Ab initio density functional theory molecular dynamics extensive calculations were used for the first time to evaluate stability conditions for relevant phases of InN. In particular, thermal decomposition of InN with formation of N2 molecules and pressure induced wurtzite – rocksalt solid-solid phase transition were established. The results consistent with available experimental data allowed a critical evaluation of potential and limitations of the proposed simulation method. The ab initio molecular dynamics as an efficient tool for simulations of phase transformations of InN including solid-solid structural transition and thermal decomposition with formation of N2 molecules has been demonstrated. It is of high interest because InN being important component of epitaxial quantum structures has still not been obtained as a bulk single crystal making difficult a determination of its basic physical properties and designing new applications.

Using the example of III-V nitrides crystallizing in a wurtzite structure (GaN, AlN, InN), this review presents the special role of hydrostatic pressure in studying semiconductor properties. Starting with a brief description of high pressure techniques for growing bulk crystals of nitride compounds, we focus on the use of hydrostatic pressure techniques in both experimental and theoretical investigations of special properties of nitride compounds, their alloys and quantum structures. The band gap pressure coefficient is one of the most important parameters in semiconductor physics. Trends in its behavior in nitride structures, together with trends in pressure-induced phase transitions, are discussed in the context of the behavior of other typical semiconductors. Using InN as an example, the pressure-dependent effects typical of very narrow bandgap materials, such as conduction band filling or effective mass behavior, are described. Interesting aspects of bandgap bowing in In-containing nitride alloys, including pressure and clustering effects, are discussed.Hydrostatic pressure also plays an important role in the study of native defects and impurities, as illustrated by the example of nitride compounds and their quantum structures. Experiments and theoretical studies on this topic are reviewed. Special attention is given to hydrostatic pressure and strain effects in short periods nitride superlattices. The explanation of the discrepancies between theory and experiment in the optical emission and its pressure dependence from InN/GaN superlattices led to the well-documented conclusion that InN growth on the GaN substrate is not possible. The built-in electric field present in InGaN/GaN and AlGaN/GaN heterostructures crystallizing in wurtzite lattice can reach several MV/cm, leading to drastic changes in the physical properties of these structures and related devices. It is shown how hydrostatic pressure modifies these effects and helps to understand their origin.

The Eastern Kunlun Fault Zone (EKFZ) is located in a seismic blank area. This study investigates the hydrogeochemical characteristics of varied-temperature springs in the EKFZ to understand the relationship between fractures, fluids and earthquakes. It aids in establishing their induction mechanisms and assists in monitoring the earthquake precursors of the EKFZ. In this study, the main elements, trace elements, hydrogen and oxygen isotopes and strontium isotopes of 23 varied-temperature springs in the EKFZ were analyzed. The results reveal the source of groundwater recharge, hydrochemical types, mineral saturation, and for a select few springs indicative of geothermal activity, collected geothermal reservoir temperatures. The study also explores the relationship between earthquakes and springs, identifying sensitive chemical indicators. Based on continuous monitoring at Maqu Station, we found that before the occurrence of the Maerkang Ms 6.0 earthquake, the concentration of Cl− rose by 2.9 times, and 46 days before the Gande earthquake (Ms = 4.7), the concentrations of Na+ and SO42− significantly increased. Finally, a conceptual model of the hydrogeochemistry of springs is presented to describe the groundwater circulation in the study area. This research is of great significance for the analysis of fluid geochemistry in this area and for assessing the seismic hazards of the EKFZ.

Olivine-like NaFePO4 glasses and nanocomposites are promising materials for cathodes in sodium batteries. Our previous study concerned the influence of high pressure on DC electric conductivity of NaFePO4 glasses. This work presents the results of AC measurements of glasses and nanocomposites from pressure treatment. Depending on the temperature range, the electronic conduction mechanism changed from variable range hopping (between Fe2+/Fe3+centers) to phonon-assisted hopping. For DC electric conductivity the portrayal via the classic Mott’s Variable Range Hopping is limited to low temperatures. Spectra of AC conductivity for glasses and pressure-formed nanocomposites fulfill Jonscher’s scaling law with power exponents ranging from 0.3 to 0.9 depending on temperature and the electron hopping mechanism. Due to the decrease in distance between hopping centers, an increase of AC conductivity around 2-3 orders of magnitude was observed after high pressure-high temperature treatment. Up to 200 K temperature dependencies of AC conductivity follow the pattern suggested by Mott's theory. Above that temperature corresponds to phonon-assisted hopping with activation energies EAC≈0.40 eV (for glass: amorphous solid) and EAC≈0.18 eV (for glass + nanocrystallites nanocomposite). Notable that they are considerably lower than values of EDC for DC conductivity. Results obtained show that high-temperature compressing, just below the glass temperature, significantly leads to a stable decrease in distance between hopping centers related to nanocrystallites in a glassy matrix. Consequently, it leads to an essential rise in electric conductivity and volumetric capacity. AC spectra of electronic conductivity are disturbed by the conduction of Na+ mobile ions, which impacts polaron conductivity and can be a limiting factor for conductivity.

Background: Several kinds of research say that adjuvant blood glucose and blood pressure are usual, but an efficient solution for medical application count remains. This review analyzes the pandemic blood pressure and blood glucose to identify the publications which tell about the clinical practices and research gaps in systematic research.Methods: A study guides to identify the research of Blood Pressure (BP) and Blood Glucose. In order to analyze the recent innovations and research on BP and Blood glucose, the relevant publications and literature from journals were identified.Results: Co-morbidity of BP and Blood glucose is reported as very high. The commonness of blood pressure is thrice as high in type I diabetes patients and almost two times higher in type II diabetes patients when compared to others without Diabetes. The pervasiveness of getting depression is more in the female when compared with men. A detailed study about the linkage of BP and blood glucose tells that the relationship between them is not exactly clear.Limitations: Nearly all reviews providing the linkage of BP and blood glucose are with some limitations and they are not providing any clear conclusion.Conclusions: Present research tells that people having high blood glucose will have a greater chance of getting high blood pressure. More research is needed to state the linkage between BP, blood glucose, and the growth of diabetes mellitus issues and to provide support for managing Diabetes.

(1) Background: Lifestyle changes, eventually associated with a nutraceutical, are recommended strategies for managing high-normal blood pressure (BP) patients with low-moderate cardiovascu-lar (CV) risk. Nitrates-enriched products (i.e., red beet extracts) may help reduce BP, exerting vas-oactive properties and enhancing adherence to lifestyle advice. Our study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness in clinical practice of generic written lifestyle advice and a beetroot-based nutraceu-tical prescription based on the 2018 ESC/ESH guidelines on 24-hour BP in a population with high-normal BP and low-moderate CV risk.; (2) Methods: A longitudinal observational study was con-ducted in two ESH hypertension excellence centres on 43 consecutive subjects with high-normal BP based on repeated office BP (OBP) measurements and a low-moderate CV risk. Twenty-four-hour ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM) was carried out at baseline and three months after ge-neric written ESC/ESH advice for lifestyle changes associated with a nutraceutical containing 500 mg of dry beetroot extract; (3) Results: Mean age 50±11 years, 54% males, 58% overweight/obese, mean OBP 135±3/85±3 mmHg. At baseline, 24-hour BP, daytime BP and night-time BP were 127±7/80±6 mmHg, 131±8/83±6 mmHg and 118±8/70±5 mmHg, respectively, BP profiles compat-ible with hypertension status in some subjects. After a median follow-up of 98 (92-121) days, all BPs, except night-time diastolic BP, were significantly decreased: -3±6/-2±4 mmHg for 24-hour BP, -3.9±6.0/-3.0±4.0 mmHg for daytime BP and -3.3±7.4/-1.3±4.7 mmHg for night-time BP, respec-tively. No significant clinical changes in weight were detected. BP decreased independently of baseline BP level, gender, smoking status and BMI, while a more substantial decrease in BP was observed in older patients; (4) Conclusions: Our pilot study shows for the first time that written generic lifestyle advice based on ESC/ESH hypertension guidelines coupled with a beetroot-based nutraceutical may represent a valid initial non-pharmacological approach in subjects with high-normal BP and low-moderate CV risk even without personalized diet interventions.

Background: Telemonitoring systems in cardiology have shown potential in improving chronic cardiovascular disease (CVD) management. This study aims to evaluate the impact of telemonitoring, mainly through mobile applications, on patient outcomes such as self-care, blood pressure control, quality of life, and hospitalization. Methods: We systematically reviewed studies assessing telemonitoring methods for patients with chronic CVD. The analysis included studies from various geographic regions and healthcare settings, focusing on qualitative outcomes without performing a meta-analysis. Results: Telemonitoring was found to aid in maintaining blood pressure and significantly enhance self-care abilities. Improvements in quality of life were observed in some studies, though results varied. Most studies indicated telemonitoring could effectively manage blood pressure and reduce hypertension-related complications. However, the heterogeneity of interventions and outcomes measured across trials posed challenges for a comprehensive meta-analysis. Conclusions: Integrating telemonitoring systems into routine care can significantly improve disease management and patient outcomes for chronic CVD patients. Future research should standardize telemonitoring interventions and outcome measures, conduct long-term studies, and evaluate the cost-effectiveness of these systems. Greater blindness in future randomized controlled trials and more studies on atrial fibrillation are also necessary. Significant potential exists for telemonitoring to improve patient outcomes and assist in managing chronic illnesses.

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a single stranded RNA virus which has resulted in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and has infected millions of people all over the world. SARS-CoV-2 has been mutating rapidly resulting in the emergence of multiple variants to escape the host immune system mainly by mutations in its receptor binding domain (RBD) of the spike protein. This rapid evolution of the SARS-CoV-2 posed a great challenge regarding the efficacy and effectiveness of the current SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. The RBD and full-length spike of SARS-CoV-2 is the main target of the neutralizing antibodies. Many SARS-CoV-2 variants are considered to have the potential to escape from the host immune system. In this study, the RBD of Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Kappa and Omicron and the full-length spike of BA.1, BA.2, BA.3, BA.4/5, BQ.1.1 and XBB.1.5 Omicron variants were used as coating antigens in Enzyme Linked Immuno-Sorbent Assay (ELISA) to check the neutralization capability of COVID-19 convalescent sera from patients of first wave of infection occurring in Wuhan. Our results show that the currently circulating Omicron BQ.1.1, XBB.1.5 and previous Omicron BA.1, BA.2 and BA.4/5 do not show significant reduction in neutralization, while Omicron BA.3 and previous variants Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Kappa, and Omicron showed a significantly reduced neutralization when compared to the wild-type Wuhan strain. These results indicate patients recovering from natural infection of early original Wuhan strain may have the potential to resist infection of current circulating variants and the vaccines using the prototype antigen may still working for newly emerged variants.

Macrophages as a source and target of GDF-15

Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) based gene-editing has begun to transform the treatment landscape of genetic diseases. The history of the discovery of CRISPR/CRISPR-associated (Cas) proteins/single guide RNA (sgRNA)-based gene-editing since the first report of repetitive sequences of unknown significance in 1987 is fascinating, instructive, and inspiring for future advances. The recent approval of CRISPR-Cas9-based gene therapy to treat patients with severe sickle cell anemia and transfusion-dependent beta thalassemia has renewed hope for treating other hematologic diseases, including patients with germline predisposition to hematologic malignancies, who would benefit greatly from the development of CRISPR-based gene therapies. The purpose of this manuscript is three-fold: first, a chronological description of the history of CRISPR-Cas9-sgRNA-based gene editing; second, a brief description of the current state of clinical research in hematologic diseases, including selected applications in treating hematologic diseases with CRISPR-based gene therapy; and third, the current progress in gene therapies in inherited hematologic diseases and bone marrow failure syndromes, to hopefully stimulate efforts towards developing these therapies for patients with inherited bone marrow failure syndromes and other inherited conditions with germline predisposition to hematologic malignancies.

Chronic exposure to the nephrotoxic metal pollutant, cadmium (Cd), has been associated with the pathogenesis of hypertension, but so far, the mechanism has not been well defined. We hypothesize that exposure to Cd causes a decline in the glomerular filtration rate (GFR), which in turn, causes a rise in blood pressure. Data were collected from 447 Thai subjects with a mean age of 51.1 years, of which 48.8% had hypertension, 15.4% had diabetes and 6.9% had an estimated GFR (eGFR) below 60 mL/min/1.73m2 (low eGFR). The mean blood Cd and mean urinary Cd concentrations were 2.75 and 4.23 µg/L, respectively. Prevalence odds ratio (POR) for hypertension rose twofold in those with a medium Cd burden and blood Cd levels of 0.61-1.69 µg/L. In the hypertensive group, the eGFR was inversely associated with age (β =−0.517), the Cd excretion rate (β = −0.177), and diabetes (β = −0.175). Mean eGFR in those with hypertension was 7.5 mL/min/1.73m2 lower than those who were normotensive with the same Cd body burden. In addition, higher systolic blood pressure (SBP) values were associated with older age (β = 0.243), higher BMI (β = 0.113), lower eGFR (β = −0.106) and diabetes (β = 0.216). Mean SBP in those who had low eGFR and medium and heavy Cd body burden was 9.5 mmHg higher than those with the same Cd body burden and a normal eGFR. Thus, chronic environmental exposure to Cd that produces urinary and blood Cd levels of 0.57-0.61 µg/L, increases the risk of hypertension, and this could be mediated by a declining GFR.

