bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Resistant/susceptible classification of respiratory tract pathogenic bacteria based on volatile organic compounds profiling
Authors: Karami Najmeh , Rezadoost Hassan , Mirzajani Fateme , Karimi Abdollah , Ghassempour Alireza , Aliahmadi Atousa , Fallah Fatemeh
Published: July 2018

Resistance to antibiotics is an emerging and growing threat. To address this threat, attempts are being made by researchers to identify the Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) of bacteria. It is believed that unique combinations could be found among the VOCs produced by each microorganism. The current study aimed to identify and compare the VOCs of antibiotic-resistant and standard strains of Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter baumannii and Klebsiella pneumoniae. A polymer of divinylbenzene /carboxen /polydimethylsiloxane was applied for absorption of volatile compounds in headspace bacterial samples in form of a solid phase micro-extraction fiber holder. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry technique was used for identification of volatile compounds. The analysis of the VOCs indicated that some VOCs appeared only in standard strains while others were common only among resistant strains. Exclusive VOCs to a specific strain were also detected. This study demonstrated that resistant strains of bacteria produced VOCs that were different from those of the standard strains. In addition, VOCs released by bacteria after passing the logarithmic growth phase showed no significant differences. The identification of VOCs can be a precise way to differentiate bacterial species, also it can be said that the VOCs produced by different pathogenic microorganisms can be the suitable biomarkers for their detection.
Nerve growth factor as an important possible component of novel therapy for cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases
Authors: Steckiewicz Karol P , BarciÅ„ska Ewelina , WoÅºniak MichaÅ‚
Published: July 2018

Nerve growth factor (NGF) is protein discovered by Rita Levi Montalcini in the 1950s. It plays a crucial role in the development of nervous system. NGF may be produced by a variety of cells even beyond nervous system. NGF modulate cell metabolism by binding to p75NTR and TrkA receptors. NGF is involved in psychological processes and may be the possible therapeutical agent for diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular diseases, which will be described in the article.
Antiviral activity of Ribavirin nano-particles against measles virus
Authors: Ahmed Engy M , Solyman Samar M , Mohamed Noha , Boseila Abeer A , Hanora Amro
Published: July 2018

Measles virus considers an important cause of child morbidity and mortality in some areas as Africa. Ribavirin's activity as a nucleoside analog can disclose the surprisingly broad spectrum action against several RNA viruses under laboratory cell culture conditions. The Current study aimed to investigate the antiviral activity of ribavirin Nano gold particles (AuNPs) against measles virus on vero cell line. Ribavirin- AuNPs was prepared, characterization and the cytotoxicity of ribavirin, AuNPs and ribavirin -AuNPs were tested on vero cells using MTT assay. Antiviral activiry of ribavirin, AuNPs and ribavirin- AuNPswere determined on vero cells using simultaneous, pre-infection and post-infection protocols. Results indicated safety of ribavirin and ribavirin-AuNPs on vero cells, there was a reduction by 78.1% when vero cells treated with ribavirin -AuNPs at 99.5µg/ml while, the viral reduction was 25.4% when ribavirin 500 µg /ml was used for the same viral concentration. Our results concluded that ribavirin - AuNPs had a higher antiviral activity with lower dose than ribavirin alone and the maximal activity showed when it used after the virus infection.
Assessment of thymoquinone effects on apoptotic and oxidative damage induced by morphine in mice heart
Authors: Jalili Cyrus , Sohrabi Maryam , Jalili Faramarz , Salahshoor Mohammad Reza
Published: July 2018

Opioids bind to specific receptors that are located in the central nervous system (CNS) and many other organs such as cardiovascular tissue. Morphine binds to opioid receptors and can induce oxidative stress under some certain conditions. Thymoquinone (TQ) has shown many therapeutic effects such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and immunomodulatory ones. Considering the oxidative effects of morphine, antioxidant effects of TQ and effects of oxidative damage in various types of biomolecules, the present study was conducted to determine the effect of morphine plus TQ on the expression of apoptotic genes in the heart of male mice. Hence we used real-time PCR to identify alterations in mRNA expression of genes involved in apoptotic pathway, including p53, Bax and Bcl-2 between the morphine-treated and TQ plus morphine-treated mice. Serum nitric oxide (NO) (Griess assay) and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) were analyzed and compared. In the morphine group, compared to control group, a significant increase in P53 and Bax mRNA expression and a significant decrease in Bcl-2 mRNA expression were observed (p < 0.01). In TQ plus morphine groups, NO was decreased (P <0 .001) and TAC levels were increased significantly (P < .001). Interestingly, TQ (9 and 18 mg/kg) plus morphine caused a significant decrease in p53 and Bax and a significant increase in Bcl2 mRNA expression, compared to morphine-treated group (p < 0.01). Collectively, the results of this study indicated that TQ, as an antioxidant, can improve the apoptotic effects induced by morphine in the heart tissue of mice.
Effect of mining site seepage and copper plant waste water on the water quality and epilithic diatom communities in Maden Stream (ElazÄ±ÄŸ-Turkey)
Authors: Yıldırım Vesile , Külköylüoğlu Okan
Published: July 2018

