bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Nonclassical wave propagation measurements in the high temperature vapor of $$\hbox {D}_{6}$$ with the asymmetric shock tube for experiments in rarefaction waves (ASTER)
Authors: Chandrasekaran Nitish , Michelis Theodoros , Mercier Bertrand , Falsetti Chiara , Colonna Piero
Published: July 2024

A novel test setup called the asymmetric shock tube for experiments on nonideal rarefaction waves (ASTER) has been commissioned at Delft University of Technology. The ASTER, which works according to the principle of Ludwieg tubes, is designed to generate and measure the speed of small and finite amplitude waves propagating in the dense vapors of fluids formed by complex organic molecules, therefore in the nonideal compressible fluid dynamics regime. The ultimate goal of the associated research is to prove the existence of nonclassical gasdynamics. The setup consists of a high-pressure charge tube and a vacuum tank separated by a glass disk equipped with a breaking mechanism for rarefaction waves experiments. When the glass disk is broken, an expansion wave propagates into the tube in the direction opposite to the fluid flow. The propagation speed of this wave is measured using a time-of-flight method with the help of four fast-response pressure sensors placed equidistantly in the middle of the tube. The charge tube can withstand pressures and temperatures of up to 15 bar and 400$$^{\circ }\mathrm{C}$$

∘

C

. Preliminary rarefaction experiments were successfully conducted using dodecamethylcyclohexasiloxane, $$\hbox {D}_{6}$$

D
6

, as the working fluid and at pressures and temperatures of up to 9.4 bar and 372$$^{\circ }\mathrm{C}$$

∘

C

 , respectively. The results of an experiment featuring the initial state for which a theoretical model predicts the nonclassical acceleration of rarefaction waves show that the propagation is qualitatively different from that put into evidence by experiments for which the propagation is classic. Upcoming setup improvements and experimental campaigns are planned with the objective of experimentally verifying the existence of nonclassical gasdynamics.

Graphical abstract
Intentional coronary revascularization versus conservative therapy in patients after peripheral artery revascularization due to critical limb ischemia: the INCORPORATE trial
Authors: Toth Gabor G , Brodmann Marianne , Kanoun Schnur Sadeek S , Bartus Stanislaw , Vrsalovic Mislav , Krestianinov Oleg , Kala Petr , Bil Jacek , Gil Robert , Kanovsky Jan , Di Serafino Luigi , Paolucci Luca , Barbato Emanuele , Mangiacapra Fabio , Ruzsa Zoltan
Published: July 2024

Objectives

INCORPORATE trial was designed to evaluate whether default coronary-angiography (CA) and ischemia-targeted revascularization is superior compared to a conservative approach for patients with treated critical limb ischemia (CLI). Registered at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT03712644) on October 19, 2018.

Background

Severe peripheral artery disease is associated with increased cardiovascular risk and poor outcomes.

Methods

INCORPORATE was an open-label, prospective 1:1 randomized multicentric trial that recruited patients who had undergone successful CLI treatment. Patients were randomized to either a conservative or invasive approach regarding potential coronary artery disease (CAD). The conservative group received optimal medical therapy alone, while the invasive group had routine CA and fractional flow reserve-guided revascularization. The primary endpoint was myocardial infarction (MI) and 12-month mortality.

Results

Due to COVID-19 pandemic burdens, recruitment was halted prematurely. One hundred eighty-five patients were enrolled. Baseline cardiac symptoms were scarce with 92% being asymptomatic. Eighty-nine patients were randomized to the invasive approach of whom 73 underwent CA. Thirty-four percent had functional single-vessel disease, 26% had functional multi-vessel disease, and 90% achieved complete revascularization. Conservative and invasive groups had similar incidences of death and MI at 1 year (11% vs 10%; hazard ratio 1.21 [0.49–2.98]). Major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCE) trended for hazard in the Conservative group (20 vs 10%; hazard ratio 1.94 [0.90–4.19]). In the per-protocol analysis, the primary endpoint remained insignificantly different (11% vs 7%; hazard ratio 2.01 [0.72–5.57]), but the conservative approach had a higher MACCE risk (20% vs 7%; hazard ratio 2.88 [1.24–6.68]).

Conclusion

This trial found no significant difference in the primary endpoint but observed a trend of higher MACCE in the conservative arm.

Graphical Abstract

A graphical abstract illustrating the key highlights of the design and comparisons
Childhood asthma and mould in homes—A meta-analysis
Authors: Varga Marton Kristof , Moshammer Hanns , Atanyazova Oral
Published: July 2024

Asthma is a multifaceted and multicausal disease. Childhood asthma is strongly influenced by genetic traits and is characterized by hyperreactivity of the airways so that also unspecific triggers including moulds can trigger an asthma attack. Therefore, it is undisputed that moulds in the home can cause asthma attacks in asthmatic children. It is, however, unclear if mould in homes also induce the development of asthma. Because more and more severe attacks in asthmatic children living in mouldy homes might speed up the diagnosis of asthma, cross-sectional studies are not well-suited to differentiate between mould as a causative or only as a precipitating factor. Cross-sectional studies show an increased asthma risk and poorer lung function in children living in mouldy homes. To better understand the causal role of mould in homes, a systematic review was performed with random effects meta-analysis focusing on cohort and case-control studies only.

