bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Nanobody-based CTLA4 inhibitors for immune checkpoint blockade therapy of canine cancer patients
Authors: Marable Jonathan , Ruiz Damien , Jaiswal Anil K. , Bhattacharya Ritankar , Pantazes Robert , Agarwal Payal , Suryawanshi Amol S. , Bedi Deepa , Mishra Amarjit , Smith Bruce F. , Sandey Maninder 
Published: October 2021

AbstractCancer is the leading cause of death in the geriatric dog population. Currently, the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) such as anti-CTLA4 antibodies has markedly improved the prognosis of several cancers in their advanced stages. However, ICIs targeting CTLA4 blockade to treat canine cancer patients are yet to define. In this study, we sought to develop, characterize and assess whether chimeric heavy chain only antibodies (cHcAbs) against CTLA4 are viable therapeutic candidates for the treatment of canine cancers. Anti-CTLA4 nanobodies (Nbs) were identified from a yeast nanobody (Nb) library using magnetic-assisted cell sorting (MACS) and flow cytometry. cHcAbs were engineered by genetically fusing the DNA sequences coding for anti-CTLA4 Nbs with the Fc domain of the subclass B of canine IgG. Recombinant cHcAbs were purified from ExpiCHO-S cells. Stable cell lines expressing canine CTLA4 and FcγRI were used to elucidate the binding ability and specificity of cHcAbs. PBMCs isolated from healthy dogs were used to evaluate the ability of cHcAbs to activate canine PBMCs (cPBMCs). Novel Nbs were identified using the extracellular domain of canine CTLA4 protein to screen a fully synthetic yeast nanobody library. Purified Nbs bind specifically to natïve canine CTLA4. We report that chimeric HcAbs, which were engineered by fusing the anti-CTLA4 Nbs and Fc region of subclass B of canine IgG, were half the size of a conventional mAb and formed dimers. The chimeric HcAbs specifically binds both with canine CTLA4 and Fcγ receptors. As the binding of Nbs overlapped with the MYPPPY motif of canine CTLA4, these Nbs were expected to sterically disrupt the interaction of canine CTLA4 to B-7s. Like their human counterpart, canine CTLA4 was expressed on helper T cells and a small subset of cytotoxic T cells. Canine Tregs also constitutively expressed CTLA4, and stimulation with PMA/Ionomycin dramatically increased expression of CTLA4 on the cell surface. Stimulation of cPBMCs in the presence of agonistic anti-CD3 Ab and cHcAb6 significantly increased the expression of IFN-γ as compared to the isotype control. This study identifies a novel nanobody-based CTLA4 inhibitor for the treatment of canine cancer patients.
Fabrication of clay soil/CuFe2O4 nanocomposite toward improving energy and shielding efficiency of buildings
Authors: Keykavous-Amand Shabnam , Peymanfar Reza 
Published: October 2021

AbstractIn this research, the energy and shielding efficiency of brick, fabricated by clay soil, as a practical building material was reinforced using CuFe2O4 nanoparticles. Initially, the nanoparticles were fabricated using the sol–gel method and then loaded in the brick matrix as a guest. The architected samples were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), diffuse reflection spectroscopy (DRS), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), vibrating-sample magnetometer (VSM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) thermograms, and vector network analyzer (VNA) analyses. IR absorption of the tailored samples was monitored under an IR source using an IR thermometer. IR absorption and energy band gap attested that inserting the nanoparticles in brick medium led to the acceleration of a warming brick, desirable for energy efficiency in cold climates. It is worth noting that the brick/CuFe2O4 nanocomposite achieved a strong reflection loss (RL) of 58.54 dB and gained an efficient bandwidth as wide as 4.22 GHz (RL > 10 dB) with a thickness of 2.50 mm, meanwhile it shielded more than 58% of the electromagnetic waves at X-band by only a filler loading of 10 wt%. The microwave absorbing and shielding characteristics of the composite are mainly originated from conductive loss, electron hopping, natural and exchange resonance, relaxation loss, secondary fields, as well as eddy current loss. Interestingly, the shielding property of the nanocomposite was significantly generated from its absorbing features, reducing the secondary electromagnetic pollutions produced by the shielding materials applying the impedance mismatching mechanism.
Effect of prewarming on body temperature in short-term bladder or prostatic transurethral resection under general anesthesia: A randomized, double-blind, controlled trial
Authors: Becerra Ángel , Valencia Lucía , Saavedra Pedro , Rodríguez-Pérez Aurelio , Villar Jesús 
Published: October 2021

