bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Dexamethasone as an Analgesic Adjunct for Postcesarean Delivery Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Mehdiratta Jennifer E. , Dominguez Jennifer E. , Li Yi-Ju , Saab Remie , Habib Ashraf S. , Allen Terrence K.
Published: September 2021

Objectives. Dexamethasone has been shown to have analgesic properties in the general surgical population. However, the analgesic effects for women that undergo cesarean deliveries under spinal anesthesia remain unclear and may be related to the timing of dexamethasone administration. We hypothesized that intravenous dexamethasone administered before skin incision would significantly reduce postoperative opioid consumption at 24 h after cesarean delivery under spinal anesthesia with intrathecal morphine. Methods. Women undergoing elective cesarean deliveries under spinal anesthesia were randomly assigned to receive 8 mg of intravenous dexamethasone or placebo prior to skin incision. Both groups received a standardized spinal anesthetic and multimodal postoperative analgesic regime. The primary outcome was cumulative opioid consumption at 24 h. Secondary outcomes included cumulative opioid consumption at 48 h, time to first analgesic request, and pain scores at rest and on movement at 2, 24, and 48 h. Results. 47 patients were analyzed—23 subjects that received dexamethasone and 24 subjects that received placebo. There was no difference in the median (Q1, Q3) cumulative opioid consumption in the first 24 hours following cesarean delivery between the dexamethasone group {15 (7.5, 20.0) mg} and the placebo group {13.75 (2.5, 31.25) mg} (

P
=
0.740

). There were no differences between the groups in cumulative opioid consumption at 48 h, time to first analgesic request, and pain scores. Conclusions. Intravenous dexamethasone 8 mg administered prior to skin incision did not reduce the opioid consumption of women that underwent cesarean deliveries under spinal anesthesia with intrathecal morphine and multimodal postoperative analgesic regimen.
A Privacy‐Preserving Blockchain Supervision Framework in the Multiparty Setting
Authors: Wen Baodong , Wang Yujue , Ding Yong , Zheng Haibin , Liang Hai , Wang Huiyong
Published: September 2021

Data supervision is an effective method to ensure the legality of user data on blockchain. However, the massive growth of data makes it difficult to achieve data supervision in existing blockchain applications. Also, data supervision often leads to problems such as disclosure of transaction data and user privacy information. To address these issues, this paper proposes a privacy‐preserving blockchain supervision system (BSS) in the multiparty setting, where a supervision chain is introduced to realize data supervision on blockchain. All sensitive information such as user information in the supervising data is encrypted by the attribute‐based encryption (ABE) technology, so that both privacy protection and access control on user data can be achieved. Theoretical analysis and comparison show that the proposed BSS scheme is efficient, and experimental analysis indicates the practicality of our BSS scheme.
Comparative Evaluations of Selected Pigeon Pea (Cajanus cajan) Genotypes for Biomass Yield, Nutrient Composition, and Dry Matter Intake under Diverse Locations of Tropical Africa
Authors: Tulu Abuye , Diribsa Mekonnen , Fekede Gutu , Temesgen Worku , Keba Wakgari , Kumsa Alemayehu
Published: September 2021

Feeding standards of ruminant livestock could be significantly enhanced through the cultivation of improved quality forages, which are suitable for different agroclimatic conditions in tropical Africa. In this frame, ten pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan) genotypes were evaluated across three locations in western Ethiopia during the 2014 and 2015 cropping seasons using a randomized complete block design with three replications. The study was designed to determine the nutrient composition, in vitro digestibility, and dry matter intake of selected pigeon pea genotypes. The result revealed that the studied quality parameters were significantly influenced by the genotypic and environmental main effects but not their interaction, while forage yield was influenced by both main effects and their interaction. Mean forage yield was greater for Degagsa across all locations followed by Belabas. In vitro organic matter digestibility and ash parameters did not vary among genotypes. However, variations were observed across locations for daily dry matter intake (DMI) and crude protein (CP) with the greatest value received from Degagsa and Belabas. The fiber components of Degagsa and Belabas were less than those of the remaining genotypes. Generally, Degagsa and Belabas had shown a greater forage yield, DMI, and CP content, but less in fiber components, and thus can be cultivated to enhance livestock productivity in western Ethiopia and similar agroecologies of tropical Africa.
Identifying Chinese Medicine Patterns of Tension-Type Headache and Understanding Its Subgroups
Authors: Hao Xinyu , Liang Fanrong , Wang Linpeng , Greenwood Kenneth Mark , Xue Charlie Changli , Zheng Zhen , Li Ying
Published: September 2021

