bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Improving Hybrid CTC/Attention Architecture with Time-Restricted Self-Attention CTC for End-to-End Speech Recognition
Authors: Wu Long , Li Ta , Wang Li , Yan Yonghong
Published: October 2019

As demonstrated in hybrid connectionist temporal classification (CTC)/Attention architecture, joint training with a CTC objective is very effective to solve the misalignment problem existing in the attention-based end-to-end automatic speech recognition (ASR) framework. However, the CTC output relies only on the current input, which leads to the hard alignment issue. To address this problem, this paper proposes the time-restricted attention CTC/Attention architecture, which integrates an attention mechanism with the CTC branch. “Time-restricted” means that the attention mechanism is conducted on a limited window of frames to the left and right. In this study, we first explore time-restricted location-aware attention CTC/Attention, establishing the proper time-restricted attention window size. Inspired by the success of self-attention in machine translation, we further introduce the time-restricted self-attention CTC/Attention that can better model the long-range dependencies among the frames. Experiments with wall street journal (WSJ), augmented multiparty interaction (AMI), and switchboard (SWBD) tasks demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed time-restricted self-attention CTC/Attention. Finally, to explore the robustness of this method to noise and reverberation, we join a train neural beamformer frontend with the time-restricted attention CTC/Attention ASR backend in the CHIME-4 dataset. The reduction of word error rate (WER) and the increase of perceptual evaluation of speech quality (PESQ) approve the effectiveness of this framework.
PM1 in Ambient and Indoor Air—Urban and Rural Areas in the Upper Silesian Region, Poland
Authors: Mainka Anna , Zajusz-Zubek Elwira
Published: October 2019

(1) Background: The work presents results of concentration measurements of PM1, collected in the indoor air of four preschool buildings in Gliwice and its environs (Silesia Province) and in ambient air in the vicinity of four working hard coal power plants and four coking plants located in southern Poland. (2) Methods: The samples of <1 µm, 1–2.5 µm, 2.5–10 µm, and >10 µm fractions were collected with the use of Dekati® PM10 cascade impactor, and concentrations of seven trace elements (Cd, Cr, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sb, and Se) were determined. (3) Results: The concentrations of PM1 changed in the range of 3.1 μg/m3–65.3 μg/m3. Among trace elements, the highest concentrations in indoor air were evidenced for Cr (129–219 ng/m3), while in outdoor air for Pb (12.6–21.2 ng/m3). Principal Component Analysis PCA analysis extracted three factors of rural dusts, city dusts, and natural soils. (4) Conclusions: The paper points to accumulation of carcinogenic Cd, Cr, and Ni in indoor air, and significant contribution of trace elements in PM1, which, owing to long-lasting exposure and elevated sensitivity of developing organisms, may evoke effects on health of children.
Natural Formation of Chloro- and Bromoacetone in Salt Lakes of Western Australia
Authors: Sattler Tobias , Sörgel Matthias , Wittmer Julian , Bourtsoukidis Efstratios , Krause Torsten , Atlas Elliot , Benk Simon , Bleicher Sergej , Kamilli Katharina , Ofner Johannes , Kopetzky Raimo , Held Andreas , Palm Wolf-Ulrich , Williams Jonathan , Zetzsch Cornelius , Schöler Heinz-Friedrich
Published: October 2019

Western Australia is a semi-/arid region known for saline lakes with a wide range of geochemical parameters (pH 2.5–7.1, Cl− 10–200 g L−1). This study reports on the haloacetones chloro- and bromoacetone in air over 6 salt lake shorelines. Significant emissions of chloroacetone (up to 0.2 µmol m−2 h−1) and bromoacetone (up to 1. 5 µmol m−2 h−1) were detected, and a photochemical box model was employed to evaluate the contribution of their atmospheric formation from the olefinic hydrocarbons propene and methacrolein in the gas phase. The measured concentrations could not explain the photochemical halogenation reaction, indicating a strong hitherto unknown source of haloacetones. Aqueous-phase reactions of haloacetones, investigated in the laboratory using humic acid in concentrated salt solutions, were identified as alternative formation pathway by liquid-phase reactions, acid catalyzed enolization of ketones, and subsequent halogenation. In order to verify this mechanism, we made measurements of the Henry’s law constants, rate constants for hydrolysis and nucleophilic exchange with chloride, UV-spectra and quantum yields for the photolysis of bromoacetone and 1,1-dibromoacetone in the aqueous phase. We suggest that heterogeneous processes induced by humic substances in the quasi-liquid layer of the salt crust, particle surfaces and the lake water are the predominating pathways for the formation of the observed haloacetones.
Activation of sub 2 nm Water Soluble and Insoluble Standard Ions with Saturated Vapors of Butanol in a Boosted TSI ultrafine CPC
Authors: Attoui Michel , Kangasluoma Juha
Published: October 2019

Tetraheptylammonium bromide (THABr), tetrabutylammonium bromide (TBABr) and tetraethylammonium bromide (TEABr) dissolved in methanol or water methanol mixtures (~1 mM) produce via positive electrospray atomization and high resolution classification electrical classification standard clean ions (monomer and dier) which are singly charged. THABr is hydrophobic and insoluble in water, TBABr and TEABr are hygroscopic and water soluble (0.6 and 2.8 kg/L respectively). These ions are used to study the effect of hygroscopicity on the activation of aerosol particles in the sub 2 nm range via the detection efficiency measurement of a boosted ultrafine TSI condensation particle counter (3025A). Water solubility of particles seems to play a role in the activation and growth with butanol vapor in the CPC (condensation particle counter) independently of the size.
Prediction of Rainfall Using Intensified LSTM Based Recurrent Neural Network with Weighted Linear Units
Authors: Poornima S. , Pushpalatha M.
Published: October 2019

