Strip Area Research Articles

Organic farming and annual flower strips reduce parasite prevalence in honeybees and boost colony growth in agricultural landscapes

Abstract Despite the major role that insect pollinators play in crop production, agricultural intensification drives them into decline. Various conservation measures have been developed to mitigate the negative effects of agriculture on insect pollinators. In a novel comparison of the efficacy of three conservation measures on honeybee colony growth, we monitored experimental honeybee colonies in 16 landscapes that comprised orthogonal gradients of organic agriculture, annual flower strips and perennial semi‐natural habitats. Using structural equation modelling, we assessed the effects of conservation measures on the prevalence of 11 parasites, Varroa destructor loads and their collective impact on colony growth. Increasing area coverage of perennial semi‐natural habitat related to higher V. destructor load and indirectly to lower colony growth. Increasing area of annual flower strips was associated with lower V. destructor load and indirectly with higher colony growth. Increasing area of organic farming related to lower parasite richness and also directly to improved colony growth. Synthesis and applications: Landscape features can affect pollinators directly through the provision of food resources and indirectly through modulation of parasite prevalence. To promote honeybee colony health in agro‐ecosystems, our results suggest that organic agriculture and annual flower strips should be prioritized conservation measures. Landscape management should consider the merits and demerits of different measures to sustain healthy populations of pollinators in agro‐ecosystems.

Optimasi Desain Geometri Lereng Material Old Dump Pada Usaha Penggalian Ulang Pit X PT. Bukit Asam Tbk

In doing slope design, it is necessary to pay attention to slope geometry and soil shear strength. Determination of slope geometry design also considers the balance between height and slope and production benefits. Research was conducted to analyze slope stability through physical and mechanical properties testing, limit equilibrium, and probabilistic Monte Carlo methods. The surface area of the Overburden stripping area in the 2024 RKP design is 8,172.79 m2. The production target is 2,000,000 tons of coal with a volume of overburden material that must be stripped of 29,000,000 BCM and obtained a Stripping Ratio value of 14.5. The results of the evaluation of the overall slope of the Old Dump material with an overall slope height of 66.582 m, a slope width of 447.69 m, an overall slope of 8.32˚ and a bench width of 25 m, a bench height of 6 m with a comparison ratio of 1:3 and a single slope angle of 18.43˚. Then the redesign was carried out and obtained recommendation results of 64.799 m overall slope height, 303.33 m slope width, 13.02˚ overall slope, and 25 m bench width, bench height at elevation 131-110 of 8 m with a comparison ratio of 1:2, single slope 26.57˚ and at elevation 110-50 of 8 m with a comparison ratio of 1:1.5, single slope 33.69˚.

Розробка цифрових карт модуля індукції геомагнітного поля для території України

Knowledge of Ukraine`s geomagnetic field is based on magnetic surveys of the geomagnetic field induction module B and its power and angular components, as well as on observations or calculations of their anomalous values. The article describes the methods for constructing a digital map of the induction module of the geomagnetic field B. The map of module B for the epoch of 1969.5 is developed, which is the ground to create the maps of module B and its anomalies ΔB for an arbitrary epoch. The results of the ground absolute magnetic survey of 1969-1972, the analytical model of the main geomagnetic field BIGRF, as well as the map of the anomalous magnetic field on a scale of 1: 1,000,000 were used to construct the map of the geomagnetic field induction module B. The digital map of the module and anomalies of the geomagnetic field induction module B for the 1969.5 epoch was obtained by calculating the correction based on their difference values at the points of the absolute reference network. It was spread by interpolation according to the 1x1km matrix to the entire data array for the territory of Ukraine. The geomagnetic field induction module B for the 2005.5 epoch was calculated by adding to its values in the 1969.5 epoch the calculated values of the field dynamics ВIGRF and the "magnetizing" effect of anomalies of the induction module ΔΔB. The developed map is an approximate representation of the magnetic field modulus, since the amount of remanent magnetization was not taken into account during the calculation, which may cause minor deviations of the calculated and observed field values. The induction module of the geomagnetic field B in the epoch of 1969.5 varies in the range of 46,500÷62,000 nT, and in the epoch of 2005.5 ‒ 47,000÷63000 nT, increasing from the southwest to the northeast of the territory of Ukraine. Its maximum values are observed in the areas of regional and local magnetic anomalies, in particular in the area of the Kryvyi Rih-Kremenchuk anomalous strip and the southeastern edge of the Kursk anomaly. The dynamics of the BIGRF field for the period of 1969.5÷2005.5 is characterized by values from 700 nT in the east of the territory of Ukraine to 950 nT in the west, and the magnitude of the magnetizing effect ΔΔB varies within ±10 nT, reaching maximum values (up to 100-190 nT) in the regions of intense magnetic anomalies. The digital map of the geomagnetic field induction module B, developed in 2005.5, has been verified. This was done by measuring the values of module B in the magnetic observatories of Kyiv, L’viv, and Odesa, as well as in the Repeat Stations of the Ist and IInd classes. The results showed that there was only a small difference (-20 ÷ 40 nT) between the calculated and measured values of modulus B. Their most significant differences are spatially correlated with areas of modern activation of the Earth's crust on the territory of Ukraine and electrical conductivity anomalies.

