bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Inovasi Pembelajaran Model PBL dengan Desain FILA Chart Berbantuan Mindmaple Terhadap Keterampilan Metakognitif
Authors: Utami Kurnia , Inayah Ghina Nur , Supriatno Bambang , Riandi Riandi
Published: August 2022

This study aims to determine the effect of applying the Problem Based Learning (PBL) model with the FILA chart design with the aid of MindMaple on the metacognitive skills of class XI high school students on the excretory system material. This research was conducted at SMA Negeri 1 Palembang. The research method used is Quasi Experimental Design with the research design of Nonequivalent Control Group Design. Determination of the research sample using the Simple Random Sampling technique so that class XI IPA 6 was selected as the control class, XI IPA 7 as the experimental class, and XI IPA 8 as the placebo class with a total of 36 students in each class. Metacognitive skills are measured through a pre-test and a post-test with the instrument 3 essay questions with cognitive levels C4 to C6 which has been tested for validity and reliability. Data were analyzed using SPSS 25 program, hypothesis testing using ANCOVA test. The results of the ANCOVA test analysis showed that the application of the Problem Based Learning (PBL) model with the FILA chart design assisted by Mind Maple had a significant effect on the metacognitive skills of students at SMA Negeri 1 Palembang. Next The average results of the metacognitive skills final test scores sequentially show that the application of the PBL model with the FILA chart design with the aid of MindMaple is better than the application of the conventional learning model with the FILA chart design with the aid of MindMaple and conventional classes in improving students' metacognitive skills
Analysis of Students’ Perception toward Online Biology Learning using e-learning Madrasah at Islamic Senior High School (MAN) Penajam Paser Utara
Authors: Nigmah Choirun , Masitah Masitah , Purwati Sri , Jailani Jailani
Published: August 2022

Online learning is extremely common during the Covid-19 pandemic. That sudden alteration, from offline to online learning affect the learning process including the perception of students and teachers using online learning platform. The aims of this study are to determine the students’ perceptions of class XI MIA on online biology learning by using Madrasah E-Learning at MAN Penajam Paser Utara. The data was collected by conducting the observations, interviews and questionnaires. The questionnaire was in Likert scale form that has been valid and reliable (ralpha= 0, 836) with a very strong category. The indicators that were studied include the indicators of student activity, indicators of student perceptions of Madrasah E-Learning and the indicators of factors that affect learning in network (online). Descriptive statistical techniques were the data analysis technique that was used in the form of descriptive, frequency distribution and percentage. The results showed that the activity based on the attendance and collection of student assignments during online biology learning was in the good category. Students' perceptions of Madrasah E-Learning are in very positive category with 63.89%. However, the use of Madrasah E-Learning is still not effective due to network constraints and the lack of teacher skills and knowledge regarding the use of Madrasah E-Learning features. The factors that influence learning in the network include learning support facilities such as cellphones and laptops, network factors and internet quotas, motivational factors, learning interest factors, family factors, home atmosphere factors, environmental factors, and economic factors
Experimental Study on Damage Characteristics of Coal Samples under True Triaxial Loading and Dynamic Unloading
Authors: Cao Anye , Wang Changbin , Zhang Ning , Li Hui , Liu Zhigang , Zhi Sheng
Published: August 2022

Coal bursts are one of the formidable hazards in underground coal mines, yet it is still not fully explored due to the complex stress environment that exists during mining. To better understand the bursting mechanism of coal under real-time mining conditions, it is necessary to develop an experimental method capable of reproducing in situ stress and loading-unloading paths of coal in in situ conditions. In this study, a self-developed true triaxial testing system was used to investigate the damage and failure characteristics of coal samples under true triaxial loading and dynamic unloading conditions. Acoustic Emission (AE) monitoring was used to capture the fracturing of the loaded coal. Passive Velocity Tomography (PVT) and Cumulative AE Energy Density (CAEED) were used to analyse damage evolution characteristics of the coal samples under true triaxial loading conditions. A high-speed camera was used to record the failure of the coal samples when the minimum principal stress σ3 was suddenly unloaded. It was found that continuous coal damage occurred primarily during the true triaxial loading period. The peak number of AE events in the coal samples increased and then dropped as σ1 levels increased. High and low wave velocity zones in the coal samples represent regenerations of the high-density zone and fracture emergence, respectively. Significant energy release zones transferred and expanded as the triaxial loading level increased. Under significant triaxial loads, the coal samples failed and were severely damaged, and the dynamic unloading of σ3 caused ejections of coal fragments at low velocities. The outcome of this study provides in-depth understanding of the failure mechanism of coal under in situ conditions.
Stress State Change and Fault-Slip Tendency Assessment Associated with Gas Injection and Extraction in the Hutubi (China) Underground Gas Storage
Authors: Gao Guiyun , Chang Chandong , Wang Chenghu , Li Yanyong , Jia Jin
Published: August 2022

