bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Image-Driven Modeling of Nanoscopic Cardiac Function: Where Have We Come From, and Where Are We Going?
Authors: Louch William E. , Perdreau-Dahl Harmonie , Edwards Andrew G.
Published: March 2022

Complementary developments in microscopy and mathematical modeling have been critical to our understanding of cardiac excitation–contraction coupling. Historically, limitations imposed by the spatial or temporal resolution of imaging methods have been addressed through careful mathematical interrogation. Similarly, limitations imposed by computational power have been addressed by imaging macroscopic function in large subcellular domains or in whole myocytes. As both imaging resolution and computational tractability have improved, the two approaches have nearly merged in terms of the scales that they can each be used to interrogate. With this review we will provide an overview of these advances and their contribution to understanding ventricular myocyte function, including exciting developments over the last decade. We specifically focus on experimental methods that have pushed back limits of either spatial or temporal resolution of nanoscale imaging (e.g., DNA-PAINT), or have permitted high resolution imaging on large cellular volumes (e.g., serial scanning electron microscopy). We also review the progression of computational approaches used to integrate and interrogate these new experimental data sources, and comment on near-term advances that may unify understanding of the underlying biology. Finally, we comment on several outstanding questions in cardiac physiology that stand to benefit from a concerted and complementary application of these new experimental and computational methods.
Drought Stress Interacts With Powdery Mildew Infection in Tomato
Authors: Sunarti Sri , Kissoudis Christos , Van Der Hoek Yannick , Van Der Schoot Hanneke , Visser Richard G. F. , Van Der Linden C. Gerard , Van De Wiel Clemens , Bai Yuling
Published: March 2022

Under field conditions, plants are often exposed to more than one stress factor at the same time, and therefore need to adapt to different combinations of stresses. Crosstalk between responses to abiotic and biotic stresses is known to occur, and the interaction between stress responses can be positive or negative. We studied the interaction of drought stress and powdery mildew (PM) infection in tomatoes using near-isogenic tomato lines (NILs) carrying the Ol-1, ol-2, or Ol-4 gene that confers resistance to tomato PM caused by Oidium neolycopersici. Our study demonstrated that drought-induced growth reduction was not further reduced by powdery mildew infection. Drought stress, however, decreased fungal infection in the susceptible genotype Moneymaker (MM) with fungal biomass tending to decrease further as the drought severity increased. Drought stress did not affect PM resistance levels of resistant NIL carrying ol-2 (a mutant of the tomato susceptibility Mlo gene) and Ol-4 an NLR (nucleotide-binding site-LRR) R gene associated with a fast hypersensitivity response (HR) but tended to slightly decrease disease levels of NIL-Ol-1 (no gene characterized yet, associated with a slow HR following PM infection). At the molecular level, genes involved in abscisic acid (ABA), salicylic acid (SA), and ethylene pathways were highly induced under combined stress indicating the involvement of ABA, SA, and ethylene in the crosstalk between abiotic and biotic stress. Messenger RNA expression of the ABA-responsive dehydrin SlTAS14 was induced under drought and combined stress with the highest induction under combined stress, and resistant NIL lines showed higher expression levels than MM. The expression of SlNCED (involved in ABA synthesis) was also upregulated under drought and highly induced under combined stress. Expression levels of pathogen responsive gene SlPR1 (an indicator of the SA pathway) and SlACS (involved in ethylene synthesis) were highly induced under powdery mildew infection in MM and the Ol-1 and were induced the most under combined stress in these lines. Taken together, these findings indicate that drought stress can interact with and influence PM infection in tomatoes in a resistance type-dependent manner. The role of hormonal signaling pathways in the crosstalk between drought stress and PM infection is further discussed.
Nitric Oxide Crosstalk With Phytohormone Is Involved in Enhancing Photosynthesis of Tetrastigma hemsleyanum for Photovoltaic Adaptation
Authors: Xie Zhuomi , Yang Chuyun , Li Mingjie , Zhang Zhongyi , Wu Yao , Gu Li , Peng Xin
Published: March 2022

Photovoltaic agriculture is a newly emerging ecological planting pattern. In view of the adverse effect on production, a better understanding of photovoltaic adaptation responses is essential for the development of the innovative agriculture mode in sustainable crop production. Here, we investigated the impact of photovoltaic condition on endogenous hormone composition and transcriptome profile of Tetrastigma hemsleyanum. A total of 16 differentially accumulated phytohormones and 12,615 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. Photovoltaic adaptation significantly decreased the contents of phytohormones especially salicylic acid (SA) and jasmonic acid (JA). DEGs were the most relevant to photosynthesis and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway especially the key genes encoding proteins involved in photosystem I (PS I) and photosystem II (PS II) reaction center. Nitric oxide (NO), JA, and SA treatment alone significantly enhanced the photosynthetic efficiency which was decreased by exposure to photovoltaic condition, but the combined treatment of “NO + SA” could weaken the enhancement effect by regulating the expression level of psaL, CHIL, petF1, psbQ, and psaE genes. Exogenous phytohormones and NO treatment mitigated the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and potentiated antioxidant capacity, which would be weakened by the combined treatment of “NO + SA.” SA and JA significantly decreased endogenous NO burst triggered by photovoltaic adaptation. SA might be a potent scavenger of NO and counter the restoration effect of NO on growth and photosynthetic potential in T. hemsleyanum. The results could provide reference for the application of phytohormones/other signaling molecules in photovoltaic agriculture.
Physical and Psychological Childbirth Experiences and Early Infant Temperament
Authors: Power Carmen , Williams Claire , Brown Amy
Published: March 2022

Objective

To examine how physical and psychological childbirth experiences affect maternal perceptions and experiences of early infant behavioural style (temperament).

