bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Evolutionary dynamics of pro-inflammatory caspases in primates and rodents
Authors: Holland Mische , Rutkowski Rachel , Levin Tera
Published: June 2024

Caspase-1 and related proteases are key players in inflammation and innate immunity. Here, we characterize the evolutionary history of caspase-1 and its close relatives across 19 primates and 21 rodents, focusing on differences that may cause discrepancies between humans and animal studies. While caspase-1 has been retained in all these taxa, other members of the caspase-1 subfamily (caspase-4, -5, -11, -12, and CARD16, 17, and 18) each have unique evolutionary trajectories. Caspase-4 is found across simian primates, whereas we identified multiple pseudogenization and gene loss events in caspase-5, caspase-11, and the CARDs. Because caspases-4 and -11 are both key players in the non-canonical inflammasome pathway, we expected that these proteins would be likely to evolve rapidly. Instead, we found that these two proteins are largely conserved, whereas caspase-4s close paralog, caspase-5, showed significant indications of positive selection, as did primate caspase-1. Caspase-12 is a non-functional pseudogene in humans. We find this extends across most primates, although many rodents and some primates retain an intact, and likely functional, caspase-12. In mouse laboratory lines, we found that 50% of common strains carry non-synonymous variants that may impact the functions of caspase-11 and -12, and therefore recommend specific strains to be used (and avoided). Finally, unlike rodents, primate caspases have undergone repeated rounds of gene conversion, duplication, and loss leading to a highly dynamic pro-inflammatory caspase repertoire. Thus we uncovered many differences in the evolution of primate and rodent pro-inflammatory caspases, and discuss the potential implications of this history for caspase gene functions.
Scaling text de-identification using locally augmented ensembles
Authors: Murugadoss Karthik , Killamsetty Saivikas , Doddahonnaiah Deeksha , Iyer Nakul , Pencina Michael , Ferranti Jeffrey , Halamka John , Malin Bradley A. , Ardhanari Sankar
Published: June 2024

The natural language text in electronic health records (EHRs), such as clinical notes, often contains information that is not captured elsewhere (e.g., degree of disease progression and responsiveness to treatment) and, thus, is invaluable for downstream clinical analysis. However, to make such data available for broader research purposes, in the United States, personally identifiable information (PII) is typically removed from the EHR in accordance with the Privacy Rule of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Automated de-identification systems that mimic human accuracy in identifier detection can enable access, at scale, to more diverse de-identified data sets thereby fostering robust findings in medical research to advance patient care.

The best performing of such systems employ language models that require time and effort for retraining or fine tuning for newer datasets to achieve consistent results and revalidation on older datasets. Hence, there is a need to adapt text de-identification methods to datasets across health institutions. Given the success of foundational large language models (LLMs), such as ChatGPT, in a wide array of natural language processing (NLP) tasks, they seem a natural fit for identifying PII across varied datasets.

In this paper, we introduce locally augmented ensembles, which adapt an existing PII detection ensemble method trained at one health institution to others by using institution-specific dictionaries to capture location specific PII and recover medically relevant information that was previously misclassified as PII. We augment an ensemble model created at Mayo Clinic and test it on a dataset of 15,716 clinical notes at Duke University Health System. We further compare the task specific fine tuned ensemble against LLM based prompt engineering solutions on the 2014 i2b2 and 2003 CoNLL NER datasets for prediction accuracy, speed and cost.

On the Duke notes, our approach achieves increased recall and precision of 0.996 and 0.982 respectively compared to 0.989 and 0.979 respectively without the augmentation. Our results indicate that LLMs may require significant prompt engineering effort to reach the levels attained by ensemble approaches. Further, given the current state of technology, they are at least 3 times slower and 5 times more expensive to operate than the ensemble approach.
PCCA variant rs16957301 is a novel AKI risk genotype-specific for patients who receive ICI treatment: Real-world evidence from All of Us cohort
Authors: Wang Yanfei , Xiong Chenxi , Yu Weifeng , Zhou Minghao , Shugg Tyler A. , Hsu Fang-Chi , Eadon Michael T. , Su Jing , Song Qianqian
Published: June 2024

Background

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) enhance the immune system’s ability to target and destroy cancer cells by blocking inhibitory pathways. Despite their efficacy, these treatments can trigger immune-related adverse events (irAEs), such as acute kidney injury (ICI-AKI), complicating patient management. The genetic predispositions to ICI-AKI are not well understood, necessitating comprehensive genomic studies to identify risk factors and improve therapeutic strategies.

Objective

To identify genetic predispositions for ICI-AKI using large-scale real-world data.

Methods

A systematic literature search led to 14 candidate variants related to irAEs. We performed a candidate variant association study with these 14 variants using the All of Us cohort (AoU, v7, cutoff date: 7/1/2022). A cohort for cancer patients receiving ICI and a general cohort were established to evaluate ICI-AKI risk. Logistic regression, adjusted for sex, was used to evaluate the impact of each candidate genotype, separately for self-reported and ancestry-estimated race. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis assessed the genetic effects on AKI-free survival.

