bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A gene knockout mutant of ferric uptake regulator (Fur) reveals biofilm formation, energy metabolism and transcript regulation are three toxicity regulation strategies of Vibrio harveyi isolated from American eels (Anguilla rostrota)
Authors: Wan Qijuan , Zhai Shaowei , Wang Yue , Xu Ming , Chen Minxia , Guo Songlin
Published: June 2023

Vibrio harveyi is commonly found in salt and brackish water, and is recognized as a serious bacterial pathogen in aquaculture worldwide. In this study, we cloned the ferric uptake regulator (Fur) gene from V. harveyi wild-type strain HA_1, which was isolated from diseased American eels (Anguilla rostrata) and has a length of 450 bp, encoding 149 amino acids. Then, a mutant strain, HA_1-ΔFur, was constructed through homologous recombination of a suicide plasmid (pCVD442). The HA_1-ΔFur mutant exhibited attenuated biofilm formation, intensified swarming motility, and 18-fold decrease (5.5%) in virulence to the American eels, but it showing no difference in growth and hemolysis with the wild-type strain. Transcriptome analysis revealed that 875 genes were differentially expressed in the ΔFur mutant, with 385 up-regulated and 490 down-regulated DEGs. GO and KEGG enrichment analysis revealed that, compared to the wild-type strain, the type II secretion systems (T2SS), type VI secretion systems (T6SS), amino acid synthesis and transport, and energy metabolism pathways were significantly down-regulated, but the ABC transporters and biosynthesis of siderophore group non-ribosomal peptides pathways were up-regulated in the ΔFur strain. The qRT-PCR results further confirmed that DEGs responsible for amino acid transport and energy metabolism were positively regulated, but DEGs involved in iron acquisition were negatively regulated in the ΔFur strain. These findings suggest that the gene Fur contribute to the virulence of V. harveyi through biofilm formation, energy metabolism, and transcript regulation.
Effects of light perception on visual function recovery in patients with traumatic optic neuropathy
Authors: Wang Jiancun , Xue Qiang , Tan Xuewen , Huang Jie , Zhu Yibai , Li Wen
Published: June 2023

Objective
This study aimed to assess the impact of light perception presence or absence on visual function recovery in patients with traumatic optic neuropathy (TON).
Methods
A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 206 TON patients. Based on the presence or absence of light perception after injury, patients were categorized into a light perception group and a non-light perception group. A comparison was made between the two groups regarding visual acuity recovery before and after treatment.
Results
The non-light perception group comprised 63 patients, with a treatment effectiveness rate of 39.68%. The light perception group consisted of 143 patients, with a treatment effectiveness rate of 74.83%. The difference between the two groups was statistically significant (χ2 = 23.464, P < 0.01). Subgroup analysis indicated that surgical treatment appeared to be more effective than steroid hormone therapy for patients with light perception. Conversely, for patients without light perception, there was no significant difference in the effectiveness of the two methods.
Conclusion
The total effectiveness rate of the light perception group was significantly higher than that of the non-light perception group, suggesting that patients with light perception before treatment experience better outcomes compared to those without light perception. Treatment choices should be individualized to ensure optimal results.
Character and frequency of conjunctival tumors: A study of 107 Polish children
Authors: Chmielarz-Czarnocińska Anna , Musioł Aleksandra , Adamski Wojciech , Neagoy Douglas , Rospond-Kubiak Iwona , Gotz-Więckowska Anna
Published: June 2023

PURPOSE
Conjunctival tumors in children are rarely malignant. However, they often concern both parents and pediatricians, resulting in prolonged follow-up and surgery under general anesthesia in tertiary referral hospitals. The aim of the study was to analyze the type and frequency of benign and malignant conjunctival tumors among pediatric patients with conjunctival lesions.
METHODS
A retrospective analysis was carried out based on histopathological reports of surgically removed conjunctival lesions. We included patients below 18 years of age who underwent excisional biopsy in the Ophthalmology Department of Poznan University of Medical Sciences in Poland between November 2013 and November 2021.
RESULTS
We identified one-hundred-and-seven patients, 55 girls (51,4%) and 52 boys (48,6%), with conjunctival lesions. The mean age at the time of excision was 10 years (range: 7-17). All excised lesions were benign. Histopathological diagnoses were grouped into three classes: benign tumors (92 [86%]); fragments of a normal tissue with or without melanosis (11 [10,3%]); and inflammatory lesions (4 [3,7%]). Among benign tumors the most common was melanocytic nevus (87 [94,5%]). Other benign tumors included dysplastic nevus (1 [1,1%]), Spitz nevus (1 [1,1%]), epidermoid cyst (1 [1,1%]), lipoma (1 [1,1%]), papilloma (1 [1,1%]) and sebaceous nevus with chronic inflammation (1 [1,1%]).
CONCLUSION
Our study is consistent with reports confirming that malignant conjunctival tumors in children are extremely rare. Lesion character and patient age should be taken into account when considering surgical removal of conjunctival lesions in children as the procedure is performed under general anesthesia.
Ventricular bigeminy associated with myocardial ischemia in a dog with a colonic torsion: a case report
Authors: Burns Charlotte , Barletta Michele
Published: June 2023

