bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Role of Mindfulness, Mind Wandering, Attentional Control, and Maladaptive Personality Traits in Problematic Gaming Behavior
Authors: Chiorri Carlo , Soraci Paolo , Ferrari Ambra
Published: January 2023

Objectives

Problematic gaming has become a phenomenon of growing clinical relevance due to its negative impact on life and mental health outcomes. Much research has been carried out on its complex aetiology, and some studies have suggested that dispositional mindfulness, mind wandering, attentional control, and maladaptive personality traits may play some role, but they have never been included in the same prediction model. This study used Gaussian graphical models and Bayesian networks to investigate the pattern of association of these constructs and of background and gaming-related variables with problematic gaming in a sample of adult gamers.

Method

Participants (n = 506) were administered an online survey comprising a questionnaire on background and gaming-related variables and the Gaming Disorder Test, the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire-15, the Mind Wandering-Spontaneous and Deliberate scales, the Attention Control-Distraction and Shifting scales, and the Personality Inventory for DSM-5-Brief Form.

Results

Gaussian graphical models showed that problematic gaming was directly associated with Acting with Awareness, Disinhibition, Psychoticism, playing more than 30 hr a week, ability level, and playing strategy games. Bayesian networks indicated that the occurrence of high levels of problematic gaming directly depended on the presence of low scores on Acting with Awareness.

Conclusions

The results suggest that one key feature of problematic gamers can be a high level of spontaneous thinking, either in the form of mind wandering or in the lack of Acting with Awareness, while maladaptive personality traits and attentional control seem to play a less central role.
Mindful Text Comprehension: Meditation Training Improves Reading Comprehension of Meditation Novices
Authors: Lusnig Larissa , Hofmann Markus J. , Radach Ralph
Published: January 2023

Objectives

Research on the effects of meditation practice on reading performance is a new and promising field of research. However, the evidence on whether meditation improves reading comprehension and/or speed in continuous reading is inconclusive. The present work addresses this question.

Method

For the present longitudinal study, undergraduate students (n = 52) participated in a 6-week mindfulness meditation course or an active control condition. We assessed reading comprehension and speed before and after the intervention/control condition, as well as emotion regulation, sustained attention, and personality traits.

Results

Reading comprehension improved significantly after the meditation intervention (B = 2.15, t = 3.47, p = 0.002, d = 0.69), but reading speed did not change, contrary to our expectations. The control group showed no significant changes in either text comprehension or reading speed. Further, we found that meditation led to better attention capacity. Improved attention was positively associated with improved reading comprehension in the meditation group, though attention capacity did not mediate the effect on text comprehension. While we found that meditation can increase the acceptance of one’s own emotions and decrease emotional overload, these covariates did not affect comprehension performance.

Conclusions

The present work shows that mindfulness meditation improves attention capacity and text comprehension. However, mindfulness meditation does not affect reading speed. Finally, we confirmed that meditation can help in emotion regulation.

Preregistration

This study is not preregistered.
Intraoperative thermal infrared imaging in neurosurgery: machine learning approaches for advanced segmentation of tumors
Authors: Cardone Daniela , Trevisi Gianluca , Perpetuini David , Filippini Chiara , Merla Arcangelo , Mangiola Annunziato
Published: January 2023

Surgical resection is one of the most relevant practices in neurosurgery. Finding the correct surgical extent of the tumor is a key question and so far several techniques have been employed to assist the neurosurgeon in preserving the maximum amount of healthy tissue. Some of these methods are invasive for patients, not always allowing high precision in the detection of the tumor area. The aim of this study is to overcome these limitations, developing machine learning based models, relying on features obtained from a contactless and non-invasive technique, the thermal infrared (IR) imaging. The thermal IR videos of thirteen patients with heterogeneous tumors were recorded in the intraoperative context. Time (TD)- and frequency (FD)-domain features were extracted and fed different machine learning models. Models relying on FD features have proven to be the best solutions for the optimal detection of the tumor area (Average Accuracy = 90.45%; Average Sensitivity = 84.64%; Average Specificity = 93,74%). The obtained results highlight the possibility to accurately detect the tumor lesion boundary with a completely non-invasive, contactless, and portable technology, revealing thermal IR imaging as a very promising tool for the neurosurgeon.
Ko-Konstruktionen über das Schriftsystem – Eine Herausforderung für Lehrende, Lernende und die fachdidaktische Forschung
Authors: Jagemann Sarah , Bormann Franziska , Weinhold Swantje
Published: January 2023

Im Deutschunterricht stellt sich die Frage nach dem Zusammenhang von sprachlichem und fachlichem Lernen in besonderer Weise. Hier ist Sprache nicht nur Medium und Werkzeug, sondern selbstderLerngegenstand. Im basalen Lese- und Rechtschreibunterricht ergibt sich aus diesem Zusammenhang von Lerngegenstand und Lernmedium für Lernende und Lehrende eine besondere Herausforderung: Das Schriftsystem muss als ein sprachliches Teilsystem mit eigenen Gesetzmäßigkeiten und in seinen Zusammenhängen zur gesprochenen Sprache durchschaut und im Medium gesprochener und geschriebener Sprache verhandelt werden.

