Two-way Response Research Articles

Early transcriptomic host response signatures in the serum of dengue patients provides insights into clinical pathogenesis and disease severity

Dengue virus (DENV), known to cause viral infection, belongs to the family Flaviviridae, having four serotypes (DENV1-4) that spreads by the bite of the Aedes aegypti mosquito. India has been suffering from dengue outbreaks annually with widespread epidemics by prevalence of all the four DENV serotypes. The diverse spectrum of clinical manifestations in dengue infection, mild to severe forms, makes the need of timely diagnosis and prompt treatment an essence. The identification of a dengue host response signature in serum can increase the understanding of dengue pathogenesis since most dengue NS1 Ag tests have been developed and evaluated in serum samples. Here, to understand the same, we undertook a dual RNA-sequencing (RNA-Seq) based approach from the serum samples of dengue-infected patients. The results thus yield the early transcriptional signatures that discriminated the high viral reads patients from patients who had low dengue viral reads. We identified a significant upregulation of two sets of genes, key antiviral (IFIT3, RSAD2, SAT1) and vascular dysfunction (TNFS10, CXCL8) related genes in the high viral reads group. Deeper delving of this gene profile revealed a unique two-way response, where the antiviral genes can mediate the disease course to mild, contrarily the increased expression of the other gene set might act as pointers of severe disease course. Further, we explored the hematologic parameters from the complete blood count (CBC), which suggests that lymphocytes (low) and neutrophils (high) might serve as an early predictor of prognosis in dengue infection. Collectively, our findings give insights into the foundation for further investigation of the early host response using the RNA isolated from dengue patients’ serum samples and opens the door for careful monitoring of the early clinical and transcriptome profiles for management of the dengue patients.

Strength, Ductility, and Collapse Response of UHPC Waffle Slabs

Waffle slabs made of ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) are now being widely used in bridge deck construction. However, to date, no research has been conducted to study their failure behavior. Two one-way waffle slab strips made of UHPC were load-tested under four-point bending to investigate their strength, ductility, and failure patterns. An identical set made of high strength concrete (HSC) was also tested to provide a comparison to specimens made with traditional construction materials. The UHPC specimens exhibited multiple fine cracks prior to rebar yielding and failed by steel rebar rupture after a single crack localized. In contrast, the HSC slab strips exhibited several large cracks and substantially larger ductility than the UHPC slab strips, although their strength was about 40% less than the corresponding UHPC specimens. The experimental results were used to validate a three-dimensional finite element model, which was then employed to investigate the two-way response of UHPC waffle slabs. The simulation study revealed that the yield line design method is applicable to UHPC waffle slabs despite their markedly different behavior compared to concrete slabs. Like the HSC slabs, the UHPC slabs also exhibited displacements and load carrying capacities well in excess of those predicted by flexural theories, due to formation of membrane action.

A case-control investigation of the psychological and physiological stress markers with salivary cortisol levels in patients with temporomandibular joint disorders: A short clinical study.

This study aimed to determine the association of stress and salivary cortisol levels in the adult Indian population with and without temporomandibular disorder (TMD) and to validate it with bite force. The present study had an observational, case-control study design. This study sample comprised two groups of 25 cases and 25 controls between 18 and 45 years of age. Diagnostic criteria-TMD questionnaire Axis I was used to assess TMD classification, the TMD Disability Index and modified Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) questionnaires were filled, and salivary cortisol levels were measured using electrochemiluminescence immunoassay (ECLIA). Bite force analysis was performed using a portable load indicator. To characterize and analyze the study variables, means, standard deviations, Mann-Whitney U-test, and logistic regression were employed (STATA 14.2 [Texas, USA]). Shapiro-Wilk test was used to test the normality of the data. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant (95% power). Female gender was proportionately higher in both the groups (P = 0.508), TMD Disability Index was significantly higher for cases (P < 0.001), TMD cases perceived higher stress levels (P = 0.011), there was no statistically significant difference in salivary cortisol level between cases and controls (P = 0.648), and the median bite force was lower for cases (P = 0.0007). This study concluded that the chance of developing TMD increased with age. An increase in the TMD Disability Index score and modified PSS scores; and a decrease in the bite force increased the likelihood of TMD. Modified PSS score was negatively correlated with salivary cortisol concentrations, indicating a two-way response to TMD symptoms.

Enhanced axial and lateral resolution using stabilized pulses.

