bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Prediction of recrystallized grain size during hot deformation of AZ31 magnesium alloy by monte carlo method
Authors: He Yifei
Published: May 2021

Magnesium alloy is an important engineering metal material, which has a series of excellent mechanical, chemical and physical properties. It is widely used in aerospace, advanced manufacturing, biomedical and other fields. In the processing and preparation of magnesium alloy, high temperature and large deformation treatment are usually introduced. The introduction of temperature and strain rate will lead to grain coarsening and dynamic recrystallization. Therefore, it is necessary to study the effects of high temperature and deformation on the grain evolution of magnesium alloys. Based on the Monte Carlo simulation method, the microstructure evolution of AZ31 magnesium alloy at different temperatures and strain rates was simulated and analyzed. The results show that high temperature is the main reason for grain growth, and increasing strain rate can promote recrystallization and refine grain size.
Application of prefabricated building in emergency rescue project construction Taking — Wuhan Huoshenshan Hospital Project as an example
Authors: Peng Cong
Published: May 2021

In recent years, various natural disasters and health events have caused huge losses of people’s lives and properties. Because these events have the characteristics of force majeure, it is necessary to focus on the emergency relief after the disaster, with the development of industrialization of construction industry, the modular building provides strong technical support for the construction of emergency rescue projects. In late 2019, the super-efficient construction of Wuhan Huoshenshan Hospital became an example of the application of Modular Assembly building in the rescue of the new coronavirus epidemic in Hubei Province, it provides a new idea for building industrialization and sustainable development
Experimental Research on Atomization Parameters of High Pressure Nozzle
Authors: Zou Chang-Fu
Published: May 2021

The effect of wind speed on the nozzle effective water volume and distribution uniformity and the fog particle size was studied. The results showed that when the fog particle size and the dust particle size distribution range were close, the dust reduction effect was the best. With the increase of spray pressure, Under the influence of the wind flow, the effective water flow of the nozzle is 80% of the effective water without wind flow, as the wind speed increases, the spray range and the spray coverage area decrease greatly. about. Based on the experimental results, the dust-reducing efficiencies of total dust and respirable dust concentration were 91.1% and 90%, respectively, after the dust was sprayed by the preferred nozzle at the unloading point of the Xiadian Gold Mine unloading station.
Coordination Behaviors of Cu2+ With Azo Dye Acid Black 10B
Authors: Jiang Bo
Published: May 2021

This study mainly explored the coordination relationship between Cu2+ and functional groups of acid black 10B, including sulfonic group, azo group, amino group, hydroxyl group and nitro group. By means of UV-vis spectrum scanning, FTIR and XPS techniques, the complex reaction process of cooper ion with dye molecule and their precipitate formed during alkali titration were analyzed. The results showed that copper ion had coordination with all the above groups, and its coordination with azo group and sulfonic group can be able to form a closed ring structure similar to chelate. The spectra characteristics of precipitate revealed that copper ions could play bridging role between amino and hydroxyl and its coordination process would be affected by the pH value of the solution.
Radiation Response of AI2O3 based Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor Structures under Gamma-ray
Authors: Ding Man
Published: May 2021

The radiation effect in aluminium oxide based MOS capacitors is studied in this article. The radiation induced oxide and interface trapped charge characteristic as well as the leakage current and charge transportation mechanism are studied by using Capacitance-Voltage and Current-Voltage measurements. The results show that the radiation induced oxide and interface trapped charges are both positive with the density in the order of 1012cm-2 which increase with the increase of irradiation total dose, the charge transport is dominated by Schottky mechanism and the leakage current as well as the trap barrier height rarely change after irradiation. This provides a reference for the application of Al2O3 based MOS devices in space environment.
Research on Ground Storage Scheme of Li-ion Battery Based on Rapid Satellite Launch
Authors: Liu Kuo , Song Chengpeng , Liu Fangchen , Chen Bo , Deng Jiaquan
Published: May 2021

With the rapid development of society, satellites play an irreplaceable role in human production and life. Space has become the commanding strategic point of the world’s scientific and technological competition and the core area of the scientific and technological revolution. The competition for space among the space powers is becoming increasingly fierce. In order to adapt the requirements of rapid and emergency satellite launches, the mode of satellite long-term storage, regular testing, and selective launch is maturing. Lithium-ion battery has a limited lifespan, and its storage options need to be fully demonstrated. In this paper, the performance degradation of space-use lithium-ion batteries under different ground storage conditions is verified by experiments, and based on this, ground storage strategies and plans for lithium-ion battery are formulated.
The Effect of Wood Forest Products Import on Pollution Emissions: Evidence from China’s Forest Products Industry
Authors: Mao Yuling , Wan Lu , Zhang Yuting
Published: May 2021

The article uses the product-level and industry-level data to empirically test the relationship between China’s import of wood forest products and the pollution discharge of forest products industry from 2003 to 2015. The results of the benchmark model show that the import of wood forest products has a significant role in reducing the pollution emission of forest products industry. Furthermore, taking the total factor productivity as the intermediary variable, it is found that the import of wood forest products can improve the total factor productivity, thus promoting the pollution emission reduction of forest products industry. In addition, from the perspective of different factor intensive products, the empirical results show that the capital and technology intensive and the labor-intensive have different positive effects on pollution reduction through the improvement of total factor productivity.
The study of natural biofilm formation and microbial community structure for recirculating aquaculture system
Authors: Qu Jiangqi , Yang Haochen , Liu Yi , Qi Hongfang , Wang Yang , Zhang Qingjing
Published: May 2021

