bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Systematic Review of User Acceptance in Industrial Augmented Reality
Authors: Quandt Moritz , Freitag Michael
Published: December 2021

In the industrial work context, Augmented Reality (AR) can support work processes and employees’ cognitive relief through the location-specific and context-related superimposition of real objects with virtual information. The AR-based support of industrial work processes ranges over product development, manufacturing, assembly, maintenance, and training. In all these areas, numerous location-based AR support functions are being prototypically implemented, aiming to improve work efficiency, communication in mobile work situations, or employee qualification in the work process. In contrast to the increasing number of developed AR solutions in recent years, there is no widespread use of these solutions in industrial practice. AR systems’ successful introduction is closely related to user acceptance, which has not been comprehensively considered over the system development process. In addition to improving AR hardware ergonomic features, usability or user interface design play an essential role in user acceptance. Particularly in the context of employee qualification, increasing employee engagement can be named as a success factor. Previous user studies of industrial AR systems only include individual user acceptance aspects. The use of game elements has not been widely addressed in connection with manual tasks in production environments, including AR-based assistance systems. This paper aims to examine user acceptance of industrial AR systems and the relevant factors for investigating user acceptance, e.g., ease of use or enjoyment, based on a systematic literature review. An analysis of existing review articles on industrial AR systems elaborates the current state of the art and identifies the research gap. This review of 109 scientific articles from 2011 to 2020 provides an overview of the current state of research on the inclusion of user acceptance in industrial AR systems. The identified papers from the scientific databases, Scopus, Web of Science, IEEE Xplore Digital Library, ACM Digital Library, and Science Direct, are evaluated for their relevance and selected for further analysis based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, e.g., year of publication. This review presents the current challenges regarding user acceptance of industrial AR systems and future possibilities for the comprehensive integration of user acceptance factors into the development, evaluation, and implementation process.
MnFtz-f1 Is Required for Molting and Ovulation of the Oriental River Prawn Macrobrachium nipponense
Authors: Yuan Huwei , Zhang Wenyi , Fu Yin , Jiang Sufei , Xiong Yiwei , Zhai Shuhua , Gong Yongsheng , Qiao Hui , Fu Hongtuo , Wu Yan
Published: December 2021

Molting and ovulation are the basic processes responsible for the growth and reproduction of Macrobrachium nipponense; however, the molecular mechanisms of molting and ovulation in M. nipponense are poorly understood. The present study aimed to use MnFtz-f1 as the starting point to study the molting and ovulation phenomena in M. nipponense at the molecular level. The full-length MnFtz-f1 cDNA sequence was 2,198 base pairs (bp) in length with an open reading frame of 1,899 bp encoding 632 amino acids. Quantitative real-time PCR analysis showed that MnFtz-f1 was highly expressed in the ovary at the cleavage stage and on the fifth day after hatching. In vivo administration of 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E) showed that 20E effectively inhibited the expression of the MnFtz-f1 gene, and the silencing of the MnFtz-f1 gene reduced the content of 20E in the ovary. In situ hybridization (ISH) analysis revealed the localization of MnFtz-f1 in the ovary. Silencing of MnFtz-f1 by RNA interference (RNAi) resulted in significant inhibition of the expression of the vitellogenin (Vg), Spook, and Phantom genes, thus confirming that MnFtz-f1 had a mutual regulatory relationship with Vg, Spook, and Phantom. After RNAi, the molting frequency and ovulation number of M. nipponense decreased significantly, which demonstrated that MnFtz-f1 played a pivotal role in the process of molting and ovulation.
A Demand-Side Load Event Detection Algorithm Based on Wide-Deep Neural Networks and Randomized Sparse Backpropagation
Authors: Li Chen , Liang Gaoqi , Zhao Huan , Chen Guo
Published: December 2021

Event detection is an important application in demand-side management. Precise event detection algorithms can improve the accuracy of non-intrusive load monitoring (NILM) and energy disaggregation models. Existing event detection algorithms can be divided into four categories: rule-based, statistics-based, conventional machine learning, and deep learning. The rule-based approach entails hand-crafted feature engineering and carefully calibrated thresholds; the accuracies of statistics-based and conventional machine learning methods are inferior to the deep learning algorithms due to their limited ability to extract complex features. Deep learning models require a long training time and are hard to interpret. This paper proposes a novel algorithm for load event detection in smart homes based on wide and deep learning that combines the convolutional neural network (CNN) and the soft-max regression (SMR). The deep model extracts the power time series patterns and the wide model utilizes the percentile information of the power time series. A randomized sparse backpropagation (RSB) algorithm for weight filters is proposed to improve the robustness of the standard wide-deep model. Compared to the standard wide-deep, pure CNN, and SMR models, the hybrid wide-deep model powered by RSB demonstrates its superiority in terms of accuracy, convergence speed, and robustness.
Anaerobic Digestion of Animal Manure and Influence of Organic Loading Rate and Temperature on Process Performance, Microbiology, and Methane Emission From Digestates
Authors: Ahlberg-Eliasson Karin , Westerholm Maria , Isaksson Simon , Schnürer Anna
Published: December 2021