In dem ProjektKo-Konstruktionen über das Schriftsystem(KoKonS) untersuchen wir vor diesem Hintergrund, wie in Aushandlungsprozessen über das Schriftsystem Wissen und Bedeutungen über diesen Lerngegenstand von Lehrkräften und Lernenden (ko-)konstruiert werden und welche Zusammenhänge dabei zwischen sprachlichem und fachlichem Lernen identifiziert werden können.

In dem vorliegenden Beitrag wird zum einen gezeigt, welche Anforderungen solche Aushandlungsprozesse an die Akteure in der Praxis stellen. Zum anderen wird einModell zur Analyse von Aushandlungsprozessen über das Schriftsystem(MAAuS) vorgestellt. Es bietet ein inhaltsanalytisches Kategoriensystem, mit dem die Deskription des Zusammenspiels von sprachlichen, fachlichen und materiellen Handlungskomponenten in Aushandlungsprozessen theoretisch und empirisch möglich wird. Anhand einer exemplarischen Analyse wird eine für Aushandlungsprozesse über das Schriftsystem spezifische Verflechtung sprachlicher und fachlicher Handlungskomponenten sichtbar. Wir definieren diese alselementare Zugriffeauf den Lerngegenstand ‚Schriftsystem‘.
Need for considering urban climate change factors on stroke, neurodegenerative diseases, and mood disorders studies
Authors: Tewari Kushagra , Tewari Mukul , Niyogi Dev
Published: January 2023

The adverse health impacts of climate change have been well documented. It is increasingly apparent that the impacts are disproportionately higher in urban populations, especially underserved communities. Studies have linked urbanization and air pollution with health impacts, but the exacerbating role of urban heat islands (UHI) in the context of neurodegenerative diseases has not been well addressed. The complex interplay between climate change, local urban air pollution, urbanization, and a rising population in cities has led to the byproduct of increased heat stress in urban areas. Some urban neighborhoods with poor infrastructure can have excessive heat even after sunset, increasing internal body temperature and leading to hyperthermic conditions. Such conditions can put individuals at higher risk of stroke by creating a persistent neuroinflammatory state, including, in some instances, Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) phenotypes. Components of the AD phenotype, such as amyloid beta plaques, can disrupt long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD), which can negatively alter the mesolimbic function and thus contribute to the pathogenesis of mood disorders. Furthermore, although a link has not previously been established between heat and Parkinson’s Disease (PD), it can be postulated that neuroinflammation and cell death can contribute to mitochondrial dysfunction and thus lead to Lewy Body formation, which is a hallmark of PD. Such postulations are currently being presented in the emerging field of ‘neurourbanism’. This study highlights that: (i) the impact of urban climate, air pollution and urbanization on the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases and mood disorders is an area that needs further investigation; (ii) urban climate- health studies need to consider the heterogeneity in the urban environment and the impact it has on the UHI. In that, a clear need exists to go beyond the use of airport-based representative climate data to a consideration of more spatially explicit, high-resolution environmental datasets for such health studies, especially as they pertain to the development of locally-relevant climate adaptive health solutions. Recent advances in the development of super-resolution (downscaled climate) datasets using computational tools such as convolution neural networks (CNNs) and other machine learning approaches, as well as the emergence of urban field labs that generate spatially explicit temperature and other environmental datasets across different city neighborhoods, will continue to become important. Future climate – health studies need to develop strategies to benefit from such urban climate datasets that can aid the creation of localized, effective public health assessments and solutions.
The Malay Monarchies in Constitutional and Social Conception
Authors: Harding Andrew , Kumarasingham Harshan
Published: January 2023

This article examines the constitutional nature of the Malaysian monarchies in their social context. We discuss the evolution of the monarchies through pre-colonial, colonial, and post-colonial history, and account for their survival despite several attempts to curb their powers, including restriction of the royal assent and sovereign immunity. It is argued that the powers of the monarchies respond to their historical role and social embeddedness of the monarchies, stretching the role of the Rulers beyond the Westminster norms as set out in constitutional texts. Moving to contemporary issues, we see the assertion of the right to uphold the Constitution in relation to prime-ministerial appointments, and acting on advice. Here, the monarchies reflect a braiding of both traditional elements and Westminster constitutional norms.
The Progressive Monarchy of Bhutan: A Not-So-Absolute Monarchy to a Democratic Constitutional Monarchy
Authors: Dorji Nima
Published: January 2023

This article provides a descriptive account of the evolution of the Bhutanese monarchy, and normative claims about its endurance and its nature, suggesting that the monarchy is both the expression of as well as the guardian of the country’s constitutional identity. Bhutan became a democratic constitutional monarchy by adopting the written Constitution in 2008 after a successful 100 years of hereditary monarchy. The willingness of successive monarchs to evolve based on changing times, their ability to ensure stability and continuity, and work for the benefits of the people and country guided by the principles of Buddhist kingship seem to have contributed not only in them benefitting from unqualified support of the people, but also in attaining the status of an expression of Bhutanese constitutional identity.
Can dogs help chickens? Pet owners’ willingness to pay for animal welfare-friendly pet food in the United States
Authors: Pearce Hillary , Neill Clinton L , Royal Kenneth , Pairis-Garcia Monique
Published: January 2023