Fungi inhabiting deep subseafloor sediments have been shown to possess anaerobic methane (CH₄) production capabilities under atmospheric conditions. However, their ability to produce CH₄ under in situ conditions with high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) remains unclear. Here, Schizophyllum commune 20R-7-F01, isolated from ~ 2 km below the seafloor, was cultured in Seawater Medium (SM) in culture bottles fitted with sterile syringes for pressure equilibration. Subsequently, these culture bottles were transferred into 1-liter stainless steel pressure vessels at 30 °C for 5 days to simulate in situ HHP and anaerobic environments. Our comprehensive analysis of bioactivity, biomass, transcriptomics revealed that S. commune not only survived but significantly enhanced CH₄ production, reaching approximately 2.5 times higher levels under 35 MPa HHP compared to 0.1 MPa standard atmospheric pressure. Pathways associated with carbohydrate metabolism, methylation, hydrolase activity, cysteine and methionine metabolism, and oxidoreductase activity were notably activated under HHP. Specifically, key genes involved in fungal anaerobic CH₄ synthesis, including methyltransferase mct1 and dehalogenase dh3, were upregulated 7.9- and 12.5-fold, respectively, under HHP. Enhanced CH₄ production under HHP was primarily attributed to oxidative stress induced by pressure, supported by intracellular Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) levels and comparative treatments with cadmium chloride and hydrogen peroxide. These findings suggest that fungi persisting in deep-sea sediments over millions of years have the potential to significantly contribute to global CH₄ flux.

The pressure exerted on the heart and blood vessels because of blood flow is considered as an important parameter for the cardiovascular function. It determines sufficient blood perfusion as well as transportation of nutrition, oxygen and other essential factors to every organ. Pressure in the primary arteries located near the heart and the brain, known as central blood pressure (CBP), while in peripheral arteries, known as peripheral blood pressure (PBP). Normally, CBP and PBP are correlated; however, cardiovascular disorders interfere their regulation and affect the blood flow in vital organs and accessory organs, differently. Therefore, understanding each of them in normal and disease conditions is essential for managing various cardiovascular disorders and increasing their treatment outcomes. In this review, we have described the control systems (neural, hormonal, osmotic and cellular) of the blood pressure and its regulation in hypovolemic shock using centhaquine (Lyfaquin®) as a resuscitative agent.

The likelihood of pre-hypertensive young adults developing hypertension has been steadily increasing over the past few years. Despite the fact that aerobic exercise training (AET) has demonstrated positive results in lowering high blood pressure, the efficacy of different types of AET among pre-hypertensive young adults has not been well-established. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and continuous moderate-intensity training (CMT) on blood pressure (BP) of physically inactive pre-hypertensive young adults. 32 adults (age 20.0±1.1 years and BMI 21.5±1.8) were randomly assigned into 3 groups: HIIT, CMT and control (CON). HIIT and CMT groups participated in 5 weeks of AET; while the CON group followed a DASH diet plan only. The HIIT protocol consisted of 1:4 minute work to rest ratio of participants 80%-85% heart rate reserve (HR-reserve) and 40%-60% HR-reserve respectively for 20-minutes, CMT group exercised at 40%-60% of HR-reserve continuously for 20-minutes. In both HIIT and CMT groups, systolic blood pressure (SBP) (3.8±2.8 mmHg, P=0.002 VS 1.6±1.5 mmHg, P=0.011) was significantly reduced. While, significant reductions in the diastolic blood pressure (DBP) (2.9±2.2 mmHg, P=0.002) and mean arterial pressure (MAP) (3.1±1.6mmHg, P<0.0005) were noted only in the HIIT group. No significant differences in SBP (-0.4±3.7 mmHg, P=0.718), DBP (0.4±3.4 mmHg, P=0.714), or MAP (0.1±2.5mmHg, P= 0.892) were observed in the CON group. Both HIIT and CMT decreased the BP in physically inactive pre-hypertensive young adults; however, HIIT yielded more beneficial results in terms of reducing the SPB, DBP and MAP.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is the most common metabolic disease in humans, and its prevalence is increasing worldwide in parallel with the obesity pandemic. A lack of insulin or insulin resistance, and consequently hyperglycemia, leads to many systemic disorders, among which diabetic encephalopathy (DE) is a long-term complication of the central nervous system (CNS), characterized by cognitive impairment and motor dysfunctions. The role of oxidative stress and neuroinflammation in the pathomechanism of DE has been proven. Fractalkine (CX3CL1) has unique properties as an adhesion molecule and chemoattractant, and by acting on its only receptor, CX3CR1, it regulates the activity of microglia in physiological states and neuroinflammation. Depending on the clinical context, CX3CL1-CX3CR1 signaling may have neuroprotective effects by inhibiting the inflammatory process in microglia or, conversely, maintaining/intensifying inflammation and neurotoxicity. This review discusses the evidence supporting that the CX3CL1-CX3CR1 pair is neuroprotective and other evidence that it is neurotoxic. Interrupting the vicious cycle within neuron-microglia interactions may be a therapeutic goal in DE by limiting the inflammatory response.

This study investigates the suitability of the timestamp approach algorithm for predicting blood pressure (BP) using wearable and comfortable devices, showcasing its accuracy even with low-frequency sampled signals. Developed within the SINTEC European project, the algorithm utilizes Electrocardiogram (ECG) and Photoplethysmogram (PPG) sensors, demonstrating promising results in both laboratory and hospital settings. The research emphasizes the algorithm’s potential to transform continuous and non-invasive BP monitoring through wearable technology, offering frequent measurements with minimal discomfort. While the study shows promise, further exploration is needed, focusing on optimizing machine learning coefficients for long-term monitoring applications and addressing potential changes over time. Technological improvements, including the implementation of edge computing algorithms, hold the key to enhancing BP accuracy, denoising techniques, and integrating alarm systems for future wearable solutions. This study emphasizes the adaptability of the algorithm for diverse healthcare environments, paving the way for broader applications in convenient and reliable BP monitoring.

Elizabethkingia anophelis is an opportunistic pathogen causing lifethreatening infections in humans, particularly in immunocompromised patients, neonates and elderly. Infections caused by this species are exceptionally challenging to treat due to its multiresistance to antimicrobials. We report a case of central line-associated bloodstream infection by E. anophelis in a 2.5-year-old girl with acute lymphoblastic leukemia successfully treated with a combination of piperacillin/tazobactam and amikacin. The literature was also reviewed on paediatric infections caused by E. anophelis. Accurate identification with MALDI-TOF, or using molecular techniques, is crucial because of varying susceptibilities among species. Early, accurate diagnosis and prompt effective treatment optimize outcomes.

Background of the Study: We investigated the link between hypertension and cancer since it has been suggested that hypertension may raise the long-term risk of cancer. Previous large observational cohort studies found that greater blood pressure (BP) was related to a higher risk of cancer. Mendelian randomization (MR) was utilized to produce less confounded blood pressure estimates (BP) on overall and site-specific malignancies. The study aims to draw conclusions on the relationship between high blood pressure and cancer. Methods: Studies on high blood pressure and various malignancies are inconclusive, except for renal cell carcinoma. However, given that most meta-analyses only contained a limited number of trials, some relative risks had small to moderate magnitudes, and several may have been impacted by residual confounding, careful interpretation is necessary. The study was conducted using the meta-analysis technique. Cochran's Q test and I2 test were used to assess statistical heterogeneity between studies in the current investigation for research involving two or more cause and outcome combinations. Results: Positive correlations were also reported between high blood pressure and esophageal adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, liver, and squamous cell carcinoma. However, most studies lacked multivariable adjustments. Physical and numerical risk of cardiovascular disease is linked to bowel cancer but no other cancers. According to a meta-analysis, hypertensive persons could also be at increased danger of gastrointestinal and breast cancer. Most meta-analyses comprised several trials with moderate or mild hazard ratios.ConclusionDifferent types of cancers have been noted to be directly caused by hypertension. In addition, some treatments have also been associated with the side effects of cancer treatments to cause hypertension. Women facing hypertension have an increased risk of getting breast cancer. Although some cancers showed a real relationship with hypertension, others had no connection at all.

High systolic blood pressure and increased blood pressure variability after the onset of ischemic stroke are associated with poor clinical outcomes. One of the key determinants of blood pressure is arteriolar size, determined by vascular smooth muscle tone and vasodilatory and vasoconstrictor substances that are released by the endothelium. The aim of this study is to outline alterations in vasomotor function in isolated peripheral arteries following ischemic stroke. The reactivity of thoracic aortic segments from male C57BL/6 mice to dilators and constrictors was quantified using wire myography. Acetylcholine induced endothelium-dependent vasodilation was impaired after ischemic stroke (LogIC50 Sham=-7.499, LogIC50 Stroke=-7.350, P=0.0132, n= 19, 31 respectively). Vasodilatory responses to SNP were identical in isolated aortas in sham and stroke groups. Phenylephrine induced vasoconstriction was impaired in aortas isolated from stroke animals in comparison to sham counterparts (Sham LogEC50= -6.652 vs Stroke LogEC50=-6.475, P< 0.001). Our study demonstrates that 24 hours post-ischemic stroke, peripheral vascular responses are impaired in remote arteries. Aortas from stroke animals exhibited reduced vasoconstrictor and endothelium-dependent vasodilator responses, while endothelium-independent vasodilatory responses were preserved. Since both vasodilatory and vasoconstrictor responses of peripheral arteries are impaired following ischemic stroke, our findings might explain increased blood pressure variability following ischemic stroke.

Chronic exposure to the nephrotoxic metal pollutant, cadmium (Cd), has been associated with hypertension, but the mechanism by which it raises blood pressure is not understood. We hypothesize that exposure to Cd reduces the glomerular filtration rate (GFR), which in turn, causes a rise in blood pressure. Data were collected from 447 Thai subjects with a mean age of 51.1 years, of which 48.8% had hypertension, 15.4% had diabetes and 6.9% had an estimated GFR (eGFR) below 60 mL/min/1.73 m2 (low eGFR). The mean blood and urinary Cd concentrations were 2.75 and 4.23 µg/L, respectively. The prevalence odds ratio (POR) for hypertension rose twofold in those with blood Cd levels of 0.61-1.69 µg/L or urinary Cd excretion levels ≥ 0.98 µg/g creatinine. In the hypertensive group, the eGFR was inversely associated with age (β =−0.517), the Cd excretion rate (β = −0.177), and diabetes (β = −0.175). Mean eGFR in the normotensive group was 7.5 mL/min/1.73 m2 higher than the hypertensive with a similar Cd body burden. Mean systolic blood pressure (SBP) in those with low or medium eGFR plus heavy Cd body burden was 9.5 mmHg higher than those with the same Cd body burden and a normal eGFR. By mediation analysis, a 22.7% increase in SBP and a 5% increase in diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were attributable to the effect of Cd on GFR. Thus, a rise of blood pressure appears to be a consequence of GFR loss due to Cd-induced kidney damage. This finding is consistent with a well-known role of the kidney in long-term blood pressure regulation.

Autoimmune hemolytic anemias (AIHAs) are conditions whereby a person produces an antibody to their own red blood cells (RBCs). These conditions can be primary with unknown cause or secondary, associated with diseases or infections. There are seven different categories of AIHA, warm-antibody AIHA (wAIHA); cold-antibody AIHA that includes cold agglutinin syndrome (CAS) and cold agglutin disease (CAD); mixed AIHA, also called combined cold and warm AIHA; paroxysmal cold hemoglobinuria (PCH) also termed Donath-Lansteiner test-positive AIHA; direct antiglobulin test-negative AIHA (DAT-neg AIHA); drug-induced immune hemolytic anemia (DIIHA); and passenger lymphocyte syndrome. This review will discuss each of these AIHAs and provide information on diagnosis and treatment.

In order to realize the accurate measurement of wearable sphygmomanometer, this paper selects the micro electro mechanical system (MEMS) pressure sensor with small size, low cost and high accuracy, and proposes a flexible packaging method combining Parylene and Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). The flexible packaging sensor protects the sensor chip while ensuring the comfort of the measured person. It can be worn for a long time, and the encapsulated sensor has good accuracy and sensitivity. At the same time, the encapsulated MEMS pressure sensor was used to collect good pulse signals and extract multiple pulse wave characteristic parameters. A blood pressure measurement method based on the combination of arterial tonometry method and pulse wave parameters method was proposed, and multiple machine learning algorithms were compared and analyzed to select the algorithm model with the smallest error as the optimal regressor. The experimental results show that the blood pressure measurement method combining the arterial tonometry method and the pulse wave parameters method can effectively improve the accuracy of blood pressure measurement. The experimental results demonstrate that the combination of arterial tonometry and pulse wave parameter methods can effectively enhance the accuracy of blood pressure measurement, with the random forest model serving as the optimal regressor. The average deviation between the systolic blood pressure measured by our self-made sphygmomanometer and the commercial sphygmomanometer was 0.86mmHg, with a standard deviation of 4.04mmHg. The average deviation of diastolic blood pressure was 0.63mmHg, with a standard deviation of 5.15mmHg, meeting the AAMI standard for clinical practice.

Background: Despite its global eradication in 1977, smallpox remains a concern owing to its potential as a biological agent, thereby prompting the ongoing development and utilization of its vaccine. Vaccination with the Vaccinia virus induces immunity against variola virus, the causative agent of smallpox; however, this immunity does not extend to viruses of different genera within the Poxviridae family. In this study, we aimed to assess the efficacy of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method utilizing Vaccinia virus and recombinant A27L antigen for detecting antibodies against smallpox. Methods. Analysis of serum from 20 individuals pre- and post-vaccination with the CJ strain (CJ50300) revealed neutralizing antibodies, which were confirmed using the plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT). The ELISA method, validated with a PRNT50 cut-off value of &gt;4, exhibited a sensitivity and specificity of &gt;95% and was particularly reactive with the inactivated virus. Furthermore, adherence to the smallpox vaccination policy revealed significant differences in Orthopoxvirus antibody levels among 300 individuals of different age groups. These findings highlight the reliability and efficacy of the ELISA method in detecting post-vaccination antibodies and contribute significantly to diagnostic methods to prepare for potential smallpox resurgence and bioterrorism threats.

Effects of oxygen content on microstructure and creep property of FGH96 superalloy were investigated. When oxygen content increased from 135ppm to 341ppm, prior particle boundary (PPB) rose from degree 2 to degree 3, and the size of γ′ phase on PPB enlarged from 1.07μm to 1.27μm, and MC carbide size grew from 77.4nm to 104.0nm. Meanwhile, the steady creep rate accelerated form 4.34×10-3 h-1 to 1.87×10-2 h-1, and the creep rupture life shortened from 176h to 94h, and the creep rupture mode transferred from intergranular and transgranular mixed fracture to along PPB fracture. During creep, the micro-twins formation and gliding will be restrained by ∑3 boundaries. FGH96 superalloy with higher oxygen content contains less ∑3 boundaries and its micro-twins cross slipped instead of single direction slip in lower oxygen content superalloy. Consequently, specimen with higher oxygen content creeped faster and raptured earlier.

