Panel Scores Research Articles

Machine learning assisted design of acoustic metamaterials with broadband sound-absorbing and superior mechanical performance

It remains challenging to design lightweight metamaterials with superior sound-absorbing and load-bearing capacities. One promising approach is using multiple coherently coupled resonators to serve as sound absorbers and reinforced grid cores of sandwich panels. However, with too many design parameters each requiring careful tuning to reach the stringent critical coupling condition, achieving an optimal design based on experience alone is challenging. An autoencoder-like neural network is constructed that, once well trained, significantly promote the inverse design process thanks to the highly efficient computational speed. Particularly, a probabilistic model is inserted into the network to tackle ill-posed inverse problems requiring man-made and probably unreal spectrum as an input, and can provide multiple ultra-thin (32 mm) and broadband designs. We have fabricated and tested the optimized metallic sandwich structures, showing broadband capacity of using solely nine resonators to achieve quasi-perfect sound absorption (over 0.9) from 399 to 675 Hz. The static compression and dynamic impact testing also verify the superior mechanical performance with high yield strength (21.2 MPa) and large normalized energy absorption (0.29) at lower relative density (13.5%). We believe this work is encouraging to accelerate the design of multifunctional absorbers targeted especially for low-frequency noise control in engineering.

Experimental investigation on impact behavior of curved sandwich composites with chiral auxetic core

The purpose of this study is to evaluate and compare the capability of impact energy absorption of the sandwich panels with various chiral auxetic cores. To this end, flat and curved panels were subjected to impact testing at varying energy levels. Glass fiber-reinforced epoxy composites and PLA material were used as the skins and core of the examined sandwich panels, respectively. The face sheets were produced by the hand-layup method and the auxetic cores with tetrachiral, anti-tetrachiral, and hexachiral configurations were printed using a 3D printer. The wall thickness, node diameter, and ligament length of the cells, as well as the core thickness, were kept constant for all the studied core structures. Flat and curved sandwich panels were obtained by combining the skins and cores produced in flat, 100 mm, 125 mm, and 160 mm radii of curvature with the epoxy used in skin production. Drop weight tests were carried out at impact energies of 10, 25, and 80 J. The contribution of the auxetic core configuration and panel curvature to the impact behavior of the sandwich panel was evaluated by examining the relationships between contact forces and deflection and by the analysis of the energy absorption and failure mode. The comparative evaluations showed that the auxetic core structure and the curvature of the panel have a significant effect on the impact properties of the sandwich panels. It was also observed that the use of tetrachiral cores could be the ideal design option for flat panels loaded at the perforation energy level. For curved panels, it was determined that the use of a hexachiral core configuration was advantageous in terms of more energy absorption capability, while the use of an anti-tetrachiral core structure was more effective in terms of specific energy absorption.

Metal-faced sandwich composite panels: A review

This review paper discusses the challenges in improving the mechanical and structural performance of metal-faced sandwich composite panels while reducing weight and cost. It focuses on the core and facesheet structural trends of metal-faced sandwich panels, highlighting innovative design concepts and mechanical performance with respect to failure modes. The paper categorizes recent core geometries used in metal-faced sandwich structures into three types: cellular foam cores, two-dimensional periodic cores, and three-dimensional periodic cores, each with unique characteristics and advantages. The performance of metal sandwich panels with different core structures in response to various mechanical tests is also summarized, including high and low-velocity impact, flexural, and blast and fire resistance. The review emphasizes that the core geometry, facesheet thickness, and core-face interfacial bonding of sandwich composites play a critical role in determining their structural performance and potential applications. Overall, this review paper provides valuable insights into the challenges of improving the mechanical and structural performance of metal-faced sandwich composite panels and highlights the importance of innovative design concepts for achieving optimal performance.

