bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Characteristics and outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections among double-vaccinated and triple-vaccinated patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases
Authors: Hasseli Rebecca , Richter Jutta G. , Hoyer Bimba Franziska , Lorenz Hanns-Martin , Pfeil Alexander , Regierer Anne Constanze , Schmeiser Tim , Strangfeld Anja , Voll Reinhard E , Krause Andreas , Reckert Sabine , Gräßler Anett , Saar Petra , Kapelle Andreas , Backhaus Marina , Blank Norbert , Henes Joerg , Osiek Silke , Knothe Anna , Hoese Guido , Brandt-Jürgens Jan , Maltzahn Anja , Specker Christof , Müller-Ladner Ulf , Schulze-Koops Hendrik
Published: April 2023

Objective

To analyse the clinical profile of SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections in at least double-vaccinated patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRDs).

Methods

Data from the physician-reported German COVID-19-IRD registry collected between February 2021 and July 2022 were analysed. SARS-CoV-2 cases were stratified according to patients’ vaccination status as being not vaccinated, double-vaccinated or triple-vaccinated prior to SARS-CoV-2 infection and descriptively compared. Independent associations between demographic and disease features and outcome of breakthrough infections were estimated by multivariable logistic regression.

Results

In total, 2314 cases were included in the analysis (unvaccinated n=923, double-vaccinated n=551, triple-vaccinated n=803, quadruple-vaccinated n=37). SARS-CoV-2 infections occurred after a median of 151 (range 14–347) days in patients being double-vaccinated, and after 88 (range 14–270) days in those with a third vaccination. Hospitalisation was required in 15% of unvaccinated, 8% of double-vaccinated and 3% of triple-vaccinated/quadruple-vaccinated patients (p<0.001). Mortality was 2% in unvaccinated, 1.8% in the double-vaccinated and 0.6% in triple-vaccinated patients. Compared with unvaccinated patients, double-vaccinated (OR 0.43, 95% CI 0.29 to 0.62) and triple-vaccinated (OR 0.13, 95% CI 0.08 to 0.21) patients showed a significant lower risk of COVID-19-related hospitalisation. Using multivariable analysis, the third vaccination was significantly associated with a lower risk for COVID-19-related death (OR 0.26; 95% CI 0.01 to 0.73).

Conclusions

Our cross-sectional data of COVID-19 infections in patients with IRD showed a significant reduction of hospitalisation due to infection in double-vaccinated or triple-vaccinated patients compared with those without vaccination and even a significant reduction of COVID-19-related deaths in triple-vaccinated patients. These data strongly support the beneficial effect of COVID-19 vaccination in patients with IRD.

Trial registration number

EuDRACT 2020-001958-21.
Application of X-rays to interpret alloying effects on the 3d and 4s4p electron populations of nickel-boron-nitrogen metal matrix composites
Authors: Koksal O.K.
Published: April 2023

For this experiment, nickel-boron and nickel-boron-nitrogen alloys are created using the electrochemical deposition method. Utilizing energy-dispersive X-ray methods, the nickel-boron and nickel-boron-nitrogen alloys are characterized. X-ray diffraction was used to examine the crystal structure of nickel-boron and nickel-boron-nitrogen alloys. An energy dispersed X-ray fluorescence spectrometer is used to gather X-ray photons from the present samples. The number of radiated X-ray photons from the present specimens is used to compute the Kβ/Kα intensity ratios. The theoretical Coulomb and Babushkin gauges are used to calculate the populations of the 3d and 4s4p electrons. The observed data imply that shielding effects from 4s3d orbitals, hybridization, changes in energy levels, and charge transfer mechanism may be the causes of the variance in 3d and 4s4p electron populations. In an effort to clarify the conclusions drawn as a result of all these computations, this study contrasts the results with those of pure nickel.
TGSNET: A FRACTAL NEURAL NETWORK FOR ACTION RECOGNITION
Authors: ZHAO YULAN , LEE HYO JONG
Published: April 2023

In the study of action recognition based on optical flow, improving the recognition speed of two-stream neural networks is challenging. In this paper, a new network structure Teacher Guided Student Network (TGSNet) which is based on two-stream and teacher–student architecture is proposed to judge the category of action rapidly in the application. There are two sub-networks with optical flow and RGB frame stream in the network, the optical flow sub-network is assigned as the teacher and the RGB frame stream sub-network as the student. In the training stage, the optical flow sub-network computes the optical flow of the video frame and trains the sub-network then transmits the feature to the RGB frame stream sub-network. The RGB frame stream sub-network uses the RGB frame to mimic the optical flow to train the sub-network. In the test stage, there is only RGB frame stream sub-network existing for action recognition rapidly without computing optical flow. The experimental results show that the TGSNet feeds only by RGB frame stream get a competitive accuracy of 56.7% and a better run-time on HMDB51.
SUPER-HYDROPHOBIC SILICON CARBIDE REINFORCED EPOXY RESIN COMPOSITES
Authors: YAN S. , TANG J. , JIN Z. , QI F. , ZHANG A. , ZHOU A.
Published: April 2023

