bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Influencing factors of depressive symptoms in the elderly in rural China: Based on a health ecological model
Authors: Fan Rong , Li Xiaoju , Dong Jiaxin , Yang Jielin , Zhao Li , zhang Xianqi
Published: January 2023

Background
Depressive symptoms has become an increasingly important public health issue, contributing to disability and disease burden around the world. Studies have found that social support is strongly associated with depression in rural older people, so it is important to explore the factors influencing depression in rural older people in a comprehensive manner and to analyze the association between social support and depression.
Methods
On the basis of a theoretical model of health ecological, data were obtained from The China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study in the 2018, with a sample consisting of 5,660 rural individuals aged ≥ 60 years. Then, Chi-square test and logistic regression analyses were used for statistical description and inference.
Results
Results indicate that the prevalence of depressive symptoms amongst rural older adults in China is 41.18%. The logistic regression analysis reveals that being female (OR = 1.406, 95% CI: 1.170–1.689), having ≥ 3 non-communicable diseases (OR = 1.736, 95% CI: 1.447–2.082), being not satisfied with spouse (OR = 2.978, 95% CI: 2.304–3.849), and being not at all satisfied with children (OR = 3.640, 95% CI: 1.736–7.635) are significantly correlated with depression.
Conclusions
The prevalence of depression amongst rural Chinese older adults is obviously high. Women and the elderly with chronic diseases need to be focused on. Hence, this study suggests that promoting interactivity amongst family members, increasing their relationship satisfaction, and encouraging active participation in social activities are necessary to further reduce the risk of depression amongst rural Chinese older adults. The government should not only improve the social security system, but also provide financial support and assistance to the elderly in rural China.
The Effect of Reflection Supported Learning of Writing on Students’ Writing Attitude and Writing Achievement Goal Orientations
Authors: Deti Taddese , Ferede Tekile , Tiruneh Dagne
Published: January 2023

The purpose of this study is to investigate how reflection-supported learning of writing affects students' writing attitude and writing achievement goal orientations. First-year natural science students from Jimma University were the study participants. In the study a quasi-experimental research design was used. Consequently, from 25 sections in the first year of natural science, two sections were randomly selected, and a coin was flipped to assign them into control and experimental groups. In the study, a control group of 49 and an experimental group of 50 participants participated. A questionnaire was administered to both groups before and after treatment to measure writing attitudes and writing achievement goals. A one-way between groups Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) was calculated using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS), version 24. The SPSS software was used also to calculate Paired samples t- test to determine the differences of mean scores within each group pre and posttreatment. There was a statistically significant difference between the experimental and control groups on the combined dependent variables, writing attitude and writing achievement goal orientations. Thus, reflection-supported learning of writing has a positive effect on students’ writing attitude and writing achievement goal orientations. Hence, EFL instructors called on to support their teaching of writing with students’ guided reflection on pieces of writing that they produce.
Overexpression of SOX4 indicates poor prognosis and promotes progression of hypopharyngeal carcinoma
Authors: Zhang Xiao-bo , Liu Hui-ting , Liu Yuan-ru , Zuo Fan , Wang Zhi-xia , Ren Qian-qian , Yao Yao , Chen Yan , Gao Qian , Gu Xing-xing , Zhang Zhen-xin
Published: January 2023

Objectives.
Members of the SOX family's subgroup C include SOX4, whose high expression has been linked to carcinogenesis and the development of cancer. However, it is still unclear exactly how SOX4 functions in hypopharyngeal carcinoma (HPC). Our research's objective was to discover how SOX4 affected HPC's development, migration, and prognosis.
Methods.
The expression levels of SOX4 and Ki-67 in tissues were examined by immunohistochemical staining (IHC) to analyze their relationship with prognosis in this study. Changes in SOX4 gene transcript levels and protein expression levels in HPC cancer tissues and adjacent normal tissues were assessed by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and Western blot. Cell biology and molecular assays, as well as in vivo nude mice cancer experiments, were used to evaluate the effects of SOX4 on the viability, proliferation, and migration of Fadu cells in vitro and in vivo.
Results.
In HPC samples, SOX4 was considerably overexpressed, and our investigation demonstrated that this overexpression was connected with differentiation (P = 0.002), clinical stage (P < 0.001), lymph node metastasis (P < 0.001), tumor size (P = 0.006) and poor survival (P = 0.012). Moreover, knockdown of SOX4 can inhibit the proliferation, reduce their migration, and promote the epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) phenotype in HPC cells. SOX4 knockdown inhibited tumor growth in vivo experiments.
Conclusions.
These findings collectively show that SOX4 promotes HPC migration and progression both in vitro and in vivo, and may be a prognostic marker for HPC patients.
Evaluation of electronic patient reported outcome assessment in inpatient cancer care: a feasibility study
Authors: Salm Hanna , Hentschel Leopold , Eichler Martin , Pink Daniel , Fuhrmann Stephan , Kramer Michael , Reichardt Peter , Schuler Markus K.
Published: January 2023

