bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Field‐amplified sample injection in capillary zone electrophoresis for the pharmacokinetic research of trace risperidone and its major metabolite 9‐hydroxyrisperidone in beagle dogs
Authors: Fan Xianyu , Li Ji , Wu Shengyuan , Jiang Jingjing , Wang Jiajing , Wang Shuowen , Lou Yuefen , Fan Guorong
Published: June 2020

This article describes a method for the simultaneous quantitation of risperidone and its major metabolite, 9‐hydroxyrisperidone, in beagle dog plasma by field‐amplified sample injection in capillary zone electrophoresis. The separation was carried out at 25°C in a 48 cm × 75 µm fused‐silica capillary with an applied voltage of 20 kV using 60 mM NaH2PO4 buffer (pH 3.6). The detection wavelength was 280 nm. Clean‐up and preconcentration of plasma samples were conducted by 96‐well formatted liquid‐liquid extraction. In this study, this stacking technique provided a sensitivity enhancement of approximately 158 to 188 fold compared with the same sample without stacking. The method was suitably validated with respect to stability, specificity, linearity, lower limit of quantitation, accuracy, precision, and extraction recovery. Calibration curves exhibited good linearity (r2 > 0.995) over a wide concentration range of 2.5 to 200 ng/mL for both risperidone and 9‐hydroxyrisperidone. The intra‐ and interday precisions at the three quality control levels were less than 11.40%. The intra‐ and interday accuracies ranged from 87.90 to 107.17% for risperidone and from 88.43 to 105.92% for 9‐hydroxyrisperidone. All validation data were within the required limits. In conclusion, the method developed was successfully applied to pharmacokinetic studies of risperidone and 9‐hydroxyrisperidone in beagle dogs.
Wetland Waterbird Food Resources Increased by Harvesting Invasive Cattails
Authors: Lishawa Shane C. , Dunton Eric M. , Pearsall Douglas R. , Monks Andrew M. , Himmler Kurtis B. , Carson Brendan D. , Loges Brian , Albert Dennis A.
Published: June 2020

The conservation of many freshwater marsh waterbirds (i.e., waterfowl, shorebirds, wading birds, and secretive marshbirds) in the Laurentian Great Lakes requires managing invasive emergent macrophytes, which degrade waterbird habitat by creating dense, litter‐clogged stands, and excluding plants that produce nutritionally balanced and high‐energy food (seeds, tubers, and submerged aquatic vegetation). The most commonly used management approach in the United States Great Lakes region involves the application of herbicides, which can stimulate waterbird forage plants but does not address the accumulation of plant litter, the underlying cause of plant community diversity loss and habitat degradation. We experimentally evaluated the effects of an alternative approach, harvesting invasive plants and their litter followed by flooding, on plant communities, focusing on the effects of these treatments to increase the abundance of high‐energy wetland plants. At the Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge in Michigan, USA, we experimentally treated an invasive cattail (Typha × glauca)‐dominated wetland in August and September of 2016, 2017, and 2018, using a randomized block design with 4 blocks and 3 treatments (sediment surface harvest, above ground harvest, and control). We monitored the effects of these treatments on the abundance and dominance of waterbird forage‐producing plants, plant diversity, and plant communities prior to (Jul 2016) and during the summer following each treatment (late Jul or early Aug 2017, 2018, and 2019). Additionally, we used pre‐ and post‐treatment waterbird use‐day data collected at the unit scale and compared values with satellite imagery‐derived land cover changes. Compared to control plots, 3 years of harvesting and flooding significantly increased plant species diversity, increased the abundance of waterbird seed‐ and tuber‐producing plant species by 5 times, and increased annual plant dominance by more than 10 times, while substantially reducing all measures of cattail and its litter. Use‐days increased for total waterbirds, including waterfowl and dabbling ducks, following treatment. Cattail cover decreased and open water and non‐cattail emergent vegetation cover increased. Harvesting invasive plant biomass coupled with flooding promoted a plant community composition and structure beneficial to waterbirds. © 2020 The Wildlife Society.
Temporally coherent cardiac motion tracking from cine MRI: Traditional registration method and modern CNN method
Authors: Qiao Mengyun , Wang Yuanyuan , Guo Yi , Huang Lu , Xia Liming , Tao Qian
Published: June 2020

Purpose

Cardiac motion tracking enables quantitative evaluation of myocardial strain, which is clinically interesting in cardiovascular disease research. However, motion tracking is difficult to perform manually. In this paper, we aim to develop and compare two fully automated motion tracking methods for the steady state free precession (SSFP) cine magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and explore their use in real clinical scenario with different patient groups.

Methods

We proposed two automated cardiac motion tracking method: (a) a traditional registration‐based method, named full cardiac cycle registration, which simultaneously tracks all cine frames within a full cardiac cycle by joint registration of all frames; and (b) a modern convolutional neural network (CNN)‐based method, named Groupwise MotionNet, which enhances the temporal coherence by fusing motion along a continuous time scale. Both methods were evaluated on the healthy volunteer data from the MICCAI 2011 STACOM Challenge, as well as on patient data including hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) and myocardial infarction (MI).

