bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Cooperative modification of PVDF electroactive films due to the exfoliated and oriented Na+‐MMT with assistance of different cationic chain length ionic liquids
Authors: Liu Yan , Hu Jing , Zhao Xuanchen , Xie Junhao , Song Shixin , Sun Shulin
Published: February 2022

Poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) based nano dielectric composites have been investigated widely due to their potential application in sensors, actuators, and energy storage fields. To achieve these goals, a novel modification of PVDF electroactive films was prepared due to the exfoliated and oriented Na+‐MMT with the assistance of different cationic chain length imidazole‐based ionic liquids. The results proved the ion exchange between Na+‐MMT and ILs promoted exfoliation and uniform dispersion of Na+‐MMT in PVDF matrix efficiently even under a low ILs content (<0.05%). Furthermore, the existence of ILs and shearing force contributed to the oriented dispersion of Na+‐MMT. The synergistic effect of Na+‐MMT and ILs induced the crystal conformation transition from non‐polar α‐crystal to electroactive β/γ crystal. The ILs with longer cationic chains behaved much higher inducibility for PVDF electroactive phases. Compared with pure PVDF, PVDF/Na+‐MMT/ILs nanocomposites with longer cationic chain ILs showed higher dielectric constant, breakdown strength, and energy density, while kept low‐dielectric loss and conductivity. The improved compatibility between PVDF and Na+‐MMT due to the ion exchange and decreased crystal size for the polar β/γ crystal enhanced the transparency and elongation at break of PVDF/Na+‐MMT/ILs nanocomposites significantly. The results proved [C16MIM][Cl] behaved optimum synergistic modification effect for the nanocomposites, and which showed potential applications in dielectric energy storage and microelectronic fields.
Demographics and significance of porotic hyperostosis as assessed by surface microscopy
Authors: Rothschild Bruce M. , Jellema Lyman , Lambert Wayne
Published: February 2022

Background

Examination of parietal surface anatomy has been limited because standard techniques have insufficient resolution to identify and characterize the structures of interest. Perspectives derived thereof have not clarified their nature. Surface microscopy is pursued as a nondestructive technique to assess the character and implications of porotic pores (referred to as porotic hyperostosis), which have been subject of much speculation.

Methods

The external surface of the skulls, selected on the basis of age and gender, from the Hamann‐Todd human collection are examined by epi‐illumination microscopy for surface pores and to assess correlation with age, ethnicity, gender, anemia, infection, cancer, hypertrophic bone disorders, renal disease, and fractures.

Results

Pore‐like surface defects are present in 2.7%–5% of individuals in the third‐fifth decades of life; 7%, in the sixth‐eighth; and 25%, in the ninth‐11th, but absent in the second decade of life. They are gender and birthdate independent, but slightly more common in African Americans. Fractures are more common among individuals with parietal pores, while tuberculosis, cancer, and hypertrophic bone diseases and anemia are less common.

Discussion

This is the first study to actually examine the prevalence of parietal pores as a function of known age, race, and sex and provides a baseline for comparison with populations in which those variables are not clearly identifiable. While some porotic pores may be related to marrow hyperplasia, transcortical circulation may explain the majority.
An apparently phylogeny‐independent method for identification of skeletal (longitudinal) growth cessation (skeletal maturity) in birds
Authors: Rothschild Bruce
Published: February 2022

Identification of skeletal maturity is of interest as a measure of species longevity and for identifying its maximal achievable size/mass. Measurement of age on the basis of growth arrest/accentuation lines and external fundamental system evidences cessation or at least extreme slowing of circumferential bone growth. Such intramembranous (periosteal)‐derived growth is distinct from the endochondral ossification responsible for longitudinal growth and therefore achievable organismal size/mass. As subchondral transcortical channels are required for nourishment, their loss should identify cessation of longitudinal growth. Predicated on phylogenetic bracketing/relationship and shared anatomical structures with and without growth plates, birds represent an appropriate model for the study of dinosaur ontogeny. Persistence of transcortical subchondral channels in the long bones of birds are examined at ×100–200 magnification and correlated with bone length. Transcortical channels are present in subchondral articular surfaces, but disappear when terminal longitudinal growth is achieved. Articular vascular channels perforating articular surfaces from within the bone are detected. Loss of penetrating channels is interpreted as evidence of skeletal growth cessation, identifying the longitudinal bone length at which skeletal growth cessation has been achieved. The current study provides evidence that maximal bone length does correlate with endochondral cessation growth. Failure of circumferential growth reduction/cessation to correlate with bone length may be related to lack of synchronicity of periosteal‐based circumferential growth with the endochondral process responsible for bone lengthening. Loss/closure of articular vascular channels may be the most reliable measure of a bird's achievement of maximal growth (indicating cessation of appendicular element lengthening).
How does early‐life adversity shape telomere dynamics during adulthood? Problems and paradigms
Authors: Marasco Valeria , Smith Steve , Angelier Frédéric
Published: February 2022

