bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Serum Elabela expression is decreased in hypertensive patients and could be associated with the progression of hypertensive renal damage
Authors: Tian Geng , Zheng Qian , Zhang Qingru , Liu Xiaoyu , Lu Xuehong
Published: October 2023

Background
Elabela, a recently discovered hormonal peptide containing 32 amino acids, is a ligand for the apelin receptor. It can lower blood pressure and attenuate renal fibrosis. However, the clinicopathological relationship between the Elabela level and renal damage caused by benign hypertension (BHT) and malignant hypertension (MHT) has not been elucidated. Therefore, we discussed the clinicopathological correlation between the serum Elabela level and renal damage caused by BHT and MHT in patients.
Methods
The participants comprised 50 patients and 25 age-matched healthy adults. The 50 patients were separated into two groups: the MHT (n = 25) and BHT groups (n = 25). We analyzed their medical histories, demographics, and clinical examinations, including physical and laboratory tests.
Results
The results showed that the serum Elabela level decreased gradually with a continuous increase in blood pressure from the healthy control group, BHT, to MHT. Moreover, the Elabela levels negatively correlated with BMI(R = − 0.27, P = 0.02), SBP (R = − 0.64, P < 0.01), DBP (R = − 0.58, P < 0.01), Uric acid(R = − 0.39, P < 0.01), BUN (R = − 0.53, P < 0.01), and Scr (R = − 0.53 P < 0.01) but positively correlated with eGFR (R = 0.54, P < 0.01). Stepwise multivariate linear regression analysis showed that SBP was the variable most related to Elabela (t = − 7.029, P < 0.01).
Conclusions
Serum Elabela levels decreased in patients with hypertension, especially malignant hypertension, and had a significant negative correlation with systolic blood pressure.
Trial registration: retrospectively registered approval number:2020076.
Organic matter degradation in the deep, sulfidic waters of the Black Sea: Insights into the ecophysiology of novel anaerobic bacteria
Authors: Yadav Subhash , Koenen Michel , Bale Nicole J , Reitsma Wietse , Engelmann Julia C , Damsté Jaap S. Sinninghe , Villanueva Laura
Published: October 2023

Background:
Recent studies have reported the identity and functions of key anaerobes involved in the degradation of organic matter (OM) in deep (>1,000 m) sulfidic marine habitats. However, due to the lack of available isolates, detailed investigation of their physiology has been precluded. In this study, we cultivated and characterized the ecophysiology of a wide range of novel anaerobes potentially involved in OM degradation in deep (2,000 m depth) sulfidic waters of the Black Sea.
Results:
We have successfully cultivated a diverse physiological group of novel anaerobes belonging to various phyla, including Fusobacteriota (strain S5), Bacillota (strains A1T and A2), Spirochaetota (strains M1T, M2, and S2), Bacteroidota (strains B1T, B2, S6, L6, SYP and M2P), Cloacimonadota (Cloa-SY6), Planctomycetota (Plnct-SY6), Mycoplasmatota (Izemo-BS), Chloroflexota (Chflx-SY6) and Desulfobacterota (strains S3T and S3-i). These microorganisms were able to grow at an elevated hydrostatic pressure of up to 50 MPa.
Moreover, this study revealed that different anaerobes were specialized in degrading specific types of OM. For instance, strains affiliated with the phyla Fusobacteriota, Bacillota, Planctomycetota, and Mycoplasmatota were found to be specialized in the degradation of cellulose, cellobiose, chitin, and DNA, respectively. While strains affiliated with Spirochaetota, Bacteroidota, Cloacimonadota, and Chloroflexota preferred to ferment simpler OM sources. We also identified members of the phylum Desulfobacterota as terminal oxidizers, potentially involved in the consumption of hydrogen produced during fermentation. These results were further supported by the presence of specific metabolic pathways in the (meta)genomes of the cultivated microbial taxa. Additionally, we analyzed the lipid profiles of selected taxa, which could be critical for their survival in the harsh environment of the deep sulfidic waters and could potentially be used as signatures for these strains in the sulfidic waters of the Black Sea.
Conclusions
This is the first report that demonstrates the cultivation and ecophysiology of such a diverse group of microorganisms from any sulfidic marine habitat. Collectively, this study provides a step forward in our understanding of the microbes thriving in the extreme conditions of the deep sulfidic waters of the Black Sea.
Cumulative risk factors, Problematic smartphone use and Depressive symptoms in Nursing Students：a cross-sectional study
Authors: Yang Ya-juan , Granlund Mats , Tao Fang-biao , Tao Shu-man , Zou Li-wei , Wu Xiao-yan , Hong Jing-Fang , Enskar Karin
Published: October 2023

Background
No single risk factor is decisive in shaping an individual's healthy development. This study was to analyze that depressive symptoms are related to a cumulative risk index composed of individual, family and social variables among nursing students.
Methods
We recruited 1716 Chinese nursing students from 3 universities via a paperless survey that measured a set of individual, family and social risk factors of depressive symptoms.
Results
Regardless of the combination of factors, as the number of risk factors increased, the mean of depressive symptom scores also increased, with statistically significant difference, and the proportion of the normal group became lower, the proportion of different depressive symptoms severity groups showed an increasing trend(P <0.001). A high risk cluster of poor sleep quality combined with problematic smartphone use was associated with high levels of depressive symptom (P < 0.001).
Conclusion
The depressive symptoms of nursing students were positively related to the cumulative risk of individual, family and social variables. Among them, a cluster with poor sleep quality combined with problematic smartphone had the highest risk.
CHS-2 is involved in the response of Aedes albopictus larvae to Cadmium stress by mediating the formation of peritrophic membrane
Authors: Zhang Chen , Ding Yanjuan , Lan Ruoyun , Zhou Min , Chen Yanrong , Tang Bin , Wang Shigui
Published: October 2023

