Summary
Background
Interventional treatment for overt hepatic encephalopathy (OHE), includes non‐absorbable disaccharides, neomycin, rifaximin, L‐ornithine‐L‐aspartate and branched chain amino acids ...(BCAA). However, the optimum regimen remains inconclusive.
Aim
To compare interventions in terms of patients’ adverse events and major clinical outcomes.
Methods
Literature search of PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and Cochrane Library studies published up to July 31 2014. RCTs of above interventions in OHE patients were included. Network meta‐analysis combined direct and indirect evidence to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and mean difference (MD) between treatments and the probabilities of ranking for treatment based on clinical outcomes.
Results
Twenty eligible RCTs were included. When compared with observation, only L‐ornithine‐L‐aspartate (OR 3.71, P < 0.001) and BCAA (OR 3.37, P < 0.001) improved clinical efficacy significantly. However, when L‐ornithine‐L‐aspartate was compared with BCAA, non‐absorbable disaccharides and neomycin, there was a trend suggesting that L‐ornithine‐L‐aspartate may be the most effective intervention with respect to clinical improvement (OR 1.10), rifaximin (OR 1.31), non‐absorbable disaccharides (OR 2.75), neomycin (OR 2.22). In addition, L‐ornithine‐L‐aspartate (MD −20.18, 95% CI −40.12 to −0.27) provided a significant reduction in blood ammonia concentration compared with observation. Neomycin appeared to be associated with more adverse events in comparison with non‐absorbable disaccharides (OR 10.15), rifaximin (OR 17.31), L‐ornithine‐L‐aspartate (OR 3.16) or BCAA (OR 7.69).
Conclusions
L‐ornithine‐L‐aspartate treatment may show a trend in superiority for clinical efficacy among standard interventions for OHE. Rifaximin shows the greatest reduction in blood ammonia concentration, and treatment with neomycin demonstrates a higher probability in causing adverse effects among the five compared interventions.
The mechanism of superconductivity in cuprates remains one of the big challenges of condensed matter physics. High-Tc
cuprates crystallize into a layered perovskite structure featuring copper oxygen ...octahedral coordination. Due to the Jahn Teller effect in combination with the strong static Coulomb interaction, the octahedra in high-Tc
cuprates are elongated along the c axis, leading to a 3dx²-y² orbital at the top of the band structure wherein the doped holes reside. This scenario gives rise to 2D characteristics in high-Tc
cuprates that favor d-wave pairing symmetry. Here, we report superconductivity in a cuprate Ba₂CuO4-y, wherein the local octahedron is in a very exceptional compressed version. The Ba₂CuO4-y compound was synthesized at high pressure at high temperatures and shows bulk superconductivity with critical temperature (Tc
) above 70 K at ambient conditions. This superconducting transition temperature is more than 30 K higher than the Tc
for the isostructural counterparts based on classical La₂CuO₄. X-ray absorption measurements indicate the heavily doped nature of the Ba₂CuO4-y superconductor. In compressed octahedron, the 3d3z²-r² orbital will be lifted above the 3dx²-y² orbital, leading to significant 3D nature in addition to the conventional 3dx²-y² orbital. This work sheds important light on advancing our comprehensive understanding of the superconducting mechanism of high Tc
in cuprate materials.
Free-electron lasers have been successfully operated with ultrahigh brightness and excellent transverse coherence at X-ray wavelengths. One of the next goals for further improvements is full ...coherence. An obvious approach is to seed the free-electron laser interaction using a conventional source that has good temporal coherence. Here, we show the first lasing of a free-electron laser with an echo-enabled harmonic generation scheme, which shows great promise for producing coherent lasing at short wavelengths, even in the X-ray regime. The experiment was conducted at a test facility that combines a 135.4 MeV electron accelerator with an amplifier consisting of a series of undulator magnets. Lasing was achieved at the third harmonic of the seed with a gain of ∼100,000 over spontaneous radiation. The measurements show typical exponential growth and excellent spectral characteristics, as well as good intensity stability.
During reconnection, a flux pileup region (FPR) is formed behind a dipolarization front in an outflow jet. Inside the FPR, the magnetic field magnitude and Bz component increase and the whistler‐mode ...waves are observed frequently. As the FPR convects toward the Earth during substorms, it is obstructed by the dipolar geomagnetic field to form a near‐Earth FPR. Unlike the structureless emissions inside the tail FPR, we find that the whistler‐mode waves inside the near‐Earth FPR can exhibit a discrete structure similar to chorus. Both upper band and lower band chorus are observed, with the upper band having a larger propagation angle (and smaller wave amplitude) than the lower band. Most chorus elements we observed are “rising‐tone” type, but some are “falling‐tone” type. We notice that the rising‐tone chorus can evolve into falling‐tone chorus within <3 s. One of the factors that may explain why the waves are unstructured inside the tail FPR but become discrete inside the near‐Earth FPR is the spatial inhomogeneity of magnetic field: we find that such inhomogeneity is small inside the near‐Earth FPR but large inside the tail FPR.
