bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Impact of contextual variables on the representative external load profile of Spanish professional soccer match‐play: A full season study
Authors: Oliva‐Lozano José M. , Rojas‐Valverde Daniel , Gómez‐Carmona Carlos D. , Fortes Víctor , Pino‐Ortega José
Published: April 2020

The aims of this study were to: (1) identify the representative external load profile of match‐play in Spanish professional soccer players by principal components analysis (PCA), and (2) analyse the effect of match location (home vs away), match outcome (win vs draw vs loss) and length of the microcycle (5 vs 6 vs 7 vs 8 vs 9 days) on the external load profile. Data were collected during one season consisting of 42 matches in LaLiga 123 and 11 external load variables were selected after the PCA. TD, total distance covered; DIS0–6: distance from 0 to 6 km/h; DIS21–24: distance from 21 to 24 km/h; HSRD: high‐speed running distance above 21 km/h; HSRA: total of high‐speed running actions above 21 km/h; V MAX: maximum speed in km/h; Sprints: total of actions above 24 km/h; ACC: total of accelerations; ACCG‐avg: average accelerometer G‐force; ACCMAX: maximum acceleration (m/s2); DECMAX: maximum deceleration (m/s2). Match location had an impact on HSRD (p < 0.01; ES = 0.05), DIS0–6 (p < 0.01; ES = 0.05), and ACCMAX (p < 0.01; ES = 0.05). Match outcome had a relation to TD (p < 0.01; ES = 0.05), DIS0–6 (p < 0.01; ES = 0.05) and HSRD (p < 0.01; ES = 0.05). Length of the microcycle had an impact on TD (p < 0.01; ES = 0.05), DIS0–6 (p < 0.01; ES = 0.11), ACC (p < 0.01; ES = 0.04) and VMAX (p < 0.01; ES = 0.04). This study provides coaches a selection of variables for match‐play analysis, which could represent two‐thirds of external load profile. Then, professionals should consider that these contextual variables could have an impact on the external load profile.
Competence against insufficiency: Why are men mostly safe from a rare and deadly prostate cancer?
Authors: Mathew Grinu , Trotman Lloyd C.
Published: April 2020

Prostate cancer is a slow-growing disease, but not always. A highly rare and lethal form of the disease shows survival rates of less than a year. It is called squamous cell prostate carcinoma. In this issue of JEM, Hermanova et al. (https://doi.org/10.1084/jem.20191787) provide new findings in mouse demonstrating a strong genetic handle on both the reasons behind the rarity and the aggressiveness.
Consistent and invertible deformation vector fields for a breathing anthropomorphic phantom: a post-processing framework for the XCAT phantom
Authors: Eiben Björn , Bertholet Jenny , Menten Martin J , Nill Simeon , Oelfke Uwe , McClelland Jamie R
Published: April 2020

Breathing motion is challenging for radiotherapy planning and delivery. This requires advanced four-dimensional (4D) imaging and motion mitigation strategies and associated validation tools with known deformations. Numerical phantoms such as the XCAT provide reproducible and realistic data for simulation-based validation. However, the XCAT generates partially inconsistent and non-invertible deformations where tumours remain rigid and structures can move through each other. We address these limitations by post-processing the XCAT deformation vector fields (DVF) to generate a breathing phantom with realistic motion and quantifiable deformation.

An open-source post-processing framework was developed that corrects and inverts the XCAT-DVFs while preserving sliding motion between organs. Those post-processed DVFs are used to warp the first XCAT-generated image to consecutive time points providing a 4D phantom with a tumour that moves consistently with the anatomy, the ability to scale lung density as well as consistent and invertible DVFs. For a regularly breathing case, the inverse consistency of the DVFs was verified and the tumour motion was compared to the original XCAT. The generated phantom and DVFs were used to validate a motion-including dose reconstruction (MIDR) method using isocenter shifts to emulate rigid motion. Differences between the reconstructed doses with and without lung density scaling were evaluated.

The post-processing framework produced DVFs with a maximum

95

t
h

-percentile inverse-consistency error of 0.02 mm. The generated phantom preserved the dominant sliding motion between the chest wall and inner organs. The tumour of the original XCAT phantom preserved its trajectory while deforming consistently with the underlying tissue. The MIDR was compared to the ground truth dose reconstruction illustrating its limitations. MIDR with and without lung density scaling resulted in small dose differences up to 1 Gy (prescription 54 Gy).

The proposed open-source post-processing framework overcomes important limitations of the original XCAT phantom and makes it applicable to a wider range of validation applications within radiotherapy.
Quantum phase transition inside the superconducting dome of Ba(Fe1−xCox)2As2 from diamond-based optical magnetometry
Authors: Joshi K R , Nusran N M , Tanatar M A , Cho K , Bud’ko S L , Canfield P C , Fernandes R M , Levchenko A , Prozorov R
Published: April 2020

