bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Development of adjusted nuclear data library for fast reactor application
Authors: Yokoyama Kenji
Published: March 2023

In Japan, development of adjusted nuclear data library for fast rector application based on the cross-section adjustment method has been conducted since the early 1990s. The adjusted library is called the unified cross-section set, which is an ABBN-type group constant set with 70-group energy structure. The first version was developed in 1991 and is called ADJ91. After that, ADJ98, ADJ2000, ADJ2000R, and ADJ2010 were constantly developed. For instance, ADJ2010 was developed based on JENDL-4.0, which provides covariance data needed to apply the cross-section adjustment method, by using 488 integral experimental data acquired in typical fast reactor systems. ADJ2010 has been used as the standard cross-section set for nuclear design in the fast reactor cycle technology development project (FaCT) and the succeeding fast reactor projects. In parallel, the integral experimental data were further expanded to improve the design prediction accuracy of the core loaded with MA and/or degraded Pu. Using the additional integral experimental data, development of the next version of ADJ2017 was started in 2017. In 2022, the latest unified cross-section set AJD2017R was developed based on JENDL-4.0 by using 619 integral experimental data. An overview of the latest version with a review of previous ones will be shown.

On the other hand, the latest Japanese evaluated nuclear data library JENDL-5 was released at the end of 2021. In the development of JENDL-5, some of the integral experimental data used in ADJ2017R were explicitly utilized in the nuclear data evaluation. However, this is not reflected in the covariance data. This situation needs to be considered when developing a next version of the unified cross-section set based on JENDL-5. Preliminary adjustment calculation based on JENDL-5 is performed using C/E (calculation/experiment) values simply evaluated by a sensitivity analysis. The preliminary result of the JENDL-5-based adjustment will be also discussed.
XSUN-2022/SUSD3D n/γ sensitivity-uncertainty code package with recent JEFF-3.3 and ENDF/B-VIII.0 covariance data
Authors: Kodeli Ivan A.
Published: March 2023

A new version of the XSUN-2022 computer code package is under preparation to be released through NEA Data Bank which includes the latest updates of the SUSD3D sensitivity/uncertainty (S/U) code and the corresponding cross section and covariance matrix libraries based on the JEFF-3.3, ENDF/B-VIII.0 and FENDL-3.2 evaluations. The XSUN code package is a user–computer interface environment, written in Xbase++ ® and using Compiler 1.90.331 and Alaska 32-Bit Linker, for user-friendly pre- and post-processing of the input and output data for a complete and self-consistent set of deterministic codes. The flowchart integrates the codes TRANSX, PARTISN, and SUSD3D, all available from the OECD/NEA Data Bank and RSICC. The codes are used for the preparation of multigroup nuclear cross-section, neutron and gamma transport calculations for criticality and shielding calculations and nuclear data sensitivity and uncertainty calculations, respectively. XSUN-2022 is the 3rdreleased version, after XSUN-2013 and -2017.
Calculated covariance matrices for fission product yields using BeoH
Authors: Lovell A. E. , Kawano T. , Talou P.
Published: March 2023

Fission product yields (FPY) are important for a variety of applications (reactor neutronics, spent fuel, dosimetry, radiochemistry, etc.) and are currently included in many of the evaluated libraries around the world. The FPYs in the current US evaluation, ENDF/B-VIII.0, are mainly based on the 1994 evaluation of England and Rider and have only had slight updates—such as the inclusion of a 2 MeV point for 239Pu—since their development. Additionally, only mean values and uncertainties are included in the evaluation, not full correlations. Los Alamos National Laboratory, in collaboration with several other institutes, has been working on an updated evaluation for the FPYs of 239Pu(n,f), 235U(n,f), 238U(n,f), and 252Cf(sf) using the deterministic, Hauser-Feshbach, fission fragment decay code, BeoH. BeoH calculates the FPYs consistently with many other prompt and delayed fission observables, explicitly taking into account multi-chance fission and ensuring consistency between observables. In addition to providing updated means and uncertainties for the FPYs on a pointwise energy grid from thermal to 20 MeV, we calculate correlations between all FPYs at each incident energy and across incident energies. Here, we discuss the development of these covariance matrices, differences in the correlations between FPYs based on the parameters that are included in the model optimization, and correlations across incident energies for neutron-induced fission.
Krafttraining bei Frauen mit generalisierter Hypermobilität: Machbarkeit, Beschwerden und Effekte – Eine Pre-post-Studie
Authors: Luder Gere , Mebes Christine Mueller , Haupt-Bertschy Bettina , Verra Martin L. , Aeberli Daniel , Baeyens Jean-Pierre
Published: March 2023

Hintergrund Eine generalisierte Hypermobilität liegt vor, wenn die Beweglichkeit in mehreren Gelenken das übliche Maß übersteigt. Bis zu 30 % der Frauen und 10 % der Männer sind davon betroffen. Hypermobilität ist keine Pathologie, wenn sie jedoch mit Schmerzen und weiteren Symptomen einhergeht, kann sie die Gesundheit und Alltagsfunktionen beeinträchtigen. Zur physiotherapeutischen Behandlung gibt es wenige Studien, wobei Krafttraining eine mögliche Intervention sein könnte.

Ziel Erfassung der Machbarkeit und des Effekts eines Krafttrainings für Frauen mit generalisierter Hypermobilität.

