bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Lnc RNA ZFAS1 regulates the proliferation, apoptosis, inflammatory response and autophagy of fibroblast-like synoviocytes via miR-2682-5p/ADAMTS9 axis in rheumatoid arthritis
Authors: Yang Shanshan , Yin Wei , Ding Yan , Liu Fan
Published: August 2020

Backgrounds: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a frequent autoimmune disease. Emerging evidence indicated that ZNFX1 antisense RNA1 (ZFAS1) participates in the physiological and pathological processes in RA. However, knowledge of ZFAS1 in RA is limited, the potential work pathway of ZFAS1 needs to be further investigated.

Methods: Levels of ZFAS1, microRNA (miR)-2682-5p, and ADAM metallopeptidase with thrombospondin type 1 motif 9 (ADAMTS9) were estimated using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) assay. 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was conducted to explore the ability of cell proliferation in fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS-RA). Cell apoptosis was measured via flow cytometry. Also, levels of ADAMTS9, apoptosis-related proteins, cleaved-caspase-3 (active large subunit), and autophagy-related proteins were identified adopting Western blot. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was performed to determine the productions of inflammatory cytokines. Beside, the interrelation between miR-2682-5p and ZFAS1 or ADAMTS9 was verified utilizing dual-luciferase reporter assay.

Results: High levels of ZFAS1 and ADAMTS9, and a low level of miR-2682-5p were observed in RA synovial tissues and FLS-RA. Knockdown of ZFAS1 led to the curbs of cell proliferation, inflammation, autophagy, and boost apoptosis in FLS-RA, while these effects were abolished via regaining miR-2682-5p inhibition. Additionally, the influence of miR-2682-5p on cell phenotypes and inflammatory response were eliminated by ADAMTS9 up-regulation in FLS-RA. Mechanically, ZFAS1 exerted its role through miR-2682-5p/ADAMTS9 axis in RA.

Conclusion: ZFAS1/miR-2682-5p/ADAMTS9 axis could modulate the cell behaviors, inflammatory response in FLS-RA, might provide a potential therapeutic target for RA treatment.
Membraneless organelles: phasing out of equilibrium
Authors: Hondele Maria , Heinrich Stephanie , De Los Rios Paolo , Weis Karsten
Published: August 2020

Over the past years, liquid–liquid phase separation (LLPS) has emerged as a ubiquitous principle of cellular organization implicated in many biological processes ranging from gene expression to cell division. The formation of biological condensates, like the nucleolus or stress granules, by LLPS is at its core a thermodynamic equilibrium process. However, life does not operate at equilibrium, and cells have evolved multiple strategies to keep condensates in a non-equilibrium state. In this review, we discuss how these non-equilibrium drivers counteract solidification and potentially detrimental aggregation, and at the same time enable biological condensates to perform work and control the flux of substrates and information in a spatial and temporal manner.
Recenser et évaluer les pratiques agricoles qui stockent le carbone des sols, premier pas vers une agriculture à faible impact en Guyane
Authors: Courte Amandine , Cialdella Nathalie , Muller Alexandre , Blanfort Vincent , Bochu Jean-Luc , Brossard Michel
Published: August 2020

En Guyane, les questions environnementales et le besoin croissant en énergie et produits alimentaires liés à la croissance démographique exercent une pression accrue sur les ressources naturelles par le changement d’affectation des sols qu’ils engendrent. Des agriculteurs testent cependant des pratiques à faible impact conciliant objectifs de production et respect de l’environnement. Une prospection dans les systèmes de production agricoles guyanais, basée sur des enquêtes de terrain, a permis la description de ces pratiques ; parmi celles-ci, les pratiques à faible impact sur la dynamique du carbone ont été sélectionnées dans des systèmes maraîchers et arboricoles, pour des mesures spécifiques des stocks de carbone des sols. En Guyane, la pratique de la défriche est toujours active afin d’étendre les surfaces agricoles utiles. Cela induit des pertes de carbone importantes. Nous cherchons donc à identifier des pratiques qui permettent de compenser ces pertes. La place du sol dans les prises de décision des agriculteurs a été appréhendée et des mesures spécifiques des stocks de carbone des sols ont complété l’enquête, pour mieux comprendre les logiques des pratiques mises en œuvre et en cerner les effets. Nos résultats montrent que les agriculteurs maîtrisent « l’objet sol » dans ses composantes physiques ; la matière organique est un indicateur reconnu qui conditionne l’organisation des cultures sur l’exploitation. En Guyane, les agriculteurs mobilisant des pratiques à faible impact ont des systèmes de production efficients au niveau économique et environnemental (carbone et gaz à effet de serre).
Contributions of remote sensing in the diachronic study of the spatial and temporal evolution of the Ahmed El Hansali dam water reservoir from 2002-03 to 2018-19
Authors: El Orfi Tarik , El Ghachi Mohamed , Lebaut Sébastien
Published: August 2020

