bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
What is the Actual Molecular Weight of Irisin Hormone According to Western Blot Analysis?
Authors: Ugur Kader , Aydin Suleyman
Published: September 2019

Irisin hormone, secreted mainly in skeletal, cardiac muscles, is proteolytically cleaved from the C-terminal moiety and secreted from the fibronectin domain-containing protein 5(FNDC5) receptor. This hormone carries carbohydrate moieties, which are glycosylated, and is a dimeric protein, and released as a hormone of 112 amino acids [1]. The dimerization of this hormone is not affected by glycosylation, although N-glycosylation is necessary for the stabilization of FNDC5 and secretion of irisin [2]. Quantitation of circulating human irisin by Tandem Mass Spectrometry was ∼ 3.6 ng/ml in sedentary individuals [3]. Irisin is secreted mainly in skeletal, cardiac muscles and adipose tissues.
HIPERINFESTAÇÃO POR Strongyloides stercoralis: UMA ABORDAGEM A CLÍNICA E AO DIAGNÓSTICO LABORATORIAL
Authors: Da Silva Emerson Barbosa , Lossurdo Yasmin Pezente , Beraldo Nadis Cristina Câmara Pagels , Chagas Camila dos Santos , Barbosa Rodrigo Pereira , Neves Daniel Santos
Published: September 2019

Doenças negligenciadas são doenças tropicais endêmicas, especialmente entre as populações pobres da África, Ásia e América Latina e que apresentam em alguns casos, ações preventivas e tratamentos já conhecidos. No entanto por afetarem principalmente a população que vive na pobreza, esses indivíduos são privados do tratamento indicado. Desta forma, o trabalho visa reunir dados de estudos já publicados, sintetizando assim, uma revisão bibliográfica da literatura que possibilita uma melhor compreensão da hiperinfestação por Strongyloides stercoralis bem com uma avaliação dos métodos utilizados para o diagnóstico da doença. Realizamos um levantamento de artigos científicos publicados, a partir de banco de dados confiáveis como Pubmed, Bireme e Scielo, dentre 1974 á 2017. Ao fim do trabalho observamos que todos os doentes diagnosticados com estrongiloidíase, mesmo que assintomáticos, devem ser tratados e todos os doentes com fatores de risco para a infecção devem ser rastreados, especialmente aqueles sob corticoterapia ou outros regimes imunossupressores.
Fragile familiarity in transnational home care arrangements for older people
Authors: van Holten Karin , Kaspar Heidi , Soom-Ammann Eva
Published: September 2019

This paper examines the notion of familiarity in live-in elder care settings and how it is challenged, changed, and reestablished. Live-in care is a strategy to prevent disruptions and preserve familiarity in enabling older persons in need of extensive care to stay at home – and thus, to enable ageing in place. This paper problematizes this strategy based on interviews with family caregivers who engaged a migrant live-in care worker in Switzerland. The key argument is that live-in care arrangements constitute an all-embracing form of inserting formal, paid-for care service delivery into the informal, private, intimate space of home. The live-in care arrangement not only challenges the familiarity of the home space, but also seems to ask for strategies of adaptation to familiarize the unfamiliar. Therefore, the introduction of live-in care is consequential for all involved parties and requires largely underestimated efforts to adapt to the new home space.
Dysregulation of miR-375/AEG-1 Axis by Human Papillomavirus 16/18-E6/E7 Promotes Cellular Proliferation, Migration, and Invasion in Cervical Cancer
Authors: Jayamohan Sridharan , Kannan Maheshkumar , Moorthy Rajesh Kannan , Rajasekaran Nirmal , Jung Hun Soon , Shin Young Kee , Arockiam Antony Joseph Velanganni
Published: September 2019

Cervical Cancer (CC) is a highly aggressive tumor and is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths in women. miR-375 was shown to be significantly down-regulated in cervical cancer cells. However, the precise biological functions of miR-375 and the molecular mechanisms underlying its action in CC are largely unknown. miR-375 targets were predicted by bioinformatics target prediction tools and validated using luciferase reporter assay. Herein, we investigated the functional significance of miR-375 and its target gene in CC to identify potential new therapeutic targets. We found that miR-375 expression was significantly downregulated in CC, and astrocyte elevated gene-1 (AEG-1) was identified as a target of miR-375. Our results also showed that ectopic expression of miR-375 suppressed CC cell proliferation, migration, invasion and angiogenesis, and increased the 5-fluorouracil-induced apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in vitro. In contrast, inhibition of miR-375 expression significantly enhanced these functions. Furthermore, HPV - 16 E6/E7 and HPV - 18 E6/E7 significantly down-regulates miR-375 expression in CC. HPV 16/18-E6/E7/miR-375/AEG-1 axis plays an important role in the regulation of cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in CC. Therefore, targeting miR-375/AEG-1 mediated axis could serve as a potential therapeutic target for CC.
Using Graph Partitioning for Scalable Distributed Quantum Molecular Dynamics
Authors: Djidjev Hristo N. , Hahn Georg , Mniszewski Susan M. , Negre Christian F. A. , Niklasson Anders M. N.
Published: September 2019