Methode Pre-post-Studie, in der hypermobile Frauen (Beighton-Score > 5) zwischen 20 und 40 Jahren während 12 Wochen ein Krafttraining an Geräten, fokussiert auf Beine und Rücken, absolvierten. Mithilfe eines Protokolls und wöchentlicher Fragebogen wurden das Training und dadurch ausgelöste Beschwerden analysiert. Vor und nach dem Training wurde die Kraft der Knieflexoren und -extensoren sowie der Muskelquerschnitt am Oberschenkel gemessen. Die Analyse erfolgte primär deskriptiv, zusätzlich erfolgte ein Vergleich von 2 Subgruppen mittels Mann-Whitney-U und Chi2-Test.

Ergebnisse 46 Teilnehmerinnen (26,3 ± 4,3 Jahre) absolvierten das Training. 6 davon brachen die Studie vorzeitig ab, davon eine wegen Rückenschmerzen aufgrund einer Diskushernie. 72,5 % der verbleibenden 40 Teilnehmerinnen absolvierten 20 oder mehr Trainings. In 34 % der Trainingswochen wurden geringe Beschwerden angegeben, mehrheitlich an Knie und Rücken. Der Einsatz der verwendeten Gewichte war oft tief, so wurde auf der Legpress mit durchschnittlich 44,8 % des Körpergewichts begonnen, nach 12 Wochen lag das Trainingsgewicht im Mittel bei 52,2 kg, was 85,7 % des Körpergewichts entspricht. Bei der Kraft und beim Muskelquerschnitt wurden keine signifikanten Verbesserungen erreicht, wobei bis zu 17 Teilnehmerinnen (42,5 %) eine Verbesserung von mehr als 10 % erreichten.

Schlussfolgerung Das Krafttraining war für die meisten Teilnehmerinnen machbar und gut verträglich. Das mehrheitlich selbstgesteuerte Training war zu wenig intensiv, um eindeutige Auswirkungen auf Kraft oder Muskelmasse zu erreichen, obwohl einzelne Teilnehmerinnen durchaus davon profitierten. In weiteren Studien sollten individuellere und enger begleitete Trainingsprogramme untersucht werden.
Der koronarkranke Diabetiker: moderne Therapieansätze und Behandlungspfade
Authors: Buchmann Nikolaus , Landmesser Ulf , Sinning David
Published: March 2023

Patienten mit koronarer Herzerkrankung (KHK) und Diabetes mellitus Typ 2 (T2D) weisen ein besonders hohes Risiko für (rezidivierende) kardiovaskuläre Ereignisse (CVE) auf; in der
Sekundärprävention wirkt sich eine suffiziente Kontrolle der kardiovaskulären Risikofaktoren prognostisch besonders günstig aus. Für diese Patientengruppe konnte in den letzten Jahren der
kardioprotektive Nutzen der SGLT2-Inhibitoren und GLP-1-Rezeptor-Agonisten nachgewiesen werden, sodass diese Substanzgruppen mittlerweile bei der Initiierung einer medikamentösen
antidiabetischen Therapie zu bevorzugen sind. Auch lipidmodifizierende Medikamente wie die PCSK9-Inhibitoren oder Icosapent-Ethyl haben sich insbesondere bei Patienten mit KHK und T2D als
vorteilhaft erwiesen. Zudem haben sich zuletzt die Empfehlungen zum Management der Koronarrevaskularisation bei Patienten mit stabiler KHK und T2D verändert. So sollte bei Mehrgefäß-KHK und
komplexer Koronarmorphologie zwar weiterhin eine chirurgische Koronarrevaskularisation (CABG) bevorzugt empfohlen werden; bei einem niedrigen SYNTAX-Score kann die interventionelle
Koronarrevaskularisation jedoch eine gleichwertige Alternative zur CABG darstellen.
Lipidmanagement 2022 – von der Tradition zur Innovation
Authors: Reibis Rona K.
Published: March 2023

Lipoproteine niedriger Dichte (LDL-Cholesterin) spielen in der Pathogenese atherosklerotischer kardiovaskulärer Erkrankungen eine fundamentale Rolle. Moderne lipidmodifizierende Substanzen
ermöglichen additiv zur potenten LDL-C-Senkung durch pleiotrope Effekte eine Reduktion kardiovaskulärer Ereignisse und eine Prognoseverbesserung. Während Statine, Ezetimib und monoklonale
PCSK-9-Antikörper eine gesicherte Evidenz aufweisen, werden für die neueren nukleinsäurebasierten Substanzen die Endpunktdaten noch erwartet. Die langfristigen pharmakotherapeutischen
Effekte in der Lipidtherapie werden vorwiegend durch die Stringenz der Leitlinienumsetzung und der Patientenadhärenz determiniert.
Ist Stress am Arbeitsplatz ein Thema für den kardiologischen Alltag? Evidenz, Erkennung und Therapie aversiver Stressbedingungen im Arbeitsumfeld
Authors: Ladwig Karl-Heinz , Lukaschek Karoline
Published: March 2023

