bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Assessment of Water Quality Parameters of Meghna River Kishoreganj, Bangladesh
Authors: Rima Romana , Ryhan Abdullah Al , Ahmed Sony , Islam Rafiq , Munshi Sharif Hossain , Azam Sabbir
Published: April 2020

The Meghna River is one of the most important rivers in Bangladesh, one of the three rivers, the Ganges delta, and the largest delta in the world in the Bay of Bengal. The water quality of Meghna has become a matter of concern due to serious levels of pollution. The present study was conducted to assess the surface water quality of upstream of the Meghna River using physic-chemical parameters in summer and winter season at five different points. Water quality was evaluated by laboratory analysis considering a total of six water quality parameters, pH, DO, BOD, COD, salinity and TDS and water samples were collected from five stations. The study indicates that some parameters exceed the permissible limit for drinking purpose, it may cause potential threat to the human, but the water of this river is not immediate threat to human or ecosystem.
Contribution of Sentinel 1 Radar Data to Flood Mapping in the San-Pédro River Basin (South-west Côte d’Ivoire)
Authors: Kouassi Kouakou Hervé , N’go Yao Alexis , Anoh Kouao Armand , Koua Tanoh Jean-Jacque , Stoleriu Cristian Constantin
Published: April 2020

Floods result from the overflow of water which submerges the surrounding land. They are frequent on the coast of Côte d'Ivoire during the rainy season and have more or less serious consequences on the populations, property and the environment. The study site is the San Pedro river basin. It is a coastal catchment area characterized by an average annual rainfall of up to 2000 mm and subject to recurrent flooding. The objective of this study is to assess the risk of flooding during the great rainy season of 2017. The study aims to study flood hazard, assess vulnerability and map flood risk areas. The methodological approach is based on the use of C-band (5.6 cm) radar remote sensing data acquired by the Sentinel-1 sensor at 12-day intervals. These data are in GRD (Ground Range Detected) level 1 format and were used to calculate the radar backscatter coefficient. The results obtained allowed to map the extent of the flooded areas and showed that more than 6,000 ha of land is flooded for more than 3 days. Sentinel-1 has enormous potential to identify flooding risky areas and to continuously monitor them.
Selection Criteria and Selection Environment for Drought Tolerance of Egyptian Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Landraces
Authors: Al-Naggar Ahmed Medhat Mohamed , El-Shafi Mohamed Abd El-Maboud Abd , El-Shal Mohamed Helmy , Anany Ali Hassan
Published: April 2020

Strong correlations between wheat traits and drought tolerance (DT) associated with high heritability and high genetic advance from selection would allow plant breeder to use such traits as selection criteria. The objective of the present investigation was to determine the optimum selection criteria and selection environment for drought tolerance via estimation of correlation coefficients (r) among 13 agronomic, grain yield and quality traits and DT of 20 wheat landraces, broad-sense heritability (h2b) and genetic advance (GA) from selection for such traits under well-watered (WW) and water stressed (WS) environments. A two-year experiment was carried out using a split-plot design with four replications. Results concluded that the best selection criterion for drought tolerance in our study was grain yield/plant (GYPP), followed by a number of grains/spike (GPS), grain filling period (GFP), grain starch (GSC) and protein (GPC) content, plant height (PH) and days to maturity (DTM), since they showed high (r), high h2b and high GA estimates. The best selection environment was WW for days to anthesis, PH, spikes/plant, GPS, spikelets/spike, GYPP, GPC and WS for DTM, GFP, GSC and thousand-grain weight traits. This information could help future breeding programs in selection for improving drought tolerance of wheat.
Evaluation and Selection of Thin-layer Drying Models for Paddy Dried in Static Flat-bed Batch Dryer
Authors: Anchal Lubna Sadaf , Dubey Abhinav , Kumar Prassana
Published: April 2020

A Static flat-bed batch dryer was developed for drying paddy from harvesting moisture content (20 – 22%) to 12% for safe storage. The dryer mainly consisted of Blower, Heating chamber, Plenum chamber and drying chamber. Twenty kg paddy was dried in the developed dryer at two different inlet air flow rate (1 m3/min. and 1.26 m3/min). The machine has a capacity of 20 kg and temperature of drying air was 60 and 55°C respectively. The moisture content was recorded at every 15 minutes interval and moisture ratio plots were generated. The experimental data were fit in 8 different thin-layer drying models and statistical parameters along with the model constants were obtained. It was found that the Wang and Singh model with the highest values for R2 and the least values of RMSE in selected drying conditions has the best fit. Henderson & Pabis and Newton models were also found suitable for describing the drying kinetics of paddy in the developed dryer.
Characterization of Viscoelastic Behavior of Ripe Deseeded Tamarind Subjected to Uniaxial Compressive Loading
Authors: Satankar M. , Patil A. K. , Verma D. K. , Singh M.
Published: April 2020

