Sum Of Rates Research Articles

MEASURING NATIONAL ECONOMIC WELL-BEING: REEVALUATING THE “MISERY INDEX”

ABSTRACT The degree of national economic well-being with the associated macroeconomic outcomes is of considerable concern to policymakers. Hanke's Annual Misery Index (HMI) which is the sum of inflation rates, interest rate, GDP growth rate, and unemployment was explained and analyzed to provide a single statistic to measure the level of national economic well-being. In this paper, I offer a comprehensive approach to investigate the order of importance of macroeconomic performances for national economic well-being by analyzing HMI. This paper provides a framework for understanding the Misery Index around the world as the relative representation of national welfare. Keywords Misery Index, national economic wellbeing, macroeconomic variables, economic policy.

Decreased lamin A and B1 expression results in nuclear enlargement in serous ovarian carcinoma, whereas lamin A-expressing tumor cells metastasize to lymph nodes

BackgroundLamins, located beneath the nuclear membrane, are involved in maintaining nuclear stiffness and morphology. The nuclei of tumor cells are enlarged in serous carcinoma, a histologic subtype of ovarian cancer that is notable for its poor prognosis. The present study investigated the association of lamin A, B1, and B2 expression with nuclear morphology and metastatic route in serous ovarian carcinoma. MethodsWe performed immunohistochemistry for lamins A, B1, and B2 using specimens of patients who underwent surgery for serous ovarian carcinoma in Gunma University Hospital between 2009 and 2020. Following staining, the specimens were scanned using a whole-slide scanner and processed using computer-assisted image analysis. ResultsThe positivity rates for lamins A and B1 as well as the rank sum of the positivity rates for lamins A, B1, and B2 were negatively correlated with the mean and standard deviation of the nuclear area. Interestingly, the positivity rate for lamin A was significantly higher in metastatic lesions than in primary tumors in cases with lymph node metastasis. DiscussionPrevious studies indicated that decreased lamin A led to nuclear enlargement and deformation and that lamin B1 was required to maintain the meshworks of lamins A and B2 to maintain nuclear morphology. The present study findings suggest that decreased lamin A and B1 expression might lead to nuclear enlargement and deformation and raise the possibility that tumor cells maintaining or not losing lamin A expression might metastasize to lymph nodes.

Optimal Control of Wireless Powered Edge Computing System for Balance Between Computation Rate and Energy Harvested

Wireless powered edge computing system (WPECS) enhances the computing power and extends the lifetime of wireless devices (WDs). This paper studies the WPECS with multiple WDs, in which the access point (AP) provides some transmission channels which differ from each other in the channel gain, and the WD powered through the wireless power transfer (WPT) technology has some indivisible tasks and adopts binary task-offloading actions. More energy harvested strengthens the WDs with more computing power, while corresponding to more energy consumption. Therefore, how to make the optimal tradeoff between computation rate and energy harvested arises as an interesting issue. To address this issue, this paper first formulates the switch process of transmission channel as a constrained Markov decision process (CMDP), and then proposed an effective algorithm to maximize the sum of computation rates of all WDs in terms of task data bits computed, within the required level of accumulative energy harvested. Theoretical analysis, simulations and field experiments jointly document and illustrate its performance. Note to Practitioners—This paper addresses the interesting tradeoff between computation rate and energy harvested in a wireless powered edge computing system that operates in the environments with limited available energy. It helps to improve the operation efficiency of the edge computing systems in the area of Internet of Things (IoT) or Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) that employ wireless power transfer technology to power the wireless devices through the access point over the air to maximize the sum of computations rates of all WDs in terms of task data bits computed, while keeping the accumulative energy harvested within a range. Simulations and experimental investigations show that the solution proposed here outperforms existing solutions.

