bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A COMPARISON OF TWO FLUCTUATION ANALYSES FOR NATURAL LANGUAGE CLUSTERING PHENOMENA —TAYLOR vs. EBELING & NEIMAN METHODS—
Authors: TANAKA-ISHII KUMIKO , TAKAHASHI SHUNTARO
Published: October 2020

This paper considers the fluctuation analysis methods of Taylor and Ebeling & Neiman. While both have been applied to various phenomena in the statistical mechanics domain, their similarities and differences have not been clarified. After considering their analytical aspects, this paper presents a large-scale application of these methods to text. It is found that both methods can distinguish real text from independently and identically distributed (i.i.d.) sequences. Furthermore, it is found that the Taylor exponents acquired from words can roughly distinguish text categories; this is also the case for Ebeling and Neiman exponents, but to a lesser extent. Additionally, both methods show some possibility of capturing script kinds.
PREDICTION OF THE ANTARCTIC MARGINAL ICE ZONE EXTENT BASED UPON ITS MULTIFRACTAL PROPERTY
Authors: LIU YUE , PANG XIAOPING , ZHAO XI , STEIN ALFRED , ZHANG XIANG , JI QING , QU MENG , DONG JIANG
Published: October 2020

The marginal ice zone (MIZ) around Antarctica is an important air–ice–ocean–wave interaction area and a crucial habitat for marine life. Given its dynamic nature, it is essential to understand and quantify both the short- and long-term changes of its extent. In this study, we investigated the MIZ extent time series using multifractal spectrum and [Formula: see text]/[Formula: see text] analysis, examining Antarctica as a whole and per sub-region. The MIZ extent was predicted using a back-propagation (BP) algorithm. The results show that the wide multifractal spectrum width of the MIZ extent time series has strong multifractal features for the entire Antarctic and for the five sub-regions. By comparing the spectrum width of the original time series with those of a shuffled series, we found that multifractality is related to long-range correlations in the time series. The Hurst exponent obtained using the [Formula: see text] analysis indicates that the long-range correlation over six months is strongest for all time intervals. Compared to the autoregressive integrated moving average model, the mean absolute percentage error obtained using the BP algorithm was lower by 4–15%. We conclude that the BP algorithm combined with the multifractal property is well suited to predict the Antarctic MIZ extent.
A FRACTAL MULTIPHASE TRANSPORT MODEL IN SHALE POROUS MEDIA WITH MULTIPLE TRANSPORT MECHANISMS AND ROCK–FLUID INTERACTION
Authors: WANG DONGYING , SONG WENHUI , YAO JUN , YANG QIANHONG , YAN XIA , SUN HAI
Published: October 2020

Fluid transport in shales is complex due to the various storage spaces and multiple transport mechanisms, especially for multiphase transport during flowback and early stage of production. This study proposes a gas-water relative permeability fractal model during a gas displacing water process in shale gas reservoirs, with incorporations of (1) real gas transport controlled by Knudsen Number (Kn) and second-order slip boundary, (2) slip length for water phase transport, (3) a mobile water film with varying thickness due to rock–fluid interaction and (4) stress-dependence. Specially, the varying thickness of water film is determined according to the extended Derjaguin–Landau–Verwey–Overbeek (DLVO) theory through van der Waals, electrostatic and structural force during a drainage process. Moreover, the organic matter (OM) and inorganic matter (IOM) pore structures are considered with individual pore/tortuosity fractal dimensions. The proposed model is verified by comparing with an analytical model and experimental data. Results show that the decreasing pore pressure during depressurization brings a decline in gas relative permeability, while the decreasing pore pressure has little impact on water relative permeability. The impact of pore and tortuosity fractal dimensions of OM can be ignored compared with that of IOM. Furthermore, neglecting the mobile water film with varying thickness during a gas drainage process leads to an overestimation of gas relative permeability, especially at smaller pore sizes. This work presents a comprehensive model to determine gas-water relative permeability in shales by considering fluids/reservoir properties and rock–fluid interaction in full, which reveals multiphase transport mechanisms in the unconventional reservoirs.
Rather Than COVID-19, is the US-China Trade War the Real Threat to Global Supply Chains?
Authors: STANGARONE Troy
Published: October 2020

COVID-19 has raised questions about the resiliency and robustness of global supply chains. While firms will learn from the pandemic as they did from prior disasters to improve their supply chains, COVID-19 is more likely to accelerate existing trends in international trade and the US-China trade war than to reshape global supply chains. ASEAN remains well placed to continue to benefit from these trends.
PEAL
Authors: Ayub Muhammad Kamran , Hanif Muhammad Abdullah , Hasan Osman , Shafique Muhammad
Published: October 2020

