The effectiveness of an augmented reality app in online civil engineering learning: Journal of the Association for Programmed Learning

In this study, an AR-based mobile learning application is proposed to assist online civil engineering course learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. A quasi-experiment has been conducted, and feedback from both the teacher and students has been analysed to examine the effectiveness of the proposed approach in terms of learning achievements. The subjects were 46 sophomores who majored in civil engineering in one class taught by one instructor in a southern U.S. state university. The quasi-experimental results showed that the proposed approach could not significantly improve the students' online learning achievements. However, the feedbacks brought some explanation to this non-significant result. They indicated that students found this mobile AR app to be an interesting, helpful, practical, and effective approach in their online learning that helped them gain more in-depth knowledge than traditional teacher-centred classroom instruction.

Identification of the Hub Genes and the Signaling Pathways in Human iPSC-Cardiomyocytes Infected by SARS-CoV-2.

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is an enveloped single-stranded RNA virus that can lead to respiratory symptoms and damage many organs such as heart, kidney, intestine, brain and liver. It has not been clearly documented whether myocardial injury is caused by direct infection of cardiomyocytes, lung injury, or other unknown mechanisms. The gene expression profile of GSE150392 was obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. The processing of high-throughput sequencing data and the screening of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were implemented by R software. The R software was employed to analyze the Gene Ontology (GO) analysis and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis. The protein-protein interaction (PPI) network of the DEGs was constructed by the STRING website. The Cytoscape software was applied for the visualization of PPI network and the identification of hub genes. The statistical analysis was performed by the GraphPad Prism software to verify the hub genes. A total of 516 up-regulated genes and 191 down-regulated genes were screened out. The top 1 enrichment items of GO in biological process (BP), Cellular Component (CC), and Molecular Function (MF) were type I interferon signaling pathway, sarcomere, and receptor ligand activity, respectively. The top 10 enrichment pathways, including TNF signaling pathway, were identified by KEGG enrichment analysis. A PPI network was established, consisting of 613 nodes and 3,993 edges. The 12 hub genes were confirmed as statistically significant, which was verified by GSE151879 dataset. In conclusion, the hub genes of human iPSC-cardiomyocytes infected with SARS-CoV-2 were identified through bioinformatics analysis, which may be used as biomarkers for further research.

ARIMA model forecasting analysis of the prices of multiple vegetables under the impact of the COVID-19.

As a large agricultural country, China's vegetable prices affect the increase in production and income of farmers and the daily life of urban and rural residents and influence the healthy development of Chinese agriculture. 51,567 vegetable price data of 2020 are analyzed to determine the factors that influence vegetable price fluctuations in two dimensions (vertical and horizontal) in the special context of the COVID-19, and an ARIMA model of short-term price prediction is then employed and evaluated. Based on the factors affecting vegetable prices, the results of the model are further examined. Finally, pertinent suggestions are made for the development of the local vegetable industry in the post-epidemic era.

Sensitivity of Fusarium pseudograminearum isolates to fludioxonil in Henan Province, China

