bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Renal MRI: From Nephron to NMR Signal
Authors: Bane Octavia , Seeliger Erdmann , Cox Eleanor , Stabinska Julia , Bechler Eric , Lewis Sara , Hickson LaTonya J. , Francis Sue , Sigmund Eric , Niendorf Thoralf
Published: May 2023

Renal diseases pose a significant socio‐economic burden on healthcare systems. The development of better diagnostics and prognostics is well‐recognized as a key strategy to resolve these challenges. Central to these developments are MRI biomarkers, due to their potential for monitoring of early pathophysiological changes, renal disease progression or treatment effects. The surge in renal MRI involves major cross‐domain initiatives, large clinical studies, and educational programs. In parallel with these translational efforts, the need for greater (patho)physiological specificity remains, to enable engagement with clinical nephrologists and increase the associated health impact. The ISMRM 2022 Member Initiated Symposium (MIS) on renal MRI spotlighted this issue with the goal of inspiring more solutions from the ISMRM community. This work is a summary of the MIS presentations devoted to: 1) educating imaging scientists and clinicians on renal (patho)physiology and demands from clinical nephrologists, 2) elucidating the connection of MRI parameters with renal physiology, 3) presenting the current state of leading MR surrogates in assessing renal structure and functions as well as their next generation of innovation, and 4) describing the potential of these imaging markers for providing clinically meaningful renal characterization to guide or supplement clinical decision making. We hope to continue momentum of recent years and introduce new entrants to the development process, connecting (patho)physiology with (bio)physics, and conceiving new clinical applications. We envision this process to benefit from cross‐disciplinary collaboration and analogous efforts in other body organs, but also to maximally leverage the unique opportunities of renal physiology.

Level of Evidence

1

Technical Efficacy Stage

2
What Makes Children's Responses to Creativity Assessments Difficult to Judge Reliably?
Authors: Dumas Denis , Acar Selcuk , Berthiaume Kelly , Organisciak Peter , Eby David , Grajzel Katalin , Vlaamster Theadora , Newman Michele , Carrera Melanie
Published: May 2023

Open‐ended verbal creativity assessments are commonly administered in psychological research and in educational practice to elementary‐aged children. Children's responses are then typically rated by teams of judges who are trained to identify original ideas, hopefully with a degree of inter‐rater agreement. Even in cases where the judges are reliable, some residual disagreement on the originality of the responses is inevitable. Here, we modeled the predictors of inter‐rater disagreement in a large (i.e., 387 elementary school students and 10,449 individual item responses) dataset of children's creativity assessment responses. Our five trained judges rated the responses with a high degree of consistency reliability (α = 0.844), but we undertook this study to predict the residual disagreement. We used an adaptive LASSO model to predict 72% of the variance in our judges' residual disagreement and found that there were certain types of responses on which our judges tended to disagree more. The main effects in our model showed that responses that were less original, more elaborate, prompted by a Uses task, from younger children, or from male students, were all more difficult for the judges to rate reliably. Among the interaction effects, we found that our judges were also more likely to disagree on highly original responses from Gifted/Talented students, responses from Latinx students who were identified as English Language Learners, or responses from Asian students who took a lot of time on the task. Given that human judgments such as these are currently being used to train artificial intelligence systems to rate responses to creativity assessments, we believe understanding their nuances is important.
Effects of tamarind seed polysaccharides on physicochemical characteristics of frozen dough: structure–function relationship
Authors: Ren Xiaolong , Zheng Weiqi , Li Lin , Feng Shuo , Zhang Hui , Xiong Zhiqiang , Wu Yan , Song Zibo , Ai Lianzhong , Xie Fan
Published: May 2023

BACKGROUND

Recently, frozen dough has become more popular because of its ability to be quickly transformed into freshly baked foods. During the storage and transport process, frozen dough can suffer some degree of damage caused by ice crystallization and recrystallization. Adding polysaccharides to frozen dough is a good way to solve this problem. Tamarind seed polysaccharide (TSP) has excellent ice crystal steady ability and has also been widely used in frozen foods. However, there is no study on the use of TSP in frozen dough.

RESULTS

TSP can stabilize the bound water content, inhibit the freezable water content, and increase elasticity. However, the dough with different structures of TSP added was less firm after 30 days of freezing compared to the dough without TSP, and the porosity and stomatal density of the prepared steamed bread gradually decreased. The addition of TSP reduced gluten deterioration during the freezing process, thus decreasing the collapse and uneven porosity of the steamed bread.

CONCLUSIONS

The results could provide new insights into the structure of TSP and its effect on the quality characteristics of frozen dough. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.
The Coral Bleaching Automated Stress System (CBASS): A low‐cost, portable system for standardized empirical assessments of coral thermal limits
Authors: Evensen Nicolas R. , Parker Katherine E. , Oliver Thomas A. , Palumbi Stephen R. , Logan Cheryl A. , Ryan James S. , Klepac Courtney N. , Perna Gabriela , Warner Mark E. , Voolstra Christian R. , Barshis Daniel J.
Published: May 2023