In marine, aviation and railway transportation, dirt, corrosion, and wear lead to rapid failure of equipment, and organic coating is the main protective means. Epoxy (EP) coating is a widely used film-forming material in organic coating. We report a new modification method — fluorine modified silicon carbide (F–SiC) modified EP coating. The hydrophobicity, wear resistance and corrosion resistance of the EP coating were improved by grafting fluorinated organic compound (F–SiC) onto the surface of silicon carbide particles and adding it to the EP coating. When the content of F–SiC is 3 wt.%, compared with the EP coating without F–SiC, the contact angle between 3 wt.% F–SiC EP coating and water increases by 63%, and the friction coefficient decreases by 73%. The corrosion resistance of 3 wt.% F–SiC EP coating is about three orders of magnitude higher than that of the EP coating soaked for six days.
EFFECT OF SHOT BLASTING PARAMETERS ON THE WATER CONTACT ANGLE ON THE SURFACE OF ADDITIVELY MANUFACTURED AlSi10Mg ALUMINUM ALLOY
Authors: MINHAS NAVDEEP , SHARMA VARUN , BHADAURIA SHAILENDRA SINGH
Published: April 2023

In this paper, the effect of shot blasting parameters such as time, pressure, and grit size were studied over the water contact angle of additively manufactured aluminum alloy (AlSi10Mg) surfaces. The Taguchi L9 orthogonal array was implied to set the correlations and interactions between the shot blasting parameters and water contact angle as output parameters. The analysis of variance establishes a good agreement with the results, revealing the time as the most significant parameter with a 41.98% contribution, followed by the pressure (41.57%) and grit size (16.43%). Further, the roughness measurements and scanning electron microscopy analysis of the shot-blasted surfaces validate the variations in the water contact angle.
SYNTHESIS OF FUNCTIONALIZED GRAPHENE NANOPLATELETS THROUGH OXIDATIVE CHLOROPHOSPHORYLATION: TECHNICAL NOTE
Authors: ALIYEVA SOLMAZ , ALOSMANOV RASIM , BUNIYATZADEH IRADA
Published: April 2023

This paper is devoted to the investigation of functionalized graphene nanoplatelets (FGNPs) samples. Synthesis of FGNPs was carried out through oxidative chlorophosphorylation (OxCh) reaction, i.e. reaction of graphite with PCl3 in the presence of oxygen under different conditions. For this, the reaction of graphite with PCl3 in the presence of oxygen was carried out separately both at a temperature of 65°C and at room temperature in a CCl4 medium and at a temperature of 65°C in a CCl4 medium. The FGNPs samples obtained by this method were named FGNPs1, FGNPs2, and FGNPs3, respectively. FGNPs1, FGNPs2, and FGNPs3 were investigated using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and ultraviolet–visible (UV–Visible) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis methods. The results of FTIR spectroscopy showed that all FGNPs samples contain phosphonate groups. Based on the UV–Vis spectroscopy, the optical band gap of the samples was calculated and compared with pristine graphite. It has been established that the width of the optical bands of FGNPs1 (1.17[Formula: see text]eV), FGNPs2 (1.22[Formula: see text]eV), and FGNPs3 (1.24[Formula: see text]eV) is wider than that of the pristine graphite (1.04[Formula: see text]eV). Based on the XRD analysis, it was determined that the functionalization causes a change in the crystal lattice parameters of graphite. Based on the XRD analysis, it was determined that the functionalization causes a change in the crystal lattice parameters of graphite and FGNPs samples (number of graphene layers: [Formula: see text]; [Formula: see text]; [Formula: see text]) to consist of fewer graphene layers than graphite ([Formula: see text]).
The Role of GHG Emissions and Energy Consumption Disclosures in Determining Performance-Based CEO Compensation — A Panel Data Approach
Authors: Rath Chetna , Deo Malabika
Published: April 2023

This paper aims to empirically examine whether the negative impact of greenhouse gas emissions and energy use disclosures alleviates or exacerbates the positive impact of an overall Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) disclosure while determining the performance-based CEO pay. A total of 67 companies listed in the NSE Nifty 100 ESG index spanning six years from 2014 to 2019 have been taken as the data sample. As a baseline methodology, the Panel Corrected Standard Errors model is applied and a further two-step system GMM model has been considered for robustness check. ESG disclosure scores show a significant positive effect on the pay–performance relationship, while its interaction with the emissions/ energy use disclosure index gives a negative impact. The results indicate that the significant positive effect of ESG disclosure scores cannot reinforce the negative impact of emissions or energy use while ascertaining the performance-based CEO compensation.
Technical Analysis in Investing
Authors: Cohen Gil
Published: April 2023

