bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Uncovering Early Traces of Bark Beetle Induced Forest Stress via Semantically Enriched Sentinel-2 Data and Spectral Indices
Authors: Mandl Lisa , Lang Stefan
Published: April 2023

Forest ecosystems are shaped by both abiotic and biotic disturbances. Unlike sudden disturbance agents, such as wind, avalanches and fire, bark beetle infestation progresses gradually. By the time infestation is observable by the human eye, trees are already in the final stages of infestation—the red- and grey-attack. In the relevant phase—the green-attack—biochemical and biophysical processes take place, which, however, are not or hardly visible. In this study, we applied a time series analysis based on semantically enriched Sentinel-2 data and spectral vegetation indices (SVIs) to detect early traces of bark beetle infestation in the Berchtesgaden National Park, Germany. Our approach used a stratified and hierarchical hybrid remote sensing image understanding system for pre-selecting candidate pixels, followed by the use of SVIs to confirm or refute the initial selection, heading towards a 'convergence of evidence approach’. Our results revealed that the near-infrared (NIR) and short-wave-infrared (SWIR) parts of the electromagnetic spectrum provided the best separability between pixels classified as healthy and early infested. Referring to vegetation indices, we found that those related to water stress have proven to be most sensitive. Compared to a SVI-only model that did not incorporate the concept of candidate pixels, our approach achieved distinctively higher producer’s accuracy (76% vs. 63%) and user’s accuracy (61% vs. 42%). The temporal accuracy of our method depends on the availability of satellite data and varies up to 3 weeks before or after the first ground-based detection in the field. Nonetheless, our method offers valuable early detection capabilities that can aid in implementing timely interventions to address bark beetle infestations in the early stage.
Effects of forest roads and an assessment of their disturbance of the natural enviroment based on GIS spatial multi-criteria analysis: case study of the University Forest of Taxiarchis, Chalkidiki, Greece
Authors: Kolkos Georgios , Stergiadou Anastasia , Kantartzis Apostolos , Tampekis Stergios , Arabatzis Garyfallos
Published: April 2023

The forest road network contributes to all aspects of the management and protection of natural ecosystems, such as fire protection and access to settlements, infrastructure and forest recreation. This has led to a constant demand for new roads and increased road density in forest areas. However, due to the environmental impact of such roads, a tool that takes into account all the parameters that they affect and evaluates the spatial distribution of forest-road-induced disturbance is needed. The present research highlights a multi-criteria evaluation (MCE), based on a spatial approach that utilizes geographical information systems (GIS), for estimating both the impact of the forest road network and the absorptiveness of the natural environment for that impact. The University Forest of Taxiarchis, Greece, was selected as it combines both timber production and recreation characteristics. Primary data were collected through the management plan for the area and the road network was categorized. A variety of factors regarding forestry, wood extraction methods and production, and social and topographical criteria were examined and scored based on their weighting factors. The results regarding the impact and the absorptiveness were analyzed in order to assess the spatial disturbance. The analysis showed that the spatial environmental impact of the forest roads is crucial and that MCE methods should be applied in environmental impact assessment (EIA) in order to support decision-making systems (DMS) for new road construction and to enhance environmental integration.
An Iranian Childhood
Authors: Dabashi Hamid
Published: April 2023

Hamid Dabashi was born and raised in southern Iran in the 1950s and 1960s. During this time, his homeland was changed beyond recognition, from the 1953 coup d'état to the 1963 political protests and the beginning of the Marxist rebellions against the Shah in 1971. In this vibrant, unique and personal study, Dabashi recounts his experience of this defining period in modern Iranian history, deftly blending the personal with the political, the ordinary with the extraordinary. Lyrically written, he combines vivid childhood memories with careful reflection to explore the intersection of history and memory. The book draws upon a rich tapestry of themes and sources, including art, literature, and folklore. In doing so, Dabashi asserts the power and place of the knowing postcolonial subject. Redrawing the limits of modern literary historiography, he asks what it means to be a Muslim and an Iranian, and, indeed, what it is that forms the humanity of a person.
Religious Speech and the Quest for Freedoms in the Anglo-American World
Authors: Bird Wendell
Published: April 2023

In the secular, contemporary world, many people question the relevance of religion. Many also wonder whether religiously-informed speech and beliefs should be tolerated in the public square, and whether religions hinder freedom. In this volume, Wendell Bird reminds us that our basic freedoms are the important legacies of religious speech arising from the Judeo-Christian tradition. Bird demonstrates that religious speech, rather than secular or irreligious speech based on other belief systems, historically made the demands and justifications for at least six critical freedoms: speech and press, rights for the criminally accused, higher education, emancipation from slavery, and freedom from discrimination. Bringing an historically-informed approach to the development of some of the most important freedoms in the Anglo-American world, this volume provides a new framework for our understanding of the origins of crucial freedoms. It also serves as a powerful reminder of an aspect of history that is steadily being forgotten or overlooked-that many of our basic freedoms are the historical legacies of religious speech arising from Judeo-Christian faiths.
Aust's Modern Treaty Law and Practice
Authors: Hill Jeremy
Published: April 2023

