Search results for: distribution pattern

Authors: J. Fryt, K. Pietras, T. Smolen

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Intergenerational similarities in values may be effect of value transmission within families or socio-cultural trends prevailing at a specific point in time. According to salience hypothesis, salient family values may be transmitted more frequently. On the other hand, many value studies reveal that generational shift from social values (conservation and self-transcendence) to more individualistic values (openness to change and self-enhancement) suggest that value transmission and value change are two different processes. The first aim of our study was to describe similarities and differences in values of young women and their parents. The second aim was to determine which value similarities may be due to transmission within families. Ninety seven Polish women aged 19-25 and both their mothers and fathers filled in the Portrait Value Questionaire. Intergenerational similarities in values between women were found in strong preference for benevolence, universalism and self-direction as well as low preference for power. Similarities between younger women and older men were found in strong preference for universalism and hedonism as well as lower preference for security and tradition. Young women differed from older generation in strong preference for stimulation and achievement as well as low preference for conformity. To identify the origin of intergenerational similarities (whether they are the effect of value transmission within families or not), we used the comparison between correlations of values in family dyads (mother-daughter, father-daughter) and distribution of correlations in random intergenerational dyads (random mother-daughter, random father-daughter) as well as peer dyads (random daughter-daughter). Values representing conservation (security, tradition and conformity) as well as benevolence and power were transmitted in families between women. Achievement, power and security were transmitted between fathers and daughters. Similarities in openness to change (self-direction, stimulation and hedonism) and universalism were not stronger within families than in random intergenerational and peer dyads. Taken together, our findings suggest that despite noticeable generation shift from social to more individualistic values, we can observe transmission of parents’ salient values such as security, tradition, benevolence and achievement.

Keywords: value transmission, value change, intergenerational similarities, differences in values

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Authors: Anna Krukowska, Tomasz Klimczuk, Adriana Zaleska-Medynska

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Photoactive materials have attracted attention due to their potential application in the degradation of environmental pollutants to non-hazardous compounds in an eco-friendly route. Among semiconductor photocatalysts, tantalates such as potassium tantalate (KTaO3) is one of the excellent functional photomaterial. However, tantalates-based materials are less active under visible-light irradiation, the enhancement in photoactivity could be improved with the modification of opto-eletronic properties of KTaO3 by doping rare earth metal (Er) and further photodeposition of noble metal nanoparticles (Pt). Inclusion of rare earth element in orthorhombic structure of tantalate can generate one high-energy photon by absorbing two or more incident low-energy photons, which convert visible-light and infrared-light into the ultraviolet-light to satisfy the requirement of KTaO3 photocatalysts. On the other hand, depositions of noble metal nanoparticles on the surface of semiconductor strongly absorb visible-light due to their surface plasmon resonance, in which their conducting electrons undergo a collective oscillation induced by electric field of visible-light. Furthermore, the high dispersion of Pt nanoparticles, which will be obtained by photodeposition process is additional important factor to improve the photocatalytic activity. The present work is aimed to study the effect of photocatalytic process of the prepared Er-doped KTaO3 and further incorporation of Pt nanoparticles by photodeposition. Moreover, the research is also studied correlations between photocatalytic activity and physico-chemical properties of obtained Pt/Er-KTaO3 samples. The Er-doped KTaO3 microcomposites were synthesized by a hydrothermal method. Then photodeposition method was used for Pt loading over Er-KTaO3. The structural and optical properties of Pt/Er-KTaO3 photocatalytic were characterized using scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), volumetric adsorption method (BET), UV-Vis absorption measurement, Raman spectroscopy and luminescence spectroscopy. The photocatalytic properties of Pt/Er-KTaO3 microcomposites were investigated by degradation of phenol in aqueous phase as model pollutant under visible and ultraviolet-light irradiation. Results of this work show that all the prepared photocatalysis exhibit low BET surface area, although doping of the bare KTaO3 with rare earth element (Er) presents a slight increase in this value. The crystalline structure of Pt/Er-KTaO3 powders exhibited nearly identical positions for the main peak at about 22,8o and the XRD pattern could be assigned to an orthorhombic distorted perovskite structure. The Raman spectra of obtained semiconductors confirmed demonstrating perovskite-like structure. The optical absorption spectra of Pt nanoparticles exhibited plasmon absorption band for main peaks at about 216 and 264 nm. The addition of Pt nanoparticles increased photoactivity compared to Er-KTaO3 and pure KTaO3. Summary optical properties of KTaO3 change with its doping Er-element and further photodeposition of Pt nanoparticles.

Keywords: heterogeneous photocatalytic, KTaO3 photocatalysts, Er3+ ion doping, Pt photodeposition

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Authors: Asnakew Mulualem Tegegne, Tarun Kumar Lohani, Abunu Atlabachew Eshete

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Groundwater potential delineation is essential for efficient water resource utilization and long-term development. The scarcity of potable and irrigation water has become a critical issue due to natural and anthropogenic activities in meeting the demands of human survival and productivity. With these constraints, groundwater resources are now being used extensively in Ethiopia. Therefore, an innovative convolutional neural network (CNN) is successfully applied in the Gunabay watershed to delineate groundwater potential based on the selected major influencing factors. Groundwater recharge, lithology, drainage density, lineament density, transmissivity, and geomorphology were selected as major influencing factors during the groundwater potential of the study area. For dataset training, 70% of samples were selected and 30% were used for serving out of the total 128 samples. The spatial distribution of groundwater potential has been classified into five groups: very low (10.72%), low (25.67%), moderate (31.62%), high (19.93%), and very high (12.06%). The area obtains high rainfall but has a very low amount of recharge due to a lack of proper soil and water conservation structures. The major outcome of the study showed that moderate and low potential is dominant. Geodetoctor results revealed that the magnitude influences on groundwater potential have been ranked as transmissivity (0.48), recharge (0.26), lineament density (0.26), lithology (0.13), drainage density (0.12), and geomorphology (0.06). The model results showed that using a convolutional neural network (CNN), groundwater potentiality can be delineated with higher predictive capability and accuracy. CNN-based AUC validation platform showed that 81.58% and 86.84% were accrued from the accuracy of training and testing values, respectively. Based on the findings, the local government can receive technical assistance for groundwater exploration and sustainable water resource development in the Gunabay watershed. Finally, the use of a detector-based deep learning algorithm can provide a new platform for industrial sectors, groundwater experts, scholars, and decision-makers.

Keywords: CNN, geodetector, groundwater influencing factors, Groundwater potential, Gunabay watershed

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Authors: Sabir Hussain, Muhammad Naeem, Yousif Aldryhim, Susan E. Halbert, Qingjun Wu

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Plant viruses annually cause severe economic losses in crop production and globally, different aphid species are responsible for the transmission of such viruses. Additionally, aphids are also serious pests of trees, and agricultural crops. Al Bahah Province, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has a high native and introduced plant species with a temperate climate that provides ample habitats for aphids. In this study, we surveyed virus-transmitting aphids from the Province to highlight their spatial distributions and hot spot areas for their target control strategies. During our fifteen month's survey in Al Bahah Province, three hundred and seventy samples of aphids were collected using both beating sheets and yellow water pan traps. Consequently, fifty-four aphid species representing 30 genera belonging to four families were recorded from Al Bahah Province. Alarmingly, 35 aphid species from our records are virus transmitting species. The most common virus transmitting aphid species based on number of collecting samples, were Macrosiphum euphorbiae (Thomas, 1878), Brachycaudus rumexicolens (Patch, 1917), Uroleucon sonchi (Linnaeus, 1767), Brachycaudus helichrysi (Kaltenbach, 1843), and Myzus persicae (Sulzer, 1776). The numbers of samples for the forementioned species were 66, 24, 23, 22, and 20, respectively. The widest range of plant hosts were found for M. euphorbiae (39 plant species), B. helichrysi (12 plant species), M. persicae (12 plant species), B. rumexicolens (10 plant species), and U. sonchi (9 plant species). The hottest spot areas were found in Al-Baha, Al Mekhwah and Biljarashi cities of the province on the basis of their abundance. This study indicated that Al Bahah Province has relatively rich aphid diversity due to the relatively high plant diversity in a favorable climatic condition. ArcGIS tools can be helpful for biologists to implement the target control strategies against these pests in the integrated pest management, and ultimately to save money and time.

