bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Thermal ratcheting in granular materials with irregular particle shapes
Authors: Pan Yize , Gong Xiaohui , Loria Alessandro Rotta
Published: July 2023

Granular materials with irregular particle shapes, such as sands, undergo a myriad of temperature variations in natural and engineered systems. However, the impacts of cyclic temperature variations on the mechanics of granular materials remain poorly understood. In this context, little is known about the mechanical response of such materials to cyclic temperature variations for central variables that characterize granular systems: particle shapes, applied stress levels, relative densities, and temperature amplitudes. This paper presents advanced laboratory experiments to explore the impacts of cyclic temperature variations on the mechanics of sands. The results show that cyclic temperature variations applied to sands induce thermal ratcheting: the cumulative growth of irreversible bulk deformations of such materials due to microstructural rearrangements caused by thermal expansions and contractions of constituting particles. The deformations of granular materials caused by thermal ratcheting strongly depend on particle shape, stress level, relative density, and temperature amplitude. These deformations are limited for individual thermal cycles but accumulate and become significant for multiple thermal cycles. Thermal ratcheting leads to substantial compaction in sands and other granular materials, which can affect various natural and engineered systems.
Impact of Different Sulfur Sources on the Structure and Function of Sulfur Autotrophic Denitrification Bacteria
Authors: Chen Zhenguo , Lou Minlan , Fang Peizhen , Xiao Dunquan , Zhu Wenting , Chen Hongwei , Qian Wei
Published: July 2023

Nitrate pollution in surface water has become a significant environmental concern. Sulfur autotrophic denitrification (SAD) technology is gaining attention for its cost-effectiveness and efficiency in nitrate removal. This study aimed to investigate the structure and function of sulfur autotrophic denitrification microbial communities in systems using sodium thiosulfate (Group A) and elemental sulfur (Group B) as the sole electron donors. Metagenomic amplicon sequencing and physicochemical analysis were performed to examine the microbial communities. The results revealed that on day 13, the nitrate nitrogen removal rate in Group A was significantly higher (89.2%) compared to Group B (74.4%). The dominant genus in both Groups was Thiobacillus, with average abundances of 34.15% and 16.34% in Groups A and B, respectively. β-diversity analysis based on species level showed significant differences in bacterial community structure between the two Groups (P < 0.001). Group A exhibited a greater potential for nitrate reduction and utilized both thiosulfate and elemental sulfur (P < 0.01) compared to Group B. This study provides valuable technical insights into applying autotrophic denitrification with different sulfur sources and offers new prospects for in-depth mechanistic analysis.
Agricultural Pest Small Target Detection Algorithm Based on Improved YOLOv5 Architecture
Authors: Song Haiying , Yan Yiying , Xie Min , Duan Dejie , Xie Zhuokai , Li Yiliang
Published: July 2023

How to accurately and timely detect harmful organisms without artificial intervention is an important research issue in agricultural technology. When using machine vision methods to detect pests and diseases, the targets of agricultural pests are often too small or obstructed, resulting in targets occupying too small pixels to be accurately recognized. To address this issue, this article proposes an effective pest detection algorithm for small targets——YOLO-Pest. This method is based on the backbone of YOLOv5s as the backbone network, mainly replacing the C3 module of YOLOv5 backbone layer and the PANet structure of the neck layer with C3CBAM module and BiFPN structure respectively, and adding CAC3 module to the neck layer to improve the detection accuracy of small targets. In addition, based on the IP102 dataset, this article selected 40 species of pests as the dataset for model evaluation. The experimental results show that the improved YOLOv5s achieves MAP0.5 and MAP0.5:0.95 of 64.6% and 40.1% respectively in the dataset selected in this article. Compared with the original algorithm, MAP0.5 and MAP0.5:0.95 have been improved by 1.6% and 0.1%, respectively.
Artificial Intelligence Applications in Decision Making for Disease Management
Authors: Abdekhoda Mohammadhiwa , Ranjbaran Fatemeh
Published: July 2023

Background: Artificial intelligence (AI) has several potential applications in medicine, creating opportunities for reliable and evidence based decision making in disease management. Thus, the practical aspects of AI in decision-making should be identified. This study was conducted to identify AI applications in decision making for disease management.
Method: This study was a systematic review using the PRISMA-ScR checklist. Data collection was carried out by searching the related keywords in WOS and Scopus in May 2023.
Results: Regarding the AI applications in decision making for disease management, we found 80 sub-themes which were categorized into six themes, i.e. 1) Processing and managing data, 2) Characterization and analysis, 3) Prediction and risk stratification, 4) Screening, 5) Prognosis, and 6) Diagnosis.
Conclusion: AI has considerable capability in disease treatment and would be an integral part of medicine in the future. This study clearly identified six main themes that addressed AI capability in decision making for disease management. The use of AI can help in making medical decisions with more trust and confidence and thus make medical interventions more accurate and effective.
Water quality and gender intersections: Assessing differential impacts on health and well-being in Abeokuta, Nigeria
Authors: OLUWASANYA Grace , OMONIYI Ayodetimi , PERERA Duminda , LAYI-ADIGUN Barakat , THUY Laurens , QADIR Manzoor
Published: July 2023

