bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Method for Intelligent Allocation of Diagnostic Testing by Leveraging Data from Commercial Wearable Devices: A Case Study on COVID-19
Authors: Dunn Jessilyn , Shandhi Md Mobashir Hasan , Cho Peter , Roghanizad Ali , Singh Karnika , Wang Will , Enache Oana , Stern Amanda , Sbahi Rami , Tatar Bilge , Fiscus Sean , Khoo Qi Xuan , Kuo Yvonne , Lu Xiao , Hsieh Joseph , Kalodzitsa Alena , Bahmani Amir , Alavi Arash , Ray Utsab , Snyder Michael , Ginsburg Geoffrey , Pasquale Dana , Woods Christopher , Shaw Ryan
Published: April 2022

Mass surveillance testing can help control outbreaks of infectious diseases such as COVID-19. However, diagnostic test shortages are prevalent globally and continue to occur in the US with the onset of new COVID-19 variants, demonstrating an unprecedented need for improving our current methods for mass surveillance testing. By targeting surveillance testing towards individuals who are most likely to be infected and, thus, increasing testing positivity rate (i.e., percent positive in the surveillance group), fewer tests are needed to capture the same number of positive cases. Here, we developed an Intelligent Testing Allocation (ITA) method by leveraging data from the CovIdentify study (6,765 participants) and the MyPHD study (8,580 participants), including smartwatch data from 1,265 individuals of whom 126 tested positive for COVID-19. Our rigorous model and parameter search uncovered the optimal time periods and aggregate metrics for monitoring continuous digital biomarkers to increase the positivity rate of COVID-19 diagnostic testing. We found that resting heart rate features distinguished between COVID-19 positive and negative cases earlier in the course of the infection than steps features, as early as ten and five days prior to the diagnostic test, respectively. We also found that including steps features increased the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC-ROC) by 7–11% when compared with RHR features alone, while including RHR features improved the AUC of the ITA model’s precision-recall curve (AUC-PR) by 38–50% when compared with steps features alone. The best AUC-ROC (0.73 ± 0.14 and 0.77 on the cross-validated training set and independent test set, respectively) and AUC-PR (0.55 ± 0.21 and 0.24) were achieved by using data from a single device type (Fitbit) with high-resolution (minute-level) data. Finally, we show that ITA generates up to a 6.5-fold increase in the positivity rate in the cross-validated training set and up to a 3-fold increase in the positivity rate in the independent test set, including both symptomatic and asymptomatic (up to 27%) individuals. Our findings suggest that, if deployed on a large scale and without needing self-reported symptoms, the ITA method could improve allocation of diagnostic testing resources and reduce the burden of test shortages.
A DFT study of hydrogen adsorption on metallic platinum: Associative or dissociative adsorption
Authors: Farzaneh Laleh , Pour Ali Nakhaei
Published: April 2022

In this study, the molecular and atomic adsorption energies, and total density of states (DOS) of the hydrogen on the on-top, bridge, and hollow positions of FCC (100), and FCC (111) surfaces of the metallic platinum were investigated using the DFT calculations. The total DOS result shows higher interaction between hydrogen molecule and metallic surface for the FCC (111) than the FCC (100) surface. Also, the intensity of the anti-bonding orbital for the bridge position is higher than two other positions on the FCC (100) surface, which shows that the hydrogen molecule in this position is ready to be dissociated into hydrogen atoms. In addition, the intensity of the anti-bonding orbital for hollow and bridge positions are higher than the on-top position on FCC (111) surface, which shows the hydrogen molecule in these positions are dissociated into hydrogen atoms. The results show that the comparison between the activation barrier energy (ΔEads) calculated from Lennard-Jones potential curves, and molecular adsorption energy determines whether the hydrogen molecule is dissociated on the surface. If the activation barrier energy (ΔEads) is higher than molecular adsorption energy, the probability that the hydrogen molecule will dissociate on the surface is very low.
Radiation Recall Pneumonitis Covid-19 Infection Induced After Adjuvant Breast Cancer Radiotherapy. A Known Phenomenon in a Unknown Pandemic Disease. A Case Report
Authors: Lazzari Grazia , Giua Renato , Verdolino Elisabetta , Solazzo Angela Pia , Benevento Ilaria , Montagna Antonia , Castaldo Giovanni , Rago Luciana , Silvano Giovanni
Published: April 2022

