bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Regulatory barriers to dental anesthesia services for special populations
Authors: Busto Robert , Virga Joseph , Bean Canise , Draper John , Jatana Courtney , Cornelius Bryant
Published: October 2022

Aims

Sedation and general anesthesia are necessities for the treatment of many individuals within special populations such as those with physical and intellectual disabilities, fear/anxiety, or individuals requiring extensive procedures. This study aims to discover regulatory factors that may be contributing to the limited access to anesthesia services provided by dentist anesthesiologists.

Methods and Results

The study included an online survey completed by self‐reported dentist anesthesiologists with 2 or more years of formal anesthesia training. The survey was distributed at the April 2019 American Society of Dentist Anesthesiologists national meeting in Chicago. Participants responded to questions regarding the effect of specific state regulations on decisions to practice in a particular state and how such regulations influenced patient safety and barriers to care. Rules and regulatory restrictions on the mobility of dentist anesthesiologist equipment/supplies and additional state narcotic transportation regulations were deemed statistically significant in failing to improve safety. Requiring airway and sedation training for a facility's provider and staff were not barriers to care. Rules and regulations were not a factor to establishing clinical practice in one state over another state.

Conclusion

Individuals and organizations responsible for influencing the regulatory environment of anesthesia services should improve regulations to facilitate the mobility of dentist anesthesiologists.
Identification of the novel HLA‐B*50:01:17 allele by polymerase chain reaction sequence‐based typing
Authors: Zhao Shuoxian , Wang Fang , He Yizhen , Zhang Wei , Zhu Faming
Published: October 2022

HLA‐B*50:01:17 shows one nucleotide substitution at position 861 when compared with HLA‐B*50:01:01:01.
Identification of the novel HLA‐DQA1*01:01:01:10 allele in an individual from Orissa, India
Authors: Pinto Andrea S. , Tambe Manisha , D'Silva Selma Z. , Singh Meenakshi
Published: October 2022

The novel HLA‐DQA1*01:01:01:10 allele differs from HLA‐DQA1*01:01:01:07 by a single nucleotide change at gDNA 702 G T.
Frozen and freeze‐dried solvent/detergent treated plasma: Two different pharmaceutical formulations with comparable quality
Authors: Heger Andrea , Gruber Gerhard
Published: October 2022

Background

OctaplasLG is a frozen solvent/detergent‐treated plasma product used for treating complex coagulation factor deficiencies or as substitution therapy in emergency situations where specific factor concentrates are not available. A new freeze‐dried (also known as lyophilized) form of OctaplasLG, referred as OctaplasLG Lyo (Octapharma AG, Switzerland) offers rapid reconstitution and more flexible storage conditions, improving logistics and utilization. This study compared the biochemical quality of OctaplasLG Lyo with OctaplasLG and single‐donor fresh frozen plasma units.

Study Design and Methods

Three batches of OctaplasLG Lyo, manufactured for production process qualification, and 12 batches of OctaplasLG were provided by Octapharma AB (Sweden). Twelve units of fresh frozen plasma were collected by the local FDA‐licensed blood provider. All plasma samples were assessed for global coagulation parameters, coagulation factors and protease inhibitors, activation markers of coagulation and fibrinolysis, and important plasma proteins. Quality control assays were conducted in accordance with European Pharmacopeia requirements.

Results

Frozen and freeze‐dried OctaplasLG demonstrated comparable quality profiles upon thawing or reconstitution. All coagulation factor and protease inhibitor activity parameters were in line with levels mandated by the European Pharmacopeia. Fresh frozen plasma units showed comparable coagulation factor activities, with higher protein S and plasmin inhibitor levels than the OctaplasLG products. Fresh frozen plasma parameters showed high lot‐to‐lot variations.

Discussion

The two pharmaceutical forms of OctaplasLG (frozen and freeze‐dried) have comparable biochemical quality. Key features of OctaplasLG Lyo are rapid reconstitution time and storage flexibility, which may improve logistics and utilization, and have particular advantages in emergency situations and pre‐hospital settings.
Minimising COVID‐19 transmission cases: Do policies and institutions matter?
Authors: Ambaw Dessie Tarko , Hing Vutha , Osakwe Patrick N. , Thangavelu Shandre Mugan
Published: October 2022

This paper examines the effects of institutional factors and government policy responses on COVID‐19 infection cases. It applies the Random Effects (RE) and GMM (Generalised Method of Moments) estimation techniques to panel data to explore the relationship between COVID‐19 cases on the one hand and institutions and government policy responses on the other. The paper finds that the nature and timing of policy responses matter and that institutions play a crucial role in explaining observed infection cases across countries. The results also indicate that high population density and previous experience with infectious diseases are important factors in explaining infection cases across countries. One of the policy implications of our findings is the importance of timely policy intervention at the national level in reducing infection cases.
Effects of different pollen diets in comparison to a natural prey, Tetranychus turkestani (Acari: Tetranychidae), on development, survival, and reproduction of Euseius scutalis (Acari: Phytoseiidae)
Authors: Shishehbor Parviz , Rahmani-Piani Atefeh , Riahi Elham
Published: October 2022

