This paper is concerned with the formation control problem for a class of large-scale mobile sensor networks. The dynamic of mobile sensors are modeled by class of semilinear parabolic system, which is a class of partial differential equation(PDE) and has rich geometric family. In this model, the communication topology of agents is a chain graph and fixed. Leader feedback laws which designed in a manner to the boundary control of semilinear parabolic system allow the mobile sensors stable deployment onto planar curves. By constructing appropriate Lyapunov functional and using linear matrix inequality, several sufficient criteria are derived ensuring the mobile sensor networks to be globally asymptotically stable at the equilibrium. A simulation example is provided to demonstrate the usefulness of the proposed formation control scheme.

This proof-of-concept investigation reports the results of eight patients who, after declining mesh midurethral slings, were treated for stress urinary incontinence with levator ani midurethral support, a single vaginal incision technique. Seven patients had good subjective outcomes at 22 to 33 months. One patient had good subjective outcome for 14 months, followed by stress urinary incontinence recurrence. The peri-operative complications were temporary urinary retention at hospital discharge and urinary tract infection. Patients reported having no long-term complications. Results of this preliminary investigation suggest that this technique may be a reasonable alternative to other surgical procedures for stress urinary incontinence.

Objective: Lifestyle factors including education, coffee intake, tea consumption, dietary fat intake, obesity, physical activities, smoking and alcohol drinking, sleep duration, and insomnia, have been linked to Ovarian Cancer (OC) in observational studies. We assessed whether the concerning factors are causally associated with the risk of OC by histological subtypes. Design: Mendelian Randomization (MR) study. Setting: Independent genetic instruments associated with thirteen lifestyle behaviors were selected from ten genome-wide association studies. Summary-level data for OC subtypes were obtained from the Ovarian Cancer Association Consortium. Population: Exposures population were including 375,833 to 1,232,091 European individuals, outcomes population were including up to 25,509 cases and 40,941 controls. Methods: Two-sample and multivariable MR study, and multiple complementary sensitivity analyses were conducted. Main Outcome Measures: Histological subtypes of OC. Results: We provided unconfounded genetic evidence of inverse associations of genetically predicted years of education and fat intake with specific OC subtypes, which are independent of BMI. Whereas consumption of coffee or tea was positively associated with endometroid OC, which may be partly mediated by BMI. Although physical activity and sleep characteristics have been reported to be the risk factors for OC, no causal associations were observed in our study. Conclusions: Our study clarified the protective and independent role of high level education and relative fat intake in particularly OC subtypes. We also showed detrimental effects of higher coffee or tea consumption on OC histotypes. Our results may provide insight into the corresponding interventions as lifestyle factors can easily be modified.

Tracer-aided studies to understand source water partitioning in tropical ecosystems are limited. Here we report dry season source water partitioning in five unique ecosystems distributed across Costa Rica in altitudinal (<150-3,400 m asl) and latitudinal (Caribbean and Pacific slopes) gradients: evergreen and seasonal rainforests, cloud forest, Páramo, and dry forest. Soil and plant samples were collected during the dry season (2021). Plant and soil water extractions (triplicates) were conducted using controlled centrifugation. Stem water extraction efficiency and stem water content were calculated via gravimetric measurements. Water source contributions were estimated using a Bayesian mixing model. Isotope ratios in soil and stems exhibited a strong meteoric origin. Enrichment trends were detected mainly in stems and cactus samples within the dry forest ecosystem. Soil profiles revealed nearly uniform isotopic profiles; however, a depletion trend was observed in the Páramo ecosystem below 25 cm depth. More enriched compositions were reported in cactus samples for extracted water volumes above ~20% ( Adj. r2=0.34, p<0.01). The most prominent dry season water source in the evergreen rainforest (74.0%), seasonal rainforest (86.4%), and cloud forest (66.0%) corresponded with soil water. In the Páramo ecosystem, recent rainfall produced by trade wind incursions resulted in the most significant water source (61.9%), whereas in the dry forest, mean annual precipitation (38.6%) and baseflow (33.1%) were the dominant sources. The latter highlights the prevalence of distinct water uptake sources between recent cold front’s rainfall to more well-mixed soil moisture during the dry season.