Malignant arrhythmias and advanced heart failure in patients with RBM20 cardiomyopathy: a single center cohort study and review of the literature

Abstract Background Sudden cardiac death (SCD), and death rate attributable to heart failure (HF) are common causes of death in the general population. Both are seen in cardiomyopathy patients. RBM20 mutations associated with a cardiomyopathy phenotype and a high risk of SCD and HF. Purpose The aim of this study is to investigate the genotype-phenotype correlations, and clinical outcomes of the RBM20 mutations. Methods Peripheral blood from patients was drawn as a routine diagnostic procedure and genomic DNA extracted according to standard protocols. Patients were tested for at least 45 cardiomyopathy-related genes included in the Dutch core panel. 23 patients with a likely pathogenic or pathogenic RBM20 mutation and a cardiomyopathy phenotype were retrospectively enrolled in a single-center cohort. Patient data on clinical characteristics, imaging and pathology were extracted retrospectively. Furthermore, a literature search was conducted for a literature review on RBM20 mutations in cardiomyopathies. Peer reviewed studies with patients aged 18 or older, a RBM20 mutation, and a cardiomyopathy were included. Results Whole genome sequencing found 5 different RBM20 protein altering mutations. The c.1900C>T mutation was the most frequently seen in 18 patients. Four RBM20 mutations were novel mutations; c.1912, c.2919, c.414 and c.1118_1119 (Table1). The 23 patients had a mean age of 52 ± 15 years, and 13 (59%) were male. The phenotype was predominantly dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). This was seen in 18 (82%)patients compared to 2 (12%) noncompaction cardiomyopathy (NCCM) patients. Nine (41%) patients had experienced malignant ventricular arrhythmia (VA). The mean age of first VA was 49 ± 10 years. An implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) was implanted in 13 (57%) patients, and gave appropriate therapy in 5 (23%) patients compared to 1 (9%) patient receiving inappropriate therapy. Ten (46%) patients were diagnosed with heart failure (HF) at a mean age of 50 ± 11 years. One patient died of heart failure, while 5 (25%) patients underwent heart transplantation (HTx). Delayed enhancement (DE) was shown on MRI in 5 (50%) patients, of which 3 had DE located in the mid-myocardial and inferolateral segments. They all had c.1900C>T, but did not differ in clinical outcomes compared to patients without DE. The literature review included 32 studies with 394 total patients. Five studies reported on c.1900C>T, of which 4 case reports/series and 1 cohort study. The mean age at diagnosis was lower in 4 studies and varied between 26 and 52 years compared to 51 ± 15 years in our c.1900C>T group. The prevalence of VA was 66%-100% in the case reports/series, and 28% in the cohort study. In our cohort had 5 (42%) patients a VA. Conclusion This study found 4 novel RBM20 mutations. Moreover, the RBM20 mutation phenotype was predominantly DCM combined with a high prevalence of malignant VA and/or HF, which both had an peak age of early onset between 45-54 years.

Aircraft Wing Design for Extended Hybrid Laminar Flow Control

Laminar flow offers significant potential for increasing the energy-efficiency of future transport aircraft. The German Cluster of Excellence SE2A is developing a new approach for hybrid laminar flow control. The concept aims to maintain laminar flow up to 80% of the chord length by integrating suction panels at the rear part of the wing, which consist of a thin suction skin and a supporting core structure. This study examines effects of various suction panel configurations on wing mass and load transfer for an all-electric short-range aircraft. Suction panel material, as well as thickness and relative density of the suction panel core are modified in meaningful boundaries. Suction panels made from Ti6Al4V offer the most robust design resulting in a significant increase in wing mass. For the studied configurations, they represent up to 33.8% of the mass of the wingbox. In contrast, panels made from Nylon11CF or PU1000 do not significantly increase the wing mass. However, the use of these materials raises questions about their robustness under operational conditions. The results demonstrate that the choice of material strongly influences the load path within the wing structure. Ti6Al4V suction panels provide sufficient mechanical properties to significantly contribute to load transfer and buckling stiffness. Locally, the share of load transfer attributed to the suction panel exceeds 50%. In contrast, compliant materials such as Nylon11CF or PU1000 are inherently decoupled from load transfer. Unlike the thickness of the suction skin, the relative density of the core structure strongly affects the wrinkling stiffness. However, wrinkling failure did not appear critical for the examined suction panel configurations. In the present study, the mechanical properties of Ti6Al4V cannot fully be exploited. Therefore, compliant suction panels made from Nylon11CF are preferred in order to achieve a lightweight solution, provided that they meet operational requirements.

