bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Congenital blindness enhances perception of musical rhythm more than melody in Mandarin speakers
Authors: Zhang Linjun , Jiang Wenling , Shu Hua , Zhang Yang
Published: May 2019

This study adopted the Musical Ear Test [Wallentin, Nielsen, Friis-Olivarius, Vuust, and Vuust (2010). Learn. Indiv. Diff. 20, 188–196] to compare musical competence of sighted and congenitally blind Mandarin speakers. On the rhythm subtest, the blind participants outperformed the sighted. On the melody subtest, however, the two groups performed equally well. Compared with sighted speakers of non-tonal languages reported in previous studies [Wallentin, Nielsen, Friis-Olivarius, Vuust, and Vuust (2010). Learn. Indiv. Diff. 20, 188–196; Bhatara, Yeung, and Nazzi (2015). J. Exp. Psychol. Hum. Percept. Perform. 41(2), 277–282], sighted Mandarin speakers performed better only on the melody subtest. These results indicate that tonal language experience and congenital blindness exert differential influences on musical aptitudes with rhythm perception reflecting a cross-modal compensation effect and melody perception dominated by a cross-domain language-to-music transfer effect.
Experimental identification of the radiation resistance matrix
Authors: Milton Joseph , Cheer Jordan , Daley Steve
Published: May 2019

The radiation resistance matrix allows for the calculation of structurally radiated sound power using a series of measured structural responses. Currently, estimating the radiation resistance matrix requires precise modelling of the structure which, for practical structures, can lead to estimation errors. This paper presents two methods for identifying the radiation resistance matrix for a structure using measurable structural and acoustic responses and the solution of an inverse problem. Although well suited to practical, complex structures, to allow the accuracy of the proposed methods of identifying the radiation resistance matrix to be reliably validated, they are compared with the theoretical radiation resistance matrix for a flat plate in an infinite baffle. It is shown through a simulation-based study that the accuracy of the proposed identification methods depends on the number of structural and acoustic sensors and structural forces used in the identification process. The proposed identification methods are then implemented experimentally to identify the radiation resistance matrix for a flat plate. The results demonstrate that an accurate estimate of the sound power can be obtained using the experimentally identified radiation resistance matrix using the two proposed methods, and the limits on the two methods are discussed.
Mechanistic Insight into the Binding and Swelling Functions of Prepeptidase C-Terminal (PPC) Domains from Various Bacterial Proteases
Authors: Huang JiaFeng , Wu RiBang , Liu Dan , Liao BinQiang , Lei Ming , Wang Meng , Huan Ran , Zhou MingYang , Ma ChangBei , He HaiLun
Published: May 2019

Prepeptidase C-terminal (PPC) domains commonly exist in the C termini of marine bacterial proteases. Reports examining PPC have been limited, and its functions remain unclear. In this study, eight PPCs from six different bacteria were examined. Most of the PPCs possessed the ability to bind collagen, feathers, and chitin, and all PPCs could significantly swell insoluble collagen. PPCs can expose collagen monomers but cannot disrupt pyridinoline cross-links or unwind the collagen triple helix. This swelling ability may also play synergistic roles in collagen hydrolysis. Comparative structural analyses and the examination of PPC mutants revealed that the hydrophobic binding pockets of PPCs may play important roles in collagen binding. This study provides new insights into the functions and ecological significance of PPCs, and the molecular mechanism of the collagen binding of PPCs was clarified, which is beneficial for the protein engineering of highly active PPCs and collagenase in the pharmaceutical industry and of artificial biological materials.
Uncovering the Metabolic Strategies of the Dormant Microbial Majority: towards Integrative Approaches
Authors: Greening Chris , Grinter Rhys , Chiri Eleonora
Published: May 2019

A grand challenge in microbiology is to understand how the dormant majority lives. In natural environments, most microorganisms are not growing and instead exist in a spectrum of dormant states.
mRNA expression of genes related to fat deposition during in vitro ovine adipogenesis
Authors: Li Baojun , Qiao Liying , Yan Xiaoru , Shi Tao , Ren Duanyang , Zhao Yanyan , Zhao Junxing , Liu Wenzhong
Published: May 2019

Fat deposition in animals involves adipogenic differentiation guided by transcriptional factors and other key factors. To understand the molecular mechanism underlying ovine adipogenic differentiation, the dynamic mRNA expression of key genes related to fat deposition, including peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPAR-γ), fatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4), FABP5, and cellular retinoic acid-binding protein 2 (CRABP2), were analyzed during in vitro differentiation of ovine preadipocytes. The stromal vascular cells from underneath the tail fat tissue of 1-wk-old sheep were isolated and cultured, and the preadipocytes were induced using a cocktail of 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine, insulin, dexamethasone, and troglitazone. The cultivated cells were collected at different time points after induced differentiation. The expression levels of PPAR-γ, FABP4, FABP5, and CRABP2 were studied by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. The expressions of these genes in sheep were compared with those in human and mouse retrieved from the Gene Expression Omnibus DataSets. We observed that the expression of PPAR-γ, FABP4, and FABP5 was increased upon differentiation of ovine preadipocytes, as in humans and mice. The expression of CRABP2 was sharply increased from days 0 to 2 after induced differentiation and was subsequently decreased. This expression pattern of CRABP2 was different from that observed in humans and mice. Our results provide new insights into the function of these genes in fat deposition.
Descriptor Selection Improvements for Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationships
Authors: Xia Liang-Yong , Wang Qing-Yong , Cao Zehong , Liang Yong
Published: May 2019