In modernen Industriegesellschaften verbringen die Menschen die aktivste Zeit ihres Lebens in beruflicher Umgebung, die damit weitgehend Alltag und Lebensqualität bestimmt. Immer mehr
verschwimmen die Grenzen zwischen Privatem und Beruflichem. Neben „klassischem“ Arbeitsstress – häufig definiert als Missverhältnis von hohen Anforderungen bei gleichzeitig geringen
Entscheidungsmöglichkeiten oder als Missverhältnis zwischen Arbeitseinsatz und Belohnung – gehören u. a. Überarbeitung, Mobbing und Arbeitsplatzverlust sowie negative Arbeitsplatzbedingungen
zu den Belastungen, die seelische und körperliche gesundheitliche Probleme auslösen können. Evidenz aus Megastudien mit > 100000 Teilnehmern belegt die Bedeutung von Arbeitsstress als
Risikofaktor (RF) für Hypertonie, Schlafstörungen und Depressionen. Unter Arbeitsstress werden häufig gesundheitsgefährdende Verhaltensweisen als Kompensationsversuche eingesetzt.
Andauernder Arbeitsstress wird damit zu einem signifikanten RF für ischämische Herzerkrankungen, zerebrovaskuläre Ereignisse und Diabetes mellitus. Arbeitsstress sollte daher in der
kardiologischen Praxis exploriert werden. Grundzüge einer auf Arbeitsstress fokussierten Gesprächsführung für den Alltagseinsatz werden vorgestellt.
Validation of an Automated Symptom-Based Triage Tool in Ophthalmology
Authors: Meer Elana , Ramakrishnan Meera S. , Whitehead Gideon , Leri Damien , Rosin Roy , VanderBeek Brian
Published: March 2023

Objectives Acute care ophthalmic clinics often suffer from inefficient triage, leading to suboptimal patient access and resource utilization. This study reports the preliminary results of a novel, symptom-based, patient-directed, online triage tool developed to address the most common acute ophthalmic diagnoses and associated presenting symptoms.

Methods A retrospective chart review of patients who presented to a tertiary academic medical center's urgent eye clinic after being referred for an urgent, semi-urgent, or nonurgent visit by the ophthalmic triage tool between January 1, 2021 and January 1, 2022 was performed. Concordance between triage category and severity of diagnosis on the subsequent clinic visit was assessed.

Results The online triage tool was utilized 1,370 and 95 times, by the call center administrators (phone triage group) and patients directly (web triage group), respectively. Of all patients triaged with the tool, 8.50% were deemed urgent, 59.2% semi-urgent, and 32.3% nonurgent. At the subsequent clinic visit, the history of present illness had significant agreement with symptoms reported to the triage tool (99.3% agreement, weighted kappa = 0.980, p < 0.001). The triage algorithm also had significant agreement with the severity of the physician diagnosis (97.0% agreement, weighted kappa = 0.912, p < 0.001). Zero patients were found to have a diagnosis on exam that should have corresponded to a higher urgency level on the triage tool.

Conclusion The automated ophthalmic triage algorithm was able to safely and effectively triage patients based on symptoms. Future work should focus on the utility of this tool to reduce nonurgent patient load in urgent clinical settings and to improve access for patients who require urgent medical care.
Endoscopic Management of a Complex Biliary Problem
Authors: Gattani Mayur G. , Mukewar Shrikant , Kulkarni Akshay , Bhaware Bhushan , Mukewar Saurabh
Published: March 2023

Endoscopic interventions have become increasingly popular in the management of obstructive jaundice. In this case study, we present a case of complex Bismuth type 4 hilar stricture in an elderly lady presenting with obstructive jaundice. Complete endoscopic biliary drainage was accomplished successfully by placement of three metal stents – two with ERCP and one with Endoscopic Ultrasound (EUS) guided hepatico-gastrostomy. She developed cholecystitis later, which was successfully addressed by EUS guided gallbladder drainage using a cautery enhanced lumen apposing metal stent. Thus, a complete internal biliary drainage was achieved with endoscopic interventions.
Cancer in Anal Fistulas
Authors: Perez Sean , Eisenstein Samuel
Published: March 2023

Fistula-associated anal cancer in Crohn's disease (CD) can be challenging to diagnose and treat. Patients with longstanding fistulas in the setting of CD who present with a sudden change in their symptoms should undergo biopsy under anesthesia with extensive sampling, followed by staging imaging. Pelvic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be helpful in identifying the extent of the disease locally. Patients often present in the later stages due to the challenges associated with diagnosing these patients. Two subtypes of this disease include squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma, and treatment depends on diagnosis. Small sample size and lack of uniform data on treatments make it difficult to say which treatment modalities are optimal, but aggressive combined therapy is likely the best approach for survival. This will include chemotherapy and radiation and often radical resection as well. Despite this, survival is poor, although more recent data suggest that outcomes are improving.
A Master Mind Game Code Algorithm Approach to Help Surgical Decision-Making between Retropharyngeal Fat Grafting and Pharyngoplasty for the Treatment of Velopharyngeal Incompetence
Authors: Suzzi Chiara , Di Gennaro Gianfranco , Baylon Hélène , Captier Guillaume
Published: March 2023

Introduction Velopharyngeal insufficiency (VPI) is a controversial pathology with many surgical options.

Objective To compare pharyngoplasty and retropharyngeal fat grafting and to build a prognostic tool to achieve perfect speech.

Methods Retrospective observational cohort study of 114 patients operated for VPI from 1982 to 2019 in a single tertiary center. The instrumental assessment was made using an aerophonoscope and nasofibroscopy. The variables sex, age, genetic syndromes, and type of diagnosis were analyzed with logistic regression model adjusted with propensity score. To generalize results and to build a surgical predictive tool, a marginal analysis concludes the study.

Results Among the patients (median [range] age 7 [4–48]), 63 (55.26%) underwent pharyngoplasty and 51 (44.74%) graft. The graft group had no complication, but it had a failure rate of 7.84%. The pharyngoplasty group had no failure, but one patient had postoperative obstructive sleep apnea. The marginal analysis demonstrated that age lower than 7 years, cleft lip and palate, absence of syndrome, and intermittent VPI were important predictive factors of good result regardless of surgical technique.

