bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Exertional Heat Stroke, Modality Cooling Rate, and Survival Outcomes: A Systematic Review
Authors: Filep Erica M. , Murata Yuki , Endres Brad D. , Kim Gyujin , Stearns Rebecca L. , Casa Douglas J.
Published: November 2020

Background and Objectives: The purpose of this systematic review is to synthesize the influence cooling modality has on survival with and without medical complications from exertional heat stroke (EHS) in sport and military populations. Methods and Materials: All peer-reviewed case reports or series involving EHS patients were searched in the following online databases: PubMed, Scopus, SPORTDiscus, Medline, CINAHL, Academic Search Premier, and the Cochrane Library: Central Registry of Clinical Trials. Cooling methods were subdivided into “adequate” (>0.15 °C/min) versus “insufficient” (<0.15 °C/min) based on previously published literature on EHS cooling rates. Results: 613 articles were assessed for quality and inclusion in the review. Thirty-two case reports representing 521 EHS patients met the inclusion criteria. Four hundred ninety-eight (498) patients survived EHS (95.58%) and 23 (4.41%) patients succumbed to complications. Fischer’s Exact test on 2 × 2 contingency tables and relative risk ratios were calculated to determine if modality cooling rate was associated with patient outcomes. EHS patients that survived who were cooled with an insufficient cooling rate had a 4.57 times risk of medical complications compared to patients who were treated by adequate cooling methods, regardless of setting (RR = 4.57 (95%CI: 3.42, 6.28)). Conclusions: This is the largest EHS dataset yet compiled that analyzes the influence of cooling rate on patient outcomes. Zero patients died (0/521, 0.00%) when treatment included a modality with an adequate cooling rate. Conversely, 23 patients died (23/521, 4.41%) with insufficient cooling. One hundred seventeen patients (117/521, 22.46%) survived with medical complications when treatment involved an insufficient cooling rate, whereas, only four patients had complications (4/521, 0.77%) despite adequate cooling. Cooling rates >0.15 °C/min for EHS patients were significantly associated with surviving EHS without medical complications. In order to provide the best standard of care for EHS patients, an aggressive cooling rate >0.15 °C/min can maximize survival without medical complications after exercise-induced hyperthermia.
Metabolic Flux Analysis—Linking Isotope Labeling and Metabolic Fluxes
Authors: Wang Yujue , Wondisford Fredric E. , Song Chi , Zhang Teng , Su Xiaoyang
Published: November 2020

Metabolic flux analysis (MFA) is an increasingly important tool to study metabolism quantitatively. Unlike the concentrations of metabolites, the fluxes, which are the rates at which intracellular metabolites interconvert, are not directly measurable. MFA uses stable isotope labeled tracers to reveal information related to the fluxes. The conceptual idea of MFA is that in tracer experiments the isotope labeling patterns of intracellular metabolites are determined by the fluxes, therefore by measuring the labeling patterns we can infer the fluxes in the network. In this review, we will discuss the basic concept of MFA using a simplified upper glycolysis network as an example. We will show how the fluxes are reflected in the isotope labeling patterns. The central idea we wish to deliver is that under metabolic and isotopic steady-state the labeling pattern of a metabolite is the flux-weighted average of the substrates’ labeling patterns. As a result, MFA can tell the relative contributions of converging metabolic pathways only when these pathways make substrates in different labeling patterns for the shared product. This is the fundamental principle guiding the design of isotope labeling experiment for MFA including tracer selection. In addition, we will also discuss the basic biochemical assumptions of MFA, and we will show the flux-solving procedure and result evaluation. Finally, we will highlight the link between isotopically stationary and nonstationary flux analysis.
Human Infection of Methicillin-Susceptible Staphylococcus aureus CC398: A Review
Authors: Bouiller Kevin , Bertrand Xavier , Hocquet Didier , Chirouze Catherine
Published: November 2020

Staphylococcus aureus (SA) belonging to the clonal complex 398 (CC398) took a special place within the species due to its spread throughout the world. SA CC398 is broadly separated in two subpopulations: livestock-associated methicillin-resistant SA (MRSA) and human-associated methicillin-susceptible SA (MSSA). Here, we reviewed the global epidemiology of SA CC398 in human clinical infections and focused on MSSA CC398. The last common ancestor of SA CC398 was probably a human-adapted prophage φSa3-positive MSSA CC398 strain, but the multiple transmissions between human and animal made its evolution complex. MSSA and MRSA CC398 had different geographical evolutions. Although MSSA was present in several countries all over the world, it was mainly reported in China and in France with a prevalence about 20%. MSSA CC398 was frequently implicated in severe infections such as bloodstream infections, endocarditis, and bone joint infections whereas MRSA CC398 was mainly reported in skin and soft tissue. The spread of the MSSA CC398 clone is worldwide but with a heterogeneous prevalence. The prophage φSa3 played a crucial role in the adaptation to the human niche and in the virulence of MSSA CC398. However, the biological features that allowed the recent spread of this lineage are still far from being fully understood.
Modified Spruce Sawdust for Sorption of Hexavalent Chromium in Batch Systems and Fixed-Bed Columns
Authors: Politi Dororthea , Sidiras Dimitrios
Published: November 2020