BACKGROUND Covid-19 pandemic has opened several new disease scenarios yielding novel syndromes which have never been seen before or resurrecting old inflammatory phenomenon no longer recorded, like radiation recall (RR) syndromes. Radiation recall syndrome is a limited field inflammatory reaction occurring in a previous irradiated volume several months or year before induced by a triggering factor. The most reported phenomena are skin reactions, although other organs could be involved, like the lung as in radiation recall pneumonitis (RRP). It is a well described inflammatory reaction, occurring within a previous irradiated pulmonary volume several months or years later radiotherapy (RT), triggered by factors like drugs, chemotherapy agents, immunotherapy or vaccination. Indeed in the Covid -19 pandemic, RRP following anti-Covid 19 vaccination administration or SARS-CoV2 virus have been just recorded. Herein, we describe a RRP triggered by COVID-19 pulmonary infection, in a woman previously treated with adjuvant breast cancer radiotherapy. CASE PRESENTATION A 65-year-old woman was diagnosed with invasive stage III A (pT2 pN2 M0) G2, Luminal B ductal carcinoma of the right breast, in 2016. After breast conserving surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy, postoperative radiotherapy was applied on the supraclavicular area and the remaining breast.In March 2020, she complained of fever, mild dyspnoea and cough. The real-time polymerase chain reaction on nasopharyngeal swab was positive for SARS-CoV2. The chest computed tomography (CT) scan showed radiologic features in the right lung, miming the previous radiation treatment fields. She was admitted to a Covid Unit and treated per protocol. Chest CT scan 3 months later showed a complete resolution, with a consolidated pulmonary fibrosis.CONCLUSIONRadiation recall pneumonitis is an inflammatory reaction occurring within a previous irradiation of lung volume induced by triggering factors (drugs, ultraviolet light, viruses). The precise underlying mechanism has not been defined yet. A fascinating hypothesis could be that a previous radiation due to a lung repaired damage, might induce an inflammatory response that can leave a kind of “damage cell memory” and can be triggered after many years by a strong immune activation, such as occurs in COVID19 pneumonia.
COI is not enough: integrative taxonomy reveals striking overestimation of species diversity in a Mediterranean freshwater amphipod
Authors: Hupalo Kamil , Copilaș-Ciocianu Denis , Leese Florian , Weiss Martina
Published: April 2022

BackgroundThe emergence of DNA taxonomy sparked a paradigm shift in biodiversity assessments and revealed the existence of many morphologically cryptic species in all ecosystems worldwide. For animals, DNA-based assessments of species diversity usually rely on the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene. However, an increasing number of studies report patterns of mito-nuclear discordance originating for example from shared ancestral polymorphisms or introgression, leading to an over- or underestimation of true species diversity. Therefore, reports of mitochondrial lineages should be verified by other methods. Freshwater amphipods are ideal model organisms since putative cryptic species have been reported in many of the nominal taxa. In this study, we investigated the species status of the numerous mitochondrial molecular operational taxonomic units (MOTUs) found within the Mediterranean freshwater amphipod Echinogammarus sicilianus on Sicily. For validation, we used an integrative taxonomic approach combining DNA barcoding with behavioural data, detailed morphometrics and genome-wide double digest restriction site-associated DNA sequencing (ddRAD-seq). Results Within a relatively small sampling area (approx. 200 km2), we detected 12 divergent COI MOTUs, with genetic distances ranging from 1.8% to 20.3% and a mean distance of 11%. At 17 of the 25 sampling sites up to six MOTUs occurred in syntopy. The four most common MOTUs were analysed with high resolution morphometric data (49 measurements per specimen), but we found no clear evidence of morphological differentiation among them. We also observed a high level of MOTU intermixing (38%) in precopulatory pairs. Similarly, ten of the mitochondrial MOTUs were not supported by the genome-wide ddRAD-seq data. However, for the two remaining mitochondrial MOTUs found at sites outside of the main river stretch, ddRAD-seq and COI data were congruent, indicating that those MOTUs might indeed represent cryptic species. Conclusions Our study on the amphipod E. sicilianus reveals another prominent example of mito-nuclear discordance indicating that species delimitation based solely on mitochondrial markers can significantly overestimate species diversity. The study highlights that integrative taxonomy approaches are important for validating species status, especially in hyperdiverse species complexes, where many mitochondrial MOTUs occur in close proximity or even syntopy.
Effect of ice formation on cross-section electrical resistance and stress wave velocity in living trees at low temperatureAuthorship
Authors: Xu Huadong , Guo Jiaxing , Wang Peng , Wang Yuting
Published: April 2022

Accurate tree decay detection and quality evaluation at low temperature is a scientific problem. The electric resistance tomography (ERT) and stress wave tomography (SWT) are two widely recognized methods for decay detection, but the influence of ice formation on the detection has not been studied. The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of ice formation on cross-section electrical resistance (ER) and stress wave velocity (SWV) in living trees at low temperature. Larix gmelinii and Populus simonii living tree specimens were conducted on moisture content (MC) measurement using time domain reflectometry (TDR), trunk ER and SWV test using ERT and SWT methods, respectively. Ice content (IC) was calculated based on the MC data. The effects of IC on ER and SWV were then explored. We find IC of both tree species shows a general trend that is first rising and then decreasing, it is opposite with ambient temperature. With the decrease of ambient temperature, daily average IC increases, but the variation range narrows gradually and both ER and SWV increase. The ER and SWV increase rapidly near 0℃, which is mainly caused by ice formation (phase change and freezing of free water) in living trees. Furthermore, the ER and SWV are both positively correlated with IC (R2 > 0.87, p < 0.01). The results suggest that IC should be considered as an important factor for improving the test accuracy in the process of tree decay detection and quality evaluation using ERT and SWT methods under low temperature.
Thyroid –pineal axis: Melatonin, circadian clock genes expression and vitamin D in Hashimoto's thyroiditis patients
Authors: Shaker Sara A. , Meghad Magda A. , Mahfouz Mahmoud , Hassanien Tamer E. , Mahmoud Bothina F , Salem Tarek M.
Published: April 2022