This new edition of a textbook first published in 2000 provides a comprehensive account of the law of treaties from the viewpoint of two experienced practitioners. It draws on the combined experience of Anthony Aust, the original author, and Jeremy Hill, until recently Legal Counsellor in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, London. The book provides a wealth of examples of the problems experienced with treaties on a daily basis. The authors explore numerous precedents from treaties and other related documents, such as non-legally binding instruments. Using clear and accessible language, the authors cover the full extent of treaty law, with both practitioners and students in mind. Modern Treaty Law and Practice is essential reading for officials in governments and international organisations, lawyers practising in international law, and teachers and students of law, political science, international relations and diplomacy who have an interest in treaties.
Surveiller sans punir : la place du droit dans la prévention des risques professionnels
Authors: Juston Morival Romain , Pélisse Jérôme
Published: April 2023

This article analyzes the role of law in the surveillance and prevention of occupational risks within a large public bureaucracy in France, based on a comparison of three services: a listening unit, an occupational health service, and an inspection mission. Each of these services offers legal intermediation activities that frame forms of legality, ranging from the most spontaneous to the most formal normative references. These references to the law make it possible to differentiate situations in order to create an occupational risk prevention policy that favors actions within the organization rather than external recourse. Deprived of any judicial horizon to use effectively to transform working conditions, the legal intermediaries in charge of occupational health and safety are nevertheless relying, even if in a differentiated way, on the law to work towards better risk prevention.
Perseverance and consistency of interest in underrepresented post-doctoral fellows and early-career faculty
Authors: Thakar Maya S. , Mitchell-Miland Chantele , Morone Natalia E. , Althouse Andrew D. , Murrell Audrey J. , Rubio Doris M. , White Gretchen E.
Published: April 2023

Introduction:

Underrepresented researchers face more challenges than their well-represented counterparts. Perseverance and consistency of interest are associated with career success in well-represented physicians. Therefore, we examined associations of perseverance and consistency of interest with Clinical Research Appraisal Inventory (CRAI), science identity, and other factors related to career success among underrepresented post-doctoral fellows and early-career faculty.

Methods:

This is a cross-sectional analysis of data collected from September to October 2020 among 224 underrepresented early-career researchers at 25 academic medical centers in the Building Up Trial. We used linear regression to test associations of perseverance and consistency of interest scores with CRAI, science identity, and effort/reward imbalance (ERI) scores.

Results:

The cohort is 80% female, 33% non-Hispanic Black, and 34% Hispanic. The median perseverance and consistency of interest scores were 3.8 (25th–75th percentile: 3.7,4.2) and 3.7 (25th–75th percentile: 3.2, 4.0), respectively. Higher perseverance was associated with a higher CRAI score (β = 0.82; 95% CI = 0.30, 1.33, p = 0.002) and science identity (β = 0.44; 95% CI = 0.19, 0.68, p = 0.001). Higher consistency of interest was associated with a higher CRAI score (β = 0.60; 95% CI = 0.23, 0.96, p = 0.001) and higher science identity score (β = 0.20; 95% CI = 0.03, 0.36, p = 0.02), while lower consistency of interest was associated with imbalance favoring effort (β = –0.22; 95% CI = –0.33, –0.11, p = 0.001).

Conclusions:

We found that perseverance and consistency of interest are related to CRAI and science identity, indicating that these factors may positively influence one’s decision to stay in research.
Rapid Expansion and Adaptability of California Medical Disaster Teams
Authors: Rymer Thérèse , Breyre Amelia M. , Lovett-Floom LeAnne , Devereaux Asha , Staats Katherine , Noste Erin E. , Backer Howard
Published: April 2023

The California Medical Assistance Team (CAL-MAT) program is coordinated by the California Emergency Medical Services Authority (EMSA). The program was developed to deploy and support medical personnel for disaster medical response. During the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, the program and missions grew rapidly in response to medical surge, programs for testing and vaccination, and other concurrent disasters. CAL-MAT enrollment increased 10-fold from approximately 200 members at the beginning of 2020, to an estimated 2200 members by June 2021. This article describes the flexible use of a state-managed disaster medical response program within California and some of the challenges associated with rapid expansion and varied demands during the COVID-19 surges of March 2020–March 2022. CAL-MAT may serve as a model for development of similar state-sponsored or other disaster medical response teams.
Two Asian cricetodontine-like muroid rodents from the Neogene of western North America
Authors: Martin Robert A. , Kelly Thomas S. , Holroyd Patricia
Published: April 2023

We appraise the morphology and potential origin of two Neogene cricetodontine-like muroids, Pliotomodon primitivus from Late Miocene sediments in northern California and an undescribed muroid from the late Oligocene or Early Miocene of central Oregon. Superficial resemblance of the dentition of Pliotomodon with members of the North American galushamyinan neotominins is considered a result of parallel evolution, as shown by the large size and unreduced M3/m3 of the former. Dental features of Pliotomodon are similar to those of Eurasian genera such as Byzantinia, Hispanomys, and Ruscinomys, but the unusual morphology of M3/m3, with continuous enamel connections across their lingual surfaces closing the hypoflexus and posteroflexid, respectively, plus retention of only three roots on M1, suggests Pliotomodon arose from an ancestor distinct from the one that gave rise to the large late Neogene hypsodont cricetodontines of the Old World. In the absence of known ancestral taxa in North America, we postulate Pliotomodon dispersed to North America across Beringia during the Hemphillian (ca. 8.6 Ma, Hh-1). Another archaic cricetodontine-like rodent, from the Warm Springs region of the John Day Formation in Oregon, is named as a new species of Deperetomys, D. dingusi new species. Deperetomys dingusi n. sp. likely descended from a species of Deperetomys intermediate between archaic species such as D. calefactus and D. magnus and more dentally derived species such as D. intermedius and D. hagni, dispersing to North America during the late Oligocene or Early Miocene (Arikareean; ca. 23 Ma, Ar3 or Ar4).