This study investigated the potential use of spruce sawdust that was pretreated with diethylene glycol and sulfuric acid for the removal of hexavalent chromium from wastewater. The sawdust pretreatment process was conducted at different temperatures and times. The adsorbent was characterized by quantitative saccharification, scanning electron microscopy, and Brunauer–Emmet–Teller surface area analysis. Adsorption capacity was studied for both batch and column processes. The experimental adsorption isotherms were simulated using seven isotherm models, including Freundlich and Langmuir models. By using the Langmuir isotherm model, the maximal Cr(VI) adsorption capacity of organosolv-pretreated spruce sawdust (qm) was 318.3 mg g−1. Furthermore, the kinetic data were fitted to Lagergren, pseudo-second-order, and intraparticle diffusion models, revealing that the adsorption of Cr(VI) onto spruce sawdust pretreated with diethylene glycol and sulfuric acid is best represented by the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. Three kinetic models, namely, the Bohart–Adams model, Thomas model, and modified dose–response (MDR) model, were used to fit the experimental data obtained from the column experiments and to resolve the characteristic parameters. The Thomas adsorption column capacity of the sawdust was increased from 2.44 to 31.1 mg g−1 upon pretreatment, thus, demonstrating that organosolv treatment enhances the adsorption capability of the material.
High Sensitivity and High Stability QCM Humidity Sensors Based on Polydopamine Coated Cellulose Nanocrystals/Graphene Oxide Nanocomposite
Authors: Yao Yao , Huang Xianhe , Chen Qiao , Zhang Zhen , Ling Weiwei
Published: November 2020

In this paper, a high sensitivity and high stability quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) humidity sensor using polydopamine (PDA) coated cellulose nanocrystal (CNC)/graphene oxide (GO) (PDA@CNC/GO) nanocomposite as sensitive material is demonstrated. The PDA@CNC was prepared by the self-polymerization action on the surface of CNC, and it acted as filler material to form functional nanocomposite with GO. The material characteristics of PDA@CNC, CNC/GO and PDA@CNC/GO were analyzed by transmission electron microscope (TEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), respectively. The experimental results show that the introduction of PDA@CNC into GO film not only effectively enhanced the sensitivity of GO-based nanocomposite-coated QCM sensor but also significantly maintained high stability in the entire humidity range. The PDA@CNC/GO30-coated QCM humidity sensor exhibited a superior response sensitivity up to 54.66 Hz/% relative humidity (RH), while the change rate of dynamic resistance of the sensor in the humidity range of 11.3–97.3% RH is only 14% that is much smaller than that of CNC/GO-coated QCM. Besides, the effect of the PDA@CNC content on the sensitivity and stability of GO-based nanocomposite-coated QCM humidity was also studied. Moreover, other performances of PDA@CNC/GO-coated QCM humidity sensor, including humidity hysteresis, fast response and recovery and long-term stability, were systematically investigated. This work suggests that PDA@CNC/GO nanocomposite is a promising candidate material for realizing high sensitivity and high stability QCM humidity sensor in the entire humidity detection range.
Impact of Early Incorporation of Nutrition Interventions as a Component of Cancer Therapy in Adults: A Review
Authors: Richards Julie , Arensberg Mary Beth , Thomas Sara , Kerr Kirk W. , Hegazi Refaat , Bastasch Michael
Published: November 2020

Malnutrition is prevalent among oncology patients and can adversely affect clinical outcomes, prognosis, quality of life, and survival. This review evaluates current trends in the literature and reported evidence around the timing and impact of specific nutrition interventions in oncology patients undergoing active cancer treatment. Previous research studies (published 1 January 2010–1 April 2020) were identified and selected using predefined search strategy and selection criteria. In total, 15 articles met inclusion criteria and 12/15 articles provided an early nutrition intervention. Identified studies examined the impacts of nutrition interventions (nutrition counseling, oral nutrition supplements, or combination of both) on a variety of cancer diagnoses. Nutrition interventions were found to improve body weight and body mass index, nutrition status, protein and energy intake, quality of life, and response to cancer treatments. However, the impacts of nutrition interventions on body composition, functional status, complications, unplanned hospital readmissions, and mortality and survival were inconclusive, mainly due to the limited number of studies evaluating these outcomes. Early nutrition interventions were found to improve health and nutrition outcomes in oncology patients. Future research is needed to further evaluate the impacts of early nutrition interventions on patients’ outcomes and explore the optimal duration and timing of nutrition interventions.
Extractable and Non-Extractable Antioxidants Composition in the eBASIS Database: A Key Tool for Dietary Assessment in Human Health and Disease Research
Authors: Plumb Jenny , Durazzo Alessandra , Lucarini Massimo , Camilli Emanuela , Turrini Aida , Marletta Luisa , Finglas Paul
Published: November 2020

