bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Investigative Experimental Research: Effects of Waste Rubber as an Additive Substitute for Coarse Aggregates on the Compressive Strength of the Concrete
Authors: Padilla Juland , Villojan Grant Onell , Abejo John Aaron , Antipuesto Rainiel Engelhart , Basiya June Hernan , Delos Santos Nathaniel , Lura Kim Lloyd , Usi Krishnel
Published: February 2024

In recent years, rubber consumption has surged due to factors like global automobile industry growth, infrastructure development, industrial expansion, and the push for a circular economy. This research investigates the impact of incorporating waste rubber as a coarse aggregate substitute on concrete's compressive strength. This addresses concerns about rubber waste disposal and its potential as a sustainable construction alternative. Experiments vary rubber proportions (0%, 2%, and 5%) in concrete mixes to assess compressive strength. The results indicate that using rubber as coarse aggregate reduces concrete's compressive strength, Therefore having an amount of less than 2% is the best performance of the optimum rubber proportion. This is because rubber lacks chemical reactivity with cement during hydration, resulting in poor adhesion and bonding. This highlights the limitations of incorporating waste rubber in concrete mixes, cautioning against its use in high-stress structural areas. Engineers and architects interested in sustainability and innovation in construction should consider these findings, as they have practical implications for the industry.
Current Progress on Gold Nanoparticle-Mediated Gene Delivery for Human Cancer Treatment
Authors: Darmadi Jason , Anwar Ayaz , binti Shamsul Anuar Nurshafida Adzlin
Published: February 2024

Cancer treatments have become less effective in recent years, with cancer cells mutating into more non-sensitive against a plethora of chemotherapeutics. While gene therapy can lead to cancer cell sensitization and effective treatment, gene-related drugs are prone to degradation and highly unstable. Nanoparticles can thus be used for the delivery of genes as well as other therapeutic compounds into cancer cells. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have been used in cancer therapy especially for drug delivery due to their ease of synthesis and modification. AuNPs were also considered versatile nanoparticles as their characteristics could be easily customized and modulated for therapy, monitoring, or delivery. Another important characteristic that made AuNPs viable for cancer therapy is surface plasmonic resonance (SPR) which enables hyperthermia-based therapy and imaging. Therefore, utilizing AuNPs novel approaches in multi-modal therapies is achievable, where targeted gene and chemotherapy coupled with other modalities such as hyperthermia-based therapy could be performed. This article reviews several reported cases of AuNPs-based gene therapy as well as notable theranostic therapy that includes SPR characteristic utilization for therapy as well as cancer imaging.
Assessment of the age and growth of three fin fish species from a tropical estuary (Cochin, west coast of India)
Authors: Dutta Snigdhodeb
Published: February 2024

Data on three fin fish species were collected from the Cochin estuary (part of the Vembanad–Kol wetland system, India) from January 2018 to December 2019. The present study presents the first comprehensive results on fisheries demographics within this estuary, based on length-frequency data, to calculate vital demographic dynamic factors and estimate the stock of the commercially important three fin fish species. A variety of evaluations were conducted using the FiSAT II program. Caranx heberi had an asymptotic length (L) of 304.5 mm and a growth constant (K) of 1.1 year-1, while Etroplus suratensis had an asymptotic length (L) of 158.55 mm as well as a growth constant (K) of 1.1 year-1. For all the species studied, the age at zero-length (t0) had been calculated and varied from −0.04 to −0.14. Oreochromis mossambicus had longevity (tmax) of 4.76 yr and a growth performance index (ɸ) of 4.51, whereas E. suratensis had 2.72 and 4.44. E. suratensis had overall mortality (Z), natural mortality (M), and fishing mortality (F) of 2.93, 1.2 and 1.73 year-1, respectively, while C. heberi had 1.42, 1, and 0.42 year-1. The present exploitation level is greater than the optimum exploitation rate, according to the relative yield per recruit (Y/R) study, indicating over-exploitation of two examined finfish species and moderate exploitation for one species. Management measures such as mesh size limitations, restricted fishing efforts, and the proclamation of restricted seasons are required to save these species from extinction.
Influence of cut parameters on mesh performance of spiral bevel gear by duplex spread blade method
Authors: Geng Longlong , Nie Shaowu , Jiang Chuang , Xie Ruijie
Published: February 2024

Spiral bevel gears are key components in many mechanical transmission systems, and their production is always of great interest to industry, and hence, subjected to intensive research widely. The present machining methods for manufacturing spiral bevel gears, including the so called five-cut method and completing method, have drawbacks such as low processing efficiency, requiring complex calculations and high requirements on the machine-tool performance, respectively. To solve the above problems, the duplex spread blade method is proposed. Firstly, geometric parameters and machine setting parameters were comprehensively considered, and then a modified reference point was selected to deduce the machine setting parameters. Tooth contact analysis (TCA) model considering misalignment was established to check meshing performance, the influence of cutter parameters and misalignment on meshing performance was studied. As the research reveals that the cutter radius has an effect on the bias of contact trace, cutter number has an impact on the position of contact pattern. The experimental results are consistent with the theoretical which verified the effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed method. The results of this paper have a guiding significance and enrich the machining method for spiral bevel gear.
The Character Education Values on Sasak Community Folklores:Putri MandalikaandTiwok-Iwok
Authors: Zain Moh. Irawan
Published: February 2024

