bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Efficacy and safety of as-needed albuterol/budesonide versus albuterol in adults and children aged ≥4 years with moderate-to-severe asthma: rationale and design of the randomised, double-blind, active-controlled MANDALA study
Authors: Chipps Bradley E , Albers Frank C , Reilly Laurence , Johnsson Eva , Cappelletti Christy , Papi Alberto
Published: December 2021

Introduction

Uncontrolled asthma is associated with substantial morbidity. While fast-acting bronchodilators provide quick relief from asthma symptoms, their use as rescue fails to address the underlying inflammation. Combining a short-acting beta2-agonist, such as albuterol (salbutamol), with an inhaled corticosteroid, such as budesonide, in a single inhaler as rescue therapy could help control both bronchoconstriction and inflammation, and reduce the risk of asthma exacerbations.

Methods and analysis

The Phase 3 MANDALA study was designed to determine the efficacy of albuterol in combination with budesonide (albuterol/budesonide 180/160 µg or 180/80 µg, two actuations of 90/80 µg or 90/40 µg, respectively) versus albuterol (180 µg, two actuations of 90 µg) as rescue therapy in adult, adolescent and paediatric patients with moderate-to-severe asthma. This event-driven study enrolled symptomatic patients (3000 adults/adolescents and 100 children aged 4–11 years) who experienced ≥1 severe asthma exacerbation in the previous year and were receiving maintenance therapy for ≥3 months prior to study entry. The primary efficacy endpoint was time-to-first severe asthma exacerbation.

Ethics and dissemination

The study was conducted in accordance with the ethical principles that have their origin in the Declaration of Helsinki, and that are consistent with International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use and Good Clinical Practice and the applicable regulatory requirements.

Trial registration

NCT03769090.
Feasibility of using real-world data in the evaluation of cardiac ablation catheters: a test-case of the National Evaluation System for Health Technology Coordinating Center
Authors: Dhruva Sanket S , Jiang Guoqian , Doshi Amit A , Friedman Daniel J , Brandt Eric , Chen Jiajing , Akar Joseph G , Ross Joseph S , Ervin Keondae R , Collison Farr Kimberly , Shah Nilay D , Coplan Paul , Noseworthy Peter A. , Zhang Shumin , Forsyth Thomas , Schulz Wade L , Yu Yue , Drozda, Jr. Joseph P
Published: December 2021

Objectives

To determine the feasibility of using real-world data to assess the safety and effectiveness of two cardiac ablation catheters for the treatment of persistent atrial fibrillation and ischaemic ventricular tachycardia.

Design

Retrospective cohort.

Setting

Three health systems in the USA.

Participants

Patients receiving ablation with the two ablation catheters of interest at any of the three health systems.

Main outcome measures

Feasibility of identifying the medical devices and participant populations of interest as well as the duration of follow-up and positive predictive values (PPVs) for serious safety (ischaemic stroke, acute heart failure and cardiac tamponade) and effectiveness (arrhythmia-related hospitalisation) clinical outcomes of interest compared with manual chart validation by clinicians.

Results

Overall, the catheter of interest for treatment of persistent atrial fibrillation was used for 4280 ablations and the catheter of interest for ischaemic ventricular tachycardia was used 1516 times across the data available within the three health systems. The duration of patient follow-up in the three health systems ranged from 91% to 97% at ≥7 days, 89% to 96% at ≥30 days, 77% to 90% at ≥6 months and 66% to 84% at ≥1 year. PPVs were 63.4% for ischaemic stroke, 96.4% for acute heart failure, 100% at one health system for cardiac tamponade and 55.7% for arrhythmia-related hospitalisation.

Conclusions

It is feasible to use real-world health system data to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of cardiac ablation catheters, though evaluations must consider the implications of variation in follow-up and endpoint ascertainment among health systems.
Role of targeted therapies in rheumatic patients on COVID-19 outcomes: results from the COVIDSER study
Authors: Álvaro Gracia Jose María , Sanchez-Piedra Carlos , Manero Javier , Ruiz-Lucea María Ester , López-Vives Laura , Bohorquez Cristina , Martinez-Barrio Julia , Bonilla Gema , Vela Paloma , García-Villanueva María Jesús , Navío-Marco María Teresa , Pavía Marina , Galindo María , Erausquin Celia , Gonzalez-Gay Miguel A , Rua-Figueroa Inigo , Pego-Reigosa Jose M , Castrejon Isabel , Sanchez-Costa Jesús T , González-Dávila Enrique , Diaz-Gonzalez Federico
Published: December 2021

Objectives

To analyse the effect of targeted therapies, either biological (b) disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs), targeted synthetic (ts) DMARDs and other factors (demographics, comorbidities or COVID-19 symptoms) on the risk of COVID-19 related hospitalisation in patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases.

Methods

The COVIDSER study is an observational cohort including 7782 patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate ORs and 95% CIs of hospitalisation. Antirheumatic medication taken immediately prior to infection, demographic characteristics, rheumatic disease diagnosis, comorbidities and COVID-19 symptoms were analysed.

