bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Adult Eosinophilic Granuloma of Thoracic Spine
Authors: Anand Vijaya , R Krishnakumar , Abraham Ranjima
Published: July 2023

A rare case report of Adult Eosinophilic Granuloma of the upper thoracic spine involving the vertebral body. A 48-year-old male with chronic pain over the lower neck without neurological involvement. MR imaging shows a lytic lesion over D2 vertebral body. Open biopsy is done; it is consistent with EG. Immunohistochemistry markers are positive for CD1a, S100. Adult Eosinophilic Granuloma is a self-limiting and spontaneous resolution condition. It should be in the list of differential diagnoses for a solitary lytic lesion of the spine in adults. Keywords: Adult eosinophilic granuloma, Solitary lytic lesion, Langerhans cell histiocytosis
Hybrid integrated Si3N4 external cavity laser with high power and narrow linewidth
Authors: Chen Chen , Wei Fang , Han Xiuyou , Su Qingshuai , Pi Haoyang , Xin Guofeng , Wu Huimin , Stroganov Anton , Sun Yanguang , Ren Weijie , Chen Xiao , Ye Qing , Cai Haiwen , Chen Weibiao
Published: July 2023

We have designed and fabricated a hybrid integrated laser source with full C-band wavelength tunability and high-power output. The external cavity laser is composed of a gain chip and a dual micro-ring narrowband filter integrated on the silicon nitride photonic chip to achieve a wavelength tuning range of 55 nm and a SMSR higher than 50 dB. Through the integration of the semiconductor optical amplifier in the miniaturized package, the laser exhibits an output power of 220 mW and linewidth narrower than 8 kHz over the full C-band. Such a high-power, narrow-linewidth laser diode with a compact and low-cost design could be applied whenever coherence and interferometric resolutions are needed, such as silicon optical coherent transceiver module for space laser communication, light detection and ranging (LiDAR).
Rapid and sensitive detection of aqueous ammonia harnessing nanocomposite functionalized tilted fiber Bragg grating
Authors: Xu Pin , Liu Yifan , Noman Abdullah Al , Cheng Xin , Li Yujian , Yu Changyuan
Published: July 2023

A high sensitive aqueous ammonia sensor based on tilted fiber Bragg grating (TFBG) had been reported. The sensors were fabricated by a 10 ° TFBG coated by a membrane receptor named as Polyaniline/Graphene oxide on the surface of the fiber. The correlative concentrations of aqueous ammonia were demodulated by global monitoring of the envelope area of cladding modes in the transmitted spectrum of the TFBG. Tests have shown that the proposed sensor can provide a linear and rapid response of aqueous ammonia within 22 seconds, in a concentration range from 1-12 ppm. Moreover, the limit of detection can even reach 0.08 ppm, through the theoretical analysis of our experimental results. The proposed sensor has good performance, is easy to manufacture and of small size, making it a good choice for real-time, in-situ, label-free detection of aqueous ammonia in the future.
Derivation and calibration of spectral response for a channeled spectropolarimeter
Authors: Zhao Zhe , Li Yanqiu , Liu Ke , Zhou Guodong
Published: July 2023

The channeled spectropolarimeter (CSP) measures the spectrally-resolved Stokes vector from a snapshot by employing spectral modulation. The spectral modulation transfer function (SMTF) of the spectrometer preferentially suppresses the high-frequency channel amplitude in CSP, resulting in reduced measurement accuracy. This paper rigorously derives the SMTF theory and proposes an efficient calibration method for SMTF via channel shifting in a CSP. The SMTF value, obtained by channel shifting, is used to correct the high-frequency channel amplitude. Moreover, alignment and phase errors, as well as nonlinear dispersion, are compensated in situ. Other than rotating the retarder twice, no additional instruments or algorithms are required in the proposed method. In simulations and experiments, the proposed method shows high accuracy, with a maximum root-mean-square error (RMSE) of the reconstructed Stokes spectrum below 0.01, demonstrating its potential for enhancing the simplicity and practicability of Stokes CSP.
Monolithically integrated 112 Gbps PAM4 optical transmitter and receiver in a 45 nm CMOS-silicon photonics process
Authors: Baehr-Jones Thomas , Ardalan Shahab , Chang Matthew , Jafarlou Saman , Serey Xavier , Zarris George , Thompson Gabriel , Darbinian Artsroun , West Brian , Behnia Babak , Velev Vesselin , Li Yun Zhe , Roelofs Katherine , Wu Wuchun , Mali Jim , Zhan Jiahao , Ophir Noam , Horng Chris , Narevich Romanas , Guan Fen , Yang Jinghui , Wu Hao , Maupin Patrick , Manley Rhys , Ahuja Yogi , Novack Ari , Wang Lei , Streshinsky Matthew
Published: July 2023