Conclusions Without a statistical demonstration of the superiority of pharyngoplasty over graft, and in the uncertainty of literature background, our perfect-speech patient profile represents an important tool for a postoperative forecast of results in which, like in the Master Mind game, every feature has to be considered not individually but as a pattern of characteristics whose association contributes to the outcome.
Investigation of time variations of redox reactions in SrRuO3 through interface-sensitive resistance measurements
Authors: Kambara Hiroshi , Shimazaki Hiroshi , Tenya Kenichi
Published: March 2023

We used an interface-sensitive resistance measurement technique to observe the time evolution of the early stages of redox reactions at the interface between the metallic oxide SrRuO3 and a silver epoxy electrode at around room temperature (∼280–320 K). On exposure to a reducing gas (CO or H2), the interface resistance gradually increased. The time variation functions of the resistance increases for CO and H2 were similar, although the magnitude was greater for H2 than for CO. After substitution of O2 for the reducing gas, the interface resistance decreased to almost the initial value, i.e., that before exposure to a reducing gas. The resistance variations can be well explained by the time variations of the oxygen deficiency at the SrRuO3 interface and subsurfaces as a result of reduction or oxidation. We regarded the reactions as pseudo-first-order reactions and evaluated the rate constants of the SrRuO3 redox reactions at a SrRuO3–Ag interface. For the reduction (resistance increase) process, a single exponential component was enough to fit the data, which suggests that the reduction proceeds successively from outside to inside the bulk. Adsorption of oxygen atoms in the oxidation (resistance decrease) process involved several rate constants, at least up to three exponential components, depending on the prior degradation by a reducing gas. The effective activation energy of each redox reaction was evaluated from an Arrhenius plot.
Fully digital platform for local ultra-stable optical frequency distribution
Authors: Matusko Martina , Ryger Ivan , Goavec-Merou Gwenhaël , Millo Jacques , Lacroûte Clément , Carry Émile , Friedt Jean-Michel , Delehaye Marion
Published: March 2023

This article reports on the use of a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) platform for local ultra-stable optical frequency distribution through a 90 m-long fiber network. This platform is used to implement a fully digital treatment of the Doppler-cancellation scheme required by fiber links to be able to distribute ultra-stable frequencies. We present a novel protocol that uses aliased images of a digital synthesizer output to directly generate signals above the Nyquist frequency. This approach significantly simplifies the setup, making it easy to duplicate within a local fiber network. We demonstrate performances enabling the distribution of an optical signal with an instability below 10−17 at 1 s at the receiver end. We also use the board to implement an original characterization method. It leads to an efficient characterization of the disturbance rejection of the system that can be realized without accessing the remote output of the fiber link.
KIF—Key Interactions Finder: A program to identify the key molecular interactions that regulate protein conformational changes
Authors: Crean Rory M. , Slusky Joanna S. G. , Kasson Peter M. , Kamerlin Shina Caroline Lynn
Published: March 2023

Simulation datasets of proteins (e.g., those generated by molecular dynamics simulations) are filled with information about how a non-covalent interaction network within a protein regulates the conformation and, thus, function of the said protein. Most proteins contain thousands of non-covalent interactions, with most of these being largely irrelevant to any single conformational change. The ability to automatically process any protein simulation dataset to identify non-covalent interactions that are strongly associated with a single, defined conformational change would be a highly valuable tool for the community. Furthermore, the insights generated from this tool could be applied to basic research, in order to improve understanding of a mechanism of action, or for protein engineering, to identify candidate mutations to improve/alter the functionality of any given protein. The open-source Python package Key Interactions Finder (KIF) enables users to identify those non-covalent interactions that are strongly associated with any conformational change of interest for any protein simulated. KIF gives the user full control to define the conformational change of interest as either a continuous variable or categorical variable, and methods from statistics or machine learning can be applied to identify and rank the interactions and residues distributed throughout the protein, which are relevant to the conformational change. Finally, KIF has been applied to three diverse model systems (protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B, the PDZ3 domain, and the KE07 series of Kemp eliminases) in order to illustrate its power to identify key features that regulate functionally important conformational dynamics.
Improved internal quantum efficiencies of far-UVC AlGaN/AlN quantum wells by the use of semipolar r-planes
Authors: Akaike R. , Funato M. , Kawakami Y.
Published: March 2023

We investigate the internal quantum efficiencies (IQEs) of AlGaN/AlN quantum wells (QWs) on (0001) c- and semipolar (11¯02) r-planes in the far-ultraviolet C (far-UVC) region using time-integrated photoluminescence and time-resolved PL spectroscopies. Stronger emissions from r-QWs are observed, especially at shorter wavelengths, indicating that the r-QWs exhibit higher IQEs than the c-QWs. Analyses of the experimental results suggest that the main reason for the higher IQEs of r-QWs in the far-UVC region is shorter radiative lifetimes and an increase in a slow decay component, which might be related to a reduction in the number of nonradiative recombination centers. These findings indicate the superiority of the semipolar r-plane for fabricating QWs that emit in the far-UVC region.
Rapid formation of bioaggregates and morphology transition to biofilm streamers induced by pore-throat flows
Authors: Lee Sang Hyun , Secchi Eleonora , Kang Peter K.
Published: March 2023

