bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Efficiency of fall versus spring applied urea‐based fertilizers treated with urease and nitrification inhibitors I. Ammonia volatilization and mitigation by NBPT
Authors: Lasisi Ahmed A. , Akinremi Olalekan O. , Zhang Qiang , Kumaragamage Darshani 
Published: March 2020

AbstractMid‐ or late‐fall N fertilization is usually recommended on the Canadian prairies to reduce N losses from fall‐applied N. Yet, N fertilizers are less efficient when applied in mid‐ or late fall than in spring on crop yield. Ammonia volatilization from N fertilizers is one of the reasons for the low N use efficiency. We conducted a 2‐yr study to quantify and contrast the efficacy of a urease inhibitor, N‐(n‐butyl) thiophosphoric triamide (NBPT), with and without a nitrification inhibitor, 3,4‐ dimethylpyrazole phosphate (NI), in reducing NH3 volatilization from fall‐ and spring‐applied urea‐based fertilizers in two contrasting soils. Treatments consisted of surface‐applied urea and urea–NH4NO3 (UAN) with and without NBPT or NBPT + NI (double inhibitor, DI). We measured NH3 volatilization with acid‐charged disks during 21 (fall) or 28 (spring) d. Total NH3 volatilization (percentage of applied N) from untreated urea and UAN across sites ranged from 7 to 22% with fall application and from 3 to 29% with spring application. Addition of NBPT only or DI to urea or UAN reduced NH3 volatilization by 61 to 74% in the fall and 4 to 69% in the spring across site‐years. We found that the reduction of NH3 volatilization by NBPT was significantly greater in the fall (65%) than in the spring (40%) and with urea (61%) than with UAN (43%). Our study showed that (a) significant NH3 volatilization could occur from surface‐applied urea‐based fertilizers even under late‐fall temperatures and (b) NBPT reduced NH3 volatilization from fall‐ as well as spring‐applied urea‐based fertilizers. Therefore, farmers are encouraged to treat their urea‐based fertilizers with NBPT when considering surface application.
Direct Introduction of a Methyl Group at the C5‐Position of 1,2,4‐Triazines: Convenient Synthesis of 6‐Functionalized 5‐Aryl‐2,2′‐bipyridines
Authors: Krinochkin Alexey P. , Kopchuk Dmitry S. , Kovalev Igor S. , Santra Sougata , Zyryanov Grigory V. , Majee Adinath , Rusinov Vladimir L. , Chupakhin Oleg N. 
Published: March 2020

AbstractThis article describes a convenient method for the synthesis of 5‐aryl‐6‐methyl‐2,2′‐bipyridines through the direct introduction of a methyl group at the C5‐position of 1,2,4‐triazine moieties. At first 1,2,4‐triazine precursors are synthesized for this purpose. The reaction proceeds through SNH/SNips° substitution and subsequent aza‐Diels‐Alder reaction. In addition, mono‐ and dibromomethyl‐substituted 2,2’‐bipyridines are also synthesized to confirm the applicability of the present method.
Design and data analytics of electronic human resource management activities through Internet of Things in an organization
Authors: Nasar Nasreen , Ray Sumati , Umer Saiyed , Mohan Pandey Hari 
Published: March 2020

SummaryA novel design and data analytics for an electronic human resource management (e‐HRM) system has been proposed in this article. E‐HRM software is being widely used in big industries and institutions. This e‐HRM is very cost‐effective, competence, congruence, and commitment for the organization. At present, Internet of Things (IoT) have great impact on e‐HRM, which gives various facilities and supports to e‐HRM functionalities such as securities, standards, privacy, and regulations. The combination of e‐HRM with IoT has wide applications for implementing policies, strategies, and practices within the organization. An e‐HRM has mainly five activities: e‐Selection, e‐Recruitment, e‐Performance, e‐Compensation, and e‐Learning. In this work, the proposed system has two parts. In the first part, the various e‐HRM activities have been discussed and elaborated with examples. In the second part, the description of data analytics based on IoT for each e‐HRM activity has been discussed and demonstrated. Here the data analytics part is divided into four components: (a) data preprocessing; (b) feature selection; (c) data classification; and (d) performance evaluation. Extensive experimentation has been performed for each e‐HRM activity using four HR analytic datasets from Kaggle site, and finally, the performance with proper justifications has been exquisitely done using each dataset respect to each e‐HRM activity.
Epistemic beliefs and prior knowledge as predictors of the construction of different types of arguments on socioscientific issues
Authors: Baytelman Andreani , Iordanou Kalypso , Constantinou Constantinos P. 
Published: March 2020

