•This study identifies the need for variable selection when forming species distribution models via MaxEnt.•Two potential methods are proposed—one involves selecting from a priori determined ...environmental variable sets, while the other utilizes a reiterative process of model formation and stepwise removal of least contributing variables.•Both methods were tested on eight known species of invasive crayfish, with results reinforcing the need for species-specific environmental variable sets.
The popularity of MaxEnt in species distribution modeling has been driven by several factors including its high degree of accuracy, and flexibility to tailor efforts to species-specific situations. Although many recent studies have identified the importance of adjusting mathematical transformation (feature class) and regularization of coefficient values, collectively known as tuning, few studies have addressed the need to customize the variables used in species distribution modeling, and use unselected variable sets. This study presents two novel methods to select for environmental variables in MaxEnt. The first involves selecting from a priori determined environmental variable sets (pre-selected based on ecological or biological knowledge), and the second utilizes a reiterative process of model formation and stepwise removal of least contributing variables. Both methods were tested on eight known species of invasive crayfish, with results reinforcing the need for species-specific environmental variable sets. While the reiterative process generally performs better than the a priori selected variables, selection of method can be based on information availability. These techniques appear to outperform the current practice of utilizing unselected variable sets and is especially important considering the increasing application of species distribution modeling (across spatial and temporal barriers) in conservation and management efforts whereby inaccurate predictions might have adverse effects.
A joint determination of the reactor antineutrino spectra resulting from the fission of 235U and 239Pu has been carried out by the Daya Bay and PROSPECT collaborations. This Letter reports the level ...of consistency of 235U spectrum measurements from the two experiments and presents new results from a joint analysis of both data sets. The measurements are found to be consistent. The combined analysis reduces the degeneracy between the dominant 235U and 239Pu isotopes and improves the uncertainty of the 235U spectral shape to about 3%. The 235U and 239Pu antineutrino energy spectra are unfolded from the jointly deconvolved reactor spectra using the Wiener-SVD unfolding method, providing a data-based reference for other reactor antineutrino experiments and other applications. This is the first measurement of the 235U and 239Pu spectra based on the combination of experiments at low- and highly enriched uranium reactors.
Searches for electron antineutrino, muon neutrino, and muon antineutrino disappearance driven by sterile neutrino mixing have been carried out by the Daya Bay and MINOS+ collaborations. This Letter ...presents the combined results of these searches, along with exclusion results from the Bugey-3 reactor experiment, framed in a minimally extended four-neutrino scenario. Significantly improved constraints on the θμe mixing angle are derived that constitute the most constraining limits to date over five orders of magnitude in the mass-squared splitting Δm241, excluding the 90% C.L. sterile-neutrino parameter space allowed by the LSND and MiniBooNE observations at 90% CLs for Δm241 < 13 eV2. Furthermore, the LSND and MiniBooNE 99% C.L. allowed regions are excluded at 99% CLs for Δm241 < 1.6 eV2.
Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is a common tumor-predisposition disorder due to germline mutations in the tumor suppressor gene NF1. A virtually pathognomonic finding of NF1 is the plexiform ...neurofibroma (PN), a benign, likely congenital tumor that arises from bi-allelic inactivation of NF1. PN can undergo transformation to a malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor, an aggressive soft-tissue sarcoma. To better understand the non-NF1 genetic contributions to PN pathogenesis, we performed whole-exome sequencing, RNASeq profiling and genome-wide copy-number determination for 23 low-passage Schwann cell cultures established from surgical PN material with matching germline DNA. All resected tumors were derived from routine debulking surgeries. None of the tumors were considered at risk for malignant transformation at the time; for example, there was no pain or rapid growth. Deep (~500X) NF1 exon sequencing was also conducted on tumor DNA. Non-NF1 somatic mutation verification was performed using the Ampliseq/IonTorrent platform. We identified 100% of the germline NF1 mutations and found somatic NF1 inactivation in 74% of the PN. One individual with three PNs had different NF1 somatic mutations in each tumor. The median number of somatic mutations per sample, including NF1, was one (range 0-8). NF1 was the only gene that was recurrently somatically inactivated in multiple tumors. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis of transcriptome-wide tumor RNA sequencing identified five significant (FDR<0.01) and seven trending (0.01⩽FDR<0.02) gene sets related to DNA replication, telomere maintenance and elongation, cell cycle progression, signal transduction and cell proliferation. We found no recurrent non-NF1 locus copy-number variation in PN. This is the first multi-sample whole-exome and whole-transcriptome sequencing study of NF1-associated PN. Taken together with concurrent copy-number data, our comprehensive genetic analysis reveals the primacy of NF1 loss as the driver of PN tumorigenesis.
