bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Simulation analysis of electric power steering System (EPS) test platform
Authors: Zheng Xiaodong , Zhu Liucun , Luo Junqi , Liu Cheng , Ji Xinyu
Published: January 2021

Based on the principle analysis of the electric power steering system (EPS), a simulation platform for electric power steering system (EPS) test is proposed, and use Matlab/Simulink to build a simulation model of the electric power steering system (EPS) test simulation platform, for the simulation analysis of the electric power steering system under various experimental conditions and working conditions, so as to get the boost current and boost torque needed in various situations, for the design and development of electric power steering systems.
The effect of climate change on indicators of fire danger in the UK
Authors: Arnell N W , Freeman A , Gazzard R
Published: January 2021

The UK is vulnerable to wildfire, and vulnerability is likely to increase due to climate change. Whilst the risk is small compared with many other countries, recent fires have raised awareness and highlighted the potential for environmental damage and loss of property and key infrastructure. Most UK wildfires are a result of inadvertent or deliberate human action, but the environmental conditions depend on antecedent and current weather. This paper presents projections of the effects of climate change on UK wildfire danger, using a version of an operational fire danger model, UKCP18 climate projections representing low and high emissions, and several indicators of fire danger. Fire danger will increase across the whole of the UK, but the extent and variability in change varies with indicator. The absolute danger now and into the future is greatest in the south and east (the average number of danger days increases 3–4 times by the 2080s), but danger increases further north from a lower base. The variation in change across the UK for indicators based on absolute thresholds is determined by how often those thresholds are exceeded now, whilst the (lesser) variability in percentile-based indicators reflects variability in the projected change in climate. Half of the increase in danger is due to increased temperature, and most of the rest is due to projected reductions in relative humidity. Uncertainty in the magnitude of the change is due to uncertainty in changes in temperature, relative humidity, and rainfall, and there is a large difference between two of the UKCP18 climate model ensembles. Reducing emissions to levels consistent with achieving international climate policy targets significantly reduces, but does not eliminate, the increase in fire danger. The results imply that greater attention needs to be given to wildfire danger in both emergency and spatial planning, and in the development of guidelines for activities that may trigger fires. They suggest the need for the development of a fire danger system more tailored to UK conditions, and the combination of fire danger modelling with projections of sources of ignition to better estimate the change in wildfire risk.
Identifying and assessing effectiveness of alternative low-effort nitrogen footprint reductions in small research institutions
Authors: Messenger Sarah , Lloret Javier , Galloway James N , Giblin Anne
Published: January 2021

Concern over the ecological damage of excess nitrogen has brought increased attention to the role of research institutions and universities in contributing to this problem. Institutions often utilize the concept of the ecological ‘footprint’ to quantify and track nitrogen emissions resulting from their activities and guide plans and commitments to reduce emissions. Often, large-scale changes and commitments to reduce nitrogen footprints are not feasible at small institutions due to monetary and manpower constraints. We partnered with managers in the dining and facilities departments at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL), a small research institution in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, to develop five low-effort strategies to address nitrogen emissions at the institution using only resources currently available within those departments. Each proposed strategy achieved emissions reductions in their sector and in the overall nitrogen footprint of the MBL. If all modelled strategies are applied simultaneously, the MBL can achieve a 7.7% decrease in its nitrogen footprint. Managers at MBL considered strategies that required no monetary input most feasible. The intersection of carbon and nitrogen emissions also means the modelled strategies had the co-benefit of reducing the MBL’s carbon footprint, strengthening the argument for applying these strategies. This paper may serve as a model for similar institutions looking to reduce the ecological impact of their activities.
Prediction of coal dust dispersion to total suspended particulate (TSP) concentration in ambient air quality, case study: PLTU Tanjung Jati B
Authors: Kurniawan S , Huboyo H S , Samadikun B P
Published: January 2021

According to the National Medium-Term Development Plan set a 35000 MW target in 2019, wherein 2016, coal still dominated the power plant’s fuel, which is 62%. The fastest rate of consumption is 4,7% per year since 2002; by the domination of coal-fired power plant in Indonesia in 2005 with 29.4 million tons of coal consumption, it is projected to be an increment in 2020 with 75 million tons of coal consumption. This condition could lead to generated coal dust, potentially impacting the ground concentration of TSP in the ambient air quality. The further impact may lead to environmental & social issues in the community residence of surrounding coal-fired power plants (PLTU). Considering the potential impact of coal dust emission from coal stockpile activities, then the prediction of coal dust dispersion generated from coal handling activities to determine the ground concentration of TSP is necessary to determine appropriate mitigating control to reduce the coal dust emission. Therefore, such a power plant will have mutual benefits with the surrounding area, especially the community. According to the model prediction result using AERMOD, it could be predicted that the emission contribution from the coal stockpiles is reached 100-200 μg/m3.
Modelling feed energy and protein values for ruminants
Authors: Ridla M , Laconi E B , Nahrowi  , Jayanegara A
Published: January 2021