The simulation of the physical movement of multi-body systems at an atomistic level, with forces calculated from a quantum mechanical description of the electrons, motivates a graph partitioning problem studied in this article. Several advanced algorithms relying on evaluations of matrix polynomials have been published in the literature for such simulations. We aim to use a special type of graph partitioning to efficiently parallelize these computations. For this, we create a graph representing the zero–nonzero structure of a thresholded density matrix, and partition that graph into several components. Each separate submatrix (corresponding to each subgraph) is then substituted into the matrix polynomial, and the result for the full matrix polynomial is reassembled at the end from the individual polynomials. This paper starts by introducing a rigorous definition as well as a mathematical justification of this partitioning problem. We assess the performance of several methods to compute graph partitions with respect to both the quality of the partitioning and their runtime.
No Evidence of Excessive Leaf Production by Strawberries Grown in the Subtropics
Authors: Menzel Christopher M.
Published: September 2019

Fruit growth in most plants is strongly dependent on photosynthates produced in the leaves. However, if there are too many leaves, the lower part of the canopy becomes heavily shaded and yields are reduced. Experiments were conducted to determine if cultivars of strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duch.) grown in Queensland, Australia have excessive leaf production for adequate cropping. Seven cultivars and breeding lines were planted from March to May from 2004 to 2016 and the number of fully-expanded leaves, dry weight of the flowers and fruit, and yield/plant recorded (n = 23). Information was collected on daily maximum and minimum temperatures and solar radiation. Increases in the number of leaves/plant over the season followed a linear pattern (range in R2 from 0.81–0.99), with the relationship generally similar or better than a dose-logistic (sigmoid) function (range in R2 from 0.79–0.99). There were strong linear relationships between the number of leaves/plant and growing degree-days (GDDs), using a base temperature of 7 °C (range in R2 from 0.81–0.99). In contrast, there was no relationship between the number of leaves/plant produced each day and average season daily mean temperature (15.7 °C to 17.8 °C) or radiation (13.0 to 15.9 MJ/m2/day) (R2 < 0.10). Potential yield as indicated by the dry weight of the flowers and immature fruit/plant increased up to 40 to 45 leaves/plant (R2 = 0.49 or 0.50) suggesting that the cultivars do not have excessive leaf production. There was no relationship between yield and the number of leaves/plant (R2 < 0.10) because rain before harvest damaged the fruit in some years. These results suggest that the development of new cultivars with more leaves/plant might increase cropping of strawberries growing in the subtropics.
Ecological Evidence for the Fitness Trade-Off in Triazine Resistant Chenopodium Album L.: Can We Exploit the Cost of Resistance?
Authors: Ghanizadeh Hossein , Harrington Kerry C.
Published: September 2019

The alleles responsible for herbicide resistance in weeds can result in a fitness cost within affected plants. Over 200 cases of resistance to triazine herbicides have been confirmed in a wide range of weed species globally. In New Zealand, Chenopodium album L. was the first species reported as resistant to triazines. Several studies have already shown that triazine resistance in weeds is associated with fitness costs. Our current study provides further information about fitness penalties caused by triazine resistance during the vegetative growth phase of C. album. Triazine-resistant phenotypes produced less biomass and were shorter than susceptible ones prior to the onset of flowering. At an early stage of growth, triazine-resistant plants had lower photosynthetic efficacy and growth rates than susceptible plants, indicated by lower net assimilation rate (NAR) and relative growth rate (RGR), respectively. However, at a later stage of growth, the resistant plants had greater RGR values than susceptible phenotypes, though there were no significant differences in NAR between triazine-resistant and susceptible plants at this later stage. The triazine-resistant plants had less capacity for vegetative growth than susceptible plants during competition with wheat, indicating less ability to capture resources by triazine-resistant plants under competition. Overall, this study has revealed that the triazine resistance allele caused a substantial fitness cost to C. album only at the early phase of vegetative growth stage; thus, the use of crop competition to try managing triazine-resistant C. album plants should occur during this early phase.
The Coupling Effects of Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria and Salicylic Acid on Physiological Modifications, Yield Traits, and Productivity of Wheat under Water Deficient Conditions
Authors: Hafez Emad , Omara Alaa El Dein , Ahmed Alshaymaa
Published: September 2019

Water deficit and soil infertility negatively influence the growth, nutrient uptake, and productivity of wheat. Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) and salicylic acid (SA) were evaluated as possible solutions to mitigate the impacts of water deficit on growth, physiology, productivity, and nutrient uptake of wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv. Sakha 95). Over two growing seasons (2016/2017 and 2017/2018) field experiments were conducted to examine eight combinations of two water treatments (water deficit and well-watered) with four soil and foliar treatments (control, PGPR, SA, and combination of PGPR + SA). The application of PGPR increased soil microbial activity resulting in increased field capacity and available soil water. Likewise, the application of the combined treatment of PGPR and SA significantly increased chlorophyll content, relative water content, stomatal conductance, soil microbial population, and showed inhibitory impacts on proline content, thus improving yield-related traits, productivity, and nutrient uptake (N, P, K) under water deficit compared to the control treatment. The results show that the integrative use of PGPR in association with SA may achieve an efficacious strategy to attenuate the harmful effects of water deficit as well as the amelioration of productivity and nutrient uptake of wheat under water-deficient conditions.
Can Plant Phenolic Compounds Protect the Skin from Airborne Particulate Matter?
Authors: Boo Yong Chool
Published: September 2019