The Hutubi (HTB) gas reservoir in northwest China was active in production from 1998 to 2012; beginning in 2013, it was used for gas storage. Several earthquakes occurred during the early operation of the Hutubi underground gas storage (HTB-UGS) project, so it is important to explore their relationship with gas injection and extraction from the viewpoint of stress state change and faulting susceptibility. We study the evolution of the stress state and slip tendency associated with the operation of the HTB-UGS to understand the relationship between pore pressure variation and induced seismicity. We constrain the stress state in the reservoir at the time of cessation of production in 2012 using image-logged wellbore breakouts. We then estimate stress state variation over time as a result of pore pressure changes, based on the assumption of poroelastic coupling between horizontal elastic stresses and pore pressure. The maximum principal stress in the reservoir region before the HTB-UGS operation is oriented N23°±6°E, which is consistent with that of the prevailing tectonic stress derived from earthquake focal mechanisms. Our results show that the vertical stress (Sv) and the minimum horizontal principal stress (Shmin) were initially similar in magnitude before petroleum production; the magnitude of Shmin gradually decreased during petroleum production. Gas injection, initiated in 2013, raised the Shmin magnitude, returning it to approximately that of Sv. We use the estimated variations in the reservoir stress state over time to calculate temporal changes in slip tendency of the main faults in the reservoir. The fault-slip tendency decreased continuously with petroleum production and then increased with gas injection. The first earthquake swarm associated with gas injection occurred approximately 2 months after the start of injection, possibly due to the slow pore pressure diffusion. Thereafter, earthquakes were induced whenever gas was injected. Our assessment of slip tendency suggests that earthquake swarms were induced during increasing pore pressure phases when slip tendency reached a value of 0.43 ± 0.04. The maximum allowable pore pressure for avoiding earthquakes (ML > 1.5) is 29.0 ± 4.5 MPa, which might increase through stress adjustments and a newly attained balance. This study provides a possible method for induced earthquake analysis associated with gas injection and extraction from the perspective of stress state change and faulting susceptibility.
Multivariate screening of Brugia spp. adults
Authors: Wheeler Nicolas J. , Zamanian Mostafa , Ryan Kaetlyn T. , Gallo Kendra J.
Published: August 2022

The following protocol is for performing multivariate (motility, fecundity, metabolism, and viability) phenotypic drug screens against Brugia spp. adults.Adults are allowed to recover in complete media after extraction and (if applicable) shipment in order to equilibrate. The assay is initiated the next day and terminated after 48 hrs, after which females will no longer release progeny.
Weakly Supervised Object Detection with Self-Attention Distillation and Instance-Aware Mining
Authors: Yang Peng , Zhou Shi , Han Zhigeng , Yang Guowei
Published: August 2022

Weakly supervised object detection (WSOD) has been widely concerned in the field of computer vision due to its inexpensive way for learning object detectors. However, existing WSOD methods are either limited on localization accuracy or require complex pipelines. In this paper, we propose a single network training based framework for WSOD task. The layer-wise self-attention distillation is performed in our framework so as to improve representation learning of the detection network. As the complementary composition, a context addition unit is designed to prevent the detection network focusing on the most discriminative parts of object. Moreover, an instance-aware mining algorithm is proposed to generate more precise pseudo-labels, and thereby further enhance the performance of the detection network. We have evaluated the proposed method on popular benchmarks, i.e., PASCAL VOC 2007 and VOC 2012, and the experimental results show that it can accurately and efficiently locate objects in images without complex data augmentation and well-annotated auxiliary dataset.
Semi-quantum Key Agreement Protocol against Dishonest Third-party with Delegating Quantum Measuring
Authors: Zhou Yi-Hua , Xu Yang , Yang Yu-Guang , Shi Wei-Min , Chen Ze-Song
Published: August 2022

In quantum cloud environment, most application protocols have the problems of using a lot of quantum resources, high communication costs, and inability to check the honesty of cloud server. Therefore, a semi-quantum key agreement protocol based on GHZ-like state with a dishonest delegated measuring center is proposed. In our protocol, the application system consists of a quantum cloud server which only needs to prepare GHZ-like states and distributes all the particles to other participants, a quantum measuring center which performs complicated quantum measurement, such as X-base measurement and Bell measurement, and many classical semi-quantum participants which perform key agreement. Our protocol has many advantages. First, our protocol removes the assumption of honest or semi-honest cloud server because the dishonesty of cloud sever can be checked by delegated measuring center and classical semi-quantum participants. Second, the dishonesty of measuring center can also be found by classical semi-quantum participants through joint measurement. Third, only classical semi-quantum participants can obtain random shared key even if quantum cloud server and measuring center are interested in shared keys. Fourth, a large number of participants may be semi-quantum users which saving a lot of quantum resources. Our protocol is especially suitable for applications such as a large number of classical users arbitrarily performing key agreement in a real cloud environment which only need fewer resources, being easy to implement, and controllable. Security analysis and efficiency analysis show that our protocol can not only effectively resist external and internal attacks, but also resist collusion attack, which is more efficient than similar protocols.
Study on heat transfer performance of fin-and-tube heat exchanger with elliptical fins
Authors: Wang Haijun , Fu Ting , Wang Jingbo , Zhang Feng , Zhang Kan , Deng Xiaolei
Published: August 2022