The development, survival, and reproduction of the predatory mite Euseius scutalis (Athias-Henriot) (Acari: Phytoseiidae) were studied under laboratory conditions (25 ±1 °C, 65 ± 5% RH, 16:8 (L: D) h) on strawberry spider mite, Tetranychus turkestani Ugarov and Nikolski (Acari: Tetranychidae), and four different pollen including date palm, cattail, golden shower tree and caper bush pollen. Our results showed that E. scutalis mites successfully developed into the adult stage and reproduced on natural prey and plant pollen tested. Diet type significantly affected the developmental time of immature stages of both females and males. Females reared on T. turkestani had a considerably shorter total developmental time than those raised on other diets. Date pollen and spider mites-fed females began laying eggs much earlier than other females. The lower number of laid eggs was recorded for the females raised on golden shower tree, followed by caper bush pollen. The net reproductive rate (R0) of the predators fed golden shower tree was significantly lower than those provided cattail pollen and T. turkestani. Intrinsic and finite rates of increase (r and λ, respectively) were highest in the females fed T. turkestani (0.3300 ± 0.018 and 1.3910 ± 0.0247, respectively) followed by cattail pollen (0.2721 ± 0.0178 and 1.3126 ± 0.0233, respectively). Based on the current findings, it can be concluded that rearing of E. scutalis on the immatures of T. turkestani was considerably better than on other diets with higher values of egg production and population growth rate under laboratory conditions. Furthermore, cattail pollen followed by date palm pollen are suitable alternative diet sources for easy and cost-effective rearing of E. scutalis in the laboratory.
Displaced fat-jets and tracks to probe boosted right-handed neutrinos in the $$U(1)_{B-L}$$ model
Authors: Padhan Rojalin , Mitra Manimala , Kulkarni Suchita , Deppisch Frank F.
Published: October 2022

We investigate the pair-production of Right-Handed Neutrinos (RHNs) via a $$B-L$$

B
-
L

$$Z'$$

Z
′

boson and present the sensitivity studies of the active-sterile neutrino mixing ($$|V_{\mu N}|$$

|

V

μ
N

|

) at the High-Luminosity run of the LHC (HL-LHC) and a future pp collider (FCC-hh). We focus on RHN states with a mass of $$10-70$$

10
-
70

 GeV which naturally results in displaced vertices for small $$|V_{\mu N}|$$

|

V

μ
N

|

. Being produced through a mass resonance with $$M_{Z'} \ge 1$$

M

Z
′

≥
1

 TeV, the RHNs are heavily boosted, leading to collimated decay products that give rise to fat-jets. We investigate the detection prospect of dedicated signatures in the inner detector and the muon spectrometer, namely a pair of displaced fat-jets and the associated tracks, respectively. We find that both the HL-LHC and FCC-hh can be sensitive to $$|V_{\mu N}| > 10^{-6}$$

|

V

μ
N

|
>

10

-
6

and $$|V_{\mu N}| > 10^{-7}$$

|

V

μ
N

|
>

10

-
7

with the number of events reaching $${\mathcal {O}}(10)$$

O
(
10
)

and $${\mathcal {O}}(10^3)$$

O
(

10
3

)

, respectively. This allows probing the generation of light neutrino masses through the Seesaw mechanism.
Psychological Profiles and Their Relevance with Temporomandibular Disorder Symptoms in Preorthodontic Patients
Authors: Ye Chengxinyue , Xiong Xin , Zhang Yuyao , Pu Dan , Zhang Jie , Du Shufang , Wang Jun
Published: October 2022

Background. Temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) refer to a group of heterogenous musculoskeletal diseases with diverse clinical symptoms and an undetermined aetiology. The psychological profiles were closely related to the onset and treatment outcomes of TMDs. Objective. To examine the relevance between psychological profiles and different symptoms of TMDs in preorthodontic patients. Methods. The study was conducted among 570 preorthodontic patients. TMDs symptoms were recorded by the Diagnostic Criteria for TMD (DC/TMD) symptom questionnaire. The seven-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7), the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS) were used for the evaluation of anxiety, depression, and pain catastrophizing levels. The relevance of three psychological profiles with TMDs and subtypes was evaluated with Spearman’s rank correlation test and logistic regression analysis (

P
<
0.05

). Results. 34.56% of the enrolled preorthodontic patients were diagnosed with TMDs. Scores of GAD-7, PHQ-9, and PCS were significantly higher in the TMDs group than in the non-TMDs group. Participants with anxiety, depression, or high pain catastrophizing had a higher prevalence of both pain-related TMDs symptoms and intra-articular TMDs symptoms. The correlations among pain-related TMDs, intra-articular TMDs, and scores on the psychological scales were significant (

P
<
0.05

). The adjusted logistic regression model revealed that anxiety, depression, and high pain catastrophizing were significant risk factors for TMDs with an odds ratio (OR) of 2.196, 1.741, and 1.601, respectively. Depression was associated with higher pain-related TMDs prevalence (OR = 2.136), while anxiety and depression were associated with higher intra-articular TMDs prevalence (OR = 2.341 and 1.473). Conclusion. Anxiety, depression, and high pain catastrophizing were comorbid psychological conditions of TMDs. Depression was the top risk factor for pain-related TMDs, while anxiety rendered the highest risk for intra-articular TMDs. Inclusion of psychological assessments in preorthodontic evaluation might yield great benefits in TMDs screening.
In Which Patients and Why Is Laparoscopy Helpful for the Impalpable Testis?
Authors: Papparella Alfonso , Umano Giuseppina Rosaria , Romano Mercedes , Delehaye Giulia , Cascone Salvatore , Trotta Letizia , Noviello Carmine
Published: October 2022

