uuid
int64 0
6k
| title
stringlengths 8
285
| abstract
stringlengths 22
4.43k
|
|---|---|---|
600 | Effect of Foliage Dressing in Nano-Potassium Molybdate on Daily Gain and Antioxidant Function in Grazing the Chinese Merino Sheep | The study was implemented for exploring influences of nano-K2MoO4 on the daily gain and antioxidant function of Chinese merino sheep in the native pasture, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Northwest of China. Eighty of the sheep, weight of (45.56 ± 2.35) kg, were randomly distributed to the tested areas for 90 days, 20 sheep/group. The findings showed that the contents of Mo and N in the forage of applying nano-K2MoO4 were extremely higher than those in the control pastures (P <0.01). The daily gain in the fertilized groups were remarkably lower than that in the control group (P <0.01). The harvest of forage in the fertilized pastures were significantly higher than those in control (P <0.01). The contents of Mo in blood and liver in grazing the Chinese merino sheep were extremely higher than those from the control group (P <0.01). The contents of Cu in blood and liver in grazing the Chinese merino sheep were extremely lower than those in the unfertilized pastures (P <0.01). The levels of hemoglobin (Hb), blood platelet (PLT), and erythrocyte count (RBC) in animals from the fertilized pastures were extremely lower than those in the control pastures (P < 0.01). The activities of SOD, GSH-Px, and CAT in serum were significantly lower than those in group C. The serum MDA levels were significantly higher than those in the control group (P < 0.01). In conclusion, the application of nano-K2MoO4 in pastures can greatly improve the yield of forage, but strikingly decreased the daily gain and antioxidant function in grazing the Chinese merino sheep. |
601 | Climate Change and Infections on the Move in North America | Climate change is increasingly recognized for its impacts on human health, including how biotic and abiotic factors are driving shifts in infectious disease. Changes in ecological conditions and processes due to temperature and precipitation fluctuations and intensified disturbance regimes are affecting infectious pathogen transmission, habitat, hosts, and the characteristics of pathogens themselves. Understanding the relationships between climate change and infectious diseases can help clinicians broaden the scope of differential diagnoses when interviewing, diagnosing, and treating patients presenting with infections lacking obvious agents or transmission pathways. Here, we highlight key examples of how the mechanisms of climate change affect infectious diseases associated with water, fire, land, insects, and human transmission pathways in the hope of expanding the analytical framework for infectious disease diagnoses. Increased awareness of these relationships can help prepare both clinical physicians and epidemiologists for continued impacts of climate change on infectious disease in the future. |
602 | A bi-level market-clearing for coordinated regional-local multi-carrier systems in presence of energy storage technologies | A multi-energy system (MES) provides greater flexibility for the operation of different energy carriers. It increases the reliability and efficiency of the networks in the presence of renewable energy sources (RESs). Various energy carriers such as power, gas, and heat can be interconnected by energy storage systems (ES5s) and combined heat and power units at different levels (e.g., within a region or a local). Non-coordinated optimization of energy systems at local and regional levels does not verify the whole optimal operation of systems since the systems are operated without considering their interactions with each other. One of the most famous sources of flexibility is E55s. Hence, this paper presents a stochastic decentralized approach to evaluate the impact of ESSs on regional-local MES market-clearing within a bi-level framework. On the regional level, the economic interaction between the electricity and natural gas (NG) systems is carried out by a centralized system operator (CSO). In addition, coordination between various energy carriers is implemented by the energy hub operator at the local level. To ameliorate the flexibility of the NG system in the regional MES, the linepack model of gas pipelines has been considered. Local MES modeling is performed through multiple input/output ports using a linear energy hub model. The proposed model is a mixed-integer linear programming (MILP), which is solved by CPLEX solver in GAMS software. |
603 | Governance, CO2 emissions and inclusive human development in sub-Saharan Africa | This study investigates the relevance of government quality in moderating the incidence of environmental degradation on inclusive human development in 44 sub-Saharan African countries for the period 2000-2012. Environmental degradation is measured with CO2 emissions and the governance dynamics include: political stability, voice and accountability, government effectiveness, regulation quality, the rule of law and corruption-control. The empirical evidence is based on the generalised method of moments. Regulation quality modulates CO2 emissions to exert a net negative effect on inclusive development. Institutional governance (consisting of corruption-control and the rule of law) modulates CO2 emissions to also exert a net negative effect on inclusive human development. Fortunately, the corresponding interactive effects are positive, which indicates that good governance needs to be enhanced to achieve positive net effects. A policy threshold of institutional governance at which institutional governance completely dampens the unfavourable effect of CO2 emissions on inclusive human development is established. Other policy implications are discussed. |
604 | Forecasting carbon futures price: a hybrid method incorporating fuzzy entropy and extreme learning machine | In this paper, we propose a novel hybrid model that extends prior work involving ensemble empirical mode decomposition (EEMD) by using fuzzy entropy and extreme learning machine (ELM) methods. We demonstrate this 3-stage model by applying it to forecast carbon futures prices which are characterized by chaos and complexity. First, we employ the EEMD method to decompose carbon futures prices into a couple of intrinsic mode functions (IMFs) and one residue. Second, the fuzzy entropy and K-means clustering methods are used to reconstruct the IMFs and the residue to obtain three reconstructed components, specifically a high frequency series, a low frequency series, and a trend series. Third, the ARMA model is implemented for the stationary high and low frequency series, while the extreme learning machine (ELM) model is utilized for the non-stationary trend series. Finally, all the component forecasts are aggregated to form final forecasts of the carbon price for each model. The empirical results show that the proposed reconstruction algorithm can bring more than 40% improvement in prediction accuracy compared to the traditional fine-to-coarse reconstruction algorithm under the same forecasting framework. The hybrid forecasting model proposed in this paper also well captures the direction of the price changes, with strong and robust forecasting ability, which is significantly better than the single forecasting models and the other hybrid forecasting models. |
605 | The urinary exosomes derived from premature infants attenuate cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury in mice via microRNA-30a-5p/ mitogen-activated protein kinase 8 (MAPK8) | Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a susceptible factor for chronic kidney disease (CKD). There is still a lack of effective prevention methods in clinical practice. This study investigated the protective effect of the urinary exosomes from premature infants on cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury. Here we isolated exosomes from the fresh urine of premature infants. A C57BL/6 mice model of cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury was given 100 ug urinary exosomes 24 hours after model establishment. The kidneys were collected for pathological examination and the evaluation of renal tubular damage and apoptosis. In the in vitro experiment, human renal cortex/proximal tubular cells (HK-2) were induced by cisplatin to assess the effect of the urine exosomes from premature infants. Exosome microRNA (miRNA) sequencing technology was applied to investigate the miRNAs enriched in exosomes and the dual-luciferase gene reporter system to examine the targeting relationship of the miRNA with target genes. The results indicated that the urinary exosomes could decrease the serum creatinine level and the apoptosis of renal tubular cells, and reduce mice mortality. In addition, miR-30a-5p was the most abundant miRNA in the exosomes. It protected HK-2 cells from cisplatin-induced apoptosis by targeting and down-regulating the mitogen-activated protein kinase 8 (MAPK8). Together, our findings identified that the urinary exosomes derived from premature infants alleviated cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury and inhibited the apoptosis of HK-2 via miR-30a-5p, which could target MAPK8. These findings implied that urinary exosomes from premature infants riched in miR-30a-5p might become a potential treatment for AKI. |
606 | Anti-inflammatory cytokines in sickle cell disease | Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a well-studied monogenetic disease with an established chronic inflammatory component. The paradigm shift towards inflammation has made the pathophysiology of SCD even more complex. Studies have shown that an imbalance between the pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines in SCD exists; however, the reports are skewed toward the pro-inflammatory mediators. We enumerate recent in vitro and in vivo studies on anti-inflammatory cytokines in SCD patients, and discuss the biology of anti-inflammatory cytokines including the already reported IL-2, TGF-β, and IL-10 as well as the recently discovered IL-27, IL-35 and IL-37. This review will improve the understanding of the pathophysiology of SCD and aid in the search of new therapeutic options for patients with SCD. |
607 | DomArchive: a century of published dominance data | Dominance behaviours have been collected for many groups of animals since 1922 and serve as a foundation for research on social behaviour and social structure. Despite a wealth of data from the last century of research on dominance hierarchies, these data are only rarely used for comparative insight. Here, we aim to facilitate comparative studies of the structure and function of dominance hierarchies by compiling published dominance interaction datasets from the last 100 years of work. This compiled archive includes 436 datasets from 190 studies of 367 unique groups (mean group size 13.8, s.d. = 13.4) of 135 different species, totalling over 243 000 interactions. These data are presented in an R package alongside relevant metadata and a tool for subsetting the archive based on biological or methodological criteria. In this paper, we explain how to use the archive, discuss potential limitations of the data, and reflect on best practices in publishing dominance data based on our experience in assembling this dataset. This archive will serve as an important resource for future comparative studies and will promote the development of general unifying theories of dominance in behavioural ecology that can be grounded in testing with empirical data. This article is part of the theme issue 'The centennial of the pecking order: current state and future prospects for the study of dominance hierarchies'. |
608 | Up-regulation of caveolin 1 mediated by chitosan activates Wnt/ β-catenin pathway in chronic refractory wound diabetic rat model | Diabetes mellitus (DM) can be implicated in the perturbations of vascular integrity and the dysfunction of angiogenesis. Chitosan has the advantage of promoting the vascular endothelial cell proliferation. However, the molecular mechanism of action in the promotion of wound healing by chitosan derivatives is still debated. In the current study, DM with chronic wound (CW) model rats were prepared and treated with chitosan. Vascular endothelial cells isolated from granulation tissues were conducted by RNA sequencing. Two thousand three hundred and sixteen genes were up-regulated, while 1,864 genes were down-regulated after chitosan treatment compared to CW group. Here, we observed that caveolin 1 (CAV1) was highly expressed induced by chitosan. Furthermore, we observed that CAV1 knockdown could compromise the activation of Wnt pathway by reduction of β-catenin in rat aortic endothelial cells (RAOECs) and brain endothelium four cells (RBE4s). Moreover, we determined a direct interaction between CAV1 and β-catenin by IP assay. The C-terminus of CAV1 and β-catenin (24 to 586 amino acids) contributed to the interaction of these two proteins. Finally, the protein docking analysis indicated that the fragments of β-catenin (253-261 'FYAITTLHN' and 292-303 'KFLAITTDCLQI') might have affected the structure by CAV1 and facilitated the resistance to degradation. Taken together, our study demonstrates that chitosan can up-regulate CAV1 expression, and CAV1 can interact with β-catenin for promotion of canonical Wnt signaling pathway activity. Our results deepens the molecular mechanism of the Wnt pathway in vascular endothelial cells and is beneficial to developing new targets to assist in enhancing the pharmacological effect of chitosan on wound healing and angiogenesis against DM. |
609 | Technical, economic and environmental assessement of bioethanol biorefinery from waste biomass | This study presents a sequential three-steps methodology for the technical, economic and environmental assessment (TEEA) of bioethanol production from waste biomass. In EU the most abundant waste biomasses produced in 2018 could be ascribed to three main categories: lignocellulosic (329.41 Mt), starch (160 Mt) and sugar-based (58.56 Mt). The technical assessment compiled an inventory of the waste biomasses and subsequently designed their biological conversion into ethanol through integrated biorefinery processes by means of material flow analysis (MFA); the economic assessment was aimed at the definition of the cut-off size of the biorefinery plant necessary to achieve profitability; the environmental assessment was based on Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) and energy balance (i.e. energy input consumption). For each of the three waste biomass categories, at least one that was significant as available amount and representative in terms of physico-chemical characteristics, was evaluated: sugarcane for sugar-based, potatoes for starch-based and rice straw, cattle manure and organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW) for lignocellulosic biomasses. The technical assessment of the biorefinery routes lead to the following yields (kg of bioethanol per kg of biomass): 0.16, 0.17, 0.22, 0.19 and 0.14 respectively. The economic profitability was reached by all biorefineries and Net Present Value (MV) were: 0.85 for sugarcane, 0.11 for potatoes, 0.09 for rice straw, 0.11 for cattle manure and 0.39 for OFMSW. From the environmental perspective, cattle manure reached the highest reduction of climate change and acidification impacts compared to other biomasses, while sugarcane achieved the lowest energy input consumption (around 64%). (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
610 | Determination of experimental domain factors of polyphenols, phenolic acids and flavonoids of lemon (Citrus limon) peel using two-level factorial design | This study aimed to evaluate the significant extraction factors in achieving higher recovery yield of total polyphenols, phenolic acids and flavonoids content from Citrus limon peel using two-level factorial design. The effect of five independent factors including drying temperature (40-60 °C), methanol concentration (20-60%), extraction temperature (28-60 °C), extraction time (30-60 min) and storage duration (0-14 days) were evaluated. Among all the examined factors, results showed that drying temperature, storage duration and extraction temperature were the most significant and contributing factors affecting the total polyphenols, phenolic acids and flavonoids content of lemon peel at P < 0.05. On the contrary, methanol concentration and extraction time exhibited the least significant and contribution at P greater than 0.05. In conclusion, the experimental domain factors were successfully obtained from this experiment, Therefore, further study on optimization of the obtained factors will be conducted in the future study using response surface methodology. |
611 | Development of wind energy market in the European Union | Renewable energy sources (RES) can play a significant role in economic growth. This article examines the development of the wind energy market in the EU. The applicable regulations, directives, and legal acts are reviewed, and the State's role in the development of the renewable energy market is discussed. The analyses were carried out based on the available literature and Eurostat data. The authors of the paper used basic statistics to summarize the changes in wind energy and make a prognosis. The data analysis uses the Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average Method (ARIMA). The survey found that the highest average wind cumulative installed capacities were in Germany (31026 MW), Spain (18602 MW), United Kingdom (7894 MW) and France (6108 MW). Our analysis indicates that the biggest average annual installed wind capacity was in Germany (2952.6 MW), Spain (1224.5 MW) and the United Kingdom (1363.8 MW). These same countries achieved the highest average wind gross electricity production in the years 2004-17: Germany (50.9 TWh), Spain (39.3 TWh) and United Kingdom (18.9 TWh). The study finds that wind cumulative installed capacity will increase in most countries of the EU. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