We demonstrate a transmitter and receiver in a silicon photonics platform for O-band optical communication that monolithically incorporates a modulator driver, traveling-wave Mach-Zehnder modulator, control circuitry, photodetector, and transimpedance amplifier (TIA) in the GlobalFoundries Fotonix (45SPCLO) platform. The transmitter and receiver show an open 112 Gbps PAM4 eye at a 4.3 pJ/bit energy efficiency, not including the laser. Extensive use of gain-peaking enables our modulator driver and TIA to achieve the high bandwidths needed in the 45 nm CMOS-silicon photonics process. Our results suggest an alternative to the frequent approach of bump-bonding BiCMOS drivers and TIAs to silicon photonics.
High-speed TIRF and 2D super-resolution structured illumination microscopy with a large field of view based on fiber optic components
Authors: Ortkrass Henning , Schürstedt Jasmin , Wiebusch Gerd , Szafranska Karolina , McCourt Peter , Huser Thomas
Published: July 2023

Super-resolved structured illumination microscopy (SR-SIM) is among the most flexible, fast, and least perturbing fluorescence microscopy techniques capable of surpassing the optical diffraction limit. Current custom-built instruments are easily able to deliver two-fold resolution enhancement at video-rate frame rates, but the cost of the instruments is still relatively high, and the physical size of the instruments based on the implementation of their optics is still rather large. Here, we present our latest results towards realizing a new generation of compact, cost-efficient, and high-speed SR-SIM instruments. Tight integration of the fiber-based structured illumination microscope capable of multi-color 2D- and TIRF-SIM imaging, allows us to demonstrate SR-SIM with a field of view of up to 150 × 150 µm2 and imaging rates of up to 44 Hz while maintaining highest spatiotemporal resolution of less than 100 nm. We discuss the overall integration of optics, electronics, and software that allowed us to achieve this, and then present the fiberSIM imaging capabilities by visualizing the intracellular structure of rat liver sinusoidal endothelial cells, in particular by resolving the structure of their trans-cellular nanopores called fenestrations.
Low-loss grating coupler based on inter-layer mode interference in a hybrid silicon nitride platform
Authors: Korček Radovan , Cheben Pavel , Fraser William , Schmid Jens. H. , Milanizadeh Maziyar , Alonso-Ramos Carlos , Ye Winnie N. , Benedikovič Daniel
Published: July 2023

Surface grating couplers are an important component for interfacing photonic integrated circuits with optical fibers. However, conventional coupler designs typically provide limited performance due to low directionality and poor fiber-to-grating field overlap. The efficiency can be improved by using non-uniform grating structures at the expense of small critical dimensions complicating the fabrication process. While uniform gratings can alleviate this constraint, they produce an exponentially decaying near-field with the Gaussian fiber mode overlap limited to a theoretical maximum of 80%. In this work, we propose a uniform grating coupler that circumvents this field overlap limitation. This is achieved by leveraging inter-layer mode interference through a virtual directional coupler effect in a hybrid amorphous-silicon (α-Si) on silicon nitride (Si3N4) platform. By optimizing the inter-layer gap and grating geometry, a near-Gaussian profile of the out-radiated beam is achieved, resulting in an unprecedented grating-to-fiber overlap of 96%. The full three-dimensional (3D) finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations show a high directionality of 84% and a record coupling loss of −1.27 dB with a 1-dB bandwidth of 20 nm for the uniform grating coupler design. Our device is designed for a wavelength of 950 nm aimed for use in hybrid quantum photonic integrated circuits using III-V quantum dot single photon sources.
Design of a binary metal micron grating and its application in near-infrared hot-electron photodetectors
Authors: Hu Xiao-Long , Li Fen , Xu Shi-Hang , Liu Wen-Jie
Published: July 2023

Metal plasmonic nano-gratings possess a high absorption ability and exhibit potential applications in sensing, hot-electron photodetection, metasurfaces, etc. However, the fabrication techniques of high-quality nano-gratings are challenging. In this article, a binary metal micron grating for near-infrared hot-electron photodetectors (HEPDs) is designed in which the surface plasmons are excited by high-diffraction-order modes. The high-diffraction-order micron grating can be fabricated by conventional lithography and has a significantly higher tolerance in the grating parameters than a nano-grating. The range of absorption greater than 70% is ∼3 times that of a nano-grating. Moreover, an interesting relationship between the resonant wavelength and the grating duty cycle is found. When the high-diffraction-order micron grating is applied in metal-insulator-metal HEPDs, a high zero-biased responsivity of 0.533 mA/W is achieved.
Hyperspectral confocal microscopy in the short-wave infrared range
Authors: Sung Yongjin , Wang Weizhong
Published: July 2023

We demonstrate hyperspectral confocal microscopy in the short-wave infrared (SWIR) range of 1100–1600 nm using a wavelength-scanning laser in tandem with laser scanning confocal microscopy. Confocal microscopy in the SWIR range allows for high-resolution inspection of an integrated circuit (IC) chip, while hyperspectral imaging, together with a chemometric analysis, enables us to identify functional circuit block groups in the acquired image. With the extended capability, the developed instrument can be potentially used for inline inspection and non-invasive failure analysis of IC chips.
Evaluating spatial dependency of spectral ‎efficiency in trans-palpebral illumination for ‎widefield fundus photography ‎
Authors: Yao Xincheng , Rahimi Mojtaba , ROSSI ALFA , Son Taeyoon , Toslak Devrim , Le David , Abtahi Mansour , Chan R.V. , Heiferman Michael
Published: July 2023

