bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Shibi Tea (Adinandra nitida) and Camellianin A Alleviate CCl4-Induced Liver Injury in C57BL-6J Mice by Attenuation of Oxidative Stress, Inflammation, and Apoptosis
Authors: Chen Ruohong , Lian Yingyi , Wen Shuai , Li Qiuhua , Sun Lingli , Lai Xingfei , Zhang Zhenbiao , Zhu Junquan , Tang Linsong , Xuan Ji , Yuan Erdong , Sun Shili
Published: July 2022

Liver injury is a significant public health issue nowadays. Shibi tea is a non-Camellia tea prepared from the dried leaves of Adinandra nitida, one of the plants with the greatest flavonoid concentration, with Camellianin A (CA) being the major flavonoid. Shibi tea is extensively used in food and medicine and has been found to provide a variety of health advantages. The benefits of Shibi tea and CA in preventing liver injury have not yet been investigated. The aim of this study was to investigate the hepatoprotective effects of extract of Shibi tea (EST) and CA in mice with carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced acute liver injury. Two different concentrations of EST and CA were given to model mice by gavage for 3 days. Treatment with two concentrations of EST and CA reduced the CCl4-induced elevation of the liver index, liver histopathological injury score, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and aspartate aminotransferase (AST). Western blotting and immunohistochemical analysis demonstrated that EST and CA regulated the oxidative stress signaling pathway protein levels of nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2)/heme-oxygenase-1 (HO-1), the expression of inflammatory cytokines, the phosphorylated nuclear factor-kappaB p65 (p-NF-κB)/nuclear factor-kappaB p65 (NF-κB) ratio, the phospho-p44/42 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p-MAPK), and the apoptosis-related protein levels of BCL2-associated X (Bax)/B cell leukemia/lymphoma 2 (Bcl2) in the liver. Taken together, EST and CA can protect against CCl4-induced liver injury by exerting antioxidative stress, anti-inflammation, and anti-apoptosis.
Dieters in the Covid-19 Pandemic: Risk for Eating Disorders and Their Association with Food Cravings and Intuitive Eating Traits
Authors: Oliveira Jônatas , Stelmo Isis de Carvalho , Santaella Mariana Bueno Netto , Cordás Táki Athanássios
Published: July 2022

Objectives: To characterize a group of university students in social isolation regarding their eating behaviors and to investigate whether dieters have a tendency to engage in binge-eating. Study Design: Cross-sectional study carried out during Brazil’s first months of social isolation. Methods: University students filled out the Eating Attitudes Test—EAT, the Binge-eating Scale—BES, and the Hay questionnaire. In addition, the current research also evaluated food cravings (FC) and intuitive eating. Student’s t-test was used to compare the effect sizes (Cohen’s d) between groups. Results: More than 90% of participants were isolated from academic activities, and 68% reported significant dietary change. Those who dieted (n = 57) were less confident in signs of hunger and satiety (d = −0.9, p < 0.001) and had higher binge-eating and FC levels than those who did not diet. Conclusions: Data reinforces the high prevalence of risk for eating disorders in university students, the impact of dieting on FC, and intuitive eating during social isolation.
Histopathological Comparative Analysis between Syndromic and Non-Syndromic Odontogenic Keratocysts: A Retrospective Study
Authors: Favia Gianfranco , Spirito Francesca , Lo Muzio Eleonora , Capodiferro Saverio , Tempesta Angela , Limongelli Luisa , Lo Muzio Lorenzo , Maiorano Eugenio
Published: July 2022

(1) Background: The aim of this study was to compare the histopathological features of syndromic and non-syndromic odontogenic keratocysts (OKs) using conventional and Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy (CLSM) with their biological behaviour. (2) Methods: Data from the medical records of 113 patients with histological diagnosis of (single and/or multiple) OKs were collected. Globally, 213 OKs (120 syndromic and 93 sporadic) were retrieved, and their histological slides were re-evaluated with conventional H&E staining and with autofluorescence on the same slides using CLSM (Nikon Eclipse E600 microscope). (3) Results: Syndromic OKs showed more satellite cysts than sporadic cases, as well as a basophilic layer in the basement membrane, which was absent in sporadic OKs; both were highlighted with CLSM. The basement membrane in syndromic OKs appeared amorphous and fragile, thus possibly being responsible for the epithelial detachment and collapse, with scalloped features. Furthermore, the basal epithelial layers in such cases also showed increased cellularity and proliferative activity. All these histological features may possibly justify their higher tendency to recur. (4) Conclusions: CLSM is useful advanced technology that could help to quickly and easily discriminate between syndromic and non-syndromic OKs and to more accurately predict their biological behaviour in order to set fitter clinico-radiological follow-ups for individual patients.
Inferred Causal Mechanisms of Persistent FMDV Infection in Cattle from Differential Gene Expression in the Nasopharyngeal Mucosa
Authors: Zhu James J. , Stenfeldt Carolina , Bishop Elizabeth A. , Canter Jessica A. , Eschbaumer Michael , Rodriguez Luis L. , Arzt Jonathan
Published: July 2022

Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) can persistently infect pharyngeal epithelia in ruminants but not in pigs. Our previous studies demonstrated that persistent FMDV infection in cattle was associated with under-expression of several chemokines that recruit immune cells. This report focuses on the analysis of differentially expressed genes (DEG) identified during the transitional phase of infection, defined as the period when animals diverge between becoming carriers or terminators. During this phase, Th17-stimulating cytokines (IL6 and IL23A) and Th17-recruiting chemokines (CCL14 and CCL20) were upregulated in animals that were still infected (transitional carriers) compared to those that had recently cleared infection (terminators), whereas chemokines recruiting neutrophils and CD8+ T effector cells (CCL3 and ELR+CXCLs) were downregulated. Upregulated Th17-specific receptor, CCR6, and Th17-associated genes, CD146, MIR155, and ThPOK, suggested increased Th17 cell activity in transitional carriers. However, a complex interplay of the Th17 regulatory axis was indicated by non-significant upregulation of IL17A and downregulation of IL17F, two hallmarks of TH17 activity. Other DEG suggested that transitional carriers had upregulated aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR), non-canonical NFκB signaling, and downregulated canonical NFκB signaling. The results described herein provide novel insights into the mechanisms of establishment of FMDV persistence. Additionally, the fact that ruminants, unlike pigs, produce a large amount of AHR ligands suggests a plausible explanation of why FMDV persists in ruminants, but not in pigs.
Prescription of Anti-Spike Monoclonal Antibodies in COVID-19 Patients with Resistant SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Italy
Authors: Focosi Daniele , Tuccori Marco
Published: July 2022

Anti-Spike monoclonal antibodies have been considered a promising approach to COVID-19 therapy. Unfortunately, the advent of resistant lineages jeopardized their effectiveness and prompted limitations in their clinical use. Change in the dominant variant can be fast to such an extent that, in the absence of timely medical education, prescribers can keep using these drugs for relatively long periods even in patients with resistant variants. Therefore, many patients could have been exposed to drugs with unlikely benefits and probable risks. We show here that about 20% of bamlanivimab+etesevimab, 30% of casirivimab+imdevimab, and 30% of sotrovimab courses were administered in Italy during periods in which a fully resistant variant was dominant. Additionally, for monoclonal antibody cocktails, the vast majority of usage occurred against variants for which one of the mAbs within the cocktail was ineffective. Given the high costs of these drugs and their potential side effects, it would be important to consider a frequent review of the appropriateness of these drugs and timely communication when the benefit/risk balance is no longer favorable.
Epidemiologic Investigation of Two Welder’s Anthrax Cases Caused by Bacillus cereus Group Bacteria: Occupational Link Established by Environmental Detection
Authors: Dawson Patrick , Salzer Johanna S. , Schrodt Caroline A. , Feldmann Karl , Kolton Cari B. , Gee Jay E. , Marston Chung K. , Gulvik Christopher A. , Elrod Mindy G. , Villarma Aaron , Traxler Rita M. , Negrón María E. , Hendricks Kate A. , Moulton-Meissner Heather , Rose Laura J. , Byers Paul , Taylor Kathryn , Ware Daphne , Balsamo Gary A. , Sokol Theresa , Barrett Bret , Payne Erica , Zaheer Saad , Jung Ga On , Long Stephen , Quijano Ricardo , LeBouf Lindsey , O’Sullivan Briana , Swaney Erin , Antonini James M. , de Perio Marie A. , Weiner Zachary , Bower William A. , Hoffmaster Alex R.
Published: July 2022

Bacillus cereus group bacteria containing the anthrax toxin genes can cause fatal anthrax pneumonia in welders. Two welder’s anthrax cases identified in 2020 were investigated to determine the source of each patient’s exposure. Environmental sampling was performed at locations where each patient had recent exposure to soil and dust. Samples were tested for the anthrax toxin genes by real-time PCR, and culture was performed on positive samples to identify whether any environmental isolates matched the patient’s clinical isolate. A total of 185 environmental samples were collected in investigation A for patient A and 108 samples in investigation B for patient B. All samples from investigation B were real-time PCR-negative, but 14 (8%) samples from investigation A were positive, including 10 from patient A’s worksite and 4 from his work-related clothing and gear. An isolate genetically matching the one recovered from patient A was successfully cultured from a worksite soil sample. All welder’s anthrax cases should be investigated to determine the source of exposure, which may be linked to their worksite. Welding and metalworking employers should consider conducting a workplace hazard assessment and implementing controls to reduce the risk of occupationally associated illnesses including welder’s anthrax.
A Combined Chronic Low-Dose Soluble Epoxide Hydrolase and Acetylcholinesterase Pharmacological Inhibition Promotes Memory Reinstatement in Alzheimer’s Disease Mice Models
Authors: Jarne-Ferrer Júlia , Griñán-Ferré Christian , Bellver-Sanchis Aina , Vázquez Santiago , Muñoz-Torrero Diego , Pallàs Mercè
Published: July 2022

