bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Fitness Cost of Aflatoxin Production in Aspergillus flavus When Competing with Soil Microbes Could Maintain Balancing Selection
Authors: Drott Milton T. , Debenport Tracy , Higgins Steven A. , Buckley Daniel H. , Milgroom Michael G.
Published: February 2019

Aflatoxin, produced by the fungus
Aspergillus flavus
, is an extremely potent hepatotoxin that causes acute toxicosis and cancer, and it incurs hundreds of millions of dollars annually in agricultural losses. Despite the importance of this toxin to humans, it has remained unclear what the fungus gains by producing aflatoxin. In fact, not all strains of
A. flavus
produce aflatoxin. Previous work has shown an advantage to producing aflatoxin in the presence of some insects. Our current work demonstrates the first evidence of a disadvantage to
A. flavus
in producing aflatoxin when competing with soil microbes. Together, these opposing evolutionary forces could explain the persistence of both aflatoxigenic and nonaflatoxigenic strains through evolutionary time.
Evolutionary Model of Cluster Divergence of the Emergent Marine Pathogen
Vibrio vulnificus
: From Genotype to Ecotype
Authors: López-Pérez Mario , Jayakumar Jane M. , Haro-Moreno Jose M. , Zaragoza-Solas Asier , Reddi Geethika , Rodriguez-Valera Francisco , Shapiro Orr H. , Alam Munirul , Almagro-Moreno Salvador
Published: February 2019

Vibrio vulnificus
is an emergent marine pathogen and is the cause of a deadly septicemia. However, the genetic factors that differentiate its clinical and environmental strains and its several biotypes remain mostly enigmatic. In this work, we investigated the underlying genomic properties and population dynamics of the
V. vulnificus
species to elucidate the traits that make these strains emerge as a human pathogen. The acquisition of different ecological determinants could have allowed the development of highly divergent clusters with different lifestyles within the same environment. However, we identified strains from both clusters in the mucosa of aquaculture species, indicating that manmade niches are bringing strains from the two clusters together, posing a potential risk of recombination and of emergence of novel variants. We propose a new evolutionary model that provides a perspective that could be broadly applicable to other pathogenic vibrios and facultative bacterial pathogens to pursue strategies to prevent their infections.
Ultrahigh-Throughput Multiplexing and Sequencing of >500-Base-Pair Amplicon Regions on the Illumina HiSeq 2500 Platform
Authors: Holm Johanna B. , Humphrys Michael S. , Robinson Courtney K. , Settles Matthew L. , Ott Sandra , Fu Li , Yang Hongqiu , Gajer Pawel , He Xin , McComb Elias , Gravitt Patti E. , Ghanem Khalil G. , Brotman Rebecca M. , Ravel Jacques
Published: February 2019

Amplicon sequencing has become a popular and widespread tool for surveying microbial communities. Lower overall costs associated with high-throughput sequencing have made it a widely adopted approach, especially for projects that necessitate sample multiplexing to eliminate batch effect and reduced time to acquire data. The method for amplicon sequencing on the Illumina HiSeq 2500 platform described here provides improved multiplexing capabilities while simultaneously producing greater quality sequence data and lower per-sample cost relative to those of the Illumina MiSeq platform without sacrificing amplicon length. To make this method more flexible for various amplicon-targeted regions as well as improve amplification from low-biomass samples, we also present and validate a 2-step PCR library preparation method.
Performance of Microbiome Sequence Inference Methods in Environments with Varying Biomass
Authors: Caruso Vincent , Song Xubo , Asquith Mark , Karstens Lisa
Published: February 2019

Microbial communities have important ramifications for human health, but determining their impact requires accurate characterization. Current technology makes microbiome sequence data more accessible than ever. However, popular software methods for analyzing these data are based on algorithms developed alongside older sequencing technology and smaller data sets and thus may not be adequate for modern, high-throughput data sets. Additionally, samples from environments where microbes are scarce present additional challenges to community characterization relative to high-biomass environments, an issue that is often ignored. We found that a new class of microbiome sequence processing tools, called amplicon sequence variant (ASV) methods, outperformed conventional methods. In samples representing low-biomass communities, where sample contamination becomes a significant confounding factor, the improved accuracy of ASV methods may allow more-robust computational identification of contaminants.
Evidence maps: a tool to guide research agenda setting
Authors: Alahdab Fares , Murad Mohammad Hassan
Published: February 2019

A surprisingly huge proportion of medical research still shows poor quality in design, conduct and analysis, leading to far from optimal robustness of findings and validity of conclusions. Research waste remains a problem caused by a number of reasons. Asking the wrong research questions and ignoring the existing evidence are possible preventable ones. Evidence maps are tools that may aid in guiding clinical investigators and help in agenda setting of future research. In this article, we explain how they serve such a goal and outline the steps required to build effective evidence maps.
Relationship of clinical presentation and angiographic findings in patients with indirect cavernous carotid fistulae
Authors: Alexander Matthew David , Halbach Van V , Hallam Danial K , Cooke Daniel L , Ghodke Basavaraj , Dowd Christopher F , Amans Matthew R , Hetts Steven W , Higashida Randall T , Meyers Philip M
Published: February 2019

Introduction

Indirect cavernous carotid fistulae (ICCFs) can present with insidious, non-specific symptoms and prove difficult to diagnose. This study evaluates associations among ICCF symptoms and angiographic findings.

