bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Discrete Adjoint Method for Two-Phase Condensing Flows Applied to the Shape Optimization of Turbine Cascades
Authors: Pini M. , Azzini L. , Vitale S. , Colonna P.
Published: July 2020

This paper presents a fully turbulent two-phase discrete adjoint method for metastable condensing flows targeted to turbomachinery applications. The method is based on a duality preserving algorithm and implemented in the open-source CFD tool SU2. The optimization framework is applied to the shape optimization of two canonical steam turbine cascades, commonly referred to as White cascade and Dykas cascade. The optimization were carried out by minimizing either the liquid volume fraction downstream of the cascade or the total entropy generation due viscous effects and heat transfer. In the first case, the amount of condensate turned out to be reduced by as much as 24%, but without reduction of the generated entropy, while the opposite resulted in the second case. The outcomes demonstrate the capability and computational efficiency of adjoint-based automated design for the shape optimization of turbomachinery operating with phase change flow.
Designing and Implementing a Quality Physical Education Policy: Successes, Setbacks, and Lessons Learned From the Quality Physical Education Policy Project in Mexico
Authors: Jáuregui Alejandra , Pacheco-Miranda Selene , García-Olvera Armando , Orozco-Núñez Emanuel
Published: July 2020

Background: Quality physical education (QPE) is part of a whole-of-school approach for school-based physical activity promotion. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization QPE Policy Project supported 4 countries to develop QPE policies. The authors summarize the process, progress, successes, setbacks, and lessons learned during the implementation of the project in Mexico. Methods: The project was developed from August 2016 to April 2018 following the methodology proposed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Adaptations to the methodology were made to meet local needs. Results and Discussion: The project successfully implemented the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization methodology and prepared a national strategy for the provision of QPE in Mexico. The national strategy progressed despite the change in presidential administration. Successes included the use of a QPE policy evaluation framework, the inclusion of stakeholders representing extreme PE views and from all regions in the country, and the presence of international agencies in the national team. Setbacks included difficulties in engaging key organizations and a weak communication campaign. Lessons learned are discussed. Conclusions: The QPE project in Mexico served as a pilot project to test the feasibility of implementing a QPE policy revision process. The experience and lessons learned in Mexico can be drawn on to inform the work of other stakeholders interested in advocating for a national QPE policy.
Black hole and naked singularity geometries supported by three-form fields
Authors: Barros Bruno J. , Dǎnilǎ Bogdan , Harko Tiberiu , Lobo Francisco S. N.
Published: July 2020

We investigate static and spherically symmetric solutions in a gravity theory that extends the standard Hilbert–Einstein action with a Lagrangian constructed from a three-form field $$A_{\alpha \beta \gamma }$$Aαβγ, which is related to the field strength and a potential term. The field equations are obtained explicitly for a static and spherically symmetric geometry in vacuum. For a vanishing three-form field potential the gravitational field equations can be solved exactly. For arbitrary potentials numerical approaches are adopted in studying the behavior of the metric functions and of the three-form field. To this effect, the field equations are reformulated in a dimensionless form and are solved numerically by introducing a suitable independent radial coordinate. We detect the formation of a black hole from the presence of a Killing horizon for the timelike Killing vector in the metric tensor components. Several models, corresponding to different functional forms of the three-field potential, namely, the Higgs and exponential type, are considered. In particular, naked singularity solutions are also obtained for the exponential potential case. Finally, the thermodynamic properties of these black hole solutions, such as the horizon temperature, specific heat, entropy and evaporation time due to the Hawking luminosity, are studied in detail.
Automorphisms of cubic surfaces without points
Authors: Shramov Constantin
Published: July 2020

We classify finite groups acting by birational transformations of a nontrivial Severi–Brauer surface over a field of characteristic zero that are not conjugate to subgroups of the automorphism group. Also, we show that the automorphism group of a smooth cubic surface over a field [Formula: see text] of characteristic zero that has no [Formula: see text]-points is abelian, and find a sharp bound for the Jordan constants of birational automorphism groups of such cubic surfaces.
Submaximally symmetric quaternion Hermitian structures
Authors: Kruglikov Boris , Winther Henrik
Published: July 2020

We consider and resolve the gap problem for almost quaternion-Hermitian structures, i.e. we determine the maximal and submaximal symmetry dimensions, both for Lie algebras and Lie groups, in the class of almost quaternion-Hermitian manifolds. We classify all structures with such symmetry dimensions. Geometric properties of the submaximally symmetric spaces are studied, in particular, we identify locally conformally quaternion-Kähler structures as well as quaternion-Kähler with torsion.
Concentration-compactness principle of singular Trudinger–Moser inequality involving N-Finsler–Laplacian operator
Authors: Liu Yanjun
Published: July 2020