In the realm of high-pressure vessel simulation, conventional finite element method (FEM) approaches, as per ASME standards, may inadequately predict the behavior of flat surfaces under elevated temperatures. This study challenges the efficacy of shell-type mesh modeling for high-temperature flat plates, demonstrating that the thermal conditions within such high-pressure vessels can induce thermal instability and buckling, not accounted for by traditional FEM methods recommended by ASME. Through comprehensive analytical investigations, we reveal that traditional shell-type meshing techniques, while suitable for certain applications, fail to capture the intricate thermal stresses and deformation patterns inherent in high-temperature flat plate configurations. Our analysis delineates distinct stability regimes governed by key design parameters—including plate thickness, operating temperature, and geometric dimensions—profoundly impacting the structural integrity of heating plates under thermal loading. By elucidating these stability boundaries, this research provides engineers with critical insights necessary for optimizing the design and performance of high-temperature equipment. This includes the design of high-pressure vessels with flat surfaces for heating materials, flanges in high-temperature environments, and fins in heat exchangers across various industries such as oil and gas, pyrolysis, and power plants. The findings presented herein serve as a valuable reference for engineers seeking to comprehend and mitigate instability phenomena in solid mechanics, offering practical guidance for developing robust and reliable high-temperature structures in demanding industrial environments.

In this study, in order to determine the effect of matrices shape on percolation threshold values, computer simulations were performed using the Monte Carlo method for a 200x200 square-shaped matrix and rectangular matrices containing the same number of nodes as the square matrix. Based on the simulations, the average values of percolation thresholds and standard deviations for current flow along and across the matrices were determined. It was determined that for a square-shaped matrix, the average values of percolation thresholds in both directions of current flow were the same. Extending the rectangular matrix while reducing its height causes the average value of the percolation threshold in the direction of current flow along the matrix to increase from 0.592740 to 0.759847, while in the transverse direction it decreases from 0.592664 to 0.403614. The values of the classical asymmetry coefficients of the probability distributions of percolation thresholds for both directions of current flow were determined. Histograms of the probability distributions of percolation threshold values for square-shaped matrix and rectangular matrices were made and compared with normal distributions. It was found that the occurrence of two percolation thresholds in rectangular layers should be considered when analyzing electrical conductivity measurements of nanocomposite thin films.

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common degenerative disease which may cause blood pressure abnormalities due to autonomic dysfunction. Early morning rise of blood pressure which is called morning surge is found to be related with some cardiovascular diseases when it is exaggerated. We wanted to search the relation of Morning blood pressure surge (MBPS) and inflammation in PD. Method: Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring for 24 hours, fibrinogen to albumin ratio, hs-CRP are used in this retrospective study. Fifty idiopathic PD patients and 50 age and sex matched control cases were included. MBPS, it has been defined as the difference between morning BP (measured 2 hours after awakening) and the lowest night-time BP. Body mass index (BMI) is used as an independent variable. Results: Median value of MBPS for PD group (21,63) was significantly different from the control group values (18,63) (p

Background: Along with sarcopenia, delayed blood pressure (BP) recovery after standing and orthostatic hypotension (OH) are among key clinical challenges associated with ageing. Previous studies have reported an association between sarcopenia and delayed orthostatic BP recovery and OH. However, the haemodynamic mechanisms underlying this association remain unclear. Methods: 107 attendees to a falls and syncope clinic aged 50+ years underwent an active stand test with non-invasive beat-to-beat haemodynamic measurement. Hand grip strength and 5-chair stands time were measured. Muscle mass was estimated using bioelectrical impedance analysis, and participants were classified as non-sarcopenic and sarcopenic. Mixed effects models with linear splines were used to model the effect of sarcopenia status on Modelflow®-derived mean arterial pressure (MAP), cardiac output (CO), total peripheral resistance (TPR), stroke volume (SV) and heart rate (HR) after standing, while controlling for potential confounders. Results: Sarcopenia was associated with: attenuated recovery of MAP in the 10-20s period after standing (β -0.67, P<0.001); attenuated rise to peak (0-10s) and recovery from peak (10-20s) of CO (β -0.05, P<0.001; β 0.06, P<0.001); attenuated recovery (10-20s) of TPR from nadir (β -0.02, P<0.001) and attenuated recovery from peak (10-20s) of SV (β 0.54, P<0.001). HR was not significantly associated with sarcopenia status at any time interval after standing. Conclusion: The attenuated BP recovery after standing seen in sarcopenia appears to be driven by initial diminished peak of CO followed by attenuated recovery of CO from peak and TPR from nadir. The CO finding appears to be driven by SV rather than HR. Potential mechanisms for these findings include: cardio-sarcopenia, the effects of sarcopenia on the autonomic nervous system and/or the skeletal muscle pump.

Abstract Background: Alcohol consumption is linked to urinary sodium excretion and both of these traits are linked to hypertension and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). The interplay between alcohol consumption and sodium on hypertension, and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) is not well-described. Here, we used genetically predicted alcohol consumption and explored relationships between alcohol consumption, urinary sodium, hypertension, and CVDs. Methods: We performed a comparative analysis among 295,189 participants from the prospective cohort of the UK Biobank (baseline data collected between 2006 and 2010). We created a genetic risk score (GRS) using 105 published genetic variants in Europeans that were associated with alcohol consumption. We explored relationships between GRS, alcohol consumption, urinary sodium, blood pressure traits, and incident CVD. We used linear, logistic regression and Cox proportional hazards (PH) models in our analysis. Results: Our analyses supported an interaction effect between alcohol GRS and urinary sodium on hypertension (P interaction =0.03) and CVD (P interaction =0.03). In presence of high urinary sodium excretion, alcohol GRS increases blood pressure in a more enhanced fashion. Conclusions: Our results show that decrease in urinary sodium excretion offsets the risk posed by genetic risk of alcohol consumption.

Background/Objectives: Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Carotid intima-media thickness (C-IMT) is a non-invasive marker of atherosclerosis. Low omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) intake and vitamin D deficiency are potential cardiometabolic risk factors in patients with CKD. The aim of this study was to evaluate dietary intake and status of omega-3 PUFA and vitamin D in pre-dialysis and hemodialysis patients and to examine the link of dietary α-linolenic acid (ALA) and fish consumption with blood pressure and C-IMT in CKD patients. Methods: All 77 selected patients (36 pre-dialysis, 41 on hemodialysis) underwent standardized clinical, nutritional, and laboratory assessments. Repeated 24-hour recalls were performed to assess dietary intake. The fatty acid profile was determined by gas-liquid chromatography. Results: Inadequate vitamin D intake and vitamin D status were found in 95% of patients. PUFAs profiles did not differ between hemodialysis and pre-dialysis participants. Dietary intake of ALA was negatively correlated with systolic blood pressure (SBP) (p=0.007), C-IMT (p=0.002), serum CRP (p=0.044), iPTH (p=0.01) and 25(OH)D3 (p=0.006). ALA intake of more than 0.23 g/daily was associated with lower SBP (p=0.001), serum 25(OH)D3 (p=0.004), and C-IMT (p=0.002). Conclusions: This study contributes to a better understanding of the relationship between dietary ALA intake and C-IMT in CKD. The results of this study could emphasize the significant role of the high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and inadequate omega-3 PUFA intake and status considering CVD health in CKD patients.

This cross-sectional study evaluated the validity of three alternative methods compared to the gold standard 24-h urine collection for estimating dietary sodium intake, a modifiable risk factor for hypertension, among middle-aged and older adults with elevated blood pressure. These included spot urine collection (using Kawasaki, Tanaka, and INTERSALT equations), 24-h dietary recall, and food frequency questionnaire responses, compared against 24-h urine collection in a subset of 65 participants (aged 50–75 years, 58.5 % women, 61.6 % hypertensive) from the DePEC-Nutrition trial. The validity of the methods was assessed using bias, Spearman correlation coefficient (SCC), intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), and Bland-Altman analysis. Among the alternative methods, spot urine collection using the Kawasaki equation showed the strongest correlation (SCC 0.238; ICC 0.119, 95 % CI -0.079 to 0.323) but it exhibited a significant bias (1414 mg/day, p-value < 0.001) relative to 24-h urine collection. Conversely, dietary surveys had a smaller bias but wider limits of agreement. These findings underscore the complexities of accurately estimating dietary sodium intake using spot urine collection or dietary surveys in this specific population, suggesting that a combination or refinement of existing methodologies might improve accuracy. Further research with larger samples is necessary to develop more reliable methods for assessing sodium intake in this high-risk group.

Background: Deoxycholic acid (DCA) is a secondary bile acid produced by gut bacteria. Its serum concentration increases in cardiovascular disease (CVD). We hypothesized that DCA may affect hemodynamic parameters in rats. Methods: The concentration of DCA in systemic blood was measured with liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. Arterial blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR) and echocardiographic parameters were evaluated in anesthetized, male, 3-4-month-old Sprague-Dawley rats administered intravenously (IV) or intracerebroventricularly (ICV) with investigated compounds. Mesenteric artery (MA) reactivity was tested ex vivo. Results: The baseline plasma concentration of DCA was 0.24 ± 0.03 mg/l. The oral antibiotic treatment produced a large decrease in the concentration. Administered IV, the compound increased BP and HR in a dose-dependent manner. DCA also increased heart contractility and cardiac output. None of the tested compounds: prazosin (an alpha-blocker), propranolol (beta-adrenolytic), atropine (muscarinic receptor antagonist), glibenclamide (K-ATP inhibitor) or DY 268 (FXR antagonist), glycyrrhetinic acid (11HSD2 inhibitor) significantly diminished the DCA-induced pressor effect. ICV infusion did not exert significant HR or BP changes. DCA relaxed MAs. Systemic vascular resistance did not change significantly. Conclusions: DCA increases BP by increasing cardiac output. As a bioactive gut bacteria-derived metabolite, DCA may co the interaction between gut microbiota and the host’s circulatory system.

Cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE) is a highly all-important material renowned for its exceptional physical and chemical properties, and it is extensively utilized in various industries such as con-struction, piping, cable insulation and medical equipment. The cross-linking process of polyethylene involves chemical or physical bonding of polymer chains to enhance its resistance to heat, chemicals and mechanical stress. This study offers a comprehensive overview of recent research and potential advancements in this field, with a particular focus on the development of efficient techniques and environmentally sustainable cross-linking systems. It evaluates the opportunities and challenges faced by cross-linked polyethylene materials across diverse applications, providing valuable insights for future research in this area.

Cuffless sphygmomanometers may be useful alternative blood pressure monitors for screening and home healthcare. The main requirements for these devices are accuracy in the resting state, accuracy during dynamic blood pressure changes, and long-term stability. Intermittent measurements can ensure that the accuracy of active measurements mirrors that of measurements in the resting and dynamic states. This brief report proposes a new protocol to evaluate long-term stability based on a comparison with a medically approved cuff-based automated sphygmomanometer rather than an auscultatory sphygmomanometer. Dynamic changes in blood pressure are not usually assessed based on intermittent measurement with an over-the-counter (OTC) sphygmomanometer. Thus, validation testing focused on the accuracy of the OTC cuffless sphygmomanometer in the resting state and the long-term stability of the device, and the results were similar to those of the cuff-based sphygmomanometer. Further research and discussions are necessary to develop standards derived from high-quality evidence for manufacturers of OTC sphygmomanometers.

Oscillometric blood pressure (BP) devices currently estimate a single point but do not identify fluctuations in BP or distinguish them from variations in response to physiological properties. In this paper, to analyze BP normality based on oscillometric measurements, we use statistical approaches including kurtosis, skewness, Kolmogorov-Smirnov, and correlation tests. Then, to mitigate uncertainties, we use a deep neural network (DNN) to determine the confidence limits (CLs) of BP measurements based on their normality. The proposed DNN regression model decreases the standard deviation of error (SDE) of the mean error (ME) and the mean absolute error (MAE) and reduces the uncertainty of the CLs and SDEs of the proposed technique. We validate the normality of the distribution of the BP estimation distribution which fits the Gaussian distribution very well. We use a rank test in the DNN regression model to demonstrate the independence of the artificial SBP and DBP estimations. First, we perform statistical tests to verify the normality of the BP measurements for individual subjects. The proposed methodology provides accurate BP estimations and reduces the uncertainties associated with the CLs and SDEs based on the DNN regression estimator.

High pressure crystallization technique has been successfully used to prepare an elusive form II of a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, Mefenamic acid. Single crystal of form II was grown at 0.3 GPa from an 4:1 methanol/ ethanol mixture as a solvent using Diamond Anvil Cell. Comparison of crystal structures show that the efficient packing of MA molecules in Form II results from the structural flexibility of MA acid molecules. Compression studies performed on the single crystal of form I resulted in 14 % decrease of unit cell volume up to 2.5 GPa. No phase transition was observed up to this pressure. A reconstructive phase transition is required to induce conformational changes in the structure, which is confirmed by crystallization at high pressure results.

This paper presents a new semi-explicit algorithm for parameters estimation in a time-fractional generalization of dual-phase-lag heat conduction model with the Caputo fractional derivatives. It is shown that this model can be derived from a general linear constitutive relation for the heat transfer by conduction when the heat conduction relaxation kernel contains the Mittag-Leffler function. The model can be used to describe heat conduction phenomena in a material with power-law memory. The proposed algorithm of parameters estimation is based on the time integral characteristics method. The explicit representations of the thermal diffusivity and the fractional analogues of the thermal relaxation time and the thermal retardation are obtained via a Laplace transform of the temperature field and utilized in the algorithm. An implicit relation is derived for the order of fractional differentiation. In the algorithm, this relation is resolved numerically. An example illustrates the proposed technique.

