bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Identification and acclimatization of the most potential 4‐chlorophenol degrading bacterial strain isolated from hazardous soil and observing its performance in various process parameters
Authors: Maity Debapriya , Kundu Pradyut , Adhikari (Nee Pramanik) Sunita
Published: November 2023

4‐Chlorophenol is present as an essential compound of various organic compounds found in different kinds of hazardous waste. It can be easily eliminated from the industrial effluents by different physical and chemical treatment methods although best technique is bioremediation. To separate a potent bacterial strain from the soil that can dispose of 4‐chlorophenol from contaminated water, soil sample was collected from a hospital zone. Isolated bacterial colonies were segregated by the technique of soil enrichment with 500 mg/L 4‐chlorophenol and after that the enriched soil sample was serially diluted and transferred to petri plates with agar media. Twenty‐seven colonies were isolated and the most potent strain was selected in 50 mL liquid medium that was enriched previously with 500 mg/L of 4‐chlorophenol. C19 was found to be the most potent strain and it had the ability to reduce almost 99.97% of 4‐chlorophenol within 24 h, 37°C temperatures as well as in shaking condition (140–150 rpm) and pH 6.8–7.2. After the isolation, the strain was acclimatized in mineral salt medium (MSM) from lower concentration to higher concentration of 4‐chlorophenol to increase its removal capacity as well as to prepare the inoculums. Then parameter optimization study was performed where optimum temperature and pH was found to be 25°C and 6.5°C, respectively, 400 mL media volume and 8% inoculums were found to be most effective and finally 24 h time period was optimized. All these five optimum parameters were applied together to remove higher conc. of 4‐chlorophenol where almost 99.3% removals were obtained when the conc. was 600 mg/L. Moreover, more than 90% removals were obtained in case of 700, 800, and 900 mg/L concentration. Morphological, biochemical, nucleotide homology, and phylogenetic investigation of the strain was made which revealed that it was a rod shaped (Bacillus type), gram +ve, spore forming and motile bacterial strain and therefore, the selected strain was found to exhibit most extreme similarities (91.73%) with Bacillus cereus strain MK789657.
Computed tomography myelography description of pneumorrhachis secondary to a degenerative intervertebral disk disease in a cross‐breed dog
Authors: Ingelaere Eva , Levy Alice
Published: November 2023

A 9‐year‐old, male, neutered, cross‐breed dog was presented for a 6‐month history of spinal pain, mild pelvic limbs proprioceptive ataxia and discrete ambulatory paraparesis. Computed tomography myelography identified focal gas accumulation in the left aspect of the vertebral canal at the level of T11–T12, resulting in moderate extradural spinal cord compression. Minor chronic intervertebral disk protrusion was also identified at this level with no evidence of spinal cord compression. An encapsulated space‐occupying gas accumulation was identified and removed during a left‐sided T11–T12 hemilaminectomy. On histopathological analysis, the capsule was formed by connective and inflammatory tissue. Early neurological deterioration following surgery was observed due to persistent extradural material causing spinal cord compression. Widening of the previous hemilaminectomy window was performed to remove the compressive material, and progressive improvement was noted during the following weeks. This is the first case of computed tomography myelography description of pneumorrhachis in a dog.
Numerical simulations for a parametric study of blockage effect on offshore wind farms
Authors: Flaszyński Pawel , Wasilczuk Filip , Piotrowicz Michal , Telega Janusz , Mitraszewski Karol , Hansen Kurt Schaldemose
Published: November 2023

The paper presents a study of the upstream influence of wind farms on the wind speed, which is called blockage effect. A Reynolds Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) numerical model using an actuator disc method was devised and validated using the SCADA data from a Horns Rev 1 wind farm. The maximum difference between the average power in the first row for SCADA and the numerical model was 7.8%. The model was used to determine the impact of blockage effect on the wind farm parameters and the extent to which the wind speed and the power generation were reduced. A reference wind farm was defined, with a modified size, spacing, turbine height, and diameter that were used for comparison with other wind farm configurations. The results of the investigation of the wind farm parameter effects on the upstream wind speed reduction are presented in the paper. It has been established that increasing the turbine spacing from 5D to 6.7D reduces the power loss due to blockage by two. Blockage losses are almost eliminated when the spacing is increased two times. Similarly, the wind turbine thrust coefficient (CT) has a large impact on blockage, which is more pronounced, when CT is higher. In fact, the velocity deficit due to blockage is proportional to CT. The turbine tower height has small impact on blockage effect—the power reduction was changed by 0.3% due to blockage for the investigated range. The number of turbines in a row (with a constant number of turbines in a row) does not affect blockage significantly.
Introduction: Conceptualizing Hinterlands
Authors: Peeren Esther , Stuit Hanneke , Nuttall Sarah , Gupta Pamila
Published: November 2023

This introduction first considers the history of the hinterland as not just any spatial distribution but one driven by and instrumental to the workings of the capitalist-colonialist-climatic assemblage. Subsequently, it contends that an interdisciplinary conceptual approach to hinterlands that straddles the humanities and social sciences allows for critical and engaged reflection on the haunting afterlives of colonialism, the logistical turn of global capitalism, the impending threat of environmental collapse, and persistent urban-suburban-rural-wilderness divides. The introduction closes by outlining how, together, the contributions to this volume make clear that while hinterlands are primarily realms of extraction and abandonment, they are places of possibility as well, where alternative ways of living together and new forms of care, including for the planet, may flourish.
Biophilia in the Hinterland: Symbiotic Affects in Robinson in Ruins
Authors: Lord Catherine
Published: November 2023