Key Points
Near‐Earth FPR: structured chorus; midtail FPR: unstructured whistlersSpatial inhomogeneity of magnetic field can explain such phenomenonRising‐tone chorus can evolve into falling‐tone chorus within <3 s
The vast majority of slopes, both natural and constructed, exhibit a complex geometric configuration and three-dimensional (3D) state, whereas slopes satisfying the assumption of plane strain ...(infinite length) are seldom encountered. Existing research mainly emphasizes the 3D dimensions and boundary effect in slope stability analysis; however, the effect of complex geometric ground configuration on 3D slope stability is rarely reported. In this paper, an elastoplastic finite-element method using strength-reduction techniques is used to analyze the stability of special 3D geometric slopes. A typical 3D slope underlain by a weak layer with groundwater is described to validate the numerical modeling, safety factor values, and critical slip surface for the 3D slope. Furthermore, a series of special 3D slopes with various geometric configurations are analyzed numerically, and the effects of turning corners, slope gradient, turning arcs, and convex- and concave-shaped surface geometry on the stability and failure characteristics of slopes under various boundary conditions are discussed in detail.
A series of hierarchical porous carbons (HPCs) were prepared by a combination of self-assembly and chemical activation. Pore-structure analysis shows that micropores can be generated within the ...mesopore wall of mesoporous carbon in a controllable manner during activation. As evidenced by cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge/discharge cyclings and frequency response measurements, HPCs show superior capacitive performances to hard-templated ordered mesoporous carbons, which can be attributed to the generated pore surfaces that play most important role in the formation of double-layer capacitance and to their unique hierarchical porous structure that favors the fast diffusion of electrolyte ions into the pores. Of special interest is the fact that HPCs maintains 180
F/g at high-frequency of 1
Hz.
Current densities associated with dipolarization fronts (DFs) have been calculated in the geomagnetic tail using the curlometer technique applied to high‐resolution magnetic field B→ data obtained by ...the four Cluster spacecraft. We then use the relation b→·∇×B→ to characterize the behavior of field‐aligned current (FAC) during 25 DF events. Our results show that the magnitude of FAC density (J//) ranges from 5 to 20 nA/m2, and they are observed in Northern and Southern Hemispheres flowing along both directions of the B→‐field. The FACs have dimensions characteristic of the DFs and with region‐1 current sense flowing inside the DFs and region‐2 sense just in front of DF (in the Bz dips). Most of our observations come from 15 to 20 RE in the tail, different from previous statistical studies based mainly on observations made around 9–12 RE. We suggest that DFs can sustain significant FACs and appear as “wedgelets” in the early stage.
Key Points
The DFs sustain significant FACs and appear as wedgelets in the early stage
Only the DFs with magnetic dips correspond with the region‐2 sense FACs
This work is case study and the calculations are more accurate
The key physics of the spin valve involves spin-polarized conduction electrons propagating between two magnetic layers such that the device conductance is controlled by the relative magnetization ...orientation of two magnetic layers. Here, we report the effect of a magnon valve which is made of two ferromagnetic insulators (YIG) separated by a nonmagnetic spacer layer (Au). When a thermal gradient is applied perpendicular to the layers, the inverse spin Hall voltage output detected by a Pt bar placed on top of the magnon valve depends on the relative orientation of the magnetization of two YIG layers, indicating the magnon current induced by the spin Seebeck effect at one layer affects the magnon current in the other layer separated by Au. We interpret the magnon valve effect by the angular momentum conversion and propagation between magnons in two YIG layers and conduction electrons in the Au layer. The temperature dependence of the magnon valve ratio shows approximately a power law, supporting the above magnon-electron spin conversion mechanism. This work opens a new class of valve structures beyond the conventional spin valves.
A study was conducted to identify volatile organic compounds or volatiles produced by Candida intermedia strain C410 using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, and to determine efficacy of the ...volatiles of C. intermedia in suppression of conidial germination and mycelial growth of Botrytis cinerea and control of Botrytis fruit rot of strawberry. Results showed that, among 49 volatiles (esters, alcohols, alkenes, alkanes, alkynes, organic acids, ketones, and aldehydes) identified from C. intermedia cultures on yeast extract peptone dextrose agar, two compounds, 1,3,5,7-cyclooctatetraene and 3-methyl-1-butanol, were the most abundant. Synthetic chemicals of 1,3,5,7-cyclooctatetraene; 3-methyl-1-butanol; 2-nonanone; pentanoic acid, 4-methyl-, ethyl ester; 3-methyl-1-butanol, acetate; acetic acid, pentyl ester; and hexanoic acid, ethyl ester were highly inhibitory to conidial germination and mycelial growth of B. cinerea. Inhibition of conidial germination and mycelial growth of B. cinerea by volatiles of C. intermedia was also observed. Meanwhile, results showed that incidence and severity of Botrytis fruit rot of strawberry was significantly (P < 0.01) reduced by exposure of the strawberry fruit to the volatiles from C. intermedia cultures or C. termedia-infested strawberry fruit. These results suggest that the volatiles of C. intermedia C410 are promising biofumigants for control of Botrytis fruit rot of strawberry.
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop an intelligent manufacturing system for transforming production management and operations to an Industry 4.0 manufacturing ...paradigm.Design/methodology/approachA manufacturing mode-Graduation Manufacturing System is designed for organizing and controlling production operations. An Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and digital twin-enabled Graduation Intelligent Manufacturing System (GiMS) with real-time task allocation and execution mechanisms is proposed to achieve real-time information sharing and production planning, scheduling, execution and control with reduced complexity and uncertainty.FindingsThe implementation of GiMS in an industrial company illustrates the potential advantages for real-time production planning, scheduling, execution and control with reduced complexity and uncertainty. For production managers and onsite operators, effective tools, such as cloud services integrates effective production and operations management strategies are needed to facilitate their decision-making and daily operations at the operational level.Originality/valueThis paper presents an Industry 4.0 paradigm-GiMS, which aims to explore Industry 4.0 technologies opportunities on operations and production management, especially on production planning, scheduling, execution and control.
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