bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Validation of the American English Version of The Acute Cystitis Symptom Score
Authors: Alidjanov Jakhongir F. , Naber Kurt G. , Pilatz Adrian , Wagenlehner Florian M.
Published: November 2020

Background To develop and validate the American-English version of the self-reporting Acute Cystitis Symptom Score (ACSS), a suitable tool for diagnosis and patient-reported outcome in female patients with acute uncomplicated cystitis (UC). Methods After certified translation into American-English and cognitive assessment, the clinical validation of the ACSS was performed as an embedded study in a US phase II trial (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03129295). Results A total of 167 female patients with typical symptoms of UC were included in the study following FDA guidance. At Day 1 (diagnosis) the mean(SD) sum score of the six ACSS typical symptoms reached 10.60(2.51). Of 100 patients followed-up last time on Day 5 or 6 (End-of-treatment, EoT), 91 patients showed clinical success according to the favoured ACSS criteria (sum score of typical symptoms 0.98(1.94)). There was no correlation between the severity of symptoms on Day 1 or between clinical success rate at EoT and level of bacteriuria on Day 1. Conclusion The American-English ACSS showed high predictive ability and responsiveness, and excellent levels of reliability and validity. It can now be recommended as the new master version in clinical and epidemiological studies, in clinical practice or for self-diagnosis of women with symptoms of UC.
Seasonal Variation in Aflatoxins Levels in Edible Seeds, Estimation of Its Dietary Intake and Vitamin E Levels From Southern Areas of Punjab, Pakistan
Authors: Razis Ahmad Faizal Abdull , Shehzad Muhammed Muzammel , Usman Sunusi , Ali Nada Basheir , Iqbal Shahzad Zafar , Naheed Nadia , Asi Muhammad Rafique
Published: November 2020

A total of 779 samples of edible nuts (melon seeds, watermelon seeds, pumpkin seeds, and cantaloupe seeds) from southern cities of Punjab, Pakistan were collected from the summer and the winter seasons. The natural occurrence of aflatoxins (AFs) and vitamin E (tocopherols) levels were investigated using HPLC. The results have shown that 180 (43.4%) samples from the winter season and 122 (33.4%) samples from the summer season were found positive with AFs. The elevated average levels of total AFs (20.9±3.10 µg/kg) were observed in watermelon seeds without shell and the lowest average amount (15.9±3.60 µg/kg) were documented in melon seeds without shell samples from the winter season. The elevated average amount of total AFs 17.3±1.50 µg/kg were found in pumpkin seeds available as without shell. The results have documented a significant difference in total AFs levels in edible seeds available as shells versus without shells (α = 0.05 & 0.01). The highest dietary intake of 6.30 µg/kg/day was found in female individuals from pumpkin seeds (without shell) in the winter season and the value of 3.00 µg/kg/day were found in pumpkin seed without shell in summer season in female individuals. The highest amount of total tocopherol levels of 22.2 ± 7.70 ng/100g in pumpkin seeds samples from winter season and 14.5 ± 5.50 mg/100g were found in melon seeds samples from summer season. The variation of total tocopherol levels in edible seeds among the winter and summer seasons showed significant difference (p ≤ 0.0054), except watermelon seeds samples which shown non-significant difference (p ≥ 0.183).
Sustainability and Resilience in Smart City Planning: A Review
Authors: Ramirez Lopez Leonardo Juan , Grijalba Castro Angela Ivette
Published: November 2020

Urban planning is recognized as an interaction between the state and society, which aims to articulate public policies in the territory, facilitating their administration in favor of greater development and well-being of society. However, this interaction becomes complex because consumption demands increase, and the needs of the community exceed the capacity of the urban ecosystem to supply them, hindering its sustainable functionality. With this panorama, it becomes relevant to study urban planning from a sustainable environmental planning perspective, based on four topics: urban planning, sustainability, resilience and smart cities. The methodology used is based on a bibliometric study through a PRISMA adjustment to 87 articles, supported by VOSviewer® to construct and visualize the co-occurrence networks of important terms extracted from a body of scientific literature. The main result is to consider cities with a complex systems approach that works like a gear, that is, there is a connective element between inter- and intra-urban processes. This relationship is the key factor that allows understanding their synchronization, stating that the deepening of each of these topics is crucial to the ideal of a territorial administration through time scales, by means of adaptive cycles, allowing to provide new tools to concepts such as carrying capacity and the measurement of the environmental footprint.
Direct and Label-Free Monitoring of Albumin in 2D Fatty Liver Disease Model using Plasmonic Nanogratings.
Authors: Lopez-Muñoz Gerardo A. , Ortega Ma. Alejandra , Ferret-Miñana Ainhoa , Chiara Francesco De , Ramón-Azcón Javier
Published: November 2020

