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Watermeal, Wolffia australiana, is the smallest known flowering monocot and is rich in protein. Despite its great potential as a biotech crop, basic research on Wolffia is in its infancy. Here, we generated the reference genome of a species of watermeal, W. australiana, and identified the genome-wide features that may contribute to its atypical anatomy and physiology, including the absence of roots, adaxial stomata development, and anaerobic life as a turion. In addition, we found evidence of extensive genome rearrangements that may underpin the specialized aquatic lifestyle of watermeal. Analysis of the gene inventory of this intriguing species helps explain the distinct characteristics of W. australiana and its unique evolutionary trajectory., Halim Park and Jin Hwa Park et al. report the nuclear genome sequence of the duckweed Wolffia australiana, the smallest known flowering plant. The genome assembly represents an improvement over a recently published genome and highlights genome rearrangements that may be linked to its specialized aquatic adaptations.

Document-grounded goal-oriented dialog system understands users’ utterances, and generates proper responses by using information obtained from documents. The Dialdoc21 shared task consists of two subtasks; subtask1, finding text spans associated with users’ utterances from documents, and subtask2, generating responses based on information obtained from subtask1. In this paper, we propose two models (i.e., a knowledge span prediction model and a response generation model) for the subtask1 and the subtask2. In the subtask1, dialogue act losses are used with RoBERTa, and title embeddings are added to input representation of RoBERTa. In the subtask2, various special tokens and embeddings are added to input representation of BART’s encoder. Then, we propose a method to assign different difficulty scores to leverage curriculum learning. In the subtask1, our span prediction model achieved F1-scores of 74.81 (ranked at top 7) and 73.41 (ranked at top 5) in test-dev phase and test phase, respectively. In the subtask2, our response generation model achieved sacreBLEUs of 37.50 (ranked at top 3) and 41.06 (ranked at top 1) in in test-dev phase and test phase, respectively.

This paper investigates the possibility of using benchtop NMR spectroscopy for quantification of illicit drugs (methamphetamine) in binary and ternary mixtures with impurities and cutting agents (N-isopropylbenzylamine, phenethylamine and dimethylsulfone). To avoid handling regulated substances, methamphetamine in our experiments is substituted with amino-2-propanol, which has similar functional groups and chemical structure to methamphetamine and hence a related NMR spectrum. Binary and ternary mixtures at concentrations from 30 mmol/L up to 500 mmol/L for each of these species were measured using a 60 MHz benchtop spectrometer. The spectra were analysed using both integration and a model-based algorithm that relies on a full quantum mechanical description of the studied spin systems. Both techniques were able to quantify the composition of the mixtures. The root mean squared error in the measured concentration using the model-based algorithm was10 mmol/L, whereas the error using integration was typically20 mmol/L. Thus, we conclude benchtop NMR is viable for quantitative measurements of mixtures of illicit substances, particularly when coupled with a quantum mechanical model for the analysis.

The availability of large-scale, collateral mRNA expression and RNAi data from diverse cancer cell types provides useful resources for the discovery of anticancer targets for which inhibitory efficacy can be predicted from gene expression. Here, we calculated bidirectional cross-association scores (predictivity and descriptivity) for each of approximately 18,000 genes identified from mRNA and RNAi (i.e., shRNA and sgRNA) data from colon cancer cell lines. The predictivity score measures the difference in RNAi efficacy between cell lines with high vs. low expression of the target gene, while the descriptivity score measures the differential mRNA expression between groups of cell lines exhibiting high vs. low RNAi efficacy. The mRNA expression of 90 and 74 genes showed significant (p &lt, 0.01) cross-association scores with the shRNA and sgRNA data, respectively. The genes were found to be from diverse molecular classes and have different functions. Cross-association scores for the mRNA expression of six genes (CHAF1B, HNF1B, HTATSF1, IRS2, POLR2B and SATB2) with both shRNA and sgRNA efficacy were significant. These genes were interconnected in cancer-related transcriptional networks. Additional experimental validation confirmed that siHNF1B efficacy is correlated with HNF1B mRNA expression levels in diverse colon cancer cell lines. Furthermore, KIF26A and ZIC2 gene expression, with which shRNA efficacy displayed significant scores, were found to correlate with the survival rate from colon cancer patient data. This study demonstrates that bidirectional predictivity and descriptivity calculations between mRNA and RNAi data serve as useful resources for the discovery of predictive anticancer targets.

