bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effect of CETP inhibition with evacetrapib in patients with diabetes mellitus enrolled in the ACCELERATE trial
Authors: Menon Venu , Kumar Anirudh , Patel Divyang R , St John Julie , Riesmeyer Jeffrey , Weerakkody Govinda , Ruotolo Giacomo , Wolski Kathy E , McErlean Ellen , Cremer Paul C , Nicholls Stephen J , Lincoff A Michael , Nissen Steven E
Published: March 2020

Background

High-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels are inversely associated with cardiovascular risk. Cholesteryl ester transfer protein inhibition with evacetrapib results in a marked increase in HDL and reduction in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels. We evaluated the impact of treatment with evacetrapib versus placebo in the subset of 8236 patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) enrolled in the Assessment of Clinical Effects of Cholesteryl Ester Transfer Protein Inhibition with Evacetrapib in Patients at a High Risk for Vascular Outcomes trial.

Methods and results

Time to first occurrence of any component of the primary composite endpoint of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke, revascularization, and hospitalization for unstable angina was compared among patients with DM randomized to treatment with evacetrapib (n=4127) or placebo (n=4109) over a median of 26 months of follow-up. The mean baseline LDL at initiation was 80 mg/dL with a mean baseline HDL of 44 mg/dL. In patients with DM, evacetrapib resulted in a 131% mean increase in HDL levels and a 32% mean decrease in LDL at 3 months that was sustained during the course of the trial. At 6 months, hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels were lower with evacetrapib than placebo (7.08% vs 7.15%, p=0.023). Composite event rates were higher in patients with DM than without DM (Kaplan-Meier estimates: 15.2% vs 10.6%, HR 1.46, 95% CI 1.30 to 1.64, p<0.001). In the DM group, event rates for the composite endpoint (14.5% evacetrapib vs 16% placebo, HR 0.95, 95% CI 0.85 to 1.07, p=0.38) and individual components of the composite were similar for both evacetrapib and placebo groups. No significant treatment interaction between treatment assignment and diabetes status was noted.

Conclusion

Despite a favorable increase in HDL, and decreases in LDL and HbA1c levels in patients with DM, we observed no benefits of treatment with evacetrapib on prespecified clinical outcomes in this high-risk population.
Interventions to improve quantitative measures of parent satisfaction in neonatal care: a systematic review
Authors: Sakonidou Susanna , Andrzejewska Izabela , Webbe James , Modi Neena , Bell Derek , Gale Chris
Published: March 2020

Objective

Interventions improving parent satisfaction can reduce parent stress, may improve parent-infant bonding and infant outcomes. Our objective was to systematically review neonatal interventions relating to parents of infants of all gestations where an outcome was parent satisfaction.

Methods

We searched the databases MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsychINFO, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, CINAHL, HMIC, Maternity and Infant Care between 1 January 1946 and 1 October 2017. Inclusion criteria were randomised controlled trials (RCT), cohort studies and other non-randomised studies if participants were parents of infants receiving neonatal care, interventions were implemented in neonatal units (of any care level) and ≥1 quantitative outcome of parent satisfaction was measured. Included studies were limited to the English language only. We extracted study characteristics, interventions, outcomes and parent involvement in intervention design. Included studies were not sufficiently homogenous to enable quantitative synthesis. We assessed quality with the Cochrane Collaboration risk of bias tool (randomised) and the ROBINS-I tool (Risk Of Bias In Non-randomised Studies - of Interventions) (non-randomised studies).

Results

We identified 32 studies with satisfaction measures from over 2800 parents and grouped interventions into 5 themes. Most studies were non-randomised involving preterm infants. Parent satisfaction was measured by 334 different questions in 29 questionnaires (only 6/29 fully validated). 18/32 studies reported higher parent satisfaction in the intervention group. The intervention theme with most studies reporting higher satisfaction was parent involvement (10/14). Five (5/32) studies reported involving parents in intervention design. All studies had high risk of bias.

Conclusions

Many interventions, commonly relating to parent involvement, are reported to improve parent satisfaction. Inconsistency in satisfaction measurements and high risk of bias makes this low-quality evidence. Standardised, validated parent satisfaction measures are needed, as well as higher quality trials of parent experience involving parents in intervention design.

PROSPERO registration number

CRD42017072388.
Asylum seeking children and adolescents in Australian immigration detention on Nauru: a longitudinal cohort study
Authors: Zwi Karen , Sealy Louise , Samir Nora , Hu Nan , Rostami Reza , Agrawal Rishi , Cherian Sarah , Coleman Jacinta , Francis Josh , Gunasekera Hasantha , Isaacs David , Larcombe Penny , Levitt David , Mares Sarah , Mutch Raewyn , Newman Louise , Raman Shanti , Young Helen , Norwood Christy , Lingam Raghu
Published: March 2020

Introduction

Immigration detention has a profound and negative impact on the physical health, mental health, development and social-emotional well-being of children, adolescents and their families. Australian clinicians will report results from detailed health and well-being assessments of asylum seeking children and adolescents who have experienced prolonged immigration detention.

