bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Development, Implementation and Assessment of Molecular Diagnostics by Next Generation Sequencing in Personalized Treatment of Cancer: Experience of a Public Reference Healthcare Hospital
Authors: Simarro Javier , Murria Rosa , Pérez-Simó Gema , Llop Marta , Mancheño Nuria , Ramos David , de Juan Inmaculada , Barragán Eva , Laiz Begoña , Cases Enrique , Ansótegui Emilio , Gómez-Codina José , Aparicio Jorge , Salvador Carmen , Juan Óscar , Palanca Sarai
Published: August 2019

The establishment of precision medicine in cancer patients requires the study of several biomarkers. Single-gene testing approaches are limited by sample availability and turnaround time. Next generation sequencing (NGS) provides an alternative for detecting genetic alterations in several genes with low sample requirements. Here we show the implementation to routine diagnostics of a NGS assay under International Organization for Standardization (UNE-EN ISO 15189:2013) accreditation. For this purpose, 106 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and 102 metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) specimens were selected for NGS analysis with Oncomine Solid Tumor (ThermoFisher). In NSCLC the most prevalently mutated gene was TP53 (49%), followed by KRAS (31%) and EGFR (13%); in mCRC, TP53 (50%), KRAS (48%) and PIK3CA (16%) were the most frequently mutated genes. Moreover, NGS identified actionable genetic alterations in 58% of NSCLC patients, and 49% of mCRC patients did not harbor primary resistance mechanisms to anti-EGFR treatment. Validation with conventional approaches showed an overall agreement >90%. Turnaround time and cost analysis revealed that NGS implementation is feasible in the public healthcare context. Therefore, NGS is a multiplexed molecular diagnostic tool able to overcome the limitations of current molecular diagnosis in advanced cancer, allowing an improved and economically sustainable molecular profiling.
SRSF2 Mutations in Uveal Melanoma: A Preference for In-Frame Deletions?
Authors: van Poppelen Natasha M. , Drabarek Wojtek , Smit Kyra N. , Vaarwater Jolanda , Brands Tom , Paridaens Dion , Kiliç Emine , de Klein Annelies
Published: August 2019

Background: Uveal melanoma (UM) is the most common primary ocular malignancy in adults in the Western world. UM with a mutation in SF3B1, a spliceosome gene, is characterized by three or more structural changes of chromosome 1, 6, 8, 9, or 11. Also UM without a mutation in SF3B1 harbors similar chromosomal aberrations. Since, in addition to SF3B1, mutations in U2AF1 and SRSF2 have also been observed in hematological malignancies, UM without a SF3B1 mutation—but with the characteristic chromosomal pattern—might harbor mutations in one of these genes. Methods: 42 UMs were selected based on their chromosomal profile and wildtype SF3B1 status. Sanger sequencing covering the U2AF1 (exon 2 and 7) hotspots and SRSF2 (exon 1 and 2) was performed on DNA extracted from tumor tissue. Data of three UM with an SRSF2 mutation was extracted from the The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Results: Heterozygous in-frame SRSF2 deletions affecting amino acids 92–100 were detected in two UMs (5%) of 42 selected tumors and in three TGCA UM specimens. Both the UM with an SRSF2 mutation from our cohort and the UM samples from the TCGA showed more than four structural chromosomal aberrations including (partial) gain of chromosome 6 and 8, although in two TCGA UMs monosomy 3 was observed. Conclusions: Whereas in myelodysplastic syndrome predominantly missense SRSF2 mutations are described, the observed SRSF2 mutations in UM are all in-frame deletions of 8–9 amino acids. This suggests that the R625 missense SF3B1 mutations and SRSF2 mutations in UM are different compared to the spliceosome gene mutations in hematological cancers, and probably target a different, as yet unknown, set of genes involved in uveal melanoma etiology.
The Complex Interaction between the Tumor Micro-Environment and Immune Checkpoints in Breast Cancer
Authors: Barriga Vanessa , Kuol Nyanbol , Nurgali Kulmira , Apostolopoulos Vasso
Published: August 2019

The progression of breast cancer and its association with clinical outcome and treatment remain largely unexplored. Accumulating data has highlighted the interaction between cells of the immune system and the tumor microenvironment in cancer progression, and although studies have identified multiple facets of cancer progression within the development of the tumor microenvironment (TME) and its constituents, there is lack of research into the associations between breast cancer subtype and staging. Current literature has provided insight into the cells and pathways associated with breast cancer progression through expression analysis. However, there is lack of co-expression studies between immune pathways and cells of the TME that form pro-tumorigenic relationships contributing to immune-evasion. We focus on the immune checkpoint and TME elements that influence cancer progression, particularly studies in molecular subtypes of breast cancer.
Rapid Depletions of Subcutaneous Fat Mass and Skeletal Muscle Mass Predict Worse Survival in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma Treated with Sorafenib
Authors: Imai Kenji , Takai Koji , Miwa Takao , Taguchi Daisuke , Hanai Tatsunori , Suetsugu Atsushi , Shiraki Makoto , Shimizu Masahito
Published: August 2019