Technical analysis helps investors to better time their entry and exit from financial asset positions. This methodology relies solely on past information on financial assets price and volumes to predict a financial asset’s future price trend. Modern research has established that combined with other sentiment measures such as social media, it can outperform the standard buy and hold strategy. Moreover, it has been documented that novice and professional investors technical analysis in their investing strategy. An experienced investor should combine fundamental analysis and technical analysis for better trading results. Programmers use technical analysis to create algorithmic trading systems that learn and adapt to the changing trading environments and perform trading accordingly without human involvement. There are hundreds of technical tools offered by known trading platforms. investors must use specific tools that fit their trading style and risk adoption. Moreover, different financial assets such as stocks, exchange trade funds (ETFs), cryptocurrency, futures, and commodities demand different sets of tools. Furthermore, investors should use these tools according to the time frame they use for trading. This paper will discuss different technical tools that are used to help traders of different time frames and different financial assets to achieve better returns over the traditional buy and hold strategy.
Some quadratic permutation polynomials over finite fields
Authors: Singh Rajesh P. , Vishwakarma Chandan Kumar
Published: April 2023

Polynomials of the form [Formula: see text] are called quadratic polynomials over a finite field [Formula: see text] and the quadratic polynomials of the form [Formula: see text] are called Dembowski–Ostrom polynomials. In this paper, we propose four classes of permutation trinomials of Dembowski–Ostrom type polynomials over finite fields [Formula: see text] and two classes of quadratic permutation polynomials of the form [Formula: see text] over [Formula: see text].
Exploring Customers’ Feedback on the Technological and Operational Changes at the Departments of Motor Vehicles Due to Covid-19 Pandemic
Authors: Kutela Boniphace , Magehema Raynard Tom , Mwekh’iga Rafael
Published: April 2023

In Early 2020, after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provided guidelines to combat the spread of COVID-19. As a result, Departments of Motor Vehicles (DMVs) introduced several technological changes and modified operation protocols. This study explored the changes of customer feedback resulting from the changes in DMVs operations across the United States. A total of 24[Formula: see text]164 Google reviews were collected from 69 cities in 43 States. Sentiment analysis, text network, and logistic regression were applied to evaluate the changes of the feedback before and after the lockdown period. It was found that the post-lockdown reviews had higher positive polarity and low negative polarity than pre-lockdown reviews. Furthermore, positive feedback topics, such as excellent service and short waiting time, increased significantly during the post-lockdown era. Keywords that showed a higher likelihood of higher ratings include appointment, wait time, and minutes. Conversely, lower ratings were associated with keywords — customer services, hours, and people, among others. Further, the logistic regression showed that the odds of high ratings increased nearly three times when COVID-19-related keywords were mentioned. Several recommendations to improve operations are presented in this study. It is expected that the findings will benefit DMV operators and policymakers across the United States.
Fuzzy computational study on the generalized fractional smoking model with caputo gH-type derivatives
Authors: Verma Lalchand , Meher Ramakanta
Published: April 2023

This work considers a generalized fuzzy fractional smoking model with Caputo [Formula: see text]-types fractional derivatives upon considering the case of uncertainty quantification. The disease-free equilibrium point and stability of the equilibrium point have been discussed for the fuzzy nonlinear fractional smoking model. The analytical proofs for the existence and uniqueness of the proposed model are concerned with the help of the fixed-point theorem, Banach contraction, and Schauder theorem. A robust double parametric approach with a generalized transform is used to study the behavior of the fuzzy fractional model in an uncertain context and obtain the convergence analysis of the study in a crisp context. Finally, the obtained results of the proposed model have been validated with the Runge–Kutta method of fourth order in crisp case [Formula: see text].
BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS ON BIG DATA APPLICATIONS IN INSURANCE SECTOR: PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS
Authors: MALL SUNITA , PANIGRAHI TUSHAR RANJAN , VERMA SUSHMA
Published: April 2023

In this study, the key areas and current trends in the field of big data applications in the insurance industry are identified, along with suggestions for future research initiatives. We identified the most prominent authors, journals, organizations, and countries based on their total publications and citations, showing their significance within the network, using bibliometric analysis on a sample of 191 articles retrieved from Scopus from 1976 to 2021. VOSviewer and R-Biblioshiny tools were used to generate the bibliometric output on these retrieved papers. The findings showed that although while a good number of writers from other parts of the world contributed to the literature on big data applications in the insurance industry, during this time, most research papers have listed the United States, India, and China as their affiliated countries. The yearly publication was either one or two, with some discontinuity, from 1976 to 2011, but since 2012, it has increased, exhibiting an exponential growth tendency. The three journals “Risks,” “Applied Stochastic Models in Business and Industry,” and “Expert Systems with Applications” are the most popular for including a sizable number of papers in the field of big data technologies in the insurance sector. Each of the top 10 authors in this field published two research papers during these 46 years. Seven areas, including fraud detection and prevention, risk assessment, pricing & rate making, technology utilization, risk management, claim processing & prediction, and finally digitalization, were the major focus of research papers on bigdata applications in the insurance business. The human-centered AI system development, adoption of wearable technology, personalization, and other topics were found to have received very little attention in this study. As a result, the researchers may now direct future research in this area. This study is completely new of its kind in the domain of insurance though few documents are available on the broad concept of finance.
Reversible Database Watermarking Based on Order-preserving Encryption for Data Sharing
Authors: Hu Donghui , Wang Qing , Yan Song , Liu Xiaojun , Li Meng , Zheng Shuli
Published: April 2023

