bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Improving the Properties of Black Cotton Soil using Aluminium Cans
Authors: Issac Serin
Published: August 2021

Black cotton (BC) soil is a problematic soil, as it is expansive in nature. The swelling and shrinking characteristics in Black Cotton (BC) soil is imparted due to the presence of the mineral component montmorillonite. It is predominantly clay, black in colour with a smooth texture. Construction over this particular soil type is always challenging due to its low strength and less drainage property. This soil type is always a threat to the strength and stability of pavements and highways. Beverage cans are globally produced in huge amount. Aluminium cans are the largest source of aluminium in the waste stream. Also, recycling of aluminium continuously affects its quality. This study was an attempt to improve the shear strength characteristics of black cotton soil by using strips of waste aluminium cans as reinforcement. It is a cost effective and eco-friendly attempt. The usage of aluminium fibre increases the tensile strength of soil thereby improving its properties as a subgrade. Cans were cut into 3mm thick strips and were added to soil in 2, 4, 6 and 8% by dry weight. The compaction test, unconfined compression test, CBR test and free swell test were conducted on the aluminium strips reinforced soil. The results obtained from the study showed a significant enhancement in the soil properties such as maximum dry density, shear strength and CBR value.
Effect on Fresh and Harden Properties by using Fly Ash and GGBS with Fibers of High Performance Self Compacting Concrete
Authors: Theerthananda M P , Naveen G M
Published: August 2021

The study of cementations materials of supplementary on High Performance Concrete with Self Compacting is studied in this work. The High Performance Self-Compacting Concrete makes it suitable for placing in difficult sections and conditions in members with congested reinforcement the properties of fresh concrete and Harden properties in Special concrete of High Performance Self Compacting Concrete (HPSCC) studied in this work. Effect of fibers with fly ash & GGBS behavior of combined fibers sections subjected to load. The work studied has been focused on the Fly ash and GGBS effect with fibers on mix proportion and concrete in harden state Strength in Ultimate with replacement of Polypropylene fibers range 0%-1.5% in 0.5 interval and also the focusing of work with various percentage of fly Ash and GGBS combination and behavior of fiber under loading, compression strength, Split Tensile Strength & Flexural Strength. The obtained values from this study are to be useful in determining design charterstic of HPSCC with fiber (polypropylene) sections. It gets helps the mix proportion, analysis and designing of specimens with high performance to resist various loading.
International Roughness Index as Road Performance Indicator: A Literature Review
Authors: Dela Cruz Orlean G. , Mendoza Christian A. , Lopez Kristel D.
Published: August 2021

Rough pavements have a substantial influence on public approval, safety, and the economy. It is imperative to understand road surface conditions, particularly in decision-making processes for road maintenance, asset management, maintenance planning, and programming. In interpreting road pavement conditions, there are various methods of determining metrics and parameters. Thus, ride quality is one of the essential requirements for travelers to check road pavements. Addressing the identified research gaps is needed: 1) sensitivity of IRI values, 2) inaccuracy between no. of vehicles’ wheels, 3) characteristics of Android-based smartphones used, and 4) age of pavement. Results show the need for developing an index of roughness, representing urban roads’ unique features and predicting users’ road conditions. It is an impressive win for a model that would cover all the identified gaps—further recommends that future researchers consider the cause of when, how, and why a pavement deteriorates, given that there are different pavement situations. Thus, it complements the analysis results significantly and provides a better picture of the paving conditions.
Assessment of the Impact of Changing Land Use and land Cover on the Peak Discharges of a Tropical Watershed: A Study of the Davao River Basin
Authors: Santos F D , Sablan K A D , Gonzales C E , Gonzales W E
Published: August 2021

Urbanization has spread throughout the globe. Accompanied by rapid population growth, urbanization has resulted in the change of land use/land cover manifested by conversion of forests to impervious areas and subsequent alteration of the hydrology in the area. This study sheds light on the impacts of such land cover changes to peak discharges in the Davao River Basin as a result of the watershed alterations. Land cover from 2010 and 2018 were used to represent two (2) levels of urbanization (increasing with year). These were generated from spatial analysis of MODIS imagery data in ArcGIS. This was used in the hydrologic simulation in HEC-HMS to gather the peak discharges for the two events. An increase in peak discharge is observed along with an increase in urbanization. Furthermore, the additional 1.12% of land converted to an impervious area of the basin lead to an increase in peak discharge of 105.85% in the simulations. Moreover, the conversion of areas to impermeable surfaces led to a 52.23% decrease in the infiltration capacity of the sub basins.
Evaluation of Mechanical Properties on High Performance Concrete using Steel Fibres
Authors: Shruthi B K
Published: August 2021

