bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Photosynthetic parameters and stomatal conductance in attached and detached balsam fir foliage
Authors: Akalusi Matthew E. , Meng Fan‐Rui , P.‐A. Bourque Charles
Published: August 2021

Leaf level gas‐exchange measurements can be made on detached foliage to address the challenge of access to the crown of tall trees. However, detachment may impact leaf gas exchange. This necessitates the study of gas‐exchange characteristics of foliage on detached branches to assess the feasibility of using detached branches for gas‐exchange analysis. We compared photosynthetic parameters and stomatal conductance in foliage of attached and detached branches of balsam fir [Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.] during the growing season. Data were analyzed using a linear mixed‐effect model, with fixed and random effects (branch status and measurement month, and tree number, respectively). Branch detachment had no significant effects on: (i) photosynthesis at the current ambient CO2 concentration (400 µmol mol−1, A400); (ii) maximum rates of Ribulose‐1,5‐bisphosphate (RuBP) carboxylation (Vcmax) and regeneration (Jmax); (iii) the ratio of Jmax to Vcmax (i.e., Jmax:Vcmax), and (iv) stomatal conductance (gs) during the study period (p = 0.120–0.335). There was a strong seasonal effect on all gas‐exchange variables (p ≤ 0.001–0.015). Gas‐exchange measurements made on detached foliage during the warm summer months should be performed with care. Reliable gas‐exchange measurements can be obtained using balsam fir foliage on detached branches 50–80 cm in length, in cooler growing‐season months, up to 30 min after detachment.
Exploring the thermomechanical properties of peroxide/co‐agent assisted thermoplastic vulcanizates through temperature scanning stress relaxation measurements
Authors: Bhattacharya Asit Baran , M. Gopalan Anagha , Chatterjee Tuhin , Vennemann Norbert , Naskar Kinsuk
Published: August 2021

Temperature scanning stress relaxation (TSSR) measurement of peroxide vulcanized polymer blends of polypropylene (PP) and ultrahigh molecular‐EPDM (UHM‐EPDM) rubber has been performed to study the thermomechanical behavior of thermoplastic vulcanizates (TPVs). Co‐agents play crucial roles in the enhancement of properties of TPVs. Different types of co‐agents (Triallyl cyanurate‐TAC; N, N‐m‐phenylene‐dimaleimide‐HVA2; zinc dimethacrylate‐ZDMA; and in‐situ formed zinc dimethacrylate‐ZMA) have been explored in this work. TSSR study shows that higher T50 and T90 values have been achieved in ZMA co‐agent assisted‐TPV. Higher TSSR‐index (RI) value was also found for the same co‐agent ZMA, indicating higher elastic behavior. TSSR result supports the mechanical and rheological properties, and it is found that the ZMA and ZDMA show higher mechanical strength. Cross‐linked‐density calculated by modified Flory–Rehner equation and the cross‐link‐density as obtained from TSSR method have been compared and the trend was found to be the same. Stress relaxation study shows the slow relaxation‐phenomena of the ZMA‐TPV with slowest relaxation‐time (θr) than the other TPVs, which correlates with superior material strength. Thermogravimetric analysis proves that there is a difference in degradation temperature of the blends at approximately 5–10°C. Ultrahigh molecular weight‐EPDM/PP based TPVs reveal superior thermomechanical and physico‐mechanical properties with ZMA and ZDMA co‐agent over TAC and HVA2. These ultrahigh molecular weight‐EPDM based TPVs can be used in automotive seals/strips, hoses, bellows, and 2 K‐molds for automotive applications.
Three‐dimensional X‐ray‐computed tomography of 3300‐ to 6000‐year‐old Citrullus seeds from Libya and Egypt compared to extant seeds throws doubts on species assignments
Authors: Wolcott Katherine A. , Chomicki Guillaume , Staedler Yannick M. , Wasylikowa Krystyna , Nesbitt Mark , Schönenberger Jürg , Renner Susanne S.
Published: August 2021

Societal Impact Statement

The watermelon (Citrullus lanatus subsp. vulgaris) is among the world's most important fruit crops. We here use C‐14 dating and morphometric analysis to test whether ancient seeds can be identified to species level, which would help document food expansion, innovation, and diversity in Northeastern Africa. We dated a Libyan seed to 6182–6001 calibrated years BP, making it the oldest Citrullus seed known. Morphometric analysis could not reliably assign ancient seeds to particular species, but several seeds showed breakage patterns characteristic of modern watermelon seeds cracked by human teeth. Our study contributes to the understanding of the early history of watermelon use by humans, who may have mostly snacked on the seeds, and cautions against the use of morphology alone to identify Citrullus archaeological samples.
End group analysis of poly(methylmethacrylate)s using the most abundant peak in electrospray ionization‐ion mobility spectrometry‐tandem mass spectrometry and Fourier transform–based noise filtering
Authors: Omae Mizuki , Ozeki Yuka , Kitagawa Shinya , Ohtani Hajime
Published: August 2021

Rationale

We recently developed the characterization method for synthetic polymers weighing more than a few tens of kilodalton using electrospray ionization‐ion mobility spectrometry‐tandem mass spectrometry, in which the m/z value of the most abundant peak was used for characterization. However, the identification of the most abundant peak from the isotopic peaks was often difficult due to the background noise.