In the era of big data, data sharing not only boosts the economy of the world but also brings about problems of privacy disclosure and copyright infringement. The collected data may contain users’ sensitive information; thus, privacy protection should be applied to the data prior to them being shared. Moreover, the shared data may be re-shared to third parties without the consent or awareness of the original data providers. Therefore, there is an urgent need for copyright tracking. There are few works satisfying the requirements of both privacy protection and copyright tracking. The main challenge is how to protect the shared data and realize copyright tracking while not undermining the utility of the data. In this article, we propose a novel solution of a reversible database watermarking scheme based on order-preserving encryption. First, we encrypt the data using order-preserving encryption and adjust an encryption parameter within an appropriate interval to generate a ciphertext with redundant space. Then, we leverage the redundant space to embed robust reversible watermarking. We adopt grouping and K-means to improve the embedding capacity and the robustness of the watermark. Formal theoretical analysis proves that the proposed scheme guarantees correctness and security. Results of extensive experiments show that OPEW has 100% data utility, and the robustness and efficiency of OPEW are better than existing works.
The Proteins of mRNA Modification: Writers, Readers, and Erasers
Authors: Flamand Mathieu N. , Tegowski Matthew , Meyer Kate D.
Published: April 2023

Over the past decade, mRNA modifications have emerged as important regulators of gene expression control in cells. Fueled in large part by the development of tools for detecting RNA modifications transcriptome wide, researchers have uncovered a diverse epitranscriptome that serves as an additional layer of gene regulation beyond simple RNA sequence. Here, we review the proteins that write, read, and erase these marks, with a particular focus on the most abundant internal modification, N6-methyladenosine (m6A). We first describe the discovery of the key enzymes that deposit and remove m6A and other modifications and discuss how our understanding of these proteins has shaped our views of modification dynamics. We then review current models for the function of m6A reader proteins and how our knowledge of these proteins has evolved. Finally, we highlight important future directions for the field and discuss key questions that remain unanswered.
Environmental Decision-Making in Times of Polarization
Authors: Judge Madeline , Kashima Yoshihisa , Steg Linda , Dietz Thomas
Published: April 2023

Polarization in the United States and around the world is of growing concern. Polarization is about more than just differences in opinions in society. It occurs when groups increasingly diverge in either actual or perceived differences in opinion and can involve both disagreements about issues and negative views of other groups. Since most environmental problems are collective action problems, polarization may interfere with the kinds of deliberation and collaborations needed for effective environmental decision-making. In this review, we examine how polarization influences environmental decision-making and what strategies could be useful for preventing or reducing the negative consequences of polarization. Evidence about the extent of polarization among citizens suggests the current situation may be less severe than is sometimes assumed. The coevolution of individual views, network interactions, and social media that cause polarization is complex and subject to rapid change. However, there are interventions that seem to be effective at reducing polarization.
Ionic Gating for Tuning Electronic and Magnetic Properties
Authors: Guan Yicheng , Han Hyeon , Li Fan , Li Guanmin , Parkin Stuart S.P.
Published: April 2023

The energy-efficient manipulation of the properties of functional materials is of great interest from both a scientific and an applied perspective. The application of electric fields is one of the most widely used methods to induce significant changes in the properties of materials, such as their structural, transport, magnetic, and optical properties. This article presents an overview of recent research on the manipulation of the electronic and magnetic properties of various material systems via electrolyte-based ionic gating. Oxides, magnetic thin-film heterostructures, and van der Waals 2D layers are discussed as exemplary systems. The detailed mechanisms through which ionic gating can induce significant changes in material properties, including their crystal and electronic structure and their electrical, optical, and magnetic properties, are summarized. Current and potential future functional devices enabled by such ionic control mechanisms are also briefly summarized, especially with respect to the emerging field of neuromorphic computing. Finally, a brief outlook and some key challenges are presented.
Perspective—The Feasibility of Continuous Protein Monitoring in Interstitial Fluid
Authors: Young Thomas , Clark Vincent , Arroyo-Currás Netzahualcóyotl , Heikenfeld Jason
Published: April 2023

Real-time continuous monitoring of proteins in-vivo holds great potential for personalized medical applications. Unfortunately, a prominent knowledge gap exists in the fundamental biology regarding protein transfer and correlation between interstitial fluid and blood. Additionally, technological sensing will require affinity-based platforms that cannot be robustly protected in-vivo and will therefore be challenged in sensitivity, longevity, and fouling over multi-day to week timelines. Here we use electrochemical aptamer sensors as a model system to discuss further research necessary to achieve continuous protein sensing.
DEC-7/SUSD2, a sushi domain-containing protein, regulates an ultradian behavior mediated by intestinal epithelial Ca2+ oscillations in Caenorhabditis elegans
Authors: Laboy Jocelyn T. , Bonner Jennifer , Norman Kenneth R.
Published: April 2023

