bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Traditional and local communities as key actors to identify climate-related disaster impacts: a citizen science approach in Southeast Brazilian coastal areas
Authors: Pereira Rafael Damasceno , Brazílio Lucas de Paula , Trejo-Rangel Miguel Angel , Duarte dos Santos Maurício , Silva Letícia Milene Bezerra , Souza Lilian Fraciele , Barbosa Ana Carolina Santana , de Oliveira Mario Ricardo , dos Santos Ronaldo , Sato Danilo Pereira , Iwama Allan Yu
Published: November 2023

The impacts of climate-related disasters can be estimated by climate models. However, climate models are frequently downscaled to specific settings to facilitate Disaster Risk Management (DRM) to better understand local impacts and avoid overlooking uncertainties. Several studies have registered the increasing importance of recognizing traditional knowledge, co-design, and collaboration with local communities in developing DRM strategies. The objective of this research was co-design local-scale observations with traditional and local communities to characterize their local context regarding the impacts of climate-related disasters. The citizen science approach coupled with participatory action research was conducted with two traditional communities in the Southeast of the Brazilian coast: Quilombo do Campinho da Independência in Paraty, Rio de Janeiro, and the Caiçara (artisanal fishing) community of Ubatumirim in Ubatuba, São Paulo. Working groups were organized with leaders to become community researchers, conducting interviews and actively mobilizing their communities. A structured questionnaire was developed, adapting 22 variables taken from the Protocol for the Collection of Cross-Cultural Comparative Data on Local Indicators of Climate Change Impacts—LICCI Protocol. A total of 366 impacts were analyzed, after combining the georeferencing form data collected—Survey123 (280 impacts) and the interviews with community leaders (86 impacts). The results showed a significant level of cohesion (α = 0.01) between the Caiçara (artisanal fishers) and Quilombola (Afro-descendants) perceptions of climate-related events associated with their subsistence practices and climate variability. These findings highlighting the importance of DRM proposals that recognize traditional peoples and local communities as frontline vulnerable populations while acknowledging their role as key actors in identifying impacts, collecting data on land use and territory, subsistence-oriented activities, and cosmovision. However, it is still necessary to address climate change challenges at different scales. To do this, it is crucial to promote cognitive justice though the recognition of the values of the memories, perceptions and local knowledge, by scaling up locally-driven observations that empower local communities to lead their own climate adaptation efforts.
Valvular and ascending aortic hemodynamics of the On-X aortic valved conduit by same-day echocardiography and 4D flow MRI
Authors: Lee Jeesoo , Huh Hyungkyu , Scott Michael B. , Elbaz Mohammed S. M. , Puthumana Jyothy J. , McCarthy Patrick , Malaisrie S. Christopher , Markl Michael , Thomas James D. , Barker Alex J.
Published: November 2023

This study aims to assess whether the On-X aortic valved conduit better restores normal valvular and ascending aortic hemodynamics than other commonly used bileaflet mechanical valved conduit prostheses from St. Jude Medical and Carbomedics by using same-day transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) and 4D flow magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examinations. TTE and 4D flow MRI were performed back-to-back in 10 patients with On-X, six patients with St. Jude (two) and Carbomedics (four) prostheses, and 36 healthy volunteers. TTE evaluated valvular hemodynamic parameters: transvalvular peak velocity (TPV), mean and peak transvalvular pressure gradient (TPG), and effective orifice area (EOA). 4D flow MRI evaluated the peak systolic 3D viscous energy loss rate (VELR) density and mean vorticity magnitude in the ascending aorta (AAo). While higher TPV and mean and peak TPG were recorded in all patients compared to healthy subjects, the values in On-X patients were closer to those in healthy subjects (TPV 1.9 ± 0.3 vs. 2.2 ± 0.3 vs. 1.2 ± 0.2 m/s, mean TPG 7.4 ± 1.9 vs. 9.2 ± 2.3 vs. 3.1 ± 0.9 mmHg, peak TPG 15.3 ± 5.2 vs. 18.9 ± 5.2 vs. 6.1 ± 1.8 mmHg, p < 0.001). Likewise, while higher VELR density and mean vorticity magnitude were recorded in all patients than in healthy subjects, the values in On-X patients were closer to those in healthy subjects (VELR: 50.6 ± 20.1 vs. 89.8 ± 35.2 vs. 21.4 ± 9.2 W/m3, p < 0.001) and vorticity (147.6 ± 30.0 vs. 191.2 ± 26.0 vs. 84.6 ± 20.5 s-1, p < 0.001). This study demonstrates that the On-X aortic valved conduit may produce less aberrant hemodynamics in the AAo while maintaining similar valvular hemodynamics to St. Jude Medical and Carbomedics alternatives.
In vitro drug interaction of ionophores with artemisinin and chloroquine against Plasmodium falciparum 3D7 blood-stage infection
Authors: Rajendran Vinoth , Gurukkalot Keerthana
Published: November 2023

