bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Responses of NDVI to climate factors in Inner Mongolia using geographically weighted regression
Authors: Wang Yuwei , Gao Wang
Published: September 2020

Using the MODIS normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) datasets along with the climate data (precipitation and temperature), geographically weighted regression (GWR) was constructed to explore the spatial nonstationarity and heterogeneity relationships between NDVI and climate factors in Inner Mongolia, China. Our work compared the results of GWR model accuracy with ordinary least squares (OLS) model. The results indicated that GWR method yielded better goodness of fit and higher model accuracy than OLS. Moreover, the GWR model could deeply reveal the complex relationship between NDVI and climate factors. At the same time, the research results could also provide scientific basis for vegetation modeling in Inner Mongolia and similar areas.
Research on 4D Simulation Technology of Reconstruction Engineering Construction Organization Based on BIM
Authors: Wang Chen , Liu Xiangsheng , Zhang Kechao
Published: September 2020

This research is based on BIM technology to achieve 4D simulation of highway construction organization. By correlating BIM model and construction process, it can identify potential process errors or conflicts in advance, optimize construction organization process, and reduce unnecessary capital investment. Relying on the research results, the collaborative management of the quality, schedule and cost of complex projects in the construction process is realized.
Research on the Framework of the Collaborative Management Platform for the Reconstruction of Bridge Projects during Construction Based on BIM
Authors: Jiang Kai , Yang Yong , Zhang Kechao
Published: September 2020

This research is based on BIM technology, cloud computing and Internet of Things technology, and independently developed the BIM collaborative management platform framework during the bridge reconstruction project construction period, to achieve visual and refined management of the quality, safety and progress of the bridge reconstruction based on BIM technology. The research results can be found in Popularize and apply on the same type of bridge.
Brief introduction of dehumidification technology and research progress
Authors: Wang Jie , Peng Fusheng , Tu Zhiyuan , Wei Zijie , Zhang Di , Guo Jiaquan , Huang Chunjie
Published: September 2020

Air humidity is one of the important factors that constitute the human body’s thermal comfort. Inappropriate humidity will affect people’s comfort and health. With the improvement of people’s living standard, people have higher and higher requirements for indoor air quality, and air humidity is important factors that affect air quality. Thus it is an important task to control appropriate air humidity in air-conditioning engineering. This paper will briefly discuss and analyze the existing dehumidification technologies of air conditioning, compare the advantages and disadvantages of various dehumidification technologies, and look into the future research direction.
Study on key micromechanics of recycled concrete based on compound random aggregate model
Authors: Zeliang Yao , Shuo Wen , Dongxu Duan , Faning Dang
Published: September 2020

A compound random aggregate program of recycled concrete is developed based on the concrete damage plasticity constitutive mode using computer language. Bifacial mesoscopic models of the recycled concrete are studied with ABAQUS finite element analysis software. The mesoscopic performance of the recycled concrete are studied as follows: uniaxial compression strength, strain change, damage process, stress state, and so on. The influence factors of the mesoscopic mechanical properties of recycled concrete are analyzed. The analysis results show that there are concentration problems of tensile and shear stress in the internal and external interface area of the recycled concrete under the action of uniaxial compression load. The concentration of the tensile stress and shear stress may result in the damage failure of recycled concrete. The initial damage appears the first in weaker interfacial area, after that the damage is developed towards the mortar area. The recycled concrete compressive strength is greatly influenced by the new hardened mortar strength and old hardened mortar strength, and the influence of the interfacial area and the outer surface area is small. The mechanical properties of the recycled concrete are weakened due to the old hardened mortar.
Research on the Design of Comprehensive Storm Flood Prevention and Treatment Project of Sponge Airport
Authors: Ziyin Qu , Jie Ouyang , Xingang Han
Published: September 2020

In view of the current situation that the airport is often flooded in recent years, based on the analysis of comprehensive storm flood prevention and treatment measures in different regions, this paper puts forward the overall framework scheme for the spatial layout design of comprehensive storm flood prevention and treatment project of sponge airport, and focuses on the composition of purification function, workflow process and large-scale release function of new storage tank, so as to promote the new-type “assembled” and “modular” regulation innovative application of storage tank.
Deepening of Integrated pipeline - based BIM
Authors: Han Zhongjun , Chen Peng
Published: September 2020

The traditional electromechanical design using two-dimensional drawings conveys information that is relatively abstract, which means simple profiles and elevation drawings can’t reflect the three-dimensional effect of the pipeline. And that will cause some problems such as collisions during the construction process, disordered pipeline layout, and unreasonable space utilization. As a three-dimensional design technology, BIM can solve the above problems well. This paper describes the deepening and construction methods of pipe comprehensive based on BIM technology in detail. On the basis of refined modeling, combined with on-site construction experience and the comprehensive layout specifications of various professional pipelines, NAVISWORKS is used for collision detection, which is carried out with the designer and the builder, and the optimization of the original design drawings of the project. The deepened model can be used directly to guide on-site construction, that can reflect the important application value of BIM technology in electromechanical engineering.
Influence of the Reservoir Position on Sponge Slope Stability
Authors: Li Liang , Shumei Zhai , Zhihui Wu
Published: September 2020