Tension-type headache (TTH) is common among adults. Individualized management strategies are limited due to lack of understanding of subtypes of TTH. Chinese medicine (CM) uses the pattern differentiation approach to subtype all health conditions. There is, however, a lack of evidence-based information on CM patterns of TTH. This study aimed to identity common CM patterns of TTH. TTH sufferers were invited for a survey, consisting of a validated Chinese Medicine Headache Questionnaire (CMHQ), Migraine Disability Assessment Test, and Perceived Stress Scale. The CMHQ consisted of information about headache, aggravating and relieving factors, and accompanying symptoms. Principal component analysis was used for factor extraction and TwoStep cluster analyses for identifying clusters. ANOVA was used to compare cluster groups with disability and stress. In total, 170 eligible participants took part in the survey. The commonest headache features were continuous pain (64%); fixed location (74%); aggravated by overwork (74%), stress (74%), or mental strain (70%); and relieved by sleeping (78%). The commonest nonpain symptoms were fatigue (71%) and neck stiffness (70%). Four clusters, differing in their key signs and symptoms, could be assigned to three different CM patterns including ascendant hyperactivity of liver yang (cluster 1), dual qi and blood deficiency (cluster 2), liver depression forming fire (cluster 3), and an unlabelled group (cluster 4). Additionally, over 75% participants in clusters 1 and 2 have episodic TTH, over one-third participants in cluster 3 have chronic TTH, and a majority of participants in cluster 4 have infrequent TTH. The three patterns identified also differed in levels of disability and some elements of coping as measured with PSS. The three CM patterns identified are common clinical presentations of TTH. The new information will contribute to further understanding of the subtypes of TTH and guide the development of targeted intervention combinations for clinical practice and research.
Wheat Futures Prices Prediction in China: A Hybrid Approach
Authors: Sun Yunpeng , Guo Jin , Shan Shan , Khan Yousaf Ali
Published: September 2021

Stocks markets play their financial roles of price shocks and hedging just when they are proficient. The imperative highlights of productive market are that one cannot make extraordinary profit from the stocks markets. This research investigates whether China wheat futures price can be predicted by employing artificial intelligence neural network. This would add to our knowledge whether wheat futures market is resourceful and would enable traders, sellers, and investors to improve cost-effective trading strategy. We utilize the traditional financial model to forecast the wheat futures price and acquire out of sample point estimates. We additionally assess the robustness of our outcomes by applying several alternative forecasting techniques such as artificial intelligence with one hidden layer and autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model. Furthermore, the statistical significance of our point estimation was further tested through the Mariano and Diebold test. Considering random walk forecast as the bench mark, we used a number of economic indicators, trader’s expectation towards futures prices, and lagged value of futures price of wheat in order to forecast the evaluation of wheat futures price. The computable significance of out of sample estimations recommends that our ANN with one hidden layer has the best anticipating presentation among all the models considered in this exploration and has the estimating power in foreseeing wheat futures returns. Furthermore, this investigation discovers that the futures price of wheat can be predicted, and the wheat futures market of China is not productive.
Heat-Induced Interaction of Milk Proteins: Impact on Yoghurt Structure
Authors: Asaduzzaman Md , Mahomud Md Sultan , Haque Mohammod Enamul
Published: September 2021

Heating milk for yoghurt preparation has a significant effect on the structural properties of yoghurt. Milk heated at elevated temperature causes denaturation of whey protein, aggregation, and some case gelation. It is important to understand the mechanism involved in each state of stabilization for tailoring the final product. We review the formation of these complexes and their consequence on the physical, rheological, and microstructural properties of acid milk gels. To investigate the interactions between denatured whey protein and casein, the formation of covalent and noncovalent bonds, localization of the complexes, and their impact on ultimate gelation and final yoghurt texture are reviewed. The information regarding this fundamental mechanism will be beneficial to develop uniform quality yoghurt texture and potential interest of future research.
The Effect of A2E on the Uptake and Release of Calcium in the Lysosomes and Mitochondria of Human RPE Cells Exposed to Blue Light
Authors: Luo Mao-Mei , Chen Lin , Wang Shu , Zeng Chun , Li De-Zhi , Bi YeGe , Liu Long-Qian , Cai Shan-Jun
Published: September 2021

We aimed to explore the effect of N-retinylidene-N-retinylethanolamine (A2E) on the uptake and release of calcium in lysosomes and mitochondria by establishing a model of human retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cell injury induced by exposure to blue light. Primary human RPE cells were cultured from passages 4 to 6 and exposed to blue light at an intensity of 2000 ± 500 lux for 6 hours. After blue light exposure, the culture was maintained for 24 hours. A2E at a final concentration of 25 μM was added to the culture 2 hours before light exposure, and nifedipine at a final concentration of 10−4 M was added 1 hour before light exposure. The levels of Ca2+ in the cytosol (CaTM/2AM), mitochondria (Rhod/2AM), and lysosomes (LysoTracker Red and Fluo-3/AM) were determined. In order to measure the calcium levels in the different organelles, RPE were imaged using a laser scanning confocal microscope. Moreover, changes in the mitochondrial membrane potential were detected by flow cytometry analysis of JC-1-stained cells. The obtained results revealed that blue light illumination increased the calcium fluorescence intensity in the cytoplasm, mitochondria, and lysosomes of human RPE cells when compared with the control cells (

P
<
0.05

). After A2E treatment, the fluorescence intensity of the calcium in the cytoplasm was further increased (

P
<
0.05

), while that in the mitochondria and lysosomes decreased (

P
<
0.05

). In addition, we observed that nifedipine reduced the fluorescence intensity of calcium in the RPE cells. Our results also showed that the mitochondrial membrane potential in the RPE treated with blue light and A2E was lower than that in the control, blue light, and A2E-treated cells (

