bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Behavioral Risk Compensation after Initiation of Daily Oral Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis among Sexual and Gender Minorities in Nigeria.
Authors: Adeyemi Olusegun , Nowak Rebecca , Morgan Daniel , Sam-Agudu Nadia , Craddock Jaih , Zhan Min , Crowell Trevor , Baral Stefan , Adebajo Sylvia , Charurat Manhattan
Published: October 2022

Background: Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) effectively prevents HIV acquisition but may be associated with an elevated risk of other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) due to increased condomless anal intercourse (CAI) among sexual and gender minorities (SGM). We estimated the odds of self-reported CAI, concurrent sexual relationships with two or more male partners (concurrency), and sexually transmitted Infections (STIs)among SGM in Nigeria before and during the use of PrEP.
Methods: This was anopen-label prospective study of SGM seen over four clinical visits between April 2018 and May 2019 as a nested study of the ongoing TRUST cohort study in Abuja, Nigeria. We identified participants who had been in the TRUST study on or before Feb 15, 2016, thereby providing at least 26 months of pre-PrEP initiation data for a “pre PrEP - PrEP” intervention analysis with participants serving as self-controls. Using conditional logistic regression, we estimated the odds ratio (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of PCR-diagnosed bacterial STIs (rectal Chlamydia trachomatis, rectal Neisseria gonorrhea, urethral Chlamydia trachomatis, and urethral Neisseria gonorrhea) and self-reported behavioral outcomes (CAI and concurrency).
Results: Of the 400 SGM who initiated PrEP in this study, 206, with a median age of 24 years (interquartile range: 22-27) were eligible for these analyses. Compared with the pre-PrEP period, participants in the PrEP period had higher unadjusted odds of rectal gonorrhea (OR: 3.53, 95% CI: 1.10, 11.35) and decreased odds of self-reported CAI (OR: 0.57, 95% CI: 0.37, 0.87). There were no significant associations with other STIs or concurrency. In the adjusted analysis, after controlling for alcohol use in the past month, participants in the PrEP period had decreased odds of CAI (adjusted OR: 0.49, 95% CI: 0.28, 0.84).
Conclusion: PrEP use was not associated with behavioral risk compensation among SGM in our study. However, there is a need for increased surveillance for STI screening and diagnosis among SGM using PrEP. These measures should complement ongoing behavioral risk-reduction counselling, emphasizing consistent condom use to prevent bacterial STIs while on PrEP.
Joint Iterative Detection and Decoding for Polar-Coded MIMO-IDMA Systems
Authors: Arachchige Rangana Kithmini Weththasinghe , Wavegedara Chandika
Published: October 2022

Non orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) was one of the key potential physicallayer technologies considered for the fifth generation (5G) wireless communication systems. Interleave division multiple access (IDMA), which uses packet level interleavers to distinguish multiple access users, is a promising NOMA scheme. Recently, polar codes have received extensive attention as a capacity approaching code and have already been adopted as the channel coding technique for the physical-layer control channel of 5G New Radio (NR). On the other hand, Multiple-Input Multiple Output (MIMO) has been one of the key enabling technologies in the recent standardized wireless communication systems. The performance benefits of both IDMA and MIMO can be obtained by combining two technologies. In this paper, a polar-coded MIMO-IDMA uplink system model with QPSK modulation is proposed. Moreover, we propose an joint iterative detection and decoding (JIDD) receiver. In the proposed JIDD receiver, at each iteration, likelihood messages are exchanged between the soft multiuser MIMO detector and belief propagation (BP) polar decoders. The numerical results confirm that polar coding offers significant performance improvement over the uncoded MIMOIDMA system. Furthermore, considerably improved error performance can be obtained by using the proposed JIDD receiver scheme over single-pass (non-iterative) multiuser MIMO detection and decoding.
Ionic Thermoelectric Materials with Long Operation and High Energy Density
Authors: Sun Kuan , He Yongjie , Li Shaowei , Chen Rui , Odunmbaku George Omololu , Fang Wei , Lin Xiaoxue , Ou Zeping , Gou Qianzhi , Wang Jiacheng , Ouedraogo Nabonswende Aida Nadege , Li Jing , Li Meng , Li Chen , Zheng Yujie , Chen Shanshan , Zhou Yongli
Published: October 2022

Ionic thermoelectrics (i-TE) possesses great potential in powering distributed electronics, because it can generate thermopower up to tens of millivolts per Kelvin 1, 2. However, due to the fact that ions cannot enter external circuit, the utilization of i-TE is currently based on capacitive charge/discharge 3, which results in discontinuous working mode and low energy density 4. Here, we introduce an ion-electron thermoelectric synergistic (IETS) effect by utilizing an ion-electron conductor. Electrons/holes can drift under the electric field generated by thermodiffusion of ions, thus converting the ionic current into electrical current that can pass through the external circuit. Due to the IETS effect, i-TE is able to operate continuously for over 3000 min. Moreover, our i-TE exhibits a thermopower of 32.7 mV K-1 and an energy density of 553.9 J m-2, which is more than 6.9 times of the best reported value. Consequently, direct powering of electronics by i-TE is realized. This work provides a new strategy for the design of high-performance i-TE materials.
Metabolic pathway responsive gene encoding enzyme anchored EST-SSR markers based genetic and population assessment among Capsicum accessions
Authors: Haq Shamshadul , Singh Ram Baran , Gupta Vibha , Mahendrakar Mahesh D. , Kothari S. L. , Kachhwaha Sumita
Published: October 2022

