bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effect of water and seawater on mechanical properties of fiber reinforced polymer composites: a review for amphibious aircraft float development
Authors: Abdurohman K , Adhitya M
Published: November 2019

One of the composite applications is its utilize in the water and seawater environments like boats, ships and float device of amphibious aircraft. This environment can affect the mechanical properties of composites since water can diffuse into the composites. Many researches have discussed about the effect of water and seawater on mechanical properties of composites like tensile, compressive, shear, and impact properties. This review is conducted on the field of durability of composites in water and seawater environment. Most studies are carried out by immersing composites in water and seawater for a certain period of time. Almost all studies exhibit the degradation of the mechanical properties of composites with ageing time of the immersion process in water or seawater.
The Impact of Aging Time on Structure and Corrosion Resistance of Aluminum 2091 Lithium Alloy for Aerospace Application
Authors: Octavian Arya , Soegijono Bambang
Published: November 2019

In need of aerospace and automotive industries, the aluminum lithium alloy becomes a worldwide topic because of its corrosion resistance, hardness, and categorized as a lightweight material. This alloy has high resistance to corrosion due to doped alloying element, such as copper. Addition of lithium to aluminum alloys lowers its density. This paper was meant to study the impact of aging time at 190°C for 24 hours, 42 hours, and 72 hours on aluminum alloy crystal. The materials had solutionized at 525°C for 5 hours and had quenched at water before it was artificially aged. Besides corrosion resistance, the structure of this alloy are change as the aging times rise that caused by Al2Cu precipitation. To examine the electrochemical response of this material, potentiodynamic curves were obtained for aluminium lithium alloy 2091 during standard test in natural deaerated 3.5% wt and 7.0% wt NaCl solution after heat treatment. The structure after heat treatment were characterized by using X-ray diffraction. The results showed that aging time modified the structure and lead to change the electrochemical behaviour.
Effect of part orientation on dimensional accuracy, part strength, and surface quality of three dimensional printed part
Authors: Abdelrhman Ahmed M. , Wei Gan Wen , Kurniawan D.
Published: November 2019

Additive manufacturing such as fused deposition modelling (FDM) three dimensional printing machine can deliver complex shapes with fine details in relatively short building time using various materials (albeit mostly polymers in this case). However, the quality of the printed results might vary depending on the set input. The present study aims to investigate the effects of part orientation on dimensional accuracy, part strength, total cost, and surface quality of a three dimensional printed part. Five test specimens were printed on FDM machine with polylactic acid (PLA) as the material by varying the build orientation, i.e. X0°Y0°, X90°Y0°, X0°Y90°, X0°Y45°, and X90°Y45°. Dimensional accuracy, surface roughness, and part strength were measured by using digital vernier calliper, universal testing machine, and portable surface roughness tester, respectively. The results show that part orientation influences printed part quality, especially in accuracy and surface roughness. No part orientation studied delivered all positive quality expected, but overall, X0°Y0° orientation resulted the highest quality in terms of dimensional accuracy, mechanical properties, and cost.
Modification of TiO2 with hBN: high temperature anatase phase stabilisation and photocatalytic degradation of 1,4-dioxane
Authors: Byrne Ciara , Rhatigan Stephen , Hermosilla Daphne , Merayo Noemí , Blanco Ángeles , Michel Marie Clara , Hinder Steven , Nolan Michael , Pillai Suresh C
Published: November 2019

This paper examines the modification of anatase TiO2 with hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) and the impact this coupling has on the temperature of the anatase to rutile phase transition and photocatalytic activity. All samples were 100% anatase when calcined up to 500 °C. At 600 °C, all BN-modified samples contain mixed rutile and anatase phases, with 8% and 16% BN–TiO2 showing the highest anatase contents of 64.4% and 65.5% respectively. The control sample converted fully to rutile at 600 °C while the BN modified sample converted to rutile only at 650 °C. In addition to TiO2 phase composition, XRD also showed the presence of bulk boron nitride peaks, with the peak at 26° indicating the graphite-like hBN structure. Density functional theory calculations of hBN-rings adsorbed at the anatase (101) surface show strong binding at the interface; new interfacial bonds are formed with key interfacial features being formation of B–O–Ti and N–Ti bonds. Models of extended hBN sheets at the anatase (101) surface show that formation of B–O and N–Ti bonds along the edge of the hBN sheet anchor it to the anatase surface. 16% BN–TiO2 at 500 °C showed a significant increase in the photocatalytic degradation of 1,4-dioxane when compared with pure anatase TiO2 at 500 °C. This arises from the effect of hBN on anatase. The computed density of states (DOS) plots show that interfacing anatase with BN results in a red shift in the TiO2 energy gap; N-p states extend the valence band maximum (VBM) to higher energies. This facilitates transitions from high lying N-p states to the Ti-d conduction band. A simple photoexcited state model shows separation of electrons and holes onto TiO2 and BN, respectively, which promotes the photocatalytic activity.
2. Federalism, American style
Authors: Rozell Mark J. , Wilcox Clyde
Published: November 2019

