bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Patient safety culture improves during an in situ simulation intervention: a repeated cross-sectional intervention study at two hospital sites
Authors: Schram Anders , Paltved Charlotte , Christensen Karl Bang , Kjaergaard-Andersen Gunhild , Jensen Hanne Irene , Kristensen Solvejg
Published: March 2021

Objectives

This study aimed to investigate staff’s perceptions of patient safety culture (PSC) in two Danish hospitals before and after an in situ simulation intervention.

Design

A repeated cross-sectional intervention study.

Setting

Two Danish hospitals. Hospital 1 performs emergency functions, whereas hospital 2 performs elective functions.

Participants

A total of 967 healthcare professionals were invited to participate in this study. 516 were employed in hospital 1 and 451 in hospital 2. Of these, 39 were trained as simulation instructors.

Intervention

A 4-day simulation instructor course was applied. Emphasis was put on team training, communication and leadership. After the course, instructors performed simulation in the hospital environment. No systematic simulation was performed prior to the intervention.

Main outcome measures

The Safety Attitude Questionnaire investigating PSC was applied prior to the intervention and again 4 and 8 weeks after intervention. The proportion of participants with a positive attitude and mean scale scores were measured as main outcomes.

Results

The response rate varied from 63.6% to 72.0% across surveys and hospitals. Baseline scores were generally lower for hospital 1. The proportion of staff with positive attitudes in hospital 1 improved by ≥5% in five of six safety culture dimensions, whereas only two dimensions improved by ≥5% in hospital 2. The mean scale scores improved significantly in five of six safety culture dimensions in hospital 1, while only one dimension improved significantly in hospital 2.

Conclusions

Safety attitude outcomes indicate an improvement in PSC from before to after the in situ simulation intervention period. However, it is possible that an effect is more profound in an acute care hospital versus an elective setting.
Increased incidence and treatment of intracranial atherosclerotic disease during mechanical thrombectomy is safe, even with an increased number of passes
Authors: Monayao Marlon Carl , Malik Ahmed A , Preston Laurie , Monayao Sr Marlon Carl , Tekle Wondwossen , Hassan Ameer E
Published: March 2021

Background

The incidence of intracranial atherosclerotic disease (ICAD) in acute ischemic stroke treated with mechanical thrombectomy (MT) is not well defined, and its description may lead to improved stroke devices and rates of first pass success.

Methods

A retrospective study was performed on MT patients from 2012 to 2019 at a comprehensive stroke center using chart review and angiogram analysis. Angiograms at the time of MT were reviewed for ICAD, and location and severity were recorded. Patients with ICAD were divided according to ICAD location relative to the large vessel occlusion (LVO) site. Statistical analyses were performed on baseline demographics, comorbidities, MT procedure variables, outcome variables, and their association with ICAD.

Results

Of the 533 patients (mean age 70.4 (SD 13.20) years, 43.5% women), 131 (24.6%) had ICAD. There was no significant difference in favorable discharge outcomes (modified Rankin Scale score of 0–2; 23.8% ICAD vs 27.0% non-ICAD; p=0.82) or groin puncture to recanalization times (average 43.5 (range 8–181) min for ICAD vs 40.2 (4–204) min for non-ICAD; p=0.42). Patients with ICAD experienced a significantly higher number of passes (average 1.8 (range 1–7) passes for ICAD vs 1.6 (1–5) passes for non-ICAD; p=0.0059). Adjusting for age, ≥3 device passes, baseline National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale, rates of angioplasty only, rates of concurrent angioplasty and stenting, coronary artery disease and atrial fibrillation incidences, and time from emergency department arrival to recanalization, yielded no significant difference in rates of favorable outcomes between the two groups.

Conclusion

Patients who underwent MT with underlying ICAD had similar rates of favorable outcomes as those without, but required a higher number of device passes.
Temperature variability and asthma hospitalisation in Brazil, 2000–2015: a nationwide case-crossover study
Authors: Wu Yao , Xu Rongbin , Wen Bo , Coelho Micheline de Sousa Zanotti Staglior , Saldiva Paulo H , Li Shanshan , Guo Yuming
Published: March 2021

Background

Both cold and hot temperature have been associated with the onset of asthma, but it remains largely unknown about the risk of asthma hospitalisation associated with short-term temperature fluctuation or temperature variability (TV).

Objective

To explore the association between short-term exposure to TV and asthma hospitalisation in Brazil.

Methods

Data for asthma hospitalisation and weather conditions were collected from 1816 Brazilian cities between 2000 and 2015. TV was calculated as the SD of all daily minimum and maximum temperatures within 0–7 days prior to current day. A time-stratified case-crossover design was performed to quantify the association between TV and hospitalisation for asthma.

Results

A total of 2 818 911 hospitalisations for asthma were identified during the study period. Each 1°C increase in 0–7 days’ TV exposure was related to a 1.0% (95% CI 0.7% to 1.4%) increase in asthma hospitalisations. The elderly were more vulnerable to TV than other age groups, while region and season appeared to significantly modify the associations. There were 159 305 (95% CI 55 293 to 2 58 054) hospitalisations, US$48.41 million (95% CI US$16.92 to US$78.30 million) inpatient costs at 2015 price and 450.44 thousand inpatient days (95% CI 156.08 to 729.91 thousand days) associated with TV during the study period. The fraction of asthma hospitalisations attributable to TV increased from 5.32% in 2000 to 5.88% in 2015.

