bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Successful Round Robin Analyses Resulting from the Engineered Residual Stress Implementation Working Group
Authors: Pilarczyk Robert , Actis Ricardo , Cardinal Joseph , Carlson Scott , Harter James , Hodges Joshua , Prost-Domasky Scott , Renaud Guillaume
Published: August 2020

The application of engineered residual stresses (ERSs) on aircraft structure provides an opportunity to significantly extend the total fatigue life of critical components. In order to reach required service life goals within budgetary constraints, the ability to implement ERS into analyses is essential. However, it has been repeatedly demonstrated that in order to properly quantify, apply, and analyze ERSs, sophisticated analytical tools, advanced technical knowledge, and specialized training are required. The ERS implementation (ERSI) working group provides the opportunity for collaborative development of best practices for government, contractors, and engineers supporting the implementation of ERSs into life predictions. The ultimate goal of the working group is to develop a more holistic framework for the implementation of ERS, with validated tools and processes for application to aircraft structures, minimizing expensive test programs, and offering benefits to all stakeholders. The ERSI Fatigue Crack Growth Analysis Method committee has taken the initiative to develop round robin fatigue life predictions for cold expanded holes. An initial round robin effort was completed to quantify the epistemic uncertainties in the prediction of fatigue crack growth, given a fixed set of input data. The results of this round robin are presented, including the variations in the predictions and comparison with test results, as well as lessons learned and best practices.
θ-γ Cross-Frequency Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation over the Trough Impairs Cognitive Control
Authors: Turi Zsolt , Mittner Matthias , Lehr Albert , Bürger Hannah , Antal Andrea , Paulus Walter
Published: August 2020

Cognitive control is a mental process, which underlies adaptive goal-directed decisions. Previous studies have linked cognitive control to electrophysiological fluctuations in the θ band and θ-γ cross-frequency coupling (CFC) arising from the cingulate and frontal cortices. However, to date, the behavioral consequences of different forms of θ-γ CFC remain elusive. Here, we studied the behavioral effects of the θ-γ CFC via transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) designed to stimulate the frontal and cingulate cortices in humans. Using a double-blind, randomized, repeated measures study design, 24 healthy participants were subjected to three active and one control CFC-tACS conditions. In the active conditions, 80-Hz γ tACS was coupled to 4-Hz θ tACS. Specifically, in two of the active conditions, short γ bursts were coupled to the delivered θ cycle to coincide with either its peaks or troughs. In the third active condition, the phase of a θ cycle modulated the amplitude of the γ oscillation. In the fourth, control protocol, 80-Hz tACS was continuously superimposed over the 4-Hz tACS, therefore lacking any phase specificity in the CFC. During the 20 min of stimulation, the participants performed a Go/NoGo monetary reward-based and punishment-based instrumental learning task. A Bayesian hierarchical logistic regression analysis revealed that relative to the control, the peak-coupled tACS had no effects on the behavioral performance, whereas the trough-coupled tACS and, to a lesser extent, amplitude-modulated tACS reduced performance in conflicting trials. Our results suggest that cognitive control depends on the phase specificity of the θ-γ CFC.
Against the Epistemological Primacy of the Hardware: The Brain from Inside Out, Turned Upside Down
Authors: Poeppel David , Adolfi Federico
Published: August 2020

Before he wrote the recent bookThe Brain from Inside Out, the neuroscientist György Buzsáki previewed some of the arguments in a paper written 20 years ago (“The brain-cognitive behavior problem: a retrospective”), now finally published. The principal focus of the paper is the relationship between neuroscience and psychology. The direction in which that research had proceeded, and continues now, is, in his view, fundamentally misguided. Building on the critique, Buzsáki presents arguments for an “inside-out” approach, wherein the study of neurobiological objects has primacy over using psychological concepts to study the brain, and should, in fact, give rise to them. We argue that he is too pessimistic, and actually not quite right, about how the relation between cognition and neuroscience can be studied. Second, we are not in agreement with the normative recommendation of how to proceed: a predominantly brain first, implementation-driven research agenda. Finally, we raise concerns about the philosophical underpinning of the research program he advances. Buzsáki’s perspective merits careful examination, and we suggest that it can be linked in a productive way to ongoing research, aligning his inside-out approach with current work that yields convincing accounts of mind and brain.
Interhemispheric Callosal Projections Sharpen Frequency Tuning and Enforce Response Fidelity in Primary Auditory Cortex
Authors: Slater Bernard J. , Isaacson Jeffry S.
Published: August 2020

Sensory cortical areas receive glutamatergic callosal projections that link information processing between brain hemispheres. In primary auditory cortex (A1), ipsilateral principal cells from a particular tonotopic region project to neurons in matching frequency space of the contralateral cortex. However, the role of interhemispheric projections in shaping cortical responses to sound and frequency tuning in awake animals is unclear. Here, we use translaminar single-unit recordings and optogenetic approaches to probe how callosal inputs modulate spontaneous and tone-evoked activity in A1 of awake mice. Brief activation of callosal inputs drove either short-latency increases or decreases in firing of individual neurons. Across all cortical layers, the majority of responsive regular spiking (RS) cells received short-latency inhibition, whereas fast spiking (FS) cells were almost exclusively excited. Consistent with the callosal-evoked increases in FS cell activityin vivo, brain slice recordings confirmed that parvalbumin (PV)-expressing cells received stronger callosal input than pyramidal cells or other interneuron subtypes. Acutein vivosilencing of the contralateral cortex generally increased spontaneous firing across cortical layers and linearly transformed responses to pure tones via both divisive and additive operations. The net effect was a decrease in signal-to-noise ratio for evoked responses and a broadening of frequency tuning curves. Together, these results suggest that callosal input regulates both the salience and tuning sharpness of tone responses in A1 via PV cell-mediated feedforward inhibition.
Mutator Foci Are Regulated by Developmental Stage, RNA, and the Germline Cell Cycle in Caenorhabditis elegans
Authors: Uebel Celja J , Agbede Dana , Wallis Dylan C , Phillips Carolyn M
Published: August 2020