Molecular descriptor selection is an essential procedure to improve a predictive quantitative structure–activity relationship (QSAR) model. However, within the QSAR model, there are a number of redundant, noisy and irrelevant descriptors. In this study, we propose a novel descriptor selection framework using self-paced learning (SPL) via sparse logistic regression (LR) with Logsum penalty (SPL-Logsum), which can simultaneously adaptively identify the simple and complex samples and avoid over-fitting. SPL is inspired by the learning process of humans or animals gradually learned from simple and complex samples to train models, and the Logsum penalized LR helps to select a small subset of significant molecular descriptors for improving the QSAR models. Experimental results on some simulations and three public QSAR datasets show that our proposed SPL-Logsum framework outperforms other existing sparse methods regarding the area under the curve, sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and [Formula: see text]-values.
Multi-object tracking using deformable convolution networks with tracklets updating
Authors: Zhang Yuanping , Tang Yuanyan , Fang Bin , Shang Zhaowei
Published: May 2019

Many multi-object tracking methods have been proposed to solve the computer vision problem which has been attracting significant attentions because of the significant appearance changes caused by deformation, abrupt motion, background clutter and occlusion. In this paper, hybrid deformable convolution neural networks with frame-pair input and deformable layers for multi-object tracking are presented. The object tracking method trained using two successive frames can predict the centers of searching windows as the locations of tracked targets to improve the accuracy and robustness of object tracking. Histogram of Oriented Gradient and CNN features are extracted as appearance features to measure similarities between objects. Kalman filter and Hungarian algorithm are used to create tracklets association which indicates the location and the trajectories of tracked targets. To solve the problem of object transformation, we construct a novel sampling strategy for off-line training with the idea of augmenting the special sampling locations in the convolution layers and pooling layers with additional offsets. Experiments on the popular challenging datasets show that the proposed tracking system performs on par with recently developed generic multi-object tracking methods, but effective for dense geometric transformation objects and with much less memory. In addition, the proposed tracking system can run in a speed of over 75 (24) fps with a GPU (CPU), much faster than most deep networks-based trackers.
Quasi-Monte Carlo tractability of integration problem in function spaces defined over products of balls
Authors: Zhang Jie , Liu Yongping
Published: May 2019

Recently, quasi-Monte Carlo (QMC) rules for multivariate integration in some weighted Sobolev spaces of functions defined over unit cubes [Formula: see text], products of [Formula: see text] copies of the simplex [Formula: see text] and products of [Formula: see text] copies of the unit sphere [Formula: see text] have been well-studied in the literature. In this paper, we consider QMC tractability of integrals of functions defined over product of [Formula: see text] copies of the ball [Formula: see text]. The space is a tensor product of [Formula: see text] reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces defined by positive and uniformly bounded weights [Formula: see text] for [Formula: see text]. We obtain matching necessary and sufficient conditions in terms of this weights for various notions of QMC tractability, including strong polynomial tractability, polynomial tractability, quasi-polynomial tractability, uniformly weak tractability and [Formula: see text]-weak tractability.
Complete assembly of circular and chloroplast genomes based on global optimization
Authors: Andonov Rumen , Djidjev Hristo , François Sebastien , Lavenier Dominique
Published: May 2019

This paper focuses on the last two stages of genome assembly, namely, scaffolding and gap-filling, and shows that they can be solved as part of a single optimization problem. Our approach is based on modeling genome assembly as a problem of finding a simple path in a specific graph that satisfies as many distance constraints as possible encoding the insert-size information. We formulate it as a mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) problem and apply an optimization solver to find the exact solutions on a benchmark of chloroplasts. We show that the presence of repetitions in the set of unitigs is the main reason for the existence of multiple equivalent solutions that are associated to alternative subpaths. We also describe two sufficient conditions and we design efficient algorithms for identifying these subpaths. Comparisons of the results achieved by our tool with the ones obtained with recent assemblers are presented.
DSRIG: Incorporating graphical structure in the regularized modeling of SNP data
Authors: Stephenson Matthew , Darlington Gerarda A. , Schenkel Flavio S. , Squires E. James , Ali R. Ayesha
Published: May 2019

Genetic selection of farm animals plays an important role in genetic improvement programs. Regularized regression methods on single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data from a set of candidate genes can help to identify genes that are associated with the trait of interest. This complex task must also consider the relative effect sizes on the desired trait and account for the relationships among the candidate SNPs so that selection of a SNP does not promote other undesirable traits through breeding. We present the Doubly Sparse Regression Incorporating Graphical structure (DSRIG), a novel regularized method for genetic selection that exploits the relationships among candidate SNPs to improve prediction. DSRIG was applied in the prediction of skatole and androstenone levels, two compounds known to be associated with boar taint. DSRIG was shown to provide a predictive benefit when compared to ordinary least squares (OLS) and the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) in a cross-validation procedure. The relative sizes of the coefficient estimates over the cross-validation procedure were compared to determine which SNPs may have the greatest impact on expression of the boar taint compounds and a consensus graph was used to infer the relationships among SNPs.
Synthesis, structure, photophysical, electrochemical properties and antibacterial activity of brominated BODIPYs as an inhibitor of DNA gyrase B of S. aureus
Authors: Prasannan Dijo , Sareena Chennakkandathil , Arunkumar Chellaiah , Vasu Suchithra Tharamel
Published: May 2019

