bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effects of Quantum Flux Field on Generalized Duffin-Kemmer-Petiau Oscillator in Conical Space-Times and Thermodynamic Properties
Authors: Ahmed Faizuddin , Candemir Nuray
Published: January 2023

In this article, we study the generalized Duffin-Kemmer-Petiau (DKP) oscillator in the presence ofthe Aharonov-Bohm (AB) flux field in a topological defect space-times background. This generalized DKPoscillator will investigate by a nonminimal substitution of the momentum operator $\vec{p} →\vec{p}+i M ω η^{0} f(r) \hat{r}$ in the relativistic DKP equation, where f(r) is the linear plus Coulomb potential function (called Cornell-typepotential function). We solve this wave equation in a cosmic string space-time background and obtain theenergy levels and the wave function using the parametric Nikiforov-Uvarov method. Afterwards, we solve thegeneralized DKP oscillator in a point-like global monopole background, and obtain the energy levels and thewave functions using the same method. We see that the energy eigenvalues depend on the geometric quantumphase, and thus, calculate the persistent currents of the quantum system. Finally, we study the thermodynamicproperties of the quantum systems and calculate the partition function and other quantities, such as Helmholtzfree energy, mean free energy, specific heat capacity, and entropy in cosmic string space-time and point-likeglobal monopole background. We show that the eigenvalue solutions and thermodynamic functions obtainedin both cases are influenced by the topological defects of cosmic string space-time and global monopole, thequantum flux field, and the Cornell-type potential function and get them modified in comparison to the flatspace result.
PACS 03.65.Pm · 03.65.Ge · 14.80.Hv · 98.80.Cq · 02.30.Gp · 05.30.-d · 05.70.Ce
Effect and Mechanism of Fisetin on Patulin Induced Myocardial Damage Based on Network Pharmacology
Authors: Xu Dongmei , Zhang Baigang , Huang Chenghui , Lu Jiao , Li Yang , Fu Binggang
Published: January 2023

Objectives of the Study
The aim of this study is to investigate whether fisetin can effectively reduce patulin induced myocardial damage, and to reveal the mechanism and target of fisetin in inhibiting myocardial damage.
Materials and Methods:
Network pharmacology was used to screen the targets of fisetin on myocardial damage, the regulatory network of active ingredients-drug targets was constructed, and GO and KEGG enrichment analysis were performed to screen out the key pathways and targets of fisetin on myocardial damage. Patulin was used to induce apoptosis in H9c2 cardiomyocytes to verify the key targets. The mechanism of fisetin inhibiting myocardial damage was determined.
Results
FIS can reduce the apoptosis of cardiomyocytes by protecting cardiomyocytes from PAT injury. According to the results of network pharmacology analysis, combined with enzyme activity detection and WB experiment, it was found that the mechanism of FIS to reduce myocardial damage may be related to P53 signaling pathway, Caspase3/8/9 and Bax/Bcl-2.
Conclusion
FIS plays a protective role in PAT-induced myocardial damage by inhibiting the protein overexpression of P53, Caspase-9 and Bax and enhancing the protein expression of Bcl-2.
Public Debts’ Component and Crowding Out Effect of Private Domestic Investment in Nigeria
Authors: Michael Eze Onyebuchi , Kingsley Ubaka Chika
Published: January 2023

The study interrogated the rationale behind the federal government’s continued reliance on Keynesian fiscal policy prescriptions of deficit financing as a way of spurring sustainable economic growth in a developing economy like Nigeria; especially when such ideology seemed to contrast sharply with the realities of dwindling growth indices. Thus, this study examined the influence of public debts on the crowding-out effect of private domestic investment in Nigeria from 1986 to 2021. The research used the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model in the analysis. Data obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria statistical bulletin, volume 32, 2021 on external debt, external debt service, domestic debt, domestic debt service, interest rate, and exchange rate were estimated in the study. The results indicated that external debt and external debt servicing had significant negative effects on private domestic investment; while domestic debt exerted an insignificant positive influence on domestic investment. The result implies that servicing of external debt crowds out private domestic investment in Nigeria. Hence, the government should curtail future contraction of external debt, as any further external debt contraction would lead Nigeria into debt overhang, where future borrowing would almost be impossible for the country.
The prevalence of back pain in patients operated on due to colorectal cancer depending on the type of surgical procedure performed
Authors: Głowacka-Mrotek Iwona , Jankowski Michał , Skonieczny Bartosz , Tarkowska Magdalena , Ratuszek-Sadowska Dorota , Lewandowska Anna , Nowikiewicz Tomasz , Zegarski Wojciech , Mackiewicz-Milewska Magdalena , Ogurkowski Karol
Published: January 2023