Unconventional superconductivity often emerges in close proximity to a magnetic instability. Upon suppressing the magnetic transition down to zero temperature by tuning the carrier concentration, pressure, or disorder, the superconducting transition temperature T
c acquires its maximum value. A major challenge is the elucidation of the relationship between the superconducting phase and the strong quantum fluctuations expected near a quantum phase transition (QPT) that is either second order (i.e. a quantum critical point) or weakly first order. While unusual normal state properties, such as non-Fermi liquid behavior of the resistivity, are commonly associated with strong quantum fluctuations, evidence for its presence inside the superconducting dome are much scarcer. In this paper, we use sensitive and minimally invasive optical magnetometry based on NV-centers in diamond to probe the doping evolution of the T = 0 penetration depth in the electron-doped iron-based superconductor Ba(Fe1−x
Co
x
)2As2. A non-monotonic evolution with a pronounced peak in the vicinity of the putative magnetic QPT is found. This behavior is reminiscent to that previously seen in isovalently-substituted BaFe2(As1−x
P
x
)2 compounds, despite the notable differences between these two systems. Whereas the latter is a very clean system that displays nodal superconductivity and a single simultaneous first-order nematic–magnetic transition, the former is a charge-doped and significantly dirtier system with fully gapped superconductivity and split second-order nematic and magnetic transitions. Thus, our observation of a sharp peak in λ(x) near optimal doping, combined with the theoretical result that a QPT alone does not mandate the appearance of such peak, unveils a puzzling and seemingly universal manifestation of magnetic quantum fluctuations in iron-based superconductors and unusually robust quantum phase transition under the dome of superconductivity.
Two major modes of East Asian marine heatwaves
Authors: Lee Seonju , Park Myung-Sook , Kwon Minho , Kim Young Ho , Park Young-Gyu
Published: April 2020

We show two major modes of East Asian marine heatwaves (MHWs) associated with two contrasting sea surface temperature patterns over the subtropical western North Pacific (WNP). In the first MHW mode, ocean warming over East Asia occurs along with the subtropical WNP from the earlier winter by an El Niño-Southern Oscillation. The basin-wide ocean warming is finally intensified to an extreme warming state around East Asia, where a high-pressure region in zonal waves across the Eurasian continent passes. In contrast, at the early stage, the second MHW mode is unfavorable with ocean cooling. However, MHWs over East Asia occur due to a significant intensification of a zonally elongated high-pressure zone in response to anomalous subtropical convection in addition to mid-latitude zonal waves. Due to the importance of persistent ocean warming as well as immediate atmospheric forcing, MHW inducible oceanic and atmospheric interactions are clearly distinguishable from those of atmospheric heatwaves.
Retrospect driving forces and forecasting reduction potentials of energy-related industrial carbon emissions from China’s manufacturing at city level
Authors: Su Yongxian , Wang Yilong , Zheng Bo , Ciais Philippe , Wu Jianping , Chen Xiuzhi , Wang Yang , Wang Changjian , Ye Yuyao , Li Qian , Zhang Chaoqun , Zhang Hongou , Huang Guangqing , Huang Ningsheng , Lafortezza Raffaele
Published: April 2020

Lack of either spatial or temporal coverage in city-level carbon emissions analysis might curb our understanding of historical drivers and make future forecasting uncertain. To fill these gaps, we analyzed time-series energy-related industrial carbon emissions (EICEs) from manufacturing in over 99 cities nationwide in China during the period 2000–2015. We estimated these cities’ EICEs reduction potential up until 2030 by improving scenario design, which imposed constraints separately on different city groups based on historical drivers. Results indicated distinct changes of EICEs around 2013 for the heavy manufacturing [HM], light manufacturing [LM] and high-tech development [HD] city groups and of emissions intensity for the energy production [EP] city group. The slowing economic growth would partly explain these transformations since 2013. Energy efficiency and industrial structure contributed most to these switches for the EP and HD city groups, respectively, while energy mix and energy efficiency were also major contributors for the HM and LM city groups. Given economic growth at a normal speed, EICEs will increase by 59%, 78%, 90% and 95% for the EP, HM, LM and HD city groups, respectively, from 2015–2030. Our scenarios show that energy efficiency improvement and industrial structure optimization will spur the EICEs to peak before 2030 and limit future EICEs increase by 6.4% and 33.4% in 2030 for the EP and HD city groups, respectively. This implies that energy efficiency improvement and industrial structure optimization are key emissions mitigation factors for the EP and HD cities. Equally important, our study found more unclean fuel structure with higher coal share in the HM and LM city groups than in the other groups. It is therefore imperative to improve their energy efficiency and optimize energy and industrial structures in the HM and LM cities. Results highlight the need to impose different constraints in scenario design and provide mitigation strategies at city level.
Toluene side chain alkylation with methanol over silica catalyst
Authors: Aziz M A H , Jalil A A , Rahman A F A , Fatah N A A , Izan S M , Hussain I , Hambali H U
Published: April 2020

MSN and SiO2 catalyst were investigated on side chain toluene alkylation with methanol reaction. Characterization of the catalyst were carried out by XRD, N2 physisorption analysis, FTIR spectroscopy. A pyrrole adsorption FTIR study reveals shifting of perturbed NH stretching increasing slightly in MSN compared to SiO2 catalyst revealed that MSN possessed higher basic sites than SiO2. N2 adsorption desorption isotherm analysis showed that MSN possessed higher surface area than SiO2 as well as increased the amount of mesopores in catalyst. The catalytic side chain toluene alkylation with methanol reaction was conducted in the range of 523K-673K under atmospheric pressure. MSN exhibits the highest catalytic performance compared to SiO2 catalyst.
Hydroconversion of n-hexane over Pt-supported on fibrous silica mordenite catalysts: effect of transition metals on acidity and activity
Authors: Ibrahim M , Jalil A A , Zakaria W F W , Izan M , Fauzi A A , Hussain I
Published: April 2020

