bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Stainless Steel Pipe Welding With No Backing Gas
Authors: Rajan Vaidyanath , Narayanan Badri , Barrett Michael , Beardsley Kevin
Published: October 2020

For pipe fabrication shops, stainless steel pipe welding typically represents 15%–20% of their business. The pipe materials fabricated in these shops are primarily austenitic stainless 304L and 316L pipe. The quality requirements in stainless pipe fabrication shops are determined by performance requirements for service applications in low temperature, high temperature or corrosive environments. To enable the performance required in these applications, codes, standards and recommended practices for welding are frequently written from a conventional GTAW or SMAW welding paradigm. In addition, for the root pass and the first fill pass made with GTAW, an inert backing gas is always recommended to minimize or eliminate the discoloration or oxidation on the ID surface of the pipe near the root pass. The use of GTAW with inert backing gas adds significant time, complexity and cost to the welding of stainless pipe. In stainless pipe shop fabrication, very few welding practices recognize or encourage the use of GMAW welding solutions for these applications, even though it is known to be a more productive and economical welding process. Moreover, the absence of a consistent and proven GMAW welding solution in terms of either no backing gas GMAW, alternative options for expensive shielding gases, implementing unique welding waveforms etc., proves to be a hindrance in the adoption of GMAW solutions for the welding of stainless pipe.

In this paper, we discuss advances that have been made in producing acceptable stainless pipe welds with a 1G GMAW welding solution using an STT® waveform for the root pass and a unique “Rapid X™” waveform for fill passes with no use of backing gas. One goal of this project was to also find a shielding gas mixture to provide acceptable welds from root to cap that takes into account both welding process performance as well as fabrication of defect free welds. Six different shielding gas mixtures with varying amounts of Ar, He, CO2 and N2 were evaluated. Results indicate that STT/RAPID X™ welds made with 97%Ar/2%CO2/1%H2 provide very promising results in terms of weld appearance and other conventional metrics such as radiography, bends and tensile properties. However, assessment of the corrosion performance in comparison to welds made with conventional GTAW requires development of a better test protocol than the ASTM G48 Method A test for it to be relevant and meaningful.
Cryo-Mechanical Design of ALPACA: A Mixed-Material Radio-Frequency Transparent Vacuum Vessel Operating at 20 K
Authors: Parshley Stephen C. , Cortes-Medellin German , Vishwas Amit , Campbell Donald B. , Herter Terry
Published: October 2020

One of the most promising technologies to enable and enhance large survey capabilities for radio astronomy is the use of focal plane phased array antenna feeds, or more simply, phased array feeds (PAFs). PAFs allow for full and continuous coverage of the telescope’s field of view (FoV), and combined with cryogenic amplifiers, can result in survey speed improvements several orders of magnitude better than current multiple-feed-horn cameras. In order to locate cryogenic PAF elements and amplifiers at the telescope focal plane, a radio-frequency transparent vacuum vessel is required. Unlike typical radomes, the transmission properties must be exceptionally good when dealing with weak astronomical signals. The dome must also be sufficiently strong to carry the mechanical load on the vacuum vessel due to atmospheric pressure. Furthermore, the thermal loading on the internal cryogenic stages from the dome must be manageable for the cooling system. We have solved these problems by using a combination of welded polyethylene sheet to maintain the vacuum integrity and a closed-cell rigid foam to transfer the mechanical load to the opposite side of the vessel (a welded aluminum structure). The PAF elements and amplifiers operate at 20 K, while the foam transfers the mechanical load through an 80 K temperature stage, which also serves as a low-temperature radiation shield for the 20 K sections. The poor thermal conductivity of the foam, combined with G10-CR thermal standoffs on the opposite side, ensures the 80 K stage is sufficiently thermally isolated from room temperature conduction. The radiative loading is reduced via the usual employment of multi-layer insulation. In order to facilitate instrument maintenance and future upgrades, a modular PAF element mechanical strategy is employed. The design is such that a PAF-element-amplifier unit can be replaced without accessing the 20 K stage owing to the use of a “cryo-clamp” that uses materials with different coefficients of thermal expansion to tightly hold the units when cold. Cooling is supplied by three two-stage Gifford-McMahon cryo-coolers. This paper presents these design details for the cryostat of the ALPACA (Advanced L-Band Phased Array Camera for Arecibo), an instrument currently being designed and built for the 305 m radio telescope of the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico.
Creep Damage Assessment of a Low Alloy Pressure Vessel With Dissimilar Metal Welded Joint
Authors: Loomis Robert , Srigiriraju Srikanth , Chakraborty Arindam
Published: October 2020

Creep damage in low alloy steel plates welded using carbon steel filler can be of concern for petroleum and petrochemical industry due to differential thermal strain and creep behavior. An aggravated scenario can occur when a flaw is present at the weld. The current work considers a catalytic reactor vessel in steady-state operation whose design life is consumed by 80%. It is assumed that after few years of initial operation a low alloy steel patch (similar to the vessel plate) was welded to the vessel using carbon steel filler. A crack like flaw is assumed to be present currently and was sized using non-destructive testing. However, uncertainty remains regarding the time when the crack first appeared, which is often a representative case for a vessel in operation for many years.