The OumErRbiabasin is one of the watersheds with the largest number of hydraulic infrastructures in Morocco. These hydraulic structuressupply water for drinking, industrial and agricultural uses. The Ahmed El Hansali dam is a 740 Mm³ reservoir located near Zaouyat Cheikh andhave an active storage of473 Mm³. The succession of dry years in the OumErRbiabasin has had a negative impact on the water resource and has caused a remarkable decrease in the reservoir of the Ahmed el Hansali dam. In this paper, the MNDWI (Modified Normalized Difference Water Index) from Landsat 5-TM, Landsat 7-ETM, and Landsat 8-OLI satellite images was used to estimate the spatial and temporal fluctuations of the volumes of water stored in the reservoir between hydrological years 2002-03 and 2018-19. Results show that the volumes estimated by remote sensing reasonably match the volumes estimated by the OumErRbia Hydraulic Basin Agency (OERHBA)using recorded water levels and reservoir storage curve for years 2002-03 and 2013-14; the determination coefficient R² exceeds 0.90. The mapping of the extent of the dam’s impoundment has shown a very significant decreasein the flooded area level during dry years.
Impact of drought on water quality in the Youssef Ben Tachafine dam (Souss-Massa region, Morocco)
Authors: Boudarfa Fatima , Gallouli Elmahjoub , El hafa Mohamed , Oulad Ali Hassan
Published: August 2020

The Massa catchment area has been experiencing an acute rainfall deficit for several years, which has had direct effects on the filling level of the Youssef Ben Tachafine dam. The objective of this work is to study the impact of the drought on the physicochemical quality and the biological balance of this aquatic ecosystem. A monitoring and bi-monthly analyses of the physicochemical and biological parameters (temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, transparency, manganese, iron, nitrate, ammonium, silica, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a) were carried out from January to December 2019. The considerable drop in the level of the reservoir has had a major impact on the degradation of the water quality of the lake and its trophic status. The analysis of the results showed that the trophic state of the Youssef Ben Tachafine dam is between mesotrophic and hypereutrophic.
Assessment of non-destructive spectroscopy and chemometrics tools for the development of green analytical methods to determine the shelf-life of olive oils
Authors: El Orche Aimen , Mbarki Mohamed , Cheikh Amine , Bouatia Mustapha
Published: August 2020

The development of sustainable and environmentally friendly analytical methods for agri-food products and the modification of reference methods is an essential issue to be treated in green analytical chemistry. The potential application of non-destructive spectroscopic techniques with chemometrics tools to achieve these principles are examined in this work. In this study a new sustainable analytical approach based on the use of fluorescence spectroscopy and multivariate analysis methods of Machine-Learning(Support Vector Machine regression) and chemometrics (Partial Least Square regression) have been developed to control the quality of virgin olive oils in Morocco according to their shelf life. The spectral data of 45 samples were first analyzed by principal component analysis method (PCA), the PCA method shows an important classification of the three groups of olive oil according to their shelf life. The use of the regression methods SVM and PLS shows a high ability to predict the quality of olive oils, this ability is shown by the high value of R-square and the low value of root mean square error of calibration and crossvalidation (RMSEC, RMSECV), the validation of these models by cross-validation shows the potential of this sustainable analytical approach in the determination of the quality of virgin olive oils.
Chemical characterization of almond meal as a co-product of the mechanical extraction of almond oil
Authors: Houmy Nadia , Melhaoui Reda , Belhaj Kamal , Richel Aurore , Sindic Marianne , Hano Christophe , Kodad Souhayla , Mihamou Aatika , Addi Mohamed , Abid Malika , Elamrani Ahmed
Published: August 2020

Almonds harvesting, along with precleaning, hulling, shelling, and sorting, generate recoverable co-products such as double, malformed, or damaged almonds. The common way that generates more benefit is the extraction of almond oil for food and cosmetic uses. The aim of this study is to compare composition and nutritional value of almond meals of the main varieties from eastern Morocco, Marcona (M), Fournat de Breznaud (FNB), FerragnesandFerraduel (FF) and Beldi a local ecotype (B), during three consecutive crop years (2016-2018). Significant differences were observed, which mainly concern the residual oil in almond cakes and especially their fibres, sugars, and proteins. Differences depend on the quality of the raw material and the effects of the crop year on the variety. Besides, from a nutritional point of view, analysed almond meals still contain significant amounts of residual oil and the major constituents of almond seeds (sugars, fibres, and proteins). The amino acid profile presents eight essential amino acids (Cysteine, Methionine, Isoleucine, Leucine, Phenylalanine, Tyrosine, and Lysine Valine) and the Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score (PDCAAS) ranges between 24.78% for (M) and 62.17% for (FF). We conclude the analysed almond meals present interesting nutritional values as a specific ingredient for gluten-free culinary preparations and light foodstuffs.
Evaluation of pomological and biochemicalquality of Moroccan almond native genetic resources for conservation of biodiversity
Authors: Kodad Souhayla , Melhaoui Reda , Houmy Nadia , Addi Mohamed , Serghini-Caid Hana , Elamrani Ahmed , Abid Malika , Mihamou Aatika
Published: August 2020

