bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Spatial Optimization and Evaluation of the Economic, Ecological, and Social Value of Urban Green Space in Shenzhen
Authors: Yu Yuhan , Zhang Wenting , Fu Peihong , Huang Wei , Li Keke , Cao Kai
Published: March 2020

Urban green space (UGS) is important in urban systems, as it benefits economic development, ecological conservation, and living conditions. Many studies have evaluated the economic, ecological, and social value of UGS worldwide, and spatial optimization for UGS has been carried out to maximize its value. However, few studies have simultaneously examined these three values of UGS in one optimization system. To fill this gap, this study evaluated the economic value of UGS in terms of promoting housing prices, its ecological value through the relief of high land surface temperature (LST), and its social value through the provision of recreation spaces for residents within a 255 m distance. Subsequently, these three values were set as objectives in a genetic algorithm (GA)-based multi-objective optimization (MOP) system. Shenzhen was taken as the case study area. The results showed that the influencing distance of UGS in Shenzhen for house prices was 345 m, and the influencing distance of UGS for LST was 135 m. Using MOP, the Pareto solutions for increasing UGS were identified and presented. The results indicate that MOP can simultaneously optimize UGS’s economic, ecological, and social value.
Impact of the Spatial Configuration of Streets Networks on Urban Growth: A Case Study of Abha City, Saudi Arabia
Authors: Bindajam Ahmed Ali , Mallick Javed
Published: March 2020

The rapid economic growth of Saudi cities after the discovery of oil in 1960 had some disadvantages, the most significant of which was the rapid search for alternatives to urban development and the acceleration of urban growth in its major cities and villages. That contributed to the implementation of certain planning policies based on the heavy use of large-scale vehicles. These policies have been instrumental in increasing horizontal expansion, which has been linked to the increased need to rely on cars as a means of movement and not to adopt public transport such as metro and railways. In this research, one of the main cities in the Asir region, which is the administrative capital of Abha, which has been evaluated and analyzed. Space syntax is an informative theory that stands on the structure of urban graphs. Utilizing syntactic analysis, the impact of highways and arterial roads on the integration and connectivity orientation in the urban structure of the city is analyzed, and the constraints and opportunities for development in the building use map are identified. Resulting in isolated parts of districts with no pedestrian routes to connect them, this methodology allows us to determine the main points in the structure of the city where pedestrian accessibility can be added in order to provide the remedy to overcome the shortage in the city’s network system (i.e., crossovers, tunnels, etc.). In addition, the impact on the human dimension of the living community, the diversity of land use, and real estate financial classifications were discussed, while the principles of sustainable planning were used to enhance the integration of walkability in the built environment, which was the goal of this study.
The Effect of Emotional Intelligence on Turnover Intention and the Moderating Role of Perceived Organizational Support: Evidence from the Banking Industry of Vietnam
Authors: Giao Ha Nam Khanh , Vuong Bui Nhat , Huan Dao Duy , Tushar Hasanuzzaman , Quan Tran Nhu
Published: March 2020

The objective of this study is to investigate the impact of emotional intelligence on turnover intention, noting the mediating roles of work-family conflict and job burnout as well as the moderating effect of perceived organizational support. Survey data collected from 722 employees at banks in Vietnam was analyzed to provide evidence. Results from the partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) using the SmartPLS 3.0 program indicated that there was a negative effect of emotional intelligence on employees’ turnover intention; this was mediated partially through work-family conflict and job burnout. Besides, this study indicated that perceived organizational support could decrease work-family conflict, job burnout and turnover intention of employees. It could also moderate the relationship between emotional intelligence and work-family conflict. This negative relationship was stronger for employees who work in a supportive environment. The main findings of this research provided some empirical implications for the Vietnamese banking industry. It implied that organizations in the service industry should try to improve their employees’ work-family balance, reduce job burnout and take advantage of these emotional balances and supportive environments to create beneficial outcomes.
Community Self-Organisation from a Social-Ecological Perspective: ‘Burlang Yatra’ and Revival of Millets in Odisha (India)
Authors: Saxena Lopamudra Patnaik
Published: March 2020

In this paper, I focus on the revival of an Indigenous community seed festival known locally as Burlang Yatra (‘Indigenous Biodiversity Festival’) in the district of Kandhamal in Odisha (India). This annual event brings together millet farmers to share knowledge and practices, including exchange of Indigenous heirloom seeds. Such community seed festivals remain largely underappreciated (and underexplored). Investigating Burlang Yatra through a social-ecological lens allowed for a greater understanding of its capacity to build and strengthen relationships, adaptation, and responsibility, three key principles that together link the social and the ecological in a dynamic sense. These principles, driven by intergenerational participation and interaction as well as social learning, can be seen as fostering ‘social-ecological memory’ of millet-based biodiverse farming. The festival’s persistence and revival illustrate a form of grassroots self-organising that draws on values of an Indigenous knowledge system. Within a restorative context, it has the capacity to repair and restore cultural and ecological relationships that the community has with their own foods and practices. This paper offers a new understanding of community self-organising from a social-ecological perspective and particularly in a marginalised context as supporting the revitalisation of Indigenous food systems.
Economic Structure Transformation and Low-Carbon Development in Energy-Rich Cities: The Case of the Contiguous Area of Shanxi and Shaanxi Provinces, and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China
Authors: Zhang Hongli , Shen Lei , Zhong Shuai , Elshkaki Ayman
Published: March 2020

