bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Cohort profile: genomic data for 26 622 individuals from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA)
Authors: Forgetta Vincenzo , Li Rui , Darmond-Zwaig Corinne , Belisle Alexandre , Balion Cynthia , Roshandel Delnaz , Wolfson Christina , Lettre Guillaume , Pare Guillaume , Paterson Andrew D , Griffith Lauren E , Verschoor Chris , Lathrop Mark , Kirkland Susan , Raina Parminder , Richards J Brent , Ragoussis Jiannis
Published: March 2022

Purpose

The Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) Comprehensive cohort was established to provide unique opportunities to study the genetic and environmental contributions to human disease as well as ageing process. The aim of this report was to describe the genomic data included in CLSA.

Participants

A total of 26 622 individuals from the CLSA Comprehensive cohort of men and women aged 45–85 recruited between 2010 and 2015 underwent genome-wide genotyping of DNA samples collected from blood. Comprehensive quality control metrics were measured for genetic markers and samples, respectively. The genotypes were imputed to the TOPMed reference panel. Sex chromosome abnormalities were identified by copy number profiling. Classical human leukocyte antigen gene haplotypes were imputed at two-field (four-digit).

Findings to date

Of the 26 622 genotyped participants, 24 655 (92.6%) were identified as having European ancestry. These genomic data were linked to physical, lifestyle, medical, economic, environmental and psychosocial factors collected longitudinally in CLSA. The combined analysis, including CLSA genomic data, uncovered over 100 novel loci associated with key parameters to define glaucoma. The CLSA genomic dataset validated the contribution of a polygenic risk score to screen individuals with high fracture risk. It is also a valuable resource to directly identify common genetic variations associated with conditions related to complex traits. Taking advantage of the comprehensive interview and physical information collected in CLSA, this genomic dataset has been linked to psychosocial factors to investigate both the independent and interactive effects on cardiovascular disease.

Future plans

The CLSA overall is ongoing. Follow-up data will continue to be collected from participants in the current genomic subcohort, including the DNA methylation and metabolomic data. Ongoing studies focus on elucidating the role of genetic factors in cognitive decline and cardiovascular diseases. This genomic data resource is available on request through the CLSA data access application process.
Patient, physician and geographic predictors of cardiac stress testing strategy in Ontario, Canada: a population-based study
Authors: Roifman Idan , Han Lu , Fang Jiming , Chu Anna , Austin Peter , Ko Dennis T , Douglas Pamela , Wijeysundera Harindra
Published: March 2022

Objectives

To identify patient, physician and geographic level factors that are associated with variation in initial stress testing strategy in patients evaluated for chest pain.

Design

Retrospective cohort study.

Setting

Population-based study of patients undergoing evaluation for chest pain in Ontario, Canada between 1 January 2011 and 31 March 2018.

Participants

103 368 patients who underwent stress testing (graded exercise stress testing (GXT), stress echocardiography (stress echo) or myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI)) following evaluation for chest pain.

Primary and secondary outcome measures

To identify the patient, physician and geographic level factors associated with variation in initial test selection, we fit two separate 2-level hierarchical multinomial logistic regression models for which the outcome was initial stress testing strategy (GXT, MPI or stress echo).

Results

There was significant variability in the initial type of stress test performed, with approximately 50% receiving a GXT compared with approximately 36% who received MPI and 14% who received a stress echo. Physician-level factors were key drivers of this variation, accounting for up to 59.0% of the variation in initial testing. Physicians who graduated medical school >30 years ago were approximately 45% more likely to order an initial stress echo (OR 1.45, 95% CI 1.17 to 1.80) than a GXT. Cardiovascular disease specialists were approximately sevenfold more likely to order an initial MPI (OR 7.35, 95% CI 5.38 to 10.03) than a GXT. Patients aged >70 years were approximately fivefold more likely to receive an MPI (OR 4.74, 95% CI 4.42 to 5.08) and approximately 26% more likely to receive a stress echo (OR 1.26, 95% CI 1.15 to 1.38) than a GXT.

Conclusions

We report significant variability in initial stress testing strategy in Ontario. Much of that variability was driven by physician-level factors that could potentially be addressed through educational campaigns geared at reducing this variability and improving guideline adherence.
Sexual and gender harassment and use of psychotropic medication among Swedish workers: a prospective cohort study
Authors: Blindow Katrina Julia , Paulin Johan , Hanson Linda Magnusson , Johnell Kristina , Nyberg Anna
Published: March 2022

Objective

To estimate the prospective association between the exposure to three types of gender-based violence and harassment (GBVH) and psychotropic medication.

Methods

Information on three measures of workplace GBVH—sexual harassment (1) from superiors or colleagues, (2) from others (eg, clients) and (3) gender harassment from superiors or colleagues—were retrieved from the biannual Swedish Work Environment Survey 2007–2013 (N=23 449), a representative sample of working 16–64 years old registered in Sweden. The survey answers were merged with data on antidepressants, hypnotics/sedatives and anxiolytics from the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register. Cox proportional hazards analyses with days to purchase as time scale and first instance of medicine purchase as failure event were fitted, adjusted for demographic and workplace factors.