The creep behavior a rheological property of tamarind (Tamarandus indica L.) was studied to characterize the effect of compressive stress and time on volumetric reduction in ripe deseeded tamarind and creep curve developed using Kelvin model. Five different compressive stresses 222.95, 445.90, 668.86, 891.81 and 1114.77 N/m2 were used and deformation was observed at different time intervals  0+, 5, 10, 20, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, 180, 240, 300  and 360 minutes. Creep curve were plotted to demonstrate the volumetric strain variance for various time intervals. The slope of curve is sharp at the beginning and then with the increase in duration of loading the slope of curve flattened down which shows that the rate of change of volumetric strain for a given sample at a given stress is large at the beginning and with increase in the time, the rate of change becomes less and less. The volumetric strain with respect to variation of loading is maximum in case of maximum stress that was 1114.77 N/m2.
Electrostatic Induction Spray-charging System (Embedded Electrode) for Knapsack Mist-blower
Authors: Khatawkar Dipak S. , Dhalin D. , James P. Shaji , Subhagan Seena R.
Published: April 2020

The introduction of electrically charged sprays in agricultural application has become inevitable for better control on droplet transference with reduced drift with less spray chemical requirements.  The study was under taken to develop an electrostatic induction spray charging system as attachment to knapsack mist-blower. A high voltage generator was fabricated on the basis of Cockcroft-Walton voltage multiplier principle with input of 6 V DC battery. A self-atomizing hydraulic nozzle was developed to deliver the droplet spectrum required for effective electrostatic charge induction.  The prototype was evaluated for charge to mass ratio (mC. kg-1) at five electrode potentials (1 kV, 2 kV, 3 kV, 4 kV and 5 kV) at four electrode placement positions from atomization zone (0, 5, 10 and 15 mm). The charge mass ratio (CMR) value of spray cloud was measured using Faradays Cage at five positions from nozle tip (50, 100, 150, 200 and 250 cm). The electrode voltage potential at 5 kV at its position 5 mm from the atomization zone shown the maximum CMR value of 1.088 mC.kg-1. In contrast with commercial system (ESS-MBP90) it was observed that except at 50 cm distance, the developed charging system, at 4 kV and 5 kV, surpassed commercial system in CMR from 100 cm to 250 cm distances. The droplet spectrum of the developed system was analysed and observed that the size of droplets were 100 to 200 µm.  The developed system found to be cost effective and significantly consistent over the commercial one.
Synthesis, Anti-microbial, Flameretardance and Anti-corrosive Activity of Some New Heterocycles Incorporating Coumarin moiety
Authors: Mohamed S. M. , Dawoud Nadia T. A. , El-Khalik N. Abd , Mazen Wafaa. M. , Bailey Z. I. El
Published: April 2020

In the present study a series of novel heterocyclic compounds (2-16) incorporating coumarin moiety was synthesized. The newly synthesized compounds were elucidated on the basis of elemental analysis, spectral data, were tested for in-vitro antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis (Gram-positive bacteria), Salmonella typhimurium, Escherichia coli (Gram-negative bacteria) and Candida albicans, Aspergillus fumigatus (fungi).

Coumarin derivatives (1,6,16) were chosen to evaluate the anti-corrosion, flame retardant properties. The results clearly showed that, the incorporation of coumarin derivatives into epoxy coating have led to improve the flame residency, corrosion resistance, and mechanical properties of investigated coating and confirmed that these new developed varnishes have an excellent properties as flame resistance and anticorrosive for mild steel.
Influence of Various Types of Steel Fibre on the Mechanical and Physical Characteristics of GGBS Based Geopolymer Concrete
Authors: Sadawy M. Ali , Faried Ahmed Serag , El-Ghazaly H. A.
Published: April 2020

This study provides experimental investigation of the mechanical and physical properties of reinforced geopolymer concrete based on Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS). This research demonstrates the influence of various types of steel fibre on compressive, split tensile, flexural strengths and elastic modulus of hardened GPC, workability of reinforced geopolymer concrete and also analyzed the workability, setting time and flow test of fresh geopolymer concrete. Additionally, corrosion test was conducted on reinforced geopolymer concrete. Mixtures of alkaline liquid to GGBS ratio of 0.5 with steel fibers had been added to the mixture of 0% volume fractions (Vf %), 0.5%, 1.0%, and 1.5% concrete amount. Based on the result of the experiments, the presence of steel fibres enhanced the compressive and tensile strength of the SERGPC, in terms of volume fraction of steel fibres as compared to the regular GPC without fibres. It was observed that there was a significant improvement in GPC's mechanical characteristics and corrosion rate as the lifespan of concrete increased. The incorporation of steel fibres resulted in increased compressive and flexural strengths in the early age and consequently tensile splitting power was increased. The increase in concrete geopolymer content improved the rate of corrosion over time.
Improved Chuck Table Design for Silicon Wafer Defects Resolution
Authors: Bacquian Bryan Christian , Gomez Frederick Ray
Published: April 2020

The paper aimed to mitigate wafer defects such as large kerf shifting issue, dice pop-out occurrence and edge cut defects in the wafer preparation or pre-assembly stage of integrated circuits (IC) assembly manufacturing. With the introduction of new wafer preparation technologies such as dicing before grinding (DBG) and laser die attach film (DAF) cut, technical challenges were encountered. The paper focused on the interaction of different glass chuck table design and laser DAF parameter in order to address the problems. Based on the evaluation and revalidation of results, it has been identified that the single hole without outer groove glass chuck table design improved the response, eliminating dice pop-out issue at laser DAF cut, as well as the kerf shifting issue and edge cut defect.
LC‐MS assay targeting the mycobacterial indirect aminoacylation pathway uncovers glutaminase activities of the nondiscriminating aspartyl‐synthetase
Authors: Chew Bing Liang Alvin , Tanoto Frederick Reinhart , Luo Dahai
Published: April 2020

