bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Elucidation of Interaction between Whey Proteins and Proanthocyanidins and Its Protective Effects on Proanthocyanidins during In-Vitro Digestion and Storage
Authors: Tang Chenyu , Tan Bing , Sun Xiangjun
Published: September 2021

Whey proteins and oligomeric proanthocyanidins have nutritional value and are widely used in combination as food supplements. However, the effect of the interactions between proanthocyanidins and whey proteins on their stability has not been studied in depth. In this work, we aimed to characterize the interactions between β-Lactoglobulin (β-LG) and α-lactalbumin (α-LA) and oligomeric proanthocyanidins, including A1, A2, B1, B2, B3, and C1, using multi-spectroscopic and molecular docking methods. Fluorescence spectroscopic data revealed that all of the oligomeric proanthocyanidins quenched the intrinsic fluorescence of β-LG or α-LA by binding-related fluorescence quenching. Among the six oligomeric proanthocyanidins, A1 showed the strongest affinity for β-LG (Ka = 2.951 (±0.447) × 104 L∙mol−1) and α-LA (Ka = 1.472 (±0.236) × 105 L∙mol−1) at 297 K. β-LG/α-LA and proanthocyanidins can spontaneously form complexes, which are mainly induced by hydrophobic interactions, hydrogen bonds, and van der Waals forces. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and circular dichroism spectroscopy showed that the secondary structures of the proteins were rearranged after binding to oligomeric proanthocyanidins. During in vitro gastrointestinal digestion, the recovery rate of A1 and A2 increased with the addition of WPI by 11.90% and 38.43%, respectively. The addition of WPI (molar ratio of 1:1) increased the retention rate of proanthocyanidins A1, A2, B1, B2, B3, and C1 during storage at room temperature by 14.01%, 23.14%, 30.09%, 62.67%, 47.92%, and 60.56%, respectively. These results are helpful for the promotion of protein–proanthocyanidin complexes as functional food ingredients in the food industry.
Fructose plus High-Salt Diet in Early Life Results in Salt-Sensitive Cardiovascular Changes in Mature Male Sprague Dawley Rats
Authors: Levanovich Peter E. , Chung Charles S. , Komnenov Dragana , Rossi Noreen F.
Published: September 2021

Fructose and salt intake remain high, particularly in adolescents and young adults. The present studies were designed to evaluate the impact of high fructose and/or salt during pre- and early adolescence on salt sensitivity, blood pressure, arterial compliance, and left ventricular (LV) function in maturity. Male 5-week-old Sprague Dawley rats were studied over three 3-week phases (Phases I, II, and III). Two reference groups received either 20% glucose + 0.4% NaCl (GCS-GCS) or 20% fructose + 4% NaCl (FHS-FHS) throughout this study. The two test groups ingested fructose + 0.4% NaCl (FCS) or FHS during Phase I, then GCS in Phase II, and were then challenged with 20% glucose + 4% NaCl (GHS) in Phase III: FCS-GHS and FHS-GHS, respectively. Compared with GCS-GCS, systolic and mean pressures were significantly higher at the end of Phase III in all groups fed fructose during Phase I. Aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) was elevated at the end of Phase I in FHS-GHS and FHS-FHS (vs. GCS-GCS). At the end of Phase III, PWV and renal resistive index were higher in FHS-GHS and FHS-FHS vs. GCS-GCS. Diastolic, but not systolic, LV function was impaired in the FHS-GHS and FHS-FHS but not FCS-FHS rats. Consumption of 20% fructose by male rats during adolescence results in salt-sensitive hypertension in maturity. When ingested with a high-salt diet during this early plastic phase, dietary fructose also predisposes to vascular stiffening and LV diastolic dysfunction in later life.
Cannabidiol Effectively Promoted Cell Death in Bladder Cancer and the Improved Intravesical Adhesion Drugs Delivery Strategy Could Be Better Used for Treatment
Authors: Chen Shanshan , Deng Changping , Zheng Wenyun , Li Shihui , Liu Yuping , Zhang Tong , Zhang Chen , Fu Yunhui , Miao Hui , Ren Fuzheng , Ma Xingyuan
Published: September 2021

Cannabidiol (CBD), a primary bioactive phytocannabinoid extracted from hemp, is reported to possess potent anti-tumorigenic activity in multiple cancers. However, the effects of CBD on bladder cancer (BC) and the underlying molecular mechanisms are rarely reported. Here, several experiments proved that CBD promoted BC cells (T24, 5637, and UM-UC-3) death. For example, T24 cells were treated with 12 µM CBD for 48 h, flow cytometry analysis demonstrated that early and late apoptotic cells were accounted for by 49.91%, indicating CBD enhanced cell apoptosis ability. To deeper explore molecular mechanisms, the CBD-treated T24 cell transcriptome libraries were established. KEGG analysis implied that the significantly changed genes were enriched in the PI3K/Akt pathway. qRT-PCR and Western blot assays verified that CBD regulated BC cells growth and migration and induced apoptosis by inactivating the PI3K/Akt pathway. Meanwhile, the developed chitosan to wrap CBD-loaded PLGA nanoparticles can significantly enhance the adhesion of the material to the mouse bladder wall, and the binding efficiency of mucin to chitosan-PLGA nanoparticles reached 97.04% ± 1.90%. In summary, this work demonstrates that CBD may become a novel reliable anticancer drug and the developed intravesical adhesion system is expected to turn into a potential means of BC chemotherapy drug delivery.
Image Restoration Based on End-to-End Unrolled Network
Authors: Tao Xiaoping , Zhou Hao , Chen Yueting
Published: September 2021