In this paper, suppose [Formula: see text] be a convex function of class [Formula: see text] which is even and positively homogeneous of degree 1. We establish the Lions type concentration-compactness principle of singular Trudinger–Moser Inequalities involving [Formula: see text]-Finsler–Laplacian operator. Let [Formula: see text] be a smooth bounded domain. [Formula: see text] be a sequence such that anisotropic Dirichlet norm[Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] weakly in [Formula: see text]. Denote [Formula: see text] Then we have [Formula: see text] where [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] is the volume of a unit Wulff ball. This conclusion fails if [Formula: see text]. Furthermore, we also obtain the corresponding concentration-compactness principle in the entire Euclidean space [Formula: see text].
On stable CMC free-boundary surfaces in a strictly convex domain of a bi-invariant Lie group
Authors: Barbosa Ezequiel , Santana Farley , Upadhyay Abhitosh
Published: July 2020

Let [Formula: see text] be a three-dimensional Lie group with a bi-invariant metric. Consider [Formula: see text] a strictly convex domain in [Formula: see text]. We prove that if [Formula: see text] is a stable CMC free-boundary surface in [Formula: see text] then [Formula: see text] has genus either 0 or 1, and at most three boundary components. This result was proved by Nunes [I. Nunes, On stable constant mean curvature surfaces with free-boundary, Math. Z. 287(1–2) (2017) 73–479] for the case where [Formula: see text] and by R. Souam for the case where [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] is a geodesic ball with radius [Formula: see text], excluding the possibility of [Formula: see text] having three boundary components. Besides [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], our result also apply to the spaces [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]. When [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] is a geodesic ball with radius [Formula: see text], we obtain that if [Formula: see text] is stable then [Formula: see text] is a totally umbilical disc. In order to prove those results, we use an extended stability inequality and a modified Hersch type balancing argument to get a better control on the genus and on the number of connected components of the boundary of the surfaces.
A New Method for Mapping Active Joint Locations of Skeletons to Pre-Shape Space for Action Recognition
Authors: Li Guang , Liu Kai , Ding Chongyang , Ding Wenwen , Belyaev Evgeny , Cheng Fei
Published: July 2020

Being a class of effective feature descriptors for action recognition, action representations based on skeleton sequences have yielded excellent recognition results. Most methods used to construct these action representations are based on the information from all the joint positions in actions. Unfortunately, some joints in the actions do not improve the accuracy of action recognition, and may even cause unnecessary inter-class errors. In this study, the authors propose a new method for action recognition by selecting active joints which are closely related to the movement of the body as the first step. Further, a skeleton is characterized as a set of its active-joint positions, and the set can be mapped to a point on pre-shape space to filter out the scale and translation variability. Then, a skeleton sequence (an action) can be regarded as points on the space. Because the timing-sequence relationship between skeletons is very valuable for action recognition, a tensor-based linear dynamical system (tLDS) is employed to model the temporal information of the action. To avoid using a finite-order sequence to estimate the infinite-order feature descriptor of a tLDS, the descriptor is mapped to a point on an infinite Grassmannian composed of the extended observability subspaces. The action is classified using sparse coding and dictionary learning (SCDL) on the infinite Grassmannian. Experimental results demonstrate that the recognition accuracies of the proposed method outperform state-of-the-art ones on four different action datasets.
Enhancement of Nonuniformly Illuminated Underwater Images
Authors: Mathur Monika , Goel Nidhi
Published: July 2020

Underwater image capturing is a challenging task due to attenuation of light in water. Scattering and absorption are the results of light attenuation which lead to faded colors and reduced contrast of images, respectively. To deal with these issues and to provide better visual quality image, various enhancement methods have been proposed. This paper proposes the Dual Domain-based Underwater Image Enhancement (DDUIE) method. DDUIE method provides contrast stretching in approximation band of discrete wavelet transformed image followed by intensity adjustment of different color channels in spatial domain. To further improve the color quality, the image is processed in HSV (Hue–Saturation–Value) color space. Result analysis indicates better results for DDUIE method over state-of-the-art methods. Subjective results of DDUIE method show minimization of the bluish-green effect and reduction of nonuniform illumination up to a certain extent. These lead to enhanced color and image details. Quantitative results show that the Underwater Image Quality Measure (UIQM) and Underwater Color Image Quality Evaluation (UCIQE) values between 1 and 2 and between 0 and 1 have been achieved, respectively, which significantly illustrate that images have been enhanced efficiently and also entropy values between 7 and 8 depict the effectiveness of the proposed method in terms of image details.
Visual Analysis of Sorting and Classification of Multidimensional Data
Authors: Yang Dongsheng , Yu Shidong , Hao Ying
Published: July 2020

An important work of data analysis is to identify correlation structures and classify the data in unlabeled high-dimensional data, which usually requires iterative experiments on clustering parameters, attribute weights and instances. For a large dataset, the number of clusters may be huge, and it is a great challenge to explore in this huge space. People usually have a more comprehensive understanding of some data. For example, they think that data A is better than data B, but they do not know which attributes are important. Therefore, a powerful interactive analysis tool can help people greatly improve the effectiveness of exploratory clustering analysis. This paper provides a visual analysis method for sorting and classifying multivariate data. It can determine the weight of each attribute through user’s interaction, thus, generating sorting, and then complete classification according to sorting results. Through visual display, users can understand the characteristics of data as well as category characteristics intuitively and quickly, and it helps users improve sorting and classification results.
Characters of Renner monoids and their Hecke algebras
Authors: Hardt Andrew , Marx-Kuo Jared , McDonald Vaughan , O’Brien John M. , Vetter Alexander
Published: July 2020