Results

The full cardiac cycle registration method achieved an average end‐point error (EPE) 2.89 ± 1.57 mm for cardiac motion tracking, with computation time of around 9 min per short‐axis cine MRI (size 128 × 128, 30 cardiac phases). In comparison, the Groupwise MotionNet achieved an average EPE of 0.94 ± 1.59 mm, taking < 1 s for a full cardiac phases. Further experiments showed that registration method had stable performance, independent of patient cohort and MRI machine, while the CNN‐based method relied on the training data to deliver consistently accurate results.

Conclusion

Both registration‐based and CNN‐based method can track the cardiac motion from SSFP cine MRI in a fully automated manner, while taking temporal coherence into account. The registration method is generic, robust, but relatively slow; the CNN‐based method trained with heterogeneous data was able to achieve high tracking accuracy with real‐time performance.
Development of a rotation phantom for phase contrast MRI sequence validation and quality control
Authors: Vali Alireza , Schmitter Sebastian , Ma Liliana , Flassbeck Sebastian , Schmidt Simon , Markl Michael , Schnell Susanne
Published: June 2020

Purpose

To develop a reliable, consistent, and reproducible reference phantom for error quantification of phase‐contrast MRI so it can be used for validation and quality control.

Methods

An air‐driven rotation phantom consisting of a steadily rotating cylinder surrounded by a static ring both filled with agarose gel was developed. Rotational speed was measured and controlled in real time using an optical counter and a closed‐loop controller. Consistency of the phantom was assessed by recording variations in rotational speed. The phantom was imaged with 2D phase‐contrast MRI, and the velocity at each point was compared with analytically predicted velocity. Additionally, to examine reproducibility, the phantom was run with the same rotational speed on 2 different days and imaged using the same phase‐contrast MRI protocol.

Results

The rotation phantom provided consistent rotational speed with 2 revolutions per minute SD from the set value for 20 min. Comparison between predicted and measured velocities demonstrated excellent agreement (intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.99). The RMS error in velocity components were less than 1% of maximum value. The scan–rescan experiment showed that the phantom can reproduce the same velocity distributions (intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.99) using the same rotational speed and MRI settings.

Conclusion

The developed rotation phantom provided well‐defined and reproducible linear velocity distributions, which can be used for systematic and quantitative error analysis of phase‐contrast MRI for a range of known velocities.
Effects of water‐ and land‐based exercises on quality of life and physical aspects in women with fibromyalgia: A randomized clinical trial
Authors: Britto André , Rodrigues Vandilson , dos Santos Alcione M. , Rizzini Marta , Britto Paula , Britto Lucio , Garcia João B. S.
Published: June 2020

Introduction

Fibromyalgia (FM) is consistently associated with fatigue, sleep disturbances, morning stiffness, and anxiety and depression, affecting physical capacities and skills and thereby reducing quality of life. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of water‐based and land‐based therapies as an adjuvant treatment for women with FM in relation to quality of life and physical aspects.

Methods

FM women were randomized into a water‐based exercise group (WG) and land‐based exercise group (LG). The interventions were conducted for 8 weeks, three times a week, and each therapy session had a 60‐min duration. Evaluations were performed before and after intervention using the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire, the Visual Analogue Scale, the number of tender points (TPs), and the Wells bench sit and reach test score.

Results

Both interventions produced significantly positive clinical effects in most aspects evaluated. However, only WG obtained significant improvements for the variables functional capacity, number of TPs, and flexibility.

Conclusions

The findings suggest that water‐based exercise is effective as an adjuvant FM treatment, including FM‐related physical and psychological health aspects.
A stability‐indicating ultra‐fast liquid chromatography method for the assay of the main flavonoids of Achyrocline satureioides (Marcela) in porcine skin layers and nanoemulsions
Authors: Balestrin Lucélia Albarello , Fachel Flávia Nathiely Silveira , Koester Letícia Scherer , Bassani Valquiria Linck , Teixeira Helder Ferreira
Published: June 2020

Introduction

Achyrocline satureioides (marcela or macela) is a plant widely used in folk medicine in South America. Recently, there has been increasing interest for the development of skin care products containing A. satureoides extracts, due to its well‐documented antioxidant, antiherpetic, and wound healing properties.

Objectives

The present study aimed to develop and validate a yet unexplored stability‐indicating and robust ultra‐fast liquid chromatography (UFLC) method for the simultaneous quantification of the main flavonoids of A. satureioides in extracts, nanoemulsions, and porcine skin layers.

Material and methods

The chromatographic separation of flavonoids quercetin, luteolin, and 3‐O‐methylquercetin was performed on a Luna C18 analytical column (100 mm × 2.0 mm i.d.; particle size 2.5 μm) using isocratic elution with methanol/phosphoric acid 1% (48:52 v/v) with a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min at 40°C.

Results

The method was found to be specific, linear (R > 0.998), precise, accurate, and robust for all flavonoids assayed in A. satureioides extract, nanoemulsions, and porcine ear skin. A low matrix effect was noted for all complex matrices. The stability‐indicating UFLC method was evaluated by submitting isolated flavonoids, a mixture of standards, and A. satureioides extract to acidic, alkaline, oxidative, UV‐A/UV‐C light, and thermal stress conditions. No peaks were found co‐eluting with the flavonoids of interest in all matrices. The robustness of the method was confirmed using Plackett–Burman experimental design.