Prediction of rainfall is one of the major concerns in the domain of meteorology. Several techniques have been formerly proposed to predict rainfall based on statistical analysis, machine learning and deep learning techniques. Prediction of time series data in meteorology can assist in decision-making processes carried out by organizations responsible for the prevention of disasters. This paper presents Intensified Long Short-Term Memory (Intensified LSTM) based Recurrent Neural Network (RNN) to predict rainfall. The neural network is trained and tested using a standard dataset of rainfall. The trained network will produce predicted attribute of rainfall. The parameters considered for the evaluation of the performance and the efficiency of the proposed rainfall prediction model are Root Mean Square Error (RMSE), accuracy, number of epochs, loss, and learning rate of the network. The results obtained are compared with Holt–Winters, Extreme Learning Machine (ELM), Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA), Recurrent Neural Network and Long Short-Term Memory models in order to exemplify the improvement in the ability to predict rainfall.
Development of a Predictive Model to Induce Atherogenesis and Hepato-Renal Impairment in Female Rats
Authors: Guarnier Lucas Pires , Romão Paulo Vitor Moreira , Palozi Rhanany Alan Calloi , Silva Aniely Oliveira , Lorençone Bethânia Rosa , Marques Aline Aparecida Macedo , dos Santos Ariany Carvalho , Souza Roosevelt Isaias Carvalho , Souza Karine Delgado , Lourenço Emerson Luiz Botelho , Gasparotto Junior Arquimedes
Published: October 2019

Therapeutic approaches for the treatment of dyslipidemia and atherosclerosis have radically changed in recent decades. Part of this advance undeniably stems from basic biomedical research that has provided a better understanding and identification of new therapeutic targets. The aim of this work was to develop a model to induce atherogenesis and hepato-renal impairment in female Wistar rats. The following groups received the respective treatments for 60 days: control animals, non-ovariectomized rats that received an atherogenic diet (NEAD), ovariectomized rats that received an atherogenic diet (NOAD), non-ovariectomized rats that received an atherogenic diet and oral Nω-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester hydrochloride (l-NAME; LEAD), and ovariectomized rats that received an atherogenic diet and oral l-NAME (LOAD). Animals in the NEAD, NOAD, LEAD, and LOAD groups also received methimazole and cholecalciferol daily. Urinary, biochemical, hemodynamic, and electrocardiographic parameters and renal function were assessed. Samples of the liver, heart, kidney, and arteries were collected to investigate redox status and perform histopathological analyses. All of the groups developed dyslipidemia and hepatic steatosis. Only the NEAD group developed arterial lesions that were compatible with fatty streaks. Renal function was significantly impaired in the LEAD and NOAD groups. These results indicate a viable alternative to induce atherogenesis and hepato-renal impairment in female rats.
The Lysosomal Sequestration of Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors and Drug Resistance
Authors: Ruzickova Eliska , Skoupa Nikola , Dolezel Petr , Smith Dennis A. , Mlejnek Petr
Published: October 2019

The Lysosomal sequestration of weak-base anticancer drugs is one putative mechanism for resistance to chemotherapy but it has never been directly proven. We addressed the question of whether the lysosomal sequestration of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) itself contributes to the drug resistance in vitro. Our analysis indicates that lysosomal sequestration of an anticancer drug can significantly reduce the concentration at target sites, only when it simultaneously decreases its extracellular concentration due to equilibrium, since uncharged forms of weak-base drugs freely diffuse across cellular membranes. Even though the studied TKIs, including imatinib, nilotinib, and dasatinib, were extensively accumulated in the lysosomes of cancer cells, their sequestration was insufficient to substantially reduce the extracellular drug concentration. Lysosomal accumulation of TKIs also failed to affect the Bcr-Abl signaling. Cell pre-treatment with sunitinib significantly enhanced the lysosomal accumulation of the TKIs used; however, without apparent lysosomal biogenesis. Importantly, even increased lysosomal sequestration of TKIs neither decreased their extracellular concentrations nor affected the sensitivity of Bcr-Abl to TKIs. In conclusion, our results clearly show that the lysosomal sequestration of TKIs failed to change their concentrations at target sites, and thus, can hardly contribute to drug resistance in vitro.
The Dipterose of Black Soldier Fly (Hermetia illucens) Induces Innate Immune Response through Toll-Like Receptor Pathway in Mouse Macrophage RAW264.7 Cells
Authors: Fariz Zahir Ali Muhammad , Ohta Takashi , Ido Atsushi , Miura Chiemi , Miura Takeshi
Published: October 2019