Biofilter is the core unit of the recirculating aquaculture system(RAS), which is mainly to achieve in situ purification and restoration of water pollutants by enriching microorganisms on biofilters to form biofilms. To explore the changes and metabolic characteristics of microbial communities in the process of biofilm formation in the RAS under low-temperature environment, the 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing was applied to analyze differences of the microbial composition and structural characteristics in the biofilm initiation group (I) and biofilm formation group(B), and the PICRUSt functional gene prediction method was used to predict the metabolic functions. Results of microbial diversity showed that the OTUs numbers, Shannon index and richness index increased significantly after bio-film formation(p<0.05). The Pcoa results indicated that the microbial community composition in group B was quite different compared with the group I. After the biofilm formation, the phylum Proteobacteria, Bacteroidota, Fusobacteriota, Patescibacteria and Verrucomicrobiota were the main dominant bacteria on the biofilter. The denitrifying bacteria, such as Comamonadaceae and Rhodobacteraceae as the dominant bacteria in group B. Meanwhile, the activities of bio-film microorganisms in metabolic aspects of Carbohydrate Metabolism, Energy Metabolism, Lipid Metabolism, Amino Acid Metabolism of Terpenoids and Polyketides and Enzyme Families were obviously enhanced(p <0.05).
Application Case of NK50/56 Small Steam Turbine for Dynamic Balance
Authors: Niu Qingliang , Gong Yuli , Tian Guocheng , Liu Chuanmei , Wang Qian
Published: May 2021

Vibration anomaly occurred at the first start of the NK50/56 small steam turbine after repair A plant, and the vibration increased with the increase of rotational speed. Through data analysis, the vibration spectrum was mainly composed of power frequency and high frequency. The main reason was that there was mass imbalance and slight friction in the steam turbine. After two times of dynamic balance, the problem of abnormal vibration of small steam turbine was successfully solved.
Is core bacterial community more vulnerable to environmental changes in dammed river?
Authors: Zhu Shijun , Wen Chen , Xie Shanshan , Luo Xia
Published: May 2021

It is well known that dam construction has a potential to impact water quality, resulting other related changes on bacterial community structure and diversity. Yet, effects of dam construction on planktonic and sediment bacterial structure are much more fragmentary. Through sampling of water and sediments along a dammed river between winter and summer, bacterial community were investigated using Illumina high-throughput sequencing. Core bacterial community, including Proteobacteria (55.29%), Firmicutes (25.29%), Bacteroidetes (17.22%), Verrucomicrobia (1.27%) and Gemmatimonadetes (0.93%), were maintained among water and sediments and between seasons. Mantel test showed the core bacterial community was less sensitive to environmental variable. However, a few of dominant microbe, such as class Alphaproteobacteria and family Sphingomonadaceae in core community were still tightly correlated with physiochemical properties according to correlation analysis. Physiochemical characteristics in water and sediment were mainly affected by season fluctuations. Changes in sediment texture has been attributed to the dam construction. This study suggests a potential to detect possible biological indicators of human and natural pressures in riverine system.
Determination of the elastic moduli of CVD graphene by probing graphene/polymer Bragg stacks
Authors: Liu Bohai , Pavlou Christos , Wang Zuyuan , Cang Yu , Galiotis Costas , Fytas George
Published: May 2021

Graphene has been widely used in the form of micro-flakes to fabricate composite materials with enhanced mechanical properties. Due to the small size of the inclusions and their random orientation within the matrix, the superior mechanical properties of graphene cannot be fully exploited. Recently, attempts have been made to fabricate nanolaminate composites by interleaving large sheets of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) monolayer graphene between thin layers of polymer matrices. However, CVD graphene is inevitably accompanied by wrinkles that are formed in the synthesis process, and it remains unknown how the wrinkles affect the mechanical properties of graphene. Here, we employ Brillouin light spectroscopy to study the elastic moduli of CVD graphene by probing graphene/poly(methylmethacrylate) hybrid Bragg stacks at zero strain. We find the Young’s and shear moduli of the CVD graphene, which has wrinkles in the form of sharp elevations with a height of about 6 nm and a fullwidth at half maximum (FWHM) of ca. 30 nm, to be 680 ± 16 and 290 ± 10 GPa, respectively, with the former being about 30% lower than that of exfoliated, flat graphene. This work sheds light on the elastic properties of CVD graphene and provides a method that can be extended to studying the wrinkle-induced softening effect in other two-dimensional materials.
Analysis of the density and distribution of entropy in biomedical infrared imaging for Diabetes Mellitus Type II
Authors: Ortiz-Sosa Rosalinda , Fuentes-Oliver Edgar Israel , García-Segundo Crescencio , Serrano-Loyola Raúl , Solalinde-Vargas Rebeca
Published: May 2021

