bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Residents’ perceptions of negative tourism impacts and mitigation strategies: the case of Porto
Authors: Stevic Ivana , Rodrigues Vítor , Breda Zélia , Veríssimo Medéia , da Silva Ana Margarida Ferreira , da Costa Carlos Manuel Martins
Published: April 2024

Purpose

This paper aims to analyse residents’ perceptions of tourism growth in Porto prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, aiming to determine the most appropriate strategies to mitigate negative tourism impacts. Studies on resident perceptions of tourism impacts are still scarce, particularly the ones addressing the topic in the context of Portuguese urban tourism areas.

Design/methodology/approach

Data was collected through an online survey, focusing on three categories of impacts: (i) economic, (ii) sociocultural (iii) and spatial-environmental, and the respective mitigation strategies, analysed from the perspective of Porto’s residents. Descriptive and bivariate statistics – T-test and Eta correlation – were used to analyse the collected data.

Findings

Respondents who live in the city centre experience specific tourism impacts more negatively, when compared to those living outside the inner-city area. Furthermore, no strong correlation is found between the said impacts and the respective mitigation strategies. However, creating awareness among tourists about acceptable behaviour in shared spaces is the strategy that stands out, as it has a medium correlation with all three impact categories. Most impact-strategy associations are weak, meaning that the defined strategies are not the most case-appropriate, which is something that policymakers should address.

Originality/value

To the best of the author’s/authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to adopt this approach in tackling the negative impacts of rapid tourism growth in Porto.
Pop-up micro clinics for pre-exposure prophylaxis of immunocompromised patients
Authors: Chan Ryan J. , Isaacksz Shiran , Low Brian , Raymond Cecile , Seeton Lori , Chan Christopher T.
Published: April 2024

Purpose

Health care systems aspire to adopt integration strategies shifting the focus from acute care to a broader focus on community-based health and social services. Real-world examples demonstrating effective delivery of integrated care are essential.

Design/methodology/approach

In this article, we introduce UHN Connected Care Hub, an innovative model of care comprising an interdisciplinary team designing sustainable, shareable practices across the continuum of care alongside community and health organization partnerships.

Findings

We describe UHN Connected Care Hub’s ability to identify patients from high-risk population and collaborate to delivery timely care, in detailing the real world experience of this model of care in the organization of a centralized system of micro-clinics to administer a therapeutic for pre-exposure prophylaxis against COVID-19 (Tixagevimab/cilgavimab [Evusheld]) in a population of immunocompromised patients.

Practical implications

Having a centralized system of micro-clinics for care delivery presents opportunities for increased adaptability, patient accessibility, enhanced community partnerships and integratedness. Expansion in the scope of services could also create new opportunities in preventative therapies for optimizing the cost effectiveness and quality of health care provided at the population level.

Originality/value

There is limited evidence on how to efficiently deliver integrated care, particularly to vulnerable and co-morbid patients. We discuss how dynamic organizations with proper infrastructure and a network of healthcare partnerships may allow a more fluid response to rapidly changing policies and procedures and facilitate preparedness for future health care crises or pandemics.
Collaborative decision-making of the supply chain system considering green innovation capability
Authors: Huang Xiaotong , Zhan Wentao , Li Chaowei , Ma Tao , Hong Tao
Published: April 2024

Purpose

Green innovation in supply chains is crucial for socioeconomic development and stability. Factors that influence collaborative green innovation in the supply chain are complex and diverse. Exploring the main influencing factors and their mechanisms is essential for promoting collaborative green innovation in supply chains. Therefore, this study analyzes how upstream and downstream enterprises in the supply chain collaborate to develop green technological innovations, thereby providing a theoretical basis for improving the overall efficiency of the supply chain and advancing green innovation technology.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on evolutionary game theory, this study divides operational scenarios into pure market and government-regulated operations, thereby constructing collaborative green innovation relationships in different scenarios. Through evolutionary analysis of various entities in different operational scenarios, combined with numerical simulation analysis, we compared the evolutionary stability of collaborative green innovation behavior in supply chains with and without government regulation.

Findings

Under pure market mechanisms, the higher the green innovation capability, the stronger the willingness of various entities to collaborate in green innovation. However, under government regulation, a decrease in green innovation capability increases the willingness to collaborate with various entities. Environmental tax rates and green subsidy levels promote collaborative innovation in the short term but inhibit collaborative innovation in the long term, indicating that policy orientation has a short-term impact. Additionally, the greater the penalty for collaborative innovation breaches, the stronger the intention to engage in collaborative green innovation in the supply chain.