TheSasakcommunity is theSasakpeople who live on the island of Lombok. The Sasak tribe is the highest percentage population who live on the island of Lombok. In teaching character values, theSasakcommunity always transfers character values in their generations conveyed through folklore. This research aims to describe the value of character education contained in Sasak folklore, namely,Putri MandalikaandTiwok-iwok. This study is qualitative descriptive research with a literature study approach. The data collection techniques used were documentation and literature study. The data analysis used was a qualitative content analysis technique. This research focuses on 5 (five) character education values, namely:religious(love of peace, tolerance, respect for differences, determination, selfconfidence, cooperation, anti-bullying, friendship, sincerity, not forcing your will, loving the environment, and protecting the small and marginalized);Characteristics of Nationalism(love for the homeland, proud to be Indonesian, have a sense of brotherhood, solidarity, peace and nonviolence between community groups, participate in the progress of the nation and state, have culture, participate, develop Indonesian unity, live up to the values basic in the 1945 Constitution and Pancasila (the Five Pillars), and places national unity and integrity);Independent character(work ethic, tough and highly motivated, professional, creative, brave to try, and a lifelong learner);character of mutual cooperation(respect for others, helping each other, solidarity, empathy, volunteerism, and consensus deliberation); andintegrity character(honesty, love of truth, moral commitment, anti-corruption attitude, justice, responsibility and exemplary). The results of the research show that the percentage of religious characters inSasakfolklore is 23.96%; the percentage of nationalist character education is 12.90%; the percentage of independent character education is 20.99%; the percentage of mutual cooperation character education is 29.01%, the percentage of integrity education value is 13.14%. It is indicated that the value of character education inSasakfolklore, especiallyPutri MandalikaandTiwok-Iwork, is quite varied.
Aktualisierung der standardisierten Bewertungssätze aus
gesellschaftlicher Perspektive für gesundheitsökonomische
Evaluationen
Authors: Muntendorf Louisa-Kristin , Brettschneider Christian , Konnopka Alexander , König Hans-Helmut
Published: February 2024

Ziel der Arbeit Ziel ist die Aktualisierung der Bewertungssätze
(BS) aus dem Jahr 2015 zur monetären Bewertung des gesundheitsbezogenen
Ressourcenverbrauchs aus gesellschaftlicher Perspektive für die Jahre
2019 und 2020.

Methodik Die Aktualisierung folgt der Methodik von Bock et al. 2015.
Aufgrund der neu etablierten Pflegegrade, werden BS für die Pflegegrade
1 bis 5 neu zur Verfügung gestellt. Um Veränderungen der
Preisentwicklung während der Covid-19 Pandemie zu
berücksichtigen, wird die durchschnittliche Wachstumsrate der BS von
2011–2019 im Vergleich zu 2019–2020 ausgewiesen.

Ergebnisse Der Kurzbeitrag aktualisiert die BS für den
ambulant-ärztlichen Sektor, Heil- und Hilfsmittel,
Krankenhäuser, (in-)formelle Pflegeleistungen, sowie Rehabilitation
für die Jahre 2019 und 2020.

Schlussfolgerung Die aktualisierten BS können als Referenzwerte
für die monetäre Bewertung individueller
Ressourcenverbräuche in gesundheitsökonomischen Evaluationen
genutzt werden.
Inpatient Rsv-Management 2016–2022: Epidemiology and
Adherence to A Bronchiolitis Treatment Standard at a German University
Children’s Hospital
Authors: Heidtmann Solvej , Baltaci Yeliz , Meyer Sascha , Zemlin Michael , Furtwängler Rhoikos , Rissland Juergen , Simon Arne
Published: February 2024

Background This study analyzes the RSV season 2021/2022 in a
referral children’s hospital, compares the epidemiology and illness
severity with RSV-infected inpatients from 2016 to 2020 and audits the adherence
to our internal therapy standard for RSV bronchiolitis.

Material and methods Inpatients with rtPCR-confirmed RSV infection (Jan.
2016 to Jan. 2022).

Results The audit comprises 306 RSV inpatients, on average 50
hospitalizations per year; in 03/2020, a rapid RSV Season-Offset was
observed. In the winter season 2020/2021, no patient with RSV was
hospitalized. Beginning in July, we noticed a rapid increase of RSV-admissions
(most cases in Sept./Oct, duration until Dec. 2021; n=53). In
2021–2022, a significant larger share needed PICU admission
(9.4% vs 3.2%, p=0.040). Adherence to the internal
guidance was low; only 11.8% (n=36) of all patients received
supportive treatment without inhalative or systemic medications, 37% of
all patients received antibiotics.

Conclusions This audit confirms the strong impact of public preventive
measures directed against SARS-CoV-2 transmission on RSV epidemiology. Few weeks
after easing public COVID-19 restrictions (summer 2021), RSV inpatient cases
rapidly increased, lasting until Dec. 2021. The audit of bronchiolitis
management revealed surprisingly low adherence to the internal guidance, despite
a face-to-face educational session with the attending pediatricians in Oct.
2021. Low adherence resulted in an unnecessary exposure of RSV patients to
systemic medications of questionable benefit including antibiotics.
Verhaltens- und persönlichkeitsbasierte Korrelate von
Vergewaltigungsmythen bei Männern, die aufgrund einer Vergewaltigung
verurteilt wurden
Authors: Freudenthaler Laura , Eher Reinhard
Published: February 2024

Ziel der Studie Vergewaltigungsmythen von Personen, die einen sexuellen
Übergriff an erwachsenen Frauen begangen haben, sind bisher unzureichend
in den Kontext anderer psychologischer Konstrukte eingebettet. Als Risikofaktor
für die Begehung einer Vergewaltigung erscheint es bedeutsam, ihr
Verhältnis zu individuellen, verhaltens- und
persönlichkeitsbasierten Merkmalen genauer zu untersuchen.