We report a methodology to analyze data extracted from infrared images. These pictures show the lower limbs of a cohort of individuals belonging to, (1) voluntary controls and (2) patients diagnosed with diabetes mellitus type II. The analysis is presented in terms of Cross Entropy and temperature distributions; both using the associated thermal histograms. The temperature analysis is placed in terms of comparing the extreme values of dS/dQ, for controls and patients. In this analysis for the frontal view, the values of specificity and sensitivity calculated were 77.77% and 91.66%, respectively. For the back view, the specificity and sensitivity obtained were 88.8% and 83.3%, respectively. Instead of that, the cross-entropy analysis is placed in the modality of self-referencing. In this part of the study we obtained the coefficient of asymmetry and thermal response (ATR). The values of specificity and sensitivity for the ATR quotient in both cases were 83.3%. The results of both studies have a significant correlation with glucose (p < 0.01) and HbA1c (p < 0.01). It means that both approaches have statistical correspondence. By means of the Mann-Whitney U test, for independent samples, we get that the characteristic parameters we analyze can be differentiated among the populations of interest with a significance of p < 0.05. This suggests that both studies show consistency with the clinical diagnosis; exhibiting clear differences between control and patient groups.
Frailty is an outcome predictor in patients with acute ischemic stroke receiving endovascular treatment
Authors: Pinho João , Küppers Charlotte , Nikoubashman Omid , Wiesmann Martin , Schulz Jörg B , Reich Arno , Werner Cornelius J
Published: May 2021

Introduction

Frailty is a disorder of multiple physiological systems impairing the capacity of the organism to cope with insult or stress. It is associated with poor outcomes after acute illness. Our aim was to study the impact of frailty on the functional outcome of patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) submitted to endovascular stroke treatment (EST).

Methods

We performed a retrospective study of patients with AIS of the anterior circulation submitted to EST between 2012 and 2017, based on a prospectively collected local registry of consecutive patients. The Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS) at discharge was calculated for each patient. We compared groups of patients with and without favourable 3-month outcome after index AIS (modified Rankin Scale 0–2 and 3–6, respectively). A multivariable logistic regression model was used to identify variables independently associated with favourable 3-month outcome. Diagnostic test statistics were used to compare HFRS with other prognostic scores for AIS.

Results

We included 489 patients with median age 75.6 years (interquartile range [IQR] = 65.3–82.3) and median NIHSS 15 (IQR = 11–19). About 29.7% presented a high frailty risk (HFRS >15 points). Patients with favourable 3-month outcome presented lower HFRS and lower prevalence of high frailty risk. High frailty risk was independently associated with decreased likelihood of favourable 3-month outcome (adjusted odds ratio = 0.48, 95% confidence interval = 0.26–0.89). Diagnostic performances of HFRS and other prognostic scores (THRIVE and PRE scores, SPAN-100 index) for outcome at 3-months were similar.

Discussion

Frailty is an independent predictor of outcome in AIS patients submitted to EST.
NR4A3 Immunostain Is a Highly Sensitive and Specific Marker for Acinic Cell Carcinoma in Cytologic and Surgical Specimens
Authors: Viswanathan Kartik , Beg Shaham , He Bing , Zhang Taotao , Cantley Richard , Lubin Daniel J , Shi Qiuying , Maleki Zahra , Asiry Saeed , Rao Rema , Katabi Nora , Nakaguro Masato , Faquin William C , Sadow Peter M , Siddiqui Momin T , Scognamiglio Theresa
Published: May 2021

Objectives

Salivary gland acinic cell carcinoma (AciCC) has recognizable cytomorphologic features that can overlap with benign and malignant entities, creating a diagnostic challenge. AciCC harbors a t(4;9) translocation increasing nuclear receptor subfamily 4 group A member 3 (NR4A3) expression, detectable by immunohistochemistry (IHC) on surgical resection (SR). NR4A3 IHC cytology data are limited. Here, we examine NR4A3 IHC on smears, cell blocks (CBs), and SRs of AciCC and its mimickers.

Methods

Our cohort comprised AciCC (including high-grade transformation), secretory carcinoma, mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC), Warthin tumor, pleomorphic adenoma (PA), cellular PA, carcinoma ex-PA, oncocytic carcinoma, oncocytoma, and nodular oncocytosis. NR4A3 IHC (Santa Cruz Biotechnology and Origene antibodies) was positive if more than 5% tumor cells showed nuclear staining.

Results

Among CBs, 90% of AciCC cases and none of the mimickers expressed NR4A3. Among SRs, 100% of AciCC cases showed diffuse NR4A3, whereas one high-grade MEC expressed focal NR4A3. Concordance was 95% with two antibody clones. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were 90%, 100%, 100%, and 94.7% for CBs and 100%, 98.8%, 92.3%, and 100% for SRs, respectively. NR4A3 immunostaining was demonstrable on smears from an AciCC case.