BODIPYs with 3-thienyl and 4-acetamido phenyl groups substituted at the meso-position are subjected to regioselective bromination using three equivalents of [Formula: see text]-bromosuccinimide (NBS) to yield their 2-mono and 2,6-di bromoderivatives. Their photophysical, electrochemical and antimicrobial properties are investigated. This paper presents a mechanistic investigation of the antibacterial effect of brominated BODIPYs, particularly against Staphylococcus aureus. Fluorescence microscopic images reveal that the compounds are internalized effectively within the bacterial cells, making it an ideal antibacterial drug. Morphological analysis of the bacterial cells after the treatment with the test compounds showed that the compounds did not affect the cell membrane or cell wall and the antibacterial effect of these compounds is achieved via a different mechanism. The most effective compound was selected to explore the target of action. Molecular docking studies were performed on 22 selected proteins in S. aureus and the in silico results were validated by in vitro experiments. It was observed that the supercoiling activity of DNA gyrase was completely inhibited by the 2,6-dibromo-1,3,5,7-tetramethyl-8-(4-acetamido)-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-[Formula: see text]-indacene, 3c by forming H-bonds with the ASP 81 residue of the enzyme.
PANI-Encapsulated Si Nanocomposites with a Chemical Bond Linkage in the Interface Exhibiting Higher Electrochemical Stability as Anode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries
Authors: Huang Renzhong , Xie Yuqiu , Chang Qing , Xiong Jian , Guan Shiqi , Yuan Songdong , Jiang Guodong
Published: May 2019

A covalent linkage between polyaniline (PANI) and Si nanoparticles in PANI-encapsulated Si nanocomposites was proposed and achieved by a facile and economical synthetic strategy, in which NH2-grafted Si was first obtained via a chemical modification of Si surface and the polymerization of aniline initiated at NH2 group surface was readily accomplished to get PANI shell. The characterizations suggested that NH2 groups were successfully introduced onto Si surface and PANI-encapsulated Si nanocomposites with a core/shell structure were fabricated. Electrochemical tests showed that our proposed Si nanocomposites delivered a high initial specific capacity of 2135[Formula: see text]mAh/g and retained 848[Formula: see text]mAh/g after 100 charge/discharge cycles at a current density of 0.1[Formula: see text]A/g, which were superior than that of the normal PANI-encapsulated Si nanocomposites with the absence of chemical bonds in the interface. The enhanced electrochemical performance was ascribed to the surface chemical modification and the introduction of chemical bond in the interface. NH2 group function of Si could improve the homogeneity of encapsulated PANI shell. Additionally, PANI was tightly anchored to Si nanoparticles via a covalent bond between silicon and PANI, which would greatly inhibit the separation of PANI from Si surface during the expansion/contraction of Si particles. Thus, the structural integrity was maintained. Besides, PANI layer with a unique structure promoted the transport of both electrons and lithium ions.
Use of Corifollitropin Alfa for Ovarian Stimulation: A Retrospective Analysis of 804 Women Undergoing IVF/ICSI
Authors: Giang Nhu H. , Vuong Lan N. , Pham Toan D. , Ho Tuong M.
Published: May 2019

Background: Corifollitropin alfa in GnRH antagonist protocol could provide a friendly treatment for IVF patients. There is limited evidence regarding the outcomes of corifollitropin alfa in ovarian hyperstimulation in Asian population.

Methods: This was a retrospective study conducted on IVF women from July 2012 to July 2018. The recruited patients were expected normal responders, expected poor responders and oocyte donors. The patients underwent GnRH antagonist protocol with corifollitropin alfa.

Results: There were 804 IVF patients included in the study. The patients were analyzed into: normal ovarian reserve-autologous cycles ([Formula: see text] 36 years and [Formula: see text] 60 kg, n = 33; [Formula: see text] 36 years and [Formula: see text] 60 kg, n [Formula: see text] 9; [Formula: see text] 36 years and [Formula: see text] 50 kg, n [Formula: see text] 204; [Formula: see text] 36 years and [Formula: see text] 50 kg, n [Formula: see text] 52), normal ovarian reserve-donor cycles ([Formula: see text] 60 kg, n [Formula: see text] 234; [Formula: see text] 60 kg, n [Formula: see text] 104) and diminished ovarian reserve cycles (n [Formula: see text] 168). In each group of patients, the pregnancy outcomes of fresh embryo transfer were comparable to those of frozen embryo transfer.