The prevalence of clinical resistance of P. falciparum towards artemisinin and its partner drugs has significantly hampered malarial chemotherapy. To circumvent this situation, identifying a new class of partner drugs with significant anti-malarial efficacy and multi-stage activity can slow the development of resistance. This study demonstrates the potential interactions of carboxylic ionophores such as monensin (MON), maduramicin (MAD) or salinomycin (SAL) with standard antimalarial drugs artemisinin (ART) or chloroquine (CQ). The in vitro drug interactions were studied in P. falciparum 3D7 strain by a growth inhibition SYBR green 1 assay. The asynchronized parasites were exposed for 48 h in the presence of varying proportions of two drug concentrations using the modified fixed-ratio isobologram method. We determined the growth inhibition response and the sums of the fractional inhibitory concentrations (ΣFICs) of the following drug combinations (4:1, 3:2, 2:3, 1:4) and (1:1, 1:3, 3:1) were calculated for 50% inhibitory concentrations (IC50s). Combining artemisinin with monensin, maduramicin, or salinomycin showed significant additive interaction. A combination of chloroquine with monensin, maduramicin, or salinomycin showed slight synergism to additive interaction. None of the drug combinations displayed an antagonistic effect indicating ionophores usage in combination therapy to treat drug-resistant malarial infections.
Potential of paleoecology and paleolandscape modeling to identify pre-Colonial cultural burning in montane forests: case studies in California
Authors: Klimaszewski-Patterson Anna
Published: November 2023

Paleoecology and paleolandscape modeling have the potential to differentiate cultural burning from climatic fires, improving interpretations of past fire histories and vegetation resource management practices. People have conducted variations of traditional fire management to increase terrestrial resources for hundreds of millennia, commonly in fire-prone areas where vegetation is adapted to frequent fire events. Over time, these cultural fires influenced regrowth and led to an anthropogenically-modified landscape. For some non-agrarian, semi-nomadic societies, such as the pre-Colonial groups within what is now known as California, identifying anthropogenic landscapes is difficult because of a lack of domesticated plant remains in the environmental record to indicate where human impacts occurred. This paper uses case studies from the central and southern Sierra Nevada range in California to explore the potential of paleoecology, specifically pollen and sedimentary charcoal, and spatially-explicit paleolandscape modeling to identify and distinguish periods of cultural burning in mountainous forests to improve archaeological interpretations of human-fire dynamics. Specifically, I use climate-vegetation dynamics and cluster analysis to look at temporal relationships of change between sites. These case studies are ideal because (1) the region is naturally fire-prone, (2) study sites are typically well-dated and analyzed at a sub-centennial resolution, (3) study sites are associated with archaeological sites, and (4) indigenous groups were proto-agricultural, balanophagy societies known to practice cultural burning. These case study sites show a strong potential to identify periods of cultural burning that help better inform archaeological interpretations and show synchronous evidence for cultural burning during the Little Ice Age (1250-1850). Furthermore, these studies provide better dated timelines of human influence at each site than nearby archaeological studies, indicating that in certain locales, paleoecological studies with high temporal resolutions could be used to inform the timing of archaeological activities and shifts.
Computational aspects of the equivalent-layer technique: review
Authors: Oliveira Junior Vanderlei C. , Takahashi Diego , Reis André L. A. , Barbosa Valéria C. F.
Published: November 2023

Equivalent-layer technique is a powerful tool for processing potential-field data in the space domain. However, the greatest hindrance for using the equivalent-layer technique is its high computational cost for processing massive data sets. The large amount of computer memory usage to store the full sensitivity matrix combined with the computational time required for matrix-vector multiplications and to solve the resulting linear system, are the main drawbacks that made unfeasible the use of the equivalent-layer technique for a long time. More recently, the advances in computational power propelled the development of methods to overcome the heavy computational cost associated with the equivalent-layer technique. We present a comprehensive review of the computation aspects concerning the equivalent-layer technique addressing how previous works have been dealt with the computational cost of this technique. Historically, the high computational cost of the equivalent-layer technique has been overcome by using a variety of strategies such as: moving data-window scheme, column- and row-action updates of the sensitivity matrix, reparametrization, sparsity induction of the sensitivity matrix, iterative methods using the full sensitivity matrix, iterative deconvolution by using the concept of block-Toeplitz Toeplitz-block (BTTB) matrices and direct deconvolution. We compute the number of floating-point operations of some of these strategies adopted in the equivalent-layer technique to show their effectiveness in reducing the computational demand. Numerically, we also address the stability of some of these strategies used in the equivalent-layer technique by comparing with the stability via the classic equivalent-layer technique with the zeroth-order Tikhonov regularization. We show that even for the most computationally efficient methods, which can save up to 109 flops, the stability of the linear system is maintained. The two most efficient strategies, iterative and direct deconvolutions, can process large datasets quickly and yield good results. However, direct deconvolution has some drawbacks. Real data from Carajás Mineral Province, Brazil, is also used to validate the results showing a potential field transformation.
Cumulative live birth rate in mild versus conventional stimulation in progestin-primed ovarian stimulation protocols for individuals with low prognosis
Authors: Zhang Junwei , Du Mingze , Zhang Caihua , Wu Yanli , Guan Yichun
Published: November 2023

Objective

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cumulative live birth rate (CLBR) of mild stimulation and conventional stimulation for the low-prognosis population undergoing PPOS protocols.

