bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Eco-friendly Green Composites Reinforced with Recycled Polyethylene for Engineering Applications
Authors: Azeko Salifu Tahiru , Mensah Jacob Kofi , Arthur Emmanuel Kwesi , Abiwu Napoleon , Flomo Moses Kingsford , Boadu Joseph Asiamah , Yamba Philip , Larson Enoch Asuako , Akayeti Anthony , Satankar Raf Kumar , Annan Ebenezer
Published: December 2022

Polyethylene (PE) and cement are serious industrial wastes that promote environmental pollution, with these pollutants having tremendous effects on the lives of humanity and other living creatures, including animals. Therefore, this research presents the results of experimental and theoretical modeling of green composites (without the inclusion of cement) reinforced with recycled polyethylene waste for applications in the Mechanical and Civil Engineering industry. The composites are produced using different weight percentages of laterite and molten PE mixed homogeneously to produce unique green composites with excellent mechanical properties. The green composite with 40 wt.% laterite and 60 wt.% PE exhibited the highest compressive strength, flexural strength and fracture toughness of 25 MPa, 7.3 MPa and , respectively. Additionally, the green composite recorded maximum yield stress of . The maximum yield stress of the green composites falls under the minimum range of yield stress for traditional concrete structures. The SEM images reveal evidence of bonding and ligament bridging in the green composites reinforced with 40 wt.% laterite and 60 wt.% PE. The probability distribution plots show that the polyethylene in the green composites follows the Weibull distribution with low Anderson Darling Statics and p-values greater than the significance level of 5%.
Experience of Chinese Countermarching Nurses with COVID-19 Patients' Death in Wuhan: A Qualitative Study
Authors: GUO Zhifang , Wu Kunli , Shan Huibin , kim Younglee , He Qilian
Published: December 2022

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic was occurring worldwide with over a 6.5million deaths. It’s important to explore the instructions for the global nursing community by identifying the personal coping methods of Chinese nurses in Wuhan to deal with patient deaths.
Methodology: A qualitative phenomenological study was designed to describe 14 Chinese nurses' COVID-19 patient death experiences through in-depth interviews in April 2022, data were analyzed by conventional content analysis methods.
Results: Four themes and subthemes were generated in which participants reported their contacts with COVID-19 patients’ death. The main themes were psychological shock, psychological adjustment, and demands, insights into life and values, and the need for relevant knowledge and skills.
Conclusions: The study provided evidence of nurses‘ psychological and professional needs regarding patient deaths during the epidemic. The instructions integrated from nurses' stories could give guidance for a well-prepared global nursing workforce and high-quality end-of-life patient care in the present and future epidemics.
Igloo-technique for robotic radical prostatectomy—maximum nerve sparing for very early recovery of continence and sexual function
Authors: Fankhauser Christian Daniel , Malkmus Christian , Aschwanden Fabian Joel , Baumeister Philipp , Mattei Agostino
Published: December 2022

Background: We describe a surgical technique to facilitate very early return of continence and erectile function after robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) for prostate cancer.
Objective: To describe the “igloo technique” for RARP.
Design, setting, and participants: Prospective study of the first 13 patients to be treated with the igloo technique at a major urban hospital. Only patients without suspected invasion of the neurovascular bundle were included.
Surgical procedure: RARP was performed using “igloo technique” to preserve all periprostatic structures, including the puboprostatic ligament complex, neurovascular bundles, Santorini complex, endopelvic and periprostatic fascia, and accessory pudendal arteries.
Outcome measurements and statistical analysis: Descriptive analysis of the perioperative, pathological, and short-term oncological outcomes.
Results and limitations: The median operative time was 200 minutes [inter-quartile range (IQR): 188–210]. The transurethral catheter was removed after a median of 3 days post-RARP. In the first 24 hours after catheter removal, the median urine loss was 4g/24h[IQR: 2–10g/24h]. Ten days after surgery, 3 patients had urine loss of 10g/24h, and 10 patients had urine loss of 0g/24h. At 6 weeks after surgery, only 1 patient had urine loss of 10g/24h, and the remaining 12 patients all reported urine loss of 0g/24h. The median IIEF-15 decrease after surgery was 19[IQR: 5–36]. Positive surgical margins were reported for 4 participants(31%), and biochemical recurrence was observed in 1 subject who did not have a positive surgical margin.
Conclusions: The igloo technique is a technically demanding technique for RARP that spares most periprostatic structures with very early return of continence and erectile function after surgery. Despite case selection, a considerable proportion of participants showed a positive surgical margin.
Patient summary: Through improved preservation of the anatomical structures around the prostate, we achieved very early return of urinary continence and erectile function after surgical removal of the prostate.
Construction and validation of a necroptosis-related gene signature associated with the tumor microenvironment in melanoma
Authors: Huang Jie , Lao Jianle , Lai Hongyi , Tan Zhen , Qin Wentao
Published: December 2022