The objective of the current study is to, by following API 579-1/ASME FFS-1 code procedures, assess the creep damage at the end of the design life considering the postulated scenario as described above. Two cases are considered. For the first case, the currently observed flaw was assumed to be present as is since the beginning of time when the welded patch was made. No flaw growth is assumed for this case from initial time till present. This represents a conservative upper bound case. For the second case, it is assumed that a smaller initial flaw grew to the current size during normal operation. The initial flaw size was determined iteratively such that after growth it matches the currently determined flaw size. For the ease of calculations, the time from initiation of the flaw to the present was discretized into three time intervals during which it is assumed that the flaw size remains constant for the time interval. This removes some of the conservatism inherent in the first case. For both the cases, additional accumulated creep damage is determined considering crack growth. A Finite Element Analysis (FEA) is performed for the reactor vessel patch consisting of a single crack at the weld-patch interface to assess the accumulated creep damage from normal operation till the end of design life. Due to inherent uncertainties in the parameters, sensitivity studies on creep damage due to Adjustment Factors were also performed, based on which Adjustment Factors for Creep Strain Rate (material scatter) and Creep Ductility were chosen appropriately. Steady-state crack growth is considered for creep damage using analytical approach.

The current work shows a practical approach combining FEA and analytical calculations to determine accumulated creep damage where a crack appears to have initiated sometime during the past normal operation.
Retracted: “Motion Model of Spent Fuel Rack Considering Two-Dimensional Gap Flow” [ASME 2020 Pressure Vessels & Piping Conference, Volume 4: Fluid-Structure Interaction, Virtual, Online, August 3, 2020, Conference Sponsors: Pressure Vessels and Piping Division, ISBN: 978-0-7918-8384-6, Copyright © 2020 by ASME. Paper No. PVP2020-21848, V004T04A004; 10 pages; doi: https://doi.org/10.1115/PVP2020-21848]
Authors: ASME
Published: October 2020

This paper was removed as a dual publication on August 5, 2022.

Copyright © 2022 by ASME
Transcatheter aortic valve implantation in a patient with interventricular membranous septal aneurysm resulted in cardiac tamponade of unclear etiology
Authors: Dregoesc Mihaela Ioana , Bindea Dan Ion , Marc Madalin Constantin , Sasarman Vasile , Iancu Adrian Corneliu
Published: October 2020

An 86-year-old lady with severe aortic stenosis and interventricular membranous septal aneurysm underwent transfemoral transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). A balloon-expandable valve was deployed after a difficult native valve crossing. Transesophageal echocardiography showed a rapidly accumulating pericardial effusion, with pericardial thrombus and subsequent cardiac tamponade. The angiographic views raised suspicion of aortic root perforation. Median sternotomy was performed because of sudden hemodynamic collapse.The report presents the uncommon association between severe aortic stenosis and interventricular membranous septal aneurysm in an octogenarian and discusses its impact on the development of a post-TAVI major complication.
Acoustic radiation force on a compressible spheroid
Authors: Jerome Thomas S. , Ilinskii Yurii A. , Zabolotskaya Evgenia A. , Hamilton Mark F.
Published: October 2020

The acoustic radiation force on a compressible spheroid is calculated using expansions of the scattered field in terms of both spherical and spheroidal wave functions that are matched analytically in the far field. There is no restriction on the size or impedance of the spheroid, the structure of the incident field, or the orientation of the spheroid with respect to the incident field. The form of the solution is the same as that developed previously for the radiation force on an elastic sphere, which is a summation of terms involving products of the coefficients in spherical wave expansions of the incident and scattered fields. Spheroidal wave expansions are employed to satisfy the boundary conditions and obtain the scattering coefficients. While the scattering coefficients must be obtained numerically for compressible spheroids, explicit expressions in terms of radial wave functions are available for spheroids with rigid or free surfaces. Results are compared with available analytical expressions for various limiting cases. The theoretical framework may be extended to objects of arbitrary shape.
Let more big fish sink: Fisheries prevent blue carbon sequestration—half in unprofitable areas
Authors: Mariani Gaël , Cheung William W. L. , Lyet Arnaud , Sala Enric , Mayorga Juan , Velez Laure , Gaines Steven D. , Dejean Tony , Troussellier Marc , Mouillot David
Published: October 2020

Removing large fish from the ocean limits blue carbon sequestration through the sinking of their carcasses.
Encapsulating a leukemia vaccine
Authors: Roche Ellen T.
Published: October 2020

A self-healing microcapsule loaded with leukemia-associated antigens, epitope peptides, and PD-1 antibody demonstrates sustained delivery of a leukemia vaccine.
Impact of Intraoperative Cell Salvage on Concentrations of Antibiotics Used for Surgical Prophylaxis
Authors: Lasko Maxwell J. , Conelius Allison M. , Serrano Oscar K. , Nicolau David P. , Kuti Joseph L.
Published: October 2020

Intraoperative cell salvage (IOCS) is used to administer autologous blood lost during surgery. We studied antibiotic disposition through anex vivoIOCS system for vancomycin, piperacillin, ampicillin, and cefazolin. Only 2% ± 1% of antibiotic inoculated in whole blood was recovered in the IOCS reinfusion bag, whereas 97% ± 17% was found in the waste. These observations were confirmed for ampicillin in two patients undergoing liver transplantation.
Chlamydia
-Specific IgA Secretion in the Female Reproductive Tract Induced via Per-Oral Immunization Confers Protection against Primary
Chlamydia
Challenge
Authors: Shillova Nita , Howe Savannah E. , Hyseni Besmir , Ridgell Deahneece , Fisher Derek J. , Konjufca Vjollca
Published: October 2020

