bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mitochondrial and Oxidative Unbalance in Placentas from Mothers with SARS-CoV-2 Infection
Authors: Mandò Chiara , Savasi Valeria M. , Anelli Gaia M. , Corti Silvia , Serati Anaïs , Lisso Fabrizia , Tasca Chiara , Novielli Chiara , Cetin Irene
Published: September 2021

SARS-CoV-2 infection has been related to adverse pregnancy outcomes. A placental role in protecting the fetus from SARS-CoV-2 infection has been documented. Nevertheless, it is still unclear how the placenta is affected in SARS-CoV-2 infection. Here we assessed placental mitochondrial (mt) and oxidative features in COVID-19 and healthy mothers. mtDNA levels, DNA oxidative damage, expression levels of genes involved in antioxidant defenses, mitochondrial dynamics and respiratory chain subunits were investigated in placentas from singleton pregnancies of 30 women with SARS-CoV-2 infection during the third trimester (12 asymptomatic, 18 symptomatic) and 16 controls. mtDNA levels decreased in COVID-19 placentas vs. controls and inversely correlated with DNA oxidative damage, which increased in the symptomatic group. Antioxidant gene expressions decreased in SARS-CoV-2 mothers (CAT, GSS). Symptomatic cases also showed a lower expression of respiratory chain (NDUFA9, SDHA, COX4I1) and mt dynamics (DNM1L, FIS1) genes. Alterations in placental mitochondrial features and oxidative balance in COVID-19-affected mothers might be due to the impaired intrauterine environment, generated by systemic viral effects, leading to a negative vicious circle that worsens placental oxidative stress and mitochondrial efficiency. This likely causes cell homeostasis dysregulations, raising the potential of possible long-term effects.
Preclinical Evidence for the Interplay between Oxidative Stress and RIP1-Dependent Cell Death in Neurodegeneration: State of the Art and Possible Therapeutic Implications
Authors: Jantas Danuta , Lasoń Władysław
Published: September 2021

Neurodegenerative diseases are the most frequent chronic, age-associated neurological pathologies having a major impact on the patient’s quality of life. Despite a heavy medical, social and economic burden they pose, no causative treatment is available for these diseases. Among the important pathogenic factors contributing to neuronal loss during neurodegeneration is elevated oxidative stress resulting from a disturbed balance between endogenous prooxidant and antioxidant systems. For many years, it was thought that increased oxidative stress was a cause of neuronal cell death executed via an apoptotic mechanism. However, in recent years it has been postulated that rather programmed necrosis (necroptosis) is the key form of neuronal death in the course of neurodegenerative diseases. Such assumption was supported by biochemical and morphological features of the dying cells as well as by the fact that various necroptosis inhibitors were neuroprotective in cellular and animal models of neurodegenerative diseases. In this review, we discuss the relationship between oxidative stress and RIP1-dependent necroptosis and apoptosis in the context of the pathomechanism of neurodegenerative disorders. Based on the published data mainly from cellular models of neurodegeneration linking oxidative stress and necroptosis, we postulate that administration of multipotential neuroprotectants with antioxidant and antinecroptotic properties may constitute an efficient pharmacotherapeutic strategy for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.
Sesamol Ameliorates Renal Injury-Mediated Atherosclerosis via Inhibition of Oxidative Stress/IKKα/p53
Authors: Wang Jie-Sian , Tsai Ping-Hsuan , Tseng Kuo-Feng , Chen Fang-Yu , Yang Wen-Chin , Shen Ming-Yi
Published: September 2021

Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are at an increased risk of premature death due to the development of cardiovascular disease (CVD) owing to atherosclerosis-mediated cardiovascular events. However, the mechanisms linking CKD and CVD are clear, and the current treatments for high-risk groups are limited. In this study, we aimed to examine the effects of sesamol, a natural compound extracted from sesame oil, on the development of atherosclerosis in a rodent CKD model, and reactive oxygen species-induced oxidative damage in an endothelial cell model. ApoE–/– mice were subjected to 5/6 nephrectomy (5/6 Nx) and administered sesamol for 8 weeks. Compared with the sham group, the 5/6 Nx ApoE–/– mice showed a significant increase in malondialdehyde levels and Oil Red O staining patterns, which significantly decreased following sesamol administration. Sesamol suppressed H2O2-induced expression of phospho-IKKα, p53, and caspase-3. Our results highlight the protective role of sesamol in renal injury-associated atherosclerosis and the pathological importance of oxidative stress burden in CKD–CVD interaction.
Adaptive Prediction of Enhanced Oil Recovery by N2 huff-n-puff in Fractured-Cavity Reservoir Using an FNN-FDS Hybrid Model
Authors: Wang Qi , Jiang Hanqiao , Han Jianfa , Wang Daigang , Li Junjian
Published: September 2021