This paper gives a general algorithm for computing the character table of any Renner monoid Hecke algebra, by adapting and generalizing techniques of Solomon used to study the rook monoid. The character table of the Hecke algebra of the rook monoid (i.e. the Cartan type [Formula: see text] Renner monoid) was computed earlier by Dieng et al. [2], using different methods. Our approach uses analogues of so-called A- and B-matrices of Solomon. In addition to the algorithm, we give explicit combinatorial formulas for the A- and B-matrices in Cartan type [Formula: see text] and use them to obtain an explicit description of the character table for the type [Formula: see text] Renner monoid Hecke algebra.
Effect of in-medium mass-shift on transverse-momentum spectrum and elliptic anisotropy of ϕ meson
Authors: Zhang Yong , Yang Jing , Wu Weihua
Published: July 2020

We study the effect of in-medium mass-shift on transverse-momentum spectrum and elliptic anisotropy of [Formula: see text] meson. It is found that the mass-shift enhances the [Formula: see text] yields and suppresses the elliptic flow [Formula: see text] in large momentum region, and the effects increase with the increasing mass-shift. The effects are various for different sources and decrease with the increasing collision energy. We further study the effects for parts of all [Formula: see text] meson with mass-shift, and the effects decrease with the decreasing probability of [Formula: see text] meson with mass-shift. A possible method to detect the mass-shift of [Formula: see text] meson via transverse-momentum spectrum and [Formula: see text] is proposed.
On Schrödinger–Poisson systems involving concave–convex nonlinearities via a novel constraint approach
Authors: Sun Juntao , Wu Tsung-Fang
Published: July 2020

In this paper, we investigate the multiplicity of positive solutions for a class of Schrödinger–Poisson systems with concave and convex nonlinearities as follows: [Formula: see text] where [Formula: see text] are two parameters, [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] is a potential well, [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]. Such problem cannot be studied by applying variational methods in a standard way, since the (PS) condition is still unsolved on [Formula: see text] due to [Formula: see text]. By developing a novel constraint approach, we prove that the above problem admits at least two positive solutions.
The Harnack inequality for a class of nonlocal parabolic equations
Authors: Banerjee Agnid , Garofalo Nicola , Munive Isidro H. , Nhieu Duy-Minh
Published: July 2020

In this paper, we establish a scale invariant Harnack inequality for the fractional powers of parabolic operators [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], where [Formula: see text] is the infinitesimal generator of a class of symmetric semigroups. As a by-product, we also obtain a similar result for the nonlocal operators [Formula: see text]. Our focus is on non-Euclidean situations.
On the rim tori refinement of relative Gromov–Witten invariants
Authors: Tehrani Mohammad F. , Zinger Aleksey
Published: July 2020

We construct Ionel–Parker’s proposed refinement of the standard relative Gromov–Witten invariants in terms of abelian covers of the symplectic divisor and discuss in what sense it gives rise to invariants. We use it to obtain some vanishing results for the standard relative Gromov–Witten invariants. In a separate paper, we describe to what extent this refinement sharpens the usual symplectic sum formula and give further qualitative applications.
Supercritical problems with concave and convex nonlinearities in ℝN
Authors: do Ó João Marcos , Mishra Pawan Kumar , Moameni Abbas
Published: July 2020

In this paper, by utilizing a newly established variational principle on convex sets, we provide an existence and multiplicity result for a class of semilinear elliptic problems defined on the whole [Formula: see text] with nonlinearities involving linear and superlinear terms. We shall impose no growth restriction on the nonlinear term, and consequently, our problem can be supercritical in the sense of the Sobolev embeddings.
Remarks on solitary waves and Cauchy problem for Half-wave-Schrödinger equations
Authors: Bahri Yakine , Ibrahim Slim , Kikuchi Hiroaki
Published: July 2020

In this paper, we study solitary wave solutions of the Cauchy problem for Half-wave-Schrödinger equation in the plane. First, we show the existence and the orbital stability of the ground states. Second, we prove that given any speed [Formula: see text], traveling wave solutions exist and converge to the zero wave as the velocity tends to [Formula: see text]. Finally, we solve the Cauchy problem for initial data in [Formula: see text], with [Formula: see text]. The critical case [Formula: see text] still stands as an interesting open problem.
Approximation of critical regularity functions on stratified homogeneous groups
Authors: Curcă Eduard
Published: July 2020

Let [Formula: see text] be a stratified homogeneous group with homogeneous dimension [Formula: see text] and whose Lie algebra is generated by the left-invariant vector fields [Formula: see text]. Let [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]. We prove that for any function [Formula: see text] there exists a function [Formula: see text] such that [Formula: see text] [Formula: see text] where [Formula: see text] is the largest integer smaller than [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] is a positive constant depending only on [Formula: see text]. Here, [Formula: see text] is a homogeneous Triebel–Lizorkin type space adapted to [Formula: see text].

