bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ethylene signaling in rice and Arabidopsis: New regulators and mechanisms
Authors: Zhao He , Yin Cui‐Cui , Ma Biao , Chen Shou‐Yi , Zhang Jin‐Song
Published: October 2020

Ethylene is a gaseous hormone which plays important roles in both plant growth and development and stress responses. Based on studies in the dicot model plant species Arabidopsis, a linear ethylene signaling pathway has been established, according to which ethylene is perceived by ethylene receptors and transduced through CONSTITUTIVE TRIPLE RESPONSE 1 (CTR1) and ETHYLENE‐INSENSITIVE 2 (EIN2) to activate transcriptional reprogramming. In addition to this canonical signaling pathway, an alternative ethylene receptor‐mediated phosphor‐relay pathway has also been proposed to participate in ethylene signaling. In contrast to Arabidopsis, rice, a monocot, grows in semiaquatic environments and has a distinct plant structure. Several novel regulators and/or mechanisms of the rice ethylene signaling pathway have recently been identified, indicating that the ethylene signaling pathway in rice has its own unique features. In this review, we summarize the latest progress and compare the conserved and divergent aspects of the ethylene signaling pathway between Arabidopsis and rice. The crosstalk between ethylene and other plant hormones is also reviewed. Finally, we discuss how ethylene regulates plant growth, stress responses and agronomic traits. These analyses should help expand our knowledge of the ethylene signaling mechanism and could further be applied for agricultural purposes.
Jasminum chiae sp. nov. (Oleaceae), from a tropical limestone area in Yunnan, China
Authors: Zhang Kai , Wu Mingsong , Qian Xin , Zhang Dianxiang
Published: October 2020

Jasminum chiae (Oleaceae), a new species from tropical limestone mountains in Cangyuan County, Yunnan Province, China is described here. This new species is similar to J. longitubum, but differs in having 5–8 pairs of lateral veins, abaxially conspicuous quaternary veins of leaf blade when dry, subulate‐filiform bracts at base of inflorescence, and larger inflorescences. Besides it also resembles J. adenophyllum and J. kaulbackii, but is distinguished by its subcordate or rounded laminar base, abaxially conspicuous quaternary veins of leaf blade when dry, and shorter calyx lobes.
Primula gracilituba (Primulaceae), a new species from northern Vietnam
Authors: Nuraliev Maxim S. , Kuznetsov Andrey N. , Kuznetsova Svetlana P. , Hu Chi‐Ming
Published: October 2020

Primula gracilituba sp. nov. (Primulaceae) collected from montane forest of Bat Xat Nature Reserve in Lao Cai Province of northwestern Vietnam is described and illustrated. The distinguishing characters from the respectively nearest relatives are discussed.
Positive indirect effects of top‐predators on the behaviour and survival of juvenile fishes
Authors: Palacios Maria del Mar , McCormick Mark I.
Published: October 2020

Top‐predators can suppress mesopredator behaviour through risk effects. However, there is limited understanding of whether such behavioural suppression can dampen the lethal and sub‐lethal effects of mesopredators on bottom level prey. Here, we document a field experiment that examines whether the presence of top‐predator cues (visual and chemical stimuli from a coral trout) can cascade to indirectly influence the behaviour and survival of juvenile fish prey of different species (Pomacentrus amboinensis and P. chrysurus) and size (small = 1.18 cm SL versus large = 1.32 cm SL). Results showed that habitat patches exposed to top‐predator cues received fewer visits and foraging attacks from mesopredators, leading to higher space use (~ 46%), feeding rate (~ 95%) and survival (~ 67%) from juvenile fish prey. Survival was always higher for individuals of P. amboinensis and of large‐size, independent of the presence or absence of top‐predator cues. Our data indicate that predation risk from the top‐predator indirectly favoured the persistence and behaviour of juvenile fishes by promoting risk‐averse behavioural responses in mesopredators. This study underscores the behavioural mechanisms by which risk effects can cascade through the food web and highlights the consequences that harvesting top‐predators may have on the replenishment of bottom prey populations.
Reduction of Blood Loss by Intra‐articular Injection of Tranexamic Acid Combined with Knee and Hip Flexion at 45° During Primary Total Knee Arthroplasty: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Yang Jian‐qi , Yang Lin , Tan Jian‐shao , Huo Kun‐ping , Zhao Liang , Cai Dao‐zhang
Published: October 2020

Objective

To explore the hemostatic effect of intra‐articular administration of tranexamic acid (TXA) combined with knee flexion in total knee arthroplasty (TKA).

Methods

This randomized controlled trial was conducted at the Third Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University (Guangzhou, China) from January 2017 to February 2018. The patients were randomized 1:1 to the TXA group (TXA 500 mg into the joint after closure, knee, and hip flexed at 45° for 4 h) or the control group (physiological saline, with limb fully extended). The primary endpoint was postoperative hemoglobin reduction. The postoperative levels of hemoglobin were measured at four time points: 6 h after operation, and on the first, second, and third postoperative days. Calculated blood loss (CBL) at 3 days, transfusion rate, range of motion (ROM), VAS pain score, and knee circumference increment were the secondary endpoints. Ninety‐four (47/group) patients were analyzed.

