bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Agent based online learning approach for power flow control of electric vehicle fast charging station integrated with smart microgrid
Authors: Amir Mohammad , Zaheeruddin  , Haque Ahteshamul , Kurukuru V. S. Bharath , Bakhsh Farhad Ilahi , Ahmad Akbar
Published: July 2022

In stochastic power systems, electric vehicle (EV) fast charging stations (FCS) are rapidly being installed, while adversely impacts the distribution network. Due to this, the improper offline charging control policies for EVs may increase the voltage fluctuation and instability. To analyse these aspects, this paper investigates the problems associated with offline (dis)charging control for effective utilization of battery storage and grid power through different modes of operations. Further, the need to develop real‐time charging control is identified to mitigate the adverse impacts of FCS on the distribution network. Hence, an online controller using reinforcement learning (RL) is designed to distinguish the uncertainties in real‐time and to schedule the (dis)charging of an EV against the uncertainties based on travelling pattern. The RL based online controller uses deep neural network (DNN), where the agents are programmed to control the bi‐directional power flow (V2G/G2V). The effectiveness of the RL rewards controller is fulfilled by the different charging states of the battery. The performance of online (dis)charging controllers that utilize DNN to act at its optimal power flow set of points for all sessions are examined in the details. Finally, the effectiveness of online RL controller and hardware results have been realized using real time hardware‐in‐the loop simulator.
Are the host galaxies of long gamma-ray bursts more compact than star-forming galaxies of the field?
Authors: Schneider B. , Le Floc’h E. , Arabsalmani M. , Vergani S. D. , Palmerio J. T.
Published: July 2022

Context. Long gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) offer a promising tool for tracing the cosmic history of star formation, especially at high redshift, where conventional methods are known to suffer from intrinsic biases. Previous studies of GRB host galaxies at low redshift showed that high surface density of stellar mass and high surface density of star formation rate (SFR) can potentially enhance the GRB production. Evaluating the effect of such stellar densities at high redshift is therefore crucial to fully control the ability of long GRBs for probing the activity of star formation in the distant Universe.

Aims. We assess how the size, stellar mass, and star formation rate surface densities of distant galaxies affect the probability of their hosting a long GRB, using a sample of GRB hosts at z > 1 and a control sample of star-forming sources from the field.

Methods. We gathered a sample of 45 GRB host galaxies at 1 < z < 3.1 observed with the Hubble Space Telescope WFC3 camera in the near-infrared. Our subsample at 1 < z < 2 has cumulative distributions of redshift and stellar mass consistent with the host galaxies of known unbiased GRB samples, while our GRB host selection at 2 < z < 3.1 has lower statistics and is probably biased toward the high end of the stellar mass function. Using the GALFIT parametric approach, we modeled the GRB host light profile with a Sérsic component and derived the half-light radius for 35 GRB hosts, which we used to estimate the star formation rate and stellar mass surface densities of each object. We compared the distribution of these physical quantities to the SFR-weighted properties of a complete sample of star-forming galaxies from the 3D-HST deep survey at a comparable redshift and stellar mass.

Results. We show that similarly to z < 1, GRB hosts are smaller in size and they have higher stellar mass and star formation rate surface densities than field galaxies at 1 < z < 2. Interestingly, this result is robust even when separately considering the hosts of GRBs with optically bright afterglows and the hosts of dark GRBs, as the two subsamples share similar size distributions. At z > 2, however, GRB hosts appear to have sizes and stellar mass surface densities more consistent with those characterizing the field galaxies. This may reveal an evolution with redshift of the bias between GRB hosts and the overall population of star-forming sources, although we cannot exclude that our result at z > 2 is also affected by the prevalence of dark GRBs in our selection.

Conclusions. In addition to a possible trend toward a low-metallicity environment, other environmental properties such as stellar density appear to play a role in the formation of long GRBs, at least up to z ∼ 2. This might suggest that GRBs require special environments to enhance their production.
Merging of unequal mass binary black holes in non-axisymmetric galactic nuclei
Authors: Berczik Peter , Arca Sedda Manuel , Sobolenko Margaryta , Ishchenko Marina , Sobodar Olexander , Spurzem Rainer
Published: July 2022

In this work, we study the stellar-dynamical hardening of unequal mass supermassive black hole (SMBH) binaries in the central regions of merging galactic nuclei. We present a comprehensive set of direct N-body simulations of the problem, varying both the total mass and the mass ratio of the SMBH binary (SMBHB). Simulations were carried out with the φ-GPU N-body code, which enabled us to fully exploit supercomputers equipped with graphic processing units (GPUs). As a model for the galactic nuclei, we adopted initial axisymmetric, rotating models, aimed at reproducing the properties of a galactic nucleus emerging from a galaxy merger event, containing two SMBHs which were unbound initially. We found no ‘final-parsec problem’, as our SMBHs tend to pair and shrink without showing significant signs of stalling. This confirms earlier results and extends them to large particle numbers and rotating systems. We find that the SMBHB hardening depends on the binary-reduced mass ratio via a single parameter function. Our results suggest that, at a fixed value for the SMBHB primary mass, the merger time of highly asymmetric binaries is up to four order of magnitudes smaller than the equal-mass binaries. This can significantly affect the population of SMBHs potentially detectable as gravitational wave sources.
Screening for Gestational Diabetes Mellitus and Pregnancy Outcomes:
Results from a Multicentric Study in Tajikistan
Authors: Pirmatova Dilnoza , Dodkhoeva Munavvara , Hasbargen Uwe , Flemmer Andreas W. , Abdusamatzoda Zulfiya , Saburova Khursheda , Salieva Nasiba , Radzhabova Surayyo , Parhofer Klaus G.
Published: July 2022