Methode In der vorliegenden Studie wurden daher die
Selbstauskünfte zu Aggressivität, Assertivität,
Hypersexualität, Sozial- und Sexualangst,
SKID-II-Persönlichkeitsausprägungen und
fremdeingeschätzter Psychopathie von N=569 Männern, die
wegen einer Vergewaltigung verurteilt wurden, auf relevante
Zusammenhänge mit der Akzeptanz von Vergewaltigungsmythen
analysiert.

Ergebnisse Die Ergebnisse zeigten signifikante Korrelationen mit allen
Konstrukten, außer mit Sexualangst, antisozialer Persönlichkeit
und Psychopathie. Darüber hinaus konnten mit den relevanten Konstrukten
zwei Hauptkomponenten differenziert werden: Vergewaltigungsmythen,
Aggressivität, Hypersexualität und paranoide sowie narzisstische
Persönlichkeit (K1) einerseits, und Psychopathie und antisoziale
Persönlichkeit (K2) andererseits.

Diskussion Anhand der empirisch gewonnenen Erkenntnisse werden die
Kontextualisierung von Vergewaltigungsmythen innerhalb der untersuchten
psychologischen Konstrukte und eine potenzielle Abgrenzung zu Psychopathie und
Antisozialität diskutiert.
Evaluation of exclusive internal endoscopic drainage for complex biloma with transluminal and transpapillary stenting
Authors: Sakamoto Jun , Ogura Takeshi , Ueno Saori , Okuda Atsushi , Nishioka Nobu , Hakoda Akitoshi , Uba Yuki , Tomita Mitsuki , Hattori Nobuhiro , Nakamura Junichi , Bessho Kimi , Nishikawa Hiroki
Published: February 2024

Background and study aims Biloma is treated endoscopically with endoscopic retrograde cholangiography (ERCP) or endoscopi ultrasound-guided transluminal biloma drainage (EUS-TBD). However, almost all previous studies have used both internal and external drainage. External drainage has the disadvantages of poor cosmetic appearance and self-tube removal. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the internal endoscopic drainage for complex biloma after hepatobiliary surgery with an ERCP- or EUS-guided approach, without external drainage.

Patients and methods This retrospective study included consecutive patients who had bilomas. A 7F plastic stent was deployed from the biloma to the duodenum in the ERCP group and the metal stent was deployed from the biloma to the stomach in the EUS-TBD group.

Results Forty-seven patients were enrolled. The technical success rate was similar between the groups (ERCP 94% vs EUS-TBD 100%, P=0.371); however, mean procedure time was significantly shorter in the EUS-TBD group (16.9 minutes) than in the ERCP group (26.6 minutes) (P=0.009). The clinical success rate was 87% (25 of 32 patients) in the ERCP group and 84% (11 of 13 patients) in the EUS-TBD group (P=0.482). The duration of median hospital stay was significantly shorter in the EUS-TBD group (22 days) than in the ERCP group (46 days) (P=0.038). There was no significant difference in procedure-associated adverse events between the groups.

Conclusions In conclusion, ERCP and EUS-TBD are complementary techniques, each with its own merits in specific clinical scenarios. If both techniques can be performed, EUS-TBD should be considered because of the short times for the procedure, hospital stay. and biloma resolution.
A Simplified Protocol for Tracheostomy Decannulation in Patients Weaned off Prolonged Mechanical Ventilation
Authors: Devaraja K. , Majitha C. S. , Pujary Kailesh , Nayak Dipak Ranjan , Rao Shwethapriya
Published: February 2024

Introduction The criteria for the removal of the tracheostomy tube (decannulation) vary from center to center. Some perform an endoscopic evaluation under anesthesia or computed tomography, which adds to the cost and discomfort. We use a simple two-part protocol to determine the eligibility and carry out the decannulation: part I consists of airway and swallowing assessment through an office-based flexible laryngotracheoscopy, and part II involves a tracheostomy capping trial.

Objective The primary objective was to determine the safety and efficacy of the simplified decannulation protocol followed at our center among the patients who were weaned off the mechanical ventilator and exhibited good swallowing function clinically.

Methods Of the patients considered for decannulation between November 1st, 2018, and October 31st, 2020, those who had undergone tracheostomy for prolonged mechanical ventilation were included. The efficacy to predict successful decannulation was calculated by the decannulation rate among patients who had been deemed eligible for decannulation in part I of the protocol, and the safety profile was defined by the protocol's ability to correctly predict the chances of risk-free decannulation among those submitted to part II of the protocol.

Results Among the 48 patients included (mean age: 46.5 years; male-to-female ratio: 3:1), the efficacy of our protocol in predicting the successful decannulation was of 87.5%, and it was was safe or reliable in 95.45%. Also, in our cohort, the decannulation success and the duration of tracheotomy dependence were significantly affected by the neurological status of the patients.