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurological disorder with multifactorial and heterogeneous causes. AD involves several etiopathogenic mechanisms such as aberrant protein accumulation, neurotransmitter deficits, synaptic dysfunction and neuroinflammation, which lead to cognitive decline. Unfortunately, the currently available anti-AD drugs only alleviate the symptoms temporarily and provide a limited therapeutic effect. Thus, new therapeutic strategies, including multitarget approaches, are urgently needed. It has been demonstrated that a co-treatment of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitor with other neuroprotective agents has beneficial effects on cognition. Here, we have assessed the neuroprotective effects of chronic dual treatment with a soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) inhibitor (TPPU) and an AChE inhibitor (6-chlorotacrine or rivastigmine) in in vivo studies. Interestingly, we have found beneficial effects after chronic low-dose co-treatment with TPPU and 6-chlorotacrine in the senescence-accelerated mouse prone 8 (SAMP8) mouse model as well as with TPPU and rivastigmine co-treatment in the 5XFAD mouse model, in comparison with the corresponding monotherapy treatments. In the SAMP8 model, no substantial improvements in synaptic plasticity markers were found, but the co-treatment of TPPU and 6-chlorotacrine led to a significantly reduced gene expression of neuroinflammatory markers, such as interleukin 6 (Il-6), triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cell 2 (Trem2) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (Gfap). In 5XFAD mice, chronic low-dose co-treatment of TPPU and rivastigmine led to enhanced protein levels of synaptic plasticity markers, such as the phospho-cAMP response element-binding protein (p-CREB) ratio, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and postsynaptic density protein 95 (PSD95), and also to a reduction in neuroinflammatory gene expression. Collectively, these results support the neuroprotectant role of chronic low-dose co-treatment strategy with sEH and AChE inhibitors in AD mouse models, opening new avenues for effective AD treatment.
Effect of Administration of Azithromycin and/or Probiotic Bacteria on Bones of Estrogen-Deficient Rats
Authors: Cegieła Urszula , Londzin Piotr , Janas Aleksandra , Pytlik Maria , Folwarczna Joanna
Published: July 2022

The gut microbiota plays an important role in maintaining homeostasis, including that of the skeletal system. Antibiotics may affect the skeletal system directly or indirectly by influencing the microbiota. Probiotic bacteria have been reported to favorably affect bones in conditions of estrogen deficiency. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of azithromycin (AZM) administered alone or with probiotic bacteria (Lactobacillus rhamnosus; LR) on bones in estrogen-deficient rats. The experiments were carried out on mature rats divided into five groups: non-ovariectomized (NOVX) control rats, ovariectomized (OVX) control rats, and OVX rats treated with: LR, AZM, or AZM with LR. The drugs were administered for 4 weeks. Serum biochemical parameters, bone mineralization, histomorphometric parameters, and mechanical properties were examined. Estrogen deficiency increased bone turnover and worsened cancellous bone microarchitecture and mechanical properties. The administration of LR or AZM slightly favorably affected some skeletal parameters of estrogen-deficient rats. The administration of AZM with LR did not lead to the addition of the effects observed for the separate treatments, indicating that the effects could be microbiota-mediated.
Review of Quality Optimization of Electron Beam Based on Laser Wakefield Acceleration
Authors: Jiang Kangnan , Wang Wentao , Feng Ke , Li Ruxin
Published: July 2022

Compared with state-of-the-art radio frequency accelerators, the gradient of laser wakefield accelerators is 3–4 orders of magnitude higher. This is of great significance in the development of miniaturized particle accelerators and radiation sources. Higher requirements have been proposed for the quality of electron beams, owing to the increasing application requirements of tabletop radiation sources, specifically with the rapid development of free-electron laser devices. This review briefly examines the electron beam quality optimization scheme based on laser wakefield acceleration and presents some representative studies. In addition, manipulation of the electron beam phase space by means of injection, plasma profile distribution, and laser evolution is described. This review of studies is beneficial for further promoting the application of laser wakefield accelerators.
Research on Attenuation Motion Test Based on Double-N Six-Light-Screen System
Authors: Li Hai , Ni Jinping , Yang Xiaodong , Chen Ding
Published: July 2022

In this paper, to improve the testing accuracy of moving objects, the speed attenuation caused by air resistance was introduced into a double-N six-light-screen test system, and the pulse-time axis was recalibrated. Through error analyses of the yaw angle, pitch angle, and axial speed and distance, the advantages of this improved system for testing accuracy were demonstrated. In addition, the reliability of this system was verified through an experimental test with mud pellets. The results show that this system greatly improved the test accuracy of yaw angle and pitch angle, using certain statistical rules for test errors, and the error of the axial speed was only affected by pitch coordinates, while the distance error could reach the nanometer scale, which satisfies our test requirements for small-volume moving objects.
Ferula communis L. (Apiaceae) Root Acetone-Water Extract: Phytochemical Analysis, Cytotoxicity and In Vitro Evaluation of Estrogenic Properties
Authors: Maiuolo Jessica , Musolino Vincenzo , Guarnieri Lorenza , Macrì Roberta , Coppoletta Anna Rita , Cardamone Antonio , Serra Maria , Gliozzi Micaela , Bava Irene , Lupia Carmine , Tucci Luigi , Bombardelli Ezio , Mollace Vincenzo
Published: July 2022