Results

The ICI cohort (n=414) showed a one-year AKI incidence rate of 23.2%, significantly higher than the general cohort (6.5%, n=213,282). The rs16957301 variant (chr13:100324308, T>C) in the PCCA gene was a significant risk genotype for ICI-AKI among self-reported Caucasians (Beta=0.93, Bonferroni-corrected P-value=0.047) and ancestry estimated Caucasians (Beta = 0.94, Bonferroni-corrected P-value=0.044). Self-reported Caucasians with the rs16957301 risk genotypes (TC/CC) developed AKI significantly earlier (3.6 months) compared to the reference genotype (TT, 7.0 months, log-rank P=0.04). Consistent results were found in ancestry-estimated Caucasians. This variant did not present significant AKI risks in the general cohort (Beta: -0.008–0.035, FDR: 0.75–0.99).

Conclusion

Real-world evidence from the All of Us cohort suggests that, in Caucasians, PCCA variant rs16957301 is a novel AKI risk genotype specific to ICI treatment. Additional studies are warranted to validate rs16957301 as risk marker for AKI in Caucasian patients treated with ICIs and to assess its risk in other ancestral populations.
Added value of cell-free DNA over clinical and ultrasound information for diagnosing ovarian cancer
Authors: Vanderstichele Adriaan , Ceusters Jolien , Fischerova Daniela , Testa Antonia , Froyman Wouter , Landolfo Chiara , Heremans Ruben , Moro Francesca , Van Rompuy Anne-Sophie , Baert Thaïs , Van Nieuwenhuysen Els , Van Gorp Toon , Vergote Ignace , Busschaert Pieter , Venken Tom , Lambrechts Diether , Vermeesch Joris Robert , Bourne Tom , Coosemans An , Van Calster Ben , Timmerman Dirk
Published: June 2024

Background

We previously proposed two cfDNA-based scores (genome-wide z-score and nucleosome score) as candidate non-invasive biomarkers to further improve pre-surgical diagnosis of ovarian malignancy. We aimed to investigate the added value of these cfDNA-based scores to the predictors of the ADNEX model (Assessment of Different NEoplasias in the adnexa) to estimate the risk of ovarian malignancy.

Methods

526 patients with an adnexal mass scheduled for surgery were consecutively recruited in three oncology referral centers. cfDNA-based scores were calculated in pre-operative plasma samples. Logistic regression models were fitted for ADNEX predictors alone and after adding cfDNA scores. We reported likelihood ratio tests, the area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic curve (AUC), sensitivity, specificity, and Net Benefit for thresholds between 5% and 40%.

Results

The study included 272 benign, 86 borderline, 36 stage I invasive, 113 stage II-IV invasive, and 19 secondary metastatic tumors. The likelihood ratio tests for adding the cfDNA variables to the ADNEX model were statistically significant (p<0.001 for ADNEX without CA125, p=0.001 for ADNEX with CA125). The accompanying increases in AUC were 0.013 and 0.003. Net Benefit, sensitivity and specificity were similar for all models. The increase in Net Benefit at the recommended 10% threshold estimated risk of malignancy was 0.0017 and 0.0020, respectively. According to these results, adding cfDNA markers required at least 453 patients per additional true positive.

Conclusion

Although statistically significant, the addition of the cfDNA scores to the ADNEX model do not improve the ADNEX model in a clinically meaningful way.
Decreased central corpus callosum volume is associated with repetitive behaviours and motor difficulties in autistic children
Authors: Scaccabarozzi Gaia , Peruzzo Denis , Arrigoni Filippo , Ceccarelli Silvia Busti , Villa Laura , Mani Elisa , Maggioni Eleonora , Brambilla Paolo , Nobile Maria , Molteni Massimo , Crippa Alessandro
Published: June 2024

Along with the core characteristics of the condition, autistic individuals commonly experience motor coordination difficulties, potentially related to a reduced cortical connectivity. Being the largest human commissure, the corpus callosum (CC) plays an essential role in interhemispheric connectivity and has been often involved among autistic atypicalities. This study aimed to investigate the volumes of corpus callosum subregions in a group of drug-naïve, autistic children and to explore its possible associations with both core features and motor coordination skills. Thirty-five autistic children (2.5-12 years) were compared with a group of 35 closely IQ-matched, non-autistic peers. CC was identified and segmented into five subregions using Freesurfer. Callosal volumes were compared between the two groups and correlated with parental ratings of core autistic features as assessed by the Social Responsiveness Scale and with motor features as assessed by the Developmental Coordination Disorder Questionnaire. Associations between CC volume and Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule scores were also explored in autistic participants. Autistic children showed a reduced volume of the central segment of the CC, in the context of a comparable CC total volume. This reduction appeared to be correlated with symptoms of restricted and repetitive behaviours in autistic children, and to parental ratings of autistic mannerisms and motor skills across participants. These findings expand the current knowledge about the neural mechanisms underlying autism, suggesting that the reduced connectivity through the CC might have implications for both core and motor features of autistic individuals.