Results

A total of 426 cases of symptomatic COVID-19 from 1 March 2020 to 13 April 2021 were included in the analyses: 106 (24.9%) were hospitalised and 19 (4.4%) died. In multivariate-adjusted models, bDMARDs and tsDMARDs in combination were not associated with hospitalisation compared with conventional synthetic DMARDs (OR 0.55, 95% CI 0.24 to 1.25 of b/tsDMARDs, p=0.15). Tumour necrosis factor inhibitors (TNF-i) were associated with a reduced likelihood of hospitalisation (OR 0.32, 95% CI 0.12 to 0.82, p=0.018), whereas rituximab showed a tendency to an increased risk of hospitalisation (OR 4.85, 95% CI 0.86 to 27.2). Glucocorticoid use was not associated with hospitalisation (OR 1.69, 95% CI 0.81 to 3.55). A mix of sociodemographic factors, comorbidities and COVID-19 symptoms contribute to patients’ hospitalisation.

Conclusions

The use of targeted therapies as a group is not associated with COVID-19 severity, except for rituximab, which shows a trend towards an increased risk of hospitalisation, while TNF-i was associated with decreased odds of hospitalisation in patients with rheumatic disease. Other factors like age, male gender, comorbidities and COVID-19 symptoms do play a role.
Reconstructing the “push” and “pull” of climate and its impacts on subsistence cultures using paleolimnology
Authors: Covert Allison Elizabeth , Medeiros Andrew Scott
Published: December 2021

Climate variability has influenced settlement and cultural activities of human populations for millennia, and our knowledge of the context of environmental drivers of migration can be inferred using paleolimnological techniques. We present a systematic map of literature to understand the breadth of paleolimnological research that exists on environmental change and its impact on subsistence cultures. We aim to illustrate how the “push” and “pull” of climate influenced human society over the late-Holocene. A systematic search found 68 unique relevant studies that discussed topics of human settlement and migration, stressors on the environment, and (or) ecological monitoring with respect to changes in climate using paleolimnological methods. We identified three primary themes: where people live, how people live, and how people will continue to live. Most studies took place in North America, within the last decade, and had a focus on diatoms, sediment characteristics, and climate. Topics ranged from reconstructions of changes in climate, human presence, human influence on the environment, subsistence strategies, and the importance of monitoring. We demonstrate the value of paleolimnological methods in understanding the timing of events, revealing long-term ecological trends, and providing baseline conditions for effective remediation and management purposes.
Companies under stress: the impact of shocks on the production network
Authors: Pálovics Róbert , Dolenc Primož , Leskovec Jure
Published: December 2021

In this paper we analyze the effect of shocks in production networks. Our work is based on a rich dataset that contains information about companies from Slovenia right after the financial crisis of 2008. The processed data spans for 8 years and covers the transaction history as well as performance indicators and various metadata of the companies. We define sales shocks at different levels, and identify companies impacted by them. Next we investigate stress, the potential immediate upstream and downstream impact of a shock within the production network. We base our main findings on a matched pairs analysis of stressed companies. We find that both shock and stress are associated with reporting bankruptcy in the future and that stress foremost impacts the future sales of customers. Furthermore, we find evidence that stress not only results in performance losses but the reconfiguration of the production network as well. We show that stressed companies actively seek for new trading partners, and that these new links often share the industry of the shocked company. These results suggest that both stressed customers and suppliers react quickly to stress and adjust their trading relationships.
NUMERICAL SOLUTION OF DISTRIBUTED ORDER INTEGRO-DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS
Authors: ZHANG ANQI , GANJI ROGHAYEH MOALLEM , JAFARI HOSSEIN , NCUBE MAHLULI NAISBITT , AGAMALIEVA LATIFA
Published: December 2021

In this paper, a numerical algorithm is presented to obtain approximate solution of distributed order integro-differential equations. The approximate solution is expressed in the form of a polynomial with unknown coefficients and in place of differential and integral operators, we make use of matrices that we deduce from the shifted Legendre polynomials. To compute the numerical values of the polynomial coefficients, we set up a system of equations that tallies with the number of unknowns, we achieve this goal through the Legendre–Gauss quadrature formula and the collocation technique. The theoretical aspects of the error bound are discussed. Illustrative examples are included to demonstrate the validity and applicability of the method.
Geopolitical Thinking behind the US Policy-Making toward China and the Diplomatic Choice of Japan
Authors: Lian Degui
Published: December 2021

The roots of US policy toward China are laid in the geopolitical thinking mode of its strategic culture. This mode of thinking first originated in Britain and later evolved into geopolitics. Bearing such thoughts, the United States sees China as a country at the southeastern rim of the Eurasian continent, and the rise of China is a threat to its dominance as a maritime state in the Eurasian continent. No matter the rotation of governing parties in the United States, containing the development of China is not merely an expedient for electoral politics but an inevitable choice for maritime states to contain continental states and an objectively necessary national security strategy aimed at retaining the global hegemony of the United States. As China further develops, such intention will become more and more apparent. In order to achieve the goal of slowing down China’s development pace and maintaining US’s political dominance over Eurasia, it seems that the United States has to build a maritime alliance system. The alliance between Japan and the United States will be further strengthened since Japan is a strategic pivot of this system. However, Japan’s perception of interests and strategic thinking are not fully aligned with those of the United States, and as a result, Japan will choose strategies with a certain degree of autonomy, thus eventually limiting the implementation of US’s geopolitical strategies.