Dissecting genomic regions and underlying sheath blight resistance traits in rice (Oryza sativa L.) using a genome-wide association study.

The productivity of rice is greatly affected by the infection of the plant pathogenic fungus Rhizoctonia solani, which causes a significant grain yield reduction globally. There exist a limited number of rice accessions that are available to develop sheath blight resistance (ShB). Our objective was to identify a good source of the ShB resistance, understand the heritability, and trait interactions, and identify the genomic regions for ShB resistance traits by genome-wide association studies (GWAS). In the present study, a set of 330 traditional landraces and improved rice varieties were evaluated for ShB resistance and created a core panel of 192 accessions used in the GWAS. This panel provides a more considerable amount of genetic variance and found a significant phenotypic variation among the panel of rice accessions for all the agro-morphological and disease-resistance traits over the seasons. The infection rate of ShB and disease reaction were calculated as percent disease index (PDI) and area under the disease progress curve (AUDPC). The correlation analysis showed a significant positive association between PDIs and AUPDC and a negative association between PDI and plant height, flag leaf length, and grain yield. The panel was genotyped with 133 SSR microsatellite markers, resulting in a genome coverage of 314.83 Mb, and the average distance between markers is 2.53 Mb. By employing GLM and MLM (Q + K) models, 30 marker-trait associations (MTAs) were identified with targeted traits over the seasons. Among these QTLs, eight were found to be novel and located on 2, 4, 8, 10, and 12 chromosomes, which explained the phenotypic variation ranging from 5% to 15%. With the GWAS approach, six candidate genes were identified. Os05t0566400, Os08t0155900, and Os09t0567300 were found to be associated with defense mechanisms against ShB. These findings provided insights into the novel donors of IC283139, IC 277248, Sivappuchithirai Kar, and Bowalia. The promising genomic regions on 10 of 12 chromosomes associated with ShB would be useful in developing rice varieties with durable disease resistance.

Indicators of the hospital use of antimicrobial agents based on consumption

ObjectiveTo identify indicators of hospital use of antimicrobials from the benchmark analysis of consumption data between hospitals at the same level through the collective judgement of a group of experts. MethodA committee formed by members of the Spanish Societies of Hospital Pharmacy and Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology prepared a proposal of indicators which was submitted to consensus by a panel of 21 experts on infectious diseases, microbiology and antimicrobial therapy, through a modified Delphi method. The panel underwent two rounds of scores by e-mail. Participants assigned a score from 1 (completely disagree) to 9 (completely agree) to the relevance of each indicator in four dimensions: scientific evidence, efficacy and safety, ecological impact and cost. Scores were processed according to the RAND-UCLA method. An indicator was considered to be relevant if at least one dimension other than cost obtained a median score equal to or higher than 7 without disagreement among the panel. ResultsThe committee submitted an initial proposal of 14 indicators. After the first round of panel scores, one indicator was ruled out and two were modified for moving on to the second round. Finally, 13 indicators were considered relevant. ConclusionsDetermining indicators of the hospital use of antimicrobial agents based on consumption can allow the antimicrobial stewardship programs to detect any potential problems with the use of antimicrobial agents, and to help guide their efforts in order to implement actions of improvement, as well as to assess the impact of the measures implemented.

Design and structural testing of 3D printed honeycomb cores with optimised integrated blended inserts

The integration of inserts into sandwich panel constructions is a complex multi-step process with significant human intervention that also limits the geometrical freedom of the insert design. In a standard sandwich construction, the panel core is made up of multiple materials across its main components: insert, potting and core. This multi-material assembly is not only difficult to manufacture, but it also promotes stress jumps at the insert-core interface, leading to a sub-optimal load distribution from the bolt to the panel core. Additive manufacturing (AM) can lead to a single-part core and insert assembly with more optimised insert geometries that can better transmit the loads applied to the panel. Previous work by the authors has explored the manufacturing limits and the failure modes of AM inserts integrated in cores printed out of sintered AlSi10Mg. The conclusions were that the core walls and insert elements should have a minimum design thickness of 0.5 mm to survive the tapping process without facesheets attached and it was found that the main failure mode of the geometries tested in pull-out was buckling of the insert walls. Based on these results, the paper proposes a novel insert design philosophy that can delay the buckling of 3D printed inserts and move the failure point of the insert away from the bolt. A set of inserts that follow this design direction is manufactured and tested under normal pull-out loads and the optimised designs outperform standard printed insert geometries by a factor of three. The design philosophy can be further developed to offer a suitable alternative to the current insert standard.