The effect of incorporation of either Zr, Co, Mo or Zn on Pt/HFSM was investigated for the hydroconversion of n-hexane in a pulsed micro-reactor at a temperature range 423-623 K. The acidity of all the studied catalysts were investigated using pyridine adsorption and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. The FTIR-pyridine study showed that the catalysts possessed different concentration and strength of both Lewis and Brønsted acid sites. It was revealed that the moderate acid sites distribution on PtZr/HFSM and PtZn/HFSM facilitated the isomerization of the intermediate hexene while the strong acid sites were selective towards cracking reaction. The trend for the bimetallic catalysts studied in n-hexane hydroisomerization is in the order: PtZr/HFSM>PtZn/HFSM>PtMo/HFSM>PtCo/HFSM. The highest activity for hydrocracking and hydrogenolysis were exhibited by PtMo/HFSM and PtCo/HFSM respectively. The PtZr/HFSM exhibited the highest hydroisomerization activity due to the moderate acidity and abundant Lewis acid sites capable of generating protonic acid sites by the hydrogen-spill over phenomena.
Renewable biogas from anaerobic digestion of biomass: influence factors in life cycle assessment
Authors: Abu R , Aziz M A A , Hassan C H C , Noor Z Z
Published: April 2020

Based on the current generation rate of 1 kg−1 person−1, the production of organic waste in Malaysia is estimated to reach 9 metric tons per year by the year 2020. Components of these wastes, however, can be used to generate biogas, not only to decrease waste-related issues, but also to produce renewable energy. There is a growing interest in resource recovery and waste/energy integration through biogas generation from organic waste through anaerobic digestion method. However, due to the anaerobic digestion process varies in different facilities, thus proactive assessment on the status of biogas production and its effect on the environment through life cycle assessment is vital. The objective of this review is to assess factors that affect environmental performance results such as the system boundaries setting, the databases used and the life cycle impact assessment methods applied. This review underscores the fact that goal definition and scope, functional units, system boundaries setting, characterization and life cycle impact assessment methodology, as well as types of software and databases used influence and affects the life cycle assessment results. It suggests that for future cross study comparisons, all assessment guidelines should be addressed to avoid biased comparisons on climate performance between different alternatives.
Preparation of porous membrane with graphene oxide for vanadium redox flow battery
Authors: Nor Fadzil Noor Fatina Emelin , Abouzari-Lotf Ebrahim , Sha’rani Saidatul Sophia Md , Ting Teo Ming , Che Jusoh Nurfatehah Wahyuny , Ahmad Arshad
Published: April 2020

Graphene oxide (GO) was functionalized onto both sides of grafted porous polyethylene/polypropylene (PEPP) membrane sheet through sonication and simple immersion. Graphene oxide is a trending material in the field due to its excellent properties such as highly resistant to alkaline/acidic and strong mechanical strength, low cost and easily accessible. PEPP was successfully modified and the fiber gap of PEPP was reduced by grafting with GMA functionalized with GO. With addition of GO, modified PEPP membrane became hydrophilic with the addition of hydrogen bond from the GO. The FTIR results also showed traces of GMA on the surface of PEPP and after functionalized the membrane, it has shown prominent new peak which correspond to the C bond from GO from ultrasonication method.
Enhanced Degradation Rates of Paracetamol in Aqueous Solution using Silver Doped Durio Zibethinus Husk Catalyst
Authors: Harimisa G E , Mustapha M H , Masudi A , Jusoh N. W. C , Tan L S
Published: April 2020

In the recent years, traces of paracetamol in water body had increases due to the increasing usage and production of it. Since the discharge of wastewater containing paracetamol into water body can cause harm to environment and human health, it is crucial to find a suitable treatment method to overcome this problem. Advanced Oxidation Process (AOPs) with the assist of heterogeneous catalyst received growing interest as one of prospective treatment method. Some of noble catalysts such as platinum (Pt), gold (Au) and Silver (Ag) could serve as alternative to popular semiconductor catalyst. This study report a series of Ag (5, 10, 15 wt.%) loaded to Durio Zibethinus Husk (Ag/DZH) with detailed physicochemical properties using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). Then, the respective catalysts were tested for photodegradation of paracetamol (PCT) in aqueous solution. It was showed that the catalysts have a potential to degrade 5 mg/L of paracetamol solution (pH 9) with the highest degradation rate of 0.01197 mg/L.min using 0.03 g/L of 10 wt.% Ag/DZH catalyst. This result could serve as alternative for DZH utilization and reduce environmental pollution.
Fibrous silica induced narrow band gap TiO2 catalyst for enhanced visible light-driven photodegradation of methylene blue
Authors: Fauzi A A , Jalil A A , Mohamed M , Naseri N A , Hitam C N C , Khusnun N F , Hassan N S , Rahman A F A , Aziz F F A , Azmi M S M
Published: April 2020

