bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Titanium dioxide nanoparticles: Recent progress in antimicrobial applications
Authors: Younis Almotasem Bellah , Haddad Yazan , Kosaristanova Ludmila , Smerkova Kristyna
Published: October 2022

For decades, the antimicrobial applications of nanoparticles (NPs) have attracted the attention of scientists as a strategy for controlling the ever‐increasing threat of multidrug‐resistant microorganisms. The photo‐induced antimicrobial properties of titanium dioxide (TiO2) NPs by ultraviolet (UV) light are well known. This review elaborates on the modern methods and antimicrobial mechanisms of TiO2 NPs and their modifications to better understand and utilize their potential in various biomedical applications. Additional compounds can be grafted onto TiO2 nanomaterial, leading to hybrid metallic or non‐metallic materials. To improve the antimicrobial properties, many approaches involving TiO2 have been tested. The results of selected studies from the past few years covering the most recent trends in this field are discussed in this review. There is extensive evidence to show that TiO2 NPs can exhibit certain antimicrobial features with disputable roles of UV light. Hence, they are effective in treating bacterial infections, although the majority of these conclusions came from in vitro studies and in the presence of some additional nanomaterials. The methods of evaluation varied depending on the nature of the research while researchers incorporated different techniques, including determining the minimum inhibitory concentration, cell count, and using disk and well diffusion methods, with a noticeable indication that cell count was the most and dominant criterion used to evaluate the antimicrobial activity.

This article is categorized under:

Nanotechnology Approaches to Biology > Nanoscale Systems in Biology

Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Emerging Technologies

Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Nanomedicine for Infectious Disease
Network Intrusion Detection System Based on an Adversarial Auto-Encoder with Few Labeled Training Samples
Authors: Shiomoto Kohei
Published: October 2022

Network intrusion detection systems (NIDS) are critical to defending network systems from cyber attacks. Recently, machine learning has been applied to enhance NIDS capability. To train a supervised machine-learning model, a large number of labeled training samples are required to achieve practical performance. However, labeling data samples is a costly task. Additionally, obtaining anomaly data samples is difficult because trends in network traffic that are subject to NIDS change daily, and new attacks continue to be generated. To address this issue, we propose a semi-supervised machine-learning-based NIDS that reduces the required number of labeled training samples by applying an adversarial auto-encoder (AAE) technique. We evaluated the proposed method through a series of experiments and confirmed that the proposed AAE-based NIDS achieves performance comparable to that of multi-layer perceptron-based NIDS with only 0.1% of the labeled training samples. We also confirmed that the selection of data samples for annotation does not affect the performance of the proposed AAE-based NIDS. We also evaluated the relationship between the performance of the proposed method and the dimension of its latent-variable vector. The best performance as measured by recall and F1 score occurred when the dimensionality of the latent variable vector was 10, which suggests that this structure allows for accurate decomposition of attack and normal. This study presents promising results obtained by the proposed semi-supervised learning method with a reduced number of labeled training samples, which reduces the operational costs of a machine-learning-based NIDS.
An investigation of the impact of Black male and female actors on US movies’ box-office across countries
Authors: Giannetti Verdiana , Chen Jieke
Published: October 2022

Globalization has resulted in an environment in which foreign markets constitute a large portion of new product sales. This is particularly the case in the movie industry. The movie industry is also pressured to increase the representation of ethnic minorities, especially in casting choices. We investigate how Black (1) male and (2) female actors affect the country-level international box-office of 788 US movies released in 2012–2019. The results show that Black male (female) actors increase (decrease) a movie’s box-office in a given country. Extending developments in the literature on intergroup contact, we examine how these effects are moderated by (a) actors’ star power, (b) the number of releases prior to release in the country, (c) the time-lag between worldwide release and release in the country, and (d) whether the country is emerging (vs. developed).
2N labeling defense method against adversarial attacks by filtering and extended class label set
Authors: Szűcs Gábor , Kiss Richárd
Published: October 2022

The fast improvement of deep learning methods resulted in breakthroughs in image classification, however, these models are sensitive to adversarial perturbations, which can cause serious problems. Adversarial attacks try to change the model output by adding noise to the input, in our research we propose a combined defense method against it. Two defense approaches have been evolved in the literature, one robustizes the attacked model for higher accuracy, and the other approach detects the adversarial examples. Only very few papers discuss both approaches, thus our aim was to combine them to obtain a more robust model and to examine the combination, in particular the filtering capability of the detector. Our contribution was that the filtering based on the decision of the detector is able to enhance the accuracy, which was theoretically proved. Besides that, we developed a novel defense method called 2N labeling, where we extended the idea of the NULL labeling method. While the NULL labeling suggests only one new class for the adversarial examples, the 2N labeling method suggests twice as much. The novelty of our idea is that a new extended class is assigned to each original class, as the adversarial version of it, thus it assists the detector and robust classifier as well. The 2N labeling method was compared to competitor methods on two test datasets. The results presented that our method surpassed the others, and it can operate with a constant classification performance regardless of the presence or amplitude of adversarial attacks.
On an integrated Krylov-ADI solver for large-scale Lyapunov equations
Authors: Benner Peter , Palitta Davide , Saak Jens
Published: October 2022