Paper-based enzyme-linked biosensor combined with smartphone for simultaneous colorimetric sensing of xanthines and sarcosine

A portable paper-based enzyme-linked biosensor that integrates a multi-enzyme cascade reaction, natural enzyme, and nanozyme with filter paper, combined with smartphones, is proposed for the detection of xanthine (XA) and sarcosine (SA) in urine. The primary biological component of the sensor is horseradish peroxidase (HRP). By chemically modifying cellulose filter paper (CFP) the HRP in horseradish crude extract is specifically immobilized through boron affinity and metal chelation techniques. Furthermore, the incorporation of UiO-66 on CFP had a good synergistic effect on the electron transfer of HRP and the detection of H2O2, significantly increasing the sensor's sensitivity. Under optimized experimental conditions, the sensor demonstrated a dynamic response range of 8–400 μmol L−1 for SA with a minimum detection limit (LOD) of 5 μmol L−1, and a dynamic response range of 10–400 μmol L−1 with an LOD of 8 μmol L−1 for XA. Additionally, the well-designed detection area of the portable test strip simplifies the detection operation, reduces the detection time, and enables rapid on-site analysis. UV-Vis analysis further confirmed the sensor's accuracy in detecting disease markers in urine. The sensing platform has good reproducibility, specificity and stability, suitable for the detection of SA and XA in real human urine samples, and the sensor has the advantages of simple manufacturing, easy operation, strong portability, low reagent consumption, and low cost benefit. Therefore, the development of this paper-based enzyme-linked biosensor offers a novel approach to the detection of disease markers in urine and has potential applications in medical testing.

Initiation mechanism of arcing generated in RF capacitively coupled plasma

In our previous study, we established an arcing generation and measurement system and we observed prior light emission before arcing current development. However, we briefly analyzed those light emissions with strong assumptions without detailed experiment evaluations and thus, the investigation of the formation mechanism in the initiation phase with detailed experiment evaluations has yet to be conducted. In this work, we investigated the initiation mechanism of arcing generated on an arcing inducing probe (AIP) in a radio frequency capacitively coupled plasma (CCP) environment. Here, the AIP is an aluminum rod covered by anodized film and its tip edge is partially stripped to localize arcing on this edge. We measured emission light, voltage, and current waveforms induced by arcing. The spatiotemporal image of the emission light revealed that the tip glow is the brightest intensity and has longest lifetime during arcing, meaning that it is the primary process in whole arcing process. The current waveform induced by arcing corresponds to the time evolution of the tip glow and estimations revealed that the electron emission is the predominant component of the current formation. Furthermore, snapshot images with AIPs having enlarged stripping area exhibited that arcing occurs at the boundary between the alnuminum and anodized film (dielectric), where charging of ions from the CCP on the film surface can induce high-electric field. In addition, we found that the energy relaxation length of emitted electrons for collisions with Ar atoms, which are the background gas, is much larger than the tip glow diameter, meaning that the electon-Ar collision cannot maintain tip glow. This result supports additional source of atoms to sustain the tip glow such as the surface evaporation from arcing spot, of which evidence was speculated our previous study. We estimated minimum aluminum vapor density and surface temperature, which is sufficiently high enough to induce surface vaporization. Combining those experiment results and estimations, that are electron emission, high surface temperature, and surface evaporation, we can speculate that the initiation mechanism of arcing near dielectric surface in radio-frequency CCP environment is the thermionic emission and surface evaporation from arcing spot.