Methods

Here, we employed a noise reduction method using Fourier transform (FT) filtering. In the power spectrum obtained using FT of the mass spectrum of the multiple charged analytes, the significant signals in the low‐frequency region and at frequency z are observed for the analytes of z charges. When the signals in both regions were used for inversed FT (i.e., the signals in other regions were zero padded), a noise‐filtered mass spectrum was obtained.

Results

In the analysis of poly(methylmethacrylate)s weighing 13–17 kDa, mass spectra without noise filtering with relatively high‐intensity noise (than signal) were complicated to identify the most abundant peak. On the contrary, the most abundant peak was clearly identified from the mass spectra after FT‐based noise filtering, and end group composition was estimated successfully.

Conclusions

The proposed FT‐based noise filtering for the mass spectrum is effective to characterize multiply charged synthetic polymers weighing more than a few tens of kilodalton using electrospray ionization‐ion mobility spectrometry‐tandem mass spectrometry.
Quantitative electrospray ionization efficiency scale: 10 years after
Authors: Oss Merit , Tshepelevitsh Sofja , Kruve Anneli , Liigand Piia , Liigand Jaanus , Rebane Riin , Selberg Sigrid , Ets Kristel , Herodes Koit , Leito Ivo
Published: August 2021

Rationale

The first comprehensive quantitative scale of the efficiency of electrospray ionization (ESI) in the positive mode by monoprotonation, containing 62 compounds, was published in 2010. Several trends were found between the compound structure and ionization efficiency (IE) but, possibly because of the limited diversity of the compounds, some questions remained. This work undertakes to align the new data with the originally published IE scale and carry out statistical analysis of the resulting more extensive and diverse data set to derive more grounded relationships and offer a possibility of predicting logIE values.

Methods

Recently, several new IE studies with numerous compounds have been conducted. In several of them, more detailed investigations of the influence of compound structure, solvent properties, or instrument settings have been conducted. IE data from these studies and results from this work were combined, and the multilinear regression method was applied to relate IE to various compound parameters.

Results

The most comprehensive IE scale available, containing 334 compounds of highly diverse chemical nature and spanning 6 orders of magnitude of IE, has been compiled. Several useful trends were revealed.

Conclusions

The ESI ionization efficiency of a compound by protonation is mainly affected by three factors: basicity (expressed by pKaH in water), molecular size (expressed by molar volume or surface area), and hydrophobicity of the ion (expressed by charge delocalization in the ion or its partition coefficient between a water–acetonitrile mixture and hexane). The presented models can be used for tentative prediction of logIE of new compounds (under the used conditions) from parameters that can be computed using commercially available software. The root mean square error of prediction is in the range of 0.7–0.8 log units.
An efficient recursive identification algorithm for multilinear systems based on tensor decomposition
Authors: Wang Yanjiao , Yang Ling
Published: August 2021

There are many important fields involving the multilinear system identification. A great number of parameters to be identified is an important challenge, leading to the need for tensorial decomposition and modeling of such systems. This article is about the parameter estimation of the higher‐order multilinear systems with non‐Gaussian noises and to explore the role of tensor algebra in the multilinear model identification. A high‐dimension system identification problem is reformulated in terms of low‐dimension problems by using the tensorial decomposition technique. Further, applying the multi‐innovation identification theory, the recursive algorithm combining with the logarithmic p‐norms is investigated for multilinear systems with non‐Gaussian noises of low computational complexity. Finally, some simulation results illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed recursive identification method.
Ready, Set, Write: Early Learning Standards for Writing in the Common Core Era
Authors: Tortorelli Laura S. , Gerde Hope K. , Rohloff Rebecca , Bingham Gary E.
Published: August 2021

Early writing skills are among the strongest predictors of later reading and writing achievement; however, these crucial skills are often neglected in early childhood classrooms. In this article, we present a systematic, quantitative content analysis of early learning standards (for ages 3–5) in states that were using the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts at the time of analysis. We identified 458 discrete early learning writing standards across 42 states, the District of Columbia, and Head Start (publication dates ranged from 2004 to 2018). We coded standards for the domains of writing skills addressed (transcription, composition, and/or writing concepts) in two stages, human coding and computer‐assisted coding, and we coded some standards as addressing multiple domains. Results indicated that more than half (53.7%) of early writing standards addressed transcription. Composition was addressed in 38.4% of the standards and writing concepts in 26.6%. Within the transcription category, 95.4% of the standards addressed handwriting, and only 12.3% addressed spelling. More standards addressed handwriting specifically than all composition skills combined. The early learning standards across states varied considerably in how well they aligned with the Common Core for the early elementary grades (K–2). Early childhood standards rarely asked young children to create their own texts, whereas the Common Core includes expectations for composing in multiple genres. Early learning standards provided little guidance for comprehensive writing instruction that integrates writing skills across domains, and indicated potential misalignment in how writing is conceptualized and taught in preschool and elementary contexts.
Noncovalent Immobilization of Pentamethylcyclopentadienyl Iridium Complexes on Ordered Mesoporous Carbon for Electrocatalytic Water Oxidation
Authors: Geer Ana M. , Liu Chang , Musgrave Charles B. , Webber Christopher , Johnson Grayson , Zhou Hua , Sun Cheng-Jun , Dickie Diane A. , Goddard William A. , Zhang Sen , Gunnoe T. Brent
Published: August 2021