In the present work, three-dimensional numerical analysis was carried out for thermo-fluid analysis of annular fin-and-tube heat exchangers (AFTHE) with circular fins and elliptical fins having varying Reynolds number (𝑅𝑒) changed from 4000 to 9000. The effects of the angle of attack (𝛼 ) and the ratio of long diameter to short diameter (LDR) for elliptical fins on heat transfer characteristics and flow structure were studied and analyzed in inline arrangement tubes. They were also compared with thermo-hydraulic performance criteria which include Nusselt number (𝑁𝑢 ), friction factor (𝑓 ), and London area goodness factor (𝐽𝐹 ). The results showed that the heat transfer performance of the AFTHE with elliptical fins was better than that of AFTHE with circular fins, except for elliptical fins with an α of 90°. The 𝐽𝐹 for AFTHE with elliptical fins, when the value of 𝛼 was 0°, was optimal, improved by 42.08% based on the AFTHE with circular fins. When 𝛼 was 0°, the 𝐽𝐹 of the AFTHE with elliptical fins was proportional to the LDR, where the LDR of 1.5 was improved by 43.52% from the AFTHE with circular fins. And the results were well in line with the entropy generation.
Incidence of hepatitis E virus among elevated liver enzyme (ALT, AST) Sudanese patients, Khartoum, Sudan
Authors: Ahmed Myada , Osman Amira Altom Fawzi
Published: August 2022

Background
Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) infection is a newly recognized serious threat to global public health and Africa is suspected to be among the most severely affected regions in the world.
Objective
This study aimed to detect the frequency of anti-hepatitis E IgM, among elevated liver enzyme patients.
Methods
The current study is descriptive cross-sectional study carried out between April to august 2016, Ninety Patients with high liver enzyme ALT&AST and non B non C hepatitis attended Ibn senaa hospital Khartoum north, Omdurman teaching hospital and bahri teaching hospital bahri north, sedan were collected and tested by using (ELISA) kit
Results
show that Out of the 90 samples tested in order to evaluate the effect of age on HEV seropositivity, there was a significant difference (P < 0.05) between HEV seropositivity and age group,
Conclusion
study demonstrates the high prevalence rate of HEV seropositivity among non-hepatitis patients with high level enzyme ALT, AST. This will raise the potential risk of HEV infection by blood transfusion and may be the source of the outbreak.
Evaluation of knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding neosporosis and toxoplasmosis among farmers and animal health practitioners in Namibia
Authors: Samkange Alaster , Chitanga Simbarashe , Neves Luis , Matjila Tshepo
Published: August 2022

This study assessed the knowledge, attitudes and practices of livestock farmers in Namibia’s Khomas region and animal health practitioners (veterinarians & animal health technicians) in the whole country concerning neosporosis and toxoplasmosis. Structured questionnaires were used, and a total of 63 farmers and 51 animal health practitioners responded, out of an estimated 560 farmers in the Khomas region and 300 veterinarians and veterinary technicians in the country. Only 15.9% (n = 63) of the livestock farmers had heard about neosporosis or toxoplasmosis or knew how animals get infected (p < 0.0001). Only 5% of the farmers knew the risks associated with keeping dogs and cats concerning neosporosis and toxoplasmosis, respectively (p < 0.0001). None of the 51 animal health practitioners routinely requested Neospora caninum or Toxoplasma gondii laboratory tests in cases of cattle, sheep or goat abortions. Although all animal health practitioners indicated that they routinely interacted with livestock farmers, none regularly discussed neosporosis or toxoplasmosis with them. Only 3.9% (n = 51) of animal health practitioners indicated that they had ever discussed either neosporosis or toxoplasmosis at a farmers’ gathering (p < 0.0001), and only 21.6% had talked to at least one cat owner about toxoplasmosis in the previous 12 months (p < 0.0001). The authors concluded that farmers in the Khomas region were generally unaware of neosporosis and toxoplasmosis but could change their attitudes and practices if educated. The animal health practitioners lacked a deeper understanding and appreciation of the two diseases, which is required to cultivate enough confidence to educate farmers and cat owners.
Development and validation of a questionnaire to identify barriers to the implementation of the Clinical Practice Guidelines for lower limb amputees in a middle-income country
Authors: Posada-Borrero Ana María , Plata-Contreras Jesús Alberto , Lugo-Agudelo Luz Helena , Velásquez-Correa Juan Carlos , Patiño-Lugo Daniel F. , Aguirre-Acevedo Daniel-Camilo , Pastor-Durango María del Pilar
Published: August 2022

Objective
The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a questionnaire to identify the perceived barriers in the implementation of the Clinical Practice Guidelines for the lower limb amputee (CPGAMP).
Study design and setting:
The study consisted of two stages: first, the development of the questionnaire based on a meta-review of the literature and interviews with patients and health providers. Second, the evaluation of its psychometric properties was performed. Participants included health providers from hospitals and clinics, prosthetic workshops, and academic institutions in Colombia.
Results
A total of 90 items were obtained from the literature review and interviews. Validation of a preliminary 66-item questionnaire was performed with 545 participants. After the factorial analysis a 25-item questionnaire with four domains was developed. Internal consistency was adequate in the four domains, with Cronbach's alpha values between 0.76 and 0.83. Test-retest reliability in 58 participants yielded intraclass correlation coefficients between 0.51 and 0.59.
Conclusions
A 25-item questionnaire with four domains (health system; guidelines; institutional and individual) was proposed to measure the perception of barriers to the CPGAMP. The conceptual framework and the questionnaire can be used to identify barriers of other CPG and to help design strategies aimed at improving its implementation.
CmHY5 functions in apigenin biosynthesis by regulating Flavone synthase II expression in chrysanthemum flowers
Authors: Luo Chang , Liu Lei , Zhao Jian , Xu Yanjie , Liu Hua , Chen Dongliang , Cheng Xi , Gao Junping , Hong Bo , Huang Conglin , Ma Chao
Published: August 2022

Chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum morifolium) flowers have been used for centuries as functional food and in herbal tea and traditional medicine. The chrysanthemum flower contains significant amounts of the biologically active compound flavones, which has medicinal properties. However, the mechanism regulating flavones biosynthesis in chrysanthemum flowers organs is still unclear. Here, we compared the transcriptomes and metabolomes of different floral organs between two cultivars with contrasting flavone levels in their flowers. We identified that the predominant flavones in the ray florets of chrysanthemum flowers are apigenin and its derivatives, of which the contents are highly correlated with the expression of flavones synthase II gene CmFNSII-1. We also determined that CmHY5 is a direct upstream regulator of CmFNSII-1 transcription. We showed that CmHY5 RNAi interference lines in chrysanthemum have lower contents of apigenin compared to wild-type chrysanthemum. Our results demonstrated that CmHY5 participates in flavone biosynthesis by directly regulating the expression of FNSII-1 in chrysanthemum.
The effect of Leventhal’s Self-Regulatory Intervention on the hypertensive patients’ Illness Perception and Lifestyle: A randomized controlled trial
Authors: Saranjam Fatemeh , Afrasiabifar Ardashir , Alamdari Alikaram , Hosseini Nazafarin
Published: August 2022

BackgroundThe perception of illness may lead to the improvement of the hypertensive patients’ lifestyle, but no study was found in this regard. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the effect of intervention based on Leventhal’s self-regulatory model on illness perception and lifestyle of patients with hypertension.MethodsIn the present randomized controlled trial study, ninety eligible patients with primary hypertension were randomly assigned to one of the two groups of intervention and control. Patients in the intervention group received five sessions of Leventhal’s self-regulatory intervention, and the control group received routine care. The outcomes were illness perception and lifestyle of the patients with hypertention. The Revised Illness Perception Questionnaire and the Lifestyle Questionnaire were administered to assess illness perception and lifestyle prior to the treatment to establish a baseline and subsequently 12 weeks after the intervention. The collected data was analyzed, using statistical IMB SPSS software, version 21. ResultsLeventhal’s self-regulatory intervention improved subscales of illness perception (p<0.05) except for emotional representations and consequences. The global mean scores of the hypertensive patients ̓ lifestyle in the intervention group significantly increased from 102.8±2.3 at the baseline to 112.1±3 post intervention.Conclusions: Interventions based on Leventhal’s self-regulatory model could improve illness perception and lifestyle of patients with hypertension. Trial registration: The present randomized controlled trial study was registered on Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials Website (IRCT); ID: IRCT20141222020401N6 on 8/5/2019.
Anisotropic elastic strain in Pt-Co catalyst nanoparticles measured by correlated atomic resolution imaging and spectroscopy
Authors: Luo Xiaonan , Varambhia Aakash , Song Weixin , Shen Zhao , Sheader Alex , Ozkaya Dogan , Perez Sergio Lozano , Nellist Peter
Published: August 2022

Catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction are crucial to the performance of fuel cell applications. Pt-based alloys have been shown to exhibit superior catalytic activities compared to pure Pt catalysts. Ligand and strain are two fundamental effects that have been proposed to explain the mechanistic origin of catalytic enhancement. It has been suggested that compressive strain leads to a shift of the d-band centre leading to improved reaction kinetics. Herein, we precisely quantify and correlate composition and strain variations from the same nanoparticle at an atomic scale within alloyed and dealloyed Pt-Co oxygen reduction reaction catalyst systems. Unlike the previously assumed effects of dealloying, we find that no compressive strain on the Pt-rich outer shell is imposed by the alloy core. Dilation strain is found to be distributed throughout the individual nanoparticles, with the radial dilation strain being much larger than the circumferential dilation strain at the surface. Remarkably, all the Pt-Co stoichiometries studied have a relatively invariant surface lattice parameter, which is smaller than that for pure Pt but larger than that predicted using the measured local surface composition, whether or not an acid de-alloying treatment is applied. These findings provide crucial insights to enable a full understanding of the origins of enhanced catalytic performance.
Using segmented linear regression under a Bayesian approach to detect climate change in different regions of the world
Authors: Achcar Jorge Alberto , Rodrigues Eliane R. , Oliveira Ricardo Puziol , Barili Emerson
Published: August 2022