P
<
0.05

). Blue light increased calcium levels in the cytoplasm, lysosomes, and mitochondria of RPE cells. A2E damages the lysosomal and mitochondrial membranes, resulting in calcium release into the cytoplasm. Finally, our results demonstrated that both blue light and A2E treatments reduced mitochondrial membrane potential, increasing cytosolic Ca2+ levels, which can contribute to the activation of RPE death.
Research on Intelligent Tourism Information System Based on Data Mining Algorithm
Authors: Du Jia
Published: September 2021

Smart tourism purposes symbolize a new idea of IT application to increased competition and satisfaction of all stakeholders, including visitors as co-creators of tourism products and co-promoters of a destination. To improve the effect of smart tourism, this paper improves the common big data technology through algorithm enhancement to improve the intuitive effect of big data. We construct big data visualization technology and realize real-time online visualization of tourism data. In the spark-distributed environment, we use the conventional K clustering technique to improve the final output utilizing clustering means. The research results show that the smart tourism information system based on big data constructed in this paper can meet actual tourism information needs and user experience needs. The outcomes of the experimental results show that the proposed predictor significantly outperforms based on the improved algorithm.
Leukocytoclastic Vasculitis as a Rare Dermatologic Extraintestinal Manifestation of Ulcerative Colitis in an Elderly Patient with Positive PR3-ANCA
Authors: Ng Jacky , Zezoff David , Dargham Hanadi Abou
Published: September 2021

Ulcerative colitis is an inflammatory bowel disease that in rare cases may develop extraintestinal manifestations. This case report aims to add to the limited clinical data on leukocytoclastic vasculitis and possible ANCA-associated vasculitis as rare cutaneous and rheumatologic extraintestinal manifestations of IBD, particularly in elderly patients. Our case involves a 79-year-old male with a history of mild-moderate ulcerative colitis on oral mesalamine 2.4 g daily and pyoderma gangrenosum who presented with recurrent bilateral polyarthralgia, joint swelling, diffuse lower extremity purpura, acute kidney injury, and scrotal rash. Autoimmune titers were significant for positive ANA and PR3-ANCA. Biopsy of purpuric lesions demonstrated findings suggestive of leukocytoclastic vasculitis. The patient was promptly treated with pulse-dose methylprednisolone for 3 days with rapid improvement of symptoms.
SIRT5‐Related Desuccinylation Modification Contributes to Quercetin‐Induced Protection against Heart Failure and High‐Glucose‐Prompted Cardiomyocytes Injured through Regulation of Mitochondrial Quality Surveillance
Authors: Chang Xing , Zhang Tian , Wang Junyan , Liu Yan , Yan Peizheng , Meng Qingyan , Yin Yongtian , Wang Shiyuan
Published: September 2021

Myocardial fibrosis represents the primary pathological change associated with diabetic cardiomyopathy and heart failure, and it leads to decreased myocardial compliance with impaired cardiac diastolic and systolic function. Quercetin, an active ingredient in various medicinal plants, exerts therapeutic effects against cardiovascular diseases. Here, we investigate whether SIRT5‐ and IDH2‐related desuccinylation is involved in the underlying mechanism of myocardial fibrosis in heart failure while exploring related therapeutic drugs for mitochondrial quality surveillance. Mouse models of myocardial fibrosis and heart failure, established by transverse aortic constriction (TAC), were administered with quercetin (50 mg/kg) daily for 4 weeks. HL‐1 cells were pretreated with quercetin and treated with high glucose (30 mM) in vitro. Cardiac function, western blotting, quantitative PCR, enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay, and immunofluorescence analysis were employed to analyze mitochondrial quality surveillance, oxidative stress, and inflammatory response in myocardial cells, whereas IDH2 succinylation levels were detected using immunoprecipitation. Myocardial fibrosis and heart failure incidence increased after TAC, with abnormal cardiac ejection function. Following high‐glucose treatment, HL‐1 cell activity was inhibited, causing excess production of reactive oxygen species and inhibition of mitochondrial respiratory complex I/III activity and mitochondrial antioxidant enzyme activity, as well as increased oxidative stress and inflammatory response, imbalanced mitochondrial quality surveillance and homeostasis, and increased apoptosis. Quercetin inhibited myocardial fibrosis and improved cardiac function by increasing mitochondrial energy metabolism and regulating mitochondrial fusion/fission and mitochondrial biosynthesis while inhibiting the inflammatory response and oxidative stress injury. Additionally, TAC inhibited SIRT5 expression at the mitochondrial level and increased IDH2 succinylation. However, quercetin promoted the desuccinylation of IDH2 by increasing SIRT5 expression. Moreover, treatment with si‐SIRT5 abolished the protective effect of quercetin on cell viability. Hence, quercetin may promote the desuccinylation of IDH2 through SIRT5, maintain mitochondrial homeostasis, protect mouse cardiomyocytes under inflammatory conditions, and improve myocardial fibrosis, thereby reducing the incidence of heart failure.
Exploring the Potential Mechanism of Shennao Fuyuan Tang for Ischemic Stroke Based on Network Pharmacology and Molecular Docking
Authors: Li Jia Min , Mu Zhen Ni , Zhang Tian Tian , Li Xin , Shang Yan , Hu Guo Heng
Published: September 2021

