bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Systems Thinking Approach for Community Health and Wellbeing
Authors: Morgan Michelle J. , Stratford Elaine , Harpur Siobhan , Rowbotham Samantha
Published: May 2023

Under national or state-based legislation, local governments are commonly required to prepare municipal health and wellbeing plans. Yet, the issues these plans aim to address are often complex, and programmatic planning approaches traditionally used by practitioners struggle to engage with such complexity as they assume these issues can be ‘solved’ in isolation. Systems thinking is increasingly being used as an approach to deal with those struggles more effectively, yet little is known about whether local governments and other stakeholders think systems approaches are feasible and acceptable in practice. This study tested a systems thinking approach to gauge if it could better address complex place-based health and wellbeing issues, such as to reduce noncommunicable diseases. Guided by a systems change framework, the approach comprised a facilitated systemic inquiry and rich picture process involving diverse stakeholders in a remote municipality in the Australian state of Tasmania. Among the participants there was broad support for the systems approach tested and they thought it was effective for increasing systems thinking capacity, collaboratively revealing systemic issues, and identifying opportunities to address those issues. They valued the rich picture because it created shared understandings of local issues. The findings suggest more is needed from macro-level policy to support place-based stakeholders to undertake systems approaches in practice, which could result in more sustainable and effective systems change required to improve health and wellbeing outcomes. The findings have implications for theory, research, and practice across interdisciplinary fields concerned with placed-based systems change, especially in rural and remote municipalities.
Advice as a Form of Structural Coupling: Intersystem Organizations and Scientific Communication in the Japanese Response to COVID-19
Authors: Sakai Kosuke
Published: May 2023

A critical issue in the study of scientific communication from a systems theoretical perspective is its role in multiple intersystem relationships. During COVID-19, politics has adopted scientific findings to inform political decisions. However, science has in response actively coordinated its operations for providing desired stimuli to politics. Luhmann identified advice as a form of structural coupling that links political and scientific systems. Advice is not a monolithic intervention by which one side acts on the other but is rather an interface that enables the two systems to relate through distancing. In this article, I empirically illustrate how the structural coupling of the political system and scientific system through advice manifests itself in an examination of the roles that various organizations (expert meeting and cluster task forces) have played in Japan’s response to COVID-19. Through this analysis, I provide a theoretical insight regarding these organizations and a more detailed case analysis of the transformation of certain organizations to re-describe the system theoretical insights of advice in the form of scientific communication between politics and science.
Agamemnon at Aulis: On the Right and Wrong Sorts of Imaginative Identification
Authors: Chappell Sophie-Grace
Published: May 2023

Williams’ discussion of dilemmas in his classic paper “Ethical consistency” famously focuses on an example that has not bothered commentators on and respondents to Williams as much as it should have bothered them: the example of Agamemnon in Aeschylus’ play. In this paper I try to pick apart what Williams wants to say from what is really going on in the text that he unfortunately chooses for his example. I compare with Williams’ discussion of Agamemnon four other commentators on this crucial passage in Aeschylus’ play: Plato, Socrates, Aristotle—and Bernard Williams’ Greats tutor Eduard Fraenkel, whose epochal Corpus Christi seminars on the play Williams attended (along with Iris Murdoch, Hugh Lloyd Jones, and other rising stars of the time). I shall argue that these commentators led Williams astray. They are surprisingly prone to the same flaws of rationalism, impersonality, and moralism in making sense of Aeschylus’ extraordinarily subtle and brilliant depiction of Agamemnon; and Williams’ discussion inherits these flaws. This is an obviously ironic fact, especially given that a very fruitful reading of the passage—one that I think makes much better sense of what Aeschylus actually says—points a deeply Williamsian moral. It takes Agamemnon at Aulis as a study of a key step in the corruption of a character, a study that gets its power and its horror from its ability to show us how that process looks from Agamemnon’s own viewpoint.
Addressing Water Meter Inaccuracies Caused By Intermittent Water Supply: A Laboratory Investigation of Remedial Measures
Authors: Ferrante Marco , Rogers Dewi , Mugabi Josses , Casinini Francesco
Published: May 2023

The interruption of supply in water distribution systems is a common management practice particularly prevalent in developing countries. Upon reopening, the air is expelled through user service pipes, which causes over-reading and seriously impacts the water meter reliability. This paper aims to assess by laboratory tests the effects of air flow on water meter performance by laboratory tests, using a set-up with diameters comparable to those of real water systems. The improvements introduced by applying unmeasured-flow reducer and air valves at different locations are also tested. The relevance of the results of the laboratory activity for practical applications is discussed, both for reducing the over-reading and improving the reliability of the water meters.
Evolutionary stasis: creationism, evolution and climate change in the Accelerated Christian Education curriculum
Authors: Scaramanga Jenna , Reiss Michael J.
Published: May 2023