In our study, a novel bioactive polysaccharide was identified in the larvae of the black soldier fly (BSF) (Hermetia illucens) as a molecule that activates the mammalian innate immune response. We attempted to isolate this molecule, which was named dipterose-BSF, by gel-filtration and anion-exchange chromatography, followed by nitric oxide (NO) production in mouse RAW264.7 macrophage cells as a marker of immunomodulatory activity. Dipterose-BSF had an average molecular weight of 1.47 × 105 and consisted of ten monosaccharides. Furthermore, in vitro assays demonstrated that dipterose-BSF enhanced the expression of proinflammatory cytokines and interferon β (IFNβ) in RAW264.7 cells. The inhibition of Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) and 4 (TLR4) significantly attenuated NO production by dipterose-BSF, indicating that dipterose-BSF stimulates the induction of various cytokines in macrophages via the TLR signaling pathway. This observation was analogous with the activation of nuclear factor kappa B in RAW264.7 cells after exposure to dipterose-BSF. Our results suggest that dipterose-BSF has immunomodulatory potential through activating the host innate immune system, which allows it to be a novel immunomodulator for implementation as a functional food supplement in poultry, livestock, and farmed fish.
Improved Anti-Tumour Adaptive Immunity Can Overcome the Melanoma Immunosuppressive Tumour Microenvironment
Authors: Dang Nana , Waer Mark , Sprangers Ben , Lin Yuan
Published: October 2019

Clinical benefits obtained from checkpoint blockade regimens demonstrate the importance of overcoming the immunosuppressive tumour microenvironment (TME) in cancer immunotherapy. Intravenous (i.v.) injection of B16 melanoma cells (H-2Kb) leads to lethal disseminated pulmonary metastasis in Balb/c recipients (H-2Kd). This lack of immune control is related to low major histocompatibility complex (MHC) expression on B16 cells which is associated with delayed and decreased anti-tumour adaptive immune responses (e.g., alloantibody formation) as: (i) other tumour types with normal H-2Kb expression are rejected with concomitant antibody production; (ii) preincubation of B16 with IFN-gamma to upregulate H-2Kb expression resulted in improved antibody production and anti-tumour activity. The delayed/decreased anti-tumour adaptive immune responses induced by B16 inoculation is not able to interrupt progression of primary metastases, while it is able to effectively eliminate secondary inoculated subcutaneously (s.c.) B16 cells from progression. This is due to the presence of an immunosuppressive TME within the primary metastases characterized by increased regulatory T cells (Tregs) and an increased T helper cells (Th) 2/1 profile. These tumour-induced immunosuppressive T cell populations are counteracted by improved adaptive immunity via active and passive immunization, resulting in effective elimination of the TME, destruction of the metastatic tumour and a reversal of Th2/1 profile in a time-sensitive manner. Thus, we here demonstrate that the TME is not irreversible and adaptive immunity is able to eradicate established solid tumour and its immunosuppressive TME. This study will help design treatments to overcome the immunosuppressive effect of the TME and improve efficacy of cancer immunotherapy.
Facile Green Preparation of Rhodium Nanoclusters Supported Nano-Scaled Graphene Platelets for Sonogashira Coupling Reaction and Reduction of p-Nitrophenol
Authors: Mayakrishnan Gopiraman , Somasundaram Saravanamoorthy , Ullah Sana , Andivelu Ilangovan , Ick Soo Kim , Ill Min Chung
Published: October 2019

Rhodium nanoclusters were uniformly dispersed on nano-scaled graphene platelets by a simple ‘mix and heat’ method without using any toxic reagents. Distilled water was used to obtain the homogenous dispersion of Rh-nanoclusters on graphene platelets. The morphology of the resultant catalyst (Rh(0)NCs/GNPs) was studied by means of transmission electron microscope (TEM) and atomic force microscope (AFM) analyses. The X-ray photoemission spectroscope (XPS) result confirmed the metallic form of Rh-nanoclusters in Rh(0)NCs/GNPs. The crystalline property and the interaction between Rh-nanoclusters and graphene platelets (GNPs) were studied by means of XRD and Raman analysis. The Rh-loading in Rh(0)NCs/GNPs was confirmed by scanning electron microscope and energy dispersive spectroscope (SEM-EDS) and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectroscope (ICP-MS) analysis. After being optimized, the Rh(0)NCs/GNPs used as catalyst for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol with NaBH4 and the Sonogashira coupling reaction between iodobenzene with phenylacetylene. To our delight, the Rh(0)NCs/GNPs showed excellent catalytic activity towards the reduction of 4-nitrophenol with an excellent turnover frequency (TOF) value of 112.5 min−1. The kapp and k’ values were calculated to be 62.07 × 10−3 min−1(0.002 mg of Rh(0)NCs/GNPs) and 31035 × 10−3 mg−1 min−1,respectively. Alike, under the optimal conditions, the Rh(0)NCs/GNPs gave the desired product, diphenylacetylene, in a good yield of 87% with 91% selectivity. The Rh(0)NCs/GNPs can be reused without significant loss in its catalytic activity.
P65 Targets FGFR1 to Regulate the Survival of Ovarian Granulosa Cells
Authors: Yuan Xiaolong , Li Zhonghui , Kong Yaru , Zhong Yuyi , He Yingting , Zhang Ailing , Zhou Xiaofeng , Jiang Yao , Zhang Zhe , Zhang Hao , Li Jiaqi
Published: October 2019