Objective
Evaluate Melatonin, circadian clock genes; brain and muscle aryl hydrocarbon receptor nuclear translocator-like 1 (BMAL-1), Period 2 (PER2) & nuclear factor kabba B (NF-Kb), sirtuin 1 (SIRT-1), Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) genes expression and vitamin D in Egyptian patients with Hashimoto thyroiditis (HT). Methods: 240 Egyptian volunteers (Egyptian healthy females and Egyptian females with HT). All participants were susceptible to laboratory investigations including and gene expressions.
Results
The current study revealed increased serum thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), anti-thyroid peroxidase antibody (anti TPO-Ab) and anti- thyroglobulin antibody (anti Tg-Ab) in the HT group. On the other hand, decreased serum concentration of melatonin, vitamin D, free tetraiodothyronine (FT4), free triiodothyronine (FT3), ionized calcium & blood hemoglobin in the HT group. Also, our results revealed that the gene expression of the BMAL-1, PER2 and SIRT-1 were downregulated in the HT group. On the contrary, the levels of gene expression of NF-kB, TLR-4,TNF-α genes were upregulated in the HT group.
Conclusions
We concluded that there is an association between HT and circadian rhythms approved by downregulation of Bmal-1 and PER2 genes expression Also, it may lead to an inflammatory response and oxidative stress. The significant decrease of serum melatonin levels in HT patients, strongly suggests an association between the melatonin pathway and HT. So, Melatonin may be recommended as supplementation for HT patients.
Implicit, Intrinsic, Extrinsic, and Host Factors Attributing the COVID-19 Pandemic. Part 3- Host Factor GDP: A Systematic Analysis
Authors: Gahtori Archana , Pargaien Amrita , Ghosh Surajit Kumar , Bhat Hans Raj , Kumar Vikas , Singh Udaya Pratap , Gahtori Prashant
Published: April 2022

Despite successful large laboratory studies, the progression of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is still underway. As with a short time, COVID-19 escalated into a 'global pandemic', emphasized a special attention for ‘global data analysis’. Using a large global dataset (n=166), we demonstrate that COVID-19 distribution remained particularly unequal across the world's four income groups and global percentage of infectivity including deaths fairly suppressed from high (18.44% e.g. Estonia- 2385 deaths), upper middle (4.44% e.g. Mauritius- 934 deaths), lower middle (2.64% e.g. Timor Leste- 129 deaths) to low-income countries (0.23% e.g. Burundi- 38 deaths). All above reported 4 countries have almost similar population (1.2M-1.3M). Both deaths and infectivity differences between high and upper middle, or upper middle and lower middle, or lower middle and low provides fair visibility in unbiased analyses. Nonetheless, a significant linear relationship (r= 0.72 ± 0.02) over a long 18 months between GDP and COVID-19 infection by country entails risk of contracting COVID-19 (Mar 2020: t-test one-tail/two-tail p < 0.05, F-test one-tail p< 0.05, df= 165, F= 449.03, r2= 0.732, r2 aj= 0.731 and SS=63867700637). Our finding connects health areas that shape unequal distribution of COVID-19 through the resident functional alleles, for example HLA-A*01:01 and HLA-B*46:01 alleles for increased risk in high income countries. The evidence-based views laid foundation for unusual heterogenic immune responses among different human habitats. The ancient evolution theory by natural selection also underlies high susceptibility in high-income countries, due to no adaptive challenges for the lives and improved living standards over the years.
Determination of an Optimum Extraction Region for the Recovery of Antioxidants From Olive Leaves (Olea Europaea L.) Using Dynamic Ple With Water/ethanol Mixtures
Authors: Silva Patrícia Sabino , Viell Franciele Leila Giopato , Ineu Rafael Porto , Bona Evandro , Dias Maria Inês , Ferreira Isabel C.F.R. , Barros Lillian , Gonçalves Odinei Hess , Leimann Fernanda Vitória , Filho Lucio Cardozo
Published: April 2022

Pressurized liquid extraction with water and ethanol was employed to obtain high antioxidant extracts from olive leaves (Olea europaea L.). The influence of solvent ratio (100–50% v/v water/ethanol), temperature (100–200°C), and solvent flow rate (1–5 mL min− 1) on the extraction process was investigated using a Box-Behnken experimental design. ANOVA was applied to determine the overall goodness of fit of the dependent variables (extraction yield, antioxidant capacity by DPPH, total flavonoids, total iridoid-glycoside, and total phenolic content) in second-order models. For the optimization, these models were used to find the optimal conditions using the Sequential Simplex optimization procedure combined with Derringer and Suich’s desirability function to maximize antioxidant capacity, total iridoid-glycoside recovery, and total phenolic content. The optimal conditions for extraction were determined at a solvent ratio of 53–65% v/v water/ethanol, the extraction temperature of 100–120°C, and a 3–4 mL.min− 1 solvent flow rate. Fifteen phenolic compounds were identified in the samples using HPLC-DAD-ESI/MSn, and also two phenolic acids (hydroxytyrosol and hydroxytyrosol glucoside), four flavonols (apigenin-6,8-C-dihexoside, quercetin-3-O-rutinoside, luteolin-O-hexoside, and derivatives), and nine iridoid-glycosides (verbascoside, oleuropein, and derivatives). Oleuropein derivates were identified as the major phenolic compounds in the extract obtained at optimal conditions.
Effect of the External Shocks on the Predictability of Remittances flows from Developed Countries
Authors: KIMM GNANGNON SENA
Published: April 2022