RNA interference is a crucial gene regulatory mechanism in Caenorhabditis elegans. Phase-separated perinuclear germline compartments called Mutator foci are a key element of RNAi, ensuring robust gene silencing and transgenerational epigenetic inheritance. Despite their importance, Mutator foci regulation is not well understood, and observations of Mutator foci have been largely limited to adult hermaphrodite germlines. Here we reveal that punctate Mutator foci arise in the progenitor germ cells of early embryos and persist throughout all larval stages. They are additionally present throughout the male germline and in the cytoplasm of post-meiotic spermatids, suggestive of a role in paternal epigenetic inheritance. In the adult germline, transcriptional inhibition results in a pachytene-specific loss of Mutator foci, indicating that Mutator foci are partially reliant on RNA for their stability. Finally, we demonstrate that Mutator foci intensity is modulated by the stage of the germline cell cycle and specifically, that Mutator foci are brightest and most robust in the mitotic cells, transition zone, and late pachytene of adult germlines. Thus, our data defines several new factors that modulate Mutator foci morphology which may ultimately have implications for efficacy of RNAi in certain cell stages or environments.
Designing Pathology Curriculum Through Guided Enquiry/Mixed Modalities Case-Based Learning
Authors: Amin Hebat Allah , Abdulmonem Mohamed Alaaeldin , Goda Omar Gamal Ali , Shehata Mohamed Hany K.
Published: August 2020

This article was migrated. The article was not marked as recommended. Background: Implementing case-based learning (CBL) in the Integrated Modular Curriculum has proved a great efficiency in teaching medical students. We aim to develop and validate a customized model of CBL to integrate disciplines while meeting the requirements of our national academic reference standards. Phase I medical students' reflection is presented. Methods: In this retrospective cross-sectional study, we present our experience in introducing CBL in a hybrid mixed model of teaching the pathology course to phase I, first batch (2016-2022) students. The data are collected from feedback questionnaires, the CBL implemented in the teaching of the pathology course is compared to the other implemented methods (didactic lectures, students' presentations, PBL, and skills'labs), in the integrated modules. Also, a focus group has been conducted to receive the students' reflection and suggestions for improvement. Results: Students' satisfaction with CBL was the highest among all the teaching methods of the modules and other learning modalities with a mean of 4.77±0.46. Results were statistically significant (< 0.001). Conclusion: Most of the students declared that the customized CBL model is a convenient tool to be used in the Integrated Modular Curricula. Satisfaction is superior to that of didactic lectures and even other interactive teaching methods.
Apolipoprotein L1-Specific Antibodies Detect Endogenous APOL1 inside the Endoplasmic Reticulum and on the Plasma Membrane of Podocytes
Authors: Scales Suzie J. , Gupta Nidhi , De Mazière Ann M. , Posthuma George , Chiu Cecilia P. , Pierce Andrew A. , Hötzel Kathy , Tao Jianhua , Foreman Oded , Koukos Georgios , Oltrabella Francesca , Klumperman Judith , Lin WeiYu , Peterson Andrew S.
Published: August 2020

Significance Statement

Specific variants of APOL1, G1 and G2, are associated with CKD in the Black population. Overexpression of these variants kills cells, through different proposed mechanisms in different subcellular compartments. The localization of endogenous APOL1 has not been conclusively established because all studies have used antibodies that crossreact with APOL2. Generation and use of APOL1-specific antibodies show that endogenous podocyte APOL1 localizes mainly inside the endoplasmic reticulum, with a few molecules on the cell surface. These findings potentially support the endoplasmic reticulum stress or cell surface cation channel models of cytotoxicity.

Background

APOL1 is found in human kidney podocytes and endothelia. Variants G1 and G2 of the APOL1 gene account for the high frequency of nondiabetic CKD among African Americans. Proposed mechanisms of kidney podocyte cytotoxicity resulting from APOL1 variant overexpression implicate different subcellular compartments. It is unclear where endogenous podocyte APOL1 resides, because previous immunolocalization studies utilized overexpressed protein or commercially available antibodies that crossreact with APOL2. This study describes and distinguishes the locations of both APOLs.

Methods

Immunohistochemistry, confocal and immunoelectron microscopy, and podocyte fractionation localized endogenous and transfected APOL1 using a large panel of novel APOL1-specific mouse and rabbit monoclonal antibodies.