Conclusions: Corifollitropin alfa could offer an effective and simple treatment option for all groups of patients without PCOS.
Socioeconomic, Demographic, and Environmental Determinants of Under-5 Mortality in Ethiopia: Evidence from Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey, 2016
Authors: Woldeamanuel Berhanu Teshome
Published: May 2019

Background. Though Ethiopia has made impressive progress in reducing child mortality in the past two decades, the reduction of under-five mortalities is a major concern for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) introduced in 2016 targeted to reduce under-5 mortality rate below 25 deaths of under-5 per 1,000 live births by 2030. This study aims to assess the risk factors attributed to under-five mortalities in Ethiopia region based on Ethiopian Demographic Health Survey 2016 dataset. Methods. The study was a secondary analysis of 2016, Ethiopian Demographic Health Survey and the information collected from 10,274 children born five years preceding the survey was considered in the study, and variables like maternal social and demographic characteristics, child demographic characteristics, and cultural and environmental factors were considered as determinants of under-five deaths. The study used descriptive statistics and logistic regression model to explore significant risk factors accredited to under-five deaths in Ethiopia. Results. Maternal education attainment, women age at first birth, women current age, child birth order, preceding birth interval, birth type, and occupation of mother were found significant predictors of under-five mortalities. Being born to mother with no education (OR=2.610, 95% CI: 1.598, 4.265), short birth spacing 1 to 18 months birth intervals (OR=2.164, 95% CI: 1.821, 2.570), birth order of five and above, and 11 to 17 years ages at birth (OR=1.556, 95% CI: 1.243, 1.949) were factors significantly associated with increased risk of under-five mortalities. Conclusion. The magnitude of under-five deaths in the study area was decreasing. However, under-five mortality rates have stayed higher in some regions. Therefore, interventions that focus on birth spacing, mothers living in Affar and Gambela, and uneducated mothers are required for improving child survival in Ethiopia.
A Systematic Review of Deep Learning Approaches to Educational Data Mining
Authors: Hernández-Blanco Antonio , Herrera-Flores Boris , Tomás David , Navarro-Colorado Borja
Published: May 2019

Educational Data Mining (EDM) is a research field that focuses on the application of data mining, machine learning, and statistical methods to detect patterns in large collections of educational data. Different machine learning techniques have been applied in this field over the years, but it has been recently that Deep Learning has gained increasing attention in the educational domain. Deep Learning is a machine learning method based on neural network architectures with multiple layers of processing units, which has been successfully applied to a broad set of problems in the areas of image recognition and natural language processing. This paper surveys the research carried out in Deep Learning techniques applied to EDM, from its origins to the present day. The main goals of this study are to identify the EDM tasks that have benefited from Deep Learning and those that are pending to be explored, to describe the main datasets used, to provide an overview of the key concepts, main architectures, and configurations of Deep Learning and its applications to EDM, and to discuss current state‐of‐the‐art and future directions on this area of research.
Pore Pressure Disturbance Induced by Multistage Hydraulic Fracturing in Shale Gas: Modelling and Field Application
Authors: Zeng Yijin , Wang Zizhen , Zang Yanbin , Wang Ruihe , Wang Feifei , Niu Xinming , Niu Feng
Published: May 2019

Currently, there is no proper method to predict the pore pressure disturbance caused by multistage fracturing in shale gas, which has challenged drilling engineering in practice, especially for the infilling well drilling within/near the fractured zones. A numerical modelling method of pore pressure redistribution around the multistage fractured horizontal wellbore was put forward based on the theory of fluid transportation in porous media. The fracture network of each stage was represented by an elliptical zone with high permeability. Five stages of fracturing were modelled simultaneously to consider the interactions among fractures. The effects of formation permeability, fracturing fluid viscosity, and pressure within the fractures on the pore pressure disturbance were numerically investigated. Modelling results indicated that the pore pressure disturbance zone expands as the permeability and/or the differential pressure increases, while it decreases when the viscosity of the fracturing fluid increases. The pore pressure disturbance level becomes weaker from the fracture tip to the far field along the main-fracture propagation direction. The pore pressure disturbance contours obviously have larger slopes with the variation of permeability than those of the differential pressure. The distances between the pore pressure disturbance contours are smaller at lower permeability and higher viscosity. The modelling results of the updated pore pressure distribution are of great importance for safe drilling. A case study of three wells within one platform showed that the modelling method could provide a reliable estimation of the pore pressure disturbance area caused by multistage fracturing.
Nigella sativa L. (Black Cumin): A Promising Natural Remedy for Wide Range of Illnesses
Authors: Yimer Ebrahim M. , Tuem Kald Beshir , Karim Aman , Ur-Rehman Najeeb , Anwar Farooq
Published: May 2019

The seed of Nigella sativa (N. sativa) has been used in different civilization around the world for centuries to treat various animal and human ailments. So far, numerous studies demonstrated the seed of Nigella sativa and its main active constituent, thymoquinone, to be medicinally very effective against various illnesses including different chronic illness: neurological and mental illness, cardiovascular disorders, cancer, diabetes, inflammatory conditions, and infertility as well as various infectious diseases due to bacterial, fungal, parasitic, and viral infections. In spite of limited studies conducted so far, the promising efficacy of N. sativa against HIV/AIDS can be explored as an alternative option for the treatment of this pandemic disease after substantiating its full therapeutic efficacy. Moreover, the strong antioxidant property of this valued seed has recently gained increasing attention with regard to its potential role as dietary supplement with minimal side effects. Besides, when combined with different conventional chemotherapeutic agents, it synergizes their effects resulting in reducing the dosage of concomitantly used drugs with optimized efficacy and least and/or no toxicity. A number of pharmaceutical and biological properties have been ascribed to seeds of N. sativa. The present review focuses on the profile of high-value components along with traditional medicinal and biological principles of N. sativa seed and its oil so as to explore functional food and nutraceutical potential of this valued herb.
Intramelanocytic Acidification Plays a Role in the Antimelanogenic and Antioxidative Properties of Vitamin C and Its Derivatives
Authors: Miao Fang , Su Meng-Yun , Jiang Shan , Luo Long-Fei , Shi Ying , Lei Tie-Chi
Published: May 2019

