bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A high‐resolution bilevel skew‐tstochastic generator for assessing Saudi Arabia's wind energy resources
Authors: Tagle Felipe , Genton Marc G. , Yip Andrew , Mostamandi Suleiman , Stenchikov Georgiy , Castruccio Stefano 
Published: May 2020

AbstractSaudi Arabia has recently established its renewable energy targets as part of its “Vision 2030” proposal, which represents a roadmap for reducing the country's dependence on oil over the next decade. This study provides a foundational assessment of the wind resource in Saudi Arabia that serves as a guide for the development of the outlined wind energy component. The assessment is based on a new high‐resolution weather simulation of the region generated with the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. Furthermore, we propose a spatiotemporal stochastic generator of daily wind speeds that assists in characterizing the uncertainty of the energy estimates. The stochastic generator considers a vector autoregressive structure in time, with innovations from a novel biresolution model based on a skew‐tdistribution with a low‐dimensional latent structure. Estimation of the spatial model parameters is performed using a Monte Carlo expectation‐maximization (EM) algorithm, which achieves inference over approximately 184 million points and enables to capture the spatial patterns of the higher order moments that typically characterize high‐resolution wind fields. Our results identify regions along the western mountain ranges and central escarpments that are suitable for the deployment of wind energy infrastructure. According to the assessment, between 30 and 70% of the national electricity demand could be met by wind energy.
Conventional weight loss interventions across the different BMI obesity classes: A systematic review and quantitative comparative analysis
Authors: Bauer Kerstin , Lau Teresa , Schwille‐Kiuntke Juliane , Schild Sandra , Hauner Hans , Stengel Andreas , Zipfel Stephan , Mack Isabelle 
Published: May 2020

AbstractObjectiveThe recommendation for conventional body weight loss (BWL) treatment in obesity is 5–10%. It is not clear whether BWL is similar across the three different body mass index (BMI) obesity classes. The aim was to provide an overview on BWL across these classes in moderate lifestyle/diet intervention programs.MethodA systematic literature search was conducted and the evidence of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and pre‐post design studies synthesized. The outcome was BWL.ResultsFor RCTs, mean BWL in the intervention group was 3.6 kg (class I) and 5.3 kg (class II), which equates to 4 and 5% BWL, respectively. None of the assessed class III obesity studies met the inclusion criteria. For pre‐post design studies, mean BWL was 5.4 kg (class I), 5.5 kg (class II) and 7.9 kg (class III), with high variation within and across studies in the latter. This equates to 6, 5 and, 6% BWL, respectively.ConclusionsBWL of moderate BWL programs are similar across the different obesity classes. For class I obesity, the results differ between RCT and pre‐post design studies by 2% BWL. The high variation of BWL in class III obesity might reflect different states of motivation such as the attitude towards bariatric surgery.
Provenance‐based data flow control mechanism for Internet of things
Authors: Rong‐na Xie , Hui Li , Guo‐zhen Shi , Yun‐chuan Guo , Ben Niu , Mang Su 
Published: May 2020