Results

Both endogenous podocyte and transfected APOL1 isoforms vA and vB1 (and a little of isoform vC) localize to the luminal face of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and to the cell surface, but not to mitochondria, endosomes, or lipid droplets. In contrast, APOL2, isoform vB3, and most vC of APOL1 localize to the cytoplasmic face of the ER and are consequently absent from the cell surface. APOL1 knockout podocytes do not stain for APOL1, attesting to the APOL1-specificity of the antibodies. Stable re-transfection of knockout podocytes with inducible APOL1-G0, -G1, and -G2 showed no differences in localization among variants.

Conclusions

APOL1 is found in the ER and plasma membrane, consistent with either the ER stress or surface cation channel models of APOL1-mediated cytotoxicity. The surface localization of APOL1 variants potentially opens new therapeutic targeting avenues.
Mechanisms Regulating Muscle Protein Synthesis in CKD
Authors: Zhang Liping , Chen Qin , Chen Zihong , Wang Ying , Gamboa Jorge L. , Ikizler Talat Alp , Garibotto Giacomo , Mitch William E.
Published: August 2020

Significance Statement

The morbidity and mortality of CKD arise from acceleration of muscle protein degradation and suppression of muscle protein synthesis. Responses such as caspase-3 mediation of apoptosis and activation of the ubiquitin-proteasome system drive CKD-induced proteolysis. However, CKD-induced mechanisms that impair protein synthesis in muscle are less well studied. This investigation reports that CKD-stimulated, chromatin-modifying, nucleolar protein 66 (NO66) suppresses both ribosomal DNA transcription and muscle protein synthesis via a demethylase mechanism. Notably, muscle-specific knockout of NO66 in mice improved muscle protein metabolism despite the presence of CKD. Additionally, NO66 is present in muscle biopsy specimens of patients with CKD or those on hemodialysis. These findings might lead to clinical strategies that counter CKD-induced muscle protein catabolism.

Background

CKD induces loss of muscle proteins partly by suppressing muscle protein synthesis. Muscles of mice with CKD have increased expression of nucleolar protein 66 (NO66), as do muscle biopsy specimens from patients with CKD or those undergoing hemodialysis. Inflammation stimulates NO66 expression and changes in NF-κB mediate the response.

Methods

Subtotal nephrectomy created a mouse model of CKD with BUN >80 mg/dl. Crossing NO66flox/flox with MCK-Cre mice bred muscle-specific NO66 (MCK-NO66) knockout mice. Experiments assessed the effect of removing NO66.

Results

Muscle-specific NO66 knockout in mice blocks CKD-induced loss of muscle mass and improves protein synthesis. NO66 suppression of ribosomal biogenesis via demethylase activity is the mechanism behind these responses. In muscle cells, expression of NO66, but not of demethylase-dead mutant NO66, decreased H3K4me3 and H3K36me3 and suppressed pre-rRNA expression. Knocking out NO66 increased the enrichment of H3K4me3 and H3K36me3 on ribosomal DNA. In primary muscle cells and in muscles of mice without NO66, ribosomal RNA, pre-rRNA, and protein synthesis all increased.

Conclusions

CKD suppresses muscle protein synthesis via epigenetic mechanisms that NO66 mediates. Blocking NO66 could suggest strategies that counter CKD-induced abnormal muscle protein catabolism.
A Perceptual Approach to Aging: Latent Aging
Authors: Özsungur Fahri
Published: August 2020

This study is a review article. Gerontology literature was reviewed and issues of latent aging were systematically formed. According to the results of the study, latent aging consists of perceptual diagnosis, research, adoption, and reactive actions.Reactive actions include the social, psychological and physical effects of latent aging. The social effects of latent aging are the decline of social relations and social isolation. Depression, stress, anxiety, traumas and cognitive decline are among the psychological effects. Chronic musculoskeletal pain, sleep disorders, premature mortality, and suicidal ideation were determined as physical effects. The detection of latent aging is important in the prevention of chronic diseases.It was revealed that latent aging has the following four main processes: perceptual diagnosis and coding, research and comparison, adoption and reactive actions. Furthermore, this aging approach has three significant effects: social, psychological and physical.
Traumatic bilateral posterior hip dislocation in children. A 12 years follow up case report
Authors: Soto-Juárez Ignacio , Martínez-Pérez Ricardo
Published: August 2020

Background. Bilateral traumatic hip dislocation in children is a very rare orthopedic emergency. Few case reports are available in literature.
Clinical case. A 4-year-old male child case with a trivial mechanism of injury is presented. Closed reduction in emergency department was achieved after 24 hours of injury, he was placed on Bucks skin traction for 4 days and during 4 weeks in a spica cast. There was not either clinical sign nor images of early or late complications during follow up until he reached skeletal maturity.
Discussion. Hip dislocation in children is a rare emergency with an incidence of 0.8 cases per million per year, its treatment should not be delayed to minimize late complications such as osteonecrosis, recurrent dislocations, osteoarthritis, neurological lesions, coxa magna and heterotopic ossification. The reported incidence for hip osteonecrosis is 36.4% for late (6 hours) and 8.2% after early (6 hours) reduction. After 12 years of follow up no complication was found although the reduction was made 24 hours later.
Conclusions. After immediate reduction a 4 to 6 weeks immobilization period is an effective treatment. Close monitoring to timely identify and treat any further complication is mandatory.
Gait biometrics in children with cerebral palsy before and after robotic mechanotherapy
Authors: Nikityuk Igor E. , Ikoeva Galina A. , Kononova Elizaveta L. , Solokhina Irina Yu.
Published: August 2020

