bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Rheumatoid Arthritis: Clinical-Laboratory and Ultrasound Parallels
Authors: Krivotulova I. A. , Chernysheva T. V.
Published: August 2021

Purpose.To establish the relationship of serum adiponectin and leptin with clinical data, serological parameters, disease activity, results of ultrasound examination of the musculoskeletal system and X-ray damage of joints in rheumatoid arthritis patients.

Materials and methods.The article presents a comparative characteristic of adipokine levels among 64 women diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis (group I) and 30 healthy women (group II). The dependence of adipokine levels on clinical, laboratory, ultrasound and radiological changes was revealed in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Results.The concentration adiponectin level was significantly higher in rheumatoid arthritis patients compared to the control group (p <0.0001) and had significant correlations with radiological changes in the joints (r=0.40; p <0.001) and the intake duration of methotrexate (r=0.4; p <0.001) and glucocorticosteroids (r=0.3; p <0.05). The level of leptin in the blood serum of women with rheumatoid arthritis and healthy individuals was approximately the same. However, there were positive correlations between the level of leptin and of the tender joint count (r=0.5; p <0.0001), the levels of C-reactive protein (r=0.3; p <0.05) and interleukin-17 (r=0.3; p <0.05), the index Disease Activity Score 28 (r=0.4; p <0.001) and increased blood flow during Doppler imaging (r=0.4; p <0.001).

Conclusion.Thus, patients with rheumatoid arthritis have a significant increase in the level of adiponectin compared to the health group, which is associated with pronounced destructive changes in the joints and the intake duration of methotrexate and glucocorticosteroids. However, a positive relationship between the indicators of disease activity and the presence of a Doppler signal is observed only in leptin.
Anemia in Patients with Axial Spondyloarthritis is Not Associated with an Increase of Arterial Stiffness and Intima-Media Thickness (Results of a Single-Center Cross-Sectional Study)
Authors: Safarova K. N. , Makhina V. I. , Dorogoykina K. D. , Rebrov A. P.
Published: August 2021

Aim: to study parameters of arterial stiffness and subclinical atherosclerosis in patients with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) without clinically manifest cardiovascular pathology depending on the presence of anemia.

Material and methods. 102 patients with axSpA (mean age – 37.7±9.8 years, axSpA duration – 13.5±8.7 years, 66 (64.7%) men) were included. The BASDAI index and C-reactive protein (CRP)-based ASDAS score were measured, the hemogram, the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and the level of CRP were studied. Parameters of arterial stiffness were studied by oscillography and photoplethysmography, intima-media thickness (IMT) was evaluated by B-mode ultrasound according to standard protocols.

Results. During analysis of pulse wave properties, no statistically significant differences in parameters of vascular wall stiffness were found in axSpA patients with and without anemia. Aortic pulse wave velocity (PWVao) in patients with anemia was 7.4±1.5 m/sec, aortic augmentation index (Aix-ao) was 19.1±13.7%, stiffness index (SI) was 8.2±1.7 m/sec; in patients without anemia – 7.4±1.4 m/sec, 17.3±10.6% and 8.8±2.0 m/sec, respectively (p >0.05 for all). IMT in patients with anemia was 0.70±0.13 cm, in patients without anemia – 0.73±0.16 cm (p >0.05). Correlation analysis was performed and significant correlations were noted between Aix-ao, PWVao, SI, IMT and age (r=0.488, r=0.516, r=0.289, r=0.461, respectively, p <0.05); Aix-ao, PWVao and the BASDAI index (r=0.243, r=0.253, respectively, p <0.05). Significant correlations between PWVao and Aix-ao (r=0.442, p <0.001), SI (r=0.273, p=0.011) and IMT (r=0.236, p=0.034) were found.

Conclusion. The present study did not confirm the negative effect of anemia on vascular wall stiffness parameters and IMT in patients with axSpA. We consider that potential protective effect of anemia, due to well-known pathophysiological patterns — a decrease in blood viscosity and the induction of nitric oxide synthesis, plays an important role. Further studies are required to assess relationship between hemoglobin levels and markers of endothelial dysfunction in patients with axSpA.
The uncertainty and antimony of laws of Ukraine in civil sefety sphere
Authors: Borodina Nataliiа , Golinko Vasyl , Cheberiachko Serhii
Published: August 2021

The analysis of the legislative base of Ukraine in the field of national safety is performed. It is established that the existing system of national safety does not fully take into account such components as: transport safety, life safety, industrial safety, labor safety (labor protection), man-made safety, fire safety, sanitary and epidemiological safety. It should be noted that despite the urgent need to ensure cybersecurity in modern conditions, the training of specialists carried out in higher education institutions is not coordinated with the state bodies that formulate and implement state policy in the field of national safety. It is shown that currently the terms “Civil Safety” and “Economic Security” are not defined by law and this component of national safety is not included in the national safety system at all.  The structure of national safety is proposed and the compliance of safety types with the main components of national safety is determined, which will allow to remove the existing uncertainties and contradictions in the legislation. It is recommended that the next revision of the legal framework of Ukraine in the field of safety take into account the proposed structure of national safety and the defined compliance of safety with the main components of national safety, which will remove existing uncertainties and contradictions in the legislation. At the same time, the proposed structure of national safety can be changed and new definitions of concepts will be provided, which will already be based on the type of threat (military / non-military) and on the objects of influence (state / society / person).
COMPARISON OF ON-SITE TESTING WITH ONLINE TESTING DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC
Authors: Stradiotová Eva , Nemethova Ildiko , Stefancik Radoslav
Published: August 2021