Ocean warming is increasingly affecting marine ecosystems across the globe. Reef‐building corals are particularly affected by warming, with mass bleaching events increasing in frequency and leading to widespread coral mortality. Yet, some corals can resist or recover from bleaching better than others. Such variability in thermal resilience could be critical to reef persistence; however, the scientific community lacks standardized diagnostic approaches to rapidly and comparatively assess coral thermal vulnerability prior to bleaching events. We present the Coral Bleaching Automated Stress System (CBASS) as a low‐cost, open‐source, field‐portable experimental system for rapid empirical assessment of coral thermal thresholds using standardized temperature stress profiles and diagnostics. The CBASS consists of four or eight flow‐through experimental aquaria with independent water masses, lighting, and individual automated temperature controls capable of delivering custom modulating thermal profiles. The CBASS is used to conduct daily thermal stress exposures that typically include 3‐h temperature ramps to multiple target temperatures, a 3‐h hold period at the target temperatures, and a 1‐h ramp back down to ambient temperature, followed by an overnight recovery period. This mimics shallow water temperature profiles observed in coral reefs and prompts a rapid acute heat stress response that can serve as a diagnostic tool to identify putative thermotolerant corals for in‐depth assessments of adaptation mechanisms, targeted conservation, and possible use in restoration efforts. The CBASS is deployable within hours and can assay up to 40 coral fragments/aquaria/day, enabling high‐throughput, rapid determination of thermal thresholds for individual genotypes, populations, species, and sites using a standardized experimental framework.
Multifunctional Fluorinated Lubricant‐Infused Poly(4‐Hydroxybutyrate) (P4HB) Membranes for Full‐Thickness Abdominal Wall Defect Repair
Authors: Sun Xiuxia , Chen Qi , Guan Angelique A. , Yuan Shuaishuai , Li Zhibo
Published: May 2023

Abdominal wall defect caused by surgical trauma, congenital rupture, or tumor resection may result in hernia formation or even death. Tension‐free abdominal wall defect repair by using patches is the gold standard to solve such problems. However, adhesions following patch implantation remain one of the most challenging issues in surgical practice. The development of new kinds of barriers is key to addressing peritoneal adhesions and repairing abdominal wall defects. It is already well recognized that ideal barrier materials need to have good resistance to nonspecific protein adsorption, cell adhesion, and bacterial colonization for preventing the initial development of adhesion. Herein, electrospun poly(4‐hydroxybutyrate) (P4HB) membranes infused with perfluorocarbon oil are used as physical barriers. The oil‐infused P4HB membranes can greatly prevent protein attachment and reduce blood cell adhesion in vitro. It is further shown that the perfluorocarbon oil‐infused P4HB membranes can reduce bacterial colonization. The in vivo study reveals that perfluoro(decahydronaphthalene)‐infused P4HB membranes can significantly prevent peritoneal adhesions in the classic abdominal wall defects’ model and accelerate defect repair, as evidenced by gross examination and histological evaluation. This work provides a safe fluorinated lubricant‐impregnated P4HB physical barrier to inhibit the formation of postoperative peritoneal adhesions and efficiently repair soft‐tissue defects.
Phenolic Polymers as Model Melanins
Authors: Galeb Hanaa A. , Eichhorn Jonas , Harley Sam , Robson Alexander J. , Martocq Laurine , Nicholson Steven J. , Ashton Mark D. , Abdelmohsen Hend A. M. , Pelit Emel , Baldock Sara J. , Halcovitch Nathan R. , Robinson Benjamin J. , Schacher Felix H. , Chechik Victor , Vercruysse Koen , Taylor Adam M. , Hardy John G.
Published: May 2023

Melanins are a class of conjugated biopolymers with varying compositions and functions, which have a variety of potential medical and technical applications. Here, this work examines the conjugated polymers derived from a variety of phenolic monomers (catechol (CAT), levodopa (DOPA), and homogentisic acid (HGA)), using a selection of different analytical chemistry techniques to compare their properties with a view to understanding structure–function relations. The polymers display measurable conductivity, with electronic properties tuned by the functional groups pendant on the polymer backbones (which served as dopants) suggesting their potential for application in electronic devices.
Syntheses of Cyclic Poly(l‐lactide)s by Means of Zinc‐Based Ring‐Opening Polymerization with Simultaneous Polycondensation (ROPPOC) Catalysts
Authors: Kricheldorf Hans R. , Scheliga Felix , Weidner Steffen M.
Published: May 2023

Ring‐opening polymerizations of l‐lactide are studied in bulk at 140 or 160 °C with zinc n‐hexanoate, zinc 4‐chlorothiophenolate, and zinc pentafluoro thiophenolate (ZnSPF) as catalysts. The reactivity increases in the given order. With all three catalysts a high fraction of cycles is obtained only at polymerization (annealing) times around 7 d. With ZnSPF weight average molecular weights (Mw) up to 178 000, a Tm around 199 °C and a ΔHm around 99 J g−1 w
ere achieved. The samples annealed for 4 or 7 d also display a saw tooth pattern of the mass peak distribution in the matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight spectra indicating transesterification reactions across the surface of extended ring crystals. This process optimizes the thermodynamical properties of the crystalline cyclic polylactides and is responsible for the high Tm and ΔHm values.
Incomparable Vγ$V_\gamma$‐degrees
Authors: Zhang Teng
Published: May 2023

In [3], Shi proved that there exist incomparable Zermelo degrees at γ if there exists an ω‐sequence of measurable cardinals, whose limit is γ. He asked whether there is a size antichain of Zermelo degrees. We consider this question for the ‐degree structure. We use a kind of Prikry‐type forcing to show that if there is an ω‐sequence of measurable cardinals, then there are ‐many pairwise incomparable ‐degrees, where γ is the limit of the ω‐sequence of measurable cardinals.
Collusion and corporate tax burden: Firm‐level evidence from China
Authors: Feng Yuanlin , Wang Fei , He Lingyun
Published: May 2023