Conclusions

NR4A3 IHC can be a robust diagnostic tool to identify AciCC, especially for cytology specimens.
A new thinking: extended application of genomic selection to screen multiomics data for development of novel hypoxia-immune biomarkers and target therapy of clear cell renal cell carcinoma
Authors: Gui Cheng-Peng , Wei Jin-Huan , Chen Yu-Hang , Fu Liang-Min , Tang Yi-Ming , Cao Jia-Zheng , Chen Wei , Luo Jun-Hang
Published: May 2021

Increasing evidences show the clinical significance of the interaction between hypoxia and immune in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) microenvironment. However, reliable prognostic signatures based on a combination of hypoxia and immune have not been well established. Moreover, many studies have only used RNA-seq profiles to screen the prognosis feature of ccRCC. Presently, there is no comprehensive analysis of multiomics data to mine a better one. Thus, we try and get it. First, t-SNE and ssGSEA analysis were used to establish tumor subtypes related to hypoxia-immune, and we investigated the hypoxia-immune–related differences in three types of genetic or epigenetic characteristics (gene expression profiles, somatic mutation, and DNA methylation) by analyzing the multiomics data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) portal. Additionally, a four-step strategy based on lasso regression and Cox regression was used to construct a satisfying prognostic model, with average 1-year, 3-year and 5-year areas under the curve (AUCs) equal to 0.806, 0.776 and 0.837. Comparing it with other nine known prognostic biomarkers and clinical prognostic scoring algorithms, the multiomics-based signature performs better. Then, we verified the gene expression differences in two external databases (ICGC and SYSU cohorts). Next, eight hub genes were singled out and seven hub genes were validated as prognostic genes in SYSU cohort. Furthermore, it was indicated high-risk patients have a better response for immunotherapy in immunophenoscore (IPS) analysis and TIDE algorithm. Meanwhile, estimated by GDSC and cMAP database, the high-risk patients showed sensitive responses to six chemotherapy drugs and six candidate small-molecule drugs. In summary, the signature can accurately predict the prognosis of ccRCC and may shed light on the development of novel hypoxia-immune biomarkers and target therapy of ccRCC.
Estimation of genetic correlation with summary association statistics
Authors: Wang Jianqiao , Li Hongzhe
Published: May 2021

Genome-wide association studies have identified thousands of genetic variants that are associated with complex traits. Many complex traits are shown to share genetic etiology. Although various genetic correlation measures and their estimators have been developed, rigorous statistical analysis of their properties, including their robustness to model assumptions, is still lacking. We develop a method of moments estimator of genetic correlation between two traits in the framework of high-dimensional linear models. We show that the genetic correlation defined based on the regression coefficients and the linkage disequilibrium matrix can be decomposed into both the pleiotropic effects and correlations due to linkage disequilibrium between the causal loci of the two traits. The proposed estimator can be computed from summary association statistics when the raw genotype data are not available. Theoretical properties of the estimator in terms of consistency and asymptotic normality are provided. The proposed estimator is closely related to the estimator from the linkage disequilibrium score regression. However, our analysis reveals that the linkage disequilibrium score regression method does not make full use of the linkage disequilibrium information, and its jackknife variance estimate can be biased when the model assumptions are violated. Simulations and real data analysis results show that the proposed estimator is more robust and has better interpretability than the linkage disequilibrium score regression method under different genetic architectures.
Positive Correlation Between Candida auris Skin-Colonization Burden and Environmental Contamination at a Ventilator-Capable Skilled Nursing Facility in Chicago
Authors: Sexton D Joseph , Bentz Meghan L , Welsh Rory M , Derado Gordana , Furin William , Rose Laura J , Noble-Wang Judith , Pacilli Massimo , McPherson Tristan D , Black Stephanie , Kemble Sarah K , Herzegh Owen , Ahmad Ausaf , Forsberg Kaitlin , Jackson Brendan , Litvintseva Anastasia P
Published: May 2021

Background

Candida auris is an emerging multidrug-resistant yeast that contaminates healthcare environments causing healthcare-associated outbreaks. The mechanisms facilitating contamination are not established.

Methods

C. auris was quantified in residents’ bilateral axillary/inguinal composite skin swabs and environmental samples during a point-prevalence survey at a ventilator-capable skilled-nursing facility (vSNF A) with documented high colonization prevalence. Environmental samples were collected from all doorknobs, windowsills and handrails of each bed in 12 rooms. C. auris concentrations were measured using culture and C. auris-specific quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) The relationship between C. auris concentrations in residents’ swabs and associated environmental samples were evaluated using Kendall’s tau-b (τ b) correlation coefficient.

Results

C. auris was detected in 70/100 tested environmental samples and 31/57 tested resident skin swabs. The mean C. auris concentration in skin swabs was 1.22 × 105 cells/mL by culture and 1.08 × 106 cells/mL by qPCR. C. auris was detected on all handrails of beds occupied by colonized residents, as well as 10/24 doorknobs and 9/12 windowsills. A positive correlation was identified between the concentrations of C. auris in skin swabs and associated handrail samples based on culture (τ b = 0.54, P = .0004) and qPCR (τ b = 0.66, P = 3.83e−6). Two uncolonized residents resided in beds contaminated with C. auris.

Conclusions

Colonized residents can have high C. auris burdens on their skin, which was positively related with contamination of their surrounding healthcare environment. These findings underscore the importance of hand hygiene, transmission-based precautions, and particularly environmental disinfection in preventing spread in healthcare facilities.
Influence of doctors’ perception on the diagnostic status of chronic kidney disease: results from 976 409 individuals with electronic health records in China
Authors: Wang Huai-Yu , Ding Guo-Hui , Lin Hongbo , Sun Xiaoyu , Yang Chao , Peng Suyuan , Wang Jinwei , Du Jian , Zhao Yu , Chen Zhengyue , Bao Beiyan , Kong Guilan , Zhang Luxia
Published: May 2021

Background

The diagnostic status of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and its underlying reasons provide evidence that can improve CKD management. However, the situation in developing countries remains under-investigated.