Ferula communis L. (F. communis) belongs to the Apiaceae family and is a herbaceous plant with various pharmaceutical properties, due to the different contents of bioactive compounds extracted mainly from its roots, as well as its leaves and rhizome. To date, this plant extract has demonstrated estrogenic, anti-inflammatory, antiproliferative, cytotoxic, antimicrobial and anti-neoplastic properties. Its estrogenic activity is justified by the presence of ferutinin, an ester of a sesquiterpenic alcohol that acts as an agonist for estrogen receptors, with a chemical formula equal to C22H3O4. The component present in F. communis responsible for the toxicity of the plant is ferulenol, a prenylated coumarin with the chemical formula C24H30O3. This compound is capable of inducing mortality via its strong anti-coagulant properties, leading to a lethal hemorrhagic syndrome, ferulosis, in animals that feed on a chemotype of F. communis containing a high amount of ferulenol. The removal of the component ferulenol makes extracts of Ferula non-toxic. In fact, the remaining prenylated coumarins are not present in concentrations sufficient to induce toxicity. The intake of high concentrations of the extract of this plant leads a double dose-dependent effect that is typical of sesquiterpenes such as ferutinin. Here, we assessed the cytotoxicity and the estrogenic properties of the F. communis phytocomplex obtained through extraction using a mixture of acetone and water. Among the active constituents of F. communis, the identification of ferutinin and ferulenol was performed using HPLC. The effects of the extract were evaluated, following the removal of ferulenol, on three cell lines: human breast cancer MCF-7, human cervical cancer HeLa and human osteoblastic sarcoma Saos-2. The choice of these cell lines was justified by the need to mimic certain processes which may occur in vivo and which are estrogen-dependent. The obtained results demonstrated that F. communis extract, in addition to possessing an estrogenic-like property, showed a dose-dependent effect. Low concentrations (0.1–0.8 μM) demonstrated a hyperproliferative effect, whereas higher concentrations (1.6–50 μM) were toxic. Therefore, this extract could be an excellent candidate to make up for a reduction or lack of estrogen.
Alkaloid Composition and Biological Activities of the Amaryllidaceae Species Ismene amancaes (Ker Gawl.) Herb.
Authors: Soto-Vásquez Marilú Roxana , Rodríguez-Muñoz Cecilia Anataly , Tallini Luciana R. , Bastida Jaume
Published: July 2022

Natural products have always played a significant role in the search for new drugs. One of the most relevant alkaloid-containing plant groups is the Amaryllidaceae family, a source of exclusive structures with a wide variety of pharmacological activities. The aim of this work was to determine the alkaloid composition and biological potential of an extract from the bulbs of an endemic Peruvian Amaryllidaceae species Ismene amancaes (Ker Gawl.) Herb. The alkaloid profiling was carried out by GC-MS, which revealed the presence of 13 compounds, 2 of them unidentified. The plant extract was found to contain high amounts of lycoramine, a galanthamine-type alkaloid. The extract also presented low inhibitory potential against the enzymes AChE and BuChE, with IC50 values of 14.6 ± 0.6 and 37.6 ± 1.4 μg·mL−1, respectively, and good to moderate inhibitory activity against the protozoan Plasmodium falciparum strain FCR-3 (chloroquine-resistant), with IC50 values of 3.78 ± 0.3 μg·mL−1. This is the first report of the alkaloid profile of a plant of the Ismene genus, which could be an interesting source of bioactive compounds.
Source Identification and Genome-Wide Association Analysis of Crown Rot Resistance in Wheat
Authors: Pu Lefan , Goher Farhan , Zeng Mengke , Wu Dongsheng , Zeng Qingdong , Han Dejun , Li Chunlian
Published: July 2022

Crown rot (CR) is a soil-borne disease of wheat in arid and semiarid areas of the world. The incidence rate and severity of CR are increasing with each passing year, which seriously threatens the safety of world wheat production. Here, 522 wheat varieties/lines representing genetic diversity were used to identify and evaluate the resistance source to CR disease. Six varieties, including Zimai 12, Xinong 509, Mazhamai, Sifangmai, and Dawson, were classified as resistant ® to CR. Seventy-nine varieties were classified as moderately resistant (MR) to CR, accounting for 15.13% of the tested varieties. The wheat 660 K SNP array was used to identify resistance loci by genome-wide association analysis (GWAS). A total of 33 SNPs, located on chromosomes 1A, 1B, 1D, 4A, and 4D, were significantly correlated with seedling resistance to CR in two years. Among them, one SNP on chromosome 1A and nine SNPs on chromosome 1B showed most significant resistance to disease, phenotypic variance explained (PVE) by these SNPs were more than 8.45%. Except that significant locus AX-110436287 and AX109621209 on chromosome 1B and AX-94692276 on 1D are close to the already reported QTL, other SNPs are newly discovered resistance loci. These results could lay a strong theoretical foundation for the genetic improvement and breeding for CR resistance in wheat.
Dissecting the Chloroplast Proteome of the Potato (Solanum Tuberosum L.) and Its Comparison with the Tuber Amyloplast Proteome
Authors: Liu Shengxuan , Liu Tengfei , Wang Enshuang , Cheng Yunxia , Liu Tiantian , Chen Guogang , Guo Minrui , Song Botao
Published: July 2022

