bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Acute pulmonary pressure change after transition to sacubitril/valsartan in patients with heart failure reduced ejection fraction
Authors: Tran Jeffrey S. , Havakuk Ofer , McLeod Jennifer M. , Hwang Jennifer , Kwong Hoi Yan , Shavelle David , Zile Michael R. , Elkayam Uri , Fong Michael W. , Grazette Luanda P.
Published: February 2021

Aims

Sacubitril/valsartan combines renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system inhibition with amplification of natriuretic peptides. In addition to well‐described effects, natriuretic peptides exert direct effects on pulmonary vasculature. The effect of sacubitril/valsartan on pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) has not been fully defined.

Methods and results

This was a retrospective case‐series of PAP changes following transition from angiotensin‐converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) to sacubitril/valsartan in patients with heart failure reduced ejection fraction and a previously implanted CardioMEMS™ sensor. Pre‐sacubitril/valsartan and post‐sacubitril/valsartan PAPs were compared for each patient by examining averaged consecutive daily pressure readings from 1 to 5 days before and after sacubitril/valsartan exposure. PAP changes were also compared between patients based on elevated trans‐pulmonary gradients (trans‐pulmonary gradient ≥ 12 mmHg) at time of CardioMEMS™ sensor implantation. The cohort included 18 patients, 72% male, mean age 60.1 ± 13.6 years. There was a significant decrease in PAPs associated with transition from ACEI/ARB to sacubitril/valsartan. The median (interquartile range) pre‐treatment and post‐treatment change in mean, systolic and diastolic PAPs were −3.6 (−9.8, −0.7) mmHg (P < 0.001), −6.5 (−15.0, −2.0) mmHg (P = 0.001), and −2.5 (−5.7, −0.7) (P = 0.001), respectively. The decrease in PAPs was independent of trans‐pulmonary gradient (F(1,16) = 0.49, P = 0.49).

Conclusions

In this retrospective case series, transition from ACEI/ARB to sacubitril/valsartan was associated with an early and significant decrease in PAPs.
Who embodies the evaluative state? Programmatic actors in the chilean and colombian policies of quality assurance in higher education
Authors: Duque Juan Felipe
Published: February 2021

Based on the Programmatic Action Framework (PAF), this article presents a comparative analysis of the Chilean and Colombian policies of quality assurance (QA) in higher education. Despite their instrumental commonalities, these policies actually reflect two contrasting approaches to quality: a flexible approach in Chile versus an excellence‐oriented approach in Colombia. The article shows that both policies were initially developed by groups of prestigious academics who shared most of the features of programmatic elites and that the contrast between the approaches to quality arises from the divergent evolution of the policy program of these groups: The policy of QA was subjected to an instrumental layering in Chile while, in Colombia, it followed a path‐dependent evolution. The study shows that sociological perspectives like the PAF can provide a more complete and dynamic understanding of the Evaluative State that takes into account the instrumental and the social dimensions of quality‐related activities.
The Open Brain Consent: Informing research participants and obtaining consent to share brain imaging data
Authors: Bannier Elise , Barker Gareth , Borghesani Valentina , Broeckx Nils , Clement Patricia , Emblem Kyrre E. , Ghosh Satrajit , Glerean Enrico , Gorgolewski Krzysztof J. , Havu Marko , Halchenko Yaroslav O. , Herholz Peer , Hespel Anne , Heunis Stephan , Hu Yue , Hu Chuan‐Peng , Huijser Dorien , de la Iglesia Vayá María , Jancalek Radim , Katsaros Vasileios K. , Kieseler Marie‐Luise , Maumet Camille , Moreau Clara A. , Mutsaerts Henk‐Jan , Oostenveld Robert , Ozturk‐Isik Esin , Pascual Leone Espinosa Nicolas , Pellman John , Pernet Cyril R , Pizzini Francesca Benedetta , Trbalić Amira Šerifović , Toussaint Paule‐Joanne , Visconti di Oleggio Castello Matteo , Wang Fengjuan , Wang Cheng , Zhu Hua
Published: February 2021

Having the means to share research data openly is essential to modern science. For human research, a key aspect in this endeavor is obtaining consent from participants, not just to take part in a study, which is a basic ethical principle, but also to share their data with the scientific community. To ensure that the participants' privacy is respected, national and/or supranational regulations and laws are in place. It is, however, not always clear to researchers what the implications of those are, nor how to comply with them. The Open Brain Consent (https://open-brain-consent.readthedocs.io) is an international initiative that aims to provide researchers in the brain imaging community with information about data sharing options and tools. We present here a short history of this project and its latest developments, and share pointers to consent forms, including a template consent form that is compliant with the EU general data protection regulation. We also share pointers to an associated data user agreement that is not only useful in the EU context, but also for any researchers dealing with personal (clinical) data elsewhere.
Impact of disease status at allogeneic stem cell transplantation on adolescent and young adult patients with early T‐cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia
Authors: Meng Tongyan , Qi Jiaqian , Zhu Yuanxin , Xu Yang , Chen Feng , Xue Shengli , Miao Miao , Chen Suning , Han Yue , Tang Xiaowen , Qiu Huiying , Sun Aining , Wu Depei , Wang Ying
Published: February 2021