Methods

Adults with electronic health records (EHRs; 2008–19) in Yinzhou, China were included. The gold standard for CKD was defined as having persistently reduced estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), albuminuria/proteinuria, haematuria or a history of CKD. CKD stages (G1–G5) were defined by eGFR. Clinical diagnosis of CKD in the real world setting was evaluated using International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-10 codes related to primary cause or stages of CKD. The specialty of doctors who administered the serum creatinine (SCr) tests and who made the primary-cause/CKD-staging diagnoses was analysed. The accuracy of CKD-staging codes was assessed.

Results

Altogether, 85 519 CKD patients were identified from 976 409 individuals with EHRs. Of them, 10 287 (12.0%) having persistent urinary abnormalities or labelled with CKD-related ICD codes did not receive SCr tests within 12 months before or after the urine tests. Among 75 147 patients who received SCr tests, 46 150 (61.4%) missed any CKD-related codes, 6857 (35.7%) were merely labelled with primary-cause codes, and only 2140 (2.9%) were labelled with CKD-staging codes. The majority of CKD patients (51.6–91.1%) received SCr tests from non-nephrologists, whereas CKD-staging diagnoses were mainly from nephrologists (52.3–64.8%). Only 3 of 42 general hospitals had nephrologists. The CKD-staging codes had high specificity (>99.0%) but low sensitivity (G3–G4: <10.0%).

Conclusions

Under-perception of CKD among doctors, rather than unsatisfactory health-seeking behaviour or low detection rates, was the main cause of under-diagnosis of CKD in China. Intensification of CKD education among doctors with different specialties might bring about immediate effective improvement in the diagnosis and awareness of CKD.
Agent-Based Autonomic Semantic Context-Aware Platform for Smart Health Monitoring and Disease Detection
Authors: Alti Adel , Laouamer Lamri
Published: May 2021

Nowadays, mobile applications have been widely used in various health and social domains. While there are large number of smart devices that connect and transmit their context data in free manner, these mobile applications have limitations regarding the increasing number of heterogeneous context data sent by devices, conducting the problem of identifying user-centric situations and providing services in real-time. Many smart mobile health systems were proposed to ensure context-aware personal health monitoring and diseases detection, while most of them are failed to ensure a right level of dynamicity and enough flexibility for assisting users everywhere, anytime, through widespread sensors and mobile devices. In fact, it becomes necessary to rethink a new way to minimize the response time combining competitive agents with semantic-based situation reasoning strategy. In this paper, we introduce a novel agent-based platform with three-layered ontology for the semantic description and parallel management of services selection approach dedicated to context-aware health mobile applications. In addition, we propose an innovative parallel services discovery and optimal selection process, which involved a set of filtered and classified semantic health multipath according to user’s context and preferences with consistent mobility of users and limited resources (low battery, processing capabilities, memory and others). Experimental results show the effectiveness of the proposed approach as it includes the semantic service information on cooperative agents. In addition, the proposed approach ensures fast response time and prolongs the continuity of the mobile application.
Improved Meet-in-the-Middle Attacks on Reduced-Round Tweakable Block Cipher Deoxys-BC
Authors: Li Manman , Chen Shaozhen
Published: May 2021

Deoxys-BC is an internal tweakable block cipher of the authenticated encryption algorithm Deoxys, which is a third-round finalist in the CAESAR competition. In this paper, we study the property of Deoxys-BC, such as the subtweakey difference cancelation and the freedom of the tweak. Combining the differential enumeration technique with these properties, the authors achieve the key-recovery attacks on Deoxys-BC under the meet-in-the-middle attack. As a result, we get an attack on 9-round Deoxys-BC-128-128 by constructing a 6-round meet-in-the-middle distinguisher with $2^{113}$ plaintext–tweak combinations, $2^{97}$ Deoxys-BC blocks and $2^{121.6}$ 9-round Deoxys-BC-128-128 encryptions. We also present an attack on 11-round Deoxys-BC-256-128 for the first time by constructing a 7-round meet-in-the-middle distinguisher with $2^{113}$ plaintext-tweak combinations, $2^{226}$ Deoxys-BC blocks and $2^{251}$ 11-round Deoxys-BC-256-128 encryptions.
Synthetic control method with convex hull restrictions: a Bayesian maximum a posteriori approach
Authors: Goh Gyuhyeong , Yu Jisang
Published: May 2021