As private tutoring has expanded worldwide, it has been noted that private tutoring and associated emotional distress can affect sleep duration and the health of adolescent students. However, the relationships between extra-school tutoring time, somatic symptoms, defined as physical symptoms of emotional distress, and sleep duration in adolescents has rarely been determined. The aim of this study was to identify these relationships in adolescent students. Data from the Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey were analyzed to address the research questions. Weekday sleep duration, extra-school tutoring time, and somatic symptoms were measured using adolescents&rsquo, self-report questionnaires. A multilevel, structural equation model was utilized to test the relationships between these variables and was deemed appropriate considering the repeated measure of the panel data. After controlling for respondent sex, parent working status and education level, and family structure, adolescents&rsquo, extra-school tutoring time and level of somatic symptoms were associated with sleep duration during weekdays. Furthermore, the association between extra-school tutoring time and sleep duration was partially mediated by somatic symptoms. Korean adolescent students slept less than the recommended duration. Intervention programs that increase parental interest and attention in adolescent students&rsquo, lives, not only focused on academic achievement but also emotional distress is needed. Researchers and policymakers should understand recommended age-appropriate sleep duration and the educational culture and provide balanced strategies between the consideration of the effect of private education on academic achievement and the need to guarantee physical and mental health in adolescent students.

Objectives To examine real-time relationships between social interactions and poststroke mood and somatic symptoms in participants’ daily environments. Design Prospective observational study using smartphone-based ecological momentary assessment (EMA) surveys 5 times a day for 2 weeks. Multilevel models were used to analyze data for concurrent and lagged associations. Setting Community. Participants Adults (N=48) with mild stroke. Interventions Not applicable. Main Outcome Measures EMA measures of self-appraisal of social interactions (confidence, satisfaction, and success), as well as mood (depression and anxiety) and somatic (pain and fatigue) symptoms. Results In concurrent associations, increased depressed mood was associated with reduced ratings of all aspects of social interactions. Fatigue was associated with reduced ratings of social satisfaction and success. In lagged associations, increased anxious mood preceded increased subsequent social confidence. Higher average social satisfaction, confidence, and success were related to lower momentary fatigue, anxious mood, and depressed mood at the next time point. Regarding clinicodemographic factors, being employed was concurrently related to increased social interactions. An increased number of comorbidities predicted higher somatic, but not mood, symptoms at the next time point. Conclusions This study provides preliminary evidence of dynamic relationships between social interactions and somatic and mood symptoms in individuals with mild stroke. Interventions to not only address the sequelae of symptoms, but also to promote participation in social activities in poststroke life should be explored.

Background: Providing care for dementia can negatively influence the physical health and health behaviors of family caregivers. A better understanding of the factors associated with health checkups and cancer screening is vital to better develop effective interventions. Thus, this study aimed to identify factors associated with participation in health checkups and cancer screening among family caregivers of individuals with dementia. Methods: This study analyzed a total of 2,414 family caregivers of individuals with dementia, using the Korea Community Health Survey (KCHS) data in 2017. A binomial logistic regression analysis was performed to identify demographic, socioeconomic, and health status factors associated with health checkups and cancer screening participation among family caregivers of individuals with dementia. Results: The health checkups and cancer screening rates among family caregivers of individuals with dementia patients were 68.7% and 61.4%, respectively, which were significantly lower than those who do not provide care. Those with lower education level had lower odds ratios for both health checkups(OR: 0.60) and cancer screening(OR: 0.59). In addition, symptoms of depression were associated with lower participation(Health checkups OR: 0.67; Cancer screening OR: 0.65). Conclusions: It is needed to develop more targeted disease prevention and management strategies for family caregivers of individuals with dementia, particularly those with lower education level and symptoms of depression.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions on depressive symptoms in people after stroke. DATA SOURCES: A literature search was performed through the following databases from January 2000 to August 2018: MEDLINE; CINAHL Plus; Scopus; Academic Search Complete; Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials; Scopus; and Library, Information Science and Technology Abstracts. Search terms included depression, stroke, non-pharmacologic, and intervention. STUDY SELECTION: We included randomized controlled trials comparing non-pharmacological interventions to control conditions for depressive symptoms in people following stroke. Of 1703 identified articles, 22 trials were included in narrative synthesis, of which 13 were eligible for meta-analysis. All trials were included once their outcome assessments were blinded. DATA EXTRACTION: Two reviewers were involved in the data extraction process. Characteristics of participants, interventions, and methods and results (means and standard deviations) were extracted from all included trials. DATA SYNTHESIS: Thirteen non-pharmacological interventions were categorized into four types: complementary and alternative therapy (five trials, 228 participants), exercise (four trials, 263 participants), psychosocial therapy (two trials, 216 participants), and multifactorial therapy (two trials, 358 participants). Overall beneficial effects of non-pharmacological interventions on depressive symptoms were found both post-intervention (effect size [ES] = −0.24, 95% confidence Interval [CI]: −0.37 to −0.11, p < 0.05) and at follow-up (ES = −0.22, CI: −0.36 to −0.07, p < 0.05). We found individual beneficial effects for complementary and alternative therapy (ES = −0.29, CI: −0.55 to −0.02, p < 0.05) and psychosocial therapy (ES = − 0.33, CI: −0.60 to −0.06, p < 0.05) post-intervention. CONCLUSIONS: Non-pharmacological interventions can be effective in addressing depressive symptoms in people after stroke. Complementary and alternative therapy and psychosocial therapy appear to be promising strategies for improving post-stroke depressive symptoms. Future studies are required to identify a personalized approach for people with specific conditions such as cognitive impairment.