Government‐firm collusion and corporate tax avoidance will result in tax loss, which has spawned several challenges that hinder economic growth and political stability. Based on the microdata of the National Tax Statistics Database (NTSD) of China from 2010 to 2014, this paper estimates the impact of government‐firm collusion on corporate tax burden. Using the business entertainment expenses as a measure of collusion, we find that government‐firm collusion significantly reduces corporate tax burden and increases tax avoidance. Mechanism analysis shows that collusion reduces corporate tax burden by providing firms with preferential tax policies and weakening taxation supervision of tax authorities. In addition, we find that reaping enormous benefits is the primary motivation for government‐firm collusion. The reduction effect of collusion on tax burden will be more substantial if the parties involved can reap more benefits. If tax collectors' discretionary power is restricted, the mutual benefits will be reduced, thus making it difficult for tax officials and taxpayers to build collusive relationships.
Mitochondrial energy metabolism is downregulated in repeated implantation failure patients related to alteration of PGC‐1α acetylation level
Authors: Han Shuo , Liu Sai , Jin Nai‐Qian , Lv Ya‐Su , Yang Mo , Ma Shuai , Fu Yao , Zhao Shan‐Ke , Liu Ming‐Hui
Published: May 2023

Herein we aimed at exploring mitochondrial energy metabolism status in patients with repeated implantation failure (RIF) and whether key regulatory factor PGC‐1α of energy metabolism is involved in the decidualization of endometrial stromal cells. Mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation level and ATP synthesis were compared in primary endometrial stromal cells from RIF and control group. At the same time, as one of key transcription regulators of mitochondrial energy metabolism, the expression level and acetylation level of PGC‐1α were compared with two groups. Then, we downregulated the acetylation levels of PGC‐1α, and the expression of decidual markers (PRL and IGFBP1) was observed further. Mitochondrial energy metabolism, showing by mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation level and ATP synthesis, was decreased in the endometrial stromal cells of the RIF group (RIF‐hEnSCs). Meanwhile, PGC‐1α acetylation levels were significantly higher in RIF‐hEnSCs. When we reduced the acetylation levels of PGC‐1α in RIF‐hEnSCs, the basal O2 consumption rate and maximal respiration were increased, and also the PRL and IGFBP1. Overall, our data indicated that the endometrial stromal cells of the RIF patients had low level of mitochondrial energy metabolism. Reducing acetylation level of key energy metabolism regulator PGC‐1α can increase the decidualization level of RIF‐hEnSCs. These findings may inspire new ideas about the treatment of RIF.
Biochemical and functional characterization of skeletal muscle cells differentiated from tonsil‐derived mesenchymal stem cells
Authors: Choi Yeonzi , Nam Yu Hwa , Jeong Soyeon , Lee Hee‐Yoon , Choi Se‐Young , Park Saeyoung , Jung Sung‐Chul
Published: May 2023

Introduction/Aims

Human tonsils are a readily accessible source of stem cells for the potential treatment of skeletal muscle disorders. We reported previously that tonsil‐derived mesenchymal stem cells (TMSCs) can differentiate into skeletal muscle cells (SKMCs), which renders TMSCs promising candidates for cell therapy for skeletal muscle disorders. However, the functional properties of the myocytes differentiated from mesenchymal stem cells have not been clearly evaluated. In this study we investigated whether myocytes differentiated from TMSCs (skeletal muscle cells derived from tonsil mesenchymal stem cells [TMSC‐SKMCs]) exhibit the functional characteristics of SKMCs.

Methods

To test the insulin reactivity of TMSC‐SKMCs, the expression of glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) and phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase/Akt was analyzed after the cells were treated for 30 minutes with 100 nmol/L insulin in normal or high‐glucose medium. We also examined whether these cells formed a neuromuscular junction (NMJ) when cocultured with motor neurons, and whether they were stimulated by electrical signals using whole‐cell patch clamping.

Results

Skeletal muscle cells derived from tonsil mesenchymal stem cells expressed SKMC markers, such as MYOD, MYH3, MYH8, TNNI1, and TTN, at high levels, and exhibited a multinucleated cell morphology and a myotube‐like shape. The expression of the acetylcholine receptor and GLUT4 was confirmed in TMSC‐SKMCs. In addition, these cells exhibited insulin‐mediated glucose uptake, NMJ formation, and transient changes in cell membrane action potential, all of which are representative functions of human SKMCs.

Discussion

Tonsil‐derived mesenchymal stem cells can be functionally differentiated into SKMCs and may have potential for clinical application for the treatment of skeletal muscle disorders.
Quality of life and associated factors among community‐dwelling adults with multimorbidity in Shanghai, China: A cross‐sectional study
Authors: Liu Xingyue , Zhang Juhua , Zhang Shixiang , Peng Shuzhi , Pei Mengyun , Dai Chunying , Wang Tingting , Zhang Peng
Published: May 2023

Aim

To compare the quality of life of patients with and without multimorbidity and investigate potential factors related to the quality of life in patients with multimorbidity.

Design

A descriptive cross‐sectional study.