Background
Although carcinogenesis, cancer metastasis, and immunology are all closely related to necroptosis, research is still insufficient to pinpoint the precise function of necroptosis-related genes (NPRGs) in melanoma.
Methods
The training cohort included melanoma patient samples from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), and the validation cohort included melanoma patient samples from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database (GSE65904). The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression was used in the training cohort to construct prognostic signatures based on six NPRGs. Patients were split into groups with high and low risk. The Kaplan-Meier method compared the various risk groups' overall survival (OS). Utilizing Cox regression, the effect of their clinicopathological characteristics and risk scores on survival was assessed. The CIBERSORT method was used to evaluate the immunological microenvironment. The relationship between clinical features, levels of checkpoint gene expression, and risk scores were examined using correlation analysis. The GEPIA2 database and immunohistochemistry were used to confirm the gene expression of six NPRGs (IHC).
Results
The prognostic signature of the NPRGs predicted a worse OS in the high-risk group, and the test cohort corroborated this prediction. In patients with melanoma, risk scores also independently predicted survival outcomes. Significant differences existed between the various risk groups in the immune microenvironment and the expression of checkpoint genes. Necroptosis score revealed a substantial positive link with natural killer cells and M2 macrophages and a significant negative correlation with T-cell and B-cell infiltration. In the high-risk group, several immune checkpoint genes displayed low levels of expression. The results of the IHC investigation were in agreement with the expression of NPRGs from GEPIA2.
Conclusion
In melanoma patients, the prognostic signature linked to NPRGs can be employed as novel prognostic predictors of prognosis and the immune microenvironment.
Probabilistic and deterministic based approach for Liquefaction potential assessment of layered soil
Authors: Poddar Prince , Ojha Sauhadra , Gupta Mohit Kumar
Published: December 2022

The assessment of liquefaction potential in the present study is based on deterministic and probabilistic approach. The deterministic approach was used to analyze the liquefaction assessment of loose saturated river bed deposit with emphasis to two benchmark location. A wide range earthquake data in form of PGA’s value of 0.18g, 0.37g, 0.6g, 0.75g is used as input motion. The dynamic properties of soil were evaluated by using SPT data obtained from the bore log locations. The shear stress induced within soil deposit due to the seismic excitation in the form of cyclic stress ratio (CSR) and cyclic resistance ratio (CRR) was calculated in order to calculate the factor of safety (FOS) against liquefaction. In addition to that, liquefaction potential index (LPI) and probability of liquefaction was also calculated using input motion. It was observed that the shallow layer soil profile is safe against liquefaction whereas deep layer soil profile is unsafe based on probability of liquefaction index.
Geochemical, sedimentological and microbial diversity in contrasting thermokarst lake sediments of Far Eastern Siberia
Authors: Meisel Ove Hanns , Rijkers Ruud , Dean Joshua F. , Zandt Michiel H. in 't , Huissteden Jacobus van , Maximov Trofim C. , Karsanaev Sergey V. , Marchesini Luca Belelli , Goovaerts Arne , Wacker Lukas , Reichart Gert-Jan , Bouillon Steven , Welte Cornelia U. , Jetten Mike S. M. , Vonk Jorien E. , Dolman Han
Published: December 2022

Thermokarst lakes are important conduits for organic carbon (OC) sequestration, soil organic matter (SOM) processing and atmospheric greenhouse gas (GHG) release in the Arctic. They can be classified as either floating-ice lakes, which sustain a zone of unfrozen sediment (talik) at the lakebed year-round, or as bedfast-ice lakes, which freeze all the way to the lakebed in winter. This difference in winter ice regime, as well as their eroding shorelines which mainly determine the quantity and quality of organic matter (OM) input into the lakes, is thought to have a strong influence on the lake’s sediment characteristics and general lake biogeochemistry. We used an array of physical, geochemical, and microbiological tools to identify the differences in the environmental conditions, sedimentary characteristics, carbon stocks and microbial community compositions in the sediments of a bedfast-ice and a floating-ice lake in Far East Siberia with different eroding shorelines. Our data show strong differences across most of the measured parameters between the two lakes. For example, the floating-ice lake contains considerably lower amounts of SOM and dissolved organic carbon (DOC), both of which also appear to be more degraded in comparison to the bedfast-ice lake, based on their stable carbon isotope composition (δ13C). We also document clear differences in the microbial community composition, for both archaea and bacteria. We identified two main drivers of the sedimentary, microbial and biogeochemical diversity in thermokarst lakes. First, the lake depth, which defines the ice regime (bedfast-ice and floating-ice) and thereby also determines the absence or presence of taliks. Second, the input of eroded shoreline soils and OM into the lakes from different allochthonous sources. With ongoing climate warming, it is likely that an increasing number of lakes will shift from a bedfast- to a floating-ice state, and that increasing levels of shoreline erosion will supply the lakes with sediments. Yet, still little is known about the physical, biogeochemical and microbial differences in the sediments of these lake types and how different eroding shorelines impact these lake systems.
Treatment of Persistent Idiopathic Facial Pain with High Cervical Spinal Cord Stimulation: Case Report
Authors: Potru Sudheer , Singh Vinita
Published: December 2022