The antioxidant properties of foods are crucial in nutrition, food chemistry, and medicine studies but are often underestimated, with significant amounts of bioactive compounds containing physiological and biochemical properties remaining in the residue from extraction as non-extractable antioxidants. Over the last decade, extractable and non-extractable compounds have become key in the evaluation/determination of the antioxidant properties of food matrices because of their relevance in human health. This has led to the need to include extractable and non-extractable antioxidants in comprehensive and harmonized food composition databases for a wide range of applications within research, food, pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, and cosmeceutical areas. Additionally, the databases are invaluable as part of the health claims application process. eBASIS, (Bioactive Substances in Food Information System) a comprehensive database containing quality-evaluated scientific data, covering the composition of bioactive compounds present in foods, has flexible structures, allowing it to be extended to include newly emerging data on extractable and non-extractable compounds. Search criteria were developed and defined for compiling suitable peer-reviewed literature. Data quality assessment methods were established for the addition of composition data and antioxidant activity, with a focus on various parameters including: the extraction procedure, the antioxidant measurements, the expression of results. A total of 437 quality-evaluated datapoints on the composition of extractable and/or non-extractable compounds were entered into the database. This database update represents one of the first examples of building a database dedicated to antioxidant properties. This expansion of eBASIS provides a novel and unique tool for nutritionists, dietitians, researchers to use for a wide range of applications, such as dietary assessment, exposure studies and epidemiological studies, and may contribute to an increase in high-bioactive food consumption by consumers.
l-Cysteine and Vitamin D Co-Supplementation Alleviates Markers of Musculoskeletal Disorders in Vitamin D-Deficient High-Fat Diet-Fed Mice
Authors: Parsanathan Rajesh , Achari Arunkumar E. , Manna Prasenjit , Jain Sushil K.
Published: November 2020

Vitamin D (VD) deficiency is associated with musculoskeletal disorders. This study examines whether co-supplementation of l-cysteine (LC) and VD is better than monotherapy with LC or VD at alleviating musculoskeletal dyshomeostasis in the skeletal muscle of VD-deficient high-fat diet (HFD-VD-) fed mice. Mice were fed a healthy diet or an HFD; for VD-deficient animals, the mice were maintained on a HFD-VD-diet (16 weeks); after the first 8 weeks, the HFD-VD-diet-fed mice were supplemented for another 8 weeks with LC, VD-alone, or the same doses of LC + VD by oral gavage. Saline and olive oil served as controls. Myotubes were exposed with high-glucose, palmitate, Monocyte Chemoattractant Protein 1 (MCP-1), and Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF), to mimic the in vivo microenvironment. In vitro deficiencies of glutathione and hydrogen sulfide were induced by knockdown of GCLC and CSE genes. Relative gene expression of biomarkers (myogenic: MyoD, Mef2c, Csrp3; muscle dystrophy: Atrogin1, Murf1, and Myostatin; bone modeling and remodeling: RANK, RANKL, OPG) were analyzed using qRT-PCR. Co-supplementatoin with LC + VD showed beneficial effects on gene expression of myogenic markers and OPG but reduced markers of dystrophy, RANK/RANKL in comparison to LC or VD alone-supplementation. In vitro myotubes treated with glutathione (GSH) precursors also showed a positive effect on OPG and the myogenesis genes, and inhibited RANK/RANKL and muscle-dystrophy markers. This study reveals that the co-supplementation of LC with VD significantly alleviates the markers of musculoskeletal disorders in the skeletal muscle better than monotherapy with LC or VD in HFD-VD-fed mice.
Contribution of Major Groups of Food Products to the Daily Intake of Selected Elements—Results from Analytical Determinations Supported by Chemometric Analysis
Authors: Koch Wojciech , Czop Marcin , Nawrocka Agnieszka , Wiącek Dariusz
Published: November 2020

Food is a major source of minerals for humans. The main objective of this study was to determine the intake level of 10 essential macro- (Na, K, Ca, and Mg) and trace elements (Cu, Zn, Mn, Fe, Cr, and Se) with major food groups among young adults. Dietary intake of elements was evaluated using the 24-h dietary recall technique in combination with F-AAS and ICP-OES methods. A very high intake of sodium and a very low intake of calcium, combined with inappropriate sodium/potassium ratio, may be harmful to the health of the population. Dietary intake of trace elements was within the range of reference values in the subjects, with cereals being the major source of a majority of those elements, while meat (38% for Na), vegetables (25% for K), and milk products (75% for Ca) were the main contributors to the daily dietary intake of macroelements. PCA revealed several visible trends in the datasetAmong men, the intake of Zn, Cr Na and K was significantly correlated with the consumption of meat and vegetables, whereas Mg, Se, Fe and Cu with cereals and water and beverages. Among women, the intake of Mg was significantly correlated with the consumption of meat and vegetables.
The Effectiveness of the Foodbot Factory Mobile Serious Game on Increasing Nutrition Knowledge in Children
Authors: Froome Hannah M. , Townson Carly , Rhodes Sheila , Franco-Arellano Beatriz , LeSage Ann , Savaglio Rob , Brown Jacqueline Marie , Hughes Janette , Kapralos Bill , Arcand JoAnne
Published: November 2020