Background. The improvement in existing methods and the development of new principles for treating children with cerebral palsy necessitates a quantitative assessment of the parameters of motor activity. However, because of the explicit and complex abnormalities in motor skills in patients with severe forms of cerebral palsy, an evaluation of their locomotor function dynamics using instrumental diagnostic methods remains a serious problem.
Aim. This work aimed to study the walking function in patients with cerebral palsy before and after motor rehabilitation using a biomechanical method with biometric sensors.
Materials and methods. We examined 14 patients with cerebral palsy aged 8 to 13 years with III level of restriction of motor activity according to the gross motor function classification system (GMFCS). All patients underwent rehabilitation in the Lokomat robotic simulator for three weeks. The course consisted of 15 sessions of 45 min each. The temporal and dynamic parameters of walking were studied in 14 patients with cerebral palsy before and after a course of locomotor training. The biometry of the step cycle was studied using the STEDIS hardware-software complex, including the Neurosens set of wireless biometric sensors. The temporal characteristics of the step cycle and the force interaction of the lower extremities with the supporting surface during walking were recorded. For comparison, we conducted a biomechanical examination of 18 healthy children of the same age who did not have signs of orthopedic disorders.
Results. Although after a course of mechanotherapy, the indices of the support phases in biometry in children with cerebral palsy did not reach the level of healthy individuals, a physiological tendency to roll foot was observed in the phase of pushing and accelerating the foot. Active braking of the lower limb increased. The studied time parameters showed a relative improvement in the step structure because of the emerging tendency to normalize the ratio of the periods of the double support of the contralateral lower extremities.
Conclusion. Robotic mechanotherapy helps to change the biomechanical pattern of walking of a child with a severe degree of cerebral palsy. An instrumental analysis of walking using wireless biometric sensors allows you to evaluate the results and effectiveness of rehabilitation measures in patients with severe motor impairment objectively.
Othering of Full-Time and Volunteer Women Firefighters in the Canadian Fire Services
Authors: Gouliquer Lynne , Poulin Carmen , McWilliams Jennifer
Published: August 2020

Being discriminated against because of factors such as gender, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, and stature (i.e., height and weight) has been a common experience for women in traditionally men-dominated/identified occupations. Although women’s representation has risen in other men-dominated domains (Hughes 1995), within firefighting their presence remains extremely low in Canada (4.4% [Statistics Canada 2017]). Women firefighters mostly operate in a patriarchal context; they are often ignored, harassed, and treated poorly due to an intersectionality of factors (Paechter 1998). Thus far, most research has taken place in the US, UK, and AUS. In the present Pan-Canadian study, we examined the experiences of volunteer and career women firefighters (N=113). The Psycho-Social Ethnography of the Commonplace methodology (P-SEC [Gouliquer and Poulin 2005]) was used. With this approach, we identified several practices, both formal and informal (e.g., physical and academic standards, gender roles), which resulted in women feeling the effect of the intersection of gender and firefighting. Results indicated that women firefighters experience “Othering” manifesting itself in a variety of ways such as discrimination, hostility, and self-doubt. This paper focuses on Canadia women firefighters and ends with social change and policy recommendations to better their reality.
Meetings or Power Weeks? Boundary Work in a Transnational Police Project
Authors: Åkerström Malin , Wästerfors David , Yakhlef Sophia
Published: August 2020

Meetings are common in contemporary working life, but they are often overlooked in academic studies and sometimes defined as empty or boring by employees. Yet, the meeting society is being reproduced again and again. There seem to be hidden ways to incorporate meetings into today’s working life without arousing critique about pointless activities and deviations from what should really be done. One strategy was illustrated in a study of a transnational police project. Police culture celebrates visible crime fighting, which is associated with action, physical toughness, and capturing criminals. The police officers involved in the project emphasized the need to avoid “a lot of meetings,” but de facto constructed their project as meetings. Nonetheless, the project was declared a success. We analyze this paradox in terms of boundary work concerning meetings; the police officers turned some meetings into “real police work” by discursively and practically removing them from the category of bureaucracy and its associations with formalities, rigidity, and documentation. The most important example is how an “operational action group meeting” was renamed “power weeks,” eradicating the very word “meeting” from the term. This was closely associated with increased informality and multi-tasking during these gatherings.
Ethical Aspects of Social Research: Old Concerns in the Face of New Challenges and Paradoxes. A Reflection from the Field of Biographical Method
Authors: Kaźmierska Kaja
Published: August 2020

The paper deals with the ethical aspects of the research process and contemporary changes in this field, which make the discussion on ethical dilemmas and concerns more dynamic and varied. Although in natural science and social sciences one can find a common ground related to the most general ethical principles. In the article I refer primarily to the social sciences. The article discusses three aspects affecting the dynamics of ethical discussions: the development of research in the field of natural sciences leading to many ethical dilemmas and forcing ethical codification of research proceedings also in the area of social sciences; the increase in sensitivity and social consciousness and not only awareness of research as such (processes of democratization, emphasizing human and animal rights, protection of minority rights, the process of individualization); the dynamics of contemporary social changes resulting from the development of technology, especially the Internet, which has become a global resource of data and their exchange. This forces qualitative researchers to consider the issue of data archiving, their reanalysis, and determining the boundary for creating Big Qualidata from them. The article discusses these three dimensions, with particular emphasis on the last of them, which will be commented on in relation to the specific methodological approach, which is biographical research.
Etude Phytochimique de Senna occidentalis (L.) Link et Cissus quadrangularis (Linn) deux Plantes MÃ©dicinales Gabonaises UtilisÃ©es Contre la Filaire Loa Loa
Authors: Kamsi Leaticia NzÃ© , Mengome Line Edwige , Aboughe-Angone Sophie , Engonga Prospert Edou
Published: August 2020

