bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Efficiency of Edge Banding Module in a Mass Customized Line for Wooden Doors Production
Authors: Kwidziński Zdzisław , Hanincová Luďka , Tyma Eryka , Bednarz Joanna , Sankiewicz Łukasz , Knitowski Bartłomiej , Pędzik Marta , Procházka Jiří , Rogoziński Tomasz
Published: December 2022

The TechnoPORTA technology line is a fully automated smart line ensuring the highest quality and efficiency of production wooden doors. The aim of the study was to experimentally determine the performance of the edge banding module in the TechnoPORTA line on particular working days and to determine the possible influence of organizational and technological factors characterizing the line’s operation, which can be defined and determined by analyzing the temporal technological data obtained from the IT systems controlling the line’s operation. The research was conducted on the edge banding module, which is crucial to the performance of the entire TechnoPORTA line. During the study, data on door leaf machining were collected such as the mean time of production per one working cycle, mean time of retooling, number of retooling, number of door leaves leaving in a series, and most frequent time of series. The data collected by the IT system controlling the line indicates that this module is flexible and its performance is not related to the control parameters. The results can be used to improve the operation of the module and the replication of the work schedule to subsequent modules of the technological line.
Deep Learning of Diffuse Optical Tomography Based on Time-Domain Radiative Transfer Equation
Authors: Takamizu Yuichi , Umemura Masayuki , Yajima Hidenobu , Abe Makito , Hoshi Yoko
Published: December 2022

Near infrared diffuse optical tomography (DOT) is a potential tool for diagnosing cancer by image reconstruction of tissue optical properties. A variety of image reconstruction methods for DOT have been attempted, in general, based on the diffusion equation (DE). However, the image quality is still insufficient to clinical use, which is mainly attributed to the fact that the DE is invalid in some regions, such as low-scattering regions, and the inverse problem is inherently ill-posed. In contrast, the radiative transfer equation (RTE) accurately describes light propagation in biological tissue and also the DOT by deep learning is recently thought to be an alternative approach to the inverse problem. Distribution of time of flight (DTOF) of photons estimated by the time-domain RTE lends itself to deep learning along a temporal sequence. In this study, we propose a new DOT image reconstruction algorithm based on a long-short-term memory and the time-domain RTE. In simulation studies, using this algorithm, we succeeded in detection of an absorbing inclusion with a diameter of 5 mm, an absorber mimicking cancer, which was embedded in a two-dimensional square model (4 cm × 4 cm) with an optically homogeneous background. Multiple absorbers and a bigger absorber embedded in this model were also detected. We also demonstrate that, if simulation data by beam injection from multiple directions are employed as a training set, the accuracy of detection is improved especially for multiple absorbers.
Experimental Research of Symmetrical Airfoil Piezoelectric Energy Harvester Excited by Vortex-Induced Flutter Coupling
Authors: Li Xia , Wang Xiaoxiao , Tian Haigang , Wang Chengming , Liu Benxue
Published: December 2022

In order to solve the problem of self-energy supply of vehicle-mounted micro-sensors, bridge detection and some other low-power electronic devices in their working state, a vortex-induced flutter composite nonlinear piezoelectric energy harvester (VFPEH) with symmetrical airfoils on both sides of a cylindrical bluff body is designed. The VFPEH consists of a cantilever beam, a cylindrical bluff body connected to the free end of the cantilever beam, and two airfoil components symmetrically fixed at both ends of the shaft, which enables coupling between vortex-induced vibration and flutter. The airfoil symmetrically arranged on both sides of the cylindrical bluff body induces the cantilever beam to produce bending and torsional composite vibrations at high wind velocities, realizing energy harvest in the two degrees of freedom motion direction, which can effectively improve the output power of the energy harvester. Based on a wind tunnel experimental platform, the effect of key parameters matching impedance and the diameter of the cylindrical bluff body on the output performance of the VFPEH is investigated, together with the output performance of the classical vortex-induced energy harvester (VEH), the flutter energy harvester (FEH) and the VFPEH. The experimental results show that for the VFPEH under a combination of vortex-induced vibrations and flutter vibrations has a better output performance than the VEH and the FEH when using the same size. The coupling of vortex-induced vibration and flutter can reduce the start-up wind velocity of the VFPEH and expand the wind velocity range of the high output power of the VFPEH. The VFPEH has a better output performance at the cylindrical bluff body diameter of 30 mm and a load resistance of 140 kΩ. When the wind velocity range is 2 m/s–15 m/s, the maximum output power of the VFPEH is 6.47 mW, which is 129.4 times and 24.9 times of the maximum output power of the VEH (0.05 mW) and FEH (0.26 mW), respectively.
Asphalt Road Pavements to Address Climate Change Challenges—An Overview
Authors: Almeida Arminda , Picado-Santos Luís
Published: December 2022

Climate change is already happening. It is one of the significant challenges that the planet has to face. Asphalt road pavements cover a large area of the Earth’s surface; consequently, climate change challenges can significantly affect their performance and serviceability. Thus, pavement solutions have been developed to address the problem. This paper aims to present an overview of those topics to increase awareness among transportation engineers and practitioners. First, the most significant aspects of road asphalt pavements’ materials, design and condition are presented. Second, the most relevant climate change challenges for asphalt pavements are described. Then, different pavement solutions are presented. This overview concludes that there are pavement solutions able to address climate change. These depend on local climate conditions and should be incorporated into the decision-making process in planning, design and maintenance.
The Proliferation Inhibitory Effect of Postbiotics Prepared from Probiotics with Antioxidant Activity against HT-29 Cells
Authors: Kim Yeeun , Kim Hak Jun , Ji Keunho
Published: December 2022