UUID: http://zoobank.org/b691db3a-79de-4d3e-8af0-3bda4957b119
Design framework for programmable mechanical metamaterial with unconventional damping properties under dynamic loading conditions
Authors: Kaal William , Becker Michael M. , Specht Marius , Fischer Sarah C.L.
Published: April 2023

A theoretical and experimental framework for novel metamaterial with programmable damping properties is presented. This material system is able to switch between elastic-dominated and damping-dominated regimes with different overall stiffness under dynamic loading depending on the external stimulus. The unit cell combines an auxetic and a bellow-like layer separated by an interface through which the amount of media flow can be tuned depending on the lateral strain. A simplified analytical model is derived to analyse the programmable damping effect. The model is further extended with a fluid-dynamics approach to link the effective damping properties with geometrical parameters to aid with the practical design of the metamaterial. Afterward, experiments are conducted on a macroscopic level using laser-sintered unit cells to validate the functionality of the concept both with air and water as media within the unit cells. To conclude the work, initial results on microscopic-level unit cells fabricated by two-photon lithography are introduced to showcase the scalability of the concept. This work provides an experimentally validated theoretical framework for future investigations to design unit cells with programmable damping on different length scales for applications requiring tailored dynamic energy dissipation.
A meta-analysis on the uncinate fasciculus in depression
Authors: Xu Ellie P. , Nguyen Lynn , Leibenluft Ellen , Stange Jonathan P. , Linke Julia O.
Published: April 2023

Aberrant microstructure of the uncinate fasciculus (UNC), a white matter (WM) tract implicated in emotion regulation, has been hypothesized as a neurobiological mechanism of depression. However, studies testing this hypothesis have yielded inconsistent results. The present meta-analysis consolidates evidence from 44 studies comparing fractional anisotropy (FA) and radial diffusivity (RD), two metrics characterizing WM microstructure, of the UNC in individuals with depression (n = 5016) to healthy individuals (n = 18 425). We conduct meta-regressions to identify demographic and clinical characteristics that contribute to cross-study heterogeneity in UNC findings. UNC FA was reduced in individuals with depression compared to healthy individuals. UNC RD was comparable between individuals with depression and healthy individuals. Comorbid anxiety explained inter-study heterogeneity in UNC findings. Depression is associated with perturbations in UNC microstructure, specifically with respect to UNC FA and not UNC RD. The association between depression and UNC microstructure appears to be moderated by anxiety. Future work should unravel the cellular mechanisms contributing to aberrant UNC microstructure in depression; clarify the relationship between UNC microstructure, depression, and anxiety; and link UNC microstructure to psychological processes, such as emotion regulation.
Older and still voting? A mixed-methods study of voting amongst the older old in Europe and in the North-West of England
Authors: Purdam K. , Taylor H.
Published: April 2023

The implications of an ageing population for democracy are far reaching, however, older people are often treated as a homogenous group. This article used survey data from 29 countries across Europe, alongside qualitative interviews with the older old (people aged 70 and older) in the North-West of England (United Kingdom). The findings suggest that voting declines amongst the older old and women aged 85 and older were less likely to report having voted compared to men in the same age group. Older women aged 85 and older were also less likely to feel that people like them could have an influence on politics. In terms of a sense of the future, having grandchildren was associated with the likelihood of reporting having voted, but being older than the country average life expectancy was not. The interviews with the older old in the North-West of England revealed that many could remember the first time they had voted and its lasting personal significance. However, many also described becoming politically disengaged in their late old age. Older people also reported barriers to voting, including difficulties in accessing polling stations and in using postal voting. There was a desire amongst the older old to see more young people voting and frustration about their lack of interest, including amongst their own children and grandchildren. This suggests a concern for democracy and future generations. As the population ages and people are living longer, it is important to develop the understanding of voter turnout amongst the older old at different ages and the barriers they can face.
The (In)conceivability of Real “Workers’ Control” Under Capitalism
Authors: Rahnema Saeed
Published: April 2023

“History teaches, but has no pupils”
Rates of Inpatient Hospitalizations Across a 2-Year Time Horizon Between reSET-O and Control Patients: A Difference in Differences Approach
Authors: Shah Neel , Mahon Rowan , Murphy Sean M. , Velez Fulton F. , Maricich Yuri
Published: April 2023

Introduction

reSET-O® is an FDA-authorized prescription digital therapeutic (PDT) for opioid use disorder (OUD) providing cognitive behavioral therapy as an adjunct to buprenorphine therapy. This analysis describes differences in inpatient hospitalization rates over a 2-year period between patients treated with the PDT and those who were not.