One of the most computationally expensive steps of the low-rank ADI method for large-scale Lyapunov equations is the solution of a shifted linear system at each iteration. We propose the use of the extended Krylov subspace method for this task. In particular, we illustrate how a single approximation space can be constructed to solve all the shifted linear systems needed to achieve a prescribed accuracy in terms of Lyapunov residual norm. Moreover, we show how to fully merge the two iterative procedures in order to obtain a novel, efficient implementation of the low-rank ADI method, for an important class of equations. Many state-of-the-art algorithms for the shift computation can be easily incorporated into our new scheme, as well. Several numerical results illustrate the potential of our novel procedure when compared to an implementation of the low-rank ADI method based on sparse direct solvers for the shifted linear systems.
Error profile for discontinuous Galerkin time stepping of parabolic PDEs
Authors: McLean William , Mustapha Kassem
Published: October 2022

We consider the time discretization of a linear parabolic problem by the discontinuous Galerkin (DG) method using piecewise polynomials of degree at most r − 1 in t, for r ≥ 1 and with maximum step size k. It is well known that the spatial L2-norm of the DG error is of optimal order kr globally in time, and is, for r ≥ 2, superconvergent of order k2r− 1 at the nodes. We show that on the n th subinterval (tn− 1,tn), the dominant term in the DG error is proportional to the local right Radau polynomial of degree r. This error profile implies that the DG error is of order kr+ 1 at the right-hand Gauss–Radau quadrature points in each interval. We show that the norm of the jump in the DG solution at the left end point tn− 1 provides an accurate a posteriori estimate for the maximum error over the subinterval (tn− 1,tn). Furthermore, a simple post-processing step yields a continuous piecewise polynomial of degree r with the optimal global convergence rate of order kr+ 1. We illustrate these results with some numerical experiments.
iDVS: interactive 2D and 3D visualizations of proximal sensor data for rapid characterization of soil profiles
Authors: Pham Vung , Jordan Cynthia M. , Siebecker Matthew G. , Weindorf David C. , Dang Tommy
Published: October 2022

Knowledge of the soil’s physical and chemical properties in field-scale geographical areas is crucial for farmers and policymakers for agronomic productivity and environmental quality assessment. Proximal sensors can successfully model soil properties for these purposes and offer a way to rapidly acquire data from soil profiles. However, existing data analysis approaches are ill-suited to explore this type of multivariate proximal sensor data over large land areas and in a sizeable three-dimensional volume. Therefore, this work proposes a multifaceted approach with seamless integration of a star pattern for soil sample collection, data acquisition using proximal sensor devices, and an interactive data visualization solution for processing, analyzing, and reporting analysis results. This solution is the result of an interdis- ciplinary project in which data visualizers worked closely with soil scientists and agronomists to develop a tool called iDVS for rapid characterizations of soil profiles over larger geographical areas using proximal sensor technologies.
Ante rem structuralism and the semantics of instantial terms
Authors: Gutiérrez Sofía Meléndez
Published: October 2022

Ante remstructures were posited as the subject matter of mathematics in order to resolve a problem of referential indeterminacy within mathematical discourse. Nevertheless,ante remstructuralists are inevitably committed to the existence of indiscernible entities, and this commitment produces an exactly analogous problem. If it cannot be sorted out, then the postulation ofante remstructures is futile. In a recent paper, Stewart Shapiro argued that the problem may be solved by analysing some of the singular terms of mathematics not as genuinely referring expressions, but as instantial terms. In this paper, I discuss several competing accounts of the semantics of terms of this kind, and argue that they are all untenable for theante remstructuralist. Shapiro, then, still owes us an account of the semantics of instantial terms that suits theante remstructuralist project. Without it, theante remstructuralist is still unable to determine the reference of the singular terms of mathematics.
Cellulitebehandlung mithilfe von Stammzellen und Stoßwellen
Authors: Knobloch Karsten
Published: October 2022

Die extrakorporale Stoßwellentherapie (ESWT) bedient sich akustischer Wellen, um biologische Wirkungen im Zielgewebe zu erreichen. Seit ihrer ersten klinischen Anwendung im Jahr 1980 ist eine Reihe an biologischen Antworten der ESWT mechanistisch aufgeklärt worden, so u. a. eine Stammzellaktivierung, antifibrotische Effekte, Effekte auf den verbesserten Lymphabfluss und weitere mehr. Zur Cellulite liegen mithin 12 klinische kontrollierte Studien vor, die positive Effekte der ESWT mit radialen wie auch fokussierten ESWT-Technologien bestätigen. Auch die Stimulation von autologem Fettgewebe mit „adipose-derived stem cells“ durch die ESWT ist mit einigen experimentellen Studien belegt. Insofern erscheint die ESWT als nebenwirkungsfreie Therapieform in der Hand des sachkundigen ESWT-Anwenders eine hochattraktive Therapieform zu sein, die auch in der Kombination mit anderen Therapieverfahren sinnvoll ist.
Entwicklung konkreter Handlungsoptionen für die sichere Öffnung und den Betrieb von Freizeitdestinationen unter Pandemiebedingungen
Authors: Fichtner Urs A. , Piotrowsky-Fichtner Manuela , Fichtner Myriel , Goßmann Ann-Kathrin , Weis Frederik , Weiß Maximilian , Steinmann Daniel
Published: October 2022