Purpose Low back pain presents a serious challenge for numerous medical specialties. The purpose of this study was to assess disability due to low back pain in patients operated on due to colorectal cancer depending on the type of surgery performed. Methods This prospective observational study was carried out in the period of July 2019 through March 2020. Included in the study were patients with colorectal cancer for scheduled surgeries including anterior resection of rectum (AR), laparoscopic anterior resection of rectum (LAR), Hartmann’s procedure (HART), or abdominoperineal resection of rectum (APR). The Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability Questionnaire was used as the research tool. The study patients were surveyed at three time points: before surgery, six months after surgery, and one year after surgery. Results The analysis of study results revealed that an increase in the degree of disability and functioning impairment occurred in all groups between time points I and II, with the differences being statistically significant (p<0.05). The inter-group comparative analysis of the total Oswestry questionnaire scores revealed statistically significant differences, with the impairment of function being most severe within the APR group and least severe within the LAR group. Conclusion The study results show that low back pain contributes to impaired functioning of patients operated on due to colorectal cancer regardless of the type of procedure performed. A reduction in the degree of disability due to low back pain was observed one year after the procedure in patients having undergone LAR.
Improving the Care Seeking Behaviour Toward Cervical Cancer Screening Participation Among Gwafan Community Women, North- Central, Nigeria
Authors: Ari Eunice Samuel , Dioso Regidor III Poblete , Sotunsa John Obafemi
Published: January 2023

Introduction: Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women globally and the second in low-Middle income countries, its screening rate is yet to reach 70% WHO target. Most interventions that proved effective in improving screening participation in some communities did not achieve the desired behavioural outcome in some settings. Aim: This study aimed at evaluating the care seeking behaviour interventions on cervical cancer screening participation. Method: A Pragmatic Multiphase Mixed Methods Design was adopted for this study and three phases of Human Centered Design process was used for data collection. Thematic analysis was used for qualitative data while SPSS for the quantitative data analysis. Results: Findings indicate that most (57.4%) participants were within 30–65 years, most (81.0%) were extremely poor with annual income < 284,700.00 Naira. Before intervention, most (77.4%) were afraid of exposing their private parts, 75.9% were afraid of being diagnosed with cervical cancer; 52.1% felt the procedure was embarrassing, 53.2% felt the procedure was painful; 11.2% had ever screened; majority (88.8%) said involving husband, (86.5%) welcoming attitude of care provider are among facilitators for screening. Screening participation improved from 11.2% preintervention to 29.7% postintervention (average mean screening score from 1.89 ± 0.316 to 1.7000 ± 0.458), all participants who screened postintervention said the procedure was not embarrassing, painful, and were not afraid of procedure and screening room. In conclusion, screening habit in the community was low preintervention as this may result from social norms, affect, utility, influence of sociodemographic variables and lack of facilitating conditions. Care-seeking behaviour interventions has significantly increased screening participation.
Thermal optima of cercarial emergence in trematodes from a marine high-temperature ecosystem, the Persian Gulf
Authors: Khosravi Maral , Díaz-Morales Dakeishla M. , Thieltges David W. , Wahl Martin , Vajedsamiei Jahangir
Published: January 2023

Global warming may alter the dynamics of infectious diseases by affecting important steps in the transmission of pathogens and parasites. In trematode parasites, the emergence of cercarial stages from their hosts is temperature-dependent, being highest around a thermal optimum. If environmental temperatures exceed this optimum as a consequence of global warming, this may affect cercarial transmission. However, our knowledge of cercarial emergence patterns of species from high temperature environments is currently very limited. Here, we investigated the effect of temperature on the emergence of two common trematode species from an abundant mud snail Pirenella cingulata in the Persian Gulf, the warmest sea on Earth. Infected snails were incubated in the laboratory at 6 temperatures from 10 to 40°C for 3 days. We found an optimal temperature for cercarial emergence of 32.0°C and 33.5°C for Acanthotrema tridactyla and Cyathocotylidae gen. sp., respectively, which are the warmest recorded thermal optima for any aquatic trematode species. Emergence of both species dropped at 40°C, suggesting upper thermal limits to emergence. Overall, Persian Gulf trematodes may be among the most heat-tolerant marine trematode species, indicating a potential for dispersing to regions that will continue to warm in the future.
Classification of Catheters and Tubes on Chest Radiographs Using Light-Weight Deep Convolutional Neural Networks
Authors: Wu Jia-Min , Lai Chih-Chun , Chen Sui-Pi , Lee Cheng-Chun , Huang Tung-Kuo , Tseng Neng-Chuan , Tsai Wei-Lin , Lin Yi-Chen , Wu Yen-Cheng , Cheng Bor-Wen , Yu Jen-Ta
Published: January 2023

Purpose: The research aimed to verify the applicability of low computational complexity and high diagnosis accuracy deep convolutional neural network, using MobileNetV2 to identify the presence of chest catheters and tubes on chest X-ray images.
Methods: The dataset of chest X-rays collected from a teaching hospital included the endotracheal tube (ETT), the central venous catheter (CVC), and the nasogastric tube (NGT) datasets. A new method of applying dynamic image size training procedures was implemented and compared with fixed image size training. The idea is to learn more features through dynamic image size training. Transfer learning with pre-trained MobileNetV2 on ImageNet was conducted to accelerate the training process and acquire higher accuracy. Class activation mapping (CAM) was also employed to visualize artificial intelligence (AI) predictions, making AI decisions more explainable.
Results: The ETT datasets included 10464 X-ray images, while the CVC and NGT datasets contained 10274 and 9610 images, respectively. The accuracies for ETT, CVC, and NGT are 99.0%, 98.4%, and 96.2% in the validation dataset, while in the testing dataset are 98.8%, 98.6%, and 96.8%, respectively. The area under the receiver operating characteristics (AUROCs) were 0.992, 0.988, and 0.980 in the ETT, CVC, and NGT testing datasets.
Conclusion: MobileNetV2 with the dynamic image size achieved dedicated performance in the application of chest catheters and tubes classifications. The similarity of the accuracy between the validation and testing data suggests the good generalization capability of the model.
Approaches, tools, algorithms, and methods for automatic term extraction: A systematic literature mapping
Authors: Andrade Juan Carlos Blandón , Otálvaro Carlos Mario Medina , Jaramillo Carlos Mario Zapata , Ríos Alejandro Morales
Published: January 2023

