bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Methanogenesis Potentials: Insights from Mineralogical Diagenesis, SEM and FTIR Features of the Permian Mikambeni Shale of the Tuli Basin, Limpopo Province of South Africa
Authors: Akintola George Oluwole , Amponsah-Dacosta Francis , Rupprecht Steven , Palaniyandy Nithyadharseni , Mhlongo Sphiwe Emmanuel , Gitari Wilson Mugera , Edokpayi Joshua Nosa
Published: June 2021

Carbonaceous shale is more topical than ever before due to the associated unconventional resources of methane. The use of FTIR, SEM-EDX, and mineralogical analyses has demonstrated a promising approach to assess methanogenesis potentials in a more rapid and reliable manner for preliminary prospecting. Representative core samples from the borehole that penetrated the carbonaceous Mikambeni shale Formations were investigated for methanogenesis potentials. The absorption band stretches from 1650 cm−1 to 1220 cm−1 in wavenumber, corresponding to C-O stretching and OH deformation of acetic and phenolic groups in all studied samples, thereby suggesting biogenic methanogenesis. The CO2 was produced by decarboxylation of organic matter around 2000 cm−1 and 2300 cm−1 and served as a source of the carboxylic acid that dissolved the feldspar. This dissolution process tended to release K+ ions, which facilitated the illitization of the smectite minerals. The SEM-EDX spectroscopy depicted a polyframboidal pyrite structure, which indicated a sulfate reduction of pyrite minerals resulting from microbial activities in an anoxic milieu and causes an increase in alkalinity medium that favors precipitation of dolomite in the presence of Ca and Mg as burial depth increases. The contact diagenesis from the proximity of Sagole geothermal spring via Tshipise fault is suggested to have enhanced the transformation of smectite to chlorite via a mixed layer corrensite in a solid-state gradual replacement reaction pathway. The presence of diagenetic chlorite mineral is characteristic of low-grade metamorphism or high diagenetic zone at a temperature around 200 °C to 230 °C and corresponds to thermal breakdown of kerogen to methane at strong absorption band around 2850 cm−1 and 3000 cm−1, indicating thermal methanogenesis.
Structural Transitions and Stability of FAPbI3 and MAPbI3: The Role of Interstitial Water
Authors: Cordero Francesco , Craciun Floriana , Paoletti Anna Maria , Zanotti Gloria
Published: June 2021

We studied the influence of water on the structural stability and transformations of MAPI and FAPI by anelastic and dielectric spectroscopies under various temperature and H2O partial pressure protocols. Before discussing the new results in terms of interstitial water in MAPI and FAPI, the literature is briefly reviewed, in search of other studies and evidences on interstitial water in hybrid halide perovskites. In hydrated MAPI, the elastic anomaly between the cubic α and tetragonal β phases may be depressed by more than 50%, demonstrating that there are H2O molecules dispersed in the perovskite lattice in interstitial form, that hinder the long range tilting of the PbI6 octahedra. Instead, in FAPI, interstitial water accelerates in both senses the reconstructive transformations between 3D α and 1D δ phases, which is useful during the crystallization of the α phase. On the other hand, the interstitial H2O molecules increase the effective size of the MA and FA cations to which are bonded, shifting the thermodynamic equilibrium from the compact perovskite structure to the open δ and hydrated phases of loosely bonded chains of PbI6 octahedra. For this reason, when fabricating devices based on hybrid metal-organic halide perovskites, it is important to reduce the content of interstitial water as much as possible before encapsulation.
Strong Dipole-Quadrupole-Exciton Coupling Realized in a Gold Nanorod Dimer Placed on a Two-Dimensional Material
Authors: Pang Huajian , Huang Hongxin , Zhou Lidan , Mao Yuheng , Deng Fu , Lan Sheng
Published: June 2021

Simple systems in which strong coupling of different excitations can be easily realized are highly important, not only for fundamental research but also for practical applications. Here, we proposed a T-shaped gold nanorod (GNR) dimer composed of a long GNR and a short GNR perpendicular to each other and revealed that the dark quadrupole mode of the long GNR can be activated by utilizing the dipole mode excited in the short GNR. It was found that the strong coupling between the dipole and quadrupole modes can be achieved by exciting the T-shaped GNR dimer with a plane wave. Then, we demonstrated the realization of strong dipole–quadrupole–exciton coupling by placing a T-shaped GNR on a tungsten disulfide (WS2) monolayer, which leads to a Rabi splitting as large as ~299 meV. It was confirmed that the simulation results can be well fitted by using a Hamiltonian based on the coupled harmonic oscillator model and the coupling strengths for dipole–quadrupole, dipole–exciton and quadrupole–exciton can be extracted from the fitting results. Our findings open new horizons for realizing strong plasmon–exciton coupling in simple systems and pave the way for constructing novel plasmonic devices for practical applications.
Hollow Silica Particles: A Novel Strategy for Cost Reduction
Authors: Spence Daron , Cullen David A. , Polizos Georgios , Muralidharan Nitin , Sharma Jaswinder
Published: June 2021