Fibrous silica titania (FST) was synthesized via hydrothermal method and evaluated on photodegradation of methylene blue (MB). The catalyst was characterized using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-Vis DRS) and N2 adsorption–desorption. The photocatalytic activity was performed under different reaction condition namely pH, catalyst dosage and MB initial concentration. FST demonstrated higher performance (99.9%) for 10 mg L−1 of MB initial concentration than titania (TiO2) using 0.25 g L−1 of catalyst dosage at pH 5 for 2 h. The superior performance towards photodegradation of MB under visible light demonstrated by synthesized FST was due to unique morphology of fibrous, high surface area, narrow band gap and more active site (Si-O-Ti). Kinetics study indicated that the photodegradation of MB was well fitted with pseudo-first order Langmuir-Hinshelwood model and adsorption was the rate-limiting step. The FST maintained its photocatalytic activities for up to five cycles reaction with slightly catalyst deactivation, suggesting that the FST is suitable to be implied in the photocatalytic reaction.
Boosted Ag/g-C3N4 prepared under microwave irradiation for photocatalytic activity of RhB under visible light
Authors: Azami M S , Jalil A A , Mamat C R , Hitam C N C , Hassan N S , Hussain I , Fauzi A A , Adnan R H
Published: April 2020

The effluent of Rhodamine B (RhB) from industries causes a high impact toward contamination of the environment. Photocatalytic degradation has become a promising destructive technique to remove those dye from industrial. In this study, Silver/graphitic carbon nitride (Ag/g-C3N4) prepared using simplistic preparation using microwave irradiation in its place of normal calcination under furnace as heating media. The prepared photocatalyst was characterized by using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), N2 adsorption-desorption, ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectra (UV-VIS/DRS). The deposited of Ag on g-C3N4 surface photocatalyst enhanced capability to extend the adsorption of visible light region. The texture of g-C3N4 affected after deposited with Ag and the bandgap energy of Ag/g-C3N4 narrowed from 2.7 eV to 2.31 eV significantly boosting and improved the efficiency of degradation RhB under visible light irradiation. The additional Ag on g-C3N4 revealed highest performance (98%) using RhB solution after exposed under visible light for 180 min. As a result, this works can give benefit to purify the effluent of toxic dyes as wastewater treatment.
Catalytic Cracking of High Density Polyethylene Pyrolysis Vapor over Zeolite ZSM-5 towards Production of Diesel
Authors: Ghaffar N F A , Johari A , Abdullah T A T , Ripin A
Published: April 2020

The upsurge in the amount of plastic pollution has drawn the attention of various researchers in finding the best solution for plastic waste treatment. Pyrolysis of high density polyethylene using ZSM-5 catalyst has been investigated using two-staged reactors consisting of a pyrolysis reactor and a catalytic fixed bed reactor. The effect of the heating rate (2 °C/min, 6 °C/min, 10 °C/min, 14 °C/min, 18 °C/min) of the pyrolysis reactor and reaction time (75 min, 90 min, 105 min) were studied on the yield of products and the quality of pyrolytic oil products. The quality of pyrolytic oil produced was evaluated based on the gross calorific values (GCV) and the paraffin, olefin, naphthenic and aromatic (PONA) compounds distribution, which were used to compare with conventional fuel. The highest yield of oil product was obtained at a reaction time of 75 minutes, where it was 61.05 wt.%, with solid product yield of 0.41wt.% and gas product yield of 38.54wt.%, at a heating rate of 2°C/min. The GCV of oil products were within the range of that of conventional diesel (44 – 45 MJ/kg). The pyrolytic oil products contained mainly C10to C24hydrocarbon compounds, which were diesel range hydrocarbon. In terms of the PONA distribution, the composition of paraffin was larger for most of the products, while the composition of naphthenes and aromatic were relatively small with respect to the range for conventional diesel.
Effect of size and shape dependent of synthesized copper nanoparticle using natural honey
Authors: Ismail N A , Shameli K , Che Jusoh N W , Rasit Ali R
Published: April 2020

A study on the effect of size and shape of copper nanoparticles (Cu-NPs) by varying the amount of honey has been done using a facile green synthesis method with the presence of ultrasonic assistance. Several amount of different % w/v of honey (0%, 1%, 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% w/v) that contain carbohydrate which are mainly glucose and fructose, and other polyhydroxyl groups act as stabilizing agent and a weak reducing agent supported by ascorbic acid were used to produce the Cu-NPs. The synthesized Cu-NPs were characterized using UV-visible, XRD and HRTEM to prove the size and shape of the nanoparticles. The best amount of honey used to produce Cu-NPs with uniform particle size and shape is at 15 % w/v. The size is 3.81 ± 1.135 nm and it shows a consistence spherical shape using HRTEM analysis image. UV-visible supported the results from the HRTEM. And XRD shows good diffraction pattern for pure Cu-NPs. It proves that honey has the ability to act as stabilizing agent in controlling the size and shape of nanoparticles.
Fabrication and Characterization of PU-g-poly(HEMA) Film for Clotting Time and Platelet Adhesion
Authors: Tarmizi Z I , Ali R R , Nasef M M , Akim A M , Eshak Z , Noor S M
Published: April 2020