Gene encoding enzyme based EST-SSR markers are more potent or functional marker system to evaluate astounding genetic and structural differentiation in plants. It is very useful in shaping divergences in metabolic fingerprinting, ecological interactions, conservation and adaptation among plants. Therefore, gene encoding enzyme mediated EST-SSR markers system were used presently to evaluate genetic and population structure among 48 Capsicum accessions. Total of 35 gene encoding enzyme based EST-SSR markers was used and generated 184 alleles at 35 loci with an average of 5.25 alleles per locus. The average value of polymorphic information content (PIC), marker index (MI) and discriminating power (DP) was 0.40, 0.232, and 0.216 respectively which revealed noteworthy degree of marker efficacy and their competency was further supported by primer polymorphism (93.57%) and cross transferability (44.52%). A significant genetic variability (Na = 1.249, Ne = 1.269, I = 0.247, He = 0.163, and uHe = 0.183) was identified among the Capsicum accession using EST-SSR markers. The mean value for Nei gene diversity, total species diversity (Ht), and diversity within population (Hs) were 0.277, 0.240 and 0.170 respectively. The coefficient of gene differentiation (Gst) was 0.296 indicating significant genetic differentiation within the population and Gene flow (Nm) was 1.189, which reflect a constant gene flow among populations. AMOVA revealed more genetic differentiation within the population which is similarly supported by principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) among the different Capsicum population. Thus, gene encoding enzyme based EST-SSR markers represent a potent system for estimation of genetic and structural relationship and is helpful for estimation of relationships or variations studies in plants.
Association between overweight/obesity and risk of chronic rhinosinusitis: a prisma-compliant meta-analysis
Authors: ZHANG Lan , ZHANG Rong , ZHU Baohua , LIU Huixia , PANG Kaiyun , LI Peishan , LIAO Jie , SHEN Hanchao , XIE Yan , TIAN Li
Published: October 2022

Background
Previously increasing studies revealed that overweight/obesity patients were significantly higher in groups of patients with common otorhinolaryngological inflammatory diseases. Although there still may have some controversies remaining in the effect of overweight/obesity on CRS. Therefore, this study aimed to perform a meta-analysis to explore whether overweight/obesity is a significant risk factor for CRS.
Methods
In this meta-analysis, we comprehensively and systematically searched for relevant published literatures concerning the correlation between overweight/obesity and risk of CRS through applying a predefined search terms as follows: (“overweight” OR “obesity”) AND (“chronic rhinosinusitis” OR “nasal polyps” OR “CRS” OR “CRSsNP” OR “CRSwNP”) in the following databases: PubMed, Web of science, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar from inception to July 31, 2022. To explore the association between overweight/obesity and risk of developing CRS, multivariate odds ratio (OR) or relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were analyzed by using STATA software version16.0. This meta-analysis was registered with PROSPERO, CRD42022353658.
Results
Of 376 studies initially identified, only 7 studies concerning on the association between overweight/obesity and risk of CRS were eligible for the inclusion criteria eventually. The meta-analysis indicated that overweight was closely related to elevated risk of CRS (OR/RR = 1.04, 95%CI 0.90–1.18, P < 0.001). Meanwhile, the meta-analysis suggested that obesity was significantly related to elevated risk of CRS (OR/RR = 1.01, 95%CI 0.99–1.03, P < 0.001). Sensitivity analyses showed that there are no changes in the direction of effect when any one study was omitted from all meta-analyses. In addition, there was no significant risk of publication bias in this meta-analysis by performing Bgg’s test, Egger’s test, and funnel plot.
Conclusion
We found that overweight/obesity contributed to increasing the risk of developing CRS. Certainty, the result should be interpreted cautiously. Certainty, to obtain a more convincible result, more rigorous and high-quality clinical research will be warranted to be performed to evaluate the relationship between overweight/obesity and CRS in future.
Enhancing the value of death registration with verbal autopsy data: a pilot study in Dakar, Senegal
Authors: Khadim Niang , Fall Atoumane , Ndiaye Samba , Sarr Maguette , Ba Khady , Masquelier Bruno
Published: October 2022

Background - There is no source of data on causes of death in Senegal that covers both community and hospital deaths. Yet the death registration system in the Dakar region is relatively complete (>80%) and could be expanded to provide information on the diseases and injuries that led to death.
Methods - In this pilot study, we recorded all deaths that occurred over 2 months and were reported in the 72 civil registration offices in the Dakar region. We selected deaths of residents of the region and administered a verbal autopsy to a relative of the deceased to identify the underlying causes of death. Causes of death were assigned using the InterVA5 model.
Results - The age structure of deaths registered at the civil registry differed from that of the census, with a proportion of infant deaths about twice as high than in the census. The main causes of death were prematurity and obstetric asphyxia in newborns, while meningitis and encephalitis, severe malnutrition, and acute respiratory infections were the leading causes from 1 month to 15 years of age. Cardiovascular diseases accounted for 27% of deaths in adults aged 15-64 and 45% of deaths among adults above age 65, while neoplasms accounted for 20% and 12% of deaths in these two age groups, respectively.
Conclusions - This study demonstrates that the epidemiological transition is at an advanced stage in urban areas of Dakar, and underlines the importance of conducting regular studies based on verbal autopsies of deaths reported in civil registration offices.
The multi-channel system of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta: impacts on the flow dynamics under relative sea level rise scenarios
Authors: Le Hoang Anh , Nguyen Thong , Gratiot Nicolas , Deleersnijder Eric , Soares-Frazão Sandra
Published: October 2022