“Federalism, American style” describes the end of the colonial period, the Articles of Confederation, and the drafting of the new Constitution. Federal systems are partially a function of history, geography, and political and social factors. The US federal system is more decentralized than those of most other countries, in part because thirteen separate colonies spent years resisting central control from Britain and fought a war of independence. They were not keen to give up power to a central government. The Constitution and the Bill of Rights set into motion the formal bases for the US federal system. Key provisions of the Constitution specifically address how federalism should operate.
4. What state and local governments do
Authors: Rozell Mark J. , Wilcox Clyde
Published: November 2019

Even as most Americans fix their gaze on the actions of the federal government, states and localities are the cornerstones of the US federal system. “What state and local governments do” explains that states are free to design their own governments so long as their structure does not violate the US Constitution. All states have designed their governments to somewhat resemble the national government, with an elected governor, elected legislatures, and state supreme courts. However, each of these structures can operate in different ways, with different powers from state to state. The governments of the Native American reservations and those of the five permanently inhabited US territories are also discussed.
1. Behind the “big bang”
Authors: Carlin Richard
Published: November 2019

How did country music evolve? What were its antecedents? How did this unique style draw on different cultures to become a uniquely American creation? Behind the “big bang” explores how country music developed out of many different influences, and how this music was initially documented and received by scholars and folklorists, and performers and songwriters themselves. It also explores how selective aspects of these musical influences were used to market this music, particularly through new performance styles and music publishing. It begins with the ballads, dance, and religious music of Anglo-American traditions, before considering the influences of work songs and blues from the African American traditions.
3. “Back in the saddle again”
Authors: Carlin Richard
Published: November 2019

“Back in the saddle again” explains how the figure of the singing cowboy was cemented by a series of radio and Hollywood stars, from Gene Autry to Roy Rogers and Patsy Montana. Much of this music was popularized over the radio, particularly on Chicago’s National Barn Dance, which led to pressure on the Grand Ole Opry to modernize its sound. This era also saw the rise of the so-called “brother acts”—notably the Blue Sky Boys—who created a smoother form of old-time singing. During the mid-1930s, Western swing combined the cowboy image and country instrumentation with big-band stylings through the work of artists like Bob Wills.
7. “Friends in low places”
Authors: Carlin Richard
Published: November 2019

“Friends in low places” describes the roles of notable female performers in the new country world: Patty Loveless, Gretchen Wilson, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Lucinda Williams, Gillian Welch, Shania Twain, and Taylor Swift. The 1980s saw a return to country’s roots in reaction to the demise of countrypolitan and the influence of the country outlaws. Honky-tonk revivalists like George Strait, Randy Travis, and Alan Jackson brought traditional country themes of lovin’, cheatin’, drinkin’, and hell-raisin’ back to the top of the country charts. Superstar Garth Brooks modernized the subjects addressed in country music as well as its presentation onstage, borrowing from rock and mainstream performers.
6. Future energy systems
Authors: Jenkins Nick
Published: November 2019

Energy for a modern society must be affordable, reliable, and sustainable. ‘Future energy systems’ considers future electricity generation and electricity networks, including the Smart Grid. Electricity systems are expensive and the choice of technologies to be used is heavily influenced by their costs. Low carbon generation, such as nuclear and renewables, is particularly capital intensive. Local energy systems and microgrids are also considered alongside future gas systems. It is now being recognized that for the development of low carbon energy systems a more integrated and regional approach to energy supply is likely to be preferable. There are no short-term easy solutions to energy supply and all choices involve compromise.
1. Watching the tide
Authors: Bowers David George , Roberts Emyr Martyn
Published: November 2019

The tide is the ocean’s response to the variation in gravitational pull of the Moon and the Sun over the surface of the Earth. ‘Watching the tide’ considers the importance of tides, from tide knowledge for safe navigation of ships in coastal waters to tides as a source of mechanical energy in the form of potential and kinetic energy. Tides also mix the sea, maintaining vertical circulation of the ocean and pumping heat from the tropics to the poles. Tidal rhythms (or harmonics), including diurnal and semi-diurnal tides, are discussed along with tidal range, neap tides, spring tides, and meteorological effects called surges, which can cause serious flooding.
An efficient approach based on multi-sources information to predict circRNA–disease associations using deep convolutional neural network
Authors: Wang Lei , You Zhu-Hong , Huang Yu-An , Huang De-Shuang , Chan Keith C C
Published: November 2019

Motivation

Emerging evidence indicates that circular RNA (circRNA) plays a crucial role in human disease. Using circRNA as biomarker gives rise to a new perspective regarding our diagnosing of diseases and understanding of disease pathogenesis. However, detection of circRNA–disease associations by biological experiments alone is often blind, limited to small scale, high cost and time consuming. Therefore, there is an urgent need for reliable computational methods to rapidly infer the potential circRNA–disease associations on a large scale and to provide the most promising candidates for biological experiments.

