bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Analysis of Scattering Angle Sampling by Multi-Angle Imaging Polarimeters for Different Orbit Geometries
Authors: Thompson Sabrina N. , van Diedenhoven Bastiaan , Colarco Peter R. , Castellanos Patricia , Lian Eric , Martins J. Vanderlei
Published: April 2022

Per the 2017–2027 Decadal Survey for Earth Science and Applications from Space, many resources are being dedicated to identifying the most cost-effective and appropriate space-based approaches to aid in answering important questions related to the roles of aerosols, clouds, convection, and precipitation within the climate system. This includes developing advanced space-based multi-angle polarimetric imagers for observing aerosols and clouds. The information content with respect to aerosol and cloud properties of such instruments partly depends on the observed range of scattering angles. Factors influencing the sampled scattering angle range include orbit geometry, solar, and viewing angle geometry and swath width. The focus of this research is to gain better insight into how each of these factors influence the scattering angle range sampled by different polarimeter platforms. Based on calculations of example precessing and sun-synchronous orbits, we conclude that the maximum observed scattering angles vary primarily with local equator crossing time (LCT) and location across the swath, while the minimum observed scattering angles vary primarily with LCT and latitude. The altitude and inclination of a precessing orbit determines the length of cycles occurring in LCT and thus in the scattering angle sampling statistics. For a nominal polarimeter with a 57° swath width in an orbit with 65.5° inclination, scattering angle ranges that are suitable for aerosol and cloud remote sensing are sampled somewhere across the swath at most covered latitudes roughly 54% of days throughout the year. Unfavorable scattering angles are observed on days where the orbit is near the terminator and LCT are early in the morning or late in the evening, when solar zenith angles are generally not suited for remote sensing. Decreasing the instrument’s swath width to 7° primarily decreases the maximum observed scattering angle, and therefore limits the range of crossing times for which a large range of scattering angles are observed. In addition, the fraction of days throughout the year with favorable scattering angles decreases to roughly 37%. These calculations will aid in the development of next-generation observing systems using combinations of instrument platforms in different orbits, as well for other missions such as those using cubesats.
How We Learn About Our Networked World
Authors: David Sophia U. , Loman Sophie E. , Lynn Christopher W. , Blevins Ann S. , Ouellet Mathieu , Bassett Dani S.
Published: April 2022

We receive bits of information every day. They come to us in a stream. When we listen to music, read a book, or solve a math problem we receive a stream of musical bits, word bits, or math bits. Our minds arrange that stream into a network. A network links together bits of information like musical notes, syllables, or math concepts. Networks help us to organize information and anticipate what is coming next. In this article, we ask two questions about how our minds build networks: First, are some networks easier to learn than others? And second, do we find some links between bits of information more surprising than others? The answer to both questions is “yes.” The findings reveal how humans learn about the networked world around them. Knowing how humans learn can also help us understand how to teach in ways that will result in the best learning.
A Comparison of Sprint Mechanical Parameters Measured With Timing Gates and a Laser Gun
Authors: van den Tillaar Roland , Haugen Markus Estifanos , Falch Hallvard Nygaard
Published: April 2022

The aim of the study was to compare sprint mechanical parameters measured with timing gates and a laser gun. Thirty-four female team handball players (age: 17.0 ± 2.3 years, height: 1.70 ± 0.07 m, body mass: 66.7 ± 9.7 kg) performed three 30 m sprints in which the times were measured at 5, 10, 20 and 30 m with timing gates (accuracy 0.01 s) together with the distance over time by a laser gun. The main findings were that with a correction of +0.21 s (timing gates) the times and sprint mechanical properties calculated with the spreadsheet of Morin between timing gates and laser gun were not different. But when peak velocity was derived directly from the laser gun (MusclelabTM system) this was significantly higher than maximal velocity (vmax), and lower than the theoretical maximal velocity (v0) calculated with the spreadsheet. It was concluded that a correction of +0.21 s should be used to get correct mechanical properties when measuring with timing gates compared with laser gun measurements on an indoor court.
Application of the Jigsaw Puzzle Flap Based on Freestyle Perforators to Repair Large and Deep Ulcers on the Buttocks
Authors: Chen Xiaoming , Huang Biao , Xiao Haitao , An Lu , Su Wenxing , Yu Daojiang
Published: April 2022

Background

Decubitus ulcers are common skin injuries in plastic and burn surgery departments, usually occur in patients with a long disease course and poor underlying health. Designing a reconstruction procedure with safety blood supply to a large volume soft tissue and resulting in minimal trauma is a priority for surgeons.

Methods

The free-style perforators on the potential donor sites surrounding the ulcers were detected by Doppler, and the area of the ulcer was divided into several sections based on the location of pre-design perforator flaps. According to the insertion point of the perforators, small V-Y advancement flaps, propeller flaps and rotation flaps pedicled with freestyle perforators were formed and moderately modified during surgery. All of the small flaps were transplanted from donor sites to the defect and reassembled into a new composite flap to repair the ulcer. The donor sites were directly closed. The area of the flaps ranged from 7.0 × 10.5 cm to 8.0 × 22.0 cm and the diameter of the pedicle perforators ranged from 0.5 to 4.0 mm.