This paper describes a fabrication of poly (2-hydroxylethyl methacrylate) poly(HEMA) grafted on polyurethane (PU) film prepared by radiation-induced grafting (RIG) copolymerization method using electron beam irradiation for the first time. This method was well known to be fast technique, clean method without involve any chemical initiator, chemically bond the materials, and at the same time is a sterile technique suitable for further potential of biomedical application. This poly(HEMA) grafted on PU film or called as PU-g-poly(HEMA) films was analysed using Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR), scanning electron microscope (SEM), water contact angle analyser (WCA), platelet adhesion and clotting time measurement. As the results, poly(HEMA) was confirmed successful grafted on PU based on the shifting of the functional group, no significant changes in surface morphology, lowering the water contact angle from 78.28° to 70.02°, nearly no platelet adhesion and no excessive disturbance of the clotting time was observed. This means that PU-g-poly(HEMA) was improved its hydrophilicity, thus significantly reduced the platelet adhesion and maintain the normal range of time taken for blood to clot. Therefore, the present PU-g-poly(HEMA) films not only improved hydrophilicity, however, was also compatible with blood. Thus, it may be potential candidates in the biomedical devices or new biomaterial useful for future tissue engineering fields.
The phasor FLIM method reveals a link between a change in energy metabolism and mHtt protein spread in healthy Mammalian cells when co-cultured with Huntington diseased cells
Authors: Sameni Sara , Zhang Run , Digman Michelle A
Published: April 2020

Huntington Disease (HD) is a late-onset autosomal neurodegenerative disease characterized by the aggregations of mutant Huntingtin proteins (mHTT). A glutamine stretch (PolyQ) at the N-terminal of the Huntingtin protein is generated by the abnormal expansion of CAG trinucleotide repeats in exon 1 of the HTT gene. While the resulting polyQ aggregates are the predominate feature of HD, the intercellular spread of the expanded protein and the effect upon this transfer inside healthy cells have not yet fully understood. Here, we have employed the phasor Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy (FLIM) method to measure NADH fluorescence lifetime change after the internalization of the PolyQ protein. Based on our analysis, we have found a significant decrease in the fraction of bound NADH in both cytoplasmic and nucleus regions when cells are co-cultured or when healthy cells uptake the supernatant containing polyQ proteins and aggregates. Overall, our FLIM study combined with confocal fluorescence imaging visualizes the absorption of the mutant Htt protein aggregates which results in a distinct NADH fluorescence lifetime between control cells and acceptor cells. These studies show, for the first time, the influence of how neighboring cells expressing the expanded Htt protein can regulate energy metabolism in healthy cells.
Resolution of 4 components in the same pixel in FLIM images using the phasor approach
Authors: Vallmitjana Alexander , Dvornikov Alexander , Torrado Belen , Jameson David M , Ranjit Suman , Gratton Enrico
Published: April 2020

In several cellular systems, the phasor FLIM approach has shown the existence of more than 2 components in the same pixel, a typical example being free and bound NADH. In order to properly quantify the concentrations and the spatial distributions of fluorescence components associated with different molecular species we developed a general method to resolve 3 and 4 components in the same pixel using the phasor approach. The method is based on the law of linear combination of components valid after transformation of the decay curves to phasors for each pixel in the image. In principle, the linear combination rule is valid for an arbitrary number of components. For 3 components we use only the phasor position for the first harmonic, which has a small error, while for 4 components we need the phasor location at higher harmonics that have intrinsically more noise. As a result of the noise in the higher harmonics, caused by limited photon statistics, we are able to use linear algebra to resolve 4 components given the position of the phasors of 4 independent components in mixtures of dyes and 3 components for dyes in cellular systems.
Intentional carbon doping reveals CH as an abundant charged impurity in nominally undoped synthetic WS2 and WSe2
Authors: Cochrane K A , Zhang T , Kozhakhmetov A , Lee J-H , Zhang F , Dong C , Neaton J B , Robinson J A , Terrones M , Bargioni A Weber , Schuler B
Published: April 2020

Understanding the physical properties and controlling the generation of intrinsic and extrinsic defects is central to the technological adoption of 2D materials in devices. Here we identify a charged carbon-hydrogen complex at a chalcogen site (CHX) as a common, charged impurity in synthetically grown transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs). This conclusion is drawn by comparing high resolution scanning probe microscopy measurements of nominally undoped and intentionally carbon doped TMD samples. While CH impurity densities in undoped CVD-grown WS2 and MOCVD-grown WSe2 can range anywhere from parts per million to parts per thousand, CH densities in the percentage levels were selectively generated by a post-synthetic methane plasma treatment. Our study indicates that methane plasma treatment is a selective and clean method for the controlled introduction of a charged carbon-hydrogen complex at a surface chalcogen site, a defect that is commonly present in synthetic TMDs.
Investigating the effective thermal conductivity of moist fibrous fabric based on Parallel-Series model: a consideration of material’s swelling effect
Authors: Zhu FL
Published: April 2020

The aim of this work reported in the paper is to investigate the influence of moisture content on the effective thermal conductivity (ETC) of non-hygroscopic Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and hygroscopic Viscose (VC) fabrics using Parallel-Series (P-S) thermal-electrical analogy method and TPS measurement. An equivalent porosity for hygroscopic fabric was first proposed to preserve the validity of the P-S model. The equivalent porosity is characterized by reasonably eliminating the absorbed moisture effects partly, which is embodied in enhancing heat conduction, endothermic reaction and swelling. Calculated values of the effective thermal conductivity of the two kinds of fabrics had been compared with experimental measurements. Results show that the P-S model incorporated with equivalent porosity is found to yield higher prediction accuracy than that of P-S model with parent porosity. The calibrated model can also provide a robust tool for predicting the global effective thermal conductivity of moist hygroscopic fibrous porous media.
Magnetic behavior of mixed spin prussian blue analog cylindrical nanowire
Authors: Buitrago-Torres I D , Galindo-González C C , Alzate-Cardona J D , Restrepo-Parra E
Published: April 2020

