Background: The biosynthesis of citric acid (CA) with Aspergillus niger as a carrier is influenced by the morphology of the mycelium, which depends on the morphogenesis-related genes. Methods: To study the effect of chitin content on morphogenesis and fermentation performance, we used RNA interference to knockdown chitin synthase C (chsC) and chitin synthase activator (chs3) to obtaine the single-gene mutant strains A. niger chs3 and chsC, as well as the double mutant A. niger chs3C. Results: The CA fermentation performance of the two single mutants was significantly higher than that of the double mutant. We determined certein characteristics of CA high-yielding strain fermentation pellets; the mutant A.niger chs3-4 exhibited greater CA production potential than that of the WT strain in scale-up fermentation. In addition, when chsC alone was silenced, there was very little change in chs3 mRNA levels, whereas those of chsC were significantly reduced when just chs3 was silenced. As this may be because of a synergistic effect between chsC and chs3. Conclusion: This study is the first application of a separation and combination strategy of chitin synthase and chitin synthase activator and it provides new insights into the method for the morphological study of A.niger fermentation and the interaction of homologous genes.

Personal identity documents (IDs) are used for identity verification by many services in the real world. Recent research includes identity document verification using only an image of the document obtained from a mobile phone camera allowing verification procedures to be automatic and remote. Literature shows promising results for verification of standard IDs although the problem of verifying non-standard IDs such as student identity cards remains less explored. Identity verification pipeline often requires information matching , a non-trivial problem in case of non-standard identity cards, lacking in other literature. In this study, we describe a complete system utilizing deep learning methods to verify student identity cards from images captured using a mobile phone camera. Other contributions of this study include a method to correct skew in images using a convolutional neural network, use of state-of-the-art models for text extraction, comparison between algorithms applicable to various stages of the system and a customized fuzzy string-matching algorithm for information verification. This system evaluates an ID card in 2.31s and achieves an F1 score of 0.90054, G-Mean of 0.89442, and average precision of 0.95 in detecting improper ID cards. The system achieves superior performance in verifying student IDs, a type of non-standard IDs. The study also highlights several enhancements and open problems for improving verification.

This paper deals with the periodic boundary value problem u^”+ρ^2 u=g(t)f(u),0 0 is a constant satisfying ρ≠2nπ/T,n=1,2,… and the associated Green’s function changes sign when ρ>π/T. The existence and multiplicity results for average-positive solutions are established by using the fixed point index theory of cone mapping.

ECMO is a selectively available therapeutic option, generally at a large-size referral healthcare system. In a single-center experience of use of veno-venous ECMO for COVID-19 ARDS in a medium-size healthcare system during the pandemic, West and colleagues in their study have convincingly demonstrated that ECMO can become a broadly available therapeutic option without compromising quality.

This work brings a one-dimensional logistic harvesting model with Allee effect to the time-varying framework. This new framework is more sober than the autonomous version of the system because it; the framework, permits all environment-dependent coefficients to depend on time. Based on these coefficients, we derive sets of conditions that drive population to “mathematical” extinction. More precisely, we investigate various local and global stability notions including uniform stability, attractivity, asymptotic stability and the (uniform) exponential stability.

Recently, several research articles have investigated the existence of solution of dynamical systems with fractional-order and as well as expounded controllability. Nevertheless, very little attention has been given to observability of such dynamical systems. In the present work, we explore the outcomes of controllability and observability regarding a differential system of fractional order with input delay. Laplace and inverse Laplace transforms along with the Mittage-Leffler matrix function are applied to the proposed dynamical system in Caputo's sense and obtain a general solution in the form of an integral equation. Then we set out conditions for the controllability of the underlying model, regarding the linear case. We then expound controllability conditions for the nonlinear case with the aid of fixed point theorem of Schaefer and the Arzola-Ascoli theorem. After converting the problem considered to a fixed point problem, we prove the observability of the linear case using the observability Grammian matrix. The necessary and sufficient conditions, for the nonlinear case, are investigated with the help of the Banach contraction mapping theorem. Finally, we add some examples to elaborate our work.

A document by Xinjing Wang. Click on the document to view its contents.

In this paper, we mainly study the random sampling stability for signals in a weighted reproducing kernel subspace of $L_\nu^p(\mathbb{R}^d)$ without the additional requirement that the kernel function has symmetry. The sampling set is independently and randomly drawn from a general probability distribution over $\mathbb{R}^d$. Based on the frame characterization of weighted reproducing kernel subspaces, we first approximate the weighted reproducing kernel space by a finite dimensional subspace on any bounded domains. Then, we prove that the random sampling stability holds with high probability for all signals in weighted reproducing kernel subspaces whose energy concentrate on a cube when the sampling size is large enough.