Energy-rich cities tend to rely on resource-based industries for economic growth, which leads to a great challenge for its low-carbon and sustainable economic development. The contiguous area of Shanxi and Shaanxi Provinces, and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (SSIM) is one of the most important national energy bases in China. Its development pattern, dominated by the coal industry, has led to increasingly prominent structural problems along with difficult low-carbon transition. Taking energy-rich cities in the contiguous area of SSIM as examples, this study analyzes the main drivers of CO2 emissions and explores the role of economic structure transformation in carbon emission reduction during 2002–2012 based on structural decomposition analysis (SDA). The results show that CO2 emissions increase significantly with the coal industry expansion in energy-rich cities. Economic growth and structure are the main drivers of CO2 emission increments. An energy structure dominated by coal and improper product allocation structure can also cause CO2 emission increases. Energy consumption intensity is the main factor curbing CO2 emission growth in energy-rich cities. The decline of agriculture and services contributes to carbon emission reduction, while the expansion of mining and primary energy processing industries has far greater effects on CO2 emission growth. Finally, we propose that energy-rich cities must make more efforts to transform energy-driven economic growth patterns, cultivate new pillar industries by developing high-end manufacturing, improve energy efficiency through more investment in key technologies and the market-oriented reform of energy pricing and develop natural gas and renewable energy to accelerate low-carbon transition.
Performance of Alternative Estimation Procedures of the Implied Equity Duration in a Small Stock Market
Authors: Fullana Olga , Toscano David
Published: March 2020

This paper is focused on the measurement of interest rate risk of nonfinancial firms. The measurement is the initial step in the risk management, which, in the context of financial risks, it is expected to lead to better levels of enterprises’ financial sustainability. Concretely, we checked the performance of alternative estimation procedures of the implied equity duration as a measure of the exposure to interest rate risk of firms listed on a small stock market. Previous evidence in the US stock market shows that when the implied equity duration is computed using industry-specific parameters instead of market parameters, significant differences arise in their absolute and relative values and even in their ranking. In this paper, we checked the robustness of these results when we moved to a smaller stock market. To do so, we replicated previous analyses carried out in the Spanish stock market but using alternative estimation procedures. We conclude that significant differences arise in the implied equity duration estimations when we consider industry-specific parameters instead of market parameters. This finding in a small stock market is in line with previous evidence found for the US stock market.
Spanish Photovoltaic Solar Energy: Institutional Change, Financial Effects, and the Business Sector
Authors: Fernández-González Raquel , Suárez-García Andrés , Álvarez Feijoo Miguel Ángel , Arce Elena , Díez-Mediavilla Montserrat
Published: March 2020

Spain is a country with a high dependence on fossil fuels. For this reason, in 2007, it implemented a bonus system that aimed to encourage the production of renewable energies, particularly photovoltaic solar energy. These production bonuses, guaranteed by the Spanish government, led to an exponential increase in the number of companies in the market and, consequently, the MWh produced. However, in 2012, given the excessive budgetary burden involved in maintaining this “feed-in tariff” system and after several years of institutional instability, the aforementioned system of incentives for phoyovoltaic (PV) energy was eliminated. This paper has tried to analyze the consequences of this institutional change, a clear example of the “hold up” problem. For this purpose, a sample of 5354 companies, which was divided, geographically, into Spanish regions and, temporarily, into three different periods, has been taken, considering diverse economic and financial variables. The results show a notable weakening of the sector that, due to the effects of the regulatory change, has lost attractiveness and profitability for investors and is consequently suffering from stagnation, which has led to the disappearance of many companies in the sector.
Revising Seismic Vulnerability of Bridges Based on Bayesian Updating Method to Evaluate Traffic Capacity of Bridges
Authors: Wang Wei , Wu Fengying , Wang Ziyi
Published: March 2020

Analyzing the seismic vulnerability of bridge structures is of great significance in assessing the sustainable capacity of bridges. However, previous seismic vulnerability analysis of bridge structures was based on theoretical simulation or experimental research, which couldn’t really reflect the actual seismic damage. Therefore, this paper used Bayesian updating method to obtain a corrected vulnerability curve of bridge structures considering the theoretical simulation and historical seismic data, which overcame the shortcomings that information couldn’t be updated. Specifically speaking, the seismic demand probability function of the bridge structure was obtained through numerical simulation, and a seismic vulnerability curve of a log-normal distribution with two parameters (median value c j and log-standard deviation ξ j ) was established, which was taken as the prior information. Then, combining the historical empirical damage data, the demand information is updated to obtain the posterior probability of the structural seismic demand. The possibility of exceeding the limit damage state of the bridge structure under different ground motion intensity can be obtained by using the corrected seismic vulnerability curve. The results show that the corrected seismic vulnerability curves are closer to theoretical simulation results, which provides a new idea for the reliability analysis of the bridge structure. Moreover, based on the corrected seismic vulnerability curve of Guxigou Middle Bridge, the post-earthquake traffic capacity of the bridge was evaluated by combining with traffic flow and traffic time. The research results show that the proposed method can quickly evaluate the sustainable traffic capacity of bridges after earthquakes, which has certain practicability and scientificity and provides the theoretical basis and practical guiding significance for the relief work after earthquakes.
Sustainability Accounting and Reporting in the Public Sector: Towards Public Value Co-Creation?
Authors: Tommasetti Aurelio , Mussari Riccardo , Maione Gennaro , Sorrentino Daniela
Published: March 2020