From the viewpoints of power transfer, geopolitics and ideology for the confrontation between maritime and continental states, this paper focuses on the limitations of the geopolitical thinking behind US’s policy-making toward China and the relatively autonomous strategy of Japan to analyze the status quo and underlying trends of China–US–Japan relations.
The Systematic Design of Responsibility Analysis by Abstract Interpretation
Authors: Deng Chaoqiang , Cousot Patrick
Published: December 2021

Given a behavior of interest, automatically determining the corresponding responsible entity (i.e., the root cause) is a task of critical importance in program static analysis. In this article, a novel definition of responsibility based on the abstraction of trace semantics is proposed, which takes into account the cognizance of observer, which, to the best of our knowledge, is a new innovative idea in program analysis. Compared to current dependency and causality analysis methods, the responsibility analysis is demonstrated to be more precise on various examples.

However, the concrete trace semantics used in defining responsibility is uncomputable in general, which makes the corresponding concrete responsibility analysis undecidable. To solve this problem, the article proposes a sound framework of abstract responsibility analysis, which allows a balance between cost and precision. Essentially, the abstract analysis builds a trace partitioning automaton by an iteration of over-approximating forward reachability analysis with trace partitioning and under/over-approximating backward impossible failure accessibility analysis, and determines the bounds of potentially responsible entities along paths in the automaton. Unlike the concrete responsibility analysis that identifies exactly a single action as the responsible entity along every concrete trace, the abstract analysis may lose some precision and find multiple actions potentially responsible along each automaton path. However, the soundness is preserved, and every responsible entity in the concrete is guaranteed to be also found responsible in the abstract.
Conditional Independence by Typing
Authors: Gorinova Maria I. , Gordon Andrew D. , Sutton Charles , Vákár Matthijs
Published: December 2021

A central goal of probabilistic programming languages (PPLs) is to separate modelling from inference. However, this goal is hard to achieve in practice. Users are often forced to re-write their models to improve efficiency of inference or meet restrictions imposed by the PPL. Conditional independence (CI) relationships among parameters are a crucial aspect of probabilistic models that capture a qualitative summary of the specified model and can facilitate more efficient inference.

We present an information flow type system for probabilistic programming that captures conditional independence (CI) relationships and show that, for a well-typed program in our system, the distribution it implements is guaranteed to have certain CI-relationships. Further, by using type inference, we can statically
deduce
which CI-properties are present in a specified model.

As a practical application, we consider the problem of how to perform inference on models with mixed discrete and continuous parameters. Inference on such models is challenging in many existing PPLs, but can be improved through a workaround, where the discrete parameters are used
implicitly
, at the expense of manual model re-writing. We present a source-to-source semantics-preserving transformation, which uses our CI-type system to automate this workaround by eliminating the discrete parameters from a probabilistic program. The resulting program can be seen as a hybrid inference algorithm on the original program, where continuous parameters can be drawn using efficient gradient-based inference methods, while the discrete parameters are inferred using variable elimination.

We implement our CI-type system and its example application in SlicStan: a compositional variant of Stan.

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Health and Health Care Among Transgender Adults in the United States
Authors: Scheim Ayden I. , Baker Kellan E. , Restar Arjee J. , Sell Randall L.
Published: December 2021

Transgender (trans) communities in the USA and globally have long organized for health and social equity but have only recently gained increased visibility within public health. In this review, we synthesize evidence demonstrating that trans adults in the USA are affected by disparities in physical and mental health and in access to health care, relative to cisgender (nontrans) persons. We draw on theory and data to situate these disparities in their social contexts, explicating the roles of gender affirmation, multilevel and intersectional stigmas, and public policies in reproducing or ameliorating trans health disparities. Until recently, trans health disparities were largely made invisible by exclusionary data collection practices. We highlight the importance of, and methodological considerations for, collecting inclusive sex and gender data. Moving forward, we recommend routine collection of gender identity data, an emphasis on intervention research to achieve trans health equity, public policy advocacy, and investment in supporting gender-diverse public health leadership.
Evidence that endpoint feedback facilitates intermanual transfer of visuomotor force learning by a cognitive strategy
Authors: De Havas Jack , Haggard Patrick , Gomi Hiroaki , Bestmann Sven , Ikegaya Yuji , Hagura Nobuhiro
Published: December 2021

The causes and consequences of cognitive strategy use are poorly understood. We tested whether a visuomotor task learned in a manner that may promote cognitive strategy use causes greater generalization across effectors. Visual feedback was manipulated to promote cognitive strategy use. Learning consistent with cognitive strategy use for one hand transferred to the unlearned hand. Our result suggests that intermanual transfer can result from a common cognitive strategy used to control both hands.
The effect of limb position on a static knee extension task can be explained with a simple spinal cord circuit model
Authors: York Gareth , Osborne Hugh , Sriya Piyanee , Astill Sarah , de Kamps Marc , Chakrabarty Samit
Published: December 2021