Sponge slopes have received increasing attention due to their unique ecological advantage. Based on the three-dimensional numerical calculation model, the paper explores the influence of the position of the reservoir on the safety and stability of the slope and compares the variation characteristics of the sliding displacement and stress field of the slope. The results show that when the reservoir is built below the slope foot or at the slope top, the disturbance is relatively small, and the maximum displacement of the slope is smaller. Shear stress concentration occurs near the wall of the reservoir, and it increases and then decreases as the height of the reservoir increases. Besides, the maximum principal stress appears near the reservoir wall and the maximum principal stress decreases as the position of the reservoir increases.
New Structure of Impervious Steel Sheet Pile in Foundation Slab
Authors: Zhao Waner , Tu Zhibin , Yao Jianfeng , Liu Xueying
Published: September 2020

In view of the poor seepage control effect, slow construction progress and high investment cost of the existing sluice vertical impervious core structure, a new type of anti-seepage steel sheet pile structure for foundation slab is proposed in this paper.

The new structure is formed by connecting multiple steel sheet piles, the steel sheet pile is in “U” shape, the steel sheet pile body forms horizontal extension edges on both sides, the two extended edges form two reverse hooks at the end, and the clasp forms an inward inclined plane at the connection opening. The steel sheet pile is used as the vertical anti-seepage body, and the structure of the steel sheet pile is optimized. The connection end is connected by the reverse hook. The gap between the connection end faces is small and the anti-seepage performance is good. The structure reduces the seepage head, reduces the saturation line, and improves the stability of sluice foundation and sluice.
Application of Species Cumulative Curve in the Investigation of Swimming Organisms in the Fishway of Cao’e River
Authors: Rong Li , Hui Yin , Fuqing Bai , Tingli Xu , Xinchuang Cheng , Xinsheng Che
Published: September 2020

Using the species cumulative curve (EstimateS) to analyze the monitored swimming biological data in the Cao’e River gate fishway, the results showed that as the number of sampling increased, the number of species gradually increased, and the cumulative curve rose sharply and then became smooth asymptote, indicating that the swimming organisms in the fishway were fully sampled; there were estimated to be 30 species of swimming organisms in the fishway, and 27 species were found in the actual sample survey, and the survey discovery rate reached 90%, and the sampling survey effect was good.
Development and application of Sequencing Batch Airlift Reactor for Domestic Sewage Treatment
Authors: Chen Peng , Qiu Chong , Han Zhongjun
Published: September 2020

Aiming at the demand of decentralized domestic sewage treatment in rural areas, Sequencing Batch Airlift Reactor (SBAR) for domestic sewage treatment was developed and applied for sewage disposal of an office building in shenjiadun village, Deqing, Zhejiang Province. The device doesn’t need to set up sedimentation tank and sludge reflux system. It has a good precipitation effect and only occupies a small area. In the aspect of control, it adopts the self-researched embedded software system. And it integrates GPRS/GSM/SMS/CDMA/Internet communication technology and high-precision electrical parameter measurement technology. The actual operation results show that the device can ensure sufficient contact between sludge and waste water. It can effectively remove BOD5, CODCr, ammonia nitrogen and total nitrogen from domestic sewage. And it has the advantages of low investment, low energy consumption, high automation and simple operation. Therefore, this device has important popularization value in the field of distributed treatment of rural domestic sewage.
Bibliometric analysis of research progress on karst groundwater pollution
Authors: Zhou Yaxing , yang Fan , Wu Xiaohua , Jia Chao , Liu Sen , Gao Yan
Published: September 2020

The hydrological conditions in karst areas are complex. Due to the special karst structure, the surface and aquifers are closely connected through surface karsts, sinkholes, etc., making the karst aquifers vulnerable to pollution. In recent years, human activities and climate change have also exacerbated this phenomenon. Understanding the key knowledge and research status of karst groundwater pollution is an important prerequisite for subsequent research. Based on the CiteSpace software, this paper analyzed the related papers on karst groundwater pollution in the core database of Web of Science, intending to sort out the research results in this field and explore potential research hotspots. Analysis results show that: (1) In recent years, the number of publications and citations in this field has gradually increased, and there is a large space for research and development; (2) The United States, China, Germany are the countries that have contributed the most in this field. The number of research results in this field supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China is in a leading position in the world; (3) The identification and protection of the vulnerability of karst aquifers, modeling of groundwater flow and pollutant migration are the main research directions. Water chemical analysis, tracer experiment and numerical modeling are the main research methods in this field; (4) The migration of organic micro-pollution, the trace of groundwater flow, the distribution of biodiversity and control factors, the characterization of karst conduits and the simulation of conduit flow, and the development of new tracer isotope fractions are potential development directions and breakthrough points in this field. In general, the research on karst groundwater pollution in the future is inseparable from the cross-integration of various disciplines, the mutual verification of multiple methods, and the introduction of new technological methods.
Experimental Study On Properties Of High-Early-Strength Cementitious Grout
Authors: Huang S M , Zhu W , Yu L L , Zhang S , Lu D H
Published: September 2020