Introduction:
Facial pain presents complex clinical challenges for the treating clinician, whether those arise from 1) a diagnostic standpoint with identifying the source of pain; 2) dealing with medication side effects at higher doses; or 3) issues with identifying small anatomical structures for interventional or surgical treatment. Atypical facial pain, now known as persistent idiopathic facial pain (PIFP), is no exception to these rules, and is often more refractory than other types of facial pain to conventional treatment options.
Neuromodulation (including both spinal cord and peripheral nerve stimulation) has been described to treat some types of facial pain, with the best evidence available thus far for trigeminal neuralgia, but there is limited evidence thus far for PIFP.
Case Presentation:
We review here the case of a 70-year-old man with significant PIFP versus trigeminal neuralgia, refractory to medications and other interventions. He had excellent relief of his pain with high cervical spinal cord stimulation, and we address the diagnostic challenges related to the true source of pain (equivocal results from interventional procedures) as well as the numerous failed treatment modalities in his care.
Conclusions:
High cervical and cervicomedullary spinal cord stimulation has potential to treat persistent facial pain other than that related to trigeminal neuralgia, and we hope to see more literature for these challenging facial pain states moving forward.
Metabolic crosstalk between skeletal muscle and liver through IRF4-FSTL1 in NASH
Authors: Guo Shangshan , FENG YONGHAO , ZHU XIAOPENG , Zhang Xinyi , Gao Huanqing , Wang Hui , Wang Ruwen , Zhang Qiongyue , Li Yiming , Ren Yan , Gao Xin , Bian Hua , Liu Tieming , Kong Xingxing
Published: December 2022

Inter-organ crosstalk has gained more and more attention recently. However, the mechanisms under this remain incompletely understood. Here, we revealed an endocrine pathway regulated by skeletal muscle IRF4 that manipulates liver pathology. Skeletal muscle specific IRF4 knockout (F4MKO) mice showed ameliorated liver steatosis, inflammation, and fibrosis, without changes in body weight on nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) diet. Proteomics analysis of serum suggested that follistatin-like protein 1 (FSTL1) might link the communication between muscle and liver. Dual luciferase assays showed that IRF4 could transcriptionally regulate FSTL1 and reconstitution of FSTL1 expression in muscle of F4MKO mice was sufficient to restore the liver pathology. Furthermore, co-culture experiments verified that different receptors contribute to FSTL1’s function in different cell types of liver. Finally, we found serum FSTL1 level was positively correlated with NASH progression in human. These data unveiled a signaling pathway from skeletal muscle to liver via IRF4-FSTL1-DIP2A/CD14 in the pathogenesis of NASH.
Comparison of porcine early colonization tendency of intestinal flora between Lantang and Landrace newborn piglets
Authors: li ling , Li Shuai , Luo Junyi , Chen Ting , Xi Qianyun , Zhang Yongliang , Sun Jiajie
Published: December 2022

Background: The early colonization and succession of intestinal microbiota plays a fundamental role in host health and development. To investigate the difference of porcine early colonization tendency of intestinal flora between Lantang and Landrace, we amplified and sequenced the V3-V4 region of 16S rRNA gene in jejunal microbiota of Lantang and landrace piglets.
Results: The findings revealed that the dominant phyla in the jejunum of Lantang piglets were Firmicutes, Actinobacteria and Bacteroidetes, while the dominant phyla of Landrace is Proteobacteria and Fusobacteria. Specifically, Corynebacterium_1, Lactobacillus, Rothia, Granulicatella, Corynebacteriales_unclassified, Corynebacterium, Globicatella and Actinomycetales_unclassified were found to be the dominant genera of Lantang group, while Clostridium_sensu_stricto_1, Escherichia-Shigella, Actinobacillus and Bifidobacterium were the dominant genera of Landrace. Based on the functional prediction of bacteria, we found that bacterial communities from Lantang samples had a significantly greater abundance pathways of fatty acid synthesis, protein synthesis, DNA replication, recombination, repair and material transport across membranes, while the carrier protein of pathogenic bacteria was more abundant in Landrace samples.
Conclusions: Overall, there was a tremendous difference in the early colonization of intestinal microbiota between the two pig species, which may be related to the growth characteristics. However, more further extensive studies should be included to reveal the underlying relationship between early intestinal microbiota colonization in different breeds and pig growth characteristics.
Study on Gas Concentration Prediction of Tunnel Engineering Based on UMAP-BiLSTM
Authors: ZHANG Lunning , RONG Ming , HE Wei , ZHU Keying , ZHAO Qing
Published: December 2022

A deep learning model for Unified Manifold Approximation Projection (UMAP) and Bidirectional Long and Short Time Memory (BiLSTM) is proposed to predict that air ambient gas concentration of the tunnel face in the tunnel and provide early warning to protect the life safety of workers. Firstly, UMAP model reduces the dimensionality of high-dimensional data measured by sensors, and then uses BiLSTM model to predict low-dimensional time series data. Thanks to its long-term dependence capture ability, the characteristics of historical data can be learned in a better way to predict the gas concentration in the closed area of tunnels. In this paper, the proposed model is used to predict the concentration of five gases (O2, CO, CL2, CH4 and H2S) in Kuitun River Tunnel Project in Xinjiang. Compared with three machine learning models: Support Vector Machine (SVM), Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) and BP neural network, the results show that the prediction performance based on UMAP-BiLSTM model is the best, and its Mean Absolute Error (MAE), Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) and Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) are 0.868, 3.925 and 1.5196 respectively. Compared with the existing SVM, ARIMA and BP neural network models, UMAP-BiLSTM model is the best in the comparison models in five kinds of gas concentration prediction, which shows that it puts forward a prediction model with higher efficiency in this paper.
Rational and semi-rational solutions to the Davey-Stewartson III equation
Authors: Wang Shengnan , Yu Guo-Fu
Published: December 2022

