bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Origin of precious opal revisited: Possible quick formation of precious opal
Authors: Okudera Hiroki , Takeda Tetsuyoshi
Published: November 2021

It has been well known that a sedimentary precious opal is composed of closely packed uni-size silica spheres with voids filled by an air or water, and that an interference among reflections from the boundaries of those spheres and filler yields play-of-colour (iridescence). So, occurrence of a play-of-colour means occurrence of natural selection in size of spheres, or suppression of further nucleation after initial outburst of spheres, during its formation process. We had been exploring the possibility if we can regard a Stöber process as an analogue of the formation process of precious opal. The key is the reason why variation in size is rarely found on both precious opal and Stöber colloid. To give a clue, we examined the internal structure of Stöber particles and how those particles were formed at very initial stage of the process. The answers for evenness in shape and size are a quick supersaturation of reactive silica species, consecutive formation of large and loose polymers by fast dehydration, and their quick aggregation as the initial burst of silica spheres in highly diffusive medium. These can be achieved in nature by quick but continuous decrease in temperature on “basic” (high pH) geothermal hot water moving upward through cracks in rocks. Sedimentary precious opal can thus be formed when such naturally occurring colloid is filtered by a permeable bed.
Cervical Discopathy in Idiopathic Trigeminal Neuralgia: More than Coincidence?
Authors: Börü Ülkü Türk , Bölük Cem , Özdemir Adnan , Demirbaş Hayri , Taşdemir Mustafa , Karabacak Tuğçe Gezer , Şahbaz Fatma Gülhan , Dumanlı Ahmet
Published: November 2021

BackgroundThe most common cause of trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is neurovascular compression. However, a number of patients present with unknown etiology. This study aims to investigate the relationship between TN and cervical pathology in patients previously diagnosed with idiopathic TN. MethodsWe designed an observational case-control study. A study group consisting of patients previously diagnosed with idiopathic TN and a control group was included in the study. Cranial MRI’s of TN patients were re-evaluated by a blinded neuroradiologist. Once it was confirmed that no signs of neurovascular compression or any secondary causes were present, a cervical MRI was performed to evaluate cervical pathologies. Results20 patients and 20 controls were investigated. The mean age of TN patients was 64.9±12.6, and the mean age of the control group was 61.3±9.1 (p=0.305). Whilst indentation on the trigeminal spinal tract above C4 spinal level was observed in 12 out of 20 patients, none of the controls had any involvement in the same region (p<0.001). ConclusionsThe results of this study suggest that extramedullary indentation on the trigeminal spinal tract caused by upper cervical discopathy may be one of the possible etiological factors in TN.
A Hybrid Big Data Analytics and Industry 4.0 Approach for Projecting The Cycle Time Range
Authors: Chen Toly , Wang Yu Cheng
Published: November 2021

To enhance the effectiveness of projecting the cycle time range of a job in a factory, a hybrid big data analytics and Industry 4.0 (BD-I4) approach is proposed in this study. As a joint application of big data analytics and Industry 4.0, the BD-I4 approach is distinct from existing methods in this field. In the BD-I4 approach, first, each expert constructs a fuzzy deep neural network (FDNN) to project the cycle time range of a job, which is an application of big data analytics (i.e., deep learning). Subsequently, fuzzy weighted intersection (FWI) is applied to aggregate the cycle time ranges projected by experts to consider their unequal authority levels, which is an application of Industry 4.0 (i.e., artificial intelligence). After applying the BD-I4 approach to a real case, the experimental results showed that the proposed methodology improved the projection precision by up to 72%. This result implied that instead of relying on a single expert, seeking the collaboration among multiple experts may be more effective and efficient.
Long Noncoding RNA LINC00518 Contributes to Proliferation and Metastasis in Lung Adenocarcinoma via the miR-335-3p/CTHRC1 Axis
Authors: Shen Ruoyi , Cai Xin , Shen Dan , Zhang Ruochen , Zhang Weijie , Zhang Yang , Li Yue , Wang Anqi , Zeng Yuanyuan , Zhu Jianjie , Liu Zeyi , Huang Jian-an
Published: November 2021

Background

Recently, a considerable amount of researches had been published that in some human tumours long intergenic nonprotein coding RNA 518 (LINC00518) could promote cancer proliferation and metastasis.
Methods

To directly test the effects of LINC00518 in LUAD, we treated the A549 and H1299 cells. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), western blot, and immunohistochemical assays were used to detect the expression of genes. CCK-8, clonogenic assays, the wound healing, migration and invasion assays to investigate the proliferation and motility of cells. Flow cytometry was used to determine the cell cycle stage. Meanwhile, a lung carcinoma xenograft mouse model was used to investigate the in vivo effects.
Results

Here we found that LINC00518 levels were up-regulated in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) tissues, and aberrant LINC00518 levels were particularly associated with the poor prognosis of LUAD patients. LINC00518 functions as a ceRNA to regulate the cell proliferation and tumour growth of LUAD by regulating the cell cycle and focal adhesion signalling and might be a potential synergistic therapeutic target of the FAK-inhibitor VS-6063.
Conclusions