The prevalence of gestational diabetes parallels the prevalence of type 2
diabetes mellitus and is associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes. However,
these data are not available for many parts of the world. We assessed the
prevalence of gestational diabetes and pregnancy outcomes in Tajikistan. This
cohort study included 2438 consecutively recruited representative pregnant women
from 8 locations in two cities in Tajikistan, in whom an oral glucose tolerance
test (75 g, fasting, 1 h, 2 h) was performed during
gestational weeks 24–28. Women with known diabetes and twin pregnancies
were excluded. Associations between glucose tolerance test results and pregnancy
outcomes were examined. According to the WHO 2013 thresholds, 32.4% of
women qualified as having gestational diabetes, the vast majority
(29.7%) based on an elevated fasting glucose level
(5.1–5.6 mmol/L), while only 2.8% had elevated
1- or 2-hour values or met more than one threshold. Women with only elevated
fasting glucose (impaired gestational fasting glycemia) had no evidence of
adverse pregnancy outcomes, while those with elevated 1- and/or 2-hour
values (impaired gestational glucose tolerance) had more pregnancy complications
(infection of urinary tract 1.8 vs. 8.8% p<0.001; preeclampsia
0.7 vs. 10.3% p<0.001) and emergency cesarean sections (4.4 vs.
13.2% p=0.002). Neonates from pregnancies with impaired
gestational glucose tolerance had lower APGARs, lower birth weights, lower
30 min glucose levels, and a lower probability of being discharged alive
(all p<0.05). In conclusion, the formal prevalence of gestational
diabetes is high in Tajikistan; however, this does not translate into adverse
pregnancy outcomes for women with impaired gestational fasting glycemia.
The Effect of Melatonin on Nasal Septal Wound Healing in an Experimental Animal Model
Authors: Çakan Doğan , Uşaklıoğlu Semih
Published: July 2022

The purpose of our study was to examine the effect of melatonin (MLT) on wound healing in the nasal septum. Twenty-two Sprague–Dawley rats of the male sex were included in this experimental study. Nasal septal perforation (NSP), about 2 mm in diameter, was formed in each rat. MLT was applied topically to the subjects in the study group and saline was applied topically to the subjects in the control group once a day for 14 days. On day 14, the rats were sacrificed and the nasal septums of the subjects were resected for pathological evaluation. In the NSP area, degeneration and regeneration of nasal septal epithelium; degeneration and regeneration of the septal cartilage; number of cells involved in wound healing such as acute inflammatory cells (leukocytes), fibroblast, eosinophil, and giant cell; capillary vessel intensity; granulation tissue formation; and collagen intensity parameters were evaluated histopathologically. The macroscopic size and histopathologic examination results of NSPs were statistically analyzed. In the MLT group, the epithelium regeneration, cartilage regeneration, fibroblast number, collagen density, vascularity, and granulation formation were significantly higher, and the epithelial degeneration and acute inflammatory cells density were significantly lower, in the NSP area (p < 0.05). In addition, macroscopic healing was significantly higher in the MLT group (p = 0.044 and <0.05). Local application of MLT accelerates nasal septal wound healing. With this feature, the usage of MLT can be promising to prevent the formation of NSP.
Assistive Technology for Adults with Hearing Aids
Authors: Atcherson Samuel R.
Published: July 2022

Although there is a strong trend of satisfaction with hearing aids, recent consumer surveys indicate that there are still challenges with understanding speech in background noise and low penetration of wireless technologies using many modern-day communication and audio devices, such as smartphones, tablets, and computers. For some listening and communication settings, many patients could benefit from assistive technology that exceeds the capabilities of their hearing aids. When patients are not wearing their hearing aids, such as during sleep, concerns about environmental awareness and safety begin to arise. This article describes some current assistive technologies and accessories that facilitate accessibility to other devices and to satisfy the patient's listening and communication needs.
Infection-Related Ventilator-Associated Complication and Possible Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia among Mechanically Ventilated Patients of Adult Medical and Surgical Intensive Care Units
Authors: Behera Bijayini , Mahapatra Ashoka , Kunjan Pillai Jawahar Sreevihar , Jena Jayanti , Rath Jyotirmayee , Biswala Jyotirmayee , Sahoo Chandramani , Panda Rajeswari , Kanungo Madhusmita
Published: July 2022

Objective An observational study was conducted to evaluate (1) the incidence rates of infection-related ventilator-associated complication (IVAC) and possible ventilator-associated pneumonia (PVAP) among mechanically ventilated patients of adult medical and surgical intensive care units (ICUs) and (2) the pathogen distribution in patients with PVAP.

Materials and Methods The IVAC and PVAP rates of medical and surgical ICUs, between July 1, 2017, and June 30, 2021, per 1,000 mechanical ventilator (MV) days were calculated. The significance of difference in IVAC and PVAP rates between medical and surgical ICUs was calculated. The level of significance was set at less than 0.05.

