bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Privacy-Preserving Subgraph Matching Protocol for Two Parties
Authors: Xu Zifeng , Zhou Fucai , Li Yuxi , Xu Jian , Wang Qiang
Published: July 2019

Graph data structure has been widely used across many application areas, such as web data, social network, and cheminformatics. The main benefit of storing data as graphs is there exists a rich set of graph algorithms and operations that can be used to solve various computing problems, including pattern matching, data mining, and image processing. Among these graph algorithms, the subgraph isomorphism problem is one of the most fundamental algorithms that can be utilized by many higher level applications. The subgraph isomorphism problem is defined as, given two graphs [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], whether [Formula: see text] contains a subgraph that is isomorphic to [Formula: see text]. In this paper, we consider a special case of the subgraph isomorphism problem called the subgraph matching problem, which tests whether [Formula: see text] is a subgraph of [Formula: see text]. We propose a protocol that solve the subgraph matching problem in a privacy-preserving manner. The protocol allows two parties to jointly compute whether one graph is a subgraph of the other, while protecting the private information about the input graphs. The protocol is secure under the semi-honest setting, where each party performs the protocol faithfully.
Nonce-Based Key Agreement Protocol Against Bad Randomness
Authors: Kang Burong , Meng Xinyu , Zhang Lei , Sun Yinxia
Published: July 2019

Most of the existing cryptographic schemes, e.g., key agreement protocol, call for good randomness. Otherwise, the security of these cryptographic schemes cannot be fully guaranteed. Nonce-based cryptosystem is recently introduced to improve the security of public key encryption and digital signature schemes by ensuring security when randomness fails. In this paper, we first investigate the security of key agreement protocols when randomness fails. Then we define the security model for nonce-based key agreement protocols and propose a nonce-based key agreement protocol that protects against bad randomness. The new protocol is proven to be secure in our proposed security model.
Bound states of an inverse-cube singular potential: A candidate for electron-quadrupole binding
Authors: Alhaidari A. D.
Published: July 2019

We use the Tridiagonal Representation Approach (TRA) to obtain exact bound states solution (energy spectrum and wave function) of the Schrödinger equation for a three-parameter short-range potential with [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] singularities at the origin. The solution is a finite series of square-integrable functions with expansion coefficients that satisfy a three-term recursion relation. The solution of the recursion is a non-conventional orthogonal polynomial with discrete spectrum. The results of this work could be used to study the binding of an electron to a molecule with an effective electric quadrupole moment which has the same [Formula: see text] singularity.
Fermionic Schwinger model for spinning Feshbach–Villars particle in magnetic field
Authors: Boudjedaa T. , Merad M.
Published: July 2019

Propagator for spinning particle described in the Feshbach–Villars formalism is set up using fermionic coherent state path integral. The fermionization of the charge-spin symmetry is presented following the Schwinger recipe. The explicit calculations are done in the free case and magnetic interaction using the Foldy–Wouthuysen tranformation. The spectrum and wave functions are deduced.
Unusual and multicore extensive air showers
Authors: Doostmohammadi Saeed , Fatemi Seyed Jaliledin , Nikpour Maryam
Published: July 2019

Unusual and multicore extensive air showers are detected in some experiments. Study of these kinds of showers is an important issue in nuclear collisions at high energies and need to be interpreted by hadronic interaction models. In the work, taking into account results Sleptsova et al. of which emphasized shower size variations at energies above [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]eV, and also by using of the auger experimental data, some characteristics of multicore events are investigated. Intense nuclear variations are seen in energy range of [Formula: see text]–[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]eV, and nuclear distinctive properties of multicore showers relative to normal showers are shown.
THE FUNDAMENTAL THEOREMS OF ASSET PRICING AND THE CLOSED-END FUND PUZZLE
Authors: FRAHM GABRIEL , JONEN ALEXANDER , SCHÜSSLER RAINER
Published: July 2019

We propose a solution to the closed-end fund puzzle in financial markets without a free lunch with vanishing risk. Our results are consistent with both the time-series and the cross-sectional aspect of the closed-end fund puzzle. It turns out that a closed-end fund cannot exist if the fund manager is supposed to receive a fee although he is not able to find mispriced assets in the market. By contrast, a premium can typically be observed at the initial public offering because the fund manager has access to information that enables him to create a dominant strategy. As soon as this weak arbitrage opportunity evaporates, a premium can no longer occur. The reason why a premium quickly turns into a discount might be that the fund manager stops applying a superior trading strategy at some point in time. Another possibility is that abnormal profits are transient in a competitive financial market. In any case, when the fund manager is no longer willing or able to maintain a superior strategy, the fund must trade at a discount in order to compensate for his management fee.
Uncountable structures are not classifiable up to bi-embeddability
Authors: Calderoni Filippo , Mildenberger Heike , Motto Ros Luca
Published: July 2019