Thus, LINC00518 could do duty for a biomarker and potential therapeutic target in LUAD.
Treatment Failure of Venous Stenting With or Without Direct Oral Anticoagulants (DOAC) / Non-Vitamin K Oral Anticoagulants (NOACs) in Patients With Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) in Term of the Stent Patency: Protocol for a Systematic Review
Authors: Mohebbi Bahram , Moosavi Jamal , Ghadrdoost Behshid , Bayatian Ayatollah , Bakhshandeh Hooman , Besharat Sima , Keshtkar Abbas , Sadeghipour Parham
Published: November 2021

Background: Venous stenting plays a significant role in the treatment of acute deep vein thrombosis (DVT). But the adjuvant anti-coagulant therapy could also help to more successful patency rate. We hope to elucidate the differences in the patency rate of venous stenting with or without direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC) / non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants (NOACs). Methods: Studies that work on the stent patency rate in venous stent with or without DOAC / NOAC will be included. The primary studies (Cohort, case control, case-series or randomized/ non-randomized trials) will be included if the participants / patients have had acute or chronic DVT, with venous stenting (at least one study group or all of study subjects) who have received DOAC / NOAC agents. The stent patency rate should be reported in all of study subjects within a follow-up time, minimum for 1 year. We will perform an electronic search on published or in press articles, which have been published in MEDLINE / PubMed, Embase, the online Cochrane database, CENTRAL and searches of clinical trial registries: clinicalTrials.gov, EU Clinical Trials, ISRCTN registry, WHO network registry for trials. PROSPERO databases will be manually searched for protocols.After screening of the relevant articles, selection and data extraction will be conducted in duplicate and independently. Methodological quality of the selected studies will be assessed using the Newcastle Ottawa Scale (NOS) tool. We will use “Hazard Ratio” (HR) as the optimum Effect Size (ES) in this meta-analysis, otherwise we will use or calculate “Risk Ratio” (RR) or “Odds Ratio” (OR) ES measures as the selected study specific ES. Discussion: In this review, we hope to find the treatment failure/ success rate of venous stenting with or without DOAC / NOAC regards to the stent patency rate and will try to provide insights into the right choice of anti-coagulant therapy.Submitted to PROSPERO (20/9/2021): CRD42021274542
Efficient Eco-Friendly Nano-Extracted Gelatin as Biodegradable Packaging Material
Authors: Ibrahim Saber , Soliman Mohamed
Published: November 2021

Extracted gelatin from the waste of fresh and grilled chicken skin was used to prepare films as a biodegradable packaging material from solutions of various gelatin concentrations using a casting approach. The thermal behavior of extracted gelatins was investigated by differential scanning calorimetric. The particle size and zeta potential of dispersed nanoparticles of gelatins were measured by dynamic light scattering. The surface area of lyophilized gelatin nanoparticles was calculated from the adsorption of N2 gas. Mechanical properties, water vapor permeability (WVP), and oil uptake (OU) of all manufactured films were studied. Tensile strength values significantly increased for films manufactured from both gelatin sources when the concentration increased from 4 % to 6 % up to 5.1 MPa. The elongation of waste skin gelatin-based films was higher than waste grilled skin gelatin (WG)-based films using 4 % and 8 % concentrations up to 57 %. Films manufactured from WG had significantly lower WVP than waste skin gelatin (WS) analogous at a 4 % gelatin concentration. The WVP of films manufactured from gelatin significantly increased as gelatin concentration increased where OU showed higher oil resistance for films manufactured from WS up to 91 % using 4 % gelatin concentration. The morphological structure of the gelatin film was investigated with scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A homogenized and smooth film surface was observed. The percentage of heavy metal was examined by inductively coupled plasma (ICP). The results of this study showed that the films manufactured using higher concentrations of gelatin possessed promising mechanical properties, good barrier properties, and high safety as a recommended biopolymer packaging material for food contact and pharmaceutical applications.
Evolution of metamemory based on self-reference to own memory in artificial neural network with neuromodulation
Authors: Yamato Yusuke , Suzuki Reiji , Arita Takaya
Published: November 2021

The ability that is people’s self-monitoring and controlling of their memory processes is called metamemory. It has been regarded as truly unique characteristics of human memory, and has been studied widely as a component of metacognition in cognitive psychology. We aim to evolve artificial neural networks with neuromodulation, that have a metamemory function. Our constructive approach is based on the repetition of evolutionary experiments, analysis of the evolved networks, and refinement of the measure, to reduce the gap between the functional properties of behavior and human subjective reports of phenomenal experience. In this paper, we show the evolution of neural networks that have metamemory function based on the self-reference of memory, and analysis of the evolved mechanism of metamemory. We also discuss a similarity between the structure of the evolved neural network and the metamemory model defined by Nelson and Narens.
Analysis of Lymphocyte Profile in Lymph Nodes, Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid and Peripheral Blood in Patients With Stage II Sarcoidosis
Authors: Mi Song , Cui Na , Feng Xiaokai , Jiang Chunguo , Wang Jing , Zhang Liming
Published: November 2021