The present study investigated the effect of pollution caused by mining site seepage, copper plant flotation and domestic wastewaters on the water quality and epilithic diatom communities in the Maden Stream, ElazÄ±ÄŸ (Turkey). Maden Stream's epilithic diatoms, water chemistry and physical variables were examined between January 2008- December 2008 which identified 4 stream sites taken the samples of montly periods. During the study, a total of 77 diatom taxa belonging to 24 genera were identified. Three of which Cymbella, Navicula, and Nitzschia included the highest number of species. Species dominancy was changed among the stations where the most common species found from first, second, third, and fourth stations were Cymbella affinis, Ulnaria ulna, Achnanthes minutissima and Surirella angustata, and Gomphonema parvulum, respectively. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) explained 82.6% of the correlation between 66 species and 12 environmental variables among which EC, pH, DO, and Mn, were the most explanatory variables for species occurrence. Individual species showed different ecological tolerance and optimum levels. Among the species with cosmopolitan characteristics, eight of them (C. cistula, U. ulna, Nitzscia palea, N. sigmoida, G. parvulum, Achnanthes laceolatum, Navicula pupula, and Diatoma tenuis) were the most common species with relatively high tolerance levels to those environmental variables measured.
Effect of planting time and vermicompost on the proteomic pattern of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum)
Authors: Mostafaie Ali , Kahrizi Danial , Mohammadi Mina , Yari Kheirollah , Rostami Hossein , Yaghotipoor Anita , Beheshti Ale Agha Ali , Amjadian Omid Ali , Yari Peiman , Mostafaie Hossein
Published: July 2018

The fenugreek is one of the most important medicinal plants belongs to Fabaceae, originated in West Asia, Iran and Mediterranean regions. This research included a qualitative study of fenugreek proteins using SDS-PAGE electrophoresis on polyacrylamide gel and the separation of protein bands of fenugreek leaves in different treatments of vermicompost fertilizer and cultivating dates. Results showed that a band (about 80 kDa) on the first planting date (May 31) is observed in all samples except for sample a1 (10 t/ha vermicompost on May 31). Another significant difference was the band contained in the third planting date (31 September) and in the molecular weight of about 15 kDa, which was not seen in other dates. This difference can be due to the synthesis of this protein with the mentioned weight under the conditions of reducing the temperature in the early fall. It also showed more differences in two-dimensional electrophoresis, for example, in 14 kDa and PI in the range of 4.5-4.7 in treatment without fertilizer, no protein expression was observed, which was consistent with the results of the SDS-PAGE test.
Selective deglycosylation of lactoferrin to understand glycans' contribution to antimicrobial activity of lactoferrin
Authors: Karav Sercan
Published: July 2018

Lactoferrin is a highly glycosylated antimicrobial protein that contains multiple glycan types. In this research, recombinantly produced three forms of novel endo-Î²-N-acetylglucosaminidase (free, genetically attached Glutatiohine-S-transferase and polyhistide) were used for selective release of lactoferrin glycans to understand the contribution of specific glycan types to the antimicrobial function of lactoferrin. Three lactoferrin forms with different glycan profile were obtained by treatment with these fusion tagged enzymes; native, fully deglycosylated and sialylated glycan enriched lactoferrin. The released glycan structures were analyzed and confirmed with mass spectrometry. The results showed that native and sialylated glycans enriched lactoferrin have similar minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values against E.coli DH5a (1 mg/ml), whereas the MIC value for fully deglycosylated lactoferrin was 6mg/ml. These results suggest that sialylated glycans play important role in the antimicrobial function of lactoferrin.
The roles of DNA epigenetics and clinical significance in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia: a review
Authors: Keramatinia Aliasghar , Ahadi Alireza , Akbari Mohammad Esmaeil , Mohseny Maryam , Mosavi Jarahi Alireza , Bahadori-Monfared Ayad , Hashemi Mehrdad , Moradi Afshin , Mehrvar Narjes , Kazemi Elham , Movafagh Abolfazl
Published: July 2018

Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML) is a myeloproliferative disorder characterized by the genetic translocation t(9;22) (q34;q11.2) encoding for the BCR-ABL fusion oncogene. Growing body of evidence suggests that epigenetic abnormalities are involved in tyrosine kinase resistance in CML, leading to leukemic clone escape and disease propagation. The significant of therapeutic role in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) depends on both genetic and epigenetic mechanisms.  This article focused on the CML and epigenetic and clinical significance. An electronic search of peer-reviewed articles was systematically performed to obtain the relevant literature with the CINAHL, cancer, Google scholar, self-experience and PubMed databases. The keywords included leukemia, cancer, illness, epigenetic. The inclusion criteria for the reviews were that the documents were original quantitative research and published in English. Articles that were not directly relevant to the present objective were excluded. Current progress in molecular biology and bioinformatics offer novel promising experiments namely as next generation sequencing for new development in epigenetic figures characterization and more understanding of the epigenetic mechanisms to be successfully utilized for personalized CML therapy in the next coming years.
Effects of digital game-based learning on achievement, flow and overall cognitive load
Authors: Chang Chi-Cheng , Warden Clyde A , Liang Chaoyun , Lin Guan-You
Published: July 2018