Multi-spectral widefield fundus photography is valuable for the clinical diagnosis and ‎management of ocular conditions that may impact both central and peripheral regions of the ‎retina and choroid. Trans-palpebral illumination has been demonstrated as an alternative to ‎transpupillary illumination for widefield fundus photography without requiring pupil dilation. ‎However, spectral efficiency can be complicated due to the spatial variance of the light ‎property through the palpebra and sclera. This study aims to investigate the effect of light ‎delivery location on spectral efficiency in trans-palpebral illumination. Four narrow-band ‎light sources, covering both visible and infrared wavelengths, were used to evaluate spatial ‎dependency of spectral illumination efficiency. Comparative analysis indicated a significant ‎dependence of visible light efficiency on spatial location, while near infrared (NIR) light ‎efficiency is only slightly affected by the illumination location. This study confirmed the pars ‎plana as the optimal location for delivering visible light to achieve color imaging of the retina. ‎Conversely, spatial location is not critical for NIR light imaging of the choroid.‎
Regularized sequence-context mutational trees capture variation in mutation rates across the human genome
Authors: Adams Christopher J. , Conery Mitchell , Auerbach Benjamin J. , Jensen Shane T. , Mathieson Iain , Voight Benjamin F.
Published: July 2023

Germline mutation is the mechanism by which genetic variation in a population is created. Inferences derived from mutation rate models are fundamental to many population genetics methods. Previous models have demonstrated that nucleotides flanking polymorphic sites–the local sequence context–explain variation in the probability that a site is polymorphic. However, limitations to these models exist as the size of the local sequence context window expands. These include a lack of robustness to data sparsity at typical sample sizes, lack of regularization to generate parsimonious models and lack of quantified uncertainty in estimated rates to facilitate comparison between models. To address these limitations, we developed Baymer, a regularized Bayesian hierarchical tree model that captures the heterogeneous effect of sequence contexts on polymorphism probabilities. Baymer implements an adaptive Metropolis-within-Gibbs Markov Chain Monte Carlo sampling scheme to estimate the posterior distributions of sequence-context based probabilities that a site is polymorphic. We show that Baymer accurately infers polymorphism probabilities and well-calibrated posterior distributions, robustly handles data sparsity, appropriately regularizes to return parsimonious models, and scales computationally at least up to 9-mer context windows. We demonstrate application of Baymer in three ways–first, identifying differences in polymorphism probabilities between continental populations in the 1000 Genomes Phase 3 dataset, second, in a sparse data setting to examine the use of polymorphism models as a proxy for de novo mutation probabilities as a function of variant age, sequence context window size, and demographic history, and third, comparing model concordance between different great ape species. We find a shared context-dependent mutation rate architecture underlying our models, enabling a transfer-learning inspired strategy for modeling germline mutations. In summary, Baymer is an accurate polymorphism probability estimation algorithm that automatically adapts to data sparsity at different sequence context levels, thereby making efficient use of the available data.
The glutathione import system satisfies the Staphylococcus aureus nutrient sulfur requirement and promotes interspecies competition
Authors: Lensmire Joshua M. , Wischer Michael R. , Kraemer-Zimpel Cristina , Kies Paige J. , Sosinski Lo , Ensink Elliot , Dodson Jack P. , Shook John C. , Delekta Phillip C. , Cooper Christopher C. , Havlichek Daniel H. , Mulks Martha H. , Lunt Sophia Y. , Ravi Janani , Hammer Neal D.
Published: July 2023

Sulfur is an indispensable element for bacterial proliferation. Prior studies demonstrated that the human pathogen Staphylococcus aureus utilizes glutathione (GSH) as a source of nutrient sulfur; however, mechanisms of GSH acquisition are not defined. Here, we identify a five-gene locus comprising a putative ABC-transporter and predicted γ–glutamyl transpeptidase (ggt) that promotes S. aureus proliferation in medium supplemented with either reduced or oxidized GSH (GSSG) as the sole source of nutrient sulfur. Based on these phenotypes, we name this transporter operon the glutathione import system (gisABCD). Ggt is encoded within the gisBCD operon, and we show that the enzyme is capable of liberating glutamate using either GSH or GSSG as substrates, demonstrating it is a bona fide γ–glutamyl transpeptidase. We also determine that Ggt is expressed in the cytoplasm, representing only the second example of cytoplasmic Ggt localization, the other being Neisseria meningitidis. Bioinformatic analyses revealed that Staphylococcus species closely related to S. aureus encode GisABCD-Ggt homologs. However, homologous systems were not detected in Staphylococcus epidermidis. Consequently, we establish that GisABCD-Ggt provides a competitive advantage for S. aureus over S. epidermidis in a GSH- and GSSG-dependent manner. Overall, this study describes the discovery of a nutrient sulfur acquisition system in S. aureus that targets GSSG in addition to GSH and promotes competition against other staphylococci commonly associated with the human microbiota.
Identification of risk factors and mosquito vectors associated with dengue virus infection in American Samoa, 2017
Authors: Sharp Tyler M. , Tufa A. John , Cotter Caitlin J. , Lozier Matthew J. , Santiago Gilberto A. , Johnson Stephanie S. , Mataia’a Mary , Waterman Stephen H. , Muñoz-Jordán Jorge L. , Paz-Bailey Gabriela , Hemme Ryan R. , Schmaedick Mark A. , Anesi Scott
Published: July 2023

Introduction

The first outbreak of dengue in American Samoa was reported in 1911. Sporadic outbreaks have been reported since, as were outbreaks of other pathogens transmitted by Aedes species mosquitoes including Ross River, chikungunya, and Zika viruses. During an outbreak of dengue virus-type 2 (DENV-2) in 2016–2018, we conducted household-based cluster investigations to identify population-specific risk factors associated with infection and performed entomologic surveillance to determine the relative abundance of Ae. aegypti and Ae. polynesiensis.