The edible and tasty almond {Prunus amygdalus [syn. P. dulcis (Mill.) D.A.Webb]} kernel is not anymore the main reason for its production and uses, other properties related to its by-products, especially the sweet edible almond oil, which is mainly used as a salad dressing or as an ingredient in a highly appreciated Moroccan almond-based recipes. The studied almond populations are derived from seedling, the trees of these plantations are very heterogeneous in terms of vigor and flowering time and are facing a genetic bottleneck due to an attack by an insect ’bark beetle’, as well as the introduction of new foreigner cultivars. Our preliminary study concerns the evaluation of fruits quality of locally commercializedalmond ecotypes, with a shelling rate ranging from 22.37% to 34.21%and it comparison with the introducedFrench cultivars couple Ferragnes/Ferraduel (Fg/Fd) grown in the same region, that presents higher commercial values but yet lowest nutritional traits compared to local populations.Since Beldi almonds showed higher total tochopherols content with avalue equal to 511.64 mg/kg, while for Fg/Fd cultivars it presents only 433.1 mg/kg. Hence the interest of a detailed study to prove both the genetic variability of local Beldi almond populations for the conservation of biodiversity, and also the biochemical propertiesof almond oils and cakes lead to post-harvest recovery of these products by increasing it commercial value in favour of local farmers and cooperatives.
A Wolfrom transmission without carrier
Authors: Höhn B.-R. , Zhang Y. , Geitner M. , Otto M.
Published: August 2020

Wolfrom-transmission are well known planetary transmission with low number of gears and used for very high transmission - ratio for example : i=100 or more. With the book of Mueller “Die Umlaufgetriebe” they are a type of reduced planetary transmission containing two simple transmission one a minus-type and one a plus-type for the two transmission inside. With a common carrier for both transmission and only one sun and two inner gears it is very compact but known for bad efficiency. Firms who produces such transmission are talking about a lot of problems, but no details are published so long. The Author will show that a calculation with low-loss-gears will improve the efficiency very much and that we can produce this type without a carrier. The forces which are active at the planet should be go direct to the housing and not about bearings in a carrier. Details and a modelling of such type will be presented in the conference.
La « crise du Chambon », de nouveaux liens entre territoire, institutions, populations et sciences
Authors: Bally Frédéric , Gabillet Marine , Laforgue Denis , Lavorel Sandra , Peyrache-Gadeau Véronique
Published: August 2020

En 2015, un danger d’éboulement de la montagne conduit à couper la route départementale 1091 entre la Haute Romanche et Grenoble. Cette coupure provoque une crise sociale et économique à La Grave et Villar-d’Arêne, deux communes desservies par cette route ; crise qui perdure malgré le rétablissement de la circulation. Cet article propose une analyse qualitative du processus de vulnérabilisation du territoire de Haute Romanche au prisme des interférences, des tensions et des complémentarités qui ont émergé entre la dynamique propre de l’aléa, les processus de décision politique, les expériences (subjectives et pratiques) des populations locales et les enquêtes des chercheurs en sciences sociales et de l’environnement.
Harungana madagascariensis (Haronga) – der Drachenblutbaum
Authors: Teut Michael
Published: August 2020

Das homöopathische Wissen zu Harungana madagascariensis (Haronga) wird zusammengefasst. Klinische Anwendungsgebiete sind Verdauungsschwäche bei Funktionsstörungen der Bauchspeicheldrüse, Meteorismus, Dyspepsie und postoperative oder -traumatische Verdauungsstörungen.
Pronounced Heterotopic Ossifications after Traumatic
Hamstring Rupture: Is an Ossification Prophylaxis Useful?
Authors: Hemmann Philipp , Schreiner Anna Janine , Frauenfeld Leonie , Stöckle Ulrich , Schmidutz Florian
Published: August 2020

Hamstring injuries include a wide range of injuries and affect mainly athletes
with high eccentric loads (football, athletics, rugby, climbing). According to
the latest literature, unrecognized traumatic ruptures can cause permanent
discomfort and may be associated with a poorer postoperative outcome when
delayed surgical therapy is performed. Heterotopic ossifications (HO) after
hamstring rupture have been described in individual case reports and smaller
studies so far. Heterotopic ossifications are mainly known in hip surgery and
elbow fractures. In this case report, a 48-year-old patient presented with an
increasing swelling with hardening in the area of the right ischial tuberosity.
One year before, an impact trauma was the reason for a traumatic hamstring
rupture which was diagnosed with a delay. The HO was excised and the tendon
refixed with two suture anchors. By limiting the range of motion with a hip-knee
orthosis for 9 weeks, a regular postoperative healing process was observed.
Heterotopic ossifications after hamstring ruptures have been reported repeatedly
but have not been evaluated in any major study so far. It should therefore be
considered whether prophylaxis with NSAIDs should be used for conservatively and
surgically treated hamstring ruptures, analogous to the ossification prophylaxis
for hip endoprostheses or fractures in the elbow region.
Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19): An Updated Review
Authors: Rudrapal Mithun , Khairnar Shubham J. , Borse Laxmikant B. , Jadhav Anil G.
Published: August 2020