Forming quality and residual stress analysis of Al2024-T351 perforated sheets with laser annulus and strip peening

Laser peen forming (LPF) is a precision forming technique that uses nanosecond pulsed laser-induced shock waves to bend, shape, align, and restore components with remarkable precision. This study has developed a novel process approach by combining laser annulus and strip peening to enhance the consistency of the forming curvature in perforated sheets and maximize their structural performance. The study compared and analyzed the forming effectiveness of two peening strategies (laser strip peening, laser annulus and strip peening) under different peening sequences. Then, a thorough analysis of residual stresses following the bending deformation of sheets from diverse specimens was carried out using numerical models. The results showed that the radius of curvature of the perforated sheet decreased as the peening sequence increased. The laser annulus and strip peening process could not increase the degree of deformation of the perforated sheet compared to strip peening under the same peening sequence, but it could decrease the deviation of the hole edge. In addition, the laser peening strategy with one peening sequence in the annular area and three peening sequences in the strip area could further improve the consistency of single curvature forming. The distribution of residual stresses around the holes varied significantly across specimens subjected to the laser annulus and strip peening process. The compressive residual stress (CRS) surrounding the hole was lower for perforated sheets treated with one peening sequence in the annular area and three peening sequences in the strip area. This was mainly due to the greater bending moment generated by the strip peening, resulting in a more pronounced release of compressive stress around the hole.

Research on baking soda media blasting technology for achieving the cleaner production for stripping PTFE coatings in food utensils remanufacturing process: FEM analysis and economic appraisal

The efficient and environment-friendly stripping of damaged Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) coatings is a committed procedure in the remanufacturing process of food utensils. A green and economically valuable baking soda media blasting technology that could meet remanufacturing roughness standards was proposed in this paper, aiming for avoiding the fluorine-containing solid waste disposal challenges and roughness mismatch of existing stripping methods. The compatibility between baking soda media blasting technology (2.0–3.4 μm) and remanufacturing process roughness standards (2.5–4 μm) was confirmed by comparing the stripping ability with other media (alumina, glass bead and walnut shell) at different blasting angles and pressures, and its efficient stripping process parameters (30° and 0.7 MPa), stripping rate (6.81 mm2/s) and cleanliness (The weight percentage of element F was 0.68%) were determined. Based on finite element model (FEM) analysis, the LSTC-dynamics (LS-DYNA) explicit dynamic solver was used to track the process of single particle eroding the coating to explore the extruding-plowing composite stripping mechanism of the stripping coating using the baking soda media blasting technology at the micro level. The discrete phase model (DPM) was used to track the process of particle beam impacting the coating to verify the variation law between the stripping area and blasting process parameters at the macro level. The PXRD and FT-IR test results of the recovered baking soda media and PTFE coatings showed no impurity peaks, confirming the feasibility of the baking soda media recovery project. Based on the economic appraisal by management accounting evaluation method, the introduction of the baking soda media recovery project could significantly reduce the process chain cost by 136852.62 ¥ per year. As a PTFE coating stripping technology that can completely solve the fluorine-containing solid waste disposal problem, the baking soda media blasting technology owns the advantages of non-pollution and low technical cost, which is expected to realize cleaner production of food utensils remanufacturing process in the future.

Use of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation and 2D ultrasound in resection of low-grade glioma at motor strip area in resource limited setting

Eloquent area glioma surgery is technically demanding. Identification and preservation of the functional area determines the long term outcome. Here we discuss the use of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and 2D ultrasound (2DUSG) in resection of low grade glioma (LGG) located at motor strip area. In five patients where the LGG was located close to motor area were evaluated with TMS in the preoperative period and the functional area is marked. This information is used for planning the craniotomy. A 2DUSG is used to detect the margin of resection. Complete excision was feasible in two and partial resection in three without any added deficit. TMS is an useful tool for localizing motor area in the pre operative period for patients with tumor located close to the motor area. Additionally 2DUSG provides real time imaging to safeguard the eloquent brain area. Combination of these two offers low cost, easily available method for resecting eloquent area brain tumors in resource limited areas.