This study aimed to estimate feed metabolizable energy (ME) and metabolizable protein (MP) contents by their chemical composition. A total of 134 feeds from various categories (dry forage, fresh forage, silage, concentrate rich in energy, concentrate rich in protein and by-product) were integrated into a database. Values of TDN and CP were regressed against ME and MP, respectively. The value of ME was predicted from neutral detergent fiber (NDF), non-fiber carbohydrate (NFC), ether extract (EE) and CP whereas MP was predicted from rumen degradable protein (RDP) and rumen undegradable protein (RUP). The RDP to RUP ratio was regressed to MP in order to obtain optimum value of the ratio. Results showed that TDN and CP could predict quite accurately ME and MP by explaining 78.2% and 92.7% of their total variations, respectively. The ME was accurately predicted by NFC, NDF, EE and CP, whereas MP was accurately predicted by RDP and RUP. Lower RDP/RUP led to a higher MP percentage to CP. It can be concluded that TDN, CP and other feed chemical constituents could predict quite accurately ME and MP. This indicates that the old system is still valid to be used for formulating ruminant diets.
Economic analysis of sweet potato (Ipomoea batata L.) farming in Lamongan regency
Authors: Hamidah E , Rahayu E S , Sutrisno J , Marwanti S
Published: January 2021

Sweet potato has the potential to be developed for diversified food consumption programs as a source of carbohydrates, nutrients, with a small risk of failure, low production costs, various processed products, food providers, industrial raw materials, and animal feed. This research aimed to analyze sweet potato farming economically and socially. The study was carried out quantitatively using a survey method. The research was conducted in Lamongan Regency, East Java, Indonesia. The location was chosen purposively. The sampling method was carried out using census in Kalitengah and Kedungpring Districts, in 6 villages, with 348 respondent farmers. The data analysis employed Revenue Cost (R/C) and descriptive analysis. The results revealed that 80.46% of farmers did not complete elementary school. Farmers with experience in sweet potato farming over 20 years reached 67.53%. Their income from total farm costs was IDR 5,178,296, with an R/C ratio is 1.89. Sweet potato farming is profitable and feasible to develop. The utilization of small sweet potato tubers affected by Cylas Formicarius disease as a fish feed was carried out by 19.54% of the farmers. Meanwhile, 51.72% of the farmers utilized sweet potato stalks and leaves as goat feed.
Comparative Need Analysis of Industrial Robot Calibration Methodologies
Authors: Chiwande Sumedh N , Ohol Shantipal S
Published: January 2021

The paper focuses on a study of literature about available Industrial robot calibration technique, technical relevance of its utility and summaries findings & reasons behind specific features of each type of method. Comparative analysis helps to identify and assess the present knowledge to identify the future research areas for developing the research interest on the particular needs. The study focuses on advantages and disadvantages of different measuring systems used for calibration. It is observed from literature survey that the research focus about the calibration technique has moved towards the micro level classification of an industrial robot calibration process. The use of micro analysis, benchmarking and standardization of a calibration process requires an additional research. Therefore various recent contributions on industrial robot calibration techniques have been analysed for establishing a commonly acceptable methodology.
Gyro-Stabilized Camera Control in drones for Military Applications
Authors: Bharath Singh J , Jaison B
Published: January 2021

The usage of drones or unmanned aerial vehicle in military applications is increasing. The input or the control of drones is becoming a challenging task for the developers. One of the input recognition methods is the gesture recognition. Pilot’s head movement using a gyroscope is used to control the angle of an on- board FPV (First Person Video) Camera. MPU 6050 Sensor collects the displaced values from three axis and sent it as an input for the processor which reads the possible values. The values are then compared and processed and given to the output. The output is controlled by servomotor which actuates mechanical moves based on MPU sensor. This whole setup can be connected through wireless RC (Radio Controller) transmitter and receiver. This motion controlled mechanical arms can be used for various applications like FPV (First Person View) in drone enabled surveillances, Military, Search and Rescue etc.
Heuristic Algorithm for Cooperative Motion Planning & Controlling of Unmanned Surface Vehicles
Authors: Raviteja Tirumalapudi , Rajay Vedaraj I.S , Siva Krishnam Raju R , Yugandhar M
Published: January 2021

From the past decades autonomous technology is growing significantly in all applications. In Marine applications, Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USV’s) is emerging research technology. For this research mobile robotics motion, path planning technologies are adopted and extended. The objective of this paper finds out the shortest route and Collision free path between the two points at the dynamic environment in moving time using the proposed modified A* algorithm. The simulation of the proposed algorithm is using python - OpenCV.
Comparative study on different balancing conditions of an air filled tyre using statistical features and classification via regression algorithm
Authors: Anoop P S , Sugumaran V
Published: January 2021