Methods

This study included 1778 residents with chronic diseases, including single disease (1255 people, average age: 60.78 ± 9.42) and multimorbidity (523 people, average age: 64.03 ± 8.91) groups, who were recruited from urban residents of Shanghai through a multistage, stratified, probability proportional to size sampling method. The quality of life was measured using the World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire. The socio‐demographic data and psychological states were measured using a self‐made structured questionnaire, Self‐rating Anxiety Scale, and Self‐rating Depression Scale. Differences in demographic characteristics were estimated using Pearson's chi‐squared test, and independent t‐test or one‐way ANOVA followed by S‐N‐K test was used to compare the mean quality of life. Multiple linear regression analysis was conducted to identify risk factors for multimorbidity.

Results

There were differences in age, education, income, and BMI between single‐disease and multimorbidity groups, but no differences in gender, marriage, and occupation. Multimorbidity had lower quality of life, reflected in all four domains. Multiple linear regression analyses showed that low level of education, low income, number of diseases, depression, and anxiety were negatively related to quality of life in all domains.
Feasibility of combining temsirolimus to vincristine, dactinomycin, cyclophosphamide, and vincristine and irinotecan chemotherapy for children with intermediate‐risk rhabdomyosarcoma: A report from Children's Oncology Group
Authors: Oberoi Sapna , Qumseya Amria , Xue Wei , Harrison Douglas J. , Rudzinski Erin R. , Wolden Suzanne L. , Dasgupta Roshni , Venkatramani Rajkumar , Gupta Abha A.
Published: May 2023

Background

Temsirolimus has shown in vivo activity against rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS). We aimed to determine the feasibility of incorporating temsirolimus within the standard Children's Oncology Group (COG) chemotherapy backbone of vincristine, actinomycin‐D, and cyclophosphamide (VAC) alternating with vincristine and irinotecan (VI) in children with intermediate‐risk (IR) RMS.

Methods

The feasibility phase of the COG IR‐RMS trial, ARST1431 (NCT02567435), assigned 10 patients to receive 15 mg/m2/dose (dose level 1) of temsirolimus on days 1, 8, and 15 of each of three weekly VAC and VI cycles for the first 12 weeks of induction chemotherapy. The primary endpoint of the feasibility phase was to establish the safe dose and safety of combining temsirolimus with VAC/VI. The combination regimen was deemed feasible if less than 40% of patients developed a priori defined nonhematological dose‐limiting toxicities (DLTs).

Results

Ten patients (seven males and three females; median age = 4.5 years [range: 0.2–14.4 years]) with IR‐RMS were enrolled and received dose level 1 of temsirolimus. Eight patients had FOXO1‐negative disease, while two had FOXO1‐positive disease. Two patients had metastatic disease. Of 10 patients, two developed DLTs: grade 3 oral mucositis and pneumonitis. Four patients (40%) had grade 4 neutropenia. No treatment‐related mortality occurred. The median duration of the completion of the feasibility phase was 12.1 weeks (range: 11.7–15 weeks).

Conclusions

Weekly temsirolimus at 15 mg/m2/dose during VAC/VI chemotherapy was feasible and well tolerated. The efficacy of this regimen is currently being tested in a phase III randomized trial against VAC/VI chemotherapy alone in the ARST1431 trial.
Barriers to medication adherence in sickle cell disease: A comprehensive theory‐based evaluation using the COM‐B model
Authors: King Kathryn , Cai Stephanie , Barrera Leonardo , Reddy Paavani , Heneghan Mallorie B. , Badawy Sherif M.
Published: May 2023

Background

Sickle cell disease (SCD) affects more than 100,000 Americans, with complications such as pain episodes and acute chest syndrome. Despite the efficacy of hydroxyurea in reducing these complications, adherence remains low. Study objectives were to examine barriers to hydroxyurea adherence, and to evaluate the relationship between barriers and their impact on adherence.

Methods

In this cross‐sectional study, patients with SCD and their caregivers were enrolled if they were taking hydroxyurea. Study measures included demographics, self‐report of adherence using visual analog scale (VAS), and the Disease Management and Barriers Interview (DMI)‐SCD. The DMI‐SCD was mapped to the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation, and Behavior (COM‐B) model.

Results

Forty‐eight caregivers (females 83%, median age 38 [34–43]) and 19 patients (male 53%, median age 15 [13.5–18]) participated. Using VAS, many patients (63%) reported low hydroxyurea adherence, while most caregivers (75%) reported high adherence. Caregivers endorsed barriers across multiple COM‐B components, with physical opportunity (e.g., cost) and reflective motivation (e.g., SCD perceptions) being the most identified categories (48% and 42%), respectively. Patients’ most identified barriers included psychological capability (e.g., forgetfulness) and reflective motivation (84% and 68%), respectively. Patients’ and caregivers’ VAS scores negatively correlated with the number of barriers (rs = –.53, p = .01; rs = –.28, p = .05) and COM‐B categories (rs = –.51, p = .02; rs = –.35, p = .01), respectively, suggesting lower adherence with more endorsed barriers.

