bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Seeded Growth of Gold–Copper Janus Nanostructures as a Tandem Catalyst for Efficient Electroreduction of CO2 to C2+ Products
Authors: Zheng Yiqun , Zhang Jiawei , Ma Zesong , Zhang Gongguo , Zhang Haifeng , Fu Xiaowei , Ma Yanyun , Liu Feng , Liu Maochang , Huang Hongwen
Published: April 2022

Gold–copper (Au‐Cu) Janus nanostructures (Au‐Cu Janus NSs) are successfully prepared using N‐oleyl‐1,3‐propanediamine as capping agent and Cu(acac)2 as the precursor in a typical seeded growth strategy. By preferably depositing Cu atoms on one side of concave cubic Au seeds, the Cu part gradually grows larger as more Cu precursors are added, making the size tuning feasible in the range of 74–156 nm. When employed as an electrocatalyst for electrochemical CO2 reduction (CO2RR), the Au‐Cu Janus NSs display superior performance to Au@Cu core‐shell NSs and Cu NPs in terms of C2+ products selectivity (67%) and C2+ partial current density (−0.29 A cm–2). Combined experimental verification and theoretical simulations reveal that CO spillover from Au sites to the nearby Cu counterparts would enhance CO coverage and thus promote C–C coupling, highlighting the unique structural advantages of the Au‐Cu Janus NSs toward deep reduction of CO2. The current work provides a facile strategy to fabricate tandem catalyst with a Janus structure and validates its structural advantages toward CO2RR, which are of critical importance for the rational design of efficient CO2RR catalyst.
Board members reflect on the ‘new normal’
Authors: Hope Joan
Published: April 2022

Two years into the COVID‐19 pandemic, Advisory Board members for The Successful Registrar said they're still ready to make changes to how they do things, depending on what happens with the pandemic. “The new normal is that nothing is etched in stone,” said Ari Kaufman, Registrar Systems Operations Manager and Compliance Officer at the Berklee College of Music/Boston Conservatory at Berklee.
Convert paper forms to electronic format for time savings, student convenience
Authors: Hope Joan
Published: April 2022

Through 2019, all the forms in the Registrar's Office at the University of Northwestern, St. Paul were paper based, or in some cases, fillable PDFs. Student could either print them out and bring them to the office once they were completed or come by the office to pick one up, said Registrar Andy Simpson.
Build connections in a new position, whether you are remote or in the office
Authors: Hope Joan
Published: April 2022

When Erin Michelle Collins, M.A., started her new position as Registrar at Pomona College in June 2021, it would be a while before she would meet her staff members in person or get the chance to drop into a colleague's office on campus. But that didn't prevent her from making connections and establishing herself as a leader in the office and at the college.
Circulating cell-specific extracellular vesicles as biomarkers for the diagnosis and monitoring of chronic liver diseases
Authors: Newman Lauren A. , Muller Kate , Rowland Andrew
Published: April 2022

Chronic liver diseases represent a burgeoning health problem affecting billions of people worldwide. The insufficient performance of current minimally invasive tools is recognised as a significant barrier to the clinical management of these conditions. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have emerged as a rich source of circulating biomarkers closely linked to pathological processes in originating tissues. Here, we summarise the contribution of EVs to normal liver function and to chronic liver pathologies; and explore the use of circulating EV biomarkers, with a particular focus on techniques to isolate and analyse cell- or tissue-specific EVs. Such approaches present a novel strategy to inform disease status and monitor changes in response to treatment in a minimally invasive manner. Emerging technologies that support the selective isolation and analysis of circulating EVs derived only from hepatic cells, have driven recent advancements in EV-based biomarker platforms for chronic liver diseases and show promise to bring these techniques to clinical settings.
On conjectures of Hovey–Strickland and Chai
Authors: Barthel Tobias , Heard Drew , Naumann Niko
Published: April 2022

We prove the height two case of a conjecture of Hovey and Strickland that provides a K(n)-local analogue of the Hopkins–Smith thick subcategory theorem. Our approach first reduces the general conjecture to a problem in arithmetic geometry posed by Chai. We then use the Gross–Hopkins period map to verify Chai’s Hope at height two and all primes. Along the way, we show that the graded commutative ring of completed cooperations for Morava E-theory is coherent, and that every finitely generated Morava module can be realized by a K(n)-local spectrum as long as $$2p-2>n^2+n$$

2
p
-
2
>

n
2

+
n

. Finally, we deduce consequences of our results for descent of Balmer spectra.
Gender preferences for robots and gender equality orientation in communication situations
Authors: Suzuki Tomohiro , Nomura Tatsuya
Published: April 2022