The interactive and engaging nature of serious games (i.e., video games designed for educational purposes) enables deeper learning and facilitates behavior change; however, most do not specifically support the dissemination of national dietary guidelines, and there are limited data on their impact on child nutrition knowledge. The Foodbot Factory serious game mobile application was developed to support school children in learning about Canada’s Food Guide; however, its impacts on nutrition knowledge have not been evaluated. The objective of this study was to determine if Foodbot Factory effectively improves children’s knowledge of Canada’s Food Guide, compared to a control group (control app). This study was a single-blinded, parallel, randomized controlled pilot study conducted among children ages 8–10 years attending Ontario Tech University day camps. Compared to the control group (n = 34), children who used Foodbot Factory (n = 39) had significant increases in overall nutrition knowledge (10.3 ± 2.9 to 13.5 ± 3.8 versus 10.2 ± 3.1 to 10.4 ± 3.2, p < 0.001), and in Vegetables and Fruits (p < 0.001), Protein Foods (p < 0.001), and Whole Grain Foods (p = 0.040) sub-scores. No significant difference in knowledge was observed in the Drinks sub-score. Foodbot Factory has the potential to be an effective educational tool to support children in learning about nutrition.
Probiotics Modulate Tilapia Resistance and Immune Response against Tilapia Lake Virus Infection
Authors: Waiyamitra Pitchaporn , Zoral Mehmet Arif , Saengtienchai Aksorn , Luengnaruemitchai Amorn , Decamp Olivier , Gorgoglione Bartolomeo , Surachetpong Win
Published: November 2020

Tilapia lake virus (TiLV) causes an emerging viral disease associated with high mortality and economic damage in tilapia farming around the world. The use of probiotics in aquaculture has been suggested as an alternative to antibiotics and drugs to reduce the negative impact of bacterial and viral infections. In this study, we investigate the effect of probiotic Bacillus spp. supplementation on mortality, viral load, and expression of immune-related genes in red hybrid tilapia (Oreochromis spp.) upon TiLV infection. Fish were divided into three groups, and fed with: control diet, 0.5% probiotics-supplemented diet, and 1% probiotics-supplemented diet. After 21 days of experimental feeding, the three groups were infected with TiLV and monitored for mortality and growth performances, while organs were sampled at different time points to measure viral load and the transcription modulation of immune response markers. No significant difference was found among the groups in terms of weight gain (WG), average daily gain (ADG), feed efficiency (FE), or feed conversion ratio (FCR). A lower cumulative mortality was retrieved from fish fed 0.5% and 1% probiotics (25% and 24%, respectively), compared to the control group (32%). Moreover, fish fed with 1% probiotic diet had a significantly lower viral load, than those fed with 0.5% probiotic and control diet at 5, 6, 9, and 12 days post infection-challenge (dpc). The expression patterns of immune-related genes, including il-8 (also known as CXCL8), ifn-γ, irf-3, mx, rsad-2 (also known as VIPERIN) showed significant upregulation upon probiotic treatment during the peak of TiLV pathogenesis (between 9 and 12 dpc) and during most of the study period in fish fed with 1% probiotics-supplemented diet. Taken together, these findings indicate that dietary supplementation using Bacillus spp. probiotics may have beneficial effects to strengthen tilapia immunity and resistance against TiLV infections. Therefore, probiotic treatments may be preventively administered to reduce losses caused by this emerging viral infection in tilapia aquaculture.
Prevalence, Intensity, and Correlates of Schistosomiasis and Soil-Transmitted Helminth Infections after Five Rounds of Preventive Chemotherapy among School Children in Southern Ethiopia
Authors: Gebreyesus Tigist Dires , Tadele Tafesse , Mekete Kalkidan , Barry Abbie , Gashaw Habtamu , Degefe Workagegnehu , Tadesse Birkneh Tilahun , Gerba Heran , Gurumurthy Parthasarathi , Makonnen Eyasu , Aklillu Eleni
Published: November 2020

Preventive chemotherapy (PC) is a WHO-recommended strategy to control and eliminate schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminths (STHs). We assessed the prevalence, intensity, and correlates of schistosomiasis and STH infection after five rounds of PC in southern Ethiopia. A total of 3162 school children from four schools in Wondo Gennet and Hawella Tula districts were screened for Schistosoma mansoni and STHs infection. The overall prevalence of S. mansoni infection was 25.8% (range between schools 11.6% to 54.1%), with light (19.1%), moderate (5.3%), and heavy (1.4%) infection intensities. A total of 61.6% S. mansoni-infected children were STH co-infected. The overall prevalence of STHs infection was 54.7% (range between schools 30.6–71.0%), with moderate-to-heavy intensity infections being 16.3%. Ascaris lumbricoides was the most prevalent 45% (95% CI, 43.5–47) followed by Trichuris trichiura 25.3% (95% CI, 23.8–26.9) and hookworm 6.1% (95% CI, 5.3–7). A total of 33.7% of STHs-infected children had A. lumbricoides and T. trichiura co-infections. S. mansoni infection was significantly associated with school and STHs co-infection (p < 0.001). STH infection was correlated with school and younger age (p < 0.001). Despite repeated PC, S. mansoni and STH infection remain significant health problems, and the WHO target to control schistosomiasis and eliminate STH by 2020 may not be achieved. Intensified control and prevention measures, including drug efficacy surveillance, is recommended.
Impact of Hydroxychloroquine on Mortality in Hospitalized Patients with COVID-19: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Hong Thomas S. , Gonzalez Jimmy , Nahass Ronald G. , Brunetti Luigi
Published: November 2020

