bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Life experiences and cultural adaptation among migrant workers in Malaysia
Authors: Enh Azlizan Mat , Wahab Andika , Azlan Arina Anis , Talib Kartini Aboo , Sakti Andi Muhammad Tri , Sultan Fazal Mohamed Mohamed
Published: January 2024

This study examines the state of migrants’ cultural adaptation in Malaysia, and how such an adaptation can help build our understanding of migrants’ life and employment experiences in the country. In doing so, this study has adopted a quantitative approach, with a completed survey towards 410 migrant respondents, living and working temporarily in Selangor, Malaysia. A multiple regression analysis finds that the three most significant predictors contributing to the respondents’ cultural adaptation are “positive experiences” (β = .677, p = .000), “closeness” (β = − .107, p = .008), and “social relationships” (β = .095, p = .032). While “positive experiences” and “social relationships” influence the migrant workers’ adaptation positively, the “closeness” predictor on the contrary (negative). Another predictor, “disconnection”, is found to be not statistically significant. The one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) reveals significant differences in the respondents’ cultural adaptation based on such demographic characteristics as age, gender, level of education, nationality, length of employment, and sector of employment. For instance, female migrants are strongly associated with a higher level of “positive experiences” [F(1, 408) = 6.321, p = .013] and “social relationships” [F(1, 408) = 5.634, p = .018], while male migrants tend to rely on cultural proximity (i.e., “closeness”) [F(1, 408) = 6.828, p = .009]. The discussion section highlights attributes such as the gender factor in cultural adaptation, preservation of cultural identities, and creation of migrants’ symbolic places to understand how cultural adaptation intersects with the migrant workers’ daily lives and experiences. This study concludes that as Malaysia’s economy continues to rely on migrant workers, it needs to better understand the workers’ cultural adaptation and their far-reaching impact on their life experiences and employment conditions in the country.
Anti-complement drugs for the treatment of geographic atrophy and the release of silicone oil
Authors: Melo Gustavo Barreto , Emerson Geoffrey Guy
Published: January 2024

Intravitreal injections are a common procedure in ophthalmology, often using syringes coated with silicone to aid piston movement and needles coated with silicone oil to facilitate penetration of the sclera. Pegcetacoplan and avacincaptad pegol, recently approved for clinical use by the US Food and Drug Administration, have higher viscosity and seem more susceptible to entrap air bubbles compared to anti-VEGF drugs.

It is plausible that both anti-complement drugs could be associated with a higher likelihood of introducing silicone oil in the vitreous because of higher viscosity, with potentially higher friction at the inner surface of syringe barrel, in the vicinity of silicone oil. In addition to this, undesirable agitation might be inadvertently promoted by some retina specialists to remove air bubbles from the drug solution.

In conclusion, recent reports of silicone oil droplets in the vitreous of patients receiving pegcetacoplan injection might be related to both its viscosity and to agitation of the syringe to remove air bubbles. Since avacincaptad pegol also is viscous, though with different pH, syringe and filter needle, we might expect similar reports for this agent soon. We also recommend further studies be carried not only to clarify the current matter but also the potential association between the combination of agitation, silicone oil and inflammation or any immune response.
What wages do people expect for vocational and academic education backgrounds in Switzerland?
Authors: Cattaneo Maria Alejandra
Published: January 2024

Correctly anticipating the earnings for different education profiles is pivotal in making informed education decisions. In this paper, leveraging unique survey data, we study the wage expectations for academic and vocational education backgrounds in Switzerland. Personal reference points matter in forming these wage expectations as we find significant heterogeneity in their distributions by gender, age, socioeconomic status, region of residence, and migration background. Asymmetries exist between beliefs for academic and vocational backgrounds since relative differences in wage expectations also vary by respondents’ characteristics. These heterogeneities are vital for education policy because our analyses show that the wage expectations are associated with preferences for specific educational tracks for the own (hypothetical) child. If education decisions are ill-informed, this possibly leads to educational mismatches and related adverse effects later in life.
Is it a complication or a consequence - a new perspective on adverse outcomes in Interventional Radiology
Authors: Ierardi Anna Maria , Ascenti Velio , Lanza Carolina , Carriero Serena , Amato Gaetano , Pellegrino Giuseppe , Giurazza Francesco , Torcia Pierluca , Carrafiello Gianpaolo
Published: January 2024

The aim of the article is to introduce a new term in post-procedural events related to the procedure itself. All the Societies and Councils report these events as complications and they are divided in mild, moderate and severe or immediate and delayed.

On the other hand the term error is known as the application of a wrong plan, or strategy to achieve a goal.

For the first time, we are trying to introduce the term “consequence”; assuming that the procedure is the only available and the best fit to clinical indication, a consequence should be seen as an expected and unavoidable occurrence of an “adverse event” despite correct technical execution.
Diagnostic and prognostic value of single nucleotide polymorphisms in autophagy-related genes (ATG) among Egyptian patients with breast cancer disease
Authors: Saadawy Sara F. , Raafat Ahmed , Omar Walaa E.
Published: January 2024

Background

Autophagy-related genes (ATGs), associated with autophagy, contribute to the pathogenesis of many illnesses, including cancer. ATGs’ role in breast cancer (BC) is still under investigation. Therefore, the current study aimed to determine whether genetic variants in core ATGs correlate with BC prognosis and investigate their impact on protein plasma levels.

