bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Intrahepatic Cross-Presentation and Hepatocellular Antigen Presentation Play Distinct Roles in the Induction of Hepatitis B Virus-Specific CD8
+
T Cell Responses
Authors: Murata Yasuhiro , Kawashima Keigo , Sheikh Knvul , Tanaka Yasuhito , Isogawa Masanori
Published: August 2018

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) causes acute and chronic hepatitis. Approximately 260 million people are chronically infected with HBV and under an increased risk of developing cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Host immune responses, particularly HBV-specific CD8
+
T cell responses, largely determine the outcome of HBV infection. It is widely accepted that antigen inexperienced CD8
+
T cells should be initially activated by professional antigen-presenting cells (pAPCs) in lymphoid tissues to differentiate into effector CD8
+
T cells. However, this notion has not been tested for HBV-specific CD8
+
T cells. In this study, we show that HBV-specific CD8
+
T cell responses can be induced in the liver. Surprisingly, antigen presentation by hepatocytes is more important than cross-presentation by hematopoietic cells for the induction of HBV-specific CD8
+
T cell responses. These results revealed a previously unappreciated role of antigen presentation by hepatocytes in the induction of HBV-specific CD8
+
T cell responses.
Impact of baseline Diabetic Retinopathy Severity Scale scores on visual outcomes in the VIVID-DME and VISTA-DME studies
Authors: Staurenghi Giovanni , Feltgen Nicolas , Arnold Jennifer J , Katz Todd A , Metzig Carola , Lu Chengxing , Holz Frank G
Published: August 2018

Background/aims

To evaluate intravitreal aflibercept versus laser in subgroups of patients with baseline Diabetic Retinopathy Severity Scale (DRSS) scores ≤43, 47, and ≥53 in VIVID-DME and VISTA-DME.

Methods

Patients with diabetic macular oedema were randomised to receive intravitreal aflibercept 2 mg every 4 weeks (2q4), intravitreal aflibercept 2 mg every 8 weeks after five initial monthly doses (2q8), or macular laser photocoagulation at baseline with sham injections at every visit. These post hoc analyses evaluate outcomes based on baseline DRSS scores in patients in the integrated dataset. The 2q4 and 2q8 treatment groups were also pooled.

Results

748 patients had a baseline DRSS score based on fundus photographs (≤43, n=301; 47, n=153; ≥53, n=294). At week 100, the least squares mean difference between treatment groups (effect of intravitreal aflibercept above that of laser, adjusting for baseline best-corrected visual acuity) was 8.9 (95% CI 5.99 to 11.81), 9.7 (95% CI 5.54 to 13.91), and 11.0 (95% CI 7.96 to 14.1) letters in those with baseline DRSS scores ≤43, 47, and ≥53, respectively. The proportions of patients with ≥2 step DRSS score improvement were greater in the intravitreal aflibercept group versus laser, respectively, for those with baseline DRSS scores of ≤43 (13% vs 5.9%), 47 (25.8% vs 4.5%), and ≥53 (64.5% vs 28.4%).

Conclusions

Regardless of baseline DRSS score, functional outcomes were superior in intravitreal aflibercept-treated patients, demonstrating consistent treatment benefit across various baseline levels of retinopathy.

Trial registration numbers

NCT01331681 and NCT01363440, Post-results.
Providing safe and effective pleural medicine services in the UK: an aspirational statement from UK pleural physicians
Authors: Evison Matthew , Blyth Kevin G , Bhatnagar Rahul , Corcoran John , Saba Tarek , Duncan Tracy , Hallifax Rob , Ahmed Liju , West Alex , Pepperell Justin Charles Thane , Roberts Mark , Sivasothy Pasupathy , Psallidas Ioannis , Clive Amelia O , Latham Jennifer , Stanton Andrew E , Maskell Nick , Rahman Najib
Published: August 2018

Physicians face considerable challenges in ensuring safe and effective care for patients admitted to hospital with pleural disease. While subspecialty development has driven up standards of care, this has been tempered by the resulting loss of procedural experience in general medical teams tasked with managing acute pleural disease. This review aims to define a framework though which a minimum standard of care might be implemented. This review has been written by pleural clinicians from across the UK representing all types of secondary care hospital. Its content has been formed on the basis of literature review, national guidelines, National Health Service England policy and consensus opinion following a round table discussion. Recommendations have been provided in the broad themes of procedural training, out-of-hours management and pleural service specification. Procedural competences have been defined into descriptive categories: emergency, basic, intermediate and advanced. Provision of emergency level operators at all times in all trusts is the cornerstone of out-of-hours recommendations, alongside readily available escalation pathways. A proposal for minimum standards to ensure the safe delivery of pleural medicine have been described with the aim of driving local conversations and providing a framework for service development, review and risk assessment.
Step oximetry test: a validation study
Authors: Fox Benjamin Daniel , Sheffy Nadav , Vainshelboim Baruch , Fuks Leonardo , Kramer Mordechai R
Published: August 2018

Introduction

Step climbing is a potentially useful modality for testing exercise capacity. However, there are significant variations between test protocols and lack of consistent validation against gold standard cycle ergometry cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET). The purpose of the study was to validate a novel technique of exercise testing using a dedicated device.