Answering some of the main questions from [L. Motto Ros, The descriptive set-theoretical complexity of the embeddability relation on models of large size, Ann. Pure Appl. Logic 164(12) (2013) 1454–1492], we show that whenever [Formula: see text] is a cardinal satisfying [Formula: see text], then the embeddability relation between [Formula: see text]-sized structures is strongly invariantly universal, and hence complete for ([Formula: see text]-)analytic quasi-orders. We also prove that in the above result we can further restrict our attention to various natural classes of structures, including (generalized) trees, graphs, or groups. This fully generalizes to the uncountable case the main results of [A. Louveau and C. Rosendal, Complete analytic equivalence relations, Trans. Amer. Math. Soc. 357(12) (2005) 4839–4866; S.-D. Friedman and L. Motto Ros, Analytic equivalence relations and bi-embeddability, J. Symbolic Logic 76(1) (2011) 243–266; J. Williams, Universal countable Borel quasi-orders, J. Symbolic Logic 79(3) (2014) 928–954; F. Calderoni and L. Motto Ros, Universality of group embeddability, Proc. Amer. Math. Soc. 146 (2018) 1765–1780].
An improved bound of cumulative coherence for signal recovery
Authors: Geng Pengbo , Li Peng , Chen Wengu
Published: July 2019

This paper considers the recovery condition of signals from undersampled data corrupted with additive noise in the framework of cumulative coherence. We establish some sufficient conditions which can guarantee the stable recovery from quadratically constrained basis pursuit (QCBP), Dantzig selector (DS) and Lasso estimator.
Sampling of bandlimited signals in the offset linear canonical transform domain based on reproducing kernel Hilbert space
Authors: Xu Shuiqing , Chen Zhiwei , Chai Yi , He Yigang , Li Xiang
Published: July 2019

The offset linear canonical transform (OLCT) has proven to be a novel and effective method in signal processing and optics. Many important properties and results of the OLCT have been well studied and published. In this work, the sampling theorem of the OLCT bandlimited signals based on reproducing kernel Hilbert space has been proposed. First, we show that the bandlimited signals in the OLCT domain form a reproducing kernel Hilbert space. Then, an orthogonal basis for the OLCT bandlimited signals has been obtained based on the reproducing kernel Hilbert space. By using the orthogonal basis, the uniform sampling theory for bandlimited signals associated with the OLCT has been obtained. Furthermore, the nonuniform sampling of the OLCT bandlimited signals also has been attained. Finally, the simulations are provided to prove the usefulness and correctness of the derived results.
Optical limiting properties of BODIPY dyes substituted with styryl or vinylene groups on the nanosecond timescale
Authors: Ndebele Nobuhle , Hlatshwayo Zweli , Ngoy Bokolombe P. , Kubheka Gugu , Mack John , Nyokong Tebello
Published: July 2019

The results of recent studies on the optical limiting properties of BODIPY dyes at 532 and 1064 nm are described and compared. The optical limiting properties of novel 1,7-dimethyl-3,5-di-4-dihydroxyborylstyryl- and 3,5,7-tristyryl-1-methyl-BODIPY dyes were studied in CH2Cl2 and C6H6 and polystyrene thin films using the open aperture Z-scan technique at 532 nm with nanosecond laser pulses to provide an example of how the effective nonlinear absorption coefficient, the third order susceptibility, hyperpolarizability and limiting thresholds can be calculated.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF PERCEIVED EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE WITH ADAPTIVE PERFORMANCE IN NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT TEAMS
Authors: AÇIKGÖZ ATIF , LATHAM GARY P.
Published: July 2019

An individual’s adaptability is an important dimension for performing many dynamic tasks. A survey that assessed perceived emotional intelligence and adaptive performance was administered to 257 members of new product development teams in Turkey. A regression analysis revealed that perceived emotional intelligence is related to adaptive performance.
Third-order mock theta functions
Authors: Hu Qiuxia , Song Hanfei , Zhang Zhizheng
Published: July 2019

In [G. E. Andrews and B. C. Berndt, Ramanujan’s Lost Notebook, Part II (Springer, New York, 2009), Entry 3.4.7, p. 67; Y.-S. Choi, The basic bilateral hypergeometric series and the mock theta functions, Ramanujan J. 24(3) (2011) 345–386; B. Chen, Mock theta functions and Appell–Lerch sums, J. Inequal Appl. 2018(1) (2018) 156; E. Mortenson, Ramanujan’s radial limits and mixed mock modular bilateral [Formula: see text]-hypergeometric series, Proc. Edinb. Math. Soc. 59(3) (2016) 1–13; W. Zudilin, On three theorems of Folsom, Ono and Rhoades, Proc. Amer. Math. Soc. 143(4) (2015) 1471–1476], the authors found the bilateral series for the universal mock theta function [Formula: see text]. In [Choi, 2011], the author presented the bilateral series connected with the odd-order mock theta functions in terms of Appell–Lerch sums. However, the author only derived the associated bilateral series for the fifth-order mock theta functions. The purpose of this paper is to further derive different types of bilateral series for the third-order mock theta functions. As applications, the identities between the two-group bilateral series are obtained and the bilateral series associated to the third-order mock theta functions are in fact modular forms. Then, we consider duals of the second type in terms of Appell–Lerch sums and duals in terms of partial theta functions defined by Hickerson and Mortenson of duals of the second type in terms of Appell–Lerch sums of such bilateral series associated to some third-order mock theta functions that Chen did not discuss in [On the dual nature theory of bilateral series associated to mock theta functions, Int. J. Number Theory 14 (2018) 63–94].
Cutting Edge of Reproductive Medicine
Authors: Wiweko Budi
Published: July 2019