Thermal insulation materials are highly sought after for applications such as building envelopes, refrigerators, cryogenic fuel storage chambers, and water supply piping. However, current insulation materials either do not provide sufficient insulation or are costly. A new class of insulation materials, hollow silica particles, has attracted tremendous attention due to its potential to provide a very high degree of thermal insulation. However, current synthesis strategies provide hollow silica particles at very low yields and at high cost, thus, making the particles unsuitable for real-world applications. In the present work, a synthesis process that produces hollow silica particles at very high yields and at a lower cost is presented. The effect of an infrared heat absorber, carbon black, on the thermal conductivity of hollow silica particles is also investigated and it is inferred that a carbon black–hollow silica particle mixture can be a better insulating material than hollow silica particles alone.
Individual Diet Modification Reduces the Metabolic Syndrome in Patients Before Pharmacological Treatment
Authors: Zujko Małgorzata Elżbieta , Rożniata Marta , Zujko Kinga
Published: June 2021

Modification of lifestyle, including healthy nutrition, is the primary approach for metabolic syndrome (MetS) therapy. The aim of this study was to estimate how individual nutrition intervention affects the reduction of MetS components. Subjects diagnosed with MetS were recruited in the Lomza Medical Centre. The study group consisted of 90 participants and was divided into one intervention group (individual nutrition education group (INEG)) and one control group (CG). The research was conducted over 3 months. The following measurements were obtained during the first visit and after completion of the 3 months intervention: body mass, waist circumference, body composition, blood pressure, fasting glucose, and blood lipids. Dietary assessments were performed before and post-intervention using 3-day 24-h dietary recalls. Dietary knowledge was evaluated with the KomPAN questionnaire. The total polyphenol content of the diet was calculated. Sociodemographic and lifestyle characteristics were collected from a self-reported questionnaire. The physical activity was assessed by the short version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ). It was found that the individual nutrition education was an effective method to improve the knowledge, dietary habits, and physical activity of the study participants. The modification of the diet in terms of higher intake of polyphenols (flavonoids and anthocyanins), fiber, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), PUFA n-3, and lower intake of saturated fatty acids (SFA) had a significant impact on the improvement of some MetS risk factors (waist circumference, fasting glucose, and HDL-cholesterol).
Mapping Geographical Differences and Examining the Determinants of Childhood Stunting in Ethiopia: A Bayesian Geostatistical Analysis
Authors: Ahmed Kedir , Agho Kingsley , Page Andrew , Arora Amit , Ogbo Felix ,   on behalf of the Global Maternal and Child Health Research Collaboration (GloMACH)
Published: June 2021

Understanding the specific geographical distribution of stunting is essential for planning and implementing targeted public health interventions in high-burdened countries. This study investigated geographical variations in the prevalence of stunting sub-nationally, and the determinants of stunting among children under 5 years of age in Ethiopia. We used the 2016 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) dataset for children aged 0–59 months with valid anthropometric measurements and geographic coordinates (n = 9089). We modelled the prevalence of stunting and its determinants using Bayesian geospatially explicit regression models. The prevalence of stunting among children under five years was 36.3% (95% credible interval (CrI); 22.6%, 51.4%) in Ethiopia, with wide variations sub-nationally and by age group. The prevalence of childhood stunting ranged from 56.6% (37.4–74.6%) in the Mekelle Special zone of the Tigray region to 25.5% (10.5–48.9%) in the Sheka zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples region. Factors associated with a reduced likelihood of stunting in Ethiopia included non-receipt of breastmilk, mother’s BMI (overweight/obese), employment status (employed), and higher household wealth, while the enablers were residence in the “arid” geographic areas, small birth size of the child, and mother’s BMI (underweight). The prevalence and determinants of stunting varied across Ethiopia. Efforts to reduce the burden of childhood stunting should consider geographical heterogeneity and modifiable risk factors.
Habitual Dietary Intake Affects the Altered Pattern of Gut Microbiome by Acarbose in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes
Authors: Takewaki Fumie , Nakajima Hanako , Takewaki Daiki , Hashimoto Yoshitaka , Majima Saori , Okada Hiroshi , Senmaru Takafumi , Ushigome Emi , Hamaguchi Masahide , Yamazaki Masahiro , Tanaka Yoshiki , Nakajima Shunji , Ohno Hiroshi , Fukui Michiaki
Published: June 2021

The aim of this research was to reveal the characteristics of gut microbiome altered by acarbose intervention in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and its possible association with habitual dietary intake. Eighteen patients with T2D were administered acarbose for four weeks. The abundances of two major phyla, namely Actinobacteria and Bacteroidetes, were reciprocally changed accompanied by the acarbose intervention. There were also significant changes in the abundances of ten genera, including the greater abundance of Bifidobacterium, Eubacterium, and Lactobacillus and the lower abundance of Bacteroides in the group after the intervention than that before the intervention. Hierarchical clustering of habitual dietary intake was performed based on the pattern of changes in the gut microbiota and were classified into distinct three clusters. Cluster I consisted of sucrose, cluster II mainly included fat intake, and cluster III mainly included carbohydrate intake. Moreover, the amount of change in Faecalibacterium was positively correlated with the intake of rice, but negatively correlated with the intake of bread. The intake of potato was negatively correlated with the amount of change in Akkermansia and Subdoligranulum. Acarbose altered the composition of gut microbiome in Japanese patients with T2D, which might be linked to the habitual dietary intake.
The Role of Resilience and Basic Hope in the Adherence to Dietary Recommendations in the Polish Population during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Sińska Beata , Jaworski Mariusz , Panczyk Mariusz , Traczyk Iwona , Kucharska Alicja
Published: June 2021

