bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Local gingival crevicular fluid, synovial fluid, and circulating levels of prolactin hormone in patients with moderately active rheumatoid arthritis and stage III and IV periodontitis before and after non-surgical periodontal treatment—a controlled trial
Authors: El-Wakeel Naglaa Mohamed , Shalaby Zienab Farid , Abdulmaguid Rania Farouk , Elhamed Sally Said Abd , Shaker Olfat
Published: January 2023

Objectives

We aimed to investigate prolactin (PRL) levels in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF), synovial fluid, and serum in patients suffering from moderately active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with and without periodontitis (P). Further, to evaluate the effect of non-surgical periodontal treatment on these levels compared to controls.

Materials and methods

Eighty subjects were divided into 4 groups: group 1: 20 patients with RA + P, group 2: 20 periodontitis patients (systemically healthy), group 3: RA patients (periodontally healthy), and group 4: healthy controls. Patients with periodontitis received scaling and root planning (SRP). PRL was measured using enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay.

Results

At baseline, in GCF of RA + P group showed the highest mean PRL levels, followed by P group whereas groups 3 and 4 showed a statistically less values than the first 2 groups. Serum values showed non-significant difference between the first three groups, although higher than healthy controls. SRP reduced GCF and serum levels of PRL in both P groups as well as synovial fluid PRL in group 1. SRP caused no change in DAS scores while reduced ESR values were observed in group 1 after treatment.

Conclusions

Local GCF and synovial levels of PRL seem to be linked to the disease process of both periodontitis and rheumatoid arthritis than serum levels. SRP reduced these local levels.

Clinical relevance

In patients with RA and CP, local PRL seems to play a role in the association between the two conditions; further, periodontal treatment is essential to improve periodontal condition in RA patients.

Trial registration

Clinicaltrials.gov. Identifier: NCT04279691.
Interpretable tabular data generation
Authors: Zhang Yishuo , Zaidi Nayyar , Zhou Jiahui , Li Gang
Published: January 2023

Generative adversarial network () models have been successfully utilized in a wide range of machine learning applications, and tabular data generation domain is not an exception. Notably, some state-of-the-art models of tabular data generation, such as ,  , , etc. are based on models. Even though these models have resulted in superior performance in generating artificial data when trained on a range of datasets, there is a lot of room (and desire) for improvement. Not to mention that existing methods do have some weaknesses other than performance. For example, the current methods focus only on the performance of the model, and limited emphasis is given on the interpretation of the model. Secondly, the current models operate on raw features only, and hence they fail to exploit any prior knowledge on explicit feature interactions that can be utilized during data generation process. To alleviate the two above-mentioned limitations, in this work, we propose a novel tabular data generation model—GenerativeAdversarial Network modelling inspired fromNaiveBayes andLogisticRegression’s relationship ($${ { \texttt {GANBLR} } }$$
GANBLR
), which not only address the interpretation limitation of existing tabular -based models but provides capability to handle explicit feature interactions as well. Through extensive evaluations on wide range of datasets, we demonstrate $${ { \texttt {GANBLR} } }$$
GANBLR
’s superior performance as well as better interpretable capability (explanation of feature importance in the synthetic generation process) as compared to existing state-of-the-art tabular data generation models.
CircRNA Circ_0000118 Regulates Malignancy of Cervical Cancer Cells by Regulating miR-211-5p/miR-377-3p/AKT2 Axis
Authors: Wu Lilan , Xiao Huiqin , Hong Yaqin , Xie Meihua , Yu Yanxia , Jiang Lijuan
Published: January 2023

CircRNAs are implicated in the development of several cancers. Nevertheless, the involvement of circ_0000118 in the development of cervical cancer (CC) remains unclear. Circ_0000118 levels in tumor tissues and cells were examined by qRT-PCR. The function of circ_0000118 in regulating the malignancy of CC cells was investigated using functional assays, including CCK-8, colony formation, transwell, and tube formation experiments. The functional interaction between circ_0000118 and microRNAs were validated by dual-luciferase activity assay and RNA precipitation experiments. In vivo mouse model was employed to assess the effect of circ_0000118 in the tumorigenesis of CC cells. Circ_0000118 was overexpressed in CC cells and tissues. Loss-of-function experiments demonstrated that circ_0000118 knockdown impaired the proliferation and tumor sphere formation, as well as the angiogenic potential of CC cells. RNA interaction experiments confirmed that circ_0000118 sponged miR-211-5p and miR-377-3p. AKT2 was found to be a target gene negatively modulated by miR-211-5p and miR-377-3p. AKT2 overexpression rescued the inhibition of circ_0000118 downregulation on CC cells. Our study suggested that circ_0000118 functions as an oncogenic factor in progression of CC by maintaining AKT2 level through targeting miR-211-5p and miR-377-3p as a ceRNA (competitive endogenous RNA), which provides novel therapeutic target in the management of CC.
Corporate Responses to Community Grievance: Voluntarism and Pathologies of Practice
Authors: Owen John R. , Kemp Deanna
Published: January 2023