Results MV utilization ratios of adult medical and surgical ICUs were 0.32 and 0.26, respectively (p < 0.001). About 8 and 7 episodes of IVAC and 14 and 6 episodes of PVAP were reported from adult medical and surgical ICUs, accounting for IVAC rates of 3.17 and 1.8 per 1,000 MV (p > 0.05) and PVAP rates of 2.46 and 1.59 per 1,000 MV days in medical and surgical ICUs, respectively (p > 0.05). Acinetobacter baumannii complex either singly or in combination was isolated in 11/20 PVAP cases.

Conclusion IVAC and PVAP were more in medical compared with surgical ICUs. The most common pathogen in patients with PVAP was A. baumannii complex. More studies are warranted to monitor the significance of ventilator-associated event on patient outcomes.
Polarization rotator for shear elastic waves
Authors: Jin Yuqi , Yang Teng , Choi Tae-Youl , Dahotre Narendra B. , Neogi Arup , Krokhin Arkadii
Published: July 2022

We designed and characterized a 3D printed acoustic shear wave polarization rotator (PR) based on the specific nature of the fused-deposition-modeling printing process. The principle of the PR is based on rotation of the polarization axis of a shear wave due to the gradual change in orientation of the axis of anisotropy along the direction of wave propagation of a printed layered structure. The component of the shear modulus parallel to the infilled lines within each layer is significantly higher than that in the perpendicular direction. As the PR was printing, a small angle between neighboring layers was introduced, resulting in a 3D helicoidal pattern of distribution of the axes of anisotropy. The polarization of the propagating shear wave follows this pattern leading to the rotation of the polarization axis by a desirable angle. The total rotation angle can be tuned by the number of printed layers. The fabricated 90° rotators demonstrate high performance that can be improved by changing the infill fraction settings.
Forces applied to nanoparticles in magnetron discharges and the resulting size segregation
Authors: Arnas C. , Guidez T. , Chami A. , Mun J. H. , Couedel L.
Published: July 2022

Two-dimensional measurements of magnetron discharge plasma parameters are used to calculate the forces applied to an isolated nanoparticle in conditions where nanoparticles are produced from cathode sputtering. Plasma spatial inhomogeneities, which are specific to magnetron discharges, also induce inhomogeneities in the charging mechanism and applied forces. It is shown that the nanoparticle transport is due to electric, thermophoretic and ion drag forces, and that the dominant one proportional to the nanoparticle size varies according to position. For a given plasma, these spatial differences explain the segregation of size in the nanoparticle deposits, which are observed inside the device.
Double quantum dot–metal nanoparticle systems under strong coupling
Authors: Akram Haneen , Abdullah M. , Al-Khursan Amin H.
Published: July 2022

This work uses the Green function to model the emission spectra from a hybrid metal nanoparticle (MNP) coupled with a double quantum dot (DQD), considering higher-order plasmonic mode contribution. It calculates the quantum dot (QD) energy states and momenta, i.e., this work differs from other strong-coupling systems by considering the material entities. A Fano-shape spectrum is shown with peaks depending on interference between the fields with the DQD and MNP. A prominent effect of the pump field appears as it interferes with other fields (probe and MNP polarization field). The MNP–DQD distance and MNP radius control the peak height and its position in the spectrum. The importance of the probe field in controlling the peak frequency and its height is demonstrated. The transition energy with momenta controls the spectra. An approximated relation is presented. High strength in the DQD–MNP and a more strong contribution are obtained compared to QD–MNP.
Toward high-efficiency low-noise propellers: A numerical and experimental study
Authors: Jiang Hanbo , Wu Han , Chen Wangqiao , Zhou Peng , Zhong Siyang , Zhang Xin , Zhou Guocheng , Chen Bao
Published: July 2022

This work presents a high-efficiency low-noise propeller design for unmanned aerial vehicles. Three different blade configurations are first investigated, using the computational aeroacoustic approach to recognize the flow around propellers and the noise emissions. The flow simulation is obtained by an acoustic-wave preserved artificial compressibility method, and the far-field noise is extrapolated by solving the Ffowcs-Williams and Hawkings equations. Experiments are also conducted to validate numerical simulations and the design philosophy. The comparison between numerical and experimental results confirms an encouraging agreement regarding aerodynamic efficiency, noise spectra and differences between propellers. The results show that two designed propellers can simultaneously improve aerodynamic efficiency and reduce noise emissions compared to the baseline propeller. It is observed that using a longer chord length and shorter propeller radius can reduce flow separation at the trailing edge. Furthermore, a qualitative noise-source analysis shows that broadband noise sources are primarily ascribed to the time-derivative of blade surface pressure and occur at the trailing edge near the tip.
A stochastic particle Fokker–Planck method with nonlinear production terms for a variable hard-sphere gas
Authors: Kim Sanghun , Jun Eunji
Published: July 2022

The stochastic particle Fokker–Planck (FP) method has been gaining increasing attention in the field of rarefied gas dynamics due to its potential to reduce the computational costs of the direct simulation Monte Carlo method. The FP method approximates the discrete binary collisions of the Boltzmann equation as continuous drift–diffusion phenomena in velocity space. Consistency between the FP method and the Boltzmann equation is achieved by matching production terms. The Maxwell molecular model has been widely used in this process due to the possibility of obtaining closed-form solutions for these production terms. However, it is well known that the Maxwell molecular model has difficulty predicting strong shock waves since it cannot provide accurate relaxation rates for the moments. By contrast, the variable hard-sphere (VHS) molecular model is able to capture the transport properties of real gases better than the Maxwell molecular model. Nonetheless, there have so far been no reports associated with an accurate VHS molecular model for the stochastic particle FP method. In this paper, two different molecular models are developed to describe a monatomic gas interacting through a VHS potential. The proposed VHS molecular models are evaluated using Grad's 13- and 26-moment distribution functions; hence, they are named the G13 and G26 molecular models. The G13 and G26 molecular models include additional nonlinear moments compared with the conventional Maxwell molecular model. A one-dimensional shock wave and two-dimensional hypersonic cylinder flow are considered for validation. The results show that the proposed molecular models perform better than the Maxwell molecular model in predicting supersonic and hypersonic shock waves.
Molecular Zeeman interactions in NMR spectra of methyl groups
Authors: Bernatowicz P. , Szymański S.
Published: July 2022