Results

Workers who reported exposure to gender harassment only (HR 1.2, 95% CI 1.07 to 1.36), to sexual but not gender harassment (HR 1.21, 95% CI 1.04 to 1.40), or to gender and sexual harassment (HR 1.31, 95% CI 1.08 to 1.60) had an excess risk of psychotropics use in comparison to workers who reported neither of the exposures in the past 12 months. We found no interaction between the exposures and gender in the association with psychotropics use.

Conclusions

Exposure to sexual or gender harassment at the workplace may contribute to the development of mental disorders.
R-matrix calculations for elastic electron and positron scattering from pyrazine: effect of the polarization description
Authors: Graves Vincent , Gorfinkiel Jimena D.
Published: March 2022

We present R-matrix calculations of electron and positron low energy scattering from the highly polarizable pyrazine molecule. We compare integral and differential elastic cross sections with experimental results and assess the quality of the models used for describing collisions of either projectile. Static-exchange-plus-polarization models give a good description of electron scattering (including that of shape resonances), whereas both the integral and small-angle differential cross sections are underestimated for positron collisions for the same models. We discuss whether the absence of a permanent dipole moment improves the comparison with experiment for this molecule, as well as future calculations that may improve the description of polarization effects and thus positron scattering.

Graphical abstract
The effect of process parameters on chemical mechanical polishing of quartz glass
Authors: Yakun Yang , Zhankui Wang , Minghua Pang , Yongfeng Li , Jena Kumar
Published: March 2022

The effects of polishing pressure, polishing speed and pH value of the polishing slurry on the chemical activity of quartz glass, the material removal rate (MRR) and surface roughness (Ra) of the workpiece were studied. Using MRR and Ra as evaluation indexes, three factors and four levels of the orthogonal test were used to perform chemical mechanical polishing on quartz glass. By measuring the contact angle between the polishing slurry and workpiece, the influence of different polishing slurries on the chemical activity of quartz glass surface was studied. The processing mechanism of CMP quartz glass was analyzed. The order of important factors affecting MRR of quartz glass was: pressure [Formula: see text] rotation speed [Formula: see text] pH value; the order of significant factors affecting Ra of quartz glass was: pressure [Formula: see text] pH value [Formula: see text] rotation speed. The optimum polishing process parameter combination of the MRR was: pressure 27.58 kPa, rotation speed 85 rpm, pH value 12; the optimum polishing process parameter combination of the Ra was: pressure 13.79 kPa, rotation speed 85 rpm, pH value 12. The MRR and Ra of the workpiece are evaluated from the mechanical action of pressure and speed and the chemical action of polishing slurry on the workpiece. The results proved that the effect of the alkaline polishing solution on MRR and Ra of quartz glass is more significant than that of the acidic polishing slurry.
Numerical approach to generalized coupled fractional Ramani equations
Authors: Veeresha P. , Prakasha D. G. , Ravichandran C. , Akinyemi Lanre , Nisar Kottakkaran Sooppy
Published: March 2022

The main goal of this study is to find solutions for the generalized coupled Ramani equation with the fractional order using the fractional natural decomposition method (FNDM). Four distinct cases are chosen to illustrate and validate the effectiveness of the considered method. The simulations in terms of numeric have been illustrated to confirm the reliability and proficiency of the projected scheme. Moreover, the behavior of the obtained results is captured for distinct fractional order. The comparison study is illustrated to verify the accuracy of the projected procedure. The achieved results exemplify that the projected solution procedure offers a simple algorithm and is also very efficient to analyze the nature of the coupled differential equations with arbitrary order situated in associated areas of Science and Engineering.
Agreement in experimental and theoretically obtained electrocaloric effect in optimized Bi3+ doped PbZr0.52Ti0.48O3 material
Authors: Kaur Shubhpreet , Arora Mehak , Kumar Sunil , Malhi Parambir Singh , Singh Mandeep , Singh Anupinder
Published: March 2022

This work harmonizes the experimental and theoretical study of electrocaloric effect (ECE) in (Pb[Formula: see text]Bi[Formula: see text](Zr[Formula: see text]Ti[Formula: see text]O3 solid solution by optimizing sintering temperature. Bi[Formula: see text]-doped PbZr[Formula: see text]Ti[Formula: see text]O3 solid solutions were synthesized by the conventional solid-state reaction method. Different samples were prepared by varying the sintering temperature. X-ray diffraction study confirms the crystalline nature of all the samples. An immense value of polarization has been acquired in the optimized sample. The maximum adiabatic temperature change of order 2.53 K with electrocaloric strength of 1.26 K mm kV[Formula: see text] has been achieved experimentally. Whereas a comparatively close value of ECE has been acquired from the theoretical calculations using a phenomenological approach. Furthermore, a large value (218 mJ cm[Formula: see text] of thermal energy conversion has been obtained using the Olsen cycle.
The Evolution of Search: Three Computing Paradigms
Authors: Wu Xindong , Zhu Xingquan , Wu Minghui
Published: March 2022