Results

In 30 patients, 65 flaps were constructed, and all of the flaps survived with direct closure of all donor sites. One case with effusion healed 1 month postoperatively through draining and application of a mild pressure dressing. After a 3–24 months follow-up period, all of the patients were satisfied with post-operative function and appearance, and only one case had a local recurrence 6 months postoperatively.

Conclusion

The jigsaw puzzle flap based on freestyle perforators can repair the large skin and soft tissue defects caused by decubitus ulcers on the buttocks, with direct donor flap area closure. This method is easy to perform with a safe blood supply and minimal trauma resulting from the avoidance of microvascular anastomosis and the conventional myocutaneous flap.
Clinical Study on the Treatment of Female Stress Urinary Incontinence With Modified Buzhong Yiqi Decoction
Authors: Zhou Feifei , Chen Chen , Shi Jiani , Zhou Qianru , Jin Lijun , Ma Xiaofang
Published: April 2022

Purpose

To study the clinical application value of Modified Buzhong Yiqi Decoction in the treatment of female stress urinary incontinence (SUI).

Methods

A total of 103 female patients with SUI were included in this study, 13 were lost to follow-up, and the final number of studies was 90. General information about the patients, including age, years of menopause, body mass index (BMI), reproductive history, chronic respiratory disease, hypertension, and diabetes, were recorded. All the patients were treated with Modified Buzhong Yiqi Decoction alone for 4 weeks. The Patient Global Impression of Improvement (PGI-I), the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire-Urinary Incontinence Short Form (ICI-QSF) and 72-h voiding diary were used to evaluate the patients' subjective symptoms and urinary incontinence degree before treatment, 1 month after treatment and 1 year after treatment, the efficacy and efficacy-related factors of Modified Buzhong Yiqi Decoction in the treatment of female SUI were analyzed.

Results

One month after Modified Buzhong Yiqi Decoction treatment, compared with before treatment, the PGI-I questionnaire was very much better (68.89%), much better (8.89%), a little better (12.33%), no change (8.89%), the ICI-QSF score decreased (P < 0.05), and 72-h urine leakage frequency decreased (P < 0.05); One year after treatment compared with before treatment, the PGI-I questionnaire was very much better (40.00%), much better (17.78%), a little better (12.22%), no change (30.00%), the ICI-QSF score decreased (P < 0.05), and 72-h urine leakage frequency decreased (P < 0.05); and 1 year after treatment compared with 1 month after treatment, the ratio of very much better at 1 year after treatment was significantly decreased (P < 0.05), the score of the ICI-QSF was significantly increased (P < 0.05), and 72-h urine leakage frequency was significantly increased (P < 0.05). The correlation analysis showed that the efficacy at 1 month after treatment was negatively correlated with the severity of SUI and chronic respiratory diseases, but was not significantly correlated with age, menopause status, BMI, number of pregnancies, and number of births. The efficacy at 1 year after treatment was negatively correlated with the severity of SUI, chronic respiratory disease, age, and number of births and was positively correlated with BMI, but not significantly correlated with menopause status and number of pregnancies.

Conclusion

Modified Buzhong Yiqi Decoction can effectively treat SUI in women. The efficacy is related to the severity of SUI and chronic abdominal hypertension, but the long-term efficacy decreases.
Effect of Different Pig Fecal Microbiota Transplantation on Mice Intestinal Function and Microbiota Changes During Cold Exposure
Authors: Liu Ting , Guo Yanbo , Lu Chang , Cai Chunbo , Gao Pengfei , Cao Guoqing , Li Bugao , Guo Xiaohong , Yang Yang
Published: April 2022

Cold stress influences intestinal processes, causing physiological and immunological responses in animals. Intestinal microbiota participates in maintaining the stability of the intestinal environment. However, phenotypic characteristics and the effects of porcine microbiota changes under cold conditions remain poorly understood. Here, the fecal microbiota of cold tolerant breed (Mashen) and cold sensitive breed (Duroc-Landrace-Yorkshire) was transferred to germ-free mice, respectively. After a cold exposure (4°C) for 21 days, intestinal function and microbe changes of mice were explored. The results showed that Mashen pigs microbiota transplantation made the body temperature of the mice stable, in which the fat weight and expression of uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1), carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1B (Cpt1b), and Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma coactivator (PGC-1α) were significantly higher (P < 0.05) than those of the control group. The results of intestinal structure and expression of serum inflammatory factors showed that fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) mice have more intact intestinal structure and high expression of proinflammatory factor such as interleukin-4 (IL-4). The study of mice fecal microbiome characterized via 16S rRNA sequencing found that pig microbiota transplantation changed the abundance of Firmicutes. In addition, it identified discriminative features of Firmicutes in the microbiota between two breeds of pig, in which Clostridiaceae were enriched in the microbiota community of Mashen pig and Coriobacteriales were significantly (P < 0.05) enriched in the Duroc-Landrace-Yorkshire pig microbiota transplantation group based on linear discriminant analysis effect size (LEfSe) analysis. Finally, we found that the content of propionic acid and butyric acid in rectal contents significantly changed and the abundances of Clostridium and Lachnospira showed significant correlations with changes in short-chain fatty acids. The results suggest that pig fecal microbiota transplantation can alleviate the changes in physiological and biochemical indicators in mice caused by cold exposure. Mice have gut microbes altered and improved gut barrier function via fecal microbiota transplantation in pigs.
Proteomic Investigation Reveals Eukaryotic Translation Initiation Factor 5A Involvement in Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus Infection in vitro
Authors: Li Huawei , Wan Bo , Jiang Dawei , Ji Pengchao , Zhao Mengmeng , Li Xinfeng , Li Rui , Qiao Songlin
Published: April 2022