The economic, social, and environmental contingencies of the last two decades have called into question the need for public sector organizations to align accounting practices with sustainable concerns. Sustainability refers to the ability of organizations to co-create economic value in the long run, involving all stakeholders, safeguarding the environment, and generating well-being for the community. While this topic attracts increasing interests from several perspectives, there is a lack of a comprehensive assessment of how academia is debating it. Therefore, this paper reviews the field of sustainability, accounting, and reporting (SAR) in the public sector in order to develop insights into how the literature is developing the theme of public value (PV) co-creation, offer a critique of the state-of-the-art to date, and outline future research opportunities. The study is based on a structured literature review (SLR) methodology that enables studying the corpus of scholarly literature, developing insights, critical reflections, and future research paths. The results highlight that, although the involvement of stakeholders appears as crucial for developing SAR practices in the public sector, scholars have not yet adopted a PV co-creation perspective to this phenomenon, since, at best, previous studies only focused on the stakeholders’ involvement, without considering other aspects such as synergistic integration of resources and alignment of purposes. Therefore, academics should rethink their research setting and implications to provide a significant contribution by conducting studies capable of leading future development of SA in the public sector.
Fiscal Decentralization, Pollution and China’s Tourism Revenue
Authors: Zeng Shaolong , Gao Lingyun , Shen Rui , Ma Yingying , Li Haiping
Published: March 2020

This paper focuses on the role of local governments in the development of tourism in China by examining 30 Chinese provinces from 2000 to 2018. The results of empirical research show that fiscal decentralization in China provides local governments with incentives for the development of high pollution industries and of large state-owned enterprises, which do not help the sustainable development of tourism. In addition, there is an “inverted U-shaped” relationship between pollution level and tourism development. Although the growth of China’s tourism industry is pollution-based currently, tourism revenue is considered to decline once a threshold is reached. The competition from local governments for foreign investment is conducive to the improvement of environmental quality and increase in tourism revenue. Based on this, we have proposed a series of sustainable tourism development measures.
Application of Floating Aquatic Plants in Phytoremediation of Heavy Metals Polluted Water: A Review
Authors: Ali Shafaqat , Abbas Zohaib , Rizwan Muhammad , Zaheer Ihsan , Yavaş İlkay , Ünay Aydın , Abdel-DAIM Mohamed , Bin-Jumah May , Hasanuzzaman Mirza , Kalderis Dimitris
Published: March 2020

Heavy-metal (HM) pollution is considered a leading source of environmental contamination. Heavy-metal pollution in ground water poses a serious threat to human health and the aquatic ecosystem. Conventional treatment technologies to remove the pollutants from wastewater are usually costly, time-consuming, environmentally destructive, and mostly inefficient. Phytoremediation is a cost-effective green emerging technology with long-lasting applicability. The selection of plant species is the most significant aspect for successful phytoremediation. Aquatic plants hold steep efficiency for the removal of organic and inorganic pollutants. Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes) and Duck weed (Lemna minor) along with some other aquatic plants are prominent metal accumulator plants for the remediation of heavy-metal polluted water. The phytoremediation potential of the aquatic plant can be further enhanced by the application of innovative approaches in phytoremediation. A summarizing review regarding the use of aquatic plants in phytoremediation is gathered in order to present the broad applicability of phytoremediation.
Clinical Presentation and Serologic Response during a Rabies Epizootic in Captive Common Vampire Bats (Desmodus rotundus)
Authors: Cárdenas-Canales Elsa M. , Gigante Crystal M. , Greenberg Lauren , Velasco-Villa Andres , Ellison James A. , Satheshkumar Panayampalli S. , Medina-Magües Lex G. , Griesser Richard , Falendysz Elizabeth , Amezcua Ignacio , Osorio Jorge E. , Rocke Tonie E.
Published: March 2020

We report mortality events in a group of 123 common vampire bats (Desmodus rotundus) captured in México and housed for a rabies vaccine efficacy study in Madison, Wisconsin. Bat mortalities occurred in México and Wisconsin, but rabies cases reported herein are only those that occurred after arrival in Madison (n = 15). Bats were confirmed positive for rabies virus (RABV) by the direct fluorescent antibody test. In accordance with previous reports, we observed long incubation periods (more than 100 days), variability in clinical signs prior to death, excretion of virus in saliva, and changes in rabies neutralizing antibody (rVNA) titers post-infection. We observed that the furious form of rabies (aggression, hyper-salivation, and hyper-excitability) manifested in three bats, which has not been reported in vampire bat studies since 1936. RABV was detected in saliva of 5/9 bats, 2–5 days prior to death, but was not detected in four of those bats that had been vaccinated shortly after exposure. Bats from different capture sites were involved in two separate outbreaks, and phylogenetic analysis revealed differences in the glycoprotein gene sequences of RABV isolated from each event, indicating that two different lineages were circulating separately during capture at each site.
Use of Insecticides in Agriculture and the Prevention of Vector-Borne Diseases: Population Knowledge, Attitudes, Practices and Beliefs in Elibou, South Côte d’Ivoire
Authors: N’Dri Bédjou P. , Heitz-Tokpa Kathrin , Chouaïbou Mouhamadou , Raso Giovanna , Koffi Amoin J. , Coulibaly Jean T. , Yapi Richard B. , Müller Pie , Utzinger Jürg
Published: March 2020