Although early‐life adversity has been associated with negative consequences during adulthood, growing evidence shows that such adversity can also lead to subsequent stress resilience and positive fitness outcomes. Telomere dynamics are relevant in this context because of the link with developmental conditions and longevity. However, few studies have assessed whether the effects of early‐life adversity on developmental telomere dynamics may relate to adult telomere dynamics. We propose that the potential links between early‐life adversity and adult telomere dynamics could be driven by developmental constraints (the Constraint hypothesis), by the nature/severity of developmental adversity (the Resilience hypothesis), or by developmental‐mediated changes in individual life‐history strategies (the Pace of Life hypothesis). We discuss these non‐mutually exclusive hypotheses, explore future research directions, and propose specific studies to test these hypotheses. Our article aims to expand our understanding of the evolutionary role of developmental conditions on adult telomere dynamics, stress resilience and ageing.
Investigating Ion Transport through Artificial Transmembrane Channels Containing Introverted Groups
Authors: Li Ya‐Wei , Fu Yong‐Hong , Hou Jun‐Li
Published: February 2022

Comprehensive Summary

The investigation on the relationship between structure and transport activity of artificial transmembrane channels has still remained a challenge because of lacking strategy to precisely arrange the functional group in the channel structures. Herein, we report a general strategy to monitor ion transport through the artificial channels by using unimolecular tubular molecules containing introverted groups. We found that the ion transport rate decreased with elongation of the introverted sidechains and the channel with propyl group as the introverted sidechain exhibited the longest opening duration time. Moreover, we have revealed that, comparing to the ion transport rate, the opening duration is a more important factor for determining the transport activity of the artificial channels.
A Highly Efficient Luminescent Metal–Organic Framework with Strong Conjugate Unit for Sensing Small Molecules
Authors: Chai Bi‐Lian , Xu Hui , Zheng Teng‐Fei , Chen Jing‐Lin , Liu Sui‐Jun , Yu Mei‐Hui , Wen He‐Rui
Published: February 2022

Comprehensive Summary

Luminescent metal–organic frameworks (LMOFs) have become a promising class of fluorescence sensing materials, however, the multi‐responsive LMOF sensors for organic compounds are rather rare. Herein, a water stable and highly efficient luminescent MOF with the formula of {[Zn(BBZB)(2,6‐NDC)]·solvents}n (JXUST‐10, BBZB = 4,7‐bis(1H‐benzimidazole‐1‐yl)‐2,1,3‐benzothiadiazole and 2,6‐NDC = 2,6‐naphthalenedicarboxylate) was constructed by the incorporation of Zn2+ and two organic ligands (BBZB and 2,6‐NDC) featuring the conjugate system. JXUST‐10 is a three‐dimensional two‐fold interpenetrated framework with good fluorescent property. Based on the luminescent characteristic, JXUST‐10 can be used as a multi‐responsive sensor for detection of three different analytes including tetracycline, benzaldehyde and uric acid via different luminescent change behaviours. Remarkably, fluorescence test paper and LED light devices are used to detect analytes through the visual change of luminescence colour of JXUST‐10 from blue greenish to yellow greenish under ultraviolet light (365 nm) irradiation. Furthermore, the probable sensing mechanisms for three target analytes were also discussed.
Dynamics Study of the Self‐assembly of an Amphipathic Heptapeptide and Its Application as Glucosidase Mimetic
Authors: He Xingxing , Wang Xueqing , Liu Jifeng , Wang Shuo
Published: February 2022

Controlled peptide assembly is an important approach for the synthesis of materials with diverse functions, which opened up new frontiers in polymer science. Herein, we have qualitatively evaluated the morphological changes of the self‐assembly heptapeptide “Fmoc‐AEAEAEA‐CONH2” under various experimental conditions by transmission electron microscopy. The results showed that the morphology of the self‐assembled heptapeptide were found to be strongly influenced by the temperature, pH and solvents. And the heptapeptide can form two assemblies, nanofibers and cubes, depending on the kinetic parameters during the fabrication. It was concluded that the rebalance of molecular interactions such as hydrophobic interactions, hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interactions between peptides are responsible for the conversion of morphology. Additionally, the two assemblies could be utilized as the β‐glucosidase mimics, and the catalytic activity of the hydrolases mimics followed the density of active sites outside the assemblies. This finding provided a new perspective to understanding the process of self‐assembling and the potential relationship between block architectures and the generation of efficient artificial enzymes.
Virtual Colour Atlas
Authors: Smith Neville S. , Fairchild Mark D.
Published: February 2022

A web application (Virtual Colour Atlas) has been developed that implements seven of the leading color order systems: Colorcurve, Coloroid, DIN 6164, Munsell, OSA‐UCS, NCS, and Swiss Colour Atlas 2541, three color spaces: CIE xyY, CIELAB, and CIELUV, and three colour ranges: BS:5252, RAL 840‐HR, and RAL 841‐GL—allowing the user to view any of the core planes in the color space of each of these systems. The Virtual Colour Atlas is freely available at (www.vcsconsulting.uk) and provides visual interaction with these systems using any modern browser hosted on a device with a sufficiently large physical display including: windows PCs, Macs, iPads, Linux devices, and smart televisions (HD to 8 K). This paper provides a brief background on the systems, describes the Virtual Colour Atlas software and history, and discusses example applications of the Virtual Colour Atlas.
Simple sequence repeat marker development and diversity analysis in buffalograss
Authors: Marshall Collin , Warnke Scott , Amundsen Keenan
Published: February 2022