Since laparoscopy has been proposed in the management of the nonpalpable testis (NPT), this technique has been widely diffused among pediatric surgeons and urologists, but its application is still debated. We conducted a retrospective review to highlight how diagnostic and surgical indications for laparoscopy are selective and should be targeted to individual patients. From 2015 to 2019, 135 patients with NPT were admitted to our surgical division. Of these, 35 were palpable on clinical examination under anesthesia and 95 underwent laparoscopy. The main laparoscopic findings considered were: intra-abdominal testis (IAT), cord structures that are blind-ending, completely absent, or entering the abdominal ring. The patients’ mean age was 22 months. In 48 cases, an IAT was found, and 42 of these underwent primary orchidopexy while 6 had the Fowler–Stephens (FS) laparoscopic procedure. Of the first group one patient experienced a testicular atrophy while two a reascent of the testis. In the FS orchidopexy group, one patient had testicular atrophy. Cord structures entering the internal inguinal ring were observed in 35 children, and all were surgically open explored. In 3 cases of these, a hypotrophic testis was revealed and an open orchidopexy was executed. In the remaining the histological examination revealed viable testicular cells in four patients and fibrosis, calcifications, and hemosiderin deposits in the others. Eleven patients presented with intrabdominal blind-ending vessels and one a testicular agenesia. A careful clinical examination is important to select patients to submit to laparoscopy. Diagnostic laparoscopy, and therefore, the anatomical observation of the testis and cord structures are strictly related to develop a treatment plan. In IAT, many surgical strategies can be applied with good results. Laparoscopy offers a concrete benefit to the patient.
Efficacy and Safety of Wuling Powder in the Treatment of Patients with Diabetic Nephropathy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Yang Yunyi , Sha Wenjun , Hou Keke , Xu Yuanying , Tan Shufa , Yin Hongping , Chen Lin , Lei Tao
Published: October 2022

Background. Wuling powder is a classical formula of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), which is extensively applied to treat diabetic nephropathy (DN). However, there are no related reports on systematically evaluating the efficacy of Wuling powder in the treatment of DN. Targeted at this, this study was developed. Materials and Methods. This study systematically searched related articles from nine databases, including PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase, Web of Science, China Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), China Biomedical CD-ROM (Sino Med), Wanfang database, Vipers database (VIP), and the China Clinical Trials Registry website. The randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involving Wuling Power to treat DN were included, which were published from the established data of the above databases to March 2022. In addition, the language of the studies was not restricted. Studies were meta-analyzed using the RevMan 5.4 software given in the Cochrane Collaboration Network. The treatment efficacy was measured using the weighted mean differences (WMD) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results. 24 studies were included for the final analysis. 24 h urine volume (WMD = 357.95; 95% CI [322.83, 393.06],

p
<
0.00001

), 24 h urine protein quantification(24 h UPQ) (WMD = −1.30; 95% CI [−1.82, −0.78],

p
<
0.00001

), serum creatinine (Scr) (WMD = −10.17; 95% CI [−11.13, −9.21],

p
<
0.00001

), blood urea nitrogen (BUN) (WMD = −1.62; 95% CI [−2.30, −0.93],

p
<
0.00001

), urinary albumin excretion rate (UAER) (WMD = −24.73; 95% CI [−35.46, −13.99],

p
<
0.00001

), fasting blood glucose (FBG) (WMD = −0.63.95% CI [−0.97, −0.30], p = 0.002), glycated hemoglobin (WMD = −0.11; 95% CI [−0.30, 0.08],

p
=
0.26

), total cholesterol (TC) (WMD = −0.63; 95% CI [−1.23, −0.04],

p
=
0.04

), triglycerides (TG) (WMD = −0.46. 95% CI [−0.70, −0.23],

p
=
0.0001

), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (WMD = −0.32; 95% CI [0.03, 0.62],

p
=
0.03

), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) (WMD = −0.57; 95% CI [−0.77, −0.37],

p
<
0.00001

), and total effective rate (TER) (response ratio (RR) = 1.40; 95% CI [1.32, 1.48];

p
<
0.00001

) were concluded. The Wuling powder in the treatment of DN was statistically significant in all the above outcome indicators, and the efficacy of the treatment group was better than that of the control group. Conclusion. The results of this study provided evidence for the clinical application of Wuling powder to treat the DN, but it had to be further validated in higher-quality clinical studies.
Prevalence, Knowledge, Attitude, and Predictors of Waterpipe Smoking among School Adolescents in Saudi Arabia
Authors: Alsanosy Rashad
Published: October 2022

This cross-sectional study was designed to investigate the prevalence, knowledge, attitude, and predictors of waterpipe (WP) smoking among intermediate and secondary school adolescents in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). A self-administered anonymous questionnaire was used to collect data on demography, WP smoking status and patterns, the Arabic version of the Global Youth Tobacco Survey tool, and instruments to assess knowledge and attitude towards WP smoking. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) was also used. Descriptive and inferential statistical techniques were used. Modeling of WP smoking behavior was conducted using logistic regression. A total of 639 male students participated in this study. The prevalence of current WP and cigarette smokers were 17.7% and 14.6%, respectively. Out of the total population, 47.8% of students have the misconception that WP smoking is less harmful than cigarettes. A significant association (

