bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The significance of an immunohistochemical marker-based panel in assisting the diagnosis of parathyroid carcinoma
Authors: Hu Ya , Mo Shengwei , Xiao Jinheng , Cui Ming , Zheng Qingyuan , Chen Tianqi , Chang Xiaoyan , Liao Quan
Published: February 2024

Purpose

Parathyroid carcinoma (PC) is an endocrine malignancy with a poor prognosis. However, the diagnosis of PC is still a difficult problem. A model with immunohistochemical (IHC) staining of 5 biomarkers has been reported from limited samples for the differential diagnosis of PC. In the present study, a series of IHC markers was applied in relatively large samples to optimize the diagnostic model for PC.

Methods

In this study, 44 patients with PC, 6 patients with atypical parathyroid tumors and 57 patients with parathyroid adenomas were included. IHC staining for parafibromin, Ki-67, galectin-3, protein-encoding gene product 9.5 (PGP9.5), E-cadherin, and enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) was performed on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue samples. The effects of clinical characteristics, surgical procedure, and IHC staining results of tumor tissues on the diagnosis and prognosis of PC were evaluated retrospectively.

Results

A logistic regression model with IHC results of parafibromin, Ki-67, and E-cadherin was created to differentiate PC with an area under the curve of 0.843. Cox proportional hazards analysis showed that negative parafibromin staining (hazard ratio: 3.26, 95% confidence interval: 1.28–8.34, P = 0.013) was related to the recurrence of PC.

Conclusion

An IHC panel of parafibromin, Ki-67 and E-cadherin may help to distinguish PC from parathyroid neoplasms. Among the 6 IHC markers and clinical features examined, the risk factor related to PC recurrence was parafibromin staining loss.
Accessing Sexual and Reproductive Health Services in Chile: Women with Disabilities and Their Experience with Gynaecological and Obstetric Violence
Authors: Yupanqui-Concha Andrea , Hichins-Arismendi Melissa , Mandiola-Godoy Daniela , Rodríguez-Garrido Pía , Rotarou Elena S.
Published: February 2024

Introduction

Although access to sexual and reproductive health services is a human right, violations of the rights of women with disabilities in this aspect are frequent. However, there are no studies regarding gynaecological and obstetric violence that this population subgroup may face. This qualitative study is aimed at identifying and analysing the experiences of women with disabilities with regard to gynaecological and obstetric violence in Chile.

Methods

From a feminist phenomenological paradigm of research, data were collected from March 2017 to December 2018. Women with disabilities (n = 18) were interviewed regarding their experiences. Data were analysed through thematic analysis.

Results

The experiences of women with disabilities regarding gynaecological and obstetric violence fall under three central categories: (a) health inequity in communication, (b) objectification of girls’ and women’s bodies through practices, such as forced sterilisation, and (c) intimidation and discrimination related to maternity.

Conclusions

Gynaecological and obstetric violence of women with disabilities is a present form of gender-based violence in Chile. Such instances occur systematically and persistently and lead to the dehumanisation of healthcare, an increase in health inequities, and the creation of particularly complex scenarios experienced by women with disabilities regarding access to sexual and reproductive healthcare.

Policy Implications

It is necessary to promote research on gynaecological and obstetric violence faced by women with disabilities, take action against this form of gender-based violence, and improve access to sexual and reproductive services for this population. Specific recommendations aimed at the elimination of gynaecological and obstetric violence are given.
Octonion-based transform moments for innovative stereo image classification with deep learning
Authors: Tahiri Mohamed Amine , Boudaaoua Brahim , Karmouni Hicham , Tahiri Hamza , Oufettoul Hicham , Amakdouf Hicham , Qjidaa Hassan , Abouhawwash Mohamed , Askar S. S. , Sayyouri Mhamed
Published: February 2024

Recent advances in imaging technologies have led to a significant increase in the adoption of stereoscopic images. However, despite this proliferation, in-depth research into the complex analysis of the visual content of these stereoscopic images is still relatively rare. The advent of stereoscopic imaging has brought a new dimension to visual content. These images offer a higher level of visual detail, making them increasingly common in a variety of fields, including medicine and industrial applications. However, exploiting the full potential of stereoscopic images requires a deeper understanding. By exploiting the capabilities of octonion moments and the power of artificial intelligence, we aim to break new ground by introducing a novel method for classifying stereoscopic images. The proposed method is divided into two key stages: The first stage involves data preprocessing, during which we strive to construct a balanced database divided into three distinct categories. In addition, we extract the stable Octonion Krawtchouk moments (SOKM) for each image, leading to a database of moment images with dimensions of 128 × 128 × 1. In the second step, we train a convolutional neural network (CNN) model using this database, with the aim of discriminating between different categories. Standard measures such as precision, accuracy, recall, F1 score, and ROC curves are used to assess the effectiveness of our method. These measures provide a quantitative assessment of the performance of our object classification approach for stereoscopic images.
Solution strategy for sustainable additive manufacturing design problem using Pythagorean fuzzy MCGDM methodology
Authors: Momena Alaa Fouad
Published: February 2024

