bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Ionomers Modify the Selectivity of Cu‐Catalyzed Electrochemical CO2 Reduction
Authors: Chang Miyeon , Ren Wenhao , Ni Weiyan , Lee Seunghwa , Hu Xile 
Published: December 2022

AbstractElectrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2RR) to produce energy‐rich fuels using copper‐based electrocatalysts is widely studied as a possible solution to CO2 recycling. Ionomers are commonly used as binders to prepare catalyst‐loaded electrodes, but their effects on the performance have not been fully investigated. In this study, electrochemical and operando Raman spectroscopic measurements are used to study the effects of three archetypical ionomers [Nafion, Sustainion‐type XA‐9, and poly(terphenyl piperidinium) (PTP)] on Cu‐catalyzed CO2 reduction at high current densities (up to 200 mA cm−2). Nafion is found to have little influence, whereas XA‐9 promotes the formation of CO over multicarbon products and PTP favors hydrogen and formate production. Charge and hydrophobicity/hydrophilicity are found to be important parameters of the ionomers. The observed effects are attributed to the charge transfer between Cu and XA‐9 weakening the CO adsorption energy, whereas the hydrophilicity of PTP reduces M−H energy. This study reveals the structure‐sensitive nature of the ionomer‐catalyst interaction in CO2RR.
A review on technological aspects of different PWM techniques and its comparison based on different performance parameters
Authors: Chatterjee Shantanu , Das Abhijit 
Published: December 2022

AbstractUse of Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) techniques has enabled the converters to be used in low‐frequency high‐power applications. The main objectives of PWM are to reduce the line current harmonic, switching energy loss, and torque pulsation and motor acoustic noise (for motor drive applications). This paper mainly deals with selective harmonic elimination PWM (SHEPWM), Hysteresis current controlled PWM (HCPWM), space vector PWM (SVPWM), bus‐clamping PWM (BCPWM), and the most advanced wavelet PWM technique (WPWM). Different conventional as well as advanced soft computing techniques have been discussed for SHEPWM in order to solve the complex non‐linear transcendental equations and obtain the optimized switching angles. The paper also deals with different conventional and advanced bus clamping sequences that have shown superior result in mitigating the switching loss. In order to judge the true performance of SHEPWM and CSVPWM in terms of accuracy of obtaining the switching angles, convergence rate, THD, torque ripple, switching energy loss, etc., a common experimental test bench consisting of three‐phase, two‐level, six switch inverter coupled with a 2 hp, 50 Hz, three‐phase induction machine has been formed. The selected BIA‐based SHEPWM and CSVPWM have been implemented in the MATLAB simulation software, and the same has also been applied to the experimental test bench through dSPACE 1104 DAC card. Performance of HCPWM and different BC‐PWM sequences has also been verified using the same experimental test bench. This manuscript will help the researches and practitioners working in this field, to gain a clear idea about the type of PWM to be used for their specific application in order to achieve superior performance.
Mutual synchronization of rotary pulses in coupled tunnel‐diode oscillator lattice loops
Authors: Narahara Koichi 
Published: December 2022

SummaryCoupled tunnel‐diode oscillator lattice loops are investigated to characterize the mutual synchronization of nonlinear rotary pulses. In a properly biased lattice loop, a pulsed phase wave autonomously rotates. When two loops are coupled, these pulses are supposed to be mutually synchronized to start rotating with a fixed phase difference. To quantify the synchronization properties of both the in‐phase and out‐of‐phase rotary pulses, two five‐cell loops that are point‐coupled by a capacitor are studied using bifurcation analyses with respect to the bias voltage and coupling capacitance. In‐phase pulses are allowed irrespective of the coupling capacitance, whereas relatively small coupling is favorable for out‐of‐phase pulses. Moreover, a solution exists whose phase difference continuously varies with the bias voltage, which bifurcates from the out‐of‐phase pulses through pitchfork bifurcation. This study presents the result from the bifurcation analyses. For validation of the rotary pulse in the coupled loops, we measured a breadboarded test circuit in both the frequency and time domains. The in‐phase, out‐of‐phase, and symmetry‐broken rotary pulses were detected successfully.
The impact of sequencing depth and relatedness of the reference genome in population genomic studies: A case study with two caddisfly species (Trichoptera, Rhyacophilidae, Himalopsyche)
Authors: Deng Xi‐Ling , Frandsen Paul B. , Dikow Rebecca B. , Favre Adrien , Shah Deep Narayan , Shah Ram Devi Tachamo , Schneider Julio V. , Heckenhauer Jacqueline , Pauls Steffen U. 
Published: December 2022