The attachment of molecular catalysts to conductive supports for the preparation of solid‐state anodes is important for the development of devices for electrocatalytic water oxidation. The preparation and characterization of three molecular cyclopentadienyl iridium(III) complexes, Cp*Ir(1‐pyrenyl(2‐pyridyl)ethanolate‐κO,κN)Cl (1) (Cp* = pentamethylcyclopentadienyl), Cp*Ir(diphenyl(2‐pyridyl)methanolate‐κO,κN)Cl (2), and [Cp*Ir(4‐(1‐pyrenyl)‐2,2′‐bipyridine)Cl]Cl (3), as precursors for electrochemical water oxidation catalysts, are reported. These complexes contain aromatic groups that can be attached via noncovalent π‐stacking to ordered mesoporous carbon (OMC). The resulting iridium‐based OMC materials (Ir‐1, Ir‐2, and Ir‐3) were tested for electrocatalytic water oxidation leading to turnover frequencies (TOFs) of 0.9–1.6 s−1 at an overpotential of 300 mV under acidic conditions. The stability of the materials is demonstrated by electrochemical cycling and X‐ray absorption spectroscopy analysis before and after catalysis. Theoretical studies on the interactions between the molecular complexes and the OMC support provide insight onto the noncovalent binding and are in agreement with the experimental loadings.
Dopant‐Free Ternary Conjugated Polymeric Hole‐Transporting Materials for Efficient Inverted Planar Perovskite Solar Cells
Authors: Guo Shanshan , Zhang Xiaoye , Li Zhanfeng , Chen Yong-Mei , Wang Hua , Hao Yuying
Published: August 2021

In inverted perovskite solar cells (PSCs), hole transport materials (HTMs) can efficiently improve hole extraction and transfer as well as the crystallization of perovskite films and thus enhance the photovoltaic performance. Herein, two dopant‐free, regular A1–D–A2–D‐type (D: electron donor; A: electron acceptor) polymeric HTMs, PTPDTBT and PDPPTBT, are developed by integrating the benzothiadiazole unit (A1) with the electron‐accepting species of either a thieno[3,4‐c]pyrrole‐4,6‐dione or a pyrrolo[3,4‐c]pyrrole‐1,4‐dione segment (A2), respectively, where the thiophene unit (D) results in a kinked molecular geometry. These A1–D–A2–D‐type terpolymers exhibit comparable nonpolar properties but distinct film‐quality morphology and charge transport characteristics. PDPPTBT with the more insulating side‐chain groups is found to improve the quality of perovskite films cast on top with larger grain sizes and more homogeneous crystallization. As a consequence, the PDPPTBT‐based PSCs without any dopants and additional interlayers display a champion power conversion efficiency of 18.17%, one of the highest values of MAPbI3‐based inverted PSCs using dopant‐free D‐A‐type polymeric HTMs. Furthermore, the PDPPTBT‐based device exhibits negligible hysteresis and high long‐term stability. This work provides a potential strategy to design dopant‐free A1–D–A2–D‐type polymeric HTMs for efficient and stable PSCs.
Solvent‐Assisted Anisotropic Cleavage of Transition Metal Carbide into 2D Nanoflakes
Authors: Hu Chen-Xia , Tian Zhen , Xiao Qi , Zhu Zhen-Tong , Li Xiang-Yang , Dun Guan-Hua , Wu Hao-Ran , Tang Yu-Long , Wang Qiang , Zhang Hao-Li
Published: August 2021

Mechanical exfoliation of bulk layered materials into atomic‐layer thin nanosheets has become a general strategy to obtain 2D nanomaterials, which seems intuitively unsuitable for non‐van der Waals crystals. However, a new method is proposed, namely, solvent‐assisted anisotropic cleavage (SAAC), for producing thin nanostructures from transition metal carbides (TMCs), including titanium carbide (TiC) and tungsten carbide (WC). The SAAC method harnesses the intrinsic anisotropic hardness properties of the TMC and enables efficient cleavage of bulk TMC into 2D layers. Under ultrasonication in appropriated solvent, TiC crystals show preferable cleavage along [110] direction and produce 2D nanoflakes. The obtained 2D nanoflakes are successfully applied for ultrafast photonics as saturable absorbers (SAs) in mode‐locked thulium fiber lasers, where stable third‐order harmonically mode‐locked dissipative solitons are realized at 2 μm. The success of the SAAC process opens a new pace toward preparation of 2D nanomaterials.
On‐Line Fault Diagnosis Model of Distribution Transformer Based on Parallel Big Data Stream and Transfer Learning
Authors: Yang Zhichun , Yang Fan , Shen Yu , Yang Lei , Su Lei , Hu Wei , Le Jian
Published: August 2021