The role of sensory feedback in motor control when limbs are held in a fixed position is disputed. We performed a novel experiment involving fixed position tasks based on two common clinical tests. We identified patterns of muscle activity during the tasks that changed with different leg positions and then inferred how sensory feedback might influence the observations. We developed a computational model that required three distinct inputs to reproduce the activity patterns observed experimentally. The model provides a neural explanation for how the activity patterns can be changed by sensory feedback.
MiR-20a-5p Negatively Regulates NR4A3 to Promote Metastasis in Bladder Cancer
Authors: Yang Haibei , Chen Zhao , Liu Zhiming
Published: December 2021

Metastasis is the leading cause of death in cancer patients. Therefore, the prediction and treatment of metastasis are critical in improving the survival of patients with bladder cancer. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of miR-20a-5p and NR4A3 in bladder cancer and the regulatory relationship between them. The high expression of miR-20a-5p in the bladder cancer (BCa) tissues and cells was determined by qRT-PCR. Exogenous miR-20a-5p overexpression promoted the proliferation, migration, and invasion of BCa cells. MiR-20a-5p inhibition inhibited the BCa cell proliferation, invasion, and migration. NR4A3 was proved to be the target gene of miR-20a-5p by the double luciferase reporter assay. In addition, the reduction of NR4A3 could promote the proliferation, invasion, and clonal formation of the bladder cancer cells 5637 and T24. NR4A3 overexpression could reverse the carcinogenic effect of miR-20a. We further confirmed that the oncogenic effect of miR-20a was achieved by promoting EMT in tumor cells. MiR-20a-5p promoted the growth and metastasis of the bladder cancer cells by inhibiting the expression of the tumor suppressor gene NR4A3 and played a carcinogenic role in BCa. Thus, miR-20a-5p may become a potential therapeutic target for BCa treatment.
Comparison of Five Methods to Estimate the Parameters for the Three-Parameter Lindley Distribution with Application to Life Data
Authors: Thamer Mathil K. , Zine Raoudha
Published: December 2021

We have studied one of the most common distributions, namely, Lindley distribution, which is an important continuous mixed distribution with great ability to represent different systems. We studied this distribution with three parameters because of its high flexibility in modelling life data. The parameters were estimated by five different methods, namely, maximum likelihood estimation, ordinary least squares, weighted least squares, maximum product of spacing, and Cramér-von Mises. Simulation experiments were performed with different sample sizes and different parameter values. The different methods were compared on the generated data by mean square error and mean absolute error. In addition, we compared the methods for real data, which represent COVID-19 data in Iraq/Anbar Province.
Acute Lower Limb Ischemia in COVID-19 Patient with Delayed Presentation
Authors: Shah Sangam , Yadav Rukesh , Chamlagain Rajan , Adhikari Yagya Raj , Sah Sanjit Kumar , Kandel Bipin , Basnet Subash , Yadav Sutap
Published: December 2021

Thromboembolism is a common complication of SARS-CoV-2, which generally involves venous thromboembolism, although there have been reported cases of arterial thrombosis affecting cerebral, coronary, and visceral arteries, as well as arteries in the extremities. We discuss a case of a 45-year-old diabetic man with COVID-19 who developed late-onset acute lower limb ischemia.
Research on Platoon Dispersion Delay of Traffic Flow considering Coordinated Control
Authors: Liu Yan , Zhang Kuo , Wang Li-jie
Published: December 2021

To improve the traffic capacity and reduce the delay of signalized intersections, the delay of coordinated control intersections is studied. Based on the freedom and randomness of the speed change and considering the delay problem caused by the discrete behavior, the authors deduced a new delay model. Firstly, by analyzing the kinematic behavior of traffic flow under coordinated control, it is found that traffic flow reaches the downstream intersection in two different forms. The two forms were as follows: the tail vehicles of discrete traffic flow were truncated and the front vehicles of discrete traffic flow were stopped. Then, the authors deduced the new delay model by analyzing the two conditions. Finally, the delay of the two cases is analyzed, which can be used as the basis for setting the phase difference between coordinated control intersections. The correctness of the model is verified by designing two example coordinated control intersections under unsaturated flow with MATLAB. Results show that the discrete traffic flows will have different impacts on delay or traffic efficiency when they arrive at the downstream intersection in different forms. Through the analysis of the delay of vehicles, when the green split is less than 0.64, the tail truncation delay is greater than the front truncation delay. When the green split is greater than or equal to 0.64, the opposite is true. The phase difference of upstream and downstream intersections can be optimized and coordinated according to the goal that vehicles can smoothly pass through the coordinated control intersection or ensure the minimum delay, so as to give full play to the space-time utilization of the coordinated control intersection.
Anlotinib Suppresses Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Growth and Metastasis by Targeting the RAS Protein to Inhibit the PI3K/Akt Signalling Pathway
Authors: Lu Yunfei , Lin Jing , Duan Meng , Rui Ying , Zheng Hao , Zhu Liting , Zhu Xuanyu , Wei Jingchen
Published: December 2021