The aim of this study was to investigate whether rapid depletions of fat mass and skeletal muscle mass predict mortality in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients treated with sorafenib. This retrospective study evaluated 61 HCC patients. The cross-sectional areas of visceral and subcutaneous fat mass and skeletal muscle mass were measured by computed tomography, from which the visceral fat mass index (VFMI), subcutaneous fat mass index (SFMI), and skeletal muscle index (L3SMI) were obtained. The relative changes in these indices per 120 days (ΔVFMI, ΔSFMI, and ΔL3SMI) before and after sorafenib treatment were calculated in each patient. Patients within the 20th percentile cutoffs for these indices were classified into the rapid depletion (RD) group. Kaplan–Meier analysis revealed that with respect to ΔL3SMI (p = 0.0101) and ΔSFMI (p = 0.0027), the RD group had a significantly poorer survival. Multivariate analysis using the Cox proportional-hazards model also demonstrated that ΔL3SMI (≤−5.73 vs. >−5.73; hazard ratio [HR]: 4.010, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.799–8.938, p = < 0.001) and ΔSFMI (≤−5.33 vs. >−5.33; HR: 4.109, 95% CI: 1.967–8.584, p = < 0.001) were independent predictors. Rapid depletions of subcutaneous fat mass and skeletal muscle mass after the introduction of sorafenib indicate a poor prognosis.
1 h Postload Glycemia Is Associated with Low Endogenous Secretory Receptor for Advanced Glycation End Product Levels and Early Markers of Cardiovascular Disease
Authors: Di Pino Antonino , Urbano Francesca , Scicali Roberto , Di Mauro Stefania , Filippello Agnese , Scamporrino Alessandra , Piro Salvatore , Purrello Francesco , Rabuazzo Agata Maria
Published: August 2019

We investigated the correlation of the soluble receptor for advanced glycation end products (sRAGE) and endogenous secretory RAGE (esRAGE) with markers of cardiovascular disease in subjects with normal glucose tolerance (NGT) and 1 h postload glucose ≥155 mg/dL after an oral glucose tolerance test. We stratified 282 subjects without a previous diagnosis of diabetes into three groups: 123 controls (NGT and 1 h postload glycemia <155 mg/dL), 84 NGT and 1 h postload glycemia ≥155 mg/dL (NGT 1 h high), and 75 subjects with impaired fasting glucose and/or impaired glucose tolerance (IFG/IGT). NGT 1 h high subjects exhibited lower esRAGE (0.36 ± 0.18 vs. 0.4 5 ± 0.2, p < 0.05) and higher S100A12 levels than controls (5684 (3193.2–8295.6) vs. 3960.1 (2101.8–7419), p < 0.05). Furthermore, they showed an increased pulse wave velocity (PWV) and intima–media thickness (IMT). No differences were found between the NGT 1 h high group and the IFG/IGT group regarding cardiometabolic profiles. After multiple regression analyses, esRAGE was associated with glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP). Age, HbA1c, and esRAGE were the determinants of IMT, whereas S100A12 and systolic pressure were the determinants of PWV. The NGT 1 h high group exhibited low esRAGE levels and an altered cardiometabolic profile. HbA1c, S100A12, and hs-CRP were associated with these alterations. In conclusion, subjects with NGT are not a homogeneous population, and they present different cardiovascular and glycometabolic risks.
The uPAR System as a Potential Therapeutic Target in the Diseased Eye
Authors: Cammalleri Maurizio , Dal Monte Massimo , Pavone Vincenzo , De Rosa Mario , Rusciano Dario , Bagnoli Paola
Published: August 2019

Dysregulation of vascular networks is characteristic of eye diseases associated with retinal cell degeneration and visual loss. Visual impairment is also the consequence of photoreceptor degeneration in inherited eye diseases with a major inflammatory component, but without angiogenic profile. Among the pathways with high impact on vascular/degenerative diseases of the eye, a central role is played by a system formed by the ligand urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) and its receptor uPAR. The uPAR system, although extensively investigated in tumors, still remains a key issue in vascular diseases of the eye and even less studied in inherited retinal pathologies such as retinitis pigmantosa (RP). Its spectrum of action has been extended far beyond a classical pro-angiogenic function and has emerged as a central actor in inflammation. Preclinical studies in more prevalent eye diseases characterized by neovascular formation, as in retinopathy of prematurity, wet macular degeneration and rubeosis iridis or vasopermeability excess as in diabetic retinopathy, suggest a critical role of increased uPAR signaling indicating the potentiality of its modulation to counteract neovessel formation and microvascular dysfunction. The additional observation that the uPAR system plays a major role in RP by limiting the inflammatory cascade triggered by rod degeneration rises further questions about its role in the diseased eye.
The Intricate Interplay between Epigenetic Events, Alternative Splicing and Noncoding RNA Deregulation in Colorectal Cancer
Authors: Amirkhah Raheleh , Naderi-Meshkin Hojjat , Shah Jaynish , Dunne Philip , Schmitz Ulf
Published: August 2019

