bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Surface Characteristics and Adhesion of Veneering Composite Resin to PAEK‐Based Substructure Restorative Materials
Authors: Alsadon Omar , Moorehead Robert , Almansour Haitham , Bangalore Durgesh , Alageel Omar , Wood Duncan
Published: March 2022

Purpose

To evaluate and compare the shear bond strength (SBS) of composite veneering material to polyetherketoneketone (PEKK), polyetheretherketone (PEEK), zirconia (YZ), and nickel‐chromium alloy (NiCr) substructure restorative materials.

Materials and methods

Forty samples (12 × 2 mm) were prepared from four materials: PEKK, PEEK, zirconia, and NiCr alloy (n = 10). The Vickers hardness was evaluated before preparing the surface for bonding by shot‐blasting using 110 μm Al2O3 particles. The surface roughness (Ra) of each sample was determined using a noncontact optical profilometer. The veneering resin was bonded onto each sample following primer application. The prepared samples were then subjected to an SBS test using a universal testing machine at 0.5 mm/min crosshead speed. Failure modes and surface topography following debonding were assessed. The data were statistically analyzed using ANOVA and Tukey's post‐hoc comparison test (p < 0.05). 

Results

The highest and lowest mean surface roughness was observed in PEEK (3.45 ±0.13 μm) and NiCr (1.87 ±0.07 μm) materials, respectively. A significant difference in roughness values was observed between the materials except for NiCr and YZ (p = 0.547). Concerning SBS, PEEK and NiCr exhibited the highest (16.23 ±0.96 MPa) and lowest (10.1 ±0.63 MPa) values. The mean difference in SBS indicated a statistically significant difference between the material groups (p < 0.01).

Conclusions

PEKK materials demonstrated significantly lower SBS than PEEK and significantly higher SBS values than conventional zirconia and alloy materials. A positive and significant correlation between mean roughness and SBS was observed, but the causality could be either intrinsic to the material or the roughness.
Teachers’ Verbal Lexical Explanation for Second Language Vocabulary Learning: A Meta‐Analysis
Authors: Lee Jang Ho , Lee Hansol
Published: March 2022

This article reports a meta‐analysis of studies on the effects of teachers’ verbal lexical explanation (TVLE), as one type of lexical focus on form, on second language vocabulary learning. The dataset for this meta‐analysis included 14 studies, representing a total of 36 independent samples (N = 3,304). The results of this study reveal that TVLE resulted in more vocabulary gains than an absence of TVLE, at posttest and delayed posttest. In addition, explanation in the first language was more effective than explanation in the second language at posttest and delayed posttest. We further identified a range of potential moderators that may influence the effects of TVLE. In particular, we found that the overall effectiveness of TVLE was greater when the degree of vocabulary knowledge was measured through recall tests rather than through recognition tests in the long term.
Art, not a science: How legal impact organizations identify community need
Authors: Trowbridge David
Published: March 2022

The cause lawyering and social movement organization literature explains that movement groups may not prioritize needs that are important to marginalized subgroups within their constituencies. This echoes common and salient critiques within the LGBTQ legal industry. Using a case study of legal organizations within the LGBTQ movement, this article attempts to identify the mechanisms used to determine community need. Contrary to expectations, legal organizations take deliberate and often systematic steps to understand community need and recognize it as central to priority setting. Information flow about needs between large impact groups and smaller state/local groups moves in both directions. However, there are features of these mechanisms that may explain the perceived gap between organizational agendas and community need. The identification of sites and tools for determining need found in this project might provide organizations with guideposts to help them improve practices and close that gap. Finally, the findings here add to our understanding of how lawyers seek to promote organizational accountability.
“Acquired” Brugada syndrome in a cardiac allograft
Authors: Power Alyssa , Lynch Áine , Zahavich Laura , Lévesque Sébastien A. , Stephenson Elizabeth A. , Jean‐St‐Michel Emilie , Dipchand Anne I. , Jeewa Aamir
Published: March 2022

Introduction

Brugada syndrome is an inherited channelopathy characterized by arrhythmia and an increased risk of sudden cardiac death (SCD). Implantation of a defibrillator for primary or secondary prevention is the only effective strategy to decrease the risk of SCD in Brugada syndrome. We present a case in which a cardiac donor had a pathogenic variant for Brugada syndrome, discovered on genetic testing after transplantation.

Case report

A young child with dilated cardiomyopathy underwent orthotopic heart transplantation from a donor with in‐hospital cardiac arrest in the context of fever and a normal ECG. Approximately 1 month after transplant, the donor's post mortem genetic testing revealed a pathogenic loss‐of‐function SCN5A variant associated with Brugada syndrome, which was confirmed on genetic testing on a post‐transplant endomyocardial biopsy from the recipient. The recipient's post‐transplant electrocardiographic monitoring revealed persistent right bundle branch block and progressive, asymptomatic sinus node dysfunction. The recipient was managed with precautionary measures including aggressive fever management, avoidance of drugs that increase arrhythmia risk in Brugada syndrome, and increased frequency of arrhythmia surveillance. The recipient remains asymptomatic at over 3 years post‐transplant with preserved graft function and no documented ventricular arrhythmias.