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in learning achievement, flow, and overall cognitive load between digital game-based learning (DGBL) and traditional computer-based learning (CBL). This study was conducted with 103 Taiwan college students: 50 college students in the experimental group used DGBL; 53 students in the control group used CBL. Results show the DGBL participants displayed significantly better learning achievement, flow, and lower cognitive load compared to the CBL participants. Learning achievement and flow exhibit a positive correlation, while negatively correlating with overall cognitive load. These results align with the existing research concepts of flow theory, cognitive theory of multimedia learning, and cognitive load theory.
Continuity properties of weakly monotone Orlicz–Sobolev functions
Authors: Carozza Menita , Cianchi Andrea
Published: July 2018

The notion of weakly monotone functions extends the classical definition of monotone function, that can be traced back to Lebesgue. It was introduced, in the framework of Sobolev spaces, by Manfredi, in connection with the analysis of the regularity of maps of finite distortion appearing in the theory of nonlinear elasticity. Diverse authors, including Iwaniecz, Kauhanen, Koskela, Maly, Onninen, Zhong, thoroughly investigated continuity properties of monotone functions in the more general setting of Orlicz–Sobolev spaces, in view of the analysis of continuity, openness and discreteness properties of maps under minimal integrability assumptions on their distortion. The present paper complements and augments the available Orlicz–Sobolev theory of weakly monotone functions. In particular, a variant is proposed in a customary condition ensuring the continuity of functions from this class, which avoids a technical additional assumption, and applies in certain situations when the latter is not fulfilled. The continuity outside sets of zero Orlicz capacity, and outside sets of (generalized) zero Hausdorff measure are also established when everywhere continuity fails.
Skew symmetric logarithms and geodesics on O
n
(ℝ)
Authors: Dolcetti Alberto , Pertici Donato
Published: July 2018

We investigate the connections between the differential-geometric properties of the exponential map from the space of real skew symmetric matrices onto the group of real special orthogonal matrices and the manifold of real orthogonal matrices equipped with the Riemannian structure induced by the Frobenius metric.
On the cells in a stationary Poisson hyperplane mosaic
Authors: Reitzner Matthias , Schneider Rolf
Published: July 2018

Let X be the mosaic generated by a stationary Poisson hyperplane process X̂ in ℝ
d
. Under some mild conditions on the spherical directional distribution of X̂ (which are satisfied if the process is isotropic), we show that with probability one the set of cells (d-polytopes) of X has the following properties. The translates of the cells are dense in the space of convex bodies. Every combinatorial type of simple d-polytopes is realized infinitely often by the cells of X. A further result concerns the distribution of the typical cell.
A proof of a conjecture by Haviv, Lyubashevsky and Regev on the second moment of a lattice Voronoi cell
Authors: Magazinov Alexander
Published: July 2018

In this short note we prove a sharp lower bound for the second moment of a lattice Voronoi cell in terms of the respective covering radius. This gives an affirmative answer to a conjecture by Haviv, Lyubashevsky and Regev. We also characterize those lattice Voronoi cells for which this lower bound is attained.
Lipschitz–Killing curvatures and polar images
Authors: Dutertre Nicolas
Published: July 2018

We relate the Lipschitz–Killing measures of a definable set X ⊂ ℝ
n
in an o-minimal structure to the volumes of generic polar images. For smooth submanifolds of ℝ
n
, such results were established by Langevin and Shifrin. Then we give infinitesimal versions of these results. As a corollary, we obtain a relation between the polar invariants of Comte and Merle and the densities of generic polar images.
Self–Employment, Wealth and Start–up Costs: Evidence from a Financial Crisis
Authors: Elitcha Koffi , Fonseca Raquel
Published: July 2018

Using individual-level data from three uniquely comparable surveys (Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, English Longitudinal Study of Ageing and Health and Retirement Study) in Europe and the United States, as well as the World Bank’s Doing Business data, this paper empirically zeroes in on the impact of start-up costs on the self-employment–wealth relationship. The longitudinal nature of the data enables us to investigate the potential effects of the last global financial crisis. Results confirm the strong positive relationship between the entrepreneurial choice and wealth as well as the negative effect that stems from the increase in start-up costs. Interestingly, although there is no strong evidence that wealth in itself played a bigger role during the crisis, we find that the negative impact of start-up costs on the entrepreneurship–wealth relationship proved to be significantly pronounced during the last crisis.
A Low-Rank Inexact Newton–Krylov Method for Stochastic Eigenvalue Problems
Authors: Benner Peter , Onwunta Akwum , Stoll Martin
Published: July 2018

This paper aims at the efficient numerical solution of stochastic eigenvalue problems.
Such problems often lead to prohibitively
high-dimensional systems with tensor product structure when discretized with the stochastic
Galerkin method. Here, we exploit this inherent tensor product structure to develop a globalized low-rank inexact Newton method with which we tackle the stochastic eigenproblem.
We illustrate the effectiveness of our solver with numerical experiments.
Calcified microorganisms bloom in Furongian of the North China Platform: Evidence from Microbialitic-Bioherm in Qijiayu Section, Hebei
Authors: Xiao EnZhao , Latif Khalid , Riaz Muhammad , Qin Yinglun , Wang Hao
Published: July 2018