The skin is directly exposed to the polluted atmospheric environment, and skin diseases, such as atopic dermatitis and acne vulgaris, can be induced or exacerbated by airborne particulate matter (PM). PM can also promote premature skin aging with its accompanying functional and morphological changes. PM-induced skin diseases and premature skin aging are largely mediated by reactive oxygen species (ROS), and the harmful effects of PM may be ameliorated by safe and effective natural antioxidants. Experimental studies have shown that the extracts and phenolic compounds derived from many plants, such as cocoa, green tea, grape, pomegranate, and some marine algae, have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects on PM-exposed cells. The phenolic compounds can decrease the levels of ROS in cells and/or enhance cellular antioxidant capacity and, thereby, can attenuate PM-induced oxidative damage to nucleic acids, proteins, and lipids. They also lower the levels of cytokines, chemokines, cell adhesion molecules, prostaglandins, and matrix metalloproteinases implicated in cellular inflammatory responses to PM. Although there is still much research to be done, current studies in this field suggest that plant-derived phenolic compounds may have a protective effect on skin exposed to high levels of air pollution.
Recovery of Polyphenols from Brewer’s Spent Grains
Authors: Birsan Rares I. , Wilde Peter , Waldron Keith W. , Rai Dilip K.
Published: September 2019

The recovery of antioxidant polyphenols from light, dark and mix brewer’s spent grain (BSG) using conventional maceration, microwave and ultrasound assisted extraction was investigated. Total polyphenols were measured in the crude (60% acetone), liquor extracts (saponified with 0.75% NaOH) and in their acidified ethyl acetate (EtOAc) partitioned fractions both by spectrophotometry involving Folin–Ciocalteu reagent and liquid-chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) methods. Irrespective of the extraction methods used, saponification of BSG yielded higher polyphenols than in the crude extracts. The EtOAc fractionations yielded the highest total phenolic content (TPC) ranging from 3.01 ± 0.19 to 4.71 ± 0.28 mg gallic acid equivalent per g of BSG dry weight. The corresponding total polyphenols quantified by LC-MS/MS ranged from 549.9 ± 41.5 to 2741.1 ± 5.2 µg/g of BSG dry weight. Microwave and ultrasound with the parameters and equipment used did not improve the total polyphenol yield when compared to the conventional maceration method. Furthermore, the spectrophotometric quantification of the liquors overestimated the TPC, while the LC-MS/MS quantification gave a closer representation of the total polyphenols in all the extracts. The total polyphenols were in the following order in the EtOAc fractions: BSG light > BSG Mix > BSG dark, and thus suggested BSG light as a sustainable, low cost source of natural antioxidants that may be tapped for applications in food and phytopharmaceutical industries.
Side Effects of Curcumin: Epigenetic and Antiproliferative Implications for Normal Dermal Fibroblast and Breast Cancer Cells
Authors: Cianfruglia Laura , Minnelli Cristina , Laudadio Emiliano , Scirè Andrea , Armeni Tatiana
Published: September 2019

Background: Curcumin is a yellow-orange pigment obtained from the plant Curcuma longa, which is known to exert beneficial effects in several diseases, including cancer. However, at high doses, it may produce toxic and carcinogenic effects in normal cells. In this context, we studied the effects of curcumin on normal human dermal fibroblast (HDF) cells and breast cancer cells (MCF7). Methods: We used cellular viability and growth assays to evaluate the antiproliferative action of curcumin, analyzed the endogenous glutathione levels, conducted cell cycle, apoptosis, and necrosis analyses, and performed immunodetection of glutathionylated and acetylated H3 histones. Results: We found that HDFs are more sensitive to curcumin treatment than MCF7 cells, resulting in pronounced arrest of cell cycle progression and higher levels of cellular death. In both cell types, the homeostasis of the redox cellular environment did not change after curcumin treatment; however, significant differences were observed in glutathione (GSH) levels and in S-glutathionylation of H3 histones. Conclusion: Curcumin administration can potentially confer benefits, but high doses may be toxic. Thus, its use as a dietary supplement or in cancer therapies has a double edge.
Particulate Matter 2.5 Mediates Cutaneous Cellular Injury by Inducing Mitochondria-Associated Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress: Protective Effects of Ginsenoside Rb1
Authors: Piao Mei Jing , Kang Kyoung Ah , Zhen Ao Xuan , Fernando Pincha Devage Sameera Madushan , Ahn Mee Jung , Koh Young Sang , Kang Hee Kyoung , Yi Joo Mi , Choi Yung Hyun , Hyun Jin Won
Published: September 2019

The prevalence of fine particulate matter-induced harm to the human body is increasing daily. The aim of this study was to elucidate the mechanism by which particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) induces damage in human HaCaT keratinocytes and normal human dermal fibroblasts, and to evaluate the preventive capacity of the ginsenoside Rb1. PM2.5 induced oxidative stress by increasing the production of reactive oxygen species, leading to DNA damage, lipid peroxidation, and protein carbonylation; this effect was inhibited by ginsenoside Rb1. Through gene silencing of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-related genes such as PERK, IRE1, ATF, and CHOP, and through the use of the ER stress inhibitor tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA), it was demonstrated that PM2.5-induced ER stress also causes apoptosis and ultimately leads to cell death; however, this phenomenon was reversed by ginsenoside Rb1. We also found that TUDCA partially restored the production of ATP that was inhibited by PM2.5, and its recovery ability was significantly higher than that of ginsenoside Rb1, indicating that the process of ER stress leading to cell damage may also occur via the mitochondrial pathway. We concluded that ER stress acts alone or via the mitochondrial pathway in the induction of cell damage by PM2.5, and that ginsenoside Rb1 blocks this process. Ginsenoside Rb1 shows potential for use in skin care products to protect the skin against damage by fine particles.
Contrast Experiments in Dielectrophoresis Polishing (DEPP)/Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP) of Sapphire Substrate
Authors: Zhao Tianchen , Yuan Julong , Deng Qianfa , Feng Kaiping , Zhou Zhaozhong , Wang Xu
Published: September 2019