Background A core outcome set could address inconsistent outcome reporting and improve evidence for stillbirth care research, which has been identified as an important research priority. Objectives To identify outcomes and outcome measurement instruments reported by studies evaluating interventions after the diagnosis of a stillbirth. Search strategy Amed, BNI, CINAHL, ClinicalTrials.gov, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Embase, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and WHO ICTRP from 1998 to August 2021. Selection criteria Randomised and non-randomised comparative or non-comparative studies reporting a stillbirth care intervention. Data collection and analysis Interventions, outcomes reported, definitions and outcome measurement tools were extracted. Main results 40 randomised and 200 non-randomised studies were included. 58 different interventions were reported, labour and birth care (52 studies), hospital bereavement care (28 studies), clinical investigations (116 studies), care in a multiple pregnancy (2 studies), psychosocial support (28 studies) and care in a subsequent pregnancy (14 studies). 391 unique outcomes were reported and organised into 14 outcome domains: labour and birth; postpartum; delivery of care; investigations; multiple pregnancy; mental health; emotional functioning; grief and bereavement; social functioning; relationship; whole person; subsequent pregnancy; subsequent children and siblings and economic. 242 outcome measurement instruments were used, with 0-22 tools per outcome. Conclusions Heterogeneity in outcome reporting, outcome definition and measurement tools in care after stillbirth exists. Considerable research gaps on specific intervention types in stillbirth care were identified. A core outcome set is needed to standardise outcome collection and reporting for stillbirth care research.

In this paper, we consider an initial value problem for the 2 − D compressible Navier-Stokes equations without heat conductivity. We prove the global existence of strong solution when the initial perturbation is small in H2 and its L1 norm is bounded. Moreover, we derive some decay estimate for such a solution.

Insect sex pheromones are important chemical signals in sexual communication, they are traditionally thought to be inactive to larvae. However, it was found that some lepidopteran larvae can be significantly attracted by sex pheromones of the same species in a food context. Here we reported that the host-feeding choice of early-instar Mythimna separata larvae can be effectively regulated by the sex pheromone component (Z)-11-hexadecenal (Z11-16: Ald). Further exploration revealed that two olfactory proteins, M. separata general odorant binding protein 2 (MsGOBP2) and olfactory receptor 3 (MsOR3), were molecular basis of the host-feeding choice regulation mediated by Z11-16: Ald. Silencing either MsGOBP2 or MsOR3 led to a sharply reduced preference for Z11-16: Ald-spiked hosts. It is possible that the Z11-16: Ald-based preference of the M. separata larvae for host is governed by the interplay between MsGOBP2 and MsOR3. In the present research, the interactions between MsGOBP2 and Z11-16: Ald were also discussed using molecular dynamics-based approaches. Our research explored insight into the Z11-16: Ald-mediated host-feeding choice regulation of M. separata larvae, all the results would aid in developing olfaction-based methods for controlling pests in larval stage.

The Darboux theorem, one of the fundamental results in analysis, states that the derivative of a real (not necessarily continuously) differentiable function defined on a compact interval has the intermediate value property, i.e. attains each value between the derivatives at the endpoints. The Bolzano intermediate value theorem, which implies Darboux’s theorem when the derivative is continuous, states that a continuous real-valued function $f$ defined on $[-1,1]$ satisfying $f(-1)<0$ and $f(1)>0$ 0, has a zero, i.e. $f(x) = 0$ for at least one number $-1