Methods and analysis

This is a national, multicentre study with a longitudinal cohort design that will document health and well-being outcomes of the children and adolescents who have been detained in offshore detention on the remote island of Nauru. Outcome measures will be reported from the time arrival in Australia and repeated over a 5-year follow-up period. Measures include demographics, residency history and refugee status, physical health and well-being outcomes (including mental health, development and social-emotional well-being), clinical service utilisation and psychosocial risk and protective factors for health and well-being (eg, adverse childhood experiences). Longitudinal follow-up will capture outcomes over a 5-year period after arrival in Australia. Analysis will be undertaken to explore baseline risk and protective factors, with regression analyses to assess their impact on health and well-being outcomes. To understand how children’s outcomes change over time, multilevel regression analysis will be utilised. Structural equation modelling will be conducted to explore the correlation between baseline factors, mediational factors and outcomes to assess trajectories over time.

Ethics and dissemination

This research project was approved by the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network Human Research Ethics Committee. Subsequent site-specific approvals have been approved in 5 of the 11 governing bodies where the clinical consultations took place. In order to ensure this research is relevant and sensitive to the needs of the cohort, our research team includes an asylum seeker who has spent time in Australian immigration detention. Results will be presented at conferences and published in peer-reviewed Medline-indexed journals.
Nationwide, population-based study of school grades in practical and aesthetic subjects of children treated for brain tumour
Authors: Lönnerblad Malin , van't Hooft Ingrid , Blomgren Klas , Berglund Eva
Published: March 2020

Background

Children treated for brain tumour (hereafter termed paediatric brain tumour survivors (PBTS)) often need extra support in school because of late-appearing side effects after their treatment. We explored how this group of children perform in the five practical and aesthetic (PRAEST) subjects: home and consumer studies, physical education and health, art, crafts and music.

Methods

In this nationwide population-based study of data from the Swedish Childhood Cancer Registry and Statistics Sweden, we included 475 children born between 1988 and 1996, diagnosed with a brain tumour before their 15th birthday. We compared their grades in PRAEST subjects with those of 2197 matched controls. We also investigated if there were any differences between girls and boys, children diagnosed at different ages, and children with high-grade or low-grade tumours.

Results

The odds for failing a subject were two to three times higher for girls treated for a brain tumour compared with their controls in all five PRAEST subjects, whereas there were no significant differences between the boys and their controls in any subject. PBTS had lower average grades from year 9 in all PRAEST subjects, and girls differed from their controls in all five subjects, while boys differed in physical education and health and music. PBTS treated for high-grade tumours neither did have significantly different average grades nor did they fail a subject to a significantly higher extent than PBTS treated for low-grade tumours.

Conclusions

Children treated for a brain tumour, especially girls, are at risk of lower average grades or failing PRAEST subjects. All children treated for brain tumour may need extra support as these subjects are important for their well-being and future skills.
Treatment of severe acute malnutrition with oat or standard ready-to-use therapeutic food: a triple-blind, randomised controlled clinical trial
Authors: Hendrixson David Taylor , Godbout Claire , Los Alyssa , Callaghan-Gillespie Meghan , Mui Melody , Wegner Donna , Bryant Taylor , Koroma Aminata , Manary Mark J
Published: March 2020

Objective

We hypothesised that an alternative RUTF (ready-to-use therapeutic food) made with oats (oat-RUTF) would be non-inferior to standard RUTF (s-RUTF).

Design

This was a randomised, triple-blind, controlled, clinical non-inferiority trial comparing oat-RUTF to s-RUTF in rural Sierra Leone. Children aged 6–59 months with severe acute malnutrition (SAM) were randomised to oat-RUTF or s-RUTF. s-RUTF was composed of milk powder, sugar, peanut paste and vegetable oil, with a hydrogenated vegetable oil additive. Oat-RUTF contained oats and no hydrogenated vegetable oil additives. The primary outcome was graduation, an increase in anthropometric measurements such that the child was not acutely malnourished. Secondary outcomes were rates of growth, time to graduation and presence of adverse events. Intention to treat analyses was used.

Results

Of the 1406 children were enrolled, graduation was attained in 404/721 (56%) children receiving oat-RUTF and 311/685 (45%) receiving s-RUTF (difference 10.6%, 95% CI 5.4% to 15.8%). Death, hospitalisation or remaining with SAM was seen in 87/721 (12%) receiving oat-RUTF and in 125/685 (18%) receiving s-RUTF (difference 6.2%, 95% CI 2.3 to 10.0, p=0.001). Time to graduation was less for children receiving oat RUTF; 3.9±1.8 versus 4.5±1.8 visits, respectively (p<0.001). Rates of weight in the oat-RUTF group were greater than in the s-RUTF group; 3.4±2.7 versus 2.5±2.3 g/kg/d, p<0.001.

Conclusion

Oat-RUTF is superior to s-RUTF in the treatment of SAM in Sierra Leone. We speculate that might be because of beneficial bioactive components or the absence of hydrogenated vegetable oil in oat-RUTF.