Tyre condition monitoring systems (TCMS) are the safety systems used in a vehicle for measuring the condition of tyre like tyre pressure, temperature, balancing etc. In this era of increasing vehicle accidents, these systems are having paramount importance in terms of safety. The current technology TCMS uses direct sensors like pressure sensors or wheel speed sensors etc, which are highly expensive. This paper puts forward an innovative indirect TCMS system using condition monitoring techniques and machine learning. For different five balancing conditions vertical vibrations from fixed wheel hub were extracted from a moving air filled tyre with the help of an accelerometer. The tyres filled with air are considered with different pressure values to represent puncture, normal, idle and high pressure conditions. In feature extraction process, the statistical features were extracted from the acquired signals and the prominent features were selected using J48 algorithm. Selected features were classified with the help of classification via regression algorithm and reasonable high accuracy was obtained. This paper attempts to study the effect of unbalance of the wheel on the classification accuracy of an indirect TPMS system. The results are compared and presented
Vibration based Data Analysis of Single Acting Compressor through Condition Monitoring and Multilayer Perceptron – A Machine Learning Classifier
Authors: Sivakumar Aravinth , Vaithiyanathan Sugumaran
Published: January 2021

The air compressor is one of the desired mechanical equipment used for producing compressed air, which is utilized for performing various industrial and domestic functions. Its operation involves several rotating and fluctuating members which fail due to several miscellaneous reasons as the members prone to dynamic working environment quite frequently. The deficiencies create huge impact over the overall performance and thus leads to economic losses associated with system seizure. It is now essential to predict the occurrence of faults at earlier stages in order to avoid major shutdowns. Hence, in this article, a data modelling study using a machine learning algorithm is proposed. Initially, the vibration signals are measured as physical parameters from the compressor test rig as it contains critical information regarding the system working conditions instantly. The statistical features were extracted from the acquired signals and by using the J48 algorithm the most prominent features were selected. These selected features were classified using Multilayer Perceptron and its performance in fault classification was presented
Generative Design and Topology Optimization of Analysis and Repair Work of Industrial Robot Arm Manufactured Using Additive Manufacturing Technology
Authors: Kumaran M. , Senthilkumar V.
Published: January 2021

Today’s industrial robots work in a wide range of industries, the industrial robots are developed to perform operations such as pick and place, manufacturing assembly line, welding work, metal forging, and painting operations. The constraints of available robots are in terms of structural complexity, more material in the body, over weightage, and space. To overcome the difficulties of the current scenario, the generative design and topology optimization based industrial robot arm is manufactured by Additive Manufacturing (AM) technology using the Powder Bed Fusion (PBF) process. The scope of the research is when the generatively designed robot arm getting crack or broken, the Direct Energy Deposition (DED) processes use to help the repair of the PBF parts. In the present research, studies were conducted on the topology optimized industrial robot arm using SolidWorks software, and to verify the significance of DED to extend requirements needed for PBF parts, sample parts were extended and their metallurgical characteristics, tensile properties, and hardness observed.
Manufacturing of 3 D Shrouded Impeller of a Centrifugal Compressor on 3D-Printing machine using FDM Technology
Authors: Aruna Prabha K , Sai Rohit P , Nitturi Sai Chand , Nithin Bobba
Published: January 2021

Blades of impellers are intricate and are having complex profiles which are difficult to be manufactured by convectional milling processes. To produce such multifaceted precise dimensional functional components, expertise combined with new technology machining such as 5-Axis CNC machining is required which is costly and tedious task. The impellers components have maximum diameters of 200mm and thickness of blades are less than 1.5mm. A rapid manufacturing technique aids in manufacture of blade profiles which are robust in design and prototypes can be easily made for testing and analysis this aid in design validation. In particular, the investigation was focused on shrouded and unshrouded 3D impeller of centrifugal compressors. The present paper describes about the basic functioning of FDM based 3D printer while printing open and shrouded impeller and various steps involved in it and finally advantages and disadvantages associated with 3D printing technology.
A Low-Cost Portable Smart Card Based Attendance System
Authors: Vinod Vibin Mammen , Murugesan Govindasamy , Mekala V , Thokaiandal S , Vishnudevi M , Siddharth S M
Published: January 2021

Managing attendance may be a vital record-keeping activity in any institution. There are different methods of maintaining the attendance from manual system where attendance is marked in sheets to automated attendance on the likes of biometrics. The combination of frequency Identification (RFID) with fingerprint biometric technology was to enhance the safety level and integrity of the records. The designed system not only makes the system design simpler but also enhances the productivity of the institution both in terms of man power and time. The system doesn’t only simplify the method of taking attendance but reduces error and allows for faster verification of student attendance, all with minimal human interaction. This technique will help the authorities manage the attendance system in a more organized, efficient and time saving manner. The planning of the system is straightforward and portable making it an honest candidate for commercial and academic purpose. A GUI based version and app-based version has been designed to make the system both PC and mobile friendly. The system is built with various levels of access permissions and security. The system was tested for a small group of 100 students and was found to provide accurate marking of attendance for all users.
Performance Investigation of PLC Hardware for Portable Two-Wheeler Dynamometer Test rig
Authors: Maniar Shubham , Umbarkar Ashish , Morbale Omkar
Published: January 2021

The dynamometer is an instrument used for torque, force and velocity measurements. In a two-wheeler dynamometer frame, that is the easiest thing to use. So, until now, the testing has been held in the same place, but doing something new is making the whole system portable and being able to carry it anywhere. Therefore, PLC should be used to measure the parameters for input purposes, as many types of PLC are available. The machine is then connected to SCADA for an additional point. In order to monitor the working of the two-wheeler chassis dynamometer, the sensor is also used in the device and can changed the parameters.