Methyl groups in organic solids generally behave as uniaxial quantum rotors. The existing nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) theory appears to be complete, capable of describing even the finest details of the temperature-dependent spectra of such objects. However, the once reported temperature effects in the carbon spectra of the C13-labeled methyl group in a single crystal of acetylsalicylic acid have still not been explained. As the temperature decreases, in the quartet corresponding to the rapid motional averaging regime, the inner lines first begin to broaden, but then, they narrow again, so that at 6 K, a pattern similar to that at room temperature was observed. In the present work, these puzzling effects are explained quantitatively by invoking the molecular Zeeman (MZ) interaction. Like the spin–rotation (SR) interaction long known to occur in methyl groups, it engages the magnetic moments generated by their torsional motions. However, it has not been considered in NMR spectroscopy until now. This is a surprising situation because in the magnetic fields currently used in NMR spectroscopy, the MZ interaction is orders of magnitude stronger than the (magnetic field independent) SR effects.
Photovoltaic properties of hole transport materials for organic solar cell (OSC) applications: physiochemical insight and in silico designing
Authors: Haroon Muhammad , Jamil Saba , Zeshan Muhammad Bilal , Sultana Nargis , Tariq Muhammad Ilyas , Janjua Muhammad Ramzan Saeed Ashraf
Published: July 2022

Hole transport materials (HTMs) play a dominant role in enhancing the photovoltaic and optoelectronic properties of solar cells. These materials efficiently transport the hole, which significantly boosts the power conversion efficiencies of solar cells. In order to obtain better photovoltaic materials with efficient optoelectronic characteristics, we theoretically designed five new hole transport materials (Y3D1–Y3D5) after end-capped donor modifications of the recently synthesized highly efficient hole transport material Y3N (R). The relationships among photovoltaic, photophysical, optoelectronic and structural properties of these newly designed molecular models were studied at 6-31G(d,p) basis set and MPW1PW91 functional levels. Time‐Dependent Density Functional Theory (TDDFT) and density functional theory (DFT) proved to be excellent approaches for the studied systems. Geometrical parameters, molecular orbitals (MOs), open-circuit voltage (Voc), energy of binding and density of states were calculated. Low reorganization energy (RE) was noted; compared with the parent molecule (Reference/R), the designed molecular models possess high mobility. Molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) also supports our conclusion. Last but not least, the Y3D3:PC61BM complex was also studied to comprehend the role of charge distribution. These analyses showed that our modelled molecules are more efficient than the Y3N molecule. Thus, recommendations are made for experimentalists to develop extremely efficient solar cells in the near future.
Selenium cycling in a marine dominated estuary: Lake Macquarie, NSW, Australia a case study
Authors: Maher William A. , Batley Graeme E. , Krikowa Frank , Ellwood Michael J. , Potts Jaimie , Swanson Rebecca , Scanes Peter
Published: July 2022

Environmental context Knowledge of the fate of selenium in estuaries receiving inputs from coal-fired power stations is essential as these environments are important nursery habitats for marine life and selenium has been shown to cause fish and bird mortality and sublethal effects including oedema, chromosomal aberrations and reproductive success. Understanding selenium cycling allows risk assessment to be undertaken and appropriate action to protect resident organisms. Abstract The fate of selenium (Se) inputs from coal-fired power station operations in a marine dominated estuary, Lake Macquarie NSW, is explored, as well as Se toxicity, including sublethal and population effects. Selenium is rapidly adsorbed to sediments, and food webs are based on benthic food sources. Selenium is remobilised from sediments by volatilisation and diffusional processes following bioturbation. It is then transferred into food chains via benthic microalgae, deposit feeders and filter-feeding organisms processing suspended sediments. Historically, Se has been found to accumulate in fish to levels above those considered safe for human consumption. After the remediation of a major ash dam in 1995, Se inputs to Lake Macquarie have declined, and the Se concentrations of sediments have also reduced partially due to the deposition of cleaner sediment but also due to the formation of volatile dimethyl selenide. Bioturbation of oxidised surface sediments also results in the release of inorganic Se. In response to decreases in sediment Se concentrations, molluscs and fish Se concentrations have also reduced below deleterious levels, with most fish now being safe for human consumption. Selenium cycling involves the transformation of inorganic species (Se0, SeII, SeIV, SeVI) in sediments and the water column to dimethylselenide and dimethyl diselenide by bacteria with the accumulation of organic Se species in plant detritus (selenomethionine) and animals (selenomethionine and selenocysteine). Dissolved Se concentrations in Lake Macquarie, except near ash dam inputs, have always been well below those that cause toxicity. There is evidence based on Se sediment-spiking studies, however, that Se is probably causing sublethal effects. When undertaking risk assessments of Se, careful consideration should be given to understanding the fate of Se inputs and remobilisation into food webs as not all systems act in accordance with published studies that generally have high Se concentrations in the water column and phytoplankton-based food webs.
Mitigation of age-dependent accumulation of defective mitochondrial genomes
Authors: Tsai Pei-I , Korotkevich Ekaterina , O’Farrell Patrick H.
Published: July 2022