Grievance landscapes form in rapidly industrialising contexts where social and environmental impacts are inevitable. This paper focuses on the complex operational and organisational settings in which grievances arise and the industrial pathologies that form around resource development projects. The arguments draw on classic and contemporary literature on “grievance”, “right” and “entitlement”, and the authors’ own sustained engagement with global mining companies and local communities. Our contention is that the grievance landscape is far more critical to understanding environmental, human rights, and mining interactions than the managerial systems that companies construct to signal compliance with voluntary international norms. These managerial systems, or operational-level grievance mechanisms, map the procedural contours of how a local grievance would travel once it is made visible to the company. In practice, however, it is fiction, illegibility and invisibility that dominate. Across the pathologies, the common denominator is the corporate propensity to avoid recognising the legitimacy of a local grievance and the source of its cause.
Odors Attracting the Long-Legged Predator Medetera signaticornis Loew to Ips typographus L. Infested Norway Spruce Trees
Authors: Sousa Maria , Birgersson Göran , Karlsson Green Kristina , Pollet Marc , Becher Paul G.
Published: January 2023

Predatory long-legged flies of the genus Medetera are important, but currently understudied, natural enemies of Scolytinae bark beetles such as Ips typographus. Medetera flies lay eggs on beetle-infested trees, where the developing larvae find their prey, but the chemical cues used by Medetera to locate infested trees are currently unknown. To identify odors attracting Medetera signaticornis, a species in Europe, headspace samples were collected at several time-points through different stages of I. typographus attacks on logs of Norway spruce (Picea abies). The headspace samples were analyzed using combined gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (GC–MS), and gas chromatography coupled with electroantennographic detection (GC-EAD) to determine compounds that stimulate M. signaticornis antennae. Antennae of M. signaticornis males and females were found to detect (–)-cis-verbenol, ( +)-trans-verbenol and myrtenol, which are known to be produced by bark beetles. Antennal responses were also observed for verbenene, isoterpinolene, α-pinene oxide, camphor, pinocamphone, terpinene-4-ol, myrtenal, borneol, α-terpineol, geranyl acetone, and verbenone, which are primarily produced by microorganisms, and α-pinene, α-fenchene, β-pinene, camphene, 3-carene, limonene, γ-terpinene, and terpinolene, known spruce tree compounds. In field experiments testing two synthetic blends containing 18 antennal active and two additional compounds 2-methyl-3-buten-2-ol and ipsdienol we observed significant attraction of M. signaticornis within 24 h. These attractive blends can form the basis for development of Medetera monitoring lures for use in future forest and pest management.
Prenatal Mental Representations in Italian First-Time Mothers Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Study with Interviews on Maternal Representations During Pregnancy
Authors: Smorti Martina , Mauri Giulia , Carducci Alessia , Andreol Angelica , Bonassi Lucia
Published: January 2023

Introduction

Psychosocial risks increase the levels of not-integrated/ambivalent and restricted/disengaged representations during pregnancy, but no study has specifically analysed the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on maternal representation styles.

Objectives

(1) to compare maternal representation styles in primiparous women who became pregnant before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and (2) to analyse the content of representation styles during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

A total of 37 Italian pregnant women were recruited from 2019 to 2021. The sample was divided into two groups: the pre-COVID-19 group (22 women, mean age = 33.14 years; SD = 3.78) and the COVID-19 group (15 women, mean age = 35.9 years; SD = 4.6). Interviews on maternal representations during pregnancy were administered and analysed for style and content. Results: Women during the COVID-19 pandemic reported more restricted/disengaged and less integrated/balanced representation styles than women pre-COVID-19. Content analysis showed that the COVID-19 pandemic led women to focus more on concrete aspects of pregnancy in lieu of emotional aspects, thus leading them to develop more restricted/disengaged representation styles.

Conclusions for practice

In future pandemics pregnant women should be supported in focusing their attention to emotions, sensations and fantasies about themselves as mothers and their children.
Lansoprazole attenuates cyclophosphamide-induced cardiopulmonary injury by modulating redox-sensitive pathways and inflammation
Authors: Hassanein Emad H. M. , Kamel Esam O. , Gad-Elrab Wail M. , Ahmed Mohammed A. , Mohammedsaleh Zuhair M. , Ali Fares E. M.
Published: January 2023

Cyclophosphamide (CPA) is a classical chemotherapeutic drug widely used as an anticancer and immunosuppressive agent. However, it is frequently associated with significant toxicities to the normal cells of different organs, including the lung and heart. Lansoprazole (LPZ), a proton pump inhibitor (PPI), possesses antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. The current study investigated how LPZ protects against CPA-induced cardiac and pulmonary damage, focusing on PPARγ, Nrf2, HO-1, cytoglobin, PI3K/AKT, and NF-κB signaling. Animals were randomly assigned into four groups: normal control group (received vehicle), LPZ only group (Rats received LPZ at a dose of 50 mg/kg/day P.O. for 10 days), CPA group (CPA was administered (200 mg/kg) as a single i.p. injection on the 7th day), and cotreatment group (LPZ plus CPA). Histopathological and biochemical analyses were conducted. Our results revealed that LPZ treatment revoked CPA-induced heart and lung histopathological alterations. Also, LPZ potently mitigated CPA-induced cardiac and pulmonary oxidative stress through the activation of PPARγ, Nrf2/HO-1, cytoglobin, and PI3K/AKT signaling pathways. Also, LPZ effectively suppressed inflammatory response as evidenced by down-regulating the inflammatory strategic controller NF-κB, MPO, and pro-inflammatory cytokines. The present findings could provide a mechanistic basis for understanding LPZ's role in CPA-induced cardiopulmonary injury through the alleviation of oxidative stress and inflammatory burden.
Implementation frameworks for polypharmacy management within healthcare organisations: a scoping review
Authors: Al Bulushi S. , McIntosh T. , Grant A. , Stewart D. , Cunningham S.
Published: January 2023