This generalizes earlier results of Bourgain, Brezis [New estimates for eliptic equations and Hodge type systems, J. Eur. Math. Soc. 9(2) (2007) 277–315] and of Bousquet, Russ, Wang, Yung [Approximation in fractional Sobolev spaces and Hodge systems, J. Funct. Anal. 276(5) (2019) 1430–1478] in the Euclidean case and answers an open problem in the latter reference.
A remark on the minimal dispersion
Authors: Litvak Alexander E.
Published: July 2020

We improve known upper bounds for the minimal dispersion of a point set in the unit cube and its inverse in both the periodic and non-periodic settings. Some of our bounds are sharp up to logarithmic factors.
Gene expression analysis reveals a pitfall in the molecular research of prostate tumors relevant to Gleason score
Authors: Zhang Wensheng , Dong Yan , Zhang Kun
Published: July 2020

Gleason score (GS) is a powerful prognostic factor in prostate cancer (PCa). A GS-7 tumor typically has the primary Gleason (architectural) pattern and secondary prevalent one being graded with 3 and 4 (or 4 and 3), respectively. Due to the well-known intratumoral multifocal occurrence of different patterns, a biological sample from a GS-7 tumor used in a molecular experiment will be uncertain regarding the actually represented pattern if no special attention is given to specimen preparation. In this study, by an integrative analysis of several published gene expression datasets, one of which is the profiling of the paired GP-3 (Gleason pattern 3) and GP-4 (Gleason pattern 4) specimens of 13 GS-7 tumors, we demonstrate that such an uncertainty can be frequently observed in the published data. More specifically, our results suggest that the GS-7 specimens used to generate the frequently-cited The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) data and the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) dataset GSE21032 which largely are individual GP-3 or GP-4 specimens rather than the “intermediate” specimens of GP-3 and GP-4. This indicates a pitfall in the existing molecular research of prostate tumors relevant to GS and in GS-related molecular biomarker identification using the previously documented data.
Conformal vector fields of some vacuum classes of static spherically symmetric space-times in f(T,B) gravity
Authors: Shabbir Ghulam , Hussain Fiaz , Malik Shabeela , Ramzan Muhammad
Published: July 2020

The aim of this paper is to investigate the conformal vector fields (CVFs) for some vacuum classes of static spherically symmetric space-times in [Formula: see text] gravity. First, we have explored the space-times by solving the Einstein field equations in [Formula: see text] gravity. These solutions have been obtained by imposing various conditions on the space-time components and selecting separable form of the bivariate function [Formula: see text]. Second, we find the CVFs of the obtained space-times via direct integration approach. The overall study reveals that there exist 17 cases. From these 17 cases, the space-times in five cases admit proper CVFs whereas in rest of the 12 cases, CVFs become Killing vector fields (KVFs). We have also calculated the torsion scalar and boundary term for each of the obtained solutions.
A note on almost co-Kähler manifolds
Authors: De Uday Chand , Chaubey Sudhakar K. , Suh Young Jin
Published: July 2020

We characterize almost co-Kähler manifolds with gradient Yamabe, gradient Einstein and quasi-Yamabe solitons. It is proved that if the metric of a [Formula: see text]-almost co-Kähler manifold [Formula: see text] is a gradient Yamabe soliton, then [Formula: see text] is either [Formula: see text]-almost co-Kähler or [Formula: see text]-almost co-Kähler or the metric of [Formula: see text] is a trivial gradient Yamabe soliton. A [Formula: see text]-almost co-Kähler manifold with gradient Einstein soliton is [Formula: see text]-almost co-Kähler. Finally, it is shown that an almost co-Kähler manifold admitting a quasi-Yamabe soliton, whose soliton vector is pointwise collinear with the Reeb vector field of the manifold, is [Formula: see text]-almost co-Kähler. Consequently, some results of almost co-Kähler manifolds are deduced.
Electrospun antibacterial nanofibers for wound dressings and tissue medicinal fields: A Review
Authors: Wei Zhimei , Wang Liqun , Zhang Shouyu , Chen Tonghai , Yang Jie , Long Shengru , Wang Xiaojun
Published: July 2020

Bacterial infections are a major cause of chronic infections. Thus, antibacterial material is an urgent need in clinics. Antibacterial nanofibers, with expansive surface area, enable efficient incorporation of antibacterial agents. Meanwhile, structure similar to the extracellular matrix can accelerate cell growth. Electrospinning, the most widely used technique to fabricate nanofiber, is often used in many biomedical applications including drug delivery, regenerative medicine, wound healing and so on. Thus, this review provides an overview of all recently published studies on the development of electrospun antibacterial nanofibers in wound dressings and tissue medicinal fields. This reviewer begins with a brief introduction of electrospinning process and then discusses electrospun fibers by incorporating various types of antimicrobial agents used as in wound dressings and tissue. Finally, we finish with conclusions and further perspectives on electrospun antibacterial nanofibers as 2D biomedicine materials.
IL-37 Exerts Anti-Inflammatory Effects in Fetal Membranes of Spontaneous Preterm Birth via the NF-κB and IL-6/STAT3 Signaling Pathway
Authors: Wang Lulu , Liu Zheng , Huang Dongni , Ran Yuxin , Zhang Hanwen , He Jie , Yin Nanlin , Qi Hongbo
Published: July 2020