The conserved complement group protein DEC-7/SUSD2 acts at the apical cell-cell junction of C. elegans intestinal epithelia to mediate gap junction protein organization and function to facilitate a Ca2+ wave-regulated ultradian behavior.
A Novel High-Efficiency Password Authentication and Key Agreement Protocol for Mobile Client-Server
Authors: Xu Xiang , Wang Yu , Zhang Xue-Dian , Jiang Min-Shan
Published: April 2023

With the development of wireless technology, people increasingly rely on mobile devices. Since most mobile devices transmit sensitive information via insecure public channels, it is important to design multiauthentication key agreement protocols for security protection. Traditional scholars tend to use traditional public-key cryptosystems (PKCs) in their protocols to improve security. High-cost operations (e.g., elliptic curve point multiplication and bilinear pairing) were widely used in their scheme but were not suitable for mobile devices because of limited computing resources. In this study, we designed a novel high-efficiency multiauthentication and key agreement protocol and demonstrate its security in the random oracle model. Compared with other protocols, our proposed scheme only uses string concatenation operations, one-way hash functions, and XOR operations. In addition, our protocol requires much fewer computing resources to achieve the same level of security.
A Full-Duplex Decode-and-Forward Relaying Approach Based on QAM Constellation Suitable for Small-Size Devices
Authors: Song Xinhai , Ding Haiyang , He Liang , Miao Zhuang
Published: April 2023

The explosive growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) is putting higher requirements for the performance of co-time co-frequency full-duplex relaying (CCFD-R) due to small-size devices appearing in abundance. In this paper, we present a novel CCFD-R approach with very low complexity to deal with the issue above. Based on the orthogonality of its two components, a distributed usage mode of quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) constellation is proposed to perform self-interference cancellation (SIC) without the complicated processing modules, as used widely in traditional full-duplex techniques. Instead of the conventional practice of assigning the entire QAM constellation to only one communication node, our scheme (termed as QAM-R) splits the constellation into two parts and further assigns them to different communication nodes, respectively. With the principle above, the mapping pattern and the frame format are carefully designed. Then, the corresponding signal model is established and the approximation of end-to-end bit error probability (BEP) is derived. Finally, numerical simulations validate the theoretical analysis and show that QAM-R can balance spectrum effectiveness and transmission reliability very well and, especially, performs even better in the low range of signal noise ratio (SNR) when adopting higher-order QAM constellations.
Machinery Changes and Challenges of Architecture and Landscape Design in the Virtual Reality Perspective
Authors: Jin He , Zhang Nan
Published: April 2023

With the in-depth study of architectural planning in China, more and more designers and developers are aware of the superiority of the use of technological robots to improve the speed and quality of construction, weakening past experience and based on real-world research through modern technology. However, the application of this method in the predesign work is not mature. To be specific, designers may lack expertise due to the overly detailed division of labor. In addition, the developer’s blind pursuit of profitability leads to inaccurate market positioning and forecasting. At the same time, the lack of effective communication between designers and developers, architects and owners makes the predesign work ineffective and does not provide reasonable and accurate guidance for the building design. Therefore, the predesign work requires the designer to analyze and select the site reasonably. In addition, it is necessary to conduct in-depth research on the target customers. At the same time, it is necessary to accurately position and predict the dynamic market, and then to have a thorough understanding of the norms and regulations. As a result, the predesign work enables the design to be analyzed in the context of the actual situation. Then, according to the data and information from various aspects, effective planning and argumentation are carried out, and corresponding decisions are made to provide guidance for the design. Overall, predesign is a process of rational planning of the design process. In fact, in the process of landscape design innovation, it is necessary to fully consider the requirements of the intelligent era. Therefore, multimedia and advanced robotics can continuously enhance the interaction and experience of urban landscape to make it integrate into the intelligent system of the future city. In other words, multimedia technology can enhance the new image of the city in an intelligent, digital, and humanized interactive experience. Especially in the landscape design process, the advent of computers has enabled landscape designers to use relevant design software to design their own works, thus giving them unlimited design possibilities. Virtual reality technology, as a form of computer technology, provides designers with a new creative experience in the design phase of a landscape project. To be specific, this technology allows designers to freely grasp the design space and scientifically compare the differences between design options to make the design more reasonable and complete. Therefore, this paper analyzes the differences in the general environment and concepts of 3D software virtual reality technology, starting from the characteristics of the application of 3D technology as an entry point. At the same time, this study uses the similarities and differences in technology to discover the vital role of using virtual reality technology to reconstruct the space and the impact of robots on modern architecture.
Effect of Ultrasonic Vibration on Forming Force in the Single-Point Incremental Forming Process
Authors: Le Trung-Kien , Tran Duc-Toan , Bui Ngoc-Tam Bui , Nguyen Thanh-Hai
Published: April 2023