The Mekong Delta has the world's third largest surface area. It plays an indisputable role in the economy and livelihoods of Vietnam, Cambodia, with repercussions at regional and global scales. During recent decades, the Vietnamese part of the Mekong Delta underwent profound human interventions (construction of dykes and multi-channel networks), which modified the hydrodynamic regime, especially cycles of field submersion. In this study, we first applied a full 2D numerical hydraulic model, TELEMAC-2D, to examine the effects of the complex channel and river networks on the spatial and temporal distribution of the flow in the 40,000 km2 of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta. Then, two scenarios of relative sea level rise in 2050 and 2100 are implemented to simulate the future patterns of water fluxes in the delta. The results show that the dykes and multi-channel networks would reduce by 36% the inundation area and lessen by 15% the peak water level and 24% discharge over the floodplains. Despite this protection, under relative sea level rise of 30 cm and 100 cm, the maximum flooded area could occupy about 69% and 85% of the whole delta in 2050 and 2100, respectively.
Evaluation of Microbial Corrosion in Biofuel Storage Tanks Using Split-chamber Zero Resistance Ammetry
Authors: II Robert B. Miller , Ghadimi Hanieh , Chinthala Sai Prasanna , Sadek Anwar , Crouch Audra L. , Floyd James G. , Stevenson Bradley S. , Crookes-Goodson Wendy , Senko John M. , Monty Chelsea N.
Published: October 2022

Split chamber zero resistance ammetry (SC-ZRA) was used to study microbiologically influenced corrosion by aerobic chemoorganotrophic microeukaryotes isolated from biodiesel storage tanks. The magnitude and direction of electric current were measured between two shorted carbon steel electrodes, which were deployed in separate chambers connected by a salt bridge (via a SC-ZRA assembly). This approach permitted rapid screening for the corrosive activity of these previously understudied microeukaryotes. During this study, two previously understudied microeukaryotes (Byssochlamys sp. SW2 and Yarrowia lipolytica) showed increased biomass, an increase in electrochemical signal (current), and a corresponding increase in corrosion rate (weight loss). However, other previously understudied microeukaryote (Wickerhammomyces sp. SE3) showed an increase in biomass without an increase in electrochemical signal and minimal corrosion rate. Indicating, that the SC-ZRA technique can screen for the corrosive activity of a microorganism, regardless of overall microbial activity. This technique could be used to quickly assess the corrosive potential for a range of previously understudied microorganisms.
Maximum Power Point Tracking of Solar Photovoltaic Systems using Flyback Converter under normal and partial shading conditions.
Authors: Kanth Saqib Asgar , Yousuf Baziga
Published: October 2022

Among Renewable energy sources (RES), a Photovoltaic system (PV) is the most clean and abundantly available form of energy. The major challenge for a PV system is efficiency. In this paper a simulation based study is presented for a 100KW photovoltaic system under normal and partial shading conditions for maximum power point tracking (MPPT) integrated with the flyback converter. Partial shading reduces the output voltage and induces multiple peaks in the P-V characteristics. The maximum power point techniques work in combination with the flyback converter to track the maximum power under normal conditions and the global peak in case of partial shading conditions. Since the maximization of load power is required, this paper focuses on the load power maximization. The flyback converter is used because of its simpler design, isolation property (flyback transformer), and higher output voltage requirement. The power transferred to the load side is studied and analysed through simulation in MATLAB and the results are shown.
Data structures for computing unique palindromes in static and non-static strings
Authors: Mieno Takuya , Funakoshi Mitsuru
Published: October 2022

A palindromic substring T[i.. j] of a string T is said to be a shortest unique palindromic substring (SUPS) in T for an interval [p, q] if T [i.. j] is a shortest one such that T [i.. j] occurs only once in T, and [i, j] contains [p, q]. The SUPS problem is, given a string T of length n, to construct a data structure that can compute all the SUPSs for any given query interval. It is known that any SUPS query can be answered in O(α) time after O(n)-time preprocessing, where α is the number of SUPSs to output [Inoue et al., 2018]. In this paper, we first show that α is at most 4, and the upper bound is tight. We also show that the total sum of lengths of minimal unique substrings of string T, which is strongly related to SUPSs, is O(n). Then, we present the first O(n)-bits data structures that can answer any SUPS query in constant time. Also, we present an algorithm to solve the SUPS problem for a sliding window that can answer any query in O(log log W) time and update data structures in amortized O(log σ) time, where W is the size of the window, and σ is the alphabet size. Furthermore, we consider the SUPS problem in the after-edit model and present an efficient algorithm. Namely, we present an algorithm that uses O(n) time for preprocessing and answers any k SUPS queries in O(log n log log n + k log log n) time after single character substitution. Finally, as a by-product, we propose a fully-dynamic data structure for range minimum queries (RmQs) with a constraint where the width of each query range is limited to poly-logarithmic. The constrained RmQ data structure can answer such a query in constant time and support a single-element edit operation in amortized constant time.
Degradation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons During Decontamination of Oil-Polluted Soils: In Silico Approach
Authors: Ablieieva Iryna , Plyatsuk Leonid , Liu Tong , Berezhna Iryna , Yanchenko Ilona
Published: October 2022