In this work, we implemented Monte Carlo simulations in order to describe the magnetic phase transition properties of a mixed ferro-ferrimagnetic ternary alloy cylindrical nanowire with formula

AB

p

C

1
−
p

. The ternary compound, known as Prussian Blue Analog, exhibits two interpenetrating lattices, one containig components with spin −3/2 and the other one with a random distribution of spin −1 and spin −5/2 compounds. The concentration of spin −3/2 compounds p, and the interaction ratio R were independently modulated to study their influence on the critical temperature, saturation magnetization and compensation temperature. The results show that it is possible to modify the transition temperature and saturation magnetization of the system just by manipulating p and R values, and it was determined, not only the existence of compensation in the sample, but also the fact that it is possible to determine the behavior of the compensation temperature by varying these parameters. In addition, a critical concentration value p

c
, which is a threshold related to the compensation temperature, was determined from magnetization curves and compared to the one computed through a percolation analysis.
Mechanical and wear behaviour of pulverised poultry eggshell/sisal fiber hybrid reinforced epoxy composites
Authors: Oladele I O , Makinde-Isola B A , Adediran A A , Oladejo M O , Owa A F , Olayanju T M A
Published: April 2020

This study investigates the effects of calcined and uncalcined eggshell particles (ESP) and sisal fiber (SF) on the mechanical and wear properties of eggshell particles/sisal fiber reinforced epoxy composites. Egg shell was processed to obtain calcined and uncalcined egg shell particulate of −43 μm and sisal fibers was extracted by soil retting and treated with NaOH. The composite was developed using the hand lay-up method by blending the selected materials in predetermined proportions. SEM/EDS and XRD of the egg shell particles were carried out while mechanical and wear properties of the developed composites were evaluated. SEM images of the fracture surfaces were also examined. The results showed that eggshell particles contain CaCO3 and the uncalcined ESP/SF reinforced epoxy composite showed improved properties than the calcined ESP/SF composites in most of the tests performed. Also, it was observed that most of the tests gave the best results at different weight fractions. However, 3 wt. % emerged as the weight fraction with optimum values.
Effect of temperature and humidity on dielectric and impedance properties of K(Nb0.8Ta0.2)0.99Mn0.01O3 electroceramics
Authors: Ravikant  , Singh Sheshamani , Ojha V N , Kumar Ashok
Published: April 2020

We report the effect of humidity and temperature on the dielectric and impedance properties of lead-free potassium tantalum niobium oxide (KTN). It illustrates large dielectric constant ∼4500 at 1 kHz, low tangent loss in dry condition, which drastically changes under humidity condition. The nature and magnitude of dielectric constant and tangent loss were moderately different in both heating and cooling conditions. A series of phase transitions from rhombohedral to orthorhombic (below room temperature), and orthorhombic to tetragonal (∼185 °C) and tetragonal to Cubic (390 °C) have been obtained respectively over a wide range of temperature with a significant change in magnitude and nature in transition temperature during cooling mode. A detail transport properties have been carried out based on Impedance spectra, Modulus spectra, Nyquist Plot, and ac conductivity to establish a microstructure-property relation. The activation energy of the charge carriers determined that mainly electronic charge carriers contribute to transport properties in the low-temperature range while oxygen vacancies and cations near the high-temperature ferroelectric phase transition. The effect of moisture on room temperature capacitance, tangent loss, and impedance have been discussed.
Numerical solutions for phase noise due to pointing jitter with the LISA telescope
Authors: Vinet Jean-Yves , Christensen Nelson , Dinu-Jaeger Nicoleta , Lintz Michel , Man Nary , Pichot Mikhaël
Published: April 2020

The aim of the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) is to detect gravitational waves through a phase modulation in long (2.5 Mkm) laser light links between spacecraft. Among other noise sources to be addressed are the phase fluctuations caused by a possible angular jitter of the emitted beam. The present paper follows our preceding one (Vinet et al 2019 Class. Quant. Grav.
36, 205 003) based on an analytical study of the far field phase. We address here a numerical treatment of the phase, to first order in the emitted wavefront aberrations, but without any assumptions on the static bias term. We verify that, in the phase change, the higher order terms in the static mispointing are consistent with the results found in our preceding paper.
Dye-based covalent organic networks
Authors: Freitas Sunny K S , Oliveira Felipe L , Merlini Claudia , Justo Elizanne P S , Gioda Adriana , Esteves Pierre M
Published: April 2020