The current outbreak of novel Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a major pandemic situation and a catastrophe for humans. COVID-19 is a severe infectious disease particularly of the respiratory system characterized by fatal complications such as severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (SARS), pneumonia, cardiac arrhythmia, kidney failure/ multiple organ failure and even death. Since its discovery, the SARS-CoV-2 has spread across 213 countries or territories, causing more than 8.5 million people with a rising death toll over 5.5 million people (as of June 2020, WHO). In fact, the current looming crisis of COVID-19 has become an increasingly serious concern to public health. It has affected lives of millions of people with severe impact on health systems and economies globally. Since there are no specific drugs and/or vaccines available so far, combating COVID-19 remains to be a major challenging task. Therefore, development of potential and effective treatment regimens (prophylactic/therapeutic) is urgently required which could resolve the issue. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge about the coronavirus, disease epidemiology, clinical manifestations and risk factors, replication of the virus, pathophysiology and host immune responses of SARS-CoV-2 infection. The therapeutic interventions and prophylactic measures along with precautionary measures are the frontline approaches that could be undertaken in order to control and prevent the spread of the deadly and highly contagious COVID-19 are also detailed herein.
Diagnostic Performance of Xpert MTB/RIF in Bronchoalveolar Lavage of Sputum-Scarce Recurrent Pulmonary Tuberculosis Cases
Authors: Sharma Pratibha , Kumar Abhishek , S. Mamatha , Ganga Ranganath T.
Published: August 2020

Introduction Xpert MTB/RIF has greater sensitivity and specificity than smear microscopy. Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) is safe and valuable tool in sputum-scarce and sputum-negative tuberculosis (TB) patients. Our study evaluated the performance of Xpert in BAL specimen of sputum-scarce recurrent TB cases exclusively.

Materials and Methods Sputum-scarce recurrent TB patients who underwent BAL between July 2018 and July 2019 were included. The diagnostic performance of Xpert and acid-fast bacilli (AFB) smear examination in BAL specimen was compared with liquid culture Mycobacterium TB (MTB) and composite reference standard.

Results A total of 126 patients were included in the study. MTB culture was positive in 70 cases and nontuberculous mycobacteria were seen in five cases. Xpert was positive was in 63 patients. Sensitivity of Xpert and AFB smear was 84.29% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 73.62–91.89) and 18.57% (95% CI: 10.28–29.66), respectively, with p < 0.001 proving the superiority of Xpert. Xpert had a specificity of 97.96 (89.15–99.95), positive predictive value of 93.65% (95% CI 85.19–97.42), and negative predictive value of 80.36% (95% CI: 70.26–87.63). Smear had a specificity of 91.84% (95% CI: 80.21–97.58) against 97.96 (89.15–99.95) of Xpert, and smear was positive in nontuberculous mycobacterium cases as well. Xpert showed no cross-reactivity between mycobacterial species. Rifampicin resistance was seen in 8 (12.69%) cases, and 21 patients had other diagnoses.

Conclusion Xpert has greater sensitivity in comparison to AFB smear in BAL specimen. Sputum-scarce recurrent TB cases have a similar chance of rifampicin resistance as sputum smear-positive cases should undergo BAL for Xpert analysis routinely.
Regeneration of Furcation Defects Treated with Porous Hydroxyapatite and Platelet-Rich Plasma: A Histological Study
Authors: Talwar Avaneendra , Amin Reshma
Published: August 2020

Introduction The alveolar bone, periodontal ligament (PDL), and cementum are the integral structural components invariably subject to changes during periodontal diseases. Many documents on animal and human studies state that the polypeptide growth factors (GFs) have a role in periodontal regeneration. The platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) is in use since the last decade. It has the potential of delivering GFs into vertical osseous defects. Human platelets contain platelet-derived growth factor and transforming growth factor-β in their α granules. These GFs are involved in wound healing and act as promoters of tissue regeneration. The study aimed to obtain histologic evidence, if any, of new attachment in humans, following treatment of osseous defects with 10-1055-s-0040-1714651_00084_ (HA) and PRF mix.

Materials and Methods Five maxillary molar teeth with advanced bone loss were treated with porous 10-1055-s-0040-1714651_00084_ (PHA) mixed with PRF. Distobuccal roots were resected and studied histologically for evidence of bone formation, if any, at 1st, 3rd, and the 5th months.

Results The PHA was completely resorbed in all the specimens. There was definitive evidence of bone formation at the 3rd month itself with mature lamellar bone with resting and reversal lines at the fifth postoperative month. There was no evidence of new cementum or PDL formation.

Conclusion PRF in conjunction with osteoconductive materials prove to accelerate bone formation in vertical osseous defects.
Evaluation of Toxicity and Antiangiogenic Activity of Murraya koenigii Leaf Extracts in Zebrafish
Authors: Dinesh Deeksha , Nanjappa Dechamma Pandyanda , Babu Nishith , Kalladka Krithika , Chakraborty Gunimala , Chakraborty Anirban
Published: August 2020

Introduction This study aimed to evaluate the toxicity and the antiangiogenic activity of Murraya koenigii leaf extracts in zebrafish.

Materials and Methods Crude aqueous and ethanol extracts of M. koenigii leaves were obtained following a standard solvent-based extraction method. The toxicity of these extracts on zebrafish embryonic development was determined and the LC50 values were calculated. Finally, the antiangiogenic activity of the M. koenigii leaf extracts was evaluated in a transgenic zebrafish (Tg [fli1: GFP]) that express GFP under the control of fli1, a transcription factor involved in vasculogenesis.

Results The LC50 value of the aqueous extract of M. koenigii leaves was much larger (2,450 ppm) compared with that of ethanol extract (9.85 ppm), suggesting a lower toxicity of the aqueous extract. The antiangiogenic activity was evident only in aqueous extract, with significant effects in formation of intersegmental vessels and subintestinal veins in treated Tg (fli1: GFP) zebrafish embryos.