N2 huff-n-puff has proven to be a promising technique to further improve oil recovery in naturally fractured-cavity carbonate reservoirs. The effect of enhanced oil recovery (EOR) by N2 huff-n-puff is significantly affected by various dynamic and static factors such as type of reservoir space, reservoir connectivity, water influx, operational parameters, and so on, typically leading to a significant increase in oil production. To reduce the prediction uncertainty of EOR performance by N2 huff-n-puff, an adaptive hybrid model was proposed based on the fundamental principles of fuzzy neural network (FNN) and fractional differential simulation (FDS); a detailed prediction process of the hybrid model was also illustrated. The accuracy of the proposed FNN-FDS hybrid model was validated using production history of N2 huff-n-puff in a typical fractured-cavity carbonate reservoir. The proposed model was also employed to predict the EOR performance by N2 huff-n-puff in a naturally fractured-cavity carbonate reservoir. The methodology can serve as an effective tool to optimize developmental design schemes when using N2 huff-n-puff to tap more remaining oil in similar types of carbonate reservoirs.
Improving Aphasic Speech Recognition by Using Novel Semi-Supervised Learning Methods on AphasiaBank for English and Spanish
Authors: Torre Iván G. , Romero Mónica , Álvarez Aitor
Published: September 2021

Automatic speech recognition in patients with aphasia is a challenging task for which studies have been published in a few languages. Reasonably, the systems reported in the literature within this field show significantly lower performance than those focused on transcribing non-pathological clean speech. It is mainly due to the difficulty of recognizing a more unintelligible voice, as well as due to the scarcity of annotated aphasic data. This work is mainly focused on applying novel semi-supervised learning methods to the AphasiaBank dataset in order to deal with these two major issues, reporting improvements for the English language and providing the first benchmark for the Spanish language for which less than one hour of transcribed aphasic speech was used for training. In addition, the influence of reinforcing the training and decoding processes with out-of-domain acoustic and text data is described by using different strategies and configurations to fine-tune the hyperparameters and the final recognition systems. The interesting results obtained encourage extending this technological approach to other languages and scenarios where the scarcity of annotated data to train recognition models is a challenging reality.
Effect of Stirrup on Bond Strength Degradation in Concrete Cracked by Expansion Agent Filled Pipes
Authors: Syll Amadou Sakhir , Shimokobe Hiroki , Kanakubo Toshiyuki
Published: September 2021

The corrosion of rebars in reinforced concrete structures cracks the concrete, which leads to the degradation of the bond strength between the rebar and concrete. Since bond deterioration can menace structural safety, bond strength evaluation is essential for proper maintenance. In this study, the authors investigated bond strength degradation by conducting pull-out tests on concrete specimens, with induced crack width and stirrups ratio being the principal parameters. An expansion agent-filled pipe (EAFP) simulates cracks due to the volumetric expansion of the corroded rebar. One advantage of this method is that it allows one to focus on the single effect of an induced crack. The pull-out tests on 36 specimens show that stirrups’ confinement significantly influences the bond degradation due to induced cracks. The authors proposed an empirical model for the degradation of bond strength, considering the impact of induced crack width. The result shows that the induced crack by EAFP can quantify the exclusive consequence of corrosion on bonds. Furthermore, the coefficient of variation is 12% for specimens without stirrup from Law et al. For specimen without and with stirrup from Lin et al., the coefficients of variation are 14% and 17%. The proposed model can predict the corroded specimen from the literature with reasonable accuracy.
Joint Motion Planning of Industrial Robot Based on Modified Cubic Hermite Interpolation with Velocity Constraint
Authors: Pu Yasong , Shi Yaoyao , Lin Xiaojun , Zhang Wenbin , Zhao Pan
Published: September 2021

As for industrial robots’ point-to-point joint motion planning with constrained velocity, cubic polynomial planning has the problem of discontinuous acceleration; quintic polynomial planning requires acceleration to be specified in advance, which will likely cause velocity to fluctuate largely because appropriate acceleration assigned in advance is hardly acquired. Aiming at these problems, a modified cubic Hermite interpolation for joint motion planning was proposed. In the proposed methodology, knots of cubic Hermite interpolation need to be reconfigured according to the initial knots. The formulas for how to build new knots were put forward after derivation. Using the newly-built knots instead of initial knots for cubic Hermite interpolation, joint motion planning was carried out. The purpose was that the joint planning not only satisfied the displacement and velocity constraints at the initial knots but also guaranteed C2 continuity and less velocity fluctuation. A study case was given to verify the rationality and effectiveness of the methodology. Compared with the other two planning methods, it proved that the raised problems can be solved effectively via the proposed methodology, which is beneficial to the working performance and service life of industrial robots.
Feasibility of Ex Vivo Margin Assessment with Hyperspectral Imaging during Breast-Conserving Surgery: From Imaging Tissue Slices to Imaging Lumpectomy Specimen
Authors: Kho Esther , Dashtbozorg Behdad , Sanders Joyce , Vrancken Peeters Marie-Jeanne T. F. D. , van Duijnhoven Frederieke , Sterenborg Henricus J. C. M. , Ruers Theo J. M.
Published: September 2021

