creatinine ratio. Creatinine measurement, performed on the i-STAT, was aligned with the isotope dilution mass spectrometry reference method before the study. Scientists from the Flinders Community Point-of-Care Services unit delivered training for the renal nurses, developed poster sets on how to use the selected point-of-care devices, and devised a quality control program to monitor the analytical quality of field testing. Screening was conducted at 3 community locations in Australia: Townsville (Queensland), Roxby Downs (South Australia), and Perth (Western Australia). Four hundred two participants were screened, of whom 82 had results suggestive of chronic kidney disease and 39 had an estimated glomerular filtration rate of less than 60 mL/min per 1.73 m2. Between-day imprecision (n = 16) averaged 4.5% for creatinine, 0.7% for glucose, 3.2% for hemoglobin A1c, 3.4% for urine albumin-creatinine ratio, 5.1% for cholesterol, and 0.6% for hemoglobin. All point-of-care test results were completed within 9 minutes per subject, whereas approximately 30 subjects were screened per day. Ninety-nine percent of participants indicated that point-of-care testing was convenient for them, and 96% stated that immediate feedback on their results helped them understand their risk of chronic kidney disease.
A Case-Control Study of Medication use and Acute Occupational Injury

The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that workers who use medications that cause drowsiness are at increased risk of having an acute occupational injury. To test the hypothesis, a case-control study (n=1223 cases, n=1202 controls) was conducted where the sampling frame was composed of employees who had Worker's Compensation claims in one Midwestern state between March and October of 1997. Cases were employees whose cause of injury was acute (i.e. caught in, struck by, or fall). Controls, on the other hand, were employees whose cause of injury was not acute (i.e. strain injuries). The results of the study supported the hypothesis by showing that the use of drowsing medications significantly increased the risk of having an acute occupational injury (odds ratio=2.45, 95% CI = 1.00–6.01), after adjusting for 12 other risk factors. Age modified the effect such that only younger workers who took drowsing medication were at increased risk of acute occupational injuries.
Erratum: Experimental study of the dynamics of fast gas heating in a low-pressure DC discharge in nitrogen (2019 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 28 045011)

This paper discusses the experimental studies of the gas heating dynamics of a low-pressure DC discharge in nitrogen. The time evolution of the discharge current, the electric ﬁ eld, and the gas temperature in the positive column of a pulsed DC discharge in nitrogen for a gas pressure of 1.5 Torr and a current density of 0.1 – 6 A cm − 2 were measured. The gas temperature in the discharge was equal to the rotational temperature in the A u 3 S + and a g 1 П metastable electronic states of nitrogen. The rotational temperature in the A u 3 S + state was found from the spectra of the ﬁ rst positive system of N 2 , which were recorded by using intracavity laser absorption spectroscopy. The rotational temperature in the a g 1 П state was determined from the VUV emission spectra of the Lyman – Birge – Hop ﬁ eld system of N 2 . The gas temperatures obtained by these two spectroscopic methods were in good agreement. It was found that two phases with different gas heating rates exist during a discharge pulse. In the ﬁ rst phase, the gas heating was relatively slow. With increasing current density, the duration of the ﬁ rst heating phase decreased from 150 μ s at 0.2 A cm − 2 to 10 μ s at 2.5 A cm − 2 . In the second phase, fast gas heating occurred. The gas heating rate in the second phase increased with increasing discharge current, and was equal to 10 K μ s − 1 for a current density of about 2 A cm − 2 . The relation between the rate of the fast heating and the density of deposited power obeyed a power law. In 300 μ s, the gas was heated in the discharge up to about 400, 1500, and 3000 K for current densities of 0.2, 1, and 2.5 A cm − 2 , respectively. These experimental data can be the basis for veri ﬁ cation of kinetic models for gas heating dynamics in a low-pressure discharge in nitrogen. Supplementary material for this article is available online
Effect of polyvinyl acetals on non-isothermal crystallization behaviour and mechanical properties of poly(ε-caprolactone)