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused significant health and economic havoc around the globe. One of the early agents targeted for repurposing to treat and prevent COVID-19 was hydroxychloroquine (HCQ). In this systematic review and meta-analysis, HCQ is evaluated for its potential role in decreasing mortality in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. We searched PubMed, Web of Science, and medRxiv databases using combinations of the terms “COVID-19”, “SARS-CoV-2”, “coronavirus”, “hydroxychloroquine”, and “mortality”. Articles were selected for further review based on the content of their abstracts. Studies were excluded if they were of poor methodological quality, were not based in the inpatient setting, or did not have available data to assess the primary outcome of death between patients treated with HCQ versus standard of care. Once the final dataset was compiled, a meta-analysis using the random-effects model was performed. Our search identified 14 studies involving 24,780 patients of whom 12,707 patients were on HCQ alone or in combination with other adjuvant therapies. HCQ alone or in combination with other drugs did not significantly decrease mortality in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 (odds ratio [OR], 0.95; 95% CI, 0.72–1.26; p = 0.732; I2 = 91.05). Similar findings were observed in all subgroup analyses. HCQ did not significantly impact mortality in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. Additional well-designed studies are essential due to the heterogeneity in available studies.
An Improved Multi-Satellite Method for Evaluating Real-Time BDS Satellite Clock Offset Products
Authors: Yuan Zhimin , Cai Changsheng , Pan Lin , Kuang Cuilin
Published: November 2020

Two methods are widely used for evaluating the precision of satellite clock products, namely the single-satellite method (SSM) and the multi-satellite method (MSM). In the satellite clock product evaluation, an important issue is how to eliminate the timescale difference. The SSM selects a reference satellite to eliminate the timescale difference by between-satellite differencing, but its evaluation results are susceptible to the gross errors in the referenced satellite clock offsets. In the MSM, the timescale difference is first estimated and then removed. Unlike the GPS, the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) consists of three types of satellites, namely geosynchronous earth orbit (GEO), inclined geosynchronous orbit (IGSO), and medium earth orbit (MEO) satellites. The three types of satellites have uneven orbital accuracy. In the generation of satellite clock products, the orbital errors are partly assimilated into the clock offsets. If neglecting the orbital accuracy difference of the three types of BeiDou satellites, the MSM will obtain biased estimates of the timescale difference and finally affect the clock product evaluation. In this study, an improved multi-satellite method (IMSM) is proposed for evaluating the real-time BDS clock products by removing the assimilated orbital errors of the three types of BDS satellites when estimating the timescale difference. Three real-time BDS clock products disseminated by three different International GNSS Service (IGS) analysis centers, namely CLK16, CLK20, and CLK93, over a period of two months are used to validate this method. The results indicate that the assimilated orbital errors have a significant impact on the estimation of the timescale difference. Subsequently, the IMSM is compared with the SSM in which the referenced satellite is rigorously chosen, and their RMS difference is only 0.08 ns, which suggests that the evaluation results obtained by the IMSM are accurate. Compared with the traditional MSM, the IMSM improves the RMS by 0.16, 0.11, and 0.07 ns for CLK16, CLK20, and CLK93, respectively. Finally, three real-time BDS clock products are evaluated using the proposed method, and results reveal a significant precision difference among them.
Improving the Retrieval of Carbon-Based Phytoplankton Biomass from Satellite Ocean Colour Observations
Authors: Bellacicco Marco , Pitarch Jaime , Organelli Emanuele , Martinez-Vicente Victor , Volpe Gianluca , Marullo Salvatore
Published: November 2020

Phytoplankton is at the base of the marine food web and plays a fundamental role in the global carbon cycle. Ongoing climate change significantly impacts phytoplankton distribution in the ocean. Monitoring phytoplankton is crucial for a full understanding of changes in the marine ecosystem. To observe phytoplankton from space, chlorophyll-a concentration (Chl) has been widely used as a proxy of algal biomass, although it can be impacted by physiology. Therefore, there has been an increasing focus towards estimating phytoplankton biomass in units of carbon (Cphyto). Here, we developed an algorithm to quantify Cphyto from space-based observations that accounts for the spatio-temporal variations of the backscattering coefficient associated with the fraction of detrital particles that do not covary with Chl. The main findings are: (i) a spatial and temporal variation of the detritus component must be accounted for in the Cphyto algorithm; (ii) the refined Cphyto algorithm performs better (relative bias of 23.7%) than any previously existing model; and (iii) our algorithm shows the lowest error in Cphyto across areas where picophytoplankton dominates (relative bias of 14%). In other areas, it is currently not possible to accurately assess the performance of the refined algorithm due to the paucity of in situ carbon data associated with nano- and micro-phytoplankton size classes.
Retrieval of Daily Reference Evapotranspiration for Croplands in South Korea Using Machine Learning with Satellite Images and Numerical Weather Prediction Data
Authors: Kim Nari , Kim Kwangjin , Lee Soobong , Cho Jaeil , Lee Yangwon
Published: November 2020

