bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Bekæmpelse af trafikulykker
Authors: Ludvigsen Henrik S.
Published: February 2023

Erindringer fra Sekretariatet for Sikkerhedsfremmende Vejforanstaltninger (SSV) (1974-1990).
En ny hærvejsbog
Authors: Jørgensen Steffen Elmer
Published: February 2023

Jesper Asmussen har skrevet en række kulturhistoriske bøger om lokaliteter som Gudenåen, Bornholm og København. Senest har han begået dette velillustrerede værk om Hærvejen, Danmarks mest legendariske vej.
Vibrācijas korelācijas tehnika cilindrisko konstrukciju nestspējas novērtēšanā
Authors:   , Skuķis Eduards
Published: February 2023

Promocijas darbā izstrādāta vibrācijas korelācijas tehnika kā nesagraujoša testa metode čaulu kritiskās slodzes novērtēšanai. Nesagraujošās metodes pret nepilnībām jutīgu plānsienu konstrukciju kritiskās slodzes aprēķiniem ir viens no svarīgākajiem paņēmieniem jaunu konstrukciju un liela mēroga kosmosa konstrukciju skaitlisko modeļu validācijai. Vibrācijas korelācijas tehnika (VCT) ļauj noteikt kritisko slodzi dažādu veidu konstrukcijām, nesasniedzot bifurkācijas punktu.
Human influenza virus infection elicits distinct patterns of monocyte and dendritic cell mobilization in blood and the nasopharynx
Authors: Vangeti Sindhu , Falck-Jones Sara , Yu Meng , Österberg Björn , Liu Sang , Asghar Muhammad , Sondén Klara , Paterson Clare , Whitley Penn , Albert Jan , Johansson Niclas , Färnert Anna , Smed-Sörensen Anna
Published: February 2023

During respiratory viral infections, the precise roles of monocytes and dendritic cells (DCs) in the nasopharynx in limiting infection and influencing disease severity are incompletely described. We studied circulating and nasopharyngeal monocytes and DCs in healthy controls (HCs) and in patients with mild to moderate infections (primarily influenza A virus [IAV]). As compared to HCs, patients with acute IAV infection displayed reduced DC but increased intermediate monocytes frequencies in blood, and an accumulation of most monocyte and DC subsets in the nasopharynx. IAV patients had more mature monocytes and DCs in the nasopharynx, and higher levels of TNFα, IL-6, and IFNα in plasma and the nasopharynx than HCs. In blood, monocytes were the most frequent cellular source of TNFα during IAV infection and remained responsive to additional stimulation with TLR7/8L. Immune responses in older patients skewed towards increased monocyte frequencies rather than DCs, suggesting a contributory role for monocytes in disease severity. In patients with other respiratory virus infections, we observed changes in monocyte and DC frequencies in the nasopharynx distinct from IAV patients, while differences in blood were more similar across infection groups. Using SomaScan, a high-throughput aptamer-based assay to study proteomic changes between patients and HCs, we found differential expression of innate immunity-related proteins in plasma and nasopharyngeal secretions of IAV and SARS-CoV-2 patients. Together, our findings demonstrate tissue-specific and pathogen-specific patterns of monocyte and DC function during human respiratory viral infections and highlight the importance of comparative investigations in blood and the nasopharynx.
CriSNPr, a single interface for the curated and de novo design of gRNAs for CRISPR diagnostics using diverse Cas systems
Authors: Ansari Asgar H , Kumar Manoj , Sarkar Sajal , Maiti Souvik , Chakraborty Debojyoti
Published: February 2023

CRISPR-based diagnostics (CRISPRDx) have improved clinical decision-making, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, by detecting nucleic acids and identifying variants. This has been accelerated by the discovery of new and engineered CRISPR effectors, which have expanded the portfolio of diagnostic applications to include a broad range of pathogenic and non-pathogenic conditions. However, each diagnostic CRISPR pipeline necessitates customized detection schemes based on the fundamental principles of the Cas protein used, its guide RNA (gRNA) design parameters, and the assay readout. This is especially relevant for variant detection, a low-cost alternative to sequencing-based approaches for which no in silico pipeline for the ready-to-use design of CRISPRDx currently exists. In this manuscript, we fill this lacuna using a unified web server, CriSNPr (CRISPR-based SNP recognition), which provides the user with the opportunity to de novo design gRNAs based on six CRISPRDx proteins of choice (Fn/enFnCas9, LwCas13a, LbCas12a, AaCas12b, and Cas14a) and query for ready-to-use oligonucleotide sequences for validation on relevant samples. Furthermore, we provide a database of curated pre-designed gRNAs as well as target/off-target for all human and SARS-CoV-2 variants reported thus far. CriSNPr has been validated on multiple Cas proteins, demonstrating its broad and immediate applicability across multiple detection platforms. CriSNPr can be found at http://crisnpr.igib.res.in/.
Motor processivity and speed determine structure and dynamics of microtubule-motor assemblies
Authors: Banks Rachel A , Galstyan Vahe , Lee Heun Jin , Hirokawa Soichi , Ierokomos Athena , Ross Tyler D , Bryant Zev , Thomson Matt , Phillips Rob
Published: February 2023