Biogas production from manure is of particular value in regard of lowering greenhouse gas emissions and enhancing nutrient re-circulation. However, the relatively low energy content and the characteristics of manure often result in low degradation efficiency, and the development of operating strategies is required to improve the biogas yield and the economic benefits. In this study, the potential to enhance the performance of two full-scale biogas plants operating with cattle manure, in mono-digestion or combined with poultry manure, was investigated. Four continuously fed laboratory-scale reactors were operated in sets of two, in which the temperature in one reactor in each set was increased from 37–42°C to 52°C. The potential to increase the capacity was thereafter assessed by increasing the organic loading rate (OLR), from ca 3 to 5 kg volatile solids (VS)/ m3 and day. The processes were evaluated with both chemical and microbiological parameters, and in addition, the residual methane potential (RMP) was measured to evaluate the risk of increased methane emissions from the digestate. The results showed that both processes could be changed from mesophilic to themophilic temperature without major problems and with a similar shift in the microbial community profile to a typical thermophilic community, e.g., an increase in the relative abundance of the phylum Firmicutes. However, the temperature increase in the reactor co-digesting cattle and poultry manure caused a slight accumulation of fatty acids (2 g/l) and reduced the specific methane production, most likely due to ammonia inhibition (0.4–0.7 g NH3/l). Still, during operation at higher OLR, thermophilic as compared to mesophilic temperature slightly increased the methane yield and specific methane production, in both investigated processes. However, the higher OLR decreased the overall degree of degradation in all processes, and this showed a positive correlation with increased RMP values. Chemical analyses suggested that high RMP values (40–98 Nml gVS−1) were related to the degradation of cellulose, hemicellulose, and volatile fatty acid enriched in the digestate. Conclusively, increased temperature and load can increase the methane yield from manure but can result in less efficient degradation and increased risks for methane emissions during storage and handling of the digestate.
Presence of Anti-MDA5 Antibody and Its Value for the Clinical Assessment in Patients With COVID-19: A Retrospective Cohort Study
Authors: Wang Geng , Wang Qian , Wang Yeming , Liu Changzheng , Wang Linghang , Chen Hong , Jiao Tao , Hu Chaojun , Lei Xiaobo , Guo Li , Ren Lili , Li Mengtao , Zhao Yan , Zeng Xiaofeng , Zhang Dingyu , Cao Bin , Wang Jianwei
Published: December 2021

Background

Striking similarities have been found between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and anti-melanoma differentiation-associated gene 5 (MDA5) antibody (Ab)-related dermatomyositis, implying a shared autoinflammatory aberrance. Herein, we aim to investigate whether the anti-MDA5 Ab is present in COVID-19 and correlates with the severity and adverse outcome of COVID-19 patients.

Methods and Findings

We retrospectively recruited 274 adult inpatients with COVID-19 in this study, including 48, 164, and 62 cases of deaths, severe, and non-severe patients respectively. The anti-MDA5 Ab was determined by ELISA and verified by Western Blotting, which indicated that the positive rate of anti-MDA5 Ab in COVID-19 patients was 48.2% (132/274). The clinical and laboratory features, as well as outcomes between patients with positive and negative anti-MDA5 Ab were compared and we found that the anti-MDA5 Ab positive patients tended to represent severe disease (88.6% vs 66.9%, P<0.0001). We also demonstrated that the titer of anti-MDA5 Ab was significantly elevated in the non-survivals (5.95 ± 5.16 vs 8.22 ± 6.64, P=0.030) and the positive rate was also higher than that in the survivals (23.5% vs 12.0%, P=0.012). Regarding severe COVID-19 patients, we found that high titer of anti-MDA5 Ab (≥10.0 U/mL) was more prevalent in the non-survivals (31.2% vs 14.0%, P=0.006). Moreover, a dynamic analysis of anti-MDA5 Ab was conducted at different time-points of COVID-19, which revealed that early profiling of anti-MDA5 Ab could distinguish severe patients from those with non-severe ones.

Conclusions

Anti-MDA5 Ab was prevalent in the COVID-19 patients and high titer of this antibody is correlated with severe disease and unfavorable outcomes.
Development and Internal Validation of Supervised Machine Learning Algorithms for Predicting the Risk of Surgical Site Infection Following Minimally Invasive Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion
Authors: Wang Haosheng , Fan Tingting , Yang Bo , Lin Qiang , Li Wenle , Yang Mingyu
Published: December 2021

Purpose: Machine Learning (ML) is rapidly growing in capability and is increasingly applied to model outcomes and complications in medicine. Surgical site infections (SSI) are a common post-operative complication in spinal surgery. This study aimed to develop and validate supervised ML algorithms for predicting the risk of SSI following minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS-TLIF).

Methods: This single-central retrospective study included a total of 705 cases between May 2012 and October 2019. Data of patients who underwent MIS-TLIF was extracted by the electronic medical record system. The patient's clinical characteristics, surgery-related parameters, and routine laboratory tests were collected. Stepwise logistic regression analyses were used to screen and identify potential predictors for SSI. Then, these factors were imported into six ML algorithms, including k-Nearest Neighbor (KNN), Decision Tree (DT), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Random Forest (RF), Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP), and Naïve Bayes (NB), to develop a prediction model for predicting the risk of SSI following MIS-TLIF under Quadrant channel. During the training process, 10-fold cross-validation was used for validation. Indices like the area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUC), sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy (ACC) were reported to test the performance of ML models.