Recent studies on image restoration (IR) methods under unrolled optimization frameworks have shown that deep convolutional neural networks (DCNNs) can be implicitly used as priors to solve inverse problems. Due to the ill-conditioned nature of the inverse problem, the selection of prior knowledge is crucial for the process of IR. However, the existing methods use a fixed DCNN in each iteration, and so they cannot fully adapt to the image characteristics at each iteration stage. In this paper, we combine deep learning with traditional optimization and propose an end-to-end unrolled network based on deep priors. The entire network contains several iterations, and each iteration is composed of analytic solution updates and a small multiscale deep denoiser network. In particular, we use different denoiser networks at different stages to improve adaptability. Compared with a fixed DCNN, it greatly reduces the number of computations when the total parameters are equal and the number of iterations is the same, but the gains from a practical runtime are not as significant as indicated in the FLOP count. The experimental results of our method of three IR tasks, including denoising, deblurring, and lensless imaging, demonstrate that our proposed method achieves state-of-the-art performances in terms of both visual effects and quantitative evaluations.
Bioremediation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons from Industry Contaminated Soil Using Indigenous Bacillus spp.
Authors: Mandree Prisha , Masika Wendy , Naicker Justin , Moonsamy Ghaneshree , Ramchuran Santosh , Lalloo Rajesh
Published: September 2021

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are reportedly toxic, ubiquitous and organic compounds that can persist in the environment and are released largely due to the incomplete combustion of fossil fuel. There is a range of microorganisms that are capable of degrading low molecular weight PAHs, such as naphthalene; however, fewer were reported to degrade higher molecular weight PAHs. Bacillus spp. has shown to be effective in neutralizing polluted streams containing hydrocarbons. Following the growing regulatory requirement to meet the PAH specification upon disposal of contaminated soil, the following study aimed to identify potential Bacillus strains that could effectively remediate low and high molecular weight PAHs from the soil. Six potential hydrocarbon-degrading strains were formulated into two prototypes and tested for the ability to remove PAHs from industry-contaminated soil. Following the dosing of each respective soil system with prototypes 1 and 2, the samples were analyzed for PAH concentration over 11 weeks against an un-augmented control system. After 11 weeks, the control system indicated the presence of naphthalene (3.11 µg·kg−1), phenanthrene (24.47 µg·kg−1), fluoranthene (17.80 µg·kg−1) and pyrene (28.92 µg·kg−1), which illustrated the recalcitrant nature of aromatic hydrocarbons. The soil system dosed with prototype 2 was capable of completely degrading (100%) naphthalene, phenanthrene and pyrene over the experimental period. However, the accumulation of PAHs, namely phenanthrene, fluoranthene and pyrene, were observed using prototype 1. The results showed that prototype 2, consisting of a combination of Bacillus cereus and Bacillus subtilis strains, was more effective in the biodegradation of PAHs and intermediate products. Furthermore, the bio-augmented system dosed with prototype 2 showed an improvement in the overall degradation (10–50%) of PAHs, naphthalene, phenanthrene and pyrene, over the un-augmented control system. The following study demonstrates the potential of using Bacillus spp. in a bioremediation solution for sites contaminated with PAHs and informs the use of biological additives for large-scale environmental remediation.
Advanced Digital 3D Technology in the Combined Surgery-First Orthognathic and Clear Aligner Orthodontic Therapy for Dentofacial Deformity Treatment
Authors: Nguyen Minh Truong , Vu Tien Thuy , Nguyen Quang Ngoc
Published: September 2021

Orthognathic surgery and orthodontic treatment are required for patients with dentofacial deformities to obtain an ideal facial esthetic with good functioning. Recently, characterized by the surgery-first approach, an integrated orthodontic–surgical treatment has been introduced as an emerging solution to dentofacial deformity treatment. The surgery-first approach is regarded to have less treatment time and quicker enhancement of a facial profile than the conventional orthodontic–surgical treatment. Moreover, the recent advances in computing and imaging have allowed the adoption of 3-dimensional (3D) virtual planning protocols in orthognathic surgery as well as digital orthodontic treatment, which enables a paradigm shift when realizing virtual planning properly. These techniques then allow the surgeon and orthodontist to collaborate, plan, and simulate the dentofacial deformity treatment before performing the whole procedure. Along this line, in this research article, we present an integrated treatment method for the realization of an effective deformity treatment. Specifically, we implemented the integrated 3D technique by combining it with the surgery-first orthognathic approach (SFOA) as a novel treatment method for the patients. The outcomes from the combined treatments of the patients with dentofacial deformity, in practice, have demonstrated that our proposed 3D technique in orthognathics and orthodontics using clear aligner therapy (e.g., Invisalign) can enhance the satisfactory level of the patient since the start of treatment then improve their quality of life. As a result, the combined techniques realize the novel integrated treatment method using 3D technology with the use of 3D imaging and modeling as a promising development trend of dentistry, which fits into the context of Dentistry 4.0 as a key enabler to the concept of sustainable dentistry development.
Economic Potential of Bio-Ethylene Production via Oxidative Coupling of Methane in Biogas from Anaerobic Digestion of Industrial Effluents
Authors: Teixeira Penteado Alberto , Lovato Giovanna , Pérez Ortiz Abigail , Esche Erik , Domingues Rodrigues José Alberto , Godini Hamid Reza , Orjuela Alvaro , Gušča Jūlija , Repke Jens-Uwe
Published: September 2021