In the paper, we deal with the comparison of the evaluation of students' language skills in two environments, on-site and online. Testing took place through the moodle platform, where we used e-test, during the first and second waves of the pandemic. The main aim of the research was to find out what impact the environment in which the testing takes place has on the test results, i.e. in which environment students achieved better results. Printed tests were used for on-site testing. The on-site testing took place in the academic years 2018/2019 (summer term) and 2019/2020 (winter term). The online testing took place in the academic years 2019/2020 (summer term) and 2020/2021 (winter term). We compared the results of the testing, which took place in person at the university, with the results that the students achieved during the online testing. In the research of testing, we used the method of quantitative analysis and descriptive statistics, which allow us to better understand the correlation between the results obtained in on-site and online testing. Based on the data analysis, we confirmed the alternative hypothesis H1: Students who took part in on-site testing achieve better results than students who took part in online testing. Testing results show that students achieve better results in on-site testing than in online testing.
DIRECT DATA COLLECTION METHOD BY TELECOMMUNICATIONS AERIAL PLATFORMS FROM THE WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORK NODES
Authors: Romaniuk Anton , Samberg Andre
Published: August 2021

Background. To collect monitoring data from the nodes of the wireless sensor network in the absence of public telecommunications infrastructure, it is proposed to use telecommunications aerial platforms (TA), built on the basis of UAVs. Each telecommunication aerial platform acts as a mobile gateway, dynamically creates virtual clusters in the network, determines the data collection points in the clusters and their flight paths, forms a schedule and exchanges data with cluster nodes depending on their location coordinates relative to the TA flight path, battery power level and volume of monitoring data.

Objective. The aim of the paper is to improve the efficiency of data collection from wireless sensor network nodes by telecommunication aerial platforms.

Methods. Unlike existing data collection methods, the proposed method: uses the FOREL (FORmal ELement) cluster analysis method for clustering the network, new rules for selecting data collection points and rules for data transmission between TA and cluster nodes to achieve the specified target control functions: minimization of TA data collection time, maximization of network operation time, minimization of used TA.

Results. The proposed monitoring data collecting method by TA from the nodes of the wireless sensor network allows increasing the efficiency of achieving a given target control function (reduce the time of data collection, increase the time of network operation, reduce the number of telecommunication aerial platforms used).

Conclusions. The implementation of the proposed method into the specialized software of the wireless sensor network control system will improve the efficiency of the sensor node data collection process by telecommunication aerial platforms.

Keywords: wireless sensor network; data collection method; network clustering; telecommunication aerial platform.
Vertical Boundary Mixing Events during Stratification Govern Heat and Nutrient Dynamics in Windy Tropical Lakes with High Water-Level Fluctuations: A Long-Term (2001-2018) Study
Authors: Merino Ibarra Martín , Ramírez-Zierold Jorge A. , Valdespino-Castillo Patricia M. , Castillo-Sandoval Fermin S. , Guzmán-Arias Andrea P. , Barjau-Aguilar Mariel , Monroy-Ríos Emiliano , López- Gómez Luz M. , Sacristán-Ramírez Arantxa , Quintanilla-Terminel José G. , González–De Zayas Roberto , Jimenez-Contreras Jorge , Valeriano-Rivero María E. , Vilaclara-Fatjó Gloria , Sánchez-Carrillo Salvador
Published: August 2021

Physical processes play important roles in controlling eutrophication and oligotrophication. In stratified lakes, internal waves can cause vertical transport of heat and nutrients without breaking the stratification, through boundary mixing events. Such is the case in tropical Valle de Bravo (VB) lake, where strong diurnal winds drive internal waves, boundary mixing and hypolimnetic warming during stratification periods. We monitored VB during 18 years (2001-2018) when important water-level fluctuations (WLF) occurred, affecting mixing and nutrient flux. Mean hypolimnetic temperature increase (0.06–1.04°C month-1) occurred in all the stratifications monitored. We analyzed temperature distributions and modeled the hypolimnion heat budget to assess vertical mixing between layers (26,618–140,526 m-3h-1), vertical diffusivity coefficient KZ (6.2x10-7–3.3x10-6 m2s-1) and vertical nutrient entrainment to epilimnion on monthly scale. Stability also varied as a function of WLF. Nutrient flux to the epilimnion ranged 0.36–5.99 mg m-2d-1 for soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) and 5.8–97.1 mg m-2d-1 for dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN). During low water-level years, vertical nutrient fluxes increase and can account for up to >40% of the total external nutrients load to the lake. Vertical mixing changes related to WLF affect nutrient recycling, their flux to sediments, ecosystemic metabolic balance and planktonic composition of VB.
Antifungal Combinations in Dermatophytes
Authors: Brescini Lucia , Fioriti Simona , Morroni Gianluca , Barchiesi Francesco
Published: August 2021