Search is probably the most common activity that humans conduct all the time. A search target can be a concrete item (with a yes or no answer and location information), an abstract concept (such as the most important information on the Web about Xindong Wu), or a plan/path for a specific target with an objective function (like flight scheduling with a minimal travel time), among others. In this article, we propose a Universal Connection Theorem (UCT) to suggest that all physical objects/items in the universe are connected through explicit or implicit relationships. Search is to explore the relationships, using different computing methods, to retrieve relevant objects. Under the UCT theorem, we summarize mainstream search approaches into two categories from the user perspective, deterministic search vs. abstract search, and further distinguish them into three computing paradigms: planning based search, data driven search, and knowledge enhanced search. The planning based paradigm explores search as a planning process in a large search space, by graph traversing with heuristic principles to locate optimal solutions. The data driven paradigm seeks to find objects matching the user's query from a large data repository. Indexing, hashing, information retrieval, and recommendations are typical strategies to tackle the data volumes and select the best answers for users’ queries. The knowledge enhanced search does not aim to find matching objects, but to discover and then meet user's search requirements through knowledge mining. The evolution of these three search paradigms, from planning to data engineering and knowledge engineering, provides increasing levels of challenges and opportunities. This article elaborates the respective principles of these paradigms.
Constant Time Graph Neural Networks
Authors: Sato Ryoma , Yamada Makoto , Kashima Hisashi
Published: March 2022

The recent advancements in graph neural networks (GNNs) have led to state-of-the-art performances in various applications, including chemo-informatics, question-answering systems, and recommender systems. However, scaling up these methods to huge graphs, such as social networks and Web graphs, remains a challenge. In particular, the existing methods for accelerating GNNs either are not theoretically guaranteed in terms of the approximation error or incurred at least a linear time computation cost. In this study, we reveal the query complexity of the uniform node sampling scheme for Message Passing Neural Networks, including GraphSAGE, graph attention networks (GATs), and graph convolutional networks (GCNs). Surprisingly, our analysis reveals that the complexity of the node sampling method is completely independent of the number of the nodes, edges, and neighbors of the input and depends only on the error tolerance and confidence probability while providing a theoretical guarantee for the approximation error. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first article to provide a theoretical guarantee of approximation for GNNs within constant time. Through experiments with synthetic and real-world datasets, we investigated the speed and precision of the node sampling scheme and validated our theoretical results.
Complex-valued Neural Network-based Quantum Language Models
Authors: Zhang Peng , Hui Wenjie , Wang Benyou , Zhao Donghao , Song Dawei , Lioma Christina , Simonsen Jakob Grue
Published: March 2022

Language modeling is essential in Natural Language Processing and Information Retrieval related tasks. After the statistical language models, Quantum Language Model (QLM) has been proposed to unify both single words and compound terms in the same probability space without extending term space exponentially. Although QLM achieved good performance in ad hoc retrieval, it still has two major limitations: (1) QLM cannot make use of supervised information, mainly due to the iterative and non-differentiable estimation of the density matrix, which represents both queries and documents in QLM. (2) QLM assumes the exchangeability of words or word dependencies, neglecting the order or position information of words.

This article aims to generalize QLM and make it applicable to more complicated matching tasks (e.g., Question Answering) beyond ad hoc retrieval. We propose a complex-valued neural network-based QLM solution called C-NNQLM to employ an end-to-end approach to build and train density matrices in a light-weight and differentiable manner, and it can therefore make use of external well-trained word vectors and supervised labels. Furthermore, C-NNQLM adopts complex-valued word vectors whose phase vectors can directly encode the order (or position) information of words. Note that complex numbers are also essential in the quantum theory. We show that the real-valued NNQLM (R-NNQLM) is a special case of C-NNQLM.

The experimental results on the QA task show that both R-NNQLM and C-NNQLM achieve much better performance than the vanilla QLM, and C-NNQLM’s performance is on par with state-of-the-art neural network models. We also evaluate the proposed C-NNQLM on text classification and document retrieval tasks. The results on most datasets show that the C-NNQLM can outperform R-NNQLM, which demonstrates the usefulness of the complex representation for words and sentences in C-NNQLM.
Effect of Electrolytes on the Cathode-Electrolyte Interfacial Stability of Fe-Based Layered Cathodes for Sodium-Ion Batteries
Authors: Park Jehee , Ku Kyojin , Son Seoung-Bum , Gim Jihyeon , Kim Youngsik , Lee Eungje , Johnson Christopher
Published: March 2022

Iron (Fe)-based layered oxide cathodes that employ Fe3+/Fe4+ redox reaction present a family of attractive cathode materials for sodium-ion batteries as iron is abundant, low-cost, and environmentally benign. However, their electrochemical performance is not yet satisfactory and requires further improvement. In this study, we investigate the effect of electrolytes on the electrochemical performance of α-NaFeO2, a prototypical model of Fe-based layered cathodes. First, we established the critical impact of the poor cathode-electrolyte interfacial stability on cell performances. Systematic electrochemical tests and material characterizations further revealed the degradation mechanism in which the highly reactive Fe4+ state in the charged Na1−xFeO2 electrodes promotes severe electrolyte decomposition and subsequent growth of a thick interface layer that leads to impedance rise and performance degradation. In addition, the superior performance of NaPF6 over NaClO4 and the beneficial effect of the FEC additive are reported.
Review—Origin and Promotional Effects of Plasmonics in Photocatalysis
Authors: Thangamuthu Madasamy , Raziman T.V. , Martin Olivier J. F , Tang Junwang
Published: March 2022