Purpose
Patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures are increasingly important in evaluating medical care. The increased integration of technology within the healthcare systems allows for collection of PROs electronically. The objectives of this study were to (1) implement an electronic assessment of PROs in inpatient cancer care and test its feasibility for patients, as well as (2) determine the equivalence of the paper and electronic assessment.
Methods
The study is an interventional, three-arm and multicenter inpatient trial. A self-administered questionnaire based on validated PRO-measures was applied and completed at admission, one week after, and at discharge. For this analysis - focusing on feasibility of the electronic assessment - two groups will be considered: Group A (intervention arm) received a tablet version while group B (control arm) completed the questionnaire on paper. A feasibility questionnaire, that was adapted from Ashley et al. (1), was administered to group A.
Results
N = 125 patients were recruited in oncology wards. ePRO was feasible to most patients, with 84% preferring the electronic over paper-based assessment. The feasibility questionnaire contained questions that were answered on a scale ranging from ‘1’ (illustrating non achievement) to ‘5’ (illustrating achieving goal). The majority (mean 4.24, SD .99) reported no difficulties handling the electronic tool and found it relatively easy finding time for filling out the questionnaire (mean 4.15, SD 1.05). There were no significant differences between the paper and the electronic assessment regarding the PROs.
Conclusion
Results indicate that electronic PRO assessment in inpatient cancer care is feasible.
Counteracting data bias and class imbalance – towards useful and reliable retinal disease recognition system
Authors: Karanowski Konrad , Chłopowiec Adam Ryszard , Skrzypczak Tomasz , Grzesiuk Mateusz , Chłopowiec Adrian Bendykt , Tabakov Martin
Published: January 2023

Fundus images play a fundamental role in the early screening of eye diseases. On the other hand, as deep learning provides an accurate classification of medical images, it is natural to apply such techniques for fundus images. There are many developments in deep learning for such image data but are often burdened with the same common mistakes. Training data are biased, not diverse and hidden to the public. Algorithms classify diseases, which suitability for screening could be questioned. Therefore, in our research, we consolidate most of the available public data of fundus images (pathological and non-pathological) taking into consideration only image data relevant to the most distressing retinal diseases. Next, we apply some well-known state-of-the-art deep learning models for the classification of the consolidated image data addressing class imbalance problem occurring in the dataset and clinical usage. In a conclusion, we present our classification results for diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and age- related macular degeneration disease, which are urgent problem of ageing populations in developed countries.
Microbial traceability analysis of Chinese Feng-flavour Daqu to explore the influence of environmental microorganisms
Authors: Zhang Yongli , Xu Chen , Xing Gang , Yan Zongke , Chen Yaodong
Published: January 2023

Aims:Analysis the changes of microorganisms during Chinese Feng-flavour Daqu fermentation, and the specific contribution of different environmental factors to Daqu microorganisms.
Methods and Results: High throughput sequencing technology and SourceTracker software were used to analyze the microbial diversity of Feng-flavour Daqu before and after fermentation. 85 fungal and 105 bacterial were detected in the newly pressed Feng-flavour Daqu, while 33 fungal and 50 bacterial in the mature Daqu, and 202 fungal and 555 bacterial in the environmental samples. After fermentation, the microbial community structure of Daqu changed and decreased significantly.
Conclusions: 94.7% of fungi come from raw materials and 1.8% from outdoor ground, 60.95% of bacteria come from indoor ground, 20.44% from raw materials, and 8.98% from tools. By comparing the changes of microorganisms in Daqu before and after fermentation, the microorganisms in mature Daqu may mainly come from not only the enhanced strains but also the environment.
Significance and Impact of the Study: The source of main microorganisms in Feng-flavour Daqu and the influence of environmental factors on the quality of Daqu were clarified, which provided a basis for improving the quality of Feng-flavour Daqu.
The Effect of Polydioxanone Thread and Platelet Rich Plasma in Treating Myofascial Pelvic Pain
Authors: Kim Junam , Yi Kyu-Ho , Jeong Wooju
Published: January 2023

Introduction

Myofascial pelvic pain is a major component of chronic pelvic pain. Effective treatments are available to reduce pain, including myofascial tender point release. The study investigated the safety, feasibility and early outcomes of releasing myofascial tender point by polydioxanone thread and platelet rich plasma treatment in myofascial pelvic pain patients.

Methods

Twenty myofascial pelvic pain patients underwent polydioxanone thread and platelet rich plasma treatment. After autologous platelet rich plasma was injected into the pelvic muscles through vaginal access, a multi-braided polydioxanone thread was inserted into the middle and deep layers of the pelvic muscles. Pre- and post-procedural satisfaction surveys and Female Sexual Function Index scores (FSFI) were obtained. Vaginal manometry measured mobility and pressure of pelvic floor muscles. The patients were followed-up at 3 and 6 months after the procedure.

Results

At 3-months after the procedure, 65% of the patients answered positively on the improvement of symptoms and tenderness, 35% answered no difference, and none answered worsening. At this period, FSFI did not show a significant change in any of the six categories. After six months, however, there was a statistically significant improvement in all the indices except for sexual desire (p < 0.05).