AbstractIn the Internet of things (IoT), the flow and sharing of data between different devices has become a trend. However, determining how to ensure the controlled flow and sharing of data is an urgent problem to address to ensure data security and privacy in the IoT environment. To address the above problem, we propose a provenance‐based data flow control mechanism (PDFC) that includes flow control and further control to realize data flow control and further control after flow. The mechanism implements both direct and indirect control of data flow based on provenance data, which reduces the risk of indirect leakage. As data flow and are shared between different devices, the provenance data become increasingly large, consequently, indirect control on the provenance data takes increasing amounts of time, seriously affecting control efficiency. To improve the control efficiency of data flow, the provenance data are simplified according to the type of operation generating the data and the association degree of data and their provenance data. To reduce the storage space occupied by the provenance data and improve the efficiency of querying the provenance data, we propose a provenance tree that records the relationship between data and their provenance data. A theoretical analysis demonstrates the security and effectiveness of PDFC, which can solve the fine‐grained controlled sharing problem in IoT. Using the data flow in a smart healthcare system as an example, we demonstrate the implementation and optimization method of PDFC, and the result shows PDFC has obvious flexibility and performance advantages.
Britain and Brexit: A forecast of the future of employment protection during corporate insolvency
Authors: Gant Jennifer L. L. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractBrexit has produced a lot of uncertainties in the UK, not the least of which are the future of protections that have been derived from EU social policy Directives. Arguably, the UK's membership in the EU has pushed it further into a socially liberal and protective framework that it might not have adopted had it remained outside of the EU's sphere of influence. The question now is what direction the UK will take with regard to both the rescue culture and the social protections, both of which have been highly influenced by EU law and policy. The UK has ever been the “odd man out” in the EU, springing as it does from a significantly different legal origin than the Franco/German model at the heart of the EU. Examining the developmental path of other common law jurisdictions (America, Canada, and Australia) whose legal systems are derived from the British may be instructive in relation to the direction the UK might have taken had it not joined the EU, with a particular focus on the employment protections derived from the EU which are often applicable during insolvency and rescue procedures. An analysis of this counterfactual position may then also provide a clue or forecast as to the direction that the UK may take following Brexit.
Cumulative risk of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia for women with normal cytology but positive for human papillomavirus: Systematic review and meta‐analysis
Authors: Malagón Talía , Volesky Karena D. , Bouten Sheila , Laprise Claudie , El‐Zein Mariam , Franco Eduardo L. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractMost women positive for human papillomavirus (HPV) are cytology normal. The optimal screen‐management of these women is unclear given their risk of developing precancer. We performed a systematic review and meta‐analysis of progression rates to precancer and cancer for HPV‐positive, cytology normal women. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE and Scopus for prospective studies measuring the cumulative incidence of precancer and cervical cancer in HPV‐positive, cytology/histology normal women. Record screening was performed independently by two reviewers. We modeled the cumulative incidence over time using a multilevel random‐effects meta‐regression model. We used the model to predict HPV type‐specific risks of precancer and cancer over follow‐up. Data from 162 unique records were used in our analysis. The average incidence rate of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3 or cancer (CIN3+) in high‐risk HPV positive but cytology/histology normal women was 1.0 per 100 women‐years (95% CI: 1.0‐1.1). This corresponds to an average cumulative risk at 1, 3 and 5 years of 2.1% (95% prediction interval 0.0‐9.5), 4.3% (95% prediction interval 0.0‐11.5) and 6.4% (95% prediction interval 0.0‐13.5). HPV type was a strong predictor of the risk of oncogenic progression. There was substantial heterogeneity in the background precancer risk across studies (P‐value < .0001). Our HPV type‐specific progression risk estimates can help inform risk‐based cervical cancer screening guidelines for HPV‐positive women. However, precancer and cervical cancer risks are highly variable and may not be generalizable between populations.
Study on the stability and cellular affinity of gelatin‐polysaccharide composite films
Authors: Liu Yang , Lv Shijie , Gao Jun , Zhang Ying , Zhao Shan , Guo Xin , Sun Guangwei 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThe gelatin film has great potential in biomedical applications, especially in wound healing. The combination of gelatin films and stem cells could further accelerate the skin regeneration. Although polysaccharide modification can improve the mechanical property and biological activity of gelatin films, information about the stability and cellular affinity is still limited. This study investigated the influence of polysaccharides on the stability and cellular affinity of gelatin films. Two kinds of gelatin‐polysaccharide composite films, including gelatin‐hyaluronic acid (G‐HA) and gelatin‐chitosan (G‐CS), were prepared in this study. It was found that G‐HA composite film had better short‐term and long‐term stability compared with G‐CS composite film. And G‐HA composite film also had better biological safety than G‐CS film. Moreover, the surface of G‐HA composite film supported the adhesion and growth of human umbilical cord Wharton's jelly‐derived mesenchymal stem cells (WJ MSCs) better than G‐CS film surface. These data illustrated that G‐HA composite film has better stability and cellular affinity compared with G‐CS film, which could be considered a promising delivery system of stem cells for further in vivo studies. Therefore, this work would be very helpful to optimize the preparation of gelatin‐polysaccharide composite films.
Synthesis of combinatorial Janus nanoparticles based on EpCAM‐PEG/PCL for targeted therapy of human colorectal adenocarcinoma
Authors: Khezrian Somayeh , Khoee Sepideh , Caceres Marleny 
Published: May 2020