Conclusion The decannulation protocol consisting of office-based flexible laryngotracheoscopy and capping trial of the tracheostomy tube can safely and effectively aid the decannulation process.
Sleep Patterns and Associated Insomnia in Junior and Senior Medical Students: A Questionnaire-Based Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Alshehri Ghady Dhafer , Almahmoudi Ahlam Ahmed , Alsaif Afnan Abdullah , Shalabi Bashayer Hassan , Fatani Hana Zuhair , Aljassas Fatima Hassan , Alsulami Dania Wazen , Alhejaili Faris , Zawawi Faisal
Published: February 2024

Introduction Appropriate quality and quantity of sleep are critical for good mental health, optimal body functioning, memory consolidation, and other cognitive processes.

Objectives To evaluate the sleeping patterns of medical students in Saudi Arabia and their relationships with psychological distress.

Methods This was a cross-sectional, self-administered, questionnaire-based study. The study included medical students from a university in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS) were used to evaluate the prevalence and burden of inadequate sleep quality and insomnia in the participants.

Results The majority of the participants was women (76.6%). Furthermore, most participants (96.2%) were aged between 18 and 24 years old, while 54.4% of the participants were in their senior year. According to the AIS scores (mean: 15.85 ± 4.52), 98.7% of the participants exhibited insomnia symptoms. The PSQI scores (mean: 9.53 ± 5.67) revealed that 70.5% of the participants had poor sleep quality. Students in their fundamental and junior years had significantly higher percentages of insomnia symptoms and poor sleep quality compared with students in their senior years.

Conclusion The prevalence of insomnia and poor sleep quality is high among medical students. Therefore, appropriate strategies for early detection and intervention are warranted.
Sleep and Learning: A Systematic Review
Authors: Gutiérrez Pérez Martha Lucía , Lugo Machado Juan Antonio , Lozano Lavado Valeria , Navarro Pimiento Diana Camila
Published: February 2024

Introduction Sleep deprivation has a great impact on the learning process in physicians in training. Therefore, inquiring on this phenomenon in the most recent investigations will facilitate the provision of evidence on the influence regarding the absence of sleep on the learning process in health personnel.

Objectives The aim of this systematic review is to review, analyze and discuss the current literature that shows the impact of sleep on the learning process on doctors in training.

Data Synthesis A systematic review was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. A search of the existing literature between the years of 2000 and 2022 was performed in the PubMed and Elsevier databases, taking into account the inclusion criteria of articles in English or Spanish and the established timeframe. As a result, 128 articles distributed in the databases were obtained and 23 articles that met the inclusion criteria were selected.

Conclusion Sleep is a fundamental factor for the consolidation, processing and functioning of memory and learning. Health professionals are a population at risk of sleep deprivation, thus it is important to take into account the effects it has on patients and health personnel.
Olfactory Dysfunction in Adults from Rio Grande do Norte: A Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Bedaque Henrique de Paula , Andrade Filho Emerson Kennedy Ribeiro de , Rabelo Caio de Oliveira , Moura José Eduardo Nóbrega , Moura Kelvin Leite , Diniz Junior José , Guimarães Maria Luisa Nobre Medeiros e Silva
Published: February 2024

Introduction Smell is one of the senses of the human body, and it can be affected by several factors, such as viral infections, traumatic brain injury, iatrogenesis, smoking, and neurodegenerative and systemic diseases.

Objectives The main goal of the present study is to describe the epidemiology of olfactory disorders in Rio Grande do Norte (RN). More specifically, to determine the prevalence of olfactory dysfunction and to identify the main risk factors related to these dysfunctions in the state's population.

Methods A total of 180 volunteers living in the RN underwent the Connecticut Clinical Research Center (CCCRC) smell test and a clinical and demographic questionnaire.

Results A total of 58.89% of the patients presented normosmia and 87.78% were classified as having between normal and mild hyposmia. A statistically significant relationship was found between worse performance in the test and nasal surgery (p = 0.041) and the subjective feeling of not having an accurate sense of smell (p = 0.006 on the right nostril). There was no statistical relationship between the olfactory status and the report of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection (p = 0.254).

Conclusion The occurrence of altered sense of smell in our study was different from that reported in other studies that used the same test. The relationship with COVID-19 was not clear.
Practical Consensus Guidelines for the Use of S-1 in GI Malignancies
Authors: Parikh Purvish M , Sahoo Tarini P. , Biswas Ghanashyam , Talwar Vineet , SP Somashekhar , Panda Soumya Surath , CB Avinash , Shetty Nishita , Ramesh Anita , Ghosh Joydeep , Shetty Vijith Vital , Naik Radheshyam , Singh Ashish , Gupta Gaurav , Parekh Bhavesh
Published: February 2024