In order to study the sedimentological response of the first episode of “cyanobacteria calcification event” in Phanerozoic, we studied the microbialites from Furongian Series in Qijiayu section, Hebei Province, which is located in the central part of the North China Platform. Cambrian Furongian Series is made up of three third-order depositional sequences, Depositional Sequence 1 (DS1) in Changshan Formation and DS2and DS3in Fengshan Formation. Two beds of massive limestone of a shallow ramp facies developed in Changshan Formation and the first third-order sequence of Fengshan Formation. Both of them contains many dome-shaped carbonate structures that formed as a result of forced regression. These structures can be described as leiolitic bioherms, with a morphology like string of beads. In the current study, microorganisms such asEpiphyton,GirvanellaandRenalcisare reported from the leiolitic bioherms. This provides not only documentation for the model of cyanobacteria calcification, but also describes the genesis of leiolitic bioherms by microbial processes inside cyanobacteria dominated microbial mats. Moreover, the diverse emergence of the calcified microorganisms represents the fossil evidence of calcified microorganisms’ blooms in Cambrian Furongian and offers a reference for studying the complex microbial processes in such old carbonate depositions.
Spatial predictive modeling of prehistoric sites in the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands based on graph similarity analysis
Authors: Mertel Adam , Ondrejka Peter , Šabatová Klára
Published: July 2018

This paper presented a new method for identifying promising areas for archaeological research. The method is based on graph analysis that iteratively compares and manipulates Hamming distances between graphs of input geographical parameters and graphs of human activity data in various historical periods. The weights learned from the comparison was used to build a prediction model to estimate the potential presence of an archaeological site of a certain time period in a given cadaster. This was applied in the Bohemian Moravian Highlands region based on the most complete archaeological dataset of the area. Resulting maps were analyzed from the archaeological and historical point of view to test against the existing knowledge of prehistoric population movement in the region. Overall, the method proved to overcome problems such as fragmentary inputs and is a good candidate for application in smaller and geographically diverse research areas. The aim of this work was to contribute to the methodology of the prediction of historical human activity, to facilitate greater comprehension of past local settlement dynamics, and to possibly ease the protection of cultural heritage.
Tree-ring widths and the stable isotope composition of pine tree-rings as climate indicators in the most industrialised part of Poland during CO2 elevation
Authors: Sensuła Barbara , Wilczyński Sławomir
Published: July 2018

Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) growing in 16 sites in three industrial regions in Poland was analysed to delineate dendroclimatologically uniform areas. A dendrochronological and mass spectrometric analysis revealed the following: a dry and sunny previous September, low winter temperature, and moisture supply in July limit the radial growth of the pines in all the regions. The weather conditions of the current growing season have been the most strongly reflected in the isotopic ratio. Positive relationships were noted between δ13C and temperature and δ13C and sunshine. A negative relationship was observed between δ13C and precipitation and δ13C and humidity. At the same time, a positive relationship was noted between δ18O and sunshine and δ18O and temperature, but negative between δ18O and humidity. The climate signal recorded in the stable isotope composition was temporally unstable and only for a few of the climatic parameters did we find temporally stable climate signals. However, variability in the strength and direction of the relationships between variables has been observed. In general, the weather in July and August is important for determining the δ13C and δ18O signals. Instability can reflect the physiological adaptation of the plants to changes in the ecosystem.
Design, synthesis and cytotoxicity evaluation of indibulin analogs
Authors: Saeedian Moghadam Ebrahim , Saravani Farhad , Ostad Seyednasser , Tavajohi Shohreh , Pirali Hamedani Morteza , Amini Mohsen
Published: July 2018

Indibulin is one of the most potent tubulin polymerization inhibitors with minimal peripheral neuropathy. The design and synthesis of new indibulin analogs were carried out in order to investigate their anti-cancer activity. The target compounds 4a–i were synthesized in multistep reactions starting with the related indole derivatives. Compound 4f shows the highest cytotoxic activity on HT-29 and Caco-2 cell lines with the respective half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values of 5.1 μm and 7.3 μm. In the case of the T47-D cell line, compound 4c exerts the best cytotoxic activity with an IC50 value of 11.5 μm. In the cell cycle analysis on HT-29 cells, compound 4f at 5.1 μm showed an increase in the percentage of cells in the sub-G1 phase. Altogether, nine target compounds were synthesized and characterized by infrared spectroscopy (IR), proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR), carbon-13 nuclear magnetic resonance (13C NMR), mass spectrometry (MS) and elemental analysis. Some of the compounds show good cytotoxic activity against cancerous cell lines.
Incidence of decay in creosote-treated Scots pine poles in Ireland
Authors: Cappellazzi Jed , Maguire Karl , Nelson Rob , Morrell Jeffrey J.
Published: July 2018

Air-seasoning is a simple method for moisture management in utility poles prior to treatment, but it involves the risk of fungal invasion during drying. These fungi can be eliminated by heat treatment, but fungi surviving in the installed poles are a quality problem. In this context, the incidence of decay fungi was investigated in 963 creosote-treated Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) poles of varying ages in a utility system in Ireland. Thirty-seven percent of increment cores removed from the poles contained at least one viable basidiomycete. There was no relationship between pole age or distance above the groundline and fungal isolations. Phlebiopsis gigantea, a white rot fungus, was the most common isolate followed by Neolentinus lepideus and Sistotrema brinkmannii. The results highlight the importance of including a sterilizing process during treatment and maintaining quality controls when purchasing large numbers of poles.
CO2 Absorption of Powdered Ba2Fe2O5 with Different Particle Size
Authors: Liu Jun-Hao , Zhang Guo-Hua , Wang Zhi
Published: July 2018