Methods

This was a retrospective cohort study. We included women with a low prognosis. All women underwent PPOS protocols, and the starting gonadotropin (Gn) dose was 150 IU or 300 IU. The primary outcome measure was CLBR. The secondary outcome measures were the number of oocytes retrieved, number of 2PN oocytes and number of available embryos.

Results

In total, 171 women with mild stimulation and 1810 women with conventional stimulation met the criteria. In the PSM model, 171 mild stimulation cycles were matched with 513 conventional stimulation cycles. The gonadotropin dosage in the mild stimulation group was significantly lower than that in the conventional stimulation group (1878.6 ± 1065.7 vs. 2854.7 ± 821.0, P<0.001). The numbers of oocytes retrieved, 2PN oocytes, available embryos and high-quality embryos were also higher in the conventional stimulation group than in the mild stimulation group (P<0.05). There was no significant between-group difference in the cumulative clinical pregnancy rate (26.3% vs. 27.5%, P=0.77). The CLBR after mild stimulation was similar to that after conventional stimulation (21.1% vs. 22.0%, P=0.79).

Conclusion

In our study, we found that the CLBRs of mild stimulation and conventional stimulation were similar, despite conventional stimulation resulting in significantly more oocytes and embryos. Thus, mild stimulation can be considered an option for women with a low prognosis in PPOS protocols.
Following in Banting’s footsteps or straying from the path? Observations from contemporary diabetes innovation
Authors: Leadley Connor , Addala Ananta , Berkeley Juliet , Crocket Hamish , Davis Elizabeth A. , Hewapathirana Niranjala , Hussain Sufyan , Lal Rayhan , Lomax Kate , Wilkinson Thomas , de Bock Martin , Burckhardt Marie-Anne
Published: November 2023

While advancements in the treatment of diabetes continue to rapidly evolve, many of the newer technologies have financial barriers to care, opposing the egalitarian ethos of Banting who sold his patent on insulin for a nominal cost to allow it to be made widely available. Inequity in access to new therapies drives disparity in diabetes burden with potential for these gaps to widen in the future. The 2023 International Conference on Advanced Technologies and Treatments of Diabetes (ATTD) presented ground-breaking and current research in diabetes technology. Oral presentations of the ATTD conference 2023 were analyzed to describe what percentage of speakers discussed equity in their talks. Overall, less than a quarter of presenters discussed equity, though there was regional variation. To ensure that diabetes technologies reduce disparity and improve outcomes, we encourage future speakers at diabetes (technology) conferences to consider equity of diabetes care and incorporate this into their presentations.
Similarity preserving hashing for appliance identification based on V-I trajectory
Authors: Liu Xingqi , Liu Xuan , Zheng Angang , Chen Hao , Dou Jian
Published: November 2023

Non-intrusive load monitoring (NILM) is a technique used to monitor energy consumption in buildings without requiring hardware installation on individual appliances. This approach offers a cost-effective and scalable solution to enhance energy efficiency and reduce energy usage. Recent advancements in NILM primarily employ deep-learning algorithms for appliance identification. However, the substantial number of parameters in deep learning models presents challenges in quickly and effectively identifying appliances. An effective technique for appliance identification is analyzing the appliances’ voltage-current (V-I) trajectory signature. This research introduces a novel hashing method that learns compact binary codes to achieve highly efficient appliance V-I trajectory identification. Specifically, this paper uses a profound structure to acquire V-I trajectory image features by acquiring multi-level non-linear transformations. Subsequently, we merge these intermediary traits with high-level visual data from the uppermost layer to carry out the V-I trajectory image retrieval process. These condensed codes are subjected to three distinct standards: minimal loss in quantization, uniformly distributed binary components, and autonomous bits that are not interdependent. As a result, the network easily encodes newly acquired query V-I images for appliance identification by propagating them through the network and quantizing the network’s outputs into binary code representations. Through extensive experiments conducted on the PLAID dataset, we demonstrate the promising performance of our approach compared to state-of-the-art methods.
Study on MCFC-integrated GSCC systems with SEGR in parallel or series and CO2 capture
Authors: Bian Jing , Duan Liqiang
Published: November 2023