AbstractWhole genome sequencing for generating SNP data is increasingly used in population genetic studies. However, obtaining genomes for massive numbers of samples is still not within the budgets of many researchers. It is thus imperative to select an appropriate reference genome and sequencing depth to ensure the accuracy of the results for a specific research question, while balancing cost and feasibility. To evaluate the effect of the choice of the reference genome and sequencing depth on downstream analyses, we used five confamilial reference genomes of variable relatedness and three levels of sequencing depth (3.5×, 7.5× and 12×) in a population genomic study on two caddisfly species: Himalopsyche digitata and H. tibetana. Using these 30 datasets (five reference genomes × three depths × two target species), we estimated population genetic indices (inbreeding coefficient, nucleotide diversity, pairwise FST, and genome‐wide distribution of FST) based on variants and population structure (PCA and admixture) based on genotype likelihood estimates. The results showed that both distantly related reference genomes and lower sequencing depth lead to degradation of resolution. In addition, choosing a more closely related reference genome may significantly remedy the defects caused by low depth. Therefore, we conclude that population genetic studies would benefit from closely related reference genomes, especially as the costs of obtaining a high‐quality reference genome continue to decrease. However, to determine a cost‐efficient strategy for a specific population genomic study, a trade‐off between reference genome relatedness and sequencing depth can be considered.
Frog body size responses to precipitation shift from resource‐driven to desiccation‐resistant as temperatures warm
Authors: Sheridan Jennifer A. , Mendenhall Chase D. , Yambun Paul 
Published: December 2022

AbstractClimate change threatens biodiversity in a range of ways, including changing animal body sizes. Despite numerous examples of size declines related to increasing temperatures, patterns of size change are not universal, suggesting that one or more primary mechanisms impacting size change are unknown. Precipitation is likely to influence the size different from and in conjunction with changes in temperature, yet tests of the interaction between these variables are rare. In this study, we show that a crossover interaction between temperature and precipitation impacts the body size of frogs as the climate warms. Using more than 3000 museum frog specimens from Borneo and climate records spanning more than 100 years, we found that frogs are larger in wet conditions than in dry conditions at cool temperatures, suggesting that resource availability determines body size at colder temperature. Conversely, frogs are larger in dry conditions than in wet conditions at warm temperatures, resulting in a crossover to desiccation resistance as the main determinant of body size as climates warm. Our results demonstrate that global warming can alter the impact of precipitation on life‐history traits. We suggest that increased attention be paid to such interactive effects of climate variables, to identify complex mechanisms driving climate‐induced size changes.
The origins of climate‐diversity relationships and richness patterns in Chinese plants
Authors: Wu Guilin , Wiens John J. 
Published: December 2022

AbstractA major goal of ecology and evolutionary biology is to explain geographic patterns of species richness. Richness is often correlated with climatic variables. However, the processes underlying these climate‐diversity relationships remain poorly understood. Two potential hypotheses to explain these relationships involve: (i) faster diversification rates (speciation minus extinction) in high‐richness climates and (ii) earlier colonization of high‐richness climates, allowing more time for speciation to build up richness. Few studies have tested these hypotheses directly, and most focused on animal clades with limited richness. In this study, we test these hypotheses in Chinese angiosperms, encompassing ~10% of Earth's plant species, using large‐scale phylogenetic, climatic, and distributional data including 26,977 species. We find that climatic zones that were colonized earlier have higher species richness. By contrast, relationships between diversification rates and richness of climatic zones are often nonsignificant or negative. Our study reveals that even when richness is strongly correlated with climate, the underlying explanation may still be rooted in phylogenetic history. Thus, climate may not be a competing explanation for richness patterns relative to colonization times and diversification rates. We also show that the timing of colonization can be crucial for explaining richness patterns. Yet, many recent studies have ignored this explanation and instead have focused solely on rates of speciation and diversification as drivers of diversity gradients.
Grassland bird population declines at three Breeding Bird Survey spatial scales in contrast to a large native prairie
Authors: Mahony Nancy A. , Dale Brenda C. , Miller David A. W. 
Published: December 2022