Prebiotics and probiotics have gained much attention in the pursuit of a healthy life. Recently, postbiotics have been spotlighted as next-generation compounds that can improve health. Postbiotics are designated into non-viable, inactivated, and ghost probiotics, and linked to several health benefits for the gut, immune system, and various other aspects of health. This study investigated the anti-proliferation effects of postbiotics against HT-29 cells, a colon cancer cell line. The postbiotics were produced by the ultrasonication method from two Lactobacillus strains (Lactobacillus sp. La1, and La2) and designated to Pobt-La1 and Pobt-La2, respectively, and non-viability was confirmed on the plate media. The anti-proliferation effect was concentration-dependent. The HT-29 cells showed viabilities of 39% and 49% when treated with 300 µL/mL of Pobt-La1 and Pobt-La2, respectively. During observation of the morphological changes of HT-29 cells when treated with IC50, a cell nucleus was not observed but cell condensation was observed. Moreover, in comparison with the control group, a reduced number of cells were observed. Based on these results, it considered that the postbiotic compounds from Lactobacillus La1 and La2 could provide crucial information in the development of anticancer research. Through further research, it would be beneficial to investigate the possibility of using these postbiotics (Pobt-La1 and -La2) as an anticancer drug.
Clinical Risk Factor Prediction for Second Primary Skin Cancer: A Hospital-Based Cancer Registry Study
Authors: Lee Hsi-Chieh , Lin Tsung-Chieh , Chang Chi-Chang , Lu Yen-Chiao Angel , Lee Chih-Min , Purevdorj Bolormaa
Published: December 2022

This study aimed to develop a risk-prediction model for second primary skin cancer (SPSC) survivors. We identified the clinical characteristics of SPSC and created awareness for physicians screening high-risk patients among skin cancer survivors. Using data from the 1248 skin cancer survivors extracted from five cancer registries, we benchmarked a random forest algorithm against MLP, C4.5, AdaBoost, and bagging algorithms for several metrics. Additionally, in this study, we leveraged the synthetic minority over-sampling technique (SMOTE) for the issue of the imbalanced dataset, cost-sensitive learning for risk assessment, and SHAP for the analysis of feature importance. The proposed random forest outperformed the other models, with an accuracy of 90.2%, a recall rate of 95.2%, a precision rate of 86.6%, and an F1 value of 90.7% in the SPSC category based on 10-fold cross-validation on a balanced dataset. Our results suggest that the four features, i.e., age, stage, gender, and involvement of regional lymph nodes, which significantly affect the output of the prediction model, need to be considered in the analysis of the next causal effect. In addition to causal analysis of specific primary sites, these clinical features allow further investigation of secondary cancers among skin cancer survivors.
Stochastic Evaluation of Cutting Tool Load and Surface Quality during Milling of HPL
Authors: Frydrýšek Karel , Skoupý Ondřej , Mrkvica Ivan , Slaninková Aneta , Kratochvíl Jiří , Jurga Tibor , Vlk Miroslav , Krpec Pavel , Madeja Roman , Havlíček Miroslav , Stančeková Dana , Pometlová Jana , Hlinka Josef
Published: December 2022

The topic of the article concerns the mechanics of machining plastics and their machined surface. This article deals with measurements and their stochastic (probabilistic) evaluation of the force and moment loading of the machine tools and workpiece. It also deals with the quality of the machined surface in relation to its surface roughness and surface integrity. Measurements were made under different cutting conditions on a CNC milling machine using a newly designed cutter with straight teeth. The statistical evaluation is presented by bounded histograms and basic statistical characteristics that give a realistic idea of the machining process. The practical focus of the experiments is on the milling of HPL (high-pressure plastic–laminate composite material). The listed procedures can also be applied to other materials and machining methods, and can be used for numerical modelling, setting the optimum parameters of machining technology, or for the design of cutting tools. Numerical modelling and other solution options are also mentioned. We have not yet found detailed information in the literature about the milling of HPL material, and our results are therefore new and necessary.
Diagrammatic and Modal Dimensions of the Syllogisms of Hegel and Peirce
Authors: Redding Paul
Published: December 2022

While in his Science of Logic, Hegel employed neither diagrams nor formulae, his reinterpretation of Aristotle’s syllogistic logic in the “Subjective Logic” of Book III strongly suggests a diagrammatic dimension. Significantly, an early diagram depicting a “triangle of triangles” found among his papers after his death captures the organization of categories to be found in The Science of Logic. Features of this diagram help us understand Hegel’s logical project as an attempt to retrieve features of Plato’s thinking that are implicit within Aristotle’s syllogistic logic. It is argued that parallels between Hegel’s modification of Aristotle’s syllogistic figures and Peirce’s functional alignment of those syllogistic figures with his three inference forms—deduction, induction, and abduction—suggest modifications of the traditional “square of opposition” into a logical hexagon as found in recent discussions. However, Hegel had conceived of Aristotle’s syllogism as a distorted version of the “syllogism” thought by Plato to bind the parts of the cosmos into a unity as described in the dialogue Timaeus. In accord with this, it is argued that seen in the light of Hegel’s platonistic reconstruction of Aristotle’s logic, such logical hexagons should be understood as two-dimensional projections of a logical polyhedron.
Visual Monitoring Strategies of Sentinels in a Cooperative Breeder
Authors: Beauchamp Guy , Bowman Reed
Published: December 2022