In this paper, we describe our vision to accelerate algorithms in the domain of genomic data analysis by proposing a framework called Genesis (genome analysis) that contains an interface and an implementation of a system that processes genomic data efficiently. This framework can be deployed in the cloud and exploit the FPGAs-as-a-service paradigm to provide cost-efficient secondary DNA analysis. We propose conceptualizing genomic reads and associated read attributes as a very large relational database and using extended SQL as a domain-specific language to construct queries that form various data manipulation operations. To accelerate such queries, we design a Genesis hardware library which consists of primitive hardware modules that can be composed to construct a dataflow architecture specialized for those queries. As a proof of concept for the Genesis framework, we present the architecture and the hardware implementation of several genomic analysis stages in the secondary analysis pipeline corresponding to the best known software analysis toolkit, GATK4 workflow proposed by the Broad Institute. We walk through the construction of genomic data analysis operations using a sequence of SQL-style queries and show how Genesis hardware library modules can be utilized to construct the hardware pipelines designed to accelerate such queries. We exploit parallelism and data reuse by utilizing a dataflow architecture along with the use of on-chip scratchpads as well as non-blocking APIs to manage the accelerators, allowing concurrent execution of the accelerator and the host. Our accelerated system deployed on the cloud FPGA performs up to $ 19.3\times$ better than GATK4 running on a commodity multi-core Xeon server and obtains up to $ 15\times$ better cost savings. We believe that if a software algorithm can be mapped onto a hardware library to utilize the underlying accelerator(s) using an already-standardized software interface such as SQL, while allowing the efficient mapping of such interface to primitive hardware modules as we have demonstrated here, it will expedite the acceleration of domainspecific algorithms and allow the easy adaptation of algorithm changes.

Recently, many studies have highlighted the importance of the ability to predict the Arctic sea ice concentration in the sub-seasonal time scales. Notably, the Arctic sea ice concentration has a potential for skillful predictions through their long-term trend memory. Based on the long-term memory of Arctic sea ice concentration, we evaluate the predictability of Arctic sea ice concentration (SIC) by applying a time-series analysis technique of the Prophet model on sub-seasonal time scales. A Prophet is a recently introduced method as a statistical approach inspired by the nature of time series forecasted at Facebook and has not been applied to the prediction of Arctic SIC before. Sub-seasonal prediction skills of Arctic SIC in the Prophet model were compared with the NCEP Climate Forecast System Reforecast (CFS-Reforecast) model as a dynamical approach and verified with the satellite observation during wintertime from 2000 to 2018 for 1 to 8 weeks lead times. The result shows that the Prophet model exhibits much better skill than the NCEP CFS-Reforecast model in the climatology prediction except for the 1 to 3 weeks lead times, as the Prophet model has mainly the ability to capture the long-term trend. In the anomaly prediction, however, the NCEP CFS-Reforecast model is superior to the Prophet model in the prediction of sub-seasonal time scales, as the NCEP CFS-Reforecast captures more effectively the sub-seasonal transition of the underlying dynamical system. Therefore, even if the Prophet model has shown a useful skill in predicting the climatological Arctic SIC, there is still a need to improve the accuracy and robustness of the predictions in an anomalous Arctic SIC. Further, we suggest that the bias correction method is needed to improve the forecast skill of Arctic SIC using the time-series analysis technique, and it will be critical to advance the field of the Arctic SIC forecasting on the sub-seasonal time scales.