Conclusion

The short run time (8 min) and reliability of the method could be useful for the determination of A. satureioides flavonoids in topical product development since extracts of this medicinal plant have been used to treat various skin disorders.
A Comprehensive Evaluation of MS/MS Spectrum Prediction Tools for Shotgun Proteomics
Authors: Xu Rui , Sheng Jie , Bai Mingze , Shu Kunxian , Zhu Yunping , Chang Cheng
Published: June 2020

Spectrum prediction using machine learning or deep learning models is an emerging method in computational proteomics. Several deep learning‐based MS/MS spectrum prediction tools have been developed and showed their potentials not only for increasing the sensitivity and accuracy of data‐dependent acquisition search engines, but also for building spectral libraries for data‐independent acquisition analysis. Different tools with their unique algorithms and implementations may result in different performances. Hence, it is necessary to systematically evaluate these tools to find out their preferences and intrinsic differences. In this study, multiple datasets with different collision energies, enzymes, instruments, and species, are used to evaluate the performances of the deep learning‐based MS/MS spectrum prediction tools, as well as, the machine learning‐based tool MS2PIP. The evaluations may provide helpful insights and guidelines of spectrum prediction tools for the corresponding researchers.
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi alleviate negative effects of arsenic‐induced stress on crop plants: A meta‐analysis
Authors: Neidhardt Harald
Published: June 2020

Societal Impact Statement

The inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi shows great potential to increase the tolerance of host plants toward toxic arsenic. In many Asian countries and elsewhere, crops are increasingly being irrigated with arsenic‐contaminated groundwater, which causes loss of yield and the risk that arsenic enters the food chain. Greenhouse cultivation experiments demonstrated that AM fungi are able to increase the arsenic tolerance in crop plants, but the results are highly variable. This meta‐analysis demonstrates that AM fungi significantly reduce the arsenic concentration, and at the same time, positively modify the nutrient supply and the biomass in host crops that are grown under arsenic stress. Thus, the inoculation with AM fungi represents a promising approach to alleviate the negative effects of arsenic on crop growth, which deserves to be developed in future studies.

Recent greenhouse experiments showed that the inoculation of crop plants with arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi does not only improve plant nutrition but also shows great potential to increase the host plants’ tolerance toward the toxic metalloid arsenic (As). This approach could alleviate negative effects of crop plants grown under As stress, which causes substantial loss of yield and the risk of As entering the food chain. This is especially relevant in Asian countries and elsewhere where As subsequently accumulates in soil due to irrigation with As‐polluted groundwater. Overall effects of AM fungi symbiosis on seven crop plants grown under As stress were assessed by a meta‐analysis that included 299 studies obtained from 27 independent publications. Biomass, concentrations of As and phosphorus (P), and P/As ratios in plant tissue were used to evaluate the effects of AM fungi in host crops. Inoculation with AM fungi reduced As concentrations in tissue of host plants by 19% on average, while it increased the P/As ratio and biomass at the same time by 64% and 53%, respectively. With the exception of Helianthus annuus, AM effects were highly significant in all crop plants. The meta‐analysis results illustrate that AM fungi are able to significantly reduce As concentration, and at the same time, positively modify the nutrient supply and the biomass in host crops. These promising results strongly encourage the implementation of field trials as a next step toward the development of AM fungi‐based approaches to alleviate the negative effects of As stress on crop growth.
Pleural line thickness reference values for preterm and term newborns
Authors: Alonso‐Ojembarrena Almudena , Lechuga‐Sancho Alfonso María , Ruiz‐González Estefanía , González‐Haba‐Martínez Blanca , Lubián‐López Simón Pedro
Published: June 2020

Background

In lung ultrasound (LUS), the pleural line is an artifact whose thickness depends on the underlying lung pathology. To date there are no published studies on normal values of pleural line thickness (PLT) in newborns.

Objective

The aim of our study is to describe normal PLT values in term newborn (TN) and preterm newborn (PTN).

Methods

We recruited eupneic TN and PTN, under 34 weeks of gestation, on their first 24 hours of life. Newborns presenting any respiratory distress since birth were excluded. LUS was performed in four areas: upper anterior, lower anterior, lateral and posterior. At each location, we measured PLT and values where compared. Intraobserver and interobserver agreement were assessed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), and the kappa coefficient.

Results

We included 23 TN with a median birth weight of 3365 g (interquartile range [IQR] 3100‐3575 g) and a median gestational age of 39 weeks (IQR, 38‐40 weeks). In the PTN group, 23 patients were included with a median birth weight of 1350 g (IQR, 1150‐1590 g) and a median gestational age of 31 weeks (IQR, 30‐32 weeks). Median PLT values were less than 1 mm, and there were no significant differences between groups at any locations, with the exception of the left lower anterior field (0.79 mm [IQR, 0.72‐0.89 mm] vs 0.68 mm [IQR, 0.62‐0.72 mm]). Intraobserver agreement was high: consistency ICC 0.77 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.32‐0.92) and absolute ICC 0.78 (95% CI, 0.34‐0.93). Interobserver agreement was high for the definition of thin pleural line as less than 1 mm.

Conclusions

TN and asymptomatic PTN have similar PLT values. Overall, PLT in healthy newborns should be less than 1 mm.
Patients' narratives of patient education in physiotherapy after total hip arthroplasty
Authors: Jäppinen Anna‐Maija , Muñoz Minna , Kettunen Tarja , Piirainen Arja
Published: June 2020

Objective

The aim of this study was to explore patients' narratives of patient education in physiotherapy after a total hip arthroplasty (THA).

