bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Bioefficacy and persistence of acaricides applied against two spotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae Koch) in cucumber (Cucumis sativus Linnaeus) under protected cultivation system
Authors: Prakash K. , Baskaran V. , Suganthi A. , Sumathi E. , Swarnapriya R.
Published: June 2022

The two-spotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae Koch) is the most pronounced polyphagous non-insect pest, wreaking havoc on agricultural and horticultural crops. In cucumber, the infestation by various pests jeopardises effective cultivation, with two spotted spider mites causing great harm to the crop. Six different chemical acaricides were tested for their effectiveness against T. urticae in cucumber cultivated under protected cultivation system at the farmer’s field. The results revealed that none of the acaricides exhibited a tangible decrease over the control, but spiromesifen (59.50 %) recorded a rather excellent reduction over the other investigated chemicals (40 to 54.47 %). The experimental bioassays were performed to determine the effective dosage, which resulted in a significant mite population reduction and the results revealed that tested chemical acaricides were found to be effective at their higher dose, ranging nearly from 3X to 4X of recommended by CIB&RC. The pot culture and field study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of fixed doses from bioassay investigations. A good reduction in mite population was observed for all tested chemicals with spiromesifen recorded a 100 per cent reduction in mite population. Residue analysis of harvest time samples of cucumber after spiromesifen application revealed residues below quantification limit of 0.025 µg/kg.
Intracorporeal versus extracorporeal anastomosis in laparoscopic right colectomy: a retrospective study
Authors: Chen Fangqian , Lv Zeping , Feng Wenqing , Xu Zhuoqing , Miao Yiming , Xu Zifeng , Zhang Yuchen , Gao Han , Zheng Minhua , Zong Yaping , Zhao Jingkun , Lu Aiguo
Published: June 2022

Background: Laparoscopic right colectomy (LRC) with intracorporeal ileocolic anastomosis (IIA) may be beneficial for postoperative recovery, but there is a lack of evidence to confirm this hypothesis. This study aimed to investigate the feasibility and safety of IIA.Methods: A total of 114 patients who underwent LRC with IIA (58) or extracorporeal ileocolic anastomosis (EIA, 56) between January 2019 and September 2021 were enrolled. We assessed clinical characteristics, pathological characteristics and short-term outcomes.Results: Faster gastrointestinal (GI) recovery and less postoperative pain were observed in patients with IIA than EIA [time to first flatus: (2.4±0.7) vs (2.8±1.0) days, p <0.01; time to fluid intake: (3.5±0.7) vs (4.0±1.1) days, p =0.01; visual analogue scale score on the day of surgery: (3.9±1.0) vs (4.3±0.6), p =0.02]. No significant differences were detected in oncological outcomes or postoperative complications. IIA tended to be performed in patients with higher body mass index than EIA [( 23.93±3.52) vs ( 22.36±2.87) kg/m2, p =0.01].Conclusions: IIA is associated with faster GI function recovery and less postoperative pain, and considered to be potentially superior to EIA in patients with obesity.
Focus Fusion: Overview of Progress Towards p-B11 Fusion with the Dense Plasma Focus
Authors: Lerner Eric J. , Hassan Syed
Published: June 2022

LPPFusion is developing a source of fusion energy using the dense plasma focus device and pB11 fuel, a combination we call Focus Fusion. So far, this project has led to the achievement of the highest confined ion energies of any fusion experiment (> 200 keV) as well as, recently, the lowest impurities of any fusion plasma. Among privately-funded fusion efforts, our experiments have achieved the highest ratio of fusion energy generation to device energy input (wall-plug efficiency) and the highest ntT product of 3.4x1020 keV-s/cm3. Our calculations and simulations indicate that the quantum magnetic field effect will allow a great reduction in bremsstrahlung radiation with pB11 fuel. For commercial fusion, this approach has several major advantages. The small size and simplicity of design of the DPF can lead to 5MW generators that are much cheaper than any existing energy source, that can be manufactured by mass production and that can be located close to loads. It shares with other pB11 approaches a lack of neutron damage and radioactive waste. Direct energy conversion of the ion beam and x-rays produced by the device avoids the high costs associated with thermal cycles. With adequate, but still modest, financial resources we anticipate working prototype generators could be ready for production by 2026–2030.
Blood-brain-barrier dysfunction and folate and vitamin B12 levels in first-episode psychosis
Authors: Campana Mattia , Löhrs Lisa , Strauß Johanna , Münz Susanne , Oviedo-Salcedo Tatiana , Fernando Piyumi , Maurus Isabel , Raabe Florian , Moussiopoulou Joanna , Eichhorn Peter , Falkai Peter , Hasan Alkomiet , Wagner Elias
Published: June 2022