Methods

This case–control study was carried out on 70 BC patients as well as 70 cancer-free controls in order to determine the association of these variants with BC risk. ATG10 (rs1864182) and ATG7 (rs1375206) polymorphisms were genotyped in whole blood samples using TaqMan SNP Genotyping Assays, and ATG7 and ATG10 levels in plasma were determined using ELISA.

Results

The results revealed that ATG7 (rs1375206) might contribute to BC, as patients with the GG genotype displayed a substantial association with BC (OR = 3.23, 95% CI 1.12–9.5) as well as a significant increase in ATG7 protein expression. For ATG7 rs1375206, genotypes GG was significantly associated with increased BC risk; carriers of the G allele frequently have a bad prognosis compared to carriers of the CC genotype (OR of mortality equals 3.01). Serum ATG 7 in the breast cancer patients’ group was significantly higher than that in the control group (p < 0.001). In contrast, carriers of the ATG10 (rs1864182) CC genotype were significant with a lower risk of BC (OR = 0.31, 95% CI 0.26–0.79) when compared with patients with AA genotype, while serum ATG 10 protein levels were decreased in patients carrying C allele (p < 0.05). Carriers of the C allele frequently have a good prognosis (OR of mortality equals 0.79) also the C allele were significantly less likely to have higher grade tumor (14.3% compared to 65.2% of A allele).

Conclusions

Single gene polymorphisms (SNPs) within the ATG7 (rs1375206) and ATG 10 (rs1864182) are substantially correlated with BC among Egyptian females. Consequently, SNPs should be considered critical prognostic markers for distinguishing individuals with ATG7 (rs1375206) at elevated risk of developing BC as well as its progression from those with ATG 10 (rs1864182) at lower risk and the effect of these SNPs on its protein expression levels as ATG7 (rs1375206) polymorphism associated with decreased plasma ATG7 level, on the other hand, ATG 10 (rs1864182) polymorphism accompanied with increased ATG 10 plasma level.
Advancing the community plan to end the HIV Epidemic in Philadelphia: a qualitative descriptive evaluation of low-threshold PrEP services in sexual health clinics
Authors: Bonett Stephen , Mahajan Anjali , da Silva Daniel Teixeira , Williams Javontae , Brady Kathleen , Bauermeister José , Wood Sarah M.
Published: January 2024

Background

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is an effective HIV prevention method and a key component of Philadelphia’s Community Plan to End the HIV Epidemic (EHE). However, significant barriers to accessing PrEP exist among people at risk for HIV. Low-threshold models for PrEP services that minimize barriers to entry and service engagement could help bolster access to PrEP through community-based clinics. This study aimed to describe the initial implementation of low-threshold PrEP services in three sexual health clinics funded by the Philadelphia Department of Public Health and explore strategies for delivering low-threshold PrEP services.

Methods

We conducted three focus groups with staff (i.e., providers, prevention navigators, and administrative staff, N = 21) at each of three participating PDPH-funded sexual health clinics from November 2021 to January 2022. Discussion topics included details about the PrEP delivery process, clinic strengths and assets, resource gaps, and PrEP implementation goals. Follow-up interviews with staff members (N = 8) between March 2022 and May 2022 focused on identifying successful strategies for PrEP delivery and adaptations needed to optimize low-threshold PrEP service delivery. Rapid qualitative methods and the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Science were used to analyze data from focus groups and interviews.

Results

Participants collaborated to create process maps that visualized the steps involved in delivering PrEP services within their respective settings. These maps highlighted several stages in PrEP service delivery, such as connecting individuals to services, providing prevention navigation, conducting clinical encounters, and ensuring follow-up care. Participants described effective strategies for implementing PrEP, which included integrating and co-locating services on-site, strengthening staffing resources and capacity, and addressing barriers experienced by clients.

Conclusions

Lessons from the implementation of low-threshold PrEP service delivery in Philadelphia can guide ongoing local adaptations and future scale-up of these models to improve access to PrEP and advance the goals of the EHE initiative.
Epigenetic Control of Adamantinomatous Craniopharyngiomas
Authors: Marrero-Gutiérrez Junier , Bueno Ana Carolina , Martins Clarissa Silva , Coeli-Lacchini Fernanda Borchers , Silva-Júnior Rui M Patrício , Marques Gonçalves Gabriel Henrique , Ozaki Jorge Guilherme Okanobo , de Almeida e Silva Danillo C , Wildemberg Luiz Eduardo , da Silva Antunes Ximene Lima , dos Santos Antônio Carlos , Machado Helio Rubens , Santos Marcelo Volpon , Moreira Ayrton Custodio , Gadelha Monica R , Vêncio Ricardo Zorzetto Nicoliello , Antonini Sonir Roberto R , de Castro Margaret
Published: January 2024

Introduction

Studies addressing the methylation pattern in adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma (ACP) are lacking.

