The population of the obese is increasing worldwide. Prevention and improvement of obesity are indispensable for decreasing the risk of metabolic disorders. We have recently shown that obesity and ...fatty liver are reduced by a plant-derived lactic acid bacterium, Pediococcus pentosaceus LP28 (LP28), in high-fat diet-induced obese mice. The aim of the present clinical study is to prove that LP28 is effective for reducing body fat and body weight, as shown in the experiment using mice.
The clinical trial was carried out as a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study comprising 62 subjects (20-70 years of age, BMI 25-30 kg/m(2)). These subjects were randomly assigned to three groups that received living LP28, heat-killed LP28 or a placebo powder, administered orally once a day for 12 weeks.
Heat-killed LP28 reduced BMI (0.45 kg/m(2), 95% CI (0.04, 0.86), P=0.035), body fat percentage (1.11%, (0.39, 1.82), P=0.002), body fat mass (1.17 kg (0.43, 1.92), P=0.004) and waist circumference (2.84 cm (0.74, 4.93), P=0.009) when compared with a placebo group. Fasting plasma glucose, HbA1c, fasting insulin, HOMA-IR and serum lipids levels did not change by either living LP28 or heat-killed LP28 intake.
Heat-killed LP28 displays an antiobesity effect that reduces BMI, body fat and waist circumference, suggesting that the plant-derived lactic acid bacterium LP28 would be a promising preventive of metabolic syndrome.
Developing robust bridge health monitoring (BHM) frameworks based on the vehicle-mounted sensing, or so-called indirect structural health monitoring (SHM) or Drive-by Bridge Inspection is currently a ...rapidly growing research area. The goal is to monitor any change in the structural integrity of a bridge using the vibration responses measured from sensors installed on a vehicle passing over the bridge. To this aim, we present a novel data-driven approach by integrating a nonlinear dimensionality-reduction technique using Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection (UMAP) together with a non-parametric clustering technique using Hierarchical Density-Based Spatial Clustering of Applications with Noise (HDBSCAN). Ultimately, through the combined use of UMAP and HDBSCAN, it is demonstrated that such methods align perfectly well with the problems and restrictions present when analyzing drive-by bridge inspection data. That is, in the drive-by bridge inspection context data sets may have low cardinality, and the individual clusters may have different sizes and densities and do not need to have a spherical shape. Furthermore, new clusters may emerge over time as new damage cases evolve. The pairing of UMAP and HDBSCAN will be shown to assist in these issues in a principled manner. For the validation, we first make use of the theoretical formulation of the vehicle-bridge interaction system and conduct a finite element simulation of this system to obtain the moving vehicle response once traveling over five different bridge states. Further, a simply supported bridge model in the laboratory is considered for the experimental validation. The structure of the bridge model is gradually changed by adding multiple stiffener plates, and by gradually increasing a concentrated mass at mid-span. The proposed method is then applied to identify changes that occur in the laboratory bridge model. The experimental results for damage characterization demonstrate that various bridge states can successfully be separated from one another. The contributions of the work are three-fold; (1) First, a novel feature extraction and classification framework based on the combined use of UMAP and HDBSCAN is developed and validated. (2) Second, this paper demonstrates one of the early successful attempts of drive-by bridge inspection for monitoring the progressive change in the structure of a bridge based on the extensive numerical and experimental investigations. (3) Finally, the research presented in this work can open up new opportunities for condition monitoring of bridge network.
•A novel feature extraction and classification framework is developed and validated.•Superior performance of the method by combined use of UMAP and HDBSCAN is presented.•One of the early successful attempts of drive-by bridge inspection is demonstrated.
We propose an efficient algorithm for sparse signal reconstruction problems. The proposed algorithm is an augmented Lagrangian method based on the dual problem. It is efficient when the number of ...unknown variables is much larger than the number of observations because of the dual formulation. Moreover, the primal variable is explicitly updated and the sparsity in the solution is exploited. Numerical comparison with the state-of-the-art algorithms shows that the proposed algorithm is favorable when the design matrix is poorly conditioned or dense and very large.
Making informed future decisions about solar radiation modification (SRM; also known as solar geoengineering)—approaches such as stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI) that would cool the climate by ...reflecting sunlight—requires projections of the climate response and associated human and ecosystem impacts. These projections, in turn, will rely on simulations with global climate models. As with climate-change projections, these simulations need to adequately span a range of possible futures, describing different choices, such as start date and temperature target, as well as risks, such as termination or interruptions. SRM modeling simulations to date typically consider only a single scenario, often with some unrealistic or arbitrarily chosen elements (such as starting deployment in 2020), and have often been chosen based on scientific rather than policy-relevant considerations (e.g., choosing quite substantial cooling specifically to achieve a bigger response). This limits the ability to compare risks both between SRM and non-SRM scenarios and between different SRM scenarios. To address this gap, we begin by outlining some general considerations on scenario design for SRM. We then describe a specific set of scenarios to capture a range of possible policy choices and uncertainties and present corresponding SAI simulations intended for broad community use.