Background
Ventricular bigeminy due to myocardial ischemia has been reported in humans as well as in canine patients with obstructive gastrointestinal diseases. This is the first case report of ventricular bigeminy in a dog with a colonic torsion that resolved with fluid resuscitation and restoration of myocardial perfusion.
Case Presentation
An 11-year-old, male neutered mixed breed dog presented with a one day history of vomiting, tenesmus, and lethargy. Physical examination identified an arrhythmia, namely ventricular premature complexes (VPCs), on a 3-lead ECG and intermittent pulse deficits. Abdominal radiographs confirmed a colonic torsion. Prior to anesthetic induction, ventricular bigeminy was noted that was non responsive to fentanyl or lidocaine. The patient was anesthetized and intravascular volume deficit was identified by dampened plethysmographic wave amplitude (plethysomographic variability), audible softening of the Doppler sound, and more pronounced pulse deficits. Fluid resuscitation was achieved with a combination of intravenous crystalloid and colloid fluid therapy comprising 7.2% hypertonic saline and 6% hetastarch. The patient’s cardiac rhythm converted to normal sinus after fluid resuscitation and the colonic torsion was surgically corrected. The patient recovered well from anesthesia and was ultimately discharged from the hospital.
Conclusions
The present case report highlights that myocardial ischemia can lead to ventricular arrythmias, such as ventricular bigeminy. This is the first documented case of ventricular bigeminy in the canine patient with a colonic torsion. Assessment of patient volume status and appropriate fluid resuscitation along with continuous electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring are vital to patient stability under general anesthesia.
Parental Mental Disorders and Ages of Onset of Severe Mental Disorders in Offspring: A Nationwide Family-link Study
Authors: Ching Pao-Yuan , Hsu Tien-Wei , Tsai Shih-Jen , Bai Ya-Mei , Cheng Chih-Ming , Su Tung-Ping , Chen Tzeng-Ji , Liang Chih-Sung , Chen Mu-Hong
Published: June 2023

Objective
Few studies have investigated the association between age of onset of severe mental disorders (SMDs) in offspring and the likelihood of diagnoses of parental mental disorder.
Method
We enrolled 212,333 patients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder (BD), or major depressive disorder (MDD) and 2,123,329 controls matched for age, sex, and demographics from the National Health Insurance Database of Taiwan. Poisson regression models were used to examine the likelihood of diagnoses of five mental disorders in their parents compared to the parents of the controls (reported as odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval), including schizophrenia, BD, MDD, alcohol use disorder (AUD), and substance use disorder (SUD). The study cohort was classified into child-onset, adolescent-onset, and adult-onset groups according to the onset of SMDs in the offspring.
Result
The parents of patients with child-, adolescent-, and adult-onset schizophrenia (OR range: 1.73–9.08, all p < 0.05) or BD (OR range: 1.97–8.17, all p < 0.05) were more likely to be diagnosed with schizophrenia, BD, MDD, AUD, and substance use disorder (SUD) than controls except for AUD in the child-onset group. However, the parents of patients with child-, adolescent-, and adult-onset depressive disorder were more likely to be diagnosed with schizophrenia, BD, MDD, AUD, and SUD (OR range: 1.82–4.76, all p < 0.05) than controls. Sub-analyses stratified by sex showed different patterns of associations between parental mental disorders and offspring mental disorders.
Conclusion
No matter when the SMD occurred during the developmental milestone, their parents had higher likelihood of being diagnosed with schizophrenia, BD, MDD, AUD, and SUD.
Multimode OAM beam generation through 1-Bit programmable metasurface antenna for high throughput data communications
Authors: Nadi Morteza , Sedighy Seyed Hassan , Cheldavi Ahmad
Published: June 2023

In modern wireless communication, the orbital angular momentum (OAM) beam is considered as an important technology. Some considerable efforts have been devoted to using this technology for channel capacity enhancement as much as possible. Nowadays, programmable metasurfaces provide an innovational scenario for generating multi-mode OAM beams due to their ability for digital electromagnetic waves modulation. However, the current programmable metasurfaces for generating OAM beams are typically based on reflective and transmissive modes, which have low aperture efficiency due to spillover and illumination effects. In this paper, a 1-bit programmable metasurface antenna is proposed with capability of producing highly efficient dynamic multi-mode OAM beams. The proposed structure is consisted of electronically reconfigurable meta-radiating elements loaded by PIN diodes to generate two-phase states of electric field. The designed Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) can assign a code sequence of 0 or 1 to the metasurface antenna in real-time to generate multi-mode OAM beams. Hence, a dynamical surface is obtained by switching PIN diodes to change the phase distribution on the surface. To verify the concept, the metasurface antenna is fabricated and measured with different OAM beam states, which are in agreement with the full-wave simulations, properly. The designed structure introduces a capable multi-mode OAM alternative for high throughput mm-wave communications.
Comparative Analysis of Evolutionary Techniques for Economical Load Dispatch in a 6-Unit Thermal Power System
Authors: KHOBARAGADE TEJASWITA , Chaturvedi k t
Published: June 2023