We found 21 case-control and 11 cohort studies examining the association between mould at home and later advent of childhood asthma. According to the case-control studies, mouldy homes increase the risk of asthma by 53% (95 confidence interval [CI]: 42–65%) with no evidence of heterogeneity or publication bias. Risk estimates based on cohort studies were smaller with 15% (1–31%). The cohort studies also showed no publication bias but substantial heterogeneity (I2 = 60.5, p = 0.005). Heterogeneity could be partly explained by percentage of male children, age of participants, and publication year, but was not affected by study quality.

In conclusion, living in mouldy homes during childhood seems to increase the risk of later developing bronchial asthma.
Exploring factors associated with health literacy and the underlying mechanism among primary school children
Authors: Huang Junjie , Xu Yue , Yim Lai , Keung Vera M. W. , Cheung Calvin K. M. , Lo Amelia S. C. , Lau Vincent T. C. , Mui Lancelot W. H. , Lee Albert , Wong Martin C. S.
Published: July 2024

Aim

A better understanding of health literacy (HL) within a local context is needed before developing and implementing interventions in Hong Kong. The current study aimed to explore factors associated with HL and functional HL and the underlying mechanism of functional HL.

Subject and methods

The study recruited students from grades 4–6 in 18 Hong Kong primary schools. Self-administrated questionnaires with 49 items were given to children to assess their HL and 20 factors of interest (e.g., screen time, healthy behaviours). Data were analysed using logistic regression, with the levels of HL and functional HL as outcomes. Mediation analysis was used to assess whether the associations between factors of interest and functional HL were mediated by HL.

Results

A sample of 405 students were included (mean age = 10.0 years, 54.6% female). The majority of students (n = 304, 75.1%) had low family socio-economic status. Higher HL levels were significantly associated with children’s higher self-rated health levels (good: OR = 2.23; very good: OR = 4.09), more health information sources (OR = 1.10), more healthy behaviours (hand washing: OR = 1.83; dental cleaning: OR = 1.76), better efficacy (OR = 4.45) and motivation (OR = 2.61), and less screen time on TV (school days: OR = 0.60; holidays: OR = 0.47). Children’s higher functional HL levels were significantly associated with regular breakfast eating (OR = 2.08), fewer health information sources (OR = 0.94), poorer personal hygiene (OR = 0.57), insufficient physical activity (OR = 0.66), and less screen time on games (OR = 0.52) and social media (school days: OR = 0.30; holidays: OR = 0.42). HL partially explained functional HL’s positive associations with hand hygiene (indirect effect = 0.078, SE = 0.033) and the number of health information sources (indirect effect = 0.011, SE = 0.004).

Conclusion

The current study identified potential intervention targets for HL and functional HL. For greater intervention benefits, intervention should focus on specific targets that have direct effects on the functional HL outcome rather than factors mediated by HL. Continuing research with longitudinal data is needed to draw causal findings.
Role of Artificial Intelligence in the crime prediction and pattern analysis studies published over the last decade: a scientometric analysis
Authors: Kaur Manpreet , Saini Munish
Published: July 2024

Crime is the intentional commission of an act usually suspected as socially detrimental and specifically defined, forbidden, and punishable under criminal law. Developing a society that is less susceptible to criminal acts makes crime prediction and pattern analysis (CPPA) a paramount topic for academic research interest. With the innovation in technology and rapid expansion of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the research in the field of CPPA has evolved radically to predict crime efficiently. While the number of publications is expanding substantially, we believe there is a dearth of thorough scientometric analysis for this topic. This work intends to analyze research conducted in the last decade using Scopus data and a scientometric technique, emphasizing citation trends and intriguing journals, nations, institutions, their collaborations, authors, and co-authorship networks in CPPA research. Furthermore, three field plots have been staged to visualize numerous associations between country, journal, keyword, and author. Besides, a comprehensive keyword analysis is carried out to visualize the CPPA research carried out with AI amalgamation. A total of five clusters have been identified depicting several AI methods used by the researchers in CPPA and the evolution of research trends over time from various perspectives.
Motives for Performing Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors (BFRBs): Similarities to and Differences from Non-Suicidal Self-Injurious and Stereotypic Movement Behaviors
Authors: Moritz Steffen , Schmotz Stella , Hoyer Luca , Abramovitch Amitai
Published: July 2024

Background

In the DSM-5, body-focused repetitive behaviors (BFRBs) are now classified in the obsessive-compulsive and related disorders section. Differential diagnosis is complicated by the overlap of BFRBs with other disorders, especially non-suicidal self-injurious behavior (NSSI) and stereotypic movement behavior (SMB). The present study examined participants’ motives for performing BFRBs to provide a better understanding of how BFRBs may differ from NSSI and SMB and to determine whether BFRB is best characterized as an obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorder.

Methods

A total of 268 individuals with various BFRBs were assessed with respect to their motives for performing BFRBs, comorbid diagnoses, emotions accompanying their BFRBs, and whether they felt an urge to perform the behavior on others as well as themselves.

Results

The main motives for performing BFRBs were release of stress (84.7%), boredom (51.5%), and gratification/pleasure (34.7%). Approximately one third of the sample were unable to provide a clear motive. The majority were ambivalent about their behavior. Participants rarely engaged in cutting; 16.4% performed a BFRB on someone else’s body or wanted to do so. OCD was self-reported by only 7.5% of the participants.