Inverted index serves as a fundamental data structure for efficient search across various applications such as full-text search engine, document analytics and other information retrieval systems. The storage requirement and query load for these structures have been growing at a rapid rate. Thus, an ideal indexing system should maintain a small index size with a low query processing time. Previous works have mainly focused on using CPUs and GPUs to exploit query parallelism while utilizing state-of-the-art compression schemes to fit the index in memory. However, scaling parallelism to maximally utilize memory bandwidth on these architectures is still challenging. In this work, we present IIU, a novel inverted index processing unit, to optimize the query performance while maintaining a low memory overhead for index storage. To this end, we co-design the indexing scheme and hardware accelerator so that the accelerator can process highly compressed inverted index at a high throughput. In addition, IIU provides flexible interconnects between modules to take advantage of both intra- and inter-query parallelism. Our evaluation using a cycle-level simulator demonstrates that IIU provides an average of 13.8\times× query latency reduction and 5.4\times× throughput improvement across different query types, while reducing the average energy consumption by 18.6\times×, compared to Apache Lucene, a production-grade full-text search framework.

Background Acquired brain injury can cause disorders of consciousness. An additive effect of cerebrolysin and amantadine has been postulated, but not systematically studied. The present study aimed to investigate this additive effect in patients with disorders of consciousness secondary to acquired brain injury. Methods The medical records of patients diagnosed with disorders of consciousness after acquired brain injury were reviewed. The patients were categorized into 2 groups: single regimen (amantadine only) and dual regimen (amantadine plus cerebrolysin). The patients' conscious states were assessed using the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (CRS-R) before, and after 4 weeks of drug administration. Results Data for a total of 84 patients were analysed. The degree of change in CRS-R and the proportion of patients in the disorders of consciousness category showing a change was higher in the dual regimen group than in the single regimen group. Analysis of patients who had initially been in a prolonged vegetative state or minimally conscious state minus before administration showed that the patients in the dual regimen group had greater increases in CRS-R scores than those in the single regimen group. Conclusion This study identified that an amantadine-plus-cerebrolysin regimen additively affects patients with prolonged disorders of consciousness. A future controlled trial is needed to investigate the efficacy of each regimen in patients with prolonged disorders of consciousness secondary to acquired brain injury, particularly for patients who have remained in a prolonged vegetative state after acquired brain injury.

Additional file 1.

The correct perception of visual information in the design of human-machine systems is one of the most important factors to consider for improving the usability and safety of systems. Humans rely on sight for more than 80% of the information that is processed in their work performance and daily lives. However, the recognition of visual stimuli is not always accurate. Human beings do not recognize the subtle changes in visual stimuli. Such characteristics should be considered in the visual information design of human-machine systems. The study was conducted on the assumption that the layout of visual stimuli could affect human cognitive performance. The effect of signal stimulus location on the visual stimulus array was investigated through the experiments. Three black circles were used as an experimental stimulus. The reference stimulus was a 30 mm diameter circle and the signal stimulus was a 30.8 mm diameter circle. The signal stimulus was the size that 90% of the subjects correctly determined in the JND measurement experiment. The experimental equipment was a tachistoscope and 20 college students participated as subjects. The subjects judged whether the three circles presented in the horizontal or vertical direction were the same size. They pressed the left button if they were the same and pressed the right button for the other. As a result, the location of the signal stimulus in the horizontal arrangement of visual stimuli did not significantly affect the error rate and response time of the stimulus judgment. However, the location of the signal stimulus in the vertical arrangement had a significant effect on the error rate and response time, and the error rate and response time were the smallest when the signal stimulus was located at the center. These results should be considered in the visual information design or interface design.

We analyzed the contents of 38 primary metabolites and 9 minerals in the leaves and roots of bell pepper (Capsicum annuum L. var. angulosum) to study metabolic responses to deficiency in nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, or magnesium. Induced deficiencies of individual cations reduced the abundance of the other cations in both leaves and roots. Each nutrient-deficient condition was clearly grouped by principal component analysis, which also showed that leaves under cation-deficiency treatments were separated from those under non-cation-deficiency treatments. This was consistent with that a single cation deficiency decreased the levels of the other cations in leaves. Specifically, N deficiency reduced amino acids and organic acids in both tissues. The common response to P-, K-, Ca- or Mg-deficient conditions showed significant increases in the levels of amino acids in both tissues and organic acids in the roots. In the leaves, P- or Mg-deficient conditions reduced organic acids. Soluble carbohydrates were significantly increased under N-, K-, Ca- or Mg-deficient conditions in the leaves, whereas in roots under K deficiency. Notably, the level of γ-aminobutyric acid, an amino acid that helps protect against biotic and abiotic stresses, was increased threefold in leaves under K-deficient conditions and sixfold in roots under P-, K-, Ca-, or Mg-deficient conditions. These findings provide additional information about variations in metabolite and mineral abundance in bell pepper leaves and roots in response to mineral shortage.