Background and Objective. Shennao Fuyuan Tang (SNFYT) is an effective herbal formula for ischemic stroke (IS). It has been in China for more than 20 years, but its effective biologically active components and underlying mechanisms remain to be elucidated. This study aimed to investigate the mechanism of action of SNFYT for the treatment of IS from both network pharmacology and molecular docking aspects. Methods. Screen the biologically active components and potential targets of SNFYT through Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology (TCMSP), Traditional Chinese Medicines Integrated Database (TCMID), and related literature. In addition, DrugBank, OMIM, DisGeNET, and the Therapeutic Target Database were searched to explore the therapeutic targets of IS. The cross-targets of SNFYT potential targets and IS treatment targets were taken as candidate gene targets, and GO and KEGG enrichment analyses were performed on the candidate targets. On this basis, the SNFYT-component-target network and protein-protein interaction (PPI) network were constructed using Cytoscape 3.7.2. Finally, AutoDock was used to verify the molecular docking of core components and core targets. Results. We screened out 95 potentially active components and 143 candidate targets. SNFYT-component-target network, PPI network, and Cytoscape analysis identified four core active ingredients and 14 core targets. GO enrichment analyzed 2333 biological processes, 79 cell components, and 149 molecular functions. There are 170 KEGG-related signal pathways

P
<
0.05

, including the IL-17 signal pathway, TNF signal pathway, and HIF-1 signal pathway. The molecular docking results of the core components and the core targets showed good binding power. Conclusions. SNFYT may achieve the effect of treating ischemic stroke through its anti-inflammatory effect through a signal pathway with core targets as the core.
A Novel Method for Solving Multiobjective Linear Programming Problems with Triangular Neutrosophic Numbers
Authors: Wang Qing , Huang Yi , Kong Shiming , Ma Xinqiang , Liu Youyuan , Das S. K. , Edalatpanah S. A.
Published: September 2021

In the field of operation research, linear programming (LP) is the most utilized apparatus for genuine application in various scales. In our genuine circumstances, the manager/decision-makers (DM) face problems to get the optimal solutions and it even sometimes becomes impossible. To overcome these limitations, neutrosophic set theory is presented, which can handle all types of decision, that is, concur, not certain, and differ, which is common in real-world situations. By thinking about these conditions, in this work, we introduced a method for solving neutrosophic multiobjective LP (NMOLP) problems having triangular neutrosophic numbers. In the literature study, there is no method for solving NMOLP problem. Therefore, here we consider a NMOLP problem with mixed constraints, where the parameters are assumed to be triangular neutrosophic numbers (TNNs). So, we propose a method for solving NMOLP problem with the help of linear membership function. After utilizing membership function, the problem is converted into equivalent crisp LP (CrLP) problem and solved by any suitable method which is readily available. To demonstrate the efficiency and accuracy of the proposed method, we consider one classical MOLP problem and solve it. Finally, we conclude that the proposed approach also helps decision-makers to not only know and optimize the most likely situation but also realize the outcomes in the optimistic and pessimistic business situations, so that decision-makers can prepare and take necessary actions for future uncertainty.
Preliminary Evaluation of Nanobacteria on Crystal Retention, CaSR, and Claudin‐14 Expression in HK‐2 Cells
Authors: Xu Gang , Qian Biao , Zheng Liying
Published: September 2021

To evaluate cell morphology, crystal adhesion, cell damage, Calcium sensitive receptor (CaSR), and Claudin protein‐14 (Claudin‐14) expression at different time intervals and explore the role of nanobacteria in the formation of urinary calculi. In this experiment, HK‐2 cells were cocultured with nanobacteria (NB) in the absence or presence of tetracycline (Tet). Cells treated with calcium oxalate monohydrate (COM) crystals were used as a positive control of urinary stone‐induced cell damage. After which, cell morphology was evaluated by hematoxylin‐eosin staining in comparison to untreated HK‐2 cells (negative control). Use different methods to assess cell damage, crystal adhesion, and protein expression. (The degree of cell damage, crystal adhesion, and protein expression were evaluated by various methods). It was found that the degree of cell damage observed in Tet + NB‐treated cells was significantly lower than that in NB‐treated cells. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) leakage was higher in COM‐exposed than in control cells (P < 0.05). However, LDH release from both NB‐ and Tet + NB‐treated cells was significantly lower than from COM‐treated cells (P < 0.05). The relative expression of CaSR and Claudin‐14 proteins was higher in NB, COM, and TET + NB cells than in control cells (P < 0.001) and was lower in Tet + NB than in NB cells (P < 0.01). And P < 0.05 means that the difference was statistically significant, and P < 0.001 means that there was a significant difference between the both things. From the cell morphology, the cell damage in the COM group was greater than that in the NB group, and the cell damage markers in the COM group and the NB group were elevated. NB caused damage to HK‐2 cells by inducing lipid peroxidation, and the degree of damage was increased in processing time. The adhesion of HK‐2 cells to COM crystals increased after injury and was proportional to the duration of NB coculture. NB upregulated the expression of CaSR and Claudin‐14 in HK‐2 cells.
Fracability Evaluation Method and Influencing Factors of the Tight Sandstone Reservoir
Authors: Liu Jiageng , Qu Lisha , Song Ziyi , Li Jing , Liu Chen , Feng Yongcun , Sun Haihang
Published: September 2021