There has been little consideration in the science education literature of schools or curricula that advocate creationism. Accelerated Christian Education (ACE) is among the world’s largest providers of creationist science materials with a curriculum divided into a system of workbooks which students complete at their own speed. This article examines the ways in which ACE presents particular areas of science that it considers to be contentious, namely evolution and climate change. The ACE curriculum has recently been rewritten, and we show that, like previous editions, the current curriculum relies on rote memorisation to the exclusion of other styles of learning, and that information presented is often misleading or distorted. Religious explanations of natural phenomena are sometimes given in place of scientific ones, and creationist assumptions are inserted into lessons not directly related to evolution or the Big Bang. Those who reject creationism are depicted as making an immoral choice. ACE’s recent curricula also add material denying the role of humans in climate change. It is argued that both the teaching methods and content of the ACE curriculum place students at an educational disadvantage.
Intestinal Disaccharidase Deficiency in Adults: Evaluation and Treatment
Authors: Viswanathan Lavanya , Rao Satish SC
Published: May 2023

Purpose of Review

Disaccharidase deficiency in adults causes carbohydrate malabsorption, resulting in symptoms which significantly overlap with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). This article discusses the diagnosis and treatment of disaccharidase deficiency within the context of recent literature.

Recent Findings

Disaccharidase deficiency in adults is more common than previously thought, which includes lactase, sucrase, maltase and isomaltase enzymes. Deficiency in disaccharidases, which are produced by the intestinal brush border, will interfere with the breakdown and absorption of carbohydrates and may result in abdominal pain, gas, bloating and diarrhea. Patients deficient in all 4 disaccharidases are known as having “pan-disaccharidase” deficiency, which has a distinct phenotype with more reported weight loss than patients deficient in one enzyme. IBS patients who do not respond to low FODMAP dietary restriction may have undiagnosed disaccharidase deficiency and may benefit from testing. Diagnostic testing methods are limited to duodenal biopsies, which is the gold standard, and breath testing. Dietary restriction and enzyme replacement therapy have been shown to be effective treatments in these patients.

Disaccharidase deficiency is an underdiagnosed condition in adults with chronic GI symptoms. Patients who do not respond to traditional treatment strategies for DBGI may benefit from testing for disaccharidase deficiency. Further studies delineating the distinctions between disaccharidase deficient patients and those with other motility disorders are needed.
MINOCA and INOCA: Role in Heart Failure
Authors: Almeida Ana G.
Published: May 2023

Purpose of Review

Infarction (MINOCA) and ischaemia (INOCA) with non-obstructive coronary disease are recent non-conventional presentations of coronary syndromes that are increasingly recognised in the clinical arena, particularly with the availability of new cardiovascular imaging techniques. Both are related to heart failure (HF). MINOCA is not associated with benign outcomes, and HF is among the most prevalent events. Regarding INOCA, microvascular dysfunction has also been found to associate with HF, particularly with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF).

Recent Findings

Regardless of the several aetiologies underlying HF in MINOCA, it is likely related to LV dysfunction, where secondary prevention is not yet clearly established. Regarding INOCA, coronary microvascular ischaemia has been associated to endothelial dysfunction leading ultimately to diastolic dysfunction and HFpEF.

MINOCA and INOCA are clearly related to HF. In both, there is a lack of studies on the identification of the risk factors for HF, diagnostic workup and, importantly, the appropriate primary and secondary prevention strategies.
An exploratory psychometric network analysis of loneliness scales in a sample of older adults
Authors: Thompson Alexandra , Pollet Thomas V.
Published: May 2023

To examine the relationships within and between commonly used measures of loneliness to determine the suitability of the measures in older adults. Further, to determine whether certain items in these measures are more psychometrically robust in terms of capturing different types of loneliness across this population. Data were obtained from 350 older adults via completion of an online survey. Four measures of loneliness were completed. These were the University of California Los Angeles Loneliness Scale 4 (Version 3), the de Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale, the Social and Emotional Loneliness Scale for Adults (Short Version) and a direct measure of loneliness. Analysis via a regularized partial correlation network and via clique percolation revealed that only the SELSA-S encompassed loneliness relating to deficits in social, family and romantic relationships. The remaining measures tapped mostly into social loneliness alone. The direct measure of loneliness had the strongest connection to the UCLA item-4 and the de Jong Gierveld item-1 exhibited the strongest bridge centrality, being a member of the most clusters. The results indicate that should researchers be interested in assessing loneliness resulting from specific relationships, then the SELSA-S would be the most suitable measure. Whereas the other measures are suitable for assessing loneliness more generally. The results further suggest that the de Jong Gierveld item-1 may be a more suitable direct measure of loneliness than that currently employed as it taps into a greater number of relationships.
Macrofauna Community Dynamics and Food Webs in the Canopy-forming Macroalgae and the Associated Detrital Subsidies
Authors: Kahma T. I. , Norkko A. , Rodil I. F.
Published: May 2023

