ahmedabdelwahed/Medical_papers_title_and_abstract_NLP_dataset huggingface dataset:
Globalization, electricity consumption and ecological footprint: An autoregressive distributive lag (ARDL) approach

In light of the growing need for countries to stay within their ecological limits, this paper examines how the current wave of globalization and electricity consumption drive human demands on ecological resources for Ghana from 1971-2016. Having accounted for structural breaks, the evidence from the Autoregressive Distributive Lag bound test shows that there is a long-run association between the variables. The results reveal that globalization positively and significantly stimulates the ecological footprint. More specifically, economic and social globalization inspire the ecological footprint whiles political globalization improves the environmental sustainability by exerting a reducing effect on the ecological footprint. We further demonstrate that electricity consumption particularly from fossil-fuel based energy source deteriorates the environmental quality. Moreover, economic growth and urbanization contribute to environmental degradation. Furthermore, the causality results disclose the feedback hypothesis between ecological footprint and electricity consumption and a one-way causal relationship running from globalization to ecological footprint. Some policy insights are elucidated premised on the evidence presented.
Toward low-carbon development: Assessing emissions-reduction pressure among Chinese cities

Assessing emissions-reduction pressure among Chinese cities is a critical task for local governments formulating and implementing environmental policies. From the perspectives of carbon intensity and carbon inequality, this study develops an improved carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions-reduction index to quantify emissions-reduction pressure on 284 cities in China. Results indicate that driven by the decrease of overall carbon intensity and the rise of inter-city carbon inequality, emissions-reduction pressure on 41.38% of provinces and 49.65% of cities was greater than the overall national level; emissions-reduction pressure on 52.35% of cities exceeded the provincial average level. The central government determines national emissions-reduction pressure by adjusting carbon-inequality tolerance between cities and determines carbon-inequality preference based on population and economic output principles. These determinations become benchmarks for local governments' CO2 emissions-reduction pressure. Provinces and cities that exceed benchmarks become foci for promoting energy savings, emissions reduction, and low-carbon development in the future.
Virulence of entomopathogenic fungi against Culex pipiens: Impact on biomolecules availability and life table parameters

Culex pipiens mosquitoes considered as vectors for many arboviruses such as the West Nile virus and encephalitis virus showing a global impact on human health. The natural management of the aquatic stages of this pest is crucial for maintaining an insecticide-free and sustained environment. The present work focused on studying the biological and biochemical effects of the entomopathogenic fungi: Metarhizium anisopliae, Beauveria bassiana, and Paecilomyces lilicanus, against 3rd instar larvae of Culex pipiens laboratory colony. The results revealed that M. anisopliae showed maximum larval mortality (88%) with the lowest lethal time (LT50) (22.6 hrs) at 108 spores/ml followed by B. bassiana (73.33%) with LT50 (38.35 hrs), while P. lilicanus showed minimum percent mortality (65%) with highest LT50 (51.5 hrs). The median lethal concentration (LC50) values were found to be 1.027 × 105 spores/ml for M. anisopliae, 1.24 × 106 spores/ml for B. bassiana, while it was 8.453 × 106 spores/ml for P. lilicanus. A reduction in female fecundity, number of hatched eggs, pupation and adult emergence percentage were recorded. The biochemical analysis of the treated larvae revealed different quantitative decrease in total soluble proteins, lipids, and carbohydrate hydrolyzing enzymes compared to control. Histopathological effects of fungal infection upon insect cuticles, muscles, and midgut were investigated. Based on the obtained results, M. anisopliae proved its superior virulent effect as a bio-control agent against Cx. pipiens.
Performance assessment and optimization of a biomass-based solid oxide fuel cell and micro gas turbine system integrated with an organic Rankine cycle