The individual physical appearances of robots are considered significant, similar to the way that those of humans are. We investigated whether users prefer robots with male or female physical appearances for use in daily communication situations and whether egalitarian gender role attitudes are related to this preference. One thousand adult men and women aged 20–60 participated in the questionnaire survey. The results of our study showed that in most situations and for most subjects, “males” was not selected and “females” or “neither” was selected. Moreover, the number of respondents who chose “either” was higher than that who chose “female.” Furthermore, we examined the relationship between gender and gender preference and confirmed that the effect of gender on the gender preference for a robot weakened when the human factor was eliminated. In addition, in some situations for android-type robots and in all situations for machine-type robots, equality orientation in gender role attitudes was shown to be higher for people who were not specific about their gender preferences. It is concluded that there is no need to introduce a robot that specifies its gender. Robots with a gender-neutral appearance might be more appropriate for applications requiring complex human–robot interaction and help avoid reproducing a gender bias.
Should Radiological Assessment be Part of Core General Surgery Competency? A Survey of the General Surgery Residents
Authors: Aziz Hassan , Drumm Gavin , Gleason Augustus , Han Sam M. , Alvi Saba , Palotai Miklos
Published: April 2022

Background

Radiological assessment is an important skill to develop in general surgery training. Therefore, we aimed to determine general surgery residents' points of view on receiving formal radiology didactics.

Methods

We performed an anonymous survey of general surgery residents throughout the USA. The survey queried the residents’ postgraduate year, training program type, diagnostic radiology education in their training program, as well as the residents' comfort level in interpreting various imaging modalities, followed by a series of images to assess the residents' ability to interpret images showing various surgical disease processes.

Results

A total of 365 residents responded to the survey. In total, 76.6% of the respondent states that there is no structured didactic session in their program on radiological studies. However, 66.3% felt that interpretation of radiological images should be used to determine surgical competency and promotion to the next academic year. In terms of accurately reading images—68.7% of the residents were able to read an X‐ray showing cecal volvulus correctly, 51.9% were able to read a cholangiogram correctly, and 95.3% were correctly read an X‐ray showing free under the diaphragm.

Conclusion

Most residents favored having radiological assessments as part of the competency evaluation. Furthermore, a curriculum and inbuilt training structure that aims to ensure residents develop competent clinical image interpretation abilities may enhance the development and retention of such skills, ultimately influencing patient outcomes.
Sleeve Gastrectomy and Cholecystectomy are Safe in Obese Patients with Asymptomatic Cholelithiasis. A Multicenter Randomized Trial
Authors: Habeeb Tamer A. A. M. , Kermansaravi Mohammad , Giménez Mariano Eduardo , Manangi Mallikarjuna N. , Elghadban Hosam , Abdelsalam Samar A. , Metwalli Abd‐Elrahman M. , Baghdadi Muhammad Ali , Sarhan Abdelrahman A. , Moursi Adel Mahmoud , El‐Taher Ahmed K.
Published: April 2022

Background

Obesity is a severe health problem. Gallstones may symptomatize after sleeve gastrectomy (SG). Concomitant laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) with SG is controversial. The effects of SG and LC versus delayed LC following SG in obese patients with asymptomatic gallbladder stones were evaluated.

Methods

A randomized trial of 222 morbidly obese patients with gallbladder stones divided them into two equal groups: SG + LC and SG‐only. This multicenter study conducted from January 2016 to January 2019.

Results

Except for operative time and postoperative hospital stay, there was no statistically significant difference between LSG + LC group and SG group (P < 0.001). In SG + LC group, LC added 40.7 min to SG, three patients (3%) required conversion, early postoperative complications occurred in 9 cases (9/111, 9%), three cases required re‐intervention (3%). In SG group, the complicated cases required LC were 61 cases (61/111, 55%). Acute cholecystitis (26/61, 42.7%) was the most common gallstone symptoms. Most complicated cases occurred in the first‐year follow‐up (52/61, 85%). In the delayed LC group (61 patients), operative time was 50.13 ± 1.99 min, open conversion occurred in 2 cases (2/61, 3.2%), early postoperative complications occurred in four patients (4/61, 6.4%) and postoperative re‐intervention were due to bile leaks and cystic artery bleeding (2/61, 3.2%).

Conclusions

SG with LC prolongs the operative time and hospital stay, but the perioperative complications are the same as delayed LC; LC with SG minimizes the need for a second surgery. Concomitant LC with SG is safe.
Species composition, distribution and relative abundance of the inshore fish community off the Argentine Islands, Bellingshausen Sea
Authors: Trokhymets Vladlen , Savytskiy Oleksander , Zinkovskyi Artem , Gupalo Olena , Dykyy Ihor , Lutsenko Dmytro , Berezkina Anna , La Mesa Mario
Published: April 2022

