bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Triazole derivatives as potential xanthine oxidase inhibitors: Design, enzyme inhibition potential, and docking studies
Authors: Gulati Harmandeep Kaur , Khanna Aanchal , Kumar Nitish , Sharma Anchal , Rupali  , Jyoti  , Singh Jatindervir , Bhagat Kavita , Bedi Preet Mohinder Singh
Published: January 2024

Considerable ingenuity has been shown in the recent years in the discovery of novel xanthine oxidase (XO) inhibitors that fall outside the purine scaffold. The triazole nucleus has been the cornerstone for the development of many enzyme inhibitors for the clinical management of several diseases, where hyperuricemia is one of them. Here, we give a critical overview of significant research on triazole‐based XO inhibitors, with respect to their design, synthesis, inhibition potential, toxicity, and docking studies, done till now. Based on these literature findings, we can expect a burst of modifications on triazole‐based scaffolds in the near future by targeting XO, which will treat hyperuricemics, that is, painful conditions like gout that at present are hard to deal with.
The prevalence of ultrasound curricula in a sampling of U.S. physician assistant programs and recommendations for common ultrasound objectives: A national survey
Authors: Parker Morgan , Johnson Laura , Paquette Roland , Sakaguchi Alan , Kar Rekha
Published: January 2024

An increasing number of practicing physician assistants (PAs) are using ultrasound (US) in clinical settings. However, a lack of US learning objectives for PA students limits the optimal integration of this imaging modality in PA curricula. This study surveyed PA program directors across the United States to create a list of US learning objectives for PA students and to gauge their attitudes toward integrating US into anatomy curricula. Thirty‐one of the 280 PA program directors responded to the survey. While 87% of participants reported that their institution includes ultrasound in its curriculum, 71% disagreed that the state of the use of ultrasound throughout their PA curriculum is fine and needs no modification. Based on the responses of the survey participants, this study categorized US learning objectives into high, medium, low, and no agreement for integration in PA curricula. As over half of the learning objectives (73%, 43/59) had high agreement for inclusion in curricula, this study demonstrates an opportunity for educators to include US in PA curricula.
A waveform command shaping control of a double pendulum with nonzero initial conditions
Authors: Alfares Mohammed , Alhazza Khaled
Published: January 2024

In most material handling industries, input‐ and command‐shaping techniques are extensively used to transfer objects safely. In these techniques, most of the work assumes a single‐degree‐of‐freedom system with zero initial conditions, and some of these cases are not practical. In crane systems, a crane jib cannot be positioned exactly on top of the payload at the start of transfer motion, which forces the system to start with initial angles. Furthermore, when the hook is large and/or far from the payload, the system cannot be considered a single‐degree‐of‐freedom system. Not accounting for such conditions can create unwanted oscillations at the end of the motion. In this work, a closed‐form command shaping control of a double pendulum is suggested to eliminate the residual oscillations while considering nonzero initial angles. The equation of motion is derived and then solved to find the shaper constants analytically. This shaper has a selectable maneuvering time and ensures maximum cruising velocity. Several examples are implemented numerically and experimentally to evaluate the shaper's performance. Despite the nonzero initial conditions, the results showed that the shaper can effectively eliminate all induced vibrations at the end of the maneuver.
Anthracycline‐induced cardiotoxicity on regional myocardial work and left ventricular mechanical dispersion in adolescents and young adults in post‐lymphoma remission
Authors: Jaber Mohamed , Armand Alexandre , Rochette Emmanuelle , Monzy Severine , Greze Victoria , Kanold Justyna , Merlin Etienne , Paysal Justine , Nottin Stéphane
Published: January 2024

Background

Myocardial work (MW) is a new echocardiographic tool with a high sensitivity to detect early and subtle alterations of myocardial function. We aimed to evaluate the late effects of anthracyclines by assessing the global and segmental MW and intraventricular mechanical dispersion from speckle tracking echocardiography in childhood lymphoma survivors (CLS).

Methods

Thirty‐one young adults including CLS and age‐matched healthy controls were enrolled. All underwent echocardiography including an evaluation of left ventricular (LV) morphology and regional function. We assessed LV longitudinal (differentiating sub‐endocardial and sub‐epicardial layers), circumferential strains and twist, global and regional MW index (MWI). LV mechanical dispersion was assessed from the time dispersion of LV longitudinal strain, from myocardial wasted work (MWW) and myocardial work efficiency (MWE).

Results

The longitudinal strains both at the level of the sub‐endocardium and sub‐epicardium were reduced in CLS compared to controls. The global MWI was also decreased (1668 ± 266 vs 1870 ± 264%.mmHg in CLS patients and controls, respectively, p < 0.05), especially on the apical segments. An increase of LV intraventricular mechanical dispersion was observed in CLS. MWW and MWE remained unchanged compared to controls.