Fracability evaluation is the basis of reservoir fracturing and fracturing zone optimization. The tight sandstone reservoir is characterized by low porosity and low permeability, which requires hydraulic fracturing to improve industrial productivity. In this study, a systematic model was proposed for the fracability evaluation of tight sandstone reservoirs. The rock mechanics tests and sonic tests demonstrated that tight sandstone reservoir is characterized by high brittleness, high fracture toughness, and weak development of natural fractures. Numerical simulation was used to analyze the change of reservoir parameters during hydraulic fracturing and the influence of in situ stress on fracture propagation. The results showed that when the horizontal stress anisotropy coefficient is small, natural fractures may lead hydraulic fractures to change direction, and complex fracture networks are easily formed in the reservoir. The horizontal stress anisotropy coefficient ranges from 0.23 to 0.52, and it is easy to produce fracture networks in the reservoir. A new fracability evaluation model was established based on the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). The fracability of tight sandstone reservoir is characterized by the fracability index (FI) and is divided into three levels. Based on the model, this study carried out fracability evaluation and fracturing zone optimization in the study area, and the microseismic monitoring results verified the accuracy of the model.
Robot Navigation in Crowd Based on Dual Social Attention Deep Reinforcement Learning
Authors: Zeng Hui , Hu Rong , Huang Xiaohui , Peng Zhiying
Published: September 2021

Finding a feasible, collision-free path in line with social activities is an important and challenging task for robots working in dense crowds. In recent years, many studies have used deep reinforcement learning techniques to solve this problem. In particular, it is necessary to find an efficient path in a short time which often requires predicting the interaction with neighboring agents. However, as the crowd grows and the scene becomes more and more complex, researchers usually simplify the problem to a one-way human-robot interaction problem. But, in fact, we have to consider not only the interaction between humans and robots but also the influence of human-human interactions on the movement trajectory of the robot. Therefore, this article proposes a method based on deep reinforcement learning to enable the robot to avoid obstacles in the crowd and navigate smoothly from the starting point to the target point. We use a dual social attention mechanism to jointly model human-robot and human-human interaction. All sorts of experiments demonstrate that our model can make robots navigate in dense crowds more efficiently compared with other algorithms.
Enteral Nutrition Combined with Improved-Sijunzi Decoction Shows Positive Effect in Precachexia Cancer Patients: A Retrospective Analysis
Authors: Li Yueying , Chen Yajun , Zeng Yaqi , Dong Jie , Li Chunlei , Jia Yingjie , Zhao Yonghua , Wang Kun
Published: September 2021

Background. Cancer has been considered as the leading cause of death in the world. In patients with cancer, up to 80% display a cachectic period after diagnosis. Cachexia is known to have a negative impact on function, treatment tolerance, higher rates of hospitalizations, and mortality. Anorexia is often used as a warning sign of precachexia. Long-term anorexia may lead to malnutrition and, then, accelerate the occurrence of cachexia. A safe and effective treatment, which can both improve appetite and assist nutritional support for precachexia cancer patients shows its particular important role. Methods. A retrospective analysis comparing the different therapeutic effects on precachexia cancer patients with anorexia-malnutrition. We recorded 46 patients with the improved-Sijunzi decoction combined with enteral nutrition emulsion (ISJZ group) and 35 patients with single enteral nutrition emulsion (SEN group). The different therapeutic effects of the two groups were observed by recording indicators before and 2 weeks after treatment, including patient-generated subjective global assessment score, quality of life score, Karnofsky performance status scale, Eastern cooperative oncology group scale standard and traditional Chinese medicine syndrome, daily total dietary intake, red blood cells, hemoglobin, prealbumin, albumin, total protein cholinesterase, C-reactive protein, leukocytes, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, urea nitrogen, and creatinine. Results. ISJZ group exhibited prominent improvement of traditional Chinese medicine syndrome (TCMS), nutritional condition, and quality of life compared with the SEN group (QOL:

p
=
0.0001

, PG-SGA:

p
=
0.019

, dietary intake:

p
=
0.0001

, TCMS:

p
=
0.0001

). The levels of HGB (

p
=
0.006

), PAlb (

p
=
0.001

), Alb (

p
=
0.0001

), TP (

p
=
0.008

), and ChE (

p
=
0.0001

) in the ISJZ group were higher than the SEN group after treatment. Moreover, the ratios of CRP/ALB (

p
=
0.028

) and CRP/PALB (

p
=
0.005

) in the two groups have obvious differences; they were lower for the ISJZ group than the SEN group. Conclusions. Enteral nutrition combined with ISJZ decoction is an effective treatment in precachexia cancer patients for the prevention of cachexia. This treatment therapy can alleviate the inflammatory response, improve malnutrition state, and promote the performance status. Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital approved this study (Trial No. 1913).
Accurate Estimation of English Word Similarity Based on Semantic Network
Authors: Gong Qifeng
Published: September 2021