Chlamydia trachomatis
is an obligate intracellular pathogen that causes sexually transmitted disease. In women, chlamydial infections may cause pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), ectopic pregnancy, and infertility. The role of antibodies in protection against a primary
Chlamydia
infection is unclear and was a focus of this work. Using the
C. muridarum
mouse infection model, we show that intestinal mucosa is infected via intranasal (i.n.) or per-oral (p.
Phosphatidylethanolamine and Phosphatidylserine Synergize To Enhance GAS6/AXL-Mediated Virus Infection and Efferocytosis
Authors: Zhang Lizhou , Richard Audrey S. , Jackson Cody B. , Ojha Amrita , Choe Hyeryun
Published: October 2020

Phosphatidylserine (PS) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) are usually sequestered to the inner leaflet of the plasma membrane of the healthy eukaryotic cells. During apoptosis, these phospholipids move to the cell’s outer leaflet where they are recognized by so-called PS receptors on surveilling phagocytes. Several pathogenic families of enveloped viruses hijack these PS receptors to gain entry into their target cells. Here, we show that efficiency of these processes is enhanced, namely, PE synergizes with PS to promote PS receptor-mediated virus infection and clearance of apoptotic cells. These findings deepen our understanding of how these fundamental biological processes are executed.
Draft Genome Sequences of
Bacillaceae
Strains Isolated from the International Space Station
Authors: Daudu Robert , Singh Nitin K. , Wood Jason M. , Debieu Marilyne , O'Hara Niamh B. , Mason Christopher E. , Venkateswaran Kasthuri
Published: October 2020

The draft genome sequences of 29 bacterial isolates belonging to the family
Bacillaceae
were collected from the International Space Station, assembled, and identified. Further analysis of these sequences will enable us to understand their roles for space and biotechnological applications.
Complete Genome Sequence of a Jumbo Bacteriophage, vB_pir03, against Vibrio harveyi
Authors: Misol Gerald N. , Kokkari Constantinta , Katharios Pantelis
Published: October 2020

Vibrio harveyi
is a persistent pathogen responsible for disease outbreaks in aquaculture. We have sequenced the genome of a jumbo
Vibrio
phage, vB_pir03, isolated in Greece. Here, we present the complete genome of vB_pir03, which consists of 286,284 bp and 336 open reading frames.
Predictors of postoperative acute exacerbation of interstitial lung disease: a case–control study
Authors: Hosoki Keisuke , Mikami Yu , Urushiyama Hirokazu , Souma Kunihiko , Kawamura Gaku , Uchida Kanji , Nagase Takahide , Jo Taisuke
Published: October 2020

Introduction

Patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD) are known to develop an acute exacerbation (AE) after surgery. Previous studies have evaluated the predictors of postoperative AE. However, it remains unclear whether the results of those studies can be generalised to patients with different types of ILD and/or extrapolated to those who undergo non-pulmonary surgery. This study aimed to elucidate the predictors of the development of AE after surgery with general anaesthesia in patients with ILD.

Methods

We conducted a nested matched case–control study of 700 patients from an initial cohort of 50 840 patients. We excluded those who underwent solid organ or bone marrow transplantation. The cases were patients with ILD who developed AE within 30 days postoperatively, whereas the controls did not develop AE. Each case (n=28) was matched with four controls (n=112) for sex, year of surgery and multiple operations within 30 days. Furthermore, a multivariable conditional logistic regression analysis was used to identify significant predictors, as indicated by a p value of <0.05.

Results

After adjusting for potential confounders, the multivariable conditional logistic regression analysis identified honeycombing on CT (OR 3.09; 95% CI 1.07 to 8.92), a per cent predicted FVC <80% (OR 4.21; 95% CI 1.46 to 12.2) and an ARISCAT score ≥45 (OR 6.14; 95% CI 2.10 to 18.0) significantly associated with the development of postoperative AE.

Conclusions

We found that the three factors were independent predictors for the development of postoperative AE in patients with ILD. These predictors are advantageous because they can be readily evaluated before surgery by surgeons and anaesthesiologists even without consulting experienced pulmonologists.
Identification of a novel differentially methylated region adjacent to ATG16L2 in lung cancer cells using methyl-CpG binding domain protein-enriched genome sequencing
Authors: Bai Hao , He Yanghua , Lin Yanli , Leng Qixin , Carrillo José A. , Liu Jianan , Jiang Feng , Chen Jilan , Song Jiuzhou
Published: October 2020