In the last three decades, several interdisciplinary studies investigated the marine ecosystems off the West Antarctic Peninsula (WAP), one of the most impacted areas of the Southern Ocean by the global warming. Although the extent of near-shore habitats along the WAP is wider than elsewhere in Antarctica, the coastal fish communities have been rarely studied. Complementing these previous studies, we provide new data on the species composition, population structure and relative abundance of the inshore fish community living off the Argentine Islands (Bellingshausen Sea). Fish samples were caught all the year round during four different periods spread over ten years (from 2006 to 2017). The fish fauna consisted of fourteen high-Antarctic and low-Antarctic species of notothenioids, most of them belonging to the Nototheniidae. Notothenia coriiceps was by far the most abundant species, followed in decreasing abundance by Chaenocephalus aceratus, Notothenia rossii, Trematomus newnesi and Trematomus bernacchii. Our findings provide context for future ecological studies as this area represents either a spawning and nursery area for multiple species in this study. More generally, the inshore waters off the Argentine Islands represent the southern limit of distribution for several low-Antarctic species, and our results provide critical baseline data for assessing possible disruptions in population dynamics driven by the ongoing climate change.
Cup positioning and its effect on polyethylene wear of vitamin E- and non-vitamin E-supplemented liners in total hip arthroplasty: radiographic outcome at 5-year follow-up
Authors: Baghdadi Josef , Alkhateeb Shareef , Roth Alexander ,   VITAS-Group, Jäger M , Busch A , Alkhateeb S , Landgraeber S , Serong S , Haversath M , vonWasen A , Windhagen H , Flörkemeier T , Budde S , Kubilay J , Noll Y , Delank KS , Baghdadi J , Willburger R , Dücker M , Wilke A , Hütter F , Jäger Marcus
Published: April 2022

Background

Aseptic loosening remains a challenging problem after total hip arthroplasty. Accurate cup placement and supplementation of antioxidants in acetabular liners might reduce material failure rates. The aim of this study is to assess the effect of the cup position on the wear behaviour of UHMWPE-XE and UHMWPE-X liners in vivo using virtual radiographs.

Methods

We conducted a prospective, randomized, controlled, multicenter trial. Clinical data of 372 probands were analyzed. Anteroposterior pelvic X-rays of 324 patients immediately postoperatively and after 1 and 5 years were evaluated by the RayMatch® analysis software regarding cup position and wear behaviour.

Results

Mean cup anteversion was 20.3° (± 7.4) and inclination was 41.9° (± 7.0) postoperatively. 62.3% of all patients had an anteversion and inclination within the Lewinnek safe zone. Anterior and anterolateral approaches led to significantly higher cup anteversion compared to lateral approaches (27.3° ± 5.5; 20.9° ± 7.2; 17.5° ± 6.6; p < 0.001 and p = 0.001, respectively). Mean anteversion increased to 24.6° (± 8.0) after 1 year (p < 0.001). Only one revision occurred because of implant dislocation. Wear rates from UHMWPE-X and UHMWPE-XE did not differ significantly. Anteversion angles ≥ 25° correlated to increased polyethylene wear (23.7 µm/year ± 12.8 vs. 31.1 µm/year ± 22.8, p = 0.012) and this was amplified when inclination angles were ≥ 50° (23.6 µm/year ± 12.8 vs. 38.0 µm/year ± 22.7, p = 0.062).

Conclusion

Anterior approaches lead to the highest inaccuracy of cup placement, but cup positioning outside the Lewinnek safe zone does not necessarily cause higher dislocation rates. Moreover, mean anteversion increased by approximately four degrees within the first year after operation, which is expected to be functional due to a regularization of pelvic tilt after intervention. Mid-term wear rates of UHMWPE-X and UHMWPE-XE liners are comparable, but steep cup positions lead to significantly increased polyethylene wear. In summary, a re-evaluation of target zones for intraoperative cup positioning might be considered. In the long-term reduced oxidative embrittlement could lead to superior wear behaviour of vitamin E-blended liners.
A retrospective analysis of hearing after cholesteatoma surgery: the bony obliteration tympanoplasty versus canal wall up and canal wall down without mastoid obliteration
Authors: van der Toom Hylke F. E. , van der Schroeff Marc P. , Metselaar Mick , van Linge Anne , Vroegop Jantien L. , Pauw Robert J.
Published: April 2022

Objective

To evaluate and compare the hearing outcome after the bony obliteration tympanoplasty (BOT), canal wall up (CWU) without mastoid obliteration and canal wall down (CWD) without mastoid obliteration in a large patient cohort. As the aeration of the middle ear is associated with hearing outcome, we hypothesized that the post-operative hearing after the BOT may be better compared to CWU and CWD without obliteration.

Methods

This is a retrospective cohort study on all adult patients who underwent the BOT, CWU without obliteration or CWD without obliteration for primary or revision cholesteatoma between January 2003 and March 2019 with audiological follow-up at our institution. Pre-operative, short-term post-operative and long-term post-operative hearing tests were analyzed and potential factors influencing post-operative hearing were assessed.

Results

626 ears were included. We found no significant differences between the short-term and long-term post-operative audiometry. The pre-operative air–bone gap (ABG) was the factor with the largest effect size on change in air–bone gap (ABG) between pre- and post-operative. When stratifying for this factor along with the type of ossicular chain reconstruction to account for differences at baseline, no significant differences in post-operative ABG were found between BOT and non-obliteration CWU and CWD.

