bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Adaptive Optimal Control of Twin-Rotor Helicopter System; Meta-heuristics and Lyapunov based Approach
Authors: Amar REZOUG , Messah Ayoub , Messaoud Walid Ahmed , Baizid Khelifa , Iqbal Jamshed
Published: May 2023

The novelty of the proposed control approach lies in hybridization of control technique based on Nonsingular Terminal Sliding Mode (NTSM) Control, metaheuristic optimization algorithms and adaptive super-twisting based on Lyapunov stability analysis for controlling Quanser Aero simulator helicopter. Firstly, the he NTSM and NTSM Super Twisting (NTSTW) controllers are designed Followed by optimization of the designed controllers using Grey Wolf Optimizer (GWO), Whale Optimization Algorithm (WOA), Salp Swarm Algorithm (SSA) and Ant Lion Optimizer (ALO). Qualitative and quantitative comparisons between the obtained optimized controllers is then thoroughly analyzed. Results confirmed that the Optimized NTSTW (O-NTSTW) based on GWO demonstrated overperformance compared with other controllers. In order to achieve superior performance with robustness, this controller is hybridized with an adaptive Lyapunov super-twisting algorithm resulting in a new controller Adaptive O-NTSTW (AO-NTSTW). Visualization using ROS-Gazebo is done while validating AONTSTW and O-NTSTW.Simulation results demonstrated the effectiveness and the superiority of AO-NTSTW compared to O-NTSTW.
Large language models completely understand molecular characteristics of squamous cervical cancer
Authors: Sun Chaoyang , Zhang Weizhi , Lu Funian , Qin Tianyu , Gou Yujie , Guo Ensong , Peng Di , Zhang Li , Yang Bin , Liu Si , Han Cheng , Fu Shanshan , Song Kun , Xia Bairong , Zou Dongling , Shen Yuanming , Huang He , Zhou Shengtao , Yuan Cunzhong , Shu Yao , Pi Yanan , Wang Shuxiang , Chen Wenjuan , Wang Haixia , Zhong Lin , Yuan Li , Wen Baogang , Yang Siqi , Wan Ting , Fan Junpeng , Fu Yu , Liu Dan , Xiao Rourou , Zhang Chi , Wei Yuxiang , Peng Wenju , Huang Xinhe , Wang Beibei , Wu Peng , Kong Beihua , Mills Gordon , Ma Ding , Chen Gang , Xue Yu
Published: May 2023

Squamous cervical cancer (SCC) is a major cause of death in women, yet its molecular characteristics are poorly understood. Here, we profiled histopathological and molecular alterations in SCC, and used large language models (LLMs) for interpretation, reasoning, and understanding of multi-modal data. We implemented an immersive-knowledge prompting (iKLP) strategy to trigger LLMs, which interpreted 17.8%-20.3% of omic alterations known to be associated with cancer. Also, the emergence of cross-disciplinary reasoning in LLMs helped for interpreting phenotypic effects of SCC molecular alterations, exemplified by a prognostic biomarker HRG, and targetable kinases, CDK18 and CDK9. With experimental validations, LLM-reasoning showed >2-fold increased confidence for 68.5% of analyzed molecules. Strikingly, LLMs understood the information flow of cell-cell communications, and uncovered a CDK18-mediated immune escaping axis in orchestrating the crosstalk of malignant, immune, and niche cells. We anticipate that LLMs can be used for completely distinguishing between knowns and unknowns in any scientific problems.
Effects of Intimate Partner Violence and Childhood Trauma on Depression in Ghanaian Women: A Cross-sectional Study
Authors: Longla Terence Acheliu , Ogum-Alangea Deda , Hal Guido Van
Published: May 2023

Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) and childhood trauma are highly prevalent in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), especially among women. These two traumatic experiences can adversely affect the physical and mental health status of the victims. One of the mental health consequences is major depressive disorder, a relatively neglected health issue in SSA. This study aims to examine the association between IPV and depression and determine if there is any significant interaction between IPV and childhood trauma as predictors of depression among Ghanaian women.
Methods: The current study is a secondary analysis of cross-sectional data obtained from 1877 women during the Ghana Community-Based Action Teams Study in the central region of Ghana between 2016-2019. The negative binomial regression model was used for univariable and multivariable analyses, and interaction plots were used to study interaction effects. The level of statistical significance was set at 0.05.
Results: Emotional violence was the most commonly reported form of IPV, with a prevalence of 24.6% (95% CI: 20.5-29.2). Regression analysis showed that after controlling for childhood trauma, age, income level, marital status, level of education, disability and pregnancy status, only emotional (coef. =1.038, 95%CI: 1.018– 1.058, p-value <0.001) and sexual (coef. =1.037, 95%CI: 1.022– 1.053, p-value <0.001) IPV were significant predictors of depression. Except for economic IPV, there was a statistically significant interaction effect between IPV and childhood trauma (coef. = 0.995, 95%CI: 0.992– 0.998, p-value=0.003).
Conclusion: Exposure to emotional and sexual IPV significantly predisposes women to develop depressive symptoms. There is a significant interaction effect between early and late-life trauma on the occurrence of depression. Public health interventions to reduce IPV and childhood trauma must be strengthened in addition to early case identification and support through screening.
Application of Periwinkle Shell for the Synthesis of Calcium Oxide Nanoparticles and in the Remediation of Pb2+ Contaminated Water
Authors: Eddy Nnabuk Okon , Garg Rajni , Ukpe Richard Alexis , Ameh Paul Ocheje , Garg Rishav , Runde Musa , Kwanchi Iliya Dimas , Wabaidur Saikh Mohammad , Siddiqu Masoom Raza , Ogbodo Raphael
Published: May 2023