Conclusion

Our results strongly support that cardiac remodeling is observed in CLS, characterized by a decrease in MW and an increase in LV mechanical dispersion. The apex is specifically altered, but its clinical significance remains uncertain. MW as a complement to strain seems interesting in cancer survivors to detect myocardial dysfunction at early stage and adapt their follow‐up.
Durvalumab and taxane family combination therapy enhances the antitumoral effects for NSCLC: An in vitro study
Authors: Firoozi Mohammad‐Reza , Sadeghi‐Mohammadi Sanam , Asadi Milad , Shekari Najibeh , Seyed Nejad Farshad , Alizade‐Harakiyan Mostafa , Soleimani Zahra , Zarredar Habib
Published: January 2024

Immunotherapy has lately become the most preferred cancer treatment method, and for non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) first‐line treatment, there are many immunotherapy options. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness and toxicity of paclitaxel (PTX), docetaxel (DTX) chemotherapy, immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment (durvalumab; DVL), and their combination in NSCLC. A‐549 cells were treated with DVL in combination with PTX and DTX (a quarter of the IC50) to investigate their anticancer effects on these cells. The MTT assay, wound healing tests, and double‐staining with Annexin V/PI were used to assess the cell viability, apoptosis, and migration. The results showed that a combination of 0.35 mg/mL DVL with 6.5 μg/mL PTX and 1.75 μg/mL DTX produced a synergistic effect with CI values of 0.88, 0.37, and 0.81, respectively. Moreover, the PTX + DTX + DVL combination led to a significantly increased apoptotic rate up to 88.70 ± 3.39% in the A549 cell line compared to monotherapy (p < .001). In addition, we found that the combination therapy with these agents increased the expression level of Bax, Cas‐3, p53, and Bax/Bcl‐2 ratio in all experimental groups. In conclusion, the results suggest that combining anti‐PD‐L1 antibody therapy with chemotherapy may provide a promising approach to enhance treatment outcomes and be a potentially efficacious strategy for treating NSCLC patients. Further research and clinical investigations are needed to elucidate the underlying molecular mechanisms and validate the therapeutic potential of these compounds in vivo.
External validation of the SYNTAX score II 2020 in patients with chronic renal insufficiency
Authors: Li Mengyao , Liu Xu , Jiang Mao , Lei Yumeng , Liu Wenjie , Li Zhongpei , Li Shicheng , Liu Ruijie , Cao Xufen , Yan Liqiu
Published: January 2024

Background

The SYNTAX score Ⅱ 2020 (SSⅡ‐2020) was created as a customized decision‐making tool for individuals diagnosed with complex coronary artery disease (CAD). Nevertheless, there has been a scarcity of research investigating the long‐term predictive significance of SSⅡ‐2020 for patients with both CAD and chronic renal insufficiency (CRI) who undergo percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

Aims

We sought to showcase the prognostic capacity of SSII‐2020 in evaluating long‐term all‐cause mortality (ACM) within this high‐risk patient cohort.

Methods

A retrospective cohort comprising 1156 individuals diagnosed with CRI and exhibiting left main CAD, three‐vessel CAD or both was included in this investigation. We categorized participants into three groups based on the optimal SSII‐2020 threshold for predicting long‐term ACM, determined using the X‐tile software.

Results

At the median follow‐up duration of 6.3 years, the ACM rates were determined to be 10% in the low, 17% in the moderate, and 28% in the high SSII‐2020 groups (p < 0.001). Employing multivariate Cox regression analysis, it was observed that the high SSII‐2020 group exhibited a 3.289‐fold increased risk of ACM (95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.229–4.856, p < 0.001) compared with the low SSII‐2020 group, whereas the high SSII‐2020 group displayed a 1.757‐fold (95% CI: 1.190–2.597, p = 0.005) in comparison to the median SSII‐2020 groups. Compared with SSII, the SSII‐2020 had an incremental value for predicting 7‐year ACM (C‐index: 0.662 vs. 0.534, p = 0.007; IDI: 0.016, p < 0.001).

Conclusions

SSII‐2020 enhances long‐term ACM prediction, facilitates improved risk stratification, and improves clinical utility for PCI patients with complex CAD and CRI.
Transcatheter pulmonary valve replacement in surgically‐created double‐barrel right ventricular outflow tracts: A single center case‐series
Authors: Boscamp Nicholas Seizo , Maschietto Nicola , Porras Diego
Published: January 2024

This manuscript describes the feasibility and approach to the assessment and performance of transcatheter pulmonary valve replacement (tPVR) in patients with surgically‐created “double‐barrel” right ventricular outflow tracts (RVOT). Patients with tetralogy of Fallot may have coronary anomalies which prohibit the performance of traditional tetralogy of Fallot repair. In certain cases, this may necessitate the placement of a right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit in addition to the native RVOT, which is left in situ, creating so‐called “double‐barrel” RVOTs. When these patients develop RVOT dysfunction later in life, they would typically be referred for reoperation due to concerns for risk of coronary compression associated with a transcatheter approach. However, whether a transcatheter approach with valve replacement in the native RVOT is feasible or safe is unknown. This was a retrospective review of patients with a surgically created “double‐barrel” RVOTs who underwent cardiac catheterization for assessment of tPVR at Boston Children's Hospital. From July 2012 to July 2022, there were four patients with “double‐barrel” RVOTs who underwent assessment for tPVR. The age at catheterization ranged between 22 and 39 years. In three out of four patients, coronary compression testing was negative. These three patients had successful tPVR in the native RVOT. At follow up, all three patients were free of greater than mild regurgitation by echocardiogram and had a maximum instantaneous gradient across the RVOT ranging between 20 and 33 mmHg. Performance of tPVR in patients with surgically created “double‐barrel” RVOTs is feasible. The safety of this procedure depends crucially on coronary artery assessment at all stages.
Catalytic One‐Pot Reductive Amination of Carboxylic Acids
Authors: Dong Jun , Yang Zhanhui
Published: January 2024