Trial registration number

NCT03407326.
Role of advanced left ventricular imaging in adults with aortic stenosis
Authors: Calin Andreea , Mateescu Anca D , Popescu Andreea C , Bing Rong , Dweck Marc R , Popescu Bogdan A
Published: March 2020

This review focuses on the available data regarding the utility of advanced left ventricular (LV) imaging in aortic stenosis (AS) and its potential impact for optimising the timing of aortic valve replacement. Ejection fraction is currently the only LV parameter recommended to guide intervention in AS. The cut-off value of 50%, recommended for decision-making in asymptomatic patients with AS, is currently under debate. Several imaging parameters have emerged as predictors of disease progression and clinical outcomes in this setting. Global longitudinal LV strain by speckle tracking echocardiography is useful for risk stratification of asymptomatic patients with severe AS and preserved LV ejection fraction. Its prognostic value was demonstrated in these patients, but further work is required to define the best thresholds to aid the decision-making process. The assessment of myocardial fibrosis is the most studied application of cardiac magnetic resonance in AS. The detection of replacement fibrosis by late gadolinium enhancement offers incremental prognostic information in these patients. Clinical implementation of this technique to optimise the timing of aortic valve intervention in asymptomatic patients is currently tested in a randomised trial. The use of T1 mapping techniques can provide an assessment of interstitial myocardial fibrosis and represents an expanding field of interest. However, convincing data in patients with AS is still lacking. All these imaging parameters have substantial potential to influence the management decision in patients with AS in the future, but data from randomised clinical trials are awaited to define their utility in daily practice.
A first-in-human phase 1 dose escalation study of spartalizumab (PDR001), an anti–PD-1 antibody, in patients with advanced solid tumors
Authors: Naing Aung , Gainor Justin F , Gelderblom Hans , Forde Patrick M , Butler Marcus O , Lin Chia-Chi , Sharma Sunil , Ochoa de Olza Maria , Varga Andrea , Taylor Matthew , Schellens Jan H M , Wu Hongqian , Sun Haiying , Silva Antonio P , Faris Jason , Mataraza Jennifer , Cameron Scott , Bauer Todd M
Published: March 2020

Background

Spartalizumab is a humanized IgG4κ monoclonal antibody that binds programmed death-1 (PD-1) and blocks its interaction with PD-L1 and PD-L2. This phase 1/2 study was designed to assess the safety, pharmacokinetics, and preliminary efficacy of spartalizumab in patients with advanced or metastatic solid tumors.

Methods

In the phase 1 part of the study, 58 patients received spartalizumab, intravenously, at doses of 1, 3, or 10 mg/kg, administered every 2 weeks (Q2W), or 3 or 5 mg/kg every 4 weeks (Q4W).

Results

Patients had a wide range of tumor types, most commonly sarcoma (28%) and metastatic renal cell carcinoma (10%); other tumor types were reported in ≤3 patients each. Most patients (93%) had received prior antineoplastic therapy (median three prior lines) and two-thirds of the population had tumor biopsies negative for PD-L1 expression at baseline. The maximum tolerated dose was not reached. The recommended phase 2 doses were selected as 400 mg Q4W or 300 mg Q3W. No dose-limiting toxicities were observed, and adverse events included those typical of other PD-1 antibodies. The most common treatment-related adverse events of any grade were fatigue (22%), diarrhea (17%), pruritus (14%), hypothyroidism (10%), and nausea (10%). Partial responses occurred in two patients (response rate 3.4%); one with atypical carcinoid tumor of the lung and one with anal cancer. Paired tumor biopsies from patients taken at baseline and on treatment suggested an on-treatment increase in CD8+ lymphocyte infiltration in patients with clinical benefit.

Conclusions

Spartalizumab was well tolerated at all doses tested in patients with previously treated advanced solid tumors. On-treatment immune activation was seen in tumor biopsies; however, limited clinical activity was reported in this heavily pretreated, heterogeneous population. The phase 2 part of this study is ongoing in select tumor types.

Trial registration number

NCT02404441.
Impact of the occupational environment of a submerged submarine on cardiometabolic health of Royal Navy submariners
Authors: Gunner Frances , Lindsay Michael , Brown Pieter , Shaw Anneliese , Davey Trish , Lanham-New Susan , Griffin Bruce , Fallowfield Joanne
Published: March 2020

Objective

To determine the effect of prolonged exposure to a submarine environment on biomarkers of cardiometabolic risk in Royal Navy (RN) submariners.

Methods

Serum lipids (cholesterol (C), triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), non-HDL-C), glucose, insulin and anthropometrics were compared within three RN submarine crews before and after submerged patrols of 12 or 6 weeks, and with a crew that remained ashore (SUB-HOME). Dietary intake and activity patterns were self-reported during each patrol. Differences were assessed in crew characteristics using one-way analysis of variance and in serum lipids using paired t-tests.

Results

Postpatrol, the mean body weight of submerged crews decreased (−1.4±4.2 kg, p=0.0001), but increased in SUB-HOME (1.9±1.8 kg, p=0.0001). Modest improvements in serum lipids (mean individual change (mmol/L); C=−0.3±0.7, p=0.0001; TG=−0.3±0.7, p=0.0001; HDL-C=−0.1±0.3, p=0.0001; non-HDL-C=−0.2±0.6, p=0.012), glucose (−0.2±0.5, p=0.0001) and insulin (−1.5±4.6 mU/L, p=0.001) were observed in submerged crews. Changes in serum lipids were positively associated with changes in body weight within crews combined. Energy intake was maintained during submerged patrols but was lower compared with non-submerged (11 139±2792 vs. 9617±2466 kJ, p=0.001; 11 062±2775 vs. 9632±2682 kJ, p=0.003).