The main idea was to solve the problem related to oil contamination of soil using bioremediation with bioaugmentation with modelled microorganism strains. The paper aimed to develop a bacterial consortium for petroleum hydrocarbons degradation during biological treatment of oil-contaminated soils using electronic databases. The methodology of the research included analysis of the mechanisms and metabolic pathways of petroleum hydrocarbons degradation, and assessment of the possible reaction modulus and enzymatic systems for degradation of aromatic compounds. The taxonomic classification and review of metabolic pathways of oil compound transformation were carried out using electronic KEGG, MetaCyc and EzTaxon databases. The KEGG database was used to create a microbiological consortium of certain strains of bacteria that improved hydrocarbon degradation process performance. Identification of bacteria complete genome using Island Viewer 4 allowed to create of a consortium of oil-destructive bacteria consisting of such strains: Pseudoxanthomonas spadix BD-a59, Rhodococcus jostii RHA1, Rhodococcus aetherivorans IcdP1, Pseudomonas putida ND6, Pseudomonas stutzeri 19SMN4, Pseudomonas fluorescens UK4, Acinetobacter lactucae OTEC-02, Bacillus cereus F837/76.7.9. The ratio between the mentioned strains of microorganisms in the consortium was set at 20% : 20% : 15% : 10% : 10% : 5% : 5% : 15%. This bacterial consortium for aromatic hydrocarbons was created according to the metabolic information of basic enzymatic systems and predominant transformation of particular oil compounds, using BacDive database.
Candidate stem cell isolation and transplantation in Hexacorallia
Authors: Talice Shani , Barkan Shany , Snyder Grace , Ottolenghi Aner , Eliachar Shir , Ben-Romano Ronit , Oisher Shelly , Sharoni Ton , Lewandowska Magda , Sultan Eliya , Goldstein Oron , Aharoni Reuven , Hadad Uzi , Davis Claytus , Moran Yehu , Gershoni-Yahalom Orly , Traylor-Knowles Nikki , Rosental Benyamin
Published: October 2022

Stem cells are the base for cell therapy due to their ability to self-renew, differentiate into other cell types, and live throughout the life of an organism. The initial cell therapy was bone marrow transplantation; bone marrow that contains haematopoietic stem cells is transferred from a healthy donor into a sick recipient to transfer the healthy genotype1,2. Stem cell therapy approach may be possible in corals, where there is genotypic variation in heat tolerance that influences survival during increased water temperatures3–5. However, we first need the ability to reliably isolate and transplant stem cells in Hexacorallia, which includes stony corals and sea anemones6.
In this work, we used the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis as our model for candidate stem cell transplantation, as it is the only hexacorallian species that has fluorescent-tagged transgenic strains7. We established cell transplantation to show that there are cell populations exhibiting the functional characteristics of stem cells. We showed that a subpopulation of cells from N. vectensis can be transplanted from donor to recipient, are long-lived and self-renewing, can proliferate and differentiate, can integrate into the recipient, and rescue recipient animals treated with lethal doses of a chemotherapeutic agent. Lastly, we showed that this subpopulation can be enriched by sorting, using species non-specific cell markers and that similar subpopulations of cells can be isolated from other hexacorallians, including stony corals. This lays a foundation for the possibility of stem cell-based therapy in species of Hexacorallia.
The Solar Asymmetric Activity – Dose The Sun Have a Face?
Authors: Mizrahi Ezra , Hazan Suzan
Published: October 2022

The east-west asymmetrical, longitudinal distribution of solar activity has a long history, and has been recorded for prolonged periods.
In order to explore these observations further this paper focuses on the space and time, of magnetic fluxes in the photosphere that were harvested from images and data from the SOHO/MIDI magnetogram during 2006. Our research documented the distribution of the time and the location of the birth of sunspots, while taking into consideration evidence from other tracers, and comparing them to other solar activity observations.
The fluxes’ longitudinal distribution indicates east-west asymmetry and shows remarkably similar behavior to other observational results that have been observed over prolonged periods. Distinguishing between initial and advanced stages demonstrates how most fluxes near the east limb are brought into view in their formation stage .
The preponderance of “new” fluxes on the Eastern limb indicates an active longitude belt on the Eastern side thereby causing E-W asymmetry.
When observed from an Earth-located perspective, the evidence of east-west asymmetry leads us to conclude that the active longitudinal belt can only exist on one side of the hemisphere and, in fact, can be observed only from an Earth-located perspective.
In order to further explore these observations, our research draws on the 2006 results to calculate how the same photospheric activity pattern would be viewed from the perspective of the planets Mars and Venus; as if using virtual observers. In contrast to the Earth-located observer, our calculations indicate an apparent random spread of sunspot longitudinal distribution, with no clear evidence of an active longitudinal belt, and no evidence of an east-west asymmetry as observed from Earth. This empirical evidence leads us to suggest that the sun has a face.
The Impact of COVID-19 Infection on Previous Respiratory Diseases
Authors: Shihabi Farah , Rasheed Modar Haj , Alahmadi Qusai , Al-Bardan Hussam
Published: October 2022