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a malignant tumour originating from the mucosal lining of the oral cavity. Its characteristics include hidden onset, high recurrence, and distant metastasis after operation. At present, clinical treatment usually includes surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, or the joint use of these modalities. Unfortunately, multidrug resistant is one of the important obstacles that causes cancer chemotherapy failure. Anlotinib, which has recently been proven to have good antitumour effects, is a novel multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor. However, there are few studies of the anlotinib-associated mechanism in OSCC and its underlying molecular mechanism. In our study, in vitro models of human oral squamous cell carcinoma HSC-3 cells were used to determine the efficacy of anlotinib. On the one hand, we showed that anlotinib treatment significantly reduced the viability and proliferation of HSC-3 cells and decreased cell migration by inhibiting the activation of the Akt phosphorylation pathway. On the other side, anlotinib inhibited PI3K/Akt/Bad phosphorylation and promoted apoptosis of HSC-3 cells by activating RAS protein expression. In brief, these results indicated that anlotinib had prominent antitumour activity in OSCC, mainly by inhibiting the PI3K/Akt phosphorylation pathway. This work provides evidences and a basic principle for using anlotinib to treat patients with OSCC for clinical research.
Functions of Traditional Chinese Medicine Combined with Recombinant Human Interferon α2b in Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasias Patients
Authors: Ding Wei , Li Xiaoyan , Ji Baojun , Wang Zhenna
Published: December 2021

Cervical cancer is a common malignant neoplasm in women, and its incidence is increasing year by year. This study explored the effects of traditional Chinese medicine combined with recombinant human interferon α2b in cervical cancer patients. 178 cervical intraepithelial neoplasias (CIN) combined with high-risk HPV-positive patients from June 2017 to August 2020 were divided into the study group (n = 89 cases) and the control group (n = 89 cases) by the random number table method. Patients in the control group were treated with recombinant human interferon α2b, and the study group was treated with traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) on the basis of the control group. After treatment, the recurrence rate in the study group was significantly decreased while the human papillomavirus (HPV) negative conversion rate was significantly increased. 3 months after treatment, the TCM symptom scores in the study group were lower than in the control group. Moreover, serum levels of inflammatory factors decreased in both groups, and the decrease was more significant in the study group. After treatment, the ultrasound parameters were significantly decreased in the study group than in the control group. In conclusion, traditional Chinese medicine combined with recombinant human interferon α2b in cervical cancer patients could effectively improve the negative conversion rate of HPV infection, the level of inflammatory factors, reduce the degree of cervical erosion, and enhance the immunity of patients with high safety and significantly improve the quality of life.
Application of Wavelet in Quantitative Evaluation of Gait Events of Parkinson’s Disease
Authors: Zahra Noore
Published: December 2021

Motivation. In Parkinson’s disease, disturbances in gait initiation are of particular interest as they affect postural adjustments and movement disorders which may lead to falling. This falling down may be dangerous and at times life threatening, thus becoming a major concern for the patient and the clinician. These gait abnormalities are due to dependencies of movement on the motor system. Paroxysmal dyskinesia (commonly termed as freezing of gait) is one of the extreme cases of motor blocks. Since the last two decades, automated methods for monitoring motor activities, their data analysis, and algorithm techniques have been subjects of research for Parkinson’s disease (PD). This research will be of help to clinicians in prescribing a drug regimen. Problem Statement. Development of a system based on an algorithm for automatic detection of the freezing of gait (FOG) and other postural adjustments, with the help of wearable sensor’s data and to provide a quantitative approach for assessing the intensity of PD by analyzing frequency components associated with different motor movements and gait. Methodology. This paper presents a novel wavelet energy distribution approach to distinguish between walking, standing, and FOG. Data from the acceleration sensor is taken as input. After preprocessing, discrete wavelet transform (DWT) is applied on the data which shows its entire frequency spectrum. In the next step, energy is computed for the decomposed level of interest. Results. Systems detected FOG and other gait postures and showed time-frequency range by examining differentiated decomposed signals by DWT. Energy distribution and PSD graph proved the accuracy of the system. Validation is done by the LOSO method which shows 90% accuracy for the proposed method. Conclusion. Observations of the clinical trials validate the proposed technique. In comparison to the previous techniques reported in literature, it is seen that the proposed method shows improvement in time and frequency resolution as well as processing time.
Aicardi-Goutières Syndrome due to a SAMHD1 Mutation Presenting with Deep White Matter Cysts
Authors: Oleksy Barbara , Mierzewska Hanna , Tryfon Jolanta , Wypchło Maria , Wasilewska Krystyna , Zalewska-Miszkurka Zofia , Płoski Rafał , Rydzanicz Małgorzata , Szczepanik Elżbieta
Published: December 2021