Conclusion

TV was significantly associated with asthma hospitalisation and the corresponding substantial health costs in Brazil. Our findings suggest that preventive measures of asthma should take TV into account.
Post-traumatic stress disorder can be predicted in hospitalized blunt trauma patients using a simple screening tool
Authors: Rahmat Saad , Velez Jessica , Farooqi Muhammad , Smiley Abbas , Prabhakaran Kartik , Rhee Peter , Khan Maria , Dornbush Rhea , Ferrando Stephen , Smolin Yvette
Published: March 2021

Background

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has debilitating psychiatric and medical consequences. The purpose of this study was to identify whether PTSD diagnosis and PTSD symptom scale score (PTSD severity) could be predicted by assessing peritraumatic experiences using a single question or screening tools at different time points in patients hospitalized after admission to the hospital after significant physical trauma, but with stable vitals (level II trauma).

Methods

Patients completed the ‘initial question’ and the National Stressful Events Survey Acute Stress Disorder Scale (NSESSS) at 3 days to 5 days after trauma (NSESSS-1). The same scale was administered 2 weeks to 4 weeks after trauma (NSESSS-2). The Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms Scale Interview for DSM-5 (PSSI-5) was administered 2 months after trauma. PTSD diagnosis and PTSD severity were extracted from the PSSI-5. Linear multivariate regression analyses were used to establish whether scores for NSESSS-1 or NSESSS-2 predicted PTSD diagnosis/PTSD severity. Non-linear multivariate regression analyses were performed to better understand the relationship between NSESSS-1/NSESSS-2 and PTSD diagnosis/PTSD severity.

Results

A single question assessing the experience of fear, helplessness, or horror was not an effective tool for determining the diagnosis of PTSD (p=0.114) but can be a predictor of PTSD severity (p=0.039). We demonstrate that administering the NSESSS after either 3 days to 5 days (p=0.008, p<0.001) or 2 weeks to 4 weeks (p=0.039; p<0.001) can predict the diagnosis of PTSD and PTSD severity. Scoring an NSESSS above 14/28 (50%) increases the chance of experiencing a higher PTSD severity substantially and linearly.

Discussion

Our initial question was not an effective predictor of PTSD diagnosis. However, using the NSESSS at both 3 days to 5 days and 2 weeks to 4 weeks after trauma is an effective method for predicting PTSD diagnosis and PTSD severity. Additionally, we show that patients who score higher than 14 on the NSESSS for acute stress symptoms may need closer follow-up.

Level of evidence

Level III, prognostic.
Single-cell motile behaviour of $${Trypanosoma\, brucei}$$ in thin-layered fluid collectives
Authors: Krüger Timothy , Maus Katharina , Kreß Verena , Meyer-Natus Elisabeth , Engstler Markus
Published: March 2021

We describe a system for the analysis of an important unicellular eukaryotic flagellate in a confining and crowded environment. The parasite Trypanosoma brucei is arguably one of the most versatile microswimmers known. It has unique properties as a single microswimmer and shows remarkable adaptations (not only in motility, but prominently so), to its environment during a complex developmental cycle involving two different hosts. Specific life cycle stages show fascinating collective behaviour, as millions of cells can be forced to move together in extreme confinement. Our goal is to examine such motile behaviour directly in the context of the relevant environments. Therefore, for the first time, we analyse the motility behaviour of trypanosomes directly in a widely used assay, which aims to evaluate the parasites behaviour in collectives, in response to as yet unknown parameters. In a step towards understanding whether, or what type of, swarming behaviour of trypanosomes exists, we customised the assay for quantitative tracking analysis of motile behaviour on the single-cell level. We show that the migration speed of cell groups does not directly depend on single-cell velocity and that the system remains to be simplified further, before hypotheses about collective motility can be advanced.

Graphic abstract
Investigating the Atomki anomaly in the framework of axial (ABJ) anomaly
Authors: Liu Chang-Yong
Published: March 2021

An anomaly observed in the 8Be nuclear transition by the Atomki collaboration hints at a light, neutral boson decaying into an [Formula: see text] pair with a mass of about 17 MeV. In this paper, we study the Atomki anomaly in the framework of axial (ABJ) anomaly. Some theoretical results indicate that the X17 particle is the color singlet pseudoscalar. We take the X17 particle as a pseudoscalar meson [Formula: see text] system which has the axial (ABJ) anomaly, where [Formula: see text] denotes the up quark. Besides this, we also give an interpretation for E38 particle with a mass of about 38 MeV as a pseudoscalar meson [Formula: see text] system. We obtain the correct masses of the two pseudoscalars by a non-perturbative mass formula.
Impact of Government Bailout on Banks’ Cost of Equity: Additional Evidence from the Financial Bailout of 2008–2009
Authors: Wang Daphne , Houmes Robert , Ngo Thanh , Esqueda Omar
Published: March 2021