Hintergrund

Die SARS-CoV-2-Pandemie führte weltweit zur Schließung von Freizeit- und Erholungseinrichtungen. Im Rahmen einer vom baden-württembergischen Ministerium für Soziales, Gesundheit und Integration geförderten Modellstudie konnte am Beispiel der Öffnung und des Betriebs eines Freizeitparks unter wissenschaftlicher Begleitung gezeigt werden, wie ein Hygiene- und Sicherheitskonzept in die Praxis erfolgreich umsetzbar ist.

Ziel

Neben der Überprüfung eines möglichen Infektionsgeschehens durch den Besuch des Freizeitparks, zielte das Projekt darauf ab, Handlungsoptionen für die sichere Öffnung und den Betrieb von Freizeiteinrichtungen unter Pandemiebedingungen, die auf andere Destinationen übertragbar sind, zu erarbeiten.

Material und Methoden

Für dieses Projekt wurden verschiedene Datenquellen genutzt: Expertenrunden multidisziplinärer Teams (Betriebswirtschaft, Versorgungsforschung, Soziologie und Medizin), Aerosolmessdaten, Beobachtungsprotokolle, amtliche Infektionszahlen und Daten aus Besucherbefragungen.

Ergebnisse

Die in diesem Projekt entstandenen Handlungsoptionen liefern eine Orientierungshilfe für Betreiber von Freizeiteinrichtungen zur Umsetzung von Maßnahmen, durch welche die Sicherheit des Personals und der Gäste erhöht werden und so den Betrieb der Anlagen unter Pandemiebedingungen ermöglichen.

Diskussion

Diese Studie stellt einen Präzedenzfall am Beispiel eines Freizeitparks in Baden-Württemberg dar, der anderen Einrichtungen als Wegweiser dient. Freizeit- und Tourismusbetriebe sind allerdings einzigartig und Maßnahmen entsprechend schwer direkt übertragbar. Die Handlungsoptionen sollen weiterhin politische Entscheidungsträger in zukünftigen Pandemiesituationen hinsichtlich Maßnahmen zur Schließung, Öffnung und Betrieb solcher Anlagen unterstützen.
Scientific Posters: 1 Torsional Strength of the Radius Following Osteofasciocutaneous Free Flap Harvest with and Without Primary Bone Plating
Authors: Edmonds Joseph L. , Toby E. Bruce , Bowers Kevin W. , Girod Douglas A.
Published: October 2022

The scientific posters provide an opportunity for visual presentation of charts, drawings, and photographs, supplemented with one or two pages of text. Authors will post the times they will be available for questions. The posters will be open from 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM.
Language Matters: The Study of Canadian Politics through an Exploration of Syllabi and Comprehensive Exams
Authors: Daoust Jean-François , Gagnon Alain-G. , Galipeau Thomas
Published: October 2022

The representation of Canada's two main linguistic groups in the teaching of Canadian politics is crucial, but we know little about it. In this article, we analyze the systemic underrepresentation of francophone authors in Canadian political science by examining the research that students are exposed to. Based on data from 351 syllabi across 42 Canadian universities, as well as data from the reading list of the doctoral qualifying field exams in Canadian politics, our findings show that francophone authors are systemically underrepresented (when not totally absent). About 38 per cent of Canadian politics courses include no francophone authors in their reading lists. Our findings suggest that Canadian politics is not an inclusive and comprehensive field. This result entails important implications not only for current professors and students but also for the profession more generally, given that the students who will make up tomorrow's faculties in Canadian universities are shaped by these biases.
Cassava root yield variability in shifting cultivation systems in the eastern Amazon region of Brazil
Authors: Abrell Thomas , Naudin Krishna , Bianchi Felix J.J.A. , Aragao Debora Veiga , Tittonell Pablo , Corbeels Marc
Published: October 2022

