In this paper, we show that any displacement of a plate is the sum of a Kirchhoff-Love displacement and two terms, one for shearing and one for warping. Then, the plate is loaded in order to obtain that the bending and shearing contribute the same order of magnitude to the fiber rotations.

Introduction: Substance abuse has been recognized as a national problem in which poisoning with pharmaceutical drugs, opioids and alcohols is a common problem in Iran. Due to the lack of a comprehensive information system related to Substance abuse, despite the systematic information in health services, and to achieve this goal, the purpose of this research was to develop a registry system for substance abuse poisoning in - Urmia University of Medical Sciences. Materials and methods: This research is a practical development study that was done in 4 phases. In the first phase, minimum data set (MDS) of the system were determined. In the second phase, the registration system was designed. The third phase includes the implementation of the system, and finally, the system was evaluated by QUIS questionnaire. Findings: A total of 58 data elements in 6 classes were recognized as essential for this system from the point of view of experts. The system was implemented on the ASP.NET platform using C# language and SQL Server database in the poisoning department of Taleghani Hospital in Urmia. The evaluation of usability of the system showed score obtained in the 6 main categories were in set of terms of the system 8.52, screen 8.36, ability to learn 8.8, overall functionality 8.04, user interface 7.98, and the overall interaction is 7.73 respectively. Conclusion: Considering the capabilities of the system for registering poisonings caused by drug abuse, it seems necessary to implement this system in the form of a national network, in order to make the necessary interventions to control drug abuse while using resources efficiently.

Global changes such as elevated carbon dioxide [eCO2] and warming have been described as the most serious environmental threats to our planet. Elevated CO2 may have important consequences on forested ecosystems. Although, the impact is worse in dryland ecosystems as atmospheric changes increase aridity and change soil fertility, but it remains unknown. The study aiming at understanding the effects of eCO2 and its consequences on Hashab (Acacia senegal) as a dryland C3 tree species with substantial ecological and economic roles. We quantitatively reviewed and discussed over 50 papers on the literature about CO2 elevation (eCO2) effects on C3 plant and ecosystems to understand how eCO2 will affect dryland C3 species of sub-Saharan Africa. We found in the literature that, for C3 species generally eCO2 increases photosynthesis rate and reduces stomatal conductance but with increased plant leaves’ area leading to release water. Water loss due to stomatal conductance is unavoidable in dryland ecosystems. More seeds can be produced in eCO2 but with mostly correlated seed low quality which may limit seedling recruitment. Seedlings, as the most responsive stage to eCO2, may respond by enhancing growth and biomass production or experience photosynthesis down regulation and/or photorespiration. The results suggested that A. senegal, as a C3 and leguminous species will respond to eCO2 by two scenarios; 1) positively through enhancing growth and biomass or; 2) a negative photosynthetic acclimation that could be due to physiological dysfunction that resulted in metabolic compulsions. The responses need to be further investigated under different ecological conditions to feedback the global changes and ecosystem monitoring including changes of species composition is recommended.

Transseptal puncture is a fundamental learning step for a young electrophysiologist. New technologies have been developed to reduce the complexity of the procedure and improve safety. One of them is AcQCross™️Qx. Our aim is to discuss our procedural approach with this new technology, during cryoballoon pulmonary vein isolation.

Cerebral small vessel disease(CSVD) is the most common cause of vascular cognitive impairment, affecting all levels of the cerebral vascular system. It mainly affects the structure and function of arterioles and capillaries, resulting in the decrease of cerebral perfusion. Due to the aging of the population, the incidence of CSVD is increasing, but the root cause of CSVD is not completely clear. Magnetic resonance imaging confirmed that the destruction of blood-brain barrier (BBB) is an important feature of CSVD. In physiological state, the main function of BBB is to establish a controlled environment to maintain relatively constant levels of hormones and nutrients in the brain. At the same time, BBB can also block or defend against the invasion of brain toxins or pathogens that may be caused by circulation, so BBB is an important anatomical and biochemical barrier of the central nervous system. This review focuses on the main role and potential mechanism of tight junction (TJ) of BBB in cerebral microvascular disease.