Background: The lymphocyte profile(LP) in mediastinal lymph nodes involved by sarcoidosis has not been extensively studied and the results in the literature were mixed.Methods: This was a prospective study of stage II sarcoidosis patients with intrathoracic lymphadenopathy underwent endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) and bronchoalveolar lavage(BAL). LP in lymph node puncture fluid (LNPF),BAL fluid(BALF) and peripheral blood (PB) were evaluated using flow cytometry. The results of LP in PB,BALF and LNPF were compared. The relationship between respiratory symptoms and LP was preliminarily analyzed.Results: In this study, 16 cases of stage II sarcoidosis were diagnosed,11 with respiratory symptoms and 5 without. There was no correlation between LP in LNPF and BALF in all patients. Compared with the proportion of LP in BALF, in LNPF the lymphocytes and B cells increased, the T cells, CD4 , NK T cells and CD4/CD8 ratio decreased, and there was no difference between CD8 T cells and NK cells.Respiratory symptoms had no effect on LP in LNPF. T cells, CD4, CD8 T cells and CD4/CD8 ratio in BALF were correlated with respiratory symptoms, and there was significant difference between symptomatic group and asymptomatic group. Conclusion: The LP in LNPF were significantly different from those in BALF and not correlated with BALF and not with respiratory symptoms, mainly reflect the involvement of lymph nodes, which may be more conducive to the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of sarcoidosis with lymph nodes involved. T cells, CD4 T cells and CD4/CD8 ratio in BALF were positively correlated with respiratory symptoms, while CD8 in BALF and PB was negatively correlated with respiratory symptoms. These indexes may more accurately reflect the pulmonary involvement of sarcoidosis.
Comprehensive Validation of a Wearable Foot Sensor System for Estimating Spatiotemporal Gait Parameters by Simultaneous Three-Dimensional Optical Motion Analysis
Authors: Homan Kentaro , Yamamoto Keizo , Kadoya Ken , Ishida Naoki , Iwasaki Norimasa
Published: November 2021

Background
Use of a wearable gait analysis system (WGAS) is becoming common when conducting gait analysis studies due to its versatility. At the same time, its versatility raises a concern about its accuracy, because its calculations rely on assumptions embedded in its algorithms. The purpose of the present study was to validate all spatiotemporal gait parameters calculated by the WGAS by comparison with simultaneous measurements taken with an optical motion capture system (OMCS).
Methods
Ten young healthy volunteers wore two inertial sensors of the commercially available WGAS, Physilog®, on their feet and 23 markers for the OMCS on the lower part of the body. The participants performed at least three sets of 10-m walk tests at their self-paced speed in the laboratory equipped with 12 high-speed digital cameras with embedded force plates. To measure repeatability, all participants returned for a second day of testing within two weeks.
Results
All gait parameters calculated by the WGAS had a significant correlation with the ones determined by the OMCS. Bland and Altman analysis showed that the between-device agreement for all gait parameters was within clinically acceptable limits. The validity of the gait parameters generated by the WGAS was found to be excellent except for two parameters, swing width and maximal heel clearance. The repeatability of the WGAS was excellent when measured between sessions.
Conclusion
The present study showed that spatiotemporal gait parameters estimated by the WGAS were reasonably accurate and repeatable in healthy young adults, providing a scientific basis for applying this system to clinical studies.
Triglyceride/low-Density-Lipoprotein Cholesterol (TG/LDL-C) Ratio is the Most Diagnostically Valuable Predictor for Increased Small, Dense LDL in Type 2 Diabetes Patients
Authors: Ouchi Gen , Komiya Ichiro , Taira Shinichiro , Wakugami Tamio , Ohya Yusuke
Published: November 2021

Background: Small, dense low-density lipoprotein (sd-LDL) increases in type 2 diabetes patients and causes arteriosclerosis. Non–high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) is thought to be useful for predicting arteriosclerosis and sd-LDL elevation; however, there are no data about whether the triglyceride (TG)/low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) ratio is a valuable predictor for sd-LDL.Methods: One hundred and ten type 2 diabetes patients with hypertriglyceridemia were analyzed. No patients were treated with fibrates, but forty-seven patients were treated with statins. LDL-C was measured by the direct method. LDL-migration index (LDL-MI) using electrophoresis (polyacrylamide gel, PAG) was calculated, and the value ≥ 0.400 was determined to indicate an increase in sd-LDL. Simple regression analyses were carried out between LDL-MI and lipid markers. Receiver operating characteristic curves of lipid markers for predicting high LDL-MI were applied to determine the area under the curve (AUC).Results: LDL-MI correlated negatively with LDL-C (P = 0.0027) and LDL fraction (P < 0.0001) in PAG electrophoresis and correlated positively with TGs, non–HDL-C, TG/LDL-C ratio, TG/HDL-C ratio, and non–HDL-C/HDL-C ratio among all study patients. Similar results were obtained for patients analyzed according to statin treatment. The AUCs (95% confidence interval) were 0.945 (0.884-1.000) for TG/LDL-C ratio and 0.614 (0.463-0.765) for non–HDL-C in patients without statins (P = 0.0002). The AUCs were 0.697 (0.507-0.887) for TG/LDL-C and 0.682 (0.500-0.863) for non–HDL-C in patients treated with statins. The optimal cut-off point for TG/LDL-C ratio for increased LDL-MI was 1.1 (molar ratio) regardless of statin treatment. The sensitivity and specificity of TG/LDL-C ratio (90.0% and 93.9%) were higher than those of non–HDL-C (56.7% and 78.8%) in patients without statins. Conclusions: The TG/LDL-C ratio is a reliable surrogate lipid marker of sd-LDL and superior to non–HDL-C in type 2 diabetes patients not treated with statins.
Enhanced Thermodynamic, Pharmacokinetic and Theranostic Properties of Polymeric Micelles via Hydrophobic Core-clustering of Superparamagnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles
Authors: Jiang Yixin , Lee Junghan , Park Hye-Min , Shin Kyung-Ju , Yang Su-Geun
Published: November 2021