Vigilance is important for early detection of threats. Previous studies have focused on the allocation of time to vigilance but neglected how animals monitor their surroundings during vigilance. Where animals look and how long each look lasts can affect the quality of visual monitoring and thus the ability to detect threats during vigilance. We examined visual monitoring strategies in the Florida scrub-jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens), a cooperative breeder with sentinel behaviour. Sentinels in this species make head turns from vantage points to detect the arrival of predators and intruding neighbours. We found that sentinels initiated head turns at regular intervals and also returned their gaze to areas previously monitored at regular intervals, which is predicted when predators and intruders rely on surprise rather than stealth to approach. Sentinels made head turns in several directions, but often more frequently on one side of the body than the other, which was not predicted for regular vigilance. Average look duration during sentinel bouts was shorter in smaller groups and in juveniles. We argue that shorter looks are beneficial to increase visual coverage in more threatening situations. Our study highlights how visual monitoring strategies during vigilance reflect the risk posed by predators and intruders.
Heavy Metals in Four Marine Fish and Shrimp Species from a Subtropical Coastal Area: Accumulation and Consumer Health Risk Assessment
Authors: Hossain Mohammad Belal , Bhuiyan Nurer Zaman , Kasem Abul , Hossain Md. Kamal , Sultana Salma , Nur As-Ad Ujjaman , Yu Jimmy , Albeshr Mohammed Fahad , Arai Takaomi
Published: December 2022

Trace-element or heavy-metal pollution has emerged as a serious concern in terms of both environmental and human health issues. This study measured six trace and toxic heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cr, Ni, Cu, and Zn) in four marine fish and shrimp species to assess their accumulation levels and evaluate the risks to human health. The mean concentrations of the metals in fish and shrimp species (Labeo bata, Sillaginopsis panijus, Platycepalus fuscus, and Penaeus monodon) followed the decreasing order of Zn (40.8 ± 9.7 μg/g) > Cu (17.8 ± 7.1 μg/g) > Pb (6.2 ± 1.8 μg/g) > Ni (0.4 ± 0.3 μg/g) > Cd (0.06 ± 0.02 μg/g > Cr (below detection level). Among the metals, only Pb in finfish and Pb, Cu, and Zn in shrimp samples exceeded the national recommended limits, representing possible risks to consumers. The mean metal concentrations in the studied fish/shrimp species followed the descending order of P. monodon > S. panijus > P. fuscus > L. bata, which implies that bottom dwellers and omnivores had higher levels of metals. However, the estimated daily intake (EDI) concentrations of Zn and Cu for the studied species were lower than the RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance). In addition, the Target Hazard Quotient (THQ) and hazard index (HI or TTHQ) values for all species were < 1, indicating that consumers might not experience carcinogenic health risks. A strong significant (p < 0.05) correlation between Cu and Pb (r = 0.623) and Zn and Cu (r = −0.871) indicated they were from the same source of origin. Cluster analysis (CA) and principal component analysis (PCA) demonstrated possible anthropogenic sources of toxic metals in the study area, specifically industrial wastes and agricultural chemicals.
Secondary Metabolites Diversity of Aspergillus unguis and Their Bioactivities: A Potential Target to Be Explored
Authors: Domingos Levy Tenório Sousa , Martins Raquel dos Santos , Lima Leonardo Melo de , Ghizelini Angela Michelato , Ferreira-Pereira Antonio , Cotinguiba Fernando
Published: December 2022

Aspergillus unguis belongs to the Aspergillus section Nidulantes. This species is found in soils and organisms from marine environments, such as jellyfishes and sponges. The first chemical study reported in the literature dates from 1970, with depsidones nidulin (1), nornidulin (2), and unguinol (3) being the first isolated compounds. Fifty-two years since this first study, the isolation and characterization of ninety-seven (97) compounds have been reported. These compounds are from different classes, such as depsides, depsidones, phthalides, cyclopeptides, indanones, diarylethers, pyrones, benzoic acid derivatives, orcinol/orsenillate derivatives, and sesterpenoids. In terms of biological activities, the first studies on isolated compounds from A. unguis came only in the 1990s. Considering the tendency for antiparasitic and antibiotics to become ineffective against resistant microorganisms and larvae, A. unguis compounds have also been extensively investigated and some compounds are considered very promising. In addition to these larvicidal and antimicrobial activities, these compounds also show activity against cancer cell lines, animal growth promotion, antimalarial and antioxidant activities. Despite the diversity of these compounds and reported biological activities, A. unguis remains an interesting target for studies on metabolic induction to produce new compounds, the determination of new biological activities, medicinal chemistry, structural modification, biotechnological approaches, and molecular modeling, which have yet to be extensively explored.
A Systematic Analysis of the Role of Unc-5 Netrin Receptor A (UNC5A) in Human Cancers
Authors: Zhou Zonglang , Fan Bingfu , Cheng Hongrong , Wang Ming , Xie Jun , Zou Mingyuan , Yang Yi
Published: December 2022