Automatic term extraction is a branch of Natural Language Processing (NLP) used to automatically generate lexicographic materials, such as glossaries, vocabularies, and dictionaries. It allows the creation of standard bases for building unified theories and translations between languages. Scientific literature shows great interest in the construction of automatic term extractors and includes several approaches, tools, algorithms, and methods that can be used for their construction; however, the number of articles in specialized databases is vast, and literature reviews are not recent. This paper presents a systematic literature mapping of the existing material for developing automatic term extractors to provide an overview of approaches, tools, algorithms, and methods used to create them. For this purpose, scientific articles in the domain published between 2015 and 2022 are reviewed and categorized. The mapping results show that among the most used approaches are statistical, with 21.85%; linguistic, with 9.75%; and hybrid, with 68.29%. In addition, there are various computational tools for terminology extraction where authors use different methods for their construction and whose results are measured under the criteria of precision and recall. Finally, 113 documents were selected to answer the research questions and to demonstrate how automatic term extractors are constructed. This paper presents a global summary of primary studies as an essential tool to approach this type of computational system construction.
Integrated Prediction of Potato Cyst Nematodes’ (Globodera rostochiensis and Globodera pallida) Potential Distribution and Risk Regions: Using China as a Case Study
Authors: He Yitong , Wang Guanjin , Ren Yonglin , Zheng Dan , Gao Shan , McKirdy Simon J. , Chu Dong
Published: January 2023

Global potato trade has resulted in the spread of potato cyst nematodes (PCNs) worldwide, which causes significant agricultural and economic loss. Predicting the potential habitats and risk regions for PCNs is critical for management and biosecurity strategies. However, building such prediction models is challenged by the uncertainty of the occurrence data. This research aimed to mitigate the effect of the deficiency of data and build a reliable prediction model of PCNs. The model proposed a combination of fuzzy logic and Maxent modelling enabling the forecasting of the integrated distribution of PCNs. Firstly, the niche similarity between two PCN species was tested by a fuzzy generalised linear model. Then, an integrated dataset was employed to calibrate and evaluate the Maxent model. Results showed that the model constructed on the integrated dataset possessed higher accuracy (Boyce index 0.917) compared to that of individual datasets. After verifying the prediction with the recent incursions in China, the prediction was in accord with actual presence records, which provided further evidence to prove the accuracy of this model. The prediction illustrated that 39% of the land surface in China was suitable for PCNs. The high-risk regions occupied more than half of the cultivated lands, including 66% of the potato-producing areas. In conclusion, the proposed modelling procedure with an integrated dataset can provide an informative reference for countries facing the uncertainty of PCNs’ occurrence to conduct an adequate risk assessment. The integrated prediction result can support policymakers in simultaneously managing both PCN species.
HRAV: Hierarchical virtual machine placement algorithm in multi-hierarchy RF cloud architecture
Authors: Farzaneh Seyed Milad , Fatemi Omid
Published: January 2023

Finding the optimum virtual machine placement (VMP) approach in cloud infrastructure is one of the most important optimization problems. Furthermore, in recent years, with the semiconductor industry's increasing development, there has been a growing interest in fabricated chips, including multiple homogeneous or heterogeneous processing elements (PEs). Modern chips include multiple general-purpose cores alongside reconfigurable fabrics (RFs) used for high-performance computing which perform on par with ASIC hardware. Using RF at different hierarchy levels of cloud architecture significantly improve the performance of VM tasks. The methodology in our previous work is used to design a hierarchical RF-aware VMP. The Communication Delay (CD) parameter is used to perform the optimal virtual machine (VM) placement considering multi-hierarchy RF cloud architecture. The synthetic workload simulation results show that the proposed VMP algorithm outperforms other algorithms that work with our proposed cloud architecture model.
A novel two-stream convolution neural network with temporal information for bearing fault diagnosis
Authors: Ren Hang , Liu Shaogang , Wei Fengmei , Qiu Bo , Zhao Dan
Published: January 2023

Deep learning has been widely applied to intelligent fault diagnosis of rotating machines. In particular, convolutional neural network (CNN) improves the accuracy of diagnosis due to automatic feature extraction ability. However, CNN cannot make full use of the temporal information of the input signals. In order to overcome the above weaknesses, a new depth diagnositic framework called two stream convolution neural network with temporal information(TITSCNN) is proposed for bearing fault diagnosis. First, we obtain tempory signal through the difference of data points in the input signal. Next, tempory signal and original signal are used as input of two CNN branches respectively. Then, an attention mechanism is used to aggregate the features and assign weights to the features extrated by CNN adaptively. Finally, the learned high-level representations are fed into full connect layer to perform fault diagnosis. Experiments are conducted and the results showed that TITSCNN has higher accuracy compared to state-of-the-art methods. Further, experimental results demonstrated that TITSCNN has excellent noise immunity and transformation performance.
Two putative glutamate decarboxylases of Streptococcus pneumoniae as possible antigens for the production of anti-GAD65 antibodies leading to type 1 diabetes mellitus
Authors: García Ernesto
Published: January 2023