Our sensory system is able to build a unified perception of the world, which although rich, is limited and inaccurate. Sometimes, features from different objects are erroneously combined. At the neural level, the role of the parietal cortex in feature integration is well-known (Humphreys, 2016; Shafritz et al., 2002). However, the brain dynamics underlying correct and incorrect feature integration are less clear. To explore the temporal dynamics of feature integration, we studied the modulation of different frequency bands in trials in which feature integration was correct or incorrect. Participants responded to the color of a shape target, surrounded by distractors. A calibration procedure ensured that accuracy was around 70% in each participant. To explore the role of expectancy in feature integration, we introduced an unexpected feature to the target in the last blocks of trials. Results demonstrated the contribution of several frequency bands to feature integration both pre- and post-stimulus. During the pre-stimulus period, alpha power was higher for illusions compared to hits. After stimulus onset, alpha, beta, and gamma-band power was reduced for hits compared to illusions. Moreover, gamma power was overall larger during the experiment for participants who were aware of the unexpected target presented during the last blocks of trials (as compared to unaware participants). These results demonstrate that feature integration is a complex process that can go wrong at different stages of information processing and is influenced by top-down expectancies.

Hypnotizability is a psychophysiological trait measured by scales and associated with several differences including interoceptive accuracy and the morpho-functional characteristics of interoception-related brain regions. The aim of the study was to assess whether the amplitude of the heartbeat evoked cortical potential (HEP), a correlate of interoceptive accuracy, differs in participants with low (lows) and high (highs) hypnotizability scores (assessed by the Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale, form A) before and after the induction of hypnosis. ECG and EEG were monitored in 16 highs and 15 lows during an experimental session including open eyes baseline (B), closed eyes relaxation (R), hypnotic induction (IND), neutral hypnosis (NH), post session baseline (Post). No significant difference was observed between groups and conditions in autonomic variables. The HEP amplitude was lower in highs than in lows at the right parietal site, likely due to hypnotizability-related differences in the functional connection between the right insula and parietal cortex. It increased in highs and decreased in lows across the session, possibly due to the highs’ preeminently internally directed attention and to the lows’ possible disengagement from the task. Since interoception is involved in several cognitive-emotional functions, its hypnotizability-related differences may contribute to the variability of experience and behavior in daily life.

Room-temperature phosphorescence (RTP) of purely organic materials is easily quenched with unexpected purposes because the excited triplet state is extremely susceptible to external stimuli. How to stabilize the RTP property of purely organic luminogens is still challenging and considered as the bottleneck in the further advancement of the bottom-up approach. Here, we describe a gated strategy that can effectively harness RTP by employing complexation/dissociation with proton. Due to the order-disorder transition orientation of intermolecular packing, the RTP of triazine derivative Br-TRZ will easily vanish upon mechanical force. Impressively, by enhancing its intramolecular charge transfer effect, the protonated Br-TRZ stubbornly possesses an obvious RTP under external grinding, whatever in the ordered or disordered intermolecular arrangement state. Consequently, the “Lock” gate of RTP was achieved in the protonated Br-TRZ molecule. Combined with theoretical calculation analysis, the enhanced charge transfer effect can narrow the singlet−triplet energy gap significantly, and stabilize the RTP property of triazine derivative sequentially. Furthermore, the locked RTP can be tuned via proton and counterions repeatedly and show excellent reversibility. This gated RTP concept provide an effective strategy for stabilizing the RTP emission of purely organic systems.

A document by Frank Annie. Click on the document to view its contents.

Previous studies have demonstrated the influences of facial emotionality on attentional and perceptual processing when socially anxious individuals perceive threatening information from facial expressions. However, it remains unclear whether and how positive expressions may also affect the attention and perception of socially anxious individuals. This event-related potential (ERP) study addresses this issue and examines the temporal dynamics of electrophysiological responses to negative and positive faces in individuals with high (HSA; n = 56) or low (LSA; n = 47) social anxiety in a dot-probe task. Four face pairs (neutral-neutral, angry-neutral, happy-neutral, and angry-happy) were presented to probe the influences of positive and negative emotionality. The behavioural results showed a greater negative bias in reaction times for the LSA group than the HSA group when angry-happy face pairs were presented. Our ERP results showed an enhanced N170 effect for the LSA group in comparison to the HSA group when emotional faces were presented in angry-neutral, happy-neutral, and angry-happy face pairs. Moreover, greater N2pc effects on emotional faces were found in the HSA group when angry-neutral and happy-neutral face pairs were presented. However, this was not true for the LSA group. No N2pc effect was found when both positive and negative faces were presented simultaneously. We did not find any significant P1 effect. Together, our results showed that facial emotionality influenced facial processing and attention bias in relation to social anxiety. Socially anxious individuals perceived less emotional facial information and had attention biases towards both negative and positive faces.