Conclusions

The environment of a submerged submarine produced no adverse effects on serum biomarkers of cardiometabolic risk in crew. Conversely, modest improvements in these biomarkers were associated with a decrease in body weight.
Exploration of pathophysiological pathways for incident atrial fibrillation using a multiplex proteomic chip
Authors: Molvin John , Jujic Amra , Melander Olle , Pareek Manan , Råstam Lennart , Lindblad Ulf , Daka Bledar , Leosdottir Margret , Nilsson Peter , Olsen Michael , Magnusson Martin
Published: March 2020

Objective

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia and associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Its increasing prevalence calls for novel biomarkers to identify underlying pathophysiological mechanisms as well as patients at risk.

Methods

Plasma samples from 1694 individuals from the Swedish population-based Malmö Preventive Project (mean age 69.5 years; 29.3% female; mean follow-up time 9.7±3.1 years) were analysed with the Olink proximity extension assay CVD III panel consisting of 92 proteins to identify proteins associated with incident AF or atrial flutter, referred to as incident AF. Incident cases of AF (n=278) were retrieved by linkage to the registers. Participants were followed until the first episode of AF or until censoring by death or emigration. Bonferroni-corrected multivariable Cox regression models adjusted for known risk factors were used to explore possible associations of the 92 proteins and incidence of AF.

Results

Multivariable Cox regression analyses of 11 proteins associated with incident AF (mean follow-up time 9.7±3.1 years) after Bonferroni correction confirmed N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (HR per 1 SD increment (95% CI) 1.80 (1.58 to 2.04); p=1.2×10−19) as risk marker of incident AF. Further, matrix metalloproteinase-2 (1.22 (1.07 to 1.39); p=0.002) and osteopontin (1.27 (1.12 to 1.44); p=2.7×10−4) were associated with incident AF at follow-up independently of traditional risk markers and NT-proBNP.

Conclusion

In a general Swedish population, we confirmed the well-known association of NT-proBNP with incident AF and also identified matrix metalloproteinase-2 and osteopontin as novel risk markers for incident AF, independently of traditional risk factors and NT-proBNP.
Redefining spatial population structure of winter flounder (Pseudopleuronectes americanus): implications for stock assessment and management
Authors: Siskey Matthew R. , Frisk Michael G. , Cerrato Robert M. , Limburg Karin E.
Published: March 2020

The southern New England – mid-Atlantic (SNE–MA) stock of winter flounder (Pseudopleuronectes americanus) collapsed in the 1990s without discernable recovery to date. Owing to the lack of recovery, consideration of population subcomponents, which are currently ignored in fisheries stock structure definitions, may be necessary for rebuilding. We used the otolith chemistry tracer manganese–calcium ratios (Mn/Ca) to estimate inshore- versus ocean-nursery contributions of 77.3%/22.7% in SNE–MA, 15.7%/84.3% in the Gulf of Maine (GOM), and 60.0%/40.0% in Georges Bank (GB). In addition, we used strontium–calcium ratios (Sr/Ca) to estimate migratory- and resident-contingent membership of nursery-classified fish. Across all stocks, 30.2% of fish were classified as bay residents, 25.2% as bay migrants, 25.8% as ocean residents, and 18.8% as ocean migrants. Finally, model selection indicated that both nursery-specific and contingent-specific growth models were more appropriate than a common model. Nursery-specific models exhibited increasing deviations in length with age. Contingent-specific model reflected moderate differences at the youngest ages but convergence at older ages. These findings are informative for the population structure and migration ecology of winter flounder; however, simulation is required to determine whether partial migration and substock structure are necessary inputs for sustainable fisheries management.
An algebraic input–output equation for planar RRRP and PRRP linkages
Authors: Rotzoll Mirja , Hayes M. John D. , Husty Manfred L.
Published: March 2020

In this paper, the algebraic input–output (IO) equations for planar RRRP and PRRP linkages are derived by mapping the linkage displacement constraints into Study’s soma coordinates and then using tangent half-angle substitutions to transform the trigonometric into algebraic expressions. Both equations are found to be equivalent to the one that has already been derived for RRRR linkages, giving exciting new insight into kinematic analysis and synthesis of planar four-bar linkages. The algebraic properties of the IO curve equations yield information regarding the topology of the linkage, such as the sliding position limits of the prismatic joints and (or) the angle limits of the rotational joints. Additionally, the utility of the equations is successfully demonstrated with two approximate synthesis examples.
Erratum to: $$\hbox {BHLS}_{2}$$, a new breaking of the HLS model and its phenomenology
Authors: Benayoun M. , DelBuono L. , Jegerlehner F.
Published: March 2020

The original version of this article was revised.
The perturbative approach for the weak deflection angle
Authors: Jia Junji
Published: March 2020

