bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Cold intolerance and associated factors: a population study
Authors: Khabbazi Alireza , Farzaneh Rojin , Mahmoudi Maryam , Shahi Mohammad , Jabbaripour Sarmadian Amirreza , Babapour Elaheh , Alizadeh Leila , Khabbazi Raha , Nouri-Vaskeh Masoud
Published: October 2022

Cold intolerance has been defined as a set of symptoms including pain, tingling, numbness, chills, stiffness, weakness, swelling or skin color changes on exposure to cold. Cold intolerance may have a profound effect on health-related quality of life. In this cross-sectional study, we investigated primarily the prevalence of cold intolerance and secondly associated factors in the general population of Tabriz. Simple random sampling of individuals aged ≥ 18 was performed from the population covered by Emamieh health center under the supervision of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences. A telephone interview was conducted with the participants by the general physician of that center. In participants with a positive response to each of two questions “I am oversensitive to cold” and “I experience pain or discomfort when exposed to cold” a Cold Intolerance Symptom Severity (CISS) questionnaire was filled. We used a cut off value 50 for defining cold intolerance. Of the 353 person who received telephone calls, 322 answered questions. Cold related symptoms and cold intolerance were reported in 144 (44.7%) and 38 (11.1%) persons, respectively. Cold intolerance was significantly more common in females and people with comorbidities. Cold intolerance led to a decrease in quality of job in 27 (8.4%) and a change in job in 6 (1.9%) persons. In conclusion, cold intolerance is a common problem in the general population of Tabriz.
Establishment of the diagnostic and prognostic nomograms for pancreatic cancer with bone metastasis
Authors: Liu Zongtai , Liu Haiyan , Wang Dalin
Published: October 2022

Bone metastasis (BM) is rare in patients with pancreatic cancer (PC), but often neglected at the initial diagnosis and treatment. Bone metastasis is associated with a worse prognosis. This study was aimed to perform a large data analysis to determine the predictors and prognostic factors of BM in PC patients and to develop two nomograms to quantify the risks of BM and the prognosis of PC patients with BM. In the present study, we reviewed and collected the data of patients who were diagnosed as PC from 2010 to 2015 in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used together to screen and validate the risk factors for BM in PC patients. The independent prognostic factors for PC patients with BM were identified by Cox regression analysis. Finally, two nomograms were established via calibration curves, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, and decision curve analysis (DCA). This study included 16,474 PC patients from the SEER database, and 226 of them were diagnosed with BM. The risk factors of BM for PC patients covered age, grade, T stage, N stage, tumor size, and primary site. The independent prognostic factors for PC patients with BM included age, race, grade, surgery, and lung metastasis. The AUC of the diagnostic nomogram was 0.728 in the training set and 0.690 in the testing set. In the prognostic nomogram, the AUC values of 6/12/18 month were 0.781/0.833/0.849 in the training set and 0.738/0.781/0.772 in the testing set. The calibration curve and DCA furtherly indicated the satisfactory clinical consistency of the nomograms. These nomograms could be accurate and personalized tools to predict the incidence of BM in PC patients and the prognosis of PC patients with BM. The nomograms can help clinicians make more personalized and effective treatment choices.
Applicability of DRIS in bananas based on the accuracy of nutritional diagnoses for nitrogen and potassium
Authors: Villaseñor-Ortiz Diego , de Mello Prado Renato , Pereira da Silva Gilmara , Lata-Tenesaca Luis Felipe
Published: October 2022

DRIS (Diagnosis Recommendation Integrated System) is a tool used in the interpretation of leaf analyses that values the balance of nutrients, an important fact for a better assessment of the nutritional status of banana plants. Its usefulness depends on the ability to identify the nutrients that limit productivity in order to correct possible nutritional imbalances, but there is a lack of research in all crops, including bananas, to assess the accuracy of these diagnoses, which have a worrying global implication. To this end, this study evaluates DRIS norms for banana cultivation in Ecuador and the use of accuracy measurements for nutritional diagnosis, verifying the capacity of DRIS to detect true nutritional status based on plant response. The database created here contains 233 results referring to productivity and leaf contents of N, P, K, Ca, Mg, S, Cl, Fe, Mn, Cu, B, and Zn for banana trees in 2018, 2019, and 2020. Then, a field experiment evaluated doses of nitrogen and potassium and the accuracy of DRIS norms for N and K. The results show that the DRIS of banana produced in Ecuador depends on the nutrient being variable according to the crop nutritional status. The DRIS norms for diagnosis of N and K result in an acceptable accuracy to identify only deficiencies and toxicities, respectively, indicating the need for adjustments in these standards for later use in the field. Thus, there is a need for more research aiming to adopt calibrated DRIS diagnostic norms to assess the nutritional status of bananas in Ecuador.
East Asian heatwaves driven by Arctic-Siberian warming
Authors: Kim Jeong-Hun , Kim Seong-Joong , Kim Joo-Hong , Hayashi Michiya , Kim Maeng-Ki
Published: October 2022