S-1 (5-fluorouracil prodrug [tegafur] in combination with 5-chloro-2,4-dihydroxypyridine [CDHP] and potassium oxonate [OXO]) was first approved in 1999. In order to make it easy for community oncologists, we decided to put together this expert consensus guideline for its use in gastrointestinal (GI) malignancies. A total of 15 subject matter experts used modified Delphi method to discuss, analyze, and vote on key aspects regarding practical approach to use of S-1 in GI cancers, a process involving 6 months of work. The consensus guidelines specify how S-1 use can be optimized in patients with colorectal, gastric, and pancreatic tumors. The voting for the 17 key points resulted in a majority consensus for all the statements (approval ranging from 13/15 [87%] to 15/15 [100%]). S-1 is a combination of three drugs (tegafur, CDHP, and OXO) specifically designed to reduce toxicity and enhance efficacy; clinical data and meta-analysis confirm both factors; and it is recommended as standard of care for GI cancers. S-1 is approved and one of the standards of care for all lines of therapy in colorectal cancer and pancreatic cancers. S-1 with oxaliplatin is the standard of care for gastric cancers.
Effect of Antenatal Magnesium Sulfate Exposure on Patent Ductus Arteriosus in Premature Infants
Authors: Okulu Emel , Kraja Elvis , Kostekci Yasemin Ezgi , Seker Erdal , Ozisik Mehmet Seckin , Sarısoy Doğacan , Aslan Batuhan , Çakır Maide Selin , Demirtaş Ferhan , Ramoğlu Mehmet Gökhan , Uçar Tayfun , Erdeve Omer , Atasay Begum , Koc Acar , Arsan Saadet
Published: February 2024

Objective Magnesium sulfate (MgSO4) provides effective fetal neuroprotection. However, there is conflicting evidence regarding the association between antenatal MgSO4 exposure and patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). Thus, herein, we aimed to evaluate the association between antenatal MgSO4 exposure and PDA.

Study Design Preterm infants born between 240/7 and 316/7 weeks of gestation were included in this retrospective study. Infants who died within the first 72 hours of life and those with significant congenital anomalies were excluded from the study. Echocardiographic and clinical assessment parameters were used to define PDA and hemodynamically significant PDA (hsPDA). Treatments were planned according to the standard protocols of the unit. The following data were collected from hospital medical records: perinatal characteristics, neonatal outcomes, detailed PDA follow-up findings, and maternal characteristics including MgSO4 exposure and doses.

Results Of the 300 included infants, 98 (32.6%) were exposed to antenatal MgSO4. hsPDA rates were similar in the infants exposed and not exposed to antenatal MgSO4, when adjusted for antenatal steroid administration, gestational age, and birth weight (OR: 1.6, 95% CI: 0.849–3.118, p = 0.146). The rates of PDA ligation and open PDA at discharge were similar between the groups. A cumulative MgSO4 dose of >20 g was associated with an increased risk of hsPDA (crude OR: 2.476, 95% CI: 0.893–6.864, p = 0.076; adjusted OR: 3.829, 95% CI: 1.068–13.728, p = 0.039). However, the cumulative dose had no effect on the rates of PDA ligation or open PDA at discharge. Rates of prematurity-related morbidities and mortality were similar between the groups.

Conclusion Although antenatal MgSO4 exposure may increase the incidence of hsPDA, it may not affect the rates of PDA ligation or open PDA at discharge. Further studies are required to better evaluate the dose-dependent outcomes and identify the MgSO4 dose that not only provides neuroprotection but also has the lowest risk of adverse effects.

Key Points
Addressing Parental Gatekeeping in Early-Intervention Services: Engaging all Caregivers
Authors: Puhlman Daniel J. , Puhlman Jane
Published: February 2024

The successful implementation of early interventions (EIs) within families is crucial in mitigating language and developmental delays in young children. Considering that language acquisition primarily occurs through interactions between caregivers and children, parental involvement plays a significant role in EI services. Working within families where one parent interferes with the involvement of the child's other parent or caregiver can be challenging for service providers. This article examines parental gatekeeping—a concept from the family science literature that can have a significant impact on services provided by speech language pathologists (SLPs). We outline and provide examples of family dynamics that may pose challenges to SLPs working with young children and their families as well as provide strategies for effectively navigating and working within these dynamics.
Advanced age predicts increased susceptibility to attribute, goal, and risky-choice framing in negative frame valences
Authors: Xu Lance
Published: February 2024

The framing effect has been extensively studied in the context of attribute, goal, and risky-choice framing, revealing its significant impact on decision-making. However, the interplay between age and the framing effect remains relatively unexplored, and existing findings are inconclusive and conflicting. Addressing this gap, this study investigates the influence of age on all three types of framing using a large cohort of participants (N = 696). The Johnson-Neyman technique was employed to examine the effect across a continuous range of ages. The analysis demonstrated that advanced age significantly increased susceptibility to the framing effect. Moreover, it was found that this susceptibility primarily manifests in response to negative frames across all framing types. These findings not only align with the socioemotional selectivity theory and dual-process model but also underscore the importance of affect heuristics in decision-making among older adults. By offering a robust examination of all three types of framing and their interactions with age, this study provides a theoretical foundation for the role of age as a potential moderator in framing contexts. These findings may therefore inform the development of targeted strategies to mitigate the impact of the framing effect on elderly populations.
Populism and the quest for political power: the pitfalls to populist electoral success in Canada
Authors: Karimi Sirvan
Published: February 2024

