bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Underload on the Road: Measuring Vigilance Decrements During Partially Automated Driving
Authors: McWilliams Thomas , Ward Nathan
Published: April 2021

Partially automated vehicle technology is increasingly common on-road. While this technology can provide safety benefits to drivers, it also introduces new concerns about driver attention. In particular, during partially automated driving (PAD), drivers are expected to stay vigilant so they can readily respond to important events in their environment. However, using partially automated vehicles on the highway places drivers in monotonous situations and requires them to do very little. This can place the driver in a state of cognitive underload in which they experience a very small amount of cognitive demand. In this situation, drivers can exhibit vigilance decrements which impact their ability to respond to on-road threats. This is of particular concern in situations when the partially automated vehicle fails to respond to a potentially critical situation and leaves all responsibility to safely navigate to the driver. This paper reviews situations that lead to vigilance decrements and characterizes the different methodologies of measuring driver vigilance during PAD, highlighting their advantages and limitations. Based on our reading of the literature, we summarize several factors future research on vigilance decrements in PAD should consider.
Digital Detectives: Websleuthing Reduces Eyewitness Identification Accuracy in Police Lineups
Authors: Elphick Camilla , Philpot Richard , Zhang Min , Stuart Avelie , Pike Graham , Strathie Ailsa , Havard Catriona , Walkington Zoe , Frumkin Lara A. , Levine Mark , Price Blaine A. , Bandara Arosha K. , Nuseibeh Bashar
Published: April 2021

Eyewitnesses to crimes sometimes search for a culprit on social media before viewing a police lineup, but it is not known whether this affects subsequent lineup identification accuracy. The present online study was conducted to address this. Two hundred and eighty-five participants viewed a mock crime video, and after a 15–20 min delay either (i) viewed a mock social media site including the culprit, (ii) viewed a mock social media site including a lookalike, or (iii) completed a filler task. A week later, participants made an identification from a photo lineup. It was predicted that searching for a culprit on social media containing the lookalike (rather than the culprit) would reduce lineup identification accuracy. There was a significant association between social media exposure and lineup accuracy for the Target Present lineup (30% more of the participants who saw the lookalike on social media failed to positively identify the culprit than participants in the other conditions), but for the Target Absent lineup (which also included the lookalike) there was no significant association with lineup identification accuracy. The results suggest that if an eyewitness sees a lookalike (where they are expecting to see the culprit) when conducting a self-directed search on social media, they are less likely to subsequently identify the culprit in the formal ID procedure.
Abusive Supervision, Affective Commitment, Customer Orientation, and Proactive Customer Service Performance: Evidence From Hotel Employees in China
Authors: Zang Dexia , Liu Chang , Jiao Yan
Published: April 2021

Abusive supervision is quite common in the service industry. Employees’ proactive customer service performance is essential for the long-term development of service enterprises. This study enriches the antecedents of proactive customer service performance from a new theoretical perspective by incorporating the analysis of abusive supervision into the theoretical framework and fills the research gap between customer orientation and proactive customer service performance. Based on Affective Events Theory and Social Cognitive Theory, this study established the structure equation model between abusive supervision and proactive customer service performance mediated by affective commitment and customer orientation. Utilizing structural equation modeling, a negative association between abusive supervision and proactive customer service performance was found, and affective commitment and customer orientation act as the mediators between abusive supervision and proactive customer service performance. In addition, the implications for future study were also discussed.
Gymnastics Experience Enhances the Development of Bipedal-Stance Multi-Segmental Coordination and Control During Proprioceptive Reweighting
Authors: Busquets Albert , Ferrer-Uris Blai , Angulo-Barroso Rosa , Federolf Peter
Published: April 2021

Performance and control of upright bipedal posture requires a constant and dynamic integration of relative contributions of different sensory inputs (i. e., sensory reweighting) to enable effective adaptations as individuals face environmental changes and perturbations. Children with gymnastic experience showed balance performance closer to that of adults during and after proprioceptive alteration than children without gymnastic experience when their center of pressure (COP) was analyzed. However, a particular COP sway can be achieved through performing and coordinating different postural movements. The aim of this study was to assess how children and adults of different gymnastic experience perform and control postural movements while they have to adjust balance during and after bilateral tendon vibration. All participants were equipped with spherical markers attached to their skin and two vibrators strapped over the Achilles tendons. Bipedal stance was performed in three 45-s trials in two visual conditions (eyes open, EO, and eyes closed, EC) ordered randomly in which vibration lasted 10 s. Posture movements were analyzed by a principal component analysis (PCA) calculated on normalized and weighted markers coordinates. The relative standard deviation of each principal movement component (principal position, PP-rSTD) quantified its contribution to the whole postural movements, i.e., quantified the coordinative structure. The first (principal velocities, PV-rSTD) and second (principal accelerations, PA-rSTD) time-derivatives characterized the rate-dependent sensory information associated with and the neuromuscular control of the postural movements, respectively. Children without gymnastic experience showed a different postural coordinative structure and different sensory-motor control characteristics. They used less ankle movements in the anterior-posterior direction but increased ankle movements in medio-lateral direction, presented larger hip and trunk velocities, and exhibited more hip actions. Gymnastic experience during childhood seemed to benefit the development of proprioceptive reweighting processes in children, leading to a more mature form of coordinating and controlling posture similarly to adults.
Feasibility of Present-Centered Therapy for Prolonged Grief Disorder: Results of a Pilot Study
Authors: Vogel Anna , Comtesse Hannah , Nocon Agnes , Kersting Anette , Rief Winfried , Steil Regina , Rosner Rita
Published: April 2021