People’s knowledge, attitudes, practices and beliefs (KAPB) pertaining to malaria are generally well described. However, little is known about population knowledge and awareness of insecticide resistance in malaria vectors. The aim of this study was to investigate KAPB related to insecticide resistance in malaria vectors due to the use of insecticides in agriculture and the prevention against mosquitoes. In mid-2017, we carried out a cross-sectional survey in Elibou, South Côte d’Ivoire, employing a mixed methods approach. Quantitative data were obtained with a questionnaire addressed to household heads. Interviews were conducted with key opinion leaders, including village chiefs, traditional healers, heads of health centres and pesticide sellers. Focus group discussions were conducted with youth and elders. A total of 203 individuals participated in the questionnaire survey (132 males, 65%). We found that people had good knowledge about malaria and mosquitoes transmitting the disease, while they felt that preventing measures were ineffective. Pesticides were intensively used by farmers, mainly during the rainy season. Among the pesticides used, insecticides and herbicides were most commonly used. While there was poor knowledge about resistance, the interviewees stated that insecticides were not killing the mosquitoes anymore. The main reason given was that insecticides were diluted by the manufacturers as a marketing strategy to sell larger quantities. More than a third of the farmers used agricultural pesticides for domestic purposes to kill weeds or mosquitoes. We observed a misuse of pesticides among farmers, explained by the lack of specific training. In the community, long-lasting insecticidal nets were the most common preventive measure against malaria, followed by mosquito coils and insecticide sprays. The interviewees felt that the most effective way of dealing with insecticide resistance was to combine at least two preventive measures. In conclusion, population attitudes and practices related to insecticides used in agriculture and the prevention against mosquitoes could lead to resistance in malaria vectors, while people’s knowledge about insecticide resistance was limited. There is a need to raise awareness in communities about the presence of resistance in malaria vectors and to involve them in resistance management.
Comparative Seasonal Respiratory Virus Epidemic Timing in Utah
Authors: Callahan Zayne Y. , Smith Trevor K. , Ingersoll Celeste , Gardner Rebecca , Korgenski E. Kent , Sloan Chantel D.
Published: March 2020

Previous studies have found evidence of viral interference between seasonal respiratory viruses. Using laboratory-confirmed data from a Utah-based healthcare provider, Intermountain Health Care, we analyzed the time-specific patterns of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), influenza A, influenza B, human metapneumovirus, rhinovirus, and enterovirus circulation from 2004 to 2018, using descriptive methods and wavelet analysis (n = 89,462) on a local level. The results showed that RSV virus dynamics in Utah were the most consistent of any of the viruses studied, and that the other seasonal viruses were generally in synchrony with RSV, except for enterovirus (which mostly occurs late summer to early fall) and influenza A and B during pandemic years.
IRE1α Promotes Zika Virus Infection via XBP1
Authors: Kolpikova Elena P. , Tronco Ana R. , Den Hartigh Andreas B. , Jackson Konner J. , Iwawaki Takao , Fink Susan L.
Published: March 2020

Zika virus (ZIKV) is an emergent member of the Flaviviridae family which causes severe congenital defects and other major sequelae, but the cellular processes that support ZIKV replication are incompletely understood. Related flaviviruses use the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) as a membranous platform for viral replication and induce ER stress during infection. Our data suggest that ZIKV activates IRE1α, a component of the cellular response to ER stress. IRE1α is an ER-resident transmembrane protein that possesses a cytosolic RNase domain. Upon activation, IRE1α initiates nonconventional cytoplasmic splicing of XBP1 mRNA. Spliced XBP1 encodes a transcription factor, which upregulates ER-related targets. We find that ZIKV infection induces XBP1 mRNA splicing and induction of XBP1 target genes. Small molecule inhibitors of IRE1α, including those specific for the nuclease function, prevent ZIKV-induced cytotoxicity, as does genetic disruption of IRE1α. Optimal ZIKV RNA replication requires both IRE1α and XBP1. Spliced XBP1 has been described to cause ER expansion and remodeling and we find that ER redistribution during ZIKV infection requires IRE1α nuclease activity. Finally, we demonstrate that inducible genetic disruption of IRE1α and XBP1 impairs ZIKV replication in a mouse model of infection. Together, our data indicate that the ER stress response component IRE1α promotes ZIKV infection via XBP1 and may represent a potential therapeutic target.
Broad Protection of Pigs against Heterologous PRRSV Strains by a GP5-Mosaic DNA Vaccine Prime/GP5-Mosaic rVaccinia (VACV) Vaccine Boost
Authors: Cui Junru , O’Connell Caitlin M. , Hagen Connor , Sawicki Kim , Smyth Joan A. , Verardi Paulo H. , Van Kruiningen Herbert J. , Garmendia Antonio E.
Published: March 2020