Objectif : Cette Ã©tude avait pour objectif de valoriser deux plantesmÃ©dicinales utilisÃ©es au Gabon pour traiter la filaire Loa loa. MatÃ©riels etMÃ©thodes : Les poudres des feuilles de Senna occidentalis et des tiges etfeuilles de Cissus quadrangularis ont Ã©tÃ© soumis Ã  une successiondâ€™extractions par des solvants de polaritÃ©s croissantes (cyclohexane,dichloromÃ©thane, mÃ©thanol et lâ€™eau dÃ©minÃ©ralisÃ©e). Un criblagephytochimique qualitatif a Ã©tÃ© effectuÃ© en utilisant la mÃ©thode standard basÃ©esur desrÃ©actions de colorations et/ou de prÃ©cipitations. RÃ©sultats: lesrÃ©sultatsrÃ©vÃ¨lent la prÃ©dominance des sucres totaux, des alcaloÃ¯des, et des phÃ©nols danstous les extraits. Les des tanins cathÃ©chiques, les sucres rÃ©ducteurs, et lesflavonoÃ¯des sur de nombreux extraits testÃ©s. Les tanins galliques et les coumarines sont retrouvÃ©s dans quelques extraits. TrÃ¨s peu de quinones, detriterpÃ¨nes ou stÃ©rols dans les deux plantes. Conclusions : CertainsmÃ©tabolites secondaires ont dÃ©jÃ  prouvÃ© leurs activitÃ©s filaricides. La richesseen composÃ©s chimiques prÃ©sents dans ces plantes mÃ©dicinales Ã©tudiÃ©es,justifierait leur utilisation. Cependant, lâ€™Ã©valuation des activitÃ©s biologiquessur la filariose Ã  Loa loa ainsi que leur toxicitÃ© reste Ã  explorer.
Objective: This study aimed to valorize two medicinal plants usedagainst Loa loa filarial in Gabon. Material and Methods: Powders of leavesof Senna occidentalis and stems and leaves of Cissus quadrangularis wereproposal to successive extractions by solvents with increasing polarities (cyclohexan, dichloromethan, methanol and demineralized water). QualitativePhytochemistry screening was established using the standard color and/orprecipitation reactions. Results: The results reveal the predominance of totalsugar, alkaloids, and phenols in all extracts. Cathechic tannins, reducing sugar,and flavonoids on many extracts were tested. Gallic tannins and coumarins arefound in some extracts. They are very few quinones, triterpenes or sterols inthe two species. Conclusion: Some secondary metabolites have provedfilaricide activities already. The abundance of chemical compounds present inthese medicinal plants would justify their usage. However, the evaluation ofbiological activities on the Loa loa filarial along with toxicity remainsunexplored.
Comparative Study of Nutritional Value of Wheat, Maize, Sorghum, Millet, and Fonio: Some Cereals Commonly Consumed in CÃ´te dâ€™Ivoire
Authors: Jocelyne Robet Emilie , BÃ©hiblo Konan , Ernest Amoikon Kouakou
Published: August 2020

This paper focuses on providing a useful database for the decisionmakers for adequate food security policy. It involves making a comparative study of the nutritional values of wheat, maize, sorghum, millet and fonio, which are the five cereals largely consumed in CÃ´te dâ€™Ivoire. In conducting this study, physicochemical analysis were performed. The results reveal that wheat, maize, sorghum, millet, and fonio have an acidic pH. These cereals contain relatively little amount of water and a large proportion of fibers. Carbohydratesrepresent the highest proportion of the dry matter of the cereals, while maize contains the most important rate. Maize, sorghum, and millet contain more lipids. Wheat, maize, and millet have lower ashes. Wheat and millet contain more proteins. Millet, sorghum, and fonio are the richest cereals in iron. Wheat is rich in calcium but has a lower content of potassium, phosphorus, and Magnesium. Fonio is rich in zinc. Cereals are rich in phytochemical compounds such as phenolic acid, flavonoids, and tannins. It is also important to take into cognizance the presence of antinutritional compounds such as phytates and oxalates. The results show that all the cereals studied represent potential sources of energy in Ivorians food but also has significant sources of fibers and minerals.
Social Mobilization to Reduce Vulnerability to Adverse Impacts of Climate Change in the Niger Delta Region of Nigeria
Authors: Ighedosa Stephena Udinmade
Published: August 2020

