bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Neurological update: hereditary neuropathies
Authors: Kramarz Caroline , Rossor Alexander M.
Published: May 2022

In this update, we review the recent discovery of autosomal recessive variants in sorbitol dehydrogenase as one of the commonest and potentially treatable causes of hereditary motor neuropathy and CMT2. We also report on recent therapeutic advances in hereditary neuropathy including the use of lipid nanoparticle sequestered antisense oligonucleotides in CMT1A and lipid nanoparticle delivered CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing in ATTR amyloidosis.
Continuum multiscale modeling of absorption processes in micro- and nanocatalysts
Authors: Köhler Maximilian , Junker Philipp , Balzani Daniel
Published: May 2022

In this paper, we propose a novel, semi-analytic approach for the two-scale, computational modeling of concentration transport in packed bed reactors. Within the reactor, catalytic pellets are stacked, which alter the concentration evolution. Firstly, the considered experimental setup is discussed and a naive one-scale approach is presented. This one-scale model motivates, due to unphysical fitted values, to enrich the computational procedure by another scale. The computations on the second scale, here referred to as microscale, are based on a proper investigation of the diffusion process in the catalytic pellets from which, after continuum-consistent considerations, a sink term for the macroscopic advection–diffusion–reaction process can be identified. For the special case of a spherical catalyst pellet, the parabolic partial differential equation at the microscale can be reduced to a single ordinary differential equation in time through a semi-analytic approach. After the presentation of our model, we show results for its calibration against the macroscopic response of a simple standard mass transport experiment. Based thereon, the effective diffusion parameters of the catalyst pellets can be identified.
Correlation of chemokines and growth factors with radiation-induced liver injury after interstitial high dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy of liver metastases
Authors: Damm Robert , Pech Maciej , Cavalli Paola , Haag Florian , Gylstorff Severin , Omari Jazan , Thormann Maximilian , Seidensticker Ricarda , Ricke Jens , Seidensticker Max , Relja Borna
Published: May 2022

Background

Locoregional therapies, as imaging-guided tumor-directed procedures, are emerging treatment strategies in the management of primary and secondary liver malignancies such as e.g. colorectal cancer liver metastases. As one of those, irradiation-based interstitial high dose rate brachytherapy (iBT) of liver metastases bears a risk of developing focal radiation-induced liver injury (fRILI). Since little is known about biological factors involved in hepatic dysfunction after irradiation, the aim of this study was to identify factors, that may play a role in the underlying mechanism of fRILI, and that potentially may serve as biomarkers for post-therapeutic fRILI to improve specific management and treatment of patients.

Methods

Twenty-two patients with hepatic malignancies (tumor patients, TP) underwent iBT with total ablative doses of radiation to the target volume ranging from e.g. 15 to 25 Gy. Hepatobiliary magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed 6 weeks after iBT to quanitify fRILI. Blood samples were taken before (pre) and 6 weeks after (post) iBT from TP, and from ten healthy volunteers (HV controls) for the analyses of humoral mediators: monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), chemokine (C-X3-C motif) ligand 1 (CX3CL1), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and beta-nerve growth factor (beta-NGF) using the Multi-Analyte Flow Assay via flow cytometry. Correlation analyses between the humoral mediators (pre and post iBT) with the tumor volume and fRILI were performed.

Results

While MCP-1 and CX3CL1 tended to decrease in TP vs. HV, VEGF was significantly decreased in TP vs. HV pre and post iBT (p < 0.05). Beta-NGF levels were significantly increased in TP vs. HV pre and post iBT (p < 0.05). Baseline circulating levels of MCP-1, VEGF and beta-NGF have shown significant positive correlations with the hepatic tumor volume (p < 0.05). Circulating levels of humoral mediators before treatment did not correlate with fRILI, while CX3CL1 and VEGF after iBT have shown significant positive correlations with fRILI (p < 0.05).

Conclusion

Tumor volume and threshold dose of irradiation damage correlated positively with MCP-1 and VEGF as well as NGF and CX3CL, respectively. Thus, investigation of biological mediators in blood samples from tumor patients may provide an appropriate tool to predict fRILI after interstitial HDR brachytherapy of liver metastases.
Ultrastructural organization of Halammohydra vermiformis Swedmark & Teissier, 1957 (Cnidaria: Hydrozoa)
Authors: Tödter Lenke , Schmidt-Rhaesa Andreas
Published: May 2022

