bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Did the COVID-19 pandemic stimulate telemedicine in pediatric diabetes care in Germany? A multicenter analysis of the year 2020 in the DPV-registry.
Authors: Raile Klemens , Biester Torben , Eckert Alexander , von Sengbusch Simone , Böhle Anne , Faller Uta Faller , Klee D , Bokelmann Jessica , Mirza Joaquina , Holl Reinhard
Published: March 2022

Objectives: We analyzed uptake, volume and covariates of telemedicine use in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes in 2020 with focus on the COVID-19 lockdown in Germany and provide first outcome data associated with telemedicine use. Research design and methods: Based on data from the German Diabetes Prospective Follow-up Registry (DPV) in 2020, we included 247 pediatric diabetes centers following 26,365 children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Centers and individuals were characterized according to telemedicine use. Effects of the lockdown from March 13th to May 13th 2020 versus the entire years 2020 and 2019 were analyzed.Results: During the lockdown in 2020, telemedicine visits increased from pre-lockdown 0.6% of all patient visits to 12.8% and remained 3.5 % until end of 2020. Among 247 centers only 11 provided telemedicine to more than 50 patients, while telephone contacts were the preferred telemedicine-mode during lockdown. Patients receiving telemedicine in 2020 had lower HbA1c, longer distance to diabetes centers, less frequently migration background and higher use of insulin pumps or CGMS. Discussion: Telemedicine experienced a dramatic boost during and after the strict lockdown in Germany. Anyhow absolute numbers of telemedicine in outpatient contacts remained below 5% and thus telemedicine did not take a load-carrying role in pediatric diabetes care in Germany. Having migration background and not using diabetes technology possibly reflect barriers to scale up digital communication.
Impact of Parental Status on Medical Student Specialty Selection
Authors: Morrison Georgia Mae , Cocco Bianca L. Di , Goldberg Rebecca , Calderwood Audrey H. , Schulman Allison R. , Enestvedt Brintha , Yu Jessica
Published: March 2022

Background: Medical training occurs during peak childbearing years for most medical students. Many factors influence specialty selection. The aim of this study was to determine whether being a parent affects specialty choice among United States medical students in 2020.Methods: The authors performed a multicenter web-based survey study of medical students enrolled in Oregon Health and Science University, Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine, and University of Michigan Medical School. The 22-item instrument assessed parenthood status, specialty preference, specialty perceptions, and factors influencing specialty choice.Results: 537 out of 2236 (24.0%) students responded. Among respondents, 59 (10.9%) were current or expecting parents. The majority (359, 66.8%) were female and 24-35 years old (430, 80.1%). Of the students who were parents or expecting, 30 (50.9%) were female, and the majority (55, 93.2%) were partnered. Top specialties preferred by both groups were family medicine, emergency medicine, obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), internal medicine, psychiatry, and pediatrics. Specialties rated most family-friendly included family medicine, dermatology, pediatrics, psychiatry, radiology, emergency medicine and pathology. The specialties rated least family-friendly were surgery, neurosurgery, orthopedic surgery, plastic surgery, and OB/GYN. These rankings were the same between groups. Passion for the field, culture of the specialty, and quality of life were the top three factors students considered when choosing a specialty. Being a parent or future parent ranked more highly for parents than non-parents, but was not in the top three factors for either group.Conclusions: Parental status did not affect specialty choices of medical students. While being a parent was considered more heavily by current student parents than non-parents, this was not weighed as heavily as passion for the field, culture of the specialty and quality of life. Medical school training and simultaneous parenting is daunting, yet student parents are putting their passion first when making a career choice.
Enhancing the information of nonlinear SU(1, 1) quantum systems interacting with a two-level atom
Authors: Abd-Rabbou M.Y. , Ali S. I. , Ahmed M. M. A.
Published: March 2022

The effect of nonlinearity, initial atomic state, and different resonance cases on the interaction between nonlinear SU (1, 1) quantum states and a two-level atom is discussed. The optimal behaviours of decoherence, entanglement and quantum coherence are predicted via using the skew information, tomographic entropy, and the relative entropy of coherence, respectively. It is shown that the detuning parameter has a destructive effect on the coherence and consequently on the entanglement if the quantum system is regulated in the ideal SU (1, 1) quantum systems. For the nonlinear SU (1, 1) quantum systems, the ability to suppress the decay of entanglement induced by the detuning may be increased by preparing the initial atomic state in its excited state.
A multichannel optical neural network for advanced machine vision
Authors: Fang Lu , Xu Zhihao , Yuan Xiaoyun , Zhou Tiankuang
Published: March 2022