Results

Postoperatively, there were statistically significant differences between the TXA and control groups in CBL (791 ± 212 mL vs 1175 ± 273 mL, P < 0.05). Hemoglobin reduction was significantly lower in the TXA group (2.0 ± 0.9 g/dL vs 4.5 ± 0.7 g/dL, P < 0.05). Based on the transfusion criteria, 3 out of 47 (6.4%) patients in the TXA group and 13 out of 47 (27.6%) patients in the control group received blood transfusions (P = 0.006). ROM (90.8° ± 6.2° vs 87.6° ± 6.4°, P = 0.004), VAS pain score (4.1 ± 1.1 vs 4.8 ± 1.3, P = 0.004), and KCI (2.4 ± 0.9 cm vs 3.2 ± 1.0 cm, P = 0.01) were better in the TXA group compared with thecontrols. There was no deep venous thrombosis (DVT), wound infection or other adverse events in either group. In the control group, 2 patients had a fever after blood transfusion.

Conclusion

Intra‐articular injection of TXA combined with knee and hip flexion at 45° can effectively attenuate CBL and hemoglobin reduction during primary TKA, without an additional adverse event.
Chitosan primes plant defence mechanisms against Botrytis cinerea, including expression of Avr9/Cf‐9 rapidly elicited genes
Authors: De Vega Daniel , Holden Nicola , Hedley Pete E , Morris Jenny , Luna Estrella , Newton Adrian
Published: October 2020

Current crop protection strategies against the fungal pathogen Botrytis cinerea rely on a combination of conventional fungicides and host genetic resistance. However, due to pathogen evolution and legislation in the use of fungicides, these strategies are not sufficient to protect plants against this pathogen. Defence elicitors can stimulate plant defence mechanisms through a phenomenon known as defence priming. Priming results in a faster and/or stronger expression of resistance upon pathogen recognition by the host. This work aims to study defence priming by a commercial formulation of the elicitor chitosan. Treatments with chitosan result in induced resistance (IR) in solanaceous and brassicaceous plants. In tomato plants, enhanced resistance has been linked with priming of callose deposition and accumulation of the plant hormone jasmonic acid (JA). Large‐scale transcriptomic analysis revealed that chitosan primes gene expression at early time‐points after infection. In addition, two novel tomato genes with a characteristic priming profile were identified, Avr9/Cf‐9 rapidly elicited protein 75 (ACRE75) and 180 (ACRE180). Transient and stable over‐expression of ACRE75, ACRE180 and their Nicotiana benthamiana homologs, revealed that they are positive regulators of plant resistance against B. cinerea. This provides valuable information in the search for strategies to protect Solanaceae plants against B. cinerea.
My fault or yours? Leaders’ dual reactions to abusive supervision via rumination depend on their independent self‐construal
Authors: Deng Hong , Lam Catherine K. , Guan Yanjun , Wang Mo
Published: October 2020

In this research, we propose a novel goal‐failure perspective based on cognitive theories of rumination to examine how leaders react to their own abusive supervision in distinct ways. Findings from two multi‐wave, multisource field studies conducted with organizational leaders and an online experiment support hypotheses that leaders ruminate on their abusive behavior and this rumination triggers reconciliation efforts (a problem‐solving reaction) or the blaming of victims (a self‐serving reaction). In line with cognitive theories of rumination, leaders’ independent self‐construal functions as a key qualifier for the effects of rumination, such that when they ruminate, leaders who have low levels of independent self‐construal are more likely to seek reconciliation, whereas leaders who have high levels of independent self‐construal are more likely to blame their victims. Furthermore, reconciliation is not significantly related to subordinates’ evaluation of their leaders’ effectiveness but blaming is negatively related to it. These findings are an important extension of nascent perpetrator‐centric research regarding abusive supervision.
Stability Studies of New Caged bis‐deoxy‐coelenterazine Derivatives and Their Potential Use as Cellular pH Probes
Authors: Giuliani Germano , Merolla Assunta , Paolino Marco , Reale Annalisa , Saletti Mario , Blancafort Lluís , Cappelli Andrea , Benfenati Fabio , Cesca Fabrizia
Published: October 2020

The synthesis of new bis‐deoxy‐coelenterazine (1) derivatives bearing ester protective groups (acetate, propionate and butyrate esters) was accomplished. Moreover, their hydrolytic stability at room temperature was evaluated in dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) as solvent, using the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra of the key products at different time intervals. The results showed an increasing hydrolysis rate according to longest aliphatic chain, with a half‐life of 24 days of the more stable acetate derivative (4a). Furthermore, the analysis of the experimental data revealed the greater stability of the enol tautomer in this aprotic polar solvent. This result was confirmed by theoretical calculations using the density functional theory (DFT) approach, which gave us the opportunity to propose a detailed decomposition mechanism. Additionally, the derivatives obtained were tested by bioluminescence luciferase assays to evaluate their potential use as extracellular pH‐sensitive reporter substrates of luciferase. The biological data support the idea that further structural modifications of these molecules may open promising perspectives in this field of research.
Methods for evaluating penetration of drug into the skin: A review
Authors: Supe Shibani , Takudage Pooja
Published: October 2020

Background

Skin being the largest organ of the human body plays a very important role in the permeation and penetration of the drug. In addition, the transdermal drug delivery system (TDDS) plays a major role in managing dermal infections and attaining sustained plasma drug concentration. Thus, evaluation of percutaneous penetration of the drug through the skin is important in developing TDDS for human use.