Lay Summary

Differences in brain development have been widely outlined in autism. Exploring brain scans of 35 autistic and non-autistic children aged 2.5-12 years and closely matched for cognitive functioning, we found that the central part of the corpus callosum was smaller for the autistic group. This reduction was associated with the level of restricted and repetitive behaviours in autistic children, and to parental ratings of autistic mannerisms and motor coordination skills across participants. This work offers new empirical evidence that interhemispheric connectivity is atypical in autism and that the corpus callosum can be involved in the manifestation of both core and motor characteristics of autistic children.
Competition of decoherence and quantum speed limits for quantum-gate fidelity in the Jaynes-Cummings model
Authors: Pratapsi Sagar Silva , Buffoni Lorenzo , Gherardini Stefano
Published: June 2024

Quantum computers are operated by external driving fields, such as lasers, microwaves, or transmission lines, that execute logical operations on multiqubit registers, leaving the system in a pure state. However, the drive and the logical system might become correlated in such a way that, after tracing out the degrees of freedom of the driving field, the output state will not be pure. Previous works have pointed out that the resulting error scales inversely with the energy of the drive, thus imposing a limit on the energy efficiency of quantum computing. In this study, focusing on the Jaynes-Cummings model, we show how the same scaling can be seen as a consequence of two competing phenomena: the entanglement-induced error, which grows with time, and a minimal time for computation imposed by quantum speed limits. This evidence is made possible by quantifying, at any time, the computation error via the spectral radius associated with the density operator of the logical qubit. Moreover, we also prove that, in order to attain a given target state at a chosen fidelity, it is energetically more efficient to perform a single driven evolution of the logical qubits rather than to split the computation in subroutines, each operated by a dedicated pulse.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Programmable order by disorder effect and underlying phases through dipolar quantum simulators
Authors: Wu Huan-Kuang , Suzuki Takafumi , Kawashima Naoki , Tu Wei-Lin
Published: June 2024

In this work, we study two different quantum simulators composed of molecules with dipole-dipole interaction through various theoretical and numerical tools. Our first result provides knowledge of the quantum order by disorder effect of the S=1/2 system, which is programmable in a quantum simulator composed of circular Rydberg atoms in the triangular optical lattice with a controllable diagonal anisotropy. When the numbers of up spins and down spins are equal, a set of subextensive degenerate ground states is present in the classical limit, composed of continuous strings whose configuration enjoys a large degree of freedom. Among all possible configurations, we focus on the stripe (up and down spins aligning straightly) and kinked (up and down spins forming zigzag spin chains) patterns. Adopting the the real space perturbation theory, we estimate the leading order energy correction when the nearest-neighbor spin exchange coupling, J, is considered, and the overall model becomes an effective XXZ model with a spatial anisotropy. Our calculation demonstrates a lifting of the degeneracy, favoring the stripe configuration. When J becomes larger, we adopt the infinite projected entangled-pair state (iPEPS) and numerically check the effect of degeneracy lifting. The iPEPS results show that even when the spin exchange coupling is strong the stripe pattern is still favored. Next, we study the dipolar bosonic model with tilted polar angle which can be realized through a quantum simulator composed of cold atomic gas with dipole-dipole interaction in an optical lattice. By placing the atoms in a triangular lattice and tilting the polar angle, the diagonal anisotropy can also be realized in the bosonic system. With our cluster mean-field theory calculation, we provide various phase diagrams with different tilted angles, showing the abundant underlying phases including the supersolid. Our proposal indicates realizable scenarios through quantum simulators in studying the quantum effect as well as extraordinary phases. We believe that our results indicated here can also become a good benchmark for two-dimensional quantum simulators.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Effects of measurement power on state discrimination and dynamics in a circuit-QED experiment
Authors: Tosi L. , Lobato I. , Goffman M. F. , Metzger C. , Urbina C. , Pothier H.
Published: June 2024

We explore the effects of driving a cavity at a large photon number in a circuit-QED experiment where the “matterlike” part corresponds to a unique Andreev level in a superconducting weak link. The three many-body states of the weak link, corresponding to the occupation of the Andreev level by 0, 1, or 2 quasiparticles, lead to different cavity frequency shifts. We show how the nonlinearity inherited by the cavity from its coupling to the weak link affects the state discrimination and the photon number calibration. Both effects require treating the evolution of the driven system beyond the dispersive limit. In addition, we observe how transition rates between the circuit states (quantum and parity jumps) are affected by the microwave power, and compare the measurements with a theory accounting for the “dressing” of the Andreev states by the cavity.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Universal hard-edge statistics of non-Hermitian random matrices
Authors: Xiao Zhenyu , Shindou Ryuichi , Kawabata Kohei
Published: June 2024

