bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Characterization of an APP/tau rat model of Alzheimer’s disease by positron emission tomography and immunofluorescent labeling
Authors: Filip Thomas , Mairinger Severin , Neddens Joerg , Sauberer Michael , Flunkert Stefanie , Stanek Johann , Wanek Thomas , Okamura Nobuyuki , Langer Oliver , Hutter-Paier Birgit , Kuntner Claudia
Published: October 2021

Background

To better understand the etiology and pathomechanisms of Alzheimer’s disease, several transgenic animal models that overexpress human tau or human amyloid-beta (Aβ) have been developed. In the present study, we generated a novel transgenic rat model by cross-breeding amyloid precursor protein (APP) rats with tau rats. We characterized this model by performing positron emission tomography scans combined with immunofluorescent labeling and cerebrospinal fluid analyses.

Methods

APP/Tau rats were generated by cross-breeding male McGill-R-Thy1-APP transgenic rats with female hTau-40/P301L transgenic rats. APP/Tau double transgenic rats and non-transgenic (ntg) littermates aged 7, 13, and 21 months were subjected to dynamic [11C] PiB scan and dynamic [18F]THK-5317 scans. For regional brain analysis, a template was generated from anatomical MR images of selected animals, which was co-registered with the PET images. Regional analysis was performed by application of the simplified reference tissue model ([11C]PiB data), whereas [18F]THK-5317 data were analyzed using a 2-tissue compartment model and Logan graphical analysis. In addition, immunofluorescent labeling (tau, amyloid) and cerebrospinal fluid analyses were performed.

Results

[11C]PiB binding potential (BPND) and [18F]THK-5317 volume of distribution (VT) showed an increase with age in several brain regions in the APP/Tau group but not in the ntg control group. Immunohistochemical analysis of brain slices of PET-scanned animals revealed a positive correlation between Aβ labeling and [11C]PiB regional BPND. Tau staining yielded a trend towards higher levels in the cortex and hippocampus of APP/Tau rats compared with ntg littermates, but without reaching statistical significance. No correlation was found between tau immunofluorescence labeling results and the respective [18F]THK-5317 VT values.

Conclusions

We thoroughly characterized a novel APP/Tau rat model using combined PET imaging and immunofluorescence analysis. We observed an age-related increase in [11C]PiB and [18F]THK-5317 binding in several brain regions in the APP/Tau group but not in the ntg group. Although we were able to reveal a positive correlation between amyloid labeling and [11C]PiB regional brain uptake, we observed relatively low human tau and amyloid fibril expression levels and a somewhat unstable brain pathology which questions the utility of this animal model for further studies.
Results on exact controllability of second-order semilinear control system in Hilbert spaces
Authors: Arora Urvashi , Vijayakumar V. , Shukla Anurag , Nisar Kottakkaran Sooppy , Rezapour Shahram , Jamshed Wasim
Published: October 2021

In our manuscript, we extend the controllability outcomes given by Bashirov (Math. Methods Appl. Sci. 44(9):7455–7462, 2021) for a family of second-order semilinear control system by formulating a sequence of piecewise controls. This approach does not involve large estimations which are required to apply fixed point theorems. Therefore, we avoid the use of fixed point theory and the contraction mapping principle. We establish that a second-order semilinear system drives any starting position to the required final position from the domain of the system. To achieve the required results, we suppose that the linear system is exactly controllable at every non-initial time period, the norm of the inverse of the controllability Grammian operator increases as the time approaches zero with the slower rate in comparison to the reciprocal of the square function, and the nonlinear term is bounded. Finally, an example has been presented to validate the results.
Biogeographic traits of dimethyl sulfide and dimethylsulfoniopropionate cycling in polar oceans
Authors: Teng Zhao-Jie , Qin Qi-Long , Zhang Weipeng , Li Jian , Fu Hui-Hui , Wang Peng , Lan Musheng , Luo Guangfu , He Jianfeng , McMinn Andrew , Wang Min , Chen Xiu-Lan , Zhang Yu-Zhong , Chen Yin , Li Chun-Yang
Published: October 2021

Background

Dimethyl sulfide (DMS) is the dominant volatile organic sulfur in global oceans. The predominant source of oceanic DMS is the cleavage of dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP), which can be produced by marine bacteria and phytoplankton. Polar oceans, which represent about one fifth of Earth’s surface, contribute significantly to the global oceanic DMS sea-air flux. However, a global overview of DMS and DMSP cycling in polar oceans is still lacking and the key genes and the microbial assemblages involved in DMSP/DMS transformation remain to be fully unveiled.

Results

Here, we systematically investigated the biogeographic traits of 16 key microbial enzymes involved in DMS/DMSP cycling in 60 metagenomic samples from polar waters, together with 174 metagenome and 151 metatranscriptomes from non-polar Tara Ocean dataset. Our analyses suggest that intense DMS/DMSP cycling occurs in the polar oceans. DMSP demethylase (DmdA), DMSP lyases (DddD, DddP, and DddK), and trimethylamine monooxygenase (Tmm, which oxidizes DMS to dimethylsulfoxide) were the most prevalent bacterial genes involved in global DMS/DMSP cycling. Alphaproteobacteria (Pelagibacterales) and Gammaproteobacteria appear to play prominent roles in DMS/DMSP cycling in polar oceans. The phenomenon that multiple DMS/DMSP cycling genes co-occurred in the same bacterial genome was also observed in metagenome assembled genomes (MAGs) from polar oceans. The microbial assemblages from the polar oceans were significantly correlated with water depth rather than geographic distance, suggesting the differences of habitats between surface and deep waters rather than dispersal limitation are the key factors shaping microbial assemblages involved in DMS/DMSP cycling in polar oceans.