Introduction: Mitral annulus (MA) assessment is of utmost importance for the management of patients with mitral valve (MV) abnormalities and Three-dimensional transesophageal echocardiography (3D-TOE) has been the only reliable echocardiographic method for the evaluation of the mitral annulus by now. However, newer transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) probes have enabled to provide accurate measurements when TOE is contraindicated. The aim of this study is to assess the feasibility of 3D-TTE analysis of MA and the level of agreement with 3D-TOE measurements. Methods: A total of 121 consecutive patients were assessed with 3D-TTE and TOE. All MA parameters were retrospectively analyzed with the dedicated 4D-autoMVQ application. Bland-Altman analysis and intraclass correlation coefficient were used for the comparison and agreement between the two methods. Half of our patients had normal mitral valves and served as control group, while the other half had various mitral valve pathologies. Results: AutoMVQ analysis was not feasible in 11 out of 121 TTE examinations (91% feasibility) and in 4 out of 121 TOE examinations (96% feasibility). MA area and perimeter were slightly larger in TTE than those measured by TOE (12.7±3.6 vs 12.4±3.2cm2 for area and 12.7±1.7 vs 12.5±1.6cm for perimeter), however still showing strong correlation (r=0.942 and r=0.922 respectively). The majority of MV measurements were similar between the two methods with strong correlation (r>0.80). Conclusions: Assessment of the MV with 3D TTE with dedicated MVQ software is feasible and accurate, showing strong correlation and agreement with TOE measurements.

The abundance ratio [HNC]/[HCN] in upper atmosphere is known to vary depending on the various conditions, like the presence of UV radiation, the temperature of the region of abundance, etc. There have been attempts to justify the related observations from kinetic as well as thermodynamic considerations. In the present work we consider the dissociation of HCNH, right after its formation from electron capture of HCNH+, as the primary source of HNC and HCN in upper atmosphere. Few years back, from our group, a study [J.Phys.Chem.A, 2013, 117, 8680-8690] of nonadiabatic effect on low-lying excited states of HCNH was undertaken to understand the formation of HNC. Present study is to explore the nonadiabatic effects on the various dissociation channels of HCNH leading to the formation of HCN and thus to justify the abundance ratio [HNC]/[HCN] in upper atmosphere. We present here the first ever exploration of the presence of conical intersection around the transition state geometries along the intrinsic reaction coordinate for the dissociation of HCNH into HCN and HNC.

The existing researches have shown that internal degradation processes and external shocks may simultaneously interfere with the reliability of dynamic systems in uncertain random environments. Assume that failure processes are dependent, that is, shocks may accelerate degradation processes by additional degradations. Wear and additional degradations are uncertain, while shocks are considered to be random. As a natural consideration, it is necessary to maximize the reliability of multi-stage uncertain random systems. In this paper, a maximizing reliability problem is presented, and recurrence equations are provided by Bellman's principle. These are successfully applied to maximize reliability index in two special cases with linear and quadratic state equations. In addition, two effective algorithms are developed to achieve optimal solutions. Finally, a numerical example of a metallized film pulse capacitor is proposed which aims to indicate that optimization method is beneficial to maximize the reliability of multi-stage systems.