Dietary variability and the degradation and incorporation of macroalgae in key macroinvertebrate consumers were examined (1) in a monitoring field study including a natural attached canopy habitat and an adjacent habitat receiving natural accumulations of detritus, and (2) in a manipulative in situ experiment of macroalgal detritus at two different depths (3 and 6 m) in the archipelago of SW Finland. The monitoring field study, examining species-specific dietary responses across three sampling dates in natural macroalgal stands, showed that a pulse of drifting filamentous macroalgae shaped the dietary compositions of the abundant benthic macroinvertebrate consumers and that accumulations of drifting filamentous macroalgae were rapidly incorporated into the food web through epigrazers. The in situ field experiment simulating a natural accumulation event and the degradation process of Fucus vesiculosus during 60 days showed that algal decomposition progressed relatively slowly at both depths. Detectable increasing incorporation of Fucus-derived matter to epigrazers and detritivorous bivalves occurred after 2−3 weeks, while simultaneously the incorporation of filamentous algae decreased over time. Hence, the ecological role of decomposing F. vesiculosus might be more important in areas where the algal matter can accumulate for several months. The effect of depth influenced the food incorporation of typical epigrazers. The increasing depth from 3 to 6 m lowered the median proportion of Fucus-derived matter incorporated into the macrofauna community approximately by 10% points compared to the shallower depth of 3 m.
A stochastic optimization approach for optimal Tail Assignment with knowledge-based predictive maintenance
Authors: Glomb Lukas , Liers Frauke , Rösel Florian
Published: May 2023

Recent developments in the field of data analysis offer enormous potential to derive predictions of future aircraft maintenance necessities from observable aircraft attributes. This procedure is called Predictive Maintenance. The Predictive Maintenance generates considerable business benefits compared to alternatives like reactive or preventive maintenance for various reasons. Nevertheless, recognizing a maintenance necessity is only the first step, since the execution of the maintenance action has to fit into the airlines operational schedule. An essential step to realize financial benefits is to integrate Predictive Maintenance into the airlines optimization processes. To contribute to this task, we expand a well-known Tail Assignment model for the assignment of a potentially heterogeneous fleet of aircraft to a schedule of flights by a number of part failure scenarios. This results in a stochastic mixed integer linear optimization program, for which an optimization algorithm with solution guarantees is developed. This optimization algorithm is based on Benders Decomposition, which is concretized for the Tail Assignment problem and optimized for this task. Using this algorithm, a large proportion of the recovery costs for almost all instances tested is saved. The algorithm solves all instances in a reasonable amount of time. The algorithm uses a state-of-the-art mixed-integer linear solver, implementing a decomposition-based solution procedure for stochastic programs, called the L-shaped method. To demonstrate the potential of the approach, we benchmark our results using four strategies, motivated by commonly used preventive, reactive and passive approaches. Our approach leads to considerable cost savings when compared to each of the four benchmark approaches. The algorithms are tested on a set of instances with up to 80 flights based on a pre-pandemic schedule of a larger German airline. To the best of our knowledge, this article presents the first attempt to implement an exact optimization approach integrating malfunction predictions of the form presented into a Tail Assignment model.
An Efficient Design and Control Techniques of Photo-Voltaic Pumping System (PVPS)
Authors: Ammar Hossam Hassan , Mahmoud Mohamed I. , Azar Ahmad Taher , Shalaby Raafat
Published: May 2023

In this paper, new methods for increasing the efficiency of photovoltaic pumping systems are presented (PVPS). A feasible implementation of battery-free PVPS, as well as a cost-effective design, has been proposed. The variation of the PV power causes its behaviour to transit permanently between the characteristics of constant current sources and constant voltage sources, which is studied in this paper from a new perspective. The inconsistency of PV generator behaviour reveals an unexpected phenomenon in the operation of induction motors (IM). To overcome the effects of fluctuating PV behaviour on IM operation, a modified fractional order MPPT controller (FO-MPPT) has been proposed. FO-MPPT has improved as a result of the use of several metaheuristics approaches, including the Grey Wolf (GWO), Anti-lion (ALO), and Whale Optimizer (WOA). A comparison of the proposed FO-MPPT and conventional MPPT techniques is carried out. The steady-state power, rise time, and efficiency are used as three measures to demonstrate the reliability of the proposed controller, demonstrating that the FO-MPPT outperforms traditional MPPT techniques. The optimal FO-ability MPPT’s to regulate nonlinear and unpredictable dynamic loads is demonstrated.
Analysis of Traction Coefficient Subject to Rail Cleaning Effect Based on Tribomachine Measurements
Authors: Bernal E. , Camacho D. , Rahaman M.L. , Spiryagin M. , Wu Q. , Sneath B. , Bosomworth C. , Cole C.
Published: May 2023

The proper representation of friction contact conditions between each wheel and the rail is necessary to accurately model the behaviour of a heavy haul locomotive since friction conditions at the wheel-rail interface affect the locomotive’s dynamic performance under traction and braking conditions. In normal operations, a phenomenon commonly known as rail cleaning effect occurs. The rail cleaning effect causes increased friction coefficients between the following wheel treads and the rail head. The wheel-rail interaction causes the third body layer to be partly or wholly eliminated from the surfaces in contact and generates new layer. An experimental analysis of the changes in friction coefficients under simulated locomotive wheel-rail contact conditions, in terms of contact pressure and slip, is presented in this paper. For this study, data processing equations are presented to obtain the experimental traction coefficient and slip. Furthermore, the rail cleaning effect is examined under different slip conditions. The experiment shows the traction coefficient increases for a given number of cycles until reaching a steady value, demonstrating that the rail cleaning effect is measurable in various slip conditions on a twin disc machine.
Adaptiveness for Online Learning: Conceptualising ‘Online Learning Dexterity’ from Higher Education Students’ Experiences
Authors: Koh Joyce Hwee Ling , Daniel Ben Kei , Greenman Angela C.
Published: May 2023