In this work we study the behavior of some climate data (annual temperature and precipitation averages) obtained from climate stations in eleven countries in different regions of the world. One of the goals of the study is to determine whether the climate variables have change-points that could indicate the possible beginning of a change in climate. Another goal is to analyze the possible changes detected by the change-points in terms of the linear trends of the climate variables under investigation. Based on the information provided, differences between different regions in terms of the locations of the change-points and the changes they produce may also be inferred. The original data sets consist of monthly temperature and precipitation averages obtained over a period of time ranging from the end of the nineteenth century to the recent past. The annual averages were obtained and used in the analysis. The statistical methodology adopted to study the existence of the possible changes in the behavior of the climate variables, as well as the types of change produced, is that of segmented linear regression modeling.
Isolated long thoracic nerve palsy following COVID-19 vaccine: a case report.
Authors: Cutsem Gilles Van , Bolyn Serge
Published: August 2022

Introduction: We report an adult man who developed an isolated long thoracic nerve palsy three days following vaccination against COVID-19. To the best of our knowledge this is the first well-documented case of this association. Case presentation: A 46-year-old white man developed back pain, followed by pain in the right axilla and scapular region, clumsiness of the right arm and unusual position of his shoulder blade, three days after receiving a second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. When he consulted a neurologist six months later, the pain had subsided, but the other symptoms persisted despite physiotherapy. Main clinical findings were right scapular winging and marked amyotrophy of the serratus anterior, with preservation of the other muscles of the shoulder and scapula. Nerve conduction studies of the long thoracic nerve yielded a low amplitude with a slightly prolonged latency. Needle electromyography showed decreased compound motor action potentials on the right was normal with a few polyphasic waves on the left. Main diagnosis and interventions: A diagnosis of post-immunisation long thoracic neuritis was made. The patient was treated with physiotherapy. Conclusions: Clinicians should be aware of the possibility of neuritis of any nerve after COVID-19 vaccination.
Structural atlas of the most abundant human gut virus
Authors: Bayfield Oliver , Shkoporov Andrey , Yutin Natalya , Khokhlova Ekaterina , Smith Jake , Hawkins Dorothy , Koonin Eugene , Hill Colin , Antson Alfred
Published: August 2022

Bacteriophages of the order Crassvirales (crassviruses) were originally discovered by cross-assembly of metagenomic sequences. They are the most abundant viruses in the human gut, are found in the majority of individual gut viromes and account for up to ~95% of the viral sequences in some individuals(1–4). Crassviruses are likely to play major roles in shaping the composition and functionality of the human microbiome, but the structures and roles of most of the phage-encoded proteins are unknown, with only generic predictions resulting from bioinformatic analyses(4,5). Here we present a cryo-electron microscopy structure of Bacteroides intestinalis bacteriophage ΦcrAss001(6), providing the structural basis for the functional assignment of most of its virion proteins. The muzzle protein forms a ~1 MDa assembly at the end of the tail and exhibits a previously unknown fold that we designate “crAss fold”, that likely serves as a gatekeeper to control ejection of cargoes. In addition to packing the ~103 kb virus DNA, the ΦcrAss001 virion encompasses extensive storage space for cargo proteins in the capsid and, most unusually, within the tail. One of the cargo proteins is present in both the capsid and the tail, suggesting a general mechanism for protein ejection, which involves partial unfolding of proteins during their extrusion through the tail. These findings provide the structural basis for understanding the mechanisms of assembly and infection of these hugely abundant crassviruses.
ASPP2 enhances hepatic inflammation through exosome CD40L release derived from hepatocyte in alcoholic liver disease
Authors: Zhang Wenyan , Zhou Xiao , Zhang Jing , Jiang Qiuzhu , Shi Honglin , Zhang Ying , Chen Dexi , Ma Yingmin , Yu Haibin , Shi Hongbo
Published: August 2022

ASPP2 plays an important role in regulating hepatic inflammation, but the mechanism has been unclear. Recent studies found that damaged hepatocytes can activate macrophages through releasing exosomes. Although there is no report that ASPP2 can regulate exosome release, some evidence suggests that ASPP2 may participate in exosome release by autophagy. Compared to wild type mice fed by EtOH diet, conditional ASPP2 gene knock out (ASPP2 ALB−/−) mice fed by EtOH diet showed decreased hepatic steatosis and inflammation. ASPP2 high expression promotes the exosome CD40L release in alcohol induction and vice versa. The expression of TNF- α, IL-1 β, IL-6 were increased in THP1 cells treated with exosome derived from 7702 cells with ASPP2 upregulation and vice versa. CD40L knockdown in hepatocytes reversed activated effect of ASPP2 on macrophages through exosomes CD40L derived from hepatocytes. ASPP2 enhanced exosome CD40L release through RAS-mTORC1-autophagy pathways in hepatocytes in alcohol induction. Compared to normal controls, the expression of ASPP2, TNF- α, IL-1 β, IL-6 in liver tissue and exosome CD40L in plasma increased significantly in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis. ASPP2 enhances hepatic inflammation and macrophages activation through exosome CD40L release from hepatocyte which is regulated by RAS-mTORC1-autophagy pathways in alcoholic liver disease.
3D Roughness Prediction Modeling and Evaluation of Textured Liner of Piston Component-cylinder System
Authors: Lü Yanjun , Liu Cheng , Zhang Yongfang , Jiang Cheng , Bai Xudong , Xing Zhiguo
Published: August 2022

