Maximum Proportions Research Articles

Influence of pseudocereals on gluten-free bread quality: A study integrating dough rheology, bread physical properties and acceptability

This study describes the use of the Mixture Design for simultaneals to improve the physical properties and acceptability of gluten-free bread (GFB) based on whole pseudocereals flour, as well as to define dough and bread instrumental predictors of the sensory quality of GFB. Three simplex-centroid designs were used to study the effects of each pseudocereal flour (amaranth – AF, buckwheat – BF, and quinoa – QF) blended with rice flour (RF) and potato starch (PS) on dough and bread properties. A total of 30 GFB formulations were produced and evaluated. Results reveal relationships between dough Mixolab parameters, such as C3 and C4, related to gelatinization and starch stability, with crumb moisture and firmness of GFB formulation, in which higher values of these parameters related to higher acceptability scores (>7 on a 10 cm hydroid hedonic scale). However, higher values of the secondary parameter C3-C4 was related to lower loaf-specific volume, impairing appearance and texture acceptability, as well as overall liking. The interaction effects between pseudocereal flour and RF increases dough consistency, bread volume, softness, and acceptability. Blends of 50% AF, BF, or QF with 50% RF results in GFB with high acceptability (overall liking of 8). The maximum pseudocereal proportions to obtain acceptable GFB (scores ≥ 7 for appearance, color, odor, texture, flavor acceptability and overall liking) were 60% AF, 85% BF, and 82% QF blended with RF. The combination of instrumental and sensory methods was useful to identify parameters capable of predicting the GFB quality, which may be useful for food scientists and producers to face the challenges regarding the development of healthier and better quality GFB to meet consumer needs.

Chemical diversity of essential oil among basil genotypes (Ocimum viride Willd.) across the years

Ocimum viride is known for its diverse medicinal uses. However, most previous studies have been conducted on phytochemical assessment, but intra-specific chemical variations are rarely reported. Chemical variations among seven genotypes of O. viride were studied over three consecutive years in the experimental farm in CSIR-CIMAP, Lucknow. The essential oils obtained by hydro-distillation from the aerial parts of O. viride genotypes were subjected to GC, enantiomeric GC, and GC/MS analyses for their chemical characterization. GC-FID analysis revealed maximum proportions of eugenol (37.8 %–45.8 %) along with monoterpenes such as (Z)-β-ocimene (9.3 %–29.5 %). The sesquiterpenoids identified were β-caryophyllene (3.1 %–4.6 %), α-trans-bergamotene (5.5 %–7.4 %) and germacrene D (5.9 %–10.6 %). Chiral separation of germacrene D enantiomers [(+)– and (−)–form] were achieved using a cyclodextrin-based capillary column in each genotype. (−)–Germacrene D was found to be the most predominant enantiomer in all genotypes. Genotype 133 was recorded with the highest enantiomeric excess (≥ 99 %) for (−)–germacrene D. Besides, genotype 131 contained high monoterpenoids. Major chemical constituents such as eugenol were isolated through column chromatography, and structure elucidation was carried out using 1D and 2D NMR experiments. The thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) showed the stability pattern of extracted essential oils and revealed the complete volatile degradation ranged from 160 °C–200 °C. The statistical analysis was performed to select the best genotypes. The study revealed the best genotypes based on the correlation between constituents × years (C × Y) interaction. These analyses helped better estimate essential oil yield analysis, chemical diversity, and herb yield analysis on a field experiment basis. In conclusion, genotypes 129 and 132 had the highest essential oil output and eugenol content (%). Eugenol, a marker chemical ingredient, was reported with the highest proportions in genotype 132 at the full bloom stage.