To solve difficulties involving various groups’ decision-making problems, this work has been proposed to develop a logical aggregation approach to aggregate decision-makers’ crisp data into Pythagorean fuzzy numbers. By combining the established strategy with the Pythagorean fuzzy TOPSIS method, a hybrid Pythagorean fuzzy multiple criteria group decision-making methodology is presented. Based on fuzzy rules inference and the Takagi–Sugeno technique, a novel function is created to represent the degrees of uncertainty in decision-makers’ data. As an example, the material selection process in practical additive manufacturing designs is provided to show how the proposed methodology may be applied to actual applications. Sensitivity analysis is used to evaluate the effectiveness of the suggested methodology. The outcomes demonstrate that the plan was successful in producing a PFN that accurately reflects the decision-maker’s knowledge.
Pseudospheres: combinatorics, topology and distributed systems
Authors: Alberto Luis
Published: February 2024

Pseudospheres are simplicial complexes defined in the late 1990s to model some aspects of distributed systems. Since then, combinatorial properties of pseudospheres combined with topological properties have been very useful to derive distributed computability results. The goal of this paper is to study pseudospheres in more depth as mathematical objects and to give an overview of the properties that have been used in distributed computing. In this work we focus in combinatorial and topological aspects of pseudospheres. While doing so, the paper shows that these structures can be viewed from different perspectives, in addition to models of distributed computing. We show that the properties of pseudospheres that have been proved in distributed computing, as well as new ones, can be derived using combinatorial topology techniques and other combinatorial techniques taken from matroids and partial orders. A subclass of pseudospheres is related to universal bundles, and the Borsuk–Ulam theorem can be extended to apply to them.
The Transition Layer and Remnant Transition Layer of the Western Arctic Ocean: Stratification, Vertical Diffusivity, and Pacific Summer Water Heat Fluxes
Authors: Cole Sylvia T. , Roemer Peter A.
Published: February 2024

The exchange of heat and other tracers between the ocean interior and sea ice cover depends on vertical diffusion through the thin and strongly stratified Arctic Ocean transition layer and remnant transition layer. Ice‐Tethered Profiler observations during 2004–2021 were used to characterize and investigate the active and remnant transition layers in the Beaufort Gyre region. Transition layers evolved seasonally, with the deepest, densest, and warmest transition layers observed in spring. In a composite view, the summer mixed layer shoaled over a timescale of approximately 2 weeks, leaving behind a remnant transition layer whose stratification had already begun to weaken. The stratification maximum of the remnant transition layer continued to weaken and broaden throughout the summer, including changes associated with storm events. The weakening stratification was used to estimate an effective vertical turbulent diffusivity which ranged from 10−8 to 10−6 m2/s for individual ITP records; a value of 6 × 10−7 m2/s is representative of the Beaufort Gyre region. Vertical heat fluxes through the active and remnant transition layers were estimated over 90‐day timescales. Springtime vertical heat fluxes increased from 0.3 ± 0.3 W/m2 during 2006–2011 to 1.1 ± 0.7 W/m2 during 2017–2021. Summertime vertical heat fluxes through the remnant transition layer were somewhat less, but also increased interannually. Vertical gradients of density during spring and summer, and so diffusion of density through the active and remnant transition layers, did not increase interannually. Pacific Summer Water warming has increased ocean to ice heat fluxes, which may continue to become more significant in the future.
The Structure and Dynamics of an Estuarine Tidal Intrusion Front
Authors: Geyer W. R. , Ralston D. K. , Haller M. C. , Bassett C. , Honegger D.
Published: February 2024

Tidal intrusion fronts are surface convergences that occur at constrictions in estuaries during the flood tide, separating incoming higher‐salinity water from lower‐salinity, stratified estuarine water. Previous observations of tidal intrusion fronts describe a V‐shaped planform, with the apex of the V pointing into the estuary, however the significance of this structure has not been previously explained. Observations near the mouth of the James River estuary during the flood tide reveal the development of a quasi‐steady, V‐shaped front. Considering a reference frame oriented normal to the front, the velocity and density structure are consistent with gravity‐current dynamics, but the oblique orientation of the front relative to the impinging flow indicates strong, along‐front shear, which results from vorticity produced by flow separation at the lateral boundaries as well as topographic torque from upstream. The combination of convergence and along‐front shear leads to enhanced mixing, as revealed by acoustic backscatter images of shear instability and persistent subcritical gradient Richardson number in the frontal zone. Oblique fronts such as this tidal intrusion front are common features of estuaries, and they play an important role in vertical exchange due to subduction and mixing of surface water.
TMEM65 promotes gastric tumorigenesis by targeting YWHAZ to activate PI3K-Akt-mTOR pathway and is a therapeutic target
Authors: Shi Lingxue , Wang Xiaohong , Guo Shang , Gou Hongyan , Shang Haiyun , Jiang Xiaojia , Wei Chunxian , Wang Jia , Li Chao , Wang Lihong , Zhao Zengren , Yu Weifang , Yu Jun
Published: February 2024