Conclusions

Pelvic floor muscle targeted polydioxanone thread insertion and platelet rich plasma injection is safe and feasible, and may minimize pelvic pain without side effects such as infection or bleeding. It may potentially improve urinary control and sexual function by releasing myofascial tenderness.
Comparison of the Clinical and Prognosis Risk Factors Between Endoscopic Mucosal Dissection/Endoscopic Mucosal Resection and Radical Gastrectomy for Early-Stage Gastric Cancer.
Authors: Dao Qianze , Chen Ke , Zhu Liang , Wang Xiaoshan , Chen Mengding , Wang Jian , Wang Zhengguang
Published: January 2023

Aim: This study aimed to explore the efficacy and safety of endoscopic mucosal dissection/endoscopic mucosal resection (ESD/EMR), laparoscopic-assisted radical gastrectomy (LARG), and open radical gastrectomy (ORG) in early-stage gastric cancer.
Methods: A total of 417 patients with early-stage gastric cancer who were admitted in two hospitals from January 1, 2014 to July 31, 2017 were selected; the patients were divided into the ESD/EMR group (139 cases), LARG group (108 cases), and ORG group (170 cases) according to the operation methods used. The baseline data, economic cost of health, oncologic characteristics, postoperative complications, 5-year overall survival and disease-free survival, and risk factors of death were compared and analyzed.
Results: No significant difference was observed in the baseline data among the three patient groups (P>0.05). The total hospitalization days, operation time, postoperative fluid intake time, hospitalization expenses, and proportion of antibiotic use rate in the ESD/EMR group were lesser than those in other groups (P<0.05). The LARG group has a longer operation time and higher hospitalization expenses compared with the ORG group (P<0.05), but the total hospitalization days, postoperative fluid intake time, proportion of antibiotic use, and lung infection status were consistent. The ESD/EMR group had a lower incidence of incisionsite infection and postoperative abdominal distension compared with that of the surgerygroups (P<0.05). Five patients required radical surgery after undergoing ESD/EMR (all 5 had residual tissue margin cancer), while none of the patients had switched to ORG during LARG. Surgery had advantages over ESD/EMR in terms of lymph node dissection (P<0.05). No significant differences were observed in the postoperative complications such as upper gastrointestinal bleeding, perforation, liver metastasis, pancreatic metastasis, recurrence,incision hernia, and reoperation (P>0.05). The 5-year postoperative survival rates of patients in the three groups were 94.2% (ESD/EMR), 93.5% (LARG), and 94.7% (ORG), respectively, with no significant differences (P>0.05). The binary logistics multivariate analysis showed that the tumor size, invasion depth, vascular invasion, and differentiated degree were risk factors for death in patients with gastric cancer.
Conclusions: No significant difference was observed between ESD/EMR and radical surgery. However, standardized criteria for excluding metastatic lymph nodes should be established to promote ESD/EMR.
Probing densified silica glass structure by molecular oxygen and E’ point defect formation under irradiation
Authors: Ollier Nadège , Reghioua Imène , Cavani Olivier , Mobasher Mahinour , Alessi Antonino , Floch Sylvie Le , Skuja Linards
Published: January 2023

The aim of the paper was to learn more about the structure of densified silica, in particular about the metamict-like silica phase (density = 2.26g/cm3) by examining the radiation-induced formation of E’ point defects and interstitial molecular oxygen. The large amount of the molecular oxygen produced after 11 GGy integrated dose irradiation in the metamict-like phase is destroyed when this one is submitted to electron irradiation. It infers a particular behavior to this silica phase compared to the other densified silica where the amount of O2 is reduced compared to silica. The position and shape of the O2 emission line support the idea that the void configuration of metamict phase is close to silica. A strong correlation exists between the formation of 3-membered rings of Si-O bonds and E’-centers in the densification process between 2.20-and 2.26 density.
On the Distribution of Alexander Polynomials in Certain Families of Closed Braids
Authors: Ray Anwesh
Published: January 2023

We study the distribution of arithmetic invariants associated to Alexander polynomials for certain infinite families of links. The families of links we consider arise from braids on a fixed number of strings. We explore analogies with number theory and the distribution of class groups in various families of number fields, setting out new directions in arithmetic topology and arithmetic statistics.
Lignin-based epoxy composite vitrimers with light-controlled remoldability
Authors: Zheng Yong , Liu Tingting , He Haodong , Lv Zilu , Xu Jiayun , Ding Dayong , Dai Lin , Huang Zhanhua , Si Chuanling
Published: January 2023

Vitrimers open new possibilities in the reprocess of epoxy and other thermosets. However, direct heating is not practical on many occasions, and the waste vitrimers would cause great harm to the environment. In this work, we propose to use kraft lignin (KL) to fabricate vitrimer with reprocessability and environmental friendliness. The lignin-based epoxy vitrimer was fabricated by blending epoxy-modified KL and poly(ethylene glycol) bis(carboxymethyl) ether (PEG-DCM). The obtained lignin-based epoxy vitrimer (EML/PEG-DCM) showed good light-to-heat capability. Under the infrared radiation (808 nm, 1 W cm-2) for only 30 s, the surface temperature of EML/PEG-DCM was over ∼148 °C, and reached the maximum at ∼231 °C for 5 min. This good light-to-heat effect can activate the dynamic 3D crosslinking networks and repair the vitrimer. The energy consumption of the light-controlled remolding process is only one-thousandth of the conventional hot-press. This study not only helps to explore the natural characteristics of lignins, promoting their functional and intelligent utilization but also provides a new raw material platform for the development of green vitrimer materials.
The interplay between malaria vectors and human activity accounts for high residual malaria transmission in a Burkina Faso village with universal ITN coverage
Authors: Perugini Eleonora , Guelbeogo Wamdaogo Moussa , Guglielmo Federica , Poggi Cristiana , Gabrieli Eugenio , Ranson Hilary , Torre Alessandra della , Pombi Marco
Published: January 2023