Methods

A retrospective analysis was performed of prospectively maintained records at four medical centers to identify patients with ICCFs evaluated with angiography. Patient demographics, symptoms, and angiographic findings were tabulated. Univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to identify associations among these variables.

Results

Records sufficient for review existed for 267 patients evaluated with angiography. Patients were most commonly women, in the sixth or seventh decade of life, and had symptoms for months before a definitive diagnosis. The most common symptoms included proptosis, diplopia, cranial nerve palsy, and chemosis. Cortical venous reflux was most common in patients with chemosis, orbital pain, or bruit. Intracranial hemorrhage was associated with cortical reflux and bilateral inferior petrosal sinus occlusion. Patients with loss of symptoms demonstrated higher rates of inferior petrosal sinus occlusion and a trend towards rupture.

Conclusion

A high index of suspicion is needed to promptly diagnose patients with ICCFs. High risk features are more common in the setting of chemosis, orbital pain, bruit, or spontaneous loss of symptoms. Patients with such symptoms warrant expedited angiographic evaluation.
Expansion and collapse of spherical source with cosmological constant
Authors: Abbas G. , Qaisar Shahid , Rehman Hamood Ur , Younas M.
Published: February 2019

In this research paper, we address the issues of expansion and gravitational collapse of anisotropic spherical source in the presence of cosmological constant. For this purpose, we have solved the Einstein field equations with gravitating source and cosmological constant. The absence of radial heat flux in the gravitating source provide the parametric form of two-metric functions in terms of a single-metric function. The expansion scalar and the mass function of the gravitating source is evaluated for the given metric. The trapping condition is applied to mass function which implies the existence of horizons, like the horizons of Schwarzschild de-Sitter black holes. The trapping condition provides the parametric form of the unknown metric function. The value of expansion scalar has been analyzed in detail to see its positivity and negativity, which correspond to expansion and collapse, respectively. So, the values of parameter [Formula: see text] for which expansion scalar is positive have been used to analyze the other physical variables including density, pressures and anisotropy. The same quantities have been evaluated for the values of [Formula: see text] that result in the negative values of expansion scalar leading to collapse. The effects of positive cosmological constant have been noted in both expansion and collapse solutions. Due to the presence of cosmological constant after collapse, there would occur inner and outer horizons or a unique horizon depending on the value of mass of the gravitating source.
Dynamics of viscous dissipative collapse with casual approach in string inspired Gauss–Bonnet gravity
Authors: Tahir M. , Abbas G.
Published: February 2019

In this work, we have studied the effects of dissipative viscous/heat gravitational collapse on the dynamics of collapsing source in 5D Einstein–Gauss–Bonnet theory using full casual approach. For this purpose, the dynamical equations have been formulated by using Misner–Sharp approach in 5D Einstein–Gauss–Bonnet theory of gravity. Using the Müller–Israel–Stewart theory, the dynamical equations have coupled with casual transport equations for the heat flux, the bulk and shear bulk viscosity to determine the effects of heat flux including thermodynamics viscous/heat coupling coefficients. The applications of this work to certain astrophysical situations are discussed.
Quantum dialogue protocol with four-mode continuous variable GHZ state
Authors: Zhang Ming-Hui , Peng Jin-Ye , Cao Zheng-Wen
Published: February 2019

Quantum dialogue can realize the mutual transmission of secret information between two legal users. In most of the existing quantum dialogue protocols, the information carriers applied in quantum dialogue are discrete variable (DV) quantum states. However, there are certain limitations on the preparation and detection of DV quantum states with current techniques. Continuous variable (CV) quantum states can overcome these problems effectively while improving the quantum channel capacity. In this paper, we propose a quantum dialogue protocol with four-mode continuous variable GHZ state. Compared with the existing CV-based quantum dialogue protocols, the protocol allows two users to transmit two groups of secret information with different lengths to each other simultaneously. The channel capacity of the protocol has been improved as each traveling mode carries two- or four-bits of information. In addition, the protocol has been proved to be secure against information leakage problem and some common attacks, such as beam splitter attack and intercept-and-resend attack.
SEEPAGE PROPERTIES OF ROCK FRACTURES WITH POWER LAW LENGTH DISTRIBUTIONS
Authors: MIAO TONGJUN , CHENG SUJUN , CHEN AIMIN , XU YAN , YANG GUANG , WANG JIGUANG , YU BOMING
Published: February 2019

Fractures with power law length distributions abound in nature such as carbonate oil and gas reservoirs, sandstone, hot dry rocks, etc. The fluid transport properties and morphology characterization of fracture networks have fascinated numerous researchers to investigate for several decades. In this work, the analytical models for fracture density and permeability are extended from fractal fracture network to general fracture network with power law length distributions. It is found that the fracture density is related to the power law exponents [Formula: see text] and the area porosity [Formula: see text] of fracture network. Then, a permeability model for the fracture length distribution with general power law exponent [Formula: see text] and the power law exponent [Formula: see text] for fracture length versus aperture is proposed based on the well-known cubic law in individual fracture. The analytical expression for permeability of fractured networks is found to be a function of power law exponents [Formula: see text], area porosity [Formula: see text] of fracture network, and the micro-structural parameters (maximum fracture length [Formula: see text], fracture azimuth [Formula: see text] and fracture dip angle [Formula: see text]). The present model may shed light on the mechanism of seepage in fracture networks with power law length distributions.
S-Artinian rings and finitely S-cogenerated rings
Authors: Sevim Esra Sengelen , Tekir Unsal , Koc Suat
Published: February 2019