This paper presents an experimental study to check the mechanical properties of high-performance steel fibre reinforced concrete (HPSFRC) in comparison with plain high-performance concrete (HPC). The tests were conducted in two parts. In the first part, compressive strength, split tensile strength and flexural strength of HPC were tested with varying percentage of combination of silica fume (SF) and ground granulated blast furnace (GGBS) to determine the optimum values of mineral admixtures. Then with the incorporation of steel fibres in HPC mix with 0.65% volume fraction (Vf) and optimized values of combination of 9% SF and 30% GGBS, mechanical properties were evaluated. The experimental studies on HPSFRC showed significant enhancement in mechanical properties. By comparing the results with plain HPC, it was found that the compressive strength, splitting tensile strength and flexural strengths at 28 days were improved by 11%, 47% and 51.2% respectively.
Ground Water Management in Gujarat: An Empirical Study
Authors: Shanthakumar S , Banerjee M , Batas A
Published: August 2021

With the emergence of industries, advent of new agriculture technologies and increase in water consumption of domestic households, there has been an escalation in the consumption of the underground water in the state of Gujarat. In this research paper, the authors have analysed the legal policies to regularize the availability of underground water in Gujarat. The authors have conducted an empirical study based on three districts of Gujarat i.e., Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad and Baroda to find out the usage of underground water for domestic purposes and also to explore what alternative methods are adopted by these households to replenish the underground water used by the residents of these districts. The authors have concluded that majority of people are relying on underground water along with the water supplied by the city corporation and scarcely any household from the above-mentioned districts have a system to replenish the underground water through mode like rainwater harvesting. Further, the authors have summarized and recommended a few strategic steps that can be sorted for underground water problem in Gujarat.
Strength Parameters of Blended Recycled Aggregate for M40 Self-Compacted Concrete
Authors: Malagavelli Venu , Siva Rama Krishna S , Tarun Kumar K , Siva Chennakesava Rao M
Published: August 2021

Waste material like building demolition waste is creating lot of environmental problems. Apart from this even industrial waste is also polluting environment. This waste material can be utilized in making of concrete. Self-compacting concrete (SCC) is one of the high-performance concrete (HPC), which will be spread like a liquid and there is no need of compacting the concrete. The ingredients are same as the normal concrete with some modification in the mix design, so that concrete will become SCC. An attempt has been made to develop the SCC with industrial waste materials. In the present investigation Nan Su mix design has been chosen for development of SCC. For the experiments 10% of recycled aggregate and 20% fly ash and 1% of superplasticizer has been used for making of SCC. The number of samples prepared are 12 numbers of 15X15X15cm cubes and 12 cylinders of 15X30cm casted for both conventional and SCC mixes. These specimens are tested for compressive and split tensile strengths after 7 and 28 days of curing. The results show decrease in the strengths of SCC with recycled aggregate.
Seismic Analysis of Tall Structures
Authors: Gawande Sumit , Amte Uday , Agrawal Siddharth , Saonerkar Abhishek , Dabhekar Kuldeep R , Khedikar Isha P , Agrawal Rahul
Published: August 2021

Nowadays, tall structures have turned out to be a great engineering wonder. From past earthquakes information, it is demonstrated that a significant number of structures are harmed or destroyed due to earthquakes, therefore, it becomes necessary to decide and analyze seismic reactions over the structure. Earthquake can cause huge destructive to the structure. There is a need of seismic study and planning to protect the structure from earthquake. The analysis of the structures is to determine the deformations and forces induced by applied load or because of ground movements so as to resist earthquakes while designing the buildings. Depending on the intent of the study, a variety of methods are available. In this, seismic response of residential G+7 reinforced cement concrete frame building is analyzed by equivalent static method and by using STAAD. PRO software as per IS 1893(Part1): 2016.
Performance Comparison of Concrete Composites for Sustainable Construction
Authors: Patel Dhruva , Tiwari Aryan , Nikhare Nishant , Shinde Rohit , Dubey Ashutosh , Shah Manan , Sandbhor Sayali , Hire Shalaka
Published: August 2021

Concrete is an essential component of every civil engineering project. Advanced concrete is a concrete that has been adapted to meet the needs and specifications of the building construction. The main objective of this paper is to study the advanced concrete and performance comparison of the concrete composites for sustainable construction. As traditional concrete cannot be used in all types of construction, this study presents certain advance concrete composites along with its properties in order to help the contractors and engineers in the selection of the most suitable composite as per the required construction.
Mitigation Strategies of Cyclonic and Heavy Winds on Structures: A Review
Authors: Ruchir A J
Published: August 2021

India is one of the most vulnerable areas to tropical Cyclones, which experiences an average of 4-5 tropical cyclones every year. As per the definition of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO, 1976), the wind speed which exceeds ‘Gale Force’ (minimum of 34 knots or 63 kmph) is considered a Cyclone. Cyclones are usually associated with high-speed winds followed by heavy rains, which leads to untold misery to the populace and devastation to properties, especially buildings. Therefore, it is necessary to have adequate knowledge of cyclone prediction systems and Cyclone resistant structures. This review Journal discusses cyclone-warning systems and various techniques adopted for Cyclone resistant structures by studying wind behaviour for different shaped structures. The findings conclude that shape modification, corner modification (especially chamfer and round shape) have shown reasonable results for improving the longevity of structures subjected to high wind speeds. Further, dynamic response of tall buildings can be minimised by increasing the structural stiffness, shear walls in appropriate location and use of viscous dampers, tuned mass dampers (TMD) etc.
Influence of Soil Gradation and Moulding Water Content on Fresh Adobe Mixes
Authors: Joshi Ashwin M , Adiga Madhura , Jagadish K S
Published: August 2021