Material and methods

Various techniques are used for getting the desired drug penetration, permeation, and absorption through the skin in managing these dermal disorders. The development of novel pharmaceutical dosage forms for dermal use is much explored in the current era. However, it is very important to evaluate these methods to determine the bioequivalence and risk of these topically applied drugs, which ultimately penetrate and are absorbed through the skin.

Results

Currently, numerous skin permeation models are being developed and persuasively used in studying dermatopharmacokinetic (DPK) profile and various models have been developed, to evaluate the TDD which include ex vivo human skin, ex vivo animal skin, and artificial or reconstructed skin models.

Conclusion

This review discusses the general physiology of the skin, the physiochemical characteristics affecting particle penetration, understand the models used for human skin permeation studies and understanding their advantages, and disadvantages.
Microvascular effects of microneedles with subsequent histamin application in the skin prick test
Authors: Hackethal Johannes
Published: October 2020

Background

Since decades, histamin applications are routinely performed in skin prick tests using a lancet. However, this technique is associated with various drawbacks.

Materials and Methods

In healthy human subjects, we investigated the effects of microneedle‐enhanced histamin delivery (wheal size, erythema size) in the skin microvasculature using polarized light spectroscopy imaging (Tissue Viability imaging, TiVi). Histamin was applied on microneedle‐pretreated skin or on ‐untreated skin, to assess the microvascular response in the local skin.

Results

In our results, histamin was delivered more rapidly into the skin after microneedle pretreatment compared to passive diffusion, visible as wheal and erythema.

Conclusion

The here presented technique might be useful for a personalized drug‐testing system in the future.
The Sustainability of Public Finances in Spain
Authors: Garcia Manuel Jaen
Published: October 2020

Concern regarding deficits in the public accounts in Europe and the United States has led politicians and researchers to consider sustainability of fiscal policy understood as the fulfillment of the intertemporal budget constraint established by the government which indicates the extent to which accumulated and future debt can be paid for by means of current and future taxes, and also cover standard public expenditures.The present article analyzes the sustainability of the national deficit in Spain for the period 1960-2016 by considering public revenue and spending in both real terms and percentages of gross domestic product using data from diverse Spanish sources. It utilizes the equations formulated by Quintos and adapts them when using variables as percentages of gross domestic product. This work concludes that Spanish debt is barely sustainable, which implies the need to instate fiscal reforms or, at least, make an effort towards consolidation.This result is accord with the situation of Spanish debt and deficit in the period after the crisis of 2008.
Optical measurement of physiological sodium currents in the axon initial segment
Authors: Filipis Luiza , Canepari Marco
Published: October 2020

Key points

Τhe axonal Na+ fluorescence underlying an action potential in the axon initial segment was optically measured at unprecedented temporal resolution.

The measurement allowed resolution of the kinetics of the Na+ current at different axonal locations.

The distinct components of the Na+ current were correlated with the kinetics of the action potential.

NEURON simulations from a modified published model qualitatively predicted the experimentally measured Na+ current.

The present method permits the direct investigation of the kinetic behaviour of native Na+ channels under physiological and pathological conditions.

In most neurons of the mammalian central nervous system, the action potential (AP) is generated in the axon initial segment (AIS) by a fast Na+ current mediated by voltage‐gated Na+ channels. While the axonal Na+ signal associated with the AP has been measured using fluorescent Na+ indicators, the insufficient resolution of these recordings has not allowed tracking the Na+ current kinetics underlying this fundamental event. In this article, we report the first optical measurement of Na+ currents in the AIS of pyramidal neurons of layer 5 of the somatosensory cortex from brain slices of the mouse. This measurement was obtained by achieving a temporal resolution of 100 μs in the Na+ imaging technique, with a pixel resolution of 0.5 μm, and by calculating the time‐derivative of the Na+ change corrected for longitudinal diffusion. We identified a subthreshold current before the AP, a fast‐inactivating current peaking during the rise of the AP and a non‐inactivating current during the AP repolarization. We established a correlation between the kinetics of the non‐inactivating current at different distances from the soma and the kinetics of the somatic AP. We quantitatively compared the experimentally measured Na+ current with the current obtained by computer simulation of published NEURON models, demonstrating how the present approach can lead to the correct estimate of the native behaviour of Na+ channels. Finally, we discuss how the present approach can be used to investigate the physiological or pathological function of different channel types during AP initiation and propagation.
Cymbopogon citratus essential oil-induced ultrastructural & morphological changes in the midgut, cuticle & Haller’s organ of the tick Haemaphysalis longicornis (Acari: Ixodidae)

Authors: Agwunobi Desmond O. , Hu Yuhong , Yu Zhijun , Liu Jingze
Published: October 2020