Methods

We built a step oximetry device from an adapted aerobics step and pulse oximeter connected to a computer. Subjects performed lung function tests, a standard incremental cycle CPET and also a CPET while stepping on and off the step oximetry device to maximal exertion. Data from the step oximetry device were processed and correlated with standard measurements of pulmonary function and cycle CPET.

Results

We recruited 89 subjects (57 years, 50 men). Oxygen uptake (VO2) was 0.9 mL/kg/min (95% CI −3.6 to 5.4) higher in the step test compared with the gold standard cycle CPET, p<0.001. VO2in the two techniques was highly correlated (R=0.87, p<0.001). Work rate during stair climbing showed the best correlation with VO2(R=0.69, p<0.0001). Desaturation during step climbing correlated negatively with diffusion capacity for carbon monoxide (r=−0.43, p<0.005). No adverse events occurred.

Conclusions

The step oximetry test was a maximal test of exertion in the subjects studied, achieving slightly higher VO2than during the standard test. The test was safe to perform and well tolerated by the patients. Parameters derived from the step oximetry device correlated well with gold standard measurements. The step oximetry test could become a useful and standardisable exercise test for clinical settings where advanced testing is not available or appropriate.
Non-motor features of Parkinson’s disease in a nested case–control study of US men
Authors: Hughes Katherine C , Gao Xiang , Baker Jessica M , Stephen Christopher , Kim Iris Y , Valeri Linda , Schwarzschild Michael A , Ascherio Alberto
Published: August 2018

Background

Several non-motor features may individually contribute to identify prodromal Parkinson’s disease (PD), but little is known on how they interact.

Methods

We conducted a case–control study nested within the Health Professionals Follow-up Study in a large cohort of men age 40–75 at recruitment in 1986. Cases (n=120) had confirmed PD, were<85 in January 2012, returned a 2012 questionnaire with questions on probable rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder (RBD) and constipation sent to all cohort participants and completed in 2014 the Brief Smell Identification Test and a questionnaire assessing parkinsonism and other non-motor PD features (including depressive symptoms, excessive daytime sleepiness, impaired colour vision and body pain). Controls (n=6479) met the same criteria as cases, except for the PD diagnosis.

Results

Concurrent constipation, probable RBD and hyposmia were present in 29.3% of cases and 1.1% of controls, yielding an age-adjusted OR of 160(95%CI 72.8to353) for three features versus none. The odds of PD increased exponentially with additional non-motor features (OR for 6–7 features versus none: 1325; 95%CI333to5279). Among men without PD, the number of non-motor features was associated with odds of parkinsonism (OR for 6–7 features versus none: 89; 95%CI21.2to375). We estimated that in a population with a prodromal PD prevalence of 2%, concurrent constipation, probable RBD and hyposmia would have a maximum sensitivity of 29% and a positive predictive value (PPV) of 35%. The PPV could increase up to 70% by including additional features, but with sharply decreased sensitivity.

Conclusions

Concurrent constipation, probable RBD and hyposmia are strongly associated with PD. Because these features often precede motor symptoms and their co-occurrence could provide an efficient method for early PD identification.
Association between alcohol exposure and the risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in the Euro-MOTOR study
Authors: D'Ovidio Fabrizio , Rooney James P K , Visser Anne E , Manera Umberto , Beghi Ettore , Logroscino Giancarlo , Vermeulen Roel C H , Veldink Jan Herman , van den Berg Leonard H , Hardiman Orla , Chiò Adriano
Published: August 2018

Objectives

Several studies focused on the association between alcohol consumption and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), although with inconsistent findings. Antioxidants may play a role since lyophilised red wine was found to prolong SOD1 mice lifespan. The aim of this international population-based case–control study performed in Ireland, The Netherlands and Italy was to assess the role of alcohol, and red wine in particular, in developing ALS.

Methods

Euro-MOTOR is a case–control study where patients with incident ALS and controls matched for gender, age and area of residency were recruited in a population-based design. Logistic regression models adjusted for sex, age, cohort, education, leisure time physical activity, smoking, heart problems, hypertension, stroke, cholesterol and diabetes were performed.

Results

1557 patients with ALS and 2922 controls were enrolled in the study. Exposure to alcohol drinking was not significantly associated with ALS risk. A stratified analysis of exposure to alcohol by cohort revealed significant ORs in The Netherlands and in Apulia, with opposite directions (respectively 0.68 and 2.38). With regard to red wine consumption, only in Apulia the double-fold increased risk (OR 2.53) remained significant. A decreased risk was found for current alcohol drinkers (OR 0.83), while a significantly increased risk was detected among former drinkers (OR 1.63). Analysis of cumulative exposure to alcohol revealed no significant associations with ALS risk.