AbstractGrassland biomes in North America are threatened by agricultural intensification with implications for grassland‐associated bird populations via habitat loss, alteration, pesticide use, and declining landscape heterogeneity. Despite decades of conservation concern, steep declines of grassland birds continue. Key to optimizing conservation effort is understanding how land‐use practices, such as agriculture, across the annual cycle affect population status. Determining the relative influence of impacts on grassland bird declines is difficult given that the most robust estimate of trends, the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS), is conducted throughout agriculturally dominated regions. Our goal was to explore whether agriculture during the breeding season is a major driver of grassland bird declines, by evaluating population trends in regions with different amounts of agricultural development. We derived trends for 16 bird species spanning 23 years (1994–2016) at a large (459 km2), native prairie site, Suffield National Wildlife Area (SNWA) in Alberta, Canada. We compared those trends with the BBS across three spatial scales, a regional monitoring scheme with higher than average native grass cover (Grassland Bird Monitoring [GBM]), Bird Conservation Region 11 Canada (Canada), and all of Bird Conservation Region 11 (BCR 11). Trends measured as annual percent change and credible interval varied greatly among species and survey strata. Across all species, declines were greatest for Canada (−1.3%, CI: −2.8, 0.0) and BCR 11 (−1.9%, CI: −3.2, −0.6). This contrasts with positive trends for GBM routes (1.0%, CI: −0.4, 2.3) and the SNWA data (1.7%, CI: 0.3, 3.3). Six of 16 species at SNWA were increasing with one decreasing. Five species increased at GBM and four declined. Canada had 10 species declines and 3 increases and BCR 11 had 10 declines and no increases. None of the six grassland obligate species declined at SNWA, two declined at GBM, and all six declined over the two larger BBS strata. Our results showing fewer negative population trends at a large native grassland site compared with BBS at three spatial scales across the North American prairies support the prediction that agricultural intensification on breeding grounds may be driving population declines and protection of native grasslands is a key component of grassland bird conservation efforts.
Plant species richness and sunlight exposure increase pollinator attraction to pollinator gardens
Authors: Watson Travis L. , Martel Carlos , Arceo‐Gómez Gerardo 
Published: December 2022

AbstractEvidence documenting the decline of insect populations is accumulating. Efforts have increased to mitigate pollinator losses by establishing gardens to support pollinator diversity. However, knowledge of the specific garden characteristics, landscape features, and environmental factors that affect pollinator diversity and abundance is limited, particularly in biodiverse regions in North America. In order to better understand how garden characteristics affect pollinator attraction, we compared pollinator composition across 16 pollinator gardens in the Appalachian ecoregion in North America. We evaluated the effects of garden characteristics (e.g., plant richness, flower abundance, garden size, and proportion of native species), landscape features (land‐use type and distance to forest), and environmental factors (sunlight exposure) on pollinator richness, overall visitation rate, and visitation rate by defined pollinator groups (i.e., solitary native bees, bumblebees, honeybees, lepidopterans, and other insects). Solitary bees (i.e., native bees besides Bombus) were the most frequent visitors (61%). We found differences in pollinator species composition between urban and rural gardens. Moreover, plant richness had a positive effect on pollinator richness and an increase in flower abundance increased the pollinator visitation rate. Flower abundance, plant richness, and high sunlight exposure increased visitation rate of solitary bees. Visitation rate of solitary bees however decreased with increasing proportion of native plants. Overall, our results indicate that garden characteristics, landscape features, and environmental factors all are important mediators of pollinator diversity and abundance. Solitary bees were most affected by garden (i.e., plant richness, number of flowers, and proportion of native plants) and environmental factors (i.e., sunlight exposure). However, we also identified differential effects of garden and environmental factors across pollinator groups. We suggest that an integrated management approach that considers multiple garden and environmental characteristics could help improve the effectiveness of pollinator garden as a conservation tool and help preserve this key ecosystem service.
The clinical relevance of quality of life in heart failure patients with preserved ejection fraction
Authors: Seo Masahiro , Watanabe Tetsuya , Yamada Takahisa , Yano Masamichi , Hayashi Takaharu , Nakagawa Akito , Nakagawa Yusuke , Tamaki Shunsuke , Yasumura Yoshio , Sotomi Yohei , Hikoso Shungo , Nakatani Daisaku , Fukunami Masatake , Sakata Yasushi ,   the Osaka CardioVascular Conference (OCVC)‐Heart Failure investigators
Published: December 2022