Background: Louise Brown’s delivery in 1978 was the mark of a successful IVF program that has now been in practice for more than 40 years. The technology has delivered more than 8 million babies. Many breakthrough innovations were established to answer the problem in ART services. Optimizing ART biomarkers and cross border reproductive care have become a rising issue in ART services. Disruptive innovation disrupts the existing condition and takes the lead in the new market, including to change our patient behavior in health services. National health services addressed new issues about the impact of 4.0 industrial revolution on health workforce and our daily practices. Every disruptive innovation today is enhanced by a combination of physical, digital, and biological domain. The advancement in the area of the internet of things, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, nanotechnology, cloud computing, big data, deep learning, machine learning, robotics, and gene editing could potentially support us to innovate. And to improve the quality and outcome of ART, the introduction of the latest technology, such as robotics and artificial intelligence, has become an essential approach. A recent study discovered that the use of artificial intelligence would remove the embryologist’s subjectivity and improve the way we choose the best embryo for implantation. The next challenging issue in ART is improving the success rate through optimizing noninvasive biomarkers development. Many biological products such as blood, tissue, organ fluid can be assessed and considered to be used as IVF biomarkers. Proteomic tools were used and are needed to analyze a sample from subjects before it was created as a biomarker for improving the IVF services quality.

Conclusion: The development of IVF over 40 years has brought about many distinct achievements in the laboratory and in clinic. Industrial revolution 4.0 has generated many innovations that have helped improve the quality of ART services, including AUGMENT social egg freezing, artificial intelligence, and genome editing. In this era, precision medicine looks very promising for bridging the gap and increasing the accuracy and efficacy of promotive, preventive, diagnostic, and treatment approaches in reproductive medicine.
Higher-order Demand-driven Program Analysis
Authors: Facchinetti Leandro , Palmer Zachary , Smith Scott
Published: July 2019

Developing accurate and efficient program analyses for languages with higher-order functions is known to be difficult. Here we define a new higher-order program analysis, Demand-Driven Program Analysis (DDPA), which extends well-known
demand-driven
lookup techniques found in first-order program analyses to higher-order programs.

This task presents several unique challenges to obtain good accuracy, including the need for a new method for demand-driven lookup of non-local variable values. DDPA is flow- and context-sensitive and provably polynomial-time. To efficiently implement DDPA, we develop a novel pushdown automaton metaprogramming framework, the Pushdown Reachability automaton. The analysis is formalized and proved sound, and an implementation is described.
What Do We Mean by “Interaction”? An Analysis of 35 Years of CHI
Authors: Hornbæk Kasper , Mottelson Aske , Knibbe Jarrod , Vogel Daniel
Published: July 2019

The notion of interaction is essential to human-computer interaction, yet rarely studied. We use quantitative and qualitative methods to investigate how this notion has been used across 35 years of proceedings from the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing (CHI). Using natural language processing, we extract 53,568 occurrences of the word “interaction” across 4,604 papers. In these occurrences, we categorize 2,668 unique words that modify how “interaction” is used in a sentence. We show that the use of “interaction” is both increasing and diversifying, suggesting the importance of the notion, but also the difficulty in developing theory about interaction. Our findings show that styles of interaction are closely associated with changes in technology and that modalities and characteristics of interaction are becoming more of a topic than specific devices or widgets. Interaction qualities, relating to structure, feel, effectiveness, and efficiency, are consistently prominent, and the quality of novelty is increasingly frequent. From this analysis, we identify open questions about interaction, including how to build knowledge across changing technologies, how to work toward a model of quality for interaction, and what the core of a science of interaction could be.
Active Two Phase Collaborative Representation Classifier
Authors: Dornaika Fadi
Published: July 2019

The Sparse Representation Classifier, the Collaborative Representation Classifier (CRC), and the Two Phase Test Sample Sparse Representation (TPTSSR) classifier were introduced in recent times. All these frameworks are supervised and passive in the sense that they cannot benefit from unlabeled data samples. In this paper, inspired by active learning paradigms, we introduce an active CRC that can be used by these frameworks. More precisely, we are interested in the TPTSSR framework due to its good performance and its reasonable computational cost. Our proposed Active Two Phase Collaborative Representation Classifier (ATPCRC) starts by predicting the label of the available unlabeled samples. At testing stage, two coding processes are carried out separately on the set of originally labeled samples and the whole set (original and predicted label). The two types of class-wise reconstruction errors are blended in order to decide the class of any test image. Experiments conducted on four public image datasets show that the proposed ATPCRC can outperform the classic TPTSSR as well as many state-of-the-art methods that exploit label and unlabeled data samples.
NQA
Authors: Wang Xiaokang , Yang Laurence T. , Li Hongguo , Lin Man , Han Jianjun , Apduhan Bernady O.
Published: July 2019

Radio frequency identification (RFID) systems, as one of the key components in the Internet of Things (IoT), have attracted much attention in the domains of industry and academia. In practice, the performance of RFID systems rather relies on the effectiveness and efficiency of anti-collision algorithms. A large body of studies have recently focused on the anti-collision algorithms, such as the Q-algorithm (
QA
), which has been successfully utilized in EPCglobal Class-1 Generation-2 protocol. However, the performance of those anti-collision algorithms needs to be further improved. Observe that fully exploiting the pre-processing time can improve the efficiency of the
QA
algorithm. With an objective of improving the performance for anti-collision, we propose a Nested Q-algorithm (
NQA
), which makes full use of such pre-processing time and incorporates the advantages of both Binary Tree (
BT
) algorithm and
QA
algorithm. Specifically, based on the expected number of collision tags, the
NQA
algorithm can adaptively select either
BT
or
QA
to identify collision tags. Extensive simulation results validate the efficiency and effectiveness of our proposed
NQA
(i.e., less running time for processing the same number of active tags) when compared to the existing algorithms.
PYE
Authors: Thakur Manas , Nandivada V. Krishna
Published: July 2019