Conclusion

We describe the clinical course of “acquired” Brugada syndrome in a cardiac allograft recipient, which has not been previously reported. The time‐sensitive nature of donor organ selection, especially in critically ill recipients, combined with the growing use of molecular autopsies in patients with unexplained etiologies for death may increasingly result in important donor genetic information being made available after transplantation.
Involvement of Akt and the antiapoptotic protein Bcl‐xL in the inhibition of apoptosis of dendritic cells by Leishmania mexicana
Authors: Rodríguez‐González Jorge , Wilkins‐Rodríguez Arturo A. , Gutiérrez‐Kobeh Laila
Published: March 2022

The intracellular parasite Leishmania mexicana inhibits camptothecin (CPT)‐induced apoptosis of monocyte‐derived dendritic cells (moDC) through the down‐regulation of p38 and JNK phosphorylation, while the kinase Akt is maintained active for 24 h. In addition, the infection of moDC with L. mexicana promastigotes increases the protein presence of the antiapoptotic protein Bcl‐xL. In the present work, we aimed to investigate the role of Akt in the inhibition of apoptosis of moDC by L. mexicana and in the modulation of the expression of the antiapoptotic proteins Bcl‐2, Mcl‐1 and Bcl‐xL. moDC were infected with L. mexicana metacyclic promastigotes and treated with CPT, an Akt inhibitor, or both and the mitochondrial outer membrane permeabilization (MOMP) and protein presence of active caspase 3, Bcl‐2, Mcl‐1 and Bcl‐xL were evaluated. Our results show that the specific inhibition of Akt reverts the apoptosis protective effect exerted by L. mexicana on moDC reflected by a reduction in MOMP, caspase 3 activation, and upregulation of Bcl‐xL. Interestingly, we also found that the infection of moDC with L. mexicana promastigotes induces a decrease in Bcl‐2 along with an isoform change of Mcl‐1, this independently to Akt activity. We demonstrated that Akt is deeply involved in the inhibition of apoptosis of moDC by L. mexicana.
Exploring the impact of economic integration agreements through extreme bounds analysis
Authors: Park Byungyul , Beghin John
Published: March 2022

This article provides an empirical strategy guided by the data to estimate the effects of Economic Integration Agreements (EIAs) on trade flows and their transitional dynamics. The strategy uses Extreme Bounds Analysis (EBA) to guide the choice of lags and leads in the effects without researchers' discretion involved. We show that arbitrarily selected year intervals and starting year can result in non‐robust estimates of transitional dynamics of the effects of EIAs on trade flows. The empirical strategy follows two steps: EBA first sifts lags and leads of EIAs robustly related to trade flows from candidates, then these are included in the gravity equation to estimate the effects of EIAs on trade. We find that various lags and leads are robustly and positively related to trade flows, and the lag and lead structure depends on the level of integration. Our results show that EIAs have a long‐term effect of 63% on trade flows. Under the richer lag and lead structure, deep‐integration agreements beyond the level of free trade agreements have a much higher impact on trade flows than free trade agreements do (132% vs 31%). The estimates of effects of EIAs obtained from EBA‐based estimation have a smaller contemporaneous effect and larger phased‐in effects compared to previous studies relying on the subjective choices of year intervals while similar results are observed with the decomposed EIAs.
External sustainability in Spanish economy: Bubbles and crises, 1970–2020
Authors: Esteve Vicente , Prats María A.
Published: March 2022

We address the issue of the sustainability Spain's external debt, using data for the period 1970–2020. To detect episodes of potentially explosive behavior of the Spanish net foreign assets over GDP ratio and the current account balance over GDP ratio, as well as episodes of external adjustments over this long period, we employ a recursive unit root test approach. Our empirical analysis leads us to conclude that there is some evidence of bubbles in the ratio between Spanish net foreign assets and the GDP. In contrast, the evidence that the ratio between the Spanish current account balance and the GDP had explosive subperiods is very weak. The episode of explosive behavior identified in the position of net foreign assets during the period 2002–2015 was the result of the country's economic expansion 1995–2007. The results also show an external adjustment during the period 2008–2019 after the start of a cyclical economic recession.
Combined effect of biochar and soil moisture on soil chemical properties and microbial community composition in microplastic‐contaminated agricultural soil
Authors: Dissanayake Pavani Dulanja , Palansooriya Kumuduni Niroshika , Sang Mee Kyung , Oh Dongyeop X. , Park Jeyoung , Hwang Sung Yeon , Igalavithana Avanthi Deshani , Gu Cheng , Ok Yong Sik
Published: March 2022