It is often assumed that humans experience the effect of poor water quality like multiple health and socioeconomic impacts in the same way. But these impacts are not gender-neutral due to inequalities caused by physiological composition, age marginalization, and socioeconomic conditions, among others. We analyzed the intersections between water quality and gender and applied a mixed-method approach in collecting local-specific data and information. The assessment shows that without point-of-use water treatment, the water sources in the area are not safe for potable purposes, as the waters are hard in the sequence of borehole > surface water > hand-dug well > sachet water, with elevated levels of calcium (> 75mg/L) and not free from microbial contamination. Among the area population segments, men and boys (relative to women and girls) are more susceptible (55%) to the compounding health effects associated with the hardness and high calcium concentration in water. Girls are the most affected by the associated impacts of water collection. Men and boys are more vulnerable to the consequences of poor hygiene, while women are more susceptible to the health effects of toilet cleaning and sharing of sanitation facilities. Though most women and girls prefer disposable sanitary pads, women change more frequently and practice better menstrual hygiene than girls. We conclude that there are differential impacts of unsafe water, WASH services, and practices on human health. Gendered statistics through sex-disaggregated data is crucial to unmasking the differential impacts, which are neither gender-neutral nor evenly distributed between women and men, and boys and girls.
Binary gannet optimization algorithm for feature selection using time-varying transfer function
Authors: Xu Lin , Geng Fang-Dong , Hu Rui-Bin , Wang Ruo-Bin
Published: July 2023

The Gannet Optimization Algorithm (GOA) has shown good competence in solving constrained optimization problems, whereas the algorithm is unable to solve binary optimization problems. Hence, this paper proposes a new S-shaped time-varying transfer function and implements a binary version of the Gannet Optimization Algorithm (BGOA). The performance of the proposed time-varying transfer function was verified by comparing it with five other popular S-shaped transfer functions on 23 benchmark test functions. Eventually, BGOA is used in the feature selection domain to find feature subsets, which minimizes the number of selected features and maximizes the classification accuracy. An assessment metric to evaluate the performance of BGOA over 15 different datasets from the UCI repository and compare it with Binary Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm (BPSO), and Binary Grey Wolf Optimization Algorithm (BGOA). The results show that the proposed BGOA is capable of searching for the optimal subset of features in the binary search space.
MultiDMet: Designing a Hybrid Multidimensional Metrics Framework to Predictive Modeling for Performance Evaluation and Feature Selection
Authors: Hailu Tesfay Gidey , Abdulkadir Taye
Published: July 2023

In a competitive digital age where data volumes are increasing with time, the ability to extract meaningful knowledge from high-dimensional data using machine learning (ML) and data mining (DM) techniques and making decisions based on the extracted knowledge is becoming increasingly important in all business domains. Nevertheless, high-dimensional data remains a major challenge for classification algorithms due to its high computational cost and storage requirements. The 2016 Demographic and Health Survey of Ethiopia (EDHS 2016) used as the data source for this study which is publicly available contains several features that may not be relevant to the prediction task. In this paper, we developed a hybrid multidimensional metrics framework for predictive modeling for both model performance evaluation and feature selection to overcome the feature selection challenges and select the best model among the available models in DM and ML. The proposed hybrid metrics were used to measure the efficiency of the predictive models. Experimental results show that the decision tree algorithm is the most efficient model. The higher score of HMM (m, r) = 0.47 illustrates the overall significant model that encompasses almost all the user's requirements, unlike the classical metrics that use a criterion to select the most appropriate model. On the other hand, the ANNs were found to be the most computationally intensive for our prediction task. Moreover, the type of data and the class size of the dataset (unbalanced data) have a significant impact on the efficiency of the model, especially on the computational cost, and the interpretability of the parameters of the model would be hampered. And the efficiency of the predictive model could be improved with other feature selection algorithms (especially hybrid metrics) considering the experts of the knowledge domain, as the understanding of the business domain has a significant impact.
Long-term outcomes of Baerveldt glaucoma implant surgery in Japanese patients
Authors: Iwasaki Kentaro , Komori Ryohei , Arimura Shogo , Orii Yusuke , Takamura Yoshihiro , Inatani Masaru
Published: July 2023

This study evaluated the long-term surgical outcomes of Baerveldt glaucoma implant (BGI) surgery in patients with refractory glaucoma (233 eyes/204 patients). Surgical failure was defined by: <20% reduction in preoperative intraocular pressure (IOP), or criterion A (IOP > 21 mmHg), criterion B (IOP > 17 mmHg), or criterion C (IOP > 14 mmHg). Reoperation, loss of light perception vision, or hypotony also denoted failure. The probability of success at 5 years postoperatively using criteria A, B, and C was 71.5%, 48.4%, and 22.0%, respectively. The mean IOP decreased significantly from 32.8 ± 9.4 mmHg preoperatively to 13.4 ± 4.1 mmHg at 5 years; the mean number of glaucoma medications also decreased from 3.7 ± 1.2 to 1.9 ± 1.9 (both P < 0.01). The number of previous intraocular surgeries was significantly associated with failure in the multivariable analysis for criterion B (hazard ratio: 1.28; P < 0.01). Early and late postoperative complications occurred in 93 (39.9%) and 33 (14.2%) eyes, respectively. Postoperative interventions were performed in 55 eyes (23.6%). BGI surgery resulted in significant long-term decreases in IOP and the number of glaucoma medications. BGI surgery is effective for refractory glaucoma. However, postoperative interventions due to complications are required in numerous cases.
Cancer Prevalence Across Vertebrates
Authors: Compton Zachary , Harris Valerie , Mellon Walker , Rupp Shawn , Mallo Diego , KAPSETAKI Stefania , Wilmot Mallory , Kennington Ryan , Noble Kathleen , Baciu Cristina , Ramirez Lucia , Peraza Ashley , Martins Brian , Sudhakar Sushil , Aksoy Selin , Furukawa Gabriela , Vincze Orsolya , Giraudeau Mathieu , Duke Elizabeth , Spiro Simon , Flach Edmund , Davidson Hannah , Zehnder Ashley , Graham Trevor , Troan Brigid , Harrison Tara , Tollis Marc , Schiffman Joshua , Aktipis Athena , Abegglen Lisa , Maley Carlo , Boddy Amy
Published: July 2023