Let [Formula: see text] be a commutative ring with nonzero identity and [Formula: see text] be a multiplicatively closed subset. In this paper, we study [Formula: see text]-Artinian rings and finitely [Formula: see text]-cogenerated rings. A commutative ring [Formula: see text] is said to be an [Formula: see text]-Artinian ring if for each descending chain of ideals [Formula: see text] of [Formula: see text] there exist [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] such that [Formula: see text] for all [Formula: see text] Also, [Formula: see text] is called a finitely [Formula: see text]-cogenerated ring if for each family of ideals [Formula: see text] of [Formula: see text] where [Formula: see text] is an index set, [Formula: see text] implies [Formula: see text] for some [Formula: see text] and a finite subset [Formula: see text] Moreover, we characterize some special rings such as Artinian rings and finitely cogenerated rings. Also, we extend many properties of Artinian rings and finitely cogenerated rings to [Formula: see text]-Artinian rings and finitely [Formula: see text]-cogenerated rings.
Energy–Economy–Environment Interactions: A Comparative Analysis of Lisbon and Sao Paulo Metropolitan Areas
Authors: Cruz Luís , Imori Denise , Ferreira João-Pedro , Guilhoto Joaquim J. M. , Barata Eduardo , Ramos Pedro
Published: February 2019

Metropolitan areas constitute a critical arena in which to protect the environment and handle climate change efforts, both because they are at the root of the problem and they form a suitable working ground to deal with their systemic nature. Using a multi-regional input-output modelling framework, with energy-environmental extensions, this paper proposes a comparative analysis of the Sao Paulo and Lisbon metropolitan areas, distinguishing territorial, production-based and consumption-based responsibilities. This research reveals that the consideration of interregional interactions and leakages to other regions/countries, as well as the appraisal of trade-offs between socio-economic and environmental targets, are critical for climate change policy’s definition and monitoring. The results also stress the importance of tailoring policy measures to the territories and, concurrently, the need for significant changes regarding the discussion of climate change policies on a subnational scale, namely concerning policy concertation and coordination at the global, national and subnational levels.
Dynamic Mechanical Properties of Polyvinyl Alcohol Hydrogels Measured by Double-Striker Electromagnetic Driving SHPB System
Authors: Xie Beixin , Xu Peidong , Tang Liqun , Zhang Yongrou , Xu Kejia , Zhang Hong , Liu Zejia , Zhou Licheng , Liu Yiping , Jiang Zhenyu
Published: February 2019

As an ultra-soft material (elastic modulus in magnitude of kPa), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) hydrogels have the potential to substitute articular cartilage, but the measurement of the dynamic stress–strain relations of ultra-soft materials is still challenging. In this paper, a double-striker electromagnetic driving split-Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) system was developed, in which all the bars were made of polycarbonate, and the polycarbonate striker was pushed by a metal striker driven electromagnetically to ensure the precise control of impact velocity. With the new SHPB system, well design of the size of hydrogel specimen and rational processing of the signal data, the stress–strain relations of hydrogels with varied PVA contents at different strain rates were measured successfully. Experimental results indicate that PVA hydrogels are a positive strain rate sensitive material with different strain-rate effects at low and high strain rates. Finally, based on the latest quasi-static constitution of the PVA hydrogel, a rate-dependent constitutive equation was recommended, which may well depict the mechanical behaviors of hydrogels with different fiber contents at varied strain rates. It also derives that the contributions of strain rate and fiber content on the mechanical behaviors of the hydrogel are relatively independent.
Kinematic Aspects in Modeling Large-Amplitude Vibration of Axially Moving Beams
Authors: Wang Yuanbin , Ding Hu , Chen Li-Qun
Published: February 2019

This paper clarified kinematic aspects of motion of axially moving beams undergoing large-amplitude vibration. The kinematics was formulated in the mixed Eulerian–Lagrangian framework. Based on the kinematic analysis, the governing equations of nonlinear vibration were derived from the extended Hamilton principle and the higher-order shear beam theory. The derivation considered the effects of material parameters on the beam deformation. The proposed governing equations were compared with a few previous governing equations. The comparisons show that proposed equations are with higher precision. Besides, the proposed equations can be viewed as the asymptotic governing equations of Lagrange’s equations of motion for large displacement. Finally, the corresponding boundary conditions and the comparison between the presented model equation and classical model equation were provided.
A Three-Dimensional Model for the Seabed Response Induced by Waves in Conjunction with Currents in the Vicinity of an Offshore Pipeline Using OpenFOAM
Authors: Liang Zuodong , Jeng Dong-Sheng
Published: February 2019