Method

The data was collected via open thematic interviews from ten patients who had had a primary THA. The interviews were analysed using a qualitative, narrative method.

Results

Three story models of patient education in physiotherapy were identified: Supportive patient education in physiotherapy, Co‐operative patient education in physiotherapy and Contradictory patient education in physiotherapy. The emphasis of narration in the first story model was on the trust in the guidance, functioning interaction in the second and insufficient patient education in physiotherapy in the third story model.

Discussion

According to the results of this study, patients with THA experience functioning interaction and trust in the patient education in physiotherapy as enhancing the rehabilitation process. Conversely insufficient patient education about exercising and follow‐up physiotherapy made the patients feel insecure and according to them might have slowed down the rehabilitation process. These findings can be utilized in planning and improving patient education in physiotherapy after THA.
Empirical profile Bayesian estimation for extrapolation of historical adult data to pediatric drug development
Authors: Wu Yaoshi , Hui Jianan , Deng Qiqi
Published: June 2020

For pediatric drug development, the clinical effectiveness of the study medication for the adult population has already been demonstrated. Given the fact that it is usually not feasible to enroll a large number of pediatric patients, appropriately leveraging historical adult data into pediatric evaluation may be critical to success of pediatric drug development. In this manuscript, we propose a new empirical Bayesian approach, profile Bayesian estimation, to dynamically borrow adult information to the evaluation of treatment effect in pediatric patients. The new approach demonstrates an attractive balance between type I error control and power gain under the transfer‐ability assumption that the pediatric treatment effect size may differ from the adult treatment effect size. The decision making boundary mimics the real‐world practice in pediatric drug development. In addition, the posterior mean of the proposed empirical profile Bayesian is an unbiased estimator of the true pediatric treatment effect. We compare our approach to robust mixture prior with prior weight for informative borrowing set to 0.5 or 0.9, regular Bayesian approach, and frequentist for both type I error and power.
Recurrent hypertrophic pulmonary osteoarthropathy in an adult with bronchiectasis
Authors: Tekiteki Amelia , Good William R. , Diggins Benjamin , Anderson Graeme , Wong Conroy A.
Published: June 2020

Hypertrophic pulmonary osteoarthropathy (HPOA) is a well‐documented complication of pulmonary malignancy and cystic fibrosis (CF). However, HPOA associated with exacerbations of non‐CF bronchiectasis has only been reported once previously in an adolescent. We describe a case of an adult patient with bronchiectasis and HPOA, whose joint symptoms flared during pulmonary exacerbations and improved with treatment of each exacerbation.
A tutorial on the use of exploratory efficacy outcomes in uncontrolled phase I cell therapy trials
Authors: Troy Jesse D.
Published: June 2020

Phase I cell therapy clinical trials evaluate the safety of novel biologic treatments and are often uncontrolled. Many of these studies also include exploratory efficacy outcome measures, which are frequently continuous measures of disease state or severity, or participant-reported measures of symptom burden or quality of life. When such outcomes are included in uncontrolled phase I trials, they are typically serially assessed on the participants over time, and any improvement from baseline is interpreted as preliminary evidence of efficacy justifying a future, controlled trial. However, it is challenging to distinguish true improvement from regression to the mean in this design. The problem is exacerbated when trial entry criteria are based on extreme values of the outcome measure used to assess efficacy. It is possible to estimate the expected effect of regression to the mean when the natural history of the outcome measure is known, yet this is rarely done in practice. This article provides a refresher on regression to the mean for investigators designing early phase clinical trials in cell therapy and evaluates the potential for regression to the mean to have influenced conclusions drawn from recently conducted phase I cell therapy trials.
Surface‐Plasmon‐Enhanced Perovskite Light‐Emitting Diodes
Authors: Gu Lianghui , Wen Kaichuan , Peng Qiming , Huang Wei , Wang Jianpu
Published: June 2020

Perovskite light‐emitting diodes (PeLEDs) have attracted considerable attention because of their potential in display and lighting applications. To promote commercialization of PeLEDs, it is important to improve the external quantum efficiency of the devices, which depends on their internal quantum efficiency (IQE) and light extraction efficiency. Optical simulations have revealed that 20–50% of the light generated in the device will be lost to surface plasmon (SP) modes formed in the metal/dielectric interfaces. Therefore, extracting the optical energy in SP modes to the air will greatly increase the light extraction efficiency of PeLEDs. In addition, the SPs can accelerate radiative recombination of the emitter via near‐field effects. Thus, the IQE of a PeLED can also be enhanced by SP manipulation. In this review, first, general concepts of the SPs and how they can enhance the efficiency of LEDs are introduced. Then recent progresses in SP‐enhanced emission of perovskite films and LEDs are systematically reviewed. After that, the challenges and opportunities of the SP‐enhanced PeLEDs are shown, followed by an outlook of further development of the SPs in perovskite optoelectronic devices.
Tetrabromination versus Tetrachlorination: A Molecular Terminal Engineering of Nonfluorinated Acceptors to Control Aggregation for Highly Efficient Polymer Solar Cells with Increased Voc and Higher Jsc Simultaneously
Authors: Zhang Chao , Liu Tao , Wang Jin-Liang , Liu Kai-Kai , Yang Can , Zhang Han-Jian , Ma Ruijie , Yan He
Published: June 2020