Cancer is pervasive across multicellular species, but what explains differences in cancer prevalence across species? Using 16,049 necropsy records for 292 species spanning three clades (amphibians, sauropsids and mammals) we found that neoplasia and malignancy prevalence increases with adult weight (contrary to Peto’s Paradox) and somatic mutation rate, but decreases with gestation time. Evolution of cancer susceptibility appears to have undergone sudden shifts followed by stabilizing selection. Outliers for neoplasia prevalence include the common porpoise (<1.3%), the Rodrigues fruit bat (<1.6%) the black-footed penguin (<0.4%), ferrets (63%) and opossums (35%). Discovering why some species have particularly high or low levels of cancer may lead to a better understanding of cancer syndromes and novel strategies for the management and prevention of cancer.
A Correlation Study of Preoperative Lumbar Paraspinal Muscle Quality and L5-S1 Lumbar Foraminal Stenosis Degeneration after L4-5 TLIF
Authors: Chen Minghang , Zhang Peng , Lai Jiaxin , Li Sheng , Yu Weijie , Fan Shikang , Teng Honglin
Published: July 2023

Study design: Retrospective study.
Objectives: Adjacent segment degeneration (ASD) is a major complication associated with spinal fusion. The lumbar paraspinal muscle is an essential factor influencing the occurrence of ASD. This study aimed to investigate the effect of preoperative lumbar paraspinal muscle quality on L5-S1 adjacent lumbar foraminal stenosis degeneration (ASLFSD) after L4-5 transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF).
Methods: 113 patients diagnosed with lumbar spinal stenosis at L4-5 were treated with TLIF. Lumbar paraspinal muscle measurements were obtained preoperatively and bilaterally from axial T2-weighted MR images. The measurementsincluded the total cross-sectional area of psoas (PS-tCSA), of erector spinae (ES-tCSA), and of multifidus (MF-tCSA); and fatty infiltration of psoas (PS-FI), of erector spinae (ES-FI) and of multifidus (MF-FI). Foraminal measurements, including posterior disc height (PDH), disc-to-facet distance (D-F), foraminal height (FH), and foraminal area (FA), were obtained bilaterally using a computed tomography system. The association between lumbar paraspinal muscle quality and changes in foraminal measurements was also studied.
Results: We observed that the FH and FA significantly reduced at 1 year postoperatively at the mean follow-up period of 41.56 ± 8.38 months (range. 43–50 months), and PDH, D-F, FH, and FA all significantly reduced at final follow-up. These changes in foraminal measurements were significantly and negatively correlated with PS-FI, ES-FI, and MF-FI.
Conclusion: During the clinical follow-up, we found that patients with a higher degree of paraspinal muscle FI were more likely to develop L5-S1 ASLFSD after L4-5 TLIF.
Genomic and functional impact of Trp53 inactivation in JAK2V617F myeloproliferative neoplasms
Authors: GIRAUDIER Stéphane , Gou Panhong , Liu Duanya , Ganesan Saravanan , Lauret Evelyne , Maslah Nabih , Zhang Wenchao , Parietti Veronique , Meignin Véronique , Kiladjian Jean-Jacques , Cassinat Bruno
Published: July 2023

Classical myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) are characterized by the proliferation of myeloid cells and the risk of transformation into myelofibrosis or acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and TP53 mutations in MPN patients are linked to AML. However, JAK2V617F has been reported to impact the TP53 response to DNA damage, suggesting potential overlapping role of TP53 inactivation in MPN. We established a mouse model showing that JAK2V617F/Vav-Cre/Trp53−/− mice displayed a similar phenotype to JAK2V617F/Vav-Cre mice, but their proliferation was outcompeted in competitive grafts. RNA-Seq revealed that half of the genes affected by JAK2V617F were p53-dependent, including the interferon pathway. To validate this finding, mice were repopulated with a mixture of wild-type and JAK2V617F (or JAK2V617F/Vav-Cre/Trp53−/−) cells and treated with pegylated interferonα. JAK2V617F-reconstituted mice entered complete hematological remission, while JAK2V617F/Vav-Cre /Trp53−/−-reconstituted mice did not, confirming that p53 loss induced interferon-α resistance. KEGG and Gene Ontology analyses of common deregulated genes showed that these genes were mainly implicated in cytokine response, proliferation, and leukemia evolution, illustrating that in this mouse model, the development of MPN is mainly Trp53-independent. Taken together, our results show that many genetic modifications induced by JAK2V617F are p53-dependent, the MPN phenotype may not be. Trp53 loss alone is insufficient to induce rapid leukemic transformation in steady-state hematopoiesis in JAK2V617F MPN, and Trp53 loss may contribute to interferon resistance in MPN.
Discovery of a novel low-cost medium-entropy stainless steel with exceptional mechanical behavior over a wide temperature range
Authors: Shen Tong , Wen Kangkang , Cai Xuecheng , Sun B. , Feng Rui , Du Congcong , Zhu Huihui , An Ke , Wu Yuan , Ding Shuaijun , Meng Fanxi , Xin S. , Bai Zhenhua , Liaw Peter
Published: July 2023