Results

In this article, we propose an efficient computational method based on multi-source information combined with deep convolutional neural network (CNN) to predict circRNA–disease associations. The method first fuses multi-source information including disease semantic similarity, disease Gaussian interaction profile kernel similarity and circRNA Gaussian interaction profile kernel similarity, and then extracts its hidden deep feature through the CNN and finally sends them to the extreme learning machine classifier for prediction. The 5-fold cross-validation results show that the proposed method achieves 87.21% prediction accuracy with 88.50% sensitivity at the area under the curve of 86.67% on the CIRCR2Disease dataset. In comparison with the state-of-the-art SVM classifier and other feature extraction methods on the same dataset, the proposed model achieves the best results. In addition, we also obtained experimental support for prediction results by searching published literature. As a result, 7 of the top 15 circRNA–disease pairs with the highest scores were confirmed by literature. These results demonstrate that the proposed model is a suitable method for predicting circRNA–disease associations and can provide reliable candidates for biological experiments.

Availability and implementation

The source code and datasets explored in this work are available at https://github.com/look0012/circRNA-Disease-association.

Supplementary information

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
NeoFuse: predicting fusion neoantigens from RNA sequencing data
Authors: Fotakis Georgios , Rieder Dietmar , Haider Marlene , Trajanoski Zlatko , Finotello Francesca
Published: November 2019

Gene fusions can generate immunogenic neoantigens that mediate anticancer immune responses. However, their computational prediction from RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) data requires deep bioinformatics expertise to assembly a computational workflow covering the prediction of: fusion transcripts, their translated proteins and peptides, Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) types, and peptide-HLA binding affinity. Here, we present NeoFuse, a computational pipeline for the prediction of fusion neoantigens from tumor RNA-seq data. NeoFuse can be applied to cancer patients’ RNA-seq data to identify fusion neoantigens that might expand the repertoire of suitable targets for immunotherapy.

Availability and implementation

NeoFuse source code and documentation are available under GPLv3 license at https://icbi.i-med.ac.at/NeoFuse/.

Supplementary information

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Efficacy and safety of calcium carbonate in normophosphataemic patients with chronic kidney disease Stages 3 and 4
Authors: Neto Ricardo , Frazão João
Published: November 2019

Background

Disordered bone and mineral metabolism are a common complication of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Phosphate binders are often prescribed in advanced CKD, when hyperphosphataemia develops. Little is known about the role of these drugs in earlier stages, when serum phosphorus levels are kept in the normal range by increased urinary excretion.

Methods

A retrospective, controlled observational study was conducted on a cohort of 78 pre-dialysis patients. Subjects had CKD Stage 3 or 4, normal serum phosphorus levels and increased urinary fractional excretion of phosphate. Thirty-eight patients receiving calcium carbonate for 24 months were compared with 40 patients under no phosphate binders, regarding mineral metabolism parameters and vascular calcification scores.

Results

Calcium carbonate decreased mean urinary fractional excretion of phosphate and median 24-h urine phosphorus, whereas no significant change was seen in the control group. Mean serum phosphorus and median serum intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) remained stable in treated patients but increased in the control group. Vascular calcification, assessed by Kauppila and Adragão scores, worsened under calcium carbonate with no significant change in the control group.

Conclusions

Calcium carbonate reduced urinary phosphate excretion and prevented the rise in phosphorus and iPTH serum levels in a cohort of normophosphataemic pre-dialysis patients. However, treatment was associated with increased vascular calcification, suggesting that calcium-based phosphate binders are not a safe option for CKD patients.
Evolution of Aspergillus oryzae before and after domestication inferred by large-scale comparative genomic analysis
Authors: Watarai Naoki , Yamamoto Nozomi , Sawada Kazunori , Yamada Takuji
Published: November 2019

Aspergillus oryzae is an industrially useful species, of which various strains have been identified; however, their genetic relationships remain unclear. A. oryzae was previously thought to be asexual and unable to undergo crossbreeding. However, recent studies revealed the sexual reproduction of Aspergillus flavus, a species closely related to A. oryzae. To investigate potential sexual reproduction in A. oryzae and evolutionary history among A. oryzae and A. flavus strains, we assembled 82 draft genomes of A. oryzae strains used practically. The phylogenetic tree of concatenated genes confirmed that A. oryzae was monophyletic and nested in one of the clades of A. flavus but formed several clades with different genomic structures. Our results suggest that A. oryzae strains have undergone multiple inter-genomic recombination events between A. oryzae ancestors, although sexual recombination among domesticated species did not appear to have occurred during the domestication process, at least in the past few decades. Through inter- and intra-cladal comparative analysis, we found that evolutionary pressure induced by the domestication of A. oryzae appears to selectively cause non-synonymous and gap mutations in genes involved in fermentation characteristics, as well as intra-genomic rearrangements, with the conservation of industrially useful catalytic enzyme-encoding genes.
A restoration ecology perspective on the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease
Authors: Orr Matthew R , Kocurek Kathryn M , Bakos Yong J , McDowell Ryder C
Published: November 2019

The human gut can be considered an ecosystem comprised of a community of microbes and nonliving components such as food metabolites and food additives. Chronic diseases are increasingly associated with disruption of this ecosystem. The science of restoration ecology was developed to restore degraded ecosystems, but its principles have not been applied widely to gut medicine, including the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). One principle of ecological restoration is that ‘passive’ restoration, which involves removing an ecosystem disturbance, should occur before attempting additional ‘active’ interventions. We discuss evidence that poor diet is principle source of disturbance in IBD, and therefore requires better attention in its research and clinical care. Another restoration principle is that higher biodiversity may improve ecosystem behavior, but this idea has not been tested for its possible importance in donor stool during fecal microbiota transplants.