The broad applications of sapphire substrates in many fields warrants an urgent demand for a highly efficient and high precision polishing method for the sapphire substrates. The authors proposed a novel sapphire substrate polishing method that is based on the dielectrophoresis (DEP) effect. The principle of dielectrophoresis polishing (DEPP) is described. A non-uniform electric field was added in the polishing area to drive abrasives moving in the direction towards the plate by the DEP force. The amount of abrasives that participates in the polishing action increases as the distribution of polishing slurry on sapphire surface changes, leading towards the improvement of sapphire polishing both in quality and efficiency. Comparative experiments between DEPP and traditional chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) were carried out. It was found that the maximum increase of sapphire MRR for DEPP is 71%, reaching 13 mg/h, and the minimum increase was 9.5%, reaching 4.6 mg/h. The surface roughness of the sapphire substrate decreases faster and more uniform with DEPP. The final surface roughness of the sapphire substrate after DEPP was Ra 0.87 nm and the flatness was 0.3078 waves (RMS value), which is better than 0.6863 waves (RMS value) of sapphire substrate with traditional CMP polishing.
Variation of Streaming Potentials with Time under Steady Fluid Pressure in Bone
Authors: Liu Jinzhao , Hou Zhende , Qin Qing-Hua , Fu Donghui , Pan Shaozhe
Published: September 2019

This paper investigates the streaming potentials’ behaviors when fluid flows through the micropores in bone. An experimental setup was developed for measuring the streaming potentials between two surfaces of a bone plate specimen. It was found that the streaming potentials measured increased almost linearly with time under a constant fluid pressure gradient, which does not agree with the prediction from the classical theory of streaming potentials. To explain the reasons associated with the results obtained, a theoretical model was proposed in which the electric charge densities on the inner surfaces of the capillary are unevenly distributed. A formula was developed for solving the model, and the solutions demonstrate that nonuniform accumulations of electric charges carried by the fluid on the inner surfaces of the microcanals in bone can induce streaming potentials which linearly increase with time during the driving air pressure holding period. This phenomenon represents the specific characteristics of bone. The solution implies that the streaming potentials in Haversian canals, lacunas and canaliculi are not affected by electro-viscous resistance in the bone fluid.
A Novel Method of Adaptive Kalman Filter for Heading Estimation Based on an Autoregressive Model
Authors: Chai Dashuai , Chen Guoliang , Wang Shengli
Published: September 2019

With the popularity of smartphones and the development of microelectromechanical system (MEMS), the pedestrian dead reckoning (PDR) algorithm based on the built-in sensors of a smartphone has attracted much research. Heading estimation is the key to obtaining reliable position information. Hence, an adaptive Kalman filter (AKF) based on an autoregressive model (AR) is proposed to improve the accuracy of heading for pedestrian dead reckoning in a complex indoor environment. Our approach uses an autoregressive model to build a Kalman filter (KF), and the heading is calculated by the gyroscope, obtained by the magnetometer, and stored by previous estimates, then are fused to determine the measurement heading. An AKF based on the innovation sequence is used to adaptively adjust the state variance matrix to enhance the accuracy of the heading estimation. In order to suppress the drift of the gyroscope, the heading calculated by the AKF is used to correct the heading calculated by the outputs of the gyroscope if a quasi-static magnetic field is detected. Data were collected using two smartphones. These experiments showed that the average error of two-dimensional (2D) position estimation obtained by the proposed algorithm is reduced by 40.00% and 66.39%, and the root mean square (RMS) is improved by 43.87% and 66.79%, respectively, for these two smartphones.
Yeast Chemogenetic Screening as a Tool to Unravel the Antifungal Mode of Action of Two Selected Selenocyanates
Authors: Sarfraz Muhammad , Nasim Muhammad Jawad , Jacob Claus , Gruhlke Martin C.H.
Published: September 2019

During recent decades, selenium-containing compounds, as with the chemically similar sulfur-containing compounds, have gained considerable interest as cytotoxic and anticancer agents. Selenocyanates represent a well-established class of organic selenium compounds. These agents exhibit a wide range of biological activities. Classically, selenocyanates may cause an increase in the intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and exert cytotoxic activities, thus, acting as pro-oxidants. In this study, chemogenetic profiling was carried out to decipher the resistance mechanisms as central part of the antifungal mode of action against two selected selenocyanates. If a mutant line is less resistant against a compound compared to the wildtype, the gene deleted in that strain seems to be correlated with the resistance. Yeast mutants carrying gene deletions for specific redox-related protein function were employed in the chemogenetic screening. The results of screening reveal the hypersensitivity of mutants carrying deletions for glutathione pool and metabolism. To confirm the results, Arabidopsis mutants deficient in glutathione were subjected to various concentrations of selenocyanates to observe their effects on mutants and the wildtype. A significant dose dependent inhibition in Arabidopsis mutants compared to the wildtype confirmed the findings of the chemogenetic screening. The data suggest that the two representatives of organoselenium compounds cause oxidative stress in yeast cells and glutathione participates towards the development of resistance against the chemicals.
Special Issue on Applications of Artificial Neural Networks for Energy Systems
Authors: Tina Giuseppe Marco
Published: September 2019