Background

Unnecessary interventions may disturb the normal progression of physiological childbirth and instinctive neonatal behaviours that facilitate mother–infant bonding and breastfeeding. While little is known about how a medicalised birth may influence developing infant temperament, high impact interventions which affect neonatal crying and cortisol levels could have longer term consequences for infant behaviour and functioning.

Methods

A retrospective Internet survey was designed to fully explore maternal experiences of childbirth and her postnatal perceptions of infant behaviour. Data collected from 999 mother–infant dyads were analysed using Pearson’s correlations and multiple analyses of covariance, employing the Bonferroni method of correction to establish initially significant variables. Multiple linear regressions were conducted to determine major perinatal contributors to perceived early infant temperament.

Results

Multiple regression analyses on each of the eight Mother and Baby Scales outcome variables indicated that early infant behavioural style (0–6 months) was largely predicted by subjective maternal states during and post-childbirth, postnatal depression scores, maternal personality traits and infant age. For example, infant age (Beta = 0.440, p = 0.000) was the most significant predictor of Alert-Responsive infant behaviour, followed by maternal Postnatal Positive experience (Beta = 0.181, p = 0.000). In contrast, depression (EPDS) scores (Beta = 0.370, p = 0.000) were the most significant predictor of Unsettled-Irregular infant behaviour, followed by Anxious-Afraid Birth Emotions (Beta = 0.171, p = 0.000) and infant age (Beta = −0.196, p = 0.000). Mothers also perceived their infants as more Alert-Responsive (Beta = 0.080, p = 0.010) and Easier overall (Beta = 0.085, p = 0.008) after a Supported birth experience.

Conclusion

Maternal and infant outcomes were influenced by multiple physical and psychological perinatal variables. The mother’s subjective experience appeared to be of equal significance to more objective factors (e.g. birthplace/mode). Social support enhanced the mother’s childbirth experience, benefitting her perceptions of her baby’s early temperament. These findings provide further support for current World Health Organisation intrapartum guidelines (2018) on the importance of making childbirth a ‘positive experience’ for women.
Tears of Joy as an Emotional Expression of the Meaning of Life
Authors: Paoli Bernardo , Giubilei Rachele , De Gregorio Eugenio
Published: March 2022

This article describes a research project in which a qualitative research was carried out consisting of 24 semi-structured interviews and a subsequent data analysis using the MAXQDA software in order to investigate a particular dimorphic emotional expression: tears of joy (TOJ). The working hypothesis is that TOJ are not only an atypical expression due to a “super joy,” or that they are only an attempt by the organism to self-regulate the excess of joyful emotion through the expression of the opposite emotion (sadness), but that it is an emotional experience in its own right—not entirely overlapping with joy—with a specific adaptive function. Through the interviews, conducted in a cross-cultural context (mainly in India and Japan), we explored the following possibility: what if the adaptive function of crying for joy were to signal, to those experiencing it, the meaning of their life; the most important direction given to their existence? The material collected provided positive support for this interpretation.
Teachers Helping EFL Students Improve Their Writing Through Written Feedback: The Case of Native and Non-native English-Speaking Teachers' Beliefs
Authors: Cheng Xiaolong , Zhang Lawrence Jun
Published: March 2022

Although the efficacy of teacher written feedback has been widely investigated, relatively few studies have been conducted from feedback practitioners' perspectives to investigate teachers' beliefs regarding it, particularly compare beliefs held by teachers with different sociocultural and linguistic backgrounds. Consequently, much remains to be known about teachers' conceptions about written feedback, who has different first languages (L1). To bridge such a gap, we conducted this qualitative study to examine the similarities and differences between native English-speaking (NES) and non-native English-speaking (NNES) teachers' beliefs in Chinese University EFL settings. We analyzed the in-depth interviews with eight teachers through thematic analysis. The findings showed that NES and NNES teachers espoused a range of beliefs in relation to the five themes of written feedback: Purpose, scope, focus, strategy, and orientation. While they shared similar beliefs with regard to feedback focus, their beliefs differed in terms of feedback scope. Important implications are discussed for educational practices.
Impacts of Stress Response and Negative Emotion on Mental Health of College Students During the COVID-19 Outbreak
Authors: Xu Fuming , Huang Long
Published: March 2022

Object

In this study, we aimed to explore the influences of stress responses and negative emotion on mental health of college students during the initial COVID-19 outbreak in China.