Keywords: Al Bahah province, aphid-virus interaction, biodiversity, global information system

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Authors: Nahid Parween Anwar, Sadia Muzaffar Bhutta, Takbir Ali

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Mentoring is a structured activity which is designed to facilitate engagement between mentor and mentee to enhance mentee’s professional capability as an effective teacher. Both mentor and mentee are important elements of the ‘mentoring equation’ and play important roles in nourishing this dynamic, collaborative and reciprocal relationship. Cluster-Based Mentoring Programme (CBMP) provides an indigenous example of a project which focused on development of primary school teachers in selected clusters with a particular focus on their classroom practice. A study was designed to examine the efficacy of CBMP as part of Strengthening Teacher Education in Pakistan (STEP) project. This paper presents results of one of the components of this study. As part of the larger study, a cross-sectional survey was employed to explore nature and patterns of mentoring process from mentees’ perspectives in the selected districts of Sindh and Balochistan. This paper focuses on the results of the study related to the question: What are mentees’ perceptions of their mentors’ support for enhancing their classroom practice during mentoring process? Data were collected from mentees (n=1148) using a 5-point scale -‘Mentoring for Effective Primary Teaching’ (MEPT). MEPT focuses on seven factors of mentoring: personal attributes, pedagogical knowledge, modelling, feedback, system requirement, development and use of material, and gender equality. Data were analysed using SPSS 20. Mentees perceptions of mentoring practice of their mentors were summarized using mean and standard deviation. Results showed that mean scale scores on mentees’ perceptions of their mentors’ practices fell between 3.58 (system requirement) and 4.55 (personal attributes). Mentees’ perceives personal attribute of the mentor as the most significant factor (M=4.55) towards streamlining mentoring process by building good relationship between mentor and mentees. Furthermore, mentees have shared positive views about their mentors efforts towards promoting gender impartiality (M=4.54) during workshop and follow up visit. Contrary to this, mentees felt that more could have been done by their mentors in sharing knowledge about system requirement (e.g. school policies, national curriculum). Furthermore, some of the aspects in high scoring factors were highlighted by the mentees as areas for further improvement (e.g. assistance in timetabling, written feedback, encouragement to develop learning corners). Mentees’ perceptions of their mentors’ practices may assist in determining mentoring needs. The results may prove useful for the professional development programme for the mentors and mentees for specific mentoring programme in order to enhance practices in primary classrooms in Pakistan. Results would contribute into the body of much-needed knowledge from developing context.

Keywords: cluster-based mentoring programme, mentoring for effective primary teaching (MEPT), professional development, survey

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Authors: Julieth Gudo

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The prevalence of corruption in African countries and persisting unsatisfactory distribution by governments of state resources among the citizens are clear indicators of a festering problem. Civil society organisations (CSOs) in Southern African countries, as citizen representatives, have been involved in challenging the ongoing corruption and poor governance in the public sector that have caused tensions between citizens and their governments. In doing so, civil society organisations demand accountability, transparency, and citizen participation in public governance. The problem is that CSOs’ role in challenging governments is not clearly defined in both law and literature. This uncertainty has resulted in an unsatisfying operating and legal environment for CSOs and a strained relationship between themselves and the governments. This paper examines civil society organisations' role in advancing good public governance in South Africa and Zimbabwe. The study will be conducted by means of a literature review and case studies. The state of public governance in Southern Africa will be discussed. The historical role of CSOs in the region of Southern Africa will be explored, followed by their role in public governance in contemporary South Africa and Zimbabwe. The relationship between state and civil society organisations will be examined. Furthermore, the legal frameworks that regulate and authoriseCSOs in their part in challenging poor governance in the public sector will be identified and discussed. Loopholes in such provisions will be identified, and measures that CSOs use to hold those responsible for poor governance accountable for their actions will be discussed, consequently closing the existing gap on the undefined role of CSOs in public governance in Southern Africa. The research demonstrates the need for an enabling operating environment through better cooperation, communication, and the relationship between governments and CSOs, the speedy and effective amendment of existing laws, and the introduction of legal provisions that give express authority to CSOs to challenge poor governance on the part of Southern African governments. Also critical is the enforcement of laws so that those responsible for poor governance and corruption in government are held accountable.

Keywords: civil society organisations, public governance, southern Africa, South Africa, zimbabwe

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Authors: Ozan Kahraman, Hao Feng

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Ultrasonic atomization (UA) is a useful technique for producing a liquid spray for various processes, such as spray drying. Ultrasound generates small droplets (a few microns in diameter) by disintegration of the liquid via cavitation and/or capillary waves, with low range velocity and narrow droplet size distribution. In recent years, UA has been investigated as an alternative for enabling or enhancing ultrasound-mediated unit operations, such as evaporation, separation, and purification. The previous studies on the UA separation of a solvent from a bulk solution were limited to ethanol-water systems. More investigations into ultrasound-mediated separation for other liquid systems are needed to elucidate the separation mechanism. This study was undertaken to investigate the effects of the operational parameters on the ultrasound-mediated separation of three miscible liquid pairs: ethanol-, methanol-, and butanol-water. A 2.4 MHz ultrasonic mister with a diameter of 18 mm and rating power of 24 W was installed on the bottom of a custom-designed cylindrical separation unit. Air was supplied to the unit (3 to 4 L/min.) as a carrier gas to collect the mist. The effects of the initial alcohol concentration, viscosity, and temperature (10, 30 and 50°C) on the atomization rates were evaluated. The alcohol concentration in the collected mist was measured with high performance liquid chromatography and a refractometer. The viscosity of the solutions was determined using a Brookfield digital viscometer. The alcohol concentration of the atomized mist was dependent on the feed concentration, feed rate, viscosity, and temperature. Increasing the temperature of the alcohol-water mixtures from 10 to 50°C increased the vapor pressure of both the alcohols and water, resulting in an increase in the atomization rates but a decrease in the separation efficiency. The alcohol concentration in the mist was higher than that of the alcohol-water equilibrium at all three temperatures. More importantly, for ethanol, the ethanol concentration in the mist went beyond the azeotropic point, which cannot be achieved by conventional distillation. Ultrasound-mediated separation is a promising non-equilibrium method for separating and purifying alcohols, which may result in significant energy reductions and process intensification.