The gradation characteristics of soil play an important role in the strength and durability characteristics of soil-based construction material like soil-cement blocks, adobe, rammed earth, mud concrete, and so on. In addition, the water content at which these stabilized soil-cement composites are moulded along with the quantity of stabilizer content also influence their characteristics. The water content at which the adobe is pugged and moulded is also important. The current study attempts to understand the influence of soil gradation, especially the variation of silt and clay content, at a constant stabilizer content on the pugging moisture of the fresh stabilized adobe mixes. The experimental program also attempts to understand and establish the relation between optimum moisture content and optimum pugging moisture, the fresh moulded density etc for stabilized adobe mixes.
A Short Review on Numerical Modelling Approaches for Seismic Evaluation Performance of Nuclear Power Plant Structures
Authors: Phan Van-Tien , Vu Xuan-Hung , Vo Trong-Cuong , Nguyen Duy-Duan
Published: August 2021

Nuclear power plant (NPP) structures play a crucial role in protecting the safety of the whole plant. Overall, NPP structures have complex shapes and large dimensions. Therefore, the decision of an appropriate finite element model for seismic response analysis is important. This study presents a brief review of various numerical modelling approaches for seismic evaluation performance of NPP structures. Different conventional models, i.e. lumped-mass stick model (LMSM), full three-dimensional finite element model (3D FEM), elastic solid element model (ESM), and multi-layer shell model (MLSM), which have been applied in modelling nuclear structures, are introduced. Also, the advantages and drawbacks of those models are analysed. Furthermore, a new model namely, beam-truss model (BTM), which is recently proposed, is highlighted. It reveals that LMSM is the most simplified approach for structural modelling of NPP structures. However, it is normally used for linear analyses and not able to simulate the local behaviours and vertical responses of the complex NPP structures. Even though 3D FEM is the most sufficient method for nonlinear seismic response analyses, this approach is very time-consuming and costly computation. MLSM and BTM are recommended as practical and efficient models for nonlinear analyses of NPP structures.
Urban Water Consumption and its Influencing Factor Identification using Water Decision Support System
Authors: Mousi P , Bhuvaneswari V
Published: August 2021

Due to population growth and economic development, the water shortage in many urban cities has become a serious concern for sustainability and management. In-house surveys and in-person monitoring of water consumption is a tedious task. To overcome this difficulty Geographic Information System helps in finding the optimal solution. The study on existing literature outlines the major underlying issues and challenges in analyzing water consumption patterns. The objective of this work is to identify urban water consumption patterns and ways to provide a surplus supply of water using geographic Information. The results reveal that the urban areas with a high economy consume more water than the low-income group. As a feasible solution, a simple water decision support system is proposed with the help of GIS to overcome the upcoming challenges.
Effect of damping material thickness on vibration analysis in pretension layer damping process
Authors: Mohamed A , Omer A A , Hassan A
Published: August 2021

Vibration reduction is a critical necessity in many fields of engineering, technology, and industry. As a result, there is a need for vibration management. To restrict or adjust the system’s vibration response, a variety of techniques are employed. In recent years, there has been a lot of enthusiasm for the easy implementation of these vibration-control structures. The damping properties of viscoelastic materials tend to be excellent. Damping is determined by the material’s ability to dissipate energy. To minimise the vibration of vibrating surfaces, viscoelastic materials are commonly used. In this study, viscoelastic material (Dyad 606) is applied on the AL plate in the form of free layer damping and pretension layer damping. First aluminium structure using free layer damping and another one using pretension layer damping by applying tension load (two layers of damping plates, one on the top surface of the Al alloy and the other on the lower face). Passive vibration damping of the plate is achieved. These layers are influenced by axial uniform distributed load. The damping behaviour of the AL Plate is discussed in relation to the thickness variation of the pre-tension damping material. The results show that the loss factor and the attenuation percentage of the structure with pretension layer damping are increased as compared to free layer damping. It is also found that the most effective thickness of the damping material to increase the damping capacity of the framework is around half the base plate thickness
Vibration damping of aircraft propeller blades using shunted piezoelectric transducers
Authors: Morad A M , Kamel M , Khalil M K
Published: August 2021

Gas turbine engine blades experience vibrations due to the flow disturbances, these vibrations are critical to the engine durability and performance. Piezoelectric transducers (sensors and actuators) have been used for engine blade vibrations damping either through a passive or active vibration control. The propeller blades are part of turboprop engine and considered as one of the main source of turboprop engine vibrations. Piezoelectric blade damping ideas have been studied by other researchers for fan blades and compressor blades. In this research a vibration damping procedure using piezoelectric transducers applied to an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) composite propeller. Experimental investigation introduces an approach for the propeller vibration damping using piezoelectric transducers in conjunction with appropriate shunt circuit. Three thin piezoelectric transducers macro fiber composite (MFC) type PZT-5A are surface-mounted on the propeller, one at each blade. These transducers are placed at locations of high modal strain areas for the propeller first mode at each blade, where these locations are identified by finite element numerical simulation. Electronic resonance shunt circuit, resistor-inductor-capacitor type, for the piezoelectric transducers is designed and experimentally developed such that effective vibration suppression of the propeller is achieved. The experimental and numerical investigations in this research illustrate that piezoelectric transducers with appropriate shunt circuit reduces the aircraft propeller vibrations.
Effective electromagnetic interference shielding using polyurethane / graphite composite foam materials
Authors: Oraby H , Tantawy H R , Naeem I , Magdy M , Ezz A A , Senna M
Published: August 2021