Discussion

Ambivalence towards symptoms is high in individuals with BFRBs; the main motive for performing the behavior was emotion regulation, particularly of stress. Limitations of the study are the self-reported assessment and the high attrition during the assessment. Further research is needed to clarify whether BFRBs, NSSI, and SMB should be kept separate or should be combined into one category, perhaps with specifiers. The current classification of BFRBs as an OCD-related disorder should be reconsidered.
When Cows Become Heroes: The Construction of Animal Subjectivity and Environmental Sustainability in the Swedish Organic food Sector
Authors: Velander Josefin
Published: July 2024

An escalating consumption of animal products characterizes contemporary Western society, resulting in severe environmental consequences and heightened exploitation of animals. Among these issues, livestock production stands out as particularly detrimental due to its significant climate impact and land usage. Paradoxically, the Swedish organic food sector positions cattle as central to achieving sustainable food production. This article delves into the strategies employed by organic organizations to legitimize the consumption of cattle’s meat and dairy. The aim is to examine how Swedish organic organizations produce knowledge of sustainability, and how these sustainability constructions are intertwined with anthroparchy, a system of power relations between humans and cattle. Furthermore, the study investigates how cattle’s agencies and bodies are portrayed. Interviews, documents and media material from organic organizations in Sweden are analyzed to explore how carnism, norms of eating cattle’s meat and dairy, is maintained. The analytical framework applied is rooted in critical animal studies and draws inspiration from Foucauldian discourse analysis, examining the interplay between power and knowledge. The findings reveal that certain environmental aspects are emphasized to reinforce the norm of keeping cattle for food production, while other dimensions are overlooked. Organic organizations represent cows as active subjects transforming their environment to legitimize their status as consumable commodities. The findings also show how carnistic norms limit the organic sector’s ability to achieve environmental objectives. This study underscores how anthroparchy, the dominant power structures between humans and cattle, is reproduced in the Swedish organic context through sustainability discourses that emphasize the subjectivities of cattle.
Effect of nickel oxide concentration on titanium oxide bilayer photoanode for dye-sensitized solar cell application
Authors: Mujawar Almas , Shaikh Kashmira , Lokhande Prasad , Supekar Abhijit , Naik Nithesh , Kowshik Suhas , Jadkar Sandesh
Published: July 2024

The mesoporous titanium oxide has attracted significant attention as a photoanode material for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs). In the present work, we coated a planar NiO layer on the TiO2 film to minimize charge recombination with the dye and/or electrolyte molecules. The structural, morphological, elemental, optical, and electrical properties of the TiO2 and bi-layered TiO2/NiO films were studied using various characterization techniques. DSSCs based on N3 dye-sensitized TiO2 and bi-layered TiO2/NiO films were fabricated using PI as the redox electrolyte. The photocurrent density–voltage (J–V) characteristics of the DSSCs were studied using a solar simulator. Various parameters, such as open-circuit voltage (Voc), short-circuit photocurrent density (Jsc), and fill factor (FF), were calculated from the J–V characteristics. DSSCs based on bi-layered TiO2/NiO films showed superior performance compared to bare TiO2 films. The J–V characteristics of bilayer film shows enhanced open-circuit voltage (Voc) ~ 0.56 V, short-circuit current density (Jsc) ~ 2.14 mA/cm2, fill factor (FF) ~ 75%, and efficiency (ƞ) ~ 0.91%. The TiO2/NiO solar cell showed a ~ 28% increase in efficiency compared to TiO2-based DSSC. Hence, the bi-layered TiO2/NiO films have potential applications in optoelectronic and photovoltaic devices.
Luteolin Mitigates D-Galactose-Induced Brain Ageing in Rats: SIRT1-Mediated Neuroprotection
Authors: Younis Reham L , El-Gohary Rehab M , Ghalwash Asmaa A , Hegab Islam Ibrahim , Ghabrial Maram M , Aboshanady Azza M , Mostafa Raghad A , El-Azeem Alaa H. Abd , Farghal Eman E. , Belal Asmaa A.E. , Khattab Haidy
Published: July 2024

Luteolin is an essential natural polyphenol found in a variety of plants. Numerous studies have supported its protective role in neurodegenerative diseases, yet the research for its therapeutic utility in D-galactose (D-gal)-induced brain ageing is still lacking. In this study, the potential neuroprotective impact of luteolin against D-gal-induced brain ageing was explored. Forty rats were randomly divided into four groups: control, luteolin, D-gal, and luteolin-administered D-gal groups. All groups were subjected to behavioural, cholinergic function, and hippocampal mitochondrial respiration assessments. Hippocampal oxidative, neuro-inflammatory, senescence and apoptotic indicators were detected. Gene expressions of SIRT1, BDNF, and RAGE were assessed. Hippocampal histopathological studies, along with GFAP and Ki67 immunoreactivity, were performed. Our results demonstrated that luteolin effectively alleviated D-gal-induced cognitive impairment and reversed cholinergic abnormalities. Furthermore, luteolin administration substantially mitigated hippocampus oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, neuro-inflammation, and senescence triggered by D-gal. Additionally, luteolin treatment considerably attenuated neuronal apoptosis and upregulated hippocampal SIRT1 mRNA expression. In conclusion, our findings revealed that luteolin administration attenuated D-gal-evoked brain senescence, improving mitochondrial function and enhancing hippocampal neuroregeneration in an ageing rat model through its antioxidant, senolytic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-apoptotic impacts, possibly due to upregulation of SIRT1. Luteolin could be a promising therapeutic modality for brain aging-associated abnormalities.
Effects of Universal School-Based Parental Support for Children’s Healthy Diet and Physical Activity—the Healthy School Start Plus Cluster–Randomised Controlled Trial
Authors: Norman Åsa , Malek Mahnoush Etminan , Nyberg Gisela , Patterson Emma , Elinder Liselotte Schäfer
Published: July 2024