Both null and timelike rays experience trajectory bending in a gravitational field. In this work, we systematically develop a perturbative method to compute the deflection angle of rays with general velocity v in arbitrary static and spherically symmetric spacetimes and in equatorial plane of arbitrary static and axisymmetric spacetimes. We show that the expansion in the large closest approach $$x_0$$x0 limit depends on the asymptotic behavior of the metric functions only, and the generated integrand is always integrable, resulting in a deflection angle in a series form of either $$x_0$$x0 or b, the impact parameter. Using this method, the deflection angles as series of both $$x_0$$x0 and b are found in Schwarzschild, Reissner–Nordström and Kerr–Newman spacetimes to 17-th, 15-th and 6-th orders respectively, for both lightrays and particles with general velocity. The effects of the impact parameter, velocity and other parameters of the spacatimes are briefly analyzed. Moreover, we show that for spacetimes whose metric functions are only asymptotically known, the deflection angle in the weak field limit can also be calculated. Furthermore, it is shown that the deflection angle in general static and spherically symmetric spacetime and equatorial plane of static and axisymmetric spacetime to the lowest non-trivial order, depends only on the impact parameter, velocity of the particle, and the effective ADM mass of the spacetime but not on other parameters such as charge or angular momentum. These deflection angles are used in an exact gravitational lensing equation and the corresponding apparent angles of the images of the source are also solved perturbatively.
Hermite collocation method for obtaining the chaotic behavior of a nonlinear coupled system of FDEs
Authors: Khader M. M. , Babatin Mohammed M.
Published: March 2020

This paper is devoted to introduce an efficient solver using the Hermite collocation technique (HCT), of the coupled system of fractional differential equations (FDEs). The given systems are of basic importance in modeling various phenomena like Cascades and Compartment Analysis, Pond Pollution, Home Heating, Chemostats, and Microorganism Culturing, Nutrient Flow in an Aquarium, Biomass Transfer, Forecasting Prices, Electrical Network, Earthquake Effects on Buildings. The proposed method reduces the system of FDEs to a system of algebraic equations in the coefficients of the expansion using the Hermite polynomials. The introduced method is computer oriented and provides highly accurate solution. To demonstrate the efficiency of the method, two examples are solved and the results are displayed graphically. Finally, we convert the presented coupled systems from the case of its standard form to a first-order ordinary differential equations to compare the obtained numerical solutions with those solutions using the fourth-order Runge–Kutta method (RK4).
Simulation of three types of nanoparticles on solar cell structure model
Authors: Shabat Mohammed. M. , Nassar Salah A. , Schaadt Daniel M.
Published: March 2020

In this paper, we systemically and numerically investigate the effects of three types of Nanoparticles on the efficiency of solar cells. Finite Difference Time Domain method has been implemented to compute the absorption spectra in such proposed solar cell structure. High efficiency has been achieved by optimizing the nanoparticles layer by tuning the fraction of nanoparticles on the host layer.
Combined Evidence of MFCC and CRP Features Using Machine Learning Algorithms for Singer Identification
Authors: Rajesh Sangeetha , Nalini N. J.
Published: March 2020

Singer identification is a challenging task in music information retrieval because of the combined instrumental music with the singing voice. The previous approaches focus on identification of singers based on individual features extracted from the music clips. The objective of this work is to combine Mel Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC) and Chroma DCT-reduced Pitch (CRP) features for singer identification system (SID) using machine learning techniques. The proposed system has mainly two phases. In the feature extraction phase, MFCC, [Formula: see text]MFCC, [Formula: see text]MFCC and CRP features are extracted from the music clips. In the identification phase, extracted features are trained with Bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory (BLSTM)-based Recurrent Neural Networks (RNN) and Convolution Neural Networks (CNN) and tested to identify different singer classes. The identification accuracy and Equal Error Rate (EER) are used as performance measures. Further, the experiments also demonstrate the effectiveness of score level fusion of MFCC and CRP feature in the singer identification system. Also, the experimental results are compared with the baseline system using support vector machines (SVM).
Freeze-out scenarios in small systems at RHIC and LHC energies
Authors: Panda Susil Kumar , Samanta Subhasis , Dash Ajay Kumar , Singh Ranbir , Paikaray Rita , Mohanty Bedangadas
Published: March 2020

We study the hadronic yields produced in two small collision systems [Formula: see text] at [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]TeV and [Formula: see text] at [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]TeV, and extracted the chemical freeze-out (CFO) parameters. The CFO parameters are obtained using a hadron resonance gas (HRG) model and in this study present the system size dependence of the parameters. We observe that with the strangeness suppression factor [Formula: see text] included in the model, a single freeze-out scenario can describe hadronic yields for all the centralities of [Formula: see text] collision at [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]TeV, indicating that the strange hadrons have not reached full equilibrium. On the other hand, for small average charged particle multiplicity ([Formula: see text]) bins of [Formula: see text] collision at [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]TeV strangeness is not fully equilibrated whereas strangeness equilibration seems to be reached in large [Formula: see text]. For both the collision systems, no significant system volume dependence of the temperature has been observed. However, in comparable [Formula: see text] values, temperatures are 10–20[Formula: see text]MeV larger for [Formula: see text] collision compared to [Formula: see text] collision. We observe that the volume of the system at the CFO increases with increase of charge multiplicity for both the collisions. The increase is much steeper in [Formula: see text] collision at [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]TeV than [Formula: see text] collision at [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]TeV. Further, we analyze the transverse momentum ([Formula: see text]) spectra of different hadrons produced in [Formula: see text] collision at [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]TeV in a combined freeze-out scenario. We show the [Formula: see text] dependence of freeze-out parameters. It is observed that with [Formula: see text] included in the model, a single freeze-out scheme can describe the [Formula: see text] spectra. For similar [Formula: see text] values, [Formula: see text] in both the collision systems are close to each other and overall values of [Formula: see text] increase with increase of [Formula: see text]. Unlike CFO scenario using the produced hadron yields only, freeze-out temperature in combined scenario of chemical and kinetic freeze-out, obtained from [Formula: see text] spectra, increases with increase of [Formula: see text]. For smaller [Formula: see text] values, the temperature in [Formula: see text] collision at [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]TeV is similar to that of [Formula: see text] collision at [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]TeV. However, temperatures are larger in [Formula: see text] collision than [Formula: see text] collision at larger [Formula: see text] values.
On the number of Sylow subgroups in finite simple groups
Authors: Wu Zhenfeng
Published: March 2020