The present analysis has explored the effect of external shocks on the predictability of remittances outflows, by relying on an unbalanced panel of 24 developed countries over the period of 1996-2020. Results are obtained by means of the within fixed effects estimator, and indicate that external shocks reduce the predictability of remittances outflows, with a higher effect on the positive predictability of these capital outflows than on the negative predictability of these capital outflows. The negative effect of external shocks on the predictability of remittances outflows operates through the economic growth channel, with the magnitude of this negative effect being higher in countries with low economic growth rates. External shocks enhance the predictability of remittances outflows in less developed countries among advanced economies, but reduce it in relatively more advanced economies. Finally, external shocks reduce the predictability of remittances outflows in countries that experience a decline in the migrants inflows. This finding has implications for the economic and development prospects of the countries of origin of migrants.
Does Environmentally Responsible Investment Enhance Firm Profitability? An Institutional Perspective
Authors: Khalid Fahad , Naveed Khwaja
Published: April 2022

Adopting the institutional perspective as its theoretical underpinning, this study seeks to unearth the antecedents of the mixed results in the extant literature on the association between environmentally responsible investment (ERI) and firm profitability. The study sample comprises an unbalanced sample of 2290 firm-year observations of China’s A-share listed firms for the period 2010–2019. The findings indicate that ERI enhances firms’ profitability, and the positive association is reinforced by the promulgation of environmental protection law. Regional development also augments ERI’s positive effect on firms’ profitability. Nevertheless, no significant association is observed between firms’ profitability and ERI within firms operating in environmentally sensitive sectors. Our findings imply that in addition to regulatory forces, normative and cognitive pressures are also important factors that governments may employ to motivate firms to become environmentally friendly and embrace sustainable practices. Theoretically, we content that these factors serve as a link between institutional growth and corporate environmental management practices.
Medial Patellofemoral ligament reconstruction using a digital tensiometer to determine graft tension：surgical technique and mid-term follow-up
Authors: Zhang Wenhao , Mou Limin , Gao Jin , Wang Shuhua , Ma Qiang , Abulaiti Aierxiding , shen Zhimin
Published: April 2022

BACKGROUND: When undertaking patellofemoral ligament reconstruction, there are various methods of getting the proper tension for the graft, and the choice of the finest method remains controversial.Previously, a digital tensiometer was used to simulate knee structure, and a tension of approximately 2 N was quantified to restore patellofemoral track[11], but it is unclear whether a tension of 2 N restores patellofemoral tracks during the operation. The purpose of this study was to verify the tension of the graft using a digital tensiometer for medial patellofemoral ligament reconstruction and to perform an mid-term follow-up.Methods: Thirty-nine patients with recurrent patellar dislocation were included in the study. Patellar instability and patellar tilt angle and Patellar congruence angle were confirmed preoperatively by computed tomography (CT) and X-ray, history of dislocation and patellar apprehension test. Knee function was assessed by preoperative and postoperative Lysholm and Kujala scoresResults: 39 knees (39 cases)，including 22 female and 17 male individuals with an average age of 21.10±7.26 , were included.39 people have been followed up by telephone or face-to-face questionnaires and have been followed up for at least 24 months.Preoperative history of ≥2 patellar dislocation, none of which was treated surgically. Intraoperatively, all underwent isolated MPFL reconstruction and release of the Lateral retinacular. Mean Kujala and Lysholm scores were 91.28±4.90,and 90.67±5.15, respectively.Mean The patellar tilt angle (PTA) the patellar congruence angle (PCA)were 11.5±2.63,and 2.38±3.58, respectively.39 people did not undergo reoperation during the follow-up period.In general,36patients (36/39;92.31%) were absolutely painless when Completing daily activities at the last follow-up.CONCLUSION: We conclude that the graft tension required to restore a normal patellofemoral relationship in clinical practice is approximately 24N and that the use of 2N tension is too low. Reconstruction of the patellofemoral ligament using a tensiometer is a more accurate and reliable surgical procedure for the treatment of recurrent patellar dislocation. Level of Evidence: Level IV—case series.
Epidemiological Study of Snakebite Cases Admitted in Godey Hospital, Shebelle Zone, Eastern Ethiopia, June, 2016
Authors: Mohammed Yusuf , Nafis Farah , Niguse Ayalew , Kaba Zalalem
Published: April 2022