Catalytic co-pyrolysis of corn stalk and polypropylene over Zn-Al modified MCM-41 catalysts for aromatic hydrocarbon-rich oil production

This paper investigates separate pyrolysis of corn stalk (CS) and polypropylene (PP) and co-pyrolysis of CS and PP over Zn-Al co-modified MCM-41 to produce aromatics. In the presence of catalysts, the product contents and composition were significantly influenced. Zn and Al showed a certain synergistic effect, under catalysis with 1 wt% Zn-3 wt% Al/MCM-41, and the maximum proportions of aromatics (24.31 %) and the minimum production of oxygenated compounds (12.37 %) were obtained. With Zn-Al co-modified MCM-41, the highest contents of benzene, toluene, xylene, trimethylbenzene, naphthalene, and indene were 1.33, 1.84, 2.31, 1.15, 1.20, and 1.08 times the output of MCM-41, respectively. The catalytic co-pyrolysis of CS and PP also showed a synergistic effect on the production of aromatic hydrocarbons compared with their individual catalytic pyrolysis and the chemical mechanism of that synergy was revealed. Additionally, this synergy ability was further confirmed by thermogravimetric (TG) analysis and kinetic analysis.

A New Extended Geometric Distribution: Properties, Regression Model, and Actuarial Applications

In this paper, a new modified version of geometric distribution is proposed. The newly introduced model is called transmuted record type geometric (TRTG) distribution. TRTG distribution is a good alternative to the negative binomial, Poisson and geometric distributions in modeling real data encountered in several applied fields. The main statistical properties of the new distribution were obtained. We determined the measures of value at risk and tail value at risk for the TRTG distribution. These measures are important quantities in actuarial sciences for portfolio optimization under uncertainty. The TRTG parameters were estimated via maximum likelihood, moments, proportions, and Bayesian estimation methods, and the simulation results were determined to explore their performance. Furthermore, a new count regression model based on the TRTG distribution was proposed. Four real data applications were adopted to illustrate the applicability of the TRTG distribution and its count regression model. These applications showed empirically that the TRTG distribution outperforms some important discrete models such as the negative binomial, transmuted geometric, discrete Burr, discrete Chen, geometric, and Poisson distributions.

Lydall Inc, USA

This paper investigates separate pyrolysis of corn stalk (CS) and polypropylene (PP) and co-pyrolysis of CS and PP over Zn-Al co-modified MCM-41 to produce aromatics. In the presence of catalysts, the product contents and composition were significantly influenced. Zn and Al showed a certain synergistic effect, under catalysis with 1 wt% Zn-3 wt% Al/MCM-41, and the maximum proportions of aromatics (24.31 %) and the minimum production of oxygenated compounds (12.37 %) were obtained. With Zn-Al co-modified MCM-41, the highest contents of benzene, toluene, xylene, trimethylbenzene, naphthalene, and indene were 1.33, 1.84, 2.31, 1.15, 1.20, and 1.08 times the output of MCM-41, respectively. The catalytic co-pyrolysis of CS and PP also showed a synergistic effect on the production of aromatic hydrocarbons compared with their individual catalytic pyrolysis and the chemical mechanism of that synergy was revealed. Additionally, this synergy ability was further confirmed by thermogravimetric (TG) analysis and kinetic analysis.

Bending resistance properties and combustion retardant for unsaturated polyester reinforced with copper powder

This work investigates the impact of the filler (copper powder) on the flame and resistance of bending for unsaturated polyester. The percentages of fillers (0.5%, 0.8%, 1%, 1.5%, 2%, and 2.5%) and a particle size of (150 µm) were investigated by many variables, such as flame and bending resistance. In addition, through optical microscopy, the specimens of the polymer (unsaturated polyester) were measured in a pure state and with the addition of copper powder. Results revealed strong bending resistance of 338 MPa at the percentage of 0%. The added copper powder reduced the spaces within the polymer chains, thereby reflecting the high ability of the polymer to resist the applied stress. The homogeneity is high within the polymer and additives. The findings also indicate decreased bending resistance of 120 MPa at a percentage of 2%. The average burning time starts to show a strong impact at 0%, which then increases at 181Sec. The behavior then begins to increase when the weighed proportions are increased and then continued to increase at (1%) at 190 Sec. The maximum proportions also increased at a copper powder percentage of (2%) at 212 s. Results also indicate that the percentage for the time of burning ranged within negative and positive values. The negative values at minimum weight ratios of copper powder percentages of 0.5%–0.8% and positive values at great weight ratios of copper powder percentages of 1% and 2%.