Developing algorithms for analyzing hyperspectral images as an intraoperative tool for margin assessment during breast-conserving surgery requires a dataset with reliable histopathologic labels. The feasibility of using tissue slices hyperspectral dataset with a high correlation with histopathology for developing an algorithm for analyzing the images from the surface of lumpectomy specimens was investigated. We presented a method to acquire hyperspectral images from the lumpectomy surface with a high correlation with histopathology. The tissue slices dataset was compared with the dataset obtained on lumpectomy specimen and the wavelengths with a penetration depth up to the minimum sample thickness of the tissue slices were used to develop a tissue classification algorithm. Spectral differences were observed between tissue slices and lumpectomy datasets due to differences in the sample thickness between both datasets; wavelengths with a high penetration depth were able to penetrate through the thinner tissue slices, affecting the captured signal. By using only wavelengths with a penetration depth up to the minimum sample thickness of the tissue slices, the adipose tissue could be discriminated from other tissue types, but differentiating malignant from connective tissue was more challenging.
Dynamic Responses of the Aero-Engine Rotor System to Bird Strike on Fan Blades at Different Rotational Speeds
Authors: Wu Bin , Lin Jiewei , Hedayati Reza , Zhang Guichang , Zhang Junhong , Zhang Lipeng
Published: September 2021

To study the effect of a bird striking engine fan on the rotor system, a low-pressure rotor system dynamic model based on a real aero-engine structure was established. Dynamic equations were derived considering the case of the bird strike force which transferred to the rotor system. The bird strike force was obtained from the bird strike process simulation in LS-DYNA, where a smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) mallard model was constructed using a computed tomography (CT) scanner, and finite element method (FEM) was used to simulate the bird strike on an actual fan model. The dynamic equations were solved using the Newmark-β method. The effect of rotational speeds on the rotor system dynamics after bird strike was investigated and discussed. Results show that the maximum bird impact force can reach 104 kN at 3772 r/min. Impact time is only 0.06 s, but the bird strike on fan blades lead to a transient shock on the rotor system. Under the action of transient shocks, the rotor system displacement in the horizontal and vertical directions increase sharply, and the closer the mass point is to the fan, the more it is affected; the vibration amplitude at the fan will increase 15 times within 0.1 s of the bird strike and will gradually decrease with the effect of damping. The dynamics of the rotor system changes from a stable single periodic motion to a complex irregular quasi-periodic motion after a bird strike, and the strike force excites the first-order vibrational mode of the rotor system. This phenomenon occurs at all speeds when bird strikes occur. Bird strikes will cause resonance in the rotor system, which may cause damage to the engine. It was also seen that the bird strike force, and hence the effects on the rotor system, increases as the engine rotational speed increases; the peak force is larger and the number of peaks has increased. The impact force at 3772 r/min is 99.5 kN higher than at 836 r/min, and three additional peaks emerged. This effect is more reflected in the amplitude, and the overall vibration characteristics do not change. Combining the bird strike with the rotor dynamics calculation, the dynamic response of the aero-engine rotor system to bird strike is studied at different flight stages, which is of guiding significance for power evaluation of aero engines after bird strike.
Applicability of Infrared Thermography for the Detection of Phase Transitions in Metal Alloys
Authors: Mailhé Clément , Godin Alexandre , Veillère Amélie , Duquesne Marie
Published: September 2021

This work aims at assessing the applicability of a screening-oriented device dedicated to the establishment of increasingly complex phase diagrams of phase change materials. A thermography-based method has recently been proven to allow the detection of phase transitions of organic materials for multiple samples at a time. The phase transition detection capability of the infrared thermography method is here evaluated for metal systems based on well-referenced materials commonly employed in DSC calibration (pure sample of Gallium and a mixture of Gallium and Indium). The detected transitions are compared to literature data and DSC measurements. All transitions documented in the literature could be retrieved by thermography, and liquidus transitions are validated with DSC measurements. The encouraging nature of the results is discussed, and avenues for improving the method are considered.
Terahertz Sensing for R/S Chiral Ibuprofen via All-Dielectric Metasurface with Higher-Order Resonance
Authors: Shi Weinan , Fan Fei , Zhang Ziyang , Zhang Tianrui , Li Shanshan , Wang Xianghui , Chang Shengjiang
Published: September 2021

A terahertz (THz) all-dielectric metasurface with crescent cylinder arrays for chiral drug sensing has been demonstrated. Through the multipole expansion method, we theoretically found that breaking the symmetry of the metasurface can excite higher-order resonance modes and provide stronger anisotropy as well as enhanced sensitivity for the surroundings, which gives a better sensing performance than lower-order resonance. Based on the frequency shift and transmittance at higher-order resonance, we carried out the sensing experiments on (R)-(−)-ibuprofen and (S)-(+)-ibuprofen solution on the surface of this metasurface sensor. We were able to monitor the concentrations of ibuprofen solutions, and the maximum sensitivity reached 60.42 GHz/mg. Furthermore, we successfully distinguished different chiral molecules such as (R)-(−)-ibuprofen and (S)-(+)-ibuprofen in the 5 μL trace amount of samples. The maximum differentiation was 18.75 GHz/mg. Our analysis confirms the applicability of this crescent all-dielectric metasurface to enhanced sensing and detection of chiral molecules, which provides new paths for the identification of biomolecules in a trace amount.
Maple-Leaf Shaped Broadband Optical Nano-Antenna with Hybrid Plasmonic Feed for Nano-Photonic Applications
Authors: Ahmad Inzamam , Ullah Shakir , din Jalal ud , Ullah Sadiq , Ullah Waseem , Habib Usman , Khan Salahuddin , Anguera Jaume
Published: September 2021