Results: Among the 705 patients, SSI occurred in 33 patients (4.68%). The stepwise logistic regression analyses showed that pre-operative glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), estimated blood loss (EBL), pre-operative albumin, body mass index (BMI), and age were potential predictors of SSI. In predicting SSI, six ML models posted an average AUC of 0.60–0.80 and an ACC of 0.80–0.95, with the NB model standing out, registering an average AUC and an ACC of 0.78 and 0.90. Then, the feature importance of the NB model was reported.

Conclusions: ML algorithms are impressive tools in clinical decision-making, which can achieve satisfactory prediction of SSI with the NB model performing the best. The NB model may help access the risk of SSI following MIS-TLIF and facilitate clinical decision-making. However, future external validation is needed.
Medication Errors in Secondary Care Hospitals in Kuwait: The Perspectives of Healthcare Professionals
Authors: Alsaleh Fatemah M. , Alsaeed Sara , Alsairafi Zahra K. , Almandil Noor B. , Naser Abdallah Y. , Bayoud Tania
Published: December 2021

Objectives: Medication errors (MEs) are the most common cause of adverse drug events (ADEs) and one of the most encountered patient safety issues in clinical settings. This study aimed to determine the types of MEs in secondary care hospitals in Kuwait and identify their causes. Also, it sought to determine the existing system of error reporting in Kuwait and identify reporting barriers from the perspectives of healthcare professionals (HCPs).

Material and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using a pre-tested self-administered questionnaire. Full-time physicians, pharmacists, and nurses (aged 21 years and older) working in secondary care governmental hospitals in Kuwait were considered eligible to participate in the study. Descriptive statistics and the Statistical Package for Social Science Software (SPSS), version 27 were used to analyze the data.

Results: A total of 215 HCPs were approached and asked to take part in the study, of which 208 agreed, giving a response rate of 96.7%. Most HCPs (n = 129, 62.0%) reported that the most common type of ME is “prescribing error,” followed by “compliance error” (n = 83; 39.9%). Most HCPs thought that a high workload and lack of enough breaks (n = 128; 61.5%) were the most common causes of MEs, followed by miscommunication, either among medical staff or between staff and patients, which scored (n = 89; 42.8%) and (n = 82; 39.4%), respectively. In the past 12 months, 77.4% (n = 161) of HCPs reported that they did not fill out any ME incident reports. The lack of feedback (n = 65; 31.3%), as well as the length and complexity of the existing incident reporting forms (n = 63; 30.3%), were the major barriers against reporting any identified MEs.

Conclusions: MEs are common in secondary care hospitals in Kuwait and can be found at many stages of practice. HCPs suggested many strategies to help reduce MEs, including proper communication between HCPs; double-checking every step of the process before administering medications to patients; providing training to keep HCPs up to date on any new treatment guidelines, and computerizing the health system.
Innovative Patient Involvement During Covid-19: Keeping Patients at the Heart of HTA
Authors: Rasburn Mark , Crosbie Helen , Tonkinson Amanda , Chandler David , Dhanji Tasneem , Habgood Stephen , O'Brien Stella
Published: December 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown measures in the United Kingdom resulted in significant challenges and created opportunities for innovation to keep patients at the heart of HTA. The introduction of the Coronavirus Act 2020 and the associated public health guidance meant that NICE's conventional HTA methods were no longer feasible. NICE introduced rapid, innovative updates to patient and public involvement (PPI), decision-making meetings, and consultations to harness the expertise of patients and the public to ensure guidance addressed the expected concerns and identified barriers which could impact access. This article describes the PPI support for NICE's rapid shift to virtual meetings and virtual engagement. We utilize the authors' experience and patient and public contributor feedback to understand the experience of participating in a virtual setting and identify four themes: accessibility; inclusivity; transparency; and intrapersonal relationships and committee dynamics. The article also considers how patient representatives participated in, and facilitated, the development of guidance for a hypothetical technology to keep patients and the public at the heart of expedited and novel HTA processes to identify and understand the expected patient concerns and potential barriers for when a technology would be introduced.
Expression Profiles of tRNA-Derived Small RNAs and Their Potential Roles in Primary Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma
Authors: Lu Zhaoyi , Su Kai , Wang Xiaomin , Zhang Mingjie , Ma Shiyin , Li Hui , Qiu Yuanzheng
Published: December 2021

Introduction: tRNA-derived small RNAs (tsRNAs), a class of small non-coding RNAs, are divided into two categories: tRNA-related fragments (tRFs) and tRNA halves (tiRNAs). Abnormal expression of tsRNAs has been found in diverse cancers, which indicates that further understanding of the function of tsRNAs will help identify new biomarkers and potential therapeutic targets. Until now, the underlying roles of tsRNAs in primary nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) are still unknown.

Methods: tRF and tiRNA sequencing was performed on four pairs of NPC tissues and healthy controls. Thirty pairs of NPC samples were used for quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) verification, and the ROC analysis was used to evaluate the diagnostic efficiency initially. Target prediction and bioinformatics analysis of validated tRFs and tiRNAs were conducted to explore the mechanisms of tsRNAs in NPC’s pathogenesis.