612 | Spatiotemporal dynamics of ecosystem services provision in a degraded ecosystem: A systematic assessment in the Lake Urmia basin, Iran | Lake Urmia has experienced severe environmental degradation, mainly characterized by the enormous reduction of its surface area and water level. This issue has been mainly attributed to land-use and land-cover changes, in particular related to agricultural expansion and intensification. In this study, we used the DPSIR framework (D: driving forces, P: pressures, S: states, I: impacts, and R: responses) to systematically describe the ecosystem service dynamics related to anthropogenic activities and climatic parameters in the region. We reviewed the literature and used remote sensing, agricultural, climatic and hydrological data together with expert knowledge to assess the main driving forces and pressures, resulting land-use transitions and their spatiotemporal impacts on ecosystem services and biodiversity using a matrix-based assessment approach. We identified population growth, economic incentives and climate change as the most important driving forces, leading to altered agricultural activities, numerous dam constructions and droughts. Since 1987 cropland areas doubled at the expense of bare soils and natural vegetation, the lake halt lost more than half of its surface area, urban and freshwater areas increased threefold and by 50%, respectively. This favored crop and freshwater provision, while all other ecosystem services remained nearly constant or decreased, though spatial patterns were heterogeneous. For example, regulating and cultural services, and biodiversity mainly decreased at the shorelines of the lake, while provisioning services increased along the major rivers and close to cities. To address the land-use transitions with the most profound impact on ecosystem service provision, we recommend the following measures: increase the water supply to the lake, reduce cropland expansion, manage existing croplands more sustainably and protect natural vegetation. Our study provides a comprehensive overview of the regional ecosystem service dynamics and a valuable baseline for future research and environmental management in the basin. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. |
613 | Between Justice and Money: How the Covid-19 Crisis was used to De-Differentiate Legality in Ecuador | Legality in the Global South suffers from problems of application by convenience. Some rules are applied, and some are not, depending on certain actors, such as the State, the stakeholders, or others. This undermines legitimation as constructed by legality and due process. These problems are connected to a wider complex formed by coloniality, internal colonialism, and a form of functional differentiation that limits autonomy of the different social systems. This complex of structural properties allows States and other actors to systematically use one system against the other or-within a given system-one level of rules against the other. This was the case in Ecuador: in the initial months of quarantine due to Covid-19, the government took decisions about external state bonds following international legislation-and quite contrary ones related to local work contracts. Once again, legality followed different paths in diverse cases. Ecuadorian economic authorities accept and respect conditions on external public bonds which are protected by some complex and specific clauses to secure the payment. The same authorities have different practices towards international and national legislation that were organized in the sense of legal subsidiarity. This text will explore reasons and effects of legal de-differentiation in the Global South in times of crisis. The Ecuadorian case in time of Covid-19 helps to understand how structural problems related to the lack of autonomy of the legal system are perpetuated and lead to effects of convenient political action. |
614 | Multi-objective techno-economic-environmental optimisation of electric vehicle for energy services | Electric vehicles and renewable energy sources are collectively being developed as a synergetic implementation for smart grids. In this context, smart charging of electric vehicles and vehicle-to-grid technologies are seen as a way forward to achieve economic, technical and environmental benefits. The implementation of these technologies requires the cooperation of the end-electricity user, the electric vehicle owner, the system operator and policy makers. These stakeholders pursue different and sometime conflicting objectives. In this paper, the concept of multi-objective-techno-economic-environmental optimisation is proposed for scheduling electric vehicle charging/discharging. End user energy cost, battery degradation, grid interaction and CO2 emissions in the home micro-grid context are modelled and concurrently optimised for the first time while providing frequency regulation. The results from three case studies show that the proposed method reduces the energy cost, battery degradation, CO2 emissions and grid utilisation by 88.2%, 67%, 34% and 90% respectively, when compared to uncontrolled electric vehicle charging. Furthermore, with multiple optimal solutions, in order to achieve a 41.8% improvement in grid utilisation, the system operator needs to compensate the end electricity user and the electric vehicle owner for their incurred benefit loss of 27.34% and 9.7% respectively, to stimulate participation in energy services. |
615 | Novel Technologies and Techniques for Prehospital Airway Management: An NAEMSP Position Statement and Resource Document | Novel technologies and techniques can influence airway management execution as well as procedural and clinical outcomes. While conventional wisdom underscores the need for rigorous scientific data as a foundation before implementation, high-quality supporting evidence is frequently not available for the prehospital setting. Therefore, implementation decisions are often based upon preliminary or evolving data, or pragmatic information from clinical use. When considering novel technologies and techniques. NAEMSP recommends:Prior to implementing a novel technology or technique, a thorough assessment using the best available scientific data should be conducted on the technical details of the novel approach, as well as the potential effects on operations and outcomes.The decision and degree of effort to adopt, implement, and monitor a novel technology or technique in the prehospital setting will vary by the quality of the best available scientific and clinical information:• Routine use - Technologies and techniques with ample observational but limited or no interventional clinical trial data, or with strong supporting in-hospital data. These techniques may be reasonably adopted in the prehospital setting. This includes video laryngoscopy and bougie-assisted intubation. • Limited use - Technologies and techniques with ample pragmatic clinical use information but limited supporting scientific data. These techniques may be considered in the prehospital setting. This includes suction-assisted laryngoscopy and airway decontamination and cognitive aids. • Rare use - Technologies and techniques with minimal clinical use information. Use of these techniques should be limited in the prehospital setting until evidence exists from more stable clinical environments. This includes intubation boxes.The use of novel technologies and techniques must be accompanied by systematic collection and assessment of data for the purposes of quality improvement, including linkages to patient clinical outcomes.EMS leaders should clearly identify the pathways needed to generate high-quality supporting scientific evidence for novel technologies and techniques. |
616 | Can industrial agglomeration promote pollution agglomeration? Evidence from China | After industrial agglomeration has developed to a certain extent, its negative externality will appear gradually, and the problem of environmental pollution will become serious. In this study, a comprehensive index of pollution emission is calculated by the improved entropy method, and the pollution agglomeration level is obtained through the geographical concentration. The degree of industrial agglomeration is estimated by the location quotient index. The impact of industrial agglomeration on pollution agglomeration is investigated by using the model of Geographically and Temporally Weighted Regression (GTWR). The main results are as follows. (1) There is spatial autocorrelation between pollution agglomeration and industrial agglomeration in China. (2) At the national level, industrial agglomeration increases the pollution agglomeration. (3) At the provincial level, industrial agglomeration has a positive effect on the pollution agglomeration, but the degrees of influence in different regions are different. The positive effect in the northern region (such as Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang, and Jilin) and the eastern region (such as Beijing, Tianjin, and Liaoning) is the strongest, whereas the effect in the western region (such as Sichuan, Guizhou, and Guangxi) is on the low side. (4) The relationship between industrial agglomeration and pollution agglomeration is relatively stable from the time perspective, and it may be hard to weaken the positive effect over a short time. To improve the environmental quality, this study puts forward some suggestions, such as optimising high-tech industrial agglomeration and strengthening the regional linkage. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
617 | Energy, exergy, environmental, and economic analysis of natural and forced cooling of solar still with porous media | The performance of single slope solar still with an enhanced condenser at different saline water mediums in the basin is studied and assessed based on productivity, energy, exergy, economic, and enviroeconomic methodologies. Six solar still configurations are considered: conventional solar still (CSS); modified solar still (MSS) which is a still with heat sink condenser; MSS having an umbrella (MSS + U); MSS with forced-air cooling (MSS + FA); MSS with forced-water cooling (MSS + FW); and finally, MSS with forced-water cooling and contains sand in the basin (MSS + FW + SD). Experiments are conducted under hot and cold climate conditions of Sohag city, Egypt. The results indicate that the MSS + FW + SD has a maximum daily yield of 5.37 kg/m(2)in summer and 2.74 kg/m(2)in winter with an increase of 36% in summer and 26% in winter compared with CSS. It was found that the maximum increase of the energy and exergy efficiency compared with CSS is achieved in the case of MSS + FW + SD of 39% and 33%, respectively. Furthermore, the maximum and minimum cost of freshwater is achieved in cases of MSS + U and MSS + FW + SD, respectively. Finally, among all studied systems, MSS + FW + SD achieves the best performance based on the exergoeconomic approach. |
618 | The Effect on Venous Congestion of Diverting Arterial Flow in the Arterialized Venous Flap | An arterialized venous flap is a cutaneous flap based solely on subcutaneous veins. The flap is perfused by nonphysiologic flow of blood from the vein into the peripheral tissue. This nonphysiologic perfusion limits the indications for an arterialized venous flap, and its postoperative complications make it an unpopular choice for reconstruction. When venous flaps are designed following the direction of venous valves (antegrade) in a flow-through fashion, the blood may bypass the peripheral tissue without perfusing the flap. A higher pressure within the efferent end of the vein impedes venous return from the peripheral tissue into this draining vein. Thus, venous congestion of the arterialized venous flap becomes inevitable. We describe our approach to designing an arterialized venous flap in which direct arteriovenous shunting is largely eliminated, thereby transmitting a higher pressure in the periphery of the flap while maintaining a physiologic venous pressure in the efferent vein. This restriction of shunting can be accomplished in a number of ways, depending on the venous pattern within the flap. |
619 | Vaspin attenuates steatosis-induced fibrosis via GRP78 receptor by targeting AMPK signaling pathway | Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a common chronic liver disease that is rapidly becoming a public health problem. An imbalance in lipid distribution to the hepatocytes and metabolism causes hepatocyte steatosis. Vaspin is a newly discovered adipokine that has been linked to a variety of metabolic disorders. The effects of vaspin on steatosis and fibrosis pathogenesis and related mechanisms are unclear. Thus, this study investigated the molecular mechanism of vaspin on hepatocyte steatosis and fibrosis. HepG2 cells were treated with 1.2 mM free fatty acid and the intracellular lipid values were measured by flow cytometry and Nile red assay. RT-qPCR was used to assess the effect of vaspin and blocking of the GRP78 receptor on the expression of lipogenesis, oxidation, uptake, and secretion of fatty acid (FA), as well as AMPK activity. In co-cultured HepG2 and LX-2 cell lines, the expression of main proteins of hepatocyte fibrosis was analyzed using Western blot analysis. In the HepG2 cell line, we discovered that vaspin increased oxidation, FA secretion and gene expression, and AMPK activity and decreased lipogenesis and FA uptake and gene expression. Western blot analysis in co-cultured HepG2 and LX-2 cell lines showed that α-SMA and TGF-β1 protein expression decreased. The data demonstrated that vaspin acts as a novel regulator of hepatocyte steatosis through the GRP78 receptor, effectively reducing hepatocyte fibrosis through AMPK activation and decreasing NF-κB gene expression. |
620 | Total Synthesis of Oxepin and Dihydrooxepin Containing Natural Products | The construction of oxepin and dihydrooxepin containing natural products represents a challenging task in total synthesis. In the last decades, a variety of synthetic methods have been reported for the installation of these structural motifs. Herein, we provide an overview of synthetic methods and strategies to construct these motifs in the context of natural product synthesis and highlight the key steps of each example. |
621 | Behavioural and physiological plasticity in social hierarchies | Individuals occupying dominant and subordinate positions in social hierarchies exhibit divergent behaviours, physiology and neural functioning. Dominant animals express higher levels of dominance behaviours such as aggression, territorial defence and mate-guarding. Dominants also signal their status via auditory, visual or chemical cues. Moreover, dominant animals typically increase reproductive behaviours and show enhanced spatial and social cognition as well as elevated arousal. These biobehavioural changes increase energetic demands that are met via shifting both energy intake and metabolism and are supported by coordinated changes in physiological systems including the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal and hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axes as well as altered gene expression and sensitivity of neural circuits that regulate these behaviours. Conversely, subordinate animals inhibit dominance and often reproductive behaviours and exhibit physiological changes adapted to socially stressful contexts. Phenotypic changes in both dominant and subordinate individuals may be beneficial in the short-term but lead to long-term challenges to health. Further, rapid changes in social ranks occur as dominant animals socially ascend or descend and are associated with dynamic modulations in the brain and periphery. In this paper, we provide a broad overview of how behavioural and phenotypic changes associated with social dominance and subordination are expressed in neural and physiological plasticity. This article is part of the theme issue 'The centennial of the pecking order: current state and future prospects for the study of dominance hierarchies'. |
622 | Safinamide protects against amyloid β (Aβ)-induced oxidative stress and cellular senescence in M17 neuronal cells | Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that is pathologically related to oxidative stress and cellular senescence. Safinamide is one of the clinically prescribed monoamine oxidase B (MAOB) inhibitors. It has been reported to possess therapeutic potential in neurological disorders. However, the therapeutic potential of safinamide in AD is still under investigation. In this study, we explored the effect of safinamide in amyloid (Aβ)1-42 oligomers-stimulated M17 neuronal cells. We established the in vitro model with M17 cells by treating them with 1 μM Aβ1-42 oligomers with or without safinamide (100 or 200 nM). The results show that safinamide ameliorated Aβ1-42 oligomers-induced oxidative stress in M17 cells as revealed by the decreased reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and reduced glutathione (GSH) content. Safinamide treatment significantly ameliorated senescence-associated-β-galactosidase (SA-β-gal)-positive cells and telomerase activity. Further, we show that safinamide treatment resulted in decreased mRNA and protein expressions of p21 and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1). Moreover, silencing of Sirtuin1 (SIRT1) abolished the effects of safinamide on the mRNA levels of p21 and PAI-1, as well as SA-β-gal-positive cells in Aβ1-42 oligomers-induced M17 cells. In conclusion, we reveal that safinamide exerted a protective function on M17 cells from Aβ1-42 oligomers induction-caused oxidative stress and cellular senescence through SIRT1 signaling. These present results provide meaningful evidence that safinamide may be medically developed for the prevention and therapy of AD. |
623 | Anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and neutralizing antibodies at 1 and 3 months after three doses of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in a large cohort of solid organ transplant patients | The immunogenicity of the severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccine was improved by the administration of a third dose. The aim of our retrospective study was to assess the evolution of binding and neutralizing antibody concentration until 3 months after the third dose in a large cohort of solid organ transplant (SOT) patients (n = 872). At 1 month after the third dose, anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were detected by means of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay tests in 578 patients (66.3%). In a subgroup of patients, 70% (180 out of 257) had anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody concentrations ranging from 1.2 to 18 411 binding antibody units (BAU)/ml and 48.5% (115 out of 239) had a neutralizing antibodies titer that can confer clinical protection against SARS-CoV-2. Three-hundred ninety-three patients out of the 416 (94.5%) who were seropositive at month 1 and were tested at 3 months after vaccination remained seropositive. Between months 1 and 3 after vaccination, binding and neutralizing antibodies concentrations decreased significantly. The proportion of protected patients against the SARS-CoV-2 also slightly decreased. In conclusion, this study shows that although two-third of SOT develop anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies after three doses, one-third of them remain weak or non-protected. It is important to measure anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies to define the strategy that can optimize SOT protection against SARS-CoV-2. |