We report on the first Polish patient diagnosed with the Aicardi-Goutières syndrome 5 (AGS5). AGS is caused by mutations in one of 9 genes (TREX1, RNASEH2A, RNASEH2B, RNASEH2C, SAMHD1, ADAR, IFIH, LSM11, RNU7-1) which stimulate the type I interferon response. The diagnosis was confirmed by identifying a compound heterozygous mutation p.(Phe165Ser)/p.(Gln235*) in the SAMHD1 gene using whole-exome sequencing. The cystic lesions in the temporal lobes are an uncommon finding in the presented patient carrying a SAMHD1 mutation. Reporting new cases expands the range of phenotypes and plays the crucial role in understanding the AGS pathogenesis and creates new therapy approaches.
Porphyromonas gingivalis Gingipains-Mediated Degradation of Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor-1 Leads to Delayed Wound Healing Responses in Human Endothelial Cells
Authors: Song Li-Ting , Tada Hiroyuki , Nishioka Takashi , Nemoto Eiji , Imamura Takahisa , Potempa Jan , Li Chang-Yi , Matsushita Kenji , Sugawara Shunji
Published: December 2021

Plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), a serine protease inhibitor, is constitutively produced by endothelial cells and plays a vital role in maintaining vascular homeostasis. Chronic periodontitis is an inflammatory disease characterized by bleeding of periodontal tissues that support the tooth. In this study, we aimed to determine the role of PAI-1 produced by endothelial cells in response to infections caused by the primary periodontal pathogen Porphyromonas gingivalis. We demonstrated that P. gingivalis infection resulted in significantly reduced PAI-1 levels in human endothelial cells. This reduction in PAI-1 levels could be attributed to the proteolysis of PAI-1 by P. gingivalis proteinases, especially lysine-specific gingipain-K (Kgp). We demonstrated the roles of these degradative enzymes in the endothelial cells using a Kgp-specific inhibitor and P. gingivalis gingipain-null mutants, in which the lack of the proteinases resulted in the absence of PAI-1 degradation. The degradation of PAI-1 by P. gingivalis induced a delayed wound healing response in endothelial cell layers via the low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein. Our results collectively suggested that the proteolysis of PAI-1 in endothelial cells by gingipains of P. gingivalis might lead to the deregulation of endothelial homeostasis, thereby contributing to the permeabilization and dysfunction of the vascular endothelial barrier.
Tooth Age Impact on Dental Erosion Susceptibility and Treatment Efficacy
Authors: Algarni Amnah A. , Lippert Frank , Ungar Peter , Platt Jeffrey A. , González-Cabezas Carlos , Eckert George J. , Hara Anderson T.
Published: December 2021

This laboratory study investigated the impact of tooth age on dental erosion susceptibility and preventive treatment efficacy. Extracted human premolars were selected and had their age estimated (∼10–100 years old) using established dental forensic methods. Enamel and root dentin slabs were prepared, embedded in acrylic blocks, flattened, and polished. The specimens were randomly assigned to one of three treatments (n = 93): Sn+F (800 ppm Sn as SnCl2 and 250 ppm F as NaF, pH 4.5), NaF (250 ppm F, pH 4.5), or deionized water (DIW). Each specimen was subjected for 10 days to a daily cycling protocol consisting of six 5-min erosive challenges (0.3% citric acid, pH 2.6), six 60-min remineralization periods (artificial saliva), and three 2-min treatments with the test solutions. Surface loss (SL) was measured after 3, 5, and 10 days, using optical profilometry. Effects of tooth age, antierosive treatment, and time on SL were evaluated using linear mixed effects regression analysis. SL increased with age for all substrate-treatment-time combinations (p < 0.0001). Sn+F and NaF solutions significantly reduced SL compared to DIW, regardless of substrate, time, or age (p < 0.0001), with best results shown for Sn+F. Efficacy of Sn+F increased with tooth age on enamel, but tooth age did not affect the efficacy of NaF on enamel. For dentin, increased efficacy was observed with age after 5 (for Sn+F) and 10 days (for Sn+F and NaF). In conclusion, increase of tooth age rendered enamel and root dentin more susceptible to dental erosion. NaF preventive efficacy improved with tooth age for dentin, in advanced erosion simulation. Sn+F reduced enamel SL due to erosion regardless of tooth age.
SARS-CoV-2 Clinical Characteristics and Viral Shedding in Kuwait
Authors: Alghounaim Mohammad , Caya Chelsea , Alothman Khalid , Alhasawi Almonther , Papenburg Jesse
Published: December 2021

Objectives: We aimed to describe the clinical characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 infection and estimate viral shedding duration in respiratory specimens. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was performed from February 25 to March 25, 2020. In Kuwait, all suspected coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases, contacts of cases, and returning travelers were systematically tested for SARS-CoV-2 by RT-PCR. All infected persons, regardless of symptoms, were hospitalized and serially tested until they had two negative results. Descriptive statistics and regression analyses were performed. Results: Two hundred seven cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection were included in this study. About half of the cases were asymptomatic and 1.9% died. The median time to negative RT-PCR was 22 days. Increasing age, ARDS, and low peripheral white blood cell count were associated with prolonged PCR positivity. Conclusion: Predictors for prolonged RT-PCR positivity included increasing age, ARDS, and low white blood cell count. The findings of this study may aid in better understanding of the epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 infection and molecular testing dynamics.
Transforming data-centric eXtensible markup language into relational databases using hybrid approach
Authors: Haw Su-Cheng , Song Emyliana
Published: December 2021