Endowed with the superior computing speed and energy efficiency, all-optical and optoelectronics neural networks (ONNs) have attracted ever-growing attention in recent years. Previous studies lacking viable way for multichannel optical processing, mainly implement single-channel optical computing to solve simple tasks including hand-written digit classification, saliency detection, etc. Aiming for more powerful ONNs to solve complex tasks, we innovatively develop Monet: a multichannel optical neural network for advanced machine vision. The inter- and intra- channel connections are mapped to optical interference and diffraction. By further designing a novel projection-interference-prediction framework on the basis of these connections, optical interference patterns are generated by projecting and interfering the multichannel inputs in a shared domain. These patterns encoding the correspondences together with feature embeddings are iteratively produced through the projection-interference process to predict the final output. Unlike existing ONNs trying to inherit ANN architectures, the framework of Monet is initially designed following the innate characters of light propagation and interaction, to fully explore the potential of wave optics for optical computing. For the first time, we validate that Monet is capable for advanced machine vision tasks such as 3D depth estimation and moving objection detection. Moreover, a prototype system of Monet is developed to accomplish 3D perception for real-world scenarios. We anticipate that the proposed technique will accelerate the development of more powerful optical AI as critical support for modern advanced machine vision.
Designing all Optical Half Adder Based on Photonic Crystal Ring Resonator
Authors: Parandin Fariborz , Sheykhian Arezoo
Published: March 2022

In this paper, we have tried to design and present a half adder based on two-dimensional photonic crystals which have small dimensions and simple structure. Half adders are an important component of logic circuits, and as a result, designing a half adder with good performance improves the function of computational circuits. In designing this half adder, in addition to the dimensions and simplicity of the structure, attention has been paid to the speed and accuracy of the design. The proximity of the state output 0 of this circuit to zero exponentiation and the proximity of the state output 1 to the maximum exponentiation value has led to a significant distance between the two values of reasonable 0 and 1. In this design, cylindrical silicon rods in the field of air are used. This half adder is designed to be utilized in the widely used telecommunication frequency of 1550nm. All computations are performed for TM mode and through using the finite difference methods in domain of time (FDTD).
Combined Phacoemulsification and Intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF) versus Dexamethasone Implant in Diabetics with Coexisting Cataract and Centre-involving Diabetic Macular Edema
Authors: N SHILPA I , Bhende Muna , Raman Rajiv , Natarajan Viswanathan
Published: March 2022

Purpose: To compare the anatomical and functional outcome in groups who underwent combined phacoemulsification with intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) versus combined phacoemulsification with intravitreal dexamethasone implant who had centre-involving diabetic macular edema (CI-DME) with significant cataract.Methods: Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central subfield thickness (CST) were retrospectively evaluated in both groups at baseline,1 month, 3 months and 6 months follow up period. Results: Fifty six eyes were analysed, 36 in phacoemulsification with anti-VEGF group and 20 in phacoemulsification with dexamethasone implant group. BCVA showed improvement from baseline of log MAR 0.54 ± 0.58 to 0.49 ± 0.57 at 1month in combined phacoemulsification with anti-VEGF group. Phacoemulsification with intravitreal dexamethasone implant showed baseline BCVA of 0.43 ± 0.34 and 0.55 ± 0.44 at 6 months follow up with not much of visual improvement due to the chronicity of the DME. Mean CST groups of less than 300μm, 300-600μm and more than 600μm disclosed comparable trends in both Anti-VEGF (p=0.005) and Dexamethasone group (p=0.018) from the baseline to the 6 month follow up period. 300-600μm CST group showed no such statistical significance in either group whereas in the ≥ 600μm mean CST group, there was significant statistical difference only in the dexamethasone group with p value of 0.043. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that individuals with CI-DME with lower baseline CST values undergoing combined phacoemulsification with either intravitreal Anti-VEGF or dexamethasone implant shows similar anatomical and functional success at six months. Eyes with higher baseline CST had better anatomical response to dexamethasone implant.
Modelling of CSTR Flow Field for Agaricus bisporus Residue Fermentation Based on CFD Numerical Simulation
Authors: Li Jiayu , Wei Xuan , Zou Jinping
Published: March 2022

Agaricus bisporus production gets a lot of residues, which could be fermented by a continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR). This research was conducted to study the characteristics of the multiphase flow field in the reactor and its influence on the efficiency of biogas production in the CSTR fermentation process of Agaricus bisporus residue by using CFD numerical simulation technique. The aim is to reveal the relationship between the reactor operating conditions, flow field characteristics, and biogas production efficiency at the micro-level. We compared the results of different turbulence models by evaluating the power quotients and flow quotients with the experimental results to derive the most suitable flow field model inside the reactor for the Agaricus bisporus residues. The results showed that, under the condition that the number of grids does not affect the simulation results, and considering the model accuracy and efficiency, the numerical method can be chosen as the multiple reference frame (MRF) method of the second-order upwind discrete scheme with the realizable \(k-\epsilon\) model. In this way, we can make use of edible mushroom residue as a substrate for resource utilization and provide basic data and theoretical basis for the design and scale-up with anaerobic fermentation to biogas reactor.
Research on the Influencing Factors of Medical Ethics Committees from the Perspective of Organizational Capability—A Crisp-Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis Based on 107 Cases
Authors: Lu Lu , Shuwen Shi , Beibei Lou , Xin Hu , Bojing Liu , Chanjuan Liu
Published: March 2022