In the 21st century, newer and cleaner technologies like renewable energy technologies, fuel cells, and smart grids are promising to transform the way we generate and distribute electric energy [...]
Investigation of Cavitation Noise in Cavitating Flows around an NACA0015 Hydrofoil
Authors: Yu An , Wang Xincheng , Zou Zhipeng , Tang Qinghong , Chen Huixiang , Zhou Daqing
Published: September 2019

To provide theoretical basis for cavitation noise control, the cavitation evolution around a hydrofoil and its induced noise were numerically investigated. A modified turbulence model and Zwart cavitation model were employed to calculate the flow field and predict the cavitation phenomenon accurately. Then, the acoustic analogy method based on the Ffowcs Williams-Hawking (FW-H) equation was applied to analyze the cavitation-induced noise. Seven cavitation numbers were selected for analysis. Acoustic power spectral density (PSD) and acoustic pressure were investigated to establish the relationship between cavitation number and their acoustic characteristics. It was indicated that as cavitation number decreases, cavitation cycle length gets shorter and the magnitude of acoustic power spectral density increases dramatically. One peak value of acoustic power spectral density induced by the extending and retracting of leading-edge cavitation can be obtained under sheet cavitation conditions, while under cloud cavitation, two peak values of acoustic power spectral density can be obtained and are induced by superposition from leading-edge cavitation and trailing vortex.
An Assessment of Moisture Susceptibility and Ageing Effect on Nanoclay-Modified AC Mixtures Containing Flakes of Plastic Film Collected as Urban Waste
Authors: Almeida Arminda , Crucho João , Abreu César , Picado-Santos Luís
Published: September 2019

In this research, the moisture susceptibility of a nanoclay-modified asphalt concrete (AC) mixture containing plastic film (in flakes) collected as urban waste was evaluated with specimens subjected to the tecnico accelerated ageing (TEAGE) procedure. The TEAGE procedure attempts to simulate—in a laboratory setting—the effect of field ageing by applying watering/drying cycles and ultraviolet radiation. For comparison purposes, three AC mixtures were considered, one for control, without plastic and nanoclay, a mixture with only plastic, and a mixture with both plastic and nanoclay. Furthermore, only half of the specimens were subjected to the ageing procedure. The plastic was added to the mixture using the dry process, and the nanoclay was blended with the bitumen before mixture preparation. The moisture susceptibility was evaluated, using a total of 48 Marshall specimens, by the indirect tensile strength ratio (ITSR). From the results of this study, the nanoclay-modified AC mixture containing plastic film presented slightly higher indirect tensile strength (ITS) values, lower moisture susceptibility, and enhanced ageing resistance. These slight improvements can be justified by the reduced air voids content of the samples and consequently they must be seen as conservative. Nevertheless, the modification of AC mixtures with flakes of plastic and nanoclay can be a viable solution for the recycling of plastic film collected as urban waste, being an eco-friendly alternative to disposal in landfills.
On Video Analysis of Omnidirectional Bee Traffic: Counting Bee Motions with Motion Detection and Image Classification
Authors: Kulyukin Vladimir , Mukherjee Sarbajit
Published: September 2019

Omnidirectional bee traffic is the number of bees moving in arbitrary directions in close proximity to the landing pad of a given hive over a given period of time. Video bee traffic analysis has the potential to automate the assessment of omnidirectional bee traffic levels, which, in turn, may lead to a complete or partial automation of honeybee colony health assessment. In this investigation, we proposed, implemented, and partially evaluated a two-tier method for counting bee motions to estimate levels of omnidirectional bee traffic in bee traffic videos. Our method couples motion detection with image classification so that motion detection acts as a class-agnostic object location method that generates a set of regions with possible objects and each such region is classified by a class-specific classifier such as a convolutional neural network or a support vector machine or an ensemble of classifiers such as a random forest. The method has been, and is being iteratively field tested in BeePi monitors, multi-sensor electronic beehive monitoring systems, installed on live Langstroth beehives in real apiaries. Deployment of a BeePi monitor on top of a beehive does not require any structural modification of the beehive’s woodenware, and is not disruptive to natural beehive cycles. To ensure the replicability of the reported findings and to provide a performance benchmark for interested research communities and citizen scientists, we have made public our curated and labeled image datasets of 167,261 honeybee images and our omnidirectional bee traffic videos used in this investigation.
A Snake-Like Robot with Envelope Wheels and Obstacle-Aided Gaits
Authors: Wang Kundong , Ma Youwei , Shan Haoxuan , Ma Shugen
Published: September 2019