AbstractPerioperative hypothermia causes postoperative complications. Prewarming reduces body temperature decrease in long-term surgeries. We aimed to assess the effect of different time-periods of prewarming on perioperative temperature in short-term transurethral resection under general anesthesia. Randomized, double-blind, controlled trial in patients scheduled for bladder or prostatic transurethral resection under general anesthesia. Eligible patients were randomly assigned to receive no-prewarming or prewarming during 15, 30, or 45 min using a forced-air blanket in the pre-anesthesia period. Tympanic temperature was used prior to induction of anesthesia and esophageal temperature intraoperatively. Primary outcome was the difference in core temperature among groups from the induction of general anesthesia until the end of surgery. Repeated measures multivariate analysis of covariance modeled the temperature response at each observation time according to prewarming. We examined modeled contrasts between temperature variables in subjects according to prophylaxis. We enrolled 297 patients and randomly assigned 76 patients to control group, 74 patients to 15-min group, 73 patients to 30-min group, and 74 patients to the 45-min group. Temperature in the control group before induction was 36.5 ± 0.5 °C. After prewarming, core temperature was significantly higher in 15- and 30-min groups (36.8 ± 0.5 °C, p = 0.004; 36.7 ± 0.5 °C, p = 0.041, respectively). Body temperature at the end of surgery was significantly lower in the control group (35.8 ± 0.6 °C) than in the three prewarmed groups (36.3 ± 0.6 °C in 15-min, 36.3 ± 0.5 °C in 30-min, and 36.3 ± 0.6 °C in 45-min group) (p < 0.001). Prewarming prior to short-term transurethral resection under general anesthesia reduced the body temperature drop during the perioperative period. These time-periods of prewarming also reduced the rate of postoperative complications.Study Registration Registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (Identifier: NCT03630887).
Silica fertilization improved wheat performance and increased phosphorus concentrations during drought at the field scale
Authors: Schaller Jörg , Scherwietes Eric , Gerber Lukas , Vaidya Shrijana , Kaczorek Danuta , Pausch Johanna , Barkusky Dietmar , Sommer Michael , Hoffmann Mathias 
Published: October 2021

AbstractDrought and the availability of mineable phosphorus minerals used for fertilization are two of the important issues agriculture is facing in the future. High phosphorus availability in soils is necessary to maintain high agricultural yields. Drought is one of the major threats for terrestrial ecosystem performance and crop production in future. Among the measures proposed to cope with the upcoming challenges of intensifying drought stress and to decrease the need for phosphorus fertilizer application is the fertilization with silica (Si). Here we tested the importance of soil Si fertilization on wheat phosphorus concentration as well as wheat performance during drought at the field scale. Our data clearly showed a higher soil moisture for the Si fertilized plots. This higher soil moisture contributes to a better plant performance in terms of higher photosynthetic activity and later senescence as well as faster stomata responses ensuring higher productivity during drought periods. The plant phosphorus concentration was also higher in Si fertilized compared to control plots. Overall, Si fertilization or management of the soil Si pools seem to be a promising tool to maintain crop production under predicted longer and more serve droughts in the future and reduces phosphorus fertilizer requirements.
Deformation understanding in the Upper Paleozoic of Ventana Ranges at Southwest Gondwana Boundary
Authors: Arzadún Guadalupe , Tomezzoli Renata Nela , Fortunatti Natalia , Cesaretti Nora Noemi , Febbo María Belén , Calvagno Juan Martin 
Published: October 2021