Active matter systems can generate highly ordered structures, avoiding equilibrium through the consumption of energy by individual constituents. How the microscopic parameters that characterize the active agents are translated to the observed mesoscopic properties of the assembly has remained an open question. These active systems are prevalent in living matter; for example, in cells, the cytoskeleton is organized into structures such as the mitotic spindle through the coordinated activity of many motor proteins walking along microtubules. Here, we investigate how the microscopic motor-microtubule interactions affect the coherent structures formed in a reconstituted motor-microtubule system. This question is of deeper evolutionary significance as we suspect motor and microtubule type contribute to the shape and size of resulting structures. We explore key parameters experimentally and theoretically, using a variety of motors with different speeds, processivities, and directionalities. We demonstrate that aster size depends on the motor used to create the aster, and develop a model for the distribution of motors and microtubules in steady-state asters that depends on parameters related to motor speed and processivity. Further, we show that network contraction rates scale linearly with the single-motor speed in quasi-one-dimensional contraction experiments. In all, this theoretical and experimental work helps elucidate how microscopic motor properties are translated to the much larger scale of collective motor-microtubule assemblies.
The neural machine translation models for the low-resource Kazakh–English language pair
Authors: Karyukin Vladislav , Rakhimova Diana , Karibayeva Aidana , Turganbayeva Aliya , Turarbek Asem
Published: February 2023

The development of the machine translation field was driven by people’s need to communicate with each other globally by automatically translating words, sentences, and texts from one language into another. The neural machine translation approach has become one of the most significant in recent years. This approach requires large parallel corpora not available for low-resource languages, such as the Kazakh language, which makes it difficult to achieve the high performance of the neural machine translation models. This article explores the existing methods for dealing with low-resource languages by artificially increasing the size of the corpora and improving the performance of the Kazakh–English machine translation models. These methods are called forward translation, backward translation, and transfer learning. Then the Sequence-to-Sequence (recurrent neural network and bidirectional recurrent neural network) and Transformer neural machine translation architectures with their features and specifications are concerned for conducting experiments in training models on parallel corpora. The experimental part focuses on building translation models for the high-quality translation of formal social, political, and scientific texts with the synthetic parallel sentences from existing monolingual data in the Kazakh language using the forward translation approach and combining them with the parallel corpora parsed from the official government websites. The total corpora of 380,000 parallel Kazakh–English sentences are trained on the recurrent neural network, bidirectional recurrent neural network, and Transformer models of the OpenNMT framework. The quality of the trained model is evaluated with the BLEU, WER, and TER metrics. Moreover, the sample translations were also analyzed. The RNN and BRNN models showed a more precise translation than the Transformer model. The Byte-Pair Encoding tokenization technique showed better metrics scores and translation than the word tokenization technique. The Bidirectional recurrent neural network with the Byte-Pair Encoding technique showed the best performance with 0.49 BLEU, 0.51 WER, and 0.45 TER.
A robust maximum correntropy forecasting model for time series with outliers
Authors: Ren Jing , Li Wei-Qin
Published: February 2023

It is of great significance to develop a robust forecasting method for time series. The reliability and accuracy of the traditional model are reduced because the series is polluted by outliers. The present study proposes a robust maximum correntropy autoregressive (MCAR) forecasting model by examining the case of actual power series of Hanzhong City, Shaanxi province, China. In order to reduce the interference of the outlier, the local similarity between data is measured by the Gaussian kernel width of correlation entropy, and the semi-definite relaxation method is used to solve the parameters in MCAR model. The results show that the MCAR model in comparison with deep learning methods, in terms of the average value of the mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), performed better by 1.63%. It was found that maximum correntropy is helpful for reducing the interference of outliers.
Occurrence of microplastics in freshwater gastropods from a tropical river U-Taphao, southern Thailand
Authors: Jitkaew Preyanuch , Pradit Siriporn , Noppradit Prakrit , Sengloyluan Karnda , Yucharoen Mathinee , Suwanno Suvit , Tanrattanakul Varaporn , Sornplang Kittiwara , Nitiratsuwan Thongchai
Published: February 2023

Background

Microplastics (MPs) are pollutants in rivers and marine environments. Rivers can be sources and sinks of MPs that enter the biota. Previous studies focusing on freshwater species are quite limited, especially for gastropods. Freshwater gastropods are essential to aquatic ecosystems because they are food to other aquatic animals, such as fish, shrimp, and crabs. They are a crucial link in the food chain between water resources and human food. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate MP accumulation in freshwater gastropods, commonly known as snails (Filopaludina sumatrensisspeciosaandPomacea canaliculata), in a river flowing into a shallow coastal lagoon.

Method

In this study, snail tissue samples were digested with 30% hydrogen peroxide. The mixture was heated at 60 °C for 24 h. MP particles were identified, counted, and characterized (shape, size, and color) by visual identification under a stereomicroscope. Furthermore, polymer-type identification was performed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied for the statistical analysis.