Spatial variations, health risk assessment, and source apportionment of soil heavy metals in the middle Yellow River Basin of northern China

The ecological and environmental problems in the Yellow River Basin of northern China have attracted widespread research attention. This study focused on the soil heavy metals (HMs) in the middle Yellow River Basin; the spatial variations of soil HMs were analyzed using geostatistical techniques, the pollution status and health risks were comprehensively assessed through multiple methods, and the sources of soil HMs were apportioned using a positive matrix factorization (PMF) model. The results showed that the spatial patterns of soil HMs in the study area with a high coefficient of variation (>20 %) exhibited obvious regional zoning, at a low level in the north and a high level in the south. The soil with significantly high HM content was mainly located in the vicinity of industrial cities and usually featured large enrichment factor values (>1.5), especially with respect to Hg, Cd, and Pb, indicating some influence of anthropogenic activities on soil HMs. Based on the comprehensive assessment method, it was found that soil in the study area was clean and safe on the whole, but relatively severe pollution and relatively high risks were found in the strip area of urban agglomeration, including in Tongchuan and Weinan. Further, Hg, Cd, and Pb – with a cumulative contribution of >85 % – were the primary elements to cause soil pollution, while As and Pb were the primary objects leading to health risks, with a cumulative contribution of >95 %. After quantitative analysis using a PMF model, five sources of soil HMs were identified in the south and their contributions decreased in the following order: natural source (43.25 %), industrial source (21.09 %), mixed source (13.15 %), agricultural source (13.11 %) and traffic source (9.40 %). Moreover, some key areas were delineated both with the combined pollution of soil HMs and the relatively high health risk for children. These key areas should be paid more attention to and the Hg, Cd, Pb, and As should be the main objects of prevention and control in the middle Yellow River Basin.

Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Ballistic Resistance of Polyurea-Coated Aluminum Plates under Projectile Impacts

The effects of the spraying thickness and the position on the response of aluminum plates under impact loading were studied. The impact tests and numerical simulation were conducted for the penetration process of polyurea-coated 2024 aluminum plates with tungsten sphere impacts. The results indicate the impact resistance performance is similar at slower impact velocity (500–1000 m/s), and the front (or double-side) coating has a smaller advantage. When the impact velocity rises to 1500 m/s, the back coating has a better energy-absorbing performance. The polyurea perform more efficiently with the increase in the impact velocity because the elastomer has large-scale deformation. By comparing the different thicknesses of the back coating, the residual velocity of the fragment has small changes and the impact energy absorption increased with the increase in the coating thickness. The separated phenomenon is serious in front of the bonding face with shear compression failure. In the back polyurea layer, the stripping area is smaller than the front bonding face, and the petaloid cracking is formed with tensile failure.

Seismic Anisotropy in the upper crust beneath the Sanjiang lateral collision zone in the southeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau revealed by S wave splitting from a temporary array

The Sanjiang lateral collision zone is a key region to understand the Tibetan Plateau’s tectonic structure and the Tethys-Himalayan’s tectonic evolution. Complex tectonic structures, intense crustal deformation, frequent seismicity, and abundant metal deposits are all present. With the seismic data recorded by a temporary array (SJ-Array) and permanent stations (Nov. 2018 ~ Dec. 2020), this paper adopts the S wave splitting technique to obtain the essential properties of upper crustal anisotropy. In the interested area, it is shown that the dominant polarization of the fast S wave is NNW, with a mean polarization direction of 167.9°. In addition, the study area can be divided into three subzones from the west to the east: A, B, and C, according to the various mean polarizations varying from NNW, NS to NNE. The mean normalized time delay between the two split S waves is 4.0 ms/km, and the range of time delay is from 2.0 to 6.3 ms/km. The largest time delay is located at the east side of the western boundary of the Sichuan-Yunnan rhombus block. Furthermore, there is a strip area of strong anisotropy stretching along the western segment of the Lijiang-Xiaojinhe fault. These all demonstrate the local tectonic differences and indicate that the crustal structure may be strongly controlled by the fault and block boundary strike.