Methods and findings

We contacted dengue patients who had tested positive for DENV infection and offered them as well as their household members participation in household-based cluster investigations. For those that accepted participation, we also offered participation to residents of households within a 50-meter radius of each case-patient’s home. Questionnaires were administered and serum specimens collected for testing by RT-PCR and anti-DENV IgM ELISA. Adult female mosquitoes were aspirated from inside and outside participating households and tested by RT-PCR. We analyzed characteristics associated with DENV infection in bivariate analyses. A total of 226 participants was enrolled from 91 households in 20 clusters. Median age of participants was 34 years (range: <1–94), and 56.2% were female. In total, 7 (3.2%) participants had evidence of DENV infection by IgM ELISA (n = 5) or RT-PCR (n = 2). Factors significantly associated with DENV infection were reporting a febrile illness in the past three months (prevalence ratio: 7.5 [95% confidence interval: 1.9–29.8]) and having a household septic tank (Fisher’s Exact Test, p = 0.004). Of 93 Ae. aegypti and 90 Ae. polynesiensis females collected, 90% of Ae. aegypti were collected inside homes whereas 83% of Ae. polynesiensis were collected outside homes. DENV nucleic acid was not detected in any mosquito pools. Sequencing of the DENV-2 from patient specimens identified the Cosmopolitan genotype of DENV-2 and was most closely related to virus detected in the Solomon Islands during 2016.

Conclusions

This investigation demonstrated that dengue is a continuing risk in American Samoa. Increased frequency of infection among residents with a septic tank suggests a need to investigate whether septic tanks serve as larval habitats for mosquito vectors of DENV in American Samoa. Future efforts should also evaluate the role of Ae. polynesiensis in DENV transmission in the wild.
TERT expression is associated with metastasis from thin primaries, exhausted CD4+ T cells in melanoma and with DNA repair across cancer entities
Authors: Kuhn Christina Katharina , Meister Jaroslawna , Kreft Sophia , Stiller Mathias , Puppel Sven-Holger , Zaremba Anne , Scheffler Björn , Ullrich Vivien , Schöneberg Torsten , Schadendorf Dirk , Horn Susanne
Published: July 2023

Telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) promoter mutations occur frequently in cancer, have been associated with increasedTERTexpression and cell proliferation, and could potentially influence therapeutic regimens for melanoma. As the role ofTERTexpression in malignant melanoma and the non-canonical functions of TERT remain understudied, we aimed to extend the current knowledge on the impact ofTERTpromoter mutations and expression alterations in tumor progression by analyzing several highly annotated melanoma cohorts. Using multivariate models, we found no consistent association forTERTpromoter mutations orTERTexpression with the survival rate in melanoma cohorts under immune checkpoint inhibition. However, the presence of CD4+ T cells increased withTERTexpression and correlated with the expression of exhaustion markers. While the frequency of promoter mutations did not change with Breslow thickness,TERTexpression was increased in metastases arising from thinner primaries. As single-cell RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) showed thatTERTexpression was associated with genes involved in cell migration and dynamics of the extracellular matrix, this suggests a role ofTERTduring invasion and metastasis. Co-regulated genes found in several bulk tumors and single-cell RNA-seq cohorts also indicated non-canonical functions ofTERTrelated to mitochondrial DNA stability and nuclear DNA repair. This pattern was also evident in glioblastoma and across other entities. Hence, our study adds to the role ofTERTexpression in cancer metastasis and potentially also immune resistance.
An unbiased, automated platform for scoring dopaminergic neurodegeneration in C. elegans
Authors: Clark Andrew S. , Kalmanson Zachary , Morton Katherine , Hartman Jessica , Meyer Joel , San-Miguel Adriana
Published: July 2023