P

 < 0.05) of some demographic factors (age, school stage, residence, and parents’ educational level) on WP smoking status was observed. Pleasure, socializing, and happiness represented the primary motives for initiating WP smoking. The majority of students had misconceptions about WP’s health effects. More than 50% believed that smoking WP could ease anxiety, cause less harm, and has less addictive properties compared to cigarettes. Modeling suggested that the most significant predictors of WP smoking were cigarette smoking, depression, and the attitude index. Current findings warrant further research and official health programs to promote educational initiatives regarding WP smoking.
SnapUnlock: A Contrastive Learning-Based Contactless Authentication via Heterogeneous Sensors
Authors: Chen Mengqi , Lin Jiawei , Li Wanlong , Zou Yongpan , Wu Kaishun
Published: October 2022

Contactless authentication is crucial to keep social distance and prevent bacterial infection. However, existing authentication approaches, such as fingerprinting and face recognition, leverage sensors to verify static biometric features. They either increase the probability of indirect infection or inconvenience the users wearing masks. To tackle these problems, we propose a contactless behavioral biometric authentication mechanism that makes use of heterogeneous sensors. We conduct a preliminary study to demonstrate the feasibility of finger snapping as a natural biometric behavior. A prototype-SnapUnlock system was designed and implemented for further real-world evaluation in various environments. SnapUnlock adopts the principle of contrastive-based representation learning to effectively encode the features of heterogeneous readings. With the representations learned, enrolled samples trained with the classifier can achieve superior performances. We extensively evaluate SnapUnlock involving 50 participants in different experimental settings. The results show that SnapUnlock can achieve a 4.2% average false reject rate and 0.73% average false accept rate. Even in a noisy environment, our system performs similar results.
HIF1α Promotes BMP9‐Mediated Osteoblastic Differentiation and Vascularization by Interacting with CBFA1
Authors: Li Yuwan , Liu Ziming , Wang Hong-De , Zhang Jun , Lin Miaoyuan , Yang Jianye , Huang Jiaxing , Yan Wenqiang , Ao Yingfang
Published: October 2022

Bone morphogenetic protein 9 (BMP9) as the most potent osteogenic molecule which initiates the differentiation of stem cells into the osteoblast lineage and regulates angiogenesis, remains unclear how BMP9‐regulated angiogenic signaling is coupled to the osteogenic pathway. Hypoxia‐inducible factor 1α (HIF1α) is critical for vascularization and osteogenic differentiation and the CBFA1, known as runt‐related transcription factor 2 (Runx2) which plays a regulatory role in osteogenesis. This study investigated the combined effect of HIF1α and Runx2 on BMP9‐induced osteogenic and angiogenic differentiation of the immortalized mouse embryonic fibroblasts (iMEFs). The effect of HIF1α and Runx2 on the osteogenic and angiogenic differentiation of iMEFs was evaluated. The relationship between HIF1α‐ and Runx2‐mediated angiogenesis during BMP9‐regulated osteogenic differentiation of iMEFs was evaluated by ChIP assays. We demonstrated that exogenous expression of HIF1α and Runx2 is coupled to potentiate BMP9‐induced osteogenic and angiogenic differentiation both in vitro and animal model. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays (ChIP) showed that Runx2 is a downstream target of HIF1α that regulates BMP9‐mediated osteogenesis and angiogenic differentiation. Our findings reveal that HIF1α immediately regulates Runx2 and may originate an essential regulatory thread to harmonize osteogenic and angiogenic differentiation in iMEFs, and this coupling between HIF1α and Runx2 is essential for bone healing.
Evaluation Method of Street Green Landscape Viewing Degree Based on Machine Learning
Authors: Wang Tieming , Liu Mengyu , Huang Wenhua
Published: October 2022

Urban streetscape is a complex and multifaceted landscape system, which is an important part of urban public space system. With the acceleration of the urbanization process, the connotation of street landscape is becoming more and more abundant. It not only has natural and social attributes but also bears the function of protecting the urban ecological environment. However, in recent years, due to the dramatic increase in the size of the urban population, more and more problems have appeared in urban road landscape. To this end, relevant government departments continue to update the design of urban streets and accelerate the construction of urban street landscapes, but urban streets still have problems in terms of function and environment. The viewing degree of street green landscape is also less and less in line with people’s aesthetic needs, which is difficult to meet people’s life and spiritual needs. In order to change this situation, this paper combined machine learning with the evaluation method of street green landscape viewing degree and conducted experiments on it based on machine learning. The experimental results showed that the evaluation method of street green landscape viewing degree based on machine learning not only made the city more beautiful but also improved the ecological environment of the city. The air quality of the city was improved by 20.96%, which was supported and loved by the general public.
Directed Energy Deposition via Artificial Intelligence‐Enabled Approaches
Authors: Chadha Utkarsh , Selvaraj Senthil Kumaran , Lamsal Aakrit Sharma , Maddini Yashwanth , Ravinuthala Abhishek Krishna , Choudhary Bhawana , Mishra Anirudh , Padala Deepesh , M Shashank , Lahoti Vedang , Adefris Addisalem , S Dhanalakshmi
Published: October 2022