Background: Vitamin deficiency syndromes and blood-brain-barrier (BBB) dysfunction are frequent phenomena in psychiatric conditions. We analysed the largest available first-episode psychosis (FEP) cohort to date regarding routine cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and blood parameters to investigate the association between vitamin deficiencies (vitamin B12 and folate) and BBB impairments in FEP. Methods: We report a retrospective analysis of clinical data from all inpatients that were admitted to our tertiary care hospital with an ICD-10 diagnosis of a first-episode F2x (schizophrenia-spectrum) between January 1, 2008 and August 1, 2018 and underwent a lumbar puncture and blood-based vitamin status diagnostics within the clinical routine. Results: 222 FEP patients were included in our analyses. We report an increased CSF/serum albumin quotient (Qalb) as a sign of BBB dysfunction in 17.1% (38/222) of patients. White matter lesions (WML) were present in 29.3% of patients (62/212). 17.6% of patients (39/222) showed either decreased vitamin B12 levels or decreased folate levels. No statistically significant association was found between impairments in vitamin levels and an altered Qalb.Conclusions: This retrospective analysis contributes to the discussion on the impact of vitamin deficiency syndromes in FEP. Although decreased vitamin B12 or folate levels were found in approximately 17% of our cohort, we found no evidence for significant associations between BBB dysfunction and vitamin deficiencies. To strengthen the evidence regarding the clinical implications of vitamin deficiencies in FEP, prospective studies with standardized measurements of vitamin levels together with follow-up measurements and assessment of symptom severity in addition to CSF diagnostics are needed.
Identification of new biomarkers for pancreatic cancer management: A bioinformatics analysis
Authors: Jafari Somayeh , Ravan Milad , Aria Hamid , Atapour Amir , Sarab Gholamreza Anani
Published: June 2022

Background
Pancreatic adenocarcinoma is one of the highly invasive and the seventh most common cause of death among cancers worldwide. To identify key genes and the involved mechanisms in pancreatic adenocarcinoma, we used bioinformatics analyzes in our study to introduce potential biomarkers in pancreatic cancer management.
Methods
In this study, gene expression profiles of pancreatic adenocarcinoma patients and normal adjacent tissues were screened and downloaded from The Cancer Genom Atlas (TCGA) bioinformatics database. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified between normal and pancreatic cancer gene expression signatures using R software. Then, Enrichment analysis of DEGs [including Gene Ontology (GO) analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis] was performed by an enrichr (interactive and collaborative HTML5 gene list enrichment analysis) web-based tool. The protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was also constructed using STRING (Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes) and Cytoscape software to identify the hub genes according to the top 100 DEGs in pancreatic adenocarcinoma.
Results
In our study, more than 2000 DEGs with variable log2 fold (LFC) were identified among 34,706 genes. Principal component analysis showed that the top 20 DEGs, including H1-4, H1-5, H4C3, H4C2, RN7SL2, RN7SL3, RN7SL4P, RN7SKP80, SCARNA12, SCARNA10, SCARNA5, SCARNA7, SCARNA6, SCARNA21, SCARNA9, SCARNA13, SNORA73B, SNORA53, SNORA54 with 99.91% probability might distinguish pancreatic adenocarcinoma from normal tissue. GO analysis of these 20 top DEGs showed that they have more enriched in negative regulation of gene silencing, negative regulation of chromatin organization, negative regulation of chromatin silencing, nucleosome positioning, regulation of chromatin silencing and nucleosomal DNA binding. KEGG analysis identified an association between pancreatic adenocarcinoma and systemic lupus erythematosus, alcoholism, neutrophil extracellular trap formation, and viral carcinogenesis. In protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analysis, we found that different types of histone-encoding genes are involved as hub genes in the carcinogenesis of pancreatic adenocarcinoma.
Conclusions
Our bioinformatics analysis showed that the DEGs and hub genes as key genes identified in this study may serve as new biomarkers in the near future for better management of pancreatic cancer. Although, H1.3 is currently one of the prognostic biomarkers in pancreatic cancer.
Anti-nodavirus potential activity of R.A73 Enterococcus faecium strain, isolated from Tunisian freshwater fish mucus
Authors: Chérif Nadia , El-Jeni Rim , Amdouni Fatma , Bouhaouala-Zahar Balkiss , El-Bour Monia
Published: June 2022

R.A73 Enterococcus faecium (HG937697) was tested for investigating anti-nodaviral activity and immunomodulatory properties on E-11 fish cells. Non R.A73-related toxicity was confirmed. Likewise, in-vitro inhibition of nodavirus replication and gene expression of nodavirus capsid protein gene in addition to CCR3, IL-10 and TNFα genes were evaluated using qPCR. A preventive treatment of E-11 cells by the bacterial suspension generated a remarkable reduction in virus loads (RQ values from 0.1 to 0.9) at day 7. Interestingly, R.A73 E. faecium showed a significant gene expression upregulation of proinflammatory IL-10 cytokine whereas it did not significantly enhance CCR3 nor TNF-α immune gene expression in E-11 cells. Therefore, add-on its probiotic potential, R.A73 E. faecium is able to stimulate the immune system in the preventive phase throughout the differential expression of main inflammatory genes. This study provides the first evidence that R.A73 E. faecium strain can prevents effectively nodavirus replication, in vitro.
Application of Protein-Protein interaction network analysis in order to identify Cervical cancer mRNA and miRNA biomarkers
Authors: Tabrizi-Nezhadi Parinaz , MotieGhader Habib , Maleki Masoud
Published: June 2022