Lay summary: In patients with chronic disease the gut microbiome behaves like a disturbed ecosystem. Principles borrowed from the science of restoration ecology identify a need to better understand the influence of diet on treatment of inflammatory bowel disease and the importance of donor diversity in fecal microbiota transplants.
Immediate and late impact of reperfusion therapies in acute pulmonary embolism
Authors: Valerio Luca , Klok Frederikus A , Barco Stefano
Published: November 2019

Haemodynamic instability and right ventricular dysfunction are the key determinants of short-term prognosis in patients with acute pulmonary embolism (PE). Residual thrombi and persistent right ventricular dysfunction may contribute to post-PE functional impairment, and influence the risk of developing chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension. Patients with haemodynamic instability at presentation (high-risk PE) require immediate primary reperfusion to relieve the obstruction in the pulmonary circulation and increase the chances of survival. Surgical removal of the thrombi or catheter-directed reperfusion strategies is alternatives in patients with contraindications to systemic thrombolysis. For haemodynamically stable patients with signs of right ventricular overload or dysfunction (intermediate-risk PE), systemic standard-dose thrombolysis is currently not recommended, because the risk of major bleeding associated with the treatment outweighs its benefits. In such cases, thrombolysis should be considered only as a rescue intervention if haemodynamic decompensation develops. Catheter-directed pharmaco-logical and pharmaco-mechanical techniques ensure swift recovery of echocardiographic and haemodynamic parameters and may be characterized by better safety profile than systemic thrombolysis. For survivors of acute PE, little is known on the effects of reperfusion therapies on the risk of chronic functional and haemodynamic impairment. In intermediate-risk PE patients, available data suggest that systemic thrombolysis may have little impact on long-term symptoms and functional limitation, echocardiographic parameters, and occurrence of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension. Ongoing and future interventional studies will clarify whether ‘safer’ reperfusion strategies may improve early clinical outcomes without increasing the risk of bleeding and contribute to reducing the burden of long-term complications after intermediate-risk PE.
Estimating tree stem diameters and volume from smartphone photogrammetric point clouds
Authors: Marzulli Maria Immacolata , Raumonen Pasi , Greco Roberto , Persia Manuela , Tartarino Patrizia
Published: November 2019

Methods for the three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction of forest trees have been suggested for data from active and passive sensors. Laser scanner technologies have become popular in the last few years, despite their high costs. Since the improvements in photogrammetric algorithms (e.g. structure from motion—SfM), photographs have become a new low-cost source of 3D point clouds. In this study, we use images captured by a smartphone camera to calculate dense point clouds of a forest plot using SfM. Eighteen point clouds were produced by changing the densification parameters (Image scale, Point density, Minimum number of matches) in order to investigate their influence on the quality of the point clouds produced. In order to estimate diameter at breast height (d.b.h.) and stem volumes, we developed an automatic method that extracts the stems from the point cloud and then models them with cylinders. The results show that Image scale is the most influential parameter in terms of identifying and extracting trees from the point clouds. The best performance with cylinder modelling from point clouds compared to field data had an RMSE of 1.9 cm and 0.094 m3, for d.b.h. and volume, respectively. Thus, for forest management and planning purposes, it is possible to use our photogrammetric and modelling methods to measure d.b.h., stem volume and possibly other forest inventory metrics, rapidly and without felling trees. The proposed methodology significantly reduces working time in the field, using ‘non-professional’ instruments and automating estimates of dendrometric parameters.
Effect of Helicobacter pylori-eradication therapy on hepatic steatosis in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a randomized–controlled pilot study
Authors: Maharshi Vikas , Gupta Pooja , Kumar Vijay L , Upadhyay Ashish Datt , Das Prasenjit , Yadav Rajni , Nayak Baibaswata , Kumar Ramesh , Shalimar
Published: November 2019

Background

Helicobacter pylori infection has been associated with insulin resistance and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This study was done to evaluate the effect of H. pylori-eradication therapy (HPET) in patients with NAFLD compared to standard management therapy (SMT).

Methods

Eighty NAFLD patients with H. pylori co-infection were randomized into SMT (diet and exercise, n = 36) and HPET (SMT plus amoxicillin, clarithromycin, and pantoprazole, n = 44) groups. The controlled attenuation parameter (CAP), anthropometric parameters, liver enzymes, lipid profile, and glycemic parameters including homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) were measured and compared between two groups at the baseline and 24 weeks.

Results

Sixty-four participants (SMT group [n = 28] and HPET group [n = 36]) were included in a modified intention-to-treat analysis. Both the SMT group and the HPET group had a significant reduction in CAP scores at 24 weeks (P = 0.002 and P < 0.001, respectively), but the change between the groups was insignificant (P = 0.213). Successful eradication of H. pylori occurred in 68% of the HPET group and led to greater improvement in HOMA-IR at 24 weeks compared to SMT or non-responder patients (P = 0.007). The liver enzymes reduced significantly at 24 weeks in both groups, but the changes between the groups were similar. The lipid parameters remained unchanged within the groups and between the groups at 24 weeks. A significant increase in the levels of reduced glutathione was noted in the HPET group, but the change between the two groups was not statistically different.