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV), one of the most serious animal pathogens in the world, has caused enormous global swine industry losses. An in-depth investigation of the PRRSV-host interaction would be beneficial for preventing and controlling PRRSV infections and transmission. In this study, we performed label-free quantitative proteomic assays to investigate proteome dynamics of porcine alveolar macrophages (PAMs) during infection with highly pathogenic PRRSV (HP-PRRSV) strain HN07-1. Analysis of the results led to identification of 269 significantly differentially expressed host cellular proteins, of which levels of proteins belonging to the eukaryotic translation initiation factor (eIF) family were found to be decreased in abundance in HP-PRRSV-infected PAMs. Furthermore, knockdown of eIF5A expression was demonstrated to markedly suppress HP-PRRSV propagation, as reflected by reduced progeny virus titers in vitro. These results highlight the importance of eIF5A in PRRSV infection, while also demonstrating that PAMs down-regulate eIF5A expression as a host cell antiviral strategy. Results of the current study deepen our understanding of PRRSV pathogenesis and provide novel insights to guide development of effective strategies to combat the virus.
Detection of Phenuiviridae, Chuviridae Members, and a Novel Quaranjavirus in Hard Ticks From Danube Delta
Authors: Bratuleanu Bianca Elena , Temmam Sarah , Munier Sandie , Chrétien Delphine , Bigot Thomas , van der Werf Sylvie , Savuta Gheorghe , Eloit Marc
Published: April 2022

Ticks are involved in the transmission of various pathogens and several tick-borne diseases cause significant problems for the health of humans and livestock. The members of the Quaranjavirus genus are mainly associated with argas ticks but recent studies demonstrated the presence of novel quaranjaviruses-like in ixodid ticks. In 2020, 169 Rhipicephalus sanguineus ticks were collected in Southern Romania from small ruminants and analyzed by high-throughput transcriptome sequencing. Among the viral families that infect Romanian ticks, we have identified sequences from Phenuiviridae (Brown dog tick phlebovirus 1 [BDTPV1] and Brown dog tick phlebovirus 2 [BDTPV2]) and Chuviridae families (Cataloi mivirus [CTMV]), and numerous sequences from a new quaranjavirus-like, tentatively named Cataloi tick quaranjavirus (CTQV). Phylogenetic analyses performed on the five segments show that CTQV is phylogenetically positioned within a clade that encompasses Ixodidae-borne viruses associated with iguanas, small ruminants, seabirds, and penguins distributed across different geographical areas. Furthermore, CTQV is positioned differently depending on the segment considered. This is the first report on the detection of a quaranjavirus-like in Eastern Europe. Further investigations are needed to discern its infectivity and pathogenicity against vertebrates.
Simulation of Unsteady Flows of Oil/Gas in the Ventless Bearing Chamber of an Aero-Engine
Authors: Li Shaobai , Li Caixia , Wang Wei
Published: April 2022

The unsteady motion behavior of oil/gas two-phase flow in a novel ventless bearing chamber has significant impacts on the lubrication and heat transfer efficiency of bearings due to the various advantages of lower pressure levels and weaker rotating airflow effects. In this paper, the unsteady motion behavior of oil/gas two-phase flow in a ventless aero-engine bearing chamber is investigated by three-dimensional numerical simulation through the volume of fluid (VOF) method, and the numerical method is verified using published experimental data. The flow characteristics of oil/gas two-phase in the secondary flow and three-dimensional flow are investigated. The results show the evolution of vortices and the transition of the driving mode in the unsteady motion of oil/gas two-phase flow, and a criterion for the shift of the driving mode at different rotor speeds is proposed. As the rotation speed increases, the variation trend of the velocity field and pressure field of oil/gas two-phase flow is consistent, and the accumulation region of oil becomes inconspicuous. The results indicate a reference for enhancing the performance of lubrication systems for aero-engines.
System Noise Assessment and Uncertainty Analysis of a Conceptual Supersonic Aircraft
Authors: Akatsuka Junichi , Ishii Tatsuya
Published: April 2022