Denote by [Formula: see text] the number of Sylow [Formula: see text]-subgroups of [Formula: see text]. For every subgroup [Formula: see text] of [Formula: see text], it is easy to see that [Formula: see text], but [Formula: see text] does not divide [Formula: see text] in general. Following [W. Guo and E. P. Vdovin, Number of Sylow subgroups in finite groups, J. Group Theory 21(4) (2018) 695–712], we say that a group [Formula: see text] satisfies DivSyl(p) if [Formula: see text] divides [Formula: see text] for every subgroup [Formula: see text] of [Formula: see text]. In this paper, we show that “almost for every” finite simple group [Formula: see text], there exists a prime [Formula: see text] such that [Formula: see text] does not satisfy DivSyl(p).
Hybrid optimization-based pilot scheduling for reducing pilot contamination in massive MIMO systems
Authors: Pradeep Kumar Ambala , Srinivasulu Tadisetty
Published: March 2020

Massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) is an emerging technology used in next-generation cellular networks. The major challenge in the massive MIMO system is the pilot contamination. The contamination of the pilot sequences causes inaccurate channel estimation leading to huge errors in the transmissions. This paper proposes an approach for pilot contamination reduction in massive MIMO systems. In order to reduce the pilot contamination, a pilot scheduling algorithm is devised by proposing an optimization algorithm named Elephant-based Spider Monkey Optimization (ESMO) for scheduling the pilots. The proposed ESMO is designed by combining Elephant Herding Optimization (EHO) into Spider Monkey Optimization (SMO). The pilot scheduling approach employs proposed ESMO and user degradation for scheduling the pilots. Moreover, the optimal pilot scheduling is carried out using the newly devised fitness function that considers achievable rate using various user grouping parameters, such as utility function, and grouping parameter. Thus, the proposed ESMO-based pilot scheduling and fitness function are responsible for initiating optimal pilot scheduling. The performance of the proposed method is compared with the existing methods, and the proposed ESMO outperformed the existing methods with maximal achievable rate value of 39.257[Formula: see text]bps/Hz, and maximal SINR with value 118.75[Formula: see text]dB, respectively.
Optimal transport with discrete long-range mean-field interactions
Authors: Liu Jiakun , Loeper Grégoire
Published: March 2020

We study an optimal transport problem where, at some intermediate time, the mass is either accelerated by an external force field or self-interacting. We obtain the regularity of the velocity potential, intermediate density, and optimal transport map, under the conditions on the interaction potential that are related to the so-called Ma–Trudinger–Wang condition from optimal transport [X.-N. Ma, N. S. Trudinger and X.-J. Wang, Regularity of potential functions of the optimal transportation problems, Arch. Ration. Mech. Anal. 177 (2005) 151–183.].
Ziegler partial morphisms in additive exact categories
Authors: Cortés-Izurdiaga Manuel , Asensio Pedro A. Guil , Kalebog̃az Berke , Srivastava Ashish K.
Published: March 2020

We develop a general theory of partial morphisms in additive exact categories which extends the model theoretic notion introduced by Ziegler in the particular case of pure-exact sequences in the category of modules over a ring. We relate partial morphisms with (co-)phantom morphisms and injective approximations and study the existence of such approximations in these exact categories.
Mössbauer and magnetization studies of magnetic phase transitions in 0.5BiFeO3–0.5NaNbO3 and 0.5LaFeO3–0.5NaNbO3 solid solutions
Authors: Raevskaya S. I. , Kubrin S. P. , Zhuang Jian , Raevski I. P. , Malitskaya M. A. , Zakharchenko I. N. , Panchelyuga M. S. , Titov V. V.
Published: March 2020

0.5[Formula: see text]FeO3–0.5NaNbO3 ([Formula: see text], La) solid solution compositions were prepared using a solid phase reaction route from high-purity starting oxides. Mössbauer studies have shown that while for 0.5BiFeO3–0.5NaNbO3 the magnetic phase transition temperature [Formula: see text] value is about 150[Formula: see text]K, for 0.5LaFeO3–0.5NaNbO3, it is only [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]K. This dramatic difference in [Formula: see text] values seems to be due to additional contribution of the magnetic superexchange between [Formula: see text] ions via the empty 6p-states of [Formula: see text] ions to the overall superexchange.
Modelling of counter current imbibition phenomenon in two-phase fluid flows through fractured heterogeneous porous media under the effect of magnetic field
Authors: Meher Ramakanta , Gohil V. P.
Published: March 2020