Conclusions

HPET was found to be comparable to SMT alone in reducing hepatic steatosis and liver enzymes at 24 weeks in NAFLD patients. However, successful eradication of H. pylori led to greater improvement in HOMA-IR (Trial registration CTRI/2017/05/008608).
Becoming a Selfish Clan: Recombination Associated to Reverse-Transcription in LTR Retrotransposons
Authors: Drost Hajk-Georg , Sanchez Diego H
Published: November 2019

Transposable elements (TEs) are parasitic DNA bits capable of mobilization and mutagenesis, typically suppressed by host’s epigenetic silencing. Since the selfish DNA concept, it is appreciated that genomes are also molded by arms-races against natural TE inhabitants. However, our understanding of evolutionary processes shaping TEs adaptive populations is scarce. Here, we review the events of recombination associated to reverse-transcription in LTR retrotransposons, a process shuffling their genetic variants during replicative mobilization. Current evidence may suggest that recombinogenic retrotransposons could beneficially exploit host suppression, where clan behavior facilitates their speciation and diversification. Novel refinements to retrotransposons life-cycle and evolution models thus emerge.
Alteration of Fungal Microbiota After 5-ASA Treatment in UC Patients
Authors: Jun Xu , Ning Chen , Yang Song , Zhe Wu , Na Wu , Yifan Zhang , Xinhua Ren , Yulan Liu
Published: November 2019

The effect of treatment regimens on fungal microbiota is unclear in ulcerative colitis (UC) patients. Here, we aimed to clarify the effect of 5-aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA) treatment on gut fungal microbiota in UC patients. Fifty-seven UC patients, including 20 treatment-naïve and 37 5-ASA-treated, were recruited into an exploration study. We compared the gut fungal profiles of these 2 groups of patients using ITS1-2 rDNA sequencing. Ten out of 20 treatment-naïve UC patients were followed up and enrolled for a validation study and underwent a 5-ASA treatment. We assessed the longitudinal differences of fungal microbiota in these patients before and after 5-ASA treatment. Results acquired from the validation study were accordant to those from the exploration study. Ascomycota was the dominant phylum in both noninflamed and inflamed mucosae. At the phylum level, Ascomycota decreased in inflamed mucosae before 5-ASA treatment. At the genus level, pathogens such as Scytalidium, Morchella, and Paecilomyces increased, and Humicola and Wickerhamomyces decreased in inflamed mucosae. After 5-ASA treatment, Ascomycota and Wickerhamomyces increased and Scytalidium, Fusarium, Morchella, and Paecilomyces decreased in both noninflamed and inflamed mucosae. Additionally, the balanced bacteria–fungi correlation was interrupted in inflamed mucosae, and 5-ASA treatment altered group-specific fungal microbiota and restored bacteria–fungi correlation in UC patients. Our results demonstrated that fungal diversity and composition were altered and the bacteria–fungi correlation was restored in inflamed mucosae after 5-ASA treatment.
Is mode of transport to work associated with mortality in the working-age population? Repeated census-cohort studies in New Zealand, 1996, 2001 and 2006
Authors: Shaw Caroline , Blakely Tony , Atkinson June , Woodward Alistair
Published: November 2019

Background

Increasing active transport is proposed as a means to address both health and environmental issues. However, the associations between specific modes, such as cycling, walking and public transport, and health outcomes remain unclear. We examined the association between mode of travel to work and mortality.

Methods

Cohort studies of the entire New Zealand working population were created using 1996, 2001 and 2006 censuses linked to mortality data. Mode of travel to work was that reported on census day, and causes of death examined were ischaemic heart disease and injury. Main analyses were Poisson regression models adjusted for socio-demographics. Sensitivity analyses included: additional adjustment for smoking in the 1996 and 2006 cohorts, and bias analysis about non-differential misclassification of cycling vs car use.

Results

Walking (5%) and cycling (3%) to work were uncommon. Compared with people reporting using motor vehicles to travel to work, those cycling had a reduced all-cause mortality (ACM) in the socio-demographic adjusted models RR 0.87 (0.77–0.98). Those walking (0.97, 0.90–1.04) and taking public transport (0.96, 0.88–1.05) had no substantive difference in ACM. No mode of transport was associated with detectable statistically significant reductions in cause-specific mortality. Sensitivity analyses found weaker associations when adjusting for smoking and stronger associations correcting for likely non-differential misclassification of cycling.