Aiming at the problem of calculation speed for distribution transformer on‐line fault diagnosis, and the shortage of on‐line monitoring type and routine test data, an on‐line fault diagnosis model of distribution transformer based on parallel big data stream and transfer learning is established. First, the fault identification feasibility based on the present on‐line monitoring data of distribution transformer is analyzed, and the main indicators of on‐line fault identification are proposed. Second, the on‐line fault identification method based on ARIMA is proposed, on this basis, the on‐line fault identification model of distribution transformer based on big data stream is established, and the distribution transformers that possess hidden fault are selected, which would be diagnosed further. In order to improve the efficiency, the model is completed on Storm platform in parallel form. Then, the distribution transformer fault diagnosis indicator system is construct. In order to achieve fault diagnosis of the above selected distribution transformers, the effective fault information from other distribution transformers is extracted using the transfer learning algorithm TrAdaBoost, which is used as auxiliary data for the fault diagnosis tool training of the distribution transformer to be diagnosed. At the same time, the model is completed on Storm platform to improve the efficiency. Finally, based on the distribution transformer fault data, the distribution transformer fault diagnosis is simulated, and results show that the fault diagnosis is accurate and efficient. © 2021 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.
Long non‐coding RNA NORAD aggravates acute myocardial infarction by promoting fibrosis and apoptosis via miR‐577/COBLL1 axis
Authors: Xiong Xiaojv , Liu Jinhua , He Qin , Dai Rui , Zhang Hui , Cao Zhe , Liao Yuanxi , Liu Bo , Zhou Yi , Chen Juan , Liu Jijun , Chen Manhua
Published: August 2021

Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is one of the most common and serious cardiovascular diseases. With high morbidity and mortality, AMI has attracted the most attention. Emerging studies indicated that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play an important role in the progression of AMI. However, the role of NORAD in AMI remained unclear. The current study aimed to investigate the function and mechanism of NORAD in AMI. Bioinformatics tools and a wide range of assays including RT‐qPCR, flow cytometry, TTC staining, western blot, luciferase reporter and caspase‐3 activity assays were conducted to investigate the function and mechanism of NORAD in AMI. We found out that NORAD was significantly upregulated in AMI rats. Knockdown of NORAD alleviated H9c2 cell injury by reducing apoptosis and decreasing expression levels of fibrogenic factors. In addition, NORAD inhibition ameliorated AMI in a rat model by decreasing infarct size and fibrosis. We confirmed that NORAD bound to miR‐577, which was downregulated in ischemia‐reperfusion (I/R) rats and hypoxia‐exposed H9c2 cells. Additionally, miR‐577 combined with the 3′UTR of COBLL1, which was upregulated in I/R rats and hypoxia‐exposed H9c2 cells. At last, rescue assay validated that the suppressive effects of NORAD knockdown on apoptosis and expression levels of fibrogenic factors were counteracted by COBLL1 overexpression. Overall, NORAD aggravates acute myocardial infarction by promoting fibrosis and apoptosis via the miR‐577/COBLL1 axis. This novel discovery suggested that NORAD may serve as a potential therapeutic target for AMI patients.
B‐flow/spatiotemporal image correlation M‐mode: novel ultrasound method that detects decrease in spiral artery luminal diameter in first trimester in primate model of impaired spiral artery remodeling
Authors: Turan O. M. , Babischkin J. S. , Aberdeen G. W. , Turan S. , Harman C. R. , Pepe G. J. , Albrecht E. D.
Published: August 2021

Objective

To determine if B‐flow/spatiotemporal image correlation (STIC) M‐mode ultrasonography detects a decrease in spiral artery luminal diameter and volume flow during the first trimester in a non‐human primate model of impaired spiral artery remodeling (SAR).

Methods

Pregnant baboons were treated daily with estradiol benzoate on days 25–59 of the first trimester (term, 184 days), or remained untreated. On day 60 of gestation, spiral artery luminal diameter (in seven untreated and 12 estradiol‐treated baboons) and volume flow (in four untreated and eight estradiol‐treated baboons) were quantified by B‐flow/STIC M‐mode ultrasonography. In addition, in 15 untreated and 18 estradiol‐treated baboons, the percent of spiral arteries remodeled by extravillous trophoblasts was quantified ex vivo by immunohistochemical image analysis on placental basal plate tissue collected via Cesarean section on day 60. Findings were compared between treated and untreated animals. The correlation between spiral artery luminal diameter and percent of SAR was assessed in three untreated and six estradiol‐treated baboons which underwent both B‐flow/STIC M‐mode ultrasound and quantification of SAR.

Results

The proportion of spiral arteries greater than 50 µm in diameter remodeled by extravillous trophoblasts was 70% lower in estradiol‐treated baboons than in untreated animals (P = 0.000001). Spiral artery luminal diameter in systole and diastole, as quantified by B‐flow/STIC M‐mode in the first trimester of pregnancy, was 31% (P = 0.014) and 50% (P = 0.005) lower, respectively, and volume flow was 85% lower (P = 0.014), in SAR‐suppressed baboons compared with untreated animals. There was a significant correlation between spiral artery luminal diameter as quantified by B‐flow/STIC M‐mode ultrasonography and the percent of SAR (P < 0.05).

Conclusion

B‐flow/STIC M‐mode ultrasonography provides a novel real‐time non‐invasive method to detect a decrease in uterine spiral artery luminal diameter and volume flow during the cardiac cycle, reflecting decreased distensibility of the vessel wall, in the first trimester in a non‐human primate model of defective SAR. © 2021 The Authors. Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Clinical experience with non‐invasive prenatal screening for single‐gene disorders
Authors: Mohan P. , Lemoine J. , Trotter C. , Rakova I. , Billings P. , Peacock S. , Kao C.‐Y. , Wang Y. , Xia F. , Eng C. M. , Benn P.
Published: August 2021

Objective

To assess the performance of a non‐invasive prenatal screening test (NIPT) for a panel of dominant single‐gene disorders (SGD) with a combined population incidence of 1 in 600.