Social perception of migrants from “Belarus” from the perspective of voits and mayors from the area of the border strip under the state of emergency (case study)

The crisis on the border between Belarus and three EU countries, i.e. Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, which has been ongoing since the spring of 2021, was an unprecedented attempt in Europe to destabilize the situation inside the Community. Poland faced a challenge it had not faced before. The challenge was faced not only by state authorities and services dedicated to the protection of the Union’s external border, but above all by the residents of the border areas. The influx of illegal migrants inspired by the Belarusian authorities and, as a result, the introduction of the state of emergency affected their lives to the greatest extent, disrupting its rhythm, while the migrants appearing in the farms introduced a hitherto unknown fear of strangers. In this context, the issue of perception and evaluation of the migration crisis and the actions taken by the government from the point of view of local authorities: mayors and village heads of border areas bordering Belarus seems to be extremely interesting cognitively. An empirical survey carried out on a purposive, exhaustive sample of village heads and mayors of municipalities in the border area was devoted to this problem. It should be noted here that the project had the character of a case study. It was diagnostic (exploratory) in nature at this stage and needs to be deepened in the course of further research. The results obtained allow to positively confirm the formulated research hypotheses. The problem of illegal migrants was perceived by the respondents as an issue requiring decisive and immediate action by state institutions. Cooperation with Mateusz Morawiecki’s government and its field bodies was positively assessed. The mayors mostly approved of the emergency measures treating them as necessary to resolve the crisis.

Development of a non-Gaussian copula Bayesian network for safety assessment of metro tunnel maintenance

The operation and maintenance of metro systems play a crucial role in urban development, with a focus on ensuring the serviceability and safety of metro tunnels. Accurate evaluation of the condition of these tunnel states requires investigating the complex interaction of multiple factors that impact their safety state. This study developed a hybrid model that integrates pair copula constructions (PCCs) and Bayesian networks (BN) to assess the safety state of metro tunnels, considering complex dependencies among these factors. First, key performance indicators (KPIs) were selected to assess tunnel safety, based on six failure modes. Then, an improved copula-based PC algorithm was employed to learn the non-Gaussian bayesian network model, which eliminated the normality assumption in the marginal densities of the KPIs. Finally, a combination of forward reasoning and GM(1,1) was utilized to predict the safety state of the metro tunnel in time series, facilitating the formulation of effective operation and maintenance plans. Furthermore, the proposed approach was applied to a real case study of the Wuhan metro system to demonstrate its effectiveness and applicability. The results highlighted the significant influence of some KPIs, such as convergence deformation, dislocation displacement, and stripping area, on metro tunnel safety. These KPIs emerged as key factors requiring focused attention in the operation and maintenance of metro tunnels.

Experimental and numerical investigation on the flexural performance of RC slabs strengthened with EB/NSM CFRP reinforcement and bonded reinforced HSC layers

In this paper, one-way reinforced concrete (RC) slabs were strengthened using External Bonding (EB) and Near Surface Mounted (NSM) techniques and tested under flexural loading until failure. The area of internal and external reinforcement, shape of strengthening elements (bars, strips, and reinforced high strength concrete (HSC) layers) and strengthening method (EB and NSM) were the experimental tested variables. The experimental results showed significant increases in the load capacities of the upgraded slabs ranging between 133.8% and 264.5% compared to their corresponding un-strengthened slabs. Consequently, the NSM technique showed higher load efficiency than the EB, even though they had nearly the same strengthening properties and area. Compared to the control slab, using NSM strips instead of EB strips or NSM bars amplified the slab load capacity by about 51.7% and 33.2%, respectively, while using NSM HSC layer instead of EB HSC layer increased slab load capacity by 74.7%. Moreover, doubling the area of EB strips improved the load capacity by 10.3%, while increasing the internal steel area by 195% enhanced the slab load capacity by 21% to 48 %, depending on the strengthening method. However, depending on the distance between internal and external strengthening elements the cracks were initiated at the ends of the strengthening element causing the slab shear failure at dissimilar loads. Finally, a verified finite element (FE) model was built to study the effect of bond length, material, and area of the strengthening element on the slab behavior.