Brazil’s large biofuels industry generates significant amounts of effluents, e.g., vinasse from bioethanol, that can effectively be used as substrate for production of biogas via Anaerobic Digestion (AD). The Oxidative Coupling of Methane (OCM) is the heterogeneous catalytic oxidation of methane into ethylene, which is a main building block for the chemical industry. This work investigates the potential and competitiveness of bio-ethylene production via OCM using biogas produced by biological anaerobiosis of vinasse as a feedstock. The proposed process can add incentive to treat of vinasse via AD and replace fossil ethylene, thus potentially reducing emissions of Greenhouse Gases (GHG). A process model is developed in Aspen Plus v10 software and used to design an economic Biogas-based Oxidative Coupling of Methane (Bio-OCM) process that consumes biogas and oxygen as educts and produces ethylene, ethane, and light off-gases as products. Operating conditions in the reaction section are optimized and a reaction product yield of 16.12% is reached by applying two adiabatic Packed Bed Reactors (PBRs) in series. For the downstream CO2 removal section, a standalone amine-absorption process is simulated and compared to a hybrid membrane-absorption process on an economic basis. For the distillation section, two different configurations with and without Recycle Split Vapor (RSV) are simulated and compared. The bio-ethylene production cost for a Bio-OCM plant to be installed in Brazil is estimated considering a wide range of prices for educts, utility, side products, and equipment within a Monte Carlo simulation. The resulting average production cost of bio-ethylene is 0.53 ±0.73 USD kgC2H4-1. The production cost is highly sensitive to the sales price assigned to a light off-gas side-product stream containing mostly the un-reacted methane. A sales price close to that of Brazilian pipeline natural gas has been assumed based on the characteristics of this stream. The Monte Carlo simulation shows that a bio-ethylene production cost below or equal to 0.70 USD kgC2H4-1 is achieved with a 55.2% confidence, whereas market values for fossil ethylene typically lie between 0.70USD kgC2H4-1–1.50USD kgC2H4-1. Technical and economic challenges for the industrial implementation of the proposed Bio-OCM process are identified and relevant opportunities for further research and improvement are discussed.
Industrial Symbiosis through the Use of Biosolids as Fertilizer in Romanian Agriculture
Authors: Cioca Lucian-Ionel , Ciomoş Alina-Oana , Șeitoar Daiana , Druță Roxana Maria , David Geanina Maria
Published: September 2021

Biosolids’ use in agriculture is an example of industrial symbiosis. The application of biosolids (BS) in agriculture is considered one of the most sustainable sewage sludge (SS) management options, but the quality of biosolids has to meet certain requirements regarding the characteristics of the sludge, those of the land and of the type of crop. Web of Science database has been used to search for the relevant literature. The review of studies undertaken in order to determine the economic effects of the use of biosolids in agriculture shows, in the majority, an increase in crop yield and the reduction in costs, due to the reduction in the requirements for the application of chemical or synthetic fertilizers. If the entire sewage sludge production in Romania for 2019 had been used as fertilizer, the estimated cost reduction for farmers would have been almost 3 million Euros—considering the 230.59 thousand tons of dry matter produced in 2019. The estimated savings for 2019 of the sewage and water utilities, if the sewage sludge had been used in agriculture instead of depositing it at the landfill, would have been about 3.9 million Euros. However, the limits of the symbiosis are due to the size of the farms, the type of plants cultivated, pH, slope inclination, heavy metal content and social acceptance. It is impossible to use all the sewage sludge in agriculture, but these figures are a good estimation of the economic effects.
Study of the Changing Relationship between Religion and the Digital Continent—In the Context of a COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Barreau Jean Marc
Published: September 2021