In this paper, based on the combination of Hirota’s bilinear method and long wave limit technique, we investigate rational and semi-rational solutions to the third-type Davey-Stewartson (DS III) equation and its nonlocal version. Rational solutions to the DS III equation demonstrate to be kinks, lumps and line rogue waves, while semi-rational solutions display hybrids of solitons, lumps and line rogue waves. As to the nonlocal DS III equation, we derive (semi-)rational solutions and breather solutions. Semi-rational solutions show lumps on the periodic line backgrounds, hybrids of breathers and lumps, line rogue waves and line breathers on the periodic line background.
Preoperative nomogram based on CT imaging to predict recurrence of early-stage glottic cancer after larynx-preserving surgery
Authors: Zhang Huanlei , Pan Mingzhi , Zhu Xuelin , Zhao Xiuli , Feng Qiang
Published: December 2022

Background
The aim of this research is to explore the difference in clinicopathologic and CT features of early-stage glottic cancer (EGC) with or without recurrence after larynx-preserving surgery (LPS), and to establish a preoperative nomogram for predicting postoperative recurrence.
Methods
The clinicopathologic and CT features of 98 consecutive patients with EGC were analyzed retrospectively. Independent predictors for recurrence were determined by multivariate logistic regression analysis and presented with a nomogram. A Harrell’s concordance index (C-index) and a calibration plot were used to assess the performance of the nomogram. The clinical net benefit of the model was evaluated using decision curve analysis (DCA).
Results
There were significant differences in T stage, depth, and normalized CT value (NCT) in arterial phase (NCTAP) and NCT in the venous phase (NCTVP) between with and without recurrence group (all P < 0.05). T stage, depth, and NCTVP were independent predictors of recurrence (Odds ratio [OR] 3.27, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.70–7.27, P = 0.016; OR 5.02, 95% CI 1.65–14.08, P = 0.005, and OR 3.60, 95% CI 2.55–9.63, P = 0.017, respectively). The C-index showed that the nomogram (0.790, 95%CI: 0.675–0.904) has good prediction performance and better than T stage (C-index, 0.619, 95%CI: 0.508–0.730). The calibration curve showed that the predicted probabilities of the nomogram were in good agreement with the actual probabilities, and DCA indicated that it provided more net benefit than the treat-none or treat-all scheme.
Conclusions
CT could provide independent recurrence indicators in patients with EGC, and the developed nomogram may be a potential noninvasive tool to guide personalized treatment.
Comparison of long-term effects of metformin on longevity between people with Type 2 diabetes and matched non-diabetic controls
Authors: Stevenson-Hoare Joshua , Leonenko Ganna , Escott-Price Valentina
Published: December 2022

Background

Metformin, a medication for type 2 diabetes, has been linked to many non-diabetes health benefits including increasing healthy lifespan. Previous work has only examined the benefits of metformin over periods of less than ten years, which may not be long enough to capture the true effect of this medication on longevity.

Methods

We searched medical records for Wales, UK, using the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage dataset for type 2 diabetes patients treated with metformin (N = 129,140) and sulphonylurea (N = 68,563). Non-diabetic controls were matched on sex, age, smoking, and history of cancer and cardiovascular disease. Survival analysis was performed to examine survival time after first treatment, using a range of simulated study periods.

Findings

Using the full twenty-year period, we found that type 2 diabetes patients treated with metformin had shorter survival time than matched controls, as did sulphonylurea patients. Metformin patients had better survival than sulphonylurea patients, controlling for age. Within the first three years, metformin therapy showed a benefit over matched controls, but this reversed after five years of treatment.

Interpretation

While metformin does confer benefits to longevity in the short term, these initial benefits are outweighed by the effects of type 2 diabetes when patients are observed over a period of up to twenty years. Longer study periods are therefore recommended for studying longevity and healthy lifespan.
Long-COVID symptom risk among COVID-19 patients and its relationship to COVID-19 vaccination; a prospective cohort study
Authors: Hamdah Bayan Abu , Nazzal Zaher
Published: December 2022