Rice straw is a potential energy source for power generation. Here, a biomass-based combined heat and power plant integrating a downdraft gasifier, a solid oxide fuel cell, a micro gas turbine and an organic Rankine cycle is investigated. Energy, exergy, and economic analyses and multi-objective optimization of the proposed system are performed. A parametric analysis is carried out to understand the effects on system performance and cost of varying key parameters: current density, fuel utilization factor, operating pressure, pinch point temperature, recuperator effectiveness and compressors isentropic efficiency. The results show that current density plays the most important role in achieving a tradeoff between system exergy efficiency and cost rate. Also, it is observed that the highest exergy destruction occurs in the gasifier, so improving the performance of this component can considerably reduce the system irreversibility. At the optimum point, the system generates 329 kW of electricity and 56 kW of heating with an exergy efficiency of 35.1% and a cost rate of 10.2 $/h. The capability of this system for using Iran rice straw produced in one year is evaluated as a case study, and it is shown that the proposed system can generate 6660 GWh electrical energy and 1140 GWh thermal energy. (C) 2019 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Heterogeneous effects of energy efficiency, oil price, environmental pressure, R&D investment, and policy on renewable energy - evidence from the G20 countries

Understanding heterogenous effects of renewable energy consumption can serve to develop more precise strategies to promote renewable. This work is aimed to investigate the heterogeneous effects of five factors (energy efficiency, oil price, environmental pressure, research and development, and policy) on renewable energy consumption through an empirical analysis of the whole panel data of Group 20, three income groups, and 20 individual countries by using multiple co-integration estimation approaches. The results indicate that the effect of research and development is the leading contributor to promote renewable energy development in middle-income countries of Group 20, whereas the effect of policy is the major contributor to increase in renewable energy consumption in high-income countries of Group 20. It is worth noting that with the increase of income, the effects of policy and environmental pressure on promoting renewable energy are increasing, whereas the effect of research and development is declining. The analysis of these 20 individual countries indicates that research and development plays a leading role to promote renewable energy consumption in 60% of the countries, while the influence degree of policy and energy intensity rank second and third. These heterogeneity of the drivers of renewable energy should be considered to develop more precise and effective measures to accelerating renewable energy. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
COVID in Africa, one year later

This paper presents an update of last year analysis of COVID in sub-Sahara Africa (SSA). The number of confirmed cases and deaths has dramatically increased, partially driven by the expanded diagnostic capacity, but it is an unknown undercount of people infected: we are blind with respect to the real size of the pandemic. The aggregate numbers mask a substantial heterogeneity: South Africa accounts for almost half of the cases in the region; Ethiopia, the second top country in the ranking, follows from afar, with only 6% of reported cases. There are signs that the third wave of COVID, driven by the more transmissible Delta variant, is easing off.The concerns that the pandemic would have affected more severely the most vulnerable populations (refugees and internally displaced persons) have not been confirmed: there is no evidence of hospitals overwhelmed nor of high mortality in humanitarian settings, a pattern that has not found an explanation.As of now, only 1% of African has been vaccinated, a sign of vaccine inequity and of 'a catastrophic moral failure' of rich countries, which have secured a surplus of hundred million COVID vaccines that they cannot use.The combined effects of the pandemic and control measures have been particularly severe in SSA economies, where underemployment and job insecurity prevail. Reduced export of commodities, collapse of tourism and agriculture, decline of foreign investment, aid, and remittances have driven million Africans in extreme poverty. The international financial institutions have shifted their strategies from austerity to a strong package of grants and concessional loans to support poor countries, including those in SSA, to cope with the immediate consequences of the pandemic, under the lemma 'vaccine policy is the most important economic policy'.
Induction and generalization of nocebo effects on itch