Evapotranspiration (ET) is an important component of the Earth’s energy and water cycle via the interaction between the atmosphere and the land surface. The reference evapotranspiration (ET0) is particularly important in the croplands because it is a convenient and reasonable method for calculating the actual evapotranspiration (AET) that represents the loss of water in the croplands through the soil evaporation and vegetation transpiration. To date, many efforts have been made to retrieve ET0 on a spatially continuous grid. In particular, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) product is provided with a reasonable spatial resolution of 500 m and a temporal resolution of 8 days. However, the applicability to the local-scale variabilities due to complex and heterogeneous land surfaces in countries like South Korea is not sufficiently validated. Meanwhile, the AI approaches showed a useful functionality for the ET0 retrieval on the local scale but have rarely demonstrated a substantial product for a spatially continuous grid. This paper presented a retrieval of the daily reference evapotranspiration (ET0) over a 500 m grid for croplands in South Korea using machine learning (ML) with satellite images and numerical weather prediction data. In a blind test for 2013–2019, the ML-based ET0 model produced the accuracy statistics with a root mean square error of 1.038 mm/day and a correlation coefficient of 0.870. The results of the blind test were stable irrespective of location, year, and month. This outcome is presumably because the input data of the ML-based ET0 model were suitably arranged spatially and temporally, and the optimization of the model was appropriate. We found that the relative humidity and land surface temperature were the most influential variables for the ML-based ET0 model, but the variables with lower importance were also necessary to consider the nonlinearity between the variables. Using the daily ET0 data produced over the 500 m grid, we conducted a case study to examine agrometeorological characteristics of the croplands in South Korea during the period when heatwave and drought events occurred. Through the experiments, the feasibility of the ML-based ET0 retrieval was validated, especially for local agrometeorological applications in regions with heterogeneous land surfaces, such as South Korea.
Identification of Electromagnetic Pre-Earthquake Perturbations from the DEMETER Data by Machine Learning
Authors: Xiong Pan , Long Cheng , Zhou Huiyu , Battiston Roberto , Zhang Xuemin , Shen Xuhui
Published: November 2020

The low-altitude satellite DEMETER recorded many cases of ionospheric perturbations observed on occasion of large seismic events. In this paper, we explore 16 spot-checking classification algorithms, among which, the top classifier with low-frequency power spectra of electric and magnetic fields was used for ionospheric perturbation analysis. This study included the analysis of satellite data spanning over six years, during which about 8760 earthquakes with magnitude greater than or equal to 5.0 occurred in the world. We discover that among these methods, a gradient boosting-based method called LightGBM outperforms others and achieves superior performance in a five-fold cross-validation test on the benchmarking datasets, which shows a strong capability in discriminating electromagnetic pre-earthquake perturbations. The results show that the electromagnetic pre-earthquake data within a circular region with its center at the epicenter and its radius given by the Dobrovolsky’s formula and the time window of about a few hours before shocks are much better at discriminating electromagnetic pre-earthquake perturbations. Moreover, by investigating different earthquake databases, we confirm that some low-frequency electric and magnetic fields’ frequency bands are the dominant features for electromagnetic pre-earthquake perturbations identification. We have also found that the choice of the geographical region used to simulate the training set of non-seismic data influences, to a certain extent, the performance of the LightGBM model, by reducing its capability in discriminating electromagnetic pre-earthquake perturbations.
Improving Stage–Discharge Relation in The Mekong River Estuary by Remotely Sensed Long-Period Ocean Tides
Authors: Peng Hongrui , Fok Hok Sum , Gong Junyi , Wang Lei
Published: November 2020

Ocean tidal backwater reshapes the stage–discharge relation in the fluvial-to-marine transition zone at estuaries, rendering the cautious use of these data for hydrological studies. While a qualitative explanation is traditionally provided by examining a scatter plot of water discharge against water level, a quantitative assessment of long-period ocean tidal effect on the stage–discharge relation has been rarely investigated. This study analyzes the relationship among water level, water discharge, and ocean tidal height via their standardized forms in the Mekong Delta. We found that semiannual and annual components of ocean tides contribute significantly to the discrepancy between standardized water level and standardized water discharge time series. This reveals that the long-period ocean tides are the significant factors influencing the stage–discharge relation in the river delta, implying a potential of improving the relation as long as proper long-period ocean tidal components are taken into consideration. By isolating the short-period signals (i.e., less than 15 days) from land surface hydrology and ocean tides, better consistent stage–discharge relations are obtained, in terms of improving the Pearson correlation coefficient (PCC) from ~0.4 to ~0.8 and from ~0.6 to ~0.9 for the stations closest to the estuary and at the Mekong Delta entrance, respectively. By incorporating the long-period ocean tidal height time series generated from a remotely sensed global ocean tide model into the stage–discharge relation, further refined stage–discharge relations are obtained with the PCC higher than 0.9 for all employed stations, suggesting the improvement of daily averaged water level and water discharge while ignoring the short-period intratidal variability. The remotely sensed global ocean tide model, OSU12, which contains annual and semiannual ocean tide components, is capable of generating accurate tidal height time series necessary for the partial recovery of the stage–discharge relation.
Laboratory Calibration of Energy Measurement Systems (EMS) under AC Distorted Waveforms
Authors: Istrate Daniela , Khamlichi Abderrahim , Soccalingame Soureche , Rovira Jorge , Fortune Dominique , Sira Martin , Simon Pascual , Garnacho Fernando
Published: November 2020

Current standard EN 50463-2 indicates the tests and the requirements to be satisfied for an energy measurement system of a traction unit for railway applications. Some of these tests are to be done with several harmonics superposed on the rated voltage, respectively current. However, no calibration systems satisfying the standard requirements were available few years ago. The work performed in the EURAMET project “MyRailS” leads to the development of fictive power sources and reference measurement systems described in this paper. Therefore, it is possible to generate distorted 25 kV-50 Hz voltages with harmonics up to 5 kHz and 90° phase-fired currents up to 500 A with harmonics up to 5 kHz. The generated power is measured by developed traceable reference systems with accuracy better than 0.5%.
Computational Diagnostic Techniques for Electrocardiogram Signal Analysis
Authors: Xie Liping , Li Zilong , Zhou Yihan , He Yiliu , Zhu Jiaxin
Published: November 2020