The broad applications of primary alkyl amines in various fields have spurred extensive interests in synthetic organic chemistry. Recently, the reductive amination of carboxylic acids has become an attractive and practical strategy for synthesizing primary alkyl amines, due to their wide availability and bench stability. However, the inherent stability and higher oxidation state of carboxylic acids render this new strategy with new challenges. This Concept provides a summary of the recent advancements in the reductive aminations of carboxylic acids, specifically focusing on the catalytic tactics, underlying mechanisms, and applications in the synthesis of valuable products.
Metallic Nanoclusters for Electrochemical Water Splitting
Authors: Shao Xiaodong , Kim Minseo , Liang Mengfang , Lee Hyoyoung
Published: January 2024

Electrocatalytic water splitting is regarded as one of the most promising strategies for producing clean and sustainable energy sources (H2 and O2) in cathodic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and anodic oxygen evolution reaction (OER), respectively. Currently, transition metal nanoparticles (NPs) such as commercial Pt/C, IrO2, and RuO2 are still popular catalysts for industrial‐level HER and OER processes. However, both the high cost and low atomic utilization of NPs can not satisfy the requirements of atomic economy and green chemistry. Compared with NPs, metallic nanoclusters (NCs), which have higher atom utilization and optimized electronic structure than NPs, show unique activities for water splitting. In this review, the recently reported advanced design strategies for preparing various NCs are discussed in detail. The methods to control the particle size, coordinated environment, and morphology of NCs are also summarized. The electrochemical activity and stability of NCs can be influenced by the synergistic effect between NCs and supporting materials, which is also mentioned. Then, the recently reported state‐of‐art‐catalysts for both HER and OER along with the detailed catalytic mechanism are described to show the advanced design principles. Finally, the future perspectives and some remaining challenges are also presented.
Transition‐Metal‐Free Synthesis of 2‐Substituted Benzo[cd]Indoles via the Reaction of 1‐Halo‐8‐lithionaphthalenes with Nitriles
Authors: Tsybulin Semyon V. , Kaplanskiy Mark V. , Antonov Alexander S.
Published: January 2024

A simple and effective organolithium approach to the synthesis of 2‐substituted benzo[cd]indoles from peri‐dihalonaphthalenes and nitriles has been developed. The reaction proceeds via a surprisingly easy intramolecular aromatic nucleophilic substitution facilitated by the “clothespin effect”. The discovered transformation provides good isolated yields, allows usage of an extensive range of nitriles, and demonstrates a good substituents tolerance. UV‐absorption and NMR spectra of the obtained benzo[cd]indoles and their protonated forms demonstrated exclusive protonation to the indole nitrogen atom even in the presence of two NMe2 groups in positions 5 and 6 (i. e. “proton sponge” moiety).
CARBON DOTS: Bioimaging and Anticancer Drug Delivery
Authors: Bartkowski Michał , Zhou Yingru , Nabil Amin Mustafa Mustafa , Eustace Alexander J. , Giordani Silvia
Published: January 2024

Cancer, responsible for approximately 10 million lives annually, urgently requires innovative treatments, as well as solutions to mitigate the limitations of traditional chemotherapy, such as long‐term adverse side effects and multidrug resistance. This review focuses on Carbon Dots (CDs), an emergent class of nanoparticles (NPs) with remarkable physicochemical and biological properties, and their burgeoning applications in bioimaging and as nanocarriers in drug delivery systems for cancer treatment. The review initiates with an overview of NPs as nanocarriers, followed by an in‐depth look into the biological barriers that could affect their distribution, from barriers to administration, to intracellular trafficking. It further explores CDs′ synthesis, including both bottom‐up and top‐down approaches, and their notable biocompatibility, supported by a selection of in vitro, in vivo, and ex vivo studies. Special attention is given to CDs′ role in bioimaging, highlighting their optical properties. The discussion extends to their emerging significance as drug carriers, particularly in the delivery of doxorubicin and other anticancer agents, underscoring recent advancements and challenges in this field. Finally, we showcase examples of other promising bioapplications of CDs, emergent owing to the NPs flexible design. As research on CDs evolves, we envisage key challenges, as well as the potential of CD‐based systems in bioimaging and cancer therapy.
Wasserstoff: Ortho/Para‐Umwandlung und Verflüssigung
Authors: Haberstroh Christoph
Published: January 2024

Mit dem zunehmenden Interesse an Wasserstoff als alternativem Energieträger rücken auch wasserstoff‐spezifische prozesstechnische Details vermehrt in den Vordergrund. Im vorliegenden Beitrag wird auf die Ortho/Para‐Allotropie und die hieraus resultierenden Konsequenzen eingegangen. Dies ist insbesondere für die Verflüssigung von Wasserstoff und für Wasserstoff in tiefkalt‐flüssiger Speicherform von Bedeutung.
Morphology and spectral sensitivity of long visual fibers and lamina monopolar cells in the butterfly Papilio xuthus
Authors: Wakita Daiki , Shibasaki Hiromichi , Kinoshita Michiyo , Arikawa Kentaro
Published: January 2024