Conclusion This study demonstrated the biological activity of M. koenigii leaf extracts as angiogenesis suppressor, suggesting its therapeutic potential as an angiogenesis inhibitor. Identification of active components from natural sources with potent antiangiogenic activity could lead to the development of anticancer agents.
Zuke Digital: Der erste digitale Klinik-Einkäufer-Kongress
Authors: Bannwarth Ralf
Published: August 2020

Unter dem Namen „ZUKEdigital“ (ZUKE: Zukunft Krankenhaus Einkauf) hat am 16. Juni der erste digitale Kongress von Krankenhauseinkäufer*innen für Krankenhauseinkäufer*innen stattgefunden: Mit perfekter Vorbereitung und unter Nutzung der sozialen Medien zur Werbung sowie Tools wie „Eventbrite“ zur kostenlosen Kartenvergabe. Die Resonanz war überwältigend positiv.
Nach der Pandemie ist vor der Pandemie: Eine digitale und nachhaltige Zukunft gestalten
Authors: Koniger Kim Kristian , Krojer Stefan
Published: August 2020

Die Corona-Pandemie hat deutlich gezeigt, dass es beim Thema Versorgungssicherheit, Transparenz und Nachverfolgbarkeit von Lieferketten noch viel Luft nach oben gibt. Wenn wir wüssten, dass in zehn Jahren wieder eine Pandemie kommt und jetzt die Möglichkeiten nutzen, die Einkaufsprozesse zu verbessern: Könnte es dann vielleicht so ablaufen, wie im folgenden Beitrag beschrieben?
3-Phasen-Modell zur Prozesskostensenkung: Mangelnde Stammdaten-Hygiene ist teuer
Authors: Ehrenburg Marcus
Published: August 2020

Verspätete und falsche Lieferungen sind nur die Spitze des Eisbergs. Fehlerhafte Stammdaten verursachen Kosten für Kliniken und Lieferanten. Die Erkennung von Datenfehlern senkt diese Kosten, erhöht die Prozessstabilität in der Supply Chain und verbessert die Versorgungs- und Patientensicherheit.
Codes of Conduct: Lieferantenkodizes: Sinnvolles Instrument zur Lieferantensteuerung oder reine Marketingmaßnahme?
Authors: Schlüchtermann Jörg , Heller Johannes
Published: August 2020

Insbesondere in komplexen Supply Chains ist es heute üblich, dass Kunden ihre Lieferanten über Selbstverpflichtungserklärungen (Codes of Conduct) steuern. Forschungen aus anderen Industrien zeigen die Möglichkeiten, aber auch Grenzen der Arbeit mit diesem Instrument des Lieferantenmanagements. Davon können auch Krankenhauseinkäufer profitieren.
ESG controversies and controversial ESG: about silent saints and small sinners
Authors: Dorfleitner Gregor , Kreuzer Christian , Sparrer Christian
Published: August 2020

Based on an extensive international dataset containing Thomson Reuters environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) rating, as well as Thomson Reuters newest controversies and combined score of an average of 2500 companies in the years 2002–2018, this article contributes to the existing discourse of the relationship between corporate social performance and corporate financial performance (CFP) by examining the Fama and French (J Financ Econ 116(1):1–22, 2015) five-factor risk-adjusted performance of positive screened best and worst portfolios, based on a 10$$\%$$%cutoff, respectively, for equally, value- and rank-weighted strategies in the European, US and global market. Furthermore, the controversies score allows us to examine the mid-to-long-term effects of scandals on the CFP without having to rely on the event study methodology. Even though a value-weighted strategy does not show any significant abnormal returns, we examined a significant outperformance for equally weighted worst ESG portfolios and best controversies strategies. These results strongly indicate that this is, on the one hand, driven by low-rated smaller companies (“small sinners”) and clean-coated firms with regard to controversies (“silent saints”) on the other hand. The findings hold for several robustness checks such as adjusting the cutoff rates or splitting the dataset across time.
Miniaturized saturated absorption spectrometer
Authors: Sosa K. , Oreggioni J. , Failache H.
Published: August 2020

We describe a saturated absorption spectrometer that is robust and compact and requires minimum alignment, which is made possible by using a diffuse probe beam generated by a retro-reflecting film. This concept was studied and implemented in a miniaturized home-built setup that provides the same performance as an optimized table-top setup.
Microfluidic devices do not significantly harm boar and bull spermatozoa viability
Authors: Mandel Savannah
Published: August 2020

Microfluidic processing does not significantly harm the viability of boar and bull spermatozoa and is less damaging than other processing techniques used for artificial insemination.
The ablation and ionization characteristics of a rectangular pulsed plasma thruster with hydroxy-terminated polybutadiene propellant
Authors: Zhou Yang , Wang Ningfei , Liu Xiangyang , Ling William Yeong Liang , Wie-addo Emmanuel Kofi Asuako
Published: August 2020