Methods

A nationally representative sample of 1,351 college students, aged 18–23 years, took part in an online survey during the COVID-19 outbreak. The ANOVA, correlation coefficients, structural equation modeling (path analysis), and other statistical analysis methods were used for data analysis.

Results

(1) The Chinese college students' epidemic panic and cognitive evaluation were found to be moderate (3.73 ± 0.74, 3.76 ± 0.62), while their defensive response was higher (4.61 ± 0.55). Their mental health during the COVID-19 outbreak was found to be good (3.75 ± 0.76). (2) The quality of their mental health was significantly and negatively associated with epidemic panic, and the quality of their mental health was significantly and positively associated with defensive response. (3) The quality of their mental health was significantly and negatively associated with negative emotion. (4) College students' epidemic panic and defensive response to the COVID-19 had a directly predictive effect on their mental health.

Conclusion

College students' negative emotion played a partial mediating role in the relationship between epidemic panic and mental health. College students' negative emotion played a complete mediating role in the relationship between cognitive appraisal and mental health.
Support for Children of Parents With Mental Illness: An Analysis of Patients’ Health Records
Authors: Kristensen Kjersti Bergum , Lauritzen Camilla , Reedtz Charlotte
Published: March 2022

Introduction

Children of parents with a mental illness (COPMI) are at risk of behavioral, emotional, and cognitive difficulties and diagnoses. Support and information about parents’ mental illness may contribute to improve their lives, which is the purpose of the intervention Child Talks (CT). This study aimed to investigate the participation rate of CT, characteristics of participating patients and children, and themes in sessions with children.

Materials and Methods

Data were collected from 424 electronic patient journals written by healthcare professionals (H) for patients admitted to a clinic for mental health and substance use disorders in the years 2010–2015. Both quantitative statistical analysis and qualitative thematic analysis were carried out.

Results

Eighteen percent of assessed parents with minor children received the CT intervention and children participated in half of them. Participating children more often knew about their parent’s treatment and condition when initially assessed, and more often lived with the hospitalized parent. Three main themes were identified in sessions with children; communication about parental mental illness within the family, childrens’ struggles, and healthcare professionals’ (HCPs) evaluation of the child’s situation and need for further support.

Discussion

Sessions with patients’ children appeared to be relatively rare, and participating children did not necessarily receive appropriate information, support, or follow-up. To ensure that HCPs provide quality support and follow-up to COPMI, the routines and the training of HCPs need to be improved.
Regressive Autism Spectrum Disorder: High Levels of Total Secreted Amyloid Precursor Protein and Secreted Amyloid Precursor Protein-α in Plasma
Authors: Li Xiaoli , Zhou Ping , Li Qiu , Peng Bin , Cun Yupeng , Dai Ying , Wei Hua , Liu Xiao , Yu Yang , Jiang Zhiyang , Fan Qiongli , Zhang Yuping , Yang Ting , Chen Jie , Cheng Qian , Li Tingyu , Chen Li
Published: March 2022

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social communication difficulties, repetitive behaviors, and parochial interests. Individuals with regressive ASD (RA), a unique subtype, have poor outcomes. Moreover, there are currently no validated blood-based biomarkers for ASD, hindering early diagnosis and treatment. This study was the first to examine plasma levels of total secreted amyloid precursor protein (sAPPtotal), secreted amyloid precursor protein-α (sAPPα), and secreted amyloid precursor protein-β (sAPPβ) in children diagnosed with RA (n = 23) and compare them with the levels in age-matched children with non-regressive ASD (NRA) (n = 23) and typically developing (TD) controls (n = 23). We found that sAPPtotal and sAPPα levels were significantly higher in children with RA than in children with NRA or in TD controls. In contrast, no difference was observed in sAPPβ levels. In conclusion, increased plasma levels of sAPPtotal and sAPPα may be valuable biomarkers for the early identification of ASD regression. Prospective studies will be conducted using a larger sample to further investigate these differences.
Knowledge Mapping Analysis of Public Health Emergency Management Research Based on Web of Science
Authors: Yang Li , Fang Xin , Zhu Junqi
Published: March 2022

At present, major public health emergencies frequently occur worldwide, and it is of great significance to analyze the research status and latest developments in this field to improve the ability of public health emergency management in various countries. This paper took 5,143 related studies from 2007 to 2020 from the Web of Science as research object and used CiteSpace, VOSviewer, and other software to perform co-word analysis, social network analysis, and cluster analysis. The results and conclusions were as follows: (1) the related research identified three periods: the exploration, growth, and outbreak period; (2) chronologically: the relevant research evolved from medical and health care for major diseases to emergency management and risk assessment of public health emergencies and then researched the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pneumonia epidemic; (3) clustering analysis of high-frequency keywords, identifying three research hotspots: “disaster prevention and emergency medical services,” “outbreak and management of infectious diseases in Africa,” and “emergency management under the COVID-19 pneumonia epidemic.” Finally, this study combined the data and literature analysis to point out possible future research directions: from the research of the COVID-19 pneumonia epidemic to the research of general major public health emergencies, thinking and remodeling of the national public health emergency management system, and exploring the establishment of an efficient international emergency management cooperation mechanism.
Computer-Implemented Articulatory Models for Speech Production: A Review
Authors: Kröger Bernd J.
Published: March 2022