In female mammals, the abnormal apoptosis of ovarian granulosa cells (GCs) impairs follicular development and causes reproductive dysfunction. Many studies have indicated that the FGFR1 gene of the PI3K signaling pathway and the p65 subunit of the transcription factor NF-κB may regulate the proliferation and apoptosis of GCs involved in follicular development. However, little is known about whether p65 regulates the transcription of FGFR1, as well as the biological effects of p65 and FGFR1 on the survival of GCs and follicular development. In porcine follicles and GCs, we found that p65 and FGFR1 were exclusively expressed in the GCs of follicles, and the mRNA and protein levels of p65 and FGFR1 significantly increased from small to large follicles. Both p65 and FGFR1 were found to activate the PI3K signaling pathway, and the expressions of proliferation markers (PCNA and MKI67) and the anti-apoptotic gene BCL2 were significantly increased by p65 and FGFR1. Furthermore, both p65 and FGFR1 were observed to promote cell proliferation and inhibit the cell apoptosis of GCs, and p65 was confirmed to bind at the −348/−338 region of FGFR1 to positively regulate its transcription. Moreover, p65 was further found to enhance the pro-proliferation and anti-apoptotic effects of FGFR1. Taken together, p65 may target the −348/−338 region of FGFR1, promote the transcription of FGFR1, and enhance the pro-proliferation effect and anti-apoptotic effect of FGFR1 to facilitate the growth of follicles. This study will provide useful information for further investigations on the p65-mediated-FGFR1 signaling pathway during folliculogenesis in mammals.
SNX17 Recruits USP9X to Antagonize MIB1-Mediated Ubiquitination and Degradation of PCM1 during Serum-Starvation-Induced Ciliogenesis
Authors: Wang Pengtao , Xia Jianhong , Zhang Leilei , Zhao Shaoyang , Li Shengbiao , Wang Haiyun , Cheng Shan , Li Heying , Yin Wenguang , Pei Duanqing , Shu Xiaodong
Published: October 2019

Centriolar satellites are non-membrane cytoplasmic granules that deliver proteins to centrosome during centrosome biogenesis and ciliogenesis. Centriolar satellites are highly dynamic during cell cycle or ciliogenesis and how they are regulated remains largely unknown. We report here that sorting nexin 17 (SNX17) regulates the homeostasis of a subset of centriolar satellite proteins including PCM1, CEP131, and OFD1 during serum-starvation-induced ciliogenesis. Mechanistically, SNX17 recruits the deubiquitinating enzyme USP9X to antagonize the mindbomb 1 (MIB1)-induced ubiquitination and degradation of PCM1. SNX17 deficiency leads to enhanced degradation of USP9X as well as PCM1 and disrupts ciliogenesis upon serum starvation. On the other hand, SNX17 is dispensable for the homeostasis of PCM1 and USP9X in serum-containing media. These findings reveal a SNX17/USP9X mediated pathway essential for the homeostasis of centriolar satellites under serum starvation, and provide insight into the mechanism of USP9X in ciliogenesis, which may lead to a better understating of USP9X-deficiency-related human diseases such as X-linked mental retardation and neurodegenerative diseases.
MicroRNAs in Uteroplacental Vascular Dysfunction
Authors: Hu Xiang-Qun , Zhang Lubo
Published: October 2019

Pregnancy complications of preeclampsia and intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) are major causes of maternal and perinatal/neonatal morbidity and mortality. Although their etiologies remain elusive, it is generally accepted that they are secondary to placental insufficiency conferred by both failure in spiral artery remodeling and uteroplacental vascular malfunction. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small no-coding RNA molecules that regulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. Increasing evidence suggests that miRNAs participate in virtually all biological processes and are involved in numerous human diseases. Differentially expressed miRNAs in the placenta are typical features of both preeclampsia and IUGR. Dysregulated miRNAs target genes of various signaling pathways in uteroplacental tissues, contributing to the development of both complications. In this review, we provide an overview of how aberrant miRNA expression in preeclampsia and IUGR impacts the expression of genes involved in trophoblast invasion and uteroplacental vascular adaptation.
Why Bile Acids Are So Important in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) Progression
Authors: Gottlieb Aline , Canbay Ali
Published: October 2019

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a complex disease, affecting not just the liver, but also all other organs in the body. Despite an increasing amount of people worldwide developing NAFLD and having it progress to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and potentially cirrhosis, there is still no approved therapy. Therefore, huge efforts are being made to find and develop a successful treatment. One of the special interests is understanding the liver–gut axis and especially the role of bile acids in the progression of NAFLD. Farnesoid X receptor (FXR)-agonists have been approved und used in other liver diseases, such as primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), and have shown signs of being able to decrease inflammation and potentially steatosis. This review will mainly focus on targets/ligands that play an important role in bile acid metabolism and give an overview of ongoing clinical as well as pre-clinical trials. With the complexity of the issue, we did not aim at giving a complete review, rather highlighting important targets and potential treatments that could be approved for NAFLD/NASH treatment within the next few years.
ACVR1 Function in Health and Disease
Authors: Valer José Antonio , Sánchez-de-Diego Cristina , Pimenta-Lopes Carolina , Rosa Jose Luis , Ventura Francesc
Published: October 2019