Type 1diabetes mellitus (T1DM) has been increasing in prevalence in the last decades and has become a global burden. Autoantibodies against human glutamate decarboxylase (GAD65) are among the first to be detected at the onset of T1DM. Diverse viruses have been proposed to be involved in the triggering of T1DM because of molecular mimicry, i.e., similarity between some viral proteins and one or more epitopes of GAD65. However, the possibility that bacterial proteins might also be responsible of GAD65 mimicry has been seldom investigated. To date, many genomes of Streptococcus pneumoniae (the pneumococcus), a prominent human pathogen particularly among children and the elderly, have been sequenced. A dataset of more than 9000 pneumococcal genomes were mined and two different (albeit related) genes (gadA and gadB), presumably encoding two glutamate decarboxylases similar to GAD65, were found. The various gadASpn alleles were present only in serotype 3 pneumococci belonging to the global lineage GPSC83, although some paralogs have also been discovered in two subspecies of Streptococcus constellatus (pharyngis and viborgensis), an isolate of the group B streptococci, and several strains of Lactobacillus delbrueckii. Besides, gadBSpn alleles are present in > 10% of the isolates in our dataset and represent 16 GPSCs with 123 sequence types and 20 different serotypes. Sequence analyses indicated that gadA- and gadB-like genes have been mobilized among different bacteria either by prophage(s) or by integrative and conjugative element(s), respectively. Substantial similarities appear to exist between the putative pneumococcal glutamate decarboxylases and well-known epitopes of GAD65. These results deserve upcoming studies on the possible involvement of S. pneumoniae in the etiopathogenesis and clinical onset of T1DM.
Non-destructive high-throughput measurement of elastic-viscous properties of maize using a novel ultra-micro sensor array and numerical validation
Authors: Nakashima Taiken , Tomobe Haruka , Morigaki Takumi , Yang Mengfan , Yamaguchi Hiroto , Kato Yoichiro , Vikas Sharma , Kimura Harusato , Morikawa Hitoshi
Published: January 2023

Maize is the world's most produced cereal crop, and the selection of maize cultivars with a high stem elastic modulus is an effective method to prevent cereal crop lodging. We developed an ultra-compact sensor array inspired by earthquake engineering and proposed a method for the high-throughput evaluation of the elastic modulus of maize cultivars. A natural vibration analysis based on the obtained Young's modulus using finite element analysis (FEA) was performed and compared with the experimental results, which showed that the estimated Young's modulus is representative of the individual Young's modulus. FEA also showed the hotspot where the stalk was most deformed when the corn was vibrated by wind. The six tested cultivars were divided into two phenotypic groups based on the position and number of hotspots. In this study, we proposed a non-destructive high-throughput phenotyping technique for estimating the modulus of elasticity of maize stalks and successfully visualized which parts of the stalks should be improved for specific cultivars to prevent lodging.
Multiple founding paternal lineages inferred from the newly-developed 639-plex Y-SNP panel suggested the complex admixture and migration history of Chinese people
Authors: He Guanglin , Wang Mengge , Miao Lei , Chen Jing , Zhao Jie , Sun Qiuxia , Duan Shuhan , Wang Zhiyong , Xu Xiaofei , Sun Yuntao , Liu Yan , Liu Jing , Wang Zheng , Wei Lanhai , Liu Chao , Ye Jian , Wang Le
Published: January 2023

Non-recombining regions of the Y-chromosome recorded the evolutionary traces of male human populations and are inherited haplotype-dependently and male-specifically. Recent whole Y-chromosome sequencing studies have identified previously unrecognized population divergence, expansion and admixture processes, which promotes a better understanding and application of the observed patterns of Y-chromosome genetic diversity. Here, we developed one highest-resolution Y-chromosome Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (Y-SNP) panel targeted for uniparental genealogy reconstruction and paternal biogeographical ancestry inference, which included 639 phylogenetically informative SNPs (Y-SNPs). We genotyped these loci in 1033 Chinese male individuals from 33 ethnolinguistically diverse populations and identified 257 terminal Y-chromosomal lineages with frequency ranging from 0.010 (singleton) to 0.0687. We identified six dominant common founding lineages associated with different ethnolinguistic backgrounds, which included O2a2b1a1a1a1a1a1a1-M6539, O2a1b1a1a1a1a1a1-F17, O2a2b1a1a1a1a1b1a1b-MF15397, O2a2b2a1b1-A16609, O1b1a1a1a1b2a1a1-F2517, and O2a2b1a1a1a1a1a1-F155. The AMOVA and nucleotide diversity estimates revealed considerable differences and high genetic diversity among ethnolinguistically different populations. We constructed one representative phylogenetic tree among 33 studied populations based on the haplogroup frequency spectrum and sequence variations. Clustering patterns in principal component analysis and multidimensional scaling results showed a genetic differentiation between Tai-Kadai-speaking Li, Mongolic-speaking Mongolian, and other Sinitic-speaking Han Chinese populations. Phylogenetic topology inferred from the BEAST and Network relationships reconstructed from the popART further showed the founding lineages from culturally/linguistically diverse populations, such as C2a/C2b was dominant in Mongolian people and O1a/O1b was dominant in island Li people. We also identified many lineages shared by more than two ethnolinguistically different populations with a high proportion, suggesting their extensive admixture and migration history. Our findings indicated that our developed high-resolution Y-SNP panel included major dominant Y-lineages of Chinese populations from different ethnic groups and geographical regions, which can be used as the primary and powerful tool for forensic practice. We should emphasize the necessity and importance of whole-sequencing of more ethnolinguistically different populations, which can help identify more unrecognized population-specific variations for the final promotion of Y-chromosome-based forensic applications.
Application of the Continuum Suitability Index (CSI) model to display the permeability of the Alpine-Dinaric landscape and to define intervention priorities for ecological linkages
Authors: Favilli Filippo , Laner Peter , Bertoncelj Irena
Published: January 2023