We consider the following X-ray free electron lasers Schr\”{o}dinger equation \begin{equation*} (i\nabla-A)^2u+V(x)u-\frac{\mu}{|x|} u=\left(\frac{1}{|x|}*|u|^2\right) u-K(x)|u|^{q-2} u, \,\, x\in \mathbb{R}^3, \end{equation*} where $A\in L_{loc}^2(\mathbb{R}^3,\mathbb{R}^3)$ denotes the magnetic potential such that the magnetic field $B=\text{curl} \, A$ is $\mathbb{Z}^{3}$-periodic, $\mu\in \mathbb{R}$, $K \in L^{\infty}\left(\mathbb{R}^3\right)$ is $\mathbb{Z}^{3}$ -periodic and non-negative, $q\in(2,4)$. Using the variational method, based on a profile decomposition of the Cerami sequence in $H^1_A\left(\mathbb{R}^3\right)$, we obtain the existence of the ground state solution for suitable $\mu\geq0$. When $\mu<0$ is small, we also obtain the non-existence. Furthermore, we give a description for the asymptotic behaviour of the ground states as $\mu \to 0^+$.

Introduction: Coronary artery disease is high-risk comorbidity of COVID-19 infection. Non-elective coronary artery revascularization in COVID-19 patients carries substantial risk. Therefore, it is essential to understand the risk factors and outcomes fully. This study aims to evaluate the prognosis of Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG) Surgery in patients with COVID-19. Materials and methods: This retrospective cohort study assesses 171 patients who underwent urgent and emergent CABG in Tehran Heart Center from March 2020 to September 2021. The patients were allocated to cases and controls based on COVID-19 infection status. Demographic and clinical features, alongside the complications and outcomes, were compared between the two groups. Results: According to diagnostic criteria, 62 patients were diagnosed with COVID 19 (Case), and 109 patients had no COVID diagnosis (Control). Regarding the demographics and risk factors, hypertension was more prevalent among patients with COVID 19 (64.5% compared to 43.1% p-value= 0.007). Length of hospital stay, ventilation time, and ICU stay time were significantly higher in patients infected with COVID 19. Post Operative complications, including stroke, atrial fibrillation, pleural effusion, blood transfusion, and Inotrope use, were significantly higher in the case group. Mortality rates were also higher in COVID-19 patients with an Odds ratio of 1.53; however, this difference is not statistically significant (p-value 0.44, 95%CI= 0.50-4.01). Conclusion: COVID-19 is associated with a significantly higher hospital stay, ventilation time, and ICU stay. Mortality rates are also higher, albeit insignificantly. Various postoperative complications are also higher with COVID-19.

Long-time integration technique is an effective way of improving target detection performance for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in the passive bistatic radar (PBR) field, while range migration (RM) and Doppler frequency migration (DFM) may have a major effect on the integration capability as a result of target maneuverability. This letter proposed an innovative long-time coherent integration approach, regarded as Continuous Radon-matched filtering process (CRMFP), for low-observable UAV target in PBR. It not only mitigates the RM by collaborative research in range and velocity dimensions but also compensates the DFM and ensures the coherent integration through the matched filtering process (MFP). Real-life data following detailed analysis verify that the proposed method can overcome the Doppler mismatch influence and acquire comparable detection performance.

The stemflow may wash canopy-dwelling metazoans to the litter and soils below; however, metazoans transported by stemflow have been typically ignored in past research. In fact, the visual presence of metazoans in stemflow collection bins was reported as “contamination.” Thus, we know little about these organisms’ transfer from plant canopies to the surface. To investigate this topic, we monitored metazoan concentrations and composition within stemflow that drained from 8 urban tree species over 12 months. Metazoan concentration and composition in stemflow were also analyzed with respect to tree canopy and bark traits to assess whether, or to what extent, canopy metazoan dispersal was affected by canopy structure. Tree structural traits studied here, include bark texture, stem diameter at breast height (D) and canopy height-to-width ratio (H:W). These traits were sorted into three classes: (1) furrowed-, flaky/exfoliating- and smooth-bark texture; (2) <10, 10-20 and >20cm D; and (3) <1, 1-2 and >2 H:W. Analysis of 288 samples found 1,307 individuals distributed into 7 classes (16 orders), and one organism at phylum level. There were considerable variations in metazoans’ density [ind L -1] in stemflow, ranging from 1.0 to 16.9 ind.L stemflow −1. Variability across individual trees was high across species, but individual trees with the highest metazoan stemflow density and flux were flaky-exfoliating-barked individuals in the largest D size class with moderate-to-high canopy. On the other hand, based on trait groups across all individuals, higher stemflow metazoan density and flux was generally observed in smooth-bark trees in largest D and H:W classes.

