bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The finishing touches: the role of friction and roughness in haptic perception of surface coatings
Authors: Skedung Lisa , Harris Kathryn L. , Collier Elizabeth S. , Rutland Mark W. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractHumans are extraordinarily skilled in the tactile evaluation of, and differentiation between, surfaces. The chemical and mechanical properties of these surfaces are translated into tactile signals during haptic exploration by mechanoreceptors in our skin, which are specialized to respond to different types of temporal and mechanical stimulation. Describing the effects of measurable physical characteristics on the human response to tactile exploration of surfaces is of great interest to manufacturers of household materials so that the haptic experience can be considered during design, product development and quality control. In this study, methods from psychophysics and materials science are combined to advance current understanding of which physical properties affect tactile perception of a range of furniture surfaces, i.e., foils and coatings, thus creating a tactile map of the furniture product landscape. Participants’ responses in a similarity scaling task were analyzed using INDSCAL from which three haptic dimensions were identified. Results show that specific roughness parameters, tactile friction and vibrational information, as characterized by a stylus profilometer, a Forceboard, and a biomimetic synthetic finger, are important for tactile differentiation and preferences of these surface treatments. The obtained dimensions are described as distinct combinations of the surface properties characterized, rather than as ‘roughness’ or ‘friction’ independently. Preferences by touch were related to the roughness, friction and thermal properties of the surfaces. The results both complement and advance current understanding of how roughness and friction relate to tactile perception of surfaces.
SPG7 mutations in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a genetic link to hereditary spastic paraplegia
Authors: Osmanovic Alma , Widjaja Maylin , Förster Alisa , Weder Julia , Wattjes Mike P. , Lange Inken , Sarikidi Anastasia , Auber Bernd , Raab Peter , Christians Anne , Preller Matthias , Petri Susanne , Weber Ruthild G. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractAmyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) are motor neuron diseases sharing clinical, pathological, and genetic similarities. While biallelic SPG7 mutations are known to cause recessively inherited HSP, heterozygous SPG7 mutations have repeatedly been identified in HSP and recently also in ALS cases. However, the frequency and clinical impact of rare SPG7 variants have not been studied in a larger ALS cohort. Here, whole-exome (WES) or targeted SPG7 sequencing was done in a cohort of 214 European ALS patients. The consequences of a splice site variant were analyzed on the mRNA level. The resulting protein alterations were visualized in a crystal structure model. All patients were subjected to clinical, electrophysiological, and neuroradiological characterization. In 9 of 214 (4.2%) ALS cases, we identified five different rare heterozygous SPG7 variants, all of which were previously reported in patients with HSP or ALS. All detected SPG7 variants affect the AAA+ domain of the encoded mitochondrial metalloprotease paraplegin and impair its stability or function according to predictions from mRNA analysis or crystal structure modeling. ALS patients with SPG7 mutations more frequently presented with cerebellar symptoms, flail arm or leg syndrome compared to those without SPG7 mutations, and showed a partial clinical overlap with HSP. Brain MRI findings in SPG7 mutation carriers included cerebellar atrophy and patterns suggestive of frontotemporal dementia. Collectively, our findings suggest that SPG7 acts as a genetic risk factor for ALS. ALS patients carrying SPG7 mutations present with distinct features overlapping with HSP, particularly regarding cerebellar findings.
The impact of total body water on breath alcohol calculations
Authors: Reiter Gregor S. , Boeckle Markus , Reiter Christian , Seltenhammer Monika H. 
Published: May 2020