BackgroundCompared with international Institutional Review Board, China started late; however, in recent years, under the promotion of Chinese government departments, academic organizations, and experts and scholars at all levels, Chinese Institutional Review Board have made great achievements in the protection of rights and interests, systems, and procedures， Chinese Institutional Review Board are still weak in their organizational capacity building. The organizational capacity building of Institutional Review Board is a subject with complex causality, and it is difficult to offer a completely reasonable explanation for all aspects. MethodIn this article, we analyzed the influencing factors that affect the current status of the operation of Chinese Institutional Review Board, using literature analysis to refine the conditional variables and analyze the cases of 107 tertiary hospitals in China through crisp-set qualitative comparative analysis (csQCA) to explore the impact of medical ethics. Using the necessary conditions and combination of committee construction, combined with the “Yang Triangle” model of organizational capabilities, we designed a “Triangle force” model of the organizational capabilities of Institutional Review Board and proposed solutions from the perspective of organizational capabilities, reflecting on and analyzing the current management status of Chinese Institutional Review Board. ResultsWe found that the protection of rights and interests was a necessary condition for a medical ethics committee. A lack of member ability, lack of review process, and lack of a supervision mechanism were sufficient conditions for a poor construction of a medical ethics committee. ConclusionsWe analyzed seven interpretation paths for this organization to operate well and they can be summarized into three typical paths: member ability-oriented, institutional process-oriented, and resource system-oriented, which are consistent with the “Triangle force” model hypothesis of the medical ethics committee’s organizational capabilities as constructed in this article. The driving factors and supporting forces of an ethics committee provide a theoretical basis and policy suggestions for the organization of Chinese Institutional Review Board.
Transcriptomic and metabolomic landscape of quinoa during seed germination
Authors: Hao Yuqiong , Hong Yechun , Guo Huimin , Qin Peiyou , Huang Ancheng , Yang Xiushi , Ren Guixing
Published: March 2022

Background: Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa), a dicotyledonous species native to Andean region, is an emerging crop worldwide nowadays due to its high nutritional value and resistance to extreme abiotic stresses. Although it is well known that seed germination is an important and multiple physiological process, the network regulation of quinoa seed germination is largely unknown. Results: Here, we performed transcriptomic study in five stages of quinoa germinating seeds. Together with the GC-MS based metabolome analysis, we found that seed metabolism is reprogrammed with significant alteration of multiple phytohormones (especially abscisic acid) and other nutrients during the elongation of radicels. Cell-wall remodeling is another main active process happening in the early period of quinoa seed germination. At the final stage of seed germination, photosynthesis was fully activated, promoting the biosynthesis of amino acids and protein to allow seedling growth. The multi-omics analysis revealed global changes in metabolic pathways and phenotype during quinoa seed germination.Conclusion: The transcriptomic and metabolomic landscape depicted here pave ways for further gene function elucidation and quinoa development in the future.
Comprehensive Risk Assessment of Algae and Shellfish in the Middle Route of South-to-North Water Diversion Project
Authors: Long Yan , Feng Mengjuan , Li Youming , Qu Jia , Gao Wei
Published: March 2022

Since the main canal of the Middle Route of South-to-North Water Diversion Project was put into operation, the species, quantity and biomass of algae and shellfish have responded quickly to the environment, and a single dominant species has appeared in the community, demonstrating the remarkably abnormal proliferation property of algae and shellfish. In order to evaluate the safety risk of abnormal proliferation of algae and shellfish in the Middle Route and realize dynamic analysis of all kinds of influencing factors, a comprehensive risk evaluation system of algae and shellfish in the Middle Route of South-to-North Water Diversion Project based on comprehensive weighting and Four-Element Connection Number (MCEN) was constructed by integrating the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and the weight assignment theory of CRITIC. The system consists of 21 evaluation indexes selected from risk factors and carriers. Taking Henan section in the Middle Route as an example, comprehensive risk evaluation system of algae and shellfish in the Middle Route of South-to-North Water Diversion Project was applied to calculate the partial connection number of each order and obtain the risk development trend of each indicator. The results showed that algae and shellfish in the Middle Route were in a very safe state at the safety risk level of level Ⅰ. Finally, reasonable measures to reduce the risks facing algae and shellfish in the Middle Route of South-to-North Water Diversion Project are given, which effectively make up the deficiency of existing evaluation methods.
Study on the impact of the improvement of traffic accessibility on regional economic disparity—Evidence from the cities along the Beijing-Shanghai HSR
Authors: Yu Lu , Wang Yaoyao
Published: March 2022

Railway transportation, as a major mode of travel in China, has an important impact on traffic conditions and even local economic development. This paper evaluates the changes of traffic accessibility and its impact on regional economic disparity of the cities along the Beijing-Shanghai HSR from 2009 to 2016. On the whole, this paper found that the traffic accessibility of all cities along this line has been greatly improved. Some medium-sized city closer to the core city and located at the middle of the Beijing Shanghai HSR benefit the most, while the small cities farther away from the core cities benefit the least. This line has also brought about a certain improvement on equilibrium level of traffic accessibility, but the increase between the cities is very different. The economic disparity between large and medium-sized cities and small-sized cities along this line has widened.
Synergistic Effects of Mixed Metal Stearate, Calcium Carbonate Particles and Recycled Low Density Polyethylene on The Mechanical, Thermal and Structural Performance of Polyvinylchloride Blend.
Authors: Maou Samira , Meftah yazid , Meghezzi ahmed
Published: March 2022