Chronic spontaneous urticaria and dermographism following COVID-19 booster vaccination: a case series To the Editor,To date, more than 3.6 million persons in Denmark have received booster doses of COVID-vaccine, of which the majority have been the Pfizer-BioNTech’s “Comirnaty” (86.5%) and Moderna’s “Spikevax” (13.5%) vaccines (1). While adverse events following vaccination with the first two doses of COVID-vaccine have been reported, only a handful of cases documenting adverse events after receiving a booster vaccination have been published (2-5). In private dermatology practice, we have noticed an increasing number of patients with chronic spontaneous urticaria and dermographism.This case series is based on 15 consecutive patients cared for in a single private dermatology practice having a catchment area of 90000 patients. Clinical and demographic data are presented in Table 1. Twelve patients had no previous medical history of urticaria and developed inducible urticaria post vaccination (Figure 1) and seven of these patients also had coexisting spontaneous urticaria. The remaining three patients developed an exacerbation of their preexisting urticaria with newly developed dermographism in two patients. All patients developed symptoms within one day to three weeks following vaccination with a median time of 14 days. Most patients had severe symptoms with six requiring acute doctor visits and two being admitted to the emergency department. All patients were treated with high-dose antihistamines, and three patients received oral prednisolone. Three patients received further treatment with omalizumab due to lack of response to high dose antihistamines/oral steroids. In all cases the most likely provoking factor of the chronic spontaneous urticaria and dermographism was believed to be the COVID-vaccine, as no other plausible cause was found, despite a thorough medical history and routine blood tests following international EAACI/GA2LEN/EUROGuiDerm/APAAACI guideline.We performed a literature research and found four other case studies reporting chronic spontaneous urticaria or dermographism following booster vaccination with COVID mRNA-vaccines (2-5). The mechanism is not elucidated, but it does not appear to be consistent with a true type I allergic reaction. We hypothesize that the generation of interleukins or other factors, in addition to T-cell activation, may lead to a non-IgE-mediated mast cell degranulation. A delayed hypersensitivity reaction against vaccine excipients or the mRNA component has already been suggested as the cause of localized injection-site reactions to the Spikevax vaccine (6). Most of our patients (73.3%) received a booster vaccination with Spikevax. Out of a total of 3.629.799 Danes who have received booster vaccinations, only 489.037 (13.5%) were vaccinated with Spikevax (1). It may be possible that Spikevax is more likely to stimulate an immunologic response leading to urticaria. Due to different booster dosages of Comirnaty (0.3 mL containing 30 micrograms of mRNA) and Spikevax (0.25 mL containing 50 micrograms of mRNA), Spikevax contains more mRNA, which could support this hypothesis, but more research is needed.It is important to identify and distinguish between different hypersensitivity reactions, which can include anaphylaxis, angioedema or acute urticaria, and delayed reactions, which consists of delayed urticarial reactions, late local reactions, and injection site reactions (“COVID-arm”). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that patients who experience immediate hypersensitivity reactions within 4 hours of receiving a COVID vaccine postpone the subsequent dose until after consulting with a specialist (6).This study describes booster vaccinations with COVID mRNA-vaccine leading to the development of chronic spontaneous urticaria and dermographism, which is a distinct clinical picture. These symptoms can be treated similar to chronic spontaneous urticaria and are not a contraindication to future vaccination. As many countries now are administrating a third or even fourth dose of COVID-vaccine, we hope this letter makes clinicians aware of this potential adverse effect, especially following booster vaccination with Spikevax.Jakob Lillemoen Drivenes1Aleena Banerji2Anette Bygum31Vestfold Hospital Trust, Tønsberg, Norway2Division of Rheumatology, Allergy, and Immunology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston3Department of Clinical Genetics, Odense University Hospital, Odense, Denmark & Clinical Institute, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark

Pneumatic active ankle foot orthosis (AFO) for drop foot correction has the advantages of inherent compliance and remote force control. However, pneumatic AFOs that use heavy stationary air compressors as the energy source have limitations for outdoor use. Although a portable air-compressor-powered pneumatic AFO has been developed recently, it is difficult to operate in practical applications owing to the bulky design of the AFO and excessive power sources with overheating issues. In this study, the AFO system was optimized to improve wearability. The weight of the AFO was decreased from 720 to 600 g. A Bluetooth module was installed instead of a 1.2-m cable between the master and slave boards. The efficiency of the portable pneumatic actuator increased 12.4%, whereas its volume decreased 11%. The internal temperature was reduced from 100°C to 40°C using two cooling fans. Throughout the optimization process, the wearability of the AFO system was improved for real-life use.