Plants regulate a number of primary metabolites, including carbohydrates, organic acids, and amino acids, in response to UV-B radiation. Therefore, it is essential to understand the time-dependent response of rice plants to UV-B stress. This study focused on the response of plants to UV-B at different leaf developmental phases (emerging, growing, and maturing) in an attempt to fully comprehend the metabolic shift. We analyzed the expression levels of genes related to starch/sucrose metabolism in the leaf blades of rice seedlings (Oryza sativa L. “Saechuchenog”) exposed to UV-B irradiation for short (1 day) and long terms (5 days) using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. We also examined the diurnal variations in the contents of primary metabolites using an established GCTOF-MS (gas chromatography time of flight-mass spectrometry) method. The results showed that the levels of primary metabolites were largely dependent upon the diurnal rhythm and leaf developmental phase. The young leaves (sink) produced and accumulated starch rather than sucrose. The short-term (4 h, 1 day) UV-B exposure inhibited sucrose synthesis, which could be the first target of UV-B radiation. Following short- and long-term (5 days) exposure to UV-B radiation, the dynamic response of primary metabolites was evaluated. It was found that the content of carbohydrates decreased throughout the period of exposure to UV-B stress, especially in terms of sucrose concentration. However, the content of the majority of amino acids increased after an early decrease. Our data revealed that the metabolic response, as well as the gene expression, differed with the period (intensity) of exposure to UV-B radiation and with the phase of leaf development. These findings provide new insights for a better understanding of the metabolic response of a variety of plant species exposed to a wide range of UV-B radiation.

Astragalus extract mixture (AEM) HT042 is a functional food approved by the MFDS (Korean FDA) for increasing height. It comprises a mixture of three standardized extracts from Astragalus membranaceus root, Eleutherococcus senticosus stem, and Phlomis umbrosa root. In this study, drug–functional food interaction was analyzed using six major human cytochrome P450 enzymes. The inhibitory effect of AEM HT042 on P450 activities was studied using a P450–NADPH P450 reductase reconstitution system. Among the six P450 enzymes (1A2, 2A6, 2B6, 2D6, 2C9, and 3A4), only P450 2B6 activity was markedly decreased by AEM HT042 addition. The bupropion hydroxylation activity of P450 2B6 was analyzed using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC–MS/MS). A calculated IC(50) value of 10.62 µg/ml was obtained. To identify the inhibitory compounds in the mixture, four active compounds in AEM HT042 were analyzed. Shanzhiside methylester exhibited inhibitory effects on P450 2B6, whereas formononetin, eleutheroside E, and sesamoside did not affect P450 2B6 activity at all. Our results suggest that shanzhiside methylester in AEM HT042 is responsible for the inhibitory effect on P450 2B6 metabolism. Characterization of the inhibitory effect on P450 can help determine the safe administration of functional foods along with many clinical drugs that are metabolized by P450.

This study examined the effect of disclosing a list of hospitals with Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) patients on the number of laboratory-confirmed MERS-CoV cases in South Korea. MERS-CoV data from 20 May 2015 to 5 July 2015 were from the Korean Ministry of Health &amp, Welfare website and analyzed using segmented linear autoregressive error models for interrupted time series. This study showed that the number of laboratory-confirmed cases was increased by 14.629 on June 5 (p &lt, 0.001). However, this number was significantly decreased following disclosure of a list of hospitals with MERS-CoV cases (Estimate = &minus, 0.948, p &lt, 0.001). Disclosing the list of hospitals exposed to MERS-CoV was critical to the prevention of further infection. It reduced the number of confirmed MERS-CoV cases. Thus, providing accurate and timely information is a key to critical care response.