The chloroplast, the energy organelle unique to plants and green algae, performs many functions, including photosynthesis and biosynthesis of metabolites. However, as the most critical tuber crop worldwide, the chloroplast proteome of potato (Solanum tuberosum) has not been explored. Here, we use Percoll density gradient centrifugation to isolate intact chloroplasts from leaves of potato cultivar E3 and establish a reference proteome map of potato chloroplast by bottom-up proteomics. A total of 1834 non-redundant proteins were identified in the chloroplast proteome, including 51 proteins encoded by the chloroplast genome. Extensive sequence-based localization prediction revealed over 62% of proteins to be chloroplast resident by at least one algorithm. Sixteen proteins were selected to evaluate the prediction result by transient fluorescence assay, which confirmed that 14 were distributed in distinct internal compartments of the chloroplast. In addition, we identified 136 phosphorylation sites in 61 proteins encoded by chloroplast proteome. Furthermore, we reconstruct the snapshots along starch metabolic pathways in the two different types of plastids by a comparative analysis between chloroplast and previously reported amyloplast proteomes. Altogether, our results establish a comprehensive proteome map with post-translationally modified sites of potato chloroplast, which would provide the theoretical principle for the research of the photosynthesis pathway and starch metabolism.
Characterization of the Water Shortage Effects on Potato Tuber Tissues during Growth Using MRI Relaxometry and Biochemical Parameters
Authors: Hajjar Ghina , Quellec Stéphane , Challois Sylvain , Bousset-Vaslin Lydia , Joly Gisèle , Langrume Christophe , Deleu Carole , Leport Laurent , Musse Maja
Published: July 2022

The potato is one of the most cultivated crops worldwide, providing an important source of food. The quality of potato tubers relates to their size and dry matter composition and to the absence of physiological defects. It depends on the spatial and temporal coordination of growth and metabolic processes in the major tuber tissues: the cortex, flesh and pith. In the present study, variations in the biochemical traits of each of these tissues were investigated during tuber growth under optimal and water-deficit conditions. MRI relaxometry was used as a non-invasive and quantitative method to access information on cellular water status. The presence of slight but significant variations in organic compound contents quantified in the cortex and flesh revealed a tissue-dependent metabolic pattern. The T2 and relative I0 of the bi-exponential relaxation signal allowed a distinction to be made between the pith and the cortex, whereas the flesh could be differentiated from these tissues only through its relative I0. T2 values did not vary significantly during tuber development, in accordance with the typical growth pattern of tubers, but were shown to be sensitive to water stress. The interpretation of the multi-exponential transverse relaxation times is discussed and could be further developed via microscopic analysis.
Study on the Microscopic Mechanism of Grouting in Saturated Water-Bearing Sand Stratum Based on VOF-DEM Method
Authors: Li Hui , Ji Xiaoming , Zhou Pengqing
Published: July 2022

During the construction of tunnels in saturated water-bearing sand stratum, water and mud inrush disasters often occur. Grouting is the most convenient and effective method to improve the mechanical properties of the soil and prevent groundwater seepage. The reasonableness of the Discrete Element Method (DEM) contact parameters is verified by comparing the repose angle test with that obtained by simulations. The grouting model of saturated water-bearing sand stratum was established based on the Volume of Fluid-Discrete Element Method (VOF-DEM). Then, the effects of sand stratum porosity and grouting pressure on grouting were discussed. The results show that (1) in dense sands, the permeation diffusion of the slurry dominates, whereas in loose sands, the compaction zone is well developed. (2) Loose sand has a wider propagation of stress and dense sand has a larger increase in the stress state. (3) In loose sand the slurry diffusion is significantly affected by gravity, whereas in dense sand the slurry diffusion along the dominant path of the grouting pipe wall boundary is obvious. (4) The range of slurry diffusion and compaction zone is positively related to the porosity and grouting pressure. (5) In loose sand with grouting pressure below 200 kPa, no compaction diffusion occurs during the grouting process, whereas in dense sand, when the grouting pressure is below 500 kPa no compaction diffusion occurs during the grouting process.
Chain Reaction of Behavioral Bias and Risky Investment Decision in Indonesian Nascent Investors
Authors: Parmitasari Rika Dwi Ayu , Syariati Alim , Sumarlin
Published: July 2022

Early investors possess unique sets of decision-making characteristics. They are more open to experience and eager to face risks. However, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, the discussions of nascent investors upon making the investment decision and its eroding biases were still elusive. The vital role of emotion as a bias in decision making was also inadequately addressed. This study enhanced behavioral finance knowledge by examining emotion’s role in regulating the illusion of control, overconfidence, and investors’ decision making. In total, 456 initial investors in Indonesia participated in online questionnaires, forming the data for covariance-based structural model analysis. This study found that emotion significantly increased the illusion of control, but not overconfidence or decision making, contrary to the bulk of previous studies. The illusion of control exhibited a substantial significant effect of as much as 86.4% toward overconfidence, followed by a considerable increase in decision making. The results of our study also pointed to the unique chain effects of biases affecting the decision-making process of nascent investors in the emerging market. This finding implied they possessed a unique bias mechanism in constructing their decision.
The Credit Risk Problem—A Developing Country Case Study
Authors: Fejza Doris , Nace Dritan , Kulla Orjada
Published: July 2022