Single-point incremental forming (SPIF) has drawn much attention recently due to its flexibility in making parts for rapid prototypes and small samples. Several studies have pointed out the benefits of using ultrasonic vibration (UV) in SPIF experimentally. This study verifies the effect of UV in reducing the forming forces by performing numerical simulations. In addition, the effect of several process parameters, including tool diameters, rotational speeds, step sizes, and ultrasonic vibration amplitudes, is investigated in detail. It is found that an increase in the tool rotational speed and vibrating amplitude decreases forming forces, whereas an increase in the vertical step size increases forming forces.
Screening of Antimicrobial Properties and Bioactive Compounds of Pleurotus Ostreatus Extracts against Staphylococcus Aureus, Escherichia coli, and Neisseria Gonorrhoeae
Authors: Yakobi Sinethemba H. , Mkhize Senzosenkosi , Pooe Ofentse J.
Published: April 2023

In recent years, the potential of pathogenic bacteria to acquire resistance to a variety of antimicrobial drugs has developed significantly due to the indiscriminate exposure of a number of antibiotic compounds. The purpose of this study is to determine the antibacterial capabilities and activities of crude Pleurotus ostreatus extracts against Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923), Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922), Neisseria gonorrhoeae (ATCC 49926), and nine multidrug-resistant clinical isolates of Neisseria gonorrhoeae. All of these isolates exhibited sensitivity to azithromycin and ceftriaxone, while the majority of antibiotic resistance was seen against penicillin G, sulphonamide, and ciprofloxacin. Fifty percent of the isolates exhibited absolute resistance to both sulphonamide and ciprofloxacin, whereas 40% of the isolates displayed absolute resistance to penicillin G. The antibacterial activity of P. ostreatus extracts examined in this investigation varied within the same species of microorganisms. Extract B and D, extracted in the presence of 20% wheat bran bagasse and 20% maize flour bagasse, respectively, had exceptional antibacterial activity against all target isolates examined. We observed the lowest concentration of antibacterial agent required to inhibit the target bacteria to be between 1 × 10−3 mg/ml and 1 × 10−6 mg/ml with an estimated probability of 0.30769, a lower 95% confidence interval (CI) of 0.126807, an upper 95% CI of 0.576307, an estimated probability of 0.15385, a lower 95% CI of 0.043258, and an upper 95% CI, respectively. The MBC of 1 × 10−3 mg/ml was seen to eliminate 31% of the target bacteria. This dose was the most inhibitive. The antibacterial activity of all the extracts examined in the current study exhibited some degree of efficacy against both clinical isolates and standard strains. However, the majority of clinically isolated bacteria exhibited greater resistance to the extracts.
Vibration and Displacement Monitoring of Surface and Rock Strata in Geological Hazards Based on Mixed Technologies
Authors: Zhang Han , Yi Zhihui , Xu Chao , Liu Huo
Published: April 2023

With the rapid development through the advancement of technology, China geological hazard monitoring system has made great progress in engineering application. Advanced geological technology on hazardous geological monitoring is emerging, Internet of Things (IOTs), Geographic Information System (GIS), and Remote Sensing (RS), for example. However, there are still many problems existing subjected to monitoring system, such as sensor power storage, stability, compatibility, and weak analysis ability, which hinders the further development and popularization of the automatic monitoring system on geological hazards. In this paper, a new buried rock sensor and a fixed inclinometer are adopted, combined with the IOTs and the Beidou navigation system, to build an automatic monitoring system for geological disasters; it not only improves the accuracy and timeliness of monitoring data of surface and rock strata vibration and displacement of geological disasters but also provides guidance for future system design and development, especially in remote areas with steep terrain.
Erythrocytic, Enzymatic, and Histological Markers of Oxidative Stress in Subacute and Chronic Stage Infections in Wistar Rats (Rattus norvegicus) Infected with Trypanosoma brucei brucei
Authors: Abubakar Z. , Dabo N. T.
Published: April 2023

Trypanosomiasis is a complex of diseases caused by a haemoprotozoan parasite of medical and veterinary importance. One of the leading factors that cause morbidity and death in trypanosomiasis is oxidative stress. The oxidative stress biomarkers in trypanosomiasis at the subacute and chronic stages of infection were investigated in this study. A total of twenty-four Wistar rats were used; the animals were placed in two groups: group A (subacute and chronic) and group B (control). The weight and body temperature of the experimental animals were determined using a digital weighing balance and thermometer. A hematology analyzer was used to determine the erythrocyte indices. Spectrophotometry was used to estimate enzyme (superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione) activities in the serum, kidney, and liver of experimental animals. Liver, kidney, and spleen were harvested and analyzed for histological changes. The mean body weight of the infected decreased compared to the control (

P
<
0.05

). The mean body temperature of infected individuals increased (35–37°C) compared to the control (

P
<
0.05

). The erythrocyte indices of the infected and control groups indicate a significant decrease (