Colorectal cancer (CRC) results from a transformation of colonic epithelial cells into adenocarcinoma cells due to genetic and epigenetic instabilities, alongside remodelling of the surrounding stromal tumour microenvironment. Epithelial-specific epigenetic variations escorting this process include chromatin remodelling, histone modifications and aberrant DNA methylation, which influence gene expression, alternative splicing and function of non-coding RNA. In this review, we first highlight epigenetic modulators, modifiers and mediators in CRC, then we elaborate on causes and consequences of epigenetic alterations in CRC pathogenesis alongside an appraisal of the complex feedback mechanisms realized through alternative splicing and non-coding RNA regulation. An emphasis in our review is put on how this intricate network of epigenetic and post-transcriptional gene regulation evolves during the initiation, progression and metastasis formation in CRC.
EGFR–c-Src-Mediated HDAC3 Phosphorylation Exacerbates Invasion of Breast Cancer Cells
Authors: Kwak Sung-Min , Seo Jaesung , Hwang Jin-Taek , Sung Gi-Jun , Song Ji-Hye , Jeong Ji-Hoon , Lee Seung-Hyun , Yoon Ho-Geun , Choi Hyo-Kyoung , Choi Kyung-Chul
Published: August 2019

Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among women. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and proto-oncogene tyrosine-protein kinase Src (c-Src) are critical components of the signaling pathways that are associated with breast cancer. However, the regulatory mechanism of histone deacetylase 3 (HDAC3) in these pathways remains unclear. Using the Net Phos 3.1 program for the analysis of kinase consensus motifs, we found two c-Src-mediated putative phosphorylation sites, tyrosine (Tyr, Y)-328 and Y331 on HDAC3, and generated a phospho-specific HDAC3 antibody against these sites. c-Src-mediated phosphorylation was observed in the cells expressing wild-type HDAC3 (HDAC3WT), but not in cells overexpressing phosphorylation-defective HDAC3 (HDAC3Y328/331A). Phosphorylated HDAC3 showed relatively higher deacetylase activity, and PP2, which is a c-Src inhibitor, blocked HDAC3 phosphorylation and reduced its enzymatic activity. EGF treatment resulted in HDAC3 phosphorylation in both MDA-MB-231 and EGFR-overexpressing MCF7 (MCF7-EGFR) cells, but not in MCF7 cells. Total internal reflection fluorescence analysis showed that HDAC3 was recruited to the plasma membrane following EGF stimulation. HDAC3 inhibition with either c-Src knockdown or PP2 treatment significantly ameliorated the invasiveness of breast cancer cells. Altogether, our findings reveal an EGF signaling cascade involving EGFR, c-Src, and HDAC3 in breast cancer cells.
MicroRNA-21 Mediates the Protective Effect of Cardiomyocyte-Derived Conditioned Medium on Ameliorating Myocardial Infarction in Rats
Authors: Chen Chih-Hung , Hsu Shu-Yuan , Chiu Chien-Chih , Leu Steve
Published: August 2019

Conditioned medium derived from ischemic myocardium improves rodent cardiac function after myocardial infarction. Exosomal miRNA-mediated intercellular communication is considered to mediate the protective effect of conditioned medium against ischemic injury. Oxygen–glucose-deprivation (OGD)-treated cardiac cells and a rat model with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) were applied. The expression profiles of myocardial-disease-associated miRNAs in cardiomyocytes, cardiac fibroblasts, ventricular myocardium, and conditioned medium derived from cardiomyocytes under ischemic stresses were analyzed. Primary cultured cell model and a rat model with myocardial infarction were applied to examine the role of miRNA in regulating cardiomyocyte apoptosis, fibroblast activation, immune cell infiltration, and myocardial infarction. Results showed that expression levels of miR-21 in cardiomyocytes, cardiac fibroblasts, and conditioned medium (CM) derived from cardiomyocytes were up-regulated with OGD treatment. With the depletion of miR-21, the protective effect of CM on cardiomyocytes against oxidative stress, enhanced fibroblast activation, and promotion of angiogenesis in endothelial cells were reduced. Administration of CM reduced the infarcted size and immune cell infiltration in myocardium of rats with AMI, while depletion of miR-21 reduced the effect of CM. In conclusion, miR-21 plays a role in intercellular communication among ischemic cardiac cells. The expression of miR-21 is important for the protective effect of conditioned medium against myocardial infarction.
Researching the Experiences of Children with Cancer: Considerations for Practice
Authors: Boles Jessika , Daniels Sarah
Published: August 2019

Children and adolescents with cancer often participate in medical and psychosocial research throughout their diagnosis and treatment. Furthermore, this involvement frequently extends into the survivorship period. Sometimes referred to as “doubly vulnerable” research participants, children and adolescents with cancer are not only minors, but also minors facing significant medical, developmental, and psychosocial stressors associated with chronic illness. Thus, it is important to exercise care in designing and conducting research with this population; however, these considerations have not been adequately addressed in pediatric healthcare literature. Therefore, the purpose of this review is to describe the research preferences and experiences of children and adolescents with cancer to identify techniques for supporting this population as research participants. By incorporating developmentally appropriate, context-specific, and child-centered adjustments, researchers can help children and adolescents with cancer effectively and meaningfully describe their illness experiences while also developing a positive outlook on future research participation.
Calebin-A, a Curcuminoid Analog Inhibits α-MSH-Induced Melanogenesis in B16F10 Mouse Melanoma Cells
Authors: Goenka Shilpi , Nagabhushanam Kalyanam , Majeed Muhammed , Simon Sanford R.
Published: August 2019