Modeling speech production and speech articulation is still an evolving research topic. Some current core questions are: What is the underlying (neural) organization for controlling speech articulation? How to model speech articulators like lips and tongue and their movements in an efficient but also biologically realistic way? How to develop high-quality articulatory-acoustic models leading to high-quality articulatory speech synthesis? Thus, on the one hand computer-modeling will help us to unfold underlying biological as well as acoustic-articulatory concepts of speech production and on the other hand further modeling efforts will help us to reach the goal of high-quality articulatory-acoustic speech synthesis based on more detailed knowledge on vocal tract acoustics and speech articulation. Currently, articulatory models are not able to reach the quality level of corpus-based speech synthesis. Moreover, biomechanical and neuromuscular based approaches are complex and still not usable for sentence-level speech synthesis. This paper lists many computer-implemented articulatory models and provides criteria for dividing articulatory models in different categories. A recent major research question, i.e., how to control articulatory models in a neurobiologically adequate manner is discussed in detail. It can be concluded that there is a strong need to further developing articulatory-acoustic models in order to test quantitative neurobiologically based control concepts for speech articulation as well as to uncover the remaining details in human articulatory and acoustic signal generation. Furthermore, these efforts may help us to approach the goal of establishing high-quality articulatory-acoustic as well as neurobiologically grounded speech synthesis.
Artificial Intelligence Based Patient-Specific Preoperative Planning Algorithm for Total Knee Arthroplasty
Authors: Lambrechts Adriaan , Wirix-Speetjens Roel , Maes Frederik , Van Huffel Sabine
Published: March 2022

Previous studies have shown that the manufacturer’s default preoperative plans for total knee arthroplasty with patient-specific guides require frequent, time-consuming changes by the surgeon. Currently, no research has been done on predicting preoperative plans for orthopedic surgery using machine learning. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate whether artificial intelligence (AI) driven planning tools can create surgeon and patient-specific preoperative plans that require fewer changes by the surgeon. A dataset of 5409 preoperative plans, including the manufacturer’s default and the plans corrected by 39 surgeons, was collected. Features were extracted from the preoperative plans that describe the implant sizes, position, and orientation in a surgeon- and patient-specific manner. Based on these features, non-linear regression models were employed to predict the surgeon’s corrected preoperative plan. The average number of corrections a surgeon has to make to the preoperative plan generated using AI was reduced by 39.7% compared to the manufacturer’s default plan. The femoral and tibial implant size in the manufacturer’s plan was correct in 68.4% and 73.1% of the cases, respectively, while the AI-based plan was correct in 82.2% and 85.0% of the cases, respectively, compared to the surgeon approved plan. Our method successfully demonstrated the use of machine learning to create preoperative plans in a surgeon- and patient-specific manner for total knee arthroplasty.
The Global States and Hotspots of ERAS Research From 2000 to 2020: A Bibliometric and Visualized Study
Authors: Su Shengjie , Wang Tonghao , Wei Ruiyuan , Jia Xiaowu , Lin Qiang , Bai Minghua
Published: March 2022

Background

Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocol has been implemented in surgeries for more than 20 years, this study investigated the global states and hotspots of ERAS research.

Methods

Based on the Web of Science database, a bibliometric and visualized study of original ERAS research from 2000 to 2020 was performed, including the trends of publications and citations; distribution of countries, authors, institutions, sources; study design, level of evidence, served surgeries and surgical disciplines. Hotspots were revealed by research interests and keywords.

Results

Within the field of original ERAS research, there was a rising trend in annual publications and citations. The USA was the greatest contributor. Kehlet, H, University of Copenhagen were the most influential author and institution, respectively. British Journal of Surgery and Annals of Surgery were the most cited journals. Though there were more prospective designs, more than half of the studies presented level IV evidence and had fewer citations and citation densities compared to that of level II and level III. ERAS protocol was overwhelmingly implemented in colorectal surgeries. Most studies focused on elements of ERAS, the top three research interests were “length of stay,” “pain management,” and “complications.” In recent years, bariatric surgery, compliance with ERAS, and feasibility in the elderly were new hotspots.

Conclusion

Revealing the global states and hotspots can help researchers better understand the trends in ERAS research. The USA was the greatest contributor to ERAS research. Kehlet, H, was the most influential author in the field. Bariatric surgery, compliance with ERAS, and feasibility in the elderly represent the new trend of ERAS research. Most of the ERAS research had a low evidence levels, studies with high-level evidence are still required in this field.
Correlation of Serum CysC, IMA, and LP-PLA2 Levels With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients With Lower Extremity Atherosclerotic Occlusive Disease
Authors: Feng Fen , Chen Yong , Wang Gang , Huang Ping , Zhu Qiaolin , Zhou Bin
Published: March 2022

Objective

To investigate the serum level of cystatin C (CysC), ischemia-modified albumin (IMA), and lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (LP-PLA2) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and with lower extremity atherosclerotic occlusive disease (LEASOD) and their correlation.