Dermatophytes are the most common cause of fungal infections worldwide, affecting millions of people annually. The emergence of resistance among dermatophytes along with the availability of antifungal susceptibility procedures suitable for testing antifungal agents against this group of fungi make the combinatorial approach particularly interesting to be investigated. Therefore, we reviewed the scientific literature concerning the antifungal combinations in dermatophytes. A literature search on the subject performed in PubMed yielded 68 publications: 37 articles referring to in vitro studies, and 31 articles referring to case reports/clinical studies. In vitro studies involved over 400 clinical isolates of dermatophytes (69% Trichophyton spp., 29% Microsporum spp., and 2% Epidermophyton floccosum). Combinations included two antifungal agents or an antifungal agent plus another chemical compound including plant extracts/essential oils, calcineurin inhibitors, peptides, disinfectant agents and others. In general, drug combinations yielded variable results spanning from synergism to indifference. Antagonism was rarely seen. In over 700 patients with documented dermatophyte infections an antifungal combination approach could be evaluated. The most frequent combination included a systemic antifungal agent administered orally (i.e.: azole [mainly itraconazole], terbinafine or griseofulvin) plus a topical medication (i.e.: azole, terbinafine, ciclopirox, amorolfine) for several weeks. Clinical results indicate that association of antifungal agents is effective, and it might be useful in accelerate the clinical and microbiological healing of a superficial infection. Antifungal combinations in dermatophytes have gained considerable scientific interest over the years and, in consideration of the interesting results available as far, it is desirable to continue the research in this field.
A Randomized Bag-of-Birds Approach to Study Robustness of Automated Audio Based Bird Species Classification
Authors: Ghani Burooj , Hallerberg Sarah
Published: August 2021

The automatic classification of bird sounds is an ongoing research topic and several results have been reported for the classification of selected bird species. In this contribution we use an artificial neural network fed with pre-computed sound features to study the robustness of bird sound classification. We investigate in detail if and how classification results are dependent on the number of species and the selection of species in the subsets presented to the classifier. In more detail, a bag-of-birds approach is employed to randomly create balanced subsets of sounds from different species for repeated classification runs. The number of species present in each subset is varied between 10 and 300, randomly drawing sounds of species from a dataset of 659 bird species taken from Xeno-Canto database. We observe that the shallow artificial neural network trained on pre-computed sound features is able to classify the bird sounds relatively well. The classification performance is evaluated using several common measures such as precision, recall, accuracy, mean average precision and area under the receiver operator characteristics curve. All of these measures indicate a decrease in classification success as the number of species present in the subsets is increased. We analyze this dependence in detail and compare the computed results to an analytic explanation assuming dependencies for an idealized perfect classifier. Moreover, we observe that the classification performance depends on the individual composition of the subset and varies across 20 randomly drawn subsets.
Detection of Glucoma and Diabetes through Image Processing and Machine Learning Approaches
Authors: Bandyopadhyay Samir , Bose Payal , DUTTA SHAWNI , Goyal Vishal
Published: August 2021

In the last few decades, glaucoma became the second biggest leading cause of irreversible vision loss. Because of its asymptotic growth, it is not properly diagnosed until the relatively late stage. To stop the severe damage by glaucoma it is needed to detect glaucoma in its early stages. Surprisingly diabetes also be the greatest cause of glaucoma. In the modern era, artificial intelligence makes great progress in the medical image processing field. Image analysis based on machine learning gives a huge success in diagnosis glaucoma without any misdiagnosis. The aim of this proposed paper is to create an automated process that can detect glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy. Here various Machine Learning models are used and results of these methods are presented.
Desa Digital dan Tingkat Literasi Keuangan Aparatur Desa: Studi Kasus Kabupaten Aceh Tamiang
Authors: Fitriansyah Fitriansyah , Nuryakin Chaikal
Published: August 2021

Since 2014, to reach the poor for increasing financial inclusion, the government of Indonesia has been digitizing social benefits. Recently, local government has also been pushed to build a “Digital Village.” We argue that for such a program to succeed, a good level of financial and digital literacy of the village officials is necessary. We surveyed the village officials in 60 out of 215 Aceh Tamiang to examine their financial, digital, and DFS literacy. We find that the literacy of the village officials, on average, is low. The factors contributing to low financial literacy are age, level of education, and accessibility to financial and digital services. --------------------------------- Sejak tahun 2014, Pemerintah mendorong inklusi keuangan bagi masyarakat berpendapatan rendah melalui digitalisasi bantuan sosial. Perkembangan terbaru, pemerintah daerah juga didorong untuk membangun “Desa Digital”. Keberhasilan program ini menurut penulis, membutuhkan literasi keuangan dan literasi digital aparatur desa. Studi ini melakukan survei mengenai literasi keuangan, digital, dan keuangan digital dari aparatur desa di 60 desa dari 213 desa di Kabupaten Aceh Tamiang. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa secara rata-rata tingkat literasi masih rendah, bahkan cenderung kurang. Penelitian ini menemukan bahwa faktor usia, tingkat pendidikan, dan akses terhadap keuangan digital memengaruhi tingkat literasi keuangan aparatur desa.
Анализ динамики эпидемического процесса COVID-19 в мире за неделю с 07.08.2021 г. по 13.08.2021 г.
Authors: Зимирова Анастасия , Поспелов Михаил , Иванова Александра , Дмитриева Людмила , Чумачкова Елена , Сафронов Валентин , Карнаухов Игорь , Щербакова Светлана , Кутырев Владимир
Published: August 2021

В обзоре представлен анализ эпидемиологической ситуации в странах мира по COVID-19, за неделю с 07.08.2021 г. по 13.08.2021 г.
Bireysel Kariyer Planlamada Öz Tanıma Aracı Olarak SWOT Analizi: Z Kuşağı Üzerine Bir Araştırma
Authors: MÜCEVHER Muhammet Hamdi
Published: August 2021