Methods

A real-world claims analysis using the HealthVerity Private Source 20 database compared inpatient hospitalization rates (including intensive care unit stays and rehospitalizations) in patients who filled a reSET-O prescription (“cases”) to patients not filling their prescription (“controls”). Index date was date of reSET-O initiation for cases, and prescription date for controls, from January 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020. Pre- and post-index incidence rates of HCRU were compared with the incidence rate ratio (IRR) using a repeated-measures negative binomial model, adjusted for age, sex, region, payer type, Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) score, and number of similar services in the 12 months pre-index with an offset for number of days in the 12-month post-index period. Adjusted differences in inpatient hospitalizations in cases vs. controls were evaluated at 3-month intervals beginning at 12 months pre-index through 12 months post-index, using a difference in differences (DID) approach.

Results

In this analysis, 901 cases (median age 36 years, 62.4% female, 73.9% Medicaid recipients, 95% treated with buprenorphine in the post-index period) were compared with 978 controls (median age 38 years, 55.1% female, 65.4% Medicaid recipients, 95% treated with buprenorphine in the post-index period). Incidence rate ratios of inpatient stays trended lower in later pre-post comparison periods among cases (IRRs 0.80, 0.95, 0.87, and 0.75 at 3-, 6-, 9-, and 12 months pre-post, respectively), and trended higher in later pre-post periods in controls (IRRs 0.93, 0.83, 0.86, 0.88 at 3-, 6-, 9-, and 12-month intervals respectively). The DID for controls vs. cases during the 12-month post interval compared to the 12-month pre-index rates, represented a 44% lower incidence of inpatient hospitalizations vs. controls between the first and last quarters of observation.

Conclusions

This difference in difference analysis showed a lower 12-month pre-post incidence rate ratio of inpatient hospitalizations for patients using reSET-O vs. controls, and a 24-month change in quarterly inpatient hospitalizations in reSET-O patients that was almost half that of controls.

Funding

Pear Therapeutics (US), Inc.
Factor Analysis Investigating the Efficacy of HP-3070 Transdermal System in Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale Five Adults With Schizophrenia
Authors: Citrome Leslie , Castelli Mariacristina , Byreddy Sandeep , Hasebe Masami , Terahara Takaaki , Faden Justin , Komaroff Marina
Published: April 2023

Introduction

HP-3070, a once-daily asenapine transdermal system, is FDA-approved for adults with schizophrenia. In a pivotal phase 3 randomized controlled study, patients with schizophrenia who were treated once daily with HP-3070 demonstrated significant improvement in Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total scores compared with placebo. The PANSS score’s five-factor structure can also assess treatment efficacy across different domains. This post-hoc analysis of the pivotal study evaluated the efficacy of HP-3070 by examining these domains.

Methods

In the pivotal phase 3 study, adults with acute exacerbations of schizophrenia were randomized to 6 weeks of treatment with HP-3070 3.8mg/24h, 7.6mg/24h, or placebo. Factor analysis of PANSS scores was performed using five domains (negative symptoms, positive symptoms, disorganized thought, uncontrolled hostility/excitement, anxiety/depression). Mixed-model repeated-measures (MMRM) analysis included change from baseline in PANSS factor score as the repeated dependent variable, with country, treatment, visit, treatment by visit interaction, and baseline PANSS score as covariates.

Results

The analysis included 607 patients. Least-squares mean estimates (standard error) of the difference from placebo in change from baseline to Week 6 for each factor were as follows: negative symptoms, 3.8mg/24h, -0.9 (0.43), P=0.045, and 7.6mg/24h, -0.4 (0.43), P=0.41; positive symptoms, 3.8mg/24h, -2.3 (0.57), P<0.001, and 7.6mg/24h, -2.0 (0.57), P<0.001; disorganized thought, 3.8mg/24h, -1.5 (0.38), P<0.001, and 7.6mg/24h, -0.9 (0.38), P=0.03; uncontrolled hostility/excitement: 3.8mg/24h, -1.1 (0.30), P<0.001, and 7.6mg/24h -0.9 (0.30), P=0.002; anxiety/depression, 3.8mg/24h, -0.5 (0.31), P=0.14, and 7.6mg/24h, -0.6 (0.31), P=0.07.

Conclusions

HP-3070 demonstrated treatment effects on a PANSS five-factor model, with the results indicating impact on negative symptoms, positive symptoms, disorganized thought, uncontrolled hostility/excitement, and anxiety/depression. These findings suggest that HP-3070 may address a broad range of symptoms in schizophrenia.

Funding

Noven Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical, Co.
New Onset Capgras and Cotard Delusions in Schizoaffective Disorder
Authors: Ongchuan Samantha , Munjal Sahil
Published: April 2023

Background

Cotard is a syndrome characterized by ideas of damnation or rejection, anxious melancholia, and nihilistic delusions concerning one’s own body or existence. Capgras is a syndrome in which the patient believes that the identities of close relatives or friends are replaced by others. Capgras and Cotard delusion are rarely reported in one individual simultaneously, which we will describe in this poster.

Case Report

DD is a 38-year-old female with history of schizoaffective disorder, bipolar type, PTSD, and reported TBI who presented to the ED exhibiting paranoia and delusions in the setting of medication non-adherence and increased psychosocial stressors. She endorsed her organs were rotting, and that she was stolen by imposters who claim to be her family from birth. Chart review revealed previous hospitalizations involving mania and paranoid delusions; however, these Cotard and Capgras delusions were new. She also had reported TBI injury from domestic abuse, as well as emotional and sexual trauma. Her Cotard delusions resolved with risperidone 6 mg daily and valproic acid 500 mg BID. However, her Capgras delusions were maintained after 22 days of inpatient hospitalization. On discharge, she continued to refuse reconnecting with her family and was subsequently set up with an intensive outpatient program.