Buffalograss [Buchloë dactyloides (Nutt.) Engelm. syn. Bouteloua dactyloides (Nutt.) Columbus] is a stoloniferous low input turfgrass species native to the central Great Plains of the United States. Several molecular marker techniques have been used to compare relationships among elite buffalograss germplasm, but most rely on random amplification, are transferred from other species, or are developed from limited DNA sequence information. The objectives of this study were to develop buffalograss derived simple sequence repeat markers (SSRs) from buffalograss sequence data using an in‐silico bioinformatics pipeline and use high resolution melt analysis to screen the SSRs based on their melt profiles on buffalograss cultivars and germplasm. Transcriptomes from buffalograss cultivars ‘378’ and ‘Prestige’ were mined for SSRs using the MIcroSAtellite tool. There were 259 conserved SSRs that were polymorphic between 378 and Prestige. Of those, 96 were tested by HRM on a panel of eight genotypes and 24 were selected for producing melt profiles that could distinguish the genotypes. The selected reactions produced 356 distinct melt profiles when tested on a panel of 96 genotypes, including 88 buffalograss germplasm selections, six buffalograss cultivars, and two blue grama [Bouteloua gracilis (H. B. K.) Lag. ex Steud.] selections, with melt profile frequencies ranging from 0.01 to 0.97. A subset of 86 melt profiles segregating among the blue grama and elite buffalograss cultivars distinguished each genotype. The buffalograss‐specific SSR markers presented here will be useful to study buffalograss genetic diversity, line purity maintenance, and for marker supported plant breeding strategies.
Prevalent, persistent, and impairing: Longitudinal course and impact of apathy in Alzheimer's disease
Authors: Grossman Hillel T. , Sano Mary , Aloysi Amy , Elder Gregory A. , Neugroschl Judith , Schimming Corbett , Soleimani Laili , Zhu Carolyn W.
Published: February 2022

Introduction

Understanding of the natural history of apathy and its impact on patient function is limited. This study examines, in a large, national sample of Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients with long follow‐ups: (1) prevalence, incidence, and persistence of apathy, and (2) impact of apathy on function across dementia severity.

Methods

A longitudinal study of 9823 well‐characterized AD patients in the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center Uniform Data Set.

Results

Apathy was highly prevalent across disease severity with cumulative prevalence of 48%, 74%, and 82% in Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0, respectively. Persistence of apathy from clinician judgment varied from visit to visit at earlier disease stages but remained high at moderate dementia. Independent of cognition, persistent apathy was strongly associated with accelerated rate of functional decline.

Discussion

Findings point to important targets for the treatment and management of apathy, include functional outcomes, and study designs that account for variable persistence of the apathy syndrome.
Plasma microRNA vary in association with the progression of Alzheimer's disease
Authors: Guévremont Diane , Tsui Helen , Knight Robert , Fowler Chris J. , Masters Colin L. , Martins Ralph N. , Abraham Wickliffe C. , Tate Warren P. , Cutfield Nicholas J. , Williams Joanna M.
Published: February 2022

Introduction

Early intervention in Alzheimer's disease (AD) requires the development of an easily administered test that is able to identify those at risk. Focusing on microRNA robustly detected in plasma and standardizing the analysis strategy, we sought to identify disease‐stage specific biomarkers.

Methods

Using TaqMan microfluidics arrays and a statistical consensus approach, we assessed plasma levels of 185 neurodegeneration‐related microRNA, in cohorts of cognitively normal amyloid β‐positive (CN‐Aβ+), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and Alzheimer's disease (AD) participants, relative to their respective controls.

Results

Distinct disease stage microRNA biomarkers were identified, shown to predict membership of the groups (area under the curve [AUC] >0.8) and were altered dynamically with AD progression in a longitudinal study. Bioinformatics demonstrated that these microRNA target known AD‐related pathways, such as the Phosphoinositide 3‐kinase (PI3K‐Akt) signalling pathway. Furthermore, a significant correlation was found between miR‐27a‐3p, miR‐27b‐3p, and miR‐324‐5p and amyloid beta load.

Discussion

Our results show that microRNA signatures alter throughout the progression of AD, reflect the underlying disease pathology, and may prove to be useful diagnostic markers.
Affinity‐Engineered Flexible Scaffold toward Energy‐Dense, Highly Reversible Na Metal Batteries
Authors: Liu Yujie , Bai Miao , Du Dou , Tang Xiaoyu , Wang Helin , Zhang Min , Zhao Ting , Liu Fu , Wang Zhiqiao , Ma Yue
Published: February 2022

The practical deployment of metallic anodes in the energy‐dense batteries is impeded by the thermodynamically unstable interphase in contact with the aprotic electrolyte, structural collapse of the substrates as well as their insufficient affinity toward the metallic deposits. Herein, the mechanical flexible, lightweight (1.2 mg cm−2) carbon nanofiber scaffold with the monodispersed, ultrafine Sn4P3 nanoparticles encapsulation (Sn4P3NPs@CNF) is proposed as the deposition substrate toward the high‐areal‐capacity sodium loadings up to 4 mAh cm−2. First‐principles calculations manifest that the alloy intermediates, namely the Na15Sn4 and Na3P matrix, exhibit the intimate Na affinity as the “sodiophilic” sites. Meanwhile, the porous CNF regulates the heterogeneous alloying process and confines the deposit propagation along the nanofiber orientation. With the precise control of pairing mode with the NaVPO4F cathode (8.7 mg cm−2), the practical feasibility of the Sn4P3 NPs@CNF anode (1* Na excess) is demonstrated in 2 mAh single‐layer pouch cell prototype, which achieves the 95.7% capacity retention for 150 cycles at various mechanical flexing states as well as balanced energy/power densities.
Standing up or giving up? Moral foundations mediate political differences in evaluations of BLACK LIVES MATTER and other protests
Authors: Richardson Isaac , Conway Paul
Published: February 2022

Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests challenge the existing social order whereas other protests do not (e.g., gun‐rights protests). Some protests even reinforce it (e.g., Blue Lives Matter protests). Protests challenging the social order align with “individualizing” moral foundations (e.g., fairness, harm/care) but undermine “binding” moral foundations (e.g., loyalty, authority), which may partially explain political differences in approval of protesting. Four studies examined whether moral foundation endorsement mediated the effect of political orientation on protest evaluations. In Study 1, liberals rated BLM protests and general protesting as more moral than conservatives, partially due to increased individualizing and decreased binding endorsement. Studies 2–4 replicated this pattern for BLM and general protesting, but these effects disappeared for gun‐rights protests and largely reversed for Blue Lives Matter protests, which uphold the status quo. These results suggest that protest evaluations partially reflect the moral values prioritized by different political groups.
The interplay between audiovisual temporal synchrony and semantic congruency in the cross‐modal boost of the visual target discrimination during the attentional blink
Authors: Zhao Song , Wang Chongzhi , Feng Chengzhi , Wang Yijun , Feng Wenfeng
Published: February 2022

The visual attentional blink can be substantially reduced by delivering a task‐irrelevant sound synchronously with the second visual target (T2), and this effect is further modulated by the semantic congruency between the sound and T2. However, whether the cross‐modal benefit originates from audiovisual interactions or sound‐induced alertness remains controversial, and whether the semantic congruency effect is contingent on audiovisual temporal synchrony needs further investigation. The current study investigated these questions by recording event‐related potentials (ERPs) in a visual attentional blink task wherein a sound could either synchronize with T2, precede T2 by 200 ms, be delayed by 100 ms, or be absent, and could be either semantically congruent or incongruent with T2 when delivered. The behavioral data showed that both the cross‐modal boost of T2 discrimination and the further semantic modulation were the largest when the sound synchronized with T2. In parallel, the ERP data yielded that both the early occipital cross‐modal P195 component (192–228 ms after T2 onset) and late parietal cross‐modal N440 component (424–448 ms) were prominent only when the sound synchronized with T2, with the former being elicited solely when the sound was further semantically congruent whereas the latter occurring only when that sound was incongruent. These findings demonstrate not only that the cross‐modal boost of T2 discrimination during the attentional blink stems from early audiovisual interactions and the semantic congruency effect depends on audiovisual temporal synchrony, but also that the semantic modulation can unfold at the early stage of visual discrimination processing.
Prevalence and Risk Factors of Advanced Liver Fibrosis in a Population‐Based Study in Germany
Authors: Huber Yvonne , Schulz Andreas , Schmidtmann Irene , Beutel Manfred , Pfeiffer Norbert , Münzel Thomas , Galle Peter R. , Wild Philipp S. , Lackner Karl J. , Schattenberg Jörn M.
Published: February 2022

The prevalence of liver disease, and especially of advanced liver fibrosis, in the German population is poorly defined. The aim of the study was to explore liver enzymes and surrogate scores of hepatic steatosis and advanced hepatic fibrosis in a population‐based cohort study in Germany. In the cross‐sectional population‐based Gutenberg Health study, data of 14,950 participants enrolled between 2007 and 2012 were captured and analyzed. The distribution of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), gamma‐glutamyltransferase (GGT), fatty liver index (FLI), and Fibrosis‐4 (FIB‐4) score, as well as the underlying risk factors, were assessed by regression models. Elevated liver enzymes in this population‐based sample were seen in 19.9% for ALT, 12.8% for AST, and 14% for GGT. Risk factors for liver disease included alcohol use and the presence of the metabolic syndrome, which were both risk factors associated with increased liver enzymes. The FLI suggested that 37.5% of the population exhibited hepatic steatosis and 1.1% of patients exhibited a FIB‐4 above the upper cutoff, while 19.2% were in the intermediate range. Interestingly, advanced fibrosis was significantly more frequent in men compared with women (FIB‐4: 1.5% vs. 0.6% [P < 0.0001]; NFS: 3.6% vs. 1.9% [P < 0.0001]). In addition, age was a relevant risk factor for exhibiting a noninvasive surrogate score suggestive of advanced fibrosis in the current study population. Conclusion: Elevated liver enzymes were seen in almost a fifth of the German population. At the population‐based level, the prevalence of advanced fibrosis was estimated at 1% in Germany.
Suspected neuropsychomotor developmental delay in the first 2 years of life in a birth cohort in the Brazilian Amazon: Incidence, persistence and risk factors
Authors: Araujo Waleska Regina Machado , Malta Maíra Barreto , Faggiani Lucas Damasio , Cardoso Marly Augusto , Matijasevich Alicia ,   for the MINA‐Brazil Study Group
Published: February 2022