Polyvinyl acetaldehyde (PVAC) and polyvinyl butyral (PVB), as nucleating agents, were melt mixed with poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL), and the non-isothermal crystallization behavior and crystalline morphology of PCL was characterized using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and polarizing microscopy (POM). It was found that melt shearing made the crystallinity of control PCL increase from 37.94% (as-received) to 41.15% and the crystallization temperature raised by 7.7 °C. As the mass fraction of polyvinyl acetals increased from 0.1 wt% to 10 wt%, both crystallization temperature and crystallinity of PCL were decreased; the spherulite size of PCL was increased from a few microns to 200 μm and a fast cooling procedure facilitated the homogeneity of spherulite size. When the content of nucleating agent was less than 1 wt%, no obvious microphase separation was observed under scanning electron microscopy; the tensile strength, yield strength and elongation at break of PCL increased slightly; and the Young's modulus of PCL was improved by 67% at a 0.1 wt% mass fraction of PVB which is beneficial to PCL in high load bearing applications. When the contents of nucleating agents were higher than 1 wt%, the microphase separation occurred obviously and a large amount of fine spherulites appeared with the deterioration of mechanical properties. The modified Avrami and Tobin models could well describe the non-isothermal crystallization kinetics.
Membrane‐hydration‐state detection in proton exchange membrane fuel cells using improved ambient‐condition‐based dynamic model

Proton‐exchange‐membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) are a popular source of alternative energy because of their operational reliability and compactness. This paper presents an improved model to represent the semi‐empirical voltage of PEMFCs to overcome the limitations of existing models. The proposed model considers variations in ambient conditions, such as the ambient temperature and relative humidity, to obtain the accurate output voltage that corresponds to variations in dynamic and static loads. The proposed model was developed by conducting several experiments on the Horizon PEMFC system under normal, humid, and dry ambient conditions. Subsequently, the model parameters corresponding to each case were optimised using the quantum lightning search algorithm (QLSA). Parameters demonstrating significant variations with ambient conditions were finally represented as a function of the ambient temperature and relative humidity via statistical regression analysis. The voltage obtained using the modified model was verified by conducting experiments on both the Horizon and NEXA PEMFC systems by varying the ambient temperature and relative humidity with root mean square error (RMSE) less than 0.5. As observed, the results we obtained using the modified model closely approximated those obtained using PEMFCs under various operating conditions, and in both cases, the PEMFC voltage was observed to vary with the ambient and load conditions. The inherent advantages of the proposed PEMFC model include its ability to determine the membrane‐water content and water pressure inside PEMFCs. The membrane‐water content provides clear indications regarding the occurrence of drying and flooding faults. Under normal conditions, this membrane water content ranges from 11 to 7 for both the Horizon and NEXA PEMFC system. The simulation results suggested using the threshold membrane‐water‐content level as a possible indicator of fault occurrence under extreme ambient conditions. The limits of the said threshold were observed to be useful for fault diagnosis within PEMFC systems.
Biomass derived functional carbon from Sargassum Wightii seaweed for supercapacitors

In this present work, microporous functional carbon is prepared by a single step pyrolysis method of dried SargassumWightiiseaweeds (SW) as crushed powder without activation and tested for supercapacitors. Although the complete study presented here on seaweeds of SargassumWightii(SW), the synthesis technique is standard and relevant to most forms of dried biomass. The morphological studies were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), Raman spectroscopy (RAMAN), field emission scanning microscopy (FE-SEM) and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The behaviour of the functional carbon were performed by using cyclic voltammetry (CV), galvanostatic charge and discharge (CD) and Impedance analysis. In aqueous electrolyte (1M H2SO4), by using three-electrode system shows highest capacitance of 354 F/g. Furthermore, it was observed that the carbonized temperature has significant role in the electrochemical performance, as the carbonized sample at 700°C showed best activity compared to the samples carbonized at 800°C and 900°C without any external activation. The electrochemical act obviously shows that the carbon produced from dried SW seaweeds can be used as a favourable material for electrodes in the application of supercapacitors.
Synthesis of Branched Poly(butyl acrylate) Using the Strathclyde Method in Continuous-Flow Microreactors

Solution polymerization of butyl acrylate and divinylbenzene (DVB) in toluene, initiated with 2,2′-azobisisobutyronitrile and mediated with chain transfer agent dodecanethiol (DDT), was carried out in a capillary microreactor with a 1 mm inner diameter. Through the Strathclyde method, branched poly(butyl acrylate) with different molecular weight distributions (MWDs) was prepared by adjusting the feed formulation and the residence time. The dosages of DVB and DDT were controlled to avoid gelation, and their effects on the branching degree of the products were investigated. The multimodal MWDs were deconvoluted to quantitatively study the branching process. The kinetics in batch and continuous operation are compared. Aqueous miniemulsion polymerization with a similar feed formulation was also conducted in the microreactor, enabling faster reaction rate, lower solution viscosity, and higher branching efficiency. This study demonstrated the feasibility to use commercial monomers to prepare branched polymers w.
Study of the modification mechanism of heavy metal ions adsorbed by biomass-activated carbon doped with a solid nitrogen source

