bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Presynaptic stochasticity improves energy efficiency and helps alleviate the stability-plasticity dilemma
Authors: Schug Simon , Benzing Frederik , Steger Angelika
Published: October 2021

When an action potential arrives at a synapse there is a large probability that no neurotransmitter is released. Surprisingly, simple computational models suggest that these synaptic failures enable information processing at lower metabolic costs. However, these models only consider information transmission at single synapses ignoring the remainder of the neural network as well as its overall computational goal. Here, we investigate how synaptic failures affect the energy efficiency of models of entire neural networks that solve a goal-driven task. We find that presynaptic stochasticity and plasticity improve energy efficiency and show that the network allocates most energy to a sparse subset of important synapses. We demonstrate that stabilising these synapses helps to alleviate the stability-plasticity dilemma, thus connecting a presynaptic notion of importance to a computational role in lifelong learning. Overall, our findings present a set of hypotheses for how presynaptic plasticity and stochasticity contribute to sparsity, energy efficiency and improved trade-offs in the stability-plasticity dilemma.
An experimental test of the effects of redacting grant applicant identifiers on peer review outcomes
Authors: Nakamura Richard K , Mann Lee S , Lindner Mark D , Braithwaite Jeremy , Chen Mei-Ching , Vancea Adrian , Byrnes Noni , Durrant Valerie , Reed Bruce
Published: October 2021

Background:

Blinding reviewers to applicant identity has been proposed to reduce bias in peer review.

Methods:

This experimental test used 1200 NIH grant applications, 400 from Black investigators, 400 matched applications from White investigators, and 400 randomly selected applications from White investigators. Applications were reviewed by mail in standard and redacted formats.

Results:

Redaction reduced, but did not eliminate, reviewers’ ability to correctly guess features of identity. The primary, preregistered analysis hypothesized a differential effect of redaction according to investigator race in the matched applications. A set of secondary analyses (not preregistered) used the randomly selected applications from White scientists and tested the same interaction. Both analyses revealed similar effects: Standard format applications from White investigators scored better than those from Black investigators. Redaction cut the size of the difference by about half (e.g. from a Cohen’s d of 0.20–0.10 in matched applications); redaction caused applications from White scientists to score worse but had no effect on scores for Black applications.

Conclusions:

Grant-writing considerations and halo effects are discussed as competing explanations for this pattern. The findings support further evaluation of peer review models that diminish the influence of applicant identity.

Funding:

Funding was provided by the NIH.
5′-Modifications improve potency and efficacy of DNA donors for precision genome editing
Authors: Ghanta Krishna S , Chen Zexiang , Mir Aamir , Dokshin Gregoriy A , Krishnamurthy Pranathi M , Yoon Yeonsoo , Gallant Judith , Xu Ping , Zhang Xiao-Ou , Ozturk Ahmet Rasit , Shin Masahiro , Idrizi Feston , Liu Pengpeng , Gneid Hassan , Edraki Alireza , Lawson Nathan D , Rivera-Pérez Jaime A , Sontheimer Erik J , Watts Jonathan K , Mello Craig C
Published: October 2021

Nuclease-directed genome editing is a powerful tool for investigating physiology and has great promise as a therapeutic approach to correct mutations that cause disease. In its most precise form, genome editing can use cellular homology-directed repair (HDR) pathways to insert information from an exogenously supplied DNA-repair template (donor) directly into a targeted genomic location. Unfortunately, particularly for long insertions, toxicity and delivery considerations associated with repair template DNA can limit HDR efficacy. Here, we explore chemical modifications to both double-stranded and single-stranded DNA-repair templates. We describe 5′-terminal modifications, including in its simplest form the incorporation of triethylene glycol (TEG) moieties, that consistently increase the frequency of precision editing in the germlines of three animal models (Caenorhabditis elegans, zebrafish, mice) and in cultured human cells.
The Inari Saami Wikipedia
Authors: Brecciaroli Fabrizio
Published: October 2021

The Inari Saami traditionally inhabit the area around Lake Inari in northern Finland. Despite being a minority group among the Saami, the Inari Saami have distinctive cultural traits as well as their own language, which has now about 400–450 speakers, including many children. This makes it a small language community in Wikipedia terms. It is still worth noting that Inari Saami is one of the most successful revitalisation processes in the world. During the last decades the language community has organised language nests for Inari Saami children, and it has taught the language to key members of the middle generation. The third phase of the revitalisation, strengthening the literacy of the language, is now in its initial phase. And this is where Wikipedia comes into play. In my presentation I am going to illustrate how the Inari Saami Wikipedia was born and what were the steps taken by the Inari Saami Language Association to make it all happen. I will also explain how we currently encourage the community to take an active role in developing the Inari Saami Wikipedia. We try to involve people from different backgrounds, but our main focus is on young people and students who can write Wikipedia articles as part of their studies at the University of Oulu and at the Sámi Education Institute (SAKK) in Inari. The ultimate goal is to create content that caters to the needs of the Inari Saami school in Inari and to give schoolchildren the possibility to use Wikipedia in their own language as a resource for assignments and classwork.
Portal Indigenous languages on Wikimedia
Authors: Oscar  , Verón Constanza
Published: October 2021