SummaryDue to a legislative amendment in Austria to determine breath alcohol (BrAC) instead of blood alcohol (BAC) in connection with traffic offences, many results of blood alcohol calculations were simply converted using distinct conversion factors. In Austria, the transformation of BAC to BrAC was carried out by using a factor of 1:2000, which, however, is commonly known to be too low. Noticing the great demand for a calculation method that is not exclusively based on blood alcohol, a formula for calculating breath alcohol based on blood alcohol was published in 1989, but in which the body surface area (BSA) was considered the most important influencing variable. In order to refine this new method, a liquor intake experiment was conducted combined with measurements of total body water (TBW) as an additional variable, using hand to foot bioelectrical impedance assessment (BIA). The test group comprised 37 men and 40 women to evaluate the accuracy of TBW and BSA as an individual parameter for alcohol concentration. The correlation coefficient of BrAC with TBW was constantly higher than with BSA (maximum = 0.921 at 1 h and 45 min after cessation of alcohol intake). These results are valid for both men and women as well as in a gender independent calculation. Hence, for an accurate back calculation of BrAC adjusted values of eliminations rates had to be found. This study describes mean elimination rates of BrAC for both men (0.065 ± 0.011 mg/L h−1) and women (0.074 ± 0.017 mg/L h−1). As previously shown women displayed a significantly higher elimination rate than men (p = 0.006).
Confounding factors of non-invasive tests for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
Authors: Wai Janae Wentong , Fu Charmaine , Wong Vincent Wai-Sun 
Published: May 2020

AbstractNonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) affects at least 25% of the general adult population worldwide. Because only a fraction of the patients would develop liver-related complications, it is preferable to perform non-invasive tests as the initial assessment. This review summarizes the known and potential confounding factors that affect the performance of non-invasive tests of hepatic steatosis and fibrosis in patients with NAFLD. Clinicians may apply the knowledge and exercise caution in selecting investigations and interpreting test results when confounding factors are present.
Multi-functional coating of polymeric spherulites for chiral photonic cellulose nanocrystal films
Authors: Bazrafshan Zahra 
Published: May 2020

AbstractCellulose Nanocrystal (CNC) films are from emerging nanoparticles recently known for photonic properties. The CNC films show nonuniform photonic domains resulting from structural irregularities in their typical self-assembled arrangements. This paper presents a drop-casting approach from Polyamide 6 to form a coating layer on the CNC films. This coating approach led to polycrystalline growth patterns known as spherulites on the CNC film. For the resulting coated CNC film, the spherulites yielded a unique set of enhanced physical properties including optical, mechanical and thermal as well as a new morphological appearance from their micro-scale average spherical shape; the ordering effect of their local radial symmetry and orientation positively influenced the effects of structural irregularities of the typical CNC films. Under polarized light, the optical transmission bands of the CNC film were perceived through radial symmetry of banded spherulites which were responsible for the formation of circular extinction patterns for the coated CNC film. The intermolecular interactions and interlamellar entanglement of spherulites provided enhanced flexibility and tensile strength for the coated CNC film. This protecting design allows for the future development of a variety of portable functional assemblies requiring enhanced performance in optical, mechanical and thermal properties of CNC films.
The Detectability of Welding Defects in MIAB Welded Thin-Walled Tubular Components by Immersion Ultrasonic Technique
Authors: Kustroń Paweł , Piwowarczyk Tomasz , Korzeniowski Marcin , Sokołowski Paweł , Bicz Agnieszka 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThe article demonstrates an effective solution for ultrasonic quality monitoring of transmission and drive components of motor vehicles, joined using an innovative method called magnetically impelled arc butt welding (MIAB). The major challenge was the application of ultrasonic technology for quick and reliable testing of thin-walled components with complex geometry. To solve this problem the idea of using ultrasonic subsurface waves was investigated. By using finite elements method (FEM) the angle of the ultrasonic beam incident on the tested element and the frequency of the ultrasonic transducer were verified. Then, scanning acoustic microscopy (SAM) and X-ray computed tomography (CT), both nondestructive tests on thin-walled welded tubular components were performed. The research have shown that it is possible to detect defects with diameter of 0.3 mm with the angle of incidence of wave 31.5°. The results of the numerical analysis were compared with the experimental approach and confirmed the usefulness of proposed method. Finally, the potential of using immersion ultrasonic technique for quick and reliable validation of thin-walled tubular components was proven, as the test duration for a one elements was around 3 s.
Eudaimonia and well-being: questioning the moral authority of advance directives in dementia
Authors: Byers Philippa 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThis paper revisits Ronald Dworkin’s influential position that a person’s advance directive for future health care and medical treatment retains its moral authority beyond the onset of dementia, even when respecting this authority involves foreshortening the life of someone who is happy and content and who no longer remembers or identifies with instructions included within the advance directive. The analysis distils a eudaimonist perspective from Dworkin’s argument and traces variations of this perspective in further arguments for the moral authority of advance directives by other authors. It then critiques a feature of the eudaimonist perspectives within these arguments—namely, the position that dementia has a retroactive negative impact on what a person has previously valued—and challenges the commonly held assumption underlying them that a person’s life and well-being have relatively low value beyond the onset of dementia. Although advance directives have moral authority as a means of guiding one’s future health care, accounts that dismiss the value of the lives and well-being of people living with dementia should be questioned to the extent that such accounts are used to support the moral authority of advance directives stipulating measures to foreshorten individuals’ lives.
Deep Brain Stimulation in the Nucleus Accumbens for Binge Eating Disorder: a Study in Rats
Authors: Oterdoom D. L. Marinus , Lok Renske , van Beek André P. , den Dunnen Wilfred F.A. , Emous Marloes , van Dijk J. Marc C. , van Dijk Gertjan 
Published: May 2020