Background: Every year, most snakebite envenomation occurs worldwide. The highest number of snakebites is recorded from Asia, Southeast Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa. Snake-bite included in the WHO’s (World Health Organization) list of neglected tropical diseases. The load of snakebite in Ethiopia is unknown, perhaps because of underreporting. No study done on existing data at Godey hospital. Therefore, the aim of current study was, to characterize the distribution of victims by time, place, and person, to know the extent of the problem and coming with recommendation.Methods: We conducted a retrospective descriptive cross-sectional study at Godey hospital from May 15-22/2016. We collected data, which describe the characteristics of snakebite according to the age, sex, kebeles from which cases came, woredas, and final patient’s outcome. We included all cases visited emergency wards from September 2014 to May 2016. We entered, cleaned, and analyzed collected data by using Microsoft Excel 2007. Furthermore, we secured permission for data collection from hospitals officials.Result: Starting from September 2014 to May 2016, 45 snakebite victims were reported. The death was 2 making a Case Fatality Rate (CFR) of 4.4%. The age ranges from 1 year to 60 years, with a mean age of 20.1 years. Majority 26(57.8%) of were those age group ranging from 1 to 15, while least (6.7%) age group was those from 31 to 45. About 75.6% of cases were those under 30 years. Majority 30(66.7%) of cases were male. About 91.1% of cases were reported from rural kebeles of Godey woreda. The bites were reported in all months of the years except January, and a peak report was in May. Low extremity accounts to majority (65%) of site of bites. Under registration of patients, morbidity, mortality, and not registering important variable were among problem remarked.Conclusion: This was snakebite among patients seen at Godey hospital in which males affected more than females, and maximum snakebite incidence viewed in rural concerns. Registration of patients’ improvement, further region wide study to document the most common venomous snakes’ species, incidence, morbidity, and mortality of snakebites in Ethiopian Somali Region, are among recommendation.
Hypoxia/inflammation-induced upregulation of HIF-1α and C/EBPβ, promoted nephroblastoma EMT by improving HOXA11-AS transcription
Authors: Zhu Shibo , Liang Shen , Tang Xiangliang , Zhao Zhang , Jia Wei
Published: April 2022

Homeobox (HOX) A11 antisense RNA (HOXA11-AS) has been identified as a cancer promoter lncRNA and overexpressed in nephroblastoma. However, how HOXA11-AS is regulated in hypoxia and inflammation environment has not been studied. In this study, genes expression and EMT ability were detected in nephroblastoma cell line WiT49 under hypoxia and inflammation environment. Then HOXA11-AS transcription factors were predicted by datasets and they were confirmed by CHIP-QPCR, EMSA and Dual-luciferase reporter assay. Next, the regulation relationships of HOXA11-AS and its transcription factors were further confirmed by rescue experiments. Our results showed that the hypoxia microenvironment promoted the expression of HOXA11-AS and nephroblastoma progression, induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), and activated the Wnt signaling pathway. Combined hypoxia and inflammation have a more substantial effect than single hypoxia or inflammation on nephroblastoma. HIF-1α and C/EBPβ were confirmed to be the transcription factors of HOXA11-AS. Silencing HIF-1α or C/EBPβ downregulated the expression of HOXA11-AS, suppressed EMT and Wnt signaling pathway in nephroblastoma cells under hypoxia or inflammation microenvironments. HOXA11-AS overexpression partly reversed the effect of HIF-1α or C/EBPβ knockdown. In conclusion, we demonstrated that hypoxia/inflammation-induced upregulation of HIF-1α and C/EBPβ, promoted nephroblastoma EMT by improving HOXA11-AS transcription. HOXA11-AS might be a therapy target of nephroblastoma.
mTOR signaling pathway regulate glucose metabolism and function of CD4 + Tregs in SKOV3 growth environment
Authors: Wu Ming , Fu Xin , Xu Rui , Liu Shuna , Li Rong , Xu Juan , Shang Wenwen , Wang Fang
Published: April 2022

Ovarian cancer is the most deadly gynecological malignancy, and immunotherapy is expected to be an important strategy to improve the prognosis of patients. However, the complex immunosuppressive microenvironment is a major obstacle to the immunotherapy of ovarian cancer. Studies have shown that TLRs can regulate the differentiation and function of T cells directly or indirectly, the activation of TLR8 signal can regulate the glycometabolism pathway of CD4+ Tregs and thus regulate its function. But the pathway through which TLR8 regulates the glucose metabolism of CD4+ Tregs is still unclear. It was found that the positive expression rates of mTOR in CD4+ Tregs of OC were significantly higher than that in HC, and also significantly higher than that in CD4+ Teffs of OC. What’s more, compared with CD4+ Teffs group, CD4+ Tregs highly expressed genes and proteins related to mTOR signal. After blocking mTOR signal of CD4+ Tregs and CD4+ Teffs, the expression levels of genes and proteins related to glucose metabolism were lower than that of the control group and levels of glucose uptake and glycolysis were also declined. At the same time, inhibition of mTOR signal and activation of TLR8 signal have a coordinated inhibitory effect on the glucose metabolism and immunosuppressive function of CD4+ Tregs. Furthermore, the key molecule of TLR8 signal p38 MAPK controls mTOR signal and in the process of TLR8-mediated reversal of CD4+ Tregs inhibitory function, mTOR signal plays an important role, which suggested that activation of TLR8 signal inhibited glucose metabolism of CD4+ Tregs by down-regulating mTOR signaling and thus reversed the immunosuppressive functions of CD4+ Tregs in growth environment of ovarian cancer cells.
Efficacy of anterior debridement and bone grafting with fusion using internal fixation combined with anti-tuberculosis chemotherapy in the treatment of subaxial cervical tuberculosis
Authors: Luan Haopeng , Liu Kai , Wang Yao , Kahaer Alafate , Sheng Weibin , Maimaiti Maierdan , Deng Qiang
Published: April 2022