This paper studied the influences of mineral admixture content on the fluidity, compressive strength and vertical expansion rate of the cementitious grout, which based on a ternary composite cementitious material system of sulfoalminate cement, protland cement and gypsum. The influences of fly ash, slag powder and silica fume were investigated respectively. It was shown that: (1) The initial fluidity grew as the addition of fly ash content in the cementitious grout, 1 d compressive strength and 3 d compressive strength were reduced. (2) The slag powder had great impact on the fluidity, when the content of slag powder more than 18%, initial and 30 min fluidities declined. With the slag powder increased, 1 d, 3 d and 28 d compressive strengths decreased slightly, while 3 h vertical expansion rate increased. (3) The increased of silica fume content made the compressive strengths rised first and then fell. 1 d, 3 d and 28 d compressive strengths could reach their maximum values, when the amount of silica fume was 3.0%.
Static elastoplastic analysis of the composite shear wall of the grid -tube- type double steel plate wall with infilled concrete
Authors: Tao Jiang , Jinbao Li , Wenping Xu
Published: September 2020

In this paper, the new idea is proposed on the composite shear wall of the grid -tube- type double steel plate wall with infilled concrete, the model test was carried out, and combined with practical engineering, for instance, a 18th floor high-rise building pushover static elastoplastic analysis is discussed. Research shows that the hysteresis curve of the new composite shear wall is relatively full, and has good seismic performance with high bearing capacity, high ductility and high energy consumption capacity. Under the action of rare earthquakes, the interlayer displacement is small on structural system with concrete filled steel tubular column and he composite shear wall of the grid -tube- type double steel plate wall with infilled concrete, and the new composite shear wall is distributed more base shear. Research shows that structural system on composite shear wall with grid -tube- type double steel plate wall with infilled concrete has good seismic performance.
Research on Sponge City Construction
Authors: Chen Honggang
Published: September 2020

This research carried out the exploration of sponge city construction and proposed a model combining river water body restoration with low-impact development of “gray-green combination” so as to promote the coordinated development of new city construction and the ecological environment and bring certain benefits to society, ecology and economy.
Research on Application of BIM 5D in Communication of Project Muti-participants—A Case Study of Nagpur Metro Project
Authors: Liu Yang , Liu Ying , Lin Mengguo , Zhang Jianshuo , Yang Chenchen , Huang Guozhong , Zhang Yi , Zhao Qiong
Published: September 2020

At present, our country’s infrastructure projects are in a period of rapid development of investment and construction, and they play a vital role in maintaining social production and social harmony. The concept of Building Information Modeling is used to solve the communication problems of various participants in construction projects. It is increasingly being paid attention to and applied by various departments and majors of the construction industry, as well as domestic and foreign research scholars, especially infrastructure projects with complex structures and numerous stakeholders. For the Nagpur Metro Rail Project, an analysis of the relationship between the various stakeholders involved in this infrastructure project and the benefits and challenges of adopting a digital management platform.
Research on Key Technologies of Construction Management of Large Swivel Bridge Based on BIM Technology——A Case Study of Dade Swivel Bridge
Authors: Li Yongbing , Li Peng , Li Yu , Feng Junchun , Liu Yang , Yan Ziwei , Liu Ying , Gui Yuhuan , Yang Zuxian
Published: September 2020

Swivel bridge is a special construction method in bridge engineering. It has the characteristics of difficult construction, complex environment and many benefits. The project needs fine management to overcome various problems in traditional construction management mode. Taking Kunchu Expressway over Chengdu-Kunming Railway Bridge as an example, this paper introduces the technical route and technical application points of fine management of construction of turning bridge of Expressway based on BIM technology. The main application points of this paper include: BIM collaboration, BIM collision detection, BIM project management application platform, UAV three-dimensional scene modeling, three-dimensional laser scanning. Practice has proved that BIM technology has incomparable advantages over traditional management mode in finding drawings errors, technical submission, engineering statistics, collision detection, information integration and so on. The implementation of BIM technology has brought enormous technical and economic benefits to project management and has good prospects for promotion.
Analysis of Monitoring in Displacement For Vacuum Combined Stack Preloading about Soft foundation Sluice
Authors: Jin Hai-sheng , Ma Rui-qun , Xu Xiang-ming , Ge Guo-chang
Published: September 2020