Conclusions

Overall, this study provides a global overview of the biogeographic traits of known bacterial genes involved in DMS/DMSP cycling from the Arctic and Antarctic oceans, laying a solid foundation for further studies of DMS/DMSP cycling in polar ocean microbiome at the enzymatic, metabolic, and processual levels.
Advances in the DNA methylation hydroxylase TET1
Authors: Liu Wenzheng , Wu Guanhua , Xiong Fei , Chen Yongjun
Published: October 2021

Background

The ten-eleven translocation 1 (TET1) protein is a 5-methylcytosine hydroxylase that belongs to the TET protein family of human α-ketoglutarate oxygenases. TET1 recognizes and binds to regions of high genomic 5′-CpG-3′ dinucleotide density, such as CpG islands, initiates the DNA demethylation program, and maintains DNA methylation and demethylation balance to maintain genomic methylation homeostasis and achieve epigenetic regulation. This article reviews the recent research progress of TET1 in the mechanism of demethylation, stem cells and immunity, various malignant tumours and other clinical diseases.

Conclusion

TET1 acts as a key factor mediating demethylation, the mechanism of which still remains to be investigated in detail. TET1 is also critical in maintaining the differentiation pluripotency of embryonic stem cells and plays anti- or oncogenic roles in combination with different signalling pathways in different tumours. In certain tumours, its role is still controversial. In addition, the noncatalytic activity of TET1 has gradually attracted attention and has become a new direction of research in recent years.
Separable convolutional neural networks for facial expressions recognition
Authors: Chowanda Andry
Published: October 2021

Social interactions are important for us, humans, as social creatures. Emotions play an important part in social interactions. They usually express meanings along with the spoken utterances to the interlocutors. Automatic facial expressions recognition is one technique to automatically capture, recognise, and understand emotions from the interlocutor. Many techniques proposed to increase the accuracy of emotions recognition from facial cues. Architecture such as convolutional neural networks demonstrates promising results for emotions recognition. However, most of the current models of convolutional neural networks require an enormous computational power to train and process emotional recognition. This research aims to build compact networks with depthwise separable layers while also maintaining performance. Three datasets and three other similar architectures were used to be compared with the proposed architecture. The results show that the proposed architecture performed the best among the other architectures. It achieved up to 13% better accuracy and 6–71% smaller and more compact than the other architectures. The best testing accuracy achieved by the architecture was 99.4%.
The colours of the Higgs boson: a study in creativity and science motivation among high-school students in Italy
Authors: Alexopoulos Angelos N. , Paolucci Pierluigi , Sotiriou Sofoklis A. , Bogner Franz X. , Dorigo Tommaso , Fedi Mariaelena , Menasce Dario , Michelotto Michele , Paoletti Simone , Scianitti Francesca
Published: October 2021

With the increasing shift from STEM to STEAM education, arts-based approaches to science teaching and learning are considered promising for aligning school science curricula with the development of twenty-first century skills, including creativity. Yet the impact of STEAM practices on student creativity and specifically on how the latter is associated with science learning outcomes have thus far received scarce empirical support. This paper contributes to this line of research by reporting on a two-wave quantitative study that examines the effect of a long-term STEAM intervention on two cognitive processes associated with creativity (act, flow) and their interrelationships with intrinsic and extrinsic components of science motivation. Using pre- and post-survey data from 175 high-school students in Italy, results show an overall positive effect of the intervention both on the act subscale of creativity and science career motivation, whereas a negative effect is found on self-efficacy. Gender differences in the above effects are also observed. Further, results provide support for the mediating role of self-efficacy in the relationship between creativity and science career motivation. Implications for the design of STEAM learning environments are discussed.
Shifts in learning assistants’ self-determination due to COVID-19 disruptions in Calculus II course delivery
Authors: Hite R. L. , Childers G. , Gottlieb J. , Velasco R. , Johnson L. , Williams G. B. , Griffith K. , Dwyer J.
Published: October 2021

Background

The Learning Assistant (LA) model with its subsequent support and training has evidenced significant gains for undergraduate STEM learning and persistence, especially in high-stakes courses like Calculus. Yet, when a swift and unexpected transition occurs from face-to-face to online, remote learning of the LA environment, it is unknown how LAs are able to maintain their motivation (competence, autonomy, and relatedness), adapt to these new challenges, and sustain their student-centered efforts. This study used Self-Determination Theory (SDT) to model theoretical aspects of LAs’ motivations (persistence and performance) both before and after changes were made in delivery of a Calculus II course at Texas Tech University due to COVID-19 interruptions.

Results

Analysis of weekly written reflections, a focus group session, and a post-course questionnaire of 13 Calculus II LAs throughout Spring semester of 2020 showed that LAs’ reports of competence proportionally decreased when they transitioned online, which was followed by a moderate proportional increase in reports of autonomy (actions they took to adapt to distance instruction) and a dramatic proportional increase in reports of relatedness (to build structures for maintaining communication and building community with undergraduate students).