Originality/value

We introduce the factors influencing green innovation capability and social benefits in the study of the innovation behavior of upstream and downstream enterprises, expanding the research field of collaborative innovation in the supply chain. By comparing the collaborative innovation behavior of various entities in the supply chain under a pure market scenario and government regulations, this study provides a new perspective for analyzing the impact of corresponding government policies on the green innovation capability of upstream and downstream enterprises, enriching theoretical research on green innovation in the supply chain to some extent.
Research and implementation of large-area sintering technology based on image-shaped laser
Authors: Guo Yifan , Guo Yanling , Li Jian , Wang Yangwei , Meng Deyu , Zhang Haoyu , Dai Jiaming
Published: April 2024

Purpose

Selective laser sintering (SLS) is an essential technology in the field of additive manufacturing. However, SLS technology is limited by the traditional point-laser sintering method and has reached the bottleneck of efficiency improvement. This study aims to develop an image-shaped laser sintering (ISLS) system based on a digital micromirror device (DMD) to address this problem. The ISLS system uses an image-shaped laser light source with a size of 16 mm × 25.6 mm instead of the traditional SLS point-laser light source.

Design/methodology/approach

The ISLS system achieves large-area image-shaped sintering of polymer powder materials by moving the laser light source continuously in the x-direction and updating the sintering pattern synchronously, as well as by overlapping the splicing of adjacent sintering areas in the y-direction. A low-cost composite powder suitable for the ISLS system was prepared using polyether sulfone (PES), pinewood and carbon black (CB) powders as raw materials. Large-sized samples were fabricated using composite powder, and the microstructure, dimensional accuracy, geometric deviation, density, mechanical properties and feasible feature sizes were evaluated.

Findings

The experimental results demonstrate that the ISLS system is feasible and can print large-sized parts with good dimensional accuracy, acceptable geometric deviations, specific small-scale features and certain density and mechanical properties.

Originality/value

This study has achieved the transition from traditional point sintering mode to image-shaped surface sintering mode. It has provided a new approach to enhance the system performance of traditional SLS.
Tourism, automation and responsible consumption and production: a horizon 2050 paper
Authors: Ivanov Stanislav , Seyitoğlu Faruk , Webster Craig
Published: April 2024

Purpose

By focusing on Sustainable Development Goal 12 (SDG 12) and tourism automation, this perspective paper aims to investigate how tourism and automation will work to create a world in which tourism has more sustainable production and consumption patterns.

Design/methodology/approach

This perspective paper reviews the past developments of automation in tourism in the context of sustainable production and consumption patterns, the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic and looks at the future of tourism and how automation will help it be more sustainable in terms of consumption and production patterns.

Findings

The insights from this analysis suggest that automation technologies will play a major role in both the supply and demand sides of the tourism and hospitality industry, encouraging increased tourism sustainability. While automation technologies will have the greatest impact on the supply side in the near future, as such technologies will be used to minimise waste and energy usage, creating large gains for environmental protection, the technologies will also benefit responsible consumption. Big data and analytical technologies will work in ways to ensure that consumers are nudged into consumer practices that are increasingly sustainable.

Originality/value

This perspective paper synthesises the literature on the subjects, namely, automation and SDG 12 in tourism, and points to important new future research agenda. This is one of the first papers in tourism to blend automation and SDG 12 literature to shed light on the use of automation in sustainable consumption and production in tourism.
A seismic thin‐layer detection factor calculated by integrated S transform with non‐negative matrix factorization
Authors: Zhao Yasong , Cao Hong , Yang Zhifang , Xu Huiqun , Nie Rong , Wang Zefeng , Yang Mengqiong
Published: April 2024

Time–frequency analysis is one of the effective methods for seismic thin‐layer detection. Conventional time–frequency analysis technology for seismic thin‐layer detection is interfered by the energy of adjacent frequency signals, and there is information redundancy in the frequency‐domain analysis. Therefore, an S transform with improved window factor, which is based on the constrained non‐negative matrix factorization, is constructed to realize seismic thin‐layer detection. First, the seismic data is processed by the S transform of the improved window factor, and then we can obtain the frequency‐domain information with strong time–frequency focus by changing the adjustment factor and attenuation factor in the window function. Furthermore, the key frequency of the seismic data spectrum, which can also be called the key frequency characteristic factor, can be calculated by the non‐negative matrix factorization algorithm. Fortunately, the overthrust model shows a good correspondence between the key frequency characteristic factor and the thin‐layer interface. The field data example shows that this approach provides a new approach for thin‐layer detection.
Redefining ‘state‐of‐the‐art’ for integrated population models with immigration
Authors: Nater Chloé R.
Published: April 2024