Soft soil foundation treatment methods mainly include soil replacement cushion method, dynamic compaction method, drainage consolidation method, etc. Drainage consolidation methods mainly include: vacuum preloading method, stack preloading method and vacuum combined stacking preloading method. Among them, the vacuum preloading method has obvious advantages in treating large areas and deep soft foundations. This paper describes the process of soft soil foundation vacuum combined with stack preloading reinforcement. Through the monitoring of the vacuum preloading process, we mainly analyzed the monitoring results and development trend of horizontal displacement.
Power of Microbiome Beta-Diversity Analyses Based on Standard Reference Samples
Authors: Gail Mitchell H , Wan Yunhu , Shi Jianxin
Published: September 2020

A simple method to analyze microbiome beta-diversity computes mean beta-diversity distances from a test sample to standard reference samples. We used reference stool and nasal samples from the Human Microbiome Project and regressed an outcome on mean distances (2 degrees-of-freedom (df) test) or additionally on squares and cross-product of mean distances (5-df test). We compared the power of 2-df and 5-df tests with the microbiome regression-based kernel association test (MiRKAT). In simulations, MiRKAT had moderately greater power than the 2-df test for discriminating skin versus saliva and skin versus nasal samples, but differences were negligible for skin versus stool and stool versus nasal samples. The 2-df test had slightly greater power than MiRKAT for Dirichlet multinomial samples. In associating body mass index with beta-diversity in stool samples from the American Gut Project, the 5-df test yielded smaller P values than MiRKAT for most taxonomic levels and beta-diversity measures. Unlike procedures like MiRKAT that are based on the beta-diversity matrix, mean distances to reference samples can be analyzed with standard statistical tools and shared or meta-analyzed without sharing primary DNA data. Our data indicate that standard reference tests have power comparable to MiRKAT’s (and to permutational multivariate analysis of variance), but more simulations and applications are needed to confirm this.
Current Smoking Raises Risk of Incident Hypertension: Hispanic Community Health Study–Study of Latinos
Authors: Kaplan Robert C , Baldoni Pedro L , Strizich Garrett M , Pérez-Stable Eliseo J , Saccone Nancy L , Peralta Carmen A , Perreira Krista M , Gellman Marc D , Williams-Nguyen Jessica S , Rodriguez Carlos J , Lee David J , Daviglus Martha , Talavera Gregory A , Lash James P , Cai Jianwen , Franceschini Nora
Published: September 2020

Background

Hypertension has been implicated as a smoking-related risk factor for cardiovascular disease but the dose–response relationship is incompletely described. Hispanics, who often have relatively light smoking exposures, have been understudied in this regard.

Methods

We used data from a 6-year follow-up study of US Hispanic adults aged 18–76 to address the dose–response linking cigarette use with incident hypertension, which was defined by measured blood pressure above 140/90 mm Hg or initiation of antihypertensive medications. Adjustment was performed for potential confounders and mediators, including urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio which worsened over time among smokers.

Results

Current smoking was associated with incident hypertension, with a threshold effect above 5 cumulative pack-years of smoking (vs. never smokers, hazard ratio for hypertension [95% confidence interval] of 0.95 [0.67, 1.35] for 0–5 pack-years, 1.47 [1.05, 2.06] for 5–10 pack-years, 1.40 [1.00, 1.96] for 10–20 pack-years, and 1.34 [1.09, 1.66] for ≥20 pack-years, P = 0.037). In contrast to current smokers, former smokers did not appear to have increased risk of hypertension, even at the highest cumulative pack-years of past exposure.

Conclusions

The results confirm that smoking constitutes a hypertension risk factor in Hispanic adults. A relatively modest cumulative dose of smoking, above 5 pack-years of exposure, raises risk of hypertension by over 30%. The increased hypertension risk was confined to current smokers, and did not increase further with higher pack-year levels. The lack of a smoking–hypertension association in former smokers underscores the value of smoking cessation.
Where Did ‘Human Dignity’ Come from? Drafting the Preamble to the Irish Constitution
Authors: McCrudden Christopher
Published: September 2020

This article addresses the correctness of Samuel Moyn’s contention that the inclusion of ‘dignity’ in the Irish Constitution of 1937 reflects a particularistic, sectarian and conservative Catholic viewpoint, rather than (as some other scholars do) seeing the inclusion of ‘dignity’ as the first tentative step towards the instantiation of a universalistic, liberal human rights ethic into the Irish Constitution. For Moyn, ‘dignity’s’ sectarian, political origins in Ireland add weight to his sceptical approach to human rights more generally, given the extent to which human dignity is now seen as underpinning the justification of human rights. In arguing against Moyn’s conclusions, the article provides a detailed re-examination, based on archival research, of the drafting of the Preamble to the Irish Constitution in which the term ‘dignity’ is located, situating it in the intellectual changes in political Catholicism and Irish nationalism at that time. In particular, the article examines for the first time to what extent insights can be gleaned from the contemporaneous translation of ‘dignity’ into the Irish language version of the Constitution, and the significance of the choice of ‘uaisleacht’ in the Irish text. Drawing from this, the article identifies the various different influences that appear to have contributed to the use and meaning of dignity in the Preamble, before returning to consider how far Moyn’s assessments are correct in light of the re-examination of the drafting history.
Future Alcohol-Attributable Mortality in France Using a Novel Generalizable Age-Period-Cohort Projection Methodology
Authors: Trias-Llimós Sergi , Bardoutsos Anastasios , Janssen Fanny
Published: September 2020

Aim

To forecast age- and sex-specific alcohol-attributable mortality in France for the period 2015–2050 using a novel generalizable methodology that includes different scenarios regarding period and cohort change.