Online learning dexterity, or the ability to effortlessly adapt to online learning situations, has become critical since the COVID-19 pandemic, but its processes are not well-understood. Using grounded theory, this study develops a paradigm model of online learning dexterity from semi-structured interviews with 32 undergraduate and postgraduate students from a university in New Zealand. Through students’ online learning experiences during the pandemic from 2020 to 2021, online learning dexterity is found to be how students make online learning ‘just as good’ as face-to-face learning by creating and adjusting five learning manoeuvres according to developing online learning circumstances. Undergraduates and postgraduates re-use familiar study strategies as deep learning manoeuvres, but undergraduates restrict support-seeking manoeuvres to lecturers. Technical problems with online systems and poor course organisation by lecturers affected learning productivity, resulting in the need for more time optimisation manoeuvres. Social support helped students activate persistence manoeuvres to sustain online class attendance. However, undergraduates had more problems sustaining interest and engagement during class as they were not as proficient with using learning presence manoeuvres as postgraduates enrolled in distance learning programmes. The theoretical and practical significance of online learning dexterity for post-pandemic higher education is discussed.
Online and Matching-Based Market Design
Authors: Roth Alvin E.
Published: May 2023

The rich, multi-faceted and multi-disciplinary field of matching-based market design is an active and important one due to its highly successful applications with economic and sociological impact. Its home is economics, but with intimate connections to algorithm design and operations research. With chapters contributed by over fifty top researchers from all three disciplines, this volume is unique in its breadth and depth, while still being a cohesive and unified picture of the field, suitable for the uninitiated as well as the expert. It explains the dominant ideas from computer science and economics underlying the most important results on market design and introduces the main algorithmic questions and combinatorial structures. Methodologies and applications from both the pre-Internet and post-Internet eras are covered in detail. Key chapters discuss the basic notions of efficiency, fairness and incentives, and the way market design seeks solutions guided by normative criteria borrowed from social choice theory.
Protein restriction during peripubertal period impairs endothelial aortic function in adult male Wistar rats
Authors: Souza Amanda Cristina de , Silva Deborah Gomes da , Jezuíno Juliana da Silva , Ferreira Anna Rebeka Oliveira , Ribeiro Maiara Vanusa Guedes , Vidigal Camila Borecki , Moura Kawane Fabricio , Erthal Rafaela Pires , Mathias Paulo Cezar de Freitas , Fernandes Glaura Scantamburlo Alves , Palma-Rigo Kesia , Ceravolo Graziela Scalianti
Published: May 2023

Protein restriction during early phases of body development, such as intrauterine life can favor the development of vascular disorders. However, it is not known if peripubertal protein restriction can favor vascular dysfunction in adulthood. The present study aimed to evaluated whether a protein restriction diet during peripubertal period favors endothelial dysfunction in adulthood. Male Wistar rats from postnatal day (PND) 30 until 60 received a diet with either 23% protein (CTR group) or with 4% protein (LP group). At PND 120, the thoracic aorta reactivity to phenylephrine, acetylcholine, and sodium nitroprusside was evaluated in the presence or absence of: endothelium, indomethacin, apocynin and tempol. The maximum response (Rmax) and pD2 (-log of the concentration of the drug that causes 50% of the Rmax) were calculated. The lipid peroxidation and catalase activity were also evaluated in the aorta. The data were analyzed by ANOVA (one or two-ways and Tukey’s) or independent t-test; the results were expressed as mean ± S.E.M., p < 0.05. The Rmax to phenylephrine in aortic rings with endothelium were increased in LP rats when compared with the Rmax in CTR rats. Apocynin and tempol reduced Rmax to phenylephrine in LP aortic rings but not in CTR. The aortic response to the vasodilators was similar between the groups. Aortic catalase activity was lower and lipid peroxidation was greater in LP compared to CTR rats. Therefore, protein restriction during the peripubertal period causes endothelial dysfunction in adulthood through a mechanism related to oxidative stress.
Observational Investigation of the Effect of Turbulence on Microphysics and Precipitation in Warm Marine Boundary Layer Clouds
Authors: Zhu Zeen , Yang Fan , Kollias Pavlos , Luke Edward
Published: May 2023

Turbulence is omnipresent in the marine boundary layer (MBL) and several mechanisms have been proposed regarding its role on MBL cloud microphysics. In particular, past modeling studies suggested that increasing turbulence broaden the droplet size distribution (DSD) and leads to precipitation initiation, this suggested relationship has not been evaluated yet using long‐term observations. Here, comprehensive retrievals from long‐term ground‐based observations are used to explore the impact of turbulence on microphysics and precipitation in drizzling MBL clouds. Our analysis supports that broader DSD and larger droplets are observed with strong turbulence, but interestingly, the precipitation is reduced instead of being enhanced. This suppression mechanism is mainly due to the entrainment and mixing process in which the entrained dry air evaporates cloud water. This study provides observational evidence to show the complex effect of turbulence on MBL cloud properties and implies the potential influence of turbulence on the clouds lifetime.
Energization of Cold Protons and Helium Ions by EMIC Waves in the Inner Magnetosphere: Hybrid Simulations
Authors: Kwon Jong‐Woo , Kim Khan‐Hyuk , Jin Ho , Min Kyungguk , Lee Sang‐Yun , Lee Ensang
Published: May 2023

Electromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) waves generated by hot anisotropic (T⊥ > T∥) protons (∼10–100 keV), play an important role in accelerating cold (<1 eV) protons (H+) and helium (He+) ions in the magnetosphere. Using a hybrid code with parameters found in the inner magnetosphere, we examine when and how cold H+ and He+ ions are energized by EMIC waves. Hybrid simulations show that the energization of the cold particles occurs in two steps. In the first step, EMIC waves, which are linearly excited in the early stage of the simulation, interact with cold H+ and He+ ions, resulting in energization mostly in the direction perpendicular to the background magnetic field. The energization in this step is mainly contributed by enhanced bulk motion of these ions as a result of the linear response, consistent with recent observations in the inner magnetosphere. In the second step, nonlinear evolution of energized cold H+ and He+ ions are confirmed in the parallel direction, which is seen after about 200 proton gyroperiods (∼8.5 s). Throughout the simulation run, cold He+ ions are much more energized in the perpendicular direction than in the parallel direction. However, the cold protons are more energized in the parallel direction than in the perpendicular direction after 500 proton gyroperiods (∼21.3 s). By comparing recent observations and the present simulation results, we suggest that the cold particle energization by EMIC waves occurs at an early stage of wave generation when the nonlinear evolution of EMIC waves is not dominant in the inner magnetosphere.
Geophysical‐Geochemical Modeling of Deep Crustal Compositions: Examples of Continental Crust in Typical Tectonic Settings and North China Craton
Authors: Cui Dan‐Dan , Guo Jing‐Liang , Shinevar William J. , Guo Liang , Xu Wang‐Chun , Zhang Hong‐Fei , Jin Zhen‐Min
Published: May 2023

The chemical composition of the deep continental crust is key to understanding the formation and evolution of the continental crust. Constraining the chemical composition of present‐day deep continental crust is, however, limited by indirect accessibility. This paper presents a modeling method for constraining deep crustal chemical structures from observed crustal seismic structures. We compiled a set of published composition models for the continental crust to construct functional relationships between seismic wave speed and major oxide content in the crust. Phase equilibria and compressional wave speeds (VP) for each composition model were calculated over a range of depths and temperatures of the deep crust. For conditions within the alpha(α)‐quartz stability field, robust functional relationships were obtained between VP and major oxide contents of the crust. Based on these relationships, observed VP of the deep crust can be inverted to chemical compositions for regions with given geotherms. We provide a MATLAB code for this process (CalcCrustComp). We apply this method to constrain compositions from deep crustal VP of global typical tectonic settings and the North China Craton (NCC). Our modeling results suggest that the lower crust in subduction‐related and rifting‐related tectonic settings may be more mafic than platforms/shields and orogens. The low VP signature in the deep crust of the NCC can be explained by intermediate crustal compositions, higher water contents, and/or higher temperatures. The chemical structure obtained by this method can serve as a reference model to further identify deep crustal features.
Effects of Salinity Beyond Coalescence on Submicron Aerosol Distributions
Authors: Dubitsky L. , Stokes M. D. , Deane G. B. , Bird J. C.
Published: May 2023

Bubbles entrained by ocean waves rise to the surface and burst, creating a shower of droplets which contribute to sea spray aerosols. Submicron‐sized droplets, of which an estimated 60%–80% come from a bursting bubble film cap, play a key role in global climate atmospheric processes. However, many aspects of predicting the number and size of submicron drops emitted from a bursting bubble remain unknown. It is well‐documented that higher salinity increases submicron droplet production, which has been attributed to the role of salt in the suppression of bubble coalescence. We experimentally show that submicron drop production increases with salinity despite using a salt that does not affect bubble coalescence, indicating that salinity plays a role in the physics of submicron aerosol formation beyond coalescence. Laboratory experiments are conducted using sodium acetate solutions of salinity S = 0.001–0.1 M with millimeter‐sized bubbles generated via a needle. Unlike previous studies, the measured droplet size distributions are converted to formation diameter, revealing that the peak aerosol formation diameter decreases with higher salinity. Applying this diameter conversion to past studies, we find the peak formation diameter exhibits a scaling of Dform ∼ S−0.32 across three orders of magnitude in salinity and for a variety of salts, bubble coalescence behaviors, and bubble generation mechanisms. This result suggests that salinity has a systematic effect on the length scale of the rupturing bubble film which generates the aerosols. Consequently, salinity likely impacts the submicron aerosol production in oceanic environments even if bubble coalescence is negligible.
Effects of Circulation on Tropical Cloud Feedbacks in High‐Resolution Simulations
Authors: Mackie Anna , Byrne Michael P.
Published: May 2023