Within meiofauna, cnidarians are represented by only a few species most of which are in the genus Halammohydra Remane, 1927. It represents highly modified medusae. Information about this group is limited, which complicates its placement in the Cnidarian tree and the relationship to another meiofaunal cnidarian, Otohydra Swedmark & Teissier, 1958. This needs to be clarified with molecular, but also with morphological methods. In this study, the internal organization of H. vermiformis Swedmark & Teissier, 1957 from Sylt and Helgoland (Germany) was examined using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The ultrastructure of both sexes is documented in this study, i.e. the gastric tube including gonadal compartment, aboral cone, statocysts and tentacles. It is proposed that spermatozoa and oocytes are not released into the water through the gastrodermis, but by rupture of the epidermis, because of structural changes in the epidermis. In both, male and female, there is an indent in the gastric tube and a gap of the mesoglea at the same position. Additionally, we describe the complex structure of the aboral cone with the specialized adhesive organ as well as the accumulation of myofibrils and neurites in the orally directed part of the cone, which indicates high controllability and ability to move in this region.
Grassmannian stochastic analysis and the stochastic quantization of Euclidean fermions
Authors: Albeverio Sergio , Borasi Luigi , De Vecchi Francesco C. , Gubinelli Massimiliano
Published: May 2022

We introduce a stochastic analysis of Grassmann random variables suitable for the stochastic quantization of Euclidean fermionic quantum field theories. Analysis on Grassmann algebras is developed here from the point of view of quantum probability: a Grassmann random variable is an homomorphism of an abstract Grassmann algebra into a quantum probability space, i.e. a $$C^{*}$$

C

∗

-algebra endowed with a suitable state. We define the notion of Gaussian processes, Brownian motion and stochastic (partial) differential equations taking values in Grassmann algebras. We use them to study the long time behavior of finite and infinite dimensional Langevin Grassmann stochastic differential equations driven by Gaussian space-time white noise and to describe their invariant measures. As an application we give a proof of the stochastic quantization and of the removal of the space cut-off for the Euclidean Yukawa model.
Track and trace: how soil labelling techniques have revealed the secrets of resource transport in the arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis
Authors: Watts-Williams Stephanie J.
Published: May 2022

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi colonise plant roots, and by doing so forge the ‘mycorrhizal uptake pathway(s)’ (MUP) that provide passageways for the trade of resources across a specialised membrane at the plant–fungus interface. The transport of nutrients such as phosphorus (P), nitrogen and zinc from the fungus, and carbon from the plant, via the MUP have mostly been quantified using stable or radioactive isotope labelling of soil in a specialised hyphae-only compartment. Recent advances in the study of AM fungi have used tracing studies to better understand how the AM association will function in a changing climate, the extent to which the MUP can contribute to P uptake by important crops, and how AM fungi trade resources in interaction with plants, other AM fungi, and friend and foe in the soil microbiome. The existing work together with well-designed future experiments will provide a valuable assessment of the potential for AM fungi to play a role in the sustainability of managed and natural systems in a changing climate.
4D Synchrotron X-ray Imaging of Grain Scale Deformation Mechanisms in a Seismogenic Gas Reservoir Sandstone During Axial Compaction
Authors: F. Van Stappen J. , McBeck J. A. , Cordonnier B. , Pijnenburg R. P. J. , Renard F. , Spiers C. J. , Hangx S. J. T.
Published: May 2022

Understanding the grain-scale processes leading to reservoir compaction during hydrocarbons production is crucial for enabling physics-based predictions of induced surface subsidence and seismicity hazards. However, typical laboratory experiments only allow for pre- and post-experimental microstructural investigation of deformation mechanisms. Using high-resolution time-lapse X-ray micro-tomography imaging (4D µCT) during triaxial deformation, the controlling grain-scale processes can be visualized through time and space at realistic subsurface conditions. We deformed a sample of Slochteren sandstone, the reservoir rock from the seismogenic Groningen gas field in the Netherlands. The sample was deformed beyond its yield point (axial strain > 15%) in triaxial compression at reservoir P–T-stress conditions (100 °C, 10 MPa pore pressure, 40 MPa effective confining pressure). A total of 50 three-dimensional µCT scans were obtained during deformation, at a spatial resolution of 6.5 µm. Time lapse imaging plus digital volume correlation (DVC) enabled identification of the grain-scale deformation mechanisms operating throughout the experiment, for the first time, both at small, reservoir-relevant strains (< 1%), and in the approach to brittle failure at strains > 10%. During small-strain deformation, the sample showed compaction through grain rearrangement accommodated by inter-granular slip and normal displacements across grain boundaries, in particular, by closure of open grain boundaries or compaction of inter-granular clay films. At intermediate and large strains (> 4%), grain fracturing and pore collapse were observed, leading to sample-scale brittle failure. These observations provide key input for developing microphysical models describing compaction of the Groningen and other producing (gas) reservoirs.
Krickeberg mixing for $${{\mathbb {Z}}}$$-extensions of Gibbs Markov semiflows
Authors: Terhesiu Dalia
Published: May 2022

We obtain Krickeberg mixing for a class of $${{\mathbb {Z}}}$$
Z
-extensions of Gibbs Markov semiflows with roof function and displacement function not in $$L^2$$

L
2

, where previous methods fail. This is done via a ‘smooth tail’ estimate for the isomorphic suspension flow.
Decompressive hemicraniectomy after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage—justifiable in light of long-term outcome?
Authors: Veldeman Michael , Weiss Miriam , Daleiden Lorina , Albanna Walid , Schulze-Steinen Henna , Nikoubashman Omid , Clusmann Hans , Hoellig Anke , Schubert Gerrit Alexander
Published: May 2022

Purpose

Decompressive hemicraniectomy (DHC) is a potentially lifesaving procedure in refractory intracranial hypertension, which can prevent death from brainstem herniation but may cause survival in a disabled state. The spectrum of indications is expanding, and we present long-term results in a series of patients suffering from aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH).