This study investigates the contributing factors of East Asian heatwaves (EAHWs) linked to the Arctic-Siberian Plain (ASP) over the past 42 years (1979–2020). EAHWs are mainly affected by two time scales of variabilities: long-term externally forced and interannual variabilities. The externally forced EAHWs are attributed to the increasing global warming trend, while their interannual variability is related to the circumglobal teleconnection (CGT) and the ASP teleconnection patterns. In addition to the CGT, the Rossby wave energy originating from the ASP propagates to East Asia through the upper troposphere, amplifying the EAHWs. The stationary high pressure in the ASP is generated by vorticity advection in the upper troposphere. Enhanced surface radiative heating and evaporation on the ASP surface increase the specific humidity and temperature, amplifying the thermal high pressure via positive water vapor feedback. Thermal high-pressure amplified by land–atmosphere interactions in the ASP during the peak summer season leads to EAHWs by the propagation of stationary Rossby wave energy. The results indicate that our enhanced understanding of the ASP teleconnection can improve forecasting of the EAHWs not only on a sub-seasonal time scale but also in future projections of global climate models.
Cross-sectional study of cholinergic urticaria subtypes and bronchial hyperresponsiveness
Authors: Katsurada Naoko , Nagano Tatsuya , Yamamoto Masatsugu , Kiriu Tatsunori , Dokuni Ryota , Kamiryo Hiroshi , Yoshioka Ai , Fukunaga Atsushi , Nishigori Chikako , Nishimura Yoshihiro , Kobayashi Kazuyuki
Published: October 2022

Cholinergic urticaria (CholU) is classified into several subtypes: (1) conventional sweat allergy-type CholU (conventional SAT-CholU), (2) CholU with palpebral angioedema (CholU-PA), 3) CholU with acquired anhidrosis and/or hypohidrosis (CholU-Anhd); 1) and 2) include SAT based on pathogenesis. There have been no studies on differences in the prevalence of bronchial asthma among the subtypes. We analyzed bronchial responsiveness using the methacholine dose indicator Dmin, respiratory symptoms, and exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO). Median log10 Dmin (interquartile range) of patients with conventional SAT-CholU (n = 11), CholU-PA (n = 11), and CholU-Anhd (n = 11) was 0.381 (− 0.829, 1.079), 0.717 (0.249, 0.787), and 1.318 (0.121, 1.699), respectively (p = 0.516). Respiratory symptoms were less frequently observed in CholU-Anhd than in conventional SAT-CholU or CholU-PA. FeNO of patients with conventional SAT-CholU, CholU-PA, and CholU-Anhd was 23 (18.5, 65.0), 39 (32.0, 59.5), and 25 (19.0, 33.0) ppb, respectively (p = 0.237). Nine% of conventional SAT-CholU patients and more than half of CholU-PA patients required treatment for asthma. Log Dmin tended to be lower in patients with SAT-CholU than in those with CholU-Anhd. CholU-PA might be associated with asthma.
Educational quality may be a closer correlate of cardiometabolic health than educational attainment
Authors: Cundiff Jenny M. , Lin Shayne S.-H. , Faulk Robert D. , McDonough Ian M.
Published: October 2022

Educational quality may be a closer correlate of physical health than more commonly used measures of educational attainment (e.g., years in school). We examined whether a widely-used performance-based measure of educational quality is more closely associated with cardiometabolic health than educational attainment (highest level of education completed), and whether perceived control (smaller sample only), executive functioning (both samples), and health literacy (smaller sample only) link educational quality to cardiometabolic health. In two samples (N = 98 and N = 586) collected from different regions of the US, educational quality was associated with cardiometabolic health above and beyond educational attainment, other demographic factors (age, ethnoracial category, sex), and fluid intelligence. Counter to expectations, neither perceived control, executive function, nor health literacy significantly mediated the association between educational quality and cardiometabolic health. Findings add to the growing literature suggesting that current operationalizations of the construct of education likely underestimate the association between education and multiple forms of health. To the extent that educational programs may have been overlooked based on the apparent size of associations with outcomes, such actions may have been premature.
A hybrid numerical/machine learning model development to improve the bimetal performance in the electric circuit breakers
Authors: Mallah Abdul Rahman , Aljuraid Nawaf , Alawi Omer A. , Yaseen Zaher Mundher , Singh Kamaljeet , Ataki Adel
Published: October 2022

Bimetals are widely used as a thermal tripping mechanism inside the miniature circuit breakers (MCBs) products when an overload current passes through the circuit for a certain period. Experimental, numerical, and, recently artificial intelligence methods are widely used in designing electric components. However, developing the bimetal for MCB products somewhat differs from developing other conductor items since they are strongly related to the electrical, mechanical, and thermal performance of the MCB. The conventional experimental and numerical approaches are time-consuming processes that cannot be easily utilized in optimizing the product's performance within the development lead time. In this study, a simple, fast, robust, and accurate novel methodology has been introduced to predict the temperature rise of the bimetal and other related performance characteristics. The numerical model has been built on the time-based finite difference method to frame the theoretical thermal model of the bimetal. Then, the numerical model has been consolidated by the machine learning (ML) model to take advantage of the experiments to provide an accurate, fast and reliable model finally. The novel model agrees well with the experimental tests, where the maximum error does not exceed 8%. The model has been used to redesign the bimetal of a 32 A MCB product and significantly reduce the maximum temperature by 24 °C. The novel model is promising since it considerably reduces the required design time, provides accurate predictions, and helps to optimize the performance of the circuit breaker products.
Dementia and risk of visual impairment in Chinese older adults
Authors: Kwok Charlotte P. C. , Kwok Jessie O. T. , Yan Rachel W. K. , Lee Kaspar K. W. , Richards Marcus , Chan Wai C. , Chiu Helen F. K. , Lee Ruby S. Y. , Lam Linda C. W. , Lee Allen T. C.
Published: October 2022