Unknown processes promote the accumulation of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations during aging. Accumulation of defective mitochondrial genomes is thought to promote the progression of heteroplasmic mitochondrial diseases and degenerative changes with natural aging. We used a heteroplasmic
Drosophila
model to test 1) whether purifying selection acts to limit the abundance of deleterious mutations during development and aging, 2) whether quality control pathways contribute to purifying selection, 3) whether activation of quality control can mitigate accumulation of deleterious mutations, and 4) whether improved quality control improves health span. We show that purifying selection operates during development and growth but is ineffective during aging. Genetic manipulations suggest that a quality control process known to enforce purifying selection during oogenesis also suppresses accumulation of a deleterious mutation during growth and development. Flies with nuclear genotypes that enhance purifying selection sustained higher genome quality, retained more vigorous climbing activity, and lost fewer dopaminergic neurons. A pharmacological agent thought to enhance quality control produced similar benefits. Importantly, similar pharmacological treatment of aged mice reversed age-associated accumulation of a deleterious mtDNA mutation. Our findings reveal dynamic maintenance of mitochondrial genome fitness and reduction in the effectiveness of purifying selection during life. Importantly, we describe interventions that mitigate and even reverse age-associated genome degeneration in flies and in mice. Furthermore, mitigation of genome degeneration improved well-being in a
Drosophila
model of heteroplasmic mitochondrial disease.
Staphylococcus aureusinduces a muted host response in human blood that blunts the recruitment of neutrophils
Authors: Zwack Erin E. , Chen Ze , Devlin Joseph C. , Li Zhi , Zheng Xuhui , Weinstock Ada , Lacey Keenan A. , Fisher Edward A. , Fenyö David , Ruggles Kelly V. , Loke P’ng , Torres Victor J.
Published: July 2022

Staphylococcus aureusis an opportunistic pathogen and chief among bloodstream-infecting bacteria.S. aureusproduces an array of human-specific virulence factors that may contribute to immune suppression. Here, we defined the response of primary human phagocytes following infection withS. aureususing RNA-sequencing (RNA-Seq). We found that the overall transcriptional response toS. aureuswas weak both in the number of genes and in the magnitude of response. Using an ex vivo bacteremia model with fresh human blood, we uncovered that infection withS. aureusresulted in the down-regulation of genes related to innate immune response and cytokine and chemokine signaling. This muted transcriptional response was conserved across diverseS. aureusclones but absent in blood exposed to heat-killedS. aureusor blood infected with the less virulent staphylococcal speciesStaphylococcus epidermidis. Notably, this signature was also present in patients withS. aureusbacteremia. We identified the master regulatorS. aureusexoprotein expression (SaeRS) and the SaeRS-regulated pore-forming toxins as key mediators of the transcriptional suppression. TheS. aureus–mediated suppression of chemokine and cytokine transcription was reflected by circulating protein levels in the plasma. Wild-typeS. aureuselicited a soluble milieu that was restrictive in the recruitment of human neutrophils compared with strains lackingsaeRS. Thus,S. aureusblunts the inflammatory response resulting in impaired neutrophil recruitment, which could promote the survival of the pathogen during invasive infection.
Stochastic particle unbinding modulates growth dynamics and size of transcription factor condensates in living cells
Authors: Muñoz-Gil Gorka , Romero-Aristizabal Catalina , Mateos Nicolas , Campelo Felix , de Llobet Cucalon Lara I. , Beato Miguel , Lewenstein Maciej , Garcia-Parajo Maria F. , Torreno-Pina Juan A.
Published: July 2022

Liquid–liquid phase separation (LLPS) is emerging as a key physical principle for biological organization inside living cells, forming condensates that play important regulatory roles. Inside living nuclei, transcription factor (TF) condensates regulate transcriptional initiation and amplify the transcriptional output of expressed genes. However, the biophysical parameters controlling TF condensation are still poorly understood. Here we applied a battery of single-molecule imaging, theory, and simulations to investigate the physical properties of TF condensates of the progesterone receptor (PR) in living cells. Analysis of individual PR trajectories at different ligand concentrations showed marked signatures of a ligand-tunable LLPS process. Using a machine learning architecture, we found that receptor diffusion within condensates follows fractional Brownian motion resulting from viscoelastic interactions with chromatin. Interestingly, condensate growth dynamics at shorter times is dominated by Brownian motion coalescence (BMC), followed by a growth plateau at longer timescales that result in nanoscale condensate sizes. To rationalize these observations, we extended on the BMC model by including the stochastic unbinding of particles within condensates. Our model reproduced the BMC behavior together with finite condensate sizes at the steady state, fully recapitulating our experimental data. Overall, our results are consistent with condensate growth dynamics being regulated by the escaping probability of PR molecules from condensates. The interplay between condensation assembly and molecular escaping maintains an optimum physical condensate size. Such phenomena must have implications for the biophysical regulation of other nuclear condensates and could also operate in multiple biological scenarios.
Mechanism-based heparanase inhibitors reduce cancer metastasis in vivo
Authors: de Boer Casper , Armstrong Zachary , Lit Vincent A. J. , Barash Uri , Ruijgrok Gijs , Boyango Ilanit , Weitzenberg Merle M. , Schröder Sybrin P. , Sarris Alexi J. C. , Meeuwenoord Nico J. , Bule Pedro , Kayal Yasmine , Ilan Neta , Codée Jeroen D. C. , Vlodavsky Israel , Overkleeft Herman S. , Davies Gideon J. , Wu Liang
Published: July 2022

Heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs) mediate essential interactions throughout the extracellular matrix (ECM), providing signals that regulate cellular growth and development. Altered HSPG composition during tumorigenesis strongly aids cancer progression. Heparanase (HPSE) is the principal enzyme responsible for extracellular heparan sulfate catabolism and is markedly up-regulated in aggressive cancers. HPSE overactivity degrades HSPGs within the ECM, facilitating metastatic dissemination and releasing mitogens that drive cellular proliferation. Reducing extracellular HPSE activity reduces cancer growth, but few effective inhibitors are known, and none are clinically approved. Inspired by the natural glycosidase inhibitor cyclophellitol, we developed nanomolar mechanism-based, irreversible HPSE inhibitors that are effective within physiological environments. Application of cyclophellitol-derived HPSE inhibitors reduces cancer aggression in cellulo and significantly ameliorates murine metastasis. Mechanism-based irreversible HPSE inhibition is an unexplored anticancer strategy. We demonstrate the feasibility of such compounds to control pathological HPSE-driven malignancies.
La Terre, de Émile Zola, o el desentierro de un caso de traducción y censura durante el franquismo
Authors: Meseguer Cutillas Purificación
Published: July 2022

Through the analysis of a case of translation and censorship, this study offers a recreation of the microhistory
of La terre (1883), by Émile Zola, at the time when this foreign
French novel was imported into the Francoist literary system, focusing on the processes of reception, conditioning and
appropriation to which this work was subjected by the Franco regime in order to ensure its ideological adequacy. The study of the
two Spanish versions published during the dictatorship will show that Zola’s controversial novel went through an exercise of
self-censorship and metacensorship which aimed mainly at silencing a clear anti-religious sentiment among the French peasant
community depicted in the original text, seen as unacceptable under the catholic and agrarian society ruled by Franco.
A game theory enhanced domain adaptation network for mechanical fault diagnosis
Authors: Sun Ruixue , Liu Xiaoyang , Liu Shulin , Xiang Jiawei
Published: July 2022

Transfer learning technology has been successfully applied to address the domain adaptation (DA) problem in machinery fault diagnosis. However, the partial DA problem is more suitable for industrial applications, where the target data only covers a subset of the source classes, which makes it difficult to know where to transfer the target data. To overcome this problem, a novel game theory enhanced DA network (GT-DAN) is proposed in this paper. Based on different metrics, including the maximum mean discrepancy, Jensen–Shannon divergence and Wasserstein distance, three attention matrices are constructed to describe the distribution discrepancies between the source domain and the target domain. The optimal coordination between these attention matrices is achieved by a combined weighting based on game theory to generate the optimal probability weights, which can act as a guide to filter out the irrelevant source examples in DA. Two experiments show that the proposed GT-DAN is superior to existing methods in partial DA diagnosis performance.
Development of a synthetic nanoparticle vaccine presenting the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein
Authors: Ximba Phindile , Chapman Rosamund , Meyers Ann , Margolin Emmanuel , van Diepen Michiel T , Sander Adam F , Woodward Jeremy , Moore Penny L , Williamson Anna-Lise , Rybicki Edward P
Published: July 2022

Two-component self-assembling virus-like particles (VLPs) are promising scaffolds for achieving high-density display of HIV-1 envelope (gp140) trimers, which can improve the induction of neutralising antibodies (NAbs). In this study gp140 was displayed on the surface of VLPs formed by the AP205 phage coat protein. The CAP256 SU gp140 antigen was selected as the patient who this virus was isolated from developed broadly neutralising antibodies (bNAbs) shortly after superinfection with this virus. The CAP256 SU envelope is also sensitive to several bNAbs and has shown enhanced reactivity for certain bNAb precursors. A fusion protein comprising the HIV-1 CAP256 SU gp140 and the SpyTag (ST) (gp140-ST) was produced in HEK293 cells, and trimers were purified to homogeneity using gel filtration. SpyCatcher (SC)-AP205 VLPs were produced in Escherichia coli and purified by ultracentrifugation. The gp140-ST trimers and the SC-AP205 VLPs were mixed in varying molar ratios to generate VLPs displaying the glycoprotein (AP205-gp140-ST particles). Dynamic light scattering, negative stain electron microscopy and 2D classification indicated that gp140-ST was successfully bound to the VLPs, although not all potential binding sites were occupied. The immunogenicity of the coupled VLPs was evaluated in a pilot study in rabbits. One group was injected four times with coupled VLPs, and the second group was primed with DNA vaccines expressing Env and a mosaic Gag, followed by modified vaccinia Ankara expressing the same antigens. The animals were then boosted twice with coupled VLPs. Encouragingly, gp140-ST displayed on SC-AP205 VLPs was an effective boost to heterologously primed rabbits, leading to induction of autologous Tier 2 neutralising antibodies in 2/5 rabbits. However, four inoculations of coupled VLPs alone failed to elicit any Tier 2 antibodies. These results demonstrate that the native-like structure of HIV-1 envelope trimers and selection of a geometrically-suitable nanoparticle scaffold to achieve a high-density display of the trimers are important considerations that could improve the effect of nanoparticle-displayed gp140.
Saponin and fluorine-modified polycation as a versatile gene delivery system
Authors: Hasanzadeh Akbar , Vahabi Amir Hossein , Hooshmand Seyyed Emad , Hosseini Elaheh Sadat , Azar Behjat Kheiri Yeghaneh , Kiani Jafar , Saeedi Sara , Shahbazi Ali , Rudra Arnab , Hamblin Michael R , Karimi Mahdi
Published: July 2022