Health promotion from an early age is key to preventing unhealthy weight development in childhood, and parental involvement is essential. The school-based Healthy School Start intervention aims to promote healthy dietary and activity habits in the home environment and prevent child obesity through parental support. This study evaluated the effectiveness of the third iteration of the programme on children’s dietary and activity behaviours, and body composition through a cluster-randomised controlled trial. The trial included 17 schools (8 intervention) in disadvantaged areas in mid-Sweden with 353 families with 5- to 7-year-old children. The primary outcomes were intake of selected healthy and unhealthy foods and beverages measured using photography. Secondary outcomes were physical activity and sedentary time measured by accelerometry, and measured weight and height. All outcomes were assessed at baseline and post-intervention (8 months). Linear multi-level regression showed significant favourable effects of the intervention for intake of sweet beverages (b =  − 0.17, p = 0.04), intake of healthy foods (b = 0.11, p = 0.04), and more time in moderate to vigorous physical activity during weekdays (b = 5.68, p = 0.02). An unfavourable sub-group effect of the intervention was found for children from families with low education regarding sedentary time on weekends (b = 23.04, p = 0.05). The results align with the previous two trials of the programme, indicating that school-based parental support is a useful approach for health promotion in young children in disadvantaged areas. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov: No. NCT03390725, retrospectively registered on January 4, 2018,
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03390725.
On the mathematical properties of spatial Rao’s Q to compute ecosystem heterogeneity
Authors: Rocchini Duccio , Torresani Michele , Ricotta Carlo
Published: July 2024

Spatio-ecological heterogeneity has a significant impact on various ecosystem properties, such as biodiversity patterns, variability in ecosystem resources, and species distributions. Given this perspective, remote sensing has gained widespread recognition as a powerful tool for assessing the spatial heterogeneity of ecosystems by analyzing the variability among different pixel values in both space and, potentially, time. Several measures of spatial heterogeneity have been proposed, broadly categorized into abundance-related measures (e.g., Shannon’s H) and dispersion-related measures (e.g., Variance). A measure that integrates both abundance and distance information is the Rao’s quadratic entropy (Rao’s Q index), mainly used in ecology to measure plant diversity based on in-situ based functional traits. The question arises as to why one should use a complex measure that considers multiple dimensions and couples abundance and distance measurements instead of relying solely on simple dispersion-based measures of heterogeneity. This paper sheds light on the spatial version of the Rao’s Q index, based on moving windows for its calculation, with a particular emphasis on its mathematical and statistical properties. The main objective is to theoretically demonstrate the strength of Rao’s Q index in measuring heterogeneity, taking into account all its potential facets and applications, including (i) integrating multivariate data, (ii) applying differential weighting to pixels, and (iii) considering differential weighting of distances among pixel reflectance values in spectral space.
Design of Fat Alternatives Using Saturated Monoglycerides
Authors: Melchior Sofia , Plazzotta Stella , Miao Song , Manzocco Lara , Nicoli Maria Cristina , Calligaris Sonia
Published: July 2024

Traditional fats, used in the formulation of many high-consumption foods are characterized by the presence of a fat crystal network mainly made of saturated fatty acids (SFA). Despite conferring food unique structural and sensory properties, the lipidic composition of traditional fats has raised increasing concerns associated with the spread of diet-related non-communicable diseases. Fat substitution with alternatives characterized by a more equilibrated lipid composition is thus unanimously considered a priority to increase the food nutritional profile and sustainability. In this context, the structuring of liquid oils into semi-solid materials with a composition rich in unsaturated fatty acids but structural properties analogous to that of traditional SFA-rich fats is particularly promising. To this aim, a plethora of structuring molecules has been proposed to date. Among them, saturated monoglycerides (MGs) have the peculiar ability to self-assemble into several different hierarchical structures, which can be exploited to prepare fat alternatives. Depending on system composition and environmental conditions, MG-based hydrogels, hydro-foams, oleogels, oleo-foam and structured emulsions can be obtained. This review describes the structural properties of these MG-based fat alternatives, along with the formulation and processing factors affecting MG self-assembly capacity. An approach for the design of food using these promising structures is then presented along with a discussion of their potential functionalities.
‘The Most Saving Slum in Glasgow, and the Most Abandoned’: Twentieth-Century Materiality and Twenty-First Century Virtuality in the Jewish Gorbals, Scotland
Authors: Alexander Phil
Published: July 2024