Over 100 years, stainless steels have been extensively used as engineering materials in many areas1-4. However, the strength-ductility trade-off1,3 and insufficient elevated-temperature strength largely hinder their processing and applications. Here, we report a novel Co-free Fe47Cr16Ni26Ti6Al5 medium-entropy stainless steel (MESS) strengthened by high-density coherent L12 nanoprecipitates (NPs). We use a thermodynamic approach to pursuing a large volume fraction of stable L12 NPs in the coarse-grained face-centered-cubic (FCC)-structured matrix of the MESS, which is then readily fabricated through conventional casting and thermomechanical-treatment techniques. The MESS exhibits a high ultimate tensile strength of 1.35 gigapascals (GPa) and a great total elongation of 36% at room temperature (RT), evading the strength-ductility trade-off dilemma in conventional stainless steels. The high strength is mainly due to the chemical- ordering strengthening of high-density coherent L12 NPs. The ductile L12 NPs cooperative with the dynamic refinement of the deformation substructures endow the MESS with an excellent work-hardening ability and a large uniform ductility. Furthermore, the MESS maintains a high yield strength of ~ 0.8 GPa at 700 oC, which is better than many Fe-based superalloys and stainless steels, even comparable to some Ni-based superalloys. The steady-state creep rates at 750 oC are at least two orders of magnitude lower than those of conventional Ni-based superalloys and heat-resistant steels. The excellent creep resistance is achieved via the strong interactions between sliding dislocations and stable L12 NPs at elevated temperatures, which effectively impedes the dislocation movement. The present study has huge potential for designing cost-effective engineering MESSs with excellent mechanical performance for practical applications.
Influence of the leaf-cutting ant Atta sexdens Linnaeus (1758) on the taxonomic and functional diversity of woody plants in Atlantic Forest fragments
Authors: Garcia Jéssica Magon , Pereira Lya Carolina , Vasconcelos Heraldo Luís , Torezan José Marcelo Domingues , Rodrigues Larissa Cerqueira Dias
Published: July 2023

Leaf-cutting ants can act as a biotic filter, selecting plant traits according to foraging preferences, affecting plant community species composition. We evaluated the relationship between the floristic and functional diversity of woody plants in fragments of Semideciduous Seasonal Atlantic Forest (SAF) with the presence or absence of Atta sexdens (Linnaeus, 1758) nests. We expected that, in places where A. sexdens nests are present, floristic diversity is lower and the plant community is dominated by species characterized by more anti-herbivore defenses and lower nutritional content. We sampled nine SAF fragments in the northern Paraná state, Brazil. The diversity of woody regenerants (> 1m in height, <2cm diameter) was estimated and ten functional traits were evaluated: gap dependence, deciduousness, leaf nitrogen and carbon content, leaf C/N ratio, leaf trichomes, leaf thickness, specific leaf area, presence of latex and condensed tannins. Contrary to expectations, there were no differences in floristic diversity between sites with or without A. sexdens, and functional diversity was also similar, reflecting the floristic similarity. We suggest that the herbivory pressure by A. sexdens on the woody regenerants of SAF fragments is not strong enough to cause significant mortality in individual species and, consequently, affect plant diversity and composition. This may in part be related to the fact that most A. sexdens nests are established in the edges of the fragments and that ants from these nests also forage in the agricultural matrix. Longer-term studies are still needed to fully elucidate the effects of A. sexdens on Atlantic Forest fragments.
Mutual entity authentication of a quantum key distribution network system using authentication qubits
Authors: Park Hojoong , Park Byung Kwon , Woo Min Ki , Kang Min-Sung , Choi Ji-Woong , Kang Ju-Sung , Yeom Yongjin , Han Sang-Wook
Published: July 2023

Entity authentication is crucial for ensuring secure quantum communication because the identity of the participants in a network must be confirmed before transmitting any confidential information. We propose a practical entity authentication protocol, which uses authentication qubits, for quantum key distribution (QKD) network systems. In this protocol, authentication qubits encoded with pre-shared information are generated and exchanged to verify the legitimacy of each entity. Using the authentication qubit, participants can identify each other with the same level of security as in QKD through the quantum channel. The proposed protocol can be easily integrated into existing QKD systems without additional hardware. In this study, we demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed scheme using a 1 x N QKD network system, and verify its stable operation over a deployed fiber network. In addition, we present a security analysis of the proposed entity authentication protocol and architecture.
Performance of Soil-Bearing Spread Footings Supporting Highway Structures
Authors: Tarawneh Bashar , Nusairat Jamal , Sargand Shad , Merklin Christopher , White Kevin
Published: July 2023