Hyperpigmentation skin disorders comprise melasma, age spots, and post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation. They are characterized by an aberrant upregulation of melanin pigment and pose a significant burden aesthetically. Calebin-A (CBA) is a natural curcuminoid analog derived from turmeric root (Curcuma longa) but, unlike curcumin, it has not been explored yet for anti-melanogenic activity. Hence, in the current study, we studied CBA for its effects on α-melanocyte stimulating hormone (αMSH)-stimulated melanogenesis in B16F10 mouse melanoma cells. Our results showed that CBA (20 μM) significantly suppressed αMSH-stimulated melanogenesis after 48 h treatment. The underlying mechanisms of CBA’s anti-melanogenic activity were studied, and it was shown that CBA did not affect either intracellular tyrosinase activity or the direct activity of tyrosinase enzyme. Additionally, CBA did not affect intracellular α-glucosidase activity but significantly inhibited direct α-glucosidase activity. CBA also directly scavenged 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radicals, consistent with potent antioxidant activity but did not inhibit intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS). CBA increased acidification of cellular organelles and inhibited maturation of melanosomes by significantly reducing the number of mature melanosomes. Our results indicate that CBA may hold promise as a pigmentation inhibitor for hyperpigmentation disorders for cosmetic use by targeting pathways other than tyrosinase inhibition. Further studies to delineate the molecular signaling mechanism of melanogenesis inhibition and test anti-melanogenesis efficacy of CBA in human skin melanocytes and skin equivalents are warranted.
Press to Success: Gd5FW3O16—The First Gadolinium(III) Fluoride Oxidotungstate(VI)
Authors: Dorn Katharina V. , Hartenbach Ingo
Published: August 2019

The gadolinium(III) fluoride oxidotungstate(VI), with the formula Gd5FW3O16, represents the first published fluoride-derivative of a rare-earth metal oxidotungstate. It is synthesized by a mixture of GdF3, Gd2O3, and WO3 at 800 °C and a pressure of 2 GPa with the help of a belt press. The title compound crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P21/c (no. 14) with four formula units per unit cell and the following lattice parameters: a = 539.29 (4), b = 1556.41 (12), c = 1522.66 (11) pm, and β = 93.452 (4). The crystal structure comprises five crystallographically distinguishable Gd3+ cations, which are surrounded by either oxide and fluoride anions (Gd1–3) or by oxide anions only (Gd4, Gd5), with coordination numbers ranging between seven and nine. The fluoride anions are trigonal non-planar coordinated by three Gd3+ cations (Gd1–3). The distorted [WO6]6− octahedra in this structure form isolates edge- and vertex-connected entities of the compositions [W2O10]8− and [W2O11]10−, respectively. According to the presented units, a structured formula can be written as Gd4[FGd3]2[W2O10][W2O11]2. The single-crystal Raman spectrum reveals the typical symmetric stretching vibration mode of octahedral oxidotungstate(VI) units at about 871 cm−1.
Memories of the Future. Predictable and Unpredictable Information in Fractional Flipping a Biased Coin
Authors: Volchenkov Dimitri
Published: August 2019

Some uncertainty about flipping a biased coin can be resolved from the sequence of coin sides shown already. We report the exact amounts of predictable and unpredictable information in flipping a biased coin. Fractional coin flipping does not reflect any physical process, being defined as a binomial power series of the transition matrix for “integer” flipping. Due to strong coupling between the tossing outcomes at different times, the side repeating probabilities assumed to be independent for “integer” flipping get entangled with one another for fractional flipping. The predictable and unpredictable information components vary smoothly with the fractional order parameter. The destructive interference between two incompatible hypotheses about the flipping outcome culminates in a fair coin, which stays fair also for fractional flipping.
Dual Loomis-Whitney Inequalities via Information Theory
Authors: Hao Jing , Jog Varun
Published: August 2019

We establish lower bounds on the volume and the surface area of a geometric body using the size of its slices along different directions. In the first part of the paper, we derive volume bounds for convex bodies using generalized subadditivity properties of entropy combined with entropy bounds for log-concave random variables. In the second part, we investigate a new notion of Fisher information which we call the L 1 -Fisher information and show that certain superadditivity properties of the L 1 -Fisher information lead to lower bounds for the surface areas of polyconvex sets in terms of its slices.
Quantifying the Unitary Generation of Coherence from Thermal Quantum Systems
Authors: Kallush Shimshon , Aroch Aviv , Kosloff Ronnie
Published: August 2019

Coherence is associated with transient quantum states; in contrast, equilibrium thermal quantum systems have no coherence. We investigate the quantum control task of generating maximum coherence from an initial thermal state employing an external field. A completely controllable Hamiltonian is assumed allowing the generation of all possible unitary transformations. Optimizing the unitary control to achieve maximum coherence leads to a micro-canonical energy distribution on the diagonal energy representation. We demonstrate such a control scenario starting from a given Hamiltonian applying an external field, reaching the control target. Such an optimization task is found to be trap-less. By constraining the amount of energy invested by the control, maximum coherence leads to a canonical energy population distribution. When the optimization procedure constrains the final energy too tightly, local suboptimal traps are found. The global optimum is obtained when a small Lagrange multiplier is employed to constrain the final energy. Finally, we explore the task of generating coherences restricted to be close to the diagonal of the density matrix in the energy representation.
Magnetic Helicity and the Solar Dynamo
Authors: Shebalin John V.
Published: August 2019