This article presents a broadband optical nano-antenna, which covers a broader range of optical communication wavelengths (666 to 6000 nm), used in nano-photonic applications. The proposed design is modeled and analyzed to obtain a satisfactory gain of up to 11.4 dBi for a single element-based antenna. The unique feature of the proposed antenna is the hybrid plasmonic waveguide-based feed, which receives the optical signal from the planar waveguide and redirects the signal out of the plane. The proposed antenna provides highly directional radiation properties, which makes it a suitable candidate for inter- and intra-chip optical communications and sensing applications. Moreover, an extension of the work is performed for an array configuration of the order 2 × 1 and 64 × 1, to increase the gain and directionality. Therefore, this shows that it can be equally useful for optical energy harvesting applications with a significant gain up to 26.8 dBi.
Synthesis of Porous Biomimetic Composites: A Sea Urchin Skeleton Used as a Template
Authors: Shapkin Nikolay P. , Papynov Evgeniy K. , Panasenko Alexandr E. , Khalchenko Irina G. , Mayorov Vitaly Yu. , Drozdov Anatoliy L. , Maslova Natalya V. , Buravlev Igor Yu.
Published: September 2021

The paper presents an original method for the template synthesis of biomimetic porous composites using polyferrophenylsiloxane (PFPS) and the skeleton of the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus intermedius as a structuring template. The study aimed to form an organosilicon base of a composite with an inverted structure relative to the original structure of the sea urchin shell with a period of structure movement of about 20 µm and ceramic composites fabrication with the silicate base with an average pore size distribution of about 10 μm obtained by the reaction of PFPS with the inorganic base of the sea urchin test under conditions of calcination at 1000 °C followed by acid etching. The composition and morphology of the obtained composites were investigated by IR, XRD, XPS, EDX, and SEM techniques and by mercury porosimetry; the parameters of the porous structures depend on the selected methods of their synthesis. The proposed method is of fundamental importance for developing methods for the chemical synthesis of new biomimetics with a unique porosity architecture based on environmentally friendly natural raw materials for a vast practical application.
An Innovative Optimization Design Procedure for Mechatronic Systems with a Multi-Criteria Formulation
Authors: Morales-Cruz Cuauhtémoc , Ceccarelli Marco , Portilla-Flores Edgar Alfredo
Published: September 2021

This paper presents an innovative Mechatronic Concurrent Design procedure to address multidisciplinary issues in Mechatronics systems that can concurrently include traditional and new aspects. This approach considers multiple criteria and design variables such as mechanical aspects, control issues, and task-oriented features to formulate a concurrent design optimization problem that is solved using but not limited to heuristic algorithms. Furthermore, as an innovation, this procedure address all considered aspects in one step instead of multiple sequential stages. Finally, this work discusses an example referring to Mechatronic Design to show the procedure performed and the results show its capability.
Application of Online Transportation Mode Recognition in Games
Authors: Hedemalm Emil , Kor Ah-Lian , Hallberg Josef , Andersson Karl , Pattinson Colin , Chinnici Marta
Published: September 2021

It is widely accepted that human activities largely contribute to global emissions and thus, greatly impact climate change. Awareness promotion and adoption of green transportation mode could make a difference in the long term. To achieve behavioural change, we investigate the use of a persuasive game utilising online transportation mode recognition to afford bonuses and penalties to users based on their daily choices of transportation mode. To facilitate an easy identification of transportation mode, classification predictive models are built based on accelerometer and gyroscope historical data. Preliminary results show that the classification true-positive rate for recognising 10 different transportation classes can reach up to 95% when using a historical set (66% without). Results also reveal that the random tree classification model is a viable choice compared to random forest in terms of sustainability. Qualitative studies of the trained classifiers and measurements of Android-device gravity also raise several issues that could be addressed in future work. This research work could be enhanced through acceleration normalisation to improve device and user ambiguity.
Emotional Response to Vibrothermal Stimuli
Authors: Shetty Yatiraj , Mehta Shubham , Tran Diep , Soni Bhavica , McDaniel Troy
Published: September 2021

Emotional response to haptic stimuli is a widely researched topic, but the combination of vibrotactile and thermal stimuli requires more attention. The purpose of this study is to investigate emotional response to vibrothermal stimulation by combining spatiotemporal vibrotactile stimulus with dynamic thermal stimulus (hot or cold). The vibrotactile and thermal stimuli were produced using the Haptic Chair and the Embr wave thermal bracelet, respectively. The results show that spatiotemporal vibrotactile patterns and their duration, and dynamic thermal stimulation, have an independent effect on the emotional response. Increasing duration generally increases the valence and arousal of emotional response. Shifting the dynamic temperature from cold to hot generally decreases the valence of emotional response but has no significant effect on arousal. Nevertheless, certain spatiotemporal patterns do exhibit unique responses to changes in dynamic temperature, although no interaction effects were found. The results show the potential of designing affective haptic interfaces using multimodal vibrothermal feedback.
Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Thiazolyl-Ethylidene Hydrazino-Thiazole Derivatives: A Novel Heterocyclic System
Authors: Al-Mutabagani Laila A. , Abdelrazek Fathy M. , Gomha Sobhi M. , Hebishy Ali S. , Abdelfattah Mohamed S. , Hassan Safaa M. , Sayed Abdelwahed R. , Elaasser Mahmoud M.
Published: September 2021