This paper describes a system noise assessment of a conceptual supersonic aircraft called the NASA 55t Supersonic Technology Concept Aeroplane (STCA), its prediction uncertainty, and related validation tests. A landing and takeoff noise (LTO) standard for supersonic aircraft is needed to realize future supersonic aircraft, and the noise impact due to the introduction of future supersonic aircraft should be analyzed to develop the standard. System noise assessments and uncertainty analyses using Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) were performed. The predicted noise levels showed good agreement with the prior study for both the benchmark case and statistics of the predictions. The predicted cumulative noise level satisfied the ICAO Chapter 4 noise standard, and its standard deviation was approximately 2 EPNdB. Moreover, sensitivity analysis using the obtained datasets revealed strong correlations with the takeoff noise for jet noise, fan exhaust noise at the flyover measurement point, and airframe trailing edge noise. Further understanding of these extracted factors, which were estimated to have a significant impact on the LTO noise, will be beneficial for the development of LTO noise standards and the design of supersonic aircraft.
Impact of Government Policies on Seed Innovation in China
Authors: Zhao Yawei , Deng Haiyan , Hu Ruifa , Xiong Changzhao
Published: April 2022

Seed innovation is of great importance for more sustainable agriculture and food systems. Using data on nationally approved rice varieties and farmers’ adopted varieties, this study examined rice varietal trait changes in China over the past four decades and explored the impact of national crop varietal approval policies on approved rice traits as well as the effect of seed subsidies on adopted rice trait changes. The results showed that the yield of approved varieties and adopted varieties showed an upward trend over the past decades, and the yield of approved varieties was slightly higher than that of adopted varieties in most years. The rice quality of approved rice varieties showed a trend of continuous improvement but the adopted varieties showed a downward trend. The disease resistance of the approved varieties failed to show an increasing trend overall while the adopted varieties remained unchanged. National crop variety approval policies seemed to exert a significant positive impact on approved rice yield traits but exert a negative influence on disease resistance. Subsidies for superior seed varieties significantly increased adopted rice quality but decreased yield. The results suggest that national crop variety approval policies are the gatekeeper of improved rice, so the government can improve the policies to more meet farmers’ and consumers’ needs.
Transcriptomic and Metabolomic Analysis Provides Insights into the Fruit Quality and Yield Improvement in Tomato under Soilless Substrate-Based Cultivation
Authors: Guo Jinghua , Dong Lingdi , Kandel Shyam L. , Jiao Yonggang , Shi Linqi , Yang Yubo , Shi Ainong , Mou Beiquan
Published: April 2022

The effects of soilless substrate-based versus soil cultivation on overall fruit quality and yield in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) were studied using the tomato cv. Zhonghua Lvbao. Experiments for tomato soilless cultivation were carried out under greenhouse conditions. Plant growth, fruit quality and yield, and physiologic traits were observed. RNA-seq and RT-PCR, as well as metabolomic analyses were performed to examine the expressed genes and metabolites under soilless substrate cultivation. The results showed that the plant height, stem diameter, and chlorophyll contents of tomato under substrate-based cultivation were increased by 37.3%, 19.8%, and 15.3%, respectively, compared with soil cultivation system. Leaf photosynthetic and transpiration rates, stomatal conductance, and root vitality of tomato, under substrate-based cultivation, increased by 29.0%, 21.2%, 43.9%, and 84.5%, respectively, compared with soil cultivation. The yield reached 7177.5 kg/667 m2, and the relative yield increased by 10.1%, compared with soil cultivation. The contents of total soluble sugar, soluble solids, and vitamin C increased by 35.7%, 19.7%, and 18.2%, respectively, higher than those of soil cultivation in tomato fruits, while nitrate content and titratable acid decreased by 29.4% and 11.8%, respectively. Therefore, substrate-based-cultivation can increase production and improve tomato fruit quality and taste. We examined the expressed genes and metabolites to explore the molecular mechanism of plant growth and overall fruit quality improvement in substrate-based cultivation. A total of 476 differentially expressed genes were identified by transcriptomes profiling, of which 321 and 155 were significantly up- and down-regulated, respectively. The results of metabolomics analysis showed that 441 metabolites were detected, where 24 and 36 metabolites were up- and down-regulated, respectively. By combining analyses of transcriptomic and metabolic groups, genes and metabolites related to the fruit quality were mainly concentrated in the vitamin B6/ascorbic acid/aldonic acidmetabolism, and glycerophospholipid metabolic pathways. Therefore, substrate-based cultivation can elevate vitamin and soluble sugar contents and the expression of fruit flavor related genes, which lays an initial background for exploring the mechanism of substrate-based cultivation, in order to improve the quality of tomato in the future.
Effects of Soil Acidification on Bacterial and Fungal Communities in the Jiaodong Peninsula, Northern China
Authors: Wang Tingting , Cao Xiaoxu , Chen Manman , Lou Yanhong , Wang Hui , Yang Quangang , Pan Hong , Zhuge Yuping
Published: April 2022

Soil acidification has become increasingly serious due to anthropogenic activities (e.g., fertilization) throughout the world. Examining the effects of soil acidification on bacterial and fungal communities in acidic crop soils provides valuable insights for revealing the potential role of microbes in soil quality and crop yield. Here, a total of 18 samples with pH varied from 4 to 7 were collected from agricultural regions in the Jiaodong Peninsula, Shandong Province, China. High-throughput sequencing analysis was used to determine the composition and diversity of the bacterial and fungal communities. The results revealed that the α-diversity of the bacterial community was significantly decreased as the soil acidification increased, while that of fungal communities exhibited little response to soil acidification, thus indicating that bacteria rather than fungi respond sensitively to soil acidification. Principal component analysis (PCA) and canonical correlations analysis (CCA) further corroborated that pH is an essential predictor for controlling the distribution of microbial communities, and it also could alter other exchangeable base cation (e.g., EH+, EAl3+, EK+, ENa+, ECa2+, and EMg2+) contents to further drive the microbial community patterns.
Multicenter Study of Carbapenemase-Producing Enterobacterales in Havana, Cuba, 2016–2021
Authors: Yu Haiyang , González Molina María Karla , Carmona Cartaya Yenisel , Hart Casares Marcia , Aung Meiji Soe , Kobayashi Nobumichi , Quiñones Pérez Dianelys
Published: April 2022