Approximate computing has emerged as an efficient design approach for applications with inherent error resilience. Low-power approximate adders (LPAAs), for instance, IMPACT and InXA, are being advocated as building blocks for approximate computing hardware. For their practical adoption, the error caused by these units needs to be pre-evaluated and compared with maximum allowable error bounds for an application. To address this problem, we present PEAL, a Probabilistic
error analysis
methodology for
Low-power Approximate Single and Multi-layered Adder Architectures
, while considering variable probabilities for each bit of input operands for a given multi-bit adder design. PEAL is highly generic, linearly scalable, and applicable to any adder type. The analysis provides probability of success, which is accurate for single-layered adder architectures and provides a lower bound for multi-layered architectures. We have shown that state-of-the-art LPAAs can serve as effective building blocks of approximate computing only when the input probabilities are either very high (>0.8) or very low (<0.2). Interestingly, none of the state-of-the-art LPAA units, which to the best of our knowledge are the most widely adopted, has demonstrated effectiveness for mid-range probabilities (0.3–0.7). We have also analytically explained the cause of this usability limitation and proposed its solution. Moreover, we have proposed a method for estimating the Mean-squared Error of datapaths composed of LPAAs, to quantify the magnitude of error introduced in the output due to approximation of the adder units.
Classification of Ancient Handwritten Tamil Characters on Palm Leaf Inscription Using Modified Adaptive Backpropagation Neural Network with GLCM Features
Authors: M Poornima Devi. , Sornam M.
Published: October 2020

The core aspiration of this proposed work is to classify Tamil characters inscribed in the palm leaf manuscript using an Artificial Neural Network. Tamil palm leaf manuscript characters in the form of images were processed and segmented using contour-based convex hull bounding box segmentation. The segmented characters were transformed into two forms: Binary Coded Value and the Gray-Level Co-occurrence Matrix (GLCM) feature. The features extracted from the segmented characters were trained by the proposed method of the Modified Adaptive Backpropagation Network (MABPN) algorithm with Shannon activation function. Weight initialization plays an important role in the Backpropagation Neural Network, and hence Nguyen-Widrow weight initialization was introduced to initialize the weights instead of random weight initialization in the proposed method. The models evaluated are MABPN with Shannon activation function using Nguyen-Widrow weight initialization in two forms of input: Binary Coded Value and GLCM feature extracted values. The proposed method with GLCM features as input gave a promising result over binary coded transform.
Experimental Games and Social Decision Making
Authors: van Dijk Eric , De Dreu Carsten K.W.
Published: October 2020

Experimental games model situations in which the future outcomes of individuals and groups depend on their own choices and on those of other (groups of) individuals. Games are a powerful tool to identify the neural and psychological mechanisms underlying interpersonal and group cooperation and coordination. Here we discuss recent developments in how experimental games are used and adapted, with an increased focus on repeated interactions, partner control through sanctioning, and partner (de)selection for future interactions. Important advances have been made in uncovering the neurobiological underpinnings of key factors involved in cooperation and coordination, including social preferences, cooperative beliefs, (emotion) signaling, and, in particular, reputations and (in)direct reciprocity. Emerging trends at the cross-sections of psychology, economics, and the neurosciences include an increased focus on group heterogeneities, intergroup polarization and conflict, cross-cultural differences in cooperation and norm enforcement, and neurocomputational modeling of the formation and updating of social preferences and beliefs.
The Origins and Psychology of Human Cooperation
Authors: Henrich Joseph , Muthukrishna Michael
Published: October 2020

Humans are an ultrasocial species. This sociality, however, cannot be fully explained by the canonical approaches found in evolutionary biology, psychology, or economics. Understanding our unique social psychology requires accounting not only for the breadth and intensity of human cooperation but also for the variation found across societies, over history, and among behavioral domains. Here, we introduce an expanded evolutionary approach that considers how genetic and cultural evolution, and their interaction, may have shaped both the reliably developing features of our minds and the well-documented differences in cultural psychologies around the globe. We review the major evolutionary mechanisms that have been proposed to explain human cooperation, including kinship, reciprocity, reputation, signaling, and punishment; we discuss key culture–gene coevolutionary hypotheses, such as those surrounding self-domestication and norm psychology; and we consider the role of religions and marriage systems. Empirically, we synthesize experimental and observational evidence from studies of children and adults from diverse societies with research among nonhuman primates.
Temporal Evolution of Corrosion Film Nano-Porosity and Magnesium Alloy Hydrogen Penetration in NaCl Solution
Authors: Brady Michael P. , Rother Gernot , Frith Matthew G. , Ievlev Anton E. , Leonard Donovan N. , Littrell Kenneth C. , Cakmak Ercan , Meyer Harry M. , Anovitz Lawrence M. , Davis Bruce
Published: October 2020

Exposures of 0.5, 1, 4, 8, and 24 h were conducted for Mg-3Al-1Zn (AZ31B) and Mg-1.5Zn-0.3Zr-<0.5Nd (ZE10A, ZEK100 type) alloys in D2O with 5 weight% (wt%) NaCl. Multiple techniques including small angle neutron scattering (SANS) and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) were used to follow the growth of nano-porous oxide-hydroxide corrosion films. On the same samples, time of flight mass spectrometry (ToF SIMS) was used to study the penetration of deuterium into the alloys in advance of the films. The SANS scattering invariants, which are proportional to the number of nanoscale features, increased approximately linearly with time for both alloys. Analysis with the polydisperse hard sphere model for fractal systems suggests that the nano-porous structures grew at all length scales assessed, but that the size distribution did not change significantly with reaction time, i.e., the film thickness increased while the nano-porosity structures remained essentially constant. Extensive penetration of deuterium into the underlying alloy was observed by ToF-SIMS for ZE10A, but not AZ31B despite similar corrosion film growth behavior. The depth profiles suggest an alloy diffusion-controlled deuterium penetration over time, which is of similar extent to that previously observed in water without NaCl. Implications for the corrosion mechanism(s) are discussed.
Cholinergic stimulation improves electrophysiological rate adaptation during pressure overload-induced heart failure in rats
Authors: Zasadny Frederick M. , Dyavanapalli Jhansi , Dowling N. Maritza , Mendelowitz David , Kay Matthew W.
Published: October 2020