Background: To evaluate the efficacy of anterior debridement and bone grafting with fusion using internal fixation (BFIF) combined with anti-tuberculosis chemotherapy in the treatment of subaxial cervical spine tuberculosis (SCS-TB).Methods: Clinical and radiographic data of patients with SCS-TB treated by anterior debridement and BFIF at our hospital from January 2010 to December 2017 were analyzed retrospectively. The SCS sagittal parameters at the preoperative, postoperative, and final follow-up were documented and compared, including the Occiput-C2 angle, C2-C7 Cobb angle, local Cobb angle, spinal canal angle (SCA), C2-C7 sagittal vertical axis (C2-C7 SVA), the center of gravity of the head-C7 sagittal vertical axis (CGH-C7 SVA), T1 slope (T1S), neck tilt (NT), and thoracic inlet angle (TIA). The ASIA grade, NDI index, JOA score, and VAS score were utilized to assess the postoperative function recovery, and the complications were recorded. Results: A total of 23 patients were included in the study with a mean age of 46.7 years (range, 23 to 74 years), including 8 males and 15 females. All patients with SCS-TB were treated with anterior debridement and BFIF (Figures 1-2), with a mean postoperative follow-up time of 35.9 months (range, 25 to 84 months). The poisoning symptoms of TB were relieved in all patients, and ESR (42.09±9.53 vs 8.04±5.41, P<0.05) and CRP (30.37±16.02 vs 7.4±2.68, P<0.05) were decreased at the three postoperative months in the comparison of the preoperative. The C0-C2 Cobb angle, C2-C7 Cobb angle, local Cobb angle, SCA, TIS, C2-C7 SVA, and CGH-C7 SVA were corrected remarkably after surgery (P<0.05). Further, there was a significant improvement in the JOA, VAS, and NDI with the comparison of the preoperative (P<0.05).Conclusions: Anterior debridement and BFIF combined with anti-TB chemotherapy was a practical tool for the treatment of SCS-TB with the help of SCS sagittal parameters, which can remove the lesion completely, decompress the spinal cord compression, and correct the kyphotic deformity to restore the spine sagittal balance.
KIT-c-Jun Signaling Up-regulated HMGCS1 to Promote Colorectal Cancer Development
Authors: Abbas Muhammad Khawar , Yang Liu , Sun Haimei , Sun Tingyi , Wu Bo , Ma Jian , Liu Xiaohui , Chen Hong , Yang Shu , Zhou Deshan
Published: April 2022

Purpose: Colorectal cancer (CRC) ranks 2nd in morbidity and 3rd in mortality among all cancers worldwide. 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA synthase 1 (HMGCS1) is ubiquitously expressed in humans. Remarkably, the mevalonate pathway is often dysregulated in many cancers, suggesting tumor dependency on this classic metabolic pathway. In addition to altered substrates in the mevalonate pathway, it was recently found that HMGCS1 was highly expressed in prostate, melanoma and breast cancers. The transmembrane glycoprotein KIT is critical for the survival and development of various cells through activating downstream pathways and targets. Our previous research has proved that KIT is hyper-expressed in CRC and promotes CRC progression. However, whether HMGCS1 mediates the tumor-promoting effect of KIT signaling has not been unclosed.Material and Methods: We investigated the regulatory mechanism of KIT signaling on HMGCS1 expression and the role of increased HMGCS1 in CRC development by the use of gene over-expression and knock-down techniques in CRC cells, biological function tests, protein-DNA binding detection, bioinformatics, database analysis and c-kit loss-of-function mutant mice (Wadsm/m). Results: HMGCS1 was up-regulated by KIT-JNK-c-Jun signaling in CRC cells and could be a biomarker for CRC. Highly expressed HMCGS1 promoted CRC cell proliferation and invasion while inhibiting apoptosis. Our results provided evidence for the role of HMGCS1 in CRC progression and suggested that blocking KIT-JNK-c-Jun-HMGCS1 might be a new strategy for treating CRC patients.Conclusion: Our results indicated that KIT signaling could up-regulate HMGCS1 in CRC mediated by Ap-1/c-Jun. Hyper-expressed HMGCS1 promotes CRC cell proliferation and invasion while inhibiting apoptosis.
Testing an educational intervention to improve health care providers’ preparedness to care for victims of elder abuse. A mixed method pilot study.
Authors: Simmons Johanna , Motamedi Atbin , Ludvigsson Mikael , Swahnberg Katarina
Published: April 2022

Background
Elder abuse is prevalent and associated with ill-health. However, health care providers often lack education about elder abuse and older patients’ victimization often remains unknown to them. In this pilot study we performed initial testing of an educational model aiming at improving health care providers’ preparedness to care for older adults subjected to abuse, or more specifically their self-reported propensity to ask older patients questions about abuse and perceived ability to manage the response.
Methods
The educational model consisted of a full training day about elder abuse, including theory, group discussions and forum theatre. Forum theatre is an interactive form of drama in which participants are not only observers, but rather spect-actors, urged to participate in the scene. They are thereby given the opportunity to discuss and practise difficult health care encounters. Medical interns (intervention group n = 16, control group n = 14) in Sweden participated in the study and a mixed method convergent parallel design was used. Quantitative data was collected at baseline and 6 months post-intervention using a questionnaire (the REAGERA-P). Qualitative interviews were conducted with four of the participants in the intervention group and data was analysed using qualitative content analysis.
Results
The reported frequency of asking older patients questions about abuse increased in the intervention group (p = 0.047), but not the control group (p = 0.38) post-intervention. Potential mediators for the improvement were an increased awareness of elder abuse and higher self-efficacy for asking questions about elder abuse. Participants also reported a higher perceived ability to manage cases of elder abuse, even though uncertainties concerning how to provide the best possible care remained. The qualitative interviews indicated that learning from each other in group discussions and forum theatre likely was an important contributor to the positive results.
Conclusion
This pilot test indicated that the educational model may be effective in improving health care providers’ preparedness to care for older adults subjected to abuse. However, uncertainties about how to handle elder abuse cases remained post-intervention. In a future full-scale test of the model more focus needs to be put on how to manage cases of elder abuse.
Physicochemical Properties of Imported and Locally Produced Honey did not translate into its Microbial Quality and Antibacterial Activity
Authors: Nzeh Joseph , Quansah Lydia , Dufailu Osman Adamu
Published: April 2022