Copy number alterations are crucial for the development of gastric cancer (GC). Here, we identified Transmembrane Protein 65 (TMEM65) amplification by genomic hybridization microarray to profile copy-number variations in GC. TMEM65 mRNA level was significantly up-regulated in GC compared to adjacent normal tissues, and was positively associated with TMEM65 amplification. High TMEM65 expression or DNA copy number predicts poor prognosis (P < 0.05) in GC. Furtherly, GC patients with TMEM65 amplification (n = 129) or overexpression (n = 78) significantly associated with shortened survival. Ectopic expression of TMEM65 significantly promoted cell proliferation, cell cycle progression and cell migration/invasion ability, but inhibited apoptosis (all P < 0.05). Conversely, silencing of TMEM65 in GC cells showed opposite abilities on cell function in vitro and suppressed tumor growth and lung metastasis in vivo (all P < 0.01). Moreover, TMEM65 depletion by VNP-encapsulated TMEM65-siRNA significantly suppressed tumor growth in subcutaneous xenograft model. Mechanistically, TMEM65 exerted oncogenic effects through activating PI3K-Akt-mTOR signaling pathway, as evidenced of increased expression of key regulators (p-Akt, p-GSK-3β, p-mTOR) by Western blot. YWHAZ (Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase/Tryptophan 5-Monooxygenase) was identified as a direct downstream effector of TMEM65. Direct binding of TMEM65 with YWHAZ in the cytoplasm inhibited ubiquitin-mediated degradation of YWHAZ. Moreover, oncogenic effect of TMEM65 was partly dependent on YWHAZ. In conclusion, TMEM65 promotes gastric tumorigenesis by activating PI3K-Akt-mTOR signaling via cooperating with YWHAZ. TMEM65 overexpression may serve as an independent new biomarker and is a therapeutic target in GC.
circEPB41L2 blocks the progression and metastasis in non-small cell lung cancer by promoting TRIP12-triggered PTBP1 ubiquitylation
Authors: Wang Yan , Wang Yihao , Wu Chunjie , Ji Yunfei , Hou Pingfu , Wu Xueqing , Li Zhongwei , Li Minle , Chu Sufang , Ning Qianqian , Xu Bo , Zheng Junnian , Bai Jin
Published: February 2024

The metastasis of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the leading death cause of NSCLC patients, which requires new biomarkers for precise diagnosis and treatment. Circular RNAs (circRNAs), the novel noncoding RNA, participate in the progression of various cancers as microRNA or protein sponges. We revealed the mechanism by which circEPB41L2 (hsa_circ_0077837) blocks the aerobic glycolysis, progression and metastasis of NSCLC through modulating protein metabolism of PTBP1 by the E3 ubiquitin ligase TRIP12. With ribosomal RNA-depleted RNA seq, 57 upregulated and 327 downregulated circRNAs were identified in LUAD tissues. circEPB41L2 was selected due to its dramatically reduced levels in NSCLC tissues and NSCLC cells. Interestingly, circEPB41L2 blocked glucose uptake, lactate production, NSCLC cell proliferation, migration and invasion in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, acting as a scaffold, circEPB41L2 bound to the RRM1 domain of the PTBP1 and the E3 ubiquitin ligase TRIP12 to promote TRIP12-mediated PTBP1 polyubiquitylation and degradation, which could be reversed by the HECT domain mutation of TRIP12 and circEPB41L2 depletion. As a result, circEPB41L2-induced PTBP1 inhibition led to PTBP1-induced PKM2 and Vimentin activation but PKM1 and E-cadherin inactivation. These findings highlight the circEPB41L2-dependent mechanism that modulates the “Warburg Effect” and EMT to inhibit NSCLC development and metastasis, offering an inhibitory target for NSCLC treatment.
Establishing RTS,S/AS01 as a benchmark for comparison to next-generation malaria vaccines in a mouse model
Authors: Locke Emily , Flores-Garcia Yevel , Mayer Bryan T. , MacGill Randall S. , Borate Bhavesh , Salgado-Jimenez Berenice , Gerber Monica W. , Mathis-Torres Shamika , Shapiro Sarah , King C. Richter , Zavala Fidel
Published: February 2024

New strategies are needed to reduce the incidence of malaria, and promising approaches include vaccines targeting the circumsporozoite protein (CSP). To improve upon the malaria vaccine, RTS,S/AS01, it is essential to standardize preclinical assays to measure the potency of next-generation vaccines against this benchmark. We focus on RTS,S/AS01-induced antibody responses and functional activity in conjunction with robust statistical analyses. TransgenicPlasmodium bergheisporozoites containing full-lengthP. falciparumCSP (tgPb-PfCSP) allow two assessments of efficacy: quantitative reduction in liver infection following intravenous challenge, and sterile protection from mosquito bite challenge. Two or three doses of RTS,S/AS01 were given intramuscularly at 3-week intervals, with challenge 2-weeks after the last vaccination. Minimal inter- and intra-assay variability indicates the reproducibility of the methods. Importantly, the range of this model is suitable for screening more potent vaccines. Levels of induced anti-CSP antibody 2A10 equivalency were also associated with activity: 105 μg/mL (95% CI: 68.8, 141) reduced liver infection by 50%, whereas 285 μg/mL (95% CI: 166, 404) is required for 50% sterile protection from mosquito bite challenge. Additionally, the liver burden model was able to differentiate between protected and non-protected human plasma samples from a controlled human malaria infection study, supporting these models’ relevance and predictive capability. Comparison in animal models of CSP-based vaccine candidates to RTS,S/AS01 is now possible under well controlled conditions. Assessment of the quality of induced antibodies, likely a determinant of durability of protection in humans, should be possible using these methods.
A benchmark GaoFen-7 dataset for building extraction from satellite images
Authors: Chen Peimin , Huang Huabing , Ye Feng , Liu Jinying , Li Weijia , Wang Jie , Wang Zixuan , Liu Chong , Zhang Ning
Published: February 2024