Results

The MPs found were as follows: 4.76 particles/individual were found inF. sumatrensis speciosaupstream, 5.20 particles/individual were found inF. sumatrensis speciosadownstream, 7.28 particles/individual were found inP. canaliculataupstream, and 4.00 particles/individual were found inP. canaliculatadownstream. It was found in the two-way ANOVA that the accumulation of MPs in gastropods was affected by species and study sites (upstream and downstream). There was a significant difference in the amount of MPs inP. canaliculatabetween upstream and downstream sites (p= 0.003). Fibers were the most common MPs in both species. Moreover,P. canaliculataupstream had the most significant amount of MPs. The smallest amount of MPs was recorded forP. canaliculatadownstream, but there was great diversity in shape, size, and polymer type. MPs sized 500 μm–1mm were the most common in both species. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed six polymers: poly (ethylene terephthalate), polypropylene, rayon, polyethyleneimine, polyamine, and poly(propylene: ethylene). The occurrence of MPs in gastropods is alarming for food security in Thailand. The results of this study can be used to support baseline data on MP accumulation among freshwater gastropods.
Influence of Foliar Spraying by Using Paclobutrazol and Pinching Technique on the Growth, Green Pods, Dry Seed Yields, its Components and Some Chemical Constituents of Broad Bean (Vicia faba L.) Plants
Authors: Abdel-Aziz M. A. , Ismail A. Y.
Published: February 2023

This current study was conducted at Qaha Vegetable Research Farm (Qalubia Governorate), Horticulture Research Institute, Agriculture Research Center (A. R. C.), Egypt, during the two winter seasons of 2020/2021 and 2021/2022 on broad bean (Vicia faba L.) plants Weaam cv. The aim of this work was to investigate the influence of foliar application of paclobutrazol (PBZ) at three different doses i.e. 25, 50 and 75 mg/ L at three times; at the vegetative growth, at the peak flowering and at the pod setting stages i.e. at 60, 80 and 100 days after sowing (D.A.S.), respectively as well as pinching technique treatments which were done at three times; the 1st one at plants had 60 cm, the 2nd at 80 cm and the 3rd at 100 cm from the plant height per plant by removing the tip of the main stem of broad bean plants, under the two winter seasons condition on the vegetative growth characteristics, total green pods, dry seed yields and its constituents as well as the quality of the dry seed of broad bean plants. The experimental design was arranged in a complete randomized block design with three replications.

The results indicated that, all the tested treatments significantly affected increased the vegetative growth characteristics (with the exception of the plant height in the two winter seasons, respectively), total green pods, dry seed yields, its components and chemical constituents in dry seeds as compared with the control treatment. In this case, among the different concentrations of foliar spraying paclobutrazol treatment at the rate of 50 mg/ L shows the best result as compared with the other two treatments i.e. 75 and 100 mg/ L. About the stimulatory effects of broad bean plants with pinching technique treatments either at flowering stage or at the pod setting stage, which were the best treatments and markedly improved the most of all the pervious studied characters of broad bean plants and dry seed quality as compared with the other pinching technique treatment i.e. at the vegetative growth stage and no pinching treatment.
Chemical, In-vitro Multienzyme Digestibility and Amino Acid of Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L) Moench) Fortified with Soybean (Glycine max) Composite Meal flour
Authors: Niyi Oluwagbenle Henry
Published: February 2023

The proximate, minerals, functional properties, in-vitro multi enzyme protein digestibility of fortified sorghum with soybean composite meal flour have been determined using standard analytical methods. The sample contained moisture (3.52%), ash (3.40%), crude fat (27.44%), crude protein (39.33%), crude fibre (5.66%) and carbohydrate (22.65%). The magnesium was the highest mineral with the value of 40.78mg/kg while copper had the lowest value of 0.04 mg/kg. The results of functional properties showed that water absorption capacity (WAC) had the value of 142.62%, oil absorption capacity (OAC) had the value of 114.24%, foaming capacity/stability (6.50%/2.00%)while the least gelation concentration was 2.00%. The multi enzyme protein digestibility was 66%. Glutamic acid was the most concentrated amino acid with the value of 172.5 mg/g crude protein while cysteine was the least concentrated with the value of 20.5 mg/g crude protein. The average total amino acid in the composite sample was 915.5 mg/g crude protein and the total average percent essential amino acid was 44.7% (with histidine), 42.3% (without histidine). The composite sample would provide the required amino acids for the pre-school children (2-5yrs) since the values obtained were higher than 100% required standards recommended for the group.
Impacts of Pollutants (Phosphorus and Nitrogen) from Agricultural Activities on the Soils and Waters of Toho Lake (Benin)
Authors: Tometin Lyde , Chouti Waris , Chitou Nafiou , Sotondji Rodolphe , Fatombi Jacques , Mama Daouda , Bawa Limam
Published: February 2023

We evaluated the impacts of agricultural activities on the cultivated soils around Lake Toho as well as the waters from the streams through phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium pollution of the soils and waters from the streams heading towards Lake. In the soil, pHwater and pHKCl organic matter, moisture total phosphorus and its fractionation were determined. The various supernatants obtained are analyzed using a 1600PC UV spectrophotometer as well as the waters for the determination of ammonium, nitrite, nitrates and phosphate. In soils, the determination of ammonium, nitrite, nitrate, phosphate and potassium was carried out by DR 5000 MP-AES spectrometry method. Soils around this lake are weakly acidic with an average water pH of 6.91. The humidity increases from surface to depth (8% to 28%), while organic matter (11% on average) and organic carbon decrease from surface to depth. These soils are rich in phosphorus with an overall average concentration of 10.10 mg/g. The fractionation made it possibe to extract the following forms of phosphorus in soil in the order: P-residual > P-org&Al > P-Ca > P-Fe > P-Labile. The physicochemical analysis of the waters show that these waters are moderately loaded and present an increased risk of eutrophication with multifaceted consequences. In soils, nitrate is the dominant form of nitrogen. Cultivated soils provide an abundant source of nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients to Lake Toho via its recharge sources.
The Amount of Knowledge Awareness on the Caries Risk Assessment Tools and It’s Management Strategies in Children among Dental Students
Authors: Ushanthika T. , George Mebin
Published: February 2023

Introduction: Early detection of risk factors and implementation of oral health preventative activities can help to slow or stop the spread of caries. As a result, dentists must be well-versed in a variety of approaches and early preventative methods.