Spontaneous preterm birth (sPTB), defined as delivery before 37 weeks of gestation, is thought to be a multifactorial syndrome. However, the inflammatory imbalance at the maternal-fetal interface promotes excessive secretion of inflammatory factors and induces apoptosis and degradation of the extracellular matrix (ECM), which can subsequently lead to preterm birth. As an anti-inflammatory molecule in the IL-1 family, interleukin-37 (IL-37) mainly plays an inhibiting role in a variety of inflammatory diseases. However, as a typical inflammatory disease, no previous studies have been carried out to explore the role of IL-37 in sPTB. In this study, a series of molecular biological experiments were performed in clinical samples and human amniotic epithelial cell line (Wistar Institute Susan Hayflick (WISH)) to investigate the deficiency role of IL-37 and the potential mechanism. Firstly, the results indicated that the expression of IL-37 in human peripheral plasma and fetal membranes was significantly decreased in the sPTB group. Afterward, it is proved that IL-37 could significantly suppress the production of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in WISH cells. Simultaneously, once silence IL-37, LPS-induced apoptosis and activity of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) 2 and 9 were significantly increased. In addition, the western blot data showed that IL-37 performed its biological effects by inhibiting the NF-κB and IL-6/STAT3 pathway. In conclusion, our results suggest that IL-37 limits excessive inflammation and subsequently inhibits ECM remodeling and apoptosis through the NF-κB and IL-6/STAT3 signaling pathway in the fetal membranes.
Multivariate Analysis under Indeterminacy: An Application to Chemical Content Data
Authors: Aslam Muhammad , Arif Osama H.
Published: July 2020

The Hotelling T-squared statistic has been widely used for the testing of differences in means for the multivariate data. The existing statistic under classical statistics is applied when observations in multivariate data are determined, precise, and exact. In practice, it is not necessary that all observations in the data are determined and precise due to measurement in complex situations and under uncertainty environment. In this paper, we will introduce the Hotelling T-squared statistic under neutrosophic statistics (NS) which is the generalization of classical statistics and applied under uncertainty environment. We will discuss the application and advantage of the neutrosophic Hotelling T-squared statistic with the aid of data. From the comparison, we will conclude that the proposed statistic is more adequate and effective in uncertainty.
Design of Computational Model for Cyanobacterial Pollutant Diffusion Change in Chaohu Lake of China Based on Large Data
Authors: Yao Junping , He Guilan
Published: July 2020

Cyanobacteria in Chaohu Lake multiply rapidly and diffuse in large quantities every summer, which has a serious impact on the normal life of the surrounding residents and the local economic development. Therefore, it is urgent to control the cyanobacterial pollutants in Chaohu Lake. In this context, in order to improve the scientificalness and feasibility of control measures, it is an important prerequisite and condition to grasp the change of cyanobacterial pollutant diffusion in Chaohu Lake. For this reason, a computational model for cyanobacterial pollutant diffusion in Chaohu Lake, China, was designed based on the relevant large data. The design of the model is divided into three parts: the first part builds an area calculation model to analyze the change of cyanobacterial pollutant diffusion area; the second part builds a concentration calculation model to analyze the change of cyanobacterial pollutant concentration; and the third part combines the previous two to build a diffusion change calculation model to analyze the rule of cyanobacterial pollutant diffusion change in Chaohu Lake. In order to verify the feasibility and validity of the model, simulation experiments were carried out. The results show that, under the large data related to cyanobacteria pollution in Chaohu Lake, China, from May to August 2017, the calculation model is used to calculate the cyanobacteria pollutant diffusion change. The data obtained are basically consistent with the actual situation, which proves the feasibility and validity of the model. This provides data support for the cyanobacteria pollution control in Chaohu Lake and improves the efficiency and effect of the control.
Antidepression and Prokinetic Effects of Paeoniflorin on Rats in the Forced Swimming Test via Polypharmacology
Authors: Mu Dao-zhou , Xue Mei , Xu Jian-jun , Hu Ying , Chen Yi , Ren Ping , Huang Xi
Published: July 2020

Paeoniflorin, an organic compound extracted from the roots of the white peony (Paeonia lactiflora) plant, has previously been shown to exert antidepression and prokinetic effects. The traditional Chinese prescription Si‐Ni‐San, of which paeoniflorin is a constituent, is often used in treating depression and functional gastrointestinal disorders. The effectiveness of Si‐Ni‐San has been shown to be less effective in a paeoniflorin‐deleted form. The present study further investigates whether paeoniflorin alone is as effective as herbal prescriptions in which the compound is a constituent, specifically any antidepressive and prokinetic effect on rats subjected to a forced swimming test (FST). The FST was used to establish the depression model. Sprague‐Dawley rats were administrated with 10 mg/kg paeoniflorin by gastrogavage three times before the behavioral test and gastrointestinal motility tests, respectively. In antidepression studies, fluoxetine was used as the positive control. In order to determine the effect of paeoniflorin on the gastrointestinal movement, mosapride was used as the positive control. Plasma and hippocampus monoamine, hypothalamic‐pituitary‐adrenal axis, plasma brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), superoxide dismutase (SOD), methane dicarboxylic aldehyde (MDA), ghrelin, motilin, and hippocampus nitric oxide (NO) were assessed using an enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Gastrointestinal (GI) motility was measured in vivo and in vitro. Rats subjected to FST showed decreased gastric emptying and intestinal transit in vivo, decreased plasma and hippocampus 5‐hydroxytryptamine, norepinephrine, dopamine, ghrelin, motilin, and reduced plasma BDNF and SOD as well as increased plasma and hippocampus corticotropin‐releasing hormone, adrenocorticotropic hormone, corticosterone, plasma MDA, and hippocampus NO. Paeoniflorin reversed these symptoms in a similar manner to fluoxetine and mosapride, respectively. In vitro, paeoniflorin can stimulate the jejunal contract of healthy rats dose‐dependently. The results suggest that paeoniflorin can simultaneously exert antidepression and prokinetic effects via polypharmacology.
Gastrointestinal Motility and Improvement Efficacy of Shenhuang Plaster Application on Shenque: Identification, Evaluation, and Mechanism
Authors: Shi Yanan , Xu Jingming , Ding Bin , Chen Guiping , Jin Lu , Ke Liang , Xu Xiao , Wang JingXia , Sun Qiuhua , Xu Xiaohong
Published: July 2020