Present-centered therapy (PCT) was originally developed as a strong comparator for the non-specific effects of psychotherapy in the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder. PCT qualifies as a not strictly supportive treatment as it is structured and homework is assigned between sessions. It does not focus on cognitive restructuring or exposure. A growing body of literature supports its beneficial effects. For example, it demonstrated only slightly inferior effect sizes and lower dropout rates compared to that of trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy in several trials with patients suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder. The current study is the first to evaluate the feasibility and the treatment effects of PCT in adults with prolonged grief disorder (PGD). Meta-analyses on psychotherapy for PGD have yielded moderate effect sizes. N = 20 individuals suffering from PGD were treated with PCT by novice therapists as part of a preparation phase for an upcoming RCT in an outpatient setting. Treatment consisted of 20–24 sessions á 50 min. All outcomes were assessed before treatment, at post-treatment, and at the 3-month follow-up. The primary outcome, PGD symptom severity, was assessed using the Interview for Prolonged Grief-13. Secondary outcomes were self-reported PGD severity, depression, general psychological distress, and somatic symptom severity. Furthermore, therapists evaluated their experiences with their first PCT patient and the treatment manual. In intent-to-treat analyses of all patients we found a significant decrease in interview-based PGD symptom severity at post-treatment (d = 1.26). Decreases were maintained up to the 3-month follow-up assessment (d = 1.25). There were also significant decreases in self-reported PGD symptoms, depression, and general psychological distress. No changes were observed for somatic symptoms. The completion rate was 85%. Therapists deemed PCT to be a learnable treatment program that can be adapted to the patient's individual needs. The preliminary results of PCT as a treatment for PGD demonstrate large effects and indicate good feasibility in outpatient settings. The treatment effects were larger than those reported in meta-analyses. Thus, PCT is a promising treatment for PGD. Possible future research directions are discussed.
Determinants of Revolving Door in an Acute Psychiatric Ward for Prison Inmates
Authors: D'Orta Isabella , Herrmann François R. , Giannakopoulos Panteleimon
Published: April 2021

Among the different types of heavy use of mental health services, frequent inpatient admission in acute care units of individuals unable to return to their usual environment refers to as revolving-door (RD). RD in prisoners is related to increased violence (acted and supported) and suicidal recidivism. We explored the determinants of RD in 200 inmates from the Swiss-French speaking areas who were admitted to the sole acute psychiatric care unit for all of the Swiss-French counties, located in Geneva. The Cuzick's test for trend across ordered groups, Kruskal-Wallis test and oneway ANOVA were used to compare demographic and clinical variables between single (one admission, N = 100), frequent (3–7, N = 69) and RD (more than 8, N = 31) during a 12 months period. In addition, univariate and multivariable ordered logistic regression modes were built to examine the determinants of RD. The sample included 27 women (mean age: 31.2 years) and 173 men (34.5 years) who were admitted during the period 2014–2019. The vast majority were single (65%) with low level of education (<6 years, 78%). Suicidal behavior was the more frequent reason for admission (57%). Psychiatric history was positive in 77.5% of cases and in 54.5% of cases there was at least one episode of inpatient psychiatric care. The more frequent ICD-10 psychiatric diagnosis in the last admission were psychotic disorder (38%), personality disorder (29.5%) and adjustment disorder (19.5%). In contrast, depressive episodes (7%) and bipolar disorder (4.5%) were rare. Group comparison showed that the presence of court-ordered treatments, suicidal behavior, personality and psychotic disorders was associated with significantly increased frequency of RD use. In univariate models, the same factors were positively associated with RD, the highest odds ratio being found for court-ordered treatments (5.77) and personality disorders (2.14). In contrast, the diagnosis of adjustment disorders was related to decreased RD use (OR 0.25). Court-ordered treatments and personality disorders were the only factors to predict RD in multivariable regression models. These findings suggest that acute psychiatric care in these patients did not depend of environmental stressors but rather represents the expression of a long-lasting vulnerability related to their psychological profile and criminal status.
First-Time Users of ADHD Medication Among Children and Adolescents in Germany: An Evaluation of Adherence to Prescribing Guidelines Based on Claims Data
Authors: Scholle Oliver , Kollhorst Bianca , Riedel Oliver , Bachmann Christian J.
Published: April 2021

Background: Drug utilization studies based on real-world data are vital for the identification of potentially needed improvements to rational prescribing. This is particularly important for the pharmacological treatment of children and adolescents with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) due to the associated potential side effects and the frequent use. Whereas prevalent use is well-characterized, studies on first-time use of ADHD medication are scarce. This study aimed to evaluate off-label prescribing in first-time users of ADHD medication among children and adolescents in Germany based on three criteria: (i) lack of a documented ADHD diagnosis; (ii) first-time pharmacological treatment with a second-line drug; and (iii) patient age below 6 years.