Cassava flour is the main source of carbohydrates for family farmers in the Amazon region of Brazil. Cassava is mainly grown under shifting cultivation, in recurrent cultivation periods initiated through slash-and-burn. Its sustainability is, however, questioned due to the associated deforestation and often rapidly decreasing crop productivity. There is an urgent need to make these cassava systems more sustainable and more profitable, but we currently lack a deep understanding of the key factors governing their productivity. We conducted an on-farm study on 37 cassava fields of smallholder farmers at three locations that spanned a range of crop-fallow frequencies, some of which were initiated through slash-and-burn while others through fire-free land clearance. First, we analysed how cassava plant density at harvest was related with pedoclimatic and management factors in slash-and-burn systems. Second, we assessed the relationship between plant density and cassava root yield at harvest and conducted a yield gap analysis to better understand which factors govern cassava productivity beyond plant density in slash-and-burn systems. Finally, we compared cassava productivity between slash-and-burn and the fire-free land clearing techniques that some farmers started to adopt in the study region. Cassava yields averaged 7.2 ± 5.4 Mg ha–1 (50% of the average yield of 14.2 Mg ha–1 in the Pará State), and ranged from 0 (in case of root rot diseases) to 24 Mg ha–1. Cassava yield was associated with plant density at harvest (ranging from 0 to 10 000 plants ha–1), suggesting that managing plant density is a key determinant of the attainable yield levels. In addition, differences in cassava root yields could be largely explained by differences in labour inputs for weeding and fallow clearing, the effect of the latter depending on soil texture. Therefore, our results suggest that labour is a key production factor for cassava in the shifting cultivation systems of the Eastern Amazon in which the use of external inputs, such as chemical fertilizers and herbicides, is limited. Further, root yields were influenced by the method of field preparation, whereby yields were about 50% lower (and more variable) when fields were prepared by slash-and-burn than by mechanical ploughing or herbicide application. Despite the significantly higher yields, these alternatives to burning the vegetation are, however, still hardly adopted in Paragominas. Hence, there is a need for supporting more sustainable production systems through local and national public policies. These new systems should not only focus on soil fertility management but also on weed control and, more generally, on labour productivity.
Language switching in different contexts and modalities: Response-stimulus interval influences cued-naming but not voluntary-naming or comprehension language-switching costs
Authors: de Bruin Angela , Xu Tianyi
Published: October 2022

Language switching is often associated with language competition and switching costs. However, the underlying mechanisms might differ depending on context (free versus cued naming) and modality (production or comprehension). In this study, we assessed how response-stimulus intervals (RSI) influence language-switching costs. Longer RSIs might provide more time for interference from the previous trial to decay and result in smaller switching costs. Mandarin–English bilinguals completed two dual-language production tasks (Experiment 1: cued and voluntary picture naming) and one comprehension task (Experiment 2: animacy judgement) with a short RSI and a long RSI condition. While switching costs were present in all tasks, they were only influenced by RSI length in the cued-production task, with smaller switching costs in the long RSI condition. In contrast, RSI did not influence voluntary-production or comprehension costs. This suggests that bilinguals might apply language control differently to switch languages depending on the type of switching and modality.
Eliminating proxy errors from capital estimates by targeted exact computation
Authors: Crispin Daniel J. , Kinsley Sam M.
Published: October 2022

Determining accurate capital requirements is a central activity across the life insurance industry. This is computationally challenging and often involves the acceptance of proxy errors that directly impact capital requirements. Within simulation-based capital models, where proxies are being used, capital estimates are approximations that contain both statistical and proxy errors. Here, we show how basic error analysis combined with targeted exact computation can entirely eliminate proxy errors from the capital estimate. Consideration of the possible ordering of losses, combined with knowledge of their error bounds, identifies an important subset of scenarios. When these scenarios are calculated exactly, the resulting capital estimate can be made devoid of proxy errors. Advances in the handling of proxy errors improve the accuracy of capital requirements.
Megadrought: A Series of Unfortunate La Niña Events?
Authors: Carrillo Carlos M. , Coats Sloan , Newman Matt , Herrera Dimitris A. , Li Xiaolu , Moore Rick , Shin Sang‐Ik , Stevenson Samantha , Lehner Flavio , Ault Toby R.
Published: October 2022

Megadroughts are multidecadal periods of aridity more persistent than most droughts during the instrumental period. Paleoclimate evidence suggests that megadroughts occur in many parts of the world, including North America, Central America, western Europe, eastern Asia, and northern Africa. It remains unclear to what extent such megadroughts require external forcing or whether they can arise from internal climate variability alone. A novel statistical–dynamical approach is used to evaluate the possibility that such events arise solely as a function of interannual tropical sea surface temperature (SST) variations. A statistical emulator of tropical SST variations is constructed by using an empirical moving‐blocks bootstrap approach that randomly samples multiyear sequences of the observational SST record. This approach preserves the power spectrum, seasonal cycle, and spatial pattern of El Niño‐Southern Oscillation (ENSO) but removes longer timescale fluctuations embedded in the observational record. These resampled SST anomalies are then used to force an atmospheric model (the Community Atmosphere Model Version 5). As megadroughts emerge in this run, they should, therefore, be solely a consequence of La Niña sequences combined with internal atmospheric variability and persistence driven by soil moisture storage and other land‐surface processes. We indeed find that megadroughts in this simulation have an amplitude‐duration rate that is generally indistinguishable from the rate documented in paleoclimate records of the western United States. Our findings support the idea that megadroughts may occur randomly when the unforced climate system evolves freely over a sufficiently long period of time, implying that an unforced unusual but statistically plausible series of La Niña events may be sufficient to generate megadrought.
Spatio‐Temporal Level Variations of the Martian Seasonal North Polar Cap From Co‐Registration of MOLA Profiles
Authors: Xiao Haifeng , Stark Alexander , Schmidt Frédéric , Hao Jingyan , Steinbrügge Gregor , Wagner Nicholas L. , Su Shu , Cheng Yuan , Oberst Jürgen
Published: October 2022