Unc-5 netrin receptor A (UNC5A), a netrin family receptor, plays a key role in neuronal development and subsequent differentiation. Recently, studies have found that UNC5A plays an important role in multiple cancers, such as bladder cancer, non-small cell lung carcinoma, and colon cancer but its pan-cancer function is largely unknown. Herein, the R software and multiple databases or online websites (The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), The Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx), The Tumor Immune Estimation Resource (TIMER), The Gene Set Cancer Analysis (GSCA), Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA), and cBioPortal etc.) were utilized to examine the role of UNC5A in pan-cancer. UNC5A was found to be highly expressed across multiple human cancer tissues and cells, was linked to clinical outcomes of patients, and was a potential pan-cancer biomarker. The mutational landscape of UNC5A exhibited that patients with UNC5A mutations had poorer progress free survival (PFS) in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSC) and prostate adenocarcinoma (PRAD). Furthermore, UNC5A expression was associated with tumor mutation burden (TMB), neoantigen, tumor microenvironment (TME), tumor microsatellite instability (MSI), immunomodulators, immune infiltration, DNA methylation, immune checkpoint (ICP) genes, and drug responses. Our results suggest the potential of UNC5A as a pan-cancer biomarker and an efficient immunotherapy target, which may also guide drug selection for some specific cancer types in clinical practice.
Preparation of a Highly Sensitive Electrochemical Aptasensor for Measuring Epirubicin Based on a Gold Electrode Boosted with Carbon Nano-Onions and MB
Authors: Sohouli Esmail , Ghalkhani Masoumeh , Zargar Tahereh , Ahmadi Farhad
Published: December 2022

Epirubicin is prescribed as an essential drug for treating breast, prostate, uterine, and gastrointestinal cancers. It has many side effects, such as heart failure, mouth inflammation, abdominal pain, fever, and shortness of breath. Its measurement is necessary by straightforward and cheap methods. The application of aptamer-based electrochemical sensors is accounted as a selective option for measuring different compounds. In this work, a thiol-modified aptamer was self-assembled on the surface of the gold electrode (AuE) boosted with carbon nano-onions (CNOs), and coupled with methylene blue (MB) as an electroactive tracker to achieve a sensitive and selective aptasensor. In the absence of the epirubicin, CNOs binds to the aptamer through a π-π interaction enhancing the MB electrochemical signal. When epirubicin binds to the aptamer, the adsorption of CNOs and MB to the aptamer is not well established, so the electrochemical signal is reduced, consequently, the epirubicin value can be measured. The prepared aptasensor demonstrated an excellent sensitivity with a curve slope of 0.36 μI/nM, and 3 nM limit of detection in the linear concentration range of 1–75 nM. The prepared aptasensor was accurately capable of measuring epirubicin in blood serum samples.
Determinants of Self-Perceived Health: The Importance of Physical Well-Being but Also of Mental Health and Cognitive Functioning
Authors: Caramenti Martina , Castiglioni Isabella
Published: December 2022

With life expectancy increasing for the general population, public health promotion activities should be a priority to aim at a reduction of the burden and costs of hospitalization, disability, and lifelong treatment. This study aimed to explore the influence of parameters pertaining to different aspects of well-being, including physical and mental health and cognitive functioning, on self-perceived health, a predictor of chronic disease prevalence and mortality. We used data from the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) project gathered between 2013 and 2017, obtaining a sample of 96,902 participants (63.23 ± 6.77 years). We found a strong association between the self-perceived health rating and not only physical health aspects but also mental health and cognitive functioning. In particular, BMI, chronic diseases and medications, muscle strength, and mobility issues had a strong effect on self-perceived health, as also did the quality of life, depression, and verbal fluency, while other aspects, such as individual characteristics, limitations in daily activities, and pain, among others only had a small effect. These results show that public health and prevention interventions should prioritize the targeting of all aspects of well-being and not only of physical health, acknowledging self-perceived health rating as a simple tool that could help provide a complete overview of psycho-physical well-being and functional status.
The Maintenance of Monuments as the Main Trigger to Negative Feelings in Tourists
Authors: Mendes Maria , Torres-González Marta , Valença Jónatas , Silva Ana
Published: December 2022

Tourists’ perceptions of monuments influence their feelings about the country and the possibility of returning or recommending their visit to other tourists. TripAdvisor is one of the most popular websites for sharing travelling experiences and plays an important role when choosing a travel destination. But what are the factors that can provoke negative feelings in tourists? The maintenance of monuments is essential for their conservation; however, active maintenance can trigger negative feelings in tourists, compromising their connection with the cultural heritage of the country. This study reveals how some maintenance actions can influence tourists’ expectations regarding two relevant architectural monuments in the Iberian Peninsula by applying VADER (Valence Aware Dictionary for sEntiment Reasoning) to 13,000 TripAdvisor reviews written in the last decade and in three languages. Other variables, such as weather conditions and changes in climate, tourists’ country of origin and their style of travel, are evaluated to eliminate the possible mediating effects of these variables. This study reveals that the maintenance status of monuments seems to be the variable with the greatest impact on tourists’ perceptions and on their evaluations on TripAdvisor, propagating negative feelings towards the monument, from which it takes some time to recover.
Constructing Active Sites on Self-Supporting Ti3C2Tx (T = OH) Nanosheets for Enhanced Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction into Alcohols
Authors: Zhang Shuqu , Zhang Man , Xiong Wuwan , Long Jianfei , Xu Yong , Yang Lixia , Dai Weili
Published: December 2022