624 | Decoupling and decomposition analysis of industrial sulfur dioxide emissions from the industrial economy in 30 Chinese provinces | As one of the largest emitters of sulfur dioxide (SO2), China has faced increasing pressure to achieve sustainable development. This study investigates the decoupling relationship between industrial SO2 emissions and the industrial economy in China during 1996-2015. According to the decoupling results, the study period is divided into four stages: 1996-2001, 2001-2006, 2006-2010, and 2010-2015. These four stages are closely aligned with the major adjustments of the national socio-economic policies. Then, the logarithmic mean Divisia index (LMDI) decomposition method is used to analyze the driving factors of industrial SO2 emissions. The results demonstrate that the SO2 generation intensity and SO2 abatement are the major contributors to reducing industrial SO2 emissions, while the economic activity effect is the primary inhibitory factor. Moreover, the provincial results show that most provinces with weak decoupling state since 2006 are located in less developed provinces with energy-intensive industries. Besides, the economic structure and SO2 generation intensity show negative contributions to reducing industrial SO2 emissions in some of these regions. Based on the results, the attention should be focused on cleaner production to reduce industrial SO2 emissions further, and environmental policies should be tailored to local conditions. |
625 | Impact of ex vivo lung perfusion on brain-dead donor lung utilization: The French experience | Ex vivo lung perfusion (EVLP) is a valuable method for expanding the lung donor pool. Its indications currently differ across centers. This national retrospective cohort study aimed to describe the profile of donors with lungs transplanted after EVLP and determine the effectiveness of EVLP on lung utilization. We included brain-dead donors with at least one lung offered between 2012 and 2019 in France. Lungs transplanted without or after EVLP were compared with those that were rejected. Donor group phenotypes were determined with multiple correspondence analysis (MCA). The association between donor factors and lung transplantation was assessed with a multivariable multinomial logistic regression. MCA revealed that donors whose lungs were transplanted after EVLP had profiles similar to the donors whose lungs were declined and quite different from those of donors with lungs transplanted without EVLP. Donor predictors of graft nonuse included age ≥50 years, smoking history, PaO2 /FiO2 ratio ≤300 mmHg, abnormal chest imaging, and purulent secretions. EVLP increased utilization of lungs from donors with a smoking history, PaO2 /FiO2 ratio ≤300 mmHg, and abnormal chest imaging. |
626 | Common but differentiated leadership: strategies and challenges for carbon neutrality by 2050 across industrialized economies | Given their historic emissions and economic capability, we analyze a leadership role for representative industrialized regions (EU, US, Japan, and Australia) in the global climate mitigation effort. Using the global integrated assessment model REMIND, we systematically compare region-specific mitigation strategies and challenges of reaching domestic net-zero carbon emissions in 2050. Embarking from different emission profiles and trends, we find that all of the regions have technological options and mitigation strategies to reach carbon neutrality by 2050. Regional characteristics are mostly related to different land availability, population density and population trends: While Japan is resource limited with respect to onshore wind and solar power and has constrained options for carbon dioxide removal (CDR), their declining population significantly decreases future energy demand. In contrast, Australia and the US benefit from abundant renewable resources, but face challenges to curb industry and transport emissions given increasing populations and high per-capita energy use. In the EU, lack of social acceptance or EU-wide cooperation might endanger the ongoing transition to a renewable-based power system. CDR technologies are necessary for all regions, as residual emissions cannot be fully avoided by 2050. For Australia and the US, in particular, CDR could reduce the required transition pace, depth and costs. At the same time, this creates the risk of a carbon lock-in, if decarbonization ambition is scaled down in anticipation of CDR technologies that fail to deliver. Our results suggest that industrialized economies can benefit from cooperation based on common themes and complementary strengths. This may include trade of electricity-based fuels and materials as well as the exchange of regional experience on technology scale-up and policy implementation. |
627 | The impact of R&D expenditures on CO2 emissions: Evidence from sixteen OECD countries | This study analyzes the impact of research and development (R&D) expenditures on CO2 emissions in 16 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries for the period between 1981 and 2014. The estimates of long-run regression models show that the expected average effect of R&D expenditures on CO2 emissions is negative. Growth of R&D investments by 1% reduces CO2 emissions by 0.09%-0.15% on average. However, estimated country-specific regressions indicate that the long-run effect of R&D expenditures on CO2 emissions can be both positive and negative, and they vary from -0.79% in Denmark to 0.52% in Belgium. In other words, in most cases, viewed from a long-term perspective, higher R&D expenditures reduce CO2 emissions, but this does not apply to about 40% of countries. In addition, the estimation of the short-run time-varying coefficient panel data models indicated that R&D impact can be positive, negative, but also neutral (insignificant) for many years. Such findings suggest a conclusion that the effect of R&D investments on CO2 emissions cannot be characterized as negative in advance, as pointed out by numerous analysis, but must be empirically estimated. The practical significance of this study is reflected in the fact that it directs decision-makers to concentrate their efforts on promoting R&D programs, such as those in the US and Germany, which are directly focused on reducing CO2 emissions and increasing the use thereof. (c) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
628 | H-2-based synthetic fuels: A techno-economic comparison of alcohol, ether and hydrocarbon production | Electricity-based fuels are one promising option to achieve the transition of the energy system, and especially the transport sector, in order to minimize the role of fossil energy carriers. One major problem is the lacking compatibility between different techno-economic assessments, such that recommendations regarding the most promising Power-to-Fuel technology are difficult to make. This work provides a technically sound comparison of various Power-to-Fuel options regarding technological maturity and efficiency, as well as cost. The investigated options include methanol, ethanol, butanol, octanol, DME, OME3-5 and hydrocarbons. To guarantee the comparability, all necessary chemical plants were designed in Aspen Plus (R) to determine material and energy consumption, as well as investment costs within the same boundary conditions and assumptions in all simulations and calculations. Individual technical aspects of the various synthesis routes, as well as their advantages and disadvantages, are highlighted. With an assumed electrolysis efficiency of 70% and considering the energy demand for the CO2 supply and the energy and operating material demand of the chemical plants, depending on the selected electrofuel, 30-60% of the primary energy in renewable electricity can be stored in the lower heating value of the electrofuel. In the presented results, the costs of H-2 supply are responsible for 58-83% of the total manufacturing costs and thus have the greatest potential to reduce the latter. For the base case (4.6 (sic)/kg(H2)), various electrofuels will have costs of manufacturing of between 1.85 and 3.96 (sic)/l(DE), with DME being the cheapest. (C) 2019 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
629 | The importance of renewable energy consumption and FDI inflows in reducing environmental degradation: Bootstrap ARDL bound test in selected 9 countries | This study examines the relationship between renewable energy consumption, non-renewable energy consumption, foreign direct investment, economic growth and carbon emissions for the nine countries (i.e., Denmark, Finland, France, India, Italy, Morocco, Norway, Portugal, Sweden) identified in the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2018 report. This study mainly aims to demonstrate the role of renewable energy consumption and foreign direct investment on CO2 emissions in countries with high scores in the CCPI using the newly developed bootstrap autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) approach. For this purpose, the unit root properties of the variables are determined by sharp and smooth structural break unit root test (SOR, Shahbaz et. al., 2018). We then conduct a bootstrap ARDL test developed by McNown et al. (2018) to investigate the existence of cointegration. We also use Granger causality based on the bootstrap ARDL approach to identify causal relationships between variables. Empirical analysis results show only a few cointegration relationships between variables exist. However, we have identified significant long-term relationships between foreign direct investment, renewable energy consumption and economic growth in some countries, and our study includes important policy implications, particularly for relationship among CO2 emissions and foreign direct investment inflows. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
630 | Emergence of size-structured dominance hierarchies through size-dependent feedback | Size-based dominance hierarchies influence fitness, group size and population dynamics and link dominance structure to evolutionary and ecological outcomes. While larger individuals often gain dominance, social status may influence growth and size in return, resulting in feedbacks among status, growth and size. Here, we present two models evaluating how these feedbacks influence the emergence of size structure in a dominance hierarchy. In the first, size influences competition for food and investment in suppressing growth of groupmates. Stable size differences emerged when suppression was greatest for similarly sized individuals and size had little effect on competition for food. The model predicted size divergence when size strongly affected competition for food. In the second model, we used a dynamic game to solve for optimal investment in growth suppression as a function of size structure. Investment in growth suppression was favoured only when dominants and subordinates were similar in size, generating size ratios different than those expected by chance. Variation in the feedbacks among growth, size and status can explain variation in emergent size structure of dominance hierarchies and its consequences for conflict within groups. This article is part of the theme issue 'The centennial of the pecking order: current state and future prospects for the study of dominance hierarchies'. |
631 | After-effects of acute footshock stress on sleep states and rhythmic masticatory muscle activity during sleep in guinea pigs | This study investigated the effects of acute footshock stress (FS) on the occurrence of rhythmic masticatory muscle activity (RMMA) during sleep in guinea pigs. Animals were prepared for chronic recordings from electroencephalogram, electrooculogram and electromyograms of neck and masseter muscles. The signals were recorded for six hours on the two successive days: the first day with stress-free condition (non-FS condition) and the second day with acute FS (FS condition). Sleep/wake states and RMMA were scored visually. Sleep variables and the frequency of RMMA occurring during non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep were compared during 6-h periods between the two conditions. Compared to non-FS condition, the amount of total sleep and NREM sleep significantly reduced during 2 h following the acute FS in the FS condition. Similarly, the frequency of RMMA significantly increased during 2 h following the acute FS for the FS condition compared to non-FS condition. During 2-6 h after FS in the FS condition, sleep variables and the frequency of RMMA did not differ from those without FS in the non-FS condition. These results suggest that acute experimental stress can induce transient changes in sleep-wake states and the occurrence of RMMA in experimental animals. |
632 | CircABCC1 promotes the development of glioma by sponging miR-591 and modulating high-mobility group A2 | CircABCC1 plays an oncogenic role in diverse malignancies. In this study, we investigated its involvement in glioma. The expression of circABCC1 and miR-591 was detected in glioma tissues and cell lines. Gain- and loss-of-function assays were performed to determine the biological effects of circABCC1, miR-591, and high-mobility group A2 (HMGA2) in glioma cells. The circABCC1-mediated competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) regulatory mechanism was explored by bioinformatics and the luciferase reporter assay combined with the biotinylated RNA pulldown assay. The effect of circABCC1 on the tumorigenicity of glioma in vivo was detected by constructing xenografts in nude mice. CircABCC1 was highly expressed, and miR-591 was downregulated in glioma tissues and cells. Suppression of circABCC1 repressed the malignant behaviors of glioma cells and tumor growth. Through the ceRNA mechanism, circABCC1 interacts with miR-591 to regulate the expression of HMGA2. CircABCC1 functions as an oncogene to promote the progression of glioma via the regulation of miR-591/HMGA2 signaling. In summary, as revealed by our study, circABCC1 promotes the expression of HMGA2 via sponging of miR-591, thus affecting glioma progression as an important onco-circRNA. |
633 | A tale of three paradigms: Realising the revolutionary potential of ecological economics | Ecological economics has ontological foundations that inform it as a paradigm both biophysically and socially. It stands in strong opposition to mainstream thought on the operations of the economy and society. The core arguments deconstruct and oppose both growth and price-making market paradigms. However, in contradiction of these theoretical foundations, ecological economists can be found who call upon neoclassical economic theory as insightful, price-making and capitalist markets as socially justified means of allocation and economic growth as achieving progress and development. The more radical steady-state and post-growth/degrowth movements are shown to include confused and conflicted stances in relation to the mainstream hegemonic paradigms. Ecological economics personally challenges those trained in mainstream theory to move beyond their orthodox education and leave behind the flawed theories and concepts that contribute to supporting systems that create social, ecological and economic crises. This paper makes explicit the paradigmatic struggle of the past thirty years and the need to wipe away mainstream apologetics, pragmatic conformity and ill-conceived postmodern pluralism. It details the core paradigmatic conflict and specifies the alternative social ecological economic paradigm along with a new research agenda. |
634 | Biodiversity and vector-borne diseases: Host dilution and vector amplification occur simultaneously for Amazonian leishmaniases | Changes in biodiversity may impact infectious disease transmission through multiple mechanisms. We explored the impact of biodiversity changes on the transmission of Amazonian leishmaniases, a group of wild zoonoses transmitted by phlebotomine sand flies (Psychodidae), which represent an important health burden in a region where biodiversity is both rich and threatened. Using molecular analyses of sand fly pools and blood-fed dipterans, we characterized the disease system in forest sites in French Guiana undergoing different levels of human-induced disturbance. We show that the prevalence of Leishmania parasites in sand flies correlates positively with the relative abundance of mammal species known as Leishmania reservoirs. In addition, Leishmania reservoirs tend to dominate in less diverse mammal communities, in accordance with the dilution effect hypothesis. This results in a negative relationship between Leishmania prevalence and mammal diversity. On the other hand, higher mammal diversity is associated with higher sand fly density, possibly because more diverse mammal communities harbor higher biomass and more abundant feeding resources for sand flies, although more research is needed to identify the factors that shape sand fly communities. As a consequence of these antagonistic effects, decreased mammal diversity comes with an increase of parasite prevalence in sand flies, but has no detectable impact on the density of infected sand flies. These results represent additional evidence that biodiversity changes may simultaneously dilute and amplify vector-borne disease transmission through different mechanisms that need to be better understood before drawing generalities on the biodiversity-disease relationship. |
635 | A systematic review on active sites and functions of PIM-1 protein | The Proviral Integration of Molony murine leukemia virus (PIM)-1 protein contributes to the solid cancers and hematologic malignancies, cell growth, proliferation, differentiation, migration, and other life activities. Many studies have related these functions to its molecular structure, subcellular localization and expression level. However, recognition of specific active sites and their effects on the activity of this constitutively active kinase is still a challenge. Based on the close relationship between its molecular structure and functional activity, this review covers the specific residues involved in the binding of ATP and different substrates in its catalytic domain. This review then elaborates on the relevant changes in protein conformation and cell functions after PIM-1 binds to different substrates. Therefore, this intensive study can improve the understanding of PIM-1-regulated signaling pathways by facilitating the discovery of its potential phosphorylation substrates. |
636 | Clostridioides difficile Infection in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease May be Favoured by the Effects of Proinflammatory Cytokines on the Enteroglial Network | Clostridioides difficile infection is widespread throughout countries and represents an important cause of nosocomial diarrhoea, with relatively high morbidity. This infection often occurs in patients with inflammatory bowel diseases and may complicate their clinical picture. Here, we propose, on the basis of evidence from basic science studies, that in patients affected by inflammatory bowel diseases, this infection might be facilitated by a derangement of the enteric glial cell (EGC) network caused by the effects of proinflammatory cytokines, such as tumour necrosis factor alpha and interferon gamma, which enhance the cytotoxic effects of C. difficile toxin B on EGCs. This hypothesis, if confirmed, could open the door to alternative treatment approaches to fight C. difficile infection. |