Flexural behavior of fiber reinforced composites sandwich panels with a reused wooden core

The increasing use of wood products has inevitably resulted in a fast accumulation of waste wood, which is commonly landfilled or recycled for energy or products with low added value. In the present study, a concept has been adopted to reuse the waste wood formwork as the core of FRP sandwich panels. The waste wood formwork has been firstly sliced into wood strips of a specific width, which are then flipped by 90o and bonded together to form a plate as the sandwich core. Such a recycling routine appears as a promising method due to (1) minimum pre-treatment for processing the waste wood; and (2) less likelihood of the hazardous chemicals leakage because of the covered GFRP skins. The flexural behavior of such sandwich panels has been evaluated through a series of three-point bending tests with the thicknesses of GFRP layer and the core plate as the main parameters. The test results indicate that the GFRP-waste wood sandwich panels failed by either rupture of the tensile GFRP sheet or crushing of the compression side. The bending stiffness and flexural strength improves with the increase in the thicknesses of the core plate and GFRP layer, and the panels with three-layer GFRP sheets have the bending stiffness and flexural strength up to 11.0 and 4.4 times higher than that of the core plate. The analytical and numerical predictions on the flexural properties of the sandwich plate show in good agreement with that from the tests, validating the adopted the models.

What is the Cow-Calf Economics of Genetic Panel Scores for Feedlot Traits?

AbstractPast research has only studied genetic panel scores and feedlot performance. This research combines impacts of genetic panel scores on a cow-calf operation with previously estimated feedlot impacts to evaluate the potential for misaligned economic incentives in the beef industry. Calves that were higher genetic scores for two carcass traits, marbling and tenderness, had lower weaning weights and lower net returns. Correlations between genetic traits and cow size were small and mostly insignificant. The sum of the effects on feedlot and cow-calf sectors of a one-unit higher panel score totaled $-2.83 per cow year for marbling and $-4.93 per cow year for tenderness.

Simulation of Thermal Analysis of Aluminium Composite Panel’s Core Material Using Fire Dynamic Simulator (FDS)

Aluminum composite panel cores are usually found to be combustible. At the present, most buildings that installs combustible aluminum composite panel’s (ACP) core as part of the wall cladding are suspected to accelerate the spread of fire and act as fuel during burning. The purpose of this study is to develop thermogravimetry analysis test (TGA) using FDS which is widely used by fire researchers to study the fire behavior of polymer composite. A pyrolysis model was being developed using FDS. The pyrolysis model developed has tested 5 type of ACP commercial core which includes 3 different fire retardant (FR) ACP from various manufacturer, A2 ACP and 100% polyethylene ACP. All the samples shall be simulated at a maximum of 800 °C, a heating rate of 10 °C per minute and 20mL per minute nitrogen air flow to ensure that the pyrolysis process take place. In the same time, a TGA test was conducted experimentally to compare the result from the simulation. The result from the model developed and experimental testing was closely identical. Results obtained from fire dynamic simulation indicate the same decomposition point and residue for the mass fraction. Relative error was calculated to compare the result and the highest error obtained was 9.69% for A2 type and the lowest recorded was 2.59% for FR1 type. To summarize, FDS manage to reflect the exact pyrolysis process that occurs on the 5 type of ACP that was being tested experimentally.