We had previously identified visual impairment increasing risk of incident dementia. While a bi-directional vision-cognition association has subsequently been proposed, no study has specifically examined the longitudinal association between dementia and incidence of clinically defined visual impairment. In this territory-wide community cohort study of 10,806 visually unimpaired older adults, we examined their visual acuity annually for 6 years and tested if dementia at baseline was independently associated with higher risk of incident visual impairment (LogMAR ≥ 0.50 in the better eye despite best correction, which is equivalent to moderate visual impairment according to the World Health Organization definition). By the end of Year 6, a total of 3151 (29.2%) participants developed visual impairment. However, we did not find baseline dementia associating with higher risk of incident visual impairment, after controlling for baseline visual acuity, cataract, glaucoma, diabetes, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, heart diseases, stroke, Parkinson’s disease, depression, hearing and physical impairments, physical, intellectual and social activities, diet, smoking, age, sex, educational level, and socioeconomic status. Among different covariables, baseline visual acuity appears to be more important than dementia in contributing to the development of visual impairment. Our present findings highlight the need for re-evaluating whether dementia is indeed a risk factor for visual impairment.
Identifying accurate link predictors based on assortativity of complex networks
Authors: Al Musawi Ahmad F. , Roy Satyaki , Ghosh Preetam
Published: October 2022

Link prediction algorithms in complex networks, such as social networks, biological networks, drug-drug interactions, communication networks, and so on, assign scores to predict potential links between two nodes. Link prediction (LP) enables researchers to learn unknown, new as well as future interactions among the entities being modeled in the complex networks. In addition to measures like degree distribution, clustering coefficient, centrality, etc., another metric to characterize structural properties is network assortativity which measures the tendency of nodes to connect with similar nodes. In this paper, we explore metrics that effectively predict the links based on the assortativity profiles of the complex networks. To this end, we first propose an approach that generates networks of varying assortativity levels and utilize three sets of link prediction models combining the similarity of neighborhoods and preferential attachment. We carry out experiments to study the LP accuracy (measured in terms of area under the precision-recall curve) of the link predictors individually and in combination with other baseline measures. Our analysis shows that link prediction models that explore a large neighborhood around nodes of interest, such as CH2-L2 and CH2-L3, perform consistently for assortative as well as disassortative networks. While common neighbor-based local measures are effective for assortative networks, our proposed combination of common neighbors with node degree is a good choice for the LP metric in disassortative networks. We discuss how this analysis helps achieve the best-parameterized combination of link prediction models and its significance in the context of link prediction from incomplete social and biological network data.
Climate change and species facilitation affect the recruitment of macroalgal marine forests
Authors: Monserrat Margalida , Comeau Steeve , Verdura Jana , Alliouane Samir , Spennato Guillaume , Priouzeau Fabrice , Romero Gilbers , Mangialajo Luisa
Published: October 2022

Marine forests are shrinking globally due to several anthropogenic impacts including climate change. Forest-forming macroalgae, such asCystoseiras.l.species, can be particularly sensitive to environmental conditions (e.g. temperature increase, pollution or sedimentation), especially during early life stages. However, not much is known about their response to the interactive effects of ocean warming (OW) and acidification (OA). These drivers can also affect the performance and survival of crustose coralline algae, which are associated understory species likely playing a role in the recruitment of later successional species such as forest-forming macroalgae. We tested the interactive effects of elevated temperature, low pH and species facilitation on the recruitment ofCystoseira compressa. We demonstrate that the interactive effects of OW and OA negatively affect the recruitment ofC. compressaand its associated coralline algaeNeogoniolithon brassica-florida. The density of recruits was lower under the combinations OW and OA, while the size was negatively affected by the temperature increase but positively affected by the low pH. The results from this study show that the interactive effects of climate change and the presence of crustose coralline algae can have a negative impact on the recruitment ofCystoseiras.l.species. While new restoration techniques recently opened the door to marine forest restoration, our results show that the interactions of multiple drivers and species interactions have to be considered to achieve long-term population sustainability.
Cardiopulmonary work up of patients with and without fatigue 6 months after COVID-19
Authors: Thiele Kirsten , Balfanz Paul , Müller Tobias , Hartmann Bojan , Spiesshoefer Jens , Grebe Julian , Müller-Wieland Dirk , Marx Nikolaus , Dreher Michael , Daher Ayham
Published: October 2022