Video-presentation about the portal “Indigenous languages on Wikimedia”- Wayuu community.The Wayuu or Guajiro language is spoken by about 400,000 indigenous people in the Guajira Peninsula between Colombia and Venezuela, and is the most widely spoken indigenous language in both countries. But this does not place the language in a privileged position; on the contrary, it is among the region's endangered indigenous languages, with less and less Guajiro children learning to speak, let alone write the language. There is currently no Wikipedia in Wayuunaiki language, so speakers have to access information through Wikipedia in other languages. Although there is no Wikipedia in Wayuunaiki, there is an "incubator" of Wikipedia and Wiktionary.The "Indigenous Languages on Wikipedia" portal aims to be a place to collaborate and add knowledge of the Wayúu culture to the Wikimedia projects, as well as a space for learning about the language, its culture, traditions, and history. The portal has 3 sections, (1) to learn the Wayuunaiki language, (2) to collaborate in Wikimedia projects, and (3) talk page. Knowing how difficult it is to collaborate on Wikimedia platforms, especially for projects in the incubator, we plan to use the portal as a bridge to reduce the learning curve and centralize efforts to create, modify and improve information in and for speakers of the language. Finally, we seek to promote a friendly online space dedicated to a safe and constructive community exchange in order to strengthen the confidence of the Wayuu community in the Wikimedia networks.
Preparing languages for natural language generation using Wikidata lexicographical data
Authors: Morshed Mahir
Published: October 2021

In the lead-up to the launch of Abstract Wikipedia, a sufficient body of linguistic information, based on which the text within for a given language can be generated, must be in place so that different sets of functions, some working with concepts and others turning these into word sequences, can work together to produce something natural in that language. To achieve that information body's development requires more thorough consideration of a number of linguistic aspects sooner rather than later.
This session will thus discuss aspects of language planning with respect to Wikidata lexicographical data and natural language generation, including the compositionality and manipulability of lexical units, the breadth and interconnectedness of units of meaning, and the treatment of variation among a language’s lects broadly construed. Special reference to the handling of each of these aspects for Bengali and those linguistic varieties often grouped with it will be presented.
Introducing Arctic languages
Authors: Rießler Michael
Published: October 2021

Michael Rießler talk about Arctic languages.
Picking the crucial language technologies and how Wikipedia can help: the Welsh experience
Authors: Morlais Gareth
Published: October 2021

When you're making plans to get people using your language as much and as often as possible, there's a list of things related to Wikipedia which can really help. I'll share our experience with the Welsh language.

Supporting the Welsh-language Wikipedia community forms Work Package 15 of 27 in the Welsh Government's Welsh Language Technology Action Plan https://gov.wales/sites/default/files/publications/2018-12/welsh-language-technology-and-digital-media-action-plan.pdf. We like supporting Welsh language Wikipedia editing workshops, video workshops and other channels that encourage people to create and publish Welsh-language video, audio, graphic and text content because we're on a mission to try to help double daily use of Welsh by 2050.

I'll share developments we're funding in speech, translation and conversational AI. The partners we're giving grants to publish what they develop under open licence. So we can share what we've funded with many companies. We think Microsoft might have used some to make their new synthetic voices in Welsh.

We're excited by the potential Wikidata offers. We'll look at its potential in populating Welsh maps this year. We've already used Wikipedia search data as a way of prioritising the training of a Welsh virtual assistant.

Welsh may not be spending as much as Icelandic and Estonian do on language technologies, but we'd like to share what we're learning as a smaller language about the important areas to focus on and how Wikipedia can help.
Hvilken betydning har hvem som kopierer?
Authors: Bergman Silje
Published: October 2021

Artikkelen har opphavsrett som tema, med fokus på hva som kan gjøres med andres verk, og hvilken betydning det har hvem som gjør det. Forskjeller i praksis belyses ved å beskrive, analysere og diskutere konkrete eksempler der eksisterende verk kopieres. I artikkelen drøftes ulike tilnærminger til å bruke visuell kulturarv, og ulike metoder for nyskapelse av visuelle verk. På den ene siden eksisterer myten om at originale verk oppstår i kunstnerens eget hode, og på den andre en påstand om at alle verk kun er bearbeidelser av det som allerede finnes. Mellom disse peker en tilnærming på mottageren som medskaper av kunstverket. Selv om opphavsretten kan begrense skapende prosesser finner denne artikkelen, gjennom didaktiske perspektiver, muligheter hvor åndsverkloven åpner dører inn til en verden av nye estetiske erfaringer.
Identifying vulgarity in Bengali social media textual content
Authors: Sazzed Salim
Published: October 2021