Thermo-mechanical recycling process is the cheapest way to recover plastic wastes such as LDPE with lower ecological impact, thus, the target in this work is to achieve high performance microcomposites prepared from polyvinyl chloride (PVC), recycled low density polyethylene (r-LDPE), calcium carbonate (CaCO3) and Calcium/Zinc stearate (CaSt2/ZnSt2). The effects of two ratios of thermal stabilizers with different concentrations, on the mechanical properties and thermal stability of PVC and PVC/r-LDPE (1:1) blend were studied. The samples were characterized using infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), mechanical tests, thermal analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The addition of 5 phr of CaSt2:ZnSt2 = 9:1 into PVC (MC4) seems to produce an optimum tensile strength and elongation at break values. In addition, it is highlighted that MC4 showed a high thermal stability. Moreover, the incorporation of r-LDPE into PVC makes the PVC matrix stronger and more stable than pure PVC which yields to high mechanical and thermal performances. Furthermore, an outstanding synergistic effect can be showed when heat stabilizer rich in calcium combined with CaCO3 and r-LDPE. This PVC/r-LDPE blend as waste composite can be used in several industry fields. Finally, we used DFT calculation to elucidate the dehydrochlorination mechanism of PVC in presence of Ca and Zn stearate.
A new generation of commercial brain surgery robot clinical application research
Authors: Yin Feng , Chen Hui , Yan Xin , Ding Sheng-chao , Zhao Ming-Ming , Cao Shou-Ming , Li Tong , Yang Chun-Juan , Liu Ying , Huang Yu , Zhao Feng , Wang Ya-Ming
Published: March 2022

To evaluate a new generation of commercial robotic (CR) the clinical practicability of stereotactic robotic system, operating accuracy and operation safety. We analyzed retrospectively in 08, 2018-2020 - June, during the application of CR type brain surgery robot system implementation frameless stereotactic brain surgery clinical data of 120 patients, observe clinical practicability, positioning accuracy and safety. Clin-ical successful completion of the frameless positioning brain surgery in 120 cases, the procedure goes well, no serious complications. Including registration and operation stage, the average operation time was 23.5 to 80.2 min. To the postoperative target accuracy evaluation, the results show that target error in 1.36 and 0.42 mm, 4 cases of patients with brain damaged kernel group, using three nail operation head frame fixed Mayfield, use solid coupling device to robot and heads fixed after surgery, results show that the target error in 0.92 and 0.21 mm, meet the operation requirements. The new generation of CR stereotactic robotic system has great improvement compared with the previous generation, which can apply to all types of stereotactic surgery at present, to enhance the practical operation, the structure design more reasonable, integrated practical operation, positioning precision and convenient operation, meet the demand of clinical application.
Eco-Friendly Bio-Based Adhesive for Plyboard from Natural Rubber Latex (NRL) Blended Isocyanate Crosslinked Starch
Authors: Soubam Triveni , Gupta Arun , Jamari Saidatul Shima Binti
Published: March 2022

The adhesives used in the production of plyboard are a matter of concern due to the emission of carcinogenic gas formaldehyde, increased environmental pollution and the depletion of fossil fuels. As a result, the study's goal was to concentrate on the development and application of bio-adhesives capable of meeting the standard of formaldehyde-based synthetic adhesives for plywood. The bio-adhesive was developed using natural rubber latex (NRL) and isocyanate crosslinked rice starch. The resultant bio-adhesive was investigated for chemical interaction, viscosity, solid content, and gel time. To analyzed the efficacy of the formulated bio-adhesive a plyboard was developed. The physical and mechanical properties of the plyboard are investigated. It is found that the presence of isocyanate and urethane capabilities in NRL blended crosslinked starch bio-adhesive formulations was observed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The bio-adhesive Iso-A was discovered to have the highest viscosity of 8270 mPa.s. The bio-adhesive type Iso-B has the shortest gel time of 3.46 min and the highest solid content of 44%, the higher solid content accelerates the gel time. The plyboard bonded with Iso-B bio-adhesive shows the lowest thickness swelling (TS) of 13% and water absorption (WA) of 52%. Plyboard bonded with Gly-B bio-adhesive had the highest shear strength of 1.92 MPa corresponded to the ISO 12466-2-2007 standard requirements. As a result, NRL blended isocyanate starch-based bio-adhesive could be a good potential raw material for eco-friendly plyboard industries with adequate accuracy.
Effect of Recycling Digestate Filtrate for Cow Dung Dilution on Biogas Production
Authors: ABAKAKA INOUSS MAMATE , Joël TIZE KODA
Published: March 2022