Activin A receptor type I (ACVR1) encodes for a bone morphogenetic protein type I receptor of the TGFβ receptor superfamily. It is involved in a wide variety of biological processes, including bone, heart, cartilage, nervous, and reproductive system development and regulation. Moreover, ACVR1 has been extensively studied for its causal role in fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP), a rare genetic disorder characterised by progressive heterotopic ossification. ACVR1 is linked to different pathologies, including cardiac malformations and alterations in the reproductive system. More recently, ACVR1 has been experimentally validated as a cancer driver gene in diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), a malignant childhood brainstem glioma, and its function is being studied in other cancer types. Here, we review ACVR1 receptor function and signalling in physiological and pathological processes and its regulation according to cell type and mutational status. Learning from different functions and alterations linked to ACVR1 is a key step in the development of interdisciplinary research towards the identification of novel treatments for these pathologies.
Erratum: Hopp, A.K., et al. Regulation of Glucose Metabolism by NAD+ and ADP-Ribosylation. Cells 2019, 8, 890
Authors: Hopp Ann-Katrin , Grüter Patrick , Hottiger Michael O.
Published: October 2019

Change in References list order. [...]
Effect of Ionicity of Three Protic Ionic Liquids as Neat Lubricants and Lubricant Additives to a Biolubricant
Authors: Guo Hong , Adukure Angela Rina , Iglesias Patricia
Published: October 2019

Friction and wear of sliding surfaces are responsible for important energy losses and negative environmental effects. The use of environmentally friendly and cost-effective protic ionic liquids as neat lubricants and lubricant additives has the potential to increase the efficiency and durability of mechanical components without increasing the environmental damage. In this work, three halogen-free protic ionic liquids with increasing extent of ionicity, 2-hydroxyethylammonium 2-ethylhexanoate, 2-hydroxymethylammonium 2-ethylhexancate, and 2-hydroxydimethylammonium 2-ethylhexanoate, were synthesized and studied as neat lubricants and additives to a biodegradable oil in a steel–steel contact. The results show that the use of any protic ionic liquid as a neat lubricant or lubricant additive reduced friction and wear with respect to the biodegradable oil. The ionic liquid with the lowest ionicity reached the highest wear reduction. The one possessing the highest ionicity presented the poorest friction and wear behaviors as a neat lubricant, probably due to the more ionic nature of this liquid, which promoted tribocorrosion reactions on the steel surface. This ionic liquid performed better as an additive, showing that a small addition of this liquid in a biodegradable oil is enough to form protective layers on steel surfaces. However, it is not enough to accelerate the wear process with detrimental tribocorrosion reactions.
Raman Spectra of Quartz and Pb4+-Doped SiO2 Crystals at Different Temperature and Pressure
Authors: Chen Xiuyan , Feng Wenjiang , Zhang Guoying , Gao Yan
Published: October 2019

In order to seek for new Raman crystals, the manuscript presented the discussion on the Raman frequency of α-quartz, β-quartz, as well as Pb4+-doped SiO2 crystals at different temperature and pressure. The results demonstrated that as the pressure increased, the Raman lines shifted towards higher frequency for α-SiO2 crystal, while for β-SiO2 crystals, the main lines moved to lower frequency. Several new peaks were generated from the Pb4+-doped α-SiO2 crystals. The Pb4+-doped β-SiO2 crystals presented strong and ample Raman beams in the low-frequency range. The airfoil-shaped spectra appeared and broadened at high temperature and pressure. It could be inferred that the Pb4+-doped SiO2 crystals were excellent Raman crystal candidates.
Use of the WRF-DA 3D-Var Data Assimilation System to Obtain Wind Speed Estimates in Regular Grids from Measurements at Wind Farms in Uruguay
Authors: Cazes Boezio Gabriel , Ortelli Sofía
Published: October 2019

This work assessed the quality of wind speed estimates in Uruguay. These estimates were obtained using the Weather Research and Forecast Model Data Assimilation System (WRF-DA) to assimilate wind speed measurements from 100 m above the ground at two wind farms. The quality of the estimates was assessed with an anemometric station placed between the wind farms. The wind speed estimates showed low systematic errors at heights of 87 and 36 m above the ground. At both levels, the standard deviation of the total errors was approximately 25% of the mean observed speed. These results suggested that the estimates obtained could be of sufficient quality to be useful in various applications. The assimilation process proved to be effective, spreading the observational gain obtained at the wind farms to lower elevations than those at which the assimilated measurements were taken. The smooth topography of Uruguay might have contributed to the relatively good quality of the obtained wind estimates, although the data of only two stations were assimilated, and the resolution of the regional atmospheric simulations employed was relatively low.
Comparison of Commercial ELISA Kits, a Prototype Multiplex Electrochemoluminescent Assay, and a Multiplex Bead-Based Immunoassay for Detecting a Urine-Based Bladder-Cancer-Associated Diagnostic Signature
Authors: Furuya Hideki , Pagano Ian , Chee Keanu , Kobayashi Takashi , Wong Regan S. , Lee Riko , Rosser Charles J.
Published: October 2019