Random matrix theory is a powerful tool for understanding spectral correlations inherent in quantum chaotic systems. Despite diverse applications of non-Hermitian random matrix theory, the role of symmetry remains to be fully established. Here, we comprehensively investigate the impact of symmetry on the level statistics around the spectral origin—hard-edge statistics—and expand the classification of spectral statistics to encompass all the 38 symmetry classes of non-Hermitian random matrices. Within this classification, we discern 28 symmetry classes characterized by distinct hard-edge statistics from the level statistics in the bulk of spectra, which are further categorized into two groups, namely, the Altland-Zirnbauer0 classification and beyond. We introduce and elucidate quantitative measures capturing the universal hard-edge statistics for all the symmetry classes. Furthermore, through extensive numerical calculations, we study various open quantum systems in different symmetry classes, including quadratic and many-body Lindbladians, as well as non-Hermitian Hamiltonians. We show that these systems manifest the same hard-edge statistics as random matrices and that their ensemble-average spectral distributions around the origin exhibit emergent symmetry conforming to the random-matrix behavior. Our results establish a comprehensive understanding of non-Hermitian random matrix theory and are useful in detecting quantum chaos or its absence in open quantum systems.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Fraunhofer pattern in the presence of Majorana zero modes
Authors: Dominguez F. , Novik E. G. , Recher P.
Published: June 2024

We propose a new platform to detect signatures of the presence of Majorana bound states (MBSs) in the Fraunhofer pattern of Josephson junctions featuring quantum spin Hall edge states on the normal part and Majorana bound states at the NS interfaces. We use a tight-binding model to demonstrate a drastic change in the periodicity of the Fraunhofer pattern when comparing trivial and nontrivial regimes. We explain these results in terms of the presence of additional parallel-spin electron-hole reflections, which due to the spin-momentum locking, occur as cross Andreev reflections, accumulating a different magnetic flux and yielding a change in the Fraunhofer periodicity. We show that this detection scheme exhibits some advantages compared to previous ones as it is robust against disorder and finite temperature and works in equilibrium. Furthermore, we introduce a scattering model that captures the main results of the microscopic calculations with MBSs and extend our discussion to the main differences found using accidental zero-energy Andreev bound states.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Designing optimal protocols in Bayesian quantum parameter estimation with higher-order operations
Authors: Bavaresco Jessica , Lipka-Bartosik Patryk , Sekatski Pavel , Mehboudi Mohammad
Published: June 2024

Using quantum systems as sensors or probes has been shown to greatly improve the precision of parameter estimation by exploiting unique quantum features such as entanglement. A major task in quantum sensing is to design the optimal protocol, i.e., the most precise one. It has been solved for some specific instances of the problem, but in general even numerical methods are not known. Here, we focus on the single-shot Bayesian setting, where the goal is to find the optimal initial state of the probe (which can be entangled with an auxiliary system), the optimal measurement, and the optimal estimator function. We leverage the formalism of higher-order operations to develop a method based on semidefinite programming that finds a protocol that is close to the optimal one with arbitrary precision. Crucially, our method is not restricted to any specific quantum evolution, cost function, or prior distribution, and thus can be applied to any estimation problem. Moreover, it can be applied to both single-parameter or multiparameter estimation tasks. We demonstrate our method with three examples, consisting of unitary phase estimation, thermometry in a bosonic bath, and multiparameter estimation of an SU(2) transformation. Exploiting our methods, we extend several results from the literature. For example, in the thermometry case, we find the optimal protocol at any finite time and quantify the usefulness of entanglement.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Topological and conventional nanophotonic waveguides for directional integrated quantum optics
Authors: Martin N. J. , Jalali Mehrabad M. , Chen X. , Dost R. , Nussbaum E. , Hallett D. , Hallacy L. , Foster A. , Clarke E. , Patil P. K. , Hughes S. , Hafezi M. , Fox A. M. , Skolnick M. S. , Wilson L. R.
Published: June 2024

Directionality in integrated quantum photonics has emerged as a promising route towards achieving scalable quantum technologies with nonlinearities at the single-photon level. Topological photonic waveguides have been proposed as a novel approach to harnessing such directional light-matter interactions on-chip. However, uncertainties remain regarding the strength of the directional coupling of embedded quantum emitters to topological waveguides in comparison to conventional line defect waveguides. In this work we present an investigation of directional coupling in a range of waveguides using a combination of experimental, theoretical, and numerical analyses. We quantitatively characterize the position dependence of the light-matter coupling on several topological photonic waveguides and benchmark their directional coupling performance against conventional line defect waveguides. We conclude that topological waveguides underperform in comparison to conventional line defect waveguides, casting their directional optics credentials into doubt. To demonstrate this is not a question of the maturity of the field; we show that state-of-the-art inverse design methods, while capable of improving the directional emission of these topological waveguides, still place them significantly behind the operation of a conventional (glide-plane) photonic crystal waveguide. Our results and conclusions pave the way towards improving the implementation of quantitatively predicted quantum nonlinear effects on-chip.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Asymmetric electrostatic dodecapole: compact bandpass filter with low aberrations for momentum microscopy
Authors: Tkach O. , Chernov S. , Babenkov S. , Lytvynenko Y. , Fedchenko O. , Medjanik K. , Vasilyev D. , Gloskowskii A. , Schlueter C. , Elmers H.-J. , Schönhense G.
Published: June 2024