Constipation, a gastrointestinal function disorder, is one of the side effects of paclitaxel (PTX) chemotherapy. Shenhuang plaster (SHP) application on the Shenque acupoint promotes gut motility in clinical settings. In this study, we elucidated the ingredients in SHP and evaluated its effects on PTX-induced constipation using a tumour-bearing mouse model. SHP was prepared using the traditional Chinese plaster preparation method. The ingredients were analysed using UPLC-MS/MS and identified via screening in a standard drug database. The gastrointestinal transit was evaluated by the movement of a fluorescein-labelled dextran in the gastrointestinal tract. A histological study of the mucosa was carried out after haematoxylin and eosin staining. mRNA expression was assessed using real-time RT-PCR, and the foetal microbiota composition was elucidated through 16 s rDNA sequencing and BLAST analysis. Our results indicate that the application of SHP attenuated weight gain inhibition by PTX; however, no inhibitory effect was observed on tumour growth. PTX-induced sluggish intestine, villus, and mucosal base layer damage were significantly improved following the application of SHP. Further, SHP enhanced the stimulation efficiency of PTX on TLR4 and its downstream cytokines, as well as on IL-1β in intestinal cells. SHP combined with PTX reshaped the microbiota, which showed beneficial effects on health. Hence, these results provide evidence that SHP alleviates PTX-induced constipation and intestinal morphological damage but augments the effects of PTX on the expression of cytokines in the TLR4 pathway and IL-1β. Therefore, we propose that SHP stimulates the host immune response to eradicate cancer cells.
Triggering of Apoptosis in Osteosarcoma 143B Cell Line by Carbon Quantum Dots via the Mitochondrial Apoptotic Signal Pathway
Authors: Jiao Yang , Guo Yimin , Fan Yingcong , Wang Rui , Li Xiang , Wu Hao , Meng Zhichao , Yang Xin , Cui Yunpeng , Liu Heng , Pan Liping , Maimaitijuma Talatibaike , Zhang Jiazhen , Wang Yahong , Cao Yongping , Zhang Tao
Published: July 2020

Objectives. Carbon‐based nanomaterials have gained attention in the field of biomedicine in recent years, especially for the treatment of complicated diseases such as cancer. Here, we report a novel carbon‐based nanomaterial, named carbon quantum dots (CQDs), which has potential for cancer therapy. We performed a systematic study on the effects of CQDs on the osteosarcoma 143B cell line in vitro and in vivo. Methods. Cell counting assay, the neutral red assay, lactic dehydrogenase assay, and fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) Annexin V/Propidium iodide (PI) were used to detect the cytotoxicity and apoptosis of CQDs on the 143B cell line. Intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) were detected by the oxidation‐sensitive fluorescent probe 2 ′,7 ′‐dichlorofluorescein diacetate. The JC‐10 assay was used to detect the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) of 143B cells incubated with CQDs. The effects of CQDs on the 143B cell line were evaluated by Western blot and immunofluorescence analysis of apoptosis‐related proteins Bax, Bcl‐2, cytochrome‐C, caspase‐3, cleaved‐caspase‐3, PARP1, and cleaved‐PARP1. Male tumor‐bearing BALB/c nude mice were used to investigate the antitumor effects of CQDs, and the biosafety of CQDs in vivo was tested in male BALB/c mice by measuring weight changes, hematology tests, and histological analyses of major organs. Results. CQDs exhibited a high cytotoxicity and induced apoptosis toward the 143B cell line. CQDs can also significantly increase the intracellular level of ROS and lower the mitochondrial membrane potential levels of 143B cells. CQDs increase apoptotic protein expression to induce apoptosis of 143B cells by triggering the mitochondrial apoptotic signaling pathway. The tumor volume in the CQD‐treated mice was smaller than that in the control group, the tumor volume inhibition rate was 38.9%, and the inhibitory rate by tumor weight was 30.1%. All biosafety test indexes were within reference ranges, and neither necrosis nor inflammation was observed in major organs. Conclusions. CQDs induced cytotoxicity in the 143B cell line through the mitochondrial apoptotic signaling pathway. CQDs not only showed an antitumor effect but also high biocompatibility in vivo. As a new carbon‐based nanomaterial, CQDs usage is a promising method for novel cancer treatments.
Compaction of Hyaloclastite from the Active Geothermal System at Krafla Volcano, Iceland
Authors: Eggertsson Guðjón H. , Kendrick Jackie E. , Weaver Joshua , Wallace Paul A. , Utley James E. P. , Bedford John D. , Allen Michael J. , Markússon Sigurður H. , Worden Richard H. , Faulkner Daniel R. , Lavallée Yan
Published: July 2020