The acute COVID-19 presentation is well described in the literature, but the long-term effect is unclear. This study aims to find the incidence of long-COVID symptoms and the associated risk factors among COVID-19 patients. A prospective cohort study in Palestine included 669 confirmed COVID-19 patients. Sociodemographic and clinical data were extracted from their medical records and collected via semi-structured telephone interviews on Days 10, 30, 60, and 90 using a semi-structured questionnaire. The incidence of long-COVID symptoms was 41.6% (95%CI: 37.8–45.4%). Females [aOR = 1.5 (95%CI:1.1–2.3)], the elderly [aOR = 4.9 (95%CI:2.0-11.3)], and those who required hospitalization [aOR = 5.0 (95%CI:1.3–3.7)] were at a higher risk of developing long-COVID symptoms, as well as patients with dyspnea at day ten [aOR:2.4 (95%CI: 1.6–3.7] and fatigue at day 60 [aOR:3.1 (95%CI:1.5–6.3]. On the other hand, vaccination was found to be protective; non-vaccinated patients were almost seven times more likely than vaccinated patients to report long symptoms [aOR:6.9 (95%CI:4.2–11.3)]. In conclusion, long-COVID symptoms are common among COVID-19 patients, with higher rates among females, older age groups, hospitalized patients, and those with dyspnea and fatigue, while vaccination has proven effective. Therefore, it is essential to identify at-risk patients early and provide appropriate management.
Urinary bladder metastasis from suspected second primary breast cancer presenting with ambiguous lower urinary tract symptoms: a case report and literature review
Authors: Chang-Chieh Liao , Yen-Chaun Ou , Min-Che Tung , Wei-Shiang Hu , Tang-Yi Tsao , Chao-Yu Hsu
Published: December 2022

Background: Secondary urinary bladder tumors arising from solid tumors are rare, and most are direct extensions from other pelvic neoplasms. Bladder metastasis from distant organs is extremely rare. Here, we present a case of breast cancer (BC) that metastasized to the urinary bladder 21 years after the diagnosis of primary BC.
Case presentation: A 67-year-old female patient underwent modified radical mastectomy of the right breast for stage I (T1N0M0)papillary carcinoma, which was positive for estrogen and progesterone receptors. Twenty-one years later, she visited the outpatient urology clinic with urinary frequency, urgency, and incontinence; fullness in the lower abdomen; and nocturia. Several medical treatments were administered, but symptoms persisted and even worsened. Urinary bladder ultrasound and abdominal computer tomography revealed diffuse bladder wall thickening with a tumor in the right posterior wall. Tumor markers, including alpha-fetoprotein, carcinoembryonic antigen, carbohydrate antigen 125, and carbohydrate antigen 199, were elevated but carbohydrate antigen 15-3 was within the normal range.The patient underwent cystofibroscopy, and random biopsy specimens were collected. Inflammatory changes in the urinary bladder observed during cystofibroscopy were compatible with bladder wall thickening. The pathologic examination revealed metastatic infiltrating lobular carcinoma with triple-negative molecular subtype, which was different than the type of BC diagnosed 21 years ago. We were unable to confirm whether the origin was a second primary BC or the initial BC owing to the limitations related to available immunostaining markers and pathologic sectioning 21 years earlier.
Conclusion: The present case illustrates the critical importance of history-taking in the definitive diagnosis of metastatic cancers in the bladder. Common urinary symptoms may arise from metastasis from uncommon sites. In patients with a history of cancer, the focus should not only be on the currently affected organ but also on the status of the underlying malignancy.
Larvae of Sasakia charonda (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Apaturinae) and three related species use oral odorants to repel ants and wasps
Authors: Hayashi Taro , Holikawa Kaori , Akiba Hisako , INOUE Takashi A , Niihara Kinuko , Fukuda Tatsuya
Published: December 2022

We incidentally discovered that the larvae of Sasakia charonda (Hewitson, 1863) (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Apaturinae) disturbed by ants, wasps, or humans release volatile compounds orally. To identify these substances, we collected oral odorant samples directly from the mouths of S. charonda larvae into volatile-collecting tubes. The trapped oral odorant samples were subjected to gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). We confirmed the identity of 19 substances by comparing them to GC of known standards, and inferred them to mainly be alcohols and aldehydes/ketones, with main chains of 4–5 carbons. Three of the chemicals in the oral odorant samples, 2-butanol, 1-penten-3-ol, and 3-pentanone, showed a repellant effect towards the ants Pristomyrmex punctatus (Smith, 1860) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) and Formica japonica Motschoulsky, 1866 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). We also examined the effects of these 19 volatiles on Polistes spp. (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) and confirmed that some of them were effective repellantsagainst these wasps. We propose that the substances we identified in this study can be used as defensive chemicals, analogous to the osmeterium emissions specific to Papilionidae butterflies. Furthermore, we examined the oral odorants of three related three Japanese Apaturine (Nymphalidae) species, Hestina assimilis (Linnaeus, 1758), Hestina persimilis (Westwood, 1850), and Apatura metis (Freyer, 1829) using the same approach. The chemical compositions of the oral odorants of H. assimilis and H. persimilis were similar to that of S. charonda, whereas that of A. metis differed. Some of the oral substances also induced a defensive response in Apaturinae larvae. We consider these substances to also act as alarm substances against these larvae.
Nitrogen fixation rates in the Guinea Dome and the Equatorial upwelling regions in the Atlantic Ocean
Authors: Carrera Ana Fernández , Kiko Rainer , Hauss Helena , Hamilton Douglas S. , Achterberg Eric P. , Montoya Joseph P. , Dengler Marcus , Brandt Peter , Subramaniam Ajit
Published: December 2022