Non-alcoholic fatty liver (NAFLD) is a metabolic disorder related with a chronic lipid accumulation within the hepatocytes. This disease is the most common liver disorder worldwide and it is estimated that is present in up to 25% of the world's population. However, the real prevalence of this disease and the associated disorders is unknown mainly because reliable and applicable diagnostic tools are lacking. It is known that the level of albumin, a pleiotropic protein synthetized by hepatocytes, is correlated with the correct function of the liver. The development of a complementary tool that allow the direct, sensitive, and label-free monitoring of albumin secretion in hepatocyte cell culture can provide insight about the mechanism and drugs action in NAFLD. With this aim, we have developed a simple integrated plasmonic biosensor based on gold nanogratings from periodic nanostructures present in commercial Blu-ray optical disc. This sensor allows the direct and label-free monitoring of albumin in a 2D fatty liver disease model under flow conditions using highly specific polyclonal antibody. This technology avoids both the amplification and blocking steps showing a limit of detection within pM range (≈ 0.39 ng/mL). Thanks to this technology, we identified the optimal fetal bovine serum (FBS) concentration to maximize the lipid accumulation within the cells. Moreover, we discovered that at third day from lipids challenge, the hepatocytes increased the amount of albumin secreted. These data demonstrate the ability of hepatocytes to respond to the lipid stimulation releasing more albumin. Further investigation needed to unveil the biological significance of that cell behaviour.
The Policy Framework of Natural Resource Management in Oil-Dependence Countries
Authors: Ertimi Basem , Sarmidi Tamat , Khalid Norlin , Helmi Ali Mohd
Published: November 2020

The resource curse indicates that economic growth performs poorly in countries with significant natural resources. Nevertheless, certain countries rich in energy managed to protect their resource riches in the long run. It is necessary to enforce effective policies in resource-rich countries to fully leverage the advantages which can come from the abundance of natural resources. This study aimed to evaluate how oil-rich countries would avoid resource flows by successful fiscal and management policies. By taking the guidance of Norway and implementing fiscal policy focused on tax rules on its oil management, it is proposed that oil-exporting countries benefit significantly. The framework attempts to mitigate this resource curse and utilise oil revenues in the interest of the country.
Steps of The Asian Giants: Modeling the Body Size Related Foraging Ecology of Meganthropus palaeojavanicus, a 8 Feet Hominid in Central Java
Authors: Wibowo Andri
Published: November 2020

Meganthropus palaeojavanicus was known very tall with body height of 8 feet and this made M. palaeojavanicus as the tallest hominid ever existed. This species was living in closed tropical woodland and hilly landscape as the fossil remains were found in a remote forest in Sangiran, central Java. Owing large body size, it may influence the foraging ecology of M. palaeojavanicus to cope with the terrain. In here, this study aimed to model the M. palaeojavanicus foraging ecology along terrain gradients. The model indicates that within 5 km home range radius, the most suitable foraging areas were in north east since these areas have more flat landscapes with slopes of <7.5%. While less suitable areas in north west and south west areas were characterized by hilly landscapes with rugged terrain and steep slopes with slopes of >62.8%.
Public Perceptions about the Impact of Climate Change on Human Health: A Study of Bangladesh
Authors: Biswas Bikram , Roy Sajib Kumar
Published: November 2020

The main purpose of this research is to analyze the perception of climate change impacts on human health in Bangladesh through data from nationality representative surveys conducted in some district of Bangladesh. In Bangladesh there have a few research has been conducted on public perceptions about the impact of climate change on human health. A structured questionnaire method was conducted, and data collected from 615 respondents. The findings of this study reveal that out of 615 respondents, 76.0% of the respondents replied positively while remaining 24.0%, almost one-fourth of total respondents, indicated that they have not heard the term climate change before. Knowledgeable in climate change, 92.5% of respondents agreed that climate change has an impact on human health while only 7.5% respondents disagreed with this statement. 90.5% of respondents argued that they are agreed with the opinion that climate change is a serious threat to human health.
Direct Policy Search Reinforcement Learning Based on Variational Bayesian Inference
Authors: Yamaguchi Nobuhiko ,   Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Saga University 1 Honjo, Saga-shi, Saga 840-8502, Japan
Published: November 2020

Direct policy search is a promising reinforcement learning framework particularly for controlling continuous, high-dimensional systems. Peters et al. proposed reward-weighted regression (RWR) as a direct policy search. The RWR algorithm estimates the policy parameter based on the expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm and is therefore prone to overfitting. In this study, we focus on variational Bayesian inference to avoid overfitting and propose direct policy search reinforcement learning based on variational Bayesian inference (VBRL). The performance of the proposed VBRL is assessed in several experiments involving a mountain car and a ball batting task. These experiments demonstrate that VBRL yields a higher average return and outperforms the RWR.
Enhanced Resource Allocation Algorithm for Heterogeneous Wireless Networks
Authors: Mathonsi Topside E. ,   Tshwane University of Technology Private Bag X680, Pretoria 0001, South Africa, Tshilongamulenzhe Tshimangadzo Mavin , Buthelezi Bongisizwe Erasmus
Published: November 2020