Analysis of electrophysiology from optical mapping of failing left ventricular myocardium provided insight into the possible therapeutic outcomes of cholinergic stimulation within the left ventricle. Chronic hypothalamic oxytocin neuron activation for downstream cardiac cholinergic neuron stimulation blunted onset of failing electrophysiology induced by pressure overload-induced heart failure in rats.
Application of Chimeric Antigen Receptor T Cells in the Treatment of Hematological Malignancies
Authors: Yan Weiqi , Liu Zhuojun , Liu Jia , Xia Yuanshi , Hu Kai , Yu Jian
Published: October 2020

T cell immune protection plays a pivotal role in the treatment of patients with hematological malignancies. However, T cell exhaustion might lead to the possibility of immune escape of hematological malignancies. Adoptive cell therapy (ACT) with chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR‐T) cells can restore the activity of exhausted T cell through reprogramming and is widely used in the treatment of relapsed/refractory (r/r) hematological malignancies. Of note, CD19, CD20, CD30, CD33, CD123, and CD269 as ideal targets have shown extraordinary potential for CAR‐T cell therapy and other targets such as CD23 and SLAMF7 have brought promising future for clinical trials. However, CAR‐T cells can also produce some adverse events after treatment of hematological malignancies, such as cytokine release syndrome (CRS), neurotoxicity, and on‐target/off‐tumor toxicity, which may cause systemic immune stress inflammation, destruction of the blood‐brain barrier, and even normal tissue damage. In this review, we aim to summarize the composition of CAR‐T cell and its application in the treatment of acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), non‐Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL), Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL), multiple myeloma (MM), and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Moreover, we will review the disadvantages of CAR‐T cell therapy and propose several comprehensive recommendations which might guide its development.
2‐Methacryloyloxyethyl Phosphorylcholine Polymer Coating Inhibits Bacterial Adhesion and Biofilm Formation on a Suture: An In Vitro and In Vivo Study
Authors: Kaneko Taizo , Saito Taku , Shobuike Takeo , Miyamoto Hiroshi , Matsuda Junpei , Fukazawa Kyoko , Ishihara Kazuhiko , Tanaka Sakae , Moro Toru
Published: October 2020

Initial bacterial adhesion to medical devices and subsequent biofilm formation are known as the leading causes of surgical site infection (SSI). Therefore, inhibition of bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation on the surface of medical devices can reduce the risk of SSIs. In this study, a highly hydrophilic, antibiofouling surface was prepared by coating the bioabsorbable suture surface with poly(2‐methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC)‐co‐n‐butyl methacrylate) (PMB). The PMB‐coated and noncoated sutures exhibited similar mechanical strength and surface morphology. The effectiveness of the PMB coating on the suture to suppress adhesion and biofilm formation of methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin‐susceptible Staphylococcus aureus was investigated both in vitro and in vivo. The bacterial adhesion test revealed that PMB coating significantly reduced the number of adherent bacteria, with no difference in the number of planktonic bacteria. Moreover, fluorescence microscopy and scanning electron microscopy observations of adherent bacteria on the suture surface after contact with bacterial suspension confirmed PMB coating‐mediated inhibition of biofilm formation. Additionally, we found that the PMB‐coated sutures exhibited significant antibiofouling effects in vivo. In conclusion, PMB‐coated sutures demonstrated bacteriostatic effects associated with a highly hydrophilic, antibiofouling surface and inhibited bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation. Therefore, PMB‐coated sutures could be a new alternative to reduce the risk of SSIs.
Impaired Mitophagy: A New Potential Mechanism of Human Chronic Atrial Fibrillation
Authors: Zhou Shuang , Dai Weiran , Zhong Guoqiang , Jiang Zhiyuan
Published: October 2020

Mitophagy is an autophagic response and plays essential roles in survival, development, and homeostasis of cells. It has been reported that mitophagic dysfunction is involved in several cardiovascular diseases. However, the effect of mitophagy on atrial fibrillation (AF) is still unknown. Therefore, we investigated the exact role of mitophagy in human chronic AF. Western blot was used to detect the protein abundance. The mitochondrial morphology and structure were observed by transmission electron microscopy. Immunofluorescent stainings were performed to analyze colocalization of mitochondria with autophagosomes or lysosomes. Totally, 43 patients with valvular heart disease undergoing cardiac surgery were selected, including 21 patients with chronic AF. Comparing with the sinus rhythm (SR) group, we found the size and number of mitochondria in atrial myocytes of patients with AF increased significantly. In addition, expression of LC3B II and LC3B II/LC3B I ratio was significantly decreased in the AF group. Moreover, the expression of p62 was markedly elevated in the AF group compared with that in the SR group. The results of immunofluorescence staining and western blot showed an enhanced expression of Cox IV in the AF group. Dual immunofluorescent stainings revealed that mitophagy defect in atrial myocytes of patients with AF resulted from dysfunction in the process of delivery of mitochondria into autophagosomes. For the first time, impaired mitophagy, during the phagocytosis of mitochondria, is associated with human chronic AF. Mitophagy could be a potential therapeutic target for AF.
The Hybrid Finite Difference and Moving Boundary Methods for Solving a Linear Damped Nonlinear Schrödinger Equation to Model Rogue Waves and Breathers in Plasma Physics
Authors: Salas Alvaro H. , El-Tantawy S. A. , Castillo H. Jairo E.
Published: October 2020