Methods

We performed a retrospective analysis of previously registered data including all patients treated for SAH between 2010 and 2018 in a single institution. Patients treated with decompressive hemicraniectomy due to refractory intracranial hypertension were identified. Clinical outcome was assessed by means of the Glasgow outcome scale after 12 months.

Results

Of all 341 SAH cases, a total of 82 (24.0%) developed intracranial hypertension. Of those, 63 (18.5%) patients progressed into refractory ICP elevation and were treated with DHC. Younger age (OR 0.959, 95% CI 0.933 to 0.984; p = 0.002), anterior aneurysm location (OR 0.253, 95% CI 0.080 to 0.799; 0.019; p = 0.019), larger aneurysm size (OR 1.106, 95% CI 1.025 to 1.194; p = 0.010), and higher Hunt and Hess grading (OR 1.944, 95% CI 1.431 to 2.641; p < 0.001) were independently associated with the need for DHC. After 1 year, 10 (15.9%) patients after DHC were categorized as favorable outcome. Only younger age was independently associated with favorable outcome (OR 0.968 95% CI 0.951 to 0.986; p = 0.001).

Conclusions

Decompressive hemicraniectomy, though lifesaving, has only a limited probability of survival in a clinically favorable condition. We identified young age to be the sole independent predictor of favorable outcome after DHC in SAH.
A new approach to projectivity in the categories of complexes
Authors: Bennis Driss , Rozas J. R. García , Ouberka Hanane , Oyonarte Luis
Published: May 2022

Recently, several authors have adopted new alternative approaches in the study of some classical notions of modules. Among them, we find the notion of subprojectivity which was introduced to measure in a way the degree of projectivity of modules. The study of subprojectivity has recently been extended to the context of abelian categories, which has brought to light some interesting new aspects. For instance, in the category of complexes, it gives a new way to measure, among other things, the exactness of complexes. In this paper, we prove that the subprojectivity notion provides a new sight of null-homotopic morphisms in the category of complexes. This will be proven through two main results. Moreover, various results which emphasize the importance of subprojectivity in the category of complexes are also given. Namely, we give some applications by characterizing some classical rings and establish various examples that allow us to reflect the scope and limits of our results.
How to keep text private? A systematic review of deep learning methods for privacy-preserving natural language processing
Authors: Sousa Samuel , Kern Roman
Published: May 2022

Deep learning (DL) models for natural language processing (NLP) tasks often handle private data, demanding protection against breaches and disclosures. Data protection laws, such as the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), thereby enforce the need for privacy. Although many privacy-preserving NLP methods have been proposed in recent years, no categories to organize them have been introduced yet, making it hard to follow the progress of the literature. To close this gap, this article systematically reviews over sixty DL methods for privacy-preserving NLP published between 2016 and 2020, covering theoretical foundations, privacy-enhancing technologies, and analysis of their suitability for real-world scenarios. First, we introduce a novel taxonomy for classifying the existing methods into three categories: data safeguarding methods, trusted methods, and verification methods. Second, we present an extensive summary of privacy threats, datasets for applications, and metrics for privacy evaluation. Third, throughout the review, we describe privacy issues in the NLP pipeline in a holistic view. Further, we discuss open challenges in privacy-preserving NLP regarding data traceability, computation overhead, dataset size, the prevalence of human biases in embeddings, and the privacy-utility tradeoff. Finally, this review presents future research directions to guide successive research and development of privacy-preserving NLP models.
DIKEDOC: a multicriteria methodology to organise and communicate knowledge
Authors: Norese Maria Franca , Rolando Diana , Curto Rocco
Published: May 2022

DIKEDOC is a knowledge-based multicriteria methodology that is here proposed to organise dispersed knowledge about a complex problem when a decision process has not yet been activated, or is latent, and to generate an interaction space that produces new knowledge. An integrated use of logical and analytical tools is proposed, first for use at a technical level to organise any dispersed knowledge in a way that generates insights that can be communicated, and then in a participative context, to create an opportunity to interact, share personal points of view and experiences and to explore spaces of action, where such tools facilitate understanding, criticism and proposals. A pilot study was developed, by an interdisciplinary research team, in relation to the enhancement process of the “Ivrea, industrial city of the twentieth century” UNESCO site, which still needs to be activated after a long and complex decision process that led to the inclusion of the site in the World Heritage List. Several research activities and enhancement projects have been developed in the last few years, but a series of critical conditions have limited their implementation. A new perspective is now necessary to identify and control the uncertainties that have emerged, guide the incremental development of knowledge and foster relationships, decisions and policies. The paper presents DIKEDOC, a new knowledge organisation and problem description methodology, and the conducted pilot study, which led to the proposal of a constructive vision of decision aiding that logically and analytically “described” the space of action and its uncertainties.
Well-free agglomeration and on-demand three-dimensional cell cluster formation using guided surface acoustic waves through a couplant layer
Authors: Mei Jiyang , Vasan Aditya , Magaram Uri , Takemura Kenjiro , Chalasani Sreekanth H. , Friend James
Published: May 2022