Heavy metal stress can affect the growth, development and behavior of insects, Cadmium (Cd) is one of the most seriously polluted heavy metals. Midgut is the main organ for insects to cope with heavy metal stress. chitin synthase-2 (CHS-2) is mainly expressed in the midgut of insects, which is closely related to the formation of the peritrophic membrane (PM) in the midgut. This study vector insects Aedes albopictus as the object, the fourth-instar larvae were exposed to three different concentrations of Cd. The results showed that Cd inhibited the expression of genes related to chitin synthesis and metabolism, and thickened the midgut PM, indicating that the larvae of Ae. albopictus could respond to Cd stress through the midgut PM. Secondly, silencing CHS-2 by RNAi combined with three concentrations of Cd stress, in the absence of the protective effect of midgut PM, Cd stress will lead to more serious vacuolization and deformity of larval midgut epithelial cells, and more intense redox reaction of the insect body, the expression of MT, HSP70 and antioxidant enzyme genes increased, and the activity of antioxidant enzymes also increased at different times. This study confirmed that CHS-2 was involved in the oxidative stress induced by Cd stress by regulating the formation of PM in the midgut of Ae. albopictus, and clarified the resistance of Ae. albopictus to Cd stress and some of the internal mechanisms, which provided a theoretical basis for the related research of using Ae. albopictus to monitor the aquatic environment.
Application Solutions of Highway Freight Information Systems based on Quantum Communication
Authors: Tang Wenliang , Gao Yifan
Published: October 2023

This study proposes an application plan to enhance the security of data transmission in the highway freight information system. The plan utilizes quantum communication technology to encrypt and transmit sensitive data. It involves the use of a quantum key cloud terminal for the unified management of quantum keys and providing key services for the highway freight information system. The system can be accessed through the quantum key cloud service platform. By securely using mobile terminal quantum keys, the overall security of the road freight information system is improved. This scheme ensures the security of the entire system by using a quantum encryption key that is generated only once. The plan defines a quantum key management server and a quantum key cloud platform to manage terminals and quantum keys respectively. These components work together with other hardware facilities and software to produce and distribute quantum keys, ensuring the secure transmission of key information.
Assessment and phenotypic identification of millet germplasm (Setaria italica [L.]) in Liaoning, China
Authors: LI Xin-tong , HE Wei-Feng , WANG Hong-hao , XU Min
Published: October 2023

Millet (Setaria italica [L.]) originated in China and is one of the oldest cultivated crops in the world. The current study aims to assess the present millet germplasms in Liaoning Province scientifically, in order to provide a theoretical basis for the collection, preservation, innovation, and use of millet germplasm resources. This study was conducted from 2018 to 2020. A total of 105 millet germplasm collections were selected from the germplasm resource bank of the Liaoning Academy of Agricultural Sciences. Thirty-one agronomic traits, including 19 qualitative traits and 12 quantitative traits, were observed and recorded. Data were comprehensively evaluated via multivariate analyses, including diversity analysis, correlation analysis, principal component analysis, grey relational analysis, and cluster analysis. Results show that millet resources have abundant diversity, traits represent ear size and ear-bearing capacity were found to be closely related to yield. In high-yield breeding, the resources with upthrow seedling leaves, more tillers, more branches, large ears, and long growth periods should be selected as cross parents. Meanwhile, one early-maturing and lower plant resource, one early-maturing and small-grain resource, one later-maturing and higher plant and big-ear resource, and one later-maturing and big-grain resource were screened for excellent millet breeding.
Association between maternal serum lipid profiles in early pregnancy and the risk of congenital heart disease in offspring: a prospective cohort study
Authors: Zhao Minli , Wang Xinrui , Zhang Danwei , Li Haibo , Sun Bin , Wu Zhengqin , Zhu Yibing , Cao Hua
Published: October 2023

Objective:This study aims to investigate the association of maternal serum lipid profiles in early pregnancy and the risk of congenital heart disease (CHD) in offspring.Methods:This study was based on the Fujian Birth Cohort Study (FJBCS) which was a prospective ongoing study in China. We recruited pregnant women at ≤14 weeks of gestation between 2019 and 2022, and all participants in this study filled out the questionnaire on periconceptional exposure. Simultaneously, we collected participants’ fasting blood samples to measure their lipid profiles by automatic biochemical analyzer. The outcome was defined as offspring with or without CHD. In a multivariable logistic regression model, risk estimates were calculated for associations between maternal lipid profiles and CHD in offspring. Restricted cubic splines were used to estimate the nonlinear relationship between lipid profiles levels and CHD.Results:A total of 21425 pregnant women with an average gestational age of 11.3 (± 1.40) weeks were included in the analysis. The higher triglyceride (TG) (AOR 1.201, 95%CI [1.036,1.394]), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) (AOR 1.216, 95% CI [1.048,1.410]), apolipoprotein B (Apo B) (AOR 2.107, 95% CI [1.179,3.763]) levels were correlated with increased odds of CHD in offspring. The restricted cubic spline suggested a nonlinear relationship between total cholesterol (TC) levels and the risk of CHD in offspring (P=0.0048).Conclusions: Elevated maternal serum lipid profiles levels are associated with an increased risk of CHD in offspring. Additionally, there is a non-linear relationship between TC levels and the risk of CHD in offspring.
Enhanced approach to treating chronic anal fissures: Fissurectomy with vertical non-full-thickness midline sphincterotomy and mucosal advancement flap
Authors: Tsunoda Akira , Kusanagi Hiroshi
Published: October 2023