Ti3C2Tx (T = OH) was first prepared from Ti3AlC2 by HF etching and applied into a photocatalytic CO2 reduction. Then, the Ti3C2Tx nanosheets present interbedded a self-supporting structure and extended interlayer spacing. Meanwhile, the Ti3C2Tx nanosheets are decorated with abundant oxygen-containing functional groups in the process of etching, which not only serve as active sites but also show efficient charge migration and separation. Among Ti3C2Tx materials prepared by etching for different times, Ti3C2Tx-36 (Etching time: 36 h) showed the best performance for photoreduction of CO2 into alcohols (methanol and ethanol), giving total yield of 61 μmol g catal.−1, which is 2.8 times than that of Ti3AlC2. Moreover, excellent cycling stability for CO2 reduction is beneficial from the stable morphology and crystalline structure. This work provided novel sights into constructing surface active sites controllably.
A Hands-on Guide to the Synthesis of High-Purity and High-Surface-Area Magnesium Oxide
Authors: Gliński Marek , Czajka Agnieszka , Ulkowska Urszula , Iwanek (nee Wilczkowska) Ewa M. , Łomot Dariusz , Kaszkur Zbigniew
Published: December 2022

In this study, magnesium nitrate, chloride or sulphate were used in the synthesis of Mg(OH)2, the precursor of MgO. It was found that the counter ion strongly influences the purity of the Mg(OH)2, as well as the specific surface area of the obtained MgO. The latter is also strongly influenced by the calcination temperature. The choice of the precipitating agent can lead to the introduction of K+ or Na+ ions and hence NH3 (aq) is the best choice. A multistep precipitation procedure of Mg(OH)2 was proposed to lower the concentration of typical impurities (Fe, Ni and Mn) found in commercial p.a. purity Mg(NO3)2. The effect of the number of portions of water used for washing of Mg(OH)2 on the purity of the final product has also been investigated in detail. The stages of formation of grains of Mg(OH)2 and their subsequent thermal decomposition was described together with determination of the introduction of new impurities into the material. Large scale (1500 g) preparation of Mg(OH)2 with an improved purity was performed and described. Therefore, this study explains what measures should be taken to obtain pure magnesia catalysts and is a valuable resource for catalytic research in which magnesia is used.
Synthesis of Catalytic Precursors Based on Mixed Ni-Al Oxides by Supercritical Antisolvent Co-Precipitation
Authors: Nesterov Nikolay S. , Pakharukova Vera P. , Philippov Alexey A. , Gerasimov Evgeny Y. , Tsybulya Sergey V. , Martyanov Oleg N.
Published: December 2022

Mixed Ni-Al oxide catalytic precursors with different elemental ratios (20, 50, and 80 wt.% Ni0) were synthesized using green supercritical antisolvent co-precipitation (SAS). The obtained oxide precursors and metal catalysts were characterized in detail by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, atomic pair distribution function (PDF) analysis, CO adsorption, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). It was found that the composition and structure of the Ni-Al precursors are related to the Ni content. The mixed Ni1−xAlxO oxide with NiO-based crystal structure was formed in the Ni-enriched sample, whereas the highly dispersed NiAl2O4 spinel was observed in the Al-enriched sample. The obtained metal catalysts were tested in the process of anisole H2-free hydrogenation. 2-PrOH was used as a hydrogen donor. The catalyst with 50 wt.% Ni0 demonstrated the highest activity in the hydrogenation process.
HMGB1 Promotes In Vitro and In Vivo Skeletal Muscle Atrophy through an IL-18-Dependent Mechanism
Authors: Ho Trung-Loc , Tang Chih-Hsin , Chang Sunny Li-Yun , Tsai Chun-Hao , Chen Hsien-Te , Su Chen-Ming
Published: December 2022

Skeletal muscle atrophy occurs due to muscle wasting or reductions in protein associated with aging, injury, and inflammatory processes. High-mobility group box-1 (HMGB1) protein is passively released from necrotic cells and actively secreted by inflammatory cells, and is implicated in the pathogenesis of various inflammatory and immune diseases. HMGB1 is upregulated in muscle inflammation, and circulating levels of the proinflammatory cytokine interleukin-18 (IL-18) are upregulated in patients with sarcopenia, a muscle-wasting disease. We examined whether an association exists between HMGB1 and IL-18 signaling in skeletal muscle atrophy. HMGB1-induced increases of IL-18 levels enhanced the expression of muscle atrophy markers and inhibited myogenic marker expression in C2C12 and G7 myoblast cell lines. HMGB1-induced increases of IL-18 production in C2C12 cells involved the RAGE/p85/Akt/mTOR/c-Jun signaling pathway. HMGB1 short hairpin RNA (shRNA) treatment rescued the expression of muscle-specific differentiation markers in murine C2C12 myotubes and in mice with glycerol-induced muscle atrophy. HMGB1 and IL-18 signaling was suppressed in the mice after HMGB1 shRNA treatment. These findings suggest that the HMGB1/IL-18 axis is worth targeting for the treatment of skeletal muscle atrophy.
Differential Expression of Lonp1 Isoforms in Cancer Cells
Authors: Zanini Giada , Selleri Valentina , De Gaetano Anna , Gibellini Lara , Malerba Mara , Mattioli Anna Vittoria , Nasi Milena , Apostolova Nadezda , Pinti Marcello
Published: December 2022