Legged robots have received extensive attention due to their strong ability to adapt to complex terrain. The multi-link mechanism has great flexibility of motion and has been greatly applied in the design of the leg structure of the legged robot. To utilize the benefit, a novel leg mechanism of legged robot with two degree of freedom (DoF) based on nine-bar linkage is proposed. The geometric mathematical equation of the nine-bar mechanism is established by the vector ring method. The displacement equation of the mechanism is deduced by the method of combining coordinate transformation and matrix operation. The displacement, velocity and acceleration of the nine-bar mechanism are easily analyzed by using the matrix method. Thus, the kinematic model of the robot’s leg structure is obtained. The research in this paper can lay the foundation for the kinematic design and dynamic analysis of the mechanism. The matrix motion analysis method adopted by this paper can provide a reference for the motion analysis of similar mechanisms.

Background: Left ventricular (LV) volumes, ejection fraction (EF), and myocardial strain have been shown to be predictive of clinical and subclinical heart disease. Automation of LV functional assessment overcomes difficult technical challenges and complexities, potentially decreasing inter-observer and inter-center variability, reducing analysis times and improving echocardiography laboratory throughput and efficiency. We sought to assess whether a fully automated assessment of LV function could be reliably used in children and young adults. Methods: Fifty normal volunteers (22/28, female/male) were prospectively recruited for clinical research echocardiography. LV volumes, EF, and strain were measured both manually and automatically. An experienced sonographer performed all the manual analysis and recorded the analysis timing. The fully automated analyses were accomplished by 5 groups of observers with different knowledge and medical background (experienced sonographer, high school students, college students, medical students and pediatric cardiologists). AutoLV and AutoSTRAIN (TomTec) were employed for the fully automated LV analysis. The LV volumes, EF, strain, and analysis time were compared between manual and automated methods, and among the 5 groups of observers. Results: Software-determined endocardial border detection was achievable in all subjects. Image quality did not affect the ability of automated programs to record measurements. The analysis times of the experienced sonographer were significantly shorter for AutoLV than biplane Simpson’s method and AutoSTRAIN than manual strain analyses (p<0.001). Strong correlations were seen between conventional EF and AutoLV (r=0.8373), and between conventional three view global longitudinal strain (GLS) and AutoSTRAIN (r=0.9766). The volumes from AutoLV and three view GLS from AutoSTRAIN had strong correlations among different observers regardless of level of expertise. EF from AutoLV analysis had moderately strong correlations among different observers. Conclusion: Automated pediatric LV analysis is feasible in normal hearts. Machine learning-enabled image analysis saves time and produces results that are comparable to traditional methods.

Based on the principle of active anti-wear method, seven metal anti-wear devices of types A through G were designed and numerically evaluated by comparing the erosion distribution of the local water wall surface in this work. The result shows: an approximate vertical triangle structure with an inclined upper surface and a vertical lower surface, is the most ideal structure for reducing the erosion rate. The type G and ash deposition can be combined into this ideal structure. The simulation results based on the type G show that the erosion rate increases correspondingly with the increasing inlet velocity and particle size and is somewhat mitigated by the addition of cohesive particles. The height of the ash deposition zone decreases with decreasing particle diameter and proportion of cohesive particles. The type G is preferred to be tested on the CFB boiler for half a year, and achieved a good anti-wear effect.

Following the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic peak in Ariano Irpino, Campania region (Italy), we tested cattle for the presence of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) on a cattle farm at which, prior to the investigation, 13 of the 20 farmworkers showed COVID-19-like symptoms, and one of them died. Twenty-four cows were sampled to detect SARS-CoV-2. All nasal and rectal swabs and milk samples were negative for SARS-CoV-2 RNA. Of the 24 collected serum samples, 11 were positive for SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein, 14 were positive for SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, and 13 were positive for SARS-COV-2-neutralising antibodies; all samples were negative for Bovine Coronavirus (BCoV), another betacoronavirus. To our knowledge, this is the first report of natural serological evidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in cattle. We hypothesise that this may be a case of reverse zoonosis. However, the role of cattle in SARS-CoV-2 infection and transmission seems to be negligible.