This article proposes to study the changing relationship between religion and the digital continent as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. To achieve this objective, the paper is divided into three parts. First, it offers an overview of the connection between religion and the digital environment, outlining four possible paradigms of the open relationship between these two worlds. Second, the article discusses the research project undertaken during the COVID-19 pandemic on behalf of the Corporation of Thanatologists of Quebec, focusing on the relationship between delayed funerals and delayed grief. In particular, this article deals with one of the solutions proposed to thanatologists, i.e., the development of a culture of bimodal ritual, both in person and remote, and therefore partly digital. Using this solution as a pointer, religion’s shift toward digital technology in the COVID-19 period is analyzed in the third part of the article. To this end, the four paradigms drawn from the overview are set against the research focus areas resulting from the solution proposed to the Corporation of Thanatologists.
Laser Scanner–Based Deformation Analysis Using Approximating B-Spline Surfaces
Authors: Harmening Corinna , Hobmaier Christoph , Neuner Hans
Published: September 2021

Due to the increased use of areal measurement techniques, such as laser scanning in geodetic monitoring tasks, areal analysis strategies have considerably gained in importance over the last decade. Although a variety of approaches that quasi-continuously model deformations are already proposed in the literature, there are still a multitude of challenges to solve. One of the major interests of engineering geodesy within monitoring tasks is the detection of absolute distortions with respect to a stable reference frame. Determining distortions and simultaneously establishing the joint geodetic datum can be realised by modelling the differences between point clouds acquired in different measuring epochs by means of a rigid body movement that is superimposed by distortions. In a previous study, we discussed the possibility of estimating these rigid body movements from the control points of B-spline surfaces approximating the acquired point clouds. Alternatively, we focus on estimating them by means of constructed points on B-spline surfaces in this study. This strategy has the advantage of larger redundancy compared to the control point–based strategy. Furthermore, the strategy introduced allows for the detection of rigid body movements between point clouds of different epochs and for the simultaneous localisation of areas in which the rigid body movement is superimposed by distortions. The developed approach is based on B-spline models of epoch-wise acquired point clouds, the surface parameters of which define point correspondences on different B-spline surfaces. Using these point correspondences, a RANSAC-approach is used to robustly estimate the parameters of the rigid body movement. The resulting consensus set initially defines the non-distorted areas of the object under investigation, which are extended and statistically verified in a second step. The developed approach is applied to simulated data sets, revealing that distorted areas can be reliably detected and that the parameters of the rigid body movement can be precisely and accurately determined by means of the strategy.
Fusing Measurements from Wi-Fi Emission-Based and Passive Radar Sensors for Short-Range Surveillance
Authors: Milani Ileana , Bongioanni Carlo , Colone Fabiola , Lombardo Pierfrancesco
Published: September 2021

In this work, we consider the joint use of different passive sensors for the localization and tracking of human targets and small drones at short ranges, based on the parasitic exploitation of Wi-Fi signals. Two different sensors are considered in this paper: (i) Passive Bistatic Radar (PBR) that exploits the Wi-Fi Access Point (AP) as an illuminator of opportunity to perform uncooperative target detection and localization and (ii) Passive Source Location (PSL) that uses radio frequency (RF) transmissions from the target to passively localize it, assuming that it is equipped with Wi-Fi devices. First, we show that these techniques have complementary characteristics with respect to the considered surveillance applications that typically include targets with highly variable motion parameters. Therefore, an appropriate sensor fusion strategy is proposed, based on a modified version of the Interacting Multiple Model (IMM) tracking algorithm, in order to benefit from the information diversity provided by the two sensors. The performance of the proposed strategy is evaluated against both simulated and experimental data and compared to the performance of the single sensors. The results confirm that the joint exploitation of the considered sensors based on the proposed strategy largely improves the positioning accuracy, target motion recognition capability and continuity in target tracking.
Towards High-Resolution Land-Cover Classification of Greenland: A Case Study Covering Kobbefjord, Disko and Zackenberg
Authors: Rudd Daniel Alexander , Karami Mojtaba , Fensholt Rasmus
Published: September 2021

Mapping of the Arctic region is increasingly important in light of global warming as land cover maps can provide the foundation for upscaling of ecosystem properties and processes. To this end, satellite images provide an invaluable source of Earth observations to monitor land cover in areas that are otherwise difficult to access. With the continuous development of new satellites, it is important to optimize the existing maps for further monitoring of Arctic ecosystems. This study presents a scalable classification framework, producing novel 10 m resolution land cover maps for Kobbefjord, Disko, and Zackenberg in Greenland. Based on Sentinel-2, a digital elevation model, and Google Earth Engine (GEE), this framework classifies the areas into nine classes. A vegetation land cover classification for 2019 is achieved through a multi-temporal analysis based on 41 layers comprising phenology, spectral indices, and topographical features. Reference data (1164 field observations) were used to train a random forest classifier, achieving a cross-validation accuracy of 91.8%. The red-edge bands of Sentinel-2 data proved to be particularly well suited for mapping the fen vegetation class. The study presents land cover mapping in the three study areas with an unprecedented spatial resolution and can be extended via GEE for further ecological monitoring in Greenland.
Landslide Detection in the Linzhi–Ya’an Section along the Sichuan–Tibet Railway Based on InSAR and Hot Spot Analysis Methods
Authors: Zhang Jinmin , Zhu Wu , Cheng Yiqing , Li Zhenhong
Published: September 2021