The economical load dispatch problem is a critical concern in thermal power systems to ensure cost-effective operation. This paper conducts a comparative analysis between the Social Spider Algorithm (SSA) and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) for economical load dispatch in a 6-unit thermal power system with the integration of 11,000 plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs). Both SSA and PSO are population-based optimization techniques designed to minimize the overall fuel cost while satisfying the load demand by determining the optimal power output of each unit. SSA emulates the social behavior of spiders, while PSO simulates the collective intelligence of a swarm of particles. Performance evaluation of the algorithms considers power system data, such as unit fuel costs, minimum and maximum loads, and total load demand. The objective is to minimize fuel cost while meeting the load demand. Comparative analysis of SSA and PSO includes convergence speed, solution quality, and computational efficiency. Experimental results indicate that SSA outperforms PSO in achieving a more optimal and economical load dispatch solution for the 6-unit thermal power system. SSA demonstrates faster convergence and provides superior-quality solutions compared to PSO. This paper contributes to the field by highlighting SSA's effectiveness in achieving cost-efficient operation of thermal power systems. The findings suggest that SSA holds promise as an optimization technique for similar power system optimization problems, enhancing overall operational efficiency and reducing costs for thermal power plants.
Spatially Well Structured Mangroves Fish Communities of the Persian Gulf; a Functional Perspective
Authors: Raeisbahrami Arash , Shafiekhani Fatemeh , Naderloo Reza
Published: June 2023

Functional diversity is one of the most important aspects of biodiversity studies. In this work, the functional diversity of two mangrove-associated fish communities in the Persian Gulf is evaluated, including 34 species from the estuary community and 23 species from the creek/mud community. For each community, three functional diversity indices were calculated, namely, FD (Functional Diversity, representing functional richness), MPD (Mean Pairwise Distance, representing dispersion), and MNTD (Mean Nearest Taxon Distance, representing evenness). The comparison between the observed values and the expected values indicates the low functional diversity of the estuary community, whereas, the functional diversity of the species inhabiting creeks and mud flats was not significantly lower or higher than the expected functional diversity. Moreover, the dispersion of functional traits in creek/mud species was higher and the evenness was lower than the estuaries community. This can be related to the more homogenous habitat of the estuary environment, in comparison with the creeks and mudflats. Also, we can attribute the low functional diversity of the estuary community to both the homogenous structure and the preliminary situation of the Persian Gulf. Dendrogram-based analyses show four functional guilds in both communities and were used to the recognition of the most important species for the functional diversity in each community. We found that the most important functional traits that explain the functional diversity in the estuary community were the general traits of size and position in the vertical column in water, however, in creek/mud communities more specialized traits such as the feeding habit and the migratory status explain most of the diversity.
Factors affecting community-based health insurance utilization among households in Degadamot District, Ethiopia: Community-based cross sectional study
Authors: Belayneh Melesse
Published: June 2023

Background: Community-based health insurance is provided in several countries as part of the overall health funding approach, Including Ethiopia. Ethiopia has been utilizing the Basic healthcare model and has endured a number of fundamental issues, such as insufficient service coverage, unequal access, and high out-of-pocket expenses. However, there are few studies showed that low CBHI utilization. However, enrollment is a progressive activity, and there is updated evidence about factors of utilization.
Objective: This study was focused on the factors affecting community-based health insurance utilization among households in Degadamot District, Ethiopia, in 2022.
Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was employed among 736 households from August 15 to October 15, 2022. Participants were screened by using a two-stage sampling technique. Data were collected using an interviewer-administered pre-tested questionnaire and entered into EPI-Info 7 and transported to SPSS version 26. Multi-variable logistic regression was performed to further analysis. A p-value less than 0.05 with a 95% confidence interval accounted significantly between dependent and independent variables.
Result: Among the total of 736 respondents, 66.7% [63.2%–70.1%] of them reported being members of the CBHI scheme. The mean age (±SD) of the study participants was 44.9 (±16.5) years. The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that participants who were aged in years of 35-54 years(AOR=2.89; 95% CI: 1.78, 4.69), 55-74 years(AOR=3.84; 95% CI: 2.18, 6.75), >= 75 years(AOR=2.25; 95% CI: 1.04, 4.89), family size of households who had 5 and above members(AOR=2.06; 95% CI: 1.43-2.95), primary education(AOR=2.10; 1.43, 2.95), secondary and above education(AOR=2.50; 95% CI: 1.88, 4.99), had own land (AOR: 1.62; 95% CI: 1.26, 3.54), had own domestic animals (AOR=2.11; 95% CI: 1.26, 3.54), enrolled in Safety net program (AOR=2.80; 95% CI: 1.52-5.15) and had good knowledge about CBHI(AOR=3.16; 95% CI: 2.08, 4.45) factors were significantly associated with CBHI utilization.
Conclusion: community-based health insurance utilization was affected by factors with age, family size, residence, educational status, owning land and domestic animals, being enrolled in the Safety Net program, and having good knowledge about CBHI were associated with CBHI utilization. As a result, a strong monitoring and evaluation system, strategies designed to increase awareness levels about the CBHI scheme's benefits, special considerations for aged people, and collaboration with social security sectors.
Research on Thermal Aging Properties of Modified E-51 Epoxy Resin for Cryogenic Application
Authors: Shu Shi , Zhang Xudong , Yang Jiaquan , Yang Yang , Li Mengyang , Hu Nannan
Published: June 2023