Extensive analysis of the flower‐visiting behavior of a butterfly, Papilio xuthus, has indicated complex interaction between chromatic, achromatic, and motion cues. Their eyes are spectrally rich with six classes of photoreceptors, respectively sensitive in the ultraviolet, violet, blue, green, red, and broad‐band wavelength regions. Here, we studied the anatomy and physiology of photoreceptors and second‐order neurons of P. xuthus, focusing on their spectral sensitivities and projection terminals to address where the early visual integration takes place. We thus found the ultraviolet, violet, and blue photoreceptors and all second‐order neurons terminate in the distal region of the second optic ganglion, the medulla. We identified five types of second‐order neurons based on the arborization in the first optic ganglion, the lamina, and the shape of the medulla terminals. Their spectral sensitivity is independent of the morphological types but reflects the combination of pre‐synaptic photoreceptors. The results indicate that the distal medulla is the most plausible region for early visual integration.
Outcomes and complications of intraoperative radiotherapy versus external beam radiotherapy for early breast cancer
Authors: Zangouri Vahid , Roshanshad Amirhossein , Ranjbar Aliyeh , Izadi Mahsa , Rajaeifar Sara , Goodarzi Ali , Nasrollahi Hamid
Published: January 2024

Background

Intraoperative radiotherapy (IORT) is an alternative for external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) for early stage breast cancer (BC). Herein, we compared outcomes, postoperative and post‐radiation complications of IORT and EBRT.

Methods

We conducted a cohort study to compare complications of IORT and EBRT in patients. A checklist of the complications of IORT and EBRT, was used to assess and post‐radiation complications and outcomes.

Results

Overall, 264 women (121 in IORT and 143 in EBRT group) with a mean (SD) age of 55 ± 8.6 years analyzed in this study. The IORT group (quadrantectomy + SLNB + IORT) had more severe post‐operative pain compared to the EBRT group (quadrantectomy + SLNB) (OR = 1.929, 95% CI: 1.116–3.332). Other postoperative complications, including edema, erythema, seroma, hematoma, and wound complications were not significantly different between the IORT and EBRT groups.

EBRT was associated with higher rates post‐radiation complications, including erythema (95.8% vs. 21.5%), skin dryness (30.8% vs. 12.4%), pruritus (26.6% vs. 17.4%), hyperpigmentation (48.3% vs. 9.9%), and telangiectasia (1.4% vs. 0.8%). Multivariate analysis showed that erythema, skin dryness and pruritus, and hyperpigmentation were more severe in the EBRT group, while breast induration was higher in the IORT group (OR = 4.109, 95% CI: 2.242–7.531). Excellent, good, and fair cosmetic outcome was seen in 11.2%, 72%, and 16.8% of the patients in the EBRT group and 29.8%, 63.6%, and 6.6% in the IORT group, respectively, suggesting that the cosmetic outcome was significantly better in the IORT group (P < .001). There wasn't statistically significant difference in recurrence‐free survival and overall survival rates between two groups of patients who received either IORT or EBRT (P = .953, P = .56).

Conclusion

IORT is considered to have lower post‐radiation complications and better cosmetic outcomes in breast cancer patients. Therefore, IORT might be used as the treatment of choice in eligible patients.
Protein Isolation from 3D Hydrogel Scaffolds
Authors: Da Silva André Gabriela , Paganella Lorenza Garau , Badolato Asia , Sander Sibilla , Giampietro Costanza , Tibbitt Mark W , Dengjel Jörn , Labouesse Céline
Published: January 2024

Protein isolation is an essential tool in cell biology to characterize protein abundance under various experimental conditions. Several protocols exist, tailored to cell culture or tissue sections, and have been adapted to particular downstream analyses (e.g., western blotting or mass spectrometry). An increasing trend in bioengineering and cell biology is to use three‐dimensional (3D) hydrogel‐based scaffolds for cell culture. In principle, the same protocols can be used to extract protein from hydrogel‐based cell and tissue constructs. However, in practice the yield and quality of the recovered protein pellet is often substantially lower when using standard protocols and requires tuning of multiple steps, including the selected lysis buffer and the scaffold homogenization strategy, as well as the methods for protein purification and reconstitution. We present here specific protocols tailored to common 3D hydrogels to help researchers using hydrogel‐based 3D cell culture improve the quantity and quality of their extracted protein. We focus on three materials: protease‐degradable PEG‐based hydrogels, collagen hydrogels, and alginate hydrogels. We discuss how the protein extraction procedure can be adapted to the scaffold of interest (degradable or non‐degradable gels), proteins of interests (soluble, matrix‐bound, or phosphoproteins), and downstream biochemical assays (western blotting or mass spectrometry). With the growing interest in 3D cell culture, the protocols presented should be useful to many researchers in cell biology, protein science, biomaterials, and bioengineering communities. © 2024 The Authors. Current Protocols published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.