Languages like Java and C# follow a two-step process of compilation: static compilation and just-in-time (JIT) compilation. As the time spent in JIT compilation gets added to the execution-time of the application, JIT compilers typically sacrifice the precision of program analyses for efficiency. The alternative of performing the analysis for the whole program statically ignores the analysis of libraries (available only at runtime), and thereby generates imprecise results. To address these issues, in this article, we propose a two-step (static+JIT) analysis framework called precise-yet-efficient (PYE) that helps generate precise analysis-results at runtime at a very low cost.

PYE achieves the twin objectives of precision and performance during JIT compilation by using a two-pronged approach: (i) It performs expensive analyses during static compilation, while accounting for the unavailability of the runtime libraries by generating partial results, in terms of
conditional values
, for the input application. (ii) During JIT compilation, PYE resolves the conditions associated with these values, using the pre-computed conditional values for the libraries, to generate the final results. We have implemented the static and the runtime components of PYE in the Soot optimization framework and the OpenJDK HotSpot Server Compiler (C2), respectively. We demonstrate the usability of PYE by instantiating it to perform two context-, flow-, and field-sensitive heap-based analyses: (i) points-to analysis for null-dereference-check elimination; and (ii) escape analysis for synchronization elimination. We evaluate these instantiations against their corresponding state-of-the-art implementations in C2 over a wide range of benchmarks. The extensive evaluation results show that our strategy works quite well and fulfills both the promises it makes: enhanced precision while maintaining efficiency during JIT compilation.
How to avoid death by powerpoint
Authors: Yaffe Philip
Published: July 2019

Each "Communication Corner" essay is self-contained; however, they build on each other. For best results, before reading this essay and doing the exercise, go to the first essay "How an Ugly Duckling Became a Swan," then read each succeeding essay.

Bite the bullet and learn how to organize your presentation slides to get the greatest effect.
EPA and DHA elicit distinct transcriptional responses to high-fat feeding in skeletal muscle and liver
Authors: Kunz Hawley E. , Dasari Surendra , Lanza Ian R.
Published: July 2019

Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids ( n-3 PUFAs) exert numerous beneficial biological effects and attenuate diet-induced insulin resistance in rodent models. In the present study, the independent, tissue-specific effects of two nutritionally relevant n-3 PUFAs, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), were characterized in the context of a high-fat diet (HFD). EPA and DHA supplementation (3.2% of total fat) in 6-mo-old male C57BL/6 mice fed an HFD (60% fat) partially mitigated reductions in insulin sensitivity. At 5 wk, the area above the curve below baseline glucose following an intraperitoneal insulin tolerance test was 54.5% lower in HFD than control, whereas HFD + EPA and HFD + DHA showed 27.6% and 17.1% reductions, respectively. At 10 wk, HFD increased mitochondrial oxidative capacity supported by lipid and carbohydrate-based substrates in both liver and skeletal muscle ( P < 0.05), with little effect of EPA or DHA supplementation. Whole genome transcriptomic analyses revealed HFD-induced transcriptional changes indicative of inflammation and fibrosis in both liver and muscle. Gene set enrichment analyses indicated a downregulation of transcripts associated with extracellular matrix in muscle (family-wise error rate P < 0.01) and liver ( P = 0.04) and in transcripts associated with inflammation in muscle ( P = 0.03) in HFD + DHA compared with HFD alone. In contrast, EPA appeared to potentiate some proinflammatory effects of the HFD. In the skeletal muscle, DHA increased the expression of stress-responsive genes, whereas EPA upregulated the expression of transcripts related to cell cycle. Therefore, although both EPA and DHA supplementation during HFD partially preserve insulin signaling, they modulate distinct processes, highlighting their unique biological effects in the context of obesity.
A novel natural tracer method to measure complex carbohydrate metabolism
Authors: Basu Rita , Schiavon Michele , Petterson Xuan-Mai , Hinshaw Ling , Slama Michael , Carter Rickey , Man Chiara Dalla , Cobelli Claudio , Basu Ananda
Published: July 2019