The entire dynamometer will be controlled using PLC and HMI (human-machine interface). Like the Sensor Actuators, it can integrate the device with the hardware. I decided to go with Mitsubishi PLC for this research because it has all the specifications I need and the cost that makes this a cost-effective system is lower. The effects of all the parameters are displayed on the HMI panel. For the sensors of the test rig, the simulation was developed and 3 percent of errors were identified compared to the results of the simulation with the data sheet.
Collapse behavior simulation of cylindrical steel shell under landslide impact
Authors: Wang Menghong , Shi Feiyu , Zhao Yaoxiang , Zheng Xiaobin
Published: January 2021

ANSYS/LS-DYNA dynamic analysis software was adopted to establish a model of a grid structure impacted by a landslide load, with the dynamic effects of impact loads and contact collision theory considered based on Hamilton’s principle. The case analysis in this study can provide guidance for anti-slump design in similar projects.
Research on influencing factors of high temperature performance of new type noise reduction micro-surfacing
Authors: Li Xinrui
Published: January 2021

The micro-surfacing has received widespread attention with its excellent anti-skid performance, waterproof performance, construction characteristics and significant cost advantages. However, the problem of the conventional micro surfacing high driving noise has been criticized. The new noise reduction micro-surfacing has appeared to greatly reduce the traffic noise to a considerable extent and solve the main bottleneck of the further promotion to the micro-surfacing. The noise reduction micro-surfacing proposed in this study has a special binder and gradation, as well as a specific rubber powder filler. Guided by the change rate of the wheel rut width, focused on the four key variables of oil-stone ratio, cement, mineral powder and rubber powder content, the high-temperature performance of the noise reduction micro-surfacing mixture is studied. The research shows: based on the special noise reduction gradation proposed in this article, in order to obtain a new type of noise reduction micro-surfacing with the best anti-rutting performance, the best oil-stone ratio is 10.5%, the best cement content is 1%, and the rubber powder should not exceed 2%.
Investigation of carbonation resistance of recycled aggregate concrete
Authors: Deng Zhiheng , Liu Bing , Huang Ying
Published: January 2021

This paper studied the carbonation resistance of recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) designed by two mix proportion design methods through accelerated carbonation test. The investigated variables include water-cement ratio, replacement ratio of recycled coarse aggregate (RCA), and carbonation time. Based on the test results, the effects of water-cement ratio, replacement ratio of RCA, mix proportion design method, and carbonation time on the carbonation resistance of RAC were analyzed and discussed. The results showed that the mix proportion design method has a significant effect on the carbonation resistance of RAC. The replacement ratio of RCA and the water-cement ratio alternately affected the carbonation resistance of RAC. The replacement ratio of RCA is the major factor affecting the carbonation resistance of RAC. In addition, a carbonation model for RAC considering the effect of the mix proportion design method was proposed. The comparison of the test values and calculated values indicates that the proposed model can properly predict the carbonation depth of RAC.
Ultrafast adiabatic frequency conversion
Authors: Margules Peleg , Moses Jeffrey , Suchowski Haim , Porat Gil
Published: January 2021

Ultrafast adiabatic frequency conversion is a powerful method, capable of efficiently and coherently transfering ultrashort pulses between different spectral ranges, e.g. from near-infrared to mid-infrared, visible or ultra-violet. This is highly desirable in research fields that are currently limited by available ultrafast laser sources, e.g. attosecond science, strong-field physics, high-harmonic generation spectroscopy and multidimensional mid-infrared spectroscopy. Over the past decade, adiabatic frequency conversion has substantially evolved. Initially applied to quasi-monochromatic, undepleted pump interactions, it has been generalized to include ultrashort, broadband, fully-nonlinear dynamics. Through significant theoretical development and experimental demonstrations, it has delivered new capabilities and superior performance in terms of bandwidth, efficiency and robustness, as compared to other frequency conversion techniques. This article introduces the concept of adiabatic nonlinear frequency conversion, reviews its theoretical foundations, presents significant milestones and highlights contemporary ultrafast applications that may, or already do, benefit from utilizing this method.
Biogeography and genome size evolution of the oldest extant vascular plant genus,Equisetum(Equisetaceae)
Authors: Christenhusz Maarten J M , Chase Mark W , Fay Michael F , Hidalgo Oriane , Leitch Ilia J , Pellicer Jaume , Viruel Juan
Published: January 2021

Background and Aims

Extant plant groups with a long fossil history are key elements in understanding vascular plant evolution. Horsetails (Equisetum, Equisetaceae) have a nearly continuous fossil record dating back to the Carboniferous, but their phylogenetic and biogeographic patterns are still poorly understood. We use here the most extensive phylogenetic analysis to date as a framework to evaluate their age, biogeography and genome size evolution.