Background: Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIO) have been applied for decades to design theranostic polymeric micelles for targeted cancer therapy and diagnostic MR imaging. However, the effects of SPIO on the physicochemical, and biological properties of polymeric micelles have not yet been fully elucidated. Therefore, we investigated potential effect of SPIO on the physical and biological properties of theranostic polymeric micelles using representative cancer drug (doxorubicin; Doxo) and polymer carrier (i.e., poly (ethylene glycol)-co-poly(D,L-lactide), PEG-PLA).Methods: SPIO were synthesized from Fe(acetyl acetonate)3 in an aryl ether. SPIO and Doxo were loaded into the polymeric micelles by a solvent-evaporation method. We observed the effect of SPIO-clustering on drug loading, micelle size, thermodynamic stability, and theranostic property of PEG-PLA polymeric micelles. In addition, cellular uptake behaviors, pharmacokinetic and biodistribution study were performed.Results: SPIO formed hydrophobic geometric cavity in the micelle core and significantly affected the integrity of micelles in terms of micelle size, Doxo loading, critical micelle concentration (CMC) and in vitro dissociation. In vivo pharmacokinetic studies also showed the enhanced Area Under Curve (AUC) and elongated the half-life of Doxo.Conclusions: Clustered SPIO in micelles largely affects not only MR imaging properties but also biological and physical properties of polymeric micelles.
The Impact of Electroacupuncture Early Intervention on the Brain Lipidome in a Mouse Model of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder
Authors: Zhou Cuihong , Xue Fen , Shi Qingqing , Xue Shanshan , Zhang Tian , Ma Xinxu , Yu Lisheng , Liu Chuang , Wang Huaning , Peng Zhengwu
Published: November 2021

The neuroprotective effect of electroacupuncture (EA) treatment has been well studied; growing evidence suggests that changes in lipid composition may be involved in the pathogenesis of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and may be a target for treatment. However, the influence of early EA intervention on brain lipid composition in patients with PTSD has never been investigated. Using a modified single prolonged stress (mSPS) model in mice, we assessed the anti-PTSD-like effects of early intervention using EA and evaluated changes in lipid composition in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex (PFC) using a mass spectrometry-based lipidomic approach. mSPS induced changes in lipid composition in the hippocampus, notably in the content of sphingolipids, glycerolipids, and fatty acyls. These lipid changes were more robust than those observed in the PFC. Early intervention with EA after mSPS ameliorated PTSD-like behaviors and partly normalized mSPS-induced lipid changes, notably in the hippocampus. Cumulatively, our data suggest that EA may reverse mSPS-induced PTSD-like behaviors due to region-specific regulation of the brain lipidome, providing new insights into the therapeutic mechanism of EA.
PPP6R2 is a Novel Candidate Gene for Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip as Revealed by Whole Exome Sequencing of 29 Families of Danish Descent
Authors: Dembic Maja , Andersen Lars van Brakel , Larsen Martin Jakob , Mechlenburg Inger , Søballe Kjeld , Hertz Jens Michael
Published: November 2021

Background Developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) is a common condition involving instability of the hip with multifactorial etiology. Early diagnosis and treatment are critical as undetected DDH is an important cause of long-term hip complications. Better diagnostics may be achieved through genetic methods, especially for patients with positive family history. Several candidate genes have been reported but the exact molecular etiology of the disease is yet unknown. Results In the present study, we performed whole exome sequencing of DDH patients from 29 families with at least two affected first-degree relatives. We identified PPP6R2 as a novel DDH gene as two rare missense mutations were identified in three families co-segregating with disease. Mutational burden analysis across the families identified 455 candidate genes, with many genes involved in mechanotransduction, in particular the cilia, the cytoskeleton, the extracellular matrix, and the Notch pathway. ConclusionsHere we report for the first time a previously uncorrelated gene with DDH, PPP6R2. Taken altogether, the data suggest a polygenic mode of inheritance for DDH, and we propose that impaired mechanotransduction is involved in the etiopathological mechanism.
Comprehensive Bioinformatics Analysis of Toll-like Receptors (TLRs) in Pan-Cancer
Authors: Ping Wei , Hong Senyuan , Xun Yang , Li Cong
Published: November 2021