Background: Mosquito and human behaviour interaction is a key determinant of the maximum level of protection against malaria that can be provided by insecticide treated nets (ITNs). Nevertheless, scant literature focuses on this interaction, overlooking a fundamental factor for efficient malaria control. This study aims to estimate malaria transmission risk in a Burkina Faso village by integrating vector biting rhythms with some key information about human habits.
Methods: Indoors/outdoors Human Landing Catches were conducted for 16 hours (16:00-08:00) during 8 nights (September 2020) in Goden village. A survey about net usage and sleeping patterns was submitted to half the households (October-December 2020). A subsample of A. gambiae s.l. collected specimens was molecularly processed for: species identification, Plasmodium detection from head-thoraxes, and L1014F pyrethroid-resistance allele genotyping. Hourly mosquito abundance was statistically assessed by GLM/GAM and the entomological inoculation rate (EIR) was corrected for the actual ITN usage retrieved from the questionnaire.
Results: Malaria transmission was mainly driven by Anopheles coluzzii (68.7%), followed by Anopheles arabiensis (26.2%). The overall sporozoite rate was 2%, and L1014F estimated frequency of 0.68 (N=1,070 out of 15,201 A. gambiae s.l. collected). No major shift in mosquito biting rhythms in response to ITN, nor differences between indoor and outdoor, were detected. Impressive high biting pressure (mean 30.3 mosquitoes/person/hour) was exerted from 20:00 to 06:00 with a peak at 4:00. Human survey revealed that nearly all inhabitants were awake before 20:00 and after 7:00 and at least 8.7% had no access to bednets. Adjusting for anthropological data, the EIR dropped from 6.7 to 1.2 infective bites/person/16h. In a scenario of full net coverage and accounting only for the human sleeping patterns, the daily malaria transmission risk not targetable by ITNs was 0.69 infective bites.
Conclusions: The high mosquito densities and the interplay between human/vector activities means that an estimated 10% of residual malaria transmission cannot be prevented by ITNs in the village. Locally-tailored studies, as the current one, are essential to explore the heterogeneity of human exposure to infective bites and, by consequence, to instruct the adoption of new vector control tools strengthening individual and community protection.
Fertility status and associated factors among the reproductive age group in Ethiopia: Mini Demographic and Health Survey 2019
Authors: Damete Dereje Derbew , Baraki Semere Gebremariam
Published: January 2023

Background: Fertility status is the possibility to produce offspring through reproduction following the onset of reproductive age. There are a number of environmental and biological factors that influence a person's reproductive behavior when viewed from a demographic perspective, which serve to mediate the impact of culture, society, economic conditions, living standards, and other similar background factors. The aim of this study was to determine factors associated with fertility status among the reproductive age group.
Methods: The data for this study was extracted from Ethiopia mini demographic and health survey 2019. The study involved 8885 household with reproductive age group in a weighted sample. The analysis was performed using STATA version 16 software. Using sampling weights for descriptive statistics and complex sample designs for inferential statistics, backward stepwise elimination was manually applied. Finally, statistical significance declared at the level of p-value < 0.05.
Result: The prevalence of fertility status in Ethiopia was observed to be 44.7%. In multivariate analysis the household female (AOR = 0.465, 95% CI: 0.418-0.517) had lower odds of fertility status in comparison to household male. The odds of fertility status were higher among the catholic religion as compared to the orthodox religion, (AOR = 1.615, 95% CI: 1.408-1.853). The odds of fertility status were lower in the Addis Ababa region in comparison to the Tigray region (AOR = 0.636, 95% CI: 0.495-0.818).
Fertility status odds were lower among those who could read only parts of the sentence literacy in comparison to those who were unable to read at all (AOR = 0.736, 95% CI: 0.623-0.869). The odds of fertility status were lower among primary educational levels as compared to no educational levels (AOR = 0.721, 95% CI: 0.632-0.823).
Regarding the household wealth index, the richest-wealth index (AOR = 0.832, 95% CI: 0.689-1.004) had lower odds of fertility status when compared with children from the poorest-wealth index. There was a lower odds of fertility status for electricity users compared with wood charcoal users using electricity as a cooking fuel (AOR = 0.825, 95% CI: 0.681-0.999). The odds of fertility status were higher among those with no toilet facility than those with pit latrines (AOR = 1.145, 95% CI: 1.009-1.298).
Conclusion: The high fertility status and population growth observed in this study. It shows significantly associated with household sex, region, literacy, educational level, religion, wealth index, cooking fuel, and toilet facility had a statistically significant association with fertility status. There are many factors contributing to economic development, including access to education and media, as well as job opportunities in modern economic sectors. In addition to this, it is important to develop and maintain access of family planning services.
Groundnut grain yield responses to inoculation with Bradyrhizobium sp. and cyanobacteria
Authors: Andrade Diva Souza , Lovato Gisele Milani , Kaschuk Glaciela , Hungria Mariangela
Published: January 2023