AbstractAt the east of the Ventana Ranges, Buenos Aires, Argentina, outcrops the Carboniferous-Permian Pillahuincó Group (Sauce Grande, Piedra Azul, Bonete and Tunas Formation). We carried out an Anisotropy of Magnetic Susceptibility (AMS) study on Sauce Grande, Piedra Azul and Bonete Formation that displays ellipsoids with constant Kmax axes trending NW–SE, parallel to the fold axes. The Kmin axes are orientated in the NE–SW quadrants, oscillating from horizontal (base of the sequence-western) to vertical (top of the sequence-eastern) positions, showing a change from tectonic to almost sedimentary fabric. This is in concordance with the type and direction of foliation measured in petrographic thin sections which is continuous and penetrative to the base and spaced and less developed to the top. We integrated this study with previous Tunas Formation results (Permian). Similar changes in the AMS pattern (tectonic to sedimentary fabric), as well as other characteristics such as the paleo-environmental and sharp curvature in the apparent polar wander path of Gondwana, marks a new threshold in the evolution of the basin. Those changes along the Pillahuincó deposition indicate two different spasm in the tectonic deformation that according to the ages of the rocks are 300–290 Ma (Sauce Grande to Bonete Formation deposition) and 290–276 Ma (Tunas Formation deposition). This Carboniferous-Permian deformation is locally assigned to the San Rafael (Hercinian) orogenic phase, interpreted as the result of rearrangements of the microplates that collided previously with Gondwana, and latitudinal movements of Gondwana toward north and Laurentia toward south to reach the Triassic Pangea.
Acute hyperoxia reveals tonic influence of peripheral chemoreceptors on systemic vascular resistance in heart failure patients
Authors: Tubek Stanislaw , Niewinski Piotr , Paleczny Bartlomiej , Langner-Hetmanczuk Anna , Banasiak Waldemar , Ponikowski Piotr 
Published: October 2021

AbstractPeripheral chemoreceptors’ (PCh) hyperactivity increases sympathetic tone. An augmented acute ventilatory response to hypoxia, being a marker of PCh oversensitivity, was also identified as a marker of poor prognosis in HF. However, not much is known about the tonic (chronic) influence of PCh on cardio-respiratory parameters. In our study 30 HF patients and 30 healthy individuals were exposed to 100% oxygen for 1 min during which minute ventilation and hemodynamic parameters were non-invasively recorded. Systemic vascular resistance (SVR) and mean arterial pressure (MAP) responses to acute hyperoxia differed substantially between HF and control. In HF hyperoxia caused a significant drop in SVR in early stages with subsequent normalization, while increase in SVR was observed in controls. MAP increased in controls, but remained unchanged in HF. Bilateral carotid bodies excision performed in two HF subjects changed the response to hyperoxia towards the course seen in healthy individuals. These differences may be explained by the domination of early vascular reaction to hyperoxia in HF by vasodilation due to the inhibition of augmented tonic activity of PCh. Otherwise, in healthy subjects the vasoconstrictive action of oxygen remains unopposed. The magnitude of SVR change during acute hyperoxia may be used as a novel method for tonic PCh activity assessment.
A panel of urine-derived biomarkers to identify sepsis and distinguish it from systemic inflammatory response syndrome
Authors: Tang Yao , Ling Ning , Li Shiying , Huang Juan , Zhang Wenyue , Zhang An , Ren Hong , Yang Yixuan , Hu Huaidong , Wang Xiaohao 
Published: October 2021

AbstractSepsis is a potentially fatal condition caused by infection. It is frequently difficult to distinguish sepsis from systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), often resulting in poor prognoses and the misuse of antibiotics. Hence, highly sensitive and specific biomarkers are needed to differentiate sepsis from SIRS. Urine samples were collected and segregated by group (a sepsis group, a SIRS group, and a healthy control group). iTRAQ was used to identify the differentially expressed proteins among the three groups. The identified proteins were measured by ELISA in urine samples. Finally, all the acquired data were analyzed in SPSS. C-reactive protein, leucine-rich alpha glycoprotein-1 and serum amyloid A (SAA) protein were differentially expressed among the three groups. The adjusted median concentrations of urinary C-reactive protein were 1337.6, 358.7, and 2.4 in the sepsis, SIRS, and healthy control groups, respectively. The urinary leucine-rich alpha glycoprotein-1 levels in these three groups were 1614.4, 644.5, and 13.6, respectively, and the levels of SAA were 6.3, 2.9, and 0.07, respectively. For all three of these measures, the sepsis group had higher levels than the SIRS group (P < 0.001), and the SIRS group had higher levels than the healthy control group. When combined, the three biomarkers had a sensitivity of 0.906 and a specificity of 0.896 in distinguishing sepsis from SIRS. Urinary C-reactive protein, urinary leucine-rich alpha glycoprotein-1 and urinary SAA have diagnostic value in cases of sepsis. This initial study suggests the possibility of improved differential diagnosis between sepsis and systemic inflammatory response syndrome; additional confirmation is necessary to corroborate the findings.
Design, synthesis, biological evaluation, and molecular modeling studies of pyrazole-benzofuran hybrids as new α-glucosidase inhibitor
Authors: Azimi Fateme , Azizian Homa , Najafi Mohammad , Khodarahmi Ghadamali , Saghaei Lotfollah , Hassanzadeh Motahareh , Ghasemi Jahan B. , Faramarzi Mohammad Ali , Larijani Bagher , Hassanzadeh Farshid , Mahdavi Mohammad 
Published: October 2021