Background: Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) viruses are a major cause of disease and economic loss in pigs worldwide. High genetic diversity among PRRSV strains is problematic for successful disease control by vaccination. Mosaic DNA and vaccinia (VACV) vaccines were developed in order to improve protection against heterologous PRRSV strains. Methods: Piglets were primed and boosted with GP5-Mosaic DNA vaccine and recombinant GP5-Mosaic VACV (rGP5-Mosaic VACV), respectively. Pigs vaccinated with rGP5-WT (VR2332) DNA and rGP5-WT VACV, or empty vector DNA and empty VACV respectively, served as controls. Virus challenge was given to separate groups of vaccinated pigs with VR2332 or MN184C. Necropsies were performed 14 days after challenge. Results: Vaccination with the GP5-Mosaic-based vaccines resulted in cellular reactivity and higher levels of neutralizing antibodies to both VR2332 and MN184C PRRSV strains. In contrast, vaccination of animals with the GP5-WT vaccines induced responses only to VR2332. Furthermore, vaccination with the GP5-Mosaic based vaccines resulted in protection against challenge with two heterologous virus strains, as demonstrated by the significantly lower viral loads in serum, tissues, porcine alveolar macrophages (PAMs), and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluids, and less severe lung lesions after challenge with either MN184C or VR2332, which have only 85% identity. In contrast, significant protection by the GP5-WT based vaccines was only achieved against the VR2332 strain. Conclusions: GP5-Mosaic vaccines, using a DNA-prime/VACV boost regimen, conferred protection in pigs against heterologous viruses.
Tropomyosin: An Excretory/Secretory Protein from Haemonchus contortus Mediates the Immuno-Suppressive Potential of Goat Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells In Vitro
Authors: Ehsan Muhammad , Haseeb Muhammad , Hu Ruisi , Ali Haider , Memon Muhammad Ali , Yan Ruofeng , Xu Lixin , Song Xiaokai , Zhu Xingquan , Li Xiangrui
Published: March 2020

During host-parasite interactions, binding of excretory/secretory proteins (ESPs) on the host immune cells is considered the fundamental phase for regulation of immune responses. In this study, gene encoding Haemonchus contortus tropomyosin (Hc-TpMy), was successfully cloned and expressed, and the recombinant protein after host cell surface attachment was evaluated for immune functional analysis with goat peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in vitro. The isopropyl-β-D-thiogalactopyranoside (IPTG)-induced recombinant protein was successfully recognized by the sera of rat experimentally infected with rHc-TpMy. The immunofluorescence assay detected attachment of rHc-TpMy on the surface of host PBMCs. Furthermore, immunoregulatory roles of rHc-TpMy on cytokines expression, PBMC proliferation, migration, nitric oxide (NO) production, apoptosis and monocytes phagocytosis were observed. The results showed that expression of IL-4 and IFN-γ cytokines, cell proliferation, NO production and PBMC migration were significantly suppressed by goat PBMCs after co-incubation with rHc-TpMy protein. However, the productions of IL-10, IL-17 and TGF-β1 cytokines, PBMCs apoptosis and monocytes phagocytosis were elevated at dose dependent manner. Our findings indicated that rHc-TpMy is an important ES binding protein exhibit distinct immuno-suppressive roles on goat PBMCs which might be a potential molecular target to control haemonchosis in future.
Effect of Influenza Vaccination on Mortality and Risk of Hospitalization in Elderly Individuals with and without Disabilities: A Nationwide, Population-Based Cohort Study
Authors: Chang Yu-Chia , Tung Ho-Jui , Huang Yu-Tung , Lu Chin-Te , Ernawaty Ernawaty , Wu Szu-Yuan
Published: March 2020

Purpose: The effects of influenza vaccines are unclear for elderly individuals with disabilities. We use a population-based cohort study to estimate the effects of influenza vaccines in elderly individuals with and without disabilities. Methods: Data were taken from the National Health Insurance Research Database and Disabled Population Profile of Taiwan. A total of 2,741,403 adults aged 65 or older were identified and 394,490 were people with a disability. These two groups were further divided into those who had or had not received an influenza vaccine. Generalized estimating equations (GEE) were used to compare the relative risks (RRs) of death and hospitalization across the four groups. Results: 30.78% elderly individuals without a disability and 34.59% elderly individuals with a disability had vaccinated for influenza. Compared to the unvaccinated elderly without a disability, the vaccinated elderly without a disability had significantly lower risks in all-cause mortality (RR = 0.64) and hospitalization for any of the influenza-related diseases (RR = 0.91). Both the unvaccinated and vaccinated elderly with a disability had significantly higher risks in all-cause mortality (RR = 1.81 and 1.18, respectively) and hospitalization for any of the influenza-related diseases (RR = 1.73 and 1.59, respectively). Conclusions: The elderly with a disability had higher risks in mortality and hospitalization than those without a disability; however, receiving influenza vaccinations could still generate more protection to the disabled elderly.
Advanced Safety and Genetic Stability in Mice of a Novel DNA-Launched Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus Vaccine with Rearranged Structural Genes
Authors: Johnson Dylan M. , Sokoloski Kevin J. , Jokinen Jenny D. , Pfeffer Tia L. , Chu Yong-Kyu , Adcock Robert S. , Chung Donghoon , Tretyakova Irina , Pushko Peter , Lukashevich Igor S.
Published: March 2020