Methods

Cell‐free fetal DNA isolated from maternal plasma samples accessioned from 14 April 2017 to 27 November 2019 was analyzed by next‐generation sequencing, targeting 30 genes, to look for pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants implicated in 25 dominant conditions. The conditions included Noonan spectrum disorders, skeletal disorders, craniosynostosis syndromes, Cornelia de Lange syndrome, Alagille syndrome, tuberous sclerosis, epileptic encephalopathy, SYNGAP1‐related intellectual disability, CHARGE syndrome, Sotos syndrome and Rett syndrome. NIPT‐SGD was made available as a clinical service to women with a singleton pregnancy at ≥ 9 weeks' gestation, with testing on maternal and paternal genomic DNA to assist in interpretation. A minimum of 4.5% fetal fraction was required for test interpretation. Variants identified in the mother were deemed inconclusive with respect to fetal carrier status. Confirmatory prenatal or postnatal diagnostic testing was recommended for all screen‐positive patients and follow‐up information was requested. The screen‐positive rates with respect to the clinical indication for testing were evaluated.

Results

A NIPT‐SGD result was available for 2208 women, of which 125 (5.7%) were positive. Elevated test‐positive rates were observed for referrals with a family history of a disorder on the panel (20/132 (15.2%)) or a primary indication of fetal long‐bone abnormality (60/178 (33.7%)), fetal craniofacial abnormality (6/21 (28.6%)), fetal lymphatic abnormality (20/150 (13.3%)) or major fetal cardiac defect (4/31 (12.9%)). For paternal age ≥ 40 years as a sole risk factor, the test‐positive rate was 2/912 (0.2%). Of the 125 positive cases, follow‐up information was available for 67 (53.6%), with none classified as false‐positive. No false‐negative cases were identified.

Conclusions

NIPT can assist in the early detection of a set of SGD, particularly when either abnormal ultrasound findings or a family history is present. Additional clinical studies are needed to evaluate the optimal design of the gene panel, define target populations and assess patient acceptability. NIPT‐SGD offers a safe and early prenatal screening option. © 2021 The Authors. Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Daniel Binnie Pearson
Authors:   Friends and colleagues
Published: August 2021

A charitable man, accomplished vet and talented sportsman with a deep love of Scotland, his community, and his family.
Andrew Rivers
Authors: Dickinson Judith
Published: August 2021

A caring and popular small animal vet who had many interests.
Prevalence of intestinal parasitic infection in food handlers of Iran: A systematic review and meta‐analysis
Authors: Sharifi‐Sarasiabi Khojasteh , Heydari‐Hengami Mehrgan , Shokri Azar , HosseyniTeshnizi Saeed
Published: August 2021

Food handlers regardless of whether preparing or serving food, play key roles in the transmission of food‐borne infections. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections in food handlers in Iran. In the present study, a comprehensive literature search was carried out in electronic databases, including PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Science Direct, Magiran, Scientific Information Database (SID), Iran Medex and Iran Doc, to identify all the published studies from 2000 to 31st April 2019. A total of 25 articles from different regions of Iran were identified and fulfilled our eligibility criteria. Totally, 140,447 cases were examined and 1163 cases were infected with intestinal parasites. Of all cases, 19,516 were male and 5901 were female with 1163 and 652 infected cases, respectively. The overall prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections was evaluated 14.0% [95% CI: 11.0‐17.0%]. It is revealed that protozoan, such as Giardia lamblia, with prevalence of 41.0% [95% CI: 25.0‐59.0%], Blastosystis hominis with 28.0% [95% CI: 15.0‐44.0%] and Entamoeba coli with 22.0% [95% CI: 16.0‐29.0%] had the highest prevalence while, Dientamoeba fragilis 5.0% [95% CI: 4.0‐7.0%], Iodamoeba bütschlii 5.0% [95% CI: 2.0‐8.0%], Chilomastix mesnili 5.0% [95% CI: 2.0‐9.0%] and Endolimax nana with 3.0% [95% CI: 1.0‐7.0%], were less prevalent. Infection with Ascaris lumbricoides7.0% [95% CI: 0.0‐29.0%] was more prevalent helminth followed with Enterobius vermicularis 3.0% [95% CI: 1.0‐5.0%], Hymenolepis nana 2.0% [95% CI: 1.0‐3.0%], Taenia spp. 2.0% [95% CI: 0.0‐7.0%] and Trichuris trichiura 1.0% [95% CI: 0.0‐1.0%]. The high prevalence of commensal parasites, such as Entamoeba coli, which does not need cure is indicating the importance of personal hygiene in food handlers.

Our results revealed the high prevalence of intestinal parasitic infection in food handlers in Iran. Monitoring programs to prevent and controlling of transmission to individuals are needed.
The axion-baryon coupling in SU(3) heavy baryon chiral perturbation theory
Authors: Vonk Thomas , Guo Feng-Kun , Meißner Ulf-G.
Published: August 2021

Abstract

In the past, the axion-nucleon coupling has been calculated in the framework of SU(2) heavy baryon chiral perturbation theory up to third order in the chiral power counting. Here, we extend these earlier studies to the case of heavy baryon chiral perturbation theory with SU(3) flavor symmetry and derive the axion coupling to the full SU(3) baryon octet, showing that the axion also significantly couples to hyperons. As studies on dense nuclear matter suggest the possible existence of hyperons in stellar objects such as neutron stars, our results should have phenomenological implications related to the so-called axion window.
The disk partition function in string theory
Authors: Eberhardt Lorenz , Pal Sridip
Published: August 2021