Honey is often considered a good substitute for sugar. However, concerns about the poor quality of locally produced honey have necessitated the importation of honey to meet the domestic demand in spite of Ghana’s good climatic conditions suitable for honey production. Due to the increasing level of demand for honey both locally and internationally, we highlighted here the need for an assessment of the physicochemical, microbiological quality and antibiotics resistance of microbes isolated from the imported and locally produced honey vis-à-vis international standards. Thirty honey samples which comprise 7 imported and 23 locally produced were randomly sampled from retail outlets consisting of supermarkets, marts, shops, and open markets as well as from production sites within the northern region for physicochemical analysis, microbial analysis and antibiogram. Results of the physicochemical quality analysis showed that sampled honey (both imported and locally produced) was within acceptable set standards. However, microbial quality was poor as a high incidence of bacterial contamination and resistance was recorded in the study. The High incidence of bacterial contamination and antibiotic resistance recorded in this study gives an indication that all is not well in the honey industry and therefore the need for serious concern to avert possible health issues associated with the consumption of honey found within the region.
Statistical Downscaling of High Resolution Precipitation in India using Convolutional Long Short Term Memory Networks
Authors: Misra Saptarshi , Sarkar Sudeshna , Mitra Pabitra , Shastri Hiteshri K
Published: April 2022

Different empirical-statistical downscaling methods are widely applied in weather and climate studies for assessment of effect of global-scale climate conditions on local-scale climate variables. Statistical downscaling of the General Circulation Model (GCM) simulations are widely used for accessing changes in future climate at different spatiotemporal scales. The process of downscaling is affected by uncertainty associated with the GCM selection and downscaling model. This study proposes a novel Statistical Downscaling (SD) model established on Convolutional Long Short Term Memory (ConvLSTM) Network. The methodology is applied to obtain future projection of rainfall at 0.25° spatial resolution over entire Indian sub-continental region. The traditional multisite downscaling models typically perform downscaling on a single homogeneous rainfall zone, predicting rainfall at only one grid point in a single model run. The proposed model captures spatiotemporal dependencies in multisite local rainfall and predicts rainfall for the entire zone in a single model run. The study proposes a shared ConvLSTM model. This particular modeling framework shares a ConvLSTM model across multiple neighboring regions in order to capture the similarity in rainfall patterns of and customizes it to individual grid points. This novel downscaling approach provides a single end-to-end supervised model for predicting the future precipitation series for entire India. The model captures the regional variability in rainfall superior to a region wise trained model. The proposed methodology performs superior as compared to the presently available state of the art LSTM and Kernel Regression (KR) based methodologies previously applied for Indian sub continental region. The projected future rainfall for different scenarios of climate change, obtained with the help of the proposed downscaling model reveals an overall increase in the rainfall mean over India. The changes in future rainfall extremes over India are spatially nonuniform with a probable increase at the western-ghats and northeastern India. The rainfall extreme at the same time is observed to decrease in northern and western India as well as along the southeastern coastline. These results highlight the importance of conducting in depth hydrologic study for different river basins of the country for future water availability assessment and making water resource policies.
EMOTIONAL AND SEMANTIC DOMINANT IN THE POETRY OF THE PARTICIPANTS IN JOINT FORCES OPERATION
Authors: Khraban Tatyana
Published: April 2022