The extensive land-water interface (320 kilometres) between the Niger Delta and Atlantic Ocean exposes the coastal and low-lying areas to climaterelated sea-level rise. This is associated with hazardous ecological changes and unsustainable communities, compounded by social injustice, civil strife, conflicts, insecurity, and the overwhelmingly negative overall effects on health by the environmental degradation caused by petroleum oil spillages, extensive gas flaring, and frequent disastrous gas explosions. This paper focuses on reviewing the vulnerability of the Niger-Delta region to the adverse effects of climate change, and it also explored the potentials of social mobilization to change collective behaviour towards reducing the carbon footprints, build public support for low-carbon climate change policies including focus on green economy, promote ecological resilience, and build sustainable communities. In the context of climate change, the goal of social mobilization is the application of science and policy to â€˜turn vulnerability to adverse impacts of climate change to resilienceâ€™. In the Niger Delta region, social mobilization can assist communities, individuals, groups, and organizations to learn, understand the causes and effects of climate change, and turn vulnerability into resilience. This can be achieved through selfreliance and participation in the planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of sustainable mitigation measures and strategies for adaptation to climate change. Social mobilization enables â€˜bottom-upâ€™ informal, genderdiverse, youth-sensitive, organizational and institutional initiatives for â€˜good governanceâ€™, political mobilization against social injustice, and the development of alternative forms of conflict resolution. Efficient social mobilization enables social inclusion of all stakeholders, irrespective ofsocioeconomic status, to participate in the decision-making process, and also builds skills and capacity to lead happy and healthy lives. Federal and state government policies, in the Niger Delta region, must ensure that their political agenda for mitigation measures and strategies for adaptation to climate change adopts social mobilization as an effective tool to turn â€˜vulnerability to resilienceâ€™ through a multi-sectoral, multi-jurisdictional, and multidisciplinary participatory approach.
Effect of Water Stress on the Seedlings Growth of Acacia Tortilis Subsp. Raddiana in Nursery in Sahelian Zone, Niger
Authors: Yandou Ishmael Bio , Rabiou Habou , Soumana Idrissa , Laouali Abdou , Mahamane Ali
Published: August 2020

The characteristic dominance of Acacia tortilis species in the Sahel plays a major ecological and economic role for its populations. However, in recent years, the high pastoral pressure has compromised the natural regeneration of the species and it becomes therefore important to investigate the effect of substrate and water stress on the growth of A. tortilis plants in nurseries. An experimental design made of 72 seedlings divided into 4 treatments with different proportions of substrate and watering was put in place. During the six months study, 3 seedlings were destroyed every month, and growth parameters were measured. These include the height, diameter at the collar, pivot length and diameter, number and length of lateral roots, number of nodes, number of branches, number of leaves and number of spines. Results show that the height, the collar diameter, the pivot diameter, total number of roots, number of lateral roots, number of branches, number of leaves are significantly different among treatments. The substrate containing 1/4 manure and 3/4 sand + watering twice a day recorded the best growth height (112.1Â±4.4 cm); number of branches (39.3Â±24.2); leaf biomass (301.67Â±97.99 g) and total number of roots (34Â±1.7) after 6 months of followup. The average root pivot length of Tr4 treatment seedlings (115.5Â±18.2 cm) is 4 times greater than their average height during the 6-month follow-up. The average root pivot length of Tr4 treatment seedlings is 4 times greater than their average height during the 6-month follow-up. After 3 months in nursery, the substrate containing sand only + watering once a week ensures a good development of the rooting root system to young seedlings, allowing them to better explore soil horizons. Hence, for a reforestation program, the substrate containing sand only + watering once a week is the best suited.
2-Etoksi-6-[(E)-[(2-Hidroksifenil)imino]metil]fenol Türevi Schiff Bazlarının Sentezi ve Teorik Çalışmalar
Authors: Berber Halil , Aydoğdu Erdönmez Ayşe , Uysal Ülkü Dilek
Published: August 2020

2-Etoksi-6-[(E)-[(2-hidroksifenil)imino]metil]fenol türevi Schiff bazları (4-kloro-2-((3-etoksi-2-hidroksibenziliden)amino)fenol; 5S1 ve 2-((3-etoksi-2-hidroksibenziliden)amino)-4-metilfenol); 5S2 bileşikleri sentezlenmiştir. Karekterizasyonu 1H ve 13C NMR, elemental analiz ve FT-IR Spektrometresi ile yapılmıştır. Bileşiklerin ve olası tautomer formlarının kararlı konformasyonları teorik hesaplamalarla belirlenmiştir. Tüm hesaplamalar; kararlı konformasyonlar kullanılarak ve vakumda B3LYP/6-311g(2d,p) yöntemiyle yapılmıştır. Hesaplamalarda bileşiklerin enerjileri, kararlı taotomer formları, H-bağları, Mulliken yükleri, dipol momentleri, Çözücüyle erişilebilen yüzey alanı (Solvent accessibility surface), Moleküler elektrostatik potansiyel değerleri (MEP) (Molecular electrostatic potentials values), HOMO, LUMO ve enerji bant aralığı enerjileri (HOMO, LUMO and band gap energies) hesaplamaları yapılmıştır. Deneysel ve teorik IR, 1H ve 13C NMR uyumu incelenmiştir.
A Note on CCMV Portfolio Optimization Model with Short Selling and Risk-neutral Interest Rate
Authors: Khodamoradi Tahereh , Salahi Maziar , Najafi Ali Reza
Published: August 2020

In this paper, first we present some drawbacks of the cardinality constrained mean-variance (CCMV) portfolio optimization with short selling and risk-neutral interest rate when the lower and upper bounds of the assets contributions are -1/K and 1/K(K denotes the number of assets in portfolio). Then, we present an improved variant using absolute returns instead of the returns to include short selling in the model. Finally, some numerical results are provided using the data set of the S&P 500 index, Information Technology, and the MIBTEL index in terms of returns and Sharpe ratios to compare the proposed models with those in the literature.
Age-related Changes in Attentional Refocusing During Simulated Driving
Authors: Huizeling Eleanor , Wang Hongfang , Holland Carol , Kessler Klaus
Published: August 2020