Consumer concern about farmed animal welfare is growing but does not always translate into real-world purchasing behaviour of welfare-friendly animal products for human consumption. Possible reasons for this include unfamiliarity with farming practices and economic sensitivity. In contrast, the number and role of pets in the United States have grown measurably, and spending on pets is strong. The pet food market has many opportunity niches as pet owners navigate strong marketing trends and nutrition philosophies. We hypothesised that pet owners in the US would be willing to pay a premium for pet food containing welfare-friendly animal ingredients. Eight hundred and thirty-eight pet owners completed an online survey asking questions that measured their knowledge of and interest in farm animal welfare, and their willingness-to-pay for pet food labelled as farm animal welfare-friendly. Respondents overall displayed relatively low knowledge about farm animal welfare, but poor self-assessment of their own knowledge. They displayed interest in farm animal welfare and an overall positive mean willingness-to-pay (WTP) for welfare-friendly pet food. Younger respondents, women and cat owners displayed a higher WTP than older respondents, men and dog owners. Income level was not correlated to WTP. Creating pet food products that contain animal ingredients produced using welfare-friendly practices may enhance farm animal welfare via two primary avenues: by providing a sustainable and value-added outlet for the by-products of welfare-friendly human food products, and by providing an educational opportunity about farm animal production via pet food packaging and other advertising.
Metaethics and the Limits of Normative Contract Theory
Authors: Swaminathan Shivprasad
Published: January 2023

This article outlines two models of constructing contract theory: The impinging model (based on metaethical cognitivism), which gives central place to truth and justification; and the projectivist model (based on metaethical non-cognitivism), which gives central place to attitudes and motivation. It is argued that modern contract theories which typically seek to present the whole body of contract doctrine as deducible from, and morally justifiable by, one or a small number of apex principles, presuppose the impinging model. By contrast, a projectivist approach to theory creation does not purport to offer justificatory apex principles, but rather argues for propositions that are likely to have maximum motivational purchase in the practical reasoning of contract law’s subjects. The article then goes on to point out the theoretical cost of the impinging model and argues that projectivist accounts do a better job of accommodating the internal point of view of contract law’s subjects.
Children’s Participation in Divorce Proceedings—An Arendtian Critique
Authors: Barshack Lior
Published: January 2023

The essay proposes that children should not participate in custody proceedings because they lack a place in the public world, a concept which was developed by Arendt and which I elaborate on the basis of her writings. Arendt’s concepts of place in the world and of childhood are correlated, polar ethical concepts. ‘Place in the world’ as described by Arendt combines commitment to worldbuilding as a collaborative enterprise, relations of mutual-recognition among equal co-builders of the public world, an inviolable place in public and private realms, and self-disclosure through the staging of public appearances. We should recognize children as rightful participants in divorce proceedings when we are ready to treat them as occupants of place in the world, split between public and private realms and corresponding public and private voices. Recent practices of children’s participation undermine the intimate realm of childhood as well as the public world.
James Sharpe’s Contributions to Neurology and Neuro-ophthalmology: A Posthumous Tribute 10 Years On
Authors: Barton Jason J. S. , Hershenfeld Seymour A. , Johnston Janine L. , Kim Ji-Soo , Ranalli Paul J. , Salman Michael S. , Tyndel Felix J. , White Owen B. , Wong Agnes M. , Zackon David H.
Published: January 2023

Dr. Sharpe was a leading eye movement researcher who had also been the editor of this journal. We wish to mark the 10th anniversary of his death by providing a sense of what he had achieved through some examples of his research.
Particle force-based density segregation theory for multi-component granular mixtures in a periodic chute flow
Authors: Sahu Vishnu Kumar , Kumawat Soniya , Agrawal Shivani , Tripathi Anurag
Published: January 2023

Density segregation of multi-component granular mixtures in a dense, gravity-driven flow over a rough and bumpy periodic chute surface is studied using theory and simulations. An existing theoretical model for predicting the steady-state concentration field of each species in a binary mixture using the forces acting on the particles is generalised for multi-component mixtures in this work. In addition, the rheological model for binary mixtures is also extended to multi-component mixtures. In contrast to the percolation velocity-based empirical segregation models that do not account for the rheology and need prior knowledge of the velocity field, the present approach accounts for the inter-coupling of rheology with segregation. The momentum balance equations are solved, along with the mixture rheological model as well as the multi-component density segregation model, to obtain concentration fields using an iterative numerical method. The theoretical predictions are compared with discrete element method (DEM) simulations for ternary, quaternary and quinary granular mixtures differing in density. The steady-state profiles for the concentration of different species as well as other flow properties predicted from the theory are in excellent agreement with the DEM simulation results for a variety of compositions over a range of inclination angles for different density ratios. Through this work, we take the first essential step towards proposing a generalised particle force-based segregation theory for multi-component mixtures differing in size and/or density.
Freeze-out of perturbation growth of single-mode helium–air interface through reflected shock in Richtmyer–Meshkov flows
Authors: Chen Chenren , Xing Yinuo , Wang He , Zhai Zhigang , Luo Xisheng
Published: January 2023