Biological nitrogen fixation is a key process balancing the loss of combined nitrogen in the marine nitrogen cycle. Its relevance in upwelling or high nutrient regions is still under debate, with the few available studies in these regions of the ocean reporting rates that vary widely from below detection limit to as high as 127nmol L−1d−1. In the eastern tropical Atlantic Ocean, two open ocean upwelling systems are active in boreal summer. One is the seasonal Equatorial upwelling, where the residual phosphorus associated with aging upwelled waters is suggested to enhance nitrogen fixation in this season. The other is the Guinea Dome, a thermal upwelling dome, where the information on the variability of nitrogen fixation is scarce and sparse. We conducted two surveys in the central Atlantic Ocean along 23ºW across the Guinea Dome and the Equator from ca. 16ºN to ca. 6ºS in September 2015 and August-September 2016 with high horizontal resolution (20 to 60 nmi between stations). The abundance of Trichodesmium colonies was characterized by an Underwater Vision Profiler 5 and the total biological nitrogen fixation in the euphotic layer was measured using the 15N2 technique. While the highest abundances of Trichodesmium colonies were found in the area of the Guinea Dome (9°−15°N) with a maximum of 3 colonies L−1 near the surface, colonies were almost absent in the Equatorial band between 2°N− 6°S. The highest nitrogen fixation rate was measured at the edges of the Guinea Dome in 2016 (ca. 31 nmol L−1 d−1), where a patchy distribution was unveiled by our high spatial resolution scheme, and diazotrophs thrive on a sufficient supply of both phosphorus and iron. In the Equatorial band, rates were considerably lower ranging from below detection limit to ca. 4 nmol L−1 d−1, with a clear difference in magnitude between 2015 (very low rates) and 2016 (average rates around 2 nmol L−1 d−1) probably due to a differential supply of phosphorus.
Vestibular Compound Action Potentials and Macular Velocity Evoked by Sound and Vibration in the Guinea Pig1
Authors: Pastras Christopher J. , Curthoys Ian S. , Rabbitt Richard D. , Brown Daniel J.
Published: December 2022

To examine mechanisms responsible for vestibular afferent sensitivity to transient air conducted sounds (ACS) and inter-aural bone conducted vibration (BCV), we performed simultaneous measurements of stimulus-evoked vestibular compound action potentials (vCAPs), utricular macula or stapes velocity, and vestibular microphonics (VMs) in the anaesthetized guinea pig. For short duration punctate stimuli (< 1ms), the vCAP increases magnitude in close proportion to macular velocity and temporal bone (ear-bar) acceleration, rather than other kinematic variables. For longer duration stimuli, the vCAP magnitude switches from temporal bone acceleration sensitive to linear jerk sensitive while maintaining macular velocity sensitivity. vCAP input-output (IO) functions suggest primary afferent response generation has the same origins for both BCV and ACS, with similar macular velocity thresholds and IO functions for both stimuli. Frequency tuning curves evoked by tone-burst stimuli also show the vCAP increases magnitude in proportion to macular velocity, while in contrast, the VM increases magnitude in proportion to macular displacement across the entire frequency bandwidth tested. The subset of vestibular afferent neurons responsible for synchronized firing and vCAPs have been shown previously to make calyceal synaptic contacts with type I hair cells in the striolar region of the epithelium and have irregularly spaced inter-spike intervals at rest. Present results provide new insight into mechanical and neural mechanisms underlying synchronized action potentials in these sensitive afferents, with clinical relevance for understanding the activation and tuning of neurons responsible for driving rapid compensatory reflex responses.
Provision of drug and alcohol services amidst COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative evaluation on the experiences of service providers
Authors: Richards-Johnes Levi , Patel Priya , Jagpal Parbir Kaur , Lowrie Richard , Saunders Karen , Burwood Sarah , Shrestha Sunil , Paudyal Vibhu
Published: December 2022

Background
The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the provision of Drug and Alcohol (D&A) services and associated outcomes have been under-researched.
Aim
This study aimed to understand the experiences of service providers in relation to how drug and alcohol (D&A) services were affected during COVID-19 pandemic, including the adaptations made and lessons learnt for the future.
Method
Focus groups and semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants from various D&A service organisations across the UK. Data was audio recorded followed by transcription and thematic analysis.
Results
A total of 46 participants representing various service providers were recruited between October and January 2022. The thematic analysis identified ten themes. COVID-19 required significant changes to how the treatment was provided and prioritised. Expansion of telehealth and digital services were described, which reduced service wait times and increased opportunities for peer network. However, they described missed opportunities for disease screening, and some users risked facing digital exclusion. Participants who provided opiate substitution therapy service spoke of improving service provider/user trust following the shift from daily supervised treatment consumption to weekly dispensing. At the same time, they feared fatal overdoses and non-adherence to treatment.
Conclusion
This study demonstrates the multifaceted impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on UK-based D&A service provisions. The long-term impact of reduced supervision on Substance Use Disorder treatment and outcomes and any effect of virtual communications on service efficiency, patient-provider relationships and treatment retention and successes are unknown, suggesting the need for further study to assess their utility.
Machine Learning-Assisted Optimal Schedule of Underground Water Pipe Inspection
Authors: Fan Xudong , Yu Xiong
Published: December 2022