Although vitamin C (VC, L-ascorbic acid) has been widely used as a skin lightening agent for a long time, the mechanism by which it inhibits melanogenesis remains poorly understood. It is well-documented that the intramelanocytic pH is an important factor in regulating tyrosinase function and melanosome maturation. The activity of tyrosinase, the rate-limiting enzyme required for melanin synthesis, is generally minimal in an acidic environment. Given that VC is an acidic compound, we might speculate that the intracellular acidification of melanocytes induced by VC likely reduces melanin content through the suppression of tyrosinase activity. The results of this study reveal that treatment of melanocytes with VC or its derivatives, magnesium ascorbyl phosphate (MAP) and 3-O-ethyl-L-ascorbic acid (AAE), resulted in significant decreases in the tyrosinase activity and melanin content and in the levels of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), indicating that VC and its derivatives possess antimelanogenic and antioxidative activities. Western blotting analysis indicated that VC, MAP, and AAE exert their antimelanogenic activity by inhibiting the tyrosinase activity rather than by downregulating the expression of melanogenic proteins such as tyrosinase, premelanosome protein 17 (Pmel17) and microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF). Further, we found that the reduced tyrosinase activity of melanocytes treated with VC or its derivatives could be reactivated following intracellular neutralization induced by ammonium chloride (NH4Cl) or concanamycin A (Con A). Finally, we examined the expression of sodium-dependent VC transporter-2 (SVCT-2) using western blotting and qPCR, which revealed that there was a significant increase in the expression of SVCT-2 in melanocytes following treatment with VC. VC-mediated intracellular acidification was neutralized by phloretin (a putative SVCT-2 inhibitor) in a dose-dependent manner. Taken together, these data show that VC and its derivatives suppress tyrosinase activity through cytoplasmic acidification that potentially results from enhanced VC transmembrane transport via the VC transporter SVCT-2.
TNFα-Mediated Necroptosis Aggravates Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in the Fatty Liver by Regulating the Inflammatory Response
Authors: Yang Faji , Shang Longcheng , Wang Shuai , Liu Yang , Ren Haozhen , Zhu Wei , Shi Xiaolei
Published: May 2019

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is more sensitive to ischemia and reperfusion injury (IRI), while there are no effective methods to alleviate IRI. Necroptosis, also known as “programmed necrosis,” incorporates features of necrosis and apoptosis. However, the role of necroptosis in IRI of the fatty liver remains largely unexplored. In the present study, we aimed to assess whether necroptosis was activated in the fatty liver and whether such activation accelerated IRI in the fatty liver. In this study, we found that the liver IRI was enhanced in HFD-fed mice with more release of TNFα. TNFα and supernatant of macrophages could induce necroptosis of hepatocytes in vitro. Necroptosis was activated in NAFLD, leading to more severe IRI, and such necroptosis could be inhibited by TN3-19.12, the neutralizing monoclonal antibody against TNFα. Pretreatment with Nec-1 and GSK′872, two inhibitors of necroptosis, significantly reduced the liver IRI and ROS production in HFD-fed mice. Moreover, the inhibition of necroptosis could decrease ROS production of hepatocytes in vitro. Inflammatory response was activated during IRI, and necroptosis inhibitors could suppress signaling pathways of inflammation and the soakage of inflammation cells. In conclusion, TNFα-induced necroptosis played an important role during IRI in the fatty liver. Our findings demonstrated that necroptosis might be a potential target to reduce the fatty liver-associated IRI.
Fracture Resistance of CAD/CAM Lithium Disilicate of Endodontically Treated Mandibular Damaged Molars Based on Different Preparation Designs
Authors: Clausson Carolina , Schroeder Cristiano Clausson , Goloni Paulo Vicenti , Farias Flavio Artur Rego , Passos Leandro , Zanetti Raquel Virgínia
Published: May 2019