Background: Cervical cancer (CC) is one of the most common and serious cancers in the world. This cancer includes two histological types including Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and adenocarcinoma (ADC). In this project SCC have been studied. The current study aimed to identify novel potential candidate mRNA and miRNA biomarkers for CC based on a Protein-Protein Interaction (PPI) and miRNA-mRNA networks analysis.Results: In the current project, transcriptome profile for normal and CC samples was utilized. First, the PPI network was constructed for the 1335 DEGs, and then a significant gene module was extracted from the PPI network. Next, a list of miRNAs which are targeting module's genes are collected from the miRTarBase online database and a miRNA-mRNA regulatory network was formed. Afterward, CC driver genes were selected from the module's genes (MCM2, MCM10, POLA1, and TONSL) and introduced as potential candidate biomarkers for CC. As well as, two hub miRNAs including miR-193b-3p and miR-615-3p were selected from the miRNA-mRNA regulatory network and reported as potential candidate biomarkers for CC. Conclusion: In summary, six potential candidate RNA-based biomarkers consist of four genes containing MCM2, MCM10, POLA1, and TONSL and two miRNAs containing miR-193b-3p and miR-615-3p are opposed as potential candidate biomarker for CC.
Autonomous Vehicle Decision-Making at Unsignalized Intersection via Deep Reinforcement Learning
Authors: Xie Junran , Wang Qingling
Published: June 2022

This paper is concerned with the performance of different state representation on the vehicle decision-making problem at unsignalized intersection based on deep reinforcement learning. A hybrid state representation architecture based on attention mechanism and collision time prediction is designed, which can effectively improve the autonomous decision-making ability of vehicles. Compared with the traditional state representation method, the feature of our method is that the fusion of features can improve the vehicle’s obstacle avoidance ability, and the introduced action masking module can improve the vehicle’s traffic efficiency. Finally, test results in the simulation environment verify the effectiveness of our proposed method.
Student Perspectives on the Use of Universal Design for Learning in Virtual Formats in Higher Education
Authors: Wells Melissa
Published: June 2022

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in higher education may be a useful tool in supporting the heterogenous higher education student population, specifically in supporting student academic outcomes and retention. With more students enrolling in digital formatted education, specifically international students, a strong framework must be established to support non-geocentric students. Using survey responses of undergraduate degree-seeking students, this mixed-methods study explored the students’ perceptions and impact of UDL in virtual learning modalities (online courses, independent studies, and virtual study groups). Participants used a Likert-type survey to assess the student-reported prevalence of UDL techniques in higher education in various virtual learning modalities. Students also discussed the strategies that impacted their experience as learners and the mode of study in which they felt most successful. Implications for practice and research are also presented.
CoFee-L: A model of animal displacement in large groups combining Cohesion maintenance, Feeding area search and transient Leadership.
Authors: Gavrilitchenko Nikita , Gazagne Eva , Vandewalle Nicolas , Delcourt Johann , Hambuckers Alain
Published: June 2022

BackgroundIn the current context of climate change and intensive anthropization of natural environments, the preservation of ecosystems is a matter of great importance. In the tropics, the conservation of tree species is closely linked to that of animals. A large proportion of tree species is zoochore and needs animals, mainly vertebrates, to disperse their seeds in order to increase their chances of survival. Being able to predict the movement of animals is therefore an important skill. Lots of research exists on the subject, but it has always focused on particular characteristics of collective behavior. In contrast to previous studies, we included the concepts of Cohesion maintenance, Feeding area search and transient Leadership in a single model, CoFee-L.MethodsWe tested CoFee-L to simulate the movement of a wild-ranging troop of primates belonging to the species Macaca leonina in a nature reserve of Thailand. We analyzed this methodology by statistical physics tools (mean squared displacement) and we characterized the simulated trajectories by histograms and χ2 for the step length and turning angle distributions sampled at the same frequency as the collection of field observations.ResultsCoFee-L allowed us to reproduce the physical properties of the troop's centre of mass trajectory, as well as the step length and angle distributions of the field data. Moreover, CoFee-L is able to produce trajectories looking like correlated random walks or levy walks depending of the parametrisation. ConclusionsWe created a model, CoFee-L, which allowed us to simulate the movement of a group of vertebrates taking into account not only the movement and individual characteristics of each member, but this also independently of the group size. The parameterisation of CoFee-L was rather simple, as it was sufficient to fix a set of parameters easily observable in the field (number of individuals, size of the study site, duration of monitoring, duration of foraging, distance between individuals and maximum spread of the group) and then to adjust the values of 4 parameters which have biological meaning (personal information, exploration of the study site, speed of movement and tendency to do a levy walk).
Clinical verification of the relationship between serum lipid metabolism and immune activity in breast cancer patients treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy
Authors: Goto Wataru , Kashiwagi Shinichiro , Takada Koji , Asano Yuka , Ogisawa Kana , Morisaki Tamami , Shibutani Masatsune , Tanaka Hiroaki , Ohira Masaichi
Published: June 2022

Background: The have been recent reports that lipid metabolism affects the prognosis and tumor immune activity in cancer patients. However, the effect of lipid metabolism on chemosensitivity in patients with breast cancer treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) remains unclear. Methods: We examined 327 patients with breast cancer who were treated with NAC followed by curative surgery. The correlations between the serum levels of total cholesterol (TC) and triglyceride (TG) and the clinicopathological features, including the efficacy of NAC, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and absolute lymphocyte count (ALC), were evaluated retrospectively. Results: Serum TG levels were increased after NAC in all the subtypes, and the rate of change was the highest, especially in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) (21.0% → 48.1%). In addition, only TNBC patients with an objective response (OR) had significantly higher TG levels after NAC than those without (P = 0.049). Patients with a high ALC before NAC had significantly higher TG levels after NAC than patients with breast cancer (P = 0.001), HER2-enriched breast cancer (P = 0.021), and TNBC (P = 0.008). Patients with a low NLR before NAC had significantly higher TG levels after NAC only among patients with TNBC (P = 0.025). In patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-enriched breast cancer, the group with normal TC levels before NAC had significantly better OS than those with high TC levels (P = 0.013, log-rank test), and in patients with TNBC, the group with high TC levels after NAC had significantly better OS than those with normal TC levels (P = 0.014, log-rank test). Conclusions: Good systemic immune activity and chemosensitivity may be associated with lipid metabolism regulated by NAC in TNBC patients.
Hub genes for early diagnosis and therapy of adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma
Authors: Zou Yang-fan , Zhang Shu-yuan , Wu Bin , Li Li-weng , Jin Kai , Sun Caixing , Xia Liang
Published: June 2022