Lung cancer is the most common cancer worldwide. Epigenetic modifications like DNA methylation play fundamental roles in the dynamic process of lung cancer. The objective of this study was to use methyl-CpG binding domain protein-enriched genome sequencing (MBD-Seq) to identify novel and high-confidence DNA methylation in lung tumor. We first compared the whole-genome DNA methylation of three lung cancer cell lines, including A549, H1299, and SK-MES-1, against BEAS-2B, a lung/bronchial normal epithelial cell line. We then used pyrosequencing and OneStep qMethyl kit methods to verify the results in the cell line specimens. MBD-Seq identified 279, 8046, and 22 887 differentially methylated regions (DMRs), respectively, with 120 common DMRs among three comparison groups. Three DMRs were consistent with the MBD-Seq results by both pyrosequencing and OneStep qMethyl validations. Furthermore, OneStep qMethyl kit was also performed for functional validation of these three potential DMRs in sputum DNA from clinical participants. We successfully identified one new DMR adjacent to ATG16L2. The novel DMR might have an important function in lung carcinogenesis. Further validation of the finding in clinical specimens of lung cancer patients and functional analysis of this novel DMR in the development of lung cancer through transcriptional silencing of ATG16L2 are warranted.
A novel topology identification method based on compressive sensing for multidimensional networks
Authors: Fang Shuheng , Kong Zhengmin , Hu Ping , Ding Li
Published: October 2020

In real-world scenarios, it is difficult to know about the complete topology of a huge network with different types of links. In this brief, we propose a method to identify the topology of multidimensional networks from information transmission data. We consider information propagating over edges of a two-dimensional (2D) network, where one type of links is known and the other type is unknown. Given the state of all nodes at each unit time, we can transform the topology identification problem into a compressive sensing framework. A modified reconstruction algorithm, called Sparsity Adaptive Matching Pursuit with Mixed Threshold Mechanism (SAMPMTM), is proposed to tackle the problem. Compared with the classical Sparsity Adaptive Matching Pursuit (SAMP) algorithm, the proposed SAMPMTM algorithm can reduce the conflict rate and improve the accuracy of network recovery. We further demonstrate the performance of this improved algorithm through Monte-Carlo simulations under different network models.
Comaximal factorization of lifting ideals
Authors: Rostami Esmaeil , Hedayat Sina , Nekooei Reza , Karimzadeh Somayeh
Published: October 2020

A proper ideal [Formula: see text] of a commutative ring [Formula: see text] is called lifting whenever idempotents of [Formula: see text] lift to idempotents of [Formula: see text]. In this paper, many of the basic properties of lifting ideals are studied and we prove and extend some well-known results concerning lifting ideals and lifting idempotents by a new approach. Furthermore, we give a necessary and sufficient condition for every proper ideal of a commutative ring to be a product of pairwise comaximal lifting ideals.
Barrow holographic dark energy with hubble horizon as IR cutoff
Authors: Srivastava Shikha , Sharma Umesh Kumar
Published: October 2020

In this work, we propose a non-interacting model of Barrow holographic dark energy (BHDE) using Barrow entropy in a spatially flat FLRW Universe considering the IR cutoff as the Hubble horizon. We study the evolutionary history of important cosmological parameters, in particular, deceleration parameter, equation of state (EoS) parameter, the BHDE and matter density parameter, and also observe satisfactory behaviors in the BHDE model. The stability of the BHDE model has been examined by squared sound speed [Formula: see text]. In addition, to describe the accelerated expansion of the Universe, the correspondence of the BHDE model with the quintessence scalar field has been reconstructed.
An approach for designing a developable and minimal ruled surfaces using the curvature theory
Authors: Güler Fatma
Published: October 2020

Developable surfaces are defined to be locally isometric to a plane. These surfaces can be formed by bending thin flat sheets of material, which makes them an active research topic in computer graphics, computer aided design, computational origami and manufacturing architecture. We obtain condition for developable and minimal ruled surfaces using rotation frame. Also, the validity of the theorems is illustrated with examples.
Final fate of Kantowski–Sachs gravitational collapse
Authors: Terezón Brisa , De Campos Miguel
Published: October 2020

Although it is not a fundamental question, determining exact and general solutions for a given theory has advantages over a numerical integration in many specific cases. Of course, respecting the peculiarities of the problem. Revisiting the integration of the General Relativity Theory field equations for the Kantowski–Sachs spacetime describes a homogeneous but anisotropic universe whose spatial section has the topology of [Formula: see text], we integrate the equations for arbitrary curvature parameter and write the solutions considering the process of gravitational collapse. We took the opportunity and made some comments involving some features of the model such as energy density, shear, viscosity and the production of gravitational waves via Petrov classification.
On Location Relevance and Diversity in Human Mobility Data
Authors: Damiani Maria Luisa , Hachem Fatima , Quadri Christian , Rossini Matteo , Gaito Sabrina
Published: October 2020

The theme of human mobility is transversal to multiple fields of study and applications, from ad hoc networks to smart cities, from transportation planning to recommendation systems on social networks. Despite the considerable efforts made by a few scientific communities and the relevant results obtained so far, there are still many issues only partially solved that ask for general and quantitative methodologies to be addressed. A prominent aspect of scientific and practical relevance is how to characterize the mobility behavior of individuals. In this article, we look at the problem from a location-centric perspective: We investigate methods to extract, classify, and quantify the symbolic locations specified in telco trajectories and use such measures to feature user mobility. A major contribution is a novel
trajectory summarization
technique for the extraction of the locations of interest, i.e.,
attractive
, from symbolic trajectories. The method is built on a density-based trajectory segmentation technique tailored to telco data, which is proven to be robust against noise. To inspect the nature of those locations, we combine the two dimensions of location attractiveness and frequency into a novel location taxonomy, which allows for a more accurate classification of the visited places. Another major contribution is the selection of suitable entropy-based metrics for the characterization of single trajectories, based on the diversity of the locations of interest. All these components are integrated in a framework utilized for the analysis of 100,000+ telco trajectories. The experiments show how the framework manages to dramatically reduce data complexity, provide high-quality information on the mobility behavior of people, and finally succeed in grasping the nature of the locations visited by individuals.
Developmental Exposure to Air Pollution, Cigarettes, and Lead: Implications for Brain Aging
Authors: Finch Caleb E. , Morgan Todd E.
Published: October 2020