Most of the current snake-like robots can only work in a specific environment, or only have a good movement effect in a certain gait. This paper presents a design for a snake-like robot to improve the adaptability of various environments. Each standard module of the snake-like robot has three degrees of freedom: yawing, rolling, and telescoping. The envelope passive wheels are used to enable the robot to move in complex environments such as a narrow passage. We verified some simple movements such as serpentine movement and rectilinear movement and designed a method for recovering from rollover when the robot is in straight state. In addition, two novel gaits, obstacle-aided concertina gait, and obstacle-aided gait through narrow corner, are proposed in this paper. We demonstrated the feasibility for passing the narrow corner by these gaits in experiments.
Performance Evaluation of Region-Based Convolutional Neural Networks Toward Improved Vehicle Taillight Detection
Authors: Wang Zhenzhou , Huo Wei , Yu Pingping , Qi Lin , Geng Shanshan , Cao Ning
Published: September 2019

Increasingly serious traffic jams and traffic accidents pose threats to the social economy and human life. The lamp semantics of driving is a major way to transmit the driving behavior information between vehicles. The detection and recognition of the vehicle taillights can acquire and understand the taillight semantics, which is of great significance for realizing multi-vehicle behavior interaction and assists driving. It is a challenge to detect taillights and identify the taillight semantics on real traffic road during the day. The main research content of this paper is mainly to establish a neural network to detect vehicles and to complete recognition of the taillights of the preceding vehicle based on image processing. First, the outlines of the preceding vehicles are detected and extracted by using convolutional neural networks. Then, the taillight area in the Hue-Saturation-Value (HSV) color space are extracted and the taillight pairs are detected by correlations of histograms, color and positions. Then the taillight states are identified based on the histogram feature parameters of the taillight image. The detected taillight state of the preceding vehicle is prompted to the driver to reduce traffic accidents caused by the untimely judgement of the driving intention of the preceding vehicle. The experimental results show that this method can accurately identify taillight status during the daytime and can effectively reduce the occurrence of confused judgement caused by light interference.
FnnmOS-ELM: A Flexible Neural Network Mixed Online Sequential Elm
Authors: Li Xiali , He Shuai , Yu Junzhi , Wu Licheng , Yue Zhao
Published: September 2019

The learning speed of online sequential extreme learning machine (OS-ELM) algorithms is much higher than that of convolutional neural networks (CNNs) or recurrent neural network (RNNs) on regression and simple classification datasets. However, the general feature extraction of OS-ELM makes it difficult to conveniently and effectively perform classification on some large and complex datasets, e.g., CIFAR. In this paper, we propose a flexible OS-ELM-mixed neural network, termed as fnnmOS-ELM. In this mixed structure, the OS-ELM can replace a part of fully connected layers in CNNs or RNNs. Our framework not only exploits the strong feature representation of CNNs or RNNs, but also performs at a fast speed in terms of classification. Additionally, it avoids the problem of long training time and large parameter size of CNNs or RNNs to some extent. Further, we propose a method for optimizing network performance by splicing OS-ELM after CNN or RNN structures. Iris, IMDb, CIFAR-10, and CIFAR-100 datasets are employed to verify the performance of the fnnmOS-ELM. The relationship between hyper-parameters and the performance of the fnnmOS-ELM is explored, which sheds light on the optimization of network performance. Finally, the experimental results demonstrate that the fnnmOS-ELM has a stronger feature representation and higher classification performance than contemporary methods.
Fast Face Tracking-by-Detection Algorithm for Secure Monitoring
Authors: Su Jia , Gao Lihui , Li Wei , Xia Yu , Cao Ning , Wang Ruichao
Published: September 2019

This work proposes a fast face tracking-by-detection (FFTD) algorithm that can perform tracking, face detection and discrimination tasks. On the basis of using the kernelized correlation filter (KCF) as the basic tracker, multitask cascade convolutional neural networks (CNNs) are used to detect the face, and a new tracking update strategy is designed. The update strategy uses the tracking result modified by detector to update the filter model. When the tracker drifts or fails, the discriminator module starts the detector to correct the tracking results, which ensures the out-of-view object can be tracked. Through extensive experiments, the proposed FFTD algorithm is shown to have good robustness and real-time performance for video monitoring scenes.
A Bayesian Approach in the Evaluation of Unit Weight of Mineral and Organic Soils Based on Dilatometer Tests (DMT)
Authors: Rabarijoely Simon
Published: September 2019

Recently, geotechnical problems that are characterized by a high degree of complexity and uncertainty with respect to input data have been solved using Bayesian analysis. One example is the problem of cautious estimation of geotechnical parameters according to Eurocode 7 requirements. The research included various types of soil such as peat, gyttja, organic mud, and clays. These were studied in order to develop an empirical correlation for determining the unit weight of mineral and organic soils. The compiled database of documented field research sites for different types of soil was used to investigate and develop direct relationships between measured results and dilatometer (DMT) readings, i.e., po and p1 together with pore water pressure (uo) and pressure (Pa). The soil unit weights were determined for both mineral and organic soils. The paper addresses the applicability of the Bayesian approach in geotechnics via a simple example related to the determination of characteristic values of geotechnical parameters for design structures. The results show that it is possible to conduct a more reliable forecast with improved statistical measures compared to other available methods for multilayer subsoils.
Time and Mobility in Photographs of the Northeast Industrial Landscape
Authors: Ashmore Rupert
Published: September 2019