Nocebo effects, that is, negative treatment outcomes due to negative expectancies, can increase itch. Moreover, indirect evidence has shown that nocebo hyperknesis can generalize to another itch modality. Knowledge on response generalization can help to prevent and decrease negative effects. The aims of this study were to investigate (1) the efficacy of inducing nocebo effects on cowhage-evoked itch via verbal suggestions and (2) whether these effects can generalize to (2a) mechanically evoked touch and (2b) mechanically evoked itch. Forty-four healthy participants watched a video suggesting that a nocebo solution increases cowhage-evoked itch and that a control solution does not affect itch. Subsequently, cowhage, mechanical itch, and mechanical touch stimuli were applied. Nocebo effects were measured as the difference in both mean and peak of the outcomes itch and urge to scratch between nocebo and control trials. Main analyses revealed significant nocebo effects on mean and peak itch for all stimuli. For urge to scratch, a significant nocebo effect was only observed for mechanical touch (peak). As mechanical stimuli did not induce pure sensations as planned, posthoc sensitivity analyses were run for mechanical stimuli that individually induced either touch or itch at baseline. These analyses showed similar results for generalization to mechanical itch, but generalization to mechanical touch was non-significant. This study showed that merely verbal suggestion can induce nocebo effects on cowhage-evoked itch and that these effects can generalize to another itch modality. Future studies may examine how to prevent negative experiences from generalizing to subsequent encounters.
Genotype diversity promotes the persistence of Daphnia populations exposed to severe copper stress

When environmental stressors of high intensity are sustained for long periods of time, populations face high probabilities of being extirpated. However, depending on the intensity of the stressor, large populations with sufficient genetic diversity may persist. We report the results of an experiment that tracked the persistence of Daphnia populations exposed to copper contamination. We assessed whether genotypic diversity reduced the risk of extinction. We created monoclonal and multiclonal populations and monitored their population sizes during a 32-week experiment. Cu was applied at a sub-lethal concentration and then increased every week until the population sizes dropped to about 10% of the carrying capacity (Cu at 180 μg/L). The concentration was then increased up to 186 μg/L and held stable until the end of the experiment. A survival analysis showed that clonal diversity extended the persistence of Daphnia populations, but copper contamination caused a substantial genetic erosion followed by population extirpation. However, some Cu-treated populations, mostly multiclonal, showed U-shaped patterns of growth consistent with evolutionary rescue but these did not lead to lasting population recovery. These results highlight the importance of genetic variation for population persistence, but they also show how quickly it can be lost in contaminated environments.
Understanding COVID-19 diffusion requires an interdisciplinary, multi-dimensional approach

After COVID-19 initial diffusion in Europe in March 2020, research has suggested a direct correlation between environmental pollution and contagion dynamics (i.e., environment-to-human pollution), thereby indicating that mechanisms other than human-to-human transmission can explain COVID-19 diffusion. However, these studies did not consider that complex outcomes, such as a pandemic's diffusion patterns, are typically caused by a multiplicity of environmental, economic and social factors. While disciplinary specialties increase scholars' attitudes of concentrating on specific factors, neglecting this multiplicity during a pandemic crisis can lead to misleading conclusions. This communication aims to focus on certain limitations of current research about environmental-to-human COVID-19 transmission and shows the benefit of an interdisciplinary, multi-dimensional approach to understand the geographical diversity of contagion diffusion patterns.
Analysis on the causes of the change in the north-south gap of industrial pollution discharge in China

What are the causes of the change in the north-south gap of industrial pollution discharge in 2008 and 2016? In order to solve this problem, this paper makes theoretical and empirical research. The results show that (1) the difference in economic growth pattern transformation is the root cause of the change in the north-south gap of industrial pollution discharge.(2) The international financial crisis is the direct cause of the change in the north-south gap of industrial pollution discharge in 2008. The international financial crisis forced the industrial transformation and upgrading of the southern region, which made the TFP of the southern region relatively improve, and then led to the relative reduction of industrial pollution discharge in the southern region. (3) The supply-side structural reform is the direct cause of the change in the north-south gap of industrial pollution discharge in 2016. However, the supply-side structural reform proposed by the central government in 2016 is essentially a further continuation of the policy of "resolving overcapacity" implemented in 2013. In fact, the north-south gap in the growth rate of industrial discharge has changed since 2013.
Forecasting annual electricity consumption in China by employing a conformable fractional grey model in opposite direction