Powdery mildew limits cucumber production worldwide. Most resistant cucumber cultivars become susceptible to powdery mildew at low temperatures. Resistance within a wide temperature range is ...therefore desirable for cucumber production. We constructed a cucumber genetic linkage map based on a population of 111 recombinant inbred lines derived from a cross between CS-PMR1, with strong and temperature-independent resistance, and Santou, with moderate and temperature-dependent resistance. The map spans 693.0 cM and consists of 296 markers segregating into seven linkage groups; the markers include 289 simple sequence repeats (SSRs), six sequence characterized amplified regions, and one inter simple sequence repeat. Due to the presence of 150 common SSR markers, we were able to compare our map with previously published maps obtained by using populations derived from inter- or intra-variety crosses. We also evaluated powdery mildew resistance of the recombinant inbred lines and identified seven quantitative trait loci (QTL) contributed by CS-PMR1 and two QTL contributed by Santou. Four QTL (pm3.1, pm5.1, pm5.2 and pm5.3) were successfully validated by using populations derived from residual heterozygous lines. Some of the QTL identified in our study are in good agreement with previously published results obtained with materials of different origin. The markers reported here would be useful for introducing high and temperature-independent resistance by accumulation of QTL from CS-PMR1 and Santou.
Summary
The NLRP3 inflammasome, an intracellular sensor consisting of the nucleotide‐binding oligomerization domain‐like receptor family, pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3), the adaptor protein ...apoptosis‐associated speck‐like protein containing a caspase‐recruitment domain (ASC), and procaspase‐1, plays critical roles in host defense against microbial pathogens by inducing production of interleukin‐1β (IL‐1β) and IL‐18. Mycoplasma salivarium and Mycoplasma pneumoniae cells activated murine bone marrow‐derived macrophages (BMMs) to induce production of IL‐1α, IL‐1β, and IL‐18. The IL‐1β production‐inducing activities of these mycoplasmas toward BMMs from Toll‐like receptor 2 (TLR2)‐deficient mice were significantly attenuated compared with those from C57BL/6 mice (B6BMMs). This result suggests the possibility that their lipoproteins as TLR2 agonists are involved in the activity. Lipoproteins of M. salivarium and M. pneumoniae (MsLP and MpLP), and the M. salivarium‐derived lipopeptide FSL‐1 induced IL‐1β production by B6BMMs, but not by BMMs from caspase‐1‐, NLRP3‐ or ASC‐deficient mice. The activities of MsLP and MpLP were not downregulated by the proteinase K treatment, suggesting that the active sites are their N‐terminal lipopeptide moieties. B6BMMs internalized the mycoplasmal N‐terminal lipopeptide FSL‐1 at least 30 min after incubation, FSL‐1‐containing endosomes started to fuse with the lysosomes around 2 hours, and then FSL‐1 translocated into the cytosol from LAMP‐1+ endosomes. The artificial delivery of FSL‐1 into the cytosol of B6BMMs drastically enhanced the IL‐1β production‐inducing activity. FSL‐1 as well as the representative NLRP3 inflammasome activator nigericin induced the NLRP3/ASC speck, but FSL‐1 located in a compartment different from the NLRP3/ASC speck.
Extended thermodynamics of dense gases Arima, T.; Taniguchi, S.; Ruggeri, T. ...
Continuum mechanics and thermodynamics,
11/2012, Volume:
24, Issue:
4-6
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
We study extended thermodynamics of dense gases by adopting the system of field equations with a different hierarchy structure to that adopted in the previous works. It is the theory of 14 fields of ...mass density, velocity, temperature, viscous stress, dynamic pressure, and heat flux. As a result, most of the constitutive equations can be determined explicitly by the caloric and thermal equations of state. It is shown that the rarefied-gas limit of the theory is consistent with the kinetic theory of gases. We also analyze three physically important systems, that is, a gas with the virial equations of state, a hard-sphere system, and a van der Waals fluid, by using the general theory developed in the former part of the present work.
Summary
This study aimed to determine the incidence and risk factors for hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) undergoing immunosuppressive therapy. The ...National Database of Japan, in which insurance claim data have been comprehensively accumulated, was utilized. The subjects were 76 641 RA patients who were plausibly initiated on immunosuppressive therapy from April 2013 to March 2014. Laboratory tests of the hepatitis B surface antigen, anti‐hepatitis B virus surface antibody, and anti‐hepatitis B virus core antibody were performed in 28.23%, 12.52% and 14.63% of patients, respectively, when the therapy was initiated. We found that HBV reactivation and fulminant hepatitis occurred in both the patients with and without HBV DNA monitoring, indicating insufficient monitoring in Japan during the study. The cumulative incidence of HBV reactivation over 24 months was 1.57% (95% confidence interval CI = 1.28%‐1.92%) in the monitoring group, which consisted of those with resolved HBV infection. Glucocorticoid administration was a potent risk factor for HBV reactivation (hazard ratio HR = 1.70, 95% CI = 1.26‐2.29, P = .001 in all subjects, and HR = 1.82, 95% CI = 1.18‐2.81, P = .007 in the nonmonitoring group), although it was not statistically significant in the monitoring group (HR = 1.49, 95% CI = 0.99‐2.26 and P = .057). No significant risk difference was observed between single administration of methotrexate and biological drugs.
We illustrate the important trade-off between far-field scattering effects, which have the potential to provide increased optical path length over broad bands, and parasitic absorption due to the ...excitation of localized surface plasmon resonances in metal nanoparticle arrays. Via detailed comparison of photocurrent enhancements given by Au, Ag and Al nanostructures on thin-film GaAs devices we reveal that parasitic losses can be mitigated through a careful choice of scattering medium. Absorption at the plasmon resonance in Au and Ag structures occurs in the visible spectrum, impairing device performance. In contrast, exploiting Al nanoparticle arrays results in a blue shift of the resonance, enabling the first demonstration of truly broadband plasmon enhanced photocurrent and a 22% integrated efficiency enhancement.
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