Advanced structural and multi‐functional sandwich composites with prismatic and foam cores: A review

AbstractAdvanced sandwich structures have emerged as new multifunctional structures with low density and good mechanical performance. Sandwich composites have high strength to weight and high stiffness to weight ratio. Good thermal and sound insulation can be provided using sandwich composite materials. Sandwich composites have high energy absorbing capacity. Multifunctional sandwich composites exhibit mechanical performance and other functional properties such as energy storage, electrical conductivity, etc. Further, the core can be used for routing wires, foam filling, fluid storage, embedding bars, etc. Thus, the multifunctionality can be introduced to the resuting composite materials. This article reviews current research on innovative sandwich structures with integrally woven corrugated core, honeycomb, foam, and 3D printed core architectures, emphasizing their multifunctionality. Aspects of sandwich structure with types of face and core structure design, material design, mechanical properties, and panel performance and damage, including multifunctional benefits, are reviewed. Examples of engineering and modern uses of sandwich structures are presented, covering hypersonic vehicles, civil and marine engineering, electronics, and biological fields. A list of areas for future study initiatives is also included. This review will serve as a baseline for future studies to do more research in the same direction.Highlights A detailed review of various types of core materials and sandwich structures is presented. Sandwich structures have high energy absorbing capacity. 3D woven sandwich structures, their manufacturing and failure mechanics is discussed. Modern applications of sandwich structures are detailed.

Antibiotic prescribing guideline recommendations in COVID-19: a systematic survey

COVID-19 and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are two intersecting public health crises. Antimicrobial overuse in patients with COVID-19 threatens to worsen AMR. Guidelines are fundamental in encouraging antimicrobial stewardship. We sought to assess the quality of antibiotic prescribing guidelines and recommendations in the context of COVID-19, and whether they incorporate principles of antimicrobial stewardship. We performed a systematic survey which included a search using the concepts "antibiotic/antimicrobial" up to November 15, 2022 of the eCOVID-19 living map of recommendations (RecMap) which aggregates guidelines across a range of international sources and all languages. Guidelines providing explicit recommendations regarding antibacterial use in COVID-19 were eligible for inclusion. Guideline and recommendation quality were assessed using the AGREE II and AGREE-REX instruments, respectively. We extracted guideline characteristics including panel representation and the presence or absence of explicit statements related to antimicrobial stewardship (i.e., judicious antibiotic use, antimicrobial resistance or adverse effects as a consequence of antibiotic use). We used logistic regression to evaluate the relationship between guideline characteristics including quality and incorporation of antimicrobial stewardship principles. Protocol registration (OSF): https://osf.io/4pgtc. Twenty-eight guidelines with 63 antibiotic prescribing recommendations were included. Recommendations focused on antibiotic initiation (n=52, 83%) and less commonly antibiotic selection (n=13, 21%), and duration of therapy (n=15, 24%). Guideline and recommendation quality varied widely. Twenty (71%) guidelines incorporated at least one concept relating to antimicrobial stewardship. Including infectious diseases expertise on the guideline panel (OR 9.44, 97.5% CI: 1.09-81.59) and AGREE-REX score (OR 3.26, 97.5% CI: 1.14-9.31 per 10% increase in overall score) were associated with a higher odds of guidelines addressing antimicrobial stewardship. There is an opportunity to improve antibiotic prescribing guidelines in terms of both quality and incorporation of antimicrobial stewardship principles. These findings can help guideline developers better address antibiotic stewardship in future recommendations beyond COVID-19. This project was funded by Michael G. DeGroote Cochrane Canada and McMaster GRADE centres.

Establishing pyrolysis kinetics for fire modelling and thermal analysis of polymeric cladding materials used in high-rise buildings

This research paper presents a comprehensive analysis of kinetics data concerning with the core materials of Aluminium Composite Panels (ACPs), with a specific focus on composite materials comprising mineral fillers and organic polymers. The study addresses the current scarcity of kinetics data for cladding panel core materials, particularly those with complex compositions involving mineral fillers and organic polymers, which poses a significant challenge for accurate fire modelling. The study aims to extract essential parameters, including activation energy, pre-exponential factors, and reaction orders, essential for precise fire modelling. This study involves Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) on three distinct cladding core materials, namely, ACP-1, ACP-2, and ACP-3, featuring varying proportions of organic polymer content (100%, 30%, and 7%) and exposure to different heating rates (5, 10, 15, and 20 K/min). By employing both model-free and model-based techniques in conjunction with TGA analysis, the study successfully derives kinetics data aligned with specific pyrolysis reaction stages. To validate the extracted kinetics data, the study conducted experimental tests utilising a Cone calorimeter. The results from these experiments showcased a strong correlation between fire performance parameters such as Total Heat Release (THR), Effective Heat of Combustion (EHC), and Mass Loss Rate (MLR) and the proportion of polymer in the cladding composites. Furthermore, the study examined the implications of the derived kinetics data within the Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS). The insights gained from this research substantially contribute to our comprehension of core material kinetics in ACPs, while also offering valuable input for fire dynamics simulations, thereby enhancing fire safety modelling and practices knowledge in the field of construction materials and design.