Kariyerini geliştirmek isteyen her bireyin kariyer planlaması yapması önerilmektedir. Bireysel kariyer planlaması, kişilerin kendi beklentileri doğrultusunda gelecek hedefleri, yetenekleri ve mesleklerinin planlanması sürecidir. SWOT Analizi, bireysel kariyer planlamada, öz tanıma aracı olarak kullanılabilir. Bu motivasyon ile yapılan çalışmada, Z kuşağı üyesi üniversite öğrencilerine ait 251 bireysel SWOT analizi, içerik analizi yöntemiyle analiz edilmiştir. Neticede, Z kuşağının güçlü ve zayıf yönleri, yetenek ve yetkinlikleri, fırsat ve tehditleriyle ilgili bir profil ortaya çıkarılmıştır. Araştırma sonuçlarına göre, Z kuşağı öğrencilerin en güçlü ilk üç yönü, beşeri ilişkiler becerisi, sanat/spor/hobi ile uğraşma ve kararlılık iken; en zayıf ilk üç yönü ise duygularını yönetememe, yabancı dil eksikliği ve sinir/öfkedir. Buna mukabil Z kuşağının fırsat olarak gördüğü ilk üç unsur, aile desteği, sosyal sermaye ve iyi bir üniversite okumak iken; tehdit olarak gördükleri ilk üç faktör ise rakipler, işletmelerin nitelikli insan kaynağı talebi ve DGS/KPSS’yi kazanamamaktır.
Asociación entre anemia del primer trimestre y bajo peso al nacer en cuatro Centros de Salud Materno Infantiles de Lima Sur durante el 2019
Authors:   , Reátegui Estrada Ximena Alexandra
Published: August 2021

Objetivo: Determinar la relación entre la anemia materna del primer trimestre y el bajo peso al nacer de 4 centros de salud maternos de Lima-Sur durante el 2019. Materiales y métodos: Se realizó un estudio cohorte retrospectivo de una base de datos secundaria donde se incluyeron gestantes atendidas en 4 Centros de Salud con nivel de complejidad I-4 de Lima-Sur; cuyos partos se registraron durante el 2019, excluyendo a los recién nacidos pretérmino. Una hemoglobina del primer trimestre <11 g/dl se definió como anemia y un peso <2500 g como bajo peso al nacer. Se calculó la incidencia acumulada según anemia y se halló el riesgo relativo (RR) ajustado a potenciales confusores. Resultados: Se incluyó 221 gestantes y el 76% tuvo una edad entre 18 a 35 años. Un 42% fue primigesta, un 52% presentó exceso de peso y el 60% realizó 6 o más controles prenatales. Un 23,5% de gestantes presentó anemia en el primer trimestre y se halló una incidencia de 2,7% casos con bajo peso al nacer. La anemia del primer trimestre elevó en 11 veces la incidencia de recién nacidos con bajo peso, independiente de la edad, índice de masa corporal y paridad (RR ajustado = 11,1; IC 95% 1,3 – 97,2; p=0,029). Conclusiones: Una de cada cuatro gestantes presenta anemia durante el primer trimestre incrementando la incidencia acumulada de tener un neonato con bajo peso hasta en 11 veces.
Evaluación de los efectos cardiovasculares, respiratorios y calidad de intubación mediante el uso de propofol, con o sin ketamina durante la inducción anestésica en gatos
Authors:   , Torres Da Silva Denis Sauer
Published: August 2021

La inducción anestésica con propofol es ampliamente utilizada en gatos ya que permite una inducción de manera rápida, suave y sin excitación, y posibilita además el manejo adecuado de las vías aéreas para la intubación cuya necesidad es fundamental para los gatos. No obstante, el propofol ocasiona una reducción en los parámetros cardiovasculares y respiratorios cuando es administrado como único inductor. Ante ello, la asociación de ketamina con propofol reduciría la dosis de propofol, así como sus efectos adversos, sin afectar la calidad de intubación, lo que permitiría su uso como una alternativa más segura para la inducción anestésica en gatos. Por ello, el objetivo del presente estudio es evaluar dos protocolos anestésicos utilizando propofol con o sin ketamina en relación a su efecto sobre los parámetros cardiovasculares, respiratorios y calidad de intubación en gatos durante la inducción anestésica. Para ello, se anestesiaron 24 gatos clínicamente sanos, de ambos sexos y de diversas edades, los cuales fueron separados en dos grupos experimentales iguales; grupo (P) y grupo (KP). Los resultados para la dosis efectiva de propofol (media ± DE) fueron menores para KP (5.0 ± 1.4 mg / kg) que para P (6.8 ± 2.1 mg / kg) ( p〈 ± 0.500). KP estuvo asociado con una mayor PA que P. La FC fue similar entre ambos grupos, pero la asociación de ketamina con propofol resultó en una mayor disminución en la FR. Todos los gatos fueron intubados fácilmente.
Artificial intelligence approaches for spatial prediction of landslides in mountainous regions of western India
Authors: PRASAD PANKAJ , Loveson Victor Joseph , Das Sumit , Chandra Priyankar
Published: August 2021