AbstractThis study investigates whether university students’ epistemic beliefs and prior knowledge about controversial socioscientific issues (SSIs) can predict the different types of arguments that students construct. Two hundred forty‐three university students were asked to construct different types of supportive arguments—social, ethical, economic, scientific, ecological—as well as counterarguments and rebuttals after they had read a scenario on a SSI. Participants’ epistemic beliefs and prior knowledge were assessed separately. Results showed that students’ epistemic beliefs and prior knowledge predicted the quantity, quality, and diversity of the different types of arguments the students constructed. In particular, students who held sophisticated epistemic beliefs about the structure of knowledge and exhibited relativelymore robustprior knowledge scores, produced arguments of greater quantity, better quality, and higher diversity than students with less sophisticated epistemic beliefs and low prior knowledge scores. Educational implications are discussed.
Molecular imaging of extracellular matrix proteins with targeted probes using magnetic resonance imaging
Authors: Salarian Mani , Ibhagui Oluwatosin Y. , Yang Jenny J. 
Published: March 2020

AbstractThe extracellular matrix (ECM) consists of proteins and carbohydrates that supports different biological structures and processes such as tissue development, elasticity, and preservation of organ structure. Diseases involving inflammation, fibrosis, tumor invasion, and injury are all attributed to the transition of the ECM from homeostasis to remodeling, which can significantly change the biochemical and biomechanical features of ECM components. While contrast agents have played an indispensable role in facilitating clinical diagnosis of diseases using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), there is a strong need to develop novel biomarker‐targeted imaging probes for in vivo visualization of biological processes and pathological alterations at a cellular and molecular level, for both early diagnosis and monitoring drug treatment. Herein, we will first review the pathological accumulation and characterization of ECM proteins recognized as important molecular features of diseases. Developments in MRI probes targeting ECM proteins such as collagen, fibronectin, and elastin via conjugation of existing contrast agents to targeting moieties and their applications to various diseases, are also reviewed. We have also reviewed our progress in the development of collagen‐targeted protein MRI contrast agent with significant improvement in relaxivity and metal binding specificity, and their applications in early detection of fibrosis and metastatic cancer.This article is categorized under:
Diagnostic Tools > in vivo Nanodiagnostics and Imaging
Biology‐Inspired Nanomaterials > Peptide‐Based Structures
Biology‐Inspired Nanomaterials > Protein and Virus‐Based Structures
KMS States on Nica-Toeplitz $$\hbox {C}^*$$-algebras
Authors: Afsar Zahra , Larsen Nadia S. , Neshveyev Sergey 
Published: March 2020

AbstractGiven a quasi-lattice ordered group (G, P) and a compactly aligned product system X of essential $$\hbox {C}^*$$

C
∗

-correspondences over the monoid P, we show that there is a bijection between the gauge-invariant $$\hbox {KMS}_\beta $$

KMS
β

-states on the Nica-Toeplitz algebra $$\mathcal {NT}(X)$$

NT
(
X
)

of X with respect to a gauge-type dynamics, on one side, and the tracial states on the coefficient algebra A satisfying a system (in general infinite) of inequalities, on the other. This strengthens and generalizes a number of results in the literature in several directions: we do not make any extra assumptions on P and X, and our result can, in principle, be used to study KMS-states at any finite inverse temperature $$\beta $$
β
. Under fairly general additional assumptions we show that there is a critical inverse temperature $$\beta _c$$

β
c

such that for $$\beta >\beta _c$$

β
>

β
c

all $$\hbox {KMS}_\beta $$

KMS
β

-states are of Gibbs type, hence gauge-invariant, in which case we have a complete classification of $$\hbox {KMS}_\beta $$

KMS
β

-states in terms of tracial states on A, while at $$\beta =\beta _c$$

β
=

β
c

we have a phase transition manifesting itself in the appearance of $$\hbox {KMS}_\beta $$