The pathogenesis of long-Covid symptoms remains incompletely understood. Therefore, we aimed to determine cardiopulmonary limitations 6 months after surviving COVID-19 using pulmonary function tests, echocardiographic studies to the point of analysis of global-longitudinal-strain (GLS), which describes the cycling myocardium deformation and provides better data on left ventricular (LV) dysfunction than LV ejection fraction (LVEF), and validated questionnaires. Overall, 60 consecutive hospitalized patients were included (61 ± 2 years, 40% treated in the ICU). At follow-up (194 ± 3 days after discharge), fatigue was the most prevalent symptom (28%). Patients with fatigue were more symptomatic overall and characterized by worse quality of life (QoL) scores compared to patients without fatigue (all p < 0.05), mainly due to limited mobility and high symptom burden. While PFT variables and LVEF were normal in the vast majority of patients (LVEF = 52% (45–52%)), GLS was significantly reduced (− 15% (− 18 to − 14%)). However, GLS values were not different between patients with and without fatigue. In conclusion, fatigue was the most prevalent long-Covid symptom in our cohort, which was associated with worse QoL mainly due to limited mobility and the high burden of concomitant symptoms. Patients showed a subtle myocardial dysfunction 6 months after surviving COVID-19, but this did not relate to the presence of fatigue.
Highly efficient, perfect, large angular and ultrawideband solar energy absorber for UV to MIR range
Authors: Patel Shobhit K. , Udayakumar Arun Kumar , Mahendran G. , Vasudevan B. , Surve Jaymit , Parmar Juveriya
Published: October 2022

Although different materials and designs have been tried in search of the ideal as well as ultra-wideband light absorber, achieving ultra-broadband and robust unpolarized light absorption over a wide angular range has proven to be a major issue. Light-field regulation capabilities provided by optical metamaterials are a potential new technique for perfect absorbers. It is our goal to design and demonstrate an ultra-wideband solar absorber for the ultraviolet to a mid-infrared region that has an absorptivity of TE/TM light of 96.2% on average. In the visible, NIR, and MIR bands of the solar spectrum, the absorbed energy is determined to be over 97.9%, above 96.1%, and over 95%, respectively under solar radiation according to the Air Mass Index 1.5 (AM1.5) spectrum investigation. In order to achieve this wideband absorption, the TiN material ground layer is followed by the SiO2 layer, and on top of that, a Cr layer with patterned Ti-based resonators of circular and rectangular multiple patterns. More applications in integrated optoelectronic devices could benefit from the ideal solar absorber's strong absorption, large angular responses, and scalable construction.
Research on equivalent thermal network modeling for rare-earth giant magnetostrictive transducer
Authors: Zhang Zhihe , Yang Xin , Chen Yukai
Published: October 2022

Of crucial importance for giant magnetostrictive transducers (GMTs) design is to quickly and accurately analysis the temperature distribution. With the advantages of low calculation cost and high accuracy, thermal network modelling has been developed for thermal analysis of GMT. However, the existing thermal models have their limits to describe these complicated thermal behaviors in the GMTs: most of researches focused on steady-state which is incapable of capturing temperature variances;  the temperature distribution of giant magnetostrictive (GMM) rods is generally assumed to be uniform whereas the temperature gradient on the GMM rod is remarkable due to its poor thermal conductivity;  the non-uniform distribution of GMM’s losses is seldom introduced into thermal model. Therefore, a transient equivalent thermal network (TETN) model of GMT is established in this paper, considering the aforementioned three aspects. Firstly, based on the structure and working principle of a longitudinal vibration GMT, thermal analysis was carried out. Following this, according to the heat transfer process of GMT, the TETN model was established and the corresponding model parameters were calculated. Finally, the accuracy of the TETN model for the temporal and spatial analysis of the transducer temperature are verified by simulation and experiment.
Patterns of patients with polypharmacy in adult population from Korea
Authors: Shin Woo-young , Go Tae-Hwa , Kang Dae Ryong , Lee Sei Young , Lee Won , Kim Seonah , Lee Jiewon , Kim Jung-ha
Published: October 2022

Polypharmacy and its rising global prevalence is a growing public health burden. Using a large representative nationwide Korean cohort (N = 761,145), we conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study aiming to identify subpopulations of patients with polypharmacy and characterize their unique patterns through cluster analysis. Patients aged ≥ 30 years who were prescribed at least one medication between 2014 and 2018 were included in our study. Six clusters were identified: cluster 1 mostly included patients who were hospitalized for a long time (4.3 ± 5.3 days); cluster 2 consisted of patients with disabilities (100.0%) and had the highest mean number of prescription drugs (7.7 ± 2.8 medications); cluster 3 was a group of low-income patients (99.9%); cluster 4 was a group of high-income patients (80.2%) who frequently (46.4 ± 25.9 days) visited hospitals/clinics (7.3 ± 2.7 places); cluster 5 was mostly elderly (74.9 ± 9.8 years) females (80.3%); and cluster 6 comprised mostly middle-aged (56.4 ± 1.5 years) males (88.6%) (all P < 0.001). Patients in clusters 1–5 had more prescribed medications and outpatient visit days than those in cluster 6 (all P < 0.001). Given limited health care resources, individuals with any of the identified phenotypes may be preferential candidates for participation in intervention programs for optimal medication use.
Estimation of carbon stocks in wood products for private building companies
Authors: Matsumoto Ryoto , Kayo Chihiro , Kita Satoshi , Nakamura Kentaro , Lauk Christian , Funada Ryo
Published: October 2022