Herein, a pair of tetrahalogenated nonfullerene small molecular acceptors (NF‐SMAs) (TSeIC4Cl and TSeIC4Br) are designed and synthesized, with the same indacenodithieno[3,2‐b]selenophene central unit and two different dihalogenation terminal groups, respectively. The systematic investigation is achieved to reveal the impact of two different nondifluorinated terminal groups on the device performance of the resultant ITIC series NF‐SMAs. TSeIC4Br shows red‐shifted absorption range and higher frontier energy levels compared with that of TSeIC4Cl. Moreover, PM6:TSeIC4Br blend film exhibits more suitable phase‐separated morphology with more ordered molecular packing and improved miscibility compared with that of the tetrachlorinated counterpart. Importantly, PM6:TSeIC4Br‐based device exhibits a better power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 11.92%, with a higher open‐circuit voltage (Voc) and an enhanced short‐circuit current density (Jsc) when compared with that of PM6:TSeIC4Cl‐based device (11.13%). Furthermore, the energy loss can be reduced by replacing the disubstituents of end group from chlorine to bromine atoms. The results demonstrate that incorporation of indacenodithieno[3,2‐b]selenophene and replacement of tetrachlorination by tetrabromination on the end group contributes to elevating the Jsc, reduce energy loss, and enhancing the PCE for its relevant ITIC series device simultaneously, which may give a new avenue for achieving high‐performance multihalogenated ITIC series NF‐SMAs.
Implementing Hybrid Energy Harvesting in 3D Spherical Evaporator for Solar Steam Generation and Synergic Water Purification
Authors: Lu Yi , Fan Deqi , Xu Haolan , Min Huihua , Lu Chunhua , Lin Zixia , Yang Xiaofei
Published: June 2020

Solar‐powered water evaporation provides a promising strategy for eco‐friendly and cost‐effective freshwater production. The exploration of high‐performance photothermal materials and the rational design of evaporation architectures are crucial in promoting solar steam generation efficiency. Herein, multidimensional MXene‐based composites with well‐organized heterojunction nanostructures are proposed as bifunctional photothermal materials. The solar thermal conversion, chemical stability, and photocatalysis degradation properties are enhanced by anchoring Co3O4 nanoparticles on delaminated ultrathin MXene nanosheets, compared with that of Ti3C2 MXene. Based on these advantages, an integrated 3D spherical evaporator is constructed using the Co3O4/Ti3C2 MXene‐based fabric. The evaporator shows its distinct advantages in maximizing the harvest of the hybrid energy from sunlight and the ambient environment, making it ideal for solar steam generation and synergetic water purification. An extremely high evaporation rate of 1.89 kg m−2 h−1 with a corresponding light‐to‐vapor energy conversion efficiency beyond the theoretical limit (130.4%) is achieved. More importantly, while the evaporation rate of the 2D evaporator significantly recedes upon the oblique sunlight irradiation, the evaporation rate of the 3D spherical evaporator is constantly high at different incident angles of sunlight, which satisfies the requirement of practical applications under moving sun.
Understanding the Effect of End Group Halogenation in Tuning Miscibility and Morphology of High‐Performance Small Molecular Acceptors
Authors: Ma Ruijie , Li Gang , Li Dandan , Liu Tao , Luo Zhenghui , Zhang Guangye , Zhang Ming , Wang Zaiyu , Luo Siwei , Yang Tao , Liu Feng , Yan He , Tang Bo
Published: June 2020

A multitude of studies have been conducted on organic solar cells (OSCs) to understand how end group halogenation changes the property of the small molecular acceptors (SMAs) energetically, morphologically, and so on. But how the halogenation impacts the miscibility between SMAs and polymers, which is an important index to thermodynamically predict and understand the morphology of blend films, has not been systematically studied, particularly for the state‐of‐the‐art polymer–SMA blends. Herein, three series of asymmetric or symmetric SMAs, all reported recently with high photovoltaic performances, are used to investigate the effect of halogenation on miscibility, crystallinity, and solar cell performance. Using the asymmetric SMA named TPIC, and its derivatives (TPIC‐4F and TPIC‐4Cl) as the focus, it is revealed that the enhancement in solar cell performance for the halogenated SMAs is to reduce the miscibility between the acceptor and donor, which leads to a more favorable morphology, enhanced charge transport, and an extended absorption range. Similarly, the halogenation‐induced reduction in miscibility for the initially overmixed donor:acceptor blend is also demonstrated in the symmetric ITIC and the state‐of‐the‐art BTP series, where attractive power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of 16.5% and 16.8%, respectively, are achieved by the halogenated‐SMA‐based devices in each series.
Flexible Solar Yarns with 15.7% Power Conversion Efficiency, Based on Electrospun Perovskite Composite Nanofibers
Authors: Li Qian , Balilonda Andrew , Ali Aizaz , Jose Rajan , Zabihi Fatemeh , Yang Shengyuan , Ramakrishna Seeram , Zhu Meifang
Published: June 2020