In this paper, two new molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC)-integrated gas–steam combined cycle (GSCC) systems with selective exhaust gas recirculation (SEGR) and CO2 capture are proposed and analyzed. The CO2 concentration in the gas turbine emission is increased because CO2 is selectively recycled with the help of SEGR. Molten carbonate fuel cells (MCFCs) are another way to increase CO2 concentration in the gas turbine flue gas by translating only CO2 from the cathode to the anode. In these two new gas–steam combined cycle systems, SEGR connected with MCFC, either in parallel or series, increases CO2 concentration beyond 11%. A gas–steam combined cycle system combined with MCFC and CO2 capture without SEGR is used as the reference system. Aspen Plus software is adopted to build the system models, and the performances of different systems are discussed and compared. The research results reveal that for the MCFC-integrated gas–steam combined cycle system with SEGR in series and CO2 capture, the CO2 concentration of gas turbine exhaust increases to 11.72% and the thermal efficiency is 56.29% when the overall CO2 capture rate is 88.16%, which is 1.13% higher than that of the reference system; for the MCFC-integrated gas–steam combined cycle system with SEGR in parallel and CO2 capture, the CO2 concentration of gas turbine exhaust increases to 14.15% and the thermal efficiency is 56.62%, which is 1.46% higher than that of the reference system. Furthermore, the economic analysis results show that the economic performances of new systems are mainly influenced by MCFC cost and will be gradually improved with the decrease in the MCFC cost.
Recent advances in the applications of machine learning methods for heat exchanger modeling—a review
Authors: Zou Junjia , Hirokawa Tomoki , An Jiabao , Huang Long , Camm Joseph
Published: November 2023

Heat exchanger modeling has been widely employed in recent years for performance calculation, design optimizations, real-time simulations for control analysis, as well as transient performance predictions. Among these applications, the model’s computational speed and robustness are of great interest, particularly for the purpose of optimization studies. Machine learning models built upon experimental or numerical data can contribute to improving the state-of-the-art simulation approaches, provided careful consideration is given to algorithm selection and implementation, to the quality of the database, and to the input parameters and variables. This comprehensive review covers machine learning methods applied to heat exchanger applications in the last 8 years. The reviews are generally categorized based on the types of heat exchangers and also consider common factors of concern, such as fouling, thermodynamic properties, and flow regimes. In addition, the limitations of machine learning methods for heat exchanger modeling and potential solutions are discussed, along with an analysis of emerging trends. As a regression classification tool, machine learning is an attractive data-driven method to estimate heat exchanger parameters, showing a promising prediction capability. Based on this review article, researchers can choose appropriate models for analyzing and improving heat exchanger modeling.
The water tap design for ablution activities considering cultural influences: a design for sustainability
Authors: Ghazali Ihwan , Padzil Nur Wardah Sufina , Mohamad Effendi Bin , Al-Mashjari Layla Ahmed , Irianto Irianto , Herawan Safarudin Gazali
Published: November 2023

Water is a vital resource that should be utilized effectively. However, it is overused and squandered on a daily need, including the unrestrained use of water for ablution purposes. This condition can be due to a lack of awareness and the influences of peer cultural values. Therefore, the aim of this study is to develop a water-tap design that takes into consideration the influences of cultural value. Accordingly, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling (SEM) approach the significant correlation between cultural influences and user preferences on water-tap design by referring at the critical threshold output of each attribute. The result showed that collectivism and uncertainty avoidance dimensions were identified as the influencing cultural dimensions and the automatic water level-control float valve, mechanical water-taps with auto-stop function, and transparent water tanks are the most important considerations for water tap technical specification. Through the assessment of its applicability, the use of the prototype can reduce water usage by 54.6% compared to regular water-taps. Correspondingly, the approach of cultural value in the designing process is expected to give more insights to practices such as product designers when determining design specification while for knowledge, it extends the applicability of Hofstede cultural theory for product design and development.
Evolution of terrestrial herbivory: nutrient stoichiometry, body size, and dietary diversity
Authors: Boyce C. Kevin
Published: November 2023

Direct fossil preservation of leaf damage, arthropod mouthparts, and vertebrate teeth has understandably led to a focus on oral processing of plant material when considering the evolution of herbivory in deep time. Here, nutrient stoichiometry is advocated as an important alternative constraint on the evolution of herbivory. Most life possesses C:N ratios of approximately 7:1, but uniquely among land plants, that ratio can be skewed to 1,000:1 in some tissues due to the abundance of cell wall structural polymers that lack nitrogen entirely. Since the superabundance of carbon is unevenly distributed between and within plant organs and tissues, avoidance is a viable strategy for herbivores, but availability is dependent on herbivore body size. Sub-millimeter herbivores can attack plants cell-by-cell, avoiding cell wall consumption entirely in favor of cell contents, thereby presenting little stoichiometric distinction between herbivory and consumption of animals, fungi, or unicellular life. Insect-sized herbivory at least allows avoidance of the most carbon-rich/nutrient-poor tissues within a plant organ. However, vertebrate sizes prevent such selectivity. The increasing challenges of nutrient stoichiometry with increasing herbivore body size are recapitulated through time in the fossil record. The first herbivores were microherbivores that can avoid cell wall consumption—present already with their first opportunity for fossil preservation in the Early Devonian. Tissue-specific consumption by insect herbivores followed in the Carboniferous. One hundred fifty million years would pass after the first microherbivory record before vertebrate herbivory would reach its modern prevalence.
Influence of aspect on vegetation dynamics: insights into the understory vegetation diversity of the dry temperate forests of South Waziristan Agency, Pakistan
Authors: Khan Imran , Zahid Din Muhammad , Zubair Muhammad , Manzoor Syed Amir , Yasin Ghulam , Mohammad Mamoona Wali , Khan Khalid Ali , Rahman Shafeeq Ur , Qin Anzhen
Published: November 2023