The seasonal deposition and sublimation of CO2 constitute a major element in Martian volatile cycles. We reprocess the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) data and apply co‐registration procedures to obtain spatio‐temporal variations in levels of the Seasonal North Polar Cap (SNPC). The maximum level over the Residual North Polar Cap (RNPC) is 1.3 m, approximately half of that at the south pole (2.5 m). However, the maximum level in the dune fields at Olympia Undae can be up to 3.8 m. Furthermore, off‐season decreases up to 3 m during the northern winter at Olympia Undae are observed. These are likely due to metamorphism effects accentuated by the reduced snowfall at this period. Meanwhile, off‐season increases of up to 2 m during the northern spring are noted, the cause of which remains to be explored. The volume of the SNPC peaks at the end of northern winter and is estimated to be approximately 9.6 × 1012 m3, which is 2% more than that of the Seasonal South Polar Cap. The bulk density of the SNPC can go through phased decreases in accordance with phased accumulation at northern high‐latitudes. These findings can put important constraints on the Martian volatile cycling models.
A Place‐Based Approach to Drought Forecasting in South‐Central Oklahoma
Authors: McPherson Renee A. , Corporal‐Lodangco Irenea L. , Richman Michael B.
Published: October 2022

To assist water managers in south‐central Oklahoma prepare for future drought, reliable place‐based drought forecasts are produced. Past‐, present‐, and future‐forecasted climate indices (Multivariate ENSO Index, Pacific Decadal Oscillation index, and Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation index) and past and present Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI) are employed as predictor variables to forecast PDSI using a multivariate regression technique. PDSI is forecasted 18 months in advance with sufficient skill to provide water managers early warning of drought. Using a training data set obtained from the period January 1901 to November 2021, a second‐order model equation that contains, without any restriction, all the predictors and their interaction terms is built to predict drought intensity. Significant predictors are selected through stepwise regression, with cross‐validation producing the simplest restricted model that describes the data well. PDSI values are predicted using 1000 fitted restricted models produced from bootstrapping, then averaged monthly. The technique found the best‐fitting model and estimated the model coefficients that minimized the sum of squared deviations between the fitted model and the predictor variables. The adjusted R‐squared value of the restricted model is large enough to explain an adequately accurate model, and relatively low values of error measures point to good predictive ability of the model. Although the model slightly overestimates the PDSI forecast maxima and minima, it necessarily captures the timing of the periods of severe to exceptional drought.
Ancient Nile Tributary May Have Aided Pyramid Construction
Authors: Schmidt Jennifer
Published: October 2022

Pollen from sediment cores shows that a now dry channel cutting through Giza was once a flowing waterway that Egyptian pyramid builders could have used to transport supplies.
Assessing Measurement Invariance of a Land Use Environment Construct Across Levels of Urbanicity
Authors: Meeker Melissa A. , Schwartz Brian S. , Bandeen‐Roche Karen , Hirsch Annemarie G. , De Silva S. Shanika A. , McAlexander Tara P. , Black Nyesha C. , McClure Leslie A.
Published: October 2022

Variation in the land use environment (LUE) impacts the continuum of walkability to car dependency, which has been shown to have effects on health outcomes. Existing objective measures of the LUE do not consider whether the measurement of the construct varies across different types of communities along the rural/urban spectrum. To help meet the goals of the Diabetes Location, Environmental Attributes, and Disparities (LEAD) Network, we developed a national, census tract‐level LUE measure which evaluates the road network and land development. We tested for measurement invariance by LEAD community type (higher density urban, lower density urban, suburban/small town, and rural) using multiple group confirmatory factor analysis. We determined that metric invariance does not exist; thus, measurement of the LUE does vary across community type with average block length, average block size, and percent developed land driving most shared variability in rural tracts and with intersection density, street connectivity, household density, and commercial establishment density driving most shared variability in higher density urban tracts. As a result, epidemiologic studies need to consider community type when assessing the LUE to minimize place‐based confounding.
On the Influence of Thermal Stratification on Emitted Dust Flux
Authors: Dupont S.
Published: October 2022

The influence of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) stability on dust emitted from saltation is usually neglected. This has been challenged by two recent studies which suggested a dependency of the dust emission flux particle size distribution (PSD) to the thermal stratification. Both studies observed a dust flux enrichment in fine particles with instability but for two different explanations: (a) a larger eddy diffusivity of submicron particles with instability, and (b) an enhanced turbulence and friction velocity u* stochasticity with instability, increasing saltation bombardment and fine‐dust emission. Here, we discuss and investigate these two propositions using the WIND‐O‐V (WIND erOsion in presence of sparse Vegetation's) 2017 data set. We first show that the first explanation and the observed stability effect on the dust flux are questionable. We, then, investigate the second explanation in the context of the enhanced influence of ABL‐scale motions on the near‐surface turbulence and u* stochasticity with increasing instability. This second explanation appears only possible at the transition between windy and free convection regimes where u* is close to its erosion threshold value. However, this intermediate regime appears more convective than the erosion event from whom the second explanation was proposed. Overall, our results show no thermal stability effect on the dust emission flux PSD. Instead, u* and the air relative humidity seem to be the main meteorological variables influencing the dust emission flux PSD. We, in particular, suggest that the air relative humidity may have affected the surface soil moisture, and thus the interparticle cohesion, through water vapor adsorption.
The RNA m6A writer WTAP in diseases: structure, roles, and mechanisms
Authors: Huang Qibo , Mo Jie , Liao Zhibin , Chen Xiaoping , Zhang Bixiang
Published: October 2022