The Capital Purchase Program (CPP) was the first and most significant program under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) during 2008–2009 financial crisis. This study evaluates the effect of the CPP during this period on the cost of equity of 170 publicly listed banks in the United States that received funding. To control for the potential effects of endogeneity on our results, we use a propensity score matched sample of non-CPP banks. Using this approach, we document robust evidence that the liquidity provided by the government bailout reduced the cost of equity for recipient banks, especially for those banks that repaid their bailout funds in full. This decrease in the cost of equity is particularly significant for banks with high market-to-book ratios, low concentrations of institutional ownership, and those banks with at least one large blockholder. Our findings have important implications for the assessment of government bailout programs and the future regulation of financial institutions.
Dynamics of an autonomous Gilpin–Ayala competition model with random perturbation
Authors: Fu Jing , Han Qixing , Jiang Daqing , Yang Yanyan
Published: March 2021

This paper discusses the dynamics of a Gilpin–Ayala competition model of two interacting species perturbed by white noise. We obtain the existence of a unique global positive solution of the system and the solution is bounded in [Formula: see text]th moment. Then, we establish sufficient and necessary conditions for persistence and the existence of an ergodic stationary distribution of the model. We also establish sufficient conditions for extinction of the model. Moreover, numerical simulations are carried out for further support of present research.
Passthrough+
Authors: Chaurasia Gaurav , Nieuwoudt Arthur , Ichim Alexandru-Eugen , Szeliski Richard , Sorkine-Hornung Alexander
Published: March 2021

We present an end-to-end system for real-time environment capture, 3D reconstruction, and stereoscopic view synthesis on a mobile VR headset. Our solution allows the user to use the cameras on their VR headset as their eyes to see and interact with the real world while still wearing their headset, a feature often referred to as Passthrough. The central challenge when building such a system is the choice and implementation of algorithms under the strict compute, power, and performance constraints imposed by the target user experience and mobile platform. A key contribution of this paper is a complete description of a corresponding system that performs temporally stable passthrough rendering at 72 Hz with only 200 mW power consumption on a mobile Snapdragon 835 platform. Our algorithmic contributions for enabling this performance include the computation of a coarse 3D scene proxy on the embedded video encoding hardware, followed by a depth densification and filtering step, and finally stereoscopic texturing and spatio-temporal up-sampling. We provide a detailed discussion and evaluation of the challenges we encountered, as well as algorithm and performance trade-offs in terms of compute and resulting passthrough quality.;AB@The described system is available to users as the Passthrough+ feature on Oculus Quest. We believe that by publishing the underlying system and methods, we provide valuable insights to the community on how to design and implement real-time environment sensing and rendering on heavily resource constrained hardware.
Information retrieval models for recommender systems
Authors: Valcarce Daniel
Published: March 2021

Information retrieval addresses the information needs of users by delivering relevant pieces of information but requires users to convey their information needs explicitly. In contrast, recommender systems offer personalized suggestions of items automatically. Ultimately, both fields help users cope with information overload by providing them with relevant items of information.

This thesis aims to explore the connections between information retrieval and recommender systems. Our objective is to devise recommendation models inspired in information retrieval techniques. We begin by borrowing ideas from the information retrieval evaluation literature to analyze evaluation metrics in recommender systems [2]. Second, we study the applicability of pseudo-relevance feedback models to different recommendation tasks [1]. We investigate the conventional top-N recommendation task [5, 4, 6, 7], but we also explore the recently formulated user-item group formation problem [3] and propose a novel task based on the liquidation of long tail items [8]. Third, we exploit ad hoc retrieval models to compute neighborhoods in a collaborative filtering scenario [9, 10, 12]. Fourth, we explore the opposite direction by adapting an effective recommendation framework to pseudo-relevance feedback [13, 11]. Finally, we discuss the results and present our conclusions.

In summary, this doctoral thesis adapts a series of information retrieval models to recommender systems. Our investigation shows that many retrieval models can be accommodated to deal with different recommendation tasks. Moreover, we find that taking the opposite path is also possible. Exhaustive experimentation confirms that the proposed models are competitive. Finally, we also perform a theoretical analysis of some models to explain their effectiveness.

Advisors
: Álvaro Barreiro and Javier Parapar.

Committee members
: Gabriella Pasi, Pablo Castells and Fidel Cacheda.

The dissertation is available at: https://www.dc.fi.udc.es/~dvalcarce/thesis.pdf.
Titan's Interior Structure and Dynamics After the Cassini-Huygens Mission
Authors: Sotin Christophe , Kalousová Klára , Tobie Gabriel
Published: March 2021

The Cassini-Huygens mission that explored the Saturn system during the period 2004–2017 revolutionized our understanding of Titan, the only known moon with a dense atmosphere and the only body, besides Earth, with stable surface liquids. Its predominantly nitrogen atmosphere also contains a few percent of methane that is photolyzed on short geological timescales to form ethane and more complex organic molecules. The presence of a significant amount of methane and40Ar, the decay product of40K, argues for exchange processes from the interior to the surface. Here we review the information that constrains Titan's interior structure. Gravity and orbital data suggest that Titan is an ocean world, which implies differentiation into a hydrosphere and a rocky core. The mass and gravity data complemented by equations of state constrain the ocean density and composition as well as the hydrosphere thickness. We present end-member models, review the dynamics of each layer, and discuss the global evolution consistent with the Cassini-Huygens data. ▪  Titan is the only moon with a dense atmosphere where organic molecules are synthesized and have sedimented at the surface. ▪  The Cassini-Huygens mission demonstrated that Titan is an ocean world with an internal water shell and liquid hydrocarbon seas at the poles. ▪  Interactions between water, rock, and organics may have occurred during most of Titan's evolution, which has strong astrobiological implications. ▪  Data collected by the Dragonfly mission and comparison with the JUpiter ICy moons Explorer (JUICE) data for Ganymede will further reveal Titan's astrobiology potential.
An Atlas of Phanerozoic Paleogeographic Maps: The Seas Come In and the Seas Go Out
Authors: Scotese Christopher R.
Published: March 2021