In heterogeneous wireless networks, service providers typically employ multiple radio access technologies to satisfy the requirements of quality of service (QoS) and improve the system performance. However, many challenges remain when using modern cellular mobile communications radio access technologies (e.g., wireless local area network, long-term evolution, and fifth generation), such as inefficient allocation and management of wireless network resources in heterogeneous wireless networks (HWNs). This problem is caused by the sharing of available resources by several users, random distribution of wireless channels, scarcity of wireless spectral resources, and dynamic behavior of generated traffic. Previously, resource allocation schemes have been proposed for HWNs. However, these schemes focus on resource allocation and management, whereas traffic class is not considered. Hence, these existing schemes significantly increase the end-to-end delay and packet loss, resulting in poor user QoS and network throughput in HWNs. Therefore, this study attempts to solve the identified problem by designing an enhanced resource allocation (ERA) algorithm to address the inefficient allocation of available resources vs. QoS challenges. Computer simulation was performed to evaluate the performance of the proposed ERA algorithm by comparing it with a joint power bandwidth allocation algorithm and a dynamic bandwidth allocation algorithm. On average, the proposed ERA algorithm demonstrates a 98.2% bandwidth allocation, 0.75 s end-to-end delay, 1.1% packet loss, and 98.9% improved throughput performance at a time interval of 100 s.
The Great Depression: Econometric Analysis and Fuzzy Regression
Authors: Kuzmin Peter , Kalashnikov Vitaliy , Kalashnykova Natalyia , Watada Junzo ,   Department of International Economics, Mathematical Methods and Business Informatics, Altai State University 68 Socialist Street, Barnaul 656049, Russia,   Facultad de Economía, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León (UANL) Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico,   Facultad de Ciencias Físico Matemáticas (FCFM), Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León (UANL) Pedro de Alba, Niños Héroes, Ciudad Universitaria, San Nicolás de los Garza, Nuevo León 66451, Mexico,   Waseda University, Japan Kobai, Yahatanishi, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka 803-0011, Japan
Published: November 2020

The study examines the period of the Great Depression and analyzes several measures taken by the US President Roosevelt’s government that allowed the country to get out of the crisis. An analysis and proof of the correctness of the measures chosen to exit from the crisis was conducted using econometric models and the use of statistics. Techniques for overcoming crises are relevant for all countries. This study adapts an innovative perspective in that it used the sequence of the Cobb–Douglas type function including different types of factors, and applied fuzzy regression methods.
Centella Asiatica (GOTU KOLA) TREATMENT ATTENUATES PRO-INFLAMMATORY MEDIATORS IN LIVER OF RATS WITH ELECTRICAL FOOT SHOCK STRESS MODEL
Authors: Sari Dwi Cahyani Ratna , Setyaningsih Wiwit Ananda Wahyu , Mainichi Rizky Nur , Dara Gita Mumtarin , Kemalasari Ratih , Romi Muhammad Mansyur , Rochmah Mawaddah Ar , Arfian Nur
Published: November 2020

Background: Stress induces secretion of cathecolamines and glucocorticoids, which may produce liver injury. Followed by the production of inflammatory mediators, it causes apoptosis. Centella asiatica (CeA) has anti-inflammatory and hepatoprotective effects. The present study aims to determine the role of CeA in the attenuation of liver pro-inflammatory mediator expression in rats with electrical foot shock stress model. Materials and Methods: Twenty-four Sprague-Dawley rats were randomized into four groups consisted of six rats each: (1) Control group, (2) CeA-treated group, (3) Stress group, and (4) CeA + stress group. Reverse transcriptase PCR of inflammatory and apoptosis markers as well as Real-Time PCR of β2-adrenergic receptor were performed from liver tissues. Results: Electrical foot shock stress induced up-regulation of NFκB and TNF-α mRNA expressions as pro-inflammatory mediators, compared to control group. This alteration was followed by up-regulation of BAX and β2-adrenergic receptor, as well as the down-regulation of BCl2 compared to control. CeA treatment prevented enhancement of NFκB, TNF-α, TLR-4 and β-adrenergic receptor mRNA expressions, which was followed by down-regulation of BAX and up-regulation of BCl-2, compared to stress group. Conclusion: CeA prevents secretion of pro-inflammatory chemokines and cytokines as well as apoptotic markers in liver cells through the activation of β2-adrenergic receptor.
IMPLEMENTASI METODE ANP DAN BCA DALAM PEMILIHAN KAPAL SATROL LANTAMAL I GUNA MENDUKUNG TUGAS F1QR DI SELAT MALAKA
Authors: Cahyono Didik Wahyu , Murniawan Rubiyantoro , Ciptomulyono Udisubakti
Published: November 2020

Dalam rangka menjaga kedaulatan hukum negara Indonesia di selat Malaka, Komando Armada RI I membentuk satuan reaksi cepat yang lebih dikenal dengan Fleet One Quick Response (F1QR). Dalam pelaksanaan tugas operasi di selat Malaka F1QR dibawah komando wilayah Lantamal I Belawan. Agar terwujudnya keberhasilan tugas F1QR ini, dibutuhkan kekuatan unsur Satrol yang maksimal dalam melaksanakan operasi dilaut. Saat ini kondisi unsur Satrol Lantamal I belawan masih terbatas, baik dalam kualitas maupun kuantitas, hanya beberapa unsur yang mampu beroperasi sampai ke Selat Malaka dalam mendukung tugas F1QR. Sehingga sangat diperlukan penambahan ataupun peremajaan unsur Satrol Lantamal I yang efektif dalam mendukung tugas F1QR. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode ANP dan BCA dalam pemilihan kelas kapal Satrol di Lantamal I, serta didukung wawancara kepada stageholder guna memberikan data pendukung melalui metode triangulasi. Penelitian ini mendapatkan hasil akhir bahwasannya kapal Satrol Kelas Torani memiliki nilai keuntungan yang lebih tinggi dibandingkan dengan kapal Satrol Kelas Sigalu, Kelas Tarihu dan kelas Krait, sehingga layak untuk diprioritaskan menjadi kapal Satrol Lantamal I guna mendukung tugas F1QR.
Real estate dispossession, income and immigration in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Spain)
Authors: Parreño Castellano Juan Manuel , Domínguez-Mujica Josefina , Moreno-Medina Claudio
Published: November 2020