Synthetic control methods have gained popularity among causal studies with observational data, particularly when estimating the impacts of the interventions implemented to a small number of large units. The synthetic control methods face two major challenges: (a) estimating weights for each donor to create a synthetic control and (b) providing statistical inferences. To overcome these challenges, we propose a Bayesian framework that implements the synthetic control method with the parallelly shiftable convex hull and provides a Bayesian inference, which is from the duality between a penalised least squares approach and a Bayesian maximum a posteriori (MAP) approach. Our approach differs from the recent Bayesian approach, which allow violating the convex hull restriction and face the potential extrapolation bias. Simulation results indicate that the proposed method leads to smaller biases compared to alternatives. We revisit Abadie and Gardeazabal (2003) by applying our proposed method.
Predicting the Location of Maple Habitat Under Warming Scenarios in Two Regions at the Northern Range in Canada
Authors: Jain Pratiksha , Khare Siddhartha , Sylvain Jean-Daniel , Raymond Patricia , Rossi Sergio
Published: May 2021

Acer saccharum and Acer rubrum, two main maple species in North America, will be affected by ongoing global warming. Several studies predict a southern limit contraction but limited northward expansion of maple distribution for the future. We aimed to understand the main drivers of current maple distribution to quantify potential changes to maple habitat in this context. We identified the local conditions of maple stands and assessed the potential changes under warming scenarios. We selected two regions in Quebec, Canada, at the northern distribution of the species and applied probability distribution function and principal component analysis to identify the factors explaining the occurrence of maple compared with other forest species, croplands, and grasslands. Maple habitat was estimated under warming scenarios up to 2°C. We observed a lower density of maple stands in the north (7.76%), compared to the south (33.01%). Warming increased maple stands by 3.54 and 1.45% in the northernmost and southernmost regions, respectively, with the highest increases being estimated at the initial warming (+1.0°C). We conclude that maple of northern regions can benefit from local warming if precipitation does not become limiting. These changes could increase the potential for the regional maple industry and forest management.
Surgical treatment for a patient with immunoglobulin G4-related lung disease
Authors: Costa Rita , Maciel João , Fernandes Pedro , Pinho Paulo
Published: May 2021

Immunoglobulin G4-related disease (IgG4-RD) is an autoimmune fibroinflammatory disease, and isolated lung disease is a rare phenomenon. IgG4-RD frequently mimics primary pulmonary malignancy. It has been described in association with malignancies, including lung cancer, but it remains unclear if it increases the risk of malignancy. We report the case of a patient who had a left lower lobectomy after relapse while receiving corticotherapy. The pathological findings confirmed the diagnosis of IgG4-RD. After 2 months, the thoracic computerized tomography scan showed an important left pleural effusion that could be a consequence of the recent intervention or a relapse of IgG4-RD.
Rational Points on Solvable Curves over ℚ via Non-Abelian Chabauty
Authors: Ellenberg Jordan S , Hast Daniel Rayor
Published: May 2021

We study the Selmer varieties of smooth projective curves of genus at least two defined over $\mathbb{Q}$ which geometrically dominate a curve with CM Jacobian. We extend a result of Coates and Kim to show that Kim’s non-abelian Chabauty method applies to such a curve. By combining this with results of Bogomolov–Tschinkel and Poonen on unramified correspondences, we deduce that any cover of P$^1$ with solvable Galois group, and in particular any superelliptic curve over $\mathbb{Q}$, has only finitely many rational points over $\mathbb{Q}$.
The pharmacodynamics of minocycline alone and in combination with rifampicin against Staphylococcus aureus studied in an in vitro pharmacokinetic model of infection
Authors: Noel A R , Attwood M , Bowker K E , MacGowan A P
Published: May 2021

Background

Tetracyclines are widely used as oral therapy of MRSA infection, however, the pharmacodynamic underpinning is absent.

Objectives

We employed an in vitro pharmacokinetic model to study the pharmacodynamics of minocycline alone and in combination with rifampicin.

Methods

An exposure-ranging design was used to establish fAUC/MIC targets for static, −1 log drop and −2 log drop effects against Staphylococcus aureus for minocycline and in combination with rifampicin. We then simulated 7–10 day human dosing of minocycline and the combination.

Results

The minocycline fAUC/MIC for 24 h static effect and −1 log drop in bacterial load were 12.5 ± 7.1 and 23.3 ± 12.4. fAUC/MIC targets for static and −1 log drop were greater at 48 and 72 h. The addition of simulated free rifampicin associated with dosing 300 mg q12h reduced the 24 h minocycline fAUC/MICs. Simulations performed over 7–10 days exposure indicated that for minocycline standard human doses there was a 1–3 log reduction in viable count and no changes in population profiles. Addition of rifampicin resulted in larger reductions in staphylococcal load but emergence of resistance to rifampicin. There was no resistance to minocycline.

Conclusions

An fAUC/MIC minocycline target of 12–36 is appropriate for S. aureus. Addition of rifampicin decreases bacterial load but results in emergence of resistance to rifampicin. Unusually, there was no emergence of resistance to minocycline.
Redefining therapeutic success in HIV patients: an expert view
Authors: Antela Antonio , Rivero Antonio , Llibre Josep M , Moreno Santiago ,   the RET Group, Antela Antonio , Llibre Josep M , Moreno Santiago , Rivero Antonio , Alonso Montero Marta , Bernal Enrique , Ramos José Ramón Blanco , Castaño Manuel , Dalmau Juanola David , de la Fuente García Belén , Dueñas Carlos , Espinosa Nuria , Estrada Vicente , José Galindo Puerto María , García del Toro Miguel , González Juan , Górgolas Miguel , Hidalgo-Tenorio Carmen , Knobel Freu Hernando , Carlos López Bernaldo de Quirós Juan , Macías Sánchez Juan , Martín Ruíz Carlos , Martínez Chamorro Esteban , Masía Mar , Miguelez Máximo , Miralles Celia , Olalla Julián , Pascuet Esteban Ribera , Rodríguez-Vidigal Francisco , Rubio Rafael , Jesús Santos
Published: May 2021