Conclusion

With few exceptions, no significant association was found between alcohol consumption and ALS. The study of the association between alcohol and ALS requires a thorough exploration, especially considering the role of different type of alcoholic beverages.
Evaluation of the accuracy of design methods for geosynthetic-reinforced piled embankments
Authors: Fonseca Ewerton C.A. , Palmeira Ennio M.
Published: August 2018

Geosynthetic-reinforced piled embankments have been increasingly used as a solution to stabilize embankments on soft subgrades. Analytical methods have been commonly used in routine designs of such works and significant deviations between results can occur depending on the method considered. This paper investigates the accuracy of different analytical methods by comparing their predictions with results of large-scale tests. A section of piled embankment consisting of an instrumented fill layer subjected to varying values of surface surcharge was simulated in the laboratory. Four different reinforcement types were tested. Results of the tests are presented and discussed, and statistical analyses were carried out to assess the accuracy of each method with regard to pile efficacy, maximum fill settlement, and reinforcement strain. Results show that the identification of the most accurate and precise method depends on the statistical criterion used. However, in general, the methods based on the concentric arches theory, the modified British method (BS8006), and the German method (EBGEO) were the ones that showed the best predictive capability.
Male functionality inGarcinia celebicaL., a candidate ancestor species of mangosteen (G. mangostanaL.)
Authors: Sutthinon Pornsawan , Samuels Lacey , Meesawat Upatham
Published: August 2018

Mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana L.) is widely cultivated for its prized fruit, but its origins are unclear as this crop has not been found in the wild. Seashore mangosteen (Garcinia celebica L.) has been proposed as a candidate ancestral species for the mangosteen male parent in a hypothesized hybridization event, yet the functionality of the male organs in perfect flowers of G. celebica has not been characterized. The objective of this study was to describe pollen development in G. celebica using light, scanning, and transmission electron microscopy techniques. Male gametophyte development led to viable pollen at anthesis. The tapetum was of the secretory type, and it started to degrade following meiosis II, which corresponded to the complete encasement of a callose wall around the microspore tetrad. Pollen viability, demonstrated with 2,3,5-triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC) assays, was 68%. An in-vitro pollen germination assay was developed, and the rate of germination was remarkably similar to the viability (68%). Male functionality was clearly confirmed by both the high rate of pollen viability and germination. The occurrence of stigmatic exudates on pistillode and its pollen features are consistent with biotic pollination. The perfect flower of G. celebica is thus a functional male flower.
Relationship between background invertebrate drift concentration and flow over natural flow recession and prediction with a drift transport model
Authors: Hayes John W. , Goodwin Eric O. , Shearer Karen A. , Hicks D. Murray
Published: August 2018

This study advances understanding of the flow dependency of invertebrate drift in rivers and its relevance to drift-feeding fish. Background drift concentration varied spatially and with flow over natural flow recession (lower mid-range to low flow) in a reach of a New Zealand river, largely consistent with passive entrainment. Seven taxonomic groups (dominated by Leptophlebiidae and Chironomidae) exhibited positive drift concentration–flow relationships, and one (sandy/stony-cased caddisflies (Conoesucidae)) exhibited negative relationships. A mechanistic drift transport model accurately predicted the slope, but not y intercept, of the drift concentration–flow relationship for the total drift community that positively responded to flow but performed more poorly at the taxon or size-class level. Partitioning the relative influence of drift entry and dilution revealed that positive drift concentration–flow relationships arose from entry overwhelming dilution with increasing flow. Drift transport models have potential for predicting relative (%) effects of flow change on concentration and rate of drift-prone invertebrates. This paves the way for drift transport models to inform inputs to net rate of energy intake models for drift-feeding fish.
The non-Abelian gauge field propagator in a plane wave background field
Authors: McKeon D.G.C.
Published: August 2018

Employing methods introduced by Schwinger in quantum electrodynamics, we compute the propagator for a non-Abelian gauge field in a plane wave background field. In the long distance limit a mass-like term for the gauge field is induced by this interaction.
The effect of strong electron-rattling phonon coupling on some superconducting properties
Authors: Tajik Samin , Mitrović Božidar , Marsiglio Frank
Published: August 2018

Using the Eliashberg theory of superconductivity we have examined several properties of a model in which electrons are coupled only to rattling phonon modes represented by a sharp peak in the electron–phonon coupling function. Our choice of parameters was guided by experiments on β-pyrochlore oxide superconductor KOs2Os6. We have calculated the temperature dependence of the superconducting gap edge; the quasi-particle decay rate; the NMR relaxation rate assuming that the coupling between the nuclear spins and the conduction electrons is via a contact hyperfine interaction, which would be appropriate for the O-site in KOs2Os6; and the microwave conductivity. We examined the limit of very strong coupling by considering three values of the electron–phonon coupling parameter λ = 2.38, 3, and 5 and did not assume that the rattler frequency Ω0 is temperature dependent in the superconducting state. We obtained a very unusual temperature dependence of the superconducting gap edge Δ(T), very much like the one extracted from photoemission experiments on KOs2O6.
Assessment of the performance of High-Luminosity LHC operational scenarios: integrated luminosity and effective pile-up density
Authors: Medina L. , Tomás R. , Arduini G. , Napsuciale M.
Published: August 2018