In this study, a machine vision method is proposed to characterize 3D roughness of the textured surface on cylinder liner processed by plateau honing. The least absolute value (L∞) regression robust algorithm and Levenberg-Marquardt (LM) algorithm are employed to reconstruct image reference plane. On this basis, a single-hidden layer feedforward neural network (SLFNN) based on the extreme learning machine (ELM) is employed to model the relationship between high frequency information and 3D roughness. The characteristic parameters of Abbott-Firestone curve and 3D roughness measured by a confocal microscope are used to construct ELM-SLFNN prediction model for 3D roughness. The results indicate that the proposed method can effectively characterize 3D roughness of the textured surface of cylinder liner.
Risk factors of recurrent bacterial vaginosis among women of reproductive age: A cross-sectional study
Authors: Zeng Xianling , An Ruifang , Li Han , Zhang Yafei
Published: August 2022

Background: Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is the most common cause of vaginitis and is associated with an increased risk of health problems. Our study aims to explore risk factors of recurrent BV (RBV) among women of reproductive age and offer references for clinical prevention and treatment of BV.Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out in Gynecology Outpatient Clinic of the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University from June 2016 to June 2019 in real-world conditions. Women with RBV were selected，and simultaneously uncomplicated BV (UBV) patients and those who underwent routine gynecological examination and had normal vaginal microflora (NVM) were also recruited as the control. We conducted a face-to-face questionnaire survey and a multivariate logistic regression analysis to uncover the related risk factors of RBV and UBV.Results: Totally, 316 participants were enrolled in the present study, including 68 RBV patients, 135 UBV patients and 113 NVM women. Univariate analysis showed that unemployment, desserts and wiping were the risk factors for UBV (P2<0.05), while education, high BMI index, smoking and sedentary lifestyle were risk factors for both RBV and UBV (P1<0.05). In addition, history of HPV infection, contraceptive methods, age at FSI and not cleaning vulva during sexual actvity were the risk factors for UBV (P2<0.05), while history of other vaginitis and number of sexual partners in the previous year were risk factors for both RBV and UBV (P1<0.05). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis revealed that lower educational level increased the risk of suffering RBV (OR =2.842, 95% CI = 1.177-6.859, P =0.020). Interestingly, no smoking was a protective factor (OR =0.371, 95% CI = 0.152-0.885, P =0.026). Moreover, absence of other vaginitis and exclusive sexual partner could also weaken the risk of incurring RBV. However, there was no statistical difference between non-sedentary lifestyle, BMI and RBV.Conclusions: Risk factors of RBV are various, involving women's socioeconomic status, hygienic habits, disease history and other aspects. It is necessary to take corresponding measures to avoid risk factors and to help lessening the prevalence of RBV among women of reproductive age.This study was registered in the Thai Clinical Trials Registry (www.clinicaltrials.in.th) on 24 February 2018, and the registered number was, TCTR20180223002, retrospectively registered
Spatial Disparity and Factors Associated with Dementia Mortality: A Cross-Sectional Study in Zhejiang Province, China
Authors: Heng Xiaotian , Liu Xiaoting , Li Na , Lin Jie , Zhou Xiaoyan
Published: August 2022

BackgroundThere is evidence of spatial disparity in mortality from Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia in China. Regional factors of physical and social features may be influencing this spatial disparity. However, there are few reports on dementia mortality in China, and the true extent of spatial disparity in dementia mortality across small regional localities is unclear. The majority of people who die from dementia are over 60 years old. This study aims to explore the geographical variations in dementia mortality, estimate the relative risk and identify districts at higher risk for intervention and further study.Methods We used surveillance data on deaths from Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia in Zhejiang province from 2015–2019 to estimate the spatial risk of death from dementia using a Bayesian spatial model. We mapped predicted relative risk to visualize the risk of death from Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia and to identify risk factors associated with dementia.ResultsA total of 30,398 deaths attributable to dementia as the underlying or related cause (multiple causes) were reported in 2015–2019. Counties and districts located in the southeast and west of Zhejiang province had significantly higher standard mortality ratios than others. The predicted mean relative risk was 0.98, with a range of 0.14 ~ 4.37. Counties and districts with a smaller proportion of residents aged 60 years or older, poorer economic status, inferior health resources and worse pollution had a higher risk of dementia death.ConclusionsThere is spatial disparity in dementia mortality across different districts in Zhejiang. Our study adds new evidence on the association between social and environmental factors and the risk of dementia death. Appropriate preventive health strategies can be developed to reduce such spatial disparity in the risk of dementia mortality.
Effects of chemical additives and mature compost on reducing nitrogen loss during food waste composting
Authors: Xiong Shangao , Liu Yongdi , Zhang Hao , Xu Shaoqi , Li Songrong , Fan Xinqi , Chen Rui , Ding Guochun , Li Ji , Wei Yuquan
Published: August 2022