While the triple tracer isotope dilution method has enabled accurate estimation of carbohydrate turnover after a mixed meal, use of the simple carbohydrate glucose as the carbohydrate source limits its translational applicability to everyday meals that typically contain complex carbohydrates. Hence, utilizing the natural enrichment of [13C]polysaccharide in commercially available grains, we devised a novel tracer method to measure postprandial complex carbohydrate turnover and indices of insulin action and β-cell function and compared the parameters to those obtained after a simple carbohydrate containing mixed meal. We studied healthy volunteers after either rice ( n = 8) or sorghum ( n = 8) and glucose ( n = 16) containing mixed meals and modified the triple tracer technique to calculate carbohydrate turnover. All meals were matched for calories and macronutrient composition. Rates of meal glucose appearance (2,658 ± 736 vs. 4,487 ± 909 μM·kg−1·2 h−1), endogenous glucose production (−835 ± 283 vs. −1,123 ± 323 μM·kg−1·2 h−1) and glucose disappearance (1,829 ± 807 vs. 3,606 ± 839 μM·kg−1·2 h−1) differed ( P < 0.01) between complex and simple carbohydrate containing meals, respectively. Interestingly, there were significant increase in indices of insulin sensitivity (32.5 ± 3.5 vs. 25.6 ± 3.2 10−5(dl·kg−1·min−2)/pM, P = 0.006) and β-cell responsivity (disposition index: 1,817 ± 234 vs. 1,236 ± 159 10−14(dl·kg−1·min−2)/pM, P < 0.005) with complex than simple carbohydrate meals. We present a novel triple tracer approach to estimate postprandial turnover of complex carbohydrate containing mixed meals. We also report higher insulin sensitivity and β-cell responsivity with complex than with simple carbohydrates in mixed meals of identical calorie and macronutrient compositions in healthy adults.
Akkermansia muciniphila abundance is lower in severe obesity, but its increased level after bariatric surgery is not associated with metabolic health improvement
Authors: Dao Maria Carlota , Belda Eugeni , Prifti Edi , Everard Amandine , Kayser Brandon D. , Bouillot Jean-Luc , Chevallier Jean-Marc , Pons Nicolas , Le Chatelier Emmanuelle , Ehrlich Stanislav Dusko , Doré Joel , Aron-Wisnewsky Judith , Zucker Jean-Daniel , Cani Patrice D. , Clément Karine
Published: July 2019

The gut bacterial species Akkermansia muciniphila is associated with a healthier clinical profile. The purpose of this study was to determine the association between A. muciniphila and glucose homeostasis in patients undergoing bariatric surgery (BS): gastric banding (GB) or Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB). This nonrandomized prospective study included 65 women with severe obesity. Longitudinal analysis included subjects for whom A. muciniphila data were available at follow-up [1, 3, and 12 mo; GB ( n = 10) or RYGB ( n = 11)]. Glucose homeostasis markers were measured under fasting conditions (glucose, insulin, and HbA1c) or during an oral glucose tolerance test. Fecal microbiota was analyzed using shotgun metagenomics, and A. muciniphila relative abundance was assessed with 16S rRNA quantitative PCR. A. muciniphila relative abundance was significantly lower in severe obesity [mean body mass index, 45.7 kg/m2 (SD 5.4)] than in moderate obesity [33.2 kg/m2 (SD 3.8)] but not associated with glucose homeostasis markers. A significant increase in A. muciniphila relative abundance after RYGB was not correlated with metabolic improvement. Baseline A. muciniphila abundance was correlated with bacterial gene richness and was highest in the high-richness Ruminococcaceae enterotype. A. muciniphila increased in relative abundance after BS in patients with low baseline A. muciniphila abundance, especially those with a Bacteroides type 2 enterotype classification. Although decreased in severe obesity, relative abundance of A. muciniphila was not associated with glucose homeostasis before or after BS. A certain level of A. muciniphila abundance might be required to observe a beneficial link to health. The severity of obesity and gut dysbiosis may partly explain the discrepancy with previous findings in less obese populations.
Effect of Telmisartan in the Oxidative Stress Components Induced by Ischemia Reperfusion in Rats
Authors: Rodríguez-Lara Simón Quetzalcoatl , Trujillo-Rangel Walter Angel , Castillo-Romero Araceli , Totsuka-Sutto Sylvia Elena , Garcia-Cobián Teresa Arcelia , Cardona-Muñoz Ernesto German , Miranda-Díaz Alejandra Guillermina , Ramírez-Lizardo Ernesto Javier , García-Benavides Leonel
Published: July 2019

The therapeutic effects of telmisartan, an angiotensin II receptor antagonist and a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ(PPAR-γ) agonist, have been demonstrated in several disorders. It has antioxidant and immune response modulator properties and has shown promising results in the treatment of an ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) lesion. In this study, a skeletal muscle (right gastrocnemius muscle) I/R lesion was induced in rats and different reperfusion times (1 h, 24 h, 72 h, 7-day, and 14-day subgroups) were assessed. Furthermore, levels of oxidative markers such as enzymatic scavengers (catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD)) and metabolites (nitrates and 8-oxo-deoxyguanosine) were determined. The degree of tissue injury (total lesioned fibers and inflammatory cell count) was also evaluated. We observed an increase in CAT and SOD expression levels under telmisartan treatment, with a decrease in injury and oxidative biomarker levels in the 72 h, 7-day, and 14-day subgroups. Telmisartan reduced oxidative stress and decreased the damage of the I/R lesion.
Application of a Non-Coaxial Soil Model with an Anisotropic Yield Criterion in Tunnelling
Authors: Yuan Ran , Zhang Jia-Rong , Cui Jian , Wang Wen-Ming , He Yi , Fang Yong
Published: July 2019