The ability to accurately measure multiple proteins simultaneously in a single assay has the potential to markedly improve the efficiency of clinical tests composed of multiple biomarkers. We investigated the diagnostic accuracy of the two multiplex protein array platforms for detecting a bladder-cancer-associated diagnostic signature in samples from a cohort of 80 subjects (40 with bladder cancer). Banked urine samples collected from Kyoto and Nara Universities were compared to histologically determined bladder cancer. The concentrations of the 10 proteins (A1AT; apolipoprotein E—APOE; angiogenin—ANG; carbonic anhydrase 9—CA9; interleukin 8—IL-8; matrix metalloproteinase 9—MMP-9; matrix metalloproteinase 10—MMP10; plasminogen activator inhibitor 1—PAI-1; syndecan—SDC1; and vascular endothelial growth factor—VEGF) were monitored using two prototype multiplex array platforms and an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) according to the manufacturer’s technical specifications. The range for detecting each biomarker was improved in the multiplex assays, even though the lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) was typically lower in the commercial ELISA kits. The area under the receiver operating characteristics (AUROC) of the prototype multiplex assays was reported to be 0.97 for the multiplex bead-based immunoassay (MBA) and 0.86 for the multiplex electrochemoluminescent assay (MEA). The sensitivities and specificities for MBA were 0.93 and 0.95, respectively, and for MEA were 0.85 and 0.80, respectively. Accuracy, positive predictive values (PPV), and negative predictive values (NPV) for MBA were 0.94, 0.95, and 0.93, respectively, and for MEA were 0.83, 0.81, and 0.84, respectively. Based on these encouraging preliminary data, we believe that a multiplex protein array is a viable platform that can be utilized as an efficient and highly accurate tool to quantitate multiple proteins within biologic specimens.
Comparative Analysis of the Serological Reactivity of Individuals with Clinical History of Malaria using Two Different ELISA Tests
Authors: Ruiz Moreno Yorleydy , Donato Silvia Tavares , Nogueira Fátima , Sousa Silva Marcelo
Published: October 2019

Early diagnosis of malaria reduces disease, prevents deaths, and contributes to decreased malaria transmission. The use of specific and sensitive antigens in the execution of serological diagnostics may have an impact on the transmission of the disease. However, many individuals cannot be easily diagnosed by serological tests due to low levels of antibodies in the serum. Using two different Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) tests (a commercial and an in-house ELISA), a total of 365 serum samples from individuals with a clinical history of malaria were analyzed. From the serum samples analyzed, 192 (53%) samples from the commercial ELISA and 219 (60%) samples from the in-house ELISA presented positive serological reactivity to malaria. The concordance of the samples tested (n = 365) between both ELISAs was of 67% (n = 242), and with the negative control was 100% (n = 17). We demonstrated that the in-house ELISA showed high antigenic reactivity to Plasmodium falciparum antigens when compared with the commercial ELISA. The degree of concordance of both ELISAs suggested the possibility of existence of other P. falciparum antigens present in the crude extract of P. falciparum that are important in the serological response during malaria infection.
Ranking Power Spectra: A Proof of Concept
Authors: Yu Xilin , Mei Zhenning , Chen Chen , Chen Wei
Published: October 2019

To characterize the irregularity of the spectrum of a signal, spectral entropy and its variants are widely adopted measures. However, spectral entropy is invariant under the permutation of the power spectrum estimations on a predefined grid. This erases the inherent order structure in the spectrum. To disentangle the order structure and extract meaningful information from raw digital signal, a novel analysis method is necessary. In this paper, we tried to unfold this order structure by defining descriptors mapping real- and vector-valued power spectrum estimation of a signal into a scalar value. The proposed descriptors showed its potential in diverse problems. Significant differences were observed from brain signals and surface electromyography of different pathological/physiological states. Drastic change accompanied by the alteration of the underlying process of signals enables it as a candidate feature for seizure detection and endpoint detection in speech signal. Since the order structure in the spectrum of physiological signal carries previously ignored information, which cannot be properly extracted by existing techniques, this paper takes one step forward along this direction by proposing computationally efficient descriptors with guaranteed information gain. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work revealing the effectiveness of the order structure in the spectrum in physiological signal processing.
An Integrated Approach for Making Inference on the Number of Clusters in a Mixture Model
Authors: Saraiva Erlandson Ferreira , Suzuki  Adriano Kamimura , Milan Luis Aparecido , Pereira Carlos Alberto de Bragança
Published: October 2019

This paper presents an integrated approach for the estimation of the parameters of a mixture model in the context of data clustering. The method is designed to estimate the unknown number of clusters from observed data. For this, we marginalize out the weights for getting allocation probabilities that depend on the number of clusters but not on the number of components of the mixture model. As an alternative to the stochastic expectation maximization (SEM) algorithm, we propose the integrated stochastic expectation maximization (ISEM) algorithm, which in contrast to SEM, does not need the specification, a priori, of the number of components of the mixture. Using this algorithm, one estimates the parameters associated with the clusters, with at least two observations, via local maximization of the likelihood function. In addition, at each iteration of the algorithm, there exists a positive probability of a new cluster being created by a single observation. Using simulated datasets, we compare the performance of the ISEM algorithm against both SEM and reversible jump (RJ) algorithms. The obtained results show that ISEM outperforms SEM and RJ algorithms. We also provide the performance of the three algorithms in two real datasets.
Potential Exergy Storage Capacity of Salt Caverns in the Cheshire Basin Using Adiabatic Compressed Air Energy Storage
Authors: Dooner Mark , Wang Jihong
Published: October 2019