Surveillance of carbapenem resistance is particularly important for Enterobacterales, mainly in countries with limited healthcare resources. We conducted a cross-sectional study to detect carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales at 10 sentinel hospitals in Havana, Cuba for a six year-period (2016–2021) by the National Reference Laboratory for Health Care-Associated Infections in the Pedro Kourí Institute. A total of 152 isolates were collected with phenotypic production of metallo-β-lactamase. NDM-type carbapenemase was detected in all the 152 isolates, and KPC-type enzyme gene was simultaneously identified in four NDM-positive isolates. The most abundant carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales (CPE) species was Klebsiella pneumoniae (69.7%), followed by Enterobacter cloacae complex (13.2%), and Escherichia coli (5.9%). Over the study period, among CPE, prevalence of K. pneumoniae was almost constant, while Enterobacter spp. showed slightly increasing tendency. The urinary tract (36.2%) was the most prevalent source of infection with CPE, followed by bloodstream (26.3%) and surgical wound (17.1%), being frequently derived from Intensive Care Units (35.5%) and urology wards (21.7%). This study revealed the present situation of CPE in hospitals in Havana, Cuba, showing the emergence and dissemination of Enterobacterales producing NDM-type carbapenemase, mainly K. pneumoniae.
Azithromycin: An Underappreciated Quinolone-Sparing Oral Treatment for Pseudomonas aeruginosa Infections
Authors: Ulloa Erlinda R. , Sakoulas George
Published: April 2022

Outpatient treatment of Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections is challenged by increasing rates of resistance to fluoroquinolones, the only class of antibiotics which offers an established oral route of administration against this organism. Azithromycin does not demonstrate activity against P. aeruginosa when evaluated under standard methods of susceptibility testing with bacteriologic media. However, growing evidence shows that azithromycin is very active against P. aeruginosa when using physiologic media that recapitulate the in vivo milieu and is supported by animal models of infection and various clinical settings, including cystic fibrosis. We present three cases of outpatient management of P. aeruginosa otolaryngological infections successfully treated with oral azithromycin, 500 mg daily ranging from 3–8 weeks, where use of fluoroquinolones was not possible due to either resistance or patient intolerance. We review the previous data supporting this clinical approach, in the hope that this will alert clinicians to this treatment option and to inspire a more thorough clinical trial evaluation of azithromycin in this environment of growing medical need.
An ACE2-Alamandine Axis Modulates the Cardiac Performance of the Goldfish Carassius auratus via the NOS/NO System
Authors: Filice Mariacristina , Mazza Rosa , Imbrogno Sandra , Mileti Olga , Baldino Noemi , Barca Amilcare , Del Vecchio Gianmarco , Verri Tiziano , Gattuso Alfonsina , Cerra Maria Carmela
Published: April 2022

Alamandine is a peptide of the Renin Angiotensin System (RAS), either generated from Angiotensin A via the Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2 (ACE2), or directly from Ang-(1–7). In mammals, it elicits cardioprotection via Mas-related G-protein-coupled receptor D (MrgD), and the NOS/NO system. In teleost fish, RAS is known to modulate heart performance. However, no information is available on the presence of a cardioactive ACE2/Alamandine axis. To fill this gap, we used the cyprinid teleost Carassius auratus (goldfish) for in silico and in vitro analyses. Via the NCBI Blast P suite we found that in cyprinids ace2 is phylogenetically detectable in a subcluster of proteins including ace2-like isoforms, and is correlated with a hypoxia-dependent pathway. By real-time PCR, Western Blotting, and HPLC, ACE2 and Alamandine were identified in goldfish heart and plasma, respectively. Both increased after chronic exposure to low O2 (2.6 mg O2 L−1). By using an ex-vivo working goldfish-heart preparation, we observed that in vitro administration of exogenous Alamandine dose-dependently stimulates myocardial contractility starting from 10−11 M. The effect that involved Mas-related receptors and PKA occurred via the NOS/NO system. This was shown by exposing the perfused heart to the NOS inhibitor L-NMMA (10−5 M) that abolished the cardiac effect of Alamandine and was supported by the increased expression of the phosphorylated NOS enzyme in the extract from goldfish heart exposed to 10−10 M Alamandine. Our data are the first to show that an ACE2/Alamandine axis is present in the goldfish C. auratus and, to elicit cardiac modulation, requires the obligatory involvement of the NOS/NO system.
Nitric Oxide (NO) Differentially Modulates the Ascorbate Peroxidase (APX) Isozymes of Sweet Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) Fruits
Authors: González-Gordo Salvador , Rodríguez-Ruiz Marta , López-Jaramillo Javier , Muñoz-Vargas María A. , Palma José M. , Corpas Francisco J.
Published: April 2022