Groundnut can obtain N from the N2 fixation in the symbiosis with rhizobia and inoculation with selected strains can improve grain yields. We report the results from four field experiments, aiming to verify if microbial inoculants may improve groundnut performance, through the effects of single inoculation with Bradyrhizobium sp. (SEMIA6144), of co-inoculation Arthrospira platensis IPR7059 or Synechocystis sp. IPR7061, and of the N fertilization with 100 kg ha− 1 of N on plant growth, nodulation, N accumulated in tissues, grain protein, and grain yield. There were no effects of inoculation treatments and N-fertilizer on shoot and root dry weights. In clayey soil, co-inoculation with Bradyrhizobium sp. and cyanobacteria increased grain productivity by an average of 19% compared to the non-inoculated control. In this clayey soil with higher P content, regardless of whether co-inoculated with Bradyrhizobium sp. and cyanobacteria or single inoculated, grain productivity was 16% higher on average compared to nitrogen fertilizer. In conclusion, it was clear that success of rhizobia inoculation in groundnut is dependent on the soil, probably due to P limitation, and weather conditions.
Magnetospirillum magneticum triggers apoptotic pathways in human breast cancer cells
Authors: Menghini Stefano , Vizovisek Matej , Enders Jonathas , Schuerle Simone
Published: January 2023

The use of bacteria in cancer immunotherapy has the potential to bypass many shortcomings of conventional treatments. The ability of anaerobic bacteria to preferentially accumulate and replicate in hypoxic regions of solid tumors, as a consequence of bacterial metabolic needs, is particularly advantageous and key to boosting their immunostimulatory therapeutic actions in situ. While several of these bacterial traits are well-studied, little is known about their competition for nutrients and its effect on cancer cells which could serve as another potent and innate antineoplastic action. Here we explored the nutrient-scavenging abilities of a particular species of bacteria, Magnetospirillum magneticum, which has been studied as a potential new class of bacteria for magnetically targeted bacterial cancer therapy. We investigated their influence on the tumor microenvironment and studied the consequential metabolic effects exerted on cancer cells. To do so, we established an in vitro co-culture system consisting of the strain AMB-1 incubated under hypoxic conditions with human breast cancer cells. We first quantified the number of viable cells after incubation with magnetotactic bacteria demonstrating a lower rate of cellular proliferation that correlated with increasing bacteria-to-cancer-cells ratio. Further experiments showed increasing populations of apoptotic cells when cancer cells were incubated with AMB-1 over a period of 24h. Analysis of the metabolic effects induced by bacteria revealed an increase in the activation of executioner caspases as well as changes in levels of apoptosis-related proteins. Finally, the level of several human apoptosis-related proteins was investigated, confirming a bacteria-dependent triggering of apoptotic pathways in breast cancer cells. Overall, our findings indicate that magnetotactic bacteria could act as self-replicating iron-chelating agents that interfere with proliferation and lead to increased apoptosis of cancer cells. This bacterial feature could serve as an additional antineoplastic mechanism to reinforce current bacterial cancer therapies.
CCL2 is required for initiation but not persistence of HIV infection mediated neurocognitive disease in mice
Authors: Kim Boe-Hyun , Hadas Eran , Kelschenbach Jennifer , Chao Wei , Gu Chao-Jiang , Potash Mary Jane , Volsky David
Published: January 2023

HIV enters the brain within days of infection causing neurocognitive impairment (NCI) in up to half of infected people despite suppressive antiretroviral therapy. The virus is believed to enter the brain in infected monocytes through chemotaxis to the major monocyte chemokine, CCL2, but direct demonstration of the role of CCL2 in NCI pathogenesis in vivo is lacking. We addressed this question during infection of conventional or CCL2 knockout mice with EcoHIV in which NCI can be verified in behavioral tests. NCI develops gradually during EcoHIV infection of mice, with chronic cognitive disease starting 25 days after infection. CCL2 knockout mice infected by intraperitoneal injection of virus failed to develop brain infection and NCI. However, when EcoHIV was directly injected into the brain, CCL2 knockout mice developed NCI. Knockout of CCL2 or its principal receptor, CCR2, slightly reduced macrophage infection in culture. Treatment of mice prior to and during EcoHIV infection with the CCL2 transcriptional inhibitor, bindarit, prevented brain infection and NCI, and reduced macrophage infection. In contrast, bindarit treatment of mice four weeks after infection affected neither brain virus burden nor NCI, suggesting that once established, brain disease was independent of CCL2. Our results indicate that HIV enters the brain mainly through infected monocytes but that resident brain cells are sufficient to maintain NCI. A conclusion from these findings is that NCI therapy must act within the brain. .
Development and Validation of a Machine Learning Algorithm for Problematic Menopause in the Canadian Primary Care Sentinel Surveillance Network (CPCSSN)
Authors: Pham Anh N.Q. , Cummings Michael , Yuksel Nese , Sydora Beate , Williamson Tyler , Garies Stephanie , Pilling Russell , Ross Sue
Published: January 2023