The recovery of CaCO3 from periwinkle shells as a precursor for the synthesis of CaO nanoparticles is validated in this work. The sol-gel synthesized CaO nanoparticles were characterized by XRD, FT-IR, UV visible spectrophotometer, SEM, BET and ICP instrumentation. Information obtained from the characterization showed that the material has a band gap of 4.12 eV, porosity in the mesoporous range (average pore size of 3.02 nm), crystalline size of 18 nm, BET surface area and pore volume of 220.11 m2/g and 8.43 cc/g respectively. The application of the nanoparticles for the separation of lead (II) from aqueous solution yielded results that indicated a strong dependency of the adsorption efficiency on decreasing temperature but increasing pH (up to 6.5), initial concentration of Pb2+, adsorbent dosage and period of contact. The interaction of concentration, time, temperature and adsorbent dosage indicated that optimum efficiency greater than 80% can be obtained at a temperature of 318 K, concentration of 250 ppm, an adsorbent dosage of 0.5 g and contact period of 75 minutes. Enhanced removal capacities (reaching almost 100% efficiency) were obtained under UV-activated adsorption experiments. The adsorbent showed an excellent ability to favourably adjust the pH, dissolved oxygen, alkalinity and conductivity of the contaminated water. It also displayed an appreciable tendency towards reusability and the total recovery of the adsorbed heavy metal ions from its surface. The pseudo-first-order kinetic, liquid film diffusion, Freundlich, Halsey and Elovich adsorption isotherms best fitted the adsorption process and confirmed the multimolecular adsorption layer with physical adsorption profile. Also, the adsorption of the heavy metal ions is limited by liquid film diffusion and supported surface heterogeneity and physical adsorption mechanism.
Coexistence of Crowned Dens Sign and Calcification of Ligamentum Flavum in the cervical Spine: coincidence or association?
Authors: Meng Yake , Pan Weicheng , Zhang Weihang , Zhang Wei , Pan Hao , Guo Yongfei
Published: May 2023

Background: Calcification of the cervical ligamentum flavum(CLF) and periodontoid calcification are two rare diseases in the orthopaedic clinic. Only few reports have described these coexisting conditions.
Objectives: We present our cases of cervical radiculomyelopathy caused by CLF combined with or without periodontoid calcification, and the relationship between the two clinical conditions are briefly discussed on the review of data of the literature.
Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 33 patients with CLF. In our case series, the clinical and radiological characteristics of patients are described and analyzed. The calcification surrounding the dens is termed as crowned dens sign(CDSign) in our study. And the relationship between the two conditions of CLF and CDSign are discussed.
Results:There were 28 women and 5 men aged between 56 and 86 years. Neurological symptoms and neck pain were presented in most patients. Calcification sites on axial CT images were described in 33 cases with 81 levels, C4-5 and C5-6 were attacked most frequently, and multiple- rather than single-level involvement could be observed in our series. CDSign was identified in 26 cases, and the the prevalence were 79%. Following evaluation, 23 patients received posterior surgery, and 8 patients underwent anterior cervical surgery.
Conclusions: The coexistence of CDSign and CLF is an uncommon phenomenon. The association of these two diseases is stronger than a coincidence. It is possible that the coexistence of CLF with CDSign may be a rare form of the cervical manifestation of calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate (CPPD) deposition disease.
Combined effect of anti-mycobacterial plant extracts and their inhibitory effect on RNA polymerase and DNA gyrase gene of Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Authors: Tamrakar Vaibhav Kumar , Bhat Jyothi , Parihar Nitish Singh , S Rajasubramaniam
Published: May 2023

Background Tuberculosis continues to be a serious health problem, and drug-resistant tuberculosis is an increasing threat that directly impacts the tuberculosis control program. These can be prevented or controlled by combining several drugs with antituberculous activity. In the present study, an attempt is made to understand the combinatorial effect of two medicinal plant extracts i.e. Piper longum and Cressa cretica against Mycobacterium tuberculosis.Methodology 2D checkerboard assay was used to study the combinatorial effect of the crude extracts. The 2-∆∆Ct method was used to determine the changes in gene expression of selected genes rpoB, gyrA and gyrB involved in transcription and DNA replication and intrinsic resistance of Mycobacterium tuberculosis to front-line drugs.Results Determination of the effect on gene expression at the subminimum inhibitory concentration of the crude extracts. The required MIC concentration, 125 µg/ml, was inversely reduced up to 7 µg/ml for P. longum. Similarly, the required MIC concentration of 250µg/mL of C. cretica is reduced to 10µg/mL.Conclusions The relative change in gene expression for rpoB and gyrA was 2 and 4-fold, respectively, and 1-fold for gyrB. Further characterization of the downstream target genes and in vivo studies may provide the mode of action of these two anti-mycobacterial agents.
Atomically-ordered plating/stripping enables deep cycling zinc metal batteries
Authors: Chen Shuang , Xia Yufan , Zeng Ran , Luo Zhen , Wu Xingxing , Hu Xuzhi , Lu Jian , Gazit Ehud , Pan Hongge , Hong Zijian , Yan Mi , Tao Kai , Jiang Yinzhu
Published: May 2023