Conclusions

Relatedness emerged as the most salient factor from SDT to maintain LA self-determination due to the COVID-19 facilitated interruption to course delivery in a high-stakes undergraduate STEM course. Given that online learning continues during the pandemic and is likely to continue after, this research provides an understanding to how LAs responded to this event and the mounting importance of relatedness when LAs are working with undergraduate STEM learners. Programmatic recommendations are given for enhancing LA preparation including selecting LAs for autonomy and relatedness factors (in addition to competence), modeling mentoring for remote learners, and coaching in best practices for online instruction.
Dual energy window imaging for optimisation of P/V ratios in VP SPECT
Authors: Doruyter A. G. G. , Holness J. L.
Published: October 2021

Purpose

Ventilation–perfusion single-photon emission computed tomography (VP SPECT) plays an important role in pulmonary embolism diagnosis. Rapid results may be obtained using same-day ventilation followed by perfusion imaging, but generally requires careful attention to achieving an optimal count rate ratio (P/Vratio) of ≥ 3:1. This study investigated whether the ratio of counts simultaneously acquired in adjacent primary and Compton scatter energy windows (Eratio) on V SPECT was predictive of final normalised perfusion count rate (PCRnorm) on P SPECT using [99mTc]Tc-macroaggregated albumin (MAA), thus allowing for optimisation ofP/Vratios.

Methods

Same-day VP SPECT studies acquired using standard protocols in adult patients during a 2-year period (training dataset) were assessed. Studies were included provided they were acquired with correct imaging parameters, and injection site imaging and laboratory records were available for quality control and normalised count rate corrections. Extraction of DICOM information, and linear regression were performed using customPythonandRscripts. A predictive tool was developed in Microsoft Excel. This tool was then validated using a second (validation) dataset of same-day studies acquired over a subsequent 7-month period. Accuracy of the prediction tool was assessed by calculating the mean absolute percentage error (MAPE).

Results

Of 643 studies performed, the scans of 342 participants (median age 30.4 years, 318 female) were included in the training dataset, the analysis of which yielded a significant regression equation (F(1,340) = 1057.3,p < 0.0001), with an adjustedR2of 0.756 and MSE of 0.001089. A prediction tool designed for routine clinical use was developed for predicting finalP/Vratio. Of an additional 285 studies, 198 were included in the second (validation) dataset (median age 29.7 years, 188 female). The Excel-based tool was shown to be 91% accurate (MAPE: 9%) in predictingP/Vratio.

Conclusion

The relationship between the ratio of simultaneously acquired counts in adjacent energy windows on V SPECT and perfusion count rate after administration of a known activity of [99mTc]Tc-MAA can be linearly approximated. A predictive tool based on this work may assist in optimising the dose and timing of [99mTc]Tc-MAA administration in same-day studies to the benefit of patients and workflows.
Strategies for Empowering activities in Everyday life (SEE 1.0): study protocol for a feasibility study of an Internet-based occupational therapy intervention for people with stroke
Authors: Larsson-Lund Maria , Månsson Lexell Eva , Nyman Anneli
Published: October 2021

Background

Rehabilitation after stroke seldom focuses on needs related to an active everyday life and the process of change that people must undergo to adapt to an altered capacity and life situation. In particular, occupational therapy in the late phase needs to support clients in adopting sustainable self-initiated management strategies to regain daily activities and an active everyday life. To improve access to rehabilitation, the use of digital solutions has been suggested.This study aimsto evaluate the feasibility of the Internet-based occupational therapy intervention “Strategies for Empowering activities in Everyday life” (SEE, version 1.0). We will investigate the feasibility of the intervention process in terms of acceptability and adherence as well as the most suitable outcome measures to evaluate SEE and improve the knowledge about the potential changes and outcomes of SEE for clients with stroke.

Methods

This feasibility study is based on a pretest posttest design without a control group. Quantitative and qualitative data will be collected from clients and staff concurrently embedded in a mixed-method design during the entire study.

Discussion

The project is a first test of a novel Internet-based occupational therapy intervention, and the research will contribute to the continued development and evaluation of the SEE programme. SEE can provide people with strategies in daily activities that can support them to live an active everyday life despite changed capacity and to improve access to rehabilitation interventions.

Trial registration

NCT04588116.Name of the registry:Strategies Empowering Activities in Everyday Life (SEE 1.0). A Web-based Occupational Therapy Intervention.URL of trial registry record.Date of registry: Trial first posted: October 19, 2020;first submitted: October 2, 2020
Amelioration of fatigue in chronic dialysis patients with dialysis solution employing electrolyzed water containing molecular hydrogen (H2) and its association with autonomic function balance
Authors: Tsujimoto Yoshihiro , Kuratsune Daisuke , Kabayama Shigeru , Miyazaki Mariko , Watanabe Yasuyoshi , Nishizawa Yoshiki , Nakayama Masaaki
Published: October 2021

Background

Enhanced oxidative stress is involved with fatigue in hemodialysis (HD) patients. Molecular hydrogen (H2) could improve the redox status. Thus, the study examines whether HD solution rendered by electrolyzed water containing H2 (E-HD) could impact the fatigue and autonomic balance of patients.