Objective

To identify methylation signatures in ACPs regarding clinical presentation and outcome.

Methods

Clinical and pathology data were collected from 35 patients with ACP (54% male; 18.1 years [2-68]). CTNNB1 mutations and methylation profile (MethylationEPIC/Array-Illumina) were analyzed in tumoral DNA. Unsupervised machine learning analysis of this comprehensive methylome sample was achieved using hierarchical clustering and multidimensional scaling. Statistical associations between clusters and clinical features were achieved using the Fisher test and global biological process interpretations were aided by Gene Ontology enrichment analyses.

Results

Two clusters were revealed consistently by all unsupervised methods (ACP-1: n = 18; ACP-2: n = 17) with strong bootstrap statistical support. ACP-2 was enriched by CTNNB1 mutations (100% vs 56%, P = .0006), hypomethylated in CpG island, non-CpG Island sites, and globally (P < .001), and associated with greater tumor size (24.1 vs 9.5 cm3, P = .04). Enrichment analysis highlighted pathways on signaling transduction, transmembrane receptor, development of anatomical structures, cell adhesion, cytoskeleton organization, and cytokine binding, and cell type-specific biological processes as regulation of oligodendrocytes, keratinocyte, and epithelial cells differentiation.

Conclusion

Two clusters of patients with ACP were consistently revealed by unsupervised machine learning methods, with one of them significantly hypomethylated, enriched by CTNNB1 mutated ACPs, and associated with increased tumor size. Enrichment analysis reinforced pathways involved in tumor proliferation and in cell-specific tumoral microenvironment.
Generation of rat-derived lung epithelial cells in Fgfr2b-deficient mice retains species-specific development
Authors: Yuri Shunsuke , Murase Yuki , Isotani Ayako
Published: January 2024

Regenerative medicine is a tool to compensate for the shortage of lungs for transplantation, but it remains difficult to construct a lung in vitro due to the complex three-dimensional structures and multiple cell types required. A blastocyst complementation method using interspecies chimeric animals has been attracting attention as a way to create complex organs in animals, although successful lung formation using interspecies chimeric animals has not yet been achieved. Here, we applied a reverse-blastocyst complementation method to clarify the conditions required to form lungs in an Fgfr2b-deficient mouse model. We then successfully formed a rat-derived lung in the mouse model by applying a tetraploid-based organ-complementation method. Importantly, rat lung epithelial cells retained their developmental timing even in the mouse body. These findings provide useful insights to overcome the barrier of species-specific developmental timing to generate functional lungs in interspecies chimeras.
Diet influences resource allocation in chemical defence but not melanin synthesis in an aposematic moth
Authors: Ottocento Cristina , Rojas Bibiana , Burdfield-Steel Emily , Furlanetto Miriam , Nokelainen Ossi , Winters Sandra , Mappes Johanna
Published: January 2024

For animals that synthesise their chemical compounds de novo, resources, particularly proteins, can influence investment in chemical defences and nitrogen-based wing colouration such as melanin. Competing for the same resources often leads to trade-offs in resource allocation. We manipulated protein availability in the larval diet of the wood tiger moth, Arctia plantaginis, to test how early life resource availability influences relevant life history traits, melanin production and chemical defences. We expected higher dietary protein to result in more effective chemical defences in adult moths and a higher amount of melanin in the wings. According to the resource allocation hypothesis, we also expected individuals with less melanin to have more resources to allocate to chemical defences. We found that protein-deprived moths had a slower larval development, and their chemical defences were less unpalatable for bird predators, but the expression of melanin in their wings did not differ from that of moths raised on a high-protein diet. The amount of melanin in the wings, however, unexpectedly correlated positively with chemical defences. Our findings demonstrate that the resources available in early life have an important role in the efficacy of chemical defences, but melanin-based warning colours are less sensitive to resource variability than other fitness-related traits.
Efficacy of pre, pro, and synbiotic on clinical endpoint of acute pancreatitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Mariadi I Ketut , Somayana Gde , Sindhughosa Dwijo Anargha , Shalim Christina Permata , Daniella Dian , Purwanta Made Lady Adelaida
Published: January 2024

Background: Acute pancreatitis (AP) commonly presents as gastrointestinal disease and can become a life-threatening condition. The pathophysiological process involves impairment in the gut barrier and bacterial translocation, mediating the infection of necrotic pancreatic tissue. Therefore, a strategy to maintain gut integrity is rational. The Probiotics in Pancreatitis Trial (PROPATRIA) found that probiotics had a harmful effect on severe AP. However, additional research revealed neither favorable nor unfavorable effects. This study aimed to analyze the efficacy of these medications on clinical endpoints in patients with AP.

Methods: We performed a systematic search up to April 14, 2023. The study population in this review were patients with AP. The intervention consisted of prebiotic group, probiotic group, and synbiotic group. The effectiveness of each group in treating LoH was the main result, while infection complications were the secondary result. The analysis was conducted using a random effect model, and publication bias was found using a funnel plot.