Construction of the 998.64-km Linzhi–Ya’an section of the Sichuan–Tibet Railway has been influenced by landslide disasters, threatening the safety of Sichuan–Tibet railway projects. Landslide identification and deformation analysis in this area are urgently needed. In this context, it was the first time that 164 advanced land-observing satellite-2 (ALOS-2) phased array type L-band synthetic aperture radar-2 (PALSAR-2) images were collected to detect landslide disasters along the entire Linzhi–Ya’an section. Interferogram stacking and small baseline interferometry methods were used to derive the deformation rate and time-series deformation from 2014–2020. After that, the hot spot analysis method was introduced to conduct spatial clustering analysis of the annual deformation rate, and the effective deformation area was quickly extracted. Finally, 517 landslide disasters along the Linzhi–Ya’an route were detected by integrating observed deformation, Google Earth optical images, and external geological data. The main factors controlling the spatial landslide distribution were analyzed. In the vertical direction, the spatial landslide distribution was mainly concentrated in the elevation range of 3000–5000 m, the slope range of 10–40°, and the aspect of northeast and east. In the horizontal direction, landslides were concentrated near rivers, and were also closely related to earthquake-prone areas, fault zones, and high-precipitation areas. In short, rainfall, freeze–thaw weathering, seismic activity, and fault zones are the main factors inducing landslides along this route. This research provides scientific support for the construction and operation of the Linzhi–Ya’an section of the Sichuan–Tibet Railway.
Can the Structure Similarity of Training Patches Affect the Sea Surface Temperature Deep Learning Super-Resolution?
Authors: Ping Bo , Meng Yunshan , Xue Cunjin , Su Fenzhen
Published: September 2021

Meso- and fine-scale sea surface temperature (SST) is an essential parameter in oceanographic research. Remote sensing is an efficient way to acquire global SST. However, single infrared-based and microwave-based satellite-derived SST cannot obtain complete coverage and high-resolution SST simultaneously. Deep learning super-resolution (SR) techniques have exhibited the ability to enhance spatial resolution, offering the potential to reconstruct the details of SST fields. Current SR research focuses mainly on improving the structure of the SR model instead of training dataset selection. Different from generating the low-resolution images by downscaling the corresponding high-resolution images, the high- and low-resolution SST are derived from different sensors. Hence, the structure similarity of training patches may affect the SR model training and, consequently, the SST reconstruction. In this study, we first discuss the influence of training dataset selection on SST SR performance, showing that the training dataset determined by the structure similarity index (SSIM) of 0.6 can result in higher reconstruction accuracy and better image quality. In addition, in the practical stage, the spatial similarity between the low-resolution input and the objective high-resolution output is a key factor for SST SR. Moreover, the training dataset obtained from the actual AMSR2 and MODIS SST images is more suitable for SST SR because of the skin and sub-skin temperature difference. Finally, the SST reconstruction accuracies obtained from different SR models are relatively consistent, yet the differences in reconstructed image quality are rather significant.
Non-Invasive Intra-Abdominal Pressure Measurement by Means of Transient Radar Method: In Vitro Validation of a Novel Radar-Based Sensor
Authors: Tayebi Salar , Pourkazemi Ali , Malbrain Manu L.N.G. , Stiens Johan
Published: September 2021

Intra-abdominal hypertension, defined as an intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) equal to or above 12 mmHg is one of the major risk-factors for increased morbidity (organ failure) and mortality in critically ill patients. Therefore, IAP monitoring is highly recommended in intensive care unit (ICU) patients to predict development of abdominal compartment syndrome and to provide a better care for patients hospitalized in the ICU. The IAP measurement through the bladder is the actual reference standard advocated by the abdominal compartment society; however, this measurement technique is cumbersome, non-continuous, and carries a potential risk for urinary tract infections and urethral injury. Using microwave reflectometry has been proposed as one of the most promising IAP measurement alternatives. In this study, a novel radar-based method known as transient radar method (TRM) has been used to monitor the IAP in an in vitro model with an advanced abdominal wall phantom. In the second part of the study, further regression analyses have been done to calibrate the TRM system and measure the absolute value of IAP. A correlation of –0.97 with a p-value of 0.0001 was found between the IAP and the reflection response of the abdominal wall phantom. Additionally, a quadratic relation with a bias of −0.06 mmHg was found between IAP obtained from the TRM technique and the IAP values recorded by a pressure gauge. This study showed a promising future for further developing the TRM technique to use it in clinical monitoring.
Asian Americans’ Ethnic Identity Exploration and the Role of Ethnic Community in a Southern City in the United States
Authors: Weng Suzie S. , Choi Shinwoo
Published: September 2021

This qualitative study explores Asian Americans’ ethnic identity concerning their process of exploring their own identity belonging and the impact of an ethnic community in a southern city in the United States. The South has mainly consisted of European Americans and African Americans. However, it has diversified to include an increasing number of Latinx and Asian Americans over the last several decades. Yet, the growing Asian American community remains disparate in its ethnic identity and nationality. Therefore, this study uses the phenomenological method to provide a more in-depth understanding of ethnic identity in an Asian American community within a southern region of the United States. Themes emerging from interviews included the need to bridge two worlds, the desire to be part of a community, and the existence of a two-layer community involving both ethnic and racial identity. This study contributes to a greater understanding of Asian Americans’ experiences in and adaptation to the Southern region within the United States. Implications for practice are provided for social workers when working alongside Asian American clients.
“Humane Criminology”: An Inclusive Victimology Protecting Animals and People
Authors: Arkow Phil
Published: September 2021