Methods

This single-arm, prospective observational study examined 95 patients on chronic HD (54 males; mean age and HD duration; 71.4 years and 10.6 years). Fatigue status on HD and HD-free days was compared between control HD (CHD) and 8 weeks after commencement of E-HD, using a visual analog scale (VAS) and an original scale. Autonomic balance was analyzed with the degree of activities of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system via frequency analysis of a continuous beat interval.

Results

Patients were classified into three groups according to the presence of subjective fatigue during the period of CHD: Group A (40.0%), fatigue only on HD days; Group B (11.6%), presence of fatigue on both HD and HD-free days; and Group C (48.4%), freedom from fatigue. During the 8-week observation period of E-HD, VAS scores were significantly decreased on HD days in Group A, while Group B showed no significant changes in VAS on HD days, but significant decreases on HD-free days. No consistent changes were found in Group C. Significant increases in percentages of patients who reported absence of fatigue were seen in Group A on HD days and in Group B on HD-free days in week 8. Regarding changes in autonomic balance parameters after E-HD commencement, a positive correlation was identified between changes in VAS and autonomic balance in Group A.

Conclusion

E-HD may ameliorate fatigue in patients with subjective symptoms on HD and HD-free days. The influence of autonomic balance by E-HD and its impact on fatigue needs to be elucidated.
Suicide by ethylene glycol/brake oil poisoning—a case report
Authors: Vadysinghe Amal Nishantha , Kumarasinghe W. G. G. B. , Kodikara Sarathchandra , Wickramasinghe Navoda
Published: October 2021

Background

Brake fluid is used for automobiles. It is a mixture of different glycol derivatives including ethylene glycol and diethylene glycol (DEG) which are metabolized into various toxic metabolites. Fatalities following brake fluid ingestion are rare in forensic practice. Here, we report a case of suicide by brake fluid ingestion complicated with severe renal failure and esophageal and gastric erosions.

Case presentation

A 52-year-old male, with a history of alcohol dependence and comorbid moderate depression, ingested a bottle of brake fluid (100ml) mixed with alcohol. He had defaulted psychiatric follow-up. He developed severe metabolic acidosis and acute renal failure which necessitated intensive care, other supportive management, and the antidote; ethyl alcohol. On the 2nd day of admission, he developed upper gastrointestinal bleeding with melena. He also had seizures and cardiovascular complications. He died 12 days after hospital admission, and the manner of death was concluded as suicidal. The autopsy revealed congested and edematous brain, flabby and pale heart without evidence of infarction, erythematous trachea, bilateral diffuse pulmonary edema, congested liver, ulcer over the lower 1/3 of the esophagus, and few ulcers in the stomach. Also, the kidneys were edematous, diffusely necrosed, and there were adrenal hemorrhages.

Conclusions

This case report highlights the severity of effects of brake fluid poisoning including the corrosive effect on gastrointestinal mucosa which is rarely encountered in clinical practice.
The effect of time and type of stress moderators on yield and yield components of cotton on conventional and double-cropping systems under saline conditions
Authors: BORZOUYI Zeinab , ARMIN Mohammad , MARVI Hamid
Published: October 2021

Background

Today, stress moderators are employed to mitigate crop loss due to the adverse effects of environmental stress. The current research aimed to investigate the impacts of time and stress moderator types on agro-physiological responses of cotton on conventional and double-cropping systems during 2017 and 2018 under saline conditions. A split-plot factorial experiment was carried out in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Cultivation system [conventional (recommended planting date) and double-cropping systems (sowing after harvest of wheat)] were considered as the main plots, and stress moderator type at four levels [water control, 2 mmol·L–1Salicylic acid (SA), 100 mmol·L–1Glycine betaine (GB), and 100 μmol·L–1sodium nitroprusside (SNP)] and application time (flowering and flowering + bolling stages) were regarded as subplots.

Results

Plant height, reproductive branch number, the number of bolls, 10-boll weight, 1 000-seed weight, biological yield, seed cotton yield, lint yield, chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, carotenoids, total chlorophyll, sodium, potassium, and proline content were less in double-cropping system comparing with conventional system. Spraying with the stress moderators alleviated soil salinity effects on yield, yield components, and biochemical traits of cotton. SNP spraying led to maximum plant height, branch number, the number of bolls per plant, 10-boll weight and seed cotton yield. SA spraying yielded the highest 1 000-seed weight, biological yield, lint percentage and lint yield. The highest chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, carotenoids, and total chlorophyll content resulted from SNP spraying. Yield, yield components, and biochemical traits did not respond to the stress moderator types in double-cropping system. However, the highest chlorophyll a, carotenoids, proline content, the number of bolls per plant, and seed cotton yield resulted from SNP spraying in conventional system. No statistically significant differences were observed between spraying with SNP and SA in most studied traits.

Conclusions

The results suggest that the optimum cotton planting time and SNP spraying could be recommended for producing the most suitable yield under saline conditions.

Highlights

External application of stress modulators increases salinity stress tolerance.

Spraying with sodium nitroprusside has more moderating effect.

Agro-physiological response of cotton to moderators is stronger in early sowing.

Maximum seed cotton yield was achieved at early sowing and spraying sodium nitroprusside.

Delayed cultivation reduces cotton yield.
Surgical removal of a telemetry system in a cynomolgus monkey (Macaca fascicularis): a 12-month observation study
Authors: Cho Doo-Wan , Han Hyoung-Yun , Yang Mi-Jin , Woo Dong Ho , Han Su-Cheol , Yang Young-Su
Published: October 2021

Background

Telemetry is a wireless implanted device that measures biological signals in conscious animals and usually requires surgery for its removal when the study is finished. After removing the device, the animals are either used for other studies or euthanatized.