Keywords: azeotropic mixtures, distillation, evaporation, purification, seperation, ultrasonic atomization

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Authors: Robert Cazar, Nathaly Maza

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Energy drinks and sports drinks are quite popular among young adults and teenagers worldwide. Some concerns regarding their health effects – particularly those of the energy drinks - have been raised based on scientific findings. Differentiating between these two types of drinks by means of their chemical properties seems to be an instructive task. Chemometrics provides the most appropriate strategy to do so. In this study, a discrimination analysis of the energy and sports drinks has been carried out applying chemometric methods. A set of eleven samples of available commercial brands of drinks – seven energy drinks and four sports drinks – were collected. Each sample was characterized by eight chemical variables (carbohydrates, energy, sugar, sodium, pH, degrees Brix, density, and citric acid). The data set was standardized and examined by exploratory chemometric techniques such as clustering and principal component analysis. As a preliminary step, a variable selection was carried out by inspecting the variable correlation matrix. It was detected that some variables are redundant, so they can be safely removed, leaving only five variables that are sufficient for this analysis. They are sugar, sodium, pH, density, and citric acid. Then, a hierarchical clustering `employing the average – linkage criterion and using the Euclidian distance metrics was performed. It perfectly separates the two types of drinks since the resultant dendogram, cut at the 25% similarity level, assorts the samples in two well defined groups, one of them containing the energy drinks and the other one the sports drinks. Further assurance of the complete discrimination is provided by the principal component analysis. The projection of the data set on the first two principal components – which retain the 71% of the data information – permits to visualize the distribution of the samples in the two groups identified in the clustering stage. Since the first principal component is the discriminating one, the inspection of its loadings consents to characterize such groups. The energy drinks group possesses medium to high values of density, citric acid, and sugar. The sports drinks group, on the other hand, exhibits low values of those variables. In conclusion, the application of chemometric methods on a data set that features some chemical properties of a number of energy and sports drinks provides an accurate, dependable way to discriminate between these two types of beverages.

Keywords: chemometrics, clustering, energy drinks, principal component analysis, sports drinks

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Authors: Qin Yao

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Content and language integrated instruction provides second language learners instruction in subject matter and language, and is greatly valued, particularly in the language immersion classroom where a language other than students’ first language is the vehicle for teaching school curriculum. Corrective feedback is an essential instructional technique for teachers to integrate a focus on language into their content instruction. This study aims to fill a gap in the literature on immersion—the lack of studies examining corrective feedback in Chinese immersion classrooms, by studying learning opportunities brought by oral corrective feedback in a Chinese immersion classroom. Specifically, it examines what is the distribution of different types of teacher corrective feedback and how students respond to each feedback type, as well as how the focus of the teacher-student interactional exchanges affect the effect of feedback. Two Chinese immersion teachers and their immersion classes were involved, and data were collected through classroom observations interviews. Observations document teachers’ provision of oral corrective feedback and students’ responses following the feedback in class, and interviews with teachers collected teachers’ reflective thoughts about their teaching. A primary quantitative and qualitative analysis of the data revealed that, among different types of corrective feedback, recast occurred most frequently. Metalinguistic clue and repetition were the least occurring feedback types. Clarification request lead to highest percentage of learner uptake manifested by learners’ oral production immediately following the feedback, while explicit correction came the second and recast the third. In addition, the results also showed the interactional context played a role in the effectiveness of the feedback: teachers were most likely to give feedback in conversational exchanges that focused on explicit language and content, while students were most likely to use feedback in exchanges that focused on explicit language. In conclusion, the results of this study indicate recasts are preferred by Chinese immersion teachers, confirming results of previous studies on corrective feedback in non-Chinese immersion classrooms; and clarification request and explicit language instruction elicit more target language production from students and are facilitative in their target language development, thus should not be overlooked in immersion and other content and language integrated classrooms.

Keywords: Chinese immersion, content and language integrated instruction, corrective feedback, interaction

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Authors: Neumoin Anton Ivanovich, Opra Denis Pavlovich

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Materials based on titanium oxide compounds are widely used in such areas as solar energy, photocatalysis, food industry and hygiene products, biomedical technologies, etc. Demand for them has also formed in the battery industry (an example of this is the commercialization of Li4Ti5O12), where much attention has recently been paid to the development of next-generation systems and technologies, such as sodium-ion batteries. This dictates the need to search for new materials with improved characteristics, as well as ways to obtain them that meet the requirements of scalability. One of the ways to solve these problems can be the creation of nanomaterials that often have a complex of physicochemical properties that radically differ from the characteristics of their counterparts in the micro- or macroscopic state. At the same time, it is important to control the texture (specific surface area, porosity) of such materials. In view of the above, among other methods, the hydrothermal technique seems to be suitable, allowing a wide range of control over the conditions of synthesis. In the present study, a method was developed for the preparation of mesoporous nanostructured sodium trititanate (Na2Ti3O7) with a hierarchical architecture. The materials were synthesized by hydrothermal processing and exhibit a complex hierarchically organized two-layer architecture. At the first level of the hierarchy, materials are represented by particles having a roughness surface, and at the second level, by one-dimensional nanotubes. The products were found to have high specific surface area and porosity with a narrow pore size distribution (about 6 nm). As it is known, the specific surface area and porosity are important characteristics of functional materials, which largely determine the possibilities and directions of their practical application. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy data show that the resulting sodium trititanate has a sufficiently high electrical conductivity. As expected, the synthesized complexly organized nanoarchitecture based on sodium trititanate with a porous structure can be practically in demand, for example, in the field of new generation electrochemical storage and energy conversion devices.

Keywords: sodium trititanate, hierarchical materials, mesoporosity, nanotubes, hydrothermal synthesis

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Authors: G. W. Greubel, A. Kalam

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This paper provides a review of the technical problems facing the South African electricity system and discusses a hypothetical ‘virtual grid’ concept that may assist in solving the problems. The proposed solution has potential application across emerging markets with constrained power infrastructure or for companies who wish to be entirely powered by renewable energy. South Africa finds itself at a confluence of forces where the national electricity supply system is constrained with under-supply primarily from old and failing coal-fired power stations and congested and inadequate transmission and distribution systems. Simultaneously, the country attempts to meet carbon reduction targets driven by both an alignment with international goals and a consumer-driven requirement. The constrained electricity system is an aspect of an economy characterized by very low economic growth, high unemployment, and frequent and significant load shedding. The fiscus does not have the funding to build new generation capacity or strengthen the grid. The under-supply is increasingly alleviated by the penetration of wind and solar generation capacity and embedded roof-top solar. However, this increased penetration results in less inertia, less synchronous generation, and less capability for fast frequency response, with resultant instability. The renewable energy facilities assist in solving the under-supply issues but merely ‘kick the can down the road’ by not contributing to grid stability or by substituting the lost inertia, thus creating an expanding issue for the grid to manage. By technically balancing its electricity demand and supply a company with facilities located across the country can be protected from the effects of load shedding, and thus ensure financial and production performance, protect jobs, and contribute meaningfully to the economy. By treating the company’s load (across the country) and its various distributed generation facilities as a ‘virtual grid’, which by design will provide ancillary services to the grid one is able to create a win-win situation for both the company and the grid.

Keywords: load shedding, renewable energy integration, smart grid, virtual grid, virtual power plant

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Authors: Israel Ropo Orimoloye, Johanes A. Belle, Olusola Adeyemi, Olusola O. Ololade

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With more than 100,000 orbits during the past 20 years, Terra has significantly improved our knowledge of the Earth's climate and its implications on societies and ecosystems of human activity and natural disasters, including drought events. With Terra instrument's performance and the free distribution of its products, this study utilised Terra MOD13Q1 satellite data to assess drought disaster events and its spatiotemporal patterns over the Free State Province of South Africa between 2001 and 2019 for summer, autumn, winter, and spring seasons. The study also used high-resolution downscaled climate change projections under three representative concentration pathways (RCP). Three future periods comprising the short (the 2030s), medium (2040s), and long term (2050s) compared to the current period are analysed to understand the potential magnitude of projected climate change-related drought. The study revealed that the year 2001 and 2016 witnessed extreme drought conditions where the drought index is between 0 and 20% across the entire province during summer, while the year 2003, 2004, 2007, and 2015 observed severe drought conditions across the region with variation from one part to the another. The result shows that from -24.5 to -25.5 latitude, the area witnessed a decrease in precipitation (80 to 120mm) across the time slice and an increase in the latitude -26° to -28° S for summer seasons, which is more prominent in the year 2041 to 2050. This study emphasizes the strong spatio-environmental impacts within the province and highlights the associated factors that characterise high drought stress risk, especially on the environment and ecosystems. This study contributes to a disaster risk framework to identify areas for specific research and adaptation activities on drought disaster risk and for environmental planning in the study area, which is characterised by both rural and urban contexts, to address climate change-related drought impacts.