Methods

For the French national population aged 25–90 years (1979–2014), we estimated alcohol-attributable mortality by mortality from the main causes of death wholly attributable to alcohol, plus liver cirrhosis mortality. We modelled sex-specific alcohol-attributable mortality by adjusting for age, period and birth cohort. We forecasted the model parameters to obtain future age- and sex-specific alcohol-attributable mortality up until 2050 using a conventional baseline, scenario I (favourable period change) and scenario II (unfavourable cohort change).

Results

Alcohol-attributable mortality is clearly declining in France, with the decline decelerating from 1992 onwards. In 2014, the age-standardized alcohol-attributable mortality rates, in deaths per 100,000, were 34.7 among men and 9.9 among women. In 2050, the estimated rates are between 10.5 (prediction interval: 7.6–14.4; scenario I) and 17.6 (13.1–23.7; scenario II) among men, and between 1.1 (0.7–1.7; scenario I) and 1.8 (1.2–2.9; scenario II) among women; which implies declines of 58% for men and 84% for women (baseline).

Conclusion

Alcohol-attributable mortality in France is expected to further decline in the coming decades, accompanied by age pattern changes. However, France’s levels are not expected to reach the current lower levels in Italy and Spain for 15 years or more. Our results point to the value of implementing preventive policy measures that discourage alcohol consumption among people of all ages, but especially among adolescents.
Vegetation structure drives mixed-species flock interaction strength and nuclear species roles
Authors: Jones Harrison H , Robinson Scott K
Published: September 2020

Mixed-species flocks are a key facilitative interaction for tropical birds. Forest fragmentation leads to species loss and spatial turnover in these flocks, yet it is unknown how these changes to composition influence within-flock species interactions. We used network analysis to characterize flocking interactions along a fragment-size gradient in the Colombian Western Andes. We asked 1) how patch size, edge density, and vegetation structure explained network measures indicative of flock cohesion, 2) whether changes were driven by flocking species turnover or changes to the frequency of species co-occurrence, and 3) whether nuclear species, those that maintain flock stability and cohesion, changed in importance across the gradient. We constructed weighted social networks from flock compositions observed on 500-m transects, and then calculated global network measures and the centrality of six nuclear species. Patch size and edge density did not correlate with interspecific co-occurrence patterns, but interaction strength increased with canopy height. Flocks contained numerous, weak interactions, and there were no flock subtypes, suggesting flock composition was dynamic and unstructured. Several redundant nuclear species were present and varied in importance based on ecological conditions. A chlorospingus (Passerellidae) was most central in old-growth forest, whereas several tanager (Thraupidae) species became more central in smaller fragments and disturbed forest. When partitioning network dissimilarity, we found that 66% of dissimilarity resulted from species turnover, whereas only 34% resulted from changes to species co-occurrence. This finding suggests that coherence of flocking behavior itself is maintained even as extensive species turnover occurs from continuous forest to small fragments.
IHP-PING—generating integrated human protein–protein interaction networks on-the-fly
Authors: Mazandu Gaston K , Hooper Christopher , Opap Kenneth , Makinde Funmilayo , Nembaware Victoria , Thomford Nicholas E , Chimusa Emile R , Wonkam Ambroise , Mulder Nicola J
Published: September 2020

Advances in high-throughput sequencing technologies have resulted in an exponential growth of publicly accessible biological datasets. In the ‘big data’ driven ‘post-genomic’ context, much work is being done to explore human protein–protein interactions (PPIs) for a systems level based analysis to uncover useful signals and gain more insights to advance current knowledge and answer specific biological and health questions. These PPIs are experimentally or computationally predicted, stored in different online databases and some of PPI resources are updated regularly. As with many biological datasets, such regular updates continuously render older PPI datasets potentially outdated. Moreover, while many of these interactions are shared between these online resources, each resource includes its own identified PPIs and none of these databases exhaustively contains all existing human PPI maps. In this context, it is essential to enable the integration of or combining interaction datasets from different resources, to generate a PPI map with increased coverage and confidence. To allow researchers to produce an integrated human PPI datasets in real-time, we introduce the integrated human protein–protein interaction network generator (IHP-PING) tool. IHP-PING is a flexible python package which generates a human PPI network from freely available online resources. This tool extracts and integrates heterogeneous PPI datasets to generate a unified PPI network, which is stored locally for further applications.
LipidFinder 2.0: advanced informatics pipeline for lipidomics discovery applications
Authors: Alvarez-Jarreta Jorge , Rodrigues Patricia R S , Fahy Eoin , O’Connor Anne , Price Anna , Gaud Caroline , Andrews Simon , Benton Paul , Siuzdak Gary , Hawksworth Jade I , Valdivia-Garcia Maria , Allen Stuart M , O’Donnell Valerie B
Published: September 2020