‘Freeze-out’ of amplitude growth, i.e. the amplitude growth stagnation of a shocked helium–air interface, is realized through a reflected shock, which produces baroclinic vorticity of the opposite sign to that deposited by the first shock. Theoretically, a model is constructed to calculate the relations among the initial parameters for achieving freeze-out. In particular, if the amplitude growth is within the linear regime at the arrival of the reflected shock, the time interval between the impacts of two shock waves is linearly related to the initial perturbation wavelength, and is independent of the initial perturbation amplitude. Experimentally, an air–SF

$_6$

(or air–argon) plane interface is adopted to produce a weak reflected shock. Seven experimental runs with specific initial conditions are examined. For all cases, freeze-out is achieved after the reflected shock impact under the designed conditions.
CONSTRUCTING MAXIMAL COFINITARY GROUPS
Authors: SCHRITTESSER DAVID
Published: January 2023

Improving and clarifying a construction of Horowitz and Shelah, we show how to construct (in
$\mathsf {ZF}$
, i.e., without using the Axiom of Choice) maximal cofinitary groups. Among the groups we construct, one is definable by a formula in second-order arithmetic with only a few natural number quantifiers.
The Translation of Protest: The Worldwide Readings Project of Andrei Kureichyk’s Insulted. Belarus
Authors: Brown Bryan
Published: January 2023

On 9 August 2020, Belarus erupted in protest over the falsified election results promoted and endorsed by existing president Aliaksandar Lukashenka. Playwright, director, and member of the Coordination Council for the peaceful transfer of power in Belarus, Andrei Kureichyk was one of the thousands on the streets that month. In early September he finished a new play depicting the events leading up to and surrounding the largest anti-government demonstrations in Belarus’s history. Before going into hiding, Kureichyk sent the play, Insulted. Belarus, to former Russian theatre critic John Freedman for translation. Together, the two men hoped to have a few theatres in various European and North American countries give a reading of the play in solidarity with the people of Belarus. Neither of them expected that, within two months, the play would be translated into eighteen languages and receive over seventy-seven readings on digital platforms. While many companies were eager to add their name to the global ledger of solidarity, the rise of authoritarianism, as well as the renewed reckoning with systemic racism and sexism in many cultures and countries around the world, additionally meant that many theatres found in the play a vehicle to reflect and comment on their own situations. This article, written by one of the initial participants of the project, attempts to chart how the Worldwide Readings of Insulted. Belarus navigated the translation of protest from Belarus to the world. Bryan Brown is Senior Lecturer at the University of Exeter and co-director of visual theatre company ARTEL (American Russian Theatre Ensemble Laboratory) and author of A History of the Theatre Laboratory (Routledge, 2019). He is a member of the editorial board of Theatre Dance and Performance Training, co-editing the special issue ‘Training Places: Dartington College of Arts’ (2018).
LIFT and the London 2012 Olympics: Spectacular Experiences
Authors: Patey-Ferguson Phoebe
Published: January 2023

In 2012, London staged the Olympic Games and the associated Cultural Olympiad, which produced the ‘London 2012’ Festival, funding a wide series of events including many productions by the London International Festival of Theatre (LIFT). A decade on, this article considers the impact of these overlapping events during a period of unprecedented austerity in the United Kingdom, and how arts events might be considered as having colluded with the government’s own agenda. The connection between neoliberal governance, with its programme of increased privatization, rapid gentrification, and the opportunistic marketing of diversity is examined with reference to increasing nationalism through Olympiad displays, together with the increasing influence of the ‘experience economy’ as defined by Joseph Pine and James Gilmore. Phoebe Patey-Ferguson is a Lecturer in Theatre and Social Change at Rose Bruford College. This article, derived from their PhD on LIFT in its social, cultural, and political context, follows ‘LIFT and the GLC versus Thatcher: London’s Cultural Battleground in 1981’ (NTQ 141) and, in the same issue, Patey-Ferguson’s interview with LIFT’s founding Artistic Directors, Rose Fenton and Lucy Neal.
Critical Disengagement: The Epistemic and White Supremacist Violence of Theatre Criticism in Canada and the USA
Authors: Lynch Signy , MacArthur Michelle
Published: January 2023

This article examines recent controversies sparked by the critical reception of work by Global Majority theatre artists in Canada and the USA, including Yolanda Bonnell, Yvette Nolan, and Antoinette Nwandu. It argues that, when faced with works that fall outside of their presumed expertise and experience, critics commonly resort to a strategy of critical disengagement, which displaces the focus from the work and refuses to evaluate it on its own terms. Through an analysis of case studies, we elucidate the concept of critical disengagement and its three distinct categories, ‘othering,’ ‘imposing’, and ‘self-staging’. These acts are representative of larger patterns in dominant theatre criticism practices, which are descended from neoclassical and Enlightenment formulations of criticism, and centre around the ideals of fair judgement and critical objectivity. When applied to the work of Global Majority theatre artists by a largely white critical establishment, they enact, consolidate, and reproduce what Gayatri Spivak calls epistemic violence. During this pivotal moment, as theatre communities in the Global North respond to calls for racial justice and decolonization, this article sheds light on the often overlooked role of criticism in sustaining white supremacy within theatre production and reception, and stresses the urgent need to re-imagine critical practices. Signy Lynch is a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Toronto Mississauga and recipient of the Governor General’s Gold Medal (York University, 2022). She has published articles on theatre criticism and intercultural theatre in Contemporary Theatre Review, Canadian Theatre Review, and Theatre Research in Canada. Michelle MacArthur is associate professor at the University of Windsor’s School of Dramatic Art. She has published articles in Contemporary Theatre Review, Journal of Dramatic Theory and Criticism, Theatre Research in Canada, Canadian Theatre Review, and several edited volumes. She is the editor of Voices of a Generation: Three Millennial Plays (Playwrights Canada Press, 2022).
Seeing it Feelingly: On Affect and Bodyworld in Performance
Authors: Camilleri Frank
Published: January 2023