E-51 epoxy resin with medium viscosity can be used to. fabricate mechanical or insulating structural components. However, because of its brittleness, the unmodified E-51 epoxy resin system can’t absorb significant internal stress at cryogenic temperature. As a result, a modified E-51 epoxy resin system for cryogenic application was developed to investigate the thermal aging properties, which aims at understanding the impact of heating temperature and heating time on the evolution of micro-structure, thermo stability, and mechanical properties. Testing results show that the modified E-51 epoxy resin system has a stable micro-structure after undergoing 50 thermal cycling and 50 thermal cycling while heating at 105℃ with a duration of 120 hours. However, the mechanical tensile strength of the modified E-51 epoxy resin system undergoes a decline of approximately 13.63% when the heating duration increases to 240 hours. Moreover, heating the modified E-51 epoxy resin system for 480 hours can lead to significant changes in the micro-structure, which ultimately affects the mechanical tensile testing results. Therefore, to achieve high performance, achieving micro homogeneity and modification of the E-51 epoxy resin system are critical.
Biliary Neuroendocrine Neoplasms: A Clinicopathological and Prognostic Analysis of 36 Clinical Cases
Authors: Zhao Zhihao , Wu Qingyuan , Jiang Chao , Wang Meng
Published: June 2023

Background
Biliary neuroendocrine neoplasms are rare diseases characterized by low morbidity, difficult diagnosis, and poor prognosis. In this study, we aimed to provide a better understanding of this disease by analyzing the clinicopathological features, treatment, and factors associated with prognosis of 36 cases of neuroendocrine neoplasms arising from the gallbladder, bile ducts, and ampulla of Vater.
Results
The early stages of the disease often present with atypical symptoms, leading to a delayed diagnosis in most cases, abdominal discomfort was the primary manifestation at diagnosis. Neuroendocrine carcinoma was the most common pathological stage observed, with small-cell neuroendocrine carcinomas being the predominant subtype. Tumor recurrence occured mostly in the liver. The median follow-up time was 39 months, and the median survival time was 30 months. The 1-, 2-, and 3-year survival rates were 63.9%, 51.0%, and 35.7%, respectively. No significant effects of adjunctive therapy on prognosis were found. Pathological grade and access to R0 margin were found to be significantly associated with overall survival.
Conclusions
Biliary neuroendocrine neoplasms are challenging to diagnose at an early stage due to the absence of typical symptoms. Liver metastasis is relatively common in desease recurrence and is indicative of a poor prognosis., and poor histological grading and the inability to achieve R0 margin significantly shorten the survival period.
Swyer-James-Macleod Syndrome In A Geriatric Patient: A Case Report
Authors: Panchal Ishita , SHAH ABHI , Bhowmik Subham , Vohra Rimsha Rahim , Bloom Kim , Lloyd Kenneth Scott
Published: June 2023

Introduction:
Hyper-lucent lung syndrome or Swyer-James-Macleod syndrome is a rare, often an incidental finding, primarily showing unilateral hyper-lucency as a consequence of bronchiolitis obliterans. Often diagnosed in early childhood; though in some cases it may only be discovered in adulthood or on account of recurrent chest infections.
Case Presentation:
A patient presented to our outpatient center with complaints of shortness of breath with mild to moderate exertional dyspnea & exacerbations of symptoms classically associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Complaints have persisted for several years with waxing & waning intensity. There is a history of migraine, atrial fibrillation, hypothyroidism, and colon & breast cancer without recurrence.
Computed tomography of the chest with intravenous contrast showed asymmetric emphysematous changes with marked hyperinflation & attenuated vasculatures confined to the middle lobe of the right lung.
The patient was started on a combination of inhaled long-acting beta-agonists, corticosteroids & long-acting muscarinic antagonists and is almost asymptomatic.
Conclusion:
Geriatric patients are at increased risk of various age-related diseases, respiratory disorders being among them. Knowledge of this rare condition allows for its appropriate management as it often coexists with bronchiectasis & results in frequent respiratory infections, which may be preventable.
High figure of merit refractive index sensor derived from the axial length ratio of elliptically polarized light of chiral plasmonic structure arrays
Authors: Zhu Xupeng , Shi Huimin , Zhang Shi , Zheng Mengjie , Dai Peng , Huang Ruomeng , Liao Jun , Xue Shuwen , Zhang Jun
Published: June 2023

The refractive index sensor based on the Fano resonance effect (that is, Fano sensor) is one promising branch of plasmonic sensing applications owing to its narrow spectral line shape. Further improvement in the sensitivity and figure of merit (FOM) is the main issue in this field. In contrast to the Fano sensor, herein, we report a novel ultra-sensitive refractive index sensor based on the axial length ratio of transmitted elliptically polarized light of chiral plasmonic structure arrays (that is, ratio sensor). Compared with the optimized Fano sensor in the same asymmetric chiral plasmonic structure arrays, the proposed ratio sensor shows a better sensitivity performance of 556.9 nm/RIU, that is 1.31 times higher than that of the optimized Fano sensor. Specifically, the quality factor of the spectral line shape and FOM of the proposed ratio sensor reach 121.6 and 60, respectively, that are 2.14 and 2.92 times higher than those of the optimized Fano sensor, respectively. Our study proposes a potential path to achieve high-quality ultra-sensitive refractive index sensing.
Genotype-phenotype analysis in patients with PAX2 mutations: beyond renal coloboma syndrome
Authors: Kim Ji Hyun , Ahn Yo Han , Jang Yeonji , Park Eujin , Lee Hajeong , Kim Seong Heon , Song Ji Yeon , Han Kyoung Hee , Jung Jiwon , Lee Joo Hoon , Kang Hee Gyung , Jung Jae Ho , Cheong Hae Il
Published: June 2023