Aim of the Study: The aim of the study is to create knowledge and awareness on the caries risk assessment tools and it’s management strategies in children among dental students.

Methodology: A questionnaire survey was carried out online containing 10 questions and was sent to 100 students on the caries risk assessment tools and it’s management strategies in children among dental students. An online survey was conducted using survey planet software and the data was collected and completely analysed for statistical difference.

Results:  According to our findings, the majority of undergraduates believe that a child should see a dentist between the ages of 12 and 22, and that specific information gained from a systematic assessment of caries risk guides the dentist in the decision-making process for treatment and preventive protocols for children (66 percent of undergraduates and 18 percent of postgraduates).

Conclusion: Dental practitioners have a critical role in preventing and minimising the severity of ECC in young children, and they can use preventive treatment regimens to assess their paediatric patients' caries risk.
Pillarization of Sumatera Bentonite by Sodium-assisted As Effective Adsorbent of Anionic Surfactants Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (SLS) Waste
Authors: Mohadi Risfidian , Hakim Yusuf Mathiinul , Astuti Rahma Dinta , Royani Idha , Mardiyanto Mardiyanto
Published: February 2023

In this work, the Sumatera bentonite was sodium-pillarized in a new low-temperature and restricted time preparation route and then applied in anionic surfactant sodium lauryl sulphate removal. Structure characterization used Fourier Transform Infra Red (FT-IR), Scanning Electron Microscope - Energy Dispersive X-ray (SEM-EDX), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis. A strong peak at 22° and 35.66° in XRD analysis was detected as Sodium-pillar that increased crystallinity, then the functional changes of dehydration in lattice structure were detected in 1013 cm−1 by FTIR analysis. The morphology and compositional transformation were analyzed by SEM-EDX and BET analysis, denoted by increasing particle shape and sodium intercalant composition homogeneity. Moreover, the surface area increased from 61.791 to 66.086 m2/g. The sodium lauryl sulphate adsorption by bentonite-Na reached maximum capacity at 8.403 mg/g, which is higher than the pristine bentonite (5.747 mg/g) under the optimum condition. The adsorption mechanism is feasible, endothermic, and conformed to the pseudo-second-order and Freundlich adsorption model. The new route proposed for sodium intercalation effectively improves the Sumatera bentonite adsorption ability to remove sodium lauryl sulphate waste. Copyright © 2023 by Authors, Published by BCREC Group. This is an open access article under the CC BY-SA License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0).
Association of Long-term Change in N-Terminal Pro–B-Type Natriuretic Peptide With Incident Heart Failure and Death
Authors: Jia Xiaoming , Al Rifai Mahmoud , Hoogeveen Ron , Echouffo-Tcheugui Justin B. , Shah Amil M. , Ndumele Chiadi E. , Virani Salim S. , Bozkurt Biykem , Selvin Elizabeth , Ballantyne Christie M. , Nambi Vijay
Published: February 2023

Importance

Most studies, especially in primary prevention patients, have evaluated N-terminal B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) at one time point. Evaluation of change in NT-proBNP may improve risk stratification for incident cardiovascular events.

Objective

To assess the association between change in NT-proBNP and risk for incident heart failure (HF) and death.

Design, Setting, and Participants

Participants were recruited from 4 US communities enrolled in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Community (ARIC) study. Individuals who attended ARIC visits 2 and 4 (approximately 6 years apart) with measurements of NT-proBNP and without prevalent HF were included. Assays of NT-proBNP were conducted between 2011 and 2013, and analysis took place between July 2021 and October 2022.

Exposures

The primary exposure variable was NT-proBNP change between visits 2 and 4, modeled as change categories (<125 pg/mL or ≥125 pg/mL) and as percent change.

Main Outcomes and Measures

The primary outcome measures were incident HF hospitalization and all-cause death. The association between changes in cardiovascular risk factors with change in NT-proBNP was further assessed.

Results

A total of 9776 individuals (mean [SD] age, 57.1 [5.7] years at visit 2; 5523 [56.5%] women) were included in the study. Compared with participants with NT-proBNP level less than 125 pg/mL at both visits, participants with NT-proBNP level of 125 pg/mL or higher at both visits had an increase in incident HF (adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 2.40 [95% CI, 2.00-2.88]) and mortality risk (HR, 1.68 [95% CI, 1.47-1.91). Participants with NT-proBNP levels of 125 pg/mL or higher at visit 2 and less than 125 pg/mL at visit 4 had similar risk for HF and death (HR, 1.01 [95% CI, 0.71-1.43]; HR, 0.79 [95% CI, 0.61-1.01]) compared with the group with NT-proBNP levels of less than 125 pg/mL at both visits. The percent change in NT-proBNP was positively associated with HF and death (HR, 1.06 [95% CI, 1.02-1.10]; HR, 1.05 [95% CI, 1.03-1.08] per 1-SD increase, respectively). Change in systolic blood pressure, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglyceride level, body mass index, and estimated glomerular filtration rate were significantly associated with change in NT-proBNP.