Accurate building extraction is crucial for urban understanding, but it often requires a substantial number of building samples. While some building datasets are available for model training, there remains a lack of high-quality building datasets covering urban and rural areas in China. To fill this gap, this study creates a high-resolution GaoFen-7 (GF-7) Building dataset utilizing the Chinese GF-7 imagery from six Chinese cities. The dataset comprises 5,175 pairs of 512 × 512 image tiles, covering 573.17 km2. It contains 170,015 buildings, with 84.8% of the buildings in urban areas and 15.2% in rural areas. The usability of the GF-7 Building dataset has been proved with seven convolutional neural networks, all achieving an overall accuracy (OA) exceeding 93%. Experiments have shown that the GF-7 building dataset can be used for building extraction in urban and rural scenarios. The proposed dataset boasts high quality and high diversity. It supplements existing building datasets and will contribute to promoting new algorithms for building extraction, as well as facilitating intelligent building interpretation in China.
Chromosome-level genome assembly and annotation of rare and endangered tropical bivalve, Tridacna crocea
Authors: Li Jun , Ma Haitao , Qin Yanpin , Zhao Zhen , Niu Yongchao , Lian Jianmin , Li Jiang , Noor Zohaib , Guo Shuming , Yu Ziniu , Zhang Yuehuan
Published: February 2024

Tridacna crocea is an ecologically important marine bivalve inhabiting tropical coral reef waters. High quality and available genomic resources will help us understand the population structure and genetic diversity of giant clams. This study reports a high-quality chromosome-scale T. crocea genome sequence of 1.30 Gb, with a scaffold N50 and contig N50 of 56.38 Mb and 1.29 Mb, respectively, which was assembled by combining PacBio long reads and Hi-C sequencing data. Repetitive sequences cover 71.60% of the total length, and a total of 25,440 protein-coding genes were annotated. A total of 1,963 non-coding RNA (ncRNA) were determined in the T. crocea genome, including 62 micro RNA (miRNA), 58 small nuclear RNA (snRNA), 83 ribosomal RNA (rRNA), and 1,760 transfer RNA (tRNA). Phylogenetic analysis revealed that giant clams diverged from oyster about 505.7 Mya during the evolution of bivalves. The genome assembly presented here provides valuable genomic resources to enhance our understanding of the genetic diversity and population structure of giant clams.
Functional trait dataset of European groundwater Amphipoda: Niphargidae and Typhlogammaridae
Authors: Premate Ester , Fišer Cene
Published: February 2024

Groundwater represents a vast, but mostly hidden and inaccessible ecosystem. Although often overlooked in freshwater research, groundwater organisms form a significant part of freshwater biodiversity, whereas their functions are crucial in different ecosystem processes. Knowledge on functional traits is generally lacking for most groundwater species worldwide, yet European groundwater amphipods, particularly the family Niphargidae, are an exception. They are well-researched and used as a model system in ecological and evolutionary studies. We focused on this group to assemble a first functional trait dataset dedicated to groundwater species. We gathered data for eight morphological functional traits quantified through 27 measurements for 1123 individuals which represent 180 species and 314 MOTUs. Besides functional trait data, every entry is accompanied with locality information, including habitat type, and DNA sequences if available. The structure of the dataset and data processing information provided along enable wide applicability and extension to other amphipod taxa. When coupled with phylogeny, the dataset may further enhance different aspects of groundwater research, including biodiversity patterns, community assembly processes, and trait evolution.
A dataset of behavioral measures on Chinese word production in picture naming
Authors: Feng Chen , Damian Markus F. , Qu Qingqing
Published: February 2024

Most studies of language production have been conducted with speakers of alphabetic languages, but relatively little research has examined languages with non-alphabetic scripts, such as Chinese. Moreover, most work on language word production has investigated phonological output processing (i.e., speaking), whereas comparatively little research has focused on orthographic output, such as writing and typing. Work on non-alphabetic languages and/or written production is particularly promising, given that it speaks to universalities vs. specificity in terms of architectures and mechanisms underlying language processing across all world languages and modalities. The current article reports a dataset of word production in Chinese with spoken and written responses, which includes reaction times of 193,851 trials of naming 403 pictures obtained from 667 participants across 23 Chinese word production experiments. All data were collected in the same experimental environment and from participants with relatively homogenous characteristics, using the same protocols and parameters. The dataset enables researchers to explore how Chinese speakers produce spoken and/or written words, and to identify language-specific features underlying word production.
Precise single column resection and reconstruction with femoral head plus total hip replacement for primary malignant peri-acetabulum tumors
Authors: Yang Yongkun , Li Yuan , Liu Weifeng , Niu Xiaohui
Published: February 2024