The synthesis of asparagine (Asn)‐tRNAAsn in most prokaryotes uses an indirect aminoacylation pathway involving a nondiscriminating aspartyl synthetase (ND‐AspRS) and a glutamine amidotransferase (GatCAB). This was recently implicated as an adaptive mistranslation mechanism for antimicrobial resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis, but it remains poorly understood. We report an accessible liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry method with unparalleled chemical specificity, sensitivity, and quantification over the current assays to enable the direct analysis and drug screening campaigns of this pathway. Through this method, we show that the mycobacterial ND‐AspRS stimulates the glutaminase activity of GatCAB. We further uncover novel glutaminase activity of the synthetase. These biological insights help better understand the indirect aminoacylation biology and allude to new roles beyond protein translation.
Crystal structure of the human tau PHF core domain VQIINK complexed with the Fab domain of monoclonal antibody Tau2r3
Authors: Tsuchida Tomohiro , Susa Kouki , Kibiki Tomohiro , Tsuchiya Takahiro , Miyamoto Katsushiro , In Yasuko , Minoura Katsuhiko , Taniguchi Taizo , Ishida Toshimasa , Tomoo Koji
Published: April 2020

Neurofibrillary tangles formed by abnormally aggregated tau protein are a histopathological feature of tauopathies. A tau aggregation inhibitor is a potential therapeutic agent for tauopathies. In this study, we prepared a monoclonal antibody for tau, monoclonal antibody to tau protein (Tau2r3), using as epitope the 272GGKVQIINKKLD283 peptide in the microtubule‐binding domain of tau, the key region mediating tau aggregation. We show that Tau2r3 clearly inhibits tau aggregation. To analyze the inhibition mechanism of Tau2r3, we solved the crystal structure of the Fab domain of Tau2r3 (Fab2r3) in complex with the VQIINK peptide. In the Fab2r3‐VQIINK structure, the second and sixth polar residues and the fourth hydrophobic residue of VQIINK are crucial for binding to Fab2r3. The structural data for the Fab2r3‐VQIINK complex could contribute to the design of new tau aggregation inhibitors.
Exploring the Panel Exercises in the Modulor as presented by Le Corbusier
Authors: Watanabe Shun
Published: April 2020

In this study, the possibility of using the Modulor in the digital era is explored by employing computational methods to solve "The Panel Exercises" that Le Corbusier presented in his well‐known book "Modulor" and confirming the explosions of their combinations. First, the mathematical characteristics of the Modulor are reconfirmed. Thereafter, we present the gradual bisection method to generate combinations of the first panel exercise and a program of the depth‐first search to enumerate all the possible solutions of the second panel exercise. It is also demonstrated that the other panel exercises that evolved from the previous two exercises can be solved with these methods.
Narrative coherence in multiple forensic interviews with child witnesses alleging physical and sexual abuse
Authors: Szojka Zsofia A. , Nicol Annabelle , La Rooy David
Published: April 2020

This study investigated the narrative coherence of children's accounts elicited in multiple forensic interviews. Transcriptions of 56 police interviews with 28 children aged 3–14 years alleging physical and sexual abuse were coded for markers of completeness, consistency and connectedness. We found that multiple interviews increased the completeness of children's testimony, containing on average almost twice as much new information as single interviews, including crucial location, time and abuse‐related details. When both contradictions within the same interview and across interviews were considered, contradictions were not more frequent in multiple interviews. The frequency of linguistic markers of connectedness remained stable across interviews. Multiple interviews increase the narrative coherence of children's testimony through increasing their completeness without necessarily introducing contradictions or decreasing causal‐temporal connections between details. However, as ‘ground truth’ is not known in field studies, further investigation of the relationship between the narrative coherence and accuracy of testimonies is required.
Managing soils and crops for sustainable agricultural intensification in coastal saline zones
Authors: Zhang Jishi , Miao Qi , Xue Yanfang , Li Zongxin , Cui Zhenling
Published: April 2020

Sustainable agricultural intensification to ensure global food security requires increases in both crop yields and nitrogen (N) productivity. Together, these requirements represent a considerable challenge, especially in saline regions where the high soil sodium (Na+) content limits crop growth. An integrated soil and crop management system (ISCM) may be more successful than procedures aimed at improving only soil quality (ISM) or crop management (ICM), or current local farmers’ practice for achieving sustainable intensification in coastal saline zones. In this study, we tested different management alternatives for their ability to improve soil quality, agronomic feasibility, and affordability over four harvests in a 2‐yr wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)–maize (Zea mays L.) rotation system in China. The ISM treatment with added cow manure and flue gas desulfurization gypsum reduced both Na+ content and pH in the subsoil, thereby improving grain yields and N productivity. The ICM treatment (i.e., optimized plant density and N fertilizer management) also increased crop yields and N productivity. The ISCM treatment integrated procedures of the ICM and ISM treatments to achieve the best agronomic benefit by increasing yields of wheat and maize by 25.3 and 30.8%, respectively, and N productivity by 109 and 97.6%, respectively, while simultaneously improving soil quality by increasing both calcium ion (Ca2+) and soil organic carbon content, and decreasing Na+ and pH in the subsoil. All three management alternatives increased economic benefits, and the ICM treatment was most valuable over the short term.
Double‐external‐field enables bulk controlled radical polymerization with narrow molecular weight distribution at high conversion
Authors: Bian Chao , Zhou Yin‐Ning , Luo Zheng‐Hong
Published: April 2020