Background: Adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma (ACP) is a subtype of craniopharyngioma which is a neoplastic disease with a benign pathological phenotype but a poor prognosis in the sellar region. The disease has been considered as the most common congenital tumor in the skull. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to identify hub genes which might serve as genetic markers of diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of ACP.Methods: The procedure of this research includes acquisition of public data, identification and functional annotation of differentially expressed genes (DEGs), construction and analysis of PPI network, and the mining and analysis of hub genes by Spearman-rho test, multivariable linear regression, and receiver operator characteristic curve analysis. Quantitative real-time (RT-qPCR) were used to detect the level of mRNA of relative genes.Results: Among 2 datasets, a total of 703 DEGs were identified, which were mainly enriched in chemical synaptic transmission, cell adhesion, odontogenesis of dentin-containing tooth, cell junction, extracellular region, extracellular space, structural molecule activity, and structural constituent of cytoskeleton. The PPI network was composed of 4379 edges and 589 nodes. Its significant module had 10 hub genes, and SYN1, SYP and GRIA2 were significantly down-regulated with ACP.Conclusion: In a word, we find out the DEGs between ACP patients and normal samples, which are likely to play an important role in the development of the ACP. At the same time, these DEGs are of great value in the diagnosis and targeted therapy of tumors, and could even be mined as biological molecular targets for the diagnosis and therapy of ACP patients.
Snack consumption patterns and their associations with risk of incident metabolic syndrome: Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study
Authors: Gaeini Zahra , Malmir Hanieh , Mirmiran Parvin , Feizy Zahra , Azizi Fereidoun
Published: June 2022

Aim: Few studies considered the association between snack patterns and metabolic abnormalities. Here we aimed to characterize the major snack patterns among Iranian adults and determine their association with the risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its components.Methods: This study was conducted on 1713 MetS-free adults who participated in the third phase of the Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study (TLGS). At baseline, dietary intake of snack was assessed using a validated 168-items food frequency questionnaire, and snack patterns were obtained by principal component analysis (PCA). Adjusted Hazard Ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated for the association of incident MetS and its components with the extracted snack patterns.Results: PCA identified five major snack patterns, defined as "healthy pattern", "low-fructose pattern", "high-trans pattern", "high-caffeine pattern" and "high-fructose pattern". Participants in the highest tertile of the "high-caffeine pattern" had lower risks of MetS (HR=0.80, 95% CI=0.65-0.99) and hypertriglyceridemia (HR=0.76, 95% CI=0.63-0.92). The risk of developing abdominal obesity and hypertension decreased by 27% and 24%, respectively, in the highest compared to the lowest tertile of the "low-fructose pattern" (HR=0.73, 95% CI=0.61-0.88 and HR=0.76, 95% CI=0.58-0.99, respectively). Other snack patterns have not shown any significant association with MetS and its components.Conclusions: "High-caffeine pattern" was associated with lower risks of MetS and hypertriglyceridemia. In addition, greater adherence to a "low-fructose pattern" resulted in reduced abdominal obesity and hypertension risks.
Biomass pools in intensively managed hedgerows can be a net emission of carbon dioxide
Authors: Black Kevin , Lanigan Gary , Ward Mark , Kavanagh Ian , OHuallachain Daire , Sullivan Lilian O
Published: June 2022

Perennial landscape features, such as hedgerows, can play a role in enhancing terrestrial carbon (C) sinks, especially in North-western Europe, where they form a large part of the agricultural landscape. To date, there are few studies relating aerial imagery to ground-truthed biomass measurements and relating changes in biomass to hedgerow management. This study sought to develop relationships between measured biomass of hedgerows and digital elevation model (DEM) data from drones and aircraft. Furthermore, changes in hedgerow above-ground and below-ground biomass stocks were assessed using a two-point sampling approach. The developed inventory framework was then applied to a pilot study area of 419,701 hectares in Ireland. Robust relationships were developed relating DEM data to volume and above-ground biomass. Model equations were also developed linking above-ground and below-ground biomass. However, these were less robust due to the confounding impact of hedgerow management. Aboveground biomass was linearly correlated with hedge volume with irregular, unmanaged hedgerows observed to contain significantly higher amounts of aboveground biomass compared to regular, highly managed hedgerows. When the models were extrapolated to the county level, hedgerow biomass C pools are suggested to be a net emission of -0.3 tC. ha-1.yr-1 due to removals and management.
Risk factors for chronic postsurgical pain in visceral surgery: a matched case-control analysis
Authors: Perrodin Stéphanie F. , Trinh Win-Hua , Streitberger Konrad , Martinelli Claudine Di Pietro , Harnik Michael Alexander , Holzgang Melanie , Candinas Daniel , Beldi Guido
Published: June 2022