Caenorhabditis elegans(C.elegans) has served as a simple model organism to study dopaminergic neurodegeneration, as it enables quantitative analysis of cellular and sub-cellular morphologies in live animals. These isogenic nematodes have a rapid life cycle and transparent body, making high-throughput imaging and evaluation of fluorescently tagged neurons possible. However, the current state-of-the-art method for quantifying dopaminergic degeneration requires researchers to manually examine images and score dendrites into groups of varying levels of neurodegeneration severity, which is time consuming, subject to bias, and limited in data sensitivity. We aim to overcome the pitfalls of manual neuron scoring by developing an automated, unbiased image processing algorithm to quantify dopaminergic neurodegeneration inC.elegans. The algorithm can be used on images acquired with different microscopy setups and only requires two inputs: a maximum projection image of the four cephalic neurons in theC.eleganshead and the pixel size of the user’s camera. We validate the platform by detecting and quantifying neurodegeneration in nematodes exposed to rotenone, cold shock, and 6-hydroxydopamine using 63x epifluorescence, 63x confocal, and 40x epifluorescence microscopy, respectively. Analysis of tubby mutant worms with altered fat storage showed that, contrary to our hypothesis, increased adiposity did not sensitize to stressor-induced neurodegeneration. We further verify the accuracy of the algorithm by comparing code-generated, categorical degeneration results with manually scored dendrites of the same experiments. The platform, which detects 20 different metrics of neurodegeneration, can provide comparative insight into how each exposure affects dopaminergic neurodegeneration patterns.
A national study confirms that Escherichia coli from Australian commercial layer hens remain susceptible to critically important antimicrobials
Authors: Abraham Rebecca , Allison Hui San , Lee Terence , Pavic Anthony , Chia Raymond , Hewson Kylie , Lee Zheng Zhou , Hampson David J. , Jordan David , Abraham Sam
Published: July 2023

Controlling the use of the most critically important antimicrobials (CIAs) in food animals has been identified as one of the key measures required to curb the transmission of antimicrobial resistant bacteria from animals to humans. Expanding the evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of restricting CIA usage for preventing the emergence of resistance to key drugs amongst commensal organisms in animal production would do much to strengthen international efforts to control antimicrobial resistance (AMR). As Australia has strict controls on antimicrobial use in layer hens, and internationally comparatively low levels of poultry disease due to strict national biosecurity measures, we investigated whether these circumstances have resulted in curtailing development of critical forms of AMR. The work comprised a cross-sectional national survey of 62 commercial layer farms with each assessed for AMR in Escherichia coli isolates recovered from faeces. Minimum inhibitory concentration analysis using a panel of 13 antimicrobials was performed on 296 isolates, with those exhibiting phenotypic resistance to fluoroquinolones (a CIA) or multi-class drug resistance (MCR) subjected to whole genome sequencing. Overall, 53.0% of isolates were susceptible to all antimicrobials tested, and all isolates were susceptible to cefoxitin, ceftiofur, ceftriaxone, chloramphenicol and colistin. Resistance was observed for amoxicillin-clavulanate (9.1%), ampicillin (16.2%), ciprofloxacin (2.7%), florfenicol (2.4%), gentamicin (1.0%), streptomycin (4.7%), tetracycline (37.8%) and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (9.5%). MCR was observed in 21 isolates (7.0%), with two isolates exhibiting resistance to four antimicrobial classes. Whole genome sequencing revealed that ciprofloxacin-resistant (fluoroquinolone) isolates were devoid of both known chromosomal mutations in the quinolone resistance determinant regions and plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance genes (qnr)—other than in one isolate (ST155) which carried the qnrS gene. Two MCR E. coli isolates with ciprofloxacin-resistance were found to be carrying known resistance genes including aadA1, dfrA1, strA, strB, sul1, sul2, tet(A), blaTEM-1B, qnrS1 and tet(A). Overall, this study found that E. coli from layer hens in Australia have low rates of AMR, likely due to strict control on antimicrobial usage achieved by the sum of regulation and voluntary measures.
Social world knowledge: Modeling and applications
Authors: Lotan Nir , Minkov Einat
Published: July 2023

Social world knowledge is a key ingredient in effective communication and information processing by humans and machines alike. As of today, there exist many knowledge bases that represent factual world knowledge. Yet, there is no resource that is designed to capture social aspects of world knowledge. We believe that this work makes an important step towards the formulation and construction of such a resource. We introduce SocialVec, a general framework for eliciting low-dimensional entity embeddings from the social contexts in which they occur in social networks. In this framework, entities correspond to highly popular accounts which invoke general interest. We assume that entities that individual users tend to co-follow are socially related, and use this definition of social context to learn the entity embeddings. Similar to word embeddings which facilitate tasks that involve text semantics, we expect the learned social entity embeddings to benefit multiple tasks of social flavor. In this work, we elicited the social embeddings of roughly 200K entities from a sample of 1.3M Twitter users and the accounts that they follow. We employ and gauge the resulting embeddings on two tasks of social importance. First, we assess the political bias of news sources in terms of entity similarity in the social embedding space. Second, we predict the personal traits of individual Twitter users based on the social embeddings of entities that they follow. In both cases, we show advantageous or competitive performance using our approach compared with task-specific baselines. We further show that existing entity embedding schemes, which are fact-based, fail to capture social aspects of knowledge. We make the learned social entity embeddings available to the research community to support further exploration of social world knowledge and its applications.
Research on mobile learning platform interface design based on college students’ visual attention characteristics
Authors: Zhu Tiejun , Yang Yujin
Published: July 2023