Conclusions

Fewer barriers to hydroxyurea adherence were associated with higher adherence. Understanding barriers to adherence is essential to develop tailored interventions aimed at improving adherence.
A single‐blinded, randomized controlled trial of standard versus higher dose carboplatin‐based intravenous chemotherapy for group D and E retinoblastoma
Authors: Roy Pritam Singha , Muhammed Safal , Singh Usha , Gowravajhala Sameeksha , Jain Richa , Trehan Amita , Bansal Deepak
Published: May 2023

Background

Access to intra‐arterial chemotherapy for retinoblastoma in low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMICs) is limited. There is a need to optimize the efficacy of systemic chemotherapy for advanced intraocular retinoblastoma, particularly in LMICs. The aim was to compare the efficacy of standard versus higher dose carboplatin‐based intravenous chemotherapy for group D and E retinoblastoma.

Methods

The single‐center, single‐blinded, randomized study was conducted during 2019–2021. Patients with newly diagnosed group D or E retinoblastoma were randomized to receive vincristine, etoposide, and standard versus higher dose (<36 months: 18.6 vs. 28 mg/kg; ≥36 months: 560 vs. 840 mg/m2) carboplatin. Examination under anesthesia and ultrasonography was performed at diagnosis and following three cycles of chemotherapy. Group E eyes with poor likelihood of globe/vision salvage at diagnosis were excluded.

Results

Thirty‐two eyes of 30 patients were analyzed: 17 group D and 15 group E eyes. The tumor response to chemotherapy with regards to regression pattern (p = .72), tumor shrinkage (diameter: p = .11, height: p = .96), subretinal seeds (p = .91), and vitreous seeds (p = .9) were comparable between the two treatment arms. The globe salvage (group D [82% vs. 67%; p = .58]; group E [12.5% vs. 29%; p = .57]) and salvage of meaningful vision (group D [100% vs. 75%; p = .13]; group E [100% vs. 50%; p = .48]) were comparable between standard and higher dose arms. No excess treatment‐related toxicity was observed in the higher dose arm.

Conclusions

Higher dose carboplatin‐based intravenous chemotherapy did not result in superior globe or vision salvage in group D or E retinoblastoma.
Intra‐abdominal desmoplastic small round cell tumor: The European pediatric Soft tissue sarcoma Study Group (EpSSG) experience
Authors: Berlanga Pablo , Orbach Daniel , Schoot Reineke A. , Casanova Michela , Alaggio Rita , Corradini Nadege , Brennan Bernadette , Ramirez‐Villar Gema L. , Hjalgrim Lisa Lyngsie , Chisholm Julia C. , Bisogno Gianni , Coppadoro Beatrice , Safwat Akmal , Merks Johannes H. M. , Burrieza Gabriela Guillen , van Noesel Max M. , Ferrari Andrea
Published: May 2023

Background

This study describes the clinical findings of a consecutive series of pediatric and adolescent patients with a diagnosis of intra‐abdominal desmoplastic small round cell tumor (DSRCT) prospectively enrolled in European pediatric Soft tissue sarcoma Study Group (EpSSG) protocols: the BERNIE study, the EpSSG MTS 2008 study, and the EpSSG NRSTS 2005 study.

Methods

Patients aged less than 21 years with a diagnosis of DSRCT arising in the abdomen were included. All trials recommended a multimodal approach including intensive multidrug chemotherapy and loco‐regional treatment with surgery and/or radiotherapy whenever possible.

Results

The analysis included 32 cases (median age 13.7 years, male:female ratio 1.5:1). Three patients had localized tumors, seven had regionally disseminated disease, and 22 extraperitoneal metastases. All but one patient received multidrug chemotherapy and 11 had maintenance chemotherapy. Loco‐regional treatment consisted of surgery only in seven cases, surgery plus adjuvant radiotherapy in 10, and radiotherapy only in six. Among the 17 cases who had radiotherapy, six had irradiation of the primary site, 10 had whole abdominopelvic radiotherapy plus boost to macroscopic residual disease, and one had irradiation to lung metastases only. With a median follow‐up of 76 months (range: 18–124 months), 5‐year event‐free and overall survivals were 19.7% and 21.0%, respectively. Event‐free survival was significantly worse for patients who did not receive loco‐regional treatment (p‐value .007).

Conclusions

The study confirmed that the outcome of patients with DSRCT remains dismal and did not improve over recent years despite an intensive multimodal treatment approach.
Prognostic value of chest x‐ray‐ and CT‐defined large mediastinal adenopathy in high‐risk pediatric Hodgkin lymphoma: A report from the Children's Oncology Group Study AHOD0831
Authors: Lo Andrea C. , Lee Inki , Pei Qinglin , Wu Yue , McCarten Kathleen M. , Hoppe Bradford S. , Hodgson David C. , Roberts Kenneth , Milgrom Sarah , Kessel Sandy , Cole Peter D. , Kelly Kara M. , Cho Steve Y.
Published: May 2023

Purpose/objective

We compared the prognostic value of chest radiograph (CXR)‐ and computed tomography (CT)‐derived definition of large mediastinal adenopathy (LMA) in pediatric Hodgkin lymphoma (HL).

Materials/methods

Total 143 patients treated for stage IIIB/IVB HL on COG AHOD0831 were included in this study. Six definitions of LMA were investigated: (i) mediastinal mass ratio on CXR (MRCXR) > 1/3; (ii) mediastinal mass ratio on CT (MRCT) > 1/3; (iii) mediastinal mass volume on CT (MVCT) > 200 mL; (iv) normalized mediastinal mass volume (MVCT/thoracic diameter [TD]) > 1 mL/mm; (v) mediastinal mass diameter on CT (MDCT) > 10 cm; and (vi) normalized mediastinal mass diameter (MDCT/TD) > 1/3.