The safety and genetic stability of V4020, a novel Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus (VEEV) vaccine based on the investigational VEEV TC-83 strain, was evaluated in mice. V4020 was generated from infectious DNA, contains a stabilizing mutation in the E2-120 glycoprotein, and includes rearrangement of structural genes. After intracranial inoculation (IC), replication of V4020 was more attenuated than TC-83, as documented by low clinical scores, inflammation, viral load in brain, and earlier viral clearance. During the first 9 days post-inoculation (DPI), genes involved in inflammation, cytokine signaling, adaptive immune responses, and apoptosis were upregulated in both groups. However, the magnitude of upregulation was greater in TC-83 than V4020 mice, and this pattern persisted till 13 DPI, while V4020 gene expression profiles declined to mock-infected levels. In addition, genetic markers of macrophages, DCs, and microglia were strongly upregulated in TC-83 mice. During five serial passages in the brain, less severe clinical manifestations and a lower viral load were observed in V4020 mice and all animals survived. In contrast, 13.3% of mice met euthanasia criteria during the passages in TC-83 group. At 2 DPI, RNA-Seq analysis of brain tissues revealed that V4020 mice had lower rates of mutations throughout five passages. A higher synonymous mutation ratio was observed in the nsP4 (RdRP) gene of TC-83 compared to V4020 mice. At 2 DPI, both viruses induced different expression profiles of host genes involved in neuro-regeneration. Taken together, these results provide evidence for the improved safety and genetic stability of the experimental V4020 VEEV vaccine in a murine model.
Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Regarding Rabies in El Jadida Region, Morocco
Authors: Bouaddi Khadija , Bitar Abdelali , Bouslikhane Mohammed , Ferssiwi Abdesslam , Fitani Aziz , Mshelbwala Philip Paul
Published: March 2020

The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding rabies in the El Jadida region, Morocco. We conducted a cross-sectional survey using a structured questionnaire among randomly selected residents across 24 study sites. In total, 407 respondents took part in the survey. The majority (367, 92%) were male and had no formal education (270, 66%). Some (118, 29%) believed that rabies does not affect humans. Most respondents (320, 79%) were aware that vaccination could prevent rabies, but nevertheless did not vaccinate their dogs (264, 64.9%) and allowed their dogs to roam freely in search of food. Some (52.8%) would visit traditional healers for treatment in the event of a dog bite incident. Age and educational level were found to be significantly associated with knowledge, attitudes, and practices (p < 0.05). Although respondents demonstrated some level of knowledge about rabies, overall this study reveals critical gaps in their attitudes and practices. These shortcomings may be associated with a low level of education. Therefore, decision-makers need a new approach to control rabies, with a special focus on public awareness and health education, in order to sustain rabies control programs.
Aplikasi Capital Budgeting dalam Penentuan Keputusan Investasi Kamar dan Ballroom Di Hotel Panorama Lembang
Authors: Wardhana Wishnu
Published: March 2020

This research's title is "Applications of Capital Budgeting Method in Feasibility Study of Rooms and Ballroom Investment at Hotel Panorama Lembang", the purpose of this research are to know the feasibility of hotel investment based on financial projection aspect which using Capital Budgeting Method at Hotel Panorama Lembang. The feasibility of investment evaluate by the tools of capital budgeting model, which is have aspect of Discounted Payback Period, Net Present Value, Internal Rate Of Return, and Profitability Index in Hotel Panorama Lembang. The results of this research from the financial projection evaluated with the tools of capital budgeting evaluation which have the results can be seen that investment is feasible, as calculated by the method of discounted payback period is 8 years and 2 months based on hotel evaluation and 6 years and 11 months based on writer's evaluation, net present value in positive result (NPV > 0) in the amount of Rp. 1.743.693.325 , Internal Rate of Return is higher than the discounted factor of 12% in the amount of 23.9303%, profitability index is in positive result higher than 1. Based upon this calculation summarised that the feasibilty of investment based on financial projection are accepted. Based on the evaluation from the capital budgeting method, the criteria of investment at Hotel Panorama Lembang are accepted. The management used the methods which doesn't improve a good result in feasibility. Methods that used by the author more improve a good result in investing decisions, because using a selection of forecasting methods for future revenues. The author used a time series forecasting methods to improve more revenues for hotel. This forecasting method can provide the closest forecast result and the highest rate of accuracy. The author recommends to the management of Panorama Hotel Lembang to continue and accepted the investment of new rooms and ballroom. Considering the result of a feasebility study with a capital budgeting methods are accepted. The author also recommends to the management of Panorama Hotel Lembang to use a proper forecasting methods, such as time series methods.
LA DIVERSIDAD FENOTÍPICA DE MANZANO EN ZACATLÁN, PUEBLA, MÉXICO ES AMPLIA Y ES APORTADA PRINCIPALMENTE POR CARACTERÍSTICAS DE FRUTO
Authors: Posadas-Herrera Breni María , López Pedro A. , Gutiérrez-Rangel Nicolás , Díaz-Cervantes Rufino , Ibáñez-Martínez Armando
Published: March 2020