To explore the visual experience characteristics and influencing factors of college students’ visual attention intervention in the interface of mobile learning platform by using eye-tracking technology, and to summarize and summarize the visual experience pattern of platform interface design and its design inspiration. Methods: Using the head-mounted eye-tracking technology, 28 images from 6 groups of typical elements in the interface layout of CGTN learning platform were selected as the test samples, and the eye-movement indexes of the subjects browsing the interface were recorded. Results: There were significant differences in the attention time, number of times of attention, visual attention rate and visual recall rate of different areas and topics of the interface (P < 0. 001). Conclusion: In the platform interface design, the analysis of the factors influencing visual attention can be found that people’s attention and visual experience is mainly influenced by color, text, and typography, and secondary areas and layout also play an important role in visual communication. The color and text areas in the interface design, as well as the innovative design of typography can effectively enhance the visual attention of college students and better communicate the information of the platform.
Plantar threshold sensitivity assessment using an automated tool—Clinical assessment comparison between a control population without type 2 diabetes mellitus, and populations with type 2 diabetes mellitus, with and without neuropathy symptoms
Authors: Castellano Vitale Kyle , Commander Jon , Burch Thomas , Burch Hayden , Remy Jessica , Harman Benjamin , Zabala Michael E.
Published: July 2023

Diabetic peripheral neuropathy is often classified as a loss of sensation in the extremities, particularly in elderly populations. The most common diagnosis technique is with the use of the hand-applied Semmes-Weinstein monofilament. This study’s first aim was to quantify and compare sensation on the plantar surface in healthy and type 2 diabetes mellitus populations with the standard Semmes-Weinstein hand-applied methodology and a tool that automates this approach. The second was to evaluate correlations between sensation and the subjects’ medical characteristics. Sensation was quantified by both tools, at thirteen locations per foot, in three populations: Group 1-control subjects without type 2 diabetes, Group 2-subjects with type 2 diabetes and with neuropathy symptoms, and Group 3-subjects with type 2 diabetes without neuropathy symptoms. The percentage of locations sensitive to the hand-applied monofilament, yet insensitive to the automated tool was calculated. Linear regression analyses between sensation and the subject’s age, body mass index, ankle brachial index, and hyperglycemia metrics were performed per group. ANOVAs determined differences between populations. Approximately 22.5% of locations assessed were sensitive to the hand-applied monofilament, yet insensitive to the automated tool. Age and sensation were only significantly correlated in Group 1 (R2 = 0.3422, P = 0.004). Sensation was not significantly correlated with the other medical characteristics per group. Differences in sensation between the groups were not significant (P = 0.063). Caution is recommended when using hand-applied monofilaments. Group 1’s sensation was correlated to age. The other medical characteristics failed to corelate with sensation, despite group.
Stress symptoms and positive coping during coronavirus disease 2019: The need to look at health from a gender perspective
Authors: Romo-González Tania , Barranca-Enríquez Antonia , León-Díaz Rosalba , Hurtado-Capetillo José Manuel , Herrera-Meza Socorro , Villegas Juan de Dios , Carvajal Alejandro Botero
Published: July 2023

Background

The emergency derived from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has taught us important lessons in public and environmental health, particularly in the alarming numbers of existing noncommunicable diseases. However, one aspect to which little attention has been paid during the pandemic is mental health and its relationship with the gender perspective, in spite of gender being a determinant associated with health. In contrast, regarding health, few schemes and theories consider health from a positive and comprehensive perspective.

Methods

This study was designed to examine the symptoms of stress and positive coping from a gender perspective. For this, the Stress Symptomatology Inventory, the Positive Coping to Life Scale and a general data questionnaire were applied to 665 individuals underwent the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 test at the Center for Health Studies and Services of the Universidad Veracruzana from July 2020 to November 2021.

Findings

We found that women presented more stress symptoms and less positive coping in the factor of positive self-regulation of adverse situations and the factors of self-determination and positive self-regulation of important situations. Moreover, significant differences in the associations of these variables were observed between men and women.

Conclusions

Therefore, the needs of women must be considered in the approach to the emergency department due to COVID-19 and in general in the health–disease process; therefore, not considering a gender approach will continue to deepen inequalities between sexes.
Towards the development of a quality youth sport experience measure: Understanding participant and stakeholder perspectives
Authors: Brown Denver M. Y. , Cairney John , Azimi Sina , Vandenborn Elizabeth , Bruner Mark W. , Tamminen Katherine A. , Kwan Matthew Y. W.
Published: July 2023

Quality sport experiences may be a key underlying mechanism through which continued sport participation may facilitate positive youth development. However, what constitutes a quality sport experience for youth is poorly understood due to a lack of comprehensiveness among existing measures. This study aimed to identify the salient factors that constitute quality sport experience for youth by capturing athletes and stakeholder perspectives with a broader goal of developing a more robust quality sport experiences measure. A total of 53 youth athletes and stakeholders (i.e., parents, coaches, and sport administrators) completed semi-structured interviews or focus groups about what they felt were important aspects of a quality sport experience for youth. Inductive content analysis of the data identified four themes representing important indicators for a quality sport experience for youth: fun and enjoyment, opportunity for sport skill development and progress, social support and sense of belonging, and open and effective communication. These higher order themes were found among each of the groups that have important interpersonal relationships with athletes, as well as among athletes themselves. Each of these themes were also related to one another. Collectively, findings outline a framework to understand what constitutes a quality sport experience for youth. The Quality Sport Experience Framework for Youth will help in the development of a quantitative tool to assess this construct and enable researchers to examine how these experiences contribute to continued engagement in sport and positive developmental outcomes among youth sport participants.
Predictors and trends of Caesarean section and breastfeeding in the Eastern Mediterranean region: Data from the cross-sectional Cyprus Women’s Health Research (COHERE) Initiative
Authors: Swift Bethan , Taneri Bahar , Cagnan Ilgin , Becker Christian M. , Zondervan Krina T. , Quigley Maria A. , Rahmioglu Nilufer
Published: July 2023

Introduction

Caesarean section (C-section) is a life-saving procedure when medically indicated but unmet need and overuse can add to avoidable morbidity and mortality. It is not clear whether C-section has a negative impact on breastfeeding and there is limited data available on rates of C-section or breastfeeding from Northern Cyprus, an emerging region in Europe. This study aimed to investigate prevalence, trends and associations of C-section and breastfeeding in this population.

