Proteomic Biomarkers of the Apnea Hypopnea Index and Obstructive Sleep Apnea: Insights into the Pathophysiology of Presence,Severity, and Treatment Response

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a disease associated with excessive sleepiness and increased cardiovascular risk, affects an estimated 1 billion people worldwide. The present study examined proteomic biomarkers indicative of presence, severity, and treatment response in OSA. Participants (n = 1391) of the Stanford Technology Analytics and Genomics in Sleep study had blood collected and completed an overnight polysomnography for scoring the apnea–hypopnea index (AHI). A highly multiplexed aptamer-based array (SomaScan) was used to quantify 5000 proteins in all plasma samples. Two separate intervention-based cohorts with sleep apnea (n = 41) provided samples pre- and post-continuous/positive airway pressure (CPAP/PAP). Multivariate analyses identified 84 proteins (47 positively, 37 negatively) associated with AHI after correction for multiple testing. Of the top 15 features from a machine learning classifier for AHI ≥ 15 vs. AHI < 15 (Area Under the Curve (AUC) = 0.74), 8 were significant markers of both AHI and OSA from multivariate analyses. Exploration of pre- and post-intervention analysis identified 5 of the 84 proteins to be significantly decreased following CPAP/PAP treatment, with pathways involving endothelial function, blood coagulation, and inflammatory response. The present study identified PAI-1, tPA, and sE-Selectin as key biomarkers and suggests that endothelial dysfunction and increased coagulopathy are important consequences of OSA, which may explain the association with cardiovascular disease and stroke.     

虚拟群体与动态视频场景的在线实时融合

将虚拟人群与实拍视频场景融合实现虚拟人群对现实场景中动态目标的合理避让,是增强现实技术有待解决的一个新问题.文中首先对实拍视频流进行分析,获取真实动态目标在三维空间中的运动信息;然后将动态目标的运动转化为每个虚拟角色的约束条件,实时更新虚拟角色的运动决策,实现其对现实场景中动态目标的避让以及虚拟角色之间的避让.为了清晰地展示现实世界中多个目标的空间位置关系,还对视频画面中的目标体做了精确的实时分割,以产生正确的遮挡关系和目标定位.最后通过实验结果表明了该算法的有效性.     

High-Throughput Strategies for the Design,Discovery, and Analysis of Bismuth-Based Photocatalysts

Bismuth-based nanostructures (BBNs) have attracted extensive research attention due to their tremendous development in the fields of photocatalysis and electro-catalysis. BBNs are considered potential photocatalysts because of their easily tuned electronic properties by changing their chemical composition, surface morphology, crystal structure, and band energies. However, their photocatalytic performance is not satisfactory yet, which limits their use in practical applications. To date, the charge carrier behavior of surface-engineered bismuth-based nanostructured photocatalysts has been under study to harness abundant solar energy for pollutant degradation and water splitting. Therefore, in this review, photocatalytic concepts and surface engineering for improving charge transport and the separation of available photocatalysts are first introduced. Afterward, the different strategies mainly implemented for the improvement of the photocatalytic activity are considered, including different synthetic approaches, the engineering of nanostructures, the influence of phase structure, and the active species produced from heterojunctions. Photocatalytic enhancement via the surface plasmon resonance effect is also examined and the photocatalytic performance of the bismuth-based photocatalytic mechanism is elucidated and discussed in detail, considering the different semiconductor junctions. Based on recent reports, current challenges and future directions for designing and developing bismuth-based nanostructured photocatalysts for enhanced photoactivity and stability are summarized.     

In vitro antifungal activity and chemical composition of Warionia saharae essential oil against 3 apple phytopathogenic fungi

Essential oil of aerial parts of Warionia saharae was obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by GC and GC-MS. Thirty-nine compounds were identified, accounting for 93.2% of the total oil. β-Eudesmol (34.9%), nerolidol-E (23%), and linalool (15.2%) were the most abundant components. The antifungal activity of the W. saharae oil was tested by poisoned food (PF) technique and the volatile activity (VA) assay against 3 phytopathogenic causing the deterioration for apple. The results indicated that the W. saharae oil inhibited significantly the mycelial growth of all strains tested (p<0.05). The minimum inhibitory concentration against Alternaria sp. was 2 μL/mL air in VA assay, whereas >2 μL/mL in PF technique for all strains. Fungal spore production was completely inhibited at 1 μL/mL air for Alternaria sp. and at 2 μL/mL air for Penicillium expansum and Rhizopus stolonifer.     

A quantitative risk assessment of a domestic property connected to a hydrogen distribution network

The increased reliance on natural gas for heating worldwide makes the search for carbon-free alternatives imperative, especially if international decarbonisation targets are to be met. Hydrogen does not release carbon dioxide (CO₂) at the point of use which makes it an appealing candidate to decarbonise domestic heating. Hydrogen can be produced from either 1) the electrolysis of water with no associated carbon emissions, or 2) from methane reformation (using steam) which produces CO₂, but which is easily captured and storable during production. Hydrogen could be transported to the end-user via gas distribution networks similar to, and adapted from, those in use today. This would reduce both installation costs and end-user disruption. However, before hydrogen can provide domestic heat, it is necessary to assess the ‘risk’ associated with its distribution in direct comparison to natural gas. Here we develop a comprehensive and multi-faceted quantitative risk assessment tool to assess the difference in ‘risk’ between current natural gas distribution networks, and the potential conversion to a hydrogen based system. The approach uses novel experimental and modelling work, scientific literature, and findings from historic large scale testing programmes. As a case study, the risk assessment tool is applied to the newly proposed H100 demonstration (100% hydrogen network) project. The assessment includes the comparative risk of gas releases both upstream and downstream of the domestic gas meter. This research finds that the risk associated with the proposed H100 network (based on its current design) is lower than that of the existing natural gas network by a factor 0.88.     

Does social capital reduce entrepreneurs' petty corruption? Evidence across Indonesian regions

Petty corruption is a barrier to entrepreneurship in emerging countries, justifying to investigate its determinants. Using data on 1,240 entrepreneurs across Indonesian regions, we analyse the effects of social capital. Two-evel ordered probit regressions show that weak-ties discourage entrepreneurs' bribing, strong-ties encourage it, whereas this latter effect is moderated by the quality of access to formal credit. Bribing banks or turning to relatives for external funding are alternative solutions for entrepreneurs facing poor access to formal credit, a common feature in emerging countries, and the second solution is preferred given the risk and psychological costs of corruption.     

A phase‑locked loop using ESO‑based loop flter for grid‑connected converter: performance analysis

An extended state observer (ESO)-based loop flter is designed for the phase-locked loop (PLL) involved in a disturbed gridconnected converter (GcC). This ESO-based design enhances the performances and robustness of the PLL, and, therefore, improves control performances of the disturbed GcCs. Besides, the ESO-based LF can be applied to PLLs with extra flters for abnormal grid conditions. The unbalanced grid is particularly taken into account for the performance analysis. A tuning approach based on the well-designed PI controller is discussed, which results in a fair comparison with conventional PItype PLLs. The frequency domain properties are quantitatively analysed with respect to the control stability and the noises rejection. The frequency domain analysis and simulation results suggest that the performances of the generated ESO-based controllers are comparable to those of the PI control at low frequency, while have better ability to attenuate high-frequency measurement noises. The phase margin decreases slightly, but remains acceptable. Finally, experimental tests are conducted with a hybrid power hardware-in-the-loop benchmark, in which balanced/unbalanced cases are both explored. The obtained results prove the efectiveness of ESO-based PLLs when applied to the disturbed GcC.