Ultrasound B-scan imaging systems operate under some well-known resolution limits. To improve resolution, the concept of stable pulses, having bounded inverse filters, was previously utilized for the lateral deconvolution. This framework has been extended to the axial direction, enabling a two-dimensional deconvolution. The modeling of the two-way response in the axial direction is discussed, and the deconvolution is performed in the in-phase quadrature data domain. Stable inverse filters are generated and applied for the deconvolution of the image data from Field II simulation, a tissue-mimicking phantom, and in vivo imaging of a carotid artery, where resolution enhancement is observed. Specifically, in simulation results, the resolution is enhanced by as many as 8.75 times laterally and 20.5 times axially considering the [Formula: see text] width of the autocorrelation of the envelope images.

Researched on Initiation Synchronization of Addressable Initiation System

Addressable initiation system was established by bus topology structure and information coding which owns the ability to safely and reliably control up to 256 initiators on a signal bus according to the communication protocol which is a robust two-way command response type protocol. Also, the two-way digital communication was achieved between intelligent bus controller and smart initiator by multiplexed serial data bus. The synchronous performance of addressable initiation system was researched. The result shows that each smart initiator will performance the built-in logic control, and arm electronic safe switch after receiving the synchronous signal sent by intelligent bus controller. Then they discharged the electrical energy of the firing capacitor as approximately synchronous, and were initiated synchronously at 4±0.2μs. It indicates that this initiation system has favorable synchronization.

Funding Constraints and Market Liquidity in the European Treasury Bond Market

Theoretical studies show that shocks to funding constraints should affect and be af-fected by market illiquidity. However, little is known about the empirical magnitude of such responses because of the intrinsic endogeneity of illiquidity shocks. This paper adopts an identification technique based on the heteroskedasticity of illiquidity proxies to infer the reaction of one measure to shocks affecting the other in a joint setting. Using data for the European Treasury bond market, we find evidence of a two-way response occurring between funding and market illiquidity shocks. In the cross-section, we show that individual bonds’ illiquidity responses to funding or market illiquidity shocks vary with with bond maturity, the credit risk of the issuer, haircuts, and the number of bonds issued by the country.

A nonlinear lumped model for ultrasound systems using CMUT arrays.

We present a nonlinear lumped model that predicts the electrical input-output behavior of an ultrasonic system using CMUTs with arbitrary array/membrane/electrode geometry in different transmit-receive configurations and drive signals. The receive-only operation, where the electrical output signal of the CMUT array in response to incident pressure field is calculated, is included by modifying the boundary elementbased vibroacoustic formulation for a CMUT array in rigid baffle. Along with the accurate large signal transmit model, this formulation covers pitch-catch and pulse-echo operation when transmit and receive signals can be separated in time. In cases when this separation is not valid, such as CMUTs used in continuous wave transmit-receive mode, pulse-echo mode with a nearby hard or soft wall or in a bounded space such as in a microfluidic channel, an efficient formulation based on the method of images is used. Some of these particular applications and the overall modeling approach have been validated through comparison with finite element analysis on specific examples including CMUTs with multiple electrodes. To further demonstrate the capability of the model for imaging applications, the two-way response of a partial dual-ring intravascular ultrasound array is simulated using a parallel computing cluster, where the output currents of individual array elements are calculated for given input pulse and compared with experimental results. With its versatility, the presented model can be a useful tool for rapid iterative CMUT-based system design and simulation for a broad range of ultrasonic applications.

The two-way shape memory behaviour of crosslinked poly(ε-caprolactone) systems with largely varied network density

The two-way shape memory behaviour of semicrystalline networks was investigated on systems based on poly(ε-caprolactone) featuring significantly different network architecture. Crosslinked poly(ε-caprolactone)s were prepared by thermal curing from methacrylic end-capped linear chains having various methacrylation degrees. By conveniently reducing the methacrylation degree, the crosslink density of cured materials was varied over a range of one order of magnitude, leading to comparable changes in the material compliance in the rubbery region, but only to moderate variations in melting and crystallization temperatures (Tm and Tc) and in the crystallinity content. When subjected to constant non-zero stress and to cooling–heating cycles from above Tm to below Tc, the materials undergo a reversible two-way elongation–contraction effect, whose extent depends on material structure and applied stress. The structural changes in the crystalline phase accompanying the cooling-induced elongation were studied through differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffraction analyses. The elongation process involves different contributions of entropy- and crystallization-driven processes, whose amounts were investigated as a function of the loading conditions and the molecular architecture. The role of the network density towards a controlled two-way response is evidenced, showing that a proper value of the crosslink density has to be identified to maximize the two-way elongation capabilities.