Impact of Salts Mixtures on the Physicochemical and Sensory Characteristics of Spanish-Style Manzanilla Green Table Olives during Packaging.

Using response surface methodology (RSM), this study investigates the effect of NaCl substitution (50%) with KCl, CaCl2, and MgCl2 in the packaging brines (controlled variables) on the characteristics (responses) of plain green Spanish-style Manzanilla olives, maintaining the salt-mixture level of 5%. The RSM showed that the increment of CaCl2 caused a linear significant (p-value ≤ 0.05) decrease in pH and a linear increase in firmness (instrumental), hardness (panel scores), and crunchiness. The models for bitterness and fibrousness also included quadratic (CaCl2·MgCl2) and cubic (the three salt) interactions, which led to areas of minimum and maximum scores around the central points of the CaCl2-MgCl2 and KCl-MgCl2 axes, respectively. In contrast, the increase in the KCl level linearly decreased bitterness scores. Optimisation resulted in a relatively low desirability (0.57) and the selection of a combination that may necessitate further refinement, such as increasing KCl or reducing CaCl2 levels, especially for markets sensitive to bitterness. Interestingly, the overall score and buying predisposition positively correlate with salty, smell, acid, and appearance and negatively with bitterness. Furthermore, PLS-R analysis found that the pivotal attributes influencing overall appreciation were smell and crunchiness while buying predisposition was promoted by crunchiness. Conversely, bitterness had a detrimental impact on these appreciations. Cluster analysis grouped the experimental runs into four categories, with sensory profiles predominantly diverging in bitterness, salty, and kinesthetic characteristics. Ultimately, this study elucidates four distinct sensory profiles that consumers experience.

Modeling, testing, and optimization of novel lattice structures for enhanced mechanical performance

Cellular materials have drawn increasing interest in numerous applications due to their promising specific stiffness, strength and energy absorption capacity. In this work, a variety of rather novel lattice topologies pertinent to additive manufacturing are derived and examined. A number of these are derived by free-domain and constrained domain topology optimization procedures, while others are inspired by the triply periodic minimum surface (TPMS) sheet-based topologies. The topology optimization module utilized a single objective function of minimizing strain energy under linear elastic conditions. A total of fifteen different lattice topologies are investigated numerically, including both novel and conventional topologies (e.g. strut-based lattices) and their effective elastic properties are determined with respect to relative density through finite element analysis (FEA). Based on the preliminary FEA results, a number of these topologies are selected of which tessellated lattice structures are fabricated through laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) additive manufacturing technique out of Nylon thermoplastic material. The tessellated lattice structures are experimentally tested in compression and their mechanical performance, including uniaxial modulus, yield strength, and energy absorption capacity (EAC), is assessed. FEA simulations have been conducted using an elastic-plastic constitutive model for the Nylon base material. Both the experimental and numerical results reveal that the mechanical performance of the novel tube-based TPMS lattice P-100 and the combined loading (CL) topology derived through free-domain topology optimization surpasses all other topologies. P-100 uses a primitive TPMS with equal-length tubular connections in each direction, where the tubular length percentage compared to the primitive lattice size is 100%, while CL lattice topology is a free domain topology optimized under compressive loads on the centers of faces, edges, and vertices toward the center. The innovative lattice topologies proposed in the current study, particularly the P-100 and CL topologies, can become crucial in applications where it is necessary to improve the energy absorption capacity, such as sandwich panel cores, supports, and infills for 3D printed components.