Results: A total of 158 differentially expressed tRFs and tiRNAs were identified, of which 88 are upregulated and 70 are downregulated in NPC. Three validated tRFs in the results of qRT-PCR were consistent with the sequencing data: two upregulations (tRF-1:28-Val-CAC-2 and tRF-1:24-Ser-CGA-1-M3) and one downregulation (tRF-55:76-Arg-ACG-1-M2). The GO and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis showed that the potential target genes of validated tRFs are widely enriched in cancer pathways. The related modules may play an essential role in the pathogenesis of NPC.

Conclusions: The tsRNAs may become a novel class of biological diagnostic indicators and possible targets for NPC.
Can Immune Tolerance Be Re-established in Neuromyelitis Optica?
Authors: Loda Eileah , Arellano Gabriel , Perez-Giraldo Gina , Miller Stephen D. , Balabanov Roumen
Published: December 2021

Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system that primarily affects the optic nerves and spinal cord of patients, and in some instances their brainstem, diencephalon or cerebrum as spectrum disorders (NMOSD). Clinical and basic science knowledge of NMO has dramatically increased over the last two decades and it has changed the perception of the disease as being inevitably disabling or fatal. Nonetheless, there is still no cure for NMO and all the disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) are only partially effective. Furthermore, DMTs are not disease- or antigen-specific and alter all immune responses including those protective against infections and cancer and are often associated with significant adverse reactions. In this review, we discuss the pathogenic mechanisms of NMO as they pertain to its DMTs and immune tolerance. We also examine novel research therapeutic strategies focused on induction of antigen-specific immune tolerance by administrating tolerogenic immune-modifying nanoparticles (TIMP). Development and implementation of immune tolerance-based therapies in NMO is likely to be an important step toward improving the treatment outcomes of the disease. The antigen-specificity of these therapies will likely ameliorate the disease safely and effectively, and will also eliminate the clinical challenges associated with chronic immunosuppressive therapies.
Orphan Medicinal Products for the Treatment of Pancreatic Cancer: Lessons Learned From Two Decades of Orphan Designation
Authors: Mulder Jorn , van Rossum Tobias , Mariz Segundo , Magrelli Armando , de Boer Anthonius , Pasmooij Anna M. G. , Stoyanova-Beninska Violeta
Published: December 2021

Pancreatic cancer has a dismal prognosis and only a few treatment options are available. In the European Union, pancreatic cancer classifies as a rare disease, allowing drug developers to apply for orphan medicinal product (OMP) designation. The aim of this study was to provide more detail on OMPs for pancreatic cancer. All applications for OMP designation submitted to the EMA between 2000 and 2019 were identified. For each medicinal product that received an OMP designation, the mode of drug action, use of protocol assistance, and current life cycle status was determined. Fifty-two medicinal products received an OMP designation. At the time of submission, eighteen OMPs were at the non-clinical and 34 OMPs were at the clinical stage of development. At least fourteen kinds of mode of action were explored in the condition. For eighteen out of 52 OMPs protocol assistance was sought. At the time of data analysis, one OMP received marketing authorisation and 24 OMPs were ongoing in development. Many medicinal products for pancreatic cancer received an OMP designation and the majority of these products was already in the clinical stage of development. Nonetheless, the success rate of OMPs for pancreatic cancer that reach the market is low, and increasing this rate is something to aspire. Fortunately, development is still ongoing for a part of the OMPs, and a few developers are planning to submit a marketing authorisation application in the near future. This however does not guarantee success, as pancreatic cancer remains a difficult disease to treat. Developers are advised to make optimal use of incentives such as protocol assistance, establishing (early) dialogue between regulators and drug developers and to agree on important topics such as clinical trial design.
Identification of NF1 Frameshift Variants in Two Chinese Families With Neurofibromatosis Type 1 and Early-Onset Hypertension
Authors: Lu Yi-Ting , Zhang Di , Liu Xin-Chang , Zhang Qiong-Yu , Dong Xue-Qi , Fan Peng , Xiao Yan , Zhou Xian-Liang
Published: December 2021

Background: Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF-1) is a common autosomal dominant disorder caused by mutations in the NF1 gene. It is characterized by multiple café-au-lait macules, cutaneous neurofibromas, optic glioma, Lisch nodules, and axillary and inguinal freckling. The aim of this study was to investigate NF1 mutations in two Chinese families with NF-1 who presented with early-onset hypertension, and to determine the prevalence of hypertension associated with NF-1 to better understand this complication.

Methods: Whole-exome sequencing was performed for the probands with NF-1 from two unrelated families. Possible pathogenic mutation was predicted by bioinformatic tools. Sanger sequencing was used to confirm candidate variants in all available individuals for familial co-segregation analysis. We also performed a systematic literature review of studies that reported the prevalence of hypertension in patients with NF-1.