Particle size dependence of CO2 absorption rate of powdered Ba2Fe2O5 with three kinds of particle size was studied by XRD, SEM, particle size distribution measurement and thermogravimetry. From the particle size distribution measurement, average particle sizes of the powdered Ba2Fe2O5 samples were estimated about 52.5 μm, 77.5 μm and 100.0 μm, respectively. Results show that the reaction of CO2 with Ba2Fe2O5 was controlled by the diffusion step in the product layer, and the kinetics process could be described by the RPP model (Real Physical Picture). Moreover, Ba2Fe2O5 exhibits a good recycling performance though the adsorption capacity is reduced slightly during the cycle processes, and the pathway of the CO2 adsorption–desorption on Ba2Fe2O5 has also been obtained, which suggested that Ba2Fe2O5 is a promising CO2 absorbent material.
FE Analysis of Dynamical Recrystallization during the Seamless Tube Extrusion of Semicontinuous Casting Magnesium Alloy and Experimental Verification
Authors: Lin Tao , Liu Yun-teng , Zhou Ji-xue , Yang Yuan-sheng , Yang Zhu
Published: July 2018

In this paper, empirical dynamic recrystallization (DRX) models for the semicontinuous AZ31 magnesium alloy were established based on the stress–strain curves and microstructure observations generated from hot compression tests. The DRX evolution during the seamless tube extrusion of the alloy was studied by numerical and experimental methods. The extruding temperature and the ram speed were two important parameters during the extrusion. With the increase of the two parameters, the volume fraction of DRX and the recrystallized grain size were observably increased. The predicted DRX fraction and grain size were in an excellent agreement with the experimental results.
Performance and Applications of Semifluidized Bioreactors – A Review
Authors: Narayanan C. M.
Published: July 2018

This paper reviews the design features and performance characteristics of semifluidized bed bioreactors. Both biofilm reactors and immobilized enzyme bioreactors have been analysed. Also, both two phase (liquid – solid) and three phase (gas – liquid – solid) operations are considered. Apart from the hydrodynamic parameters (semifluidization velocity, bed expansion ratio, height of packed section formed, fractional fluid holdups in both fluidized and packed sections), all other operating/system parameters affecting reactor performance such as axial dispersion, intrinsic kinetics of bioconversion (mostly nonlinear), the effectiveness factor and Thiele – type modulus have also been surveyed. The specific advantages and attractive features of these bioreactors have been highlighted based on data from successful case studies such as bioplastic synthesis, biodiesel manufacture, Xanthan gum production and aerobic waste water treatment with and without LPO (Liquid Phase Oxygen) utilization.
Solar Radiation Effect on a Magneto Nanofluid Flow in a Porous Medium with Chemically Reactive Species
Authors: Eid Mohamed R. , Makinde O.D.
Published: July 2018

The combined impact of solar radiation, chemical reaction, Joule heating, viscous dissipation and magnetic field on flow of an electrically conducting nanofluid over a convectively heated stretching sheet embedded in a saturated porous medium is simulated. By using appropriate similarity transformation, the governing nonlinear equations are converted into ODEs and numerical shooting technique with (RK45) method is employed to tackle the problem. The effects of various thermo-physical parameters on the entire flow structure with heat and mass transfer are presented graphically and discussed quantitatively. Special cases of our results are benchmarked with some of those obtained earlier in the literature and are found to be in excellent agreement. It is found that both the temperature and surface concentration gradients are increasing functions of the non-Darcy porous medium parameter. One describing result is the incident solar radiation absorption and its transmission into the working nanofluid by convection.
Response Surface Methodology Optimization for Photodegradation of Methylene Blue in a ZnO Coated Flat Plate Continuous Photoreactor
Authors: Baghbani Ghatar Somaiyeh , Allahyari Somaiyeh , Rahemi Nader , Tasbihi Minoo
Published: July 2018

In this paper, a continuous flat plate photoreactor with ZnO coating was studied in the photodegradation of methylene blue. The structural properties of catalyst were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction, Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX). The XRD results indicate that high crystalline ZnO particles with average size of 13.5 nm were coated on the glass plate. The thickness of ZnO layer was 39.67 μm and the coating was uniform and crack free. The EDX showed clear border between glass and ZnO layer which confirmed no material transfer between glass and ZnO layer during thermal treatment. The influence of reactor parameters such as the slope of the glass plate, number of UV lamps, distance between lamp and ZnO coated glass plate and flow rate of wastewater was investigated using optimal custom design which is a subset of response surface methodology (RSM). The results indicated that the maximum photodegradation of methylene blue was achieved under the following conditions: plate slope of 9, 3 UVA lamps, 12 ml/s wastewater flow rate and 10 cm distance between lamp and glass plate. The response of surface methodology at optimum conditions was 65.05% while experimental value was 64.66%, showing good agreement between the experimental values and those predicted by the models, with relatively small errors which were only 0.64. The kinetic study was also performed for methylene blue photodegradation at optimum conditions.
Study on the Impacts of Uncertain Meteorological Parameters on Line Transmission Capacity
Authors: Mo Yang , Wang Yanling , Liang Likai , Li Heji , Zhang Qiang , Niu Zhiqiang
Published: July 2018