To control over molecular weight and its distribution in bulk controlled radical polymerization (CRP) at high conversion remains a challenge. Currently, there are few reports about bulk CRP regulated by external field. In this work, a new strategy combining external fields of light and ultrasound, namely double‐external‐field, is reported to overcome the challenge. Light irradiation directly reduces the deactivator CuIIBr2/L in the presence of free amine ligand, while ultrasonic agitation improves the homogeneity of the system and moderates the diffusional limitations on activation‐deactivation and termination processes. Bulk polymerizations of methyl acrylate (MA) were conducted in a controlled manner at conversion over 90%, producing PMA with low dispersities (Đ = 1.05–1.07) and good retention of chain‐end functionality (77%). In addition, good control over the polymerizations for methyl methacrylate (MMA) and styrene was obtained, although the chain‐end functionality of PMMA‐Br requires further improvement. It is believed that this as‐developed double‐external‐field regulation strategy is also applicable to other light induced bulk RDRP systems to improve the controllability.
Oil Price Pass through to Agricultural Commodities†
Authors: Lundberg Clark , Skolrud Tristan , Adrangi Bahram , Chatrath Arjun
Published: April 2020

Energy represents an important share of production costs for many agricultural commodities. Previous studies have found mixed evidence of a pass‐through relationship between oil prices and agricultural commodity prices, a relationship that has the potential to disrupt farm‐level decision making. We propose that these mixed findings are in part due to heterogeneity in the pass‐through relationship across time horizons. We use a new wavelet‐based regression approach to explore horizon‐based heterogeneity in the relationship between oil and agricultural commodity prices. We find strong evidence of heterogeneity across time horizons and commodities. We develop a stylized model of agricultural production and show that agricultural contracts can generate price stickiness that leads to heterogeneity in input price pass through over different horizons. We also find evidence that recent technological shifts have led to a structural change in this horizon‐based heterogeneity.
Nasal nitric oxide as a long‐term monitoring and prognostic biomarker of mucosal health in chronic rhinosinusitis
Authors: Lee Daniel J. , Yip Jonathan , Lee John M.
Published: April 2020

Background

Nasal nitric oxide (nNO) is a potential biomarker of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS), and correlates well with endoscopic and radiologic severity of disease. However, the long‐term profile of nNO as a biomarker is not established in the literature. The objectives of our study were to examine whether nNO can maintain this correlation in a 5‐year follow‐up after endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) and to investigate whether nNO value can be used to prognosticate revision rates in patients with CRS.

Methods

We enrolled CRS patients 5 years after initial ESS at our institution. Patients underwent initial ESS at our institution between January 2013 and January 2015. Patients prospectively had the following measurements at baseline, 1 month, 6 months, and 5 years post‐ESS: nNO levels, Lund‐Kennedy Endoscopy Score (LKES), and 22‐item Sino‐Nasal Outcome Test‐22 (SNOT‐22) score. We also compared the nNO levels between patients who underwent revision ESS and those who did not.

Results

There were 32 patients included in the study with 8 patients undergoing revision ESS during the 5‐year follow‐up. nNO levels were elevated at 1 month, 6 months, and 5 years post‐ESS compared to baseline. A significant negative correlation between nNO and LKES was found at 5 years post‐ESS. nNO levels were significantly reduced at baseline and 6 months post‐ESS in the revision cohort compared to the nonrevision cohort despite having comparable radiologic severity.

Conclusion

nNO may serve as a noninvasive long‐term biomarker to monitor sinus disease severity and to prognosticate results in patients with CRS. This has implications for potential integration into clinical practice.
Hippocampal Interictal Spikes during Sleep Impact Long‐Term Memory Consolidation
Authors: Lambert Isabelle , Tramoni‐Negre Eve , Lagarde Stanislas , Roehri Nicolas , Giusiano Bernard , Trebuchon‐Da Fonseca Agnès , Carron Romain , Benar Christian‐Georges , Felician Olivier , Bartolomei Fabrice
Published: April 2020

Objective

Non‐rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep is supposed to play a key role in long‐term memory consolidation transferring information from hippocampus to neocortex. However, sleep also activates epileptic activities in medial temporal regions. This study investigated whether interictal hippocampal spikes during sleep would impair long‐term memory consolidation.

Method

We prospectively measured visual and verbal memory performance in 20 patients with epilepsy investigated with stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) at immediate, 30‐minute, and 1‐week delays, and studied the correlations between interictal hippocampal spike frequency during waking and the first cycle of NREM sleep and memory performance, taking into account the number of seizures occurring during the consolidation period and other possible confounding factors, such as age and epilepsy duration.

Results

Retention of verbal memory over 1 week was negatively correlated with hippocampal spike frequency during sleep, whereas no significant correlation was found with hippocampal interictal spikes during waking. No significant result was found for visual memory. Regression tree analysis showed that the number of seizures was the first factor that impaired the verbal memory retention between 30 minutes and 1 week. When the number of seizures was below 5, spike frequency during sleep higher than 13 minutes was associated with impaired memory retention over 1 week.