Background: To conduct a comprehensive bioinformatics analysis on the transcriptome signatures of Toll-like receptors (TLRs) in pan-cancer. Materials and methods: A total of 11,057 tissues consisted of 33 types carcinoma in the cancer genome atlas (TCGA) were retrieved and then we further explored the correlation between TLRs’ expression with tumorigenesis, immune infiltration, and drug sensitivity. We conducted a comprehensive bioinformatics analysis on TLR1 to 10 in pan-cancer, including differential expression analysis between normal and tumor tissues, differential immune subtype correlation, survival analysis, tumor immune infiltration estimating, stemness indices correlation, and drug responses correlation.Results: TLR2 was high expressed in most type of tumors. TLR9 was hardly expressed compared to other TLR genes, which lead to TLR9 showed less correlation with both immune-estimate scores and stromal-estimate scores. All the TLRs were related with immune subtype of tumor samples that all of them were differentially expressed in differential immune subtype samples. Expression of TLRs were positively related with immune-estimate scores and stromal-estimate scores in almost all types of tumor. Expression of TLRs were negatively correlated with mRNA expression based stemness scores (RNAss) in nearly almost type of tumors except kidney renal clear cell carcinoma (KIRC), and also negatively correlated with DNA methylation based stemness scores (DNAss) in many types of tumors except Adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC), cholangiocarcinoma (CHOL), KIRC, acute myeloid leukemia (LAML), low-grade glioma (LGG), Testicular Germ Cell Tumors (TGCT), Thyroid carcinoma (THCA), Thymoma (THYM), and Uveal Melanoma (UVM). The expression of TLR9 was significant positively correlated with the drug sensitivity of Fluphenazine, Alectinib, Carmustine, and 7−Hydroxystaurosporine. TLR7 was significant positively correlated with the drug sensitivity of Alectinib.Conclusions: Our study reveals the significant role of TLRs family in pan-cancer and provides potential therapeutic strategies of cancer.
The Risk Factors and Predictive Nomogram for Length Of Stay More than 14 Days in Undergoing TKA Patients: A Secondary Analysis Based on a Cohort Study in Singapore
Authors: Liu Bo , Ma Yijiang , Zhou Chunxiao , wang zhijie
Published: November 2021

Objective: The aim was to explore the risk factors and establish a predictive nomogram of length of stay (LOS) more than 14 days in a undergoing Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) cohort .Methods: We used the raw data, a retrospective cohort study of 2622 patients undergoing TKA in Singapore, for secondary analysis. The LASSO regression was used to optimize feature selection for the LOS more than 14 days. The Multivariable logistic regression analysis was applied to build a predicting nomogram by using the feature selected in the LASSO regression model. In order to evaluate the prediction ability of the model, we calculated the C-index. Simultaneously, the ROC curve, the Calibration curve and the DCA curve was draw to assess the model. Finally, we used 1000 times bootstrap method to verify the accuracy of the model. Results: Finally, 100(3.81%) patients were hospitalized for more than 14 days and 2522 patients (96.19%) were less 14 days. Patient age, ASA status, type of anesthesia, operation duration, procedure description, DM, IHD, CHF, day of operation and blood transfusion were determined and incorporated into the diagnostic nomogram. The C-index was 0.797(95% CI: 0.755-0.839).The calibration curve showed that the model had good recognition ability.The DCA curve analysis showed that the risk nomogram of length of stay more than 14 days was clinically useful.The C-index is 0.763 through 1000 times bootstrapping validation.Conclusion:We used the age, ASA status, type of anesthesia, operation duration, procedure description, DM, IHD, CHF, day of operation and blood transfusion to establish the clinical prediction model , this method can conveniently predict the risk of individual patients with total knee arthroplasty length of stay for more than 14 days.
Advanced HIV Disease Management Practices within Inpatient Medicine Units at a Referral Hospital in Zambia: A Retrospective Chart Review
Authors: Mbewe Nyuma , Vinikoor Michael J. , Fwoloshi Sombo , Mwitumwa Mundia , Lakhi Shabir , Sivile Suilanji , Yavatkar Mallika , Lindsay Brianna , Stafford Kristen , Hachaambwa Lottie , Mulenga Lloyd , Claassen Cassidy W.
Published: November 2021

Background Zambia recently achieved UNAIDS 90-90-90 treatment targets for HIV epidemic control; however, inpatient facilities continue to face a large burden of patients with advanced HIV disease and HIV-related mortality. Management of advanced HIV disease, following guidelines from outpatient settings, may be more difficult within complex inpatient settings. We evaluated adherence to HIV guidelines during hospitalization, including opportunistic infection (OI) screening, treatment, and prophylaxis. Methods We reviewed inpatient medical records of people living with HIV (PLHIV) admitted to the University Teaching Hospital in Lusaka, Zambia between December 1, 20218 and April 30, 2019. We collected data on patient demographics, antiretroviral therapy (ART), HIV biomarkers, and OI screening and treatment – including tuberculosis (TB), Cryptococcus, and OI prophylaxis with cotrimoxazole (CTX). Screening and treatment cascades were constructed based on the 2017 WHO Advanced HIV Guidelines. Results We reviewed files from 200 charts of patients with advanced HIV disease; of these 92% (184/200) had been on ART previously; 58.1% (107/184) for more than 12 months. HIV viral load (VL) testing was uncommon but half of VL results were high. 39% (77/200) of patients had a documented CD4 count result. Of the 172 patients not on anti-TB treatment (ATT) on admission, TB diagnostic tests (either sputum Xpert MTB/RIF MTB/RIF or urine TB-LAM) were requested for 105 (61%) and resulted for 60 of the 105 (57%). Nine of the 14 patients (64%) with a positive lab result for TB died before results were available. Testing for Cryptococcosis was performed predominantly in patients with symptoms of meningitis. Urine TB-LAM testing was rarely performed. Conclusions Inconsistent CD4 testing reduced recognition of advanced HIV and OI screening was suboptimal, in part due to laboratory challenges. HIV programs can potentially reduce mortality and identify PLHIV with retention and adherence issues through strengthening inpatient activities, including VL testing.
Increased Admission Serum Total Bile Acids can be Associated with Decreased 3-month Mortality in Patients with Acute Ischemic Stroke
Authors: Huang Lingling , Xu Ge , Zhang Rong , Ji Jiahui , Wang Yadong , Sun Yaming
Published: November 2021