Conclusions and Relevance

In this study, 6-year change in NT-proBNP reflected dynamic change in risk for HF events and death among community-dwelling adults without prevalent clinical HF. These results support the utility of serial NT-proBNP measurements to improve risk stratification of patients with pre-HF.
Association of Familial Aggregation of Major Depression With Risk of Major Depression
Authors: Gronemann Frederikke Hørdam , Jacobsen Rikke Kart , Wium-Andersen Marie Kim , Jørgensen Martin Balslev , Osler Merete , Jørgensen Terese Sara Høj
Published: February 2023

Importance

Major depression (MD) aggregates within families, but how family history of MD confers risk of MD over the life course is unclear. Such knowledge is important to identify and prevent possible depressogenic effects of family environment.

Objective

To examine the association between family MD history and risk of MD including association with age, sex, type of kinship, and age of the affected family member.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This cohort study included all Danish citizens born from 1960 to 2003 with known parental identity followed up from their 15th birthday until time of MD, censoring, or December 31, 2018. Analysis took place between April 2022 and December 2022.

Exposures

Family members with first-time MD using International Classification of Diseases, Eighth Revision codes 296.09, 296.29, 298.09, and 300.49 or 10th Revision codes F32.0-F33.9, family members’ age at MD onset, and individuals’ age at exposure to family MD

Main Outcomes and Measures

Multivariable Poisson regression was applied to estimate the incidence rate ratio (IRR) with 95% CI of first-time MD.

Results

Of 2 903 430 individuals (1 486 574 [51.2%] men), 37 970 men (2.6%) and 70 223 women (5.0%) developed MD during follow-up. For men, exposure to maternal, paternal, or full sibling MD were associated with a 2-times higher risk of MD (IRR, 2.10 [95% CI, 2.02-2.19]; IRR, 2.04 [95% CI, 1.94-2.14]; IRR, 2.08 [95% CI, 1.97-2.19]) and the associated risk increased with number of affected family members. This pattern was similar for women. For men, family members’ age at MD onset was not associated with MD. For women, maternal MD onset at 69 years or younger was associated with higher IRRs of MD (age <40 years: IRR, 1.64 [95% CI, 1.28-2.10]; age 40-49 years: IRR, 1.62 [95% CI, 1.27-2.07]; age 50-59 years: IRR, 1.56 [95% CI, 1.22-2.00]; and age 60-69 years: IRR, 1.67 [95% CI, 1.28-2.16]) compared with women with maternal MD onset at 70 years or older. For men, exposure to maternal MD younger than 30 years (age <1 year: IRR, 1.95 [95% CI, 1.70-2.25]; age 1 to <12 years: IRR, 2.31 [95% CI, 2.16-2.47]; age 12 to <19 years: IRR, 2.18 [95% CI, 2.03-2.35]; age 19 to <30 years: IRR, 1.42 [95% CI, 1.32-1.53]) was associated with increased IRRs, while exposure to maternal MD at 30 years or older was associated with a lower IRR (0.77 [95% CI, 0.70-0.85]). The findings were similar across type of kinships and for women.

Conclusions and Relevance

In this study, risk of MD was associated with increased numbers of affected family members but did not vary by gender or type of kinship. Exposure to family MD during childhood and adolescence was associated with increased risk.
More may not be better: reconsidering early clinical trial design in the era of targeted cancer therapeutics
Authors: Bernards René
Published: February 2023

The advent of a new generation of targeted cancer drugs requires a radically different design of early clinical trials. Here, René Bernards discusses why new clinical trial designs are needed and what is being done to achieve this. Such innovative trials can lead to similar outcomes for cancer patients with fewer side effects while at the same time reducing the cost of cancer care.
Linking autism spectrum disorders and parkinsonism: clinical and genetic association
Authors: Mai Aaron Shengting , Yau Chun En , Tseng Fan Shuen , Foo Qi Xuan Joel , Wang Dennis Qing , Tan Eng‐King
Published: February 2023

Background

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) comprise many complex and clinically distinct neurodevelopmental conditions, with increasing evidence linking them to parkinsonism.

Methods

We searched Medline and Embase from inception to 21 March 2022 and reviewed the bibliographies of relevant articles. Studies were screened and reviewed comprehensively by two independent authors.

Results

Of 863 references from our search, we included eight clinical studies, nine genetic studies, and five case reports. Regardless of age group, Parkinson's disease (PD) and parkinsonian syndromes were more frequently observed in patients with ASD, though the evidence for increased rates of parkinsonism is less clear for children and adolescents. Parkinsonian features and hypokinetic behavior were common in Rett syndrome, with prevalence estimates ranging from 40% to 80%. Frequently observed parkinsonian features include bradykinesia, rigidity, hypomimia, and gait freezing. PD gene PARK2 copy number variations appear more frequently in ASD cases than controls. Evidence suggests that RIT2 and CD157/BST1 are implicated in ASD and PD, while the evidence for other PD‐related genes (DRD2, GPCR37, the SLC gene family, and SMPD1) is less clear. Rare mutations, such as ATP13A2, CLN3, and WDR45, could result in autistic behavior and concomitant parkinsonism.