We present LipidFinder 2.0, incorporating four new modules that apply artefact filters, remove lipid and contaminant stacks, in-source fragments and salt clusters, and a new isotope deletion method which is significantly more sensitive than available open-access alternatives. We also incorporate a novel false discovery rate method, utilizing a target–decoy strategy, which allows users to assess data quality. A renewed lipid profiling method is introduced which searches three different databases from LIPID MAPS and returns bulk lipid structures only, and a lipid category scatter plot with color blind friendly pallet. An API interface with XCMS Online is made available on LipidFinder’s online version. We show using real data that LipidFinder 2.0 provides a significant improvement over non-lipid metabolite filtering and lipid profiling, compared to available tools.

Availability and implementation

LipidFinder 2.0 is freely available at https://github.com/ODonnell-Lipidomics/LipidFinder and http://lipidmaps.org/resources/tools/lipidfinder.

Supplementary information

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
PredHPI: an integrated web server platform for the detection and visualization of host–pathogen interactions using sequence-based methods
Authors: Loaiza Cristian D , Kaundal Rakesh
Published: September 2020

Motivation

Understanding the mechanisms underlying infectious diseases is fundamental to develop prevention strategies. Host–pathogen interactions (HPIs) are actively studied worldwide to find potential genomic targets for the development of novel drugs, vaccines and other therapeutics. Determining which proteins are involved in the interaction system behind an infectious process is the first step to develop an efficient disease control strategy. Very few computational methods have been implemented as web services to infer novel HPIs, and there is not a single framework which combines several of those approaches to produce and visualize a comprehensive analysis of HPIs.

Results

Here, we introduce PredHPI, a powerful framework that integrates both the detection and visualization of interaction networks in a single web service, facilitating the apprehension of model and non-model host–pathogen systems to aid the biologists in building hypotheses and designing appropriate experiments. PredHPI is built on high-performance computing resources on the backend capable of handling proteome-scale sequence data from both the host as well as pathogen. Data are displayed in an information-rich and interactive visualization, which can be further customized with user-defined layouts. We believe PredHPI will serve as an invaluable resource to diverse experimental biologists and will help advance the research in the understanding of complex infectious diseases.

Availability and implementation

PredHPI tool is freely available at http://bioinfo.usu.edu/PredHPI/.

Supplementary information

Sup  plementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Assessing the fit of the multi-species network coalescent to multi-locus data
Authors: Cai Ruoyi , Ané Cécile
Published: September 2020

Motivation

With growing genome-wide molecular datasets from next-generation sequencing, phylogenetic networks can be estimated using a variety of approaches. These phylogenetic networks include events like hybridization, gene flow or horizontal gene transfer explicitly. However, the most accurate network inference methods are computationally heavy. Methods that scale to larger datasets do not calculate a full likelihood, such that traditional likelihood-based tools for model selection are not applicable to decide how many past hybridization events best fit the data. We propose here a goodness-of-fit test to quantify the fit between data observed from genome-wide multi-locus data, and patterns expected under the multi-species coalescent model on a candidate phylogenetic network.

Results

We identified weaknesses in the previously proposed TICR test, and proposed corrections. The performance of our new test was validated by simulations on real-world phylogenetic networks. Our test provides one of the first rigorous tools for model selection, to select the adequate network complexity for the data at hand. The test can also work for identifying poorly inferred areas on a network.

Availability and implementation

Software for the goodness-of-fit test is available as a Julia package at https://github.com/cecileane/QuartetNetworkGoodnessFit.jl.

Supplementary information

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Financial Well-Being of the Non-Profit Social Service Workforce in China
Authors: Zhou Ling , Guo Baorong , Huang Jin
Published: September 2020

Using secondary data from the 2017 online survey of 736 non-profit social service employees in urban China, this study provides a complete description of the financial well-being of the non-profit social service workforce and examines correlates of financial well-being. Results show that non-profit employees’ household income is lower than the disposable income of a typical urban household. Nearly one-third of social service professionals have short-term unsecured debts, 10 per cent do not have public health insurance coverage and another 22 per cent report economic hardships caused by large unexpected expenses. Correlates of financial well-being include individual characteristics (e.g. age, education and marital status) and organizational characteristics (type, revenue and size). New services (e.g. employment-based programmes and financial services) are proposed to promote financial well-being of non-profit social service employees in China.
GDF15 serves as a coactivator to enhance KISS-1 gene transcription through interacting with Sp1
Authors: Zhou Bo , Huang Wen-he , Chen Shaoying , Chen Weibin , Peng Pei , Zhou Yanchun , Gu Wei
Published: September 2020