Biogas production in the Sahelian zone faces the problem of water shortage during the dry season. This study was initiated in the bioscience laboratory at the University of Maroua with the objective of improving the accessibility of households to biogas in water scarcity conditions. Also another aim is to recycle the filtrate of the digestate into a new dilution of the substrate for biogas production. Thus, the Cow Dung (CD) digestate from the biogas unit was filtered. Two types of filters were made: filter with sand and cotton and filter with sand, biochar and cotton. The filtrate obtained was used to make five treatments with CD to feed mini biodigesters (1st generation) of 1 liter each. After a HRT of 30 days, the digestate from the 1st generation was again filtered into the same treatments (2nd generation). During the anaerobic digestion; the production and pH of each treatment repeated three times were evaluated. The effect of water recycling and the type of filtration were analyzed. This study shows that the dilution of CD with the filtrate from the 1st generation significantly improves on the production of biogas by 47% compared to that of dung diluted with ordinary water. In the 2nd generation, dilution with ordinary water provided the best production which is 7% higher than that obtained from the filtrates without biochar. As the pH is concerned, it varies between 6 and 7.5 when filtrates are used. It was more acidic when water has been used.
Impact of Online Learning on Sense of Belonging Among First Year Clinical Health Students During COVID-19: Student and Academic Perspectives
Authors: Tang Clarice , Thyer Liz , Bye Rosalind , Kenny Belinda , Tulliani Nikki , Peel Nicole , Gordon Rebecca , Penkala Stefania , Tannous Caterina , Sun Yu-Ting , Dark Leigha
Published: March 2022

Background
The need to belong is a fundamental human desire that provides the basis for relationships and community; it provides a sense of security that enables growth and development. This sense of belonging is pivotal to new University students, indeed, without it, students are at greater risk of failing or withdrawing from their studies. Yet developing a sense of belonging within a new cohort is complex and multi-faceted and further complicated by a sudden shift from face-to-face to online learning. Our study explores first year clinical health students’ sense of belonging in the context of the rapid transition to online learning because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods
We utilised a current mixed-method approach including a survey incorporating previously validated tools, demographic and open-ended qualitative questions. Data was also gathered from three focus groups: two dedicated student groups and one academic focus group. Qualitative data was subjected to thematic analysis whilst descriptive statistics were used to describe the quantitative data.
Results
179 first year students complete the survey and four students, and five academics were involved in the focus groups. All participants were from clinical health science courses at an Australian university. Our qualitative results indicated a global theme of: Navigating belonging during the COVID-19 crisis: a shared responsibility; with four organising themes describing (1) dimensions of belonging, (2) individual experiences and challenges, (3) reconceptualising teaching and learning, and (4) relationships are central to belonging.
Conclusion
While the rapid transition to online learning did not greatly impact knowledge acquisition of first-year students in this cohort, the lack of sense of belonging highlights the need for further research into development of this essential aspect of learning in the online domain. Although contextualised in the COVID-19 pandemic, it became clear that the findings will remain relevant beyond the current situation, as a student’s need to belong will always be present in the face of challenges or change.
CD97 Serves as a Novel Biomarker of Immune Cell Infiltration in Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Authors: Su Qiuming , Li Lu , Li Xiaokai , Li Wang , Zhang Xibing , Dong Yun , Han Lei , Wang Duo , Ran Jianghua
Published: March 2022

Background: CD97 is the most widely expressed G protein-coupled receptor in the epidermal growth factor seven-span transmembrane family. It plays a vital role in cell adhesion, migration, and cell connection regulation. We explored the role of CD97 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).Methods: We evaluated CD97 mRNA expression in HCC using TNMplot and the Gene Expression Omnibus database. The clinical prognostic significance of CD97 in HCC was evaluated by gene expression profiling interactive analysis, the Kaplan–Meier plotter, and the UALCAN database. The Tumor Immune Estimation Resource (TIMER) and CIBERSORT databases were used to analyze the relationships among CD97, CD97 co-expression genes, and tumor-infiltrating immune cells.Results: CD97 was highly expressed in HCC and was associated with a poor prognosis. CD97 and its co-expressed genes were positively correlated with tumor-infiltrating immune cells and strongly correlated with tumor-infiltrating macrophages (all r ≥ 0.513, P < 0.0001). CD97 was closely related to M2 macrophage and tumor-associated macrophage markers (both r ≥ 0.464, P < 0.0001). CD97 was found to be an immune-related gene in HCC and positively correlated with the TOX, PD-L1, PD-L2, CTLA4, and PD-1 immune checkpoint genes. CD97 copy number alterations affect the level of immune cell infiltration and mRNA expression.Conclusions: CD97 can be used as a potential molecular marker of prognosis in HCC, which is associated with immune cell infiltration.
Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity in patients with primary polydipsia compared to healthy volunteers
Authors: Sailer Clara Odilia , Kühne Jill M. , Conceição Ismael da , Refardt Julie , Christ-Crain Mirjam , Winzeler Bettina
Published: March 2022