Background

Several guidelines support polypharmacy management in individual patients. More organisational-level focus is needed on the use of implementation frameworks.

Aim

To characterise the peer reviewed literature on implementation frameworks, focussing on barriers and facilitators to implementation at organisational level in the context of polypharmacy management.

Method

A scoping review protocol was devised, supporting retrieval of studies published in English, reporting from any sector of practice. Medline, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts, Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature and Business Source Complete were searched to January 2022 using Medical Subject Headings including: ‘polypharmacy’, ‘deprescriptions’, ‘strategic planning’ and ‘organizational innovation’. A narrative approach to data synthesis was applied. Searching, data extraction and synthesis were undertaken independently by two reviewers.

Results

After screening 797 records eight papers remained. Two were descriptive outlining details of specific initiatives, six used qualitative methods to explore determinants for implementation including barriers and enablers. Organisation level barriers included: poor organisational culture with a lack of sense of urgency and national plans, resource availability and communication issues including patient information and at transitions of care. Organisational facilitators included availability of government funding and regulatory environment promoting patient safety, a national emphasis on quality of care for older adults, co-ordinated national efforts and local evidence.

Conclusion

Limited literature focusses on the use of implementation frameworks at organisational levels. This review highlights the need for further work on implementation frameworks in this context to help achieve effective organisational change.
Climatic and Other Global Changes as Current Challenges in Improving Water Systems Management: Lessons from the Case of Italy
Authors: Rossi Giuseppe , Peres David J.
Published: January 2023

Climate change linked to human activities is affecting natural systems, increasing frequency and severity of water-related hazards. The issue of climate change pushes to tackle the expected risks in the water sector through a comprehensive and global view, with a revision of the paradigms considered as drivers of water resources development. Based on the evolution of these paradigms in Italy the main characteristics of an adaptive approach to climate change and other global changes are discussed relatively to water infrastructures, legislative and institutional frameworks. The objective of adaptation strategies is the increase of resilience of water systems, emphasizing the capability of reducing both physical and socio-political vulnerability, improving the governance of water services. Starting from the analysis of the evolution of water management, priorities for coping with future challenges are discussed with reference to the reduction of the risk of water shortage due to drought, to the mitigation of flood risk, and to the issues concerning the water-food-energy nexus.
Religionsoffen und zuschreibungsreflexiv
Authors: Seiler Elke
Published: January 2023

Der Artikel rückt die Bedeutung des gesellschaftlichen Diskurses um Religion und religiöse Zugehörigkeit in den Mittelpunkt des pädagogischen Interesses. Weniger als um Verständnis differenter Glaubensfragen sollten Pädagog_innen um die Wahrnehmung und Reflexion von Zuschreibungen von Zugehörigkeit und Nichtzugehörigkeit bemüht sein. Zudem wird die Frage aufgeworfen, wie angesichts einer verbreiteten Diskriminierungsrealität eine Anerkennung (auch) religiöser Ausdrucksformen gelingen kann.
Barriers to patient access of CAR T cell therapies in Austria
Authors: Hopfinger Georg , Rupp Bernhard , Greil Richard
Published: January 2023

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapies offer a promising new therapeutic option for treating B cell malignancies, for instance relapsed or refractory diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL). However, patient access to this type of cellular immunotherapy may be limited due to systemic barriers even in wealthy Western countries. In Austria, the CAR T eligible DLBCL population is estimated to encompass approximately 56 patients based on the criteria applied for CAR T registrational trials. However, less than 40% of these DLBCL patients eligible for commercial standard-of-care CAR T cell therapy were finally treated with CAR T cell therapy in 2021 based on our analysis. This report discusses potential barriers that may impede current patient access to CAR T cell therapy and provides recommendations for systemic solutions to address these barriers and improve the CAR T access situation in Austria.
Exposure Factors vs. Bioaccessibility in the Soil-and-Dust Ingestion Pathway: A Comparative Assessment of Uncertainties Using MC2D Simulations in an Arsenic Exposure Scenario
Authors: Barrio-Parra F. , Serrano García H. , Izquierdo-Díaz M. , De Miguel E.
Published: January 2023