Paleogeography is the study of the changing surface of Earth through time. Driven by plate tectonics, the configuration of the continents and ocean basins has been in constant flux. Plate tectonics pushes the land surface upward or pulls it apart, causing its collapse. All the while, the unrelenting forces of climate and weather slowly reduce mountains to sand and mud and redistribute these sediments to the sea. This article reviews the changing paleogeography of the past 750 million years. It describes the broad patterns of Phanerozoic paleogeography as well as many of the specific paleogeographic events that have shaped the modern continents and ocean basins. The focus is on the changing latitudinal distribution of the continents, fluctuations in sea level, the opening and closing of oceanic seaways, mountain building, and how these paleogeographic changes have affected global climate, ocean circulation, and the evolution of life. This review presents an atlas of 114 paleogeographic maps that illustrate how Earth's surface has evolved during the past 750 million years. During that time interval, Earth has witnessed the formation and breakup of two supercontinents: Pannotia and Pangea. The continents have been transformed from low-lying flooded platforms to high-standing land areas crisscrossed by the scars of past continental collisions. Oceans have opened and closed, and then opened again in a seemingly never-ending cycle. ▪  The changing configuration of the continents and ocean basins during the past 750 million years is illustrated in 114 paleogeographic maps. ▪  These maps describe how the surface of Earth has been continually modified by mountain building and erosion. ▪  The changing paleogeography has affected global climate, ocean circulation, and the evolution of life. ▪  The data and methods used to produce the maps are described in detail.
Shear Pleasure: The Structure, Formation, and Thermodynamics of Crystallographic Shear Phases
Authors: Voskanyan Albert A. , Navrotsky Alexandra
Published: March 2021

A renaissance of interest in crystallographic shear structures and our recent work in this remarkable class of materials inspired this review. We first summarize the geometrical aspects of shear plane formation and possible transformations in ReO3, rutile, and perovskite-based structures. Then we provide a mechanistic overview of crystallographic shear formation, plane ordering, and propagation. Next we describe the energetics of planar defect formation and interaction, equilibria between point and extended defect structures, and thermodynamic stability of shear compounds. Finally, we emphasize the remaining challenges and propose future directions in this exciting area.
Barium Sulfate Scale Removal at Low-Temperature
Authors: Gamal Hany , Al-Afnan Saad , Elkatatny Salaheldin , Bahgat Mohamed
Published: March 2021

Precipitation of the scale in the oil and gas reservoirs, surface and subsurface equipment, and processing and production facilities is a big problem as it affects petroleum production. The scale precipitations decrease the oil and gas production and cause economical loss. Solving this issue requires an engineering investigation to provide a safe, efficient, and economic solution. Consequently, this study proposed a developed dissolver for barium sulfate scales, where two field-scale samples were collected from different locations. The compositional analysis for scale samples showed that sample 1 is 100% barium sulfate where sample 2 has 97.75% barium sulfate and 2.25% of quartz. The composition of the developed dissolver has diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA) as a chelating agent, oxalic acid, and tannic acids as an activator, nonionic surfactant, and water as the base fluid. The new dissolver was investigated with extensive lab tests to determine the dissolution efficiency, precipitation tendency for the dissolved scale solids, corrosion rate, and fluid-rock interaction. The obtained successful results indicated that the developed dissolver had a dissolution efficiency for two real barium scale samples as the results showed 76.9 and 71.2% at 35°C and 91.3 and 78.4% at 90°C for samples 1 and 2, respectively. The new solution has a great performance compared with common scale dissolvers in the oil field as hydrochloric acid, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, and diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid. The developed dissolver showed a very low precipitation tendency for the scale dissolved solids (1.9 and 3.2% for samples 1 and 2, respectively) under 35°C for 24 hours. Without any additives of corrosion inhibitors, the corrosion rate was 0.001835 g/cm2 at 6.9 MPa and 100°C for 6 hours. Injecting the developed dissolver for damaged sandstone core sample with barite mud by flooding test showed a return permeability of 115%.
Mexican Sage (Salvia officinalis) Extraction Using Factorial Design and Its Effect on Chemical and Antibacterial Properties
Authors: Conde-Hernández L. A. , Luna-Guevara M. L. , Luna-Guevara J. J. , Pérez-Vázquez J. , Aranda-García R. J.
Published: March 2021