Dynamic contribution of CFRP strips to CFRP-strengthened RC shear walls

For accurately simulating the dynamic mechanical behavior of CFRP-strengthened RC shear wall, a three-dimensional numerical model was proposed in the present study to capture the effect of strain rate on the constitutive relations of concrete, steel bar, CFRP and CFRP-concrete interface. The influences of strain rate, CFRP wrapping method and the number of CFRP layer on the dynamic shear properties and dynamic CFRP shear contribution of CFRP-strengthened RC shear wall were investigated. The results indicated that: 1) as the strain rate increases, the damage of the CFRP-strengthened shear wall became more severe, as evidenced by the increase in the damage area of concrete and CFRP strips; 2) the failure pattern and shear bearing capacity of shear wall was affected by the CFRP layout configurations; 3) the ductility coefficient and energy dissipation capacity increase with an increasing strain rate and CFRP layout configurations. It was to emphasize that, the shear contribution provided by CFRP strips was substantially enhanced subjected to the dynamic loads, especially with the strain rate exceeding 10−3 /s, therefore, yielding a significant increase in the overall bearing capacity of CFRP-strengthened shear wall. Moreover, it was found that the degree of enhancement was extensively affected by the CFRP wrapping methods and the number of CFRP layer bundled on the RC shear wall. Based on numerical results, a strain-rate-dependent formula predicting the dynamic shear contribution of CFRP strips was proposed to quantitatively describe influences of CFRP wrapping method and bundled layers.

Combined use of intraoperative MRI and awake tailored microsurgical resection to respect functional neural networks: preliminary experience.

The combined use of intraoperative MRI and awake surgery is a tailored microsurgical resection to respect functional neural networks (mainly the language and motor ones). Intraoperative MRI has been classically considered to increase the extent of resection for gliomas, thereby reducing neurological deficits. Herein, we evaluated the combined technique of awake microsurgical resection and intraoperative MRI for primary brain tumours (gliomas, metastasis) and epilepsy (cortical dysplasia, non-lesional, cavernomas). Eighteen patients were treated with the commonly used "asleep awake asleep" (AAA) approach at Lille University Hospital, France, from November 2016 until May 2020. The exact anatomical location was insular with various extensions, frontal, temporal or fronto-temporal in 8 (44.4%), parietal in 3 (16.7%), fronto-opercular in 4 (22.2%), Rolandic in two (11.1%), and the supplementary motor area (SMA) in one (5.6%). The patients had a mean age of 38.4 years (median 37.1, range 20.8-66.9). The mean surgical duration was 4.1 hours (median 4.2, range 2.6-6.4) with a mean duration of intraoperative MRI of 28.8 minutes (median 25, range 13-55). Overall, 61% (11/18) of patients underwent further resection, while 39% had no additional resection after intraoperative MRI. The mean preoperative and postoperative tumour volumes of the primary brain tumours were 34.7 cc (median 10.7, range 0.534-130.25) and 3.5 cc (median 0.5, range 0-17.4), respectively. Moreover, the proportion of the initially resected tumour volume at the time of intraoperative MRI (expressed as 100% from preoperative volume) and the final resected tumour volume were statistically significant (p= 0.01, Mann-Whitney test). The tumour remnants were commonly found posterior (5/9) or anterior (2/9) insular and in proximity with the motor strip (1/9) or language areas (e.g. Broca, 1/9). Further resection was not required in seven patients because there were no remnants (3/7), cortical stimulation approaching eloquent areas (3/7) and non-lesional epilepsy (1/7). The mean overall follow-up period was 15.8 months (median 12, range 3-36). The intraoperative MRI and awake microsurgical resection approach is feasible with extensive planning and multidisciplinary collaboration, as these methods are complementary and synergic rather than competitive to improve patient oncological outcomes and quality of life.

AGRICULTURAL INFLUENCE FACTORS ON THE ENVIRONMENTAL STATE OF THE LOW-PROTECTED FOREST STRIPS OF THE RIGHT-BANK FOREST STEPPE