Methods: Based on German claims data, we included children and adolescents aged 0–17 years with a first-time dispensation of any ADHD medication in the period 2015–2017. These first-time users were characterized with regard to sex, age, specialty of the prescribing physician, documentation of an ADHD diagnosis, psychiatric hospitalization, psychiatric comorbidities, and history of other psychopharmacological drugs at first-time use.

Results: The study population comprised 18,703 pediatric first-time users of ADHD medication. Of these, 9.8% had no documented ADHD diagnosis. Most of the ADHD drug users received first-line ADHD pharmacotherapy (methylphenidate, atomoxetine), whereas 2.6% were prescribed second-line ADHD medication (lisdexamfetamine, guanfacine, dexamfetamine, multiple ADHD drugs) as first drug. Overall, 1.2% of first-time users were aged below 6 years. A total of 12.7% of the study population met any off-label criterion.

Conclusions: About 13% of pediatric first-time users of ADHD medication in Germany received an off-label pharmacotherapy at first-time use. Prescribing ADHD medication without a confirmed ADHD diagnosis was the most common of the three assessed off-label criteria. Off-label prescribing regarding drug choice and age of patients only occurred in a small percentage of initial pharmacological ADHD treatment. Our results suggest the need for improvement in rational prescribing, especially with regard to diagnostic requirements.
Strange Days: Adult Physical Activity and Mental Health in the First Two Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Gierc Madelaine , Riazi Negin A. , Fagan Matthew James , Di Sebastiano Katie M. , Kandola Mahabhir , Priebe Carly S. , Weatherson Katie A. , Wunderlich Kelly B. , Faulkner Guy
Published: April 2021

Background: In addition to its physical health benefits, physical activity is increasingly recognized as a means to support mental health. Regular moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) is associated with improved mental well-being, reduced likelihood of developing mental illness, and improved symptom management. Despite these benefits, most people fail to achieve minimum recommended levels of MVPA. Population levels of physical activity have further declined since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and implementation of public health measures (e.g., shelter-in-place protocols). The potential impact of this decline on mental heath outcomes warrants ongoing investigation.

Purpose: To investigate associations between changes in MVPA and mental health (depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and life satisfaction) in adults impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Method: Research followed a cross-sectional design. English-speaking adults were invited to complete an online questionnaire. MVPA was assessed retrospectively (before COVID-19) and currently (during COVID-19) with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Mental health was assessed with the Patient Health Questionnaire, 9-Item (PHQ-9), the Generalized Anxiety Disorder, 7-Item (GAD-7), and the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS). Regression was used to assess relationships between MVPA and mental health. ANOVA with follow-up tests examined whether participants who differed in mental health status (e.g., no symptoms vs. severe symptoms) differed in their change in MVPA. T-tests were used to examine differences in mental health symptomatology between participants who were sufficiently (i.e., achieving MVPA guidelines of ≥ 150 min/week) vs. insufficiently active.

Results: Prior to COVID-19, 68.2% of participants were classified as being sufficiently active, vs. 60.6% during COVID-19. The majority of participants reported experiencing some level of depressive symptoms (62.0%) or anxiety symptoms (53.7%). After controlling for covariates, changes in MVPA accounted for significant variability in the PHQ-9 (7.7%), GAD-7 (2.5%), and SWLS (1.5 %). Participants with clinically significant mental health symptomatology reported greater declines in MVPA than those who reported no symptoms. Conversely, participants who were sufficiently active during COVID-19 reported significantly lower depression and anxiety, and higher life satisfaction.

Conclusion: Participants who experienced the greatest declines in MVPA reported relatively greater psychological distress and lower life satisfaction. While preliminary, these findings suggest the importance of maintaining and promoting physical activity during a period of pandemic.
From Multi-Modal Property Dataset to Robot-Centric Conceptual Knowledge About Household Objects
Authors: Thosar Madhura , Mueller Christian A. , Jäger Georg , Schleiss Johannes , Pulugu Narender , Mallikarjun Chennaboina Ravi , Rao Jeevangekar Sai Vivek , Birk Andreas , Pfingsthorn Max , Zug Sebastian
Published: April 2021