Wheat crown rot caused by Fusarium pseudograminearum has become an important soilborne disease and affects the quality and yield of wheat. In order to detect the sensitivity of F. pseudograminearum to fludioxonil in Henan Province, China, 105 isolates of F. pseudograminearum were collected from six cities in 2019. Sensitivity was determined by the mycelial growth rate method, then the methods of least-significant difference (LSD) and SPSS cluster were used for result analysis. The sensitivity of F. pseudograminearum to carbendazim and tebuconazole was determined and the correlation coefficient which existed between fludioxonil and the two fungicides, carbendazim and tebuconazole was analyzed. The results showed that the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of fludioxonil was 0.240 0 μg/mL. The sensitivity frequency distribution was a continuous single peak curve, and the EC50 value ranged from 0.002 7 to 0.047 0 μg/mL. The average EC50 value of (0.026 3 ± 0.010 1) μg/mL, could be used as the sensitivity baseline of the pathogen to fludioxonil. The variance analysis results showed that the sensitivity of the different cities to fludioxonil was different, and the EC50 value ranged from 0.015 0 to 0.033 5 μg/mL. The maximum EC50 value of the isolate from Zhongmu County Zhengzhou City was 16.78 times bigger than the minimum value. Cluster analysis showed that there was no significant correlation between the sensitivity of isolates to fludioxonil and their geographical origin. The mean EC50 values of carbendazimand tebuconazole against the pathogens were (0.788 1 ± 0.315 3) μg/mL and (0.088 6 ± 0.145 3) μg/mL, respectively. There was no significant correlation between the sensitivity of the isolates to fludioxonil, carbendazim and tebuconazole. The results of greenhouse trials showed that the control efficacy of fludioxonil suspension seed coat agent could reach 58.00% (75.0 μg a.i/g) in 2020 and 63.69% (50.0 μg a.i/g) in 2021 when used to treat wheat as a seed dressing agent. The results of this study provide the basis for the rational use of fludioxonil in the control of wheat crown rot and provide information for monitoring the sensitivity of pathogenic fungi to fungicides. (English) [ FROM AUTHOR] 由假禾谷镰刀菌 Fusarium pseudograminearum 引起的小麦茎基腐病已成为重要的土传 病害,并且影响小麦的品质和产量。为了明确中国河南省假禾谷镰刀菌对咯菌腈的敏感性，采用 菌丝生长速率法测定了咯菌腈对 2019 年从河南省 6 个地市分离的 105 株假禾谷镰刀菌 F. pseudograminearum 的敏感性，通过最小显著差异法 (LSD) 和 SPSS 聚类方法对测定结果进行了 分析，并测定了假禾谷镰刀菌对多菌灵和戊唑醇的敏感性，分析了咯菌腈与这两种杀菌剂毒力 的相关性。结果表明：咯菌腈对供试菌株的最低抑制浓度 (MIC) 为 0.240 0 μg/mL。敏感性频率 分布图显示，EC50 值范围在 0.002 7~0.047 0 μg/mL，敏感性差异达 17.41 倍；敏感性频率分布 为连续单峰曲线，平均 EC50 值为 (0.026 3 ± 0.010 1) μg/mL，可作为假禾谷镰刀菌对咯菌腈的敏 感性基线。方差分析结果显示，不同县市的小麦假禾谷镰刀菌对咯菌腈的敏感性差异较大， EC50 值变化范围为 0.015 0~0.033 5 μg/mL，其中咯菌腈对郑州中牟的敏感性最低和最高菌株的 EC50 值相差 16.78 倍。聚类分析结果显示，河南省小麦茎基腐病菌菌株对咯菌腈敏感性差异与 菌株的地理来源无明显关联性。多菌灵和戊唑醇对病菌的平均 EC50 值分别为 (0.788 1 ± 0.315 3) μg/mL 和 (0.088 6 ± 0.145 3) μg/mL。病菌对咯菌腈与其对多菌灵和戊唑醇的敏感性之间无明显 相关性。温室防效结果显示，用咯菌腈悬浮种衣剂对小麦进行拌种处理，2020 年 (咯菌腈有效 成分为 75.0 μg/g) 对小麦茎基腐病的防治效果可达 58.00%，2021 年 (咯菌腈有效成分为 50.0 μg/g) 的防治效果可达到 63.69%。本研究结果可为咯菌腈在小麦茎基腐病防治中的合理使用提供依 据，为病原菌对药剂的敏感性监测提供参考。 (Chinese) [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Chinese Journal of Pesticide Science / Nongyaoxue Xuebao is the property of Chinese Journal of Pesticide Science and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Early administration of COVID-19 convalescent plasma with high titer antibody content by live viral neutralization assay is associated with modest clinical efficacy.