Bioaggregates are condensed porous materials comprising microbes, organic and inorganic matters, and water. They are commonly found in natural and engineered porous media and often cause clogging. Despite their importance, the formation mechanism of bioaggregates in porous media systems is largely unknown. Through microfluidic experiments and direct numerical simulations of fluid flow, we show that the rapid bioaggregation is driven by the interplay of the viscoelastic nature of biomass and hydrodynamic conditions at pore throats. At an early stage, unique flow structures around a pore throat promote the biomass attachment at the throat. Then, the attached biomass fluidizes when the shear stress at the partially clogged pore throat reaches a critical value. After the fluidization, the biomass is displaced and accumulated in the expansion region of throats forming bioaggregates. We further find that such criticality in shear stress triggers morphological changes in bioaggregates from rounded- to streamer-like shapes. This knowledge was used to control the clogging of throats by tuning the flow conditions: When the shear stress at the throat exceeded the critical value, clogging was prevented. The bioaggregation process did not depend on the detailed pore-throat geometry, as we reproduced the same dynamics in various pore-throat geometries. This study demonstrates that pore-throat structures, which are ubiquitous in porous media systems, induce bioaggregation and can lead to abrupt disruptions in flow.
Loss of regulation of protein synthesis and turnover underpins an attenuated stress response in senescent human mesenchymal stem cells
Authors: Llewellyn Jack , Mallikarjun Venkatesh , Appleton Ellen , Osipova Maria , Gilbert Hamish T. J. , Richardson Stephen M. , Hubbard Simon J. , Swift Joe
Published: March 2023

Cells respond to stress by synthesizing chaperone proteins that seek to correct protein misfolding and maintain function. However, abrogation of protein homeostasis is a hallmark of aging, leading to loss of function and the formation of proteotoxic aggregates characteristic of pathology. Consequently, discovering the underlying molecular causes of this deterioration in proteostasis is key to designing effective interventions to disease or to maintaining cell health in regenerative medicine strategies. Here, we examined primary human mesenchymal stem cells, cultured to a point of replicative senescence and subjected to heat shock, as an in vitro model of the aging stress response. Multi -omics analysis showed how homeostasis components were reduced in senescent cells, caused by dysregulation of a functional network of chaperones, thereby limiting proteostatic competence. Time-resolved analysis of the primary response factors, including those regulating heat shock protein 70 kDa (HSPA1A), revealed that regulatory control is essentially translational. Senescent cells have a reduced capacity for chaperone protein translation and misfolded protein (MFP) turnover, driven by downregulation of ribosomal proteins and loss of the E3 ubiquitin ligase CHIP (C-terminus of HSP70 interacting protein) which marks MFPs for degradation. This limits the cell’s stress response and subsequent recovery. A kinetic model recapitulated these reduced capacities and predicted an accumulation of MFP, a hypothesis supported by evidence of systematic changes to the proteomic fold state. These results thus establish a specific loss of regulatory capacity at the protein, rather than transcript, level and uncover underlying systematic links between aging and loss of protein homeostasis.
Cholinergic regulation of vascular endothelial function by human ChAT
+
T cells
Authors: Tarnawski Laura , Shavva Vladimir S. , Kort Eric J. , Zhuge Zhengbing , Nilsson Ingrid , Gallina Alessandro L. , Martínez-Enguita David , Heller Sahlgren Benjamin , Weiland Matthew , Caravaca April S. , Schmidt Staffan , Chen Ping , Abbas Katarina , Wang Fu-Hua , Ahmed Osman , Eberhardson Michael , Färnert Anna , Weitzberg Eddie , Gustafsson Mika , Kehr Jan , Malin Stephen G. , Hult Henrik , Carlström Mattias , Jovinge Stefan , Olofsson Peder S.
Published: March 2023

Endothelial dysfunction and impaired vasodilation are linked with adverse cardiovascular events. T lymphocytes expressing choline acetyltransferase (ChAT), the enzyme catalyzing biosynthesis of the vasorelaxant acetylcholine (ACh), regulate vasodilation and are integral to the cholinergic antiinflammatory pathway in an inflammatory reflex in mice. Here, we found that human T cell ChAT mRNA expression was induced by T cell activation involving the PI3K signaling cascade. Mechanistically, we identified that ChAT mRNA expression was induced following the attenuation of RE-1 Silencing Transcription factor REST-mediated methylation of the ChAT promoter, and that ChAT mRNA expression levels were up-regulated by GATA3 in human T cells. In functional experiments, T cell-derived ACh increased endothelial nitric oxide-synthase activity, promoted vasorelaxation, and reduced vascular endothelial activation and promoted barrier integrity by a cholinergic mechanism. Further, we observed that survival in a cohort of patients with severe circulatory failure correlated with their relative frequency of
ChAT 
+
CD4
+
T cells in blood. These findings on ChAT
+
human T cells provide a mechanism for cholinergic immune regulation of vascular endothelial function in human inflammation.
Identification of a broadly conserved family of enzymes that hydrolyze (p)ppApp
Authors: Ahmad Shehryar , Gordon Isis J. , Tsang Kara K. , Alexei Andrea G. , Sychantha David , Colautti Jake , Trilesky Sarah L. , Kim Youngchang , Wang Boyuan , Whitney John C.
Published: March 2023