Nitric oxide (NO) is a free radical which modulates protein function and gene expression throughout all stages of plant development. Fruit ripening involves a complex scenario where drastic phenotypical and metabolic changes take place. Pepper fruits are one of the most consumed horticultural products worldwide which, at ripening, undergo crucial phenotypical and biochemical events, with NO and antioxidants being implicated. Based on previous transcriptomic (RNA-Seq), proteomics (iTRAQ), and enzymatic data, this study aimed to identify the ascorbate peroxidase (APX) gene and protein profiles in sweet peppers and to evaluate their potential modulation by NO during fruit ripening. The data show the existence of six CaAPX genes (CaAPX1–CaAPX6) that encode corresponding APX isozymes distributed in cytosol, plastids, mitochondria, and peroxisomes. The time course expression analysis of these genes showed heterogeneous expression patterns throughout the different ripening stages, and also as a consequence of treatment with NO gas. Additionally, six APX isozymes activities (APX I–APX VI) were identified by non-denaturing PAGE, and they were also differentially modulated during maturation and NO treatment. In vitro analyses of fruit samples in the presence of NO donors, peroxynitrite, and glutathione, showed that CaAPX activity was inhibited, thus suggesting that different posttranslational modifications (PTMs), including S-nitrosation, Tyr-nitration, and glutathionylation, respectively, may occur in APX isozymes. In silico analysis of the protein tertiary structure showed that residues Cys32 and Tyr235 were conserved in the six CaAPXs, and are thus likely potential targets for S-nitrosation and nitration, respectively. These data highlight the complex mechanisms of the regulation of APX isozymes during the ripening process of sweet pepper fruits and how NO can exert fine control. This information could be useful for postharvest technology; NO regulates H2O2 levels through the different APX isozymes and, consequently, could modulate the shelf life and nutritional quality of pepper fruits.
Paraoxonase-1 Concentrations in Obstructive Sleep Apnoea: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Pau Maria Carmina , Zinellu Angelo , Zinellu Elisabetta , Pintus Gianfranco , Carru Ciriaco , Fois Alessandro G. , Mangoni Arduino A. , Pirina Pietro
Published: April 2022

Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is characterized by overproduction of reactive oxygen species and oxidative stress. The antioxidant enzyme paraoxonase-1 (PON-1) may be useful for monitoring the antioxidant defence systems and the effect of treatments in OSA patients. We investigated, by means of systematic review and meta-analysis, the serum concentrations of PON-1 in OSA patients and non-OSA controls. A literature search was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus and Google Scholar databases, from the outset to November 2021, utilizing the terms: “paraoxonase” or “PON” or “paraoxonase-1” or “PON-1” and “obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome” or “OSAS” or “OSA”. Eleven studies in 429 OSA patients and 258 non-OSA controls were involved in the meta-analysis. The pooled serum PON-1 concentrations were significantly lower in OSA (standardized mean difference (SMD) = −0.70, 95% CI −1.13 to −0.28; p = 0.001). Despite the extreme between-study heterogeneity, the SMD values were not substantially affected by the sequential omission of individual studies. There was no publication bias. Our systematic review and meta-analysis supports the presence of an impaired antioxidant defence system in OSA, possibly the consequence of intermittent hypoxia. Further studies are required to determine the clinical use of PON-1 measurements for risk stratification and monitoring in OSA patients.
Oxidative Stress and Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury in Kidney Transplantation: Focus on Ferroptosis, Mitophagy and New Antioxidants
Authors: Granata Simona , Votrico Valentina , Spadaccino Federica , Catalano Valeria , Netti Giuseppe Stefano , Ranieri Elena , Stallone Giovanni , Zaza Gianluigi
Published: April 2022

Although there has been technical and pharmacological progress in kidney transplant medicine, some patients may experience acute post-transplant complications. Among the mechanisms involved in these conditions, ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury may have a primary pathophysiological role since it is one of the leading causes of delayed graft function (DGF), a slow recovery of the renal function with the need for dialysis (generally during the first week after transplantation). DGF has a significant social and economic impact as it is associated with prolonged hospitalization and the development of severe complications (including acute rejection). During I/R injury, oxidative stress plays a major role activating several pathways including ferroptosis, an iron-driven cell death characterized by iron accumulation and excessive lipid peroxidation, and mitophagy, a selective degradation of damaged mitochondria by autophagy. Ferroptosis may contribute to the renal damage, while mitophagy can have a protective role by reducing the release of reactive oxygen species from dysfunctional mitochondria. Deep comprehension of both pathways may offer the possibility of identifying new early diagnostic noninvasive biomarkers of DGF and introducing new clinically employable pharmacological strategies. In this review we summarize all relevant knowledge in this field and discuss current antioxidant pharmacological strategies that could represent, in the next future, potential treatments for I/R injury.
A Neural Network-Based Method for Respiratory Sound Analysis and Lung Disease Detection
Authors: Brunese Luca , Mercaldo Francesco , Reginelli Alfonso , Santone Antonella
Published: April 2022