Conversely, to metallic based electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding materials; composite polymer-based foams are normally lightweight, cheaper than metals, and less sensitive to types of environmental degradation. In this work polyurethane - Graphite composite (PU-G) foam materials were prepared with different filler concentrations. Different characterization tools such as Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FTIR) and scanning electron microscope (SEM), were used to identify the structural and topological construction of the prepared composites. Further mechanical properties for the prepared samples were studied to elucidate the opportunity of utilizing these composites in applied applications, specifically for electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding efficiency (SE) for aerospace applications. Also, in order to adjust this research in the area of aerospace EMI SE, the evaluations were executed in the X-band at (8-12) GHz. The obtained data indicated that the moreover in filler concentration enhanced the compressive strength and compressive modulus of the prepared samples. Moreover EMI SE reached -44 dB with 30 wt % graphite concentration. Finally polyurethane – graphite composite foam material can be taken into consideration a gratifying material to be utilised in EMI SE.
On the effect of post-processing techniques of the additively manufactured aluminum alloy parts
Authors: Maamoun A H
Published: August 2021

Additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing of metals promises a significant impact on the upcoming industrial revolution “Industry 4.0” as it is considered one of its main pillars. However, some challenges related to high initial cost and the fabricated part’s quality still existed. Selective laser melting (SLM) is one of the effective techniques used for additive manufacturing to fabricate metal products. This paper presents the impact of different post-processing treatments on the microstructure and surface quality of the AlSil0Mg parts fabricated using SLM. This work illustrates the analytical view of the results obtained from two studies in a previous work by the author. A process map is presented for thermal post-processing treatment to customize the required quality and material characteristics of the AlSil0Mg parts. In addition, the shot peening results in a significant improvement for both surface roughness and hardness is illustrated. This work is a part of developing the manufacturing process of additively manufactured lightweight parts in some critical applications specifically for the metallic mirrors used in high power laser systems or wide view space telescopes.
Water recycling system based on adsorption by activated carbon synthesised from c. verum for space exploration; an estimated design
Authors: Ettish M N , Abuzalat O , El-Sayyad G S , Elsayed M A
Published: August 2021

Water recycling is a crucial component of space flights. In this study, c.verum, a low-cost agricultural by-product abundant in Egypt, which was not utilized before for the preparation of porous carbons, and its ability for recycling water in space stations was estimated. The prepared samples show high porosity and surface area by physical activation. The influences of the pyrolysis temperature and activation hold-up time on the activated carbon’s porosity were studied. The BET surface area and the total pore volume of the prepared carbon were used as the criteria for selecting the optimum preparation parameters. The optimum temperature for pyrolysis was found to be at a temperature of 900°C, hold-up time of two-hour, a nitrogen flow rate of 150 cm3/min, and a heating rate of 10°C/min. However, the optimum activation conditions were at a temperature of 900°C, a CO2 flow rate of 150 cm3/min, a heating rate of 200C/min, and a hold-up time of 120 min. Equilibrium data is used for fitting to Freundlich, Langmuir, and Temkin isotherms models. The result revealed that the Langmuir model was the finest match for the equilibrium data, with an extreme monolayer adsorption capability of 12.37 mg/g at 25°C. The maximum monolayer adsorption capacity decreased with increasing temperature confirmed the exothermic character of the adsorption interaction.
Obstacle avoidance for multi-UAV path planning based on particle swarm optimization
Authors: Mobarez E N , Sarhan A , Ashry M M
Published: August 2021

Traffic Collision Avoidance System aims to help aircraft to avoid collision with any object or other aircraft. One of the functions of this system is that it avoids threatening UAV to collide, it also addresses each threat separately with the best collision avoidance and the best suitable horizontal separation with other aircraft in the optimal path. In this paper the flight path planning for UAVs was designed to avoid obstacles depending on how the particle swarm was improved. Optimization problems are improved by using swarm dynamics (evolutionary computational technology). This is by describing avoiding obstacles and adapt the path planning for UAVs. The concept of concurrent restructuring has been integrated into path planning to stay away from both static obstacles. This optimization technique designed to decrease processing time and the shortest route of the path planning.
Evaluation of a Video-Assisted Patient Education Program to Reduce Blood Pressure Delivered Through the Electronic Medical Record: Results of a Quality Improvement Project
Authors: Miller Edgar R , Alzahrani Haitham A , Bregaglio Daniel S , Christensen Jon K , Palmer Sarah L , Alsharif Fawaz H , Matroud Ashwaq S , Kanaani Kanaan A , Sunbul Tamara J , D’almeida Jasintha , Morrissey Sinéad , Crockford Margaret , Rajanayagam Selva N , Sarhan Ahlam A , Azmi Wafa H , Miller Anna R , Vrany Elizabeth A , Al Natour Shahed , Dalcin Arlene T , Ghamdi Mohammed J , Appel Lawrence J
Published: August 2021

BACKGROUND

Low-cost, automated interventions that increase knowledge and skills around diet and lifestyle modifications are recommended for cardiovascular disease risk reduction.