Accumulation of microplastics (MPs) in agricultural environments has caused growing concern in recent years because of its detrimental impacts on soil quality, crop productivity and ecosystem function. This study was conducted to assess the impact of biochar on soil chemical and microbial properties in a MP‐contaminated soil under two moisture regimes. Soil was contaminated with 1% (w/w) of low‐density polyethylene MPs. Four types of standard biochar, that is, oil seed rape (OSR) biochar produced at 550°C (OSR 550) and 700°C (OSR 700) and soft wood pellet (SWP) biochar produced at 550°C (SWP 550) and 700°C (SWP 700), were applied at a rate of 5% (w/w). The control was maintained without MP addition. The samples were incubated in soil with two moisture regimes, that is, at 30% and 70% of the water holding capacity, and the soil chemical and microbiological properties were assessed after 100 days of incubation. OSR biochar application significantly increased soil pH (8.53–8.81) and electrical conductivity (0.51–0.58 dS/m) in both moisture regimes. The effect of biochar application on soil enzyme activity and microbial community composition did not show a clear trend. However, SWP 700 biochar improved soil enzyme activity compared with that of the control and improved bacterial diversity and evenness compared with those of other biochars, which was attributed to the high surface area available for microbial colonization. Low soil moisture content significantly reduced enzyme activity and bacterial richness even with biochar amendment, except for SWP 550 biochar. This study implies the suitability of biochar for improvement of soil quality in MP contaminated soil under both moisture regimes. However, further long‐term studies are needed to get a clear understanding on the impact of different types of biochar on MP‐contaminated soil.
The clinical utility and thresholds of virtual and Halifaster flow crossmatches in lung transplantation
Authors: Hiho Steven J. , Levvey Bronwyn , Carroll Robert , Nicolson Ian , Mihaljcic Masa , Diviney Mary B. , Snell Gregory I. , Sullivan Lucy C. , Westall Glen P.
Published: March 2022

Immune sensitization, defined as the presence of alloreactive donor‐specific antibodies (DSA), is associated with increased wait‐times and inferior transplant outcomes. Identifying pretransplant DSA with a physical cell‐based assay is critical in defining immunological risk. However, improved solid phase antibody detection has provided the potential to forgo this physical assay. Here, we evaluated the association between DSA mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) and the recently introduced Halifaster Flow cytometry crossmatch (FXM) to determine if MFI could predict the outcome of FXM and whether a virtual crossmatch (VXM) would provide an accurate risk assessment. Sera from 134 waitlisted lung patients was retrospectively assessed by Halifaster FXM against lymphocytes preparations from 32 donors, resulting in 265 FXMs. HLA typing was performed to 2‐field allelic level and Luminex single antigen beads (SAB) used to identify DSA. The association between FXM and Luminex MFI was calculated using ROC analysis. MFI threshold accuracy was confirmed using a separate validation cohort (174 recipient sera and 34 donors), whereby both VXM and FXMs were compared. From the 265 FXM performed, 48 (18%) T‐cell (TFXM) and 56 (21%) B‐cell (BFXM) were positive. In the evaluation cohort, MFI thresholds of 2000 for HLA‐A, B, DRB1, and > 4000 for DQB1, were predictive of a positive FXM. The validation cohort of 233 paired FXM and VXM confirmed these MFI thresholds for both TFXM and BFXM with an accuracy of 91.4% and 89.3%, respectively. A positive VXM, defined with HLA‐specific MFI thresholds predicts Halifaster FXM reactivity, and can potentially expedite organ allocation, by minimizing the need for the more time‐consuming FXM.
Honokiol Provides Cardioprotection from Myocardial Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury (MI/RI) by Inhibiting Mitochondrial Apoptosis via the PI3K/AKT Signaling Pathway
Authors: Lv Linhua , Kong Qiuhuan , Li Zhiying , Zhang Ying , Chen Bijiao , Lv Lihua , Zhang Yubi
Published: March 2022

Background. Myocardial injury refers to a major complication that occurs in myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury (MI/RI). Honokiol is a well-recognized active compound extracted from the traditional Chinese herb known as Magnolia officinalis and is utilized in treating different vascular diseases. This research is aimed at examining whether Honokiol might alleviate myocardial injury in an MI/RI model. Methods. Seventy-eight male C57BL/6 mice were categorized randomly into three cohorts including the Sham operation (Sham) cohort, the MI/RI cohort (Con), and the Honokiol cohort (

n
=
26

for each cohort). The mice in the Honokiol cohort were treated with Honokiol before MI/RI surgery (0.2 mg/kg/day for 14 days, intraperitoneal), while the mice in the Con cohort were given an intraperitoneal injection with an equivalent volume of vehicle (DMSO) daily in 14 days prior to exposure to MI/RI. After the surgery, creatine kinase- (CK-) MB and cardiac troponin T (cTnT) levels, as well as the infarct area, were measured to assess the degree of myocardial damage. Apoptotic levels were detected using terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) staining. Electron microscopy was utilized to identify mitochondrial damage. Lastly, the expression levels of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), cleaved caspase-9, cytochrome C (Cyt-C), B cell lymphoma/leukemia-2 (Bcl-2), B cell lymphoma/leukemia-2 associated X (Bax), AKT, p-AKT, PI3K, and p-PI3K were analyzed utilizing western blotting. Results. Honokiol can reduce the MI/RI-induced cTnT and CK-MB levels, apoptosis index, and mitochondrial swelling in cardiomyocytes via activating the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Conclusion. Honokiol provides cardiac protection from MI/RI by suppressing mitochondrial apoptosis through the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.
Design of Automatic Motion Capture Algorithm for Yao’s Long Drum Dance Based on Multieye Machine Vision
Authors: Meng Yan
Published: March 2022