Patrick Keiller’s Robinson in Ruins is a feature-length film essay presenting a fictional protagonist, the politically radical Robinson. Set in the 2008–2009 financial collapse, Robinson meets some “nonhuman intelligences,” who are lichens. These inspire him to document the historical and contemporary state of England’s far hinterland, which comprises not just post-industrial wastelands, such as the cement mines, but also historical sites of civil disobedience, such as Hampton Gay. In its vicinity, roads are lined with flowers, fences, and gas markers: a nonhuman world of both organic and inorganic entities. Engaging with Jobb Arnold’s concept of “land affects” and Sara Ahmed’s work on “affective economies,” I explore “symbiotic affects” as they flow between human and nonhuman beings in the film’s far hinterland.
Wet and Dry Hinterlands: Pluviality and Drought in J. M. Coetzee’s Life and Times of Michael K
Authors: Nuttall Sarah
Published: November 2023

Conditions of pluviality and dryness are crucial to registers of extraction, abandonment, and care in J. M. Coetzee’s Life and Times of Michael K. The analysis reads for these conditions across the looped hinterlands from the port city of Cape Town into the uplands of the Karoo. Water, specifically rain or the lack of it, shapes K’s capacity to (even minimally) redefine abandonment as a form of small abundance. Unloosed from the terms of his involuntary labor in service to capitalism-colonialism, he works a wind pump and a borehole, mostly by cover of moonlight. In the now “disastrously dry” hills above Prince Albert, where much of the novel is set, K’s project of temporary freedom and surreptitious subsistence would no longer be remotely possible.
The Animal Hinterland in Marieke Lucas Rijneveld’s My Heavenly Favorite
Authors: Paijmans Marrigje
Published: November 2023

This chapter conceptualizes the obscured space of Dutch livestock farming as a “hinterland” through an analysis of Marijke Lucas Rijneveld’s novel My Heavenly Favorite (Mijn lieve gunsteling, 2020). It argues that the central relationship, between a farmer girl and a vet, figures the detrimental effects of factory farming on agricultural communities, particularly human-animal relationships. The novel renders the life and suffering of animals in the Dutch countryside through the girl’s “becoming animal” (Deleuze and Guattari), entering an obscure animal hinterland where the vet cannot follow. Conducting an affective analysis of the girl’s becomings, the chapter aims to demonstrate how animal hinterlands, however neglected and exploited, can generate powerful affects which may compel humans to restore balance to human-animal relationships.
Compound Focalization in the Literary Hinterlands
Authors: Pratt Murray
Published: November 2023

In this chapter I consider hinterlands as necessary supplements: unseen and unseemly, concealed or obscured, but nonetheless essential to those broader humancentric stratifications and systems they co-constitute and maintain. Through a comparative reading ofShuggie Bainby Douglas Stuart andDjinn Patrol on the Purple Lineby Deepa Anappara, I draw on literary evocations of hinterlands lives to consider the scope in contemporary fiction to reconceive of hinterlands as places capable of eluding site-specificity, within the contexts of Achille Mbembe’s refutal of brutalist logic and Amitav Ghosh’s call for alternative literary readings. Turning to the more-than-human dimensions permeating Chen Qiufan’s speculative novelWaste Tide, I conclude by identifying fiction’s capacity to review hinterlands in compound ways that unsettle and reimagine human perspectives and places.
Cultivating Hinterland: What Lies Behind Agnes Denes’ Wheatfield?
Authors: Voelcker Becca
Published: November 2023

In 1982, the artist Agnes Denes and several volunteers grew two acres of wheat near Manhattan’s financial district, titling the project Wheatfield: A Confrontation. Denes had undeniably eco-ethical intentions, and her work was celebrated as environmentalist. But did Wheatfield’s pastoral aesthetic confront the capitalist power structures Denes hoped to critique or offer urban elites a picturesque spectacle? The notion of hinterland—literally, land behind a city that provides natural resources and labor power—guides this chapter’s inquiry into ideas and ideologies that lay behind Wheatfield. As the climate emergency exacerbates polarizations between urban and rural contexts, studying Wheatfield yields important clues for how contemporary ecopolitical art might disrupt ecologically and socially unjust systems, cultivate alternatives, and avoid compromise, complicity, or appropriation.
“Washed with Sun”: Landscaping South Africa’s Hinterlands
Authors: Gupta Pamila
Published: November 2023

This chapter takes up Jeremy Foster’s evocative description of South Africa’s landscape as “washed with sun” (Washed with Sun: Landscape and the Making of White South Africa. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2008), that of the entwining of natural beauty with political turmoil, to reflect on the shifting spatial thematics of two contemporary South African non-fiction writers and academics, Rob Nixon and Jacob Dlamini. What happens when we view certain locations described in their respective works (a small desert town vs. a township) through the prism of hinterlands? Hinterland thinking opens up new understandings of those places inflected by the rural and urban and highlights the importance of human/non-human relations, with Nixon and Dlamini operating as each other’s hinterland. Landscaped memories of hinterland childhoods are also employed to say something about political becoming and the past in South Africa today.
Swamp Things: The Wetland Roots of American Authoritarianism
Authors: Zwiers Maarten
Published: November 2023