Methods

DNA sequences of four plastid loci were used to estimate divergence times and investigate the biogeographic history of all extant species of Equisetum. Flow cytometry was used to study genome size evolution against the framework of phylogenetic relationships in Equisetum.

Key Results

On a well-supported phylogenetic tree including all extant Equisetum species, a molecular clock calibrated with multiple fossils places the node at which the outgroup and Equisetum diverged at 343 Mya (Early Carboniferous), with the first major split among extant species occurring 170 Mya (Middle Jurassic). These dates are older than those reported in some other recent molecular clock studies but are largely in agreement with a timeline established by fossil appearance in the geological record. Representatives of evergreen subgenus Hippochaete have much larger genome sizes than those of deciduous subgenus Equisetum, despite their shared conserved chromosome number. Subgenus Paramochaete has an intermediate genome size and maintains the same number of chromosomes.

Conclusions

The first divergences among extant members of the genus coincided with the break-up of Pangaea and the resulting more humid, warmer climate. Subsequent tectonic activity most likely involved vicariance events that led to species divergences combined with some more recent, long-distance dispersal events. We hypothesize that differences in genome size between subgenera may be related to the number of sperm flagellae.
Efficient multiple biomedical events extraction via reinforcement learning
Authors: Zhao Weizhong , Zhao Yao , Jiang Xingpeng , He Tingting , Liu Fan , Li Ning
Published: January 2021

Motivation

Multiple events extraction from biomedical literature is a challenging task for biomedical community. Usually, biomedical event extraction is modeled as two sub-tasks, trigger identification and argument detection. Most existing methods perform these two sub-tasks sequentially, and fail to make full use of the interaction between them, leading to suboptimal results for multiple biomedical events extraction.

Results

We propose a novel framework of reinforcement learning (RL) for the task of multiple biomedical events extraction. More specifically, trigger identification and argument detection are treated as main-task and subsidiary-task, respectively. Assigning the event type of triggers (in the main-task) is viewed as the action taken in RL, and the result of corresponding argument detection (i.e. the subsidiary-task) for the identified trigger is used for computing the reward of the taken action. Moreover, the result of the subsidiary-task is modeled as part of environment information in RL to help the procedure of trigger identification. In addition, external biomedical knowledge bases are employed for representation learning of biomedical text, which can improve the performance of biomedical event extraction. Results on two widely used biomedical corpora demonstrate that the proposed framework performs better than the selected baselines on the task of multiple events extraction. The ablation test indicates the contributions of RL and external KBs to the performance improvement in the proposed method. In addition, by modeling multiple events extraction under the RL framework, the supervised information is exploited more effectively than the classical supervised learning paradigm.

Availability  and implementation

Source codes will be available at: https://github.com/David-WZhao/BioEE-RL.
CaMelia: imputation in single-cell methylomes based on local similarities between cells
Authors: Tang Jianxiong , Zou Jianxiao , Fan Mei , Tian Qi , Zhang Jiyang , Fan Shicai
Published: January 2021

Motivation

Single-cell DNA methylation sequencing detects methylation levels with single-cell resolution, while this technology is upgrading our understanding of the regulation of gene expression through epigenetic modifications. Meanwhile, almost all current technologies suffer from the inherent problem of detecting low coverage of the number of CpGs. Therefore, addressing the inherent sparsity of raw data is essential for quantitative analysis of the whole genome.

Results

Here, we reported CaMelia, a CatBoost gradient boosting method for predicting the missing methylation states based on the locally paired similarity of intercellular methylation patterns. On real single-cell methylation datasets, CaMelia yielded significant imputation performance gains over previous methods. Furthermore, applying the imputed data to the downstream analysis of cell-type identification, we found that CaMelia helped to discover more intercellular differentially methylated loci that were masked by the sparsity in raw data, and the clustering results demonstrated that CaMelia could preserve cell-cell relationships and improve the identification of cell types and cell subpopulations.

Availability and implementation

Python code is available at https://github.com/JxTang-bioinformatics/CaMelia.