Plasmonic effects including near-field coupling, light scattering, guided mode through surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs), Förster resonant energy transfer (FRET), and thermoplasmonics are extensively used for harnessing inexhaustible solar energy for photovoltaics and photocatalysis. Recently, plasmonic hot carrier-driven photocatalysis has received additional attention thanks to its specific selectivity in the catalytic conversion of gas molecules and organic compounds, resulting from the direct injection of hot carriers into the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital of the adsorbate molecule. The excellent light trapping property and high efficiency of hot charge-carrier generation through electromagnetic surface plasmon decay have been identified as the dominant mechanisms that promote energy-intensive chemical reactions at room temperature and atmospheric pressure. However, understanding the electromagnetic effects of plasmonics and distinguishing them from chemical effects in photocatalysis is challenging. While there exist several reviews underlining the experimental observations of plasmonic effects, this critical review addresses the physical origin of the various plasmon-related phenomena and how they can promote photocatalysis. The conditions under which each plasmonic effect dominates and how to distinguish one from another is also discussed, together with the analysis of the photoconversion efficiency. Finally, future research directions are proposed with the aim to accelerate progress in this field at the interface between chemistry and physics.
Development of Molecularly Imprinted poly(Phenol) Membrane Based Electrochemical Sensor for The Selective Determination of Guanine
Authors: Kodakat Keerthi , Girish Kumar K.
Published: March 2022

This article describes the development of a simple, selective and sensitive molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) based voltammetric sensor for guanine (Gua). The recognition element, MIP was fabricated by electropolymerization of the functional monomer phenol in presence of Gua onto the surface of a poly(L- Glutamic acid) (pGlu) modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE). Extraction of the template molecules, Gua from the poly(phenol) layer was carried out using a solvent mixture of ethanol and 10% acetic acid at 1:1 (v/v) ratio. Various experimental parameters determining the performance of the sensor were optimized and under these conditions the proposed sensor responds linearly to the concentration of Gua in the range from 8.00 × 10−5 M to 2.00 × 10−5 M and 1.00 × 10−5 M to 5.00 × 10−7 M with the limit of detection as low as 8.00 × 10−8 M. The sensor exhibits excellent selectivity, reproducibility and stability. It was successfully applied in synthetic physiological fluids in order to verify its practical utility.
Structural, Magnetic, and Dielectric Spectroscopy Investigations of Multiferroic Composite Based on Perovskite–Spinel Approach
Authors: Moustafa A. M. , Gad S. A. , Turky G. M , Salah L. M.
Published: March 2022

Multiferroic composite materials with the nominal composition (La0.8Gd0.2FeO3)1−x(Mn0.5Cu0.5Fe2O4)x, x = 0.0≤x≤1 were prepared using the co-precipition method. XRD, FTIR and Raman were utilized to investigate the structure phase, microstructural characteristics, vibrational bands. The optical properties were analyzed; the VSM was used to investigate the magnetic properties of the composites. Broadband dielectric spectroscopy is employed to investigate the dielectric and electrical performance of the prepared multiferroic composites. Rietveld refinement of the XRD patterns confirmed the orthorhombic phase for lanthanum gadolinium iron oxide (La0.8Gd0.2FeO3) and cubic phase for manganese copper ferrite (Mn0.5Cu0.5Fe2O4). The crystallite size of LGFO phase pointed out that it increases with increasing the MCFO phase, while the microstrain found to decline. The FTIR results elucidated the tetrahedral and octahedral bands. The deduced optical properties revealed that the samples have optical energy gap in the range 4.18 −4.5 eV. The magnetic properties revealed that the composites exhibit typical ferromagnetic hysteresis loops, indicating the presence of ordered magnetic structure. The frequency dependence of permittivity ε′(f) and real part of complex conductivity, σ′(f) exhibits a development of a net of micro-capacitors like behavior that stores charge carriers.
Analysis of Etch Profiles on C-Plane Wafers in Wet Etching of Sapphire Based on Undercutting Rate Distributions in Mixture of H2SO4 and H3PO4 at 236 °C
Authors: Wu Guorong , Xing Yan , Chen Ye , Zhou Zai-Fa
Published: March 2022

In this paper, the formation and evolution of etch profiles with different mask shapes and sizes on C-plane wafers of sapphire are analyzed based on undercutting rate distributions of characteristic planes. The effect of concentrations of etchants on etch profiles is further analyzed. Firstly, etch rate distributions under different experimental conditions (236 °C, H2SO4:H3PO4 = 3:1 and 6:1) are obtained by wet etching experiments of sapphire hemispheres. Undercutting rate distributions of characteristic planes on C-plane wafers under different experimental conditions are obtained by the maximum positive curvature (MPC) recognition method. Then, the effect of different mask shapes and sizes on the formation and evolution of etch profiles of complex cavities and islands on C-plane wafers are analyzed based on the undercutting rate distribution under the experimental condition (236 °C, H2SO4:H3PO4 = 3:1). Finally, characteristic differences of etch profiles on C-plane wafers at different concentrations are explained based on undercutting rate distributions of characteristic planes at the corresponding concentrations (236 °C, H2SO4:H3PO4 = 3:1 and 6:1). These provide a basis for the study of the anisotropic wet etching mechanism of sapphire.
Multiomic profiling of iron-deficient infant monkeys reveals alterations in neurologically important biochemicals in serum and cerebrospinal fluid before the onset of anemia
Authors: Sandri Brian J. , Kim Jonathan , Lubach Gabriele R. , Lock Eric F. , Guerrero Candace , Higgins LeeAnn , Markowski Todd W. , Kling Pamela J. , Georgieff Michael K. , Coe Christopher L. , Rao Raghavendra B.
Published: March 2022