Results: 16 studies were used in this review and meta-analysis. A total of 1,044 acute pancreatitis patients and 779 patients were included for primary and secondary outcomes, respectively. The use of either pre-, pro-, and synbiotics reduces the LoH significantly (-3.32 days, p = 0.001). Subgroup analysis of the interventions revealed that probiotics (-3.02 days, p =0.02) and prebiotics (-3.9 days, p =0.02) reduce the LoH, but not for synbiotics (-4.37 days, p =0.18). As for secondary outcomes, the use of pre-, pro-, and synbiotics reduce the risk of infection in acute pancreatitis patients with odds ratio (OR) of 0.32 (p = 0.006).

Conclusion: Additional medication of prebiotics, probiotics, and synbiotics as an adjunctive to standard therapy showed clinical benefits in AP patients. Therefore, its usage on acute pancreatitis patients could provide clinical benefit, albeit further studies are warranted.
Latent Stratification for Incrementality Experiments
Authors: Berman Ron , Feit Elea McDonnell
Published: January 2024

A method is proposed to compute more precise standard errors for marketing A/B tests.
To Earmark or to Nonearmark? The Role of Control, Transparency, and Warm-Glow
Authors: Özer Özalp , Urrea Gloria , Villa Sebastián
Published: January 2024

Problem definition: Charities face tension when deciding whether to earmark donations, that is, allow donors to restrict the use of their donations for a specific purpose. Research shows that earmarking decreases operational performance because it limits charities’ flexibility to use donations. However, there is also a common belief that earmarking increases donations. Earmarking is assumed to increase donations through three mechanisms: by (i) giving donors control over their donations, (ii) increasing operational transparency of donations, and (iii) changing donors’ levels of altruism and warm-glow. To resolve this tension, we study how, when, and why earmarking affects donors’ decisions. We consider three important decisions donors make that impact the fundraising outcome: (i) preference between earmarking and nonearmarking, (ii) decision to donate or not (i.e., donor activation), and (iii) the donation amount. Methodology/results: We design three online experiments that allow us to quantify the effect of earmarking on donors’ decisions and to investigate the role of the three aforementioned mechanisms in fundraising. Our results reveal, for example, that earmarking activates more donors but it does not always increase donation amounts. In addition, we determine the conditions under which the three mechanisms affect the outcome of fundraising campaigns. Managerial implications: Our findings provide actionable insights for how charities can design fundraising campaigns more effectively and suggest when to leverage earmarking and the three mechanisms depending on the charities’ fundraising goals.

Funding: The authors gratefully acknowledge financial support provided by the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado Boulder.

Supplemental Material: The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/msom.2022.0096 .
Global Optimality Guarantees for Policy Gradient Methods
Authors: Bhandari Jalaj , Russo Daniel
Published: January 2024

Policy gradient methods, which have powered a lot of recent success in reinforcement learning, search for an optimal policy in a parameterized policy class by performing stochastic gradient descent on the cumulative expected cost-to-go under some initial state distribution. Although widely used, these methods lack theoretical guarantees as the optimization objective is typically nonconvex even for simple control problems, and hence are understood to only converge to a stationary point. In “Global Optimality Guarantees for Policy Gradient Methods,” J. Bhandari and D. Russo identify structural properties of the underlying MDP that guarantee that despite nonconvexity, the optimization objective has no suboptimal stationary points, ensuring asymptotic convergence of policy gradient methods to globally optimal policies. Under stronger conditions, authors show the policy gradient objective to satisfy a Polyak-lojasiewicz (gradient dominance) condition that yields fast convergence rates. In addition, when some of the said conditions are relaxed, authors provide bounds on the suboptimality gap of any stationary point. The results rely on a key connection with policy iteration, a classic dynamic programming algorithm which solves a single period optimization problem at every step. The authors show how structure in the single period optimization problems solved by policy iteration translate into nice properties of the multiperiod policy gradient objective, making it amenable for first-order methods to find globally optimal solutions. The authors also instantiate their framework for several classical control problems including tabular and linear MDPs, linear quadratic control, optimal stopping, and finite-horizon inventor control problems.
Impacts of social media use on occupations of youths with hearing disability in a special education school in upper northern Thailand
Authors:   Department of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Chiang Mai University, Thailand, Limthongchalearn Siriyanee , Lersilp Suchitporn ,   Department of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Chiang Mai University, Thailand, Putthinoi Supawadee ,   Department of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Chiang Mai University, Thailand
Published: January 2024