Recent electoral inroads by anti-establishment political parties in Europe and around the world have led to the resurgence of the debate on populism. Within the burgeoning theoretical and analytic interpretations of the surge of populism, competing arguments have been deployed. Economic dislocation and the demographic shift within liberal democratic societies have provided fertile ground for the rise of populism. However, the success of these populist political parties, particularly the radical right populist parties, in utilizing prevailing societal resentment is to a great extent conditional upon a perceived threat to national identity. While the vestiges of political distrust and social and economic indignation can be found in Canadian society, the absence of a historically ingrained strong sense of nationhood, consolidation of multiculturalism, the eclipse of class from national political discourse, and the implausibility of resorting to Anti-Americanism as a mobilizing tactic has made it difficult for both Canadian right and left-populist forces to replicate the success of their international counterparts at the national level.
Assembly and comparative analysis of the complete mitochondrial genome of Pinellia ternata
Authors: Liu Xiao , You Qian , Liu Mengmeng , Bo Chen , Zhu Yanfang , Duan Yongbo , Xue Jianping , Wang Dexin , Xue Tao
Published: February 2024

Pinellia ternata is an important natural medicinal herb in China. However, it is susceptible to withering when exposed to high temperatures during growth, which limits its tuber production. Mitochondria usually function in stress response. The P. ternata mitochondrial (mt) genome has yet to be explored. Therefore, we integrated PacBio and Illumina sequencing reads to assemble and annotate the mt genome of P. ternata. The circular mt genome of P. ternata is 876 608 bp in length and contains 38 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 20 tRNA genes and three rRNA genes. Codon usage, sequence repeats, RNA editing and gene migration from chloroplast (cp) to mt were also examined. Phylogenetic analysis based on the mt genomes of P. ternata and 36 other taxa revealed the taxonomic and evolutionary status of P. ternata. Furthermore, we investigated the mt genome size and GC content by comparing P. ternata with the other 35 species. An evaluation of non-synonymous substitutions and synonymous substitutions indicated that most PCGs in the mt genome underwent negative selection. Our results provide comprehensive information on the P. ternata mt genome, which may facilitate future research on the high-temperature response of P. ternata and provide new molecular insights on the Araceae family.
Ultrahigh frequencies of peripherally matured LGI1- and CASPR2-reactive B cells characterize the cerebrospinal fluid in autoimmune encephalitis
Authors: Theorell Jakob , Harrison Ruby , Williams Robyn , Raybould Matthew I. J. , Zhao Meng , Fox Hannah , Fower Andrew , Miller Georgina , Wu Zoe , Browne Eleanor , Mgbachi Victor , Sun Bo , Mopuri Rohini , Li Ying , Waters Patrick , Deane Charlotte M. , Handel Adam , Makuch Mateusz , Irani Sarosh R.
Published: February 2024

Intrathecal synthesis of central nervous system (CNS)-reactive autoantibodies is observed across patients with autoimmune encephalitis (AE), who show multiple residual neurobehavioral deficits and relapses despite immunotherapies. We leveraged two common forms of AE, mediated by leucine-rich glioma inactivated-1 (LGI1) and contactin-associated protein-like 2 (CASPR2) antibodies, as human models to comprehensively reconstruct and profile cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) B cell receptor (BCR) characteristics. We hypothesized that the resultant observations would both inform the observed therapeutic gap and determine the contribution of intrathecal maturation to pathogenic B cell lineages. From the CSF of three patients, 381 cognate-paired IgG BCRs were isolated by cell sorting and scRNA-seq, and 166 expressed as monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). Sixty-two percent of mAbs from singleton BCRs reacted with either LGI1 or CASPR2 and, strikingly, this rose to 100% of cells in clonal groups with ≥4 members. These autoantigen-reactivities were more concentrated within antibody-secreting cells (ASCs) versus B cells (
P
< 0.0001), and both these cell types were more differentiated than LGI1- and CASPR2-unreactive counterparts. Despite greater differentiation, autoantigen-reactive cells had acquired few mutations intrathecally and showed minimal variation in autoantigen affinities within clonal expansions. Also, limited CSF T cell receptor clonality was observed. In contrast, a comparison of germline-encoded BCRs versus the founder intrathecal clone revealed marked gains in both affinity and mutational distances (
P
= 0.004 and
P
< 0.0001, respectively). Taken together, in patients with LGI1 and CASPR2 antibody encephalitis, our results identify CSF as a compartment with a remarkably high frequency of clonally expanded autoantigen-reactive ASCs whose BCR maturity appears dominantly acquired outside the CNS.
Tumor circadian clock strength influences metastatic potential and predicts patient prognosis in luminal A breast cancer
Authors: Li Shi-Yang , Hammarlund Jan A. , Wu Gang , Lian Jia-Wen , Howell Sacha J. , Clarke Robert B. , Adamson Antony D. , Gonçalves Cátia F. , Hogenesch John B. , Anafi Ron C. , Meng Qing-Jun
Published: February 2024