Improved Initialization Method for Simple and Fast K-medoids Clustering

Initial solution selection is an important process in determining an optimal solution for the efficient classification of clustering methods in machine learning. This study proposes an improved initialization method for a simple and fast Kmedoids clustering algorithm, considering not only the sum of the relative distance rates for each data point, but also the distance between the previously selected medoids (representative objects). Selection of the balanced initial medoids causes the dissimilarity of patterns in the same cluster to be small and the dissimilarity of patterns in different clusters to be large. The performance of the proposed method is verified and validated based on two valid indices of clustering solutions by employing seven machine learning repository datasets of prominent applications with large improvements. The Mann–Whitney test is employed to assess the statistical significance of the performance differences between the method proposed by Park and Jun (2009) and the initialization method for clustering proposed here. The proposed initial selection method is effective, highly reliable, and computationally practical even for large problems.

Environmental Kuznets curve, balanced growth, and influencing factors: evidence from economic development in China

PurposeThe aggregate index and per capita index have different meanings for some countries or regions. CO2 emissions per capita matters for China because of its huge population. Therefore, this study aims to deepen the understanding of Kuznets curve from the perspective of CO2 emissions per capita. In this study, mathematical formulas will be derived and verified.Design/methodology/approachFirst, this study verified the existing problems with the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) through multiple regression. Second, this study developed a theoretical derivation with the Solow model and balanced growth and explained the underlying principles of the EKC’s shape. Finally, this study quantitatively analyzed the influencing factors.FindingsThe CO2 emission per capita is related to the per capita GDP, nonfossil energy and total factor productivity (TFP). Empirical results support the EKC hypothesis. When the proportion of nonfossil and TFP increase by 1%, the per capita CO2 decrease by 0.041 t and 1.79 t, respectively. The growth rate of CO2 emissions per capita is determined by the difference between the growth rate of output per capita and the sum of efficiency and structural growth rates. To achieve the CO2 emission intensity target and economic growth target, the growth rate of per capita CO2 emissions must fall within the range of [−0.92%, 6.1%].Originality/valueInspired by the EKC and balanced growth, this study investigated the relationships between China’s environmental variables (empirical analysis) and developed a theoretical background (macro-theoretical derivation) through formula-based derivation, the results of which are universally valuable and provide policymakers with a newly integrated view of emission reduction and balanced development to address the challenges associated with climate change caused by energy.

Monsoon Depression Amplification by Horizontal Shear and Humidity Gradients: A Shallow Water Perspective

Abstract Transient, synoptic-scale vortices produce a large fraction of total rainfall in most monsoon regions and are often associated with extreme precipitation. However, the mechanism of their amplification remains a topic of active research. For monsoon depressions, which are the most prominent synoptic-scale vortex in the Asian–Australian monsoon, recent work has suggested that meridional gradients in zonal wind in the vortex environment may produce growth through barotropic instability, while meridional gradients in environmental humidity have also been proposed to cause amplification through coupling with precipitating convection. Here, a two-dimensional shallow water model on a sphere with parameterized precipitation is used to examine the relative role played by these two environmental gradients. By systematically varying the meridional moisture gradient and meridional wind shear for both weak, quasi-linear waves and finite-amplitude isolated vortices, we show that rotational winds in the initial vortex are amplified most strongly by meridional shear of the environmental zonal wind, while vortex precipitation rates are most sensitive to environmental moisture gradients. The growth rate in the presence of both gradients is less than the sum of growth rates in the presence of isolated gradients, as the phase relation between moisture and vorticity anomalies becomes distorted with increasing shear. These results suggest that background meridional gradients in both zonal wind and environmental humidity can contribute to the amplification of vortices to monsoon depression strength, but with some degree of decoupling of the dry rotational flow and the moist convection.