Conclusions

This large cohort study supports an association between cycling to work and reduced ACM, but found no association for walking or public-transport use and imprecise cause-specific mortality patterns.
Thermophotovoltaic applications in waste heat recovery systems: example of GaSb cell
Authors: Utlu Zafer
Published: November 2019

In this study, it is aimed at evaluating real data in high temperature GaSb cell thermophotovoltaic (TPV) systems. The TPV systems are considered as an alternative energy source in terms of efficient use of waste heat, cost and efficiency. The TPV system can be defined as a system that converts waste heat energy emitted from heat sources into electrical energy at high temperature. In this context, efficiency and parameters of TPV GaSb cells have been determined in laboratory conditions. The conversion of the high temperature applied to the cell to electrical energy has been investigated by selecting the GaSb photovoltaic cell as the cell type. According to the analysis have been done so far, TPV high-temperature real graphics have been obtained using GaSb cell. The temperature parameters used are, namely, cell temperature and source temperature. With these graphs, energy efficiency, fill factor, effect of open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current values have been determined. While the efficiency value of the GaSb TPV cell systems was calculated, the radiation source temperature values have been taken in increments of 300 K between 1300 and 3100 K. In this analysis, the optimum energy conversion efficiency values of GaSb solar cell structure have been detected to be 21.57%. Opinions about the feasibility, efficiency and development of thermophotovoltaic energy conversion systems are stated, and suggestions are presented.
Longitudinal Analysis of Group A Streptococcus emm Types and emm Clusters in a High-Prevalence Setting: Relationship between Past and Future Infections
Authors: Campbell Patricia Therese , Tong Steven Y C , Geard Nicholas , Davies Mark R , Worthing Kate A , Lacey Jake A , Smeesters Pierre R , Batzloff Michael R , Kado Joseph , Jenney Adam W J , Mcvernon Jodie , Steer Andrew C
Published: November 2019

Group A Streptococcus is a pathogen of global importance, but despite the ubiquity of group A Streptococcus infections, the relationship between infection, colonization, and immunity is still not completely understood. The M protein, encoded by the emm gene, is a major virulence factor and vaccine candidate and forms the basis of a number of classification systems. Longitudinal patterns of emm types collected from 457 Fijian schoolchildren over a 10-month period were analyzed. No evidence of tissue tropism was observed, and there was no apparent selective pressure or constraint of emm types. Patterns of emm type acquisition suggest limited, if any, modification of future infection based on infection history. Where impetigo is the dominant mode of transmission, circulating emm types either may not be constrained by ecological niches or population immunity to the M protein, or they may require several infections over a longer period of time to induce such immunity.
Affine screening operators, affine Laumon spaces and conjectures concerning non-stationary Ruijsenaars functions
Authors: Shiraishi Jun’ichi
Published: November 2019

Based on the screened vertex operators associated with the affine screening operators, we introduce the formal power series $f^{\widehat{\mathfrak gl}_N}(x,p|s,\kappa|q,t)$ which we call the non-stationary Ruijsenaars function. We identify it with the generating function for the Euler characteristics of the affine Laumon spaces. When the parameters $s$ and $\kappa$ are suitably chosen, the limit $t\rightarrow q$ of $f^{\widehat{\mathfrak gl}_N}(x,p|s,\kappa|q,q/t)$ gives us the dominant integrable characters of $\widehat{\mathfrak sl}_N$ multiplied by $1/(p^N;p^N)_\infty$ (i.e. the $\widehat{\mathfrak gl}_1$ character). Several conjectures are presented for $f^{\widehat{\mathfrak gl}_N}(x,p|s,\kappa|q,t)$, including the bispectral and the Poincaré dualities, and the evaluation formula. The main conjecture asserts that (i) one can normalize $f^{\widehat{\mathfrak gl}_N}(x,p|s,\kappa|q,t)$ in such a way that the limit $\kappa\rightarrow 1$ exists, and (ii) the limit $f^{{\rm st.}\,\widehat{\mathfrak gl}_N}(x,p|s|q,t)$ gives us the eigenfunction of the elliptic Ruijsenaars operator. The non-stationary affine $q$-difference Toda operator ${\mathcal T}^{\widehat{\mathfrak gl}_N}(\kappa)$ is introduced, which comes as an outcome of the study of the Poincaré duality conjecture in the affine Toda limit $t\rightarrow 0$. The main conjecture is examined also in the limiting cases of the affine $q$-difference Toda ($t\rightarrow 0$), and the elliptic Calogero–Sutherland ($q,t\rightarrow 1$) equations.
DETECTING BID-RIGGING CARTELS WITH DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS
Authors: Imhof David
Published: November 2019

The paper shows that descriptive statistics, used as screens, capture the effect of bid rigging in the distribution of the bids. The bid-rigging cartel studied in this paper negatively affected the variance of the bids as illustrated by the coefficient of variance and the kurtosis statistic. Furthermore, it cleverly manipulated the differences between bids to secure that the designated bidder from the cartel won the contract. Such cover-bidding mechanism produced asymmetry in the distribution of the bids illustrated by the relative distance, the skewness statistic, and the percentage difference between the first and second lowest bids. The descriptive statistics capture the change in the statistical pattern of the distribution of the bids between periods of collusion and competition. Moreover, the bid rotation screen shows that the behavior of firms changed radically between the cartel and post-cartel periods. Finally, the paper discusses policy implications for competition agencies wishing to set up a detection method for screening procurement markets.
Discrimination and Career Satisfaction: Perceptions from US Forest Service Scientists
Authors: Kern Christel C , Kenefic Laura S , Dockry Michael J , Cobo-Lewis Alan
Published: November 2019