“Swamp Things” demonstrates the roots of Trumpism through a case study of the hinterland strongman Leander Perez, who ruled Plaquemines Parish in southern Louisiana from the 1920s through the 1960s. Perez considered the parish his own watery white-supremacist empire, where racist practices went hand in hand with environmentally destructive activities, such as oil drilling and petrochemical production. In the liquid subtropical hinterlands of the US South, racialized, authoritarian regimes of labor and resource extraction developed anew after the demise of slavery. The politics of these regimes finally materialized at the federal level when Donald Trump, the landlord of Mar-a-Lago (“Sea-to-Lake”), became president. His promise to “drain the swamp” had very specific connotations that harken back to the days of Leander Perez.
Lighting up the LHC with Dark Matter
Authors: Baum Sebastian , Carena Marcela , Ou Tong , Rocha Duncan , Shah Nausheen R. , Wagner Carlos E. M.
Published: November 2023

Abstract

We show that simultaneously explaining dark matter and the observed value of the muon’s magnetic dipole moment may lead to yet unexplored photon signals at the LHC. We consider the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model with electroweakino masses in the few-to-several hundred GeV range, and opposite sign of the Bino mass parameter with respect to both the Higgsino and Wino mass parameters. In such region of parameter space, the spin-independent elastic scattering cross section of a Bino-like dark matter candidate in direct detection experiment is suppressed by cancellations between different amplitudes, and the observed dark matter relic density can be realized via Bino-Wino co-annihilation. Moreover, the observed value of the muon’s magnetic dipole moment can be explained by Bino and Wino loop contributions. Interestingly, “radiative” decays of Wino-like neutralinos into the lightest neutralino and a photon are enhanced, whereas decays into leptons are suppressed. While these decay patterns weaken the reach of multi-lepton searches at the LHC, the radiative decay opens a new window for probing dark matter at the LHC through the exploration of parameter space regions beyond those currently accessible. To complement the current electroweakino searches, we propose searching for a single (soft) photon plus missing transverse energy, accompanied by a hard initial state radiation jet.
Krylov complexity and chaos in quantum mechanics
Authors: Hashimoto Koji , Murata Keiju , Tanahashi Norihiro , Watanabe Ryota
Published: November 2023

Abstract

Recently, Krylov complexity was proposed as a measure of complexity and chaoticity of quantum systems. We consider the stadium billiard as a typical example of the quantum mechanical system obtained by quantizing a classically chaotic system, and numerically evaluate Krylov complexity for operators and states. Despite no exponential growth of the Krylov complexity, we find a clear correlation between variances of Lanczos coefficients and classical Lyapunov exponents, and also a correlation with the statistical distribution of adjacent spacings of the quantum energy levels. This shows that the variances of Lanczos coefficients can be a measure of quantum chaos. The universality of the result is supported by our similar analysis of Sinai billiards. Our work provides a firm bridge between Krylov complexity and classical/quantum chaos.
Baryogenesis and dark matter in the mirror twin Higgs
Authors: Bittar Pedro , Burdman Gustavo , Kiriliuk Larissa
Published: November 2023

Abstract

We consider a natural asymmetric dark matter (ADM) model in the mirror twin Higgs (MTH). We show that it is possible to obtain the correct dark matter (DM) abundance when a twin baryon is the DM without the need of explicit breaking of the MTH ℤ2 symmetry in the dimensionless couplings (i.e. without hard ℤ2 breaking). We illustrate how this is possible in a specific baryogenesis setup, which also leads to ADM. In the simplest scenario we obtain mDM ~ O(1) GeV, just above the proton mass. We show estimates for direct detection rates at present and future experiments.
A Structural Approach to Gudermannian Functions
Authors: Gambini Alessandro , Nicoletti Giorgio , Ritelli Daniele
Published: November 2023

The Gudermannian function relates the circular angle to the hyperbolic one when their cosines are reciprocal. Whereas both such angles are halved areas of circular and hyperbolic sectors, it is natural to develop similar considerations within the study of a class of curves images of maps with constant areal speed. After a brief exposition of some use of the Gudermannian in applied sciences, we proceed to illustrate the class of curves, called Keplerian curves, which can be parametrised by a map $${{\textbf{m}}}= (\cos _{{{\textbf{m}}}}, \sin _{{{\textbf{m}}}})$$

m
=
(

cos
m

,

sin
m

)

whose areal speed is 1. In the next Sections, after a detailed study of p-circular and hyperbolic Fermat curves $$\mathscr {F}_p$$