Wood products function as carbon storage even after being harvested from forests. This has garnered attention in relevance to climate change countermeasures. In the progress of efforts toward climate change mitigation by private companies, the effective use of wood products has been an important measure. However, the methodology for accounting carbon stocks in wood products for private companies has not been established. Therefore, this study investigated methods for estimating carbon stocks in wood products used in wooden houses built by private enterprises, targeting a major company in the Japanese building industry. The results indicated that both the direct inventory method and flux data method (FDM) were applicable for estimating the carbon stocks. These two methods use data that can be obtained from many other building companies, thus, indicating high versatility. The log-normal, Weibull, normal, and logistic distributions, in descending order, proved to be suitable lifetime functions of wooden houses under the FDM, with a half-life of 66–101 years. It is important to continuously acquire time-series data on the floor areas of both newly built and existing houses and the amount of wood products used to improve the accuracy of estimates and explore future predictions.
Challenges and opportunities associated with the MD Anderson IMPACT2 randomized study in precision oncology
Authors: Vo Henry Hiep , Fu Siqing , Hong David S. , Karp Daniel D. , Piha-Paul Sarina , Subbiah Vivek , Janku Filip , Naing Aung , Yap Timothy A. , Rodon Jordi , Ajani Jaffer A. , Cartwright Carrie , Johnson Amber , Song I-Wen , Beck Jennifer , Kahle Michael , Nogueras-Gonzalez Graciela M. , Miller Vincent , Chao Calvin , Vining David J. , Berry Donald A. , Meric-Bernstam Funda , Tsimberidou Apostolia-Maria
Published: October 2022

We investigated the challenges of conducting IMPACT2, an ongoing randomized study that evaluates molecular testing and targeted therapy (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02152254). Patients with metastatic cancer underwent tumor profiling and were randomized between the two arms when eligibility criteria were met (Part A). In Part B, patients who declined randomization could choose the study arm. In Part A, 69 (21.8%) of 317 patients were randomized; 78.2% were not randomized because of non-targetable alterations (39.8%), unavailability of clinical trial (21.8%), other reasons (12.6%), or availability of US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drugs for the indication (4.1%). In Part B, 32 (20.4%) of 157 patients were offered randomization; 16 accepted and 16 selected their treatment arm; 79.0% were not randomized (patient’s/physician’s choice, 29.3%; treatment selection prior to genomic reports, 16.6%; worsening performance status/death, 12.7%; unavailability of clinical trials, 6.4%; other, 6.4%; non-targetable alterations, 5.7%; or availability of FDA-approved drugs for the indication, 1.9%). In conclusion, although randomized controlled trials have been considered the gold standard for drug development, the execution of randomized trials in precision oncology in the advanced metastatic setting is complicated. We encountered various challenges conducting the IMPACT2 study, a large precision oncology trial in patients with diverse solid tumor types. The adaptive design of IMPACT2 enables patient randomization despite the continual FDA approval of targeted therapies, the evolving tumor biomarker landscape, and the plethora of investigational drugs. Outcomes for randomized patients are awaited.
Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus Probio-M9 extends the lifespan of Caenorhabditis elegans
Authors: Zhang Juntao , Zhao Yanmei , Sun Zhihong , Sun Tiansong
Published: October 2022

Probiotics have been characterized as useful for maintaining the balance of host gut flora and conferring health effects, but few studies have focused on their potential for delaying aging in the host. Here we show thatLacticaseibacillus rhamnosusProbio-M9 (Probio-M9), a healthy breast milk probiotic, enhances the locomotor ability and slows the decline in muscle function of the model organismCaenorhabditis elegans. Live Probio-M9 significantly extends the lifespan ofC. elegansin a dietary restriction-independent manner. By screening various aging-related mutants ofC. elegans, we find that Probio-M9 extends lifespan via p38 cascade anddaf-2signaling pathways, independent ondaf-16but dependent onskn-1. Probio-M9 protects and repairs damaged mitochondria by activating mitochondrial unfolded protein response. The significant increase of amino acids, sphingolipid, galactose and fatty acids in bacterial metabolites might be involved in extending the lifespan ofC. elegans. We reveal that Probio-M9 as a dietary supplementation had the potential to delay aging inC. elegansand also provide new methods and insights for further analyzing probiotics in improving host health and delaying the occurrence of age-related chronic diseases.
Multivalent SnO2 quantum dot-decorated Ti3C2 MXene for highly sensitive electrochemical detection of Sudan I in food
Authors: Mei Lin , Shi Yanmei , Shi Yange , Yan Pengpeng , Lin Chunlei , Sun Yue , Wei Bingjie , Li Jing
Published: October 2022

A new electrochemical sensor was fabricated by SnO2 quantum dot-decorated Ti3C2 MXene for the highly sensitive detection of Sudan I in food. This sensor with good selectivity, precision and accuracy can be used in monitoring illegal food additives.
Current strategies for SARS-CoV-2 molecular detection
Authors: Xie Lei , Li Junlin , Ai Ying , He Haolan , Chen Xiuyun , Yin Mingyu , Li Wanxi , Huang Wenguan , Luo Min-Yi , He Jinyang
Published: October 2022

The molecular detection of SARS-CoV-2 is extremely important for the discovery and prevention of pandemic dissemination.
Synthesis of chiral functionalized UiO-66-NH2@SiO2and use of its domain-limiting effect for separating small enantiomers
Authors: Liu Chunqiang , Quan Kaijun , Li Hui , Shi Xiaofeng , Chen Jia , Qiu Hongdeng
Published: October 2022

UiO-66-DATA@SiO2and UiO-66-DBTA@SiO2were designed and synthesized for the separation of α-amino acid enantiomers and small alkaline enantiomers based on the domain-limiting effect from the micropore structure of MOFs.
Red light induced folding of single polymer chains
Authors: Mohamed Irshadeen Ishrath , Truong Vinh X. , Frisch Hendrik , Barner-Kowollik Christopher
Published: October 2022