Background: Social media have been used increasingly in the daily lives of the global population. Youths with hearing disability participate in many activities through social media, as do those in general. However, due to their hearing loss, they may experience different impacts, particularly in the special education context. Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the impacts of social media use on occupations of youths with hearing disability, and the relationship of activity limitation and participation restriction in the special education school context. Materials and methods: The participants comprised 92 youths with hearing disability, who were studying in a special education school. The research instrument was a questionnaire in two forms: paper-based and a sign language video clip. It was presented with acceptable content validity (IOC=0.60-1.00), good internal consistency reliability (α=0.88) and moderate stability reliability (ICC=0.70). Results: Results showed that most of the participants had their own smart phone and used a hearing aid for access to social media. Frequency of social media use was daily for 1-3 hour(s) per day. Overall, most of the participants had no activity limitation or participation restriction in their occupations, but they showed a minimal level of limitation and restriction in education. In terms of social media use, most of the youths presented a positive impact on occupations, particularly in social participation. The overall results indicated the relationship between activity limitation and participation restriction and impacts of social media use on occupations (r= -0.293, p=0.005). When considering each type of occupation, the results indicated the relationships of education, work, and social participation significantly. Conclusion: The findings of this study revealed the relationship between activity limitation and participation restriction and overall impacts of social media use on occupations. These findings were applied to social media use, particularly in parts of the text and virtual networks, as an optional channel for providing occupational therapy services and accessing meaningful occupations for youths with hearing disability.
Phytochemical Compositions and Cosmeceutical Activities of Rosa damascena Mill. Leaf Extracts from Environmentally Friendly Extraction Technique
Authors:   Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand, Jittasai Pipat , Kanjanakawinkul Watchara ,   Chulabhorn Royal Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Facilities by Chulabhorn Royal Academy, Phlu Ta Luang, Sattahip District, Chon Buri 20180, Thailand, Yawootti Artit ,   Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Rajamangala University of Technology Lanna, Chiang Mai 50300, Thailand, Chaiyana Wantida ,   Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
Published: January 2024

A significant amount of Rosa damascena Mill. leaves were discarded as waste during the harvesting and pruning for flowering. The current study aimed to investigate the potential of using these agricultural waste products in the cosmetics industry. Dried R. damascena leaves were extracted using maceration or environmentally friendly extractions, including infusion, digestion, ultrasonic, microwave, micellar, and pulsed electric fields (PEF) extraction. The extracts were analyzed for their chemical compositions and assessed for antioxidant, anti-tyrosinase, and anti-aging properties. The irritation profile of each extract was investigated by the hen’s egg-chorioallantoic membrane (HET-CAM) test. The results noted that extraction by ethanol yielded significantly higher extract content than deionized water (P < 0.05). However, total phenolic and flavonoid content was found to be greater, whereas the bioactive compounds, including rutin and rosmarinic acid, were only found in the aqueous extracts. On the other hand, kojic acid was found in the extract from infusion and maceration. Interestingly, the extracts from micellar and PEF extractions were found to significantly scavenge the radical, which were related to their rutin contents. Their collagenase inhibition (69.1 ± 10.1% and 54.8 ± 19.1%, respectively) were equivalent to those of epigallocatechin gallate, a well-known anti-aging compound (76.0 ± 1.2%). Besides, all extracts were safe since they induced no irritation in the HET-CAM test. In conclusion, environmentally friendly extraction of bioactive components from R. damascena leaves were suggested, with the potential to be exploited as an anti-aging and whitening ingredient for further use in cosmeceutical area. Keywords: Rosa damascene, Green extraction, Antioxidant, Anti-tyrosinase, Collagen, Elastin; Hyaluronan, Irritation
Antioxidant Activity and Phytochemical Profile of Diadema paucispinum from Sumenep-Madura, Indonesia
Authors: Izazi Farizah , Hardiyono Hardiyono , Kresnamurti Angelica
Published: January 2024

Background: Sea urchin shells contain pigment compounds, such as PHNQ, which vary based on habitat conditions. These pigments, especially in darker shells, display diverse chemical compounds and increased antioxidant power. Diadema paucispinum is a type of sea urchin found in Sumenep-Madura, Indonesia, which has yet to be extensively studied for its antioxidant potential. Aim: To identify the class of compounds present in the 96% ethanol extract of Diadema paucispinum (EEDP) from Sumenep-Madura, Indonesia, and to evaluate the antioxidant activity of this extract. Methods: The research utilized phytochemical screening for extracts, FTIR analysis of simplicia and extracts, and antioxidant tests with DPPH and ABTS. Results: The study identified the presence of alkaloid, flavonoid, saponin, and tannin compounds in the extract. Antioxidant activity, determined by the IC50 value, was found to be 6084 µg/ml using the DPPH method and 756.3 µg/ml with the ABTS method, while IC50 of Vitamin C was 3,25 ppm with DPPH method and 2,09 ppm for ABTS method. Conclusion: According to the study's findings, Diadema paucispinum extract found in Sumenep-Madura contains alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, and tannins. The IC50 value of EEDP was more significant than 200 ppm, indicating that 96% EEDP sea urchin did not have antioxidant activity when compared to vitamin C as a standard compound.
Protective Effect of Prosopis Farcta Fruit Aqueous Extract Against Oxidative Stress Caused By Ethanol in Albino Rats
Authors: Mushatet Mustafa K. , jary Thikra abd , khalaf Asaad Abbas , Alqabbany Mustafa Abbas
Published: January 2024