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is a widely investigated RNA modification in studies on the “epigenetic regulation” of mRNAs that is ubiquitously present in eukaryotes. Abnormal changes in m6A levels are closely related to the regulation of RNA metabolism, heat shock stress, tumor occurrence, and development. m6A modifications are catalyzed by the m6A writer complex, which contains RNA methyltransferase-like 3 (METTL3), methyltransferase-like 14 (METTL14), Wilms tumor 1-associated protein (WTAP), and other proteins with methyltransferase (MTase) capability, such as RNA-binding motif protein 15 (RBM15), KIAA1429 and zinc finger CCCH-type containing 13 (ZC3H13). Although METTL3 is the main catalytic subunit, WTAP is a regulatory subunit whose function is to recruit the m6A methyltransferase complex to the target mRNA. Specifically, WTAP is required for the accumulation of METTL3 and METTL14 in nuclear speckles. In this paper, we briefly introduce the molecular mechanism of m6A modification. Then, we focus on WTAP, a component of the m6A methyltransferase complex, and introduce its structure, localization, and physiological functions. Finally, we describe its roles and mechanisms in cancer.
Pericyte remodeling is deficient in the aged brain and contributes to impaired capillary flow and structure
Authors: Berthiaume Andrée-Anne , Schmid Franca , Stamenkovic Stefan , Coelho-Santos Vanessa , Nielson Cara D. , Weber Bruno , Majesky Mark W. , Shih Andy Y.
Published: October 2022

Deterioration of brain capillary flow and architecture is a hallmark of aging and dementia. It remains unclear how loss of brain pericytes in these conditions contributes to capillary dysfunction. Here, we conduct cause-and-effect studies by optically ablating pericytes in adult and aged mice in vivo. Focal pericyte loss induces capillary dilation without blood-brain barrier disruption. These abnormal dilations are exacerbated in the aged brain, and result in increased flow heterogeneity in capillary networks. A subset of affected capillaries experience reduced perfusion due to flow steal. Some capillaries stall in flow and regress, leading to loss of capillary connectivity. Remodeling of neighboring pericytes restores endothelial coverage and vascular tone within days. Pericyte remodeling is slower in the aged brain, resulting in regions of persistent capillary dilation. These findings link pericyte loss to disruption of capillary flow and structure. They also identify pericyte remodeling as a therapeutic target to preserve capillary flow dynamics.
Reputation effects drive the joint evolution of cooperation and social rewarding
Authors: Pal Saptarshi , Hilbe Christian
Published: October 2022

People routinely cooperate with each other, even when cooperation is costly. To further encourage such pro-social behaviors, recipients often respond by providing additional incentives, for example by offering rewards. Although such incentives facilitate cooperation, the question remains how these incentivizing behaviors themselves evolve, and whether they would always be used responsibly. Herein, we consider a simple model to systematically study the co-evolution of cooperation and different rewarding policies. In our model, both social and antisocial behaviors can be rewarded, but individuals gain a reputation for how they reward others. By characterizing the game’s equilibria and by simulating evolutionary learning processes, we find that reputation effects systematically favor cooperation and social rewarding. While our baseline model applies to pairwise interactions in well-mixed populations, we obtain similar conclusions under assortment, or when individuals interact in larger groups. According to our model, rewards are most effective when they sway others to cooperate. This view is consistent with empirical observations suggesting that people reward others to ultimately benefit themselves.
Development of intravenously administered synthetic RNA virus immunotherapy for the treatment of cancer
Authors: Kennedy Edward M. , Denslow Agnieszka , Hewett Jacqueline , Kong Lingxin , De Almeida Ana , Bryant Jeffrey D. , Lee Jennifer S. , Jacques Judy , Feau Sonia , Hayes Melissa , McMichael Elizabeth L. , Wambua Daniel , Farkaly Terry , Rahmeh Amal A , Herschelman Lauren , Douglas Danielle , Spinale Jacob , Adhikari Sanmit , Deterling Jessica , Scott Matt , Haines Brian B. , Finer Mitchell H. , Ashburn Ted T , Quéva Christophe , Lerner Lorena
Published: October 2022

The therapeutic effectiveness of oncolytic viruses (OVs) delivered intravenously is limited by the development of neutralizing antibody responses against the virus. To circumvent this limitation and to enable repeated systemic administration of OVs, here we develop Synthetic RNA viruses consisting of a viral RNA genome (vRNA) formulated within lipid nanoparticles. For two Synthetic RNA virus drug candidates, Seneca Valley virus (SVV) and Coxsackievirus A21, we demonstrate vRNA delivery and replication, virus assembly, spread and lysis of tumor cells leading to potent anti-tumor efficacy, even in the presence of OV neutralizing antibodies in the bloodstream. Synthetic-SVV replication in tumors promotes immune cell infiltration, remodeling of the tumor microenvironment, and enhances the activity of anti-PD-1 checkpoint inhibitor. In mouse and non-human primates, Synthetic-SVV is well tolerated reaching exposure well above the requirement for anti-tumor activity. Altogether, the Synthetic RNA virus platform provides an approach that enables repeat intravenous administration of viral immunotherapy.
Multimodal Data for the Detection of Freezing of Gait in Parkinson’s Disease
Authors: Zhang Wei , Yang Zhuokun , Li Hantao , Huang Debin , Wang Lipeng , Wei Yanzhao , Zhang Lei , Ma Lin , Feng Huanhuan , Pan Jing , Guo Yuzhu , Chan Piu
Published: October 2022