Conceptual knowledge about objects is essential for humans, as well as for animals, to interact with their environment. On this basis, the objects can be understood as tools, a selection process can be implemented and their usage can be planned in order to achieve a specific goal. The conceptual knowledge, in this case, is primarily concerned about the physical properties and functional properties observed in the objects. Similarly tool-use applications in robotics require such conceptual knowledge about objects forsubstitute selectionamong other purposes. State-of-the-art methods employ a top-down approach where hand-crafted symbolic knowledge, which is defined from a human perspective, is grounded into sensory data afterwards. However, due to different sensing and acting capabilities of robots, a robot's conceptual understanding of objects (e.g., light/heavy) will vary and therefore should be generated from the robot's perspective entirely, which entails robot-centric conceptual knowledge about objects. A similar bottom-up argument has been put forth in cognitive science that humans and animals alike develop conceptual understanding of objects based on their own perceptual experiences with objects. With this goal in mind, we propose an extensible property estimation framework which consists of estimations methods to obtain the quantitative measurements of physical properties (rigidity, weight, etc.) and functional properties (containment, support, etc.) from household objects. This property estimation forms the basis for our second contribution: Generation of robot-centric conceptual knowledge. Our approach employs unsupervised clustering methods to transform numerical property data into symbols, and Bivariate Joint Frequency Distributions and Sample Proportion to generate conceptual knowledge about objects using the robot-centric symbols. A preliminary implementation of the proposed framework is employed to acquire a dataset comprising sixphysicaland fourfunctionalproperties of 110 household objects. This Robot-Centric dataSet (RoCS) is used to evaluate the framework regarding the property estimation methods and the semantics of the considered properties within the dataset. Furthermore, the dataset includes the derived robot-centric conceptual knowledge using the proposed framework. The application of the conceptual knowledge about objects is then evaluated by examining its usefulness in a tool substitution scenario.
Colorectal Cancer that Highly Express Both ACE2 and TMPRSS2, Suggesting Severe Symptoms to SARS-CoV-2 Infection
Authors: Wang Huai , Yang Jiankang
Published: April 2021

The epidemic of the novel, pathogenic SARS-coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in the world pose a global health emergency. Cancer has been identified as a risk factor for the novel Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The ACE2 and TMPRSS2 have been implicated in SARS-CoV-2 infection for mediating viral entry into the host cell. However, a systematic analysis of aberrant expression of ACE2 and TMPRSS2 was not yet reported in multiple human cancers. Here, we analyzed gene expression of ACE2 and TMPRSS2 across 31 types of tumors. Notably, overexpression of ACE2 and TMPRSS2 have been observed in colorectal cancer including colon adenocarcinoma (COAD), and rectum adenocarcinoma (READ). In addition, the colorectal tumors with upregulated gene expressing presented with decreased DNA methylation levels. DNA methylation might be one of the reasons for abnormal expression of ACE2 and TMPRSS2. Conclusively, colorectal cancer was the only cancer with the upregulated expression of ACE2 and TMPRSS2. More care of colorectal cancer patients is needed in multiple cancers affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Use of Thermal Time to Describe and Predict the Growth and Nutritive Value of Lolium perenne L. and Bromus valdivianus Phil
Authors: Calvache Iván , Balocchi Oscar , Arias Rodrigo , Alonso Máximo
Published: April 2021

The thermal time, expressed in accumulated growing degree-days (AGDD), was used as a predictor to describe and simulate the independent growth of two pasture crops, Lolium perenne L. and Bromus valdivianus Phil. Two sinusoidal models (four-parameter Logistic and Gompertz) were applied to the growth variables (total leaf blade length per tiller—LBL, and accumulated herbage mass—AHM). The nutritive value of pastures was predicted and modeled using regression equations (linear and quadratic), depending on each nutrient. Data for modeling were collected from a two-year study, in which LBL, AHM, and nutritive value variables for L. perenne and B. valdivianus pastures were measured at three-day intervals. Defoliation was determined according to the AGDD, such that the swards were defoliated at 90, 180, 270, 360, and 450 AGDD. The Logistic and Gompertz models presented similar values for the growth rate (GR) parameters, superior asymptote (Asup), inferior asymptote (Ainf), and point of maximum growth (Pmax). In both species, the maximum growth was 260 AGDD. The GR was similar for both species in different seasons of the year, but the maximum AHM varied, with B. valdivianus presenting a higher value (+1500 kg DM ha−1) than L. perenne during the spring. The regressions accurately described the nutritive value, demonstrating a positive linear relationship between the AGDD and concentrations of neutral and acid detergent fiber (NDF, ADF), an inverse linear relationship with crude protein (CP), and a quadratic relationship with metabolizable energy (ME) and water-soluble carbohydrate (WSC) concentration.
Rice By-Products Reduce Seed and Seedlings Survival of Echinochloa crus-galli, Leptochloa chinensis and Fymbristylis miliacea
Authors: Ho Thi L. , Nguyen Cuong T. , Vu Danh C. , Nguyen Tu T. C. , Nguyen Vinh Q. , Smeda Reid J.
Published: April 2021

Extracting allelochemicals from rice (Oryza sativa) straw and use for weed management is more sustainable than burning and reduces herbicide dependence. Water soluble compounds were extracted from shoots and roots of OM 5930, generating both a crystallized by-product and liquid extract. Crystallized product was applied to soil with pre-germinated barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crus-galli L. Beauv), red sprangletop (Leptochloa chinensis L. Nees), and grass-like fimbry (Fimbristylis miliacea L. Vahl) seeds. As little as 9.4 g per pot (1 ton ha−1 biomass) reduced survival of all species, with the order of sensitivity barnyardgrass (BG) < red sprangletop (RS) < grasslike-fimbry (GF). Increased rates or time of exposure (3 to 42 days after treatment; DAT) resulted in a stepwise reduction in seed survival. Using liquid extract, 5.33 g pot−1 (3 tons ha−1 biomass) reduced BG survival by 49.8%, while 2.67 g pot−1 reduced survival of RS and GF by 49.7 and 54.3%, respectively at 42 DAT. A rate of 8 g pot−1 reduced survival of BG seedlings by 78.3% but was lethal to RS and GF seedlings. The most abundant allelochemicals present were ergosterol peroxide, p-coumaric acid, and salicylic acid. OM 5930 rice is a promising variety for extraction of allelopathic compounds and application for extended herbicidal activity.
The Physical Activity-Dependent Hematological and Biochemical Changes in School Horses in Comparison to Blood Profiles in Endurance and Race Horses
Authors: Maśko Małgorzata , Domino Małgorzata , Jasiński Tomasz , Witkowska-Piłaszewicz Olga
Published: April 2021