In this article, the performing body is considered via a three-pronged approach involving affect theory and affective science, a scene from King Lear, and long-distance running. Inspired by the chiaroscuro of painting, this variety and mix of sources act as a methodological device to shed unfamiliar light (and shade) on the elusive topic of affect. While ‘body’ is viewed from the perspective of ‘bodyworld’ to denote constitutive and reciprocally shaping human–nonhuman relationalities, the ‘performance’ that occurs in bodies is analyzed in terms of a ‘drama of affect’ to signal the activity that germinates and circulates at various levels of consciousness in human behaviour, whether aesthetic, athletic, or daily. Frank Camilleri is Professor of Theatre Studies at the University of Malta and Artistic Director of Icarus Performance Project. He has performed, given workshops, and published various texts on performer training, theatre as a laboratory, and practice as research. He is the author of Performer Training Reconfigured: Post-Psychophysical Perspectives for the Twenty-first Century (Bloomsbury, 2019) and Performer Training for Actors and Athletes (Bloomsbury, forthcoming).
Direct Election, Bureaucratic Appointment and Local Government Responsiveness in Taiwan
Authors: Newland Sara A.
Published: January 2023

Does local democracy induce better service to citizens? While elected officials can be punished at the ballot box if they fail to address citizens’ needs, appointed bureaucrats may have policy knowledge that enables them to better serve citizens. Employing a multimethod design, this paper uses variation in local political institutions in Taiwan to assess the relative merits of direct election and bureaucratic appointment for local government responsiveness. While democratic institutions are often thought to induce responsiveness, I find that in Taiwan, with its historically strong bureaucracy and relatively new democratic institutions, the picture is somewhat more complicated. Elected and appointed officials face different incentives that motivate the latter to respond more quickly and effectively to online requests for help.
The perceived legitimacy of deliberative minipublics: taking the perspective of polarized citizens
Authors: van Dijk Lisa , Turkenburg Emma , Pow James
Published: January 2023

Deliberative minipublics are becoming increasingly popular, with both scholars and practitioners highlighting their potential to bolster public approval of political decision-making. Yet, it remains unclear whether minipublics are able to do so in contexts where the public itself is deeply divided – a concern which becomes only more relevant as levels of polarization are said to rise across the globe. In this study, we argue that polarized citizens may perceive minipublics and their outcomes as less legitimate than more moderate citizens. We use original survey data from Northern Ireland (n= 932), a highly polarized society where a minipublic was organized on the contentious issue of the region’s constitutional future. We find that higher levels of ideological polarization and, to an extent, affective polarization are associated with lower levels of perceived minipublic legitimacy among the wider public, although effects are small. This offers novel insights into the role of minipublics in polarized settings.
Anisotropy and Heterogeneity Induced by Shale in Aquifer lithology—Influence of Aquifer Shale on the Leaky Model With Tidal Response Analysis
Authors: Zhang Yan , Fu Li‐Yun , Zhu Aiyu , Zhao Lianfeng , Qi Shengwen , Huang Tianming , Ma Yuchuan , Zhang Wang
Published: January 2023

Tidal and barometric water‐level responses in wells have been widely used to calculate the hydraulic properties of aquifer systems. The effect of anisotropy induced by shale content on such responses has not received significant attention. In this study, we examine how the presence of shale (anisotropy, extremely low porosity/permeability; approximately 10−4 to 10−3 mD), which occurs as interlayers in aquifers, affects the tidal responses of the leaky model. Our findings show that the number of wells with shale in the screened section of the study aquifer is limited. Here, we focus on the study of the limited number of wells in the North China Platform to ensure a similar geological background for each well. Calculations indicate that wells, even with a small amount of shale (≥∼5%) in the observation aquifer, may exhibit strong anisotropy and heterogeneity, deviating from the theoretical analytical solutions obtained using isotropic and homogeneous assumption models. Generally, the higher the shale content in aquifer lithology, the greater the phase shifts deviated. Thus, theoretical ideal models with isotropic and homogeneous assumptions may only obtain a rough estimation for wells with shale in aquifer lithology, suggesting that we avoid setting observation aquifers onto shale layers.
Summer Arctic Atmospheric Circulation and Its Association With the Ensuing East Asian Winter Monsoon Variability
Authors: Yu Qikai , Wu Bingyi
Published: January 2023