Discussion

Cotard and Capgras delusions are considered to reflect different interpretations of similar anomalous experiences. The persecutory delusions and suspiciousness often noted in Capgras contribute to the patient’s mistaking a change in themselves for a change in others, whereas people who are depressed in Cotard exaggerate the negative effects of the same change whilst attributing it to themselves. Although these two delusions are phenomenally distinct, they may therefore represent attempts to make sense of fundamentally similar experiences. The anatomical origin of these disorders have been reported to be from a disconnection between the temporal cortex and the limbic system as described in a patient with ischemic stroke. DD’s PTSD and TBI with possible damage to her left tempoparietal lobe may have predisposed her to comorbid delusions. Although DD’s Cotard delusions abated with antipsychotic treatment, her Capgras delusions were maintained. Recently losing custody of children may have contributed to the depression that precipitated her Cotard subtype 1 delusion. Her response to risperidone is consistent with a previous case report that highlighted the effectiveness of antipsychotics in the absence of ECT with Cotard delusion. In regards to her ongoing Capgras delusion, the chronic abuse by DD’s family may have led to a more persistent psychodynamically meaningful negation of DD’s sense of relationship to her family.

Conclusion

Capgras and Cotard syndromes, though rare, can present together. Additional studies are needed to understand the pathophysiology and treatment outcomes.

Funding

No Funding
Soil Respiration Responses to Throughfall Exclusion Are Decoupled From Changes in Soil Moisture for Four Tropical Forests, Suggesting Processes for Ecosystem Models
Authors: Cusack Daniela F. , Dietterich Lee H. , Sulman Benjamin N.
Published: April 2023

Climatic drying is predicted for many tropical forests yet models remain poorly parameterized for these ecosystems, hampering predictions of forest‐climate interactions. We applied an integrated model–experiment approach, parameterizing an ecosystem model with tropical forest observational data and comparing model predictions to a field drying manipulation. We hypothesized that drying suppresses soil CO2 fluxes (i.e., respiration) in relatively dry tropical forests but increases CO2 fluxes in wetter tropical forests by alleviating anaerobiosis. We measured soil CO2 fluxes during wet‐dry cycles from 2015 to 2022 in four Panamanian forests that vary in rainfall and soil fertility. Measured soil CO2 fluxes declined in the dry season and peaked in the early wet season ahead of peak soil moisture, resulting in lower soil moisture optima for respiration than previously modeled. We then parameterized the model using field data and the new moisture‐respiration response functions. The updated model predicted increased soil CO2 fluxes with drying in wetter and fertile forests and suppressed fluxes in drier, infertile forests. In contrast to model predictions, a chronic throughfall exclusion experiment initially suppressed soil respiration across forests, with sustained suppression for four years in the wettest forest only (−28% ± 4% during the dry season). In the fertile forest, drying eventually elevated CO2 fluxes over this period (+75% ± 28% during the late wet season). The unexpected negative drying effect in the wettest, infertile forest could have resulted from reduced vertical flushing of nutrients into soils. Including hydro‐nutrient interactions in ecosystem models could improve predictions of tropical forest‐climate feedbacks.
Reply to “Comment on Ionospheric and Magnetic Signature of a Space Weather Event on August 2018: CME and HSSWs by Kader et al. (2023)”
Authors: Younas Waqar , Khan Majid , Ammory‐Mazaudier C. , Fleury R.
Published: April 2023

We agree with Kader et al. (2023, https://doi.org/10.1029/2022ja030701) to the extent that longitudinal axis was flipped, by mistake, in Figure 5a of Younas et al. (2020, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020ja027981). However, claiming that this leads to wrong interpretation of main finding of the work is not true. This only affects one sentence in the Result section of Younas et al. (2020, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020ja027981). Moreover, the claimed corrected figure of Kader et al. (2023, https://doi.org/10.1029/2022ja030701) still has a scaling error which may lead to wrong interpretation of GUVI data. For setting a benchmark for future studies, we propose that either scaling should not be done, or it must be the same for all the considered days. Moreover, Kader et al. (2023, https://doi.org/10.1029/2022ja030701) showed that by taking mean of data points leads to different results, which is possible however it cannot be considered as an error in our work. If they believe that their method gives better explanation, they should publish it as an independent article. The statement of Kader et al. (2023, https://doi.org/10.1029/2022ja030701) about the error in our TEC data is also exaggerated. The article by Bolaji et al. (2021, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020ja029068) provided more insight about latitudinal variations in two sectors and used different GPS stations. Obviously, it is not possible to put all data sets in one study. Hence, stating that Bolaji et al. (2021, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020ja029068) found errors in our TEC results is a misleading statement. Although Kader et al. (2023, https://doi.org/10.1029/2022ja030701) also pointed out an error in Bolaji et al. (2021, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020ja029068), however in their title they only comment about Y20.
Stabilization of mineral-associated organic carbon in Pleistocene permafrost
Authors: Martens Jannik , Mueller Carsten W. , Joshi Prachi , Rosinger Christoph , Maisch Markus , Kappler Andreas , Bonkowski Michael , Schwamborn Georg , Schirrmeister Lutz , Rethemeyer Janet
Published: April 2023