In this paper, the dissipative and nondissipative modulated pulses such as rogue waves (RWs) and breathers (Kuznetsov-Ma breathers and Akhmediev breathers) that can exist and propagate in several fields of sciences, for example, plasma physics, have been analyzed numerically. For this purpose, the fluid dusty plasma equations with taking the kinematic dust viscosity into account are reduced to the linear damped nonlinear Schrödinger equation using a reductive perturbation technique. It is known that this equation is not integrable and, accordingly, does not have analytical solution. Thus, for modelling both dissipative RWs and breathers, the improved finite difference method is introduced for this purpose. It is found that FDM is a good numerical technique for small time interval but for large time interval it becomes sometimes unacceptable. Therefore, to describe these waves accurately, the new improved numerical method is considered, which is called the hybrid finite difference method and moving boundary method (FDM-MBM). This last and updated method gives an accurate and excellent description to many physical results, as it was applied to the dust plasma results and the results were good.
Study on the Effect of Different Delamination Defects on Buckling Behavior of Spar Cap in Wind Turbine Blade
Authors: Li Jianwei , Wang Jinghua , Zhang Leian , Huang Xuemei , Yu Yongfeng
Published: October 2020

Delamination is detrimental to the composite materials, and it may occur in the manufacturing process of the unidirectional laminate of the spar cap in wind turbine blades. This paper studies the effect of different delamination defects on the strength of the unidirectional laminate. The finite element model of laminate with different delamination areas and delamination heights is established using solid elements. The eigenvalues of laminates have different parameters calculated based on the finite element method. The final coupon test is used to verify the conclusions of simulation results. The finite element method presented in this study shows excellent capabilities to predict the buckling behavior of the laminate. The buckling eigenvalue of tested laminate is negatively correlated with the delamination area and positively correlated with the delamination height under the edgewise load. The S11, which is too high at the boundary of the delamination region, plays a significant role in buckling failure. It has a particular reference value for testing the laminate of blade both in theory and practice.
A Study of the Ionic Liquid‐Based Ultrasonic‐Assisted Extraction of Isoliquiritigenin from Glycyrrhiza uralensis
Authors: Hao Jingwei , Liu Jiahui , Zhang Lei , Jing Yunrong , Ji Yubin
Published: October 2020

We successfully extracted isoliquiritigenin from Glycyrrhiza uralensis through the utilization of an ionic liquid‐based ultrasonic‐assisted extraction (ILUAE) approach. Briefly, we utilized the solution of 1‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium bromide ([BMIM]Br) as solvent and optimized key ILUAE parameters such as solid‐liquid ratios, concentrations of ionic liquids, and the times of ultrasonication. Based on a single‐factor experiment, we utilized the response surface method (RSM) approach to optimize the extraction procedure. The approach revealed that the optimal energy consumption time was 120 min, with the ultrasonic extraction temperature of 60°C. Using these optimized parameters together with the solid‐liquid ratio (dried G. uralensis powder: [BMIM]Br of 0.3 mol/L) of 1 : 16.163 and the [BMIM]Br of 0.3 mol/L, we achieved a 0.665 mg/g extraction yield. Overall, these findings thus indicate that we were able to effectively use ILUAE as an efficient approach to reliably extract isoliquiritigenin in a reproducible and environmentally friendly manner.
Learning-Based Lane-Change Behaviour Detection for Intelligent and Connected Vehicles
Authors: Du Luyao , Chen Wei , Pei Zhonghui , Zheng Hongjiang , Fu Shuaizhi , Chen Kang , Wu Di
Published: October 2020

Detection of lane-change behaviour is critical to driving safety, especially on highways. In this paper, we proposed a method and designed a learning-based detection model of lane-change behaviour in highway environment, which only needs the vehicle to be equipped with velocity and direction sensors or each section of the highway to have a video camera. First, based on the Next Generation Simulation (NGSIM) Interstate 80 Freeway Dataset, we analyzed the relevant features of lane-changing behaviour and preprocessed the data and then used machine learning algorithms to select the suitable features for lane-change detection. According to the result of feature selection, we chose the lateral velocity of the vehicle as the lane-change feature and used machine learning algorithms to learn the lane-change behaviour of the vehicle to detect it. From the dataset, continuous data of 14 vehicles with frequent lane changes were selected for experimental analysis. The experimental results show that the designed KNN lane-change detection model has the best performance with detection accuracy between 89.57% and 100% on the selected dataset, which can well complete the vehicle lane-change detection task.
Soft Microenvironments Induce Chemoresistance by Increasing Autophagy Downstream of Integrin-Linked Kinase
Authors: Anlaş Alişya A. , Nelson Celeste M.
Published: October 2020