Traditionally, transmission lines have been operated based on static thermal rating, which is determined by fixed and conservative meteorological data. It causes underutilization of potential transmission capacity. To overcome this limitation, this paper presents seasonal time scale, which can provide flexible ratings. Seasonal meteorological parameters are uncertain. The uncertainty can directly impact the conductor temperature, and eventually impact transmission capacity of the lines. In order to account for the uncertainty, this paper presents an uncertainty analysis model. This model consists of three parts: establishment of probability distribution models, Monte Carlo simulation, and operation risk assessment. In the case study, the actual meteorological data for 7 years in the Weihai is utilized, and is divided into four subsets by spring, summer, autumn and winter. The uncertainty analysis model is tested on an actual 47 km Wei-Kun line and a 4-bus power system. Results show that potential transmission capacity can be extracted if seasonal meteorological parameters are taken into account.
Effects of Ozone Treatment on the Storage Quality of Post-Harvest Tomato
Authors: Liang Yunzhi , Ji Lili , Chen Cunkun , Dong Chenghu , Wang Chengrong
Published: July 2018

Effects of ozone treatment on the storage quality of post-harvest tomato were investigated. The tomatoes packed in microporous film were treated with 4.29 mg·(m3)−1, 8.57 mg·(m3)−1, 12.86 mg·(m3)−1 and 17.14 mg·(m3)−1 ozone gas for 1 h at 0℃. The firmness, ethylene, vitamin C (VC), malonaldehyde (MDA), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), peroxidase (POD) and aromatic compounds were tested to determine the proper ozone concentrations. Compared with other treatments, 17.14 mg·(m3)−1 ozone could maintain the firmness of tomato, depress ethylene, keep the content of VC and aromatic compounds, and inhibit the accumulation of MDA and activity of POD and APX, which had a good fresh-keeping effect on tomato.
Comparative effect of the aqueous extracts of Aloe buettneri, Dicliptera verticillata, Hibiscus macranthus and Justicia insularis on the sexual maturation of pregnant mare serum gonadotrophin-primed immature female rats
Authors: Goka Marie Stéphanie Chekem , Awouafack Maurice Ducret , Lamshöft Marc , Lienou Landry Lienou , Mbemya Gildas Tetaping , Fekam Fabrice Boyom , Tane Pierre , Telefo Phélix Bruno
Published: July 2018

Background

Aloe buettneri, Dicliptera verticillata, Hibiscus macranthus and Justicia insularis are medicinal plants used in the western region of Cameroon to cure infertility among women. This experiment was designed to compare the effect of the aqueous extracts of A. buettneri (AAB), D. verticillata (ADV), H. macranthus (AHM), J. insularis (AJI), their mixture (AME) and the extract obtained from the mixture of their powders (AMP) on some parameters of reproduction.

Materials and methods

High-performance liquid chromatography coupled with the mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) was used to detect the constituents of different extracts. The extracts (50 mg/kg) were administered to PMSG-primed immature rats (10 rats/group) for 5 days. At the end of the treatment, five animals of each group were sacrificed and various biological markers of reproduction were recorded. The remaining animals were injected with 10 IU of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) sacrificed 48 h later and the number of ovarian hemorrhagic points counted.

Results

Fifty-four compounds were found in the various extracts with 37 individually distributed among them and the remaining found in at least two extracts. As compared with the control, the AMP and AJI increased serum estradiol level by 2.36 and 2.23 times, respectively. The AMP was the only extract whose administration resulted in a significant increase (p<0.001) in the serum levels of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH). Compared with the other extract-treated rats, the AMP-treated rats showed the highest number of hemorrhagic points.

Conclusions

These findings provided evidence on the synergistic effect of compounds present in these plant extracts and supported the usage of the mixture in traditional medicine.
Protective effect of chloroform extract of Stereospermum chelonoides bark against amyloid beta42 induced cell death in SH-SY5Y cells and against inflammation in Swiss albino mice
Authors: Islam Md. Imamul , Shanta Meena Afroze , Mondal Milon , Hoque Nazia , Majumder Senjuti , Ahmed Taksim , Rana Md. Sohel
Published: July 2018

Background

This study was designed to evaluate the free radical scavenging property of chloroform extract of the bark of Stereospermum chelonoides (SCBC) and to investigate its potential in Alzheimer’s disease and inflammation, two oxidative stress related disorders.

Methods

Preliminary phytochemical analysis and in vitro antioxidant potential of SCBC were evaluated using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay, cupric reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC) and total antioxidant capacity determination assay. Total phenol and total flavonoid contents were also determined. 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) based cytotoxicity and cyto-protective assays were performed on human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells. Thioflavin-T assay and caspase activation measurement assay were carried out to elucidate the mechanism of cytoprotection of SCBC observed here. In vivo anti-inflammatory potential was measured using croton oil and xylene induced ear edema tests.