F
p

and $$\mathscr {F}^*_p$$

F
p
∗

, we define the p-Gudermannian as the primitive of the derivative of the p-hyperbolic sine divided by the square of the p-hyperbolic cosine: all the analogues of the classical identities are proven. Having realised that such curves correspond to each other by means a homology, we extend our study to a wide class of Keplerian curves and their homologues; once again, defined the Gudermannian in an identical manner, all the analogues of classical identities subsist. Below, three examples are detailed. The last paragraph further extends this consideration, eliminating the hypothesis that the curves are parametrised by maps with areal speed 1. The Appendix illustrates integrating techniques for systems defining the Fermat curves and determining the inverse of their tangent function.
Einschätzung von kariösen Zahnläsionen und Therapieoptionen: Vergleich der Kenntnisse von Studierenden der Zahnmedizin und AssistenzzahnärztInnen für Kieferorthopädie
Authors: Jablonski-Momeni Anahita , Korbmacher-Steiner Heike
Published: November 2023

Um das Zahnmedizinstudium zu optimieren, sollten etablierte Verfahren zur Kariesdiagnostik und -therapie wie das „International Caries Classification and Management System“ (ICCMS) in den Lehrplan integriert werden. Vorbereitend wurde der Kenntnisstand von Zahnmedizinstudierenden zu Kariesdetektion und -management erhoben, um Defizite in der Lehre gezielt aufgreifen zu können. Ergänzend wurden die erhobenen Daten dem Wissen von klinisch erfahreneren ZahnärztInnen gegenübergestellt. Die Ergebnisse werden in dem vorliegenden Bericht dargestellt und mögliche Konsequenzen für die zahnmedizinische Lehre diskutiert.

26 Studierende im 6. Fachsemester Zahnmedizin und 6 AssistenzzahnärztInnen der Poliklinik für Kieferorthopädie (Philipps-Universität Marburg) standen im Wintersemester 2018/2019 für die schriftliche Befragung zur Verfügung. Für 12 anonymisierte kieferorthopädische Patientenfälle sollten für je einen definierten Zahn der klinische Befund, das Kariesrisiko und die adäquate Behandlung ermittelt werden. Als Referenzwert diente die Konsensentscheidung von 2 erfahrenen ZahnärztInnen. Im Ergebnis lag die Übereinstimmung mit der Referenz bei den Studierenden zwischen 40,7 % und 51,3 % und bei den AssistenzzahnärztInnen zwischen 56,9 % und 75,0 %. Die Kariesausdehnung und die darauf basierende notwendige Behandlung wurden meist unterschätzt.

Neben theoretischen Kenntnissen ist die klinische Erfahrung eine weitere Voraussetzung für eine adäquate Diagnose von Karies und deren Management. Das Unterschätzen von Kariesausdehnung und notwendiger Behandlung sollte bei der Übermittlung von Lehrinhalten berücksichtigt werden. Verfahren wie das ICCMS sollten bereits zu einem frühen Zeitpunkt in das Curriculum integriert werden, damit auch kieferorthopädische PatientInnen effektiv versorgt werden können.
Insertion of a second electrode array—a rare complication of CI reimplantation
Authors: Ketterer M. C. , Brückerhoff K. , Arndt S. , Beck R. , Aschendorff A.
Published: November 2023

Due to a technical defect or a medical indication, it may be necessary to explant a cochlear implant. This case report shows that there is the risk of encountering a nonremovable electrode array—as described here from the scala tympani—during cochlear reimplantation. In the present case, insertion of a second electrode array into the free and nonobstructed scala vestibuli was successful. Nonetheless, the indication for reimplantation must be carefully considered, especially in patients with tolerable limitations with little or no loss of speech understanding. Furthermore, surgery should not be performed solely because an implant upgrade is desired.
Time required to achieve clinically significant outcomes after arthroscopic superior capsular reconstruction
Authors: Ben Hui , Zeng Chu Hui , Kholinne Erica , Ryu Seung Min , Ling Jian Loong , Koh Kyoung‐Hwan , Jeon In‐Ho
Published: November 2023

Purpose

To investigate the time‐dependent nature of clinically significant outcomes, including the minimal clinically important difference (MCID), substantial clinical benefit, and Patient Acceptable Symptomatic State (PASS) after arthroscopic superior capsular reconstruction, and the factors contributing to the achievement of early clinically significant outcomes.

Methods

Patients who underwent ASCR between March 2015 and September 2020 with complete preoperative and postoperative 6‐month, 1‐year, and 2‐year patient‐reported outcome measures (PROMs) were retrospectively analysed. Threshold values for MCID, substantial clinical benefit, and PASS were obtained from the previous literature for the PROMs. The time required to achieve clinically significant outcomes was calculated using Kaplan–Meier analysis. Multivariate Cox regression was performed to evaluate the variables predictive of an earlier or delayed achievement of MCID.

Results

Fifty‐nine patients with a mean age of 64.5 ± 8.7 years old were included. The time of mean achievement of MCID, substantial clinical benefit, and PASS for VAS was 11.2 ± 0.9, 16.3 ± 1.1, and 16.6 ± 0.9 months, respectively. The time of mean achievement of MCID, substantial clinical benefit, and PASS for ASES was 13.2 ± 1.0, 16.8 ± 1.0, and 18.3 ± 0.9 months, respectively. The time of mean achievement of MCID, substantial clinical benefit, and PASS for the Constant score was 11.6 ± 0.9, 15.1 ± 1.0, and 14.7 ± 0.9 months, respectively. The time of mean achievement of MCID, substantial clinical benefit, and PASS for SANE was 14.4 ± 1.0, 16.1 ± 1.0, and 15.5 ± 0.8 months, respectively. Patients with a higher preoperative VAS score achieved an earlier MCID for VAS (P = 0.014). However, patients with a higher preoperative ASES and SANE scores achieved delayed MCID for ASES and SANE (P = 0.026, and P < 0.001, respectively).