The dry temperate forests of Pakistan exhibit rich diversity of understory floral species. These important and endemic plant species play a pivotal role in ecosystem functioning and providing livelihoods to the forest communities. South Waziristan, located in the southwest of Pakistan, is known for its rare pure stands of Pinus gerardiana Wallichex. D. Don forests. The rapidly expanding population and current state of affairs are leading to deforestation and causing disturbance to the understory vegetation of this valuable forest. The current study aims to fill the currently scanty information present in the literature regarding the diversity status of understory vegetation in P. gerardiana forests. Data of understory vegetation diversity were gathered for the northern and southern aspects of the forest. A 50 m2 sampling plot along with the placement of fifty 1x1m2 quadrats on both sites were laid out to determine species dominance, diversity, and evenness using Simpson, Shanon, Marglef, and Buzas–Gibson indices. The study depicted 612 individuals of about 29 species representing 23 families from the study site. The most abundant species in all of the sites was Salvia Glutinosa cccIV = 0.52. The southern aspect depicted the lowest diversity, but had high species dominance. Allium carolinianum DC. in this site was the most important species (IV = 0.74). The most abundant species were medicinal plants (75%), followed by edible plants (25%). Aspect had a significant effect on the understory vegetation and different categories of plants with respect to their diversity, dominance, and evenness as predicted by the various diversity indices. This study provides essential insight in to the florisitic diversity and community structure of the fragile pine nut understory vegetation in South Waziristan, which was hitherto not available. It was concluded that the southern aspect of understudy dry temperate forests depicted lower diversity and density as compared with the northern aspect. But it was observed that the southern aspect more specifically had more density and diversity of medicinal plants. It is therefore the need of the hour that conservation of these species from grazing and unsustainable harvesting must be ensured to sustain the livelihood of the inhabitants.
RNA interference of Aspergillus flavus in response to Aspergillus flavus partitivirus 1 infection
Authors: Jiang Yinhui , Liu Xiang , Tian Xun , Zhou Jianhong , Wang Qinrong , Wang Bi , Yu Wenfeng , Jiang Yanping , Hsiang Tom , Qi Xiaolan
Published: November 2023

RNA interference (RNAi) is one of the important defense responses against viral infection, but its mechanism and impact remain unclear in mycovirus infections. In our study, reverse genetics and virus-derived small RNA sequencing were used to show the antiviral responses of RNAi components in Aspergillus flavus infected with Aspergillus flavus partitivirus 1 (AfPV1). qRT-PCR revealed that AfPV1 infection induced the expression of the RNAi components in A. flavus compared with noninfected A. flavus. Knock mutants of each RNAi component were generated, but the mutants did not exhibit any obvious phenotypic changes compared with the A. flavus parental strain. However, after AfPV1 inoculation, production of AfPV1 was significantly less than in the parental strain. Furthermore, sporulation was greater in each AfPV1-infected mutant compared with the AfPV1-infected parental A. flavus. We also investigated the sensitivity of virus-free and AfPV1-infected RNAi mutants and the parental strain to cell wall stress, osmotic stress, genotoxic stress, and oxidative stress. The mutants of DCLs and AGOs infected by AfPV1 displayed more changes than RDRP mutants in response to the first three stresses. Small RNA sequencing analysis suggested that AfPV1 infection reduced the number of unique reads of sRNA in A. flavus, although there were many vsiRNA derived from the AfPV1 genome. GO term and KEGG pathway analyses revealed that the functions of sRNA affected by AfPV1 infection were closely related to vacuole production. These results provide a better understanding of the functional role of RNAi in the impact of AfPV1 on the hypovirulence of A. flavus.
Diversity of classic and novel human astrovirus in outpatient children with acute gastroenteritis in Shanghai, China
Authors: Lu Lijuan , Zhong Huaqing , Xu Menghua , Jia Ran , Liu Pengcheng , Su Liyun , Cao Lingfeng , Zhu Xunhua , Xu Jin
Published: November 2023

Introduction

Human astrovirus (HAstV) is an important pathogen of acute gastroenteritis (AGE) in children. This study was aimed at investigating the diversity and epidemiology of classic and novel HAstV in outpatient children aged 0–16 years old with AGE in Shanghai.

Methods

From May 2020 to December 2022, a total of 1,482 stool samples were collected from children diagnosed as AGE from the Children’s Hospital of Fudan University. HAstV was identified using pan-astrovirus consensus primers by Reverse transcription PCR.