The prediction of landslide is a complex task but preparing the landslide susceptibility map through artificial intelligence approaches can reduce life loss and damages resulting from landslides. The purpose of this study is to evaluate and compare the landslide susceptibility mapping (LSM) using six machine learning models, including random forest (RF), deep boost (DB), stochastic gradient boosting (SGB), rotation forest (RoF), boosted regression tree (BRT), and logit boost (LB) in the mountainous regions of western India. The landslide inventory map consisting of 184 landslide locations has been divided into two groups for training (70% dataset) and validation (30% dataset) purposes. Fourteen landslide triggering factors including slope, topographical roughness index, road density, topographical wetness index, elevation, slope length, drainage density, stream power index, geomorphology, rainfall, soil, lithology, lineament density, and normalized difference vegetation index have been considered using the boruta approach for the LSM. The results reveal that the RF model has the highest precision in terms of AUC (0.88; 0.89), kappa (0.62; 0.50), accuracy (0.81; 0.77), and specificity (0.86; 0.86) both in the study region and secondary region, respectively. Hence, it can be concluded that the RF is an effective and promising technique as compared to DB, SGB, RoF, BRT, and LB for landslide susceptibility assessment in the research area as well as in regions having similar geo-environmental configuration.
UV Light Combined with Nitrate Remove Bisphenol A: Kinetics, Transformation Pathways, and Acute Toxicity Assessment
Authors: Li Zhiquan , Luo Congwei , Tan Fengxun , Wu Daoji , Wang Shishun , Cheng Xiaoxiang , Zhang Fumiao , Li Mingli , Ma Qiao
Published: August 2021

As a powerful endocrine disruptor, bisphenol A (BPA) is a serious threat to human health. In this study, low-pressure UV lamp (LP-UV) photolysis nitrate was used to degrade BPA in different aqueous solutions. Results showed that BPA could be decomposed efficiently in the UV/nitrate process. ·OH played a significant role in the UV/nitrate process, and the steady-state concentration of ·OH ([·OH]ss) was calculated to be 5.26×10-15 M under control conditions. Moreover, the contributions of UV irradiation (4.1%), ·OH (52.7%), and reactive nitrogen species (43.2%) were obtained. The observed rate constant of BPA degradation (kobs) increased with nitrate concentration since more activity species were generated in high nitrate concentration. BPA degradation rate significantly accelerated as the pH value rose, it was ascribed to the increase of the molar absorption coefficient and the portion of ionic BPA. However, kobs declined with increasing BPA concentration result from the inner filter effect and the competition of more generated intermediate products. The increasing decomposition of BPA with the addition of HCO3-/CO32- (0~10 mM), which could be explained as HCO3-/CO32- scavenged ·OH resulting in the accumulation of ·NO2. The effect of Cl- (0~20 mM) can be ignored, which suggested reactive chlorine radicals degraded BPA effectively. The kobs reduced acutely when NOM (0~5mg-C/L) existed in the solution, this could be ascribed to the dual role of NOM inner filter effect and reactive radicals scavenging effect. Further, several degradation products were detected and possible transformation pathways were put forward. Remarkably, the acute toxicity of BPA was slightly enhanced then decayed in the UV/nitrate process.
Study of The Performance of A Cylindrical Flow-Through Electro-Fenton Reactor Using Different Arrangements of Carbon Felt Electrodes: Degradation of Amoxicillin In Aqueous Solution
Authors: García-Espinoza Josué Daniel , Robles Irma , Durán-Moreno Alfonso , Godinez Luis A.
Published: August 2021

In this work, a cylindrical flow-through electro-Fenton reactor integrated by graphite felt electrodes and Fe(II) loaded resin was evaluated for the production of the Fenton reaction mixture and for the degradation of amoxicillin (AMX) containing aqueous solutions. First, the influence of several factors such as treatment time, current intensity, flow rate and electrode position were investigated for the electrogeneration of H2O2 and the energetic consumption by means of a factorial design methodology using a 24 factorial matrix. Electric current and treatment time were found to be the pivotal parameters influencing the H2O2 production with respective contributions of 40.2% and 26.9%. The flow rate had low influence on the responses, however, 500 mL min-1 (with an average residence time of 1.09 min obtained in the residence time distribution analysis) allowed to obtain a better performance due to the high mass transport to and from the electrodes. As expected, polarization was also found to play an important role, since for cathode-to-anode flow direction, lower H2O2 concentrations were determined when compared with anode-to-cathode flow arrangement, indicating that part of the H2O2 produced in the cathode could be destroyed at the anode. A fluorescence study of hydroxyl radical production on the other hand, showed that higher yields were obtained using an anode-to-cathode flow direction (up to 3.88 µM), when compared with experiments carried out using a cathode-to-anode flow direction (3.11 µM). The removal of a commercial formulation of the antibiotic amoxicillin (AMX) was evaluated in terms of total organic carbon, achieving up to 57.9 % and 38.63% of the pollutant mineralization using synthetic and real sanitary wastewater spiked, respectively. Finally, the efficiency of the process on the inactivation of fecal coliforms in sanitary wastewater samples was assessed, reducing 90% of the bacterium after 5 min of electrolysis.
Antifungal activity and mechanism of the essential oils from Litsea (Litsea cubeba), Melissa (Melissa officinalis), Palmarosa (Cymbopogon martini) and Verbena (Verbena officinalis) and their major active constituents against Trametes hirsuta and Laetiporus sulphureus
Authors: Xie Yongjian , Yang Xi , Han Hui , Zhang Zhilin , Zhang Dayu
Published: August 2021