GDF15 has been recently recognized as a tumor-suppressive gene. However, the underlying mechanism by which GDF15 affects breast carcinogenesis is not well understood. Here, we showed that the inhibitory effect of GDF15 on cell proliferation was dependent on the nuclear localization of the protein. Dynamic translocation of GDF15 into the nucleus altered expression of a number of genes, including KISS-1, and resulted in inhibition of cell growth and invasive behavior. Using KISS-1 promoter-driven luciferase reporter and chromatin immunoprecipitation assays, we demonstrated that, in highly malignant breast cancer cells, GDF15 directly interacts with specific protein-1 (Sp1) at the Sp1-binding sites of the KISS-1 promoter, leading to upregulated KISS-1 expression. Our study indicates that nuclear GDF15 could serve as a transcriptional coactivator to mediate the expression of particular genes to reduce cell proliferation.
Exploration and practice of intelligent engineering in Dadu River hydropower construction
Authors: Duan Bin , Tu Yangju , Li Shanping , Yan Qinzhi
Published: September 2020

In view of the difficulties in promoting intelligent management in the field of engineering construction, based on the concept of intelligent enterprise and the actual situation of hydropower project-construction management, this paper puts forward the basic concept, main features and general idea of intelligent engineering. Based on a review of the exploration, pilot construction and comprehensive practice of intelligent engineering in the hydropower construction of Dadu River, the practical results of the intelligent engineering of Dagangshan, Houziyan, Shaping-II and Shuangjiangkou hydropower stations are summarized. The technical system and management model of engineering an early-warning decision centre, intelligent dam project, intelligent underground project, intelligent electromechanical project, intelligent security control, intelligent service guarantee, intelligent environmental and water protection, and intelligent resource control in Shuangjiangkou hydropower station are introduced. It is proposed that intelligent engineering is a high integration of information technology, industrial technology and management technology. And it is pointed out that intelligent engineering will lead in the new development of water conservancy and the hydropower industry, and even the engineering-construction field, throughout the world.
Prediction of Social Influence for Provenance of Misinformation in Online Social Network Using Big Data Approach
Authors: P Kumaran , Sridhar Rajeswari
Published: September 2020

Online social networks (OSNs) is a platform that plays an essential role in identifying misinformation like false rumors, insults, pranks, hoaxes, spear phishing and computational propaganda in a better way. Detection of misinformation finds its applications in areas such as law enforcement to pinpoint culprits who spread rumors to harm the society, targeted marketing in e-commerce to identify the user who originates dissatisfaction messages about products or services that harm an organizations reputation. The process of identifying and detecting misinformation is very crucial in complex social networks. As misinformation in social network is identified by designing and placing the monitors, computing the minimum number of monitors for detecting misinformation is a very trivial work in the complex social network. The proposed approach determines the top suspected sources of misinformation using a tweet polarity-based ranking system in tandem with sarcasm detection (both implicit and explicit sarcasm) with optimization approaches on large-scale incomplete network. The algorithm subsequently uses this determined feature to place the minimum set of monitors in the network for detecting misinformation. The proposed work focuses on the timely detection of misinformation by limiting the distance between the suspected sources and the monitors. The proposed work also determines the root cause of misinformation (provenance) by using a combination of network-based and content-based approaches. The proposed work is compared with the state-of-art work and has observed that the proposed algorithm produces better results than existing methods.
Predicting smartphone location-sharing decisions through self-reflection on past privacy behavior
Authors: Wisniewski Pamela , Safi Muhammad Irtaza , Patil Sameer , Page Xinru
Published: September 2020

Smartphone location sharing is a particularly sensitive type of information disclosure that has implications for users’ digital privacy and security as well as their physical safety. To understand and predict location disclosure behavior, we developed an Android app that scraped metadata from users’ phones, asked them to grant the location-sharing permission to the app, and administered a survey. We compared the effectiveness of using self-report measures commonly used in the social sciences, behavioral data collected from users’ mobile phones, and a new type of measure that we developed, representing a hybrid of self-report and behavioral data to contextualize users’ attitudes toward their past location-sharing behaviors. This new type of measure is based on a reflective learning paradigm where individuals reflect on past behavior to inform future behavior. Based on data from 380 Android smartphone users, we found that the best predictors of whether participants granted the location-sharing permission to our app were: behavioral intention to share information with apps, the “FYI” communication style, and one of our new hybrid measures asking users whether they were comfortable sharing location with apps currently installed on their smartphones. Our novel, hybrid construct of self-reflection on past behavior significantly improves predictive power and shows the importance of combining social science and computational science approaches for improving the prediction of users’ privacy behaviors. Further, when assessing the construct validity of the Behavioral Intention construct drawn from previous location-sharing research, our data showed a clear distinction between two different types of Behavioral Intention: self-reported intention to use mobile apps versus the intention to share information with these apps. This finding suggests that users desire the ability to use mobile apps without being required to share sensitive information, such as their location. These results have important implications for cybersecurity research and system design to meet users’ location-sharing privacy needs.
Pathophysiologic importance of visceral adipose tissue in women with heart failure and preserved ejection fraction
Authors: Sorimachi Hidemi , Obokata Masaru , Takahashi Naoki , Reddy Yogesh N V , Jain Christopher C , Verbrugge Frederik H , Koepp Katlyn E , Khosla Sundeep , Jensen Michael D , Borlaug Barry A
Published: September 2020

Aims 

Central obesity is a major risk factor for heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), particularly in women, but the mechanisms remain unclear. We hypothesized that sex-specific differences in visceral adipose tissue (VAT) content would differentially relate to haemodynamic severity of HFpEF in women and men.