Early T‐cell precursor (ETP) acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is an aggressive subset of T‐cell ALL, and the role of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo‐HSCT) in adolescent and young adult (AYA) patients has not been sufficiently described. We retrospectively analysed the data of 30 AYA patients (19 in first complete remission [CR1], 3 in CR2, and 8 with active disease) with ETP‐ALL who underwent myeloablative allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo‐HSCT) from HLA‐matched related, n = 2, unrelated, n = 5, or HLA‐haploidentical related, n = 23 donors with an emphasis on the impact of disease status on the outcomes of transplant. The stem cell source was unmanipulated G‐CSF mobilized bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cells. All patients achieved neutrophil engraftment with full donor chimerism. The cumulative incidences of grade II to IV acute graft‐versus‐host disease (GVHD) and chronic GVHD at 2 years were 37% and 33%, respectively. Overall, 16 patients died. The causes of death were relapse (8 patients), infection (4 patients) and GVHD (4 patients). The estimated 2‐year overall survival (OS) and leukemia‐free survival (LFS) for the whole cohort were 47.8% and 46.2%, respectively. Patients transplanted in CR1/2 had significantly better 2‐year OS and LFS than patients with active disease (61.7% vs. 12.5%, p = 0.02; and 58.3% vs. 12.5%, p = 0.04, respectively). There was a trend toward an inferior OS rate in those patients in CR1 with chemoresistance or in CR2 compared with patients in CR1 with chemosensitivity, although this did not reach statistical significance. Our data support allo‐HSCT, especially from HLA‐haploidentical donors as an effective therapeutic strategy in AYA patients with ETP‐ALL and disease status was significantly associated with survival in these patients.
Flow and thermal field in sessile droplet evaporation at various environmental conditions
Authors: Prakash Jyoti , Sikarwar Basant S. , Agarwal Basant K.
Published: February 2021

Sessile droplets' evaporation is a complex process that involves fluid flow coupled with heat and mass transfer. In this study, mathematical modelling of sessile droplet evaporation on hydrophobic substrates is developed and simulations are carried out on COMSOL. The model results are validated with the data available in the literature. Postvalidation, the simulation of droplet evaporation is carried out on the various substrate hydrophobicities and various environmental conditions. For these conditions, contours are plotted for temperature, velocity, and mass concentration for the droplet and moist air domain. The result shows that Marangoni convection plays a very important role in droplet evaporation. A high rate of evaporation is observed at the droplet interface at low relative humidity and a large degree of subheating. The effect of air velocity on the evaporation rate is studied, however, its effect is very marginal as compared to relative humidity and degree of subheating. The heat flux at the three‐phase contact line is large for a smaller Prandtl number fluid. Overall, the evaporation rate increases with increasing the Prandtl number because it has a large value of Marangoni convection.
HOXD13 suppresses prostate cancer metastasis and BMP4‐induced epithelial‐mesenchymal transition by inhibiting SMAD1
Authors: Xu Fan , Shangguan Xun , Pan Jiahua , Yue Zhiying , Shen Kai , Ji Yiyi , Zhang Weiwei , Zhu Yinjie , Sha Jianjun , Wang Yanqing , Fan Liancheng , Dong Baijun , Wang Qi , Xue Wei
Published: February 2021

The HOX genes are a group of highly conserved Homeobox‐containing genes that control the body plan organization during development. However, their contributions to tumorigenesis and tumor progression remain uncertain and controversial. Here we provided evidence of tumor‐suppressive activity of HOXD13 in prostate cancer. HOXD13 depletion contributes to more aggressiveness of prostate cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. These effects were corroborated in a metastatic mice model, where we observed more bone metastatic lesions formed by prostate cancer cells with HOXD13 ablation. Mechanistically, HOXD13 prevents BMP4‐induced epithelial‐mesenchymal transition (EMT) by inhibiting mothers against decapentaplegic homolog 1 (SMAD1) transcription. Both bioinformation and our tissue microarray cohort data show that HOXD13 expression inversely correlated in advanced prostate cancer patient specimens. Our findings establish HOXD13 as a negative regulator of prostate cancer progression and metastasis by preventing BMP4/SMAD1 signaling, and potentially suggest new strategies for targeting metastatic prostate cancer.
Exploring the impact of gut microbiota and diet on breast cancer risk and progression
Authors: Teng Nancy M. Y. , Price Christopher A. , McKee Alastair M. , Hall Lindsay J. , Robinson Stephen D.
Published: February 2021