To better understand the physical processes involved in the wave–seabed–pipeline interactions (WSPI), a three-dimensional numerical model for the wave-induced soil response around an offshore pipeline is proposed in this paper. Seabed instability around an offshore pipeline is one of the key factors that need to be considered by coastal engineers in the design of offshore infrastructures. Most previous investigations into the problem of WSPI have only considered wave conditions and have not included currents, despite the co-existence of waves and currents in natural ocean environments. Unlike previous studies, currents are included in the present study for the numerical modeling of WSPI, using an integrated FVM model, in which the volume-averaged Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (VARANS) equation is used to solve the mean fluid field, while Biot’s consolidation equation is used to describe the solid–pore fluid interaction in the porous medium. Numerical examples demonstrate a significant influence of ocean current direction and angle on the wave-induced pore pressures and the resultant seabed liquefaction around the pipeline, which cannot be observed in two-dimensional (2D) numerical simulation.
A renewed look at calcite cement in marine-deltaic sandstones: the Brent Reservoir, Heather Field, northern North Sea, UK
Authors: Worden Richard H. , Morrall Glenn T. , Kelly Sean , Mc Ardle Peter , Barshep Dinfa V.
Published: February 2019

Wireline and seismic acoustic impedance imaging show that the marine part of the clastic Brent Group reservoir in the Heather Field, northern North Sea, contains much calcite cement in the flank parts of the structure. The non-marine Ness Formation and crest parts of the structure contain negligible calcite cement. This localized calcite cement has led to relatively poor reservoir performance since first oil in 1978, although a new suite of wells has boosted production with plans to keep the field active until 2030. Understanding the origin and distribution of calcite cement would help the development of more realistic reservoir models and boost production rates through optimum well location. We have thus used a suite of techniques, including standard point counting, SEM-EDS mineralogy, BSE microscopy, fluid inclusion thermometry and stable isotope analysis, to develop new and improved models of calcite distribution. Calcite seems to have attributes of both early and late diagenetic cement. A 30–40% intergranular volume in calcite cemented beds seems to support pre-compactional growth but high-temperature fluid inclusions and the presence of primary oil inclusions suggest late growth. Much calcite may have developed early but it seems to have recrystallized, and possibly undergone redistribution, at close to maximum burial or had a late growth event. Calcite cement probably originated as marine-derived micrite, bioclasts or early marine cement but adopted the isotopic characteristics of high-temperature growth as it recrystallized. Quartz grains have corroded outlines in calcite-cemented areas with one sample, with 79% calcite cement, displaying signs of nearly total replacement of quartz grains by calcite. The flank localization of calcite cement remains to be explained, although it could be due to primary depositional factors, early diagenetic loss of calcite from crestal regions or late diagenetic loss of calcite from crestal regions. Controversially, the growth of calcite seems to be associated with quartz dissolution, although the geochemical and petrophysical cause of this remains obscure. Diagenetic loss of quartz from sandstones cannot easily be explained by conventional modelling approaches and yet seems to be an important phenomenon in Heather sandstones.
Automatic Segmentation and Enhancement of Pavement Cracks Based on 3D Pavement Images
Authors: Li Baoxian , Wang Kelvin C. P. , Zhang Allen , Fei Yue , Sollazzo Giuseppe
Published: February 2019

Pavement cracking is a significant symptom of pavement deterioration and deficiency. Conventional manual inspections of road condition are gradually replaced by novel automated inspection systems. As a result, a great amount of pavement surface information is digitized by these systems with a high resolution. With pavement surface data, pavement cracks can be detected using crack detection algorithms. In this paper, a fully automated algorithm for segmenting and enhancing pavement crack is proposed, which consists of four major procedures. First, a preprocessing procedure is employed to remove spurious noise and rectify the original 3D pavement data. Second, crack saliency maps are segmented from 3D pavement data using steerable matched filter bank. Third, 2D tensor voting is applied to crack saliency maps to achieve better curve continuity of crack structure and higher accuracy. Finally, postprocessing procedures are used to remove redundant noises. The proposed procedures were evaluated over 200 asphalt pavement images with diverse cracks. The experimental results demonstrated that the proposed method showed a high performance and could achieve average precision of 88.38%, recall of 93.15%, and F-measure of 90.68%, respectively. Accordingly, the proposed approach can be helpful in automated pavement condition assessment.
The Protective Role of Adiponectin for Lipoproteins in End-Stage Renal Disease Patients: Relationship with Diabetes and Body Mass Index
Authors: Coimbra Susana , Reis Flávio , Nunes Sara , Viana Sofia , Valente Maria João , Rocha Susana , Catarino Cristina , Rocha-Pereira Petronila , Bronze-da-Rocha Elsa , Sameiro-Faria Maria , Oliveira José Gerardo , Madureira José , Fernandes João Carlos , Miranda Vasco , Belo Luís , Santos-Silva Alice
Published: February 2019