We estimated risk factors associated with suspected neuropsychomotor developmental delay at age 2 years, in a birth cohort in the Brazilian Amazon. The Maternal and Child Health and Nutrition in Acre (MINA‐Brasil) study is a population‐based birth cohort involving children born between July 2015 and June 2016 in the municipality of Cruzeiro do Sul, in the Brazilian state of Acre. We assessed neuropsychomotor development in 735 and 819 children at one and 2 years of age, respectively, using the Denver II screening test. Multivariate Poisson regression models were used to investigate the factors associated with suspected developmental delay at age 2 years. The frequency of suspected developmental delay was 29.5 and 51.0% at one and 2 years of age, respectively, with a cumulative incidence of 41.6% and a persistence of 60.6% between the first and second years of life. After adjustment, the risk of developmental delay at 2 years of age was found to be higher for children born to women with fewer years of education and whose mothers had urinary tract infection during pregnancy. Other risk factors included male sex, low height for age at 2 years, malaria at childhood, pacifier use and limited child stimulation at age 2 years.
Nutritional interventions to ameliorate the effect of endocrine disruptors on human reproductive health: A semi‐structured review from FIGO
Authors: Corbett Gillian A. , Lee Sadhbh , Woodruff Tracey J. , Hanson Mark , Hod Moshe , Charlesworth Anne Marie , Giudice Linda , Conry Jeanne , McAuliffe Fionnuala M. ,   International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) Committee on Impact of Pregnancy on Long‐term Health and the FIGO Committee on Climate Change and Toxic Environmental Exposures
Published: February 2022

Background

Endocrine disrupting chemicals have harmful effects on reproductive, perinatal, and obstetric outcomes.

Objective

To analyze the evidence on nutritional interventions to reduce the negative effects of endocrine disruptors on reproductive, perinatal, and obstetric outcomes.

Search strategy

A search of MEDLINE (PubMed), Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), EMBASE, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Database was conducted from inception to May 2021.

Selection criteria

Experimental studies on human populations.

Data collection and analysis

Data were collected from eligible studies. Risk of bias assessment was completed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool and the ROBINS‐I Tool.

Results

Database searches yielded 15 362 articles. Removing 11 181 duplicates, 4181 articles underwent abstract screening, 26 articles were eligible for full manuscript review, and 16 met full inclusion criteria. Several interventions were found to be effective in reducing exposure to endocrine disruptors: avoidance of plastic containers, bottles, and packaging; avoidance of canned food/beverages; consumption of fresh and organic food; avoidance of fast/processed foods; and supplementation with vitamin C, iodine, and folic acid. There were some interventional studies examining therapies to improve clinical outcomes related to endocrine disruptors.

Conclusion

Dietary alterations can reduce exposure to endocrine disruptors, with limited data on interventions to improve endocrine‐disruptor–related clinical outcomes. This review provides useful instruction to women, their families, healthcare providers, and regulatory bodies.
Seroreduction of syphilis non‐treponemal titers during pregnancy for women with and without HIV co‐infection
Authors: Webster Carolyn M. , Kasaro Margaret P. , Price Joan T. , Stringer Elizabeth M. , Wiesen Christopher A. , Vwalika Bellington , Stringer Jeffrey S. A.
Published: February 2022

Objective

To evaluate the effect of HIV co‐infection on non‐treponemal titers during pregnancy in women with syphilis.

Methods

This is a secondary analysis of pregnant women with syphilis in the prospective, observational Zambian Preterm Birth Prevention Study (ZAPPS). Treponemal (Treponema pallidum particle agglutination) and non‐treponemal (rapid plasma reagin; RPR) testing were performed on serum biospecimens, resulting in 47 participants with serologically confirmed syphilis (27 HIV‐positive, 20 HIV‐negative). The primary outcome, achievement of RPR titer seroreduction during pregnancy, was analyzed by logistic regression. Secondary outcomes included overall titer reduction, seroreduction rate, serologic cure, and adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Results

Seroreduction of RPR titer occurred in 78% (21/27) of women with HIV versus 45% (9/20) of women without (adjusted odds ratio 4.66; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.14 − 19.08). Overall RPR titer reduction, rate of seroreduction per week, and the proportion achieving serologic cure each trended higher among women with HIV compared with those without HIV. There was a trend toward decreased stillbirth incidence in participants achieving seroreduction (odds ratio 0.15, 95% CI 0.01–1.58).

Conclusion

HIV co‐infection in this cohort of Zambian women with syphilis was associated with greater odds of RPR titer seroreduction during pregnancy. Pregnant women with syphilis and HIV may not be at increased risk for a delayed syphilis treatment response compared with women without HIV.
Patient‐reported outcome measures for pregnancy‐related urinary and fecal incontinence: A prospective cohort study in a large Italian population
Authors: Ferrari Amerigo , Bonciani Manila , Russo Eleonora , Mannella Paolo , Simoncini Tommaso , Vainieri Milena
Published: February 2022

Objective

To investigate prevalence and risk factors of pregnancy‐related urinary/fecal incontinence (UI/FI) in a large Italian population.

Methods

This is a prospective cohort study analyzing patient‐reported outcome (PRO) measures obtained from the systematic longitudinal survey on the maternity pathway of Tuscany from March 2019 to April 2021. Four questionnaires were completed by 6023 women from the beginning of pregnancy until 6 months postpartum, each including two PRO measures—Wexner scale for FI and ICIQ‐SF for UI–, and questions investigating sociodemographic/clinical factors. After assessing UI/FI prevalence at each time‐point, we run panel regressions to explore the related risk factors.