This paper addresses documentary landscape photographs of the industrial and post-industrial Northeast of England from 1983 to 2005. Adopting a “mobilities” approach, this paper addresses these images as revealing a process, in which the movement of things and people, on multiple scales and timeframes, continually adapts space and the subjectivities of the people inhabiting it. The representation of mobility is considered in relation to issues of time in the photograph and it proposes one approaches these images not as static representations of a singular time and place but as part of an extended “event”. This interpretation was suggested by Ariella Azoulay and the approach encompasses the historical circumstances of their making, in addition to the multiple viewing positions of their consumption. As such, these photographs suggest an ongoing relationship between power, movement and dwelling. The paper advocates for a contemplative, relational viewing position, in which viewers consider their own spatio-temporal and socio-political position in regard to those landscapes, as well as a continuum of mobilities.
Reduction of Bioaerosols Emitted from a Swine Confinement Building by a Percolating Biofilter During a 10-Month Period
Authors: Vyskocil Jonathan , Létourneau Valérie , Girard Matthieu , Lévesque Ariane , Duchaine Caroline
Published: September 2019

The release of pathogens into the air from swine confinement buildings are mitigated through preventative measures, such as outgoing air filtration, to reduce the risk of spread to nearby barns and communities. The present study aims to characterize the effectiveness of a percolating biofilter developed by the Research and Development Institute for the Agri-environment (IRDA) to capture airborne contaminants, such as bacteria and viruses emitted from a swine finishing room. Over a 10-month period (summer, fall, and winter), air was sampled upwind and downwind of the biofilter using two wet walled cyclonic samplers. Culture-dependent and molecular biology analyses were used to track changes in microbial concentrations and populations both captured and emitted by the percolating biofilter. Results revealed a minor reduction (median reduction efficiency 14.4%) in culturable bacteria. There was a decrease in total bacteria (qPCR) (75.0%) and other qPCR targeted organisms: archaea (42.1%), coliphages (25.6%), Enterococcus (76.1%), and Escherichia coli (40.9%). The community analyses showed similar bacterial diversity in the air upwind and downwind of the biofilter although more Proteobacteria were present downwind of the unit, likely attributable to the Proteobacteria-rich nutritive solution. Evidence is provided for bioaerosols reduction by a percolating biofilter treating air from a swine fattening-finishing room.
Resonant Charge-Transfer in Grazing Collisions of H− with Vicinal Nanosurfaces on Cu(111), Au(100) and Pd(111) Substrates: A Comparative Study
Authors: Shaw John , Monismith David , Zhang Yixiao , Doerr Danielle , Chakraborty Himadri
Published: September 2019

We compare the electron dynamics at monocrystalline Cu(111), Au(100) and Pd(111) precursor substrates with vicinal nanosteps. The unoccupied bands of a surface superlattice are populated via the resonant charge transfer (RCT) between the surface and a H − ion that flies by at grazing angles. A quantum mechanical wave packet propagation approach is used to simulate the motion of the active electron, and time-evolved wave packet densities are used to visualize the dynamics through the superlattice. The survived ion fraction in the reflected beam generally exhibits modulations as a function of the vicinal terrace size and shows peaks at those energies that access the image state subband dispersions. Differences in magnitudes of the ion-survival as a function of the particular substrate selection and the ion-surface interaction time, based on the choice of two ion-trajectories, are examined. A square well model, producing standing waves between the steps on the surface, explains the energies of the maxima in the ion survival probability for all the metals considered. This indicates that the primary process of confinement induced subband formation is robust. The work may motivate measurements and applications of shallow-angle ion-scattering spectroscopy to access electronic substructures in periodically nanostructured surfaces.
Discovery of the Liver Hyaluronan Receptor for Endocytosis (HARE) and Its Progressive Emergence as the Multi-Ligand Scavenger Receptor Stabilin-2
Authors: Weigel Paul H.
Published: September 2019

Since the discovery of a novel liver hyaluronan (HA) clearance receptor in 1981 by Laurent, Fraser and coworkers, 22 different ligands cleared by the renamed receptor (the Hyaluronan Receptor for Endocytosis (HARE); Stabilin-2 (Stab2)) were discovered over 37 years. Ligands fall into three groups: (1) 11 anionic polymers, (2) seven cleaved or modified proteins and (3) four types of cells. Seven synthetic ligands, not found normally in serum or tissues, likely mimic natural molecules cleared by the receptor. In 2002 we purified and cloned HARE, based on HA-binding activity, and two other groups cloned full-length receptor; FEEL-2 and Stab2. Macrophages likely require full-length Stab2 for efficient binding and phagocytosis of bacteria or apoptotic cells, since cell-binding domains are throughout the receptor. In contrast, all 16 known single-molecule binding sites are only within the C-terminal half (190HARE). The HARE isoform is generated by proteolysis, not mRNA splicing. The majority of circulating ligands is cleared by HARE, since sinusoidal endothelial cells of liver, spleen and lymph node express twice as many HARE half-receptors as full-length receptors. Based on their significant binding and functional differences, a modified receptor nomenclature is proposed that designates HARE as the C-terminal half-receptor isoform and Stab2 as the full-length receptor isoform.
Small, Smaller, Smallest: Minimal Structural Requirements for a Fully Functional Box C/D Modification Guide RNA
Authors: Deryusheva Svetlana , Gall Joseph G.
Published: September 2019