AbstractActive targeted nanotechnology‐based drug delivery systems have gained significant favor because they have the ability to decrease side effects, improve drug bioavailability, and the potency of anticancer treatment. In this study, functional amphiphilic Janus nanoparticles (JNPs), consisting of hydrophilic and hydrophobic biocompatible polymers as two distinct sides, have been prepared via a robust and simple synthesis method. The surface‐active hydrophilic side of this Janus platform is functionalized with an aptamer against epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) to deliver Doxorubicin (DOX) for the treatment of metastasis colorectal adenocarcinoma HT29 cells. The Janus morphology of the nanoparticles and their cell penetration behavior are shown in microscopic evaluations. By evaluating the prepared DOX‐loaded aptamer–modified JNPs by cell‐toxicity assay and confocal microscopy, it was determined that the utilization of an internalization strategy to enhance cell uptake would increase the anticancer effect of the Janus nanocarrier and improve the capacity to deliver the chemotherapeutical drug site‐specifically.
Adsorption of serum proteins on titania nanotubes and its role on regulating adhesion and migration of mesenchymal stem cells
Authors: Wu Sai , Zhang Deteng , Bai Jun , Zheng Honghao , Deng Jun , Gou Zhongru , Gao Changyou 
Published: May 2020

AbstractMigration and differentiation of bone marrow‐derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) is an important biological process in tissue regeneration. Nanostructured titanium materials are believed to play a fundamental role in dental and orthopedic applications. However, the protein adsorption on nanostructured titanium materials and its correlation with the subsequent cell behaviors have not been studied. In this work, the titania nanotube arrays with different tubular diameters ranging from 27.3 to 88.2 nm were fabricated by using an electrochemical etching method. The adsorbed amounts and types of cell adhesion‐related proteins (such as fibronectin, vitronectin, and laminin) from serum were investigated, revealing that these proteins were preferred to bind onto the surface with nanotubes of a smaller diameter. Adhesion and migration of BMSCs were studied as a function of different nanotube diameters in the presence or absence of serum proteins. Compared with the nanotube surface with a larger tubular diameter (88.2 nm), the surface with a smaller one could better support BMSCs in terms of adhesion and spreading. The pre‐adsorbed serum proteins significantly enhanced adhesion and migration abilities of BMSCs. However, the adequate interactions between cells and serum proteins on the nanotubes surface with smallest nanotubes in diameter weakened cell mobility. Arrangement of cytoskeleton and expressions of key genes and proteins were studied, revealing that the nanostructured surfaces and pre‐adsorbed proteins jointly mediated the adhesion and migration of BMSCs.
Development of nanocomposite collagen/ HA/β‐TCP scaffolds with tailored gradient porosity and permeability using vitamin E
Authors: Ebrahimi Mehdi , Botelho Michael , Lu William , Monmaturapoj Naruporn 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThe production of the biomimetic scaffolds with well‐designed porosity parameters is a critical and challenging factor in biomaterials processing. The porosity parameters (i.e., pore size, pore shape, and distribution pattern) impact scaffold permeability, proteins/cells infiltration, and angiogenesis. This study introduced a new approach for the production of gradient porous nanocomposite scaffolds with controllable porosity and permeability using basic biomaterials of collagen and nanobiphasic calcium phosphate (nBCP) powder consisting of nano HA/β‐TCP. A modified freeze‐drying method (i.e., variables; collagen/nBCP ratio and quenching rates) was integrated for the first time with the chemical foaming method with the use of vitamin E as a potential surfactant and porogen. Vitamin E successfully increased the range of pore size, pore interconnection, and scaffold permeability. Further control of collagen/nBCP ratios and quenching rates allowed modulation of the pore morphology, total porosity, and the surface roughness of the scaffold. Scaffolds produced using vitamin E with collagen/nBCP ratio of 92/8% at −80°C quenching rate displayed a multimodal heterogeneous pore network with a wide range of pore sizes of mostly round/oval and polygonal pore morphology. Furthermore, these scaffolds revealed a more consistent gradient porous network with peripheral large pores—that gradually become smaller toward scaffold central—that produced a significantly higher permeability and better support of initial cellular performances. Accordingly, considering the various potentials of vitamin E, this study would provide promising insight into the production of smart and customized scaffolds for regenerative and therapeutic applications.
Study on the transfection efficiency of chitosan‐based gene vectors modified with poly‐l‐arginine peptides
Authors: Zhang Yan , Chu Tianjiao , Sun Le , Chen Xiaotong , Zhang Wangwang , Zhang Haibin , Han Baoqin , Chang Jing , Feng Yilin , Song Fulai 
Published: May 2020