Soil-bearing spread footings (SBSF) are becoming an appealing alternative to support highway structures. SBSF have many advantages compared to deep foundations, such as cost-saving, expedited construction, simple design, environmentally friendly, and less maintenance. This paper aims to evaluate highway structures' performance supported by SBSF at four sites in Ohio. This evaluation's outcomes are recommendations for future use of spread footings and potential limitations on their use. The project team reviewed the documented performance data, evaluated existing footings' performance, and compared them to the structural performance criteria. The team also examined the calculated settlement, provided an estimate of the tolerable structure settlement, compared the measured settlement to the predicted settlement, and compared performance to soil conditions. The collected data and the field review of all four sites included in this research showed that SBSF performed as designed, and there were no signs of settlements and/or rideability issues. SBSF were constructed following the manuals and procedures by the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) and performed adequately. The paper provides recommendations for the method of settlement monitoring and the Ohio department of transportation plan notes.
No microorganism was detected in amniotic fluid of healthy pregnancies from the second trimester to the delivery
Authors: Liu Yu , Ma Jingmei , Li Xiang , Zhao Haijuan , Ai Qubo , Zhang Lanying , Tong Yulong , Meng Lingzhen , Yang Huixia
Published: July 2023

Background The early colonization and establishment of the microbiome in newborn is a crucial step in the development of immune system and host metabolism. However, the exact timing of initial microbial colonization remains a subject of ongoing debate. While numerous studies have attempted to determine the presence or absence of intrauterine bacteria, the majority of them have drawn conclusions based on sequencing data from maternal or infant samples taken at a single time point. In this study, we aimed to investigate the microbial signals in amniotic fluid (AF) from the second trimester until the time of delivery using multiple microbiological methods.
Methods AF samples were collected during the second trimester (19-21 gestational weeks) and at the time of delivery. Cohort 1 included 51 women who underwent the term and elective cesarean section, with both their second trimester and delivery AF samples (n=55, respectively) analyzed.Cohort 2 contained of 22 women who experienced preterm birth and/or infection, with only their second trimester AF samples (n=24) examined. Additionally, multiple procedural negative controls and technical positive controls were applied into this study to remove potential contamination. Microbial profiles were assessed through cultivation, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing, and cytokine analysis.
Results In cohort 1, the bacterial load and community structure in the second trimester AF samples were indistinguishable from negative controls. Although marginally higher bacterial loads and different bacterial communities were observed in the delivery AF samples compared to negative controls, these bacterial DNA signals were not considered biologically functional due to the absence of maternal inflammatory responses. In cohort 2, the bacterial load and community structure of the second trimester AF samples differed significantly from those of negative controls, with Ureaplasma and Lactobacillus identified as the most prevalent genera against negative controls.
Conclusions Our study demonstrates that no microorganisms were detected in the AF of healthy pregnancies from the second trimester to the delivery. The presence of Ureaplasma and Lactobacillusin the second trimester AF may be associated with preterm birth and intra-amniotic infection.
Can preoperative high-intensity strength training combined with balance training improve early outcomes after total knee arthroplasty?
Authors: Sun Jian-ning , Shan Yu-zhou , Wu Li-xia , Li Ning , Xu Fei-hu , Kong Xiang-ru , Zhang Bei
Published: July 2023

Background: To investigate the effect of preoperative high-intensity strength training combined with balance training on the knee function of end-stage knee osteoarthritis (KOA) patients after total knee arthroplasty (TKA).
Methods: A prospective study was conducted on end-stage KOA patients awaiting TKA. The patients were divided into an experimental group and a control group according to whether they received a preoperative training intervention. The differences in knee flexor-extensor strength, knee range of motion (ROM), timed up and go (TUG) test result, stair ascend/descend test result, Knee Society score (KSS) and Berg balance scale (BBS) score were assessed in both groups at baseline (T1), before operation (T2), 3 months after operation (T3), and 1 year after operation (T4).
Results: After high-intensity strength training and balance training, the knee flexor-extensor strength, TUG test result, stair ascend/descend test result, and KSS were all significantly improved at T2 in the experimental group over the control group. At T3, the knee ROM, knee flexor-extensor strength, TUG test result, BBS score, and KSS clinical and functional scores were all significantly superior in the experimental group. The experimental group enjoyed a superiority in KSS clinical and functional scores until T4. Group×time and between-group interactions were found in all assessment indicators in both groups (p<0.01).
Conclusion:Preoperative high-intensity strength training combined with balance training can enhance the knee flexor-extensor strength and balance of patients with end-stage KOA in the short term and help improve early outcomes after KOA.
Trial registration：（ChiCTR2000032857，2020-05-13）
SOX21-AS1 augmented cervical cancer growth by triggering FZD3 to activate the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway
Authors: Zhi Yanfang , Du Peipei , Li Ya , Liu Hui , Jiang Tao , Zhao Xin , Li Xiaofu
Published: July 2023