Case presentation

Herein, we report the case of a living cynomolgus monkey (Macaca fascicularis) that was used for the entire experimental period, instead of euthanasia, after surgical removal of an implanted telemetry system. Radiography was used to determine the status of the implanted telemetry, following which, a repair surgery was performed for removing the system; clinical signs were used to preserve the life of the cynomolgus monkey. Postoperative clinical signs, food consumption, hematology, and serum biochemistry were examined during the 12-month observational period. No abnormal readings or conditions were observed in the subject after implant removal.

Conclusions

This study may be a useful case report for living cynomolgus monkeys in telemetry implantations used throughout the study period. We suggest minimizing the suffering and improving the welfare of these animals.
Screening assessment of trimethoxy flavonoid and - (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate against formalin-induced arthritis in Swiss albino rats and binding properties on NF-κB-MMP9 proteins
Authors: Panda Siva Prasad , Panigrahy Uttam Prasad , Mallick Sarada Prasanna , Prasanth DSNBK , Raghavendra Mitta
Published: October 2021

Background

The isolated trimethoxy flavonoid 4a,5,8,8a-tetrahydro-5-hydroxy-3,7,8-trimethoxy-2-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl) chromen-4-one (TMF) from methanolic stem extract ofT chrysantha(METC) and - (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) can be used to suppress acute inflammation and arthritis as an ethical medicine in Ayurveda. The nuclear factor kappa beta (NF-κB) signaling is involved in the expression of inflammatory mediators such as TNF-α and IL-1β. A successive investigation of NF-κB–MMP9 signaling during the production of inflammatory mediators needs to be developed. The docking studies of compounds TMF and EGCG were carried out using Autodock 4.0 and Discovery studio Biovia 2017 software to find out the interaction between ligand and the target proteins. The anti-arthritic potential of TMF, EGCG, and indomethacin was evaluated against formalin-induced arthritis in Swiss albino rats. Arthritis was assessed by checking the mean increase in paw diameter for 6 days via digital vernier caliper. The blood cell counter and diagnostic kits measured the different blood parameters and Rheumatoid factor (RF, IU/mL). The interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis factor (TNFα) in serum were determined by ELISA, and the pERK, MMP9, and NF-κB expressions in the inflamed tissue were determined by Western blotting, respectively. The mRNA expression for inflammatory marker enzymes such as inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) was determined by qRT-PCR.

Results

Based on grid score, interactions, and IC50values in molecular docking studies, the TMF and EGCG can be effectively combined with proteins NF-kB and MMP9. The TMF-HD and EGCG-HD better suppressed the acute inflammation and arthritis with marked low-density pERK, MMP9, NF-κB, iNOS, COX-2 levels. The endogenous antioxidant levels were increased in TMF and EGCG treated rats.

Conclusion

The TMF and EGCG effectively unraveled acute inflammation and arthritis by suppressing NF-κB mediated MMP9 and cytokines.

Graphic abstract
Stability indicating RP-UPLC method for simultaneous quantification of bempedoic acid and ezetimibe in bulk and pharmaceutical formulations
Authors: Yarra Uma Sai Teja , Gummadi Sowjanya
Published: October 2021

Background

Bempedoic acid and Ezetimibe acid are used in combination for treatment of hypercholesterolemia. The current work was undertaken to develop a simple and rapid stability-indicating RP-UPLC method for the simultaneous estimation of Bempedoic acid and Ezetimibe in tablets as no such method was available. The chromatographic separation was performed with Waters Acquity C18 [50 × 2.1 mm, 1.7 μ] column using methanol: acetonitrile: water [50: 30: 20, by volume] as mobile phase pumped at a flow rate 0.5 mL/min. The separated analytes were detected at 260 nm using UV detector.

Results

The separation of Bempedoic acid (BA) and Ezetimibe (EZ) was done at a retention time of 1.827 min. and 3.577 min. respectively. The validation and stability studies of the present method were carried out according to the ICH guidelines. The linearity of the proposed method was in the range of 30–130 μg/mL and 5–50 μg/mL for Bempedoic acid and Ezetimibe respectively. Limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) were found to be 0.1216 μg/mL and 0.3685 μg/mL for Bempedoic acid and 0.1189 μg/mL and 0.3602 μg/mL for Ezetimibe respectively. The recovery of the method was found to be in the range of 99.89—100.31% for Bempedoic acid and 98.14—99.94% for Ezetimibe while the % RSD for both drugs in the precision and robustness study was less than 2.0. The drugs did not show any major degradants in the exposed conditions.