There are over 2.2 million miles of underground water pipes serving the cities in the United States. Many are in poor conditions and deteriorate rapidly. Failures of these pipes could cause enormous financial losses to the customers and communities. Inspection provides crucial information for pipe condition assessment and maintenance plan; it, however, is very expensive for underground pipes due to accessibility issues. Therefore, water agencies commonly face the challenge to 1) decide whether it is worthwhile to schedule expensive water pipe inspections under financial constraints, and 2) if so, how to optimize the inspection schedule to maximize its value. This study leverages the physical model and data-based machine learning (ML) models for underground water pipe failure prediction to shed light on these two important questions for decision making. Analyses are firstly conducted to assess the value of water pipe inspection. Results by use of a physical-based failure model and Monte Carlo simulations indicate that by inspecting pipe’s condition, i.e., assessment of pipe’s erosion depth, the uncertainty of water pipe failure prediction can be narrowed down by 51%. For optimal inspection schedule, an artificial neural network (ANN) model, trained with historical inspection data, is evaluated for its performance in forecasting the future pipe failure probability. The results showed that a biased pipe failure prediction can occur under limited rounds of inspection. However, incorporating more rounds of inspection allows to predict the pipe failure conditions over its life cycle. From this, an optimal inspection plan can be proposed to achieve the maximum benefits of inspection in uncertainty reduction. A few salient results from the analyses include 1) the optimal schedule for inspection is not necessarily equal in the time interval, 2) by setting the goal of uncertainty reduction, an optimal inspection schedule can be obtained, where machine learning (ML) model augmented by continuously training with inspection data allows to reliably predict water pipe failure conditions over its life cycle. While this study focuses on underground pipe inspection, the general observations and methodology are applicable to optimize the inspection of other types of infrastructure as well.
Bioinformatic identification of hub genes related to Obesity paradox in Breast Cancer by Menopausal Status
Authors: hosseinpour Zahra , Tavirani Mostafa Rezaei , Akbari Mohammad Esmaeil
Published: December 2022

Breast cancer (BC) considers as one of the most common cancers in women contributing to cancer-related death in the modern world. Obesity, as a worldwide epidemic beside the menopausal status, has a paradox associated with breast cancers. To determine molecular mechanism underlying the paradoxical effects of Obesity on breast cancer, a gene expression dataset from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database was downloaded and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) used to study the changes of co-expression genes in BMI, grad, “tumor. Stage” and “tumor.subtype” dynamically. Functional enrichment analysis was performed on the modules that are highly correlated with BMI, for annotation, visualization and integration discovery. Differentially expressed gene (DEG) analysis was used to determinate upregulated gene in obese post-menopausal woman compare to pre menopause. The results proved that RHO GTPase cycle pathway, had the highest correlation with BMI, but on the other contrary, OSBPL7 and KIR2DL2 genes were upregulated in obese post-menopausal woman. These results may lead to an improvement in comprehending the underlying mechanisms of the effects of body mass on BC, and assist in identifying biomarkers and potential therapeutic targets for treating obese post-menopausal woman with breast cancer.
Cadmium concertation and health risk assessment of ground-water in district Khanewal (South Punjab) Pakistan
Authors: Murtaza Ghulam , Usman Muhamad , Iqbal Rashid , Rahman Muhammad Habib ur , Ali Iftikhar , Arslan Muhammad
Published: December 2022

Contamination of cadmium (Cd) in several areas of Pakistan has been accounted which display severe health risks to the peoples through its various ways of the exposure. There exists relatively infrequent data about cadmium levels in the groundwater of the south Punjab, which is usually utilized for the drinking intention. This study was conducted to evaluate the cadmium concentration in the drinking water of Khanewal district. 196 drinking samples were taken from various areas (urban and rural). Several groundwater sources (tube well, hand pumps and electric pump) were selected at various depths (50 to 400 feet) of four tehsils (Khanewal, Kabirwala, Main channu, Jahanian) of Khanewal district. Collected samples were pacified to assessment of cadmium concentration and physiochemical features of the water such as pH, anions, cations, EC, bicarbonates and carbonates. It was observed that around 90% of water samples were unsafe for the drinking purpose, the main reason is various areas of Khanewal were noticed with cadmium levels greater than WHO (world health organization) allowable limit of cadmium (3µg/l) in the drinking-water. Cadmium caused health hazards was also assessed with regard to the average daily dose (ADD), hazard quotient (HQ) and carcinogenic risk (CR) for human who were depending on the cadmium-contained water for ingestion. It is noticed that peoples of district Khanewal are at the severe carcinogenic health risk. In this research emphasizes that essential monitoring and management steps are essential for humans in the study areas, in order to reduce the cadmium-caused health impacts and build effectual remediation approaches for cadmium-polluted drinking water.
A new species of Genus Limacella from Changa Manga Forest, Pakistan
Authors: KHALIL HAJRA , AYYUB MISBAH , NIAZI ABDUL REHMAN , AKRAM AIZA
Published: December 2022

During a study of the genus Leucoagaricus in Pakistan, we collected a putatively new species with a distinct morphology, anatomy and ITS nrDNA profile from Changa Manga, Punjab. The new species is characterized by the presence of reddish brown central squamules on a milk-white background, thick-walled and ellipsoid spores, narrowly sub-cylindrical to subclavate cheilocystidia and cylindrical stipe. A full description, color photographs, line drawings and a phylogenetic tree of the new species are provided.
Biosynthesis approach of zinc oxide nanoparticles for aqueous phosphorous removal: physicochemical properties and antibacterial activities
Authors: Khamis Mona , Gouda Gamal A. , Nagiub Adham M.
Published: December 2022