Prosopis farcta was previously used in folk medicine as a dry fruit to relieve pain before its active biological components that contribute to this were known. This study assessed the effectiveness of a dry fruit extract of P. farcta by measuring the indicators of inflammation in albino rats after they were dosed with ethanol. As such, looking at the antioxidant potential of P. farcta fruit aqueous extract (PFFAE) in resistance to ethanol's harm in rats given ethanol showed a notable increase in serum C reactive protein (CRP), malondialdehyde (MDA), CRP/ALB ratio (CAR), and WBC count. At the same time, glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and albumin were markedly reduced. PFFAE diminished ethanol-induced amounts of CRP, MDA, and CAR in plasma; additionally, it strengthened the ethanol-induced decline in GPx activity, and albumin had no apparent effect on the ESR level. Consequently, the current findings demonstrate that PFFAE counteracts the toxicity of ethanol and has a protective impact against the ethanol effect.
A Comparative Diagnostic Study for Using the Contrast Agent in Active and Non-Active Multiple Sclerosis by Region of Interest Parameter
Authors: Sulaiman Ali Abd , abbas Hawraa kadhim , Al-Samydai Ali Mahmoud , K. Alkufi Hussein , kharaba Haneen abdul hadi , Al-hussaniy Hany A.
Published: January 2024

Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a neuropathological disease diagnosed by a magnetic resonance imaging device. Early patients affected with MS are named active. Objectives: This study assessed the difference between active and non-active MS using the region of interest value. Methods: Twenty patients with MS included in this study were examined with T1 weighted image (T1W) with and without contrast agent injection to increase the brightness of darker regions after only 10 minutes. Also, T2 weighted images (T2W) and Fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) were scanned. The area of interest option was calculated for all cases. Results: The result shows that the region of interest (ROI) value was significantly higher for T1 weighted image (T1W) with contrast than without. Furthermore, the range of FLAIR values was higher than the (T2W). Conclusion: The ROI is an effective parameter for diagnosing active MS early by values instead of the radiographic picture.
Effect of Manganese Doping in SnO2 Thin Films and its NO2 Gas Sensing Performance
Authors: R. Yogasaraswathi  , J. Dheepa
Published: January 2024

By using an automated nebulizer spray pyrolysis technique with varied concentrations of manganese chloride (0 - 3%) in the spray solution of tin chloride, thin films of pure and manganese-doped tin oxides (Mn-SnO2) were deposited. X-ray diffraction investigations indicated that 2% Manganese chloride concentration in the spray solution promoted development along (200) and (220) directions. The preferred growth direction in the (200) and (220) planes decreased with increasing manganese chloride doping concentration (2-3%) in the solution. The surface morphology of the films had changed as a result of adding Manganese as a dopant. Compositional analysis was carried out using EDAX. From UV-Vis spectroscopy, the optical properties of the SnO2 and Mn-SnO2 thin film were observed; the maximum optical absorbance was in the wavelength range of 300 - 400 nm. The concentration of Mn in the films affected the intensity of the photoluminescence emission peak detected at 347 and 392 nm for pure SnO2 and Mn-SnO2 films, respectively. The gas sensing performance of the films was examined by dynamic method against NO2 gas, at an operating temperature of 250 °C and 400 ppm gas concentration. Mn-SnO2 films achieved quick response and recovery times of 17 s and 34 s.
Next-generation Electricity Potential from Aqueous Extracts of Plant Resources
Authors: P. Mohanapriya
Published: January 2024

Electrical energy plays a major role in our daily life and its consumption is ever-increasing. Conventional source-based electricity generation has massive environmental challenges such as pollution and global warming. To overcome this, many non-conventional energy source-based generation have been tried and tested such as solar energy, wind energy and biofuels. The present investigation deals with a new technology to produce electricity by using aqueous extracts of various plant resources. Some plants in nature have the properties congenial for the generation of electricity, which may be enhanced.
The promise and performance of data ecosystems: Australia’s COVID-19 response
Authors: Howard Cosmo , Hyland-Wood Bernadette
Published: January 2024

Ecosystem metaphors are increasingly used to describe complex business and civil society relationships. This article argues that the rise of ecosystem thinking in public policy and administration represents a new, radically decentred model of policy action. It focuses on ecosystems of data-driven modelling and experts who use government public health data. This study presents a conceptual framework that suggests effective data ecosystems undergo organic adaptation, display institutional leadership, and respond instrumentally to policymakers’ information needs. It examines how Australia’s infectious disease data ecosystem performed before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. In-depth interviews with data experts involved in infectious disease modelling in Australia revealed trade-offs within and between organic, institutional and instrumental dimensions, which COVID-19 exacerbated. The article concludes that data ecosystems represent a hybrid form of policymaking in practice and that tensions must be managed to maximise the contributions of data ecosystems to facilitate evidence-informed decision-making.
Did low-income essential workers during COVID-19 increase public support for redistribution?
Authors: Kim Jeong Hyun , Kuk John , Kweon Yesola
Published: January 2024