Results

Women reporting UI and FI were, respectively, 24.3% and 6.2% in the third trimester, and 12.6% and 4.2% 6 months postpartum. UI occurrence and severity were higher in highly educated, aged >30, and overweight/obese women. Spontaneous tears or episiotomy were risk factors for postpartum UI, while receiving cesarean‐section and performing pelvic‐floor‐muscle‐training during pregnancy were protective, mainly in specific groups. Finally, higher FI prevalence and severity emerged in overweight, aged >40, highly educated, non‐Italian women and in those undergoing tears.

Conclusion

We employed PRO measures to investigate the epidemiology of pregnancy‐related UI/FI and detect the main risk groups. Pelvic‐floor‐muscle‐training may be recommended in women with peculiar sociodemographic/clinical features.
Attitudes toward Homelessness Inventory: A psychometric analysis
Authors: Snow‐Hill Nyssa L. , Kloos Bret
Published: February 2022

The Attitudes toward Homelessness Inventory (ATHI) was developed due to a lack of psychometrically sound instruments to measure the nature and change in attitudes toward homelessness. Given inconsistencies in its use and internal reliability, this study evaluates the psychometric properties of the ATHI. Participants (n = 899) were selected using a random‐digit‐dial telephone survey to complete the ATHI. Results demonstrated that the four‐factor solution suggested by the ATHI developers was the best fit for the data, but factor loadings and reliability coefficients were not sufficient for ensuring adequate measurement of attitudes toward homelessness. The poor psychometrics found in this study were likely the result of now outdated items. While the ATHI was developed using well‐regarded and rigorous methods, results from this study suggest that it may be necessary to either make edits to the ATHI or to develop a new conceptually and psychometrically‐sound measure.
Microscopic handcrafted features selection from computed tomography scans for early stage lungs cancer diagnosis using hybrid classifiers
Authors: Alyami Jabar , Khan Amjad Rehman , Bahaj Saeed Ali , Fati Suliman Mohamed
Published: February 2022

Lung's cancer is the leading cause of cancer‐related deaths worldwide. Recently cancer mortality rate and incidence increased exponentially. Many patients with lung cancer are diagnosed late, so the survival rate is shallow. Machine learning approaches have been widely used to increase the effectiveness of cancer detection at an early stage. Even while these methods are efficient in detecting specific forms of cancer, there is no known technique that could be used universally and consistently to identify new malignancies. As a result, cancer diagnosis via machine learning algorithms is still fresh area of research. Computed tomography (CT) images are frequently employed for early cancer detection and diagnosis because they contain significant information. In this research, an automated lung cancer detection and classification framework is proposed which consists of preprocessing, three patches local binary pattern feature encoding, local binary pattern, histogram of oriented gradients features are extracted and fused. The fast learning network (FLN) is a novel machine‐learning technique that is fast to train and economical in terms of processing resources. However, the FLN's internal power parameters (weight and basis) are randomly initialized, resulting it an unstable algorithm. Therefore, to enhance accuracy, FLN is hybrid with K‐nearest neighbors to classify texture and appearance‐based features of lung chest CT scans from Kaggle dataset into cancerous and non‐cancerous images. The proposed model performance is evaluated using accuracy, sensitivity, specificity on the Kaggle benchmark dataset that is found comparable in state of the art using simple machine learning strategies.

Research highlights

Fast learning network and K‐nearest neighbor hybrid classifier proposed first time for lung cancer classification using handcrafted features including three patches local binary pattern, local binary pattern, and histogram of oriented gradients.

Promising results obtained from novel simple combination.
Views of Israeli healthcare professionals regarding communication of genetic variants of uncertain significance to patients
Authors: Levin Fridman Alma , Raz Aviad , Timmermans Stefan , Shkedi‐Rafid Shiri
Published: February 2022

While genomic medicine is becoming an important part of patient care with an ever‐increasing diagnostic yield, communicating variants of uncertain clinical significance (VUSs) remains a major challenge. We draw on qualitative analysis of semi‐structured interviews conducted in 2020 with 20 Israeli healthcare professionals and stakeholders involved in communicating the results of genome‐wide sequencing to patients. Respondents described four main strategies of communicating VUSs to patients: preparing the patient pre‐test for uncertainty; adapting the level of detail to the patient's needs; upgrading versus downgrading the VUS; and following up on the possible reclassification of VUSs. These strategies were expressed differently by physicians and genetic counselors, varying according to their specialty and perception of the patient's situation. We discuss the strategic management and communication of uncertain genomic test results with patients in the context of meeting patients' expectations and working toward genetic causality through genomic narration and designation.
Efficient synthesis of benzo[h]carbazol[3,2‐b][1,6]naphthyridines
Authors: Ezhumalai Yamuna , Kumaresan Prabakaran , Matthias Zeller , Karnam Jayarampillai Rajendra Prasad
Published: February 2022

The use of CuI as a promoter to examine amination in the reaction of aminocarbazole (1) and 2‐methyl‐4‐chloroquinoline (2) resulted in a functionalized series of substituted naphthylamino carbazole. After cyclization with polyphosphoric acid and benzoic acid/p‐toluic acid, new isomeric ellipticine derivatives of linear benzo[h]carbazol[3,2‐b][1,6]naphthyridines were obtained in high yield. The current method has the advantages of a straightforward methodology, a clean and mild reaction, a broad substrate range, and a high yield.
Identifying volatile and non‐volatile organic compounds to discriminate cultivar, growth location, and stage of ripening in olive fruits and oils
Authors: Greco Maria , Spadafora Natasha , Shine Martin , Smith Ann , Muto Antonella , Muzzalupo Innocenzo , Chiappetta Adriana , Bruno Leonardo , Müller Carsten , Rogers Hilary , Bitonti M. Beatrice
Published: February 2022