Conclusion

In this large retrospective cohort study, we found no significant differences in post-operative ABG between the BOT and the non-obliteration CWU and CWD. A solid comparison of hearing between groups remains very challenging as hearing outcome seems to be dependent on many different factors. Hearing outcome seems to be no additional argument to choose for BOT over non-obliteration surgery.
Duration of symptom control following intratympanic dexamethasone injections in Meniere’s disease
Authors: Hilton Aidan , McClelland Alison , McCallum Rhona , Kontorinis Georgios
Published: April 2022

Purpose

Intratympanic (IT) injections of corticosteroids have emerged as a non-ablative alternative to gentamicin in the management of refractory Meniere’s disease. However, currently, the duration of the symptom control achieved via intratympanic corticosteroids is under reported.

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed the notes of all patients who underwent IT injections of dexamethasone for the treatment of definite Meniere’s disease at a single tertiary referral university centre over a 6-year period. We included demographic information, the number of procedures patients required, duration of symptom-control achieved (time interval between repeat IT injections), and the presence of co-morbidities, with a focus on the presence of autoimmune disease.

Results

We identified 27 patients who underwent a total of 42 procedures; 23/27 (85.2%) patients demonstrated clinical response with a median period of symptom control of 14.5 months (range 1–64, IQR 10.25). The median longest asymptomatic period per patient was 19 months (range 11–64, IQR: 18). Interestingly, all patients with autoimmune disease (7/27) demonstrated a clinical response; autoimmune disease was found to be a statistically significant predictor of response to treatment (p = 0.002). In patients who received repeated treatment following disease relapse, there was no difference in duration of symptom-control achieved.

Conclusions

IT steroids can provide an effective alternative to gentamicin ablation. Symptom control is achieved for a median of 14.5 months, and treatment can be repeated with no loss of efficacy. Those patients who have an underlying autoimmune co-morbidity are more likely to demonstrate a clinical response to therapy, which may provide insight into the underlying pathophysiology of Meniere’s disease.
Biological and molecular characterization of fEg-Eco19, a lytic bacteriophage active against an antibiotic-resistant clinical Escherichia coli isolate
Authors: Badawy Shimaa , Baka Zakaria A. M. , Abou-Dobara Mohamed I. , El-Sayed Ahmed K. A. , Skurnik Mikael
Published: April 2022

Characterization of bacteriophages facilitates better understanding of their biology, host specificity, genomic diversity, and adaptation to their bacterial hosts. This, in turn, is important for the exploitation of phages for therapeutic purposes, as the use of uncharacterized phages may lead to treatment failure. The present study describes the isolation and characterization of a bacteriophage effective against the important clinical pathogen Escherichia coli, which shows increasing accumulation of antibiotic resistance. Phage fEg-Eco19, which is specific for a clinical E. coli strain, was isolated from an Egyptian sewage sample. Phage fEg-Eco19 formed clear, sharp-edged, round plaques. Electron microscopy showed that the isolated phage is tailed and therefore belongs to the order Caudovirales, and morphologically, it resembles siphoviruses. The diameter of the icosahedral head of fEg-Eco19 is 68 ± 2 nm, and the non-contractile tail length and diameter are 118 ± 0.2 and 13 ± 0.6 nm, respectively. The host range of the phage was found to be narrow, as it infected only two out of 137 clinical E. coli strains tested. The phage genome is 45,805 bp in length with a GC content of 50.3% and contains 76 predicted genes. Comparison of predicted and experimental restriction digestion patterns allowed rough mapping of the physical ends of the phage genome, which was confirmed using the PhageTerm tool. Annotation of the predicted genes revealed gene products belonging to several functional groups, including regulatory proteins, DNA packaging and phage structural proteins, host lysis proteins, and proteins involved in DNA/RNA metabolism and replication.
Exploring the ERTMS/ETCS full moving block specification: an experience with formal methods
Authors: Basile Davide , ter Beek Maurice H. , Ferrari Alessio , Legay Axel
Published: April 2022

Shift2Rail is a joint undertaking funded by the EU via its Horizon 2020 program and by main railway stakeholders. Several Shift2Rail projects aim to investigate the application of formal methods to new ERTMS/ETCS railway signalling systems that promise to move European railway forward by guaranteeing high capacity, low cost and improved reliability. We explore the ERTMS/ETCS level 3 full moving block specifications stemming from different Shift2Rail projects using Uppaal and statistical model checking. The results range from novel rigorously formalised requirements to an operational model formally verified against scenarios with multiple trains on a single railway line. From the gained experience, we have distilled future research goals to improve the formal specification and verification of real-time systems, and we discuss some barriers concerning a possible uptake of formal methods and tools in the railway industry.
Bio-electrochemical production of hydrogen and electricity from organic waste: preliminary assessment
Authors: De Gioannis Giorgia , Dell’Era Alessandro , Muntoni Aldo , Pasquali Mauro , Polettini Alessandra , Pomi Raffaella , Rossi Andreina , Zonfa Tatiana
Published: April 2022

This study investigated the performance of a novel integrated bio-electrochemical system for synergistic hydrogen production from a process combining a dark fermentation reactor and a galvanic cell. The operating principle of the system is based on the electrochemical conversion of protons released upon dissociation of the acid metabolites of the biological process and is mediated by the electron flow from the galvanic cell, coupling biochemical and electrochemical hydrogen production. Accordingly, the galvanic compartment also generates electricity. Four different experimental setups were designed to provide a preliminary assessment of the integrated bio-electrochemical process and identify the optimal configuration for further tests. Subsequently, dark fermentation of cheese whey was implemented both in a stand-alone biochemical reactor and in the integrated bio-electrochemical process. The integrated system achieved a hydrogen yield in the range 75.5–78.8 N LH2/kg TOC, showing a 3 times improvement over the biochemical process.