The High-Luminosity Large Hadron Collider (HL-LHC) experiments will operate at unprecedented levels of event pile-up from proton–proton collisions at 14 TeV centre-of-mass energy. In this paper, we study the performance of the baseline and a series of alternative scenarios in terms of the delivered integrated luminosity and its quality (pile-up density). A new figure-of-merit is introduced, the effective pile-up density, a concept that reflects the expected detector efficiency in the reconstruction of event vertices for a given operational scenario, acting as a link between the machine and experimental sides. Alternative scenarios have been proposed either to improve the baseline performance or to provide operational schemes in the case of particular limitations. Simulations of the evolution of their optimum fills with the latest set of parameters of the HL-LHC are performed with β*-levelling, and the results are discussed in terms of both the integrated luminosity and the effective pile-up density. The crab kissing scheme, a proposed scenario for pile-up density control, is re-evaluated under this new perspective with updated beam and optics parameters. Estimates on the expected integrated luminosity due to the impact of crab cavity noise, full crab crossing, and reduced cross section for burn-off, are also presented.
Biomedical study of effects nanoparticles on unsteady blood (non-Newtonian) flow through a catheterized stenotic vessel
Authors: Zaman Akbar , Sajid M. , Kousar Nabeela
Published: August 2018

The purpose of this article is to theoretically discuss the unsteady hemo-dynamics of blood through a catheterized overlapping stenotic vessel with nanoparticles. The nature of the blood is characterized by the constitutive Cross model equation. This study is conducted under the assumption of mild stenotic conditions and the equations of momentum and temperature are simplified after making this assumption. Explicit finite difference method is employed to obtain the numerical results of the governing equations. Results for different values of emerging parameters, such as Weissenberg number, Lewis number, thermophoresis parameter, and Brownian motion parameter are shown at different locations of an arterial cross section. These results demonstrate a pictorial way to comprehend the theoretical biomedical problem. These results reveal that Lewis number (Le) and visco-elastic parameter Weissenberg number (We) both are decreasing functions of velocity profiles at each arterial cross section. Furthermore, it is also noted that the thermophoresis parameter (Nt) quantitatively decreases the flow of blood inside the vessel while the Brownian motion parameter (Nb) shows the opposite effects on blood flow; it increases the magnitude of velocity.
Metformin, sitagliptin, and liraglutide modulate serum retinol-binding protein-4 level and adipocytokine production in type 2 diabetes mellitus rat model
Authors: Abbas Noha A.T. , El. Salem Amal
Published: August 2018

Many adipocytokines correlate with obesity and insulin resistance. We examined the effects of metformin, sitagliptin, and liraglutide in diabetic rats. Group 1: control normal (CN) rats received oral saline daily. Group 2: diabetic non-treated (DNT) rats were injected with streptozotocin (STZ) to get diabetic then after 72 h received oral saline daily. Group 3: rats were injected with STZ then after 72 h were treated with metformin (200 mg/kg) orally. Group 4: rats were injected with STZ then after 72 h received sitagliptin 6 mg/kg orally twice daily. Group 5: rats were injected with STZ then after 72 h were treated with liraglutide at a dose of 0.3 mg/kg every 12 h subcutaneous injection. After 8 weeks, body mass, fasting blood glucose, adipocytokines, and lipid profile were assessed. From the results, we concluded that the 3 drugs improved blood glucose and insulin resistance with correction of adipocytokines serum levels; however, the liraglutide-treated group was the only group that showed significant body mass reduction.
AAC Scotty cranberry common bean
Authors: Hou Anfu , Conner Robert L. , Balasubramanian Parthiba M.
Published: August 2018

AAC Scotty (CFIA registration No. 8374) is a high-yielding cranberry bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) cultivar with a large seed size and resistance to races 73 and 105 of Colletotrichum lindemuthianum developed at the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Morden Research and Development Centre in Morden, MB. AAC Scotty is adapted to the dry bean producing regions of the Red River Valley with an average maturity of 97 d. AAC Scotty has acceptable cooking and canning quality.
Historical distributions of bobcats (Lynxrufus) and Canada lynx (Lynxcanadensis) suggest no range shifts in British Columbia, Canada
Authors: Gooliaff T. , Hodges K.E.
Published: August 2018

Species across the planet are shifting their ranges in response to climate change and habitat loss. However, range shifts may vary, with populations moving in some areas but remaining stable in others; the conditions that encourage range stability rather than range shifts are poorly known. Bobcats (Lynx rufus (Schreber, 1777)) and Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis Kerr, 1792) are congeneric mesocarnivores with wide ranges across North America and range overlap in southern boreal and montane forests (the southern edge for lynx and the northern edge for bobcat). The ranges of both species are shifting in some parts of North America, in most cases resulting in a northward expansion for bobcats and a northward contraction for lynx. However, their range dynamics in the Pacific Northwest, which contains the northwestern range margin for bobcats and the southwestern range margin for lynx, have not been thoroughly documented. Here, we examine whether the range of each species has shifted in British Columbia (BC), Canada, provincially during 1983–2013 or in central BC during 1935–2013. Trapping records indicated that ranges have remained stable, and surveys from trappers supported these findings. Our findings are consistent with previous work showing that many wide-ranging species do not shift their range uniformly across their entire range edge. For bobcats and lynx, their range stability in BC contrasts with their range dynamics in other parts of North America.
UAV–LiDAR accuracy in vegetated terrain
Authors: Kucharczyk Maja , Hugenholtz Chris H. , Zou Xueyang
Published: August 2018