P
<
0.05

). In erythrocyte indices, only MCHC indicated a nonsignificant decrease (

P
>
0.05

). The SOD of serum shows a significant increase (

P
<
0.05

), and no significant increase SOD (

P
>
0.05

) in kidney and the liver SOD indicates a significant decrease (

P
<
0.05

). The serum, kidney, and liver show a significant increase (

P
<
0.05

) in CAT. The serum GSH from the findings indicates a nonsignificant increase (

P
>
0.05

), and the kidney and liver GSH shows a significant increase (

P
<
0.05

). The correlation analysis for SOD shows nonsignificant negative correlation for serum/kidney, and the serum/liver and kidney/liver show significant positive correlation. The result of CAT shows significant correlations for serum and kidney, serum and liver, and kidney/liver with a positive correlation. The GSH result shows no significant negative correlation for serum/kidney and no significant positive correlation for serum/liver and kidney/liver. The histological damage in the kidney, liver, and spleen was much higher in the chronic stage than in the subacute stage and no tissue damage in the control group. In conclusion, subacute and chronic stage trypanosome infection is associated with changes in hematological indices, antioxidants of the liver, spleen and kidney, and histological architecture.
Analysis of Persian Bioinformatics Research with Topic Modeling
Authors: Ebrahimi Fezzeh , Dehghani Mohammad , Makkizadeh Fatemah
Published: April 2023

Purpose. As a scientific field, bioinformatics has drawn remarkable attention from various fields, such as information technology, mathematics, and modern biological sciences, in recent years. The topic models originating from the field of natural language processing have become the focus of attention with the rapid accumulation of biological datasets. Thus, this research is aimed at modeling the topic content of the bioinformatics literature presented by Iranian researchers in the Scopus Citation Database. Methodology. This research was a descriptive‐exploratory study, and the studied population included 3899 papers indexed in the Scopus database, which had been indexed in this database until March 9, 2022. The topic modeling was then performed on the abstracts and titles of the papers. A combination of LDA and TF‐IDF was utilized for topic modeling. Findings. The data analysis with topic modeling resulted in identifying seven main topics “Molecular Modeling,” “Gene Expression,” “Biomarker,” “Coronavirus,” “Immunoinformatics,” “Cancer Bioinformatics,” and “Systems Biology.” Moreover, “Systems Biology” and “Coronavirus” had the largest and smallest clusters, respectively. Conclusion. The present investigation demonstrated an acceptable performance for the LDA algorithm in classifying the topics included in this field. The extracted topic clusters indicated excellent consistency and topic connection with each other.
Glycolytic Genes Predict Immune Status and Prognosis Non‐Small‐Cell Lung Cancer Patients with Radiotherapy and Chemotherapy
Authors: Zhao Tianye , Shao Jingjing , Liu Jia , Wang Yidan , Chen Jia , He Song , Wang Gaoren
Published: April 2023

Background. Non‐small‐cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a major health problem that endangers human health. The prognosis of radiotherapy or chemotherapy is still unsatisfactory. This study is aimed at investigating the predictive value of glycolysis‐related genes (GRGs) on the prognosis of NSCLC patients with radiotherapy or chemotherapy. Methods. Download the clinical information and RNA data of NSCLC patients receiving radiotherapy or chemotherapy from TCGA and geo databases and obtain GRGs from MsigDB. The two clusters were identified by consistent cluster analysis, the potential mechanism was explored by KEGG and GO enrichment analyses, and the immune status was evaluated by estimate, TIMER, and quanTIseq algorithms. Lasso algorithm is used to build the corresponding prognostic risk model. Results. Two clusters with different GRG expression were identified. The high‐expression subgroup had poor overall survival. The results of KEGG and GO enrichment analyses suggest that the differential genes of the two clusters are mainly reflected in metabolic and immune‐related pathways. The risk model constructed with GRGs can effectively predict the prognosis. The nomogram combined with the model and clinical characteristics has good clinical application potential. Conclusion. In this study, we found that GRGs are associated with tumor immune status and can assess the prognosis of NSCLC patients receiving radiotherapy or chemotherapy.
Bridge Deformation Measurement Using Unmanned Aerial Dual Camera and Learning-Based Tracking Method
Authors: Jiang Shang , Zhang Jian , Gao Chenhao
Published: April 2023

Bridge deformation response data are the basis for calculating the dynamic parameters of the bridge, and it is of great significance to accurately measure the deformation response of the bridge during the load test and service conditions. A bridge deformation measurement method using an unmanned aerial system (UAS) with dual cameras and a deep learning-based object tracking method is proposed to measure the bridge deformation. The contributions are as follows: (1) To address the problem that the movement of the UAS brings error to the deformation measurement results, dual cameras with telephoto and wide-angle lenses are used to simultaneously capture the deformed points and stable points on the bridge, so as to simultaneously measure the deformation of the bridge and the displacement of the UAS, and then the displacement of UAS is eliminated by using the homography relationship between the two cameras. (2) To solve the problem that the traditional digital image correlation-based displacement measurement method is easily disturbed by factors such as light changes and occlusion, a displacement calculation method based on object detection network and target tracking algorithm is proposed to achieve the stable target displacement measurement. Finally, the proposed method was verified in a laboratory test and applied to the deformation measurement of an in-service bridge to verify the practicability of the proposed method.
ANCA-Associated Vasculitis after Moderna COVID-19 Vaccination
Authors: Gen Shiko , Iwai Takanori , Ohnari Sayuri , Nobe Kanako , Ikeda Naofumi
Published: April 2023