In this study, the N-doping of biomass-activated carbon with dicyandiamide was performed via an ultrasonic method and a redox method. BET, SEM, EDS, FT-IR and XPS were used to determine the pore structures, morphologies and surface chemistry of the adsorbents obtained. The N-doping effect of the two modification methods on the same solid nitrogen source was evaluated and the simulated adsorption experiments of heavy metal ions in wastewater were conducted. The results showed that the N-doped biomass-activated carbon having the higher doping content was obtained by a redox method with nitric acid at 25 °C, a solid nitrogen source ratio of 1 : 1 and charring at 800 °C for 2 hours. The adsorption efficiency for the divalent copper ion of the sample obtained by the redox method was 41.15% higher than that of the ultrasonic method sample, and proved that pyridinium nitrogens and amino groups play important roles in adsorption and complexation processes. The isothermal adsorption experiments of N-doped activated carbon conformed to the Freundlich model, which mainly depended on chemical adsorption. The kinetics for copper ion adsorption followed a pseudo-second-order kinetic model. Thermodynamic experiments showed that a higher temperature was advantageous to adsorption. Simultaneously, this study further analyzed the N-doping process of the redox method sample and suggested that improvements can be implemented in the N-doping of activated carbon with solid nitrogen sources.
Effects of spray drying process parameters on the physical properties and digestibility of the microencapsulated product from Moringa stenopetala leaves extract

Abstract Moringa stenopetala is a locally valuable plant; it has nutritional and medicinal values. Its production has progressively grown. The aim of this study was to evaluate the physical properties, and in vitro digestibility of the microencapsulated bioactive product using spray dryer from M. stenopetala leaves extract. The selected spray drying process parameters such as maltodextrin: high methoxyl pectin ratio (10:0, 9.5:0.5, and 9:1), core:coating ratios (1:10, 1:8, and 1:6), and inlet air temperature (120°C, 140°C and 160°C) on the physical properties and digestibility of the microencapsulates. The result showed that process conditions significantly affect the physical properties and the total flavonoid content. The spray drying processing parameters significantly affect the flowability property. The Hausner's ratio, Carr’s index and angle repose were in the range of 1.68–2.11, 40.47–43.73% and 32.32–57.05°, respectively. Moreover, the in vitro digestibility was affected by the coating materials ratio, core: coating ratio and inlet air temperature. In conclusion, the spray drying microencapsulation parameters had significant effects on the physical properties and in vitro digestibility. The physical properties and digestibility of the microencapsulated bioactive product was relatively improved when the mixture of maltodextrin and pectin was used as a coating material than using maltodextrin alone.
Optimization of H_2O_2 dosage in microwave-H_2O_2 process for sludge pretreatment with uniform design method

A microwave-H2O2 process for sludge pretreatment exhibited high efficiencies of releasing organics,nitrogen,and phosphorus,but large quantities of H2O2 residues were detected.A uniform design method was thus employed in this study to further optimize H2O2 dosage by investigating effects of pH and H2O2 dosage on the amount of H2O2 residue and releases of organics,nitrogen,and phosphorus.A regression model was established with pH and H2O2 dosage as the independent variables,and H2O2 residue and releases of organics,nitrogen,and phosphorus as the dependent variables.In the optimized microwave-H2O2 process,the pH value of the sludge was firstly adjusted to 11.0,then the sludge was heated to 80°C and H2O2 was dosed at a H2O2:mixed liquor suspended solids(MLSS)ratio of 0.2,and the sludge was finally heated to 100°C by microwave irradiation.Compared to the microwave-H2O2 process without optimization,the H2O2 dosage and the utilization rate of H2O2 in the optimized microwave-H2O2 process were reduced by 80% and greatly improved by 3.87 times,respectively,when the H2O2:MLSS dosage ratio was decreased from 1.0 to 0.2,resulting in nearly the same release rate of soluble chemical oxygen demand in the microwave-H2O2 process without optimization at H2O2:MLSS ratio of 0.5.
MRI Investigations of Metabolic and Structural Brain Changes in Alzheimer’s Disease and Vitamin D Deprivation