We examined the horizontal and vertical accuracy of LiDAR data acquired from an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) at a field site with six vegetation types: coniferous trees, deciduous trees, short grass (0–0.3 m height), tall grass (>0.3 m height), short shrubs (0–1 m height), and tall shrubs (>1 m height). The objective was to assess positional accuracy of the ground surface in the context of digital mapping standards, and to determine how different vegetation types affect vertical accuracy. The data were acquired from a single-rotor vertical takeoff and landing UAV equipped with a Riegl VUX-1UAV laser scanner, KVH Industries 1750 IMU, and dual NovAtel GNSS receivers. Reference measurements of ground surface elevation were acquired with conventional field surveying techniques. Accuracy was evaluated using methods in the 2015 American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) Positional Accuracy Standards for Digital Geospatial Data. Results show that horizontal accuracy and vegetated vertical accuracy at the 95% confidence level were 0.05 and 0.24 m, respectively. Median vertical errors significantly differed among 10 of 15 vegetation type pairs, highlighting the need to account for variations of vegetation structure. According to the 2015 ASPRS standards, the reported errors fulfill the requirements for mapping at the 2 and 8 cm horizontal and vertical class levels, respectively.
New empirical formula for α-decay calculations
Authors: Akrawy Dashty T. , Ahmed Ali H.
Published: August 2018

A set of empirical formulae have been proposed to calculate the [Formula: see text]-decay half-lives from ground state to ground state transitions of 356 nuclei classified to different set of e–e, e–o, o–e and o–o isotopes. Within these formulae, modification of the previous set of Royer expressions were done by introducing three different physical terms, including the orbital angular momentum and isobaric asymmetry factors. The predicted [Formula: see text]-decay half-lives compared with those adopted by former proposed models for the depended experimental data, and significant improvements were noticed for all the studied sets of isotopes.
TALENT VERSUS LUCK: THE ROLE OF RANDOMNESS IN SUCCESS AND FAILURE
Authors: PLUCHINO ALESSANDRO , BIONDO ALESSIO EMANUELE , RAPISARDA ANDREA
Published: August 2018

The largely dominant meritocratic paradigm of highly competitive Western cultures is rooted on the belief that success is mainly due, if not exclusively, to personal qualities such as talent, intelligence, skills, smartness, efforts, willfulness, hard work or risk taking. Sometimes, we are willing to admit that a certain degree of luck could also play a role in achieving significant success. But, as a matter of fact, it is rather common to underestimate the importance of external forces in individual successful stories. It is very well known that intelligence (or, more in general, talent and personal qualities) exhibits a Gaussian distribution among the population, whereas the distribution of wealth — often considered as a proxy of success — follows typically a power law (Pareto law), with a large majority of poor people and a very small number of billionaires. Such a discrepancy between a Normal distribution of inputs, with a typical scale (the average talent or intelligence), and the scale-invariant distribution of outputs, suggests that some hidden ingredient is at work behind the scenes. In this paper, we suggest that such an ingredient is just randomness. In particular, our simple agent-based model shows that, if it is true that some degree of talent is necessary to be successful in life, almost never the most talented people reach the highest peaks of success, being overtaken by averagely talented but sensibly luckier individuals. As far as we know, this counterintuitive result — although implicitly suggested between the lines in a vast literature — is quantified here for the first time. It sheds new light on the effectiveness of assessing merit on the basis of the reached level of success and underlines the risks of distributing excessive honors or resources to people who, at the end of the day, could have been simply luckier than others. We also compare several policy hypotheses to show the most efficient strategies for public funding of research, aiming to improve meritocracy, diversity of ideas and innovation.
Sparse signal recovery via non-convex optimization and overcomplete dictionaries
Authors: Huang Wei , Liu Lu , Yang Zhuo , Zhao Yao
Published: August 2018

In this paper, we address the problem of recovering signals from undersampled data where such signals are not sparse in an orthonormal basis, but in an overcomplete dictionary. We show that if the combined matrix obeys a certain restricted isometry property and if the signal is sufficiently sparse, the reconstruction that relies on [Formula: see text] minimization with [Formula: see text] is exact. In addition, under a mild assumption about the dictionary [Formula: see text], we use a similar method [H. Rauhut et al., Compressed sensing and redundant dictionaries, IEEE Trans. Inf. Theory 54(5) (2008) 2210–2219] to derive an estimation of the restricted isometry constant of the composed matrix [Formula: see text]. Finally, the performance of the [Formula: see text] minimization is testified by some numerical examples.
Extending hidden Markov models to allow conditioning on previous observations
Authors: Tamposis Ioannis A. , Theodoropoulou Margarita C. , Tsirigos Konstantinos D. , Bagos Pantelis G.
Published: August 2018