PEDIGREE ANALYSIS AND POPULATION STRUCTURE OF BRAHMAN CATTLE FROM COSTA RICA

The objective of this study was to evaluate the population of Brahman cattle from Costa Rica. Pedigree analysis of 98,749 animals was used to estimate the following parameters: pedigree integrity, as a proportion of known ancestors; the number of complete generations, maximum generations traced, and equivalent complete generations; inbreeding coefficient (F); generation interval (GI) across four selection paths; additive genetic relationship (AGR); effective number of founders (fe) and ancestors (fa); and effective population size (Ne). The analysis was carried out using the ENDOG software. The maximum proportions of unknown parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents were 14.1%, 38.9%, and 61.2%, respectively. Average F for the whole population was 0.86, while 27.4% of the population was inbred, with an average F of 3.1%. The inbred population increased through the time, while F decreased. The average AGR was 0.64, with maximum values of 4.1 and positive trends. The fe and fa were 617.8 and 172.0, respectively. The Ne indicated increases of F, with values lower than 1%. The GI fluctuated from 6.4 to 7.4, with an average of 6.85 years. These results summarize previous breeding practices and represent useful information for designing breeding programs by anticipating the relationship between the selection response and increases of inbreeding.

Plant growth promoting and antifungal asset of indigenous rhizobacteria secluded from saffron (Crocus sativus L.) rhizosphere

Saffron (Crocus sativus L.) is an important plant in medicine. The Kashmir Valley (J&K, India) is one of the world's largest and finest saffron producing regions. However, over the past decade, there has been a strong declining trend in saffron production in this area. Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR) are free living soil bacteria that have ability to colonize the surfaces of the roots and ability to boost plant growth and development either directly or indirectly. Using the efficient PGPR as a bio-inoculant is another sustainable agricultural practice to improve soil health, grain yield quality, and biodiversity conservation. In the present study, a total of 13 bacterial strains were isolated from rhizospheric soil of saffron during the flowering stage of the tubers and were evaluated for various plant growth promoting characteristics under in vitro conditions such as the solubilization of phosphate, production of indole acetic acid, siderophore, hydrocyanic acid, and ammonia production and antagonism by dual culture test against Sclerotium rolfsii and Fusarium oxysporum. All the isolates were further tested for the production of hydrolytic enzymes such as protease, lipase, amylase, cellulase, and chitinase. The maximum proportions of bacterial isolates were gram-negative bacilli. About 77% of the bacterial isolates showed IAA production, 46% exhibited phosphate solubilization, 46% siderophore, 61% HCN, 100% ammonia production, 69% isolates showed protease activity, 62% lipase, 46% amylase, 85% cellulase, and 39% showed chitinase activity. Three isolates viz., AIS-3, AIS-8 and AIS-10 were found to have the most plant growth properties and effectively control the growth of Sclerotium rolfsii and Fusarium oxysporum. The bacterial isolates were identified as Brevibacterium frigoritolerans (AIS-3), Alcaligenes faecalis subsp. Phenolicus (AIS-8) and Bacillus aryabhattai (AIS-10) respectively by 16S rRNA sequence analysis. Therefore, these isolated rhizobacterial strains could be a promising source of plant growth stimulants to increase cormlets growth and increase saffron production.

Experimental investigation on tip-vortex flow characteristics of novel bionic multi-tip winglet configurations

Five bionic multi-tip winglet configurations, inspired by basic feather shapes and wingtip postures of birds, were designed to suppress the tip-vortex structures around their wingtips. Each of the bionic multi-tip winglet configurations consists of multiple novel feather-shaped winglets and looks like a dihedral (or non-planar) wingtip shape. The influence of the distribution density and chord-directional gap for the feather-shaped winglets on the tip-vortex flow characteristics was investigated experimentally at Re = 83 166. The results reveal that the vorticity levels of the tip-vortex structures in the near-wake region can achieve effective suppression by improving the feather-shaped winglets’ distribution density at the wingtip of the bionic wing configuration. The maximum proportions of the induced drag relative to the total drag for the bionic wing configurations I, II, and III are 25.54%, 21.05%, and 19.47%, respectively. The variation of the feather-shaped winglets’ distribution density significantly affects the lift–drag efficiency of the bionic wing configuration. However, the increase in the feather-shaped winglets’ mounting gap weakens the tip-vortex suppression effect for the bionic wing configuration (equipped with the three feather-shaped winglets) to some degree. The maximum proportions of the induced drag relative to the total drag for the bionic wing configurations IV and V are 27.28% and 28.32%, respectively. Compared with the bionic wing configuration I, the slightly worse aerodynamic performance for the bionic wing configurations IV or V (with the larger feather-shaped winglets’ mounting gap) is closely related to its weaker tip-vortex suppression ability.