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), including asymptomatic myocardial ischemia, angina, myocardial infarction, and ischemic heart failure, are the leading cause of death globally. Early detection and treatment of CVDs significantly contribute to the prevention or delay of cardiovascular death. Electrocardiogram (ECG) records the electrical impulses generated by heart muscles, which reflect regular or irregular beating activity. Computer-aided techniques provide fast and accurate tools to identify CVDs using a patient’s ECG signal, which have achieved great success in recent years. Latest computational diagnostic techniques based on ECG signals for estimating CVDs conditions are summarized here. The procedure of ECG signals analysis is discussed in several subsections, including data preprocessing, feature engineering, classification, and application. In particular, the End-to-End models integrate feature extraction and classification into learning algorithms, which not only greatly simplifies the process of data analysis, but also shows excellent accuracy and robustness. Portable devices enable users to monitor their cardiovascular status at any time, bringing new scenarios as well as challenges to the application of ECG algorithms. Computational diagnostic techniques for ECG signal analysis show great potential for helping health care professionals, and their application in daily life benefits both patients and sub-healthy people.
Performances and Biosensing Mechanisms of Interdigitated Capacitive Sensors Based on the Hetero-mixture of SnO2 and In2O3
Authors: Chandran Mukkattu Kuniyil Akhil , Zavašnik Janez , Cvejić Željka , Sarang Sohail , Simić Mitar , Srdić Vladimir V. , Stojanović Goran M.
Published: November 2020

This study aims to discuss the synthesis and fabrication of SnO2-In2O3-based thick-films and their biosensing applications. The structural characterization of SnO2-In2O3 nanocomposites was performed using X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. Furthermore, the screen-printing technology was used in the fabrication of conductive electrodes to form an interdigitated capacitive structure, and the sensor layer based on the mixture of SnO2 and In2O3. Moreover, the sensing performance of the developed structure was tested using Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) bacteria. In addition, the validation of sensing characteristics was performed by electrochemical impedance spectroscopic and self-resonant frequency analysis. Finally, the sensing properties were analyzed for two consecutive days, and changes in both P. aeruginosa and S. aureus pathogens growing media were also studied.
Control Systems and Electronic Instrumentation Applied to Autonomy in Wheelchair Mobility: The State of the Art
Authors: Callejas-Cuervo Mauro , González-Cely Aura Ximena , Bastos-Filho Teodiano
Published: November 2020

Automatic wheelchairs have evolved in terms of instrumentation and control, solving the mobility problems of people with physical disabilities. With this work it is intended to establish the background of the instrumentation and control methods of automatic wheelchairs and prototypes, as well as a classification in each category. To this end a search of specialised databases was carried out for articles published between 2012 and 2019. Out of these, 97 documents were selected based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The following categories were proposed for these articles: (a) wheelchair instrumentation and control methods, among which there are systems that implement micro-electromechanical sensors (MEMS), surface electromyography (sEMG), electrooculography (EOG), electroencephalography (EEG), and voice recognition systems; (b) wheelchair instrumentation, among which are found obstacle detection systems, artificial vision (image and video), as well as navigation systems (GPS and GSM). The results found in this review tend towards the use of EEG signals, head movements, voice commands, and algorithms to avoid obstacles. The most used techniques involve the use of a classic control and thresholding to move the wheelchair. In addition, the discussion was mainly based on the characteristics of the user and the types of control. To conclude, the articles exhibited the existing limitations and possible solutions in their designs, as well as informing the physically disabled community about the technological developments in this field.
An Energy-Based Method for Orientation Correction of EMG Bracelet Sensors in Hand Gesture Recognition Systems
Authors: Barona López Lorena Isabel Barona , Valdivieso Caraguay Ángel Leonardo Valdivieso , Vimos Victor H. , Zea Jonathan A. , Vásconez Juan P. , Álvarez Marcelo , Benalcázar Marco E.
Published: November 2020

Hand gesture recognition (HGR) systems using electromyography (EMG) bracelet-type sensors are currently largely used over other HGR technologies. However, bracelets are susceptible to electrode rotation, causing a decrease in HGR performance. In this work, HGR systems with an algorithm for orientation correction are proposed. The proposed orientation correction method is based on the computation of the maximum energy channel using a synchronization gesture. Then, the channels of the EMG are rearranged in a new sequence which starts with the maximum energy channel. This new sequence of channels is used for both training and testing. After the EMG channels are rearranged, this signal passes through the following stages: pre-processing, feature extraction, classification, and post-processing. We implemented user-specific and user-general HGR models based on a common architecture which is robust to rotations of the EMG bracelet. Four experiments were performed, taking into account two different metrics which are the classification and recognition accuracy for both models implemented in this work, where each model was evaluated with and without rotation of the bracelet. The classification accuracy measures how well a model predicted which gesture is contained somewhere in a given EMG, whereas recognition accuracy measures how well a model predicted when it occurred, how long it lasted, and which gesture is contained in a given EMG. The results of the experiments (without and with orientation correction) executed show an increase in performance from 44.5% to 81.2% for classification and from 43.3% to 81.3% for recognition in user-general models, while in user-specific models, the results show an increase in performance from 39.8% to 94.9% for classification and from 38.8% to 94.2% for recognition. The results obtained in this work evidence that the proposed method for orientation correction makes the performance of an HGR robust to rotations of the EMG bracelet.
A New Planar Microwave Sensor for Building Materials Complex Permittivity Characterization
Authors: Oliveira João G. D. , Junior José G. Duarte , Pinto Erica N. M. G. , Neto Valdemir P. Silva , D’Assunção Adaildo G.
Published: November 2020