Basic Protocol 1: Isolating proteins from PEG‐based hydrogels

Basic Protocol 2: Isolating proteins from collagen hydrogels

Basic Protocol 3: Isolating proteins from alginate hydrogels

Alternate Protocol: Isolating protein from alginate gels using EDTA to dissolve the gel

Support Protocol: Isolating protein and RNA simultaneously from the same samples
Heat Stress in Canola: Paving a Path Forward for Varieties With Improved Tolerance
Authors: Koscielny Chad , Duncan Rob
Published: January 2024

Canola grown in years or locations with increased temperatures shows a significant decline in seed yield. Research has shown a ∼7 bu/ac yield loss with a 5.4°F increase in growing season temperatures. Given the importance of canola in western Canada and the fact that canola is a cool‐season crop, continued applied and basic research into heat tolerance is of critical importance. Earn 0.5 CEUs in Crop Management by reading this article and taking the quiz at https://web.sciencesocieties.org/Learning‐Center/Courses.
A Sustainable and Versatile Cellulose‐based CO Surrogate for Carbonylative Reactions
Authors: Wang You , Tian Bing , Li Yi , Li Wei , Chen Zhijun , Liu Shouxin , Li Shujun
Published: January 2024

The highly toxic and flammable nature of CO lead to high handling demand for its use and storage, undoubtedly constricting its further academic exploration for carbonylative reactions in laboratory. Although many CO surrogates have been developed and applied in carbonylative reactions instead of CO gas, exploration of more versatile CO surrogates for diverse carbonylations is still highly desirable. Here we report a cellulose‐based CO surrogate (cellulose‐CO), which prepared from cheap and abundant cellulose through a simple and green process. The very mild and efficient CO release makes this reagent a highly competitive candidate for providing CO in carbonylation. This surrogate is compatible with a wide variety of functional groups in various carbonylative reactions due to the excellent compatibility of cellulose‐CO. Moreover, the cellulose‐CO exhibits excellent chemical stability which can be stored exposed to air for 12 months, making this CO surrogate a robust and general reagent in CO chemistry.
Effective privacy preserving model based on adversarial CNN with IBOA in the social IoT systems for CEC
Authors: Shukla Prashant Kumar , Pandit Shraddha V. , Gandhi Charu , Alrizq Mesfer , Alghamdi Abdullah , Shukla Piyush Kumar , Venkatareddy Prashanth , Rizwan Ali
Published: January 2024

In the present scenario, the social Internet of Things (IoT) is one of the emerging technologies in combination with collaborative edge computing (CEC). The CEC solves the issue of storage and computing with the help of deep learning models that make full usage of the edge‐computing abilities. The robustness of the deep learning models is ineffective, and the edge devices in the CEC are threatened by the malicious attacks. Therefore, a new data protection framework is proposed in this manuscript to avoid the security crisis and privacy leakage of CEC. A new adversarial sample generation model is introduced in this manuscript on the basis of intensive butterfly optimization algorithm (IBOA) that effectively reduces the time complexity of the framework to linear. Here, IBOA is chosen because an extra intensive exploitation step is included that guides the proposed framework to converge quickly towards global optimum and to avoid local optima trap. Then, the adversarial training concept is incorporated with the convolutional neural network (CNN) model for sentence similarity analysis. On the other hand, the anti‐dropout layers are combined with the adversarial CNN model to reduce the overfitting concern. The proposed framework, adversarial CNN with IBOA, obtained higher results with f1‐score of 88.70%, accuracy of 89.40%, correct rate of 88.95%, recall of 89.48%, and precision of 89.41% on the Microsoft Research Paraphrase Corpus (MSRP) dataset. The obtained results are superiorly better than the conventional deep learning models.
Comparison of analytical approaches for the detection of oral testosterone undecanoate administration in men
Authors: Langer Tobias , Nicoli Raul , Schweizer‐Grundisch Carine , Grabherr Silke , Kuuranne Tiia , Musenga Alessandro
Published: January 2024

For antidoping laboratories, the determination of an illicit testosterone (T) administration in urine samples remains a difficult process as it requires the determination of the exogenous origin by carbon isotope ratios (CIRs) of testosterone and its metabolites. As a complement to the urinary analysis, targeting testosterone esters (e.g. testosterone undecanoate [TU]) in serum samples by liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) could represent a simpler approach compared with isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS). These two approaches both lead to the direct detection of the administration of exogenous T but with a difference in effort and complexity of the analysis. To compare the detection window obtained with the two strategies, serum and the corresponding urine samples collected from an administration study with oral TU were analysed. Results showed that, at all timepoints where the intact TU was detected in serum, the CIRs of urinary steroids were also not in agreement with an endogenous origin. IRMS analysis required more effort but resulted in slightly longer detection windows than the ester analysis. Finally, this comparison study showed that, in the presence of a suspicious urinary steroid profile, the LC–MS/MS steroid esters analysis in the corresponding serum samples can be very helpful. If steroid esters are not detected, the IRMS analysis can then be conducted on the urine sample afterwards. Overall, the combination of matrices might facilitate the detection of prohibited T administration in sports, especially for athletes with naturally low T/E ratios.
Radiofrequency catheter ablation for pulmonary hypertension patients with atrial flutter
Authors: Zhang Aikai , Ding Lei , Zhang Hongda , Mi Lijie , Yu Fengyuan , Tang Min
Published: January 2024

Aims

We aimed to evaluate the effects of radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA) and the factors influencing mortality after RFCA in patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH) and atrial flutter (AFL).