Purpose Lateral internal sphincterotomy is a conventional surgical intervention for chronic anal fissures, yet the potential for postoperative anal incontinence underscores the need for an alternative approach. This study aimed to evaluate the outcomes of patients with chronic fissures who underwent a combination of fissurectomy, vertical non-full thickness midline sphincterotomy (VNMS), and mucosal advancement flap (MAF), as a means of mitigating the risk of incontinence.
Methods This retrospective analysis included forty-six consecutive patients with chronic anal fissures, unresponsive to topical diltiazem, who underwent fissurectomy combined with VNMS and MAF between April 2018 and May 2023. Primary outcome measures encompassed fissure healing rates. Continence was assessed using the Fecal Incontinence Severity Index (FISI), and manometric assessments were conducted before the procedure and three months postoperatively.
Results With a median follow-up of 27 months, there were no postoperative complications, and the overall fissure healing rate reached 96% (44/46). At three months post-procedure, FISI scores were reduced to 0, with no instances of fecal soiling. Anal resting pressure exhibited a significant reduction at 3 months [pre-op: 133 (95% CI, 128−150) vs. 3 mo: 109 (95% CI, 100−117) cm H2O; p = 0.01]. Similarly, maximum anal squeeze pressure showed a significant decrease three months post-surgery [pre-op: 317 cmH2O (95% CI, 294−380) vs. 3 mo: 291 cmH2O (95% CI, 276−359), p = 0.03].
Conclusion The combination of fissurectomy, VNMS, and MAF proved to be an effective approach for chronic anal fissures, yielding favorable medium-term outcomes without postoperative anal incontinence.
Impact of loneliness on blood glucose: a cross-sectional survey among Japanese
Authors: Quyen An Tran , Nakamura Sho , Watanabe Kaname , Chei Choy-Lye , Narimatsu Hiroto
Published: October 2023

Although the correlation between loneliness and both the development and management of diabetes has been gradually uncovered, the finding was inclusive. Furthermore, this aspect has yet to be researched in the Japanese populace. Therefore, this cross-sectional study analyzed data from the Kanagawa prospective “ME-BYO” Cohort Study (ME-BYO cohort) to investigate the correlation between loneliness and HbA1c. A total of 666 participants were included in the analysis, with a mean age of 54.1 years and a mean BMI of 23 kg/m2. Half of the participants had obtained an education level beyond high school. The mean household income and physical activity level were reported as 6.83 million Japanese yen and 12.3 METs-h/day, respectively. Linear regression analysis determined no significant association between the loneliness scale and HbA1c (p = 0.512). The lack of association persisted even after adjusting for age, sex, and BMI. Thus, the study found no link between loneliness and HbA1c in the high SES population. This finding contradicts prior results and may be attributed to the impact of population characteristics, SES status, or genetic backgrounds.
Trial registration: not applicable
Identification of wood specimens utilizing fs-LIBS and machine learning techniques
Authors: Sarafis A. , Gerodimos T. , Kechaoglou E. , Anagnostopoulos D. F. , Kosmidis C.
Published: October 2023

We report on the ability to identify wood specimens by utilizing 30 fs Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) in conjunction with machine learning techniques. Ten different wood specimens have been studied. The spectral features were assigned to atomic / ionic and diatomic molecular transitions. The origin of the latter has been explored by investigating the dynamics of the created plume in ambient and argon atmosphere. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was employed for dimensionality reduction based on the primary LIBS analysis. The principal components formation is grounded on the CN, Ca+, Ca, and Na, LIBS data. Furthermore, applying the weighted k nearest neighbor (kNN) algorithm led to an accurate identification of the investigated specimens, since the evaluation metrics of specificity value were found to be in the range of 0.96–1.00, while that of accuracy was within 0.93–1.00.
Perceived Organizational Support and Employee Loyalty as Mediators in the Relationship Between Leadership Effectiveness and Task Performance: A Study of Nurses in Erbil City
Authors: Sherwani Karwan , Bala Hussaini , Khatoon Ghousia
Published: October 2023