Electric power makes a significant contribution to economic development. Predicting annual electricity consumption is becoming increasingly crucial for electric power utility planning and economic development. To address this problem, a novel conformable fractional grey model in opposite direction is presented to predict annual electricity consumption in China. Firstly, the computational formulas for the novel model are deduced by grey modelling method and the effectiveness of the novel model is proved by matrix perturbation theory. Secondly, the optimal parameters are determined by quantum inspired evolutionary algorithm. Thirdly, two empirical examples are taken to validate the prediction accuracy of the novel model. Finally, the proposed model is applied to predict electricity consumption of Beijing, Fujian and Shandong. The results show that the novel model is superior to other six competitive models. Besides, electricity consumption of these regions in next five years are predicted, which can well serve a benchmark research and provide a relatively reliable reference for economic and electric sectors. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
The use of ecological footprint in estimating the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis for BRICST by considering cross-section dependence and heterogeneity

A vast body of literature estimates the impact of economic growth on environmental degradation in the framework of EKC model. Typical empirical studies proxy environmental degradation with CO2 emissions; however, this indicator does not consider the complex nature of environmental degradation. To fulfill this omission, ecological footprint that tracks the use of multiple categories of productive surface areas is used as proxy for the environment. Moreover, studies that do not consider issues of heterogeneity and cross-sectional dependence may not produce reliable outcomes. Hence, the present study re-investigates the validity of the EKC hypothesis for BRICST (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Turkey) by using ecological footprint and considering the mentioned issues in the estimation process. Based on the annual data covering the period of 1980-2014, excluding Russia due to data unavailability, empirical results show that the EKC hypothesis is not valid, and energy intensity and energy structure are important determinants of environmental degradation. In line with the empirical outputs, possible policy suggestions are discussed in the present study. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Triacrylamide-Based Adhesives Stabilize Bonds in Physiologic Conditions

In this study, an acrylamide-based adhesive was combined with a thiourethane-based composite to improve bond stability and reduce polymerization stress, respectively, of simulated composite restorations. The stability testing was conducted under physiologic conditions, combining mechanical and bacterial challenges. Urethane dimethacrylate was combined with a newly synthesized triacrylamide (TMAAEA) or HEMA (2-hydroxyethyl-methacrylate; control) to produce a 2-step total-etch adhesive system. Methacrylate-based composites (70 wt% silanized filler) were formulated, containing thiourethane oligomers at 0 (control) or 20 wt%. Standardized preparations in human third molars were restored; then, epoxy replicas were obtained from the occlusal surfaces before and after 7-d storage in water or with Streptococcus mutans biofilm, which was tested after storage in an incubator (static) or the bioreactor (mechanical challenge). Images were obtained from the replicas (scanning electron microscopy) and cross sections of the samples (confocal laser scanning microscopy) and then analyzed to obtain measurements of gap, bacterial infiltration, and demineralization. Microtensile bond strength of specimens stored in water or biofilm was assessed in 1-mm2 stick specimens. Data were analyzed with analysis of variance and Tukey's test (α = 0.05). HEMA-based materials had greater initial gap measurements, indicating more efficient bonding for the acrylamide materials. When tested in water, the triacrylamide-based adhesive had smaller gaps in the incubator or bioreactor. In the presence of biofilm, there was less difference among materials, but the acrylamide/thiourethane combination led to statistically lower gap formation in the bioreactor. HEMA and TMAAEA-based adhesives produced statistically similar microtensile bond strengths after being stored in water for 7 d, but after the same period with biofilm-challenged specimens, the TMAAEA-based adhesives were the only ones to retain the initial bond strength values. The use of a stable multiacrylamide-based adhesive led to the preservation of the resin-dentin bonded interface after a physiologically relevant challenge. Future studies will include a multispecies biofilm model.
The consistency and reliability of six-strand and four-strand flexor tendon repairs: a comparative porcine cadaveric study