Previous studies have shown that America generally has a low level of support for redistribution, in large part due to racial prejudice, particularly toward the poor. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, has increased public attention to low-income workers’ essential roles in society. Has this increased attention to low-income workers promote public support for redistribution? This article examines how priming about low-income workers’ (1) essential roles and (2) race, shaped individuals’ redistributive preferences. Our findings demonstrate that an emphasis on essential workers increased appreciation of their contribution to society and support for pandemic-related benefits for these workers. However, it did not increase support for redistribution or welfare programmes in general. In addition, while we found negative effects of a Latino cue, particularly among white respondents, this effect weakened when information about workers’ work ethics and other attributes was provided. Our findings have implications for understanding public support of redistribution and communicating government social welfare programmes.
Cattell’s Catholics: Who Were These American Men (and Woman) of Science?
Authors: Freiburger Dana A.
Published: January 2024

Abstract: This article surveys the 1910 second edition of J. McKeen Cattell’s American Men of Science: A Biographical Directory with the aim of identifying individuals who, through their institutional affiliation, education, and other details, could be classified as likely being Catholic. From the 5,500 names listed in this volume, I found seventy who fit my search criteria. I call them Cattell’s Catholics . I next consider these sixty-nine men and one woman of American science through the historical lens of late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century American Catholic higher education. As products of or contributors to this well-established educational enterprise during this period, these individuals provide a critical gauge for judging its range and effectiveness. Additionally, they allow me to identify scientific fields of study, teaching, or research appropriate, if not auspicious, for Catholics. While these Cattell’s Catholics confirm turn-of-the-century American Catholic higher education as being attentive to the teaching of science, their scant numbers reinforce the view that Catholic higher education, although flourishing in the mainstream for much of the nineteenth century in giving definite attention to American educational needs, including the teaching of science, was failing to keep up with the science education demands emerging toward the end of the nineteenth century.
Digital Baggage: Influences On New Student Affairs Professionals’ Social Media Use And Digital Identity
Authors: Gorham Lucas
Published: January 2024

Abstract: This exploratory embedded case study examined the personal and professional social media use of entry-level student affairs professionals at four campuses from a state university system. Bounded by the profession of student affairs, this study focused on how entry-level student affairs professionals used social media platforms. Findings suggest that most entry-level professionals do not enter student affairs ready or willing to engage university communities on social media platforms and their respective campuses and graduate programs are not preparing them to do so. Study participants largely lacked a professional digital identity and were somewhat reticent about developing a robust professional digital identity. Contributing to their hesitancy, participants described their digital baggage – a collection of social media or social media-connected experiences that consciously or unconsciously influence personal or professional social media use.
Group Psychotherapy, Racial and Social Justice
Authors: Schmidt Christine , Lucas Rudy
Published: January 2024

Abstract: Social and racial justice concerns are innately compatible with group psychotherapy. Incorporating justice intentions into group therapy practices ensures the relevance of group work as a form of psychotherapeutic healing. Responding to the Final Report of the Holmes Commission on Racial Equality in American Psychoanalysis 2023 , this article argues that group psychotherapy organizations have a responsibility to offer unique approaches to social and racial justice healing both within group organizations and to other psychotherapy and psychoanalytic institutions. A detailed example from Eastern Group Psychotherapy Society illustrates the multiple group processes that advanced a measure of racial equity.
The Makings and Meanings of Childhood: Parents and the Juvenile Justice System in Interwar Palestine
Authors: Shatz Julia
Published: January 2024

Abstract: Over the thirty years of the British Mandatory government in Palestine, thousands of young people were arrested and tried as juvenile delinquents. This article explores how the parents and families of those "young offenders" confronted the logics of the colonial criminal justice system and argued for their own understandings of the law and their children's places in Palestine's social and political landscape. Studying parental petitions to the government reveals that different groups made fragmented and multidirectional claims on the category of childhood. This article argues that in interwar Palestine, childhood was the political capital through which colonial power was both constructed and contested. In doing so, this article also illuminates the roles that ordinary families and communities played in daily governance in a twentieth-century developmentalist colonial state.
The Power of Courage in Plato's Republic
Authors: Anderson Merrick
Published: January 2024

abstract: This paper offers a new interpretation of courage in Plato's Republic . Despite the attention that this dialogue has received in the past, scholars have been disinclined to explore the metaphysics of the virtues. I argue that courage is, by its very nature, a δύναμις of the sort described in book 5. In particular, I argue that courage is the power over reason's correct practical deliberations about what one ought to do and that it accomplishes the preservation of these deliberations in the face of appetitive threats. I then explore the implications this has for the moral psychology of the virtuous agent and the question of who can be genuinely courageous.
'Sing me a lullaby': Tenderness and Trans Mothers in the Work of Camila Sosa Villada
Authors: Bollig Ben
Published: January 2024