Solar magnetism is believed to originate through dynamo action in the tachocline. Statistical mechanics, in turn, tells us that dynamo action is an inherent property of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence, depending essentially on magnetic helicity. Here, we model the tachocline as a rotating, thin spherical shell containing MHD turbulence. Using this model, we find an expression for the entropy and from this develop the thermodynamics of MHD turbulence. This allows us to introduce the macroscopic parameters that affect magnetic self-organization and dynamo action, parameters that include magnetic helicity, as well as tachocline thickness and turbulent energy.
A Control Strategy for a Three-Phase Grid Connected PV System under Grid Faults
Authors: Khawla El Malleh , Chariag Dhia Elhak , Sbita Lassaad
Published: August 2019

This paper proposes a Low-Voltage Ride-Through control strategy for a three-phase grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) system. At two stages, the topology is considered for the grid-tied system fed by a photovoltaic generator with a boost converter followed by a three-phase voltage source inverter. A flexible control strategy is built for the proposed system. It accomplishes the PV converter operations under the normal operating mode and under grid faults (symmetrical and asymmetrical grid voltage sag). The boost converter is controlled via an incremental conductance maximum power point tracking technique to maximize the PV generator power extraction. In the case of voltage sag, the implemented control strategy provides a switch between MPPT mode and non-MPPT mode to ensure the protection of the power converters. Theoretical modeling and simulation studies were performed, and significant results are extracted and presented to prove the effectiveness of the proposed control algorithm.
A Long-Range 2.4G Network System and Scheduling Scheme for Aquatic Environmental Monitoring
Authors: Zhang Zheng , Cao Shouqi , Wang Yuntengyao
Published: August 2019

Wireless communications for applications of inshore fishery and large area aquatic environmental monitoring are really challenging, due to the characteristics of a long monitoring period, large coverage area, and adverse transmission conditions. Recently, LPWAN (low-power wide-area network) became the new solution to address these challenges, due to its long transmission distance and low power consumption of end-nodes. In this paper, we designed a novel network system for aquatic environmental monitoring, based on long-range 2.4G technology, which consisted of a low cost dual-channel gateway and end-nodes. A DMSF (dual-channel multiple spreading factors)–TDMA (time division multiple access) MAC (medium access control) scheme for this system was proposed, which largely reduces the channel collision probability, and improves the real-time for urgent data and the average lifetime of end-nodes. We verified the applicability of the long-range 2.4G technology in an aquatic environment, by point-to-point communication experiments over lake water. The performance evaluation and analysis of DMSF–TDMA is presented through simulations, and comparison with other existing schemes. The results demonstrated the benefit of our proposed scheme, in terms of the packet delivery rate, delay, and energy consumption.
SCRAS Server-Based Crosslayer Rate-Adaptive Video Streaming over 4G-LTE for UAV-Based Surveillance Applications
Authors: Naveed Muhammad , Qazi Sameer , Atif Syed Muhammad , Khawaja Bilal A. , Mustaqim Muhammad
Published: August 2019

This research focuses on intelligent unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based, real-time video surveillance to ensure better monitoring and security of remote locations over 4G-LTE cellular networks by maximizing end-user quality of experience (QoE). We propose a novel server-based crosslayer rate-adaptive scheme (SCRAS) for real-time video surveillance over 4G-LTE networks using UAVs. Our key contributions are: (1) In SCRAS, mobile UAVs having preprogrammed flight co-ordinates act as servers, streaming real-time video towards a remote client; (2) server-side video rate adaptation occurs in 4G-LTE based on the physical characteristics of the received signal conditions due to variations in the wireless channel and handovers; (3) SCRAS is fully automated and independent of client assistance for rate adaptation, as it is intended for real-time, mission-critical surveillance applications; (4) SCRAS ensures that during rate adaptation, the current video frame should not be damaged by completing the current group of packet (GoP) before adaptation. Our simulations in NS3 provide credible evidence that SCRAS outperforms recently proposed schemes in providing better QoE for real-time, rate-adaptive, video surveillance over 4G-LTE under varying channel quality and frequent handovers that occur during flight by UAVs.
Intelligent Mapping Method for Power Consumption and Delay Optimization Based on Heterogeneous NoC Platform
Authors: Fang Juan , Zong Huan , Zhao Haoyan , Cai Huayi
Published: August 2019

As integrated circuit processes become more advanced, feature sizes become smaller and smaller, and more and more processing cores and memory components are integrated on a single chip. However, the traditional bus-based System-on-Chip (SoC) communication is inefficient, has poor scalability, and cannot handle the communication tasks between the processing cores well. Network-on-chip (NoC) has become an important development direction in this field by virtue of its efficient transmission and scalability of data between multiple cores. The mapping problem is a hot spot in NoC's research field, and its mapping results will directly affect the power consumption, latency, and other properties of the chip. The mapping problem is a NP-hard problem, so how to effectively obtain low-power and low-latency mapping schemes becomes a research difficulty. Aiming at this problem, this paper proposes a two-populations-with-enhanced-initial-population based on genetic algorithm (TI_GA) task mapping algorithm based on an improved genetic algorithm from the two indexes of power consumption and delay. The quality of the initial individual is optimized in the process of constructing the population, so the quality of initial population is improved. In addition, a two-population genetic mechanism is added during the iterative process of the algorithm. The experimental results show that TI_GA is very effective for optimizing network power consumption and delay of heterogeneous multi-core.
Long-term Analysis of the Effects of Production Management in Coal Mining in Poland
Authors: Jonek-Kowalska Izabela
Published: August 2019