Background
Menopause is a normal transition in a women’s life. For some women, it is a stage without significant difficulties; for others, menopause symptoms can severely affect their quality of life. Identifying problematic menopause is essential to study the condition and to improve quality of care. This study developed and validated a case definition for problem menopause using Canadian primary care electronic medical records.
Methods
We used data from the Canadian Primary Care Sentinel Surveillance Network (CPCSSN). A case definition was developed using a reference set created by expert reviewers and a machine learning approach was applied to produce a case definition. Methods to select the most appropriate features and to re-balance our cohort were also applied.
Results
We randomly selected 2,776 women aged 45–60 for this analysis. An algorithm of two occurrences of ICD-9-CM code 627 in diagnosis fields within 24 months OR one occurrence of ATC code G03CA in medication fields detected problem menopause. This definition produced sensitivity 81.5% (95%CI 76.3%-85.9%), specificity of 93.5% (95%CI 91.9%-94.8%), positive predicted value 73.8% (95%CI 68.3%-78.6%), and negative predicted value 95.7% (95%CI 94.4%-96.8%).
Conclusion
Our case definition for problem menopause is useful for epidemiological study and demonstrated strong validity metrics. This case definition will help inform future studies exploring management of menopause in primary care settings.
The association between parental risks and childhood development: findings from a community-based survey in East China
Authors: Zheng Shuangshuang , Hua Mengdi , Bai Guannan , He Xinyu , Fang Jianing , Zhu Bingquan , Chen Weijun , Dong Wenhong , Wang Lei , Huang Xiaona , Wang Huishan , Shao Jie
Published: January 2023

Background: Nurturing care is necessary for optimal early childhood development. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of parental risks in rural East China and assess its impacts on the early neurodevelopment of children younger than 3 years old.
Methods: A community-based cross-sectional survey was conducted from December 2019 to January 2020 among children aged 0 to 3 years old and their caregivers in four counties of Zhejiang Province, who participated the Early Childhood Development Program (ECD) of China. Face-to-face interviews with the major caregivers were conducted by local child health care providers. Demographic information of the child and caregiver were collected by questionnaire. Parental risk screening was performed for each child through Parental Risk Checklist designed by ECD programme. The Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ) was used to identify children with potential developmental delays. Multinomial logistic regression model and linear trend test were applied to assess the association between parental risks and suspected developmental delays.
Results:Among 3852 children surveyed, the percentage of children identified with at least one parental risk was 46.70%. Prevalence of children with at least one domain suspected developmental delays was 9.01% according to ASQ. Parental risk was statistically significantly associated with the overall suspected developmental delay of children aged 0-3 years old (Odd Ratio (OR): 1.36; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.08, 1.72; P=0.010) after adjusting potential confounders. Respectively, children exposed to 3 or more parental risks had 2.59, 5.76, 3.95, and 2.84 times higher risk of the suspected developmental delay in overall ASQ, communication, problem-solving and personal-social domain than children without any parental risk (P values <0.05). The linear trend tests found that the more parental risk factors, the higher possibility of developmental delay (P values <0.05).
Conclusions: Parental risks for children under age 3 are still existing and prevalent in rural East China, which may increase children’s risk of developmental delays. The parental risk screening can be used to recognize poor nurturing care in primary health care settings. Targeted interventions are warranted to improve the nurturing care for optimal early childhood development.
Automatic Burst Detection in Solar Radio Spectrograms using Deep Learning: deARCE method
Authors: Gordo Javier Bussons , Ruiz Mario Fernández , Mateo Manuel Prieto , Díaz Jorge Alvarado , O Francisco Chávez de la , Hidalgo J. Ignacio , Monstein Christian
Published: January 2023

We present in detail an automatic radio burst detection system, based on the AlexNet convolutional neural network, for use with any kind of solar spectrograms. A full methodology for model training, performance evaluation and feedback to the model generator has been developed with special emphasis on: i) robustness tests against stochastic and overfit effects; ii) specific metrics adapted to the imbalanced nature of the solar burst scenario; iii) tunable parameters for probability threshold optimization; iv) burst coincidence cross match among e-Callisto stations and with external observatories (NOAA-SWPC). The resulting neural network configuration has been designed to accept data from observatories other than e-Callisto --either ground- or satellite-based. Typical False Negative and False Positive Scores in single-observatory mode are, respectively, in the 10--16\% and 6--8\% ranges, which improve further in cross-match mode. This mode includes new services (deARCE, Xmatch) allowing the end scientist to check at a glance if a solar radio burst has taken place with a high level of confidence.
Implementation of an mHealth intervention to increase adherence to triage among HPV-positive women with HPV - self-collection (ATICA study): post-implementation evaluation - women's perspective
Authors: Paolino Melisa , Antelo Victoria Sanchez , Kohler Racquel , Viswanath Kasisomayajula , Arrossi Silvina
Published: January 2023