We pioneer the photochemical generation of single chain nanoparticles (SCNPs) at the to-date mildest reported wavelength of 625 nm by exploiting the photochemical uncaging of methylene blue protected amines.
Introducing the 1H-Na2S monolayer as a new direct gap semiconductor with feature-rich electronic and magnetic properties
Authors: Nguyen Duy Khanh , Guerrero-Sanchez J. , Hoat D. M.
Published: October 2022

(a) Planar average potential (inset: Bader charge analysis) and (b) electronic localization function (iso-surface value: 0.85) of the Na2S monolayer.
Effect of Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation on the composition of chlorogenic acids and anti-hyperuricemia activity of Artemisia selengensis Turcz
Authors: Wan Yin , Wang Dengxiao , Shen Yuefeng , Chen Yanru , Qian Jin , Fu Guiming
Published: October 2022

FASTE can relieve hyperuricemia by inhibiting the production of uric acid, alleviating oxidative stress damage and inflammation, promoting uric acid excretion and improving the abundance of intestinal flora.
Correction: Multi-enzymatic cascade reactions with Escherichia coli-based modules for synthesizing various bioplastic monomers from fatty acid methyl esters
Authors: Yoo Hee-Wang , Jung Hyunsang , Sarak Sharad , Kim Ye Chan , Park Beom Gi , Kim Byung-Gee , Patil Mahesh D. , Yun Hyungdon
Published: October 2022

Correction for ‘Multi-enzymatic cascade reactions with Escherichia coli-based modules for synthesizing various bioplastic monomers from fatty acid methyl esters’ by Hee-Wang Yoo et al., Green Chem., 2022, 24, 2222–2231, https://doi.org/10.1039/D1GC04532F.
On-surface synthesis of hydroxy-functionalized graphene nanoribbons through deprotection of methylenedioxy groups
Authors: Ohtomo Manabu , Hayashi Hironobu , Shiotari Akitoshi , Kawamura Mayu , Hayashi Ryunosuke , Jippo Hideyuki , Yamaguchi Junichi , Ohfuchi Mari , Aratani Naoki , Sugimoto Yoshiaki , Yamada Hiroko , Sato Shintaro
Published: October 2022

We demonstrate on-surface deprotection of methylenedioxy groups which yielded graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) with edges functionalized by hydroxy groups.
Reply to the ‘Comment on “Real-time atomistic simulation of the Ostwald ripening of TiO2 supported Au nanoparticles”’ by V. P. Zhdanov, Nanoscale, 2022, 14, DOI: 10.1039/D1NR05352C
Authors: Zhu Beien , Qi Rui , Gao Yi
Published: October 2022

Au dimers are the major species on the anatase TiO2(101) surface compared to monomers during sintering.
A dual S-scheme TiO2@In2Se3@Ag3PO4 heterojunction for efficient photocatalytic CO2 reduction
Authors: Feng Hange , Zhang Chaomin , Luo Menghao , Hu Yuechuan , Dong Zibo , Xue Shaolin , Chu Paul K.
Published: October 2022

Electrons with a strong reduction capacity and holes with a high oxidation capacity are retained. CO2 adsorbed on the photocatalyst surface is reduced to CH4, CH3OH and CO by electrons, and H2O is oxidized to O2 by holes.
Autofluorescence spectroscopy for quantitative analysis of cellulose nanocrystals
Authors: Johns Marcus A. , Abu-Namous Jude , Zhao Hongying , Gattrell Michael , Lockhart James , Cranston Emily D.
Published: October 2022

Cluster-triggered emission autofluorescence spectroscopy enables the simultaneous characterisation of multiple cellulose nanocrystal properties without need for chemical addition, nor modification.
Extremely black carbon nanotube materials with three-dimensional networks for highly efficient solar-driven vapor generation
Authors: Zhou Shenglin , Zhang Jiapeng , Wang Chuang , Wu Chen , Zhang Xiangcheng , Yang Zhaohui , Zhang Xiaohua
Published: October 2022

The schematic of SF-CNTA and SF-CNTS for water evaporation.
Systemic maternal inflammation promotes ASD via IL-6 and IFN-γ
Authors: Majerczyk Daniel , Ayad Elizabeth G. , Brewton Kari L. , Saing Pichrasmei , Hart Peter C.
Published: October 2022

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurological disorder that manifests during early development, impacting individuals through their ways of communicating, social behaviors, and their ability to perform day-to-day activities. There have been different proposed mechanisms on how ASD precipitates within a patient, one of which being the impact cytokines have on fetal development once a mother’s immune system has been activated (referred to as maternal immune activation, MIA). The occurrence of ASD has long been associated with elevated levels of several cytokines, including interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interferon gamma (IFN-γ). These proinflammatory cytokines can achieve high systemic levels in response to immune activating pathogens from various extrinsic sources. Transfer of cytokines such as IL-6 across the placental barrier allows accumulation in the fetus, potentially inducing neuroinflammation and consequently altering neurodevelopmental processes. Individuals who have been later diagnosed with ASD have been observed to have elevated levels of IL-6 and other proinflammatory cytokines during gestation. Moreover, the outcome of MIA has been associated with neurological effects such as impaired social interaction and an increase in repetitive behavior in animal models, supporting a mechanistic link between gestational inflammation and development of ASD-like characteristics. The present review attempts to provide a concise overview of the available preclinical and clinical data that suggest cross-talk between IL-6 and IFN-γ through both extrinsic and intrinsic factors as a central mechanism of MIA that may promote the development of ASD.
Effectiveness of Intense Accent Modification Training With Refugees From Burma
Authors: Burda Angela , Squires Lindsey , Krupke David , Arthur Andrew , Bahia Mariana , Bernard Kevin , Easley Matt , English Maggie , Hicks Joslyn , Johnson Valeria , Lancaster Megan , O'Loughlin Elizabeth , Skaar Samantha
Published: October 2022