Human Health Risk Assessment (HHRA) is a widely applied method to make decisions about the environmental status of sites affected by toxic substances. Its conclusions are affected by the variability and uncertainty of the input variables in the HHRA model. The aim of this work is to apply an algorithm based on 2D Monte Carlo simulations to integrate the variability and uncertainty of exposure factors, concentration, and bioaccessibility, reported by various information sources, to assess and compare their influence on the risk outcome. The method is applied to a specific case study of exposure of children to arsenic from accidental soil ingestion in a residential setting in the city of Madrid (Spain) by combining information from 12 studies. The consideration of the variability and uncertainty of the exposure parameters in the Baseline Risk Assessment (BRA, deterministic) resulted in a greater reduction in the numerical value of risk estimations than that produced by considering only the bioaccessibility factor. The results of the Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) showed that the risk distribution was more sensitive to the variabilities of the accidental soil intake rate and the total arsenic concentration than to other variables such as bioaccessibility. In this case study, the uncertainty introduced by using the "default" reasonable maximum exposure factors in the HHRA model and the variability of the concentration term produce overestimates of risk that are at least in the range of those produced by omitting the bioaccessibility term. Thus, the inclusion of bioaccessibility is, alone, insufficient to improve the HHRA since the selection of the exposure factors can significantly affect the estimates of risk for the soil ingestion pathway. In other sites or for other contaminants, however, the role of the uncertainties associated with the bioaccesible fraction could be more pronounced. The method applied in this work may be useful in updating exposure factors to reduce uncertainties in HHRAs.
Bio-utilization of agricultural residue banana plant shoot through solid state fermentation for production of inulinase using newly isolated Nothophoma anigozanthi JAM
Authors: Tippanavar Nisarga , Bhat Divya , Rebello Orline , Prabhu Girisa , Selvaraj Subbalaxmi , Bhat Ramananda M.
Published: January 2023

The present research was carried out with the objectives of isolating fungal strains capable of exhibiting inulinase activity from a novel source, then optimizing solid state fermentation for the inulinase production and characterizing crude enzyme. Production of inulinase is first reported in this study with a novel substrate, banana plant shoot powder, using newly isolated fungal strain Nothophoma anigozanthi JAM through solid state fermentation. The fungal strain was isolated from the root soil of a white Jamun (Syzygium cumini) tree. Optimization of the solid state fermentation was carried out by central composite design for determining the interaction and impact of the influential process on inulinase production. A mathematical model was developed based on the statistical analysis and recommended optimal process conditions of 2 g of substrate, 5 mL of moistening media, 5 mL of inoculum volume, and 96 h of fermentation time for enhanced production (2.578 U/gds). Crude inulinase enzyme exhibited an 8.0-fold increase in activity after optimization, in comparison with the activity under unoptimized conditions. The optimum pH (5.0), temperature (60 °C) for the enzyme activity, and Km (0.205 mM) and Vmax (0.333 µM/min) were determined based on the biochemical and inulin hydrolytic properties of the crude inulinase enzyme. The production of inulinase was further validated by using TLC, osazone, and Seliwanoff tests. Hence, the inulinase enzyme produced by Nothophoma anigozanthi JAM can be successfully utilized for the production of edible sugar fructose from non-edible polysaccharide inulin, present in agricultural residues such as banana shoot by solid state fermentation.
Muscle fat infiltration in chronic kidney disease: a marker related to muscle quality, muscle strength and sarcopenia
Authors: Avesani Carla Maria , de Abreu Aline Miroski , Ribeiro Heitor S. , Brismar Torkel B. , Stenvinkel Peter , Sabatino Alice , Lindholm Bengt
Published: January 2023

Muscle fat infiltration (MFI) also known as myosteatosis refers to any deposit of lipids found in the skeletal muscle. MFI is preferably assessed by image-based methods like computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance image (MRI) and ultrasound, normally from muscle groups located in the legs, arms and in the trunk. MFI is understood as a marker of muscle quality, where a muscle with higher fat deposition has lower contraction power and capacity to produce force per unit of muscle mass. This concept supports the hypothesis that a decrease in muscle strength is not always explained by a decrease in muscle mass, but also by other factors, including lipid deposition in the muscle. In the general population, MFI is associated with older age, physical inactivity and with insulin resistance and inflammation. In chronic kidney disease (CKD), MFI has been associated with a decrease in muscle strength and impaired muscle quality as well as with metabolic abnormalities, cardiovascular disease and increased mortality. Interventions aimed at reducing MFI in CKD are incipient, but it seems that guided exercise can ameliorate muscle quality in patients on hemodialysis. The aim of this narrative review about MFI in CKD is to draw attention to a still not often addressed complication in CKD. We conclude that more studies are warranted to investigate mechanisms and factors promoting MFI in CKD. Thus, clinical trials aimed at understanding the type, frequency and intensity of exercise that can diminish MFI and improve the clinical condition of the patients are needed.