(1) Background: The COVID-19 pandemic exerts a negative influence on dietary behaviors, which may lead to health deterioration. Dietary behaviors may be determined by psychological characteristics, such as basic hope and resilience, which facilitate the effective adjustment to new difficult conditions. The professional literature includes no research on the role of basic hope and resilience in the context of undertaken dietary behaviors in the situations of mental load associated with pandemics. The study aimed at the description of the dietary behaviors of individuals with various intensities of the discussed psychological characteristics (basic hope and resilience); (2) The observational cross-sectional online questionnaire study was conducted with the participation of 1082 adult Polish inhabitants. Three psychological scales were used: PSS-10, the Brief Resilient Coping Scale (BRCS) and BHI-12 questionnaire. The assessment of the adherence to dietary recommendations was performed with the present authors’ Dietary Guidelines Adherence Index (DGA Index); (3) Results: The value of DGA Index was variable depending on the psychological profile of study participants. The highest adherence to the principles of appropriate nutrition was observed in individuals characterized by the ability to cope with difficult situations and those who quickly adapted to new changing circumstances. The DGA Index values became poorer with the deterioration of the coping ability as regards stress and mental load; (4) Conclusions: Nutritional education during pandemics should encompass the psychological profile of the patients. It requires the implementation of a different psychodietetic approach which will facilitate a more effective introduction of a well-balanced diet.
Nutritional Aspects of Pediatric Gastrointestinal Diseases
Authors: Di Chio Teresa , Sokollik Christiane , Peroni Diego G. , Hart Lara , Simonetti Giacomo , Righini-Grunder Franziska , Borrelli Osvaldo
Published: June 2021

In the last decade, the role of nutritional management in pediatric gastrointestinal diseases has gained increasing popularity. Disease-specific diets have been introduced as conventional treatments by international guidelines. Patients tend to more willingly accept food-based therapies than drugs because of their relatively “harmless” nature. Apart from a diet’s therapeutic role, nutritional support is crucial in maintaining growth and improving clinical outcomes in pediatric patients. Despite the absence of classical “side effects”, however, it should be emphasized that any dietary modification might have negative consequences on children’s growth and development. Hence, expert supervision is always advised, in order to support adequate nutritional requirements. Unfortunately, the media provide an inaccurate perception of the role of diet for gastrointestinal diseases, leading to misconceptions by patients or their caregivers that tends to overestimate the beneficial role of diets and underestimate the potential adverse effects. Moreover, not only patients, but also healthcare professionals, have a number of misconceptions about the nutritional benefits of diet modification on gastrointestinal diseases. The aim of this review is to highlight the role of diet in pediatric gastrointestinal diseases, to detect misconceptions and to give a practical guide for physicians on the basis of current scientific evidence.
Dietary Behaviors and Incident COVID-19 in the UK Biobank
Authors: Vu Thanh-Huyen T. , Rydland Kelsey J. , Achenbach Chad J. , Van Horn Linda , Cornelis Marilyn C.
Published: June 2021

Background: Nutritional status influences immunity but its specific association with susceptibility to COVID-19 remains unclear. We examined the association of specific dietary data and incident COVID-19 in the UK Biobank (UKB). Methods: We considered UKB participants in England with self-reported baseline (2006–2010) data and linked them to Public Health England COVID-19 test results—performed on samples from combined nose/throat swabs, using real time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)—between March and November 2020. Baseline diet factors included breastfed as baby and specific consumption of coffee, tea, oily fish, processed meat, red meat, fruit, and vegetables. Individual COVID-19 exposure was estimated using the UK’s average monthly positive case rate per specific geo-populations. Logistic regression estimated the odds of COVID-19 positivity by diet status adjusting for baseline socio-demographic factors, medical history, and other lifestyle factors. Another model was further adjusted for COVID-19 exposure. Results: Eligible UKB participants (n = 37,988) were 40 to 70 years of age at baseline; 17% tested positive for COVID-19 by SAR-CoV-2 PCR. After multivariable adjustment, the odds (95% CI) of COVID-19 positivity was 0.90 (0.83, 0.96) when consuming 2–3 cups of coffee/day (vs. <1 cup/day), 0.88 (0.80, 0.98) when consuming vegetables in the third quartile of servings/day (vs. lowest quartile), 1.14 (1.01, 1.29) when consuming fourth quartile servings of processed meats (vs. lowest quartile), and 0.91 (0.85, 0.98) when having been breastfed (vs. not breastfed). Associations were attenuated when further adjusted for COVID-19 exposure, but patterns of associations remained. Conclusions: In the UK Biobank, consumption of coffee, vegetables, and being breastfed as a baby were favorably associated with incident COVID-19; intake of processed meat was adversely associated. Although these findings warrant independent confirmation, adherence to certain dietary behaviors may be an additional tool to existing COVID-19 protection guidelines to limit the spread of this virus.
Application of Clinical Decision Support System to Assist Breast Cancer Patients with Lifestyle Modifications during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Randomised Controlled Trial
Authors: Papandreou Panos , Gioxari Aristea , Nimee Frantzeska , Skouroliakou Maria
Published: June 2021