A 12-gene panel in estimating hormone-treatment responses of castration-resistant prostate cancer patients generated using a combined analysis of bulk and single-cell sequencing data

Background Castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) represents one type of advanced prostate cancer (PCa) with a median survival time of 1–2 years. Currently, there is a lack of reliable gene panels in predicting hormone treatment (HT) responses due to limited knowledge of CRPC-specific tumor-microenvironment (TME) characteristics. Methods In this study, we first screened for up-regulated genes in CRPC samples using bulk-sequencing data retrieved from TCGA online database, and further investigated the expression status of these genes in four sets of downloaded single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNAseq) data: GSE117403 containing 16 normal human prostate samples; GSE141445 containing 13 PCa samples; GSE176031 containing 11 PCa samples and GSE137829 containing 6 CRPC samples. Results We identified a series of CRPC-specific TME characteristics including an enriched number of PEG10 + neuroendocrine cells, elevated expression of PPIB/CCDC74A/GAPDH/AR genes in tumor cells, increased expression of FAP/TGFB1 in cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), suppressed immune environment featured by enhanced M2 macrophage polarization, T cell exhaustion and increased number of regulatory B cells. We further established a 12-gene panel using these characteristics and showed that this panel could separate CRPC samples from PCa samples (AUC of 0.78), and CRPC patients with higher panel scores tended to have treatment failure or progression (R = −0.47, p = 0.019). Conclusions Based on these unique TME characteristics of CRPC, we established a prediction tool for estimating the duration of HT responses in PCa treatment. Our results suggest mechanisms by which prostate cancer becomes castrate resistant. Further study of PEG10 (and/or others) to evaluate therapeutic efficacy should be considered.

Impact of phenotypic and chemotypic traits on genetic variability, heritability, correlation and path coefficient in core panel of opium poppy (Papaver somniferum)

Impact of phenotypic and chemotypic traits on genetic variability, heritability, correlation and path coefficient in core panel of opium poppy (Papaver somniferum)

Thermo-Mechanical Behavior of Green Sandwich Structures for Building and Construction Applications

In this work, three different types of sandwich structures were manufactured, each using a Formica sheet (a paper-based sheet) as the skin and perlite/sodium silicate foam as the core, with or without a paper honeycomb. The sandwich structures were fabricated by attaching the Formica sheets on both sides of a paper honeycomb core panel, a perlite/sodium silicate foam core panel, and a perlite/sodium silicate foam-filled honeycomb core panel. The flexural characteristics were studied by a three-point bending test and the thermal conductivity was measured using Lee’s thermal conductivity apparatus. The results demonstrated a significant improvement in flexural properties, including core shear stress, facing stress, bending stress, and energy absorption, when incorporating the paper honeycomb reinforcement. The thermal conductivity and flexural properties of the paper honeycomb reinforced and unreinforced perlite/sodium silicate foam-based sandwich panels were found to be very compatible with existing building materials described in the literature that are used for similar applications. The failure investigation revealed that the sandwiches with paper honeycomb failed prematurely only due to core buckling, while the foam-filled honeycomb core-based sandwiches were able to sustain higher loads while exhibiting material failures such as core shear failure, skin rapture, and delamination. It was found that the foam-filled paper honeycomb sandwich structures can withstand higher bending loads than the foam core-based sandwich structure or the paper-honeycomb-based sandwich structure. These developed sandwiches offer potential as green materials due to the characteristics of their constituent materials and they can provide valuable applications in the thermal insulation of buildings.

Genetic dissection of endosperm hydration in malting barley (Hordeum vulgare)

AbstractHydration of the endosperm is a critical part of the malting process that ensures proper modification of the grain. However, little is known about the genetic controls of endosperm hydration and its relationship to agronomic and malt quality traits. The extent of endosperm hydration is estimated through hydration index (HYI). We measured HYI, agronomic, and malt quality traits on a 169‐line subset of the NSGC Barley Core Panel, which includes global malt lines, some dating from the inception of European breeding programmes. Utilizing GWAS, 61 QTLs were identified for HYI, dormancy, agronomic, and malt quality traits. Of these, six were found to be related to HYI and were located on 1H, 2H, 3H, 6H, and 7H. We found HYI QTLs cosegregating with kernel size and hardness (1H and 3H), malting quality (2H and 6H), and dormancy (2H and 6H). These results indicate that endosperm hydration after steeping can be improved by selecting high HYI alleles on 2H, 6H, and 7H, positively impacting malting quality without negatively impacting kernel size or dormancy.