Conclusion

The prevalence of parkinsonism in ASD is substantially greater than in the general population or matched controls. Various PD‐associated gene loci, especially PARK2, could confer susceptibility to ASD as well. Important future directions include conducting prospective cohort studies to understand how parkinsonian symptoms may progress, genetic studies to reveal relevant gene loci, and pathophysiologic studies to identify potential therapeutic targets.
Associations of Postdischarge Follow‐Up With Acute Care and Mortality in Lupus: A Medicare Cohort Study
Authors: Schletzbaum Maria , Sweet Nadia , Astor Brad , Yu Ang , Powell W. Ryan , Gilmore‐Bykovskyi Andrea , Kaiksow Farah , Sheehy Ann , Kind Amy J. , Bartels Christie M.
Published: February 2023

Objective

Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus experience the sixth highest rate of 30‐day readmissions among chronic diseases. Timely postdischarge follow‐up is a marker of ambulatory care quality that can reduce readmissions in other chronic conditions. Our objective was to test the hypotheses that 1) beneficiaries from populations experiencing health disparities, including patients from disadvantaged neighborhoods, will have lower odds of completed follow‐up, and that 2) follow‐up will predict longer time without acute care use (readmission, observation stay, or emergency department visit) or mortality.

Methods

This observational cohort study included hospitalizations in January–November 2014 from a 20% random sample of Medicare adults. Included hospitalizations had a lupus code, discharge to home without hospice, and continuous Medicare A/B coverage for 1 year before and 1 month after hospitalization. Timely follow‐up included visits with primary care or rheumatology within 30 days. Thirty‐day survival outcomes were acute care use and mortality adjusted for sociodemographic information and comorbidities.

Results

Over one‐third (35%) of lupus hospitalizations lacked 30‐day follow‐up. Younger age, living in disadvantaged neighborhoods, and rurality were associated with lower odds of follow‐up. Follow‐up was not associated with subsequent acute care or mortality in beneficiaries age <65 years. In contrast, follow‐up was associated with a 27% higher hazard for acute care use (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] 1.27 [95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.09–1.47]) and 65% lower mortality (adjusted HR 0.35 [95% CI 0.19–0.67]) among beneficiaries age ≥65 years.

Conclusion

One‐third of lupus hospitalizations lacked follow‐up, with significant disparities in rural and disadvantaged neighborhoods. Follow‐up was associated with increased acute care, but 65% lower mortality in older systemic lupus erythematosus patients. Further development of lupus‐specific postdischarge strategies is needed.

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Recruitment and Retention Strategies for Underrepresented Populations and Adults With Arthritis in Behavioral Interventions: A Scoping Review
Authors: Pellegrini Christine A. , Wilcox Sara , DeVivo Katherine E. , Jamieson Scott
Published: February 2023

Objective

To identify strategies used to recruit and retain underrepresented populations and populations with arthritis or fibromyalgia (FM) into behavioral programs targeting exercise, physical activity, or chronic disease self management.

Methods

Five bibliographic databases were searched for articles published between January 2000 and May 2022. The search focused on strategies and best practices for recruiting and retaining underrepresented populations or populations with arthritis or FM into disease self‐management or physical activity/exercise programs. Abstracts and full‐text articles were screened for inclusion by 2 independent reviewers, and 2 reviewers extracted data from included articles.

Results

Of the 2,800 articles, a total of 43 publications (31 interventions, 8 reviews, 4 qualitative/descriptive studies) met criteria and were included. The majority of studies focused on physical activity/exercise (n = 36) and targeted African American (n = 17), Hispanic (n = 9), or arthritis populations (n = 7). Recruitment strategies that were frequently used included having race‐ or community‐matched team members, flyers and information sessions in areas frequented by the population, targeted emails/mailings, and word of mouth referrals. Retention strategies used included having race‐ or community‐matched team members, incentives, being flexible, and facilitating attendance. Most studies used multiple recruitment and retention strategies.

Conclusion

This scoping review highlights the importance of a multifaceted recruitment and retention plan for underrepresented populations and populations with arthritis or FM in behavioral intervention programs targeting exercise, physical activity, or chronic disease self management. Additional research is needed to better understand the individual effects of different strategies and the costs associated with the various recruitment/retention methods in underrepresented populations and populations with arthritis.
Myeloid Cells As a Promising Target for Brain–Bone Degenerative Diseases from a Metabolic Point of View
Authors: Pang Yidan , Zhu Siyuan , Xu Jun , Su Cuimin , Wu Bo , Zhang Changqing , Gao Junjie
Published: February 2023

Brain and bone degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and osteoporosis are common in the aging population and lack efficient pharmacotherapies. Myeloid cells are a diverse group of mononuclear cells that plays important roles in development, immune defense, and tissue homeostasis. Aging drastically alters the expansion and function of myeloid cells, which might be a common pathogenesis of the brain–bone degenerative diseases. From this perspective, the role of myeloid cells in brain–bone degenerative diseases is discussed, with a particular focus on metabolic alterations in myeloid cells. Furthermore, targeting myeloid cells through metabolic regulation via drugs such as metformin and melatonin is proposed as a potential therapy for the clinical treatment of brain–bone diseases.
Two Distinct Carbocyclizations of (2‐Formylphenyl)prop‐2‐yn‐1‐yl acetates to Form Substituted 1H‐indene Derivatives and 4‐Acetoxy‐3‐hydroxy‐2‐naphthoates. Cooperative Catalysis using Au(I)/H2O Dual Catalysts
Authors: Suresh Kshirsagar Akshay , Dixit Surya , Liu Rai‐Shung
Published: February 2023

Gold‐catalyzed cyclizations of (2‐formylphenyl)prop‐2‐yn‐1‐yl acetates afford two distinct cyclization products. In the case of substrates bearing a alkyl or arylalkynyl group, 2‐carbonyl‐1H‐indene derivatives were obtained whereas substrates bearing an electron‐withdrawing alkynoate or alkynone group, distinct 4‐acetoxy‐3‐hydroxy‐2‐naphthoates were produced efficiently. Our mechanistic analysis indicates that H2O is not only a nucleophile but also a catalyst for both carbocyclizations.