Proper and effective employee training is vital for a company’s success. Training of employees would increase a company’s performance when assigned to the right people. This study proposes an integrated model to evaluate employees and choose the right candidate for the training program. Additionally, the clustering stage gives essential information regarding the number of people assigned. The flexibility of the proposed methodology is also essential when there is a constraint limiting the number of assignments. The objective of the proposed study is to suggest an expert system for the human resources department of a company. The proposed model has three stages, namely Delphi, INV-AHP, and FCM. The input of the model are expert opinions about possible criteria, values of each candidate’s assessment, and bi-comparison of agreed criteria. Outputs are weights, members of each cluster representing possible candidates. To the best of our research integrated approach of the methods are first in the literature. MCDM approach in training assignment is also new in literature. The proposed Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) approach focuses on deciding the correct number and right employees for training assignments. The proposed model also allows the integration of constraints such as the number of people assigned. The model can define the possible number of people to be assigned when needed, such as budgeting requirements. The application is performed in a real business. The feedback received from the decision-makers showed that the proposed method would apply to additional areas, such as recruitment and promotion.

With the advancement of society and people's knowledge of oral health, the prevention of oral illnesses such as dental caries, periodontal disease, oral cancer, oral mucosal disease, salivary gland disease, and so on has become the primary focus of current health status and treatment. Although treatment for these diseases has focused on removing lesions or inhibiting progression, early detection has always been the focus of clinical research. And the non-invasive diagnosis is now the primary goal of clinical diagnosis. Meanwhile, the electrochemical approach can satisfy this need while also achieving a speedy and reliable diagnosis, giving patients a more comfortable option. And noninvasive detection of specific diseases can be achieved by detecting markers carried in body fluids. Therefore, in the context of disease, pathophysiological progress and electrochemical-assisted diagnosis form a close relationship, providing a basis for the detection of oral disease related indicators. As a result, this review comprehensively summarizes the detection and diagnosis of common oral diseases using electrochemical sensing technology and provides important insights for the development of electrochemical biosensors for the early detection of common oral diseases.

This study aimed to look into the impact of educational practices on the reading and writing skills of learners, with a specific focus on the gaps and bonds in EFL learning while communication skills carried follow-ups. The study employed a mixed methodology, which embraced communication contexts placed in the teaching process, and self-perceptions of the participants in a multidimensional communication axis to collect data via surveys, observational forms and exploratory statistics. The results indicate that while there is a stable level of variation in terms of reading and writing achievement, there are setbacks in certain areas such as fill-in-the-blank questions in complex activities and sentence rewriting tasks. Additionally, the study found that providing students with picture clues can improve their performance. The study also suggests that blending both reading and writing skills in activities can lead to large linkages and improvements in performance.

Analysis of human emotions from multimodal data for making critical decisions is an emerging area of research. The evolution of deep learning algorithms has improved the potential for extracting value from multimodal data. However, these algorithms do not often explain how certain outputs from the data are produced. This study focuses on the risks of using black-box deep learning models for critical tasks, such as emotion recognition, and describes how human understandable interpretations of these models are extremely important. This study utilizes one of the largest multimodal datasets available - CMU-MOSEI. Many researchers have used the pre-extracted features provided by the CMU Multimodal SDK with black-box deep learning models making it difficult to interpret the contribution of individual features. This study describes the implications of individual features from various modalities (audio, video, text) in Context-Aware Multimodal Emotion Recognition. It describes the process of curating reduced feature models by using the GradientSHAP XAI method. These reduced models with highly contributing features achieve comparable and even better results compared to their corresponding all feature models as well as the baseline model GraphMFN proving that carefully selecting significant features can help improve the model robustness and performance and in turn make it trustworthy.

In this letter, the performance of reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS)-assisted non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) system is studied in the cooperative scenarios, where the quality of the received signals for the far user is enhanced by the assistance of the near user. We respectively derive the exact closed-form expressions for the outage probabilities of near user and far user under Nakagami-m fading. Further, to give more insights into the system performance, the asymptotic outage probability is obtained at the high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) regime. The results show that the near user can achieve a diversity order of m, while the far user can achieve a diversity order relating to a and m, where m denotes the shape parameter of Nakagami-m distribution, and a is a function of m and the number of reflecting elements N. Simulation result are provided to verity the theoretical analysis.