LPBF-Formed 2024Al Alloys: Process, Microstructure, Properties, and Thermal Cracking Behavior

2024Al is an Al-Cu-Mg series heat-treatable aluminum alloy with high strength and excellent damage resistance. To obtain a high-performance target component of LPBF-formed 2024Al, the effect of process parameters on density, microstructure, and performance is systematically investigated and the thermal cracking phenomenon is analyzed in detail. The results reveal that the optimization of process parameters can suppress the cracks generated during the LPBF forming of 2024Al to a certain extent. When the laser energy density is 741 J/mm3, the maximum density reaches 99.77%, whereas the tensile strength and elongation reach 330 ± 7 MPa and 9 ± 0.6%, respectively. Owing to the high Cu and Mg contents in 2024Al, the transverse strain rate of columnar grains during LPBF forming is easily higher than the sum of the transverse expansion rate of grains and the liquid phase filling rate at grain boundaries, resulting in strong thermal crack sensitivity. In addition, an extremely high cooling rate (−108 K/s) and heat input during LPBF forming reduce the liquid phase filling rate at grain boundaries to further aggravate the thermal cracking tendency. The current study provides experimental guidance for the preparation of high-quality, crack-less, or even crack-free 2024Al alloys.

UAV-Enabled Mobile Edge Computing for Resource Allocation Using Cooperative Evolutionary Computation

Edge computing is a viable paradigm for supporting the Industrial Internet of Things deployment by shifting computationally demanding tasks from resource-constrained devices to powerful edge servers. In this study, mobile edge computing (MEC) services are provided for multiple ground mobile nodes (MNs) through a time-division multiple access protocol using the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-enabled edge servers. Remotely controlled UAVs can serve as MEC servers due to their adaptability and flexibility. However, the current MEC approaches have proven ineffective in situations where the number of MNs rapidly increases, or network resources are sparsely distributed. Furthermore, suitable accessibility across wireless networks via MNs with an acceptable quality of service is a fundamental problem for conventional UAV-assisted communications. To tackle this issue, we present an optimized computation resource allocation model using cooperative evolutionary computation to solve the joint optimization problem of queue-based computation offloading and adaptive computing resource allocation. The developed method ensures the task computation delay of all MNs within a time block, optimizes the sum of MN's accessibility rates, and reduces the energy consumption of the UAV and MNs while meeting task computation restrictions. Moreover, we propose a multilayer data flow processing system to make full use of the computational capability across the system. The top layer of the system contains the cloud centre, the middle layer contains the UAV-assisted MEC (U-MEC) servers, and the bottom layer contains the mobile devices. Our numerical analysis and simulation results prove that the proposed scheme outperforms conventional techniques such as equal offloading time allocation and straight-line flight.

Discovery of a Hidden Proinflammatory Signaling Proteome Using a Large-Scale, Targeted Antibody Microarray Platform.

Dynamic post-translational processes regulate protein expression in eukaryotic cells. However, the processes are difficult to assess on a proteomic scale because protein levels actually reflect the sum of individual biosynthesis and degradation rates. These rates are presently hidden from the conventional proteomic technologies. We present here a novel and dynamic, antibody microarray-based time-resolved approach to simultaneously measure not only the total protein changes but also the rates of biosynthesis of low abundance proteins in the proteome of lung epithelial cells. In this chapter, we describe the feasibility of this technique by investigating the complete proteomic kinetics of 507 low abundance proteins in cultured cystic fibrosis (CF) lung epithelial cells using 35[S] methionine or 32[P] and the consequences of repair by gene therapy with [wildtype] CFTR. This novel antibody microarray-based technology identifies relevant, hidden proteins whose regulation by the CF genotype would never have been detected by simple measurements of total proteomic masses.