Background: Respiratory sound analysis represents a research topic of growing interest in recent times. In fact, in this area, there is the potential to automatically infer the abnormalities in the preliminary stages of a lung dysfunction. Methods: In this paper, we propose a method to analyse respiratory sounds in an automatic way. The aim is to show the effectiveness of machine learning techniques in respiratory sound analysis. A feature vector is gathered directly from breath audio and, thus, by exploiting supervised machine learning techniques, we detect if the feature vector is related to a patient affected by a lung disease. Moreover, the proposed method is able to characterise the lung disease in asthma, bronchiectasis, bronchiolitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pneumonia, and lower or upper respiratory tract infection. Results: A retrospective experimental analysis on 126 patients with 920 recording sessions showed the effectiveness of the proposed method. Conclusion: The experimental analysis demonstrated that it is possible to detect lung disease by exploiting machine learning techniques. We considered several supervised machine learning algorithms, obtaining the most interesting performance with the neural network model, with an F-Measure of 0.983 in lung disease detection and equal to 0.923 in lung disease characterisation, increasing the state-of-the-art performance.
Criteria Selection Using Machine Learning (ML) for Communication Technology Solution of Electrical Distribution Substations
Authors: Azhar Nayli Adriana , Mohamed Radzi Nurul Asyikin , Mohd Azmi Kaiyisah Hanis , Samidi Faris Syahmi , Muhammad Zainal Alisadikin
Published: April 2022

In the future, as populations grow and more end-user applications become available, the current traditional electrical distribution substation will not be able to fully accommodate new applications that may arise. Consequently, there will be numerous difficulties, including network congestion, latency, jitter, and, in the worst-case scenario, network failure, among other things. Thus, the purpose of this study is to assist decision makers in selecting the most appropriate communication technologies for an electrical distribution substation through an examination of the criteria’s in-fluence on the selection process. In this study, nine technical criteria were selected and processed using machine learning (ML) software, RapidMiner, to find the most optimal technical criteria. Several ML techniques were studied, and Naïve Bayes was chosen, as it showed the highest performance among the rest. From this study, the criteria were ranked in order of importance from most important to least important based on the average value obtained from the output. Seven technical criteria were identified as being important and should be evaluated in order to determine the most appropriate communication technology solution for electrical distribution substation as a result of this study.
Real-Time Face Mask Detection to Ensure COVID-19 Precautionary Measures in the Developing Countries
Authors: Farman Haleem , Khan Taimoor , Khan Zahid , Habib Shabana , Islam Muhammad , Ammar Adel
Published: April 2022

Recently, the rapid transmission of Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) is causing a significant health crisis worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) issued several guidelines for protection against the spreading of COVID-19. According to the WHO, the most effective preventive measure against COVID-19 is wearing a mask in public and crowded areas. It is quite difficult to manually monitor and determine people with masks and no masks. In this paper, different deep learning architectures were used for better results evaluations. After extensive experimentation, we selected a custom model having the best performance to identify whether people wear a face mask or not and allowing an easy deployment on a small device such as a Jetson Nano. The experimental evaluation is performed on the custom dataset that is developed from the website (See data collection section) after applying different masks on those images. The proposed model in comparison with other methods produced higher accuracy (99% for training accuracy and 99% for validation accuracy). Moreover, the proposed method can be deployed on resource-constrained devices.
Development of Fuzzy-Adaptive Control Based Energy Management Strategy for PEM Fuel Cell Hybrid Tramway System
Authors: Trinh Hoai-An , Truong Hoai-Vu-Anh , Ahn Kyoung Kwan
Published: April 2022

Currently, the implementation of hybrid proton-exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC)-battery-supercapacitor systems for hybrid tramways to replace conventional internal combustion engines and reduce greenhouse gas emissions has triggered an upward trend in developing energy management strategies (EMSs) to effectively deploy this integration. For this purpose, this paper introduces a comprehensive EMS consisting of high-level and low-level controls to achieve appropriate power distribution and stabilize the operating voltage of the powertrain. In the high-level control, a fuzzy logic technique and adaptive control loop are proposed to determine the reference power for energy sources under different working conditions. Meanwhile, the low-level control aims to generate a pulse-width-modulation (PWM) signal for DC/DC converter, associated with each electric source, to regulate the device’s output performance and guarantee the DC bus voltage. Comparisons between the proposed strategy with available approaches are conducted to verify the effectiveness of the proposed EMS through MATLAB/Simulink environment. The simulation results confirm that the proposed EMS not only sufficiently ensures powers distribution even when the abrupt changes of load or high peak power, but also enhance the efficiency of the PEMFC, in which the PEMFC stack efficiency can be exhibited up to 53% with hydrogen consumption less than 21.4%. Moreover, the DC bus voltage can be regulated with a small ripple of around 1%.
One-Dimensional Optimization Design of Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Radial Inflow Turbine and Performance Analysis under Off-Design Conditions
Authors: Tong Zhiting , Song Zedong , Zhang Chao , Xing Hao , Sun Yuxuan
Published: April 2022