To those who primarily associate the word “humane” with “humane society”, its connection to criminology might appear to be unrelated. The origins of “humane” and “humane society” are complex and primarily reflect an abiding interest in human and societal welfare rather than animal welfare. Consequently, the origins and evolution of the current American association of humane societies with animal protection—as contrasted to its British association with rescuing victims of drowning—remain shrouded in mystery. A new focus that returns to the original roots of “humane” describing the implications of animal cruelty, abuse, and neglect as cause for human and societal concern due to their potential as sentinel indicators and predictors of interpersonal violence, rather than a strict focus on animals’ welfare or their alleged “rights”, holds great promise for advancing legislation and community programming that improves the well-being of human and non-human animal species and the prevention of crime.
Research on Environmental Regulation, Technological Innovation and Green Transformation of Manufacturing Industry in the Yangtze River Economic Belt
Authors: Zhao Xiaoke , Ding Xuhui , Li Liang
Published: September 2021

The green transformation of the manufacturing industry is crucial for high-quality development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, and environmental regulation and technological innovation may play key roles. Considering the undesirable output of the manufacturing industry, this paper adopted the undesirable-SE-SBM Model to measure the green transformation efficiency, which can reflect the core transformation performance. On this basis, this paper respectively adopted system generalized method of moments (SYS-GMM) and differential generalized method of moments (DIF-GMM) to explore the driving factors of green transformation, which fully considered the lag variable of transformation efficiency. The estimated results of green transformation showed that the efficiency of the Yangtze River Economic Belt has maintained an overall growth trend, while that of the eastern regions was higher than that of the central and western regions. The regional difference of transformation efficiencies showed a trend of convergence first and then expansion, however, a few regions such as Chongqing have achieved leapfrog development. The estimated results of driving factors showed the first-stage lag affected the green transformation positively, while the second-stage lag had a significantly negative effect. The ratchet effect and cumulative effect led to the continued efforts on green transformation, however, the timeliness of policy might cause a rebound in practice. As mentioned in green paradox, the environmental regulation had a negative effect, which might bring compliance costs. The technology innovation level indeed promoted the green transformation of manufacturing, but the scientific research investment did not exert the expected positive effect, while the utilization of many research funds lacked market orientation. Economic development level had a negative effect on green transformation, and it would play a positive effect only if it reached a certain stage. The industrialization and urbanization affected the efficiency positively, and the external dependence degree had a significant negative effect. It was not clear whether foreign direct investment (FDI) brought a pollution haven or pollution halo effect. In view of these conclusions, local governments should strictly enforce environmental regulations, build the regional green innovation system, improve marketization of research funds, optimize the export structure, and promote new urbanization and new industrialization.
Incentives for Corporate Environmental Information Disclosure in China: Public Media Pressure, Local Government Supervision and Interactive Effects
Authors: Xue Jia , He Youshi , Liu Ming , Tang Yin , Xu Hanyang
Published: September 2021

Disclosing environmental information is essential for listed firms to demonstrate social conscience. To fulfill government and public media supervision, Chinese listed firms are increasing the quality and quantity of disclosed environmental information. This elicits a new topic of interest: the correlation between media/government supervision and corporate environmental information disclosure (EID). The paper addresses this issue through data analysis and factor correlation study in data from some high-pollution firms in China during 2017–2019. The study first introduces a standardized definition for the quantification of media and government supervision, as well as the degree to which the corporation discloses the environmental information. Then, the correlations between the factors are isolated and refined to three sub-topics: (1) how public media and local government supervision affect the quality of corporate EID; (2) how is the interactive effect of public media and government supervision related to corporate EID; (3) how is the distinct ownership of corporate affect the government supervision on corporate EID. The concluding result from the above factor analysis could provide guidance for authorities to adjust certain laws and regulations so that the media and government supervision better motivates the corporate EID, and furthermore, better sustainable development of ecological environment.
How Retailer Co-Opetition Impacts Pricing, Collecting and Coordination in a Closed-Loop Supply Chain
Authors: Li Xinyi , Huang Guoxuan , Chu Jie , Zheng Benrong , Huang Kai
Published: September 2021