637 | Optimization and dynamic techno-economic analysis of a novel PVT-based smart building energy system | There is a variety of solar-based energy system designs for buildings. Although these systems are economically profitable, reducing the energy cost of the buildings over time, their penetration has not been that impressive yet due to their high initial cost. In this study, an energy system comprising a few PVT panels (without any batteries) and a heat storage tank is proposed and investigated for smart buildings with two-way interactions with both heat and electricity grids. Removing the battery from the system would result in a sharp reduction of the cost of the system and, thereby, will make incentives for the end-users to adopt the solution. This novel system will not only supply the buildings' real-time electricity and domestic hot water needs but also will compensate for a significant portion of the buildings' energy expenses by selling the surplus generations to the electricity and heat networks. The dynamic model of the proposed system is comprehensively analyzed from thermodynamic and economic points of view using TRNSYS software. Additionally, defining the overall annual exergy efficiency, and the total product cost as the objective functions, optimization of the design and size of the system employing the TRNOPT tool has been done. It is shown that the optimized system results in 16.7 (sic)/MWh and 7.7 (sic)/MWh lower energy costs for electricity and heat of the buildings compared to when the buildings' demand is only supplied by heat and electricity grids. |
638 | Circ_0017639 facilitates proliferative, migratory, and invasive potential of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells via PI3K/AKT signaling pathway | Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has increased morbidity and mortality rate worldwide. The current NSCLS therapies are associated with poor outcomes and need further improvement. CircRNAs were shown to regulate NSCLC progression. However, little is known re garding the functions and mechanisms of circ_0017639 in NSCLC, which requires further extensive studies. The circ_0017639 expression in NSCLC tissues and cell lines was evaluated via qRT-RCR. Moreover, using ectopic plasmid incorporation and shRNA assays, we analyzed the circ_0017639-mediated cellular proliferative, migratory and invasive processes in NSCLC cell lines, using CCK-8, EdU, and transwell assays. Furthermore, the core proteins (p-PI3K, PI3K, p-AKT, and AKT) levels of the PI3K/AKT signaling cascade were investigated via immunoblotting. Finally, we tested the functional role of circ_0017639 by examining its regulation of xenograft tumor growths in nude mice in vivo. Circ_0017639 expression was remarkably high in the NSCLC tissues and cell lines. The transfection experiments showed that circ_0017639 overexpression was able to promote proliferative, migratory, and invasive properties of NSCLC cells, while sh-circ_0017639 showed opposing effects. We further showed that circ_0017639 knockdown suppressed the cellular development via PI3K/AKT cascade inactivation. Additionally, in-vivo experiment in nude mice demonstrated that sh-circ_0017639 could reduce the tumor growth of NSCLC. Circ_0017639 may promote the development of NSCLC by accelerating NSCLC metastasis through stimulating the PI3K/AKT cascade. |
639 | Sinonasal Plasmablastic Lymphoma Arising in the Setting of Recurrent Nasal Polyposis in an Immunocompetent Individual | Plasmablastic lymphoma (PBL) is an aggressive, rare variant of B-cell lymphoma typically associated with human immunodeficiency virus and other immunocompromised populations. Most commonly found in the oral cavity, PBL can occasionally originate in the sinonasal tract. Diagnosis of PBL is difficult due to overlapping features with other malignancies; however, early detection and treatment are imperative given its aggressive clinical course. When in the sinonasal tract, the diagnostic process can be further complicated if the patient has a history of recurrent nasal polyposis. Described is the case of a 57-year-old immunocompetent male who initially presented with benign nasal polyposis, only to return a year after sinus surgery with a unilateral sinonasal mass consistent with PBL. As literature has yet to characterize this phenomenon, this article presents the first case reported of sinonasal PBL arising in the setting of recurrent nasal polyposis. This case emphasizes the importance of investigating sinonasal masses showing laterality, maintaining a high index of suspicion for malignancy, and keeping close surveillance of the patient after treatment of PBL. |
640 | A selective disassembly multi-objective optimization approach for adaptive reuse of building components | Adaptive reuse of buildings plays a key role in the transition from a resource-based economy and towards a Circular Economy (CE) in the construction industry. Adaptive reuse has the potential to maximize the residual utility and value of existing assets through green design methods such as selective disassembly planning. Studies in the field of selective disassembly are scarce and there is no evidence of established methodologies for the optimization of the environmental and financial benefits. A multi-objective analysis is key to obtaining several effective selective disassembly plans for the adaptive reuse of an existing asset through the combination of different deconstruction methods. The analysis is carried out in terms of the physical, environmental, and economic constraints of the deconstruction methods per building component. The Sequential Disassembly Planning for Buildings (SDPB) method is used in order to generate the optimized disassembly plans for retrieving target components. At the end, a weighted multi-objective optimization analysis is incorporated to generate the set of noninferior solutions that minimizes environmental impacts and building cost. The results show that different complete disassembly plans exist for all the possible combinations. The possible combinations are driven by the deconstruction methods per component, as well as the dismantling interdependence. The method described in this study can be used to improve the project outcomes according to specific goals and constraints (e.g. environmental, economic, technical). The results of this study improve the decision-making process for adaptive reuse building projects by adding comprehensive quantitative analysis towards sustainable management and conservation of resources. |
641 | Dynamical analysis of coronavirus disease with crowding effect, and vaccination: a study of third strain | Countries affected by the coronavirus epidemic have reported many infected cases and deaths based on world health statistics. The crowding factor, which we named "crowding effects," plays a significant role in spreading the diseases. However, the introduction of vaccines marks a turning point in the rate of spread of coronavirus infections. Modeling both effects is vastly essential as it directly impacts the overall population of the studied region. To determine the peak of the infection curve by considering the third strain, we develop a mathematical model (susceptible-infected-vaccinated-recovered) with reported cases from August 01, 2021, till August 29, 2021. The nonlinear incidence rate with the inclusion of both effects is the best approach to analyze the dynamics. The model's positivity, boundedness, existence, uniqueness, and stability (local and global) are addressed with the help of a reproduction number. In addition, the strength number and second derivative Lyapunov analysis are examined, and the model was found to be asymptotically stable. The suggested parameters efficiently control the active cases of the third strain in Pakistan. It was shown that a systematic vaccination program regulates the infection rate. However, the crowding effect reduces the impact of vaccination. The present results show that the model can be applied to other countries' data to predict the infection rate. |
642 | Removal of heavy metals from wastewater using agricultural byproducts | The use of agricultural waste to remove heavy metals from wastewater has attracted much attention due to its economic advantages and high removal efficiency which is attributed to different functional groups. The sorption mechanism of biomass can consist of several steps including chemisorption, complexation, adsorption on surface, diffusion through pores, and ion exchange. Heavy metals were removed in different rates depending on the adsorbent and metal itself. For instance, coconut waste showed adsorption capacities of 263 and 285 mg/g in removing lead and cadmium ions, respectively. Also, black oak bark has adsorbed mercury in an adsorption capacity of 400 mg/g, while wheat brans adsorption capacity for chromium was 310 mg/g. The adsorption capacity is commonly calculated by Lagergren's first-order equation, the Redlich Peterson model, and the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) model. However, Langmuir and Freundlich models were intensively used to calculate the adsorbed amount by a unit weight of solid sorbents. This review article aims to present the recently available information on utilizing the biomass materials for heavy metals removal. Here, we highlight the increasing use of these materials due to their low cost, regeneration ability, high adsorption efficiency, and small chemical or biological sludge with a possibility of metal recovery. |
643 | Distributed energy systems as common goods: Socio-political acceptance of renewables in intelligent microgrids | The future social-technical system (STS) of power supply based on renewables depends heavily upon the rapid emergence of Distributed Energy Systems (DES). The prime object of Social Acceptance processes of renewable energy innovation becomes the issue of how to incorporate DES. The realization of this transformation requires the escape from locked-in hierarchy and standardized design of the centralized grid. This review elaborates the advanced conceptualization of Social Acceptance, particularly its socio-political layer. High diffusion of DES in intelligent microgrids leads to polycentricity replacing hierarchy. Therefore, the main object of 'socio-political acceptance' concerns institutional changes replacing hierarchy by co-production within STSs applying DES. Renewables become 'common goods' in such systems, instead of 'private' or 'public' goods. Systems providing 'common goods' like renewables -that are natural resources-show similarities to socialecological systems, the self-governing entities in common pool resources theory. Application of this institutional theory to co-production in DES leads to the following conclusions on socio-political acceptance. Renewables generation, integration, storage, intelligence and demand response require a shift towards co-producing prosumers. Electricity as an economic good must be redefined from commercial private commodity delivered in a public grid towards a co-produced common good. Essential for common prosumer-based DES is the application of peer-to-peer deliverance (P2P). Policy must avoid to interfere in this and also should remove legal obstructions and transaction costs for P2P and coproduction. As space is the prime scarcity factor for DES, prosumers' communities should also be empowered in co-producing land use decisions for construction of their DES infrastructures. |
644 | Comparative study on asphalt pavement rut based on analytical models and test data | Asphalt pavement rut influences the durability of the pavement as well as traffic safety. The influence of a flexible and a semi-rigid base on asphalt pavement rut has not been researched in detail. Using theoretical and experimental research on asphalt pavement rut, the objective of this project is to determine the differences in asphalt pavement rut for different base types and the influence of the base on the pavement's performance. The research details include an analysis of asphalt pavement rut for different base conditions using ABAQUS FEA software, an indoor rut test, and actual engineering data. For rut of asphalt surface and base(Surface and base rut means the total deformation of asphalt surface layer and base.), semi-rigid base asphalt pavement is less than flexible base asphalt pavement, but for rut of surface(Rut of surface means the deformation of asphalt surface), flexible base asphalt pavement is less than semi-rigid base asphalt pavement. This demonstrates a greater durability of asphalt pavement with a flexible base compared to a semi-rigid base. The research results provide reference values for asphalt pavement design and the described applications have economic and social benefits. |
645 | Testing for cirrhosis | Cirrhosis can be suspected by a thorough clinical assessment, but compensated liver disease is often asymptomatic. Select investigations are therefore critical for identifying patients with advanced liver disease and cirrhosis Biomarkers and validated serum tests can evaluate liver damage and synthetic function. The ratio of the concentration of aspartate aminotransferase to the platelet count can predict the presence of cirrhosis Non-invasive imaging techniques, from basic ultrasound to elastography, are critical adjuncts to the clinical assessment of cirrhosis. They reduce the need for liver biopsy Careful monitoring, prescribing and appropriate specialist referral are key considerations in cirrhosis management. Early diagnosis can help to improve the outcomes for patients. |
646 | A novel energy-economic-environmental multi-criteria decision-making in the optimization of a hybrid renewable system | The development of hybrid renewable systems is an economically competitive solution to reach energy decarbonization and reduction of greenhouse gasses. Based on the literature, energy, economic and environmental indicators were rarely simultaneously employed in the optimization of a hybrid renewable system. In addition, there is no procedures or a set of indicators to be applied uniformly in all applications for the shared analysis. The paper presents a novel energy-economic-environmental multi-criteria decision-making in the optimization of a hybrid renewable system, based on a new set of dimensionless indicators, proposed as a standard for future applications. The procedure compares the entire PV-wind-battery system configuration with the PV-wind, PV-battery and wind-battery system sub-configurations. A width parametric and multi-optimization analysis permit the identification of the most proper nominal powers of each system component. The procedure proposed was applied in a Mediterranean residential building, demonstrating that some system configurations allow complying simultaneously with at least two of the three energy objectives proposed, the cost-optimal level and the maximum reduction of emissions, for specific values of the load. The solar source was the most suitable both from energy, environmental and economic point of view, while the use of the wind source leads to a greater system operating time in the nominal power conditions. The study pointed out and quantified that, for specific loads, PV, wind and battery powers, the development of specific incentives for wind systems and of battery systems with a higher lifespan can help to make the hybrid systems more economically competitive. |
647 | Crosschecking teachers' perspectives on learning in a one-to-one environment with their actual classroom behavior - a longitudinal study | One-to-one laptop initiatives have become prevalent in schools aiming to enhance active learning and assist students in developing twenty-first-century skills. This paper reports on a qualitative investigation of teachers in a junior high school in Northern Israel, who were gradually implementing one-to-one computing. The research reported in this paper is based on longitudinal data collected over a five-year period and included all of the teachers who participated in the project. We triangulated teachers' perspectives and actual behavior by employing classroom observations, followed up with semi-structured interviews. This study aims to map teachers' perspectives on changes in teaching in one-to-one computing settings, and the pedagogical strategies that they use in one-to-one classrooms. To explore the depth of change in teaching, teachers' perspectives were mapped based on the SAMR framework, while the TEUCT-TEUIT approach was employed to categorize pedagogical strategies. The findings pointed to several benefits of using a laptop for teaching, as well as classroom management problems and technological problems while teaching. Analysis of the interviews revealed four categories which appeared in the original TEUCT/ TEUCT scales, alongside three additional categories which did not appear in the original scales, and emerged bottom-up from our data. Furthermore, findings indicated that some of the categories originally included in TEUCT, should rather be included in the TEUIT scale. The findings point to a change in teaching strategies, from a more teacher-centered teaching approach to a more student-centered learning approach. |
648 | Residential carbon emission embedded in China's inter-provincial population migration | Population migration embodies virtual residential energy consumption and carbon transfer from the origin to the destination. Based on the differences of the per capita levels between the sending-out origins and arriving-in destinations, we develop a model to estimate the inter-spatial transfer flows of residential carbon emissions, broken down by rural-to-urban, rural-to-rural, urban-to-rural and urban-to-urban flows. The net value of transfer-in and transfer-out residential carbon emission contributes to the change of the whole carbon emission. Using the latest census data and energy balance sheet in 2010, China's inter-provincial residential carbon emission flows embedded in the population migration were calculated and visualized. We found that China's non-Hukou migration increased the national total residential carbon emission. The largest transfer flows were mainly from central to eastern China. The northern provinces were also distinct destinations due to the high-carbon energy structure. The regional difference of residential energy consumption structures, the unbalanced regional economic development and origin-to-destination interaction were the main influencing factors. To promote low-carbon and environment-friendly urbanization, the energy optimization policy should be enhanced in the identified regions, especially in the Beijing-Tianjin area. |
649 | The impact of foreign direct investment on urban PM2.5 pollution in China | The hypothesis of "Pollution Heaven" or "Pollution Halo" has, for some time, been one of the central issues in environmental economics. There is a controversy in the conclusions with regards to China, it thus needs further empirical testing. Based on 2003 to 2016 statistical data on 285 Chinese cities, this paper uses a dynamic spatial panel model to empirically analyze the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) on PM2.5 pollution. The results demonstrate that urban PM2.5 pollution shows both significant global spatial autocorrelation and local spatial agglomeration effects. Overall, FDI significantly aggravates China's urban PM2.5 pollution, thus confirming the "Pollution Heaven" hypothesis. This effect, however, depends on the stage of urban economic development. Although FDI has no significant effect on urban PM2.5 pollution in the initial stage of industrialization, it does aggravate urban PM2.5 pollution in the midterm stage. In the later period of industrialization, FDI actually improves urban PM2.5 pollution, but the effect of this improvement is relatively weak. Furthermore, PM2.5 pollution shows significant spatial spillover and dynamic effects. It follows that both joint prevention and control and continuous efforts must be made to control PM2.5 pollution. |