Objective: Primary polydipsia is characterized by excessive fluid intake which may suppress vasopressin levels. It is speculated that suppressed vasopressin levels lead to a dysregulated hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis as vasopressin co-modulates the HPA axis. However, data is contradictory. The aim of this study was to investigate markers of the HPA axis in patients with primary polydipsia compared to healthy controls. Design: Exploratory analysis combining data from two different prospective observational studies.Method: We included 34 patients with primary polydipsia (68% females, median aged 29.5 years (IQR 26.0, 38.8)) and 20 healthy volunteers (55% females, median age 24.0 years (IQR 22.0, 27.2)). The main outcome was circadian serum and salivary cortisol, 24-hour urinary free cortisol, and cortisol levels before and after adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) stimulation.Results: No difference was seen in circadian serum cortisol levels (p=0.9), urinary free cortisol levels (p=0.17), and serum cortisol in response to ACTH stimulation (p=0.77) between patients with primary polydipsia and healthy volunteers. However, circadian salivary cortisol levels were significantly lower in patients with primary polydipsia as compared to healthy volunteers with an estimated difference of -3.7 nmol/l (95%-CI -5.5, -1.8 nmol/l, p=<0.001). Conclusion: Our results suggest no difference in HPA axis activity between patients with primary polydipsia and healthy volunteers. The observed difference in salivary cortisol levels may be linked to a dilution effect in saliva rather than an altered stress axis considering the other findings.
Adaptability and Stability of Coffea Canephora to Dynamic Environments Using Bayesian Approach
Authors: Partelli Fabio Luiz , Silva Flavia Alves , Covre André Monzoli , Oliosi Gleison , Correa Caio Cezar Guedes , Viana Alexandre Pio
Published: March 2022

The aim of the work was to use the Bayesian approach, modeling the interaction of coffee genotypes with the environment, using a bisegmented regression to identify stable and adapted genotypes. A group of 43 promising genotypes of Coffea canephora was chosen. The genotypes were arranged in a randomized block design with three replications of seven plants each. The experimental plot was harvested four years in the study period, according to the maturation cycle of each genotype. The proposed Bayesian methodology was implemented in the free program R using rstanarm and coda. After fine adjustments in the approach, it was possible to make inferences about the significant GxE interaction, and to discriminate the coffee genotypes regarding production, adaptability and stability.
A Novel Decentralized Federated Learning Approach to Train on Globally Distributed, Poor Quality, and Protected Private Medical Data
Authors: Nguyen T. V. , Dakka M. A. , Diakiw S. M. , VerMilyea M. D. , Perugini M. , Hall J. M. M. , Perugini D.
Published: March 2022

Training on multiple diverse data sources is critical to ensure unbiased and generalizable AI. In healthcare, data privacy laws prohibit data from being moved outside the country of origin, preventing global medical datasets being centralized for AI training. Data-centric, cross-silo federated learning represents a pathway forward for training on distributed medical datasets. Existing approaches typically require updates to a training model to be transferred to a central server, potentially breaching data privacy laws unless the updates are sufficiently disguised or abstracted to prevent reconstruction of the dataset. Here we present a completely decentralized federated learning approach, using knowledge distillation, ensuring data privacy and protection. Each node operates independently without needing to access external data. AI accuracy using this approach is found to be comparable to centralized training, and when nodes comprise poor-quality data, which is common in healthcare, AI accuracy can exceed the performance of traditional centralized training.
Constraint-based modeling identifies metabolic vulnerabilities during the epithelial to mesenchymal transition
Authors: Campit Scott , Keshamouni Venkateshwar G. , Chandrasekaran Sriram
Published: March 2022

BackgroundEpithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a developmentally conserved cellular process critical for tumor metastasis. EMT enables malignant epithelial cells to acquire mesenchymal-like migratory and invasive phenotype. During EMT cancer cells undergo extensive metabolic reprogramming that correlates with the suppression of proliferation, and stimulation of the energy-intensive migratory behavior. However, the causal relationship between metabolic changes and coordinated physiological phenotypes that occur during EMT is still unclear. MethodsWe used bulk time-course transcriptomics and proteomics, and single-cell transcriptomics from five independent EMT studies in A549 lung adenocarcinoma cells to simulate metabolic network activity using constraint-based modeling.ResultsModel predictions were validated using literature mining, experimental studies and CRISPR-Cas9 essentiality screens. We uncovered temporal metabolic dependencies in glycolysis and glutamine metabolism reactions, and experimentally validated isoform-specific dependency on Enolase3 for cell survival during EMT.ConclusionsTogether, our approach uncovered temporally regulated cell-state-specific metabolic dependencies in cells undergoing EMT.
ERα-NRF2 signaling axis promotes bicalutamide resistance in PCa
Authors: Du Xiaoling , Shi Jiandang , Zhang Ju , Yang Kuo , Tian Lei , Liang Zhixian
Published: March 2022