The effect of exposed aggregate concrete gradation on the texture characteristics and durability

To ensure a lower tire/road noise level and proper friction, exposed aggregate concrete (EAC) is widely used for the construction of major highways in Europe. Even though EAC is commonly used, the number of publications about the effect of the EAC composition on the texture characteristics and durability is lacking. Moreover, there are no publications about EAC mixtures for pedestrian sidewalks. The objective of this article is to develop a mixture gradation that will lead to better pavement surface characteristics and durability of EAC used for the wearing layer of highways and pedestrian sidewalks. Variations in the maximum coarse aggregate size and proportions were used to develop EAC mixtures. The experimental research results showed that increasing the amount of coarse aggregates improves the skid resistance, resistance to polishing, exposed aggregate peak number, and compressive strength but impairs the mean profile depth (MPD) and mean texture depth (MTD). Based on the evaluation of the experimental data collected in this study, all EAC mixtures with a maximum aggregate size of 8 mm (EAC 8) achieved higher compressive strength values than EAC mixtures with a maximum aggregate size of 5 mm (EAC 5). However, EAC 8 and EAC 5 showed similar values of flexural strength, splitting strength, skid resistance and resistance to polishing. The analytic hierarchy process (AHP) was developed and applied to prioritize all tested EAC alternatives considering the most important criteria. The EAC 5 mixture with 80% coarse aggregates fr. 2–5 mm (EAC 5_3) was selected as the most rational alternative for the wearing layer of pedestrian sidewalks, while the EAC mixture contained 70% coarse aggregate fr. 5–8 mm (EAC 8_1) was selected for the wearing layer of highways.

Tip-vortex flow characteristics investigation of a novel bird-like morphing discrete wing structure

A bird-like morphing discrete wing, inspired by primary feathers of birds’ wings, was designed to control the wing-tip vortex strength. The influence of both the morphing process and discrete (non-continuous) surface feature for the bird-like wing structure on the tip-vortex flow characteristics was investigated in detail at Re = 87 000. The results reveal that the morphing process of the bird-like discrete wing structure can achieve the effective control of the core vortex strength by changing the flow structures around the tip-vortex core center(s). The induced drag yielded by the bird-like morphing wing structure is tightly related to its vorticity distribution in the near-wake region. Moreover, compared with the fully extended fixed-wing model with a continuous surface structure, the bird-like discrete wing model with the fully extended morphing state can suppress the core vortex strength by destroying the tip-vortex merging process. Meanwhile, the core vortex strength of the fully extended discrete wing model decays more sharply with the increase in x/c. The maximum proportions of the induced drag relative to the total drag for both the discrete and continuous wing models with the fully extended shape are 14.33% and 19.97%, respectively. However, the fully folding process of the bird-like wing structure significantly weakens the induced-drag reduction effect of the discrete surface structure. The maximum proportions of the induced drag relative to the total drag for both the discrete and continuous wing models with the fully folded shape are 17.59% and 18.41%, respectively.

Fast corn stalk pyrolysis and the influence of catalysts on product distribution

Fast pyrolysis of corn stalk (CS) was performed by pyrolysis–gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) and the product distribution was measured as a function of temperature, time, and catalyst. The types and yields of product compounds were influenced dramatically by temperature, while the duration of the reaction had little effect on the type of compound. Three primary components in the biomass interacted during pyrolysis. The maximum proportions of aldehydes (27.26%), furans (5.93%), and olefins (6.46%), and the minimum proportions of alcohols (0%) and carbohydrates (0.74%) were obtained over MCM-41. HZSM-5 improved the selectivity of aromatic hydrocarbons while inhibiting acid formation. The proportion of N-compounds was maximal (23.39%) over ZrO2. ZnCl2 tended to generate the least amounts of ketones (2.02%), phenols (9.08%), and esters (2.16%), but the greatest amount of carbohydrates (37.31%). K2SO4 promoted the formation of acids, ketones, alcohols, and phenols, while reducing the production of N-compounds and aldehydes.