Research Highlight: Christian, M., Oosthuizen, W. C., Bester, M. N., & de Bruyn, P. N. (2024). Robustly estimating the demographic contribution of immigration: Simulation, sensitivity analysis and seals. Journal of Animal Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365‐2656.14053. Immigration can have profound consequences for local population dynamics and demography, but collecting data to accurately quantifying it is challenging. The recent rise of integrated population models (IPMs) offers an alternative by making it possible to estimate immigration without the need for explicit data, and to quantify its contribution to population dynamics through transient Life Table Response Experiments (tLTREs). Simulation studies have, however, highlighted that this approach can be prone to bias and overestimation. In their new study, Christian et al. address one of the root causes of this issue by improving the estimation of time variation in vital rates and immigration using Gaussian processes in lieu of traditionally used temporal random effects. They demonstrate that IPM‐tLTRE frameworks with Gaussian processes produce more accurate and less biased estimates of immigration and its contribution to population dynamics and illustrate the applicability of this approach using a long‐term data set on elephant seals (Mirounga leonida). Results are validated with a simulation study and suggest that immigration of breeding females has been central for population recovery of elephant seals despite the species' high female site fidelity. Christian et al. thus present new insights into population regulation of long‐lived marine mammals and highlight the potential for using Gaussian process priors in IPMs. They also illustrate a suite of ‘best practices’ for state‐of‐the‐art IPM‐tLTRE analyses and provide an inspirational example for the kind of ecological modelling workflow that can be invaluable not just as a starting point for fellow ecologists picking up or improving their own IPM‐tLTRE analyses, but also for teaching and in contexts where model estimates are used for informing management and conservation decision‐making.
Identification of transporters involved in aromatic compounds tolerance through screening of transporter deletion libraries
Authors: Sáez‐Sáez Javier , Munro Lachlan Jake , Møller‐Hansen Iben , Kell Douglas B. , Borodina Irina
Published: April 2024

Aromatic compounds are used in pharmaceutical, food, textile and other industries. Increased demand has sparked interest in exploring biotechnological approaches for their sustainable production as an alternative to chemical synthesis from petrochemicals or plant extraction. These aromatic products may be toxic to microorganisms, which complicates their production in cell factories. In this study, we analysed the toxicity of multiple aromatic compounds in common production hosts. Next, we screened a subset of toxic aromatics, namely 2‐phenylethanol, 4‐tyrosol, benzyl alcohol, berberine and vanillin, against transporter deletion libraries in Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We identified multiple transporter deletions that modulate the tolerance of the cells towards these compounds. Lastly, we engineered transporters responsible for 2‐phenylethanol tolerance in yeast and showed improved 2‐phenylethanol bioconversion from L‐phenylalanine, with deletions of YIA6, PTR2 or MCH4 genes improving titre by 8–12% and specific yield by 38–57%. Our findings provide insights into transporters as targets for improving the production of aromatic compounds in microbial cell factories.
Why tRNA acquisition could be relevant to bacteriophages?
Authors: Lomeli‐Ortega Carlos O. , Balcázar José Luis
Published: April 2024

In this opinion, we discuss the role of tRNAs in phage biology and their importance in DNA replication and phage‐host interactions. Phages are a diverse group of obligate bacterial viruses that possess genomes with a wide range of sizes. Among them, we find phages with few genes that depend entirely on their host's translational machinery for replication. However, some phages carry genes for all replication steps and even contain genes for their own translational synthesis. In these cases, the integration of tRNA genes in their genomes is not completely understood, generating different theories about their presence and function during the replication cycle. Although different studies have attempted to elucidate their role, additional studies are needed to clarify the presence and significance of tRNA genes in phages. Moreover, we highlight the importance of tRNA genes in phages from both ecological and therapeutic perspectives.
Structure of Aspergillus flavus populations associated with maize in Greece, Spain, and Serbia: Implications for aflatoxin biocontrol on a regional scale
Authors: Ouadhene Mohamed Ali , Callicott Kenneth A. , Ortega‐Beltran Alejandro , Mehl Hillary L. , Cotty Peter J. , Battilani Paola
Published: April 2024

Aspergillus flavus is the most frequently identified producer of aflatoxins. Non‐aflatoxigenic members of the A. flavus L strains are used in various continents as active ingredients of bioprotectants directed at preventing aflatoxin contamination by competitive displacement of aflatoxin producers. The current research examined the genetic diversity of A. flavus L strain across southern Europe to gain insights into the population structure and evolution of this species and to evaluate the prevalence of genotypes closely related to MUCL54911, the active ingredient of AF‐X1. A total of 2173L strain isolates recovered from maize collected across Greece, Spain, and Serbia in 2020 and 2021 were subjected to simple sequence repeat (SSR) genotyping. The analysis revealed high diversity within and among countries and dozens of haplotypes shared. Linkage disequilibrium analysis indicated asexual reproduction and clonal evolution of A. flavus L strain resident in Europe. Moreover, haplotypes closely related to MUCL54911 were found to belong to the same vegetative compatibility group (VCG) IT006 and were relatively common in all three countries. The results indicate that IT006 is endemic to southern Europe and may be utilized as an aflatoxin mitigation tool for maize across the region without concern for potential adverse impacts associated with the introduction of an exotic microorganism.
Abusive head trauma and crying infant–Public awareness of newborn and infant trauma
Authors: Arneitz Christoph , Schmitz Jana , Szilagyi Istvan , Kienesberger Bernhard , Schalamon Georg , Senica Simone Oliver , Schalamon Johannes
Published: April 2024

Aim

Crying seems to be a common trigger for abusive head trauma (AHT), which is the leading cause of fatalities from physical abuse in infants. Our objective was to evaluate knowledge of AHT, crying infants and correct behavioural measures in a general population.