A flexible perovskite solar yarn with an impressive active lifetime (>216 h) and an exceptional photon conversion efficiency is prepared under ordinary conditions. The champion device demonstrates an average linear mass density of 0.89 mg cm−1 and can be bent over a loop diameter of 2.5 mm, with a negligible efficiency loss. Photoactive nanofibers composed of a polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) central strain and a perovskite phase on the surface (with average grain size of 275 ± 14.3 nm), are prepared by electrospinning, at 18 kV, relative humidity of 75%, and a temperature of 25 °C. This bilayered configuration promises superior mechanical strength and flexibility, together with an excellent photovoltaic character, compared with their dip coated counterparts. Photoactive perovskite nanofibers are incorporated into a plied‐solar yarn, with an organic hole‐conductive layer, poly(3‐hexylthiophene‐2,5‐diyl)‐coated on silver yarn electrode, and a composite electron conductive layer, phenyl‐C61‐butyric acid methyl ester (PC61BM)‐SnO2 coated on a carbon yarn. An individual double‐twisted solar yarns yields 15.7% champion power conversion efficiency, while a 30.5 mm × 30.5 mm active area of plain‐woven fabric generates a maximum power density of 1.26 mW cm−2 under one sun (1000 W m−2) solar illumination.
Adsorption of toxic dye Eosin Y from aqueous solution by clay/carbon composite derived from spent bleaching earth
Authors: Liu Yongde , Chen Yao , Shi Yahui , Wan Dongjin , Chen Jing , Xiao Shuhu
Published: June 2020

The environmentally friendly clay/carbon composite (SBE/C) was prepared by one‐step pyrolysis under N2 atmosphere at 700°C of spent bleaching earth (SBE) from the industrial waste of the refined oil industry. SBE/C was tested to remove anionic dye Eosin Y from aqueous water. The results revealed that SBE/C had larger specific surface area than SBE, and the equilibrium adsorption capacity of SBE/C (11.15 mg/g) was about 3 times than that of SBE (4.04 mg/g). The adsorption process was found to be exothermic and spontaneous. The adsorption capacity of SBE/C was independent on pH (5–12), and exhibits satisfactorily recyclable performance. Combined with characterization analysis, the adsorption mechanism likely includes electrostatic interaction, hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interaction, halogen bonding, and π‐π interaction. Overall, this exploration of SBE/C might open a window to the design of an efficient and low‐cost adsorbent for Eosin Y dye elimination from wastewater.

Practitioner points

The resource utilization of industrial waste SBE was achieved.

SBE/C was synthesized and tested to adsorb Eosin Y for the first time.

SBE/C had characteristics with porous structure and large surface area.

pH had little effect on adsorption capacity of SBE/C for Eosin Y.

SBE/C exhibited potential for dye elimination from wastewater.
Confluent conformal blocks of the second kind
Authors: Lenells Jonatan , Roussillon Julien
Published: June 2020

Abstract

We construct confluent conformal blocks of the second kind of the Virasoro algebra. We also construct the Stokes transformations which map such blocks in one Stokes sector to another. In the BPZ limit, we verify explicitly that the constructed blocks and the associated Stokes transformations reduce to solutions of the confluent BPZ equation and its Stokes matrices, respectively. Both the confluent conformal blocks and the Stokes transformations are constructed by taking suitable confluent limits of the crossing transformations of the four-point Virasoro conformal blocks.
Clustering method for censored and collinear survival data
Authors: Liverani Silvia , Leigh Lucy , Hudson Irene L. , Byles Julie E.
Published: June 2020

In this paper we propose a Dirichlet process mixture model for censored survival data with covariates. This model is suitable in two scenarios. First, this method can be used to identify clusters determined by both the censored survival data and the predictors. Second, this method is suitable for highly correlated predictors, in cases when the usual survival models cannot be implemented because they would be unstable due to multicollinearity. The Dirichlet process mixture model links a response vector to covariate data through cluster membership and in this paper this model is extended for mixtures of Weibull distributions, which can be used to model survival times and also allow for censoring. We propose two variants of this model, one with a shape parameter common to all clusters (referred to as a global parameter) for the Weibull distributions and one with a cluster-specific shape parameter. The first satisfies the proportional hazard assumption, while the latter is very flexible, as it has the advantage of allowing estimation of the survival curve whether or not the proportional hazards assumption is satisfied. We present a simulation study and, to demonstrate the applicability of the method in practice, a real application to sleep surveys in older women from The Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health. The method developed in the paper is available in the R package PReMiuM.
Characterization of highly active 2-keto-3-deoxy-L-arabinonate and 2-keto-3-deoxy-D-xylonate dehydratases in terms of the biotransformation of hemicellulose sugars to chemicals
Authors: Sutiono Samuel , Siebers Bettina , Sieber Volker
Published: June 2020