Purpose: Chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP) after abdominal visceral surgery is an underestimated long-term complication with relevant impact on health-related quality of life and socioeconomic costs. Early identification of affected patients is important. We aim to identify the incidence and risk factors for CPSP in this patient population.Methods: Retrospective case-control matched analysis including all patients diagnosed with CPSP after visceral surgery in our institution between 2016 and 2019 was performed. One-to-two case-control matching was based on operation category (HPB, upper-GI, colorectal, transplantation, bariatric and others) and date of surgery. Potential risk factors for CPSP were identified using conditional multivariate logistic regression. Results: Among a cohort of 3730 patients, 176 (4.7%) were diagnosed with CPSP during the study period and matched to a sample of 352 control patients. Independent risk factors for CPSP were age under 55 years (OR 2.64, CI 1.51-4.61), preexisting chronic pain of any origin (OR 3.42, CI 1.75-6.67), a history of abdominal surgery (OR 1.99, CI 1.11-3.57), acute postoperative pain (OR 1.29, CI 1.16-1.44), postoperative use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (OR 3.73, OR 1.61-8.65), opioid use on discharge (OR 3.78, CI 2.10-6.80) and length of stay over three days (OR 2.60, CI 1.22-5.53).Conclusion: The incidence of CPSP is high and associated with specific risk factors, some of them modifiable. Special attention should be given to sufficient treatment of preexisting chronic pain and acute postoperative pain.
A Novel Method to Detect Cyber Attacks in IoT/IIoT Devices on the Modbus Protocol using Deep Learning
Authors: Gueye Thierno , Wang Yanen , Rehman Mudassar , Mushtaq Ray Tahir
Published: June 2022

The dominant Intrusion Detection Models in the field of IoT/IIoT cybersecurity use network-based datasets. This paper proposes a way to perform Intrusion Detection with just the values in the registers of a device over a Modbus communication protocol. The proposed method of performing Intrusion Detection is by introducing an Embedding Layer into an otherwise simple neural network. Three neural networks were designed for the experiment and trained for both a binary classification of whether an attack occurred or not, and a multi-class classification of different types of attacks. The models performed better than the results previously reported without the use of Embedding Layers. This paper shows that a neural network with an Embedding Layer can effectively be used to model not only whether an attack occurred on a device, but also the class of attack that occurred.
Chicken cecal microbiota reduces abdominal fat deposition by regulating fat metabolism
Authors: Chen Yan , Akhtar Muhammad , Ma Ziyu , Hu Tingwei , Liu Qiyao , Pan Hong , Zhang Xiaolong , Nafady Abdallah A. , Ansari Abdur Rahman , Abdel-Kafy El-Sayed M. , Shi Deshi , Liu Huazhen
Published: June 2022

Background: Rapidly developed broilers are often accompanied by excessive fat deposition and markedly decreased feed utilization, which is a severe problem in the poultry industry. Recent studies established that gut microbiota significantly alters chicken fat deposition. However, what kind of cecal bacteria can regulate fat deposition and how they control fat deposition remains unclear. Results: The abdominal fat weight and index, and average diameter of adipocytes were markedly higher in high than in low abdominal fat deposition chickens at different time points (1, 4, and 12 months). The higher expression levels of fat synthesis related genes (ACSL1, FADS1, CYP2C45, ACC, and FAS) and a lower expression of fat catabolism genes (CPT-1, and PPARα) in the liver and abdominal fat of high abdominal fat deposition chickens, indicated that an unbalanced fat metabolism leads to excessive abdominal fat deposition. Parabacteroides, Parasutterella, Oscillibacter, and Anaerofustis were found higher in high abdominal fat deposition chickens, while Bacteroides and Sphaerochaeta were higher in low abdominal fat deposition chickens at different time points. Further, Spearman correlation analysis indicated that the relative abundance of Parabacteroides, Parasutterella, Oscillibacter, and Anaerofustis was positively correlated with abdominal fat weight and index, and the expression level of fat anabolism genes, yet the relative abundance of Bacteroides and Sphaerochaeta was negatively correlated with these factors. Furthermore, transferring fecal microbiota from adult chickens with low abdominal fat deposition into one-day-old chicks significantly decreased Parabacteroides, abdominal fat weight and index, and fat anabolism genes, while markedly increased Bacteroides and Sphaerochaeta and fat catabolism genes. Conclusion: Our findings highlighted that Bacteroides and Sphaerochaeta might reduce abdominal fat deposition, yet Parabacteroides Parasutterella, Oscillibacter, and Anaerofustis could promote abdominal fat deposition by regulating fat metabolism.
Assessment of groundwater quality around the open dump site near Sathyamangalam Town in Erode District, Tamilnadu, India
Authors: Ramaswamy Geethamani , Subramaniam Kanmani , Balu Soundara
Published: June 2022