The legal proceedings of real estate dispossession are essential elements in understanding the impact of the economic crisis on Spanish cities. Those that took place between 2009 and 2017 in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, their quantitative dimension and their intra-urban distribution are analysed in this study. This perspective allows an appreciation of their relationship with the unequal distribution of income and alien status, factors leading the investigations on the loss of property. In order to achieve this objective, the records of the Common Service of Notifications and Seizures have been used together with data of the Inland Revenue Ministry and Municipal Register, combining statistical and cartographical analysis with the purpose of finding associations and predictive factors. The study reveals that there is a great concentration of real estate deprivation in the central areas of the city and that the standards of distribution of dispossession are inversely related to the level of income of the urban districts and directly related to the foreign population. This tends to confirm that dispossession must be interpreted as the result of mechanisms of capitalist accumulation, which reinforce socio-urban inequalities.
Metodologías de investigación de los semilleros E-InnovaCMM y TECSIS desde la virtualidad
Authors: Cárdenas-Espinosa Rubén Darío , Devia-Caicedo Luis Alfonso , Rodríguez-Pinto Darwin Dubay , Martínez-Zuluaga Claudia María , López-Salazar Fabio Andrés , Ruiz-Salazar Jhon Jairo
Published: November 2020

El propósito de este artículo es socializar las metodologías de investigación aplicada e innovación que se han desarrollado de forma articulada desde la virtualidad, utilizando las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación (TIC), en el Centro Metalmecánico Sena Distrito Capital, y en los programas especiales de la Facultad de Ingeniería de la Universidad de Caldas, promoviendo la investigación formativa en contexto según las necesidades identificadas en el entorno local de los aprendices. La metodología corresponde a una investigación mixta, de carácter analítico descriptivo, a partir de la cual se pretende cimentar proyectos posteriores que permitan profundizar en el conocimiento científico de unos campos específicos de conocimiento, aplicando el B-Learning a través del modelo PACIE (presencia, alcance, capacitación, interacción y e-learning). En el texto se describe el proceso que se implementó en los programas formativos y las trasformaciones que se dieron en los procesos y entornos investigativos de los estudiantes. Finalmente se evidencia cómo se lograron desarrollar recursos educativos digitales y transferencias tecnológicas desde el semillero E-InnovaCMM a los cinco semilleros de investigación de los programas especiales de la Universidad de Caldas, lo que demostró que el desarrollo de recursos educativos digitales puede facilitar el aprendizaje significativo y su uso en todos los niveles de formación —tecnológico, técnico y complementario—.
Guest Editorial: Digitally Transforming Oil Fields With Connected, Intelligent Hardware
Authors: Pafitis Demos
Published: November 2020

In recent years, the oil and gas industry has placed significant emphasis on digital transformation. For most early adopters, this journey began with real-time monitoring and remote operation of equipment. This has been followed by the increasing application of modern data science techniques in order to extract actionable insight from the growing volumes of data. The emergence of highly scalable data storage and compute power has provided a step change in the ability to derive actionable insights from data and perform simulations at a scale previously inaccessible. What we derive from this combination allows us to deliver new levels of performance and efficiency. But, in addition to these now well recognized elements of the digital transformation, there is a need to evolve our industry hardware through the application of enhanced edge computing and the application of intelligence at the edge.

There will, of course, continue to be engineering innovation in our hardware, resulting from creative new designs that result in new functional features, cost efficiency, enhanced reliability and greater operational performance. But there are now myriad opportunities to enhance hardware in ways that maximize the value of data capture. Thus, the emergence of connected, intelligent hardware is key to realizing the vision of the digitalized oil field.

Connected, Intelligent Hardware Explained

Much conventional hardware has little to no digital enablement or means of monitoring its own function or state. In a first step, it is largely trivial to make it connected to cloud-based data stores, thus enabling the use of modern data analysis techniques such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). Each piece of hardware in this scenario will benefit from remote intelligence to enrich its capabilities.

Intelligent hardware takes the “connected” concept in another direction and refers to equipment with embedded edge computing that can host models and algorithms, creating capabilities beyond remote intelligence. These machines can now take advantage of both edge and cloud digital capabilities to learn and gain intelligence, thus continuously improving operational performance and service delivery.

By populating oil fields with connected and intelligent hardware, operators gain access to optimized, secure, and sustainable operations. Connected and intelligent hardware enables advanced planning, real-time performance optimization, and higher levels of automation and health management. It is a critical part of a broader architecture that is adapted to problems where latency, communications fallibility, and system reliability are important considerations that make a central command-and-control approach inappropriate.
Pilot Lessons: Chesapeake’s Shale EOR Program Stalls But Still Offers Bold Vision
Authors: Jacobs Trent
Published: November 2020

Before global oil prices turned south earlier this year in swift and historic fashion, Oklahoma City­based Chesapeake Energy was gearing up to build a new gas­compression station in the Eagle Ford Shale of Texas.