To evaluate whether single acetabular column can be reserved and the effect of reconstruction with femoral head plus total hip replacement (THR) for primary malignant peri-acetabulum tumors. From 2007 to 2015, nineteen patients with primary malignant peri-acetabulum tumors were enrolled. All cases underwent single column resection with clear surgical margins. Ten of the 19 tumor’s resections were assisted by computer navigation. Femoral heads were applied to reconstruct anterior or posterior column defects; THR was used for joint reconstruction. The surgical safety, oncologic outcome and prosthesis survivorship and function were evaluated by regular follow-up. The average follow-up period was 65.9 months. Surgical margins contained wide resection in 12 cases and marginal resection in 7 cases. One patient with Ewing's sarcoma died 14 months postoperative due to lung metastasis. One case with chondrosarcoma had recurrence. One prosthesis was removed due to infection. The average MusculoSkeletal Tumor Society (MSTS) function score was 83.7%. Due to the relative small number of cases, there was no significant difference in the recurrence rate and prosthesis failure rate between the navigation group and non-navigation group. Single column resection and reconstruction with femoral head autograft plus THR is an effective, safe method with less complication rate and better functional outcome for patients with peri-acetabular tumors.
Facilitating long-term cell examinations and time-lapse recordings in cell biology research with CO2 mini-incubators
Authors: Talebipour Ali , Saviz Mehrdad , Vafaiee Mohaddeseh , Faraji-Dana Reza
Published: February 2024

In recent years, microscopy has revolutionized the study of dynamic living cells. However, performing long-term live cell imaging requires stable environmental conditions such as temperature, pH, and humidity. While standard incubators have traditionally provided these conditions, other solutions, like stagetop incubators are available. To further enhance the accessibility of stable cell culture environments for live cell imaging, we developed a portable CO2 cell culture mini-incubator that can be easily adapted to any x–y inverted microscope stage, enabling long-term live cell imaging. This mini-incubator provides and maintains stable environmental conditions and supports cell viability comparable to standard incubators. Moreover, it allows for parallel experiments in the same environment, saving both time and resources. To demonstrate its functionality, different cell lines (VERO and MDA-MB-231) were cultured and evaluated using various assays, including crystal violet staining, MTT, and flow cytometry tests to assess cell adhesion, viability, and apoptosis, respectively. Time-lapse imaging was performed over an 85-h period with MDA-MB-231 cells cultured in the mini-incubator. The results indicate that this device is a viable solution for long-term imaging and can be applied in developmental biology, cell biology, and cancer biology research where long-term time-lapse recording is required.
The current state of artificial intelligence generative language models is more creative than humans on divergent thinking tasks
Authors: Hubert Kent F. , Awa Kim N. , Zabelina Darya L.
Published: February 2024

The emergence of publicly accessible artificial intelligence (AI) large language models such as ChatGPT has given rise to global conversations on the implications of AI capabilities. Emergent research on AI has challenged the assumption that creative potential is a uniquely human trait thus, there seems to be a disconnect between human perception versus what AI is objectively capable of creating. Here, we aimed to assess the creative potential of humans in comparison to AI. In the present study, human participants (N = 151) and GPT-4 provided responses for the Alternative Uses Task, Consequences Task, and Divergent Associations Task. We found that AI was robustly more creative along each divergent thinking measurement in comparison to the human counterparts. Specifically, when controlling for fluency of responses, AI was more original and elaborate. The present findings suggest that the current state of AI language models demonstrate higher creative potential than human respondents.
Advancing spinal cord injury care through non-invasive autonomic dysreflexia detection with AI
Authors: Pancholi Sidharth , Everett Thomas H. , Duerstock Bradley S.
Published: February 2024

This paper presents an AI-powered solution for detecting and monitoring Autonomic Dysreflexia (AD) in individuals with spinal cord injuries. Current AD detection methods are limited, lacking non-invasive monitoring systems. We propose a model that combines skin nerve activity (SKNA) signals with a deep neural network (DNN) architecture to overcome this limitation. The DNN is trained on a meticulously curated dataset obtained through controlled colorectal distension, inducing AD events in rats with spinal cord surgery above the T6 level. The proposed system achieves an impressive average classification accuracy of 93.9% ± 2.5%, ensuring accurate AD identification with high precision (95.2% ± 2.1%). It demonstrates a balanced performance with an average F1 score of 94.4% ± 1.8%, indicating a harmonious balance between precision and recall. Additionally, the system exhibits a low average false-negative rate of 4.8% ± 1.6%, minimizing the misclassification of non-AD cases. The robustness and generalizability of the system are validated on unseen data, maintaining high accuracy, F1 score, and a low false-negative rate. This AI-powered solution represents a significant advancement in non-invasive, real-time AD monitoring, with the potential to improve patient outcomes and enhance AD management in individuals with spinal cord injuries. This research contributes a promising solution to the critical healthcare challenge of AD detection and monitoring.
A deep learning-based approach for axle counter in free-flow tolling systems
Authors: Souza Bruno José , da Costa Guinther Kovalski , Szejka Anderson Luis , Freire Roberto Zanetti , Gonzalez Gabriel Villarrubia
Published: February 2024