Lonp1 is a mitochondrial protease that degrades oxidized and damaged proteins, assists protein folding, and contributes to the maintenance of mitochondrial DNA. A higher expression of LonP1 has been associated with higher tumour aggressiveness. Besides the full-length isoform (ISO1), we identified two other isoforms of Lonp1 in humans, resulting from alternative splicing: Isoform-2 (ISO2) lacking aa 42-105 and isoform-3 (ISO3) lacking aa 1-196. An inspection of the public database TSVdb showed that ISO1 was upregulated in lung, bladder, prostate, and breast cancer, ISO2 in all the cancers analysed (including rectum, colon, cervical, bladder, prostate, breast, head, and neck), ISO3 did not show significant changes between cancer and normal tissue. We overexpressed ISO1, ISO2, and ISO3 in SW620 cells and found that the ISO1 isoform was exclusively mitochondrial, ISO2 was present in the organelle and in the cytoplasm, and ISO3 was exclusively cytoplasmatic. The overexpression of ISO1 and, at a letter extent, of ISO2 enhanced basal, ATP-linked, and maximal respiration without altering the mitochondria number or network, mtDNA amount. or mitochondrial dynamics. A higher extracellular acidification rate was observed in ISO1 and ISO2, overexpressing cells, suggesting an increase in glycolysis. Cells overexpressing the different isoforms did not show a difference in the proliferation rate but showed a great increase in anchorage-independent growth. ISO1 and ISO2, but not ISO3, determined an upregulation of EMT-related proteins, which appeared unrelated to higher mitochondrial ROS production, nor due to the activation of the MEK ERK pathway, but rather to global metabolic reprogramming of cells.
Insulitis in Human Type 1 Diabetic Pancreas: From Stem Cell Grafting to Islet Organoids for a Successful Cell-Based Therapy
Authors: La Noce Marcella , Nicoletti Giovanni Francesco , Papaccio Gianpaolo , Del Vecchio Vitale , Papaccio Federica
Published: December 2022

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is an autoimmune disease with immune cells’ islet infiltration (called “insulitis”), which leads to beta cell loss. Despite being the critical element of T1D occurrence and pathogenesis, insulitis is often present in a limited percentage of islets, also at diagnosis. Therefore, it is needed to define reproducible methods to detect insulitis and beta-cell decline, to allow accurate and early diagnosis and to monitor therapy. However, this goal is still far due to the morphological aspect of islet microvasculature, which is rather dense and rich, and is considerably rearranged during insulitis. More studies on microvasculature are required to understand if contrast-enhanced ultrasound sonography measurements of pancreatic blood-flow dynamics may provide a clinically deployable predictive marker to predict disease progression and therapeutic reversal in pre-symptomatic T1D patients. Therefore, it is needed to clarify the relation between insulitis and the dynamics of β cell loss and with coexisting mechanisms of dysfunction, according to clinical stage, as well as the micro vessels’ dynamics and microvasculature reorganization. Moreover, the ideal cell-based therapy of T1D should start from an early diagnosis allowing a sufficient isolation of specific Procr+ progenitors, followed by the generation and expansion of islet organoids, which could be transplanted coupled to an immune-regulatory therapy which will permit the maintenance of pancreatic islets and an effective and long-lasting insulitis reversal.
Photosynthesis under Biotic and Abiotic Environmental Stress
Authors: Brestic Marian , Allakhverdiev Suleyman I.
Published: December 2022

Photosynthesis is a unique process that has shaped life on our planet and created the conditions for all known life forms [...]
Polymerized Laminin-521: A Feasible Substrate for Expanding Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells at a Low Protein Concentration
Authors: Mesquita Fernanda C. P. , Leite Eliel S. , Morrissey Jacquelynn , Freitas Catarina , Coelho-Sampaio Tatiana , Hochman-Mendez Camila
Published: December 2022

Laminins (LNs) play a central role in the self-assembly and maintenance of basement membranes and are involved in critical interactions between cells and other extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins. Among the defined, xeno-free ECM culture matrices, LNs—namely LN521—have emerged as promising coating systems for the large-scale expansion of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). The biologic activity of LNs is enhanced by their acidification-induced self-polymerization into a cell-associated network called polylaminin (polyLN), which can recapitulate the native-like polymeric array in a cell-free system. Here, we show for the first time to our knowledge that polyLN521 displays a native-like hexagonal-like structure and that, at basal and low concentrations, it permits the large-scale expansion of human iPSCs. Human iPSCs expanded with polyLN521 maintained the pluripotent state and showed no impairment of karyotype stability or telomere length. These results suggest that low-concentration polyLN521 is a stable and cost-effective coating for large-scale iPSC expansion.
Surface Modification and Parametric Optimization of Tensile Strength of Al6082/SiC/Waste Material Surface Composite Produced by Friction Stir Processing
Authors: Kumar Nitesh , Singh Rakesh Kumar , Srivastava Ashish Kumar , Nag Akash , Petru Jana , Hloch Sergej
Published: December 2022