BACKGROUND

There is increasing consumer demand for olive oil to be traceable. However, genotype, environmental factors, and stage of maturity, all affect the flavor and composition of both the olives and olive oil. Few studies have included all three variables. Key metabolites include lipids, phenolics, and a wide range of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which provide the olives and oil with their characteristic flavor. Here we aim to identify markers that are able to discriminate between cultivars, that can identify growth location, and can discriminate stages of fruit maturity. ‘Nocellara messinese’ and ‘Carolea’ olive fruits were grown at three locations differing in altitude in Calabria, Italy, and harvested at three stages of maturity. Oil was analyzed from the two most mature stages.

RESULTS

Nine and 20 characters discriminated all fruit and oil samples respectively, and relative abundance of two fatty acids distinguished all oils. Whole VOC profiles discriminated among the least mature olives, and oil VOC profiles discriminated location and cultivar at both stages. Three VOCs putatively identified as hexanal, methyl acetate, and 3‐hexen‐1‐ol differentiated all samples of oils from the most mature fruit stage.

CONCLUSION

The results confirm that interactions of location, cultivar and fruit maturity stage are critical for the overall pattern of aroma compounds, and identify potential markers of commercial relevance. © 2022 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.
Performance of the single‐event wind erosion evaluation program (SWEEP) model in assessing the impact of crop rotation, green manure, fertilizer, and tillage on wind erosion
Authors: Pi Huawei , Webb Nicholas P. , Huggins David R. , Sharratt Brenton , Li Sisi
Published: February 2022

Agricultural land management strategies have been applied to minimize wind erosion in the inland Pacific Northwest (iPNW) due to their profound influence on various soil properties and crop residue characteristics. However, simulating soil loss in response to these treatment strategies remains a challenge. The objective of this study was to test the performance of the single‐event wind erosion evaluation program (SWEEP) in simulating soil loss from agricultural land under contrasting tillage, crop rotation, fertilizer, and green manure treatments in the iPNW. These management strategies appeared to impact residue characteristics but had little or no impact on soil properties except tillage treatments in the short term (<2 years). Tillage appeared to have a greater impact on soil properties and residue characteristics than other treatments. As a result, the performance of SWEEP varied among disk‐tillage (DT), undercutter‐tillage (UT), and NT (no‐tillage/zero‐tillage) treatments. No or little difference was found in the performance of SWEEP between winter wheat‐summer fallow (WW‐SF) and WW‐oilseed‐SF (WW‐O‐SF) crop rotations and synthetic and biosolids fertilizer treatments. In addition, the performance of SWEEP was acceptable for both crop rotation and fertilizer treatments. In contrast, poor agreement between simulated and measured erosion was found for manure treatments in which SWEEP over‐estimated erosion by 313 and 210% for no manure and manure treatments, respectively. The over‐estimation of SWEEP may be due to the over‐estimation of abrasion flux from the fully crusted soil surface. Our results suggest that SWEEP can be used to identify control measures for windblown soil loss in the iPNW.
Effects of tillage systems on soil organic carbon and some soil physical properties
Authors: Farahani Elham , Emami Hojat , Forouhar Majid
Published: February 2022

Conservation tillage by increasing soil organic carbon can improve soil structure, especially in arid and semiarid regions. In this study, the effects of three tillage systems [conventional (CT), reduced (RT), and no‐till (NT)] in a wheat‐maize crop rotation on soil organic carbon content (SOC) and some physical properties of a clay loam soil were investigated. The field experiment was set up in a randomized complete block design with three replications in the third year in northeastern Iran. Samples of disturbed and undisturbed soil were collected from 0–15 and 15–30 cm depths and analyzed to quantify SOC content, pore size distribution, hydraulic properties, and aggregate stability. SOC was higher in NT than in the RT and CT treatments, due to the use of cover crops (clover) and the retention of crop residues in this system. The highest water‐stable and macro‐aggregate content were also obtained in the NT system. The highest water contents (for most of the matric suctions) were found in the treatments CT and RT, which also had a high total soil porosity. It was found that tillage in CT and RT loosened the soil and thus increased the total porosity. The highest air‐entry value was found in the CT treatment at 15–30 cm depth, which contained the most micro‐aggregates. However, the maximumn‐value (shape parameter of the water retention curve) was obtained in the treatment with the largest pores, that is, NT at a depth of 15–30 cm. X‐ray images of the pore space and pore function data (dmean,dmode, anddmedian) showed that the largest soil pores were found in the NT treatment, probably due to the high SOC in the NT system. The results of this study showed that the effects of tillage systems on soil physical properties are strongly dependent on SOC. Based on the results of this study, the use of a no‐till system with crop rotation that includes cover crops and crop residue retention is recommended to increase soil organic matter and thereby improve soil structural stability in arid and semiarid regions.
Novel 1, 3, 5‐triazine derivative is a highly efficient inhibitor of corrosion of Q235 carbon steel in an acidic medium
Authors: Wei Cunhua , Xu Ge , Yu Jin
Published: February 2022