Breast cancer relapse can develop over the course of years as a result of dormant cancer cells that disseminate to secondary sites. These dormant cells are often resistant to conventional hormone and chemotherapy. Although recurrence is the main cause of death from cancer, microenvironmental factors that may influence resistance to therapy and duration of dormancy are largely unknown. Breast cancer relapse is often detected in tissues that are softer than the normal mammary gland or the primary breast tumor, such as bone marrow, brain, and lung. We therefore explored how stiffness of the microenvironment at secondary sites regulates tumor dormancy and the response of breast cancer cells to hormone and chemotherapy. In soft microenvironments reminiscent of metastatic sites, breast cancer cells were more resistant to the estrogen receptor modulator tamoxifen as a result of increased autophagy and decreased expression of estrogen receptor-α. Consistently, pharmacologic inhibition or genetic downregulation of autophagy increased the response of breast cancer cells to tamoxifen on soft substrata. In addition, autophagy was decreased downstream of integrin-linked kinase on stiff substrata. Altogether, our data show that tissue mechanics regulates therapeutic outcome and long-term survival of breast cancer cells by influencing autophagy.

Significance:

These findings characterize the persistence of dormant cells at metastatic sites, where soft microenvironments downregulate estrogen receptor expression and upregulate autophagy, thereby promoting therapy resistance in breast cancer cells.
A Case of HaNDL with Low Cerebrospinal Fluid Level of Neurofilament Light Chain
Authors: Sisman Aysel Büsra , Bayar Muhammet Duran , İçöz Sema , Yilmaz Vuslat , Kürtüncü Murat , Tüzün Erdem , Ertaş Mustafa , Baştan Birgül
Published: October 2020

Diagnosis of the syndrome of headache and neurological deficits with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) lymphocytosis (HaNDL) is based on clinical features, and no diagnostic biomarkers are available. We present a case presenting with characteristic features of HaNDL and an MRI lesion in the splenium of corpus callosum. CSF neurofilament light chain (NFL) levels were assessed in this patient together with 7 additional HaNDL patients, 18 multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, and 15 primary headache patients. Both HaNDL and primary headache patients showed significantly lower NFL levels than MS patients. Our results suggest that increased CSF levels of NFL and neuroaxonal loss are not characteristic features of HaNDL. Neurological disorders mimicking HaNDL often present with increased levels of NFL, and thus CSF measurement of NFL might be useful in differential diagnosis of HaNDL.
Digital Multiplexed Gene Expression Analysis of mRNA and miRNA from Routinely Processed and Stained Cytological Smears: A Proof-of-Principle Study
Authors: Gentien David , Piqueret-Stephan Laure , Henry Emilie , Albaud Benoît , Rapinat Audrey , Koscielny Serge , Scoazec Jean-Yves , Vielh Philippe
Published: October 2020

Objective: Although transcriptomic assessments of small samples using high-throughput techniques are usually performed on fresh or frozen tissues, there is a growing demand for those performed on stained cellular specimens already used for diagnostic purposes. Study Design: The possibility of detecting mRNAs and microRNAs (miRNAs) from routinely processed cytological samples using nCounter® technology was explored. Fresh samples from pleural and peritoneal effusions were analyzed using 2 parallel methods: samples were smeared and routinely stained using the May-Grünwald-Giemsa or Diff-Quik® method and mounted using conventional methods, and they were also studied following a snap freezing method, in which samples were maintained at −80°C until use. mRNAs and miRNAs were assessed and compared after total RNA extraction from both routinely processed samples and their matched frozen controls. Results: A good concordance was found between the gene expression measured in routinely processed samples and their matched frozen controls for the majority of mRNAs and miRNAs tested. However, the standard deviation of low-expressed miRNA was high. Conclusions: Although nCounter® technology is a robust method to measure and characterize both mRNAs and miRNAs from routinely processed cytological samples, caution is recommended for the interpretation of low-expressed miRNA.
Inferior Vena Cava Thrombosis: Taking a Second Look at the Inferior Vena Cava in Trauma Patients
Authors: Hussain Sara , Al Najjar Firas
Published: October 2020

We present the case of a patient who fell from a 3-m height. He was bought to the emergency department and immediate resuscitative measures were taken. His GCS on presentation was 15, and the airway was patent and maintainable. Breathing was equal bilaterally, the blood pressure and capillary refill were established to be normal, and a bedside E-FAST scan was negative. He was found to have a dislocated left knee, with sensorineural loss distal to the injury. After the dislocation was reduced, a whole-body CT scan was performed and revealed an incidental finding of thrombus in the inferior vena cava (IVC). A thrombus in the IVC by itself is an uncommon complication among trauma patients, but among the cases noted in literature, most patients with an IVC thrombus had a slightly delayed presentation and it was usually discovered a few days after admission. Management of the thrombus depends on the stability of the patient’s presentation. When feasible, operative or otherwise invasive procedures can be delayed, allowing for the medical management of the thrombus. IVC filters may also be used, but their use may be limited due to anatomical restrictions, as in our case.
Diagnostic Relevance of Ferrokinetic Laboratory Markers in Anemic Pregnant Women
Authors: Aringazina Raisa , Zharmakhanova Gulmira , Kurmanalina Gulnara , Bekkuzhin Anes , Kurmanalin Bakhtiyar
Published: October 2020