In today's complex workplaces, good leadership is crucial for making employees do their jobs better. The aim of the study is to evaluate the role of Perceived Organizational Support and Employee Loyalty in the relationship between Leadership Effectiveness and Task Performance. While previous research has shed light on how leadership affects task performance, this study goes a step further by investigating how feeling supported and being loyal to the organization come into play. For this purpose, researchers have used a self-administered questionnaire and sampled 193 nurses in eight hospitals in Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq about their experiences. The researchers used SMARTPLS using structure equation modeling to investigate the objective of the research. The study’s findings show that loyalty and organizational support serve as pivotal assets in mediating the relationship between leadership effectiveness and task performance. Loyal employees are highly motivated and engaged, leading to enhanced productivity, while organizational support creates a positive work environment, fostering job satisfaction and performance being loyal and feeling supported by the organization really matter when it comes to how good leadership affects job performance loyal employees work harder, and when the organization supports them, they feel happier and work better. This study provides valuable insights for organizations aiming to optimize their leadership strategies to enhance employee performance and satisfaction in complex and dynamic work environments.
Physical activity and hippocampal volume in young adults
Authors: Cherednichenko Anastasia , Miró-Padilla Anna , Adrián-Ventura Jesús , Monzonís-Carda Irene , Beltran-Valls Maria Reyes , Moliner-Urdiales Diego , Ávila César
Published: October 2023

Evidence from previous studies suggests that physical activity may contribute to a functional and structural hippocampal change throughout the lifespan. However, there is little evidence available in the young adult population. In addition, the personality traits that may influence this association remain unclear. With a sample of 84 young adults (43 girls; age 22.7 ± 2.8y), the main aim of the current study was to analyze the association between objective and self-reported measures of daily physical activity and hippocampal gray matter volume, and to examine the role of the personality trait of punishment sensitivity in this association. Our results showed that only vigorous levels of objectively measured physical activity (but not moderate or light) were positively associated with hippocampal volume and negatively with the personality trait of punishment sensitivity. Moreover, self-reported measures of total and vigorous physical activity were only associated with the personality measures, but not with the hippocampus volume. Thus, our data suggest that vigorous physical activity may contribute to enhancing the hippocampal volume in young adults.
Long-term outcomes and predictive factors of achieving low disease activity in childhood systemic lupus erythematosus: a Chinese bicentric retrospective registered study
Authors: Yu Xi Xi , Deng Jia , Chen Qiu XIa , Qiu Shi Yuan , Jiang Chao Hui , Wu Yi Qian , Qin Yang , Zhang Gao Fu , Yang Hai Ping , Zhao Fei , Li Qiu , Zhang Aihua , Wang Mo
Published: October 2023

Backgroud
Explore the clinical value of LDAS in the T2T strategy of pediatric systemic lupus erythematosus (pSLE) and find the risk factors for never reaching low disease activity state (LDAS).
Methods
Total of 272 children with SLE who were diagnosed and followed up in the Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University or Children's Hospital of Nanjing Medical University during the period from January 2012 to December 2019 were involved in this study, and the clinical presentation, pathology, treatment were retrospectively studied.
Results
Of the 272 patients enrolled in this study. During follow-up, 230 children achieved LDAS, and 42 were never been in. Male (P = 0.018), mucosal ulcer (P = 0.048), liver function damage (P = 0.026), cardiac effusion (P = 0.034), hematuria (P = 0.048), urine red blood cells (P = 0.017), urinary leukocytes (P = 0.032), endothelial cell proliferation (P = 0.004), these indexes have statistical differences between the two groups. Male (P = 0.045) and endothelial cell proliferation (P = 0.010) are independent risk factors for never achieving LDAS by multivariate logistic analysis. Children with biologics achieved LDAS at a higher rate than children without biologics (P = 0.038). The proportion of pSDI ≥ 1 in patients never been in LDAS was significantly higher than that in patients who achieved LDAS (P < 0.001).
Conclusions
Male and endothelial cell proliferation were independent risk factors for never achieving LDAS. At the end of the follow-up, the organ damage in the remission group was similar to that in the LDAS group, indicating that LDAS can be used as a target for pSLE treatment.
Trial registration
This study was registered at the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR2100046357, date: 2021.06.01-2023.06.01) and the National Center for Biotechnology Information (#NCT04942314, date: 2021.07.01-2023.06.01).
Seasonal extreme temperatures and short-term fine particulate matter increases child respiratory hospitalizations in a sparsely populated region of the intermountain western United States
Authors: Landguth Erin L. , Knudson Jonathon , Graham Jon , Orr Ava , Coyle Emily A. , Smith Paul , Semmens Erin O. , Noonan Curtis
Published: October 2023