Interpretation

Our results show that activation of interictal spikes in the hippocampus during sleep and seizures specifically impair long‐term memory consolidation. We hypothesize that hippocampal interictal spikes during sleep interrupt hippocampal‐neocortical transfer of information. ANN NEUROL 2020;87:976–987
A Chemistry for Incorporation of Selenium into DNA‐Encoded Libraries
Authors: Xu Hongtao , Gu Yuang , Zhang Shuning , Xiong Huan , Ma Fei , Lu Fengping , Ji Qun , Liu Lili , Ma Peixiang , Hou Wei , Yang Guang , Lerner Richard A.
Published: April 2020

Conventional direct C−H selenylation suffers from simple selenation with limited atom economy and complicated reaction system. In this work, we designed benzoselenazolone as a novel bifunctional selenide reagent for both off‐ and on‐DNA C−H selenylation under rhodium(III) catalysis. We show that using benzoselenazolone allowed production of a series of selenylation products containing an adjacent aminoacyl group in a fast and efficient way, with high atom economy. The synthetic application of this method was demonstrated by taking advantage of the amide functionality as a nucleophile, directing group, and amide coupling partner. This work shows great potential in facilitating rapid construction of selenium‐containing DNA‐encoded chemical libraries (SeDELs), and lays the foundation for the development of selenium‐containing drugs.
CncC/Maf‐mediated xenobiotic response pathway in insects
Authors: Palli Subba Reddy
Published: April 2020

Insects have evolved resistance to almost all insecticides developed for their control. Multiple mechanisms of resistance, including enhanced metabolism and excretion of insecticides, target‐site insensitivity, reduced penetration of insecticides, and avoidance behavior, have been reported. The genes coding for proteins involved in resistance have been identified in numerous insects. The enzymes and transporters required for all three phases of insecticide metabolism and excretion including cytochrome P450 monooxygenases, glutathione S‐transferases, UDP‐glucuronosyltransferases, carboxylesterases, and ATP‐binding cassette transmembrane transporters have been identified. Recent research in multiple insect species identified CNC‐bZIP transcription factor superfamily members as regulators of genes coding for enzymes and transporters involved in insecticide metabolic resistance. The information on the pathway including reactive oxygen species, cap “n” collar isoform‐C, and its heterodimer partner, muscle aponeurosis fibromatosis transcription factors involved in overexpression of enzymes and transporters involved insecticide resistance will be summarized.
Association of chromosome 7 aneuploidy measured by fluorescence in situ hybridization assay with muscular invasion in bladder cancer
Authors: Diao Xiayao , Cai Jinhua , Zheng Junjiong , Kong Jianqiu , Wu Shaoxu , Yu Hao , Huang Hao , Xie Weibin , Chen Xiong , Huang Chengran , Huang Lifang , Qin Haide , Huang Jian , Lin Tianxin
Published: April 2020

Background

The preoperative prediction of muscular invasion status is important for adequately treating bladder cancer (BC) but nevertheless, there are some existing dilemmas in the current preoperative diagnostic accuracy of BC with muscular invasion. Here, we investigated the potential association between the fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) assay and muscular invasion among patients with BC. A cytogenetic‐clinical nomogram for the individualized preoperative differentiation of muscle‐invasive BC (MIBC) from non‐muscle‐invasive BC (NMIBC) is also proposed.

Methods

All eligible BC patients were preoperatively tested using a FISH assay, which included 4 sites (chromosome‐specific centromeric probe [CSP] 3, 7, and 17, and gene locus‐specific probe [GLP]‐p16 locus). The correlation between the FISH assay and BC muscular invasion was evaluated using the Chi‐square tests. In the training set, univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to develop a cytogenetic‐clinical nomogram for preoperative muscular invasion prediction. Then, we assessed the performance of the nomogram in the training set with respect to its discriminatory accuracy and calibration for predicting muscular invasion, and clinical usefulness, which were then validated in the validation set. Moreover, model comparison was set to evaluate the discrimination and clinical usefulness between the nomogram and the individual variables incorporated in the nomogram.

Results

Muscular invasion was more prevalent in BC patients with positive CSP3, CSP7 and CSP17 status (OR [95% CI], 2.724 [1.555 to 4.774], P < 0.001; 3.406 [1.912 to 6.068], P < 0.001 and 2.483 [1.436 to 4.292], P = 0.001, respectively). Radiology‐determined tumor size, radiology‐determined clinical tumor stage and CSP7 status were identified as independent risk factors of BC muscular invasion by the multivariate regression analysis in the training set. Then, a cytogenetic‐clinical nomogram incorporating these three independent risk factors was constructed and was observed to have satisfactory discrimination in the training (AUC 0.784; 95% CI: 0.715 to 0.853) and validation (AUC 0.743; 95% CI: 0.635 to 0.850) set. The decision curve analysis (DCA) indicated the clinical usefulness of our nomogram. In models comparison, using the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) analyses, the nomogram showed higher discriminatory accuracy than any variables incorporated in the nomogram alone and the DCAs also identified the nomogram as possessing the highest net benefits at wide range of threshold probabilities.