In 1905, Yiddish poet and Glasgow union activist Avrom Radutsky described the Jewish population of Scotland as ‘a mere drop in the ocean’. Nevertheless, by 1920 this drop had swelled to 20,000 people, centred primarily (though by no means exclusively) around the Gorbals in Glasgow. The area was characterised by vibrant community life, but also cramped low-quality housing, poor sanitation and harsh economic inequality. Many of Glasgow’s Jews began to climb a social ladder that would lead them out of the Gorbals and towards more spacious residences in the south-west of the city, but maintained regular contact with its streets, shops and places of worship. Large-scale demolition of the neighbourhood in the 1960s mean that the Gorbals looks very different today, and the Jews are gone. The Jewishness of this space, however, still remains: a remembered or imagined presence in the minds of second and third generations, celebrated through community outreach, or romantically evoked in popular narratives. Equally, an absence of Jewish life in today’s Gorbals has been paralleled by the emergence of wide-ranging and socially minded virtual networks of shared memory. Through analysis of contemporary accounts and archival sources, oral histories, fieldwork interviews, and lively online discussion groups, this article examines how this former densely populated Jewish neighbourhood now functions as an important lieu de memoire, but in a significantly different way to Eastern Europe’s pre-war Jewish spaces. At the geographical edges of more traumatic histories, the Gorbals instead provides an affective link for contemporary, assimilated Scottish Jews, while at the same time the area’s Jewish history becomes part of a wider virtual online community – signifying an emotional connection to immigrant narratives and grounding personal and social histories.
A Note on the Use of Race and Color in Jewish Social Scientific Research
Authors: DellaPergola Sergio
Published: July 2024

This note takes as its point of departure the tensions and discrimination against individuals and groups that persist in the United States on the grounds of race and color. It is unfortunately likely that there is a long road ahead before racial and color-based prejudice, abuse, inequality, and indignity are no longer normative in the US. Growing incorporation of Jews in US society and culture brought about the adoption in Jewish social research of concepts and categories routinely used in the classification and analysis of the general population. I take issue with the uncritical use of categories such as race or color in Jewish social scientific research. The study of population diversity is essential for both cognitive and policymaking purposes. However, I maintain that some frequently used classification criteria, along with evident conceptual weaknesses, are plagued by a conscious or unconscious racist component. The use of race and color categories—no matter how well-meaning—is not congruent with a fair and thoughtful approach to social research in general, and to Jewish social research in particular. Instead, it looks like naïve and poorly understood, intentionally offensive or irrelevant concepts are increasingly applied in the definition and study of Jewish minorities. This raises substantial questions regarding the contributions of certain analysis to the resilience of racism in America.
Glass working and recycling in Pompeii: new evidence from the landfill of the Sarno Baths (VIII 2, 17–23)
Authors: Boschetti Cristina , Furlan Guido , Schibille Nadine , Raja Rubina , Bonetto Jacopo
Published: July 2024

Forty-six glass finds, including vessel fragments, windows, one inlay and one indicator of production (moil) excavated in the dump of the Sarno Baths in Pompeii were selected for an interdisciplinary technological, typological and chemical study. The identification of the moil demonstrates that a glassblowing workshop most likely existed in Pompeii, thus putting an end to a long-standing scientific debate. The LA-ICP-MS chemical data show that Roman-Mn base glass predominates, along with few Egyptian natron-type glasses and some plant-ash glass of probable Egyptian origin as well. A large proportion of the analysed glass, including the moil, consists of recycled compositions, suggesting the existence of an efficient system of collection and recycling of glass, which was active even at a time when the city had an abundant supply of fresh glass. The demand for raw glass in Pompeii far exceeded the average demand of other Roman towns, because glass containers were essential for the flourishing perfume industry in Pompeii and Campania. The proximity of the Sarno dump to the perfume district in the south-western part of the city and to the horrea of the Sanctuary of Venus suggests the possible location of the glass workshop in this area.
Aqueous Black Seed (Nigella sativa L.) Extract-Mediated Corrosion Inhibition in Mild Steel Exposed to 3.5% NaCl: Effect of Temperature, pH, Time, and In Situ Analysis Using Atomic Force Microscopy
Authors: Jayakumar Sangeetha , Jouhar Mohammed , Khan Fouzia , Vadivel M. , Nandakumar T. , Lahiri B. B. , Philip John
Published: July 2024

Atomic force microscopy (AFM)-based analysis on the corrosion inhibition properties of aqueous black seed extract for mild steel exposed to 3.5% NaCl solution is reported here. At ~ 600 ppm inhibitor concentration, corrosion rate and inhibition efficiency are found to be ~ 0.18 ± 0.1 mpy and ~ 94%, respectively. The superior corrosion inhibition is due to the adsorption of the phytochemicals onto the metallic surface, as confirmed from spectroscopic analysis. Findings show the suitability of the black seed extract for practical applications at neutral pH and room temperature. AFM and magnetic force microscopy indicate lower surface roughness and nearly pristine topography for the inhibitor-protected specimens. In situ AFM analyses indicate delayed formation of surface irregularities for the inhibitor-protected specimens. The obtained results clearly show the superior corrosion inhibition efficiency of the aqueous black seed extract against mild steel under simulated sea water condition.
Phytonanotherapeutic Applications of Plant Extract-Synthesized Silver Nanoparticles in Wound Healing—a Prospective Overview
Authors: Oselusi Samson O. , Sibuyi Nicole R. S. , Meyer Mervin , Madiehe Abram M.
Published: July 2024