BACKGROUND
Low adherence to triage after positive screening is a widespread problem for cervical cancer screening programs in Low- and Middle-income Countries. Adhering to cytology-based triage can be challenging, especially among women with self-collected tests. SMS-based interventions are accepted by women and can increase screening uptake. ATICA study was an effectiveness-implementation hybrid type I trial, combining a cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT) with a mixed-methods approach involving quantitative and qualitative evaluations of the implementation. Although ATICA RCT provided evidence regarding the effectiveness of SMS-based intervention, less is known about its acceptability, relevance, and usefulness from the women´s perspective.
METHODS
We carried out a cross-sectional based on a structured questionnaire among HPV-positive women who had participated in the ATICA's intervention group. We measured acceptability, appropriateness, and message content comprehension. Also, we evaluated if the SMS message was considered a cue to encourage women to pick up their HPV test results and promote the triage.
RESULTS
370 HPV-positive women were interviewed. 97.2% of women showed high acceptability of SMS messages. We found higher levels of agreement in all appropriateness dimensions. More than 77% of women showed high comprehension of the content. 76.1% of women who received at least one SMS message went to the health center to pick up their results. Among them, 90.5% mentioned that the SMS message had influenced them to go. We found high acceptability, appropriateness, and comprehension of the SMS message among HPV-positive women with no significant differences between women with vs. without triage Pap at day 60 after receiving the SMS messages.
CONCLUSION
The intervention was an appropriate channel to be informed about HPV test results availability and as a useful cue to go to the health center to pick up results. These results indicate that the implementation of the intervention did not encounter barriers associated with the characteristics of the SMS message itself, suggesting the existence of other obstacles to triage adherence. Our results contributed to a better understanding of the effectiveness achieved in ATICA RCT and provided evidence that could be useful to the scaling up of the intervention in similar settings.
Federal policy discourses, local agricultural knowledge, and regenerating forest dynamics in Mexico’s Mesoamerican Biological Corridor
Authors: Rader Alana M. , Schmook Birgit , Schneider Laura C. , Leichenko Robin , Castelar Jorge
Published: January 2023

Mexico’s neoliberal agrarian policies incentivize intensification, privatization, and field rotation regulations, often by stating that these practices conserve forest from inefficient land use. In Mexico’s Mesoamerican Biological Corridor, this policy discourse is interpreted by smallholders and preconditions land use decisions and subsequent local agriculture and forest cover configurations. Examining how discourses align with the reality of local land use and resulting agriculture-forest configurations is critical to understand the socio-ecological tradeoffs of implementing policies in local forests. We examine how one community’s understanding of land use and forest cover tradeoffs relate to the discourse of Mexico’s latest agrarian policy, Sembrando Vida (SV), using in-depth discourse network analysis. We show that while smallholders participate in multiple governmental programs, they interpret program policies based on their own independent land use histories and experiences. We shed light on how misalignments between policy aims, conservation discourses, and smallholder interpretations have material impacts on tropical forests.
Neural Waves and Short Term Memory in a Neural Net Model
Authors: Selesnick Stephen
Published: January 2023

We show that recognizable neural waveforms are reproduced in the model described in previous work. In so doing we reproduce close matches to certain observed, though filtered, EEG-like measurements in closed mathematical form, to good approximations. Such neural waves represent the responses of individual networks to external and endogenous inputs and are presumably the carriers of the information used to perform computations in actual brains, which are complexes of interconnected networks. Then we apply these findings to a question arising in short term memory processing in humans.
Development of a Dynamical Statistical Analog Ensemble Forecast Model for Landfalling Typhoon Disasters
Authors: Wu Caiming , Ren Fumin , Zhang Da-Lin , Zhu Jing , McBride John Leonard , Chen Yuxu
Published: January 2023

In this report, the development of a Dynamical Statistical Analog Ensemble Forecast model for landfalling typhoon disasters (LTDs) and some applications over coastal China are described. This model consists of the following four elements: i) obtaining the forecast track of a target landfalling typhoon, ii) constructing its generalized initial value (GIV), iii) identifying its analogs based on the GIV, and iv) assembling typhoon disasters of the analogs. Typhoon track, intensity, and landfall date are introduced in GIV at this early development stage. The pre-assessment results show that the mean threat scores of two important damage levels of LTDs reach 0.48 and 0.55, respectively. Of significance is that most of the damage occurs near the typhoon centers around the time of landfall. These results indicate the promising performance of the model in capturing the main damage characteristics of typhoon disasters, which would help coastal community mitigate damage from destructive typhoons.
Study on Numerical Simulation Uplift of Bridge pile Foundation
Authors: Zhanhui Qu , Guozheng Sun , Jiangbo Xu , Heping Wang , Yifan Liu , Zemin Han , Haoyu Tang
Published: January 2023

A bridge is located in a complex area of engineering geological conditions. It is found that some pile foundations of the bridge have been uplifted to varying degrees, up to 309mm, which seriously affects the operation and driving safety of the bridge. Based on this, through theoretical analysis and Plaxis3D finite element software simulation, the cause mechanism of the bridge pile foundation arch is analyzed, and the influence of ground stress and goaf on the bridge pile foundation under different working conditions is studied. The results show that for the bridge in the valley area, the uplift of the bridge pile foundation caused by the equivalent ground stress is the largest, reaching about 300mm; the uplift of non-bridge area in goaf is greater than that of bridge pile foundation; it can be seen that the ground stress is the main reason for the arching of the bridge pile foundation.
Graft Signal and Clinical Outcomes of Single-bundle Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction and Double-bundle ACLR: The Different Effects Related with Posterior Tibial Slope
Authors: Huang Xi-Meng , Liu Yang , Mao Zi-Mu , Wang Xin-Jie , Wang Hai-Jun , Lin Lin , Li Nan , Wang Jian , Yu Jia-Kuo
Published: January 2023