Keywords: remote sensing, drought disaster, climate scenario, assessment

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Authors: Zakaria Baka, Halima Alem

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Cancer is a major worldwide health problem that has caused around ten million deaths in 2020. In addition, efforts to develop new anti-cancer drugs still face a high failure rate. This is partly due to the lack of preclinical models that recapitulate in-vivo drug responses. Indeed conventional cell culture approach (known as 2D cell culture) is far from reproducing the complex, dynamic and three-dimensional environment of tumors. To set up more in-vivo-like cancer models, 3D bioprinting seems to be a promising technology due to its ability to achieve 3D scaffolds containing different cell types with controlled distribution and precise architecture. Moreover, the introduction of microfluidic technology makes it possible to simulate in-vivo dynamic conditions through the so-called “cancer-on-chip” platforms. Whereas several cancer types have been modeled through the cancer-on-chip approach, such as lung cancer and breast cancer, only a few works describing ovarian cancer models have been described. The aim of this work is to combine 3D bioprinting and microfluidic technics with setting up a 3D dynamic model of ovarian cancer. In the first phase, alginate-gelatin hydrogel containing SKOV3 cells was used to achieve tumor-like structures through an extrusion-based bioprinter. The desired form of the tumor-like mass was first designed on 3D CAD software. The hydrogel composition was then optimized for ensuring good and reproducible printability. Cell viability in the bioprinted structures was assessed using Live/Dead assay and WST1 assay. In the second phase, these bioprinted structures will be included in a microfluidic device that allows simultaneous testing of different drug concentrations. This microfluidic dispositive was first designed through computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations for fixing its precise dimensions. It was then be manufactured through a molding method based on a 3D printed template. To confirm the results of CFD simulations, doxorubicin (DOX) solutions were perfused through the dispositive and DOX concentration in each culture chamber was determined. Once completely characterized, this model will be used to assess the efficacy of anti-cancer nanoparticles developed in the Jean Lamour institute.

Keywords: 3D bioprinting, ovarian cancer, cancer-on-chip models, microfluidic techniques

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Authors: Mudasir Ahmad Syed, Raashid Ahmd Wani, Mashooq Ahmad Dar, Uneeb Urwat, Riaz Ahmad Shah, Nazir Ahmad Ganai

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Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (Salmonella Typhimurium) is a primary avian pathogen responsible for severe intestinal pathology in younger chickens and economic losses. However, the Salmonella Typhimurium is also able to cause infection in humans, described by typhoid fever and acute gastro-intestinal disease. A study was conducted at days to investigate pathological, histopathological, haemato-biochemical, immunological and expression kinetics of NRAMP (natural resistance associated macrophage protein) gene family (NRAMP1 and NRAMP2) in broiler chickens following experimental infection of Salmonella Typhimurium at 0,1,3,5,7,9,11,13 and 15 days respectively. Infection was developed in birds through oral route at 2×108 CFU/ml. Clinical symptoms appeared 4 days post infection (dpi) and after one-week birds showed progressive weakness, anorexia, diarrhea and lowering of head. On postmortem examination, liver showed congestion, hemorrhage and necrotic foci on surface, while as spleen, lungs and intestines revealed congestion and hemorrhages. Histopathological alterations were principally observed in liver in second week post infection. Changes in liver comprised of congestion, areas of necrosis, reticular endothelial hyperplasia in association with mononuclear cell and heterophilic infiltration. Hematological studies confirm a significant decrease (P<0.05) in RBC count, Hb concentration and PCV. White blood cell count showed significant increase throughout the experimental study. An increase in heterophils was found up to 7dpi and a decreased pattern was observed afterwards. Initial lymphopenia followed by lymphocytosis was found in infected chicks. Biochemical studies showed a significant increase in glucose, AST and ALT concentration and a significant decrease (P<0.05) in total protein and albumin level in the infected group. Immunological studies showed higher titers of IgG in infected group as compared to control group. The real time gene expression of NRAMPI and NRAMP2 genes increased significantly (P<0.05) in infected group as compared to controls. The peak expression of NRAMP1 gene was seen in liver, spleen and caecum of infected birds at 3dpi, 5dpi and 7dpi respectively, while as peak expression of NRAMP2 gene in liver, spleen and caecum of infected chicken was seen at 9dpi, 5dpi and 9dpi respectively. This study has role in diagnostics and prognostics in the poultry industry for the detection of salmonella infections at early stages of poultry development.

Keywords: biochemistry, histopathology, NRAMP, poultry, real time expression, Salmonella Typhimurium

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Authors: Seulki Lee, Seoung Bum Kim

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Statistical process control (SPC) is a practical and effective method for quality control. The most important and widely used technique in SPC is a control chart. The main goal of a control chart is to detect any assignable changes that affect the quality output. Most conventional control charts, such as Hotelling’s T2 charts, are commonly based on the assumption that the quality characteristics follow a multivariate normal distribution. However, in modern complicated manufacturing systems, appropriate control chart techniques that can efficiently handle the nonnormal processes are required. To overcome the shortcomings of conventional control charts for nonnormal processes, several methods have been proposed to combine statistical learning algorithms and multivariate control charts. Statistical learning-based control charts, such as support vector data description (SVDD)-based charts, k-nearest neighbors-based charts, have proven their improved performance in nonnormal situations compared to that of the T2 chart. Beside the nonnormal property, time-varying operations are also quite common in real manufacturing fields because of various factors such as product and set-point changes, seasonal variations, catalyst degradation, and sensor drifting. However, traditional control charts cannot accommodate future condition changes of the process because they are formulated based on the data information recorded in the early stage of the process. In the present paper, we propose a SVDD algorithm-based control chart, which is capable of adaptively monitoring time-varying and nonnormal processes. We reformulated the SVDD algorithm into a time-adaptive SVDD algorithm by adding a weighting factor that reflects time-varying situations. Moreover, we defined the updating region for the efficient model-updating structure of the control chart. The proposed control chart simultaneously allows efficient model updates and timely detection of out-of-control signals. The effectiveness and applicability of the proposed chart were demonstrated through experiments with the simulated data and the real data from the metal frame process in mobile device manufacturing.