Bacteria produce a variety of nucleotide second messengers to adapt to their surroundings. Although chemically similar, the nucleotides guanosine penta- and tetraphosphate [(p)ppGpp] and adenosine penta- and tetraphosphate [(p)ppApp] have distinct functions in bacteria. (p)ppGpp mediates survival under nutrient-limiting conditions and its intracellular levels are regulated by synthetases and hydrolases belonging to the RelA-SpoT homolog (RSH) family of enzymes. By contrast, (p)ppApp is not known to be involved in nutrient stress responses and is synthesized by RSH-resembling toxins that inhibit the growth of bacterial cells. However, it remains unclear whether there exists a family of hydrolases that specifically act on (p)ppApp to reverse its toxic effects. Here, we present the structure and biochemical characterization of adenosine 3′-pyrophosphohydrolase 1 (Aph1), the founding member of a monofunctional (p)ppApp hydrolase family of enzymes. Our work reveals that Aph1 adopts a histidine-aspartate (HD)-domain fold characteristic of phosphohydrolase metalloenzymes and its activity mitigates the growth inhibitory effects of (p)ppApp-synthesizing toxins. Using an informatic approach, we identify over 2,000 putative (p)ppApp hydrolases that are widely distributed across bacterial phyla and found in diverse genomic contexts, and we demonstrate that 12 representative members hydrolyze ppApp. In addition, our in silico analyses reveal a unique molecular signature that is specific to (p)ppApp hydrolases, and we show that mutation of two residues within this signature broadens the specificity of Aph1 to promiscuously hydrolyze (p)ppGpp in vitro. Overall, our findings indicate that like (p)ppGpp hydrolases, (p)ppApp hydrolases are widespread in bacteria and may play important and underappreciated role(s) in bacterial physiology.
Digital practice as discriminatory discourse
Authors: Peng Altman Yuzhu
Published: March 2023

This chapter incorporates and draws on the concept of affect to examine how users’ discursive practices are reshaped by the design of interactive digital platforms. An affective critical discourse analysis approach is developed to analyse the affective-discursive loop by using Internet users’ practice of regional discriminatory discourses against Henan people as a case study. Through a comparison between users’ differing practices on two major Chinese news portals – Tencent and NetEase – this chapter reveals the extent to which regional discrimination is amplified by the locative IP-address function of NetEase news portal’s user commentary system. This chapter makes a methodological contribution in response to the CDS notion of discursive power in the digital realm.
Towards an ethnographic approach to social media discourses
Authors: Boukala Salomi , Serafis Dimitris
Published: March 2023

This chapter intends to show how the arena of political debate has relocated from Parliament to Facebook in contemporary Greece and explore the parameters and impact of such relocation in discourses of contemporary political polemics. It explores the way social media spaces combine bottom-up and top-down discourses and their repercussions for discourses of national identity. We assume that social media dominate current politics not only as a source of official announcements but, quite contrarily, that platforms such as Facebook enable communication between civilians and politicians and shape a new public sphere with a new discursive dynamic. In line with studies on the Self and the Other in digital discourses of identity (e.g., KhosraviNik and Sarkhoh 2018), the chapter particularly focuses on the dispute over the name ‘Macedonia’ in Greek digital discourses. The chapter considers the research on the impact of social media on current politics and proposes an ethnographic approach for the analysis of social media discourse by integrating traditions in discourse studies, anthropology, and digital ethnography (Androutsopoulos 2008; Horst and Miller 2012; Hine 2015; KhosraviNik and Unger 2016).
Online counterspeech and the targeting of digital discourses of racism in New Zealand
Authors: Smith Philippa
Published: March 2023

This chapter seeks to locate online counterspeech in the relatively new framework of Social Media Critical Discourse Studies (SM-CDS) by examining the discursive strategies used to counter the racist discourse beneath a YouTube video. I argue that online counterspeech – a phenomenon whereby the Internet is used as a platform to challenge another person’s speech or ideology whether race, religion, or political beliefs – is worthy of critical examination as its associated discourses are inherent in the many-to-many dynamic of bottom-up online social interaction. Innovative ways of investigation such as SM-CDS are called for on top of the traditions in CDS where existing frameworks may fall short in accounting for the techno-discursive dynamic of digital discourse and the way new environments may produce new dynamics of power and influence in discourse formation and consumption.
Productive HIV-1 infection of tissue macrophages by fusion with infected CD4+ T cells
Authors: Mascarau Rémi , Woottum Marie , Fromont Léa , Gence Rémi , Cantaloube-Ferrieu Vincent , Vahlas Zoï , Lévêque Kevin , Bertrand Florent , Beunon Thomas , Métais Arnaud , El Costa Hicham , Jabrane-Ferrat Nabila , Gallois Yohan , Guibert Nicolas , Davignon Jean-Luc , Favre Gilles , Maridonneau-Parini Isabelle , Poincloux Renaud , Lagane Bernard , Bénichou Serge , Raynaud-Messina Brigitte , Vérollet Christel
Published: March 2023

Macrophages are essential for HIV-1 pathogenesis and represent major viral reservoirs. Therefore, it is critical to understand macrophage infection, especially in tissue macrophages, which are widely infected in vivo, but poorly permissive to cell-free infection. Although cell-to-cell transmission of HIV-1 is a determinant mode of macrophage infection in vivo, how HIV-1 transfers toward macrophages remains elusive. Here, we demonstrate that fusion of infected CD4+ T lymphocytes with human macrophages leads to their efficient and productive infection. Importantly, several tissue macrophage populations undergo this heterotypic cell fusion, including synovial, placental, lung alveolar, and tonsil macrophages. We also find that this mode of infection is modulated by the macrophage polarization state. This fusion process engages a specific short-lived adhesion structure and is controlled by the CD81 tetraspanin, which activates RhoA/ROCK-dependent actomyosin contractility in macrophages. Our study provides important insights into the mechanisms underlying infection of tissue-resident macrophages, and establishment of persistent cellular reservoirs in patients.
Modulation of Steady-State Heat Transport in a Dissipative Multi-Mode Qubit-Photon System
Authors: Chen Ze-Huan , Wang Fei-Yu , Chen Hua , Lu Jin-Cheng , Wang Chen
Published: March 2023