Additive manufacturing (AM) has been gaining pace, replacing traditional manufacturing methods. Moreover, artificial intelligence and machine learning implementation has increased for further applications and advancements. This review extensively follows all the research work and the contemporary signs of progress in the directed energy deposition (DED) process. All types of DED systems, feed materials, energy sources, and shielding gases used in this process are also analyzed in detail. Implementing artificial intelligence (AI) in the DED process to make the process less human‐dependent and control the complicated aspects has been rigorously reviewed. Various AI techniques like neural networks, gradient boosted decision trees, support vector machines, and Gaussian process techniques can achieve the desired aim. These models implemented in the DED process have been trained for high‐precision products and superior quality monitoring.
Nanoformulation of Tetrapyrroles Derivatives in Photodynamic Therapy: A Focus on Bacteriochlorin
Authors: Pallavi Pragya , Harini Karthick , Anand Arumugam Vijaya , Gowtham Pemula , Girigoswami Koyeli , Muthukrishnan Saradhadevi , Girigoswami Agnishwar
Published: October 2022

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a well-known remedial treatment for cancer, infections, and various other diseases. PDT uses nontoxic dyes called photosensitizers (PS) that are activated in visible light at the proper wavelength to generate ROS (reactive oxygen species) that aid in killing tumor cells and destroying pathogenic microbes. Deciding a suitable photosensitizer is essential for enhancing the effectiveness of photodynamic therapy. It is challenging to choose the photosensitizer that is appropriate for specific pathological circumstances, such as different cancer species. Porphyrin, chlorin, and bacteriochlorin are tetrapyrroles used with proper functionalization in PDT, among which some compound has been clinically approved. Most photosensitizers are hydrophobic, have minimum solubility, and exhibit cytotoxicity due to the dispersion in biological fluid. This paper reviewed some nanotechnology-based strategies to overcome these drawbacks. In PDT, metal nanoparticles are widely used due to their enhanced surface plasmon resonance. The self-assembled nano-drug carriers like polymeric micelles, liposomes, and metal-based nanoparticles play a significant role in solubilizing the photosensitizer to make them biocompatible.
Study on the Potential Mechanism of Semen Strychni against Myasthenia Gravis Based on Network Pharmacology and Molecular Docking with Experimental Verification
Authors: Fang Pingfei , Yu Changwei , Liu Jian , Deng Gongying , Zhang Min
Published: October 2022

Background. Semen Strychni (SS) is an effective Chinese medicine formula for treating myasthenia gravis (MG) in clinics. Nonetheless, its molecular mechanism is largely unknown. Objective. Using network pharmacology, molecular docking, and experimental validation, we aim to identify the therapeutic effect of SS on MG and its underlying mechanism. Methods. The main ingredients of SS and their targets and potential disease targets for MG were extracted from public databases. The protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed using the STRING 11.0 database, and Cytoscape was used to identify the hub targets. In addition, Gene Ontology (GO) and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) were used to identify molecular biological processes and signaling pathways. Then, AutoDock Via conducted molecular docking. The experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis (EAMG) model in female Lewis rats, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), Western blot, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) were performed to confirm the effect and mechanism of SS on MG. Results. The following active compounds and hub targets were identified by screening and analyzing: isobrucine, vomicine, (S)-stylopine, strychnine, brucine-N-oxide, brucine and AKT1, MAPK1, MAPK14, CHRM1, ACHE, and CHRNA4. KEGG enrichment analyses indicated that the cholinergic synapse and neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction signaling pathway may be necessary. The results of molecular docking revealed that the main active ingredients bind well to the hub targets. In vivo experiments proved that SS could improve the weight loss and Lennon scores in the EAMG model. Experiments in molecular biology showed that SS could treat MG by affecting the cholinergic synapse through the respective antibody, receptor, and key enzymes in the cholinergic pathway. Conclusion. This study provided a preliminary overview of the active constituents, primary targets, and potential pathways of SS against MG. SS ameliorated EAMG by regulating the cholinergic synaptic junction.
Role of High-Dose Adjuvant Chemotherapy Followed by Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation in Locally Advanced Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: A Retrospective Chart Review
Authors: Al-Share Bayan , Assad Hadeel , Abrams Judith , Deol Abhinav , Alavi Asif , Modi Dipenkumar , Kin Andrew , Ratanatharathorn Voravit , Uberti Joseph , Ayash Lois
Published: October 2022

Purpose. Women with locally advanced/high-risk triple-negative breast cancer treated with the current standard chemotherapy continue to have a poor prognosis. High-dose chemotherapy with autologous stem cell transplant as treatment for locally advanced/high-risk breast cancer remains controversial due to a lack of survival benefit seen in previous phase III trials. However, these trials evaluated a heterogeneous group of patients with different receptor subtypes. A marginal benefit was observed in certain subgroups. We report long-term outcomes of women with stage IIB or III triple-negative breast cancer treated with high-dose chemotherapy followed by autologous stem cell transplant at our institution between 1995 and 2001. Methods. This is a retrospective analysis of stage IIB or stage III triple-negative breast cancer treated with high-dose chemotherapy followed by autologous stem cell transplant. We excluded women with hormone-positive, HER2/neu-positive/unknown, and/or metastatic disease prior to transplant as per updated AJCC 7th edition guidelines. Patients underwent surgery and either neoadjuvant or adjuvant anthracycline and taxane-based chemotherapy and then proceeded to high-dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplant using carmustine 600 mg/sqm, cyclophosphamide 5.6gm/sqm, and cisplatin 165 mg/sqm (STAMP 1 regimen) for consolidation. This was followed by locoregional breast and lymph node radiation per standard of care. Results. Twenty-nine women (2 stage IIB and 27 stage III) were evaluated. The median age at diagnosis was 43 years (IQR: 40, 51). Eleven patients had 4–9 regional lymph nodes (LN) involved and 16 had 10+ involved LNs. Four patients had T4 or inflammatory breast cancer and two had ipsilateral supraclavicular LNs involved. The median follow-up time is 16 years (95% CI: 12, 19, range <1–19 y) posttransplant. The median overall survival was 15 years (95% CI: 3, 19); the median DFS was 14 years (95% CI: 1, 19). Conclusions. This study of locally advanced/high-risk triple-negative breast cancer treated with adjuvant high-dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplant reveals high overall survival rate. With the current improvement in treatment-related mortality, re-evaluating this approach in this subset of high-risk breast cancer in prospective randomized studies may be worthwhile.
Value-Added Dietary Fiber Concentrate Obtained as Waste after Protein Isolation from Ethanol-Treated Sunflower Meal
Authors: Ivanova Petya , Kalaydzhiev Hristo , Slavov Anton , Chalova Vesela I.
Published: October 2022