Long non-coding RNA (LncRNA) SOX21-AS1 has been reported that it plays an important role in biological processes of several cancers. However, how it functions in cervical cancer (CC) still remain unclear. This investigation seeks to explore the impact of SOX21-AS1 on CC cell proliferation, invasion and migration and its association to the FZD3 and the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. SOX21-AS1 expression levels were detected using real-time quantitative PCR in 20 cases of cervical cancer together with its adjacent tissues and several cervical cancer cell lines. Transgenic technology and functional experiments were conducted to confirm the carcinogenic properties of SOX21-AS1, and western blot was utilized to analyze the regulatory network composed of SOX21-AS1, FZD3 and the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in CC. Through bioinformatics analysis, we found that the expression of SOX21-AS1 in CC was the highest among 16 kinds of tumor tissues. Moreover, clinical specimens confirmed that both CC tissues and cell lines possessed elevated SOX21-AS1 expressions (P < 0.01). CC cells which stably expressed upregulated SOX21-AS1 were noted to possesses higher rates of metastasis, invasion and proliferation, lower apoptotic rates and higher expression of FZD3,β-catenin and c-myc(P < 0.01). Conversely, the use of small interfering RNA to inhibit the expression of SOX21-AS1 yielded the opposite results (P < 0.01). SOX21-AS1 functions as an oncogenic lncRNA which enhances CC cell metastasis, invasion and proliferation through FZD3 upregulation via Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway activation. This lncRNA may represent an important biomarker for CC patients.
The optimization model of UAV shooting flight routes
Authors: ZHENG TING , li shangze , xiao zhensheng , zhang luyan
Published: July 2023

For the first drone operator, it is difficult to master the techniques of flight altitude, flight speed and shooting angle. The main task of this paper is to analyze how to adjust the flying height, flight speed and shooting angle of the drone and use the drone to take satisfactory photos. Mainly complete the following four questions. In the first part, we analyze the geometric relationship between the flying height and the camera's acquisition range area. Then, we set a pixel accuracy score index as the criterion. The sum of the weighted capture area and the pixel accuracy score is taken as the objective function, the flight height does not exceed the height limit area, and the unit pixel point is greater than 800 as the constraint condition. An optimization model for the accuracy of drone shooting was established. We use computer simulation to solve the accuracy method step by step. We obtain that the height range of the drone is [25 m, 100 m], and the optimal aerial height is 33 m when θ = 60º. In the second part, based on the first part, we independently analyzed the numerical relationship between the shooting angle and the camera acquisition range area. The sum of the captured area and the pixel accuracy score after updating the weight is the objective function, the shooting angle is the decision variable, and the UAV shooting accuracy score optimization model is used. The golden section algorithm is used to solve this problem. When the flying speed of the drone is 40 m/s and the flying height is 33 m, the optimal range of the shooting angle of the drone is [56.2248º, 77.4972º]. In the third part, we established a small UAV system model and a ground target model based on the knowledge of robotics. We generated motion trajectories of discrete and continuous states of the object. The recursive target tracking algorithm is used to continuously adjust the UAV shooting angle to ensure that the target is within its shooting area. Finally, the corresponding values of the two shooting angles with respect to time are obtained. The range of angle changes is [42.18º, 79.87º] and [32.81º, 79.89º]. In the fourth part, we generated 1 skyscraper, 2 signal towers, 3 telephone poles, 3 residential buildings, for a total of 9 obstacles. We present a new RRT* algorithm for path planning based on the obstacles encountered by UAVs during flight, that is, using the cost function to select the node with the minimum cost in the field of expanding nodes as the parent node, and the two new nodes are recalculated. We use MATLAB to select a reasonable obstacle avoidance strategy, and the global optimal route is obtained by smoothing processing. Finally, we verify the rationality of the model. Through computer simulation, we determine the three-dimensional field of flight speed constant, flying height and shooting angle with respect to the score, which proves model stability and robustness.
Age-dependent Robust Strategic Asset Allocation with Inflation-Deflation Hedging Demand
Authors: Kusuda Koji , Kikuchi Kentaro
Published: July 2023

This study analyzes robust strategic asset allocation under a quadratic security market model with stochastic volatility and inflation rates assuming “homothetic age-dependent robust utility” in which relative ambiguity aversion is a decreasing function of age. We consider the finite-time consumption-investment problem and derive a linear approximate optimal robust portfolio decomposed into myopic, intertemporal hedging, and inflation-deflation hedging demands. Our numerical analysis of equity allocations shows modest hump-shaped age effects, similar to the results of a previous empirical analysis, and that the upswing is due to the increase in myopic demand, while the downswing is due to the decline in intertemporal hedging demand.
JEL Classification C61 · G11
Genetic features of young and aged animals after peripheral nerve injury: implications for diminished regeneration capacity
Authors: huang weixiao , Yi Sheng , zhao lili
Published: July 2023