Ice-rich Pleistocene-age permafrost is particularly vulnerable to rapid thaw, which may quickly expose a large pool of sedimentary organic matter (OM) to microbial degradation and lead to emissions of climate-sensitive greenhouse gases. Protective physico-chemical mechanisms may, however, restrict microbial accessibility and reduce OM decomposition; mechanisms that may be influenced by changing environmental conditions during sediment deposition. Here we study different OM fractions in Siberian permafrost deposited during colder and warmer periods of the past 55,000 years. Among known stabilization mechanisms, the occlusion of OM in aggregates is of minor importance, while 33-74% of the organic carbon is associated with small, <6.3 µm mineral particles. Preservation of carbon in mineral-associated OM is enhanced by reactive iron minerals particularly during cold and dry climate, reflected by low microbial CO2production in incubation experiments. Warmer and wetter conditions reduce OM stabilization, shown by more decomposed mineral-associated OM and up to 30% higher CO2production. This shows that considering the stability and bioavailability of Pleistocene-age permafrost carbon is important for predicting future climate-carbon feedback.
Screening of Drosophila microRNA-degradation sequences reveals Argonaute1 mRNA’s role in regulating miR-999
Authors: Sheng Peike , Li Lu , Li Tianqi , Wang Yuzhi , Hiers Nicholas M. , Mejia Jennifer S. , Sanchez Jossie S. , Zhou Lei , Xie Mingyi
Published: April 2023

MicroRNAs (miRNA) load onto AGO proteins to target mRNAs for translational repression or degradation. However, miRNA degradation can be triggered when extensively base-paired with target RNAs, which induces confirmational change of AGO and recruitment of ZSWIM8 ubiquitin ligase to mark AGO for proteasomal degradation. This target RNA-directed miRNA degradation (TDMD) mechanism appears to be evolutionarily conserved, but recent studies have focused on mammalian systems. Here, we performed AGO1-CLASH in Drosophila S2 cells, with Dora (ortholog of vertebrate ZSWIM8) knockout mediated by CRISPR-Cas9 to identify five TDMD triggers (sequences that can induce miRNA degradation). Interestingly, one trigger in the 3′ UTR of AGO1 mRNA induces miR-999 degradation. CRISPR-Cas9 knockout of the AGO1 trigger in S2 cells and in Drosophila specifically elevates miR-999, with concurrent repression of the miR-999 targets. AGO1 trigger knockout flies respond poorly to hydrogen peroxide-induced stress, demonstrating the physiological importance of this TDMD event.
Obesity, but not high-fat diet, is associated with bone loss that is reversed via CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ Tregs-mediated gut microbiome of non-obese mice
Authors: Song Wei , Sheng Qinglin , Bai Yuying , Li Li , Ning Xin , Liu Yangeng , Song Chen , Wang Tianyi , Dong Xiaohua , Luo Yane , Hu Jinhong , Zhu Lina , Cui Xiaole , Chen Bing , Li Lingling , Cai Congli , Cui Haobo , Yue Tianli
Published: April 2023

Osteoporosis is characterized by decreased bone mass, microarchitectural deterioration, and increased bone fragility. High-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity also results in bone loss, which is associated with an imbalanced gut microbiome. However, whether HFD-induced obesity or HFD itself promotes osteoclastogenesis and consequent bone loss remains unclear. In this study, we developed HFD-induced obesity (HIO) and non-obesity (NO) mouse models to evaluate the effect of HFD on bone loss. NO mice were defined as body weight within 5% of higher or lower than that of chow diet fed mice after 10 weeks HFD feeding. NO was protected from HIO-induced bone loss by the RANKL /OPG system, with associated increases in the tibia tenacity, cortical bone mean density, bone volume of cancellous bone, and trabecular number. This led to increased bone strength and improved bone microstructure via the microbiome-short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) regulation. Additionally, endogenous gut-SCFAs produced by the NO mice activated free fatty acid receptor 2 and inhibited histone deacetylases, resulting in the promotion of Treg cell proliferation in the HFD-fed NO mice; thereby, inhibiting osteoclastogenesis, which can be transplanted by fecal microbiome. Furthermore, T cells from NO mice retain differentiation of osteoclast precursors of RAW 264.7 macrophages ex vivo. Our data reveal that HFD is not a deleterious diet; however, the induction of obesity serves as a key trigger of bone loss that can be blocked by a NO mouse-specific gut microbiome.
Modulation of internal solitary waves by the Kuroshio in the northern South China Sea
Authors: Yu Yujun , Chen Xu , Cao Anzhou , Meng Jing , Yang Xiaoxin , Liu Tianyang
Published: April 2023

