•Blockchain has a considerable value as one of the promising technologies in industrial 4.0.•We propose a new topic modeling method based on word embedding and clustering.•The proposed method ...outperforms an existing method in both qualitative and quantitative views.•The proposed method contributes to analyzing the research trend of blockchain technology.
Blockchain has become one of the core technologies in Industry 4.0. To help decision-makers establish action plans based on blockchain, it is an urgent task to analyze trends in blockchain technology. However, most of existing studies on blockchain trend analysis are based on effort demanding full-text investigation or traditional bibliometric methods whose study scope is limited to a frequency-based statistical analysis. Therefore, in this paper, we propose a new topic modeling method called Word2vec-based Latent Semantic Analysis (W2V-LSA), which is based on Word2vec and Spherical k-means clustering to better capture and represent the context of a corpus. We then used W2V-LSA to perform an annual trend analysis of blockchain research by country and time for 231 abstracts of blockchain-related papers published over the past five years. The performance of the proposed algorithm was compared to Probabilistic LSA, one of the common topic modeling techniques. The experimental results confirmed the usefulness of W2V-LSA in terms of the accuracy and diversity of topics by quantitative and qualitative evaluation. The proposed method can be a competitive alternative for better topic modeling to provide direction for future research in technology trend analysis and it is applicable to various expert systems related to text mining.
Nuclear structure and function are governed by lamins, which are intermediate filaments that mostly consist of α-helices. Different lamin assembly models have been proposed based on low resolution ...and fragmented structures. However, their assembly mechanisms are still poorly understood at the molecular level. Here, we present the crystal structure of a long human lamin fragment at 3.2 Å resolution that allows the visualization of the features of the full-length protein. The structure shows an anti-parallel arrangement of the two coiled-coil dimers, which is important for the assembly process. We further discover an interaction between the lamin dimers by using chemical cross-linking and mass spectrometry analysis. Based on these two interactions, we propose a molecular mechanism for lamin assembly that is in agreement with a recent model representing the native state and could explain pathological mutations. Our findings also provide the molecular basis for assembly mechanisms of other intermediate filaments.
Context: γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) is the main inhibitory neurotransmitter and it is well established that activation of GABA
A
receptors favours sleep. l-Theanine, a naturally occurring amino acid ...first discovered in green tea, is a well-known anti-anxiety supplement with proven relaxation benefits.
Objective: This study investigated the potential synergistic sleep enhancement effect of GABA/l-theanine mixture.
Materials and methods: Pentobarbital-induced sleep test was applied to find proper concentration for sleep-promoting effect in ICR mice. Electroencephalogram (EEG) analysis was performed to investigate total sleeping time and sleep quality in normal SD rats and caffeine-induced awareness model. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was applied to investigate whether the sleep-promoting mechanism of GABA/l-theanine mixture involved transcriptional processes.
Results: GABA/l-theanine mixture (100/20 mg/kg) showed a decrease in sleep latency (20.7 and 14.9%) and an increase in sleep duration (87.3 and 26.8%) compared to GABA or theanine alone. GABA/l-theanine mixture led to a significant increase in rapid eye movement (REM) (99.6%) and non-REM (NREM) (20.6%) compared to controls. The use of GABA/l-theanine mixture rather than GABA or l-theanine alone restored to normal levels sleep time and quality in the arousal animal model. The administration of GABA/l-theanine led to increased expression of GABA and the glutamate GluN1 receptor subunit.
Conclusions: GABA/l-theanine mixture has a positive synergistic effect on sleep quality and duration as compared to the GABA or l-theanine alone. The increase in GABA receptor and GluN1 expression is attributed to the potential neuromodulatory properties of GABA/l-theanine combination, which seems to affect sleep behaviour.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Here, we demonstrate that electroporation-enhanced immunization with a rationally designed HPV DNA vaccine (GX-188E), preferentially targeting HPV antigens to dendritic cells, elicits a significant ...E6/E7-specific IFN-γ-producing T-cell response in all nine cervical intraepithelial neoplasia 3 (CIN3) patients. Importantly, eight out of nine patients exhibit an enhanced polyfunctional HPV-specific CD8 T-cell response as shown by an increase in cytolytic activity, proliferative capacity and secretion of effector molecules. Notably, seven out of nine patients display complete regression of their lesions and viral clearance within 36 weeks of follow up. GX-188E administration does not elicit serious vaccine-associated adverse events at all administered doses. These findings indicate that the magnitude of systemic polyfunctional CD8 T-cell response is the main contributing factor for histological, cytological and virological responses, providing valuable insights into the design of therapeutic vaccines for effectively treating persistent infections and cancers in humans.
Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is a fatal clinical condition with high mortality. Computed tomography angiography (CTA) imaging is the preferred minimally invasive modality for the long-term ...postoperative observation of AAA. Accurate segmentation of the thrombus region of interest (ROI) in a postoperative CTA image volume is essential for quantitative assessment and rapid clinical decision making by clinicians. Few investigators have proposed the adoption of convolutional neural networks (CNN). Although these methods demonstrated the potential of CNN architectures by automating the thrombus ROI segmentation, the segmentation performance can be further improved. The existing methods performed the segmentation process independently per 2D image and were incapable of using adjacent images, which could be useful for the robust segmentation of thrombus ROIs. In this work, we propose a thrombus ROI segmentation method to utilize not only the spatial features of a target image, but also the volumetric coherence available from adjacent images. We newly adopted a recurrent neural network, bi-directional convolutional long short-term memory (Bi-CLSTM) architecture, which can learn coherence between a sequence of data. This coherence learning capability can be useful for challenging situations, for example, when the target image exhibits inherent postoperative artifacts and noises, the inclusion of adjacent images would facilitate learning more robust features for thrombus ROI segmentation. We demonstrate the segmentation capability of our Bi-CLSTM-based method with a comparison of the existing 2D-based thrombus ROI segmentation counterpart as well as other established 2D- and 3D-based alternatives. Our comparison is based on a large-scale clinical dataset of 60 patient studies (i.e., 60 CTA image volumes). The results suggest the superior segmentation performance of our Bi-CLSTM-based method by achieving the highest scores of the evaluation metrics, e.g., our Bi-CLSTM results were 0.0331 higher on total overlap and 0.0331 lower on false negative when compared to 2D U-net++ as the second-best.
In this study, we introduce a novel design for a three-dimensional (3D) controller, which incorporates the omni-purpose stretchable strain sensor (OPSS sensor). This sensor exhibits both remarkable ...sensitivity, with a gauge factor of approximately 30, and an extensive working range, accommodating strain up to 150%, thereby enabling accurate 3D motion sensing. The 3D controller is structured such that its triaxial motion can be discerned independently along the X, Y, and Z axes by quantifying the deformation of the controller through multiple OPSS sensors affixed to its surface. To ensure precise and real-time 3D motion sensing, a machine learning-based data analysis technique was implemented for the effective interpretation of the multiple sensor signals. The outcomes reveal that the resistance-based sensors successfully and accurately track the 3D controller's motion. We believe that this innovative design holds the potential to augment the performance of 3D motion sensing devices across a diverse range of applications, encompassing gaming, virtual reality, and robotics.
Silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) are most effective against pathogens and have widely been studied as antibacterial agents in commodity clothing, medical textile, and other hygiene products. However, ...prolonged utilization of silver and rapid mutation in bacterium stains has made them resistant to conventional silver agents. On the other hand, strict compliance against excessive utilization of toxic reagents and the current sustainability drive is forcing material synthesis toward green routes with extended functionality. In this study, we proposed an unprecedented chemical-free green synthesis of bioactive Ag-NPs without the incorporation of any chemicals. Cinnamon essential oil (ECO) was used as a bio-reducing agent with and without the mediation of lime extract. A rapid reaction completion with better shape and size control was observed in the vicinity of lime extract when incorporated into the reaction medium. The interaction of natural metabolites and citrus compounds with nanoparticles was established using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopy. The application of as-prepared nanoparticles on textiles encompasses extended bioactivity to treated fabric with infused easy-care performance. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported instance of utilizing bioactive silver nanoparticles as a functional finish, both as an antimicrobial and as for easy care in the absolute absence of toxic chemicals. The easy-care performance of fabric treated with lime-mediated nanoparticles was found to be 141
, which is around 26% better than bare cotton without any significant loss in fabric strength. Furthermore, to enlighten the sustainability of the process, the development traits were mapped with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which show significant influence on SDGs 3, 8, 9, and 14. With the effective suspension of microorganisms, added functionality, and eco-mapping with SDGs with the chemical-free synthesis of nanoparticles, widespread utilization can be found in various healthcare and hygiene products along with the fulfillment of sustainability needs.