Metal anodes are emerging as culminating solutions for the development of energy-dense batteries in either aprotic, aqueous or solid battery configurations due to their fully active nature and lowest redox potential. However, unlike traditional intercalation electrodes, the low utilization of “hostless” metal anodes due to the intrinsically disordered plating/stripping has been impeding their practical applications. Herein, we report atomically-ordered plating/stripping in a bulk zinc (Zn) foil anode to achieve an extremely high depth of discharge (DODZn) exceeding 90% with negligible thickness fluctuation and long-term stable cycling. The topmost atomic layer of the Zn anode can be plated/stripped preferentially throughout the consecutive charge/discharge process, along with the dynamic formation and dissociation of interfacial bridge bonds assisted by a self-assembled supramolecular bilayer at the Zn anode-electrolyte interface. Through real-time tracking of the Zn atoms migration using ab initio molecular dynamics, we reveal that the atomically-ordered plating/stripping is driven by stepwise kinetic pathways originating from the construction of Zn–N bindings and the atomic gradient energy landscape at the reaction fronts. The breakthrough results provide atomic insights into the ordered and reversible plating/stripping of metal anodes toward rechargeable energy-dense metal batteries.
Analyzing the Impact of Software Testing on Software Maintainability
Authors: Thahseen Ahamed , Aaron Navathanaraj , Nanayakkara Thakshila , Farves Arsath , Silva Dilshan , Gunathilake Poojani
Published: May 2023

Software project success depends on maintainability. Complexity increases as software evolves, making maintenance harder. Software testing is critical for detecting bugs before deployment. Testing reduces faults and improves program quality, enhancing maintainability. This study examines software testing and maintainability. We want to know if testing improves software maintainability and how. We reviewed software testing and maintainability research to do this. Testing and maintainability were examined empirically on numerous software projects. Existing research implies that testing improves software maintainability. Testing early in development helps reduce production faults and errors, according to studies. Testing for functional and non-functional criteria improves software quality. We studied various software projects to see how testing affects maintainability. We compared the maintainability of software projects with comprehensive and limited testing. Code complexity, code churn, and fault density measured maintainability. Extensive testing improved program maintainability, according to our findings. Extensive testing reduced code complexity, churn, and defects. Comprehensive testing appears to enhance software maintainability, quality, and cost over time. Testing and maintainability issues were also found. Testing costs, takes time, and is hard to measure. Software development teams should prioritize testing to solve these issues. Adopting testing frameworks and tools, educating, and developing testers, and frequently analyzing testing procedures helps achieve this.
Ammonium salts of microcrystalline cellulose-g-poly(acrylonitrile): toxicity, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties
Authors: Kenawy El-Refaie , Khattab Samar , Tenhu Heikki , Azaam Mohamed
Published: May 2023

Cellulose is an excellent starting material for the construction of bioactive polymers. In the present work, we have synthesized quaternized graft copolymers of cellulose and tested their biological properties. Cellulose was grafted with acrylonitrile in a cerium ion catalyzed reaction. High yield of the grafting reaction, 89%, was achieved. Next, the poly (acrylonitrile) chains were aminated using three different amines and finally, the amino functions were quaternized using methyl iodide.
In addition to chemical and physical characterization of the polymers, several tests on their bioactive properties have been conducted. The polymers turned out to have good antioxidant properties, as assessed studying how they scavenge ABTS radicals. Anti-inflammatory properties were investigated by a membrane stabilization method. The results showed that the quaternized polymers had anti-inflammatory effects and the one aminated with tris(2-aminoethyl)amine was the most significant compared with indomethacin.
The cytotoxicity was evaluated in vitro against HepG2 and WI-38 cell lines. All quaternized polymers showed moderate effects against the cancerous cell line HEPG2. On the other hand, their effect against normal fibroblast WI-38 was weak. The acute toxicity in vivo was evaluated for one of the polymers, for which the LD50 was 6606 mg/kg. The high LD50 indicates the polymer is relatively non-toxic, and will be considered in future for in vivo studies.
A rare case of Enterobius Vermicularis infection in the Oral Cavity
Authors: Gyeltshen Tshewang , Choden Kuenga
Published: May 2023

A rare case of extraintestinal infection with pinworm (Enterobius vermicularis) in the oral cavity is presented. A 19-year-old girl presented with complaints of oral sore describing as zig-zag rough lesion over the buccal mucosa for 2 months. Parasitic infestation in the oral cavity was suspected. The case presentation and management of the case are discussed here. To date, no such case has been reported.
Reversible Acute Blindness in Suspected Metformin- Associated Lactic Acidosis
Authors: Huang Rui , Sun Wentao
Published: May 2023

Background: Metformin is commonly used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus. It has multiple advantages, including low risk for hypoglycemia, weight neutrality, low cost, and cardioprotective and anti-inflammatory effects. However, renal insufficiency is one of the contraindications for its use. Inadvertent prescription in patients with renal insufficiency may lead to metformin-associated lactic acidosis (MALA), which is associated with a high risk of mortality. Consequently, the early recognition and management of MALA is essential.
Case Report: We present the case of a 58-year-old woman with history of type 2 diabetes mellitus with nephropathy and heart disease for which she was treated with metformin, insulin and other medicines for heart disease. She developed nausea, vomiting, anion gap metabolic acidosis due to hyperlactatemia, and acute kidney injury. She was hospitalized for i.v. hydration and correction of metabolic acidosis after she suddenly developed blindness. The diagnostic work-up ruled out central causes and her symptoms resolved briefly after continuous vein-vein hemodialysis (CVVHD) was initiated, confirming the diagnosis of MALA.
Conclusions: Metabolic disease can bring about acute blindness. Metabolic acidosis in a patient with a history of metformin intake should suggest the possibility of MALA, necessitating immediate management, without waiting for results of other examinations, especially in patients with sudden blindness. And further study about reversible blindness-associated severe metabolic acidosis will be needed.
Natural Wetlands: Are they Managed Sustainably in Developing Economies? A Case Study on the Iture- Abakam Natural Wetland in Cape Coast, Ghana
Authors: Duncan Albert Ebo , Pennellini Sara , BARNIE SAMUEL , Osei-Marfo Martha , Boateng Samuel Nketia , Bonoli Alessandra
Published: May 2023