Results: In family 1, a recurrent mutation c.6789_6792delTTAC in NF1 was identified in the proband but in no other family members, indicating that this is a de novo mutation. In family 2, a novel mutation c.6934_6936delGCAinsTGCT in NF1 was detected in the proband and two other family members, which co-segregated with the disease phenotype within the family. Both mutations were predicted to be pathogenic by bioinformatic analysis. We found hypertension was a relatively common complication of NF-1, with a prevalence range of 6.1–23.4%. Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring is a stable method for detecting initial alterations of the blood pressure pattern, particularly for pre-hypertension.

Conclusions: We identified one recurrent (c.6789_6792delTTAC) and one novel frame-shift mutation (c.6934_6936delGCAinsTGCT) in two unrelated families with NF-1 using whole-exome sequencing. In consideration of phenotypic heterogeneity in NF-1, genetic testing is a robust tool which helps early and accurate diagnosis. Because hypertension is not a rare complication of NF-1, routine screening for hypertension in patients with NF-1, especially children and adolescents, is important to avoid serious cardiovascular events.
Application of Dexmedetomidine Sedation Combined With Suprascapular Nerve Block and Axillary Nerve Block in Shoulder Arthroscopy, A Randomized Single-Blind Study
Authors: Wang Chu-Ting , Zhu Liang-Ming , Wu Ji-Ling , Kang Fen-Fen , Lin Zhi-Jian
Published: December 2021

Objective: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the anesthetic and analgesic effects of dexmedetomidine combined with suprascapular nerve block and axillary nerve block in shoulder arthroscopy.

Methods: A total of 60 patients were randomly divided into the experimental group (DEX group) and the control group (GA group) via a random number table method. Dexmedetomidine sedation combined with suprascapular nerve block and axillary nerve block was used in the DEX group, while general anesthesia with tracheal intubation combined with interscalene brachial plexus block was used in the GA group. The perioperative indexes, intraoperative hemodynamics, cerebral oxygen saturation, and postoperative pain score, as well as any complications, were compared between the two groups.

Results: The anesthesia duration (p < 0.05) and postoperative monitoring time (p < 0.05) in the DEX group were significantly shorter than those in the GA group. At most time points during the anesthesia, the cerebral oxygen saturation (p < 0.05) and mean arterial pressure (p < 0.05) in the DEX group were significantly higher than those in the GA group. Additionally, the decrease in the cerebral oxygen saturation and mean arterial pressure in the GA group was significantly higher than that in the DEX group (p < 0.05). The pain score of DEX group 12 h after operation significantly lower than that in the GA group (p < 0.05), and the incidence of postoperative hypoxemia along with nausea and vomiting in the GA group was significantly higher than that in the DEX group (p < 0.05).

Conclusion: Dexmedetomidine combined with suprascapular nerve block and axillary nerve block could reduce the incidence of hypoxemia, while the approach demonstrated better hemodynamic stability, fully ensured the cerebral blood perfusion, and exhibited better anesthetic and analgesic effects, meaning it could be safely and effectively applied in shoulder arthroscopy procedures.
Artesunate Combined With Metformin Ameliorate on Diabetes-Induced Xerostomia by Mitigating Superior Salivatory Nucleus and Salivary Glands Injury in Type 2 Diabetic Rats via the PI3K/AKT Pathway
Authors: Zhang Siqin , Li Jiarui , Nong Xiaolin , Zhan Yuxiang , Xu Jiazhi , Zhao Danni , Ma Chubin , Wang Yuchen , Li Yixing , Li Zhan , Li Jiaquan
Published: December 2021

Polydipsia and xerostomia are the most common complications that seriously affect oral health in patients with diabetes. However, to date, there is no effective treatment for diabetic xerostomia. Recent studies have reported that artesunate (ART) and metformin (Met) improve salivary gland (SG) hypofunction in murine Sjögren’s syndrome. Therefore, aim of this study was to investigate the effect and underlying mechanism of artesunate (ART) alone and in combination with metformin (Met) on hyposalivation in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) rats. T2DM rats were induced using a high-fat diet and streptozotocin. SPF male Sprague–Dawley rats were divided into the following five groups: normal control group, untreated diabetic group, ART-treated diabetic group (50 mg/kg), Met-treated diabetic group (150 mg/kg), and ART/Met co-treated diabetic group (50 mg/kg ART and 150 mg/kg Met). ART and Met were intragastrically administered daily for 4 weeks. The general conditions, diabetes parameters and serum lipids were evaluated after drug treatment. Furthermore, we observed changes in the central superior salivatory nucleus (SSN) and SG, and changes in the AQP5 expression, parasympathetic innervation (AChE and BDNF expression), and PI3K/AKT pathway- (p-AKT, and p-PI3K), apoptosis- (Bax, Bcl-2, and Caspase3), and autophagy- (LC3 and P62) related markers expression in T2DM rats after treatment. Our results showed that ART or Met alone and ART/Met combination attenuated a range of diabetic symptoms, including weight loss, urine volume increase, water consumption increase, hyperglycemia, insulin resistance, glucose intolerance and dyslipidemia. More importantly, we found that these three treatments, especially ART/Met combination, mitigated hyposalivation in the T2DM rats via improving the central SSN and SGs damage in hyperglycemia. Our data also indicated that ART/Met attenuated SG damage though regulating the PI3K/Akt pathway to inhibit apoptosis and autophagy of SGs in the T2DM rats. Moreover, ART/Met preserved parasympathetic innervation (AChE and BDNF expression) in SGs to alleviate diabetes-induced hyposalivation likely through rescuing central SSN damage. Taken together, these findings might provide a novel rationale and treatment strategy for future treatment of diabetes-induced xerostomia in the clinic.
Prediction of the Drug–Drug Interaction Types with the Unified Embedding Features from Drug Similarity Networks
Authors: Yan Xiao-Ying , Yin Peng-Wei , Wu Xiao-Meng , Han Jia-Xin
Published: December 2021