Internal solitary waves (ISWs) in the South China Sea (SCS) are considerably modulated by the background currents. In this study, a three-dimensional high-resolution non-hydrostatic model is configured to investigate how the Kuroshio influences the generation and evolution of ISWs in the northern SCS. Three runs are conducted, including one control experiment without the Kuroshio and two sensitivity experiments with the Kuroshio in different paths. In the Luzon Strait (LS), the Kuroshio reduces the westward baroclinic energy flux radiated into the SCS, resulting in weakened ISWs. In the SCS basin, the background currents further refract the ISWs. With the leaping Kuroshio, the A-waves have longer crest lines but lower amplitudes compared with those in the control run. In contrast, the B-waves are less affected by the leaping Kuroshio. In the presence of looping Kuroshio, the wave refraction caused by the intrusion currents in the SCS basin results in the weakest amplitudes and energy but the widest crest lines of ISWs. Moreover, the energy of the A-waves exhibits double-peak structure along the crest lines. The crest lines of the B-waves extend to 19.5° N, which are more south than those in summer. These results highlight the importance of the Kuroshio on the 3D features of ISWs in the SCS.
Effect of bioagents on cucumber seed mycoflora, seed germination, and seedling vigour
Authors: Sharma Aman , Shukla Arti , Gupta Meenu
Published: April 2023

The effect of different bioagents such as Trichoderma harzianum, T. viride, T. virens, Pseudomonas fluorescens, and Bacillus subtilis was studied on seed mycoflora, seed germination, root/shoot length, and seedling vigour of cucumber var. Solan Srijan under in vitro conditions. Alternaria sp., Aspergillus sp., and Fusarium spp. were observed on cucumber as seed mycoflora, with T. harzianum showing the greatest inhibition for Alternaria sp. and Fusarium spp., and T. viride showing the greatest inhibition for Aspergillus sp. Cucumber var. Solan Srijan seeds were treated with various bio agents, with T. harzianum being the most effective in increasing seed germination (88.75%), root length (13.58 cm), shoot length (14.58 cm), and seedling vigour (2501.31).
Bio-catalytic degradation of dibenzothiophene (DBT) in petroleum distillate (diesel) by Pseudomonas spp.
Authors: Sadare Olawumi Oluwafolakemi , Daramola Michael Olawale
Published: April 2023

Biodesulfurization (BDS) was employed in this study to degrade dibenzothiophene (DBT) which accounts for 70% of the sulfur compounds in diesel using a synthetic and typical South African diesel in the aqueous and biphasic medium. Two Pseudomonas sp. bacteria namely Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Pseudomonas putida were used as biocatalysts. The desulfurization pathways of DBT by the two bacteria were determined by gas chromatography (GC)/mass spectrometry (MS) and High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). Both organisms were found to produce 2-hydroxy biphenyl, the desulfurized product of DBT. Results showed BDS performance of 67.53% and 50.02%, by Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Pseudomonas putida, respectively for 500 ppm initial DBT concentration. In order to study the desulfurization of diesel oils obtained from an oil refinery, resting cells studies by Pseudomonas aeruginosa were carried out which showed a decrease of about 30% and 70.54% DBT removal for 5200 ppm in hydrodesulfurization (HDS) feed diesel and 120 ppm in HDS outlet diesel, respectively. Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Pseudomonas putida selectively degraded DBT to form 2-HBP. Application of these bacteria for the desulfurization of diesel showed promising potential for decreasing the sulfur content of South African diesel oil.
Exploiting social graph networks for emotion prediction
Authors: Khalid Maryam , Sano Akane
Published: April 2023

Emotion prediction plays an essential role in mental healthcare and emotion-aware computing. The complex nature of emotion resulting from its dependency on a person’s physiological health, mental state, and his surroundings makes its prediction a challenging task. In this work, we utilize mobile sensing data to predict self-reported happiness and stress levels. In addition to a person’s physiology, we also incorporate the environment’s impact through weather and social network. To this end, we leverage phone data to construct social networks and develop a machine learning architecture that aggregates information from multiple users of the graph network and integrates it with the temporal dynamics of data to predict emotion for all users. The construction of social networks does not incur additional costs in terms of ecological momentary assessments or data collection from users and does not raise privacy concerns. We propose an architecture that automates the integration of the user’s social network in affect prediction and is capable of dealing with the dynamic distribution of real-life social networks, making it scalable to large-scale networks. The extensive evaluation highlights the prediction performance improvement provided by the integration of social networks. We further investigate the impact of graph topology on the model’s performance.
Quantum annealing for microstructure equilibration with long-range elastic interactions
Authors: Sandt Roland , Le Bouar Yann , Spatschek Robert
Published: April 2023

We demonstrate the use and benefits of quantum annealing approaches for the determination of equilibrated microstructures in shape memory alloys and other materials with long-range elastic interaction between coherent grains and their different martensite variants and phases. After a one dimensional illustration of the general approach, which requires to formulate the energy of the system in terms of an Ising Hamiltonian, we use distant dependent elastic interactions between grains to predict the variant selection for different transformation eigenstrains. The results and performance of the computations are compared to classical algorithms, demonstrating that the new approach can lead to a significant acceleration of the simulations. Beyond a discretization using simple cuboidal elements, also a direct representation of arbitrary microstructures is possible, allowing fast simulations with currently up to several thousand grains.
Fabrication of spectroscopic microfluidic chips for mastitis detection in raw milk
Authors: Phiphattanaphiphop Chalinee , Leksakul Komgrit , Nakkiew Wasawat , Phatthanakun Rungrueang , Khamlor Trisadee
Published: April 2023