Pulsed plasma thrusters (PPTs) are attractive micro-thrusters for their advantages such as compactness and lightweight compared to other electric propulsion systems. Accordingly, PPTs have been used in station-keeping, drag makeup, and attitude control for small satellites. Instead of the most common PPT propellant PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB) propellant was used and some interesting experimental results were obtained; however, the ablation and ionization characteristics of such propellant have never been investigated. In this research, performance experiments using rectangular breech-fed PPT were conducted with HTPB propellant. Mass shot, electrical parameters, and plasma properties were obtained. The ablation process was further analyzed from three perspectives: electrical thermal energy, chemical energy, and ablation energy. The experimental result shows that all mass shots of different HTPB propellants are less than that of PTFE propellant, and the mass shot of HTPB propellant increases with increasing oxidant content. The difference in ablation between HTPB propellant and PTFE propellant could be explained by ablation energy while the difference between HTPB propellants with different proportional compositions could be elucidated by chemical energy. It was observed that the electron densities of these two kinds of propellants were not significantly different. This could be explained by the fact that HTPB propellant produced about three times more electrons than PTFE did even though less mass shot was produced by HTPB propellant.
A perturbative approach to a nonlinear advection-diffusion equation of particle transport
Authors: Walter Dominik , Fichtner Horst , Litvinenko Yuri
Published: August 2020

We explore analytical techniques for modeling the nonlinear cosmic ray transport in various astrophysical environments which is of significant current research interest. While nonlinearity is most often described by coupled equations for the dynamics of the thermal plasma and the cosmic ray transport or for the transport of the plasma waves and the cosmic rays, we study the case of a single but nonlinear advection-diffusion equation. The latter can be approximately solved analytically or semi-analytically, with the advantage that these solutions are easy to use and, thus, can facilitate a quantitative comparison to data. In the present study, we extend our previous work in a twofold manner. First, instead of employing an integral method to the case of pure nonlinear diffusion, we apply an expansion technique to the advection-diffusion equation. We use the technique systematically to analyze the effect of nonlinear diffusion for the cases of constant and spatially varying advection combined with time-varying source functions. Second, we extend the study from the one-dimensional, Cartesian geometry to the radially symmetric case, which allows us to treat more accurately the nonlinear diffusion problems on larger scales away from the source.
Dynamics of fintech terms in news and blogs and specialization of companies of the fintech industry
Authors: Ciulla Fabio , Mantegna Rosario N.
Published: August 2020

We perform a large scale analysis of a list of fintech terms in (i) news and blogs in the English language and (ii) professional descriptions of companies operating in many countries. The occurrence and the co-occurrence of fintech terms and locutions show a progressive evolution of the list of fintech terms in a compact and coherent set of terms used worldwide to describe fintech business activities. By using methods of complex networks that are specifically designed to deal with heterogeneous systems, our analysis of a large set of professional descriptions of companies shows that companies having fintech terms in their description present over-expressions of specific attributes of country, municipality, and economic sector. By using the approach of statistically validated networks, we detect geographical and economic over-expressions of a set of companies related to the multi-industry, geographically, and economically distributed fintech movement.
A two-layer model for coevolving opinion dynamics and collective decision-making in complex social systems
Authors: Zino Lorenzo , Ye Mengbin , Cao Ming
Published: August 2020

Motivated by the literature on opinion dynamics and evolutionary game theory, we propose a novel mathematical framework to model the intertwined coevolution of opinions and decision-making in a complex social system. In the proposed framework, the members of a social community update their opinions and revise their actions as they learn of others’ opinions shared on a communication channel and observe others’ actions through an influence channel; these interactions determine a two-layer network structure. We offer an application of the proposed framework by tailoring it to study the adoption of a novel social norm, demonstrating that the model is able to capture the emergence of several real-world collective phenomena such as paradigm shifts and unpopular norms. Through the establishment of analytical conditions and Monte Carlo numerical simulations, we shed light on the role of the coupling between opinion dynamics and decision-making, and of the network structure, in shaping the emergence of complex collective behavior in social systems.
Fluid and gyrokinetic turbulence in open field-line, helical plasmas
Authors: Francisquez M. , Bernard T. N. , Zhu B. , Hakim A. , Rogers B. N. , Hammett G. W.
Published: August 2020

Two-fluid Braginskii codes have simulated open-field line turbulence for over a decade, and only recently, it has become possible to study these systems with continuum gyrokinetic codes. This work presents a first-of-its-kind comparison between fluid and (long-wavelength) gyrokinetic models in open field-lines, using the GDB and Gkeyll codes to simulate interchange turbulence in the Helimak device at the University of Texas [T. N. Bernard et al., Phys. Plasmas 26, 042301 (2019)]. Partial agreement is attained in a number of diagnostic channels when the GDB sources and sheath boundary conditions (BCs) are selected carefully, especially the heat-flux BCs that can drastically alter the temperature. The radial profile of the fluctuation levels is qualitatively similar and quantitatively comparable on the low-field side, although statistics such as moments of the probability density function and the high-frequency spectrum show greater differences. This comparison indicates areas for future improvement in both simulations, such as sheath BCs, and improvements in GDB like particle conservation and spatially varying thermal conductivity, in order to achieve better fluid-gyrokinetic agreement and increase fidelity when simulating experiments.
Coupled heteroclinic networks in disguise
Authors: Voit Maximilian , Veneziale Sara , Meyer-Ortmanns Hildegard
Published: August 2020