PAX2-related disorders encompass renal coloboma syndrome (RCS) and hereditary focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS)type 7. In this multicenter study on patients with PAX2 mutations, we explored genotype-phenotype correlations regarding kidney and ocular involvement and long-term clinical outcomes. Among 27 patients with PAX2 mutations detected from 2004–2022, 19 had RCS, 4 had FSGS, and 4 had isolated congenital anomalies of the kidneys and urinary tract (CAKUT). Based on genotypes, patients were classified into truncating (n=22) and missense (n=5) mutation groups. Truncating mutations were associated with RCS in 81.8% of cases, while missense mutations were linked to FSGS (n=2) and isolated CAKUT (n=2) in 80.0% of cases (P=0.034). Fourteen patients developed kidney failure at a median age of 14.5 years, with no difference in kidney survival between the truncating and missense mutation groups. However, mutations in the paired domain of PAX2 resulted in kidney failure more rapidly than mutations in other sites (P=0.025). Regarding ocular manifestations, the truncating mutation group exhibited more common, earlier onset and severe involvement compared to the missense mutation group. Our findings support genotype-phenotype correlations in ophthalmology field and emphasize the impact of the paired domain on kidney outcomes in patients with PAX2mutations.
Development and validation of a rating scale for barriers and facilitators of nurses' participation intention on “Internet + nursing service”
Authors: Tian Fei , Peng Zhekang , Mi Yuanyuan , Xi Zuyang , Zhang Zhaohui , Gui Shengmin , Liu Min , Zhang Ting , Qu Xingguang , Liu Jinglan
Published: June 2023

Background: With the increasing pace of China's aging population, the growing demand for public health services and the shortage of nursing human resources have become more prominent. The “Internet+ Nursing Services” have received more attention. Exploring the obstacles and promoting factors of nurses' willingness to participate in “Internet+ Nursing Services” and utilizing internet technology to increase the supply of nursing services has become a key issue.
Objective: This study aimed to develop a scale for assessing the obstacles and promoting factors of nurses' willingness to participate in “Internet+ Nursing Services”, and to test the validity and reliability of the scale.
Methods: A preliminary scale was developed through literature review, theoretical research, semi-structured qualitative interviews, and two rounds of Delphi expert inquiry. A convenience sampling method was used for the questionnaire survey. Likert 5-point scoring was used to assign importance to the items. The survey data of 659 clinical nurses from February to March 2023 were used for item analysis, exploratory factor analysis, and reliability and validity tests of the pre-test scale. The survey data of 538 clinical nurses in April 2023 were used for confirmatory factor analysis of the formal scale.
Results: The final scale consisted of 25 items and 4 dimensions (performance expectation, perceived risk, professional knowledge training needs, and non-professional knowledge training needs). The scale showed good structural validity and content validity: the Cronbach's α coefficient of the scale was 0.955, the split-half reliability was 0.778, the test-retest reliability was 0.944, the KMO value was 0.960, and the cumulative variance contribution rate of the 4 common factors was 83.147%. The content validity index of the scale (S-CVI) was 0.914. The confirmatory factor analysis model fit indices were good: χ2/df=4.234, RMSEA=0.078, NFI=0.940, IFI=0.953, TLI=0.947, and CFI=0.953.
Conclusion: The scale for assessing the obstacles and promoting factors of nurses' willingness to participate in “Internet+ Nursing Services” has good reliability and validity, and provides a reference for evaluating nurses' willingness to participate in “Internet+ Nursing Services”.
Spatial Quasi-Bound States of Dirac Electrons in Graphene Monolayer
Authors: Miniya Mohammed , Oubram Outmane , Hachimi Abdel Ghafour El , Gaggero-Sager Luis Manuel
Published: June 2023

Our study investigated the emergence of spatial Quasi-Bound States (QBSs) in graphene mono- layers induced by rectangular potential barriers. By solving the time-independent Dirac equation and using the transfer matrix formalism, we calculated the resonance energies and identify the QBSs based on probability density functions (PDF). We analyzed two types of structures: single and dou- ble barriers, and we find that the QBSs are located within the barrier region, at energies higher than the single barrier. Additionally, we observe QBSs in the double barrier and their position depends on the distance and width of the well between the two barriers. The width and height of the barrier significantly impact the QBSs while the well width influences the resonance energy levels of the QBSs in the double barrier. Interestingly, the QBSs can be manipulated in the graphene system, offering potential for optoelectronic devices. Finally, our results demonstrated that the spatial localization of these states is counter-intuitive and holds great promise for future research in optolectronic devices.
Cytokines and metabolites are the main descriptors of severe asthma in children when performing multi-omics analysis of bronchoaleveolar lavages
Authors: Briard Mélanie , Guillon Blanche , Venot Eric , Grauso Marta , Hennequet-Antier Christelle , Bruneau Aurélia , Fenaille François , Castelli Florence , Thomas Muriel , Lezmi Guillaume , Leite-de-Moraes Maria , Saint-Criq Vinciane , Adel-Patient Karine
Published: June 2023