Imaging energy filters in photoelectron microscopes and momentum microscopes use spherical fields with deflection angles of 90°, 180° and even 2 × 180°. These instruments are optimized for high energy resolution, and exhibit image aberrations when operated in high transmission mode at medium energy resolution. Here, a new approach is presented for bandpass-filtered imaging in real or reciprocal space using an electrostatic dodecapole with an asymmetric electrode array. In addition to energy-dispersive beam deflection, this multipole allows aberration correction up to the third order. Here, its use is described as a bandpass prefilter in a time-of-flight momentum microscope at the hard X-ray beamline P22 of PETRA III. The entire instrument is housed in a straight vacuum tube because the deflection angle is only 4° and the beam displacement in the filter is only ∼8 mm. The multipole is framed by transfer lenses in the entrance and exit branches. Two sets of 16 different-sized entrance and exit apertures on piezomotor-driven mounts allow selection of the desired bandpass. For pass energies between 100 and 1400 eV and slit widths between 0.5 and 4 mm, the transmitted kinetic energy intervals are between 10 eV and a few hundred electronvolts (full width at half-maximum). The filter eliminates all higher or lower energy signals outside the selected bandpass, significantly improving the signal-to-background ratio in the time-of-flight analyzer.
Synthesis and structural investigation of salts of 2-amino-3-methylpyridine with carboxylic acid derivatives: an experimental and theoretical study
Authors: Balasubramanian Hemalatha , Ashraf Aarifa Muhammed , Karuppannan Srikanth , Poomani Kumaradhas
Published: June 2024

The salts bis(2-amino-3-methylpyridinium) fumarate dihydrate, 2C6H9N2
+·C4H2O2
2−·2H2O (I), and 2-amino-3-methylpyridinium 5-chlorosalicylate, C6H9N2
+·C7H4ClO3
− (II), were synthesized from 2-amino-3-methylpyridine with fumaric acid and 5-chlorosalicylic acid, respectively. The crystal structures of these salts were characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, revealing protonation in I and II by the transfer of a H atom from the acid to the pyridine base. In the crystals of both I and II, N—H...O interactions form an R
2
2(8) ring motif. Hirshfeld surface analysis distinguishes the interactions present in the crystal structures of I and II, and the two-dimensional (2D) fingerprint plot analysis shows the percentage contribution of each type of interaction in the crystal packing. The volumes of the crystal voids of I (39.65 Å3) and II (118.10 Å3) have been calculated and reveal that the crystal of I is more mechanically stable than II. Frontier molecular orbital (FMO) analysis predicts that the band gap energy of II (2.6577 eV) is lower compared to I (4.0035 eV). The Quantum Theory of Atoms In Molecules (QTAIM) analysis shows that the pyridinium–carboxylate N—H...O interaction present in I is stronger than the other interactions, whereas in II, the hydroxy–carboxylate O—H...O interaction is stronger than the pyridinium–carboxylate N—H...O interaction; the bond dissociation energies also confirm these results. The positive Laplacian [∇2ρ(r) > 0] of these interactions shows that the interactions are of the closed shell type. An in-silico ADME (Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism and Excretion) study predicts that both salts will exhibit good pharmacokinetic properties and druglikeness.
Gender, religion and politics: a qualitative analysis on the role of women to a sustainable quality of work-life (QWL)
Authors: Akinwale Olayombo Elizabeth , Akinwale Olusegun Emmanuel , Kuye Owolabi Lateef
Published: June 2024

Purpose

Employability skills have transformed from the acquisition of university degrees to possessions of cognate skills other than only degrees that can help employees secure employment in contemporary work environments. This study evaluates essential skills that will prepare millennia of youths and graduates for employment in the present job market. The study investigated four major hypotheses to underscore the employability opportunities of graduates in challenging 21st-century work environments.

Design/methodology/approach

To clearly gain an understanding of women’s disparity in society, the study employed a qualitative approach to evaluate the incidence of gender prejudice in a men’s dominant world. The study utilised two distinguished sampling strategies, purposive and snowballing sampling techniques, which were deemed suitable and useful due to the nature of the study. The study recruited 42 participants by conducting semi-structured interview sessions for the study. The study employed a deductive approach to analyse the data obtained from participants. A thematic content analysis was used to take away prejudice and establish an overarching impression of the interviewed data. Atlas.ti was used to analyse the transcribed interview data from the participants to establish common themes from the surveyed informants.

Findings

The results of this investigation indicated that there is a deep-rooted trend of institutionalised men’s dominance in politics and religious leadership. Women perceived less representation and men dominated the two domains of existence in their local environment. The study established that women are optimistic about a turnaround narrative on gender equality in politics and religious leadership. They expressed their concern about strengthened public debate and campaigns on women’s representation, and against gender discrimination. The study further shows that women are influencing the ethical and moral sense for change against women’s neglect in society. They expressed their concerns against the selection of people into political offices for elected political posts and observed the peculiarity of political godfathers fixing their favourite men into those offices.