Objectives: Different forms of anemia are considered as the most frequent complication of the gestational period. By its etiology, pathogenesis, and clinical hematology, it is not a single disease. Among all forms of anemia occurring during pregnancy, iron deficiency anemia (IDA) is the most common, accounting for 80–95% of all cases. Design: The article describes a theoretical basis for the diagnosis of the anemic syndrome among pregnant women, the determining factors of its development, and the diagnostic methods at different gestational periods. Participants/Materials, Setting, and Methods: Diagnostic and prognostic values of iron balance indicators in the body were established for IDA during pregnancy to improve the outcome of childbirth. A total of 140 anemic patients were examined. The control group consisted of 50 pregnant women without anemia and other significant health problems, 48 IDA pregnant women, and 42 pregnant women with anemia caused by various chronic diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis. All patients of the main and control groups were registered on clinical records at the Family Planning Center in Aktobe city, Kazakhstan. Results: Ferrokinetic indicators were suggested for diagnosing IDA and anemia of chronic diseases. It was established that IDA is characterized by low ferritin levels during gestation, while increased ferritin and C-reactive protein are typical for anemia of chronic diseases. Limitations: Differential diagnostics was applied for pregnant women with IDA and anemia of chronic diseases to observe the dynamics of serum ferritin and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels at different gestational periods. The article presents the results of a study on ferrokinetics in pregnant women with IDA and anemia caused by inflammation or chronic diseases. Other causes of anemia leading to a decrease in hemoglobin (Hb) levels to <90 g/L include hemoglobinopathies, which were not considered in this study. Conclusions: Determination of iron deficiency in pregnant women at different gestational periods will allow for identifying the risk group of anemic patients and deciding on the treatment. IDA (Hb <100 g/L) can be effectively measured by ferritin level <15 ng/mL, iron level of <11.5 μmol/L, and transferrin level >2.6 mg/L at p < 0.001. Anemia due to chronic diseases (Hb <100 g/L) can be effectively diagnosed with ferritin above 15 μg/L and CRP above 10 mg/L at p < 0.001.
Long-Term Outcome of the Randomized DAPA Trial
Authors: Haanschoten Danielle M. , Elvan Arif , Ramdat Misier Anand R. , Delnoy Peter Paul H.M. , Smit Jaap Jan J. , Adiyaman Ahmet , Demirel Fatma , Wellens Hein J.J. , Verheugt Freek W.A. , Ottervanger Jan Paul , Schalij M.J. , Zijlstra F. , Wever E.F.D. , de Boer M.J. , Boersma E. , Robbe H.W.J.
Published: October 2020

Background:

The randomized DAPA trial (Defibrillator After Primary Angioplasty) aimed to evaluate the survival benefit of prophylactic implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) implantation in early selected high-risk patients after primary percutaneous coronary intervention for ST-segment–elevation myocardial infarction.

Methods:

A randomized, multicenter, controlled trial compared ICD versus conventional medical therapy in high-risk patients with primary percutaneous coronary intervention, based on one of the following factors: left ventricular ejection fraction <30% within 4 days after ST-segment–elevation myocardial infarction, primary ventricular fibrillation, Killip class ≥2 or TIMI (Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction) flow <3 after percutaneous coronary intervention. ICD was implanted 30 to 60 days after MI. Primary end point was all-cause mortality at 3 years follow-up. The trial prematurely ended after inclusion of 266 patients (38% of the calculated sample size). Additional survival assessment was performed in February 2019 for the primary end point.

Results:

A total of 266 patients, 78.2% males, with a mean age of 60.8±11.3 years, were enrolled. One hundred thirty-one patients were randomized to the ICD arm and 135 patients to the control arm. All-cause mortality was significant lower in the ICD group (5% versus 13%, hazard ratio, 0.37 [95% CI, 0.15–0.95]) after 3 years follow-up. Appropriate ICD therapy occurred in 9 patients at 3 years follow-up (5 within the first 8 months after implantation). After a median long-term follow-up of 9 years (interquartile range, 3–11), total mortality (18% versus 38%; hazard ratio, 0.58 [95% CI, 0.37–0.91]), and cardiac mortality (hazard ratio, 0.52 [95% CI, 0.28–0.99]) was significant lower in the ICD group. Noncardiac death was not significantly different between groups. Left ventricular ejection fraction increased ≥10% in 46.5% of the patients during follow-up, and the extent of improvement was similar in both study groups.

Conclusions:

In this prematurely terminated and thus underpowered randomized trial, early prophylactic ICD implantation demonstrated lower total and cardiac mortality in patients with high-risk ST-segment–elevation myocardial infarction treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention.