Aiming at the problems of low accuracy and long time consumption in the existing dance motion automatic capture methods, this study designs an automatic capture algorithm of Yao’s long drum dance based on multieye machine vision. The images of Yao’s long drum dance are collected by the multieye machine vision measurement system, and the image signals under different lighting conditions are processed; on this basis, by determining the dance action image threshold and analyzing the change law of action image signal, the dance action image extraction of Yao’s long drum is completed. By converting the dance action images from different angles, the Euler angle of the images from different angles is determined and fused. On this basis, the observation items of the observation part of the Yao long drum dance action image are set, and the a priori conditions and a posteriori probability of the Yao long drum dance action image preprocessing are determined, so as to obtain the best result of the dance action image, and dance action image preprocessing is completed. According to the preprocessed image, the capture algorithm of area range is designed, the remaining areas to be captured are determined by means of classification, and the automatic capture algorithm design of Yao’s long drum dance is completed. The experimental results show that the motion image captured by the automatic motion capture algorithm of Yao’s long drum dance based on multieye machine vision has high accuracy, and the capture time is long, which is feasible.
Comamonas kerstersii Bacteremia of Unknown Origin
Authors: Rong Kassie , Delport Johan , AlMutawa Fatimah
Published: March 2022

Comamonas kerstersii (C. kerstersii) is a Gram-negative bacillus abundant in the environment and rarely implicated in human disease. Previously considered nonpathogenic, its scarcity in literature may be partly due to the unreliability of past phenotypic tests used for its identification. In recent years, the development of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry (MS) has enabled fast and accurate laboratory identification of C. kerstersii. Since the first report of human infection in 2013, several others have emerged, with most cases involving peritoneal infection. Here, we present a rare case of C. kerstersii bacteremia in an 82-year-old male patient. With no clear predisposing conditions, the source of his infection is unclear. We accompany this report with a review of C. kerstersii bacteremia cases found in the literature.
Mitofusin2 Promotes β Cell Maturation from Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells via Sirt3/Idh2 Activation
Authors: Lu Li , Zhitao Li , Nannan Cui , Mingzhu Huang , Xiaoping Hu , Dongsheng Hong , Zongfu Pan , Xiaoyang Lu
Published: March 2022

β cell dysfunction is the leading cause of diabetes. Adult β cells have matured glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS), whereas fetal and neonatal β cells are insensitive to glucose and are functionally immature. However, how β cells mature and acquire robust GSIS is not fully understood. Here, we explored the potential regulatory proteins of β cell maturation process and the capacity for GSIS. Combined with the data from public databases, we found that the gene expression of Mitofusin2 (Mfn2) showed an increasing trend from mouse neonatal β cells to mature β cells. Moreover, its protein expression increased during mouse embryonic pancreas development and β cell differentiation from mouse embryonic stem cells. Knocking down Mfn2 reduced Urocortin3 (Ucn3) expression, GSIS, and ATP production in induced β cells, while overexpressing it had the opposite effect. However, neither Mfn2 knockdown nor overexpression affected the differentiation rate of insulin-positive cells. In immature and mature β cells, Mfn2 and its correlated genes were enriched in tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle-related pathways. The expressions of Sirtuin 3 (Sirt3) and isocitrate dehydrogenase 2 (NADP+) and mitochondrial (Idh2) were Mfn2-regulated during β cell differentiation. Inhibiting Idh2 or Sirt3 reduced cellular ATP content and insulin secretion levels that increased by Mfn2 overexpression. Thus, Mfn2 modulated the induced β cell GSIS by influencing the TCA cycle through Sirt3/Idh2 activation. We demonstrated that Mfn2 promoted embryonic stem cell-derived β cell maturation via the Sirt3/Idh2 pathway, providing new insights into β cell development. Our data contribute to understanding diabetes pathogenesis and offer potential new targets for β cell regeneration therapies.
Implementation of Hospital‐to‐Home Model for Nutritional Nursing Management of Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease Using Artificial Intelligence Algorithm Combined with CT Internet +
Authors: Chen Xing , Huang Xueqin , Yin Mingyuan
Published: March 2022