Uncertainty in the response of clouds to global warming remains a significant barrier to reducing uncertainty in climate sensitivity. A key question is the extent to which the dynamic component—that which is due to changes in circulation rather than changes in the thermodynamic properties of clouds—contributes to the total cloud feedback. Here, simulations with a range of cloud‐resolving models are analyzed to quantify the impact of circulation changes on tropical cloud feedbacks. The dynamic component of the cloud feedback is substantial for some models and is controlled both by sea surface temperature (SST) induced changes in circulation and nonlinearity in the climatological relationship between clouds and circulation. We find notable inter‐model differences in the extent to which ascending regions narrow or expand in response to a change in SST, which we link to differences in the longwave and shortwave dynamic components across models. The diversity of changes in ascent area is coupled to intermodel differences in non‐radiative diabatic heating in ascending regions.
Solar Panels Nurse Desert Soil Back to Life
Authors: Duncombe Jenessa
Published: May 2023

Cultivating delicate soil crust in the shade of solar panels might boost the recovery of arid land.
Middle Jurassic Paleolatitude of the Tethyan Himalaya: New Insights Into the Evolution of the Neo‐Tethys Ocean
Authors: Jiao Xianwei , Yang Tianshui , Bian Weiwei , Wang Suo , Ma Jiahui , Peng Wenxiao , Zhang Shihong , Wu Huaichun , Li Haiyan
Published: May 2023

The paleogeography of the Tethyan Himalaya (TH) during the Mesozoic is vital to constrain the evolutionary history of the Neo‐Tethys Ocean, but reliable paleomagnetic data from Jurassic rocks in this area are scarce. Here, we report the first high‐quality paleomagnetic results from the Middle Jurassic (∼175–173 Ma) Lanongla Formation limestones in the Nyalam area of the TH. For most specimens, stepwise thermal or hybrid demagnetization reveals two well‐defined magnetization components. A low‐temperature component, which is isolated between natural remanent magnetization and 200–300°C, is consistent with the present geomagnetic field direction. A high‐temperature component, which is isolated between 300–350°C/10–25 mT and 500–580°C/60–120 mT, passes fold tests at the 95% and 99% confidence level, indicating a prefolding primary magnetization. The tilt‐corrected site‐mean direction for 28 paleomagnetic sites is Ds = 331.0° and Is = −49.9° with α95 = 2.7°, which provides a Fisherian site‐mean paleopole at 23.7°N, 292.9°E with A95 = 2.8° and a paleolatitude of 31.7 ± 2.8°S for the Nyalam study area (28.6°N, 86.1°E). A comparison between the reliable Middle Jurassic‐Early Cretaceous poles obtained from the TH and those observed from the Lhasa terrane reveals that the Neo‐Tethys Ocean for the reference point (29.1°N, 86.1°E) had a latitudinal width of 3,500 ± 1,000 km at ∼174 Ma, reached its greatest width of 7,000 ± 1,000 km at ∼137 Ma, and had an average latitudinal spreading rate of ∼10.4 cm/year during ∼174–137 Ma.
Polarization-sensitive intensity diffraction tomography
Authors: Song Seungri , Kim Jeongsoo , Moon Taegyun , Seong Baekcheon , Kim Woovin , Yoo Chang-Hyuk , Choi Jun-Kyu , Joo Chulmin
Published: May 2023

Optical anisotropy, which is an intrinsic property of many materials, originates from the structural arrangement of molecular structures, and to date, various polarization-sensitive imaging (PSI) methods have been developed to investigate the nature of anisotropic materials. In particular, the recently developed tomographic PSI technologies enable the investigation of anisotropic materials through volumetric mappings of the anisotropy distribution of these materials. However, these reported methods mostly operate on a single scattering model, and are thus not suitable for three-dimensional (3D) PSI imaging of multiple scattering samples. Here, we present a novel reference-free 3D polarization-sensitive computational imaging technique—polarization-sensitive intensity diffraction tomography (PS-IDT)—that enables the reconstruction of 3D anisotropy distribution of both weakly and multiple scattering specimens from multiple intensity-only measurements. A 3D anisotropic object is illuminated by circularly polarized plane waves at various illumination angles to encode the isotropic and anisotropic structural information into 2D intensity information. These information are then recorded separately through two orthogonal analyzer states, and a 3D Jones matrix is iteratively reconstructed based on the vectorial multi-slice beam propagation model and gradient descent method. We demonstrate the 3D anisotropy imaging capabilities of PS-IDT by presenting 3D anisotropy maps of various samples, including potato starch granules and tardigrade.
Role of the gut microbiota in anticancer therapy: from molecular mechanisms to clinical applications
Authors: Zhao Lin-Yong , Mei Jia-Xin , Yu Gang , Lei Lei , Zhang Wei-Han , Liu Kai , Chen Xiao-Long , Kołat Damian , Yang Kun , Hu Jian-Kun
Published: May 2023