Haemaphysalis longicornis Neumann is a widely distributed species known for its capacity to transmit pathogens of medical, public health, and veterinary importance. Due to the environmental contamination caused by synthetic acaricides, plant essential oils have emerged as a promising alternative to manage tick infestation. This study evaluated the ultrastructural and morphological changes induced by Cymbopogon citratus Stapf (lemongrass) essential oil on adult H. longicornis tick. The concentrations of lemongrass essential oil used for the treatment via the adult immersion test were from 10 to 40 mg/mL. The most significant alterations 24 h post-exposure include the proliferation of lysosomes, reduction in the number of the rough endoplasmic reticulum, disorganization of the microvilli, the disappearance of lipid droplets and hematin granules, and cytoplasmic vacuolization (midgut); a thinner endocuticle and epicuticle, the deletion of the subdivision’s demarcation of the procuticle, disfiguration of the lamellar arrangements of the exocuticle, and cytoplasmic vacuolization of the epithelial cells (integument); cracks on the sensilla sockets, the detachment of one or two sensilla in the anterior pit, and partial disfiguration of part of the slit’s edge (Haller’s organ). These results reflect the acaricidal properties of the essential oil and could be an alternative means of tick control.
An alpha diversity survey of Heterostigmatic mites (Trombidiformes, Prostigmata) phoretic on scarabaeoid beetles in Hyrcani forest, northern Iran

Authors: Rahiminejad Vahid , Hajiqanbar Hamidreza , Talebi Ali Asghar
Published: October 2020

Complicated ecological interactions among numerous species could drive ecosystems towards more stability. Scarabaeoid beetles render a profound contribution to ecological processes through establishing symbiotic relationships with a variety of fungivorous mites. Such interactions with mites play important roles in forest conservation and biodiversity. In this study, we aimed to peruse the scarabaeoid-mite associations by alpha diversity tools. We investigated species diversity, richness and host range of heterostigmatic mites (Trombidiformes: Prostigmata) associated with scarabaeoid beetles. A total of 1113 individual mites belonging to 20 species were recorded from 870 adult individuals of Scarabaeidae (six species), 540 Lucanidae (two species) and 360 Geotrupidae (one species). Attachment site of the mites on the hosts were examined and discussed; that indicated they have most and least safety status on Lucanidae and Scarabaeidae, respectively. Spatulaphorus gorganica (Pygmephoridae) was the most frequent mite species, and Premicrodispus spinosus, P. brevisetus and Paramicrodispus scarabidophilus (Microdispidae) relatively common, whereas the other mites occurred occasionally. The host family Scarabaeidae showed to be more diverse than two other families, associated with highest number of mite species. The results of phoresy and host-range of heterostigmatic mites have been discussed.
Effect of speech volume on respiratory emission of oral bacteria as a potential indicator of pathogen transmissibility risk
Authors: Patel Riyakumari K. , Shackelford Isis A. , Priddy Mariah C. , Kopechek Jonathan A.
Published: October 2020

Respiratory droplets emitted during speech can transmit oral bacteria and infectious viruses to others, including COVID-19. Loud speech can generate significantly higher numbers of potentially infectious respiratory droplets. This study assessed the effect of speech volume on respiratory emission of oral bacteria as an indicator of potential pathogen transmission risk. Loud speech (average 83 dBA, peak 94 dBA) caused significantly higher emission of oral bacteria (p = 0.004 compared to no speech) within 1 ft from the speaker. N99 respirators and simple cloth masks both significantly reduced emission of oral bacteria. This study demonstrates that loud speech without face coverings increases emission of respiratory droplets that carry oral bacteria and may also carry other pathogens such as COVID-19.
Unique Properties of the Alpha-Helical DNA-Binding Protein KfrA Encoded by the IncU Incompatibility Group Plasmid RA3 and Its Host-Dependent Role in Plasmid Maintenance
Authors: Lewicka Ewa , Mitura Monika , Steczkiewicz Kamil , Kieracinska Justyna , Skrzynska Kamila , Adamczyk Malgorzata , Jagura-Burdzy Grazyna
Published: October 2020

Alpha-helical coiled-coil KfrA-type proteins are encoded by various broad-host-range low-copy-number conjugative plasmids. The DNA-binding protein KfrA encoded on the RA3 plasmid, a member of the IncU incompatibility group, oligomerizes, forms a complex with another plasmid-encoded, alpha-helical protein, KfrC, and interacts with the segrosome proteins IncC and KorB. The unique mode of KfrA dimer binding to the repetitive operator is required for a KfrA role in the stable maintenance of RA3 plasmid in distinct hosts.
Evaluation of the Biotoxis qPCR Detection Kit for Francisella tularensis Detection in Clinical and Environmental Samples
Authors: Hennebique Aurélie , Gas Fabienne , Batina Hélène , De Araujo Cécilia , Bizet Karine , Maurin Max
Published: October 2020

Rapid and reliable detection and identification of
Francisella tularensis
(a tier 1 select agent) are of primary interest for both medical and biological threat surveillance purposes. The Biotoxis qPCR detection kit is a real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay designed for the detection of
Bacillus anthracis
,
Yersinia pestis
, and
F. tularensis
in environmental or biological samples. Here, we evaluated its performance for detecting
F. tularensis
in comparison to previously validated qPCR assays.
One-year outcomes of stand-alone ab externo SIBS microshunt implantation in refractory glaucoma
Authors: Durr Georges M , Schlenker Matthew B , Samet Saba , Ahmed Iqbal Ike K
Published: October 2020

Background/Aims

Determine the efficacy of stand-alone implantation of the ab externo SIBS or poly(styrene-block-isobutylene-block-styrene) microshunt with mitomycin C in glaucomatous eyes, refractory to previous subconjunctival filtering surgery, over 1 year of follow-up.