Background
Western Montana, USA, experiences complex air pollution patterns with predominant exposure sources from summer wildfire smoke and winter wood smoke. In addition, climate change related temperatures events are becoming more extreme and expected to contribute to increases in hospital admissions for a range of health outcomes. Few studies have evaluated these exposures (air pollution and temperature) that often occur simultaneously and may act synergistically on health.
Methods
We explored short-term exposure to air pollution on childhood respiratory health outcomes and how extreme temperature or seasonal period modify the risk of air pollution-associated hospitalizations. The main outcome measure included all respiratory-related hospital admissions for three categories: asthma, lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI), and upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) across western Montana for all individuals aged 0–17 from 2017–2020. We used a time-stratified, case-crossover analysis and distributed lag models to identify sensitive exposure windows of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) lagged from 0 (same-day) to 15 prior-days modified by temperature or season.
Results
Short-term exposure increases of 1 µg/m3 in PM2.5 were associated with elevated odds of all three respiratory hospital admission categories. PM2.5 was associated with the largest increased odds of hospitalizations for asthma at lag 7–13 days [1.87(1.17–2.97)], for LRTI at lag 6–12 days [2.18(1.20–3.97)], and for URTI at a cumulative lag of 13 days [1.29(1.07–1.57)]. The impact of PM2.5 varied by temperature and season for each respiratory outcome scenario. For asthma, PM2.5 was associated most strongly during colder temperatures [3.11(1.40–6.89)] and the winter season [3.26(1.07–9.95)]. Also in colder temperatures, PM2.5 was associated with increased odds of LRTI hospitalization [2.61(1.15–5.94)], but no seasonal effect was observed. Finally, 13 days of cumulative PM2.5 prior to admissions date was associated with the greatest increased odds of URTI hospitalization during summer days [3.35(1.85–6.04)] and hotter temperatures [1.71(1.31–2.22)].
Conclusions
Children’s respiratory-related hospital admissions were associated with short-term exposure to PM2.5. PM2.5 associations with asthma and LRTI hospitalizations were strongest during cold periods, whereas associations with URTI were largest during hot periods.
Classification
: environmental public health, fine particulate matter air pollution, respiratory infections
Pseudo-Labeling and Clustering based Active Learning for Imbalanced Classification of Wafer Bin Map Defects
Authors: Manivannan Siyamalan
Published: October 2023

Wafer Bin Map (WBM) defect patterns play a crucial role in identifying the root cause of manufacturing defects in the semiconductor industry. Although various deep learning-based approaches have been proposed for automated defect pattern classification, they often demand a large amount of labeled data for effective training. However, manual labeling is a costly and time-consuming process that requires specialized expertise.To address this challenge, this work introduces a novel active learning framework aimed at reducing the labeling cost by strategically selecting which WBMs should be labeled. An approach is proposed to mitigate issues related to class imbalance; the WBM patterns from identified classes are clustered, and a set of samples from each cluster is carefully selected, with a particular emphasis on classes with limited labeled data. This intelligent selection process effectively reduces human labeling efforts and mitigates problems associated with class-imbalanced training.The effectiveness of the proposed approach is demonstrated through significant improvements compared to other active learning methods. Remarkably, the state-of-the-art F1 score of 91.6% on the large-scale public WBM dataset, WM-811K, is achieved using only 4.3K labeled WBM images, while existing approaches require over 100K labeled images to achieve similar results. This outcome showcases the efficiency and practicality of the proposed approach. The code is available at \url{https://github.com}
The Effect of Tomato C2H2 Greening Factor H on Gland Hair and Flower Color
Authors: 冉 家俊 , Zong Chen , Xie Zhao , Yang Zhongzhou , Guo Ziqing , Dai Zuyun
Published: October 2023

The Tomato H gene is responsible for encoding a C2H2 zinc finger protein, which is a critical transcription factor of the C2HC subfamily for the development of glandular trichomes. Through the analysis of zinc finger protein structure and subfamily, it is hypothesized that other genes similar to H may also have a regulatory role in the formation of epidermal hairs in Solanaceae plants. Functional validation of these genes has shown that when the H gene is overexpressed, there is a significant increase in the density of leaf trichomes, as well as a noticeable dwarf phenotype in the plants. The most notable effects are observed in floral organs, particularly in terms of flower morphology, corolla color, and differences in the morphology of epidermal cells.
Multi-classification of Grading Stages for Osteoporosis Using Abdominal Computed Tomography with Clinical Variables: Application of Deep Learning with a Convolutional Neural Network
Authors: Ha Tae Jun , Kim Hee sang , Hwang Dong Hwan , Kang Seong Uk , Yeo Na Young , Kim Woo Jin , Choi Hyun-Soo , Kim Jeong Hyun , Kim Yoon , Moon Ki Won , Park Sang Won , Bak So Hyeon
Published: October 2023

Background: Osteoporosis is a significant global health concern and is often undetected until a fracture occurs. To improve early detection, a deep learning (DL) model was developed to classify osteoporosis stages using abdominal computed tomography (CT) scans.
Materials and Methods: This study retrospectively collected data from scanned contrast-enhanced abdominal CT. A total of 3,012 acquired CT scan data DL models were constructed for using image data, demographic information, and multi-modality data, respectively. The three groups were defined according to T-score [normal (T-Score ≥ –1.0), osteopenia (–2.5 < T-Score < –1.0), and osteoporosis (T-Score ≤ –2.5)] derived from dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and assessed by a qualified radiologist. In the DL process, we used the Gradient-Weighted Class Activation Mapping (Grad-CAM) technique to identify features and accurately interpret clinical areas.
Results: Of the 3,012 data sets, the results of the multimodal dataset models showed the highest area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) (0.94) and accuracy (ACC) (0.80), while the image data model showed an AUC of 0.93 and an ACC of 0.79. The model using demographic information independently showed the worst performance with an AUC of 0.85 and an ACC of 0.68. The sensitivity and specificity for the multimodal model are 0.80 and 0.90, respectively, while the demographic data model scored 0.69 and 0.84. In addition, the Grad-CAM identified informative extracted features through the convolutional neural network, indicating femoral neck was the most common cause of femoral fractures across all three grading stages.
Conclusions: We developed a DL model for the multi-classification of osteoporosis using real-world clinical data, combining CT-scanned images with variables. This implies that DL can be fully applied to medical data for the classification stage of osteoporosis. Our results suggest that abdominal CT could be important in osteoporosis screening and could lead to appropriate treatment for the reduction of osteoporotic fractures.
A comparison of pain between laparoscopic and open procedures for inguinal hernia in young children
Authors: Sato Hideaki , Adachi Sei , Tominaga Miri , Kimura Shouta , Fukunaga Natsu , Osawa Syunsuke , Tayama Ai , Nakayama Noriyoshi , Watarai Yu
Published: October 2023