The reaction of 2-(1-(2-(2-(4-methoxybenzylidene)hydrazinyl)-4-methylthiazol-5-yl)ethylidene)hydrazinecarbothioamide with a range of hydrazonoyl chlorides and α-halo-compounds yielded three new series of thiazole derivatives. Chemical and physical techniques were used to analyze all newly prepared derivatives (1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, FT-IR and mass spectrometry). The potential antimicrobial and anticancer properties of the synthesized derivatives were investigated using various in vitro biological experiments. Most of the thiazole compounds tested were effective against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. In addition, a minimum inhibition concentration was determined for the antibiotic properties of the most active produced substances. The cytotoxic activities were tested on HepG-2 (liver carcinoma), HCT-116 (colorectal carcinoma) and MDA-MB-231 (breast carcinoma) cell lines in comparison with cisplatin reference drug and using colorimetric MTT assay. The results detected that compound 10c was the most potent against the three tested cell lines. Interestingly, when the tested compounds were evaluated for their toxicity against normal (MRC-5) cells, they exhibited low toxic effects indicating the safe use of most of them that may require further in vivo and pharmacological studies.
A VR Truck Docking Simulator Platform for Developing Personalized Driver Assistance
Authors: Ribeiro Pedro , Krause André Frank , Meesters Phillipp , Kural Karel , van Kolfschoten Jason , Büchner Marc-André , Ohlmann Jens , Ressel Christian , Benders Jan , Essig Kai
Published: September 2021

Professional truck drivers frequently face the challenging task of manually backwards manoeuvring articulated vehicles towards the loading bay. Logistics companies experience costs due to damage caused by vehicles performing this manoeuvre. However, driver assistance aimed to support drivers in this special scenario has not yet been clearly established. Additionally, to optimally improve the driving experience and the performance of the assisted drivers, the driver assistance must be able to continuously adapt to the needs and preferences of each driver. This paper presents the VISTA-Sim, a platform that uses a virtual reality (VR) simulator to develop and evaluate personalized driver assistance. This paper provides a comprehensive account of the VISTA-Sim, describing its development and main functionalities. The paper reports the usage of VISTA-Sim through the scenario of parking a semi-trailer truck in a loading bay, demonstrating how to learn from driver behaviours. Promising preliminary results indicate that this platform provides means to automatically learn from a driver’s performance. The evolution of this platform can offer ideal conditions for the development of ADAS systems that can automatically and continuously learn from and adapt to an individual driver. Therefore, future ADAS systems can be better accepted and trusted by drivers. Finally, this paper discusses the future directions concerning the improvement of the platform.
Laser Transverse Modes with Ray-Wave Duality: A Review
Authors: Chen Yung-Fu , Wang Ching-Hsuan , Zheng Xin-Liang , Hsieh Min-Xiang
Published: September 2021

We present a systematic overview on laser transverse modes with ray-wave duality. We start from the spectrum of eigenfrequencies in ideal spherical cavities to display the critical role of degeneracy for unifying the Hermite–Gaussian eigenmodes and planar geometric modes. We subsequently review the wave representation for the elliptical modes that generally carry the orbital angular momentum. Next, we manifest the fine structures of eigenfrequencies in a spherical cavity with astigmatism to derive the wave-packet representation for Lissajous geometric modes. Finally, the damping effect on the formation of transverse modes is generally reviewed. The present overview is believed to provide important insights into the ray-wave correspondence in mesoscopic optics and laser physics.
Agricultural Waste-Based Biochar for Agronomic Applications
Authors: Enaime Ghizlane , Lübken Manfred
Published: September 2021

Agricultural activities face several challenges due to the intensive increase in population growth and environmental issues. It has been established that biochar can be assigned a useful role in agriculture. Its agronomic application has therefore received increasing attention recently. The literature shows different applications, e.g., biochar serves as a soil ameliorant to optimize soil structure and composition, and it increases the availability of nutrients and the water retention capacity in the soil. If the biochar is buried in the soil, it decomposes very slowly and thus serves as a long-term store of carbon. Limiting the availability of pesticides and heavy metals increases soil health. Biochar addition also affects soil microbiology and enzyme activity and contributes to the improvement of plant growth and crop production. Biochar can be used as a compost additive and animal feed and simultaneously provides a contribution to minimizing greenhouse gas emissions. Several parameters, including biochar origin, pyrolysis temperature, soil type when biochar is used as soil amendment, and application rate, control biochar’s efficiency in different agricultural applications. Thus, special care should be given when using a specific biochar for a specific application to prevent any negative effects on the agricultural environment.
A Simple Method for Assessing Diversity and Dynamics of Microbial Community: Comparison of Dairy Phages from Industrial and Spontaneous Fermentation
Authors: Olejnik-Schmidt Agnieszka , Pietrzak Bernadeta , Kawacka Iwona , Malak Klaudia , Wawrzyniak Weronika , Schmidt Marcin
Published: September 2021