As the number of renewable energy sources connected to the grid has increased, the need to address the intermittency of these sources becomes essential. One solution to this problem is to install energy storage technologies on the grid to provide a buffer between supply and demand. One such energy storage technology is Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES), which is suited to large-scale, long-term energy storage. Large scale CAES requires underground storage caverns, such as the salt caverns situated in the Cheshire Basin, UK. This study uses cavern data from the Cheshire Basin as a basis for performing an energy and exergy analysis of 10 simulated CAES systems to determine the exergy storage potential of the caverns in the Cheshire Basin and the associated work and power input and output. The analysis revealed that a full charge of all 10 caverns could store 25.32 GWh of exergy, which can be converted to 23.19 GWh of work, which requires 43.27 GWh of work to produce, giving a round trip efficiency of around 54%. This corresponds to an input power of 670.07 GW and an output power of 402.74 GW. The Cheshire Basin could support around 100 such CAES plants, giving a potential total exergy storage capacity of 2.53 TWh and a power output of 40 TW. This is a significant amount of storage which could be used to support the UK grid. The total exergy destroyed during a full charge, store, and discharge cycle for each cavern ranged from 299.02 MWh to 1600.00 MWh.
Reclaiming Liberal Education
Authors: Hadzigeorgiou Yannis
Published: October 2019

The main purpose of this paper is to articulate and defend an updated concept of liberal education. To achieve this purpose, the paper has attempted two things. First, to provide a meaning for the notion of liberal education by drawing upon, and discussing briefly, the ideas of three British philosophers, namely, Paul Hirst, Richard Stanley Peters, and Michael Oakeshott. And second, to discuss the need for an updated concept of liberal education, by pointing out the shortcomings of the traditional/classical concept of liberal education, in the context of contemporary reality. The implications of an updated notion of liberal education are also pointed out. The discussion highlights the fact that there is a need to reclaim the value of liberal learning not only in higher education but at all levels of education.
Tilted-Beam Switched Array Antenna for UAV Mounted Radar Applications with 360° Coverage
Authors: Lee Cheol Ung , Noh Gunhark , Ahn ByungKuon , Yu Jong-Won , Lee Han Lim
Published: October 2019

A highly efficient antenna array for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) mounted radar applications with a tilted-beam characteristic and a 360° beam coverage is proposed in this paper. The proposed array antenna is configured by four planar super J-pole antennas with 2-dimensional ground reflectors. Each super J-pole antenna element provides a high directivity where the peak gain is tilted about 45° facing toward the ground from the bottom of a UAV body. Thus, the air-to-ground communication difficulty due to the altitude difference between the UAV and ground targets can be effectively solved. Further, the four super J-pole elements with a switched operation can cover the whole 360° areas around the UAV while high antenna gain is maintained. To verify the performance, the proposed structure was implemented at 5.9 GHz with an overall volume of 0.88 × 0.88 × 0.83 λo3. The measured 10-dB impedance bandwidths for all four antenna elements were better than 27.2% and the isolation among the four antenna ports was also always better than 13 dB. The measured peak gain was better than 7.4 dBi and tilted at 45° in the elevation angle. Lastly, the measured half power beam widths in elevation and azimuth planes were more than 60° and 87°, respectively.
Post Text Processing of Chinese Speech Recognition Based on Bidirectional LSTM Networks and CRF
Authors: Yang Li , Li Ying , Wang Jin , Tang Zhuo
Published: October 2019

With the rapid development of Internet of Things Technology, speech recognition has been applied more and more widely. Chinese Speech Recognition is a complex process. In the process of speech-to-text conversion, due to the influence of dialect, environmental noise, and context, the accuracy of speech-to-text in multi-round dialogues and specific contexts is still not high. After the general speech recognition technology, the text after speech recognition can be detected and corrected in the specific context, which is helpful to improve the robustness of text comprehension and is a beneficial supplement to the speech recognition technology. In this paper, a text processing model after Chinese Speech Recognition is proposed, which combines a bidirectional long short-term memory (LSTM) network with a conditional random field (CRF) model. The task is divided into two stages: text error detection and text error correction. In this paper, a bidirectional long short-term memory (Bi-LSTM) network and conditional random field are used in two stages of text error detection and text error correction respectively. Through verification and system test on the SIGHAN 2013 Chinese Spelling Check (CSC) dataset, the experimental results show that the model can effectively improve the accuracy of text after speech recognition.
Positive Phase Pressure Function and Pressure Attenuation Characteristic of a Liquid Carbon Dioxide Blasting System
Authors: Ke Bo , Zhou Keping , Ren Gaofeng , Shi Ji , Zhang Yanan
Published: October 2019

As environmental requirements become more stringent, the liquid carbon dioxide blasting system is one of the non-explosive blasting technologies that, with low tensile stress energy, will replace the chemical explosive blasting technology, and the impact pressure characteristic of high-pressure fluid is a crucial factor in the process of rock breaking. To further investigate the impact and pressure attenuation characteristics of high-pressure fluid during the phase transition of liquid carbon dioxide blasting system, the pressure curves of high-pressure fluid in liquid carbon dioxide blasting systems at different distances were measured in the laboratory. Based on the mechanism analysis of phase transition kinetics, the initial jet velocity of the four experiments was calculated, and the rationality of results was verified by the Bernoulli equation. The general expression of the positive phase pressure–time function was proposed, and the idealized impact pressure curve can be divided into five stages. The impact pressure field of the liquid carbon dioxide blasting system can be divided into three areas at different distances: the explosive jet impact zone, the jet edge zone and the shock wave action zone, and the pressure–contrast distance fitting equation of the liquid carbon dioxide blasting system were obtained.
Integrated Process for Sequential Extraction of Bioactive Phenolic Compounds and Proteins from Mill and Field Olive Leaves and Effects on the Lignocellulosic Profile
Authors: Contreras María del Mar , Lama-Muñoz Antonio , Gutiérrez-Pérez José Manuel , Espínola Francisco , Moya Manuel , Romero Inmaculada , Castro Eulogio
Published: October 2019