Purpose
The laparoscopic approach (LA) for inguinal hernia (IH) repair has become widely spread as a minimally invasive surgical technique, but few studies have compared its degree of pain with that of the open approach (OA). However, invasiveness is difficult to evaluate in children under five years old, as they cannot adequately express their pain. Therefore, the present study compared the degree of pain with the LA with that of the OA in children under five years old using a pain scoring system at our institute.
Material and methods
The records of 74 IH patients under 5 years old who underwent surgery between January 2022 and July 2023 were reviewed and compared in terms of the age, operative method, operative diagnosis, operation time, postoperative symptoms, and complications. The revised Face, Legs, Activity, Cry, and Consolability (FLACC) scores were used to evaluate the degree of pain quantitatively.
Results
Forty-seven patients with a mean age of 2.85 years old underwent the OA, while 27 patients with a mean age of 2.37 years old underwent the LA. During the LA, the contralateral patent processus vaginalis was identified in eight patients. The average operation time was 46.2 min for the OA and 37.8 min for LA. Both groups experienced similar rates of a postoperative fever, pain, and vomiting. The mean FLACC scores were 0.21 and 0.44 in the OA and LA groups, respectively. In a subanalysis by age groups, the average operation durations in patients < 2 years old were 48.9 and 33.9 min in the OA and LA groups, respectively, whereas those in patient 3–5 years old were 44.0 and 39.6 min in the OA and LA groups, respectively. The FLACC scores in patients < 2 years old were 0.09 and 0.5 in the OA and LA groups, respectively, and those in patients 3–5 years old were 0.3 and 0.18 in the OA and LA groups, respectively.
Conclusion
The LA can be performed to avoid contralateral recurrences, and the operation time is reduced in patients under two years old. However, the reduced invasiveness of the LA compared with the OA did not minimize postoperative pain, especially in patients under two years old.
Low oxygen environment effect on the tomato cell wall composition during the fruit ripening process
Authors: Leszczuk Agata , Kutyrieva-Nowak Nataliia , Nowak Artur , Nosalewicz Artur , Zdunek Artur
Published: October 2023

Background
Oxygen concentration is a key characteristic of the fruit storage environment determining shelf life and fruit quality. The aim of the work was to identify cell wall components that are related to the response to low oxygen conditions in fruit and to determine the effects of such conditions on the ripening process. Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) fruits at different stages of the ripening process were stored in an anoxic and hypoxic environment, at 0% and 5% oxygen concentrations, respectively. We used comprehensive and comparative methods: from microscopic immunolabelling and estimation of enzymatic activities to detailed molecular approaches. Changes in the composition of extensin, arabinogalactan proteins, rhamnogalacturonan-I, low methyl-esterified homogalacturonan, and high methyl-esterified homogalacturonan were analysed.
Results
The results indicate alterations in fruits stored in the low oxygen environment, i.e. changes in fruit morphology, protein content, distribution of low methyl-esterified homogalacturonan, secretion of callose, modified activities of β-1,3-glucanase, endo-β-1,4-glucanase, and guaiacol peroxidase (GPX), and numerous disruptions in the cell wall structure at the molecular level.
Conclusions
In-depth molecular analyses showed that low oxygen stress immediately affected the cell wall composition. This may be considered a way of cell wall remodelling as a response to unfavourable conditions. Taken together, our results confirm that the 5% oxygen concentration slows down the ripening process and 0% oxygen accelerates the changes taking place during ripening. Thus, the observed molecular reset occurring in tomato cell walls in hypoxic and anoxic conditions emerges to be a result of regulatory and protective mechanisms modulating ripening processes.
Clothing-Change Person Re-identification Based on Fusion of RGB Modality and Gait Features
Authors: Tu Hongbin , Liu Chao , Peng Yuanyuan , Xiong Haibo , Wang Haotian
Published: October 2023

Clothing-change person re-identification is an emerging research topic aimed at reidentifying individuals who have changed their clothing. This topic is highly challenging and has not received sufficient research attention to date. Most existing person re-identification methods primarily focus on clothing features, but in real-world scenarios where individuals change their attire, the identification accuracy of conventional person re-identification networks significantly decreases. The key challenge is how to effectively extract clothing-agnostic human features. This paper presents a method for clothing-change person re-identification that combines gait recognition and RGB modality. Initially, we use a ResNet50-based network for feature extraction from pedestrian images to obtain initial person features. We train the network using a clothing-aware loss function, which emphasizes features such as the face, body posture, or shoes that are less likely to change with different clothing. Additionally, we employ semantic segmentation to transform the original pedestrian images into gait energy maps. To address the limited gait information within a single image, we introduce a gait prediction module and use the GaitSet network to extract multi-frame pedestrian gait features. Finally, we fuse the extracted gait features with clothing-agnostic features to enhance the network's robustness. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach on a new dataset, showcasing improved robustness and higher accuracy compared to existing methods, thus confirming its superiority.
Prognostic modeling of glycosylation in TNBC and screening of related key genes through a comprehensive analysis of multi-omics studies
Authors: Zhou Han , Wang Zhiwei , Guo Jun , Zhu Zihui , Sun Gang
Published: October 2023