Background: The dairy industry heavily relies on fermentation processes driven in high proportion by Lactococcus lactis. The fermentation process can be perturbed or even stopped by bacteriophage activity, leading to complete loss of fermentation batch or decreased quality product. The monitoring of the phage diversity and dynamics in the process allows implementing protective measures (e.g., starter rotation) to maintain unperturbed production. Methods: Universal primers were used to amplify sequences of the 936, c2, and P335 Lactococcus phage types. The amplicons were sequenced with the Sanger method and obtained degenerate sequences were analyzed using a simple bioinformatic pipeline in the R environment. Results: The most prevalent phage type is 936, followed by P335, whereas the c2 type is less frequent. Conclusions: Curd cheeses prepared on non-pasteurized milk based on native milk microbiota had a higher diversity of phages distinct from those found in dairy plants. Sanger sequencing of heterogenous amplicons generated on metagenome DNA can be used to assess low-complexity microbiota diversity.
Cooperative Multi-Objective Optimization of DC Multi-Microgrid Systems in Distribution Networks
Authors: Xu Zhiwen , Chen Changsong , Dong Mingyang , Zhang Jingyue , Han Dongtong , Chen Haowen
Published: September 2021

By constructing a DC multi-microgrid system (MMGS) including renewable energy sources (RESs) and electric vehicles (EVs) to coordinate with the distribution network, the utilization rate of RESs can be effectively improved and carbon emissions can be reduced. To improve the economy of MMGS and reduce the network loss of the distribution network, a cooperative double-loop optimization strategy is proposed. The inner-loop economic dispatching reduces the daily operating cost of MMGS by optimizing the active power output of RESs, EVs, and DC/AC converters in MMGS. The outer-loop reactive power optimization reduces the network loss of the distribution network by optimizing the reactive power of the bidirectional DC/AC converters. The double-loop, which synergistically optimizes the economic cost and carbon emissions of MMGS, not only improves the economy of MMGS and operational effectiveness of the distribution network but also realizes the low-carbon emissions. The Across-time-and-space energy transmission (ATSET) of the EVs is considered, whose impact on economic dispatching is analyzed. Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) is applied to iterative solutions. Finally, the rationality and feasibility of the cooperative multi-objective optimization model are proved by a revised IEEE 33-node system.
New Urbanization, Energy-Intensive Industries Agglomeration and Analysis of Nitrogen Oxides Emissions Reduction Mechanisms
Authors: Yu Yang , Wang Tianchang
Published: September 2021

With the deepening of urbanization and industrialization, as well as the exacerbation of energy consumption, China is facing a severe situation in which nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions reduction is imperative. In this study, it is aimed to put forward countermeasures and suggestions to reduce NOx emissions by analyzing the impact and mechanism of new urbanization, the agglomeration of energy-intensive industries and mutual interactions on China’s NOx emissions. By analyzing the data of 30 provinces in China from 2006 to 2017, this paper adopted the system generalized method of moments (SYS-GMM) and intermediary effect model to introduce four variables, such as: energy efficiency, human capital, industrial structure and energy structure, which were for empirical analysis. From the results, it was shown that: (1) NOx emissions in China have an accumulated effect; (2) new urbanization inhibits NOx emissions, whilst the agglomeration of energy-intensive industries intensifies NOx emissions. New urbanization weakens the negative impact of the agglomeration of energy-intensive industries on NOx emissions reduction and, (3) among the impacts of new urbanization on NOx emissions, the energy efficiency and human capital reflect the intermediary effect mechanism. At the same time, in the impact of the agglomeration of energy-intensive industries on NOx emissions, the industrial structure and energy structure show the mechanisms of the intermediary effect and masking effect, respectively.
Characteristics of Desert Precipitation in the UAE Derived from a Ceilometer Dataset
Authors: Airey Martin W. , Nicoll Keri A. , Harrison R. Giles , Marlton Graeme J.
Published: September 2021

Understanding rainfall in arid and water-scarce regions is central to the efficient use of water resources in agriculture, irrigation, and domestic food security. This work presents a new dataset with which to study precipitation processes in arid regions, utilising two years (2018–2020) of ceilometer observations made at Al Ain International Airport in the desert region of Al Ain, United Arab Emirates (UAE), where the annual rainfall is 76 mm. Ceilometer data provide a novel method by which to study both the evolution of water droplets from the cloud base down to the surface and the local circumstances required for rain to successfully reach the surface. In this work, we explore how successful precipitation depends on the initial size of the droplets and the thermodynamic profile below the cloud. For 64 of the 105 rain events, the droplet diameters ranged from 0.60 to 3.75 mm, with a mean of 1.84 mm. We find that smaller droplets, higher cloud bases, reduced cloud depths, and colder cloud bases all act to prevent successful precipitation, instead yielding virga (28 out of the 105 rain generating events). We identify how these multiple regional factors combine—specifically, we identify clouds deeper than 2.9 km, droplet diameters greater than 2 mm, and a midpoint below-cloud RH profile greater than 50%—to give successful rainfall, which may ultimately lead to more efficient rainfall enhancing measures, such as cloud seeding.
Performance of Aether Low-Cost Sensor Device for Air Pollution Measurements in Urban Environments. Accuracy Evaluation Applying the Air Quality Index (AQI)
Authors: Spyropoulos Georgios C. , Nastos Panagiotis T. , Moustris Konstantinos P.
Published: September 2021