Background. Severe asthma (SA) is a heterogeneous condition with multiple phenotypes. There is still an unmet need to characterize and understand underlying mechanisms taking place in the lungs in order to propose the most suitable therapeutic strategies for SA. For this purpose, we aimed to identify a local signature of severe asthma by conducting comprehensive multi-omics analysis of bronchoalveolar lavages fluids (BALs) from children with SA versus non-asthmatic (NA) controls.
Method. BALs were collected from twenty children with SA and from ten age-matched NA. We previously analyzed soluble and cellular immune components in those samples, and now propose to perform comprehensive analysis of their microbiota and their metabolome. Briefly, DNA from BALs was extracted and 16S rRNA gene (V3-V4 region) was amplified by PCR and sequenced. In parallel, untargeted metabolomics was performed using liquid chromatography coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) following an established workflow for sample preparation, data acquisition and treatment. Each microbiome and metabolome dataset was first analysed independently by unsupervised multivariate analyses (Principal component analyses, PCA). Differences between groups for microbiota diversity indices, the relative distribution of each phyla and genera were then analysed. Metabolite set enrichment analysis (MSEA) and univariate supervised analysis were also performed. To identify a local signature of severe asthma, microbiota and metabolome data were further integrated, together with immune and with clinical data, using unsupervised Multi-Omics Factor Analysis (MOFA).
Results. Microbiota diversity was higher in children with SA versus NA, with higher relative abundances of Streptococcus, Corynebacterium, Tropheryma whipplei, Dolosigranulum pigrum and Moraxella nonliquefaciens. We identified 88 metabolites in BALs, but unsupervised PCA of corresponding data did not differentiate children with SA from NA. However, MSEA evidenced that biotin and carnitine synthesis, lysine degradation, methionine metabolism and spermidine and spermine biosynthesis pathways were significantly enriched in children with SA. Finally, multiblocks data integration identified a signature of SA, mainly described by metabolites and cytokines.
Conclusion. By integrating metabolome, microbiome and cytokines data obtained on BALs from children with severe asthma versus NA, our study uniquely described a local signature of SA.
Detection of Yield and Physiological Responses to Water Stress using Leaf Turgor Pressure and Thermal Images in Pepper
Authors: Camoglu Gokhan , Demirel Kursad , Kahriman Fatih , Akcal Arda , Nar Hakan
Published: June 2023

Today, the use of sensors and imaging techniques to obtain information about plants and soil in smart irrigation systems is rapidly becoming widespread. This study aimed to investigate the usability of leaf turgor pressure and thermal images to detect water stress and the irrigation time of pepper and to determine their relationship with physiological traits (leaf water potential, stomatal conductivity, superoxide dismutase, and catalase activity). For this purpose, the pepper (Capsicum annuum L. cv. "California Wonder") experiment was carried out in Canakkale, Turkey in 2017 and 2018. A total of four treatments were applied in the experiment, control (100%) and three different water stress levels (75%, 50%, and 25%). Leaf turgor pressure (Pp), thermal images and physiological measurements were carried out during the growing season. Soil moisture and leaf turgor pressure (Pp) were monitored in real time by remote. As a result of the study, the average evapotranspiration (ETc) was 697 mm, and the yield value was 83.7 t ha− 1 under non-stress conditions. Depending on the decrease in ETc, yield values also decreased significantly. The physiological traits of pepper were also adversely affected by water stress. Leaf water potential and stomatal conductivity values were statistically different in all irrigation treatments. The change in the activity of catalase (CAT) due to water stress was greater than that of superoxide dismutase (SOD). In this case, it can be said that other physiological traits are more successful than SOD in distinguishing water stress. According to the regression models, significant relationships were determined between both the indices calculated from the thermal images and Pp, yield and physiological traits. The predictive ability of Pp values has been strengthened with the addition of meteorological properties to the model in general. The highest correlation (R2 = 0.63) was between Pp + meteorological properties and the catalase activity. All the regression models between CWSI and IGp calculated from thermal images were statistically significant. The highest R2 values were obtained in August. In this month, the highest correlations were between CWSI and leaf water potential and stomatal conductivity (R2 = 0.91), IGp and stomatal conductivity (R2 = 0.80). The predictive power of CWSIp was higher than IGp. The experiment illustrated that Pp and temperature data, which are plant-based monitoring methods, have the potential to detect water stress in peppers.
Mutation in yl-HOG1 represses the filament-to-yeast transition in the dimorphic yeast Yarrowia lipolytica
Authors: Rzechonek Dorota A. , Szczepańczyk Mateusz , Mirończuk Aleksandra M.
Published: June 2023

Background
Yarrowia lipolytica is a dimorphic fungus, which switches from yeast to yeast-to-filament form in response to environmental conditions. For industrial purposes it is important to lock cells in the yeast or filamentous form depending on the fermentation process. yl-Hog1 kinase is a key component of the HOG signaling pathway, responsible for activating the osmotic stress response. Additionally, deletion of yl-Hog1 leads to increased filamentation in Yarrowia lipolytica, but causes significant sensitivity to osmotic stress induced by a high concentration of a carbon source.
Results
In this study, we tested the effect of point mutations on the function of yl-Hog1 protein kinase. The targets of modification were the phosphorylation sites (T171A-Y173A) and the active center (K49R). Introduction of the variant HOG1-49 into the hog1∆ strain partially improved growth under osmotic stress, but did not recover the yeast-like shape of the cells. The HOG1-171/173 variant was completely inactive, and its introduction further weakened the hog1∆ strains. To verify a genetic modification in filament form, we developed a new system based on green fluorescent protein (GFP) for easier screening of proper mutants.
Conclusions
These results provide new insights into the functions of yl-Hog1 protein in dimorphic transition and constitute a good starting point for further genetic modification of Y. lipolytica in filament form.
Emotional contagion in the human/dog dyad - physiological and cognitive consequences, and implications for pain management: A scoping review
Authors: Walt Ansi , Parker Romy
Published: June 2023