Graphical Abstract
The Teaching of Collaborative Creativity, a Methodological Approach to Designing the Environment
Authors: Peralta Hernández Jesús , Tirado Segura Felipe
Published: January 2023

The emerging problems are characterized by their high level of complexity. Faced with this scenario, the teacher must propose methodologies that promote collaborative creativity in search of solutions to emerging problems. Designing environments that promote it represents an alternative for this purpose. We conducted this research in a university course that taught collaborative creativity to solve emerging professional problems. It used a methodological approach based on the analysis and adjustments to the educational environment. For this, an Educational Design Research was carried out to improve the environment by identifying and solving its contradictions. We obtained creativity indicators to evaluate the effects of the transformations made to the environment. The overall results showed an increase in the creative value of the products, which we interpreted from the Flow Theory.
Plücker coordinates of the best-fit Stiefel tropical linear space to a mixture of Gaussian distributions
Authors: Miura Keiji , Yoshida Ruriko
Published: January 2023

In this research, we investigate a tropical principal component analysis (PCA) as a best-fit Stiefel tropical linear space to a given sample over the tropical projective torus for its dimensionality reduction and visualization. Especially, we characterize the best-fit Stiefel tropical linear space to a sample generated from a mixture of Gaussian distributions as the variances of the Gaussians go to zero. For a single Gaussian distribution, we show that the sum of residuals in terms of the tropical metric with the max-plus algebra over a given sample to a fitted Stiefel tropical linear space converges to zero by giving an upper bound for its convergence rate. Meanwhile, for a mixtures of Gaussian distribution, we show that the best-fit tropical linear space can be determined uniquely when we send variances to zero. We briefly consider the best-fit topical polynomial as an extension for the mixture of more than two Gaussians over the tropical projective space of dimension three. We show some geometric properties of these tropical linear spaces and polynomials.
Evidencing built health system reconfiguration policy
Authors: Mills Grant Raymond Willton , García Antonio Rojas , Raine Rosalind
Published: January 2023

Background

Current built health system reconfiguration evidence is insufficient to support policy decisions on the best settings for healthcare provision. As a result, the “built health system” (the buildings, physical environments, engineering infrastructure and the building standards, guidance and evidence that support them) remain misunderstood. We explore several literature review types that have supported built health system policy, and the methodological, interdisciplinary and theoretical challenges of conducting high-impacting systematised reviews. Then establish how they might provide a robust basis for prioritising the reconfiguration of significant capital investments.

Methods/design

Five literature reviews undertaken to inform built health system reconfiguration policy are used as an empirical basis to help establish clearer scientific grounds for built health system infrastructure policy. The methods, benefits and empirical limitations of systematic, scoping, narrative, realistic and rapid reviews are compared.

Discussion

The methodological, interdisciplinary and theoretical shortcomings of existing evidence on built health system reconfiguration need to be addressed. This paper conceptualises this evidence and offers a new evidence co-production framework.
On wind–wave interaction phenomena at low Reynolds numbers
Authors: Cimarelli A. , Romoli F. , Stalio E.
Published: January 2023

After decades of research efforts, wind–wave interaction mechanisms have been recognized as extremely elusive. The reason is the complex nature of the problem, which combines complex coupling mechanisms between turbulent wind and water waves with the presence of multiple governing parameters, such as the friction Reynolds number of the wind, the water depth and the wind fetch. As shown unequivocally here, the use of suitable flow settings allows us to reduce the complex problem of wind–wave interaction to its essential features, mainly as a function of the sole friction Reynolds number of the wind. The resulting numerical solution allows us to study the interactions between water and air layers with their own fluid properties, and to unveil very interesting features, such as an oblique wave pattern travelling upstream and a wave-induced Stokes sublayer. The latter is responsible for a drag reduction mechanism in the turbulent wind. Despite the simulated flow conditions being far from the intense events occurring at the ocean–atmosphere interface, the basic flow phenomena unveiled here may explain some experimental evidence in wind–wave problems. Among other things, the wave-induced Stokes sublayer may shed light on the large scatter of the drag coefficient data in field measurements where swell waves of arbitrary directions are often present. Hence the present results and the developed approach pave the way for the understanding and modelling of the surface fluxes at the ocean–atmosphere interface, which are of overwhelming importance for climate science.
VIRGIL AND SALLUST:AENEID10.354–79 ANDBELLVM CATILINAE58–60
Authors: Woodman A.J.
Published: January 2023

Since a problematic passage in Virgil'sAeneid(10.366–7) shows the same influence of Sallust (Cat.58–60) as do the dozen lines preceding and following, it should not be deleted, as has been suggested.
Is There Smart Money? How Information in the Commodity Futures Market Is Priced into the Cross Section of Stock Returns with Delay
Authors: Ho Steven Wei , Lauwers Alexandre R.
Published: January 2023

We document a new empirical phenomenon in which the aggregate positions of money managers, who are sophisticated speculators in the commodity futures market, as disclosed by the Disaggregated Commitments of Traders reports, can predict the cross section of commodity producers’ stock returns in the subsequent week. We employ a number of cross-sectional methods, including calendar-time regression analysis, single-sort, double-sort, and Fama–MacBeth regressions, to confirm the predictability results. The results are more pronounced in firms with higher information asymmetry. We thus add more empirical evidence to the literature on costly information processing, which leads to gradual information diffusion across asset markets.
Citizenship, Ability, and Contribution
Authors: Devidi David , Klausen Catherine , Lowry Christopher
Published: January 2023