Soil strength isotropy and coaxiality of the principal axes of stress and plastic strain rate tensors are often assumed in modelling the soils around tunnels, in the conventional plastic theory. However, the complexity of the soil response during the excavation of tunnelling cannot be well exhibited. In this paper, a recently developed two-dimensional (2D) elastoplastic constitutive model incorporating both soil strength anisotropy and non-coaxiality is firstly reviewed and then implemented in the finite element platform ABAQUS through the user-defined material subroutine (UMAT). This model is then numerically applied to analyze tunnel excavation problems. Two case studies, i.e., centrifuge testing and field testing, are carried out and compared with the numerical simulations to investigate the influences of soil anisotropy and non-coaxiality on the stress paths of soils around the tunnel crown and the subsurface settlement induced by tunnel excavations. The results show that the representative soil elements around tunnel crown experience severe principal stress orientations. The predictions of normalized subsurface settlement troughs can be improved by considering initial soil strength anisotropy compared to the conventional Mohr–Coulomb model. A larger value of the non-coaxial coefficient results in a larger magnitude of the maximum vertical displacement. The normalized subsurface settlement troughs are better improved in the case of centrifuge testing than that of the field testing.
Molecular Evolution and Functional Analysis of Rubredoxin-Like Proteins in Plants
Authors: Li Ying , Liu Pan pan , Ni Xin
Published: July 2019

Rubredoxins are a class of iron-containing proteins that play an important role in the reduction of superoxide in some anaerobic bacteria and also act as electron carriers in many biochemical processes. Unlike the more widely studied about rubredoxin proteins in anaerobic bacteria, very few researches about the function of rubredoxins have been proceeded in plants. Previous studies indicated that rubredoxins inA. thalianamay play a critical role in responding to oxidative stress. In order to identify more rubredoxins in plants that maybe have similar functions as the rubredoxin-like protein ofA. thaliana, we identified and analyzed plant rubredoxin proteins using bioinformatics-based methods. Totally, 66 candidate rubredoxin proteins were identified based on public databases, exhibiting lengths of 187–360 amino acids with molecular weights of 19.856–37.117 kDa. The results of subcellular localization showed that these candidate rubredoxins were localized to the chloroplast, which might be consistent with the fact that rubredoxins were predominantly expressed in leaves. Analyses of conserved motifs indicated that these candidate rubredoxins contained rubredoxin and PDZ domains. The expression patterns of rubredoxins in glycophyte and halophytic plant under salt/drought stress revealed that rubredoxin is one of the important stress response proteins. Finally, the coexpression network of rubredoxin inArabidopsis thalianaunder abiotic was extracted from ATTED-II to explore the function and regulation relationship of rubredoxin inArabidopsis thaliana. Our results showed that putative rubredoxin proteins containing PDZ and rubredoxin domains, localized to the chloroplast, may act with other proteins in chloroplast to responses to abiotic stress in higher plants. These findings might provide value inference to promote the development of plant tolerance to some abiotic stresses and other economically important crops.
A Novel Experiment to Study the Roll Motion Characteristics of a Sailing Ship in a Landslide‐Generated Wave in the Three Gorges Reservoir
Authors: Yuan Peiyin , Wang Pingyi , Zhao Yu
Published: July 2019

Strong earthquakes, heavy rains, changes in reservoir water levels, and other external factors destabilize large rock masses causing them to fall into the water at high speed, thereby destroying the original ecological balance in the region. These occurrences cause fluctuations in water levels and form landslide‐induced waves, which behave similar to tsunamis upon reaching the shore, a dam structure, or ships. The impact invariably threatens residents’ lives and properties in the upper and lower reaches of the reservoir area. In the current study, we conducted orthogonal experiments of landslide‐induced impulse waves to assess their related hazards. To explore the effects of a landslide‐generated wave on the roll characteristics of a ship, experimental model tests were performed using different speed vessels, landslide bodies, and navigation positions. Accordingly, a reasonable optimization strategy was proposed to provide technical support for ship navigation safety in regions of landslide‐generated waves.
Microstructural Changes and Mechanical Response of Aluminum-Based Composites Prepared with Dispersed CeO2 Nanoparticles
Authors: Baldenebro-López Francisco J. , Peréz-Bustamante Raúl , Estrada-Guel Ivanovich , Martínez-Sánchez Roberto , Duarte-Moller Alberto , Gómez-Esparza Cynthia D.
Published: July 2019

The effect of CeO2 nanoparticles on the microstructure of two different metal matrixes, AA2024 aluminum alloy and pure aluminum, were studied. The aluminum-based composites were synthesized by mechanical milling and subsequently sintering at 550°C under an argon atmosphere. The microstructural evolution of consolidated composites was evaluated by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction. The experimental results revealed that the addition of CeO2 nanoparticles in the AA2024 alloy produced a dispersed needle-like Ce-Cu-rich phase that reduces the hardness of samples after sintering. On the contrary, the dispersion of CeO2 in pure aluminum shows significant improvement of hardness in comparison with the reinforced and unreinforced AA2024 aluminum alloy. During the sintering, the CeO2 nanoparticles show higher chemical stability in the aluminum matrix in comparison with the AA2024 matrix.
A Method for Selecting Enterprise’s Logistics Operation Mode Based on Ballou Model
Authors: Li Feng , Fan Zhi-Ping , Cao Bing-Bing , Wang Ze
Published: July 2019