Blood testing is one of the most important ways to improve performance, facilitate recovery and monitor the training of endurance and race horses. However, little is known about the physical activity-dependent changes of blood parameters in horses used for pleasure and in riding schools. This study aimed to perform routine blood tests for training monitoring of sport horses in three different horse types of use. Then the values of blood indicators were compared between school, endurance and race horses to find similarities in the physical activity-dependent profile. The study was carried out on 15 endurance, 15 race and 15 school healthy horses who underwent the typical effort for their disciplines. The hemogram parameters, creatine phosphokinase (CPK), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), blood lactate (LAC), and total serum protein (TSP) concentrations were measured using the same protocol and equipment. Measurements of main hematological and biochemical physical activity-dependent parameters were conducted before, immediately after and 30 min after training. In school horses, the physical activity-dependent increase of WBC (40.9%) and CPK (76.4%) was similar to endurance horses, whereas an increase of RBC (19.1%), HGB (18.6%) and HCT (19.4%) were more similar to race horses. The moderate effort-dependent increase of LAC concentration (2775%) was lower than in race horses (7526%) and higher than in endurance horses (390%). Limiting the training or work monitoring assessment of school horses to only the endurance or racing blood profile may result in the omission of significant changes in hematological and biochemical parameters.
The Influence of Oxytocin on Maternal Care in Lactating Dogs
Authors: Ogi Asahi , Mariti Chiara , Pirrone Federica , Baragli Paolo , Gazzano Angelo
Published: April 2021

In recent years, many studies on the role of oxytocin (OXT) in the onset of parental care, regulation of social bonding, and modulation of the emotional state have been published. However, its possible regulation of maternal behavior in lactating dogs has not been investigated yet. For this reason, the present study aimed at assessing potential correlations between salivary oxytocin and maternal behavior in 25 lactating Labrador Retriever dogs. Salivary concentrations of OXT (sOXT) were unrelated to the amount of maternal care except for a weak negative correlation with sniffing/poking behavior. Moreover, sOXT was positively correlated with the percentage of male puppies. Sniffing/poking behavior, in turn, was positively correlated with the duration of time the mothers spent out of the whelping box, while the number of male puppies showed a positive correlation with lateral nursing, a position known to provide puppies the easiest access to the milk. Taken together, these results suggest that sOXT may not be strongly associated with maternal care dynamics but could be correlated with sex-biased parental investment in dogs.
Advances in the Regulation of Mammalian Follicle-Stimulating Hormone Secretion
Authors: Wang Hao-Qi , Zhang Wei-Di , Yuan Bao , Zhang Jia-Bao
Published: April 2021

Mammalian reproduction is mainly driven and regulated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis. Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), which is synthesized and secreted by the anterior pituitary gland, is a key regulator that ultimately affects animal fertility. As a dimeric glycoprotein hormone, the biological specificity of FSH is mainly determined by the β subunit. As research techniques are being continuously innovated, studies are exploring the underlying molecular mechanism regulating the secretion of mammalian FSH. This article will review the current knowledge on the molecular mechanisms and signaling pathways systematically regulating FSH synthesis and will present the latest hypothesis about the nuclear cross-talk among the various endocrine-induced pathways for transcriptional regulation of the FSH β subunit. This article will provide novel ideas and potential targets for the improved use of FSH in livestock breeding and therapeutic development.
Hyperoxidation of Peroxiredoxins and Effects on Physiology of Drosophila
Authors: McGinnis Austin , Klichko Vladimir I. , Orr William C. , Radyuk Svetlana N.
Published: April 2021

The catalytic activity of peroxiredoxins (Prx) is determined by the conserved peroxidatic cysteine (CysP), which reacts with peroxides to form sulfenic acid (Cys-SOH). Under conditions of oxidative stress, CysP is oxidized to catalytically inactive sulfinic (Cys-SO2) and sulfonic (Cys-SO3) forms. The Cys-SO2 form can be reduced in a reaction catalyzed by sulfiredoxin (Srx). To explore the physiological significance of peroxiredoxin overoxidation, we investigated daily variations in the oxidation state of 2-Cys peroxiredoxins in flies of different ages, or under conditions when the pro-oxidative load is high. We found no statistically significant changes in the 2-Cys Prxs monomer:dimer ratio, which indirectly reflects changes in the Prx catalytic activity. However, we found daily variations in Prx-SO2/3 that were more pronounced in older flies as well as in flies lacking Srx. Unexpectedly, the srx mutant flies did not exhibit a diminished survivorship under normal or oxidative stress conditions. Moreover, the srx mutant was characterized by a higher physiological activity. In conclusion, catalytically inactive forms of Prx-SO2/3 serve not only as a marker of cellular oxidative burden, but may also play a role in an adaptive response, leading to a positive effect on the physiology of Drosophila melanogaster.
Re-Evaluating the Oxidative Phenotype: Can Endurance Exercise Save the Western World?
Authors: Kolodziej Filip , O’Halloran Ken D.
Published: April 2021