The effects of iron deficiency (ID) during infancy extend beyond the hematologic compartment and include short- and long-term adverse effects on many tissues including the brain. However, sensitive biomarkers of iron-dependent brain health are lacking in humans. To determine whether serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers of ID-induced metabolic dysfunction are concordant in the pre/early anemic stage of ID before anemia in a nonhuman primate model of infantile iron deficiency anemia (IDA). ID ( n = 7), rhesus infants at 4 mo (pre-anemic period) and 6 mo of age (anemic) were examined. Hematological, metabolomic, and proteomic profiles were generated via HPLC/MS at both time points to discriminate serum biomarkers of ID-induced brain metabolic dysfunction. We identified 227 metabolites and 205 proteins in serum. Abnormalities indicating altered liver function, lipid dysregulation, and increased acute phase reactants were present in ID. In CSF, we measured 210 metabolites and 1,560 proteins with changes in ID infants indicative of metabolomic and proteomic differences indexing disrupted synaptogenesis. Systemic and CSF proteomic and metabolomic changes were present and concurrent in the pre-anemic and anemic periods. Multiomic serum and CSF profiling uncovered pathways disrupted by ID in both the pre-anemic and anemic stages of infantile IDA, including evidence for hepatic dysfunction and activation of acute phase response. Parallel changes observed in serum and CSF potentially provide measurable serum biomarkers of ID that reflect at-risk brain processes prior to progression to clinical anemia.
Priming cardiac function with voluntary respiratory maneuvers and effect on early exercise oxygen uptake
Authors: Stucky Frédéric , Churchill Timothy W. , Churchill Jessica L. , Petek Bradley J. , Guseh James Sawalla , Wasfy Meagan M. , Kayser Bengt , Baggish Aaron L.
Published: March 2022

We demonstrate that different breathing maneuvers can augment both right and left-sided cardiac output in healthy subjects. These maneuvers, when performed immediately before exercise, result in a pre-exercise “cardiodynamic” increase in oxygen uptake (V̇o2) associated with a subsequent reduction in the “cardiodynamic” V̇o2 normally seen during early exercise. We conclude that pre-exercise breathing maneuvers are a plausible tool worthy of additional study to prime V̇o2 kinetics and improve exercise tolerance in patients with cardiovascular disease.
Engagement of the contralateral limb can enhance the facilitation of motor output by loud acoustic stimuli
Authors: McInnes Aaron N. , Nguyen An T. , Carroll Timothy J. , Lipp Ottmar V. , Marinovic Welber
Published: March 2022

The facilitation of reaction time, force, and vigor of a ballistic action by loud acoustic stimuli can be enhanced by the maintenance of a sustained contraction during preparation. This enhanced facilitation is observed when the sustained contraction is maintained with low force contralaterally and congruently with the ballistic response. This increased facilitation may be particularly applicable to rehabilitative applications of loud acoustic stimuli in improving the functional recovery of movement after neurological conditions such as stroke.
Differential impact of movement on the alpha and gamma dynamics serving visual processing
Authors: Heinrichs-Graham Elizabeth , Wiesman Alex I. , Embury Christine M. , Schantell Mikki , Joe Timothy R. , Eastman Jacob A. , Wilson Tony W.
Published: March 2022

Processing of visual stimuli is served by occipital alpha and gamma activity. Many studies have investigated the impact of visual stimuli on motor cortical responses, but few studies have systematically investigated the impact of motor responses on visual oscillations. We found that when participants are asked to move in response to a visual stimulus, occipital alpha power was modulated whereas gamma responses were unaffected. This suggests that these responses have dissociable roles in visuomotor integration.
Traditional Chinese Acupressure Massage of the Quadriceps Femoris Can Relieve Flexion Pain after Undergoing Total Knee Arthroplasty
Authors: Fu Zhiwei , Xu Changming , Wang You , Qu Xinhua , Yang Chunxi
Published: March 2022