The aim of this study was to evaluate the fracture resistance of 2 different types of all-ceramic crown using immediate dentin sealing (IDS), obtained using a CAD/CAM system on molars with different preparations. Forty extracted lower molars were endodontically treated and divided into four groups (n = 10) according to the dental preparation. Group 1 (SP0) was prepared without filling the pulp chamber and crown-root junction was located at the cementoenamel junction (CEJ). Group 2 (SP1) was prepared without filling the pulp chamber and crown-root junction was located 1-mm above the CEJ. Groups 3 and 4 contained a flat preparation surface with no axial wall height. Group 3 (CP0) was made IDS with complete filling of the pulp chamber with composite resin and crown-root junction was located at the CEJ. Group 4 (CP1) was prepared with complete filling of the pulp chamber and crown-root junction was located 1-mm above the CEJ. All groups were restored with CAD/CAM lithium disilicate ceramic crowns. Specimens were subjected to the fracture test and statistically analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA). Fracture mode was determined using a stereoscopic microscope, classified as repairable or nonrepairable, and analyzed using Fischer’s exact test. Results indicated that there were no significant differences between the groups in terms of fracture resistance or fracture pattern (p >0.05). Fracture resistance was the lowest in the SP0 group, followed by the SP1 group (1634.38 N) of CP0 (1821.50 N), and it was the highest in the CP1 group. There was a predominance of nonrepairable fractures and there were no significant differences in the fracture resistance and fracture mode of CAD/CAM lithium disilicate molar all-ceramic crowns. Endodontically treated molars teeth might be restored with endocrowns or all-ceramic crowns on flat preparation; however tooth fracture failures that affect reliability of these types of restorations should be considered.
Surgical Resection of Anastomotic Stenosis after Rectal Cancer Surgery Using a Circular Stapler and Colostomy with Double Orifice
Authors: Imagami Toru , Takayama Satoru , Maeda Yohei , Hattori Taku , Matsui Ryohei , Sakamoto Masaki , Kani Hisanori
Published: May 2019

The double stapling technique has greatly facilitated intestinal reconstruction, particularly for anastomosis after anterior resection. However, anastomotic stenosis may occur, which sometimes requires surgical treatment. Redo surgery with reresection and reanastomosis presents a high risk of complications. Treatment methods need to be selected depending on the degree and location of stenosis. In an effort to propose a new resolution, reporting new cases and sharing valid experiences are necessary. An 82-year-old man diagnosed with rectal cancer had undergone laparoscopic anterior resection. Endoscopic balloon dilation performed for anastomotic stenosis had failed. Therefore, colostomy with double orifice was constructed on the oral side at 10 cm from the stenosis. Approaching from the anal and stoma side, the anastomotic stenosis was resected using a circular stapler. The colostomy was closed 1 month after surgery. Stenosis resection using a circular stapler requires the following steps: (1) passing the center shaft through the stenosis, (2) inserting the anvil head into the oral side of the stenosis, and (3) attaching the anvil head to the center shaft. This method can resect the stenosis using a circular stapler without being affected by postoperative adhesion in the pelvis. Compared to endoscopic balloon dilation, resection of the stricture by the circular stapler is thought to be reliable. This technique is particularly effective for localized stenosis, including anastomotic stenosis. It is considered that this method is minimally invasive and is low risk for complications. This method can contribute to the useful surgical option for refractory anastomotic stenosis after anterior resection.
Protective Effect of the HIF-1A Pro582Ser Polymorphism on Severe Diabetic Retinopathy
Authors: Ekberg Neda Rajamand , Eliasson Sofie , Li Young Wen , Zheng Xiaowei , Chatzidionysiou Katerina , Falhammar Henrik , Gu Harvest F. , Catrina Sergiu-Bogdan
Published: May 2019

Objective. Hypoxia is central in the pathogenesis of diabetic retinopathy (DR). Hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) is the key mediator in cellular oxygen homeostasis that facilitates the adaptation to hypoxia. HIF-1 is repressed by hyperglycemia contributing by this to the development of complications in diabetes. Recent work has shown that the HIF-1A Pro582Ser polymorphism is more resistant to hyperglycemia-mediated repression, thus protecting against the development of diabetic nephropathy. In this study, we have investigated the effect of the HIF-1A Pro582Ser polymorphism on the development of DR and further dissected the mechanisms by which the polymorphism confers a relative resistance to the repressive effect of hyperglycemia. Research Design and Method. 703 patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus from one endocrine department were included in the study. The degree of retinopathy was correlated to the HIF-1A Pro582Ser polymorphism. The effect of glucose on a stable HIF-1A construct with a Pro582Ser mutation was evaluated in vitro. Results. We identified a protective effect of HIF-1A Pro582Ser against developing severe DR with a risk reduction of 95%, even when adjusting for known risk factors for DR such as diabetes duration, hyperglycemia, and hypertension. The Pro582Ser mutation does not cancel the destabilizing effect of glucose but is followed by an increased transactivation activity even in high glucose concentrations. Conclusion. The HIF-1A genetic polymorphism has a protective effect on the development of severe DR. Moreover, the relative resistance of the HIF-1A Pro582Ser polymorphism to the repressive effect of hyperglycemia is due to the transactivation activity rather than the protein stability of HIF-1α.
Uncovering the Pharmacological Mechanism ofChaibei ZhixianDecoction on Epilepsy by Network Pharmacology Analysis
Authors: Zhang Jian , Zheng Chenglong , Yuan Siyuan , Dong Xiaoke , Wang Le , Wang Yong , Wang Wei , Gao Kuo , Liu Jinmin
Published: May 2019