There is emerging evidence that resident microbiota communities, that is, the microbiota, play a key role in cancer outcomes and anticancer responses. Although this has been relatively well studied in colorectal cancer and melanoma, other cancers, such as breast cancer (BrCa), have been largely overlooked to date. Importantly, many of the environmental factors associated with BrCa incidence and progression are also known to impact the microbiota, for example, diet and antibiotics. Here, we explore BrCa risk factors from large epidemiology studies and microbiota associations, and more recent studies that have directly profiled BrCa patients' gut microbiotas. We also discuss how in vivo studies have begun to unravel the immune mechanisms whereby the microbiota may influence BrCa responses, and finally we examine how diet and specific nutrients are also linked to BrCa outcomes. We also consider future research avenues and important considerations with respect to study design and implementation, and we highlight some of the important unresolved questions, which currently limit our overall understanding of the mechanisms underpinning microbiota‐BrCa responses.
Multiphoton tomography in differentiation of morphological and molecular subtypes of breast cancer: A quantitative analysis
Authors: Gubarkova Ekaterina V. , Elagin Vadim V. , Dudenkova Varvara V. , Kuznetsov Sergey S. , Karabut Maria M. , Potapov Arseny L. , Vorontsov Dmitry A. , Vorontsov Alexey Y. , Sirotkina Marina A. , Zagaynova Elena V. , Gladkova Natalia D.
Published: February 2021

In this study multiphoton tomography, based on second harmonic generation (SHG), and two‐photon‐excited fluorescence (TPEF) was used to visualize both the extracellular matrix and tumor cells in different morphological and molecular subtypes of human breast cancer. It was shown, that quantified assessment of the SHG based imaging data has great potential to reveal differences of collagen quantity, organization and uniformity in both low‐ and highly‐ aggressive invasive breast cancers. The values of quantity and uniformity of the collagen fibers distribution were significantly higher in low‐aggressive breast cancer compared to the highly‐aggressive subtypes, while the value representing collagen organization was lower in the former type. Additionally, it was shown, that TPEF detection of elastin fibers and amyloid protein may be used as a biomarker of detection the low‐aggressive breast cancer subtype. Thus, TPEF/SHG imaging offers the possibility of becoming a useful tool for the rapid diagnosis of various subtypes of breast cancer during biopsy as well as for the intraoperative determinination of tumor‐positive resection margins.
Sirtuin‐3 activation by honokiol restores mitochondrial dysfunction in the hippocampus of the hepatic encephalopathy rat model of ammonia neurotoxicity
Authors: Anamika  , Trigun Surendra K.
Published: February 2021

The neurotoxic level of ammonia in the brain during liver cirrhosis causes a nervous system disorder, hepatic encephalopathy (HE), by affecting mitochondrial functions. Sirtuin‐3 (SIRT3) is emerging as a master regulator of mitochondrial integrity, which is currently being focused as a pathogenic hotspot for HE. This article describes SIRT3 level versus mitochondrial dysfunction markers in the hippocampus of the control, the moderate‐grade hepatic encephalopathy (MoHE), developed in thioacetamide‐induced (100 mg/kg bw ip for 10 days) liver cirrhotic rats, and the MoHE rats treated with an SIRT3 activator, honokiol (HKL; 10 mg/kg bw ip), for 7 days from 8th day of the thioacetamide schedule. As compared with the control group rats, hippocampus mitochondria of MoHE rats showed a significant decline in SIRT3 expression and its activity with concordant enhancement of ROS and declined membrane permeability transition and organelle viability scores. This was consistent with the declined mitochondrial thiol level and thiol‐regenerating enzyme, isocitrate dehydrogenase 2. Also, significantly declined activities of electron transport chain complexes I, III, IV, and Q10, decreased NAD+/NADH and ATP/AMP ratios, and enhanced number of the shrunken mitochondria were recorded in the hippocampus of those MoHE rats. However, all these mitochondrial aberrations were observed to regain their normal profiles/levels, concordant to the enhanced SIRT3 expression and its activity due to treatment with HKL. The findings suggest a role of SIRT3 in mitochondrial structure–function derangements associated with MoHE pathogenesis and SIRT3 activation by HKL as a relevant strategy to protect mitochondrial integrity during ammonia neurotoxicity.
Nephroprotective effect of umbelliferone against cisplatin‐induced kidney damage is mediated by regulation of NRF2, cytoglobin, SIRT1/FOXO‐3, and NF‐kB‐p65 signaling pathways
Authors: Ali Fares E. M. , Hassanein Emad H. M. , El‐Bahrawy Ali H. , Omar Zainab M. M. , Rashwan Eman K. , Abdel‐Wahab Basil A. , Abd‐Elhamid Tarek H.
Published: February 2021

Cisplatin (Cis) is one of the most potent and effective broad‐spectrum antitumor drugs, but its use is limited due to nephrotoxicity. The current study investigated the renoprotective effect of umbelliferone (UMB) on Cis‐induced nephrotoxicity in rats. Renal injury was induced by a single injection of Cis (7 mg/kg, ip). Our results exhibited that the injection of Cis significantly disrupted renal function biomarkers as well as KIM‐1 expression. The expressions of TNF‐α, IL‐1β, NF‐kB‐p65, and IKKβ were elevated along with downregulation of IkBα expression. Also, Cis disrupted cellular oxidant/antioxidant balance through the reduction of glutathione (GSH), glutathione‐S‐transferase (GST), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels and elevation of malondialdehyde (MDA) content. On the contrary, the levels of renal function biomarkers, cytokines, NF‐kB‐p65, IkBα, IKKβ, and oxidant/antioxidant status have been improved after UMB treatment. Mechanistically, rats administered Cis only exhibited a significant decrease in NRF2 and cytoglobin expressions as well as the CREB, SIRT1, FOXO‐3, and PPAR‐γ genes. Treatment with UMB significantly upregulated NRF2 and cytoglobin proteins, as well as effectively increased the expression of CREB, SIRT1, FOXO‐3, PPAR‐γ, and NRF2 genes. Histopathological findings strongly supported our biochemical results, as evidenced by attenuation of renal hemorrhage, cast diffusion, and inflammatory cell infiltration. Interestingly, UMB significantly enhanced Cis cytotoxicity in both HL‐60 and HeLa cells in a dose‐dependent manner. Together, our results demonstrated that UMB can protect against Cis‐induced nephrotoxicity in normal rats along with the enhancement of its in vitro antitumor activity. These findings suggested that UMB could be used as a potential adjuvant therapy in Cis chemotherapeutic protocols.
Machine learning techniques to detect and forecast the daily total COVID‐19 infected and deaths cases under different lockdown types
Authors: Saba Tanzila , Abunadi Ibrahim , Shahzad Mirza Naveed , Khan Amjad Rehman
Published: February 2021