Keywords: multivariate control chart, nonparametric method, support vector data description, time-varying process

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Authors: Lei Li, Ping Yin, Haneen Khreis

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Stroke is the second leading cause of death and a third leading cause of death and disability worldwide in 2019. Given the significant role of environmental factors in stroke development and progression, it is essential to investigate the effect of air pollution on stroke occurrence while considering the modifying effects of meteorological variables. This study aimed to evaluate the association between short-term exposure to air pollution and the incidence of stroke subtypes in Shenzhen, China, and to explore the potential interactions of meteorological factors with air pollutants. The study analyzed data from January 1, 2006, to December 31, 2014, including 88,214 cases of ischemic stroke and 30,433 cases of hemorrhagic stroke among residents of Shenzhen. Using a time-stratified case–crossover design with conditional quasi-Poisson regression, the study estimated the percentage changes in stroke morbidity associated with short-term exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), sulfur dioxide (SO₂), particulate matter less than 10 mm in aerodynamic diameter (PM10), carbon monoxide (CO), and ozone (O₃). A five-day moving average of air pollution was applied to capture the cumulative effects of air pollution. The estimates were further stratified by sex, age, education level, and season. The additive and multiplicative interaction between air pollutants and meteorologic variables were assessed by the relative excess risk due to interaction (RERI) and adding the interactive term into the main model, respectively. The study found that NO₂ was positively associated with ischemic stroke occurrence throughout the year and in the cold season (November through April), with a stronger effect observed among men. Each 10 μg/m³ increment in the five-day moving average of NO₂ was associated with a 2.38% (95% confidence interval was 1.36% to 3.41%) increase in the risk of ischemic stroke over the whole year and a 3.36% (2.04% to 4.69%) increase in the cold season. The harmful effect of CO on ischemic stroke was observed only in the cold season, with each 1 mg/m³ increment in the five-day moving average of CO increasing the risk by 12.34% (3.85% to 21.51%). There was no statistically significant additive interaction between individual air pollutants and temperature or relative humidity, as demonstrated by the RERI. The interaction term in the model showed a multiplicative antagonistic effect between NO₂ and temperature (p-value=0.0268). For hemorrhagic stroke, no evidence of the effects of any individual air pollutants was found in the whole population. However, the RERI indicated a statistically additive and multiplicative interaction of temperature on the effects of PM10 and O₃ on hemorrhagic stroke onset. Therefore, the insignificant conclusion should be interpreted with caution. The study suggests that environmental NO₂ and CO might increase the morbidity of ischemic stroke, particularly during the cold season. These findings could help inform policy decisions aimed at reducing air pollution levels to prevent stroke and other health conditions. Additionally, the study provides valuable insights into the interaction between air pollution and meteorological variables, which underscores the need for further research into the complex relationship between environmental factors and health.

Keywords: air pollution, meteorological variables, interactive effect, seasonal pattern, stroke

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Authors: Jin-Hyeong Park, Hong-Seok Kim, Jin-Hyeok Yim, Young-Ji Kim, Dong-Hyeon Kim, Jung-Whan Chon, Kun-Ho Seo

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Salmonella contamination in chicken samples can cause major health problems in humans. However, not only the effects of antibiotic treatment during growth but also the impacts of poultry slaughter line on the prevalence of Salmonella in final chicken meat sold to consumers are unknown. In this study, we compared the isolation rates and antimicrobial resistance of Salmonella between antibiotic-free, conventional, conventional Korean native retail chicken meat samples and clonal divergence of Salmonella isolates by multilocus sequence typing. In addition, the distribution of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) genes in ESBL-producing Salmonella isolates was analyzed. A total of 72 retail chicken meat samples (n = 24 antibiotic-free broiler [AFB] chickens, n = 24 conventional broiler [CB] chickens, and n = 24 conventional Korean native [CK] chickens) were collected from local retail markets in Seoul, South Korea. The isolation rates of Salmonella were 66.6% in AFB chickens, 45.8% in CB chickens, and 25% in CK chickens. By analyzing the minimum inhibitory concentrations of β -lactam antibiotics with the disc-diffusion test, we found that 81.2% of Salmonella isolates from AFB chickens, 63.6% of isolates from CB chickens, and 50% of isolates from CK chickens were ESBL producers; all ESBL-positive isolates had the CTX-M-15 genotype. Interestingly, all ESBL-producing Salmonella were revealed as ST16 by multilocus sequence typing. In addition, all CTX-M-15-positive isolates had the genetic platform of blaCTX-M gene (IS26-ISEcp1-blaCTX-M-15-IS903), to the best of our knowledge, this is the first report in Salmonella around the world. The Salmonella ST33 strain (S. Hadar) isolated in this study has never been reported in South Korea. In conclusion, our findings showed that antibiotic-free retail chicken meat products were also largely contaminated with ESBL-producing Salmonella and that their ESBL genes and genetic platforms were the same as those isolated from conventional retail chicken meat products.

Keywords: antibiotic-free poultry, conventional poultry, multilocus sequence typing, extended-spectrum β-lactamase, antimicrobial resistance

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Authors: German Hernandez-Alonso, Antonio Lazcano, Arturo Becerra

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Until today, viruses remain controversial and poorly understood; about their origin, this problem represents an enigma and one of the great challenges for the contemporary biology. Three main theories have tried to explain the origin of viruses: regressive evolution, escaped host gene, and pre-cellular origin. Under the perspective of the escaped host gene theory, it can be assumed a cellular origin of viral components, like protein RNA-binding domains. These universal distributed RNA-binding domains are related to the RNA metabolism processes, including transcription, processing, and modification of transcripts, translation, RNA degradation and its regulation. In the case of viruses, these domains are present in important viral proteins like helicases, nucleases, polymerases, capsid proteins or regulation factors. Therefore, they are implicated in the replicative cycle and parasitic processes of viruses. That is why it is possible to think that those domains present low levels of divergence due to selective pressures. For these reasons, the main goal for this project is to create a catalogue of the RNA-binding domains found in all the available viral proteomes, using bioinformatics tools in order to analyze its evolutionary process, and thus shed light on the general virus evolution. ProDom database was used to obtain larger than six thousand RNA-binding domain families that belong to the three cellular domains of life and some viral groups. From the sequences of these families, protein profiles were created using HMMER 3.1 tools in order to find distant homologous within greater than four thousand viral proteomes available in GenBank. Once accomplished the analysis, almost three thousand hits were obtained in the viral proteomes. The homologous sequences were found in proteomes of the principal Baltimore viral groups, showing interesting distribution patterns that can contribute to understand the evolution of viruses and their host-virus interactions. Presence of cellular RNA-binding domains within virus proteomes seem to be explained by closed interactions between viruses and their hosts. Recruitment of these domains is advantageous for the viral fitness, allowing viruses to be adapted to the host cellular environment.

Keywords: bioinformatics tools, distant homology, RNA-binding domains, viral evolution

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Authors: María Graciela Aguayo, Laura Reyes, Claudia Oviedo, José Navarrete, Liset Gómez, Hugo Torres

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Most wood species used in construction deteriorate when exposed to environmental conditions that favor wood-degrading organisms’ growth. Therefore, chemical protection by impregnation allows more efficient use of forest resources extending the wood useful life. A wood protection treatment which has attracted considerable interest in the scientific community during the last decade is wood impregnation with nano compounds. Radiata pine is the main wood species used in the Chilean construction industry, with total availability of 8 million m³ sawn timber. According to the requirements of the American Wood Protection Association (AWPA) and the Chilean Standards (NCh) radiata pine timber used in construction must be protected due to its low natural durability. In this work, the impregnation with copper nanoparticles (CuNP) was studied in terms of penetration and its protective effect against wood rot fungi. Two concentrations: 1 and 3 g/L of NPCu were applied by impregnation on radiata pine sapwood. Test penetration under AWPA A3-91 standard was carried out, and wood decay tests were performed according to EN 113, with slight modifications. The results of penetration for 1 g/L CuNP showed an irregular total penetration, and the samples impregnated with 3 g/L showed a total penetration with uniform concentration (blue color in all cross sections). The impregnation wood mass losses due to fungal exposure were significantly reduced, regardless of the concentration of the solution or the fungus. In impregnated wood samples, exposure to G. trabeum resulted ML values of 2.70% and 1.19% for 1 g/L and 3 g/L CuNP, respectively, and exposure to P. placenta resulted in 4.02% and 0.70%-ML values for 1 g/L and 3 g/L CuNP, respectively. In this study, the penetration analysis confirmed a uniform distribution inside the wood, and both concentrations were effective against the tested fungi, giving mass loss values lower than 5%. Therefore, future research in wood preservatives should focus on new nanomaterials that are more efficient and environmentally friendly. Acknowledgments: CONICYT FONDEF IDeA I+D 2019, grant number ID19I10122.