The cooperative and competitive (i.e., co-opetition) behavior between retailers plays a significant role in the development of operations and marketing strategies in a supply chain. Specifically, retailers’ co-opetition relationship pivotally influences the sustainable performance in a closed-loop supply chain. This study examines the impact of retailer co-opetition on pricing, collection decisions and coordination in a closed-loop supply chain with one manufacturer and two competing retailers. Based on observations in some industries (e.g., electronic manufacturing, fabric and textile, etc.), the cooperative and competitive relationships between retailers can be classified into the following three different modes: Bertrand competition, Stackelberg competition, and Collusion. In this paper, we establish a centralized and three decentralized game-theoretic models under these three co-opetition modes and characterize the corresponding equilibrium outcomes. The results indicate that the Bertrand competition mode yields the highest return rate, which is also superior to the other two modes for both the manufacturer and the supply chain system in terms of profitability. However, it can be shown that which mode benefits the retailers would depend on the degree of competition between the retailers and the relative remanufacturing efficiency. Interestingly, we find that the retailer’s first-move advantage does not necessarily lead to higher profits. In addition, we design a modified two-part tariff contract to coordinate the decentralized closed-loop supply chains under three different retailer co-opetition modes, and the results suggest that the optimal contractual parameters in the contracts highly rely on the remanufacturing efficiency and the competition degree between the two retailers. Several managerial insights for firms, consumers and policy makers are provided through numerical analysis.
Factors Affecting Technology Transfer of Universities in the LINC (Leaders in Industry-University Cooperation) Program of Korea
Authors: Jin Seunghoo , Lee Kangwon
Published: September 2021

The purpose of our study was to propose the measures necessary to promote industry-academic cooperation by investigating and analyzing factors affecting its performance Recently, the Korean government increased the budget available for industry-academic cooperation to help nurture industrial talent and promote industry-academic cooperation. In our study, the results of industry-academic cooperation for 48 universities that carried out the 5-year LINC development project from 2012 to 2016 were analyzed via panel analysis to identify any factors affecting the performance. Our analysis revealed that the organizational capabilities of the university—including the number of dedicated professors, the number of projects assigned, and the financial support—had a significant effect on technical commercialization. In addition, we found that the moderating effect of allied companies on the relationship between the organizational capabilities of universities and their technical commercialization was significant. However, the results of our analysis differed depending on university location. Universities in and around the Capital region benefited from their organizational capabilities and cooperation with allied companies. Based on the results of the analysis, we conclude that it is necessary to consider a variety of factors, including efficient support of the industry-academic cooperation budget and practical application of industry-academic cooperation systems.
Dynamic Capabilities and Their Impact on Intellectual Capital and Innovation Performance
Authors: Ali Mostafa A. , Hussin Nazimah , Haddad Hossam , Alkhodary Dina , Marei Ahmad
Published: September 2021

There is a high tendency for conversion from a statistical economy based on measuring tangible assets into investigating non-tangible capital drive in the present economic status worldwide. The implications of intellectual capital on innovation performance have widely attracted attention among researchers in the global arena. The present study investigated the impacts of intellectual capital on innovation performance in the banking sector as influencing non-tangible assets. Besides, the role of dynamic capabilities in moderating the relationship between intellectual capital and innovation performance was examined. A purposive sampling technique was applied to 364 participants from Iraqi commercial banks as the research context. Thereafter, structural equation modelling (SEM) was utilised to analyse the collected data from the survey questionnaire using SPSS.v25 and AMOS.v24. The study found that the employees’ levels of intellectual capital significantly increased toward innovativeness through the moderating role of dynamic capabilities between intellectual capital and innovation performance in the commercial banking sector for better competitive advantages. Consequently, the study provides valuable insights and guidance for academicians and practitioners on the impacts of developing intellectual capital on enhancing competitive performance, especially in the context of Iraqi commercial banks.
Responses to COVID-19 in Higher Education: Students’ Learning Experience Using Microsoft Teams versus Social Network Sites
Authors: Sobaih Abu Elnasr E. , Salem Amany E. , Hasanein Ahmed M. , Elnasr Ahmed E. Abu
Published: September 2021

The long-lasting impact of COVID-19 forced governments to continue with distance learning. Due to the absence of a formal digital learning management system (DLMS), public universities in many countries adopted social network sites (SNSs), e.g., Facebook and WhatsApp, and/or digital communication platforms, e.g., Microsoft (MS) Teams and Zoom for teaching and learning. This research investigates students’ learning experiences and responses to course/s incorporating SNSs and MS Teams as a sole distance learning platform during COVID-19. An online, pre-tested, questionnaire was used, directed at bachelor students in public institutions in Egypt, offering tourism and hotel programs, who received their courses using both SNSs and MS Teams. The results showed that the usage of both SNSs and MS Teams helped students to access information and learning resources, have good impact on their knowledge construction and critical refection, and report overall positive learning experience. The results of paired-samples t-test showed statistically significant differences between students’ experiences of course/s incorporating SNSs and MS Teams. However, students recorded limited support by their educators and peers and low participation in course activities that adopted MS Teams. They also reported poor assessment and feedback with course/s that incorporated SNSs. Hence, several implications for scholars, policymakers, and educators were presented for achieving better learning experience and to cope with the pandemic or similar crises, especially in universities with poor infrastructure, including unavailability of DLMS.
Vibrational Analysis of Paraelectric–Ferroelectric Transition of LiNbO3: An Ab-Initio Quantum Mechanical Treatment
Authors: Gentile Francesco Silvio , Diana Rosita , Panunzi Barbara , Caruso Ugo , Platonenko Alexander , Pascale Fabien , Dovesi Roberto
Published: September 2021