Although fertilization of controlled-release fertilizer (CRF) and crop rotation have been shown the contribution to improving yield, nutrient use efficiency, and soil fertility, their interactions on the quality of relcalimed land remains unclear. Hence, a field experiment was conducted in a reclaimed land along Yangze River to investigate their interactions. Results indicated that application of bulk blending urea (BBU) of conventional urea and controlled-release urea (CRU) with appropriate dosage and frequency increased the rice yield and nitrogen agronomic efficiency (NAE). Crop rotation also improved the rice yield and NAE through enhancing the retention capability of fertility. Crop rotation combined with fertilization significantly increased the soil pH, organic carbon (SOC), total N (TN), and permanganate oxidizes carbon (POXC). The rice-green manure (RG) rotation improved soil pH and TN most, and the rice-rape (RR) rotation improved SOC most. Fertilization of conventional urea and BBU both significantly increased the labile SOC functional groups and reduced the the stabled SOC functional groups under RG rotation. Under RR rotation, however, only fertilization of conventional urea increased the labile SOC functional groups and reduced the the stabled SOC functional groups. The rice-wheat (RW) rotation showed no significant effects on the changes in soil organic functional groups. The changes in soil properties had significant effects on improving rice yield or NAE under RG and RR rotations instead of RW rotation. The findings suggested that BBU combined with crop rotations could make good use of reclaimed land through improved nutrient use efficiency and soil fertility.

Ecosystems remain under enormous pressure from multiple anthropogenic stressors. Manipulative experiments evaluating stressor interactions and impacts mostly apply stressors under static conditions without considering how variable stressor intensity (i.e., fluctuations) and synchronicity (i.e., timing of fluctuations) affect biological responses. We ask how variable stressor intensity and synchronicity, and interaction type, can influence how multiple stressors affect seagrass. At the highest intensities, fluctuating stressors applied asynchronously reduced seagrass biomass 36% more than for static stressors, yet no such difference occurred for photosynthetic capacity. Testing three separate hypotheses to predict underlying drivers of differences in biological responses highlighted alternative modes of action dependent on how stressors fluctuated over time. Given that environmental conditions are constantly changing, assessing static stressors may lead to inaccurate predictions of cumulative effects. Translating multiple stressor experiments to the real-world, therefore, requires considering variability in stressor intensity and the synchronicity of fluctuations.

A document by Barış Timur. Click on the document to view its contents.

Redo cardiac surgery can present a unique set of challenges even to the experienced surgeon. Although outcomes have steadily improved in the modern era; if an intraoperative adverse event occurs, there is a 5% incidence of mortality and 19% incidence of myocardial infarction, stroke or death [(1)](#ref-0001). Overall, the modern incidence of mortality at reoperation varies but be segregated into low and higher risk cohorts depending on the planning computed tomography imaging and risk to substernal structures on re-entry [(2, 3)](#ref-0002). Patients with ascending aortic or root pseudoaneurysms represent a particularly difficult subset of high-risk patients requiring re-operative cardiac surgery due to the danger of exsanguination and air embolization [(4)](#ref-0004). Some surgeons advocate the use of deep hypothermic circulatory arrest (DHCA) to achieve safe re-entry in such cases however this can result in unpredictable DHCA duration depending on the degree of pericardial adhesions [(5)](#ref-0005). We report a case of aortic pseudoaneurysm in a patient with patent coronary grafts managed using an endoballoon precisely positioned relative to the proximal anastomoses resulting in a safe surgical re-entry and shorter DHCA time.

Title Page:Title: Letter To The Editor: Long-Term Renal Function After Venoarterial Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation.Article Type: Letter To The EditorCorrespondence: 1. Rohit KumarContact No: +923332669103 Email: rohitkella001@gmail.comInstitute: Dow Medical CollegeAddress: Baba-e-urdu road, KarachiCo-Authors: 2. Sunil KumarContact No: +923008088669. Email: dr.sunilkumar@hotmail.comInstitute: Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences.Word Count: 476Conflict of interest : NoneAcknowledgment : NoneDeclaration: NoneDisclosure : NoneFunding : None

We describe conservative management of a rare type IIa endoleak after frozen elephant trunk operation with hybrid Thoraflex stent graft in chronic type B aortic dissection repair.