High temperatures (HT) and high hydrostatic pressures (HHP) are characteristic of deep-sea hydrothermal vents and other deep crustal settings. These environments host vast and diverse microbial populations, yet only a small fraction of those populations have been successfully cultured. This is due, in part, to the difficulty of sampling while maintaining these in situ conditions and also replicating those high-temperature and high-pressure conditions in the laboratory. In an effort to facilitate more HT-HHP cultivation, we present two HT-HHP batch culture incubation systems for cultivating deep-sea vent and subsurface (hyper)thermophilic microorganisms. One HT-HHP system can be used for batch cultivation up to 110 MPa and 121°C, and requires sample decompression during subsampling. The second HT-HHP system can be used to culture microorganisms up to 100 MPa and 160°C with variable-volume, pressure-retaining vessels that negate whole-sample decompression during subsampling. Here, we describe how to build cost effective heating systems for these two types of high-pressure vessels, as well as the protocols for HT-HHP microbial batch cultivation in both systems. Additionally, we demonstrate HHP transfer between the variable-volume vessels, which has utility in sampling and enrichment without decompression, laboratory isolation experiments, as well as HHP filtration.

Precise association of serum leptin with body mass index (BMI) and blood pressure (BP; both systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) is not well known for understanding their involvement in health and disease. Hence, the present study was planned to be conducted for investigating the association of BP, BMI and serum leptin levels in young normal weight (NW) and overweight (OW) male Saudi students. The NW (n: 198) and OW male subjects (n: 192) in the age range of 18-20 years were consulted. Blood pressure (BP) was measured with a mercury sphygmomanometer. Leptin Human ELISA Kits were employed for the determination of the serum leptin levels. The mean ± SD values of BMI (kg/m2), serum leptin (ng/ml), SBP (mmHg), and DBP (mmHg) all showed significant difference for young OW vs. NW male university students as: 27.52± 1.42 vs. 21.49± 2.03; 10.70± 4.67 vs. 4.68± 1.91; 121.37±2.59 vs.118.51±1.54 and 81.44±1.97 vs. 78.79±1.44 respectively. All associations (among BMI, leptin, SBP and DBP) showed positive linear and significant correlation except nonsignificant correlation of BMI and SBP for NW group. The present study in the young Saudi male students, presents significant variations for BP and serum leptin levels and significant positive linear association among serum leptin, BMI and BP.

The zinc oxide (ZnO) arrester is positioned on locomotive roof preventing other onboard electrical equipment from the harm caused by external and internal overvoltages. A number of locomotive arrester burnout and explosion accidents occur during traction supply network harmonic resonance causing train stoppages and power outages in the network. This study firstly carries out high-frequency tests to investigate the wide frequency band electrical characteristics of the locomotive arrester, explaining that the arrester is prone to fault during resonance. Consequently, a prognostics and health management (PHM) for locomotive arrester is proposed providing on online monitoring, fault warning and health assessment solutions, which is beneficial to the operation and maintenance of arresters in the future. The testing method and PHM scheme presented in this paper can be not only applied to the arrester, also readily expanded to other high-voltage electrical equipment on the electric locomotive.

Hypertension is one of the most common and significant cardiovascular risk factor. With the emergence of COVID-19, concerns have arisen about its potential to exacerbate cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Several theories have emerged linking hypertension with COVID-19. However, the relationship between SARS-CoV-2 infection and long-term risk of hypertension remains insufficiently explored. Therefore, our study aimed to investigate the impact of COVID-19 infection on blood pressure and long-term risk of hypertension developing. A comprehensive search was conducted in the PubMed and SCOPUS databases up to 10th August 2023 for relevant papers. The analysis included 35 eligible articles. The majority of the latest studies pointed to increase BP after COVID-19 infection. However, several observations contradicted the influence of SARS-CoV-2 on the hypertension development or suggesting a transient effect. The possible role of the loss of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, cytokine storm, increased sympathetic activity, and endothelial dysfunction were considered. On the other hand, BP changes following COVID-19 could be a consequence of lifestyle changes, which often accompanied COVID-19 infection. Our findings highlight the urgent need for comprehensive research on the COVID-19 and hypertension link. These insights are crucial for implementing effective prevention and management strategies for individuals with the history of COVID-19 infection.

The domestic ducks (Anas platyrhynchos domesticus) are resistant to most of the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) infections. In this study, we characterized the lung proteome and phosphoproteome of ducks infected with HPAI H5N1 virus (A/duck/India/02CA10/2011/Agartala) at 12 hr, 48 hr and 5 days post infection condition. Total 2082 proteins were differentially expressed and 320 phosphorylation sites mapping to 199 phosphopeptides corresponding to 129 proteins were identified. Functional annotation of proteome data analysis reveals activation of RIG-I-like receptor and Jak-STAT signaling pathways, that lead to induction of interferon stimulated genes (ISGs) expression. The pathway analysis of phosphoproteome datasets also confirms the activation of RIG I, Jak-STAT signaling, NF-kappa B signaling and MAPK signaling pathways in the lung tissues. The induction of ISGs proteins (STAT1, STAT3, STAT5B, STAT6, IFIT5 and PKR) establishes protective antiviral immune response in duck lung tissue. Further, the protein-protein interaction network analysis identified proteins like AKT1, STAT3, JAK2, RAC1, STAT1, PTPN11, RPS27A, NFKB1 and MAPK1 as main hub proteins that might play important roles in disease progression in ducks. Together, functional annotation of proteome and phosphoproteome datasets reveals the molecular basis of the disease progression and disease resistance mechanism in ducks infected with HPAI H5N1 virus.

Microscopic vision plays an important role in automated micro-assembly. However, some uncertain factors in the assembly process, such as occlusion and stains can lead to the mistakes of feature extraction. Herein, to solve the problem, the deep learning techniques are introduced into the feature recognition tasks, focusing on the attention mechanism and visualizing CNNs for DL-based microscopic vision. The main contributions are summarized as follows: The CBAM attention mechanism is combined with the YOLOv5 algorithm to improve the accuracy and robustness of feature extraction. The micropart feature occlusion experiment results show that at 70% occlusion degree, YOLOV5-CBAM can reach 97.9% [email protected], which is 4.6% higher than the original one. Visualization analysis of DL-based model is conducted using Grad-CAM to make the decision result more transparent and avoid potential visual detection risks during assembly. The heatmap matching degree between GT area and high-light area is increased by 27.81% on average, which further verify the effectiveness of attention mechanism in micropart feature localization. Additionally, micropart surface stain and droplet quality classification models based on ResNet50 are trained to replace the manual sorting. The visual results are consistent with human eye discernment and judgement, confirming the reliability of parts and droplets sorting.

The B169L protein (pB169L) of African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a structural protein with an unidentified function during the virus replication. The sequences of the B169L gene and the downstream B438L gene are separated by short intergenic regions. However, the regulatory mode of the gene transcription remains unknown. Here, we identified two distinct promoter regions and two transcription start sites (TSS) located upstream of the open reading frame (ORF) of B438L. Using the promoter reporter system, we demonstrated that the cis activity of the ORF proximal promoter exhibited significantly higher levels compared with that of the distal promoter located in the B169L gene. Furthermore, transfection with the plasmids with two different promoters for B438L could initiate the transcription and expression of the B438L gene in HEK293T cells, and the cis activity of the ORF proximal promoter also displayed the higher activities compared with the distal promoter. Interestingly, the B438L distal promoter also initiated the transcription of the alternatively spliced B169L mRNA (B169L mRNA2) encoding a truncated pB169L (tpB169L) (amino acids 92–169), and the gene transcription efficiency was increased upon mutation of the initiation codon located upstream of the alternatively spliced B169L gene. Taken together, we demonstrated that the distal promoter of B438L gene initiates the transcription of both the B438L mRNA and B169L mRNA2. Comprehensive analysis of the transcriptional regulatory mode of the B438L gene is beneficial for the understanding of the association of B438L protein and pB169L and the construction of the gene-deleted ASFV.

Abstract:High-pressure water jet technology has received extensive attention and application due to its high efficiency and environmental protection characteristics. The high-pressure water jet nozzle is its core component, and the research on the high-pressure water jet nozzle is conducive to improving the jet performance and improving the jet efficiency. This paper introduces the characteristics of water jet and the working principle of pure water jet, abrasive water jet, pulsed water jet and cavitation water jet, reviews the theoretical analysis and experiment of the predecessor's nozzle, briefly explains the application of high-pressure water jet and looks forward to the development trend of this technology.

Hypertension is a major risk factor for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Previous studies have indicated that the presence of heavy metals in the air may be a risk factor for hypertension. This study examined the combined effects of heavy metals on blood pressure considering, sex differences. A health impact survey was conducted with 561 residents near waste incineration facilities in Buki-myeon, Cheongju, Korea. Blood samples were analyzed for heavy metal concentrations, and the blood pressure was measured. Multiple linear and Bayesian kernel machine regressions (BKMR) were used to assess the association between heavy metal exposure and blood pressure. Men had higher blood mercury and lead concentrations, while women had higher cadmium levels. The multiple linear regression analysis revealed no significant associations between heavy metals and systolic blood pressure. However, cadmium was significantly associated with increased diastolic blood pressure in the total group and women, whereas lead was associated with the same in men. In the BKMR analysis, the joint effect of the three metals was significantly associated with diastolic blood pressure below the 45th percentile and above the 55th percentile only in men. These findings underscore the importance of considering sex differences in environmental health studies and public health strategies.

The use of renewable fuels for internal combustion engines marks a significant stride towards sustainability in transportation and power generation. Ensuring the compatibility of these fuels with existing diesel engines and infrastructure is paramount for a smooth transition. Diesel engines ca-pable of harnessing the advantages of alternative fuels without extensive modifications offer a pragmatic approach to sustainable power for vehicles and industries. This article investigates the impact of carbon neutral renewable fuel types (HVOs and biodiesel) on the operation of the high-pressure injection pump, focusing on rotational speed and delivery pressure as key parame-ters. Investigations, based on pump operating cycle analysis and volumetric efficiency measure-ments, reveals that while speed dependence is moderate, fuel type significantly influences pump performance. Hydrogenated carbon-neutral fluids (HVOs) demonstrate adequate capabilities compared to conventional fossil fuels, offering promising prospects for reducing environmental impact. The findings underscore the importance of considering fuel properties, particularly com-pressibility modulus. These insights provide valuable guidance for the advancement of sustainable transportation and industrial systems.

Co-Zr amorphous alloys exhibit soft magnetic properties, whereas Co-rich crystalline magnetic phases in this alloy system display hard magnetic behaviour. In this study, an initial two-phase Co-Zr composite with an overall composition of 75 at.% Co and 25 at.% Zr was processed by high pressure torsion (HPT) and the effects of severe plastic deformation and subsequent thermal treatment on the structural evolution and its magnetic properties have been investigated. HPT processing allowed us to achieve an amorphous microstructure in the as-deformed state with low coercivity. To further tune magnetic properties and study the alloys’ crystallization behaviour, various annealed states are investigated. Microstructural properties are correlated to the magnetic properties and a decreasing coercivity with increasing annealing temperature is observed despite the onset of crystallization in the amorphous alloy. At higher annealing temperatures, coercivity increases again. The results appear promising to obtain tuneable rare-earth free magnetic materials by severe plastic deformation.

The structural stability of γ-boron is investigated using Raman spectra under high pressures up to 126 GPa at ambient temperature. The pressure dependence of all the Raman-active modes of the γ-boron is reported. We also observe amusing changes within the B3g and B1g Raman-active vibrational modes, which results in the phenomenon of merging first and then separating of the Raman peaks. In addition to the Raman measurements, the changes in crystal structure and force constants are calculated to reasonably explain the discrepancy between the two Raman modes in response to pressure. The results of the continuous shifts for all Raman modes with increasing pressure indicate that γ-boron remains stable below this pressure value, with no changes in either symmetry or structure.

The multi-stage, multi-level assembly job shop scheduling problem (MsMlAJSP) is commonly encountered in the manufacturing of complex customized products. Ensuring production efficiency while effectively improving energy utilization is a key focus in the industry. For the energy-efficient MsMlAJSP (EEMsMlAJSP), an improved imperialist competitive algorithm based on Q-learning (IICA-QL) is proposed to minimize the maximum completion time and total energy consumption. In IICA-QL, a decoding strategy with energy-efficient triggers based on problem characteristics is designed to ensure solution quality while effectively enhancing search efficiency. Additionally, an assimilation operation with operator parameter self-adaptation based on Q-learning is devised to overcome the challenge of balancing exploration and exploitation with fixed parameters, thus the convergence and diversity of the algorithmic search is enhanced. Finally, the effectiveness of the energy-efficient strategy decoding trigger mechanism and the operator parameter self-adaptation operation based on Q-learning is demonstrated through experimental results, and the effectiveness of IICA-QL for solving EEMsMlAJSP is verified by comparing with other algorithms.

Anesthetics reduce cardiac functions and lower blood pressure (BP), potentially causing excessive BP reduction in dehydrated patients or those with heart conditions, such as coronary artery disease (CAD). Considering the increased prevalence of cardiovascular disease with age, anesthesiologists must be cautious about BP reduction during general anesthesia in older adults. In the present case, an undiagnosed CAD patient in a hypovolemic state experienced a significant systolic blood pressure drop to the 50s during propofol and sevoflurane anesthesia. Despite the use of vasopressors, excessive hypotension persisted, leading to anesthesia suspension. Subsequent cardiac examinations, including computed tomography heart angio and calcium score, and coronary angiogram, revealed a near total occlusion of the left main coronary artery and the formation of collateral circulation. After 5 days of hydration and anticoagulation medications and confirmation of normovolemic state, general anesthesia was attempted again and successfully induced; a normal BP was maintained throughout the surgery. Thus, it is important to conduct a thorough cardiac evaluation and maintain normovolemia for general anesthesia in older adults.