Quantifying the role and benefits of wetlands to environmental security, ecosystem sustenance, and economic development is a very difficult task. Wetlands serve as filters of secondary wastewater by removing most nutrients that cause eutrophication. The plants and microbes in the natural wetland have the potential of breaking down toxic compounds into less toxic forms before they are discharged into streams, rivers, and lakes. Natural wetlands could serve as treatment plants in most developing countries if they are managed sustainably. Unfortunately, most developing countries that lack waste treatment plants have not taken the advantage of available natural wetlands and managed them sustainably. This study investigates sustainable wetland management on the Iture-Abakam Natural Wetland in Cape Coast by considering the management plan available and the threat posed by urbanization. The findings reveal the absence of a management plan and the serious threat posed to the wetland. The study revealed a net wetland loss of 83.2% to residential development between 1991 to 2021. The findings from the water quality analysis show that the wetland is performing poorly in treating wastewater as revealed by the quality and pollution indexes used. The potential of the wetland is high if it is managed sustainably.
Boiling Water Resistant Fully Bio-Based Adhesive Made from Maleated Chitosan and Glucose with Excellent Performance
Authors: Zeng Heyang , Jin Tao , Shi Senlei , Liu Li , Guo Haiyang , Xie Linkun , Chai Xijuan , Xu Kaimeng , Du Guanben , Zhang Lianpeng
Published: May 2023

Preparing green wood adhesives using renewable biomass resources is significant. A three-component biomass adhesive CSC-G was prepared by combining chitosan, maleic anhydride, and glucose. Characterization using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) demonstrated that dehydrated malic acid serves as a bridge for connecting chitosan and glucose. The introduction of glucose enriches the crosslinking density, thereby improving the bonding strength. In addition, the effects of the mass ratio of CSC to glucose, hot pressing temperature, and hot-pressing time on CSC-G adhesive were also investigated. The excellent performance of CSC-G is mainly shown in that when pressed at 160 ℃, the shear strength of three-layer plywood remains at 0.88 MPa after soaking in boiling water for 3 hours, and the curing temperature is better than the previously reported polyester adhesive. As an all-biomass polyester adhesive, CSC-G adhesive has a lower curing temperature and excellent performance and provides a new approach to developing high-performance chitosan-based wood adhesives.
Hyperbranched 5-sulfosalicylic acid-TDI-chitosan decorated by Fe3O4 nanoparticles: a highly efficient solid acid organocatalyst for the synthesis of quinazoline derivatives under green conditions
Authors: Peyvasteh Reyhaneh , Dekamin Mohammad G. , Valiey Ehsan , Hassanzadeh Najmeh , Dohendou Mohammad
Published: May 2023

In this research, a new magnetic decorated hyperbranched chitosan by grafting of 5-sulfosalicylic acid using toluene-2,4-diisocyanate linker (CS-TDI-SSA-Fe3O4) was designed and prepared conveniently. The obtained magnetic biopolymeric nanomaterial was properly characterized by using FT-IR, EDX XRD, FESEM, TGA and VSM spectroscopic, microscopic, or analytical methods. The supramolecular CS-TDI-SSA-Fe3O4 nanocomposite was investigated, as a heterogeneous solid acidic organocatalyst, to promote three-component synthesis of 2,3-dihydroquinazoline-4(1H)-one derivatives under green chemistry conditions. The CS-TDI-SSA-Fe3O4 nanocatalyst was demonstraed to act as a highly efficient solid acid for the synthesis of various quinazoline derivatives, as an important pharmaceutical scaffold, through multicomponent strategy. The reaction proceeds very well in the presence of CS-TDI-SSA-Fe3O4 solid acid nanocatalyst in EtOH to afford corresponding 2,3-dihydroquinazoline-4(1H)-one derivatives in high to excellent yields. Key advantages of the present protocol are the use of a renewable and biopolymeric and biodegredable solid acid as well as simple procedure for preparation of the hybrid material. Furthermore, the CS-TDI-SSA-Fe3O4 catalyst can be used at least five times for the synthesis of quinazoline derivatives with a slight decrease in its catalytic activity.
Expansion of Dermacentor reticulatus in central-southern Poland and new threats to human and animal health
Authors: Buczek Alicja , Buczek Weronika , Rudek Maciej , Bartosik Katarzyna
Published: May 2023