Clinical decision support systems (CDSS) are data aggregation tools based on computer technology that assist clinicians to promote healthy weight management and prevention of cardiovascular diseases. We carried out a randomised controlled 3-month trial to implement lifestyle modifications in breast cancer (BC) patients by means of CDSS during the COVID-19 pandemic. In total, 55 BC women at stages I-IIIA were enrolled. They were randomly assigned either to Control group, receiving general lifestyle advice (n = 28) or the CDSS group (n = 27), to whom the CDSS provided personalised dietary plans based on the Mediterranean diet (MD) together with physical activity guidelines. Food data, anthropometry, blood markers and quality of life were evaluated. At 3 months, higher adherence to MD was recorded in the CDSS group, accompanied by lower body weight (kg) and body fat mass percentage compared to control (p < 0.001). In the CDSS arm, global health/quality of life was significantly improved at the trial endpoint (p < 0.05). Fasting blood glucose and lipid levels (i.e., cholesterol, LDL, triacylglycerols) of the CDSS arm remained unchanged (p > 0.05) but were elevated in the control arm at 3 months (p < 0.05). In conclusion, CDSS could be a promising tool to assist BC patients with lifestyle modifications during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ion Pairs for Transdermal and Dermal Drug Delivery: A Review
Authors: Cristofoli Mignon , Kung Chin-Ping , Hadgraft Jonathan , Lane Majella E. , Sil Bruno C.
Published: June 2021

Ion pairing is a strategy used to increase the permeation of topically applied ionised drugs. Formation occurs when the electrostatic energy of attraction between oppositely charged ions exceeds their mean thermal energy, making it possible for them to draw together and attain a critical distance. These ions then behave as a neutral species, allowing them to partition more readily into a lipid environment. Partition coefficient studies may be used to determine the potential of ions to pair and partition into an organic phase but cannot be relied upon to predict flux. Early researchers indicated that temperature, size of ions and dielectric constant of the solvent system all contributed to the formation of ion pairs. While size is important, this may be outweighed by improved lipophilicity of the counter ion due to increased length of the carbon chain. Organic counter ions are more effective than inorganic moieties in forming ion pairs. In addition to being used to increase permeation, ion pairs have been used to control and even prevent permeation of the active ingredient. They have also been used to stabilise solid lipid nanoparticle formulations. Ion pairs have been used in conjunction with permeation enhancers, and permeation enhancers have been used as counter ions in ion pairing. This review attempts to show the various ways in which ion pairs have been used in drug delivery via the skin. It also endeavours to extract and consolidate common approaches in order to inform future formulations for topical and transdermal delivery.
Immune Checkpoint and Anti-Angiogenic Antibodies for the Treatment of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer in the European Union and United States
Authors: Ferreira Marion , Secher Thomas , Heuze-Vourc’H Nathalie , Reckamp Karen L
Published: June 2021

Several types of antibodies (Abs) are currently used in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Anti-angiogenic and immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) Abs are the most frequent treatments used alone or with chemotherapy in metastatic NSCLC, for the front line and beyond. Considering the many therapeutic options for locally advanced and metastatic lung cancer and differences in use according to geographic area, we present here a comprehensive review of the marketed ICI and anti-angiogenic Abs approved in the European Union (EU) and the US to treat locally advanced and metastatic NSCLC patients. We briefly describe the different molecules and their development in thoracic oncology and compare pharmacokinetic data, processing decision algorithms and marketing authorizations by the EMA and US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Evaluation of the Photocatalytic Activity and Anticorrosion Performance of Electrospun Fibers Doped with Metallic Oxides
Authors: Albistur Ainhoa , Rivero Pedro J. , Esparza Joseba , Rodríguez Rafael
Published: June 2021

This paper reports the development and characterization of a multifunctional coating that combines anticorrosion and photocatalytic properties, deposited by means of the electrospinning technique. In the first step, a functional electrospun fiber mat composed of poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) and β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) was obtained, showing high water insolubility and great adhesion increased by means of a thermal crosslinking process (denoted as PAA + β-CD). In the second step, the fibers were doped with particles of titanium dioxide (denoted as PAA + β-CD/TiO2) and titanium dioxide plus iron oxide (denoted as PAA + β-CD/TiO2/Fe2O3). The morphology and fiber diameter of the electrospun mats were evaluated by using confocal microscopy, whereas the presence of the metal oxides in the electrospun fibers was corroborated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF), respectively. In addition, electrochemical tests in saline solution revealed that the sample composed of PAA + β-CD/TiO2/Fe2O3 showed the highest corrosion protection efficiency of all the samples, which was directly associated to lower corrosion current density and higher corrosion potential. Furthermore, the paper reports a novel approach to in situ determination of methylene blue (MB) degradation onto the coating. The results revealed complete degradation of MB, which is perfectly appreciated by total discoloration of the film in the irradiated zone (from bluish to a white spot). The main conclusions of this research are the efficiency of the electrospun system PAA + β-CD/TiO2/Fe2O3 for developing photocatalytic activity and corrosion protection and the utility of the dry MB discoloration tests to evaluate photocatalytic activity.
Antifungal Activities of Wood and Non-Wood Kraft Handsheets Treated with Melia azedarach Extract Using SEM and HPLC Analyses
Authors: Salem Mohamed Z. M. , Alotaibi Saqer S. , Elgat Wael A. A. Abo , Taha Ayman S. , Fares Yahia G. D. , El-Shehawi Ahmed M. , Ghareeb Rehab Y.
Published: June 2021