Groundwater sources play an important role in meeting the day today needs of the present generation for various activities such as domestic, industrial, commercial and agricultural. These sources are to be protected from pollution to meet the essentials of the future generation. Frequent monitoring of the ground water source plays an important part. The aim of this study is to analyze the quality of the ground water in and around the open dumpsite near Sathyamangalam town in Erode district and to identify the variation in concentration with respect to time. Groundwater samples were collected from twenty-one locations in around the open dumpsite and analyzed for the important parameters such as pH, Electrical conductivity (EC), Total Alkalinity (TA), Total Hardness (TH), Total Dissolved solids (TDS), Calcium (Ca2+), Magnesium (Mg2+), Chlorides (Cl-), Sodium (Na+), Potassium (K+), Nitrates (NO3-) and Sulphates (SO42-). Water Quality Index (WQI) was used to identify the quality of water for drinking. From the results obtained, it is inferred that WQI changes with respect to different seasons and different time periods for the same season. Majority of the samples are of poor quality with respect to drinking water quality index. Gibb’s plot, Wilcox diagram and United States Salinity Laboratory (USSL) diagram are used to assess the suitability of groundwater samples for irrigation purpose. Most of the samples are good for agricultural use. Hence frequent and continuous monitoring of the groundwater quality is necessary to identify its suitability for drinking and agricultural purpose.
Frequency analysis of EEG microstate sequences in wakefulness and NREM sleep
Authors: Wiemers Milena C. , Laufs Helmut , von Wegner Frederic
Published: June 2022

The majority of EEG microstate analyses concern wakefulness, and the existing sleep studies have focused on changes in spatial microstate properties and on microstate transitions between adjacent time points, the shortest available time scale. We present a more extensive time series analysis of unsmoothed EEG microstate sequences in wakefulness and non-REM sleep stages across many time scales. Very short time scales are assessed with Markov tests, intermediate time scales by the entropy rate and long time scales by a spectral analysis which identifies characteristic microstate frequencies.During the descent from wakefulness to sleep stage N3, we find that the increasing mean microstate duration is a gradual phenomenon explained by a continuous slowing of microstate dynamics as described by the relaxation time of the transition probability matrix. The finite entropy rate, which considers longer microstate histories, shows that microstate sequences become more predictable (less random) with decreasing vigilance level. Accordingly, the Markov property is absent in wakefulness but in sleep stage N3, 10/19 subjects have remarkably simple microstate sequences which are compatible with a second-order Markov process.A spectral microstate analysis is performed by comparing the time-lagged mutual information coefficients of microstate sequences with the autocorrelation function of the underlying EEG. We find periodic microstate behavior in all vigilance states, linked to alpha frequencies in wakefulness, theta activity in N1, sleep spindle frequencies in N2, and in the delta frequency band in N3.In summary, we show that EEG microstates are a dynamic phenomenon with oscillatory properties that slow down in sleep and are coupled to specific EEG frequencies across several sleep stages.
Determining the Source Location of Groundwater Contamination by Weierstrass’ Polynomial Approximation
Authors: Samanta Animesh , Chatterjee Ayan , Singh Mritumjay Kumar , Pasupuleti Srinivas , Singh Vijay P.
Published: June 2022

This study proposes a new technique, based on Weierstrass’ polynomial approximation to determine the source location of chemical contaminants and their concentration in groundwater. Validation of the technique with a previous study showed that its results were almost identical (0.2 percent difference). The technique was also validated with field data on groundwater physico-chemical parameters, including pH, Sulphate, Nitrate, Fluoride, and Potassium, which were approximated, respectively, with 6%, 3%, 8%, 10% and 25% error.
An Application of Remote Sensing/GIS to map groundwater potential zone for Hydrogeophysical Prospecting in Potwar Plateau, Pakistan
Authors: Raza Irfan , Khalid Perveiz
Published: June 2022

The groundwater potential zone (GWPZ) mapping is fundamental target in urbanization and socio-economic development as well as environmental protection of an area. The delineation of fresh groundwater and saline water boundaries is a very crucial in water scarcity areas. Conventionally, geophysical survey is conducted for this objective, which is expensive and time consuming. Islamabad, the capital city of Pakistan – a part of the Potwar Plateau – belongs to water scare area where sustainable supply of fresh water is very challenging. Remote Sensing (RS)/GIS techniques are applied for GWPZ in the study area comprised of 6,000 km2. Geology, land use/ land cover (LULC), slope, lineament density, geomorphology, rainfall, drainage density, soil type thematic maps were prepared using geological information, rainfall data and Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission Digital Elevation Model (SRTM DEM). The analytical hierarchical process (AHP) multi-decision making analysis indicate that the weights of multiple parameters influence the GWPZ vary from 0.36 – 0.02 with LULC receives maximum weightage and soil type with minimum weightage. Based on these thematic maps GWPZ map was prepared and the whole area under investigation was classified into five groundwater potential zones ranging from very poor to very good. The study reveals about 50 % of the entire total surface territory having good to very good potential for groundwater prospecting and around 20 % area falls in poor to very poor zone. Due to the distribution of surficial, stream deposits and agricultural area with water penetration capacity, the very good GWPZ are dominating in the south and northwestern areas in the research region.
Open Chest Duration Following Congenital Cardiac Surgery Increases Risk for Surgical Site Infection
Authors: Iguidbashian John , Feng Zihan , Colborn Kathryn L. , Barrett Cindy S. , Newman Shanna R. , Harris Marisa , Campbell David N. , Mitchell Max B. , Jaggers James , Stone Matthew L.
Published: June 2022