In order to create a smart mine, it is necessary to digitize the existing emulsion pumping station. Existing research does not achieve this task, this paper designs and manufactures a high-pressure, high-flow, high-water-based mining digital controlled unloading valve (abbreviated as HLHMDCUV), which achieves good results in both theoretical analysis and experimental testing. In order to obtain the accurate dynamic characteristics, this valve was analyzed by simulation using AMESim. Based on the dynamic performance analysis and the flow field analysis inside the valve body, the structure has been optimized to improve the performance of HLHMDCUV. The results show that the HLHMDCUV has a better dynamic characteristics, which were also demonstrated in the experiment. At the same time, the HLHMDCUV is easy to disassemble and maintain. This paper provides a theoretical basis for the design of such valves, which is conducive to the subsequent promotion of intelligent mine transformation.

In order to study the corrosion resistance of 904L composite plate pressure vessel under high temperature and high pressure gas field environment, the pitting corrosion and stress corrosion cracking resistance of 904L composite plate body and weld material were compared with those of 2205 composite plate and 825 composite plate, which have been used in high temperature and high pressure gas field environment. The results showed that the pitting resistance of 904L composite plate was lower than that of 825 composite plate and higher than that of 2205 solid solution pure material plate and 2205 composite plate. The corrosion resistance of welds on 904L composite plate with different materials was very different. The corrosion rate of 904L composite plate body, welding seam and surfacing welding were all slight corrosion, and the sensitivity of chloride stress corrosion cracking was low in the simulation of the corrosion environment of high temperature and high pressure gas field. 904L composite plate met the requirements of corrosion resistance of pressure vessel material in high temperature and high pressure gas field environment.

Background This study aimed to examine the acute effects of different pre-ST strategies on muscular performance and blood pressure (BP) responses in recreationally strength-trained women. Methods: Twelve overweight women with normal-to-elevated BP were recruited and performed six exper-imental protocols in a randomized order: 1) control protocol (CC) – BP assessed without exercises performed, 2) strength training (ST), 3) foam rolling warm-up followed by strength training (FR+ST), 4) specific warm-up followed by strength training (SW+ST), 5) aerobic exercise followed by strength training (AE+ST), and 6) stretching exercises followed by strength training (SE+ST). Strength training consisted of three sets at 80% of 10RM with a self-suggested rest interval between sets for bench press, back squat, bench press 45º, front squat, lat pull-down, leg press, shoulder press, and leg extension. Results: All experimental protocol had a lower total training volume, fa-tigue index, and repetitions performance in relation to ST (p

The paper examines the possibility of increasing the wear and corrosion resistance of a CP-Ti surface by duplex plasma electrolytic treatment (borocarburizing and polishing). The structure and composition of diffusion layers, their microhardness, surface morphology and roughness, wear resistance during dry friction and corrosion resistance in Ringer's solution were studied. The formation of a surface hardened layer up to 200 m thick with a microhardness of up to 950 HV, including carbides and a solid solution of boron and carbon, is shown. Subsequent polishing makes it possible to reduce surface roughness and remove weak areas of the porous oxide layer, which is formed during high-temperature oxidation in aqueous electrolyte vapor during borocarburizing. Changing the morphology and structural-phase composition of the CP-Ti surface helps reduce weight wear by 3 times (the mode of frictional interaction changes from microcutting to oxidative wear) and corrosion current density by 4 times after borocarburizing in a solution of boric acid, glycerin and ammonium chloride at 950 °C for 5 minutes and subsequent polishing in an ammonium fluoride solution at a voltage of 250 V for 3 minutes.

Objective To observe the effect of roxadustat on blood pressure and micro-inflammatory response in patients with hemodialysis anemia, and to provide a viable technique for the treatment of hemodialysis anemia patients. Methods A total of 100 hemodialysis anemia patients admitted to the Nephrology Department of our hospital from July 2020 to July 2021 were enrolled and randomly divided into an observation group (roxadustat) and a control group (human recombinant erythropoietin (rhEPO). The clinical efficacy, blood lipid metabolism, inflammatory factor levels, iron metabolism-related indicators, blood biochemical indicators, anemia indicators, adverse reactions and blood pressure were recorded and compared. Results There was no significant difference in baseline data and serum indicators (P>0.05). The study group demonstrated superior performance to the control group in terms of clinical efficacy, blood lipid metabolism, inflammatory factor levels, iron metabolism-related indicators, blood biochemical indicators, anemia indicators, adverse reactions and blood pressure (all P<0.05). Conclusion Compared with rhEPO treatment, roxadustat exhibits a promising outcome in treating anemia and has slight impact on blood pressure of patients.

Incretin effect helps in regulating glucose homeostasis and maintaining glycaemic control within the human body. This effect is achieved by the two naturally occurring incretin hormones: glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). Such hormones released by specialized entero-endocrine cells of the gastrointestinal tract cause insulin augmentation after food consumption. However, incretin effects are impaired in type 2 diabetic, primarily attributed to the deterioration of GLP-1 function along with decreased GLP-1 receptor expression. Targeting this hormone has, therefore, become an important therapeutic approach to treat this diabetic condition. Native GLP-1’s brief half-life and rapid proteolytic degradation have generated significant enthusiasm in uncovering the long-acting GLP-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists to manage type 2 diabetes. These synthetic peptides mimic the natural GLP-1 to activate GLP-1R and effectively exert various physiological benefits in terms of weight management, blood pressure, lipid profile, obesity and major adverse cardiovascular event. This review paper provides insights into the structure, function and expression of GLP-1 and its receptor. It also summarizes existing literature regarding different types of GLP-1 receptor agonists, their effects on blood pressure and how they exert their actions. While animal models have contributed significantly to this area of study, the scarcity of human studies is noted, indicating a need for more investigation in this domain. Expanding research in humans will help in comprehending the impact of GLP-1 receptor agonists on blood pressure regulation and their underlying mechanisms.

Artificial intelligence (AI) driven language models have seen a rapid rise in development, deployment, and adoption over the last few years. This surge has sparked many discussions about their societal and political impact, including political bias. Bias is a crucial topic in the context of large models due to its far-reaching consequences on technology, politics, and society. It significantly influences public perception, decision-making, political discourse, and AI policy governance and ethics. This study investigates political bias through a comparative analysis of four prominent AI models: ChatGPT-4, Perplexity, Google Gemini, and Claude.Through a comprehensive analysis by systematically and categorically evaluating their responses to politically and ideologically charged tests and prompts, utilizing the Pew Research Center’s Political Typology Quiz, the Political Compass assessment, and ISideWith political party quiz, this study identifies significant ideological leanings and the nature of political bias within these models. The findings revealed that ChatGPT-4 and Claude exhibit a liberal bias, Perplexity is more conservative, while Google Gemini adopts more centrist stances. The presence of such biases underscores the critical need for transparency in AI development and the incorporation of diverse training datasets, regular audits, and user education to mitigate these biases. This analysis also advocates for more robust practices and comprehensive frameworks to assess and reduce political bias in AI, ensuring these technologies contribute positively to society and support informed, balanced, and inclusive public discourse, which will point towards neutrality.The results of this study add to the ongoing discourse about the ethical implications and development of AI models, highlighting the critical need to build trust and integrity in AI models. Additionally, future research directions have been outlined to explore and address the complex issue of bias in AI.

We evaluated the association of blood pressure with blood levels of cadmium, lead, and cadmium and lead together (cadmium+lead) in a representative sample of adolescents from Korea by use of 2010-2016 data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES). This cross-sectional study enrolled adolescents aged at 10-18 years-old who completed a health examination survey and had blood measurements of lead and cadmium. The association of adjusted mean differences in diastolic and systolic blood pressure with doubling of blood lead and cadmium were estimated by regression of blood pressure against log₂-transformed blood metals and their quartiles after covariate adjustment. Adjusted odds ratios for prehypertension were calculated for log₂-transformed blood levels of lead and cadmium and their quartiles. Our analysis of adolescents in Korea indicated that blood levels of lead and cadmium were not significantly associated with increased blood pressure or risk of pre-hypertension. However, the cadmium+lead level was associated with pre-hypertension. Previous studies showed that blood levels of lead and cadmium were associated with increased blood pressure and risk of hypertension in adult populations. We found no such effect in Korean adolescents, although the cadmium+lead level was associated with prehypertension. These differences may be because adolescents generally have lower levels of these blood metals or because adolescents only rarely have hypertension.

The management of brain tumors presents numerous challenges, despite the employment of multimodal therapies including surgical intervention, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy. Owing to the distinct location of brain tumors and the presence of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), these tumors exhibit considerable heterogeneity and invasiveness at a histological level. Recent advancements in hydrogel research for the local treatment of brain tumors have sought to overcome the primary challenge of delivering therapeutics past the BBB, thereby ensuring efficient accumulation within brain tumor tissues. This article elaborates on various hydrogel-based delivery vectors, examining their efficacy in the local treatment of brain tumors. Additionally, it reviews the fundamental principles involved in designing intelligent hydrogels that can circumvent the BBB and penetrate larger tumor areas, thereby facilitating precise, controlled drug release. Hydrogel-based drug delivery systems (DDSs) are posited to offer a groundbreaking approach in addressing the challenges and limitations inherent in traditional oncological therapies, which are significantly impeded by the unique structural and pathological characteristics of brain tumors.

The second-order factor effect of burner optical ports and edge inter-matrices (EIM) and the first-order factor of pressure on the soot formation process and behavior of premixed sooting flames in a high-pressure burner are numerically investigated here. Three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations of a premixed flame C₂H₄/air at p = 1.01 and 10 bar using a one-step chemistry approach are first performed to justify the satisfied predictability of the prospective axisymmetric two-dimensional (2D) and one-dimensional (1D) simulations. The justified 2D simulation approach shows the generation of an axial vorticity around the EIM and axial multi-vorticities due to the high expansion rate of burnt gases at the high pressure of 10 bar. This leads to the development of axial multi-sooting zones, which are manifested experimentally by visible luminous soot streaks, and to the boosting of soot formation conditions of a relatively low-temperature field, < 1800 K, and a high mixing rate of gases in combustion around and above the EIM location. Nevertheless, a tolerable effect on the centerline soot volume fraction (f_V) profile, f_V < 3%, is manifested only at high heights above the burner of the atmospheric sooting flame C₂H₄/air ϕ = 2.1, and early at the high pressure of 10 bar of this flame, f_V < 10%. Enhancing the combustion process reactivity by decreasing the rich equivalence ratio of the fuel/air mixture and/or rising the pressure results in the prior formation of soot precursors, which shifts the sooting zone upstream.

New nanocomposite material was prepared by high pressure processing of starting glass of nominal composition NaFePO$_{4}$. Thermal, structural, electrical and dielectric properties of the prepared samples were studied by differential thermal analysis (DTA), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS). It was demonstrated that high pressure – high temperature treatment (HPHT) led to an increase of electrical conductivity of initial glasses by 2 orders of magnitude. It was also shown that the observed effect was stronger than for lithium analogue of this material studied by us earlier. The observed enhancement of conductivity was explained by Mott’s theory of electron hopping, which is more frequent in sample after pressure treatment. The final composite consisted of nanocrystalline NASICON and alluaudite phases, which are electrochemically active in potential cathode materials for Na batteries. Average dimensions of crystallites estimated from XRD studies were between 40 and 90 nm, depending on the phase. Some new aspects of local dielectric relaxations in studied materials were also discussed. It was shown that a combination of high pressures and BDS method is a powerful method to study relaxation processes and molecular movements in solids. It was also pointed out that high-pressure cathode materials may exhibit higher volumetric capacities compared with commercially used cathodes with carbon additions.

Traditional high pressure mechanical compressors account for over half of the car station’s cost, have insufficient reliability and are not feasible for a large-scale fuel cell market. An alternative technology, employing a two-stage, hybrid system based on electrochemical and metal hydride compression technologies, represents an excellent alternative to conventional compressors. The high-pressure stage, operating at 100-875 bar, is based on a metal hydride thermal system. A techno-economic analysis of the metal hydride system is presented and discussed. A model of the metal hydride system was developed, integrating a lumped parameter mass and energy balance model with an economic model. A novel metal hydride heat exchanger configuration is also presented, based on mini-channel heat transfer systems, allowing for effective high-pressure compression. Several metal hydrides were analyzed and screened, demonstrating that one selected material, namely (Ti_0.97Zr_0.03)_1.1Cr_1.6Mn_0.4, is likely the best candidate material to be employed for high-pressure compressors under the specific conditions. System efficiency and costs were assessed based on the properties of currently available materials at industrial levels. Results show that the system can reach pressures on the order of 875 bar with thermal power provided at approximately 150 °C. The system cost is comparable with the current mechanical compressors and can be reduced in several ways as discussed in the paper.

Soccer is the leading cause of all sports-related ocular injuries in Europe and Israel and leads to blindness at a disproportionately high rate, especially among children (Thompson et al., 2019). With soccer being the most popular sport in the world, it is surprising the only solution to ocular injuries are sports glasses which can cause direct damage to the eye and impair peripheral vision by 15%, calling for an alternative (Smith & Jones, 2020). This work, based on an imported facial model, focuses on both the qualitative and quantitative aspects of building a personalized, low-cost (through optimizing material needed), superior apparatus to conventional sports glasses. The quantitative side examines a modified and model-validated (through a SRS of thirty unique extrapolated points) multivariate linear regression equation, based on horizontal and vertical rotation angles (n=60) trained with residual and computer simulation data, that can accurately extrapolate and quantify ocular impact from all horizontal and vertical rotation angles and a modified Hertzian Contact Stress Equation to determine the thickness of the apparatus using the elasticity modulus, impact force, and geometrical facial and soccer-ball features. The qualitative side examines where firstly, ocular impact is most prevalent, and secondly, where most impact is seen from rotating the ball horizontally and vertically through analysis of Pearson’s Correlation Coefficient at the supraorbital, medial canthus, infraorbital, and lateral canthus regions from both regression equations as well as a cost-benefit analysis for comparison with conventional sports glasses. The findings discovered in this work lay the groundwork for future research to build a customized low-cost ocular injury prevention device which can simultaneously ensure complete ocular safety while enhancing athletic performance for over 250,000,000 players (Johnson & Garcia, 2022).