Conclusion

CSP7 status was identified as an independent factor for predicting muscular invasion in BC patients and was successfully incorporated in a clinical nomogram combining the results of the FISH assay with clinical risk factors.
Liver cirrhosis contributes to the disorder of gut microbiota in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma
Authors: Zheng Ruipeng , Wang Guoqiang , Pang Zhiqiang , Ran Nan , Gu Yinuo , Guan Xuewa , Yuan Yuze , Zuo Xu , Pan He , Zheng Jingtong , Wang Fang
Published: April 2020

Background

Gut microbiota (GM) of patients with liver cancer is disordered, and syet no study reported the GM distribution of liver cirrhosis‐induced HCC (LC‐HCC) and nonliver cirrhosis‐induced HCC (NLC‐HCC). In this study, we aimed to characterize gut dysbiosis of LC‐HCC and NLC‐HCC to elucidate the role of GM in the pathogenesis of HCC.

Methods

A consecutive series of fecal samples of patients with hepatitis (24 patients), liver cirrhosis (24 patients), HCC (75 patients: 35 infected by HBV, 25 infected by HCV, and 15 with alcoholic liver disease), and healthy controls (20 patients) were obtained and sequenced on the Illumina Hiseq platform. The HCC group contains 52 LC‐HCC and 23 NLC‐HCC. Bioinformatic analysis of the intestinal microbiota was performed with QIIME and MicrobiomeAnalyst.

Results

Alpha‐diversity analysis showed that fecal microbial diversity was significantly decreased in the LC group, and there were significant differences in 3 phyla and 27 genera in the LC group vs the other groups (the healthy, hepatitis, and HCC groups). Beta‐diversity analysis showed that there were large differences between LC and the others. Gut microbial diversity was significantly increased from LC to HCC. Characterizing the fecal microbiota of LC‐HCC and NLC‐HCC, we found that microbial diversity was increased from LC to LC‐HCC rather than NLC‐HCC. Thirteen genera were discovered to be associated with the tumor size of HCC. Three biomarkers (Enterococcus, Limnobacter, and Phyllobacterium) could be used for precision diagnosis. We also found that HBV infection, HCV infection, or ALD (alcoholic liver disease) was not associated with intestinal microbial dysbiosis in HCC.

Conclusion

Our results suggest that GM disorders are more common in patients with LC‐HCC. The butyrate‐producing genera were decreased, while genera producing‐lipopolysaccharide (LPS) were increased in LC‐HCC patients. Further studies of GM disorders may achieve early diagnosis and new therapeutic approaches for HCC patients.
Childhood Adversities and Later Attitudes towards Harmful Parenting Behaviour including Shaking in a German Population‐based Sample
Authors: Clemens Vera , Berthold Oliver , Witt Andreas , Brähler Elmar , Plener Paul L. , Fegert Jörg M.
Published: April 2020

Various prevention strategies have proven effectiveness in preventing abusive head trauma (AHT). Most aim to influence parental knowledge and attitudes. At the same time, adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are known to be important risk factors for child physical abuse. However, the pathways from ACEs to AHT are not fully understood. This study examines the relation between prior ACEs and attitudes towards parenting strategies and whether the relations are the same in men and women in a representative sample of the German population (N = 2531). The results demonstrate that ACEs are associated with a higher acceptance of potentially harmful parenting behaviours, including shaking. While in male subjects, ACEs were related to a higher acceptance of shaking as reasonable parenting (odds ratio (OR) 3.7–5.3, depending on the type of ACE), in women, a relation to accepting withholding food from an infant (OR 2.3–2.5) and scolding an infant (OR 1.9–2.7) was seen. The relation between ACEs and acceptance of potentially harmful parenting strategies was stronger with each additional ACE (OR = 1.16). As the presented results suggest that prior ACEs are a risk factor for potentially harmful parenting attitudes, screening programmes might consider including ACEs and parent counselling should be considered for those having experienced ACEs.

‘The pathways from ACEs to AHT are not fully understood’

Key Practitioner Messages

In a population‐based sample, parents exposed to ACEs were more likely to accept harmful parenting strategies.

ACES had different effects in women and men, and a clear dose–response relationship could be seen.

Expectant parents should be screened for ACEs and offered tailored parenting courses.
Betulinic acid triggers apoptosis and inhibits migration and invasion of gastric cancer cells by impairing EMT progress
Authors: Chen Yun , Wu Xiongjian , Liu Chi , Zhou Yun
Published: April 2020

Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the most prevalent types of malignancies. Betulinic acid (BA) is a natural pentacyclic triterpene with a lupine structure. However, to the best of our knowledge, there is no research study on the anti‐tumour and anti‐metastasis effect of BA on GC. In this study, we assessed the anti‐cancer effect of BA on human GC cells in vitro and in vivo. We first investigated the cytotoxicity and anti‐proliferation effect of BA on GC cells of SNU‐16 and NCI‐N87. The results indicated that BA had significant cytotoxic and inhibitory effects on GC cells in a dose‐ and time‐dependent manner. To further study the cytotoxic action of BA on GC cells, we assessed the apoptotic induction effect of BA on SNU‐16 cells and found that BA distinctly induced apoptosis in SNU‐16 cells. In addition, BA inhibited the migratory and invasive abilities of SNU‐16 cells. Western‐blot analysis revealed that BA suppressed the migration and invasion of GC cells by impairing epithelial‐mesenchymal transition progression. Furthermore, in vivo experiments showed that BA could delay tumour growth and inhibit pulmonary metastasis, which is consistent with the results of in vitro studies. Overall, we evaluated the anti‐cancer effect of BA on human GC cells in vivo and in vitro, and the present study provides new evidence on the use of BA as a potential anti‐cancer drug for GC treatment.