Ayurveda Research Studies on COVID-19 Registered in Clinical Trials Registry of India

Introduction: In search of effective therapeutics or vaccines to treat or prevent coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19), various National Governments, World Health Organization (WHO), and associated partners are working on war footing to coordinate the rapid development of medical countermeasures by conducting various clinical trials. To date, several clinical trials, both Western and traditional medicines, have been registered in Clinical Trial Registry of India (CTRI). However, the relevant literature regarding clinical trials involving Ayurveda intervention on COVID-19 has not been published. In the current article, attempt has been made to extract, review, and summarize the relevant data regarding registered clinical trials under CTRI involving Ayurveda for COVID-19. Materials and methods: CTRI has been searched comprehensively for the registered trials of COVID-19 involving Ayurveda Intervention from March 01, 2020 to June 25, 2020. For each study, the CTRI registration details, demographic characteristics, and study methodology including design are collected and summarized. Results: Till June 25, 2020, a total of 58 trials were identified in CTRI, and of them 52 (89.66%) are interventional trials and 06 (10.34%) are observational trials. Majority of the registered trials are Government sponsored 39 (67.24%). Interventional prophylactic trials were found to be registered in equal proportion to the interventional therapeutic trials (26 each of the total 52 registered interventional trials). Majority of trials are controlled (35, 60.34%), and the allocation of participants into treatment or controlled groups is done by randomization in (24, 41.37%) of controlled trials. The maximum proportions of trials are open-label trials (47, 81.03%), and only three trials are double-blind placebo-controlled trials. All the intervention prophylactic trials are standalone (26, 100%); however, majority of the intervention therapeutic trials are adjunctive (17, 65.38%) to standard of care (conventional medicine). Interventional agent in most of the trials is either multiple drug combinations (23, 44.23%) or compound drug formulations (21, 40.38%) compared to single drug administration (8, 15.38%). Conclusion: The article provides an insight into the CTRI registered trials involving Ayurveda and COVID-19 till June 25, 2020. Although certain issues have been observed related to the design of trials, however, the efforts put in by various stakeholders of Ayurveda, especially Ministry of AYUSH is laudable. Once completed, the results of these promising studies should be published at the earliest, and accordingly the policy makers from Traditional system of medicines should strategize effective solutions to benefit public health in these challenging times.

Distribution of common modern dinoflagellate cyst taxa in surface sediments of the Northern Hemisphere in relation to environmental parameters: The new n=1968 database

Abstract We present a new version of the standardized Northern Hemisphere “modern” dinoflagellate cyst (“dinocyst”) database, which includes abundances of 71 taxa at 1968 sites across the Northern Hemisphere, cross-referenced with 17 environmental parameters extracted mostly from the 2013 World Ocean Atlas. Several taxa with tropical to warm temperate affinities were added to the previous database version. Dinocyst concentrations in the surface sediments reach 106 cysts g−1, with maximum values along the continental margins and minimum values offshore in distal open ocean settings. Assemblages are characterized by the co-occurrence of phototrophic (n = 41) and heterotrophic taxa (n = 30), with maximum proportions of heterotrophic taxa in high productivity regions, notably at the sea-ice edge and in upwelling regions. The main pattern of assemblage distributions includes north–south and nearshore–offshore gradients, with maximum diversity of species along the continental margins and towards the south, in warm temperate and tropical areas. Canonical correspondence analyses performed on heterotrophic and phototrophic taxa independently yield consistent results, hence suggesting similar, but not identical, ecological affinities for both taxonomic groups. For both groups, sea-surface temperature and sea-ice are the most determining parameters, but the phototrophic taxa seem more sensitive to onshore–offshore gradients marked by salinity changes. Productivity-related parameters also determine dinocyst distribution, especially primary productivity in the fall and winter, with a stronger relationship for the combined dataset of phototrophic and heterotrophic taxa.