Ecological traps occur when species choose to settle in lower quality habitats, even if this reduces their survival or productivity. This normally occurs in situations of drastic environmental changes, resulting, for example, from anthropogenic pressures. In the medium and long term, this could mean the extinction of the species. We investigated the dynamics of occurrence and distribution of three canid species (Atelocynus microtis, Cerdocyon thous, and Spheotos venaticus) related to human threats imposed on their habitats in the Amazon Rainforest. We analyzed the possible environmental thresholds for the occurrence of these species and confronted them with the future projections of climatic niches for each one. All three species will be negatively affected by climate change in the future, with losses of up to 91% of the suitable area of occurrence in the Brazilian Amazon. The occurrence of C. thous and S. venaticus has been positively influenced by anthropogenic open areas to the detriment of native environments, suggesting that these species are being attracted by ecological traps, which may put them at risk in the future in the Amazon Region. The A. microtis species is the most dependent on forest habitats, and thus the most significant threat would be forest loss. Using the canid species as a model, we could deeply investigate these ecological effects that can affect a large part of the Amazonian fauna in the current scenario. Considering the high degree of environmental degradation and deforestation in the Amazon Rainforest, the theory of ecological traps must be discussed at the same level that habitat loss is considered a decisive criterion of threat to biodiversity.

Background and purpose: Chronic inflammation may affect bone metabolism, leading to consequent bone loss and increased fracture risk. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a major component of Gram-negative bacteria from an infection or leaky gut, may cause chronic inflammatory bone loss. This study aims to enrich the mechanism by which LPS promotes the pathogenesis of bone loss. Experimental approach: C57BL/6 mice were treated with 1.5 mg•kg-1 of LPS or vehicle by intraperitoneal injection 3 times a week. The pharmacological effect of disulfiram, resatorvid, erlotinib were assessed in mice models of chronic inflammatory bone loss induced by LPS. Primary bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs) were used to evaluate the roles of toll-like receptor (TLR) 4 and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling in pyroptosis. Key results: We demonstrated that TLR4 and EGFR signaling differentially regulated pyroptosis in BMDMs, mediating LPS-induced low proliferation of osteoprogenitors and inflammatory bone destruction. Pharmacological treatment of LPS-treated mice with pyroptosis inhibitor by disulfiram, TLR4 signaling inhibitor by resatorvid, or EGFR signaling inhibitor by erlotinib protected mice against loss of osteoblasts and osteoprogenitors, and rescued inflammatory bone destruction as well. Mechanistically, we found that LPS suppressed the proliferation of osteoprogenitors by activating pyroptosis in BMDMs. Further, EGFR signaling mediated the mRNA expression of IL-1β and IL-18 while TLR4 signaling mediated LPS-induced pyroptosis and release of IL-1β and IL-18. Conclusion and implications: These findings have identified TLR4 and EGFR signaling in BMDMs as a co-regulator of pyroptosis and inflammatory bone destruction, highlighting the importance of targeting pyroptosis against LPS-induced bone loss.

A child had been vomiting, convulsing, and having an abnormal sensorium for 3 days. He fell from his mother's lap 20 days back. On CT scan brain, he had traumatic subdural effusion. In the emergency room, he underwent subdural effusion needle aspiration, which resulted in an immediate improvement in GCS.

A 1-year-old girl presented with an overly enlarged head for 5 months. Ignorance of parents regarding treatment for this enlarged head is concerning. Early treatment can avoid a lot of complications. Hydrocephalus secondary to aqueductal stenosis was diagnosed after a thorough history, examination, and investigations. Endoscopic Third Ventriculostomy was performed.

A 25-year-old man came to us with a three-year-old forehead scar. There was no history of trauma, and no other signs or symptoms to go along with it. He had a non-contrast computed tomography (CT) brain scan, which revealed thickening of the inner frontal bone, indicating hyperostosis frontalis interna.