The application of artificial intelligence in the field of English needs to process a large amount of English text data, but the deviation of English word similarity reduces its overall English translation accuracy and data processing efficiency. Therefore, this paper proposes an accurate estimation of English word similarity based on semantic network, which combines a variety of computing methods to form a compound computing structure based on semantic network. The experimental results show that the error between the Semantic Web-based English word similarity calculation method and manual evaluation is small, and the accuracy of English word similarity calculation is improved to a certain extent. In addition, compared with other English word similarity calculation methods, the English word similarity calculation method based on semantic network is more in line with people’s cognition and understanding of knowledge, has higher reliability, and has certain practical value in the field of English.
Critical Review on Wild-Edible Fruit Species in Ethiopia
Authors: Melaku Alebel , Ebrahim Mohammed Ahmed
Published: September 2021

Wild edible fruit species are commonly consumed and utilized in different parts of Ethiopia for staple food, filling seasonal food shortages, emergency food during a famine, and household income generation. There is a pressing need for domestication and improvement of some wild edible fruits for increased production, diversifying income for small-scale farmers, and conservation of the diminishing wild edible fruit resources. A total of 37 widely utilized and marketed wild edible fruit species falling into 23 families were recognized as of used in different parts of the country. Of which, 26 species are identified as available in local markets in different parts of the country. Ziziphus spina-christi, Syzygium guineense, Balanites aegyptiaca, and other nine species were identified as a priority wild edible fruit species from available information based on utilization extent, preference ranking by farmers, product marketability, and conservation needs for the species. There exists a lack of scientifically planned genetic variation evaluation, superior variety selection, genetic improvement, and seedling production initiatives for indigenous wild edible fruit species in Ethiopia. All of the 37 widely utilized and marketed wild fruit species have not developed to their full potential in terms of quality, production scale, and market in the country. Identifying and selecting priority species, strengthening botanical information, germplasm collection and improvement, production and processing technologies, increasing the supply of improved planting materials, and promoting on-farm cultivation of wild edible fruit-based agroforestry systems were identified as key future strategies for domestication and wider cultivation of wild edible fruit species.
Multilevel and Spatially Heterogeneous Factors Influencing Poor Households’ Income in a Frontier Minority Area in Northeast China
Authors: Wang Binyan , Rosenberg Mark W. , Wang Shijun , Yang Peifeng , Tian Junfeng
Published: September 2021

Increasing the income of poor rural households is essential for the realization of China’s goal of sustainable development, which entails inclusive and equitable development and reducing the developmental gap between urban and rural areas. We conducted a case study of Wangqing County, a frontier minority area in Northeast China to examine spatial patterns and income differentials among poor rural households in this area. We quantified existing associations between household‐level and environmental‐level characteristics and income by applying hierarchical linear models. We subsequently applied Geographically Weighted Regression to analyze the spatial heterogeneity of the environmental‐level variables and develop an understanding of the interaction mechanism of influencing factors. The results revealed that the distribution of villages, where income levels were similar, showed significant spatial agglomeration characteristics. Our findings also provide empirical evidence that household‐ and village‐level characteristics together determine the income of poor households, but that household‐level characteristics determine destitution to a greater extent than environmental characteristics. More specifically, the sex, health condition, and labor capacity of the household head, household size, the dependency ratio, social welfare, and off‐farm work are significantly associated with household income. At the environmental level, arable land, the distance to the county center, and the average altitude had spatially heterogeneous impacts that varied in direction and intensity. This systematic study provides a more comprehensive and integrated understanding of the factors influencing the income of poor households in a frontier minority area in Northeast China.
On the Prediction of Biogas Production from Vegetables, Fruits, and Food Wastes by ANFIS‐ and LSSVM‐Based Models
Authors: Yang Yong , Zheng Shuaishuai , Ai Zhilu , Jafari Mohammad Mahdi Molla
Published: September 2021

This study is aimed at modeling biodigestion systems as a function of the most influencing parameters to generate two robust algorithms on the basis of the machine learning algorithms, including adaptive network‐based fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) and least square support vector machine (LSSVM). The models are assessed utilizing multiple statistical analyses for the actual values and model outcomes. Results from the suggested models indicate their great capability of predicting biogas production from vegetable food, fruits, and wastes for a variety of ranges of input parameters. The values that are calculated for the mean relative error (MRE %) and mean squared error (MSE) were 29.318 and 0.0039 for ANFIS, and 2.951 and 0.0001 for LSSVM which shows that the latter model has a better ability to predict the target data. Finally, in order to have additional certainty, two analyses of outlier identification and sensitivity were performed on the input parameter data that proved the proposed model in this paper has higher reliability in assessing output values compared with the previous model.
Design and Performance of Ultrathin Overlay Epoxy‐Rubber Concrete
Authors: Huang Qi , Chen Fei
Published: September 2021