650 | Bacterial driver-passenger model in biofilms: a new mechanism in the development of colorectal cancer | Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a heterogeneous disease of the intestinal epithelium and ranks the third largest diagnosed malignancy in the world. Many studies have shown that the high risk of CRC is believed to be related to the formation of biofilms. To prove causation, it will be significant to decipher which specific bacteria in biofilms initiate and maintain CRC and fully describe their underlying mechanisms. Here we introduce a bacterial driver-passenger model. This model added a novel and compelling angle to the role of microorganisms, putting more emphasis on the transformation of bacterial composition in biofilms which play different roles in the development of CRC. In this model, bacterial drivers can initiate the formation of CRC through genotoxicity, while bacterial passengers maintain the CRC process through metabolites. On the basis of these pathogens, we further turned our attention to strategies that can inhibit and eradicate these pathogenic biofilms, with the aim of finding new ways to hinder colorectal carcinogenesis. |
651 | Effect of horticultural therapy on mental health: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials | WHAT IS KNOWN ON THE SUBJECT?: Mental health assessment is a common topic in horticultural therapy (HT). Some study findings were contrary to positive findings, although several studies have explored the effect of HT on mental health and reported positive results. There is weak evidence in the benefits of HT based on evidence-based medicine. Stronger evidence of the link between HT and mental health will help in policy making by health policy makers and governments. WHAT THE PAPER ADDS TO EXISTING KNOWLEDGE?: The purpose of this meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was to explore the effect of HT on mental health. This study is the first meta-analysis of RCTs to provide critical evidence that HT has a positive effect on mental health. The effect size of HT on mental health was medium (0.55). The included studies had no negative effects on mental health. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE?: HT should be considered a useful therapy to be integrated in healthcare settings by horticultural therapists to improve mental health. In the HT program, indoor and outdoor plant activities, plant-related arts, crafts and other activities were common interventions to improve specific mental health problems through at least eight sessions. ABSTRACT: Introduction HT has been widely used to promote mental health. However, heterogeneity and sample size issues of randomized controlled trials made it challenging to illustrate effect sizes across the evidence. Aim The purpose of this meta-analysis was to explore the effect of HT on mental health. Methods We used the PRISMA framework. A keyword search of Web of Science, PubMed, ProQuest and Cochrane was performed. The inclusion criteria were HT with RCTs and mental health assessments. A random-effects model was used to perform the meta-analysis. Results A total of 1,056 records were searched, and 18 eligible studies were extracted. The included RCTs had no statistical heterogeneity and publication bias. The meta-analysis showed that the HT experimental groups had a significant and positive impact on mental health compared with the control groups (effect size = 0.55). Discussion HT should be considered for enhancing mental health. The included studies had no negative outcomes and the most common HT intervention was at least eight sessions. Therefore, HT should be considered to enhance mental health. However, the concealed allocation and blinding processes should be improved in future studies. Implications for Practice: This study recommends that HT should be integrated into healthcare settings to improve mental health. |
652 | Strengthening Communities: A Qualitative Assessment of Opportunities for the Prevention of Adverse Childhood Experiences in the Wake of the Opioid Crisis | The opioid crisis is a significant challenge for health and human service systems that serve children, youth, and families across the United States. Between 2000 and 2017, the number of foster care entries, a type of adverse childhood experience (ACE), attributable to parental drug use increased by 147%. Nevertheless, there is variation in the burden of opioid overdose and foster care rates across the U.S., suggesting community supports and systems to support families affected by substance use also vary. This qualitative study sampled communities experiencing high and low rates of overdose mortality and foster care entries (i.e., a qualitative comparison group) to better understand what might protect some counties from high overdose mortality and foster care entries. The sample included six counties from three states that were selected based on their rates of opioid overdose mortality and foster care entries. Using purposive sampling within counties, interview and discussion group participants included multi-sector community partners, parents whose children had been removed due to parental substance use, and caregivers caring for children who had been removed from their homes. Across all counties, prevention was not front-of-mind. Yet, participants from communities experiencing high rates of overdose mortality and foster care entries identified several factors that might help lessen exposure to substance use and ACEs including more community-based prevention services for children and youth. Both parents and caregivers across all communities also described the need for additional supports and services. Participants also described the impact of COVID-19 on services, including greater utilization of mental health and substance use treatment services and the challenges with engaging children and youth on virtual platforms. The implications for prevention are discussed, including the need to encourage primary prevention programs in communities. |
653 | Clay-polymer nanocomposites: Progress and challenges for use in sustainable water treatment | Contaminant removal from water involves various technologies among which adsorption is considered to be simple, effective, economical, and sustainable. In recent years, nanocomposites prepared by combining clay minerals and polymers have emerged as a novel technology for cleaning contaminated water. Here, we provide an overview of various types of clay-polymer nanocomposites focusing on their synthesis processes, characteristics, and possible applications in water treatment. By evaluating various mechanisms and factors involved in the decontamination processes, we demonstrate that the nanocomposites can overcome the limitations of individual polymer and clay components such as poor specificity, pH dependence, particle size sensitivity, and low water wettability. We also discuss different regeneration and wastewater treatment options (e.g., membrane, coagulant, and barrier/columns) using clay-polymer nanocomposites. Finally, we provide an economic analysis of the use of these adsorbents and suggest future research directions. |
654 | A Comparison of Effectiveness of Thai Traditional Massage and Tamsulosin in Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms: A Randomized Controlled Trial | The prospective clinical, non-inferiority study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of Thai traditional massage on lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) compared with Tamsulosin in Thai men. It was conducted on men aged 50 to 75 years old with LUTS (N = 45). Participants were blocked four randomly assigned into 2 groups. The control group (n = 25) was received 0.4 mg Tamsulosin daily and the study group (n = 20) was given Thai traditional massage for 4 weeks. The efficacy evaluation was performed by the International Prostate Symptoms Score (IPSS), a Thai version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire (WHO-QoL Brief), Uroflowmetry, and Post-void residual urine (PVR) at baseline and end of study. The background characteristics of participants were not significantly different between groups. Both interventions relieved LUTS in the total IPSS and the quality of life score associated with urination were decreased, described as symptoms and quality of life due to urination improvement after 4 weeks of intervention. Interestingly, the Thai traditional massage has significant improvement in total IPSS and voiding score (p < .05). Additionally, the time to peak flow rate, peak flow rate (Qmax), average flow rate (Qave) and voided volume of both interventions were improved with no statistical significance. PVR was decreased in both interventions. The WHO-QoL brief score was improved the total score. There was no significant difference in terms of uroflowmetry, PVR, and WHO-QoL brief scores compared between groups. The result suggests that Thai traditional massage has the potential to be an alternative treatment for LUTS. |
655 | Comparative Informativity of Computing Methods of Insulin Resistance Assessment | We conducted a comparative study of the calculated indices of insulin resistance HOMA-R, Caro, FGIR, and QUICKI in 29 healthy volunteers (mean age 26.21±0.93 years) with normal body mass index (23.34±0.55 kg/m2). Among the used methods for insulin resistance assessment, QUICKI is the only method that has characteristics required for the diagnostic criterium: low variability coefficient, 100% reproducibility, and minimum coefficient of variation. |
656 | KV7.1 channel blockade inhibits neonatal renal autoregulation triggered by a step decrease in arterial pressure | KV7 channels, the voltage-gated K+ channels encoded by KCNQ genes, mediate heterogeneous vascular responses in rodents. Postnatal changes in the functional expression of KV7 channels have been reported in rodent saphenous arteries, but their physiological function in the neonatal renal vascular bed is unclear. Here, we report that, unlike adult pigs, only KCNQ1 (KV7.1) out of the five members of KCNQ genes was detected in neonatal pig renal microvessels. KCNQ1 is present in fetal pig kidneys as early as day 50 of gestation, and the level of expression remains the same up to postnatal day 21. Activation of renal vascular smooth muscle cell (SMC) KV7.1 stimulated whole cell currents, inhibited by HMR1556 (HMR), a selective KV7.1 blocker. HMR did not change the steady-state diameter of isolated renal microvessels. Similarly, intrarenal artery infusion of HMR did not alter mean arterial pressure, renal blood flow, and renal vascular resistance in the pigs. An ∼20 mmHg reduction in mean arterial pressure evoked effective autoregulation of renal blood flow, which HMR inhibited. We conclude that 1) the expression of KCNQ isoforms in porcine renal microvessels is dependent on kidney maturation, 2) KV7.1 is functionally expressed in neonatal pig renal vascular SMCs, 3) a decrease in arterial pressure up to 20 mmHg induces renal autoregulation in neonatal pigs, and 4) SMC KV7.1 does not control basal renal vascular tone but contributes to neonatal renal autoregulation triggered by a step decrease in arterial pressure.NEW & NOTEWORTHY KV7.1 is present in fetal pig kidneys as early as day 50 of gestation, and the level of expression remains the same up to postnatal day 21. KV7.1 is functionally expressed in neonatal pig renal vascular smooth muscle cells (SMCs). A decrease in arterial pressure up to 20 mmHg induces renal autoregulation in neonatal pigs. Although SMC KV7.1 does not control basal renal vascular resistance, its inhibition blunts neonatal renal autoregulation engendered by a step decrease in arterial pressure. |
657 | Removal of heavy metals using a novel sulfidogenic AMD treatment system with sulfur reduction: Configuration, performance, critical parameters and economic analysis | A novel sulfidogenic acid mine drainage (AMD) treatment system with a sulfur reduction process was developed. During the 220-d operation, > 99.9% of 380-mg/L ferric, 150-mg/L aluminum, 110-mg/L zinc, 20-mg/L copper and 2.5-mg/L lead ions, and 42.6-44.4% of 100-mg/L manganese ions in the synthetic AMD were step-by-step removed in the developed system with three pre-posed metal precipitators and a sulfur reduction reactor. Among them, zinc, copper and lead ions were removed by the biogenic hydrogen sulfide that produced through elemental sulfur reduction; while ferric, aluminum and manganese ions were removed by the alkali precipitation. Compared with the reported sulfate reduction reactors, the sulfur reduction reactor significantly reduced the chemical cost by 25.6-78.9% for sulfide production, and maintained a high sulfide production rate (1.12 g S2-/L-d). The pH level in the sulfidogenic reactor driven by sulfur-reducing bacteria posed a significant effect on the sulfide production rate. Under a nearly neutral condition (pH 7.0-7.5), elemental sulfur dissolved into polysulfide to increase the bioavailability of S-0. At acidic conditions (pH < 6.0), polysulfide formation was limited and sulfate reduction became dominant. Therefore, maintaining the sulfidogenic reactor driven by sulfur-reducing bacteria at neutral condition is essential to realize high-rate and low-cost AMD treatment. Moreover, the escape of residual hydrogen sulfide from the system was eliminated by employing a 17% recirculation from effluent to the sulfidogenic reactor. |
658 | Acoustic and Kinematic Correlates of Heterosyllabicity in Different Phonological Contexts | We investigate the temporal and kinematic properties of consonant gemination and heterosyllabic clusters as opposed to singletons and tautosyllabic clusters in Italian. The data show that the singleton versus geminate contrast is conveyed by specific kinematic properties in addition to systematic durational differences in both the consonantal and vocalic intervals; by contrast, tautosyllabic and heterosyllabic clusters differ significantly for the duration of the consonantal interval but do not vary systematically with respect to the vocalic interval and cannot be consistently differentiated at the kinematic level. We conclude that systematic variations in acoustic vowel duration and the kinematics of tongue tip gestures represent the phonetic correlates of the segmental phonological contrast between short and long consonants, rather than of syllable structure. Data are only partly consistent with the predictions of both moraic and gesture-based models of the syllable about the effects of syllable structure on speech production dynamics and call for a more gradient view of syllabification. |
659 | Human Factors and Ergonomics in Healthcare: Industry Demands and a Path Forward | This article reviews three industry demands that will impact the future of Human Factors and Ergonomics in Healthcare settings. These demands include the growing population of older adults, the increasing use of telemedicine, and a focus on patient-centered care. Following, we discuss a path forward through improved medical teams, error management, and safety testing of medical devices and tools. Future challenges are discussed. |
660 | Tenacibaculosis in Norwegian Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) cage-farmed in cold sea water is primarily associated with Tenacibaculum finnmarkense genomovar finnmarkense | Skin conditions associated with Tenacibaculum spp. constitute a significant threat to the health and welfare of sea-farmed Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) in Norway. Fifteen presumptive tenacibaculosis outbreaks distributed along the Norwegian coast during the late winter and spring of 2018 were investigated. Bacteriological culture confirmed the presence of Tenacibaculum spp. Seventy-six isolates cultured from individual fish were selected and subjected to whole-genome sequencing and MALDI-TOF MS analysis. Average nucleotide identity and MALDI-TOF analyses confirmed the presence of T. finnmarkense and T. dicentrarchi, with further division of T. finnmarkense into genomovars (gv.) finnmarkense and ulcerans. Core genome multilocus sequence typing (cgMLST) and single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analyses identified the presence of a genetically conserved cluster of gv. finnmarkense isolates against a background of relatively genetically diverse gv. finnmarkense and gv. ulcerans isolates in 13 of the 15 studied cases. This clustering strongly suggests a link between T. finnmarkense gv. finnmarkense and development of clinical tenacibaculosis in sea-farmed Norwegian salmon in the late winter and spring. Analysis of 25 Tenacibaculum isolates collected during the spring of 2019 from similar cases identified a similar distribution of genotypes. Low water temperatures were common to all cases, and most incidences involved relatively small fish shortly after sea transfer, suggesting that these fish are particularly predisposed to Tenacibaculum infection. |
661 | Asymmetric impact of energy consumption and economic growth on ecological footprint: Using asymmetric and nonlinear approach | The main objective of this article is to examine the impacts of energy consumption and economic growth on environmental quality in Pakistan. We use the ecological footprint (environmental quality) as a target variable, the control variables of gross domestic products are a proxy of economic growth, and energy consumption and gross fixed capital formation arc proxies of capital from 1971 to 2014. For this purpose, a unit root test with break dates is employed for a stationary check, and a BDS test is used for nonlinearity. The nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag approach is employed to assess the asymmetric co-integration among the variables. These results confirm the asymmetric co-integration among the variables. The asymmetric causality technique is also applied to scrutinize the causal link between the variables. The asymmetric feedback effect is observed between positive shocks to environmental quality and energy consumption, and symmetrically, environmental quality causes energy consumption. By contrast, the neutral effect is observed among environmental quality, economic growth, and capital. Based on these findings, current energy portfolios should be diversified by either enhancing or incorporating renewable energy technologies, and this is indispensable to support the existing successful strides of environmental policies. Thus, policymakers must buttress their commitments to reduce emissions by sustaining and decarbonizing the trajectory of economic growth. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. |