Dermacentor reticulatus is one of the tick species with the greatest epidemiological importance in Europe. To date, the Eastern European and Western European populations of this tick species have been separated by an area located in Poland where the species have never been found. In this paper, we describe newly discovered D. reticulatuslocalities in areas transformed by human activities in central-southern Poland. Thespecimens of ornate dog tick were identified among ticks collected from companion animals in 2010, 2012, 2013, and 2014.
Our results verify the available data on the spread of ornate dog tick and indicate that, since 2010, this tick species has probably been present in this area, which has a strongly transformed agricultural structure and used to be regarded as a D. reticulatus-free zone. However, field studies are required to determine the current distribution range of D. reticulatus and its population size.
The presence of the ornate dog tick in urban and suburban habitats in central-southern Poland poses new threats to the health of companion animals and humans associated with the transmission of pathogens by this species.
Hepatocyte identity and zonal position determine tumourigenic potential of mutant β-catenin
Authors: Raven Alexander , Gilroy Kathryn , Jin Hu , Leslie Holly , Hall Holly , Ridgway Rachel , Ford Catriona , Gulhan Doga , Vlahov Nikola , Mills Megan , Sphyris Nathalie , Müller Miryam , May Stephanie , Nixon Colin , Barker Nick , Clevers Hans , Ivaska Johanna , Miller Crispin , Jamieson Nigel , Bird Thomas , Park Peter , Sansom Owen
Published: May 2023

Oncogenic mutations in otherwise normal tissue are common in many adult tissues1,2. This suggests multiple events need to converge to drive tumourigenesis and that many processes such as tissue differentiation may be protective against carcinogenesis. Within the liver Wnt/β-catenin signalling maintains zonal differentiation during liver homeostasis3,4. However, the CTNNB1 oncogene—encoding β-catenin—is also frequently mutated in hepatocellular carcinoma, resulting in aberrant Wnt signalling that promotes cell growth5,6. Here we investigated the antagonistic interplay between Wnt-driven growth and differentiation in zonal hepatocyte populations during liver tumorigenesis. We found that β-catenin mutants transiently stimulated growth in zone-1 and -2 hepatocytes within the Wnt-low region of the liver lobule – before inducing a differentiated zone-3 fate. One key feature lacking within the differentiated zone-3 hepatocytes that is often upregulated in human cancer was MYC which can synergise with β-catenin to initiate HCC in mice. When mutant β-catenin and MYC were expressed cell-agnostically across the liver lobule, a subset of mutant hepatocytes were proliferative and tumorigenic. These exhibited a selective upregulation of the zone-2 factors IGFBP2, cyclin D1, and mTOR and a reduction in the levels of Wnt signalling when compared to non-proliferative Wnt-high single cell clones. Inhibition of mTOR signalling with Rapamycin blocked tumourigenesis. Furthermore, restricting β-catenin and MYC mutations with Lgr5-Cre to zone-3 hepatocytes suppressed tumourigenesis. This was associated with high Wnt signalling and the lack of zone-2 factors permissive to growth. Importantly other oncogenic-drivers could promote tumourigenesis from zone-3 hepatocytes but tumours that arose had all lost their zone 3 features. Therefore we propose that zonal identity dictates hepatocyte susceptibility to Wnt-driven tumorigenesis and that escaping Wnt-induced differentiation is essential for liver cancer.
Air-Cathode Microbial Fuel Cell: Optimizing Graphene-Sponge Anode Thickness and Chamber pH using Taguchi Experimental Method
Authors: Navarro* Emilio Steven Corrales , Boado Melissa May Muñoz
Published: May 2023

The rapid consumption of fossil fuels has led to calls to switch from non-renewable to renewable energy sources. Microbial fuel cells are a promising technology that simultaneously treats wastewater and produces power. This study used the Taguchi Experimental method to optimize anode thickness and pH to obtain the maximum power density of an air-cathode microbial fuel cell (ACMFC). The graphene-sponge (G-S) anode thickness and chamber pH were selected as operating parameters, with their corresponding levels. The L9 orthogonal array was selected for the experimental design. According to Taguchi Method, the optimum G-S anode thickness and chamber pH were obtained at 1.0 cm and 8.0, respectively. A confirmatory run was performed with the optimum conditions, and accordingly, maximum power density was observed at 707.75 mW·m−3. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to identify the percentage contributions of operating parameters in the process and was found to be 30.66% for pH and 69.34% for anode thickness.
Functional analysis of the Aspergillus fumigatus kinome reveals a DYRK kinase involved in septal plugging is a novel antifungal drug target
Authors: Rhijn Norman van , Zhao Can , Al-Furaji Narjes , Storer Isabelle , Valero Clara , Gago Sara , Chown Harry , Baldin Clara , Fortune-Grant Rachael , Shuraym Hajer Bin , Ivanova Lia , Kniemeyer Olaf , Krüger Thomas , Bignell Elaine , Goldman Gustavo , Amich Jorge , Delneri Daniela , Bowyer Paul , Brakhage Axel , Haas Hubertus , Bromley Michael
Published: May 2023

More than 10 million people suffer from lung diseases caused by the pathogenic fungus Aspergillus fumigatus. The azole class of antifungals represent first line therapeutics for most of these infections however resistance is rising. Identification of novel antifungal targets that, when inhibited, synergise with the azoles will aid the development of agents that can improve therapeutic outcomes and supress the emergence of resistance. As part of the A. fumigatus genome-wide knockout program (COFUN), we have completed the generation of a library that consists of 120 genetically barcoded null mutants in genes that encode the protein kinase cohort of A. fumigatus. We have employed a competitive fitness profiling approach (Bar-Seq), to identify targets which when deleted result in hypersensitivity to the azoles and fitness defects in a murine host. The most promising candidate from our screen is a previously uncharacterised DYRK kinase orthologous to Yak1 of Candida albicans, a TOR signalling pathway kinase involved in modulation of stress responsive transcriptional regulators. Here we show that the orthologue YakA has been repurposed in A. fumigatus to regulate blocking of the septal pore upon exposure to stress via phosphorylation of the Woronin body tethering protein Lah. Loss of YakA function reduces the ability of A. fumigatus to penetrate solid media and impacts growth in murine lung tissue. We also show that 1-ethoxycarbonyl-beta-carboline (1-ECBC), a compound previously shown to inhibit Yak1 in C. albicans prevents stress mediated septal spore blocking and synergises with the azoles to inhibit A. fumigatus growth.
Identify hospitalization cost drivers of traumatic fracture patients in China using quantile regression and backpropagation neural network
Authors: Liu Peixin , Jiang Hong , Ye Zhongshu , Zhou Liqiang , Geng Xuyang , Lin Zefang , Liu Xiaodong , Qin Yi
Published: May 2023