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) events are the main causes of death in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients on dialysis. The number and severity of CVD events remain inappropriate and difficult to explain by considering only the classic CVD risk factors. Our aim was to clarify the changes and the relationship of lipoprotein subfractions with other CVD risk factors, namely, body mass index (BMI) and adipokines, inflammation and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) oxidation, and the burden of the most prevalent comorbidities, diabetes mellitus (DM) and hypertension (HT). We studied 194 ESRD patients on dialysis and 22 controls; lipid profile, including lipoprotein subpopulations and oxidized LDL (oxLDL), C-reactive protein (CRP), adiponectin, leptin, and paraoxonase 1 activity were evaluated. Compared to controls, patients presented significantly lower levels of cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLc), LDLc, oxLDL, and intermediate and small HDL and higher triglycerides, CRP, adiponectin, large HDL, very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), and intermediate-density lipoprotein- (IDL) B. Adiponectin levels correlated positively with large HDL and negatively with intermediate and small HDL, oxLDL/LDLc, and BMI; patients with DM (n=17) and with DM+HT (n=70), as compared to patients without DM or HT (n=69) or only with HT (n=38), presented significantly higher oxLDL, oxLDL/LDLc, and leptin and lower adiponectin. Obese patients (n=45), as compared to normoponderal patients (n=81), showed lower HDLc, adiponectin, and large HDL and significantly higher leptin, VLDL, and intermediate and small HDL. In ESRD, the higher adiponectin seems to favor atheroprotective HDL modifications and protect LDL particles from oxidative atherogenic changes. However, in diabetic and obese patients, adiponectin presents the lowest values, oxLDL/LDLc present the highest ones, and the HDL profile is the more atherogenic. Our data suggest that the coexistence of DM and adiposity in ESRD patients on dialysis contributes to a higher CVD risk, as showed by their lipid and adipokine profiles.
Association Study of Myosin Heavy Chain 15 Polymorphisms with Asthma Susceptibility in Chinese Han
Authors: Chen Guo , Luo Lan , Zhang Miao-Miao , Wu Shou-Quan , Wang Yu , Sandford Andrew J. , He Jian-Qing
Published: February 2019

Background. The Myosin Heavy Chain 15 gene (MYH15) is expressed in the airway epithelium and variants in the gene have been associated with airway responsiveness. The aim of this study was to perform the first investigation of MYH15 polymorphisms in relation to asthma susceptibility. Methods. A total of 410 asthma patients and 418 controls from the Chinese Han population were enrolled in the study. Tag-single nucleotide polymorphisms were genotyped and associations between the polymorphisms and asthma risk were analyzed by logistic regression analysis adjusting for confounding factors. Dual-luciferase reporter gene analysis was performed to detect allele-dependent promoter activity of MYH15 variants in HEK293 cells. Results. The A allele of rs9288876 decreased risk of asthma (allelic model: OR=0.808, 95% CI: 0.658-0.993, additive model: OR=0.747, 95% CI: 0.588-0.947, dominant model: OR=0.693, 95% CI: 0.502-0.955). The G alleles of both rs7635009 and rs1454197 were associated with decreased risk of asthma under the additive model (OR=0.779, 95% CI: 0.618-0.981 and OR=0.756, 95% CI: 0.600-0.953, respectively). rs9288876 allele A was associated with higher luciferase activity than allele T (P<0.001). The luciferase activity of rs7635009 allele A was lower than allele G (P=0.001), while rs1454197 allele T had lower luciferase activity than allele G (P<0.001). Conclusion. This is the first study to report the association of MYH15 gene polymorphisms with asthma. Polymorphisms of rs9288876, rs7635009, and rs1454197 altered transcriptional regulation of MYH15 and may be functional variants conferring susceptibility to asthma. Further study with larger sample size in different ethnic populations is needed.
Voluntary Vaccination through Perceiving Epidemic Severity in Social Networks
Authors: Shi Benyun , Liu Guangliang , Qiu Hongjun , Chen Yu-Wang , Peng Shaoliang
Published: February 2019

The severity of an epidemic has a significant impact on individual vaccinating decisions under voluntary vaccination. During the epidemic of a vaccine‐preventable disease, individuals in a social network can perceive the infection risks based on global information announced by public health authorities, or local information obtained from their social neighbors. After that, they can rationally decide whether or not to take the vaccine through weighing the relative cost of vaccination and infection (i.e., relative vaccine cost). In this case, both social network structure and individuals’ risk perception strategies will affect the final vaccine coverage. In this paper, we focus on the problem of how individuals’ perceptions on epidemic severity affect their vaccinating behaviors in the face of flu‐like seasonal diseases in social networks, and vice versa. Specifically, we first present three types of static decision‐making mechanisms, each of which simulates human vaccinating behaviors based on different local/global information. On this basis, we further present a reinforcement‐learning‐based mechanism, where individuals can use their historical vaccination experiences to determine what information is more suitable to estimate the severity of the epidemic. Finally, we carry out simulations on three types of social networks to investigate the effects of network structure, source of information, relative vaccine cost, and individual social connections on the final vaccine coverage and epidemic size. The results and findings can provide a new insight for designing incentive‐based vaccination policies and intervention strategies for flu‐like seasonal diseases.
Oxaliplatin Treatment Alters Systemic Immune Responses
Authors: Stojanovska Vanesa , Prakash Monica , McQuade Rachel , Fraser Sarah , Apostolopoulos Vasso , Sakkal Samy , Nurgali Kulmira
Published: February 2019