Abstract

We investigate the disk partition function for the open string. This is a subtle problem because of the presence of a residual gauge group PSL(2, ℝ) on the worldsheet even after fixing the conformal gauge. It naively has infinite volume and leads to a vanishing answer. We use different methods that all demonstrate that PSL(2, ℝ) effectively behaves like a group with finite negative volume in the path integral, which leads to a simple prescription for the computation of the disk partition function. We apply our findings to give a simple rederivation of the D-brane tensions.
Small-momentum expansion of heavy-quark correlators in the large-β0 limit and αs extractions
Authors: Boito Diogo , Mateu Vicent , Rodrigues Marcus V.
Published: August 2021

Abstract

We calculate the small-momentum expansion of vector, axial-vector, scalar, and pseudo-scalar heavy-quark current correlators in the large-β0 limit of QCD, extending the analysis of Grozin and Sturm beyond the vector current. Our results are used to study the higher-order behaviour of dimensionless ratios of vector and pseudo-scalar moments used for the precise extraction of the strong coupling, αs, from relativistic quarkonium sum rules and lattice data, respectively. We show that these ratios benefit from a partial cancellation of the leading renormalon singularities. Our results can guide the design of combinations of moments with improved perturbative behaviour.
Strong anomaly and phases of chiral gauge theories
Authors: Bolognesi Stefano , Konishi Kenichi , Luzio Andrea
Published: August 2021

Abstract

We present a simple argument which seems to favor, when applied to a large class of strongly-coupled chiral gauge theories, a dynamical-Higgs-phase scenario, characterized by certain bifermion condensates. Flavor symmetric confining vacua described in the infrared by a set of baryonlike massless composite fermions saturating the conventional ’t Hooft anomaly matching equations, appear instead disfavored. Our basic criterion is that it should be possible to write a strong-anomaly effective action, analogous to the one used in QCD to describe the solution of the U(1)A problem in the low-energy effective action, by using the low-energy degrees of freedom in the hypothesized infrared theory. We also comment on some well-known ideas such as the complementarity and the large N planar dominance in the context of these chiral gauge theories. Some striking analogies and contrasts between the massless QCD and chiral gauge theories seem to emerge from this discussion.
Investigation of ultrasonic-assisted CNC cutting of honeycomb cores
Authors: Mu Dongfang , Hu Xiaoping , Yu Haofeng , Yu Baohua
Published: August 2021

As compared to traditional milling, ultrasonic-assisted cutting of honeycomb core materials has the advantages of small cutting force and superior surface quality. Currently, ultrasonic straight blade V-shaped machining is one of the most efficient roughing processes. The requirement of a processing path to be post-processed based on the processing characteristics of the straight blade cutter is one of the key issues faced while meeting the technological requirements of CNC machine tools for V-shaped machining. A post-processing method of NC code for V-shaped machining of straight blade cutter is proposed in this article. Initially, the V-shaped rough machining process planning is done, followed by the usage of Unigraphics (UG) to output the initial CNC code. Next, the CNC code is executed through the three key technologies of the second arrangement of cutter locations. Later, research is done on information planning of lifting and lowering cutter, along with research on planning of chip breaking toolpath. Eventually, the simulation cutting experiment is carried out through VERICUT. The results demonstrate that the post-processing method can meet the processing requirements.
Large-Amplitude Steady Downstream Water Waves
Authors: Constantin Adrian , Strauss Walter , Vărvărucă Eugen
Published: August 2021

We study wave-current interactions in two-dimensional water flows of constant vorticity over a flat bed. For large-amplitude periodic traveling gravity waves that propagate at the water surface in the same direction as the underlying current (downstream waves), we prove explicit uniform bounds for their amplitude. In particular, our estimates show that the maximum amplitude of the waves becomes vanishingly small as the vorticity increases without limit. We also prove that the downstream waves on a global bifurcating branch are never overhanging, and that their mass flux and Bernoulli constant are uniformly bounded.
Management of Adult Intussusception—A Case Series Experience from a Tertiary Center
Authors: Neymark Mariya , Abramov Roi , Dronov Maria , Gilshtein Hayim
Published: August 2021

Background

The management of intussusception is controversial. Clinical presentation, with the aid of imaging modalities, enables a better selection of patients for the appropriate treatment algorithm. Conservative management versus surgical intervention with bowel resection is considered accordingly.

Methods

Retrospective review of a computerized database of patients who were admitted with intussusception between January 1, 2010, and December 31, 2020, in a single tertiary center in Israel. Patients who were treated conservatively were compared to those who underwent surgery. Patients who underwent bowel resection were compared to those that had surgery without a resection.

Results

A total of 76 patients were diagnosed with intussusception, and 49 were operated. Bowel resection was performed in 32 cases. 20/76(26%) were successfully managed conservatively. Patients with a lead point (OR = 5.59) and colonic involvement (OR = 13.72) had a higher likelihood for resection. The likelihood of bowel resection was found to be significantly lower with proximal small bowel intussusception (OR = 0.071).