Brain development is impaired by maternal exposure to airborne toxins from ambient air pollution, cigarette smoke, and lead. Shared postnatal consequences include gray matter deficits and abnormal behaviors as well as elevated blood pressure. These unexpectedly broad convergences have implications for later life brain health because these same airborne toxins accelerate brain aging. Gene-environment interactions are shown for ApoE alleles that influence the risk of Alzheimer disease. The multigenerational trace of these toxins extends before fertilization because egg cells are formed in the grandmaternal uterus. The lineage and sex-specific effects of grandmaternal exposure to lead and cigarettes indicate epigenetic processes of relevance to future generations from our current and recent exposure to airborne toxins.
The Science of Workplace Instruction: Learning and Development Applied to Work
Authors: Kraiger Kurt , Ford J. Kevin
Published: October 2020

Learning is the engagement in mental processes resulting in the acquisition and retention of knowledge, skills, and/or affect over time and applied when needed. Building on this definition, we integrate the science of training and the science of learning to propose a new science of workplace instruction, linking the design of instructional events to instructional outcomes such as transfer and job performance through the mediating effects of learner events and learning outcomes. We propose three foundational elements: the learner, instructional principles, and training delivery (methods and media). Understanding and applying instructional principles are the primary methods for enhancing training effectiveness; thus, we detail 15 empirically supported principles. We then discuss the erroneous pursuit of aptitude-by-treatment interactions under the guise of learner styles and age-specific instruction. Finally, we offer suggestions for future research that draw on the foundation of instructional principles to optimize self-directed learning and learning in synthetic learning environments.
Review—Non-Noble Metal-Based Single-Atom Catalysts for Efficient Electrochemical CO2 Reduction Reaction
Authors: Choi Hyeonuk , Lee Dong-Kyu , Han Mi-Kyung , Janani Gnanaprakasam , Surendran Subramani , Kim Jin Hyeok , Kim Jung Kyu , Cho Hoonsung , Sim Uk
Published: October 2020

Single-atom catalysts (SACs), as the name suggests, indicate that only one element participates in the catalytic reaction. The characteristic feature of SACs is that it has immobilized active sites with specific properties, such as unexpected catalytic activity, high product selectivity, and reduced energy barrier. SACs for electrochemical CO2 reduction reactions (CO2RR) should have isolated metal atoms acting as active sites to maximize the efficiency of metal use. Conventional metal catalysts with nano-sized metal particles, however, contain a variety of inactive sites showing inferior efficiency of metal use. Therefore, systematic synthesis and analysis of high-efficiency SACs have been an interesting challenge in the CO2RR. To address these issues, many researchers have attempted to synthesize SACs through various methods and employed numerous characterization techniques to identify single atoms and their electrochemical properties. In this review, we discuss recent trends in the synthesis strategies and analyzing techniques of SACs and explain the influence of SACs on electrochemical CO2RR mechanisms of various C1 and C2 products.
Modulation of pharyngeal swallowing by bolus volume and viscosity
Authors: Ferris Lara , Doeltgen Sebastian , Cock Charles , Rommel Nathalie , Schar Mistyka , Carrión Silvia , Scholten Ingrid , Omari Taher
Published: October 2020

The neuromodulation of the healthy oropharyngeal swallow response was described in relation to bolus volume and viscosity challenges, using intraluminal pressure and impedance topography methods. Among a wide range of physiological measures, those indicative of distension pressure, luminal opening, and flow timing were most significantly altered by bolus condition and therefore considered potential markers of swallow neuromodulation. The study methods and associated findings inform a diagnostic framework for swallow assessment in patients with oropharyngeal dysphagia.
Isolation of high-yield and -quality RNA from human precision-cut lung slices for RNA-sequencing and computational integration with larger patient cohorts
Authors: Stegmayr John , Alsafadi Hani N. , Langwiński Wojciech , Niroomand Anna , Lindstedt Sandra , Leigh Nicholas D. , Wagner Darcy E.
Published: October 2020

Precision-cut lung slices (PCLS) have gained increasing interest as a model to study lung biology/disease and screening novel therapeutics. In particular, PCLS derived from human tissue can better recapitulate some aspects of lung biology/disease as compared with animal models. Several experimental readouts have been established for use with PCLS, but obtaining high-yield and -quality RNA for downstream analysis has remained challenging. This is particularly problematic for utilizing the power of next-generation sequencing techniques, such as RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq), for nonbiased and high-throughput analysis of PCLS human cohorts. In the current study, we present a novel approach for isolating high-quality RNA from a small amount of tissue, including diseased human tissue, such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. We show that the RNA isolated using this method has sufficient quality for RT-qPCR and RNA-seq analysis. Furthermore, the RNA-seq data from human PCLS could be used in several established computational pipelines, including deconvolution of bulk RNA-seq data using publicly available single-cell RNA-seq data. Deconvolution using Bisque revealed a diversity of cell populations in human PCLS, including several immune cell populations, which correlated with cell populations known to be present and aberrant in human disease.
Plasma brain-derived neurotrophic factor and dynamic cerebral autoregulation in acute response to glycemic control following breakfast in young men
Authors: Tsukamoto Hayato , Ishibashi Aya , Marley Christopher J. , Shinohara Yasushi , Ando Soichi , Bailey Damian M. , Hashimoto Takeshi , Ogoh Shigehiko
Published: October 2020