Purpose. Oxaliplatin is a platinum-based chemotherapeutic agent demonstrating significant antitumor efficacy. Unlike conventional anticancer agents which are immunosuppressive, oxaliplatin has the capacity to stimulate immunological effects in response to the presentation of damage associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) elicited upon cell death. However, the effects of oxaliplatin treatment on systemic immune responses remain largely unknown. Aims of this study were to investigate the effects of oxaliplatin treatment on the proportions of (1) splenic T cells, B cells, macrophages, pro-/anti-inflammatory cytokines, gene expression of splenic cytokines, chemokines, and mediators; (2) double-positive and single-positive CD4+and CD8+T thymocytes; (3) bone-marrow hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells.Methods. Male BALB/c mice received intraperitoneal injections of oxaliplatin (3mg/kg/d) or sterile water tri-weekly for 2 weeks. Leukocyte populations within the spleen, thymus, and bone-marrow were assessed using flow cytometry. RT-PCR was performed to characterise changes in splenic inflammation-associated genes.Results. Oxaliplatin treatment reduced spleen size and cellularity (CD45+cells), increased the proportion of CD4+, CD8+, and Treg cells, and elevated TNF-αexpression. Oxaliplatin was selectively cytotoxic to B cells but had no effect on splenic macrophages. Oxaliplatin treatment altered the gene expression of several cytokines, chemokines, and cell mediators. Oxaliplatin did not deplete double-positive thymocytes but increased the single-positive CD8+subset. There was also an increase in activated (CD69+) CD8+T cells. Bone-marrow hematopoietic progenitor pool was demonstrably normal following oxaliplatin treatment when compared to the vehicle-treated cohort.Conclusion. Oxaliplatin does not cause systemic immunosuppression and, instead, has the capacity to induce beneficial antitumor immune responses.
The Importance of Scalar Fields as Extradimensional Metric Components in Kaluza-Klein Models
Authors: Moraes P. H. R. S. , Correa R. A. C.
Published: February 2019

Extradimensional models are achieving their highest popularity nowadays, among other reasons, because they can plausible explain some standard cosmology issues, such as the cosmological constant and hierarchy problems. In extradimensional models, we can infer that the four-dimensional matter rises as a geometric manifestation of the extra coordinate. In this way, although we still cannot see the extra dimension, we can relate it to physical quantities that are able to exert such a mechanism of matter induction in the observable universe. In this work we propose that scalar fields are those physical quantities. The models here presented are purely geometrical no matter the fact that Lagrangian is assumed and even the scalar fields are contained in the extradimensional metric. The results are capable of describing different observable cosmic features and yield an alternative to ultimately understand the extra dimension and the mechanism in which it is responsible for the creation of matter in the observable universe.
Obesity, Physical Function, and Training Success in Community-Dwelling Nonsarcopenic Old Adults
Authors: Geirsdottir O. G. , Chang M. , Jonsson P.V. , Thorsdottir I. , Ramel A.
Published: February 2019

Objectives. Obesity-related physiological changes can limit improvements of obese subjects after training. The aim was to investigate obesity, muscular strength, and physical function in community-dwelling nonsarcopenic old adults. Methods. Nonsarcopenic subjects (N=229, 73.7 ± 5.7 years; 21% normal weight, 42% overweight, and 37% obese based on body mass index (BMI)) participated in a 12-week resistance exercise program. Leisure time physical activity (LTPA), body composition (dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry), quadriceps strength (maximum voluntary isometric contraction; absolute and relative to body weight), and physical function in terms of 6-minutes-walk-for-distance (6MWD) and timed up and go (TUG) were measured baseline and endpoint. Results. At baseline, normal weight participants had lower absolute quadriceps strength (−43 ± 22 N, P=0.015) than obese, but better quadriceps strength relative to body weight (1.4 ± 0.7 N/kg, P<0.001), 6MWD (53 ± 27 m, P<0.001), and TUG (−1.4 ± 0.7 sec, P≤0.001). LTPA was positively associated with 6MWD and TUG (both P<0.05), but based on general linear models, differences in LTPA between BMI categories did not explain differences in 6MWD and TUG between BMI categories. During the program, dropout (11.9%) and attendance (85%) were similar between BMI groups. After the intervention, body composition and physical function significantly improved in all three BMI categories; however, normal weight participants lost more body fat (−1.53 ± 0.78%, P=0.014), gained more lean mass (0.70 ± 0.36 kg, P<0.001) and relative quadriceps strength (0.31 ± 0.16 N/kg, P=0.017), and improved more on the 6MWD (24 ± 12 m, P<0.001) but gained less grip strength (−2.4 ± 1.3 N/kg, P=0.020) compared to obese. There were no differences in TUG or absolute quadriceps strength changes between the BMI strata. Physical function at baseline as well as training success of overweight participants was located between the normal weight and obesity groups. Conclusion. Nonsarcopenic obese community-dwelling old adults have lower physical function than their normal weight counterparts. This difference is not explained by lower LTPA. A 12-week resistance exercise program improves body composition and physical function in normal weight, overweight, and obese old adults; however, obese participants experience less favorable changes in body composition and physical function than normal weight individuals. This trial is registered with NCT01074879.
A Retrospective Study of Ultrasound Characteristics and Macroscopic Findings in Confirmed Malignant Pleural Effusion
Authors: Piskac Zivkovic Nevenka , Cikara Igor , Novak Nina Petra , Brkljacic Boris , Tudoric Neven
Published: February 2019