AbstractBinge eating disorder (BED), with its compulsive and addictive components, may often underlie weight regain after gastrointestinal bariatric surgeries. BED is therefore considered an exclusion criterion for these surgeries. Anecdotal reports suggest that deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an effective treatment for addictive disorders with, similar to BED, pathological changes in cerebral reward circuitry. We therefore assessed effect of DBS of the nucleus accumbens (NAC) in a rat model of BED. Twenty-one male obesity prone Wistar rats with DBS electrodes placed in NAC subregions were subjected to a binge eating protocol. Binge eating was significantly reduced with DBS during (NAC core) or before (NAC lateral shell) the binge. These outcomes provide a base to further explore the potential of DBS in the treatment of BED.
Design and rationale of a randomized, placebo-controlled trial on the efficacy and safety of sulodexide for extended treatment in elderly patients after a first venous thromboembolism
Authors: Palareti Gualtiero , Legnani Cristina , Antonucci Emilia , Zorzi Serena , Bignamini Angelo A. , Lodigiani Corrado , Tosetto Alberto , Bertù Lorenza , Pengo Vittorio , Testa Sophie , Ageno Walter , Prisco Domenico , Prandoni Paolo , Poli Daniela 
Published: May 2020

AbstractHow to prevent recurrences after a first venous thromboembolic (VTE) event in elderly patients is still an open issue, especially because of the high bleeding risk of anticoagulation in these patients. The placebo-controlled “Jason” study aims at assessing the efficacy and safety for secondary VTE prevention in elderly patients of oral Sulodexide (Vessel®) administration, a mixture of glycosaminoglycans (Alfasigma, Bologna, Italy) which proved effective against recurrences in a general population (SURVET study) without major bleeding (MB) complications. 1450 patients, aged ≥ 75 years, after at least 3 months of anticoagulation treatment for a first VTE episode, are double-blind randomized to receive for 12 months either sulodexide 500 lipasemic units (LSUs) twice daily, or sulodexide 250 LSU twice daily + indistinguishable placebo, or indistinguishable placebo. Primary outcomes for efficacy are the composite of death for VTE and recurrent VTE, and occurrence of MB for safety. Secondary outcomes include stroke, cardiovascular death and other thromboembolic events, and MB + clinically relevant non-MB. The first patient is scheduled to be randomized in May 2020. The study protocol has been approved by AIFA (Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco) and the Ethics Committee of the coordinating center. Written informed consent will be obtained from all patients prior to study participation. Jason study is an investigator-initiated trial, promoted by “Arianna Anticoagulazione” Foundation, Bologna, Italy, and supported by Alfasigma, Bologna, Italy. Study findings will be disseminated to participant centers, at research conferences and in peer-reviewed journals. Trial registration numbers NCT 04257487; EudraCT (2019–000570-33).
Self-adaptive learning for hybrid genetic algorithms
Authors: El-Mihoub Tarek A. , Hopgood Adrian A. , Nolle Lars 
Published: May 2020