In the present study, the one-dimensional optimization design and the performance analysis based on a three-dimensional model were performed for a 2.1 MW supercritical carbon dioxide radial inflow turbine. Firstly, an in-house code was developed with MATLAB language for one-dimensional optimization design to maximize the total-to-static efficiency. Then, the three-dimensional radial inflow turbine model was constructed based on the one-dimensional optimization design result. Finally, the flow field and the aerodynamic performance were studied using the commercial software NUMECA. It is shown that the total-to-static efficiency obtained from three-dimensional simulation under the nominal design condition is 85.77%, with a relative deviation of 0.55%, as compared with that from the one-dimensional optimization design. Furthermore, the static temperature and pressure from the turbine inlet to the outlet drop uniformly, and there is no obvious flow separation under the nominal design condition. The values of total-to-static efficiency are always higher than 75% at the 80–110% relative rotating speed and the expansion ratio of 1.75–4.48, which also demonstrates good performance under the off-design working conditions.
Special Issue on Application of Instrumental Methods for Food and Food By-Products Analysis
Authors: Górska Agata
Published: April 2022

The application of various analytical procedures and methods determining the properties and safety of food and food constituents is a particularly important topic when dealing with food and food by-product analyses [...]
Influence of Switching on the Aging of High Power Lithium-Ion Cells
Authors: Ngaleu Guy , Theiler Michael , Straßer Xenia , Hanzl Christian , Komsiyska Lidiya , Endisch Christian , Lewerenz Meinert
Published: April 2022

For intelligent battery systems that are able to control the current flow for each individual cell, the multilevel inverter is an interesting approach to replace the bidirectional AC/DC-converter and improve flexibility of charging system and signal quality in both directions. Therefore, the cells are modulated by switching varying the duty cycle, the current and the frequency up to the kHz-range. This is only beneficial if the switching does not lead to a significant additional aging. The scientific gap to assess and understand the impact of switching is investigated in this paper by testing 22 high-power 18650 lithium-ion cells (Samsung 25R). The cells are tested at 50 Hz and 10 kHz switching frequency during charge, discharge and charge/discharge at 50% duty cycle. The tests are compared to eight reference tests with continuous current flow performed at the average and the maximum current for charge and discharge, respectively. The results are obtained by evaluating the remaining capacity, resistance, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and dV/dQ analysis. Before reaching rollover, the investigated cells lose homogeneity and cathode capacity but no significant difference for the aging parameters are found. After rollover, the cell-to-cell variation is greater than the aging induced by the different cycling parameters.
Breast and Lung Anticancer Peptides Classification Using N-Grams and Ensemble Learning Techniques
Authors: Abbas Ayad Rodhan , Mahdi Bashar Saadoon , Fadhil Osamah Younus
Published: April 2022

Anticancer peptides (ACPs) are short protein sequences; they perform functions like some hormones and enzymes inside the body. The role of any protein or peptide is related to its structure and the sequence of amino acids that make up it. There are 20 types of amino acids in humans, and each of them has a particular characteristic according to its chemical structure. Current machine and deep learning models have been used to classify ACPs problems. However, these models have neglected Amino Acid Repeats (AARs) that play an essential role in the function and structure of peptides. Therefore, in this paper, ACPs offer a promising route for novel anticancer peptides by extracting AARs based on N-Grams and k-mers using two peptides’ datasets. These datasets pointed to breast and lung cancer cells assembled and curated manually from the Cancer Peptide and Protein Database (CancerPPD). Every dataset consists of a sequence of peptides and their synthesis and anticancer activity on breast and lung cancer cell lines. Five different feature selection methods were used in this paper to improve classification performance and reduce the experimental costs. After that, ACPs were classified using four classifiers, namely AdaBoost, Random Forest Tree (RFT), Multi-class Support Vector Machine (SVM), and Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP). These classifiers were evaluated by applying five well-known evaluation metrics. Experimental results showed that the breast and lung ACPs classification process provided an accurate performance that reached 89.25% and 92.56%, respectively. In terms of AUC, it reached 95.35% and 96.92% for both breast and lung ACPs, respectively. The proposed classifiers performed competently somewhat equally in AUC, accuracy, precision, F-measures, and recall, except for Multi-class SVM-based feature selection, which showed superior performance. As a result, this paper significantly improved the predictive performance that can effectively distinguish ACPs as virtual inactive, experimental inactive, moderately active, and very active.
Target Therapy for Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Beyond Receptor Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors and Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors
Authors: Park Hyunjung , Park Hyerin , Baek Jiyeon , Moon Hyuk , Ro Simon Weonsang
Published: April 2022

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major health concern worldwide, and its incidence is increasing steadily. To date, receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) are the most favored molecular targets for the treatment of HCC, followed by immune checkpoint regulators such as PD-1, PD-L1, and CTLA-4. With less than desirable clinical outcomes from RTK inhibitors as well as immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) so far, novel molecular target therapies have been proposed for HCC. In this review, we will introduce diverse molecular signaling pathways that are aberrantly activated in HCC, focusing on YAP/TAZ, Hedgehog, and Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathways, and discuss potential therapeutic strategies targeting the signaling pathways in HCC.