Methods and results

Fifty‐eight consecutive PH patients with AFL who underwent an electrophysiological study and RFCA between April 2013 and August 2021 were selected for this study. In the study population, pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with congenital heart disease (PAH‐CHD) was the most common type of PH (n = 34, 59%), followed by idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH) (n = 19, 33%). Typical atrial flutter was the most common type of atrial flutter (n = 50, 86.2%). Sinus rhythm was restored in 53 (91.4%) patients during RFCA. After a mean follow‐up of 33.8 months, AFL recurred in a total of 22 patients. Nine of them underwent repeat RFCA, and the site of the repeat ablation was not exactly the same as the first. At a median follow‐up of 34.6 months after the last ablation, none of the patients who underwent repeat RFCA experienced AFL recurrence, and all of these patients survived. There were no procedure‐related complications during hospitalization or follow‐up. Univariate Cox regression analysis suggested that AFL recurrence after the last ablation was not associated with all‐cause mortality. NT‐proBNP (HR: 1.00024, 95% CI: 1.00008–1.00041, P = 0.004), pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PASP) (HR: 1.048, 95% CI: 1.020–1.076, P = 0.001), and IPAH (vs. PAH‐CHD, HR: 7.720, 95% CI: 1.437–41.483, P = 0.017) were independent predictors of all‐cause mortality in PH patients with AFL after RFCA. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis revealed that the area under the curve (AUC) of PASP for predicting all‐cause mortality was 0.708. There was no significant difference in the Kaplan–Meier curves for all‐cause mortality between patients with AFL recurrence after the last ablation and those without recurrence (P = 0.851). Patients with higher PASP (≥110 mmHg) and IPAH showed the lower survival rate in Kaplan–Meier curves.

Conclusion

Repeat ablation was safe and feasible in patients with recurrent AFL and can maintain sinus rhythm. AFL recurrence was not associated with all‐cause mortality, and patients with high PASP or IPAH were at higher risk for adverse outcomes.
Pleural effusion in severe aortic stenosis: marker of an adverse haemodynamic constellation and poor prognosis
Authors: Breuss Alexander , Porsch Maximilian , Aschmann André , Weber Lukas , Appert Sharon , Haager Philipp K. , Weilenmann Daniel , Wildermuth Simon , Rickli Hans , Maeder Micha T.
Published: January 2024

Aim

Pleural effusion (PE) is a common chest radiography (CXR) finding in patients with advanced cardiac disease. The pathophysiology and clinical value of PE in this setting are incompletely defined. We aimed to assess the haemodynamic correlates and prognostic impact of PE in patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS).

Methods and results

We studied 471 patients (mean age 74 ± 10 years) with severe AS (indexed aortic valve area 0.42 ± 0.12 cm2/m2, left ventricular ejection fraction 58 ± 12%) undergoing right heart catheterization and upright CXR prior to aortic valve replacement (AVR). Two radiologist independently evaluated all CXR for the presence of bilateral PE, unilateral, or no PE, blinded to any other data. There were 49 (10%) patients with bilateral PE, 32 (7%) patients with unilateral PE, and 390 (83%) patients with no PE. Patients with bilateral PE had the highest mean right atrial pressure, mean pulmonary artery wedge pressure (mPAWP), and pulmonary vascular resistance, and had the lowest stroke volume index while those with unilateral PE had intermediate values. In the multivariate analysis, mPAWP was an independent predictor of any PE and bilateral PE. After a median (interquartile range) post‐AVR follow‐up of 1361 (957–1878) days mortality was highest in patients with bilateral PE (2.7 times higher than in patients without PE), whereas patients with unilateral PE had similar mortality as those without PE.

Conclusions

In severe AS patients, the presence of PE, particularly bilateral PE, is a marker of a poor haemodynamic constellation. Bilateral PE is associated with a substantially increased post‐AVR mortality.
An Organic Chemist's Guide to Fluorophores – Understanding Common and Newer Non‐Planar Fluorescent Molecules for Biological Applications
Authors: Lovell Terri C. , Branchaud Bruce P. , Jasti Ramesh
Published: January 2024

Labeling and detection of biomolecules in vitro and in vivo is essential to many areas of biomedical science. Fluorophores stand as indispensable tools within chemical biology, underscoring the importance of fine‐tuning their optical properties. This review focuses on methods for optimizing emission wavelength, quantum yield and photostability. We focus not just on the trends, but the fundamental physical organic chemistry concepts that inform the connection between molecular structure and fluorescent properties. This approach offers an essential understanding of fluorescence, enabling readers to develop a systematic analytical framework for thinking about fluorescence. Furthermore, an evaluation of newer non‐planar fluorophores shines light on the bright future of fluorescent molecules.
Novel Active Battery Balancing Methodologies for Lithium Batteries: An Experimental Comparative Analysis
Authors: Pandian Pandimuni , Winston David Prince , Murugesan Palpandian , Murugesan Pravin
Published: January 2024