Three-dimensional cell agglomerates are broadly useful in tissue engineering and drug testing. We report a well-free method to form large (1.4-mm) multicellular clusters using 100-MHz surface acoustic waves (SAW) without direct contact with the media or cells. A fluid couplant is used to transform the SAW into acoustic streaming in the cell-laden media held in a petri dish. The couplant transmits longitudinal sound waves, forming a Lamb wave in the petri dish that, in turn, produces longitudinal sound in the media. Due to recirculation, human embryonic kidney (HEK293) cells in the dish are carried to the center of the coupling location, forming a cluster in less than 10 min. A few minutes later, these clusters may then be translated and merged to form large agglomerations, and even repeatedly folded to produce a roughly spherical shape of over 1.4 mm in diameter for incubation—without damaging the existing intercellular bonds. Calcium ion signaling through these clusters and confocal images of multiprotein junctional complexes suggest a continuous tissue construct: intercellular communication. They may be formed at will, and the method is feasibly useful for formation of numerous agglomerates in a single petri dish.
Catalytic Conversion of Hydrocarbons and Formation of Carbon Nanofilaments in Porous Pellets
Authors: Zhdanov Vladimir P.
Published: May 2022

Catalytic conversion of hydrocarbons occurring at metal nanoparticles in porous pellets is often accompanied by the formation of coke in the form of growing heterogeneous film-like aggregates or carbon nanofilaments. The latter processes result in deactivation of metal nanoparticles. The corresponding kinetic models imply the formation and growth of film-like coke aggregates. Herein, I present an alternative generic kinetic model focused on the formation and growth of carbon nanofilaments. These processes are considered to deactivate metal nanoparticles and reduce the rate of reactant diffusion in pores. In this framework, the kinetically limited reaction regime is described by simple analytical expressions. The diffusion-limited regime can be described as well but only numerically. The model presented can be used for interpretation of experimental results.

Graphical Abstract
Detecting explicit lyrics: a case study in Italian music
Authors: Rospocher Marco
Published: May 2022

Preventing the reproduction of songs whose textual content is offensive or inappropriate for kids is an important issue in the music industry. In this paper, we investigate the problem of assessing whether music lyrics contain content unsuitable for children (a.k.a., explicit content). Previous works that have computationally tackled this problem have dealt with English or Korean songs, comparing the performance of various machine learning approaches. We investigate the automatic detection of explicit lyrics for Italian songs, complementing previous analyses performed on different languages. We assess the performance of many classifiers, including those–not fully exploited so far for this task–leveraging neural language models, i.e., rich language representations built from textual corpora in an unsupervised way, that can be fine-tuned on various natural language processing tasks, including text classification. For the comparison of the different systems, we exploit a novel dataset we contribute, consisting of approximately 34K songs, annotated with labels indicating explicit content. The evaluation shows that, on this dataset, most of the classifiers built on top of neural language models perform substantially better than non-neural approaches. We also provide further analyses, including: a qualitative assessment of the predictions produced by the classifiers, an assessment of the performance of the best performing classifier in a few-shot learning scenario, and the impact of dataset balancing.
Generative magic and designing magic performances with constraint programming
Authors: de Azevedo Silveira Guilherme
Published: May 2022

Professional magicians employ the use of interesting properties of a deck of cards to create magical effects. These properties were traditionally discovered through trial and error, the application of heuristics or analytical proofs. Those proofs come from diverse mathematical areas such as the set, number and graph theory. We discuss the limitations of relying on humans for such methods and present how professional magicians can use constraint programming as a computer-aided design tool (CAD) to search for desired properties in a deck of cards. Furthermore, we implement a solution in Python by making use of generative magic to design a new effect, demonstrating how this process broadens the level of freedom a magician can decree to their volunteers while retaining control of the outcomes of the magic. Finally, we demonstrate that the model can be easily adapted to multiple languages by presenting multiple variations of the effect supporting American English and Brazilian Portuguese.
Some hypersurfaces over finite fields, minimal codes and secret sharing schemes
Authors: Aguglia Angela , Ceria Michela , Giuzzi Luca
Published: May 2022