Antifungal activities of 37 essential oils (EOs) against two wood-decaying fungi, Trametes hirsuta and Laetiporus sulphureus were screened in vitro, and investigated the underlying mechanism. Of the 37 EOs, litsea (Litsea cubeba), melissa (Melissa officinalis), palmarosa (Cymbopogon martini), and verbena (Verbena officinalis) demonstrated strong antifungal activity, in which litsea oil exhibited the strongest antifungal property against T. hirsuta and L. sulphureus, with IC50 values of 72.3 and 40.2 µg/ml, respectively. The compositions of litsea, melissa, palmarosa, and verbena EOs were analyzed using a gas chromatography-mass spectrometry method and demonstrated geranial, geraniol, neral, and citral as their major active constituents. Among of them geranial exhibited the strongest antifungal activity against T. hirsuta and L. sulphureus, with IC50 values of 56.6 and 33.3 µg/ml, respectively. These EOs and their major active constituents increased the plasma membrane permeability of T. hirsuta and L. sulphureus, resulting in the leakage of nucleic acid, protein, and soluble sugar. Results indicate that the EOs of litsea, melissa, palmarosa, and verbena and its major constituents inhibited T. hirsuta and L. sulphureus growth by targeting its plasma membrane.
The Effect of Interactive Multimedia And Illustrated Booklet On Knowledge, Attitude, And Behavior In Preventing Lower Back Pain Among Working Nurses: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Zarifsanaiey Nahid , Yazdani Zahra , karimian Zahra , Shahraki Hadi Raeisi , Ghaffarinejad Farahnaz
Published: August 2021

Background: The present study compared interactive multimedia and illustrated booklet methods on knowledge, attitude, and behavior improvement in preventing lower back pain among nurses.Methods: In this single-blind randomized controlled trial, 153 eligible nurses working in three hospitals during 2019 were enrolled. The hospitals were randomly allocated into three parallel groups: interactive multimedia (n=55), illustrated booklet (n= 55), and t control (n= 43) groups. The primary and secondary outcomes were the assessment of behavior, knowledge, and attitude at baseline, one, and four weeks after the intervention. Results: Regarding one week and four weeks after the intervention, knowledge and behavior score was significantly higher in the illustrated booklet group than that of the multimedia group (P<0.001). In addition, the mean score of attitude was considerably higher in the interactive multimedia compared to the booklet group one week and four weeks after the intervention (P=0.002).Conclusion: A combination of the illustrated booklet and interactive multimedia methods can improve nurses' knowledge, attitude, and behavior in preventing lower back pain.Trial registration: This trial was respectively registered. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04610073Date of registration: Oct 30 2020(https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04610073?term=zarifsanaiey&draw=1&rank=2)
Assessment of Seasonal Variability of Extreme Temperature In Mainland China Under Climate Change
Authors: Yan Weixiong , Zhao Junfang , Li Jianping , Wang Yuanxia
Published: August 2021

Grain yield may be affected in the future by climate change. Some studies have suggested that variations in the seasonal cycle of temperature and season onset could affect the efficiency in the use of radiation by plants, which would then affect yield. However, the study of the temporal variation in extreme climatic variables is not sufficient in China. Therefore, this article evaluates the distribution of extreme temperature seasonality trends in mainland China, describes the trends in the seasonal cycle, and detects changes in extreme temperature characterized by the number of hot days (HD), and frost days (FD) and the frequency of warm days (Tx90p), cold days (Tx10p), warm nights (Tn90p) and cold nights (Tn10p). All data are from the EAR5 reanalysis for the 1979-2020 periods.The results show a statistically significant positive trend in the annual average amplitudes (A0) of extreme temperatures. The change in Txmax was the smallest, but it also accounted for 84.5% of the total area. The annual amplitude (A1) and phase (F1) experienced less variation than A0 for extreme temperatures in mainland China. A1 of the maximum temperature decreased significantly on the Tibetan Plateau and increased significantly in the Tianshan Mountains and Jungar Basin (mainly Taxman). F1 of the maximum temperature exhibit a negative trend in approximately 30% of mainland China, and the trend appeared in some regions except in the Northeast and Southwest. Although A1 of the minimum temperature was not as large as that of the maximum temperature, its distribution was very characteristic and it was almost bounded by the 400 mm isohyet, increasing in the Northwest and decreasing in the Southeast. In terms of the number of days, there was an increase in HD, Tx90p, and Tn90p, as well as a decrease in FD, Tx10p, and Tn10p. This number of days also indicates that temperature has increased over mainland China in the past 42 years.
Impact of Land Use Conversion On Carbon Stocks And Selected Peat Physico-Chemical Properties In The Leyte Sab-A Basin Peatland, Philippines
Authors: Decena Syrus Cesar , Villacorta-Parilla Sarah , Arribado Arwin , Macasait Dionesio , Arguelles Michael , Salamia Shella , Relevo Edwin
Published: August 2021