Objective. Epilepsy is a neuronal disorder that is characterized by epileptic seizures and linked with abnormal neural functioning in the brain. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formulaChaibei Zhixiandecoction (CZD) has been widely used for epilepsy in China while the pharmacological mechanisms are still unclear. In the present study, systematic and comprehensive network pharmacology was utilized for the first time to reveal the potential pharmacological mechanisms of CZD on epilepsy.Methods. Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology (TCMSP) database and analysis platform was utilized for the development of an ingredients-targets database. After identifying epileptic targets of CZD, their interaction with other proteins was estimated based on protein-protein interaction network created from STITCH and gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis utilizing Cytoscape-ClueGO plugin.Results. CZD formula was found to have 643 chemical ingredients, and the potential protein targets of these ingredients were 5230, as retrieved from TCMSP database. Twenty-six protein targets were found to be associated with epilepsy. Thirteen hub genes were regulated by CZD in epilepsy, including estradiol, ESR1, ESR2, SRC, CTNNB1, EP300, MAPK1, MAPK3, SP1, BRCA1, NCOA3, CHRM1, and GSK3B. The results of GO terms analysis showed that 8 GO terms were recovered in the form of 3 clusters, including negative regulation of protein kinase B signaling, positive regulation of interleukin-1 production, and microvillus assembly.Conclusions. Network pharmacology approach provides better understanding of the underlying pharmacological mechanisms of CZD on epilepsy. Estradiol, ESR1, ESR2, CTNNB1, EP300, MAPK1, MAPK3, BRCA1, and GSK3B are likely to be important molecules regulated by CZD in treatment of epilepsy. Negative regulation of protein kinase B signaling may play vital roles in the treatment of epilepsy by CZD.
Magneto Jeffrey Nanofluid Bioconvection over a Rotating Vertical Cone due to Gyrotactic Microorganism
Authors: Saleem S. , Rafiq Hunza , Al-Qahtani A. , El-Aziz Mohamed Abd , Malik M. Y. , Animasaun I. L.
Published: May 2019

The particular inquiry is made to envision the behavioral characteristics of gyrotactic microorganism effects on the MHD flow of Jeffrey nanofluid. Together the nanoparticles and motile microorganism are inducted into the modeled nonlinear differential equations. The optimal solutions for the governing equations are tackled by optimal homotopy analysis method. The physical characteristics of the relatable parameters are explored and deliberated in terms of graphs and numerical charts. Also, the precision of the present findings is certified by equating them with the previously published work. It is explored that rescaled density of the motile microorganisms contracts with bioconvection Peclet number Pe. It is seen that bioconvection Rayleigh number Rb shrinks the magnitude of tangential velocity. Also, bioconvection Schmidt number Sb augments the reduced density number of the motile microorganisms.
Optimizing Transportation Network of Recovering End-of-Life Vehicles by Compromising Program in Polymorphic Uncertain Environment
Authors: Zhang Jing , Liu Jingjing , Wan Zhong
Published: May 2019

With rapid development of technology and improvement of living standards, the per capita holding of automobiles greatly increases, and the amount of end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) becomes larger and larger such that it is valuable to investigate an effective strategy for recycling ELVs from the viewpoints of environmental protection and resource utilization. In this paper, an optimization model with fuzzy and stochastic parameters is built to formulate the transportation planning problems of recycling ELVs in polymorphic uncertain environment, where the unit processing and transportation costs, the selling price of reused items, and the fixed cost are all fuzzy, while the demand in secondary market and the production capacity are random owing to features underlying the practical data. For this complicated polymorphic uncertain optimization model, a unified compromising approach is proposed to hedge the uncertainty of this model such that some powerful optimization algorithms can be applied to make an optimal recycling plan. Then, an interactive algorithm is developed to find a compromising solution of the uncertain model. Numerical results show efficiency of the algorithm and a number of important managerial insights are revealed from the proposed model by scenario analysis and sensitivity analysis.
Genotyping Based on the LTR Region of Small Ruminant Lentiviruses from Naturally Infected Sheep and Goats from Mexico
Authors: Mendiola Wolfang P. S. , Tórtora Jorge L. , Martínez Humberto A. , García María M. , Cuevas-Romero Sandra , Cerriteño José L. , Ramírez Hugo
Published: May 2019

Small ruminant lentiviruses (SRLVs) belong to the genusLentivirusin the Retroviridae family. There are five genotypes (A, B, C, D, and E), where genotypes A and B have a global distribution and genotypes C, D, and E are limited to Europe. The presence of SRLV has been confirmed in Mexico, with genotype B detected in the central region of the country. We examined the presence of SRLVs and genotype prevalence in 1014 sheep and 1383 goats from 12 Mexican states. Using a commercial competitive ELISA (cELISA) test, we detected SRLV antibodies in 107 sheep (10.55%) and 466 goats (33.69%). We used an endpoint PCR to amplify the LTR region on seropositive animals. A total of 50 sheep and 75 goats tested positive via PCR. Positive amplicons from 11 sheep and 17 goats from ten Mexican States were cloned and sequenced. With the LTR sequence data obtained in this study, a phylogenetic analysis was performed; we also constructed a phylogenetic tree using the obtained sequences and GenBank’s available sequences. All studied sequences were associated with genotype B, specifically with the FESC-752 isolate previously identified in Mexico. Highly conserved transcription factor binding sites were observed in analyzed alignments, such as AML (vis), AP-4, and TATA box. However, we identified nucleotide differences at site AP-1 that suggest function loss. Our study found that ovine and caprine genotype B SRLVs are widely distributed in Mexico; a highly conserved LTR region among the sequences evaluated in this study was also found.
microRNA and Other Small RNA Sequence Profiling across Six Tissues of Chinese Forest Musk Deer (Moschus berezovskii)
Authors: Jie Hang , Zhang Pu , Xu Zhongxian , Mishra Shailendra Kumar , Lei Meiyan , Zeng Dejun , Zhao Guijun , Li Diyan
Published: May 2019