The extraction of bioactive compounds in a biorefinery context could be a way to valorize agri-food byproducts, but there is a remaining part that also requires attention. Therefore, in this work the integrated extraction of phenolic compounds, including the bioactive oleuropein, and proteins from olive mill leaves was addressed following three schemes, including the use of ultrasound. This affected the total phenolic content (4475.5–6166.9 mg gallic acid equivalents/100 g), oleuropein content (675.3–1790.0 mg/100 g), and antioxidant activity (18,234.3–25,459.0 µmol trolox equivalents/100 g). No effect was observed on either the protein recovery or the content of sugars and lignin in the extraction residues. Concerning the recovery of proteins, three operational parameters were evaluated by response surface methodology. The optimum (63.1%) was achieved using NaOH 0.7 M at 100 °C for 240 min. Then, the selected scheme was applied to olive leaves from the field, observing differences in the content of some of the studied components. It also changed the lignocellulosic profile of the extraction residues of both leaf types, which were enriched in cellulose. Overall, these results could be useful to diversify the valorization chain in the olive sector.
Cell Cycle-Dependent Control and Roles of DNA Topoisomerase II
Authors: Lee Joyce H. , Berger James M.
Published: October 2019

Type II topoisomerases are ubiquitous enzymes in all branches of life that can alter DNA superhelicity and unlink double-stranded DNA segments during processes such as replication and transcription. In cells, type II topoisomerases are particularly useful for their ability to disentangle newly-replicated sister chromosomes. Growing lines of evidence indicate that eukaryotic topoisomerase II (topo II) activity is monitored and regulated throughout the cell cycle. Here, we discuss the various roles of topo II throughout the cell cycle, as well as mechanisms that have been found to govern and/or respond to topo II function and dysfunction. Knowledge of how topo II activity is controlled during cell cycle progression is important for understanding how its misregulation can contribute to genetic instability and how modulatory pathways may be exploited to advance chemotherapeutic development.
Transcriptional Structure of Petunia Clock in Leaves and Petals
Authors: Terry Marta I. , Carrera-Alesina Marta , Weiss Julia , Egea-Cortines Marcos
Published: October 2019

The plant circadian clock coordinates environmental signals with internal processes including secondary metabolism, growth, flowering, and volatile emission. Plant tissues are specialized in different functions, and petals conceal the sexual organs while attracting pollinators. Here we analyzed the transcriptional structure of the petunia (Petunia x hybrida) circadian clock in leaves and petals. We recorded the expression of 13 clock genes in petunia under light:dark (LD) and constant darkness (DD). Under light:dark conditions, clock genes reached maximum expression during the light phase in leaves and the dark period in petals. Under free running conditions of constant darkness, maximum expression was delayed, especially in petals. Interestingly, the rhythmic expression pattern of PhLHY persisted in leaves and petals in LD and DD. Gene expression variability differed among leaves and petals, time of day and photoperiod. The transcriptional noise was higher especially in leaves under constant darkness. We found that PhPRR7, PhPRR5, and PhGI paralogs showed changes in gene structure including exon number and deletions of CCT domain of the PRR family. Our results revealed that petunia petals presented a specialized clock.
Evidence for Adaptive Selection in the Mitogenome of a Mesoparasitic Monogenean Flatworm Enterogyrus malmbergi
Authors: Zhang Dong , Zou Hong , Wu Shan G. , Li Ming , Jakovlić Ivan , Zhang Jin , Chen Rong , Li Wen X. , Wang Gui T.
Published: October 2019

Whereas a majority of monogenean flatworms are ectoparasitic, i.e., parasitize on external surfaces (mainly gills) of their fish hosts, Enterogyrus species (subfamily Ancyrocephalinae) are mesoparasitic, i.e., parasitize in the stomach of the host. As there are numerous drastic differences between these two environments (including lower oxygen availability), we hypothesized that this life-history innovation might have produced adaptive pressures on the energy metabolism, which is partially encoded by the mitochondrial genome (OXPHOS). To test this hypothesis, we sequenced mitochondrial genomes of two Ancyrocephalinae species: mesoparasitic E. malmbergi and ectoparasitic Ancyrocephalus mogurndae. The mitogenomic architecture of E. malmbergi is mostly standard for monogeneans, but that of A. mogurndae exhibits some unique features: missing trnL2 gene, very low AT content (60%), a non-canonical start codon of the nad2 gene, and exceptionally long tandem-repeats in the non-coding region (253 bp). Phylogenetic analyses produced paraphyletic Ancyrocephalinae (with embedded Dactylogyrinae), but with low support values. Selective pressure (PAML and HYPHY) and protein structure analyses all found evidence for adaptive evolution in cox2 and cox3 genes of the mesoparasitic E. malmbergi. These findings tentatively support our hypothesis of adaptive evolution driven by life-history innovations in the mitogenome of this species. However, as only one stomach-inhabiting mesoparasitic monogenean was available for this analysis, our findings should be corroborated on a larger number of mesoparasitic monogeneans and by physiological studies.