Peatlands are unique wetland ecosystems that provide various ecosystem services such as carbon storage and biogeochemical cycling, however being threatened by anthropogenic activities. The present study was conducted to explore the impact of land use conversion on carbon stocks and peat properties in a tropical peatland in the Leyte Sab-a Basin Peatland (LSBP) in Northeastern Leyte, Philippines. The carbon stocks (aboveground and belowground) and physico-chemical properties of peat soil were compared among wetland forest, grassland and cropland. Land use conversion resulted in the significant reduction of the total aboveground carbon stock. The wetland forest had the highest carbon stocks (38.56 ± 4.58 t ha− 1), and when converted to grassland and cropland, it has resulted to carbon loss of as much as 86.59 and 90.45%, respectively. The belowground root carbon stock was highest in the wetland forest (5.05 ± 0.64 t ha− 1) also while highest peat carbon stock (1 m depth) was observed in the cropland areas (45.28 ± 2.25–61.27 ± 3.07 t ha− 1). However, wetland forests with very deep peat deposits potentially store a significant amount of carbon than in cropland that was characterized by shallower compressed peats. In addition, land use conversion altered the physico-chemical properties of peat such as water content, organic matter, and porosity, and bulk density which all indicated peatland degradation. Finally, the overall result of this study highlights the importance to develop and implement management and conservation plans for LSBP.
Therapeutic Effect of The Combination of Short-Term Massage Manipulation With Remote Guided Self-Exercise On The Post-Mastectomy Axillary Web Syndrome In Patients With Breast Cancer: A Randomized, Single-Blind Trial.
Authors: Qiao Jia , Yang Qi-hui , Zhan Jing , Li YI , Bai Ding-qun , Kong Yu-han
Published: August 2021

Background: Although the axillary web syndrome (AWS) is a common post-mastectomy complication. A small number of studies have reported treatment strategies for the AWS that showed interventions for one month were an effective strategy. The current study in AWS patients investigated the clinical efficacy of short-term massage manipulation (STMM) combined with remote guided self-exercise (RGS).Method: The patients were randomized into either short-term massage manipulation combine with remote guided self-exercise group (STMM+RGS group) or treatment without massage manipulation and remote guided self-exercise group (T- STMM+RGS group). STMM+RGS group received massage manipulation for 20 min per day for 7 days as total hospitalized therapy and then received telephone-guided therapy for 9 weeks, rehabilitation gymnastics provided during hospitalization.T- STMM+RGS group received rehabilitation gymnastics only. The primary outcome was changes in upper limb range of movement (ROM), assessed at 3, 6, and 9 weeks after intervention. The secondary outcomes were scores of visual analog scales (VAS), disability of arm, shoulder and hand (DASH) index, and activities of daily living (ADL) index assessed at 3, 6, 9 weeks of follow-up.Results: 106 patients were enrolled in the trial, 86 were randomized to treatment groups, with 79 completing the trial (41 in STMM+RGS group, 38 in T-STMM+RGS group). At 6 and 9 weeks of follow-up ROM had improved in STMM+RGS group compared with that observed in T-STMM+RGS group(p<0.05). This improvement was more pronounced and significantly different at 9 weeks(p<0.01).. There was also a significant difference in VAS at 6 and 9 weeks between the two groups. The DASH score improved significantly in STMM+RGS group compared with that in T-STMM+RGS group at 3, 6, and 9 weeks of follow-up(p<0.01), while the ADL score was significantly different (p<0.05) in the two groups at 3 and 6 weeks , but showed no significant difference after 9 weeks of follow-up.Conclusion: The combination of STMM and RGS improves upper limb ROM, relieves upper limb pain, and reduces the occurrence of disabilities in post-mastectomy patients with the AWS.
Design and Analysis of Fiber Bragg Grating Sensor to Monitor Strain and Temperature for Structural Health Monitoring
Authors: Dhingra Ishant , Kaur Gurpreet , Kaler R. S.
Published: August 2021

In this paper, we have proposed a bragg grating based sensor to monitor health of civil structures at distinct temperatures. We have considered increased number of gratings with suitable refractive index to enhance sensitivity of fiber bragg grating sensor. Analysis of Bragg wavelength with respect to load and temperature is successfully studied. The simulation results reveal that when independently strain (50 units per simulation) and temperature (25 ℃) are increased uniformly, a linear shift in Bragg wavelength 0.064 nm and 0.347 nm is observed, respectively. Similarly, when both strain and temperature are increased (ε = 50 & T= 25 ℃) concurrently, a directly proportional relation is found in bragg wavelength (0.403 nm). The results verify the enhanced performance of as-proposed sensor, employing it could be potentially used in civil, bio-medical and military domains.
Effects of Long-Term Exposure to Cd2+ on the Common Carp (Cyprinus Carpio) HO Gene Family and Intestinal Immune Mechanisms
Authors: JIANG ZHOU , Zhang Meng , Liu Kaiyue , Xue Yaguo , Xu Peng , Li Xuejun , Dong Chuanju
Published: August 2021