Results

Phytochemical screening of SCBC revealed the presence of various phytoconstituents. Dose-dependent in vitro antioxidant activity was observed. The extract was enriched in flavonoids and polyphenolic compounds too. SCBC was found to inhibit amyloid-β peptide 1-42 (Aβ42) induced cell death in a dose-dependent manner. Encouraged by the cyto-protective effect, its effects on Aβ42 fibrillogenesis and caspase-3 activated apoptosis were observed. SCBC significantly slowed down the Aβ42 fibrillogenesis and caspase-3 activation in a concentration-dependent manner indicating its probable mechanism of rendering cyto-protection. SCBC has been able to reduce inflammation significantly in croton oil induced ear edema in both doses.

Conclusions

Thus, this study could form the basis for further study for the potential use of SCBC in oxidative stress associated cell death and inflammation.
Spectral Graph-based Features for Recognition of Handwritten Characters: A Case Study on Handwritten Devanagari Numerals
Authors: Bhat Mohammad Idrees , Sharada B.
Published: July 2018

Interpretation of different writing styles, unconstrained cursiveness and relationship between different primitive parts is an essential and challenging task for recognition of handwritten characters. As feature representation is inadequate, appropriate interpretation/description of handwritten characters seems to be a challenging task. Although existing research in handwritten characters is extensive, it still remains a challenge to get the effective representation of characters in feature space. In this paper, we make an attempt to circumvent these problems by proposing an approach that exploits the robust graph representation and spectral graph embedding concept to characterise and effectively represent handwritten characters, taking into account writing styles, cursiveness and relationships. For corroboration of the efficacy of the proposed method, extensive experiments were carried out on the standard handwritten numeral Computer Vision Pattern Recognition, Unit of Indian Statistical Institute Kolkata dataset. The experimental results demonstrate promising findings, which can be used in future studies.
A Grey Wolf Optimizer for Text Document Clustering
Authors: Rashaideh Hasan , Sawaie Ahmad , Al-Betar Mohammed Azmi , Abualigah Laith Mohammad , Al-laham Mohammed M. , Al-Khatib Ra’ed M. , Braik Malik
Published: July 2018

Text clustering problem (TCP) is a leading process in many key areas such as information retrieval, text mining, and natural language processing. This presents the need for a potent document clustering algorithm that can be used effectively to navigate, summarize, and arrange information to congregate large data sets. This paper encompasses an adaptation of the grey wolf optimizer (GWO) for TCP, referred to as TCP-GWO. The TCP demands a degree of accuracy beyond that which is possible with metaheuristic swarm-based algorithms. The main issue to be addressed is how to split text documents on the basis of GWO into homogeneous clusters that are sufficiently precise and functional. Specifically, TCP-GWO, or referred to as the document clustering algorithm, used the average distance of documents to the cluster centroid (ADDC) as an objective function to repeatedly optimize the distance between the clusters of the documents. The accuracy and efficiency of the proposed TCP-GWO was demonstrated on a sufficiently large number of documents of variable sizes, documents that were randomly selected from a set of six publicly available data sets. Documents of high complexity were also included in the evaluation process to assess the recall detection rate of the document clustering algorithm. The experimental results for a test set of over a part of 1300 documents showed that failure to correctly cluster a document occurred in less than 20% of cases with a recall rate of more than 65% for a highly complex data set. The high F-measure rate and ability to cluster documents in an effective manner are important advances resulting from this research. The proposed TCP-GWO method was compared to the other well-established text clustering methods using randomly selected data sets. Interestingly, TCP-GWO outperforms the comparative methods in terms of precision, recall, and F-measure rates. In a nutshell, the results illustrate that the proposed TCP-GWO is able to excel compared to the other comparative clustering methods in terms of measurement criteria, whereby more than 55% of the documents were correctly clustered with a high level of accuracy.
Next-generation sequencing as a second-tier diagnostic test for newborn screening
Authors: Luo Xiaomei , Wang Ruifang , Fan Yanjie , Gu Xuefan , Yu Yongguo
Published: July 2018

Background

Tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) has been used for newborn screening (NBS) of inherited metabolic diseases (IMDs) for decades. However, the traditional approach can yield false-positive or false-negative results and is affected by biochemical substrate-level fluctuations. To overcome the current limitations, we explored the possibility of using next-generation sequencing (NGS) as a second-tier diagnostic test to detect gene mutations in samples with abnormal MS/MS results.

Methods

Genomic DNA was extracted from dried blood spots and we designed a multigene panel, comprising 77 genes related to over 40 IMDs, for NBS. The prepared libraries were sequenced on the Ion Personal Genome Machine (PGM) platform. Thirty-eight samples identified as abnormal by MS/MS were tested for the diagnostic accuracy of NGS compared with Sanger sequencing.

Results

The concentration of DNA extracted from the 38 dried blood spots was sufficient for library preparation. The coverage and depth of the sequencing data were sufficient for the analysis. For all samples, the NGS results were consistent with the Sanger sequencing results.