Results

Median age at diagnosis was 15.8 years (range: 5.2–21.3 years). In patients with a slow early response (SER) to chemotherapy, MVCT > 200 mL, MDCT > 10 cm, and MDCT/TD > 1/3 were associated with worse relapse‐free survival (RFS) on MVA, while MRCXR > 1/3, MRCT > 1/3, and MVCT/TD > 1 mL/mm trended toward worse RFS; MDCT/TD was the most strongly prognostic for inferior RFS, with a hazard ratio of 6.41 for MDCT/TD > 1/3 versus ≤1/3 on MVA (p = .02).

Conclusion

LMA according to MVCT > 200 mL, MDCT > 10 cm, and MDCT/TD > 1/3 is associated with poor prognosis in advanced‐stage HL patients with SER. The normalized mediastinal diameter, MDCT/TD > 1/3 appears to be the strongest predictor of inferior RFS.
Pharmacokinetics of ampicillin during venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation: A case report
Authors: Kim Sarah , Stucky Nicholas L. , Drummond Wendi , Elbarbry Fawzy , Footer Brent W.
Published: May 2023

The presence of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) in addition to underlying critical illness can affect the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of drugs that are often required to treat this patient population. While ampicillin is the preferred agent for the treatment of susceptible Enterococcus faecalis infections, there are no in vivo pharmacokinetic studies regarding ampicillin dosing in patients receiving ECMO. This case report consists of two patients on venovenous ECMO with E. faecalis bloodstream infections in which ampicillin serum concentrations were measured. Pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated using a one compartment open model. Ampicillin trough levels were 5.87 and 39.2 mg/L for patients A and B, respectively. Based on these results, ampicillin concentrations were found to be above the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for 100% of the dosing interval. The findings of this case report demonstrate that therapeutic concentrations of ampicillin can be obtained in patients on ECMO and therapeutic drug monitoring can be utilized to ensure adequate serum concentrations are achieved.
Correspondence between functional scores from deep mutational scans and predicted effects on protein stability
Authors: Gerasimavicius Lukas , Livesey Benjamin J. , Marsh Joseph A.
Published: May 2023

Many methodologically diverse computational methods have been applied to the growing challenge of predicting and interpreting the effects of protein variants. As many pathogenic mutations have a perturbing effect on protein stability or intermolecular interactions, one highly interpretable approach is to use protein structural information to model the physical impacts of variants and predict their likely effects on protein stability and interactions. Previous efforts have assessed the accuracy of stability predictors in reproducing thermodynamically accurate values and evaluated their ability to distinguish between known pathogenic and benign mutations. Here, we take an alternate approach, and explore how well stability predictor scores correlate with functional impacts derived from deep mutational scanning (DMS) experiments. In this work, we compare the predictions of 9 protein stability‐based tools against mutant protein fitness values from 49 independent DMS datasets, covering 170,940 unique single amino acid variants. We find that FoldX and Rosetta show the strongest correlations with DMS‐based functional scores, similar to their previous top performance in distinguishing between pathogenic and benign variants. For both methods, performance is considerably improved when considering intermolecular interactions from protein complex structures, when available. Furthermore, using these two predictors, we derive a “Foldetta” consensus score, which improves upon the performance of both, and manages to match dedicated variant effect predictors in reflecting variant functional impacts. Finally, we also highlight that predicted stability effects show consistently higher correlations with certain DMS experimental phenotypes, particularly those based upon protein abundance, and, in certain cases, can significantly outcompete sequence‐based variant effect prediction methodologies for predicting functional scores from DMS experiments.
Application of an effective marker‐less augmented reality image guidance method in dental implant surgery
Authors: Dong Siyuan , Du Chen , He Bingwei , Zhu Zhaoju , Han Dongqu , Jin Wei , Lin Hao , Shi Bin
Published: May 2023

Background

The existing augmented reality (AR) dental implant surgery navigation system usually uses markers to complete image guidance. However, markers often affect dentists' operations and make patients uncomfortable.

Methods

To solve the problems caused by markers, this paper proposes an effective marker‐less image guidance method. After initialisation is completed by contour matching, the corresponding relationship is obtained by matching the feature points between the current frame and the preloaded initial frame. The camera pose is estimated by solving the Perspective‐n‐Point problem.

Results

The registration error of AR images is 0.731 ± 0.144 mm. The planting errors are 1.174 ± 0.241 mm at the neck, 1.433 ± 0.389 mm at the apex and 5.566 ± 2.102° for the angle. The maximum error and standard deviation meet the clinical requirements.

Conclusions

We demonstrate that the proposed method can accurately guide dentists to perform dental implant surgery.
Adult Supports for Preschool Writers During Learning Centers
Authors: Rowe Deborah Wells , Davis Zarabeth G. , Piestrzynski Laura
Published: May 2023