Hyaloclastites commonly form high-quality reservoir rocks in volcanic geothermal provinces. Here, we investigated the effects of confinement due to burial following prolonged accumulation of eruptive products on the physical and mechanical evolution of surficial and subsurface (depths of 70 m, 556 m, and 732 m) hyaloclastites from Krafla volcano, Iceland. Upon loading in a hydrostatic cell, the porosity and permeability of the surficial hyaloclastite decreased linearly with mean effective stress, as pores and cracks closed due to elastic (recoverable) compaction up to 22-24 MPa (equivalent to ~1.3 km depth in the reservoir). Beyond this mean effective stress, denoted as P∗, we observed accelerated porosity and permeability reduction with increasing confinement, as the rock underwent permanent inelastic compaction. In comparison, the porosity and permeability of the subsurface core samples were less sensitive to mean effective stress, decreasing linearly with increasing confinement as the samples compacted elastically within the conditions tested (to 40 MPa). Although the surficial material underwent permanent, destructive compaction, it maintained higher porosity and permeability than the subsurface hyaloclastites throughout the experiments. We constrained the evolution of yield curves of the hyaloclastites, subjected to different effective mean stresses in a triaxial press. Surficial hyaloclastites underwent a brittle-ductile transition at an effective mean stress of ~10.5 MPa, and peak strength (differential stress) reached 13 MPa. When loaded to effective mean stresses of 33 and 40 MPa, the rocks compacted, producing new yield curves with a brittle-ductile transition at ~12.5 and ~19 MPa, respectively, but showed limited strength increase. In comparison, the subsurface samples were found to be much stronger, displaying higher strengths and brittle-ductile transitions at higher effective mean stresses (i.e., 37.5 MPa for 70 m sample, >75 MPa for 556 m, and 68.5 MPa for 732 m) that correspond to their lower porosities and permeabilities. Thus, we conclude that compaction upon burial alone is insufficient to explain the physical and mechanical properties of the subsurface hyaloclastites present in the reservoir at Krafla volcano. Mineralogical alteration, quantified using SEM-EDS, is invoked to explain the further reduction of porosity and increase in strength of the hyaloclastite in the active geothermal system at Krafla.
Microbial Air Quality in Neighborhoods near Landfill Sites: Implications for Public Health
Authors: Odonkor Stephen T. , Mahami Tahiru
Published: July 2020

Air pollution has been a major challenge worldwide particularly in the developing world. Improper waste disposal and management may result in microbial air pollution. In advanced countries, landfill sites are far from neighborhoods; however, the opposite is observed for landfill sites in the developing world. In Accra, some landfill sites are 100 meters from neighborhoods. The aim of this study was to assess the microbial air quality and associated environmental health hazards of landfill sites in selected districts in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. A random sampling method was employed to select sampling sites across the dry and wet seasons from landfills and their corresponding neighborhoods. Results obtained showed a higher total count (CFU/m3) of bacteria and fungi in the air at the landfill sites than neighborhoods. Statistically significant variation p<0.05 in bacterial and fungal concentrations over two seasons was found for both landfills and neighborhoods. However, bacterial concentrations were significantly higher than fungal concentrations p<0.05 across seasons for all locations. Staphylococcus epidermidis was the highest (15.6 %) occurring microbe at both landfill sites and neighborhoods. This was followed by Staphylococcus aureus (12.7%). Other bacteria and fungi of public health importance such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Aspergillus flavus, and Aspergillus niger were also isolated from the study sites, above the WHO recommended levels. In conclusion, the landfill waste disposal and its close proximity to neighborhoods as observed in this study pose a potential environmental health risk, with dire implications for public health and safety. The government must enact and implement policies to regulate waste management and to ensure public safety.
Nonstationary Model of Oxygen Transport in Brain Tissue
Authors: Kovtanyuk Andrey E. , Chebotarev Alexander Yu. , Botkin Nikolai D. , Turova Varvara L. , Sidorenko Irina N. , Lampe Renée
Published: July 2020

The paper addresses the mathematical study of a nonstationary continuum model describing oxygen propagation in cerebral substance. The model allows to estimate the rate of oxygen saturation and stabilization of oxygen concentration in relatively large parts of cerebral tissue. A theoretical and numerical analysis of the model is performed. The unique solvability of the underlying initial-boundary value problem for a system of coupled nonlinear parabolic equations is proved. In the numerical experiment, the tissue oxygen saturation after hypoxia is analyzed for the case when a sufficient amount of oxygen begins to flow into the capillary network. A fast stabilization of the tissue oxygen concentration is demonstrated. The reliability of the results of the numerical simulation is discussed.
Parametric Study on the Ground Control Effects of Rock Bolt Parameters under Dynamic and Static Coupling Loads
Authors: Sun Zequan , Jiang Lishuai , Jiang Jinquan , Wu Xingyu , Golsanami Naser , Huang Wanpeng , Zhang Peipeng , Niu Zhongtao , He Xiaoyi
Published: July 2020