The efficacy of COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) as a treatment for hospitalized patients with COVID-19 remains somewhat controversial; however, many studies have not evaluated CCP documented to have high neutralizing antibody titer by a highly accurate assay. To evaluate the correlation of the administration of CCP with titer determined by a live viral neutralization assay with 7- and 28-day death rates during hospitalization, a total of 23 118 patients receiving a single unit of CCP were stratified into two groups: those receiving high titer CCP (>250 50% inhibitory dilution, ID50; n = 13 636) or low titer CCP (≤250 ID50; n = 9482). Multivariable Cox regression was performed to assess risk factors. Non-intubated patients who were transfused with high titer CCP showed 1.1% and 1.7% absolute reductions in overall 7- and 28-day death rates, respectively, compared to those non-intubated patients receiving low titer CCP. No benefit of CCP was observed in intubated patients. The relative benefit of high titer CCP was confirmed in multivariable Cox regression. Administration of CCP with high titer antibody content determined by live viral neutralization assay to non-intubated patients is associated with modest clinical efficacy. Although shown to be only of modest clinical benefit, CCP may play a role in the future should viral variants develop that are not neutralized by other available therapeutics.

Zinc Intakes and Health Outcomes: An Umbrella Review

It is widely accepted that the zinc element is crucial in human beings. Zinc has gained more attention during the COVID-19 pandemic due to its utilization for the treatment and prevention of respiratory tract infections. However, some studies also pointed out that zinc intake might cause unwanted side effects and even be dangerous when overdosed. To reveal the relationship between zinc intake and health outcomes, we performed an umbrella review from human studies. In total, the umbrella review included 43 articles and identified 11 outcomes for dietary zinc intake and 86 outcomes for supplementary zinc intake. Dietary zinc intake in the highest dose would decrease the risk of overall and specific digestive tract cancers, depression, and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in adults. Supplementary zinc consumption in adults was linked to an improvement of depression, antioxidant capacity and sperm quality, higher serum zinc concentration, and lower concentration of inflammatory markers. Zinc supplementation in children would reduce the incidence of diarrhea and pneumonia, improve zinc deficiency and boost growth. However, zinc might not decrease all-cause mortality in adults or the in-hospital mortality of COVID-19. And better maternal and neonatal outcomes may not derive from pregnant women who consumed higher or lower doses of zinc supplementation (>20 mg/day and <20 mg/day, respectively). Dose-response analyses revealed that a daily 5 mg increment of zinc would lower the risk of colorectal and esophageal cancer, whereas a large dose of zinc supplementation (daily 100 mg) showed no benefit in reducing prostate cancer risk.

Development and Validation of a Treatment Benefit Index to Identify Hospitalized Patients With COVID-19 Who May Benefit From Convalescent Plasma.

Importance: Identifying which patients with COVID-19 are likely to benefit from COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) treatment may have a large public health impact. Objective: To develop an index for predicting the expected relative treatment benefit from CCP compared with treatment without CCP for patients hospitalized for COVID-19 using patients' baseline characteristics. Design, Setting, and Participants: This prognostic study used data from the COMPILE study, ie, a meta-analysis of pooled individual patient data from 8 randomized clinical trials (RCTs) evaluating CCP vs control in adults hospitalized for COVID-19 who were not receiving mechanical ventilation at randomization. A combination of baseline characteristics, termed the treatment benefit index (TBI), was developed based on 2287 patients in COMPILE using a proportional odds model, with baseline characteristics selected via cross-validation. The TBI was externally validated on 4 external data sets: the Expanded Access Program (1896 participants), a study conducted under Emergency Use Authorization (210 participants), and 2 RCTs (with 80 and 309 participants). Exposure: Receipt of CCP. Main Outcomes and Measures: World Health Organization (WHO) 11-point ordinal COVID-19 clinical status scale and 2 derivatives of it (ie, WHO score of 7-10, indicating mechanical ventilation to death, and WHO score of 10, indicating death) at day 14 and day 28 after randomization. Day 14 WHO 11-point ordinal scale was used as the primary outcome to develop the TBI. Results: A total of 2287 patients were included in the derivation cohort, with a mean (SD) age of 60.3 (15.2) years and 815 (35.6%) women. The TBI provided a continuous gradation of benefit, and, for clinical utility, it was operationalized into groups of expected large clinical benefit (B1; 629 participants in the derivation cohort [27.5%]), moderate benefit (B2; 953 [41.7%]), and potential harm or no benefit (B3; 705 [30.8%]). Patients with preexisting conditions (diabetes, cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases), with blood type A or AB, and at an early COVID-19 stage (low baseline WHO scores) were expected to benefit most, while those without preexisting conditions and at more advanced stages of COVID-19 could potentially be harmed. In the derivation cohort, odds ratios for worse outcome, where smaller odds ratios indicate larger benefit from CCP, were 0.69 (95% credible interval [CrI], 0.48-1.06) for B1, 0.82 (95% CrI, 0.61-1.11) for B2, and 1.58 (95% CrI, 1.14-2.17) for B3. Testing on 4 external datasets supported the validation of the derived TBIs. Conclusions and Relevance: The findings of this study suggest that the CCP TBI is a simple tool that can quantify the relative benefit from CCP treatment for an individual patient hospitalized with COVID-19 that can be used to guide treatment recommendations. The TBI precision medicine approach could be especially helpful in a pandemic.