COVID‐19 has impacted the world in many ways, including loss of lives, economic downturn and social isolation. COVID‐19 was emerged due to the SARS‐CoV‐2 that is highly infectious pandemic. Every country tried to control the COVID‐19 spread by imposing different types of lockdowns. Therefore, there is an urgent need to forecast the daily confirmed infected cases and deaths in different types of lockdown to select the most appropriate lockdown strategies to control the intensity of this pandemic and reduce the burden in hospitals. Currently are imposed three types of lockdown (partial, herd, complete) in different countries. In this study, three countries from every type of lockdown were studied by applying time‐series and machine learning models, named as random forests, K‐nearest neighbors, SVM, decision trees (DTs), polynomial regression, Holt winter, ARIMA, and SARIMA to forecast daily confirm infected cases and deaths due to COVID‐19. The models' accuracy and effectiveness were evaluated by error based on three performance criteria. Actually, a single forecasting model could not capture all data sets' trends due to the varying nature of data sets and lockdown types. Three top‐ranked models were used to predict the confirmed infected cases and deaths, the outperformed models were also adopted for the out‐of‐sample prediction and obtained very close results to the actual values of cumulative infected cases and deaths due to COVID‐19. This study has proposed the auspicious models for forecasting and the best lockdown strategy to mitigate the causalities of COVID‐19.
Power and supply chain development in the South African and Thai automotive industries: What lessons can be learnt?
Authors: Bell Jason F. , Monaco Lorenza
Published: February 2021

In today's highly globalised, increasingly interlinked and extremely competitive auto industry, it is important to understand how some countries succeed in adopting the latest technologies while others are left behind. The creation of a competitive auto industry requires a deep supply chain. One that can compete in the global automotive space and develop and apply technologies as well as penetrate niche markets. Building on comparative research, this article seeks to understand the factors and power relations that led to the deepening of the Thai auto sector, specifically of its automotive component manufacturers, and how South Africa can learn from it.
Microbial, environmental and anthropogenic factors influencing the indoor microbiome of the built environment
Authors: Rai Sandhya , Singh Dileep K. , Kumar Amod
Published: February 2021

A built environment is a human‐made environment providing surroundings for human occupancy, activities, and settlement. It is supposed to safeguard humans from all undesirable and harmful pollutants; however, indoor concentrations of some pollutants are much greater than that of the outdoors. Bioaerosols infiltrate from the outdoors in addition to many indoor sources of bioaerosols including the use of various chemicals as well as activities like cooking, smoking, cleaning, or even normal movement. They are also associated with a number of serious health concerns. Various ecological factors associated with the generation, the persistence as well as the dispersal of these microbial components of indoor bioaerosols, are discussed in this review, that have not been considered all together till now. The factors like microbial taxa, environmental factors, and anthropogenic activities (human occupancy, activities, and impact of urbanization) are addressed in the review. Effects of both indoor environmental factors like architectural design, lighting, ventilation, temperature, humidity, indoor/outdoor ratio, particulate matter, indoor chemistry as well as outdoor environmental factors like geography, seasons, and meteorology on the microbial concentrations have been discussed. Efforts are underway to design selective pressures for microbes to create a healthy symbiotic built microbiome as the “right” indoor microbiome is a “healthy” indoor microbiome.
Warm and cool season reconstruction and assessment of the long‐term hydroclimatic variability of the Canadian prairie provinces through the development of the Canadian Prairies Paleo Drought Atlas
Authors: Kerr Samantha A. , Andreichuk Yuliya , Sauchyn David
Published: February 2021