Background
The most common malignancy in women is breast cancer, and the prognosis varies greatly according to its typing, among which the worst prognosis is TNBC. The glycosylation is one of the most priorities among reasons influencing the prognosis with TNBC of patients. We aim to develop a tumor prognosis model by analyzing genes related to glycosylation in order to predict patient prognosis.
Methods
The dataset was downloaded from the TCGA databank and the predictive genes were identified through Cox one-way regression analysis. The model genes with the highest risk scores among the 18 samples were obtained by lasso regression analysis, and the model was established. The related pathways affecting the progression of TNBC were analyzed, and the key genes of the disease were discovered for subsequent research.
Results
The model was constructed using TCGA database data, and The model underwent verification through K-M curve analysis and ROC curve. Then, we analyzed that the high expression of tumor-related chemokines in high-risk group may be associated with poor tumor prognosis. Finally, We conducted a random survival forest analysis and identified two significant genes, namely DPM2 and PINK1, which have been selected for further investigation.
Conclusion
The prognostic analysis model constructed by the TNBC glycosylation gene has excellent validation efficacy. It can be used for prognostic analysis of relevant TNBC patients.
Association Between Sociodemographic Factors and Health Beliefs Related to Breast Cancer Screening Behavior Among Northern Thai Women: A Hospital-Based Study
Authors: Jiraniramai Surin , Pinyopornpanish Kanokporn , Wongpakaran Nahathai , Angkurawaranon Chaisiri , Champion Victoria L. , Chitapanarux Imjai , Jiraporncharoen Wichuda , Wongpakaran Tinakon
Published: October 2023

Background
Early diagnosis of breast cancer is crucial for reducing mortality rates. The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of demographics/social determinants of health on beliefs about the practice of self-breast examination, using mammogram and ultrasound in the context of breast cancer screening among Thai women in a hospital-based setting for implying program planning and future research.
Methods
A cross-sectional study was conducted in two health centers in Chiang Mai Province from August 2021 to December 2021, involving 130 Thai women ages 40 to 70 years. Data were collected by a survey using a questionnaire to gather sociodemographic information, and health beliefs about breast cancer and screening behavior utilizing the modified Thai version of Champion's Health Belief Model Scale (MT-CHBMS). Descriptive statistics, t-tests, ANOVA, and linear regression models were employed for examining association between sociodemographic factors and health beliefs about the practice of self-breast examination (BSE), using mammogram (MG) and ultrasound (UTS).
Results
Health insurance schemes were associated with Benefit-MG, Barrier-BSE, Barrier-MG and Barrier-UTS subscales. Additionally, monthly income was associated with Barrier-MG and Barrier-UTS subscales. The most common barriers reported were “embarrassment”, “worry”, and “takes too much time”.
Conclusion
To enhance breast cancer screening in Thailand, program planning and future research should focus on health insurance schemes, especially women with social security schemes, as they may be the most appropriate target group for intervention.
Efficiency of transcription and translation of cell-free protein synthesis systems in cell-sized lipid vesicles with changed lipids
Authors: Miwa Akari , Wakamori Masatoshi , Ariyoshi Tetsuro , Okada Yasushi , Shirouzu Mikako , Umehara Takashi , Kamiya Koki
Published: October 2023

To develop artificial cell models that mimic living cells, cell-sized lipid vesicles encapsulating cell-free protein synthesis (CFPS) systems are useful for translation and regulation or artificial gene circuits for vesicle–vesicle communications. Therefore, investigating the transcriptional and translational properties of CFPS systems in lipid vesicles is important for maximizing the synthesis and functions of proteins. Although transcription and translation using CFPS systems inside lipid vesicles are more important than that outside lipid vesicles, the former processes are not investigated by changing the lipid composition of lipid vesicles. Herein, we investigated changes in transcription and translation using CFPS systems inside giant lipid vesicles (approximately 5–20 µm in diameter) caused by changing the lipid composition of lipid vesicles containing neutral, positively, and negatively charged lipids. After incubation for 30 min, 1, 2, and 4 h, the fluorescence intensities of fluorogenic RNA aptamer on the 3’-UTR of mRNA (transcription) or fluorescent protein sfCherry (translation) in the three types of lipid vesicles were observed by changing plasmid DNA concentration. Thus, the present study provides an experimental basis for constructing complex artificial cell models using bottom-up approaches.
Use of a deep learning application to classify recommendations made by hospital pharmacists during medication prescription review
Authors: Alkanj Ahmad , Godet Julien , Johns Erin , Gourieux Bénédicte , Michel Bruno
Published: October 2023