METHODS

We initiated a quality improvement program to assess the impact of a web-based diet and lifestyle intervention utilizing short animated videos in adults with high blood pressure (BP) at a primary care clinic in Saudi Arabia. We enrolled adults with elevated BP, not on BP medications, who were identified using the electronic medical record. We delivered a web-linked diet and lifestyle intervention using animated videos covering diet and lifestyle topics. Videos and reminders were sent weekly for 5 weeks. Outcomes were proportion who engaged in the program, returned for a repeat BP within 3 months, and change in BP.

RESULTS

We enrolled 269 adult participants, with a mean (SD) age of 41.6 (12.4) years; 77% were male. At the conclusion of the pilot, we demonstrated a high level of engagement: overall, 69% of materials were viewed and 67% of patients returned for BP. Patients who returned had a mean (SD) baseline systolic BP of 138.0 (7.2) mm Hg and a large mean reduction in systolic BP from baseline, −10.5 mm Hg (12.4; P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, the feasibility of a video-assisted, web-based, diet and lifestyle intervention as a support tool for hypertension management demonstrated a high participation rate and a high return rate for reassessment of BP. These findings suggest that this low-cost, automated intervention may have a great potential as a scalable tool for blood pressure management. However, randomized trials to understanding the effectiveness of the support tools are needed.
Minimal change disease soon after Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccination
Authors: Kobayashi Seiji , Fugo Kazunori , Yamazaki Kazuto , Terawaki Hiroyuki
Published: August 2021

We report on the onset of minimal change disease (MCD) presenting with anasarca after a second dose of the messenger RNA (mRNA)-based Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). A 75-year-old previously healthy male was admitted with rapidly progressive anasarca and proteinuria of 7.7 g/day following the second dose. A kidney biopsy revealed MCD with nephrotic syndrome. He was treated with intravenous methylprednisolone followed by prednisolone, leading to complete remission after 35 days in the hospital. Since definite causality between the vaccine and MCD remains unclear, awareness of this potential adverse effect of mRNA vaccines is important to determine its true incidence and frequency.
Translational research in nephrology: prognosis
Authors: Tripepi Giovanni , Bolignano Davide , Jager Kitty J , Dekker Friedo W , Stel Vianda S , Zoccali Carmine
Published: August 2021

Translational research aims at reducing the gap between the results of studies focused on diagnosis, prognosis and therapy, and every day clinical practice. Prognosis is an essential component of clinical medicine. It aims at estimating the risk of adverse health outcomes in individuals, conditional to their clinical and non-clinical characteristics. There are three fundamental steps in prognostic research: development studies, in which the researcher identifies predictors, assigns the weights to each predictor, and assesses the model’s accuracy through calibration, discrimination and risk reclassification; validation studies, in which investigators test the model’s accuracy in an independent cohort of individuals; and impact studies, in which researchers evaluate whether the use of a prognostic model by clinicians improves their decision-making and patient outcome. This article aims at clarifying how to reduce the disconnection between the promises of prognostic research and the delivery of better individual health.
ANMCO POSITION PAPER: Prognostic and therapeutic relevance of non-obstructive coronary atherosclerosis
Authors: Casolo Giancarlo , Gabrielli Domenico , Colivicchi Furio , Murrone Adriano , Grosseto Daniele , Gulizia Michele Massimo , Di Fusco Stefania , Domenicucci Stefano , Scotto di Uccio Fortunato , Di Tano Giuseppe , Orso Francesco , Grippo Gabriele , Abrignani Maurizio , Valente Serafina , Corda Marco
Published: August 2021

Atherosclerosis often affects the coronary arterial tree. Frequently the disease does not translate in significant narrowing of the vessels, thus determining only a non-obstructive disease. This condition that is described as non-obstructive coronary artery disease (NobsCAD) should be distinguished from the absence of disease (i.e. smooth coronary arteries) as it carries a specific prognostic value. The detection and reporting of NobsCAD should prompt preventive measures that can be individualized upon the degree of the underlying burden of disease. The accompanying clinical condition, the other cardiovascular risk factors present, and the description of the severity and extent of NobsCAD should provide the framework for an individualized treatment that should also consider the best available scientific evidence and guidelines. The description of NobsCAD represents important information to be collected whenever a coronary angiogram (both invasive and non-invasive) is performed. Treating the patient according to the presence and extent of NobsCAD offers prognostic benefits well beyond those offered by considering only the traditional cardiovascular risk factors. In order to reach this goal, NobsCAD should not be confused with the absence of coronary atherosclerosis or even ignored when detected as if it was a trivial information to provide.
ANMCO POSITION PAPER: Use of sacubitril/valsartan in hospitalized patients with acute heart failure
Authors: Di Tano Giuseppe , Di Lenarda Andrea , Iacoviello Massimo , Oliva Fabrizio , Urbinati Stefano , Aspromonte Nadia , Cipriani Manlio , Caldarola Pasquale , Murrone Adriano , Gulizia Michele Massimo , Colivicchi Furio , Gabrielli Domenico
Published: August 2021