This study aims to investigate the effect of adding different types of mature compost amendments and sulfur powder on nitrogen loss and compost maturity of food waste. High-throughput sequencing was used to analyze the bacterial community during composting. Results showed that the secondary fermentation mature compost mixed with sulfur powder group had the most reduction of ammonia emission (56.3%) and the primary fermentation mature compost amendments were the most effective for nitrous oxide emission reduction (36.9%). The temperature, pH well as the nitrogen forms transformation of the pile significantly affect the nitrogen loss during composting. Firmicutes helped to promote the rapid warming of the pile and Actinobacteria and Proteobacteria played an important role in decomposition of organic matter. Thermobifida and Ureibacillus had main contribution to the rapid degradation of organic matter in the process of composting. The relative abundance of nitrogen-fixing bacteria were higher and the relative abundance of predominantly ammonifying and denitrifying bacteria were lower than control group, with different additives addition.
Prenatal magnetic resonance imaging of cerebellar dysplasia or malformations and coexistent malformations: A retrospective study in a single institution
Authors: Yu Fei , Zhou Qing , Huang Xiaowei , Xu Chengjie , Xiao Xirong , Zhang Guofu , Zhang He
Published: August 2022

Purpose: To clarify the prenatal magnetic resonance (MR) imaging characteristics of foetal cerebellar dysplasia/hypoplasia and developmental malformations and evaluate their diagnostic value. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed MR images of foetuses with suspected intracranial anomalies on screening ultrasound (US) on picture archiving communication system (PACS) servers within a five-year period in our institution. The main abnormal findings and coexistent anomalies were recorded by two experienced radiologists with census reading. The MRI and US results were paired and compared in each case. Results: We recruited 121 cases (average gestational week, 24.5 ± 4.7 weeks) with prenatal MR imaging, including sixty-two cases with simple cerebellar dysplasia or hypoplasia, thirty-one cases with other anomalies and twenty-eight cases with normal MR imaging findings. Cerebellar anomalies included intracranial haemorrhage, arachnoid cysts, Blake’s pouch cysts, Dandy-Walker malformation, cerebellar tonsil hernia and vermis absence. Coexistent cerebral malformations included hydrocephalus, cerebral haemorrhage, holoprosencephaly, brainstem/gyri malformation, ventriculomegaly and agenesis of the corpus callosum. Other detected systemic malformations included tethered cord syndromes (9 cases), club foot (1 case), cardiac malformation (1 case) and lip-palate cleft (1 case). Among 49 cases with both prenatal MR and US, MR imaging confirmed the diagnosis and/or provided more abnormal findings than US in 12 cases. Two dead babies after birth were recorded in cerebellar malformation group. Conclusion: Prenatal MR imaging could better show cerebellar anomalies and coexistent systemic malformations. As a complementary tool of US, MR imaging could help prenatal counselling and treatment selection at term.
Online Diagnosis-Treatment Department Recommendation based on Machine Learning in China
Authors: zhang shuangzhu , Ju Chunhua
Published: August 2022

[Background] As a supplement to the traditional medical service mode, online medical mode provides services of online appointment, consultation, online remote treatment, etc. Due to the complexity of online medical service application scenarios and the necessity of professional knowledge, the accuracy of the department during patient online consultation is limited, and traditional recommendation methods in the medical field face problems such as low computational efficiency and poor effectivenessMachine learning has been widely and successfully applied in medical fields. Hence, this study applies machine learning technology to intelligent department recommendation for online diagnosis-treatment services.[Objective] This paper compares the accuracy rate of different machine learning algorithms utilized for intelligent medical department recommendation at online diagnosis-treatment platforms, aiming to extract new features from the research data to improve recommendation effect. [Method] Based on online diagnosis-treatment data from 20 second-level departments at WeDoctor platform, the accuracy rates of two text vectorization methods in implementing intelligent department recommendation pairing with four classifiers, namely support-vector machine, random forest, multinomial Bayes and logistic regression, were compared from the perspective of hierarchy classification of department and secondary department. Furthermore, the paper also introduces variable of gender and age to improve accuracy rate of department recommendation. [Results] The recommendation accuracy rate is the best when text vectorization method is word2vec and classification algorithm is support-vector machine. The accuracy rate is 79.40% after adding age and gender into the model. The accuracy rate of intelligent recommendation was only about 52.7% for general surgery department and the reason behind is probably that online consultations from patients are usually so complicated that department functions are prone to be confused. [Conclusion] The effect of machine learning for online diagnosis-treatment platforms’ intelligent department recommendation is particularly significant. And the recommendation accuracy rate can be further improved by integrating age and gender into the algorithm. Moreover, considering the fact that some disease symptoms are confusing and can affect the recommendation accuracy rate to some extent, multiple departments shall be recommended to improve patients' online diagnosis-treatment experience and satisfaction.Fund program: National Natural Science Foundation of China(71571162)
Geo-Spatial Analysis of Drought in The Gambia Using Multiple Models
Authors: Bayo Bambo , Mahmood Shakeel
Published: August 2022