Chronic wounds continue to pose severe threats to public health and the global economy. This is because the healing process is hindered by several factors, such as bacterial infections, comorbid conditions, age, and lifestyle. Medical wound therapy is currently based on long-term antibiotic use, and its activity has been limited by various factors, including treatment efficacy, toxicity, and increased risk of opportunistic infections. The advent of novel techniques such as nanotechnology can provide sustainable platforms for developing reliable, cost-effective, and innovative wound healing interventions. In this context, plant extract-synthesized silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have become attractive to the clinical community because of their wide range of biological properties, such as antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and wound healing effects. These AgNPs could be used in the development of better dressings for wounds. This review aims to provide readers with recent advances in the application of plant extract-synthesized AgNPs in wound care and management. The article provides a general overview of wounds healing process, the global prevalence of wounds, and the economic impact of chronic wounds. In addition, the limitations of conventional wound treatment strategies and the need for alternative approaches are discussed. Finally, clinical studies that have used plant extract-synthesized AgNPs in wound healing and antimicrobial activities, are highlighted.

Graphical Abstract
Automated lost circulation severity classification and mitigation system using explainable Bayesian optimized ensemble learning algorithms
Authors: Elmousalami Haytham , Sakr Ibrahim
Published: July 2024

Lost circulation and mud losses cause 10 to 20% of the cost of drilling operations under extreme pressure and temperature conditions. Therefore, this research introduces an integrated system for an automated lost circulation severity classification and mitigation system (ALCSCMS). This proposed system allows decision makers to reliability predict lost circulation severity (LCS) based on a few drilling drivers before starting drilling operations. The proposed system developed and compared a total of 11 ensemble machine learning (EML) based on collection 65,377 observations, the data was pre-processed, cleaned, and normalized to be filtered using factor analysis. For each generated algorithm, the proposed system performed Bayesian optimization to acquire the best possible results. As a result, the optimized random forests (RF) model algorithm was the optimal model for classification at 100% classification accuracy based on testing data set. Mitigation optimization model based on genetic algorithm has been incorporated to convert high severe classes into acceptable classes of lost circulation. The system classifies the LCS into 5 classes where the classes from 2 to 4 are converted to be class 0 or 1 to minimize lost circulation severity by optimizing the input parameters. Therefore, the proposed model is reliable to predict and mitigate lost circulation during drilling operations. The main drivers that served as LCS inputs were explained using the SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) approach.
Fasting in combination with the cocktail Sorafenib:Metformin blunts cellular plasticity and promotes liver cancer cell death via poly-metabolic exhaustion
Authors: López-Cánovas Juan L. , Naranjo-Martínez Beatriz , Diaz-Ruiz Alberto
Published: July 2024

Purpose

Dual-Interventions targeting glucose and oxidative metabolism are receiving increasing attention in cancer therapy. Sorafenib (S) and Metformin (M), two gold-standards in liver cancer, are known for their mitochondrial inhibitory capacity. Fasting, a glucose-limiting strategy, is also emerging as chemotherapy adjuvant. Herein, we explore the anti-carcinogenic response of nutrient restriction in combination with sorafenib:metformin (NR-S:M).

Results

Our data demonstrates that, independently of liver cancer aggressiveness, fasting synergistically boosts the anti-proliferative effects of S:M co-treatment. Metabolic and Cellular plasticity was determined by the examination of mitochondrial and glycolytic activity, cell cycle modulation, activation of cellular apoptosis, and regulation of key signaling and metabolic enzymes. Under NR-S:M conditions, early apoptotic events and the pro-apoptotic Bcl-xS/Bcl-xL ratio were found increased. NR-S:M induced the highest retention in cellular SubG1 phase, consistent with the presence of DNA fragments from cellular apoptosis. Mitochondrial functionality, Mitochondrial ATP-linked respiration, Maximal respiration and Spare respiratory capacity, were all found blunted under NR-S:M conditions. Basal Glycolysis, Glycolytic reserve, and glycolytic capacity, together with the expression of glycogenic (PKM), gluconeogenic (PCK1 and G6PC3), and glycogenolytic enzymes (PYGL, PGM1, and G6PC3), were also negatively impacted by NR-S:M. Lastly, a TMT-proteomic approach corroborated the synchronization of liver cancer metabolic reprogramming with the activation of molecular pathways to drive a quiescent-like status of energetic-collapse and cellular death.

Conclusion

Altogether, we show that the energy-based polytherapy NR-S:M blunts cellular, metabolic and molecular plasticity of liver cancer. Notwithstanding the in vitro design of this study, it holds a promising therapeutic tool worthy of exploration for this tumor pathology.
Het interpreteren van de densiteit van nierstenen met de HU-waarde: weet wat je meet
Authors: Koonen Laurens S. P. , Dijkema Geerke H. , Vrooman Olaf P. J. , van Balken Michael R. , Pijl Milan E. J.
Published: July 2024

Samenvatting

Inleiding

De huidige EAU-richtlijn baseert de behandeling van urolithiasis deels op de densiteit van een concrement, met CT geschat op basis van Hounsfield Units (HU). Het is onduidelijk hoe deze densiteit het beste kan worden gemeten en of nieuwe reconstructietechnieken van CT-scans leiden tot andere HU-waarden.