Methods

Consecutive retrospective cohort of patients with intraocular pressure (IOP) above target and previous subconjunctival filtering surgery, who received the microshunt between July 2015 and April 2019. Primary outcome was a complete success, with failure defined as IOP <6 mm Hg with vision loss, >17 mm Hg or <20% reduction in IOP without medications. Secondary outcomes included thresholds of 6 to 14 mm Hg and 6 to 21 mm Hg for both complete (no medications) and qualified (with medications) success as well as qualified success for thresholds of 6 to 17 mm Hg. Risk factors for failure, IOP, medications and complications were also assessed.

Results

85 eyes of 79 patients with a preoperative median IOP of 22.0 mm Hg (IQR 18.0–29.0) on four (IQR 3–4) medications were included. Postoperative median IOP was 13.0 mm Hg (IQR 10.0–17.0) on zero (IQR 0–2) medication at 1 year. 61.0% achieved complete success and 79.7% achieved qualified success. Mild-to-moderate disease was associated with failure (adjusted HR 2.37; 95% CI 1.23 to 4.59). Needling was performed in 11.8%, and 8.2% underwent anterior chamber reformation. Complications were transient, consisting of hyphaema, choroidal detachment and hypotony maculopathy, with 7.1% of patients undergoing reoperation.

Conclusions

In a group of high-risk eyes that had already failed at least one subconjunctival filtering surgery, the SIBS microshunt demonstrates reasonable surgical success over 1-year follow-up, with relatively few complications.
BET 1: Can acute shoulder dislocations be reduced using intra-articular local anaesthetic infiltration as an alternative to intravenous analgesia with or without sedation?
Authors: Penn Dr Michael , Williams Owen
Published: October 2020

A short cut review was carried out to establish whether intra-articular injection of local anaesthetic is an effective alternative to intravenous analgesia with or without sedation to facilitate reduction of acute shoulder dislocations. Eleven studies were considered relevant to the question. The author, date and country of publication, patient group studied, study type, relevant outcomes, results and study weaknesses of these studies are tabulated. The clinical bottom line is that intra-articular injection of local anaesthetic is a safe and effective method of providing procedural analgesia for the reduction of acute shoulder dislocations.
Consent and living organ donation
Authors: Kiener Maximilian
Published: October 2020

This paper focuses on voluntary consent in the context of living organ donation. Arguing against three dominant views, I claim that voluntariness must not be equated with willingness, that voluntariness does not require the exercise of relational moral agency, and that, in cases of third-party pressure, voluntariness critically depends on the role of the surgeon and the medical team, and not just on the pressure from other people. I therefore argue that an adequate account of voluntary consent cannot understand voluntariness as a purely psychological concept, that it has to be consistent with people pursuing various different conceptions of the good and that it needs to make the interaction between the person giving consent and the person (or people) receiving consent central to its approach.
Introduction of standardised packaging and availability of illicit cigarettes: a difference-in-difference analysis of European Union survey data 2015–2018
Authors: Laverty Anthony A , Millett Christopher , Hopkinson Nicholas S , Filippidis Filippos T
Published: October 2020

Standardised packaging of tobacco products is intended to reduce the appeal of smoking, but the tobacco industry claims this increases illicit trade. We examined the percentage of people reporting being offered illicit cigarettes before and after full implementation of standardised packaging in the UK, Ireland and France and compared this to other European Union countries. Reported ever illicit cigarette exposure fell from 19.8% to 18.1% between 2015 and 2018 in the three countries fully implementing the policy, and from 19.6% to 17.0% in control countries (p for difference=0.320). Standardised packaging does not appear to increase the availability of illicit cigarettes.
Women and men with coronary heart disease respond similarly to different aerobic exercise training modalities: a pooled analysis of prospective randomized trials
Authors: Trachsel Lukas-Daniel , Boidin Maxime , Henri Christine , Fortier Annik , Lalongé Julie , Juneau Martin , Nigam Anil , Gayda Mathieu
Published: October 2020

We aimed to compare cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET) parameters, cardiac adaptations, and proportion of responders after different aerobic training programs amongst women and men with coronary heart disease (CHD). Patients with CHD were evaluated with a CPET and echocardiography before and after 3 months of aerobic exercise training. Peak oxygen uptake exercise training response was assessed according to the median peak oxygen uptake change for post- versus pretraining in the whole cohort (stratification non/low responders (NLR) vs. high-responders) and normalized for lean body mass (LBM). Eighty-three CHD patients were included (19 women, 64 men; 27 patients with interval, 19 with continuous, and 37 with combination exercises). Peak oxygen uptake, peak workload normalized for LBM, pulmonary variables (i.e., ventilation and oxygen uptake efficiency slope), and O2 pulse were significantly lower in women versus men. These parameters improved similarly with training in both sexes (p < 0.05). There were no differences in the proportion of NLR among women and men with CHD (7/19 (37%) vs. 35/64 (55%), p = 0.1719). Left ventricular ejection fraction and mean peak early diastolic mitral annulus velocity improved similarly with training in both sexes (p < 0.05). Women and men with CHD have a similar exercise training response regarding key CPET and echocardiographic parameters. The proportion of responders is similar. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT03414996, NCT02048696, NCT03443193.