The presence of abusive and vulgar language in social media has become an issue of increasing concern in recent years. However, research pertaining to the prevalence and identification of vulgar language has remained largely unexplored in low-resource languages such as Bengali. In this paper, we provide the first comprehensive analysis on the presence of vulgarity in Bengali social media content. We develop two benchmark corpora consisting of 7,245 reviews collected from YouTube and manually annotate them into vulgar and non-vulgar categories. The manual annotation reveals the ubiquity of vulgar and swear words in Bengali social media content (i.e., in two corpora), ranging from 20% to 34%. To automatically identify vulgarity, we employ various approaches, such as classical machine learning (CML) classifiers, Stochastic Gradient Descent (SGD) optimizer, a deep learning (DL) based architecture, and lexicon-based methods. Although small in size, we find that the swear/vulgar lexicon is effective at identifying the vulgar language due to the high presence of some swear terms in Bengali social media. We observe that the performances of machine leanings (ML) classifiers are affected by the class distribution of the dataset. The DL-based BiLSTM (Bidirectional Long Short Term Memory) model yields the highest recall scores for identifying vulgarity in both datasets (i.e., in both original and class-balanced settings). Besides, the analysis reveals that vulgarity is highly correlated with negative sentiment in social media comments.
New phiocricetomyine rodents (Hystricognathi) from the Jebel Qatrani Formation, Fayum Depression, Egypt
Authors: Al-Ashqar Shorouq F. , Seiffert Erik R. , de Vries Dorien , El-Sayed Sanaa , Antar Mohamed S. , Sallam Hesham M.
Published: October 2021

Background

The rich rodent assemblages from the Eocene–Oligocene deposits of the Jebel Qatrani Formation (Fayum Depression, Egypt) have important implications for our understanding of the origin and paleobiogeography of Hystricognathi, a diverse clade that is now represented by the Afro-Asiatic Hystricidae, New World Caviomorpha, and African Phiomorpha.

Methods

Here we present previously undescribed material of the enigmatic hystricognath clade Phiocricetomyinae, from two stratigraphic levels in the lower sequence of the Jebel Qatrani Formation—a new genus and species (Qatranimys safroutus) from the latest Eocene Locality 41 (~34 Ma, the oldest and most productive quarry in the formation) and additional material of Talahphiomys lavocati from that species’ type locality, early Oligocene Quarry E (~31–33.2 Ma).

Results

The multiple specimens of Qatranimys safroutus from L-41 document almost the entire lower and upper dentition, as well as mandibular fragments and the first cranial remains known for a derived phiocricetomyine. Specimens from Quarry E allow us to expand comparisons with specimens from Libya (late Eocene of Dur at-Talah and early Oligocene of Zallah Oasis) that have been placed in T. lavocati, and we show that the Dur at-Talah and Zallah specimens do not pertain to this species. These observations leave the Fayum Quarry E as the only locality where T. lavocati occurs.
Visual assessment of dynamic knee joint alignment in patients with patellofemoral pain: an agreement study
Authors: Hansen Rudi , Lundgaard-Nielsen Mathilde , Henriksen Marius
Published: October 2021

Background

Assessment of knee kinematics plays an important role in the clinical examination of patients with patellofemoral pain (PFP). There is evidence that visual assessments are reliable in healthy subjects, but there is a lack of evidence in injured populations. The purpose of this study was to examine the intra- and interrater agreement in the visual assessment of dynamic knee joint alignment in patients with PFP.

Methods

The study was a cross-sectional agreement study. Sixty participants (42 females) were included. We assessed the intra- and interrater agreement of two functional tests: The single leg squat (SLS) and the forward lunge (FL). One investigator scored the movement according to preset criteria while video recording the movement for retest. Moreover, the performance was scored by another investigator using the video recording. Agreement was assessed using weighted kappa statistics.

Results

The intrarater agreement ranged from moderate to good (Kappa 0.58 (FL) to 0.70 (SLS)) whereas the interrater agreement ranged from fair to moderate (Kappa 0.22 (SLS) to 0.50 (FL)).