People with significant cognitive disabilities and others who advocate on their behalf routinely state their claims in terms of enabling people to claim their full citizenship. Informed by the results of a study by one of the authors, we draw attention to some of these claims, and discuss what a just society ought to do so that members with significant cognitive disabilities see themselves – and are seen by others – as full, and therefore equal, citizens. Several political philosophers have sought to develop disability-inclusive accounts of justice, using three strategies: (1) defend a permissive understanding of who is owed justice by rejecting contribution to social cooperation as a necessary condition; (2) defend a permissive understanding of what counts as contribution; and (3) argue that some demands of justice are owed to all, while others are owed only to cooperators. We defend a version of the second strategy, arguing that the relevant notion of contribution requires that it be something the agent chooses to do because they know it to be valued by someone else, and we argue that the third strategy also has a role to play.
Market access and transparency: the Genoa and Milan stock exchanges from Italian Unification to World War I
Authors: Riva Angelo
Published: January 2023

This article focuses on the conflicts over market access rules on the two primary Italian stock exchanges, Milan and Genoa. These conflicts disrupted the quality of information produced by the two markets. Official brokers aimed to defend their monopoly on brokerage and capture rents by limiting market access. Banks wanted wider access so as to avoid paying these rents, create an opaque market and maximize the benefit from their informational advantage. At the turn of the twentieth century, the Milan Exchange implemented a transparent market organization while the Genoa Exchange remained opaque, creating a complementarity between them which fostered the development of the securities market overall. When in 1907 a violent crisis erupted in the dominant Genoa Exchange, legislation was adopted to harmonize the organization of the Italian exchanges.
A note for the special issue honoring the legacy of Susan Pharr
Authors: Davis Christina L. , Kato Junko
Published: January 2023

The editors and authors provide a brief postscript about the contributions and the legacy of Susan Pharr for each author and the field of Japanese politics.
Slow Slip Detectability in Seafloor Pressure Records Offshore Alaska
Authors: Fredrickson Erik K. , Gomberg Joan S. , Wilcock William S. D. , Hautala Susan L. , Hermann Albert J. , Johnson H. Paul
Published: January 2023

In subduction zones worldwide, seafloor pressure data are used to observe tectonic deformation, particularly from megathrust earthquakes and slow slip events (SSEs). However, such measurements are also sensitive to oceanographic circulation‐generated pressures over a range of frequencies that conflate with tectonic signals of interest. Using seafloor pressure and temperature data from the Alaska Amphibious Community Seismic Experiment, and sea surface height data from satellite altimetry, we evaluate the efficacy of various seasonal and oceanographic pressure signal proxy corrections and conduct synthetic tests to determine their impact on the timing and amplitude prediction of ramp‐like signals typical of SSEs. We find that subtracting out the first mode of the complex empirical orthogonal functions of the pressure records on either the shelf or slope yields signal root‐mean‐square error (RMS) reductions up to 73% or 80%, respectively. Additional correction with proxies that exploit the depth‐dependent spatial coherence of pressure records provides cumulative variance reductions up to 83% and 93%, respectively. Our detectability tests show that the timing and amplitude of synthetic SSE‐like ramps can be well constrained for ramp amplitudes ≥4 cm on the shelf and ≥2 cm on the slope, using a fully automated detector. The principal limits on detectability are residual abrupt changes in pressure that occur as part of the transition to and from summer to winter conditions but are not adequately characterized by our seasonal corrections, as well as the inability to properly account for instrumental drift, which is not readily separated from the seasonal signal.
Occurrence Rates of Spread‐F Echoes in Australasian VI Ionograms
Authors: Eccles James V. , McNamara Leo F. , Holmes Jeffrey M.
Published: January 2023

Observations of frequency spreading (FS) and range spreading (RS) in ionogram traces for Australian vertical incidence ionosondes for 1975 through 2013 have been analyzed to provide diurnal, seasonal, latitudinal, and solar‐cycle variations of the occurrence rates of FS and RS traces. For midlatitude ionosondes, both FS and RS rates were found to be negatively correlated with solar activity. FS was found to have maximum occurrence rates in June and July (JJ), with sub‐maximum in December and January during solar minimum years. The FS occurrence rates in JJ months were highest just after midnight. RS echoes had lower occurrence rates than FS echoes overall, but in general had seasonal and diurnal variations similar to those of FS echoes. The FS and RS occurrence rates of the midlatitude Townsville ionosonde are highly correlated those of the Akita ionosonde in the conjugate hemisphere. The equatorial station Vanimo and the subauroral latitude station Hobart have different FS and RS occurrence statistics when compared to the midlatitude ionosondes. Vanimo RS occurrence rates are consistent with bottomside spread‐F instabilities associated with the Rayleigh‐Taylor instability at sunset during solar maximum. During solar minimum Vanimo spread‐F rates are similar to midlatitude vertical incidence (VI) ionosondes. Station Hobart is at subauroral latitudes. It observes high rates of FS echoes throughout the night for all seasons. Hobart spread‐F traces are consistent with plasma instabilities associated with convection dynamics of the subauroral latitudes.
A Novel Physics‐Aware Machine Learning‐Based Dynamic Error Correction Model for Improving Streamflow Forecast Accuracy
Authors: Roy Abhinanda , Kasiviswanathan K. S. , Patidar Sandhya , Adeloye Adebayo J. , Soundharajan Bankaru‐Swamy , Ojha Chandra Shekhar P.
Published: January 2023