Methods

Using self-reported data from the representative Cyprus Women’s Health Research (COHERE) Initiative, we used 2,836 first pregnancies to describe trends in C-section and breastfeeding between 1981 and 2017. Using modified Poisson regression, we examined the relationship between year of pregnancy and C-section and breastfeeding, as well as the association between C-section and breastfeeding prevalence and duration.

Results

C-section prevalence in first pregnancies increased from 11.1% in 1981 to 72.5% in 2017 with a relative risk of 2.60 (95%CI; 2.14–2.15) of babies being delivered by C-section after 2005 compared to before 1995, after full adjustment for demographic and maternal medical and pregnancy related factors. Prevalence of ever breastfeeding remained steady throughout the years at 88.7% and there was no significant association between breastfeeding initiation and the year of pregnancy, or demographic and maternal medical and pregnancy related variables. After full adjustment, women who gave birth after 2005 were 1.24 (95%CI; 1.06–1.45) times more likely to breastfeed for >12 weeks compared to women who gave birth before 1995. There was no association between C-section and breastfeeding prevalence or length.

Conclusion

Prevalence of C-section in this population is much higher than WHO recommendations. Public awareness campaigns surrounding choice during pregnancy and change in legal framework to allow for midwife-led continuity models of birthing care should be implemented. Further research is required to understand the reasons and drivers behind this high rate.
Public perception of scientists: Experimental evidence on the role of sociodemographic, partisan, and professional characteristics
Authors: Sonmez Burak , Makarovs Kirils , Allum Nick
Published: July 2023

Previous research shows that public trust in scientists is often bound up with the messages that they convey and the context in which they communicate. However, in the current study, we examine how the public perceives scientists based on the characteristics of scientists themselves, irrespective of their scientific message and its context. Using a quota sample of U.S. adults, we investigate how scientists’ sociodemographic; partisan; and professional characteristics affect preferences and trust towards them as a scientific adviser to local government. We find that scientists’ party identification and professional characteristics appear to be prominent to understand public preferences towards them.
Potential sources of contamination on textiles and hard surfaces identified as high-touch sites near the patient environment
Authors: Nygren Erik , Gonzales Strömberg Lucia , Logenius Jenny , Husmark Ulrika , Löfström Charlotta , Bergström Birgitta
Published: July 2023

The hospital environment represents an important mediator for the transmission of healthcare-associated infections through direct and indirect hand contact with hard surfaces and textiles. In this study, bacteria on high-touch sites, including textiles and hard surfaces in two care wards in Sweden, were identified using microbiological culture methods and 16S rDNA sequencing. During a cross-sectional study, 176 high-touch hard surfaces and textiles were identified and further analysed using microbiological culture for quantification of total aerobic bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus, Clostridium difficile and Enterobacteriacae. The bacterial population structures were further analysed in 26 samples using 16S rDNA sequencing. The study showed a higher frequency of unique direct hand-textile contacts (36 per hour), compared to hard surfaces (2.2 per hour). Hard surfaces met the recommended standard of ≤ 5 CFU/cm2 for aerobic bacteria and ≤ 1 CFU/cm2 for S. aureus (53% and 35%, respectively) to a higher extent compared to textiles (19% and 30%, respectively) (P = 0.0488). The number of bacterial genera was higher on textiles than on the hard surfaces. Staphylococcus (30.4%) and Corynebacterium (10.9%) were the most representative genera for textiles and Streptococcus (13.3%) for hard surfaces. The fact that a big percentage of the textiles did not fulfil the criteria for cleanliness, combined with the higher bacterial diversity, compared to hard surfaces, are indicators that textiles were bacterial reservoirs and potential risk vectors for bacterial transmission. However, since most of the bacteria found in the study belonged to the normal flora, it was not possible to draw conclusions of textiles and hard surfaces as sources of healthcare associated infections.
Effectiveness of mental health interventions for older adults in South Asia: A scoping review
Authors: Mazumder Hoimonty , Faizah Farah , Gain Easter Protiva , Sharmin Eva Irfath , Ferdouse Mou Kaniz , Saha Nobonita , Rahman Farzana , Das Jyoti , Islam A. M. Khairul , Nesa Fazilatun , Hossain M. Mahbub
Published: July 2023

Objective

Mental health problems among older adults are becoming a growing public health concern in South Asia due to continued changes in population dynamics caused by declining fertility rates and increasing life expectancy. This scoping review aimed to explore and summarize evidence about mental health interventions and their impacts on geriatric mental health and highlight gaps and areas for future research.