Conclusion

Most patients achieved MCIDs around 1 year after arthroscopic superior capsular reconstruction. A higher preoperative VAS score favours faster MCID achievement, while higher preoperative ASES and SANE scores contribute to delayed MCID achievement.

Study design

Cohort study

Level of evidence

Level IV.
Pathophysiology and Treatment of Intraseptal-Course Left Coronary Anomaly: Surgery for All?
Authors: Angelini Paolo , Uribe Carlo , Corno Antonio F.
Published: November 2023

Intraseptal-course, ectopic coronary anomalies are not well characterized as to anatomy, function, prognosis, and treatment. Recently, a revolutionary but unsupported new theory is claiming that most patients with a Left Anomalous Coronary Artery originating from the Opposite Sinus with anomalous Intra-Septal course (L-ACAOS-IS)—even small children—have significant stenoses and require open-heart surgery to prevent acute myocardial infarction and death. This surprising view has spurred ongoing discussions among adult and pediatric cardiologists and cardiac surgeons, compelling us (the conservative party in the discussion) to offer an in-depth and comprehensive review of this anomaly, based on objective but opposite data. We and other adult cardiologists have followed numerous L-ACAOS-IS patients for many years and have observed none of the claimed catastrophes. Rather, we have consistently found that L-ACAOS-IS generally has a benign clinical prognosis. We present the general principle of coronary artery dysfunction in anatomical congenital anomalies (that only significant luminal coronary stenosis can have clinical repercussions). We then review anatomical and functional details of L-ACAOS-IS related to prognosis and treatment indications, which could explain many of the clinical presentations recently mentioned. Finally, we encourage our more liberal colleagues to recognize that, compared with normal coronary arteries, those with anomalies of origin and course are associated with frequent coronary spasm. In particular, we underscore that some of the ischemic manifestations and other results might actually be caused by pressure wire–induced artifacts (rigid wires tend to cause coronary spasm when advanced into tortuous coronary arteries).
Laparoscopic partial versus radical nephrectomy for localized renal cell carcinoma over 4 cm
Authors: Sun Zi-Jun , Liu Feng , Wei Hai-Bin , Zhang Da-Hong
Published: November 2023

Purpose

To compare the long-term clinical and oncologic outcomes of laparoscopic partial nephrectomy (LPN) and laparoscopic radical nephrectomy (LRN) in patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) > 4 cm.

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed the records of all patients who underwent LPN or LRN in our department from January 2012 to December 2017. Of the 151 patients who met the study selection criteria, 54 received LPN, and 97 received LRN. After propensity-score matching, 51 matched pairs were further analyzed. Data on patients’ surgical data, complications, histologic data, renal function, and survival outcomes were collected and analyzed.

Results

Compared with the LRN group, the LPN group had a longer operative time (135 min vs. 102.5 min, p = 0.001), larger intraoperative bleeding (150 ml vs. 50 ml, p < 0.001), and required longer stays in hospital (8 days vs. 6 days, p < 0.001); however, the level of ECT-GFR was superior at 3, 6, and 12 months (all p < 0.001). Similarly, a greater number of LRN patients developed CKD compared with LPN until postoperative 12 months (58.8% vs. 19.6%, p < 0.001). In patients with preoperative CKD, LPN may delay the progression of the CKD stage and even improve it when compared to LRN treatment. There were no significant differences between the two groups for OS, CSS, MFS, and PFS (p = 0.06, p = 0.30, p = 0.90, p = 0.31, respectively). The surgical method may not be a risk factor for long-term survival prognosis.

Conclusion

LPN preserves renal function better than LRN and has the potential value of significantly reducing the risk of postoperative CKD, but the long-term survival prognosis of patients is comparable.
Milestones and turning points in the experience of physical activity throughout cancer care: a qualitative study to inform physical activity promotion
Authors: St-Cyr Jany , Saint-Onge Kadia , Doré Isabelle , Gauvin Lise
Published: November 2023

Purpose

Physical activity (PA) is an important supportive care strategy to manage cancer and treatment-related side effects, yet PA participation is low among people diagnosed with cancer. This study examined patients’, health professionals’, and managers’ perspectives on PA throughout cancer care to glean implications for PA promotion.

Methods

Random selection and purposeful sampling methods allowed for the recruitment of 21 patients (76.2% women) and 20 health professionals and managers (80% women) who participated in individual semi-structured interviews. Interview questions explored facilitators and barriers to PA participation and promotion across the cancer care continuum. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed. Then, qualitative thematic analysis was performed.

Results

The analysis produced five main themes describing milestones in PA participation throughout cancer care: (1) Getting Started, (2) Discovering PA Resources, (3) Taking Action, (4) Striving for Change, and (5) Returning to a “New Normal.” The sub-themes underscored turning points, i.e., tasks and challenges to PA participation that had to be overcome at each milestone. Achieving milestones and successfully navigating turning points were dependent on clinical, social, and community factors.