A short echo time (TE) is commonly used for brain glutamate measurement by 1H MRS to minimize drawbacks of long TE such as signal modulation to J evolution and T2 relaxation. However, J coupling causes the spectral patterns of glutamate to change with TE, and the shortest achievable TE may not produce the optimal glutamate measurement. The purpose of this study was to determine the optimal TE for glutamate measurement at 7 T using semi-LASER (localization by adiabatic selective refocusing). Time-domain simulations were performed to model the TE dependence of glutamate signal energy, a measure of glutamate signal strength, and were verified against measurements made in the human sensorimotor cortex (five subjects, 2× 2× 2 cm3 voxel, 16 averages) on a 7 T MRI scanner. Simulation showed a local maximum of glutamate signal energy at TE = 107 ms. In vivo, TE = 105 ms produced a low Cramér-Rao lower bound of 6.5± 2.0% across subjects, indicating high-quality fits of the prior knowledge model to in vivo data. TE = 105 ms also produced the greatest glutamate signal energy with the smallest inter-subject glutamate-to-creatine ratio (Glu/Cr) coefficient of variation (CV), 4.6%. Using these CVs, we performed sample size calculations to estimate the number of participants per group required to detect a 10% change in Glu/Cr between two groups with 95% confidence. 13 were required at TE = 45 ms, the shortest achievable echo time on our 7 T MRI scanner, while only 5 were required at TE = 105 ms, indicating greater statistical power. These results indicate that TE = 105 ms is optimum for in vivo glutamate measurement at 7 T with semi-LASER. Using long TE decreases power deposition by allowing lower maximum RF pulse amplitudes in conjunction with longer RF pulses. Importantly, long TE minimizes macromolecule contributions, eliminating the requirement for acquisition of separate macromolecule spectra or macromolecule fitting techniques, which add additional scan time or bias the estimated glutamate fit.
Ultrathin bismuth nanosheets as an efficient polysulfide catalyst for high performance lithium–sulfur batteries

Although many materials have sprung up as catalysts to improve polysulfide conversion in lithium–sulfur batteries, the catalytic mechanism is vague and a universal and efficient catalyst is still absent. Herein, we developed ultrathin polycrystalline bismuth (2D-Bi) nanosheets (thickness of ∼4 nm) as an electrocatalyst for polysulfide conversion. Such a 2D polycrystalline structure not only absorbs and immobilizes soluble polysulfides but also accelerates multistep polysulfide redox reactions, greatly inhibiting the polysulfide shuttling during charge–discharge cycles. Furthermore, we gained an in-depth understanding of the distinctive electrocatalysis mechanism of 2D-Bi nanosheets by steady-state and dynamic electrochemical testing methods. The results showed that with the 2D-Bi electrocatalyst, the exchange current density (i0) and electron transfer number (n) (i0 > 3 mA cm−2, n = 6.6 at 2.1 V) were significantly enhanced. As a consequence, a 2D-Bi modified Li–S battery exhibited good electrochemical performance with high reversible capacity, stable cycle life and superb rate performance (retaining a capacity of 408 mA h g−1 after 500 cycles at 10C). Ultimately, a deep exploration and comprehension of the interior redox process as well as the conversion mechanism of sulfides provided a great avenue for accelerating the large-scale application of Li–S batteries in the near future.
Etude structurale du complexe de remodelage de la chromatine NuRD et sa sous-unité MBD3 liée à l'ADN

La regulation de la transcription est un processus dynamique faisant intervenir le recrutement de complexes proteiques impliques dans le remodelage de la chromatine. Parmi eux, mon travail s’est focalise sur le complexe NuRD (Nucleosome Remodeling and histone Deacetylation) et sa sous-unite de liaison a l’ADN CpG MBD3. Pour cela une approche de biologie structurale integrative combinant la preparation biochimique, la caracterisation biophysique et l’etude structurale par cryo-EM et cristallographie aux rayons-X a ete mise en place. Les caracterisations biophysiques de MBD3 ont permis de mettre en evidence son interaction avec un ADN non-modifie CpG et des cristaux diffractant jusqu’a 3.9 A ont ete obtenu. De plus la region desordonnee en aval du domaine de liaison a ete identifiee et son impact dans la formation de complexe caracterise. Des cristaux pour les differentes constructions en complexe avec l’ADN ont ete obtenus et sont actuellement optimises. Enfin l’optimisation de la purification et la preparation du complexe, ont permis la visualisation du complexe NuRD et mettent en avant pour la premiere fois une organisation en domaines du complexe.