The main objective of this work was to evaluate pulp produced by kraft cooking for wood materials (WMT) (Bougainvillea spectabilis, Ficus altissima, and F. elastica) and non-wood materials (NWMT) (Sorghum bicolor and Zea mays stalks) and to study the fungal activity of handsheets treated with Melia azedarach heartwood extract (MAHE) solutions. Through the aforementioned analyses, the ideal cooking conditions were determined for each raw material based on the lignin percentage present. After cooking, pulp showed a decrease in the Kappa number produced from WMT, ranging from 16 to 17. This was in contrast with NWMT, which had Kappa numbers ranging from 31 to 35. A difference in the optical properties of the pulp produced from WMT was also observed (18 to 29%) compared with pulp produced from NWMT (32.66 to 35.35%). As for the evaluation of the mechanical properties, the tensile index of the pulp ranged from 30.5 to 40 N·m/g for WMT and from 44.33 to 47.43 N·m/g for NWMT; the tear index ranged from 1.66 to 2.55 mN·m2/g for WMT and from 4.75 to 5.87 mN·m2/g for NWMT; and the burst index ranged from 2.35 to 2.85 kPa·m2/g for WMT and from 3.92 to 4.76 kPa·m2/g for NWMT. Finally, the double fold number was 3 compared with that of pulp produced from pulp, which showed good values ranging from 36 to 55. In the SEM examination, sheets produced from treated handsheets with extract from MAHE showed no growth of Aspergillus fumigatus over paper discs manufactured from B. speclabilis pulp wood. Pulp paper produced from Z. mays and S. bicolor stalks was treated with 1% MAHE, while pulp paper from F. elastica was treated with 0.50% and 1% MAHE. With the addition of 0.5 or 1% MAHE, Fusarium culmorum showed no increase in growth over the paper manufactured from B. speclabilis, F. altissima, F. elastica and Zea mays pulps with visual inhibition zones found. There was almost no growth of S. solani in paper discs manufactured from pulps treated with 1% MAHE. This is probably due to the phytochemical compounds present in the extract. The HPLC analysis of MAHE identified p-hydroxybenzoic acid, caffeine, rutin, chlorogenic acid, benzoic acid, quinol, and quercetin as the main compounds, and these were present in concentrations of 3966.88, 1032.67, 834.13, 767.81, 660.64, 594.86, and 460.36 mg/Kg extract, respectively. Additionally, due to the importance of making paper from agricultural waste (stalks of S. bicolor and Z. mays), the development of sorghum and corn with high biomass is suggested.
Functionalized Particles Designed for Targeted Delivery
Authors: Basinska Teresa , Gadzinowski Mariusz , Mickiewicz Damian , Slomkowski Stanislaw
Published: June 2021

Pure bioactive compounds alone can only be exceptionally administered in medical treatment. Usually, drugs are produced as various forms of active compounds and auxiliary substances, combinations assuring the desired healing functions. One of the important drug forms is represented by a combination of active substances and particle-shaped polymer in the nano- or micrometer size range. The review describes recent progress in this field balanced with basic information. After a brief introduction, the paper presents a concise overview of polymers used as components of nano- and microparticle drug carriers. Thereafter, progress in direct synthesis of polymer particles with functional groups is discussed. A section is devoted to formation of particles by self-assembly of homo- and copolymer-bearing functional groups. Special attention is focused on modification of the primary functional groups introduced during particle preparation, including introduction of ligands promoting anchorage of particles onto the chosen living cell types by interactions with specific receptors present in cell membranes. Particular attention is focused on progress in methods suitable for preparation of particles loaded with bioactive substances. The review ends with a brief discussion of the still not answered questions and unsolved problems.
Bioprinting of Matrigel Scaffolds for Cancer Research
Authors: De Stefano Paola , Briatico-Vangosa Francesco , Bianchi Elena , Pellegata Alessandro Filippo , Hartung de Hartungen Ariel , Corti Pietro , Dubini Gabriele
Published: June 2021