Persistent, large‐area droughts are among the most damaging natural disasters, having major effects on agriculture, industry, forestry, human health and society, and ecosystems. In the Canadian Prairie provinces of the sub‐humid continental interior, changing climatic conditions, and shifts between periods of extreme wet and dry weather, emphasize the need for a better understanding of past and future variability of the regional hydroclimate. Using over 180 multi‐species tree‐ring chronologies, the warm (May through August) and cool (December through April) season Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) was reconstructed from 1400 to 2018 on a 10‐km grid spanning the Canadian Prairies. These geospatial paleo‐drought data extend back to 1200 over a smaller geographic area. Seasonal SPEI maps, comprising the newly developed Canadian Prairies Paleo Drought Atlas (CPPDA), visually represent the hydroclimatic variability across the Canadian Prairies over past centuries, including the timing, intensity, and spatial extent of major multi‐year droughts and excessive moisture events. Wavelet analysis was also examined to determine possible potential connections between hydroclimatic variables and the influence of large‐scale ocean–atmosphere oscillations (i.e., the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) and the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO)).
Will land use land cover change drive atmospheric conditions to become more conducive to wildfires in the United States?
Authors: Zhong Shiyuan , Wang Ting , Sciusco Pietro , Shen Meicheng , Pei Lisi , Nikolic Jovanka , McKeehan Kevin , Kashongwe Herve , Hatami‐Bahman‐Beiglou Pouyan , Camacho Ken , Akanga Donald , Charney Joseph J. , Bian Xindi
Published: February 2021

The increase in wildfire risk in the United States in recent decades has been linked to rapid growth of the wildland‐urban interface and to changing climate. While there have been numerous studies on wildfires and climate change, few have separately assessed the impact of climate response to land‐use‐land‐cover change (LULCC) on wildfires. In this study, we analyse two 10‐year regional climate simulations driven by the current (2011) and future (2100) land‐use‐land‐cover patterns to assess modifications by the projected LULCC to the frequency and severity of fire‐prone atmospheric conditions described by two fire weather indices, the Canadian Forest Fire Weather Index and the Hot‐Dry‐Windy Index. The simulation corresponding to future land‐use‐land‐cover pattern yields higher surface temperature and vapour pressure deficit and lower precipitation compared to the simulation with the current pattern in areas where urbanized landscapes replace forests and grasslands, such as along the Piedmont and outside the Chicagoland region, while in areas where croplands replace forests, such as the southeast Coastal Plains, the results are reversed. These changes to local and regional atmospheric conditions lead to longer fire seasons and more extreme fire‐weather conditions in much of the eastern United States, specifically in the Southeast and Ohio River Valley where significant urban expansion is projected by the end of the century. Whereas in Southern California where some highly flammable shrublands will be replaced by urban or crop lands, fire‐prone atmospheric conditions are likely to be less frequent and less extreme in the future. However, much of California moves towards a year‐round fire season under the projected LULCC. The results suggest that by altering atmospheric conditions, LULCC may play an important role in determining fire regime, but the effects are highly heterogeneous and regionalized.
Impacts of land use change on thermodynamic and dynamic changes of precipitation for the Yangtze River Basin, China
Authors: Lin Qian , Chen Jie , Li Wei , Huang Kailin , Tan Xuezhi , Chen Hua
Published: February 2021

Many studies found that land use change (LUC) had great impacts on regional precipitation, due to thermodynamic and dynamic responses. However, the relative contributions of these two factors to changes in precipitation due to LUC are rarely investigated. This study quantifies the relative contributions of thermodynamic and dynamic to the changes of mean and extreme precipitation due to LUC based on simulations of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. The Yangtze River Basin (YRB) is used as a case study, as it has experienced great LUC during the past decades. Four land use scenarios (two factual cases and two hypothetical reforestation scenarios) were used to test the sensitivity of precipitation changes to LUC. Changes in mean and extreme precipitation over the YRB for all seasons are attributed to thermodynamic and dynamic changes using 500‐hPa geopotential height and precipitation data derived from the simulations of WRF. The results show that the factual process of LUC results in a decrease in summer mean daily precipitation and precipitation extremes in most areas of the YRB (except for the middle reaches of the YRB), while the hypothetical reforestation contributes to an increase in summer mean and extreme precipitation, and the impacts of reforestation on increasing precipitation are limited. The thermodynamic change contributes to an increase in seasonal mean daily precipitation, extreme precipitation totals and occurrence frequency of precipitation extremes with contributions ranging from 94 to 102%, which is the main contributor of changes in precipitation due to LUC. The dynamic change only makes a small contribution to the change of precipitation. Because the contributions of thermodynamic can be offset by dynamic changes to changes in precipitation, it could result in minimal changes in precipitation and occurrences of precipitation extremes.
Visegrád countries' scientific productivity in the European context: A 10‐year perspective using Web of Science and Scopus
Authors: Szuflita‐Żurawska Magdalena , Basińska Beata A.
Published: February 2021

Measuring the growth of research productivity is a core element of performance in the higher education sector. This paper aims to analyse the scientific productivity of the Visegrád Group countries (2010–2019) based on data from the Web of Scopus and Scopus databases, as well as data from secondary sources (demographic and socio‐economic factors). Quantitatively, although Poland has the highest output, this is due to its comparative size, whereas output per researcher in Poland is lower than in other Visegrád Four (V4) countries. As regards the qualitative approach, Hungary and the Czech Republic are significantly more effective in terms of scientific collaboration and receive a greater number of European Research Council grants. Thus, bibliometric data in relation to cross‐country characteristic indicators (socio‐economic variables including expenditure on science and having prestigious universities) are related to the positions of the V4 countries. Practical implications suggest that university management within the Visegrád Group must develop and continue strategies to strengthen international collaboration between researchers in order to accelerate change in the dissemination of scientific output at the global level. Academic scholarly publishers may benefit from publishing research on specific issues important to different regions of the world in order to expand their audience and gain new potential resources.
Experimental Realization of Optimal Energy Storage in Resonators Embedded in Scattering Media
Authors: del Hougne Philipp , Sobry Rémi , Legrand Olivier , Mortessagne Fabrice , Kuhl Ulrich , Davy Matthieu
Published: February 2021