Drug combination therapies are a promising strategy to overcome drug resistance and improve the efficacy of monotherapy in cancer, and it has been shown to lead to a decrease in dose-related toxicities. Except the synergistic reaction between drugs, some antagonistic drug–drug interactions (DDIs) exist, which is the main cause of adverse drug events. Precisely predicting the type of DDI is important for both drug development and more effective drug combination therapy applications. Recently, numerous text mining– and machine learning–based methods have been developed for predicting DDIs. All these methods implicitly utilize the feature of drugs from diverse drug-related properties. However, how to integrate these features more efficiently and improve the accuracy of classification is still a challenge. In this paper, we proposed a novel method (called NMDADNN) to predict the DDI types by integrating five drug-related heterogeneous information sources to extract the unified drug mapping features. NMDADNN first constructs the similarity networks by using the Jaccard coefficient and then implements random walk with restart algorithm and positive pointwise mutual information for extracting the topological similarities. After that, five network-based similarities are unified by using a multimodel deep autoencoder. Finally, NMDADNN implements the deep neural network (DNN) on the unified drug feature to infer the types of DDIs. In comparison with other recent state-of-the-art DNN-based methods, NMDADNN achieves the best results in terms of accuracy, area under the precision-recall curve, area under the ROC curve, F1 score, precision and recall. In addition, many of the promising types of drug–drug pairs predicted by NMDADNN are also confirmed by using the interactions checker tool. These results demonstrate the effectiveness of our NMDADNN method, indicating that NMDADNN has the great potential for predicting DDI types.
Phytochemicals Mediate Autophagy Against Osteoarthritis by Maintaining Cartilage Homeostasis
Authors: Tian Zheng , Zhang Xinan , Sun Mingli
Published: December 2021

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common degenerative joint disease and is a leading cause of disability and reduced quality of life worldwide. There are currently no clinical treatments that can stop or slow down OA. Drugs have pain-relieving effects, but they do not slow down the course of OA and their long-term use can lead to serious side effects. Therefore, safe and clinically appropriate long-term treatments for OA are urgently needed. Autophagy is an intracellular protective mechanism, and targeting autophagy-related pathways has been found to prevent and treat various diseases. Attenuation of the autophagic pathway has now been found to disrupt cartilage homeostasis and plays an important role in the development of OA. Therefore, modulation of autophagic signaling pathways mediating cartilage homeostasis has been considered as a potential therapeutic option for OA. Phytochemicals are active ingredients from plants that have recently been found to reduce inflammatory factor levels in cartilage as well as attenuate chondrocyte apoptosis by modulating autophagy-related signaling pathways, which are not only widely available but also have the potential to alleviate the symptoms of OA. We reviewed preclinical studies and clinical studies of phytochemicals mediating autophagy to regulate cartilage homeostasis for the treatment of OA. The results suggest that phytochemicals derived from plant extracts can target relevant autophagic pathways as complementary and alternative agents for the treatment of OA if subjected to rigorous clinical trials and pharmacological tests.
Genetic Diversity and Environmental Influence on Growth and Yield Parameters of Bambara Groundnut
Authors: Olanrewaju Oluwaseyi Samuel , Oyatomi Olaniyi , Babalola Olubukola Oluranti , Abberton Michael
Published: December 2021

Bambara groundnut (BGN) is a drought-tolerant crop majorly cultivated in sub-Saharan Africa. Due to a lack of extensive research, marginalization, lack of awareness, and lack of available fund among others, this crop's improvement has been limited. The development of this crop depends on evaluation and selection of unique and stable breeding lines in different environments. This study aims to estimate genetic diversity using morphological traits at different locations in 95 accessions of BGN collected from the Genebank of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan. The experiment was carried out in three replicates at IITA experimental sites in two agroecological zones in Ibadan (7°40′19.62″ N, 3°91′73.13″ E) and Ikenne (6°51′00.873″ N, 3°41′48.528″ E) using a randomized complete block design. Ten vegetative growth traits and eight yield traits were scored. The data was subjected to ANOVA, PCA, correlation, and cluster analysis. Estimations of genetic parameters and broad sense heritability were carried out on the traits. ANOVA revealed significant variation in each trait except for days to emergence. Significant variation was also observed for accession and location interactions (genotype x environment interactions) for plant height, leaf length, leaf width, chlorophyll content, number of petioles, germination count, number of pods, number of seeds, seed length, seed width, and yield. PC1 and PC2 show 42.3% of the total variations observed by the PC, with seed thickness contributing more to PC1 and the number of seeds contributing more to PC2. Cluster analysis categorized the accessions into four distinct groups. The number of pods had the highest genotypic coefficient of variation of 32.55% and the phenotypic coefficient of variation of 97.61%, while seed length (0.63), seed width (0.54), and seed thickness (0.58) have high heritability values. The genetic advance was highest in yield (76.15%) and lowest in days to 50% germination (0.21%). This study can be used to predict appropriate agroecological zones for the planting of BGN while the knowledge of the diversity of the accessions based on the traits could serve a guide in selecting the best trait for the improvement of the crop.
The Impact of Mortality Salience on Purchase Intention and Creativity Evaluation on Products During COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Zu Chong , Zhou Xiang , Cui Yu-Xin , Liu Yan-Fang , Hu Yue-Xin , Li Dong-Qi , Zeng Hui
Published: December 2021