AbstractIn this work, new derivatives of biphenyl pyrazole-benzofuran hybrids were designed, synthesized and evaluated in vitro through enzymatic assay for inhibitory effect against α-glucosidase activity. Newly identified inhibitors were found to be four to eighteen folds more active with IC50 values in the range of 40.6 ± 0.2–164.3 ± 1.8 µM, as compared to the standard drug acarbose (IC50 = 750.0 ± 10.0 μM). Limited Structure-activity relationship was established. A kinetic binding study indicated that most active compound 8e acted as the competitive inhibitors of α-glucosidase with Ki = 38 μM. Molecular docking has also been performed to find the interaction modes responsible for the desired inhibitory activity. As expected, all pharmacophoric features, used in the design of the hybrid, are involved in the interaction with the active site of the enzyme. In addition, molecular dynamic simulations showed compound 8e oriented vertically into the active site from mouth to the bottom and stabilized the enzyme domains by interacting with the interface of domain A and domain B and the back side of the active site while acarbose formed non-binding interaction with the residue belong to the domain A of the enzyme.
Successful captive breeding of a Malayan pangolin population to the third filial generation
Authors: Yan Dingyu , Zeng Xiangyan , Jia Miaomiao , Guo Xiaobing , Deng Siwei , Tao Li , Huang Xiaolu , Li Baocai , Huang Chang , Que Tengcheng , Li Kaixiang , Liang Wenhui , Zhao Yao , Liang Xingxing , Zhong Yating , Platto Sara , Choo Siew Woh 
Published: October 2021

AbstractPangolins are threatened placental mammals distributed in Africa and Asia. Many efforts have been undertaken in the last century to maintain pangolins in captivity, but only a few of them succeeded in maintaining and keeping this species in a controlled environment. This study reports the first systematic breeding of the Critically Endangered Malayan pangolin (Manis javanica) in captivity. Our captive breeding approach successfully improved the reproductive rate for both wild and captive-born female pangolins. From 2016 to 2020, we had 33 wild pangolins and produced 49 captive-born offspring spanning three filial generations. The female offspring further bred 18 offspring, of which 14 (78%) were conceived during the first time of cohabitation with males, and four offspring were conceived during the second cohabitation event, suggesting that they may practice copulation-induced ovulation. We observed that captive-born female pangolins could reach sexual maturity at 7–9 months (n = 4), and male pangolins could mate and successfully fertilise females at nine months age (n = 1). We also observed a female pangolin conceiving on the eighth day after parturition (the fifth day after the death of its pup). Our captive pangolins had a female-biased sex ratio of 1:0.5 at birth, unlike other known captive-born mammals. Also, captive-born pangolins were generally more viable after successful weaning and had a similar gestation length (~185 days) to wild pangolins. Most importantly, we report the first self-sustaining captive population of Malayan pangolins, and this species has an efficient reproduction strategy. These advances provide more comprehensive information for people to understand pangolins, and have implications for conserving endangered Malayan pangolins and providing scientific guidance to the management of other pangolin species.
Linking the atmospheric Pacific-South American mode with oceanic variability and predictability
Authors: Lou Jiale , O’Kane Terence J. , Holbrook Neil J. 
Published: October 2021