The essential oils (EOs) extracted by hydrodistillation (HYDRO) and steam distillation (SD) from Mexican Salvia officinalis L were analyzed for yield, chemical composition (GC-MS), particle morphology (SEM), antioxidant activity (ABTS), and antibacterial activity against Enterobacter agglomerans, Citrobacter freundii, Salmonella sp, E. coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The influence of the factors (method, quantity, and sample) was evaluated using a 23 full factorial design, Pareto chart, normal probability plot, main effects, and interaction plots in variance analysis on yield and antioxidant activity. The quantity, methods, sample, and the methods × sample and methods × quantity interactions were the most significant factors on yield (%). The sample, methods, and quantity × sample interaction were significant for antioxidant activity. EO yields were between 0.35 and 1.27 (% w/w), and the highest value was obtained by the HYDRO method using 50 g of whole sage leaves. The antioxidant activity values were in the range of 2.35 to 3.44 mg Trolox equivalent/g. Camphor, limonene, camphene, and caryophyllene were the main compounds identified. Micrographs of sage leaves showed relevant changes in the structure after extraction. The antibacterial activity was confirmed with the inhibition diameter and inhibition percentage of all bacteria, and P. aeruginosa was the most resistant bacteria. Finally, S. officinalis EO potentials can be considered an alternative natural preservative for the food and pharmaceutical industries.
Bioinformatic Analysis of Key Genes and Pathways Related to Keloids
Authors: Bi Siwei , Liu Ruiqi , Wu Beiyi , He Linfeng , Gu Jun
Published: March 2021

Background. The pathophysiology of keloids is complex, and the treatment for keloids is still an unmet medical need. Our study is aimed at identifying the hub genes among the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between normal skin tissue and keloids and key pathways in the development of keloids. Materials and Methods. We downloaded the GSE92566 and GSE90051 microarray data, which contain normal skin tissue and keloid gene expression data. GSE92566 was treated as a discovery dataset for summarizing the significantly DEGs, and GSE90051 served as a validation dataset. Gene Ontology, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway, Reactome enrichment analysis, gene set enrichment analysis, and gene set variation analysis were performed for the key functions and pathways enriched in DEGs. Moreover, we also validated the hub genes identified from the protein‐protein interaction network and predicted miRNA‐hub gene interactions. Results. 117 downregulated DEGs and 204 upregulated DEGs in GSE92566 were identified. Extracellular and collagen‐related pathways were prominent in upregulated DEGs, while the keratinization‐related pathway was associated with downregulated DEGs. The hub genes included COL5A1, COL5A2, and SERPINH1, which were also validated in GSE90051. Conclusion. This study identified several hub genes and provided insights for the underlying pathways and miRNA‐hub gene interactions for keloid development through bioinformatic analysis of two microarray datasets. Additionally, our results would support the development of future therapeutic strategies.
Resting-State fMRI in Studies of Acupuncture
Authors: Li Xiaoling , Cai Lina , Jiang Xiaoxu , Liu Xiaohui , Wang Jingxian , Yang Tiansong , Wang Feng
Published: March 2021

Research exploring the mechanism of acupuncture has been a hot topic in medicine. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) research is a noninvasive and extensive method, which is aimed at the research of the mechanism of acupuncture. Researchers use fMRI technologies to inspect the acupuncture process. The authors reviewed the application of rs-fMRI in acupuncture research in recent 10 years from the aspects of studying acupoints, subjects, acupuncture methods, and intensities. The results found that the application of rs-fMRI in acupuncture research mainly includes research on the onset mechanism of acupuncture treatment; visual evidence of diagnosis and treatment of dominant diseases; efficacy assessments; physiological mechanism of acupoint stimulation; and specific visualization of acupoints.
Peripapillary Vessel Density in Eyes with Rhegmatogenous Retinal Detachment after Pars Plana Vitrectomy
Authors: Lu Bing , Zhang Pengfei , Liu Haiyun , Jia Huixun , Yu Yang , Wang Fenghua , Wang Hong , Sun Xiaodong
Published: March 2021

Purpose. To investigate the vascular density of the optic nerve head (ONH) and macula using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) in patients undergoing vitrectomy for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) and to evaluate associations with visual outcomes. Methods. Patients with RRD, successfully treated with a pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) and a minimum three-month follow-up were included in this study. The vessel density (VD) of the ONH and peripapillary regions, foveal avascular zone (FAZ), foveal flow density (FFD), and parafoveal flow density (PFD) were evaluated using OCTA and compared to the fellow eye. Multivariate linear regression analysis was performed to determine correlations with visual outcomes. Results. Thirty-one patients with macula-off RRD were included in the study. Compared with the fellow eyes, eyes after RRD surgery had a lower peripapillary VD (

P
<
0.01

). No significant difference in superficial and deep FFD, PFD, and FAZ area was found compared to the fellow eyes. Postoperative peripapillary VD and baseline BCVA were significantly associated with BCVA three months after PPV (

P
<
0.05

). Conclusion. Rhegmatogenous retinal detachment eyes successfully treated with PPV had lower peripapillary vessel density than fellow healthy eyes. Postoperative BCVA was related to postoperative peripapillary VD.
Screening of Hub Genes Associated with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension by Integrated Bioinformatic Analysis
Authors: Zeng Yu , Li Nanhong , Zheng Zhenzhen , Chen Riken , Peng Min , Liu Wang , Zhu Jinru , Zeng Mingqing , Cheng Junfen , Hong Cheng
Published: March 2021