The objective of this study was to evaluate the application value of “Internet + hospital‐to‐home (H2H)” nutritional care model using the improved wavelet transform algorithm based on computed tomography (CT) images in the nutritional care management of chronic kidney disease (CKD) stages 3‐5. A total of 120 patients with CKD were the research objects and they were randomly divided into two groups. The normal nutritional nursing model was used for nursing of patients in the control group, and the “Internet + H2H″ model was used for the observation group (H2H group), with 60 cases in each group. The nursing effect was evaluated using 320‐slice volume CT low‐dose perfusion imaging images, anthropometry, laboratory biochemical tests, and other survey scores. The results showed that compared with the mean filter denoising (MFD) algorithm and the orthogonal wavelet denoising (OWD) algorithm, the mean square error (MSE) and signal noise ratio (SNR) values of the IWT algorithm were better (40.0781 vs 45.2891, 59.2123)/(20.0122 vs 18.2311, 15.7812) (P < 0.05). The arm muscle circumference (MAC) (239.77 ± 18.24 vs 243.94 ± 18.72 mm) and triceps skindold (TSF) value (8.87 ± 2.74 vs 10.04 ± 2.90 mm) of the patients in the H2H group were greatly improved after the nursing (P < 0.05). For biochemical indicators, serum albumin (ALB) (35.22 ± 4.98 vs 45.32 ± 4.21) g/L, prealbumin (PAB) (289.94 ± 72.99 vs 341.79 ± 74.45) mg/L, hemoglobin (Hb) (97.62 ± 24.87 vs 110.65 ± 28.83) g/L, and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) (15.74 ± 9.87 vs 11.06 ± 5.69) mmol/L of patients in H2H group were improved (P < 0.05). After nursing, the nutritional screening score of the H2H group was obviously improved (83.33% (before) vs 50% (after)), the total score of health quality assessment (114.89 ± 5.23) in the H2H group was much higher than that of the control group (87.22 ± 14.89), and the satisfaction on the nursing model was higher in the H2H group (100% vs 71.67%) (P < 0.05). The renal cortex BF before and after nursing was significantly different between the two groups of patients (P < 0.05), and the BE of the H2H group was significantly higher than that of the control group after treatment ((335.12 ± 52.74) mL·100 g−1·min−1 vs (289.90 ± 53.91) mL·100 g−1·min−1) (P < 0.05). In summary, the “Internet + H2H″ nutritional nursing model was more individualized, which can better improve the physical quality of patients with stages 3‐5 of CKD, improve the psychological state of patients, and further enhance the prognosis of the disease. In addition, the IWT algorithm showed better effects in the processing of the image of 320‐slice volume CT low‐dose perfusion imaging, and it was worthy of clinical application.
Evaluation of Public Welfare Level of Urban Rail Transit considering Operation Management
Authors: Meng Ran , Mao Baohua , Xu Qi , Yang Yang
Published: March 2022

Evaluating the public welfare level of the urban rail transit systems has not only great significance for the government to provide fair and reasonable subsidies but for the better operation and management of urban rail transit enterprises. An evaluation index system composed of 3 criterion-level indicators and 12 subindexes has been established in this paper. The 3 criterion-level indicators conclude service level, social benefit, and policy loss which are all affected by operation management. Besides, the subjective and objective comprehensive weighting method combined with the analytic hierarchy process method and the entropy weight method is proposed to calculate the index-level weights. Furtherly, the grey correlation-TOPSIS comprehensive evaluation method was designed to calculate the comprehensive evaluation value of the public welfare level of each city. To verify the effectiveness of the proposed method, urban rail transit systems in 16 Chinese cities are studied as a case study. The results show that (1) the three indicators of passenger travel cost (25.69%), the increase in housing prices around urban rail transit(10.74%), and operating cost ratio(9.95%) are more likely to affect the evaluation of public welfare level of urban rail transit. (2) the level of public welfare in different cities is not balanced. The cities with a relatively high level of public welfare relative closeness exceeding 0.5 include Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Suzhou, Wuhan, Nanjing, Wuxi, and Dalian. (3) Both GDP and urban population are positively correlated with the relative closeness of social benefit and service level. (4) The level of public welfare can be improved by reducing the fare price and improving the service level, such as increasing the network density, reducing the departure interval, and increasing the average speed.
First-in-Human Evaluation of the Safety and Efficacy of a Novel Stent Positioning Assistance System for Precise Positioning of Coronary Stents
Authors: Hellou Elias , Jonas Michael , Dvir Danny
Published: March 2022

Objectives. This study was planned for evaluating the safety and efficacy of SPAS (stent positioning assistance system) device in first-in-human procedures. Background. SPAS is a novel device that can be used for improved positioning of coronary stents. Methods. Consecutive patients underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with the SPAS device. Device-related adverse and serious adverse events were evaluated in addition to a dedicated questionnaire completed by operators immediately after using SPAS. Results. The SPAS device was deployed in 55 PCI procedures, comprising of heavily calcified lesions (33.3%), totally occluded (7.4%), and severely tortuous vessels (7.4%). In these procedures, nonbifurcation and nonostial (53.7%), bifurcation (22.2%), and edge-to-edge (24.1%) stenting techniques were employed. Analysis of the pooled scores for the five satisfaction-related questions gave an average score of 5.6 ± 1.5, with 40 (75.5%) operators providing an average satisfaction grade of >5; the average operator-rated SPAS device accuracy performance scores exceeded 6 out of 7 (on visual analog score). The time spent for positioning the stent with the SPAS device averaged 41 ± 68.0 seconds. The SPAS device was rated as easy to use (6.1 ± 1.6) and reliable (6.1 ± 1.7). No device-related adverse events were reported. Conclusion. This stent positioning device was evaluated in a consecutive cohort of standard and complex PCI procedures. The device was shown to be safe, easy, and precise to use, both in standard and complex cases.
Water Treadmill Training Ameliorates Neurite Outgrowth Inhibition Associated with NGR/RhoA/ROCK by Inhibiting Astrocyte Activation following Spinal Cord Injury
Authors: Ying Xinwang , Yu Xiaolan , Zhu Jintao , Li Xuqing , Zheng Yujun , Xie Qingfeng , Wu Qiaoyun , Li Shengcun , Yue Jingjing , Zhou Ye , Zhou Kecheng , Tu Wenzhan , Jiang Songhe
Published: March 2022