Hidden Markov Models (HMMs) are probabilistic models widely used in computational molecular biology. However, the Markovian assumption regarding transition probabilities which dictates that the observed symbol depends only on the current state may not be sufficient for some biological problems. In order to overcome the limitations of the first order HMM, a number of extensions have been proposed in the literature to incorporate past information in HMMs conditioning either on the hidden states, or on the observations, or both. Here, we implement a simple extension of the standard HMM in which the current observed symbol (amino acid residue) depends both on the current state and on a series of observed previous symbols. The major advantage of the method is the simplicity in the implementation, which is achieved by properly transforming the observation sequence, using an extended alphabet. Thus, it can utilize all the available algorithms for the training and decoding of HMMs. We investigated the use of several encoding schemes and performed tests in a number of important biological problems previously studied by our team (prediction of transmembrane proteins and prediction of signal peptides). The evaluation shows that, when enough data are available, the performance increased by 1.8%–8.2% and the existing prediction methods may improve using this approach. The methods, for which the improvement was significant (PRED-TMBB2, PRED-TAT and HMM-TM), are available as web-servers freely accessible to academic users at www.compgen.org/tools/ .
Bidirectional quantum operation teleportation with different states
Authors: Zhou Si-Qi , Bai Ming-Qiang , Liao Ting , Lei Jia , Tang Liang , Zhang Chang-Yue
Published: August 2018

A new concept of bidirectional quantum operation teleportation (BQOT) is proposed, which is essentially a union of the idea of quantum operation teleportation (QOT) and bidirectional quantum teleportation (QT). This means that Alice can transmit an unknown single-qubit unitary operation [Formula: see text] on the remote Bob’s quantum system; and at the same time, Bob can also transmit an arbitrary single-qubit unitary operation [Formula: see text] on Alice’s quantum system. In this paper, we present three BQOT schemes via different quantum channels. Furthermore, using these quantum channels, we investigate the BQOT in noisy environments, such as phase-damping noise and amplitude-damping noise. We considered the influence of the noises on the process of these three BQOT protocols through analytical derivation of the fidelity. Moreover, these three schemes are amply compared with each other from five aspects, i.e. quantum resource consumption, operation complexity, classical resource consumption, success probability and efficiency. It is found that these schemes can be realized deterministically and the first scheme is better than the other two schemes.
GROUNDING THE DREAM OF AFRICAN INNOVATION HUBS: TWO CASES IN KIGALI
Authors: FRIEDERICI NICOLAS
Published: August 2018

Innovation hub organizations have become a fixture in African cities. Proponents of hubs commonly envision them to function as network infrastructures. Specifically, hubs are conceived of as network intermediaries within entrepreneurial ecosystems, allowing for seamless collaboration between diverse actors. This paper grounds such visions and conceptualizations, presenting case studies of two hubs in Rwanda: kLab and The Office. It draws on interviews with 47 participants with a stake in technology entrepreneurship in Kigali, about half of them founders or CEOs of small technology startups. Ultimately, the case studies show that implementation realities of hubs are far removed from aspirational visions. Notably, the paper finds that facets of community (such as boundaries and cultures) need to be continually negotiated between hub leaders and entrepreneurs, resulting in tensions and tradeoffs.
The location of critical points of polynomials
Authors: Gulzar Suhail , Rather N. A. , Bhat F. A.
Published: August 2018

Given a set of points in the complex plane, an incomplete polynomial is defined as one which has these points as zeros except one of them. Recently, the classical result known as Gauss–Lucas theorem on the location of zeros of polynomials and their derivatives was extended to the linear combinations of incomplete polynomials. In this paper, a simple proof of this result is given, and some results concerning the critical points of polynomials due to Jensen and others have extended the linear combinations of incomplete polynomials.
BSM model for ML-payoff function through PDTM
Authors: Ghevariya S. J.
Published: August 2018

This paper contributes to the valuation of Black–Scholes–Merton (BSM) European option pricing formula for Modified Log-payoff (ML-payoff) function, [Formula: see text] through Projected Differential Transform Method (PDTM). The ML-payoff function is closely related with the entropy function [Formula: see text] in Information Theory. It turns out that the present BSM formula is quite close to the celebrated plain vanilla option.
Characterization of local electric properties of oxide materials using scanning probe microscopy techniques: A review
Authors: Lu Wanheng , Zeng Kaiyang
Published: August 2018

The structure-function relationship at the nanoscale is of great importance for many functional materials, such as metal oxides. To explore this relationship, Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM)-based techniques are used as powerful and effective methods owing to their capability to investigate the local surface structures and multiple properties of the materials with a high spatial resolution. This paper gives an overview of SPM-based techniques for characterizing the electric properties of metal oxides with potential in the applications of electronics devices. Three types of SPM techniques, including conductive AFM ([Formula: see text]-AFM), Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy (KPFM), and Electrostatic Force Microscopy (EFM), are summarized with focus on their principles and advances in measuring the electronic transport, ionic dynamics, the work functions and the surface charges of oxides.
Bibliometric and Systemic Analysis on Material Flow Mapping and Industrial Ecosystems
Authors: Guedes Gisele Bortolaz , Paganin Lucas Barboza Zattar , Borsato Milton
Published: August 2018