Studies in shift workers and model organisms link circadian disruption to breast cancer. However, molecular circadian rhythms in noncancerous and cancerous human breast tissues and their clinical relevance are largely unknown. We reconstructed rhythms informatically, integrating locally collected, time-stamped biopsies with public datasets. For noncancerous breast tissue, inflammatory, epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT), and estrogen responsiveness pathways show circadian modulation. Among tumors, clock correlation analysis demonstrates subtype-specific changes in circadian organization. Luminal A organoids and informatic ordering of luminal A samples exhibit continued, albeit dampened and reprogrammed rhythms. However, CYCLOPS magnitude, a measure of global rhythm strength, varied widely among luminal A samples. Cycling of EMT pathway genes was markedly increased in high-magnitude luminal A tumors. Surprisingly, patients with high-magnitude tumors had reduced 5-y survival. Correspondingly, 3D luminal A cultures show reduced invasion following molecular clock disruption. This study links subtype-specific circadian disruption in breast cancer to EMT, metastatic potential, and prognosis.
Evolution and diversification of carboxylesterase-like [4+2] cyclases in aspidosperma and iboga alkaloid biosynthesis
Authors: DeMars Matthew D. , O’Connor Sarah E.
Published: February 2024

Monoterpene indole alkaloids (MIAs) are a large and diverse class of plant natural products, and their biosynthetic construction has been a subject of intensive study for many years. The enzymatic basis for the production of aspidosperma and iboga alkaloids, which are produced exclusively by members of the Apocynaceae plant family, has recently been discovered. Three carboxylesterase (CXE)-like enzymes from
Catharanthus roseus
and
Tabernanthe iboga
catalyze regio- and enantiodivergent [4+2] cycloaddition reactions to generate the aspidosperma (tabersonine synthase, TS) and iboga (coronaridine synthase, CorS; catharanthine synthase, CS) scaffolds from a common biosynthetic intermediate. Here, we use a combined phylogenetic and biochemical approach to investigate the evolution and functional diversification of these cyclase enzymes. Through ancestral sequence reconstruction, we provide evidence for initial evolution of TS from an ancestral CXE followed by emergence of CorS in two separate lineages, leading in turn to CS exclusively in the
Catharanthus
genus. This progression from aspidosperma to iboga alkaloid biosynthesis is consistent with the chemotaxonomic distribution of these MIAs. We subsequently generate and test a panel of chimeras based on the ancestral cyclases to probe the molecular basis for differential cyclization activity. Finally, we show through partial heterologous reconstitution of tabersonine biosynthesis using non-pathway enzymes how aspidosperma alkaloids could have first appeared as “underground metabolites” via recruitment of promiscuous enzymes from common protein families. Our results provide insight into the evolution of biosynthetic enzymes and how new secondary metabolic pathways can emerge through small but important sequence changes following co-option of preexisting enzymatic functions.
Towards a usage-based characterisation of the English Superlative Object Construction
Authors: Bouso Tamara
Published: February 2024

Little attention has been paid to the English Superlative Object Construction (SOC), as in She worked her
hardest. The historical grammarians Jespersen (1909–1949) and Poutsma (1904–1929) are the only ones who do touch on the SOC, and they do so in passing
relying on what seem to be the prototypical examples of the construction. This empirical evidence, though valuable for a first
characterisation of the pattern, is insufficient to provide a detailed analysis of the form, function, frequency, and distribution
of the SOC in Present Day English from the perspective of Construction Grammar. Based on usage-based data from COCA, this paper
argues that the SOC qualifies as an intensifying comparative construction. Despite being low frequent and showing a set of highly
entrenched, lexicalised units (e.g., smile [X] prettiest, work [X] hardest),
the SOC is relatively productive, especially in informal registers where the construction can be easily accommodated to serve
emotive, phatic, and conative functions.
The semantics of Mandarin futurates
Authors: He Yuyin
Published: February 2024

This paper investigates future interpretations in Mandarin declarative root clauses without overt future modals,
i.e., Mandarin futurates. Mandarin futurates require future time adverbs and schedulable eventualities, which denote future
readings relative to the utterance time or a context-determined past time. Moreover, Mandarin futurates presuppose the existence
of a plan in the context and are incompatible with a single perfective aspect marker le1
. To account
for these facts, I argue that a covert future modal m-plan is present in futurates and extend the formal analysis for
English simple futurates to Mandarin with necessary modifications.
Logarithmic pinpricks in wavefunctions
Authors: Berry M V
Published: February 2024

Waves in the plane, punctured by excision of a small disk with radius much smaller than the wavelength, can be modified by being forced to vanish on the boundary of the disk. Such waves exhibit a logarithmically thin ‘pinprick’, and logarithmically weak oscillations persisting far away. As the radius vanishes, these modifications become asymptotically invisible. Examples are punctured plane waves, and a punctured unit disk; in the latter case, the pinprick causes a logarithmic shift in the eigenvalues. It is conjectured that the plane can be densely covered with asymptotically invisible pinpricks, and that there are analogous phenomena in higher dimensions. The curious phenomenon of pinpricks is not hard to understand, and would be worth presenting in graduate courses on waves.
Nonconvex weighted variational metal artifacts removal via convergent primal-dual algorithms
Authors: Wang Lianfang , Chen Zhangling , Liu Zhifang , Li Yutong , Zhao Yunsong , Li Hongwei , Chang Huibin
Published: February 2024

Direct reconstruction through filtered back projection engenders metal artifacts in polychromatic computed tomography images, attributed to highly attenuating implants, which further poses great challenges for subsequent image analysis. Inpainting the metal trace directly in the Radon domain for the extant variational method leads to strong edge diffusion and potential inherent artifacts. With normalization based on pre-segmentation, the inpainted outcome can be notably ameliorated. However, its reconstructive fidelity is heavily contingent on the precision of the pre-segmentation, and highly accurate segmentation of images with metal artifacts is non-trivial in actuality. In this paper, we propose a nonconvex weighted variational approach for metal artifact reduction. Specifically, in lieu of employing a binary function with zeros in the metal trace, an adaptive weight function is designed in the Radon domain, with zeros in the overlapping regions of multiple disjoint metals as well as areas of highly attenuated projections, and the inverse square root of the measured projection in other regions. A nonconvex