Background. Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a disease or pathophysiological syndrome which has a low survival rate with abnormally elevated pulmonary artery pressure caused by known or unknown reasons. In addition, the pathogenesis of PAH is not fully understood. Therefore, it has become an urgent matter to search for clinical molecular markers of PAH, study the pathogenesis of PAH, and contribute to the development of new science‐based PAH diagnosis and targeted treatment methods. Methods. In this study, the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database was used to downloaded a microarray dataset about PAH, and the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between PAH and normal control were screened out. Moreover, we performed the functional enrichment analyses and protein‐protein interaction (PPI) network analyses of the DEGs. In addition, the prediction of miRNA and transcriptional factor (TF) of hub genes and construction miRNA‐TF‐hub gene network were performed. Besides, the ROC curve was used to evaluate the diagnostic value of hub genes. Finally, the potential drug targets for the 5 identified hub genes were screened out. Results. 69 DEGs were identified between PAH samples and normal samples. GO and KEGG pathway analyses revealed that these DEGs were mostly enriched in the inflammatory response and cytokine‐cytokine receptor interaction, respectively. The miRNA‐hub genes network was conducted subsequently with 131 miRNAs, 7 TFs, and 5 hub genes (CCL5, CXCL12, VCAM1, CXCR1, and SPP1) which screened out via constructing the PPI network. 17 drugs interacted with 5 hub genes were identified. Conclusions. Through bioinformatic analysis of microarray data sets, 5 hub genes (CCL5, CXCL12, VCAM1, CXCR1, and SPP1) were identified from DEGs between control samples and PAH samples. Studies showed that the five hub genes might play an important role in the development of PAH. These 5 hub genes might be potential biomarkers for diagnosis or targets for the treatment of PAH. In addition, our work also indicated that paying more attention on studies based on these 5 hub genes might help to understand the molecular mechanism of the development of PAH.
The Effect of Using Computer Simulation on Students’ Performance in Teaching and Learning Physics: Are There Any Gender and Area Gaps?
Authors: Ben Ouahi Mhamed , Ait Hou Mohamed , Bliya Abdesselam , Hassouni Taoufik , Al Ibrahmi El Mehdi
Published: March 2021

The aim of this study is to determine the effect of using computer simulation on students’ performance in teaching and learning physical science, particularly the electrical Ohm’s law. A sample of 182 students classified into two groups–experimental (92) and control (90)–from two middle schools in Meknes city (one in the rural area and the other urban area) was the subject of a pretest and posttest evaluation. The outcomes of the administered test to both groups of students, control and experimental, were compared and analyzed using Student’s t-test and the Mann–Whitney U test with Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The results obtained suggest that the experimental group register the best performances after the posttest than the control group (

p
<
0.05

). While no difference, in terms of performance, was signed according to gender in the experimental group (

p
>
0.05

), the urban students were more successful than the rural ones, with and without the use of simulations. In this respect, this study recommended using and practicing simulation software to improve and develop the performance of middle school students.
Research on Inhibiting Performance of Compound Corrosion Inhibitors Based on Nitrite
Authors: Yi Bing , Wang Jianmin , Feng Liyu , Song Yilin , Liu Junzhe , Shu Haibin
Published: March 2021

To solve rebar corrosion in existing concrete structures, two test methods, adding corrosion inhibitors into concrete and applying corrosion inhibitors on the existing concrete surface by brushing and pouring and composite repair, combined with natural potential, XRD and SEM, were used to comprehensively evaluate the performance of nitrite‐based compound corrosion inhibitors. The research results show that nitrite has a better inhibitory effect than phosphate, and when the respective mass fraction of hydrogen phosphate and sodium nitrite is about 1.5%, the rust inhibition effect is the optimum. Brushing, perfusion, and composite repair can all play a good role in inhibiting corrosion of which composite repair is the best. The addition of phosphate can improve the macrocell corrosion caused by the low dosage or uneven distribution of nitrite.
Compressive Strength Prediction of Stabilized Dredged Sediments Using Artificial Neural Network
Authors: Tran Van Quan
Published: March 2021

Stabilized dredged sediments are used as a backfilling material to reduce construction costs and a solution to environmental protection. Therefore, the compressive strength is an important criterion to determine the stabilized dredged sediments application such as road construction, building construction, and highway construction. Using the traditional method such as empirical approach and experimental methods, the determination of compressive strength of stabilized dredged sediments is difficult due to the complexity of this composite material. In this investigation, the artificial neural network (ANN) model is introduced to forecast the compressive strength. To perform the simulation, 51 experimental datasets were collected from the literature. The dataset consists of 4 input variables (water content, cement content, air foam content, and waste fishing net content) and output variable (compressive strength). Evaluation of the models was made and compared on training dataset (70% data) and testing dataset (30% remaining data) by the criteria of Pearson’s correlation coefficient (R), Mean Absolute Error (MAE), and Root Mean Square Error (RMSE). The results show that the ANN model can accurately predict the compressive strength of stabilized dredged sediments with low water content. The cement content is the most important input affecting the unconfined compressive strength. The important input affecting the unconfined compressive strength can be in the following order: cement content > air foam content > water content > waste fishing net.
A Smart Semipartitioned Real‐Time Scheduling Strategy for Mixed‐Criticality Systems in 6G‐Based Edge Computing
Authors: Wang Wenle , Mao Chengying , Zhao Shuai , Cao Yuanlong , Yi Yugen , Chen Shaolong , Liu Qinghua
Published: March 2021