Despite the development of many novel carriers for the delivery of various types of genetic material, the lack of a delivery system with high efficiency and low cytotoxicity is a major bottleneck. Herein, low molecular weight polyethylenimine (PEI1.8k) was functionalized with saponin residues using phenylboronic acid (PBA) as an ATP-responsive cross-linker, and a fluorinated side chain to construct PEI-PBA-SAP-F polycation as a highly efficient delivery vector. This vehicle could transfect small plasmid DNA (∼3 kb) with outstanding efficiency into various cells, including HEK 293T, NIH3T3, A549, PC12, MCF7 and HT-29, as well as robust transfection of a large plasmid (∼9 kb) into HEK 293T cells. The carrier indicated good transfection efficacy even at high concentration of serum and low doses of plasmid. The use of green fluorescent protein (GFP) knock-out analysis demonstrated transfection of different types of CRISPR/Cas9 complexes (Cas9/sgRNA ribonucleoproteins RNP, plasmid encoding Cas9 plus sgRNA targeting GFP, Cas9 expression plasmid plus in vitro-prepared sgRNA). In summary, we report an effective PEI-PBA-SAP-F gene carrier with the appropriate lipophilic/cationic balance for biomedical applications.
Experimental and simulation study of a capacitively coupled radiofrequency plasma with a structured electrode
Authors: Ďurian Ján , Hartmann Peter , Matejčík Štefan , Gibson Andrew R , Donkó Zoltán
Published: July 2022

A low-pressure capacitively coupled radiofrequency (RF) helium discharge with a structured electrode is investigated experimentally and via kinetic simulations. In the experiment, phase resolved optical emission spectroscopy provides information about the excitation dynamics by high energy electrons, with high spatial and nanosecond temporal resolution within the RF (13.56 MHz) period. The numerical studies are based on a newly developed 2d3v particle-in-cell/Monte Carlo collisions code carried out on graphics processing units. The two approaches give consistent results for the penetration of the plasma into the trench situated in one of the electrodes and the particular electron dynamics resulting from the presence of the structured electrode. In addition, the fluxes of He+ ions and vacuum ultraviolet photons incident on the different surfaces in and around the trench structure are studied. These are discussed with respect to the homogeneous treatment of complex structures, relevant for advanced surface modification and disinfection processes.
Polymerization of nitrogen in two theoretically predicted high-energy compounds ScN6 and ScN7 under modest pressure
Authors: Guo Yanhui , Wei Shuli , Liu Zhipeng , Sun Haiyang , Yin Guowei , Chen Shiju , Yu Ziyue , Chang Qiang , Sun Yuping
Published: July 2022

Materials under high pressure usually exhibit unique chemical and physical properties. Polynitrogen compounds have received widespread attention as potential high energy density materials. This paper uses CALYPSO crystal structure prediction method to study the structures of ScN6 and ScN7 in 0–100 GPa. Theoretical calculations show that ScN6 is thermodynamically stable above 80 GPa, while ScN7 is thermodynamically stable from 30 GPa to 90 GPa. Furthermore, ScN7 is metastable under ambient conditions, demonstrating that it can be quenched to ambient conditions after high pressure synthesis. The P

1

¯

-ScN6 is a three-dimensional extended fold multi-nitrogen network, and the P

1

¯

-ScN7 contains a five-membered ring and a curved N4 molecular unit. Both P

1

¯

-ScN6 and P

1

¯

-ScN7 contain a lot of N–N single bonds and N=N double bonds. The energy densities of P

1

¯

-ScN6 and P

1

¯

-ScN7 are 3.97 kJ g−1 and 3.12 kJ g−1, respectively. The detonation velocity and detonation pressure of the P

1

¯

-ScN6 phase and P

1

¯

-ScN7 phase are also higher than that of TNT. Excellent energy storage properties and detonation performance show that they can be used as potential high-energy materials. These results opened up a new way for the synthesis of nitrogen-rich compounds.
Cosmological analysis of three-dimensional BOSS galaxy clustering and Planck CMB lensing cross correlations via Lagrangian perturbation theory
Authors: Chen Shi-Fan , White Martin , DeRose Joseph , Kokron Nickolas
Published: July 2022