Human cytochrome P450 2B6 is an important hepatic enzyme for the metabolism of xenobiotics and clinical drugs. Recently, more attention has been paid to P450 2B6 because of the increasing number of drugs it metabolizes. It has been known to interact with terpenes, the major constituents of the essential oils used for various medicinal purposes. In this study, the effect of monoterpenes on P450 2B6 catalytic activity was investigated. Recombinant P450 2B6 was expressed in Escherichia coli and purified using Ni-affinity chromatography. The purified P450 2B6 enzyme displayed bupropion hydroxylation activity in gas-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis with a kcat of 0.5 min−1 and a Km of 47 μM. Many terpenes displayed the type I binding spectra to purified P450 2B6 enzyme and α-terpinyl acetate showed strong binding affinity with a Kd value of 5.4 μM. In GC-MS analysis, P450 2B6 converted α-terpinyl acetate to a putative oxidative product. The bupropion hydroxylation activity of P450 2B6 was inhibited by α-terpinyl acetate and its IC50 value was 10.4 μM α-Terpinyl acetate was determined to be a competitive inhibitor of P450 2B6 with a Ki value of 7.6 μM. The molecular docking model of the binding site of the P450 2B6 complex with α-terpinyl acetate was constructed. It showed the tight binding of α-terpinyl acetate in the active site of P450 2B6, which suggests that it could be a competitive substrate for P450 2B6.

The atmospheric distillation residue (ADR) of cork oak (CO) pyrolysis oil was used as the co-feeding material for the catalytic pyrolysis of CO over HZSM-5 catalysts to improve the formation of aromatic hydrocarbons. Although the non-catalytic copyrolysis of CO and ADR did not improve the formation of aromatic hydrocarbons, the catalytic copyrolysis of CO and ADR promoted the synergistic formation of aromatic hydrocarbons. HZSM-5(30), having a lower SiO2/Al2O3(30), showed better performance for the formation of aromatic hydrocarbons than HZSM-5(80) because of its higher acidity. The catalytic copyrolysis of CO and ADR also decreased the formation of coke. The largest quantity of aromatic hydrocarbons was obtained from the catalytic copyrolysis of CO and ADR over HZSM-5 (30) at 600 °C, whereas the lowest coke yield was achieved at 700 °C. When the catalyst to sample ratio was increased from 2:1 to 5:1, the synergistic formation of aromatic hydrocarbons was limited, resulting in a lower experimental yield of aromatic hydrocarbons than the theoretical yield. A lower coke yield was also achieved at a high catalyst to sample ratio (5:1).

Background: The purpose of this study was to analyze the mental health status of Danwon students who survived the Sewol ferry disaster. The study also evaluated the mental health effects of the disaster on the survivors.Methods: Questionnaires were used to collect data from selected respondents. It was found that high family function and adolescents strengths influence the quality of life of the survivors significantly.Results: Higher scores on the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales (p Limitation: It is difficult to explain the causal relationship and generalize due to cross-sectionals study with small sample size.Conclusions: Family function and adolescents strengths had the significant relationship with higher quality of life of survivors. This finding offers important insight into understanding the effects of such accident, and suggest the importance the family and mental health to survivors of disasters.

Background Caregiving for an individual with Down syndrome (DS) results in needs that can impact the stress and wellbeing of the entire family. These needs may also vary over the lifespan of the individual with DS. Coping strategies may affect stress levels and reduce the effects of unmet needs. Aims (1) Do important unmet needs (IUNs), coping, and stress vary between parents and caregivers of adults compared to children with DS? (2) What is the relationship between stress, coping, and needs for parents and caregivers of people with DS? Methods 152 parents and caregivers of people with DS of various age groups completed an online survey including: demographic information, Family Needs Survey - Revised, Questionnaire on Resources and Stress – Friedrich Version, and the Family Crisis Oriented Personal Scales. Comparisons of IUNs, coping and stress between caregivers of adults and caregivers of children with DS were conducted. Relationships between stress, coping, and needs were explored using correlations and multiple regression. Results IUNs were greater for parents and caregivers of children than for parents and caregivers of adults. Stress level was positively correlated with the number of IUNs, and great use of coping strategies were associated with less stress and fewer IUNs. The coping styles that predicted stress were different for caregivers of children versus adults. Conclusion The results of this research highlight the importance of considering age in relation to needs and stress among families with a child with DS. Fostering effective coping strategies, including acquiring social support, is likely to support positive outcomes for caregivers of people with DS.

Purpose: While sleeping problems increase with advancing age, there are inherent differences in sleep between males and females. Previous studies have shown inconsistent results of the relationship between sleep duration and risk of injury from falling. While controlling various sociodemographic and health-related factors, national representative data were used in order to analyze the association between sleep duration and injury from falling among older adults.Materials and Methods: The data were obtained from the Korean Community Health Survey of 2011. A total of 55654 individuals aged 65 years and older participated in the study. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was conducted to identify the factors associated with injury from falling.Results: After adjusting for covariates, such as age, sex, marital status, whether or not an individual is a recipient of benefits from the National Basic Livelihood Act, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, stress level, and self-rated health status, those who slept five hours or less per day [odds ratio (OR)=1.26; 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.18–1.34; pp=0.001) presented significantly higher ORs for injury from falling. A similar result was found when we conducted stratification by sex.Conclusion: The current study supports that there is a relationship between short sleep duration and injury from falling and also identified a marginal risk of long sleep in older adults. Therefore, sleep management in older adults with inadequate sleep duration may be necessary.