This paper presents the guidance algorithm for the circular formation flight of multiple fixed-wing UAVs. The formation guidance law aims at reducing both the radial and the phase angle error with ...respect to the moving reference point located at a fixed distance from the leader UAV. To this end, the proposed guidance law generates the desired course angle and the inertial speed commands for each follower UAV. The control commands are then converted to the roll angle and the airspeed commands for the autopilot. The theoretical stability proof is rigorously analyzed via the Lyaupunov method. The performance of the proposed control law is compared with the existing vector-field formation guidance scheme via numerical simulation. After the extensive validation using the hardware-in-the-loop simulation environment which includes the mesh network communication system, the flight test are performed to demonstrate not only the performance of the proposed algorithm but also the robustness to the wind disturbance.
Since the beginning of human history, the demand for effective healthcare systems for diagnosis and treatment of health problems has grown steadily. However, traditional centralized healthcare ...requires hospital visits, making in‐time and long‐term healthcare challenging. Bioelectronics has shown potential in patient‐friendly healthcare owing to the rapid advances in diverse fields of biology and electronics. In particular, wearable and implantable bioelectronics have emerged as an alternative or adjunct to conventional healthcare. To develop into next‐generation healthcare systems, however, custom designs for biological targets with a deepened understanding of the intrinsic features of the target are essential. In addition, bioelectronic systems must be designed eco‐friendly for sustainable healthcare. In this review, bioelectronics as eco‐friendly and patient‐friendly integrated nanoarchitectonics as next‐generation smart healthcare technology are described. For an in‐depth understanding of biological targets and guidelines for target‐tailored design, we discuss target‐specific considerations and relevant key parameters of bioelectronic systems with the representative examples.
Wearable and implantable bioelectronics have emerged as promising eco‐friendly and patient‐friendly healthcare technologies due to the superiority of electronics‐based characteristics. In this review, representative works in bioelectronics‐based healthcare are introduced for major biological targets, along with target‐specific considerations and relevant key parameters for bioelectronic systems. In addition, integration with functional interfaces for bridging property mismatches is introduced for optimal healthcare.
Near-infrared (NIR) absorbing film is one of the principal components of CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) image sensors to make the images photographed by a camera the same as the ...images perceived by the human eye. In this study, we have developed a series of diimmonium dyes that broadly and strongly absorb the near-infrared region. The diimmonium dyes were synthesized by introducing bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide counter anions. The synthesized diimmonium dyes showed solvatochromism depending on the polarity of solvents. The absorptivity and the maximum absorption wavelength of diimmonium dye were changed by the solvent polarity. The thermal stability of diimmonium dye was affected by the stability of the counter anion. Diimmonium dyes have been applied to the NIR absorbing films. The absorption spectra of NIR absorbing films made of different dyes showed similar positions of the absorption band. The absorbance of NIR absorbing films prepared with MC showed much higher absorbance than the films processed with MEK. Consequently, it is demonstrated that modification of counter anions of diimmonium dye affects the absorptivity and thermal stability of diimmonium dyes.
Display omitted
•A series of diimmonium dyes have been synthesized using bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide anions.•The synthesized dyes showed high molar absorptivity except for in highly polar solvent and solvatochromism depending on solvent polarity.•The synthesized dyes showed high thermal stability for the fabrication process of the NIR absorbing film of CMOS image sensor.•The NIR absorbing film composed of diimmonium dyes and a transparent binder showed a great NIR blocking ability and visible light transmittance.
PDF