Research, largely focused on academia, has shown demographic differences in perceptions and experiences of workplace culture in science fields, including natural resources. Less is known about experiences of those working for government institutions. This study examined relationships between demographic characteristics (gender, scientific discipline, years as a scientist), experiences of discrimination or harassment, and perceptions of career success and satisfaction as reported in a survey by 100 research scientists in the US Forest Service: a hierarchical federal agency with explicit goals for workforce diversification. Approximately half the survey respondents, and more women than men, indicated that they had experienced work-related discrimination or harassment. Survey respondents identified gender as the most common basis of discrimination. Although most felt successful and satisfied in their careers, this perception was lower among those who had experienced discrimination or harassment. These findings highlight challenges of workforce diversification, especially in hierarchical institutions where organizational structure favors conformity.
The 21 cm bispectrum during reionization: a tracer of the ionization topology
Authors: Hutter Anne , Watkinson Catherine A , Seiler Jacob , Dayal Pratika , Sinha Manodeep , Croton Darren J
Published: November 2019

We compute the bispectra of the 21cm signal during the epoch of reionization for three different reionization scenarios that are based on a dark matter N-body simulation combined with a self-consistent, semi-numerical model of galaxy evolution and reionization. Our reionization scenarios differ in their trends of ionizing escape fractions (fesc) with the underlying galaxy properties and cover the physically plausible range, i.e. fesc effectively decreasing, being constant, or increasing with halo mass. We find the 21 cm bispectrum to be sensitive to the resulting ionization topologies that significantly differ in their size distribution of ionized and neutral regions throughout reionization. From squeezed to stretched triangles, the 21 cm bispectra features a change of sign from negative to positive values, with ionized and neutral regions representing below-average and above-average concentrations contributing negatively and positively, respectively. The position of the change of sign provides a tracer of the size distribution of the ionized and neutral regions, and allows us to identify three major regimes that the 21 cm bispectrum undergoes during reionization. In particular the regime during the early stages of reionization, where the 21 cm bispectrum tracks the peak of the size distribution of the ionized regions, provides exciting prospects for pinning down reionization with the forthcoming Square Kilometre Array.
The initial mass function in the extended ultraviolet disc of M83
Authors: Bruzzese S M , Thilker David A , Meurer G R , Bianchi Luciana , Watts A B , Ferguson A M N , Gil de Paz A , Madore B , Martin D Christopher , Rich R Michael
Published: November 2019

Using Hubble Space Telescope ACS/WFC data we present the photometry and spatial distribution of resolved stellar populations of four fields within the extended ultraviolet disc (XUV disc) of M83. These observations show a clumpy distribution of main-sequence stars and a mostly smooth distribution of red giant branch stars. We constrain the upper end of the initial mass function (IMF) in the outer disc using the detected population of main-sequence stars and an assumed constant star formation rate (SFR) over the last 300 Myr. By comparing the observed main-sequence luminosity function to simulations, we determine the best-fitting IMF to have a power-law slope α = −2.35 ± 0.3 and an upper mass limit $M_{\rm u}=25_{-3}^{+17} \, \mathrm{M}_\odot$. This IMF is consistent with the observed H $\rm \alpha$ emission, which we use to provide additional constraints on the IMF. We explore the influence of deviations from the constant SFR assumption, finding that our IMF conclusions are robust against all but strong recent variations in SFR, but these are excluded by causality arguments. These results, along with our similar studies of other nearby galaxies, indicate that some XUV discs are deficient in high-mass stars compared to a Kroupa IMF. There are over one hundred galaxies within 5 Mpc, many already observed with HST, thus allowing a more comprehensive investigation of the IMF, and how it varies, using the techniques developed here.
Turbulent transport coefficients in galactic dynamo simulations using singular value decomposition
Authors: Bendre Abhijit B , Subramanian Kandaswamy , Elstner Detlef , Gressel Oliver
Published: November 2019

Coherent magnetic fields in disc galaxies are thought to be generated by a large-scale (or mean-field) dynamo operating in their interstellar medium. A key driver of mean magnetic field growth is the turbulent electromotive force (EMF), which represents the influence of correlated small-scale (or fluctuating) velocity and magnetic fields on the mean field. The EMF is usually expressed as a linear expansion in the mean magnetic field and its derivatives, with the dynamo tensors as expansion coefficients. Here, we adopt the singular value decomposition (SVD) method to directly measure these turbulent transport coefficients in a simulation of the turbulent interstellar medium that realizes a large-scale dynamo. Specifically, the SVD is used to least-square fit the time series data of the EMF with that of the mean field and its derivatives, to determine these coefficients. We demonstrate that the spatial profiles of the EMF reconstructed from the SVD coefficients match well with that taken directly from the simulation. Also, as a direct test, we use the coefficients to simulate a 1D mean-field dynamo model and find an overall similarity in the evolution of the mean magnetic field between the dynamo model and the direct simulation. We also compare the results with those which arise using simple regression and the ones obtained previously using the test-field method, to find reasonable qualitative agreement. Overall, the SVD method provides an effective post-processing tool to determine turbulent transport coefficients from simulations.
Convergent Evolution of Cysteine-Rich Keratins in Hard Skin Appendages of Terrestrial Vertebrates
Authors: Ehrlich Florian , Lachner Julia , Hermann Marcela , Tschachler Erwin , Eckhart Leopold
Published: November 2019