Objective Analyze the factors associated with hospitalization costs of traumatic fracture patients.Methods Data for the retrospective analysis was extracted from the first pages of inpatient medical records in Zhuhai, China. The sample consisted of 31503 patients hospitalized for traumatic fractures between January 1, 2018 and December 31, 2020. We first compared differences in hospitalization costs between subgroups, followed by quantile regression and backpropagation neural network to investigate the key drivers of the hospitalization costs.Results The median hospitalization cost for traumatic fracture patients was ¥13528.2. The mean length of stay was 13.77 days. Quantile regression showed that higher hospitalization costs from the Quantile 0.1 to the Quantile 0.9 significantly correlated with advanced age, more severe types of fracture, operation, comorbidity, longer length of stay, higher level of hospital, and payment with Medicare. Backpropagation neural network indicated that the length of stay, operation level and hospital level were the most important predictors of hospitalization costs.Conclusion Quantile regression and backpropagation neural network yielded valuable information on the factors affecting the hospitalization costs of traumatic fractures in China. Findings suggested that interventions aiming to reduce length of stay contributed to reducing the economic burden associated with traumatic fractures.
Association analysis for adult plant resistance to leaf stripe disease (Pyrenophora graminea) in spring barley cultivars
Authors: Sohrabi Mehdi , Aghnoum Reza , Shafaroudi Saeid Malekzadeh
Published: May 2023

The leaf stripe disease of barely caused by the seed transmitted hemi-biotrophic fungal pathogen, Pyrenophora graminea is an important disease of barley worldwide. The present study was carried out to determine the genetics of leaf stripe resistance in an association mapping population consisted of 141 European two-rowed spring barley cultivars and to identify new sources of resistance. The field trials were set up in a randomized complete block design with three replications during three consecutive growing years (2016-19). In the first year, the genotypes were sown in plots, adjacent to the highly susceptible spreader rows to be inoculated via natural infection at the flowering stage. In addition to the leaf stripe incidence, associations of some agronomical relevant traits including days to heading, days to maturity, plant height, number of seeds per spike and thousand kernel weight with AFLP and SSR markers were determined. The results of analysis of variance in two years showed significant variation between genotypes for all the traits. Four QTLs for leaf stripe resistance at the adult plant stage, designated as Rpgq1 to Rpgq4, were mapped on chromosomes 5H (two QTL), 6H and 7H, from which Rpgq2 QTL on chromosome 5H, showed coincidence with the map position of two QTLs for days to healing and days to maturity. We found a significant difference between the level of leaf stripe incidence in 100 cultivars carrying the Mlo wild-type and of 41 carrying mlo mutant alleles, indicating that that the mutant alleles of the MLO gene which are effective against the biotrophic barley powdery mildew pathogen (Blumeria graminis fsp. hordei) confers increased susceptibility to the leaf stripe pathogen.
The Process of Primary School Science Learning and Teaching During the Art Activities Integrated Lessons
Authors: Demir Zülfiye Melis , Gültekin Mehmet
Published: May 2023

The purpose of this research is to determine the effects of the learning-teaching process carried out by integrating the science course of the fourth grade of elementary school with art activities on learning products. The research was designed as a qualitative research method. Participants of the research were 4th grade 20 students in a public primary school, and 9 parents of students attended the research during the 2020–2021 academic year. The data of the research collected by video recordings of lessons, student products and interview transcriptions. During the art integrated science course artworks were created with different applied arts like “Painting, Music, Sculpture, Literature, Interior Architecture, Graphic Design, Industrial Product Design and Digital Arts”, art criticism and art history. Qualitative data were analysed with thematic analysis. As a result of the analysis of the qualitative data, it was concluded that the students had achievements under five themes: “cognitive dimension”, “artistic dimension”, “environmental awareness dimension”, “affective dimension” and “distance education dimension”.
Aspirin Administration can not Improve Erectile Dysfunction, whether with Higher Dosage or Longer Duration
Authors: Li Tao , Jiang Yiting , Shan Gang , Luo Chao , Du Guangshi , Qi Xinzhu , Tian Ye , Luo Fu , Tian Yuan , Gu Jiang
Published: May 2023