The impact of autumn Arctic sea ice reduction on the winter climate in Eurasia has been widely studied, but the role of the atmospheric circulation of the preceding summer has been mostly neglected. This study investigates a linkage between the summer Arctic circulation anomaly and the ensuing East Asian Winter Monsoon (EAWM) variability. The Arctic circulation anomaly, characterized by an anomalous anti‐cyclone occupying the Arctic Ocean and its marginal seas, can strongly melt Arctic sea ice in the Kara Sea‐Laptev Sea‐East Siberian Sea‐Chukchi Sea‐Beaufort Sea through dynamic and thermodynamic processes. The combination of the summer anti‐cyclone (cyclone) anomaly and light (heavy) autumn sea ice leads to an enhanced (weakened) EAWM. By introducing the coupling relationship between summer circulation and autumn sea ice into numerical experiments, the Community Atmospheric Model version 4 model has a good capability for capturing EAWM variability. Nevertheless, the dominant features of EAWM variability cannot be reproduced when the autumn sea ice mismatches the preceding summer circulation in the model. Therefore, the preceding summer circulation may modulate the impact of sea ice on Eurasia to some extent, which may increase uncertainties in the impact of Arctic sea ice loss on winter atmospheric circulation variability.
The Roles of Tidal Marshes in the Estuarine Biochemical Processes: A Numerical Modeling Study
Authors: Cai Xun , Shen Jian , Zhang Yinglong J. , Qin Qubin , Linker Lewis
Published: January 2023

Observations suggest that the existence of tidal marsh can alter the oxygen and nutrient dynamics in adjacent water bodies, but assessing the impacts of large tidal marshes on an estuary is challenging. In this study, we use a modeling approach to investigate the roles of tidal marshes on the estuarine biochemical processes. The marsh model, which simulates the ecological functions of marshes at seasonal and annual time‐scales, is embedded inside an unstructured‐grid three‐dimensional hydrodynamic and eutrophication model (SCHISM‐ICM). This modeling system simulates the growth and metabolism of the tidal marshes and links biological processes to nutrient dynamics in the water column and sediment. This model dynamically simulates nutrient recycling and physical transport of the materials between marshes and open water through wetting‐drying processes. This coupled model system is validated and successfully applied to the York River Estuary. Model results suggest that tidal marshes influence the local diurnal dissolved oxygen (DO) cycle by exporting dissolved organic carbon and high sediment oxygen demand in the marsh system through the tidal exchange. The high deposition rates of organics and diurnal DO cycle enhance the sediment release of phosphorus. On the other hand, marshes tend to decrease dissolved inorganic nitrogen in the water column by settling particulate nutrients and enhancing the denitrification process. The study demonstrates that tidal marshes exert substantial impacts on the estuarine biochemical processes. The developed tidal marsh model enhances eutrophication modeling and advances the understanding of the feedback effects between marsh biogeochemistry and estuarine eutrophication processes on a systemic scale.
Intestinal dysbiosis exacerbates the pathogenesis of psoriasis-like phenotype through changes in fatty acid metabolism
Authors: Zhao Qixiang , Yu Jiadong , Zhou Hong , Wang Xiaoyan , Zhang Chen , Hu Jing , Hu Yawen , Zheng Huaping , Zeng Fanlian , Yue Chengcheng , Gu Linna , Wang Zhen , Zhao Fulei , Zhou Pei , Zhang Haozhou , Huang Nongyu , Wu Wenling , Zhou Yifan , Li Jiong
Published: January 2023

The intestinal microbiota has been associated with host immunity as well as psoriasis; however, the mechanism of intestinal microbiota regulating psoriasis needs to be demonstrated systematically. Here, we sought to examine its role and mechanism of action in the pathogenesis of psoriasis. We found that the severity of psoriasis-like skin phenotype was accompanied by changes in the composition of the intestinal microbiota. We performed co-housing and fecal microbial transplantation (FMT) experiments using the K14-VEGF transgenic mouse model of psoriasis and demonstrated that the transfer of intestinal microbiota from mice with severe psoriasis-like skin phenotype exacerbated psoriasiform skin inflammation in mice with mild symptoms, including increasing the infiltration and differentiation of Th17, and increased the abundance of Prevotella, while decreasing that of Parabacteroides distasonis, in the colon. These alterations affected fatty acid metabolism, increasing the abundance of oleic and stearic acids. Meanwhile, gentamicin treatment significantly reduced the abundance of Prevotella and alleviated the psoriasis-like symptoms in both K14-VEGF mice and imiquimod (IMQ)-induced psoriasis-like mice. Indeed, administration of oleic and stearic acids exacerbated psoriasis-like symptoms and increased Th17 and monocyte-derived dendritic cell infiltration in the skin lesion areas in vivo, as well as increased the secretion of IL-23 by stimulating DCs in vitro. At last, we found that, treatment of PDE-4 inhibitor alleviated psoriasis-like phenotype of K14-VEGF mice accompanied by the recovery of intestinal microbiota, including the decrease of Prevotella and increase of Parabacteroides distasonis. Overall, our findings reveal that the intestinal microbiota modulates host metabolism and psoriasis-like skin inflammation in mice, suggesting a new target for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of psoriasis.
The Sapap3−/− mouse reconsidered as a comorbid model expressing a spectrum of pathological repetitive behaviours
Authors: Lamothe Hugues , Schreiweis Christiane , Mondragón-González Lizbeth Sirenia , Rebbah Sana , Lavielle Oriana , Mallet Luc , Burguière Eric
Published: January 2023