Conclusion

Cancer patients appear to progress through a series of milestones in adopting and maintaining PA throughout cancer care. Intervention strategies aimed at promoting PA could test whether support in navigating turning points could lead to greater PA participation. These findings require replication and extension, specifically among patients who are men, younger adults, and culturally diverse.
Modification of stability properties of yttrium(III) oxide particles by simultaneous adsorption of poly(acrylic acid) and poly(ethylene glycol) for possible applications in wastewater treatment
Authors: Wiśniewska Małgorzata , Herda Karolina , Urban Teresa , Nowicki Piotr , Woszuk Agnieszka
Published: November 2023

The adsorption, electrokinetic and stability properties of yttrium(III) oxide—Y2O3 in mixed solutions of macromolecular compounds were investigated. The interfacial behavior of poly(acrylic acid)-PAA and poly(ethylene glycol)—PEG in single and binary systems was examined in the pH range 3–10. The polymers used were characterized by different ionic nature—the PAA is an anionic polymer, whereas PEG belongs to the group of non-ionic polymers. Based on the results obtained, the most probable mechanisms for the binding of PAA and PEG macromolecules on the yttrium(III) oxide surface were proposed. In addition, the analysis of adsorption and electrokinetic data enabled explanation of the obtained changes in the stability of Y2O3 suspensions without and in the presence of PAA or/and PEG, as well as determination of the specific stabilization-destabilization mechanisms of the studied systems. It was shown that yttrium(III) oxide modification by mixed adsorption layers of both polymers with different ionic character changes considerably the surface and stability properties of the examined solid suspensions.

Graphical Abstract
Export quality and wage premium
Authors: Guerra Francesco
Published: November 2023

A growing body of research suggests a positive association between the quality of export products and income per capita, arguing that quality upgrades affect income through changes in the relative demand for skilled labor. This article falls within this literature and intends to shed light on the effect of quality upgrades of export products on average wages at the industry level. The study is conducted on the manufacturing sector over a set of 23 countries for which industry-level wage data are available. Contrary to previous studies which use unit values as an indirect measure of product quality, we rely on the methodology proposed in Khandelwal (Rev Econ Stud 77(4):1450–1476. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-937X.2010.00602.x, 2010) and estimate quality as a residual of a demand equation. To establish a direct causal link between export quality upgrades and changes in wages, we use an instrumental variable strategy. Our results show that ahead of upgrades to export quality within a specific industry, average wages offered within the industry increase. In addition, we observe that the effect is larger for developing countries. Our findings imply that export product quality upgrades require more intensive use of qualified workers, who require higher wages.
The Flt3-inhibitor quizartinib augments apoptosis and promotes maladaptive remodeling after myocardial infarction in mice
Authors: Monogiou Belik Daria , Bernasconi Riccardo , Xu Lifen , Della Verde Giacomo , Lorenz Vera , Grüterich Vivienne , Balzarolo Melania , Mochizuki Michika , Pfister Otmar , Kuster Gabriela M.
Published: November 2023

Background

Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) targeting fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 (Flt3) such as quizartinib were specifically designed for acute myeloid leukemia treatment, but also multi-targeting TKIs applied to solid tumor patients inhibit Flt3. Flt3 is expressed in the heart and its activation is cytoprotective in myocardial infarction (MI) in mice.

Objectives

We sought to test whether Flt3-targeting TKI treatment aggravates cardiac injury after MI.

Methods and results

Compared to vehicle, quizartinib (10 mg/kg/day, gavage) did not alter cardiac dimensions or function in healthy mice after four weeks of therapy. Pretreated mice were randomly assigned to MI or sham surgery while receiving quizartinib or vehicle for one more week. Quizartinib did not aggravate the decline in ejection fraction, but significantly enhanced ventricular dilatation one week after infarction. In addition, apoptotic cell death was significantly increased in the myocardium of quizartinib-treated compared to vehicle-treated mice. In vitro, quizartinib dose-dependently decreased cell viability in neonatal rat ventricular myocytes and in H9c2 cells, and increased apoptosis as assessed in the latter. Together with H2O2, quizartinib potentiated the phosphorylation of the pro-apoptotic mitogen activated protein kinase p38 and augmented H2O2-induced cell death and apoptosis beyond additive degree. Pretreatment with a p38 inhibitor abolished apoptosis under quizartinib and H2O2.