Objective. To reduce the pain of quadriceps during knee flexion after total knee arthroplasty and increase range motion of knee flexion. Design. Three-month prospective before/after quality improvement project. Setting. Department of Bone and Joint Surgery. Participants. A total of 80 patients who met the surgical indications were admitted to the outpatient department for surgery. They were randomly grouped by computer in advance, and the patients were divided into two groups according to the time of admission, each with 40 cases. Intervention. The intervention group performed routine rehabilitation exercises and received quadriceps acupoint massages for 20 minutes twice a day for two consecutive weeks. The control group performed routine rehabilitation exercises, such as gentle quadriceps massage for 20 minutes twice a day for two consecutive weeks. Main Outcome Measures. PPT (pressure pain threshold) of quadriceps femoris/VAS (visual analog scale) of knee flexion and motion of knee flexion. Results. The VAS score, range of motion, and tenderness threshold during flexion were significantly better in the intervention group than in the control group at 1, 2, and 4 weeks after surgery. But the VAS score, range of motion, and tenderness threshold did not significantly differ between groups at 12 weeks after surgery. Conclusion. Acupoint massage of the quadriceps femoris can relieve early flexion pain in patients after total knee arthroplasty. The trial was registered at clinical trials.gov.
Quantitation of Diclofenac, Tolbutamide, and Warfarin as Typical CYP2C9 Substrates in Rat Plasma by UPLC-MS/MS and Its Application to Evaluate Linderane-Mediated Herb-Drug Interactions
Authors: Zhang Tingting , Peng Ting , Rao Jinqiu , Wang Kai , Qiu Feng
Published: March 2022

Linderane (LDR), the main active and distinctive component of L. aggregate, is a mechanism-based inactivator of CYP2C9 in vitro, indicating the occurrence of herb-drug interactions. However, little is known about the changes of the pharmacokinetic properties of the common clinical drugs as CYP2C9 substrates after coadministration with LDR. In this study, a selective and rapid ultraperformance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS-MS) method for the determination of diclofenac, tolbutamide, and warfarin as CYP2C9 substrates in rat plasma has been developed. Chlorzoxazone was employed as an internal standard (IS), and protein precipitation was used for sample preparation. Chromatographic separation was achieved on a UPLC BEH-C18 (2.1 × 50 mm, 1.7 µm) with 0.1% (v:v) formic acid in water (A) and acetonitrile (B) as the mobile phase with gradient elution. The total run time was only 3.8 min. MS analysis was performed under multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) with electron spray ionization (ESI) operated in the negative mode. The bioanalytical method was validated, and the selectivity, carryover effects, linearity, precision, accuracy, matrix effect, extraction recovery, and stability were acceptable. The validated method was then successfully applied for evaluating the potential pharmacokinetic interactions when LDR was used along with diclofenac, tolbutamide, and warfarin, respectively. Results showed that the Cmax of diclofenac in the treated group was 1287.82 ± 454.16 μg/L, which was about 5-fold of that in the control group

P
<
0.01

. The Cmax of tolbutamide in the treated group was 60.70 ± 10.70 mg/L, which was significantly decreased by about 25% when compared with the control group

P
<
0.01

. The Vd of warfarin in the treated group was obviously increased, which was about 1.4-fold of that in the control group

P
<
0.01

.
Research on the Settlement Prediction Model of Foundation Pit Based on the Improved PSO-SVM Model
Authors: Song Zhibin , Liu Shurong , Jiang Mingyue , Yao Suling
Published: March 2022

This paper presents a settlement prediction method based on PSO optimized SVM for improving the accuracy of foundation pit settlement prediction. Firstly, the method uses the SA algorithm to improve the traditional PSO algorithm, and thus, the overall optimization-seeking ability of the PSO algorithm is improved. Secondly, the improved PSO algorithm is used to train the SVM algorithm. Finally, the optimal SVM model is obtained, and the trained model is used in foundation pit settlement prediction. The results suggest that the settling results obtained from the optimized model are closer to the actual values and also more advantageous in indicators such as RMSE. The fitting value R2 = 0.9641, which is greater, indicates a better fitting effect. Thus, it is indicated that the improvement method is feasible.
Nonhistone Lysine Methylation as a Protein Degradation Signal
Authors: Lehning Nicholas A. , Morrison Brad E.
Published: March 2022

Protein degradation is a fundamental feature of cellular life, and malfunction of this process is implicated in human disease. Ubiquitin tagging is the best characterized mechanism of targeting a protein for degradation; however, there are a growing number of distinct mechanisms which have also been identified that carry out this essential function. For example, covalent tagging of proteins with sequestosome-1 targets them for selective autophagy. Degradation signals are not exclusively polypeptides such as ubiquitin, NEDD8, and sequestosome-1. Phosphorylation, acetylation, and methylation are small covalent additions that can also direct protein degradation. The diversity of substrate sequences and overlap with other pleotrophic functions for these smaller signaling moieties has made their characterization more challenging. However, these small signals might be responsible for orchestrating a large portion of the protein degradation activity in the cell. As such, there has been increasing interest in lysine methylation and associated lysine methyltransferases (KMTs), beyond canonical histone protein modification, in mediating protein degradation in a variety of contexts. This review focuses on the current evidence for lysine methylation as a protein degradation signal with a detailed discussion of the class of enzymes responsible for this phenomenon.
Determination of Optimal Fluoroscopic Angulations for Left Main Coronary Artery Ostial Interventions: 3-Dimensional Computed Tomography Validation
Authors: Sheng Yuhe , Yu Jie , Jing Quanmin , Han Yaling , Li Yi , Xu Kai , Qiu Miaohan , Wang Yingdong , Mintz Gary S. , Wang Bin
Published: March 2022