Background
In individuals with coronavirus illness, chronic respiratory disorders (CRD) are prevalent.
Methods
Data on diagnoses, comorbidities, test findings, and clinical outcomes were taken from the Damascus Hospital archive department. Based on the individuals' medical histories, CRD was identified.
Results
The 310 patients who participated in our research had an average age of 61.54 years. Patients who were male made up 63% of the patient population, while patients who were female made up 37%. Shortness of breath was the most common symptom reported by patients during their infection with the coronavirus, affecting 292 patients. We found a statistically significant association between the presence of these chronic lung diseases and fever, a productive cough, chest pain, and bronchiectasis in the 126 patients who had them.
Conclusion
Chronic respiratory illnesses have been associated with a higher chance of COVID-19 infection overall, even though asthma is the least severe chronic lung disease that worsens COVID-19 symptoms. The severity of COVID-19 infection in people with chronic respiratory disorders may need to be investigated further.
Evidence of polygenic regulation of the physiological presence of neurofilament light chain in human serum
Authors: Herrera-Rivero Marisol , Hofer Edith , Maceski Aleksandra , Leppert David , Benkert Pascal , Kuhle Jens , Schmidt Reinhold , Khalil Michael , Wiendl Heinz , Stoll Monika , Berger Klaus
Published: October 2022

The measurement of neurofilament light chain (NfL) in blood is a promising biomarker of neurological injury and disease. We investigated the genetic factors that underlie serum NfL levels (sNfL) of individuals without neurological conditions. We performed a discovery genome-wide association study (GWAS) of sNfL in participants of the German BiDirect Study (N=1,899). A secondary GWAS for meta-analysis was performed in a small Austrian cohort (N=287). Results from the meta-analysis were investigated in relation with several clinical variables in BiDirect. Our discovery GWAS identified 12 genetic loci showing suggestive associations (p<1x10-5) with sNfL. After meta-analysis, 7 loci were significant at this threshold. Genotype-specific differences in sNfL were observed for the lead variants of meta-analysis loci (rs2462121, rs114956339, rs529938, rs73198093, rs34372929, rs10982883 and rs1842909) in BiDirect participants. We found mild associations in meta-analysis loci with markers of inflammation and renal function. At least 6 protein-coding genes (ACTG2, TPRKB, DMXL1, COL23A1, NAT1 and RIMS2) were implicated as potential genetic factors contributing to baseline sNfL levels. Our findings suggest that polygenic regulation of neuronal processes, inflammation, metabolism and clearance modulate the variability of NfL in the circulation. These will aid in the interpretation of sNfL measurements in a personalized manner.
Mesalazine in the induction of clinical and endoscopic remission of mild and moderate ulcerative colitis
Authors: Shapina M. V.
Published: October 2022

Introduction. Treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC) is necessary to induce remission and subsequently to maintain it. Given the good tolerability, safety and efficacy of mesalazine, it is considered as a first-line therapy for patients with mild to moderate forms.Aim of the study. To evaluate the effectiveness of induction of clinical and endoscopic remission in patients with mild and moderate UC during 8 weeks therapy with mesalazine in routine clinical practice.Materials and methods. The study included 40 patients aged 18 to 75 years with mild to moderate attacks of UC who received therapy for 8 weeks. Efficacy was evaluated after 2 and 8 weeks. The dynamics of the quality of life of patients was assessed on the basis of the IBS-QOL questionnaire, satisfaction with therapy was assessed using the Likert scale.Results. During therapy, the Mayo index significantly decreased, amounting to 4.95 ± 1.74 vs 4.08 ± 1.58 vs 2.53 ± 1.45 for visits 1, 2 and 3, respectively (p < 0.05). The mean value of the level of calprotectin decreased by 2.5 times during 8 weeks of therapy (p < 0.05). After 8 weeks of observation, there were no endoscopic signs of inflammation in 10 patients (25%), in 3 patients (7.5%) endoscopic activity was moderate, and in the remaining 27 subjects (67.5%) it was minimal. The mean IBS-QOL score decreased from 84.25 ± 19.67 to 69.80 ± 17.96 after 8 weeks of therapy (p < 0.05). Satisfaction with treatment according to the Likert scale was 4.13 ± 0.79 points, which corresponds to a high degree of satisfaction. No adverse events were recorded during the entire observation period.Conclusion. Data analysis demonstrated the effectiveness of induction of clinical and endoscopic remission of mild to moderate forms of left-sided UC and pancolitis with a significant positive effect on the quality of life and good tolerability of the drug.
AVALIAÇÃO DOS CIENTISTAS: UTILIZAMOS AS MÉTRICAS CORRETAS?
Authors: Pliego Jr. Josefredo
Published: October 2022