L
1

−
α

L
2

regularization term is incorporated to further enhance edge contrast, alongside a box-constraint in the image domain. Efficient first-order primal-dual algorithms, proven to be globally convergent and of low computational cost owing to the closed-form solution of all subproblems, are devised to resolve such a constrained nonconvex model. Both simulated and real experiments are conducted with comparisons to other variational algorithms, validating the superiority of the presented method. Especially in comparison to Reweighted JSR, our proposed algorithm can curtail the total computational cost to at most one-third, and for the case of inaccurate pre-segmentation, the recovery outcomes by the proposed algorithms are notably enhanced.
Image reconstruction based on nonlinear diffusion model for limited-angle computed tomography
Authors: Zhao Xuying , Jiang Wenjin , Zhang Xinting , Guo Wenxiu , Zhao Yunsong , Zhao Xing
Published: February 2024

The problem of limited-angle computed tomography (CT) imaging reconstruction has a wide range of practical applications. Due to various factors such as high x-ray absorption, structural characteristics of the scanned object, and equipment limitations, it is often impractical to obtain a complete angular scan, resulting in limited-angle scan data. In this paper, we propose an iterative image reconstruction algorithm for limited-angle CT. The algorithm carries out a traditional CT reconstruction and a nonlinear diffusion process alternatively. Specifically, a subtle partial differential equation is constructed to guide the nonlinear diffusion process to eliminate limited-angle artifacts in the reconstructed image. Numerical experiments on both analytic data and real data validate the efficacy of the proposed nonlinear diffusion reconstruction algorithm. Furthermore, a linear diffusion reconstruction algorithm which combines a traditional CT reconstruction algorithm and a linear diffusion process is also presented in the paper.
Adaptive anisotropic Bayesian meshing for inverse problems
Authors: Bocchinfuso A , Calvetti D , Somersalo E
Published: February 2024

We consider inverse problems estimating distributed parameters from indirect noisy observations through discretization of continuum models described by partial differential or integral equations. It is well understood that errors arising from the discretization can be detrimental for ill-posed inverse problems, as discretization error behaves as correlated noise. While this problem can be avoided with a discretization fine enough to decrease the modeling error level below that of the exogenous noise that is addressed, e.g. by regularization, the computational resources needed to deal with the additional degrees of freedom may increase so much as to require high performance computing environments. Following an earlier idea, we advocate the notion of the discretization as one of the unknowns of the inverse problem, which is updated iteratively together with the solution. In this approach, the discretization, defined in terms of an underlying metric, is refined selectively only where the representation power of the current mesh is insufficient. In this paper we allow the metrics and meshes to be anisotropic, and we show that this leads to significant reduction of memory allocation and computing time.
Laser-assisted two-proton radioactivity
Authors: Zou You-Tian , Cheng Jun-Hao , Xu Yang-Yang , Xiao Qiong , Liu Si-Man , Shao Fu-Qiu , Yu Tong-Pu
Published: February 2024

In this work, we systematically investigate the two-proton (2p) radioactivity assisted by an ultra-intense laser field within a deformed one-parameter model (OPM). The results show that the ultra-intense laser hardly affects the preformation probability of the emitted 2p-pair, but it can change the 2p radioactive half-lives to a finite extent by affecting the penetrability probability. Moreover, we compare the responses of different 2p radioactivity nuclei to the laser field, and it is found that the 2p radioactivity of nuclei with a low decay width are more easily influenced by the intense laser field. Furthermore, the effects of different physical parameters of a laser pulse on the 2p radioactivity were also discussed. The calculations indicate that the lasers characterized by shorter wavelengths and higher intensities exert a more significant influence on the rate of the average change in pulse duration. Finally, we extended the deformed OPM to predict the half-lives of 2p radioactivity candidates and identified the possible experimental objects of the laser-assisted 2p radioactivity. This study may promote the possibility of future experimental investigations on extensive facilities like GSI and ELI-NP, etc.
Dy-GNet: a lightweight and efficient 1DCNN-based network for leakage aperture identification
Authors: Zhang Lihao , Li Peng , Liu Xuanyu , Yu Junze , Hu Guole , Yu Tao
Published: February 2024

The deep neural network’s gas leakage aperture recognition method has high accuracy, but its low computational efficiency due to its complex structure greatly limit its application in resource-limited industrial environments and real-time processing. In this paper, we proposed an efficient recognition method based on 1D convolutional neural network. First, wavelet scattering coefficients with time-frequency information are obtained using the wavelet scattering transform. Second, the dynamic convolution is used to deepen the feature extraction and partial convolution to speed up the inference time, and the efficient Dy-G module is constructed. Finally, the Dy-G module is stacked to construct Dy-GNet to achieve the classification task. The performance of the model is verified in a noisy environment, and the results show that the model floating-point operations are 17.24 M and 83.94% accuracy is achieved at signal to noise ratio = 0 dB, which guarantees the accuracy while speeding up the inference speed with high efficiency.