Background. Current recommendations for the best views for the left main coronary artery (LMCA) ostium intervention are empirical. Objectives. To determine the optimal projection to visualize the LMCA ostium using only fluoroscopy. Methods. The optimal projection to visualize the LMCA ostium was determined using fluoroscopic images of superimposing the lowest points of the distal ends of two J tipped wires in the noncoronary cusp (NCC) and right coronary cusp (RCC). This was validated independently using 3-dimensional computed tomography (3D-CT) reconstruction. Results. Satisfactory images of the overlapping wires in NCC and RCC could be obtained in 90% (45/50). Between the fluoroscopic and the 3D-CT reconstruction approaches, the mean difference for NCC and RCC overlapping at horizontal axes is -1.8 with a 95% limit of agreement between −3.94 and 0.34

p
=
0.10

and at vertical axes −1.6 with a 95% limit of agreement between −3.46 and 0.26

p
=
0.09

; and the mean difference for the optimal projection to visualize the LMCA ostium at horizontal axes is −3.22 with a 95% limit of agreement between -7.26 and 0.81

p
=
0.11

and at vertical axes −2.31 with a 95% limit of agreement between −5.83 and 1.21

p
=
0.09

. The 3D angulation deviation for the optimal projection to visualize the LMCA ostium was 8.5° ± 4.7° when the LMCA ostium faced the NCC-RCC commissure (n = 32) and 22.3° ± 16.0°

p
=
0.009

when it did not (n = 13). Conclusions. The optimal projection for LMCA ostial intervention can be determined using fluoroscopic images of superimposing wires in the NCC and RCC when the LMCA ostium faces the NCC-RCC commissure, as was the case in 71% of the patients studied.
The Influence of Social Function of Mobile Game Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality Environment on Mobile Phone Users’ Addiction
Authors: Liang Chuan , Song Yang , Wang Bin
Published: March 2022

The study explores the influence of social function in mobile game augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) environments on mobile phone users’ addiction. This study uses the mixed research method of social function on the basis of enhancement and VR and mathematical statistics analysis to study the situation of mobile game addiction. In this research work, a collision detection algorithm (CDA) with machine learning is proposed. The collision detection algorithm aids in the detection of the intersection of two objects in the virtual environment and is implemented in games that support augmented reality and virtual reality technologies. It is assumed that the intuition for playing games is obtained from social networking sites, which may lead to the person becoming addicted to playing. This research focused on the analysis of AR and VR-related games by considering mean, standard deviation, and error parameters.
Research Progress on the Relationship between the NLRP3 Inflammasome and Immune Reconstitution in HIV-Infected Patients Receiving Antiretroviral Therapy
Authors: Shi Jinchuan , Zhang Zhongdong , Wu Jie
Published: March 2022

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is characterized not only by severe immunodeficiency but also by persistent inflammation and immune activation. These characteristics persist in people living with HIV (PLHIV) receiving effective antiretroviral therapy (ART) and are associated with morbidity and mortality in nonacquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) events. ART can inhibit HIV replication and promote immune reconstitution, which is currently the most effective way to control AIDS. However, despite effective long-term ART and overall suppression of plasma HIV RNA level, PLHIV still shows chronic low-level inflammation. The exact mechanisms that trigger chronic inflammation are unknown. Activation of the inflammasome is essential for the host response to pathogens, and some recent studies have confirmed the role of the inflammasome in the pathogenesis of inflammatory diseases. The NLRP3 inflammasome has been widely studied, which is a pyrin domain-containing protein 3 belonging to the family of nucleotide-binding and oligomerization domain-like receptors (NLRs). Recent studies suggest that inflammasome-mediated pyroptosis is associated with CD4+ T cell loss in the absence of persistent infectious HIV replication. This article reviews the mechanism of the NLRP3 inflammasome and its correlation with immune reconstitution in PLHIV treated with ART.
Feature Extraction Technology-Guided Visual Communication Design for Folk Paper-Cutting
Authors: Gao Yun
Published: March 2022

Folk paper-cut art is one of the bright pearls, with a wide range of shapes and a long history, that serves as a model for modern visual communication design in China and encourages designers to think creatively. Integrating emotional elements into a design not only can elicit an emotional response from the viewer but also can make works created using traditional rational thinking more vivid, energetic, and touching. The main focus of this research is on the path and method of incorporating folk paper-cut emotion into visual communication design. The research status of various feature extraction methods and image recognition methods at home and abroad is examined in depth in this paper. For the recognition of distorted images that are not transformed by mathematics, some effective methods are proposed. They are used to recognize artistic images of paper-cut patterns because they can extract effective features that are not affected by translation, rotation, scale change, or small deformation. Experiments have shown that they have a positive impact. The use of folk paper-cut art in visual communication design not only improves the quality of design work but also generates new ideas for the transmission and development of other traditional Chinese cultures.
Teaching and Curriculum of the Preschool Physical Education Major Direction in Colleges and Universities under Virtual Reality Technology
Authors: Wang Nina , Abdul Rahman Mohd Nazri , Lim Boon-Hooi
Published: March 2022