We recently reported that refocusing attention between temporal and spatial tasks becomes more difficult with increasing age, which could impair daily activities such as driving (Callaghan et al., 2017). Here we investigated the extent to which difficulties in refocusing attention extend to naturalistic settings such as simulated driving. 118 participants in five age groups (18-30; 40-49; 50-59; 60-69; 70-91 years) were compared during simulated driving, where they switched from a spatially focal yet temporally complex task (braking due to traffic ahead) to a spatially more distributed task (reading a motorway road sign). Sequential-Task (switching) performance was compared to Single-Task performance (road sign only) to calculate age-related switch-costs. Electroencephalography was recorded in 34 participants (17 in the 18-30 and 17 in the 60+ years groups) to explore age-related changes in the neural oscillatory signatures of refocusing attention while driving. We indeed observed age-related impairments in attentional refocusing, evidenced by increased switch-costs in response times and by deficient modulation of theta and alpha frequencies. Our findings highlight virtual reality (VR) and Neuro-VR as important methodologies for future psychological and gerontological research.
On the Construction of Raindrop Erosion Maps for Steel
Authors: Sloan James , Stack Margaret
Published: August 2020

Raindrop erosion is a significant materials limiting issue. It can affect materials for transportation and renewable energy converters such as wind turbines as well as all external structures used in the construction industries. In such cases, the raindrop effects can occur over a wide range of impact velocities and particles sizes. In understanding tribological variable effects, it is useful to study using reference materials. This is because the reference material is well characterized, from previous knowledge of the tribological and corrosion patterns. Further, the well established chemical composition and stochiometry of the corrosion products provide some background understanding of how effectively, during tribological action, the surface scale adheres to the substrate. In this study, a carbon steel was used as a reference to study the effects of velocity and drop diameter in a whirling arm erosion test rig. The results were used to establish the conditions where corrosion was accelerated and the environments where aerodynamic effects may have resulted in droplets being deflected the surfaces. Erosion maps were generated to illustrate such mechanisms based on the results.
Epidemiological Characteristics and Survival in Patients with de novo Metastatic Prostate Cancer.
Authors: Cattrini Carlo , Soldato Davide , Rubagotti Alessandra , Zinoli Linda , Zanardi Elisa , Barboro Paola , Messina Carlo , Castro Elena , Olmos David , Boccardo Francesco
Published: August 2020

The real-world outcomes of patients with metastatic prostate cancer (mPCa) are largely unexplored. We investigated the improvements in overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS) in patients with de novo mPCa in latest years. The USA SEER Research Data (2000-2017) were analyzed using the SEER*Stat software. The Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression were used. Patients with de novo mPCa were allocated to 3 cohorts based on year of diagnosis: A (2000-2003), B (2004-2010), C (2011-2014). Maximum follow-up was fixed to 5 years. Overall, 26434 patients were included. Age, race and metastatic stage significantly affected OS and CSS. After adjustment for age and race, patients in cohort C showed 9% reduced risk of death (HR:0.91 [95% CI, 0.87-0.95], p<0.001) and 8% reduced risk of cancer-specific death (HR:0.91 [95% CI, 0.87-0.95], p<0.001) compared to those in cohort A. After adjustment for age, race and metastatic stage, patients in cohort C showed an improvement in OS and CSS compared to cohort B (HR:0.94 [95% CI, 0.91-0.97], p=0.001 and HR:0.89 [95% CI, 0.85-0.92], p<0.001). Patients with M1c disease had a more pronounced improvement in OS and CSS compared with the other stages. No differences were found between cohort B and C. In conclusion, the prognosis of de novo mPCa remains poor with a median OS of 30 months and a median CSS of 35 months. Limited OS and CSS improvements were observed in latest years.
The Tempests of Time, Rights, Race and Justice: Mandela and MLK Jr. as Transformational Leaders or Beneficiaries of Extraordinary Circumstances?
Authors: Magu Stephen
Published: August 2020

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela were two of the world's most iconic civil (political) (human) rights advocates and leaders of all time. Both advocated for, and to varying degrees, applied elements of peaceful protests to the achievement of their goals. Both spent time in jail, often concurrently, but eventually forced their respective countries to extend the same rights that white populations had denied Africans and African Americans. For the US, civil rights, voting rights, right to education, housing and housing loans suggested that equality had been achieved, capped in South Africa by the election of Nelson Mandela as the first majority-rule president, and in the US, by Barack Obama’s election to the presidency. Yet the historical over-policing, police mistreatment and more generally, the judicial system’s inordinate ‘targeting’ of African Americans, with egregious cases running from Emmett Till to Rodney King to Walter Scott to Breonna Taylor to George Floyd to Rayshard Brooks and thousands of others shows the danger of such magical thinking. The now-persistent global wave pursuing human rights, civil rights and the right to be treated equally, primarily driven by the loosely-organized Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, has become the leading voice in pursuit of equality. Riots such as those in LA, protests in Ferguson and everywhere in summer 2020 has ushered new civil rights campaign. In the US and elsewhere, it has morphed to include historical issues such as monuments to colonialism, the US civil war, slavery and slave owners and traders, institutions, companies and people whose wealth and existence has links to slavery. Instructively, the protests persisted even as COVID-19, the hundred-year plague, continues to ravage the world. Lost in the moment is the absence of central leadership and leaders such as MLK or Mandela. Their charisma and effectiveness has been lacking for 50 years. This paper evaluates whether this has led to inconsistent civil and human rights pursuit for equality, or whether perchance, Mandela and MLK were extraordinary, once-in-a-lifetime transformative leaders uniquely selected by history for their time.
Identification of Toxicity Parameters Associated with Combustion Produced Soot Surface Chemistry and Particle Structure by in Vitro Assays
Authors: Al Housseiny Heba , Singh Madhu , Emile Shaneeka , Nicoleau Marvin , Wal Randy L. Vander , Silveyra Patricia
Published: August 2020