Materiaal

Bij 107 patiënten, behandeld voor urolithiasis via PNL of URS, werd retrospectief de HU-waarde van het concrement met meerdere meetmethoden bepaald op een blanco CT-abdomen met verschillende reconstructietechnieken en coupedikten. De verschillen in HU-waarden tussen deze metingen werden berekend.

Resultaten

De gemiddelde hoogste, maximale HU-waarde (1.362) werd gemeten bij de iDose 0,9 mm-reconstructie met meetmethode M3. Dit verschilt niet significant van de IMR 0,9 mm-reconstructie (1.238, p = 0,29). De maximale HU-waarde bij IMR 0,9 mm was wel significant hoger dan bij iDose 4 mm (1.038, p = 0,00026).

Conclusie

De coupedikte, reconstructietechniek en meetmethode hebben een grote invloed op de gemeten HU-waarde en daarmee op de behandelkeuze van een concrement.
A case of chronic kidney disease with refractory periodic vomiting and hypertension in a pediatric patient
Authors: Kashiwagi Yasuyo , Okuno Hironobu , Nishida Satoko , Ishii Hiroki , Yamanaka Gaku
Published: July 2024

Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) sometimes experience gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea and vomiting. In addition, hypertension and CKD are closely linked, and sustained hypertension in children is associated with the progression of CKD, leading to early cardiomyopathy and premature atherosclerosis. These symptoms substantially affect the quality of daily life of CKD patients, and particularly in children with CKD, they may cause growth retardation. Therefore, establishing effective management methods to alleviate these symptoms is very important. Here, we report a case of a male patient who was born at 34 weeks of gestation weighing 1400 g. At birth, abdominal ultrasonography displayed left multicystic dysplastic kidney. From 6 months after birth, he was frequently hospitalized owing to refractory periodic vomiting. At 9 months old, he was diagnosed as having stage 3a CKD, and at 20 months old, he presented with stage 2 high blood pressure. In Japan, the uremic toxin adsorbent AST-120 and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor-I (ACE-I) are not strongly recommended for CKD patients. However, after the patient underwent combination therapy of AST-120 and ACE-I, his frequent hospitalizations for refractory periodic vomiting ceased, and his blood pressure decreased. These results indicate that AST-120 and ACE-I are effective for refractory periodic vomiting and hypertension associated with CKD. The patient’s height, weight, and mental development are catching up smoothly. The cause of the patient’s refractory periodic vomiting remains unclear. However, his impaired kidney function owing to congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract may have caused the refractory periodic vomiting and dehydration. The production of uremic toxins in CKD patients is thought to lead to the secretion of proinflammatory cytokines into the circulation. However, our patient had low serum levels of proinflammatory cytokines, and his serum levels of the chemokines CX3CL1 and CCL2 decreased with age, together with improvement in his clinical course. Therefore, some specific chemokines might be diagnostic and/or prognostic biomarkers of CKD.
Remarks on control and inverse problems for PDEs
Authors: Fernández-Cara Emique
Published: July 2024

This paper deals with recent results and open questions on the control and parameter identification of systems governed by PDEs. Among them, we find a few parabolic and hyperbolic equations, sometimes in the framework of a free-boundary problem. In the considered control problems, we try to govern the behavior of the solution(s) with a good (judicious) choice of the data. On the other hand, in the other (inverse) problems, the goal is to identify the value(s) of unknown data from particular observations of the solutions. We will recall a collection of optimal control, controllability and inverse problem assertions and will explain the arguments of proof. We will also present the results of some numerical experiments. Finally, we will state several open problems that can motivate future research on the subject.
Primary surplus dynamics and fiscal sustainability in sub-saharan African countries
Authors: Woldu Gabriel Temesgen , Kanó Izabella Szakálné
Published: July 2024

The study analyzes the Bohn (2007) sustainability test, allowing for a quadratic fiscal reaction function to public debt levels over the period 2000–2019 for 40 countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), employing a dynamic panel threshold model and other alternative estimation methods to investigate the reaction of fiscal policy and Dumitrescu–Hurlin Granger causality to identify potential causality linkages between government spending and revenue. Fiscal policy is found to follow a debt-stabilizing rule at a low to moderate level; however, fiscal responsiveness weakens when public debt to GDP ratio exceeds 55%, indicating that the use of primary surplus as an instrument to contain debt is insufficient when debt goes above the threshold, therefore jeopardizing the efficacy of fiscal retrenchments as an instrument to achieve sustainable debt reduction in SSA countries. The Dumitrescu–Hurlin result suggests a unidirectional flow from expenditure to revenue in SSA countries, implying that an increase in government spending has a substantial impact on widening fiscal imbalances and escalating debt levels within the SSA countries. Hence, governments in SSA countries should guarantee that public debt management strategies are in line with the public debt threshold to enhance fiscal sustainability. Considering these findings, this study highlights the importance of prudent fiscal management incorporating measures such as structural reforms, targeted investments, and prudent debt management strategies in SSA countries.
Mineralogy and rare earth elements spatial distribution in the carboniferous rocks of the eastern El Galala El Bahariya, Egypt
Authors: Ramadan Randa S. , Abu-zeid Mohamed M. , Baghdady Ashraf R. , Gad Ahmed , Dawood Yehia H. , El-hadidy Shaimaa M.
Published: July 2024