The Alps and the Dinaric Mountains are biodiversity hubs and, although they are subjected to heavy human-related pressures, they still show one of the lowest levels of landscape fragmentation in Europe. The DINALPCONNECT project has the aim of identifying the most important geographical areas for ensuring the biological processes and natural movements and the gene flow of wildlife species between the Alps and the Dinaric Mountains.
The current paper presents the results of the implementation of the Continuum Suitability Index (CSI) model in combination with the least-cost path (LCP) – GIS model in the DINALPCONNECT project area in order to detect the macro-regional ecological connectivity network stretching from the Alps to the Dinaric Mountains. The aim is to support regional decision-makers in defining the actions that will ensure both the ecological network and local human-wildlife coexistence as regards the most important linkages.
The results show that the main core areas (SACA1) of the overall ecological network represent 20% of the total project area. The calculated macro-regional LCP connects 51% of the surface of these areas and reveals great differences in legislation on protected areas between EU and Non-EU countries.
The results show that non-EU countries have the highest shares of SACA1 areas outside protected areas, contributing to important macro-regional connections. The CSI is proving to be a highly adaptable model on the macro-regional level, which can include current and future local issues concerning ecological connections. Therefore, the presented GIS analysis could be a valuable tool enabling regional decision-makers to better manage human and wildlife presence and to identify the best actions for the development of the ecological network.
A new genus and new species of eriophyid mites from Papua New Guinea: a potential biological control agent of Falcataria moluccana (Fabaceae)
Authors: Vidović Biljana , Cvrković Tatjana , Orapa Warea
Published: January 2023

A new genus and species of the subfamily Nothopodinae, Colopodacini from Papua New Guinea are described and illustrated.Solenidiversum falcatariaegen. nov. sp. nov. infestsFalcataria moluccana(Miq.) Barneby & Grimes (Fabaceae) and causes erineum on the leaf surfaces. A key to the genera of the Colopodacini tribe is given.
RETRACTED: Hydrogeo-chemical characteristics of groundwater and seasonal variation in coal mining area, Madhya Pradesh , India
Authors: Ahirvar Bhairo Prasad , Kumar Ramesh , Das Pallavi
Published: January 2023

The authors have requested that this preprint be removed from Research Square.
Vibrational Spectrum and Randomness of Water at the Interface of a Protein-DNA Complex
Authors: Mondal Sandip , Ghanta Krishna Prasad , Mondal Souvik , Bandyopadhyay Sanjoy
Published: January 2023

Molecular dynamics simulations have been carried out to explore the effect of complex formation between the N-terminal domain of the \la-repressor protein (in dimeric form) and the corresponding DNA operator on low-frequency intermolecular vibrational modes of water confined at the interface. The calculations demonstrated enhanced back-scattering of interfacial water due to increased caging effects, the effect being greater for water molecules that are associated with direct binding process. Highest degree of caging effect has been identified with the water molecules that are engaged in forming hydrogen-bonded bridges either near directly bound residues or in establishing contacts between the unbound DNA and protein residues. This leads to blue shifts of the O...O...O bending mode of water and the effect is maximum for the bridged water. The analyses further demonstrated that the local randomness of the interfacial water molecules strongly depends on the conformational rigidity of the DNA and the protein components.
A numerical study of entropy generation in dissipative and radiative Casson hybrid ferrofluid past a thin needle
Authors: Ogunseye H. A. , Agbaje T. M. , Salawu S. O. , Fatunmbi E. O.
Published: January 2023