El manzano (Malus spp.) es un frutal distribuido mundialmente, con más de 30 especies y casi 1000 variedades. El municipio de Zacatlán, ubicado en la Sierra Norte de Puebla, México, es el principal productor en el estado y se le reconoce por su tradición en el cultivo y aprovechamiento de este frutal, así como por la abundancia y variabilidad de cultivares, destacando los ‘locales’ o ‘tradicionales’. No obstante, esta diversidad regional no ha sido caracterizada; por ello, este estudio tuvo como objetivo identificar la variación fenotípica presente en una muestra de árboles de manzana del municipio de Zacatlán, mediante una caracterización in situ. Para tal fin, durante los años 2015 y 2016, en ocho huertos, ubicados en cinco localidades, se caracterizaron 103 árboles pertenecientes a 36 variedades (24 ‘tradicionales’ y 12 de ‘reciente introducción’), utilizando 49 variables que incluyeron características morfológicas de fruto, flor y hoja, bioquímicas de fruto y atributos de árbol. Los datos se sometieron a análisis de varianza de una vía y a análisis multivariados (de componentes principales, de conglomerados y de varianza). Hubo diferencias significativas entre árboles en el 100 % de las variables analizadas, de las cuales, 16 variables de fruto, hoja, flor y árbol (que incluyeron 12 características morfológicas, dos bioquímicas y dos fenológicas) fueron las más importantes para explicar la variación observada. Se formaron cinco grupos que representan la diversidad en el municipio, los cuales se diferenciaron estadísticamente con nueve de las 16 variables: valor de luminosidad de cáscara y pulpa, número de lenticelas, firmeza de fruto, ancho de sépalo, color de capullo, largo del peciolo de la hoja, días a inicio de cosecha y grados Brix. Se concluye que en un área pequeña, como la del municipio de Zacatlán, Puebla, existe una amplia diversidad de manzano.
COMPARACIÓN DE SEIS MÉTODOS DE EXTRACCIÓN DE ADN EN TEJOCOTE (Crataegus mexicana Moc. & Sessé)
Authors: Betancurt-Olvera Marcela , Perez-Lainez Ma. Dolores , Nieto-Angel Raúl , Barrientos-Priego Alejandro F. , García-Mateos María del Rosario , Corona-Torres Tarsicio
Published: March 2020

El uso de técnicas de marcadores moleculares se inicia con un buen extracto de ADN; esto es, un ADN con buen rendimiento y pureza. Con la finalidad de obtener ADN puro e íntegro, en el presente estudio se evaluaron seis métodos de extracción de ADN: Dumolin, Doyle, Tsumura, Núñez, CTAB modificado y Kit Wizard Genomic DNA en brotes frescos y liofilizados, así como en hojas deshidratadas de tejocote (Crataegus mexicana Moc. & Sessé). La mejor calidad de ADN se obtuvo con los métodos Doyle y CTAB, mientras que los mayores rendimientos fueron con el Kit y con el método Doyle. Así mismo, se encontró que el material vegetal liofilizado proporcionó mayor rendimiento en todos los protocolos en los brotes frescos y hojas deshidratadas. En la verificación mediante PCR se encontró que el gen ribosomal 16S podía ser fácilmente amplificado con los protocolos de Doyle, CTAB modificado y el kit comercial.
H-47 AE, HÍBRIDO DE MAÍZ PARA VALLES ALTOS DE MÉXICO
Authors: Espinosa-Calderón Alejandro , Tadeo-Robledo Margarita , Zamudio-González Benjamín , Virgen-Vargas Juan , Turrent-Fernández Antonio , Rojas-Martínez Israel , Gómez-Montiel Noel , Sierra-Macías Mauro , López-López Consuelo , Palafox-Caballero Artemio , Vázquez-Carrillo Gricelda , Rodríguez-Montalvo Flavio , Canales-Islas Enrique I. , Zaragoza-Esparza Job A. , Martínez-Yañez Beatriz , Valdivia-Bernal Roberto , Cárdenas-Marcelo Alma L. , Mora-García Karina Y. , Martínez-Nuñez Benjamín
Published: March 2020

En México cada año se importan 10 millones de toneladas de grano de maíz (Turrent, 2009), por lo que es urgente incrementar la producción y contar con variedades que presenten mayor productividad. En los Valles Altos de México, ubicados a más de 2200 msnm, en el año 2014 se cosecharon dos millones de hectáreas de maíz, obteniéndose un rendimiento promedio de 2.82 t ha-1 (Virgen-Vargas et al., 2016). Con la aplicación de recomendaciones tecnológicas y un mayor uso de variedades mejoradas se podrían elevar los rendimientos de maíz. En 300 mil hectáreas de Valles Altos, con humedad residual, punta de riego y buen temporal, donde el rendimiento promedio es de 3.5 t ha-1 de grano, se podrían sembrar híbridos que incrementarían el rendimiento a 6.0 t ha-1 (Tadeo-Robledo et al., 2016).
The use of goalball elements in the correction of physical fitness
Authors: Kasmakova Larisa
Published: March 2020