Conclusions

The genomic DNA extracted from dried blood spots could be used for NGS, generating reliable sequencing results, and NGS may function as a second-tier diagnostic test for NBS. Ion PGM could facilitate the molecular diagnosis of IMDs with appropriate primers designed for candidate genes.
Methods for Computing Numerical Standard Errors: Review and Application to Value-at-Risk Estimation
Authors: Ardia David , Bluteau Keven , Hoogerheide Lennart F.
Published: July 2018

Numerical standard error (NSE) is an estimate of the standard deviation of a simulation result if the simulation experiment were to be repeated many times. We review standard methods for computing NSE and perform a Monte Carlo experiments to compare their performance in the case of high/extreme autocorrelation. In particular, we propose an application to risk management where we assess the precision of the value-at-risk measure when the underlying risk model is estimated by simulation-based methods. Overall, heteroscedasticity and autocorrelation estimators with prewhitening perform best in the presence of large/extreme autocorrelation.
Serum vitamin D receptor levels in gestational diabetes mellitus
Authors: Tekeli Seçkin Özgür , Yağmur Tekeli Feyza , Erol Onur , Ellidag Hamit Yaşar , Eren Esin , Yılmaz Necat
Published: July 2018

Background

Vitamin D affects glucose metabolism by increasing insulin secretion and insulin receptor expression. Also, it exerts these effects by binding to its primary receptor, the vitamin D receptor (VDR). In this preliminary study, we aimed to examine serum 25-(OH) vitamin D3and serum VDR levels in gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) patients.

Methods

Blood samples were obtained during 24–28 weeks of pregnancy from patients with GDM (n=30) and age, body mass index (BMI), and gestational age-matched control subjects (n=33). Both groups were examined for changes in the levels of glucose, insulin, glycated hemoglobin (bA1c), 25-(OH) vitamin D3and VDR.

Results

There were no significant differences in serum 25-(OH) vitamin D3and fasting insulin levels between the control and GDM groups (p=0.115, p=0.182). But serum VDR levels were significantly higher in the GDM group than in the control group (p=0.001).

Conclusions

Although there was no significant difference between the two groups regarding 25-(OH) vitamin D3levels, it is notable that VDR levels were higher in GDM patients. To further define the role of vitamin D in the prophylaxis and treatment of GDM, it may be useful to conduct more extensive studies on VDR.
Effect of predation on adult pronghornAntilocapra americana(Antilocapridae) in New Mexico, Southwestern USA
Authors: Bender Louis C. , Rosas-Rosas Octavio C. , Hartsough Matthew J. , Rodden Cristina L. , Morrow Patrick C.
Published: July 2018

The effect of predation on ungulate populations remains contentious, despite a lack of evidence showing impacts in arid Southwestern USA populations where low precipitation and frequent drought limit ungulate nutritional condition. These conditions can increase predisposition of prey to mortality, which is prerequisite for predation to be compensatory. Consequently, we tested the effect of predation on adult pronghornAntilocapra americana(Ord 1815) in two populations in arid New Mexico by modeling transformed annual survival rates as a function of predation rates. For this conservative test, a slope=0 indicates complete compensation, whereas a slope=−1 indicates complete additivity. The corrected slope of mortality potentially attributable to predation was >−0.14, and this result was consistent among individual populations. Thus, predation was primarily compensatory. Primarily compensatory predation was related to the relatively low condition of pronghorn individuals, as predated individuals were all below the mean condition of the population, similar to results seen in previous tests of the compensatory versus additive predation hypothesis in the arid Southwest USA. Conditions that predispose individual ungulates to mortality are present more often than not in arid environments, and thus managers should not assume that predation is limiting, regardless of predation rates.
Advances in materials engineering of CdS coupled with dual cocatalysts of graphene and MoS2 for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution
Authors: Zhang Nan , Li Shao-Hai , Fu Xianzhi , Xu Yi-Jun
Published: July 2018

Photocatalytic water splitting for hydrogen evolution as an attractive strategy for developing sustainable energy by utilizing sunlight has attracted enormous research efforts. Cadmium sulfide (CdS) with visible light response and proper energy band structure has been studied intensively. To suppress the recombination of charge carriers and facilitate the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) over CdS, electrically conductive graphene and active-site-abundant MoS2 have proven to be efficient dual cocatalysts to improve the photocatalytic HER performance of CdS. In this review, we will focus on the representative ternary composite photocatalysts of CdS-graphene-MoS2. The synthesis approaches are first summarized, followed by the discussion of the roles of each component in the composites. Then main attention will be paid to highlighting the effects of the microscopic structures of the components on the photocatalytic performance of the composites for HER applications. It is expected that this review could be helpful to the rational design and further optimization of semiconductor-based composite photocatalysts through materials engineering strategies for solar energy conversion.
M-polynomials and topological indices of hex-derived networks
Authors: Kang Shin Min , Nazeer Waqas , Zahid Manzoor Ahmad , Nizami Abdul Rauf , Aslam Adnan , Munir Mobeen
Published: July 2018

Hex-derived network has a variety of useful applications in pharmacy, electronics, and networking. In this paper, we give general form of the M-polynomial of the hex-derived networksHDN1[n] and HDN2[n], which came out of n-dimensional hexagonal mesh. We also give closed forms of several degree-based topological indices associated to these networks.