Spinal cord injury (SCI) often results in damage to or degeneration of axons. Crosstalk between astrocytes and neurons plays a pivotal role in neurite outgrowth following SCI. Rehabilitative training is a recognized method for the treatment of SCI, but the specific mechanism underlying its effect on axonal outgrowth in the central nervous system (CNS) has not yet been determined. A total of 190 adult male SD rats weighing 200–250 g were randomly divided into eight groups for use as animal models of SCI. Rats were subjected to water treadmill training (TT) for 7 or 14 d. The Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan (BBB) motor function scale, hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining, Nissl staining, Western blotting, and immunofluorescence were used to measure tissue morphology and the degree of neurological deficit and to determine quantitative expression and accurate localization of the corresponding proteins. We found that TT decreased tissue structure damage and improved functional recovery. TT also promoted the regeneration of neurons and reduced SCI-induced apoptosis SCI around the lesion, as well as significantly increasing the expression of GAP43 and NF200 after SCI. In addition, TT significantly inhibited the injury-induced increase in the expression of proinflammatory factors. Moreover, TT reduced the activation of astrocytes and microglia, accompanied by the reduced expression of C3d and increased expression of S100A10. Finally, TT effectively reduced the level of chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan (CSPG) surrounding the lesion and inhibited the NGR/RhoA/ROCK signaling pathway in neurons after SCI. Overall, we found that TT played a novel role in recovery from SCI by promoting axonal outgrowth associated with NGR/RhoA/ROCK signaling by inhibiting astrocyte activation after SCI.
Ultrasound Lung Image under Artificial Intelligence Algorithm in Diagnosis of Neonatal Respiratory Distress Syndrome
Authors: Wu Yuhan , Zhao Sheng , Yang Xiaohong , Yang Chunxue , Shi Zhen , Liu Qin , Wang Yubo , Qin Meilan , Zhang Li
Published: March 2022

In order to analyze the application of ultrasonic lung imaging diagnosis model based on artificial intelligence algorithm in neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (NRDS), an ultrasonic lung imaging diagnosis model based on a deep residual network (DRN) was proposed. In this study, 90 premature infants in the hospital were selected as the research object and divided into the experimental group (45 cases) and control group (45 cases) according to whether or not they have NRDS. DRN was compared with the deep residual network (DRWSR) based on wavelet domain, deep residual network detection with normalization framework (Fisher-DRN), and distorted image edge detection preprocessor (DIEDP). Then, it was applied to the diagnosis of NRDS. The clinical data and ultrasound imaging results of infants with NRDS and ordinary premature infants were compared. The results showed that the gestational age, birth weight, and Apgar scores of the NRDS group were remarkably lower than those of ordinary children (

P
<
0.05

). In addition, the segmentation accuracy, image feature extraction accuracy, algorithm convergence, and time loss of the DRN algorithm were better than the other three algorithms, and the differences were considerable (

P
<
0.05

). In children with NRDS, the positive rate of abnormal pleural line, disappearance of A line, appearance of B line, and alveolar interstitial syndrome (AIS) test in the results of lung ultrasound examination in children with NRDS were all 100%. The lung consolidation became 70.8%, and the white lung-like change was 50.1%, both of which were higher than those of ordinary preterm infants, and the differences were considerable (

P
<
0.05

). The diagnostic model of this study predicted that the AUC area of grade 1-2, grade 2-3, and grade 3-4 NRDS were 0.962, 0.881, and 0.902, respectively. To sum up, the ultrasound lung imaging diagnosis model based on the DRN algorithm had good diagnostic performance in children with NRDS and can provide useful information for clinical NRDS diagnosis and treatment.
A Person-Based Adaptive Traffic Signal Control Method with Cooperative Transit Signal Priority
Authors: Lee Wei-Hsun , Wang Hsuan-Chih
Published: March 2022

Real-time traffic signal control has long been a critical way to improve traffic congestion. Transit Signal Priority (TSP) is seen as a cost-effective way to reduce travel time variability. Most of the previous studies develop real-time signal control systems on a vehicle basis, which is unable to efficiently provide preferential treatment on transit vehicles. Person-based signal control systems, which transform traffic delay computation units from vehicle to passenger, have been proposed to try to address this limitation. However, their models, optimizing signal plan cycle-by-cycle, cannot rapidly respond to traffic variations. This study proposes a Person-based Adaptive traffic signal control method with Cooperative Transit signal priority (PACT). In PACT, not only do Road-Side Units (RSUs) perform signal optimization, but also On-Board Units (OBUs) provide in-vehicle speed advisory to reduce delays. The interaction between RSU and OBU is conducted second-by-second, which has high adaptability to traffic variations. Experiments are performed based on real traffic data via traffic simulation platform SUMO. The results indicate that PACT can efficiently reduce delays of both bus passengers and auto passengers at a signalized intersection. Compared to preoptimized signal plans, the results show that each passenger on transit vehicles experiences 33%–70% decreases in delays, and each auto passenger experiences 3%–29% decreases in delays. PACT can reduce 80%–98% in delays when the occupancy weight factor is relatively large, showing the potential of extending PACT on performing signal preemption.
Exploring Active Compounds and Mechanisms of Angong Niuhuang Wan on Ischemic Stroke Based on Network Pharmacology and Molecular Docking
Authors: Zhang Yasu , Liu Xiaomin , Long Junzi , Cheng Xue , Wang Xinyu , Feng Xiaodong
Published: March 2022