The right choice of logistics operation mode is not only the foundation for improving the comprehensive operation level of an enterprise, but also an important way to improve the management performance. Nevertheless, the study on this aspect is still lacking. In this paper, we develop a novel method for selecting enterprise’s logistics operation mode. First, we give the analysis of main types and characteristics of the logistics operation modes. According to the two dimensions of the Ballou model, i.e., the importance of logistics to enterprise success and the enterprise operation logistics capacity, we set up an evaluation index system for selecting enterprise’s logistics operation mode through literature analysis. Then, the each index is evaluated using the fuzzy language assessment method, and evaluation value of each index in the two dimensions is calculated using the 2‐tuple fuzzy linguistic representation model. Furthermore, a two‐dimensional matrix model for selecting enterprise’s logistics operation mode selection is built. According to the model, the right logistics operation mode can be selected. Finally, an example is used to illustrate the practicality and validity of proposed method.
Progressive Back Pain due toAspergillus nidulansVertebral Osteomyelitis in an Immunocompetent Patient: Surgical and Antifungal Management
Authors: Lyons Mark K. , Neal Matthew T. , Patel Naresh P. , Vikram Holenarasipur R.
Published: July 2019

Case Report.Aspergillusosteomyelitis is a destructive and progressive infection that has been described both in immunosuppressed and in immunocompetent hosts. We describe a case of lumbar vertebral osteomyelitis in a 61-year-old immunocompetent patient due toAspergillus nidulansthat was successfully treated with a combination of extensive surgical debridement, spinal stabilization, and a prolonged course of antifungal therapy. Imaging demonstrated findings consistent with L3 discitis. The biopsy grewAspergillusfungus and was treated with vorconizole. Imaging showed progressive destructive osteomyelitis at L3-L4. Patient underwent anterior L3 and L4 partial corpectomies, anterior interbody fusion L3-L5, and posterior T11-S2 pedicle screw and rod fixation. Antifungal treatment resulted in resolution of infection.Aspergillusmarkers remain negative. One year following definitive treatment, the patient’s back pain remains resolved.Conclusion. Definitive surgical resection of the infection, spinal stabilization, and aggressive antifungal therapy were required to eradicate the infection.
Evaluation of Task-Related Brain Activity: Is There a Role for18F FDG-PET Imaging?
Authors: Chiaravalloti Agostino , Micarelli Alessandro , Ricci Maria , Pagani Marco , Ciccariello Gabriele , Bruno Ernesto , Alessandrini Marco , Schillaci Orazio
Published: July 2019

Positron emission tomography (PET) with 2-[18F]-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) has been widely used for the evaluation of cortical glucose metabolism in several neurodegenerative disorders while its potential role in the evaluation of cortical and subcortical activity during a task in the healthy and pathological brain still remains to be a matter of debate. Few studies have been carried out in order to investigate the potential role of this radiotracer for the evaluation of brain glucose consumption during dynamic brain activation. The aim of this review is to provide a general overview of the applications of FDG-PET in the evaluation of cortical activation at rest and during tasks, describing first the physiological basis of FDG distribution in brain and its kinetic in vivo. An overview of the imaging protocols and image interpretation will be provided as well. As a last aspect, the results of the main studies in this field will be summarized and the results of PET findings performed in healthy subjects and patients suffering from various diseases will be reported.
The RITMIA™ Smartphone App for Automated Detection of Atrial Fibrillation: Accuracy in Consecutive Patients Undergoing Elective Electrical Cardioversion
Authors: Reverberi Claudio , Rabia Granit , De Rosa Fabrizio , Bosi Davide , Botti Andrea , Benatti Giorgio
Published: July 2019

Background. The RITMIA™ app (Heart Sentinel™, Parma, Italy) is a novel application that combined with a wearable consumer-grade chest-strap Bluetooth heart rate monitor, provides automated detection of atrial fibrillation (AF), and may be promising for sustainable AF screening programs, since it is known that prolonged monitoring leads to increased AF diagnosis. Objective. The purpose of this study was to examine whether RITMIA™ could accurately differentiate sinus rhythm (SR) from AF compared with gold-standard physician-interpreted 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG). Design. In this observational prospective study consecutive patients presenting for elective cardioversion (ECV) of AF, from November 2017 to November 2018, were enrolled. Patients underwent paired 12-lead ECG and RITMIA™ recording, both before and after ECV procedure. The RITMIA™ automated interpretation was compared with 12-lead ECG interpreted by the agreement of two cardiologists. The latter were blinded to the results of the App automated diagnosis. Feasibility, sensitivity, specificity, and K coefficient for RITMIA™ automated diagnosis were calculated. Results. A total of 100 consecutive patients were screened and enrolled. Five patients did not undergo ECV due to spontaneous restoration of SR. 95 patients who actually underwent ECV were included in the final analysis. Mean age was 66.2±10.7 years; female patients were 20 (21.1%). There were 190 paired ECGs and RITMIA™ recordings. The RITMIA™ app correctly detected AF with 97% sensitivity, 95.6% specificity, and a K coefficient of 0.93. Conclusions. The automated RITMIA™ algorithm very accurately differentiated AF from SR before and after elective ECV. The only hardware required by this method is a cheap consumer-grade Bluetooth heart rate monitor of the chest-strap type. This robust and affordable RITMIA™ technology could be used to conduct population-wide screening in patients at risk for silent AF, thanks to the long-term monitoring applicability.
Identification and Analysis of Chemical Constituents and Rat Serum Metabolites in Lycopodium clavatum Using UPLC-Q-TOF/MS Combined with Multiple Data-Processing Approaches
Authors: Li Xin , Kang Mingqin , Ma Ningning , Pang Tan , Zhang Yanjun , Jin Hua , Yang Zhen , Song Lili
Published: July 2019