Novelty: Cardiopulmonary adaptations to exercise training are similar among CHD men and women. Proportion of peak oxygen uptake for non/low/high responders is similar in CHD men and women. Left ventricular systolic and diastolic function improved similarly after exercise training in CHD men and women.
Upper-bound analysis of laterally loaded rigid monopiles in clay with linearly increasing strength
Authors: Yu Jian , Wang Hongyu , Huang Maosong , Leung Chun Fai
Published: October 2020

Monopiles supporting offshore wind farms are often subject to severe lateral environmental loads due to wind, waves, and currents. Previous studies have reported various failure patterns for such rigid monopiles in clay; hence predicting lateral pile capacity of widely different magnitudes. In this study, both a single-sided wedge failure mechanism involving passive soil failure only and a two-sided wedge failure mechanism with simultaneous active and passive soil failures are proposed. The single wedge mechanism is found to be applicable if the soil behind the pile does not move together with the pile, resulting in a gap between the soil and the pile upon loading. In contrast, the two-sided wedge is found appropriate for the soil behind the pile that moves together with the pile upon loading. Two formulations are then derived from the two upper-bound failure mechanisms. The lateral pile capacity can be determined and the corresponding failure mechanism identified based on the formulation that yields the lower capacity magnitude. In addition, the reliability of the formulations is verified against reported finite element methods as well as existing experimental and field test results.
Proposed measurement of simultaneous particle and wave properties of electric current in a superconductor
Authors: Nikolić Hrvoje , Atelj Josip
Published: October 2020

In a microscopic quantum system one cannot perform a simultaneous measurement of particle and wave properties. This, however, may not be true for macroscopic quantum systems. As a demonstration, we propose to measure the local macroscopic current passed through two slits in a superconductor. According to the theory based on the linearized Ginzburg–Landau equation for the macroscopic pseudo wave function, the streamlines of the measured current should have the same form as particle trajectories in the Bohmian interpretation of quantum mechanics. By an explicit computation we find that the streamlines should show a characteristic wiggling, which is a consequence of quantum interference.
Leakage-Aware Dynamic Thermal Management of 3D Memories
Authors: Siddhu Lokesh , Kedia Rajesh , Panda Preeti Ranjan
Published: October 2020

3D memory systems offer several advantages in terms of area, bandwidth, and energy efficiency. However, thermal issues arising out of higher power densities have limited their widespread use. While prior works have looked at reducing dynamic power through reduced memory accesses, in these memories, both leakage and dynamic power consumption are comparable. Furthermore, as the temperature rises, the leakage power increases, creating a thermal-leakage loop. We study the impact of leakage power on 3D memory temperature and propose turning OFF specific memory channels to meet thermal constraints. Data is migrated to a 2D memory before closing a 3D channel. We introduce an analytical model to assess the 2D memory delay and use the model to guide data migration decisions. The above strategy is referred to asFastCooland provides an improvement of 22%, 19%, and 32% on average (up to 57%, 72%, and 82%) in performance, memory energy, and energy-delay product (EDP), respectively, on different workloads consisting of SPEC CPU2006 benchmarks.

We further propose a thermal management strategy namedEnergy-Efficient FastCool (EEFC), which improves upon FastCool by selecting the channels to be closed by considering temperature, leakage, access rate, and position of various 3D memory channels at runtime. Our experiments demonstrate that EEFC leads to an additional improvement of up to 30%, 30%, and 51% in performance, memory energy, and EDP compared to FastCool. Finally, we analyze the effects of process variations on the efficiency of the proposed FC and EEFC strategies. Variation in the manufacturing process causes changes in the leakage power and temperature profile. Since EEFC considers both while selecting channels for closure, it is more resilient to process variations and achieves a lower application execution time and memory energy compared to FastCool.
Mechanism of Electrochemical Oxidation of Nitroxide Radicals in Ethaline Deep Eutectic Solvent
Authors: Shaheen Nora A. , Ijjada Mahesh , Vukmirovic Miomir B. , Akolkar Rohan
Published: October 2020

Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) are emerging as promising electrolytes for electrochemical energy storage applications. Electroactive nitroxide-radical-containing organics can be dissolved in DESs to facilitate redox reactions; however, mechanistic know-how of their charge transfer kinetics at the electrode surface is rather limited. Here, we investigate the mechanism underlying the electrochemical oxidation of 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl (TEMPO) and 4-hydroxy-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl (4-hydroxy-TEMPO). Using polarization measurements on a platinum rotating disk electrode and micro-electrode, we show that the anodic charge transfer coefficient (