Background Recommendations are proposals made by hospital pharmacists to address the sub-optimal use of medications during prescription review.
Objective To perform a large-scale descriptive analysis of recommendations formulated during prescription review using a deep neural network classifier in a hospital Setting This retrospective study was conducted at the University Hospital of Strasbourg. Main outcome measures Recommendations were automatically classified according to the coding of the French Society of Clinical Pharmacy.
Method Data from 2018 to 2020 were collected from prescription support software.
Results 2,930,656 prescription lines were analysed for a total of 119,689 patients. Among these prescription lines, 153,335 resulted in recommendations (n = 48,202 patients). Recommendations were predominantly observed in patients aged 65 years or older (n=26,141 patients) and in patients taking 5 or more medications (44,702). The most frequently identified types of Drug-related problems associated with recommendations were “Non conformity to guidelines or contra-indication” (n =88,523; 57.7%), “Overdosage” (16,975; 11.1%) and “Improper administration” (13, 898; 9.1%). The most frequently encountered drugs were: Paracetamol (n= 10,585; 6.9%), Esomeprazole (6,031; 3.9%), Hydrochlorothiazide (2,951; 1.9%), Enoxaparin (2,191; 1.4%), Tramadol (1,879; 1.2%), Calcium (2, 073; 1.3%), Perindopril (1,950; 1.2%), Amlodipine (1,716; 1.1%), Simvastatin (1,560; 1.0%) and Insulin (1,019; 0.7%).
Conclusion The deep neural network classifier used met the challenge of automatically classifying recommendations from a large database without mobilizing significant human resources. The use of such a classifier can lead to alerting caregivers about certain risky attitudes in prescription and administration, and triggering actions to improve practices.
Influence of sub-urban highway underpasses on animals in Chongming Island, Shanghai
Authors: Gan Yingshan , Qu Zedong , Wang Peng , Nie Dayi , Chen Min
Published: October 2023

Building wildlife corridors is thought to be a useful strategy for reducing the negative effects of road construction. However, the wildlife corridors currently built are mainly set up for medium-sized or large wild mammals in the wilderness, while there are relatively few constructions for small animal corridors in urban areas. In this study, we assessed the use of two underpasses on the Beiyan Highway of Chongming Island, Shanghai. We recorded 27 species of animals in a total of 385 events, and 8 species successfully passed through the underpasses. The most frequent animal species recorded in the two corridors were weasels and white-breasted waterhens respectively, followed by both rodents. Overall, mammals and aves frequented the underpasses the most, and their time spent there matched their routines. Our study suggests that local wildlife has successfully used the two underpasses in a variety of ways, but longer-term monitoring is still required.
Prognostic model construction of disulfidptosis-associated genes in brain glioma and their relevance in immune checkpoints
Authors: Shen Jing , Xu Hua , Wang Peng
Published: October 2023

Background: Disulfidptosis is a novel form of programmed cell death (PCD) triggered by disulfide stress and is implicated to have a potential role in various cancers. Although the role of disulfidptosis has been assessed in various cancers, its role in Glioma (GBMLGG) prognosis and immunotherapy response remains unexplored.
Results: A prognostic analysis of 15 disulfidptosis-associated genes in a pan-cancer dataset revealed significant differences in their prognostic performance in several cancer types. An analysis of GBMLGG revealed that the prognosis of GBMLGG predicted by the 15 disulfidptosis-associated genes had grouped without any clusters, and the difference in the prognosis among the subgroups was highly significant. Subsequently, seven target genes were identified using 10 machine learning algorithms including 101 algorithm combinations, and their prognostic prediction was validated by constructing receiver operating characteristic curves and conducting Kaplan-Meier (KM) analyses, which showed very satisfactory results. The complete predictive nomogram was then constructed. Furthermore, we analyzed the correlation between the target genes and immune cells, tumor mutational burden, and immune checkpoints, and the results showed that 13 cell lines and 19 immune checkpoint–associated genes were significantly correlated with the target genes. These results were also verified through single-cell analysis.
Conclusions: An in-depth analysis of GBMLGG confirmed the strong correlation between the target genes of disulfidptosis-associated cell death and GBMLGG prognosis in multiple ways. The prognostic predictive nomogram was constructed using powerful machine learning algorithms to screen for the final target genes, which demonstrated excellent results when tested using several datasets.
Trial registration: Not applicable
Multilevel Feature Extraction Model for Lung Vessel Segmentation in CT Images with an Emphasis on Small Vessel
Authors: Liao Shenghui , 彭 柴扬 , Tang Yimin , Ni Ming , Liu Lihong , Kui Xiaoyan
Published: October 2023

Lung vessel segmentation is essential for diagnosing and treating lung diseases. Most existing research relies on direct image segmentation, making it challenging to accurately segment small vessels in lung CT images. Hence, we introduced a multilevel feature extraction model for lung vessel segmentation in CT images. We extract the structural features of lung CT images as prior information to enhance segmentation accuracy, combining convolutional, MLP, and Transformer techniques to extract features at different image levels. We also refined the attention mechanism to reallocate computational resources to target regions. Additionally, we adjusted the loss function, dynamically setting the loss weight based on the size of the segmented target in the label, enhancing the segmentation precision of small vessels. Compared to current mainstream methods, our model's modules significantly contribute to the segmentation results, particularly for small vessels, with metrics improving by over 2%. It also excels in other medical image segmentation tasks.