KMS
β

-states that are not of Gibbs type. In the case of right-angled Artin monoids we show also that our system of inequalities for traces on A can be reduced to a much smaller system, a finite one when the monoid is finitely generated. Most of our results generalize to arbitrary quasi-free dynamics on $$\mathcal {NT}(X)$$

NT
(
X
)

.
Long-term rates of change in musculoskeletal aging and body composition: findings from the Health, Aging and Body Composition Study
Authors: Westbury Leo D. , Syddall Holly E. , Fuggle Nicholas R. , Dennison Elaine M. , Cauley Jane A. , Shiroma Eric J. , Fielding Roger A. , Newman Anne B. , Cooper Cyrus 
Published: March 2020

AbstractMusculoskeletal disorders are common among older people. Preventive strategies require understanding of age-related changes in strength, function and body composition, including how they interrelate. We have described, and examined associations between, 9-year changes in these parameters among 2917 Health, Aging and Body Composition Study participants (aged 70–79 years). Appendicular lean mass (ALM), whole body fat mass and total hip BMD were ascertained using DXA; muscle strength by grip dynamometry; and muscle function by gait speed. For each characteristic annualised percentage changes were calculated; measures of conditional change (independent of baseline) were derived and their interrelationships were examined using Pearson correlations; proportion of variance at 9-year follow-up explained by baseline level was estimated; and mean trajectories in relation to age were estimated using linear mixed models. Analyses were stratified by sex. Median [lower quartile, upper quartile] annual percentage declines were grip strength (1.5 [0.0, 2.9]), gait speed (2.0 [0.6, 3.7]), ALM (0.7 [0.1, 1.4]), fat mass (0.4 [− 1.1, 1.9]) and hip BMD (0.5 [0.0, 1.1]). Declines were linear for ALM and accelerated over time for other characteristics. Most conditional change measures were positively correlated, most strongly between ALM, fat mass and hip BMD (r > 0.28). Proportion of variation at follow-up explained by baseline was lower for grip strength and gait speed (39–52%) than other characteristics (69–86%). Strength and function declined more rapidly, and were less correlated between baseline and follow-up, than measures of body composition. Therefore, broader intervention strategies to prevent loss of strength and function in later life are required as those targeting body composition alone may be insufficient.
Pyrodextrin enhances intestinal function through changing the intestinal microbiota composition and metabolism in early weaned piglets
Authors: Zhu Lihui , Liao Rongrong , Tu Weilong , Lu Yonghong , Cai Xuan 
Published: March 2020

AbstractPyrodextrin (PD) is prepared from starch by heat treatment and is resistant to amylase. We hypothesized that PD might have prebiotic potential affecting the microbiota composition, because it contains a non-digestible portion that may behave as dietary fiber. This study investigated the effects of PD supplementation on growth performance, gut morphology, short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), and the bacterial community in weaned piglets receiving dietary supplementation of 0.5% PD. The piglets in the PD (treated) groups showed greater antioxidant capacity and feed efficiency (P < 0.05), as well as improved intestinal morphology in comparison with the piglets in the weaned (control) group. Gut microbiota profiles were assessed through 16S rRNA sequencing on the ileum contents and feces of early weaned piglets. Several genus-level enrichments and depletions were observed in response to PD treatment. Of note, PD supplementation decreased the relative abundance of pathogenic organisms, including Defluviicoccus and Gardnerella, while markedly increasing that of commensal bacteria (genera Psychrobacter and Prevotella), which have important roles in nutrient absorption and immune response regulation. The most notable effect in the PD treatment groups was increased production of SCFAs in the feces of PD-treated weaned piglets. Correlation analysis revealed that the improvement in SCFAs was positively correlated with the increase in SCFA-producing bacteria. Overall, this study provides a more comprehensive understanding of the effects of PD supplementation on the fecal microbial community and the modulation of SCFA production in early weaned piglets, thus indicating that PD can be used to alleviate weaning stress in piglets.
Comparison between object and image plane cross-correlation for stereoscopic PIV in the presence of pixel locking
Authors: Jankee Girish K. , Ganapathisubramani Bharathram 
Published: March 2020