We examined the acute impact of both low- and high-glycemic index (GI) breakfasts on plasma brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and dynamic cerebral autoregulation (dCA) compared with breakfast omission. Ten healthy men (age 24 ± 1 yr) performed three trials in a randomized crossover order; omission and Low-GI (GI = 40) and High-GI (GI = 71) breakfast conditions. Middle cerebral artery velocity (transcranial Doppler ultrasonography) and arterial pressure (finger photoplethysmography) were continuously measured for 5 min before and 120 min following breakfast consumption to determine dCA using transfer function analysis. After these measurements of dCA, venous blood samples for the assessment of plasma BDNF were obtained. Moreover, blood glucose was measured before breakfast and every 30 min thereafter. The area under the curve of 2 h postprandial blood glucose in the High-GI trial was higher than the Low-GI trial ( P < 0.01). The GI of the breakfast did not affect BDNF. In addition, both very-low (VLF) and low-frequency (LF) transfer function phase or gains were not changed during the omission trial. In contrast, LF gain (High-GI P < 0.05) and normalized gain (Low-GI P < 0.05) were decreased by both GI trials, while a decrease in VLF phase was observed in only the High-GI trial ( P < 0.05). These findings indicate that breakfast consumption augmented dCA in the LF range but High-GI breakfast attenuated cerebral blood flow regulation against slow change (i.e., the VLF range) in arterial pressure. Thus we propose that breakfast and glycemic control may be an important strategy to optimize cerebrovascular health.
Proteomic analysis of mitochondrial biogenesis in cardiomyocytes differentiated from human induced pluripotent stem cells
Authors: Venkatesh Sundararajan , Baljinnyam Erdene , Tong Mingming , Kashihara Toshihide , Yan Lin , Liu Tong , Li Hong , Xie Lai-Hua , Nakamura Michinari , Oka Shin-ichi , Suzuki Carolyn K. , Fraidenraich Diego , Sadoshima Junichi
Published: October 2020

Mitochondria play key roles in the differentiation and maturation of human cardiomyocytes (CMs). As human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) hold potential in the treatment of heart diseases, we sought to identify key mitochondrial pathways and regulators, which may provide targets for improving cardiac differentiation and maturation. Proteomic analysis was performed on enriched mitochondrial protein extracts isolated from hiPSC-CMs differentiated from dermal fibroblasts (dFCM) and cardiac fibroblasts (cFCM) at time points between 12 and 115 days of differentiation, and from adult and neonatal mouse hearts. Mitochondrial proteins with a twofold change at time points up to 120 days relative to 12 days were subjected to ingenuity pathway analysis (IPA). The highest upregulation was in metabolic pathways for fatty acid oxidation (FAO), the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS), and branched chain amino acid (BCAA) degradation. The top upstream regulators predicted to be activated were peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator 1 α (PGC1-α), the insulin receptor (IR), and the retinoblastoma protein (Rb1) transcriptional repressor. IPA and immunoblotting showed upregulation of the mitochondrial LonP1 protease—a regulator of mitochondrial proteostasis, energetics, and metabolism. LonP1 knockdown increased FAO in neonatal rat ventricular cardiomyocytes (nRVMs). Our results support the notion that LonP1 upregulation negatively regulates FAO in cardiomyocytes to calibrate the flux between glucose and fatty acid oxidation. We discuss potential mechanisms by which IR, Rb1, and LonP1 regulate the metabolic shift from glycolysis to OXPHOS and FAO. These newly identified factors and pathways may help in optimizing the maturation of iPSC-CMs.
Population coding in the cerebellum: a machine learning perspective
Authors: Shadmehr Reza
Published: October 2020

The cerebellum resembles a feedforward, three-layer network of neurons in which the “hidden layer” consists of Purkinje cells (P-cells) and the output layer consists of deep cerebellar nucleus (DCN) neurons. In this analogy, the output of each DCN neuron is a prediction that is compared with the actual observation, resulting in an error signal that originates in the inferior olive. Efficient learning requires that the error signal reach the DCN neurons, as well as the P-cells that project onto them. However, this basic rule of learning is violated in the cerebellum: the olivary projections to the DCN are weak, particularly in adulthood. Instead, an extraordinarily strong signal is sent from the olive to the P-cells, producing complex spikes. Curiously, P-cells are grouped into small populations that converge onto single DCN neurons. Why are the P-cells organized in this way, and what is the membership criterion of each population? Here, I apply elementary mathematics from machine learning and consider the fact that P-cells that form a population exhibit a special property: they can synchronize their complex spikes, which in turn suppress activity of DCN neuron they project to. Thus complex spikes cannot only act as a teaching signal for a P-cell, but through complex spike synchrony, a P-cell population may act as a surrogate teacher for the DCN neuron that produced the erroneous output. It appears that grouping of P-cells into small populations that share a preference for error satisfies a critical requirement of efficient learning: providing error information to the output layer neuron (DCN) that was responsible for the error, as well as the hidden layer neurons (P-cells) that contributed to it. This population coding may account for several remarkable features of behavior during learning, including multiple timescales, protection from erasure, and spontaneous recovery of memory.
Double-blind disruption of right inferior frontal cortex with TMS reduces right frontal beta power for action stopping
Authors: Sundby Kelsey K. , Jana Sumitash , Aron Adam R.
Published: October 2020