Background:The effects of single-bundle and double-bundle ACL reconstruction are still controversial and patients with different anatomy may need to choose different surgery. The aim of the study was to assess the relationship between graft maturation and clinical outcomes, identify the risk factors, and compare the results after single/double-bundle ACL reconstruction.Methods:A single-surgeon series of 147 patients with a median follow-up of 149.7 months (range, 144-189 months) underwent isolated primary ACL reconstruction (SB-ACLR group: n = 74; DB-ACLR group: n = 73). Clinical outcomes included the pivot shift test, IKDC, Lysholm, and Tegner scores. Signal intensity (SI) of the graft, and bone anatomy were also assessed.Results:Significant correlations between graft SI and last clinical outcomes were shown.Lateral tibial slope (LTS) (β = 0.09) and medial tibial slope (MTS) (β = 0.09), or their sum (STS) greater than 12° (β = 1.16) were determined as the risk factors of graft SI among SB-ACLR group patients. No independent risk factor for graft SI of patients in the DB-ACLR group was observed. Compared to the other three groups, the STS > 12° group in SB-ACLR showed significant differences in the clinical outcomes.Conclusions:Late graft SI is negatively correlated with the clinical outcomes. It might be affected by specific anatomic features in patients with SB-ACLR, including medial tibial slope, lateral tibial slope, and their sum, and mediated the effect on clinical outcomes. Patients with STS > 12° may consider choosing DB-ACLR to expect better long-term knee function after surgery.Trial registration:No. IRB00006761-2011097 and NCT03984474.Level of Evidence:Retrospective Study, Level III.
The biomechanical effects of bimaxillary osteotomies to the patients with mandibular retraction under incisal clenching
Authors: Luo Haotian , Teng Haidong , Chong Desmond Y. R. , Liu Zhan
Published: January 2023

The purpose of this study is to investigate the biomechanical effect of bimaxillary osteotomies on patients with mandibular retraction. Mandibular retraction, as a typical maxillofacial deformity, and has great adverse effects on TMJ. Bimaxillary osteotomies are widely used to correct symptoms of mandibular retraction. It is necessary to understand the effect of surgery on temporomandibular disc (TMJ). Five patients with mandibular retraction and ten asymptomatic subjects were involved in this study. And finite element models of preoperative, postoperative and control group were constructed based on the CT data. Nine sets of concentrate forces were used to simulate the muscle effect and contact method was used to simulate the interaction within the TMJs and dentitions. The results showed that bimaxillary osteotomies could effectively improve the maxillofacial morphology and alleviate the overload in TMJ. And the facial asymmetry and right chewing side preference could cause imbalanced stress distributions in the TMJs and interfere the surgical treatment.
Visual quality and safety monitoring system for human-robot cooperation
Authors: Kozamernik Nejc , Zaletelj Janez , Košir Andrej , Suligoj Filip , Bracun Drago
Published: January 2023

Efficient workspace awareness is critical for improved interaction in cooperative and collaborative robotics applications. In addition to safety and control aspects, quality-related tasks such as the monitoring of manual activities and the final quality assessment of the results are also required. In this context, a visual quality and safety monitoring system is developed and evaluated. The system integrates close-up observation of manual activities and posture monitoring. A compact single-camera stereo vision system and a time-of-flight depth camera are used to minimize the interference of the sensors with the operator and the workplace. Data processing is based on a deep learning to detect classes related to quality and safety aspects. The operation of the system is evaluated while monitoring a human-robot manual assembly task. The results show that the proposed system ensures a high level of safety, provides reliable visual feedback to the operator on errors in the assembly process, and inspects the finished assembly with a low critical error rate.
Efficient Approximate Computing Unit Architecture for Satellite Images
Authors: A AZHAGU JAISUDHAN PAZHANI
Published: January 2023

Approximate computing plays a significant role in signal processing and image processing applications. Radix-8 approximate novel booth multiplier (R8ANBM) based on approximate novel booth encoder (ANBE) is proposed in this paper to validate approximate computing. The proposed design is synthesized and simulated in Xilinx ISE 13.2. The experimental results show that the proposed multiplier performs better in terms area, speed and energy consumption. The proposed R8ANBE reduced the number of 4 input LUTs by 23.07%, 17.94%, 19.87%, 16.66%, 13.46%, 8.33%, 12.82%, 9.61%, 12.17% and number of occupied slices by 22.33%, 30.09%, 25.24%, 29.12%, 14.56%, 17.47%, 13.59%, 12.62%, 17.47% when compared with the existing techniques such as conventional booth multiplier, R4ABM1, RAD64, ABM1, HLR-BM1, HLR-BM2, R8ABM1, R8ABM2, R8ABM3 respectively. It achieved the accuracy as 67.3% which is higher than exisitng approximate booth multipliers. The proposed R8ANBM is applied to image sharpening applications and the performances are analyzed in terms of error metrics such as ralative mean error distance, normalized mean error distance and peak signal to noise ratio. The above proposed system was implemented using 45nanometer technology library. With applications in low-power CMOS design, quantum computing, optical information processing, DNA computing, bioinformatics, and nanotechnology, there is an increasing interest in power minimization.