The numerical simulation of entropy generation at mixed natural free and forced convection flow in a square lid-driven cavity filled with an eletrically conducting binary fluids saturated porous media in the presence of a magnetic field is performed in this investigation. Both the top and bottom horizontal walls of the cavity are kept at constant and different temperatures while the left and right vertical walls are adiabatic and insulated. The magnetic field is applied in normal direction to the cavity. The Darcy model, including Brinkman term relative to viscous effects and Forchheimer term due to inertial forces, is used for the momentum equations, and the SIMPLER algorithm, based on the control volume finite-element method approach is used to solve the pressure –velocity coupling. The flow pattern and the heat transfer characteristics inside the cavity are presented in the form of isotherms, streamlines and isentropic lines and average Nusselt number trend. The entropy generation rate is determined for various values of Darcy number (10^-3 ≤ Da ≤ 1) and for a range of Hartmann number (0 ≤ Ha ≤ 10²). This study is limited to Pr = 7 which corresponds to water. It is observed that entropy generation is very affected by the variations of dimensionless control parameters considered.

This paper introduces a class of symmetric ciphering systems with a finite secret key, which provides ideal secrecy, autonomy in key generation and distribution, and robustness against the probabilistic structure of messages (Ideally Secret Autonomous Robust – ISAR system). The ISAR system is based on wiretap polar codes constructed over an artificial wiretap channel with a maximum secrecy capacity of 0.5. The system autonomously maintains a minimum level of key equivocation by continuously refreshing secret keys without needing additional key generation and distribution infrastructure. Thus, this class of systems generalizes Shannon's ideal and strongly ideal ciphering systems. Additionally, it can transform any stream ciphering system with a finite secret key of known length into an ISAR system without the necessity of knowing and/or changing its algorithm. Therefore, this class of system strongly supports privacy, a critical requirement for contemporary security systems. The ISAR system's reliance on wiretap polar coding for strong secrecy ensures resistance to passive attacks with known plaintext messages. Furthermore, resistance to passive attacks on generated keys follows directly from ideal secrecy and autonomy. The results presented offer an efficient methodology for synthesizing this class of systems with predetermined security margins and a complexity of the order of nlogn, where n is the block length of the applied polar code.

This research has developed a process for producing ZnO thin film from DEZn deposited onto a PET substrate with low-pressure, high-frequency Ar + O2 plasma using a chemical vapor deposition technique. The aim is to study the film production conditions that affect electrical properties, optical properties, and thin film surfaces. This work highlights the use of plasma energy produced from a mixture of gases between Ar + O2. Plasma production is stimulated with an RF power supply to deliver high chemical energy and push ZnO atoms from the cathode inside the reactor onto the substrate through surface chemical reactions. The results showed that increasing the RF power in plasma production affected the chemical reactions on the substrate surface of film formation. The film preparation at RF power 300 W will give the thickest films. The film has a continuous columnar formation, and the surface has a granular structure. This results in the lowest electrical resistivity of 1.8 x 10-4 Ω-cm. In addition, when fabricated into a DSSC device, the device tested the PCE value and showed the highest value at 5.68%. This is due to the very rough surface nature of the ZnO film, which increases the scattering and storage of sunlight, making cells more efficient. Therefore, the benefit of this research is that it will be a highly efficient prototype of thin film production technology using a chemical process that reduces production costs and can be used in the industrial development of solar cells.

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of Blazepod technology when incorporated with various training regimens on the essential elements of physical fitness in volleyball, such as agility, speed, visual response time, and vertical leap. Thirty-six participants (age :17.33±0.48 y, height: 183.78±6.34 cm, weight: 77.14±5.16 kg) were in-volved in this study. In randomized design, three equal groups with two experimental groups and one control group were involved in the study over a period of six weeks: (GE1) used Blazepod technology to workout at a low level; (GE2) used Blazepod technology to workout at a higher intensity; (CG) did not employ Blazepod technology, but it adhered to the same fundamental training curriculum. We conducted agility, speed, reaction time, and vertical jump tests before, midway and after the study to determine optimal training volume, intensity, and frequency. A significant main effect of time (P0.01), and time×group interaction (P>0.001) were found for all tests. Post hoc test showed that the two experimental groups gadget significantly improved in all performance variables (P

A comprehensive modeling framework for the thermoforming of polymer matrix woven laminate composite was developed. Two numerical indicators, the slip path length and traction magnitude, have been identified to be positively correlated to matrix smearing and wrinkling defects. The material model has been calibrated with picture-frame experimental results, and the prediction accuracy for intra-ply shear and thickness distribution were examined with measurements on the physically formed parts. Finally, a parametric study was conducted to determine the relationship between various process parameters and the quality of the formed part. For the trapezoidal part, orienting the laminate at 45-degrees to the mold axis reduces the likelihood of matrix smear and wrinkling defects. Although this laminate orientation yielded a greater spatial variation of part thickness, the thickness deviation is lower than that for the 0-degree orientation case. Higher forming rates were found to result in more defects due to increased slip path lengths and traction magnitudes. Optimal forming speeds should balance rapid shaping within the operating temperature window while avoiding tear. It was discovered that shallower molds benefit from faster ramp rates, while deeper molds require slower rates to manage extensive shearing, stretching, and bending. Faster forming rates lead to smaller thickness increases at high intra-ply shear regions, indicating a shift from intra-ply shear to out-of-plane bending due to the visco-plastic effect of the molten laminate, and can negatively impact part quality. Lastly, it was shown that a well-conceived strategy using darts could improve the part quality by reducing the magnitude of the defect indicators.

This study evaluated the effects of high-temperature and high-pressure treatment on the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of carrot extracts. The total polyphenol and flavonoid content of heated carrot extract increased as the heating temperature increased, with 403.93 mg GAE/100 g and 53.14 mg CE/100 g at 150°C. DPPH and ABTs radical scavenging activity (IC50) of heated carrot extract also increased as the heating temperature increased, with 4.65 mg/mL and 7.31 mg/mL, respectively, at 150°C. The reducing power increased with the heating temperature. Heated carrot extract did not exhibit any temperature- or concentration-dependent cytotoxicity. Nitric oxide (NO) generation was suppressed as the heating temperature and NO production increased. The heated carrot extract showed a decrease in the production of dose-dependent TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 compared to the control group. The above results show that heated carrot extract had effective antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities.

53% of adults in the US acknowledge racial bias as a significant issue, 23% of Asian adults experience cultural and ethnic bias, and more than 60% conceal their cultural heritage after racial abuse. AI models like ChatGPT and Google Bard, trained on historically biased data, inadvertently amplify racial and ethnic bias and stereotypes. This paper addresses the issue of racial bias in AI models using scientific, evidence-based analysis and auditing processes to identify biased responses from AI models and develop a mitigation tool. The methodology involves creating a comprehensive database of racially biased questions, terms, and phrases from thousands of legal cases, Wikipedia, and surveys, and then testing them on AI Models and analyzing the responses through sentiment analysis and human evaluation, and eventually creation of an 'AI-BiasAudit,' tool having a racial-ethnic database for social science researchers and AI developers to identify and prevent racial bias in AI models.

Previous research has indicated that ultra-high pressure (UHP) technology is useful in speeding up the extraction process of cold brew (CB) coffee. However, the impact of different degrees of roasting on UHP CB coffee is still unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effects of three different degrees of roasting (light, medium, and dark) on the physicochemical and flavor characteristics of UHP CB coffee. The results of this study showed that most physicochemical characteristics of UHP coffee were similar to those of conventional CB coffee, regardless of the degree of roasting. However, the majority of physicochemical characteristics, non-volatile components, and sensory evaluation significantly increased with an increase in roasting degree. The HS-SPME-GC/MS analysis showed that most volatile components, such as pyrazines, furans (except furfural), esters, pyrrole, pyridine, and most aldehydes, increased from light to dark roasting, and this was significantly evident in CB coffee compared with UHP. The content of volatile components in UHP coffee was significantly (P<0.05) higher than that in CB coffee at the same degree of roasting, especially with dark roasting. The combination of orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) and principal component analysis (PCA) indicated that the distance between coffee samples at different degrees of roasting under CB coffee was greater than that under UHP coffee. However, the distance between these two extraction methods at medium roasting was evidently closer than that at light and dark roasting. Moreover, 15 representative differential compounds, such as were Hazelnut pyrazine, linalool, butane-2,3-dione, 3- methylbutanal found by the calculation of odor-active values (OAVs) indicating the main contributing compounds to odor. Overall, the effect of roasting degrees on UHP coffee was less than that on CB coffee, which was consistent with the results of physicochemical characteristics, volatile components, and sensory evaluation.

Exposure to traffic-related air pollution is linked with acute alterations in blood pressure (BP). We examined the cumulative short-term effect of black carbon (BC) exposure on systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) BP and assessed effect modification by participant characteristics. SBP and DBP were repeatedly measured on 152 traffic enforcers. Using a linear mixed-effects model with random intercepts, quadratic (QCDL) and cubic (CCDL) constrained distributed lag models were fitted to estimate the cumulative effect of BC concentration on SBP and DBP during the 10-hours (daily exposure) and 7-days (weekly exposure) before the BP measurement. Ambient BC was related to increased BP with QCDL models. An interquartile range change in BC cumulative during the 7-days before the BP measurement was associated with increased BP [1.2% change in mean SBP, 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.1 to 2.3; and 0.5% change in mean DBP, 95% CI, –0.8 to 1.7]. Moreover, the association between the 10-hours cumulative BC exposure and SBP was stronger for females (4.0% change, 95% CI: 2.1–5.9) versus males, and for obese (2.9% change, 95% CI: 1.0–4.8) vs. non-obese traffic enforcers. Short-term cumulative exposure to ambient traffic-related BC could bring about cardiovascular diseases through mechanisms involving increased BP.

This study explored the effects of a comprehensive health care program (CHCP) on blood pressure, blood glucose, body composition, and depression in older adults living alone. We used a quasi-experimental, two-group, pre-posttest design. The CHCP consisted of open lectures, health counseling, exercise classes, nutrition counseling, and self-help group meetings at a local senior welfare center. Fifty-eight subjects participated in this study, with thirty subjects in the experimental group and twenty-eight subjects in the control group. Data were analyzed using the descriptive statistics, χ²-test, and t-test. Comparisons of the pretest and posttest systolic blood pressure (t = - 2.530, p < .016) and blood glucose (t = 3.089, p < .004) between the experimental and control groups showed significant differences. In both the experimental (t = 3.949, p < .001) and control groups (t = 3.816, p < .002), depression symptoms showed a significant decrease post-test, compared with pre-test. Our findings infer that older adults require physical and psychosocial healthcare and that more efforts must be made to improve the general health and wellbeing of this population group.

Diamond powders with inclusions of europium atoms were synthesized at high pressure (7.7 GPa) and temperature (1800oC) from a mixture of pentaerythritol, C(CH2OH)4, and pyrolyzate of diphthalocyanine (C64H32N16Eu) served as a special precursor. In prepared diamonds by X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, we have found the concentration of Eu atoms of 51±5 ppm that is by two orders of magnitude greater than that in known natural and synthetic diamonds. X-ray diffraction, SEM, X-ray exited optical luminescence, Raman and IR spectroscopy have confirmed the formation of diamond monocrystals of high quality with em-bedded Eu atoms and a nitrogen content of ~500 ppm. Numerical simulation has allowed us de-termine the energy cost of 5.8 eV needed for the incorporation of a single Eu atom with adjacent vacancy into growing diamond crystal (528 carbons).

Isothermal interrupted hot compression tests of 5754 aluminum were conducted on Gleeble-3500 thermo-mechanical simulator at temperature 350 °C and 450 °C, strain rate 0.1 s-1 and 1s−1. These tests simulated flat rolling to investigate how softening behaviors respond to controlled parameters, such as deformation temperature, strain rate and delay times. This data allowed the parameters for the hot rolling process to be optimized. The delay times during interrupted compression vary between 5s and 60s. The dynamic softening at each pass and metadynamic recrystallization at the intervals of deformation passes were analyzed in detail. 0.2% offset yield strength is applied to calculate the softening fraction undergoing metadynamic recrystallization. A kinetic model was developed to describe metadynamic recrystallization behaviors of the hot deformed 5754 aluminum alloy. Furthermore, the time constant for 50% recrystallization was expressed as functions related to the temperature and the strain rate. The experimental and calculated results were found to be in close agreement, which verified the developed model.

Runaway electrons (RAEs) generation in high-pressure gases is an important physical phenomenon that influences significantly discharge shapes and properties of initiated plasma. The diffuse discharges formed due to RAEs in air and other gases at atmospheric pressure find wide application. In the present review, theoretical and experimental results that explain the reason for the RAEs occurrence at high pressures are analyzed and recommendations are given on the implementation of conditions under which the runaway electron beam (RAEB) with the highest current can be obtained at atmospheric pressure. Experimental results were obtained using subnanosecond, nanosecond, and submicrosecond generators, including those specially developed for runaway electron generation. The RAEB were recorded by oscilloscopes and collectors with picosecond time resolution. To describe theoretically the phenomenon of continuous electron acceleration, the method of physical kinetics has been used based on the Boltzmann kinetic equation that takes into account the minimum but sufficient number of elementary processes, including shock gas ionization and elastic electron scattering. Results of modeling allowed the main factors to be established that control the RAE appearance, the most important of which is electron scattering on neutral atoms and/or molecules. Theoretical modeling has allowed the influence of various parameters (including the voltage, pressure, gas type, and geometrical characteristics of the discharge gap) to be taken into account. The results of research presented here allow the RAEs accelerators with desirable parameters to be developed and the possibility of obtaining diffuse discharges to be accessed under various conditions. The review consists of the Introduction, 5 Sections, the Conclusion, and the References.