eXtensible markup language (XML) appeared internationally as the format for data representation over the web. Yet, most organizations are still utilising relational databases as their database solutions. As such, it is crucial to provide seamless integration via effective transformation between these database infrastructures. In this paper, we propose XML-REG to bridge these two technologies based on node-based and path-based approaches. The node-based approach is good to annotate each positional node uniquely, while the path-based approach provides summarised path information to join the nodes. On top of that, a new range labelling is also proposed to annotate nodes uniquely by ensuring the structural relationships are maintained between nodes. If a new node is to be added to the document, re-labelling is not required as the new label will be assigned to the node via the new proposed labelling scheme. Experimental evaluations indicated that the performance of XML-REG exceeded XMap, XRecursive, XAncestor and Mini-XML concerning storing time, query retrieval time and scalability. This research produces a core framework for XML to relational databases (RDB) mapping, which could be adopted in various industries.
Detection roasting level of Lintong coffee beans by using euclidean distance
Authors: Pratama Yohanssen , Dirgayussa I Gde Eka , Simarmata Paian Fernando , Tambunan Mia Hotmaria
Published: December 2021

Coffee roasting is the process by which raw coffee beans (green beans) are roasted until they reach a certain roast level. In general, the roast level of roasted coffee beans is divided into 3 levels, namely the roast level of light, medium and dark. One way to find out the roast level of roasted coffee beans is to see the color change of the coffee beans. However, it is very difficult to know the exact color conditions of each roast level of roasted coffee beans and this can be overcome by build an automatic coffee roasting equipment. In this research, an automatic coffee roaster was done with a system that is able to control the roasting temperature and stirring of coffee beans. This tool can also monitor the change in color of the coffee beans during the roasting process. The system that has been implemented can detect color changes and classify the level of dark roast of roasted coffee beans using the Euclidean distance algorithm. The Euclidean distance give a threshold to classified the roast level. The system accuracy for predicting coffee beans color at the level of dark roast is 90% and 80% for overall.
Modeling climate phenomenon with software grids analysis and display system in the development of the global warming module
Authors: Mayub Afrizal , Hendraini Leni , Johan Henny , Fahmizal Fahmizal , Wardana Rendy Wikrama
Published: December 2021

This study aims to model climate change based on rainfall, air temperature, pressure, humidity and wind with grADS software and create a global warming module. This research uses 3D model, define, design, and develop. The results of the modeling of the five climate elements consist of the annual average temperature in Indonesia in 2009-2015 which is between 29oC to 30.1oC, the horizontal distribution of the annual average pressure in Indonesia in 2009-2018 is between 800 mBar to 1000 mBar, the horizontal distribution the average annual humidity in Indonesia in 2009 and 2011 ranged between 27-57, in 2012-2015, 2017 and 2018 it ranged between 30-60, during the East Monsoon, the wind circulation moved from northern Indonesia to the southern region Indonesia. During the west monsoon, the wind circulation moves from the southern part of Indonesia to the northern part of Indonesia. The global warming module for SMA/MA produced is feasible to use, this is in accordance with the value given by the validate of 69 which is in the appropriate category and the response of teachers and students through a 91% questionnaire.
Noise resistance territorial intensity-based optical flow using inverse confidential technique on bilateral function
Authors: Kesrarat Darun , Patanavijit Vorapoj
Published: December 2021

This paper presents the use of the inverse confidential technique on bilateral function with the territorial intensity-based optical flow to prove the effectiveness in noise resistance environment. In general, the image’s motion vector is coded by the technique called optical flow where the sequences of the image are used to determine the motion vector. But, the accuracy rate of the motion vector is reduced when the source of image sequences is interfered by noises. This work proved that the inverse confidential technique on bilateral function can increase the percentage of accuracy in the motion vector determination by the territorial intensity-based optical flow under the noisy environment. We performed the testing with several kinds of non-Gaussian noises at several patterns of standard image sequences by analyzing the result of the motion vector in a form of the error vector magnitude (EVM) and compared it with several noise resistance techniques in territorial intensity-based optical flow method.
Utilizing ultra-wideband with wireless telecommunications applications microstrip
Authors: Chaudhary Abhay
Published: December 2021

The small aspect, as well as low margins of the microstrip chip amplifier (MPA) is being used in a contact system. For the last few times within the last year's research, the majority of work with MPA has been centered towards designing the portable antenna design. Wireless networking systems may be fitted with a new ultrawideband digital monopoly antenna. Throughout this exponentially changing environment, and dual multi-standard antennas play a crucial role in the implementation of cell towers. This paper presents the nature of an ultra-wideband (UWB)-based antenna array for the shape of a substratum, feeding strategies or openings.
Impact of renewable energy in Indian electric power system
Authors: Saravanan V , Venkatachalam K. M. , Arumugam M , Borelessa M.A.K , Hemapala K.T. M.U.
Published: December 2021

This paper addresses the impact of renewable power generation such as photovoltaic and wind energy in the existing power system operations. Various modeling approaches and power quality/reliability analysis of these renewable energy sources in the electric power system by researchers and research organisations and utilities are outlined and their impacts are assessed. Challenges and protection schemes of renewable power integration into the existing grid are discussed through a detailed literature review and study of renewable integration into the Indian power system are outlined including potential planning and policy actions to support renewable energy integration in India.
Arduino-based night return mechanism for passive solar trackers
Authors: Fokui Willy Stephen Tounsi , Mashava Destine
Published: December 2021