Methods

We searched six electronic databases and additional sources for experimental/non-experimental studies evaluating the effectiveness of geriatric mental health interventions in eight countries in the South Asia region from the date of inception of each database up to August 5, 2022. Following the preliminary screening, we extracted data from the eligible articles using a Microsoft Excel data extraction worksheet. We followed Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) guidelines for this scoping review and reported evidence adhering to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) checklist.

Results

From a total of 3432 potential articles retrieved, 19 were included in this review following pre-determined eligibility criteria. Across studies, mental health interventions can be broadly categorized into the following types– 1) traditional Yoga, Tai chi, or other meditative movements; 2) behavioral, occupational, or learning-based interventions; 3) tech-based interventions; 4) music therapy; and 5) new healthcare model. The evidence was predominantly based on India (n = 16), whereas three articles were identified from Pakistan. No article was found from six other South Asian countries. Depression and anxiety were the most frequent mental health outcomes, followed by quality of life, cognitive function, self-esteem, physical performance, and many more.

Conclusion

Although limited, this review found various interventions that have varying effects on different geriatric mental health outcomes. A handful of evidence on mental health intervention in South Asia indicates a lack of acknowledgment that may develop a serious paucity of geriatric mental health practice. Therefore, future researchers are encouraged to conduct empirical studies to understand disease burden, including associated factors of geriatric mental health, which may help to construct contextually appropriate mental health interventions in this region.
Modular pipeline for reconstruction and localization of implanted intracranial ECoG and sEEG electrodes
Authors: Soper Daniel J. , Reich Dustine , Ross Alex , Salami Pariya , Cash Sydney S. , Basu Ishita , Peled Noam , Paulk Angelique C.
Published: July 2023

Implantation of electrodes in the brain has been used as a clinical tool for decades to stimulate and record brain activity. As this method increasingly becomes the standard of care for several disorders and diseases, there is a growing need to quickly and accurately localize the electrodes once they are placed within the brain. We share here a protocol pipeline for localizing electrodes implanted in the brain, which we have applied to more than 260 patients, that is accessible to multiple skill levels and modular in execution. This pipeline uses multiple software packages to prioritize flexibility by permitting multiple different parallel outputs while minimizing the number of steps for each output. These outputs include co-registered imaging, electrode coordinates, 2D and 3D visualizations of the implants, automatic surface and volumetric localizations of the brain regions per electrode, and anonymization and data sharing tools. We demonstrate here some of the pipeline’s visualizations and automatic localization algorithms which we have applied to determine appropriate stimulation targets, to conduct seizure dynamics analysis, and to localize neural activity from cognitive tasks in previous studies. Further, the output facilitates the extraction of information such as the probability of grey matter intersection or the nearest anatomic structure per electrode contact across all data sets that go through the pipeline. We expect that this pipeline will be a useful framework for researchers and clinicians alike to localize implanted electrodes in the human brain.
Physics scientific events in Brazil: Female participation
Authors: Anteneodo Celia , Brito Carolina , Menezes Débora P.
Published: July 2023

It is known that diversity matters to improve scientific excellence and that scientific events are important occasions to discuss new ideas and create networks, beyond the fact that it helps to put the work of the scientists in evidence. Hence, increasing diversity in scientific events is crucial to improve their scientific quality and help to promote minorities. In Brazil, important physics scientific events are organized by the Brazilian Physical Society (SBF, in Portuguese), and in this work, some aspects related to the participation of women in these physics events are analyzed from 2005 to 2021. The analysis shows that women’s participation has increased over the years, reaching in some areas of Physics the same percentage as the one observed in the SBF community (always below 25%). However, female participation as members of organizing committees and as keynote speakers is always lower. Some proposals are listed to change the current picture of inequality.
Temporal and spatial trends in road traffic fatalities from 2001 to 2019 in Shandong Province, China
Authors: Wang Tao , Yao Zhi-Ying , Liu Bao-Peng , Jia Cun-Xian
Published: July 2023

Objective

This study explored the temporal and spatial trends in road traffic fatalities in Shandong Province from 2001 to 2019 and discusses the possible influencing factors.

Methods

We collected data from the statistical yearbooks of the China National Bureau of Statistics and the Shandong Provincial Bureau of Statistics. Join-point Regression Program 4.9.0.0 and ArcGIS 10.8 software were used to analyze the temporal and spatial trends.

Results

The mortality rate of road traffic injuries in Shandong Province decreased from 2001 to 2019, with an average annual decrease of 5.8% (Z = −20.7, P < 0.1). The three key time points analyzed in the Join-point regression model roughly corresponded to the implementation times of traffic laws and regulations in China. The temporal trend in case fatality rate in Shandong Province from 2001 to 2019 was not statistically significant (Z = 2.8, P < 0.1). The mortality rate showed spatial autocorrelation (global Moran’s I = 0.3889, Z = 2.2043, P = 0.028) and spatial clustering. No spatial autocorrelation was observed in the case fatality rate (global Moran’s I = −0.0183, Z = 0.2308, P = 0.817).

Conclusions

The mortality rate in Shandong Province decreased significantly over the studied period, but the case fatality rate did not decline significantly and remains relatively high. Many factors influence road traffic fatalities, among which laws and regulations are the most important.