In the environment of COVID-19, people are faced with mortality salience (MS) and socioeconomic crisis. According to the terror management theory, the MS would lead to particular consumption attitudes and behaviors caused by the self-esteem and cultural worldview defense. The creativity as a potential value of products needs to be examined to explore how the MS changed the creativity evaluation of three types of products categorized into normal, renovative, and innovative products, based on the degree of originality (Zhang et al., 2019). Two experiments were conducted to examine (1) the MS effect on the creativity and purchase intention evaluation and (2) both MS and country-of-origin effect on the evaluations. The results show that usefulness and purchase intention are affected by both effects, and the novelty is mainly affected by MS.
The Influence Exerted by Time Frames on Consumers’ Willingness to Buy Nearly Expired Food
Authors: Song Mingrui , Zhao Yijun , Li Xianguo , Meng Lu
Published: December 2021

With the development of Internet e-commerce channels, online shopping platforms have become the main channel for consumers to buy nearly expired food. Date labels, as one of the main external clues, play a decisive role in nearly expired food purchasing. Therefore, based on attention-related theory, this study attempts to explore the influence exerted by different time frames on consumers’ willingness to buy and its mechanism. The results show that compared with the date, consumers have a higher willingness to buy nearly expired food when the expiration time is framed by delay. More specifically, compared to the date, the delay causes the individual to have a longer time perception, thus more preference for nearly expired food. Meanwhile, the mediating effect of time perception is moderated by food type. The conclusion of this research is helpful to expand the theoretical framework of time frames and related fields on nearly expired food, as well as provide practical guidance for marketers to effectively promote nearly expired food.
Antecedents of Knowledge Hiding and Their Impact on Organizational Performance
Authors: Wen Junqi , Ma Ruijun
Published: December 2021

Research on knowledge management has rapidly increased in the last decade, leaving a huge gap on how, why, and what triggers knowledge hiding in inter-organizational setups. Furthermore, the fostering factors for knowledge sharing have also remained unexplored because the employees in an organization are unwilling to share their knowledge with others for several reasons. The current study has attempted to explore the reasons that make employees hide their knowledge from other employees in order to excel. The individual factors considered in this study that make employees hide their knowledge are the lack of rewards for knowledge sharing, internal competition, and psychological entitlement. Furthermore, the interesting consequent factor of knowledge hiding in this study was found to be significant. The moderating role of employees’ social status has a significant moderating effect on the relationship between knowledge-hiding behavior and organizational performance. The population of the study was the managerial employees of financial institutions of China and the sample size taken in his study was 446 via convenient sampling technique. The independent factors in this study found significant results of knowledge-hiding behavior, thus approving the mediating role of knowledge hiding in the organizational performance of the financial institutions of China. The software used in this study for the data analysis was smart PLS and the technique used was partial least square SEM for the measurement of the hypothesis of the study. The study’s findings also have certain implications for policymaking in financial institutions that may hinder knowledge hiding practices and support the uninterrupted flow of knowledge among employees.
Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic and Lockdown Measures on the Mental Health of the General Population in the Gulf Cooperation Council States: A Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Al-Mutawa Naif , Al-Mutairi Nourah
Published: December 2021

Background: In the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries (Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, and Oman), as in the rest of the world, the COVID-19 has been spreading since 2019, and it had a significant impact on various aspects of life. The outbreak and the restrictive measures imposed by countries to stop the spread of the virus could harm the mental health condition of the general population. This cross-sectional study aims to assess the impact of the pandemic on mental health and investigate the potential risk factors.

Methods: An online survey was collected from individuals in GCC countries from May to October 2020. The final sample included 14,171 participants, 67.3% females and 60.4% younger than 35 years old. The survey consisted of depression, Anxiety, Insomnia, and post-traumatic stress questionnaires. Crude and adjusted Odds ratios are calculated using simple and multivariable logistic regressions to investigate the association between risk factors and mental health issues.

Results: Endorsement rates for depression were 11,352 (80.1%), 9,544 (67.3%) for anxiety, 8,845 (63.9%) for insomnia and 9,046 (65.2%) for post-traumatic stress. Being female and younger age were associated with a higher likelihood of developing depression, anxiety, insomnia, and post-traumatic stress. In addition, participants with underlying psychological problems were three times more likely to develop depressive and post-traumatic stress symptoms.