We experienced a case of myeloperoxidase antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (MPO-ANCA)-associated vasculitis after Moderna COVID-19 vaccination. An 82-year-old woman developed pyrexia and general malaise one month after her third booster vaccine, and the symptoms persisted. Blood testing revealed inflammation, a high level of MPO-ANCA, and microscopic hematuria. MPO-ANCA-associated vasculitis was diagnosed by renal biopsy. The symptoms improved with steroid therapy. Common adverse reactions to mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 include pyrexia and general malaise, but MPO-ANCA-associated vasculitis can also occur. If pyrexia, prolonged general malaise, urinary occult blood, or renal impairment is observed, the onset of MPO-ANCA-associated vasculitis should be considered.
Accuracy Evaluation of Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) Estimation under Conventional Assumption in Yeşilırmak, Kızılırmak, and Konya Closed Basins, Turkey
Authors: Hinis Mehmet Ali , Geyikli Mehmet Selim
Published: April 2023

The doubt in the calculation algorithm of the standardized precipitation index (SPI), which is widely preferred in the evaluation and monitoring of drought, still remains up-to-date because its calculation process is performed in the form of standardization or normalization with a default probability distribution. Therefore, the success of this index is directly affected by the choice of the probability distribution model. This study is based on the effect of three different parameter estimation methods on the calculation process, as well as the comparison of the SPI results calculated based on the default Gamma distribution and the distribution with the best ability to represent the 3-and 12-month consecutive summed rainfall data among the 15 candidate distributions namely Gamma (GAM), Generalized Extreme Value (GEV), Pearson Type III (P III), Log Pearson Type III (LP III), two-parameter Lognormal (LN2), three-parameter Lognormal (LN3), Generalized Logistic (GLOG), Extreme Value Type I (EVI), Generalized Pareto (GPAR), Weilbul (W), Normal (N), Exponential (EXP), Logistic (LOG), four-parameter Wakeby (WK4), and five-parameter Wakeby (WK5) distributions. Approximately 68.4% and 18.4% of the 3-month data considered had the best fit to the Weibull and Pearson III distribution, while approximately 24% and 18% of the 12-month data had the best fit to the Weibull and Logistic distribution. On the other hand, it was found that the default Gamma distribution calculated the extreme drought categories significantly more than the best-fit distribution model. In terms of parameter estimation methods, L-moments for 3-month series and maximum likelihood approaches for 12-month series were most dominant.
Modified Modal Pushover Design for Asymmetric-Plan RC Shear-Wall Structures
Authors: Birzhandi Mohammad Sadegh , Mirzakhani Daniyal
Published: April 2023

The goal of this research is to provide a new method for designing reinforced concrete wall structures with a one-way asymmetric plan. This presented method is called the modified modal pushover design method (MMPD), which uses assumptions of modified modal pushover analysis (MMPA) for estimating the responses of structures. In summary, the arbitrary distribution of walls’ reinforcements at the beginning of MMPD design steps is modified so that a structure is limited to its selected limit state when analyzed by the MMPA method by knowing that walls’ stiffness is proportional to their corresponding strength. An appropriate hysteretic model (PIVOT model) is selected for the first-mode nonlinear SDOF system so that it estimates the peak and time history displacement response of the roof accurately. Three 8-storey buildings are designed for two different distributions of reinforcement areas to assess their effects on NRHA demands of each story. Higher mode contributions in responses of all structures are calculated by the elastic jagged response spectrum; mean-matched smoothed displacement response spectrum ± standard deviation curve is also used to compare stories’ shear and torsional demands estimated by these two response spectra. The results have shown the accuracy of the MMPD method in calculating the strength and stiffness of seismic-resisting walls.
Bioinformatics Analysis Identifies EPAS1 as a Novel Prognostic Marker Correlated with Immune Infiltration in Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Authors: Wang Shichun , Zhang Pengyu
Published: April 2023

EPAS1 plays an important role in the development and progression of multiple tumor types by interacting with a series of other molecules. However, the prognostic and diagnostic values of EPAS1 in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remain unknown. Here, we systematically explored and clarified the potential functions of EPAS1 in AML using data from Xena Browser and TCGA database. The expression of EPAS1 was significantly lower in AML patients than that in healthy people. The GO, KEGG, GSEA, and GSVA were performed to explore the potential functions and signaling pathways. The survival analysis was conducted using Cox regression analysis and the Kaplan-Meier method. Immune cell infiltration was evaluated via single-sample GSEA (ssGSEA). The results of enrichment analyses suggested that low-EPAS1 expression was related to the initiation, development, and prognosis of AML. The immune microenvironment landscape in AML was described by ssGSEA. ROC analysis of EPAS1 showed high discrimination ability between AML patients and healthy people. Kaplan-Meier method indicated that low-EPAS1 expression correlated significantly with a poor overall survival. Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that both age and EPAS1 expression were independent prognostic factors in AML patients. Furthermore, the nomogram based on these two variables performed well in discrimination and calibration. In summary, our study may provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying AML and demonstrate the diagnostic and prognostic value of EPAS1 in AML for the first time.