New detailed geological/structural mapping as well as field-based structural analysis were carried out to investigate the deformation pattern of well-preserved high-pressure rocks of the Blueschist Unit exposed on SE Syros (Cyclades, Greece). Our new geological mapping revealed the occurrence of a metasedimentary sequence underlain by a meta-igneous sequence. The contact between these two sequences displays typically interfingering patterns in map-scale due to folding. The earlier ductile deformation phase recognized in the mapped area, is associated with the development of a penetrative foliation, which was formed under eclogite/blueschist facies conditions at peak conditions. The subsequent main deformation phase occurred at blueschist facies conditions synchronous with the early stages of exhumation of the high-pressure rocks. This phase is mainly associated with the formation of map-scale WNW-trending folds and a pervasive axial planar foliation linked with ESE-directed shearing. The main deformation ceased within blueschist facies conditions and exhumation of the rocks to greenschist facies conditions took place under very weak deformation. Greenschist retrogression observed in the southwestern part of the mapped area seems to be controlled by fluids rather than by intense deformation. Our results indicate that the high-pressure rocks of the Blueschist Unit exposed on Syros Island represent a large-scale pod of low deformation under blueschist to greenschist facies conditions, likely occupying the core of an extrusion wedge.

Abstract: Background: Non-invasive acquistion of beat-to-beat pulse transit time (PTT) via piezoelectric/piezocapacitive sensors (PES/PCS) may expand perioperative hemodynamic monitoring. This study evaluated the ability for PTT via PES/PCS to correlate with systolic, diastolic, and mean invasive blood pressure (SBPIBP, DBPIBP, and MAPIBP) and to detect SBPIBP fluctuations. Methods: PES/PCS and IBP measurements were performed in 20 patients undergoing abdominal, urological, and cardiac surgery. A Pearson’s correlation analysis (r) between 1/PTT and IBP was performed. The predictive ability of 1/PTT with changes in SBPIBP was determined by area under the curve (reported as AUC, sensitivity, specificity). Results: Significant correlations between 1/PTT and SBPIBP were found for PES (r=0.64) and PCS (r=0.55) (p<0.01), as well as MAPIBP/DBPIBP for PES (r=0.6/0.55) and PCS (r=0.5/0.45) (p<0.05). A 7% decrease in 1/PTTPES predicted a 30% SBPIBP decrease(0.82, 0.76, 0.76), while a 5.6% increase predicted a 30% SBPIBP increase (0.75, 0.7, 0.68). A 6.6% decrease in 1/PTTPCS detected a 30% SBPIBP decrease (0.81, 0.72, 0.8), while a 4.8% 1/PTTPCS increase detected a 30% SBPIBP increase (0.73, 0.64, 0.68). Conclusions: Non-invasive beat-to-beat PTT via PES/PCS demonstrated significant correlations with IBP and detected significant changes in SBPIBP. Thus PES/PCS as a novel sensor technology may augment intraoperative hemodynamic monitoring during major surgery.

Background: Hypertension, atherogenicity and insulin resistance are major risk factors of cardiovascular disorder (CVD), which shows a strong comorbidity with major depression (MDD) and bipolar disorder (BD). Activated oxidative and nitrosative stress (O&NS), inflammatory pathways, and increased atherogenicity are shared pathways underpinning CVD and mood disorders. Methods: The current study examined the effects of lipid hydroperoxides (LOOH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), nitric oxide metabolites (NOx), advanced oxidation protein products (AOPP), and malondialdehyde (MDA) on systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) blood pressure in 96 mood disordered patients and 60 healthy controls. Results: A large part of the variance in SBP (31.6%) was explained by the regression on a z unit-weighted composite score (based on LOOH, AOPP, SOD, NOx) reflecting nitro-oxidative stress toxicity (NOSTOX), coupled with highly sensitive C-reactive protein, body weight and use of antihypertensives. Increased DBP was best predicted (23.8%) by body mass index and NOSTOX. The most important O&NS biomarkers predicting an increased SBP were in descending order of significance: LOOH, AOPP and SOD. Higher levels of the atherogenic index of plasma, HOMA2 insulin resistance index and basal thyroid-stimulating hormone also contributed to increased SBP independently from NOSTOX. Although there were no significant changes in SBP/DBP in mood disorders, the associations between NOSTOX and blood pressure were significant in patients with mood disorders but not in healthy controls. Conclusions: Activated O&NS pathways including increased lipid peroxidation and protein oxidation, which indicates hypochlorous stress, are the most important predictors of an increased BP, especially in patients with mood disorders.

This paper presents a piezoresistive pressure sensor with a shield layer for improved stability. Compared with the conventional piezoresistive pressure sensors, p-type piezoresistors are covered by an n-type shield layer, which is formed by ion implantation. The proposed pressure sensors have been successfully fabricated by bulk micromachining techniques. The impact of electrical field on piezoresistors is studied by simulation. The temperature drift of the pressure sensor has been investigated by both simulation and experimental measurement. Characteristics of developed pressure sensors are tested from -40 C to 125 C. A sensitivity of 0.022 mV/V/KPa and a maximum non-linearity of 0.085% FS are measured for the fabricated sensor in a pressure range of 1 MPa. The temperature coefficients of resistance of shielded piezoresistors are found to be smaller than those of un-shielded ones. It is demonstrated that the shield layer is able to reduce the drift caused by electrical field and ambient temperature variation.

Hypertension and arterial stiffness are the main factors contributing to cardiovascular disease. L-citrulline, a nitric oxide precursor, has been proposed as a blood pressure-lowering intervention. This study aimed to investigate the impact of L-citrulline on central and peripheral blood pressure, arterial stiffness, and muscle oxygenation at rest and during an isometric knee extension exercise protocol. Twelve older males received 6 g of L-citrulline or a placebo for six days using a double-blind crossover design. Blood hemodynamics parameters (i.e., arterial and brachial systolic and diastolic blood pressure, mean arterial pressure, pulse pressure, heart rate), arterial stiffness (i.e., augmented pressure, augmentation index, forward, backward wave pressure and carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity) and muscle oxygenation [i.e., oxyhemoglobin (Δ[O2Hb]) and deoxyhemoglobin (Δ[HHb]), total hemoglobin concentration (Δ[tHb]) and tissue saturation index (TSI%)], were measured at baseline, post-supplementation and during isometric exercise. No significant effects of L-citrulline supplementation were observed at rest or during exercise on blood pressure, arterial stiffness, and muscle blood flow. Both central and peripheral blood pressure were increased during the exercise, which is consistent with isometric contractions. The results of the present study question the efficacy of short-term L-citrulline in decreasing blood pressure at rest or attenuating blood pressure increases during isometric exercise.

Currently, foam mixers are predominantly categorized into two types: low-pressure and high-pressure. Low-pressure mixers primarily use agitator rotation to mix materials. However, they face challenges such as difficulty in cleaning and complex structures. High-pressure mixers, widely adopted for their structural simplicity and lack of need for cleaning devices, effectively mitigate issues associated with low-pressure mixers. Nonetheless, they encounter problems with uneven mixing when processing high-viscosity materials. Historically, the primary solution to this issue was increasing the working pressure. However, the capacity to increase pressure is finite, and higher pressure demands higher quality materials for the mixers. To address the issues high-pressure mixers face when dealing with high-viscosity materials, this study focuses on the polyimide high-pressure mixer. After reviewing previous studies, four design variables were selected: the mixer's impingement angle, inlet diameter, outlet diameter, and impingement pressure. Using a Full Factorial Design of Experiments (DOE), the significance of the impact exerted by these four variables on Mixing Unevenness was analyzed, determining the extent of their influence. Optimal Latin Hypercube Sampling generated several random sample points, followed by the establishment of both a Back Propagation (BP) Neural Network approximation model and a Kriging approximation model. A Genetic Algorithm was then applied to optimize these two approximation models, resulting in the optimal combination of design variables. The research findings indicate that the BP Neural Network exhibits higher predictive accuracy compared to the Kriging prediction model. The optimal combination of parameters, optimized through the Genetic Algorithm (GA), reduced the Mixing Unevenness by 69.1%, effectively decreasing the Mixing Unevenness of the mixer head.

Hardaliye, a traditional non-alcoholic beverage, made from red grape pomace from wine production and produced by lactic acid fermentation with addition of different concentrations of whole/ground or heat-treated mustard seeds and of sour cherry leaves. Short shelf life of hardaliye limits its consumption and search in trend to process hardaliye to extend its shelf life. Thus, high hydrostatic pressure treatment of hardaliye drink with determination of changes in physicochemical and sensory properties in addition to microbial inactivation were studied according to Box-Behnken design. Maximum 5.10±0.00, 4.21±0.00, 5.38±0.59 and 5.05±0.22 log reductions were obtained in total mesophilic aerobic bacteria, total mold and yeast, Brettanomyces bruxellensis and Lactobacillus brevis by HHP. Shelf-life studies of the hardaliye samples were conducted with optimum processing parameters of 490 MPa, 29 oC for 15 min with the response variables of OD520 and inactivation of L. brevis. Both control and HHP treated samples were stored at 4 and 22 C for shelf-life studies. While control samples at 4 and 22 °C were spoiled at the 15th and 3rd days, HHP treated samples were spoiled after 108th and 228th days, respectively.

The influence of cuff inflations on nighttime measurements during 24h ambulatory blood pressure (BP) measurements is unknown. We investigated the potential effect of cuff-inflations on asleep parameters using measurements taken simultaneously with a cuffless device using pulse-transit-time (PTT). On the first day of measurement, standard cuff-based 24h BP and cuf-fless measurements were simultaneously performed on right and left arms (CUFF/PTT-D). 1-2 days after the first measurement, the cuffless device was worn alone (PTT-D). Only data from the cuffless device was analyzed. The following mean asleep parameters were analyzed: systolic and diastolic BP, arousals, sleep efficiency, total arousals, arousal per hour and desaturations. 21 in-dividuals were prospectively enrolled. Mean (SD) age was 47(±15) years and 57% were female. Mean systolic asleep BP for the during CUFF/PTT-D and during PTT-D were 131(±21) and 131(±26) mmHg respectively. Mean diastolic asleep BP values during CUFF/PTT-D and during PTT-D were 80(±14) and 84(±14) mmHg respectively (p=0.860, p=0.100 respectively). Systolic and diastolic asleep mean difference was 0.1 (±18.0) and -3.6 (±9.8) mmHg, respectively. There were significantly more total arousals during PTT-D (p=0.042). There was no significant difference seen in sleep efficiency (p=0.339) or desaturations (p=0.896) between the two measurements. We could not show any significant impact from cuff inflations during asleep PTT-D measurements.

In New Orleans, Louisiana the population’s poor baseline health led to its establishment as an early epicenter for severe acute COVID-19. Antici-pating future outbreaks of COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses, we need to identify correlates of outcome, from real clinical experience. 89 patients were recruited into the ClinSeqSer acute COVID-19 longitudinal observational study, from the beginning of the outbreak in March to July 2020. Patients admitted for acute COVID-19 were enrolled in person. The cohort is unique as it is 68% Black, 53% female, of average age of early 60s, and prevalence of obesity and hypertension respectively of 55% and 83%. The outcomes are: 53% severe (20% fatal, 33% non-fatal) and 47% non-severe, with severe defined as death or requiring mechanical ventila-tion or high flow oxygen. Obesity and admit systolic blood pressure (SBP) >140mmHg are each associated with severe outcome and, despite respective sensitivity of 71% and 76%, specificity ~66% for both, and ac-curacy of 60% and 70% by ROC analysis, would likely provide useful predictors of outcome in critically stressed health care systems. We discuss pathophysiologic hypotheses to explain why high admit SBP is observed only in half of patients with pre-COVID hypertension and is associated with severe outcome.

Powdery mildew is a severe disease causing substantial yield losses in wheat production worldwide. The Chinese wheat landrace Changanhongmai (CAHM) exhibits high resistance to the physiological race E09 of powdery mildew. This study aims to characterize the powdery mildew resistance gene in CAHM, and develop molecular markers for marker-assisted selection of wheat. To investigate the genetic characteristics of this resistant gene, we developed F1 plants, F2 generation population, and F2:3 families from a cross between CAHM and SY225. Genetic analysis demonstrated that all F1 plants were resistant to the disease, while the ratio of resistant to susceptible plants was 3: 1 in both the F2 population and F2:3 families, indicating that CAHM is inherited in a manner of single dominant powdery mildew resistance gene, which was tentatively designated as PmCAHM. By using bulk segregation analysis, we constructed a genetic map encompassing Xgwm273, Xwmc626, Xgwm11, Xgwm18, Xgdm28, Xgpw7812, Xgpw5195, Xwmc694 and PmCAHM. Among these markers, Xgpw7812 and Xgpw5195 were flanking markers tightly linked to PmCAHM at a genetic distance of 2.5 cM and 8.4 cM, respectively. Furthermore, nullisomic-tetrasomic analysis revealed that PmCAHM is located on chromosome 1B. These results indicate that PmCAHM differs from the internationally recognized powdery mildew resistance genes in both location and source. In addition, a new germplasm/line NW1748 with large seeds and powdery mildew resistance was developed from the cross and back cross populations of Fengyou 1718 (FY1718)/CAHM//FY 1718. Therefore, PmCAHM can serve as a novel powdery mildew resistance source for breeding of wheat by using NW1748 as the donor in the future.

The gas-water relative permeability curve plays a crucial role in reservoir simulation and development for condensate gas reservoirs. In this study, we conducted a series of high temperature and high pressure analysis experiments on real gas cores from Wells A and B in Block L of the Yinggehai Basin to investigate the effects of temperature, pressure, and different types of gas media on gas-water seepage. The experimental results demonstrate that: Temperature has a significant impact on both gas and water relative permeability, particularly on the former. As temperature increases, gas relative permeability shows a substantial increase while water relative permeability remains relatively unchanged. Under the same effective stress, increasing pressure causes downward shifts in both the gas and water relative permeability curves; however, there is a more pronounced decrease in gas relative permeability. Gas type has minimal influence on phase permeability except at higher water saturation where differences become apparent. When water saturation ranges from 80% to 50%, there is no significant variation observed in the measured relative permeability of different displacement gases; however, as water saturation exceeds 80%, distinctions gradually emerge. At bound water saturation conditions, nitrogen exhibits lower relative permeability compared to simulated gases with approximately 92% similarity between them. This investigation into the characteristics of gas-water relative permeability in high temperature and high pressure condensate reservoirs within Yinggehai Basin provides valuable insights for efficient development strategies for similar reservoirs.