Nowadays Replacing traditional energy sources such as fossil fuels, the burning of coal with renewable energy is no longer a secret. Research in the field of renewable energy, specifically solar energy, has become the main focus, as it is available abundantly. The key point in the field of solar energy is increasing the electrical power output, further increasing the efficiency of the solar panels. Various methods to improve the existing solar panel output are available, namely, using solar tracker for the panel, an automatic cleaning system for the solar panels. Lastly, as most of the sunlight falling on to the panel is reflected back to the atmosphere, the method of using an antireflecting coating has also gained importance in increasing the efficiency of the solar panels. Nanoparticles have wide application in various fields due to its small size. In this setup, the nanocomposite material titanium dioxide with green synthesis method is used to increase the material efficiency [1]. Titanium dioxide nanoparticle is the most abundant compound on our planet and it has distinct physical and chemical properties along with greater thermal stability, bright, and high refractive index (n = 2.4). Green synthesis is a 90% natural process using natural products such as roots, flowers, petals, fruit peels, or leaves to prepare Titanium Dioxide (TiO2) nano particles. Here, flower petals are used as a natural product to prepare the coating. By applying this coating with spraying techniques, it increased the power output by an average of 1 watt in comparison with an uncoated panel.

A document by Aldo Pappalepore. Click on the document to view its contents.

Background: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a rare tumor. The approved systemic treatment of MPM is limited to chemotherapy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the economic efficacy of an NIV plus IPI regimen for the treatment of MPM in China. Methods: The data estimated were from a multicenter randomized phase III trial that showed an improved survival benefit in patients with MPM treated with a NIV+IPI combination regimen. A partitioned survival model was constructed to estimate the incremental cost–benefit ratio (ICER) from the perspective of Chinese society. The uncertainty in the model is solved by one-way certainty and probabilistic sensitivity analysis. Results: Our base case analysis showed that the total costs of treatment increased from $28,833.84 to $236,590.48 with the NIV+IPI combination regimen versus platinum plus pemetrexed chemotherapy. Treatment with NIV+IPI combination therapy was associated with an increase in effectiveness of 0.08 QALYs from 1.08 QALYs to 1.16 QALYs. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was $2,596,958.00/QALY, with a 0% probability of being cost-effective at a WTP threshold of $36,203.87/QALY. Cost changes associated with grade 3-4 AE management, tests used, or hospitalization costs had little effect on the ICER values predicted by sensitivity analysis. Conclusions: Taken together, the results of this study suggest that the combination of NIV plus IPI is not a cost-effective option from the perspective of Chinese payers as a first-line treatment option for MPM patients in China. Appropriate drug donation programs and social assistance are necessary.

Annotation. In the conditions of transformation and digitalization of the public health system, the question of using medical management does not arise. Doctors and leaders of different levels discuss on the appropriate platforms what kind of management in the healthcare system and the management of medical institutions should be. The authors consider it expedient to use strategic tools for managing this type of organization, including their organizational and financial changes. Management involves not only the adaptation of the organization to the environment, but also a directed influence on the environment, its change and the creation of conditions for the implementation of the strategy and the achievement of goals, especially in a system where “money follows the patient”. The main urgent tasks of the healthcare system today are to ensure the availability and improvement of the quality of medical care, to ensure the economic efficiency of the medical services provided. The National Health Service of Ukraine is a unique mechanism for the implementation of the tasks set and the modernization of healthcare. Medical management must study and research the ever-changing trends in healthcare. In modern conditions, the healthcare management system should be provided with the attributes of organizational flexibility, be self-sufficient, be able to promptly and actively respond to changes in the external environment, which will ensure its competitiveness in the medical services market.

RESUMO: As primeiras pesquisas com Línguas de Sinais Indígenas (LSI) surgiram a partir dos estudos sobre a LSI Urubu-Ka"apor. Desde então, pesquisas sobre diferentes línguas têm sido realizadas e mostrado a realidade dos indígenas surdos que vivem nessas comunidades. Dessa feita, o presente estudo objetiva investigar as semelhanças e diferenças fonológicas dos sinais de duas Línguas: Língua Terena de Sinais (LTS) e Língua Brasileira de Sinais (Libras). As línguas de sinais são constituídas por unidades mínimas denominadas de parâmetros fonológicos, na Libras, há cinco parâmetros: configuração de mão, movimento, locação, orientação e expressão não manual (QUADROS E KARNOPP, 2004). Por sua vez, os estudos preliminares da LTS demonstram que os parâmetros da Libras também estão presentes na LTS (SOARES, 2018). Para constituição do corpus, selecionamos os sinais para comparação a partir do trabalho de Soares (2018) sobre a LTS e contrastamos com os sinais da Libras a partir de um dicionário on-line. Como resultados, apontamos que o parâmetro fonológico que teve maior divergência nos sinais foi a configuração de mão, sendo esse, um o principal responsável em revelar a iconicidade do sinal e assim, a LTS e a Libras revelam formas diferentes de significar culturalmente determinados conceitos. Portanto, concluímos que a LTS e a Libras são línguas que apresentam poucas diferenças fonológicas, estando presentes os mesmos parâmetros em ambas as línguas e que, as disparidades presentes nessas línguas podem se dá em decorrência do fator tempo de existência, que faz com que a LTS apresente sinais mais expansivos em comparação a Libras, que é característica de línguas de sinais jovens. PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Fonologia. Língua Terena de Sinais. Língua Brasileira de Sinais.

Adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) have important applications in basic research, especially in fat transplantation. Some studies have found that three-dimensional (3D) spheroids formed by mesenchymal stem cells have enhanced therapeutic potential. However, the fundamental basics of this effect are still being discussed. In this study, ADSCs were harvested from subcutaneous adipose tissues and 3D spheroids were formed by the automatic aggregation of ADSCs in a non-adhesive 6-well plate. Oxygen glucose deprivation (OGD) was used to simulate the transplantation microenvironment. We found that 3D culture of ADSCs triggered cell autophagy. After inhibiting autophagy by Chloroquine, the rates of apoptosis were increased. When the 3D ADSC-spheroids were re-planked, the number of senescent ADSCs decreased, and the proliferation ability was promoted. In addition, there were more cytokines secreted by 3D ADSC-spheroids including VEGF, IGF-1 and TGF-β. After adding the conditioned medium with human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), 3D ADSC-spheroids were more likely to promote migration, and tube formation, stimulating the formation of new blood vessels. Fat grafting experiments in nude mice also showed that 3D ADSC-spheroids enhanced survival and neovascularization of fat grafts. These results suggested that 3D spheroids culturing of ADSCs can increase the therapeutic potential in fat transplantation.

Rationale: Metronidazole benzoate is widely used to treat a variety of infections. The presence of elemental impurities in drug products harms the normal physiological system without any therapeutic effects. To ensure the quality and safety of benzoyl metronidazole, a method for the simultaneous determination of 7 elemental impurities in metronidazole benzoate needs to be established. Methods: Ge was used as the internal standard element to compensate for matrix effects. The samples were processed by direct dissolution and measured by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry in kinetic energy discrimination(KED) mode. The method was validated by USP Pharmacopoeia chapter <233> Elemental Impurities-Procedure. Results: The correlation coefficients of the standard curves of 7 elemental impurities were not less than 0.999. The limits of detection were in the range of 0.0010~0.0487 μg/g and the limits of quantification were in the range of 0.0280 ~ 0.0306 μg/g. The recoveries were within the range of 76.5%~119.4% and the precision RSD(%) was 0.39%~1.59%(n=6). The contents of 7 elemental impurities in the three batches of metronidazole benzoate were originally below their limits and less than 30% of the control threshold, in accordance with the ICH Q3D guidelines. Conclusion: This newly developed and validated inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometric method for estimating elemental impurities(As, Cd, Hg, Pb, V, Vo, and Ni) in metronidazole benzoate was within the permitted limit and suitable for routine use.

RATIONALE: Selective derivatization of peptide N-terminus with 4-formyl-benzenesulfonic acid (FBSA) enables chemically activated fragmentation in ESI+/- (positive and negative ion mode) under charge reduction conditions. Overlapped positive and negative tandem mass spectra pinpoint b-ions making the assignment of b-ion series fragments easy and accurate. METHODS: We developed a FBSA-peptide microwave assisted derivatization procedure. Derivatized and non-derivatized bovine serum albumin tryptic peptides and insulin non-tryptic peptide were compared after MS/MS analysis in positive and negative ion mode. High-quality dataset of sulfonated b-ions obtained in negative tandem mass spectra of singly charged FBSA-peptides were matched to detected b-ions in positive MS/MS spectra. Moreover, negative spectra signals were converted and matched against y-ions in positive tandem mass spectra to identify complete peptide sequences. RESULTS: The FBSA derivatization procedure produced a significantly improved MS/MS dataset (populated by high-intensity signals of b- and y-ions) in comparison to commonly used N-terminal sulfonation reagents. Undesired side reactions do not occur and the procedure reduces the derivatization time. It was found that b-ions comprise 15% and 13% of all fragment ions generated in positive and negative ion mode, respectively. High visibility of b-ion series in negative ion mode can be attributed to the N-terminal sulfonation which had no effect on the production of b-ion series in positive ion mode. CONCLUSIONS: The FBSA derivatization and de novo sequencing approach outlined here provides a reliable method for accurate peptide sequence assignment. Increased production of the b-ions in positive and negative ion mode greatly improves peak assignment and thus enables accurate sequence reconstruction. Implementation of the named methodology would improve the quality of de novo sequencing data and reduce the number of misinterpreted spectra.

A document by Lei Hu. Click on the document to view its contents.