Backgroud: The clinical efficacy and safety of cervical pessary versus cervical cerclage in preventing spontaneous preterm birth remain uncertain. Objectives: To systematically review the clinical efficacy of cervical pessary versus transvaginal cervical cerclage in preventing spontaneous preterm birth caused by cervical shortening. Search Strategy: The Cochrane Library, PubMed, EMbase, WanFang Data, CNKI, VIP Data and CBM Data were electronically searched. Selection Criteria: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and non-randomized controlled trials (non-RCTs, including cohort studies) comparing cervical pessary and transvaginal cervical cerclage in preventing spontaneous preterm birth from the inception of the database to August 2020. Main Results: A total of 9 studies (2 RCTs and 7 non-RCTs) were included, involving 1174 patients with a short cervix in the second trimester (cervical length <25mm), 693 in the cervical pessary group and 481 in the cervical cerclage group. The results of meta-analysis showed that the incidence of preterm premature rupture of the membranes (PPROM) in the cervical pessary group was significantly lower than that in the cervical cerclage group (RR=0.48, 95% CI: 0.35 to 0.67, P<0.00001), and the premature birth rate before 34 weeks in the cervical pessary group was also significantly lower than that in the cervical cerclage group (RR=0.68, 95%CI: 0.51 to 0.89, P<0.006). Conclusion: Compared with transvaginal cervical cerclage, use of a cervical pessary may decrease the risks of PPROM and premature birth before 34 weeks. Given its advantages of easy-to-use and minimal damage, cervical pessary may become a useful preventive intervention that deserves widespread clinical application.

Background Two-dimensional (2D) strain imaging has become an important tool in assessing subclinical myocardial dysfunction in children. However, there are no pediatric reference values for vendor independent strain software. The aim of this study was to estimate 2D strain values in a cohort of healthy children using Tomtec cardiac performance analysis (CPA), a vendor independent software. Methods Transthoracic echocardiograms of healthy pediatric outpatients (0-18yrs) were retrospectively analyzed from the Vanderbilt Pediatric Heart Institute using CPA. Cardiac assessment included global longitudinal strain (GLS), global longitudinal strain rate (GLSR), global circumferential strain (GCS), global circumferential strain rate (GCSR). Mean strain values with standard deviation (SD) are reported. The Wilcoxon rank sum test, linear regression and one-way analysis of variance were used to assess differences among the various groups. Results Among 142 children analyzed, 79 (56%) were male, and the median age was 5.5 (range, 0-18) years. The mean (SD) strain values were GLS -19.3 ± 3.4, GLSR -1.1 ± 0.22; GCS -24.7 ± 4.3, GCSR -1.5 ± 0.28. Age accounted for <8% of variation in GLS, GCS and GSCR. However, for GLSR, there was a statistically significant difference between younger and older age groups with higher GLSR in the younger age group. Age accounted for ~25% of variation in GLSR (R 2 = 0.25, P < 0.001). There were no significant differences in strain based on sex. Conclusion We report normal reference values in healthy children by age for strain using CPA. These values are necessary for the interpretation of 2D strain imaging for both clinical care and research.

Soybean oil is the most consumed oil worldwide due to its cheapness but presented a weak thermo-resistance compared to most other oils used. This study aims to improve the thermo-stability of soybean oil by blending with crude oils. For this, physicochemical and antioxidant parameters of each blended oil were assessed before and after thermal treatment at 170°C for 10h/day for 5 days. The results of binary blended oils indicated that soybean oil mixed with lentisk, sesame, and almond oils (70:30%) manifested the best thermo-stability parameters. The Simplex Lattice Mixture Design applied for these three selected oils indicated that the combination of soybean oil at the proportion of 70% with lentisk oil and sesame oil at proportions of 17.7% and 12.3% respectively was selected as the best blending for maximizing soybean oil properties. Fatty acids analysis by GC/FID technique showed that the level of the degradation of linoleic acid (ω6) and linolenic acid (ω3) after heat treatment was more important in soybean oil than in blended oil. This study demonstrated that the thermo-resistance and nutritional quality of soybean oil were improved by blending with sesame and lentisk oils.