Heavy metal Cadmium (Cd2+) is an environmental pollutant that poses serious health hazards. Due to the increasing contamination of aquatic systems with Cd2+, the increased accumulation of Cd2+ in fish has become a food safety and public health concern. Heme oxygenase(HO) is an important antioxidant enzyme that plays a key role in defending the body against oxidative damage, but less research has been done in common carp. In this study, 6 HO genes were identified in the common carp genome database. Comparative genomics analysis showed considerable expansion of the HO genes and verified the four-round whole genome duplication (WGD) event in common carp. Phylogenetic analysis revealed all HO genes of common carp were clustered into orthologous groups indicating the highly conservative during evolution. In addition, the results of tissue distribution showed that most HO genes had extensive tissue distribution and showed tissue-specific expression patterns. Exposure to 0.5 mg/L Cd2+ significantly reduced the expression of TGF-β and IL-10 in common carp, which may indicate that Cd2+ exposure can destroy the physical barrier function of the intestine, inhibit intestinal immune defense and induce intestinal inflammation. In order to find a suitable concentration of Bacillus coagulans that could activate HO-1 genes and the immunity of the organism, we investigated the changes of HO-1 gene expression levels in the intestinal tract of common carp under Cd2+ stress at 30d and 60d by adding different concentrations of B. coagulans to the feed. The results showed that L2 upregulated HO-1 gene expression at different infection time points compared to the control/stressed group, but L1 and L3 almost inhibited the expression of most HO-1 genes. This result suggests that the optimum concentration of 2.0´108 CFU/g for activation of HO-1 gene expression by B. coagulans when subjected to Cd2+ stress may have an important role in organism resistance to oxidative stress and immune response. Also compared to the Cd2+ stressed group, the addition of B. coagulans to the diet provoked an upregulation of IL10 and TGF-β gene expression in almost all periods and reduced the ability to suppress intestinal immune defenses in L1, L2 and L3, with the L2 group showing the best induction level. Therefore, the addition of appropriate concentrations of B. coagulans may be a good way to activate HO-1 genes and reduce oxidative damage.
Thromboembolism in COVID-19 Patient with Unilateral Congenital Absent ICA with Intracranial Aneurysm: First Case Report
Authors: Shankar Diwakar , Singh Deepak Kumar , Chand Vipin , Yadav Kuldeep
Published: August 2021

We here discuss an interesting case of COVID-19 patient suffering from ruptured right supra-clinoid intracranial aneurysm with congenital absence of right ICA. COVID-19 has been responsible for over 175 million reported cases and over 3.8 million deaths world-wide. Severe cases of COVID-19 is characterized with cytokine outburst and hyperinflammation, platelet activation, endothelial dysfunction and sepsis related coagulopathy. This predisposes for thromboembolic events and aneurysm formation and rupture. Agenesis, aplasia and hypoplasia of internal carotid artery (ICA) is a rare congenital anomaly. ICA agenesis is associated with increased incidence of intracranial aneurysm as compared with general population.
Privacy Preserving Partially Homomorphic Encryption with Optimal Key Generation Technique for VANETs
Authors: G Tamilarasi , K Rajiv Gandhi , V Palanisamy
Published: August 2021

In recent days, vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) has gained significant interest in the field of intelligent transportation system (ITS) owing to the safety and preventive measures to the drivers and passengers. Regardless of the merits provided by VANET, it faces several issues, particularly with respect to security and privacy of users/messages. Because of the decentralized structure and dynamic topologies of VANET, it is hard to detect malicious or faulty nodes or users. With this motivation, this paper designs new privacy preserving partially homomorphic encryption with optimal key generation using improved grasshopper optimization algorithm (IGOA-PHE) technique in VANETs. The goal of the proposed IGOA-PHE technique aims to achieve privacy and security in VANET. The proposed IGOA-PHE technique involves two stage processes namely ElGamal public key cryptosystem (EGPKC) for PHE and IGOA based optimal key generation process. In order to improve the security of the EGPKC technique, the keys are optimally chosen using the IGOA. Besides, the IGOA is derived by incorporating the concepts of Gaussian mutation (GM) and Levy flights. The experimental analysis of the proposed IGOA-PHE technique is examined in a wide range of experiments. The resultant outcomes exhibited the maximum performance of the presented IGOA-PHE technique over the recent state of art methods.
Chronic Parenchymal Lung Changes after COVID-19 Infection
Authors: Touman Abdelfattah , Khayat Mohammed , Bulkhi Adeeb , Khairo Mutaz , Alyamani Wael , aldobyany Ahmad , Ghaleb Nabil , Ashi Hadeel , Alsobai Mohammed , Alqurashi Eid
Published: August 2021

Background: Persistent parenchymal lung changes are an important long-term sequela of COVID-19. There are limited data on the disease characteristics and trajectories. This study aims to evaluate persistent COVID-19-related parenchymal lung changes after 10 weeks of acute viral pneumonia and to identify its risk factors. Methods: This was a retrospective case-control observational study involving 38 COVID-19 confirmed cases using nasopharyngeal swab reverse-transcriptase-polymerase-chain-reaction (RT-PCR) at King Abdullah Medical City (KAMC) hospital, Makkah. Patients were recruited from the Post-COVID interstitial lung disease (ILD) clinic. Referral to this clinic was based on the pulmonology consultants’ assessment of hospitalized patients suspected of developing COVID-19-related ILD changes during hospitalization. Measurements and Main Results: Nineteen patients with persistent parenchymal lung changes after 10 weeks of the acute illness (group-1) were compared with 19 control patients referred for assessment of post-COVID-19 ILD and had accelerated clinical and/or radiological features (group-2). Group-1 was found to have more severe clinical and radiological disease, with higher peak value of inflammatory biomarkers. Two risk factors were identified, NLR >3.13 at admission increases the odds ratio (OR) of chronic parenchymal changes by 6.42 and 13.09 in the univariate and multivariate analyses, respectively. Invasive mechanical ventilation had a more profound effect with ORs of 5.92 and 44.5 in the univariate and multivariate analyses, respectively.Conclusion: Herein, persistent parenchymal lung changes were observed in several patients 10 weeks after acute COVID-19 infection. We found that only receiving invasive mechanical ventilation and NLR >3.13 at admission were strong risk factors for persistent parenchymal lung changes.