Background and Purpose. Angong Niuhuang Wan (ANW) is a traditional Chinese herbal formula that has been widely used for the treatment of ischemic stroke, whereas its underlying therapeutic mechanism remains unclear. The objective of the study is to explore the main bioactive ingredients and interaction mechanism of ANW on ischemic stroke based on the network pharmacology method. Methods. The chemical ingredients of ANW were retrieved from TCMSP, TCMID, and literature. We predicted the potential targets of active ingredients by PubChem, Swiss Target Prediction, and STITCH databases. The targets related to ischemic stroke were retrieved using GeneCards, DisGeNET, DrugBank, TTD, and GEO databases. Subsequently, Venn diagrams were used to identify common targets of active ingredients and ischemic stroke. Protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was structured with STRING platform and Cytoscape 3.8.2. Gene ontology (GO) enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analyses of key targets were performed in the Metascape database. Finally, molecular docking was conducted by AutoDock Tools and PyMOL software. Results. A total of 2391 targets were identified for 230 active ingredients of ANW, and 1386 of them overlapped with ischemic stroke targets. The key active ingredients were mainly quercetin, β-estradiol, berberine, wogonin, and β-sitosterol, and the key targets were also identified, including IL-6, AKT1, MAPK3, PIK3CA, and TNF. The biological process (BP) results indicated that ANW may have therapeutic effects through response oxidative stress, inflammatory response, cellular response to lipid, and response to nutrient levels. Furthermore, the ingredients of ANW were predicted to have therapeutic effects on ischemic stroke via the HIF-1 signaling pathway, FoxO signaling pathway, chemokine signaling pathway, fluid shear stress and atherosclerosis, and neurotrophin signaling pathway. The molecular docking results all showed that the core ingredients were strong binding activity with the core targets. Conclusion. In conclusion, the bioinformatics and pharmacological results reveal that counteracting oxidative stress, suppressing inflammation, inhibiting the development of AS, and even protecting neurological function are critical pathways for ANW in the treatment of ischemic stroke. These results may help to elucidate the mechanism of ANW on ischemic stroke for experimental studies and clinical applications.
Mathematical Modeling and Analysis of TB and COVID-19 Coinfection
Authors: Mekonen Kassahun Getnet , Balcha Shiferaw Feyissa , Obsu Legesse Lemecha , Hassen Abdulkadir
Published: March 2022

Tuberculosis (TB) and coronavirus (COVID-19) are both infectious diseases that globally continue affecting millions of people every year. They have similar symptoms such as cough, fever, and difficulty breathing but differ in incubation periods. This paper introduces a mathematical model for the transmission dynamics of TB and COVID-19 coinfection using a system of nonlinear ordinary differential equations. The well-posedness of the proposed coinfection model is then analytically studied by showing properties such as the existence, boundedness, and positivity of the solutions. The stability analysis of the equilibrium points of submodels is also discussed separately after computing the basic reproduction numbers. In each case, the disease-free equilibrium points of the submodels are proved to be both locally and globally stable if the reproduction numbers are less than unity. Besides, the coinfection disease-free equilibrium point is proved to be conditionally stable. The sensitivity and bifurcation analysis are also studied. Different simulation cases were performed to supplement the analytical results.
Differentially Private Singular Value Decomposition for Training Support Vector Machines
Authors: Sun Zhenlong , Yang Jing , Li Xiaoye
Published: March 2022

Support vector machine (SVM) is an efficient classification method in machine learning. The traditional classification model of SVMs may pose a great threat to personal privacy, when sensitive information is included in the training datasets. Principal component analysis (PCA) can project instances into a low-dimensional subspace while capturing the variance of the matrix A as much as possible. There are two common algorithms that PCA uses to perform the principal component analysis, eigenvalue decomposition (EVD) and singular value decomposition (SVD). The main advantage of SVD compared with EVD is that it does not need to compute the matrix of covariance. This study presents a new differentially private SVD algorithm (DPSVD) to prevent the privacy leak of SVM classifiers. The DPSVD generates a set of private singular vectors that the projected instances in the singular subspace can be directly used to train SVM while not disclosing privacy of the original instances. After proving that the DPSVD satisfies differential privacy in theory, several experiments were carried out. The experimental results confirm that our method achieved higher accuracy and better stability on different real datasets, compared with other existing private PCA algorithms used to train SVM.
Optimization and Prediction of Energy Consumption, Daylighting, and Thermal Comfort of Buildings in Tropical Areas
Authors: Zhang Jianjian , Ji Lin
Published: March 2022