Keywords: copper nanoparticles, fungal degradation, radiata pine wood, wood preservation

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Authors: Reema K. AlEssa, Sahar Alshomer, Abdullah Alfaleh, Sultan ALkhenaizan, Mohammed Albalwi

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Ichthyosis is a disorder of abnormal keratinization, characterized by excessive scaling, and consists of more than twenty subtypes varied in severity, mode of inheritance, and the genes involved. There is insufficient data in the literature about the epidemiology and characteristics of ichthyosis locally. Our aim is to identify the histopathological features and genetic profile of ichthyosis. Method: It is an observational retrospective case series study conducted in March 2020, included all patients who were diagnosed with Ichthyosis and confirmed by histological and molecular findings over the last 20 years in King Abdulaziz Medical City (KAMC), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Molecular analysis was performed by testing genomic DNA and checking genetic variations using the AmpliSeq panel. All disease-causing variants were checked against HGMD, ClinVar, Genome Aggregation Database (gnomAD), and Exome Aggregation Consortium (ExAC) databases. Result: A total of 60 cases of Ichthyosis were identified with a mean age of 13 ± 9.2. There is an almost equal distribution between female patients 29 (48%) and males 31 (52%). The majority of them were Saudis, 94%. More than half of patients presented with general scaling 33 (55%), followed by dryness and coarse skin 19 (31.6%) and hyperlinearity 5 (8.33%). Family history and history of consanguinity were seen in 26 (43.3% ), 13 (22%), respectively. History of colloidal babies was found in 6 (10%) cases of ichthyosis. The most frequent genes were ALOX12B, ALOXE3, CERS3, CYP4F22, DOLK, FLG2, GJB2, PNPLA1, SLC27A4, SPINK5, STS, SUMF1, TGM1, TGM5, VPS33B. Most frequent variations were detected in CYP4F22 in 16 cases (26.6%) followed by ALOXE3 6 (10%) and STS 6 (10%) then TGM1 5 (8.3) and ALOX12B 5 (8.3). The analysis of molecular genetic identified 23 different genetic variations in the genes of ichthyosis, of which 13 were novel mutations. Homozygous mutations were detected in the majority of ichthyosis cases, 54 (90%), and only 1 case was heterozygous. Few cases, 4 (6.6%) had an unknown type of ichthyosis with a negative genetic result. Conclusion: 13 novel mutations were discovered. Also, about half of ichthyosis patients had a positive history of consanguinity.

Keywords: ichthyosis, genetic profile, molecular characterization, congenital ichthyosis

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Authors: Kholoud Abdulaziz, Kholoud Al-Najdi, Abdullah Kadri, Konstantinos E. Kakosimos

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The Middle East area is highly affected by air pollution induced by anthropogenic and natural phenomena. There is evidence that air pollution, especially particulates, greatly affects the population health. Many studies have raised a warning of the high concentration of particulates and their affect not just around industrial and construction areas but also in the immediate working and living environment. One of the methods to study air quality is continuous and periodic monitoring using active or passive samplers. Active monitoring and sampling are the default procedures per the European and US standards. However, in many cases they have been inefficient to accurately capture the spatial variability of air pollution due to the small number of installations; which eventually is attributed to the high cost of the equipment and the limited availability of users with expertise and scientific background. Another alternative has been found to account for the limitations of the active methods that is the passive sampling. It is inexpensive, requires no continuous power supply, and easy to assemble which makes it a more flexible option, though less accurate. This study aims to investigate and evaluate the use of passive sampling for particulate matter pollution monitoring in dry tropical climates, like in the Middle East. More specifically, a number of field measurements have be conducted, both indoors and outdoors, at Qatar and the results have been compared with active sampling equipment and the reference methods. The samples have been analyzed, that is to obtain particle size distribution, by applying existing laboratory techniques (optical microscopy) and by exploring new approaches like the white light interferometry to. Then the new parameters of the well-established model have been calculated in order to estimate the atmospheric concentration of particulates. Additionally, an extended literature review will investigate for new and better models. The outcome of this project is expected to have an impact on the public, as well, as it will raise awareness among people about the quality of life and about the importance of implementing research culture in the community.

Keywords: air pollution, passive samplers, interferometry, indoor, outdoor

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Authors: Tarek Elnimr, Reda Morsy, Assem El Fert, Aziza Ismail

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Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver. The condition can be self-limiting or can progress to fibrosis, cirrhosis or liver cancer. Disease caused by the hepatitis virus, the virus can cause hepatitis infection, ranging in severity from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a serious, lifelong illness. A growing body of evidence indicates that many trace elements play important roles in a number of carcinogenic processes that proceed with various mechanisms. To examine the status of trace elements during the development of hepatic carcinoma, we determined the iron, copper, zinc and selenium levels in some biological samples of patients at different stages of viral hepatic disease. We observed significant changes in the iron, copper, zinc and selenium levels in the biological samples of patients hepatocellular carcinoma, relative to those of healthy controls. The mean hair, nail, RBC, serum and whole blood copper levels in patients with hepatitis virus were significantly higher than that of the control group. In contrast the mean iron, zinc, and selenium levels in patients having hepatitis virus were significantly lower than those of the control group. On the basis of this study, we identified the impact of natural supplements to improve the treatment of viral liver damage, using the level of some trace elements such as, iron, copper, zinc and selenium, which might serve as biomarkers for increases survival and reduces disease progression. Most of the elements revealed diverse and random distribution in the samples of the donor groups. The correlation study pointed out significant disparities in the mutual relationships among the trace elements in the patients and controls. Principal component analysis and cluster analysis of the element data manifested diverse apportionment of the selected elements in the scalp hair, nail and blood components of the patients compared with the healthy counterparts.

Keywords: hepatitis, hair, nail, blood components, trace element, nutrition therapy, multivariate analysis, correlation, ICP-MS

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Authors: Aprajeeta Jha, Punyadarshini P. Tripathy

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Drying is one of the most critical unit operations for prolonging the shelf-life of food grains in order to ensure global food security. Photovoltaic integrated solar dryers can be a sustainable solution for replacing energy intensive thermal dryers as it is capable of drying in off-sunshine hours and provide better control over drying conditions. But, performance and reliability of PV based solar dryers depend hugely on climatic conditions thereby, drastically affecting process parameters. Therefore, to ensure quality and prolonged shelf-life of paddy, optimization of process parameters for solar dryers is critical. Proper moisture distribution within the grains is most detrimental factor to enhance the shelf-life of paddy therefore; modeling of mass transport can help in providing a better insight of moisture migration. Hence, present work aims at optimizing the process parameters and to develop a 3D finite element model (FEM) for predicting moisture profile in paddy during solar drying. Optimization of process parameters (power level, air velocity and moisture content) was done using box Behnken model in Design expert software. Furthermore, COMSOL Multiphysics was employed to develop a 3D finite element model for predicting moisture profile. Optimized model for drying paddy was found to be 700W, 2.75 m/s and 13% wb with optimum temperature, milling yield and drying time of 42˚C, 62%, 86 min respectively, having desirability of 0.905. Furthermore, 3D finite element model (FEM) for predicting moisture migration in single kernel for every time step has been developed. The mean absolute error (MAE), mean relative error (MRE) and standard error (SE) were found to be 0.003, 0.0531 and 0.0007, respectively, indicating close agreement of model with experimental results. Above optimized conditions can be successfully used to dry paddy in PV integrated solar dryer in order to attain maximum uniformity, quality and yield of product to achieve global food and energy security

