bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Effects of a combination of scapular stabilization and thoracic extension exercises for office workers with forward head posture on the craniovertebral angle, respiration, pain, and disability: A randomized-controlled trial
Authors: Kang Na-Yeon , Im Sang-Cheol , Kim Kyoung 
Published: January 2022

Objectives: This study aims to investigate how exercise programs not directly applied to the cervical spine affect office workers with forward head posture (FHP).
Patients and methods: Between March 2018 and June 2018, a total of 32 office workers with FHP (13 males, 19 females; mean age 36.63 years; range, 23 to 57 years) were randomized either to experimental (n=16) or control groups (n=16). Scapular stabilization and thoracic extension exercises were applied to the experimental group and cervical stabilization and stretching exercises to the control group. The results of the pre-intervention and after six weeks measurement of the craniovertebral angle (CVA), respiration, pain, and disability were compared and analyzed.
Results: For intra-group comparison, both groups showed significant differences (p<0.05) in CVA, forced expiratory volume at 1 sec (FEV1), Visual Analog Scale (VAS), and neck disability index at pre- and post-intervention, while only the experimental group showed a significant difference (p<0.05) in maximum inspiratory pressure, maximum expiratory pressure, and forced vital capacity. For inter-group comparison, a significant difference (p<0.05) between FEV1 and VAS was observed.
Conclusion: The combination of scapular stabilization and thoracic extension exercises, not directly applied to the cervical spine, has an effect on improving the posture, respiration, neck pain, and disability in office workers with FHP.
Effect of estrogen and progesterone on nerve conduction studies during ovarian cycle
Authors: Ustaömer Kübra , Sözay Seyhan , Sarıfakıoğlu Banu 
Published: January 2022

Objectives: This study aims to investigate the effects of estrogen and progesterone on nerve conduction studies (NCSs) in three different hormonal phases of the ovarian cycle.
Patients and methods: Between April 2008 and July 2008, a total of 40 healthy volunteer women (mean age: 24.1±5.1 years; range 21 to 43 years) with regular menstrual cycles were included in this prospective study. The participants were regularly menstruating for at least one year, without any hormonal disease and without taking any medication that could lead to hormonal dysregulation. Motor and sensory conduction velocities, amplitudes, and distal latencies were analyzed at the dominant extremities within the early follicular phase (EFP), late follicular phase (LFP), and the midluteal phase (MLP).
Results: Except for the median nerve motor conduction velocity (MCV), there were no statistically significant differences between the peripheral NCS results in the three ovarian cycle phases (p=0.033). After adjusting for multiple comparisons, a significant difference was found between the EFP and LFP (p=0.004).
Conclusion: Our study results showed that only median nerve MCV was affected in the menstrual cycle. However, this would be an incidental finding, or an increased sensibility of the median nerve motor fibers to ovarian steroids by an unknown mechanism. Further studies are warranted.
Effects of platelet-rich plasma injection on pain, range of motion, and disability in adhesive capsulitis: A prospective, randomized-controlled study
Authors: Karabaş Çağlar , Talay Çalış Havva , Serkan Topaloğlu Ulaş , Karakükçü Çiğdem 
Published: January 2022

Objectives: In this study, we aimed to investigate the effectiveness of intra-articular platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection in adhesive capsulitis.
Patients and methods: Between January 2019 and December 2019, a total of 40 patients (21 males, 19 females; mean age: 57.1±6.5 years; range, 44 to 72 years) with idiopathic adhesive capsulitis were included. The patients were randomly assigned into two equal groups as the PRP and the control group. The PRP group received two doses of PRP via intra-articular route biweekly under ultrasound guidance. No injection was performed to the control group. In both groups, stretching and Codman exercises were applied as a home- based program. The Visual Analog Scale (VAS), range of motion (ROM), and Shoulder Pain and Disability Index (SPADI) scores were evaluated before the treatment and at 2, 6 and 12 weeks after the treatment.
Results: There were significant differences in all VAS, SPADI, and ROM scores at all time points after treatment compared to baseline in both groups. At the end of the study, there were significant differences in the active flexion, passive flexion, active abduction, passive abduction, and active external rotation scores at 12 weeks between the groups (p=0.012, p=0.015, p=0.008, p=0.019, and p=0.040, respectively). No significant difference was observed between the groups in terms of VAS and SPADI scores and the other parameters (active and passive extension, active and passive internal rotation, passive external rotation) at 2, 6, and 12 weeks (p>0.05).
Conclusion: The addition of PRP to exercise treatment can improve patients' joint mobility, but not pain and disability in patients with adhesive capsulitis.
When is needle examination of thenar muscle necessary in the evaluation of mild and moderate carpal tunnel syndrome?
Authors: Özişler Zuhal , Akyüz Müfit 
Published: January 2022

Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the predictors of standard nerve conduction study (NCS) parameters in determining the presence of axonal loss by means of spontaneous activity in patients with mild and moderate carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS).
Patients and methods: Between May 2015 and April 2018, a total of 118 patients (11 males, 107 females; mean age: 52.3±10.6 years; range, 27 to 79 years) who underwent electrophysiological studies and were diagnosed with CTS were included. Demographic data of the patients including age, sex, and symptom duration were recorded. Electrodiagnostic studies were performed in all patients. All the needle electromyography (EMG) findings were recorded, but only the presence or absence of spontaneous EMG activities was used as the indicator of axonal injury.
Results: In 37 (31.4%) of the patients, spontaneous activity was detected at the thenar muscle needle EMG. No spontaneous activity was observed in any of 43 (36.4%) patients with normal distal motor latency (DML). There were significant differences in DMLs, compound muscle action potential (CMAP) amplitudes, sensory nerve action potentials amplitudes, and sensory nerve conduction velocities between the groups with and without spontaneous activity (p<0.05). The multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that DML was a significant independent risk variable in determining presence of spontaneous activity. The most optimal cut-off value for median DML was calculated as 4.9 ms. If the median DML was >4.9 ms, the relative risk of finding spontaneous activity on thenar muscle needle EMG was 13.5 (95% CI: 3.6-51.2).
Conclusion: Distal motor latency is the main parameter for predicting the presence of spontaneous activity in mild and moderate CTS patients with normal CMAP. Performing needle EMG of the thenar muscle in CTS patients with a DML of >4.9 ms may be beneficial to detect axonal degeneration in early stages.
PEMAHAMAN HUKUM KEKAYAAN INTELEKTUAL BAGI CIVITAS AKADEMIKA DI PERGURUAN TINGGI
Authors: Sudjana Sudjana 
Published: January 2022

Kajian ini untuk menentukan upaya meningkatkan pemahaman Hukum Kekayaan Intelektual terhadap mahasiswa dan dosen di Perguruan Tinggi. Metode yang digunakan adalah deskriptif kualitatif yaitu mengidentifikasikan pemahaman Hukum Kekayaan Intelektual bagi civitas akademika di Perguruan Tinggi kemudian dianalisis secara kualitatif. Hasil kajian menunjukan bahwa pemberian pemahaman mahasiswa terhadap Hukum Kekayaan Intelektual di Perguruan Tinggi dapat dilakukan melalui proses belajar mengajar yang terstruktur dengan menyusun silabus dan Satuan Acara Perkuliahan sesuai substansinya berdasarkan jenis Kekayaan Intelektual dan memperhatikan format pembelajaran yaitu sikap, pengetahuan dan ketrampilan serta melakukan evaluasi terhadap ketiga aspek tersebut. Upaya tersebut, bagi fakultas yang tidak ada dalam kurikulumnya dapat dilakukan melalui revisi kurikulum dengan cara memasukan sebagai mata kuliah wajib atau pilihan, sedangkan peningkatan pemahaman Hukum Kekayaan Intelektual bagi dosen dapat dilakukan melalui peran aktifnya dalam kegiatan ilmiah.
Antigenic properties of the SARS-CoV-2 nucleoprotein are altered by the RNA admixture
Authors: Kolesov Denis E. , Sinegubova Maria V. , Safenkova Irina V. , Vorobiev Ivan I. , Orlova Nadezhda A. 
Published: January 2022