The spontaneous regeneration capacity of peripheral nerves is fundamentally reduced with advancing age, leading to severe and long-term functional loss. The cellular and molecular basis underlying incomplete and delayed recovery of aging peripheral nerves is still murky. Here, we collected sciatic nerves of aged rats at 1d, 4d, and 7d after nerve injury, systematically analyzed the transcriptional changes of injured sciatic nerves, and examined the differences of injury responses between aged rats and young rats. RNA sequencing revealed that sciatic nerves of aged and young rats exhibit distinctive expression patterns after nerve injury. Acute and vigorous immune responses, including motivated B cell receptor signaling pathway, occurred in injured sciatic nerves of both aged and young rats. Different from young rats, aged rats have CD8+ T cells both in normal and injured state and the elevation of M2 macrophages seemed to be more robust in sciatic nerves, especially at later time points after nerve injury. Young rats, on the other hand, showed strong and early up-regulation of cell-cycle related genes. These identified unique transcriptional signatures of aged and young rats help the understanding of aged-associated injury responses in the wound microenvironments and provide essential basis for the treatment of regeneration deficits in aged population.
Network analysis challenges the functional importance of charismatic and commercial species in the Gulf of California food web
Authors: Olmo-Gilabert Ruben , Cruz-Agüero Gustavo De La , Scotti Marco , Cruz-Escalona Víctor H. , Navia Andrés Felipe
Published: July 2023

Ecosystem-based management for marine life conservation is of growing consensus, although the focus on protecting either charismatic or commercially important species still persist, understating species playing key functional roles. Here we quantified the topological importance of species with high economic or conservation value by simulating extinction scenarios in the Gulf of California trophic network. We found food web robustness against removals of charismatic or commercially important species. Instead, other species suggest strong roles on food web functioning. Invertebrates such as squids and crustaceans are in crucial intermediate positions, making them key bottlenecks for energy transfers. A mixed ecosystem control is at play in the food web, which is dominated by species controlling the indirect effects in top-down forcing as white sharks and hammerheads and bottom-up forcing imposed by the phytoplankton. Direct effect transmission is regulated by the silky shark due to its diverse diet. Only two charismatic removals, blue whale and white shark affected the closeness centrality patterns, whereas only blue shrimp and Monterrey sardine are commercially important species with functional relevance roles in the food web. We hope our network analysis will help decision makers in the development of novel conservation policies. Our results highlight in fact the importance of loliginid squid and blue shrimp populations, having beneficial indirect effects for the protection of charismatic species. This study is particularly timing since islands and protected areas of the Gulf of California were upgraded to the highest level of concern by the UNESCO World Heritage Convention in 2020.
Effect of Electrical Muscular Stimulation on Occupational Activates: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Eldaly Sameh
Published: July 2023

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of electrotherapy modalities to improve muscular performance and coordination in occupational activities.
Data sources:: Search strategies were conducted on 5 Randomized control trial and one Pilot study and one Experimental proof.
Results: seven studies (151 participants) were analyzed. Movement therapy plus electrical stimulation for at least two weeks is likely to produce the best outcome in improving muscle recruitment and coordination patients with in patients with occupational activities disorders.
Conclusion: the available evidence suggests that the electrical muscular stimulation in occupational therapy can be a useful adjunct to traditional therapy approaches for improving muscle function, strength, and physical function in a variety of populations.
Cardiac-selective gene delivery of medium-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (MCAD) does not protect against diabetes-induced cardiac dysfunction
Authors: Weeks Kate L. , Kiriazis Helen , Sergienko Nicola M. , Raaijmakers Antonia J.A. , Harmawan Claudia A. , Yildiz Gunes S. , Gregorevic Paul , Delb Lea M.D. , McMullen Julie R. , Bernardo Bianca C.
Published: July 2023

People with diabetes are at significantly higher risk of developing heart failure. Diabetic cardiomyopathy describes heart disease in patients with diabetes who have no other cardiac conditions. Specific therapies to treat the diabetic heart are limited. A key mechanism involved in the progression of diabetic cardiomyopathy is dysregulation of cardiac energy metabolism. The aim of this study was to determine if increasing the expression of medium chain acyl-coenzyme A dehydrogenase (MCAD; encoded by Acadm), a key regulator of fatty acid oxidation, could improve function of the diabetic heart. Male mice were administered streptozotocin to induce diabetes, which led to diastolic dysfunction 8 weeks post-injection. Mice then received cardiac-selective adeno-associated viral vectors encoding MCAD (rAAV6:MCAD) or control AAV and were followed for 8 weeks. rAAV6:MCAD did not improve diabetes-induced diastolic dysfunction or alter the expression of key metabolic genes (Ppargc1a, Ppara, Cpt1b, Slc2a4) or proteins (OXPHOS complexes). An inverse correlation between MCAD and perilipin 5 was observed, suggesting that altered MCAD expression may have an impact on lipid droplet accumulation in the diabetic heart.
The incremental healthcare cost associated with cancer in Belgium: a registry-based data analysis.
Authors: Gorasso Vanessa , Vandevijvere Stefanie , Heyden Johan Van der , Pelgrims Ingrid , Hilderink Henk , Nusselder Wilma , Demoury Claire , Schmidt Masja , Vansteelandt Stijn , De Smedt Delphine , Devleesschauwer Brecht
Published: July 2023