Crediting represents one of the biggest risks faced by the banking sector, and especially by commercial banks. In the literature, there have been a number of studies concerning credit risk management, often involving credit scoring systems making use of machine learning (ML) techniques. However, the specificity of individual banks’ datasets means that choosing the techniques best suited to the needs of a given bank is far from straightforward. This study was motivated by the need by Credins Bank in Tirana for a reliable customer credit scoring tool suitable for use with that bank’s specific dataset. The dataset in question presents two substantial difficulties: first, a high degree of imbalance, and second, a high level of bias together with a low level of confidence in the recorded data. These shortcomings are largely due to the relatively young age of the private banking system in Albania, which did not exist as such until the early 2000s. They are shortcomings not encountered in the more conventional datasets that feature in the literature. The present study therefore has a real contribution to make to the existing corpus of research on credit scoring. The first important question to be addressed is the level of imbalance. In practice, the proportion of good customers may be many times that of bad customers, making the impact of unbalanced data on classification models an important element to be considered. The second question relates to bias or incompleteness in customer information in emerging and developing countries, where economies tend to function with a large amount of informality. Our objective in this study was identifying the most appropriate ML methods to handle Credins Bank’s specific dataset, and the various tests that we performed for this purpose yielded abundant numerical results. Our overall finding on the strength of these results was that this kind of dataset can best be dealt with using balanced random forest methods.
A New Fourier Approach under the Lee-Carter Model for Incorporating Time-Varying Age Patterns of Structural Changes
Authors: Tang Sixian , Li Jackie , Tickle Leonie
Published: July 2022

The prediction of future mortality improvements is of substantial importance for areas such as population projection, government welfare policies, pension planning and annuity pricing. The Lee-Carter model is one of the widely applied mortality models proposed to capture and predict the trend in mortality reductions. However, some studies have identified the presence of structural changes in historical mortality data, which makes the forecasting performance of mortality models sensitive to the calibration period. Although some attention has been paid to investigating the time or period effects of structural shifts, the potential time-varying age patterns are often overlooked. This paper proposes a new approach that applies a Fourier series with time-varying parameters to the age sensitivity factor in the Lee-Carter model to study the evolution of age effects. Since modelling the age effects is separated from modelling the period effects, the proposed model can incorporate these two sources of structural changes into mortality predictions. Our backtesting results suggest that structural shifts are present not only in the Lee-Carter mortality index over time, but also in the sensitivity to those time variations at different ages.
Robotic Complex for Harvesting Apple Crops
Authors: Krakhmalev Oleg , Gataullin Sergey , Boltachev Eldar , Korchagin Sergey , Blagoveshchensky Ivan , Liang Kang
Published: July 2022

The article deals with the concept of building an automated system for the harvesting of apple crops. This system is a robotic complex mounted on a tractor cart, including an industrial robot and a packaging system with a container for fruit collection. The robot is equipped with a vacuum gripper and a vision system. A generator for power supply, a vacuum pump for the gripper and an equipment control system are also installed on the cart. The developed automated system will have a high degree of reliability that meets the requirements of operation in the field.
Retrieving Pigment Concentrations Based on Hyperspectral Measurements of the Phytoplankton Absorption Coefficient in Global Oceans
Authors: Teng Jing , Zhang Tinglu , Sun Kunpeng , Gao Hong
Published: July 2022

Phytoplankton communities, which can be easily observed by optical sensors deployed on various types of platforms over diverse temporal and spatial scales, are crucial to marine ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles, and accurate pigment concentrations make it possible to effectively derive information from them. To date, there is no practical approach, however, to retrieving concentrations of detailed pigments from phytoplankton absorption coefficients (aph) with acceptable accuracy and robustness in global oceans. In this study, a novel method, which is a stepwise regression method improved by early stopping (the ES-SR method) based on the derivative of hyperspectral aph, was proposed to retrieve pigment concentrations. This method was developed from an extensive global dataset collected from layers at different depths and contains phytoplankton pigment concentrations and aph. In the case of the logarithm, strong correlations were found between phytoplankton pigment concentrations and the absolute values of the second derivative (aph″)/the fourth derivative (aph4) of aph. According to these correlations, the ES-SR method is effective in obtaining the characteristic wavelengths of phytoplankton pigments for pigment concentration inversion. Compared with the Gaussian decomposition method and principal component regression method, which are based on the derivatives, the ES-SR method implemented on aph″ is the optimum approach with the greatest accuracy for each phytoplankton pigment. More than half of the determination coefficient values (R2log) for all pigments, which were retrieved by performing the ES-SR method on aph″, exceeded 0.7. The values retrieved for all pigments fit well to the one-to-one line with acceptable root mean square error (RMSElog: 0.146–0.508) and median absolute percentage error (MPElog: 8.2–28.5%) values. Furthermore, the poor correlations between the deviations from the values retrieved by the ES-SR method and impact factors related to pigment composition and cell size class show that this method has advantageous robustness. Therefore, the ES-SR method has the potential to effectively monitor phytoplankton community information from hyperspectral optical data in global oceans.
Gully Morphological Characteristics and Topographic Threshold Determined by UAV in a Small Watershed on the Loess Plateau
Authors: Wang Ziguan , Zhang Guanghui , Wang Chengshu , Xing Shukun
Published: July 2022