Distributed and Secure Uplink Power Control in Dynamic Spectrum Access

In dynamic spectrum access (DSA), secondary users (SU) should only be allowed to access a licensed band belonging to incumbent users (IU) when the quality-of-service (QoS) requirements of both IUs and SUs can be satisfied at the same time. However, IU’s location and its received interference strength are considered sensitive in many DSA systems which should not be revealed, making it very challenging to optimize the network utility subjected to satisfying the operation and security requirements of SUs and IUs. In this paper, we develop a secure and distributed SU transmit power control algorithm to solve this challenge. Our algorithm achieves optimal SU power control to maximize the sum of SU rates. The SINR-guaranteed coexistence between SUs and IUs are enabled to maintain effective communication, while no information is directly required from IUs. Local measurements of IU signals provided by Environmental sensing capability (ESC) also undergo a security masking process to ensure that IU location cannot be derived from its outputs. Convergence and stability properties of our algorithm and its privacy-protection strength are both theoretically analyzed and experimentally evaluated through simulations.

Interference alignment with receive antenna partitioning for SWIPT-enabled fog RANs

We propose a novel interference alignment (IA) technique with receive antenna partitioning (RAP) for simultaneous wireless information and power transfer (SWIPT)-enabled downlink fog radio access networks (F-RANs). The basic idea of the proposed scheme is to apply a generalized downlink IA for each access point (AP) and to divide receive antennas at each user into two groups for information decoding (ID) and energy harvesting (EH), respectively. With the proposed scheme, an optimal receive antenna configuration at each user is obtained to maximize the weighted sum of achievable rate and the sum of harvested energy of the network. Also we develop an antenna configuration selection algorithm to obtain near-optimal performance with low computational complexity. Through extensive computer simulations, it is shown that the proposed scheme significantly improves a rate-energy region compared with existing techniques.

High Scanning Rate Asymmetrical Dual-Beam Leaky Wave Antenna Using Sinusoidally Modulated Reactance Superposing Surface

A seamless scanning dual-beam leaky-wave antenna (LWA) suited for multiobject detecting and tracking without blindness exhibits potential applications in wireless communication and radar systems. The beam scanning rate is a key indicator to measure the scanning performance of LWA. However, the high scanning rate dual-beam LWA with continuous scanning is seldom considered in the published literature. Defined first as the sum of the scanning rate of each beam in this communication, a novel asymmetrical dual-beam LWA with a high scanning rate of 12.9 is then proposed based on the combination of a half-mode substrate-integrated waveguide (HMSIW)-surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) structure and a sinusoidally modulated reactance superposing surface (SMRSS) technique. The hi gh scanning rate is attributed to the dispersion enhancement of the slotted HMSIW-SPP unit, while periodic modulation superposed and uniform slots etched on the top and bottom layers, respectively, contribute to the asymmetrical dual-beam continuous scanning. As an example, an X-band asymmetrical dual-beam LWA is implemented and measured. Over the band of 8.65–9.5 GHz [9.3% fractional bandwidth (BW)], the proposed dual-beam LWA achieves a seamless beam scanning from −65° to −2° and from −6° to +51°, respectively.

Simulation of performance evaluation model for medical-elderly care integrated institutions based on system dynamics

BackgroundBased on the Chinese model of medical-elderly care integration, this paper aims to explore the impact of different investment levels on the performance of the medical-elderly care integrated institutions.MethodsUsing the method of system dynamics, this paper establishes the performance evaluation model of medical-elderly care integrated institutions, sets the system element input, service level, and policy support as the key factors, and uses Vensim PLE software for simulation.ResultsThe three key factors have different degrees of positive impact on the performance of medical-elderly care integrated institutions. On the whole, policy support has the most significant impact on the performance of institutions, followed by the level of medical-elderly care integrated services. Institutional input mainly has a great impact on the performance of institutions in the early stage. In addition, the model simulation results also show the emergence effect: the improvement rate of institutional performance under the comprehensive simulation is higher than the sum of the improvement rates under the separate action of single factor.ConclusionGovernment policies have played an important role in promoting the development of medical-elderly care integrated institutions. The service level and resource input can effectively promote the performance of medical-elderly care integrated institutions. Institutions should formulate development strategies from a systematic perspective, and pay attention to the integration of "medical" and "elderly care" resources.