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Flexible Hybrid Electronics via Near‐Infrared Radiation‐Assisted Soldering of Surface Mount Devices on Screen Printed Circuits
Authors: Kasi Venkat , Zareei Amin , Gopalakrishnan Sarath , Alcaraz Alejandro M. , Joshi Shantanu , Arfaei Babak , Rahimi Rahim
Published: February 2023

The development of flexible hybrid electronics (FHEs) with high‐throughput integration of electrical components onto digitally printed circuits has a wide range of applications, such as asset tracking, wearable electronics, and structural health monitoring. However, one of the major challenges with FHEs is the process of soldering the electrical components onto a printed circuit while having minimal thermal damage to the printed traces and their temperature‐sensitive polymeric substrates. Here, the possibility of utilizing near‐infrared (NIR) technology as a nondestructive photonic approach for rapid soldering and mounting electrical components onto printed circuits while keeping the polymer substrate at a relatively low temperature during the soldering process is investigated. Results of this systematic study show that FHEs prepared with the optimized NIR processing conditions produce the desired reflow of solder with effective electrical connection and metallic bonding of electrical components onto the conductive traces with excellent mechanical stability (no failure even after 1000 cycles of bending). Furthermore, using this technique and as a proof of concept, the fabrication of a wearable FHE device that provides a remote assessment of the wound exudate absorption in dressings and notifies caregivers of the appropriate time to change the dressing is demonstrated.
Perovskite‐based electrocatalyst discovery and design using word embeddings from retrained SciBERT language model
Authors: Muthukkumaran Arun , Raghunathan Shrayas , Ravichandran Arjun , Rengaswamy Raghunathan
Published: February 2023

With the ever‐increasing volume of scientific literature, there is a strong need to develop methods that allow rigorous information identification. In this contribution, a state‐of‐the‐art natural language processing (NLP) model was used to select perovskite materials for electrocatalytic applications from literature. This was accomplished by obtaining word embeddings for perovskite materials from the NLP model and subsequently designing downstream tasks to discover perovskite‐based electrocatalyst materials. However, embeddings could be obtained only for materials available in the literature. Consequently, a novel methodology was devised to generate embeddings for newly designed materials. Results from the analysis showed that the computed embeddings could be used to rank materials for their suitability for electrocatalytic applications. Further, the word embeddings were also employed as features in predicting the electrocatalytic activity of perovskite‐based electrocatalysts. The analysis demonstrated that the fidelity of regression models increased when the embeddings were used as features.
ABNO‐Catalyzed Aerobic Oxidation of Thiols to Disulfides under Atmospheric Pressure
Authors: Zhang Zhiguang , Lan Xiaojie , Zhang Xiaomin , Liu Yanmei , Gao Jinxin , Zhang Bingzhu , Wu Haixia
Published: February 2023

We report herein a practical protocol for the synthesis of symmetrical disulfides under atmospheric pressure, utilizing 1 mol% ABNO (9‐Azabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane N‐oxyl) as an efficient catalyst and O2 as terminal oxidant. Thiophenols and aliphatic thiols could be oxidized smoothly to give disulfides in 70%–90% yields. This method has advantages such as high atom‐economy, commercially available catalyst, broad substrate scope and mild reaction conditions, providing researchers a simple and attractive way to synthesize disulfides.
The deep trabecular structure of first metacarpals in extant hominids
Authors: Dunmore Christopher J. , Bachmann Sebastian , Synek Alexander , Pahr Dieter H. , Skinner Matthew M. , Kivell Tracy L.
Published: February 2023

Objectives

Recent studies have associated subarticular trabecular bone distribution in the extant hominid first metacarpal (Mc1) with observed thumb use, to infer fossil hominin thumb use. Here, we analyze the entire Mc1 to test for interspecific differences in: (1) the absolute volume of trabecular volume fraction, (2) the distribution of the deeper trabecular network, and (3) the distribution of trabeculae in the medullary cavity, especially beneath the Mc1 disto‐radial flange.

Materials and Methods

Trabecular bone was imaged using micro‐computed tomography in a sample of Homo sapiens (n = 11), Pan paniscus (n = 10), Pan troglodytes (n = 11), Gorilla gorilla (n = 10) and Pongo sp., (n = 7). Using Canonical Holistic Morphometric Analysis (cHMA), we tested for interspecific differences in the trabecular bone volume fraction (BV/TV) and its relative distribution (rBV/TV) throughout the Mc1, including within the head, medullary cavity, and base.

Results

P. paniscus had the highest, and H. sapiens the lowest, BV/TV relative to other species. rBV/TV distribution statistically distinguished the radial concentrations and lack of medullary trabecular bone in the H. sapiens Mc1 from all other hominids. H. sapiens and, to a lesser extent, G. gorilla also had a significantly higher trabecular volume beneath the disto‐radial flange relative to other hominids.