Linear error-correcting codes can be used for constructing secret sharing schemes; however, finding in general the access structures of these secret sharing schemes and, in particular, determining efficient access structures is difficult. Here we investigate the properties of certain algebraic hypersurfaces over finite fields, whose intersection numbers with any hyperplane only takes a few values; these varieties give rise to q-divisible linear codes with at most 5 weights. Furthermore, for q odd, these codes turn out to be minimal and we characterize the access structures of the secret sharing schemes based on their dual codes. Indeed, the secret sharing schemes thus obtained are democratic, that is each participant belongs to the same number of minimal access sets and can easily be described.
Understanding capacities to scale innovations for sustainable development: a learning journey of scaling partnerships in three parts of Africa
Authors: Wigboldus S. , McEwan M. A. , van Schagen B. , Okike I. , van Mourik T. A. , Rietveld A. , Amole T. , Asfaw F. , Hundayehu M. C. , Iradukunda F. , Kulakow P. , Namanda S. , Suleman I. , Wimba B. R.
Published: May 2022

Finding out how to scale innovations successfully is high on the agendas of researchers, practitioners and policy makers involved in agricultural development. New approaches and methodologies seek to better address related complexities, but none of them include a systematic perspective on the role of capacity in (partnerships for) scaling innovations. We posit that this has left an important topic insufficiently addressed in relation to partnerships for scaling innovations. The need to address this gap became apparent in the context of the CGIAR Roots, Tubers, and Bananas (RTB) Scaling Fund initiative. This paper presents how we explored ways forward in relation to this by combining three methodological approaches: The Five-Capabilities, Scaling Readiness, and the Multi-Level Perspective on socio-technical innovation. This combined approach—dubbed Capacity for Scaling Innovations (C4SI)—was applied in three projects related to scaling innovations for sweet potato, cassava and banana, involving five countries in Africa. It then discusses implications for a partners-in-scaling perspective, the contribution of scaling innovations to sustainable development, the importance of research organisations considering their own capabilities in partnerships for scaling, and the extent to which C4SI was helpful in the three cases—for example, in decision making. The paper concludes that a capacity perspective on the scaling of innovations should be an essential part of a ‘science of scaling’. Finally, it provides recommendations for using the approach or parts of it in research and intervention practice for scaling, pointing in particular to the need for context-specific adaptation.
On the Prerequisites for Improving Prejudiced Ranking(s) with Individual and Post Hoc Interventions
Authors: Jönsson Martin L.
Published: May 2022

In recruitment, promotion, admission, and other forms of wealth and power apportion, an evaluator typically ranks a set of candidates in terms of their perceived competence. If the evaluator is prejudiced, the resulting ranking will misrepresent the candidates’ actual ranking. This constitutes not only a moral and a practical problem, but also an epistemological one, which begs the question of what we should do – epistemologically – to mitigate it. The article is an attempt to begin to answer this question. I first explore the presuppositions that must obtain for individual interventions to likely yield positive epistemological effects in ranking situations. I then compare these with the corresponding presuppositions of a novel, ‘post hoc’ approach to deprejudicing due to Jönsson and Sjödahl (Episteme 14(4):499–517, 2017), which does not attempt to change evaluators but attempts to increase the veracity of the rankings they produce after the fact (but before the rankings give rise to discriminatory effects) using statistical methods. With these two sets of presuppositions in place, I describe the limitations imposed by each presupposition on its intervention, compare presuppositions across the two kinds of interventions, and conclude that the two kinds of interventions importantly complement each other by having fairly disjoint, but non–conflicting, presuppositions. The post hoc intervention can thus complement an individual intervention (and vice versa) in situations where both are applicable (by adding further increases in veracity), but also by applying to situations where that intervention is not applicable (and thereby increase veracity in situations beyond the reach of that intervention).
Obtaining synthetic indications and sorting relevant structures from complex hierarchical clusters of multivariate data
Authors: Fustioni Damiano , Vignati Federica , Niro Alfonso
Published: May 2022

Hierarchical clustering of multivariate data usually provide useful information on the similarity among elements. Unfortunately, the clustering does not immediately suggest the data-governing structure. Moreover, the number of information retrieved by the data clustering can be sometimes so large to make the results little interpretable. This work presents two tools to derive relevant information from a large number of quantitative multivariate data, simply by post-processing the dendrograms resulting from hierarchical clustering. The first tool helps gaining a good insight in the physical relevance of the obtained clusters, i.e. whether the detected families of elements result from true or spurious similarities due to, e.g., experimental uncertainty. The second tool provides a deeper knowledge of the factors governing the distribution of the elements in the multivariate space, that is the determination of the most relevant parameters which affect the similarities among the configurations. These tools are, in particular, suitable to process experimental results to cope with related uncertainties, or to analyse multivariate data resulting from the study of complex or chaotic systems.
Investigation of the doping mechanism and electron transition bands of PEO/KMnO4 complex composite films
Authors: Al-Bataineh Qais M. , Aljarrah Ihsan A. , Ahmad Ahmad A. , Alsaad Ahmad M. , Telfah Ahmad
Published: May 2022