Lycopodium clavatum is a dry whole grass of Lycopodium japonicum Thunb.; it has been extensively used to anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antimicrobial actions and inhibits acetylcholinesterase activity. However, it lacks further compounds research of Lycopodium clavatum in vivo and in vitro. In this work, a rapid method was established using the ultra high performance liquid chromatography with quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF/MS) combined with multiple data-processing approaches for compounds analysis of Lycopodium clavatum in vitro and in vivo. Finally, 30 peaks were characterized in 75% ethanol extract of Lycopodium clavatum and 17 peaks were characterized in rat plasma that including 12 prototype compounds and 5 metabolites. Methylation and demethylation are the main transformation reactions of Lycopodium clavatum in rat serum. This work could be helpful for understanding the complex compounds of Lycopodium clavatum and further analyzing the pharmacological studies of active compounds.
HDAC6 Inhibition Protects against OGDR-Induced Golgi Fragmentation and Apoptosis
Authors: Zhang Jie , Tan Jieqiong , Hu Zhiping , Chen Chunli , Zeng Liuwang
Published: July 2019

The Golgi apparatus (GA) is a pivotal organelle, and its fragmentation is an essential process in the development of apoptosis. GA is a potential target in the treatment of cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury. Histone deacetylase 6 (HDAC6) catalyzes the removal of functional acetyl groups from proteins and plays an important role in cell homeostasis. In this study, the neuroprotective effects and the underlying mechanisms of HDAC6 inhibition were assessed in an ischemia-reperfusion injury model. Mouse neuroblastoma N2a cells and cultured neurons were subjected to oxygen-glucose deprivation/reperfusion (OGDR) insult. OGDR induces Golgi fragmentation and reduces tubulin acetylation in N2a cells and cultured neurons. Golgi fragmentation is prior to nuclear chromatin condensation after OGDR injury. Overexpression of GBF1 not only protects against OGDR-induced Golgi fragmentation but also protects against OGDR-induced apoptosis, suggesting that Golgi fragmentation is not secondary to apoptosis but plays a causal role for subsequent apoptosis. HDAC6 inhibition suppresses OGDR-induced tubulin deacetylation, p115 cleavage, and caspase 3 activation and protects against OGDR-induced Golgi fragmentation and apoptosis. This work opens a new avenue for potential clinical application of HDAC6 inhibitors for cerebral ischemia-reperfusion-related disorders.
Based on HIF-1α/Wnt/β-Catenin Pathway to Explore the Effect of Qingshen Granules on Chronic Renal Failure Patients: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Wang Yiping , Zhang Lei , Jin Hua , Wang Dong
Published: July 2019

Objectives. This study investigates the effect of Qingshen Granules (QSG) on chronic renal failure patients and the HIF-1α/Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. Methods. Subjects were randomly divided into treatment and control groups, with 42 patients in each group. Participants in the treatment group received 10 g oral doses of QSG 3 times a day, for 12 weeks, whereas subjects in the control group were given a placebo. The effective rates of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) symptom, serum creatinine (Scr), and estimate glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) as well as the serum levels of HIF-1α, Wnt1, β-catenin, α-SMA, and E-cadherin were evaluated. Results. Eighty patients completed the treatment program and two dropped out. After 12 weeks, the effective rates of TCM symptom and eGFR were found to be higher in the treatment group than in the control group, with statistically significant differences (P = 0.024 and 0.019, respectively). Meanwhile, lower levels of HIF-1α, Wnt1, β-catenin, α-SMA, and E-cadherin were detected in the treatment group, and the differences were statistically significant (P ≤ 0.001, P = 0.001, P ≤ 0.001, P ≤ 0.001, and P = 0.039). No adverse events occurred during the study. Conclusions. QSG can alleviate the clinical symptoms of chronic renal failure (CRF) and protect renal function in patients by influencing the HIF-1α/Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. The treatment exhibits no adverse effects and is thus safe to be used by humans.
Peripherally Embolizing Aortic Thrombus: The Work-Up, Management, and Outcome of Primary Aortic Thrombus
Authors: Mando Ramy , Gemayel Robert , Chaddha Ashish , Barbat Julian J. , Cami Elvis
Published: July 2019

Background. Primary aortic thrombus is an uncommon entity and not frequently reported in the literature. Herein, we discuss the presentation and management of a patient with a primary thoracic mural thrombus. Case Summary. A 46-year-old female with past medical history of tobacco dependence presented for low-grade fever and sudden onset, severe right upper quadrant abdominal pain with associated nausea and vomiting. Computed tomography (CT) revealed an intraluminal polypoid filling defect arising from the isthmus of the aorta projecting into the proximal descending aorta and findings consistent with infarction of the spleen and right kidney. Infectious, autoimmune, hematologic, and oncologic work-up were all unyielding. The patient was started on heparin and later transitioned to apixaban 5 mg twice a day and 81 mg of aspirin daily. She was also counseled regarding smoking cessation. Two months follow-up CT revealed resolution of the thrombus. Patient had no further thromboembolic complications. Discussion. We present a unique case of primary aortic thrombus. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case managed successfully with a NOAC. This diagnosis is one of exclusion and through work-up should be completed. Our aim is to raise awareness of this condition and successful management with apixaban in low-risk patients.