The ability to enhance light–matter interactions by increasing the energy stored in optical resonators is inherently dependent on the resonators' coupling to the incident wavefront. In practice, weak coupling may result from resonators' irregular shapes and/or the scrambling of waves in the surrounding scattering environment. Here, a blind and non‐invasive wavefront shaping technique providing optimal coupling to resonators is presented. The coherent control of the incident wavefront relies on the lengthening of delay times of waves efficiently exciting the resonator. Using a modal approach, the optimality of the proposed technique is proven and its limitations are quantified. The proposed concept is demonstrated in microwave experiments by injecting in situ optimal wavefronts that maximize the energy stored in high‐permittivity dielectric scatterers and extended leaky cavities embedded in a complex environment. The introduced framework is expected to find important applications in the enhancement of light–matter interactions in photonic materials as well as to enhance energy harvesting.
Room‐Temperature, High‐SNR Upconversion Spectrometer in the 6–12 µm Region
Authors: Rodrigo Peter John , Høgstedt Lasse , Friis Søren Michael Mørk , Lindvold Lars René , Tidemand‐Lichtenberg Peter , Pedersen Christian
Published: February 2021

Mid‐infrared (MIR) spectroscopy, which has important applications in medicine, environmental monitoring, materials, and food science, is widely performed using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometers as gold standard. Despite decades of development, FTIR systems are vulnerable to vibration and have limited temporal resolution due to reliance on mechanically scanned mirrors and MIR direct detectors that have a slower response than their near‐infrared counterparts. Using cryogenically cooled detectors, state‐of‐the‐art FTIR systems have reached a signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) of ≈6000 at 1 s integration time (at 4 cm−1 spectral resolution). Here, a novel MIR upconversion spectrometer (MIRUS) is presented with a record‐high SNR > 10 000 at 1 s (6 cm−1 resolution), outperforming FTIR systems by circumventing the need for sophisticated cooling and any moving part, thus enabling operation in harsh environments. It has a spectral coverage of 6–12 µm—the broadest for an upconversion spectrometer to date. The MIRUS uses broadband intracavity upconversion to convert the signal spanning the MIR fingerprint region to the near‐infrared where sensitive Si‐detector based spectrometers operate with rates easily reaching kilo spectra per second. Applications of MIRUS for gas sensing, plastic identification, and rapid photopolymerization monitoring are demonstrated.
Multifaceted pH and Temperature Induced Self‐Assembly of P(DMAEMA‐co‐LMA)‐b‐POEGMA Terpolymers and Their Cationic Analogues in Aqueous Media
Authors: Kafetzi Martha , Pispas Stergios
Published: February 2021

This work focuses on the synthesis of novel amphiphilic block terpolymers of the type poly[(2‐(N,N‐dimethylamino) ethyl methacrylate)‐co‐(lauryl methacrylate)]‐b‐poly[(oligo ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate] (P(DMAEMA‐co‐LMA)‐b‐POEGMA)) by reversible addition‐fragmentation chain transfer polymerization. The cationic amphiphilic polyelectrolyte analogs P(QDMAEMA‐co‐LMA)‐b‐POEGMA are obtained through quantitative quaternization of the DMAEMA segments. Molecular characterization by size exclusion chromatography, nuclear magnetic resonance, and Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopies indicates the successful synthesis of these novel series of block terpolymers. The amine forms of the block copolymers respond to pH and temperature changes in aqueous solutions by forming unimolecular or multichain nanoaggregates of varying size, micropolarity, and internal structure, as indicated by light scattering and fluorescence spectroscopy techniques. At neutral and basic pH, the existence of micellar like nanoassemblies is observed in the solutions of P(DMAEMA‐co‐LMA)‐b‐POEGMA terpolymers, while aggregation into micellar‐like clusters take place at temperature values above room temperature due to the presence of the hydrophobic LMA segments. Unexpectedly, the cationic polyelectrolytes P(QDMAEMA‐co‐LMA)‐b‐POEGMA counterparts show temperature responsiveness as a consequence of the amphiphilicity of the polymeric system.
Cistanches Herba, from an endangered species to a big brand of Chinese medicine
Authors: Song Yuelin , Zeng Kewu , Jiang Yong , Tu Pengfei
Published: February 2021

Cistanches Herba (CH, Chinese name:Roucongrong), is a very precious, tonic Chinese medicine.Cistanche deserticolaandCistanche tubulosaare the two commonly used species and authenticated in Chinese Pharmacopoeia. Due to the parasitic nature ofCistancheplants, the wild source was once endangered and listed in the Appendix II of Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. However, after continuously struggling in the past decades, CH has grown up to a big brand of Chinese medicine featured with the cultivation area as 1.26 million mu, the annual output as 6000 tons, and the related industrial output value as more than 20 billion China Yuan, attributing to large‐scale cultivation and in‐depth phytochemical and pharmacological investigations. Noteworthily, great achievements have reached concerning the research and development of relevant products, such as modern drugs, traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions, and dietary supplements. The current review summarizes the research progresses concerning the distribution and cultivation, phytochemistry, pharmacology, metabolism and product development of CH in the past decades, and the emerging challenges and developing prospects are discussed as well.
Fest und fest macht flüssig
Authors: Fuß Friederike , Thiele Günther
Published: February 2021