We consider diffusively coupled heteroclinic networks, ranging from two coupled heteroclinic cycles to small numbers of heteroclinic networks, each composed of two connected heteroclinic cycles. In these systems, we analyze patterns of synchronization as a function of the coupling strength. We find synchronized limit cycles, slowing-down states, as well as quasiperiodic motion of rotating tori solutions, transient chaos, and chaos, in general along with multistable behavior. This means that coupled heteroclinic networks easily come in disguise even when they constitute the main building blocks of the dynamics. The generated spatial patterns are rotating waves with on-site limit cycles and perturbed traveling waves from on-site quasiperiodic behavior. The bifurcation diagrams of these simple systems are in general quite intricate.
Carrier leakage via interface-roughness scattering bridges gap between theoretical and experimental internal efficiencies of quantum cascade lasers
Authors: Boyle C. , Oresick K. M. , Kirch J. D. , Flores Y. V. , Mawst L. J. , Botez D.
Published: August 2020

When conventionally calculating carrier leakage for state-of-the-art quantum cascade lasers (QCLs), that is, LO-phonon-assisted leakage from the upper laser level via electron thermal excitation to high-energy active-region (AR) states, followed by relaxation to low-energy AR states, ∼18%-wide gaps were recently found between calculated and experimentally measured internal efficiency values. We incorporate elastic scattering [i.e., interface-roughness (IFR) and alloy-disorder scattering] into the carrier-leakage process and consider carrier leakage from key injector states as well. In addition, the expressions for LO-phonon and IFR-triggered carrier-leakage currents take into account the large percentage of thermally excited electrons that return back to initial states via both inelastic and elastic scattering. As a result, we find that the gaps between theoretical and experimental internal efficiency values are essentially bridged. Another finding is that, for the investigated state-of-the-art structures, IFR scattering causes the total carrier leakage to reach values as much as an order of magnitude higher than conventional inelastic scattering-only leakage. The developed formalism opens the way to significantly increase the internal efficiency (i.e., to more than 80%) via IFR-scattering engineering, such that maximum wall-plug efficiencies close to projected fundamental, both-facets values (e.g., 42% at λ = 4.6 μm) can be achieved. By employing this formalism, we reached a 4.6 μm-emitting-QCL preliminary design for suppressing IFR-triggered carrier leakage, which provides an internal efficiency of 86% as well as a projected single-facet wall-plug efficiency value of 36% at a heatsink temperature of 300 K.
Understanding real-time time-dependent density-functional theory simulations of ultrafast laser-induced dynamics in organic molecules
Authors: Krumland Jannis , Valencia Ana M. , Pittalis Stefano , Rozzi Carlo A. , Cocchi Caterina
Published: August 2020

Real-time time-dependent density functional theory, in conjunction with the Ehrenfest molecular dynamics scheme, is becoming a popular methodology to investigate ultrafast phenomena on the nanoscale. Thanks to recent developments, it is also possible to explicitly include in the simulations a time-dependent laser pulse, thereby accessing the transient excitation regime. However, the complexity entailed in these calculations calls for in-depth analysis of the accessible and yet approximate (either “dressed” or “bare”) quantities in order to evaluate their ability to provide us with a realistic picture of the simulated processes. In this work, we analyze the ultrafast dynamics of three small molecules (ethylene, benzene, and thiophene) excited by a resonant laser pulse in the framework of the adiabatic local-density approximation. The electronic response to the laser perturbation in terms of induced dipole moment and excited-state population is compared to the results given by an exactly solvable two-level model. In this way, we can interpret the charge-carrier dynamics in terms of simple estimators, such as the number of excited electrons. From the computed transient absorption spectra, we unravel the appearance of nonlinear effects such as excited-state absorption and vibronic coupling. In this way, we observe that the laser excitation affects the vibrational spectrum by enhancing the anharmonicities therein, while the coherent vibrational motion contributes to stabilizing the electronic excitation already within a few tens of femtoseconds.
Coherent modes and turbulences observations with multi-channel Doppler reflectometer on experimental advanced superconducting tokamak
Authors: Feng X. , Liu A. D. , Zhou C. , Zou X. L. , Zhuang G. , Wang T. B. , Liu Y. , Wang S. X. , Li Y. Y. , Shi T. H. , Wang M. Y. , Liu H. Q. , Zhou T. F. , Zhao H. L. , Wang Y. M. , Zhang S. B. , Zhang J. , Liu Z. Y. , Ji J. X. , Fan H. R. , Zhong X. M. , Xie J. L. , Li H. , Lan T. , Liu Z. X. , Mao W. Z. , Ding W. X. , Liu W. D.
Published: August 2020

With a newly installed 5-channel W-band Doppler reflectometer (DR) in EAST tokamak, many interesting coherence modes and turbulences have been observed. In this paper, the tearing mode (TM), a novel inter-edge localized mode (ELM) electromagnetic mode, and the eigenmode geodesic acoustic mode (GAM) accompanied by a broadband quasi-coherent mode (QCM) during H-mode stage have been reported. The TM could be directly observed in both density fluctuation and perpendicular velocity fluctuation at the DR channel localized in the magnetic island region; moreover, many high-order TM frequency harmonics, dual turbulence peaks inside and outside the island separatrix, and strong flow shear across the island separatrix could also be observed. A high-frequency (∼230 kHz) electromagnetic mode (toroidal mode number n = 1) could be identified. The mode is generated dozens of milliseconds before the ELM crash and may affect the ELM dynamic process. The eigenmode GAM excited during the H-mode stage is generated near the top of the density pedestal and then propagates radially inward with a radial wavenumber of about 1 cm−1. A broadband QCM with a frequency range of 20–100 kHz is always accompanied by eigenmode GAM and nonlinearly coupled with both GAM and the background turbulence from the bispectrum analysis. All these results convince the validity of the Doppler reflectometer in multi-scale measurement from the mesoscale to microscale.
Deterministic aperiodic photonic crystal with a 2D array of metallic nanoparticles as polarization-sensitive dichroic filter
Authors: Glukhov Igor A. , Dadoenkova Yuliya S. , Bentivegna Florian F. L. , Moiseev Sergey G.
Published: August 2020