We present a formalism for jointly fitting pre- and post-reconstruction redshift-space clustering (RSD) and baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO) plus gravitational lensing (of the CMB) that works directly with the observed 2-point statistics. The formalism is based upon (effective) Lagrangian perturbation theory and a Lagrangian bias expansion, which models RSD, BAO and galaxy-lensing cross correlations within a consistent dynamical framework. As an example we present an analysis of clustering measured by the Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey in combination with CMB lensing measured by Planck. The post-reconstruction BAO strongly constrains the distance-redshift relation, the full-shape redshift-space clustering constrains the matter density and growth rate, and CMB lensing constrains the clustering amplitude. Using only the redshift space data we obtain Ωm= 0.303 ± 0.008,H0= 69.21 ± 0.78 andσ8= 0.743 ± 0.043. The addition of lensing information, even when restricted to the Northern Galactic Cap, improves constraints to Ωm= 0.303 ± 0.008,H0= 69.21 ± 0.77 andσ8= 0.707 ± 0.035, in tension with CMB and cosmic shear constraints. The combination of ΩmandH0are consistent with Planck, though their constraints derive mostly from redshift-space clustering. The lowσ8value are driven by cross correlations with CMB lensing in the low redshift bin (z≃ 0.38) and at large angular scales, which show a 20% deficit compared to expectations from galaxy clustering alone. We conduct several systematics tests on the data and find none that could fully explain these tensions.
Multi-scale discriminative regions analysis in FDG-PET imaging for early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease
Authors: Zhang Jin , He Xiaohai , Qing Linbo , Xu Yining , Liu Yan , Chen Honggang
Published: July 2022

Objective. Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a degenerative brain disorder, one of the main causes of death in elderly people, so early diagnosis of AD is vital to prompt access to medication and medical care. Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) proves to be effective to help understand neurological changes via measuring glucose uptake. Our aim is to explore information-rich regions of FDG-PET imaging, which enhance the accuracy and interpretability of AD-related diagnosis. Approach. We develop a novel method for early diagnosis of AD based on multi-scale discriminative regions in FDG-PET imaging, which considers the diagnosis interpretability. Specifically, a multi-scale region localization module is discussed to automatically identify disease-related discriminative regions in full-volume FDG-PET images in an unsupervised manner, upon which a confidence score is designed to evaluate the prioritization of regions according to the density distribution of anomalies. Then, the proposed multi-scale region classification module adaptively fuses multi-scale region representations and makes decision fusion, which not only reduces useless information but also offers complementary information. Most of previous methods concentrate on discriminating AD from cognitively normal (CN), while mild cognitive impairment, a transitional state, facilitates early diagnosis. Therefore, our method is further applied to multiple AD-related diagnosis tasks, not limited to AD vs. CN. Main results. Experimental results on the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative dataset show that the proposed method achieves superior performance over state-of-the-art FDG-PET-based approaches. Besides, some cerebral cortices highlighted by extracted regions cohere with medical research, further demonstrating the superiority. Significance. This work offers an effective method to achieve AD diagnosis and detect disease-affected regions in FDG-PET imaging. Our results could be beneficial for providing an additional opinion on the clinical diagnosis.
Enhanced diagnostics of radiating relativistic singularities and BISER by nonlinear post-compression of optical probe pulse
Authors: Kotov A.V. , Esirkepov T.Zh. , Soloviev A.A. , Sagisaka A. , Ogura K. , Bierwage A. , Kando M. , Kiriyama H. , Starodubtsev M.V. , Khazanov E.A. , Mironov S.Yu. , Pirozhkov A.S.
Published: July 2022

The enhancement of the resolution of pump-probe optical diagnostics for ultrafast processes by compressing the probe pulse duration using the CafCA approach [1] is considered on an example of the BISER soft-X-ray generation [2] with the J-KAREN-P laser [3].
Monitoring of Black Pepper Growth at Different Elevation using Ground Data and NDVI Time Series
Authors: Kamsan Siti Zul Lailee , Zainol Wan Nor Zanariah
Published: July 2022

Implementation of remote sensing in agriculture helps to enhance crop growth monitoring especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. To enhance black pepper growth condition, a study was conducted at two study sites in Bintulu, Sarawak. Hence, this study aims (i) to construct a black pepper growth monitoring at different levels of elevation in Suka Farm (SF) and Taime Farm (TF); and (ii) to integrate limited ground data and NDVI time series from Landsat 8OLI for black pepper growth monitoring. Elevation maps were generated using Natural Neighbor (NN) based on the ground data analysed using ArcGIS 10.4 Software. Three elevation levels were classified into the lower, middle, and upper levels. Observational ground data and NDVI time series of Landsat 8 OLI were calculated using SAS 9.4 software. All parameters then correlating with the elevation levels using Pearson Correlation Coefficient. Optimum growth of black pepper growth in SF and TF was identified at an elevation range between 39m–50m. The NDVI time series also indicated equivalent results as the ground data. This study proposed that the elevation of an area gives a significant impact on black pepper growth. Besides, the NDVI time series of Landsat 8 OLI was feasible for monitoring black pepper growth.
A review of GIS spatiotemporal analysis and web-based mapping for COVID-19
Authors: Isnan Sarah , Shariff Abdul Rashid Mohamed
Published: July 2022

The outbreak of diseases such as the pandemic Covid-19 is a critical problem that has emerged throughout the world. The outbreak is believed to be originated from Wuhan, China in December 2019. In February 2020, World Health Organization declared the name of the virus as Covid-19 and it has become a global pandemic in March 2020. This paper aims to review articles related to the application of GIS spatiotemporal analysis and web-based mapping for the Covid-19 pandemic. GIS spatiotemporal analysis is used to track the pattern of the Covid-19 and web-based mapping-based mapping is used to visualize the Covid-19 cases. This proves that GIS is a helpful tool to determine and track the transmission pattern and visualize the Covid-19 cases so that early mitigation can be done to combat the virus