Conclusion

The developed method was found to be simple, sensitive, accurate, precise, robust, rapid and yet stability indicating. The method can be adopted for simultaneous estimation of Bempedoic acid and Ezetimibe in the pharmaceutical formulation.
Cenne owoce maliny właściwej (Fructus Rubi idaei)
Authors: Baranowska Alicja , Mystkowska Iwona , Zarzecka Krystyna , Gugała Marek
Published: October 2021

Malina właściwa (Rubus idaeus L.) jest jedną z najstarszych roślin znanych ludzkości i od wieków wykorzystywana do celów spożywczych oraz leczniczych. O przydatności owoców maliny (Fructus Rubi idaei) i liści (Folium Rubi idaei) decyduje w dużej mierze ich skład chemiczny. Wartość biologiczna owoców maliny właściwej zależy od poziomu antyoksydantów, do których między innymi zalicza się kwas askorbinowy i antocyjany. Natomiast o smaku i aromacie owoców decyduje stopień ich dojrzałości, odmiana, zawartość cukrów prostych, kwasów organicznych oraz substancji lotnych. Owoce maliny są również bogatym źródłem witamin (głównie witaminy C, witamin z grupy B, PP, A, E oraz K), składników mineralnych: potasu (K), wapnia (Ca), magnezu (Mg), żelaza(Fe) oraz w mniejszych ilościach manganu (Mn), miedzi (Cu), cynku (Zn) (dlatego mają działanie odkwaszające, wzmacniają serce i regulują pracę układu nerwowego). Zawierają również spore ilości błonnika i pektyn. Wyniki ostatnich badań naukowych dowiodły,że zawarty w owocach malin kwas elagowy (pestki malin zawierają aż 87,5% kwasu elagowego) hamuje procesy nowotworowe oraz posiada właściwości przeciwwirusowe i przeciwzapalne. Najnowsze badania naukowe potwierdzają również pozytywny wpływketonu malinowego (C10H12O2) na leczenie otyłości.
Riesgos psicosociales del personal de residencias geriátricas en el contexto del COVID-19
Authors: Blanco-Donoso Luis Manuel
Published: October 2021

Entrevista a Luis Manuel Blanco-Donoso
Resilient, adaptable, innovative: The practice manager
Authors: Oxtoby Kathy
Published: October 2021

Despite the many challenges practice managers and teams have been facing in recent times, the work can bring personal and professional rewards. Practice managers tell Kathy Oxtoby what they enjoy about their career
Implications of the Health and Care Bill for general practice
Authors: Oliver Alison
Published: October 2021

The new Health and Care Bill sets out how the government plans to reform health services in England. Alison Oliver looks as what it will mean in primary care
A guide to CCTV footage: How should it be used?
Authors: Green Emma
Published: October 2021

CCTV footage is part of subject access requests and an increasing number of queries from practice managers are related to such requests. Emma Green at Medical Protection looks at the relevant law and offers some tips
Examination of the Relationship between Occupational Professionalism and Occupational Alienation in Kindergarten Teachers
Authors: Oztabak Muhammet U.
Published: October 2021

The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between the levels of occupational professionalism and occupational alienation in kindergarten teachers. Correlational survey model among the quantitative research models was used in the research. In this context, 224 kindergarten teachers were reached via convenience sampling model. The data of the research was collected via the Teacher Information Form, Teachers’ Occupational Professionalism Scale and Occupational Alienation of Preschool Teachers Scale. SPSS software and statistical measures such as independent samples t-test, ANOVA and Pearson’s Product-Moment Correlation were used to analyse the obtained data. According to the research findings, both occupational professionalism and occupational alienation levels of kindergarten teachers were found to be high. Levels of occupational professionalism and occupational alienation may differ according to some demographic variables among teachers. The relationship between occupational professionalism and occupation alienation was found to be statistically significant. The same is also true for the sub-dimensions of the scales. Lastly, the findings and results obtained during the research were discussed in the light of the literature and suggestions were made.
Generalized Standard Triples for Algebraic Linearizations of Matrix Polynomials
Authors: Chan Eunice Y.S. , Corless Robert M. , Rafiee Sevyeri Leili
Published: October 2021

We define generalized standard triples $\boldsymbol{X}$, $\boldsymbol{Y}$, and $L(z) = z\boldsymbol{C}_{1} - \boldsymbol{C}_{0}$, where $L(z)$ is a linearization of a regular matrix polynomial $\boldsymbol{P}(z) \in \mathbb{C}^{n \times n}[z]$, in order to use the representation $\boldsymbol{X}(z \boldsymbol{C}_{1}~-~\boldsymbol{C}_{0})^{-1}\boldsymbol{Y}~=~\boldsymbol{P}^{-1}(z)$ which holds except when $z$ is an eigenvalue of $\boldsymbol{P}$. This representation can be used in constructing so-called  algebraic linearizations for matrix polynomials of the form $\boldsymbol{H}(z) = z \boldsymbol{A}(z)\boldsymbol{B}(z) + \boldsymbol{C} \in \mathbb{C}^{n \times n}[z]$ from generalized standard triples of $\boldsymbol{A}(z)$ and $\boldsymbol{B}(z)$. This can be done even if $\boldsymbol{A}(z)$ and $\boldsymbol{B}(z)$ are expressed in differing polynomial bases. Our main theorem is that $\boldsymbol{X}$ can be expressed using the coefficients of the expression $1 = \sum_{k=0}^\ell e_k \phi_k(z)$ in terms of the relevant polynomial basis. For convenience, we tabulate generalized standard triples for orthogonal polynomial bases, the monomial basis, and Newton interpolational bases; for the Bernstein basis; for Lagrange interpolational bases; and for Hermite interpolational bases.
Dry Matter Estimation of Standing Corn with Near-Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy
Authors: Digman Matthew F. , Cherney Jerry H. , Cherney Debbie J.
Published: October 2021

HIGHLIGHTS

Quadratic relationships were established to relate ear moisture or stover moisture to whole plant moisture, and they explained 90% and 84% of whole plant moisture, respectively.