Symptom comorbidity is present amongst neuropsychiatric disorders with repetitive behaviours, complicating clinical diagnosis and impeding appropriate treatments. This is of particular importance for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and Tourette syndrome. Here, we meticulously analysed the behaviour of Sapap3 knockout mice, the recent rodent model predominantly used to study compulsive-like behaviours, and found that its behaviour is more complex than originally and persistently described. Indeed, we detected previously unreported elements of distinct pathologically repetitive behaviours, which do not form part of rodent syntactic cephalo-caudal self-grooming. These repetitive behaviours include sudden, rapid body and head/body twitches, resembling tic-like movements. We also observed that another type of repetitive behaviour, aberrant hindpaw scratching, might be responsible for the flagship-like skin lesions of this mouse model. In order to characterise the symptomatological nature of observed repetitive behaviours, we pharmacologically challenged these phenotypes by systemic aripiprazole administration, a first-line treatment for tic-like symptoms in Tourette syndrome and trichotillomania. A single treatment of aripiprazole significantly reduced the number of head/body twitches, scratching, and single-phase grooming, but not syntactic grooming events. These observations are in line with the high comorbidity of tic- and compulsive-like symptoms in Tourette, OCD and trichotillomania patients.
Levels of systemic inflammation response index are correlated with tumor-associated bacteria in colorectal cancer
Authors: Cao Yinghao , Zheng Xin , Hu Yugang , Li Jiahuan , Huang Binglu , Zhao Ning , Liu Tao , Cai Kailin , Tian Shan
Published: January 2023

The relationship between systemic inflammation and tumor-associated bacteria is largely unknown in colorectal cancer (CRC). The primary aim of this study was to investigate the prognostic effects of the systemic inflammation response index (SIRI) on the survival outcomes of CRC patients who experienced surgical therapy, and the second aim was to reveal the potential association between SIRI levels and tumor-associated bacteria in CRC. We recruited a cohort of 298 CRC patients who experienced surgical resection in Wuhan Union Hospital. These patients were assigned to the low and high groups based on the cut-off value of SIRI. We utilized 1:1 propensity score matching (PSM) to reduce the potential confounding factors between the low SIRI group (N = 83) and the high SIRI group (N = 83). The total DNA of 166 paraffin-embedded tumor tissues and 24 frozen tumor tissues was extracted and amplified, and 16 S rRNA sequencing was employed to uncover the composition of microbiota between low and high SIRI groups. Survival analysis uncovered that the high SIRI cohort exhibited significantly shorter overall and disease-free survival time than low SIRI companions after PSM. The ROC analyses showed that the prediction abilities of SIRI were much higher than other serum inflammatory biomarkers for survival outcomes. The microbial richness and diversity in the low SIRI group were remarkably higher than those in the high SIRI group. At the phylum level, we found that Proteobacteria, Synergistetes, WPS-2, Thermil, Fusobacteria were enriched in the high SIRI group. Cupriavidus, Thermus, Ochrobactrum, Cupriavidus, Acidovorax were enriched in the high SIRI group at the genus level. 16 S rRNA based on frozen samples also obtained similar results. SIRI is a promising and novel prognostic biomarker among CRC sufferers who underwent surgical removal. There existed significant differences in the diversity and compositions of tumor-associated bacteria between the low and high SIRI groups.
SNORA14A inhibits hepatoblastoma cell proliferation by regulating SDHB-mediated succinate metabolism
Authors: Zhu Jiabei , Mao Siwei , Zhen Ni , Zhu Guoqing , Bian Zhixuan , Xie Yi , Tang Xiaochen , Ding Miao , Wu Han , Ma Ji , Zhu Yizhun , Sun Fenyong , Pan Qiuhui
Published: January 2023

Hepatoblastoma (HB) is the most common paediatric liver malignancy. Dysregulation of small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) is a critical inducer of tumour initiation and progression. However, the association between snoRNAs and HB remains unknown. Here, we conducted snoRNA expression profiling in HB by snoRNA sequencing and identified a decreased level of SNORA14A, a box H/ACA snoRNA, in HB tissues. Low expression of SNORA14A was correlated with PRETEXT stage and metastasis in patients. Functionally, overexpression of SNORA14A suppressed HB cell proliferation and triggered cell apoptosis and G2/M phase arrest. Mechanistically, SNORA14A overexpression promoted the processing and maturation of the 18 S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) precursor to increase succinate dehydrogenase subunit B (SDHB) protein levels. In accordance with SNORA14A downregulation, SDHB protein expression was significantly reduced in HB tissues and cells, accompanied by abnormal accumulation of succinate. Overexpression of SDHB showed antiproliferative and proapoptotic effects and the capacity to induce G2/M phase arrest, while succinate dose-dependently stimulated HB cell growth. Furthermore, the inhibition of SNORA14A in HB malignant phenotypes was mediated by SDHB upregulation-induced reduction of cellular succinate levels. Therefore, the SNORA14A/18 S rRNA/SDHB axis suppresses HB progression by preventing cellular accumulation of the oncometabolite succinate and provides promising prognostic biomarkers and novel therapeutic targets for HB.
Exocytosis of the silicified cell wall of diatoms involves extensive membrane disintegration
Authors: de Haan Diede , Aram Lior , Peled-Zehavi Hadas , Addadi Yoseph , Ben-Joseph Oz , Rotkopf Ron , Elad Nadav , Rechav Katya , Gal Assaf
Published: January 2023