In this study, phosphorus (PO43–-P) is removed from water samples using zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs). These nanoparticles are produced easily, quickly, and sustainably using Onion extracts (Allium cepa) at average crystallite size 8.13 nm using Debye-Scherrer equation in hexagonal wurtzite phase. The bio-synthesis ZnO NPs characterization and investigation were conducted. With an initial concentration of 250 mg/L of P, the effects of the adsorbent dose, pH, contact time, and temperature were examined. At pH = 3 and T = 300 K, ZnO NPs, the optimum sorption capacity of 84 mg/g was achieved, which was superior to many other adsorbents. The isothermal study was found to be fit the Langmuir model at monolayer capacity 89.8 mg/g, and the kinetic study was found to follow the pseudo-second-order model. The adsorption process was verified to be endothermic and spontaneous by thermodynamic characteristics. As a result of their low cost as an adsorbent and their high metal absorption, ZnO NPs were found to be the most promising sorbent in this investigation and have the potential to be used as effective sorbents for the removal of P from aqueous solutions. The antimicrobial activity results showed that ZnO NPs concentration had a greater antibacterial activity than conventional Cefotaxime, which was utilised as a positive control, in the inhibitory zone. However, there was no inhibitory zone visible in the controlled wells that had been supplemented with onion extract and DMSO.
Comparison of the intra-abdominal and extra-abdominal techniques in the repair of cesarean section incision
Authors: Farisoğulları Nihat , Denizli Ramazan , Sakcak Bedri , Çiçekli Nayif , Doğan Zeki
Published: December 2022

Objective: To compare the intra-abdominal and extra-abdominal techniques in the repair of uterine incision in cesarean delivery.
Methods: In this study, we analyzed the data of patients that underwent a cesarean section in Viranşehir State Hospital, a secondary care center. The present retrospective study included a total of 589 patients, of whom 296 underwent intra-abdominal uterine repair and 293 underwent extra-abdominal uterine repair in cesarean delivery. The groups were compared in terms of clinical characteristics, operation time, blood loss, and length of hospital stay.
Results: Operation time significantly shorter in patients who underwent extra-abdominal uterine repair (p<0.001). Another significant finding was that blood loss was less in patients who underwent extra-abdominal uterine repair (p=0.002). Other parameters (age, blood transfusion requirement, preoperative and postoperative hemoglobin levels, length of hospital stay, and bowel movements) were statistically similar in the two groups.
Conclusions: Our study showed that extra-abdominal repair shortened the operation time and less blood loss.
Palladium-nickel supported and palladated activated diatomite as an efficient catalyst for poly-α-olefins hydrogenation
Authors: Aubakirov Yermek , Toshtay Kainaubek , Auyezov Ali , Amrousse Rachid , Azat Seitkhan , Sailaukhanuly Yerbolat , Nakan Ulantay
Published: December 2022

In this work, comparative testing of the activity of low-percentage palladium and palladium-nickel catalysts supported on activated diatomite with a commercial nickel catalyst from BASF was carried out in the process of hydrogenation of polyalphaolefins (PAO-4). It has been found that palladium catalysts carry out the process under milder conditions, demonstrate higher activity compared to nickel catalysts, significantly reduce the process time, and provide a higher degree of hydrogenation. The activity of bimetallic catalysts is lower than that of monometallic palladium catalysts. The physicochemical characteristics of catalysts and polyalphaolefin oils also have been determined.
Comparison of the effects of oxidative and inflammatory stresses on rat chondrocyte senescence
Authors: Yagi Misaki , Endo Kentaro , Komori Keiichiro , Sekiya Ichiro
Published: December 2022

Osteoarthritis (OA) is an age-related degenerative joint disease that causes progressive cartilage loss. Chondrocyte senescence is a fundamental mechanism that contributes to the imbalance of matrix homeostasis in OA by inducing senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). Although OA chondrocytes are mainly exposed to oxidative and inflammatory stresses, the role of these individual stresses in chondrocyte senescence remains unclear. In this study, we compared the effects of these stresses on the senescence of rat chondrocytes. Rat chondrocytes were treated with H2O2 and a combination of IL-1β and TNF-α (IL/TNF) to compare their in vitro effect on senescent phenotypes. For in vivo evaluation, H2O2 and IL/TNF were injected into rat knee joints for 4 weeks. The in vitro results showed that H2O2 treatment increased reactive oxygen species, γ-H2AX, and p21 levels, stopped cell proliferation, and decreased glycosaminoglycan (GAG)-producing ability. In contrast, IL/TNF increased the expression of p16 and SASP factors, resulting in increased GAG degradation. Intraarticular injections of H2O2 did not cause any changes in senescent markers; however, IL/TNF injections reduced safranin O staining and increased the proportion of p16- and SASP factor-positive chondrocytes. Our results indicate that oxidative and inflammatory stresses have significantly different effects on the senescence of rat chondrocytes.