SCIENTISTS’ ASSESSMENT: ARE WE USING THE CORRECT METRICS? The use of metrics to evaluate scientists is widespread in the present time, with implications for hiring, fellowships, and research grants. Such fact requires that metrics must be constantly scrutinized to be improved. This work analyzes the use of metrics in the area of chemistry in Brazil and discusses its limitations and shortcomings. The main findings indicate that the use of the impact factor must be complemented by the cited half-life of the journals, and a composite metric named influence factor is proposed, similar to the R-impact. The h-index is not a good metric anymore because does not correct for authorship inflation. The individual h-index (hi), which takes into account fractional counting of citations, is more reliable than the h-index. An analysis on the use of hi-index with randomly selected 15 Brazilian chemists among the top 500 more productive shows an important effect on the ranking order.
Prediction of stream water quality in Godavari River Basin, India using statistical and artificial neural network models
Authors: Satish Nagalapalli , Anmala Jagadeesh , K Rajitha , Varma Murari Raja Raja
Published: October 2022

The successful prediction of the stream or river water quality is gaining the attention of various governmental agencies, and pollution control boards worldwide due to its useful applications in determining watershed health, biodiversity, ecology, and suitability of potable water needs of the river basin. The physically based computational water quality models would require large spatial and temporal information databases of climatic, hydrologic, and environmental variables and solutions of nonlinear, partial differential equations at each grid point in a river basin. These models suffer from estimability, convergence, stability, approximation, dispersion, and consistency issues. In such a problematic modeling scenario, an artificial neural network (ANN) modeling of 22 stream water quality parameters (SWQPs) is performed from easily measurable data of precipitation, temperature, and novel land use parameters obtained from Geographic Information System (GIS) analysis for the Godavari River Basin, India. The ANN models are compared with the more traditional, statistical linear, and nonlinear regression models for accuracy and performance statistics. This study obtains regression coefficients of 0.93, 0.78, 0.83, and 0.74 for electrical conductivity, dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, and nitrate in testing using feedforward ANNs compared with a maximum of 0.45 using linear and nonlinear regressions. Principal component analysis (PCA) is performed to reduce the input data dimension. The subsequent modeling using radial basis function and ANNs is found to improve the overall regression coefficients slightly for the chosen four water quality parameters (WQPs). A closed form equation for electrical conductivity has been derived from MATLAB simulations. The successful modeling results indicate the effectiveness and potential of ANNs over the statistical regression approaches for estimating the highly nonlinear problem of stream water quality distributions.
Design methodologies to determine optimal staging of membrane-aerated biofilm reactors for mainstream treatment with anammox
Authors: Wagner Brett M. , Daigger Glen T. , Love Nancy. G.
Published: October 2022

Partial nitritation anammox (PNA) membrane-aerated biofilm reactors (MABRs) can be used in mainstream nitrogen removal to help facilities reduce their energy consumption. Previous PNA MABR research has not investigated the impacts of staging, i.e. arraying MABRs in series, on their nitrogen removal performance, operation, and ability to suppress nitrite oxidizing bacteria. In this paper, a mathematical model simulated PNA MABR performance at different influent total ammonia concentrations and loadings. A design methodology for staging PNA MABRs was created and found that the amount of membrane surface area is dependent upon the total ammonia-nitrogen concentration and loading, and the air loading to the membrane must be proportional to the total ammonia-nitrogen loading to maximize the total inorganic nitrogen (TIN) removal rate. This led to approximately equal-sized stages that each had a TIN removal percentage of 71% of the influent total ammonia nitrogen. Staging a treatment train resulted in 9.8% larger total ammonia and 9.3% larger total nitrogen removal rates when compared with an un-staged reactor. The un-staged reactor also was not able to produce an effluent total ammonia concentration below 5 mg N/L which would be necessary for many facilities’ permits.
Fostering the Return of Compatriots (Concerning Rehabilitation of Ethno-Cultural Principle)
Authors: Bazhan T. A.
Published: October 2022

To ignore the ethno-cultural principle in defining the notion of ‘compatriot’ means recognition of too wide circle of people as such. Today the risk of turning the State program on fostering voluntary migration of compatriots from the repatriation project (the initial idea) into foreign labour recruiting is obvious. For instance, opportunities are limited for elderly and people with moderate means, who know Russian, belong to peoples of Russia and are ready to integrate into Russian society; representatives of title nations of some post-soviet states are recognized as compatriots though they do not possess the mentioned-above socio-cultural features; the same corruption costs typical of labour migration are formed; the quality of human capital provided at the expense of the State program does not comply with the Constitution of the Russian Federation and needs of Russian society development. To fill state policy with the adequate repatriation content it is necessary to revise its goals, bring them into line with the Constitution; to concretize the legal basis of the repatriation institution (return to the homeland) of compatriots, primary importance should be assigned to cultural-morale categories but not to economic ones. The key sociocultural features are mastering the Russian language, belonging to peoples of Russia and readiness to integrate into Russian society. Ideology of the State program should proceed from repatriation aims but not from recruiting ones. The author points out that it is necessary to reform the system of the State program implementation by providing it with the adequate way of selecting candidates in accordance with their socio-cultural features; opportunities to support elderly and those with moderate means for returning them to the historic homeland; elimination of commercial element in work with compatriots (both in countries of departure and on the territory of Russia); infrastructure for initial adaptation and further integration in Russian society. The article analyzes certain aspects of the State program and aims at identification of system problems of this repatriation project, as well as formulation of suggestions for their settlement and optimization of state policy in the field of migration.
Organizational Balance as a Key to Enterprise Reorganization
Authors: Alekhin A. S. , Alekseev O. B.
Published: October 2022