Keywords: finite element modeling, hybrid solar drying, mass transport, paddy, process optimization

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Authors: Hitesh Kshayap, Shantanu Arya, Ajay Basod, Sachin Sakhuja

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This study was undertaken to measure the overall noise levels in different locations/zones and to estimate the prevalence of Noise induced hearing loss in Hawkers & Shopkeepers in Mumbai, India. The Hearing Test developed by American Academy Of Otolaryngology, translated from English to Hindi, and validated is used as a screening tool for hearing sensitivity was employed. The tool is having 14 items. Each item is scored on a scale 0, 1, 2 and 3. The score 6 and above indicated some difficulty or definite difficulty in hearing in daily activities and low score indicated lesser difficulty or normal hearing. The subjects who scored 6 or above or having tinnitus were made to undergo hearing evaluation by Pure tone audiometer. Further, the environmental noise levels were measured from Morning to Evening at road side at different Location/Hawking zones in Mumbai city using SLM9 Agronic 8928B & K type Digital Sound Level Meter) in dB (A). The maximum noise level of 100.0 dB (A) was recorded during evening hours from Chattrapati Shivaji Terminal to Colaba with overall noise level of 79.0 dB (A). However, the minimum noise level in this area was 72.6 dB (A) at any given point of time. Further, 54.6 dB (A) was recorded as minimum noise level during 8-9 am at Sion Circle. Further, commencement of flyovers with 2-tier traffic, sky walks, increasing number of vehicular traffic at road, high rise buildings and other commercial & urbanization activities in the Mumbai city most probably have resulted in increasing the overall environmental noise levels. Trees which acted as noise absorbers have been cut owing to rapid construction. The study involved 100 participants in the age range of 18 to 40 years of age, with the mean age of 29 years (S.D. =6.49). 46 participants having tinnitus or have obtained the score of 6 were made to undergo Pure Tone Audiometry and it was found that the prevalence rate of hearing loss in hawkers & shopkeepers is 19% (10% Hawkers and 9 % Shopkeepers). The results found indicates that 29 (42.6%) out of 64 Hawkers and 17 (47.2%) out of 36 Shopkeepers who underwent PTA had no significant difference in percentage of Noise Induced Hearing loss. The study results also reveal that participants who exhibited tinnitus 19 (41.30%) out of 46 were having mild to moderate sensorineural hearing loss between 3000Hz to 6000Hz. The Pure tone Audiogram pattern revealed Hearing loss at 4000 Hz and 6000 Hz while hearing at adjacent frequencies were nearly normal. 7 hawkers and 8 shopkeepers had mild notch while 3 hawkers and 1 shopkeeper had a moderate degree of notch. It is thus inferred that tinnitus is a strong indicator for presence of hearing loss and 4/6 KHz notch is a strong marker for road/traffic/ environmental noise as an occupational hazard for hawkers and shopkeepers. Mass awareness about these occupational hazards, regular hearing check up, early intervention along with sustainable development juxtaposed with social and urban forestry can help in this regard.

Keywords: NIHL, noise, sound level meter, tinnitus

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Authors: Farangiz Davranbekova

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Subject: The study explores the impact of Over-the-Top services in the sports rights market, focusing on football games. This impact is analysed in the big five European football markets. The research entails how the pay-TV market is combating the disruptors' entry, how the fans are adjusting to these changes and how leagues and football clubs are orienting in the transitional period of more choice. Aims and methods: The research aims to offer a general overview of the impact of OTT players in the football rights market. A theoretical framework of Jenkins’ five layers of convergence is implemented to analyse the transition the sports rights market is witnessing from various angles. The empirical analysis consists of secondary research data as and seven expert interviews from three different clusters. The findings are bound by the combination of the two methods offering general statements. Findings: The combined secondary data as well as expert interviews, conducted on five layers of convergence found: 1. Technological convergence presents that football content is accessible through various devices with innovative digital features, unlike the traditional TV set box. 2. Social convergence demonstrates that football fans multitask using various devices on social media when watching the games. These activities are complementary to traditional TV viewing. 3. Cultural convergence points that football fans have a new layer of fan engagement with leagues, clubs and other fans using social media. Additionally, production and consumption lines are blurred. 4. Economic convergence finds that content distribution is diversifying and/or eroding. Consumers now have more choices, albeit this can be harmful to them. Entry barriers are decreased, and bigger clubs feel more powerful. 5. Global convergence shows that football fans are engaging with not only local fans but with fans around the world that social media sites enable. Recommendation: A study on smaller markets such as Belgium or the Netherlands would benefit the study on the impact of OTT. Additionally, examination of other sports will shed light on this matter. Lastly, once the direct-to-consumer model is fully taken off in Europe, it will be of importance to examine the impact of such transformation in the market.

Keywords: sports rights, OTT, pay TV, football

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Authors: M. Zareh, H. Mohammadi, B. Naser

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Atherosclerotic plaque rupture is the main trigger of heart attack and brain stroke which are the leading cause of death in developed countries. Better understanding of rupture-prone plaque can help clinicians detect vulnerable plaques- rupture prone or instable plaques- and apply immediate medical treatment to prevent these life-threatening cardiovascular events. Therefore, there are plenty of studies addressing disclosure of vulnerable plaques properties. Necrotic core and fibrous tissue are two major tissues constituting atherosclerotic plaque; using histopathological and numerical approaches, many studies have demonstrated that plaque rupture is strongly associated with a large necrotic core and a thin fibrous cap, two morphological characteristic which can be acquired by two-dimensional imaging of atherosclerotic plaque present in coronary and carotid arteries. Plaque rupture is widely considered as a mechanical failure inside plaque tissue; this failure occurs when the stress within plaque excesses the strength of tissue material; hence, finite element method, a strong numerical approach, has been extensively applied to estimate stress distribution within plaques with different compositions which is then used for assessment of various vulnerability characteristics including plaque morphology, material properties and blood pressure. This study aims to evaluate significance of three-dimensional morphology on vulnerability degree of atherosclerotic plaque. To reach this end, different two-dimensional geometrical models of atherosclerotic plaques are considered based on available data and named Main 2D Models (M2M). Then, for each of these M2Ms, two three-dimensional idealistic models are created. These two 3D models represent two possible three-dimensional morphologies which might exist for a plaque with similar 2D morphology to one of M2Ms. Finite element method is employed to estimate stress, von-Mises stress, within each 3D models. Results indicate that for each M2Ms stress can significantly varies due to possible 3D morphological changes in that plaque. Also, our results show that an atherosclerotic plaque with thick cap may experience rupture if it has a critical 3D morphology. This study highlights the effect of 3D geometry of plaque on its instability degree and suggests that 3D morphology of plaque might be necessary to more effectively and accurately assess atherosclerotic plaque vulnerability.