Abstract
Pixel locking in stereoscopic particle image velocimetry (SPIV) is often overlooked, albeit the existence of studies demonstrating an influence on turbulent statistics. Such a bias error occurs when the seeding particles have an image diameter in the range of 1–2 pixels. Together with the advent of superior cameras and more powerful lasers, new image-processing techniques enable large field of views to be examined. Under such circumstances, defocusing is not an option and due to the small nature of the particle image diameter, pixel locking is inherent in the data. This study analyses the contrast between object plane-based and image plane-based approach for cross-correlation in the presence of pixel locking in SPIV. By combining experimental data and synthetic images, the sensitivity of pixel locking on single-point statistics is quantified and a protocol is proposed to tackle such an increasingly prevalent condition. A consequence of pixel locking is the occurrence of Moiré fringes, whose intensity is observed to be enhanced in the presence of particles with an image diameter less than 2 pixels. Such high frequency artifacts are not only receptive to the fill factor of the sensor but also depend on the residual error of the interpolation from image plane to the object plane. This study discusses the origins of Moiré fringes in SPIV and provides a method to mitigate these based on the type of cross-correlation used.

Graphic abstract
Variation of the difference in RMS between the true value and the derived value from diverse adopted methodologies as the particle image diameter, $$d_{\tau }$$dτ increases. (OP: Object plane cross-correlation, IP: Image plane cross-correlation, IP HE: Image plane cross-correlation post histogram equalisation)
Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation for advanced cancer pain inpatients in specialist palliative care—a blinded, randomized, sham-controlled pilot cross-over trial
Authors: Siemens Waldemar , Boehlke Christopher , Bennett Michael I. , Offner Klaus , Becker Gerhild , Gaertner Jan 
Published: March 2020

Abstract
Purpose
Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) is a treatment option for cancer pain, but the evidence is inconclusive. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of TENS.

Methods
A blinded, randomized, sham-controlled pilot cross-over trial (NCT02655289) was conducted on an inpatient specialist palliative care ward. We included adult inpatients with cancer pain ≥ 3 on an 11-point numerical rating scale (NRS). Intensity-modulated high TENS (IMT) was compared with placebo TENS (PBT). Patients used both modes according to their preferred application scheme during 24 h with a 24-h washout phase. The primary outcome was change in average pain intensity on the NRS during the preceding 24 h. Responders were patients with at least a “slight improvement.”

Results
Of 632 patients screened, 25 were randomized (sequence IMT-PBT = 13 and PBT-IMT = 12). Finally, 11 patients in IMT-PBT and 9 in PBT-IMT completed the study (N = 20). The primary outcome did not differ between groups (IMT minus PBT: − 0.2, 95% confidence interval − 0.9 to 0.6). However, responder rates were higher in IMT (17/20 [85%] vs. 10/20 [50%], p = 0.0428). Two patients experienced an uncomfortable feeling caused by the current, one after IMT and one after PBT. Seven patients (35%) desired a TENS prescription. Women and patients with incident pain were most likely to benefit from TENS.

Conclusion
TENS was safe, but IMT was unlikely to offer more analgesic effects than PBT. Even though many patients desired a TENS prescription, 50% still reported at least “slight pain relief” from PBT. Differences for gender and incident pain aspects demand future trials.
Assessment of cutaneous axon-reflex responses to evaluate functional integrity of autonomic small nerve fibers
Authors: Hijazi Mido M. , Buchmann Sylvia J. , Sedghi Annahita , Illigens Ben M. , Reichmann Heinz , Schackert Gabriele , Siepmann Timo 
Published: March 2020