Gully erosion is an important sediment source in small watershed, and causes severe land degradation, particularly in semi-arid regions. Accurately measuring gully morphological characteristics, and determining its topographic threshold, are vital for gully erosion simulation and control. In this study, 910 gullies were visually interpreted by unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technology combined with field measurement. Ten gully morphological characteristics were extracted from the digital orthophoto map (DOM) and digital elevation model (DEM) generated by UAV images, including gully length (L), circumference (C), plane area (PA), surface area (SA), volume (V), depth (D), top width (TW), mean width (MW), cross-sectional area (CSA), and ratio of top width to depth (TW/D). The morphological characteristics of 30 reachable gullies were measured by a real time kinematic (RTK) to validate the parameters extracted from the UAV images. The topographic thresholds were determined based on the local slope gradient (S) and upland drainage area (A), using a dataset of 365 gully heads and their corresponding land-use types. The results show that the mean absolute percentage errors (MAPE) of the 2D and 3D gully characteristics are less than 10% and 20%, respectively, demonstrating a high accuracy of gully characteristic extraction from UAV images. Gully V is significantly related to the other nine parameters. Significant power functions were fitted between V, and L, C, PA, and SA. The gully volume could be well-estimated by SA (V = 0.212 SA0.982), with a R2 of 0.99. For all land-use types, the topographic threshold could be described as S = 0.61 A0.48, implying that water erosion is the dominant process controlling gully erosion in this region. The topographic threshold is land-use-dependent, and shrubland is hardest for gully incision, followed by grassland and cropland. The results are helpful to rapidly estimate gully erosion, and identify the areas for gully erosion mitigation in small watershed.
A High-Precision Elastic Reverse-Time Migration for Complex Geologic Structure Imaging in Applied Geophysics
Authors: Fang Jinwei , Shi Ying , Zhou Hui , Chen Hanming , Zhang Qingchen , Wang Ning
Published: July 2022

High-precision elastic reverse-time migration (ERTM) imaging has always been one of the trends in the development of geophysics. However, current wavefield simulations using time-domain finite-difference (FD) approaches in ERTM have second-order temporal accuracy, resulting in travel time changes and waveform distortion in wavefield propagation with large time steps, i.e., temporal dispersion. Errors caused by the temporal dispersion can lead to erroneous imaging locations and out-of-focus diffraction events. A new ERTM and its workflow are established here using temporal and spatial high-order FD accuracy wavefields and the vector-based imaging condition. Our method computes elastic vector-based wavefields by solving a P- and S-wave decomposition form of a quasi-stress–velocity equation. An advanced finite-difference scheme is employed in the wavefield solution to achieve simulation with temporal fourth-order accuracy and spatial arbitrary even-order accuracy. The normalized dot-product imaging condition of the source and receiver P/S wavefields is then applied to generate high-quality images. The elastic wavefield simulation and ERTM numerical examples presented here reveal that the anti-dispersion workflow can improve modeling and imaging accuracy. In addition, the field data application shows that our method can achieve reasonable and reliable ERTM images. This method can integrate the most advanced imaging techniques into this computational framework to improve imaging accuracy.
Analysis of Space-Borne GPS Data Quality and Evaluation of Precise Orbit Determination for COSMIC-2 Mission Based on Reduced Dynamic Method
Authors: Kong Qiaoli , Chen Yanfei , Fang Wenhao , Wang Guangzhe , Li Changsong , Wang Tianfa , Bai Qi , Han Jingwei
Published: July 2022

COSMIC-2 is a remote sensing satellite mission that mainly provides scientific data for weather forecasting, ionosphere, and climate research. High precise orbit is the basis for the application of remote sensing satellite data. In order to realize the precise orbit determination (POD) of COSMIC-2, we have assessed the quality of space-borne GPS observation in detail, including the utilization of GPS observations, cycle slip ratio (o/slps), multipath error, single-noise ratio (SNR) and ionospheric delay rate (IOD) of the data, realized the POD of COSMIC-2 with the reduced dynamic (RD) method, and evaluated the accuracy of the solved orbit by means of the carrier-phase residual, overlapping orbit comparison and the reference orbit comparison. The data quality assessments show that the data is less affected by the multipath effect, the utilization of the data is low, cycle slips occur frequently, and the carrier-phase data is often interrupted. The POD results indicate that the root mean square (RMS) values of the carrier-phase residuals of six COSMIC-2 satellites are between 6.0 mm and 7.5 mm, The mean RMS values of the overlapping orbit are better than 0.92 cm, 1.33 cm and 1.03 cm in the radial (R), tangential (T) and normal (N) directions respectively, and the mean RMS values of the six satellites in the 3D direction are between 1.38 cm and 1.75 cm. The mean RMS values in R, T and N directions orbit determination accuracy of the reference orbit comparison are better than 5.61 cm, 6.59 cm and 2.29 cm respectively, and the mean RMS values of the six satellites in the 3D direction are between 7.35 cm and 8.79 cm.
A Multi-Pulse Cross Ambiguity Function for the Wideband TDOA and FDOA to Locate an Emitter Passively
Authors: Wang Yuqi , Sun Guang-Cai , Wang Yong , Yang Jun , Zhang Zijing , Xing Mengdao
Published: July 2022