Freezing of gaits (FOG) is a very disabling symptom of Parkinson’s Disease (PD), affecting about 50% of PD patients and 80% of advanced PD patients. Studies have shown that FOG is related to a complex interplay between motor, cognitive and affective factors. A full characterization of FOG is crucial for FOG detection/prediction and prompt intervention. A protocol has been designed to acquire multimodal physical and physiological information during FOG, including gait acceleration (ACC), electroencephalogram (EEG), electromyogram (EMG), and skin conductance (SC). Two tasks were designed to trigger FOG, including gait initiation failure and FOG during walking. A total number of 12 PD patients completed the experiments and produced a length of 3 hours and 42 minutes of valid data including 2 hours and 14 minutes of normal gait and 1 hour and 28 minutes of freezing of gait. The FOG episodes were labeled by two qualified physicians. The multimodal data have been validated by a FOG detection task.
Morphometric measurements and the relationship with body weight in the Sudanese Dorcas Gazelle and Bohor Reedbuck
Authors: Rashad Amr M. A. , Taha Taha K. , Mahdy Ahmed E. , Aziz Mahmoud A. , Badran Ahmed E.
Published: October 2022

The objectives were to describe the morphometric measurements and determine the best model for estimating the relationship between body weight and morphometric measurements of the two Sudanese antelopes, Dorcas Gazelle (Gazella dorcas) and Bohor Reedbuck (Redunca redunca). Twenty-four animals belonging to two Sudanese antelope species, six males and six females from each species were used. Data on body weight and body measurements were recorded from each species. Averages of body weight and morphometric traits of Bohor Reedbuck were larger than the corresponding values of Dorcas Gazelle, while the opposite was true in the case of horn thickness, which was larger in the later. Stepwise regression analysis indicated that, the best model for Dorcas Gazelle had the variables neck length, belly girth and chest height, while Bohor Reedbuck had body length, head length, neck length, tail length, chest girth and pelvic height. These variables explained 82% of the total variation in body weight of Dorcas Gazelle, and 92% of the variation of Bohor Reedbuck. These results are discussed in relation to morphometric measurements reported for antelopes elsewhere.
Cable news and COVID-19 vaccine uptake
Authors: Pinna Matteo , Picard Léo , Goessmann Christoph
Published: October 2022

COVID-19 vaccines have reduced infections and hospitalizations across the globe, yet resistance to vaccination remains strong. This paper investigates the role of cable television news in vaccine hesitancy and associated local vaccination rates in the United States. We find that, in the earlier stages of the vaccine roll-out (starting May 2021), higher local viewership of Fox News Channel has been associated with lower local vaccination rates. We can verify that this association is causal using exogenous geographical variation in the channel lineup. The effect is driven by younger individuals (under 65 years of age), for whom COVID-19 has a low mortality risk. Consistent with changes in beliefs about the effectiveness of the vaccine as a mechanism, we find that Fox News increased reported vaccine hesitancy in local survey responses. We can rule out that the effect is due to differences in partisanship, to local health policies, or to local COVID-19 infections or death rates. The other two major television networks, CNN and MSNBC, have no effect. That, in turn, indicates that more differentiated characteristics, like the networks’ messaging or tendency for controversy, matter and that the effect of Fox News on COVID-19 vaccine uptake is not due to the general consumption of cable news. We also show that there is no historical effect of Fox News on flu vaccination rates, suggesting that the effect is COVID-19-specific and not driven by general skepticism toward vaccines.
A simple nomogram for assessing the risk of IgA vasculitis nephritis in IgA vasculitis Asian pediatric patients
Authors: Bi Yuna , Quan Wei , Hao Wei , Sun Rui , Li Liwen , Jiang Chunping , Tian Lingling , Liu Lin , Liu Jie , Li Xiaozhong , Li Tao
Published: October 2022