Graphical abstract
Eye-specific quantitative dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI analysis for patients with intraocular masses
Authors: Jaarsma-Coes Myriam G. , Ferreira Teresa A. , van Houdt Petra J. , van der Heide Uulke A. , Luyten Gregorius P. M. , Beenakker Jan-Willem M.
Published: April 2022

Objective

Dynamic contrast enhanced (DCE)-MRI is currently not generally used for intraocular masses as lesions are small, have an inhomogeneous T1 and the eye is prone to motion. The aim of this paper is to address these eye-specific challenges, enabling accurate ocular DCE-MRI.

Materials & methods

DCE-MRI of 19 uveal melanoma (UM) patients was acquired using a fat-suppressed 3D spoiled gradient echo sequence with TWIST (time-resolved angiography with stochastic trajectories sequence). The analysis consisted of a two-step registration method to correct for both head and eye motion. A T1 map was calculated to convert signal intensities to concentrations. Subsequently, the Tofts model was fitted voxel wise to obtain Ktrans and ve.

Results

Registration significantly improved the concentration curve quality (p < 0.001). The T1 of melanotic lesions was significantly lower than amelanotic lesions (888 ms vs 1350 ms, p = 0.03). The average achieved B1+ in the lesions was 91%. The average Ktrans was 0.46 min−1 (range 0.13–1.0) and the average ve was 0.22 (range 0.10–0.51).

Conclusion

Using this eye-specific analysis, DCE of intraocular masses is possible which might aid in the diagnosis, prognosis and follow-up of UM.
A genetic analysis of grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) populations in Ireland
Authors: Dominguez McLaughlin Hannah , Lawton Colin , Hadziabdic Ðenita , Boggess Sarah , Ony Meher , Trigiano Robert
Published: April 2022

The grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) is an invasive rodent in Ireland that has had detrimental impacts on the native Irish red squirrel (S. vulgaris) as well as on silviculture. This invasive species spread rapidly throughout Ireland, but in recent years appears to be declining in certain areas of the country. This study analysed the genetic profile of grey squirrel populations in Ireland to gain insight into their introduction, evolutionary history in Ireland, and vulnerability to management strategies. The genetic diversity and population structure of eight grey squirrel populations in Ireland was assessed using 11 species-specific microsatellite loci, and was compared to a small population from Tennessee, U.S.A., part of the native range of the grey squirrel. This is the first time these microsatellite markers developed specifically for grey squirrels have been used to study the species in Ireland. We found low to moderate genetic diversity overall across Irish populations as well as the presence of inbreeding. One population in particular, (in Co. Kildare), was differentiated from all other populations, which could indicate genetic isolation between Irish populations or a secondary introduction of S. carolinensis to Ireland.
Modifiable Parent Factors Associated with Child and Adolescent School Refusal: A Systematic Review
Authors: Chockalingam Meena , Skinner Kayan , Melvin Glenn , Yap Marie B. H.
Published: April 2022

School refusal is a complex problem that refers to difficulty attending/remaining at school due to emotional distress about attendance. Despite its occurrence being associated with negative outcomes, many are unresponsive to the current treatment options. While parent factors have a key role to play in school refusal, they are not adequately addressed in existing treatments. Further research is needed to consolidate understanding and implement new treatments. Employing the PRISMA method, this review aims to identify modifiable parent factors associated with child and/or adolescent school refusal. Eight studies met inclusion criteria from which nine factors were identified. Factors found to be associated with school refusal included: parent psychopathology, family functioning and maternal overprotection (communication subdomain). Other factors such as maternal overprotection (affection, assistance and travel subdomains) and parental self-efficacy had weak or inconsistent results warranting further investigation. Overall, findings call for action in this field that has sparse and dated literature.
Inbreeding is associated with shorter early-life telomere length in a wild passerine
Authors: Pepke Michael Le , Niskanen Alina K. , Kvalnes Thomas , Boner Winnie , Sæther Bernt-Erik , Ringsby Thor Harald , Jensen Henrik
Published: April 2022

Inbreeding can have negative effects on survival and reproduction, which may be of conservation concern in small and isolated populations. However, the physiological mechanisms underlying inbreeding depression are not well-known. The length of telomeres, the DNA sequences protecting chromosome ends, has been associated with health or fitness in several species. We investigated effects of inbreeding on early-life telomere length in two small island populations of wild house sparrows (Passer domesticus) known to be affected by inbreeding depression. Using genomic measures of inbreeding we found that inbred nestling house sparrows (n = 371) have significantly shorter telomeres. Using pedigree-based estimates of inbreeding we found a tendency for inbred nestling house sparrows to have shorter telomeres (n = 1195). This negative effect of inbreeding on telomere length may have been complemented by a heterosis effect resulting in longer telomeres in individuals that were less inbred than the population average. Furthermore, we found some evidence of stronger effects of inbreeding on telomere length in males than females. Thus, telomere length may reveal subtle costs of inbreeding in the wild and demonstrate a route by which inbreeding negatively impacts the physiological state of an organism already at early life-history stages.
COVID-19 prevalence and mortality in longer-term care facilities
Authors: Levin Andrew T. , Jylhävä Juulia , Religa Dorota , Shallcross Laura
Published: April 2022