Mitochondria are popularly called the “powerhouses” of the cell. They promote energy metabolism through the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle and oxidative phosphorylation, which in contrast to cytosolic glycolysis are oxygen-dependent and significantly more substrate efficient. That is, mitochondrial metabolism provides substantially more cellular energy currency (ATP) per macronutrient metabolised. Enhancement of mitochondrial density and metabolism are associated with endurance training, which allows for the attainment of high relative VO2 max values. However, the sedentary lifestyle and diet currently predominant in the Western world lead to mitochondrial dysfunction. Underdeveloped mitochondrial metabolism leads to nutrient-induced reducing pressure caused by energy surplus, as reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH)-mediated high electron flow at rest leads to “electron leak” and a chronic generation of superoxide radicals (O2−). Chronic overload of these reactive oxygen species (ROS) damages cell components such as DNA, cell membranes, and proteins. Counterintuitively, transiently generated ROS during exercise contributes to adaptive reduction-oxidation (REDOX) signalling through the process of cellular hormesis or “oxidative eustress” defined by Helmut Sies. However, the unaccustomed, chronic oxidative stress is central to the leading causes of mortality in the 21st century—metabolic syndrome and the associated cardiovascular comorbidities. The endurance exercise training that improves mitochondrial capacity and the protective antioxidant cellular system emerges as a universal intervention for mitochondrial dysfunction and resultant comorbidities. Furthermore, exercise might also be a solution to prevent ageing-related degenerative diseases, which are caused by impaired mitochondrial recycling. This review aims to break down the metabolic components of exercise and how they translate to athletic versus metabolically diseased phenotypes. We outline a reciprocal relationship between oxidative metabolism and inflammation, as well as hypoxia. We highlight the importance of oxidative stress for metabolic and antioxidant adaptation. We discuss the relevance of lactate as an indicator of critical exercise intensity, and inferring from its relationship with hypoxia, we suggest the most appropriate mode of exercise for the case of a lost oxidative identity in metabolically inflexible patients. Finally, we propose a reciprocal signalling model that establishes a healthy balance between the glycolytic/proliferative and oxidative/prolonged-ageing phenotypes. This model is malleable to adaptation with oxidative stress in exercise but is also susceptible to maladaptation associated with chronic oxidative stress in disease. Furthermore, mutations of components involved in the transcriptional regulatory mechanisms of mitochondrial metabolism may lead to the development of a cancerous phenotype, which progressively presents as one of the main causes of death, alongside the metabolic syndrome.
Engine Malfunctioning Conditions Identification through Instantaneous Crankshaft Torque Measurement Analysis
Authors: Tsitsilonis Konstantinos-Marios , Theotokatos Gerasimos
Published: April 2021

In this study a coupled thermodynamics and crankshaft dynamics model of a large two-stroke diesel engine was utilised, to map the relationship of the engine Instantaneous Crankshaft Torque (ICT) with the following frequently occurring malfunctioning conditions: (a) change in Start of Injection (SOI), (b) change in Rate of Heat Release (RHR), (c) change in scavenge air pressure, and (d) blowby. This was performed using frequency analysis on the engine ICT, which was obtained through a series of parametric runs of the coupled engine model, under the various malfunctioning and healthy operating conditions. This process demonstrated that engine ICT can be successfully utilised to identify the distinct effects of malfunctions (c) or (d), as they occur individually in any cylinder. Furthermore by using the same process, malfunctions (a) and (b) can be identified as they occur individually for any cylinder, however there is no distinct effect on the engine ICT among these malfunctions, since their effect on the in-cylinder pressure is similar. As a result, this study demonstrates the usefulness of the engine ICT as a non-intrusive diagnostic measurement, as well as the benefits of malfunctioning conditions mapping, which allows for quick and less resource intensive identification of engine malfunctions.
Renewable Energy Systems 2020
Authors: Vicidomini Maria
Published: April 2021

In the last few years, several states have experienced a significant growth of the global energy demand [...]
Metabolite Profiling of Christia vespertilionis Leaf Metabolome via Molecular Network Approach
Authors: Norazhar Anis Irfan , Lee Soo Yee , Faudzi Siti Munirah Mohd , Shaari Khozirah
Published: April 2021