OBJECTIVES: Surgical site infections (SSI) following congenital heart surgery (CHS) remain a significant source of morbidity. Delayed sternal closure (DSC) is often required to minimize the potential for hemodynamic instability. The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of SSI among patients undergoing DSC versus primary chest closure (PCC) and to define a potential inflection point for increased risk of SSI as a function of open chest duration (OCD). METHODS: A retrospective review of our institutional Society of Thoracic Surgeons dataset to identify patients undergoing CHS at our institution between 2015-2020. Incidences of SSI were compared between DSC and PCC patients. DSC patients were evaluated to determine the association of OCD and the incidence of SSI. RESULTS: 2,582 operations were performed at our institution between 2015-2020, including 195 DSC and 2,387 PCC cases. The incidence of SSI within the cohort was 1.8%. DSC patients had significantly higher incidences of SSI (8.7%) than PCC patients (1.3%, p=0.041, OR: 6.7). Further, patients with an OCD of four or more days had a significantly higher incidence of SSI (17.7%, (11/62), p=0.006) than patients with an OCD less than 4 days (5.3%, 6/115).CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of SSI following CHS is higher in DSC patients compared to PCC patients. Prolonged OCD of 4 days or more significantly increases the risk of SSI and represents a potentially modifiable risk factor for SSI predisposition. These data support dedicated, daily post-operative assessment of candidacy for chest closure to minimize the risk of SSI.
Complete f-moment convergence for negatively superadditive dependent random variables
Authors: Wang Liuliu , Hu Xueping
Published: June 2022

In this paper, by utilizing the Kolmogorov exponential type inequality of negatively superadditive dependent random arrays and truncated method, we study the complete f -moment convergence for arrays of rowwise NSD random variables. Some sufficient conditions to prove the complete f-moment convergence are obtained, which generalize and improve some known ones. MSC: 60F15
Opposing effects of β-2 and β-1 adrenergic receptor signaling on neuroinflammation and dopaminergic neuron survival in α-synuclein-mediated neurotoxicity
Authors: Torrente Daniel , Su Enming J. , Schielke Gerald P. , Warnock Mark , Mann Kris , Lawrence Daniel A.
Published: June 2022

Background
Noradrenergic neurons in the locus coeruleus (LC) are the primary source of norepinephrine (NE) in the brain and degeneration of these neurons is reported in the early stages of Parkinson’s disease (PD), even prior to dopaminergic neuron degeneration in the substantia nigra (SN), which is a hallmark of PD pathology. NE depletion is generally associated with increased PD pathology in neurotoxin-based PD models. The effect of NE depletion in other models of PD like α-synuclein-based models is largely unexplored. In PD models and in human patients, β-adrenergic receptors (AR) signaling is associated with a reduction of neuroinflammation and PD pathology. However, the effect of NE depletion in the brain and the extent of NE and β-ARs signaling involvement in neuroinflammation, and dopaminergic neuron survival is poorly understood.
Methods
Two mouse models of PD, a 6OHDA neurotoxin-based model and a human α-synuclein (hα-SYN) virus-based model of PD were used. DSP-4 was used to deplete NE levels in the brain and its effect was confirmed by HPLC with electrochemical detection. A pharmacological approach was used to mechanistically understand the impact of DSP-4 in the hα-SYN model of PD using a norepinephrine transporter (NET) and a β-AR blocker. Epifluorescence and confocal imaging were used to study changes in microglia activation and T-cell infiltration after β1-AR and β2-AR agonist treatment in the hα-SYN virus-based model of PD.
Results
Consistent with previous studies we found that DSP-4 pretreatment increased dopaminergic neuron loss after 6OHDA injection. In contrast, DSP-4 pretreatment protected dopaminergic neurons after hα-SYN overexpression. DSP-4-mediated protection of dopaminergic neurons after hα-SYN overexpression was dependent on β-AR signaling since using a β-AR blocker prevented DSP-4-mediated dopaminergic neuron protection in this model of PD. Finally, we found that the β-2AR agonist, clenbuterol, reduced microglia activation, T-cell infiltration, and dopaminergic neuron degeneration whereas xamoterol a β-1AR agonist showed increased neuroinflammation and dopaminergic neuron degeneration in the context of hα-SYN-mediated neurotoxicity.
Conclusion
Our data demonstrate that the effects of DSP-4 on dopaminergic neuron degeneration are model specific, and suggest that in the context of α-SYN driven neuropathology β2-AR specific agonists may have therapeutic benefit in PD.
Games of GANs: Game-Theoretical Models for Generative Adversarial Networks
Authors: Moghadam Monireh Mohebbi , Boroomand Bahar , Jalali Mohammad , Zareian Arman , Daeijavad Alireza , Manshaei Mohammad Hossein , Krunz Marwan
Published: June 2022

Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) have recently attracted considerable attention in the AI community due to their ability to generate high-quality data of significant statistical resemblance to real data. Fundamentally, GAN is a game between two neural networks trained in an adversarial manner to reach a zero-sum Nash equilibrium profile. Despite the improvement accomplished in GANs in the last few years, several issues remain to be solved. This paper reviews the literature on the game-theoretic aspects of GANs and addresses how game theory models can address specific challenges of generative models and improve the GAN's performance. We first present some preliminaries, including the basic GAN model and some game theory background. We then present taxonomy to classify state-of-the-art solutions into three main categories: modified game models, modified architectures, and modified learning methods. The classification is based on modifications made to the basic GAN model by proposed game-theoretic approaches in the literature. We then explore the objectives of each category and discuss recent works in each class. Finally, we discuss the remaining challenges in this field and present future research directions.
Chorioamnionitis-exposure alters serum cytokine trends in premature neonates
Authors: Stepanovich Gretchen , Chapman Cole , Meserve Krista , Sturza Julie , Ellsworth Lindsay , Bailey Ryan , Bermick Jennifer
Published: June 2022