Thanks to advances in the field over the years, HIV/AIDS has now become a manageable chronic condition. Nevertheless, a new set of HIV-associated complications has emerged, related in part to the accelerated ageing observed in people living with HIV/AIDS, the cumulative toxicities from exposure to antiretroviral drugs over decades and emerging comorbidities. As a result, HIV/AIDS can still have a negative impact on patients’ quality of life (QoL). In this scenario, it is reasonable to believe that the concept of therapeutic success, traditionally associated with CD4 cell count restoration and HIV RNA plasma viral load suppression and the absence of drug resistances, needs to be redefined to include other factors that reach beyond antiretroviral efficacy. With this in mind, a group of experts initiated and coordinated the RET Project, and this group, using the available evidence and their clinical experience in the field, has proposed new criteria to redefine treatment success in HIV, arranged into five main concepts: rapid initiation, efficacy, simplicity, safety, and QoL. An extensive review of the literature was performed for each category, and results were discussed by a total of 32 clinicians with experience in HIV/AIDS (4 coordinators + 28 additional experts). This article summarizes the conclusions of these experts and presents the most updated overview on the five topics, along with a discussion of the experts’ main concerns, conclusions and/or recommendations on the most controversial issues.
Seeking an optimal dosing regimen for OZ439/DSM265 combination therapy for treating uncomplicated falciparum malaria
Authors: Dini Saber , Zaloumis Sophie G. , Price David J. , Gobeau Nathalie , Kümmel Anne , Cherkaoui Mohammed , Moehrle Joerg J. , McCarthy James S. , Simpson Julie A.
Published: May 2021

Background

The efficacy of artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs), the first-line treatments for uncomplicated falciparum malaria, has been declining in malaria-endemic countries due to the emergence of malaria parasites resistant to these compounds. Novel alternative therapies are needed urgently to prevent the likely surge in morbidity and mortality due to failing ACTs.

Objectives

This study investigates the efficacy of the combination of two novel drugs, OZ439 and DSM265, using a biologically informed within-host mathematical model.

Methods

A within-host model was developed, which accounts for the differential killing of these compounds against different stages of the parasite’s life cycle and accommodates the pharmacodynamic interaction between the drugs. Data of healthy volunteers infected with falciparum malaria collected from four trials (three that administered OZ439 and DSM265 alone, and the fourth a combination of OZ439 and DSM265) were analysed. Model parameters were estimated in a hierarchical Bayesian framework.

Results

The posterior predictive simulations of our model predicted that 800 mg of OZ439 combined with 450 mg of DSM265, which are within the safe and tolerable dose range, can provide above 90% cure rates 42 days after drug administration.

Conclusions

Our results show that the combination of OZ439 and DSM265 can be a promising alternative to replace ACTs. Our model can be used to inform future Phase 2 and 3 clinical trials of OZ439/DSM265, fast-tracking the deployment of this combination therapy in the regions where ACTs are failing. The dosing regimens that are shown to be efficacious and within safe and tolerable limits are suggested for future investigations.
More than Just Contaminants: Frequency and Characterization of Polymicrobial Blood Cultures from a Central Clinical Microbiology Laboratory Serving a Large Healthcare System
Authors: Mitchell Kaitlin F , Yarbrough Melanie L , Burnham Carey-Ann D
Published: May 2021

Background

Polymicrobial blood stream infection is often considered uncommon, and corresponding cultures may be assumed to represent contamination. Here we characterized the prevalence and epidemiology of these cultures submitted to a central clinical microbiology laboratory.

Methods

Blood cultures from 2017 to 2018 (n = 104 547) were evaluated. Polymicrobial blood cultures were defined by the presence of more than one organism in a blood culture set (set = one aerobic and one anaerobic bottle). Data were stratified by patient location and characteristics of the microbiota detected.

Results

Of all blood culture sets, 14 600 (14.0%) were positive. Among these, 1651 sets (11.3% of positive cultures; 1.6% of total cultures) were polymicrobial. Most cultures (85.2%) grew two microorganisms; the greatest number of microorganisms in a culture was 6. The most common microorganism pairs were (a) two coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS), (b) Corynebacterium and CoNS, and (c) S. aureus and CoNS. Microorganisms in polymicrobial cultures represented microbiota from skin (46.1%), the gastrointestinal (GI) tract (33.9%), strict anaerobes (1.4%), and “other” microorganisms (18.6%). Most cultures with GI microbiota originated from an adult academic medical center compared to community or pediatric settings (40.5% of polymicrobial cultures vs 27.2% and 25.8%, P < 0.0001). Within the academic medical center, patients in an intensive care unit (ICU) or who had bone marrow transplants (BMT) had more cultures suggestive of GI microbiota compared to those from the emergency department (ED) (50.8% and 52.8% vs 31.2%, P < 0.0001).