Supplementary information

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Connecting social polymorphism to single nucleotide polymorphism: population genomics of the small carpenter bee,Ceratina australensis
Authors: Harpur Brock A , Rehan Sandra M
Published: January 2021

How do social insects expand and adapt to new ranges and how does sociality per se contribute to their success (or failure)? These questions can become tractable with the use of population genomics. We explored the population genomics of the socially polymorphic small carpenter bee, Ceratina australensis, across its range in eastern and southern Australia to search for evidence of selection and identify loci associated with social nesting. We sampled and sequenced fully the genomes of 54 socially and solitarily nesting C. australensis within Queensland, Victoria and South Australia, yielding 2 061 234 single nucleotide polymorphisms across the genome. We found strong evidence of population-specific selection and evidence of genetic variants associated with social nesting behaviour. Both the sets of associated loci and differentially expressed ‘social’ genes had evidence of positive selection, suggesting that alleles at genes associated with social nesting might provide different fitness benefits.
Protein hormone fragmentation in intercellular signaling: hormones as nested information systems
Authors: Campbell Kenneth L , Haspel Nurit , Gath Cassandra , Kurniatash Nuzulul , (Nouduri) Akkiraju Indira , Stuffers Naomi , Vadher Uma
Published: January 2021

This study explores the hypothesis that protein hormones are nested information systems in which initial products of gene transcription, and their subsequent protein fragments, before and after secretion and initial target cell action, play additional physiological regulatory roles. The study produced four tools and key results: (1) a problem approach that proceeds, with examples and suggestions for in vivo organismal functional tests for peptide–protein interactions, from proteolytic breakdown prediction to models of hormone fragment modulation of protein–protein binding motifs in unrelated proteins; (2) a catalog of 461 known soluble human protein hormones and their predicted fragmentation patterns; (3) an analysis of the predicted proteolytic patterns of the canonical protein hormone transcripts demonstrating near-universal persistence of 9 ± 7 peptides of 8 ± 8 amino acids even after cleavage with 24 proteases from four protease classes; and (4) a coincidence analysis of the predicted proteolysis locations and the 1939 exon junctions within the transcripts that shows an excess (P < 0.001) of predicted proteolysis within 10 residues, especially at the exonal junction (P < 0.01). It appears all protein hormone transcripts generate multiple fragments the size of peptide hormones or protein–protein binding domains that may alter intracellular or extracellular functions by acting as modulators of metabolic enzymes, transduction factors, protein binding proteins, or hormone receptors. High proteolytic frequency at exonal junctions suggests proteolysis has evolved, as a complement to gene exon fusion, to extract structures or functions within single exons or protein segments to simplify the genome by discarding archaic one-exon genes.
Pancytopenia caused by allopurinol and azathioprine interaction in a heart transplant patient: a case report
Authors: Feinman Jason , Rollins Brett , Contreras Johanna , Parikh Aditya
Published: January 2021

Background

Azathioprine is an immunosuppressive now less commonly prescribed after orthotopic heart transplantation. Patients with solid organ transplantation are at increased risk for numerous comorbidities including gout. Co-administration of allopurinol for gout prophylaxis and azathioprine increases the risk for severe myelosuppression due to drug–drug interactions.

Case summary

A 57-year-old male with a history of heart transplant 6 years prior presented with a month of severe fatigue and shortness of breath. His admission laboratory values were notable for severe pancytopenia. Medical workup revealed no haematologic malignancy, viral infection, or other consumptive process. After extensive review, it was discovered that the patient was taking excessive allopurinol for gout. His haematologic abnormalities resolved following discontinuation of allopurinol and treatment with filgrastim and romiplostim and was able to be discharged from the hospital.

Discussion

Azathioprine and allopurinol can potentially cause profound cytopenias due to the increased production of the active metabolites of azathioprine. Given the association between gout and solid organ transplantation, recognition of the risks of medication interaction as well as communication amongst health care providers and between providers and their patients is paramount.
Minimally invasive thymectomy for myasthenia gravis favours left-sided approach and low severity class
Authors: Wilshire Candice L , Blitz Sandra L , Fuller Carson C , Rückert Jens C , Li Feng , Cerfolio Robert J , Ghanim Asem F , Onaitis Mark W , Sarkaria Inderpal S , Wigle Dennis A , Joshi Vijay , Reznik Scott , Bograd Adam J , Vallières Eric , Louie Brian E
Published: January 2021

OBJECTIVES

Complete thymectomy is a key component of the optimal treatment for myasthenia gravis. Unilateral, minimally invasive approaches are increasingly utilized with debate about the optimal laterality approach. A right-sided approach has a wider field of view, while a left-sided approach accesses potentially more thymic tissue. We aimed to assess the impact of laterality on perioperative and medium-term outcomes, and to identify predictors of a ‘good outcome’ using standard definitions.

METHODS

We performed a multicentre review of 123 patients who underwent a minimally invasive thymectomy for myasthenia gravis between January 2000 and August 2015, with at least 1-year follow-up. The Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America standards were followed. A ‘good outcome’ was defined by complete stable remission/pharmacological remission/minimal manifestations 0, and a ‘poor outcome’ by minimal manifestations 1–3. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to assess factors associated with a ‘good outcome’.