Background
Bicalutamide is a potent and specific non-steroidal anti-androgen widely used as a first-line clinical treatment for prostate cancer (PCa). Although patients initially show an effective response to bicalutamide treatment, resistance to bicalutamide frequently occurs and leads to the development of castration-resistant PCa (CRPC). Estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) is significantly increased in bicalutamide-resistant PCa cell lines. Here, we investigated the roles of the estrogen-ERα signaling pathway in bicalutamide-resistant PCa cells.
Methods
Bioinformatics analyzed the expression and the correlation of ERα and nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (NRF2) in human clinical datasets and tissue samples. RT-PCR, Western blotting, and immunofluorescence staining were used to evaluate the expression of ERα, NRF2 and resistance-related genes in cells treated with bicalutamide. The estrogen response element presents on the NRF2 promoter and facilitation of ERα binding to the NRF2 promoter were validated by the chromatin immunoprecipitation assay. The sensitivity of PCa cells to bicalutamide was evaluated by the MTT assay.
Results
ERα and NRF2 expression was significantly increased and positively correlated in CRPC cells. E2 promoted the expression of ERα and NRF2. ERα antagonist tamoxifen inhibited the upregulation of NRF2 induced by bicalutamide treatment. ERα-induced estrogen effects promote the activation of NRF2 signaling pathway via binding to NRF2 promoter. Moreover, ERα-NRF2 signaling axis resensitized PCa cells to bicalutamide and enhanced cell invasion and migration.
Conclusion
ERα-mediated estrogen effects promote bicalutamide resistance in CRPC cells by directly regulating NRF2 expression. This study suggests the molecular mechanism of PCa resistance to bicalutamide.
A parallel particle swarm optimization and enhanced sparrow search algorithm for unmanned aerial vehicle path planning
Authors: Wang Ziwei
Published: March 2022

The path planning problem is that Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) needs to plan a feasible path from the starting point to the end point in a specific environment. But it cannot get satisfactory results using ordinary algorithms, to solve this problem, a hybrid algorithm named as PESSA is proposed, where particle swarm optimization (PSO) and an enhanced sparrow search algorithm (ESSA) work in parallel. In the ESSA, the random jump of the producer’s position is strengthened to guarantee the global search ability, each scrounger keeps learning from the optimal experience of the producers, and for the sparrow with the optimal position, when it perceives the danger, the difference between the best individual and the worst individual will be imposed to speed up the search process. And then, the elite reverse search strategy was added to increase the diversity of the population. In this paper, the performance of PESSA is verified by 10 basic functions, the experimental results illustrate that PESSA is better compared with other twelve algorithms. Finally, the proposed PESSA is applied in 4 different scenarios including two groups of 2D environments and two groups of 3D environments. The results show that the PESSA algorithm can acquire more feasible and effective route than compared algorithms.
Effect of Functional groups of Reactive dyes on the Dyeing Properties of Cotton Knit fabric
Authors: Islam Khayrul , Hossain Israil , Islam Azharul , Shaha Rothy
Published: March 2022

Maximum natural textile substrates are dyed with reactive-based dyes. The exercise of this dye is progressed in an elevated celerity for its moderate to good light fastness, simple and variant dyeing methods, and an apparition of many bright colors. A trichromatic mixture of dyes of the same reactive group is always preferred. In this research work, single jersey cotton knitted fabric was dyed with the same amount [2%] of reactive dyes (red, yellow & blue) of different functional groups (Mono-functional; Triazine and Vinyl sulphone, Bi-functional; Pyrimidine and Vinyl Sulphone and poly-functional). Colorfastness (wash, rub, perspiration and light) of dyed fabrics were evaluated. Bursting strength was also measured for different functional groups. It was found that Reactive dyes of MCT and Bi-Functional groups showed better rubbing, light fastness, and bursting strength properties than other functional groups.
Facile one-step electrodeposition preparation of poly(L-Ornithine) film modified glassy carbon electrodes for sensitive detection of Thiamethoxam
Authors: Zhang Chi , Zhang Yulong , Li Gaiping , Zou Lina
Published: March 2022

In this work, a green, low-cost and environmental-friendly voltammetric sensor, poly(L-Ornithine) film modified glassy carbon electrode was fabricated for the first time and used for determination of pesticide thiamethoxam. The modified electrode was characterized by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The redox character of thiamethoxam at proposed sensor was studied systematically. Utilizing the linear sweep voltammetry, a wider linear range (5.0×10-8 mol L-1 - 9.0×10-6 mol L-1) and lower detection limit (1.7×10-8 mol L-1) (S/N=3) for the detection of thiamethoxam were achieved. In addition, the proposed method was successfully applied to the determination of thiamethoxam in the real sample with satisfactory results.
Cervical Cancer Recurrence, Prognosis, And Related Risk Factors For Patients With Cervical Cancer: A Long-Term Prospective Cohort Study
Authors: Li Jina , Liu Gaoming , Luo Jiayou , Yan Shipeng , Ye Ping , Wang Jie , Luo Miyang
Published: March 2022