α

) for one-electron transfer oxidations of TEMPO and 4-hydroxy-TEMPO approaches 0.9 in DES as well as in aqueous electrolytes, i.e., a significant deviation from α ≈ 0.5 expected for symmetric redox behavior. To explain this observation, a two-step oxidation mechanism is proposed wherein the nitroxide-containing species undergo fast charge transfer at an electrode surface followed by slow rate-limiting desorption of the adsorbed oxidized species. Numerical simulations are reported to characterize how the proposed two-step mechanism manifests in transient cyclic voltammetry behavior of the 4-hydroxy-TEMPO oxidation reaction, and good agreement with experiments is noted.
Sex differences in the time course and mechanisms of vascular and cardiac aging in mice: role of the smooth muscle cell mineralocorticoid receptor
Authors: DuPont Jennifer J. , Kim Seung Kyum , Kenney Rachel M. , Jaffe Iris Z.
Published: October 2020

These data demonstrate that the delayed and steeper decline in cardiovascular function observed in aging females can be modeled in aging mice. Moreover, the mechanisms driving vascular and cardiac aging phenotypes are distinct between males and females. Mineralocorticoid receptors in smooth muscle cells play a significant role in cardiovascular aging in both sexes; however, they do so by distinct mechanisms. Overall, these findings suggest that sex-specific therapies may be necessary to retard the aging process and improve cardiovascular disease outcomes in the aging population.
Implementation of convolutional neural network approach for COVID-19 disease detection
Authors: Irmak Emrah
Published: October 2020

In this paper, two novel, powerful, and robust convolutional neural network (CNN) architectures are designed and proposed for two different classification tasks using publicly available data sets. The first architecture is able to decide whether a given chest X-ray image of a patient contains COVID-19 or not with 98.92% average accuracy. The second CNN architecture is able to divide a given chest X-ray image of a patient into three classes (COVID-19 versus normal versus pneumonia) with 98.27% average accuracy. The hyperparameters of both CNN models are automatically determined using Grid Search. Experimental results on large clinical data sets show the effectiveness of the proposed architectures and demonstrate that the proposed algorithms can overcome the disadvantages mentioned above. Moreover, the proposed CNN models are fully automatic in terms of not requiring the extraction of diseased tissue, which is a great improvement of available automatic methods in the literature. To the best of the author’s knowledge, this study is the first study to detect COVID-19 disease from given chest X-ray images, using CNN, whose hyperparameters are automatically determined by the Grid Search. Another important contribution of this study is that it is the first CNN-based COVID-19 chest X-ray image classification study that uses the largest possible clinical data set. A total of 1,524 COVID-19, 1,527 pneumonia, and 1524 normal X-ray images are collected. It is aimed to collect the largest number of COVID-19 X-ray images that exist in the literature until the writing of this research paper.
Knowledge Level and Associated Factors of Reproductive Health Issues among Secondary School Students in Woldia Town, Amhara, Ethiopia, 2019: A Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Beletew Abate Biruk , Habtamu Gelaw Kalkidan , Fentaw Hayelom , Ashagire Mekonen , Mekash Tadesse
Published: October 2020

Background. Reproductive health (RH) is defined as a state of complete physical, mental, and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity, in all matters related to the reproductive system and to its functions and process. Local evidence about adolescents’ reproductive health knowledge level and associated factors are relevant to design age-appropriate interventions strategies. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the knowledge level on reproductive health issues among secondary school students in Woldia town. Objective. The main aim of this study was to assess the knowledge level and associated factors among adolescents in Woldia secondary schools, Amhara, Ethiopia, 2019. Methods. Institution-based descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 420 secondary school students in Woldia town from January to June 2019. Multistage sampling technique was employed. A self-administered, structured, and adapted questionnaire was used to collect the data. The data was entered by using EpiData version 4.2 and exported to SPSS version 24.0 for analysis. The samples were distributed proportionally based on probability proportional to size (PPS) allocation technique. Participants in each school have been selected by using systematic sampling technique after calculating sample interval (K) for each school. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regressions were carried out to assess the association between dependent and independent variables. Result. The prevalence of good knowledge was 204 (48.6%). Residence, educational level, handling of RHS providers, ever gone RHS institution and missed RHS service, had RHS in school, and stigma to utilize RHS were found to be significantly associated with the level of knowledge of respondents on reproductive health issues. Conclusion and Recommendations. The knowledge of respondents on reproductive health issues in the study area was found to be low. Hence, it is better to improve access to information to the secondary school students on RHS through trained health workers and accessible RHS.
Scale-Aware Attention-Based PillarsNet (SAPN) Based 3D Object Detection for Point Cloud
Authors: Song Xiang , Zhan Weiqin , Che Xiaoyu , Jiang Huilin , Yang Biao
Published: October 2020