Determining the presence of antibodies to the SARS-CoV-2 antigens is the best way to identify infected people, regardless of the development of symptoms of COVID-19. The nucleoprotein (NP) of the SARS-CoV-2 is an immunodominant antigen of the virus; anti-NP antibodies are detected in persons previously infected with the virus with the highest titers. Many test systems for detecting antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 contain NP or its fragments as antigen. The sensitivity and specificity of such test systems differ significantly, which can be explained by variations in the antigenic properties of NP caused by differences in the methods of its cultivation, isolation and purification. We investigated this effect for the Escherichia coli-derived SARS-CoV-2 NP, obtained from the cytoplasm in the soluble form. We hypothesized that co-purified nucleic acids that form a strong complex with NP might negatively affect NP’s antigenic properties. Therefore, we have established the NP purification method, which completely eliminates the RNA in the NP preparation. Two stages of RNA removal were used: treatment of the crude lysate of E. coli with RNase A and subsequent selective RNA elution with 2 M NaCl solution. The resulting NP without RNA has a significantly better signal-to-noise ratio when used as an ELISA antigen and tested with a control panel of serum samples with antibodies to SARS-CoV-2; therefore, it is preferable for in vitro diagnostic use. The same increase of the signal-to-noise ratio was detected for the free N-terminal domain of the NP. Complete removal of RNA complexed with NP during purification will significantly improve its antigenic properties, and the absence of RNA in NP preparations should be controlled during the production of this antigen.
Comparative Performance of ARIMA and GARCH Model in Forecasting Crude Oil Price Data
Authors: Yahaya Atanu, Enebi , Etuk Ette, Harrison , Emeka Amos, 
Published: January 2022

This study compares the performance of Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) and Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity models in forecasting Crude Oil Price data as obtained from (CBN 2019) Statistical Bulletin. The forecasting of Crude Oil Price, plays an important role in decision making for the Nigeria government and all other sectors of her economy. Crude Oil Prices are volatile time series data, as they have huge price swings in a shortage or an oversupply period. In this study, we use two time series models which are Box-Jenkins Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) and Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heterocedasticity (GARCH) models in modelling and forecasting Crude Oil Prices. The statistical analysis was performed by the use of time plot to display the trend of the data, Autocorrelation Function (ACF), Partial Autocorrelation Functions (PACF), Dickey-Fuller test for stationarity, forecasting was done based on the best fit models for both ARIMA and GARCH models. Our result shows that ARIMA (3, 1, 2) is the best ARIMA model to forecast monthly Crude Oil Price and we also found GARCH (1, 1) model is the best GARCH model and using a specified set of parameters, GARCH (1, 1) model is the best fit for our concerned data set.
Health Risk Assessment of Selected Heavy Metals in Cocoyam from Three Quarry Sites in Old Netim, Cross River State, Nigeria
Authors: Odey P. O. , Anacletus F. C. , Wegwu M. O. 
Published: January 2022

This study assessed health risk assessment of heavy metals in cocoyam from three quarry sites in Akamkpa LGA, Cross River State, Nigeria. Cocoyam tubers were obtained from three quarry sites in Oban Okoroba, each 4.5 kilometers apart and 20 kilometers from the control site. Cocoyam tubers were obtained from 0km, 0.2km, 0.4km, and 0.6km. Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (AAS) was used to determine the content of Lead (Pb), Cadmium (Cd), Copper (Cu), Arsenic (As) and Manganese (Mn), showing relative abundance across all sites and samples in the sequence Mn > Cu > Pb > As > Cd. Quarry site D had highest levels of Mn, As and Cu (50.003 ± 5.478 mgkg-1, 0.207 ± 0.184 and 4.522 ± 1.204mgkg-1). Quarry site C and B respectively had the highest levels of Pb and Cd (1.136 ± 0.267 mgkg-1 and 0.041 ± 0.028 mgkg-1). Results of Estimated Daily Intake (EDI), Target Hazard Quotient (THQ) and Life Carcinogenic Risk (LCR) showed ingestion of cocoyam tubers from Old Netim is safe and devoid of non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks. THI on the other hand revealed non-carcinogenic threat may result from prolonged ingestion of cocoyam tubers cultivated within quarry sites in Old Netim.
Overview on Updates on Digital Dental Radiography
Authors: Noorsaeed Ashwag Siddik , Almohammedsaleh Ali Hussain , Alhayek Mustafa Mohammed , Alnajar Abdullah Abdulhameed , Kariri Osama Nasser , Albakri Abdullah Ibrahim Mohammed , Mohammad Kamel A. Alhashmy Alamer, , Abdullah D. Alharbi, Thamer , Tariq Alshaheen, Eyad , Omar M. Aljanubi, Mohammed 
Published: January 2022