•A simple method is developed for (Ni–ZnO)@C core– and yolk–shell nanoreactors.•Splitting of seawater for H2 can be photocatalyzed by (Ni–ZnO)@C nanoreactors.•Collision frequencies of H2O and ...photoactive sites can be increased (10 times).
Novel photocatalysts i.e., metallic nickel and zinc oxide nanoparticles embedded in the carbon-shell ((Ni–ZnO)@C) have been used for photocatalytic splitting of seawater to generate H2. The (Ni–ZnO)@C core–shell nanoparticles having the Zn/Ni ratios of 0–3 were prepared by carbonization of Ni2+- and Zn2+-β-cyclodextrin at 673K for 2h. To increase the collision frequency of water and photoactive sites within the carbon-shell, Ni and ZnO are partially etched from the (Ni–ZnO)@C core–shell to form yolk–shell nanoparticles with a H2SO4 solution (2N). By X-ray diffraction spectroscopy, mainly Ni and ZnO crystallites are observed in the core– and yolk–shell nanoparticles. The sizes of the Ni and ZnO in the (Ni–ZnO)@C nanoreactors are between 7 and 23nm in diameters determined by TEM and small angel scattering spectroscopy. Under a 5-h UV–Vis light irradiation, 5.01μmol/hgcat of H2 are yielded from photocatalytic splitting of seawater effected by (Ni–ZnO)@C nanoreactors.
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is an autoimmune disease that has been proposed to involve the temporomandibular joint (TMJ). The aim of this study was to identify the relationships between JIA, ...TMJ disorders, and craniofacial deformities. This cohort study included patients diagnosed with clinically active JIA between 1999 and 2013 through a nationwide longitudinal health registry. The primary outcome was the presence of a TMJ disorder. The secondary outcome was the presence of a JIA-associated craniofacial deformity. A total of 2791 patients with JIA were included in the case group; 11,164 propensity score-matched individuals without JIA were selected from the same database as controls. TMJ disorders were present in 142 individuals: 48 (1.72%) in the case group and 94 (0.84%) in the control group (relative risk 2.047, 95% confidence interval 1.446–2.898). Craniofacial deformities were present in 374 individuals: 112 (4.01%) in the case group and 262 (2.35%) in the control group (relative risk 1.722, 95% confidence interval 1.380–2.148). Patients with JIA showed a significantly greater likelihood of developing TMJ disorders and craniofacial deformities compared to matched controls.
To explore the associations between different dietary patterns and semen quality in a general Asian male population.
Cross-sectional study. Healthy Taiwanese men aged 18 years or older who ...participated in a standard medical screening program from 2008-2013 run by a private firm were included in this study. Semen parameters including sperm concentration (SC), total sperm motility (TSM), progressive motility (PRM) and normal sperm morphology (NSM) were recorded. A dietary questionnaire was used to categorize the participants into 5 groups: "Healthy diet", "Western diet", "High-carbohydrate diet", "High sweet snacks & sugar-sweetened drinks" and "High-sodium diet".
A total of 7282 men completed the questionnaire regarding dietary pattern, and examination of anthropometric indexes was performed and laboratory data were obtained. A high intake of a "Western diet" resulted in statistically linear declines of SC and NSM (P < 0.001 and P < 0.001). Similarly, a greater intake of "High sweet snacks & sugar-sweetened drinks" was associated with a lower SC (P = 0.001). Increased intake of a "High-carbohydrate diet" was related to higher prevalences of abnormal TSM and PRM (P = 0.012 and P = 0.025). Similarly, a greater intake of a "High-sodium diet" was correlated with an elevated prevalence of abnormal NSM (P = 0.035).