The purpose of this study was to describe how experienced emergent writing teachers supported 4‐year‐olds in writing their own messages during the learning centers period of the preschool day. Data were drawn from two, year‐long qualitative studies of early writing instruction. Adult participants were three researcher‐teachers who worked in publicly funded prekindergarten classrooms 1 or 2 days per week across a school year. A sample of six open‐ended, researcher‐child writing events were selected and microanalyzed using the constant/comparative method and multimodal interaction analysis. Results showed that more than a fourth of adult message units were produced in conversations occurring “off the page” aimed at developing a shared, meaningful topic for writing. Drawing was used as a platform for developing ideas and as a launch for page‐based composing. Adults wrote their own texts alongside children as a means of engaging children as co‐authors and providing demonstrations of adult writing. Adults frequently invited children to write messages related to their play and activity, and then asked them to read their writing. They provided direct support for writing processes. Support for children's phonetic spelling was most frequent, followed by support for writing concepts. Handwriting support was provided infrequently. Adults praised all attempts at writing, regardless of the conventionality of the product. Findings provide an empirical description of how adults can support early writing in the context of informal learning center events.
From Rural China to the Digital Wilds: Negotiating Digital Repertoires to Claim the Right to Speak
Authors: Liu Guangxiang , Darvin Ron
Published: May 2023

Based on data from a qualitative case study of two Chinese university EFL learners from rural backgrounds, Andy and Jimmy, this study traces their progress from being struggling English language learners to confident speakers of English. Drawing on Darvin and Norton's (2015) model of investment that recognizes the intersection of identity, capital, and ideology, this study dissects Andy and Jimmy's engagement with the digital wilds and their negotiation of resources in online and offline environments. Analysis of interviews, observations, and digital artifacts reveal that as students from rural and migrant worker families, Andy and Jimmy positioned themselves and were positioned by others as inadequate speakers of English, contributing to their initial non‐participation in the English classroom. Participation in the digital wilds however provided these learners with opportunities to acquire a wider range of resources and to reframe their identities as legitimate speakers. Such expanded repertoires empowered them to claim the right to speak and to be heard across online and offline spaces. These findings reiterate the pedagogical potential of the digital wilds in creating conditions that enable rural EFL learners to invest in their learning of English.
Surgical treatment of a persistent right aortic arch with concurrent patent ductus arteriosus in a 4‐month‐old German shepherd dog
Authors: Duguay Marco T. , Walker Meagan A. , Ostrowska Justyna , Hoddinott Katie L.
Published: May 2023

A 4‐month‐old intact female German shepherd dog was presented with a history of postprandial regurgitation, a palpably distended cervical oesophagus after eating, and poor weight gain despite a ravenous appetite. Computed tomography angiography, esophagoscopy and echocardiography identified a persistent right aortic arch with a concurrent patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) causing extraluminal oesophageal compression leading to marked segmental megaoesophagus. A heart murmur was not detectable. A left lateral thoracotomy was performed to ligate and transect the PDA without complication. The dog was discharged with mild aspiration pneumonia which resolved with antimicrobial therapy. Twelve months post‐surgery the owners reported no regurgitation.
Getting Started
Authors: Horgmo Jæger Karoline , Tveito Aslak
Published: May 2023

In this introductory chapter we will introduce two essential concepts: differential equations and numerical methods. If you want to spend as little energy as possible (don’t be ashamed of that - energy preservation is both fashionable and a fundamental property of many biological mechanisms - it’s fine) you can get a good overview from this chapter alone.
Re-Introducing the Cell: The Extracellular-Membrane-Intracellular (EMI) Model
Authors: Horgmo Jæger Karoline , Tveito Aslak
Published: May 2023

As mentioned earlier, the bidomain system is currently the standard mathematical model of cardiac electrophysiology. This system is nowroutinely solved and provides valuable insights into the conduction of electrical signals in cardiac tissue. However, the model has one glaring limitation: The cardiomyocyte is nowhere to be found in the model, since the extracellular space, the intracellular space and the cell membrane are all assumed to be everywhere in the computational domain. The cell was lost in homogenization! There is a tremendous advantage to this because the model becomes much simpler and thus solvable for the whole human heart. And it works! But the downside is of course that the cell is the essential building block of the tissue and leaving it out of the model has consequences. For instance, it becomes impossible to investigate the detailed dynamics of the electrochemical processes in the vicinity of a small collection of cells.
The Diffusion Equation
Authors: Horgmo Jæger Karoline , Tveito Aslak
Published: May 2023

The diffusion equation appears in many applications in science and engineering, and computational physiology is no exception. In its most basic form, the diffusion equation is also useful as an example of how to deal with a PDE using numerical methods. We will start by considering it as a stand-alone model, but in the next chapterswe will study it in combination with non-linear ODEs. This chapter therefore serves as a warm-up for the more complex models. We will also follow the path we started above. In the very simplest case of an ODE, we found a formula for the solution of both the differential equation and the numerical scheme approximating the equation. One nice consequence of this is that, as we saw above, we can explicitly study the error introduced by the numerical approximation. In this chapter, we will use the same approach to study the error of the numerical approximation of the diffusion equation.
Implicit Numerical Methods
Authors: Horgmo Jæger Karoline , Tveito Aslak
Published: May 2023

In the previous chapter, we saw that the simple explicit numerical scheme resulted in an instability problem. We also saw that the problem could be resolved by using sufficiently short time steps. But in many situations, short time steps become exceedingly short, as can be seen, e.g., in the stability criterion (3.56). This means that we have to perform computations for a very large number of time steps to reach the final time and it is therefore tempting to look for alternatives. The most common alternative is to use an implicit scheme, which generally allows for much longer time steps.
A Simple Cable Equation
Authors: Horgmo Jæger Karoline , Tveito Aslak
Published: May 2023