Inconsistency in the battery pack parameters results in an uneven state of charge (SoC). The active battery balancing method is an approach to equalize the SoC of the battery cells in a battery pack. In active balancing method, the battery having the highest SoC is made to equalize with the battery having the lowest SoC through the electronic circuits. However, it needs more cost and complex control circuits. To overcome this shortcoming, simple switching circuit‐based dynamic battery balancing techniques and row interconnected techniques are proposed. The proposed techniques are compared and analyzed with various conventional techniques. The experiments are conducted with 4.4 V, 6 Ah, 0.5 C lithium ferro‐phosphate battery cell and the battery pack consists of four cells. In the proposed techniques, the interconnections among the battery cells are altered using a switching matrix circuit. From the results, it is observed that the balanced row interconnected series–parallel dynamics and balanced row interconnected series–parallel have delivered superior performance under all the balancing conditions. Overall, the proposed technique enhances the battery storage capacity by 23.3% during the unbalanced SoC condition. The row interconnected series–parallel dynamics have achieved the average SoC of 96.14% under different balancing conditions.
Voltage Equalization of Series Energy Storage Unit Based on LC Resonant Circuit
Authors: Wang Chao , Han Li , Liu Xiaohu , Wu Tiezhou
Published: January 2024

In energy storage systems, multiple energy storage monomers are usually connected in series to obtain higher voltages, but the inconsistency of the voltage of each energy storage monomer will reduce the utilization of the storage unit. To address this problem, this article proposes a method for equalizing the voltage of series energy storage units based on LC resonant circuit. The equalization circuit consists of a switch array and an LC resonant converter, which can achieve energy transfer between any monomer and continuous multi‐monomer, and realize zero‐current conduction of the switch. The equalization circuit does not have a large number of magnetic components, and for each additional energy storage monomer, the circuit only needs to add a pair of switches, which has the advantages of high flexibility and expandability. Finally, the equalization simulation experiments are conducted on the Matlab/Simulink platform for the energy storage unit composed of four series‐connected energy storage monomers. The experimental results show that under static equalization, the voltage reaches equalization in about 25 min and the equalization efficiency reaches 96.64%, which greatly reduces the switching loss, improves the equalization speed and efficiency, and verifies the feasibility and effectiveness of the method.
Data‐Driven Approach to Accelerate the Design of Halide Perovskite for Photovoltaic Application Using Electronic Properties as Descriptors
Authors: Aggarwal Shivam , Jayam Bharadwaj , Maiti Tanmoy
Published: January 2024

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have garnered remarkable attention for their efficiency and tunable optoelectronic properties. However, their instability to moisture and heat poses challenges. Traditional trial‐and‐error approaches for finding stable halide perovskites are inefficient due to the vast compositional possibilities within ABX3 perovskite structure. This study uses machine learning (ML) to predict bandgaps and photovoltaic parameters of PSCs, using a dataset of 447 data points containing chemical composition, bandgaps, and photovoltaic parameters. Various ML models including support vector regressor, random forest, gradient boost regressor, XGBoost, extratree Regressor, and AdaBoost Regressor have been used herein. Positional average elemental property (PAEP) approach is introduced to featurize the data. As ABX3 perovskite involves distinct A, B, and X sites, the proposed PAEP model captures site‐specific effects, enhancing model accuracy. The best model exhibits impressive r‐values of 0.98 for bandgap prediction and 0.86 for power conversion efficiency of PSCs. Elemental properties of B and X sites, such as ionization energy, electron affinity, and electronegativity, are found to be crucial features in the analysis by Shapley additive explanation. This study underscores the potential of ML in designing novel, stable, and efficient PSCs, offering a more efficient alternative to conventional trial‐and‐error methods.
Optimization of drilling parameters for coal seam gas extraction considering fluid–solid coupling and field application
Authors: Yang Wang , Mengtang Xu , Dezhong Kong , Yuqi Shang , Fei Li
Published: January 2024

Affect gas extraction efficiency to find out the optimum well location parameters, based on the gray correlation analysis of borehole diameter, borehole spacing, and extraction pressure three boreholes parameters that influence efficiency of gas extraction from the design of orthogonal experiment, using COMSOL simulate the effective radius of extraction under different experiments, and the effective radius of extraction for optimizing index quantitative gas extraction efficiency. The results showed that: factors affecting the gas extraction efficiency of the correlation between high and low aperture drilling, borehole spacing, and extraction from extraction negative pressure, it is concluded that the influence parameters of optimal layout parameter values, respectively, borehole diameter 8 cm and 3 m borehole spacing, extraction pressure 50 kPa, combined with the numerical simulation analysis using the optimal layout of gas drilling extraction from about 30 days. The decrease in gas pressure is about 45%, which basically meets the extraction standard, and the decreasing trend of gas pressure is obviously slowed down when the extraction time is longer than 30 days. The engineering experiment is carried out in the 9306 transport lane of a mine in Guizhou Province, and the results are basically consistent with the simulation results, which verify the rationality of the gray correlation analysis method to optimize the drilling parameters, and provide a theoretical basis for the optimization of drilling parameters.
Direct tensile damage process of calcite vein shale based on 3D CT reconstruction
Authors: Meng Xiangrui , Wu Zhonghu , Lan Baofeng , Jiang Haishen , Yang Yuhan , Wang Wentao
Published: January 2024