Methods

From March 2017 to December 2019, 110 patients with T2DM with LEASOD, who were treated in our hospital, were selected as the observation group. One hundred ten healthy persons who received medical examination in our hospital during the same period were selected as the control group. Serum CysC, IMA, LP-PLA2, and ankle-brachial index (ABI) were detected in each group. According to the ABI index, the observation group was divided into three subgroups, namely, the mild group (n = 45), the moderate group (n = 42), and the severe group (n = 23). Pearson correlation analysis was used to analyze the relationship between serum CysC, IMA, and LP-PLA2 levels in patients with T2DM with LEASOD and their condition. The receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the diagnostic value of serum CysC, IMA, and LP-PLA2 levels in patients with T2DM with LEASOD.

Results

The serum levels of CysC, IMA, and LP-PLA2 in the observation group were higher than those in the control group (p < 0.05). The serum levels of CysC, IMA, and LP-PLA2 in the severe and the moderate group were higher than those in the mild group, and the serum levels of CysC, IMA, and LP-PLA2 in the severe group were higher than those in the moderate group (p < 0.05). Pearson correlation analysis showed that CysC, IMA, and LP-PLA2 levels were all negatively correlated with ABI (r = −0.802, r = −0.757, r = −0.764, p < 0.001). The ROC curve results showed that the area under the curve (AUC) of serum CysC in the diagnosis of T2DM with LEASOD was 0.806, and the best cut-off value was 1.74 mg/L. The AUC of serum IMA for diagnosis of T2DM with LEASOD was 0.772, and the best cut-off value was 92.58 g/L. The AUC of serum LP-PLA2 in the diagnosis of T2DM with LEASOD was 0.781, and the best cut-off value was 544.86 ng/L. The AUC of the three combined diagnoses of T2DM with LEASOD was 0.863.

Conclusion

Serum levels of CysC, IMA, and LP-PLA2 were increased in patients with T2DM with LEASOD. Serum CysC, IMA, and LP-PLA2 are closely related to the severity of the disease. The higher the serum levels of CysC, IMA, and LP-PLA2, the more serious the degree of lower extremity arteriosclerosis occlusion, which can be used as an important serum marker to monitor the severity of T2DM with LEASOD. The combined detection of serum CysC, IMA, and LP-PLA2 has good diagnostic value for patients with T2DM with LEASOD.
General and Vulnerable Population’s Satisfaction With the Healthcare System in Urban and Rural Areas: Findings From the European Social Survey
Authors: Righi Lorenzo , Cullati Stéphane , Chopard Pierre , Courvoisier Delphine S.
Published: March 2022

Introduction: Access to the healthcare system when patients are vulnerable and living outside metropolitan areas can be challenging. Our objective was to explore healthcare system satisfaction of urban and rural inhabitants depending on financial and health vulnerabilities.

Methods: Repeated cross-sectional data from 353,523 European citizens (2002–2016). Multivariable associations between rural areas, vulnerability factors and satisfaction with the healthcare system were assessed with linear mixed regressions and adjusted with sociodemographic and control factors.

Results: In unadjusted analysis, the people who lived in houses in the countryside and those who lived in the suburbs were the most satisfied with the healthcare system. In the adjusted model, residents living in big cities had the highest satisfaction. Financial and health vulnerabilities were associated with less satisfaction with the healthcare system, with a different effect according to the area of residence: the presence of health vulnerability was more negatively correlated with the healthcare system satisfaction of big city inhabitants, whereas financial vulnerability was more negatively correlated with the satisfaction of those living in countryside homes.

Conclusion: Vulnerable residents, depending on their area of residence, may require special attention to increase their satisfaction with the healthcare system.
Kleene Algebra to Compute Invariant Sets of Dynamical Systems
Authors: Le Mézo Thomas , Jaulin Luc , Massé Damien , Zerr Benoit
Published: March 2022

In this paper, we show that a basic fixed point method used to enclose the greatest fixed point in a Kleene algebra will allow us to compute inner and outer approximations of invariant-based sets for continuous-time nonlinear dynamical systems. Our contribution is to provide the definitions and theorems that will allow us to make the link between the theory of invariant sets and the Kleene algebra. This link has never be done before and will allow us to compute rigorously sets that can be defined as a combination of positive invariant sets. Some illustrating examples show the nice properties of the approach.
The Verification of the Degree of Concordance of the SMI/CVMS Indexes in Evaluating the Pubertal Growth Stages—Longitudinal Study
Authors: Galan Elena , Hlatcu Andreea Raluca , Milicescu Ștefan , Teodorescu Elina , Neagoe Simina , Ionescu Ecaterina
Published: March 2022