Registration:

URL:
https://www.trialregister.nl
; Unique identifier: Trial NL74 (NTR105).
Heterozygous Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Regulator Gene Missense Variants Are Associated With Worse Cardiac Function in Patients With Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy
Authors: Jiang Xuan , Shao Yanqiu , Araj Faris G. , Amin Alpesh A. , Greenberg Benjamin M. , Drazner Mark H. , Xing Chao , Mammen Pradeep P. A.
Published: October 2020

Background

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a neuromuscular disorder caused by mutations within the dystrophin gene. DMD is characterized by progressive skeletal muscle degeneration and atrophy and progressive cardiomyopathy. It has been observed the severity of cardiomyopathy varies in patients with DMD.

Methods and Results

A cohort of male patients with DMD and female DMD carriers underwent whole exome sequencing. Potential risk factor variants were identified according to their functional annotations and frequencies. Cardiac function of 15 male patients with DMD was assessed by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, and various cardiac magnetic resonance imaging parameters and circulating biomarkers were compared between genotype groups. Five subjects carrying potential risk factor variants in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane regulator gene demonstrated lower left ventricular ejection fraction, larger left ventricular end‐diastolic volume, and higher NT‐proBNP (N‐terminal pro‐B‐type natriuretic peptide) levels compared with 10 subjects who did not carry the potential risk factor variants (
P
=0.023, 0.019 and 0.028, respectively).

Conclusions

This study revealed heterozygous cystic fibrosis transmembrane regulator gene missense variants were associated with worse cardiac function in patients with DMD. The cystic fibrosis transmembrane regulator gene may serve as a genetic modifier that accounts for more severe cardiomyopathy in patients with DMD, who would require more aggressive management of the cardiomyopathy.
China’s Geostrategic Interests in the Indian Ocean Region: Implications for Kenya
Authors: Odhiambo Paul
Published: October 2020

China’s growing influence in the Indian Ocean cannot be gainsaid as the East Asian economic powerhouse engages in a series of activities to secure maritime routes for energy supplies; to guarantee its trade routes; and to exercise increased maritime influence on the sea lines of communication (SLOCs). Since the beginning of the 21st century, Beijing has enhanced its presence in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) through construction of ports, increased Chinese naval presence, participation in anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden, construction of a military base in Djibouti, One belt One road initiative and 21st century Maritime Silk Road. While China reassures of its peaceful development, critics contend that Beijing’s military-strategic intentions are aimed at dominance in the Indian Ocean. Countries of the IOR are a home to 2.5 billion people. About 80 percent of the world’s maritime oil trade flows through three chokepoints in the Indian Ocean. Moreover, Indian Ocean is emerging as a pivotal zone due to fast growing economies in the region. Due to its geostrategic significance, the Indian Ocean is expected to play a considerable role in the development of East African littoral states including Kenya. This paper analyzes the growing presence of China in IOR and how Nairobi’s engagement with Beijing could enable Kenya to realize its geostrategic interests in the Indian Ocean. The paper recommends that Kenya needs to have effective strategies to maximize the potential from its exclusive economic zone and secure its national interests as a littoral state.
The Florida Water and Climate Alliance (FloridaWCA): Developing a Stakeholder–Scientist Partnership to Create Actionable Science in Climate Adaptation and Water Resource Management
Authors: Misra Vasubandhu , Irani Tracy , Staal Lisette , Morris Kevin , Asefa Tirusew , Martinez Chris , Graham Wendy
Published: October 2020

The Florida Water and Climate Alliance (FloridaWCA) is a stakeholder–scientist partnership committed to increasing the relevance of climate science data and tools at time and space scales needed to support decision-making in water resource management, planning, and supply operations in Florida. Since 2010, a group of university researchers, public utility water resource managers and operators, water management district personnel, and local planners have engaged in a sustained collaboration for the development, sharing, and application of cutting-edge research to the practical issues of water management and distribution in the highly urbanized state of Florida. The authors, all members of FloridaWCA, present a case study of the organization’s history, its achievements, and lessons learned at the organizational, scientific/technical, and personal levels. Their goals are to 1) describe how the organizational process has contributed to actionable science based on posing and answering questions of importance; 2) share its scientific impact and technical contributions; 3) demonstrate the value of such a stakeholder–scientist partnership, and 4) identify organizational and structural components that have influenced its effectiveness, including personal reflections. The FloridaWCA, having reached its tenth anniversary, continues to evolve today as a sustained stakeholder–scientist partnership resulting in both guiding researchers of what is applicable in the field (creating an area of research that is useful to society) while also helping the practitioners to push the envelope on the state-of-the practices that can be informed by current research.
Squall Line Response to Coastal Mid-Atlantic Thermodynamic Heterogeneities
Authors: Lombardo Kelly
Published: October 2020