Sacubitril/valsartan (S/V) has been shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular death or heart failure hospitalization and improve symptoms in chronic heart failure with reduced ejection fraction compared with enalapril. After 7 years since the publication of the results of PARADIGM-HF, further insight has been gained with potential new indications. Two prospective randomized multicentre studies (PIONEER-HF and TRANSITION) in patients hospitalized for acute heart failure (AHF) have shown an improved clinical outcome and biomarker profile as compared with enalapril, and good tolerability, safety, and feasibility of initiating in-hospital administration of S/V. Furthermore, some studies have highlighted the favourable effects of S/V in attenuating adverse myocardial remodelling, supporting an early benefit after treatment. Observational data from non-randomized studies in AHF report that in-hospital and pre-discharge prescription of evidence-based drugs associated with better survival still remain suboptimal. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic has also negatively impacted on outpatient activities. Therefore, hospitalization, a real crossroad in the history of heart failure, must become a management and therapeutic opportunity for our patients. The objective of this ANMCO position paper is to encourage and facilitate early S/V administration in stabilized patients during hospitalization after an AHF episode, with the aim of improving care efficiency and clinical outcome.
Mucosal vaccines: wisdom from now and then
Authors: Kiyono Hiroshi , Yuki Yoshikazu , Nakahashi-Ouchida Rika , Fujihashi Kohtaro
Published: August 2021

The oral and nasal cavities are covered by the mucosal epithelium that starts at the beginning of the aero-digestive tract. These mucosal surfaces are continuously exposed to environmental antigens including pathogens and allergens and are thus equipped with a mucosal immune system that mediates initial recognition of pathogenicity and initiates pathogen-specific immune responses. At the dawn of our scientific effort to explore the mucosal immune system, dental science was one of the major driving forces as it provided insights into the importance of mucosal immunity and its application for the control of oral infectious diseases. The development of mucosal vaccines for the prevention of dental caries was thus part of a novel approach that contributed to building the scientific foundations of the mucosal immune system. Since then, mucosal immunology and vaccines have gone on a scientific journey to become one of the major entities within the discipline of immunology. Here, we introduce our past and current efforts and future directions for the development of mucosal vaccines, specifically a rice-based oral vaccine (MucoRice) and a nanogel-based nasal vaccine, with the aim of preventing and controlling gastrointestinal and respiratory infectious diseases using the interdisciplinary fusion of mucosal immunology with agricultural science and biomaterial engineering, respectively.
Fates of Sec, Tat, and YidC Translocases in Mitochondria and Other Eukaryotic Compartments
Authors: Petrů Markéta , Dohnálek Vít , Füssy Zoltán , Doležal Pavel
Published: August 2021

Formation of mitochondria by the conversion of a bacterial endosymbiont was a key moment in the evolution of eukaryotes. It was made possible by outsourcing the endosymbiont’s genetic control to the host nucleus, while developing the import machinery for proteins synthesized on cytosolic ribosomes. The original protein export machines of the nascent organelle remained to be repurposed or were completely abandoned. This review follows the evolutionary fates of three prokaryotic inner membrane translocases Sec, Tat, and YidC. Homologs of all three translocases can still be found in current mitochondria, but with different importance for mitochondrial function. Although the mitochondrial YidC homolog, Oxa1, became an omnipresent independent insertase, the other two remained only sporadically present in mitochondria. Only a single substrate is known for the mitochondrial Tat and no function has yet been assigned for the mitochondrial Sec. Finally, this review compares these ancestral mitochondrial proteins with their paralogs operating in the plastids and the endomembrane system.
Phylogenetic Signal, Congruence, and Uncertainty across Bacteria and Archaea
Authors: Martinez-Gutierrez Carolina A , Aylward Frank O
Published: August 2021

Reconstruction of the Tree of Life is a central goal in biology. Although numerous novel phyla of bacteria and archaea have recently been discovered, inconsistent phylogenetic relationships are routinely reported, and many inter-phylum and inter-domain evolutionary relationships remain unclear. Here, we benchmark different marker genes often used in constructing multidomain phylogenetic trees of bacteria and archaea and present a set of marker genes that perform best for multidomain trees constructed from concatenated alignments. We use recently-developed Tree Certainty metrics to assess the confidence of our results and to obviate the complications of traditional bootstrap-based metrics. Given the vastly disparate number of genomes available for different phyla of bacteria and archaea, we also assessed the impact of taxon sampling on multidomain tree construction. Our results demonstrate that biases between the representation of different taxonomic groups can dramatically impact the topology of resulting trees. Inspection of our highest-quality tree supports the division of most bacteria into Terrabacteria and Gracilicutes, with Thermatogota and Synergistota branching earlier from these superphyla. This tree also supports the inclusion of the Patescibacteria within the Terrabacteria as a sister group to the Chloroflexota instead of as a basal-branching lineage. For the Archaea, our tree supports three monophyletic lineages (DPANN, Euryarchaeota, and TACK/Asgard), although we note the basal placement of the DPANN may still represent an artifact caused by biased sequence composition. Our findings provide a robust and standardized framework for multidomain phylogenetic reconstruction that can be used to evaluate inter-phylum relationships and assess uncertainty in conflicting topologies of the Tree of Life.
Evolutionary Profile for (Host and Viral) MLKL Indicates Its Activities as a Battlefront for Extensive Counteradaptation
Authors: Palmer Suzette N , Chappidi Sruthi , Pinkham Chelsea , Hancks Dustin C
Published: August 2021