AbstractLocal search can be introduced into genetic algorithms to create a hybrid, but any improvement in performance is dependent on the learning mechanism. In the Lamarckian model, a candidate solution is replaced by a fitter neighbour if one is found by local search. In the Baldwinian model, the original solution is retained but with an upgraded fitness if a fitter solution is found in the local search space. The effectiveness of using either model or a variable proportion of the two within a hybrid genetic algorithm is affected by the topology of the fitness function and the details of the hybrid algorithm. This paper investigates an intelligent adaptive approach to decide on the learning mechanism to be used by an individual over the course of the search. Evolution is used to self-adapt both the frequency of a steepest-descent local search and the relative proportions of Lamarckian and Baldwinian inheritance. Experiments have shown that this form of adaptive learning can improve the ability to find high-quality solutions and can accelerate the hybrid search without the need to find optimal control parameters for the learning process.
Potential biomarkers for early detection of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma
Authors: Kriz D. , Ansari D. , Andersson R. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractPancreatic cancer has the highest mortality amongst all major organ cancers. Early detection is key to reduce deaths related to pancreatic cancer. However, early detection has been challenged by the lack of non-invasive biomarkers with enough sensitivity and specificity to allow for screening. The gold standard is still carbohydrate antigen (CA 19-9), against which all new biomarkers must be evaluated. In this paper, we describe recent progress in the development of new pancreatic cancer biomarkers, focusing on proteins, metabolites, and genetic and epigenetic biomarkers. Although several promising biomarkers have been identified, they are all derived from retrospective studies and additional prospective studies are needed to confirm their clinical validity.
Investing in climate change adaptation and mitigation: A methodological review of real-options studies
Authors: Ginbo Tsegaye , Di Corato Luca , Hoffmann Ruben 
Published: May 2020

AbstractUncertain future payoffs and irreversible costs characterize investment in climate change adaptation and mitigation. Under these conditions, it is relevant to analyze investment decisions in a real options framework, as this approach takes into account the economic value associated with investment time flexibility. In this paper, we provide an overview of the literature adopting a real option approach to analyze investment in climate change adaptation and mitigation, and examine how the uncertain impacts of climate change on the condition of the human environment, risk preferences, and strategic interactions among decisions-makers have been modeled. We found that the complex nature of uncertainties associated with climate change is typically only partially taken into account and that the analysis is usually limited to decisions taken by individual risk neutral profit maximizers. Our findings call for further research to fill the identified gaps.
Ecosystem restoration in fire-managed savanna woodlands: Effects on biodiversity, local livelihoods and fire intensity
Authors: Johansson Maria Ulrika , Abebe Firew Bekele , Nemomissa Sileshi , Bekele Tamrat , Hylander Kristoffer 
Published: May 2020

AbstractEthiopia aims to restore 15 million ha degraded forests and woodlands, but effects on the potentially contrasting goals of long-term carbon storage, biodiversity and sustainable livelihoods are unknown. To quantify the effects of grazing exclusion on vegetation and fire behaviour, we established six 30 × 30 m fenced exclosures with grazed controls, in a mesic wooded savanna. Experimental burns were done after 1.5 years. Tree seedlings were few but more common inside fences. Field layer cover and biomass increased inside fences, and grass species increased in numbers and cover. Fire intensity was higher inside fences, killing shrubs and saplings but not mature trees. Interviews confirmed that overgrazing has resulted in “cool fires”, causing shrub encroachment. High-intensity fires occurred in the 1980s after a zoonotic disease killed most livestock. Short-term increase in carbon storage through fire and grazing exclusion may lead to loss of pasture, and in the long-term increased wildfire risk.
Mitigation of eutrophication caused by wastewater discharge: A simulation-based approach
Authors: Preisner Michał , Neverova-Dziopak Elena , Kowalewski Zbigniew 
Published: May 2020