The primary aim of this article is to examine financial efficiency and work productivity, as well as their determinants, in selected Polish coal mines in 1998–2015. To achieve this goal, after introducing a justification for the choice of subject and the literature studies, the research methodology is presented, and research results are subsequently described and analyzed. Next, based on the main conclusions, model regularities and policy implications regarding efficiency and productivity improvement in Polish coal mining enterprises are established. The research for this study was conducted in five Polish coal mines, which were chosen on the basis of criteria aimed at ensuring the results’ comparability and the stability of organizational and mining conditions in the analyzed research period.
Toward an Efficient and Sustainable Use of Energy in Industries and Cities
Authors: Calise Francesco , Vicidomini Maria , Costa Mário , Wang Qiuwang , Østergaard Poul Alberg , Duić Neven
Published: August 2019

Several countries have recently realized that the present development paradigm is not sustainable from an environmental and energy point of view. The growing awareness of the population regarding environmental issues is pushing governments worldwide more and more to promote policies aiming at limiting harmful effects of human development. In particular, the rapid increase of the global temperature, especially in the polar regions, and the management of human wastes, mainly plastic in seas, are some of the main points to be addressed by these novel policies. Several actions must be implemented in order to limit such issues. Unfortunately, the recent COP 24 Conference was not successful, but hopefully an agreement will be established in 2020 at the COP 26 Conference. The effort performed by policymakers must be mandatorily supported by the scientific community. In this framework, this paper aims at showing that countries worldwide are trying to negotiate an agreement to increase energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In addition, in this paper all the researchers reported can provide quantitative measures of the actions to be implemented in order to address a sustainable and efficient use of energy. Here, innovations in terms of novel efficient and environmentally friendly technologies mainly based on renewable energy sources have been also investigated. The study also highlights different sectors that have been involved for this aim, such as energy conversion systems, urban areas, mobility, sustainability, water management, social aspects, etc. In this framework, specific conferences are periodically organized in order to provide a forum for discussion regarding these topics. In this area the Sustainable Development of Energy, Water and Environment Systems (SDEWES) conference is the most ordinary conference. The 13th Sustainable Development of Energy, Water and Environment Systems Conference was held in Palermo, Italy in 2018. The current Special Issue of Energies, precisely dedicated to the 13th SDEWES Conference, is based on three main topics: energy policy and energy efficiency in urban areas, energy efficiency in industry and biomass and other miscellaneous energy systems.
Phase Change Materials (PCM) for Solar Energy Usages and Storage: An Overview
Authors: Mofijur M. , Mahlia Teuku , Silitonga Arridina , Ong Hwai , Silakhori Mahyar , Hasan Muhammad , Putra Nandy , Rahman S.M.
Published: August 2019

Solar energy is a renewable energy source that can be utilized for different applications in today’s world. The effective use of solar energy requires a storage medium that can facilitate the storage of excess energy, and then supply this stored energy when it is needed. An effective method of storing thermal energy from solar is through the use of phase change materials (PCMs). PCMs are isothermal in nature, and thus offer higher density energy storage and the ability to operate in a variable range of temperature conditions. This article provides a comprehensive review of the application of PCMs for solar energy use and storage such as for solar power generation, water heating systems, solar cookers, and solar dryers. This paper will benefit the researcher in conducting further research on solar power generation, water heating system, solar cookers, and solar dryers using PCMs for commercial development.
Desiccant-Assisted Air Conditioning System Relying on Solar and Geothermal Energy during Summer and Winter
Authors: Niemann Peter , Richter Finn , Speerforck Arne , Schmitz Gerhard
Published: August 2019

At Hamburg University of Technology the combination of an open cycle desiccant-assisted air conditioning system and a geothermal system is investigated in the framework of different research projects for several years. The objective of this study is to investigate the energy efficiency of the overall system and to evaluate the geothermal system during summer and winter mode, based on data measured for a temperate climate region. Monitoring results of the performance for dehumidification and remoistening of supply air are presented. Furthermore, the investigated system is compared to reference air conditioning processes. During summer mode, an average dehumidification efficiency of 1.15 is achieved. The electrical energy savings compared to a conventional reference system sum up to 50% for the investigated cooling period. System operation during winter shows an average moisture recovery efficiency of 0.75. The electrical energy demand for air humidification is reduced by 50% compared to a system with electric isothermal air humidification. The geothermal system is operated efficiently throughout the year for cooling and heating application. Besides the energetic system evaluation, measured data regarding the soil temperature and thermal comfort are presented.
Characteristic Analysis of DFIG Wind Turbine under Blade Mass Imbalance Fault in View of Wind Speed Spatiotemporal Distribution
Authors: Wan Shuting , Cheng Kanru , Sheng Xiaoling , Wang Xuan
Published: August 2019