Conclusion

The agreement within raters was better than between raters, which suggests that assessments should preferably be performed by the same tester in research and in a clinical setting, e.g., to evaluate any treatment effect. We promote FL as a reliable clinical tool for evaluating dynamic knee alignment, since it shows equally good intra- and interrater agreement, and it is an inexpensive and easy method to use.
Land Use Change from Rice to Maize Farming in Northern Region of Bangladesh: Identifying Causes and Future Prospects
Authors: Khatun Bipasha Shahana , Nasrin Mahmuda , Islam Md. Monirul , Vortia Pooja , Yeasmin Farzana , Islam Kamrul
Published: October 2021

Maize is gaining importance in recent years as a promising crop, but some constraints are intensifying with increased concern over input supply and soil-related environmental sustainability. So, we were interested to assess the financial profitability of maize production over the existing rice cropping system and factors responsible for changing land-use decisions in Northern Bangladesh. The comprehensive comparison revealed that maize farmers got higher returns than the farmers producing boro rice as the calculated BCR for the former (2.14) was higher than the later (1.29). The results of regression analysis showed that maize labor use, maize gross margin, availability of rice for home consumption, and the least rice-producing area had a significant effect on deciding to shift the land from rice to maize cultivation. Therefore, there was a great prospect of maize farming in the study area as a profitable enterprise.
Professional Knowledge and Organizational Commitment of Faculty Members Handling Science Subjects in the University of Eastern Philippines
Authors: Gordo Rita D.
Published: October 2021

This study aimed to determine the professional knowledge of faculty members in terms of knowledge of science content, knowledge of general pedagogy, pedagogical content knowledge, and knowledge of the curriculum structure and materials and find out the degree of organizational commitment along with affective, continuance, and normative organizational commitment. A complete enumeration of faculty members handling science teacher education courses in the College of Education and College of Science. Descriptive-observational and survey were employed. The questionnaires were adapted from the framework for Philippine Science Teacher Education published by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and University of the Philippines-National Institute for Science and Mathematics Education Development (UP-NISMED) and the organizational commitment along with affective, continuance, and normative commitment constructed and tested. It was found out that faculty members have very high professional; specifically, very high knowledge content, very high knowledge of general pedagogy, and very high knowledge of the curriculum structure and materials. It was also found out that faculty members are very highly committed to the University. Specifically, faculty members are very highly committed to affective, continuance, and normative organizational commitment.
Assessing Changes in the Reproduction Number of COVID-19 in Cameroon
Authors: Youdom Solange Whegang , Alain Djam Chefor , Kouanfack Charles
Published: October 2021

Aim: The purpose of this work is to assess changes that occur on COVID-19 infection in Cameroon since the start of the epidemic.

Study Design: We use a data-based analysis on longitudinal data of reported COVID-19 cases in Cameroon.

Place and Duration: The data for the study were obtained from the reports of confirmed COVID-19 cases from an official website between March 7, 2020 to September 29, 2021.

Methodology: A modified Susceptible-Infected-Recovered-Deceased (SIRD) model for the contagion was used to describe the cumulated cases of COVID-19 during different phases of the epidemic that correlated with highest spikes. The approach features several aspects: one is that model parameters can be time-varying, allowing us to capture possible changes of the epidemic behaviour, due for example to containment measures enforced by authorities or modifications of the epidemic characteristics, country events, and COVID-19 vaccine introduction; the second aspect is that the model accounts for a social distancing parameter. The time-varying parameters was handled using a phase-to-phase modelling in which initial parameters were the number of susceptible individuals at the end of each phase. In addition, daily incidence data were used to estimate daily reproduction number. Secondly, we used an Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) approach to analyse the dynamic of the effective reproduction number R and forecast the new number of infected contacts.

Results: There was less than 54% compliance of social distancing during all phases. The reproduction number was above 1 during each phase of the analysis. As of September 2021, it was 2.43 suggesting a constant increase of infection.   Time-series of the reproduction number was unseasonal and stationary. Forecasting of R gave a value of more than 2, suggesting a continued rise in the number of infected cases in the Country in the next coming months.

Conclusion: It is uncertain when the pandemic will last in the country. While social distancing is in decrease, prevention through vaccination is an option to reach more people and stop the propagation of the disease.
Optimization of Protein Extraction from Arachis hypogaea L. and Cucumeropsis mannii Naud. Seeds for Use as Natural Coagulants in Surface Water Clarification
Authors: Ntalani Hermeline , Duclérine Ngouanou Ravelle , Moussounda Lucien Meril Bassinga
Published: October 2021