Conclusions

Polymicrobial blood cultures are common in a variety of healthcare settings and the recovered microorganisms can be clinically relevant.
Identifying and prioritizing benefits and risks of using privacy-enhancing software through participatory design: a nominal group technique study with patients living with chronic conditions
Authors: Giannouchos Theodoros V , Ferdinand Alva O , Ilangovan Gurudev , Ragan Eric , Nowell W Benjamin , Kum Hye-Chung , Schmit Cason D
Published: May 2021

Objective

While patients often contribute data for research, they want researchers to protect their data. As part of a participatory design of privacy-enhancing software, this study explored patients’ perceptions of privacy protection in research using their healthcare data.

Materials and Methods

We conducted 4 focus groups with 27 patients on privacy-enhancing software using the nominal group technique. We provided participants with an open source software prototype to demonstrate privacy-enhancing features and elicit privacy concerns. Participants generated ideas on benefits, risks, and needed additional information. Following a thematic analysis of the results, we deployed an online questionnaire to identify consensus across all 4 groups. Participants were asked to rank-order benefits and risks. Themes around “needed additional information” were rated by perceived importance on a 5-point Likert scale.

Results

Participants considered “allowance for minimum disclosure” and “comprehensive privacy protection that is not currently available” as the most important benefits when using the privacy-enhancing prototype software. The most concerning perceived risks were “additional checks needed beyond the software to ensure privacy protection” and the “potential of misuse by authorized users.” Participants indicated a desire for additional information with 6 of the 11 themes receiving a median participant rating of “very necessary” and rated “information on the data custodian” as “essential.”

Conclusions

Patients recognize not only the benefits of privacy-enhancing software, but also inherent risks. Patients desire information about how their data are used and protected. Effective patient engagement, communication, and transparency in research may improve patients’ comfort levels, alleviate patients’ concerns, and thus promote ethical research.
Machine learning for initial insulin estimation in hospitalized patients
Authors: Nguyen Minh , Jankovic Ivana , Kalesinskas Laurynas , Baiocchi Michael , Chen Jonathan H
Published: May 2021

Objective

The study sought to determine whether machine learning can predict initial inpatient total daily dose (TDD) of insulin from electronic health records more accurately than existing guideline-based dosing recommendations.

Materials and Methods

Using electronic health records from a tertiary academic center between 2008 and 2020 of 16,848 inpatients receiving subcutaneous insulin who achieved target blood glucose control of 100-180 mg/dL on a calendar day, we trained an ensemble machine learning algorithm consisting of regularized regression, random forest, and gradient boosted tree models for 2-stage TDD prediction. We evaluated the ability to predict patients requiring more than 6 units TDD and their point-value TDDs to achieve target glucose control.

Results

The method achieves an area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve of 0.85 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.84-0.87) and area under the precision-recall curve of 0.65 (95% CI, 0.64-0.67) for classifying patients who require more than 6 units TDD. For patients requiring more than 6 units TDD, the mean absolute percent error in dose prediction based on standard clinical calculators using patient weight is in the range of 136%-329%, while the regression model based on weight improves to 60% (95% CI, 57%-63%), and the full ensemble model further improves to 51% (95% CI, 48%-54%).

Discussion

Owingto the narrow therapeutic window and wide individual variability, insulin dosing requires adaptive and predictive approaches that can be supported through data-driven analytic tools.

Conclusions

Machine learning approaches based on readily available electronic medical records can discriminate which inpatients will require more than 6 units TDD and estimate individual doses more accurately than standard guidelines and practices.
K Locus Effects in Gray Wolves: Experimental Assessment of TLR3 Signaling and the Gene Expression Response to Canine Distemper Virus
Authors: Johnston Rachel A , Rheinwald James G , vonHoldt Bridgett M , Stahler Daniel R , Lowry William , Tung Jenny , Wayne Robert K
Published: May 2021

In North American gray wolves, black coat color is dominantly inherited via a 3 base pair coding deletion in the canine beta defensin 3 (CBD103) gene. This 3 base pair deletion, called the KB allele, was introduced through hybridization with dogs and subsequently underwent a selective sweep that increased its frequency in wild wolves. Despite apparent positive selection, KBB wolves have lower fitness than wolves with the KyB genotype, even though the 2 genotypes show no observable differences in black coat color. Thus, the KB allele is thought to have pleiotropic effects on as-yet unknown phenotypes. Given the role of skin-expressed CBD103 in innate immunity, we hypothesized that the KB allele influences the keratinocyte gene expression response to TLR3 pathway stimulation and/or infection by canine distemper virus (CDV). To test this hypothesis, we developed a panel of primary epidermal keratinocyte cell cultures from 24 wild North American gray wolves of both Kyy and KyB genotypes. In addition, we generated an immortalized Kyy line and used CRISPR/Cas9 editing to produce a KyB line on the same genetic background. We assessed the transcriptome-wide responses of wolf keratinocytes to the TLR3 agonist polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (polyI:C), and to live CDV. K locus genotype did not predict the transcriptional response to either challenge, suggesting that variation in the gene expression response does not explain pleiotropic effects of the KB allele on fitness. This study supports the feasibility of using cell culture methods to investigate the phenotypic effects of naturally occurring genetic variation in wild mammals.