Objective
The objective of this scoping review is to explore the implications of human-dog dyadic interactions on canine chronic pain, by investigating the mediating role of human emotion on the affective and behavioural states of dogs typically associated with canine pain.
Introduction:
Canine chronic osteoarthritis pain causes significant burden of disease in pet dog populations. It is understood that chronic pain is complex and multidimensional, with poor correlation between disease severity and functional disability. Interactions with their human caregivers have measurable effects of affective and physiological states in dogs. A better understanding of how these interactions may affect functional disability in dogs with osteoarthritis pain will inform patient management approaches.
Inclusion criteria:
This review included studies evaluating behavioural, physiological, affective or cognitive changes in dogs, within a human-dog dyad, in response to human caregiver behaviour, personality or emotion.
Methods
The databases searched included PUBMED, SCOPUS, CINAHL, SOCINDEX, PSYCHARTICLES AND PSYCHINFO, and articles were screened by two independent reviewers for assessment against the inclusion criteria for the review.
Results
55 Full text articles were included in the results.
Conclusions
The data support the hypothesis that human affective states influence canine affect, physiology, cognition and behavioural adaptation.
The robust feature extraction of audio signal by using VGGish model
Authors: Diwakar Mandar , Gupta Brijendra
Published: June 2023

This research paper explores the use of the VGGish pre-trained model for feature extraction in the context of speech enhancement. The objective is to investigate the effectiveness of VGGish in capturing relevant speech features that can be utilized to enhance speech quality and reduce noise interference. The experimentation is conducted on the MUSAN dataset, and the results demonstrate the capability of the VGGish model in extracting rich and discriminative features encompassing spectral, temporal, and perceptual characteristics of speech. These features are then employed in various speech enhancement techniques to improve speech intelligibility, enhance spectral clarity, and reduce artifacts caused by noise and distortions. Comparative analysis with traditional methods reveals the superior performance of the VGGish model in capturing a comprehensive representation of the speech signal, leading to better discrimination between speech and noise components. The findings highlight the potential of the VGGish model for speech enhancement applications, offering opportunities for improved communication systems, automatic speech recognition, and audio processing in diverse domains. Future research directions include optimizing the VGGish model for specific speech enhancement tasks, exploring novel feature fusion techniques, and integrating other deep learning architectures to further enhance system performance and flexibility. Overall, this research contributes to advancing speech processing and provides a foundation for enhancing speech quality, reducing noise interference, and improving the overall listening experience.
Video Background Music Recommendation Based on Multi-level Fusion Features
Authors: Zhao Xin , Li Xiaobing , Tie Yun , Qi Lin
Published: June 2023

People resonate more with music when exposed to visual information, and music enhances their perception of video content. Cross-modal recommendation techniques can be used to suggest appropriate background music for a given video. However, there is not a simple correspondence between the different modal data. Therefore, to explore the association between the two modalities of video and music, we propose MFF-VBMR, a video background music recommendation model based on multi-level fusion features. The model uses the cross-modal information of static, dynamic and emotional content of video and music to realize the task of matching and recommending suitable background music for a given video. We propose a feature normalized convolutional similarity algorithm network FNC, which takes into account the pairwise similarity of visual and acoustic regions without losing region details. Experimental results show that the proposed model outperforms other existing models in terms of performance and achieves satisfactory results for video background music recommendation.
Synthesis of anion-binding molecules towards novel benzothiazinones
Authors: Süttő-Kaczeus Krisztina , Krajsovszky Gábor , Bogdán Dóra , Gáti Tamás , Szabó Pál , Horváth Péter , Mandity Istvan M.
Published: June 2023

Herein we report the synthesis of a set of novel N-benzoylthioureas, 2-(acyl)amino-4H-3,1-benzothiazin-4-ones and thiourea derivatives with amino acid moieties. The corresponding benzoyl isothiocyanates were synthesised from a variety of substituted benzoyl chlorides with ammonium thiocyanate or from benzoic acids with the trichloroisocyanuric acid/triphenylphosphine (TCCA/TPP) system. The resulting compounds were reacted with substances containing amino groups to give new molecules with thiourea functionalities, which could be potential chloride ion binders.
Computing the Kirchhoff index and the Wiener index of spiro para-hexagonal cylinder chain
Authors: Reja Md Selim , N Sk. Md. Abu
Published: June 2023

Kirchhoff index of a graph is given by the sum of inverses of non-zero Laplacian eigenvalues multiplied with the number of vertices of the graph. It has been studied for several linear and cylinder chains of chemically important graphs, so far. In this paper, we consider the spiro para-hexagonal cylinder chain and find its Kirchhoff index, Wiener index and number of spanning trees. We observe that like many other chain graphs, the ratio of Wiener index and Kirchhoff index approaches to 3 for large graphs belong to this class.
Galileo High Accuracy Service Performance and Anomaly Mitigation Capabilities
Authors: Martini Ilaria , Susi Melania , Cucchi Luca , Fernandez-Hernandez
Published: June 2023