Background. A definitive diagnosis of malignant pleural effusion (MPE) is reached by cytological or histological assessment, but thorough analysis of the ultrasound features of the effusion as well as pleural thickening or nodularity can also be of significant diagnostic help. Objective. To assess the relationship of specific ultrasound characterisctics and macroscopic features of confirmed malignant pleural effusion, thus increasing the diagnostic potential of thoracic ultrasound. Methods. The findings of thoracic ultrasonography performed prior to initial thoracentesis in 104 patients with subsequently confirmed malignant pleural effusion were analyzed with regard to the macroscopic features of the pleural effusion. Results. Distribution in terms of frequency of hemorrhagic/sanguinolent (n=64) in relation to nonhemorrhagic transparent/opaque (n=40) MPE, regardless of their ultrasound characteristics, did not yield a statistically significant correlation (p=0.159). Conversely, the frequency distribution of hemorrhagic pleural effusions (n=8) in relation to nonhemorrhagic effusions (n=1), in the group of septated MPE, showed a statistically significant difference (p<0.001). The least number of patients (0.96%) had a complex septated MPE combined with the macroscopic appearance of a serous/transparent nonhemorrhagic effusion, which suggests that this combination is a sporadic occurrence and may have a diagnostic significance for this patient group. Conclusion. The incidence of specific combinations of the ultrasound characteristics and macroscopic appearance of MPEs showed different frequency distributions, which may improve the diagnostic value of thoracic ultrasound in this patient population.
Analysis and Forecast of Global Civil Aviation Accidents for the Period 1942‐2016
Authors: Li Yafei
Published: February 2019

With the increase of global civil aviation transportation, more and more researchers pay attention to the analysis of civil aviation accidents. Time series analysis can obtain the variation law in a large amount of data, and there is no research result of aviation accident time series yet. Based on the Mann‐Kendall trend analysis and mutation analysis methods, this paper studied the change trend of accidents and casualties in different flight stages of civil aviation and built ARIMA (Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average model) time series analysis model to predict the number of civil aviation accidents and casualties by the long‐term data in the world. (1) The number of civil aviation accidents fluctuates generally in the world; from 1942 to 2016, there were two fluctuation periods of civil aviation accidents. (2) The number of global civil aviation casualties from 1942 to 2016 showed a parabola trend of increasing first and then decreasing. The highest number of casualties appeared in 1972, which was 2373; on the different flight stages, the number of accidents was different. In the air route and approach phase, the number of accidents was the most, and the number of casualties was more than other flight phases, accounting for about 50% of the whole flight phase. (3) In addition to the land phase, the number of accidents showed a significant decrease in other flight phases; while the air route and total number of casualties decreased significantly, the number of casualties at other flight phases did not decrease significantly. There were no sudden changes in the number of global civil aviation accidents and approach casualties. (4) The sudden change point of the global civil aviation casualties was 2013, the sudden change point of the air route stage accidents was 1980, the sudden change point of approach stage accidents was 2012, and the sudden change point of air route stage casualties was 2006. According to the ARIMA (1,0,1) model, the numbers of global civil aviation accidents and casualties were predicted to 2025. Through time series research, we have explored the variation law in the historical data of long‐term aviation accidents and predicted the possible changes of future aviation accidents, providing data reference for aviation safety research.
Interactive Compliance Control of a Wrist Rehabilitation Device (WReD) with Enhanced Training Safety
Authors: Xu Dong , Zhang Mingming , Xu Han , Fu Jianming , Li Xiaolong , Xie Sheng Q.
Published: February 2019

Interaction control plays an important role in rehabilitation devices to ensure training safety and efficacy. Compliance adaptation of interaction is vital for enabling robot movements to better suit the patient’s requirements as human joint characteristics vary. This paper proposes an interactive compliance control scheme on a wrist rehabilitation device (WReD) for enhanced training safety and efficacy. This control system consists of a low-level trajectory tracking loop and a high-level admittance loop. Experiments were conducted with zero load and human interaction, respectively. Satisfactory trajectory tracking responses were obtained, with the normalized root mean square deviation (NRMSD) values being 1.08% with zero load and the NRMSD values no greater than 1.4% with real-time disturbance and interaction from human users. Results demonstrate that such an interactive compliance control method can adaptively adjust the range of training motions and encourage active engagement from human users simultaneously. These findings suggest that the proposed control method of the WReD has great potentials for clinical applications due to enhanced training safety and efficacy. Future work will focus on evaluating its efficacy on a large sample of participants.
The Association between Preoperative Dry Eye Symptoms and Postoperative Discomfort in Patients Underwent Photorefractive Keratectomy
Authors: Rabina Gilad , Boguslavsky Ingibjorg Iris , Mimouni Michael , Kaiserman Igor
Published: February 2019