AbstractAimsPatient reported outcomes (PROs) are gradually being incorporated into daily practice to assess individual health‐related quality of life (QOL). However, despite accumulating evidence of the prognostic utility of heart failure (HF)‐specific QOL indices, evidence on the generic QOL score is scarce, especially in patients with HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF).Methods and resultsPatient data were extracted from the Prospective mUlticenteR obServational stUdy of patIenTs with Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction (PURSUIT HFpEF) study. EuroQol 5 dimensions 5‐level (EQ‐5D‐5L) data were obtained at discharge to evaluate patients' health‐related QOL. The study population (n = 864) was divided into tertiles based on their EQ‐5D‐5L index as follows: low EQ‐5D‐5L 0.038–0.664 (n = 287), middle EQ‐5D‐5L 0.665–0.867 (n = 293), and high EQ‐5D‐5L 0.871–1.000 (n = 284). A total of 206 patients died over a mean follow‐up period of 2.0 ± 1.2 years. Kaplan–Meier analysis revealed that the risk of mortality increased with the tertile of the EQ‐5D‐5L index (34% vs. 23% vs. 14%, P < 0.001). Cox multivariable analysis revealed that patients with EQ‐5D‐5L index in the low and middle tertiles had a significantly greater risk of mortality than those with EQ‐5D‐5L index in the high tertile [low EQ‐5D‐5L: adjusted hazard ratio (HR): 1.81 (1.12–2.92), P = 0.002, middle EQ‐5D‐5L: adjusted HR 1.91 (1.21–3.03), P = 0.006]. Among the dimensions of EQ‐5D‐5L, mobility (P = 0.014), self‐care (P = 0.023) and usual activities (P = 0.008) were significant factors associated with all‐cause mortality after multivariable adjustment.ConclusionsEQ‐5D‐5L is useful tool for risk stratification in patients with HFpEF.
The curious case of the second/end peak in the heat release rate of wood: A cone calorimeter investigation
Authors: Sanned Ellinor , Mensah Rhoda Afriyie , Försth Michael , Das Oisik 
Published: December 2022

AbstractThe reasons behind the occurrence of a second/end peak heat release rate (PHRR) during wood combustion under radiative heating were determined. Effects of the type of rear material, wood thickness, char progression, and its microstructure, as well as moisture content/transport in spruce wood, were studied. Rear materials used were insulating Kaowool, conducting steel, and the same wood but physically separated from test specimen by aluminium foil. The intensity of the second/end PHRR with Kaowool was almost 50% more than that of the sample with steel. Thus, the second/end peak is governed by the boundary condition defined by the rear material, which determines the heat losses at the rear side of the specimen and consequently the temperature of the specimen. Higher specimen temperature enhances the pyrolysis rate, thereby causing the second/end PHRR. The appearance times and values of the second/end PHRR for 30, 20, and 10 mm wood were 1740 s/78 kWm−2, 685 s/134 kWm−2, and 450 s/160 kWm−2, respectively. Char progressed to the rear of the samples even with a thin (8 mm) conductive steel substrate. Cracks in char grew almost three times wider during the second/end PHRR compared to the sample with no second/end peak. Char cracking had no significance on the time of occurrence of the second/end PHRR but affected the overall heat release. High moisture content reduced the charring rate and delayed the time of occurrence of the second/end PHRR as more water was needed to undergo a phase change, requiring a higher amount of energy.
Conformational Diversity in Partially Fluorinated N‐Alkyl Pipecolic Acid Amide Derivatives
Authors: Trapp Nils , Wörle Michael , Kuhn Bernd , Gerber Paul , Vorberg Raffael , Carreira Erick M. , Müller Klaus 
Published: December 2022