Background: Bile acids not only play an important role in lipid metabolism and atherosclerosis, but also have anti-apoptosis and neuroprotective effects. However, few studies have focused on the relationship of TBA levels with the severity and prognosis of AIS. Objectives: The aim of this study is to investigate the potential associations of admission fasting serum TBA levels with stroke severity, in-hospital complication incidence and 3 -month all-cause mortality in patients of AIS.Methods: A total of 777 AIS patients were finally enrolled in this study and divided into four groups according to the quartiles of serum TBA levels on admission. Results: Patients in group Q3 had the lowest risk of severe AIS (NIHSS > 10) regardless of the adjustments for confounders (P < 0.05). During hospitalization, 115 patients (14.8%) had stroke progressed (NIHSS score increased by ≥ 2), and 222 patients (28.6%) developed at least one complication, with no statistical difference among the four groups (P > 0.05). There was no significant difference in the incidence of pneumonia, urinary tract infection (UTI), hemorrhagic transformation (HT), gastrointestinal bleeding (GIB), seizures and renal insufficiency (RI) among the four groups (P > 0.05). A total of 114 patients (14.7%) died from various causes (including in-hospital deaths) at 3-month follow-up, respectively 42 (21.3%), 26 (13.3%), 19 (9.9%) and 27 (13.9%) in groups Q1, Q2, Q3 and Q4 with statistical difference (P = 0.013). After adjustments for confounding factors, the risk of death decreased (P -trend < 0.05) in groups Q2, Q3, and Q4 progressively compared with group Q1, with OR values of 0.36 (0.16-0.80), 0.30 (0.13-0.70), and 0.29 (0.13-0.65), respectively. Conclusions: TBA level presents no significant association with the severity of stroke and incidence of complications in patients of AIS, but negatively correlates to the risk of death within 3 months of onset.
Rapid and Reliable Analysis of Kojic Acid in Fungal Agar
Authors: Kushiro Masayo , Aoyama Koji , Kishimoto Marin , Morimitsu Yasujiro , Furukawa Tomohiro
Published: November 2021

A rapid HPLC-UV method was developed for the quantitative analysis of kojic acid contained in fungal agar media. The methanol extract from fungal agar media was diluted with acetic acid aqueous solution and injected into HPLC. The separation was achieved on a C18 column within 10 minutes in an isocratic mode. The mobile phase was composed of water, methanol, and acetic acid. Spike and recovery tests were done using three representative agar media, and accuracy, precision and limit of detection were preferable. The developed method was applicable for the analysis of kojic acid in two Aspergillus strains practically, showing the usability of this method to evaluate the fungal ability to produce a beneficial secondary metabolite, kojic acid.
E.coli JM83 Damages Mucosal Barrier Inducing Hirschsprung-Associated Enterocolitis via Activated TLR4 / NF-κB / P-p38 Signaling
Authors: Zheng Zebing , Gao Mingjuan , Tang Chengyan , Huang Lu , Gong Yuan , Liu Yuanmei , Wang Jian
Published: November 2021

Purpose

Hirschsprung-associated enterocolitis (HAEC) is characterized by intestinal mucosal damage and unbalance of intestinal microbiota. Recent studies have shown that the TLR4/NF-κB/p-p38 signaling in the intestine is of great importance to intestinal mucosal integrity. This study aimed to investigate the role of TLR4/NF-κB/p-p38 signaling in the pathogenesis of HAEC in Escherichia coli (E. coli) JM83 infected Endothelin receptor B (Ednrb)−/− mice.
Methods

Ednrb −/− mice were administered with E. coli JM83 by oral gavage to establish the HAEC model, mice were randomly divided into WT group, Ednrb−/− group and Ednrb−/−+ E. coli JM83 group. The role of TLR4/NF-κB/p-p38 signaling was evaluated by vivo study.
Results

The activation of the TLR4/NF-κB/p-p38 signaling induced by E. coli JM83 caused HAEC in Ednrb−/− mice, which was evidenced by a significantly increased expression of TNF-α, TGF-β and IL-10, decreased density of F-actin protein. While TLR4 knockdown improved the degree of enterocolitis and attenuated the expression of IL-10, TNF-α, TGF-β and increased the density of F-actin protein in Ednrb−/− mice after E. coli infection.
Conclusions

These results indicate that E. coli JM83 activates TLR4/NF-κB/p-p38 signaling to promote the development of HAEC. However, inhibition of this signaling may be benefit to the treatment and prevention of HAEC.
Variability in Plasma Lipids between Intensive Statins Therapy and Conventional-dose Statins Combined with Ezetimibe Therapy in Patients with Coronary Atherosclerosis Disease
Authors: Jin Jinhua , Wang Cao , Wang Manjun , Liu Lu , Xv Tian , Li Duanbin , Chen Zhezhe , Zhang Wenbin , Qiu Fuyu , Li Ya
Published: November 2021