Methods

An online questionnaire (LimeSurvey) was created to assess the risk of shaking. The online survey contained a total of 41 questions, including a demonstration of a previously recorded video in which an infant doll is shaken.

Results

A total of 319 people, 245 of them (76.8%) with own children, participated in the study. Almost all respondents (98.4%) were aware of serious injuries due to shaking, even to the point of death (98.1%). Most participants (97.5%) had heard the term ‘shaking trauma’ prior but did not receive any professional information, neither before nor after birth (85.2% or 86%), or during follow‐up examinations (88.5%). The majority of the participants (95%) considered that useful coping strategies in infant crying were inappropriate.

Conclusion

The consequences of shaking an infant were common knowledge in a normal population, whereas there was a knowledge gap regarding the management of excessive crying infants. Prevention programmes should mainly focus on male caregivers during postnatal care.
A case of robot‐assisted resection for cecum cancer with anomalous venous confluence
Authors: Ogi Yusuke , Sugishita Hiroki , Akita Satoshi , Ishimaru Kei , Koga Shigehiro , Yoshida Motohira , Kikuchi Satoshi , Kuwabara Jun , Matsumoto Hironori , Goyo Kai , Kashu Noriaki , Watanabe Katsuya , Habu Kyousuke , Takagi Kenji , Oshikiri Taro
Published: April 2024

There are many reports on the positional relationship between the ileocolic artery and superior mesenteric vein (SMV). However, there have been no reports of anomalous venous confluence in the ileocecal vessel area. A 69‐year‐old man was diagnosed with cecal cancer on a preoperative examination of a lung tumor. We planned to perform surgery for the cecal cancer. Computed tomography angiography revealed an anomalous vein confluence in the ileocolic region. We performed robot‐assisted ileocecal resection. Although the small intestinal vein was misidentified as the SMV at first, we confirmed the misidentification, identified the SMV on the dorsal side of the ileocolic artery, and ligated the ileocolic vessels with precise forceps manipulation during robotic surgery. Especially for cases with vascular anomalies revealed by preoperative computed tomography angiography, robotic surgery may be useful, as flexible forceps manipulation prevents vascular injury.
Searching to improve connectivity in fragmented landscapes: Road verges as complementary habitats
Authors: Santibañez Fernanda , Sabatino Malena , Garibaldi Lucas A.
Published: April 2024

Aims

Functional connectivity is crucial for conserving biodiversity and ecosystem services in fragmented landscapes. Linear landscape elements play an important role in providing refuge for plants and pollinators, as well as serving as biological corridors. The aim of this study was to assess the importance of road verges in maintaining the ecological connectivity of plant species assemblages in the Tandilia mountain system.

Location

South America, Southern Pampa region of Argentina, Tandilia mountain system.

Methods

Using graph theory, landscape connectivity was quantified both at landscape scale and at the patch scale using the probability connectivity index (PCnum), taking into account the dispersal ability of observed species. The contribution of each landscape element to habitat availability and connectivity was evaluated using different fractions of the PCnum metric. Likewise, the influence of connectivity variables in explaining species assemblages grouped by functional categories was investigated using canonical ordination techniques.

Results

The inclusion of road verges led to an 81% increase in overall connectivity at a threshold distance of 500 m. Connectivity significantly explained the assemblages of entomophilous plant species for all dispersal distances. Annual species assemblage variation was associated with intra‐patch connectivity. Variation in perennial and shrub species assemblages was explained by intra‐patch and inter‐patch connectivity.

Conclusions

Preservation and restoration of these linear landscape elements play a pivotal role in transitioning toward more sustainable agroecosystems. This ecological and practical information may help prioritize plant species and the sites used to restore an essential but neglected ecosystem.
Strategic thinking in the shadow of self‐enhancement: Benefits and costs
Authors: Grüning David J. , Krueger Joachim I.
Published: April 2024

Using a variant of the hide‐and‐seek game, we show in three studies that self‐enhancement can help or hinder strategic thinking. In this guessing game, one player chooses a number while another player tries to guess it. Each player does this either in a random fashion (throwing a mental die) or by active thinking. The structure of the game implies that guessers benefit from thinking about a number, whereas choosers are disadvantaged. Yet, regardless of their role, respondents prefer to actively think about a number. For choosers, the belief they can outthink the opponent amounts to self‐enhancement, whereas for guessers, the same belief can be rationally justified. We discuss the implications of the findings for theories of strategic cognition and applications to real‐world contexts.
Raster‐to‐Graph: Floorplan Recognition via Autoregressive Graph Prediction with an Attention Transformer
Authors: Hu Sizhe , Wu Wenming , Su Ruolin , Hou Wanni , Zheng Liping , Xu Benzhu
Published: April 2024