The time difference of arrival (TDOA) and frequency difference of arrival (FDOA) between two receivers are widely used to locate an emitter. Algorithms based on cross ambiguity functions can simultaneously estimate the TDOA and FDOA accurately. However, the algorithms, including the joint processing of received data, require transferring a large volume of data to a central computing unit. It can be a heavy load for the data link, especially for a wideband signal obtained at a high sampling rate. Thus, we proposed a multi-pulse cross ambiguity function (MPCAF) to compress the data before transmitting and then estimate the TDOA and FDOA with the compressed data. The MPCAF consists of two components. First, the raw data are compressed with a proposed two-dimensional compression function. Two methods to construct a reference pulse used in the two-dimensional compression function are considered: a raw data-based method constructs the pulse directly from the received signal, and a signal parameter-based method constructs it through the parameters of the received signal. Second, a wideband cross-correlation function is studied to refine the TDOA and FDOA estimates with the compressed data. The simulation and Cramer–Rao lower bound (CRLB) analyses show that the proposed method dramatically reduces the data transmission load but estimate the TDOA and FDOA well. The hardware-in-the-loop simulation confirms the method’s effectiveness.
FastFusion: Real-Time Indoor Scene Reconstruction with Fast Sensor Motion
Authors: Zhu Zunjie , Xu Zhefeng , Chen Ruolin , Wang Tingyu , Wang Can , Yan Chenggang , Xu Feng
Published: July 2022

Real-time 3D scene reconstruction has attracted a great amount of attention in the fields of augmented reality, virtual reality and robotics. Previous works usually assumed slow sensor motions to avoid large interframe differences and strong image blur, but this limits the applicability of the techniques in real cases. In this study, we propose an end-to-end 3D reconstruction system that combines color, depth and inertial measurements to achieve a robust reconstruction with fast sensor motions. We involved an extended Kalman filter (EKF) to fuse RGB-D-IMU data and jointly optimize feature correspondences, camera poses and scene geometry by using an iterative method. A novel geometry-aware patch deformation technique is proposed to adapt the changes in patch features in the image domain, leading to highly accurate feature tracking with fast sensor motions. In addition, we maintained the global consistency of the reconstructed model by achieving loop closure with submap-based depth image encoding and 3D map deformation. The experiments revealed that our patch deformation method improves the accuracy of feature tracking, that our improved loop detection method is more efficient than the original method and that our system possesses superior 3D reconstruction results compared with the state-of-the-art solutions in handling fast camera motions.
Towards a Low-Cost Solution for Gait Analysis Using Millimeter Wave Sensor and Machine Learning
Authors: Alanazi Mubarak A. , Alhazmi Abdullah K. , Alsattam Osama , Gnau Kara , Brown Meghan , Thiel Shannon , Jackson Kurt , Chodavarapu Vamsy P.
Published: July 2022

Human Activity Recognition (HAR) that includes gait analysis may be useful for various rehabilitation and telemonitoring applications. Current gait analysis methods, such as wearables or cameras, have privacy and operational constraints, especially when used with older adults. Millimeter-Wave (MMW) radar is a promising solution for gait applications because of its low-cost, better privacy, and resilience to ambient light and climate conditions. This paper presents a novel human gait analysis method that combines the micro-Doppler spectrogram and skeletal pose estimation using MMW radar for HAR. In our approach, we used the Texas Instruments IWR6843ISK-ODS MMW radar to obtain the micro-Doppler spectrogram and point clouds for 19 human joints. We developed a multilayer Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) to recognize and classify five different gait patterns with an accuracy of 95.7 to 98.8% using MMW radar data. During training of the CNN algorithm, we used the extracted 3D coordinates of 25 joints using the Kinect V2 sensor and compared them with the point clouds data to improve the estimation. Finally, we performed a real-time simulation to observe the point cloud behavior for different activities and validated our system against the ground truth values. The proposed method demonstrates the ability to distinguish between different human activities to obtain clinically relevant gait information.
Design, Characterization, and Performance of Woven Fabric Electrodes for Electrocardiogram Signal Monitoring
Authors: Zhang Meiling , Guo Ningting , Gao Qian , Li Hongqiang , Wang Zhangang
Published: July 2022

Conductive gel needs to be applied between the skin and standard medical electrodes when monitoring electrocardiogram (ECG) signals, but this can cause skin irritation, particularly during long-term monitoring. Fabric electrodes are flexible, breathable, and capable of sensing ECG signals without conductive gel. The objective of this study was to design and fabricate a circular fabric electrode using weaving technology. To optimize the woven fabric electrode, electrodes of different diameter, fabric weave, and weft density were devised, and the AC impedance, open-circuit voltage, and static ECG signal were measured and comprehensively evaluated. Diameter of 4 cm, 12/5 sateen, and weft density of 46 picks/cm were concluded as the appropriate parameters of the fabric electrode. ECG signals in swinging, squatting, and rotating states were compared between the woven fabric electrode and the standard medical electrode. The results showed that the characteristic waveform of the woven fabric electrode with 86.7% improved data was more obvious than that of the standard medical electrode. This work provides reference data that will be helpful for commercializing the integration of fabric electrodes into smart textiles.