This essay considers the factors that have contributed to very high COVID-19 mortality in longer-term care facilities (LTCFs). We compare the demographic characteristics of LTCF residents with those of community-dwelling older adults, and then we review the evidence regarding prevalence and infection fatality rates (IFRs), including links to frailty and some comorbidities. Finally, we discuss policy measures that could foster the physical and mental health and well-being of LTCF residents in the present context and in potential future pandemics.
Are some species ‘robust’ to exploitation? Explaining persistence in deceptive relationships
Authors: Brunton-Martin Amy L , O’Hanlon James C , Gaskett Anne C
Published: April 2022

Animals and plants trick others in an extraordinary diversity of ways to gain fitness benefits. Mimicry and deception can, for example, lure prey, reduce the costs of parental care or aid in pollination–in ways that impose fitness costs on the exploited party. The evolutionary maintenance of such asymmetric relationships often relies on these costs being mitigated through counter-adaptations, low encounter rates, or indirect fitness benefits. However, these mechanisms do not always explain the evolutionary persistence of some classic deceptive interactions.

Sexually deceptive pollination (in which plants trick male pollinators into mating with their flowers) has evolved multiple times independently, mainly in the southern hemisphere and especially in Australasia and Central and South America. This trickery imposes considerable costs on the males: they miss out on mating opportunities, and in some cases, waste their limited sperm on the flower. These relationships appear stable, yet in some cases there is little evidence suggesting that their persistence relies on counter-adaptations, low encounter rates, or indirect fitness benefits. So, how might these relationships persist?

Here, we introduce and explore an additional hypothesis from systems biology: that some species are robust to exploitation. Robustness arises from a species’ innate traits and means they are robust against costs of exploitation. This allows species to persist where a population without those traits would not, making them ideal candidates for exploitation. We propose that this mechanism may help inform new research approaches and provide insight into how exploited species might persist.
Innovative nano silicone wax coatings for the conservation of bronze artifacts from corrosion
Authors: Abdullatef O. A. , Helal M. A. , Anwar S. M. M.
Published: April 2022

Herein we studied the efficiency of a protective transparent and reversible nano silicone wax coatings (NSW) to protect bronze artifacts extracted from Herakleon City, Abu Kir Bay, Alexandria, Egypt. The nano structured silicone wax film resulted in the formation of a structure that can act as a barrier layer from corrosion. The application of NSW coatings on bronze artifacts was evaluated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy techniques. Exposure of bronze samples with and without the nano silicone wax coating to sodium chloride solution led to a remarkable inhibition of corrosion for the coated samples only. Comparison of the inhibition efficiency obtained from samples coated with nano silicone wax coatings to that obtained from silicone wax coatings in normal size revealed that the protection efficiency is very high in case of nano silicone wax coatings compared to the traditional silicone wax coatings. The application of nano silicone wax coatings on bronze artifacts can pave the way into the development of safe and tailored solutions in the field of ancient metal artifacts conservation.

Graphical abstract
Ligand-induced structural transitions combined with paramagnetic ions facilitate unambiguous NMR assignments of methyl groups in large proteins
Authors: Mühlberg Lars , Alarcin Tuncay , Maass Thorben , Creutznacher Robert , Küchler Richard , Mallagaray Alvaro
Published: April 2022

NMR spectroscopy allows the study of biomolecules in close-to-native conditions. Structural information can be inferred from the NMR spectra when an assignment is available. Protein assignment is usually a time-consuming task, being specially challenging in the case of large, supramolecular systems. Here, we present an extension of existing state-of-the-art strategies for methyl group assignment that partially overcomes signal overlapping and other difficulties associated to isolated methyl groups. Our approach exploits the ability of proteins to populate two or more conformational states, allowing for unique NOE restraints in each protein conformer. The method is compatible with automated assignment algorithms, granting assignments beyond the limits of a single protein state. The approach also benefits from long-range structural restraints obtained from metal-induced pseudocontact shifts (PCS) and paramagnetic relaxation enhancements (PREs). We illustrate the method with the complete assignment of the 199 methyl groups of a MILproSVproSAT methyl-labeled sample of the UDP-glucose pyrophosphorylase enzyme from Leishmania major (LmUGP). Protozoan parasites of the genus Leishmania causes Leishmaniasis, a neglected disease affecting over 12 million people worldwide. LmUGP is responsible for the de novo biosynthesis of uridine diphosphate-glucose, a precursor in the biosynthesis of the dense surface glycocalyx involved in parasite survival and infectivity. NMR experiments with LmUGP and related enzymes have the potential to unravel new insights in the host resistance mechanisms used by Leishmania major. Our efforts will help in the development of selective and efficient drugs against Leishmania.
A Stochastic Nash Equilibrium Problem for Medical Supply Competition
Authors: Fargetta Georgia , Maugeri Antonino , Scrimali Laura
Published: April 2022