Occurrences of extreme events, especially floods, have become more frequent and severe in the recent past due to the global impacts of climate change. In this context, possibilities for generating a near‐accurate streamflow forecast at higher lead times, which could be utilized for developing a reliable flood warning system to minimize the effects of extreme events, are highly important. This paper aims to investigate the potential of a novel hybrid modeling framework that couples the random forest algorithm, particle filter, and the HBV model for improving the overall accuracy of forecasts at higher lead times through the dynamic error correction schematic. The new framework simulates an ensemble of streamflow for estimating uncertainty associated with the predictions and is applied across two snow‐fed Himalayan rivers: the Beas River in India and the Sunkoshi River in Nepal. Several statistical indices along with graphical performance indicators were used for assessing the accuracy of the model performance and associated uncertainty. The modeling framework achieved the Nash Sutcliffe Efficiency of 0.94 and 0.98 in calibration and 0.95 and 0.99 in validation for the Beas and Sunkoshi river basin respectively for a 7‐day ahead forecast. Thus, the proposed framework can be considered as a promising tool having reasonably good performance in forecasting streamflow at a higher lead time.
Does This Mineral Indicate Oxygen on Mars?
Authors: Cutts Elise
Published: January 2023

Manganese oxides are thought to be a signature of atmospheric oxygen. But on the Red Planet, recent results suggest they might be more of a red herring.
Unexpected complexity of the ammonia monooxygenase in archaea
Authors: Hodgskiss Logan H , Melcher Michael , Kerou Melina , Chen Weiqiang , Ponce-Toledo Rafael I , Savvides Savvas N , Wienkoop Stefanie , Hartl Markus , Schleper Christa
Published: January 2023

Ammonia oxidation, as the first step of nitrification, constitutes a critical process in the global nitrogen cycle. However, fundamental knowledge of its key enzyme, the copper-dependent ammonia monooxygenase, is lacking, in particular for the environmentally abundant ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA). Here the structure of the enzyme is investigated by blue-native gel electrophoresis and proteomics from native membrane complexes of two AOA. Besides the known AmoABC subunits and the earlier predicted AmoX, two new protein subunits, AmoY and AmoZ, were identified. They are unique to AOA, highly conserved and co-regulated, and their genes are linked to other AMO subunit genes in streamlined AOA genomes. Modeling and in-gel cross-link approaches support an overall protomer structure similar to the distantly related bacterial particulate methane monooxygenase but also reveals clear differences in extracellular domains of the enzyme. These data open avenues for further structure-function studies of this ecologically important nitrification complex.
Macular buckling alone versus combined inverted ILM flap on macular hole-associated macular detachment in patients with high myopia
Authors: Zhao Xiujuan , Song Huiying , Tanumiharjo Silvia , Wang Yanbing , Chen Yuqing , Chen Shida , Huang Xia , Liu Bingqian , Lian Ping , Lu Lin
Published: January 2023

Purpose

To compare the efficacy of macular buckling (MB) alone against a combined internal limiting membrane (ILM) inversion flap for full-thickness macular hole (FTMH)-associated macular detachment (MD) in patients with high myopia.

Methods

This was a prospective interventional case series of patients with high myopia surgically treated with MB alone or combined with an inverted ILM flap for FTMH- associated MD. Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) at the 24-month postoperative follow-up, rate of initial retinal reattachment and macular hole closure were measured.

Results

A total of 62 eyes from 62 participants (33 in the MB group, 29 in the combination group) were studied. Postoperative BCVA improved significantly in both the combination group (P < 0.001) and the MB group (P = 0.027). The postoperative BCVA at 12 months (P = 0.021) and 24 months (P = 0.041) was significantly better in the combination group than in the MB group. The postoperative BCVA was not significantly different between the eyes with closed and unclosed MH at each follow-up time point (P > 0.05). In the combination group, we observed earlier retinal reattachment and closure of the MH as well as a higher rate of MH closure (82.8% vs. 66.7%) than in the MB group, although this difference was insignificant (P = 0.248).

Conclusion

MB combined with the ILM flap inversion technique achieved better postoperative BCVA and a higher success rate of MH closure than MB alone. We believe that combination surgery should be preferentially recommended.
Viral infection switches the balance between bacterial and eukaryotic recyclers of organic matter during coccolithophore blooms
Authors: Vincent Flora , Gralka Matti , Schleyer Guy , Schatz Daniella , Cabrera-Brufau Miguel , Kuhlisch Constanze , Sichert Andreas , Vidal-Melgosa Silvia , Mayers Kyle , Barak-Gavish Noa , Flores J. Michel , Masdeu-Navarro Marta , Egge Jorun Karin , Larsen Aud , Hehemann Jan-Hendrik , Marrasé Celia , Simó Rafel , Cordero Otto X. , Vardi Assaf
Published: January 2023