The interest of raising thermal conductivity and optimizing industrial based materials for an enhanced efficiency and productivity has propels various studies on nanomaterials and non-Newtonian fluids. The uses of nanotechnology in technological advancement and industrial promotion could not be overstressed. Thus, the aim of this study is to numerically investigate the entropy formation, heat propagation and conduction of hybridized Casson ferrofluid with dissipation and radiation in a thin needle. The inherent heat transfer capability of magneto-hybridized Fe2O3 and Al2O3 solid nanoparticles in H2O based solvent motivated the study. The streaming nanofluid is controlled by magnetic field, heat generation and continuous stretching velocity. A partial derivative mathematical model is developed to describe the flow dimensions, and via similarity quantities, an invariant transformation of the model is obtained. A numerical and localized spectral linearization scheme is adopted for the thermodynamic and parameters sensitivities analyzes of the thermal fluid. As observed, the heat transfer comparison rate establishes that the thermal propagation of Fe2O3-Al2O3/water is 8.28% higher than Al2O3/water at 0.01% of volume fraction. The entropy formation is raised with rising nanoparticle size, and radiation and dissipation terms boosted temperature distribution.
Testing Monetary Policy Trilemma for Middle Eastern Economies under a Bayesian Panel VAR
Authors: Shaheen Rozina , Almaktoom Abdulaziz T.
Published: January 2023

Middle Eastern economies follow the dollar-pegged exchange rate policy with an open capital account, and this poses a question regarding the autonomy of the monetary policy stance adopted by the regional central banks. In this context, the current research aims to evaluate the ‘monetary policy trilemma’ whilst using the Bayesian panel vector autoregression approach. In considering four variables, namely domestic interbank interest rate, domestic liquidity, oil price and federal funds rate, the present research finds that a positive shock in US federal funds rate increases the domestic interest rates in the Middle Eastern economies. Additionally, this research finds a negative relationship between the oil price shocks and the domestic interest rates, but, conversely, a positive shock in US federal funds rate induces a reduction in the oil price. The current project is unique, as it examines the monetary policy trilemma whilst considering oil price as a control variable in the system under a time-varying Bayesian panel vector autoregression specification. It provides insights that policymakers can use to determine the autonomy of the domestic monetary policy stance, so as to achieve the broader macroeconomic objectives of that policy.
Identification and Analysis of Toxins in Novel Bacillus thuringiensis Strain Bt S3076-1 against Spodoptera frugiperda and Helicoverpa armigera
Authors: Yang Tianbao , Wu Zhongqi , Li Liuping , Jiang Mingguo , Fang Xuanjun , Huang Wenshan , Zhou Yan
Published: January 2023

Despite the successful application of toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis as biological control agents against pests, new toxins having higher toxicity and broad-spectrum activity to insects are identified more and more. To find new toxins, in this study, based on the whole genome sequence of novel Bacillus thuringiensis strain Bt S3076-1, ten predicted toxic genes were identified, including six cry genes, two tpp genes, one cyt gene and one vip gene, among which six were novel toxins. Subsequently, SDS-PAGE analysis showed that the major proteins at spore maturation stage were about 120 kDa, 70 kDa, 67 kDa, 60 kDa and 40 kDa, while approximately 70 kDa and 40 kDa active proteins after trypsin digestion with the LC50 of 149.64 µg/g and 441.47 µg/g against Spodoptera frugiperda and Helicoverpa armigera larvae, respectively. Furthermore, pathological observation results showed the peritrophic membrane of Spodoptera frugiperda and Helicoverpa armigera larvae was degraded. These findings will provide experimental reference for further research on insecticidal activity, toxicity spectrum as well as the synergism of these toxins in Bt S3076-1.
Assessment of humoral and cellular immunity after bivalent BNT162b2 vaccination and potential association with reactogenicity
Authors: Salvagno Gian Luca , Pighi Laura , Henry Brandon M. , Valentini Myriam , Tonin Beatrice , Bragantini Damiano , Gianfilippi Gianluca , De Nitto Simone , Plebani Mario , Lippi Giuseppe
Published: January 2023

Background: This study investigated the feasibility and clinical value of using a novel, automated and high-throughput SARS-CoV-2 Interferon Gamma Release Assay (IGRA), combined with total anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies assessment, for evaluating the immune response after bivalent BNT162b2 vaccination.
Methods: A cohort of healthcare workers, who already underwent primary vaccination and boosting with monovalent BNT162b2 vaccine, received a booster dose of the new BNT162b2 bivalent formulation. Blood samples were taken immediately before vaccination (T0) and 1 month afterwards (T1). Humoral and cellular immunity were assayed with Roche Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2 and Roche Elecsys IGRA SARS-CoV-2, respectively.
Results: The study population consisted of 51 subjects (median age: 43 years; 51% females). Total anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and IGRA SARS-CoV-2 values increased at T1 from 9050 to 25000 BAU/mL (p<0.001), and from 0.44 to 0.78 IU/mL (p=0.385), accounting for median increase of 2.0 and 1.6 folds, respectively. Increased T1 values of total anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and IGRA SARS-CoV-2 were recorded in 100% and 68.6% subjects, respectively. In those with baseline values below the median, post-vaccine levels displayed larger increases of 3.3 and 5.1 folds for anti-SARS-CoV-2 total antibodies and IGRA SARS-CoV-2, respectively. The variation of total anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies was inversely associated with their T0 values (r= -0.97; p<0.001), whilst that of IGRA SARS-CoV-2 was inversely associated with its T0 value (r= -0.58; p<0.001). No other associations were found with demographical or clinical variables, including side effects.
Conclusion: The bivalent BNT162b2 vaccine booster enhance humoral and cellular immunity against SARS-CoV-2, especially in recipients with a lower baseline biological protection.
Justification of Chemotherapy Duration in Patients with Multiple and Pre-Extensive Drug Resistant Tuberculosis in the Russian Federation
Authors: Gayda A. I. , Abramchenko A. V. , Romanova M. I. , Toichkina T. V. , Burykhin V. S. , Borisov S. E. , Filippov A. V. , Kuznetsova T. A. , Perkhin D. V. , Sveshnikova O. M. , Lekhlyayder M. V. , Panteleev A. M. , Toinova S. V. , Maslennikova T. I. , Galakhova D. O. , Populyashina L. N. , Saenko G. I. , Anisimova E. S. , Svicharskaya A. K. , Sosova N. A. , Lovacheva O. V. , Maryandyshev A. O. , Samoylova A. G.
Published: January 2023