In this paper, we study the competition of healthcare institutions for medical supplies in emergencies caused by natural disasters. In particular, we develop a two-stage procurement planning model in a random environment. We consider a pre-event policy, in which each healthcare institution seeks to minimize the purchasing cost of medical items and the transportation time from the first stage, and a recourse decision process to optimize the expected overall costs and the penalty for the prior plan, in response to each disaster scenario. Thus, each institution deals with a two-stage stochastic programming model that takes into account the unmet demand at the first stage, and the consequent penalty. Then, the institutions simultaneously solve their own stochastic optimization problems and reach a stable state governed by the stochastic Nash equilibrium concept. Moreover, we formulate the problem as a variational inequality; both the discrete and the general probability distribution cases are described. We also present an alternative formulation using infinite-dimensional duality tools. Finally, we discuss some numerical illustrations applying the progressive hedging algorithm.
Revisiting respect for persons: conceptual analysis and implications for clinical practice
Authors: Subramani Supriya , Biller-Andorno Nikola
Published: April 2022

In everyday conversations, professional codes, policy debates, and academic literature, the concept of respect is referred to frequently. Bioethical arguments in recent decades equate the idea of respect for persons with individuals who are capable of autonomous decision-making, with the focus being explicitly on ‘autonomy,’ ‘capacity,’ or ‘capability.’ In much of bioethics literature, respect for persons is replaced by respect for autonomy. Though the unconditional respect for persons and their autonomy (irrespective of actual decision-making capacity) is established in Kantian bioethics, current argument and debates often revolve around a thin concept of autonomy, focusing on capacity and capability: persons are owed respect because they are ‘rational beings’ or with a focus on ‘agency’ and ‘decision-making abilities.’ However, these aspects alone are insufficient while engaging the concept of respect for persons, particularly in healthcare settings. This paper sets out to explore if the concept of respect for persons—as opposed to a thin concept of autonomy—could help us engage better in healthcare practices. We shall probe the practical value of the experiential aspect of respect—understood as the recognition of persons as respect-worthy through certain dispositions and deliberative acts—by reflecting on instances in clinical practice that tend to be dismissed as negligible or even unavoidable in a stressful environment such as a busy hospital. We shall argue that these instances are far from trivial but carry moral significance and express an unacceptable—disrespectful—attitude that can compromise the moral habitus in hospital settings. In our conclusion, we call for practicing recognition respect in the health professional–patient encounter by focussing on manners, attitudes, and behaviors. Furthermore, we call for continuous medical ethics education programs to address the moral significance of disrespectful behaviors and their manifestations in particular socio-cultural contexts.
The possible role of long non-coding RNAs in recurrent miscarriage
Authors: Zhang Yanan , Wang Shan
Published: April 2022

Recurrent miscarriage (RM) is a complicated disease in reproductive medicine that impacts many families. Currently, the etiology of RM is thought to include chromosome abnormalities, reproductive tract malformations, autoimmune dysfunction, infection, and environmental factors. However, the underlying mechanisms of RM remain unknown. At present, research on long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) is rapidly emerging and becoming a hot research topic in epigenetic studies. Recent studies revealed that lncRNAs are strongly linked to RM and play a crucial role in epigenetic, cell cycle, cell differentiation regulation, and other life activities. This article mainly reviews the difference in lncRNA expression in patients with RM and regulation of susceptibility, endometrial receptivity, and the maternal-fetal interface. Meanwhile, the correlation between lncRNAs and RM is expounded, which provides new insights for the early diagnosis and treatment of RM.
Rewarding conservative politicians? Evidence from voting on same-sex marriage
Authors: Kauder Björn , Potrafke Niklas
Published: April 2022

We ask whether voters rewarded conservative politicians who voted in favor of same-sex marriage. The evidence is based on a rollcall vote in the German national parliament (Bundestag) in June 2017. That vote had a profound influence on public discourse concerning the social-political platforms of the conservative parties in Germany, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its Bavarian sister party Christian Social Union (CSU). National elections took place in September 2017. We find that, when comparing the outcomes of the 2017 and 2013 national elections, the vote share of conservative politicians who voted in favor of same-sex marriage was around 1.29% points higher (about 0.33 standard deviations of the change in the candidate’s vote share) than the vote share of conservative politicians who did not vote in favor of same-sex marriage. Voters apparently were seeking policy outcomes other than economic ones when evaluating politicians’ performances in office.
Competition Makes Inspectors More Lenient: Evidence from the Motor Vehicle Inspection Market
Authors: Habte Osmis Areda , Holm Håkan J.
Published: April 2022