Influence of ethanol concentration on sensory perception of rums using temporal check‐all‐that‐apply

AbstractAged liquors are appreciated worldwide for their complexity, which is largely influenced by a given product's temporal profile. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of ethanol concentration on temporal sensory perception of dark rums using temporal check‐all‐that‐apply (TCATA). Trained panelists (n = 8) profiled seven commercial aged rums, each at four ethanol concentrations (10, 20, 30, and 40% alcohol by volume, ABV) in quadruplicate. Fourteen attributes were profiled. During TCATA evaluation, panelists first profiled aroma attributes, then in‐mouth flavor attributes, and finished with aftertaste attributes for the rums. Results were compared in terms of differences in citation proportion over the course of sample assessment. Higher ethanol concentration resulted in increased citation proportion and duration of basic taste attributes in rums (p < .05). Flavor attributes including caramel, banana, cherry/almond, cooked apple, and vanilla reached maximum citation proportions at 30% ABV that were not significantly different from 40% ABV. These results suggest that ethanol plays a significant role in the temporal sensory perception of aged rums and that ethanol concentrations typically evaluated by trained panels (~20% ABV) may inaccurately represent certain aspects of commercial rums from a temporal perspective.Practical ApplicationsTemporality is an important part of the consumption experience for high‐ABV products such as aged rums. Knowing how temporal sensory profiles may change when the product is presented at different alcohol levels will provide valuable insight into how rums may be applied in mixed drink or culinary applications. In addition, trained panel profiling of high‐ABV beverages is typically performed at diluted levels. An outline of the differences in dynamic product profiles at different dilutions may serve as a guidance for evaluations where diluted product outcomes are extrapolated to the undiluted commercial product.

The impact of reducing alcohol consumption in Australia: An estimate of the proportion of potentially avoidable cancers 2013-2037.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer first concluded that alcohol causes cancer in humans in 1988. The World Cancer Research Fund has declared that alcohol causes cancer of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, oesophagus (squamous cell carcinoma), female breast, colon, rectum, stomach and liver. It recommended that alcohol be avoided altogether to prevent cancer. We aimed to quantify the impact of reducing alcohol consumption on future cancer incidence in Australia. We used PREVENT 3.01 simulation modelling software to estimate the proportion of cancers that could potentially be prevented over a 25-year period under two hypothetical intervention scenarios and two latency periods (20 and 30 years). Under a scenario where alcohol consumption abruptly ceases, we estimated up to 4% of alcohol-related cancers could be avoided over a 25-year period (~49,500 cancers, depending on assumed latency). If the maximum consumption of all Australian adults was ≤20 g/day (~two Australian standard drinks), up to 2% of alcohol-related cancers could be avoided (~29,600 cancers). The maximum proportions were higher for men (6% for no alcohol consumption; 5% for ≤20 g/day) than women (3%; 1%). The proportion avoidable was highest for oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (17% no alcohol consumption; 9% ≤20 g/day), followed by cancers of the oral cavity (12%; 5%) and pharynx (11%; 5%). The cancer sites with the highest numbers of potentially avoidable cases were colon in men (11,500; 9,900) and breast in women (14,400; 4,100). Successful interventions to reduce alcohol intake could lead to significant reductions in cancer incidence.

A Study on Solid Waste Composition in Kanchanpur District, Nepal

Background: Solid waste is a by-product of human activities. It has become an alarming challenge during recent decades in many cities of Nepal. Quantity and characteristics of solid waste have changed as a result of the modification in people’s lifestyle. The purpose of this study is to characterize the composition of solid waste in Bhimdatta Municipality of Kanchanpur district, Nepal.Methods: In between July to September 2015, a total of 45 households, 15 commercial places, 15 institutions were selected randomly. Solid waste samples were collected in recommended plastic bags. The collected wastes were categorized and weighted. Direct observation of municipal solid waste collection and its disposal practices were also performed. Qualitative information was collected from focus group discussion.Results: A total of 446.7 kg of solid waste was collected and the highest proportion (66.4%) was organic in composition. In the daily production of overall solid wastes, households were ranked the first (23.3%) and followed to the hotels and lodges (20.4%). The commercial centers produced the highest amount of all types of wastes. The crude waste dumping practice in the open and vacant areas was found a threat to human health, causing ecological imbalances and also bringing land, water, and air pollution.Conclusions: The rapidly growing population in the urban region of the study area has become an urgent issue in the production of several types of solid wastes. The organic waste was generated in the highest amount and maximum proportions of solid waste were produced from commercial centers.