Background: Dyslipidemia is one of the risks of coronary atherosclerosis disease (CAD). Intensive-dose statins or combining with ezetimibe are widely used to improve the lipid-lowering efficacy in the clinic. Recently, lipid variability has gradually gained attention to be a more reliable predictor of cardiovascular events. We aimed to investigate the variability in plasma lipids in the above two lipid-lowering strategy.Methods: It was a multicenter retrospective study, a total of 1275 patients with CAD from January 2009 to April 2019 were divided into 2 groups: intensive statins (atorvastatin 40 mg/d or rosuvastatin 20 mg/d) group and conventional-dose statins (atorvastatin 20 mg/d or rosuvastatin 10 mg/d) combined with ezetimibe group. All patients were followed up for at least 1-year. Multiple linear regression was used to analyze the association of two lipid-lowering regimens with plasma lipids variability; and subgroup analyses of the relevant factors were applied. All verifications are verified by standard deviation (SD), coefficient of variation (CV), and variability independent of mean (VIM) triple methods.Results: In the overall participants, the mean age was 62.3±10.4 years old, and 72.8% was male. Multivariate linear regression indicated that intensive statins group had lower variability in total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C) in all SD, CV, and VIM triple methods than statins combined with ezetimibe group (p for all <0.05). The similar results were established in the subgroup analyses based on atorvastatin or rosuvastatin, diabetes mellites or not, hypertension or not (p for all <0.05).Conclusions: Intensive statins therapy has lower variability in TC, LDL-C, and non-HDL-C, that is, better lipids stability than statins combined with ezetimibe therapy in patients with CAD.
Metastatic Gastric Adenocarcinoma of the Uterine Cervix – A Case Report and Review of the Literature
Authors: Bahall Vishal , De Barry Lance , Barrow Mickhaiel , Ramnarace Rene
Published: November 2021

Background: Poorly differentiated diffuse-type gastric adenocarcinoma typically presents at an advanced stage, however, metastasis to the uterine cervix is extremely rare. To our knowledge, less than forty cases have been described worldwide. Case presentation: We report a case of a 47-year-old woman who presented to us with symptomatic uterine fibroids and subsequently underwent a successful total laparoscopic hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. The diagnosis of metastatic cancer involving the cervix was established incidentally on histopathology, which showed atypical signet ring cells in the lymphovascular spaces of the cervix. Further investigations for a primary malignancy revealed a poorly differentiated diffuse-type gastric adenocarcinoma. Conclusion: Gastric cancer involving the uterine cervix is rare and associated with a poor prognosis. When presented with isolated cervical metastases, the gastrointestinal tract should be considered as a possible primary source. Due to the limited publications on this clinical entity, we expect to raise awareness and study of this unique manifestation of gastric cancer by presenting our case.
Comparison of the value of different measuring parameters in the diagnosis of mediastinal lymph node metastases in patients withlung adenocarcinoma on 18F-FDG PET/CT
Authors: Wen Guanghua , Wang SIsi , Hu Yongan , Huang Qifeng
Published: November 2021

Background

18F-FDG PET/CT has been used worldwide for the staging of lung cancer, but the criteria used for classifying mediastinal lymph nodes as malignant are underdispute. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic ability of using different standardized uptake value (SUV) parameters in the detection of mediastinal lymph node metastases of lung adenocarcinoma.
Method

A retrospective review of 61 patients with lung adenocarcinoma who underwent18F-FDG PET/CT from 2015 to 2018 in the nuclear medicine department of our hospital was performed. Patients with mediastinal lymph nodes shown on PET/CT and who underwent apathological examination were enrolled in our study. Different SUV parameters (e.g.,mediastinal lymph node SUVmax, node/liver SUVmax ratio, and node/mediastinum SUVmax ratio) were evaluated.Histology was used as the gold standard to evaluate the diagnosis of mediastinal lymph node metastasis. Receiver operating characteristic(ROC) curves were used to evaluate the accuracy of the three methods mentioned above. A Pvalue <0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results

The pathological examination confirmed lymph node metastasis in 42 of 104 lymph node sections from 50 patients.The lymph node SUVmax, node/liver SUVmaxratio, and node/mediastinum SUVmax ratio of metastatic lymph nodes were higher than those of benign lymph nodes (P<0.05). The areas under the ROC curves of themediastinallymph node SUVmax, node/liver SUVmax ratio, and node/mediastinum SUVmax ratio were 0.81, 0.88, and 0.83, respectively, with cut-off values of 3.15,1.65, and 1.73, respectively.
Conclusion

The mediastinal lymph node SUVmax, node/liver SUVmax ratio, and node/mediastinum SUVmax ratio each have quite high accuracy in the detection of mediastinal lymph node metastases of lung adenocarcinoma, and a node/liver SUVmax ratio≥1.65 has higher accuracy than the other two parameters.
Adaptation of farmers to climate-change and determinants of their adaptation decisions in South India
Authors: Kumar K. Nirmal Ravi , Reddy M. Jagan Mohan
Published: November 2021

Agriculture, with its allied sectors, is the largest source of livelihood in India and now faces a serious challenge from climate-change. In this context, this study investigated, how farmers in India perceive climate-change, what adaptation strategies they practice, and major determinants of their adaptation decisions. Primary data forms the database collected from 400 sample farmers from southern States of India to employ Discriminant model and Multinomial Logit Model (MNLM). The results of Discriminant analysis revealed that off-farm income, income from agriculture and farming experience are the major discriminating variables with largest contributions to motivate the farmers for tackling climate-change. Findings from MNLM revealed that in addition to above three variables, access to climate-change information and education background of the farmers are also the important determinants in adoption of climate-change adaptation strategies viz., crop diversification, integrating crops with livestock, change in the planting date and adoption of soil and water conservation measures. The study highlighted increasing role of Government in the future to safeguard interests of farmers through offering a wide range of institutional, policy and technology support. Further, providing off-farm employment opportunities to the farmers is crucial to sustain their livelihoods, as such activities are less sensitive to climate-change.
Implementation of Long Short-Term Memory and Gated Recurrent Units on Grouped Time-Series Data to Predict Stock Prices Accurately
Authors: Lawi Armin , Mesra Hendra , Amir Supri
Published: November 2021