A nomogram for assessing the risk of IgA vasculitis nephritis (originally termed Henoch–Schönlein purpura nephritis, HSPN) in IgA vasculitis (originally termed Henoch–Schönlein purpura, HSP) pediatric patients can effectively improve early diagnosis and prognosis of IgA vasculitis nephritis. However, currently, no nomogram is available. 246 IgA vasculitis and 142 IgA vasculitis nephritis Asian pediatric patients confirmed by renal biopsy were enrolled. Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were performed to identify the independent risk factors and construct a series of predictive models. The receiver operating characteristic curve, calibration plot, decision curve analysis, net reclassification index and integrated discrimination index were used to screen the best model. Stratification analysis was applied to optimize model’s clinical utility. An external validation set was introduced to verify the predictive efficiency. The final predictive model was converted to nomogram for visual use. We identified age, duration of rash (Dor), D-dimer and IgG as independent risk factors and constructed four models as follows: AIDD (Age + IgG + Dor + D-dimer), AIDi (Age + IgG + D-dimer), AIDo (Age + IgG + Dor) and ADD (Age + Dor + D-dimer), which achieved the receiver operator characteristic curve (AUROC) of 0.931, 0.920, 0.856 and 0.907, respectively. Finally, AIDi model with an AUROC of 0.956 and 0.897 in internal and external validating sets was proposed as a novel predictive model. In stratification analysis by gender and histological grade, the AUROC of AIDi was 0.949 in female, 0.926 in male, 0.933 in mild histological grades and 0.939 in severe histological grades, respectively. AIDi nomogram is an effective and visual tool for assessing the risk of nephritis in IgA vasculitis Asian pediatric patients, regardless of IgA vasculitis nephritis histological grades and gender.
Analysis of the effects of simplifications on the state of loads in a centrifugal compressor
Authors: Bednarz Arkadiusz , Sęp Jarosław , Bartłomowicz Rafał , Jaworski Justin , Wójcik Augustyn
Published: October 2022

This study aims to quantify and assess qualitatively the impact of modeling simplifications used to represent inertial and aerodynamic loads on the stresses and structural deformations of a centrifugal compressor in operation. The research object is the compressor of the high-pressure line of the DGEN 380 bypass turbine engine. Based on the virtual dynamometer WESTT CS/BV, the gas-dynamic parameters at the entrance to the centrifugal compressor and after the stage are determined. These values were used as initial parameters for numerical flow analysis. As part of the numerical strength analyses, a series of several load configurations were carried out: spin only, spin and inlet pressure normally applied on the working surface of the rotor blade, spin and outlet pressure normally applied on the working surface of the rotor blade, and one-way fluid–structure interaction analysis taking into account the aerodynamic loads with and without spinning. Based on the simulations, the level of similarity of a given load configuration with the last analysis, adopted as the reference, was determined. It was observed that in terms of the stress state, the rotational analysis taking into account the pressure on both sides of the blade gives satisfactory results, but the strain values are overestimated. The results obtained and the method of evaluation of compressor results can be used in research in the area of aviation, automotive, and refrigeration industries.
Deep neural learning based optimization for automated high performance antenna designs
Authors: Mir Farzad , Kouhalvandi Lida , Matekovits Ladislau
Published: October 2022

The present paper introduces an optimization-oriented method here practiced for designing high performance single antennas in a fully automated environment. The proposed method comprises two sequential major steps. The first one devotes configuring the shape of antenna and determining the feeding point by employing the bottom-up optimization (BUO) method. In this algorithm, the number of microstrip transmission lines (TLs) used to model the radiator is increased consecutively and the shape of the antenna is revised up to finding the initial satisfying results. Secondly, for determining the best design parameters of the configured antenna shape in the first step (i.e., width and length of TLs), deep neural network (DNN) that is based on Thompson sampling efficient multi-objective optimization (TSEMO) is applied. The recommended optimization method is successfully attracted as a problem solver for designers to tackle the subject for antenna design such as the complexity and large dimensions of structures. Hence, the main advantage of the implemented optimization method in this article is to noticeably decrease the required designer’s involvement automatically generating valid layouts. For validating the suggested method, two wideband antennas are designed, prototyped and subjected to experiment. The first optimized antenna covers the frequency band 8.8–10.1 GHz (13.75 % bandwidth) characterized by a maximum gain of 7.13 dB while the second one covers the frequency band 11.3–13.16 GHz (15.2 %) which exhibits a maximum gain of 7.8 dB.
Differences in the microbiota of oral rinse, lesion, and normal site samples from patients with mucosal abnormalities on the tongue
Authors: Shitozawa Yawaka , Haro Kaoru , Ogawa Midori , Miyawaki Akihiko , Saito Mitsumasa , Fukuda Kazumasa
Published: October 2022

The oral microbiota associated with mucosal diseases, including oral squamous cell carcinoma and oral potentially malignant disorders, have been extensively analyzed at the phylum and genus levels. However, the details of the oral microbiota remain unclear at the species and operational taxonomic unit (OTU) levels. We aimed to determine differences in the microbiota of oral rinse, lesion and normal site swab samples of patients with mucosal abnormalities on the tongues. Oral samples were obtained from 10 patients with oral mucosal abnormalities. Alpha and beta diversity at the OTU and genus levels of the microbiota samples were analyzed using OTUs clustered with 99.6% similarity based on 16S rRNA gene sequences obtained using the Sanger method. At the OTU level, the microbiota of the lesions were the least diverse but were different from those of the normal site and oral rinse samples. The OTUs corresponding to Streptococcus infantis and Haemophilus parainfluenzae were suggested to contribute to the differences between the microbiota of the lesions and normal sites. At the genus level, no significant differences between these microbiota were observed. In conclusion, strict OTU-level microbiota analysis might be able to discriminate lesions from normal sites of patients with mucosal abnormalities.