This study aims to explore the recurrence rate and prognosis for patients with cervical cancer after the first treatment and the related risk factors. We performed a prospective cohort of cervical cancer patients enrolled in a cancer specialist hospital in Hunan Province, China from January 1992 to December 2005 and followed up until December 2010. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to estimate cumulative recurrence rate, and Cox proportional hazard model was utilized to identify risk factors associated with recurrence. A total of 4358 patients were enrolled with a median follow-up of 7.4 years (range 5–19 years), and 372 (8.5%) patients had cancer recurrence. The cumulative recurrence rate showed a rapid increase from 3.8% in the first year to 8.0% in the fifth year, and the recurrence rate remained relatively stable afterward reaching 9.7% and 10.8% at the 10th and the 15th year respectively. The median time to recurrence was 15.5 months with an IQR of 5.5 to 40.0 months. The Cox regression showed that age, age of menarche, miscarriage, clinical stage, and treatment plan were significantly associated with cervical cancer recurrence after adjustment for confounders. Patients with recurrence showed a significantly lower survival probability than those without recurrence. This study depicted the long-term recurrence rate and survival after recurrence for patients with cervical cancer after the first treatment, and reported time to recurrence and risk factors related to recurrence. These findings may provide important evidence for designing targeted interventions for the treatment of cervical cancer.
Manipulation of Single Cells via a Stereo Acoustic Streaming Tunnel (SteAST)
Authors: Duan Xuexin , Yang Yang
Published: March 2022

At the single-cell level, cellular parameters, gene expression and function are assayed on an individual but not population-average basis. Essential to observing and analyzing the heterogeneity and behavior of these cells/clusters is the ability to prepare and manipulate individual. Here, we demonstrate a versatile microsystem, a stereo acoustic streaming tunnel, which is triggered by ultrahigh-frequency bulk acoustic waves and highly confined by a microchannel. We thoroughly analyze the generation and feature of stereo acoustic streaming to develop a virtual tunnel for observation, pretreatment and analysis of cells for different single-cell applications. 3D reconstruction, dissociation of clusters, selective trapping/release, in-situ analysis and pairing of single cells with barcode gel beads were demonstrated. In order to further verify the reliability and robustness of this technology in complex bio-samples, separation of circulating tumor cells based on both physics and immunity from undiluted blood was achieved. With the rich selection of handling modes, the platform has the potential to be a full-process microsystem from pretreatment to analysis and used in numerous fields, such as in vitro diagnosis, high-throughput single-cell sequencing and drug development.
Genome-wide identification and characterization of AP2 gene family in Artemisia annua L.: Different tissues expression profiles
Authors: Liang Yu , Meng Ying , Liao Baosheng , He Wenrui , Shen Xiaofeng , Qiu Xiaohui , Huang Zhihai , Duan Baozhong , Xu Jiang
Published: March 2022

Artemisia annua produces a mass of artemisinin, an effective drug widely used in malaria treatment. The AP2 transcription factors family which is one of the largest families in higher plants plays significant roles in growth and development regulating plant secondary metabolites and tolerances to environmental stresses. However, the available data on the contributions of the AP2 gene family in the whole genome of Artemisia annua is limited. In this study, 195 AP2 genes were identified and compared with AP2 genes from Arabidopsis thaliana. These AP2 genes in A. annua were classified into five subfamilies: DREB (85), ERF (84), AP2 (21), RAV (3), as well as two Soloists. Chromosome locations and synteny alignment of AP2 genes indicated that whole-genome duplication (WGD) gene retention and tandem repeat events contributed to the expansion of the AP2 family in A. annua. The expression profiles of root, stem, leaf, and flower of A. annua two strains revealed that ADS genes were co-expressed with AP2 genes. In addition, AaAP2_096 and AaAP2_177 were suggested to have potential in regulating artemisinin content in Artemisia annua. AaAP2_096 and AaAP2_177 might be helpful to breeding A. annua. In conclusion, our results provide a foundation for the further mechanism and function study of the AP2 gene family in A. annua, and promote their potential application in the biosynthesis of artemisinin.
Responses of Regulator of G Protein Signaling Proteins and Circadian Clock Proteins to Induction of Dedifferentiation in Pancreatic β-cells
Authors: Okano Satoshi , Yasui Akira , Kanno Shin-ichiro , Satoh Kennichi , Igarashi Masahiko , Nakajima Osamu
Published: March 2022

Regulator of G protein signaling proteins (RGSs) are involved in regulating β-cell functions. This study was conducted to examine the cellular responses to the occurrence of β-cell dedifferentiation in terms of the changes of expression levels of Rgs and clock genes: We used MIN6 cells, for which the cellular contents of zinc were reduced by prolonged treatment of the cells by potassium chloride, in this way inducing the cells to a progenitor-like state. The results indicate that endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-stress markers were up-regulated in the treated cells. All examined RGS were up-regulated in treated cells compared with control cells. RGS2 partly co-localized eIF2 α in the treated cells, although no discernable co-localization was observed for RGS4 and 16, suggesting that RGS2 specifically participates in the translational control of protein in response to cellular stresses. Altered mRNA levels of a uniquely specific set of clock genes were observed, suggesting malfunction of the molecular clock in β-cells. Taken together, G protein signaling and translation process are probably fine-tuned by RGSs. Thereby β-cells can cope with stress attributable to the decrease of zinc. The attenuation of circadian rhythm, in addition to some G protein signaling, can be prerequisites for induction of β-cell dedifferentiation.