Deproteinized sunflower meal (DSM) was obtained as waste from ethanol-treated sunflower meal after alkaline extraction of proteins. The study aimed at biochemically and functionally characterizing the material concerning its potential practical application and valuability. The DSM consisted mainly of proteins (19.88%) and dietary fibers (61.06%) the majority of which were insoluble (53.09%). Cellulose (30.87%) and lignin (21.79%) were the most contributing compounds to the total amount of dietary fibers. The DSM contained Fe (133.29 mg/kg), Zn (201.56 mg/kg), and Cu (31.87 mg/kg). The analyses defined the DSM as a fiber concentrate with relatively high thermal stability. The distraction of the material began at 170°С with a maximum speed at 277°С. The highest water absorption capacity (WAC) of the DSM was observed at pH 6 and 7 (approximately 8 g H2O/g sample) under all studied conditions including pH from 3 to 10 and three levels of NaCl concentrations (0.00 M, 0.03 M, and 0.25 M). At pH 7, increasing temperature from 20°C to 60°C increased the WAC of the DSM from 8.13 g H2O/g sample to 9.80 g H2O/g sample, respectively. Further increase in the temperature diminished the WAC of the DSM. At pH 6, the increase in temperature did not influence positively the WAC of the DSM. The study demonstrated the potential of the DSM, a waste obtained from the protein isolation process, as a valuable ingredient/additive in the food industry.
Analysis and Research Based on the Crowdsourcing Corpus System in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA)
Authors: Zhu Zheyu , Xu Mingyang , Jiang Ying , Yang Jing
Published: October 2022

Objective. To sort out the application and status quo of some domestic crowdsourcing models, explore the factors affecting multilingual manual annotation through experiments and offer suggestions. Methodology. Crawling the government news texts in Mandarin, Cantonese, English, and Portuguese in Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao, and enter them into the database. Combine it with corpus tagging uses the established web platform to practice crowdsourcing and collect a large number of annotation results and behavior data. Results. Made assumptions about factors that may affect the quality of manual annotation, used SPSS and other data analysis software to evaluate the degree of interpretation of the assumptions, provided a regression formula for calculating the accuracy, and provided constructive suggestions for the corpus annotation quality assurance projects. Limitations. More corpus information in more languages and more professional annotators are needed. Conclusions. The study found that the accuracy of annotation is strongly related to the attributes of the corpus itself, such as the total number of vocabularies, the number of rare words, the complexity of parts of speech, etc., and the condition of languages are different from each other.
Research on Multitarget Detection and Intelligent Tracking Technology Based on Computer Vision
Authors: Liu Xiaobo , Yan Junya , Zhang Yuxin
Published: October 2022

With image analysis as the core for multitarget detection and intelligent tracking, mostly applying the Faster R-CNN or YOLO framework, the MOTA score for multitarget tracking is low in the face of complex working environments. Therefore, further research into computer vision techniques is carried out to design new multitarget detection and intelligent tracking methods. Based on the small-aperture imaging model, the principle of lens distortion was analyzed, and a camera calibration and image calibration scheme was designed to obtain effective environmental images. The attention mechanism is introduced to optimise the structure of deep learning networks, and a computer vision detection algorithm based on this is applied to complete regional multitarget detection. The distance between each target and the body is then measured in combination with binocular vision principles. Finally, the spatiotemporal context algorithm is applied to perform simulation calculations to obtain the multitarget intelligent tracking results. The experimental results show that the mean MOTA score of the proposed technique is 0.87 in the night environment, which is 24.14% and 28.374% better than the neural network-based and machine vision-based tracking methods, respectively; in the daytime environment, the mean MOTA score of the multitarget tracking results of the technique is 0.94, which is 28.72%, and the mean MOTA score of 0.94 for the multitarget tracking results in the daytime environment was 28.72% and 22.34% higher than the other two methods.
Evaluation of Ulcer Protective Activity of Morus alba L. Extract-Loaded Chitosan Microspheres in Ethanol-Induced Ulcer in Rat Model
Authors: Garg Sarita , Singla Rajeev K. , Rahman Md. Mominur , Sharma Rohit , Mittal Vineet
Published: October 2022