Climate change has made The Gambia vulnerable to drought hazard. Variability and negative trends in rainfall quantity and mid-season dry spells mainly attributed to the impacts of climate change. The inadequacy in hydrometeorological information puts the agricultural sector at a high risk which employs over 70% of the population. The aim of this study was to establish the intensity and spatiotemporal pattern of drought in The Gambia from 2000–2020 using multiple drought indices. Rainfall data, satellite images, and government policy documents were analyzed to determine the state of drought in The Gambia. Rainfall data, using Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) and Precipitation Anomaly Percentage (PAP) were calculated and interpolated, and satellite images were processed using Vegetation Condition Index (VCI) to determine drought intensity and spatial distribution. The findings revealed that drought exists in The Gambia at moderate levels of SPI values (-1.00 to -1.49), (35% of PAP), and VCI of no drought intensity of more than 35%. The most drought prone areas in The Gambia are North Bank Region and Eastern parts of country in both north and south of the Gambia River banks. Recommendations of adaptation practice both on-farm and off-farm such as damming and economic diversification was drawn from other parts of the world, to reduce the negative effects of drought hazard in The Gambia.
How to establishing an indicators framework for evaluating the performances in primary TB control institutions under the new TB control model？Based on a Delphi Study conducted in Guangxi, China
Authors: Wu Tengyan , He Huimin , Wei Suosu , Zhu Pinghua , Feng Qiming , Tang Zhong
Published: August 2022

Background In China, the new TB control model of trinity form had been implemented in all parts, and the comprehensively evaluation to the Performances in primary TB control institutions were closely related to the working capacity and quality of TB service, but there was still no an unified evaluation indicators framework in practice and few relevant studies. The purpose of this study was to establish an indicators framework for comprehensively evaluating the performances in primary TB control institutions under the new TB control model of trinity form in Guangxi, China. Methods The Delphi method was used to establish an indicators framework for comprehensively evaluating the performances in primary TB control institutions under the new TB control model of trinity form, and the analytic hierarchy process(AHP) was used to determine the weights of all levels of indicators, from September 2021 to December 2021 in Guangxi, China. Results A total of 14 experts who had at least 10 years working experience and engaged in TB prevention and control and public health management from health committee, CDC, TB designated hospitals and university of Guangxi were consulted in two rounds. The average age of the experts were (43.3 ± 7.549) years old, and the effective recovery rate of the questionnaire was 100.0%. The average value of authority coefficient of experts (Cr) in the two rounds of consultation was above 0.800. The Kendall's harmony coefficient (W) of experts' opinions on the first-level indicators, the second-level indicators and the third-level indicators were 0.786, 0.201 and 0.169, respectively, which were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Finally, an indicators framework was established, which includes 2 first-level indicators, 10 second-level indicators and 37 third-level indicators. The results of analytic hierarchy process (AHP) show that the consistency test of all levels of indicators were CI < 0.10, which indicating that the weight of each indicator was acceptable. Conclusion The indicators framework established in this study was in line with the reality, had reasonable weights, and could provide a scientific evaluation tool for comprehensively evaluating the performances in primary TB control institutions under the new TB control model of trinity form in Guangxi, China.
Expectations of Linear and Nonlinear Hawkes Processes by Employing a Field-theoretical Approach
Authors: Cui Lirong , Sornette Didier
Published: August 2022

Moments are some important characteristics for understanding the features and applications of Hawkes processes. In the paper, a field theoretical approach is used to present expectations of Hawkes processes and their intensity functions, and the necessary and sufficient conditions of stability of the Hawkes processes are also given by using the expectations of intensity functions directly via some matrix manipulations. Two kinds of Hawkes processes are considered, one is the linear Hawkes process with intensity function in the sum of exponentials, and the other is the non-linear Hawkes process with a quadratic form intensity function in an internal variable in the sum of exponentials and zero mean marks. All results for non-linear Hawkes processes are new conclusions in literature, although the results for linear Hawkes processes recover already known conclusions. The matrix method presented in this paper gives a new way for finding the necessary and sufficient conditions of stability of Hawkes processes.
The impact of deep learning reconstruction in low dose computed tomography on the evaluation of interstitial lung disease
Authors: Kim Chu hyun , Chung Myung Jin , Cha Yoon Ki , Oh Seok , Kim Kwang gi , Yoo Hongseok
Published: August 2022

To evaluate the effect of the deep learning model reconstruction (DLM) method in terms of image quality and diagnostic efficacy of low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) for interstitial lung disease (ILD), 193 patients who underwent LDCT for suspected ILD were retrospectively reviewed. Datasets were reconstructed using filtered back projection (FBP), adaptive statistical iterative reconstruction Veo (ASiR-V), and DLM. For image quality analysis, the signal, noise, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), blind/referenceless image spatial quality evaluator (BRISQUE), and visual scoring were evaluated. Also, CT patterns of usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP) were classified according to the 2022 idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) diagnostic criteria. The differences between CT images subjected to FBP, ASiR-V 30%, and DLM were evaluated. The image noise and BRISQUE scores of DLM images was lower and SNR was higer than that of the ASiR-V and FBP images (ASiR-V vs. DLM, p < 0.001 and FBP vs. DLR-M, p < 0.001, respectively). The agreement of the diagnostic categorization of IPF between the three reconstruction methods was almost perfect (κ = 0.992, CI 0.990–0.994). Image quality was improved with DLM compared to ASiR-V and FBP. The diagnostic efficacy was maintained in the CT pattern diagnosis of UIP in DLM.