Purpose:

This pilot research project sought to determine if an intensive accent modification training program that included See the Sound-Visual Phonics and prosodic gestures improved articulation, prosody, and intelligibility measures in refugees from Burma.

Participants:

Four individuals (two men, two women) aged 20–67 participated in this study, and they were recruited from a state organization supporting refugees who have resettled in the United States.

Method:

All participants completed the Proficiency in Oral English Communication (POEC) and Assessment of Intelligibility of Dysarthric Speech (AIDS) to measure pre- and posttraining changes. The duration of this study was 6 weeks and consisted of 1 week of pretesting, 4 weeks of accent modification training, and 1 week of posttesting. Participants attended a total of twelve 50-min accent modification training sessions, including eight individual sessions (twice per week) and four group sessions (once per week), which provided a functional way to practice newly acquired skills in a scripted conversational-type format. Trained and untrained articulation and prosody probes were used to establish baselines and measure change.

Results:

All four participants showed gains across articulation and prosody (in untrained and trained items). On pre- and posttest measures, three of the four participants also made gains on the broad measures of the AIDS and the POEC.

Conclusion:

Findings support that a brief and intensive multimodality accent modification program can be beneficial.
A Critique and Call for Action, in Response to Sexist Commentary About Vocal Fry
Authors: Winn Matthew B. , Tripp Alayo , Munson Benjamin
Published: October 2022

Purpose:

This letter to the editor discusses recommendations and publicity from a recent article by Gallena and Pinto (2021) that appeared in
Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups.
We contextualize the recommendations made by Gallena and Pinto that young women actively suppress their use of vocal fry, a normal part of linguistic and sociolinguistic variation, to make themselves more marketable to employers who discriminate on the basis of vocal fry use. By reviewing research on vocal fry, social evaluation, and linguistic discrimination, we show how this recommendation is fundamentally flawed and how it perpetuates sexist tropes about language use. We argue that this is particularly dismaying when publicized by a journal of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, which aims to promote the universal use of language, in all its forms, as a human right.

Conclusions:

People stigmatize linguistic differences to devalue those who have less power. Vocal fry is not a problem; the problem is absurd sexist judgments against those who use vocal fry. The recommendations made in Gallena and Pinto (2021) and
Perspectives'
publicity about those recommendations both contribute to sexist linguistic discrimination. Rather than recommending that victims of sexism change their behavior to suit the biased views of others, we should use our energy to eradicate the underlying sexism.
Fuzzy logic‐based multi‐mode voltage control strategy for high ratio photovoltaic in a distribution network
Authors: Yang Xiu , Qiu Zhixin , Liu Fang , Jiao Kaidan
Published: October 2022

To solve the problems of voltage crossing, offset and fluctuation caused by the high proportion of distributed photovoltaic (PV) access to the distribution network and reduce the risk of grid operation, proposing a Mamdani fuzzy logic based multi‐mode voltage control strategy for high ratio PV distribution network. Based on the voltage scale value of the grid connection, the control strategy combines multi‐mode operation with fuzzy logic and divides the PV inverter operation into three modes: Overvoltage suppression, undervoltage suppression, and network loss/power factor optimization. The control strategy is designed with different fuzzy controllers for each mode of operation to suit different operating conditions. The fuzzy rules are formulated based on the logical relationship between the inputs and the reactive power output of the inverter, and the reactive power output standardized value of the PV inverter is obtained by the defuzzification process. The simulation results show that the proposed method can alleviate the voltage crossing, voltage drift, and voltage fluctuation problems. Moreover, the voltage crossing and voltage drift are effectively suppressed, and the power factor is improved compared with the reactive power sag control, multi‐mode control, and traditional fuzzy control.
Full‐scale attention network for automated organ segmentation on head and neck CT and MR images
Authors: Zhong Zhiqiang , He Lian , Chen Changxiu , Yang Xingli , Lin Li , Yan Ziye , Tian Mengqiu , Sun Ying , Zhan Yinwei
Published: October 2022

