Sharif Digital Repository

Background: Type-2 diabetes mellitus is characterized by insulin resistance and impaired insulin secretion in the human body. Many endeavors have been made in terms of controlling and reducing blood glucose via the medium of automated controlling tools to increase precision and efficiency and reduce human error. Recently, reinforcement learning algorithms are proved to be powerful in the field of intelligent control, which was the motivation for the current study. Methods: For the first time, a reinforcement algorithm called normalized advantage function (NAF) algorithm has been applied as a model-free reinforcement learning method to regulate the blood glucose level of type-2 diabetic... 

Power systems are undergoing significant transformations due to the introduction of microgrids (MGs) and distributed energy resources (DERs). In this regard, MGs as new entities in the system facilitate the integration of independently operated DERs to the power system. In this structure, DERs would be operated by independent agents, while the microgrid's control unit (MCU) would coordinate agents' resource scheduling to maximize social welfare. In this structure, the uncertainty of resources operated by agents could lead to real-time energy imbalance in the MG resulting in agents' loss of profits. Consequently, a novel transactive-based-scheme is developed in this article to facilitate... 

Recently, due to the restructuring of power systems and the high penetration level of local renewables, distribution systems have encountered with the complexity of power management. Therefore, the modern systems would be operated in a multi-agent structure which facilitates the power management as well as privacy protections of independent entities. In this structure, the distribution system is assumed to compose of several agents who independently schedule their local resources in order to maximize their own profits. Consequently, this paper provides an efficient peer-to-peer (P2P) active power management framework in a multi-agent distribution system while considering network constraints... 

LncRNAs are involved in the modulation of several signaling pathways which have a crucial effect in the differentiation of periodontal ligament cells and the induction of cementum regeneration. Autophagy and Wnt signaling are two important pathways with a wide range of interrelationships associated with periodontitis. We chose four lncRNAs based on their potential interaction with these two pathways. We examined the expression of FOXD2-AS1, NNT-AS1, GAS8-AS1, and CCAT1 lncRNAs in tissues and blood specimens of patients with periodontitis and unaffected controls using qRT-PCR. Expression amounts of FOXD2-AS1 were lower in blood of cases compared with controls (relative expression (RE) = 0.08,... 

Three-dimensional biocompatible porous structures can be fabricated using different methods. However, the biological and mechanical behaviors of scaffolds are the center of focus in bone tissue engineering. In this study, tricalcium phosphate scaffolds with similar porosity contents but different pore morphologies were fabricated using two different techniques, namely, the replica method and the pore-forming agent method. The samples fabricated using the pore-forming agent showed more than two times higher compressive and bending strengths and more than three times higher compressive moduli. Furthermore, a thin layer of agarose coating improved the compressive and bending strength of both... 

In photoacoustic tomography (PAT) systems, the tangential resolution decreases due to the finite size of the transducer as the off-center distance increases. To address this problem, we propose a multi-angle detection approach in which the transducer used for data acquisition rotates around its center (with specific angles) as well as around the scanning center. The angles are calculated based on the central frequency and diameter of the transducer and the radius of the region-of-interest (ROI). Simulations with point-like absorbers (for point-spread-function evaluation) and a vasculature phantom (for quality assessment), and experiments with ten 0.5 mm-diameter pencil leads and a leaf... 

In this paper, a reduced multiple-model predictive controller based on gap metric and stability margin is presented to control heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. To tackle the strong nonlinearity and large number of degrees of freedom in HVAC system, two approaches, called Reduced Order Model Bank-Multiple Model (ROMB-MM) and Multiple Model-Reduced Order Model (MM-ROM), are introduced. In the first approach, the order reduction is performed prior to multiple models selection and in the second one multiple models selection is implemented before the model order reduction. Furthermore, soft switching is employed to enhance the closed-loop performance as well as to gain... 

Photocatalytic membrane reactors (PMRs), coupling photocatalysts and membranes in a single system, have shown a considerable potential to reduce membrane fouling, which is one of the major drawbacks of using membranes to treat water and wastewater. In this study, the visible light-activated photocatalysts were incorporated into the polyacrylonitrile (PAN) casting solution to synthesize the photocatalytic composite membranes. The physicochemical properties and the morphology of the membranes and photocatalysts were characterized by attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), ultraviolet–visible diffuse reflectance... 

This article presents the theory and implementation of a quadrature and differential RF front-end receiver. Combining balun, low-noise amplifier (LNA), mixer, and oscillator in a single stage, the proposed circuit, named the Blixator, is well suited for low-power applications. The baseband's transimpedance amplifier (TIA) also shares part of its dc current with the Blixator cell, resulting in sub-milliwatt power consumption. To avoid additional power and area by quadrature LO generation, the I/Q signals are generated at RF, employing the inductors already required for providing the dc current path of the LNA transistors. The expressions for gain, noise figure (NF), and phase noise of the... 

Objective: Spine kinematics, kinetics, and trunk muscle activities were evaluated during different stages of a fatigue-induced symmetric lifting task over time. Background: Due to neuromuscular adaptations, postural behaviors of workers during lifting tasks are affected by fatigue. Comprehensive aspects of these adaptations remain to be investigated. Method: Eighteen volunteers repeatedly lifted a box until perceived exhaustion. Body center of mass (CoM), trunk and box kinematics, and feet center of pressure (CoP) were estimated by a motion capture system and force-plate. Electromyographic (EMG) signals of trunk/abdominal muscles were assessed using linear and nonlinear approaches. The L5-S1... 