Originality/value

The study discovered that women are leading campaigns for their representation in politics as well as church leadership today. The novelty of this study bothering around two domains of women’s lives – politics and religion, in particular, church leadership. These have not been evidence before in a study.
Collaborative care for mental health of children and young people: a qualitative study of the experiences of mental health professionals
Authors: Fatima Sarrah , Brenisin Kristina , Doyle Isobel , Gathii Esther , Breen Kieran
Published: June 2024

Purpose

The development and implementation of a provider collaborative (PC) represents an ambitious and complex piece of work to be delivered across a geographical area for a vulnerable patient cohort. The UK East Midlands Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) PC was established in April 2021, and the current study aimed to explore the views of a variety of staff members about its functioning over the first twelve months. Specifically, it explored whether the intended aims has been achieved and identified the challenges that it faced during its introduction.

Design/methodology/approach

Feedback was collected through in-depth qualitative interviews and surveys with frontline (n = 20) and senior staff (n = 19) that were conducted to explore the experiences of a variety of stakeholders within the collaborative.

Findings

Two main themes were identified – the achievement of the key aims and the barriers to success. A thematic analysis has shown that whilst the aim of the PC is well intentioned and is generally welcomed by the multiple stakeholders across the geographical region, it is clear that changes are required in order to ensure the inception of an efficient care service that is able to achieve the ultimate goal of providing the ultimate goal of “right care at the right time”.

Originality/value

This is the first study, to the authors' knowledge, to explore collaborative working in CAMHs services. The study involved staff feedback from Phases 1 and 2 of a 4-years-long evaluation. The findings demonstrate the overall aims are being met as well as identifying areas of concern; this, in turn, allows the authors to develop a series of recommendations to implement and improve collaborative working before assessing their impact in the subsequent phase.
UICF: a new user-item composite filtering recommendation framework by leveraging temporal semantics
Authors: Wei Qingting , Liu Xing , Xian Daming , Xu Jianfeng , Liu Lan , Long Shiyang
Published: June 2024

Purpose

The collaborative filtering algorithm is a classical and widely used approach in product recommendation systems. However, the existing algorithms rely mostly on common ratings of items and do not consider temporal information about items or user interests. To solve this problem, this study proposes a new user-item composite filtering (UICF) recommendation framework by leveraging temporal semantics.

Design/methodology/approach

The UICF framework fully utilizes the time information of item ratings for measuring the similarity of items and takes into account the short-term and long-term interest decay for computing users’ latest interest degrees. For an item to be probably recommended to a user, the interest degrees of the user on all the historically rated items are weighted by their similarities with the item to be recommended and then added up to predict the recommendation degree.

Findings

Comprehensive experiments on the MovieLens and KuaiRec datasets for user movie recommendation were conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed UICF framework. Experimental results show that the UICF outperformed three well-known recommendation algorithms Item-Based Collaborative Filtering (IBCF), User-Based Collaborative Filtering (UBCF) and User-Popularity Composite Filtering (UPCF) in the root mean square error (RMSE), mean absolute error (MAE) and F1 metrics, especially yielding an average decrease of 11.9% in MAE.

Originality/value

A UICF recommendation framework is proposed that combines a time-aware item similarity model and a time-wise user interest degree model. It overcomes the limitations of common rating items and utilizes temporal information in item ratings and user interests effectively, resulting in more accurate and personalized recommendations.
Voting with the wallet: a principal–agent framework for the analysis of sustainable supply chains
Authors: Varella Miranda Bruno , Monteiro Guilherme Fowler A. , Oliveira Gustavo Magalhães de , Rodrigues Vinicius Picanço
Published: June 2024

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate delegation decisions in supply chains, exploring the metaphor that consumers who make environmentally and socially responsible choices are equivalent to voters in an election.

Design/methodology/approach

This theoretical paper relies on the principles of agency theory to shed light on fundamental challenges that shape our ability to transform supply chains.

Findings

This paper unravels two puzzles linked to delegation decisions within sustainable supply chains. It shows that as firms adopt sustainable production systems, their ability to convey relevant information that convinces consumers to enter in a delegation relationship diminishes, ceteris paribus; and once a delegation relationship is established, complementarity within the dimensions of the contract is necessary to guarantee the delivery of sustainability attributes.

Research limitations/implications

The findings of this paper offer insights that can inspire empirical research on sustainable supply chain management.

Practical implications

Policymakers and entrepreneurs willing to incentivize the transformation of supply chains must think about the nature of the relationship between firms and consumers. This paper provides a metaphor that can help practitioners to reinterpret their role as providers or consumers of products and services with sustainability attributes.

Social implications

This paper provides insights that may enhance the understanding of how individual consumption decisions may contribute to transforming supply chains.

Originality/value

This paper expands the repertoire of theoretical tools that can be applied to study the emergence and resilience of sustainable supply chains.
Understanding the effect of millennial tourists’ accommodation service experiences using structural equation modeling techniques: an emerging economy context
Authors: Hossain Md. Shakhawat , Hossain Md. Alamgir , Masud Abdullah Al , Hossain Mohammad Sabbir
Published: June 2024

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of millennial tourists’ accommodation service experiences (ASEs) on their satisfaction, word-of-mouth (WOM) and revisit intentions (RIs) in an emerging economy.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey instrument was used to collect cross-sectional data from millennial tourists, and the 282 valid datasets were analyzed using structural equation modeling.