Cancer is one of the most life-threatening diseases worldwide. Despite the huge efforts, the failure rate of therapies remains high due to cells heterogeneity, so physiologically relevant models are strictly necessary. Bioprinting is a technology able to form highly complex 3D tissue models and enables the creation of large-scale constructs. In cancer research, Matrigel® is the most widely used matrix, but it is hardly bioprinted pure, without the use of any other bioink as reinforcement. Its complex rheological behavior makes the control with a standard bioprinting process nearly impossible. In this work, we present a customized bioprinting strategy to produce pure Matrigel® scaffolds with good shape fidelity. To this aim, we realized a custom-made volumetric dispensing system and performed printability evaluations. To determine optimal printing parameters, we analyzed fibers spreading ratio on simple serpentines. After identifying an optimal flow rate of 86.68 ± 5.77 µL/min and a printing speed of 10 mm/min, we moved forward to evaluate printing accuracy, structural integrity and other key parameters on single and multi-layer grids. Results demonstrated that Matrigel® was able to maintain its structure in both simple and complex designs, as well as in single and multilayer structures, even if it does not possess high mechanical strength. In conclusion, the use of volumetric dispensing allowed printing pure Matrigel® constructs with a certain degree of shape fidelity on both single and multiple layers.
Influence of Physicochemical Properties and Parent Material on Chromium Fractionation in Soils
Authors: Campillo-Cora Claudia , Rodríguez-González Laura , Arias-Estévez Manuel , Fernández-Calviño David , Soto-Gómez Diego
Published: June 2021

Chromium is an element that possess several oxidation states and can easily pass from one to another, so its behavior in soils is very complex. For this reason, determining its fate in the environment can be difficult. In this research work we tried to determine which factors affect the chromium fractionation in natural soils, conditioning chromium mobility. We paid special attention to the parent material. For this purpose, extraction experiments were carried out on spiked soils incubated for 50–60 days, using H2O, CaCl2 and diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA). The most efficient extraction rate in all soils was achieved using water, followed by CaCl2 and DTPA. We obtained models with an adjusted R2 of 0.8097, 0.8471 and 0.7509 for the H2O Cr, CaCl2 Cr and DTPA Cr respectively. All models were influenced by the amount of chromium added and the parent material: amphibolite and granite influenced the amount of H2O Cr extracted, and schist affected the other two fractions (CaCl2 and DTPA). Soil texture also played an important role in the chromium extraction, as well as the amounts of exchangeable aluminum and magnesium, and the bioavailable phosphorus. We concluded that it is possible to make relatively accurate predictions of the behavior of the different Cr fractions studied, so that optimized remediation strategies for chromium-contaminated soils can be designed on the basis of a physicochemical soil characterization.
Migration Attractiveness as a Factor in the Development of the Russian Arctic Mineral Resource Potential
Authors: Chanysheva Amina , Kopp Pierre , Romasheva Natalia , Nikulina Anni
Published: June 2021

The development of mineral resources in the Arctic territories is one of the priorities of the state policy of Russia. This endeavor requires modern technologies, high-quality personnel, and a large number of labor resources. However, the regions of the Arctic are characterized by difficult working and living conditions, which makes them unattractive to the working population. The research objectives were to study the importance of Arctic mineral resources for the Russian economy, the Arctic mineral resource potential, and the migration attractiveness of Arctic regions. The migration processes in these locations were analyzed and modeled using a new econometric tool—complex-valued regression models. The authors assume that the attractiveness of the Arctic regions is determined by the level of their social and economic development and can be assessed using a number of indicators. A comparative analysis of four regions that are entirely in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation was carried out based on the calculation of integral indicators of the social and economic attractiveness of these territories. Forecasting migration growth using the proposed complex-valued models produced better results than simple trend extrapolation. The authors conclude that complex-valued economic models can be successfully used to forecast migration processes in the Arctic regions of Russia. Understanding and predicting migration processes in the Arctic will make it possible to develop recommendations for attracting labor resources to the region, which will contribute to the successful development of its resource potential. The methodology of this study includes desk studies, a graphical method, arithmetic calculations, correlation analysis, statistical analysis, and the methods of the complex-valued economy.
Comparison of Historical Water Temperature Measurements with Landsat Analysis Ready Data Provisional Surface Temperature Estimates for the Yukon River in Alaska
Authors: Baughman Carson A. , Conaway Jeffrey S.
Published: June 2021

Water temperature is a key element of freshwater ecological systems and a critical element within natural resource monitoring programs. In the absence of in situ measurements, remote sensing platforms can indirectly measure water temperature over time and space. The Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center has processed archived Landsat imagery into analysis ready data (ARD), including Level-2 Provisional Surface Temperature (pST) estimates derived from the Landsat 4–5 Thematic Mapper (TM), Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+), and Landsat 8 Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS). We compared in situ measurements of water temperature within the Yukon River in Alaska with 52 instances of pST estimates between June 2014 and September 2020. Agreement was good with an RMSE of 2.25 °C and only a slight negative bias in the estimated mean daily water temperature of −0.47 °C. For the 52 dates compared, the average daily water temperature measured by the USGS streamgage was 11.3 °C with a standard deviation of 5.7 °C. The average daily pST estimate was 10.8 °C with a standard deviation of 6.1 °C. At least in the case of large unstratified rivers in Alaska, ARD pST can be used to infer water temperature in the absence of or in tandem with ground-based water temperature monitoring campaigns.
Mapping and Evaluating Human Pressure Changes in the Qilian Mountains
Authors: Duan Quntao , Luo Lihui , Zhao Wenzhi , Zhuang Yanli , Liu Fang
Published: June 2021