Conclusion

Young patients presenting with intussusception may be treated conservatively when adequate criteria are met in order to avoid unnecessary surgical interventions.
Polyp dropout in a solitary cold-water coral
Authors: Laudien Jürgen , Heran Thomas , Häussermann Vreni , Försterra Günter , Schmidt-Grieb Gertraud M. , Richter Claudio
Published: August 2021

Scleractinian corals feature both sessile and mobile stages and diverse modes of development. In some cases, development can be reversed. Examples include polyp detachment in response to environmental stress (bail-out or polyp expulsion) and reverse metamorphosis, where juveniles detach from the primary skeleton and revert to the mobile stage. Here, we provide aquaria and field evidence of a new form of reverse development: polyp dropout in the solitary cold-water coral Caryophyllia huinayensis. It features tissue retraction and detachment of an entire adult polyp from the skeleton in the putative absence of a stressor. The dropout polyp remains viable and continues to live for many weeks, albeit in a rather collapsed state lacking a well-developed hydroskeleton. We carried out a long-term (37 months) rearing experiment under constant aquaria conditions and found polyp dropout in four out of 83 individuals. Detachment was accompanied by the extrusion of mesenterial filaments through perforations in the body wall. We believe this resulted in the loss of the hydroskeleton, which prevented the dropouts to subsequently resettle or form a new skeleton. As opposed to other known forms of reverse development, the new form is not accompanied by reversible metamorphosis, abandonment of the colonial way of life, nor is it a survival or asexual reproduction strategy. We found field indications of polyp dropout in Patagonian field populations of C. huinayensis, where 1.4 ± 0.8% (mean ± SD, N = 9322) of the polyps of the natural population showed partial detachment indicative of imminent dropout in the putative absence of external impact. Polyp dropout is the first record of polyp detachment in a solitary CWC with possible repercussions for adult coral mobility, evolution and Stanley’s (2003) ‘naked coral’ hypothesis.
Anticipation of aversive visual stimuli lengthens perceived temporal duration
Authors: Harjunen Ville Johannes , Spapé Michiel , Ravaja Niklas
Published: August 2021

Subjective estimates of elapsed time are sensitive to the fluctuations in an emotional state. While it is well known that dangerous and threatening situations, such as electric shocks or loud noises, are perceived as lasting longer than safe events, it remains unclear whether anticipating a threatening event speeds up or slows down subjective time and what defines the direction of the distortion. We examined whether the anticipation of uncertain visual aversive events resulted in either underestimation or overestimation of perceived duration. The participants did a temporal bisection task, where they estimated durations of visual cues relative to previously learnt long and short standard durations. The colour of the to-be-timed visual cue signalled either a 50% or 0% probability of encountering an aversive image at the end of the interval. The cue durations were found to be overestimated due to anticipation of aversive images, even when no image was shown afterwards. Moreover, the overestimation was more pronounced in people who reported feeling more anxious while anticipating the image. These results demonstrate that anxiogenic anticipation of uncertain visual threats induce temporal overestimation, which questions a recently proposed view that temporal underestimation evoked by uncertain threats is due to anxiety.
Anticipatory approach for dynamic and stochastic shipment matching in hinterland synchromodal transportation
Authors: Guo Wenjing , Atasoy Bilge , van Blokland Wouter Beelaerts , Negenborn Rudy R.
Published: August 2021

This paper investigates a dynamic and stochastic shipment matching problem faced by network operators in hinterland synchromodal transportation. We consider a platform that receives contractual and spot shipment requests from shippers, and receives multimodal services from carriers. The platform aims to provide optimal matches between shipment requests and multimodal services within a finite horizon under spot request uncertainty. Due to the capacity limitation of multimodal services, the matching decisions made for current requests will affect the ability to make good matches for future requests. To solve the problem, this paper proposes an anticipatory approach which consists of a rolling horizon framework that handles dynamic events, a sample average approximation method that addresses uncertainties, and a progressive hedging algorithm that generates solutions at each decision epoch. Compared with the greedy approach which is commonly used in practice, the anticipatory approach has total cost savings up to 8.18% under realistic instances. The experimental results highlight the benefits of incorporating stochastic information in dynamic decision making processes of the synchromodal matching system.
Clearinghouse Standards of Evidence on the Transparency, Openness, and Reproducibility of Intervention Evaluations
Authors: Mayo-Wilson Evan , Grant Sean , Supplee Lauren H.
Published: August 2021

Clearinghouses are influential repositories of information on the effectiveness of social interventions. To identify which interventions are “evidence-based,” clearinghouses review intervention evaluations using published standards of evidence that focus primarily on internal validity and causal inferences. Open science practices can improve trust in evidence from evaluations on the effectiveness of social interventions. Including open science practices in clearinghouse standards of evidence is one of many efforts that could increase confidence in designations of interventions as “evidence-based.” In this study, we examined the policies, procedures, and practices of 10 federal evidence clearinghouses that review preventive interventions—an important and influential subset of all evidence clearinghouses. We found that seven consider at least one open science practice when evaluating interventions: replication (6 of 10 clearinghouses), public availability of results (6), investigator conflicts of interest (3), design and analysis transparency (3), study registration (2), and protocol sharing (1). We did not identify any policies, procedures, or practices related to analysis plan registration, data sharing, code sharing, material sharing, and citation standards. We provide a framework with specific recommendations to help federal and other evidence clearinghouses implement the Transparency and Openness Promotion (TOP) Guidelines. Our proposed “TOP Guidelines for Clearinghouses” includes reporting whether evaluations used open science practices, incorporating open science practices in their standards for receiving “evidence-based” designations, and verifying that evaluations used open science practices. Doing so could increase the trustworthiness of evidence used for policy making and support improvements throughout the evidence ecosystem.
Monitoring experts: insights from the introduction of video assistant referee (VAR) in elite football
Authors: Holder Ulrike , Ehrmann Thomas , König Arne
Published: August 2021