Action stopping recruits the right inferior frontal gyrus (rIFG) and elicits increases in right frontal beta. The present study now provides causal evidence linking these stopping-related beta oscillations to the integrity of the underlying rIFG network. One-hertz transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) over the rIFG impaired stopping and reduced right frontal beta during a stop-signal task. Furthermore, the effect on neural oscillations was specific to stopping-related beta, with no change in sensorimotor mu/beta corresponding to the Go response.
Differential Diagnosis, Clinical Characteristics, and Interventions of Braid-Like Coronary Artery: Case Series Analysis Based on Optical Coherence Tomography
Authors: Leng Wen-Xiu , Wang Huan-Huan , Liu Hai Ming , Song Ying , Xu Lian-Jun , Xu Jing-Jing , Zhao Xue-Yan , Tan Xiao-Yan , Li Rong , Gao Zhan , Gao Li-Jian , Chen Jue , Yuan Jin-Qing , Yang Yue-Jin , Chen Ji-Lin
Published: October 2020

Aim. Based on optical coherence tomography (OCT), we aimed to determine the diagnosis, clinical characteristics, and interventions of braid-like coronary arteries, which are rare and tend to be diagnosed as a woven coronary artery (WCA) anomaly. Methods and Results. We identified braid-like lesions on coronary angiography (CAG) in 7 patients (6 men; median age 47 years; age range 26 to 57 years). All patients were heavy smokers. Four patients were diagnosed with an old myocardial infarction and the other 3 with unstable angina. The braid-like lesions were located in the left anterior descending arteries in 2 patients and in the right coronary arteries in the other 5. TIMI grade 2 flow was observed in all involved vessels. OCT findings of all lesions were consistent with recanalization of organized thrombi, which consisted of septa that divided the lumen into multiple small cavities communicating with each other. No separate three-layered structure could be defined. Based on the significance of the stenosis and its related symptoms, drug-eluting stents were implanted in all of the lesions. All patients experienced symptomatic improvement after the intervention and were followed up event-free for 12 months. Conclusions. Braid-like coronary arteries are likely to undergo recanalization of organized thrombi rather than WCA according to our OCT findings. The majority of cases affect men who smoke heavily. Percutaneous stent implantation may be beneficial in selected patients when feasible.
HVAC Optimal Control with the Multistep-Actor Critic Algorithm in Large Action Spaces
Authors: Huang Zetian , Chen Jianping , Fu Qiming , Wu Hongjie , Lu You , Gao Zhen
Published: October 2020

We propose an optimization method, named as the Multistep-Actor Critic (MAC) algorithm, which uses the value-network and the action-network, where the action-network is based on the deep Q-network (DQN). The proposed method is intended to solve the problem of energy conservation optimization of heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system in a large action space, principally for the cases with high computation and convergence time. The method employs the multistep action-network and search tree to generate the original state and then selects the optimal state based on the value-network for the original and the adjacent states. The results from the application of the MAC algorithm to a simulation problem on the TRNSYS system, where the simulation problem is referring to a real supertall building in Hong Kong, have shown that the proposed MAC algorithm balances control actions between different HVAC subsystems. Further, it substantially saves the computational time while maintaining a good energy conservation performance.
Effect of an Educational Program on Healthcare Professionals’ Readiness to Support Patients with Asthma, Allergies, and Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease for Improved Medication Adherence
Authors: Axelsson Malin , Björk Benita , Berg Ulrika , Persson Karin
Published: October 2020

Purpose. The aim of this study was to strengthen the healthcare professionals’ readiness to support patients who have asthma, an allergy, and COPD for better medication adherence. Methods. The design was an educational intervention in a study population (n = 70) consisting of 66 nurses and four other allied healthcare professionals working in primary care with patients diagnosed with asthma, allergy, or COPD in a county in southern Sweden. As part of two training days, an educational intervention—consisting of lectures and workshops—was conducted. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected. The qualitative data were collected during the workshops when the participants worked with fictitious patient cases. They documented in writing how they, based on the theoretical content in the educational intervention in combination with their clinical experiences, reasoned that the fictitious patients could be supported for better adherence. This documentation constituted qualitative data. The quantitative data were collected through questionnaires, which the participants completed before and after the intervention. Data from the questionnaires were statistically analyzed using descriptive statistics and paired t-tests. The qualitative data collected from the workshops were analyzed with content analysis. Results. The intervention increased the participants’ knowledge of adherence (pre mean 3.95 versus post mean 4.18,

p
=
0.001

) and how to better support patients’ adherence to medication (pre mean 3.71 versus post mean 3.98,