AbstractAlthough in a series of studies, arginine peptides had shown the ability to promote the targeting delivery efficacy, the relationship between the transfection efficiency and the length of the poly‐l‐arginine chain had seldom been reported. This study was aimed to explore whether the chain length of poly‐l‐arginine grafted on chitosan had a great significance on the transfection efficiency of entering the cells. Herein, arginine and arginine peptide modified chitosan were synthesized as gene vectors (CS‐Arg and CS‐5Arg) and then the chemical structures were characterized by using 1H NMR. The CS‐Arg and CS‐5Arg were combined with plasmids by electrostatic interactions to form stable particles. The morphology features, Zeta potentials, and buffering capacity of the complex particles were analyzed. Afterward, the combination ability with DNA and the protection ability to DNase I were studied, and the gene transfection efficiency and cellular uptake were investigated in vitro. The results showed that the gene transfection efficiency of the chitosan was significantly enhanced by arginine‐graft modification. However, there were no significant differences between the CS‐Arg and the CS‐5Arg. The molecular simulation results indicated that the guanidine groups of grafted arginine were shielded by chitosan molecule and the guanidine groups contributed little to the gene transfection efficiency. The results demonstrated that the increased chain length of grafted arginine had no significantly enhanced effect on the transfection efficiency, which could provide convincing evidence for the construction and application of arginine and chitosan derivatives as gene vectors, and could promote the development of gene delivery system.
Computational studies on the conformational preference of N‐(Thiazol‐2‐yl) benzamide
Authors: Zonouzi Afsaneh , Kakeshpour Ali , Ranjbar Parviz Rashidi , Moradi Ashraf 
Published: May 2020

AbstractN‐(Thiazol‐2‐yl) benzamide 1 substructures are found in some of bioactive compounds. In some of protein/ligand co‐crystals, the 1 moiety adopts a conformer in which the amide O and the thiazole S atoms are close. In fact, in the crystalline structure of 1, the O—S distance is even shorter than Van der Waals radius. Although the natural bond orbital analysis finds a weak stabilizing interaction between O and S atoms, the attractive dipole–dipole interaction between the amide N─H and thiazole N atom seems to play a more significant role. Moreover, an intramolecular O—H hydrogen bonding in dimeric forms found to have an important role in the conformation preference of 1. Computational details for the stability of conformers have been discussed using quantum theory of atoms in molecules, natural bond orbital (NBO) and noncovalent interaction index analysis.
New insight into experimental and theoretical mechanistic study on a green synthesis of functionalized 4H‐chromenes using magnetic nanoparticle catalyst
Authors: Ghavidel Hassan , Mirza Behrooz , Soleimani‐Amiri Somayeh , Manafi Mohammadreza 
Published: May 2020

AbstractA green synthesis of functionalized 4H‐chromenes using one‐pot, three‐component reaction of salicylaldehyde (1), active methylene (2), and carbon‐based nucleophile (3) using Fe3O4@CONa nanoparticles in water has been performed at 60°C. The Fe3O4@CONa nanoparticle as an efficient, green, and magnetically reusable heterogeneous catalyst was applied in these reactions up to the nine runs. Green catalyst and solvent, short reaction time, high product yields, as well as simple work‐up procedure were found as some advantages of this methodology. The density functional theory calculations were applied to all‐inclusive perception of the one‐pot, three‐component reaction mechanism. The most reactions progressed through the following route: (a) nucleophilic addition of 2 to 1; (b) ring closing, dehydration; (c) nucleophilic substitution of 3 (2‐naphtol, 4‐hydroxycumarin) to intermediate. Sometimes mechanism mutated to: (a) nucleophilic addition of 3 (indole, 2‐methylindole) to 1, and dehydration; (b) nucleophilic addition of 2 to intermediate; and (c) ring closing, and dehydration. The frontier molecular orbitals, NBO analyses, molecular electrostatic potential of reactants, and intermediates confirmed the proposal mechanisms. Theoretical study could be so helpful to pick out suitable reactants of the reaction.
The value of platelet count in evaluating the degree of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B
Authors: Zhong Li‐Kun , Zhang Guo , Luo Shuang‐Yan , Yin Wu , Song Huai‐Yu 
Published: May 2020