Keywords: atherosclerotic plaque, plaque rupture, finite element method, 3D model

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Authors: Varvara Roubtsova, Mohamed Chekired

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Recent studies on the numerical simulation of geotechnical problems show the importance of considering the soil micro-structure. At this scale, soil is a discrete particle medium where the particles can interact with each other and with water flow under external forces, structure loads or natural events. This paper presents research conducted in a virtual laboratory named SiGran, developed at IREQ (Institut de recherche d’Hydro-Quebec) for the purpose of investigating a broad range of problems encountered in geotechnics. Using Discrete Element Method (DEM), SiGran simulated granular materials directly by applying Newton’s laws to each particle. The water flow was simulated by using Marker and Cell method (MAC) to solve the full form of Navier-Stokes’s equation for non-compressible viscous liquid. In this paper, examples of numerical simulation and their comparisons with real experiments have been selected to show the complexity of geotechnical research at the micro level. These examples describe transient flows into a porous medium, interaction of particles in a viscous flow, compacting of saturated and unsaturated soils and the phenomenon of liquefaction under seismic load. They also provide an opportunity to present SiGran’s capacity to compute the distribution and evolution of energy by type (particle kinetic energy, particle internal elastic energy, energy dissipated by friction or as a result of viscous interaction into flow, and so on). This work also includes the first attempts to apply micro discrete results on a macro continuum level where the Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) method was used to resolve the system of governing equations. The material behavior equation is based on the results of simulations carried out at a micro level. The possibility of combining three methods (DEM, MAC and SPH) is discussed.

Keywords: discrete element method, marker and cell method, numerical simulation, multi-scale simulations, smoothed particle hydrodynamics

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Authors: Elena Carcano, James Ball, Betty Tiko

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Carrying capacity refers to the maximum population that a given level of resources can sustain over a specific period. In undisturbed environments, the maximum population is determined by the availability and distribution of resources, as well as the competition for their utilization. This information is typically obtained through long-term data collection. In regulated environments, where resources are artificially modified, populations must adapt to changing conditions, which can lead to additional challenges due to fluctuations in resource availability over time and throughout development. An example of this is observed in hydropower plants, which alter water flow and impact fish migration patterns and behaviors. To assess how fish species can adapt to these changes, specialized surveys are conducted, which provide valuable information on fish populations, sample sizes, and density before and after flow modifications. In such situations, it is highly recommended to conduct hydrological and biological monitoring to gain insight into how flow reductions affect species adaptability and to prevent unfavorable exploitation conditions. This analysis involves several planned steps that help design appropriate hydropower production while simultaneously addressing environmental needs. Consequently, the study aims to strike a balance between technical assessment, biological requirements, and societal expectations. Beginning with a small hydro project that requires restoration, this analysis focuses on the lower tail of the Flow Duration Curve (FDC), where both hydrological and environmental goals can be met. The proposed approach involves determining the threshold condition that is tolerable for the most vulnerable species sampled (Telestes Muticellus) by identifying a low flow value from the long-term FDC. The results establish a practical connection between hydrological and environmental information and simplify the process by establishing a single reference flow value that represents the minimum environmental flow that should be maintained.

Keywords: carrying capacity, fish bypass ladder, long-term streamflow duration curve, eta-beta method, environmental flow

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Authors: Zeiler M., Stadler D., Schmaderer C.

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Over the years of dialysis treatment, most patients experience significant weight loss. The primary emphasis in earlier research was the underlying mechanism of protein energy wasting and the subsequent malnutrition inflammation syndrome. In the interest to provide an effective and rapid solution for the patients, the aim of this study is identifying individual influences of their assumed reduced dietary intake, such as nausea, appetite loss and taste changes, and to determine whether the patients adhere to their nutrition guidelines. A prospective, controlled study with 38 end-stage renal disease patients was performed using a questionnaire to reflect their diet within the last 12 months. Thereby, the daily intake for the most important macro-and micronutrients was calculated to be compared with the individual KDQOI-guideline value, as well as controls matched in age and gender. The majority of the study population did not report symptoms commonly associated with dialysis, such as nausea or inappetence, and denied any change in dietary behavior since receiving renal replacement therapy. The patients’ daily intake of energy (3080kcal ± 1266) and protein (89,9g [53,4-142,0]) did not differ significantly from the controls (energy intake: 3233kcal ± 1046, p=0,597; protein intake: 103,7g [90,1-125,5], p=0,120). The average difference to the individual calculated KDQOI-guideline was +176,0kcal ± 1156 (p=0,357) for energy intake and -1,75g ± 45,9 (p=0,491) for protein intake. However, there was an observed imbalance in the distribution of macronutrients, with a preference for fats over proteins. The patients’ daily intake of sodium (5,4g [ 2,95-10,1]) was higher than in the controls (4,1g [2,04-5,99], p= 0,058) whereas both values for potassium (3,7g ± 1,84) and phosphorous (1,79g ± 0,91) went significantly below the controls’ values (potassium intake: 4,89g ± 1,74, p=0,014; phosphorous intake: 2,04g ± 0,64, p=0,038). Thus, the values exceeded the calculated KDQOI-recommendation by + 3,3g [0,63-7,90] (p<0,001) for sodium, +1,49g ± 1,84 (p<0,001) for potassium and +0,89g ± 0,91 (p<0,001) for phosphorous. Contrary to the assumption, the patients did not under-eat. Nevertheless, their diets did not align with the recommended values. These findings highlight the need for intervention and education among patients and that regular dietary monitoring could prevent unhealthy nutrition habits. The elaboration of individual references instead of standardized guidelines could increase the compliance to the advised diet so that interdisciplinary comorbidities do not develop or worsen.

Keywords: compliance, dialysis, end-stage renal disease, KDQOI, malnutrition, nutrition guidelines, questionnaire, salt intake

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Authors: Sohini Manna, Jong Woo Kim, Oleg Shpyrko, Eric E. Fullerton

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CVD techniques have emerged as a promising approach in the formation of a broad range of nanostructured materials. The realization of many practical applications will require efficient and economical synthesis techniques that preferably avoid the need for templates or costly single-crystal substrates and also afford process adaptability. Towards this end, we have developed a single-step route for the reduction-type synthesis of nanostructured Ni materials using a thermal CVD method. By tuning the CVD growth parameters, we can synthesize morphologically dissimilar nanostructures including single-crystal cubes and Au nanostructures which form atop untreated amorphous SiO2||Si substrates. An understanding of the new properties that emerge in these nanostructures materials and their relationship to function will lead to for a broad range of magnetostrictive devices as well as other catalysis, fuel cell, sensor, and battery applications based on high-surface-area transition-metal nanostructures. We use coherent X-ray diffraction imaging technique to obtain 3-D image and strain maps of individual nanocrystals. Coherent x-ray diffractive imaging (CXDI) is a technique that provides the overall shape of a nanostructure and the lattice distortion based on the combination of highly brilliant coherent x-ray sources and phase retrieval algorithm. We observe a fine interplay of reduction of surface energy vs internal stress, which plays an important role in the morphology of nano-crystals. The strain distribution is influenced by the metal-substrate interface and metal-air interface, which arise due to differences in their thermal expansion. We find the lattice strain at the surface of the octahedral gold nanocrystal agrees well with the predictions of the Young-Laplace equation quantitatively, but exhibits a discrepancy near the nanocrystal-substrate interface resulting from the interface. The strain in the bottom side of the Ni nanocube, which is contacted on the substrate surface is compressive. This is caused by dissimilar thermal expansion coefficients between Ni nanocube and Si substrate. Research at UCSD support by NSF DMR Award # 1411335.

Keywords: CVD, nanostructures, strain, CXRD

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