We investigate whether increased competition among inspection firms leads to an increase in the inspection pass rate in the Swedish car inspection market, which is heavily regulated and consciously designed to mitigate incentives to violate government regulations. We use a panel dataset that represent 22.5 million car roadworthiness tests that were conducted during the period 2010–2015. Fixed effects and instrumental variable estimations, which are used to account for the endogeneity of competition, show that inspection stations that operate in highly competitive markets are more lenient toward their customers than are stations that operate in less competitive markets.
Dynamic sampling rate: harnessing frame coherence in graphics applications for energy-efficient GPUs
Authors: Anglada Martí , de Lucas Enrique , Parcerisa Joan-Manuel , Aragón Juan L. , González Antonio
Published: April 2022

In real-time rendering, a 3D scene is modelled with meshes of triangles that the GPU projects to the screen. They are discretized by sampling each triangle at regular space intervals to generate fragments which are then added texture and lighting effects by a shader program. Realistic scenes require detailed geometric models, complex shaders, high-resolution displays and high screen refreshing rates, which all come at a great compute time and energy cost. This cost is often dominated by the fragment shader, which runs for each sampled fragment. Conventional GPUs sample the triangles once per pixel; however, there are many screen regions containing low variation that produce identical fragments and could be sampled at lower than pixel-rate with no loss in quality. Additionally, as temporal frame coherence makes consecutive frames very similar, such variations are usually maintained from frame to frame. This work proposes Dynamic Sampling Rate (DSR), a novel hardware mechanism to reduce redundancy and improve the energy efficiency in graphics applications. DSR analyzes the spatial frequencies of the scene once it has been rendered. Then, it leverages the temporal coherence in consecutive frames to decide, for each region of the screen, the lowest sampling rate to employ in the next frame that maintains image quality. We evaluate the performance of a state-of-the-art mobile GPU architecture extended with DSR for a wide variety of applications. Experimental results show that DSR is able to remove most of the redundancy inherent in the color computations at fragment granularity, which brings average speedups of 1.68x and energy savings of 40%.
Investigating the effect of varying block size on power and energy consumption of GPU kernels
Authors: Ikram Muhammad Jawad , Saleh Mostafa Elsayed , Al-Hashimi Muhammad Abdulhamid , Abulnaja Osama Ahmed
Published: April 2022

Power consumption is likely to remain a significant concern for exascale performance in the foreseeable future. In addition, graphics processing units (GPUs) have become an accepted architectural feature for exascale computing due to their scalable performance and power efficiency. In a recent study, we found that we can achieve a reasonable amount of power and energy savings based on the selection of algorithms. In this research, we suggest that we can save more power and energy by varying the block size in the kernel configuration. We show that we may attain more savings by selecting the optimum block size while executing the workload. We investigated two kernels on NVIDIA Tesla K40 GPU, a Bitonic Mergesort and Vector Addition kernels, to study the effect of varying block sizes on GPU power and energy consumption. The study should offer insights for upcoming exascale systems in terms of power and energy efficiency.
Marine natural products that inhibit osteoclastogenesis and promote osteoblast differentiation
Authors: El-Desoky Ahmed H. H. , Tsukamoto Sachiko
Published: April 2022

Osteoporosis is a disease that affects the quality of life of elderly people. The balance between bone formation mediated by osteoblasts and bone resorption by osteoclasts is important to maintain the normal bone condition. Therefore, the promotion of osteoblast differentiation and the suppression of osteoclastogenesis are effective strategies for osteoporosis treatment. Marine organisms are a promising source of biologically active and structurally diverse secondary metabolites, and have been providing drug leads for the treatment of numerous diseases. We describe the marine-derived secondary metabolites that can inhibit receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL)-induced osteoclastogenesis and promote osteoblast differentiation.
Trust Development in Military and Civilian Human–Agent Teams: The Effect of Social-Cognitive Recovery Strategies
Authors: Kox E. S. , Siegling L. B. , Kerstholt J. H.
Published: April 2022

Autonomous agents (AA) will increasingly be deployed as teammates instead of tools. In many operational situations, flawless performance from AA cannot be guaranteed. This may lead to a breach in the human’s trust, which can compromise collaboration. This highlights the importance of thinking about how to deal with error and trust violations when designing AA. The aim of this study was to explore the influence of uncertainty communication and apology on the development of trust in a Human–Agent Team (HAT) when there is a trust violation. Two experimental studies following the same method were performed with (I) a civilian group and (II) a military group of participants. The online task environment resembled a house search in which the participant was accompanied and advised by an AA as their artificial team member. Halfway during the task, an incorrect advice evoked a trust violation. Uncertainty communication was manipulated within-subjects, apology between-subjects. Our results showed that (a) communicating uncertainty led to higher levels of trust in both studies, (b) an incorrect advice by the agent led to a less severe decline in trust when that advice included a measure of uncertainty, and (c) after a trust violation, trust recovered significantly more when the agent offered an apology. The two latter effects were only found in the civilian study. We conclude that tailored agent communication is a key factor in minimizing trust reduction in face of agent failure to maintain effective long-term relationships in HATs. The difference in findings between participant groups emphasizes the importance of considering the (organizational) culture when designing artificial team members.