Site-specific 2’-O-ribose methylation is an abundant post-transcriptional modification mediated by small non-coding nuclear RNAs known as box C/D modification guide RNAs. The minimal structural requirements for these guide RNAs to function in higher eukaryotes are still unclear. To address this question, we generated a series of mutant variants of Drosophila box C/D scaRNA:MeU2-C28 and tested their modification guide activities in the Xenopus oocyte system. Our data suggest that box C/D guide RNA function requires either a terminal or an internal consensus kink-turn structure. We identified the minimal functional box C/D guide RNA. It consists of a single-domain molecule with (i) a terminal stem with a consensus kink-turn domain, (ii) one box C and box D connected by a 14-nucleotide antisense element and (iii) a one-nucleotide spacer between the box C and the antisense element. In this single domain RNA, the sequence of the spacer is more important than its length. We suggest that the secondary structure of box C/D RNAs, essential for guide RNA function, is more complex than generally supposed. At the same time, the expression of functional extremely short single-domain box C/D RNAs is possible in higher eukaryotes.
In Vitro and In Silico Mechanistic Insights into miR-21-5p-Mediated Topoisomerase Drug Resistance in Human Colorectal Cancer Cells
Authors: Chen Jung-Chien , Hsieh Yao-Yu , Lo Hsiang-Ling , Li Albert , Chou Chia-Jung , Yang Pei-Ming
Published: September 2019

Although chemotherapy for treating colorectal cancer has had some success, drug resistance and metastasis remain the major causes of death for colorectal cancer patients. MicroRNA-21-5p (hereafter denoted as miR-21) is one of the most abundant miRNAs in human colorectal cancer. A Kaplan–Meier survival analysis found a negative prognostic correlation of miR-21 and metastasis-free survival in colorectal cancer patients (The Cancer Genome Atlas Colon Adenocarcinoma/TCGA-COAD cohort). To explore the role of miR-21 overexpression in drug resistance, a stable miR-21-overexpressing clone in a human DLD-1 colorectal cancer cell line was established. The 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) cell viability assay found that miR-21 overexpression induced drug resistance to topoisomerase inhibitors (SN-38, doxorubicin, and etoposide/VP-16). Mechanistically, we showed that miR-21 overexpression reduced VP-16-induced apoptosis and concomitantly enhanced pro-survival autophagic flux without the alteration of topoisomerase expression and activity. Bioinformatics analyses suggested that miR-21 overexpression induced genetic reprogramming that mimicked the gene signature of topoisomerase inhibitors and downregulated genes related to the proteasome pathway. Taken together, our results provide a novel insight into the role of miR-21 in the development of drug resistance in colorectal cancer.
Antioxidant Activity of Selected Stilbenoid Derivatives in a Cellular Model System
Authors: Treml Jakub , Leláková Veronika , Šmejkal Karel , Paulíčková Tereza , Labuda Šimon , Granica Sebastian , Havlík Jaroslav , Jankovská Dagmar , Padrtová Tereza , Hošek Jan
Published: September 2019

The stilbenoids, a group of naturally occurring phenolic compounds, are found in a variety of plants, including some berries that are used as food or for medicinal purposes. They are known to be beneficial for human health as anti-inflammatory, chemopreventive, and antioxidative agents. We have investigated a group of 19 stilbenoid substances in vitro using a cellular model of THP-1 macrophage-like cells and pyocyanin-induced oxidative stress to evaluate their antioxidant or pro-oxidant properties. Then we have determined any effects that they might have on the expression of the enzymes catalase, glutathione peroxidase, and heme oxygenase-1, and their effects on the activation of Nrf2. The experimental results showed that these stilbenoids could affect the formation of reactive oxygen species in a cellular model, producing either an antioxidative or pro-oxidative effect, depending on the structure pinostilbene (2) worked as a pro-oxidant and also decreased expression of catalase in the cell culture. Piceatannol (4) had shown reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging activity, whereas isorhapontigenin (18) had a mild direct antioxidant effect and activated Nrf2-antioxidant response element (ARE) system and elevated expression of Nrf2 and catalase. Their effects shown on cells in vitro warrant their further study in vivo.
Macroscopic Behavior and Microscopic Factors of Electron Emission from Chained Nanocarbon Coatings
Authors: Boqizoda Daleri , Zatsepin Anatoly , Buntov Evgeny , Slesarev Anatoly , Osheva Daria , Kitayeva Tatiana
Published: September 2019

The carbyne-containing films based on linear-chain carbon are promising materials for the manufacture of electronic equipment components. These carbyne-containing materials can be used as active elements of computational electronics and as ultra-miniature sensors of gaseous environment. The temperature studies of the electrical characteristics of carbyne-containing films by most of the scientific groups are limited to the low temperature range in which the quantum properties of nanostructures are most pronounced. We studied carbyne-containing films with a thickness of 20 and 400 nm on copper and silicon substrates using optically stimulated electron emission (OSEE) in the temperature range from room temperature (RT) to 400 °C. Theoretical modeling explains the dependence of work function on termination groups and substrate lattice. Experimental data revealed a relationship between the spectral characteristics of electron emission and temperature. The spectral contributions of both surface states and bulk interband transitions were clearly distinguishable.