Epoxy‐rubber concrete has a big potential to be used for pavement overlays, but there is currently no appropriate epoxy‐rubber concrete design method and process. To explore the reasonable mix design process of epoxy‐rubber concrete, the ultrathin overlay aggregate gradation and epoxy resin binder with high toughness and durability were selected to carry out the design process investigation of epoxy‐rubber concrete. The performance of epoxy‐rubber concrete was characterized by vibration compaction, repeated load CBR, porosity, Fort Kentucky, uniaxial compression, bending, rutting, antiskid performance, and noise‐reduction performance test. Firstly, the optimum range of the rubber powder replacement rate was determined based on the porosity and deformation characteristics of the aggregate mixture. Then, the amount of epoxy resin binder was further determined based on the porosity and antistripping performance of the epoxy‐rubber concrete. Finally, the mechanical properties, road performance, and functions of epoxy‐rubber concrete were comprehensively considered to determine the optimum rubber power replacement rate obtaining the composition design of epoxy‐rubber concrete. The results showed that adding rubber powder decreased the elastic modulus and plastic deformation of the mineral structure, enhancing the suitability of the mixture for flexible road pavements. However, when the replacement rate increased to a specific range, the rubber particles significantly interfered with the mineral material, worsening the stability of the structure. Therefore, it was preliminarily determined that the reasonable replacement rate of rubber powder was 30–50%. The ultrathin overlay epoxy‐rubber concrete exhibited excellent antistripping performance, and its porosity increased with the epoxy resin dosage. The optimum epoxy content was 6.5% at 4.17% porosity. Within the preliminarily determined replacement rate range of rubber particles, as the replacement rate increased, the flexibility, high‐temperature stability, antiskid performance, and shock and noise resistance of the mixture increased, but the compressive and flexural tensile strength values decreased. The integrated properties of the ultrathin overlay epoxy‐rubber concrete indicated that the best replacement rate of rubber powder was 45%. In this paper, the replacement rate range of the rubber powder was initially determined based on the gradation composition of the mixture, which avoids blind determination of the replacement rate. And the composition of the concrete was obtained comprehensively by the performance and function of the epoxy‐rubber concrete, which is reasonable and reliable. The epoxy‐rubber concrete design method proposed in this paper can promote the application the epoxy‐rubber concrete in pavement overlay engineering.
Internet of Things-Based Intelligent Smart Home Control System
Authors: Taiwo Olutosin , Ezugwu Absalom E.
Published: September 2021

The smart home is now an established area of interest and research that contributes to comfort in modern homes. With the Internet being an essential part of broad communication in modern life, IoT has allowed homes to go beyond building to interactive abodes. In many spheres of human life, the IoT has grown exponentially, including monitoring ecological factors, controlling the home and its appliances, and storing data generated by devices in the house in the cloud. Smart home includes multiple components, technologies, and devices that generate valuable data for predicting home and environment activities. This work presents the design and development of a ubiquitous, cloud-based intelligent home automation system. The system controls, monitors, and oversees the security of a home and its environment via an Android mobile application. One module controls and monitors electrical appliances and environmental factors, while another module oversees the home’s security by detecting motion and capturing images. Our work uses a camera to capture images of objects triggered by their motion being detected. To avoid false alarms, we used the concept of machine learning to differentiate between images of regular home occupants and those of an intruder. The support vector machine algorithm is proposed in this study to classify the features of the image captured and determine if it is that of a regular home occupant or an intruder before sending an alarm to the user. The design of the mobile application allows a graphical display of the activities in the house. Our work proves that machine learning algorithms can improve home automation system functionality and enhance home security. The work’s prototype was implemented using an ESP8266 board, an ESP32-CAM board, a 5 V four-channel relay module, and sensors.
[Retracted] Influence of miRNA‐30a‐5p on Pulmonary Fibrosis in Mice with Streptococcus pneumoniae Infection through Regulation of Autophagy by Beclin‐1
Authors: Liu Hanyu , Li Yabo , Zou Yingdong , Zhang Xingzong , Shi Xiongfei , Yin Zhiping , Lin Yun
Published: September 2021

The study is aimed at observing the influence of microribonucleic acid‐ (miRNA‐) 30a‐50p on the pulmonary fibrosis in mice with Streptococcus pneumoniae infection through the regulation of autophagy by Beclin‐1. Specific pathogen‐free mice were instilled with Streptococcus pneumoniae through the trachea to establish the pulmonary fibrosis model. Then, they were divided into the miRNA‐30a‐50p mimics group (mimics group, n = 10) and miRNA‐30a‐5p inhibitors group (inhibitors group, n = 10), with the control group (n = 10) also set. Pulmonary tissue wet weight/dry weight (W/D) was detected. The content of tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α), interleukin‐ (IL‐) 6, and myeloperoxidase (MPO) was determined using enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Besides, the changes in the pulmonary function index dynamic lung compliance (Cdyn), plateau pressure (Pplat), and peak airway pressure (Ppeak) were monitored, and the gene and protein expression levels were measured via quantitative PCR (qPCR) and Western blotting. The expression level of miRNA‐30a‐5p was substantially raised in the mimics group (p < 0.05), but extremely low in the inhibitors group (p < 0.05). The mimics group had obviously raised levels of serum aminotransferase (AST), glutamic‐pyruvic transaminase (GPT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and pulmonary tissue W/D (p < 0.05). Additionally, the expression levels of TNF‐α, IL‐6, and MPO were notably elevated in the mimics group, while their expression levels showed the opposite conditions in the inhibitors group (p < 0.05). According to the HE staining results, the inhibitors group had arranged orderly cells, while the mimics group exhibited lung injury, pulmonary edema, severe inflammatory response, and alveolar congestion. In the inhibitors group, Cdyn was remarkably elevated, but Pplat and Ppeak declined considerably (p < 0.05). Besides, the inhibitors group exhibited elevated messenger RNA (mRNA) levels of Beclin‐1 and LC3, lowered mRNA levels of α‐SMA and p62, a raised protein level of Beclin‐1, and a markedly decreased protein level of p62 (p < 0.05). Silencing miRNA‐30a‐5p expression can promote the expression of Beclin‐1 to accelerate the occurrence of autophagy, thereby treating pulmonary fibrosis in mice with Streptococcus pneumoniae infection.
Identification of 5 Hub Genes Related to the Early Diagnosis, Tumour Stage, and Poor Outcomes of Hepatitis B Virus-Related Hepatocellular Carcinoma by Bioinformatics Analysis
Authors: Qiang Rui , Zhao Zitong , Tang Lu , Wang Qian , Wang Yanhong , Huang Qian
Published: September 2021