Discussion

These results are consistent with differences in observed thumb use in these species and may also reflect systemic differences in bone volume fraction. The trabecular bone extension into the medullary cavity and concentrations beneath the disto‐radial flange may represent crucial biomechanical signals that will aid in the inference of fossil hominin thumb use.
CO2‐Fueled Transient Breathing Nanogels that Couple Nonequilibrium Catalytic Polymerization
Authors: Wang Yixin , Yan Qiang
Published: February 2023

Here we present a “breathing” nanogel that is fueled by CO2 gas to perform temporally programmable catalytic polymerization. The nanogel is composed of common frustrated Lewis pair polymers (FLPs). Dynamic CO2‐FLP gas‐bridging bonds endow the nanogel with a transient volume contraction, and the resulting proximal effect of bound FLPs unlocks its catalytic capacity toward CO2. Reverse gas depletion via a CO2‐participated polymerization can induce a reverse nanogel expansion, which shuts down the catalytic activity. Control of external factors (fuel level, temperature or additives) can regulate the breathing period, amplitude and lifecycle, so as to affect the catalytic polymerization. Moreover, editing the nanogel breathing procedure can sequentially evoke the copolymerization of CO2 with different epoxide monomers preloaded therein, which allows to obtain block‐tunable copolycarbonates that are unachievable by other methods. This synthetic dissipative system would be function as a prototype of gas‐driven nanosynthesizer.
Boosting Electroreduction Kinetics of Nitrogen to Ammonia via Atomically Dispersed Sn Protuberance
Authors: Zhang Lijuan , Zhou Hanfeng , Yang Xiaoju , Zhang Shengbo , Zhang Haimin , Yang Xuan , Su Xintai , Zhang Jiangwei , Lin Zhang
Published: February 2023

Atomically dispersed metal catalysts show potential advantages in N2 reduction reaction (NRR) due to their excellent activity and efficient metal utilization. Unfortunately, the reported catalysts usually exhibit unsatisfactory NRR activity due to their poor N2 adsorption and activation. Herein, we report a novel Sn atomically dispersed protuberance (ADP) by coordination with substrate C and O to induce positive charge accumulation on Sn site for improving its N2 adsorption, activation and NRR performance. The extended X‐ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectra confirmed the local coordination structure of the Sn ADPs. NRR activity was significantly promoted via Sn ADPs, exhibiting a remarkable NH3 yield (RNH3) of 28.3 μg h−1 mgcat−1 (7447 μg h−1 mgSn−1) at −0.3 V. Furthermore, the enhanced N2Hx intermediates was verified by in situ experiments, yielding consistent results with DFT calculation. This work opens a new avenue to regulate the activity and selectivity of N2 fixation.
Electrochemical Interfacial Polymerization toward Ultrathin COF Membranes for Brine Desalination
Authors: Wang Meidi , Wang Yutong , Zhao Junyi , Zou Jiyu , Liang Xu , Zhu Ziting , Zhu Jiashi , Wang Hongjian , Wang Yuhan , Pan Fusheng , Jiang Zhongyi
Published: February 2023

Ultrathin covalent organic framework (COF) membranes are urgently demanded in molecular/ionic separations. Herein, we reported an electrochemical interfacial polymerization strategy to fabricate ultrathin COF membranes with thickness of 85 nm, by actively manipulate self‐healing effect and self‐inhibiting effect. The resulting COF membrane exhibited superior performance in brine desalination with the permeation flux of 92 kg m−2 h−1 and the rejection of 99.96 %. Our electrochemical interfacial polymerization strategy enriches the fabrication approach of COF membranes and facilitates the rational design of ultrathin membranes.
Chemically Recyclable Polyethylene‐like Sulfur‐Containing Plastics from Sustainable Feedstocks
Authors: Xia Yanni , Yue Xinchen , Sun Yue , Zhang Chengjian , Zhang Xinghong
Published: February 2023

The green revolution in plastics should be accelerated due to growing sustainability concerns. Here, we develop a series of chemically recyclable polymers from the first reported cascade polymerization of H2O, COS, and diacrylates. In addition to abundant feedstocks, the method is efficient and air‐tolerant, uses common organic bases as catalysts, and yields polymers with high molecular weights under mild conditions. Such polymers, structurally like polyethylene with low‐density in‐chain polar groups, manifest impressive toughness and ductility comparable to high‐density polyethylene. The in‐chain ester group acts as a breaking point, enabling these polymers to undergo chemical recycling through two loops. The structures and properties of these polymers also have an immeasurably expanded range owing to the versatility of our method. The readily available raw materials, facile synthesis, and high performance make these polymers promising prospects as sustainable materials in practice.
The Rigid Core and Flexible Surface of Amyloid Fibrils Probed by Magic‐Angle‐Spinning NMR Spectroscopy of Aromatic Residues
Authors: Becker Lea Marie , Berbon Mélanie , Vallet Alicia , Grelard Axelle , Morvan Estelle , Bardiaux Benjamin , Lichtenecker Roman , Ernst Matthias , Loquet Antoine , Schanda Paul
Published: February 2023

Aromatic side chains are important reporters of the plasticity of proteins, and often form important contacts in protein–protein interactions. We studied aromatic residues in the two structurally homologous cross‐β amyloid fibrils HET‐s, and HELLF by employing a specific isotope‐labeling approach and magic‐angle‐spinning NMR. The dynamic behavior of the aromatic residues Phe and Tyr indicates that the hydrophobic amyloid core is rigid, without any sign of “breathing motions” over hundreds of milliseconds at least. Aromatic residues exposed at the fibril surface have a rigid ring axis but undergo ring flips on a variety of time scales from nanoseconds to microseconds. Our approach provides direct insight into hydrophobic‐core motions, enabling a better evaluation of the conformational heterogeneity generated from an NMR structural ensemble of such amyloid cross‐β architecture.