Pain Response Rates after Conventional Radiation Therapy for Bone Metastases Assessed Using International Consensus Pain Response Endpoints: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Initial Radiation Therapy and Re-Irradiation

<h3>Purpose/Objective(s)</h3> Previous systematic reviews of conventional radiation therapy (RT) for painful bone metastases showed response rates of 72%<b>–</b>75% for initial RT and 68% for re-irradiation. However, the definition of pain response differed among studies included in these reviews. The International Consensus Pain Response Endpoints (ICPRE) was published in 2002 and revised in 2012 to unify evaluation methods for pain response internationally and has been used in many studies. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to determine the pain response rates assessed by ICPRE for both initial RT and re-irradiation. <h3>Materials/Methods</h3> A literature search was conducted in PubMed and Scopus for articles published between 2002 and 2021. The inclusion criteria were as follows: (i) the study designs of randomized controlled trials (RCTs), prospective studies, or studies based on prospectively collected data; and (ii) studies in which pain response was assessed using ICPRE. Our primary outcomes of interest were overall response (OR) rates (sum of complete response rate and partial response rate) for both initial RT and re-irradiation. The following subgroup analyses were performed for OR rates of initial RT: RCT vs. non-randomized studies, with vs. without exclusion criteria for complicated bone metastases, with vs. without eligibility criteria for no change in analgesic use at enrollment, and timing of response assessment (≤1 month vs. >1 month). Random effects logistic models were used to estimate pooled response rates. <h3>Results</h3> Of the 6470 articles identified in our database search, 32 and 3 met the inclusion criteria for analysis of initial RT and re-irradiation, respectively. The OR rates of initial RT in evaluable patients (n = 4775) and intent-to-treat patients (n = 6775) were 60.4% (95% confidence interval [CI], 55.2–65.4) and 45.4% (95% CI, 38.7–52.4), respectively. The OR rates of re-irradiation in evaluable patients (n = 733) and intent-to-treat patients (n = 1085) were 70.8% (95% CI, 15.7–96.9) and 62.2% (95% CI, 5.3–98.0), respectively. Subgroup analyses of initial RT showed no significant differences in any of the comparisons, indicating similar response rates across different study designs. <h3>Conclusion</h3> We determined the pain response rates of initial RT for painful bone metastases assessed by ICPRE. The OR rate assessed by ICPRE was lower than previously reported. The present review may provide benchmarks for future RCTs and non-randomized studies. Regarding the response rate for re-irradiation, the wide range of the 95% CI warrants that the OR rate based on ICPRE requires further investigation.

The competition/inhibition effect of H2O/CO2-char gasification in typical in situ gasification-chemical looping combustion (iG-CLC) conditions via particle-resolved simulation

In the fuel reactor of in-situ gasification chemical looping combustion (iG-CLC), the solid fuel (e.g., coal, biomass) goes through two typical processes: devolatilization and char gasification. Then the pyrolysis and gasification products react with oxygen carrier to produce CO2 and H2O ideally. The slow char gasification rate during iG-CLC is responsible for combustion efficiency. Therefore, a deeper understanding of char conversion characteristics is required to optimize iG-CLC conditions. In this paper, a particle-resolved simulation with detailed heterogeneous reactions is conducted, in which the effects of char particle size and reaction temperature on char conversion characteristics are carefully studied. To understand the competition between CO2 gasification and H2O gasification, single-particle simulations are carried out under mixed and separate atmospheres. The char gasification rate in CO2/H2O mixtures (rmix) is lower than the sum of the char-H2O gasification rate (rH2O) and the char-CO2 gasification rate (rCO2). We find that the competition for active sites between char-H2O gasification and char-CO2 gasification is not significant, while the inhibition of gasification products play an important role in char-CO2 gasification, particularly the inhibition of CO (from char-H2O or char-CO2 gasification), due to the accumulation of H2 and CO inside the char particle. The inhibition effect is quantified via particle-resolved simulations and then a quantitative formula is attained to describe the complex relationship between H2O gasification and CO2 gasification. Then the point-source model for H2O/CO2-char gasification is developed for computational fluid dynamics simulations. Straightforward cloud diagrams are presented to explore the relationship between conversion rate characteristics and physicochemical properties of char, providing useful information for the optimization of iG-CLC conditions.