Today, the current state of field protection forest plantations is practically unknown. This is due to the fact that their inventory has not been carried out since the mid-70s of the twentieth century. There are data indicating the presence of 0.43-0.44 million hectares of field protection plantations in Ukraine. About 13 million hectares of agricultural land are under the protection of this area of field protection forest strips, which is only 30% of the total area of such land in Ukraine. Taking into account roadside, farm, watershed forest strips, forest areas adjacent to fields, steppe glades with trees, the area of agrolandscape protection increases to 40% of their total number. Today, field protection forest cover in the agro-landscapes of Ukraine is 1.5%, while the scientifically-based coverage is 3.0-3.5%. Therefore, along with the creation of new forest strips, an important task is the inventory, care, reconstruction and preservation of the existing field protection forest plantations. Plowing the edges of the field to the outermost row of trees is most often 1.5 m for the main field protection forest strips and 1.0 m for the auxiliary field protection forest strips, although this distance can vary from 0.5 to 10.0 m. Among all the studied field protection forest strips 25,0-28.6% did not have field roads. Other field protection forest strips had field roads with an average width of 3.0-4.0 m. The projection of the crown of the outer row of trees of the forest strip protruding above the field can be 1.0-12.0 m, most often - 7.0-8.0 m. Corn and winter wheat are the main agricultural crops adjacent to field protection forest strips in the conditions of the Right Bank Forest Steppe. They were grown on 71.4-75.0% of the investigated fields. The main factors of suppressing the trees of field protection forest strips by cultivated crops are deep plowing to a depth of 25-27 cm near the forest strip for corn crops; the spreading method of applying mineral fertilizers, which is about 850 kg/ha of physical weight when growing corn and 650 kg/ha - when growing winter wheat; spraying of crops with synthetic pesticides, growth stimulants, trace elements and other drugs, which can be repeated up to 8-9 times during the growing season for both winter wheat and corn, especially by aerial method.

Multi-Mode Imaging of Ambient Background Noise for Karst Detection in the Limestone Area Based on Frequency-Bessel Transform

In response to the challenges of karst geophysical exploration in an environment with strong external interference, this paper proposes a new method, namely the frequency-Bessel transform method, for extracting multi-order dispersion curves of surface waves from background noise to characterize karst. The observation noise data of the Wuhan karst development area are used as an example, where the dolomitic limestone and limestone mixed with dolomite of the Jialing River Formation of the middle lower Triassic are widely developed in the observation area. The frequency-Bessel transform method involves performing a Bessel integral transformation on the cross-correlation coefficient of background noise in the frequency domain. Firstly, by synthesizing theoretical noise data and comparing it with the spatial autocorrelation method—which is currently the main method for extracting the fundamental dispersion curve of surface waves—it is verified that the frequency-Bessel transform method can extract the higher-mode dispersion curve. Then, by taking the actual measured single-point noise data as an example, the effect of applying the frequency-Bessel transform to the actual noise data is tested, and the inversion of the fine structure of the strata by the addition of higher-mode dispersion, the use of the damped least squares inversion method, and the joint inversion of fundamental and higher-mode dispersion curves are analyzed. The higher-mode dispersion curve of Rayleigh surface wave extracted by the frequency-Bessel transform is much clearer, and the 2D shear wave velocity structure profile obtained from inversion explains the karst development area, karst strip area, and thickness of the Quaternary overburden. The inferred results match with the actual borehole data. Multi-mode imaging of background noise based on the frequency-Bessel method can be applied to depict karst in complex backgrounds, and has significant potentiality in the field of ambient seismic noise tomography, providing a new idea and method for karst detection in near-surface engineering.

MP60-12 CHIMERIC BOTULINUM NEUROTOXIN A-B HAS HIGHER NEUROMUSCULAR BLOCKADE POTENCY COMPARED TO BOTULINUM NEUROTOXIN A IN THE MOUSE BLADDER