Friction stir processing (FSP) is one of the promising tools to enhance the mechanical and microstructural features of any engineering material due to its excellence in grain refinement. Further, the successful utilization of waste material into a useful product instigates the use of chicken bone powder (CBP), walnut shell powder (WSP), and rice husk powder (RHP) as secondary reinforcement to develop surface composites and metal matrix composites to enhance the mechanical properties. In the present work, a surface composite of base alloy Al6082 is developed through the utilization of SiC as primary reinforcement and CBP, WSP, and RHP as secondary reinforcement. The experiments were performed as per Taguchi’s L9 orthogonal array and the analysis of variance (ANOVA) response is discussed in detail. The process parameters taken for the study are the type of tool pin profile such as hexagonal, square, and cylindrical threaded along with rotational speed and tool tilt angle. The result revealed the microstructural characterization through field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) images equipped with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) phase mapping and elemental spectrum. The tensile strength of each specimen was tested through a horizontal tensometer and further studied to get the optimized value of the process parameter to achieve a larger value. The use of a hexagonal pin profile with the optimized value of the rotational speed of 1500 rpm and 3° tilt angle gives the higher tensile strength of 250.64 MPa.
Prediction of Postoperative Pathologic Risk Factors in Cervical Cancer Patients Treated with Radical Hysterectomy by Machine Learning
Authors: Ou Zhengjie , Mao Wei , Tan Lihua , Yang Yanli , Liu Shuanghuan , Zhang Yanan , Li Bin , Zhao Dan
Published: December 2022

Pretherapeutic serological parameters play a predictive role in pathologic risk factors (PRF), which correlate with treatment and prognosis in cervical cancer (CC). However, the method of pre-operative prediction to PRF is limited and the clinical availability of machine learning methods remains unknown in CC. Overall, 1260 early-stage CC patients treated with radical hysterectomy (RH) were randomly split into training and test cohorts. Six machine learning classifiers, including Gradient Boosting Machine, Support Vector Machine with Gaussian kernel, Random Forest, Conditional Random Forest, Naive Bayes, and Elastic Net, were used to derive diagnostic information from nine clinical factors and 75 parameters readily available from pretreatment peripheral blood tests. The best results were obtained by RF in deep stromal infiltration prediction with an accuracy of 70.8% and AUC of 0.767. The highest accuracy and AUC for predicting lymphatic metastasis with Cforest were 64.3% and 0.620, respectively. The highest accuracy of prediction for lymphavascular space invasion with EN was 59.7% and the AUC was 0.628. Blood markers, including D-dimer and uric acid, were associated with PRF. Machine learning methods can provide critical diagnostic prediction on PRF in CC before surgical intervention. The use of predictive algorithms may facilitate individualized treatment options through diagnostic stratification.
Blood Glucose Prediction Method Based on Particle Swarm Optimization and Model Fusion
Authors: Xu He , Bao Shanjun , Zhang Xiaoyu , Liu Shangdong , Jing Wei , Ji Yimu
Published: December 2022

Blood glucose stability in diabetic patients determines the degree of health, and changes in blood glucose levels are related to the outcome of diabetic patients. Therefore, accurate monitoring of blood glucose has a crucial role in controlling diabetes. Aiming at the problem of high volatility of blood glucose concentration in diabetic patients and the limitations of a single regression prediction model, this paper proposes a method for predicting blood glucose values based on particle swarm optimization and model fusion. First, the Kalman filtering algorithm is used to smooth and reduce the noise of the sensor current signal to reduce the effect of noise on the data. Then, the hyperparameter optimization of Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) and Light Gradient Boosting Machine (LightGBM) models is performed using particle swarm optimization algorithm. Finally, the XGBoost and LightGBM models are used as the base learner and the Bayesian regression model as the meta-learner, and the stacking model fusion method is used to achieve the prediction of blood glucose values. In order to prove the effectiveness and superiority of the method in this paper, we compared the prediction results of stacking fusion model with other 6 models. The experimental results show that the stacking fusion model proposed in this paper can accurately predict blood glucose values, and the average absolute percentage error of blood glucose prediction is 13.01%, and the prediction error of the stacking fusion model is much lower than that of the other six models. Therefore, the proposed diabetes blood glucose prediction method in this paper has superiority.
Noninvasive Classification of Glioma Subtypes Using Multiparametric MRI to Improve Deep Learning
Authors: Xiong Diaohan , Ren Xinying , Huang Weiting , Wang Rui , Ma Laiyang , Gan Tiejun , Ai Kai , Wen Tao , Li Yujing , Wang Pengfei , Zhang Peng , Zhang Jing
Published: December 2022

Background: Deep learning (DL) methods can noninvasively predict glioma subtypes; however, there is no set paradigm for the selection of network structures and input data, including the image combination method, image processing strategy, type of numeric data, and others. Purpose: To compare different combinations of DL frameworks (ResNet, ConvNext, and vision transformer (VIT)), image preprocessing strategies, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) sequences, and numerical data for increasing the accuracy of DL models for differentiating glioma subtypes prior to surgery. Methods: Our dataset consisted of 211 patients with newly diagnosed gliomas who underwent preoperative MRI with standard and diffusion-weighted imaging methods. Different data combinations were used as input for the three different DL classifiers. Results: The accuracy of the image preprocessing strategies, including skull stripping, segment addition, and individual treatment of slices, was 5%, 10%, and 12.5% higher, respectively, than that of the other strategies. The accuracy increased by 7.5% and 10% following the addition of ADC and numeric data, respectively. ResNet34 exhibited the best performance, which was 5% and 17.5% higher than that of ConvNext tiny and VIT-base, respectively. Data Conclusions: The findings demonstrated that the addition of quantitatively numeric data, ADC images, and effective image preprocessing strategies improved model accuracy for datasets of similar size. The performance of ResNet was superior for small or medium datasets.
Potential Value of Visfatin, Omentin-1, Nesfatin-1 and Apelin in Renal Cell Carcinoma (RCC): A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Chinapayan Sugania Malar , Kuppusamy Shanggar , Yap Ning Yi , Perumal Komathi , Gobe Glenda , Rajandram Retnagowri
Published: December 2022