The purpose: Development and testing of the program for correction of physical fitness and psychomotor de- velopment of children of secondary school age with intellectual disabilities based on the goalball techniques, in the framework of the educational experiment.
Objectives of the study. The first objective is to identify the features of physical fitness and psychomotor de- velopment of schoolchildren with intellectual disabilities. The second objective is to develop a program for correction of physical fitness of children of secondary school age with intellectual disabilities and to test it in the framework of the educational experiment. The third objective is to assess the effectiveness of the program for correction of physical fitness and psychomotor development in adaptive physical education for children of secondary school age with intellectual disabilities.
Methods and organization of the research. The study involved 64 schoolchildren studying in schools for chil- dren with disabilities. The study included educational testing of physical and psychomotor qualities of school- children with intellectual disabilities and comparison of the results relative to the age norms.
Results. The research revealed deviations from the age norms of children with intellectual disabilities in terms of the development of flexibility, speed, coordination, speed-power abilities and psychomotor qualities. We designed a program for correction of physical fitness and psychomotor development of children of secondary school age, based on the goalball techniques. The pilot program proved effective.
SURVEY ON ACCURACY OF PREDICTIVE BIG DATA ANALYTICS IN HEALTHCARE
Authors: S Smys
Published: March 2020

The failures in the most of research area, identified that the lack of details about the actionable and the valuable data that conceived actual solutions were the core of the crisis, this was very true in case of the health care industry where even the early diagnoses of a chronic disease could not save a person’s life. This because of the impossibility in the prediction of the individual’s outcomes in the entire population. The evolving new technologies have changed this scenario leveraging the mobile devices and the internet services such as the sensor network and the smart monitors, enhancing the practical healthcare using the predictive modeling acquiring a deeper individual measures. This affords the researches to go through the huge set of data and identify the patterns along with the trends and delivering solutions improvising the medical care, minimizing the cost and he regulating the health admittance, ensuring the safety of human lives. The paper provides the survey on the predictive big data analysis and accuracy it provides in the health care system.
DESIGN OF WIND TURBINE SYSTEM INTEGRATED WITH BATTERY ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEM
Authors: BAL Güngör , Emre EYİMAYA Süleyman
Published: March 2020

Due to uncontrolled natural variables such as wind speed, the correlation between the renewable energy production and the demand is strenuous. In order to make the renewable enrgy system effective the energy storage systems are utilized employing the, control systems for the enegy in the battery and power. In addition, the rapidly changing wind speed, particularly in wind turbines, causes variations in the power obtained from wind causing instability at a higher power levels. The system engaged in storing energy is employed to reduce fluctuations in power and to maintain stability of power systems. In this study, a wind turbine system integrated with energy storage system was created. This system is modeled and tested in MATLAB / Simulink. The results obtained evinces that the proposed system reduces power fluctuations and succeeds in meeting load demand.
STORAGE SCHEDULING SCHEME FOR DISTRIBUTED ENERGY GENERATION SOURCES
Authors: Shetty Nayana
Published: March 2020

Innumerable methods of generating, delivering and consuming electricity has become very prominent in the recent days due to the emergence of the distributed energy resources that are comprised of renewable energy sources and the energy storage systems. The prevailing energy storage systems for the distributed energy resources has its own challenges that are related to the methods of storage, the cost of the storage and their functioning. So the paper puts forward a novel energy accumulator that is supported by a rotating magnetic core as storage for the distributed energy resources. The proposed method brings down the operational, technical and financial complexities in storage of the distributed energy resources.
SURVEY ON ROBOT PROCESS AUTOMATION APPLICATION IN VARIOUS INDUSTRIES
Authors: G Ranganthan , S Smys
Published: March 2020

The Robotic Process automation (RPA) plays a vital part in the digital transformation scheme in maximum number of the organizations as they provide numerous of benefits over the conventional automation solutions that are out dated. The RPA provides an increased accuracy and productivity in the industries ensuring the cost savings and the reduced resource utilization with the technical barriers that are non-invasive. The paper presents the survey on the application of robot process automation in various industrial processes and the over view of the benefits in using the RPA.
TYPING EYES: A HUMAN COMPUTER INTERFACE TECHNOLOGY
Authors: A Sathish
Published: March 2020

The human’s beings always make use of their sensory modalities to effectively communicate or carry out their jobs. The humans use the sensory organs such as the ears, eyes mouth, including the hands to deliver a good verbal conversation. The human computer interface technology could also be made classier by involving the human voice, hands and eyes to access an application or control a device etc.; they paper puts forth the development of the human computer interface based on the eyes movement for typing the information without using the hand for typing, this could be very much useful for the patients with disabilities in the arms or affected by paralytic attacks for their regular works associated with the computers and can also be used by the normal people in security intensive applications, the evaluation results obtained for the proposed method using the MATLAB shows that the mean typing speed to be 30 characters per minute.
NEURAL NETWORK ANALYSIS FOR TUMOR INVESTIGATION AND CANCER PREDICTION
Authors: T Vijayakumar
Published: March 2020

Predicting the category of tumors and the types of the cancer in its early stage remains as a very essential process to identify depth of the disease and treatment available for it. The neural network that functions similar to the human nervous system is widely utilized in the tumor investigation and the cancer prediction. The paper presents the analysis of the performance of the neural networks such as the, FNN (Feed Forward Neural Networks), RNN (Recurrent Neural Networks) and the CNN (Convolutional Neural Network) investigating the tumors and predicting the cancer. The results obtained by evaluating the neural networks on the breast cancer Wisconsin original data set shows that the CNN provides 43 % better prediction than the FNN and 25% better prediction than the RNN.