Background. The majority of primary liver cancers in adults worldwide are hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs, or hepatomas). Thus, a deep understanding of the underlying mechanisms for the pathogenesis and carcinogenesis of HCC at the molecular level could facilitate the development of novel early diagnostic and therapeutic treatments to improve the approaches and prognosis for HCC patients. Our study elucidates the underlying molecular mechanisms of HBV-HCC development and progression and identifies important genes related to the early diagnosis, tumour stage, and poor outcomes of HCC. Methods. GSE55092 and GSE121248 gene expression profiling data were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. There were 119 HCC samples and 128 nontumour tissue samples. GEO2R was used to screen for differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Volcano plots and Venn diagrams were drawn by using the ggplot2 package in R. A heat map was generated by using Heatmapper. By using the clusterProfiler R package, KEGG and GO enrichment analyses of DEGs were conducted. Through PPI network construction using the STRING database, key hub genes were identified by cytoHubba. Finally, KM survival curves and ROC curves were generated to validate hub gene expression. Results. By GO enrichment analysis, 694 DEGs were enriched in the following GO terms: organic acid catabolic process, carboxylic acid catabolic process, carboxylic acid biosynthetic process, collagen-containing extracellular matrix, blood microparticle, condensed chromosome kinetochore, arachidonic acid epoxygenase activity, arachidonic acid monooxygenase activity, and monooxygenase activity. In the KEGG pathway enrichment analysis, DEGs were enriched in arachidonic acid epoxygenase activity, arachidonic acid monooxygenase activity, and monooxygenase activity. By PPI network construction and analysis of hub genes, we selected the top 10 genes, including CDK1, CCNB2, CDC20, BUB1, BUB1B, CCNB1, NDC80, CENPF, MAD2L1, and NUF2. By using TCGA and THPA databases, we found five genes, CDK1, CDC20, CCNB1, CENPF, and MAD2L1, that were related to the early diagnosis, tumour stage, and poor outcomes of HBV-HCC. Conclusions. Five abnormally expressed hub genes of HBV-HCC are informative for early diagnosis, tumour stage determination, and poor outcome prediction.
Recent Advances in Pediatric Cancer Research
Authors: McEachron Troy A. , Helman Lee J.
Published: September 2021

Over the past few years, the field of pediatric cancer has experienced a shift in momentum, and this has led to new and exciting findings that have relevance beyond pediatric malignancies. Here we present the current status of key aspects of pediatric cancer research. We have focused on genetic and epigenetic drivers of disease, cellular origins of different pediatric cancers, disease models, the tumor microenvironment, and cellular immunotherapies.
Visceral Fat Accumulation Is Related to Impaired Pancreatic Blood Perfusion and Beta-Cell Dysfunction in Obese Women
Authors: Szotkowská Radka , Gojda Jan , Plíhalová Andrea , Weichet Jiří , Potočková Jana , Havlík Jan , Polák Jan , Anděl Michal
Published: September 2021

Aims/Hypothesis: Beta-cell failure plays a fundamental role in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) development. It has been shown that the beta-cells are among the most sensitive to hypoxia. We aimed to analyze whether decrease in pancreatic perfusion relates to 1/decline in beta-cell function and 2/visceral fat accumulation in patients with T2DM. Methods: Fifteen women with T2DM on metformin therapy alone and fifteen women of comparable age and BMI without prediabetes/diabetes were cross-sectionally examined: clinical and anthropometric examination, fast sampled intravenous glucose tolerance test (FSIVGTT), dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging to assess pancreatic perfusion (area under the curve of postcontrast saturation, AUCTSIC), and visceral adiposity (VAT, calculated from transverse sections at the level L2–L5 vertebrae). Results: Pancreatic blood perfusion (AUCTSIC) did not differ between groups (p = 0.273), but it negatively correlated with BMI (r = −0.434, p = 0.017), WHR (r = −0.411, p = 0.024), and VAT (r = −0.436, p = 0.016) in both groups. Moreover, AUCTSIC in the head of the pancreas negatively correlated with the level of fasting glycemia (r = −0.401, p = 0.028) and HOMA-IR (r = −0.376, p = 0.041). Discussion/Conclusion: We showed that decreased pancreatic perfusion did not relate to beta-cell dysfunction in early stages of T2DM development, but it was related to VAT, insulin resistance, and higher fasting glycemia. Furthermore, lower pancreatic perfusion was related to VAT, insulin resistance, and higher fasting glycemia.