Background Aspirin is the most widely used medicine since its synthesis, we aim to investigate the controversial relationship between aspirin and erectile function.Methods Thirty-six healthy young rats were grouped and administrated with small (10 mg/kg/d) and big (150 mg/kg/d) dose aspirin for 1 and 3 months, respectively; eighteen rats with bilateral cavernous nerve crush (BCNC) process were gavaged with small dose aspirin for 1 month. The 6-keto PGF1a, PGE2, and TXB2 in corpus cavernosum were detected to verify the bioactivity of aspirin. The mICP, mICP/MAP ratio, and concentrations of total NO, cAMP, as well as cGMP were selected to determine the erectile function.Results For the healthy young rats, aspirin significantly decreased the 6-keto PGF1a and PGE2 levels than control group, however, mICP, mICP/ MAP, total NO, cAMP, and cGMP levels was similar, whether with bigger dosage or longer duration. In BCNC groups, aspirin also significantly inhibited prostaglandin productions, however, it did not improve the impaired erectile function as well.Conclusion Long-term aspirin (even with higher dosage or longer duration) administration did not strength nor deteriorate erectile function for healthy young rats, while it did not improve the BCNC-induced erectile dysfunction as well.
Helicopter Parenting and Chinese University Students' Adjustment:The Mediation of Autonomy and Moderation of the Sense of Entitlement
Authors: Gao Wen , Hou Yaxian , Nelson Larry J , Xu Yongqi , Meng Lingdan
Published: May 2023

This study examined the relationships between helicopter parenting and emerging adults' adjustment indices (school engagement, peer attachment, and stress) and the potential mediating role of autonomy and moderating role of the sense of entitlement in the relationships. Participants included 392 Chinese university students aged 18–23 (M = 18.83) who completed six questionnaires that assessed helicopter parenting, school engagement, peer attachment, stress, autonomy, and the sense of entitlement, respectively. The results showed that: (1) helicopter parenting significantly negatively predicted students' school engagement and peer attachment but positively predicted their stress; (2) autonomy mediated the relationships between helicopter parenting and students' adjustment indices; (3) students' sense of entitlement significantly negatively moderated the effect of helicopter parenting on their autonomy. These findings suggested that helicopter parenting can affect emerging adults' adjustment directly and indirectly by diminishing their autonomy in the collectivist culture. The sense of entitlement appeared to protect emerging adults from the detrimental consequences of helicopter parenting.
Beliefs and attitudes in relatives of patients with schizophrenia: a cross-sectional study in Moroccan population in the eastern region
Authors: hasnaoui Mohammed , echater sara , elghazouani fatima
Published: May 2023

The authors have requested that this preprint be removed from Research Square.
Predicting effects of non-point source Pollution emission control schemes Based on VMD-BiLSTM and MIKE21
Authors: Zhang Xianqi , Qi Yu , Liu Fang , LI Haiyang , Sun Shifeng
Published: May 2023

Controlling non-point source (NPS) pollution is crucial for implementing water environment management, and simulating the water quality response to NPS pollution emission control schemes is of great importance. Variational mode decomposition (VMD) can overcome endpoint effects and modal aliasing issues, effectively separating intrinsic mode components. Bidirectional long short-term memory (BiLSTM) can fully mine the information contained in time series and has good predictive performance. MIKE21, when coupled with the Ecolab module, can well simulate the diffusion process of NPS pollution. The Weihe River water environment prediction model was constructed using VMD-BiLSTM and MIKE21, with ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N), total phosphorus (TP), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) as pollution indicators, showing the water quality response of the Weihe River within a few years after the implementation of agricultural and urban NPS pollution emission control schemes. Among them, the COD concentration decreased by up to 71.3%, the NH3-N concentration decreased by up to 31.4%, and the TP concentration decreased by up to 43.1%. The results show that the water quality of the Weihe River can be significantly improved by controlling NPS pollution emission, and reducing agricultural NPS pollution emission is key to decreasing ammonia nitrogen and total phosphorus concentrations and improving water quality.
Regulation of LPS-Induced Inflammatory Responses in HMC3 Microglia by Nicotine and its Neuroprotective Effects
Authors: Qin Yu-Han , Luo Yan-Bo , Wang Hong-Juan , Tian Yu-Shan , Wu Xia-Qing , Chen Huan , Hou Hong-Wei , Hu Qing-Yuan
Published: May 2023

Microglia-mediated neuroimmune responses have been implicated in CNS injury and disease pathogenesis. The α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor is one of the receptors that microglia interact with in the surrounding microenvironment. Nicotine, a tobacco-specific alkaloid, can activate the α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor, leading to immune modulation. The PI3K protein plays a critical role in regulating immune homeostasis in microglia and is particularly valuable in managing neuroinflammation. Moreover, the α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor seems to have a cascading regulatory effect on the PI3K protein, and nicotine may influence microglial inflammatory activity through this pathway. This article aims to explore the modulatory effects of nicotine on neuroinflammation and its potential indirect neuroprotective effects using an in vitro microglial cell inflammation model. The study demonstrated that nicotine had a modest inhibitory effect on the LPS-induced inflammation model of HMC3 microglia. It also increased the release of neurotrophic factors and improved neuronal survival by modifying the immune environment. The action of nicotine is considered to be primarily through the activation of α7 nAChR on HMC3 cells, leading to an increase in PI3K protein phosphorylation. This study sheds light on the immunomodulatory role of nicotine in the nervous system and serves as a valuable reference for uncovering the medicinal potential of nicotine.
Evaluation of Postoperative Results After a Presurgical Optimisation Programme
Authors: Sánchez Francisco García , García Natalia Mudarra
Published: May 2023