2-keto-3-L-arabinonate dehydratase (L-KdpD) and 2-keto-3-D-xylonate dehydratase (D-KdpD) are the third enzymes in the Weimberg pathway catalyzing the dehydration of respective 2-keto-3-deoxy sugar acids (KDP) to α-ketoglutaric semialdehyde (KGSA). The Weimberg pathway has been explored recently with respect to the synthesis of chemicals from L-arabinose and D-xylose. However, only limited work has been done toward characterizing these two enzymes. In this work, several new L-KdpDs and D-KdpDs were cloned and heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli. Following kinetic characterizations and kinetic stability studies, the L-KdpD from Cupriavidus necator (CnL-KdpD) and D-KdpD from Pseudomonas putida (PpD-KdpD) appeared to be the most promising variants from each enzyme class. Magnesium had no effect on CnL-KdpD, whereas increased activity and stability were observed for PpD-KdpD in the presence of Mg2+. Furthermore, CnL-KdpD was not inhibited in the presence of L-arabinose and L-arabinonate, whereas PpD-KdpD was inhibited with D-xylonate (I50 of 75 mM), but not with D-xylose. Both enzymes were shown to be highly active in the one-step conversions of L-KDP and D-KDP. CnL-KdpD converted > 95% of 500 mM L-KDP to KGSA in the first 2 h while PpD-KdpD converted > 90% of 500 mM D-KDP after 4 h. Both enzymes in combination were able to convert 83% of a racemic mixture of D,L-KDP (500 mM) after 4 h, with both enzymes being specific toward the respective stereoisomer.

Key points• L-KdpDs and D-KdpDs are specific toward L- and D-KDP, respectively.• Mg2+affected activity and stabilities of D-KdpDs, but not of L-KdpDs.• CnL-KdpD and PpD-KdpD converted 0.5 M of each KDP isomer reaching 95 and 90% yield.• Both enzymes in combination converted 0.5 M racemic D,L-KDP reaching 83% yield.
PI3K pathway protein analyses in metastatic breast cancer patients receiving standard everolimus and exemestane
Authors: Kruger Dinja T. , Opdam Mark , van der Noort Vincent , Sanders Joyce , Nieuwenhuis Michiel , de Valk Bart , Beelen Karin J. , Linn Sabine C. , Boven Epie
Published: June 2020

Purpose

Everolimus plus exemestane (EVE/EXE) is a registered treatment option for ER-positive, HER2-negative (ER +/HER2-) metastatic breast cancer (MBC), but resistance mechanisms limit efficacy. We aimed to find markers that might help select patients with a higher chance on benefit from EVE/EXE.

Methods

Immunohistochemistry (IHC) of PTEN, p-AKT(Thr308), p-AKT(Ser473), p-4EBP1, p-p70S6K, p-S6RP(Ser240/244), p-ERK1/2 and p-S6RP (Ser235/236) was performed on primary tumour tissue and on biopsies immediately taken from ER +/HER2- MBC patients before the start of standard EVE/EXE (Eudract 2013-004120-11). Unsupervised hierarchical clustering was executed to create heatmaps to distinguish subgroups of preferentially activated and less-activated PI3K/MAPK proteins. Uni- and multivariate Cox models were used for associations with PFS.

Results

Primary tumour tissue from 145 patients was retrieved. Median PFS was 5.4 months. Patients without (neo)adjuvant therapy (p = 0.03) or bone only disease (p = 0.04) had longer PFS on EVE/EXE. In primary tumours, neither single proteins nor PI3K/MAPK-associated heatmap subgroups were significantly associated with PFS. In 21 patients a non-osseous biopsy obtained before dosing was useful for continuous scoring, which demonstrated upregulation of several proteins as compared to readings in corresponding primary tumour tissues. These comparisons revealed that increased expression of p-4EBP1 was significantly associated with worse PFS (multivariate HR 3.69, p = 0.05).

Conclusions

IHC of single proteins or heatmap subgroups of the differentially activated PI3K/MAPK pathways was not able to discriminate patients on EVE/EXE with poor or better PFS. Upregulation of p-4EBP1 in pre-treatment biopsies as compared to levels in primary tumours pointed towards shorter PFS.
Ultrastructural changes of smooth and rough titanium implant surfaces induced by metal and plastic periodontal probes
Authors: Folwaczny Matthias , Rudolf Torsten , Frasheri Iris , Betthäuser Madlena
Published: June 2020

Objectives

To determine the ultrastructural changes of titanium surfaces of dental implants induced by the tip of periodontal probes.

Materials and methods

A total of 40 samples of smooth and rough surfaces of titanium implants were randomly assigned for the treatment with metal or plastic periodontal probes under application angles of 20° and 60°. Titanium surfaces have been evaluated with CLSM prior and following to experimental probing determining various standardized 2D and 3D roughness parameters.

Results

The average profile and surface roughness (Ra and Sa) showed no significant difference between treated and untreated samples on smooth and rough surface areas irrespective of the probe material. On smooth surfaces several amplitude roughness parameters were increased with metal probes but reached significance only for Rp (p = 0.007). Rough surface parts showed a slight but not significant reduction of roughness following to the contact with metal probes. The surface roughness remained almost unchanged on smooth and rough implant surfaces using plastic probes. The surface roughness on implant surfaces was not dependent on the application angle irrespective of the probe material.

Conclusion

Probing of titanium implants with metal probes and even less with plastic probes causes only minor changes of the surface roughness. The clinical significance of these changes remains to be elucidated.