Polyethylene oxide (PEO) incorporated with potassium permanganate (KMnO4) was prepared using the solution casting technique forming PEO/KMnO4 complex composite films. The physicochemical properties, doping mechanism, and electron transition bands of PEO/KMnO4 were investigated. Introducing KMnO4 PEO matrix led to a decrease in crystallinity degree and optical bandgap energy due to the creation of polarons and bipolarons that form new energy levels in the bandgap between the HOMO and LUMO; in addition, to form of a new transition band appears at about 380 nm is attributed to the $$n{-}{\pi }^{*}$$

n
-

π

∗

electronic transitions are generated due to the unsaturated center of the molecules. The existence of KMnO4 in the polymer matrix leads to the blocking of light in the 250–400 nm range. Consequently, PEO/KMnO4 complex composite films could be used as UV-light shielding filters. Furthermore, the electrical conductivity of the PEO/KMnO4 complex composite films increases as KMnO4 concentration is increased in the PEO matrix since the created new energy levels in the bandgap between the HOMO and LUMO can be populated with conduction electrons providing true ohmic conduction with the delocalization of the electron densities moving on the polymer chain.
Research on Rhetorical Devices in German: The Use of Rhetorical Questions in Sales Presentations
Authors: Neitsch Jana , Niebuhr Oliver
Published: May 2022

Previous literature recommends using stylistic (or rhetorical) devices in presentations such as rhetorical questions (RQs: Does anyone want bad teeth?) to make them more professional, to appear more charismatic, and to convince an audience. However, in oral presentations, it is not only the what that matters in using stylistic devices like RQs, but also the how, i.e., the RQs’ prosodic realization. To date, however, virtually no handbook on the way of giving a good presentation scrutinizes this prosodic how. Therefore, our investigation focuses on the prosodic realization of German RQs in sales pitches. Specifically, we carry out a perception experiment in which 72 listeners rated both the sales pitch and its speaker based on presentations that contained questions that were lexically biased towards a rhetorical interpretation. They were realized with either the prosody of RQs or information-seeking questions (ISQs: What time is it?). An additional baseline condition was constituted by regular declarative statements with the corresponding prosody. More precisely, we investigate whether particular identified prosodic realizations—previously found for German RQs and ISQs—meet the listeners’ expectation in the context of a presentation situation. We found that listeners prefer lexically marked RQs that are produced with a prosody that is characteristic of German ISQs. We therefore suggest that handbooks should provide their readers not only with clear definitions of RQs as a stylistic device in presentations (i.e., the what), but also with the respective prosodic realization (i.e., the how) to make them a properly implemented stylistic device.
Implementation of an Individual + Policy, System, and Environmental (I + PSE) Technical Assistance Initiative to Increase Capacity of MCH Nutrition Strategic Planning
Authors: Herman Dena R. , Blom Amy , Tagtow Angela , Cunningham-Sabo Leslie
Published: May 2022

Introduction

Childhood obesity disproportionately affects low-income women, children, racial/ethnic minorities, and rural populations. To effectively promote sustainable change, healthy eating and active living initiatives should apply individual plus policy, systems, and environmental (I + PSE) approaches.

Methods

Four public health maternal and child nutrition teams selected through an application process participated in 12 months of technical assistance (TA) to develop action plans incorporating I + PSE in nutrition programming. TA included: (1) online modules; (2) community of practice (CoP) meetings; and (3) individual coaching sessions. Teams completed midpoint and endpoint surveys to assess TA knowledge and process outcomes. Semi-structured, in-depth interviews conducted post TA were transcribed and content analysis used to characterize themes and sub-themes.

Results

Facilitators to implementing I + PSE approaches included TA delivery through online modules, participation in the CoP, and individual coaching to address barriers to implementation and leadership support. Barriers were time and funding limitations, working in isolation, and lack of infrastructure and self-efficacy. Co-learning helped TA teams overcome stagnancy and promote development of creative solutions. Teams recognized relationship-building as integral to systems development.

Discussion

Lessons learned occurred across three main areas: relationships, capacity-building, and barriers encountered. Relationship formation takes time and is often not recognized as an asset impacting public health programing. Relationship direction – upstream, downstream, and lateral - affects ability to build organizational and systems capacity. While this study includes a small number of public health nutrition teams, this practice-based research highlights the value of I + PSE TA to tackle complex problems, with reciprocal, multisectoral support to enhance public health nutrition program impact.
Modulation of CREB and its associated upstream signaling pathways in pesticide-induced neurotoxicity
Authors: Narasimhamurthy Rekha Koravadi , Andrade Daicy , Mumbrekar Kamalesh Dattaram
Published: May 2022