MRI and CT images have been routinely used in clinical practice for treatment planning of the head‐and‐neck (HAN) radiotherapy. Delineating organs‐at‐risk (OAR) is an essential step in radiotherapy, however, it is time‐consuming and prone to inter‐observer variation. The existing automatic segmentation approaches are either limited by image registration or lack of global spatial awareness, thus under‐performed when dealing with segmentation of complex anatomies. Herein, we propose a full‐scale attention network (FSANet) that integrates bi‐side skip connections, full‐scale feature fusion modules (FFM), a feature pyramid fusion and supervision module (FPFSM) to accurately and efficiently delineate OARs in HAN region on CT and MRI scans. Specifically, bi‐side skip connections were adopted to keep small targets in the deep network and to capture semantic features at different scales. The FFM with cascaded attention mechanisms were used to recalibrate the significant channels and salient regions in the feature maps. The FPFSM was used to guide the network to learn the hierarchical representation so as to improve the segmentation robustness. The proposed algorithm was validated on the public benchmark HAN CT dataset and an in‐house MR dataset. Both results show significant improvement compared to state‐of‐the‐art OAR single‐stage segmentation methods for the HAN region.
An evaluation of lane management strategy for CAV priority in mixed traffic
Authors: Wang Zhengwu , Mi Qi , Xiang Jian , Zhang Zhaolei , Tang Jinjun
Published: October 2022

The emergence of connected autonomous vehicles (CAVs) has the potential to dramatically increase road capacity, and the provision of dedicated lanes for CAVs is a common management strategy to ensure that CAVs take appropriate priority over other vehicles. However, existing models of CAV lane management do not perform well at low CAV market penetration rates. Therefore, a novel model is proposed to address this shortcoming in this paper, and qualified human‐driven vehicles (HDVs) are allowed to enter the CAV priority lane when there is a low CAV penetration rate. A theoretical model is proposed to examine the impacts of three managed lane strategies under mixed traffic and then compare three lane management strategies under different CAV penetration rates and traffic demands. The results show that these lane management strategies can improve throughput, reduce travel time, increase speed, and reduce the variance of the distribution of vehicle speeds under different penetration rates and traffic demands.
An on‐body antenna for control of a wireless prosthesis in the 2.45 GHz industrial scientific and medical frequency band
Authors: Proesmans Remko , Deprez Kenneth , Velghe Maarten , Thielens Arno
Published: October 2022

Electronic prostheses require a communication link to other on‐body nodes, for example, for control signal extraction. This link can be made wireless to improve user experience compared to wired solutions. Even though ample on‐body communication techniques have been described for wireless body area networks, in prosthetics, the efficiency of wireless links is often neglected, in particular when radio frequency (RF) antennas are used. This work aims to show the benefit of on‐body RF antenna design for prosthetics, by developing a dedicated antenna for use in a lower arm prosthesis. Additionally, this work tries to fill a gap in literature, where some antennas for dedicated on‐body RF communication are presented, but no antennas specific for communication along the arm exist. To this aim, numerical simulations are performed using a cylindrically layered arm model to design a novel, electrically small, capacitively loaded, meandered, 2.45 GHz monopole antenna. The antenna is fabricated using 3D printed polylactic acid and validated both in a static human arm channel and in a dynamic setting, where the human subject performs various tasks. This antenna outperforms an off‐the‐shelf printed circuit board (PCB) antenna by 18 dB and a rectangular patch antenna by 4 dB in terms of link budget at a separation distance of 20 cm, both in line of sight and non‐LOS path loss experiments. Additionally, while performing four commonplace activities, the average power received increased by 20 dB in an on‐body link established between two of our novel antennas rather than two of the PCB antennas. These results will aid in the development of wireless prostheses used by a growing number of amputees.
A zero‐current‐transition soft‐switching technique for T‐type NPC three‐level inverter
Authors: Yin Jingyuan , Yao Xiuyuan , Li Jinke
Published: October 2022

Based on the commutation property of the T‐type neutral point clamped (T‐NPC) three‐level inverter, a novel zero‐current‐transition (ZCT) soft‐switching topology is proposed. The proposed topology employs only two auxiliary switches and one inductor and capacitor (LC) resonant tank on each phase leg. The commutation process of the soft‐switching technique is analyzed. The results show that all switches on main leg and auxiliary leg can achieve soft commutation without changing pulse width modulation (PWM) strategy. The control family of T‐NPC three‐level ZCT soft‐switching topology are analyzed respectively, and then the resonant tank and timing schemes of different modes are given. Using two auxiliary switches in resonance can produce greater resonance current due to the combination of external excitation sources, which is more conducive to realize the soft‐switching commutation of the main switch. At last, a half bridge prototype of T‐NPC three‐level inverter is built. The influence of equivalent internal resistance of power switches, diode reverse recovery and stray inductance for soft commutation is analyzed. The advantages of ZCT soft‐switching technology is verified.
Echo simulation of non‐spherical ice crystal particles for airborne weather radar
Authors: Li Hai , Feng Kaihong , Guo Minghe
Published: October 2022

Aircrafts encounter ice crystal particles during flight, which can easily cause engines icing or even damage, so the detection of ice crystal particles for airborne weather radar is very important. In view of airborne weather radar ice crystal particle radar echo simulation is still vacant problem, and in order to provide high‐fidelity echo data, an echo simulation method of non‐spherical ice crystal particles for airborne weather radar is proposed in this study. Firstly, the spatial distribution characteristic parameters of ice crystal particles are obtained from the simulating weather scenario with Weather Research and Forecasting model. Secondly, the scattering amplitude matrices of non‐spherical ice crystal particles are received by T‐matrix electromagnetic scattering calculation method. Finally, the echo simulation of non‐spherical ice crystal particles is realised using the meteorological radar equation. The simulation results are in good agreement with the real radar observation data and have validity and reliability.