This contribution presents four dye-based CONs derived from the reaction of triformylphloroglucinol with thionin acetate (RIO-43), safranin chloride (RIO-51), phenosafranin (RIO-47), and Bismarck brown Y (RIO-55). These materials, called Covalent Organic Networks (CONs), are insoluble solids formed by organic lamellar stacked structures and present permanent porosity, light absorption across the whole visible spectrum, fluorescence, ion exchange capability, and ion and electron conductivity. Periodic DFT calculations carried out indicated that the bent nature of most of those building blocks affords conductive extended materials containing pores with the shape of three-petal flowers, with the anion positioned at the petals. The turbostratic disorder makes only the center of the flower-shaped pores accessible, decreasing the specific surface areas. The material that has a higher surface area is the one derived from thionin acetate (RIO-43), such as the highest electrical conductivity (1.96 × 10–5 S cm−1), followed by RIO-47 (1.12 × 10–7 S cm−1), RIO-55 (1.58 × 10–7 S cm−1) and RIO-51 (3.26 × 10–7 S cm−1).
Fabrication of extracellular matrix-like membranes for loading piezoelectric nanoparticles
Authors: Licciardello Michela , Tonda-Turo Chiara , Gallina Andrea , Ciofani Gianni , Ciardelli Gianluca
Published: April 2020

Piezoelectric ceramic nanomaterials have recently attracted attention in the biomedical field thanks to their interesting electrical properties in response to mechanical stimulation (and vice versa) combined with a good biocompatibility and the ability to promote the regeneration of electrically sensitive tissues. In tissue engineering approaches, in order to obtain smart scaffolds these materials must be combined with other biomaterials for processing through conventional as well as non-conventional technologies. In this work, a novel composite electrospun membrane was produced by combining extracellular matrix-like gelatin nanofibers with barium titanate nanoparticles (BTNPs). The electrospinning process was optimized to achieve a high BTNP load, reducing the formation of aggregates which could alter the morphology and stability of the membrane. A complete morphological, mechanical and chemical–physical characterization of the composite membranes was performed, confirming the integration of the BTNPs into the polymer fibers. Furthermore, the biocompatibility of the developed membranes was assessed using a sarcoma osteogenic cell line (SaOS-2).
Gold and silver nanoparticles used for SERS detection of S. aureus and E. coli
Authors: Ankamwar Balaprasad , Gharpure Saee
Published: April 2020

Surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is emerging as a robust analytical method used in sensing applications in chemical as well as biological systems. SERS has been reported to be used in fast detection of micro-organisms up to the specificity of strain identification. However, use of SERS is tricky because of difficulties involved in selection of SERS active substrate so as to give uniform, sensitive as well as reproducible results. We have synthesized silver and gold nanoparticles using chemical, electrochemical and microwave-assisted methods followed by their characterization. Uses of these nanoparticles in association with micro-organisms such as S. aureus and E. coli have been analyzed using SERS to generate signature spectra. This demonstrates use of so synthesized gold and silver nanoparticles as SERS active substrates for rapid detection of micro-organisms which pave way to find applications in disease diagnostics.
Holomorphic string algebroids
Authors: Garcia-Fernandez Mario , Rubio Roberto , Tipler Carl
Published: April 2020

We introduce the category of holomorphic string algebroids, whose objects are Courant extensions of Atiyah Lie algebroids of holomorphic principal bundles and whose morphisms correspond to inner morphisms of the underlying holomorphic Courant algebroids. This category provides natural candidates for Atiyah Lie algebroids of holomorphic principal bundles for the (complexified) string group and their morphisms. Our main results are a classification of string algebroids in terms of Čech cohomology and the construction of a locally complete family of deformations of string algebroids via a differential graded Lie algebra.
Valsartan Reduces Left Ventricular Hypertrophy in Ovariectomized Spontaneous Hypertensive Rats
Authors: Ding Hong , Li Ning-ying , Zhang Xiang , Zhang Pan-pan , Yu Jing
Published: April 2020

Objective

To investigate the effects of valsartan on left ventricular mass, function, and oxidative stress in ovariectomized spontaneous hypertensive rats (SHR).

Methods

Twelve-week-old female SHRs were randomly divided into ovariectomy (OVX) control (n = 12), OVX + valsartan (n = 12), sham control (Sham, n = 13), and Sham + valsartan (n = 14) groups. Valsartan (30 mg/kg/day) or double-distilled water was given by oral gavage. After 12 weeks of valsartan or water treatment, left ventricular wall thickness and function, superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH), and 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) were assessed.

Results

There was a significant interaction between ovariectomy and valsartan on interventricular end-diastolic septum thickness (IVSTd), end-systolic interventricular septum thickness (IVSTs), left ventricular end-diastolic posterior wall thickness (LVPWTd), and left ventricular end diastolic diameter (LVEDD) (P < 0.05). Valsartan treatment in OVX rats decreased IVSTd, IVSTs, LVPWTd, and LVPWTs compared to OVX control (P < 0.05). Compared with Sham + control group, LVESP and ±dP/dt of LV were decreased while LVEDP was increased in OVX + control group (all P < 0.05). After valsartan treatment, LVESP and ±dP/dt of LV were increased and LVEDP was decreased in ovariectomized rats (all P < 0.05). Ovariectomy decreased GSH and SOD levels and increased 8-OHdG levels, which were reversed by valsartan treatment (all P < 0.05).

Conclusion

Valsartan treatment decreases oxidative stress, reduces LV hypertrophy, and improves cardiac function in overiectomized SHR.
Process analysis of procalcitonin monitoring within community hospitals
Authors: Peña Kelsey , Cooper Mandelin , Greer Nickie , Elders Ty , Septimus Edward
Published: April 2020

Purpose

Monitoring of procalcitonin (PCT) levels may support appropriate antibiotic discontinuation. The purpose of this study was to determine the current state of PCT monitoring at community hospitals across the United States.