Human activities have dramatically changed ecosystems. As an irreplaceable ecological barrier in western China, the Qilian Mountains (QLM) provide various ecosystem services for humans. To evaluate the changes in the intensity of human activities in the QLM and their impact on the ecosystem, the human footprint (HF) method was used to conduct a spatial dataset of human activity intensity. In our study, the NDVI was used to characterize the growth of vegetation, and six categories of human pressures were employed to create the HF map in the QLM for 2000–2015 at a 1-km scale. The results showed that the mean NDVI during the growing season showed a significant increasing trend over the entire QLM in the period 2000–2015, while the NDVI showed a significant declining trend of more than 70% concentrated in Qinghai. Human pressure throughout the QLM occurred at a low level during 2000–2015, being greater in the eastern region than the western region, while the Qinghai area had greater human pressure than the Gansu area. Due to the improvement in traffic facilities, tourism, overgrazing, and other illegal activities, grasslands, shrublands, forests, wetlands, and bare land were the vegetation types most affected by human activities (in decreasing order). As the core area of the QLM, the Qilian Mountains National Nature Reserve (NR) has effectively reduced the impact of human activities. However, due to the existence of many ecological historical debts caused by unreasonable management in the past, the national park established in 2017 is facing great challenges to achieve its goals. These data and results will provide reference and guidance for future protection and restoration of the QLM ecosystem.
Forest Restoration Monitoring Protocol with a Low-Cost Remotely Piloted Aircraft: Lessons Learned from a Case Study in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest
Authors: Albuquerque Rafael Walter , Ferreira Manuel Eduardo , Olsen Søren Ingvor , Tymus Julio Ricardo Caetano , Balieiro Cintia Palheta , Mansur Hendrik , Moura Ciro José Ribeiro , Costa João Vitor Silva , Branco Maurício Ruiz Castello , Grohmann Carlos Henrique
Published: June 2021

Traditional forest restoration (FR) monitoring methods employ spreadsheets and photos taken at the ground level. Since remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) generate a panoramic high resolution and georeferenced view of the entire area of interest, this technology has high potential to improve the traditional FR monitoring methods. This study evaluates how low-cost RPA data may contribute to FR monitoring of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest by the automatic remote measurement of Tree Density, Tree Height, Vegetation Cover (area covered by trees), and Grass Infestation. The point cloud data was processed to map the Tree Density, Tree Height, and Vegetation Cover parameters. The orthomosaic was used for a Random Forest classification that considered trees and grasses as a single land cover class. The Grass Infestation parameter was mapped by the difference between this land cover class (which considered trees and grasses) and the Vegetation Cover results (obtained by the point cloud data processing). Tree Density, Vegetation Cover, and Grass Infestation parameters presented F_scores of 0.92, 0.85, and 0.64, respectively. Tree Height accuracy was indicated by the Error Percentage considering the traditional fieldwork and the RPA results. The Error Percentage was equal to 0.13 and was considered accurate because it estimated a 13% shorter height for trees that averaged 1.93 m tall. Thus, this study showed that the FR structural parameters were accurately measured by the low-cost RPA, a technology that contributes to FR monitoring. Despite accurately measuring the structural parameters, this study reinforced the challenge of measuring the Biodiversity parameter via remote sensing because the classification of tree species was not possible. After all, the Brazilian Atlantic Forest is a biodiversity hotspot, and thus different species have similar spectral responses in the visible spectrum and similar geometric forms. Therefore, until improved automatic classification methods become available for tree species, traditional fieldwork remains necessary for a complete FR monitoring diagnostic.
Investigating the Temporal and Spatial Dynamics of Human Development Index: A Comparative Study on Countries and Regions in the Eastern Hemisphere from the Perspective of Evolution
Authors: Liang Hanwei , Li Na , Han Ji , Bian Xin , Xia Huaixia , Dong Liang
Published: June 2021

The Human Development Index (HDI) is a prevailing indicator to present the status and trend of sustainability of nations, hereby offers a valuable measurement on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Revealing the dynamics of the HDI of the Eastern Hemisphere countries is vital for measurement and evaluation of the human development process and revealing the spatial disparities and evolutionary characteristics of human development. However, the statistical data-based HDI, which is currently widely applied, has defects in terms of data availability and inconsistent statistical caliber. To tackle such an existing gap, we applied nighttime lights (NTL) data to reconstruct new HDI indicators named HDINTL and quantify the HDINTL at multispatial scales of Eastern Hemisphere countries during 1992–2013. Results showed that South Central Asia countries had the smallest discrepancies in HDINTL, while the largest was found in North Africa. The national-level HDINTL values in the Eastern Hemisphere ranged between 0.138 and 0.947 during 1992–2013. At the subnational scale, the distribution pattern of HDINTL was spatially clustered based on the results of spatial autocorrelation analysis. The evolutionary trajectory of subnational level HDINTL exhibited a decreasing and then increasing trend along the northwest to the southeast direction of Eastern Hemisphere. At the pixel scale, 93.52% of the grids showed an increasing trend in HDINTL, especially in the urban agglomerations of China and India. These results are essential for the ever-improvement of policy making to reduce HDI’s regional disparity and promote the continuous development of humankind’s living qualities. This study offers an improved HDI accounting method. It expects to extend the channel of HDI application, e.g., potential integration with environmental, physical, and socioeconomic data where the NTL data could present as well.
Attention Multi-Scale Network for Automatic Layer Extraction of Ice Radar Topological Sequences
Authors: Cai Yiheng , Liu Dan , Xie Jin , Yang Jingxian , Cui Xiangbin , Lang Shinan
Published: June 2021