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most lethal genitourinary malignancy. Obesity is a risk factor for RCC development. The role of adipokines in the relationship between obesity and RCC requires confirmatory evidence in the form of a systematic review and meta-analysis, specifically for visfatin, omentin-1, nesfatin-1 and apelin. A search of databases up to July 2022 (PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus) for studies reporting the association of these selected adipokines with RCC was conducted. A total of 13 studies fulfilled the selection criteria. Only visfatin (p < 0.05) and nesfatin-1 (p < 0.05) had a significant association with RCC. Meanwhile, apelin and omentin-1 showed no association with RCC. The meta-analysis results of nesfatin-1 showed no association with early-stage (OR = 0.09, 95% CI = −0.12–0.29, p = 0.41), late-stage (OR = 0.36, 95% CI = 0.07–1.89, p = 0.23) and low-grade (OR = 1.75, 95% CI = 0.37–8.27, p = 0.48) RCC. However, nesfatin-1 showed an association with a high grade of the disease (OR = 0.29, 95% CI = 0.13–0.61, p = 0.001) and poorer overall survival (OS) (HR = 3.86, 95% CI = 2.18–6.85; p < 0.01). Apelin showed no association with the risk of RCC development (mean difference = 21.15, 95% CI = −23.69–65.99, p = 0.36) and OS (HR = 1.04, 95% Cl = 0.45–2.41; p = 0.92). Although the number of studies evaluated was limited, analysis from this systematic review and meta-analysis indicate that visfatin and nesfatin-1 were elevated. In summary, these adipokines may play a role in the development and progression of RCC and hence may have potential diagnostic and prognostic capabilities for RCC.
Nectins and Nectin-like Molecules in Colorectal Cancer: Role in Diagnostics, Prognostic Values, and Emerging Treatment Options: A Literature Review
Authors: Kobecki Jakub , Gajdzis Paweł , Mazur Grzegorz , Chabowski Mariusz
Published: December 2022

In 2020, colorectal cancer was the third most common type of cancer worldwide with a clearly visible increase in the number of cases each year. With relatively high mortality rates and an uncertain prognosis, colorectal cancer is a serious health problem. There is an urgent need to investigate its specific mechanism of carcinogenesis and progression in order to develop new strategies of action against this cancer. Nectins and Nectin-like molecules are cell adhesion molecules that take part in a plethora of essential processes in healthy tissues as well as mediating substantial actions for tumor initiation and evolution. Our understanding of their role and a viable application of this in anti-cancer therapy has rapidly improved in recent years. This review summarizes the current data on the role nectins and Nectin-like molecules play in colorectal cancer.
A Deep Learning Based Approach for Grading of Diabetic Retinopathy Using Large Fundus Image Dataset
Authors: Mehboob Ayesha , Akram Muhammad Usman , Alghamdi Norah Saleh , Abdul Salam Anum
Published: December 2022

Diabetic Retinopathy affects one-third of all diabetic patients and may cause vision impairment. It has four stages of progression, i.e., mild non-proliferative, moderate non-proliferative, severe non-proliferative and proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy. The disease has no noticeable symptoms at early stages and may lead to chronic destruction, thus causing permanent blindness if not detected at an early stage. The proposed research provides deep learning frameworks for autonomous detection of Diabetic Retinopathy at an early stage using fundus images. The first framework consists of cascaded neural networks, spanned in three layers where each layer classifies data into two classes, one is the desired stage and the other output is passed to another classifier until the input image is classified as one of the stages. The second framework takes normalized, HSV and RGB fundus images as input to three Convolutional Neural Networks, and the resultant probabilistic vectors are averaged together to obtain the final output of the input image. Third framework used the Long Short Term Memory Module in CNN to emphasize the network in remembering information over a long time span. Proposed frameworks were tested and compared on the large-scale Kaggle fundus image dataset EYEPAC. The evaluations have shown that the second framework outperformed others and achieved an accuracy of 78.06% and 83.78% without and with augmentation, respectively.
Scheduling Algorithm for Two-Workshop Production with the Time-Selective Strategy and Backtracking Strategy
Authors: Zhang Xiaohuan , Wang Zhen , Zhang Dan , Xu Tao
Published: December 2022

To solve the two-workshop integrated scheduling problem with the same device resources, existing algorithms pay attention to the horizontal parallel processing of the process tree and ignore the tightness between vertical serial processes. A scheduling algorithm for two-workshop production with the time-selective strategy and Backtracking Strategy is proposed. The scheduling order of each process in the process tree needs to be determined, which will be completed by the process sequence sequencing strategy. The scheduling plan also needs to be determined, which will be completed using the time-selective scheduling strategy for the two workshops. At the same time, the “reference time” is set for the current scheduling process. To find a better scheduling scheme, the “scheduling reference time” is recorded as T. If the time of the current scheduling process scheme is greater than T, the backtracking adjustment strategy will be used to track the process scheduling scheme. Finally, experiments show that the algorithm not only ensures the parallel processing of parallel processes but also effectively improves the tightness of serial processes and optimizes the results of integrated scheduling.