AbstractWhile Pacific climate variability is largely understood based on El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the North Pacific focused Pacific decadal oscillation and the basin-wide interdecadal Pacific oscillation, the role of the South Pacific, including atmospheric drivers and cross-scale interactions, has received less attention. Using reanalysis data and model outputs, here we propose a paradigm for South Pacific climate variability whereby the atmospheric Pacific-South American (PSA) mode acts to excite multiscale spatiotemporal responses in the upper South Pacific Ocean. We find the second mid-troposphere PSA pattern is fundamental to stochastically generate a mid-latitude sea surface temperature quadrupole pattern that represents the optimal precursor for the predictability and evolution of both the South Pacific decadal oscillation and ENSO several seasons in advance. We find that the PSA mode is the key driver of oceanic variability in the South Pacific subtropics that generates a potentially predictable climate signal linked to the tropics.
A study on the algorithm of ultrasonic detection and recognition based on DAG‐SVMs mixed HMM of teleoperation gestures for intelligent manufacturing devices
Authors: Liu Dianting , Zhang Chenguang , Wu Danling , Huang Kangzheng 
Published: October 2021

AbstractRemote control for the position and status of a machine or an equipment can often be teleoperated by gestures in an intelligent manufacturing environment. In order to solve the problems that gestures with two directions such as left and right cannot be detected by single ultrasonic frequency, double different ultrasonic frequencies are used to detect gestures by the Doppler shift, and an algorithm of the recognition gesture based on the DAG‐SVMs mixed Hidden Markov Model (HMM) is proposed to identify and classify the extracted feature sequences. Thus, four more types of gestures are expanded other than that of reading display screen information, and the comparative experiments to classify and recognise gestures of teleoperation are made with DAG‐SVMs, the HMM, the DAG‐SVMs mixed HMM, and other improved HMM algorithms. The test results have shown that the mean rate of gesture recognition for the algorithm based on the DAG‐SVMs mixed HMM is 94.917%, which is 9.497% higher than that of the unimproved HMM, and its recognition accuracy of complex teleoperation gestures is improved by 2.3% compared with other improved HMM algorithms. The experimental results show that the DAG‐SVMs mixed HMM algorithm has a good effect on recognition for the gestures of teleoperation and it can perform gesture recognition accurately.
Design of a full V‐band fundamental mixer with an ultra‐wide IF from 0.01 to 22 GHz
Authors: Ren Le , Xu Jinping , Wang Chunmin 
Published: October 2021

AbstractDesign of a low cost Schottky diode based single‐balanced mixer (SBM) in full V‐band with an ultra‐wide intermediate frequency (IF) bandwidth is presented here. By loading multiple quarter‐wavelength short‐ended stubs at both radio frequency (RF) and local oscillator (LO) frequency on the multistage stepped impedance matching networks, a broadband grounding circuit is provided for IF signal and thus output power nulls are eliminated over an ultra‐wide IF band. The hybrid network is constructed by a 3 dB branch coupler and a 90‐degree delay line, which enables the required balanced outputs with equal amplitude and 180‐degree phase difference. A prototype of the SBM is designed, fabricated and tested. Measured results demonstrate that, for RF and LO frequency over entire V‐band, the mixer has a conversion loss from 6.8 to 11.4 dB with an ultra‐wide IF range of 0.01–22 GHz.
ESA‐CycleGAN: Edge feature and self‐attention based cycle‐consistent generative adversarial network for style transfer
Authors: Wang Li , Wang Lidan , Chen Shubai 
Published: October 2021

AbstractNowadays, style transfer is used in a wide range of commercial applications, such as image beautification, film rendering etc. However, many existing methods of style transfer suffer from loss of details and poor overall visual effect. To address these problems, an edge feature and self‐attention based cycle‐consistent generative adversarial network (ESA‐CycleGAN) is proposed. The model architecture consists of a generator, a discriminator, and an edge feature extraction network. Both the generator and the discriminator contain a self‐attention module to capture global features of the image. The edge feature extraction network extracts the edge of the original image and feeds it into the network together with the original image, thereby allowing better processing of details. Besides, a perceptual loss term is added to optimize the network, resulting in better perceptual results. ESA‐CycleGAN is applied on four datasets, respectively. The experimental results show that the authors’ computed final IS and FID values have good results compared to the results of several other existing models, indicating the superiority of the model in style transfer, which can better preserve the details of the original images with better image quality.