Relationship between Lightning and Aerosol Optical Depth over the Uttarakhand Region in India: Thermodynamic Perspective

The current study is mainly focused on the monthly variation in the lightning flash rate (LFR) and related thermodynamic parameters using the data for the years 2000–2013, and the trend of lightning variation is explored. Lightning data are used from a lightning imaging sensor (LIS) and an optical transient detector (OTP) boarded on the tropical rainfall measuring mission (TRMM). Additionally, aerosol optical depth (AOD) data at 550 nm for the same period were considered from a Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS). The assessment of lightning and AOD using monthly data makes it difficult to study seasonal contributions, and higher-resolution (hourly) data may be more appropriate, but unfortunately, no data were available with a higher resolution than monthly. The dependency of LFR is also investigated using thermodynamic/dynamic parameters. The LFR shows a moderate correlation with a correlation coefficient of 0.56, 0.62, and 0.63 for AOD, CAPE, and vertical velocity, respectively. The increasing AOD in the pre-monsoon season is associated with higher lightning flash rates over this region. The possible sources of aerosols that cause an increase in lightning activities are identified from the classification of aerosols based on the characteristic values of the AOD and the Ångström exponent. The thermodynamic relation of the Product of Bowen ratio with the sum of the precipitation rate and evaporation rate has been used as a proxy to evaluate the lightning flash rate density over Srinagar, Uttarakhand region (78.55° E–79.05° E, 29.97° N–30.47° N), with nine models from the Coupled Model Inter-comparison Project-Phase 5 (CMIP5). The model-simulated LFR has also been used for the projection of lightning in the late 21st century, and the projected LFR over the study area shows a 7.41% increase during the (2079–2088) period as compared to the historic period (1996–2005). The results of the study region indicate caution in using any single climate variable as a proxy for projecting a change in the lightning–climate relationships in the scenario of global warming.

Randomized controlled clinical trials of a quick screening model for symptomatic bacterascites for guided antibiotic therapy

Objective: To investigate the clinical significance of a quick screening model for symptomatic bacterascites for guided antibiotic therapy. Methods: Data were collected prospectively from 24 cases of cirrhotic ascites who were newly admitted to Nanchang Ninth Hospital between September 2016 and February 2017. No clear indication for antibiotic treatment was used when the number of polymorphonuclear cells in ascites was <250 cells/mm3. A quick screening model for symptomatic bacterascites was determined by positivity and was randomly divided into the experimental (12 cases) and the control group (12 cases). The experimental group was given antibiotic treatment during the whole process, while the control group did not receive antibiotic treatment. The 10th day of treatment was the end point of the study. The treatment responses of the two groups were compared. The treatment response results were divided into three categories: complete response, partial response, and no response. The sum of complete and partial response rates was used to determine the response rate. The Mann-Whitney U test and Fisher's exact test were used to compare the treatment responses between groups. Results: The baseline conditions of gender, age, screening score, and disease severity were consistent between the two groups (P>0.05). On the 10th day of treatment, the number of complete responses between the experimental group and the control group was 1 to 0, the number of partial responses was 7 to 2, and the number of non-responses was 4 to 10, Z=-2.467, P=0.014. The response rate was significantly better in the experimental group than in the control group [66.7% (8/12) vs. 16.7% (2/12), P=0.036]. Conclusion: Guided antibiotic therapy is somehow important for the quick screening model for symptomatic bacterascites, and patients with cirrhotic ascites who test positive in this model can benefit from antibiotic therapy.