Findings

The results demonstrated that ASE had a beneficial impact on satisfaction and WOM but not on RI. Significant positive associations between tourist satisfaction, WOM and RI were also discovered. Additionally, WOM research sheds new light on how the ASE of millennial tourists affects their satisfaction, WOM and propensity to return. Furthermore, results show that WOM intentions and satisfaction mediate the relationship between ASE and RIs.

Originality/value

The study presents a unique research context, the application of advanced statistical techniques and the comprehensive investigation of key outcome variables in the context of millennial tourists’ ASEs in an emerging economy. This study contributes significantly to the body of knowledge in the field of tourism research, aiming to meet long-term goals in a sustainable way for the hospitality industry operators by integrating ASE, satisfaction, WOM and RI. Additionally, the study presents the mediating role of WOM and satisfaction in the millennial tourists’ emerging country context.
Quantitative proteomics reveals the Sox system's role in sulphur and arsenic metabolism of phototroph Halorhodospira halophila
Authors: D'Ermo Giulia , Audebert Stéphane , Camoin Luc , Planer‐Friedrich Britta , Casiot‐Marouani Corinne , Delpoux Sophie , Lebrun Régine , Guiral Marianne , Schoepp‐Cothenet Barbara
Published: June 2024

The metabolic process of purple sulphur bacteria's anoxygenic photosynthesis has been primarily studied in Allochromatium vinosum, a member of the Chromatiaceae family. However, the metabolic processes of purple sulphur bacteria from the Ectothiorhodospiraceae and Halorhodospiraceae families remain unexplored. We have analysed the proteome of Halorhodospira halophila, a member of the Halorhodospiraceae family, which was cultivated with various sulphur compounds. This analysis allowed us to reconstruct the first comprehensive sulphur‐oxidative photosynthetic network for this family. Some members of the Ectothiorhodospiraceae family have been shown to use arsenite as a photosynthetic electron donor. Therefore, we analysed the proteome response of Halorhodospira halophila when grown under arsenite and sulphide conditions. Our analyses using ion chromatography‐inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry showed that thioarsenates are chemically formed under these conditions. However, they are more extensively generated and converted in the presence of bacteria, suggesting a biological process. Our quantitative proteomics revealed that the SoxAXYZB system, typically dedicated to thiosulphate oxidation, is overproduced under these growth conditions. Additionally, two electron carriers, cytochrome c551/c5 and HiPIP III, are also overproduced. Electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy suggested that these transporters participate in the reduction of the photosynthetic Reaction Centre. These results support the idea of a chemically and biologically formed thioarsenate being oxidized by the Sox system, with cytochrome c551/c5 and HiPIP III directing electrons towards the Reaction Centre.
From ubiquity to specificity: The diverse functions of bacterial thioredoxin systems
Authors: Anjou Cyril , Lotoux Aurélie , Morvan Claire , Martin‐Verstraete Isabelle
Published: June 2024

The thioredoxin (Trx) system, found universally, is responsible for the regeneration of reversibly oxidized protein thiols in living cells. This system is made up of a Trx and a Trx reductase, and it plays a central role in maintaining thiol‐based redox homeostasis by reducing oxidized protein thiols, such as disulfide bonds in proteins. Some Trxs also possess a chaperone function that is independent of thiol‐disulfide exchange, in addition to their thiol‐disulfide reductase activity. These two activities of the Trx system are involved in numerous physiological processes in bacteria. This review describes the diverse physiological roles of the Trx system that have emerged throughout bacterial evolution. The Trx system is essential for responding to oxidative and nitrosative stress. Beyond this primary function, the Trx system also participates in redox regulation and signal transduction, and in controlling metabolism, motility, biofilm formation, and virulence. This range of functions has evolved alongside the diversity of bacterial lifestyles and their specific constraints. This evolution can be characterized by the multiplication of the systems and by the specialization of cofactors or targets to adapt to the constraints of atypical lifestyles, such as photosynthesis, insect endosymbiosis, or spore‐forming bacteria.
Glucose evaluation and management in the ICU (GEM‐ICU): Protocol for a bi‐centre cohort study
Authors: Grigonyte‐Daraskeviciene Milda , Møller Morten Hylander , Kaas‐Hansen Benjamin Skov , Bestle Morten Heiberg , Nielsen Christian Gantzel , Perner Anders
Published: June 2024

Introduction

Hyperglycaemia is common in intensive care unit (ICU) patients. Glycaemic monitoring and effective glycaemic control with insulin are crucial in the ICU to improve patient outcomes. However, glycaemic control and insulin use vary between ICU patients and hypo‐ and hyperglycaemia occurs. Therefore, we aim to provide contemporary data on glycaemic control and management, and associated outcomes, in adult ICU patients. We hypothesise that the occurrence of hypoglycaemia in acutely admitted ICU patients is lower than that of hyperglycaemia.