ABSTRACT: This article examines Camila Sosa Villada's book Las malas (2019), a tale of trans or travesti sex workers in Córdoba, Argentina. Sosa is perhaps the most recognized trans writer in Argentina, and a notable feature of her writing is its portrayal of trans maternity. This essay addresses the depiction of tenderness in Sosa's work in the context of questions about motherhood and trans rights in contemporary Argentina. The formal and technical choices made in her work offer insights into the political potential of creative writing to destabilize literary genres while engaging in pressing debates about gender and human rights.
Dispersing the Devil’s Stench: Shifting Perceptions of Sulfuric Miasma in Early Modern English Literatures
Authors: Kettler Andrew
Published: January 2024

Abstract: From approximately 1500 to 1650, English references to sulfur’s stench focused on sensory indications of hell, demons, and wickedness in worldly environments. Thereafter, most English references to the pungent rock turned proportionately to technics, medicine, and progress. The increasing presence of sulfuric miasma within secularizing applications for fumigations, gunpowder, and industry led to a limiting of the role of sulfur as a signifier of hell within English environments. Due to economic incentives, supernatural discourses on brimstone atmospheres faced semantic dispersion, as sulfur took on a growing number of connotations instead of remaining a significant environmental signifier of the scent of the devil and his toadies. These shifting literary associations for sulfur exemplify the fluctuating powers of the market, religious voices, biopolitical networks, and the state to define what is matter out of place , or what can be considered too environmentally toxic for economic consumption. Revising the prominence of synchronic work in Early Modern Studies that critiques the dis-enchantment thesis, and redeploying theory from Douglas, Jameson, Greenblatt, Eagleton, and Rancière, this essay highlights connections between the History of Ideas, Environmental Studies, and literary criticism through asserting that the sheer abundance of sulfuric substances in the environment, caused by increased uses for the rock in the coal-fired furnaces of the 18th century, added to a literary dislodgment of mystical definitions of sulfur’s smell as signifying evil. As the Industrial Revolution stuffed chimneys with additional sulfur compounds, material encounters with brimstone became common. Continuously taught that sulfur meant profit and purity, reformed English noses found less sin in the smell of acrid sulfur smoke. This analysis portrays that within literatures that included associations to sulfur, the impending Anthropocene was tested, greenwashed, and approved by the masses of the disenchanting English public sphere.
On Listening and Failure: Roger Laporte with Marcel Proust
Authors: Acquisto Joseph
Published: January 2024

Abstract: This essay reads Roger Laporte’s Une voix de fin silence (A voice of fine silence), the second volume of his idiosyncratic work Une vie (A life), in dialogue with the early volumes of Marcel Proust’s A la recherche du temps perdu ( In Search of Lost Time ). A constellation emerges from the analysis that allows us to consider the interrelations and interdependence of Laporte’s text, his work as a critic on Proust, and the Recherche itself. The essay argues that Laporte’s textual engagement with Proust allows us to re-evaluate notions of literary failure so as to redefine what counts as the success of a literary project conceived as a writing about writing and becoming a writer. Both Proust and Laporte practice a literary writing that evokes mental experience while never being synonymous with it because, as their texts demonstrate, mental and literary experience can never coincide perfectly. Laporte labels the writer’s search a “listening,” a precarious activity which, like failure, is impossible to summon on command and which can only be recognized as such in retrospect as a motor of literary creation.
Saul Bellow’s Gothic Ontology: The Victim and More Die of Heartbreak
Authors: Smith Andrew
Published: January 2024

Abstract: Saul Bellow’s “Gothic Ontology: The Victim and More Die of Heartbreak ” examines the different types of Gothic employed by Saul Bellow in The Victim (1947) and More Die of Heartbreak (1987). The article argues that in The Victim Gothic doubling becomes erased by an idea of hospitality which challenges the status of the Gothic “other.” This is contrasted with More Die of Heartbreak where the Gothic is used in order to critically read the psychological and emotional damage caused by a materialist culture. The article explores Bellow’s complex engagement with the Gothic and examines how he employs the Gothic to raise questions about ontology and materialism.
Traceable localization enables accurate integration of quantum emitters and photonic structures with high yield
Authors: Copeland Craig R. , Pintar Adam L. , Dixson Ronald G. , Chanana Ashish , Srinivasan Kartik , Westly Daron A. , Ilic B. Robert , Davanco Marcelo I. , Stavis Samuel M.
Published: January 2024

In a popular integration process for quantum information technologies, localization microscopy of quantum emitters guides lithographic placement of photonic structures. However, a complex coupling of microscopy and lithography errors degrades registration accuracy, severely limiting device performance and process yield. We introduce a methodology to solve this widespread but poorly understood problem. A new foundation of traceable localization enables rapid characterization of lithographic standards and comprehensive calibration of cryogenic microscopes, revealing and correcting latent systematic effects. Of particular concern, we discover that scale factor deviation and complex optical distortion couple to dominate registration errors. These novel results parameterize a process model for integrating quantum dots and bullseye resonators, predicting higher yield by orders of magnitude, depending on the Purcell factor threshold as a quantum performance metric. Our foundational methodology is a key enabler of the lab-to-fab transition of quantum information technologies and has broader implications to cryogenic and correlative microscopy.