The aim of this study was to improve the quality of protein extracts from Cucumeropsis mannii Naud. and Arachis hypogaea L. The evolution of protein content and microbiological quality of aqueous extracts of A. hypogaea, C. mannii and M. oleifera seed powders were monitored over time during protein extraction. The protein contents of the extracts subjected to decantation and those subjected to centrifugation were determined by the Kjeldahl method. The microbiological quality of the different aqueous extracts was evaluated according to the standards NF EN ISO 7932, NF V 08-059 and NF EN ISO 4833-1. The results obtained show protein contents of 40.6 % for A. hypogaea, 25.4 % for C. mannii and 36.5 % for M. oleifera, after 24 h of decantation. The protein contents of the centrifuged aqueous extracts were higher and 55.9%, 36.7% and 37.6% for A. hypogaea, C. mannii and M. oleifera extracts respectively. The results of the microbiological analysis showed that the aqueous extracts of M. oleifera contain little microbial load. Significant growth of aerobic flora and Bacillus cereus was observed in the decanted extracts of C. mannii and A. hypogaea from 4 h to 24 h of decantation. Extracts obtained by centrifugation have a lower microbial load, because the treatment time was shorter. The aqueous protein extracts of A. hypogaea and C. mannii seed powders obtained by centrifugation were of better quality than those obtained by decantation, because they have higher protein contents and lower microbial loads. The water solubility of A. hypogaea and C. mannii seed proteins was also studied on protein suspensions at 2% at pH 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8. The results obtained showed that adjusting the pH to 7 and 8 could improve the degree of protein extraction for A. hypogaea and C. mannii seeds.
Agronomic and Economic Analysis of Brown top Millet under Varying Sowing Dates and Nitrogen Fertility Levels
Authors: Saikishore A. , Rekha K. Bhanu , Hussain S. A. , Madhavi A.
Published: October 2021

Aim: The experiment is aimed to identify ideal sowing date and nitrogen level in browntop millet during rainy season on alfisols of Telangana.

Study Design: Randomized Block Design with factorial concept and replicated thrice.

Place and Duration of Study: College Farm, Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University, Rajendranagar, Hyderabad, Telangana State, India during rainy season, 2019.

Methodology: Browntop millet variety VZM-1 was tested under four dates of sowing viz., D1- June 15th, D2- June 30th, D3-July 15th and D4 - 30th July and four N levels viz; N1- 0 kg ha-1 N2 - 20 kg ha-1, N1- 40 kg ha-1 and N4-60 kg ha-1. The growth parameters, yield attributes, yield, nitrogen uptake at different crop growth stages and monetary returns were studied.

Results: The results indicated that plant height, tillers hill-1, leaf area, dry matter accumulation at all crop intervals and yield attributes viz; effective tillers, panicle length,  panicle weight, number of grains, grain, straw yield, N uptake at different crop stages and monetary returns were highest with sowing on D1- June 15th.Among the N levels tested, crop fertilized with 40 kg N ha-1 registered higher plant height, tillers hill-1, leaf area, dry matter accumulation at all crop intervals, yield attributes viz; effective tillers, panicle length, panicle weight, number of grains, grain, straw yield N uptake at different crop stages and monetary returns.

Conclusion: On alfisols of Telangana during rainy season, sowing of browntop millet on June 15th fertilized with 40 kg N ha-1 helps to realize higher yield and monetary returns.
Bacterial Profile and Risk Factors Associated with Dental Caries in Enugu Metropolis, Southeast Nigeria
Authors: Maduakor U. C. , Onyemelukwe N. F. , Maduakor S.N. , Udoh I. P. , Chukwubuike M. B. C.
Published: October 2021

Dental caries is one of the most prevalent and costly diseases that are a challenge to health care providers. There is limited data on the bacterial profile and risks associated with dental caries in Nigeria. The study aimed to isolate and identify bacteria and risk factors associated with dental caries in Enugu. It was a case-controlled study. A total of 336 samples were randomly collected comprising of 125 healthy subjects and 211 patients with dental caries attending various hospitals and dental clinics in Enugu, Nigeria. Samples were subjected to standard microbiological and biochemical techniques. Standardized questionnaires were used to record demographic variables and risk factors. A total of 635 and 254 microorganisms were isolated from carious lesions and healthy subjects respectively. Of these 635 isolates, 218 (34.4%) Gram-positive bacilli, 210 (33.0%) Gram-positive cocci, 46 (7.2%) Gram-negative cocci, and 43 (6.8%) yeasts were recovered. Two hundred and seven samples were (98.1%) polymicrobial while 4 samples (1.9%) were monomicrobial. Among the organisms recovered, anaerobic Lactobacillus spp (141, 66.8%) was the most prevalent followed by Streptococcus mutans (104, 49.2%), and the least were Actinomyces israelii and Capnocytophaga spp (1, 0.05%) respectively. Of the 254 isolates from apparently healthy subjects, Streptococcus sanguis ranked highest and the least was Porphyromonas gingivalis. The factors that were found to be significantly associated with dental caries were level of education P=0.005, feeding habit P= 0.001, Favourite snack P=0.004, sweet consumption P< 0.0001, type of gum P < 0.0001, history of toothache P < 0.0001, visit dentist P< 0.0001, and the bleeding gum P < 0.0001. This research highlighted the polymicrobial nature of carious lesions and associated predictors of dental caries.  Hence public enlightenment and the implementation of oral health education in schools are crucial.
Determine the Effectiveness of Anacardic Acid and Stannous Fluoride as an Anti-erosive Agent
Authors: Dahake Sampada , Madhu Priyanka Paul , Reche Amit , Gaurav Chhabra Kumar , Kriplani Simran , Ubhale Rutuja , Adwani Barkha
Published: October 2021