Significant portions of European cities’ population are still exposed to levels of air pollution deemed harmful by the World Health Organization. Given the high impact of air pollution both on human health and the economy, numerous low-cost electrochemical sensor monitoring systems are being installed. The market is forced to develop new air quality monitoring systems to meet the needs of providing forecasting services based on advanced technologies and protocols that utilize certain characteristics such as high accuracy, real-time monitoring, daily and yearly statistics, data access from both experts and simple users with the use of low-cost equipment. In this study, conducted in Athens, Greece, a comparison is attempted between the findings from a low-cost electrochemical sensor device and those of a static, fixed site measurement monitoring station; this comparison is based on the data quality and Air Quality Index (AQI) concerning data accuracy and quality on adverse health effects due to air pollution. With regard to the prediction of different AQI intervals, TPR ranges from 35.2% up to 100.0%, FPR from 0.0% up to 36.1% and FNR from 0.0% up to 38.1%. The outcome of this study reveals flexible and affordable alternatives adopted during the evaluation and calibration of low-cost gas sensors for monitoring.
Series with Commuting Terms in Topologized Semigroups
Authors: Castejón Alberto , Corbacho Eusebio , Tarieladze Vaja
Published: September 2021

We show that the following general version of the Riemann–Dirichlet theorem is true: if every rearrangement of a series with pairwise commuting terms in a Hausdorff topologized semigroup converges, then its sum range is a singleton.
High-Potential Test for Quality Control of Separator Defects in Battery Cell Production
Authors: Hoffmann Louisa , Kasper Manuel , Kahn Maik , Gramse Georg , Ventura Silva Gabriela , Herrmann Christoph , Kurrat Michael , Kienberger Ferry
Published: September 2021

Lithium-ion batteries are a key technology for electromobility; thus, quality control in cell production is a central aspect for the success of electric vehicles. The detection of defects and poor insulation behavior of the separator is essential for high-quality batteries. Optical quality control methods in cell production are unable to detect small but still relevant defects in the separator layer, e.g., pinholes or particle contaminations. This gap can be closed by executing high-potential testing to analyze the insulation performance of the electrically insulating separator layer in a pouch cell. Here, we present an experimental study to identify different separator defects on dry cell stacks on the basis of electric voltage stress and mechanical pressure. In addition, finite element modeling (FEM) is used to generate physical insights into the partial discharge by examining the defect structures and the corresponding electric fields, including topographical electrode roughness, impurity particles, and voids in the separator. The test results show that hard discharges are associated with significant separator defects. Based on the study, a voltage of 350 to 450 V and a pressure of 0.3 to 0.6 N/mm2 are identified as optimum ranges for the test methodology, resulting in failure detection rates of up to 85%.
Understanding the Effects of Growing Seasons, Genotypes, and Their Interactions on the Anthesis Date of Wheat Sown in North China
Authors: Li Ziwei , Zheng Bangyou , He Yong
Published: September 2021

Quantitative studies on the effects of growing season, genotype (including photoperiod genes and vernalization genes), and their interaction (GGI) on the anthesis date of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) are helpful to provide a scientific reference for selecting or developing adaptive varieties in target environments. In this study, we collected 100 winter wheat varieties with ecological adaptability in North China and identified the anthesis date under field conditions for three consecutive years from 2016 to 2019 with mapped photoperiod and vernalization alleles. Our results showed that the number of the photoperiod-insensitive Ppd-D1a allele increased with variety replacement, while the haplotype Ppd-A1b + Ppd-D1b + vrn-D1 (A4B2) decreased from the 1940s to 2000s. The anthesis date of A4B2 was significantly delayed due to the photoperiod-insensitive alleles Ppd-A1b and Ppd-D1b. The additive main effect and multiplicative interaction (AMMI) model and GGI biplot analysis were used for data analysis. A large portion of the total variation was explained by growing seasons (66.3%), while genotypes and GGIs explained 21.9% and 10.1% of the anthesis dates, respectively. The varieties from the 1940s and before had a great influence on the anthesis date, suggesting these germplasms tend to avoid premature anthesis and could facilitate the development of phenological resilient varieties.
GABARAPL1 Inhibits EMT Signaling through SMAD-Tageted Negative Feedback
Authors: Jacquet Marine , Hervouet Eric , Baudu Timothée , Herfs Michaël , Parratte Chloé , Feugeas Jean-Paul , Perez Valérie , Reynders Célia , Ancion Marie , Vigneron Marc , Baguet Aurélie , Guittaut Michaël , Fraichard Annick , Despouy Gilles
Published: September 2021