Human beings are exposed to various environmental xenobiotics throughout their life consisting of a broad range of physical and chemical agents that impart bodily harm. Among these, pesticide exposure that destroys insects mainly by damaging their central nervous system also exerts neurotoxic effects on humans and is implicated in the etiology of several degenerative disorders. The connectivity between CREB (cAMP Response Element Binding Protein) signaling activation and neuronal activity is of broad interest and has been thoroughly studied in various diseased states. Several genes, as well as protein kinases, are involved in the phosphorylation of CREB, including BDNF (Brain-derived neurotrophic factor), Pi3K (phosphoinositide 3-kinase), AKT (Protein kinase B), RAS (Rat Sarcoma), MEK (Mitogen-activated protein kinase), PLC (Phospholipase C), and PKC (Protein kinase C) that play an essential role in neuronal plasticity, long-term potentiation, neuronal survival, learning, and memory formation, cognitive function, synaptic transmission, and suppressing apoptosis. These elements, either singularly or in a cascade, can result in the modulation of CREB, making it a vulnerable target for various neurotoxic agents, including pesticides. This review provides insight into how these various intracellular signaling pathways converge to bring about CREB activation and how the activated or deactivated CREB levels can affect the gene expression of the upstream molecules. We also discuss the various target genes within the cascade vulnerable to different types of pesticides. Thus, this review will facilitate future investigations associated with pesticide neurotoxicity and identify valuable therapeutic targets.
Accumulating Birth Histories Across Surveys for Improved Estimates of Child Mortality
Authors: Schmidt Laura , Elkasabi Mahmoud
Published: May 2022

Producing reliable estimates for childhood mortality rates is essential to monitor progress towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) and correctly evaluate policies designed to reduce childhood mortality rates. Different model-based approaches have been proposed to assess levels and trends in childhood mortality indicators. In this paper, we propose a design-based complement that accumulates birth histories across different household surveys to increase the precision of childhood mortality rates estimates. We accumulate birth histories across different cross-sectional Demographic Health Surveys/Multiple Cluster Indicator Surveys collected in Senegal and Malawi and estimate pooled childhood mortality rates based on calendar years. We show that accumulating birth histories smoothens fluctuations in time series for national and sub-national mortality rates, establishes more stable and reliable time trends, and results in estimated standard errors of the cumulated rates that are about 50–60% lower than their counterparts from separate surveys.
Recognition and longevity: an examination of award timing and lifespan in Nobel laureates
Authors: Chan Ho Fai , Mixon Franklin G. , Sarkar Jayanta , Torgler Benno
Published: May 2022

Using data for 387 Nobel Prize winners in physics, chemistry, or physiology/medicine from 1901 to 2000, this study focuses on the relation between the timing of prestigious awards and human longevity. In particular, it uses a linear regression model to examine how a winner’s longevity is affected by (1) the age at which the prestigious award is won, (2) the total number of prestigious awards collected, and (3) the delay between the Nobel Prize work and recognition. To alleviate estimation issues stemming from survival selection, we conduct our analyses using subsamples of surviving individuals and controlling for age-specific life expectancy. Our results suggest that receiving the Nobel Prize at a younger age is related to a longer expected lifespan (e.g., obtaining the Nobel Prize 10 years earlier is associated with an additional 1 year of lifespan compared to the average population life expectancy). The results also point to a strong negative association between the age of receiving major scientific awards and relative life expectancy, which further indicates the benefit of early recognition. Yet, we did not find evidence suggesting that thenumberof prestigious awards received at an earlier age correlated with longevity. Nor are we able to observe that the duration between Nobel Prize work and the award reception (waiting time for the Nobel Prize recognition) is associated with changes in longevity.
The geographic proximity effect on domestic cross-sector vis-à-vis intra-sector research collaborations
Authors: Abramo Giovanni , Apponi Francesca , D’Angelo Ciriaco Andrea
Published: May 2022

Geographic proximity is acknowledged to be a key factor in research collaborations. Specifically, it can work as a possible substitute for institutional proximity. The present study investigates the relevance of the “proximity” effect for different types of national research collaborations. We apply a bibliometric approach based on the Italian 2010–2017 scientific production indexed in the Web of Science. On such dataset, we apply statistical tools for analyzing if and to what extent geographical distance between co-authors in the byline of a publication varies across collaboration types, scientific disciplines, and along time. Results can inform policies aimed at effectively stimulating cross-sector collaborations, and also bear direct practical implications for research performance assessments.
Development and Validation of an Artificial Intelligence-Based Model to Predict Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease After Sleeve Gastrectomy
Authors: Emile Sameh Hany , Ghareeb Waleed , Elfeki Hossam , El Sorogy Mohamed , Fouad Amgad , Elrefai Mohamed
Published: May 2022

Purpose

Prediction of the onset of de novo gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) after sleeve gastrectomy (SG) would be helpful in decision-making and selection of the optimal bariatric procedure for every patient. The present study aimed to develop an artificial intelligence (AI)-based model to predict the onset of GERD after SG to help clinicians and surgeons in decision-making.

Materials and Methods

A prospectively maintained database of patients with severe obesity who underwent SG was used for the development of the AI model using all the available data points. The dataset was arbitrarily split into two parts: 70% for training and 30% for testing. Then ranking of the variables was performed in two steps. Different learning algorithms were used, and the best model that showed maximum performance was selected for the further steps of machine learning. A multitask AI platform was used to determine the cutoff points for the top numerical predictors of GERD.