The multimillion­dollar facility was to be the workhorse of the company’s first attempt at cyclic­gas injection, an enhanced oil recovery (EOR) method more commonly called huff ’n’ puff (HnP). Instead, the heavy equipment sits idle and the blueprints of the EOR program remain on the shelf as the operator restructures a debt load of more than $7 billion under a court­supervised bankruptcy process.

But despite the uncertainty of Chesapeake’s future - or about when US crude prices will rise to levels that justify EOR operations - the company’s plan for a pilot and subsequent full­scale development in the Eagle Ford is noteworthy in that it would have represented the most ambitious attempt made yet to revive production from a tight­oil play.

“Why would we want to do that? We wanted to do it because we can recover more oil without additional drilling,” said Dave Mohrbacher, a reservoir engineering advisor at Chesapeake and the company’s project manager of what was at one point a 40­person technical team.

Mohrbacher presented a technical paper (SPE 200415) about the team’s efforts to lay the groundwork for a large­scale HnP program during the virtual SPE Improved Oil Recovery Conference held in late August. The adopted workflow calls for a relatively large pilot fol­lowed by the conversion of hundreds of wells within 2 to 3 years.

Since 2016, Chesapeake has joined many others in the shale sector in paying close attention to a few small patches of ranch land in south Texas where EOG Resources announced that it had proven cyclic­gas injection was not only technically feasible, but a profitable way to increase recovery rates in tight­oil wells.

The Houston­based EOG demonstrated that, under the right conditions, injecting gas back into shale reservoirs can cause the tiny droplets of oil still trapped inside to swell up. This mobilizes the residual oil by making it less viscous and sticky.

EOG’s success story gave hope to shale producers across North America that the recovery rates of 5-10% of the original oil in place could be elevated to 7-17% by periodically soaking tight-oil reservoirs with miscible natural gas.

Go Big, Go Fast

Mohrbacher told industry colleagues that Chesapeake made the investment in its EOR program after confirming for itself through analysis and laboratory work that the reported gains of 10-40% in ultimate oil recovery via HnP were valid. Chesapeake was also motivated, he said, to achieve scale at a “more aggressive” pace than its predecessors because of its large position of maturing wells.
Seal Qualification and Single-Trip Lockdown Sleeve Reduce Risk
Authors: Carpenter Chris
Published: November 2020

This article, written by JPT Technology Editor Chris Carpenter, contains highlights of paper OTC 29943, “Seal Qualification and Single-Trip Lockdown Sleeve Reduce Risk Through Innovative and Advanced Technology,” by Scott Patrick Ellisor, Rodrigo Albani Queiroz, and Carlos Eduardo Martins Gaban, Dril-Quip, et al., prepared for the 2019 Offshore Technology Conference Brasil, Rio de Janeiro, 29-31 October. The paper has not been peer reviewed. Copyright 2019 Offshore Technology Conference. Reproduced by permission.

Traditionally, a wellhead system requires a drilling lockdown sleeve (LDS) during drilling operations to ensure that the seal assembly is rigid and prevents dynamic movement. By eliminating the LDS, however, the operator will save multiple trips into the well. Because of a seal-assembly design outlined in the complete paper, development of a single-trip LDS was possible for wellhead systems requiring extremely high lockdown requirements, allowing the user to save trips required by legacy designs.

New Subsea Challenges

In high-pressure/high-temperature subsea wells, annular pressure buildup, caused by thermal expansion of fluid, endangers well integrity. This phenomenon is caused by the increase of pressure during the production phase, temperature differential during the drilling phase, and fluid parameters. This type of annuli pressure buildup causes uplift as high as 3,200,000 lbf. The number of times the system needs to be shut down could be as many as eight per year for a 25-year well life; the life of the field during the production phase, therefore, could see as many as 200 total cycles.

Saving Rig Time by Implementing New Technologies

The technologies presented in the complete paper are the single-trip LDS and the dynamic casing hanger seal assembly. The single-trip LDS is used if an extremely high lockdown capacity is required. When this LDS is used, the need to run a lead impression tool (LIT) before running the lockdown sleeve is eliminated. Thus, an extra tool on the rig floor is eliminated, as well as a trip into the well. By eliminating the LIT run, between 5 and 10 hours could be saved, depending on water depth. Similar to the way in which LDS saves operators both operating expense and capital expenditure, the dynamic casing hanger seal assembly does as well. The dynamic casing hanger seal assembly has a higher lockdown capacity than the industry-standard seal assembly, which allows this seal to be run downhole without installation of an LDS. Because of this design, running the casing hanger seal assembly could save between three and five trips into the well, reducing overall risk.
Wireline Sand-Detection Tool Locates, Quantifies Downhole Sand Production
Authors: Carpenter Chris
Published: November 2020

This article, written by JPT Technology Editor Chris Carpenter, contains highlights of paper SPE 198566, “Locating and Quantifying Downhole Sand Production With Wireline Sand-Detection Tool and Examples of Application in Wells Offshore Caspian Sea,” by Andrey Timonin, Schlumberger, and Eldar Mollaniyazov, Dragon Oil, prepared for the 2019 SPE Gas and Oil Technology Showcase and Conference, Dubai, 21-23 October. The paper has not been peer reviewed.