Due to an unhealthy lifestyle, gastric ulcers have become a very common disease these days. Moreover, the side effects linked with the prolonged use of conventional treatments have shifted the paradigm towards herbal therapies. The leaves of Morus alba L. (Family-Moraceae) have been traditionally used for a large number of metabolic diseases. In the present research, we focused on the development of chitosan microspheres using extracts of leaves of Morus alba L. and their evaluation for gastroprotective efficacy against ethanol-induced ulcers in experimental rats. The process of development of M. alba extract microsphere (MEM) is also optimized using the Box-Behnken design. The formulation was prepared at optimized conditions (chitosan concentration (1.66% w/w), volume of glutaraldehyde (4.69 mL), and stirrer rotation per minute, RPM, 854.8), and the percentage yield (Y1) of the resulted microspheres is ∼95% with an encapsulation efficiency (EE) of (Y2(rutin)) ∼86%, Y2(quercetin)) ∼85%, and particle size (Y3) of ∼40 µm. The MEM prepared at optimized conditions can also be characterized for various parameters to ensure the uniformity of parameters. Also, the drug release studies indicated that the percentage release of rutin and quercetin from MEM was enhanced as compared to M. alba extract (ME) alone. Furthermore, in vivo analysis of the antiulcer potential of pretreatment with ME and MEM (500 mg/kg p.o.) in rats indicated that mucosal lesions, gastric juice volume, and total acidity were significantly altered as compared to ethanol-treated animals. Histopathology of tissue sections also confirmed the protection of gastric mucosa on pretreatment with MEM at 500 mg/kg p.o. On the basis of these findings, we can conclude that prepared microspheres can be used to develop a sustained release formulation of extract for the management of gastric ulcers. However, additional research is needed to establish the specific mechanisms of M. alba’s antiulcer efficacy.
Influence of Dehydroxymethylepoxyquinomicin on Radiosensitivity of Thyroid Carcinoma TPC-1 Cells
Authors: Liu Jie , Cai Hu , Yi Heqing , Li Xin , Peng Yunsong , Li Linfa
Published: October 2022

Objective. To investigate the influence of dehydroxymethylepoxyquinomicin (DHMEQ), an NF-κB inhibitor, on radiosensitivity of thyroid carcinoma (TC) TPC-1 cells. Methods. The isolation of CDl33 positive cells (CD133+ TPC-1) and negative cells (CD133- TPC-1) from TPC-1 cells used immunomagnetic bead sorting. After verification of the toxicity of DHMEQ to cells by MTT and cell cloning assays, the cells were divided into four groups, of which three groups were intervened by DHMEQ, 131I radiation, and DHMEQ +131I radiation, respectively, while the fourth group was used as a control without treatment. Alterations in cell growth, apoptosis, and cell cycle were observed. Results. DHMEQ had certain toxic effects on TPC-1 cells, with an IC50 of 38.57 μg/mL (

P
<
0.05

). DHMEQ inhibited CD133+ and CD133- TPC-1 proliferation and their clonogenesis after irradiation. DHMEQ + radiation contributed to a growth inhibition rate and an apoptosis rate higher than either or them alone (

P
<
0.05

), with a more significant effect on CD133- TPC-1 than CD133+ TPC-1 under the same treatment conditions (

P
<
0.05

). Conclusion. DHEMQ can increase the radiosensitivity of TC cells to 131I, inhibit tumor cell growth, and promote apoptosis. However, its effect is less significant on CD133+ TPC-1 compared with CD133- TPC-1, which may be related to the stem cell-like properties of CD133+ cells. In the future, the application of DHMEQ in TC 131I radiotherapy will effectively improve the clinical effect of patients.
Antidiabetic Potential and Antioxidant Activity of Olea europaea subsp. Cuspidata (Indian Olive) Seed Extracts
Authors: Akhtar Muhammad Furqan , Ashraf Komal Maria , Saleem Ammara , Sharif Ali , Zubair Hafiz Muhammad , Anwar Fareeha
Published: October 2022

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the antioxidant and antidiabetic potential of Indian olive seed extracts. Plant seeds were sequentially extracted with n-hexane, chloroform, methanol, and water. 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging and alpha-amylase inhibitory activities of extracts were carried out. Olea europaea methanolic extract (MEOE) and aqueous extract (AEOE) were orally administered to normoglycemic and alloxan-treated diabetic rats so as to determine their hypoglycemic effect. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis showed gallic acid, ferulic acid, quercetin, and vanillic acid in MEOE. It was found that the methanolic and aqueous extracts exhibited the maximum DPPH and alpha-amylase inhibition activities, respectively. MEOE and AEOE exerted a significant decline in the fasting blood sugar in diabetic animals (

p
<
0.05

); however, they did not cause hypoglycemia in nondiabetic animals. Treatment with MEOE and AEOE reduced the aggravated liver and kidney function biomarkers. Aggravated levels of oxidative stress biomarkers including superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), reduced glutathione (GSH), and malondialdehyde (MDA) were restored by treatment with MEOE. Moreover, MEOE improved the count of islets of Langerhans in the pancreas, fatty changes, and enlarged sinusoidal spaces in the liver and necrosis of the glomerulus and tubular cells of the kidney in diabetic rats. This study showed that the African olive seed extract effectively managed experimental diabetes and restored the normal functions and histology of the liver and kidney in diabetic rats through the reduction of oxidative stress.
Effectiveness of Charcoal Adsorbent in Flue Gas Filters for PCB Reduction in Smoke from Hospital Incinerators
Authors: Adu Robert Ohene , Gyasi Samuel Fosu , Essumang David Kofi
Published: October 2022