The research aims to verify the concordance between the skeletal maturity index (SMI) measured on the hand and wrist X-rays using Fishman method and the cervical vertebral maturation stage (CVMS), measured on the lateral cephalometric X-rays using Baccetti method. The concordance of the two indexes (SMI and CVMS) has been statistically verified with the help of the Cohen’s kappa coefficient, by relating them to the growth stages, within a longitudinal study done upon a group of 38 patients, 22 female and 16 male, aged between 8–18 y, the analyzed investigations being done in series, along the orthodontic treatment. The research showed a strong correlation between the SMI and CVMS indexes within the analyzed group, confirmed by the obtained values (k = 0.84 for female and k = 0.85 for male).
The Challenges and Advantages of Implementing a Lean-Led Design Approach
Authors: Chbaly Hafsa
Published: March 2022

Healthcare projects, like other complex projects, begin with a project definition phase, where client needs are identified, and design solutions are proposed. All decisions related to this phase have an important impact on workspace conditions. Nevertheless, traditional methods of project definition management have been proven to be inadequate. An ill-defined project might lead to an increase in hospital-acquired infections or patient mortality. Participatory approaches such as Lean-led Design—in which clients including users play an important role from the beginning—are proposed to address this problem. This paper aims to identify and analyze the advantages and difficulties of Lean-led Design during the project definition process. A single case study was used to explore these issues. The case study chosen was a mega Canadian hospital project that implemented a Lean-led Design approach. Data were collected using archive research and semistructured interviews. This paper will help AEC industry stakeholders to understand the advantages and challenges involved in implementing a Lean-led Design approach. The findings of this study could help architects as well as managers to concentrate their efforts on significantly relevant issues.
Digital Twin of a Flexible Manufacturing System for Solutions Preparation
Authors: Coito Tiago , Faria Paulo , Martins Miguel S. E. , Firme Bernardo , Vieira Susana M. , Figueiredo João , Sousa João M. C.
Published: March 2022

In the last few decades, there has been a growing necessity for systems that handle market changes and personalized customer needs with near mass production efficiency, defined as the new mass customization paradigm. The Industry 5.0 vision further enhances the human-centricity aspect, in the necessity for manufacturing systems to cooperate with workers, taking advantage of their problem-solving capabilities, creativity, and expertise of the manufacturing process. A solution is to develop a flexible manufacturing system capable of handling different customer requests and real-time decisions from operators. This paper tackles these aspects by proposing a digital twin of a robotic system for solution preparation capable of making real-time scheduling decisions and forecasts using a simulation model while allowing human interventions. A discrete event simulation model was used to forecast possible system improvements. The simulation handles real-time scheduling considering the possibility of adding identical parallel machines. Results show that processing multiple jobs simultaneously with more than one machine on critical processes, increasing the robot speed, and using heuristics that emphasize the shortest transportation time can reduce the overall completion time by 82%. The simulation model has an animated visualization window for a deeper understanding of the system.
Radiology Imaging Scans for Early Diagnosis of Kidney Tumors: A Review of Data Analytics-Based Machine Learning and Deep Learning Approaches
Authors: Gharaibeh Maha , Alzu’bi Dalia , Abdullah Malak , Hmeidi Ismail , Al Nasar Mohammad Rustom , Abualigah Laith , Gandomi Amir H.
Published: March 2022

Plenty of disease types exist in world communities that can be explained by humans’ lifestyles or the economic, social, genetic, and other factors of the country of residence. Recently, most research has focused on studying common diseases in the population to reduce death risks, take the best procedure for treatment, and enhance the healthcare level of the communities. Kidney Disease is one of the common diseases that have affected our societies. Sectionicularly Kidney Tumors (KT) are the 10th most prevalent tumor for men and women worldwide. Overall, the lifetime likelihood of developing a kidney tumor for males is about 1 in 466 (2.02 percent) and it is around 1 in 80 (1.03 percent) for females. Still, more research is needed on new diagnostic, early, and innovative methods regarding finding an appropriate treatment method for KT. Compared to the tedious and time-consuming traditional diagnosis, automatic detection algorithms of machine learning can save diagnosis time, improve test accuracy, and reduce costs. Previous studies have shown that deep learning can play a role in dealing with complex tasks, diagnosis and segmentation, and classification of Kidney Tumors, one of the most malignant tumors. The goals of this review article on deep learning in radiology imaging are to summarize what has already been accomplished, determine the techniques used by the researchers in previous years in diagnosing Kidney Tumors through medical imaging, and identify some promising future avenues, whether in terms of applications or technological developments, as well as identifying common problems, describing ways to expand the data set, summarizing the knowledge and best practices, and determining remaining challenges and future directions.
Functional Decline in the Cancer Patient: A Review
Authors: Muhandiramge Jaidyn , Orchard Suzanne G. , Warner Erica T. , van Londen Gijsberta J. , Zalcberg John R.
Published: March 2022