Three-dimensional object detection can provide precise positions of objects, which can be beneficial to many robotics applications, such as self-driving cars, housekeeping robots, and autonomous navigation. In this work, we focus on accurate object detection in 3D point clouds and propose a new detection pipeline called scale-aware attention-based PillarsNet (SAPN). SAPN is a one-stage 3D object detection approach similar to PointPillar. However, SAPN achieves better performance than PointPillar by introducing the following strategies. First, we extract multiresolution pillar-level features from the point clouds to make the detection approach more scale-aware. Second, a spatial-attention mechanism is used to highlight the object activations in the feature maps, which can improve detection performance. Finally, SE-attention is employed to reweight the features fed into the detection head, which performs 3D object detection in a multitask learning manner. Experiments on the KITTI benchmark show that SAPN achieved similar or better performance compared with several state-of-the-art LiDAR-based 3D detection methods. The ablation study reveals the effectiveness of each proposed strategy. Furthermore, strategies used in this work can be embedded easily into other LiDAR-based 3D detection approaches, which improve their detection performance with slight modifications.
Application of a Fractional Grey Prediction Model Based on a Filtering Algorithm in Image Processing
Authors: Tong Mingyu , Shao Kailiang , Luo Xilin , Duan Huiming
Published: October 2020

Image filtering can change or enhance an image by emphasizing or removing certain features of the image. An image is a system in which some information is known and some information is unknown. Grey system theory is an important method for dealing with this kind of system, and grey correlation analysis and grey prediction modeling are important components of this method. In this paper, a fractional grey prediction model based on a filtering algorithm by combining a grey correlation model and a fractional prediction model is proposed. In this model, first, noise points are identified by comparing the grey correlation and the threshold value of each pixel in the filter window, and then, through the resolution coefficient of the important factor in image processing, a variety of grey correlation methods are compared. Second, the image noise points are used as the original sequence by the filter pane. The grey level of the middle point is predicted by the values of the surrounding pixel points combined with the fractional prediction model, replacing the original noise value to effectively eliminate the noise. Finally, an empirical analysis shows that the PSNR and MSE of the new model are approximately 27 and 140, respectively; these values are better than those of the comparison models and achieve good processing effects.
A Minimal Path-Based Method for Computing Multistate Network Reliability
Authors: Xu Xiu-Zhen , Niu Yi-Feng , He Can
Published: October 2020

Most of modern technological networks that can perform their tasks with various distinctive levels of efficiency are multistate networks, and reliability is a fundamental attribute for their safe operation and optimal improvement. For a multistate network, the two-terminal reliability at demand level d, defined as the probability that the network capacity is greater than or equal to a demand of d units, can be calculated in terms of multistate minimal paths, called d-minimal paths (d-MPs) for short. This paper presents an efficient algorithm to find all d-MPs for the multistate two-terminal reliability problem. To advance the solution efficiency of d-MPs, an improved model is developed by redefining capacity constraints of network components and minimal paths (MPs). Furthermore, an effective technique is proposed to remove duplicate d-MPs that are generated multiple times during solution. A simple example is provided to demonstrate the proposed algorithm step by step. In addition, through computational experiments conducted on benchmark networks, it is found that the proposed algorithm is more efficient.
The Impact of Green Credit Guidelines on the Technological Innovation of Heavily Polluting Enterprises: A Quasi-Natural Experiment from China
Authors: Hao Fangjing , Xie Yuantao , Liu Xiaojiao
Published: October 2020

This study investigates the impact of China’s Green Credit Guidelines on the technological innovations of heavily polluting enterprises. This study uses data obtained from the CSMAR database (2007–2018) and China Marketization Index Report by Province 2018 and uses the Green Credit Guidelines as a quasi-natural experiment. The sample was divided into an experimental group and a control group; the experimental group disclosed environmental and sustainable development information, while the control group did not. This study’s primary finding is that the Green Credit Guidelines can improve the level of technological innovation of heavily polluting enterprises and have a greater impact in areas with high levels of marketization, indicating that the Green Credit Guidelines have a positive effect on the technological innovation of heavily polluting enterprises. This provides China with an experience constructing relevant policies and regulations and provides empirical evidence regarding the technological innovations of heavily polluting enterprises from the perspective of factor market distortions and the Porter hypothesis.
Main Coronary Vessel Segmentation Using Deep Learning in Smart Medical
Authors: Xian Zhanchao , Wang Xiaoqing , Yan Shaodi , Yang Dahao , Chen Junyu , Peng Changnong
Published: October 2020

The automatic segmentation of main vessels on X-ray angiography (XRA) images is of great importance in the smart coronary artery disease diagnosis system. However, existing methods have been developed to this task, but these methods have difficulty in recognizing the coronary artery structure in XRA images. Main vessel segmentation is still a challenging task due to the diversity and small-size region of the vessel in the XRA images. In this study, we propose a robust method for main vessel segmentation by using deep learning architectures with fully convolutional networks. Four deep learning models based on the UNet architecture are evaluated on a clinical dataset, which consists of 3200 X-ray angiography images collected from 1118 patients. Using the precision (Pre), recall (Re), and F1 score (F1) as evaluation metrics, the average Pre, Re, and F1 for main vessel segmentation in the entire experimental dataset is 0.901, 0.898, and 0.900, respectively. 89.8% of the images exhibited a high F1 score >0.8. For the main vessel segmentation in XRA images, our deep learning methods demonstrated that vessels could be segmented in real time with a more optimized implementation, to further facilitate the online diagnosis in smart medical.