Recognizing the detailed information embedded in rasterized floorplans is at the research forefront in the community of computer graphics and vision. With the advent of deep neural networks, automatic floorplan recognition has made tremendous breakthroughs. However, co‐recognizing both the structures and semantics of floorplans through one neural network remains a significant challenge. In this paper, we introduce a novel framework Raster‐to‐Graph, which automatically achieves structural and semantic recognition of floorplans. We represent vectorized floorplans as structural graphs embedded with floorplan semantics, thus transforming the floorplan recognition task into a structural graph prediction problem. We design an autoregressive prediction framework using the neural network architecture of the visual attention Transformer, iteratively predicting the wall junctions and wall segments of floorplans in the order of graph traversal. Additionally, we propose a large‐scale floorplan dataset containing over 10,000 real‐world residential floorplans. Our autoregressive framework can automatically recognize the structures and semantics of floorplans. Extensive experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of our framework, showing significant improvements on all metrics. Qualitative and quantitative evaluations indicate that our framework outperforms existing state‐of‐the‐art methods. Code and dataset for this paper are available at: https://github.com/HSZVIS/Raster-to-Graph.
DMT1 ubiquitination by Nedd4 protects against ferroptosis after intracerebral hemorrhage
Authors: Lv Bingchen , Fu Ping , Wang Miao , Cui Likun , Bao Lei , Wang Xingzhi , Yu Lu , Zhou Chao , Zhu Mengxin , Wang Fei , Pang Ye , Qi Suhua , Zhang Zuohui , Cui Guiyun
Published: April 2024

Objective

Neuronal precursor cells expressed developmentally down‐regulated 4 (Nedd4) are believed to play a critical role in promoting the degradation of substrate proteins and are involved in numerous biological processes. However, the role of Nedd4 in intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) remains unknown. This study aims to investigate the regulatory role of Nedd4 in the ICH model.

Methods

Male C57BL/6J mice were induced with ICH. Subsequently, the levels of glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4), malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration, iron content, mitochondrial morphology, as well as the expression of divalent metal transporter 1 (DMT1) and Nedd4 were assessed after ICH. Furthermore, the impact of Nedd4 overexpression was evaluated through analyses of hematoma area, ferroptosis, and neurobehavioral function. The mechanism underlying Nedd4‐mediated degradation of DMT1 was elecidated using immunoprecipitation (IP) after ICH.

Results

Upon ICH, the level of DMT1 in the brain increased, but decreased when Nedd4 was overexpressed using Lentivirus, suggesting a negative correlation between Nedd4 and DMT1. Additionally, the degradation of DMT1 was inhibited after ICH. Furthermore, it was found that Nedd4 can interact with and ubiquitinate DMT1 at lysine residues 6, 69, and 277, facilitating the degradation of DMT1. Functional analysis indicated that overexpression of Nedd4 can alleviate ferroptosis and promote recovery following ICH.

Conclusion

The results demonstrated that ferroptosis occurs via the Nedd4/DMT1 pathway during ICH, suggesting it potential as a valuable target to inhibit ferroptosis for the treatment of ICH.
Native establishment improved and weed competition reduced by topsoil removal in direct‐sown native grasslands
Authors: Gibson‐Roy Paul , Delpratt John , Moore Greg
Published: April 2024

Australian temperate grasslands are among its most threatened plant communities. In agricultural landscapes, major barriers to their recovery are high soil nutrient levels that favour the growth of exotic pasture and other non‐native species, high standing weed biomass creating fierce aboveground competition, and rich weed seed and bud banks providing dense emergent seedling competition. Therefore, the return of grasslands to arable landscapes through restoration must rely on overcoming these challenges, ideally by reducing soil nutrients and mitigating the effects of weeds. This study demonstrates the effectiveness of topsoil removal for restoring diverse native grassy communities by direct seeding on sites with a legacy of elevated soil nutrients and competitive exotic vegetation. Conversely, it showed that repeated shallow cultivation (four times over 12 months) to stimulate weed emergence, followed each time by herbicide application, failed to achieve this outcome, at least in the short term (three years). Grassy community restoration is imperative in Australia, but importantly, it must utilise restoration protocols that are as effective as possible so that limited time, money, and resources are not wasted. In this light, the technique of topsoil manipulation may take us one step closer to achieving this goal in agricultural locations, where their loss is most pronounced.
Worries about leadership: Examining the role of career stage, gender, and personal resources
Authors: Tavares Gustavo M. , Iwai Tatiana
Published: April 2024