RESULTS

Ninety-two percent of thymectomies (113/123) were robotic-assisted. The left-sided approach had a shorter median operating time than a right-sided: 143 (interquartile range, IQR 110–196) vs 184 (IQR 133–228) min, P = 0.012. At a median of 44 (IQR 27–75) months, the left-sided approach achieved a ‘good outcome’ (46%, 31/68) more frequently than the right-sided (22%, 12/55); P = 0.011. Multivariable analysis identified a left-sided approach and Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America class I/II to be associated with a ‘good outcome’.

CONCLUSIONS

A left-sided thymectomy may be preferred over a right-sided approach in patients with myasthenia gravis given the shorter operating times and potential for superior medium-term symptomatic outcomes. A lower severity class is also associated with a ‘good outcome’.
Instruments in the liturgy of the Real Colegio Seminario de Corpus Christi, València, in the 17th century
Authors: Royo Mireya
Published: January 2021

The Real Colegio Seminario de Corpus Christi in València, founded by Archbishop Juan de Ribera, was (along with the cathedral) the most important centre of musical activity in the city during the 17th century. The Constituciones of the chapel organize the liturgical calendar and its music, in the process stipulating the presence of instrumentalists on certain occasions. Later documents reveal gradual changes that were reflected in this daily practice: on the one hand, wind players were required to play on a growing number of feast-days, and including instruments other than those expected during the first years of the college chapel’s existence, while on the other hand, improvisational vocal practices began to incorporate instrumentalists. Finally, and in consonance with the development of polychoral practices, the usual accompaniment of singing by one or more organs was complemented by use of the harp from the mid 17th century. The present article traces the evolution of instrumental practice as can be appreciated in various documents preserved in the Archives of the Real Colegio.
Feeling understood for the first time: experiences of participation in rehabilitation after out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest
Authors: Wagner Mette Kirstine , Kikkenborg Berg Selina , Hassager Christian , Joshi Victoria Louise , Stenbæk Dea Siggaard , Missel Malene
Published: January 2021

Aims

Survivors of out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) may suffer from long-term cognitive, psychological, or physical post-arrest consequences impacting and disrupting daily life. To adjust to and manage daily life is critical, and therefore a tailored rehabiliation programme was introduced to the participants. The study aimed to explore the lived experience among cardiac arrest survivors.

Methods and results

Data were gathered through six focus group interviews during a cardiac arrest rehabilitation programme. Thirty-three out-of-hospital SCA survivors (8 women and 25 men) participated. Time since cardiac arrest was on average 12–57 months. An exploratory qualitative design inspired by Ricoeur’s phenomenological hermeneutics was applied. Two main themes emerged from the analysis and interpretation: (i) a lack of support from the health system in the transition from hospital to daily life; and (ii) feeling understood for the first time. The findings revealed that out-of-hospital SCA survivors experience a knowledge gap struggling for support. Attending the programme, gaining knowledge and experiencing peer support was described as a revelation for them.

Conclusion

The findings suggest that out-of-hospital SCA survivors felt understood for the first time when attending a cardiac arrest rehabilitation programme. A post-arrest pathway is needed led by a coordinating cardiac arrest specialist nursing service together with allied healthcare professionals. Focus on hypoxic brain injuries, emotional burdens, and supportive strategies are essential in the transition to daily life. Facilitated peer support is warranted.
The three-dimensional organization of polytene nuclei in male Drosophila melanogaster with compound XY or ring X chromosomes.
Authors: Mathog D , Sedat J W
Published: January 2021

The three-dimensional organization of polytene chromosomes within nuclei containing rearranged X chromosomes was examined in male Drosophila melanogaster. Salivary glands of third instar larvae containing either an inverted X chromosome (YSX.YL, In(1)EN/O) or a ring X chromosome (R(1) 2/BSYy+) were fixed, embedded, and serially sectioned. The nuclei in contiguous groups of cells were modeled and analyzed. We find that for both genotypes the three-dimensional behavior at each euchromatic locus is independent of the orientation of the chromosome on which it resides, independent of the behavior of loci not closely linked to it, and not similar in neighboring cells. The preference for right-handed chromosome coiling noted in previous studies is shown to be independent of homologous pairing. However, a relation between the extent of chromosome curvature and the handedness of chromosome coiling is present only in homologously paired chromosomes. The attached-XY chromosome has two previously undescribed behaviors: a nearly invariant association of the euchromatic side of the proximal heterochromatin/euchromatin junction with the nucleolus and a frequent failure of this site to attach to the chromocenter. The relative chromosome arm positions are often similar in several neighboring cells. The size of these patches of cells, assuming that they represent clones, indicates that such arrangements are at best quasi-stable: they may be maintained over at least one, but less than four, cell divisions. The observed nuclear organization in salivary glands is inconsistent with the idea that position in the polytene nucleus plays a major role in the normal genetic regulation of euchromatic loci.
HOP1: a yeast meiotic pairing gene.
Authors: Hollingsworth N M , Byers B
Published: January 2021