As awareness of the ecological environment and sustainable development has increased, green buildings have received significant attention in the design stage. For the initial design stage of buildings in the tropics, cooling energy consumption, daylighting, and thermal comfort are necessary steps for green and energy‐saving design. Therefore, this study focuses on three objectives: (1) cooling load, (2) useful daylight illuminance (UDI), and (3) the predicted mean vote (PMV). First, this research uses Rhino3D and the Grasshopper plug‐in to build an architectural model and uses the Octopus plug‐in in Grasshopper to iteratively calculate the target value to solve the multiobjective balance problem and find the relative optimal value. Next, the optimized design value is compared with the initial solution, and the cooling energy consumption is reduced by 7.48%–7.76%, the UDI increases by 0.44%–2.07%, and the PMV is reduced by 25.67%–27.43%. It is shown that the optimized layout of the office achieves energy‐saving optimization in energy consumption, daylighting, and thermal comfort. Finally, the backpropagation (BP) neural network established in this research is shown to achieve good prediction of the target value and achieves the goal of green energy‐saving.
A Prediction Model Analysis of Behavior Recognition Based on Genetic Algorithm and Neural Network
Authors: Wang Qifu , Liu Shuzhi
Published: March 2022

With the extensive application of virtual technology and simulation algorithm, motion behavior recognition is widely used in various fields. The original neural network algorithm cannot solve the problem of data redundancy in behavior recognition, and the global search ability is weak. Based on the above reasons, this paper proposes an algorithm based on genetic algorithm and neural network to build a prediction model of behavior recognition. Firstly, genetic algorithm is used to cluster the redundant data, so that the data are in fragment order, and then it is used to reduce the data redundancy of different behaviors and weaken the influence of dimension on behavior recognition. Then, the genetic algorithm clusters the data to form subgenetic particles with different dimensions and carries out coevolution and optimal location sharing for subgenetic particles with different dimensions. Through simulation test, the algorithm constructed in this paper is better than genetic algorithm and neural network algorithm in terms of calculation accuracy and convergence speed. Finally, the prediction model is constructed by setting the initial value and threshold to predict the behavior recognition, and the results show that the accuracy of the model constructed in this paper is improved in the analysis of behavior recognition.
Role of miR-181b/Notch1 Axis in circ_TNPO1 Promotion of Proliferation and Migration of Atherosclerotic Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells
Authors: Chen Mingxiang , Li Fuping , Jiang Qilong , Zhang WeiMin , Li Zhiping , Tang Wenshuai
Published: March 2022

Background. The role and expression level change in circ_TNPO1 (hsa_circ_0072951) in atherosclerosis (AS) and VSMC dysfunction remain unknown. In this study, we try to explore the effects of circ_TNPO1 on oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL)-induced human vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) excessive proliferation and migration, and the potential molecular mechanism. Methods. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and western blot experiment were used to detect the serum samples from AS patients and healthy controls. CCK-8, Transwell, and the dual-luciferase reporter gene assay were used to detect the cell biology. Results. In human AS serum and ox-LDL-induced VSMCs, circ_TNPO1 was increased, whereas miR-181b was decreased. Silencing circ_TNPO1 inhibited proliferation and migration activity and reduced protein expression of PCNA, Ki-67, MMP2, and E-cadherin and promoted N-cadherin protein expression in ox-LDL induced VSMCs. Remarkably, miR-181b knockdown or Notch1 overexpression could efficiently offset the proliferation and migration inhibiting effect of circ_TNPO1 knockdown in ox-LDL-induced VSMCs. Furthermore, a molecular mechanism study pointed out that circ_TNPO1 and Notch1 are direct-acting targets of miR-181b. Conclusions. In conclusion, our study indicated that circ_TNPO1 promotes the proliferation and migration progression of VSMCs in atherosclerosis through the miR-181b/Notch1 axis.
Personalized Route Planning of Rural Ecotourism Using Mobile Computing and Random Forest Algorithm
Authors: Xie Ningguang
Published: March 2022

Tourism has evolved from a few high-end items to a mass market, and it has become an integral part of people’s daily lives. Tourist routes connect tourist sources and destinations, whether they are part of a group tour or a road trip. Tourist routes that are designed scientifically and rationally can improve tourist satisfaction while also highlighting the unique characteristics of various tourist destinations and promoting the long-term development of tourist destinations. Ecotourism is a necessary component of China’s tourism industry’s long-term development, as well as a key component of the country’s low-carbon economy. This paper examines some basic problems in rural tourism planning using the random forest algorithm and proposes planning strategies and methods for its core content in order to promote the development of rural ecotourism. Tourist route optimization is beneficial not only to obtaining reasonable routes to meet tourists’ needs but also to maximizing resource utilization, which is beneficial to environmental protection and balanced economic development.
Research on Postproduction of Film and Television Based on Computer Multimedia Technology
Authors: Xu Xiao , Yan Hao , Wang Xiaolei
Published: March 2022

In the postproduction of film and television, the fast movement of objects or camera shake will lead to an excessive selection of key frames, resulting in information redundancy and affecting the stability of postproduction videos and video-editing effects. Aiming at this problem, this paper proposes a method of film and television postproduction based on digital media technology. Firstly, the film and video shots are segmented to find out the changing scenes; secondly, the bottom feature vector of each image is formed according to the color space entropy, motion vector, and motion region, and the video key frame is extracted based on digital media technology; finally, the pixel label information is established in the key frame, and the feature points located in the foreground are removed, while the time feature matching points and spatial feature matching points in the background are left, so as to achieve dynamic video mosaic. The experimental results show that the film and television postproduction method based on digital media technology has strong advantages compared with other methods, which can improve the stability score of video and reduce the average stitching error.