The cable equation was first derived to model transport of electrical signals in telegraphic cables. But it later gained enormous popularity as a model of transport of electrical signals along a neuronal axon. In Chapter 9, we will discuss how this equation is derived and how the different terms in the equation come about. But here, we will just take a simple version of the equations for granted and then try to solve them. We will observe that the few techniques we learned above are actually sufficient to solve the non-linear reaction-diffusion equations we consider here.
Operator Splitting
Authors: Horgmo Jæger Karoline , Tveito Aslak
Published: May 2023

In mathematics, a common approach to solving a new problem is to break down the problem into sub-problems that you know how to solve and then try to glue the pieces together to yield a solution of the new problem. This approach is also very useful in software development; well-tested pieces of software can be glued together in order to obtain solutions to a wider class of problems. Operator splitting is a technique that illustrates this principle very well. Rather complex equations can be broken down into more familiar problems and solved individually. It’s a miracle that it works, but it does. And it’s no miracle because there are proofs of convergence. Anyway, we will illustrate operator splitting with two examples and then come back to this technique when the equations become more challenging.
Diskussion der Ergebnisse: Projektakzeptanz bedingt integrierende Kommunikation
Authors: Walter Stefanie
Published: May 2023

In dieser Forschungsarbeit wurde zum Verständnis des Phänomens der Akzeptanz beigetragen, die (In-)Akzeptanz der sächsischen Bevölkerung gegenüber Anlagen der Energie- und Rohstoffwirtschaft ermittelt sowie akzeptanzsteigernde Maßnahmen bestimmt. Um den Wissenstransfer zu befördern und insbesondere KMU der untersuchten Branchen zu unterstützen, wurden Teile der Forschungsergebnisse in der Webapplikation Akzeptanz-O-Meter zusammengeführt. In diesem Kapitel werden die Erkenntnisse gebündelt wiedergegeben, kritisch diskutiert sowie der zukünftige Forschungsbedarf abgeleitet.
Asymmetrische Reflexionstheorien: Der Abschied der Soziologie vom Recht
Authors: Bora Alfons
Published: May 2023

Bisher haben wir auf der begrifflich-konzeptionellen Basis eines reflexionstheoretischen Untersuchungsansatzes die Strukturen früher Interdisziplinaritätsmodelle in der deutschsprachigen Rechtssoziologie untersucht, in denen die Fundamente aller späteren Entwicklungen gelegt wurden. Rechtswissenschaftliche Autonomie- und Praxisdiskurse, so war deutlich geworden, ließen sich am Ende des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts nicht integrieren und gaben dadurch den Raum für die neu entstehende Soziologie frei. Diese entsprang als eigenständige Disziplin unter anderem aus dem Motiv der Autonomisierung, also eines reflexionstheoretischen Abstands zur Jurisprudenz, in der welcher sich zeitgleich mit der Entstehung der Soziologie Interdisziplinaritätskonzepte etablierten, nach denen die Beziehungen der Soziologie zur Rechtswissenschaft instrumenteller, dienender Natur sind.
Reconstruction of the event vertex in the PandaX-III experiment with convolution neural network
Authors: Li Tao , Chen Yu , Wang Shaobo , Han Ke , Lin Heng , Ni Kaixiang , Wang Wei
Published: May 2023

Abstract

The PandaX-III experiment uses a high-pressure xenon gaseous time projection chamber (TPC) to search for the neutrinoless double beta decay (0νββ) of 136Xe. The absence of the vertex position in the electron drift direction at which the event takes place in the detector limits the PandaX-III TPC’s performance. The charged particle tracks recorded by the TPC provide a possibility for vertex reconstruction. In this paper, a convolution neural network (CNN) model VGGZ0net is proposed for the reconstruction of vertex position. An 11 cm precision is achieved with the Monte Carlo simulation events uniformly distributed along a maximum drift distance of 120 cm. The electron loss during the drift under the different gas conditions is studied, and after the distance-based correction, the detector energy resolution is significantly improved. The CNN model is also verified successfully using the experimental data of the PandaX-III prototype detector.
Cosmology as a weak gravitational field and the trans-Planckian problem
Authors: Komissarov Ilia , Nicolis Alberto , Staunton John
Published: May 2023

Abstract

At momenta much higher than the Hubble scale, the cosmological expansion can be thought of as a weak gravitational field. We consider QFT in a particularly convenient set of coordinates that makes this manifest, so that, for those high momenta, the effects of the cosmological expansion can be dealt with using the standard tools of perturbation theory in Minkowski space. In this way, we re-derive standard results of QFT in a cosmological background, such as mode-stretching and gravitational particle production. We discuss the implications of our results for the trans-Planckian problem.
Loop-level double-copy for massive fermions in the fundamental
Authors: Carrasco John Joseph , Seifi Aslan
Published: May 2023

Abstract

We find that unitarity cuts and the duality between color and kinematics are sufficient constraints to bootstrap D-dimensional QCD scattering amplitudes starting from three-particle tree-level. Specifically, we calculate tree level amplitudes through six-points, as well as the four-point one-loop correction for massive fermions in the fundamental representation of the gauge group — constructing a color-dual representation of the latter for the first time. To do so we clarify a prescription for functional kinematic ansatze involving fermionic matter. The advantages of color-dual calculation, familiar from particles in the adjoint, also apply here: only a small number of basis topologies must be constrained via physical information of the theory, and algebraic relations propagate this to a full solution. As all the QCD amplitudes we construct here are color-dual, they trivially generate D-dimensional amplitudes in gravitational theories via double-copy construction.