Enhancements in the structural and operational aspects of transportation are important for achieving high-quality mobility. Toll plazas are commonly known as a potential bottleneck stretch, as they tend to interfere with the normality of the flow due to the charging points. Focusing on the automation of toll plazas, this research presents the development of an axle counter to compose a free-flow toll collection system. The axle counter is responsible for the interpretation of images through algorithms based on computer vision to determine the number of axles of vehicles crossing in front of a camera. The You Only Look Once (YOLO) model was employed in the first step to identify vehicle wheels. Considering that several versions of this model are available, to select the best model, YOLOv5, YOLOv6, YOLOv7, and YOLOv8 were compared. The YOLOv5m achieved the best result with precision and recall of 99.40% and 98.20%, respectively. A passage manager was developed thereafter to verify when a vehicle passes in front of the camera and store the corresponding frames. These frames are then used by the image reconstruction module which creates an image of the complete vehicle containing all axles. From the sequence of frames, the proposed method is able to identify when a vehicle was passing through the scene, count the number of axles, and automatically generate the appropriate charge to be applied to the vehicle.
Anti-biofilm properties of laser-synthesized, ultrapure silver–gold-alloy nanoparticles against Staphylococcus aureus
Authors: Heine Nils , Doll-Nikutta Katharina , Stein Frederic , Jakobi Jurij , Ingendoh-Tsakmakidis Alexandra , Rehbock Christoph , Winkel Andreas , Barcikowski Stephan , Stiesch Meike
Published: February 2024

Staphylococcus aureus biofilm-associated infections are a common complication in modern medicine. Due to inherent resilience of biofilms to antibiotics and the rising number of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains, new treatment options are required. For this purpose, ultrapure, spherical silver–gold-alloy nanoparticles with homogenous elemental distribution were synthesized by laser ablation in liquids and analyzed for their antibacterial activity on different stages of S. aureus biofilm formation as well as for different viability parameters. First, the effect of nanoparticles against planktonic bacteria was tested with metabolic activity measurements. Next, nanoparticles were incubated with differently matured S. aureus biofilms, which were then analyzed by metabolic activity measurements and three dimensional live/dead fluorescent staining to determine biofilm volume and membrane integrity. It could be shown that AgAu NPs exhibit antibacterial properties against planktonic bacteria but also against early-stage and even mature biofilms, with a complete diffusion through the biofilm matrix. Furthermore, AgAu NPs primarily targeted metabolic activity, to a smaller extend membrane integrity, but not the biofilm volume. Additional molecular analyses using qRT-PCR confirmed the influence on different metabolic pathways, like glycolysis, stress response and biofilm formation. As this shows clear similarities to the mechanism of pure silver ions, the results strengthen silver ions to be the major antibacterial agent of the synthesized nanoparticles. In summary, the results of this study provide initial evidence of promising anti-biofilm characteristics of silver–gold-alloy nanoparticles and support the importance of further translation-oriented analyses in the future.
Pre-existing structural control on the recent Holuhraun eruptions along the Bárðarbunga spreading center, Iceland
Authors: Døssing Arne , Kolster Mick Emil , da Silva Eduardo L. S. , Muxworthy Adrian R. , Petersen Jacob Thejll , Riishuus Morten S.
Published: February 2024

The active rift zones in Iceland provide unique insight into the geodynamic processes of divergent plate boundaries. The geodynamics of Iceland are studied intensively, particularly, by geophysical methods sensitive to active and/or visible structures such as earthquake seismic and Synthetic Aperture Radar observations or aerial photographs. However, older and less active structures, that may exert a strong control on the presently active geodynamics, are often buried beneath recent volcanic or sedimentary deposits and are—due to their passive mode—overseen by the typical geophysical investigations. Aeromagnetic surveys provide spatial information about subsurface magnetization contrasts relating to both active and inactive structures. However, the aeromagnetic data in Iceland were collected in the 1970-80s and are relevant only to large-scale regional rift studies. With the availability of reliable drones and light-weight atomic scalar sensors, high-quality drone magnetic surveys can provide an unprecedented spatial resolution of both active and passive structures of rift systems as compared to conventional airborne surveys. Here, we present the results of a drone-towed magnetic scalar field and scalar gradiometry study of the north-northeast trending Bárðarbunga spreading center to the north of the Vatnajökull ice cap, Iceland. Our results provide new information about the structural complexity of rift zones with evidence of densely-spaced, conjugate and oblique faults throughout the area. Evidence is shown of a hitherto unknown and prominent east-northeast trending fault structure that coincides with the northern tip of the main eruption edifice of the 1797 and 2014-15 Holuhraun volcanic events. We suggest that this pre-existing structure controlled the locus of vertical magma migration during the two Holuhraun events.
The mediating effect of the need for cognition between aesthetic experiences and aesthetic competence in art
Authors: Świątek Agata H. , Szcześniak Małgorzata , Stempień Michał , Wojtkowiak Karolina , Chmiel Marianna
Published: February 2024