The release of gas-phase polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) as one of the persistent organic pollutants (POPs) is an unfortunate result of combustion, especially from medical waste incinerators. This tends to make incinerators unpopular. The idea of a cheaply available air pollution control device fitted to incinerator chimneys can justify the continued use of incinerators. A gas filter unit, consisting of 3 filter beds with activated charcoal as an adsorbent, was designed, constructed, and fitted onto an existing incinerator at a university hospital in Ghana. Flue gas from the incinerator was sampled before and after the filter beds, using cylindrically-shaped mini-polyurethane foam (mini-PUF) samplers, and the analytes in the samples were then Soxhlet-extracted, purified, and analyzed for certain PCBs using the gas chromatography-mass spectrometer (GC-MS) technique. Twelve of the 14 indicators PCBs analyzed in the smoke samples were present, and 11 of them saw mean reductions ranging from 3.67% to 54.9% by the charcoal filter beds. These were PCB 18, PCB 28, PCB 31, PCB 44, PCB 101, PCB 118, PCB 138, PCB149, PCB 153, PCB 170, and PCB180. The gaseous concentrations of PCBs before filtration ranged from 0.0000788 ng/m3 for PCB 180 to 0.00129 ng/m3 for PCB 153. After the filtration by the charcoal adsorbent, they ranged from 0.00003734 ng/m3 for PCB 170 to 0.00112016 ng/m3 for PCB 153. The highest mean reduction of 54.9% came from the homologue, PCB 180, whilst the homologue with a dioxin-like character (PCB 118) saw a 22.44% reduction. This suggests that dioxins and other dioxin-like compounds are most likely adsorbed by the charcoal adsorbent. This gas filter unit should further be investigated for its effectiveness at removing other dioxin-like PCBs, dioxins, and furanes and for testing the effectiveness of thermophilic bacterial strains that can further metabolize these POPs into less harmful products.
Antioxidant Indexes and Immune Function of the Intestinal Flora of Compound Microecological Preparations
Authors: Sun Wanzhen , Zhang Li
Published: October 2022

Compound probiotics are biological products made by mixing and cultivating various probiotics according to appropriate composition and ratio. It can not only play the role of a variety of probiotics in composition but also the effect of the ratio is often greater than the effect of the single strain alone. These probiotics are good for the body’s immune system in living organisms. They act as immune boosters in living organisms. They are considered the safest form of treatment. In this review, the effects of microecological agents on antioxidant indices and immune function of chicks were studied, and radial basis neural network (RBFNN) was described. Aiming at the deficiency of traditional RBFNN learning strategy, a three-layer RBFNN method based on immune mechanism was proposed. In this paper, the microecological evaluation preparation was added into chicken feed. The study showed that chickens fed with probiotics gained significant body weight at 6 weeks of age. Compared with the control group, the experimental group increased by 15.70%. In each feed/gain ratio, the feed/gain ratio of the experimental group was significantly decreased at 6 weeks of age, which was 30.37% lower than that of the control group. Compared with the control group, the spleen, bursa of Fabricius, and thymus of the experimental group were increased by 63.02%, 38.77%, and 26.82%, respectively, indicating that the compound probiotics could improve the immunity of chickens.
The Survival and Prognosis Characteristics of Primary Esophageal Small-Cell Carcinoma
Authors: Li Jie , Zhang Xiangmei , Xu Xinjian , Zhao Qi , Yang Qing , He Ming , Chen Xin , Zhao Jidong
Published: October 2022

Objective. To comprehensively explore the survival characteristics of primary esophageal small-cell carcinoma (PSCCE) and identify the main factors affecting the prognosis. Methods. The clinical and follow-up data of PSCCE patients admitted to the Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University from 2006 to 2010 were retrospectively analyzed. The primary endpoint was five-year survival. Survival curves were drawn using the Kaplan-Meier method, and log-rank test was used to compare the differences in survival rates among the groups. Cox regression models were used to analyze prognostic factors. Results. A total of 119 eligible patients were retrieved. Median survival was 27 months (3-100 months). Changes in overall survival (OS) in PSCCE patients were associated with TNM stage (

P
=
0.007

), T stage (

P
=
0.049

), and lymph node metastasis (

P
=
0.004

). When TNM was in stage I-IIb, lymph node metastasis (

P
=
0.003

) or combined adjuvant therapy (

P
=
0.004

) was an independent factor affecting OS. Survival analysis showed that TNM staging had no predictive value for 5-year survival time or disease-free survival (DFS) of PSCCE (

P
>
0.05

). Conclusion. TNM stage, T stage, and lymph node metastasis were related to the survival of patients. Negative lymph node metastasis and treatment are independent prognostic factors in PSCCE TNM stage I-IIb patients.
Practical Position Tracking for 3D Unicycle Model
Authors: Lin Haoyan , Cai He
Published: October 2022

This paper considers practical position tracking for the 3D unicycle model. In contrast to the existing hand position coordinate transformation, a novel modified hand position coordinate transformation is proposed for the 3D unicycle model which can guarantee that the induced velocity transformation matrix is nonsingular for all the possible orientations. By employing the proposed modified hand position coordinate transformation, the nonlinear 3D unicycle position kinematics can be converted into the single integrator form, which enables arbitrary position reference trajectory tracking given any prespecified upper bound for the steady-state tracking error. The control performance is examined by numerical examples.