Purpose. To investigate the association between preoperative dry eye symptoms on postoperative pain and discomfort after photorefractive keratectomy (PRK). Methods. A retrospective case series of 151 consecutive patients, who underwent myopic PRK in both eyes between 5/2016 and 5/2017. Patients with positive dry eye disease (DED) signs on clinical examination or with known DED were excluded. Patients underwent a subjective evaluation for dry eye symptoms using ocular surface disease index (OSDI) and modified standard patient evaluation of eye dryness (SPEED) questionnaires. One day postoperatively, the patients were evaluated again by a questionnaire of pain, discomfort, photophobia, foreign body sensation, satisfaction with vision, and frequency of usage of anesthetic drops. Results. Fifty-two patients had any preoperative dry eye symptoms (OSDI score > 0) compared to 99 nonsymptomatic patients (OSDI score of 0). Postoperatively, the symptomatic dry eye patients suffered significantly more pain than the nondry eye patients (p=0.02). Thirteen patients had a cumulated modified SPEED score >4 (moderate to severe) in comparison to 138 patients with score of 0–4 (non to mild). Patients with moderate to severe preoperative symptoms suffered more pain (p=0.006), photophobia (p=0.005), and epiphora (p=0.03). No statistically significant difference was seen in postoperative subjective visual quality (p=0.82) between the two groups. Conclusion. Preoperative dry eye symptoms may be associated with postoperative pain, epiphora, and photophobia and thus influence negatively on patient satisfaction with this procedure.
Real-Life Outcome in Multiple Sclerosis in the Czech Republic
Authors: Kobelt Gisela , Jönsson Linus , Pavelcova Miluse , Havrdová Eva Kubala
Published: February 2019

Background. Cohort studies and registries provide opportunities to estimate long-term outcome in multiple sclerosis. Objectives. To describe changes in disability (EDSS), relapse activity, and health care consumption over the period 2008-2015 by combining two Czech cost-of-illness studies with disease data from the MS Center in Prague. Methods. The combined dataset included 426 patients with a mean observation time of 8.3 years. A Cox proportional hazards model with time-varying covariates for treatment, disease course, and EDSS was applied to estimate the effect of treatment on the risk of progression to EDSS 4 and the risk of relapses. The use of health care resources (hospitalization, consultation, and tests) was compared between the two cross-sectional studies. Results. Total health care costs appeared stable between 2008 and 2015, despite more intense use of disease-modifying treatments in 2015 (52% of patients versus 31% in 2008). 39% of patients starting treatment at EDSS 0-3 in 2008 progressed to EDSS 4 or higher by 2015, while 65% of patients starting at EDSS 0-2 remained stable. The number of relapses was associated with a higher risk of progression. In a marginal structural Cox model of the relapse risk, treatment with natalizumab or fingolimod was associated with a lower risk of relapse (hazard ratio 0.68, p<0.01). Treatment with natalizumab or fingolimod was associated with a lower risk of progression to EDSS 4. Conclusion. Our results link relapses to progression and indicate that the newer treatments have a better effectiveness, despite difficulties caused by small a sample size, administrative rules guiding treatment, and absence of a random comparator group.
Mechanisms of Aerobic Exercise Upregulating the Expression of Hippocampal Synaptic Plasticity-Associated Proteins in Diabetic Rats
Authors: Li Jingjing , Liu Yuran , Liu Beibei , Li Feng , Hu Jingyun , Wang Qian , Li Mingming , Lou Shujie
Published: February 2019

We investigated the effects of aerobic exercise on the expression of hippocampal synaptic plasticity-associated proteins in rats with type 2 diabetes and their possible mechanisms. A type 2 diabetes rat model was established with 8 weeks of high-fat diet combined with a single intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ). Then, a 4-week aerobic exercise intervention was conducted. Memory performance was measured with Y maze tests. The expression and activity of synaptic plasticity-associated proteins and of proteins involved in the PI3K/Akt/mTOR, AMPK/Sirt1, and NFκB/NLRP3/IL-1β signaling pathways were evaluated by western blot. Our results show that aerobic exercise promotes the expression of synaptic plasticity-associated proteins in the hippocampus of diabetic rats. Aerobic exercise also activates the PI3K/Akt/mTOR and AMPK/Sirt1 signaling pathways and inhibits the NFκB/NLRP3/IL-1β signaling pathway in the hippocampus of diabetic rats. Therefore, modulating the PI3K/Akt/mTOR, AMPK/Sirt1, and NFκB/NLRP3/IL-1β signaling pathways is probably the mechanism of aerobic exercise upregulating the expression of hippocampal synaptic plasticity-associated proteins in diabetic rats.
Malignant Ischemic Stroke in a Young Female: A Rare Primary Manifestation of Takayasu Arteritis
Authors: Shah Bhupendra , Chhetri Roshan
Published: February 2019

Takayasu arteritis is a rare chronic progressive granulomatous necrotizing large vessel panvasculitis mainly involving aorta and its main branches. It commonly affects the female in second to third decades. Common clinical features of Takayasu arteritis are hypertension, claudication, dizziness, headache, or fever. Takayasu arteritis is diagnosed with clinical history of claudication, absent pulse, discordant blood pressure, bruit over aorta, and typical angiographic findings. Stroke as a primary manifestation of Takayasu arteritis is rarely reported in the medical literatures. We are reporting a 16-year-old female who had malignant ischemic stroke as a first manifestation of Takayasu arteritis.