Eutektische Lösungsmittel bestehen aus mehreren Komponenten, deren Schmelzpunkte höher liegen als der Schmelzpunkt der Mischung. Sie gelten als umweltfreundlich und nachhaltig. Das muss nicht unbedingt stimmen, aber: Sie eröffnen neue Möglichkeiten für Extraktionen, Katalyse und mehr.
Mineral für den Zahn
Authors: Enax Joachim
Published: February 2021

Ein Wirkstoff in Zahnpastenformulierungen kann zahnschmelzverwandter Hydroxylapatit sein. Wie sich die Calciumphosphatverbindung synthetisieren, charakterisieren und in der zahnmedizinischen Prävention einsetzen lässt.
Evaluating Fish Rescue as a Drought Adaptation Strategy Using a Life Cycle Modeling Approach for Imperiled Coho Salmon
Authors: Beebe Brittany A. , Bentley Kale T. , Buehrens Thomas W. , Perry Russell W. , Armstrong Jonathan B.
Published: February 2021

Projected intensification of drought as a result of climate change may reduce the capacity of streams to rear fish, exacerbating the challenge of recovering salmonid populations listed under the Endangered Species Act. Without management intervention, some stocks will likely go extinct as stream drying and fragmentation reduce juvenile survival to unsustainable levels. To offset drought-related mortality, fish rescue programs have proliferated, whereby juvenile salmonids are captured and transferred to off-site rearing facilities. However, the efficacy of this potential conservation tool remains poorly understood. We developed a life cycle model to examine the implications of fish rescue on the abundance of Coho Salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch across serial life stages. The simulation model examines scenarios with varying quantities of rescued fish, time in captivity, drought severity, and reduced smolt-to-adult return rates. Our results indicate that fish rescue can increase the abundance of adults and lower extinction risk, particularly for fish held in captivity for a full year. However, fish rescue can also decrease the abundance of adults and increase extinction risk if fish are held only for summer and there is limited winter habitat. We found that when fish rescue did increase returns, it functioned more like a stock enhancement program than a drought mitigation tool and it would likely lead to consecutive generations of captive rearing, which has been shown to have negative effects on fitness. We translated our model into an R Shiny application (https://shiny.wdfw-fish.us/CohoPopulationDynamics/) that allows users to explore how fish rescue affects Coho Salmon population dynamics through customized parameterization of the model to represent different systems or different assumptions about the effects of fish rescue.
A perturbation‐based method for a parameter‐dependent nonlinear eigenvalue problem
Authors: Xie Huiqing
Published: February 2021

A new method is proposed to compute the eigenpairs of a parameter‐dependent nonlinear eigenvalue problem. We first analyze the properties on the analytic perturbation of the invariant pair of a nonlinear eigenvalue problem and provide a method to compute the first‐order and high‐order derivatives of the invariant pair. On these grounds, the subspaces independent of the parameter and containing the approximations to the desired eigenvectors of a nonlinear eigenvalue problem are constructed. Then the desired eigenpairs of a nonlinear eigenvalue problem are obtained by projecting the parameter‐dependent nonlinear eigenvalue problem to the generated subspaces. The errors of the computed eigenpairs are estimated. Finally, the efficiency of the proposed method is illustrated with some numerical examples.
Determinants of the sustainable internationalization and risk‐taking factors in public commercial banks
Authors: Ashfaq Saleha , Maqbool Rashid , Rashid Yahya
Published: February 2021

Banking activities have crossed the border and spread worldwide. Internationalization is known as the need of the day for sustainability in height competitive banking sector trends. Is there any effect of internationalization on profitability to sustain in a competitive market or just increases risk factors? Here, the study investigates the need and effect of internationalization on bank risk in developing country like Pakistan by using seven public commercial banks' quarterly data that are being taken for the duration from 2007 to 2016. The study constructs hypotheses to justify the significance or insignificance relation of risk with internationalization variables and some other bank‐specific variables that independently affect the risk‐taking of internationalized banks. The main variables are Z‐score for risk measurement and to evaluate the degree of internationalization. The study used foreign loan ratio and foreign income ratios. To support our work, the study also constructed some control variables like size, income diversification, and listed. We find that internationalization is associated with higher income earning in significant and positive relation with risk.
Role of popular media and breaking the cycle of domestic violence
Authors: Mahapatro Meerambika , Prasad Moksh M.
Published: February 2021