With the rapid growth of 6G communication and smart sensor technology, the Internet of Things (IoT) has attracted much attention now. In the 6G‐based IoT applications on the multiprocessor platform, the partitioned scheduling has been widely applied. However, these partitioned scheduling approaches could cause system resource waste and uneven workload among processors. In this paper, a smart semipartitioned scheduling strategy (SSPS) was proposed for mixed‐criticality systems (MCS) in 6G‐based edge computing. Besides tasks’ acceptance rate and weighted schedulability, QoS is considered in SSPS to improve the service quality of the system. The SSPS allocates tasks into each processor, and some tasks can migrate to other processors as soon as possible. By comparing with the several existing algorithms, the experimental results show that the SSPS achieves the best in the schedulability and QoS of the system.
Seroprevalence and Risk Factors of Small Ruminant Brucellosis in West Hararghe Zone of Oromia Regional State, Eastern Ethiopia
Authors: Geletu Umer Seid , Usmael Munera Ahmednur , Mummed Yesihak Yusuf
Published: March 2021

A cross-sectional study design was employed on collected sera samples to investigate brucellosis in small ruminants from December 2018 to November 2019 with the objectives of estimating the seroprevalence and potential risk factors for the occurrence of brucellosis in small ruminants in selected districts of West Hararghe: Chiro, Hirna, and Mieso. A total of 2070 collected sera samples from small ruminants were tested using serological tests and screened by RBPT and confirmatory test (CFT). The overall seroprevalence of the present study was 0.24% in small ruminants (Chiro 0.2%, Hirna 0%, and Mieso 0.3%). The chi-square test (Stat 14.0) was used to determine the strength of potential risk factors associated with the occurrence of brucellosis by using univariable logistic regression. Mixed flock (OR = 2.11 (1.33–3.36 CI;

P
=
0.002

)), agropastoral (OR = 4.01 (2.35–6.84 CI;

P
=
0.0001

)) and pastoral (OR = 2.59 (1.37–4.90 CI;

P
=
0004

)) production system, and larger flock size (OR = 1.68 (1.08–2.60 CI;

P
=
0.021

) were factors significantly affecting the prevalence of small ruminant brucellosis. Univariable analysis was used, and independent predictors of small ruminant brucellosis were further analyzed using multilogistic regression. This disease was presented in the current study area; therefore, the careful separation of positive animals would help to prevent and control further distribution of the disease.
Activity and Safety of Tegafur, Gimeracil, and Oteracil Potassium for Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Zhang Ximing , Tian Xiumei , Wei Yuezi , Deng Hao , Ma Lichun , Chen Ziyang
Published: March 2021

In clinical practice, tegafur, gimeracil, and oteracil potassium (S-1) therapy is commonly administered to treat nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). However, its efficacy and safety remain controversial in both randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and non-RCTs. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of S-1 treatment for NPC. We searched PubMed, Ovid, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Database, and VIP databases for RCTs of chemotherapy with or without S-1 for NPC, from 2001 to 2020. A meta-analysis was performed using RevMan5.3 and Stata15. Randomized controlled trials published in journals were included irrespective of blinding and language used. Patients were diagnosed with NPC through a clinicopathological examination; patients of all cancer stages and ages were included. Overall, 25 trials and 1858 patients were included. There were significant differences in the complete remission (OR = 2.42, 95% CI (1.88–3.10),

P
<
0.05

) and overall response rate (OR = 2.68, 95% CI (2.08–3.45),

P
<
0.05

) between the S-1 and non-S-1 groups. However, there was no significant difference in partial remission (OR = 1.10, 95% CI (0.87–1.39),

P
=
0.42

) and seven adverse reactions (leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, dermatitis, oral mucositis, and anemia) between the S-1 and non-S-1 groups. Additionally, statistical analyses with six subgroups were performed. S-1 was found to be a satisfactory chemotherapeutic agent combined with radiotherapy, intravenous chemotherapy, or chemoradiotherapy for NPC. As an oral medicine, the adverse reactions of S-1, especially gastrointestinal reactions, can be tolerated by patients, thereby optimizing their quality of life. S-1 may be a better choice for the treatment of NPC. This trial is registered with CRD42019122041.
The Inhibitory Effects of Ficin on Streptococcus mutans Biofilm Formation
Authors: Sun Yan , Jiang Wentao , Zhang Mingzheng , Zhang Lingjun , Shen Yan , Huang Shengbin , Li Mingyun , Qiu Wei , Pan Yihuai , Zhou Liang , Zhang Keke
Published: March 2021

To investigate the effects of ficin on biofilm formation of conditionally cariogenic Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans). Biomass and metabolic activity of biofilm were assessed using crystal violet assay, colony‐forming unit (CFU) counting, and MTT assay. Extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) synthesis was displayed by SEM imaging, bacteria/EPS staining, and anthrone method while acid production was revealed by lactic acid assay. Growth curve and live/dead bacterial staining were conducted to monitor bacterial growth state in both planktonic and biofilm form. Total protein and extracellular proteins of S. mutans biofilm were analyzed by protein/bacterial staining and sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS‐PAGE), severally. qRT‐PCR was conducted to detect acid production, acid tolerance, and biofilm formation associated genes. Crystal violet assay, CFU counting, and MTT assay showed that the suppression effect of ficin on S. mutans biofilm formation was concentration dependent. 4 mg/mL ficin had significant inhibitory effect on S. mutans biofilm formation including biomass, metabolic activity, EPS synthesis, and lactic acid production (p < 0.05). The growth curves from 0 mg/mL to 4 mg/mL ficin were aligned with each other. There was no significant difference among different ficin groups in terms of live/dead bacterial staining result (p > 0.05). Protein/bacterial staining outcome indicated that ficin inhibit both total protein and biofilm formation during the biofilm development. There were more relatively small molecular weight protein bands in extracellular proteins of 4 mg/mL ficin group when compared with the control. Generally, ficin could inhibit biofilm formation and reduce cariogenic virulence of S. mutans effectively in vitro; thus, it could be a potential anticaries agent.
Optimization of Urban Cold Chain Transport Routes under Time-Varying Network Conditions
Authors: Liu Shouchen , Zhang Cheng
Published: March 2021