Dynamic and static coupling loads (DSLs) are one of the most common stress environments in underground engineering. As the depth of a roadway increases over the life of a mine, the static load of the ground stress field increase multiplies, and the cyclic operation at the working face releases a large amount of dynamic energy. Therefore, deep roadways easily induce dynamic disasters during production. In this paper, a deep roadway numerical model was built with FLAC3D to test the deep roadway under DSLs and was simulated with 16 different support designs. The ground stability in each support condition was examined and compared in terms of the ground deformation and scope of failure. The underlying support mechanism was further analyzed with numerical modeling in view of the deformation in the surrounding rock mass induced by variations in the support parameters. The results show that shortening the bolt spacing is an effective measure to control the deformation of surrounding rock whatever DSLs or static load. Under static load, the larger the anchoring length is, the more stable the surrounding rock is. Under DSLs, end grouting length (S = 600 mm) and full grouting length (S = 1800 mm) can effectively control the deformation of surrounding rocks and enhance the stability of surrounding rocks. The results contribute to the design of supports in the field of underground coal mines and provide a basis for determining the reasonable support scheme for roadways.
A Novel Multichannel Dilated Convolution Neural Network for Human Activity Recognition
Authors: Lin Yingjie , Wu Jianning
Published: July 2020

A novel multichannel dilated convolution neural network for improving the accuracy of human activity recognition is proposed. The proposed model utilizes the multichannel convolution structure with multiple kernels of various sizes to extract multiscale features of high-dimensional data of human activity during convolution operation and not to consider the use of the pooling layers that are used in the traditional convolution with dilated convolution. Its advantage is that the dilated convolution can first capture intrinsical sequence information by expanding the field of convolution kernel without increasing the parameter amount of the model. And then, the multichannel structure can be employed to extract multiscale gait features by forming multiple convolution paths. The open human activity recognition dataset is used to evaluate the effectiveness of our proposed model. The experimental results showed that our model achieves an accuracy of 95.49%, with the time to identify a single sample being approximately 0.34 ms on a low-end machine. These results demonstrate that our model is an efficient real-time HAR model, which can gain the representative features from sensor signals at low computation and is hopeful for the effective tool in practical applications.
To Align Multimodal Lumbar Spine Images via Bending Energy Constrained Normalized Mutual Information
Authors: Wu Shibin , He Pin , Yu Shaode , Zhou Shoujun , Xia Jun , Xie Yaoqin
Published: July 2020

To align multimodal images is important for information fusion, clinical diagnosis, treatment planning, and delivery, while few methods have been dedicated to matching computerized tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MR) images of lumbar spine. This study proposes a coarse‐to‐fine registration framework to address this issue. Firstly, a pair of CT‐MR images are rigidly aligned for global positioning. Then, a bending energy term is penalized into the normalized mutual information for the local deformation of soft tissues. In the end, the framework is validated on 40 pairs of CT‐MR images from our in‐house collection and 15 image pairs from the SpineWeb database. Experimental results show high overlapping ratio (in‐house collection, vertebrae 0.97 ± 0.02, blood vessel 0.88 ± 0.07; SpineWeb, vertebrae 0.95 ± 0.03, blood vessel 0.93 ± 0.10) and low target registration error (in‐house collection, ≤2.00 ± 0.62 mm; SpineWeb, ≤2.37 ± 0.76 mm) are achieved. The proposed framework concerns both the incompressibility of bone structures and the nonrigid deformation of soft tissues. It enables accurate CT‐MR registration of lumbar spine images and facilitates image fusion, spine disease diagnosis, and interventional treatment delivery.
Evolution and Differentiation of High-Quality Development of Marine Economy: A Case Study from China
Authors: Li Bo , Tian Chuang , Shi Zhaoyuan , Han Zenglin
Published: July 2020

High-quality development is an innovative way to promote the sustainable development of the marine economy. This study uses China’s coastal areas as an example, constructing a research framework for the high-quality development of the country’s marine economy. The temporal and spatial variation in the high-quality development of China’s marine economy from 2006 to 2016 is explored utilizing the nuclear density estimation, entropy, and mean standard deviation classification methods. The results show the following: (1) the policy orientation of China’s high-quality marine economic development is obvious, and the focus of policy has changed from the pursuit of growth speed to growth quality; (2) a spatiotemporal differentiation is evident, with the coastal areas of the Yangtze River Delta continuing to be the hotspots of high-quality development. The Bohai rim and Pan Pearl River Delta areas feature a mixture of cold and hot spots, with multipolar spatial differentiation; (3) in terms of development stage, Guangdong, Shanghai, Shandong, Zhejiang, and Tianjin are at advanced levels. The intermediate-level areas consist of Fujian, Jiangsu, Hainan, and Liaoning, while Hebei and Guangxi are the primary-level areas.