Christia vespertilionis (L.f.) Bakh. f. is an ornamental plant with unique butterfly-shaped leaves, hence its vernacular name “butterfly wing” or “rerama” in Malay. In Malaysia, the green-leafed variety of this plant has gained popularity in recent years due to testimonial reports by local consumers of its medicinal uses, which include treatment for cancer. Despite these popular uses, there is very limited information on the phytochemistry of the leaf of this plant, presenting a significant gap in the cheminformatics of the plant species. Herein, we report a substantially detailed phytochemical profile of the leaf metabolome of the green-leafed variety of C. vespertilionis, obtained by deploying an untargeted tandem mass spectrometry-based molecular networking approach. The detailed inspection of the molecular network map generated for the leaf metabolome enabled the putative identification of 60 metabolites, comprising 13 phenolic acids, 20 flavonoids, 2 benzyltetrahydroisoquinoline-type alkaloids, 4 hydroxyjasmonic acid derivatives, 2 phenethyl derivatives, 3 monoacylglycerols, 4 fatty acid amides, 2 chlorophyll derivatives, 4 carotenoids, 2 organic acids, 1 nucleoside, and 3 amino acids. Flavonoids are the major class of metabolites that characterize the plant leaves. Employing a mass-targeted isolation approach, two new derivatives of apigenin-6-C-β-glucoside, the major constituents of the plant leaf, were successfully purified and spectroscopically characterized as apigenin-6-C-β-glucoside 4′-O-α-apiofuranoside (28) and apigenin-6-C-β-[(4″,6″-O-dimalonyl)-glucoside] 4′-O-α-apiofuranoside (47). This work provides further information on the chemical space of the plant leaf, which is a prerequisite to further research towards its valorization as a potential phytopharmaceutical product.
Automatic Roadway Features Detection with Oriented Object Detection
Authors: Eraqi Hesham M. , Soliman Karim , Said Dalia , Elezaby Omar R. , Moustafa Mohamed N. , Abdelgawad Hossam
Published: April 2021

Extensive research efforts have been devoted to identify and improve roadway features that impact safety. Maintaining roadway safety features relies on costly manual operations of regular road surveying and data analysis. This paper introduces an automatic roadway safety features detection approach, which harnesses the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) computer vision to make the process more efficient and less costly. Given a front-facing camera and a global positioning system (GPS) sensor, the proposed system automatically evaluates ten roadway safety features. The system is composed of an oriented (or rotated) object detection model, which solves an orientation encoding discontinuity problem to improve detection accuracy, and a rule-based roadway safety evaluation module. To train and validate the proposed model, a fully-annotated dataset for roadway safety features extraction was collected covering 473 km of roads. The proposed method baseline results are found encouraging when compared to the state-of-the-art models. Different oriented object detection strategies are presented and discussed, and the developed model resulted in improving the mean average precision (mAP) by 16.9% when compared with the literature. The roadway safety feature average prediction accuracy is 84.39% and ranges between 91.11% and 63.12%. The introduced model can pervasively enable/disable autonomous driving (AD) based on safety features of the road; and empower connected vehicles (CV) to send and receive estimated safety features, alerting drivers about black spots or relatively less-safe segments or roads.
A Review on Tailoring Stiffness in Compliant Systems, via Removing Material: Cellular Materials and Topology Optimization
Authors: Arredondo-Soto Mauricio , Cuan-Urquizo Enrique , Gómez-Espinosa Alfonso
Published: April 2021

Cellular Materials and Topology Optimization use a structured distribution of material to achieve specific mechanical properties. The controlled distribution of material often leads to several advantages including the customization of the resulting mechanical properties; this can be achieved following these two approaches. In this work, a review of these two as approaches used with compliance purposes applied at flexure level is presented. The related literature is assessed with the aim of clarifying how they can be used in tailoring stiffness of flexure elements. Basic concepts needed to understand the fundamental process of each approach are presented. Further, tailoring stiffness is described as an evolutionary process used in compliance applications. Additionally, works that used these approaches to tailor stiffness of flexure elements are described and categorized. Finally, concluding remarks and recommendations to further extend the study of these two approaches in tailoring the stiffness of flexure elements are discussed.
Automatic Generation of N-Bar Planar Linkages Containing Sliders
Authors: Helal Mahmoud , Hu Jong Wan , Eleashy Hasan
Published: April 2021

In this work, a generalized algorithm is introduced to generate all alternatives of planar N-bar kinematic chains (KCs) with simple joints containing sliders. A simple graphical technique is introduced to enumerate all available N-bar chains with prismatic (P) joints. Then, a new topological Loop Code (TLC) is presented to detect isomorphic chains during the enumeration process in addition to detecting rejected KCs. A visual C++ code is developed for automatic enumeration and detection of rejected KCs and isomorphic KCs. Examples of 6, 8, and 10-bar KCs are presented to illustrate algorithm procedures. As a result, 21, 16, and 1350 KCs have P-joints for Stephenson, Watt, and 8-bar chains, respectively. Also, 308 KCs are obtained for a 10-bar KC with up to 3 sliders.
Object Detection in Drone Imagery via Sample Balance Strategies and Local Feature Enhancement
Authors: Hou Xiaoyu , Zhang Kunlin , Xu Jihui , Huang Wei , Yu Xinmiao , Xu Huaiyu
Published: April 2021