Results

During the study period, 3.3% (49/1,482) of specimens were identified as HAstV, with a detection rate of 2.5% (37/1,482) for classic HAstV and 0.8% (12/1,482) for novel HAstV. Among the 12 novel HAstV strains, 11 (91.7%) belonged to the HAstV-MLB and 1 (8.3%) was HAstV-VA. Genotyping revealed six circulating genotypes. Strain HAstV-1 was predominant in the study population with a detection rate of 1.8% (26/1,482) followed by HAstV-MLB1 (0.7%, 10/1,482) and HAstV-4 (0.6%, 9/1,482). Of note, all the HAstV-4 strains detected in this study were close to one astrovirus strain isolated from Bactrian camels with 99.0-100.0% amino acid sequences identity. In this study, HAstV was detected in all age groups with the highest detection rate of HAstV-positive specimens observed in children older than 73 months (5.7%, 12/209).

Discussion

This study provided useful information and contributed to the molecular epidemiology of both classic and novel HAstV, which were simultaneously characterized and reported for the first time in Shanghai.
Effect of Curcumin gel on inflammatory and anti-inflammatory biomarkers in experimental induced periodontitis in rats: a biochemical and immunological study
Authors: Mohammad Chenar Anwar , Ali Khadeeja Mohammed , Sha Aram Mohammed , Gul Sarhang Sarwat
Published: November 2023

This study aimed to determine the effect of local application of curcumin gels as adjunct to scaling and root planing (SRP) on the inflammatory biomarkers matrix metalloproteinase-8 (MMP-8), interleukin-6 (IL-6), C-reactive protein (CRP), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and the anti-inflammatory biomarker interleukin-10 (IL-10) in rats with experimentally induced periodontitis. Fifty-five adult Wistar rats with experimentally induced periodontitis were randomly divided into four groups: 15 rats received SRP + curcumin gel (CU), 15 rats received SRP + Tetracycline gel (Tet), 15 rats were treated with SRP alone, and 5 rats had experimental periodontitis without treatment (EP). Five systemically healthy rats without experimental periodontitis were used as the controls. Blood samples were collected by cardiac puncture from all groups after 2, 4, and 6 weeks of therapy. Biomarker levels determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and, ANOVA were used to compare the study groups. The results showed a significant increase in pro-inflammatory biomarkers and a significant decrease in anti-inflammatory biomarkers in the EP group compared with the control group (p< 0.05). The local application of curcumin or tetracycline gels resulted in a significant reduction in all inflammatory biomarkers at all periods of examination compared to the EP group. IL-10 levels gradually increased after 2 weeks, peaked at 4 weeks, and then decreased after 6 weeks, however, Tet showed statistically significant improvement compared to CU (p< 0.05). Adjunctive application of CU gel was as effective as Tet gel in the treatment of EP in rats by reducing inflammatory biomarkers and enhancing anti-inflammatory cytokines.
Elucidating the causal association between gut microbiota and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma through Mendelian randomization analysis
Authors: Chen Zhitao , Shi Weiguang , Chen Kailei , Lu Chicheng , Li Xinyuan , Li Qiyong
Published: November 2023

Background

Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) is an aggressive liver cancer with poor prognosis. The gut microbiota has been linked to ICC, but evidence for causality is lacking. Elucidating causal gut microbiota-ICC links could inform prevention and treatment strategies.

Materials and methods

We performed a bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) study to investigate causal associations between gut microbiota and ICC risk. Genome-wide significant single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with gut microbiota abundances were utilized as instrumental variables (IVs). Multiple methods assessed causality and sensitivity analyses evaluated result robustness. Bioinformatics analysis of genetic loci linked to gut microbiota and ICC examined potential mechanisms.

Results

Genetically predicted increases in Veillonellaceae, Alistipes, Enterobacteriales, and Firmicutes were suggestively associated with higher ICC risk, while increases in Anaerostipes, Paraprevotella, Parasutterella, and Verrucomicrobia appeared protective. Bioinformatics analysis revealed differentially expressed genes near gut microbiota-associated loci may influence ICC through regulating pathways and tumor immune microenvironment.

Conclusion

Our findings provide suggestive evidence for causal links between specific gut microbiota and ICC risk.
A nomogram to predict the treatment benefit of perampanel in drug-resistant epilepsy patients
Authors: Zhu Chaofeng , Li Juan , Wei Dazhu , Wu Luyan , Zhang Yuying , Huang Huapin , Lin Wanhui
Published: November 2023

Objective

The objective of this study was to identify the factors that affect the efficacy of added perampanel for the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE), and to develop a reliable nomogram to predict the benefit of this addition.

Methods

A retrospective clinical analysis was conducted on DRE patients who received perampanel treatment and who were followed up for at least 6 months from January 2020 and September 2023 at the Epilepsy Center of Fujian Medical University Union Hospital. Data from January 2020 to December 2021 were used as development dataset to build model, while the data from January 2022 to September 2023 were used as validation dataset for internal validation. The predictive factors that affected the efficacy of perampanel as DRE treatment were included in the final multivariate logistic regression model, and a derived nomogram was established.