Background: The key goal of the study is to find out the effectiveness of anacardic acid and the stannous fluoride as an anti erosive agent.

Objectives: To evaluate the erosive effect of Bio vinegar and antierosive effect of Anacardic acid and Stannous Fluoride.   

Methodology: The extracted teeth were collected for in vitro study. Three solutions were selected Bio vinegar, Anacardic acid, Fluoride to treat the extracted teeth to study and compare the anti-erosive effect. The sets of extracted teeth of ten each were grouped to be treated with different solutions. The set was immersed in Bio vinegar for 8 hours for erosive action. The second set of ten extracted teeth were immersed in anacardic acid for four days. The same set of teeth were treated with vinegar for 8 hours. The cross sectional view of stained teeth was viewed under Scanning Electron Microscope. The third set of teeth was immersed in stannous fluoride for four days and then treated with Bio vinegar for 8 hours. The cross sectional view of stained teeth was viewed under Scanning Electron Microscope. A comparison of anti-erosive effect of anacardic acid and stannous fluoride were studied under Scanning Electron Microscope.

Expected Results: Determining a better effectiveness of Anacardic acid antierosive agent than stannous fluoride.

Conclusion: Reduction in the level of erosion by the application of anacardic acid and stannous fluoride on extracted teeth exposed to carbonated drinks and assessment of erosive effect of carbonated drink on tooth.
Antibacterial Effect and Factors Influencing the Relationship between Coffee, Tea Consumption and Dental Caries
Authors: Mandorah Ayman O. , Alsunni Hawraa , Jumian Rabab Al , Salman Sarah Al , Faraj Reham Al , Matrook Fatimah Al , Alzahrani Khames T.
Published: October 2021

Aims: To assess the association between the frequency and quantity of coffee and tea consumption and dental caries severity among adolescents (middle and high schools) in the Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia.

Study Design: This is an observational cross-sectional study.

Place and Duration of Study: Conducted in the Eastern Province (Dammam and Al-Khobar), Saudi Arabia, from January to February 2019.

Methodology: A cross-sectional observational survey study that was carried out in Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia. Validated interview-based questionnaires were used to ask about the background information and the frequency and quantity of coffee and tea consumption with two sections of the survey: The first section was about the demographic data and the second section assessed the frequency and quantity of coffee and tea consumption and examination was done during daylight using disposable dental mirror and blunt probe.

Results: A total of 2265 middle school children with a response rate of 77.8%. Out of them, Females accounted for 1288 (56%) and the mean age (±SD) was 14 (±1.322). Regarding parents’ education, 1916 (84.6%) of participants’ fathers and 1836 (81.1%) of their mothers had a high school certificate or higher. There was a significant association between the frequency of coffee and tea consumption and caries (p=0.013).

Conclusion: There was a significant association between the frequency of coffee and tea consumption and caries (p=0.013). The frequency of coffee and tea consumption, the higher the caries. However, there was no association between the quantity of coffee and tea consumption and D nor with the overall DMF score.
Lexical-semantic Properties in Parkinson's Disease with and without Dementia
Authors: Lamis Alkhanani , Nourah Alandas , Hamad Alzahrani
Published: October 2021

Dementia has important clinical consequences for patients with PD and their caregivers, which may negatively, affected their daily living activities and quality of life. Previous studies, have investigated the properties and characteristics of the words generated in semantic fluency task by patients with Alzheimer's disease, but this has not been investigated in PD patients yet. This study aimed to investigate if there are possible distinctive features that might differentiate between cognitive decline direct consequence of Idiopathic PD and that of Alzheimer’s type dementia associated with PD. There were six PD patients with dementia, six matched PD patients without dementia and six matched controls participated in this study. The present findings showed that although patients with dementia performed worse than those without dementia on all neuropsychological tests, significant differences were found only on the semantic fluency test and Frontal assessment battery. Furthermore, the present findings showed that patients with dementia produced fewer words in the semantic fluency task than healthy controls did. The words generated by demented patients were longer, less familiar, less typical and acquired later in life than the words produced by healthy controls. These findings might use for clinical application to distinct between PD patients with and without dementia.
Cedarwood Oil as a Substitute for Xylene in Histopathological Laboratories – A Systematic Review
Authors: Viswasini R. Deepa , Ramani Pratibha , Ramasubramanian Abhilasha
Published: October 2021

Background: Xylene is an aromatic hydrocarbon that's extensively used as a deparaffinizing agent, and it's far extraordinarily biohazardous. It is proven to be the best chemical to be used in histopathological laboratories in spite of its carcinogenic potential.