Precise Point Positioning (PPP) and Real Time Kinematic (RTK) techniques are interesting in several sectors, especially for autonomous applications. These users have high accuracy needs coupled with stringent requirements on continuity, availability, integrity, and convergence time, whose satisfaction can be challenging in harsh environments. Galileo launched on January 2023 the initial High Accuracy Service (HAS), a European free-of charge PPP service with a worldwide coverage transmitted on E6 signals and provided through an internet connection. This paper characterizes the Galileo HAS product performance, including orbital errors, clock errors, code biases, and overall Signal In Space Error (SISE), with live signals transmitted since HAS service declaration. The paper also presents the behaviour of HAS SIS in the case of four satellite anomalies between September 2021 and August 2022, occurring for Galileo and GPS. Finally, the paper presents the results of HAS performance in both static open sky and road scenarios, showing a few-decimetre accuracy even in environments with degraded visibility. The paper shows the improvements in terms of robustness to satellite anomaly thanks to the Galileo HAS characteristics.
Stakeholders’ Use and Awareness of the Benefits of Wetland Management Practices in Ewaso Narok Swamp in Kenya
Authors: Mwangi Magdalene Mutumi , Nyikal Rose Adhiambo , Otieno David Jakinda
Published: June 2023

Wetlands are important for their richness in biodiversity and livelihood support functions. Thus, their wise use is advocated in the Ramsar Convention and calls for implementing conservation approaches to maintain the ecological character of such lands. According to this, the factors responsible for degradation, like the indiscriminate use of fertilizers, should be controlled. Wetland management practices (WMPs) are essential and safe substitutes for fertilizers because they promote resource conservation and increase farm yields. Awareness of the benefits of the WMPs is expected to enhance their utilization and reduce the use of fertilizers and chemicals which affect both wetlands and human health. To ascertain the felt needs in Ewaso Narok Swamp, a survey was carried out among two major stakeholder groups: The Water Resource Users Association (WRUA) and Water Resource Authority (WRA). Additionally, a study determined if benefit awareness influenced the use of WMPs. The major findings are low uptake of WMPs and high use of fertilizer and other chemicals. Subsequently, results showed that although over 80 percent of users were aware of the benefits of WMPs, their non-use of WMPs was 23 percent, and over 40 percent utilized fertilizer on their farms within the wetland. Furthermore, an increase in benefit awareness is likely to increase the use of soil and water conservation practices and pasture conservation practices by 27 and 16 percent respectively. Therefore, group membership must be encouraged, while fertilizer use in the wetland area should be substituted with WMPs to promote sustainable wetland management.
The financial feasibility of sustainable open ocean sea bass farming using submerged net pens: European evidence
Authors: Dyken Jeremy Van , Habibniya Houshang , DSouza Suzan , Sclodnick Tyler
Published: June 2023

The authors have requested that this preprint be removed from Research Square.
Pelargonidin-3,5-diglucoside found in Pomegranate aril acts as a potent HIF-1α inhibitor in in-silico study
Authors: Joshi Esha , Pandya Medha , Balar Shilpa , Saiyed Hiram , Patel Saumya , Rawal Rakesh , Desai Urja
Published: June 2023

Hypoxia-inducible factor 1 alpha (HIF-1α) is a transcription factor that regulates the transcription of over 100 genes involved in erythropoiesis, angiogenesis, autophagy, cell survival, and energy metabolism signalling; it appears to be a potential target in cancer therapy. The aim of this study was to identify natural compounds from Naturally Occurring Plant-based Anti-cancer Compound-Activity-Target (NPACT) database with anticancer potential. Molecular docking of 1574 phytochemicals was carried out using Autodock Vina 1.1.2 using the site-specific docking method and the amino acid residue site was near Asn803 of HIF-1α. The protein-ligand complexes considered for molecular dynamics simulation were HIF1α- Bortezomib (as control), HIF 1α- Pelargonidin-3 ,5-diglucoside and HIF1α- (25S)-5-beta-spirostan-3-beta-ol-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1->2)-[alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1->4)]-beta-D-glucopyranoside. Furthermore, ADMET evaluation for the best ligands was carried out using the pkCSM ADMET server.
Nonlinear impact-echo test for quantitative evaluation of ASR damage in concrete
Authors: Malone Clayton , Sun Hongbin , Zhu Jinying
Published: June 2023

Nonlinear acoustic methods demonstrate high sensitivity for concrete damage evaluation. Among these methods, nonlinear resonance acoustic methods have been widely used in laboratory tests on small scale test samples. In this study, a nonlinear impact-echo (IE) method was proposed for concrete damage evaluation, in which the IE frequency shift was measured at different impact force levels. The nonlinear IE test is similar to the nonlinear impact resonance acoustic spectroscopy (NIRAS) test in the experimental setup and analysis method. However, the nonlinear IE test excites a local thickness resonance mode of a member instead of the global resonance vibration. Therefore, the analyzed mode is not affected by boundary conditions and can be applied to large concrete structural members. To identify the fundamental IE frequency, multiple impacts at different locations were used. The nonlinear IE method was then validated on seven concrete beam specimens with different levels of alkali-silica reaction (ASR) damage. The nonlinear IE test results demonstrate high sensitivity to concrete damage and allow for quantitative assessment of the damage state of concrete without a baseline measurement.