Fear and anxiety are factors strongly associated with the pandemic and exacerbate the pre‐existing rate of domestic violence. Drawing evidence from popular media and existing literature, it is possible to study domestic violence in present‐day society and try to analyze the cycle of violence. During the lockdown, on‐screen media such as cinema and streaming platforms have become popular. Archaic remnants of patriarchal ethos may leave the father as a passive observer and creates barriers for the involvement of the father. Inculcating a sense of moral pride in the father regarding the daughter and daughter in law will improve family dynamics and reduce the rates of violence. As times are changing, paradigm shifts in policy and program regarding the interventions are necessary for a more fluid and suitable response by the government and community‐based organizations to cater to modern society.
Current status and future directions in assessment of paraprofessional practices
Authors: Lekwa Adam J. , Reddy Linda A.
Published: February 2021

Paraprofessionals have become a significant portion of the educational workforce for students with or at risk for needing, or receiving special educational services. Although best practice and federal legislation require supervision of paraprofessionals by certified professional educators, research indicates that supervision rendered to paraprofessionals is often ad hoc, infrequent, and not based on data. We critically examined the availability and validity evidence of existing assessment approaches (published or publically posted) for evaluation and monitoring of paraprofessional practices in schools in the United States. Overall results from a systematic review of research literature and a review of materials made available publically by schools yielded 14 assessment tools with a focus on 18 constructs. Each assessment lacked reliability and validity evidence, and had limited utility for guiding paraprofessional supervision and professional development. Based on the larger paraprofessional literature and availability of assessments, a framework of recommendations for measurement development and validation is proposed. Specifically, we offer suggestions for domains of practice and validation efforts for evaluating forms of reliability, construct validity, and consequential validity for new assessment approaches for these important school personnel.
Heterochiral tetrapeptide self‐assembly into hydrogel biomaterials for hydrolase mimicry
Authors: Kurbasic Marina , Garcia Ana M. , Viada Simone , Marchesan Silvia
Published: February 2021

Self‐assembling short peptides have attracted great interest as enzyme mimics, especially if the catalytic activity resides solely in the supramolecular structure so that it can be switched on/off as needed by controlling assembly/disassembly. Among the various enzyme classes, hydrolases find wide application in biomaterials, and their mimetics often contain His residues, in addition to either divalent cations or other amino acids to mimic the catalytic site. This work reports two self‐assembling tetrapeptides based on the Ser‐His motif for catalysis and the Phe‐Phe motif to drive amyloid structure formation. Both peptides form thermoreversible hydrogels in phosphate buffer at neutral pH that display a mild esterase‐like activity, as demonstrated on the hydrolysis of 4‐nitrophenyl acetate as a model substrate, although presence of Ser did not enhance catalytic activity. The systems are characterised by circular dichroism, transmission electron microscopy, oscillatory rheology and Thioflavin T fluorescence as an amyloid stain, to provide further insights that may assist the future design of improved supramolecular catalysts.
Picoscale Magnetoelasticity Governs Heterogeneous Magnetic Domains in a Noncentrosymmetric Ferromagnetic Weyl Semimetal
Authors: Xu Bochao , Franklin Jacob , Jayakody Amani , Yang Hung‐Yu , Tafti Fazel , Sochnikov Ilya
Published: February 2021

Magnetic Weyl semimetals are predicted to host emergent electromagnetic fields at heterogeneous strained phases or at the magnetic domain walls. Tunability and control of the topological and magnetic properties are crucial for revealing these phenomena, which are not well understood or fully realized yet. Here, a scanning superconducting quantum interference device microscope is used to image spontaneous magnetization and magnetic susceptibility of CeAlSi, a noncentrosymmetric ferromagnetic Weyl semimetal candidate. Large metastable domains are observed alongside stable ferromagnetic domains. The metastable domains most likely embody a type of frustrated or glassy magnetic phase, with excitations that may be of an emergent and exotic nature. Evidence is found that the heterogeneity of the two types of domains arises from magnetoelastic or magnetostriction effects. It is shown how these domains form, how they interact, and how they can be manipulated or stabilized with lattice strains estimated to be on picometer levels. This knowledge can be used in designing and fabricating devices made from CeAlSi and related materials for magnetic field sensing and magnetic memory applications.
Optimizing Decoy‐State Protocols for Practical Quantum Key Distribution Systems
Authors: Fan‐Yuan Guan‐Jie , Wang Ze‐Hao , Wang Shuang , Yin Zhen‐Qiang , Chen Wei , He De‐Yong , Guo Guang‐Can , Han Zheng‐Fu
Published: February 2021

The decoy‐state protocol enables quantum key distribution (QKD) systems to achieve high performance without using the single‐photon source. In the dozen years since the decoy‐state protocol has been proposed, a series of advances in scheme design, finite‐size analysis, system modelling, and parameter estimation has developed. Unfortunately, most advances are based on different starting points and lack a synthesis to figure out the optimal protocol of decoy‐state method. Here, the advances in decoy‐state method are reviewed and they are synthesized to compare the key‐rate performance of 38 decoy‐state protocols using the particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm. To form a guideline for practical QKD systems, the optimal decoy‐state protocols are found with the change of five system parameters (the transmission loss, the block size of postprocessing, the misalignment‐error probability, the dark‐count probability, and the afterpulse rate). It is expected that this work can answer the questions of what the actual performance is for different decoy‐state protocol in various scenarios and which decoy‐state protocol is the optimal choice for various QKD systems.