Aim: The aim of this study is to do a systematic review on the efficacy of cedarwood oil as clearing agent and deparaffinizing agent alternative to xylene in histopathological laboratories.

Materials and Methods: The articles for this review were searched from PubMed, Google Scholar, Google search and manual search using the keywords cedarwood oil, natural substitute, natural alternative and xylene. The final of 3 articles were included in the review which compared the efficacy of cedarwood oil as a natural alternative with the gold standard xylene. Once the articles to be reviewed were finalized, data was collected, tabulated and was verified and interpreted.

Results: Three articles included in this review showed considerable and acceptable results with cedarwood oil as clearing and deparaffinizing agent.

Conclusion: Merits and demerits are equally found in both the reagents but compromising the time and cost in terms of cedarwood oil for health benefits hold good for the pathologists but bad for the patients. In case of xylene, compromising the health benefits of workers which results in quicker diagnosis hold good for the patients but not for the pathologists. Finally storage and disposal of these two reagents still remains questionable.
Investigating the Relationship between the Production Characteristics and Quality of Concrete Produced in Aba, Abia State, Nigeria
Authors: Ikechukwu Uche Felix , Emeka Opara Hyginus
Published: October 2021

Quality of concrete explains considerably the state of affairs involved in the production of concrete in a particular area. The antecedents of the production process to a greater extent therefore have a way of predicting the expected quality of a product. Hence, the degree of relationship between the quality of concrete and its production characteristics is determined in the study. Field work adopted in the study comprises activity sampling and ex post facto experimental designs. These two different research designs were applied to obtain data for performance assessment of activities involved in the production procedures and laboratory tests of concrete produced at various sites in the study area respectively. The corresponding data obtained in the field work are in ordinance and ratio scales of measurement. Regression analysis was used to establish a casual relationship between the two variables - performance level of the production characteristics (x) and the compressive strength (y) of the concrete at various sites in the study area. A model relationship of simple regression analysis for the dependent and independent variables is established. Finding reveals that the better the ranking of sites in compliance with the standard practice of production characteristics, the higher the compressive strength property of the concrete produced on site; hence the linear relationship. The coefficient of determination shows that 93% of changes in the strength property of concrete are caused by the production characteristics. Although the highest value of compressive strength obtained as 10.80 N/mm2 goes with the best state of affairs of the production characteristics in the study, it does not meet the minimum stipulated specification for the strength.  Hence, other critical factors such as; aggregate type, and mix design should be considered for desired quality of concrete in the study area. Besides, enforcement of uniformity in production process as standard practice by all the firms should as a matter of urgency be implemented formally by the government in the state for improved quality of concrete in general.
Effect of p53 and its N‐terminally truncated isoform, Δ40p53, on breast cancer migration and invasion
Authors: Zhang Xiajie , Groen Kira , Morten Brianna C. , Steffens Reinhardt Luiza , Campbell Hamish G. , Braithwaite Antony W. , Bourdon Jean‐Christophe , Avery‐Kiejda Kelly A.
Published: October 2021

Breast cancer is the most diagnosed malignancy in women, with over half a million women dying from this disease each year. In our previous studies, ∆40p53, an N‐terminally truncated p53 isoform, was found to be upregulated in breast cancers, and a high ∆40p53 : p53α ratio was linked with worse disease‐free survival. Although p53α inhibits cancer migration and invasion, little is known about the role of ∆40p53 in regulating these metastasis‐related processes and its role in contributing to worse prognosis. The aim of this study was to assess the role of ∆40p53 in breast cancer migration and invasion. A relationship between Δ40p53 and gene expression profiles was identified in oestrogen‐receptor‐positive breast cancer specimens. To further evaluate the role of Δ40p53 in oestrogen‐receptor‐positive breast cancer, MCF‐7 and ZR75‐1 cell lines were transduced to knockdown p53α or Δ40p53 and overexpress Δ40p53. Proliferation, migration and invasion were assessed in the transduced sublines, and gene expression was assessed through RNA‐sequencing and validated by reverse‐transcription quantitative PCR. Knockdown of both p53α and ∆40p53 resulted in increased proliferation, whereas overexpression of ∆40p53 reduced proliferation rates. p53α knockdown was also associated with increased cell mobility. ∆40p53 overexpression reduced both migratory and invasive properties of the transduced cells. Phenotypic findings are supported by gene expression data, including differential expression of LRG1, HYOU1, UBE2QL1, SERPINA5 and PCDH7. Taken together, these results suggest that, at the basal level, ∆40p53 works similarly to p53α in suppressing cellular mobility and proliferation, although the role of Δ40p53 may be cell context‐specific.
Bimetallic Janus Nanocrystals: Syntheses and Applications
Authors: Qiu Jichuan , Nguyen Quynh N. , Lyu Zhiheng , Wang Qiuxiang , Xia Younan
Published: October 2021