Conclusion

Quizartinib potentiates apoptosis and promotes maladaptive remodeling after MI in mice at least in part via a p38-dependent mechanism. These findings are consistent with the multi-hit hypothesis of cardiotoxicity and make cardiac monitoring in patients with ischemic heart disease under Flt3- or multi-targeting TKIs advisable.
Will climate affect the establishment and efficacy of Agnippe sp. #1 (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), a promising biological control agent of Mesquite in South Africa?
Authors: Cowie Blair W. , Heystek Fritz , Paterson Iain D.
Published: November 2023

Several spiny leguminous tree species within the genus Neltuma Raf. (formerly Prosopis L.) (Fabaceae) occur as widespread invasive alien plants in South Africa, exerting severe negative socio-economic and ecological impacts. Given these impacts, South Africa recently released the leaf-tying moth Agnippe sp. #1 (syn. Evippe sp. #1) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) as a biological control agent against invasive Neltuma species in 2021. The widespread invasion of Neltuma spp. across a vast and climatically diverse range of South Africa has led to concerns regarding the establishment and impact of the agent. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the constraints posed by climate to the potential establishment and efficacy of Agnippe sp. #1 using both climatic matching (CLIMEX) and thermal-physiology assessments. Climatic analyses revealed relatively high (71%) and moderate (66%) matches of South Africa to the native (Argentina) and introduced (Australia) ranges of Agnippe sp. #1 respectively. Thermal assessments of Agnippe sp. #1, particularly the 4th instar larvae, determined a CTmin = 0.9 ± 0.3 °C and LLT50 = −11.1 ± 0.4 °C, which suggest the moth is suited mainly to warmer regions of South Africa. Overall, these assessments propose that the establishment and performance of Agnippe sp. #1 is likely to be constrained by climate in parts of South Africa, particularly within the cold semi-arid and temperate provinces of the country. Promisingly, these climatic comparisons suggest that Agnippe sp. #1 may become more widely established in the hottest parts of the Northern Cape province, which remains a major biological control target region for Mesquite in South Africa.
Social presence and psychological distance: A construal level account for online distance learning
Authors: Weidlich Joshua , Yau Jane , Kreijns Karel
Published: November 2023

Online distance learning presents unique psychosocial characteristics due to the inherent distance between learners. Social presence –the sense of being with others– is key to mitigating this distance. However, our understanding of social presence remains limited, despite its potential to reduce social isolation and cultivate a conducive social space in online education. A gap in our understanding relates to how social presence aligns with more general accounts of interpersonal representations under conditions of psychological distance, as presented in Construal Level Theory. We conducted a vignette-based experiment (N = 194) to examine how psychological distance in online learning affects the mental construal level of a hypothetical partner and, thus, social presence perceptions. Findings suggest that increased psychological distance leads to higher-level construals, resulting in a perception of conversation partners as non-descript and homogenous. Importantly, this affects social presence perceptions, with certain nuances. These findings can inform novel approaches to enhance social presence in online learning.
Study on the driving factors and decoupling effect of carbon emission from pig farming in China—based on LMDI and Tapio model
Authors: Yang Bian , Wang Yufeng , Dunya Rahman , Yuan Xiangshang
Published: November 2023

The livestock sector accounts for 18% of total anthropogenic carbon emissions and is an important source of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. China occupies a large proportion of total livestock carbon emissions worldwide, especially in the pig industry, which is significant to China's agricultural economy and also a key area for China to achieve the "Carbon peaking and Carbon neutrality goals." This study uses the life cycle approach to calculate the GHG emission status of China's pig farming industry from 2001 to 2020, and then, we establish a logarithmic mean Divisia index (LMDI) model to identify the main driving factors and a Tapio decoupling model to analyze its decoupling status. We decompose the emission sources as well as decoupling index into five drivers: technological progress, livestock structure, policy bias, affluence, and population. The results reveal that the carbon emission of China's pig industry is in a weak growth trend and overall in a weak decoupling state but has volatility, which is closely related to the "Pig Cycle" in China. Decomposition analysis shows that increasing affluence and population growth are the main drivers of GHG emissions; simultaneously, technological progress, livestock structure, and policy bias are the main drivers of emission reduction. Meanwhile, technological and policy factors positively contribute to the decoupling status, while affluence level, population, and livestock structure changes negatively inhibit the decoupling status. The study concludes that technological advances, optimized economic structures, the guidance of green consumption patterns, and the solution to the "Pig Cycle" problem are crucial to further reduce GHG emissions from China's pig industry; meanwhile, technological changes have a dominant role in promoting carbon decoupling in pig farming.
Veritistic Teleological Epistemology, the Bad Lot, and Epistemic Risk Consistency
Authors: Pils Raimund
Published: November 2023

This paper connects veritistic teleological epistemology, VTE, with the epistemological dimension of the scientific realism debate. VTE sees our epistemic activities as a tradeoff between believing truths and avoiding error. I argue that van Fraassen’s epistemology is not suited to give a justification for a crucial presupposition of his Bad Lot objection to inference to the best explanation (IBE), the presupposition that believing that p is linked to p being more likely to be true. This makes him vulnerable to a counterargument, tailored after Musgrave’s defense of IBE, which would result in a stalemate between them about presuppositions of rationality. I will, however, show that switching to VTE can justify van Fraassen’s presupposition. This leads to a dismissal of common IBE arguments for realism as presented by Boyd and Musgrave, but I also argue that a more cautious version of realism can be rescued from the Bad Lot objection. Finally, I raise some worries about epistemic risk-attitude consistency for constructive empiricists and develop an alternative anti-realist position.1
A Systematic Review of Attentional Bias in Problem Gambling
Authors: Farr Zoe , Broomfield Niall M. , Coventry Kenny R.
Published: November 2023