Clinical relevance

Using plastic probes for the clinical evaluation of the peri-implant sulcus might avoid ultrastructural changes to titanium implant surfaces.
Acrocomia aculeata fruits from three regions in Costa Rica: an assessment of biometric parameters, oil content and oil fatty acid composition to evaluate industrial potential
Authors: Alfaro-Solís Jose David , Montoya-Arroyo Alexander , Jiménez Víctor M. , Arnáez-Serrano Elizabeth , Pérez Jason , Vetter Walter , Frank Jan , Lewandowski Iris
Published: June 2020

Due to increased global demand for vegetable oils, diversification of the supply chain with sustainable sources is necessary. Acrocomia aculeata has recently gained attention as a multi-purpose, sustainable crop for oil production. However, the information necessary for effective selection of promising varieties for agricultural production is lacking. The aim of this study was to assess variability in fruit morphology and oil composition of individual Acrocomia aculeata plants growing wild in different climatic regions of Costa Rica. Fruits at the same ripening stage were collected at three locations, and biometric features, oil content, fatty acid composition of oils from kernels and pulp, as well as fiber composition of husks were determined. Biometric parameters showed high variability among the regions assessed. Moreover, oil content and relative proportions of unsaturated fatty acids were higher at the most tropical location, whereas lauric acid content was lowest under these conditions, indicating a potential environmental effect on oil composition. Pulp oil content correlated positively with annual precipitation and relative humidity, but no clear relation to temperature was observed. The oil chemical composition was similar to that reported for Elaeis guineensis, suggesting that Acrocomia aculeata from Costa Rica may be a suitable alternative for industrial applications currently based on African palm oil. Analysis of husks as a coproduct revealed the possibility of obtaining materials with high lignin and low water and ash contents that could be used as a solid bioenergy source. In conclusion, Acrocomia aculeata oil is a promising alternative for industrial applications currently based on African palm oil and byproducts of its oil production could find additional use as a renewable energy source.
Evolution of Surface Density Function in an Open Turbulent Jet Spray Flame
Authors: Malkeson S. P. , Ahmed U. , Pillai A. L. , Chakraborty N. , Kurose R.
Published: June 2020

A three-dimensional Direct Numerical Simulation of an open turbulent jet spray flame representing a laboratory-scale burner configuration has been used to analyse the statistical behaviours of the magnitude of reaction progress variable gradient $$\left| {\nabla c} \right|$$

∇
c

[alternatively known as the Surface Density Function (SDF)] and the strain rates, which affect its evolution. The flame has been found to exhibit fuel-lean combustion close to the jet exit, but fuel-rich conditions have been obtained further downstream due to the evaporation of fuel droplets, which leads to the reduction in the mean value of the SDF in the downstream direction. This change in mixture composition in the axial direction has implications on the statistical behaviours of the SDF and the strain rates affecting its evolution. The mean value of dilatation rate remains positive, whereas the mean normal strain rate assumes positive values where the effects of heat release are strong but becomes negative towards both unburned and burned gas sides. The mean values of dilatation rate, normal strain rate and tangential strain rate decrease downstream of the jet exit. However, the mean behaviours of displacement speed and its components do not change significantly away from the jet exit. The mean values of normal strain rate arising from flame propagation remain positive and thus act to thicken the flame. The mean tangential strain rate due to flame propagation (alternatively the curvature stretch rate) remains negative throughout the flame at all axial locations investigated. The mean effective normal strain rate assumes positive values throughout the flame and it increases in the downstream direction for the present case, which is consistent with the reduction in the peak mean value of the SDF in the axial direction. The mean effective tangential strain rate (alternatively stretch rate) assumes negative values throughout the flame at all axial locations.
Negations in uncertainty lexicon affect attention, decision-making and trust
Authors: Juanchich Marie , Shepherd Theodore G. , Sirota Miroslav
Published: June 2020

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) currently communicates uncertainty using a lexicon that features four negative verbal probabilities to convey extremely low to medium probabilities (e.g. unlikely). We compare a positive probability lexicon with the IPCC lexicon in a series of psychology experiments. We find that although the positive and negative lexicons convey a similar level of probability, the positive lexicon directs more attention towards the outcome occurrence and encourages more cautious decisions: in our role-playing experiment, it reduced the number of type 2 errors, i.e. failures to make needed precautionary interventions. Whilst participants considered the negative lexicon more useful in making a decision, they trusted the positive lexicon more and blamed information providers less after making an incorrect decision. Our results suggest that the negative verbal framing of probabilities used by the IPCC is not neutral and has implications for how climate information is interpreted by decision-makers.
Linearly equivalent S-boxes and the division property
Authors: Lambin Baptiste , Derbez Patrick , Fouque Pierre-Alain
Published: June 2020

Division property is a cryptanalysis method that proves to be very efficient on block ciphers. Computer-aided techniques such as MILP have been widely and successfully used to study various cryptanalysis techniques, and it especially led to many new results for the division property. Nonetheless, we claim that the previous techniques do not consider the full search space. We show that even if the previous techniques fail to find a distinguisher based on the division property over a given function, we can potentially find a relevant distinguisher over a linearly equivalent function. We show that the representation of the block cipher heavily influences the propagation of the division property, and exploiting this, we give an algorithm to efficiently search for such linear mappings. As a result, we exhibit a new distinguisher over 10 rounds of , while the previous best was over 9 rounds, and rule out such a distinguisher over more than 9 rounds of . We also give some insight about the construction of an S-box to strengthen a block cipher against our technique. We prove that using an S-box satisfying a certain criterion is optimal in term of resistance against classical division property. Accordingly, we exhibit stronger variants of and , improving the resistance against division property based distinguishers by 2 rounds.