Significance of the study

BA significantly suppressed proliferation and triggered apoptosis in GC cells. Additionally, BA remarkably inhibited migration and invasion of GC cells by impairing the epithelial‐mesenchymal transition signalling pathway. It is worth noting that BA drastically retarded tumour growth in the xenograft mouse model of GC. Our results indicated that BA can be considered a candidate drug for GC therapy.
Size Effect in Pd−Ir Core‐Shell Nanoparticles as Nanozymes
Authors: Xi Zheng , Gao Weiwei , Xia Xiaohu
Published: April 2020

Comprehensive studies on the size effect in nanozyme (i. e., nanomaterials with enzyme‐like activities)‐based catalysis have rarely been reported. In this work, we systematically investigated the size effect in nanozymes by using Pd−Ir core‐shell nanoparticles with peroxidase‐like activities as a model system. Pd−Ir nanoparticles with four different sizes (3.3, 5.9, 9.8 and 13.0 nm), but identical shapes and surface structures, were designed and synthesized. We found that the catalytic activity for individual nanozymes increased with particle size. The area‐specific catalytic activity was similar for nanoparticles of 3.3–9.8 nm, but decreased slightly when particle size reached 13.0 nm. By using an enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) as a model platform, the size effect of Pd−Ir nanoparticles in biosensing applications was investigated; smaller nanoparticles were found to offer lower detection limits. This work not only demonstrates the size effect, but also provides an effective strategy to enhance the performance of nanozymes in certain applications.
Primary Kaposi sarcoma of the glans: A rare case in an HIV‐negative patient
Authors: Araghi Farnaz , Tabary Mohammadreza , Bidari‐Zerehpoosh Farahnaz , Asadi‐Kani Zahra , Robati Reza M.
Published: April 2020

First presentation of the Kaposi sarcoma (KS) on the penis is not prevalent, and it was reported in 2%‐3% of the cases that mostly occurred in the HIV‐positive patients. Here, we report a case of primary KS on the glans penis in an HIV‐negative patient.
Optical coherence tomography of racemose angioma
Authors: Ravani Raghav , Patel Chandan , Tripathy Koushik
Published: April 2020

Wyburn‐Mason syndrome is associated with racemose angioma of the retina and arteriovenous malformation of the brain. Optical coherence tomography and MRI angiography may be used to document the vascular lesion of the retina and brain, respectively.
The value of coronal DWI in brainstem stroke diagnosis
Authors: Bedi Prabhjot S. , Koch Kevin J. , Lewis Paul B. , Singh Vikas K.
Published: April 2020

Acute brainstem strokes can present a diagnostic challenge due to its variable clinical presentation. MRI with diffusion‐weighted (axial) imaging is highly sensitive for diagnosing ischemic lesions however even that can fail to identify early lesions in the brainstem. Combining coronal section to standard axial MRI‐DWI can facilitate early diagnosis in these cases.
Radiation therapy in primary mediastinal large B‐cell lymphoma treated with DA‐R‐EPOCH
Authors: Gentille Cesar , Anand Kartik , Dalwadi Shraddha , Puri Akshjot , Farach Andrew , Pingali Sai Ravi
Published: April 2020

DA‐R‐EPOCH is used in PMBCL due to its good outcomes without radiation. We present three cases that required consolidation with radiation despite using this regimen. More studies are needed before considering DA‐R‐EPOCH standard of care.
Evaluation of plant growth‐promoting rhizobacteria on stockpiled bermudagrass
Authors: Griffin Megan E. , Muntifering Russell B. , Mullenix Mary K. , Held David W. , Dillard Sandra L.
Published: April 2020

A two‐year, small‐plot study was conducted to evaluate plant growth‐promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) for biofertilization of fall‐stockpiled bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pres.]. Eighteen, 10.8‐ft2 bermudagrass (cultivar ‘Coastal’) plots were mowed to 1‐inch stubble height prior to stockpiling. Experimental treatments included a negative control, synthetic fertilizer, PGPR single‐strain DH 44, DH 44 + fertilizer, PGPR multiple‐strain Blend 20, and Blend 20 + fertilizer (n = 3). Two PGPR applications were made, one at the beginning of each stockpiling season in mid‐August, and again 30 days later. Ammonium sulfate was applied at 50 lb N/acre concurrent with the first PGPR application. Each plot was divided into three subplots, which were harvested at different periods (i.e., mid‐November, mid‐December, and mid‐January) of each year to determine forage dry matter (DM) yield and nutritive value. Forage DM yield was greatest (P ≤ .03) for Blend 20 + fertilizer, but it was not different (P = .26) from that of the synthetic fertilizer treatment. Concentration of crude protein was least (P < .04) for DH 44 and Blend 20 treatments. Concentrations of acid detergent fiber were not different among treatments, except for the negative control which was lower (P < .05). In vitro true digestibility was not different (P < .05) among treatments. These results indicate that PGPR may be a viable option for biofertilization; however, further investigation into the effect of PGPR inoculants at field level is needed.
Supercritical antisolvent coprecipitation in the pharmaceutical field: Different polymeric carriers for different drug releases
Authors: Franco Paola , De Marco Iolanda
Published: April 2020