Apathy is a stressor and debilitating common condition for both stroke survivors and their caregivers. However, its effects on the postural control of these patients have not yet been investigated. Improved postural stability through withdrawing attention from postural control by concurrent cognitive task (i.e. dual-task condition) has been reported previously, but the effect of apathy, as a confounding factor, remains unknown. This study aimed to examine the effects of apathy and dual-task condition on postural control of chronic stroke survivors from biomechanical and neurophysiological perspectives. Twenty non-apathetic stroke survivors, 20 apathetic stroke survivors, and 20 sex-, age-,... 

The usage of conventional fossil fuels has aided fast economic growth while also having negative consequences, such as increased global warming and the destruction of the ecosystem. This paper proposes a novel swarm-based metaheuristic method called Chimp Optimization Algorithm (ChOA) to tackle the environmental, economic dispatch issue and reducing the waste nonrenewable materials. In this regard, two objective functions named fuel cost function and emission cost function are proposed. Unique constrained handling also solves the challenge of multi-objective optimization. Standard IEEE 30 bus with six generators and a 10-unit system are used to demonstrate the usefulness of ChOA. The result... 

Variable reluctance resolver (VR-Resolver) is a robust electromagnetic sensor that provides position information for closed-loop control systems of permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSMs). For specific motion control applications, an outer rotor structure is presented for the VR-Resolver in this article with a nonoverlapping tooth-coil windings configuration to simplify the manufacturing process. The study on the structure of the proposed position sensor is carried out, followed by the description of the working principle. The presented outer rotor VR-Resolver is simulated and its performance is investigated in detail with the aid of transient finite-element analysis (TFEA). Sensitivity... 

In recent years, key questions about the interaction of 2D MXene nanomaterials in electrochemical and biomedical applications have been raised. Most research has focused on clarifying the exclusive properties of the materials; however, only limited reports have described the biomedical applications of 2D nanomaterials. 2D MXenes are monolayer atomic nanosheets resulting from MAX phase ceramics. The hydrophilic properties, metallic conductivity, stability, and exclusive physiochemical performances make them promising materials for electrochemical and biomedical applications, including CO2 reduction, H2 evolution, energy conversion and storage, supercapacitors, stimuli-responsive drug delivery... 

Proteins possess a variety of nucleophiles, which can carry out different reactions in the functioning cells. Proteins endogenously and synthetically can be modified through their nucleophilic sites. The roles of these chemical modifications have not been completely revealed. These modifications can alter the protein folding process. Protein folding directly affects the function of proteins. If an error in protein folding occurs, it may cause protein malfunction leading to several neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. In this study, Hen Egg White Lysozyme (HEWL) and bovine insulin, as model proteins for studying the amyloid formation, were covalently attached with... 

COVID-19, as the most significant epidemic of the century, infected 467 million people and took the lives of more than 6 million individuals as of March 19, 2022. Due to the rapid transmission of the disease and the lack of definitive treatment, countries have employed non-pharmaceutical interventions. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of the smart travel ban policy, which has been implemented for non-commercial vehicles in the intercity highways of Iran since November 21, 2020. The other goal was to suggest efficient COVID-19 forecasting tools and to examine the association of intercity travel patterns and COVID-19 trends in Iran. To this end, weekly confirmed cases and... 

The spatial sparsity of targets in the radar scene is widely used in multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) radar signal processing, either to improve the detection/estimation performance of the radar or to reduce the cost of the conventional MIMO radars (e.g., by reducing the number of antennas). While sparse target estimation is the main challenge in such an approach, here, we address the design of a compressive-sensing-based MIMO radar, which facilitates such estimations. In particular, we propose an efficient solution for the problem of joint power allocation and antenna placement based on minimizing the number of transmit antennas while constraining the coherence of the sensing matrix.... 

A tri-layered nanofibrous hydrogel thin film with temperature sensitivity is introduced as a new controlled drug release system to treat breast cancer. A simultaneous heat generation with the tunable release of dual drugs is observed in response to visible light radiation. A tri-layered nanofibrous sheet was fabricated through sequential electrospinning the blends of Au@Chit@DOX-loaded poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-N-methylol acrylamide) (poly (NIPAAm-co-NMA)) and Curcumin-loaded poly (vinyl alcohol) (Cu-loaded PVA), where the Cu-loaded PVA nanofibers (NFs) are sandwiched between two layers of Au@Chit@DOX-loaded poly (NIPAAm-co-NMA) NFs. After thermal crosslinking of the tri-layered... 

The solar humidification-dehumidification desalination system with a subsurface condenser is a promising renewable energy-based desalination system. This desalination system is particularly suitable for condensation irrigation in greenhouses, especially where conventional energy sources are limited. A computational model of the system comprising a horizontal solar film evaporator and a subsurface condenser is developed. A previously proposed hybrid analytical–numerical model for horizontal ground heat exchangers is modified for the subsurface condenser. An experimental setup of the subsurface condenser is also built and used to verify the developed model of the subsurface condenser. The... 

Chitosan is a natural polymer with acceptable biocompatibility, biodegradability, and mechanical stability; hence, it has been widely appraised for drug and gene delivery applications. However, there has been no comprehensive assessment to tailor-make chitosan cross-linkers of various types and functionalities as well as complex chitosan-based semi- and full-interpenetrating networks for drug delivery systems (DDSs). Herein, various fabrication methods developed for chitosan hydrogels are deliberated, including chitosan crosslinking with and without diverse cross-linkers. Tripolyphosphate, genipin and multi-functional aldehydes, carboxylic acids, and epoxides are common cross-linkers used in...