Imbalance and breakout in the post-epidemic era: Research into the spatial patterns of freight demand network in six provinces of central China.

This study aims to explore the freight demand network spatial patterns in six provinces of central China from the perspective of the spread of the epidemic and the freight imbalance and breakout. To achieve this purpose, the big data of "cart search" demand information provided by small and medium freight enterprises on the freight information platform are analyzed. 343,690 pieces of freight demand big data on the freight information platform and Python, ArcGIS, UCINET, and Gephi software are used. The results show that: (1) The choke-point of unbalanced freight demand network is Wuhan, and the secondary choke-points are Hefei and Zhengzhou. (2) In southern China, a chain reaction circle of freight imbalance is formed with Wuhan, Hefei, and Nanchang as the centers. In northern China, a chain reaction circle of freight imbalance is formed with Zhengzhou and Taiyuan as the centers. (3) The freight demand of the six provinces in central China exhibits typical characteristics of long tail distribution with large span and unbalanced distribution. (4) The import and export of freight in different cities vary greatly, and the distribution is unbalanced. This study indicates the imbalance difference, chain reaction, keys and hidden troubles posed by the freight demand network. From the perspectives of freight transfer breakout, freight balance breakout, freight strength breakout, and breakout of freight periphery cities, we propose solutions to breakouts in the freight market in six provinces of central China in the post-epidemic era.

Fuzzy Portfolio Selection in COVID-19 Spreading Period Using Fuzzy Goal Programming Model

While the international lockdown for the COVID-19 pandemic has greatly influenced the global economy, we are still confronted with the dilemma about the economy recession when the stock market hits record highs repeatedly. As we know, since portfolio selection is often affected by many non-probabilistic factors, it is of not easiness to obtain the precise probability distributions of the return rates. Therefore, fuzzy portfolio model is proposed for solving the efficient portfolio when the economy environment remains in vagueness for the future. To manage such an investment, we revise the Chen and Tsaur’s fuzzy portfolio model by using fuzzy goal programming model. Then, two numerical examples are illustrated by the proposed model which shows that the portfolio selection can be solved by the linguistic imprecise goal of the expected return. With different linguistic descriptions for the imprecise goal of expected return for the future stock market, the optimal portfolio selection that can be solved under different investment risks which is considered better than Chen and Tsaur’s model in real world situations. The sensitivity analysis with some parameter groups can be provided for more invested risk selection in the portfolio analysis.

No Statistically Apparent Difference in Antiviral Effectiveness Observed Among Ribavirin Plus Interferon-Alpha, Lopinavir/Ritonavir Plus Interferon-Alpha, and Ribavirin Plus Lopinavir/Ritonavir Plus Interferon-Alpha in Patients With Mild to Moderate Coronavirus Disease 2019: Results of a Randomized, Open-Labeled Prospective Study.