With the advent of drones, new potential applications have emerged for the unconstrained analysis of images and videos from aerial view cameras. Despite the tremendous success of the generic object detection methods developed using ground-based photos, a considerable performance drop is observed when these same methods are directly applied to images captured by Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Usually, most of the work goes into improving the performance of the detector in aspects such as design loss, training sample selection, feature enhancement, and so forth. This paper proposes a detection framework based on an anchor-free detector with several modules, including a sample balance strategies module and super-resolved generated feature module, to improve performance. We proposed the sample balance strategies module to optimize the imbalance among training samples, especially the imbalance between positive and negative, and easy and hard samples. Due to the high frequencies and noisy representation of the small objects in images captured by drones, the detection task is extraordinarily challenging. However, when compared with other algorithms of this kind, our method achieves better results. We also propose a super-resolved generated GAN (Generative Adversarial Network) module with center-ness weights to effectively enhance the local feature map. Finally, we demonstrate our method’s effectiveness with the proposed modules by carrying out a state-of-the-art performance on Visdrone2020 benchmarks.
Influence of Mix Proportions on Rheological Properties, Air Content of Wet Shotcrete—A Case Study
Authors: Xie Jun , Cui Xiangfei , Guo Nan , Liu Guoming
Published: April 2021

To study the influence of different mix proportions on the fresh properties of wet shotcrete, the rheological properties and air content of wet shotcrete with different admixtures before pumping were measured. In addition, the pressure drop along the pipeline and the build-up thickness were studied, and the relationship between the rheological properties and the pumpability and sprayability was discussed. This paper attempts to reveal the influence mechanism of admixtures on the fluidity of wet shotcrete by means of pictures. The results show that free paste effect and ball effect are two key factors that affect the performance of fresh wet shotcrete. Air-entraining agent and fly ash are commonly used admixtures, which improve the pumping performance and spraying performance. Finally, the mix proportions of wet shotcrete are put forward to meet the requirements of different types of shotcrete.
The Application of Fuzzy Theory in the Evaluation of Visual Images of Smartphone Rear Cameras
Authors: Chen Chien-Hsiung , Lin Zhongzhen
Published: April 2021

In the present era, technology is developing rapidly. Smartphones play a significant part in people’s lives. However, the research on smartphones mainly focuses on the area of technological realization. The purposes of this study were to examine the relationship between the various rear cameras in smartphones and consumer perceptions, and to understand consumers’ purchasing intentions and preferences. Through the methods of multidimensional scaling (MDS), factor analysis and triangular fuzzy numbers, the visual images of the smartphone rear cameras were analyzed and discussed. The results indicate that the visual images taken by different shapes of rear camera are quite distinct in the categories of innovative and fashionable, and simple and pure, but less distinct in the categories of harmonious and ordered, premium and technical, and superior and valuable. Through a comprehensive comparison, four groups whose images were similar were created. The outcome effectively reflects the potential consumer demands for smartphone rear camera patterns, providing insights for design practices in the smartphone industry.
Adaptive Modeling of Prediction of Telecommunications Network Throughput Performances in the Domain of Motorway Coverage
Authors: Banjanin Milorad K. , Stojčić Mirko , Drajić Dejan , Ćurguz Zoran , Milanović Zoran , Stjepanović Aleksandar
Published: April 2021

The main goal of this paper is to create an adaptive model based on multilayer perceptron (MLP) for prediction of average downlink (DL) data throughput per user and average DL data throughput per cell within an LTE network technology and in a geo-space that includes a segment of the Motorway 9th January with the access roads. The accuracy of model prediction is estimated based on relative error (RE). With multiple trainings and testing of 30 different variants of the MLP model, with different metaparameters the final model was chosen whose average accuracy for the Cell Downlink Average Throughput variable is 89.6% (RE = 0.104), while for the Average User Downlink Throughput variable the average accuracy is 88% (RE = 0.120). If the coefficient of determination is observed, the results showed that the accuracy of the best selected prediction model for the first variable is 1.4% higher than the accuracy of the prediction of the selected model for the second dependent variable. In addition, the results showed that the performance of the MLP model expressed over R2 was significantly better compared to the reference multiple linear regression (MLR) model used.
Impact Study of FY-3B MWRI Data Assimilation in WRFDA
Authors: Yang Chun , Zhu Lijian , Min Jinzhong
Published: April 2021

In the first attempt to configure the Fengyun-3B satellite’s Microwave Radiation Imager (MWRI) radiance data in the Weather Research Forecast (WRF) model’s Data Assimilation system (WRFDA), the impact of MWRI data assimilation on the analysis and forecast of Typhoon Son-Tinh in 2012 was evaluated with WRFDA’s three-dimensional variational (3DVAR) data-assimilation scheme. Compared to a benchmark experiment with no MWRI data, assimilating MWRI radiances improved the analyses of typhoon central sea level pressure (CSLP), warm core structure, and wind speed. Moreover, verified with European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) analysis data, significant improvements in model variable forecast, such as geopotential height and specific humidity, were produced. Substantial error reductions in track, CSLP, and maximum-wind-speed forecasts with MWRI assimilation was also obtained from analysis time to 48 h forecast.