Conclusion: According to the findings, women, youth, singles, divorced individuals, and individuals with pre-existing psychological and medical conditions are subject to a higher risk of mental health problems during the pandemic, which policy-makers should consider when imposing restrictive measures.
How COVID-19 Affects Agricultural Food Sales: Based on the Perspective of China’s Agricultural Listed Companies’ Financial Statements
Authors: Chen Jianxiong , Yang Chung-Cheng
Published: December 2021

Agricultural food is generally regarded as the basis of “national security” by most countries. Through marketing strategies, promoting the sales of agri-food products in the context of a pandemic is of great significance to national food security and economic growth. The purpose of our study is to understand how the COVID-19 crisis affects the sales of agri-food products as well as the organizational and management changes it brings. By understanding those points above, we can address the problem and policy challenges to better promote the recovery of the agri-food sector from the effects caused by COVID-19. The demand is today overwhelmingly urgent. Based on the data of China’s agricultural-listed companies from 2015 to 2020, this study adopted the perspective of financial statements and conducted empirical analysis through the translog revenue function, and the results showed that the COVID-19 pandemic has reduced the sales of agri-food products, and the sales of agri-food products by large agricultural companies have fallen more than those of small- and medium-sized ones. Based on the results of the study, the government can consider the policy of providing financial support and temporary subsidies to agri-food enterprises during the pandemic, while agri-food enterprises actively practice digital marketing to reduce the adverse impact of COVID-19 on agri-food sales.
Quality and Yield of Lettuce in an Open-Air Rooftop Hydroponic System
Authors: Ezziddine Maha , Liltved Helge
Published: December 2021

In this study, the yield and growth performance of lettuce in an open-air rooftop hydroponic system were investigated. Lettuce was grown in a closed recirculating nutrient film technique (NFT) unit using a standard nutrient solution (NS). Yield, fresh weight, and nutrient content in the leaf tissue of the harvested lettuce were measured. The results were compared with the results obtained in indoor hydroponic lettuce growth with artificial lightning. Despite strong winds during the growth period, 25% of the total lettuce heads weighed twice the marketable weight; however, 25% of the total lettuce heads were below the marketable weight. A more efficient nutrient uptake was indicated by the lettuces in the rooftop system compared with the uptake in the indoor system. Foliar analysis revealed a higher content of all nutrients in the leaves of rooftop hydroponic lettuce compared with indoor hydroponic lettuce. This study suggests that hydroponic rooftop-grown lettuce can be competitive with their indoor counterparts if the rooftop hydroponic system is protected from extreme weather conditions.
A Probabilistic Approach for Solutions of Deterministic PDE’s as Well as Their Finite Element Approximations
Authors: Chaskalovic Joël
Published: December 2021

A probabilistic approach is developed for the exact solution u to a deterministic partial differential equation as well as for its associated approximation uh(k) performed by Pk Lagrange finite element. Two limitations motivated our approach: On the one hand, the inability to determine the exact solution u relative to a given partial differential equation (which initially motivates one to approximating it) and, on the other hand, the existence of uncertainties associated with the numerical approximation uh(k). We, thus, fill this knowledge gap by considering the exact solution u together with its corresponding approximation uh(k) as random variables. By a method of consequence, any function where u and uh(k) are involved are modeled as random variables as well. In this paper, we focus our analysis on a variational formulation defined on Wm,p Sobolev spaces and the corresponding a priori estimates of the exact solution u and its approximation uh(k) in order to consider their respective Wm,p-norm as a random variable, as well as the Wm,p approximation error with regards to Pk finite elements. This will enable us to derive a new probability distribution to evaluate the relative accuracy between two Lagrange finite elements Pk1 and Pk2,(k1<k2).
On the Effects of High and Ultra-High Rotational Speeds on the Strength, Corrosion Resistance, and Microstructure during Friction Stir Welding of Al 6061-T6 and 316L SS Alloys
Authors: Li Zhipeng , Chen Shujin , Meng Lingfei , Gao Yang , Yang Zhidong , Shi Mingxiao , Chen Xinyi , Zhang Hao , Zhang Yuye
Published: December 2021

In this study, under the conditions of using tools at a high rotational speed (HRS) of 10,000 rpm and an ultra-high rotational speed (ultra-HRS) of 18,000 rpm, the produced welding heat input was utilized to weld two specimens of Al alloy 6061-T6 with 1.0 mm thickness and 316L SS with 0.8 mm thickness. The microstructural characteristics, mechanical properties, and electrochemical corrosion properties of the aluminum alloy–steel joints were analyzed. The higher tool offset forms an intermetallic compound layer of less than 1 µm at the Fe-Al interface on the advancing side (AS) at different speeds. This results in a mixed zone structure. The lower tool offset forms intermetallic compounds of only 2 µm. The formation of a composite material based on aluminum alloy in the weld nugget zone improves the hardness value. The intermetallic compounds are Fe3Al and FeAl3, respectively. It was observed that the formation of intermetallic compounds is solely related to the rotational speed, and the iron-rich intermetallic compounds produced under ultra-HRS parameters have higher corrosion resistance. When the tool offset is 0.55 mm, using the HRS parameters, the tensile strength is 220.8 MPa (about 75.9% of that of the base metal).