Algal blooms are hotspots of marine primary production and play central roles in microbial ecology and global elemental cycling. Upon demise of the bloom, organic carbon is partly respired and partly transferred to either higher trophic levels, bacterial biomass production or sinking. Viral infection can lead to bloom termination, but its impact on the fate of carbon remains largely unquantified. Here, we characterize the interplay between viral infection and the composition of a bloom-associated microbiome and consequently the evolving biogeochemical landscape, by conducting a large-scale mesocosm experiment where we monitor seven induced coccolithophore blooms. The blooms show different degrees of viral infection and reveal that only high levels of viral infection are followed by significant shifts in the composition of free-living bacterial and eukaryotic assemblages. Intriguingly, upon viral infection the biomass of eukaryotic heterotrophs (thraustochytrids) rivals that of bacteria as potential recyclers of organic matter. By combining modeling and quantification of active viral infection at a single-cell resolution, we estimate that viral infection causes a 2–4 fold increase in per-cell rates of extracellular carbon release in the form of acidic polysaccharides and particulate inorganic carbon, two major contributors to carbon sinking into the deep ocean. These results reveal the impact of viral infection on the fate of carbon through microbial recyclers of organic matter in large-scale coccolithophore blooms.
Quasiparticle Andreev scattering in the ν = 1/3 fractional quantum Hall regime
Authors: Glidic P. , Maillet O. , Piquard C. , Aassime A. , Cavanna A. , Jin Y. , Gennser U. , Anthore A. , Pierre F.
Published: January 2023

The scattering of exotic quasiparticles may follow different rules than electrons. In the fractional quantum Hall regime, a quantum point contact (QPC) provides a source of quasiparticles with field effect selectable charges and statistics, which can be scattered on an ‘analyzer’ QPC to investigate these rules. Remarkably, for incident quasiparticles dissimilar to those naturally transmitted across the analyzer, electrical conduction conserves neither the nature nor the number of the quasiparticles. In contrast with standard elastic scattering, theory predicts the emergence of a mechanism akin to the Andreev reflection at a normal-superconductor interface. Here, we observe the predicted Andreev-like reflection of an e/3 quasiparticle into a − 2e/3 hole accompanied by the transmission of an e quasielectron. Combining shot noise and cross-correlation measurements, we independently determine the charge of the different particles and ascertain the coincidence of quasielectron and fractional hole. The present work advances our understanding on the unconventional behavior of fractional quasiparticles, with implications toward the generation of novel quasi-particles/holes and non-local entanglements.
Digital circuits and neural networks based on acid-base chemistry implemented by robotic fluid handling
Authors: Agiza Ahmed A. , Oakley Kady , Rosenstein Jacob K. , Rubenstein Brenda M. , Kim Eunsuk , Riedel Marc , Reda Sherief
Published: January 2023

Acid-base reactions are ubiquitous, easy to prepare, and execute without sophisticated equipment. Acids and bases are also inherently complementary and naturally map to a universal representation of “0” and “1.” Here, we propose how to leverage acids, bases, and their reactions to encode binary information and perform information processing based upon the majority and negation operations. These operations form a functionally complete set that we use to implement more complex computations such as digital circuits and neural networks. We present the building blocks needed to build complete digital circuits using acids and bases for dual-rail encoding data values as complementary pairs, including a set of primitive logic functions that are widely applicable to molecular computation. We demonstrate how to implement neural network classifiers and some classes of digital circuits with acid-base reactions orchestrated by a robotic fluid handling device. We validate the neural network experimentally on a number of images with different formats, resulting in a perfect match to the in-silico classifier. Additionally, the simulation of our acid-base classifier matches the results of the in-silico classifier with approximately 99% similarity.
A hydrophobic Cu/Cu2O sheet catalyst for selective electroreduction of CO to ethanol
Authors: Ma Guifeng , Syzgantseva Olga A. , Huang Yan , Stoian Dragos , Zhang Jie , Yang Shuliang , Luo Wen , Jiang Mengying , Li Shumu , Chen Chunjun , Syzgantseva Maria A. , Yan Sen , Chen Ningyu , Peng Li , Li Jun , Han Buxing
Published: January 2023

Electrocatalytic reduction of carbon monoxide into fuels or chemicals with two or more carbons is very attractive due to their high energy density and economic value. Herein we demonstrate the synthesis of a hydrophobic Cu/Cu2O sheet catalyst with hydrophobic n-butylamine layer and its application in CO electroreduction. The CO reduction on this catalyst produces two or more carbon products with a Faradaic efficiency of 93.5% and partial current density of 151 mA cm−2 at the potential of −0.70 V versus a reversible hydrogen electrode. A Faradaic efficiency of 68.8% and partial current density of 111 mA cm−2 for ethanol were reached, which is very high in comparison to all previous reports of CO2/CO electroreduction with a total current density higher than 10 mA cm−2. The as-prepared catalyst also showed impressive stability that the activity and selectivity for two or more carbon products could remain even after 100 operating hours. This work opens a way for efficient electrocatalytic conversion of CO2/CO to liquid fuels.