The supercritical antisolvent process (SAS) was employed to obtain polymer/drug coprecipitated powders. Indeed, processes based on the use of supercritical fluids allow us to obtain polymer/active drug coprecipitated microparticles with tunable bioavailability. In this work, two different biocompatible polymers were selected to be used as carriers for obtaining drug microparticles with different releases for different applications: polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) was coprecipitated with ketoprofen to obtain a rapid drug release and zein was coprecipitated with ampicillin to obtain a controlled drug release. The experiments were performed both on a bench‐scale and a pilot‐scale plant. Ketoprofen is one of the most prescribed non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs. It is poorly soluble in water and, to overcome this inconvenience, in this work, it was coprecipitated with PVP. In correspondence with the optimized polymer/drug ratio, the dissolution rate of the active principle in the coprecipitated particles was about three times higher than the one of the unprocessed ketoprofen. The second model drug under study in this paper is ampicillin, a semi‐synthetic penicillin that is one of the most commonly prescribed broad‐spectrum antibiotics. Prolonging the release of the drug would imply a reduction in the number of administrations and, therefore, of the side effects associated with too high dosages. For this purpose, in this work, ampicillin was coprecipitated with zein. Zein/ampicillin microparticles were produced up to a polymer/drug ratio of 5/1 w/w; in this case, the antibiotic coprecipitated with zein reaches 90% of its dissolution in about 14 hours, while the unprocessed antibiotic takes about 3 hours to dissolve.
A novel virtual flow diverter implantation method with realistic deployment mechanics and validated force response
Authors: Závodszky Gábor , Csippa Benjámin , Paál György , Szikora István
Published: April 2020

Virtual flow diverter deployment techniques underwent significant development during the last couple of years. Each existing technique displays advantageous features, as well as significant limitations. One common drawback is the lack of quantitative validation of the mechanics of the device. In the following work, we present a new spring‐mass‐based method with validated mechanical responses that combines many of the useful capabilities of previous techniques. The structure of the virtual braids naturally incorporates the axial length changes as a function of the local expansion diameter. The force response of the model was calibrated using the measured response of real FDs. The mechanics of the model allows to replicate the expansion process during deployment, including additional effects such as the push‐pull technique that is required for the deployment of braided FDs to achieve full opening and proper wall apposition. Furthermore, it is a computationally highly efficient solution that requires little pre‐processing and has a run‐time of a few seconds on a general laptop and thus allows for exploratory analyses. The model was applied in a patient‐specific geometry, where corresponding accurate control measurements in a 3D‐printed model were also available. The analysis shows the effects of FD oversizing and push‐pull application on the radial expansion, surface density, and on the wall contact pressure.
Performance improvement of DC‐DC converter using L‐D‐based modified GaN‐FET driver
Authors: Santra Subhendu Bikash , Roy Aratrika , Roy Choudhury Tanmoy , Chatterjee Debashis , Nayak Byamakesh
Published: April 2020

Bootstrap capacitor in FET gate driver plays an important role in the transient performance of the half bridge configured synchronous buck DC‐DC converter especially in the top switch. In this paper, a new bootstrap capacitor based GaN‐FET driver is proposed. This new GaN‐FET driver is tested in a synchronous buck converter for performance verification like
immunity, transient response, and voltage ringing. A comparison study with the existing LM5113 (Texas Instrument)–based driver for GaN‐FET and IR2110‐based Si‐MOSFET driver on a DC‐DC converter is carried out to show the performance improvement using the proposed GaN‐FET driver. The simulation study is performed on spice‐based NI‐Multisim 14.1. Finally, the designed GaN‐FET driver is tested on a 60‐W synchronous buck DC‐DC converter in open‐loop and closed‐loop configuration.
Self‐constraining of low‐energy rivers explains low channel mobility and tortuous planforms
Authors: Candel Jasper H. J. , Makaske Bart , Kijm Niels , Kleinhans Maarten G. , Storms Joep E. A. , Wallinga Jakob
Published: April 2020

Meandering rivers are abundant on Earth, from the largest rivers to the smallest tributaries. The classical view of meandering rivers is a sinuous planform with rounded bends, which grow and migrate until they are cut‐off. However, many low‐energy meandering rivers have planforms that are much more complex than this classical view due to the heterogeneity of their alluvium, and show relatively limited channel migration. Based on a detailed palaeogeographic study of the Dommel River in The Netherlands, it is inferred that low‐energy meandering rivers may develop tortuous planforms with sharp bends, owing to self‐formed deposits that increasingly constrain the channel mobility. This mechanism is corroborated by data from 47 meandering river reaches of varied scale from around the world, which show that erosion‐resistant floodplain deposits are preserved in the river banks when the river energy is below a critical threshold. The term ‘self‐constraining’ is proposed for low‐energy rivers where an increase in bank stability over time results in progressive tortuous planforms and reduced mobility. A conceptual model, based on the dataset, shows that the increase in bank stability over time also increases the energy required to break out of the tendency to self‐constrain. Self‐constraining thereby enhances the resilience of the system to bank erosion, while an unexpected increase in bank erosion may occur if river energy exceeds the critical threshold. This study provides a novel explanation for the evolution of low‐energy river planforms and dynamics, and provides new insights on their responses to climate changes.