The recessive mutation, hop1-1, was isolated by use of a screen designed to detect mutations defective in homologous chromosomal pairing during meiosis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mutants in HOP1 displayed decreased levels of meiotic crossing over and intragenic recombination between markers on homologous chromosomes. In contrast, assays of the hop1-1 mutation in a spo13-1 haploid disomic for chromosome III demonstrated that intrachromosomal recombination between directly duplicated sequences was unaffected. The spores produced by SPO13 diploids homozygous for hop1 were largely inviable, as expected for a defect in interhomolog recombination that results in high levels of nondisjunction. HOP1 was cloned by complementation of the spore lethality phenotype and the cloned gene was used to map HOP1 to the LYS11-HIS6 interval on the left arm of chromosome IX. Electron microscopy revealed that diploids homozygous for hop1 fail to form synaptonemal complex, which normally provides the structural basis for homolog pairing. We propose that HOP1 acts in meiosis primarily to promote chromosomal pairing, perhaps by encoding a component of the synaptonemal complex.
The heritable activation of cryptic Suppressor-mutator elements by an active element.
Authors: Fedoroff N
Published: January 2021

A weakly active maize Suppressor-mutator (Spm-omega) element is able to heritably activate cryptic Spm elements in the maize genome. The spontaneous activation frequency, which is 1-5 x 10(-5) in the present genetic background, increases by about 100-fold in the presence of an Spm-omega and remains an order of magnitude above the background level a generation after removal of the activating Spm-omega. Sectorial somatic reactivation of cryptic elements can be detected phenotypically in kernels. Selection of such kernels constitutes an efficient selection for plants with reactivated Spm elements. Analysis of the reactivation process reveals that it is gradual and proceeds through genetically metastable intermediates that exhibit different patterns of element expression during plant development. Newly reactivated elements tend to return to an inactive form. However, the probability that an element will remain in a heritably active state increases when the element is maintained in the presence of an active Spm element for several generations.
Interaction of the Enhancer of white-apricot with transposable element alleles at the white locus in Drosophila melanogaster.
Authors: Birchler J A , Hiebert J C
Published: January 2021

The Enhancer of wa [E(wa)] mutation was shown to interact strongly with 4 of 41 tested alleles of the white (w) eye color locus. All four of the affected w alleles result from the insertion of a transposable element. E(wa) was further localized cytogenetically. The locus lies between the breakpoints of T(Y;2)L11 and T(Y;2)H137 (section 60) in 2R. The original mutation was shown to be antimorphic on the basis of its action in the presence of additional normal copies and the ability to revert the original allele to one that mimics the effect of a deficiency for the locus. The RNA transcribed from wa was analyzed from flies segregating for E(wa) and normal. The low level of normal functional messenger RNA present in white-apricot is reduced further in Enhancer homozygotes. Total copia RNA was also examined on Northern analyses from the segregating population but no quantitative change in the major copia RNA was produced by E(wa) homozygotes compared to normal.
Y chromosome evolution in the subgenus Mus (genus Mus).
Authors: Tucker P K , Lee B K , Eicher E M
Published: January 2021

A 305 base pair DNA sequence isolated from the Y chromosome of the inbred mouse strain C57BL/10 was used to investigate the pattern and tempo of evolution of Y chromosome DNA sequences for five species in the subgenus Mus, including Mus spretus, Mus hortulanus, Mus abbotti, Mus musculus and Mus domesticus. Variation in hybridization patterns between species was characterized by differences in fragment lengths of both intensely and faintly hybridizing fragments, whereas variation in hybridization patterns within species was characterized primarily by differences in fragment lengths of faintly hybridizing fragments. Phylogenetic analyses were conducted based on fragment size variation within and among species. Phylogenetic relationships inferred from these analyses partly agree with the phylogenetic relationships obtained from biochemical and mitochondrial DNA data. We conclude that a set of DNA sequences common to the Y chromosomes of a closely related group of species in the subgenus Mus has evolved rapidly as reflected by sequence divergence and sequence amplification.
Genetic analysis of plant mixtures.
Authors: Griffing B
Published: January 2021

Plant mixtures are difficult to analyze genetically because of possible interactions between neighboring plants (i.e., between plants in the same biological group). However, a genetic modeling scheme has been devised which, theoretically, can accommodate such interactions. This study was an attempt to put the theoretical modeling procedure to an experimental test. To this end an experimental procedure was devised that generated biological groups from a well defined base population. A cultural system was used which permitted growing plant mixtures in controlled environmental facilities. This allowed the experiment to be conducted over a wide range of temperature and nutrient conditions. Application of the theoretical gene model to the experimental data permitted identification of those classes of gene effects that were responsible for genetic variation exhibited by the mixtures. Adequacy of the genetic modeling description was corroborated by precise prediction of an independent genetic response. The genetic analyses also identified statistically significant temperature-and nutrient-dependent forms of heterosis. It was concluded that the study demonstrated the suitability of the theoretical group gene model for describing complexities inherent in plant mixtures.