AbstractThe molecular and crystal structures of 19 N‐alkyl‐substituted pipecolamide derivatives with partial fluorination of N‐propyl and N‐butyl groups are presented. Fluorination patterns include one F‐atom at internal or terminal locations, two F‐atoms in geminal or vicinal arrangements at various positions, as well as terminal trifluoromethylation. Due to the presence of the carboxamide side chain in pipecolamide derivatives, enantiomeric fluorination patterns in the N‐alkyl group result in diastereomeric compounds, which exhibit dramatically different crystal and molecular structures. An extraordinary conformational diversity is diagnosed for the various N‐alkylpiperidine units. Structural comparisons and theoretical assessments based on extensive force field calculations provide insight into consistent conformational patterns that point to intramolecular factors as well as intermolecular modulations due to crystal packing effects.
miR‐216b‐5p regulates proliferation and apoptosis of ox‐LDL‐stimulated VSMCs and HUVECs via IGF2
Authors: Qu Chuan , Liu Xin , Han Xueyu , Sun Meng , Liu Haixia , Yang Bo 
Published: December 2022

AbstractAtherosclerosis (AS) is one of the principal causes of cardiovascular disorder. Reportedly, vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) play key roles in AS development, and microRNAs (miRNAs) regulate their functions. The function of miR‐216b‐5p in AS remains unknown. Human VSMCs and human HUVECs were treated with ox‐LDL to establish the in vitro model of AS. MiR‐216b‐5p and IGF2 expressions in VSMCs and HUVECs were probed by qRT‐PCR and western blot. The viability, cell cycle progression, and apoptosis of VSMCs and HUVECs were evaluated by Cell Counting Kit‐8 (CCK‐8), 5‐ethynyl‐2′‐deoxyuridine, and flow cytometry assays, respectively. The binding sites between IGF2 3′UTR and miR‐216b‐5p were validated by dual‐luciferase reporter assay. miR‐216b‐5p expression was declined in ox‐LDL‐induced VSMCs and HUVECs. In VSMCs, miR‐216b‐5p overexpression inhibited excessive proliferation and induced apoptosis. MiR‐216b‐5p could markedly restrain the viabiblity of VSMCs induced by ox‐LDL and enhanced the viability of HUVECs. Additionally, IGF2 was confirmed as the direct target of miR‐216b‐5p and transfection of IGF2 overexpression plasmids rescued the effects of miR‐216b‐5p on VSMCs and HUVECs. miR‐216b‐5p alleviates the dysfunction of VSMCs and HUVECs caused by ox‐LDL via repressing IGF2, and exerts protective functions to block the development of AS.
Quality over quantity: Sampling high probability rare events with the weighted ensemble algorithm
Authors: Roussey Nicole M. , Dickson Alex 
Published: December 2022

AbstractThe prediction of (un)binding rates and free energies is of great significance to the drug design process. Although many enhanced sampling algorithms and approaches have been developed, there is not yet a reliable workflow to predict these quantities. Previously we have shown that free energies and transition rates can be calculated by directly simulating the binding and unbinding processes with our variant of the WE algorithm “Resampling of Ensembles by Variation Optimization”, or “REVO”. Here, we calculate binding free energies retrospectively for three SAMPL6 host‐guest systems and prospectively for a SAMPL9 system to test a modification of REVO that restricts its cloning behavior in quasi‐unbound states. Specifically, trajectories cannot clone if they meet a physical requirement that represents a high likelihood of unbinding, which in the case of this work is a center‐of‐mass to center‐of‐mass distance. The overall effect of this change was difficult to predict, as it results in fewer unbinding events each of which with a much higher statistical weight. For all four systems tested, this new strategy produced either more accurate unbinding free energies or more consistent results between simulations than the standard REVO algorithm. This approach is highly flexible, and any feature of interest for a system can be used to determine cloning eligibility. These findings thus constitute an important improvement in the calculation of transition rates and binding free energies with the weighted ensemble method.