This study showed that a greater intake of a "Western diet" is associated with poorer SC and NSM, a "High sweet snacks and sugar-sweetened drinks" intake is correlated with a lower SC, and high-carbohydrate food is related to elevated prevalences of abnormal TSM and PRM.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
ABSTRACT
We present the Global Rapid Advanced Network Devoted to the Multi-messenger Addicts (GRANDMA). The network consists of 21 telescopes with both photometric and spectroscopic facilities. They ...are connected together thanks to a dedicated infrastructure. The network aims at coordinating the observations of large sky position estimates of transient events to enhance their follow-up and reduce the delay between the initial detection and optical confirmation. The GRANDMA programme mainly focuses on follow-up of gravitational-wave alerts to find and characterize the electromagnetic counterpart during the third observational campaign of the Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo detectors. But it allows for follow-up of any transient alerts involving neutrinos or gamma-ray bursts, even those with poor spatial localization. We present the different facilities, tools, and methods we developed for this network and show its efficiency using observations of LIGO/Virgo S190425z, a binary neutron star merger candidate. We furthermore report on all GRANDMA follow-up observations performed during the first six months of the LIGO–Virgo observational campaign, and we derive constraints on the kilonova properties assuming that the events’ locations were imaged by our telescopes.
Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are proposed to be comorbid with periodontitis (PD). It is unclear whether PD is associated with dementia and AD independent of confounding factors. We aimed at ...identifying the relationship between the longitudinal risk of developing PD in a cohort of patients with dementia and AD who did not show any signs of PD at baseline. In this retrospective cohort study, 8,640 patients with dementia without prior PD were recruited, and 8,640 individuals without dementia history were selected as propensity score–matched controls. A Cox proportional hazard model was developed to estimate the risk of developing PD over 10 y. Cumulative probability was derived to assess the time-dependent effect of dementia on PD. Of the 8,640 patients, a sensitivity test was conducted on 606 patients with AD-associated dementia and 606 non-AD propensity score–matched controls to identify the impact of AD-associated dementia on the risk for PD. Subgroup analyses on age stratification were included. Overall 2,670 patients with dementia developed PD. The relative risk of PD in these patients was significantly higher than in the nondementia group (1.825, 95% CI = 1.715 to 1.942). Cox proportional hazard models showed that patients with dementia were more likely to have PD than individuals without dementia (adjusted hazard ratio = 1.915, 95% CI = 1.766 to 2.077, P < 0.0001, log-rank test P < 0.0001). The risk of PD in patients with dementia was age dependent (P values for all ages <0.0001); younger patients with dementia were more likely to develop PD. The findings persisted for patients with AD: the relative risk (1.531, 95% CI = 1.209 to 1.939) and adjusted hazard ratio (1.667, 95% CI = 1.244 to 2.232; log-rank test P = 0.0004) of PD in patients with AD were significantly higher than the non-AD cohort. Our findings demonstrated that dementia and AD were associated with a higher risk of PD dependent of age and independent of systemic confounding factors.
Abstract
The prediction of reactor antineutrino spectra will play a crucial role as reactor experiments enter the precision era. The positron energy spectrum of 3.5 million antineutrino inverse beta ...decay reactions observed by the Daya Bay experiment, in combination with the fission rates of fissile isotopes in the reactor, is used to extract the positron energy spectra resulting from the fission of specific isotopes. This information can be used to produce a precise, data-based prediction of the antineutrino energy spectrum in other reactor antineutrino experiments with different fission fractions than Daya Bay. The positron energy spectra are unfolded to obtain the antineutrino energy spectra by removing the contribution from detector response with the Wiener-SVD unfolding method. Consistent results are obtained with other unfolding methods. A technique to construct a data-based prediction of the reactor antineutrino energy spectrum is proposed and investigated. Given the reactor fission fractions, the technique can predict the energy spectrum to a 2% precision. In addition, we illustrate how to perform a rigorous comparison between the unfolded antineutrino spectrum and a theoretical model prediction that avoids the input model bias of the unfolding method.
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