Quantum heat transport is considered as an indispensable branch of quantum thermodynamics to potentially improve performance of thermodynamic devices. We theoretically propose a dissipative qubit-photon system composed of multiple coupled resonators interacting with a single two-level qubit, to explore the steady-state heat transport by tuning both the inter-resonator photon hopping and the qubit-photon coupling. Specifically in the three-mode case, the dramatic enhancement and suppression of the heat current into the central resonator can be modulated by the corresponding frequency, compared to the currents into two edge resonators. Moreover, fruitful cycle current components are unraveled at weak qubit-photon coupling, which are crucial to exhibit the nonmonotonic feature with increase of the reservoir temperature bias. In the one-dimensional case under the mean-field framework, the influence of the photon hopping on heat transport is analyzed. The steady-state heat current is comparatively enhanced to the single-mode limit at weak qubit-photon coupling, stemming from the nonvanishing mean-field photon excitation parameter and the additional cycle current component. We hope these obtained results may have possible applications in quantum thermodynamic manipulation and energy harvesting.
Bayesian inversion of log-normal eikonal equations
Authors: Yeo Zhan Fei , Hoang Viet Ha
Published: March 2023

We study the Bayesian inverse problem for inferring the log-normal slowness function of the eikonal equation, given noisy observation data on its solution at a set of spatial points. We contribute rigorous proofs on the existence and well-posedness of the problem. We then study approximation of the posterior probability measure by solving the truncated eikonal equation, which contains only a finite number of terms in the Karhunen–Loeve expansion of the slowness function, by the fast marching method (FMM). The error of this approximation in the Hellinger metric is deduced in terms of the truncation level of the slowness and the grid size in the FMM resolution. It is well known that the plain Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) procedure for sampling the posterior probability is highly expensive. We develop and justify the convergence of a multilevel MCMC method. Using the heap sort procedure in solving the forward eikonal equation by the FMM, our multilevel MCMC method achieves a prescribed level of accuracy for approximating the posterior expectation of quantities of interest, requiring only an essentially optimal level of complexity. Numerical examples confirm the theoretical results.
A new nonconvex low-rank tensor approximation method with applications to hyperspectral images denoising
Authors: Tu Zhihui , Lu Jian , Zhu Hong , Pan Huan , Hu Wenyu , Jiang Qingtang , Lu Zhaosong
Published: March 2023

Hyperspectral images (HSIs) are frequently corrupted by mixing noise during their acquisition and transmission. Such complicated noise may reduce the quality of the obtained HSIs and limit the accuracy of the subsequent processing. By using the low-rank prior of the tensor formed by spatial and spectral information and further exploring the intrinsic structure of the underlying HSI from noisy observations, in this paper, we propose a new nonconvex low-rank tensor approximation method including optimization model and efficient iterative algorithm to eliminate multiple types of noise. The proposed mathematical model consists of a nonconvex low-rank regularization term using the γ nuclear norm, which is nonconvex surrogate to Tucker rank, and two data fidelity terms representing sparse and Gaussian noise components, which are regularized by the

ℓ

1

-norm and the Frobenius norm, respectively. To solve this model, we propose an efficient augmented Lagrange multiplier algorithm. We also study the convergence and parameter setting of the algorithm. Extensive experimental results show that the proposed method has better denoising performance than the state-of-the-art competing methods for low-rank tensor approximation and noise modeling.
An ionic pressure sensor array with digitizable sensitivity
Authors: Zou Qiang , Liu Chenyu , Su Qi , Xue Tao
Published: March 2023

Flexible pressure sensors play an indispensable role in electronic skin. A flexible pressure sensor array with a larger sensing area is an inevitable trend for further developing a single flexible pressure sensor. However, pressure sensor arrays suffer from a key challenge: each sensing unit in the array cannot be individually defined for its pressure sensing range and sensitivity. Here, we present an ionic pressure sensor array with digitizable sensitivity achieved through the synergistic cooperation of an ion gel shell interfacial capacitive sensing mechanism and a filler with digitally tunable mechanical stiffness. Through this design, the sensitivity of each sensing pixel unit in the array can be digitally defined in the range of 20 times, and the fabrication process is greatly simplified. We fabricated sensor arrays for object contour recognition and weight judgment, demonstrating their potential application in electronic skin. In addition, we proposed using a customized 3D printer of elastomer to simplify its fabrication process, which is beneficial for engineering applications.
Early crystallization of amorphous selenium under high pressure studied by synchrotron XRD method
Authors: Yuan Shuhua , Wang Luhong , Liu Fuyang , Bass Jay D , Li Yingzhe , Ginsberg Paul A , Zhang Dongzhou , Prakapenka Vitali B , Tkachev Sergey , Liu Haozhe
Published: March 2023