Based on our observations, the moisture content of a corn field can be estimated within +1% w.b. in 19 out of 20 fields by sampling 5-10 plants.

The calibration offered by SCiO was successful at predicting oven-dried moisture content based on traditional NIRS metrics of R2 = 0.92, RMSE = 3.6, RPD = 3.2, and RER = 15. However, the 95% prediction bands were +6.9% w.b., which would indicate little utility in estimating ear moisture content.

Based on a prediction model that was developed using the data collected for this study, a significant instrument-to-instrument bias was observed, indicating the necessity of including multiple SCiO devices in calibration spectra collection.

ABSTRACT. Determining the appropriate time to harvest whole-plant corn is an essential factor driving the successful preservation via anaerobic fermentation (ensiling). The current options for timely on-farm monitoring of corn moisture in the field include selecting a set of representative plants, chopping and drying a subsample, or harvesting a portion of the field using a harvester equipped with an on-board moisture sensing system. Both methods are time-consuming and expensive, limiting their practicality for harvest decision-making. This work’s objective was to develop a practical solution that utilizes the moisture content of the ear to estimate whole-plant moisture. An improvement of this method was also considered that utilized a hand-held near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy (NIRS) device to predict ear moisture in situ. Based on the data collected during this work, a quadratic relationship was developed where ear moisture explained 90% of the variability in whole-plant corn moisture. However, based on our observations, the hand-held NIRS evaluated would have little utility in predicting whole-plant corn moisture with either the calibration developed here or provided by the manufacturer. The manufacturer’s prediction model yielded the best result with an R2 of 0.92, and a ratio of performance to deviation of 3.19. However, the 95% prediction band was +6.85% w.b. Finally, we determined that for a corn field uniform in appearance, sampling five to ten plants is likely to provide a reasonable estimate of field moisture. Keywords: Corn silage, Forage analysis, Harvest timing, Moisture content, NIRS.
Key Technologies of Crop Dividers of Sugarcane Harvesters: A Review
Authors: Bai Jing , Ma Shaochun , Wang Fenglei , Xing Haonan , Ding Zhengliang , Hu Jiwei
Published: October 2021

Highlights

This article focuses on crop dividers of sugarcane harvesters.

Four crop dividers were briefly reviewed.

The research status of crop dividers was introduced.

The potential new technologies and development directions of spiral crop dividers were presented.

Abstract. The crop divider is an important mechanism of a sugarcane harvester, which affects the efficiency and quality of sugarcane mechanical harvesting. This article mainly summarized the key technologies of crop dividers. Firstly, four crop dividers (spiral crop divider, finger-chain crop divider, combined crop divider, and lever crop divider) were briefly reviewed. The advantages and disadvantages of different crop dividers were then summarized. The research status of crop dividers was introduced with theoretical analysis, simulation studies, and field experiments. Finally, the scientific researches and commercial machines were compared for a comprehensive review. Additionally, the potential new technologies and development directions of spiral crop dividers were presented to improve the performance and adaptability of sugarcane harvesters. This article is expected to provide a reference for the design of crop dividers. Keywords: Crop divider, Mechanical harvesting, Sugarcane, Sugarcane harvester.
Study of Antifungal Activity Using Three Chinese Medicine Herbs
Authors: Zhu Anming , Ren Shiming , Li Xueqi , Zhao Xiaoqi , Wang Lei , Bao Minzhen , Wang Yamei
Published: October 2021

Chinese medicine herbal extracts are ideal candidates to replace toxic industrial wood preservatives thanks to their antifungal and nontoxic properties. To investigate the antifungal activity of Chinese herbal medicines, in this study, Trametes versicolor fungi were selected as test strains to evaluate the antifungal properties of Fructus Cnidii, Fructus Forsythiae, and Radix Stemonae. The results show that Fructus Cnidii has a strong inhibitory effect against T. versicolor, whereas Fructus Forsythiae and Radix Stemonae have a weak inhibitory effect. The hyphae growth cycle shows that the three studied Chinese herbs disrupt the growth of T. versicolor. Moreover, instead of direct killing, the Chinese herbal medicine demonstrated inhibition ability. Furthermore, the morphological and toxicological evidence shows that Fructus Cnidii affected the expression of proteins or enzymes to achieve the inhibition goal. In sum, this study could provide both primary data and a theoretical foundation for further developing and applying for traditional Chinese medicine as a green type of wood preservative.
Difficult subarachnoid anaesthesia Prediction and Performance
Authors: Zundert André Van
Published: October 2021