Worries about leadership (WAL) play a key role in explaining why so many individuals are not interested in pursuing leadership positions. However, less is known about how WAL evolves throughout one's career. We address this issue by examining individuals' worries about failure (WF) and worries about work–life imbalance (WWLI)—two dimensions of WAL—at different career stages and the role of perceived lack of personal resources relevant for leadership in increasing WAL. Moreover, we explore the moderating effect of gender on the relationship among career stage, personal resources, and WAL. Using a heterogeneous sample of professionals from different hierarchical levels (n = 487), our results show a decline in WF as individuals advance in their careers, whereas WWLI remains consistently higher. Importantly, WWLI becomes remarkably high for women in mid‐to‐late career stages compared to men. Furthermore, having fewer personal resources is associated with greater WAL, particularly affecting women.
The effect of apical patency on postoperative pain following endodontic therapy: A systematic review and meta‐analysis
Authors: Xiqian Liu , Ying Zhai , Mian Mao
Published: April 2024

This systematic review and meta‐analysis aimed to determine whether apical patency increases postoperative pain after endodontic therapy. This study explored the degree and incidence of postoperative pain during root canal therapy, as well as the number of required analgesic doses. We searched PubMed, Scopus, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and gray literature from the date of database inception until May 2023. RevMan 5.4 software was used for data analysis. Twelve studies were considered eligible for meta‐analysis. The mean pain scores on days 1 (mean difference [MD] = ‐1.69) and 2 (MD = ‐0.85) differed significantly between the apical patency and non‐patency groups. The odds for pain after 24 h were significantly lower (OR 0.59) in the apical patency group than in the non‐patency group. Furthermore, the mean number of required analgesic doses was not significantly different between the two groups. In conclusion, apical patency significantly alleviated postoperative pain (low‐quality evidence) and reduced the incidence of pain (moderate evidence). However, high‐quality randomized controlled trials are required to validate these findings.
Status epilepticus in Auckland, New Zealand: Treatment patterns and determinants of outcome in a prospective population‐based cohort
Authors: Fong Michael W. K. , Stephens Eleanor , Brockington Alice , Jayabal Jayaganth , Scott Shona , Zhang Tony , Litchfield Rhonda , Beilharz Erica , Dalziel Stuart R. , Jones Peter , Yates Kim , Thornton Vanessa , Bergin Peter S.
Published: April 2024

Objective

Determination of the real‐world performance of a health care system in the treatment of status epilepticus (SE).

Methods

Prospective, multicenter population‐based study of SE in Auckland, New Zealand (NZ) over 1 year, with data recorded in the EpiNet database. Focus on treatment patterns and determinants of SE duration and 30‐day mortality. The incidence, etiology, ethnic discrepancies, and seizure characteristics of this cohort have been published previously.

Results

A total of 365 patients were included in this treatment cohort; 326 patients (89.3%) were brought to hospital because of SE, whereas 39 patients (10.7%) developed SE during a hospital admission for another reason. Overall, 190 (52.1%) had a known history of epilepsy and 254 (70.0%) presented with SE with prominent motor activity. The mean Status Epilepticus Severity Score (STESS) was 2.15 and the mean SE duration of all patients was 44 min. SE self‐terminated without any treatment in 84 patients (22.7%). Earlier administration of appropriately dosed benzodiazepine in the pre‐hospital setting was a major determinant of SE duration. Univariate analysis demonstrated that mortality was significantly higher in older patients, patients with longer durations of SE, higher STESS, and patients who developed SE in hospital, but these did not maintain significance with multivariate analysis. There was no difference in the performance of the health care system in the treatment of SE across ethnic groups.

Significance

When SE was defined as 10 continuous minutes of seizure, overall mortality was lower than expected and many patients had self‐limited presentations for which no treatment was required. Although there were disparities in the incidence of SE across ethnic groups there was no difference in treatment or outcome. The finding highlights the benefit of a health care system designed to deliver universal health care.
Barefoot methodology as a viable farriery option
Authors: O'Grady Stephen E. , Clayton Hilary M.
Published: April 2024

The equine foot evolved to provide an effective interface between the distal limb and the ground for weight‐bearing, shock absorption and providing traction. The use of horseshoes became necessary when horses performed a lot of work on abrasive surfaces. These days, however, most equine athletes train and compete on soft, manufactured surfaces that are conducive to having the horses barefooted, especially if they have good‐quality hooves and can be taken out of work for a short period of time while the hoof goes through the adaptive process. Being barefoot for a period of time is often useful in treating horses with chronic foot lameness, hoof capsule distortions with compromised heel structures, sheared heels or frogs that are either recessed or prolapsed relative to the ground surface of the foot. The benefits of being barefooted include superior shock absorption, better energy damping and improved weight‐bearing ability. Without shoes, the foot undergoes greater expansion and vertical movement at the heels and foot shape is maintained by friction and wear between the entire solar surface of the foot and the ground. Shaping the barefoot hoof involves removing excessive hoof wall using hoof nippers at an angle of 45° dorsal to the sole‐wall junction (white line) to create a bevel in the bearing surface of the hoof wall. The heels are rasped horizontally to the same horizontal plane as the frog which makes the palmar foot ‘load sharing’. Starting at the heel quarter, the rasp is used around the circumference of the foot at a 45° angle and then a rounding motion from proximal to distal is used to produce a thick rounded perimeter to the distal hoof wall. It is important to leave all the horn/mass on the solar surface of the foot for protection. Adaptation to being barefoot requires a period of time to allow the structures of the foot to strengthen along with reshaping of the foot at 3–4‐week intervals. A version of this manuscript was presented at the American Association of Equine Practitioners Scientific Program in 2023.
Impact of aridity rise and arid lands expansion on carbon‐storing capacity, biodiversity loss, and ecosystem services
Authors: Tariq Akash , Sardans Jordi , Zeng Fanjiang , Graciano Corina , Hughes Alice C. , Farré‐Armengol Gerard , Peñuelas Josep
Published: April 2024