Predicting extreme storm and flood events requires analysis to predict probable rainfall in target years. We present a non-stationary frequency analysis for 6 meteorological stations in Korea and Japan: Gangneung, Kwangju, Pohang, Seoul, Kochi, Iida. Non-stationary analysis results in higher estimated rainfall than stationary analysis for all stations. Increased probable rainfall in Korean stations was higher than in Japanese stations (i.e. Z-values of Korean stations were larger than for Japanese stations). Using rainfall data at the 6 sites with increasing trends, we estimate 3 types of probably predicted rainfall for the target years 2020, 2050 and 2070. According to the results of applicability analysis, in the case of a 100-year return period, the probable rainfall estimated by non-stationary methods has a residual of 1.6~2.5% in Kochi, 11.98~16.01% in Gangneung, 4.3~4.9% in Kwangju, and 3.2~5.3% in Seoul. This study indicates that non-stationary methods provide better results in terms of confidence than stationary methods for representing rainfall with increasing trends. The non-stationary rainfall frequency analysis provided more reasonable and well-directed estimates of probable rainfall for the target year. Results show that non-stationary methods estimate probable rainfall well over short timescales based on linear regression of observed data. Further, the probable rainfall estimator for target years reflects the increasing temporal pattern of rainfall and predicts future rainfall. Results from this study can inform the design of flood prevention approaches and effective hydraulic structures.

The infamous “master manipulators” – intracellular bacteria from the genus Wolbachia – infect a broad range of phylogenetically diverse hosts in terrestrial ecosystems. Wolbachia have important impacts on the ecology and evolution of their hosts with documented effects including induced parthenogenesis, male killing, feminization, and cytoplasmic incompatibility. On the other hand, data on Wolbachia infection in non-terrestrial invertebrates is scarce. Sampling bias and methodological limitations are among the reasons we are unable to detect these bacteria in aquatic organisms. Here we presented a metabarcoding method to detect the co-occurrence of different Wolbachia strains in new, to science, host species: water bears (Tardigrada), freshwater arthropods, and mollusks. In addition, we describe a new Wolbachia strain (supergroup V) and identify a very widespread supergroup A. This supergroup could indicate transinfection and Wolbachia abilities to switch hosts within new environmental conditions, and between hosts that are ecologically connected. Future research should focus on ecological and evolutionary relationships between a new host species and the “master manipulator”.

Predicting range expansion dynamics is challenging for fundamental and applied research, especially if ecological and evolutionary processes occur over similar time scales. We assessed the predictability of evolutionary outcomes in laboratory range expansions of the ciliate Paramecium caudatum. Experimental range core and front treatments were recreated in a predictive mathematical model, parametrized with dispersal and growth data of the 20 founder strains. Short-term evolution from standing genetic variation was driven by selection for dispersal at the front and general selection for growth rate in all treatments. The quantitative match between predicted and observed trait changes was mirrored by genetic divergence between treatments, with the repeated fixation of strains identified as most likely winners in our model. Long-term evolution in range front lines produced a dispersal syndrome (competition - colonisation trade-off). Our work suggests that short-term evolution at range fronts can follow predictable trajectories, based on few key parameters.

The projected climate change for Norway through the 21st century predicts that the temperature will increase by 4.5 OC. Events with heavy rainfall will be more intense and occur more frequently. Rainfloods will increase in magnitude and also occur more frequently. Extreme flooding and heavy rain will significantly impact the sediment dynamics in rivers. In the mountain areas, floods are often associated with erosion, transport and deposition of coarse sediment along the streams. These processes are related to bed load transport and pose a hazard in addition to the elevated water discharge and have to be included in management plans for river basins. This paper studies the bed load delivery from sources that contribute the most to the sediment budget in the Gudbrandsdalslågen river basin during the large magnitude floods in 2011 and 2013. More than 100 debris slides and debris flow were triggered in the tributary river Veikleåi by the heavy rain and snowmelt during these floods. The volume of the contribution from debris flows and erosion and deposition of the river bed was determined by subtracting digital elevation models acquired during repeated airborne LIDAR surveys. In the river Dørja the supply of sediment from a number of debris flows caused extensive aggradation and channel changes. In their new position, lateral erosion by these channels triggered slides on the adjacent slopes. The contributing volumes of debris flows, lateral erosion and river-bed erosion and deposition were determined from the LIDAR surveys. Relations obtained from studies of sediment transport in modern glacier rivers were used to obtain estimates of the ratio of bed load vs suspended load derived from the Pleistocene moraine deposits. Several monitoring stations using conventional methods for measuring bed load and suspended load recorded very large volumes of sediment delivery during both of the extreme floods. Implications for the future development of mitigation are discussed.

In this paper, a backward problem for a nonlinear time-fractional diffusion equation in an axis-symmetric cylinder has been considered. Under some assumptions, we prove the existence and uniqueness of the solution to the nonlinear problem. The ill-posedness of the backward problem is established and we obtain the error estimates by a generalized quasi-boundary value regularization method.