In the past period, due to the rapid development of next-generation sequencing technology, accumulating evidence has clarified the complex role of the human microbiota in the development of cancer and the therapeutic response. More importantly, available evidence seems to indicate that modulating the composition of the gut microbiota to improve the efficacy of anti-cancer drugs may be feasible. However, intricate complexities exist, and a deep and comprehensive understanding of how the human microbiota interacts with cancer is critical to realize its full potential in cancer treatment. The purpose of this review is to summarize the initial clues on molecular mechanisms regarding the mutual effects between the gut microbiota and cancer development, and to highlight the relationship between gut microbes and the efficacy of immunotherapy, chemotherapy, radiation therapy and cancer surgery, which may provide insights into the formulation of individualized therapeutic strategies for cancer management. In addition, the current and emerging microbial interventions for cancer therapy as well as their clinical applications are summarized. Although many challenges remain for now, the great importance and full potential of the gut microbiota cannot be overstated for the development of individualized anti-cancer strategies, and it is necessary to explore a holistic approach that incorporates microbial modulation therapy in cancer.
Immunosenescence: molecular mechanisms and diseases
Authors: Liu Zaoqu , Liang Qimeng , Ren Yuqing , Guo Chunguang , Ge Xiaoyong , Wang Libo , Cheng Quan , Luo Peng , Zhang Yi , Han Xinwei
Published: May 2023

Infection susceptibility, poor vaccination efficacy, age-related disease onset, and neoplasms are linked to innate and adaptive immune dysfunction that accompanies aging (known as immunosenescence). During aging, organisms tend to develop a characteristic inflammatory state that expresses high levels of pro-inflammatory markers, termed inflammaging. This chronic inflammation is a typical phenomenon linked to immunosenescence and it is considered the major risk factor for age-related diseases. Thymic involution, naïve/memory cell ratio imbalance, dysregulated metabolism, and epigenetic alterations are striking features of immunosenescence. Disturbed T-cell pools and chronic antigen stimulation mediate premature senescence of immune cells, and senescent immune cells develop a proinflammatory senescence-associated secretory phenotype that exacerbates inflammaging. Although the underlying molecular mechanisms remain to be addressed, it is well documented that senescent T cells and inflammaging might be major driving forces in immunosenescence. Potential counteractive measures will be discussed, including intervention of cellular senescence and metabolic-epigenetic axes to mitigate immunosenescence. In recent years, immunosenescence has attracted increasing attention for its role in tumor development. As a result of the limited participation of elderly patients, the impact of immunosenescence on cancer immunotherapy is unclear. Despite some surprising results from clinical trials and drugs, it is necessary to investigate the role of immunosenescence in cancer and other age-related diseases.
USP28 controls SREBP2 and the mevalonate pathway to drive tumour growth in squamous cancer
Authors: Maier Carina R. , Hartmann Oliver , Prieto-Garcia Cristian , Al-Shami Kamal M. , Schlicker Lisa , Vogel Felix C. E. , Haid Silke , Klann Kevin , Buck Viktoria , Münch Christian , Schmitz Werner , Einig Elias , Krenz Bastian , Calzado Marco A. , Eilers Martin , Popov Nikita , Rosenfeldt Mathias T. , Diefenbacher Markus E. , Schulze Almut
Published: May 2023

SREBP2 is a master regulator of the mevalonate pathway (MVP), a biosynthetic process that drives the synthesis of dolichol, heme A, ubiquinone and cholesterol and also provides substrates for protein prenylation. Here, we identify SREBP2 as a novel substrate for USP28, a deubiquitinating enzyme that is frequently upregulated in squamous cancers. Our results show that silencing of USP28 reduces expression of MVP enzymes and lowers metabolic flux into this pathway. We also show that USP28 binds to mature SREBP2, leading to its deubiquitination and stabilisation. USP28 depletion rendered cancer cells highly sensitive to MVP inhibition by statins, which was rescued by the addition of geranyl-geranyl pyrophosphate. Analysis of human tissue microarrays revealed elevated expression of USP28, SREBP2 and MVP enzymes in lung squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) compared to lung adenocarcinoma (LADC). Moreover, CRISPR/Cas-mediated deletion of SREBP2 selectively attenuated tumour growth in a KRas/p53/LKB1 mutant mouse model of lung cancer. Finally, we demonstrate that statins synergise with a dual USP28/25 inhibitor to reduce viability of SCC cells. Our findings suggest that combinatorial targeting of MVP and USP28 could be a therapeutic strategy for the treatment of squamous cell carcinomas.
Benzimidazole carbamate induces cytotoxicity in breast cancer cells via two distinct cell death mechanisms
Authors: Graff Brendan T. , Palanivel Chitra , Jenkins Christopher B. , Baranowska-Kortylewicz Janina , Yan Ying
Published: May 2023

Metastatic breast cancer (mBC) is responsible for >90% of breast cancer-related deaths. Microtubule-targeting agents (MTAs) are the front-line treatment for mBC. However, the effectiveness of MTAs is frequently limited by the primary or acquired resistance. Furthermore, recurrent mBC derived from cancer cells that survived MTA treatment are typically more chemoresistant. The overall response rates for the second- and third-line MTAs in mBC patients previously treated with MTAs are 12–35%. Thus, there is an ongoing search for novel MTAs with a distinct mode of action that can circumvent chemoresistance mechanisms. Our results show that methyl N-(6-benzoyl-1H-benzimidazol-2-yl)carbamate (BCar), a microtubule-disrupting anthelmintic that binds to the colchicine binding site separate from the binding sites of clinically used MTAs, has the potential to treat MTA-resistant mBC. We have comprehensively evaluated the cellular effects of BCar in a panel of human breast cancer (BC) cell lines and normal breast cells. BCar effects on the clonogenic survival, cell cycle, apoptosis, autophagy, senescence, and mitotic catastrophe were measured. Approximately 25% of BCs harbor mutant p53. For this reason, the p53 status was included as a variable. The results show that BC cells are >10x more sensitive to BCar than normal mammary epithelial cells (HME). p53-mutant BC cells are significantly more sensitive to BCar treatment than p53 wild-type BC cells. Furthermore, BCar appears to kill BC cells primarily via either p53-dependent apoptosis or p53-independent mitotic catastrophe. When compared to docetaxel and vincristine, two clinical MTAs, BCar is fairly innocuous in HME cells, providing a much wider therapeutic window than docetaxel and vincristine. Together, the results strongly support the notion that BCar-based therapeutics may serve as a new line of MTAs for mBC treatment.
Structure of a eukaryotic cholinephosphotransferase-1 reveals mechanisms of substrate recognition and catalysis
Authors: Wang Lie , Zhou Ming
Published: May 2023