The objective: to justify the optimal duration of chemotherapy with Lzd and Bdq by evaluating the long-term treatment outcomes in patients with multiple/pre-extensive drug resistant (MDR/preXDR) tuberculosis who interrupted treatment at different time points.

Subjects and Methods. 800 patients with MDR/preXDR tuberculosis were enrolled in the study, they were from all regions of the Russian Federation and they started a course of chemotherapy with regimens containing Lzd and Bdq in 2017-2018. All patients who interrupted their chemotherapy (124) were divided at 4 groups. Group 1-43 patients who received less than 90 doses, Group 2-37 patients who received from 91 to 180 doses, Group 3-39 patients who received from 181 to 270 doses, and Group 4-5 patients who received from 271 to 360 doses of anti-tuberculosis drugs.

Results. In Group 3, the effectiveness of reaching a favorable outcome during observation for 3-4 years made 53.8% in 21/39, which was comparable to the effectiveness of treatment with a 24-month course of chemotherapy (2017 – 58.0 and 2018 – 52.1%). The treatment duration of patients from Group 3 was additionally analyzed, the arithmetic mean of the number of administered doses makes 262 ± 15, which allowed recommending 9-month courses of chemotherapy.
Myostatin Serum Related with Sarcopenia Among Elderly Population
Authors: Kartika Ronald Winardi
Published: January 2023

BackgroundÂ Sarcopenia is a decrease in muscle mass accompanied by a decrease in muscle strength and performance. Sarcopenia arises from a disturbance of the complex balance between anabolic and catabolic factors. Myostatin strongly influences the inhibition of muscle growth by increasing muscle catabolism. Increased myostatin will atrophy in skeletal muscle. In the aging process, there will be an increase in the hormone myostatin plays an active role in the process of sarcopenia. The cause of the increase in myostatin hormone is a chronic inflammatory process that occurs in the aging process.Methods The writing of this paper is a literature review of the role of myostatin in sarcopenia that occurs due to the aging process.Results The incidence of sarcopenia in the elderly was 45 people (64.3%). The results of the analysis were a significant difference between myostatin levels in sarcopenia (47.59 ng/mL) and non-sarcopenia (39.7 ng/mL) subjects. The limit of myostatin levels that can cause an increase in muscle catabolic processes is 48.91 ng/mL. The prevalence ratio of the incidence of sarcopenia based on myostatin levels in the elderly was 3.84, while based on the combined risk of age and myostatin levels was 9.75.Conclusion From the literature review, it was found that there was a significant difference in myostatin levels between the elderly with and without sarcopenia. The prevalence of high myostatin levels in the elderly is almost 4 times higher than in young adults. This will lead to the progression of sarcopenia.
Book Review Manual of Chronic Total Occlusion Percutaneous Coronary Interventions: A Step-by-Step Approach
Authors: Laksono Sidhi
Published: January 2023

The Manual of Chronic Total Occlusion Percutaneous Coronary Interventions: A Step-by-Step Approach, Third Edition is a useful reference for percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with chronic total occlusion (CTO). Written by national and international experts in the field of CTO and edited by Emmanuel Brilakis, this book gives the steps necessary to do CTO PCI, the pitfalls to watch out for, and how to modify tactics if we face CTO complications. This manual book is dedicated and made for interventional cardiologists, interventional cardiology fellows, general cardiology residents, also cardiac catheterization laboratory staff. This book will give you the latest state of the art in the field of CTO PCI. In this new edition, new numbers, images, and algorithms have been developed and shared to reflect the CTO PCI updates. Additionally, this update includes links to nearly 200 of his CTO PCI cases. The structure of the book has been completely revised to align with the recently published Manual of Percutaneous Coronary Intervention.
Libro: Torralba, José María. Una educación liberal: elogio de los grandes libros. Madrid. Ediciones Encuentro. 2022. 172 pp.
Authors: De Haro Romo Vicente
Published: January 2023

Reseña crítica de:
Torralba, José María. Una educación liberal: elogio de los grandes libros. Madrid. Ediciones Encuentro. 2022. 172 pp.
Commonalty, Communities, and the Crisis of the Modern State
Authors: Vanney Alejandra
Published: January 2023