You have accessJournal of UrologyCME1 Apr 2023MP60-12 CHIMERIC BOTULINUM NEUROTOXIN A-B HAS HIGHER NEUROMUSCULAR BLOCKADE POTENCY COMPARED TO BOTULINUM NEUROTOXIN A IN THE MOUSE BLADDER Hatim Thaker, Jie Zhang, Rosalyn Adam, Vivian Cristofaro, Maryrose Sullivan, and Min Dong Hatim ThakerHatim Thaker More articles by this author , Jie ZhangJie Zhang More articles by this author , Rosalyn AdamRosalyn Adam More articles by this author , Vivian CristofaroVivian Cristofaro More articles by this author , Maryrose SullivanMaryrose Sullivan More articles by this author , and Min DongMin Dong More articles by this author View All Author Informationhttps://doi.org/10.1097/JU.0000000000003318.12AboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints ShareFacebookLinked InTwitterEmail Abstract INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE: Neurogenic and idiopathic detrusor overactivity (DO) is currently treated with onabotulinumtoxin A (onaBoNT/A) as third-line therapy. However, BoNT/A requires repeated injections into the bladder and is known to have diminished treatment effect after 5 years. Novel, chimeric toxins may provide an alternative to BoNT/A in the setting of treatment failure. Chimeric BoNT/A-B is a construct that consists of the light chain (catalytic domain) of BoNT/A, paired with a receptor binding domain of BoNT/B. This receptor binding domain binds to synaptotagmin-1, recently shown to be the dominant BoNT receptor in the bladder. Here, we aim to determine the effect of a chimeric BoNT/A-B construct in mouse bladder tissues. METHODS: Gene fragments encoding the light chain and translocation domain of BoNT/A, as well as the receptor binding domain for BoNT/B, were produced via PCR and cloned into a vector to produce chimeric BoNT/A-B. To assess ex vivo smooth muscle response, wild type (WT) mouse bladders were harvested and placed in Kreb's buffer. Each bladder was cut into three longitudinal strips and mounted in tissue chambers at 37 C with continuous bubbled mixture of carbogen. Bladder strips were attached to a force transducer (Figure A) and underwent nerve-evoked contraction studies via electrical field stimulation (EFS; 1-64Hz, 30V 0.5 ms pulse width, 10 sec duration), with the addition of 0.3 or 1 nM BoNT/A-B, to generate a frequency response curve. RESULTS: Ex vivo contraction studies in the presence of 1 nM BoNT/A-B showed a reduction in 80% of nerve-evoked contractions by 100 minutes; BoNT/A had produced the same degree of reduction at only 300 minutes, reflecting the rapid onset of BoNT/A-B. At a lower dose of 0.3 nM, BoNT/A-B reduced nerve-evoked contractions by 40% at 100 minutes; BoNT/A had minimal effect (Figure B). All bladder weights were similar, and data were normalized to the cross-sectional area of the bladder strip. Carbachol dose-response curves served as controls to ensure bladder strips were viable and contractile pre- and post-exposure. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrate chimeric BoNT/A-B has a faster onset and great potency at lower doses in smooth muscle ex vivo. This novel toxin may provide improved neuromuscular paralysis smooth muscle disorders, such as overactive and neurogenic bladder. Source of Funding: H.T. is supported by the NIH T32 Grant, AUA Urology Care Foundation Research Scholar Award, the SUFU Chemodenervation Grant, and the Office of Faculty Development at Harvard Medical School. M.D. is supported by grants from the NIH and holds the Investigator in the Pathogenesis of Infectious Disease award from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund. M.P.S. received support from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs © 2023 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 209Issue Supplement 4April 2023Page: e848 Advertisement Copyright & Permissions© 2023 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.MetricsAuthor Information Hatim Thaker More articles by this author Jie Zhang More articles by this author Rosalyn Adam More articles by this author Vivian Cristofaro More articles by this author Maryrose Sullivan More articles by this author Min Dong More articles by this author Expand All Advertisement PDF downloadLoading ...

Controlling the advancement of the liquid front of the nitrocellulose membrane assay under the influence of the centrifugal force on the Lab-on-a-Disc platform

Lateral flow immunoassays (LFIs) are ubiquitous point-of-care platforms for chemical and biological tests. They are widely used due to their portability, low cost, fast time of outcome, and absence of the need for presence of highly trained personnel to conduct these tests. One of the ways to enhance the sensitivity of LFIs is by slowing down the flow rate of the analyte through the active sensing area of the test strips (e.g., test line). Some recent developments towards the goal of the improvement of sensitivity of LFIs include placement of the lateral flow assays on the centrifugal microfluidic platforms (so-called Lab-on-discs) where the flow of the analyte through the lateral flow test strip could be sped up or impeded by the centrifugal force applied to the fluid passing through the lateral flow membrane. The finite element analysis (FEA) simulation is performed using ANSYS Fluent software platform and validated by the lateral flow membranes of several pore sizes, from 7 µm to 15 µm, were incorporated onto micromachined discs with integrated microfluidic networks with an accuracy of simulation to be within 15% of experimental values. The present work reports the dependence of the speed of advancement of the liquid meniscus of LFI placed on the Lab-on-a-Disc as a function of the porosity (volumetric fraction of the pores in nitrocellulose or NC membrane), pore sizes, and angular velocity of the spinning disc.