Global instability can be seen as a reflection of the increasing demand for natural resources and the reduction of personnel expenditures. Yet, this is often associated with industrial systems, whose main objectives are to increase productive capacity and reduce costs. This scenario identifies the need for changes in strategy establishment in the organization’s operation mode focusing on sustainable development. Industrial ecosystems, through the symbiotic relationship of industries, aim to achieve sustainability goals. Material flow mapping is essential for the construction of these industrial ecosystems. Hence, the present paper carries out a structured literature review process in order to identify the state of the art and the research opportunities on material flow mapping and industrial ecosystems. For the accomplishment of this research, the methodological procedure called Knowledge Development Process — Constructivist (ProKnow-C) was adopted. The bibliographic portfolio is represented by 35 articles of the research theme. Throughout the bibliometric analysis, a statistical analysis of the articles that compose the portfolio is presented. In the systemic analysis, the main research problems, the means of solving them and the detected opportunities about this research theme are identified. Finally, conclusions and recommendations for future research are presented.
Dispersion of Rayleigh-Type Wave in an Exponentially Graded Incompressible Crustal Layer Resting on Yielding Foundation
Authors: Verma Amit K. , Chattopadhyay Amares , Chaki Mriganka S. , Singh Abhishek K.
Published: August 2018

The objective of this study is to develop a theory to study the propagation of Rayleigh-type waves in an inhomogeneous layer having yielding surface. A detailed study of a Rayleigh-type wave propagating in an exponentially graded incompressible layer resting on yielding surface is considered. The frequency equation being a function of phase velocity, wave number and heterogeneity parameter associated with the yielding parameter and density of inhomogeneous layer reveals the fact that Rayleigh-type wave propagation is greatly influenced by the above-stated parameters. In particular cases, the dispersion relation has been discussed for stress-free foundation by taking yielding parameter tending to zero. In numerical and graphical computation, the significant effects of distortional velocity have been carried out. Moreover, the obtained dispersion relation is found in well agreement to the classical case in homogeneous isotropic layer resting on a yielding foundation.
Autism and the web
Authors: Yaneva Victoria
Published: August 2018

People with autism consistently exhibit different attention-shifting patterns compared to neurotypical people. Research has shown that these differences can be successfully captured using eye tracking. In this paper, we summarise our recent research on using gaze data from web-related tasks to address two problems: improving web accessibility for people with autism and detecting autism automatically. We first examine the way a group of participants with autism and a control group process the visual information from web pages and provide empirical evidence of different visual searching strategies. We then use these differences in visual attention, to train a machine learning classifier which can successfully use the gaze data to distinguish between the two groups with an accuracy of 0.75. At the end of this paper we review the way forward to improving web accessibility and automatic autism detection, as well as the practical implications and alternatives for using eye tracking in these research areas.
Attached Eddy Model of Wall Turbulence
Authors: Marusic Ivan , Monty Jason P.
Published: August 2018

Modeling wall turbulence remains a major challenge, as a sufficient physical understanding of these flows is still lacking. In an effort to move toward a physics-based model, A.A. Townsend introduced the hypothesis that the dominant energy-containing motions in wall turbulence are due to large eddies attached to the wall. From this simple hypothesis, the attached eddy model evolved, which has proven to be highly effective in predicting velocity statistics and providing a framework for interpreting the energy-containing flow physics at high Reynolds numbers. This review summarizes the hypothesis itself and the modeling attempts made thereafter, with a focus on the validity of the model's assumptions and its limitations. Here, we review studies on this topic, which have markedly increased in recent years, highlighting refinements, extensions, and promising future directions for attached eddy modeling.
A Rare Axonal Variant of Guillain-Barré Syndrome following Elective Spinal Surgery
Authors: Dowling Jessica R. , Dowling Thomas J.
Published: August 2018

Acute motor and sensory axonal neuropathy (AMSAN) is a rare axonal variant of Guillain-Barré syndrome. AMSAN is considered the most severe form of GBS, known for its rapid onset of severe symptoms, and often leading to quadriparesis within 7 days of initial symptom onset. We present a case of a middle-aged Caucasian female who developed AMSAN 2 weeks following an elective spinal surgery. Although rare, GBS has been reported as a complication of surgery. GBS classically presents as ascending motor weakness starting in the lower extremities following a gastrointestinal or upper respiratory tract infection. This patient’s GBS manifested slightly differently, with both sensory and motor symptoms of her thoracic region and lower extremities, with no preceding history indicative of infection. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first reported case of AMSAN following spinal surgery. Because of its risk of significant morbidity and mortality, as well as similar presentation to more common spinal postoperative complications, GBS should always be included in the differential diagnosis whenever motor or sensory weakness is observed after spinal surgery.
Influence of Frequency on the Resolution of Magnetostrictive Bio-Inspired Whisker Sensors
Authors: Zhao Ran , Wang Bo-wen , Lu Quan-guo , Yan Jian-wu , Yuan Xiao-cui
Published: August 2018