Results

In total, 441 patients (76.2% female) of a mean age of 43.7 ± 10 years were included. The ensemble model outperformed the other models. The model achieved an AUC of 0.93 (95%CI 0.88–0.99), sensitivity of 79.2% (95% CI 57.9–92.9%), and specificity of 86.1% (95%CI 70.5–95.3%). The top five ranked predictors were age, weight, preoperative GERD, size of orogastric tube, and distance of first stapler firing from the pylorus.

Conclusion

An AI-based model for the prediction of GERD after SG was developed. The model had excellent accuracy, yet a moderate sensitivity and specificity. Further prospective multicenter trials are needed to externally validate the model developed.

Graphical Abstract
Impact of DYRK1A Expression on TNNT2 Splicing and Daunorubicin Toxicity in Human iPSC-Derived Cardiomyocytes
Authors: Cejas Romina Beatriz , Tamaño-Blanco Miriam , Fontecha John Edgar , Blanco Javier Guillermo
Published: May 2022

Cardiac troponin T (encoded by TNNT2) is involved in the contraction of cardiomyocytes during beating. The alternative splicing of TNNT2 results in four transcript variants with differential Ca2+ sensitivity. The splicing of TNNT2 involves phosphorylation of the splicing factor SRSF6 by DYRK1A. Altered TNNT2 splicing patterns have been identified in failing human hearts. There is a paucity of studies describing DYRK1A-SRSF6-TNNT2 interplays in human cardiomyocytes. Also, it is not known whether the sensitivity of cardiomyocytes to cardiotoxic anthracyclines is modified in the context of variable DYRK1A-TNNT2 expression. In this study, we investigated the impact of DYRK1A on the endogenous expression of TNNT2 splicing variants in iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes. We also examined whether DYRK1A expression modifies the sensitivity of cardiomyocytes to the cardiotoxic drug daunorubicin (DAU). DYRK1A over-expression increased the abundance of TNNT2 fetal variants by ~ 58% whereas the abundance of the adult cTnT3 variant decreased by ~ 27%. High DYRK1A expression increased the phosphorylation of SRSF6 by ~ 25–65%. DAU cytotoxicity was similar between cardiomyocytes with variable levels of DYRK1A expression. DYRK1A over-expression ameliorated the impact of DAU on beating frequency. This study lays the foundation to further investigate the contribution of variable DYRK1A-TNNT2 expression to Ca2+ handling and beating in human cardiomyocytes.
Inflammaging and Frailty in Immune-Mediated Rheumatic Diseases: How to Address and Score the Issue
Authors: Salaffi Fausto , Di Matteo Andrea , Farah Sonia , Di Carlo Marco
Published: May 2022

Frailty is a new concept in rheumatology that can help identify people more likely to have less favorable outcomes. Sarcopenia and inflammaging can be regarded as the biological foundations of physical frailty. Frailty is becoming more widely accepted as an indicator of ageing and is linked to an increased risk of negative outcomes such as falls, injuries, and mortality. Frailty identifies a group of older adults that seem poorer and more fragile than their age-matched counterparts, despite sharing similar comorbidities, demography, sex, and age. Several studies suggest that inflammation affects immune-mediated pathways, multimorbidity, and frailty by inhibiting growth factors, increasing catabolism, and by disrupting homeostatic signaling. Frailty is more common in the community-dwelling population as people get older, ranging from 7 to 10% in those over 65 years up to 40% in those who are octogenarians. Different parameters have been validated to identify frailty. These primarily relate to two conceptual models: Fried’s physical frailty phenotype and Rockwood’s cumulative deficit method. Immune-mediated rheumatic diseases (IMRDs), such as rheumatoid arthritis, spondyloarthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, systemic sclerosis, and vasculitis, are leading causes of frailty in developing countries. The aim of this review was to quantitatively synthesize published literature on the prevalence of frailty in IMRDs and to summarize current evidence on the relevance and applicability of the most widely used frailty screening tools.
Produktion von Aminosäurederivaten in Cyanobakterien
Authors: Brandenburg Fabian , Klähn Stephan , Schmid Andreas , Krömer Jens O.
Published: May 2022

As photolithoautotrophs, cyanobacteria are key to a future photobiotechnology. We studied the capacity of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 to produce trans-4-hydroxy-L-proline, a valuable chiral synthon using oxygenic photosynthesis and a recombinant L-proline-4-hydroxylase. At scale, such a process would use comparable area of land to a heterotrophic one if the photosynthesis of sugar is also considered. Phototrophs offer a huge potential for higher production rates and product titers.
Genomische Signaturen des Übergangs zur Mehrzelligkeit
Authors: Becks Lutz , John Uwe
Published: May 2022

We examined the evolution of cell groups in ten isogenic lines of the unicellular green algaChlamydomonas reinhardtiiupon exposure to a rotifer predator and found that cell groups evolving in the presence of predation had increased survival compared to single cells but at a cost of reduced reproduction. Identical mutations evolved in cell group isolates and were associated with their growth form. The observation of repeated genomic changes after 500 generations of predator selection, suggest some level of deterministic evolution.