The Carboniferous rocks in the eastern part of El Galala El Bahariya were investigated using integrated field and laboratory techniques to determine their mineralogy, rare earth elements (REEs) distribution, and structural lineament density. The succession is mainly composed of argillaceous and minor arenaceous rocks, exhibiting variations in lithology across the study area. The essential minerals of these rocks are quartz, kaolinite, and illite. The accessory minerals include microcline, gypsum, anhydrite, halite, barite, hematite, pyrite, anatase and gibbsite, in addition to, the radioactive and REEs-bearing minerals such as uranophane, xenotime, monazite, and zircon. These minerals are reported in the rocks of the study area for the first time. The types, forms, habits, and modes of occurrence of the recorded minerals indicate multiple origins: allogenic–authigenic, and primary-secondary. REEs in the rocks exhibit enriched patterns with a negative Eu anomaly, likely due to low plagioclase content or and/or Eu removal by alteration processes. The distribution of REEs is influenced by textural attributes, with finer sediments in the southern part showing higher REEs content, ascribed to the high clay content and presence of gibbsite. The preferential mobility of LREEs is evident, explaining elevated LREEs/HREEs ratios in the rocks. Utilizing remote sensing techniques, lithological units and alteration zones were determined using decorrelation stretch and band ratio methods. The structural features, identified by Laplacian filter and edge enhancement, revealed the presence of NW–SE, N–S, and NE–SW faults that structurally regulate alteration zones and REEs distribution. These alteration zones are associated with clay minerals, REEs concentrations, and high lineament structure density. Spatial distribution maps highlight higher REEs concentrations in the southern part of the study area. These findings were validated using various analytical methods, including mineralogical and geochemical investigations, main component analysis, minimum noise fraction, decorrelation stretch, and spectral reflectance studies. They provide new insights into the REEs potential of the Carboniferous rocks and heighten our understanding of REEs genesis and distribution in the region.
Response to Shariff’s comments to my paper on his isotropic invariants (Shariff, 2023)
Authors: Itskov Mikhail
Published: July 2024

In the paper by Shariff (Q. J. Mech. Appl. Math. 76, 143–161, 2023) a functional basis of vectors and symmetric tensors based on eigenvectors of the first tensor is proposed. In the paper by Itskov (Mech. Soft Mater. 6(4), 1–3, 2024) a counterexample is reported demonstrating that the proposed terms do not generally represent isotropic invariants and cannot thus serve as a functional basis of symmetric tensors. In the latest response (Mech. Soft Mater. 6, 4, 2024) Shariff shows many examples of symmetric tensors for which his functional basis is valid but he does not really oppose the counterexample.
Taxonomic diversity and environmental tolerance of cultivable extremophilic bacteria from a high-altitude meltwater pond on Ojos del Salado (Chile)
Authors: Faragó Viktória , Megyes Melinda , Nagy Balázs , Borsodi Andrea K.
Published: July 2024

Earth harbors unique environments where only microorganisms adapted to extreme conditions, known as extremophiles, can survive. This study focused on a high-altitude meltwater pond, located in the Puna de Atacama, Dry Andes. The extremophilic bacteria of this habitat must adapt to a range of extremities, including cold and dry climate, high UV radiation, high daily temperature fluctuations, low-nutrient availability, and negative water balance. This study aimed to explore the taxonomic diversity of cultivable extremophilic bacteria from sediment samples of a desiccated, high-altitude, meltwater pond using media with different organic matter contents and different incubation temperatures. Based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis, the isolates were identified as members of the phyla Actinobacteria, Proteobacteria, and Firmicutes. The most abundant genera were Arthrobacter and Pseudoarthrobacter. The isolates had oligocarbophilic and psychrotrophic properties, suggesting that they have adapted to the extreme environmental parameters of their natural habitats. The results indicate a positive correlation between nutrient concentration and temperature tolerance.

Graphical abstract
Certifying Accuracy, Privacy, and Robustness of ML-Based Malware Detection
Authors: Bena Nicola , Anisetti Marco , Gianini Gabriele , Ardagna Claudio A.
Published: July 2024

Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) are radically changing how systems and applications are designed and developed. In this context, new requirements and regulations emerge, such as the AI Act, placing increasing focus on strict non-functional requirements, such as privacy and robustness, and how they are verified. Certification is considered the most suitable solution for non-functional verification of modern distributed systems, and is increasingly pushed forward in the verification of AI-based applications. In this paper, we present a novel dynamic malware detector driven by the requirements in the AI Act, which goes beyond standard support for high accuracy, and also considers privacy and robustness. Privacy aims to limit the need of malware detectors to examine the entire system in depth requiring administrator-level permissions; robustness refers to the ability to cope with malware mounting evasion attacks to escape detection. We then propose a certification scheme to evaluate non-functional properties of malware detectors, which is used to comparatively evaluate our malware detector and two representative deep-learning solutions in literature.