Performance analyses of antagonistic shape memory alloy actuators based on recovered strain

In comparison with conventional shape memory actuated structures, antagonistic shape memory alloy (SMA) actuators permits a fully reversible two-way response and higher response frequency. However, excessive internal stress could adversely reduce the stroke of the actuators under repeated use. The two-way shape memory effect might further decrease the range of the recovered strain under actuation of an antagonistic SMA actuator unless additional components (e.g., spring and stopper) are added to regain the overall actuation capability. In this paper, the performance of all four possible types of SMA actuation schemes is investigated in detail with emphasis on five key properties: recovered strain, cyclic degradation, response frequency, self-sensing control accuracy, and controllable maximum output. The testing parameters are chosen based on the maximization of recovered strain. Three types of these actuators are antagonistic SMA actuators, which drive with two active SMA wires in two directions. The antagonistic SMA actuator with an additional pair of springs exhibits wider displacement range, more stable performance under reuse, and faster response, although accurate control cannot be maintained under force interference. With two additional stoppers to prevent the over stretch of the spring, the results showed that the proposed structure could achieve significant improvement on all five properties. It can be concluded that, the last type actuator scheme with additional spring and stopper provide much better applicability than the other three in most conditions. The results of the performance analysis of all four SMA actuators could provide a solid basis for the practical design of SMA actuators.

Tailored One-Way and Two-Way Shape Memory Capabilities of Poly(ε-Caprolactone)-Based Systems for Biomedical Applications

This paper investigates the shape memory capabilities of semicrystalline networks, focusing the attention on poly(e-caprolactone) (PCL) systems, a class of materials that allows to satisfy important requirements for their applications as biomedical devices, such as the good biocompatibility, the fast recovery of large “temporary” shape configurations, and the easy tailoring of the transformation temperatures. The materials were prepared with various crosslink densities and crosslinking methodologies; in particular, beside a thermal crosslinking based on reactive methacrylic end groups, a novel type of covalently crosslinked semicrystalline systems was prepared by a sol-gel approach from alkoxysilane-terminated PCL precursors, so as to avoid potentially toxic additives typically used for free-radical thermal curing. The materials were subjected to biological tests, to study their ability in sustaining cell adhesion and proliferation, and to thermal characterizations, to evaluate the possibility to tailor their melting and crystallization temperatures. The one-way shape memory (i.e., the possibility to set the material in a given configuration and to recover its pristine shape) and the two-way shape memory response (i.e., the triggered change between two distinguished shapes on the application of an on-off stimulus) were studied by applying optimized thermo-mechanical cyclic histories. The ability to fix the applied shape and to recover the original one on the application of heating (i.e., the one-way effect) was evaluated on tensile bars; further, to investigate a potential application as self-expandable stents, isothermal shape memory experiments were carried out also on tubular specimens, previously folded in a temporary compact configuration. The two-way response was studied through the application of a constant load and of a heating/cooling cycle from above melting to below the crystallization temperature, leading to a reversible elongation/contraction effect, involving maximum strain changes up to about 80%, whose extent may be controlled through the crosslink density.

The use of multivariate curve resolution methods to improve the analysis of muramic acid as bacterial marker using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry: An alternative method to gas chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry

In analysis of muramic acid (MA) as bacterial marker, two dominant disturbing factors lead the researchers to use gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) technique instead of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). These factors are the trace concentration of MA and fundamental disturbance of base line mass channels in GC-MS technique. This study aimed to utilize multivariate curve resolution (MCR) methods combined with GC-MS to improve the analysis of MA. First, the background and noise in GC-MS analysis were corrected and reduced using MCR methods. In addition, the MA overlapped peaks were resolved to its pure chromatographic and mass spectral profiles. Then the two-way response of each component was reconstructed by the outer product of the pure chromatographic and mass spectral profiles. The overall volume integration (OVI) method was used for quantitative determination. The MA peak area was decreased dramatically after the background correction and noise reduction. The findings severely ratify the appropriateness of using MCR techniques combined with GC-MS analysis as a simple, fast and inexpensive method for the analysis of MA in complex mixtures. The proposed method may be considered as an alternative method to GC-MS/MS for thorough analysis of the bacterial marker.