A decline in functional status, an individual’s ability to perform the normal activities required to maintain adequate health and meet basic needs, is part of normal ageing. Functional decline, however, appears to be accelerated in older patients with cancer. Such decline can occur as a result of a cancer itself, cancer treatment-related factors, or a combination of the two. The accelerated decline in function seen in older patients with cancer can be slowed, or even partly mitigated through routine assessments of functional status and timely interventions where appropriate. This is particularly important given the link between functional decline and impaired quality of life, increased mortality, comorbidity burden, and carer dependency. However, a routine assessment of and the use of interventions for functional decline do not typically feature in the long-term care of cancer survivors. This review outlines the link between cancer and subsequent functional decline, as well as potential underlying mechanisms, the tools that can be used to assess functional status, and strategies for its prevention and management in older patients with cancer.
Celastrol and Resveratrol Modulate SIRT Genes Expression and Exert Anticancer Activity in Colon Cancer Cells and Cancer Stem-like Cells
Authors: Moreira Helena , Szyjka Anna , Grzesik Justyna , Pelc Katarzyna , Żuk Magdalena , Kulma Anna , Emhemmed Fathi , Muller Christian , Gąsiorowski Kazimierz , Barg Ewa
Published: March 2022

Metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC) remains a hard-to-cure neoplasm worldwide. Its curability declines with successive lines of treatment due to the development of various cancer resistance mechanisms and the presence of colorectal cancer stem cells (CSCs). Celastrol and resveratrol are very promising phytochemicals for colon cancer therapy, owing to their pleiotropic activity that enables them to interact with various biological targets. In the present study, the anticancer activities of both compounds were investigated in metastatic colon cancer cells (LoVo cells) and cancer stem-like cells (LoVo/DX). We showed that celastrol is a very potent anti-tumor compound against metastatic colon cancer, capable of attenuating CSC-like cells at the molecular and cellular levels. In contrast, resveratrol has a much greater effect on colon cancer cells that are expressing standard sensitivity to anticancer drugs, than on CSC-like cells. In addition, both polyphenols have different influences on the expression of SIRT genes, which seems to be at least partly related to their anti-tumor activity.
Downregulation and Hypermethylation of GABPB1 Is Associated with Aggressive Thyroid Cancer Features
Authors: Xing Xiangling , Mu Ninni , Yuan Xiaotian , Wang Na , Juhlin C. Christofer , Strååt Klas , Larsson Catharina , Neo Shi Yong , Xu Dawei
Published: March 2022

Promoter mutations of the telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) gene occur frequently in thyroid carcinoma (TC), including papillary (PTC) and anaplastic subtypes (ATC). Given that the ETS family transcription factors GABPA and GABPB1 activate the mutant TERT promoter and induce TERT expression for telomerase activation, GABPB1 has been proposed as a cancer therapeutic target to inhibit telomerase. Here, we sought to determine the role of GABPB1 in TC pathogenesis. In TC-derived cells carrying the mutated TERT promoter, GABPB1 knockdown led to diminished TERT expression but significantly increased invasive potentials in vitro and metastatic potential in a xenograft zebrafish model and altered expression of markers for epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. GABPB1 expression was downregulated in aggressive TCs. Low GABPB1 expression correlated with its promoter hypermethylation, which in turn was also associated with shorter disease-free survival. Consistently, DNA methylation inhibitors enhanced GABPB1 expression, as observed upon reduced promoter methylation. Our results suggest that GABPB1 is required for TERT expression and telomerase activation, but itself serves as a tumor suppressor to inhibit TC progression. Furthermore, aberrant DNA methylation leads to GABPB1 silencing, thereby promoting TC aggressiveness. Thus, caution is needed if targeting GABPB1 for cancer therapy is considered.
Single-Plant Grain Yield in Corn (Zea mays L.) Based on Emergence Date, Seed Size, Sowing Depth, and Plant to Plant Distance
Authors: Kimmelshue Chad L. , Goggi A. Susana , Moore Kenneth J.
Published: March 2022

The lack of seedling emergence uniformity in corn (Zea mays L.) is concerning for producers in the Midwestern U.S. These producers believe that just a few hours delay in emergence can increase interplant competition and decrease single-plant yield, thus reducing overall crop yield. It is speculated that lack of uniformity in seedling emergence occurs due to a variation in seed size within a commercial bag of seed, and variation in seed depth placement at sowing throughout the field. Due to these concerns, producers evaluate size seed variation within the bag before sowing. To date, research has investigated sowing dates, growing degree days, or varying sowing depths to simulate a delay in seedling emergence. These studies are important for understanding the effects of delayed emergence on overall yield, but they fail to examine the effect of inter-plant competition on single-plant yield. The objective of this study was to understand the effect of seed size and sowing depth on emergence and subsequent single-plant yield in a bare soil and a perennial groundcover (PGC) cropping system. Commercially sized seed and seed sized further in the laboratory to obtain a narrower seed size distribution were sown in Kentucky bluegrass and bare soil systems and at two sowing depths of 3.18 and 6.35 cm. The two-year experiment was planted in a split-plot design with four replications. Individual plants were flagged at emergence, and harvested individually. Seed placement was crucial to uniform emergence in both cropping systems, while seed size did not affect emergence in either system. The PGC cropping system delayed seed corn emergence and reduced grain yield as much as 50%. Single-plant yield decreased with delayed corn emergence in both cropping systems. Yield decrease as a function of emergence date followed either a quadratic or linear trend in each growing season, likely related to post emergence environmental factors. This information is important for producers and seed companies to understand the effect of seed size and sowing depth on yield and emergence. This study demonstrates that uniform sowing depth is more important than seed size distribution.
Delivering Chemotherapy to a Metastatic Poor Risk Testicular Cancer Patient on Hemodialysis
Authors: Moore Kieran J. , Snow Stephanie , Wood Lori A.
Published: March 2022