AbstractObjectiveTo investigate the value of platelet count in evaluating the degree of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB).MethodsA total of 158 CHB patients who underwent liver biopsy in our hospital were included, and the clinical characteristics of these patients were retrospectively analyzed. The diagnostic values of platelet count, aspartate aminotransferase‐to‐platelet ratio index (APRI), and the fibrosis index based on four factors (FIB‐4) for significant fibrosis (F ≥ 2) and early cirrhosis (F = 4) stages in CHB patients were assessed by the use of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis.ResultsThe median (F0: 221.0; F1: 210.0; F2: 188.0; F3: 171.0; and F4: 155.5) and mean rank (F0: 120.4; F1: 100.1; F2: 82.2; F3: 67.9; and F4: 49.5) of platelet count decreased along the aggravation of fibrosis (F0‐F4). The areas under the ROC curve for the platelet count in diagnosis of significant fibrosis stage was 0.70, which had no significant difference with FIB‐4 (0.73) and APRI (0.68) in diagnostic efficacy (P = .428). The areas under the ROC curve of platelet count in diagnosis of early cirrhosis were 0.72, which had no significant difference with FIB‐4 (0.76) and APRI (0.68) (P = .094).ConclusionThe platelet count, as a simple and non‐invasive index, could evaluate the degree of liver fibrosis in CHB individuals. At the same time, the diagnostic efficiency of platelet count to evaluate the significant liver fibrosis and early cirrhosis is comparable to FIB‐4 and APRI.
Optimization and validation of patient‐based real‐time quality control procedure using moving average and average of normals with multi‐rules for TT3, TT4, FT3, FT3, and TSH on three analyzers
Authors: Song Chao , Zhou Jun , Xia Jun , Ye Deli , Chen Qian , Li Weixing 
Published: May 2020

AbstractBackgroundWe have designed a patient‐based real‐time quality control (PBRTQC) procedure to detect analytical shifts and review analytical trends of measurement procedures.MethodsAll the nine months' patient results of total thyroxine (TT4), total triiodothyronine (TT3), free thyroxine (FT4), free triiodothyronine (FT3), and thyrotropin (TSH) measured by three identical analyzers were divided into three groups according to the source of inpatient patients, outpatient patients, and healthy people. The data in each group were truncated by optimized Box‐Plot method and normalized by Box‐Cox method if necessary. The z‐score charts of internal quality control (IQC) samples' results and PBRTQC data were drawn by IQC levels and groups, respectively. The analytical shifts and analytical trends were detected by multi‐rules of 2‐2S rules and moving average rules. The performances of PBRTQC were compared with the BIQC in which IQC samples were measurand only once per day at the beginning of the analytical batch. Twelve quality control cases were listed to validate the performances.ResultsAll the five analytes presented normal distributions when the parameter n of Box‐Plot method was 1.2. The percentages of excluded data ranged from 2.9% to 11.6%. 31 and 14 rejections triggered in PBRTQC and BIQC, respectively. 96.8% of the shift rejections in PBRTQC were trend‐related shifts and calibration‐related shifts, while the proportion was 85.7% in BIQC but 78.6% of the shift rejections in TSH. 25.7% and 8.6% of 105 calibration events which caused analytical shifts were detected by PBRTQC and BIQC, respectively. However, the performance of PBRTQC was not well in TSH because of its large coefficient of variation.ConclusionsThe optimized PBRTQC is high efficiency than BIQC in detecting analytical shifts, trends, and calibration events. The PBRTQC can be used as a low‐cost supplementary procedure to IQC every day, especially at the end of the analytical batch on that day when the within‐individual biological variation of analyte is not larger than its coefficient of variation in IQC. Further optimization and validation of PBRTQC are still needed.