Methods

Data from adult patients who were admitted to community hospitals affiliated with a large healthcare system between August 1, 2016, and July 31, 2017, and who received antibiotics were evaluated for the number of PCT levels drawn and the timing between multiple levels. Data from eligible patients were evaluated for the discontinuation of antibiotics after meeting prespecified PCT thresholds for discontinuation of therapy, namely, a PCT measurement of <0.5 μg/L or a decrease of ≥80% from a previous peak value.

Results

PCT levels were evaluated for 103,913 patient data sets collected from 136 hospitals. Of these, 70% of the data sets showed a single PCT level drawn, and approximately 30% (30,887) of the data sets showed multiple levels drawn. The first PCT measurement was drawn within 36 hours of antibiotic initiation in 96% of the patients. Of those with multiple levels, 23% (7,089) had levels drawn 24 to 72 hours apart. A small proportion (20% [6,127]) of the patients with multiple levels were eligible for evaluation of appropriate antibiotic discontinuation. Of these, 1,973 (32.2%) patients had antibiotics discontinued within 36 hours of meeting the prespecified PCT thresholds; these patients had a mean duration of antibiotic therapy of 6.1 days with a median of 4.7.

Conclusion

Additional standardization of ongoing PCT monitoring and education regarding the appropriate discontinuation of antibiotics when thresholds are reached could aid in the use of this biomarker in support of antibiotic and laboratory stewardship.
The Surveillance for Enteric Fever in Asia Project (SEAP), Severe Typhoid Fever Surveillance in Africa (SETA), Surveillance of Enteric Fever in India (SEFI), and Strategic Typhoid Alliance Across Africa and Asia (STRATAA) Population-based Enteric Fever Studies: A Review of Methodological Similarities and Differences
Authors: Carey Megan E , MacWright William R , Im Justin , Meiring James E , Gibani Malick M , Park Se Eun , Longley Ashley , Jeon Hyon Jin , Hemlock Caitlin , Yu Alexander T , Soura Abdramane , Aiemjoy Kristen , Owusu-Dabo Ellis , Terferi Mekonnen , Islam Sahidul , Lunguya Octavie , Jacobs Jan , Gordon Melita , Dolecek Christiane , Baker Stephen , Pitzer Virginia E , Yousafzai Mohammad Tahir , Tonks Susan , Clemens John D , Date Kashmira , Qadri Firdausi , Heyderman Robert S , Saha Samir K , Basnyat Buddha , Okeke Iruka N , Qamar Farah N , Voysey Merryn , Luby Stephen , Kang Gagandeep , Andrews Jason , Pollard Andrew J , John Jacob , Garrett Denise , Marks Florian
Published: April 2020

Building on previous multicountry surveillance studies of typhoid and others salmonelloses such as the Diseases of the Most Impoverished program and the Typhoid Surveillance in Africa Project, several ongoing blood culture surveillance studies are generating important data about incidence, severity, transmission, and clinical features of invasive Salmonella infections in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. These studies are also characterizing drug resistance patterns in their respective study sites. Each study answers a different set of research questions and employs slightly different methodologies, and the geographies under surveillance differ in size, population density, physician practices, access to healthcare facilities, and access to microbiologically safe water and improved sanitation. These differences in part reflect the heterogeneity of the epidemiology of invasive salmonellosis globally, and thus enable generation of data that are useful to policymakers in decision-making for the introduction of typhoid conjugate vaccines (TCVs). Moreover, each study is evaluating the large-scale deployment of TCVs, and may ultimately be used to assess post-introduction vaccine impact. The data generated by these studies will also be used to refine global disease burden estimates. It is important to ensure that lessons learned from these studies not only inform vaccination policy, but also are incorporated into sustainable, low-cost, integrated vaccine-preventable disease surveillance systems.
Development and external validation of an acute kidney injury risk score for use in the general population
Authors: Bell Samira , James Matthew T , Farmer Chris K T , Tan Zhi , de Souza Nicosha , Witham Miles D
Published: April 2020

Background

Improving recognition of patients at increased risk of acute kidney injury (AKI) in the community may facilitate earlier detection and implementation of proactive prevention measures that mitigate the impact of AKI. The aim of this study was to develop and externally validate a practical risk score to predict the risk of AKI in either hospital or community settings using routinely collected data.

Methods

Routinely collected linked datasets from Tayside, Scotland, were used to develop the risk score and datasets from Kent in the UK and Alberta in Canada were used to externally validate it. AKI was defined using the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes serum creatinine–based criteria. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed with occurrence of AKI within 1 year as the dependent variable. Model performance was determined by assessing discrimination (C-statistic) and calibration.

Results

The risk score was developed in 273 450 patients from the Tayside region of Scotland and externally validated into two populations: 218 091 individuals from Kent, UK and 1 173 607 individuals from Alberta, Canada. Four variables were independent predictors for AKI by logistic regression: older age, lower baseline estimated glomerular filtration rate, diabetes and heart failure. A risk score including these four variables had good predictive performance, with a C-statistic of 0.80 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.80–0.81] in the development cohort and 0.71 (95% CI 0.70–0.72) in the Kent, UK external validation cohort and 0.76 (95% CI 0.75–0.76) in the Canadian validation cohort.

Conclusion

We have devised and externally validated a simple risk score from routinely collected data that can aid both primary and secondary care physicians in identifying patients at high risk of AKI.