Most of the wells in the Dzheitune (Lam) field in the Caspian Sea were completed with dual tubing. Depletion in reservoir pressure caused formation failure in the A sand reservoir, and wells producing from this formation began to produce sand. Field examples presented in the complete paper describe principles of data acquisition with a sand-detection tool when run in combination with a production logging string and results of logging in slightly deviated wells completed with sand screens. Comparison of multiphase-inflow profiles with sources of sand production showed that most sand was produced through eroded intervals in the sand screens.

Introduction

Most Lam wells were completed with 9.625-in. casing and 7-in. liner across the reservoir section. The A sand reservoir, located at depths between approximately 1500 and 1800 m, and the CH sand reservoir, located below 2000 m, are produced separately by using dual-string tubing to avoid crossflow from the high-pressure CH reservoir into the low-pressure A reservoir.

When wells in the A reservoir began to produce sand, the operator had to change the completion strategy for newly drilled wells and had to recomplete some old wells by pulling out of hole dual-string completions and running in hole single tubing with sand screens across existing perforations. The top of sand accumulation in the annulus was identified with a slim sonic tool that measures cement-bond-log and variable-density-log data.

This change in completion strategy helped prevent sand production to the surface, but, eventually, several wells completed with sand screens across the A reservoir began to produce sand on the surface, damaging production facilities and plugging separators, which had to be cleaned periodically. To identify the source of sand production downhole and to verify the integrity of sand screens, a sand-detection tool was run on wireline in a few such wells.
Enhanced Oil Recovery in the Wolfcamp Shale by Carbon Dioxide or Nitrogen Injection: An Experimental Investigation
Authors: Tovar Francisco D. , Barrufet Maria A. , Schechter David S.
Published: November 2020

We present a comprehensive investigation of gas injection for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) in organic-rich shale using 11 coreflooding experiments in sidewall core plugs from the Wolfcamp Shale, and three additional coreflooding experiments using Berea Sandstone. Our work studies the effect of pressure, minimum miscibility pressure (MMP), soak time, injection-gas composition, and rock-transport properties on oil-recovery factor. The injection gases were carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen. The core plugs were resaturated with crude oil in the laboratory, and the experiments were performed at reservoir pressure and temperature using a design that closely replicates gas injection through a hydraulic fracture, minimizes convective flow, and exaggerates the fracture to the reservoir-rock ratio. We accomplished this by surrounding the Wolfcamp reservoir-rock matrix with glass beads. Computed-tomography (CT) scanning enabled the visualization of the compositional changes with time and space during the gas-injection experiments and gas chromatography provided the overall change in composition between the crude oil injected and the oil recovered.

As gas surrounds the oil-saturated sample, a peripheral, slow-kinetics vaporization/condensation process is the main production mechanism. Gas flows preferentially through the proppant because of its high permeability, avoiding the formation and displacement of a miscible front along the rock matrix to mobilize the oil. Instead, the gas surrounding the reservoir-core sample vaporizes the light and intermediate components from the crude oil, making recovery a function of the fraction of oil that can be vaporized into the volume of gas in the fracture at the prevailing thermodynamic conditions. The mass transfer between the injected gas and the crude oil is sufficiently fast to result in significant oil production during the first 24 hours, but slow enough to cause the formation of a compositional gradient within the matrix that exists even 6 days after injection has started. The peripheral and the slow-kinetics aspects of the recovery mechanism are a consequence of the low fluid-transport capacity associated with the organic-rich shale that is saturated with liquid hydrocarbons.

Our results show CO2 overperforms nitrogen as an EOR injection gas in organic-rich shale, and higher injection pressure leads to higher oil recovery, even beyond the MMP. The gas-injection scheme should allow enough time for the mass transfer to occur between the injected gas and the crude oil; we achieved this in the laboratory with a huff ’n’ puff scheme. Our results advance the understanding of gas injection for EOR in organic-rich shale in a laboratory scale, but additional work is required to rigorously scale up these observations to better design field applications.
Adenovirus Expressing the Myostatin-Somatostatin-fusing Gene Increases Mouse Growth Rate
Authors: Xu Gaoxiao , Zhang Ning , Liu Siying , Wei Tingting , Chen Xingfa , Yu Dongling , Wang Xinglong
Published: November 2020

BackgroundMyostatin (MSTN), a type of transforming growth factor, can negatively regulate skeletal muscle growth. Immunisation of mice with recombinant yeast expressing MSTN increased bodyweight and muscle composition of them. Somatostatin (SST) is an inhibitory effector of growth hormone (GH), and active immunisation against SST with a DNA vaccine improves the growth performance of piglets via an influence on GH secretion. Here, a recombinant adenovirus was constructed and used to deliver MSTN-SST to mice to achieve the goal of regulation the growth performance of the mice. ResultsA recombinant adenovirus, rAd-MSTN-SST, expressing the MSTN-SST fusing protein was successfully rescued in HEK293A cells. The expressions of MSTN-SST were confirmed by western blotting and indirect immunofluorescence. Mice immunised with rAd-MSTN-SST were successfully induced to have an immune response against MSTN-SST, which increased their growth rate and muscle mass. In addition, a booster immunisation was beneficial in terms of higher antibody response and mouse growth rate. ConclusionsFusing protein MSTN-SST is a good candidate for regulating animal growth rate and muscle mass. Adenovirus can be used as a vector for delivering MSTN and SST to animals.
The Use of Hysteroscopic Metroplasty With Diode Laser to Increase Endometrial Volume in Women With Septate Uterus: Preliminary Results
Authors: Nappi Luigi , Falagario Maddalena , Angioni Stefano , Feo Vincenzo De , Bollino Michele , Sorrentino Felice
Published: November 2020