BACKGROUND: Currently, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has spread globally, causing an unprecedented pandemic. However, there is no specific antiviral therapy for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We conducted a clinical trial to compare the effectiveness of three antiviral treatment regimens in patients with mild to moderate COVID-19. METHODS: This was a single-center, randomized, open-labeled, prospective clinical trial. Eligible patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 were randomized into three groups: ribavirin (RBV) plus interferon-α (IFN-α), lopinavir/ritonavir (LPV/r) plus IFN-α, and RBV plus LPV/r plus IFN-α at a 1:1:1 ratio. Each patient was invited to participate in a 28-d follow-up after initiation of an antiviral regimen. The outcomes include the difference in median interval to SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid negativity, the proportion of patients with SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid negativity at day 14, the mortality at day 28, the proportion of patients re-classified as severe cases, and adverse events during the study period. RESULTS: In total, we enrolled 101 patients in this study. Baseline clinical and laboratory characteristics of patients were comparable among the three groups. In the analysis of intention-to-treat data, the median interval from baseline to SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid negativity was 12 d in the LPV/r+IFN-α-treated group, as compared with 13 and 15 d in the RBV+IFN-α-treated group and in the RBV+LPV/r+ IFN-α-treated group, respectively (p=0.23). The proportion of patients with SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid negativity in the LPV/r+IFN-α-treated group (61.1%) was higher than the RBV+ IFN-α-treated group (51.5%) and the RBV+LPV/r+IFN-α-treated group (46.9%) at day 14; however, the difference between these groups was calculated to be statistically insignificant. The RBV+LPV/r+IFN-α-treated group developed a significantly higher incidence of gastrointestinal adverse events than the LPV/r+ IFN-α-treated group and the RBV+ IFN-α-treated group. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that there are no significant differences among the three regimens in terms of antiviral effectiveness in patients with mild to moderate COVID-19. Furthermore, the combination of RBV and LPV/r is associated with a significant increase in gastrointestinal adverse events, suggesting that RBV and LPV/r should not be co-administered to COVID-19 patients simultaneously. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: www.ClinicalTrials.gov, ID: ChiCTR2000029387. Registered on January 28, 2019.

Network-based drug repurposing for novel coronavirus 2019-nCoV/SARS-CoV-2.

Human coronaviruses (HCoVs), including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV, also known as SARS-CoV-2), lead global epidemics with high morbidity and mortality. However, there are currently no effective drugs targeting 2019-nCoV/SARS-CoV-2. Drug repurposing, representing as an effective drug discovery strategy from existing drugs, could shorten the time and reduce the cost compared to de novo drug discovery. In this study, we present an integrative, antiviral drug repurposing methodology implementing a systems pharmacology-based network medicine platform, quantifying the interplay between the HCoV-host interactome and drug targets in the human protein-protein interaction network. Phylogenetic analyses of 15 HCoV whole genomes reveal that 2019-nCoV/SARS-CoV-2 shares the highest nucleotide sequence identity with SARS-CoV (79.7%). Specifically, the envelope and nucleocapsid proteins of 2019-nCoV/SARS-CoV-2 are two evolutionarily conserved regions, having the sequence identities of 96% and 89.6%, respectively, compared to SARS-CoV. Using network proximity analyses of drug targets and HCoV-host interactions in the human interactome, we prioritize 16 potential anti-HCoV repurposable drugs (e.g., melatonin, mercaptopurine, and sirolimus) that are further validated by enrichment analyses of drug-gene signatures and HCoV-induced transcriptomics data in human cell lines. We further identify three potential drug combinations (e.g., sirolimus plus dactinomycin, mercaptopurine plus melatonin, and toremifene plus emodin) captured by the "Complementary Exposure" pattern: the targets of the drugs both hit the HCoV-host subnetwork, but target separate neighborhoods in the human interactome network. In summary, this study offers powerful network-based methodologies for rapid identification of candidate repurposable drugs and potential drug combinations targeting 2019-nCoV/SARS-CoV-2.