Solar trackers are support platforms that keep photovoltaic panels facing the sun by following the sun from dusk to dawn. There exist active solar trackers that make use of motors and gears to orientate the photovoltaic panels towards the sun; and passive solar trackers that operate through the differential heating of the fluid in the tracking rack to follow the sun. Passive solar trackers suffer from the lack of a night return mechanism and a slow wake-up response in the mornings due to the limitations on the surface inclination angle of the rack. This paper seeks to address these issues by proposing an Arduino-based night return mechanism for passive solar trackers. An energy-saving heating element such as the ultra heating fabric manufactured by WireKinetics Co. is installed on the west-side canister of the tracker. Before dawn, the fabric is automatically heated and this will force the refrigerant in the west-side canister to vaporize and cool in the east- side canister, forcing the tracker to return and face eastward before sunrise. The night return mechanism is designed and simulated using Proteus profesional. Simulation results show that this system can significantly optimize the function of passive solar trackers.
Investigation of temperature effects of a low-level laser source within the muscle phantom
Authors: Durmuş Hüseyin Okan , Gün Neslişah , Karaböce Baki , Seyidov MirHasan Yu.
Published: December 2021

In this study, temperature effects of a low-level laser source were investigated in a muscle phantom within 20-, 40-, 60- and 80-seconds time intervals. A temperature meter device having a 5-channel and 10 kΩ NTC type thermistor sensors were developed in TÜBİTAK UME Medical Metrology Laboratory for these special temperature measurements. The muscle phantom poured into a phantom container that was specially designed for 5-channel sensor placement and printed in a 3D printer. It has also been acoustically confirmed that the phantom has muscle phantom characteristics. As a result of this study, it is concluded that the laser source used is safe and suitable at therapy usage within the specified times in terms of the detected temperaturesa
Comparative techno-economic analysis of power system with and without renewable energy sources
Authors: Queen Hephzibah Jose , J. Jayakumar , J. Deepika T.
Published: December 2021

The primary aim of this work is to feature the advantages of integrating natural source of energy from the solar and wind to the prevailing electric power systems. Two types of analysis are carried out in two test systems (standard and modified test systems) and the outcome of the test systems are compared. The two analyses are technical analysis and economic analysis. The stability of the voltage is analyzed under technical analysis and the price of energy consumed from the electric grid is calculated and analyzed under the economic analysis. Dynamic hourly load data, hourly solar radiation, hourly wind velocity, and dynamic electricity prices are considered for the standard IEEE system and modified test system (with the integration of RES). Voltage stability index (L-Index) and price of the electricity consumed from electric grid are found for standard test system and the outcome is compared with the outcome of modified test systems. MATLAB coding is done for techno-economic analysis for both test systems. It is inferred from the outcome that the integration of renewable energy sources fairly contributes to the economic benefit of the system by lowering the power purchased from the grid and enhance the stability of the system.
Impact of micro hydro power plants on transient stability for the micro grid 20 kV system
Authors: Nojeng Syarifuddin , Syamsir Syamsir , Murniati Reny
Published: December 2021

Transient stability analysis is conducted to determine the ability of the electric power system in maintaining the operating stability after a major disturbance. The disturbance can be trigger an impact on the stability of the rotor angle, voltage, and system frequency which can cause loss of synchronization. In this paper, the impact of the interconnection of the Tombolo-Pao mini hydro power plant (MHPP) on the stability of the system was analyzed by several scenarios to determine the behavior of system parameters in a 20 kV system interconnection network. This research is an implementation of regulatory provisions relating to the study of the connection to the PLN distribution network through by regulator. Based on the result of simulation study, transient stability of generators at TomboloPao power plant about 0.1 second, will not occur with network configuration according to modeling activation of anti-islanding protection of Tombolo Pao Power Plant which is set by 2 second. The simulation results show that the location of the disturbance in the electric power system has been influenced by the behavior of the power plant (synchronous generator) which can lead to the instability of the micro-hydro connected to the micro-grid system 20 kV.
Squirrel cage induction motor fault diagnosis using lissajous curve of an auxiliary winding voltage: case of broken bars
Authors: Khadouj Jelbaoui Yakout , Lamiaà El Menzhi , Saad Abdallah
Published: December 2021

The detection of incipient faults has attracted industrials and researchers specific attention in order to prevent the motor breakdown, improve its reability and increase its lifetime. This paper presents a squirrel cage induction machine broken bar and rings diagnosis approach. This technic uses a new monitored signal as an auxiliary winding voltage related to a small coil inserted between two stator phases. Monitoring behaviors of the Lissajous curve of this auxiliary winding voltage park components under different load levels is the main key of this study. For this purpose, the squirrel cage induction machine modeling and the explicit expressions developed for the inserted winding voltage and its Park components will be presented. Then, an induction machine with different broken cases: one broken bar, two broken bars, broken end ring and broken bars with end ring are investigated. The simulation results confirm the validity of the proposed approach.