AbstractCutaneous autonomic small nerve fibers encompass unmyelinated C-fibers and thinly myelinated Aδ-fibers, which innervate dermal vessels (vasomotor fibers), sweat glands (sudomotor fibers), and hair follicles (pilomotor fibers). Analysis of their integrity can capture early pathology in autonomic neuropathies such as diabetic autonomic neuropathy or peripheral nerve inflammation due to infectious and autoimmune diseases. Furthermore, intraneural deposition of alpha-synuclein in synucleinopathies such as Parkinson’s disease can lead to small fiber damage. Research indicated that detection and quantitative analysis of small fiber pathology might facilitate early diagnosis and initiation of treatment. While autonomic neuropathies show substantial etiopathogenetic heterogeneity, they have in common impaired functional integrity of small nerve fibers. This impairment can be evaluated by quantitative analysis of axonal responses to iontophoretic application of adrenergic or cholinergic agonists to the skin. The axon-reflex can be elicited in cholinergic sudomotor fibers to induce sweating and in cholinergic vasomotor fibers to induce vasodilation. Currently, only few techniques are available to quantify axon-reflex responses, the majority of which is limited by technical demands or lack of validated analysis protocols. Function of vasomotor small fibers can be analyzed using laser Doppler flowmetry, laser Doppler imaging, and laser speckle contrast imaging. Sudomotor function can be assessed using quantitative sudomotor axon-reflex test, silicone imprints, and quantitative direct and indirect testing of sudomotor function. More recent advancements include analysis of piloerection (goose bumps) following stimulation of adrenergic small fibers using pilomotor axon-reflex test. We provide a review of the current literature on axon-reflex tests in cutaneous autonomic small fibers.
Risk for intravesical recurrence of bladder cancer stratified by the results on two consecutive UroVysion fluorescence in situ hybridization tests: a prospective follow-up study in Japan
Authors: Ikeda Atsushi , Kojima Takahiro , Kawai Koji , Hinotsu Shiro , Keino Naoto , Shiga Kenichiro , Miyake Hideaki , Miyata Yasuyoshi , Enomoto Yutaka , Shimizu Fumitaka , Anai Satoshi , Matsuyama Hideyasu , Suzuki Chieko , Kanimoto Yusuke , Shigeta Keisuke , Naito Seiji , Akaza Hideyuki , Nishiyama Hiroyuki 
Published: March 2020

Abstract
Background
A previous comparative study in Japan has demonstrated that the two consecutive UroVysion tests are useful tools to detect the presence of bladder cancer during follow-up after transurethral resection, but they also presented their high rates of false-positive results. Here, we aimed to evaluate the relationship between the UroVysion tests and subsequent intravesical recurrence.

Methods
In the previous study, patients without bladder cancer during the first analysis showed the same examination set repeated 3 months later as the second analysis. In this follow-up study, 326 patients showed negative findings confirmed on cystoscopy during the second UroVysion test. Recurrence-free survival was assessed using a median follow-up of 27 months.

Results
In the two consecutive UroVysion tests, 214 patients (65.6%) showed negative UroVysion results in both tests, whereas 91 presented a positive result on either tests and 21 patients presented positive results in both tests. During the follow-up, 40 patients (12.3%) had an intravesical recurrence with non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer. The recurrence rates in patients with negative results in both tests, those with one positive result in either tests, and those with positive results in both tests were 8.4%, 16.5%, and 33.3%, respectively. The multivariate analysis indicated that the history of bladder cancer and the consecutive UroVysion test pattern were independent risk factors for recurrence.

Conclusions
Our data confirmed the effectiveness of two consecutive UroVysion tests in predicting intravesical recurrence after TURBT. Further prospective studies would help determine an appropriate interval for cystoscopy follow-up.
Multi-Robot Patrolling with Sensing Idleness and Data Delay Objectives
Authors: Scherer Jürgen , Rinner Bernhard 
Published: March 2020

AbstractMulti-robot patrolling represents a fundamental problem for many monitoring and surveillance applications and has gained significant interest in recent years. In patrolling, mobile robots repeatedly travel through an environment, capture sensor data at certain sensing locations and deliver this data to the base station in a way that maximizes the changes of detection. Robots move on tours, exchange data when they meet with robots on neighboring tours and so eventually deliver data to the base station. In this paper we jointly consider two important optimization criteria of multi-robot patrolling: (i) idleness, i.e. the time between consecutive visits of sensing locations, and (ii) delay, i.e. the time between capturing data at the sensing location and its arrival at the base station. We systematically investigate the effect of the robots’ moving directions along their tours and the selection of meeting points for data exchange. We prove that the problem of determining the movement directions and meeting points such that the data delay is minimized is NP-hard. For this purpose, we define a structure called tour graph which models the neighborhood of the tours defined by potential meeting points. We propose two heuristics that are based on a shortest-path-search in the tour graph. We provide a simulation study which shows that the cooperative approach can outperform an uncooperative approach where every robot delivers the captured data individually to the base station. Additionally, the experiments show that the heuristic which is computational more expensive performs slightly better on average than the less expensive heuristic in the considered scenarios.