The present work aims to study the influence of virtual reality (VR) technology on the teaching and curriculum of preschool physical education in colleges and universities and establish a virtual teaching model suitable for the college teaching system. The classroom teaching situation of using VR technology in physical training of preschool education major direction in colleges and universities is investigated using the questionnaire survey and teaching experiment. Firstly, the feasibility of applying VR technology to teaching is proved by analyzing the relevant education theories. Secondly, the experimental research method is designed to verify the application effect of VR technology in teaching behavior. Finally, the collected data is sorted out to judge the method’s feasibility. The experimental results demonstrate that 88.0% of the respondents are curious about the application of VR, and 88.6% of the respondents can accept the application of VR in sports dance teaching. Besides, 89.1% claimed that VR technology could enhance students’ understanding of knowledge, and 93.0% thought that VR applications would not interfere with teachers’ explanations. In addition, 80.0% thought that virtual teaching could stimulate students’ interest in learning, 75.0% said that VR application could attract students’ attention, and 63.0% believed that VR application could improve learning efficiency. The preliminary investigation suggests that introducing VR technology can reduce the work intensity of teachers, and the students participating in the survey are optimistic about the application of VR technology in preschool physical education. The formal test based on a t-test indicates that the average score of the experimental group is 3.18 points higher than that of the control group, and there are significant differences in technology between the control group and the experimental group. VR technology can improve students’ technical level, enhance self-confidence, and improve students’ grades. To sum up, this study provides a reference for developing virtual teaching mode and applying VR technology to physical education.
Traditional Uses, Phytochemistry, and Bioactivities of Mesosphaerum suaveolens (L.) Kuntze
Authors: Almeida-Bezerra José Weverton , Rodrigues Felicidade Caroline , Lima Bezerra José Jailson , Vieira Pinheiro Anderson Angel , Almeida de Menezes Saulo , Tavares Aline Belém , Costa Adrielle Rodrigues , Augusta de Sousa Fernandes Priscilla , Bezerra da Silva Viviane , Martins da Costa José Galberto , Pereira da Cruz Rafael , Bezerra Morais-Braga Maria Flaviana , Melo Coutinho Henrique Douglas , Teixeira de Albergaria Edward , Meiado Marcos Vinicius , Siyadatpanah Abolghasem , Kim Bonglee , Morais de Oliveira Antônio Fernando
Published: March 2022

Mesosphaerum suaveolens (L.) Kuntze is a species widely used traditionally in the treatment of ailments, such as stomach pain, hemorrhoids, cough, verminosis, ulcer, liver disease, fever, influenza, nasal congestion, and inflammation. This review aims to provide a survey of available information on seven international electronic databases (Google Scholar, Medline, ResearchGate, Web of Science, Scopus, Science Direct, and PubMed) about botanical aspects, traditional uses, phytochemistry, and biological activities of M. suaveolens. Mesosphaerum suaveolens is a tropical America native species, but it can be found in several parts of the world as a ruderal plant. The species is the most studied species of the genus Lamiaceae due its phytochemical aspect, especially regarding the chemical composition of its essential oil. Besides the essential oils, M. suaveolens is a source of numerous secondary compounds such as triterpenes, diterpenes, and phenolic compounds, which are related to its biological activities, such as allelopathic, antibacterial, antifungal, insecticidal, and larvicidal activities as described in the literature.
Target Detection of Low-Altitude UAV Based on Improved YOLOv3 Network
Authors: Zhai Haiqing , Zhang Yang
Published: March 2022

Most existing methods are difficult to detect low-altitude and fast-moving drones. A low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) target detection method based on an improved YOLOv3 network is proposed. While keeping the basic framework of the original model unchanged, the YOLOv3 model is improved. That is, multiscale prediction is added to enhance the detection ability of small-target objects. In addition, the two-axis Pan/Tilt/Zoom (PTZ) camera is controlled based on proportional integral derivative (PID), so that the target tends to the center of the field of view. It is more conducive to accurate detection. Finally, experiments are carried out using real UAV datasets. The results show that the mean average precision (mAP), AP50, and AP75 are 25.12%, 39.75%, and 26.03%, respectively, which are better than other methods. Also, the frame rate is 21 frames·s−1, which meets the performance requirements.
Fragmented Task Scheduling for Load-Balanced Fog Computing Based on Q-Learning
Authors: Razaq Mian Muaz , Rahim Shahnila , Tak Byungchul , Peng Limei
Published: March 2022

5G and beyond (B5G) applications generate tremendous computing-intensive, latency-sensitive, and privacy-sensitive tasks, which differ from the legacy cloud computing tasks, requiring more sophisticated scheduling strategies. We must satisfy the stringent service requirements, particularly privacy preservation that has not been sufficiently considered in the past. Meanwhile, we need to balance the tasks offloaded to different edge nodes to avoid overwhelming some fog nodes, which may degrade the overall performance. To appropriately schedule the privacy-sensitive tasks while balancing the traffic load, we define IoT tasks according to their security need, processing time, and real-time requirement and segment IoT tasks into smaller pieces based on their privacy levels. The sliced tasks are scheduled to multiple fog nodes with satisfactory security reputations to avoid a compromised fog node handling a whole task. Meanwhile, we consider the constraint of the response time of all available fog nodes before scheduling IoT tasks to avoid chaos task scheduling that may overwhelm some fog nodes. Regarding this, we propose a reinforcement learning (RL) model in which the agent tends to satisfy the required latency and security requirements while avoiding overloading some fog nodes to minimize the average delay. The numerical results demonstrate that the proposed approach performs well in a better-balanced load and less performance violation in latency and security.