662 | Evidence-Based Considerations Exploring Relations between SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic and Air Pollution: Involvement of PM2.5-Mediated Up-Regulation of the Viral Receptor ACE-2 | The COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2 pandemic struck health, social and economic systems worldwide, and represents an open challenge for scientists -coping with the high inter-individual variability of COVID-19, and for policy makers -coping with the responsibility to understand environmental factors affecting its severity across different geographical areas. Air pollution has been warned of as a modifiable factor contributing to differential SARS-CoV-2 spread but the biological mechanisms underlying the phenomenon are still unknown. Air quality and COVID-19 epidemiological data from 110 Italian provinces were studied by correlation analysis, to evaluate the association between particulate matter (PM)(2.5)concentrations and incidence, mortality rate and case fatality risk of COVID-19 in the period 20 February-31 March 2020. Bioinformatic analysis of the DNA sequence encoding the SARS-CoV-2 cell receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE-2) was performed to identify consensus motifs for transcription factors mediating cellular response to pollutant insult. Positive correlations between PM(2.5)levels and the incidence (r = 0.67,p< 0.0001), the mortality rate (r = 0.65,p< 0.0001) and the case fatality rate (r = 0.7,p< 0.0001) of COVID-19 were found. The bioinformatic analysis of the ACE-2 gene identified nine putative consensus motifs for the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR). Our results confirm the supposed link between air pollution and the rate and outcome of SARS-CoV-2 infection and support the hypothesis that pollution-induced over-expression of ACE-2 on human airways may favor SARS-CoV-2 infectivity. |
663 | A Novel Quantum Dot-Based pH Probe for Long-Term Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy Experiments in Living Cells | The use of two nanoparticles for quantitative pH measurements in live cells by means of fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) is investigated here. These nanoparticles are based on CdSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs), functionalized with N-acetylcysteine (CdSe/ZnS-A) and with a small peptide containing D-penicillamine and histidine (CdSe/ZnS-PH). CdSe/ZnS-A has tendency to aggregate and nonlinear pH sensitivity in a complex medium containing salts and macromolecules. On the contrary, CdSe/ZnS-PH shows chemical stability, low toxicity, efficient uptake in C3H10T1/2 cells, and good performance as an FLIM probe. CdSe/ZnS-PH also has key advantages over a recently reported probe based on a CdSe/ZnS QD functionalized with D-penicillamine (longer lifetimes and higher pH-sensitivity). A pH(±2σ) of 6.97 ± 0.14 was determined for C3H10T1/2 cells by FLIM employing this nanoprobe. In addition, the fluorescence lifetime signal remains nearly constant for C3H10T1/2 cells treated with CdSe/ZnS-PH for 24 h. These results show the promising applications of this nanoprobe to monitor the intracellular pH and cell state employing the FLIM technique. |
664 | Integrated approach for optimal techno-economic planning for high renewable energy-based isolated microgrid considering cost of energy storage and demand response strategies | To realize an efficient energy supply system for an isolated microgrid, a joint design framework that considered the capacity sizing alongside operational planning is essential. In this work, an integrated planning model was developed to investigate the techno-economic performances of a high renewable energy-based standalone microgrid. The approach combines capacity sizing and operation scheduling, considering demand-side management strategies for different system design scenarios. The evaluated scenarios involved the combination of wind turbine, photovoltaic system, diesel generator, with either battery energy storage or pumped thermal energy storage. A demand response program based on instantaneous renewable energy availability is proposed with dynamic pricing economic model for improving the overall system flexibility. Mixed-integer linear programming algorithm on MATLAB (R) is deployed as the optimization solver. The minimization of the sum of system costs which includes equivalent annual costs of the investments, running costs and costs based on demand-side management strategies is the objective function. The combination of photovoltaic, wind turbine and pumped thermal energy storage is found to be the most techno-economically efficient system configuration for the considered microgrid. More so, the proposed demand response strategy minimizes the mismatch between the generation and the load demand profile effectively, thereby increasing the system flexibility. |
665 | Immunomodulation in the acute phase of autoimmune encephalitis | Autoimmune encephalitides constitute an emerging group of diseases for which the diagnosis and management may be challenging, and are usually associated with antibodies against neuroglial antigens used as biomarkers. In this review, we aimed to clarify the diagnostic approach to patients with encephalitis of suspected autoimmune origin in order to initiate early immunotherapy, and to summarize the evidence of current immunotherapies and alternative options assessed for refractory cases. Currently, the general therapeutic approach consists of steroids, IVIG, and/or plasma exchange as first-line medications, which should be prescribed once a diagnosis of possible autoimmune encephalitis is established. For patients not responding to these treatments, rituximab and cyclophosphamide are used as second-line immunotherapy. Additionally, alternative therapies, chiefly tocilizumab and bortezomib, have been reported to be useful in particularly refractory cases. Although the aforementioned approach with first and second-line immunotherapy is widely accepted, the best therapeutic strategy is still unclear since most available evidence is gathered from retrospective non-controlled studies. Moreover, several predictors of good long-term prognosis have been proposed such as response to first-line therapies, modified Rankin score lesser than 4 at the worst neurologic status, no need for admission in intensive care unit, and early escalation to second-line immunotherapy. Thus, the lack of solid evidence underlines the necessity of future well-conducted trials addressing both the best therapeutic regimen and the outcome predictors, but since autoimmune encephalitides have a relatively low incidence, international collaborations seem imperative to reach a reasonable study population size. |
666 | Pulmonary vascular resistance and compliance in pulmonary blood flow alterations in children with congenital heart disease | There is a unique hyperbolic relationship between pulmonary vascular resistance (Rp) and compliance (Cp); however, the characteristics of this coupling curve in pulmonary blood flow alterations remains unknown in children with congenital heart disease. We aimed to explore the Rp-Cp coupling and resistant-compliance (RC) time among them. We retrospectively reviewed catheterization data and calculated Rp and Cp in 217 subjects with ventricular septal defect. Median age and weight at catheterization were 2.8 (1.7-4.4) months and 4.3 (3.7-5.3) kg, respectively. Pulmonary hemodynamic parameters were as follows: mean pulmonary arterial pressure: 36 (28-43) mmHg; the amount of pulmonary blood flow (Qp): 14.2 (11.6-17.6) L/min/m2; Rp: 1.95 (1.38-2.59) Wood unit m2; Cp: 2.98 (2.42-3.88) mmHg/mL/m2; and RC time: 0.35 (0.30-0.40) s. RC time remained unchanged according to alterations in Qp (P = 0.206); however, the relationship between logarithm transformations of Rp and Cp showed more steeper according to an increase in Qp. The pulmonary circulation depends upon Cp rather than Rp according to the degree of Qp despite the constancy in RC time. We should take both Rp and Cp into consideration when evaluating the pulmonary circulation among children with congenital heart disease. |
667 | Melatonin inhibits Gram-negative pathogens by targeting citrate synthase | Bacterial infections caused by Gram-negative pathogens represent a growing burden for public health worldwide. Despite the urgent need for new antibiotics that effectively fight against pathogenic bacteria, very few compounds are currently under development or approved in the clinical setting. Repurposing compounds for other uses offers a productive strategy for the development of new antibiotics. Here we report that the multifaceted melatonin effectively improves survival rates of mice and decreases bacterial loads in the lung during infection. Mechanistically, melatonin specifically inhibits the activity of citrate synthase of Gram-negative pathogens through directly binding to the R300, D363, and H265 sites, particularly for the notorious Pasteurella multocida. These findings highlight that usage of melatonin is a feasible and alternative therapy to tackle the increasing threat of Gram-negative pathogen infections via disrupting metabolic flux of bacteria. |
668 | Immunogenicity of the COVID-19 Two-Vaccination Series Among Hematologic Malignancies: Report of Three Cases of Breakthrough Infection | Data is limited on the immunogenicity of the COVID-19 two-vaccination series among patients with hematologic malignancies and current guidelines do not recommend routine monitoring for post-vaccine antibodies. However, we describe three patients who developed severe or critical COVID-19 infections six months after vaccination. This highlights the importance of routine testing of COVID-19 IgG Spike, semi-quantitative antibodies post-vaccination, particularly among immunocompromised patients. |
669 | Rainfall intensification increases nitrate leaching from tilled but not no-till cropping systems in the US Midwest | As global surface temperatures rise, the percentage of total precipitation that falls in extreme events is increasing in many areas ("rainfall intensification"), including the U.S. Midwest, a major agricultural region. While it is well known that losses of nitrogen (N) fertilizers applied in excess of crop N demand have consequences for non-agricultural ecosystems, the effects of rainfall intensification on N losses from agricultural fields are uncertain. We conducted a 234-day field experiment in which we evaluated the effects of rainfall intensification on N leaching, soil inorganic N pools, soil N transformations, and crop N content in replicated tilled and no-till row crop systems of the upper Midwest. Under rainfall exclusion shelters we exposed 5x5m plots to a control rainfall treatment with relatively small, frequent rainfall events historically typical of the region, and an intensified rainfall treatment with the same total rainfall added in larger, less frequent events. Although rainfall intensification increased modeled water percolation to 1.2m in both tilled and no-till systems, as reported previously, it increased nitrate leaching only in tilled systems. Extractable soil nitrate concentrations throughout the experiment were on average 32 % higher in surface soils exposed to intensified rainfall compared to control rainfall regardless of tillage management. In-situ net N mineralization and nitrification rates measured during a two-week period in summer showed no significant differences between rainfall or tillage treatments. Inorganic N pools (0-1.2m depth) were 43 % greater in no-till soils compared to tilled soils and were unaffected by rainfall intensification; crop N concentrations and total N were likewise unaffected. Our results suggest that rainfall intensification in tilled cropping systems will increase N leaching to groundwater, with consequent economic and environmental harm. No-till management, however, may buffer systems against the effects of intensification on nitrate loss. |
670 | Microwave Pyrolysis of Macadamia Shells for Efficiently Recycling Lithium from Spent Lithium-ion Batteries | To reduce harm to the environment and human health and improve economic benefits, the large number of spent lithium-ion batteries that have been produced in recent years need to be reasonably recycled. The purpose of this article is to study a new method, microwave pyrolysis of the shells of macadamia nuts, for efficient recycling of lithium from spent lithium-ion batteries. XRD, SEM, and TGA analyses were used to observe the phase change during roasting. With the help of microwave heating and biomass pyrolysis, the decomposition temperature of Li(Ni1/3Co1/3Mn1/3)O-2 was reduced to 300 degrees C. Carbonated water-soluble Li2CO3 was formed under the action of biochar. Accordingly, the effects of pyrolysis temperature (Pte), biomass dose (bio%), reduction roasting temperature (Rte) and reduction roasting time (Rti) on the leaching rate of lithium were studied, and the results indicated that 93.4% lithium could be leached under the following optimum conditions: bio% = 24, Pte = 500 degrees C, Rte = 750 degrees C, and Rti = 25 min. A lattice collapse model and coupling reaction theory explained the benefit of biomass pyrolysis on the decomposition of Li(Ni1/3Co1/3Mn1/3)O-2. Finally, we designed a complete process for recycling the cathode powder of spent lithium-ion batteries. This study can guide industrial production to recover lithium-ion batteries in the future. |
671 | Are eco-innovation and export diversification mutually exclusive to control carbon emissions in G-7 countries? | Most of the member countries of COP21 have been struggling to devise relevant policies in order to control carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions since the Paris agreement in 2015. In our view, without analyzing the role of two extremely important variables i.e., ecological innovation and export diversification, in the whole chain of carbon emissions, expecting significant results from such policies would be far fetched. This study, therefore, is aimed to explore the effect of export diversification (ED) and ecological innovation (EI) on carbon emissions for G-7 countries from 1990 to 2017, along with renewable energy consumption (REC) as an important control variable. The results show that export diversification (ED) increases carbon emissions; however, ecological innovation (EI) helps reduce carbon emissions, and similarly, renewable energy consumption (REC) also controls carbon emissions. More important, however, is the realization that the negative impact of export diversification on the CO2 emissions gets weakened as the degree of environmental innovation increases. Based on our findings, the promotion of renewable energy, along with the adoption of environmentally friendly technology, is strongly recommended for G-7 countries. Our results also highlight that Government policies regarding export diversification (ED), ecological innovation (EI), and renewable energy consumption (REC) approximately take more than a year to be able to deliver the results effectively. |
672 | Dill Shows Potential for Herb-Drug Interactions via Up-Regulation of CYP1A2, CYP2C19, SULT1A1, NAT2 and ABCB1 in Caco-2 Cells | <b>Background and Objective:</b> Dill<i> </i>(<i>Anethum graveolens</i> L.) has the potential to develop as a new alternative medicine due to its pharmacological activities. However, studies into its safety regarding herb-drug interactions have been neglected. This study investigated the risk of dill-induced herb-drug interactions (HDI) by examining its effect on the expression of phase I and II drug-metabolizing enzyme and transporter genes in Caco-2 cells. <b>Materials and Methods:</b> Caco-2 cells (5×10<sup>5</sup> cells/well) were treated with 10 μM ketoconazole, 20 μM rifampicin or dill extract (60-240 μg mL<sup>1</sup>) for 72 hrs. Cell viability was assessed using the resazurin assay and reactive oxygen species (ROS) content was determined with 2 ,7 -dichlorofluorescein diacetate. Aspartate (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels were measured using L-aspartate and L-alanine with α-ketoglutarate as substrate. Expression of phase I (<i>CYP1A2</i>, <i>CYP2C19</i>, <i>CYP2D6</i>, <i>CYP2E1 </i>and <i>CYP3A4</i>) and II (<i>UGT1A6</i>,<i> SULT1A1</i>,<i> NAT1</i>,<i> NAT2 </i>and<i> GSTA1/2</i>) metabolizing genes and transporters (<i>ABCB1</i>,<i> ABCC2</i>,<i> ABCG2 </i>and <i>SLCO1B1</i>) were determined by RT/qPCR. <b>Results:</b> All tested concentrations of dill did not affect cell viability or AST and ALT levels. The highest concentration of dill extract (240 μg mL<sup>1</sup>) significantly lowered the ROS level. Expression of <i>CYP1A2</i>, <i>CYP2C19</i>, <i>SULT1A1</i>, <i>NAT2 </i>and <i>ABCB1 </i>mRNA was significantly up-regulated by dill extract. <b>Conclusion:</b> Dill extract did not directly damage Caco-2 cells but prolonged use of dill may increase the risk of HDI via the up-regulation of the drug-metabolizing genes <i>CYP1A2</i>, <i>CYP2C19</i>, <i>SULT1A1</i>, <i>NAT2 </i>and the transporter <i>ABCB1</i>. |
673 | Menthol in Combination with Iontophoresis Promotes Natamycin Penetration through the Cornea: In Vitro and In Vivo Studies | We studied whether menthol can promote penetration of natamycin, a representative antifungal macrolide agent, through the cornea. Natamycin penetration was examined using an in vitro iontophoresis system that simulates clinical scenario; menthol (0.1-0.3%, w/v) was added to the donor reservoir of a standard Franz diffusion chambers. In vivo effects of menthol on natamycin penetration were examined in a set of bioassays using rabbits inoculated with Aspergillus fumigatus in the right eye. Potential irritation to the rabbit eye was examined using a standard test. Menthol significantly (p<0.05) potentiated the effects of iontophoresis on natamycin penetration. The optimal combination seemed to be 0.2% menthol in combination with 3 mA/cm2 iontophoresis. |
674 | Corporate Social Performance and Firm Performance: Comparative Study among Developed and Emerging Market Firms | This study examines the impact of firms' environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives on financial performance. It also compares the valuation effects of corporate social performance initiatives in developed and emerging market firms. The study was based on ESG ranking scores in the Thomson Reuters database, and the sample comprised 1317 emerging market firms and 3569 developed market firms. In comparison with developed market firms, emerging market firms had higher ESG combined scores, ESG Controversy scores, category scores of resources use, workforce, human rights and corporate social responsibility strategy scores. This study finds that stakeholder initiatives positively impact valuation effects, based on all sample results. Firm-generated controversies may decrease valuation effects in the stock market. Results indicated that ESG initiatives have a significant positive to the firm performance. The presence of independent board members and ownership by investors is a positive determinant for value creation. The adoption of best practice corporate governance principles is an important determinant of the valuation of firms. Firms' propensity to use defence mechanisms decreases valuation effects. Developed market firms received positive valuation effects due to ESG initiatives. |