The Chinese forest musk deer (Moschus berezovskii) is an economically important species distributed throughout southwest China and northern Vietnam. Occurrence and development of disease are aggravated by inbreeding and genetic diversity declines in captive musk deer populations. Deep transcriptomics investigation may provide a promising way to improve genetic health of captive and wild FMD population. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), which regulate gene expression by targeting and suppressing of mRNAs, play an important role in physiology and organism development control. In this study, RNA-seq technology was adopted to characterize the miRNA transcriptome signature among six tissues (heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidney, and muscle) in Chinese forest musk deer at two years of age. Deep sequencing generated a total of 103,261,451 (~87.87%) good quality small RNA reads; of them 6,622,520 were unique across all six tissues. A total of 2890 miRNAs were identified, among them 1129 were found to be expressed in all tissues. Moreover, coexpression of 20 miRNAs (>2000RPM) in all six tissues and top five highly expressed miRNAs in each tissue implied the crucial and particular function of them in FMD physiological processes. Our findings of forest musk deer miRNAs supplement the database of transcriptome information for this species and conduce to our understanding of forest musk deer biology.
Preliminary Results of the Development of a Single-Frequency GNSS RTK-Based Autonomous Driving System for a Speed Sprayer
Authors: Han Joong-hee , Park Chi-ho , Park Young-Jin , Kwon Jay Hyoun
Published: May 2019

The speed sprayer plays an important role in fruit orchards as it undertakes spraying to prevent damage by blight and harmful insects. Although farmers who use speed sprayers wear protective devices, pesticide poisoning incidents and damage can occur when pesticides penetrate the skin. In addition, skilled manpower in agriculture is decreasing due to aging populations in farming villages. To overcome these problems, we aim to develop an autonomous driving system using a single-frequency GNSS RTK for commercialization of an autonomous driving speed sprayer. Therefore, in this study, path generation and a tracking system based on the single-frequency GNSS RTK are developed and the preliminary results of tests of this system are analyzed. The field test of the developed system showed positional accuracy of 0.01 m.
Forward Kinematics and Workspace Determination of a Novel Redundantly Actuated Parallel Manipulator
Authors: Zhang Haiqiang , Fang Hairong , Zhang Dan , Luo Xueling , Zou Qi
Published: May 2019

This paper presents a novel redundantly actuated 2RPU-2SPR parallel manipulator that can be employed to form a five-axis hybrid kinematic machine tool for large heterogeneous complex structural component machining in aerospace field. On the contrary to series manipulators, the parallel manipulator has the potential merits of high stiffness, high speed, excellent dynamic performance, and complicated surface processing capability. First, by resorting to the screw theory, the degree of freedom of the proposed parallel manipulator is briefly addressed with general configuration and verified by Grübler-Kutzbach (G-K) criteria as well. Next, the inverse kinematics solution for such manipulator is deduced in detail; however, the forward kinematics is mathematically intractable. To deal with such problem, the forward kinematics is solved by means of three back propagation (BP) neural network optimization strategies. The remarkable simulation results of the parallel manipulator demonstrate that the BP neural network with position compensation is an appropriate method for solving the forward kinematics because of its various advantages, such as high efficiency and high convergence ratios. Simultaneously, workspaces, including joint space and workspace of the proposed parallel manipulator, are graphically depicted based on the previous research, which illustrate that the proposed manipulator is a good candidate for engineering practical application.
The Weighted Fractional Fourier Transform and Its Application in Image Encryption
Authors: Zhao Tieyu , Ran Qiwen
Published: May 2019

With the rapid development of information, the requirements for the security and reliability of cryptosystems have become increasingly difficult to meet, which promotes the development of the theory of a class of fractional Fourier transforms. In this paper, we present a review of the development and applications of the weighted fractional Fourier transform (WFRFT) in image encryption. Relationships between the algorithms are established using the generalized permutation matrix group in theoretical analysis. In addition, the advantages and potential weaknesses of each algorithm in image encryption are analyzed and discussed. It is expected that this review will provide a clear picture of the current developments of the WFRFT in image encryption and may shed some light on future developments.
Anonymous and Efficient Message Authentication Scheme for Smart Grid
Authors: Wu Libing , Wang Jing , Zeadally Sherali , He Debiao
Published: May 2019

Smart grid has emerged as the next-generation electricity grid with power flow optimization and high power quality. Smart grid technologies have attracted the attention of industry and academia in the last few years. However, the tradeoff between security and efficiency remains a challenge in the practical deployment of the smart grid. Most recently, Li et al. proposed a lightweight message authentication scheme with user anonymity and claimed that their scheme is provably secure. But we found that their scheme fails to achieve mutual authentication and mitigate some typical attacks (e.g., impersonation attack, denial of service attack) in the smart grid environment. To address these drawbacks, we present a new message authentication scheme with reasonable efficiency. Security and performance analysis results show that the proposed scheme can satisfy the security and lightweight requirements of practical implementations and deployments of the smart grid.