Objective: Determine the duration of chorioamnionitis-induced altered immune responses in preterm neonates. Study Design: A 7-plex immunoassay measured levels of IL-1b, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-a, CCL2 and CCL3 longitudinally in residual serum samples from chorioamnionitis-exposed and unexposed preterm neonates less than 33 weeks’ gestation. Results: Chorioamnionitis-exposed and unexposed preterm neonates demonstrated differences in the trends of IL-1b, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-a and CCL2 over the first month of life. The unexposed neonates demonstrated elevated levels of these inflammatory markers in the first one to two weeks of life with a decrease to baseline levels by the third week of life, while the chorioamnionitis-exposed neonates demonstrated differences over time without a predictable pattern. Chorioamnionitis-exposed and unexposed neonates demonstrated altered IL-10 and TNF-a trajectories over the first twelve weeks of life.Conclusion: Chorioamnionitis induces a state of immune dysregulation that persists for at least twelve weeks following delivery in preterm neonates.
Phase space Feynman path integrals of parabolic type on the torus as analysis on path space
Authors: Kumano-go Naoto
Published: June 2022

We provide general sets of functionals for which parabolic phase space Feynman path integrals on the torus Td ≡ (R/2πZ)d have a mathematically rigorous meaning. More exactly, for each functional belonging to each set, the time slicing approximation of the phase space path integral converges uniformly on compact subsets of Td ×Zd to some function of the ending point of position paths and the starting point of momentum paths. Each set of functionals is closed under addition, multiplication, translation, invertible integer linear transformation, and functional differentiation. As a result, we can create a large number of path integrable functionals. Though we must exercise caution when using phase space path integrals, several properties comparable to those of conventional integrals are applicable.Mathematics Subject Classification (2010) 81S40 · 35S05 · 35K25
Anterior gradient 2 induces resistance to sorafenib via endoplasmic reticulum stress regulation in hepatocellular carcinoma
Authors: Chen Cheng Yi , Tsai Hung-Wen , Chen Yi-Li , Wang Chun-I , Lin Yang-Hsiang , Chu Pei-Ming , Huang Yi-Ching
Published: June 2022

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) accounts for almost 80% of all liver cancers and is the sixth most common cancer and the second most common cause of cancer-related death worldwide. The survival rate of sorafenib-treated advanced HCC patients is still unsatisfactory. Unfortunately, no useful biomarkers have been verified to predict sorafenib efficacy in HCC. We assessed a sorafenib resistance-related microarray dataset and found that anterior gradient 2 (AGR2) is highly associated with overall and recurrence-free survival and several clinical parameters in HCC. However, the mechanisms underlying the role of AGR2 in sorafenib resistance and HCC progression remain unknown. We found that sorafenib induces AGR2 secretion via posttranslational modification, and AGR2 plays a critical role in sorafenib-regulated cell viability and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and induces apoptosis in sorafenib-sensitive cells. Sorafenib downregulated intracellular AGR2 and conversely induces AGR2 secretion, which suppresses its regulation of ER stress and cell survival in sorafenib-sensitive cells. In addition, AGR2 is highly intracellularly expressed in sorafenib-resistant cells, which supports ER homeostasis and cell survival. We suggest that AGR2 regulates ER stress to influence HCC progression and sorafenib resistance. This is the first report that AGR2 can modulate ER homeostasis via the IRE1α-XBP1 cascade to regulate HCC progression and sorafenib resistance. Elucidation of the predictive value of AGR2 and its molecular and cellular mechanisms in sorafenib resistance could provide additional opportunities for HCC treatment.
WITHDRAWN: Combustion stability and flame characteristics of hydrocarbon-air mixtures in millimeter-scale cavity-stabilized burners with proper thermal management
Authors: Chen Junjie
Published: June 2022

Flame stabilization is a common problem in these combustion systems, and a flame will propagate through a fuel-air mixture only when certain conditions prevail. However, the precise mechanism underlying the stabilizing effect of the cavity method remains unclear. This study relates to the thermal management of micro-structured cavity-stabilized burners. The design factors affecting combustion stability and flame characteristics of hydrocarbon-air mixtures in millimeter-scale cavity-stabilized burners are determined. The results indicate that the flow velocity, wall thermal conductivity, channel height, and heat loss are critical factors in assuring combustion stability within the cavity-stabilized burner. The axial heat transfer from the post-flame to the pre-flame via wall conduction widens stability limits and can enable the construction of smaller burners. Axial heat transfer also enhances the benefits of operating under high admixture inlet velocity and wall heat transfer coefficient conditions. Heat exchange through the structure can lead to a broadening of the reaction region, but heat loss to the environment decreases the broadening effect and eventually results in flame quenching. The maximum power density tends to increase with increasing the channel height. Fast flows can cause blowout and slow flows can cause extinction. The anisotropic wall thermal conductivity influences the maximum achievable power density. The channel height has an important effect on the stability and performance of the cavity-stabilized burner and should be included when estimating burner performance.