Recommender systems in the healthcare domain: state-of-the-art and research issues

Journal of Intelligent Information Systems - Nowadays, a vast amount of clinical data scattered across different sites on the Internet hinders users from finding helpful information for their...     

Effect of Ni Addition on the Morphology and Microstructure of Both Conventional Cast and Melt-Spun of Al–Si–Fe–Nb (at wt%) Alloy

Metals and Materials International - In this project the morphology and microstructure of both conventional cast and melt spun of Al–20Si–9Fe–1.2Nb and...     

A novel reversible data hiding scheme with two-dimensional histogram shifting mechanism

Multimedia Tools and Applications - In this paper, we propose a novel reversible data hiding technique based on two-dimensional histogram shifting for quantized discrete cosine transformation...     

Doping of Nb to the Ba and Cu Sites in the Y0.6Gd0.4Ba2Cu3O7−δ

Polycrystalline samples of Y_0.6Gd_0.4Ba_2?x Nb _x Cu₃O_7?δ and Y_0.6Gd_0.4Ba₂Cu_3?x Nb _x O_7?δ with different Nb contents (x=0.025, 0.075, 0.125, 0.175 and 0.225) were prepared using the solid state reaction method. Structural and electrical properties of new compounds were investigated with optical microscope, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Four Point Probe (FPP). The results indicated that Nb constituted YBa₂NbO₆ structure instead of substituting to the Y_0.6Gd_0.4Ba₂Cu₃O_7?δ structure. YBa₂NbO₆ structures gathered between grains. Transition temperature did not change significantly, but critical current (J _c) values decreased with increase of Nb concentration. The underlying reason is that the oxygen concentration of compounds remained unchanged due to Gd; thus, T _c values did not change significantly.     

Elucidating the Catalytic Subunit Composition of Distinct Proteasome Subtypes: A Crosslinking Approach Employing Bifunctional Activity‐Based Probes

In addition to two well‐recognized proteasome subtypes—constitutive proteasomes and immunoproteasomes—mounting evidence also suggests the existence of intermediate proteasome subtypes containing unconventional mixtures of catalytic subunits. Although they appear to play unique biological roles, the lack of practical methods for detecting distinct proteasome subtypes has limited functional investigations. Here, we report the development of activity‐based probes that crosslink two catalytic subunits within intact proteasome complexes. Identification of the crosslinked subunit pairs provides direct evidence of the catalytic subunit composition of proteasomes. Using these probes, we found that U266 multiple myeloma cells contain intermediate proteasomes comprising both β1i and β2, but not β1 and β2i, consistent with previous findings with other cell types. Our bifunctional probes can be utilized in functional investigations of distinct proteasome subtypes in various biological settings.     

Hydrogen production enhancement using hot gas cleaning system combined with prepared Ni-based catalyst in biomass gasification

This paper investigates the hot gas temperature effect on enhancing hydrogen generation and minimizing tar yield using zeolite and prepared Ni-based catalysts in rice straw gasification. Results obtained from this work have shown that increasing hot gas temperature and applying catalysts can enhance energy yield efficiency. When zeolite catalyst and hot gas temperature were adjusted from 250 °C to 400 °C, H₂ and CO increased slightly from 7.31% to 14.57%–8.03% and 17.34%, respectively. The tar removal efficiency varies in the 70%–90% range. When the zeolite was replaced with prepared Ni-based catalysts and hot gas cleaning (HGC) operated at 250 °C, H₂ contents were significantly increased from 6.63% to 12.24% resulting in decreasing the hydrocarbon (tar), and methane content. This implied that NiO could promote the water-gas shift reaction and CH₄ reforming reaction. Under other conditions in which the hot gas temperature was 400 °C, deactivated effects on prepared Ni-based catalyst were observed for inhibiting syngas and tar reduction in the HGC system. The prepared Ni-based catalyst worked at 250 °C demonstrate higher stability, catalyst activity, and less coke decomposition in dry reforming. In summary, the optimum catalytic performance in syngas production and tar elimination was achieved when the catalytic temperature was 250 °C in the presence of prepared Ni-based catalysts, producing 5.92 MJ/kg of lower heating value (LHV) and 73.9% tar removal efficiency.     

In-Situ Investigation on Nanoscopic Biomechanics of Streptococcus mutans at Low pH Citric Acid Environments Using an AFM Fluid Cell

Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) is widely regarded as the main cause of human dental caries via three main virulence factors: adhesion, acidogenicity, and aciduricity. Citric acid is one of the antibiotic agents that can inhibit the virulence capabilities of S. mutans. A full understanding of the acidic resistance mechanisms (ARMs) causing bacteria to thrive in citrate transport is still elusive. We propose atomic force microscopy (AFM) equipped with a fluid cell to study the S. mutans ARMs via surface nanomechanical properties at citric acid pH 3.3, 2.3, and 1.8. Among these treatments, at pH 1.8, the effect of the citric acid shock in cells is demonstrated through a significantly low number of high adhesion zones, and a noticeable reduction in adhesion forces. Consequently, this study paves the way to understand that S. mutans ARMs are associated with the variation of the number of adhesion zones on the cell surface, which is influenced by citrate and proton transport. The results are expected to be useful in developing antibiotics or drugs involving citric acid for dental plaque treatment.     

The production of volatile compounds in model casein systems with varying fat levels as affected by low-frequency ultrasound

The effects of low-frequency ultrasound on the production of volatile compounds in model casein protein systems containing various fat concentrations of 2%, 4% and 6% (w/w) were investigated. Ultrasound application was performed at 20 kHz for up to 10 min which corresponded to energy densities ranging from 9.54 to 190.8 J mL⁻¹. Similar volatile compounds were detected both in pure fat and mixtures of casein and fat (CF) systems. These volatiles belonged to the groups of aldehydes, ketones, esters, alcohols and hydrocarbons, which were the products of oxidation of lipids or protein degradation due to acoustic cavitation. The amount of fat in the casein systems had minor effects on the production of volatiles, whereas the production of volatile compounds was significantly affected by the ultrasound treatment. Short sonication times <5 min generated similar volatile profiles to the untreated samples. In contrast, prolonged sonication for 5 and 10 min considerably increased the production of volatile compounds and the amounts of fatty acids. Thus, the application of low–frequency ultrasound for short periods should be considered to minimise the production of volatile compounds which can ultimately affect the taste.