Pathogen infection triggers host innate defenses which may result in the activation of regulated cell death (RCD) pathways such as apoptosis. Given a vital role in immunity, apoptotic effectors are often counteracted by pathogen-encoded antagonists. Mounting evidence indicates that programmed necrosis, which is mediated by the RIPK3/MLKL axis and termed necroptosis, evolved as a countermeasure to pathogen-mediated inhibition of apoptosis. Yet, it is unclear whether components of this emerging RCD pathway display signatures associated with pathogen conflict that are rare in combination but common to key host defense factors, namely, rapid evolution, viral homolog (virolog), and cytokine induction. We leveraged evolutionary sequence analysis that examines rates of amino acid replacement, which revealed: 1) strong and recurrent signatures of positive selection for primate and bat RIPK3 and MLKL, and 2) elevated rates of amino acid substitution on multiple RIPK3/MLKL surfaces suggestive of past antagonism with multiple, distinct pathogen-encoded inhibitors. Furthermore, our phylogenomics analysis across poxvirus genomes illuminated volatile patterns of evolution for a recently described MLKL viral homolog. Specifically, poxviral MLKLs have undergone numerous gene replacements mediated by duplication and deletion events. In addition, MLKL protein expression is stimulated by interferons in human and mouse cells. Thus, MLKL displays all three hallmarks of pivotal immune factors of which only a handful of factors like OAS1 exhibit. These data support the hypothesis that over evolutionary time MLKL functions—which may include execution of necroptosis—have served as a major determinant of infection outcomes despite gene loss in some host genomes.
Kidney biopsy chronicity grading in antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis
Authors: Casal Moura Marta , Fervenza Fernando C , Specks Ulrich , Sethi Sanjeev
Published: August 2021

Background

Kidney biopsy is valuable for prognostic assessment of renal outcomes in antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV) with glomerulonephritis (AAV-GN) but the impact of chronic changes is not determined.

Methods

We conducted a retrospective cohort study of myeloperoxidase (MPO)- or proteinase 3 (PR3)-ANCA-positive patients with AAV and active renal disease. We applied the Mayo Clinic Chronicity Score (MCCS) and validated and evaluated its implications on outcome prediction in AAV-GN.

Results

We analyzed 329 patients with kidney biopsies available to score. The extent of chronicity was graded by MCCS as minimal [102 (31.0%)], mild [106 (32.2%)], moderate [86 (26.1%)] and severe [35 (10.6%)]. The MCCS grades correlated with the degree of renal function impairment at presentation [mean estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) 48.3 versus 29.2 versus 23.7 versus 18.5 mL/min/1.73 m2, respectively; P < 0.0001]. Higher degrees of the individual components of the MCCS (glomerulosclerosis, interstitial fibrosis, tubular atrophy and arteriosclerosis) were associated with lower median eGFR (P < 0.0001) and decreased event-free [kidney failure (KF) and death] survival (P = 0.002, P < 0.0001, P < 0.0001 and P = 0.017, respectively). Patients with lower MCCS grades recovered renal function more frequently (P < 0.0001). Increasing MCCS grades were associated with decreased renal recovery (P = 0.001), more frequent events and shorter time to KF (P < 0.0001), KF and death (P < 0.0001) and death (P = 0.042), independent of the remission induction treatment used (cyclophosphamide or rituximab). The MCCS stratified renal outcomes for each MCCS grade and can be used in clinical practice as a cutoff for KF prediction (MCCS ≥4).

Conclusions

Chronic changes on kidney histology independently predict renal function, outcomes and response to treatment in AAV-GN.
Computational design and experimental optimization of protein binders with prospects for biomedical applications
Authors: Bonadio Alessandro , Shifman Julia M
Published: August 2021

Protein-based binders have become increasingly more attractive candidates for drug and imaging agent development. Such binders could be evolved from a number of different scaffolds, including antibodies, natural protein effectors and unrelated small protein domains of different geometries. While both computational and experimental approaches could be utilized for protein binder engineering, in this review we focus on various computational approaches for protein binder design and demonstrate how experimental selection could be applied to subsequently optimize computationally-designed molecules. Recent studies report a number of designed protein binders with pM affinities and high specificities for their targets. These binders usually characterized with high stability, solubility, and low production cost. Such attractive molecules are bound to become more common in various biotechnological and biomedical applications in the near future.
PERFORMANCE TESTING OF EYE LENS DOSEMETER AND EVALUATION OF PERSONAL RADIOLOGICAL EXPOSITION AT DOUERA ORTHOPEDIC INTERVENTIONAL SERVICE
Authors: Larabi-Harfouche K , Dari F , Herrati A , Medkour Ishak-Boushaki G , Ouldmouhoub-Bedak D J , Lounis-Mokrani Z
Published: August 2021