Terrestrial vertebrates have evolved hard skin appendages, such as scales, claws, feathers, and hair that play crucial roles in defense, predation, locomotion, and thermal insulation. The mechanical properties of these skin appendages are largely determined by cornified epithelial components. So-called “hair keratins,” cysteine-rich intermediate filament proteins that undergo covalent cross-linking via disulfide bonds, are the crucial structural proteins of hair and claws in mammals and hair keratin orthologs are also present in lizard claws, indicating an evolutionary origin in a hairless common ancestor of amniotes. Here, we show that reptiles and birds have also other cysteine-rich keratins which lack cysteine-rich orthologs in mammals. In addition to hard acidic (type I) sauropsid-specific (HAS) keratins, we identified hard basic (type II) sauropsid-specific (HBS) keratins which are conserved in lepidosaurs, turtles, crocodilians, and birds. Immunohistochemical analysis with a newly made antibody revealed expression of chicken HBS1 keratin in the cornifying epithelial cells of feathers. Molecular phylogenetics suggested that the high cysteine contents of HAS and HBS keratins evolved independently from the cysteine-rich sequences of hair keratin orthologs, thus representing products of convergent evolution. In conclusion, we propose an evolutionary model in which HAS and HBS keratins evolved as structural proteins in epithelial cornification of reptiles and at least one HBS keratin was co-opted as a component of feathers after the evolutionary divergence of birds from reptiles. Thus, cytoskeletal proteins of hair and feathers are products of convergent evolution and evolutionary co-option to similar biomechanical functions in clade-specific hard skin appendages.
The challenge of integrative taxonomy of rare, deep-water gastropods: the genus Exilia (Neogastropoda: Turbinelloidea: Ptychatractidae)
Authors: Kantor Yuri I , Puillandre Nicolas , Bouchet Philippe
Published: November 2019

According to a recent taxonomic revision by Kantor et al. (2001), the neogastropod genus Exilia Conrad, 1860, comprises ten mostly rare species that live at depths between 200 and 2000 m. Adult Exilia measure between 30 and 90 mm in shell length, and the genus is mostly represented in museum collections by empty shells. The abundance of this genus is low in the wild, but recent expeditions organized by the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle have yielded several dozen specimens. These new collections include samples preserved for molecular studies. Here, we present the results of the first molecular systematic study of Exilia. Our aim was to investigate the species limits proposed by Kantor et al. (2001) on the basis of shell and anatomical characters. Analysis of DNA sequence data for the cytochrome c oxidase I gene suggests that Exilia hilgendorfi, previously considered to be a single, polymorphic and broadly distributed species, is a complex of at least six species (four of which we sequenced). Two of these species, Exilia cognata n. sp. and E. fedosovi n. sp., are described as new to science. Exilia gracilior, E. claydoni and E. prellei are resurrected from the synonymy of Exilia hilgendorfi; of these three, only the last was sequenced. Exilia vagrans is a well-defined taxon, but our molecular systematic data shows that it consists of two distinct species, which occur sympatrically off Taiwan and are strikingly similar in shell and radular morphology; due to the absence of DNA sequence data from the type locality of E. vagrans (Vanuatu), it is unclear to which of these two species the name would apply. Exilia karukera n. sp., which is conchologically very similar to E. vagrans, was discovered off Guadeloupe, represents the first record of the genus from the Atlantic. For E. elegans, which was previously known only from a single shell, we provide new data including new distributional records (South Africa and the Mozambique Channel), details of the radula and DNA sequence data.
Structural basis of non-canonical transcriptional regulation by the σA-bound iron-sulfur protein WhiB1 in M. tuberculosis
Authors: Wan Tao , Li Shanren , Beltran Daisy Guiza , Schacht Andrew , Zhang Lu , Becker Donald F , Zhang LiMei
Published: November 2019

WhiB1 is a monomeric iron–sulfur cluster-containing transcription factor in the WhiB-like family that is widely distributed in actinobacteria including the notoriously persistent pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis). WhiB1 plays multiple roles in regulating cell growth and responding to nitric oxide stress in M. tuberculosis, but its underlying mechanism is unclear. Here we report a 1.85 Å-resolution crystal structure of the [4Fe–4S] cluster-bound (holo-) WhiB1 in complex with the C-terminal domain of the σ70-family primary sigma factor σA of M. tuberculosis containing the conserved region 4 (σA4). Region 4 of the σ70-family primary sigma factors is commonly used by transcription factors for gene activation, and holo-WhiB1 has been proposed to activate gene expression via binding to σA4. The complex structure, however, unexpectedly reveals that the interaction between WhiB1 and σA4 is dominated by hydrophobic residues in the [4Fe–4S] cluster binding pocket, distinct from previously characterized canonical σ704-bound transcription activators. Furthermore, we show that holo-WhiB1 represses transcription by interaction with σA4in vitro and that WhiB1 must interact with σA4 to perform its essential role in supporting cell growth in vivo. Together, these results demonstrate that holo-WhiB1 regulates gene expression by a non-canonical mechanism relative to well-characterized σA4-dependent transcription activators.