The blade mass imbalance fault is one of the common faults of the DFIG (Doubly-Fed Induction Generator) wind turbines (WTs). In this paper, considering the spatiotemporal distribution of natural wind speed and the influence of wind shear and tower shadow effect, the influence of blade mass imbalance faults on the electrical characteristics of DFIG WTs is analyzed. Firstly, the analytical expressions and variation characteristics of electromagnetic torque and electromagnetic power under blade mass imbalance are derived before and after consideration of the spatiotemporal distribution of wind speed. Then simulations on the MATLAB/Simulink platform were done to verify the theoretical analysis results. The theoretical analysis and simulation results show that, considering the spatiotemporal distribution of wind speed and the influence of wind shear and tower shadow effect, the blade mass imbalance fault will cause fluctuation at the frequency of 1P (P = the frequency of rotor rotation), 3P, and 6P on electromagnetic power. Fluctuation at 1P is caused by mass imbalance while fluctuation at 3P and 6P are caused by wind speed spatiotemporal distribution; the amplitude of fluctuation at 1P is proportional to the degree of the imbalance fault. Since the equivalent wind speed has been used in this paper instead of the average wind speed, the data is more suitable for the actual operation of the WT in the natural world and can be applied for fault diagnosis in field WT operation.
Chlorophyll in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea: Correlations with Environmental Factors and Trends
Authors: Kotta Dionysia , Kitsiou Dimitra
Published: August 2019

The research on marine chlorophyll concentrations, as indicators of phytoplankton abundance, their relations with environmental parameters, and their trends is of global interest. It is also crucial when referring to oligotrophic environments where maintenance or increase in primary production is vital. The present study focuses on the Eastern Mediterranean Sea that is in general oligotrophic. Its primary goal is to explore possible relations between surface chlorophyll-a concentrations and environmental factors. The involved parameters are the sea surface temperature, the wind speed, the wave height, the precipitation, and the mean sea level pressure; their relation with chlorophyll is assessed through the calculation of the relevant correlation coefficients, based on monthly satellite-derived and numerical model data for the period 1998–2016. The results show that chlorophyll relates inversely with sea surface temperature; in general positively with wind speed and wave height; positively, although weaker, with precipitation; and negatively, but area and season limited, with mean sea level pressure. These correlations are stronger over the open southern part of the study area and strongly dependent on the season. A secondary aim of the study is the estimation of chlorophyll trends for the same time interval, which is performed separately for the low and the high production periods. The statistically significant results reveal only increasing local chlorophyll trends that, for each period, mainly characterize the eastern and the western part of the area, respectively.
Assessing the Efficacy of Seedling Planting as a Forest Restoration Technique in Temperate Hardwood Forests Impacted by Invasive Species
Authors: Woods Michaela J. , Cobb Meredith , Hickle Katie , McEwan Ryan W.
Published: August 2019

The emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire; EAB) is an invasive insect that causes mortality of trees in the genus Fraxinus, creating canopy gaps that may facilitate invasion by exotic plants. Planting native tree seedlings under EAB-infested Fraxinus may accelerate succession and preclude invasive plant expansion; however, the effectiveness of this approach has not been experimentally tested. We assessed understory seedling planting of Quercus rubra, Carya laciniosa, and Juglans cinerea in EAB-infested forests, where the invasive shrub Lonicera maackii (Amur honeysuckle) was removed. We tested whether the use of plastic tree shelters (“tree tubes”) or planting season (fall versus spring) contributed to the success of the reforestation plan by measuring growth rates (cm/yr) and survivorship two and seven years after planting. After seven years, seedling survivorship was <25% for all species and planting techniques. Quercus rubra exhibited poor survivorship with one seedling surviving to the conclusion of the experiment. Juglans cinerea and C. laciniosa had higher survivability and growth rates than did Q. rubra after two and seven years. Effects of tree tubes were weak and temporary. After 2 years, Q. rubra seedling survivorship was higher in tree tubes; however, by the end of the experiment 29 of the 30 Q. rubra seedlings in tree tubes had died. Juglans cinerea seedlings grew faster when planted in the fall compared to the spring, but overall survivorship of these seedlings was unaffected by planting season. Neither the use of tree shelters nor the planting season contributed to the growth or survival of C. laciniosa seedlings. In summary, our results indicate that seedling planting of Carya and Juglans may be a useful way to increase biodiversity in regenerating forests; however, the resource-expensive processes of over-wintering seedlings and using tree shelters may not increase the success of reforestation efforts.
Combined Self-Attention Mechanism for Chinese Named Entity Recognition in Military
Authors: Liao Fei , Ma Liangli , Pei Jingjing , Tan Linshan
Published: August 2019

Military named entity recognition (MNER) is one of the key technologies in military information extraction. Traditional methods for the MNER task rely on cumbersome feature engineering and specialized domain knowledge. In order to solve this problem, we propose a method employing a bidirectional long short-term memory (BiLSTM) neural network with a self-attention mechanism to identify the military entities automatically. We obtain distributed vector representations of the military corpus by unsupervised learning and the BiLSTM model combined with the self-attention mechanism is adopted to capture contextual information fully carried by the character vector sequence. The experimental results show that the self-attention mechanism can improve effectively the performance of MNER task. The F-score of the military documents and network military texts identification was 90.15% and 89.34%, respectively, which was better than other models.
Dye Adsorption and Electrical Property of Oxide-Loaded Carbon Fiber Made by Electrospinning and Hydrothermal Treatment
Authors: Kansara Saurabh , Patel Shivani , Gan Yong X. , Jaimes Gabriela , Gan Jeremy B.
Published: August 2019