Air pollution has become the world’s single biggest environmental health risk of the past decade, causing about 7 million yearly deaths worldwide. One of the dominant air pollutants is fine particulate matter (PM2.5), a product of combustion. Exposure to PM2.5 has been associated with decreased lung function, impaired immunity, and exacerbations of lung disease. Accumulating evidence suggests that many of the adverse health effects of PM2.5 exposure are associated with lung inflammation and oxidative stress. While the physical structure and surface chemistry of PM2.5 are surrogate measures of particle oxidative potential, little is known about their contributions to negative health effects. In this study, we used functionalized carbon black particles as surrogates for atmospherically aged combustion formed soot to assess the effects of PM2.5 surface chemistry in lung cells. We exposed the BEAS-2B lung epithelial cell line to different soot at a range of concentrations, and assessed cell viability, inflammation, and oxidative stress. Our results indicate that exposure to soot with varying particle surface composition results in differential cell viability rates, expression of pro-inflammatory and oxidative stress genes, and protein carbonylation. We conclude that particle surface chemistry, specifically oxygen content, in soot modulates lung cell inflammatory and oxidative stress responses.
Carbon Dioxide Sequestration in Concrete and its Effects on ConcreteCompressive Strength
Authors: Itam Zarina , Zawawi Hafiz , Sivaganese Yuovendra , Beddu Salmia , Mohd Kamal Nur Liyana
Published: August 2020

In recent years, the production of cement has grown globally in a very rapid manner due to the modernization of the world we live in, and after fossil fuels and land-use change, cement production is the third-largest source of anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide, CO2. Cement being the primary binding material for concrete and with the prospects for the concrete industry continues to grow so will the emissions of CO2. Hence, a method to reduce the CO2 production while keeping up with the progression of the concrete industry is very crucial in current times. This is where CO2 sequestration comes in. It is a process where CO2 is converted into a mineral which will then be trapped into the concrete forever. Required data to carry out the research between CO2 sequestered concrete and concrete without CO2 have been observed, obtained and tabulated as necessary. These data are then used to compare the concrete samples with one another and also prove the theoretical effects of CO2 exposure to concrete. Hence, experimental results on the compressive strength of the concrete samples for 7, 14 and 28 days has also been tabulated, graphed and further disputed. The objective of this research is mainly to determine the compressive strength of CO2 sequestered concrete in comparison with concrete without CO2 in order to decrease the effects the concrete industry has on the environment. The compressive strength of concrete samples with sequestration of CO2 gas is expected to be higher than of the concrete without CO2.
Nigeria and Its Dwindling Economy: What is the Way Forward?
Authors: LATEEF SALAUDEEN , Yauri Assoc. Prof Aliyu Rufai , Muhammad Dr. Garba
Published: August 2020

Dwindling Economy is otherwise known as depression economy or economy depression interchangeably and/or recess economy. It is an occurrence wherein an economy is in a state of financial turmoil, often the result of a period of negative activity based on the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rate. However, this has become a global phenomenon; a good example of a necessitating factor is the global oil crash market and pandemics virus (Covid-19) ravaging the human race. That has conjointly led to the decline in the GDP growth per capital of a country; which forces degradation in the performances of economic sectors, retrenchment of staff and wrapping-up of industries. It is a lot worse than a recession, with GDP falling significantly, and lasts for periods of time. Pen ultimately, Nigeria has been in deteriorating financial state for years; her economy in the last few years has been going through some turbulence. A country that had recorded an average GDP growth of 6.5 per cent, one of the highest in the world less than a decade ago, is now projected to grow at about 2.3 per cent in 2016. It is no longer news that Nigeria's economy is experiencing total collapse and if nothing is done to put the peg in the right spot something worse than what we are witnessing may soon be on sight. Based on some of all these issues and other, Nigeria was said to be technically recess.In this paper, efforts were made to explore the state of the Nigeria economy in the last 36 years (1981-2017) and correlate it with the recent phenomena that conjointly constitute to its dwindling economy. Our comprehensive and elusive literary survey and extemporariness suggested way forwards to rescue the raveling situation of Nigeria dwindling economics, if not providing lasting solution but temporarys’ one that could stand test of time.
A Proof of the Riemann Hypothesis Based on Hadamard Product
Authors: Alhargan Fayez
Published: August 2020

By unraveling a persistent misconception in the zeta Hadamard product expansion, and employing the zeta functional equation, a concise proof of the Riemann Hypothesis is presented, which conclusively demonstrate that the Riemann Hypothesis is true.