The article provides authors’ ideas about organization, based on the notion of organizational balance that is secured by cyclic interaction of order and disorder, reorganization and disorganization. Striving for balance ensures continuous dynamics of organization development (ontogenesis). Guided by the ides of organizational balance the authors put forward and substantiate the thesis that organization is built in a different way compared with activity that is done by it. That is why to conduct effective transformations the organization should be studied and analyzed in another logic and parallelism between activity and organization accepted in managerial community acts as a hindering simplification. According to the authors, the manager gets a chance to see their organization and conduct needed changes that do not contradict its ‘nature’ only with the help of the organizational balance notion. The method of restoring organizational balance proposed for carrying out transformations is built on the artificial abstract separation of activity (business) and organization, their separate examination and diagnostic with further analysis and assembling steps on balancing with proposals aimed at upgrading businessprocesses within the frames of complicated organizational concept.
Phosphotyrosyl-Based Motifs in the Structure-Based Design of Protein­ Tyrosine Kinase-Dependent Signal Transduction Inhibitors
Authors: Burke, Jr. Terrence R. , Yao Zhu-Jun , Smyth Mark S. , Yet Bin
Published: October 2022

Transmission of extracellular signals from the cell membrane to the nucJeus depends on modification of phosphorylation states of intracellular proteins. Tyrosine, serine and threonine residues are the principal amino acid targets of these phosphorylation events, with tyrosyl residues being particularly important for pathways mediated by growth factors and cytokines. Aberrations in phosphotyrosyl (pTyr)­ dependent signalling can contribute to a variety of diseases, including canc.ers, and for this reason selective modulation of pTyr-dependent signalling may afford new therapeutic approaches. The design of such therapeutics is facilitated by the functional compartmen­
talization of pTyr dependent signalling into three broad categories: ( l) the generation of pTyr residues by protein-tyrosine kinases (PTK); (2) pTyr-dependent protein-protein associations mediated by binding modules such as Src homology 2 (SH2) and phosphotyrosine binding (PTB) domains and (3) the dephosphorylation of pTyr residues by protein-tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs). The pTyr residue itself, which is a unifying component of this signalling triad, potentially affords a starting point for the design of antagonists. In the PTK, SH2/PTB and PTP domain signalling environments, the pTyr residue plays unique roles by participating in interactions characteristic to each. Therefore, depending on which aspects of the L-4'-phosphotyrosyl structure are emphasized, and the manner in which they are utilized, inhibitors can be potentially directed against distinct legs of the signalling triad. This review will provide examples of this, by examining several series of compounds that have been prepared as inhibitors of either PTKs, SH2/PTB domains or PTPs. Also described will be how the pTyr structure can serve as a thematic Rosetta stone for the development of signal transduction inhibitors.
Exploring Research Trends in Air-rail Passenger Transport Relationships Through a Content-based Analysis
Authors: Rattanakijsuntorn Waralee Peetawan , Sualoy Nitjanan , Pienpookhao Kittiwadee
Published: October 2022

Background:

Air and rail passenger transport was initially considered to be competitive. However, as both modes have been developed, several other forms of relationships have been introduced and become more complicated, leading to the investigation of research trends in the air-rail passenger transport relationship.

Gap:

There are few studies on the relationships between air and rail passenger transport, lacking research synthesis application.

Aims:

This paper classifies and analyzes the relationships between air and rail passenger transport based on research publications between January 2006 and December 2020.

Objectives:

The objective of this study is 1) to investigate the possible forms of relationships the air-rail passenger transport based on existing studies, 2) to reveal research themes and trends, and 3) to propose research potentials in the air-rail passenger transport.

Methods:

The study uses a content-based analysis by deriving research articles from transportation and databases. A total of 472 articles were initially identified and screened. One hundred and forty-five articles were included in the final synthesis.

Results:

Air-rail relationships were categorized as a modal comparison, competition, cooperation, integration and influence. Research has been found to rely heavily on the mixture of modal competition, integration and influence. Furthermore, it has been pointed out that the influence between air and rail passenger transport has a one-way effect; air carriers are affected by the entrance of high-speed trains but not in a reverse direction. China has been an emerging context of this topic over the past five years and is likely to dominate the air-rail research due to its extensive high-speed rail networks and vast developments in large airports.