p
=
0.001

). Moreover, their knowledge of how to measure patients’ adherence behavior (pre mean 3.02 versus post mean 3.54,

p
=
0.001

) and how to communicate with patients effectively about adherence was heightened (pre mean 3.92 versus post mean 4.13,

p
=
0.011

). Furthermore, participants felt that their readiness to support patients for better adherence had strengthened (pre mean 3.78 versus post mean 4.13,

p
=
0.001

). Individual adherence support for three fictitious patients with different adherence issues was developed. Conclusion. An educational intervention focusing on adherence and communication equipped healthcare professionals with tools to support patients with asthma, an allergy, or COPD for better medication adherence.
Minimally Invasive Hemodynamic Assessment during Obstetric Hysterectomy for Invasive Placentation with Epidural Anesthesia
Authors: Alvarado-Ramos S. , Lara-Díaz V. J. , López-Gutiérrez M. R. , Torcida-González M. E. , Campos-Rodríguez J. F.
Published: October 2020

Background. The present study aimed to describe the evolution of hemodynamic parameters over time of patients with invasive placentation during their third trimester who were delivered via cesarean section and subsequently underwent obstetric hysterectomy under epidural anesthesia. Methods. A prospective, descriptive, longitudinal, 11-month cohort study of 43 patients aged between 18 and 37 years who presented with invasive placentation. Minimal invasive monitoring was placed before the administration of epidural anesthesia for hemodynamic parameter tracking during the cesarean section. After delivery, the patients underwent an obstetric hysterectomy. Blood loss, hemodynamic parameters, and coagulation were managed via goal-directed therapy. Parameters were compared via repeated measures ANOVA and effect size estimation (Cohen’s d). Results. The mean age of the patients was 29.2 ± 3.4 years and was moderately overweight. They had minor cardiac index variance (

P
=
NS

, no significance), vascular systemic resistance index (NS), heart rate (

P
=
NS

), and median arterial pressure (

P
=
NS

). Differences were observed in the stroke volume index (

P
=
0.015

) due to moderately higher values (d = 0.3,

P
=
0.016

) in the middle of the surgery. Patients had lower cardiac index (d = −0.36, NS) and cardiac workload requirements (d = −0.29,

P
=
0.034

) toward the completion of surgery. Conclusion. Patients who are in their third trimester and who subsequently underwent obstetric hysterectomy under epidural anesthesia had modest surgical hemodynamic variance and reduced cardiac workload requirements toward the end of the surgery.
Experimental and Numerical Study Determining the Warpage Phenomenon of Thin-Wall Injection Molding
Authors: Huang Yueh-Tzu , Huang Chiung-Fang , Peng Bou-Yue , Chang Chun-Wei , Cheng Hsing-Chung , Lin Yi , Shen Yung-Kang , Wang Hao
Published: October 2020

This study emphasizes the warpage phenomenon of thin-walled parts using acrylonitrile-butadiene styrene (ABS) plus polycarbonate (PC) plastics for optimal processing by thin-wall injection molding. The authors first employed the Moldflow software to analyze the runner’s balance on multicavities for thin-walled parts and to simulate the warpage of thin-walled parts with thin-wall injection molding. Then, this study used those data to fabricate a real mold by computer numerical control machining. For this study, the authors fabricated thin-walled parts and measured their warpage using various process parameters (injection speed, injection pressure, mold temperature, packing time, and melt temperature) with thin-walled injection molding. Finally, the authors found that the most important processing parameter was the packing time for warpage phenomenon of thin-walled parts by thin-wall injection molding.
Digital Image Analysis of the Angle and Optic Nerve: A Simple, Fast, and Low-Cost Method for Glaucoma Assessment
Authors: Russell Greg , Hertzberg Silvia N. W. , Anisimova Natalia , Gavrilova Natalia , Petrovski Beáta É. , Petrovski Goran
Published: October 2020

Purpose. To devise a simple, fast, and low-cost method for glaucoma assessment using digital image analysis of the angle and optic nerve in human subjects. Methods. Images from glaucoma and fundus assessment were used in this study, including color fundus photographs, standard optic nerve optical coherence tomography (OCT), and digital slit-lamp images of the angle/gonioscopy. Digital image conversion and analysis of the angle using ImageJ (NIH, USA) and adaptive histogram equalization contrast-limited AHE (CLAHE) to prevent noise amplification were implemented. Angle and optic nerve images were analyzed separately in the red, green, and blue (RGB) channels followed by 3D volumetric analysis of the degrees of angle depth and cup volume of the optic nerve. Horizontal tomogram reconstitution and nerve fiber detection methods were developed and compared to standard OCT images. Results. Digital slit-lamp angle images showed similar accuracy as standard anterior OCT measurements. Comparative analysis of RGB channels produced volumetric cup and horizontal tomogram, which closely resembled the 3D OCT appearance and B-scan of the cup, respectively. RGB channel splitting and image subtraction produced a map closely resembling that of the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness map on OCT. Conclusions. While OCT imaging is rapidly progressing in the area of optic disc and chamber angle assessment, rising healthcare costs and lack of availability of the technology open a demand for alternative and cost-minimizing forms of image analysis in glaucoma. Volumetric, geometric, and segmentational data obtained through digital image analysis correspond well to those obtained by OCT imaging.