Spinal anaesthesia (SA) has enjoyed a long history of success, celebrating soon its 125th anniversary. Puncturing the dura mater is considered a simple procedure, followed by a subarachnoid injection of a local anaesthetic (LA) agent into the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Even when the technique is performed perfectly, there is no guarantee that the block sits perfectly. Failure is not uncommon and encompasses a range from total absence of any neuraxial blockade, a partial block (insufficient height, quality or duration) or a patchy block. Table 1 lists a large number of potential causative factors that may result in a failed spinal anaesthetic, providing suggestions of solutions. Analysing each distinct phase of the procedure, i.e., spinal puncture, injection of local anaesthetic solution, spread of the local anaesthetic solution through the cerebrospinal fluid, action of the drug on subarachnoid neural tissue and patient management, are the keys to success at each stage. Mechanisms of failure of spinal anaesthesia include insufficient preparation and check of equipment and drugs, suboptimal positioning of the patient, unsuccessful puncture due to inadequate training or experience and inadequate use of needles and local anaesthetic solution.1-5 Besides operator, preparation, technique-dependent and patient-related factors (anatomical variations), there are also organisational factors (lack of block room, lack of adequate monitoring and trained personnel, insufficient time between block and onset of surgery, subsequent management following block). The use of the correct local anaesthetic (dose, volume, concentration) injected at the correct lumbar interspace is of paramount importance to produce an adequate spinal block for the right surgical intervention.
Nevertheless, failures may still occur. Therefore, the anaesthetist should always have a contingency plan for a failed spinal block. Indeed, patients expect reliable surgical anaesthesia when undergoing an operation
The Anatomy Table – Is it the Future Learning Tool for Regional Anaesthesiologists?
Authors: Elanjeran Rajkumar , Ramkumar Anitha , Ganni Sandeep
Published: October 2021

Cadaveric dissection has been the main stay of anatomy training for regional anaesthesia over the years. Advent of advance visualisation hardware and software has revolutionised anatomy teaching and it is only a matter of time before this technology transcends into regional anaesthesia training. This article demonstrates the innumerable capabilities of virtual dissection table using one specific use case- the supraclavicular approach to the brachial plexus block.
Keywords: Simulation, Virtual dissection, Virtual anatomy
Propagation of Pearcey Gaussian beams in a strongly nonlocal nonlinear medium
Authors: Huang Zhicong , He Junjie , Xu Danlin , Zheng Manhang , Chen Hechong , Wei Quanfeng , Deng Dongmei , Long Xuewen
Published: October 2021

We introduce the propagation of Pearcey Gaussian (PG) beams in a strongly nonlocal nonlinear medium (SNNM) analytically. Our results show that PG beams propagating in the SNNM have two different focusing positions. The intensity peak appears at different focusing positions depending on the selection of the nonlinear parameters. In addition, the effects of the nonlinear parameters and the scaling factor on the trajectory, the position of the intensity focusing, the intensity evolution between focus locations, and the radiation force are studied.
Interfacial anisotropic exciton-polariton manifolds in ReS2
Authors: Chakrabarty Devarshi , Dhara Avijit , Ghosh Kritika , Pattanayak Aswini K , Mukherjee Shreyashi , Chaudhuri Ayan Roy , Dhara Sajal
Published: October 2021

Light–matter coupling in van der Waal’s materials holds significant promise in realizing bosonic condensation and superfluidity. The underlying semiconductor’s crystal asymmetry, if any, can be utilized to form anisotropic half-light half-matter quasiparticles. We demonstrate generation of such highly anisotropic exciton-polaritons at the interface of a biaxial layered semiconductor, stacked on top of a distributed Bragg reflector. The spatially confined photonic mode in this geometry couples with polarized excitons and their Rydberg states, creating a system of highly anisotropic polariton manifolds, displaying Rabi splitting of up to 68 meV. Rotation of the incident beam polarization is used to tune coupling strength and smoothly switch regimes from weak to strong coupling, while also enabling transition from one three-body coupled oscillator system to another. Light–matter coupling is further tunable by varying the number of weakly coupled optically active layers. Our work provides a versatile method of engineering devices for applications in polarization-controlled polaritonics and optoelectronics.
Natural language processing for cognitive therapy: Extracting schemas from thought records
Authors: Burger Franziska , Neerincx Mark A. , Brinkman Willem-Paul
Published: October 2021

The cognitive approach to psychotherapy aims to change patients’ maladaptive schemas, that is, overly negative views on themselves, the world, or the future. To obtain awareness of these views, they record their thought processes in situations that caused pathogenic emotional responses. The schemas underlying such thought records have, thus far, been largely manually identified. Using recent advances in natural language processing, we take this one step further by automatically extracting schemas from thought records. To this end, we asked 320 healthy participants on Amazon Mechanical Turk to each complete five thought records consisting of several utterances reflecting cognitive processes. Agreement between two raters on manually scoring the utterances with respect to how much they reflect each schema was substantial (Cohen’s κ = 0.79). Natural language processing software pretrained on all English Wikipedia articles from 2014 (GLoVE embeddings) was used to represent words and utterances, which were then mapped to schemas using k-nearest neighbors algorithms, support vector machines, and recurrent neural networks. For the more frequently occurring schemas, all algorithms were able to leverage linguistic patterns. For example, the scores assigned to the Competence schema by the algorithms correlated with the manually assigned scores with Spearman correlations ranging between 0.64 and 0.76. For six of the nine schemas, a set of recurrent neural networks trained separately for each of the schemas outperformed the other algorithms. We present our results here as a benchmark solution, since we conducted this research to explore the possibility of automatically processing qualitative mental health data and did not aim to achieve optimal performance with any of the explored models. The dataset of 1600 thought records comprising 5747 utterances is published together with this article for researchers and machine learning enthusiasts to improve upon our outcomes. Based on our promising results, we see further opportunities for using free-text input and subsequent natural language processing in other common therapeutic tools, such as ecological momentary assessments, automated case conceptualizations, and, more generally, as an alternative to mental health scales.