The amorphous selenium (a-Se) was studied via x-ray diffraction (XRD) under pressures ranging from ambient pressure up to 30 GPa at room temperature to study its high-pressure behavior. Two compressional experiments on a-Se samples, with and without heat treatment, respectively, were conducted. Contrary to the previous reports that a-Se crystallized abruptly at around 12 GPa, in this work we report an early partially crystallized state at 4.9 GPa before completing the crystallization at around 9.5 GPa based on in-situ high pressure XRD measurements on the a-Se with 70 °C heat treatment. In comparison, crystallization pressure on another a-Se sample without thermal treatment history was observed to be 12.7 GPa, consistent with the previously reported crystallization pressure. Thus, it is proposed in this work that prior heat treatment of a-Se can result in an earlier crystallization under high pressure, which helps to understand the possible mechanism caused by the previous controversial reports on pressure induced crystallization behavior in a-Se.
EXAFS investigations on the pressure induced local structural changes of GeSe2 glass under different hydrostatic conditions
Authors: Mijit Emin , Elias F S Rodrigues João , Tchoudinov Georghii , Paparoni Francesco , Shinmei Toru , Irifune Tetsuo , Mathon Olivier , Dorothea Rosa Angelika , Di Cicco Andrea
Published: March 2023

Pressure-induced transformations in glassy GeSe2 have been studied using the x-ray absorption spectroscopy. Experiments have been carried out at the scanning-energy beamline BM23 (European Synchrotron Radiation Facility) providing a micrometric x-ray focal spot up to pressures of about 45 GPa in a diamond anvil cell. Both Se and Ge K-edge experiments were performed under different hydrostatic conditions identifying the metallization onsets by accurate determinations of the edge shifts. The semiconductor-metal transition was observed to be completed around 20 GPa when neon was used as a pressure transmitting medium (PTM), while this transition was slightly shifted to lower pressures when no PTM was used. Accurate double-edge extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) refinements were carried out using advanced data-analysis methods. EXAFS data-analysis confirmed the trend shown by the edge shifts for this disordered material, showing that the transition from tetrahedral to octahedral coordination for Ge sites is not fully achieved at 45 GPa. Results of present high pressure EXAFS experiments have shown the absence of significant neon incorporation into the glass within the pressure range up to 45 GPa.
Two-dimensional half-metallicity and fully spin-polarized topological fermions in monolayer EuOBr
Authors: Li Chenyao , Li Minghang , Li Yefeng , He Tingli , Liu Ying , Zhang Xiaoming , Dai Xuefang , Liu Guodong
Published: March 2023

Two-dimensional (2D) half-metal and topological states have been the current research focus in condensed matter physics. Herein, we report a novel 2D material named EuOBr monolayer, which can simultaneously show 2D half-metal and topological fermions. This material shows a metallic state in the spin-up channel but a large insulating gap of 4.38 eV in the spin-down channel. In the conducting spin channel, the EuOBr monolayer shows the coexistence of Weyl points and nodal-lines near the Fermi level. These nodal-lines are classified by type-I, hybrid, closed, and open nodal-lines. The symmetry analysis suggests these nodal-lines are protected by the mirror symmetry, which cannot be broken even spin–orbit coupling is included because the ground magnetization direction in the material is out-of-plane [001]. The topological fermions in the EuOBr monolayer are fully spin-polarized, which can be meaningful for future applications in topological spintronic nano-devices.
A non-nuclear inline densitometer for multiphase flows
Authors: Ramakrishnan Vijay , Arsalan Muhammad , Deffenbaugh Max
Published: March 2023

Multiphase flowmeters are used in the oil-and-gas industry to measure real-time flow rates of oil, gas, and brine, flowing simultaneously as a non-homogeneous mixture, in a pipeline from wellhead to separator. Since these flow rates cannot be measured directly, they are inferred from other measurements including mixture density. Mixture density is commonly measured using nuclear densitometers which can be problematic in terms of safety and maintenance. This paper details the development—concept and experimental validation—of a non-nuclear inline densitometer that measures multiphase mixture density using pressure sensors. A comprehensive flow-loop test was conducted at a commercial facility to evaluate the technology under a wide range of flow conditions—flow rates 1000 to 10000 bpd, gas fractions 0% to 96%, water cuts 0% to 100%, with a synthetic oil as liquid hydrocarbon, methane as gas medium, two water salinities—totaling nearly 300 test points. The results from this experimental validation—specifically, the technology’s accuracy and operating envelope—point to a groundbreaking practical solution to a long-standing problem.
Degradation phenomena of quantum dot light-emitting diodes induced by high electric field
Authors: Cha Yunmi , Woo Hwi Je , Yoon Sang Hyun , Song Young Jae , Choi Young Jin , Kim Seong Heon
Published: March 2023

Quantum dots possess exceptional optoelectronic properties, such as narrow bandwidth, controllable wavelength, and compatibility with solution-based processing. However, for efficient and stable operation in electroluminescence mode, several issues require resolution. Particularly, as device dimensions decrease, a higher electric field may be applied through next-generation quantum dot light-emitting diode (QLED) devices, which could further degrade the device. In this study, we conduct a systematic analysis of the degradation phenomena of a QLED device induced by a high electric field, using scanning probe microscopy (SPM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). We apply a local high electric field to the surface of a QLED device using an atomic force microscopy (AFM) tip, and we investigate changes in morphology and work function in the Kelvin probe force microscopy mode. After the SPM experiments, we perform TEM measurements on the same degraded sample area affected by the electric field of the AFM tip. The results indicate that a QLED device could be mechanically degraded by a high electric field, and work function changes significantly in degraded areas. In addition, the TEM measurements reveal that In ions migrate from the indium tin oxide (ITO) bottom electrode to the top of the QLED device. The ITO bottom electrode also deforms significantly, which could induce work function variation. The systematic approach adopted in this study can provide a suitable methodology for investigating the degradation phenomena of various optoelectronic devices.