Idealized 3D numerical simulations are used to quantify the impact of moving marine atmospheric boundary layers (MABLs) on squall lines in an environment representative of the U.S. mid-Atlantic coastal plain. Characteristics of the MABL, including depth and potential temperature, are varied. Squall lines are most intense while moving over the deepest MABLs, while the storm encountering no MABL is the weakest. Storm intensity is only sensitive to MABL temperature when the MABL is sufficiently deep. Collisions between the storm cold pools and MABLs transition storm lift from surface-based cold pools to wavelike features, with the resulting ascent mechanism dependent on MABL density, not depth. Bores form when the MABL is denser than the cold pool and hybrid cold pool–bores form when the densities are similar. While these features support storms over the MABL, the type of lifting mechanism does not control storm intensity alone. Storm intensity depends on the amplification and maintenance of these features, which is determined by the ambient conditions. Isolated convective cells form ahead of squall lines prior to the cold pool–MABL collision, resulting in a rain peak and the eventual discrete propagation of the storms. Cells form as storm-generated high-frequency gravity waves interact with gravity waves generated by the moving marine layers, in the presence of reduced stability by the squall line itself. No cells form in the presence of the storm or the MABL alone.
Marine Boundary Layers above Heterogeneous SST: Across-Front Winds
Authors: Sullivan Peter P. , McWilliams James C. , Weil Jeffrey C. , Patton Edward G. , Fernando Harindra J. S.
Published: October 2020

Turbulent flow in a weakly convective marine atmospheric boundary layer (MABL) driven by geostrophic winds Ug = 10 m s−1 and heterogeneous sea surface temperature (SST) is examined using fine-mesh large-eddy simulation (LES). The imposed SST heterogeneity is a single-sided warm or cold front with temperature jumps Δθ = (2, −1.5) K varying over a horizontal distance between [0.1, −6] km characteristic of an upper-ocean mesoscale or submesoscale regime. A Fourier-fringe technique is implemented in the LES to overcome the assumptions of horizontally homogeneous periodic flow. Grid meshes of 2.2 × 109 points with fine-resolution (horizontal, vertical) spacing (δx = δy, δz) = (4.4, 2) m are used. Geostrophic winds blowing across SST isotherms generate secondary circulations that vary with the sign of the front. Warm fronts feature overshoots in the temperature field, nonlinear temperature and momentum fluxes, a local maximum in the vertical velocity variance, and an extended spatial evolution of the boundary layer with increasing distance from the SST front. Cold fronts collapse the incoming turbulence but leave behind residual motions above the boundary layer. In the case of a warm front, the internal boundary layer grows with downstream distance conveying the surface changes aloft and downwind. SST fronts modify entrainment fluxes and generate persistent horizontal advection at large distances from the front.
Assimilation of Satellite Microwave Observations over the Rainbands of Tropical Cyclones
Authors: Moradi Isaac , Evans K. Franklin , McCarty Will , Cordero-Fuentes Marangelly , Gelaro Ronald , Black Robert A.
Published: October 2020

A novel Bayesian Monte Carlo integration (BMCI) technique was developed to retrieve geophysical variables from satellite microwave radiometer data in the presence of tropical cyclones. The BMCI technique includes three steps: generating a stochastic database, simulating satellite brightness temperatures using a radiative transfer model, and retrieving geophysical variables such as profiles of temperature, relative humidity, and cloud liquid and ice water content from real observations. The technique also provides uncertainty estimates for each retrieval and can output the error covariance matrix of selected parameters. The measurements from the Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder (ATMS) on board Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership (Suomi NPP) and the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Microwave Imager (GMI) were used as input. A new technique was developed to correct the ATMS and GMI observations for the beam-filling effect, which is due to small-scale variability of precipitation and clouds when compared with the instrument footprint and also the nonlinear relation between the brightness temperature and precipitation. In addition, the assimilation of the BMCI retrievals into the NASA GEOS model is discussed for Hurricane Maria. The results show that assimilating the BMCI retrievals can influence the dynamical features of the cyclone, including a stronger warm core, a symmetric eye, and vertically aligned wind columns. Two possible factors that may limit the impact of the BMCI retrievals include 1) the resolution of the model (about 25 km), which was too coarse to show the potential of the BMCI data in improving the representation of tropical storms in the model forecast, and 2) the data assimilation system not being able to consider vertically correlated observation errors.
A Convection Parameterization for Low-CAPE Environments
Authors: McTaggart-Cowan Ron , Vaillancourt Paul A. , Separovic Leo , Corvec Shawn , Zadra Ayrton
Published: October 2020

Numerical models that are unable to resolve moist convection in the atmosphere employ physical parameterizations to represent the effects of the associated processes on the resolved-scale state. Most of these schemes are designed to represent the dominant class of cumulus convection that is driven by latent heat release in a conditionally unstable profile with a surplus of convective available potential energy (CAPE). However, an important subset of events occurs in low-CAPE environments in which potential and symmetric instabilities can sustain moist convective motions. Convection schemes that are dependent on the presence of CAPE are unable to depict accurately the effects of cumulus convection in these cases. A mass-flux parameterization is developed to represent such events, with triggering and closure components that are specifically designed to depict subgrid-scale convection in low-CAPE profiles. Case studies show that the scheme eliminates the “bull’s-eyes” in precipitation guidance that develop in the absence of parameterized convection, and that it can represent the initiation of elevated convection that organizes squall-line structure. The introduction of the parameterization leads to significant improvements in the quality of quantitative precipitation forecasts, including a large reduction in the frequency of spurious heavy-precipitation events predicted by the model. An evaluation of surface and upper-air guidance shows that the scheme systematically improves the model solution in the warm season, a result that suggests that the parameterization is capable of accurately representing the effects of moist convection in a range of low-CAPE environments.