Drylands, comprising semi‐arid, arid, and hyperarid regions, cover approximately 41% of the Earth's land surface and have expanded considerably in recent decades. Even under more optimistic scenarios, such as limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C by 2100, semi‐arid lands may increase by up to 38%. This study provides an overview of the state‐of‐the‐art regarding changing aridity in arid regions, with a specific focus on its effects on the accumulation and availability of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) in plant–soil systems. Additionally, we summarized the impacts of rising aridity on biodiversity, service provisioning, and feedback effects on climate change across scales. The expansion of arid ecosystems is linked to a decline in C and nutrient stocks, plant community biomass and diversity, thereby diminishing the capacity for recovery and maintaining adequate water‐use efficiency by plants and microbes. Prolonged drought led to a −3.3% reduction in soil organic carbon (SOC) content (based on 148 drought‐manipulation studies), a −8.7% decrease in plant litter input, a −13.0% decline in absolute litter decomposition, and a −5.7% decrease in litter decomposition rate. Moreover, a substantial positive feedback loop with global warming exists, primarily due to increased albedo. The loss of critical ecosystem services, including food production capacity and water resources, poses a severe challenge to the inhabitants of these regions. Increased aridity reduces SOC, nutrient, and water content. Aridity expansion and intensification exacerbate socio‐economic disparities between economically rich and least developed countries, with significant opportunities for improvement through substantial investments in infrastructure and technology. By 2100, half the world's landmass may become dryland, characterized by severe conditions marked by limited C, N, and P resources, water scarcity, and substantial loss of native species biodiversity. These conditions pose formidable challenges for maintaining essential services, impacting human well‐being and raising complex global and regional socio‐political challenges.
Futuristic opportunities for pretreatment processes in biofuel production from microalgae
Authors: Tan Chung Hong , Low Sze Shin , Cheah Wai Yan , Singh Jeevandeep , Chai Wai Siong , Tiong Sieh Kiong , Show Pau Loke
Published: April 2024

Microalgal biofuel is a promising solution to replace fossil fuel as a renewable and environmental‐friendly energy source, thereby contributing to the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular SDG‐7, or Affordable and Clean Energy. Unlike energy crops (like oil palm and sugar cane), microalgae benefit from faster growth rate, higher lipid content, smaller land area required, ability to flourish using waste or brackish water, and posing zero competition with food crops. Microalgae‐derived biofuels (like biodiesel, bioethanol, biomethane, and biohydrogen) are sustainable energy sources that can be produced using well‐developed techniques (e.g., transesterification, fermentation, anaerobic digestion, and Fisher–Tropsch process). To prevent dire climate conditions resulting from the global temperature rise of 1.5°C and resolve worldwide energy security issue, our generation will need to establish and implement renewables on a global scale. To improve the industrial production of microalgal biofuel, the efficiencies of biomass and metabolite production to post‐cultivation biofuel synthesis processes must be enhanced. For the cultivation step, there exist three key techniques that can directly change the traits, structure, and behavior of microalgal cells, and induce them to accumulate targeted metabolites rapidly and in large amounts. These techniques are genetic engineering, chemical modulation, and nanomaterial approach. Genetic engineering commonly alters the chloroplast DNA of microalgae to overexpress or down‐regulate key genes in various metabolic pathways so that the cells accumulate more lipids. Chemicals can also be used to modulate microalgal growth and lipid accumulation by inducing oxidative stress or prevent conversion of lipid molecules. Nanomaterials and nanoparticles can also enhance microalgal lipid production by microenvironmental stress induction, vitamin supplementation, and light backscattering. Therefore, in this review, the recent progress as well as the pros and cons of genetic engineering, chemical modulation, and nanomaterial approach in achieving greater biofuel production from microalgae are comprehensively examined.
Factors to predict recurrence after epidural blood patch in patients with spontaneous intracranial hypotension
Authors: Lee Seung Hyun , Lee Jooyoung , Kim Da‐woon , Kim Dong Hyun , Ahn Sung Jae , Choi Moon Gwan , Jo Sungyang , Suh Chong Hyun , Chung Sun J.
Published: April 2024

Objectives

This study aimed to identify predictors for the recurrence of spontaneous intracranial hypotension (SIH) after epidural blood patch (EBP).