The phase transitions between paraelectric (PE) and ferroelectric (FE) isomorph phases of LiNbO3 have been investigated quantum mechanically by using a Gaussian-type basis set, the B3LYP hybrid functional and the CRYSTAL17 code. The structural, electronic and vibrational properties of the two phases are analyzed. The vibrational frequencies evaluated at the Γ point indicate that the paraelectric phase is unstable, with a complex saddle point with four negative eigenvalues. The energy scan of the A2u mode at −215 cm−1 (i215) shows a dumbbell potential with two symmetric minima. The isotopic substitution, performed on the Li and Nb atoms, allows interpretation of the nontrivial mechanism of the phase transition. The ferroelectric phase is more stable than the paraelectric one by 0.32 eV.
Thermochemistry of Polonium Evaporation from LBE
Authors: Aerts Alexander
Published: September 2021

Polonium is formed in relatively large quantities in lead-bismuth eutectic (LBE) cooled nuclear systems. Because of its radiotoxicity and volatility, a good understanding of the chemical equilibria governing polonium release from LBE is required. In this work, a set of thermochemical data is derived for the chemical species involved in the equilibrium between a solution of polonium in LBE and its vapor in inert conditions. The data were obtained by matching thermochemical models with experimental vapor pressure measurements and ab initio results. The dilute-limit activity coefficient of dissolved polonium in LBE is estimated, as well as the solubility of solid lead polonide in LBE. The results indicate that polonium evaporates from LBE according to the experimentally determined Henry’s law, up to dissolved polonium concentrations well above that expected in LBE cooled nuclear systems.
Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms of Interleukins and Toll-like Receptors and Neuroimaging Results in Newborns with Congenital HCMV Infection
Authors: Czech-Kowalska Justyna , Jedlińska-Pijanowska Dominika , Pleskaczyńska Agata K. , Niezgoda Anna , Gradowska Kinga , Pietrzyk Aleksandra , Jurkiewicz Elżbieta , Jaworski Maciej , Kasztelewicz Beata
Published: September 2021

Congenital cytomegalovirus infection (cCMV) is the most common intrauterine infection with central nervous system (CNS) involvement. There is limited data on the associations between Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) in genes involving the first-line defense mechanism and the risk of CNS damage during cCMV. We investigated the associations between neuroimaging findings and SNPs in genes encoding the following cytokines and cytokine receptors in 92 infants with cCMV: interleukins (IL1B rs16944, IL12B rs3212227, IL28B rs12979860), C-C motif chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2 rs1024611), dendritic cell-specific intercellular adhesion grabbing non-integrin (DC-SIGN rs735240), Toll-like receptors (TLR2 rs5743708, TLR4 rs4986791, TLR9 rs352140). The SNP of IL1B rs16944 (G/A) was associated with a reduced risk of ventriculomegaly on MRI (OR = 0.46, 95% CI, 0.22–0.95; p = 0.03) and cUS (OR = 0.38, 95% CI, 0.0–0.93; p = 0.034). Infants carrying heterozygous (T/C) genotype at IL28B rs12979860 had an increased risk of cystic lesions on cUS (OR = 3.31, 95% CI, 1.37–8.01; p = 0.0064) and MRI (OR = 4.97, 95% CI, 1.84–13.43; p = 0.001), and an increased risk of ventriculomegaly on MRI (OR = 2.46, 95% CI, 1.03–5.90; p = 0.04). No other associations between genotyped SNPs and neuroimaging results were found. This is the first study demonstrating new associations between SNPs of IL1B and IL28B and abnormal neuroimaging in infants with cCMV.
Rhinovirus Inhibitors: Including a New Target, the Viral RNA
Authors: Real-Hohn Antonio , Blaas Dieter
Published: September 2021

Rhinoviruses (RVs) are the main cause of recurrent infections with rather mild symptoms characteristic of the common cold. Nevertheless, RVs give rise to enormous numbers of absences from work and school and may become life-threatening in particular settings. Vaccination is jeopardised by the large number of serotypes eliciting only poorly cross-neutralising antibodies. Conversely, antivirals developed over the years failed FDA approval because of a low efficacy and/or side effects. RV species A, B, and C are now included in the fifteen species of the genus Enteroviruses based upon the high similarity of their genome sequences. As a result of their comparably low pathogenicity, RVs have become a handy model for other, more dangerous members of this genus, e.g., poliovirus and enterovirus 71. We provide a short overview of viral proteins that are considered potential drug targets and their corresponding drug candidates. We briefly mention more recently identified cellular enzymes whose inhibition impacts on RVs and comment novel approaches to interfere with infection via aggregation, virus trapping, or preventing viral access to the cell receptor. Finally, we devote a large part of this article to adding the viral RNA genome to the list of potential drug targets by dwelling on its structure, folding, and the still debated way of its exit from the capsid. Finally, we discuss the recent finding that G-quadruplex stabilising compounds impact on RNA egress possibly via obfuscating the unravelling of stable secondary structural elements.