Given the time-efficient characteristics of urban cold chain transportation and the time-varying characteristics of urban road speed, customers encounter the problem of limited vehicle path optimization due to a fuzzy time window. An optimization model of urban cold chain transportation with the objective function as the minimum total cost is constructed under the premise of service reliability, and an artificial immune particle swarm optimization algorithm is designed to solve the model. For an empirical analysis of Xiamen’s cold chain transportation, a two-stage solution involving “static optimization and dynamic optimization” is used to verify the effectiveness of the model and the practical value of this research. Results show that the time-varying model can effectively reflect the situation of urban road transportation and satisfy the timeliness requirement of urban cold chain transportation.
Existence and Stability of Implicit Fractional Differential Equations with Stieltjes Boundary Conditions Involving Hadamard Derivatives
Authors: Luo Danfeng , Alam Mehboob , Zada Akbar , Riaz Usman , Luo Zhiguo
Published: March 2021

In this article, we make analysis of the implicit fractional differential equations involving integral boundary conditions associated with Stieltjes integral and its corresponding coupled system. We use some sufficient conditions to achieve the existence and uniqueness results for the given problems by applying the Banach contraction principle, Schaefer’s fixed point theorem, and Leray–Schauder result of the cone type. Moreover, we present different kinds of stability such as Hyers–Ulam stability, generalized Hyers–Ulam stability, Hyers–Ulam–Rassias stability, and generalized Hyers–Ulam–Rassias stability by using the classical technique of functional analysis. At the end, the results are verified with the help of examples.
Polyphenols from Broussonetia papyrifera Induce Apoptosis of HepG2 Cells via Inactivation of ERK and AKT Signaling Pathways
Authors: Dou Chen-Zhuo , Liu Yan-Fen , Zhang Lu-Lu , Chen Shao-Hong , Hu Chuan-Yin , Liu You , Zhao Yun-Tao
Published: March 2021

The extract of Broussonetia papyrifera has been proved to have antitumor activity. However, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. This study aimed to elucidate the mechanism of apoptosis of HepG2 cells induced by polyphenols from Broussonetia papyrifera (PBPs). The results revealed that PBPs inhibited the proliferation of HepG2 cells in a dose-dependent and time-dependent manner. Flow cytometry analysis showed that PBPs increased the apoptosis ratio of HepG2 cells significantly. PBPs increased intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and decreased intracellular superoxide dismutase (SOD) level of HepG2 cells. PBPs induced cell cycle arrest at G1 phase. Western blotting showed that PBPs upregulated the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 and the expression level of Caspase-3, and activated p53 in HepG2 cells. The inhibition of proliferative relative signals (protein kinase B, PKB/AKT) and survival relative signals (extracellular signal-regulated kinase, ERK) were also observed in PBP-treated HepG2 cells. Our findings suggest that apoptosis of HepG2 cells induced by PBPs is mitochondria-mediated via inactivation of ERK and AKT signaling pathways.
Effects of Concentration of Pore Solution on Stability of Ion‐Absorbed Rare Earth Ore Aggregate
Authors: Wang Jie , Wang Guanshi , Hong Bengen
Published: March 2021

The continuous change in solution concentration in ore pores during in situ mineral leaching influences the stability of ore aggregate. In this study, influences of the concentration of ammonium sulfate ((NH4)2SO4) solution on the interaction forces between ore particles were calculated. On this basis, the mechanism by which (NH4)2SO4 solution concentration influences the stability of ore aggregate was analyzed. Furthermore, an empirical formula for estimating the critical (NH4)2SO4 solution concentration for aggregation and dispersion of ore body aggregates with different grain composition was proposed. Some major conclusions were drawn. First, for ore bodies with an initial particle size of less than 0.075 mm, the interaction force between particles was net attraction, with the distance range of this force increasing as the concentration of (NH4)2SO4 solution increased from ≤0.001 to 0.16 mol·L−1, aggregation of ore particles occurring within this distance range. Secondly, for ore bodies with initial particle size of less than 0.075 mm, the interaction force between particles was net attraction, but with the distance range of this force decreasing when the (NH4)2SO4 solution concentration increased from 0.16 to 0.28 mol·L−1, dispersion of ore particles occurring beyond this distance range. Thirdly, for ore bodies with particle sizes of less than 0.038, 0.075 and 0.1 mm, the cation exchange capacity (CEC) was 9.13, 8.96, and 8.8 cmol·kg−1, respectively, and the critical (NH4)2SO4 solution concentration affecting the aggregation and dispersion of ore bodies was 0.12, 0.16, and 0.20 mol·L−1, respectively.