Dog breed affiliation with a forensically validated canine STR set

We tested a panel of 13 highly polymorphic canine short tandem repeat (STR) markers for dog breed assignment using 392 dog samples from the 23 most popular breeds in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland. This STR panel had originally been selected for canine identification. The dog breeds sampled in this study featured a population frequency ≥1% and accounted for nearly 57% of the entire pedigree dog population in these three countries. Breed selection was based on a survey comprising records for nearly 1.9 million purebred dogs belonging to more than 500 different breeds. To derive breed membership from STR genotypes, a range of algorithms were used. These methods included discriminant analysis of principal components (DAPC), STRUCTURE, GeneClass2, and the adegenet package for R.STRUCTURE analyses suggested 21 distinct genetic clusters. Differentiation between most breeds was clearly discernable. Fourteen of 23 breeds (61%) exhibited maximum mean cluster membership proportions of more than 0.70 with a highest value of 0.90 found for Cavalier King Charles Spaniels. Dogs of only 6 breeds (26%) failed to consistently show only one major cluster. The DAPC method yielded the best assignment results in all 23 declared breeds with 97.5% assignment success. The frequency-based assignment test also provided a high success rate of 87%. These results indicate the potential viability of dog breed prediction using a well-established and sensitive set of 13 canine STR markers intended for forensic routine use.

High temperature properties of high viscosity asphalt based on rheological methods

This research aims to comparatively evaluate the high temperature properties of modified high viscosity asphalt (SHVA) by temperature and frequency sweep testing as well as repeated creep and recovery testing. Wheel-tracking testing was also introduced to verify anti-rutting properties of asphalt mixtures. The results indicated that the phase angles (δ) of high viscosity asphalts decreased with increased temperature. The lowest decrease rate of the complex modulus (G∗) reflected that SHAV had the lowest temperature susceptibility. The δ of neat asphalts were nearly unchanged with increased frequency, while the δ of modified asphalts clearly increased. Both temperature and frequency sweep tests indicated that improvements in anti-rutting performance (i.e., smaller δ and bigger G∗) of high viscosity asphalt were noticeable. Burgers model and a piecewise linear regression method showed high accuracy in simulating asphalt’s creep process. Changes in binder creep stiffness and accumulated strain (i.e. 2.8, 2.6, and 2.4% for SBS, TPS and SHAV, compared to 96.4 and 102.9% for two neat asphalts) demonstrated that the polymer used in these modified asphalts significantly enhanced their stiffness and elastic properties. From the analysis of creep compliance, SHVA had the maximum elastic and minimum viscous proportions in comparison with the other four asphalts. Test results of the mixtures showed that the asphalt mixture with SHVA possessed the best high-temperature stability (9265 cycles/mm). Good agreement was found between the high temperature properties of the asphalts and mixtures.

Bruxism-Related Signs and Periodontal Disease: A Preliminary Study.

Background:The effect of awake and sleep bruxism on periodontal disease has not been evaluated separately to date. Furthermore, there are few studies that have focused on awake bruxism with light force.Objective: The study aimed to investigate the frequency of sleep and awake bruxism in patients with periodontal disease.Methods:The subjects were 57 patients with periodontal disease who visited the Department of Periodontics of the Dental Hospital affiliated with Tokyo Medical and Dental University. Subjects were asked to fill out a questionnaire consisting of three items on bruxism (sleep and awake bruxism), and the maximum community periodontal index was investigated.Results:The proportions of individuals with high sleep bruxism-related signs and high awake bruxism-related signs were 6.0% and 44.0%, respectively. No significant difference was found in the comparison of maximum community periodontal index proportions between individuals with high sleep bruxism-related signs and high awake bruxism-related signs.Conclusion:The results of this survey of patients with periodontal disease showed that the proportion of subjects with high awake bruxism-related signs subjects was higher than those of the subjects with high sleep bruxism-related signs. Sleep bruxism has attracted attention as a factor influencing periodontal disease, and our data suggest that patients with periodontal disease demonstrate more bruxism while being awake than during sleep.