A standard curative intent approach of chemotherapy treatment for metastatic testicular cancer has been well established. However, there is little guidance for patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD) who require chemotherapy for this disease. Thus, we describe our treatment approach and rationale for a patient on HD with poor risk metastatic nonseminomatous germ cell tumor involving the testicle, lymph nodes, liver, and bone. After orchiectomy, five cycles of cisplatin and modified dose etoposide were delivered and strategically timed with HD. Treatment was complicated by significant neuropathy. Surgical resection of two liver lesions was performed after chemotherapy. Ten years post-chemotherapy, he remains free of clinical, biochemical, or radiological recurrence. While our patient remains free of disease after this treatment, the optimal chemotherapy and dialysis dose and schedule to maximize cure and minimize toxicity remains unknown.
Smart Wing Flutter Suppression
Authors: Moosavi Reza , Elasha Faris
Published: March 2022

In this work, it has been shown the effect of a piezoelectric material on postponing the flutter phenomenon and even removing it completely on a regular wing. First, the system response of a smart wing with only plunge DOF and pitch DOF are presented. Using an efficient piezopatch can effectively decay the oscillations of the smart wing in a very short time. In addition, implementing one piezopatch in the plunge DOF of a regular wing with three DOF can postpone the flutter speed by 81.41%, which is a considerable increase in the flutter speed. We then present the effect of adding one more piezopatch to a smart wing in the pitch DOF to further postpone the flutter phenomenon. The flutter speed in a smart wing can be postponed by 115.96%, which is a very considerable value. Finally, adding one more piezopatch on a smart wing in the control DOF can completely remove the flutter phenomenon from the wing, which represents a great achievement in the dynamic aeroelectic behavior of a wing.
Entropy Analysis of Heart Rate Variability in Different Sleep Stages
Authors: Yan Chang , Li Peng , Yang Meicheng , Li Yang , Li Jianqing , Zhang Hongxing , Liu Chengyu
Published: March 2022

How the complexity or irregularity of heart rate variability (HRV) changes across different sleep stages and the importance of these features in sleep staging are not fully understood. This study aimed to investigate the complexity or irregularity of the RR interval time series in different sleep stages and explore their values in sleep staging. We performed approximate entropy (ApEn), sample entropy (SampEn), fuzzy entropy (FuzzyEn), distribution entropy (DistEn), conditional entropy (CE), and permutation entropy (PermEn) analyses on RR interval time series extracted from epochs that were constructed based on two methods: (1) 270-s epoch length and (2) 300-s epoch length. To test whether adding the entropy measures can improve the accuracy of sleep staging using linear HRV indices, XGBoost was used to examine the abilities to differentiate among: (i) 5 classes [Wake (W), non-rapid-eye-movement (NREM), which can be divide into 3 sub-stages: stage N1, stage N2, and stage N3, and rapid-eye-movement (REM)]; (ii) 4 classes [W, light sleep (combined N1 and N2), deep sleep (N3), and REM]; and (iii) 3 classes: (W, NREM, and REM). SampEn, FuzzyEn, and CE significantly increased from W to N3 and decreased in REM. DistEn increased from W to N1, decreased in N2, and further decreased in N3; it increased in REM. The average accuracy of the three tasks using linear and entropy features were 42.1%, 59.1%, and 60.8%, respectively, based on 270-s epoch length; all were significantly lower than the performance based on 300-s epoch length (i.e., 54.3%, 63.1%, and 67.5%, respectively). Adding entropy measures to the XGBoost model of linear parameters did not significantly improve the classification performance. However, entropy measures, especially PermEn, DistEn, and FuzzyEn, demonstrated greater importance than most of the linear parameters in the XGBoost model.300-s270-s.
A Novel Circulating Current Suppression for Paralleled Current Source Converter Based on Virtual Impedance Concept
Authors: Fu Xiao , Wang Huaibao , Guo Xiaoqiang , Shi Changli , Jia Dongqiang , Chen Chao , Guerrero Josep M.
Published: March 2022

The circulating current is one of the important issues for parallel converters. It affects the system stable operation and degrades the power quality. In order to reduce the circulating current of the parallel converter and reduce the harmonic pollution to the power grid, a new circulating current suppression strategy is proposed for the parallel current source converter without any communication line. This strategy is able to realize the current sharing between parallel modules by changing the external characteristics of the parallel modules to thus suppress the circulating current among the parallel current source converters. The proposed control strategy adopts DC-side droop control and AC-side virtual impedance control. The DC-side droop control is used to generate the reference voltage of each parallel module, while the AC-side virtual impedance is used to the circulating current suppression. We performed a time domain test of the parallel converter, and the results show that the proposed control strategy reduced the RMS circulating current of the parallel converter by 50% and effectively reduced the grid-side current THD while ensuring the stable operation of the converter. The effectiveness of the proposed control strategy was, therefore, verified.