Polymer Brush-Functionalized Surfaces with Reversible, Precisely Controllable Two-Way Responsive Wettability

This paper is the first to present a facile method of fabricating intelligent surfaces with reversible, precisely controllable, two-way responsive wettability. The ABC-type block copolymers of tert-butyl methacrylate (tBMA), 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), and 2-(diisopropylamino)ethyl methacrylate (DPAEMA) were synthesized through living radical polymerization mediated by a reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) process and then grafted onto acyl chloride group-functionalized SiO2 films to produce V-shaped PDPAEMA-b-PHEMA-b-PtBMA brush-grafted SiO2 films. After hydrolysis, V-shaped polymer brushes with two arms of PDPAEMA and PMAA were produced. Because the PMAA and PDPAEMA segments were highly and independently responsive to pH values, the as-obtained films not only exhibited reversible, one-to-one, precisely controllable wettability but also two-way response behavior as pH value increased.

Determination of the volatile constituents in radix Flemingiae Philippinensis by GC-MS and a heuristic evolving latent projection method.

With the help of chemometric resolution methods, a technique for qualitative and quantitative determination of the volatile chemical constituents in Radix Flemingiae Philippinensis by chromatography-mass spectrometry was developed. After the overlapping chromatographic peaks were resolved into pure chromatograms and spectra using a heuristic evolving latent projections (HELP) method, qualitative analysis was performed by similarity search of the obtained pure mass spectrum of each component in the NIST library and the quantitative results were obtained by calculating the total two-way response volume. A total of 63 components were separated and 55 components were identified, accounting for 90.62% of the total content. The main components were farnesol isomer and β-caryophyllene, accounting for 31.33% and 12.60% of the total content, respectively. The obtained results can provide useful information for further study and development of Radix Flemingiae Philippinensis.

Determination of volatile components in cut tobacco with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and chemometric resolution

Chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to analyze the volatile components of cut tobacco samples with the help of heuristic evolving latent projections (HELP). After extracting with simultaneous distillation and extraction method, the volatile components in cut tobacco were detected by GC-MS. Then the obtained original two-dimensional data were resolved into pure mass spectra and chromatograms. The qualitative analysis was performed by similarity searches in the national institute of standards and technology (NIST) mass database with the obtained pure mass spectrum of each component and the quantitative results were obtained by calculating the volume of total two-way response. The accuracy of qualitative and quantitative results were greatly improved by using the two-dimensional comprehensive information of chromatograms and mass spectra. 107 of 141 separated constituents in the total ion chromatogram of the volatile components were identified and quantified, accounting for about 88.01% of the total content. The result proves that the developed method is powerful for the analysis of complex cut tobacco samples.

The influence of reflection coefficient statistics on the seismic method: scattering attenuation and transmission wavelets

The propagation through layered media of seismic energy from reflection seismic surveys is discussed in terms of one dimensional elastic scattering. The effect of a layered overburden on the detectability of the underlying target horizons is investigated. The required signal from the target reflectors arises from the two-way forward-scattered component whereas the internal multiple noise (which tends to obscure the target reflections) arises from the back-scattered component. The starting point of the investigation is the O’Doherty-Anstey relation for the two-way transmission response. In this paper, using statistical models of real reflection series, we derive Q -like attenuation laws for the two-way transmission. Most real sequences of reflection coefficients have spectra which rise with frequency in the seismic band and this leads to signal attenuation which only approximates to that of a 'constant Q ’ type over small bands of frequency. The implications of the theory are checked for two very different types of overburden, one being a repetitive type of sedimentary sequence with a large mean square reflection coefficient and the other a non-repetitive sequence with a small mean square reflection coefficient, against synthetic seismograms derived from real sonic logs. The minimum phase wavelet predicted by the theory is shown to model adequately the first pulse of the two-way transmission waveform, carrying the greater part of the energy, and the lag of the first peak is given approximately in terms of the statistical parameters of the reflection coefficients in the overburden.

Selection for hematocrit percent in the house mouse.

Two selection experiments were designed to change hematocrit percent. In the first experiment the mice were measured at 60 days and elevated hematocritis were achieved in the first generation with no further response. In the second experiment hematocritis were taken at 100 days and two-way response continued for three generations after which the difference between the high and low lines remained constant. Realized heritability was 71-97 percent in the first generation in one experiment and 24-30 percent for three generations in the second. These compare to an estimate of the degree of genetic determination based on 21 inbred strains of 40 percent. The evidence based on the selection experiments and crosses between inbred strains indicates that few genes are involved in the genetic control of normal hematocrit levels found within inbred strains of mice. The realtionship between hematocrit level and systolic blood pressure suggested by other studies was not a consistent finding in our studies.