Mutual exclusion algorithms are at the heart of concurrent, distributed/parallel, real-time and operating systems. It is well-known that such algorithms are very difficult to analyze and in the literature different conjectures about starvation-freedom and the number of by-passes (also said the overtaking factor), which in turn affects the (hopefully) bounded waiting time that a process competing for entering the critical section has to suffer before accessing the shared resource, have been formulated for specific algorithms. This paper proposes a novel modelling approach based on Timed Automata and the Uppaal toolset, which proves effective for studying all the properties of a mutual exclusion algorithm for N≥2 processes, by exhaustive model checking. Although the approach, as already confirmed by similar experiments reported in the literature, is not scalable due to state explosion problems, and can be practically applied until N≤5, it is of great value for revealing true properties of analyzed algorithms. For dimensions N>5 the statistical model checker of Uppaal can be used which, although based on simulations, can confirm properties by estimations and probabilities. The paper describes the proposed modelling and verification method and applies it to several mutual exclusion algorithms, thus retrieving known properties but also showing new results about properties often studied only by peer-review and intuitive reasoning.

Synthetic chalcomenite-type cupric selenite CuSeO₃∙2H₂O has been studied at room temperature under compression up to pressures of 8 GPa by means of single-crystal X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and density-functional theory. According to X-ray diffraction, the orthorhombic phase undergoes an isostructural phase transition at 4.0(5) GPa with the thermodynamic character being first-order. This conclusion is supported by Raman spectroscopy studies which have detected the phase transition at 4.5(2) GPa and by the first-principles computing simulations. The structure solution at different pressures has provided information on the change with pressure of unit-cell parameters as well as on the bond and polyhedral compressibility. A Birch-Murnaghan equation of state has been fitted to the unit-cell volume data. We found that chalcomenite is highly compressible with a bulk modulus of 42 – 49 GPa. The possible mechanism driving changes in the crystal structure is discussed, being the behavior of CuSeO₃∙2H₂O mainly dominated by the large compressibility of the coordination polyhedron of Cu. On top of that, an assignation of Raman modes is proposed based upon density-functional theory and the pressure dependence of Raman modes discussed. Finally, the pressure dependence of phonon frequencies is also reported.

The effects of psychological pressure on perceiving the height of a jump bar just before starting a high jump run was investigated. University students (N = 14) training for a high jump event performed 15 trials (3 practice, 6 pressure, and 6 non-pressure) in counterbalanced order in their daily practice environment. The height of the bar was judged as significantly higher on pressure trials compared to non-pressure trials. A regression analysis indicated that participants who reported increased subjective perceived pressure tended to judge the bar to be higher. There was no significant difference between pressure and non-pressure trials for the performance index, defined as the success rate. This study provides the first evidence that environmental perceptions prior to executing a motor task under pressure may make performance of the task appear to be more difficult.

The study aimed to investigate the impact of incorporating deep learning strategies in mathematics instruction on students' problem-solving abilities, critical thinking skills, academic achievement, and mathematical skills development. The study population consisted of 280 students, with a sample size of 162 participants. Employing a purely quantitative approach, data collection utilized questionnaires and achievement tests as instruments. Data analysis involved simple linear regression, descriptive analysis, and Pearson correlation. The results of the study revealed that there was no significant enhancement observed in students' problem-solving abilities and critical thinking skills when deep learning strategies were incorporated into mathematics instruction. Additionally, students' attitudes towards deep learning activities in mathematics showed no effect on their academic achievement. Furthermore, students' engagement levels in deep learning activities did not impact their development of mathematical skills. Lastly, the frequency of deep learning activities in the mathematics classroom did not show a significant relationship with students' academic performance. These findings suggest that the implementation of deep learning strategies in mathematics instruction did not yield notable improvements in the specified areas based on the study outcomes.

Background: Sex differences in blood pressure (BP) exist during all reproductive life between women and men whereas a sharper increase in BP occurs after menopause which is associated with increased prevalence of cardiovascular diseases. This study examined cardiovascular and biochemical parameters in perimenopausal women (PW) aiming to investigate the influence of sex on a) office BP and for 24 hours; b) cardiac autonomic modulation; c) redox state by measuring MDA, SOD, and catalase; d) NO_x^- concentration. In addition, aerobic exercise training (AET) was applied for detecting changes in cardiovascular responsiveness during the menopausal transition. Methods: Thirty-one participants were enrolled, healthy PW and age-matched men. Cardiovascular and biochemical biomarkers were evaluated at baseline and after AET (8 weeks of exercise on a treadmill, three sessions/week, duration of 30-40 minutes). Results: At rest, PW presented: a) a lower diastolic BP during daytime; b) a lower absolute and normalized LF component as well as a higher HF normalized component; d) no sex differences for redox biomarkers and NO_x^- concentration. After AET, only PW was responsive in lowering systolic BP that was accompanied by an increase in NO_x^- concentration and SOD activity. Regarding HRV, both groups were responsive to the AET. Conclusions: During the menopausal transition, systolic BP was similar to men whereas cardiac autonomic modulation remained unaltered showing the influence of sex steroids on BP. In Addition, AET was fundamental during the menopause transition by preventing an elevation in BP, minimizing the effects of aging associated with estrogen deficiency on women's cardiovascular health.

Emerging evidence demonstrated that using a new manufacturing technology to produce γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-fortified oolong (GO) tea could relieve human stress and exert versatile physiological benefits. The purpose of this human research aims to investigate therapeutic effects of daily GO tea consumption on the improvement of blood pressure, relaxation-related brain waves and quality of life (QOL) during a period of 28 consecutive days. Total polyphenols, major catechins and free amino acids were analyzed via HPLC assay. Changes of heart rate, blood pressure, α-brain wave (index of relaxation) and eight-item QOL score were investigated on day 0, 7, 14, 21 and 28, respectively. The chemical analysis results showed that GO tea contained the most abundant amino acids and GABA, contributing to the relaxation activity. Among all study participants, daily drinking GO tea could reduce systolic blood pressure on day 21 and diastolic blood pressure on day 28 (p &lt; 0.05, respectively). For participants with pre-hypertension, GO tea could effectively reduce heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure on day 28 (p &lt; 0.05). At the end of the study, incremental changes in alpha-brain wave and QOL scores were also demonstrated (p &lt; 0.05, respectively). This study recommended that GO tea might potentially serve as a natural source of alternative therapy to benefit blood pressure, stress-relief and QOL.

Background: High blood pressure (BP) has been implicated as a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases in several global populations, including in individuals of African ancestry. Despite the elevated burden of high BP-induced cardiovascular diseases in Africa and other global populations with African ancestry, limited genetic studies have been carried out to explore the genetic machinery driving this phenomenon. Methods: We performed univariate and multivariate analyses using Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and summary statistics data of 77,850 individuals of African ancestry for systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) traits. The six independent cohorts used included individuals derived from the African Partnership for Chronic Disease Research (APCDR), the UK Biobank, and the Million Veteran Program (MVP). Subsequently, we annotated, prioritized, visualized, and interpreted our meta-analyses results using FUMA, to gain further insight into the molecular mechanism(s) that contribute to the genetics of BP traits. Finally, loci attaining genome-wide significance, GWS (p<5x10-8) were also followed up with Bayesian fine-mapping to identify potential causal variants. Results: Our meta-analyses altogether identified 350 GWAS SNPs for SBP (166 SNPs) and DBP (184 SNPs, including two novel loci) whilst our multivariate GWAS method identified 166 SNPs (including three novel loci). Interestingly, in FUMA there was significant tissue enrichment of up-regulated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the sigmoid and transverse colon for SBP, as well as 10 significant gene sets from MAGMA gene set analyses, However, for DBP, no significant DEGs nor gene sets in MAGMA were found; instead, in DBP for gene property analysis for tissue specificity nine candidates were found to be significant and all nine were in different brain regions. Finally, Bayesian fine-mapping revealed that only 11 variants from the lead SNPs had >50% posterior probability (PP) of being causal and they included novel variant rs562545 (MOBP, PP = 77%) and 10 other previously published variants. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate the importance of performing GWAS in large sample sizes of global populations of African ancestry, including continental Africans; which yield novel insights, from novel loci to novel pathways/tissue expression candidates. Large-scale genomic datasets are required to enhance further discovery and fine-mapping of high-risk loci/variants in highly susceptible groups for cardiovascular disease and other related traits. Our study highlights the need for diversity in genetic research and the importance of expanding large GWASs to include ancestrally diverse populations.

This study aimed to verify the effects of an acute increase in blood pressure (BP) and/or renal sympathetic nerve activity (rSNA) on the renal excretion of sodium and water and its potential effect on the regulation of NHE3 activity. Uninephectomized anesthetized male Wistar rats were divided into three experimental groups: 1) Sham, the rats had their BP and rSNA recorded, and urine was collected for 2 h; 2) bicuculline (Bic) paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN), rat BP, and rSNA were recorded, and urine was collected for 1 h at baseline conditions and 1 h after bicuculline injection into the PVN; 3) RNS + Bicuculine injection into the PVN, BP, and rSNA were recorded, and urine was collected 1h after RNS and 1 h after bicuculline injection into the PVN. Renal nerve stimulation (RNS) decreased sodium and water excretion independent of changes in BP. However, after Bic in the PVN during RNS stimulation, BP and rSNA increased up to 30% and 60%, respectively, increasing diuresis (5-fold) and natriuresis (2.3-fold), accompanied by a significant reduction in the NHE3 activity independent of GFR changes. In conclusion, an acute increase in BP overcomes such effects, generating diuresis, natriuresis, and NHE3 activity inhibition.

The digital model of airborne frequency selective surface radomes (AFSSRs) is the basis of design, simulation analysis, manufacturing, and other related research of AFSSRs. This paper proposes a rapid modeling method of AFSSRs based on dynamic customizable primitives. Firstly, a layered digital model construction scheme of AFSSR is presented based on the typical radome wall structure. Then, according to the characteristics of various surface configurations and complex wireframe information of AFSSRs, the dynamic primitives are raised to express the boundary and contour information of all kinds of radomes. Focusing on the undevelopable characteristics of the aero-dynamic shape surface of the AFSSR, the arrangement solution and mapping method for frequency selective elements on undevelopable surfaces are proposed. Furthermore, the imple-mentation logic of this method on the creation of each layer model and the assembly of the whole machine model is introduced. Finally, according to this method, a rapid modeling system (RMS) is established, and the modeling effect and efficiency of the RMS are demonstrated and compared, which verifies the feasibility and effectiveness of this method.

The photoreduction of CO2 is an intriguing process, which allows the synthesis of fuels and chemicals. One of the limitations for CO2 photoreduction in the liquid phase is its low solubility in water. This point has been here addressed by designing a fully innovative concept of pressurized photoreactor, allowing operation up to 20 bar and applied to improve the productivity of this very challenging process. The photoreduction of CO2 in the liquid phase was performed using commercial TiO2 (Evonink P25), TiO2 obtained by flame spray pyrolysis (FSP) and gold doped P25 (0.2 wt% Au-P25) in the presence of Na2SO3 as hole scavenger (HS). The different reaction parameters (catalyst concentration, pH and amount of HS) have been addressed. The products in liquid phase were formic acid and formaldehyde. Moreover, for longer reaction time and with total consumption of HS, gas phase products formed (H2 and CO) after accumulation of significant amount of organic compounds in the liquid phase, due to their consecutive photoreforming. Enhanced CO2 solubility in water was achieved by adding a base (pH= 12-14). In basic environment, CO2 formed carbonates which further reduced to formaldehyde and formic acid and consequently formed CO/CO2+H2 in the gas phase through photoreforming. The deposition of small Au nanoparticles (3-5 nm) (NPs) onto TiO2 was found to quantitatively influence the products distribution and increase the selectivity towards gas phase products.

Moisture and thermal are the key factors for influencing methane desorption during CBM exploitation. Using high pressure water injection technology into coalbed, new fractures and pathways are formed to methane transport. It is existed a phenomenon of water inhibiting gas flow. This study is focused on various water pressures impacted on gas adsorbed coal samples, then the desorption capacity could be revealed under different conditions. And the results are shown that methane desorption capacity was decreased with water pressure increased at room temperature and the downtrend would be steady until water pressure was large enough. Heating could promote gas desorption capacity effectively, with the increasing of water injection pressures, the promotion of thermal on desorption became more obvious. These results are expected to provide a clearer understanding of theoretical efficiency of heat water or steam injection into coalbed, they can provide some theoretical and experimental guidance on CBM production and methane control.

Carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP), noted for its outstanding properties including high specific strength and superior fatigue resistance, is increasingly employed in aerospace and other demanding applications. This study investigates the interactions between CFRP composites and high-energy lasers (HEL), with continuous wave laser powers reaching up to 120 kW. A novel automated sample exchange system, operated by a robotic arm, minimizes human exposure while enabling a sequence of targeted laser tests. High-speed imaging captures the rapid expansion of a plume consisting of hot gases and dust particles during the experiment. The research significantly advances empirical models by systematically examining the relationship between laser power, perforation times, and ablation rates. It demonstrates scalable predictions for the effects of high-energy laser radiation. Detailed examination of the damaged samples, both visually and via micro-focused computed X-ray tomography, offers insights into heat distribution and ablation dynamics, highlighting the anisotropic thermal properties of CFRP. Compression-after-impact (CAI) tests further assess the residual strength of the irradiated samples, enhancing the understanding of CFRP’s structural integrity post-irradiation. Collectively, these tests improve the knowledge of the thermal and mechanical behavior of CFRP under extreme irradiation conditions. The findings not only contribute to predictive modeling of CFRP's response to laser irradiation but also enhance the scalability of these models to higher laser powers, providing robust tools for predicting material behavior in high-performance settings.