Although the role of aesthetics and aesthetic education in everyday life was discussed as early as the ancient philosophers, the psychological mechanisms shaping the aesthetic quotient have hardly been investigated by empirical studies. The aim of this study was to examine the direct relationship between experience and aesthetic competence, and the mediating role of need for cognition. The study involved 201 Polish adults, aged 18 to 76 (M = 26.40; SD = 11.89), 65% of whom were women. The respondents completed anonymous questionnaires on an online platform. The surveys included a metric, the Aesthetic Competence Scale (ACS), the Aesthetic Experience Questionnaire (AEQ) and the Need for Cognition Scale (NCS). A positive correlation coefficient was obtained between all three variables studied, with need for cognition acting as a mediator in the relationship between experience and aesthetic competence. The findings indicate that individuals reporting intense aesthetic experiences have a higher aesthetic competence if this relationship is mediated by a high need for cognitive effort.
An empirical study of indoor air quality in badminton stadiums in hot summer and cold winter regions of China during spring and fall seasons
Authors: Liu Lin , Ma Yong , Huang Ruifeng , Lin Shijie , Jia Mengyao , Liu Gan , Zheng Weitao
Published: February 2024

The indoor air quality has a direct impact on human health. In order to obtain the current status of indoor air quality in typical sports buildings in hot summer and cold winter climate zones in China, indoor badminton courts in 10 cities in Hubei Province in this climate zone were selected as research objects for field testing of indoor environmental parameters in spring and autumn, and predict air quality parameters for non-testing times. All the tested stadiums are naturally ventilated in non-event conditions, and the average daily indoor CO2 concentration was 526.78 ppm in spring and 527.63 ppm in autumn, and the average daily PM2.5 concentration was 0.035 mg/m3 in spring and 0.024 mg/m3 in autumn, all of which met the requirements of GB/T 18883-2022, the average concentration of CO2 ≤ 1000 ppm and PM2.5 ≤ 0.05 mg/m3. The indoor CO2 concentration and PM2.5 concentration of the tested badminton halls under natural ventilation gradually increased with the accumulation of exercise time, making the indoor air quality of the badminton halls decrease, which would negatively affect the health of the people exercising in this environment.
Fast insights into chitosan-cleaving enzymes by simultaneous analysis of polymers and oligomers through size exclusion chromatography
Authors: Hellmann Margareta J. , Moerschbacher Bruno M. , Cord-Landwehr Stefan
Published: February 2024

The thorough characterization of chitosan-cleaving enzymes is crucial to unveil structure–function relationships of this promising class of biomolecules for both, enzymatic fingerprinting analyses and to use the enzymes as biotechnological tools to produce tailor-made chitosans for diverse applications. Analyzing polymeric substrates as well as oligomeric products has been established as an effective way to understand the actions of enzymes, but it currently requires separate, rather laborious methods to obtain the full picture. Here, we present ultra high performance size exclusion chromatography coupled to refractive index and mass spectrometry detection (UHPSEC-RI-MS) as a straightforward method for the semi-quantitative analysis of chitosan oligomers of up to ten monomers in length. Additionally, the method allows to determine the average molecular weight of the remaining polymers and its distribution. By sampling live from an ongoing enzymatic reaction, UHPSEC-RI-MS offers the unique opportunity to analyze polymers and oligomers simultaneously—i.e., to monitor the molecular weight reduction of the polymeric substrate over the course of the digestion, while at the same time analyzing the emerging oligomeric products in a semi-quantitative manner. In this way, a single simple analysis yields detailed insights into an enzyme’s action on a given substrate.
The effects of OPRM1 118A>G on methadone response in pain management in advanced cancer at end of life
Authors: Haupt Larisa M. , Haywood Alison , Sutherland Heidi G. , Yu Chieh , Albury Cassie L. , Pharasi Anushka , Zunk Mathew , George Rani , Griffiths Lyn R. , Good Phillip , Hardy Janet
Published: February 2024

Cancer pain is the most feared symptom at end of life. Methadone has advantages over other opioids but is associated with significant variability in clinical response, making dosing challenging in practice. OPRM1 is the most studied pharmacogene associated with the pharmacodynamics of opioids, however reports on the association of the A118G polymorphism on opioid dose requirements are conflicting, with no reports including methadone as the primary intervention. This association study on OPRM1 A118G and response to methadone for pain management, includes a review of this genetic factor’s role in inter-patient variability. Fifty-four adult patients with advanced cancer were recruited in a prospective, multi-centre, open label dose individualization study. Patient characteristics were not shown to influence methadone response, and no significant associations were observed for methadone dose or pain score. The findings of our review of association studies for OPRM1 A118G in advanced cancer pain demonstrate the importance of taking ancestry into account. While our sample size was small, our results were consistent with European populations, but in contrast to studies in Chinese patients, where carriers of the A118G polymorphism were associated with higher opioid dose requirements. Pharmacogenetic studies in palliative care are challenging, continued contribution will support future genotype-based drug dosing guidelines.
Machine learning optimization of bio-sandcrete brick modelling using response surface methodology
Authors: Ganasen Nakkeeran , Krishnaraj L. , Onyelowe Kennedy C. , Stephen Liberty U.
Published: February 2024