Along with incentive schemes, another well-established way to align the interests of principals and agents and, consequently, to reduce and eliminate biases and errors is the practice of monitoring. Considering the monitoring of experts, we evaluate the introduction of the most recent monitoring technology in football, the virtual assistant referee (VAR). Focusing on the German Bundesliga and the Italian Serie A, we analyse whether VAR has changed referees’ decision-making behaviour and, in particular, whether this led to changes in referees’ well-documented preferential treatment of home teams. By doing so, we use the introduction of VAR as a natural experiment to examine whether VAR can help overcome inefficiencies in referees’ decision-making and whether it exposes any inefficiencies in the referee selection system. Ex ante (in-)efficiency would imply that few (many) changes in referee decisions are seen after the VAR introduction. Our results suggest, generally, that VAR impacts referees’ decision-making. We confirm current research and conclude that prior to the introduction of the VAR, the home team tends to be favoured with respect to awarded penalty kicks, red cards and the amount of added time in games containing either penalty kicks or red cards. However, because the home bias only partially decreased with the introduction of VAR, it seems that the bias emerges more as a result of the advantages of playing in one’s local surroundings than of the referees’ decisions. We further show that VAR interventions do not correlate with referees’ experience levels. Overall, these modest findings and even non-existent differences indicate that home bias occurs for reasons other than referees, suggesting that the process for training, promoting, and selecting referees at the highest league works well. Finally, our findings suggest that the VAR implementation is aimed at purposes other than classic agent monitoring.
Distributions for Nonsymmetric Monotone and Weakly Monotone Position Operators
Authors: Crismale Vitonofrio , Griseta Maria Elena , Wysoczański Janusz
Published: August 2021

We study the vacuum distribution, under an appropriate scaling, of a family of partial sums of nonsymmetric position operators on weakly monotone and monotone Fock spaces, respectively. We preliminary treat the case of weakly monotone Fock space, and show that any single operator has the vacuum law belonging to the free Meixner class. After establishing some relations between the combinatorics of Motzkin and Riordan paths, we give a recursive formula for the vacuum moments of the law of any finite sum. Since the operators are monotone independent, the distribution is the monotone convolution of the free Meixner law above. We also investigate the asymptotic measure for these sums, which can be seen as “Poisson type” limit law. It turns out to belong to the free Meixner class, with an atomic and an absolutely continuous part (w.r.t. the Lebesgue measure). Finally, we briefly apply analogous considerations to the case of monotone Fock space.
Resonance assignment and secondary structure of DbpA protein from the European species, Borrelia afzelii
Authors: Hejduk Libor , Rathner Petr , Strnad Martin , Grubhoffer Libor , Sterba Jan , Rego Ryan O. M. , Müller Norbert , Rathner Adriana
Published: August 2021

Decorin binding proteins (Dbps) mediate attachment of spirochetes in host organisms during the early stages of Lyme disease infection. Previously, different binding mechanisms of Dbps to glycosaminoglycans have been elucidated for the pathogenic species Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto and B. afzelii. We are investigating various European Borrelia spirochetes and their interactions at the atomic level using NMR. We report preparative scale recombinant expression of uniformly stable isotope enriched B. afzelii DbpA in Escherichia coli, its chromatographic purification, and solution NMR assignments of its backbone and sidechain 1H, 13C, and 15N atoms. This data was used to predict secondary structure propensity, which we compared to the North American B. burgdorferi sensu stricto and European B. garinii DbpA for which solution NMR structures had been determined previously. Backbone dynamics of DbpA from B. afzelii were elucidated from spin relaxation and heteronuclear NOE experiments. NMR-based secondary structure analysis together with the backbone dynamics characterization provided a first look into structural differences of B. afzelii DbpA compared to the North American species and will serve as the basis for further investigation of how these changes affect interactions with host components.
Development of a methodology for real-time retrieving and viewing of spatial data in emergency scenarios
Authors: Alamouri Ahmed , Hassan Mohammad , Gerke Markus
Published: August 2021

Quick response in emergency situations is crucial, because any delay can result in dramatic consequences and potentially human losses. Therefore, many institutions/authorities are relying on development of strategies for emergency management, specially to have a quick response process using modern technologies like unmanned aerial vehicles. A key factor affecting this process is to have a quick geo-situation report of the emergency in real time, which reflects the current emergency situation and supports in right decision-making. Providing such geo-reports is still not an easy task because—in most cases—a priori known spatial data like map data (raster/vector) or geodatabases are outdated, and anyway would not provide an overview on the current situation. Therefore, this paper introduces a management methodology of spatial data focusing on enabling a free access and viewing the data of interest in real time and in situ to support emergency managers. The results of this work are twofold: on the one hand, an automated mechanism for spatial data synchronization and streaming was developed and on the other hand, a spatial data sharing concept was realized using web map tile service. For results assessment, an experimental framework through the joint research project ANKommEn (English acronym: Automated Navigation and Communication for Exploration) was implemented. The assessment procedure was achieved based on specific evaluation criteria like time consumption and performance and showed that the developed methodology can help in overcoming some of existing challenges and addressing the practically relevant questions concerning on the complexity in spatial data sharing and retrieval.