The aim of this study was to compare the consistency and reliability of the six-strand Gan modification of the Lim-Tsai flexor tendon repair with the four-strand Adelaide repair, both with 3-0 sutures and with eight to ten runs of simple 5-0 running peripheral suture as well as the influence of the surgeons' level of experience on the strength of the repair in a cadaveric animal setup. Thirty-nine surgeons repaired 78 porcine flexor digitorum profundus tendons with either the Adelaide technique (39 tendons) or the modified Lim-Tsai technique (39 tendons). Each repaired tendon was tested in a material testing machine under a single cycle load-to-failure test. The forces were recorded when the gap between the two tendon stumps reached 1 and 2 mm and when irreversible elongation or total rupture occurred. We found no significant differences in gap formation force and yielding strength of the tendons between the two methods. The surgeon's previous experience in tendon repairs did not improve the consistency, reliability or tensile strength of the repairs. We conclude that if a strong peripheral suture is added, the modified Lim-Tsai repair has the same technical reliability and consistency as the Adelaide repair in term of ultimate loading strength in this test setup.
Some Interval-Valued Intuitionistic Fuzzy Dombi Heronian Mean Operators and their Application for Evaluating the Ecological Value of Forest Ecological Tourism Demonstration Areas

With China's sustained economic development and constant increase in national income, Chinese nationals' tourism consumption rate increases. As a major Chinese economic development engine, the domestic tourism industry has entered a transition period operation pattern featured by diversified products. Among them, as a new hot spot of the tourism industry in China, ecological tourism has enjoyed rapid development, with great potential. Thus, the ecological value evaluation of forest ecological tourism demonstration areas is very important to the domestic tourism industry. In this paper, we propose some Dombi Heronian mean operators with interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy numbers (IVIFNs). Then, two MADM (multiple attribute decision making) methods are proposed based on IVIFWDHM (interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy weighted Dombi Heronian mean) and IVIFWDGHM (interval-valued intuitionistic weighted Dombi geometric Heronian mean) operators. Finally, we gave an experimental case for evaluating the ecological value of forest ecological tourism demonstration area to show the proposed decision methods.
Marein Prevented LPS-Induced Osteoclastogenesis by Regulating the NF-κB Pathway In Vitro

Many bone diseases such as osteolysis, osteomyelitis, and septic arthritis are caused by gram-negative bacterial infection, and lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a bacterial product, plays an essential role in this process. Drugs that inhibit LPS-induced osteoclastogenesis are urgently needed to prevent bone destruction in infective bone diseases. Marein, a major bioactive compound of Coreopsis tinctoria, possesses anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, anti-hypertensive, anti-hyperlipidemic, and anti-diabetic effects. In this study, we measured the effect of marein on RAW264.7 cells by CCK-8 assay and used TRAP staining to determine osteoclastogenesis. The levels of osteoclast-related genes and NF-κB-related proteins were then analyzed by western blot, and the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines were quantified by ELISA. Our results showed that marein inhibited LPS-induced osteoclast formation by osteoclast precursor RAW264.7 cells. The effect of marein was related to its inhibitory function on expressions of pro-inflammatory cytokines and osteoclast-related genes containing RANK, TRAF6, MMP-9, CK, and CAII. Additionally, marein leads to markedly inhibited NF-κB signaling pathway activation in LPS-induced RAW264.7 cells. Concurrently, when the NF-κB signaling pathway was inhibited, osteoclast formation and pro-inflammatory cytokine expression were decreased. Collectively, marein could inhibit LPS-induced osteoclast formation in RAW264.7 cells via regulating the NF-κB signaling pathway. Our data demonstrate that marein might be a potential drug for bacteria-induced bone destruction disease. Our findings provide new insights into LPS-induced bone disease.