We demonstrate the possibility of using a two-dimensional array of spheroidal metallic nanoparticles embedded in a one-dimensional photonic crystal to obtain a narrow-bandpass, polarization-sensitive dichroic filter operating in the near-UV and visible domains. The optical anisotropy of the array of identically oriented nanoparticles results in two spectrally distinct plasmon resonances independently excited for two mutually orthogonal linear polarization states of light, which ensures polarization and spectral selectivity of the composite structure. The narrow transmission bands of the filter are defect modes due to a layer located at the center of the structure and hosting the nanoparticle array. In order to suppress these transmission windows, it is essential that the defect modes closely coincide with the plasmon resonances excited in the array. We show that the use of deterministic aperiodic distributed reflectors surrounding the defect layer makes it possible to adjust the spectral positions of two defect modes in two separate bandgaps in order to achieve such a coincidence. Among the various parameters governing the precise position of transmittivity windows of the filter, we establish the strong influence of the thickness of the defect layer. We also show that a strong localization of the optical field in the plane of the nanoparticle array is essential to enhance the efficiency of plasmonic excitation and obtain the desired control of the defect modes. Our study opens up possibilities for the further development of polarization-controlled nanophotonic devices.
Facile electrochemical synthesis of dilute AuCu alloy nanostructures for selective and long-term stable CO2 electrolysis
Authors: Kim Jaehoon , Song Jun Tae , Oh Jihun
Published: August 2020

Electrochemical CO production from CO2 electrolysis has been considered the most economically viable approach among various candidate products. AuCu bimetallic alloys are currently receiving attention for their potential to tailor catalytic activity. Here, we synthesized a dilute AuCu alloy nanostructure with an AuCu atomic composition ratio of 3% by using a simple electrochemical treatment method on a 200 nm-thick Au thin film. The dilute AuCu alloy catalyst shows an exceptional CO2 reduction activity in terms of selectivity and overpotential for CO production. In addition, the stability property is more significantly enhanced as compared to pure Au nanostructures. In addition, we describe an in situ tailoring method of catalytic activity for Au nanostructures by repeating an electrochemical treatment process that is performed for forming the Au nanostructure. This approach will be a promising and facile strategy not only for reactive Au catalysts but also to increase the stability activity simultaneously by utilizing Cu impurities existing in an aqueous electrolyte for CO2 reduction.
The role of faceting in biaxially textured thin films: Columnar morphology and abnormal tilting
Authors: Huang Y. , Masters S. L. , Krumdieck S. P. , Bishop C. M.
Published: August 2020

The ground-breaking properties of biaxially textured thin films have attracted increasing attention to the characterization and growth theory of their crystal morphologies. In particular, multi-faceted columnar structures developed during oblique angle deposition (OAD) show abnormal tilt angles that have not been previously captured by existing models. Current theories for the formation of biaxially aligned columnar structures overlook the fact that the surface diffusion on individual facets can be finite. In this work, a continuum model incorporating finite adatom mobility, flux-dependent sticking coefficient, and material-specific surface energies is employed to study the growth of a well-known MgO-OAD system. Experimentally observed morphologies are reproduced by simulating the shadowing growth of an array of preferentially oriented single crystals. We show that the abnormal tilting is elusive considering only the effects of faceting and shadowing. A proposed sticking coefficient in our model, determined by the component of adatom momentum parallel to the surface, is responsible for the development of abnormal tilting. The role of faceting is demonstrated by its effect on the resulting columnar morphologies. Using the proposed model, the characteristic morphology and tilting behavior of a CaF2-OAD system are also obtained, which agree with experiments.
Numerical investigation of secondary electron emission effect on the dusty plasma sheath with superextensive electrons
Authors: El Ghani O. , Driouch I. , Chatei H.
Published: August 2020

We have investigated the structure of a magnetized sheath of dusty plasma in the presence of secondary electrons emitted by the micro-size dust particles in the context of the Tsallis statistics. The fluid model is used to analyze numerically the effects of the nonextensivity parameter q on the emission of secondary electrons and therefore, on the sheath structure as well as the dust dynamics. The results show that the secondary emission yield increases with the decrease of the parameter of nonextensivity q and consequently, the dust charge becomes less negative with its range of values playing a primordial role in the secondary electron emission rate. The quantities characterizing the sheath are significantly affected by the secondary electron emission (SEE) from the dust. It is seen that as the SEE rises at a given value of q(q<0.91), the sheath potential decreases as well as its absolute value at the wall. In addition, the dynamics of the dust particles is also affected by the emission of secondary electrons.