A large body of previous research has provided support for the role of attentional bias as a maintaining factor in addiction. This systematic review aimed to investigate the extent and nature of attentional bias as a phenomenon which exists within problem gamblers. Studies were identified through searches of three databases (MedLine, PSYCHINFO, and Web of Science) and examination of the reference lists of the final studies meeting criteria for inclusion. The scope of the review included empirical studies making experimental comparisons of problem gamblers and non-problem gamblers across a range of attentional paradigms. A comparison of effect sizes was conducted across studies comparing problem to non-problem gamblers within and between attention paradigms. Twenty-two studies were reviewed systematically across ten experimental paradigms. Attentional bias was demonstrated in 16 of the 22 studies, with attentional bias effects varying across paradigms. Quality assessment revealed two main limitations across studies: lack of a priori power analysis, and failure to control for gambling frequency as a possible confounding variable. Findings support the role of attentional bias as a potential maintaining factor in problem gambling behaviour, in line with evidence for substance addiction. Recommendations for future studies are outlined alongside a discussion of clinical implications.
Characterization of anti-drug antibody dynamics using a bivariate mixed hidden-markov model by nonlinear-mixed effects approach
Authors: Brekkan Ari , Lledo-Garcia Rocío , Lacroix Brigitte , Jönsson Siv , Karlsson Mats O. , Plan Elodie L.
Published: November 2023

Biological therapies may act as immunogenic triggers leading to the formation of anti-drug antibodies (ADAs). Population pharmacokinetic (PK) models can be used to characterize the relationship between ADA and drug disposition but often rely on the ADA bioassay results, which may not be sufficiently sensitive to inform on this characterization.

In this work, a methodology that could help to further elucidate the underlying ADA production and impact on the drug disposition was explored. A mixed hidden-Markov model (MHMM) was developed to characterize the underlying (hidden) formation of ADA against the biologic, using certolizumab pegol (CZP), as a test drug. CZP is a PEGylated Fc free TNF-inhibitor used in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and other chronic inflammatory diseases.

The bivariate MHMM used information from plasma drug concentrations and ADA measurements, from six clinical studies (n = 845), that were correlated through a bivariate Gaussian function to infer about two hidden states; production and no-production of ADA influencing PK. Estimation of inter-individual variability was not supported in this case. Parameters associated with the observed part of the model were reasonably well estimated while parameters associated with the hidden part were less precise. Individual state sequences obtained using a Viterbi algorithm suggested that the model was able to determine the start of ADA production for each individual, being a more assay-independent methodology than traditional population PK. The model serves as a basis for identification of covariates influencing the ADA formation, and thus has the potential to identify aspects that minimize its impact on PK and/or efficacy.
Philadelphia Department of Health Doula Support Program: Early Successes and Challenges of a Program Serving Birthing People Affected by Substance Use Disorder
Authors: Haerizadeh-Yazdi Nadia , Huynh My-Phuong , Narva Arielle , Grasty Amirah , Lemon MaryNissi , Claxton Nick , Gillespie Kelly , Kallem Stacey
Published: November 2023

Purpose

Maternal substance use and deaths due to overdoses are increasing nationwide. Evidence suggests that the rate of resumed substance use, and fatal and non-fatal overdose is greatest in the first year after birth, particularly around six months postpartum, compared to other parts of the perinatal period. Doula care has been linked to improvements in perinatal health and outcomes.

Description

In response to the opioid epidemic, the Philadelphia Department of Public Health developed and implemented the Doula Support Program (DSP), with a focus on one year of postpartum care for birthing people with a substance use disorder (SUD). In this paper, we describe the program and its formation and report on the early challenges and successes of the program implementation, based on information we received from program founders and managers in a group interview.

Assessment

Early successes of the program include partnering with local community-based programs to recruit and retain doulas, supplementing traditional doula education with perinatal SUD-specific trainings, and maximizing client referrals by collaborating with local organizations and treatment centers that serve birthing people with SUD. Client retention, however, has proven to be challenging, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Conclusion

The DSP continues to grow, and lessons learned will facilitate program improvements. The goal of this paper is to outline the development and launch of the DSP and to act as a model for other state and local health departments interested in providing doula care for birthing people with SUD.
A comprehensive survey on machine learning approaches for fake news detection
Authors: Alghamdi Jawaher , Luo Suhuai , Lin Yuqing
Published: November 2023

The proliferation of fake news on social media platforms poses significant challenges to society and individuals, leading to negative impacts. As the tactics employed by purveyors of fake news continue to evolve, there is an urgent need for automatic fake news detection (FND) to mitigate its adverse social consequences. Machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL) techniques have emerged as promising approaches for characterising and identifying fake news content. This paper presents an extensive review of previous studies aiming to understand and combat the dissemination of fake news. The review begins by exploring the definitions of fake news proposed in the literature and delves into related terms and psychological and scientific theories that shed light on why people believe and disseminate fake news. Subsequently, advanced ML and DL techniques for FND are dicussed in detail, focusing on three main feature categories: content-based, context-based, and hybrid-based features. Additionally, the review summarises the characteristics of fake news, commonly used datasets, and the methodologies employed in existing studies. Furthermore, the review identifies the challenges current FND studies encounter and highlights areas that require further investigation in future research. By offering a comprehensive overview of the field, this survey aims to serve as a guide for researchers working on FND, providing valuable insights for developing effective FND mechanisms in the era of technological advancements.