Results

A total of 119 DRE patients who received perampanel treatment were included in this study (development datasets: n = 76; validation data: n = 43). Among them, 72.3% (n = 86) showed a 50% or greater reduction in seizure frequency after perampanel treatment. Of all the parameters of interest, sex, age, history of generalized tonic-clonic seizures, and the number of antiseizure medications were identified as significant predictors for estimating the benefit of adding perampanel for the treatment of DRE. A model incorporating these four variables was developed, and a nomogram was constructed to calculate the probability of benefit of adding perampanel using the model coefficients. The C-index of the predictive model was 0.838, and the validation C-index was 0.756. The goodness-of-fit test showed good calibration of the model (p = 0.920, 0.752 respectively).

Conclusion

The proposed nomogram has significant clinical potential for predicting the probability of benefit of perampanel as DRE treatment. This nomogram can be used to identify DRE patients who could benefit from the early addition of perampanel to their treatment regimen.
Transcriptional changes in the rat brain induced by repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation
Authors: Weiler Marina , Stieger Kevin C. , Shroff Kavisha , Klein Jessie P. , Wood William H. , Zhang Yongqing , Chandrasekaran Prabha , Lehrmann Elin , Camandola Simonetta , Long Jeffrey M. , Mattson Mark P. , Becker Kevin G. , Rapp Peter R.
Published: November 2023

Introduction

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) is a noninvasive technique that uses pulsed magnetic fields to affect the physiology of the brain and central nervous system. Repetitive TMS (rTMS) has been used to study and treat several neurological conditions, but its complex molecular basis is largely unexplored.

Methods

Utilizing three experimental rat models (in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo) and employing genome-wide microarray analysis, our study reveals the extensive impact of rTMS treatment on gene expression patterns.

Results

These effects are observed across various stimulation protocols, in diverse tissues, and are influenced by time and age. Notably, rTMS-induced alterations in gene expression span a wide range of biological pathways, such as glutamatergic, GABAergic, and anti-inflammatory pathways, ion channels, myelination, mitochondrial energetics, multiple neuron-and synapse-specific genes.

Discussion

This comprehensive transcriptional analysis induced by rTMS stimulation serves as a foundational characterization for subsequent experimental investigations and the exploration of potential clinical applications.
Case Report: Lymphodepletion followed by CAR-T cell therapy with Idecabtagen vicleucel in a patient with severe renal impairment
Authors: Marquard Franziska , Langebrake Claudia , Janson Dietlinde , Mahmud Maida , Dadkhah Adrin , Kröger Nicolaus , Ayuk Francis
Published: November 2023

Acute kidney injury and chronic kidney disease is common in multiple myeloma. Fludarabine which is part of lymphodepletion before CAR-T cell therapy is renally eliminated and its use is not recommended for patients with severe renal impairment defined as a glomerular filtration rate below 30ml/min/1.73m2. We administered fludarabine to a 58-year-old female patient with myeloma-associated severe renal impairment as part of lymphodepletion before Idecabtagen vicleucel infusion. Fludarabine was administered in reduced dose (15mg/m2) and cyclophosphamide with a dose of 300mg/m2 followed by hemodialysis over six hours using a larger filter (FX-100). The therapy was well tolerated with excellent CAR-T cell expansion and complete remission which is ongoing now beyond 12 months.
Performance evaluation of metaheuristics-tuned recurrent neural networks for electroencephalography anomaly detection
Authors: Pilcevic Dejan , Djuric Jovicic Milica , Antonijevic Milos , Bacanin Nebojsa , Jovanovic Luka , Zivkovic Miodrag , Dragovic Miroslav , Bisevac Petar
Published: November 2023

Electroencephalography (EEG) serves as a diagnostic technique for measuring brain waves and brain activity. Despite its precision in capturing brain electrical activity, certain factors like environmental influences during the test can affect the objectivity and accuracy of EEG interpretations. Challenges associated with interpretation, even with advanced techniques to minimize artifact influences, can significantly impact the accurate interpretation of EEG findings. To address this issue, artificial intelligence (AI) has been utilized in this study to analyze anomalies in EEG signals for epilepsy detection. Recurrent neural networks (RNNs) are AI techniques specifically designed to handle sequential data, making them well-suited for precise time-series tasks. While AI methods, including RNNs and artificial neural networks (ANNs), hold great promise, their effectiveness heavily relies on the initial values assigned to hyperparameters, which are crucial for their performance for concrete assignment. To tune RNN performance, the selection of hyperparameters is approached as a typical optimization problem, and metaheuristic algorithms are employed to further enhance the process. The modified hybrid sine cosine algorithm has been developed and used to further improve hyperparameter optimization. To facilitate testing, publicly available real-world EEG data is utilized. A dataset is constructed using captured data from healthy and archived data from patients confirmed to be affected by epilepsy, as well as data captured during an active seizure. Two experiments have been conducted using generated dataset. In the first experiment, models were tasked with the detection of anomalous EEG activity. The second experiment required models to segment normal, anomalous activity as well as detect occurrences of seizures from EEG data. Considering the modest sample size (one second of data, 158 data points) used for classification models demonstrated decent outcomes. Obtained outcomes are compared with those generated by other cutting-edge metaheuristics and rigid statistical validation, as well as results’ interpretation is performed.
Agrobacterium rhizogenes: paving the road to research and breeding for woody plants
Authors: Ying Wei , Wen Guangchao , Xu Wenyuan , Liu Haixia , Ding Wona , Zheng Luqing , He Yi , Yuan Huwei , Yan Daoliang , Cui Fuqiang , Huang Jianqin , Zheng Bingsong , Wang Xiaofei
Published: November 2023