In this study, raw grinded groundnut shell (RGGNS) was used as a fine aggregate in the brick industry to reuse agricultural waste in building materials. In this study, an experimental approach was used to examine a new cement brick with raw groundnut shells integrated with compressive strength, water absorption and dry density optimization utilizing response surface methodology (RSM). The raw ground-nut shell content improved the fine aggregate performance of the 40%, 50%, and 60% samples. The 28-day high compressive strength with the raw ground-nut shell was 6.1 N/mm2 maximum, as needed by the technical standard. Samples made from 40%, 50%, and 60% raw groundnut shells yielded densities of 1.7, 2.2, and 1.9 kg/cm3 for groundnut shell (GNS) brick, respectively. A product's mechanical properties meet the IS code standard’s minimum requirements. RSM was then utilized to develop a model for the addition of raw groundnut shell to concrete. R-square and Adeq precision values indicated that the results are highly significant, and equations for predicting compressive strength, water absorption, and dry density have been developed. In addition, optimization was performed on the RSM findings to determine the efficiency optimization of the model. Following the optimization results, experiments were conducted to determine the applicability of the optimized model.
Simultaneous coupling of metal removal and visual detection by nature-inspired polyphenol-amine surface chemistry
Authors: Ju Helen H. , Park Hong K. , Wu Jingxian , Nam Yu Ri , Kim Eunu , Seo Jeongin , Lee Haeshin
Published: February 2024

The interplay between polyphenols, amines, and metals leads to strong color development.
Weakly supervised instance segmentation via peak mining and filtering
Authors: Huang Zuxian , Pan Dongsheng , Wu Gangshan
Published: February 2024

Learning the full extent of pixel‐level instance response in a weakly supervised manner remains unsatisfactory. Peak response maps (PRMs) localizes the discriminative object regions but cannot provide complete instance information, suffering from incomplete segmentation and unreliable mask prediction by noisy proposal retrieval. This work tackles this challenging problem by mining diverse class peak responses that include more discriminative and complete object regions and retrieving more reliable proposals from noisy segment proposal galleries. First, the existing method is enhanced with two more classification branches, thus contributing to more diverse and abundant instance regions from peak response maps. The mined class peak responses from two of the branches are then merged to generate more complete peak response maps by a clustering approach in their deep feature space. Then, instance segmentation masks are retrieved from a noisy object segment proposal gallery with class confidence, which is calculated by a normal classifier to obtain cleaner mask prediction. Finally, the pseudo‐supervision can be used to train an instance segmentation network in a fully supervised manner. Experiments on the PASCAL VOC 2012 dataset and COCO dataset show that the approach works effectively and outperforms other counterparts by a margin of more than 6 %, 4%, and 3% with the mean average precision (mAP) at IoU threshold of 0.25, 0.5 and 0.75, respectively.
Optimal ordering strategy and budget allocation for the Covid-19 vaccination planning
Authors: Liu Xueping , Zhu Sheng , Wang Jinting
Published: February 2024

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the most important thing was to control the overall infection rate. To achieve this goal, social managers can choose to use vaccines with different production cycles and therapeutic effects for epidemic prevention and control under financial budget constraints. In this paper we adopt a two-tier queueing system with reneging to characterize the operation management of COVID-19 vaccine ordering and vaccination, in which a higher–efficacy vaccine queue (HQ) and a lower-efficacy vaccine queue (LQ) are employed to account for two types of vaccines service. In light of this framework, a recursive formula is proposed for deriving the infection rates of residents in both HQ and LQ. Social managers can achieve the lowest total infection rate by selecting appropriate vaccine ordering strategies under fixed service capacity, or by allocating financial budgets reasonably under the investment cost regime. Accordingly, we obtain the socially optimal vaccine ordering strategies and financial budget allocation. Finally, we analyze the sensitivity of various parameters to relevant optimal strategies and discover that utilizing a mixed ordering strategy is socially optimal in most circumstances. However, in some extreme cases, ordering a single type of vaccine (higher- or lower-efficacy) may also result in the lowest societal infection rate.
Harnessing brand authenticity to promote prosocial service behavior
Authors: Lim Weng Marc , Malik Nishtha , Gupta Sahil , Rai Himanshu
Published: February 2024

In today’s fiercely competitive, customer-centric, and service-driven marketplace, where customer satisfaction, trust, and loyalty are hard-won currencies, brand authenticity emerges as a pivotal cornerstone, potentially fostering prosocial service behavior among employees—a crucial driver of organizational success. Yet, the intricate link between brand authenticity and prosocial service behavior remains a compelling and notably understudied frontier. To address this gap, we explore how prosocial service behavior can be shaped by brand authenticity. Using partial least squares–structural equation modeling based on survey responses from a random sample of 410 frontline employees in the hospitality industry, we found that brand authenticity alone cannot spark prosocial service behavior. Instead, brands must foster psychological empowerment and organizational commitment in order to activate and harness the power of brand authenticity in nurturing prosocial service behavior. This is because employees require both a belief in their own influence (empowerment) and a strong attachment to their organization (commitment) to fully express the genuine values of a brand through prosocial actions. However, caution should be noted: introducing job autonomy might diminish the impact of psychological empowerment. This counterintuitive effect could be attributed to the perception that excessive autonomy, while meant to empower, might be seen as a lack of guidance or support. Such a scenario may potentially make employees feel isolated or overwhelmed by decision-making responsibilities.