The aim of this article is to identify the emotional and semantic dominant in the poetry of the participants in the Joint Forces Operation. Materials & Methods. The study is carried out from the standpoint of a comprehensive psycholinguistic approach based on the integration of discourse analysis and psychoanalytic interpretation. To recognize the emotional and semantic dominant in the poetry of the participants in the Joint Forces Operation, the basic emotion theory is important. Decomposing complex emotions into simpler pieces of basic emotions makes it possible to determine the emotional and semantic dominant of a text. Materials to conduct this research are poetry of the participants in the Joint Forces Operation that is posted on Facebook social media accounts “Poems of ATO. Soldier”, “Songs created in the zone of Anti-Terrorist Operation”. Results & discussions. The poetry is characterized by paired combinations of the emotion of anger with emotions of fear, disgust, sadness, grief and joy. Anger also becomes the main element of complex emotions consisting of several components. The semantic dominant in the poetry from the perspective of the emotion of anger can be expressed as “I hate war”. Expression of intensity of combatants’ suffering is achieved in poetry by conveying sthenic emotion resulting in increased activity, which we denote as grief, and asthenic emotion which doesn’t encourage further action, which we denote as sadness. The semantic dominant in the poetry from the perspective of grief and sadness can be considered as a cry for help. Emotion of fear in the poetry can be associated with the emergence of “existential anxiety”, a core of which lies in a person’s perception of the threat of non-being (mortality). In the poetry the emotion of fear often adjoins the emotion of guilt. The semantic dominant in the poetry from the perspective of the emotions of fear and guilt is understanding of death and immortality in the philosophical and religious context. In contrast to negative emotions associated with the past or present, the emotion of joy refers to the future tense. The semantic dominant in the poetry from the perspective of the emotion of joy is the idea of peace. Conclusions. Basic emotions of anger, grief, sadness prevail in the poetry of the participants in the Joint Forces Operation. However, any emotion is not in its own right, it exists in manifold combinations with other basic emotions creating different conglomerates. The general semantic dominant in the poetry of the participants in the Joint Forces Operation is “No to war”.
INTERACTION OF POLISH AND UKRAINIAN LITERATURE ON THE PAGES OF "KRIVBAS COURIER" MAGAZINE
Authors: Chaura Nataliia
Published: April 2022

The information space of modernity requires from literary and artistic periodicals new forms of interaction between the participants of the communicative process. After all, with the advent of new media, writers are losing their niche in the space of literary publications. Such material placement cells are disappearing on the World Wide Web, being replaced by mass content. Considerable attention in literary and art magazines focuses on the qualitative transmission of intercultural experiences of generations. Under such conditions, there is a need to trace the Ukrainian-Polish literary relations in the era of convergent media. These aspects are reflected, for example, in the specifics of translations. A significant amount of correspondence, peer-review, and critical investigations of well-known figures of domestic literary criticism, which are connected with the writers of the neighboring country, allow the publication to open the curtain of perception of the world by Polish writers. The question of the peculiarities of communication between writers of Ukraine and Poland is interesting. What resources do writers use to reach consensus, seek collaboration, and engage in free dialogues, which are published by the editors of the analyzed journal. The study attempts to analyze the translation of Polish literature on the pages of the Courier Kryvbas magazine, from the perspective of the interaction between the author and the translator. The ways of their communication in the process of using the language codes of the countries are indicated. The most common genres of reflection of literary concepts on the pages of the Ukrainian edition are determined. Nowadays, various journalistic genres are being modified. The Courier of Kryvbas offers readers unusual forms of the artistic word, which are specified by the authors of the explorations themselves, in particular, reflections, thinkings, monologues, mentions, etc. The classic forms of text presentation are not left without attention.
APPLIED LINGUISTICS, COMPUTATIONAL LINGUISTICS AND OTHER INTERDISCIPLINARY SCIENCES AS EFFECTIVE INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES
Authors: Serebrianska Irina
Published: April 2022

The article deals with the issues of interaction of linguistics and modern computer information technologies. It systematizes the actual problems and ways of their integration based on the analysis of the latest scientific works and the appropriate educational programs in higher education institutions all over the world. It draws attention to interdisciplinary sciences such as applied linguistics, computational linguistics, linguistic informatics, quantitative linguistics, mathematical linguistics, Internet linguistics, and integrated knowledge. The cooperation of two different areas is very productive and prospective. It contributes to the development of artificial intelligence and provides wider professional opportunities, effective intercultural communication and further improvement of society. The representatives of two, very different fields become mutually beneficial and complete each other successfully. The result of this interaction is a universal specialist which is in great demand nowadays. The main issues of the interaction of linguistics and modern information technologies are the following: 1) the role of virtual space and modern information technology in the development of linguistics; 2) the role of linguistics in the development of virtual space and information technologies, and the training of computer specialists; 3) the place of virtual space and modern information technologies in preparing linguists and translators (machine translation, translation systems, etc.); 4) the emergence of interdisciplinary sciences and educational courses at the intersection of two areas to provide society with professionals with integrated knowledge; duplication of their conceptual and terminological apparatus and research methods (due to their novelty); methodological support of the integrated educational process.
Shock events: The impact of news media and communication strategies on listed companies’ share price
Authors: Fandella Paola , Ceccarossi Guido , Attinà Davide
Published: April 2022

Academics studied the theory of a company’s communication when it is involved into a crisis but they were less concerned about the impact of the communication on a listed company’s share price, especially when it resulted from a shock event. There is a lack of information about the role played by news media. The aim of this paper is to investigate if in cases of shock events (i) a company’s response strategy has a different effect on shareholders, observing the effect on share prices, and (ii) how the news media can affect the value change. Using the event study methodology, the Cumulative Abnormal Return of companies’ share prices involved in shock events was calculated. Statistics show a best effect of an accommodative response than a defensive strategy in cases of scandals and product recalls. There is no valuable impact of company communication in cases of incidents. With news media variable, the results show a worsening effect with bad news and a mitigating effect with good news. It was proved that the impact of a response strategy is surpassed by news media. When there is absolute certainty of guilt for a given situation, it is more convenient for management to apologize, and when there is no certainty, there was no substantial difference, because in the mind of an investor the focus shifts to the event itself. The news media has been shown to have a huge impact on investor perception, even more so than a company’s best response strategy.