Woody plants play a vital role in global ecosystems and serve as valuable resources for various industries and human needs. While many woody plant genomes have been fully sequenced, gene function research and biotechnological breeding advances have lagged behind. As a result, only a limited number of genes have been elucidated, making it difficult to use newer tools such as CRISPR-Cas9 for biotechnological breeding purposes. The use of Agrobacterium rhizogenes as a transformative tool in plant biotechnology has received considerable attention in recent years, particularly in the research field on woody plants. Over the past three decades, numerous woody plants have been effectively transformed using A. rhizogenes-mediated techniques. Some of these transformed plants have successfully regenerated. Recent research on A. rhizogenes-mediated transformation of woody plants has demonstrated its potential for various applications, including gene function analysis, gene expression profiling, gene interaction studies, and gene regulation analysis. The introduction of the Ri plasmid has resulted in the emergence of several Ri phenotypes, such as compact plant types, which can be exploited for Ri breeding purposes. This review paper presents recent advances in A. rhizogenes-mediated basic research and Ri breeding in woody plants. This study highlights various aspects of A. rhizogenes-mediated transformation, its multiple applications in gene function analysis, and the potential of Ri lines as valuable breeding materials
Empirical insights into industrial policy’s influence on phytoprotection innovation
Authors: Zhang Yangxun , Li Shaoqiang , Wu Fengyun
Published: November 2023

Intelligent Phytoprotection is an important direction for the modern development of plant protection related disciplines, and its essence is the innovative application of new generation information technology industry, high-end equipment manufacturing industry, and digital industry related technologies in the traditional plant protection field. This article first identifies 224 International Patent Classification (IPC) Main groups in the field of intelligent phytoprotection technology based on the International Patent Classification System. And then combines with China’s industrial policy practice, we explore the impact of industrial policy on the application number of invention patents in the field of intelligent phytoprotection technology using the Difference-in-difference (DID) method and the Synthetic DID method. The study results showed that the implementation of industrial policy can significantly promote the patent application activities in the intelligent phytoprotection treatment group, with an average increase of 517 invention patent applications compared to the control group that is not affected by the policy. The research conclusion of this article suggests that for countries and regions, industrial policies are an important tool for promoting the innovation and development of intelligent phytoprotection related technologies.
Epidemiology of classic psychedelic substances: results from a Norwegian internet convenience sample
Authors: Kvam Tor-Morten , Uthaug Malin V. , Andersen Kristoffer A. A. , Refsum Birk Berggrav , Tunstad Paula Aarseth , Stewart Lowan Han , Jacobsen Henrik Børsting , Grønnerød Cato
Published: November 2023

Objective

In recent years, there has been a renewed interest in investigating the use of classic psychedelics such as psilocybin and lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) in the treatment of mental disorders and substance use disorders. However, knowledge about the epidemiology of classic psychedelics in the Nordic countries is limited.

Methods

We recruited adult, Norwegian participants who have had a memorable experience after taking a classic psychedelic substance. They filled in an anonymous internet survey with 119 items covering matters related to recreational use of psychedelics using a secure, web-based application. Data are presented by using descriptive statistics (frequencies, means, and standard deviations).

Results

We recruited 841 participants, 770 (72% male; 88% 45 years or younger) of which were included in the data analysis. The intentions behind taking the psychedelic substance were mainly recreational (46.1%) or therapeutic (42.3%). Most participants reported that their most memorable experience was with psilocybin. As in modern era clinical trials, most participants were well-prepared before, did processing during, and did integration work after the experience, whereas only a minority were supported by a therapist. Self-perceived symptoms of various mental disorders and substance use disorders were prevalent in the sample. Most subjects reported improvements in their condition. Although adverse reactions were usually mild and short-lived, 4.2% lasted for 1 year or more. Persisting flashbacks were present for a year or more among 2.9% of the participants.

Conclusion

In this cross-sectional sample of Norwegian, self-selecting adults, we shed light on what characterizes the most memorable experience with a classic psychedelic substance, including short- and long-term risks and benefits. For the most part, the psychedelic experience led to improvements in self-perceived symptoms of mental disorders and substance use disorders. However, a small subset experienced persisting adverse reactions.