Background Septate uterus is a common Mullerian ducts anomaly. The aim of our study was the evaluation of the efficacy of hysteroscopic metroplasty with diode laser to increase endometrial volume in women with septate uterus.Results We prospectively enrolled 10 consecutive patients with septate uterus who underwent office hysteroscopic metroplasty with diode laser between february 2019 and november 2019. Endometrial volume was evaluated before and 3 months after surgery using 3D transvaginal ultrasound. The surgical procedure was uncomplicated in all patients, the endometrial volume increased at 3 months follow up and there was a complete removal of septum with no intrauterine synechiae at follow up hysteroscopy. Conclusions Office hysteroscopic metroplasty with diode laser is a safe procedure and has preliminary showed to increase endometrial volume.
Analysis of multi-omics differences in left-side and right-side colon cancer
Authors: Huang Yanyi , Duanmu Jinzhong , Liu Yushu , Yan Mengyun , Li Taiyuan , Jiang Qunguang
Published: November 2020

Background:Colon cancer is one of the common tumors of digestive tract. Studies of left-side colon cancer(LCC) and right-side colon cancer(RCC) show that these two subtypes had different prognosis, outcomes, and clinical response to chemotherapy. Therefore,it is necessary to explore the necessity of clinical classification of anatomic subtypes about colon cancer.Methods:We selected the transcriptome data, clinical information and somatic mutation data of colon cancer patients from the the Cancer Genome Atlas(TCGA )database portal.The transcriptome data included 390 colon cancer patients(172 LCC samples and 218 RCC samples),and the somatic mutation data included 142 LCC samples and 187 RCC samples.By conducting a multi-omics analysis of the LCC and RCC from the four aspects of clinical characteristics, immune microenvironment , transcriptomic differences and mutation differences, so as to compare the expression and prognosis difference of LCC and RCC.We are the first to construct prognostic signatures respectively for LCC and RCC respectively.The prognostic signatures is validated by internal testing set, complete set and external testing set(GSE39582).Additionally we also verified the independent prognostic value of the signature.Results:Clinical characteristics analysis results show that RCC had a significantly worse prognosis than LCC.Analysis the immune microenvironment analysis shows that RCC was more immune infiltration than LCC.The results of differential gene analysis showed that there were 360 differential expressed genes,with 142 up genes in LCC and 218 up genes in RCC.Correlation analysis of mutated genes showed that the expression of mutated genes in RCC was negatively correlated, while the expression of mutated genes in LCC was positively correlated, and the mutation frequency of RCC was generally higher than that of LCC.Meanwhile, our 4-mRNA LCC and 6-mRNA RCC prognostic signatures are highly predictive and can be used as independent prognostic factors.Conclusion:The clinical classification of anatomic subtypes of colon cancer is of great significance for its early diagnosis and prognostic risk assessment.Our study provides directions for individualized treatment of left and right colon cancer.
Temporal Trends in the Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome among Middle-aged and Elderly adults from 2011 to 2015 in China: The China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS)
Authors: Liu Bo , Chen Guanqun , Zhao Ruijie , Huang Dan , Tao Lixin
Published: November 2020

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. The objective of the study was to evaluate the updated prevalence of MetS and provide a comprehensive illustration of the possible temporal changes in MetS prevalence in China from 2011 to 2015.Methods: The data for this study are from the 2011 and 2015 waves of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). CHARLS is a nationally representative survey targeting populations aged 45 and above from 28 provinces in mainland China. A total of 11847 and 13013 participants were eligible for data analysis at the two time points.Results: The estimated prevalence of MetS in 2015 was 20.41% (95% CI: 19.02%-21.8%) by the ATP III criteria, 34.77% (95% CI: 33.12%-36.42%) by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) criteria, 39.68% (95% CI: 37.88%-41.47%) by the revised ATP III criteria, and 25.55% (95% CI: 24.19%-26.91%) by the Chinese Diabetes Society (CDS) criteria. The prevalence was higher among women and elderly adults and in urban and northern populations. Furthermore, the trends in the prevalence decreased significantly between 2011 and 2015 by the ATP III, revised ATP III and CDS criteria. However, trends increased significantly from 2011 to 2015 by the IDF criteria.Conclusions: In China, elderly women living in northern urban areas should receive more attention. Notably, temporal changes in the prevalence of MetS varied somewhat according to different criteria.
Feasibility of Population-Based Input Function for Kinetic Modeling of [11C]-DPA-713
Authors: Akerele Mercy Iyabode , Zein Sara , Pandya Sneha , Nikolopoulou Anastasia , Gauthier Susan A. , Raj Ashish , Henchcliffe Claire , Mozley P. David , Karakatsanis Nicolas A. , Gupta Ajay , Babich John , Nehmeh Sadek A.
Published: November 2020