Fault Detection of Wind Turbine Gearboxes Based on IBOA-ERF.

As one of the key components of wind turbines, gearboxes are under complex alternating loads for a long time, and the safety and reliability of the whole machine are often affected by the failure of internal gears and bearings. Aiming at the difficulty of optimizing the parameters of wind turbine gearbox fault detection models based on extreme random forest, a fault detection model with extreme random forest optimized by the improved butterfly optimization algorithm (IBOA-ERF) is proposed. The algebraic sum of the false alarm rate and the missing alarm rate of the fault detection model is constructed as the fitness function, and the initial position and position update strategy of the individual are improved. A chaotic mapping strategy is introduced to replace the original population initialization method to enhance the randomness of the initial population distribution. An adaptive inertia weight factor is proposed, combined with the landmark operator of the pigeon swarm optimization algorithm to update the population position iteration equation to speed up the convergence speed and improve the diversity and robustness of the butterfly optimization algorithm. The dynamic switching method of local and global search stages is adopted to achieve dynamic balance between global exploration and local search, and to avoid falling into local optima. The ERF fault detection model is trained, and the improved butterfly optimization algorithm is used to obtain optimal parameters to achieve fast response of the proposed model with good robustness and generalization under high-dimensional data. The experimental results show that, compared with other optimization algorithms, the proposed fault detection method of wind turbine gearboxes has a lower false alarm rate and missing alarm rate.

Low-Carbon Transition Models of High Carbon Supply Chains under the Mixed Carbon Cap-and-Trade and Carbon Tax Policy in the Carbon Neutrality Era.

To achieve the goals of carbon peak and carbon neutrality, the low-carbon transformation (LCT) of high-carbon firms is inevitable. We construct game models of a supply chain with different dominant types under a mixed carbon policy that embraces carbon cap-and-trade and carbon tax. Solving each dominant model, we derive the effective area and optimal threshold of the mixed carbon policy to guide LCT. We find that the selling price, market demand, and profit of the supply chain system are equal in different dominant models due to the mixed carbon policy, but when a company dominates the supply chain, its profit is higher than when it is a subordinate. In addition, the high-carbon manufacturers (HCM) will pursue LCT only when the sum of the carbon tax rates and carbon trading prices is within a certain threshold, and the subordinate HCM are more likely to be driven to pursue LCT. Therefore, the government should adopt a differentiated hybrid carbon policy, setting a high (low) carbon tax rate for the HCM in a dominant (subordinate) position.

Differential Amino Acid Uptake and Depletion in Mono-Cultures and Co-Cultures of Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus in a Novel Semi-Synthetic Medium.

The mechanistic understanding of the physiology and interactions of microorganisms in starter cultures is critical for the targeted improvement of fermented milk products, such as yogurt, which is produced by Streptococcus thermophilus in co-culture with Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus. However, the use of complex growth media or milk is a major challenge for quantifying metabolite production, consumption, and exchange in co-cultures. This study developed a synthetic medium that enables the establishment of defined culturing conditions and the application of flow cytometry for measuring species-specific biomass values. Time courses of amino acid concentrations in mono-cultures and co-cultures of L. bulgaricus ATCC BAA-365 with the proteinase-deficient S. thermophilus LMG 18311 and with a proteinase-positive S. thermophilus strain were determined. The analysis revealed that amino acid release rates in co-culture were not equivalent to the sum of amino acid release rates in mono-cultures. Data-driven and pH-dependent amino acid release models were developed and applied for comparison. Histidine displayed higher concentrations in co-cultures, whereas isoleucine and arginine were depleted. Amino acid measurements in co-cultures also confirmed that some amino acids, such as lysine, are produced and then consumed, thus being suitable candidates to investigate the inter-species interactions in the co-culture and contribute to the required knowledge for targeted shaping of yogurt qualities.