Magnetostrictive biomimetic whiskers have been used as tactile and flow sensors. Compared to other types of whiskers, such whiskers have the advantage of being able to perform static and dynamic measurements. For dynamic measurement, the whisker’s resolution changes with varying vibration frequency; however, the mechanism for this influence has not been studied yet. Thus, the aim of this study is to investigate the resolution–frequency correlation. First, the structure and operation principle of the whisker were analyzed. Then, the Euler–Bernoulli beam theory was employed to establish the sensing model of the magnetostrictive whisker. Finally, the mapping relationship between sensor resolution and frequency was obtained. The eigenfrequency analysis was implemented by FEM to obtain the frequency response of the whisker. A vibration experimental system was built for dynamic testing. The experimental results were in good agreement with the theoretical calculations. Furthermore, it was noted that the resolution was positively correlated with frequency, and the maximum resolution was attained at the natural frequency (two peak values appeared at the first-order and second-order eigenfrequencies). Our research reveals the manner in which a whisker sensor’s resolution is affected by the vibration frequency. The theoretical model can be used to predict the resolution of magnetostrictive whisker sensors.
The Bending Responses of Sandwich Panels with Aluminium Honeycomb Core and CFRP Skins Used in Electric Vehicle Body
Authors: Xiao Yong , Hu Yefa , Zhang Jinguang , Song Chunsheng , Huang Xiangyang , Yu Jingui , Liu Zhaobing
Published: August 2018

The aim of this paper was to investigate bending responses of sandwich panels with aluminium honeycomb core and carbon fibre‐reinforced plastic (CFRP) skins used in electric vehicle body subjected to quasistatic bending. The typical load‐displacement curves, failure modes, and energy absorption are studied. The effects of fibre direction, stacking sequence, layer thickness, and loading velocity on the crashworthiness characteristics are discussed. The finite element analysis (FEA) results are compared with experimental measurements. It is observed that there are good agreements between the FEA and experimental results. Numerical simulations and experiment predict that the honeycomb sandwich panels with ±30° and ±45° fibre direction, asymmetrical stacking sequence (45°/−45°/45°/−45°), thicker panels (0.2 mm∼0.4 mm), and smaller loading velocity (5 mm/min∼30 mm/min) have better crashworthiness performance. The FEA prediction is also helpful in understanding the initiation and propagation of cracks within the honeycomb sandwich panels.
Pretherapeutic Inflammation Predicts Febrile Neutropenia and Reduced Progression-Free Survival after First-Line Chemotherapy in SCLC
Authors: Kauffmann-Guerrero Diego , Kahnert Kathrin , Syunyaeva Zulfiya , Tufman Amanda , Huber Rudolf M.
Published: August 2018

Background: Despite initial response to chemotherapy, the prognosis of small cell lung cancer (SCLC) patients is limited. Following first-line therapy, the strongest predictor of durable progression-free survival (PFS) is remission quality. Febrile neutropenia (FN) is a frequent complication after chemotherapy, and its prevention could improve treatment density and degree of remission. Patients and Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 39 SCLC patients treated at a German tertiary care lung cancer center between 2013 and 2016. We extracted data sets from electronic records and analyzed anthropometric data, pretherapeutic blood values, and prognostic scores. Discriminant analysis was performed to predict FN. Results: PFS after first-line chemotherapy was significantly shorter in patients with FN (p = 0.003). Pretherapeutic albumin (p = 0.019), C-reactive protein (CRP; p < 0.001), lactate dehydrogenase (p = 0.041), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (p = 0.009), prognostic nutritional index (p = 0.018), and Glasgow prognostic score (p < 0.001) were significantly associated with FN. CRP in combination with absolute neutrophil count is a strong predictor of FN (positive predictive value 79.8%). Conclusion: SCLC patients with FN after chemotherapy showed significantly reduced PFS. Prevention of FN may improve treatment results. We identified pretherapeutic markers which can predict FN risk. This simple and cost-effective method could serve to identify the need for preventive measures against FN (e.g., prophylactic antibiotic treatment or granulocyte colony stimulating factor administration).
Multimodal Imaging in Autosomal Dominant Cone-Rod Dystrophy Caused by Novel CRX Variant
Authors: D’Esposito Fabiana , Cennamo Gilda , de Crecchio Giuseppe , Maltese Paolo Enrico , Cecchin Stefano , Bertelli Matteo , Ziccardi Lucia , Esposito Veneruso Paolo , Magli Adriano , Cennamo Giovanni , Cordeiro Maria Francesca
Published: August 2018

Aim: To characterize by multimodal approach the phenotype of patients from a 3 generations pedigree, affected by autosomal dominant cone-rod dystrophy (CRD), found to carry a novel pathogenic variant in the cone-rod homeobox-containing (CRX) gene. Methods: Examination of the adult patients included the following tests: visual acuity, multicolour imaging, spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT), fundus autofluorescence (FAF) and OCT angiography (OCT-A) recordings. In a 2.5-year-old child, cycloplegic refraction, fundoscopy, ocular motility evaluation and electrophysiological exams were performed. Next Generation Sequencing of patients’ DNA has been carried out. Results: A novel CRX pathogenic variant has been identified in our patients. The 2.5-year-old child in the third generation was found to have inherited the variant, with no clinical signs of the condition, but electroretinographic abnormalities in the scotopic component. In the adult patients, diffuse atrophy of the retinal pigment epithelium/photoreceptor complex in the macular region was evident at the OCT and FAF, while OCT-A showed choriocapillaris density reduction. Conclusions: Multimodal study allowed the characterization of a peculiar form of CRD. The novel pathogenic variant seems to have a different effect on the phenotype if compared with a previously described similar one, giving an insight into the pathogenic mechanism of CRX-related retinal dystrophies and offering valuable information that could lead to the development of possible future therapies.