Introduction: Quantitative positron emission tomography (PET) studies of neurodegenerative diseases typically require the measurement of arterial input functions (AIF), an invasive and risky procedure. This study aims to assess the reproducibility of [ 11 C]DPA-713 PET kinetic analysis using population-based input function (PBIF). The final goal is to possibly eliminate the need for AIF. Materials and Methods: Eighteen subjects including six healthy controls (HC) and twelve Parkinson disease (PD) subjects from two [ 11 C]-DPA-713 PET studies were included. Each subject underwent 90 minutes of dynamic PET imaging. Five healthy subjects underwent a test-retest scan within the same day to assess the repeatability of the kinetic parameters. Kinetic modeling was carried out using the Logan total volume of distribution (VT) model. For each data set, kinetic analysis was performed using a patient specific AIF (PSAIF, ground-truth standard), and then repeated using the PBIF. PBIF was generated using the leave-one-out method for each subject from the remaining 17 subjects, and after normalizing the PSAIFs by 3 techniques: (a) Weight subject ×Dose Injected (b) Area Under AIF Curve (AUC), and (c) Weight subject ×AUC. The variability in the total distribution volume (V T ) measured with PSAIF, in the test/retest study were determined for selected brain regions (white matter, cerebellum, thalamus, caudate, putamen, pallidum, brainstem, hippocampus and amygdala) using the Bland-Altman analysis, and for each of the 3 normalization techniques. Similarly, for all subjects, the variabilities due to the use of PBIF were assessed. Results: Bland-Altman analysis showed systematic bias between test and retest studies, which was reduced after normalizing the V T estimate by the corresponding gray matter value. The corresponding mean bias and 95% limits of agreement (LOA) for the studied brain regions were 30% and 5%; ±70% and ±20% without and with gray matter normalization respectively. Comparing PBIF- and PSAIF-based VT estimate for all subjects and all brain regions, normalization by Weight subject ×AUC yielded the smallest 95% LOA among the three normalization techniques (±12%, ±13% and ±10% for Weight subject ×Dose Injected , AUC and Weight subject ×AUC respectively). Conclusions: The variability in VT is within that obtained for the test-retest studies. Therefore, VT assessed using PBIF-based kinetic modeling is clinically feasible, and can be an alternative to PSAIF.
Age-specific associations of serum TSH levels with markers of body composition in two population-based studies
Authors: Ittermann Till , Markus Marcello , Bahls Martin , Felix Stephan , Steveling Antje , Nauck Matthias , Völzke Henry , Dörr Marcus
Published: November 2020

Previous studies on the association between thyroid function and body composition are conflicting and showed strong differences across age groups. Our aim was to clarify age-specific associations of serum thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels with markers of body composition including body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, fat mass (FM), fat-free mass (FFM) and body cell mass (BCM). We used data from two independent population-based cohorts within the framework of the Study of Health in Pomerania (SHIP). The study population included 5,656 individuals aged 20 to 90 years. Markers of body composition were measured by bioelectrical impedance analysis. Serum TSH levels were significantly positively associated with BMI (β=0.16; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.06 to 0.27), waist circumference (β=0.35; 95% CI: 0.08 to 0.62) and FM (β=0.32; 95% CI: 0.12 to 0.52), but not with FFM an BCM. Interaction analysis revealed positive associations of serum TSH levels with BMI, waist circumference, FM, FFM and BCM in individuals older than 60 years, while no such associations were observed in younger individuals. We demonstrated that lower serum TSH levels were accompanied with lower values of BMI, waist circumference, FM, FFM, and BCM in the elderly, while no such associations were observed in younger individuals.
Oxidative Stress Response in Regulatory and Conventional T Cells: A Comparison Between Patients with Chronic Coronary Syndrome and Healthy Subjects
Authors: Lundberg Anna K , Chung Rosanna WS , Zeijlon Louise , Fernström Gustav , Jonasson Lena
Published: November 2020

BackgroundInflammation and oxidative stress form a vicious circle in atherosclerosis. Oxidative stress can have detrimental effects on T cells. A unique subset of CD4+ T cells, known as regulatory T (Treg) cells, has been associated with atheroprotective effects. Reduced numbers of Treg cells is a consistent finding in patients with chronic coronary syndrome (CCS). However, it is unclear to what extent these cells are sensitive to oxidative stress. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that oxidative stress might be a potential contributor to the Treg cell deficit in CCS patients. MethodsThirty patients with CCS and 24 healthy controls were included. Treg (CD4+CD25+CD127-) and conventional T (CD4+CD25-, Tconv) cells were isolated and treated with increasing doses of H2O2. Intracellular ROS levels and cell death were measured after 2 and 18 h, respectively. The expression of antioxidant genes was measured in freshly isolated Treg and Tconv cells. Alxo, total antioxidant capacity (TAC) was measured in fresh peripheral blood mononuclear cells. ResultsAt all doses of H2O2, Treg cells accumulated more ROS and exhibited higher rates of death than their Tconv counterparts, p < 0.0001. Treg cells also expressed higher levels of antioxidant genes, including thioredoxin and thioredoxin reductase-1 (p < 0.0001), though without any differences between CCS patients and controls. Tconv cells from CCS patients were, on the other hand, more sensitive to oxidative stress ex vivo and expressed more thioredoxin reductase-1 than Tconv cells from controls, p < 0.05. Also, TAC levels were lower in patients, 0.97 vs 1.53 UAE/100 µg, p = 0.001. ConclusionTreg cells isolated from either CCS patients or healthy controls were all highly sensitive to oxidative stress ex vivo. There were however signs of oxidant-antioxidant imbalance in CCS patients and we thus assume that oxidative stress plays a role in the reduction of Treg cells in vivo.