A novel triazine derivative, 2, 4‐diamino‐6‐dodecamido‐1, 3, 5‐triazine (DT), is synthesized by the dehydration condensation of melamine and lauric acid, and its inhibitive performances for the corrosion of Q235 carbon steel in 1 mol/L HCl solution is investigated by electrochemical polarization, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and atomic force microscope. The results reveal that its best inhibition efficiency reaches 96.98% at a concentration of 2.5 g/L. The calculation results of kinetic and thermodynamic parameters indicate that the adsorption of DT on carbon steel surface obeys Langmuir adsorption isotherm with both physical and chemical adsorption. It is demonstrated that long‐chain amide (>8C) substituted 1, 3, 5‐triazine derivative has the synergistic corrosion inhibition effect of the surface fixation on metal iron and the hydrophobic adsorption layer.
Alpha and Beta Synucleins: From Pathophysiology to Clinical Application as Biomarkers
Authors: Barba Lorenzo , Paolini Paoletti Federico , Bellomo Giovanni , Gaetani Lorenzo , Halbgebauer Steffen , Oeckl Patrick , Otto Markus , Parnetti Lucilla
Published: February 2022

The synuclein family includes three neuronal proteins, named α‐synuclein, β‐synuclein, and γ‐synuclein, that have peculiar structural features. α‐synuclein is largely known for being a key protein in the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease (PD) and other synucleinopathies, namely, dementia with Lewy bodies and multisystem atrophy. The role of β‐synuclein and γ‐synuclein is less well understood in terms of physiological functions and potential contribution to human diseases. α‐synuclein has been investigated extensively in both cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and blood as a potential biomarker for synucleinopathies. Recently, great attention has been also paid to β‐synuclein, whose CSF and blood levels seem to reflect synaptic damage and neurodegeneration independent of the presence of synucleinopathy. In this review, we aim to provide an overview on the pathophysiological roles of the synucleins. Because γ‐synuclein has been poorly investigated in the field of synucleinopathy and its pathophysiological roles are far from being clear, we focus on the interactions between α‐synuclein and β‐synuclein in PD. We also discuss the role of α‐synuclein and β‐synuclein as potential biomarkers to improve the diagnostic characterization of synucleinopathies, thus highlighting their potential application in clinical trials for disease‐modifying therapies. © 2022 The Authors. Movement Disorders published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society
Mechanics of incompressible test bodies moving on λ‐spheres
Authors: Kovalchuk Vasyl , Mladenov Ivaïlo
Published: February 2022

The considerations of the mechanics of incompressible test bodies moving on spheres are generalized to the case of λ‐spheres. Both surfaces are examples of Riemannian manifolds realized as two‐dimensional manifolds with strictly positive Gaussian curvature under the condition λ < 1/3 for the λ‐spheres. A convenient parametrization of λ‐spheres embedded as two‐dimensional surfaces of revolution into the three‐dimensional Euclidean space is derived. The so‐obtained parametrization is expressed in a concise form via the elliptic integrals of the first, second, and third kind. Next, the geodetic motion is considered. The explicit solutions for two branches of the incompressible motion are obtained in the parametric form. For the special case of geodetics corresponding to meridians taken as geodesics their analysis is performed in detail. In the latter case, the so‐obtained geodetic solutions are reduced to the incomplete elliptic integrals of the first, second, and third kind.
A back‐projection‐and‐filtering‐like (BPF‐like) reconstruction method with the deep learning filtration from listmode data in TOF‐PET
Authors: Lv Li , Zeng Gengsheng L. , Zan Yunlong , Hong Xiang , Guo Minghao , Chen Gaoyu , Tao Weijie , Ding Wenxiang , Huang Qiu
Published: February 2022

Purpose

The time‐of‐flight (TOF) information improves signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) for positron emission tomography (PET) imaging. Existing analytical algorithms for TOF PET usually follow a filtered back‐projection process on reconstructing images from the sinogram data. This work aims to develop a back‐projection‐and‐filtering‐like (BPF‐like) algorithm that reconstructs the TOF PET image directly from listmode data rapidly.

Methods

We extended the 2D conventional non‐TOF PET projection model to a TOF case, where projection data are represented as line integrals weighted by the one‐dimensional TOF kernel along the projection direction. After deriving the central slice theorem and the TOF back‐projection of listmode data, we designed a deep learning network with a modified U‐net architecture to perform the spatial filtration (reconstruction filter). The proposed BP‐Net method was validated via Monte Carlo simulations of TOF PET listmode data with three different time resolutions for two types of activity phantoms. The network was only trained on the simulated full‐dose XCAT dataset and then evaluated on XCAT and Jaszczak data with different time resolutions and dose levels.

Results

Reconstructed images show that when compared with the conventional BPF algorithm and the MLEM algorithm proposed for TOF PET, the proposed BP‐Net method obtains better image quality in terms of peak signal‐to‐noise ratio, relative mean square error, and structure similarity index; besides, the reconstruction speed of the BP‐Net is 1.75 times faster than BPF and 29.05 times faster than MLEM using 15 iterations. The results also indicate that the performance of the BP‐Net degrades with worse time resolutions and lower tracer doses, but degrades less than BPF or MLEM reconstructions.

Conclusion

In this work, we developed an analytical‐like reconstruction in the form of BPF with the reconstruction filtering operation performed via a deep network. The method runs even faster than the conventional BPF algorithm and provides accurate reconstructions from listmode data in TOF‐PET, free of rebinning data to a sinogram.