Methods

We will conduct a bi‐centre cohort study of 300 acutely admitted adult ICU patients. Routine data will be collected retrospectively at baseline (ICU admission) and daily during ICU stay up to a maximum of 30 days. The primary outcome will be the number of patients with hypoglycaemia during their ICU stay. Secondary outcomes will be occurrence of severe hypoglycaemia, occurrence of hyperglycaemia, time below blood glucose target range, time above target range, all‐cause mortality at Day 30, number of days alive without life support at Day 30 and number of days alive and out of hospital at Day 30. Process outcomes include the number of in‐ICU days, glucose measurements (number of measurements and method) and use of insulin (including route of administration and dosage). All statistical analyses will be descriptive.

Conclusions

This cohort study will provide a contemporary overview of glucose evaluation and management practices in adult ICU patients and, thus, highlight potential areas for improvement through future clinical trials in this area.
Aging‐induced short‐chain acyl‐CoA dehydrogenase promotes age‐related hepatic steatosis by suppressing lipophagy
Authors: Deng Dan , Yang Shanshan , Yu Xiaoqian , Zhou Ruixue , Liu Yin , Zhang Hongmei , Cui Daxin , Feng Xingrong , Wu Yanting , Qi Xiaocun , Su Zhiguang
Published: June 2024

Hepatic steatosis, the first step in the development of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), is frequently observed in the aging population. However, the underlying molecular mechanism remains largely unknown. In this study, we first employed GSEA enrichment analysis to identify short‐chain acyl‐CoA dehydrogenase (SCAD), which participates in the mitochondrial β‐oxidation of fatty acids and may be associated with hepatic steatosis in elderly individuals. Subsequently, we examined SCAD expression and hepatic triglyceride content in various aged humans and mice and found that triglycerides were markedly increased and that SCAD was upregulated in aged livers. Our further evidence in SCAD‐ablated mice suggested that SCAD deletion was able to slow liver aging and ameliorate aging‐associated fatty liver. Examination of the molecular pathways by which the deletion of SCAD attenuates steatosis revealed that the autophagic degradation of lipid droplets, which was not detected in elderly wild‐type mice, was maintained in SCAD‐deficient old mice. This was due to the decrease in the production of acetyl‐coenzyme A (acetyl‐CoA), which is abundant in the livers of old wild‐type mice. In conclusion, our findings demonstrate that the suppression of SCAD may prevent age‐associated hepatic steatosis by promoting lipophagy and that SCAD could be a promising therapeutic target for liver aging and associated steatosis.
Morphology of sweat glands in the skin of Saimaa (Pusa hispida saimensis) and Baltic ringed (Pusa hispida botnica) seals
Authors: Itkonen Laura , Nihtilä Heini , Laakkonen Juha
Published: June 2024

The endangered Saimaa ringed seal (Pusa hispida saimensis) is an endemic freshwater subspecies inhabiting Lake Saimaa in Finland. The Baltic ringed seal (Pusa hispida botnica) inhabits the brackish Baltic Sea, which is almost entirely landlocked. Recent research shows that Saimaa and Baltic ringed seals may be genetically even further apart from each other than from other ringed seal subspecies. We documented histologically the integument microstructure of Saimaa and Baltic ringed seals to determine whether the geographic and genetic isolation was manifested as variation in the integument microstructure of these subspecies adapted to icy aquatic environments. The skin structures of these subspecies were similar to those of other phocids. The association of the sweat glands with hair follicles in both subspecies suggested that they were small apocrine sweat glands described previously in terrestrial or aquatic mammals. None of the apocrine glands had large lumina, and some of the ducts were relatively straight and short. Further studies analysing the mode of secretion, for example, apocrine versus eccrine, in the sweat glands are necessary to confirm the types of sweat glands in seals.
In vitro modulation the Notch pathway by piperine: A therapeutic strategy for docetaxel‐resistant and non‐resistant prostate cancer
Authors: Wang Rui‐tao , Liu Hao‐en , Sun Hui‐yuan
Published: June 2024

Docetaxel (DTX) resistance poses a significant challenge in the treatment of prostate cancer (PCa), often leading to chemotherapy failure. This study investigates the ability of piperine, a compound derived from black pepper, to enhance the sensitivity of PCa cells to DTX and elucidates its underlying mechanism. We established a DTX‐resistant PCa cell line, DU145/DTX, to conduct our experiments. Through a series of assays, including MTT for cell viability, flow cytometry for apoptosis, Transwell for cell migration and invasion, and western blot for protein expression analysis, we assessed the effects of piperine on these cellular functions and on the Notch signaling pathway components. Our results demonstrated that we successfully established the DTX‐resistant PCa cell line DU145/DTX. Piperine effectively decreased the viability of both DU145 and its DTX‐resistant counterpart, DU145/DTX, in a concentration and time‐dependent manner when used alone and in combination with DTX. Notably, piperine also induced apoptosis and reduced the migration and invasion capabilities of these cells. At the molecular level, piperine down‐regulated the Notch pathway by inhibiting Notch1 and Jagged1 signaling, as well as reducing the expression of downstream effectors Hey1 and hes family bHLH transcription factor 1. The study concludes that piperine's ability to modulate the Notch signaling pathway and induce apoptosis highlights its potential as a complementary treatment for DTX‐resistant PCa, paving the way for the use of traditional Chinese medicinal compounds in modern oncology treatment strategies.