Mastitis is a disease that directly affects the quantity and quality of milk produced by dairy cows, which can have a negative impact on the income generated from selling the milk. Severe inflammation caused by this mammary disease can result in up to 1 × 106 white blood cells per milliliter of cow milk. Currently, the California mastitis test is a popular chemical inspection test, but its error rate of over 40% is a significant factor in the ongoing spread of mastitis. In this study, a new microfluidic device was designed and fabricated to identify normal, sub-clinical, and clinical mastitis. This portable device allows for precise and analysis of results within a second. The device was designed to screen somatic cells and a staining process was added to identify somatic cells using single-cell process analysis. The fluorescence principle was used to identify the infection status of the milk, which was analyzed using a mini-spectrometer. The accuracy of the device was tested, and it was found to determine the infection status with 95% accuracy, compared to the accuracy obtained using the Fossomatic machine. By introducing this new microfluidic device, it is believed that the spread of mastitis in dairy cows can be significantly reduced, leading to higher quality and more profitable milk production.
Identification of hub genes and immune infiltration in ulcerative colitis using bioinformatics
Authors: Hu Weitao , Fang Taiyong , Zhou Mingxuan , Chen Xiaoqing
Published: April 2023

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the intestine, whose pathogenesis is not fully understood. Given that immune infiltration plays a key role in UC progression, our study aimed to assess the level of immune cells in UC intestinal mucosal tissues and identify potential immune-related genes. The GSE65114 UC dataset was downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between healthy and UC tissues were identified using the “limma” package in R, while their Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways were determined with the clusterProfiler package. Protein–protein interaction network analysis and visualization were performed with STRING and Cytoscape. Immune cell infiltration was calculated with CIBERSORT. The relationship between hub genes and immune-infiltrated cells in UC was determined by Pearson correlation. A total of 206 DEGs were identified, of which 174 were upregulated and 32 downregulated. GO and KEGG functional classification indicated DEG enrichment in immune response pathways, including Toll-like receptor signaling, IL-17 signaling, and immune system process and chemokine signaling. 13 hub genes were identified. Infiltration matrix analysis of immune cells showed abundant plasma cells, memory B cells, resting CD4 memory T cells, γδ T cells, M0 and M1 macrophages, and neutrophils in UC intestinal tissues. Correlation analysis revealed 13 hub genes associated with immune-infiltrated cells in UC. 13 hub genes associated with immune-infiltrated cells in UC were identified; they included CXCL13, CXCL10, CXCL9, CXCL8, CCL19, CTLA4, CCR1, CD69, CD163, IL7R, PECAM1, TLR8 and TLR2. These genes could potentially serve as markers for the diagnosis and treatment of UC.
Collaborative training of medical artificial intelligence models with non-uniform labels
Authors: Tayebi Arasteh Soroosh , Isfort Peter , Saehn Marwin , Mueller-Franzes Gustav , Khader Firas , Kather Jakob Nikolas , Kuhl Christiane , Nebelung Sven , Truhn Daniel
Published: April 2023

Due to the rapid advancements in recent years, medical image analysis is largely dominated by deep learning (DL). However, building powerful and robust DL models requires training with large multi-party datasets. While multiple stakeholders have provided publicly available datasets, the ways in which these data are labeled vary widely. For Instance, an institution might provide a dataset of chest radiographs containing labels denoting the presence of pneumonia, while another institution might have a focus on determining the presence of metastases in the lung. Training a single AI model utilizing all these data is not feasible with conventional federated learning (FL). This prompts us to propose an extension to the widespread FL process, namely flexible federated learning (FFL) for collaborative training on such data. Using 695,000 chest radiographs from five institutions from across the globe—each with differing labels—we demonstrate that having heterogeneously labeled datasets, FFL-based training leads to significant performance increase compared to conventional FL training, where only the uniformly annotated images are utilized. We believe that our proposed algorithm could accelerate the process of bringing collaborative training methods from research and simulation phase to the real-world applications in healthcare.
Identification of diagnostic biomarks and immune cell infiltration in ulcerative colitis
Authors: Chen Qin , Bei Shaosheng , Zhang Zhiyun , Wang Xiaofeng , Zhu Yunying
Published: April 2023

We aimed to explore diagnostic biomarks and immune cell infiltration characteristics in ulcerative colitis (UC). We used the dataset GSE38713 as the training set and dataset GSE94648 as the test set. A total of 402 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were obtained from GSE38713. Annotating, visualizing, and integrating discovery of these differential genes was performed using Gene Ontology (GO), Kyoto Gene and Genome Encyclopedia Pathway (KEGG), and Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA). Protein–protein interaction networks were constructed from the STRING database, and protein functional modules were identified using the CytoHubba plugin of Cytoscape. Random forest and LASSO regression were used to screen for UC-related diagnostic markers, and ROC curves were generated to validate their diagnostic value. The composition of 22 immune cells was analyzed, and the immune cell infiltration in UC was analyzed using CIBERSORT. Results: Seven diagnostic markers associated with UC were identified: TLCD3A, KLF9, EFNA1, NAAA,WDR4, CKAP4, and CHRNA1. Immune cell infiltration assessment revealed that macrophages M1, activated dendritic cells, and neutrophil cells infiltrated relatively more compared to normal control samples. Our results suggest a new functional feature of UC and suggest potential biomarkers for UC through comprehensive analysis of integrated gene expression data.