In this paper, the counter-current imbibition phenomenon is discussed in a fractured heterogeneous porous medium under the effect of magnetic field due to the presence of magnetic fluid particles in injected fluids as well as the effects of inclination, capillarity, relative permeability and the viscosity variation of native fluids on saturation rate and on the recovery rate are considered. The homotopy analysis method is used to derive an expression for finding the saturation profiles and to study the recovery rate of the reservoir with some interesting choices of parameters.
China’s Agricultural Diplomacy Under the “Going Global” Strategy
Authors: Shuai Zhang
Published: March 2020

Since the inception of the “going global” strategy two decades ago, China has attached increasing importance to agricultural diplomacy. International agricultural cooperation has become both an end and a means of China’s diplomacy, as well as an integral part of China’s “grand diplomacy.” China’s agricultural diplomacy has many features, including: the central government playing a leading role; ministerial agencies undertaking specific programs; local governments being responsible for implementation; and enterprises acting as active participants. All these contribute to China’s overall diplomacy and help maintain food security of the target countries and promote the overseas interests of Chinese enterprises. Through various practices, China’s agricultural diplomacy has been working well with the mutual reinforcement of bilateral and multilateral approaches; and interactions among diversified diplomatic entities are encouraged. China’s agricultural diplomacy has enriched the meaning of “major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics” and constitutes an important means for China to participate in global governance and to align with the development plans of target countries. Since China’s agricultural diplomacy is still faced with multiple challenges, it is imperative for China to improve related mechanisms, explore new ways of agricultural cooperation in third countries, and formulate new patterns for agricultural diplomacy along the “Belt and Road.”
Hybrid Machine Learning and Geographic Information Systems Approach — A Case for Grade Crossing Crash Data Analysis
Authors: Lasisi Ahmed , Li Pengyu , Chen Jian
Published: March 2020

Highway-rail grade crossing (HRGC) accidents continue to be a major source of transportation casualties in the United States. This can be attributed to increased road and rail operations and/or lack of adequate safety programs based on comprehensive HRGC accidents analysis amidst other reasons. The focus of this study is to predict HRGC accidents in a given rail network based on a machine learning analysis of a similar network with cognate attributes. This study is an improvement on past studies that either attempt to predict accidents in a given HRGC or spatially analyze HRGC accidents for a particular rail line. In this study, a case for a hybrid machine learning and geographic information systems (GIS) approach is presented in a large rail network. The study involves collection and wrangling of relevant data from various sources; exploratory analysis, and supervised machine learning (classification and regression) of HRGC data from 2008 to 2017 in California. The models developed from this analysis were used to make binary predictions [98.9% accuracy & 0.9838 Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) score] and quantitative estimations of HRGC casualties in a similar network over the next 10 years. While results are spatially presented in GIS, this novel hybrid application of machine learning and GIS in HRGC accidents’ analysis will help stakeholders to pro-actively engage with casualties through addressing major accident causes as identified in this study. This paper is concluded with a Systems-Action-Management (SAM) approach based on text analysis of HRGC accident risk reports from Federal Railroad Administration.
Breastfeeding Behavior in Brazilian Children with Congenital Zika Syndrome
Authors: Fábia Cabral Cavalcanti Alidianne , Aguiar Yêska Paola Costa , Oliveira Melo Adriana Suely De , Leite Cavalcanti Alessandro , D’Ávila Sergio
Published: March 2020

Congenital Zika Syndrome (CZS) is a condition that has emerged only recently, bringing together multiple changes, including significant changes in the stomatognathic system, which may compromise sucking behavior and consequently the breastfeeding practice. The aim of this study was to investigate the breastfeeding behaviors in children with CZS. A longitudinal study was carried out in two reference centers in Northeastern Brazil. The nonprobabilistic sample consisted of 79 children diagnosed with physical, neurological, and behavioral alterations compatible with CZS. Information regarding the child, nutritive, and nonnutritive sucking behavior and changes related to the sucking reflex was collected. Data were presented through descriptive and inferential statistics. In the bivariate analyses, the chi-squared test was used and 5% significance level was adopted. The majority of children had severe microcephaly (59.7%). Breastfeeding was performed at birth in most of CZS children (89.9%) but only 36.6% of them presented exclusive breastfeeding in the six months of life. Bottle feeding and pacifier were used in 89.9% and 55.7%, respectively. Sucking and swallowing difficulties and occurrence of gastroesophageal reflux were observed in 27.8%, 48.0%, and 29.2% of children, respectively. Early weaning was associated with bottle feeding (p=0.005) and pacifier sucking (p=0.003). Although breastfeeding practice at birth constitutes a behavior adopted by most of mothers, adherence to this exclusive habit until the first six months of life was low since the children presenting a large number of comorbidities with direct interference in the suction reflex, sucking, and swallowing difficulty.
Study on Mechanical Behavior of Aging Asphalt Based on Composite Regeneration and Modification
Authors: Zhang Haitao , Wang Ying , Liu Zuoqiang , Sun Quansheng
Published: March 2020