Background
Presurgical optimisation programmes decrease the risk of postoperative complications, reduce hospital stays and speed up patient recovery. They usually involve a multidisciplinary team addressing physical, nutritional and psychosocial issues. The objective of this study was to assess the results of implementing a presurgical optimisation programme led by a liaison nurse in patients undergoing major surgery in a tertiary general hospital.
Methods
Observational, retrospective, descriptive, cross-sectional, comparative study based on the revision of patients’ health records undergoing major surgery between January 2019 and December 2022. Patients entering the presurgical optimisation programme (intervention group) were compared with patients receiving usual medical care (control group). The presurgical optimisation programme consisted of oral nutritional supplementation, physical exercise, strengthening of lung capacity and psychological and emotional support. Frequency (%) of surgery complications and use of healthcare resources (duration of hospitalisation, time spent in the intensive care unit (ICU), and readmission) at day 30 were recorded. Descriptive statistics were applied.
Results
211 patients (58.5% men, mean age: 65.76 years (SD: 11.5), 75.2%. non-smokers; mean body mass index (BMI): 28.32 (SD: 5.38); mean Nutritional Risk Score (NRS) 3.71 (SD: 1.35; oncology diagnosis: 88.6%) were included: 135 in the intervention group, and 76 in the control group. Average duration of the presurgical optimisation programme was 20 days (SD: 5). Frequency of postoperative complications was 25% (n = 33) in the intervention group and 52.6% (n = 40) in the control group (p < 0.001) [odds ratio (OR) = 3.4; 95% confidence interval (CI) (1.8; 6.2)]. 14.5% (n = 19) of patients in the intervention group and 34.2% (n = 26) in the control group had remote postoperative complications [OR = 3.1; 95% CI (1.6; 6.2)]. Patients in the intervention group spent fewer days in hospital [mean: 8.34 (SD: 6.70) vs 11.63 (SD: 10.63)], and there were fewer readmissions at 30 days (7.6% vs 19.7%) compared with the control group.
Conclusions
A presurgical optimisation programme led by a liaison nurse decreases the rate of immediate and late surgical complications and reduces hospital stay and readmissions in patients undergoing major surgery.
A Hybrid Node Localization Approach For Vehicular Adhoc Network Using Range Free Localization And Meta-heuristic Optimization Technique
Authors: sahu smitarani , Tripathy Biswajit , V Lakshmana Rao
Published: May 2023

The high mobility of vehicles causes dynamic changes in topology of the nodes present in vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) which can be considered as a type of mobile ad hoc network (MANET). The successful transmission of data packets in such a highly mobile, multi-hop, and infrastructure-free environment presents significant challenges and issues for the research community. Many studies have been conducted recently that focus on the different challenges and issues prevailing under different VANET scenarios. One of the important areas of research is the node localization. Localization of nodes or vehicles in VANET plays an essential role in many areas like intelligent transport system, tracking of vehicles, and prevention of vehicle collision. This paper aims at providing an efficient solution to the node localization problem by combining a range free technique and meta-heuristic optimization algorithm. The focus is on establishing an optimal node localization mechanism with less overhead suitable for VANET. For conducting the simulation and analysis with an aim to assess the efficiency of the proposed node location estimation mechanism the Intelligent Driver Model was used. The location of an unknown node is estimated using a hybrid approach by utilizing the localization and optimization strength of DV-Hop algorithm, a range-free location estimation technique and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), an optimization algorithm respectively.
Optimization and valorization of a clay and dune sand mixture for use in road construction
Authors: OUSLIMANE Noureddine , BAREBITA Hanane , BENSALAH Jaouad , TOUHAMI Mohamed EBN , BELFAQUIR Mustapha
Published: May 2023

Road construction plays an important role in the development of a country like Morocco. Most of the expansive soils found in the country are clay or marl, which have a "normal" state that is dry and dense. The problems created by these soils in the construction field are primarily due to soil swelling. For this reason, we have chosen to focus our work on the swelling behavior of clayey soils and evaluate the influence of adding dune sand in geotechnical studies to stabilize and modify the physico-chemical and mechanical characteristics at different percentages, considering oedometer tests.The treated and untreated soil samples are compacted at the optimum Proctor (WOpt and γDmax). The results of the compressibility tests show that the preconsolidation stress and consolidation of the treated samples are higher than those of the untreated samples. It has also been observed that dune sand reduces the compressibility index (Cc) and swelling index (Cg). Therefore, it can be said that stabilization with dune sand significantly improves the mechanical characteristics of the studied clay.The utilization of the studied materials presents a clean and cost-effective alternative in the field of road construction.
Preparation of a multifunctional and ultrasensitive Au@AgNPs-Van/PDMS film SERS substrate for rapid detection of foodborne pathogens in beef
Authors: Zhu Yaodi , Liu Shijie , Zhao Lijun , Wang Na , Li Mengya , Liang Dong , Zhao Gaiming , Liu Weijia , Sun Lingxia , Xu Lina , Li Miaoyun
Published: May 2023

We present a novel and super-sensitive vancomycin (Van) modified Au@AgNP self-assembly with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) (Au@AgNPs/Van-PDMS) film surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate for identification of foodborne pathogens in beef, without the need for in vitro bacterial culture. The results illustrated that the Au@AgNPs/Van-PDMS film exhibited high reproducibility and Raman enhancement effect (1.09×105). Clostridium perfringens, Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus isolated from beef captured by Au@AgNPs/Van-PDMS film exhibited high reproducibility and significant differences. Principal component analysis score plots distinguished classes of foodborne pathogens, and the qualitative identification of linear discriminant analysis was correct at 100%. The detection limit of S. aureus in beef was as low as 3 CFU/mL. This method could provide an effective means and technical support for realizing the application of SERS technology for quick and highly sensitive detection of foodborne pathogens in complex environments.