The theory of the modern state considers that freedom consists in the absolute autonomy of the individual. This consideration of politics and law as a relationship between "absolute equals" - with revolutionary roots - besides being metaphysically contradictory, is one of the causes of the current intellectual confusion, whose main symptoms are relativism, skepticism and ethical indifferentism. Now, since a society cannot function without there being something "in common" among its citizens, - and all reference to human nature, also to its sociability, has been renounced - this task is entrusted to the State, which establishes relationships of an external type that are sustained by means of power. This presents numerous dangers such as possible arbitrariness of the ruler, lack of social stability, permanent threats of conflicts, lawlessness, etc., which prevent people from attaining the level of freedom, security and peace they need. When any idea of "the common" is rejected, the relationships between citizens are weakened to the point that they can only exist through the ties that each one of them establishes with the State, which becomes the only mediating and determining instance of social life. There is thus the paradox that, in the face of the revolutionary desire for absolute freedom, there follows a socio-political life that limits the possible, limited freedom of the human being. On the contrary, to really achieve the end of freedom, according to its own way of being, requires strengthening the main mediating institutions and the sources of identity itself: the family, education and religion. Only in these can each person be "who he is" and become "who he is called" to be, which are the principal manifestations of human freedom and the deepest sources of the peace and security that human beings need.
Factors Affecting Dividend Policy in Indonesian State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs)
Authors:   Accounting Study Program, Universitas Terbuka, Tangerang Selatan, Banten, Indonesia, Anggya Agustina Putu Ayu , Praningtyas Elisabeth Ria Viana ,   Accounting Study Program, Universitas Terbuka, Tangerang Selatan, Banten, Indonesia, Subekti Rini ,   Accounting Study Program, Universitas Terbuka, Tangerang Selatan, Banten, Indonesia, Mas Mirayani Luh Putri ,   Accounting Study Program, Universitas Mahasaraswati Denpasar, Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia
Published: January 2023

This study examines factors affecting dividend policy with firm size, leverage, and profitability as control variables. Among the management policies aimed at improving the welfare of stakeholders, the result is in the form of dividends. Investors who receive dividends from companies that distribute dividends expect the company's share price to increase. The study population was all publicly listed SOEs listed on the IDX in 2022, with 20 companies in the observation year for 11 years from 2011 to 2021. The determination of the sample in this study used the non-probability sampling method with purposive sampling technique so that the total sample into 220 observed companies. This study uses multiple linear regression. The results showed that dividend premium, free cash flow, and audit delay had a significant positive effect on dividend policy, and firm size, leverage, and profitability were able to be control variables for this direct relationship.
Modern popular science radio discourse: The principle of dialogicity
Authors:   Russian State University for the Humanities, Basovskaya Evgeniya N. , Vorontsova Tatyana A. ,   Chelyabinsk State University
Published: January 2023

The article is devoted to identifying specifics of modern popular science media discourse. The authors conduct a comparative communicative-pragmatic and stylistic analysis of composition, speech means and discursive techniques of educational radio programs which have such feature as explicated dialogicality — representing conversation between a journalist and an expert. The leading principle of popular science radio program is dialogization: actual dialogue between a journalist and an expert is supplemented by conditional dialogue between a journalist and a scientist who does not participate in the program, as well as between a journalist and a generalized addressee — a representative of mass audience. The article notes such journalist speech moves that contribute to dialogization of discourse, as evaluation and criticism of expert’s statements by the program host and also use of “naive listener” speech mask. The tactics of illustrative explanation, appeal to personal experience, and stylistic transformation used by radio journalists are considered. The authors note the redistribution of lexical means between participants of the dialogue, characteristic of the era of Internet communication: scientific terminology is actively used by the presenter, and stylistically low lexemes — by the expert, which entails a relative stylistic uniformity with the predominance of conversational tonality. This set of techniques determines the priority communicative position of journalist, which is not typical for classical popular science discourse. The authors conclude that the popular science sub-style belongs to the journalistic style of modern Russian language. The principle of dialogicality of popular science discourse creates in the listener the idea that the authors of radio program conduct a conversation with him on an equal footing. The willingness of a journalist to model in his mind the image of a possible recipient and act in his interests ensures the effectiveness of popularization of scientific knowledge in modern mass media.
Pandora's Box: assessing the current trends and challenges of IWRM in the uMngeni catchment
Authors: Awuah Akosua Kyerewaa , Stuart-Hill Sabine , Trotter-Boardman Dayle
Published: January 2023

The uMngeni catchment in KwaZulu-Natal faces numerous challenges that threaten the availability and quality of water resources. To understand the prevalent issues, the purpose of the study was to assess the institutional aspects that may or may not have facilitated Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM). Twenty-one semi-structured interviews were conducted, and development planning and environmental management tools were analysed. Water User Associations (WUAs) are statutory bodies and have not been established at the local level. Moreover, an operational Catchment Management Agency (CMA) at the regional level is non-existent. Consequently, the implementation of IWRM has been very limited. The establishment of the uMngeni Ecological Infrastructure Partnership (UEIP) has facilitated the integration of role-players in the absence of an operational CMA. Most of the spatial planning and environmental management tools feature water resource planning except for the integrated waste management plans. As a result, poor solid waste management contributes to the poor water quality in the uMngeni catchment. The challenges remaining are the poor implementation of plans due to a lack of human and financial resources. Therefore, the gap created by a non-existent operational CMA means catchment management activities will continue to negatively affect water resources and the degree to which water resource management is integrated.