675 | Impact of Geographic Distribution of COVID-19 Cases on Hotels' Performances: Case of Polish Cities | The main goal of the article is to describe the short-term impacts of reported new cases and deaths of the COVID-19 disease on hotels' performances in the nine major Polish urban hotel markets: Krakow, Warszawa, Pozna, Wrocaw, Gdask, Lublin, od, Katowice, and Sopot. Time range of the analysis covers the period from January 5, 2020 (the beginning of the very first week when the COVID-19 cases were evidenced) to March 14, 2020 (the initial phase of lockdown was introduced by the Polish government). Various geographical contexts of the COVID-19 impacts are considered: national, European, and global. Generalized method of moments was applied to investigate the influence of reported COVID-19 cases (deaths) on both occupancy and revenue per available room. The results show that the most significant, negative impact of the pandemic on hotel performances is confirmed at the European level of the COVID-19 outbreak. Moreover, the negative influence of national cases of COVID-19 is more significant in less internationalized (or less-populated) urban destinations. Thus, the hotel industry (especially in the most internationalized, biggest Polish cities) might be recovered only when issues of the COVID-19 epidemic will be solved at the European level. |
676 | Life cycle costing for plasma gasification of municipal solid waste: A socio-economic approach | Fossil fuels contribute to climate changes, negatively affecting the environment. Waste has been seen as a possible resource for energy production, constituting a cleaner alternative to replace non-renewable fuels through waste-to-energy (WtE) techniques. Plasma gasification is a procedure that decomposes the molecules at high temperatures, affording a synthetic gas (syngas) that can further produce electricity, fuels and chemicals. Within the most used WtE technologies, plasma gasification is recent and therefore not yet widely applied. Thus, a viability study to support the thorough understanding and implementation of this treatment is required. This paper assesses the socio-economic aspects of plasma gasification promoting a more sustained waste management system, also taking advantage of the commodity assets granted by the technique. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first time that an importance-fulfilment matrix is specifically developed to appraise the socio-economic viability of plasma gasification, combining environmental, technical, economic and social aspects. Although depicting high capital costs, plasma gasification enabled high revenues, rebating the operational costs. The sensitivity analysis exhibited a descending impact in the profitability of the plant for varying electricity sales price, landfill fee, discount rate, vitrified slag sales price and initial investment. |
677 | Assessment and prediction of the water ecological carrying capacity in Changzhou city, China | With rapid economic development and population growth, pressure on the urban ecological environment is becoming intense, and the ecological environment carrying capacity is becoming an important issue. In this study, an index system combining the system dynamics (SD) and analytic hierarchy process (AHP) methods was constructed to assess the water ecological carrying capacity (WECC) of Changzhou city. In particular, the construction of the aquatic habitat and aquatic organism indexes were constructed and showed that water ecology health should be monitored along with the economy and population, which were focused in the past. Scientific research has neglected the internal spatial heterogeneity in administrative regions. Therefore, the SD and AHP models were applied to simulate the WECC of administrative regions and control units from 2010 to 2016. The simulation results show that the WECC of Liyang and Jintan counties reached a safe carrying capacity state, while the urban districts were in a critically overloaded state. In addition, the MIKE11 model was adopted to simulate the WECC under different inflow and the river connectivity index scenarios, and the optimal parameters for improving the WECC were obtained when the inflow recharge was 10m(3)/s and the river connectivity index exceeded 60%. The prediction results from the optimized WECC showed that the WECC of all administrative areas and control units in Changzhou city reached the safe carrying capacity state. The results provide insights for improving the WECC of Changzhou city. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
678 | Avoiding immediate whole-body trauma CT: a prospective observational study in stable trauma patients | High energy blunt trauma patients with normal vital signs are usually investigated with a Contrast Enhanced Computed Tomography (CECT) for torso injuries. CECT involves high levels of radiations, often showing no injuries in patients over-triaged to the trauma center. The aim of our study was to suggest an alternative diagnostic protocol based on Emergency Room (ER) tests (physical exam, blood tests, extended FAST, Chest and Pelvis X-ray) to avoid CECT in selected patients. A prospective cohort study was conducted from September 2018 to September 2019. Five hundred patients fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Patients received torso-CECT scan only if they had at least one positive ER test. The validity of the single component of the protocol and the global validity of the ER tests to detect torso injuries was assessed through sensitivity, specificity, positive (PPV) and negative (NPV) predictive value, positive (+ LR) and negative (- LR) likelihood ratio. Multivariate analysis was performed to identify independent predictors of torso injuries. One hundred and seventy patients received a torso-CECT scan because of positive ER tests. ER tests showed a global sensitivity for torso injuries of 86.96% (95% CI 80.17-92.08) specificity of 83.98%(95% CI 79.79-87.60), PPV of 67.42% (95% CI 61.83-72.54), NPV of 94.41% (95% CI 91.63-96.30) + LR of 5.43 (95% CI 4.25-6.93), - LR of 0.16 (95% CI 0.10-0.24). ER tests in an experienced center seem to be able to identify more severe blunt trauma patients needing CECT. Further studies are advisable to confirm these results. |
679 | Systematic literature review of insulin dose adjustments when initiating hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis | Chronically uncontrolled hyperglycemia is the leading cause of end stage kidney disease (ESKD) necessitating dialysis. During times of transition to hemodialysis (HD) or peritoneal dialysis (PD), considerations must be given to insulin dosing adjustments for persons with diabetes (PWD) in efforts to maintain glycemic control. However, the literature is sparse with few clear and direct practical clinical recommendations for therapeutic insulin dosing adjustments in PWD and ESKD. The objective of this systematic review was to identify and report the evidence and gaps in the literature for adjustments in therapeutic insulin recommendations when initiating HD or PD in patients with ESKD and diabetes mellitus. A literature search using PubMed, CENTRAL, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Google Scholar, and ClinicalTrials.gov revealed 242 results. After removing duplicates and articles not reaching pre-specified criteria, 29 relevant articles remained for further analysis. Following the exclusion of 18 articles after full-text review due to lack of relevance or inappropriate publication type, 11 articles remained and were included in the review. The most common recommendation regarding HD was to reduce the basal insulin dose up to 25% on HD days to prevent hypoglycemia, although a lack of consensus exists on the percent reduction. Little information was found relating to insulin management with continuous ambulatory PD or automated PD. During PD, insulin may be administered subcutaneously, IP, or with the dialysis fluid. Administration of insulin with dialysate may necessitate a dose increase of up to 30% due to a loss to tubing and dilution. Furthermore, the use of dextrose-based dialysate may require additional insulin to mitigate systemic impact of dextrose absorption on BG. Overall, a gap exists in the primary literature regarding recommendations for prophylactically adjusting insulin therapy when initiating HD or PD, or when switching between the two. More research is needed to clarify ideal alterations in insulin dosing, administration techniques, and product selections for PWD and ESKD undergoing dialysis. |
680 | Pathophysiology of Hemorrhage as It Relates to the Warfighter | Saving lives of wounded military warfighters often depends on the ability to resolve or mitigate the pathophysiology of hemorrhage, specifically diminished oxygen delivery to vital organs that leads to multiorgan failure and death. However, caring for hemorrhaging patients on the battlefield presents unique challenges that extend beyond applying a tourniquet and giving a blood transfusion, especially when battlefield care must be provided for a prolonged period. This review describes these challenges and potential strategies for treating hemorrhage on the battlefield in a prolonged casualty care situation. |
681 | The E3 Ubiquitin Ligase TRAF6 Interacts with the Cellular Prion Protein and Modulates Its Solubility and Recruitment to Cytoplasmic p62/SQSTM1-Positive Aggresome-Like Structures | The cellular prion protein (PrPC) is a ubiquitous glycoprotein highly expressed in the brain where it is involved in neurite outgrowth, copper homeostasis, NMDA receptor regulation, cell adhesion, and cell signaling. Conformational conversion of PrPC into its insoluble and aggregation-prone scrapie form (PrPSc) is the trigger for several rare devastating neurodegenerative disorders, collectively referred to as prion diseases. Recent work indicates that the ubiquitin-proteasome system is involved in quality control of PrPC. To better dissect the role of ubiquitination in PrPC physiology, we focused on the E3 RING ubiquitin ligase tumor necrosis factor receptor (TNFR)-associated factor 6 (TRAF6). Here, we report that PrPC interacts with TRAF6 both in vitro, in cells, and in vivo, in the mouse brain. Transient overexpression of TRAF6 indirectly modulates PrPC ubiquitination and triggers redistribution of PrPC into the insoluble fraction. Importantly, in the presence of wild-type TRAF6, but not a mutant lacking E3 ligase activity, PrPC accumulates into cytoplasmic aggresome-like inclusions containing TRAF6 and p62/SQSTM1. Our results suggest that TRAF6 ligase activity could exert a role in the regulation of PrPC redistribution in cells under physiological conditions. This novel interaction may uncover possible mechanisms of cell clearance/reorganization in prion diseases. |
682 | Carbon Dots: An Excellent Fluorescent Probe for Contaminant Sensing and Remediation | Pollution-induced degradation of the environment is a serious problem for both developing and developed countries. Existing remediation methods are restricted, necessitating the development of novel remediation technologies. Nanomaterials with unique characteristics have recently been developed for remediation. Quantum dots (QDs) are semiconductor nanoparticles (1-10 nm) with optical and electrical characteristics that differ from bigger particles owing to quantum mechanics, making them intriguing for sensing and remediation applications. Carbon dots (CDs) offer better characteristics than typical QDs, such as, CdSe QDs in terms of contaminant sensing and remediation. Non-toxicity, chemical inertness, photo-induced electron transfer, good biocompatibility, and adjustable photoluminescence behavior are all characteristics of CDs. CDs are frequently made from sustainable raw materials as they are cost-effective, environmentally compactable, and excellent in reducing waste generation. The goal of this review article is to briefly describe CDs fabrication methods, to deeply investigate the criteria and properties of CDs that make them suitable for sensing and remediation of contaminants, and also to highlight recent advances in their use in sensing and remediation of contaminants. |
683 | Psychological assessment of atopic dermatitis in Asia: a systematic review | Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a frequently occurring skin disorder in Asia that substantially impacts the social, financial, and psychological lives of individuals. However, there is uncertainty regarding the psychological instruments for this domain. Hence, this review systematically assessed the existing measurement instruments used, developed, and/or validated for the measurement of psychological outcomes in Asian adult patients with AD as well as the scope of those assessment tools (e.g. validity and reliability). Electronic searches were performed using six databases (inception to February 2020) to identify studies. Thematic analysis of 44 included studies revealed that the commonly employed tools to assess the quality of life were the Dermatology Life Quality Index followed by the Skindex-16 questionnaire, the European Quality of Life-5 Dimensions, and the Quality of Life Hand Eczema Questionnaire. Similarly, the Patient Health Questionnaire, Self-rating depression scale (SDS), and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale were frequently employed to assess depressive symptoms. Additionally, symptoms of anxiety were frequently assessed through Interaction Anxiousness Scale and the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Although a variety of psychological assessment measures have been used in research, data on their reliability and validity is limited. Also, information on the cultural applicability of these instruments is scantier. More research is needed to ascertain the suitability of tools for use in clinical practice. |
684 | The impact of regional industrial structure differences on carbon emission differences in China: An evolutionary perspective | All industries produce different carbon emissions during their production process. Previous studies use multivariate regression or panel models to explore the impact of the industrial structure on regional carbon emissions differences based on time series data or panel data from the perspective of one-dimensional continuous variables. However, there are also regional differences in the factors affecting regional carbon emission differences, such as the economic development level, the industrial structure, and urbanization. The regional carbon emission difference matrix and the influencing factor difference matrix are relational variables, and it is difficult for traditional multiple regression analysis to study the relationship between relational variables. Thus, this paper proposes the perspective of two-dimensional difference relations for studying the influencing factors of regional carbon emission differences based on Quadratic Assignment Procedure model. Energy consumption and the value added by industrial processes in various industries from 30 regions in China are taken as the sample. The results of this study are as follows: carbon emissions are increasing and the differences in carbon emissions between regions are also increasing. There are obvious regional differences in the industrial structure, economic growth, population and urbanization in China. The influence and magnitude of the impact of regional industrial structure differences on regional carbon emission differences vary from year to year. Interregional differences in industry, construction and transportation and warehousing industries had a significantly positive impact on interregional differences in carbon emissions from 2007 to 2016. By analyzing the impact of the influence mechanism of regional industrial structure differences on carbon emissions, the findings of this study can identify some suggestions for regionally balanced emission reduction policies. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
685 | The first case report of Strømme syndrome in a Chinese patient: Expanding the phenotype and literature review | Strømme syndrome (MIM #243605) is a rare autosomal recessive ciliopathy resulting from compound heterozygous or homozygous pathogenic alterations in the CENPF gene (# 600236). Although there are a number of case reports featuring individuals with clinically compatible Strømme syndrome, only 13 affected individuals had molecular confirmation worldwide. Herein, we report a 24 years old Chinese gentleman with molecularly confirmed Strømme syndrome with compound heterozygous pathogenic nonsense variants in NM_016343.3(CENPF):c.436C > T, p.(Gln146*) and c.9280C > T, p.(Arg3094*). He presented with microcephaly, unilateral microphthalmia, single central upper incisor and bilateral preaxial polydactyly. To our knowledge, this is the first reported Chinese individual with molecularly confirmed Strømme syndrome. |
686 | Nexus between green finance, non-fossil energy use, and carbon intensity: Empirical evidence from China based on a vector error correction model | Previous studies have considered the effect of financial development on carbon emissions; however, few studies have explored the role of green finance in carbon mitigation. To bridge this gap, the current study constructs a green finance development index based on four indicators: green credit, green securities, green insurance, and green investment. A vector error correction model is used to analyze relationships between the development level of green finance, non-fossil energy consumption, and carbon intensity using data from 2000 to 2018. We find that China's green finance industry developed rapidly, and improvements in the green finance development index, as well as the increasing use of non-fossil energy, contributed to a reduction in carbon intensity. Simultaneously, an increase in carbon intensity inhibited the expansion of non-fossil energy use, impeded the investment flow to green projects, and ultimately led to a deterioration of green finance development. In addition, non-fossil energy consumption in China was primarily influenced by green finance and carbon intensity, with clear policy-driven effects. However, the impacts of green finance policies continually fell short and lacked continuity. This study proposes ways in which to improve the effect of green finance policy implementation, expand the consumption of non-fossil energy, and develop a carbon trading market. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