Stocks are an attractive investment option since they can generate large profits compared to other businesses. The movement of stock price patterns on the stock market is very dynamic; thus it requires accurate data modeling to forecast stock prices with a low error rate. Forecasting models using Deep Learning are believed to be able to accurately predict stock price movements using time-series data, especially the Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) and Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU) algorithms. However, several previous implementation studies have not been able to obtain convincing accuracy results. This paper proposes the implementation of the forecasting method by classifying the movement of time-series data on company stock prices into three groups using LSTM and GRU. The accuracy of the built model is evaluated using loss functions of Rooted Mean Squared Error (RMSE) and Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE). The results showed that the performance evaluation of both architectures is accurate in which GRU is always superior to LSTM. The highest validation for GRU was 98.73% (RMSE) and 98.54% (MAPE), while the LSTM validation was 98.26% (RMSE) and 97.71% (MAPE).
Validity of Mechanical advantage hypothesis of human grasping depends on the nature of task difficulty
Authors: Rajakumar Banuvathy , Dutta Swarnab , SKM Varadhan
Published: November 2021

Successful object interaction during daily living involves maintaining the grasped object in a static equilibrium by properly arranging the fingertip contact forces. According to the mechanical advantage hypothesis, during supination or pronation torque production, fingers with longer moment arms would produce greater normal force than those with shorter moment arms. Previous studies have probed this hypothesis by investigating the force contributions of the individual fingers through systematic variations (or perturbations) of properties of the grasped handle. In the current study, we examined the applicability of this hypothesis in a paradigm wherein the thumb tangential force was constrained to a minimal constant magnitude. This was achieved by placing the thumb on a freely movable slider platform. The total mass of the handle was systematically varied by adding external loads directly below the center of mass of the handle. Our findings suggest that in the human hand, the central nervous system (CNS) adopts the principle of mechanical advantage depending on an abstract sense of challenge attached to the task situation.
Exome Sequencing Identifies a Novel GUCY2D Mutation in an Iranian Family with Leber Congenital Amaurosis-1: A Case Report
Authors: Neissi Mostafa , Al-Badran Adnan Issa , Mohammadi-Asl Javad
Published: November 2021

Background: Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), the severe form of inherited retinal degenerative disorder is a prevalent disorder in the first year of life. Recently, genetic studies discovered that different gene mutations are responsible for LCA clinical manifestations. Case presentation: In this study, we applied whole exome sequencing (WES) to identify probable gene defects in an Iranian girl with LCA-1. We found a novel disease-causing GUCY2D gene mutation (c.2348T>C; p.L783P), located in exon 12 (NM_000180), causing a missense mutation that has been changed the coding protein. The WES-identified variant was confirmed by Sanger sequencing for the patient and her healthy parents. Submitted to genetic counseling that the patient was 1-year old and blindness from birth.Conclusions: Our findings establish that this detected GUCY2D-p.L783P mutation is the pathogenic variant for LCA-1. This is the first genetic study indicating that c.2348T>C missense mutation in the homozygous state in GUCY2D gene is responsible for the LCA-1 phenotype.
Total Strong Litact Domination in Graphs
Authors: Avvari Renuka Lakshmi , Manda Vani , Chegu Ramprasad
Published: November 2021

In this paper, a new domination number called total strong litact domination number is defined on a graph and values of the defined variant to standard graphs, general graphs, trees etc., are acquired and endeavoured to raise a association among the total strong litact domination number of a litact graph of G with distinct parameters of G and also with additional domination parameters of G.Subject classification number: AMS-05C69, 05C70.
An Intelligent Decision-making System for Complex Products Assembly Process Planning
Authors: Zhang Sheng-Wen , Wang Zhan , Cheng De-Jun , Fang Xi-Feng
Published: November 2021

Current assembly process planning of complex products depends largely on the experience of technical personnel, which results in low design efficiency, low intelligence, and difficult to extract the assembly knowledge. To address these problems, this paper proposes an intelligent decision-making system for complex products assembly process planning through a comprehensively improved BP neural network with considering the assembly unit variability. Firstly, the characteristics, variations and similarities of assembly process for complex products are analyzed. A hierarchical model of product assembly process is established, which decomposes assembly process decision-making for overall structure into several units. A training set of each assembly unit is built considering the effect of assembly unit variability, based on which, an assembly process structure tree can be constructed quickly by connecting the nodes in the assembly process hierarchy model and the assembly process decision results. Secondly, to improve the efficiency and accuracy of decision-making, an ant lion optimizer (ALO)-BP neural network is proposed for complex products assembly process planning, which can optimize the selection of initial weights, thresholds, learning rate and feedback process of BP neural network automatically. Finally, with the case study of assembly process of the marine diesel engines, the proposed approach is compared with other algorithm models. The comparison results demonstrated that the proposed intelligent decision-making system is more precise than the other models.