Conclusion:

In terms of the air-rail infrastructure development, it was suggested that modal cooperation was outdated due to lacking seamless connectivity features. Future research might explore the deficient research disciplines, including transport sustainability, business practices and tourism, as well as the impact of the coronavirus disease pandemic in reshaping the air-rail passenger transport industry.
Betaine, a Nutraceutical Ameliorated Myocardial Infarction by Attenuation of Pro-Inflammatory Cytokines and Matrix Metalloproteinase Production in Rats
Authors: Somasundaram G. , Jaikumar S. , Sengottuvelu S.
Published: October 2022

Cardiovascular disease is a key community health challenge and presently the condition with the utmost deaths around the globe, even though enormous development has been made in its management but there are still many difficulties. In the current study, we made an attempt to evaluate the therapeutic action of betaine, an active nutraceutical against isoproterenol-induced myocardial infarction (MI) in rats. The rats were pre-treated with betaine (250mg/Kg BW) for the period of 30 days and on the 31st and 32nd days, they were administered with isoproterenol (20mg/Kg BW) to produce MI in rats. Then we evaluated the effects of betaine on the ratio of heart weight to the body weight. Cardiac diagnostic markers and the production of proinflammatory cytokines and matrix metallopreoteinases along with their mRNA expressions were also studied in the heart by RT-PCR. We found that there was a significant elevation in the heart size, levels of LDH, CK-MB, CRP, homocysteine and serum pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-ɑ, IL-1ɑ, IL-1β, IL-6, MCP-1 and RANTES) and matrix metallopreoteinases (MMP-2 and MMP-9) in MI rats. On the other hand, pre-treatment of MI rats with betaine revealed a noteworthy reduction in the proinflammatory cytokines and matrix metallopreoteinases in the serum. RT-PCR study revealed that betaine successfully down-regulated the mRNA expressions of NF-κB, TNF-ɑ, IL-6, MMP-2 and MMP-9 in MI rats. In conclusion, this study revealed that betaine is able to ameliorate MI by restraining the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and matrix metallopreoteinases. Hence, betaine might be used as a dietary supplement as an alternative for cardio-protection.
Dissensos em torno das margens e centros: planeamento urbano e contestação na zona oriental do Porto
Authors: Santos Priscilla
Published: October 2022

is article discusses the notions of core/periph-ery, or centrality/marginality, in urban planning and its contestations. It explores how centrality/marginality is mobilised in non-consensual ways in the conception of urban identity by the local gov-ernment and professionals of the so-called “crea-tive class”. It focuses on the urban area of Bonfim, East Porto, through the analysis of urban planning documents and semi-direct interviews conducted with “creative class” professionals. I sought to find out how the local council associates the notion of urban identity with centrality; it appears that the council considers Porto’s historic centre as a refer-ence for its urban identity. However, for “creative class” professionals, urban identity is also created in the margins and interstices, by the non-dominant classes. This theme is introduced within a broader discussion on the concept of core/periphery in urban planning and how it is strategically mobi-lised in the context of global intercity competition.
Factors influencing critical thinking skills among nursing students: Reports from a cross-sectional study
Authors:   General Nursing Department, Prince Sultan Military College of Health Sciences, Dammam, Saudi Arabia, et al. Sacgaca
Published: October 2022

Studying the relationship between critical thinking and academic achievement is of great importance because both are crucial in producing nurses that would deliver quality care and nurses who would be critical thinkers in the midst of constant evolution in the health care delivery system. This study aims to determine the relationship between critical thinking skills and academic achievement among undergraduate nursing students. Further, it aims to determine factors that may influence the critical thinking of students. This study used a descriptive correlational design. It was conducted at the Nursing Department, College of Health Sciences Prince Sultan Military College, Saudi Arabia. There were 67 female participants from two types of nursing pathways. The data collection was conducted between March and May 2021. The overall averages of HSRT scores of the Baccalaureate and Bridging were 2.35 and 2.25, respectively. The HSRT scores indicated that the critical thinking skills of participants from both nursing pathways were low. There was no significant relationship between critical thinking skills and academic performance (r=.11; p<.05). Critical thinking skills were not manifested among the student nurses. Further, there was no found significant relationship between age, nursing pathway, and year level. Moreover, there is no significant relationship found between academic performance and the components of HSRT. These results are useful for understanding group characteristics, comparing and contrasting similar groups on specific attributes or skills, and for guiding the development of more targeted educational or training programs.
Laws Governing Renewable Energy Production of Malaysia and Canada
Authors: Majid Efy Azirah , Mohd Faizal Nur Alia Zaheera , Mohd Fadzir Ain Nursyahirah , Rizal Siti Aishah
Published: October 2022

The transition of the usage of fossil fuels to renewable energy after centuries of technological and economic support requires a set of efficient legal frameworks. Achieving widespread implementation of renewable energy involves substantial challenges, namely inefficiency of policies, lack of financial assistance, and unsecured economic instruments. Adopting the comparative method and research interviews, this research compares the comprehensiveness of the laws governing renewable energy in Malaysia with Canada. Further, to critically analyze the correlation on the effectiveness of legal frameworks on the production of renewable energy and to provide critical insight into the legal frameworks governing renewable energy in Malaysia.  
Keywords: law; renewable energy; Malaysia; Canada
eISSN: 2398-4287 © 2022. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open-access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under the responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians), and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21834/ebpj.v7iSI8.3920