Wilhelm Roentgen first discovered X-rays in 1895. Since its introduction in the mid-1980s, digital radiography has surpassed traditional screen-film radiography. Since 2000, more than 75 percent of medical clinics in the United States have migrated to digital radiography (DR). In fact, the US government has ordered that all medical records be converted to digital. Indirect, direct, or semi-direct digital radiography pictures are types of digital radiography currently available. Forensic radiology is a branch of medical imaging technology that helps clinicians. Radiology technology has evolved and grown tremendously in recent years. When comparing aggregated antemortem and postmortem information, radiographs are crucial. Adopting new technologies into a dental business demands a certain amount of bravery. After all, why alter things if your practise is running smoothly? To grasp the new equipment and procedures, the dentist and his or her staff will need further training. It's not always apparent how the new strategy will influence the practice's present logistics. These factors may cause the practitioner to be hesitant to alter present techniques. In this article we’ll reviewing digital dental radiography, and what are the advantages of going digital. And also what are the challenges that face us.
Perceived Self-Determination Growth During an International Expedition for Adolescents With and Without Disabilities
Authors: Millen Kaitlyn , Conroy Paula Wenner 
Published: January 2022

Abstract
Two factors that positively influence success in school and in post-school settings are self-determination and social programs such as expeditions for students with and without disabilities. This mixed methods study examined the benefits of a two-week international expedition to Nepal for adolescents (ages 14-18) with and without disabilities from the United States. The researchers measured self-determination in student participants utilizing the Self-Determination Inventory: Student Report (Shogren et al., 2020) as a pre/post-program measure and the No Barriers USA Program Evaluation (Duerden et al., 2016) as post-program measure. Twelve adolescents and four adult leaders who participated in the international expedition were interviewed to determine their perceptions of the benefits for students. The self-determination scores of student participants significantly increased (p = .007) after participation in the two-week expedition. Four major themes emerged from the data: disability and identity, self-determination growth, accessing supports, and sense of purpose. Using a mixed methods approach, we compared and integrated findings that support previous studies indicating that social programs increase self-determination skills. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.
Immersion and invariance adaptive decentralized control for the speed and tension system of the reversible cold strip rolling mill
Authors: Liu Le , Shao Nuan , Deng Ranyang , Ding Suyan 
Published: January 2022

AbstractAn immersion and invariance (I&I) adaptive decentralized control strategy is proposed for the speed and tension system of the reversible cold strip rolling mill, which is characterized by multiple variable, nonlinearity, strong coupling effect, and uncertainty. First, a sliding mode observer (SMO) is constructed to estimate the unmatched uncertainty of the system to improve the tracking control precision. Second, the I&I theory‐based estimators are designed to estimate the perturbation parameters of the system, and the parameter estimation errors converge monotonically following an exponential law. Third, the I&I theory‐based decentralized controllers are designed for the speed and tension system of the reversible cold strip rolling mill, which achieve precise tracking controls for the given values of the system. Theoretical analysis shows that the resulting closed‐loop system is globally stable. Finally, the simulation research is carried out on the speed and tension system of a 1422 mm reversible cold strip rolling mill using actual data, and the simulation results verify the superiority of the proposed control strategy in comparison with the I&I control strategy and the backstepping dynamic surface control strategy.
Dendritic Polyglycerol‐Conjugated Gold Nanostars for Metabolism Inhibition and Targeted Photothermal Therapy in Breast Cancer Stem Cells
Authors: Pan Yuanwei , Zhou Suqiong , Liu Chuang , Ma Xuehua , Xing Jie , Parshad Badri , Li Wenzhong , Wu Aiguo , Haag Rainer 
Published: January 2022