The pathway of selective autophagy, leading to a targeted elimination of specific intracellular components, is mediated by the ATG8 proteins, and has been previously suggested to be involved in the regulation of the Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) during cancer’s etiology. However, the molecular factors and steps of selective autophagy occurring during EMT remain unclear. We therefore analyzed a cohort of lung adenocarcinoma tumors using transcriptome analysis and immunohistochemistry, and found that the expression of ATG8 genes is correlated with that of EMT-related genes, and that GABARAPL1 protein levels are increased in EMT+ tumors compared to EMT- ones. Similarly, the induction of EMT in the A549 lung adenocarcinoma cell line using TGF-β/TNF-α led to a high increase in GABARAPL1 expression mediated by the EMT-related transcription factors of the SMAD family, whereas the other ATG8 genes were less modified. To determine the role of GABARAPL1 during EMT, we used the CRISPR/Cas9 technology in A549 and ACHN kidney adenocarcinoma cell lines to deplete GABARAPL1. We then observed that GABARAPL1 knockout induced EMT linked to a defect of GABARAPL1-mediated degradation of the SMAD proteins. These findings suggest that, during EMT, GABARAPL1 might intervene in an EMT-regulatory loop. Indeed, induction of EMT led to an increase in GABARAPL1 levels through the activation of the SMAD signaling pathway, and then GABARAPL1 induced the autophagy-selective degradation of SMAD proteins, leading to EMT inhibition.
Computationally Assisted Lead Optimization of Novel Potent and Selective MAO-B Inhibitors
Authors: Gogineni Vedanjali , Nael Manal A. , Chaurasiya Narayan D. , Elokely Khaled M. , McCurdy Christopher R. , Rimoldi John M. , Cutler Stephen J. , Tekwani Babu L. , León Francisco
Published: September 2021

A series of dietary flavonoid acacetin 7-O-methyl ether derivatives were computationally designed aiming to improve the selectivity and potency profiles against monoamine oxidase (MAO) B. The designed compounds were evaluated for their potential to inhibit human MAO-A and -B. Compounds 1c, 2c, 3c, and 4c were the most potent with a Ki of 37 to 68 nM against MAO-B. Compounds 1c–4c displayed more than a thousand-fold selectivity index towards MAO-B compared with MAO-A. Moreover, compounds 1c and 2c showed reversible inhibition of MAO-B. These results provide a basis for further studies on the potential application of these modified flavonoids for the treatment of Parkinson’s Disease and other neurological disorders.
Possible Association between Bladder Wall Morphological Changes on Computed Tomography and Bladder-Centered Interstitial Cystitis/Bladder Pain Syndrome
Authors: Jhang Jia-Fong , Hsu Yung-Hsiang , Ho Han-Chen , Jiang Yuan-Hong , Lee Cheng-Ling , Yu Wan-Ru , Kuo Hann-Chorng
Published: September 2021

This study aimed to evaluate the clinical significance of urinary bladder wall thickening on computed tomography (CT) among patients with interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS). Patients with IC/BPS were prospectively enrolled and classified into three groups according to bladder CT finding: smooth bladder wall, focal bladder thickening, and diffuse bladder thickening. Among the 100 patients with IC/BPS, 49, 36, and 15 had smooth bladder wall, focal bladder thickening, and diffuse bladder thickening on CT, respectively. Patients with Hunner’s lesion showed a higher proportion of diffuse and focal bladder thickening compared to those without the same (p < 0.001). Patients with diffuse bladder thickening displayed smaller first sensation of filling, cystometric bladder capacity, and voided volume compared to the rest (all p < 0.001). Patients with focal and diffuse thickening had a higher proportion of inflammatory cell infiltration, uroepithelial cell denudation, and granulation tissue compared to those with smooth bladder wall (p = 0.045, 0.002, and 0.005, respectively). Bladder wall thickening on CT was correlated with clinical phenotypes of IC/BPS, including histopathological findings. Focal or diffuse bladder wall thickening on CT might indicate the presence of chronic bladder wall inflammation and fibrosis and could be used to differentiate bladder-centered IC/BPS.
The Prognostic Impact of Estimated Creatinine Clearance by Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis in Heart Failure: Comparison of Different eGFR Formulas
Authors: Scicchitano Pietro , Iacoviello Massimo , Passantino Andrea , Guida Piero , De Palo Micaela , Piscopo Assunta , Gesualdo Michele , Caldarola Pasquale , Massari Francesco
Published: September 2021

The estimation of glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) provides prognostic information in patients with heart failure (HF). Bioelectrical impedance analysis may calculate eGFR (Donadio formula). The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of the Donadio formula in predicting all-cause mortality in patients with HF as compared to Cockroft-Gault, MDRD-4 (Modification of Diet in renal Disease Study), and Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) formulas. Four-hundred thirty-six subjects with HF (52% men; mean age 75 ± 11 years; 42% acute HF) were enrolled. Ninety-two patients (21%) died during the follow-up (median 463 days, IQR 287–669). The area under the receiver operator characteristic curve for eGFR, as estimated by Cockroft-Gault formula (AUC = 0.75), was significantly higher than those derived from Donadio (AUC = 0.72), MDRD-4 (AUC = 0.68), and CKD-EPI (AUC = 0.71) formulas. At multivariate analysis, all eGFR formulas were independent predictors of death; 1 mL/min/1.73 m2 increase in eGFR—as measured by Cockroft-Gault, Donadio, MDRD-4, and CKD-EPI formulas—provided a 2.6%, 1.5%, 1.2%, and 1.6% increase, respectively, in mortality rate. Conclusions. eGFR, as calculated with the Donadio formula, was an independent predictor of mortality in patients with HF as well as the measurements derived from MDRD4 and CKD-EPI formulas, but less accurate than Cockroft-Gault.