Background

Epidural blood patch is the main treatment option for SIH; however, the characteristics of patients who experience relapse after successful EBP treatment for SIH remain understudied.

Methods

In this exploratory, retrospective, case–control study, we included 19 patients with SIH recurrence after EBP and 36 age‐ and sex‐matched patients without recurrence from a single tertiary medical institution. We analyzed clinical characteristics, neuroimaging findings, and volume changes in intracranial structures after EBP treatment. Machine learning methods were utilized to predict the recurrence of SIH after EBP treatment.

Results

There were no significant differences in clinical features between the recurrence and no‐recurrence groups. Among brain magnetic resonance imaging signs, diffuse pachymeningeal enhancement and cerebral venous dilatation were more prominent in the recurrence group than no‐recurrence group after EBP (14/19 [73%] vs. eight of 36 [22%] patients, p = 0.001; 11/19 [57%] vs. seven of 36 [19%] patients, p = 0.010, respectively). The midbrain–pons angle decreased in the recurrence group compared to the no‐recurrence group after EBP, at a mean (standard deviation [SD]) of –12.0 [16.7] vs. +1.8[18.3]° (p = 0.048). In volumetric analysis, volume changes after EBP were smaller in the recurrence group than in the no‐recurrence group in intracranial cerebrospinal fluid (mean [SD] −11.6 [15.3] vs. +4.8 [17.1] mL, p = 0.001) and ventricles (mean [SD] +1.0 [2.0] vs. +2.0 [2.5] mL, p = 0.003). Notably, the random forest classifier indicated that the model constructed with brain volumetry was more accurate in discriminating SIH recurrence (area under the curve = 0.80 vs. 0.52).

Conclusion

Our study suggests that volumetric analysis of intracranial structures may aid in predicting recurrence after EBP treatment in patients with SIH.
The potency of hematopoietic stem cell reprogramming for changing immune tone
Authors: Daman Andrew W. , Cheong Jin Gyu , Berneking Laura , Josefowicz Steven Z.
Published: April 2024

Innate immune memory endows innate immune cells with antigen independent heightened responsiveness to subsequent challenges. The durability of this response can be mediated by inflammation induced epigenetic and metabolic reprogramming in hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) that are maintained through differentiation to mature immune progeny. Understanding the mechanisms and extent of trained immunity induction by pathogens and vaccines, such as BCG, in HSPC remains a critical area of exploration with important implications for health and disease. Here we review these concepts and present new analysis to highlight how inflammatory reprogramming of HSPC can potently alter immune tone, including to enhance specific anti‐tumor responses. New findings in the field pave the way for novel HSPC targeting therapeutic strategies in cancer and other contexts of immune modulation. Future studies are expected to unravel diverse and extensive effects of infections, vaccines, microbiota, and sterile inflammation on hematopoietic progenitor cells and begin to illuminate the broad spectrum of immunologic tuning that can be established through altering HSPC phenotypes. The purpose of this review is to draw attention to emerging and speculative topics in this field where we posit that focused study of HSPC in the framework of trained immunity holds significant promise.
Geoeconomic Power Europe: When Global Power Competition Drives EU Integration
Authors: Haroche Pierre
Published: April 2024

The European Union's (EU's) ‘geoeconomic turn’ denotes the growing integration of international security considerations into EU economic policies. This article introduces the concept of ‘geoeconomic power Europe’ to show how this development has the potential to renew debates on the nature of EU power. Most existing conceptualisations of EU power – whether characterised as civilian, normative, market based, regulatory or liberal – tend to focus on the EU's endogenous characteristics. However, the added value of the concept of geoeconomic power is that it redirects attention to the ‘co‐constitution’ loop between global power competition and the evolution of EU power. In this article, I present an analytical framework that highlights the drivers of EU geoeconomic power and distinguishes between systemic pressures, the intra‐EU policy process and the impact on EU power. I conclude that the concept of geoeconomic power Europe can help to bridge theories of international security and economic interdependence, particularly neorealism and neofunctionalism.
Lawyers' legal aid participation: A qualitative and quantitative analysis
Authors: Hsu Ching‐fang , Chiang Ivan Kan‐hsueh , Chang Yun‐chien
Published: April 2024

This article develops a framework to understand the legal profession's participation in providing services to indigent clients. Our theory is based on two factors: whether lawyers have successful practices, and whether the legal aid delivered to indigent clients is free or below market price. Pro bono signals moral high ground in the profession. Conversely, a regime in which legal assistance is provided at a discounted market price (“low bono”), an under‐explored area in the literature, attracts less competitive attorneys, and doing legal aid cases is perceived as signifying incompetence in one's professional capacity. Using a unique, comprehensive data set on all legal aid lawyers in Taiwan (nearly 4000), two nationwide attorney surveys, and 143 in‐depth interviews with practicing lawyers across the country, we offer the first comprehensive empirical analysis of legal aid lawyers and explain that the design of a legal aid regime attracts lawyers of different hemispheres into the endeavor.