The radiological monitoring of the eye in the workplace depends on the type of dosemeter used and its performance. The dosimetric performances of Nuclear Research Center of Algiers (CRNA) developed eye lens dosemeter (Larabi-Harfouche et al. Characterization and qualification of a CRNA eye dosemeter. Perspect Sci. 12, 100402 (2019)) are investigated in this work in order to assess its ability to measure the operational quantity Hp(3) in photon fields and to check its compliance with the International Commission on Radiological Protection recommendations for professionally exposed people (ICRP. ICRP statement on tissue reactions/early and late effects of radiation in normal tissues and organs – threshold doses for tissue reactions in a radiation protection context. ICRP Publication 118. Ann. ICRP 41(1/2) (2012)). Some key performance indicators including the relative response of the nonlinearity, coefficient of variation, and photon energy and angular dependence are assessed before the use of this dosemeter for eye lens monitoring of orthopedic staff in the operating room at Douera hospital. The monitoring results of this first pilot study are presented and discussed in view of supporting the recommendations of the International Organization for Standardization 15382: 2015 concerning the monitoring of the dose at lens.
Sleep inertia measurement with the psychomotor vigilance task in idiopathic hypersomnia
Authors: Evangelista Elisa , Rassu Anna Laura , Lopez Régis , Biagioli Niccolò , Chenini Sofiène , Barateau Lucie , Jaussent Isabelle , Dauvilliers Yves
Published: August 2021

Study Objectives

Sleep inertia is a frequent and disabling symptom in idiopathic hypersomnia (IH), but poorly defined and without objective measures. The study objective was to determine whether the psychomotor vigilance task (PVT) can reliably measure sleep inertia in patients with IH or other sleep disorders (non-IH).

Methods

A total of 62 (51 women, mean age: 27.7 ± 9.2) patients with IH and 140 (71 women, age: 33.3 ± 12.1) with non-IH (narcolepsy = 29, non-specified hypersomnolence [NSH] = 47, obstructive sleep apnea = 39, insomnia = 25) were included. Sleep inertia and sleep drunkenness in the last month (M-sleep inertia) and on PVT day (D-sleep inertia) were assessed with three items of the Idiopathic Hypersomnia Severity Scale (IHSS), in drug-free conditions. The PVT was performed four times (07:00 pm, 07:00 am, 07:30 am, and 11:00 am) and three metrics were used: lapses, mean 1/reaction time (RT), and slowest 10% 1/RT.

Results

Sleep inertia was more frequent in patients with IH than non-IH (56.5% and 43.6% with severe sleep inertia in the past month, including 24% and 12% with sleep drunkenness). Lapse number increase and slowest 10% 1/RT decrease, particularly at 07:00 am and 07:30 am, were proportional with M-sleep inertia severity, but regardless of sleep drunkenness and sleep disorders. Similar results were obtained when PVT results were compared in patients with/without D-sleep inertia, with the largest increase of the lapse number at 07:00 am and 07:30 am associated with severe sleep inertia and sleep drunkenness.

Conclusions

PVT is a reliable and objective measure of sleep inertia that might be useful for its characterization, management, and follow-up in patients with IH.
Biological Control of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense Tropical Race 4 in Banana Plantlets Using Newly Isolated Streptomyces sp. WHL7 from Marine Soft Coral
Authors: Wang Jie , Cai Bingyu , Li Kai , Zhao Yankun , Li Chunyu , Liu Siwen , Xiang Dandan , Zhang Lu , Xie Jianghui , Wang Wei
Published: August 2021

Banana Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense is a disastrous fungal disease. Foc tropical race 4 (Foc TR4) infects almost all banana cultivars. Use of chemical fungicides caused serious environment pollution. Biological control with antagonistic microbes is a promising strategy for controlling Foc TR4. Here, strain WHL7 isolated from marine soft coral exhibited a high antifungal activity against Foc TR4. Based on the morphological and physicochemical profiles as well as the phylogenetic tree, the strain was assigned to Streptomyces sp. Fermentation broth of Streptomyces sp. WHL7 significantly increased the resistance of banana plantlets to Foc TR4 in the pot experiment. Analysis of antifungal mechanism showed that strain WHL7 extracts inhibited spore germination and mycelial growth of Foc TR4, and destroyed cell integrity and ultrastructure. Hence, Streptomyces sp. WHL7 is an important bioresource for exploring novel natural products and biofertilizer to manage Foc TR4.
Dual vs. Triple Therapy for Patients with Moderate to Severe Asthma
Authors: Rosenberg Karen
Published: August 2021

According to this study:

In patients with moderate to severe asthma, triple therapy was significantly associated with fewer severe asthma exacerbations and modest improvements in asthma control compared with dual therapy.

No significant differences were found in quality of life or mortality between triple and dual therapy.