Diatoms are unicellular algae characterized by silica cell walls. These silica elements are known to be formed intracellularly in membrane-bound silica deposition vesicles and exocytosed after completion. How diatoms maintain membrane homeostasis during the exocytosis of these large and rigid silica elements remains unknown. Here we study the membrane dynamics during cell wall formation and exocytosis in two model diatom species, using live-cell confocal microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and cryo-electron tomography. Our results show that during its formation, the mineral phase is in tight association with the silica deposition vesicle membranes, which form a precise mold of the delicate geometrical patterns. We find that during exocytosis, the distal silica deposition vesicle membrane and the plasma membrane gradually detach from the mineral and disintegrate in the extracellular space, without any noticeable endocytic retrieval or extracellular repurposing. We demonstrate that within the cell, the proximal silica deposition vesicle membrane becomes the new barrier between the cell and its environment, and assumes the role of a new plasma membrane. These results provide direct structural observations of diatom silica exocytosis, and point to an extraordinary mechanism in which membrane homeostasis is maintained by discarding, rather than recycling, significant membrane patches.
Broadband microwave detection using electron spins in a hybrid diamond-magnet sensor chip
Authors: Carmiggelt Joris J. , Bertelli Iacopo , Mulder Roland W. , Teepe Annick , Elyasi Mehrdad , Simon Brecht G. , Bauer Gerrit E. W. , Blanter Yaroslav M. , van der Sar Toeno
Published: January 2023

Quantum sensing has developed into a main branch of quantum science and technology. It aims at measuring physical quantities with high resolution, sensitivity, and dynamic range. Electron spins in diamond are powerful magnetic field sensors, but their sensitivity in the microwave regime is limited to a narrow band around their resonance frequency. Here, we realize broadband microwave detection using spins in diamond interfaced with a thin-film magnet. A pump field locally converts target microwave signals to the sensor-spin frequency via the non-linear spin-wave dynamics of the magnet. Two complementary conversion protocols enable sensing and high-fidelity spin control over a gigahertz bandwidth, allowing characterization of the spin-wave band at multiple gigahertz above the sensor-spin frequency. The pump-tunable, hybrid diamond-magnet sensor chip opens the way for spin-based gigahertz material characterizations at small magnetic bias fields.
Charachterization of spatially mapped volumetric molecular ultrasound signals for predicting response to anti-vascular therapy
Authors: Keller Cody A. , Zarkesh Shaya , Zhou Jianhua , Lutz Amelie M. , Hristov Dimitre , Kamaya Aya , El Kaffas Ahmed
Published: January 2023

Quantitative three-dimensional molecular ultrasound is a promising technology for longitudinal imaging applications such as therapy monitoring; the risk profile is favorable compared to positron emission tomography and computed tomography. However, clinical translation of quantitative methods for this technology are limited in that they assume that tumor tissues are homogeneous, and often depend on contrast-destruction events that can produce unintended bioeffects. Here, we develop quantitative features (henceforth image features) that capture tumor spatial information, and that are extracted without contrast destruction. We compare these techniques with the contrast-destruction derived differential targeted enhancement parameter (dTE) in predicting response to therapy. We found thirty-three reproducible image features that predict response to antiangiogenic therapy, without the need for a contrast agent disruption pulse. Multiparametric analysis shows that several of these image features can differentiate treated versus control animals with comparable performance to post-destruction measurements, suggesting that these can potentially replace parameters such as the dTE. The highest performing pre-destruction image features showed strong linear correlations with conventional dTE parameters with less overall variance. Thus, our study suggests that image features obtained during the wash in of the molecular agent, pre-destruction, may replace conventional post-destruction image features or the dTE parameter.
A new perspective of molecular diffusion by nuclear magnetic resonance
Authors: Costantini Giulio , Capuani Silvia , Farrelly Francis Allen , Taloni Alessandro
Published: January 2023

The diffusion-weighted NMR signal acquired using Pulse Field Gradient (PFG) techniques, allows for extrapolating microstructural information from porous materials and biological tissues. In recent years there has been a multiplication of diffusion models expressed by parametric functions to fit the experimental data. However, clear-cut criteria for the model selection are lacking. In this paper, we develop a theoretical framework for the interpretation of NMR attenuation signals in the case of Gaussian systems with stationary increments. The full expression of the Stejskal–Tanner formula for normal diffusing systems is devised, together with its extension to the domain of anomalous diffusion. The range of applicability of the relevant parametric functions to fit the PFG data can be fully determined by means of appropriate checks to ascertain the correctness of the fit. Furthermore, the exact expression for diffusion weighted NMR signals pertaining to Brownian yet non-Gaussian processes is also derived, accompanied by the proper check to establish its contextual relevance. The analysis provided is particularly useful in the context of medical MRI and clinical practise where the hardware limitations do not allow the use of narrow pulse gradients.