Although the aging asphalt and its regeneration were researched by many researchers, the poor low‐temperature performance of regenerating asphalt has still not been solved yet. In this project, the composite technology of regeneration and modification will be used to solve the problem mentioned above. Through the investigation and analysis on the composite mechanism of regeneration and modification for aging asphalt, the objective of the project attempts to explore a method for the synchronized recovery of high‐ and low‐temperature performance of aging asphalt. The research results show that the single regenerating technology cannot fully recover the low‐temperature performance of aging asphalt, and the composite technology of regeneration and modification can make the performance of aging asphalt recovery well. The indexes of aging asphalt after composite regeneration and modification have been recovered, which are better than the indexes of 90# asphalt (25°C penetration is 80–100/0.1 mm) and close with the indexes of styrene‐butadiene‐styrene (SBS) modified asphalt. The project has demonstrated that the composite technology of regeneration and modification can make the high‐ and low‐temperature performance of aging asphalt recovery well. The research results can obtain better economic and social benefits.
Bouveret Syndrome: A Rare Case of Instance and Treatment in a Younger Patient
Authors: Yang Kevin J. , Chang C. K.
Published: March 2020

Bouveret syndrome, a specific form of gallstone ileus, is the obstruction of the gastric outlet by a gallstone, which can enter the duodenum through a fistula. While the average age of individuals with Bouveret syndrome is 74 years, our patient was 42 years of age at the time of operation, significantly younger than the average patient afflicted with this condition. In the treatment of our patient’s condition, the operation conducted entailed a partial duodenectomy, gastrojejunostomy, cholecystectomy, common bile duct exploration, extraction of bile duct stones, and insertion of a t-tube in the bile duct. The patient was found to be in healthy condition upon check-up six months after the operation. The outcome of our case suggests that younger Bouveret patients can safely undergo multiple surgical procedures in the treatment of Bouveret syndrome. Our case also suggests that a cholecystectomy and the removal of the obstructing gallstone can both be carried out within one operation, although coupling these two procedures in one operation might be riskier for patients within the normal age range of Bouveret syndrome. We also suggest that fistula repair be carried out for younger Bouveret patients in particular and that the patient be subjected to a CT scan in the diagnosis of Bouveret syndrome when this condition is suspected.
Seismic Performance of an Efficient Scissor-Jack-Damper Configuration
Authors: Zhu Lihua , Guo Pengyu , Hua Chenglong , Shan Shiyu
Published: March 2020

Energy-dissipating or damping systems have been widely used in new and retrofitted structures for reducing earthquake damage to structural frames. Most damping devices were installed using diagonal or chevronbrace configurations, until the development of toggle-brace and scissor-jack configurations. This paper presents a modified scissor-jack-damper configuration with substantially improved efficiency. The mechanical behavior of the efficient scissor-jack-damper configuration is analyzed theoretically, and a formula for the displacement magnification factor of the configuration is proposed. A steel-frame specimen installed with the efficient scissor-jack-damper configuration was tested to verify the accuracy of the formula. The seismic responses of an uncontrolled steel-frame structure and of two controlled structures, installed with a diagonal brace and efficient scissor-jack-damper configurations, were analyzed using SAP2000. The high efficiency of the proposed scissor-jack-damper configuration is thus verified for practical engineering situations.
A Novel Multisupervised Coupled Metric Learning for Low-Resolution Face Matching
Authors: Zou Guofeng , Fu Guixia , Peng Xiang
Published: March 2020

This paper presents a new multisupervised coupled metric learning (MS-CML) method for low-resolution face image matching. While coupled metric learning has achieved good performance in degraded face recognition, most existing coupled metric learning methods only adopt the category label as supervision, which easily leads to changes in the distribution of samples in the coupled space. And the accuracy of degraded image matching is seriously influenced by these changes. To address this problem, we propose an MS-CML method to train the linear and nonlinear metric model, respectively, which can project the different resolution face pairs into the same latent feature space, under which the distance of each positive pair is reduced and that of each negative pair is enlarged. In this work, we defined a novel multisupervised objective function, which consists of a main objective function and an auxiliary objective function. The supervised information of the main objective function is the category label, which plays a major supervisory role. The supervised information of the auxiliary objective function is the distribution relationship of the samples, which plays an auxiliary supervisory role. Under the supervision of category label and distribution information, the learned model can better deal with the intraclass multimodal problem, and the features obtained in the coupled space are more easily matched correctly. Experimental results on three different face datasets validate the efficacy of the proposed method.
A CP-ABE Scheme Supporting Arithmetic Span Programs
Authors: Ma Chao , Gao Haiying , Wei Duo
Published: March 2020

Attribute-based encryption achieves fine-grained access control, especially in a cloud computing environment. In a ciphertext-policy attribute-based encryption (CP-ABE) scheme, the ciphertexts are associated with the access policies, while the secret keys are determined by the attributes. In recent years, people have tried to find more effective access structures to improve the efficiency of encryption systems. This paper presents a ciphertext-policy attribute-based encryption scheme that supports arithmetic span programs. On the composite-order bilinear group, the security of the scheme is proven by experimental sequence based on the combination of composite-order bilinear entropy expansion lemma and subgroup decision (SD) assumption. And, it is an adaptively secure scheme with constant-size public parameters.
Severe Malaria: A Case of a Significant Rapid Rise in the Parasite Level
Authors: Atere Muhammed , Muzangwa Lloyd , Munoh Kenne Foma , Hanna Cherry , Saverimuttu Jessie , Kopetz Virginia
Published: March 2020

Malaria is transmitted by the Plasmodium parasite, and most of the cases reported in the United States are often as a result of patients with recent return from endemic areas. Prompt diagnosis and treatment, particularly if there is severe parasitemia and drug failure, is essential in preventing mortality. Our patient had an unusual rapid rise in parasite but susceptible to intravenous artesunate.