Background
Similar to many countries, Belgium experienced a rapid increase of cancer diagnoses in the last years. Considering that a large part of cancer types could be prevented, our study aimed to estimate the annual healthcare burden of cancer per site, and to compare cost with burden of disease estimates to have a better understanding of the impact of different cancer sites in Belgium.
Methods
We used nationally available data sources to estimate the healthcare expenditure. We opted for a prevalence-based approach which measures the disease attributable costs that occur concurrently for 10-year prevalent cancer cases in 2018. Average attributable costs of cancer were computed via matching of cases (patients with cancer by site) and controls (patients without cancer). Years of life lost due to disability (YLD) were used to summarize the health impact of the selected cancers.
Results
The highest attributable cost in 2018 among the selected cancers was on average €15,867 per patient for bronchus and lung cancer, followed by liver cancer, pancreatic cancer and mesothelioma. For the total cost, lung cancer was the most costly cancer site with almost €700 million spent in 2018. Lung cancer was followed by breast and colorectal cancer that costed more than €300 million each in 2018.
Conclusions
In our study, the direct attributable cost of the most prevalent cancer sites in Belgium was estimated to provide useful guidance for cost containment policies. Many of these cancers could be prevented by tackling risk factors such as smoking, obesity, and environmental stressors.
A 6th-8th c. wire-drawing iron plate with silver residue from a Vendel Period workshop in Old Uppsala, Sweden
Authors: Wärmländer Sebastian K.T.S. , Ljungkvist John , Jahrehorn Max , Hennius Andreas
Published: July 2023

Metal wire is in modern society manufactured by drawing metal rods through dies with conical holes of decreasing diameters, until the desired thickness is obtained. The history and origin of this technique remains unclear, although it was likely developed from earlier wire-making techniques such as strip-drawing and roll-drawing. Proper wire-drawing was an established technology in Europe during the High Middle Ages, and numerous draw-plates have been found at Scandinavian trading centres or hoards from the Viking Age. Here, we report the technical examination of an iron draw-plate found in Uppsala in central Sweden. The draw-plate was excavated in a Vendel Period fine metals workshop, located immediately next to the royal hall in Old Uppsala, an important religious centre during pagan times. X-ray and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis of the draw-plate revealed silver particles in the plate’s holes, indicating drawing of silver wire. The plate is dated to the 6th – 8th c., which makes it one of the oldest confirmed tools for wire-drawing so far encountered. The presence of this tool in the workshop indicates that some high-quality jewellery in this region was locally produced. Thus, the finding of this draw-plate increases our understanding of Vendel Period jewellery production, and of the social organization of this craft.
"Electricity Will Change the Village Face" (The Coverage of the Rural Electrification Process by the Local Press of Sumy Region during 1945-1955)
Authors: Korol Vitaliy
Published: July 2023

The article is devoted to the analysis of the characteristic features of the coverage of the rural electrification process by the local press of Sumy Oblast in the second half of the 1940s - the first half of the 1950s.
It is estimated that during the first post-war decade, printed materials that touched on the topic of rural electrification in the columns of the Sumy regional newspaper were most often published in 1948-1951. This demonstrates the degree of attention paid to the process by the authorities and corresponds to the activity of efforts to implement it at that time.
In general, according to the content, all materials of the regional press devoted to rural electrification are divided into several groups:
1) reports, information about the opening of new electric power facilities;
2) visual materials dedicated to rural electrification (maps, photos);
3) publications devoted to the use of electricity, the consequences of electrification for the village;
4) criticism, complaints about shortcomings, coverage of electrification problems on the ground.
The given division is to a certain extent conditional, since the same publication could be assigned to two or even more groups at once in terms of content.
The coverage of rural electrification in the local press was part of the campaigning and propaganda support of the mentioned process and was characterized by richness in form and content. The significant informativeness of this mass of information makes it a valuable source for further prospective studies of the problems of post-war rural development both at the regional level and within the territorial boundaries of all of Ukraine.
On the Literary Work of Vasyl Andriievskyi
Authors: Vlasenko Valeriy , Kurinnoi Oleksandr
Published: July 2023

The article is dedicated to the literary work of Vasyl Vasyliovych Andriievskyi, the Ukrainian social and political figure, a participant of the Ukrainian revolution of 1917-1921, one of the leaders of the Ukrainian political emigration in Yugoslavia, a writer and a journalist, native of the Chernihiv region.
The preface highlights biography and social and political activity of V. Andriievskyi in Ukraine and emigration. It is specified that until recently, his literary work was not known, because he published his stories under pseudonyms and cryptonyms. Owing to processing of the archival-investigation case of V. Andriievskyi, which is stored in the Sectoral State Archive of the Security Service of Ukraine, the origin of pseudonyms was found out and the circle of magazines in which his prose works were published was determined.
Four stories by V. Andriievskyi under the pseudonym “Vasyl Nekrashevych” are published for the first time, which are printed in the month of writing, art, science and public life “Nova Ukraina” (“New Ukraine”) (Prague, 1923, editors V. Vynnychenko, M. Shapoval) as well as in the illustrated fortnightly “Svit” (“The World”) (Lviv, 1926-1927, chief editor I. Kvasnytsia).
Corneal neovascularization: a modern view of molecular mechanisms and methods of therapy
Authors: Arzhimatova G. S. , Salikhov E. A. , Shemyakin M. Y.
Published: July 2023

This review provides a detailed summary of the issues of etiology, pathogenesis and molecular mechanisms of corneal neovascularization. Signaling molecules involved in the process of neovasculogenesis, as well as their antagonists, antiangiogenic factors, are described. The role of signaling proteins VEGF, MMP and their receptors as modern targets of therapy is described on the basis of a series of clinical studies. The potentials of gene and bioengineering therapy as a promising method of treating corneal neovascularization are presented.