Phosphatidylcholine (PC) is the most abundant phospholipid in eukaryotic cell membranes. In eukaryotes, two highly homologous enzymes, cholinephosphotransferase-1 (CHPT1) and choline/ethanolamine phosphotransferase-1 (CEPT1) catalyze the final step of de novo PC synthesis. CHPT1/CEPT1 joins two substrates, cytidine diphosphate-choline (CDP-choline) and diacylglycerol (DAG), to produce PC, and Mg2+ is required for the reaction. However, mechanisms of substrate recognition and catalysis remain unresolved. Here we report structures of a CHPT1 from Xenopus laevis (xlCHPT1) determined by cryo-electron microscopy to an overall resolution of ~3.2 Å. xlCHPT1 forms a homodimer, and each protomer has 10 transmembrane helices (TMs). The first 6 TMs carve out a cone-shaped enclosure in the membrane in which the catalysis occurs. The enclosure opens to the cytosolic side, where a CDP-choline and two Mg2+ are coordinated. The structures identify a catalytic site unique to eukaryotic CHPT1/CEPT1 and suggest an entryway for DAG. The structures also reveal an internal pseudo two-fold symmetry between TM3-6 and TM7-10, and suggest that CHPT1/CEPT1 may have evolved from their distant prokaryotic ancestors through gene duplication.
A local water molecular-heating strategy for near-infrared long-lifetime imaging-guided photothermal therapy of glioblastoma
Authors: Kang Dongkyu , Kim Hyung Shik , Han Soohyun , Lee Yeonju , Kim Young-Pil , Lee Dong Yun , Lee Joonseok
Published: May 2023

Owing to the strong absorption of water in the near-infrared (NIR) region near 1.0 μm, this wavelength is considered unsuitable as an imaging and analytical signal in biological environments. However, 1.0 μm NIR can be converted into heat and used as a local water-molecular heating strategy for the photothermal therapy of biological tissues. Herein, we describe a Nd-Yb co-doped nanomaterial (water-heating nanoparticles (NPs)) as strong 1.0 μm emissive NPs to target the absorption band of water. Furthermore, introducing Tm ions into the water-heating NPs improve the NIR lifetime, enabling the development of a NIR imaging-guided water-heating probe (water-heating NIR NPs). In the glioblastoma multiforme male mouse model, tumor-targeted water-heating NIR NPs reduce the tumor volume by 78.9% in the presence of high-resolution intracranial NIR long-lifetime imaging. Hence, water-heating NIR NPs can be used as a promising nanomaterial for imaging and photothermal ablation in deep-tissue-bearing tumor therapy.
Implementation of a primary care asthma management quality improvement programme across 68 general practice sites
Authors: Gilchrist Francis J. , Carroll William D. , Clayton Sadie , Price David , Jarrold Ian , Small Iain , Sutton Emma J. , Lenney Warren
Published: May 2023

Despite national and international guidelines, asthma is frequently misdiagnosed, control is poor and unnecessary deaths are far too common. Large scale asthma management programme such as that undertaken in Finland, can improve asthma outcomes. A primary care asthma management quality improvement programme was developed with the support of the British Lung Foundation (now Asthma + Lung UK) and Optimum Patient Care (OPC) Limited. It was delivered and cascaded to all relevant staff at participating practices in three Clinical Commissioning Groups. The programme focussed on improving diagnostic accuracy, management of risk and control, patient self-management and overall asthma control. Patient data were extracted by OPC for the 12 months before (baseline) and after (outcome) the intervention. In the three CCGs, 68 GP practices participated in the programme. Uptake from practices was higher in the CCG that included asthma in its incentivised quality improvement programme. Asthma outcome data were successfully extracted from 64 practices caring for 673,593 patients. Primary outcome (Royal College of Physicians Three Questions [RCP3Q]) data were available in both the baseline and outcome periods for 10,328 patients in whom good asthma control (RCP3Q = 0) increased from 36.0% to 39.2% (p < 0.001) after the intervention. The odds ratio of reporting good asthma control following the intervention was 1.15 (95% CI 1.09–1.22), p < 0.0001. This asthma management programme produced modest but highly statistically significant improvements in asthma outcomes. Key lessons learnt from this small-scale implementation will enable the methodology to be improved to maximise benefit in a larger scale role out.