Research Objectives To investigate emotional predictors of post-stroke participation Design A prospective cross-sectional study. We performed an independent t-test and Pearson's correlation to identify variables for regression models. Then, we built multiple linear regression models using stepwise selection to determine predictors of post-stroke participation. Setting Community. Participants 71 community-dwelling stroke survivors. Interventions Not applicable. Main Outcome Measures Dependent variables, which are participation measures, were the Stroke Impact Scale (SIS)-Participation/Role Function for model 1, Activity Card Sort (ACS) total percent retained for model 2, and Reintegration to Normal Living (RNL) total score for model 3. Emotional independent variables included SIS Emotion, Visual Analog Mood Scale (VAMS) energetic, and happy subscales, Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI)-Trait, and Apathy Evaluation Scale (AES). Results Based on independent t-tests and Pearson's correlations, all six emotional variables were retained in regression models and education, and total NIHSS score for model 1, education for model 2, and total NIHSS score for model 3 (p Conclusions Although all three outcome measures were designed to assess participation, they consisted of different activities such as work, social activities etc. and had slightly different methods for ascertaining participation. Our results suggest that different emotional predictors may influence participation, though emotion is an important predictor regardless of participation outcome measure. Author(s) Disclosures None disclosed.

This paper investigates the use of a benchtop NMR for quantification of a commonly used frothing agent, methyl isobutyl carbinol (MIBC) in the process water of a coal preparation facility. Solid phase extraction is used to increase the concentration of MIBC in the sample so that it is quantifiable by a benchtop NMR. A polymeric, reversed phase column with methanol as solvent gives a MIBC recovery rate of 67 ± 4 % as determined using 400 MHz high-field NMR. The recovery rate consistently falls in the above narrow range even in the presence of diesel and inorganic electrolytes which are likely present as background chemicals in the process water. Using the average MIBC recovery rate, we use a quantum mechanical model to analyse the intensity of MIBC in the benchtop spectra. The quantum mechanical modelling algorithm effectively excludes the effect of the diesel on the measured NMR signal. The quantification error when the inlet concentration of MIBC is between 1 and 12 mg/L (1.2–15 ppm v/v), is within 0.5 mg/L (0.6 ppm v/v).

The catalytic pyrolysis of biomass using zeolites as catalysts is a promising technique for the production of renewable chemicals and fuels. On the other hand, the low effective hydrogen to carbon ratio of biomass results in a hydrogen-deficient hydrocarbon pool inside the catalyst and in turn the formation of carbonaceous deposits, which causes catalyst deactivation. The catalytic copyrolysis of cellulose and polypropylene was conducted using ZSM-5, desilicated ZSM-5, and Al-SBA-15. The co-feeding of polypropylene with cellulose led to the enhanced formation of aromatic hydrocarbons due to the increased hydrogen content of feedstock and the interaction between the cellulose-derived furans and olefins obtained from polypropylene. Microporous zeolites resulted in the production of more aromatic hydrocarbons compared to mesoporous Al-SBA-15. In addition, desilicated ZSM-5 showed better catalytic performance than the parent ZSM-5 due to the presence of larger channels that facilitate the diffusion of compounds with a wider range of molecular sizes.

Tungstated zirconia (WO3/ZrO2 with WO3 loadings of 9.9 (WZ9.9), 15.5 (WZ15.5), and 15.7 wt% (WZ15.7)) and Amberlyst (15, 35, 36, 39 and 45) catalysts were employed to upgrade pyrolysis bio-oil of acacia sawdust through an esterification reaction using methanol at atmospheric pressure and room temperature or 80 °C. The upgrading efficiency was evaluated by measuring the total acid number (TAN) and viscosity. The viscosity and TAN of the resulting upgraded bio-oil were found to be dependent on the calcination temperature of the WO3/ZrO2 catalysts. At room temperature, the largest decrease in viscosity and TAN of the bio-oil and methanol mixture was obtained using WZ9.9 tungstated zirconia calcined at 900 °C. An increase in reaction temperature to 80 °C improved the flowability and TAN of the methanol-added bio-oil using WZ9.9 activated at 900 °C. The product distribution of the bio-oil upgraded using methanol revealed esterification to be the dominant reaction pathway under the reaction conditions of this study. When the ether extracted bio-oil was upgraded at 80 °C using methanol over catalysts, the Amberlyst catalysts were found more effective than tungstated zirconia catalysts in enhancing the esterification reaction and reducing TAN.