Our current study deals with the dye adsorption and electrical property of a partially carbonized composite fiber containing transition metal oxides including, iron oxide, nickel oxide, and titanium oxide. The fiber was made by electrospinning, carbonization, and hydrothermal treatment. During the electrospinning, titanium oxide particles were dispersed in polyacrylonitrile (PAN) polymer-dimethylformamide (DMF) solution. Nickel chloride and iron nitrate were added into the solution to generate nickel oxide and iron oxide in the subsequent heat treatment processes. The polymer fiber was oxidized first at an elevated temperature of 250 °C to stabilize the structure of PAN. Then, we performed higher temperature heat treatment at 500 °C in a furnace with hydrogen gas protection to partially carbonize the polymer fiber. After that, the oxide-containing fiber was coated with activated carbon in a diluted sugar solution via hydrothermal carbonization at 200 °C for 8 h. The pressure reached 1.45 MPa in the reaction chamber. The obtained product was tested in view of the dye, Rhodamine B, adsorption using a Vis-UV spectrometer. Electrical property characterization was performed using an electrochemical work station. It was found that the hydrothermally treated oxide-containing fiber demonstrated obvious dye adsorption behavior. The visible light absorption intensity of the Rhodamine B dye decreased with the increase in the soaking time of the fiber in the dye solution. The impedance of the fiber was increased due to the hydrothermal carbonization treatment. We also found that charge build-up was faster at the surface of the specimen without the hydrothermally treated carbon layer. Electricity generation under visible light excitation is more intensive at the hydrothermally treated fiber than at the one without the hydrothermal treatment. This result is consistent with that obtained from the dye adsorption/decomposition test because the charge generation is more efficient at the surface of the hydrothermally treated fiber, which allows the dye to be decomposed faster by the treated fibers with activated carbon.
Performance of a Pool and Weir Fishway for Iberian Cyprinids Migration: A Case Study
Authors: Pedescoll Anna , Aguado Rafael , Marcos Carlos , González Gustavo
Published: August 2019

One of the movement barriers that fish populations must overcome for migration success in the upper basin of Tormes river (Salamanca, Spain) is a 20 m high dam. The design of its pool and weir fishway for potamodromous fishes (mostly Iberian barbel—Luciobarbus bocagei—and Northern straight-mouth nase—Pseudochondrostoma duriense) to overcome the obstacle was improved in 2013. The aim of this study was to assess the efficiency of the fishway using FDX passive integrated transponder (PIT)-Tags inserted into the fish and PIT-Tag detection antennas at the fishway. During several sampling events, 7113 barbel and nase individuals were tagged and released at the point of capture along the basin (2538 and 4575 of which were tagged downstream and upstream, respectively). PIT-Tag Detection Antennas close to the top and bottom of the fishway monitored tagged fish continuously for 10 months (from March to December 2017), to analyze the performance of the fishway. Upstream passage efficiency was greater for barbel (60% and 25% for barbel and nase, respectively). Differences in passage efficiency between species may be due to differences in their size. Mean length for barbels attempting to pass was 336 mm (±47 mm) while for nases was 143 mm (±26 mm). Moreover, both the number of attempts to pass and ascend time for nases were higher than for barbels. Entrance efficiency was low (3.5% and 10.8% for barbel and nase, respectively), although 2017 was a very dry year, thus these results are most likely influenced by flow rates. Therefore, the fishway has proved to be functional but is actually poor for efficiency purposes, especially for small fish.
Modelling of Self-Ignition in Spark-Ignition Engine Using Reduced Chemical Kinetics for Gasoline Surrogates
Authors: Khan Ahmed Faraz , Roberts Philip John , Burluka Alexey A.
Published: August 2019

A numerical and experimental investigation in to the role of gasoline surrogates and their reduced chemical kinetic mechanisms in spark ignition (SI) engine knocking has been carried out. In order to predict autoignition of gasoline in a spark ignition engine three reduced chemical kinetic mechanisms have been coupled with quasi-dimensional thermodynamic modelling approach. The modelling was supported by measurements of the knocking tendencies of three fuels of very different compositions yet an equivalent Research Octane Number (RON) of 90 (ULG90, PRF90 and 71.5% by volume toluene blended with n-heptane) as well as iso-octane. The experimental knock onsets provided a benchmark for the chemical kinetic predictions of autoignition and also highlighted the limitations of characterisation of the knock resistance of a gasoline in terms of the Research and Motoring octane numbers and the role of these parameters in surrogate formulation. Two approaches used to optimise the surrogate composition have been discussed and possible surrogates for ULG90 have been formulated and numerically studied. A discussion has also been made on the various surrogates from the literature which have been tested in shock tube and rapid compression machines for their autoignition times and are a source of chemical kinetic mechanism validation. The differences in the knock onsets of the tested fuels have been explained by modelling their reactivity using semi-detailed chemical kinetics. Through this work, the weaknesses and challenges of autoignition modelling in SI engines through gasoline surrogate chemical kinetics have been highlighted. Adequacy of a surrogate in simulating the autoignition behaviour of gasoline has also been investigated as it is more important for the surrogate to have the same reactivity as the gasoline at all engine relevant p − T conditions than having the same RON and Motored Octane Number (MON).