From core observations of shales of the Niutitang formation in the northern part of Guizhou Province, China, calcite was often found to act as a natural fracture filler and affect the extension of fractures in hydraulic fracturing. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the tensile mechanical behavior of shales by calcite veins. In this paper, by computed tomography scanning of shales containing calcite veins of different dip angles from the Niutitang formation, a three‐dimensional numerical model reflecting the internal fine structure of the shale was constructed. Direct tensile numerical simulations were carried out to investigate the effect of calcite veins at different angles on the fine‐scale damage process and mechanical properties of shale. The experimental results show that the tensile capacity of the shale increases with the increase in calcite veins. Depending on the dip angle of the calcite vein, the damage pattern of the shale is divided into three types of damage: pull‐off damage along the calcite vein, jagged damage, and horizontal damage perpendicular to the loading method. At high dip angles, the shale damage is more intense and the fracture network more complex. The temporal and spatial characteristics of the acoustic emissions provide a good indication of the microscopic behavior of the shale specimens during the damage process. The box dimension method was used to calculate the fractal dimension of the shale specimens at the final damage, and it was found that the damage was more intense and the fracture network was more complex at high dip angles, and there was an angular threshold.
Parameter identification of solar photovoltaic models by multi strategy sine–cosine algorithm
Authors: Zhou Ting‐ting , Shang Chao
Published: January 2024

Accurate modeling and parameter identification of photovoltaic (PV) cells is a difficult task due to the nonlinear characteristics of PV cells. The goal of this paper is to propose a multi strategy sine–cosine algorithm (SCA), named enhanced sine–cosine algorithm (ESCA), to evaluate nondirectly measurable parameters of PV cells. The ESCA introduces the concept of population average position to increase the population exploration ability, and at the same time introduces the personal destination agent mutation mechanism and competitive selection mechanism into SCA to provide more search directions for ESCA while ensuring the search accuracy and diversity maintenance. To prove that the proposed ESCA is the best choice for extracting nondirectly measurable parameters of PV cells, ESCA is evaluated by the single‐diode model, the double‐diode model, the three‐diode model, and the photovoltaic module model (PVM), and compared with eight existing popular methods. Experimental results show that ESCA outperforms similar methods in terms of diversity maintenance, high efficiency, and stability. In particular, the proposed ESCA method is less than the SCA by 0.081, 0.144, and 0.578 in the standard deviation statistics metrics of the three PVM models (PV‐PWP201, STM6‐40/36, and STP6‐120/36), respectively. Therefore, the proposed ESCA is an accurate and reliable method for parameter identification of PV cells.
Comparative numerical analysis of magnetized rectangular and trapezoidal fins
Authors: Ullah Sharif , Din Zia Ud , Ali Amir
Published: January 2024

Fins are extended surfaces that are designed to dissipate heat from hot sources to their surroundings. The different profiles of fins are used on the equipment surface to improve heat transfer. Fins are extensively used in refrigeration, solar panels, superheaters, electric equipment, automobile parts, combustion engines, and electrical equipment. On the basis of these applications, we study the thermal performances of magnetized convective–radiative‐rectangular fins with magnetized trapezoidal fins with internal heat generation. The shooting technique is used to numerically study the suggested model. It is revealed that magnetized trapezoidal fins transfer more heat than magnetized rectangular fins. It is also revealed that magnetized trapezoidal fins have higher thermal transfer competence than magnetized rectangular fins. When thermal conductivity, radiation–conduction number, and convection–conduction number increase, the fin's efficiency increases. In addition, a Hartmann number indicating the magnetic effect is found to improve heat transfer from the fins. Increasing the magnetism parameter from 0.1 to 0.3 reduced temperature by approximately 4.5%, changing internal heat generation from 0.1 to 0.5 increased temperature distribution by approximately 16%, and changing the Peclet number from 0.1 to 0.3 increased temperature distribution by approximately 15%. The effect of heat transfer coefficient, thermal radiation–conduction and convection–conduction, and dimensionless radiation are also investigated on the performance of the fins.
Uncertainty quantization of meteorological input and model parameters for hydrological modelling using a Bayesian‐based integrated approach
Authors: Yan Xueman , Song Jinxi , An Yongkai , Lu Wenxi
Published: January 2024

The traditional treatment of uncertainty in hydrological modelling primarily attributes it to model parameters, but rarely systematically considers meteorological input errors, especially in quantifying the impact of meteorological input errors on parameter uncertainty. This study developed a Bayesian‐based integrated approach to quantitatively investigate uncertainties in meteorological inputs (precipitation and temperature) and model parameters as well as the variation in parameter uncertainty due to meteorological input errors. Additionally, we analysed the propagation from these uncertainties to runoff response in snowmelt and non‐snowmelt periods. The applicability and advantages of this approach were presented by applying of the Soil and Water Assessment Tool to the Shitoukoumen Reservoir Catchment. Differential Evolution Adaptive Metropolis‐Markov Chain Monte Carlo was applied for the straightforward Bayesian inference the uncertainties of meteorological inputs and model parameters. On this basis, multilevel factorial analysis technology was used to quantitatively investigate the specific impact of the model parameters' individual and interactive effects due to meteorological input errors. Finally, the impact of meteorological input errors and model parameter uncertainty on the model performance were analysed and quantified systematically. The results showed that the meteorological input errors could affect the random characteristics of multiple model parameters. Moreover, meteorological input errors could further affect the model parameters' effects on annual average runoff. Overall, the above results have significant implications in enhancing hydrological model to simulate/predict runoff and understanding hydrological processes during different periods.