A new microwave sensor is proposed to characterize the complex relative permittivity of building non-magnetic materials and used in the characterization of three concrete samples. The proposed sensor structure consists of a log-periodic planar antenna with microstrip elements tilted forward by an angle β and printed, alternately, on the top and bottom sides of a dielectric layer. The operation principle is based on the measurement of the scattering parameters S11 and S21 in a free space propagation transmitter-receiver setup, for both cases with the material under test (MUT) sample (non-line-of-sight, NLOS) and without it (line-of-sight, LOS). A prototype is fabricated and measured to determine the scattering parameters of concrete samples. After measurements, the obtained results are used in the efficient and accurate Nicolson–Ross–Weir (NRW) method, making it possible to estimate the values of the complex relative permittivity of the concrete blocks. The sensor design is demonstrated from initial simulations to measurements for validation of the developed prototype. The obtained results for the complex relative permittivity of concrete are in agreement with those available in the literature and the difference between the simulated and measurement results for the sensor antenna resonant frequency is 4.71%. The used measurement setup can be applied to characterize different types of solid or liquid dielectric materials.
A Single-Fed Multiband Antenna for WLAN and 5G Applications
Authors: Khan Zakir , Memon Muhammad Hunain , Rahman Saeed Ur , Sajjad Muhammad , Lin Fujiang , Sun Liguo
Published: November 2020

In this paper, a slotted conical patch connected to a small triangular patch multiband antenna for both microwave and millimeter-wave applications is presented. The designed antenna has three characteristics. The proposed antenna is a multiband, having a compact size of 0.35λ0 × 0.35λ0 × 0.004λ0 at its lowest operational frequency, i.e., 2.4 GHz, and more importantly, it can cover both the microwave and millimeter-wave bands with a single feeding. According to the −10 dB matching bandwidth, experimental results show that the antenna operates at (2.450–2.495) GHz, (5.0–6.3) GHz, and (23–28) GHz. The reduced size, simple design, and multiband large bandwidth are some of the advantages over the reported designs in the latest literature. Both simulated and experimental results show a good agreement, and the proposed antenna can be used for wireless local area network (WLAN) applications and fifth-generation (5G) wireless communication devices.
Improving Just-in-Time Delivery Performance of IoT-Enabled Flexible Manufacturing Systems with AGV Based Material Transportation
Authors: Yao Fengjia , Alkan Bugra , Ahmad Bilal , Harrison Robert
Published: November 2020

Autonomous guided vehicles (AGVs) are driverless material handling systems used for transportation of pallets and line side supply of materials to provide flexibility and agility in shop-floor logistics. Scheduling of shop-floor logistics in such systems is a challenging task due to their complex nature associated with the multiple part types and alternate material transfer routings. This paper presents a decision support system capable of supporting shop-floor decision-making activities during the event of manufacturing disruptions by automatically adjusting both AGV and machine schedules in Flexible Manufacturing Systems (FMSs). The proposed system uses discrete event simulation (DES) models enhanced by the Internet-of-Things (IoT) enabled digital integration and employs a nonlinear mixed integer programming Genetic Algorithm (GA) to find near-optimal production schedules prioritising the just-in-time (JIT) material delivery performance and energy efficiency of the material transportation. The performance of the proposed system is tested on the Integrated Manufacturing and Logistics (IML) demonstrator at WMG, University of Warwick. The results showed that the developed system can find the near-optimal solutions for production schedules subjected to production anomalies in a negligible time, thereby supporting shop-floor decision-making activities effectively and rapidly.
Feasibility of Backscatter Communication Using LoRAWAN Signals for Deep Implanted Devices and Wearable Applications
Authors: Lazaro Marc , Lazaro Antonio , Villarino Ramon
Published: November 2020

This paper presents a method for low data rate transmission for devices implanted in the body using backscattered Long Range (LoRa) signals. The method uses an antenna loaded with a switch that changes between two load impedances at the rate of a modulating oscillator. Consequently, the LoRa signal transmitted by a LoRa node is reflected in the adjacent channels and can be detected with a LoRa gateway tuned to the shifted channels. A prototype developed to operate at Medical Implant Communication Service (MICS) and the Industrial Scientific and Medical (ISM) 433 MHz band is presented. The prototype uses a commercial ceramic antenna with a matched network tuned to the frequency band with high radiation efficiency. The effect of the coating material covering the antenna was studied. Simulated and experimental results using a phantom show that it is feasible to read data from deep implanted devices placed a few meters from the body because of the high sensitivity of commercial LoRa receivers.