687 | Examining the impacts of economic and demographic aspects on the ecological footprint in South and Southeast Asian countries | The re-examination of the existing economic and environmental policies in the South and Southeast Asian countries seems to be necessary, as these countries are struggling to achieve the goals of sustainable development. For designing a long-term environmental policy, we intended to examine whether the selected economic and demographic indicators have influenced the ecological footprint in the eight developing countries of Asia from 1990 to 2015. The use of pooled mean group (PMG) approach allowed driving the long-run common coefficients, which may facilitate us to develop a common policy framework for fortifying the environmental quality. The computed results confirmed that the selected variables are cointegrated in the long run, and the variables, i.e., per capita income, nonrenewable energy usage, urbanization, fertility rate, and population density are observed as the significant drivers of the environmental pollution. Moreover, the consumption of renewable energy restored the environmental quality in these countries. Based on the results, we recommended the need for the diversification of the energy-basket for enhancement of the use of renewable energy resources. Further, through sensitization of the necessity of environmental conservation, the governments should promote less carbon-intense economic and demographic practices across the industries and sectors. |
688 | Effect of urbanization and international trade on CO2 emissions across 65 belt and road initiative countries | This paper mainly investigates the impact of urbanization and international trade on CO2 across 65 Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Countries from 2000 to 2016. The non-linear nexus between urbanization and CO2 emissions is explored through panel quantile regression. Different effects of exports and imports on CO2 is analyzed and compared across different income groups. 2SLS (2-stages least square) regression is employed to handle the endogeneity issue. The results confirmed an inverted U-shaped relationship between urbanization and CO2 emissions only in high income group, which is consistent with the theory of ecological modernization. EKC (Environmental Kuznets Curve) hypothesis is confirmed only in uppermiddle and high income groups. Foreign direct investment increased CO2 emissions, which supports "pollution haven" hypothesis. Exports decreased carbon emissions in low and high income countries, while increased it in lower-middle countries. Imports increased carbon emissions in low income countries, while decreased it in middle and high income countries. Our findings suggest that promoting industry agglomeration during urbanization and enhancing voluntary disclosure of environmental information of FDI firms can reduce carbon emissions. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
689 | Age of Acquisition and Spoken Words: Examining Hemispheric Differences in Lexical Processing | The relationship between the age of acquisition (AoA) of words and their cerebral hemispheric representation is controversial because the experimental results have been contradictory. However, most of the lexical processing experiments were performed with stimuli consisting of written words. If we want to compare the processing of words learned very early in infancy-when children cannot read-with words learned later, it seems more logical to employ spoken words as experimental stimuli. This study, based on the auditory lexical decision task, used spoken words that were classified according to an objective criterion of AoA with extremely distant means (2.88 vs. 9.28 years old). As revealed by the reaction times, both early and late words were processed more efficiently in the left hemisphere, with no AoA × Hemisphere interaction. The results are discussed from a theoretical point of view, considering that all the experiments were conducted using adult participants. |
690 | Dynamic modelling and techno-economic analysis of adiabatic compressed air energy storage for emergency back-up power in supporting microgrid | Adiabatic compressed air energy storage technology recently attracts a great attention due to its merits of low cost, long lifetime and environmentally friendly. Several MW scale pilot plants were recently built to explore the technology deployment potential. With the encouragement of the success of these pilot plants, this paper presents the recent research in dynamic modelling and comprehensive techno-economic analysis of adiabatic compressed air energy storage in providing emergency back-up power to support microgrid operation. The dynamic modelling for key components of a MW scale adiabatic compressed air energy storage plant and the associated microgrid is carried out. The models developed are used for analyzing the system dynamic performance while it provides emergency back-up power. Then, the economic benefit estimation model is developed for conducting a comprehensive economic analysis in order to understand the economic gains of adiabatic compressed air energy storage operation with different microgrid configurations, power supply reliabilities and diesel prices. The simulation results indicate that the MW scale adiabatic compressed air energy storage can normally fully restore the power supply to important loads within several minutes. It is acceptable for the load with no strict requirement on power outage time, but its standalone operation cannot meet the requirement of uninterruptable power source. For a microgrid having low power supply reliability requirement, high diesel price and abundant renewable energy sources, using adiabatic compressed air energy storage for providing emergency back-up power can achieve higher economic benefits compared with diesel generators. |
691 | Does renewable energy technological innovation control China's air pollution? A spatial analysis | China's rapid industrialization has led to severe air pollution, which has attracted considerable attention from academia and media. To achieve cleaner production, the Chinese government has incorporated the construction of ecological civilization into the overall layout of the 'Five in One' and proposed that environmental protection and economic development should be placed on an equal footing. Based on the panel dataset covering 31 Chinese provinces during 2011-2017, this study investigates the spatial features of air pollution and the relationship between energy technology innovation (RETI) and air pollution through Moran's I index and spatial panel econometric models. The results indicate that, first, the air quality in northern China is generally worse than in southern China, especially in Shanxi, Shandong, Hebei, and Henan. Second, technological innovations in renewable energy are beneficial to alleviate nitrogen oxides (NOx) and respirable suspended particles (PM10) concentrations, while they are not significantly associated with sulfur dioxide (SO2). Third, the spatial econometric model shows that the spatial spillover effects of SO2, NOx, and PM10 are 0.626, 0.585, and 0.177, respectively. It is suggested that regional and district policymakers need to consider spatial locations when improving air quality. (C) 2019 Published by Elsevier Ltd. |
692 | Short-term effect of ambient ozone pollution on respiratory diseases in western China | Ambient air pollution has been regarded as an important cause of the morbidity and mortality of respiratory diseases. In the current work, a total of 469,490 respiratory emergency room (ER) visits in Lanzhou, China from Jan 1, 2013 to Dec 31, 2016 were collected. A generalized additive model (GAM) was used to investigate the association between O3 and respiratory ER visits for the different gender and age subgroups. The results showed that: (a) with per inter-quartile range (IQR) (31 µg/m3) increase in O3, the greatest relative risk (RR) of respiratory ER visits for the total was 1.014 (95% CI 1.008-1.020) at lag 4 days. Females and 16-to-45-year-olds were relatively more sensitive to O3; (b) the significant lag effects were found in single-day lag models, with the highest RR values for different groups were observed at lag 3-lag 5 days. The multi-day cumulative lag effects were stronger for the total; (c) in the multiple-pollutant models, the effects of O3 were generally increased when introducing other pollutants (PM10, PM2.5, SO2 and NO2) for adjustment. This study demonstrated that short-term exposure to O3 increased the RR of respiratory ER visits in Lanzhou, China. |
693 | Preliminary techno-economic analysis of biodiesel production over solid- biochar | This study suggests the economic potential of biochar-based biodiesel production by conducting the techno-economic analysis. The itemized cost estimation was performed by categorizing biochar production facility and biodiesel conversion plants for 30,000 ton y(-1) of biodiesel production capacity. The result of sensitivity analysis shows the methanol and waste cooking oil (WCO) costs are significantly sensitive to determine a unit biodiesel production cost. When the biodiesel selling price was 1.70 $ kg(-1), the discounted payback period was varied from 1.91 (not discounted) to 2.06 years (10% discounted). In addition, the break-even price of biodiesel was calculated to 1.55 $ kg(-1) when the discount rate was 10%. It means that this technology is to be feasible because of commercial diesel price (0.97 to 1.88 $ kg(-1)). The consideration of tax exemption and subsidy for biodiesel can be good option to supply WCO based energy production. |
694 | Analysis on the relationship between fisheries economic growth and marine environmental pollution in China's coastal regions | The rapid development of China's fisheries economy is accompanied by intensified marine environmental pollution over the period covered by this study. Based on data from multiple sources, this paper attempts to measure the relationship between fisheries economic growth and marine environmental pollution among China's coastal regions over the past 17 years. For this purpose, it firstly quantifies changes in fisheries economy and fisheries population. It then goes onto comparing the degree of changes in fisheries economy and marine environment. Finally, it depicts the relationship between fisheries added value (FAV) and polluted marine area (PMA) and between per capita net income of fishermen (PCNIF) and PMA ratio. Results suggest that i) the compound annual growth rate of FAV, FAV per capita, and fisheries population are 835%, 8.61%, and -024%, respectively; ii) the difference of FAV per capita increases significantly over time, while that of PMA and PMA ratio decreases moderately; iii) the relationship between FAV and PMA and between PCNIF and PMA ratio in all China's Seas and in the East China Sea show the same inverted N-shape while in the South China Sea inverted U-shape. In the Bohai and Yellow Sea, the former's relationship exhibits inverted U-shape, with the latter's N-shape. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. |
695 | Hybrid solar-biomass combined Brayton/organic Rankine-cycle plants integrated with thermal storage: Techno-economic feasibility in selected Mediterranean areas | This paper presents a thermodynamic analysis and techno-economic assessment of a novel hybrid solar-biomass power-generation system configuration composed of an externally fired gas-turbine (EFGT) fuelled by biomass (wood chips) and a bottoming organic Rankine cycle (ORC) plant. The main novelty is related to the heat recovery from the exhaust gases of the EFGT via thermal energy storage (TES), and integration of heat from a parabolic-trough collectors (PTCs) field with molten salts as a heat-transfer fluid (HTF). The presence of a TES between the topping and bottoming cycles facilitates the flexible operation of the system, allows the system to compensate for solar energy input fluctuations, and increases capacity factor and dispatchability. A TES with two molten salt tanks (one cold at 200 degrees C and one hot at 370 degrees C) is chosen. The selected bottoming ORC is a superheated recuperative cycle suitable for heat conversion in the operating temperature range of the TES. The whole system is modelled by means of a Python-based software code, and three locations in the Mediterranean area are assumed in order to perform energy-yield analyses: Marseille in France, Priolo Gargallo in Italy and Rabat in Morocco. In each case, the thermal storage that minimizes the levelized cost of energy (LCE) is selected on the basis of the estimated solar radiation and CSP size. The results of the thermodynamic simulations, capital and operational costs assessments and subsidies (feed-in tariffs for biomass and solar electricity available in the Italian framework), allow estimating the global energy conversion efficiency and the investment profitability in the three locations. Sensitivity analyses of the biomass costs, size of PTCs, feed-in tariff and share of cogenerated heat delivered to the load are also performed. The results show that the high investment costs of the CSP section in the proposed size range and hybridization configuration allow investment profitability only in the presence of a dedicated subsidy framework such as the one available in the Italian energy market. In particular, the LCE of the proposed system is around 140 Eur/MWh (with the option to discharge the cogenerated heat) and the IRR is around 15%, based on the Italian electricity subsidy tariffs. The recovery of otherwise discharged heat to match thermal energy demand can significantly increase the investment profitability and compensate the high investment costs of the proposed technology. (C) 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. |
696 | A hybrid solar chimney/photovoltaic thermal system for direct electric power production and water distillation | In this work, modifications are made on the conventional solar chimney system in order to improve its economic viability. The two main modifications are the addition of a photovoltaic (PV) system to increase the system total electricity production, and the installation of water pool to cool the PV panels as well as to allow the system to generate freshwater. A mathematical model is developed to test the feasibility of both the conventional and modified systems. It is found that the total system utilization factor for the conventional system is 0.51%, while the utilization factor for the modified system is 4.37%. Parametric analysis is conducted to determine the variables that lead to the best utilization factor. The best results are achieved when the submerged PV panels are closer to the chimney. Furthermore, the performance of the system is tested, taking into account the weather data of a location in the country of Jordan. The results showed that the proposed system produces 45.35% more electricity annually than a standalone PV system installed in the same location. Moreover, the sensitivity analysis conducted shows that the chimney height is the most significant variable influences the system utilization factor. That is, the higher the chimney, the higher the utilization factor. Finally, the economic analysis concludes that the cost of freshwater produced by the system is 1.60 US$ per cubic meter, which is 46.3% cheaper than what is produced using other similar systems. Also, the economic indices of the proposed system show an improvement from that for the conventional solar chimney. |
697 | In vivo genome-editing screen identifies tumor suppressor genes that cooperate with Trp53 loss during mammary tumorigenesis | Breast cancer is a heterogeneous disease that comprises multiple histological and molecular subtypes. To gain insight into mutations that drive breast tumorigenesis, we describe a pipeline for the identification and validation of tumor suppressor genes. Based on an in vivo genome-wide CRISPR/Cas9 screen in Trp53+/- heterozygous mice, we identified tumor suppressor genes that included the scaffold protein Axin1, the protein kinase A regulatory subunit gene Prkar1a, as well as the proof-of-concept genes Pten, Nf1, and Trp53 itself. Ex vivo editing of primary mammary epithelial organoids was performed to further interrogate the roles of Axin1 and Prkar1a. Increased proliferation and profound changes in mammary organoid morphology were observed for Axin1/Trp53 and Prkar1a/Trp53 double mutants compared to Pten/Trp53 double mutants. Furthermore, direct in vivo genome editing via intraductal injection of lentiviruses engineered to express dual short-guide RNAs revealed that mutagenesis of Trp53 and either Prkar1a, Axin1, or Pten markedly accelerated tumor development compared to Trp53-only mutants. This proof-of-principle study highlights the application of in vivo CRISPR/Cas9 editing for uncovering cooperativity between defects in tumor suppressor genes that elicit mammary tumorigenesis. |
698 | A Quantitative Approach for Using Anticipatory Behavior as a Graded Welfare Assessment | To perform quick assessments, welfare practitioners may focus on specific behavioral indicators of welfare, which can lead to challenges in interpretation. Anticipatory behavior has been suggested as a potentially graded indicator of well-being in animals. However, there are difficulties in assessing variations in this class of behavior quantitatively. Here, we propose an analytical approach for identifying and comparing the intensity of anticipatory behavior across different conditions. We evaluated the changes in the behavior of a sea lion at the San Francisco Zoo before and after daily training sessions, the start time of which had differing degrees of predictability. We show that anticipatory behavior is a complex suite of behaviors that can show multi-directional changes prior to an anticipated event. Additionally, we show that the methods utilized here can distinguish among differing intensities of anticipation directed toward daily husbandry events. We suggest that this approach may be broadly applicable for applying measures of anticipatory behavior as a graded welfare indicator. |
699 | Long-run causal relationship between economic growth, transport energy consumption and environmental quality in Asian countries: Evidence from heterogeneous panel methods | This paper analyzes data from 18 Asian countries, spanning from 1980 to 2017 to determine panel longrun causality between income growth, transport energy consumption and environmental quality. The empirical methodology of this paper considers structural breaks and cross-sectional dependence issues. In this way, our study becomes one of the few energy-GDP studies that address cross-sectional dependence in the unit root, cointegration, causality and elasticity estimation. We attempt to fill the gap in energy literature by using robust estimates in the case of Asian countries. After these methodological advances, a bi-directional long-run Granger causality between transport energy consumption, environment and GDP growth is found. The common correlated effects mean group (CMG) is used to obtain long-run elasticities. It is revealed that a 1% increase in transport energy consumption and GDP growth deteriorate environmental quality by about 0.57% and 0.46% respectively in Asian countries. Furthermore, the magnitude of elasticities varies from country to country. The empirical findings add new dimensions in energy-efficient technologies in the transport sector that positively affect economic growth without compromising environmental quality. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.