AbstractBreast cancer stem cells (CSCs) are believed to be responsible for tumor initiation, invasion, metastasis, and recurrence, which lead to treatment failure. Thus, developing effective CSC‐targeted therapeutic strategies is crucial for enhancing therapeutic efficacy. In this work, GNSs‐dPG‐3BP, TPP, and HA nanocomposite particles are developed by simultaneously conjugating hexokinase 2 (HK2) inhibitor 3‐bromopyruvate (3BP), mitochondrial targeting molecule triphenyl phosphonium (TPP), and CSCs targeting agent hyaluronic acid (HA) onto gold nanostars‐dendritic polyglycerol (GNSs‐dPG) nanoplatforms for efficient eradication of CSCs. The nanocomposite particles possess good biocompatibility and exhibit superior mitochondrial‐bound HK2 binding ability via 3BP to inhibit metabolism, and further induce cellular apoptosis by releasing the cytochrome c. Therefore, it enhanced the therapeutic efficacy of CSCs‐specific targeted photothermal therapy (PTT), and achieved a synergistic effect for the eradication of breast CSCs. After administration of the synergistic treatment, the self‐renewal of breast CSCs and the stemness gene expression are suppressed, CSC‐driven mammosphere formation is diminished, the in vivo tumor growth is effectively inhibited, and CSCs are eradicated. Altogether, GNSs‐dPG‐3BP, TPP, and HA nanocomposite particles have been developed, which will provide a novel strategy for precise and highly efficient targeted eradication of CSCs.
An Air‐Stable High‐Nickel Cathode with Reinforced Electrochemical Performance Enabled by Convertible Amorphous Li2CO3 Modification
Authors: Sheng Hang , Meng Xin‐Hai , Xiao Dong‐Dong , Fan Min , Chen Wan‐Ping , Wan Jing , Tang Jilin , Zou Yu‐Gang , Wang Fuyi , Wen Rui , Shi Ji‐Lei , Guo Yu‐Guo 
Published: January 2022

AbstractHigh‐nickel (Ni ≥ 90%) cathodes with high specific capacity hold great potential for next‐generation lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs). However, their practical application is restricted by the high interfacial reactivity under continuous air erosion and electrolyte assault. Herein, a stable high‐nickel cathode is rationally designed via in situ induction of a dense amorphous Li2CO3 on the particle surface by a preemptive atmosphere control. Among the residual lithium compounds, Li2CO3 is the most thermodynamically stable one, so a dense Li2CO3 coating layer can serve as a physical protection layer to isolate the cathode from contact with moist air. Furthermore, amorphous Li2CO3 can be transformed into a robust F‐rich cathode electrolyte interphase (CEI) during cycling, which reinforces the cathode's interfacial stability and improves the electrochemical performance. The assembled coin cell with this modified cathode delivers a high discharge capacity of 232.4 mAh g–1 with a superior initial Coulombic efficiency (CE) of 95.1%, and considerable capacity retention of 90.4% after 100 cycles. Furthermore, no slurry gelation occurs during the large‐scale electrode fabrication process. This work opens a valuable perspective on the evolution of amorphous Li2CO3 in LIBs and provides guidance on protecting unstable high‐capacity cathodes for energy‐storage devices.
Biphasic Liquid Metal Composites for Sinter‐Free Printed Stretchable Electronics
Authors: Hajalilou Abdollah , Silva André F. , Lopes Pedro Alhais , Parvini Elahe , Majidi Carmel , Tavakoli Mahmoud 
Published: January 2022

AbstractThis work introduces and presents a comprehensive study on a series of biphasic liquid metal (LM) composites that benefit from high conductivity, excellent stretchability, a low gauge‐factor, excellent adhesion to a wide range of substrates, for sinter‐free writing complex stretchable circuits. These trinary material systems are composed of a block‐co‐polymer binder, EGaIn liquid metal, and a microparticle (μP) filler (Ag flakes, Ag‐coated‐Ni, Ag‐coated‐Fe, Ni, Ferrite, or TiC). They combine the fluidic behavior, resilience, and self‐healing properties of LMs, and the printability, adhesion, and elastic integrity of elastomers. Unlike the previous efforts with LM‐polymer composites and printed EGaIn nanodroplets, these composites are intrinsically conductive and do not require any thermal/optical/mechanical sintering. The binary combinations (LM‐SIS, LM‐Ag, Ag‐SIS) are first synthesized and characterized, and then the trinary LM‐μP‐SIS composites are evaluated. This includes analysis of microstructure, surface roughness, conductivity, electromechanical coupling, and LM smearing/leakage during mechanical loading, as well as the examination of the influence of filler particle size and composition. It is found that a binary combination of Ag‐EGaIn or EGaIn‐SIS does not result in the desired properties, and only trinary combination with conductive μP, preferably Ag, results in a printable, stretchable and sinter‐free composite. As an application, a digitally‐printed epidermal sticker for respiration monitoring is demonstrated.