Methods and results 

Abdominal computed tomography (CT) and invasive haemodynamic exercise testing were performed in 105 subjects with HFpEF (63 women) and 105 age-, sex-, and body mass index-matched controls. Visceral adipose tissue area was quantified by CT. As compared with control women, VAT area was 34% higher in women with HFpEF (186 ± 112 vs. 139 ± 72 cm2, P = 0.006), while VAT area was not significantly different in men with or without HFpEF (294 ± 158 vs. 252 ± 92 cm2, P = 0.1). During exercise, pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (PCWP) increased markedly and to similar extent in both men and women with HFpEF. Women with increased VAT area displayed 33% higher PCWP during exercise compared with women with normal VAT area (28 ± 10 vs. 21 ± 10 mmHg, P = 0.001), whereas exercise PCWP was similar in men with or without excess VAT (24 ± 9 vs. 25 ± 6, P = 0.89). In women, each 100 cm2 increase in VAT area was associated with a 4.0 mmHg higher PCWP (95% CI 2.1, 6.0 mmHg; P < 0.0001), but there was no such relationship in men (interaction P = 0.009).

Conclusions 

These data suggest that accumulation of excess VAT plays a distinct and important role in the pathophysiology of HFpEF preferentially in women. Further research is needed to better understand the mechanisms and treatment implications for visceral fat in HFpEF.
Evolution of antithrombotic therapy in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention: a 40-year journey
Authors: Cao Davide , Chandiramani Rishi , Chiarito Mauro , Claessen Bimmer E , Mehran Roxana
Published: September 2020

Since its introduction in 1977, percutaneous coronary intervention has become one of the most commonly performed therapeutic procedures worldwide. Such widespread diffusion, however, would have not been possible without a concomitant evolution of the pharmacotherapies associated with this intervention. Antithrombotic agents are fundamental throughout the management of patients undergoing coronary stent implantation, starting from the procedure itself to the long-term prevention of cardiovascular events. The last 40 years of interventional cardiology have seen remarkable improvements in both drug therapies and device technologies, which largely reflected a progressive understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms of coronary artery disease, as well as procedure- and device-related adverse events. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the important milestones in antithrombotic pharmacology that have shaped clinical practice of today while also providing insights into knowledge gaps and future directions.
Prediction of low-voltage areas using modified APPLE score
Authors: Seewöster Timm , Kosich Falco , Sommer Philipp , Bertagnolli Livio , Hindricks Gerhard , Kornej Jelena
Published: September 2020

Aims

The presence of low-voltage areas (LVAs) in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) reflects left atrial (LA) electroanatomical substrate, which is essential for individualized AF management. However, echocardiographic anteroposterior LA diameter included into previous LVAs prediction scores does not mirror LA size accurately and impaired left ventricular ejection fraction (LV-EF) is not directly associated with atrial myopathy. Therefore, we aimed to compare a modified (m)APPLE score, which included LA volume (LAV) and LA emptying fraction (LA-EF) with the regular APPLE score for the prediction of LVAs.

Methods and results

In patients undergoing first AF catheter ablation, LVAs were determined peri-interventionally using high-density maps and defined as signal amplitude <0.5 mV. All patients underwent cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging before intervention. The APPLE (one point for Age ≥ 65 years, Persistent AF, imPaired eGFR ≤ 60 mL/min/1.73 m2, LA diameter ≥ 43 mm, and LVEF < 50%) and (m)APPLE (last two variables changed by LAV ≥ 39 mL/m2, and LA-EF < 31%) scores were calculated at baseline. The study population included 219 patients [median age 65 (interquartile range 57–72) years, 41% females, 59% persistent AF, 25% LVAs]. Both scores were significantly associated with LVAs [OR 1.817, 95% CI 1.376–2.399 for APPLE and 2.288, 95% CI 1.650–3.172 for (m)APPLE]. Using receiver operating characteristic curves analysis, the (m)APPLE score [area under the curve (AUC) 0.779, 95% CI 0.702–0.855] showed better LVAs prediction than the APPLE score (AUC 0.704, 95% CI 0.623–0.784), however, without statistically significant difference (P = 0.233).

Conclusion

The modified (m)APPLE score demonstrated good prognostic value for LVAs prediction and was comparable with the regular APPLE score.