Purpose The seams of slim fit outdoor pants can be uncomfortable or even restrict body movement. To reduce discomfort, the authors need to determine optimal cutting lines in various designs that do not interfere with body movement. The purpose of this paper is to apply skin deformation mapping during movement to the ergonomic design of outdoor pants, focusing in particular on the 2D pattern generation of the crotch area in a 3D shape during movement. Design/methodology/approach A 3D shape and skin length deformation of the lower body were observed, including the crotch area, which is difficult to examine on the human body. To design ergonomic and streamlined outdoor pants, the authors selected seam lines where the changes in skin deformation are at their minimum based on the skin deformation mapping. In addition, the inseam along the medial thigh close to the crotch was removed to adjust the skin length of these areas, thereby increasing the extensible area of fabric necessary to adjust to a skin deformation. After selecting the seam lines, each of the 3D pattern blocks was generated by means of a 2D flattening method. In addition, the stress distribution of overlapped replica blocks along the crotch line during the 2D flattening process is a main independent factor to avoid deteriorating lower body movement as well as a good appearance. Findings Based on the results of skin deformation mapping of a human subject, this study suggested that it is best that the design line crosses where there is no skin deformation possible. And the pants were developed without the inner seam line at the upper medial thigh because of skin deformation of a large range of ±6 percent in the upper medial thigh during a 90° knee flexion or in the squatting down position. In a wear test, the developed 3D pattern without an inseam was rated higher than that with an inseam. This verified that removing the inseam, to prevent skin deformation of the medial upper thigh during knee flexion and squatting, is a logical decision. Regarding the correction of the overlapping area during arrangement of the replica, the appearance of the front of the pants was improved when 80 percent of the overlapping area was distributed near the point of the error source, which is the front of the male’s crotch line. Originality/value In this study, the crotch area, which has been difficult to observe in previous studies, were observed thoroughly and it was found that the length of the crotch curve did not increase during movement. In addition, skin deformation was mapped during a 90° knee flexion or in the squatting down position. It is expected that the overall process of developing 3D streamlined outdoor pants from 3D skin deformation mapping can be expanded to the development of patterns for other customized functional pants.

Various methods for assessing soil total nitrogen (TN) and inorganic N content have been developed to manage nutrient and to understand N cycle in soil. This paper address the technical procedures in arable soil samples to conduct soil sampling, sample preparation, and measuring total N and inorganic N. Among various methods for measuring soil total nitrogen contents, Kjeldahl distillation and Indophenol blue method have widely used due to reliability and economic advances. Also, two methods can analyze more samples at the same time compared with other nitrogen measuring methods. For evaluating inorganic N content, mainly in forms of nitrate-N (NO₃ - -N) and ammonium-N (NH₄ + -N), extraction with a single reagent such as 2M KCl has been employed, followed by Kjeldahl distillation or indophenol blue methods.

The change in acidity of pyrolysis bio-oil was investigated using the catalytic pyrolysis of cork oak over zirconia synthesized by supercritical hydrothermal synthesis using a fixed bed reactor. Catalytic pyrolysis over zirconia reduced the content of acetic acid considerably and showed high selectivity to ketones and high-value-added aromatic compounds.

Background The differential effects of bilateral and unilateral training on upper extremity (UE) function remain unclear. Objective To compare the effectiveness of bilateral and unilateral training on UE function and activities of daily living (ADL) after stroke. Methods Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were selected for inclusion by two reviewers after searching the following databases: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), and KoreaMed. Methodological qualities were assessed using the PEDro scale. Effect size was estimated by calculating the standardized mean difference (SMD). Results Eleven RCTs of sufficient quality were included in our meta-analysis. The effect size on UE capacity was statistically significant in favor of the Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy (CIMT) groups (SMD [fixed], g: - 0.34; 95% CI: - 0.59-0.08; p = 0.01; I2 = 0%). No other SMDs were significant. Conclusion The CIMT tasks were more effective than bilateral training with regard to increased UE capacity; however, this result should be cautiously interpreted since the evaluation tools were designed for assessment of unilateral UE function, not bilateral UE function. Further, the effect of the CIMT tasks on UE capacity was not translated into ADL. Considering the disadvantages of CIMT such as fatigue, bilateral training may be more appropriate for improving ADL.