Analyzing the surface and bedrock locations in radar imagery enables the computation of ice sheet thickness, which is important for the study of ice sheets, their volume and how they may contribute to global climate change. However, the traditional handcrafted methods cannot quickly provide quantitative, objective and reliable extraction of information from radargrams. Most traditional handcrafted methods, designed to detect ice-surface and ice-bed layers from ice sheet radargrams, require complex human involvement and are difficult to apply to large datasets, while deep learning methods can obtain better results in a generalized way. In this study, an end-to-end multi-scale attention network (MsANet) is proposed to realize the estimation and reconstruction of layers in sequences of ice sheet radar tomographic images. First, we use an improved 3D convolutional network, C3D-M, whose first full connection layer is replaced by a convolution unit to better maintain the spatial relativity of ice layer features, as the backbone. Then, an adjustable multi-scale module uses different scale filters to learn scale information to enhance the feature extraction capabilities of the network. Finally, an attention module extended to 3D space removes a redundant bottleneck unit to better fuse and refine ice layer features. Radar sequential images collected by the Center of Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets in 2014 are used as training and testing data. Compared with state-of-the-art deep learning methods, the MsANet shows a 10% reduction (2.14 pixels) on the measurement of average mean absolute column-wise error for detecting the ice-surface and ice-bottom layers, runs faster and uses approximately 12 million fewer parameters.
Conscientiousness in Pilots Correlates with Electrodermal Stability: Study on Simulated Flights under Social Stress
Authors: Hidalgo-Muñoz Antonio R. , Mouratille Damien , El-Yagoubi Radouane , Rouillard Yves , Matton Nadine , Causse Mickaël
Published: June 2021

For pilots, the capacity to cope with anxiety is crucial during a flight since they may be confronted with stressful situations. According to the Big Five Inventory, this capacity can be modulated by two important personality traits: conscientiousness and neuroticism. The former would be related to concentration skills and the latter to the attention bias towards anxiety-provoking stimuli. Given the current development of monitoring systems for detecting the users’ state, which can be incorporated into cockpits, it is desirable to estimate their robustness to inter-individual personality differences. Indeed, several emotion recognition methods are based on physiological responses that can be modulated by specific personality profiles. The personality traits of twenty pilots were assessed. Afterwards, they performed two consecutive simulated flights without and with induced social stress while electrodermal activity was measured. Their subjective anxiety was assessed before the second flight, prior to the stress-induced condition. The results showed that higher scores in neuroticism correlated positively with cognitive and somatic anxiety. Moreover, under social stress, higher scores in conscientiousness correlated positively with electrodermal stability, i.e., a lower number of skin conductance responses. These results on both self-reported and physiological responses are in favor of the integration of personality differences into pilots’ state monitoring.
The Socio-Economic Cost of Wind Turbines: A Swedish Case Study
Authors: Westlund Hans , Wilhelmsson Mats
Published: June 2021

The expansion of wind turbines plays a significant role in developing the ability of a country like Sweden to achieve climate-neutral energy production without relying on nuclear power plants. Wind-turbine energy production is expected to grow in the coming decades. Conflicts may arise between, on the one hand, the government and the energy authority, and, on the other hand, municipalities and property owners, especially if this expansion affects other economic activities, such as tourism and reindeer husbandry, or property values. This report aims to analyse the negative capitalization of wind turbines on property values in Sweden over the last ten years. Our conclusions clearly show a relatively significant capitalization and that this capitalization is relatively local, within eight kilometers of the wind power plant. Large wind turbines, or larger clusters of wind turbines in wind farms, impose a greater socio-economic cost on lower value properties.
Life Cycle Assessment of Bioplastics and Food Waste Disposal Methods
Authors: Hobbs Shakira R. , Harris Tyler M. , Barr William J. , Landis Amy E.
Published: June 2021

The environmental impacts of five waste management scenarios for polylactic acid (PLA)-based bioplastics and food waste were quantified using life cycle assessment. Laboratory experiments have demonstrated the potential for a pretreatment process to accelerate the degradation of bioplastics and were modeled in two of the five scenarios assessed. The five scenarios analyzed in this study were: (1a) Anaerobic digestion (1b) Anaerobic digestion with pretreatment; (2a) Compost; (2a) Compost with pretreatment; (3) Landfill. Results suggested that food waste and pretreated bioplastics disposed of with an anaerobic digester offers life cycle and environmental net total benefits (environmental advantages/offsets) in several areas: ecotoxicity (−81.38 CTUe), eutrophication (0 kg N eq), cumulative energy demand (−1.79 MJ), global warming potential (0.19 kg CO2), and human health non-carcinogenic (−2.52 CTuh). Normalized results across all impact categories show that anaerobically digesting food waste and bioplastics offer the most offsets for ecotoxicity, eutrophication, cumulative energy demand and non-carcinogenic. Implications from this study can lead to nutrient and energy recovery from an anaerobic digester that can diversify the types of fertilizers and decrease landfill waste while decreasing dependency on non-renewable technologies. Thus, using anaerobic digestion to manage bioplastics and food waste should be further explored as a viable and sustainable solution for waste management.