AbstractMitigation of eutrophication, intensified by excessive nutrient load discharge in wastewaters regulated by restrictive legal requirements, remains one of today’s most important global problems. Despite implementation of the Water Framework Directive, the Urban Wastewater Directive and the HELCOM recommendations, the actual condition of surface water is still not satisfactory. In response to the above, the study presents an alternative approach for surface water protection against eutrophication based on the selection of appropriate nutrient removal technologies. An activated sludge model simulation was used to enable the identification of environmentally justified nutrient removal systems with lowest eutrophication potential of treated wastewater conditioned by bioavailable nutrient forms content. Based on the outcome of the study, the 3-stage Bardenpho system was identified as the most efficient for bioavailable phosphorus removal, while the Johannesburg system proved to have the highest efficiency for bioavailable nitrogen removal. The proposed eutrophication mitigation approach underlines the need for a reconsideration of current legal regulations which ignore nutrient bioavailability and key eutrophication limiting factors.
Using forest gap models and experimental data to explore long-term effects of tree diversity on the productivity of mixed planted forests
Authors: Morin Xavier , Damestoy Thomas , Toigo Maude , Castagneyrol Bastien , Jactel Hervé , de Coligny François , Meredieu Céline 
Published: May 2020

AbstractKey messageIn this exploratory study, we show how combining the strength of tree diversity experiment with the long-term perspective offered by forest gap models allows testing the mixture yielding behavior across a full rotation period. Our results on a SW France example illustrate how mixing maritime pine with birch may produce an overyielding (i.e., a positive net biodiversity effect).ContextUnderstanding the link between tree diversity and stand productivity is a key issue at a time when new forest management methods are investigated to improve carbon sequestration and climate change mitigation. Well-controlled tree diversity experiments have been set up over the last decades, but they are still too young to yield relevant results from a long-term perspective. Alternatively, forest gap models appear as appropriate tools to study the link between diversity and productivity as they can simulate mixed forest growth over an entire forestry cycle.AimsWe aimed at testing whether a forest gap model could first reproduce the results from a tree diversity experiment, using its plantation design as input, and then predict the species mixing effect on productivity and biomass in the long term.MethodsHere, we used data from different forest experimental networks to calibrate the gap model ForCEEPS for young pine (Pinus pinaster) and birch (Betula pendula) stands. Then, we used the refined model to compare the productivity of pure and mixed pine and birch stands over a 50-year cycle. The mixing effect was tested for two plantation designs, i.e., species substitution and species addition, and at two tree densities.ResultsRegarding the comparison with the experiment ORPHEE (thus on the short term), the model well reproduced the species interactions observed in the mixed stands. Simulations showed an overyielding (i.e., a positive net biodiversity effect) in pine-birch mixtures in all cases and during the full rotation period. A transgressive overyielding was detected in mixtures resulting from birch addition to pine stands at low density. These results were mainly due to a positive mixing effect on pine growth being larger than the negative effect on birch growth.ConclusionAlthough this study remains explorative, calibrating gap models with data from monospecific stands and validating with data from the manipulative tree diversity experiment (ORPHEE) offers a powerful tool for further investigation of the productivity of forest mixtures. Improving our understanding of how abiotic and biotic factors, including diversity, influence the functioning of forest ecosystems should help to reconsider new forest managements optimizing ecosystem services.
PICO: Testosteronsuppletie bij prostaatcarcinoom na curatieve behandeling of onder active surveillance
Authors: Kolenburg Jeroen , de Vries P. 
Published: May 2020

SamenvattingDeze literatuurstudie komt voort uit een casus over testosteronsuppletietherapie (TST) bij een patiënt met curatief behandeld prostaatcarcinoom. TST is tot op heden volgens vele (internationale) richtlijnen nog gecontra-indiceerd bij behandeld of onbehandeld prostaatcarcinoom (PCa). Recente literatuur suggereert een alternatieve hypothese over het verband tussen testosteron en PCa. Na de casusbeschrijving wordt in dit artikel een overzicht gegeven van de huidige literatuur over TST bij PCa na curatieve behandeling (radicale prostatectomie, brachytherapie en uitwendige bestraling) of bij active surveillance van PCa.