Bimetallic Janus nanocrystals have received considerable interest in recent years owing to their unique properties and niche applications. The side‐by‐side distribution of two distinct metals provides a flexible platform for tailoring the optical and catalytic properties of nanocrystals. First, a brief introduction to the structural features of bimetallic Janus nanocrystals, followed by an extensive discussion of the synthetic approaches, is given. The strategies and experimental controls for achieving the Janus structure, as well as the mechanistic understandings, are specifically discussed. Then, a number of intriguing properties and applications enabled by the Janus nanocrystals are highlighted. Finally, this article is concluded with future directions and outlooks with respect to both syntheses and applications of this new class of functional nanomaterials.
Bioinspired and Biomimetic Delivery Platforms for Cancer Vaccines
Authors: Liu Jing , Liew Si Si , Wang Jun , Pu Kanyi
Published: October 2021

Cancer vaccines aim at eliciting tumor‐specific responses for the immune system to identify and eradicate malignant tumor cells while sparing the normal tissues. Furthermore, cancer vaccines can potentially induce long‐term immunological memory for antitumor responses, preventing metastasis and cancer recurrence, thus presenting an attractive treatment option in cancer immunotherapy. However, clinical efficacy of cancer vaccines has remained low due to longstanding challenges, such as poor immunogenicity, immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, tumor heterogeneity, inappropriate immune tolerance, and systemic toxicity. Recently, bioinspired materials and biomimetic technologies have emerged to play a part in reshaping the field of cancer nanomedicine. By mimicking desirable chemical and biological properties in nature, bioinspired engineering of cancer vaccine delivery platforms can effectively transport therapeutic cargos to tumor sites, amplify antigen and adjuvant bioactivities, and enable spatiotemporal control and on‐demand immunoactivation. As such, integration of biomimetic designs into delivery platforms for cancer vaccines can enhance efficacy while retaining good safety profiles, which contributes to expediting the clinical translation of cancer vaccines. Recent advances in bioinspired delivery platforms for cancer vaccines, existing obstacles faced, as well as insights and future directions for the field are discussed here.
A Facile Strategy of Boosting Photothermal Conversion Efficiency through State Transformation for Cancer Therapy
Authors: Li Jie , Wang Jianxing , Zhang Jianyu , Han Ting , Hu Xiyao , Lee Michelle M. S. , Wang Dong , Tang Ben Zhong
Published: October 2021

Improving photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE) is critical to facilitate therapeutic performance during photothermal therapy (PTT). However, current strategies of prompting PCE always involve complex synthesis or modification of photothermal agents, thereby significantly inhibiting the practical applications and fundamental understanding of photothermal conversion. A facile strategy is herein present for boosting PCE by transforming photothermal agents from aggregated state to dispersed state. Compared to aggregated state, the developed photothermal agents with semiconducting nature can rotate freely in dispersed state, which allows for an efficient nonradiative dissipation through twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) effect, consequentially offering excellent photothermal performance. Noteworthy, the state transformation can be achieved by virtue of releasing photothermal molecules from nanoparticles on the basis of a pH‐responsive polymer nanocarrier, and the PCE is elevated from 43% to 60% upon changing the pH values from 7.4 to 5.0. Moreover, the nanoparticle disassembly and state transformation behaviors can also smoothly proceed in lysosome of cancer cells, demonstrating a distinct photothermal therapeutic performance for cancer ablation. It is hoped that this strategy of transforming state to boost PCE would be a new platform for practical applications of PTT technique.
Over 21% Efficiency Stable 2D Perovskite Solar Cells
Authors: Shao Ming , Bie Tong , Yang Lvpeng , Gao Yerun , Jin Xing , He Feng , Zheng Nan , Yu Yu , Zhang Xinliang
Published: October 2021

Owing to their insufficient light absorption and charge transport, 2D Ruddlesden–Popper (RP) perovskites show relatively low efficiency. In this work, methylammonium (MA), formamidinum (FA), and FA/MA mixed 2D perovskite solar cells (PSCs) are fabricated. Incorporating FA cations extends the absorption range and enhances the light absorption. Optical spectroscopy shows that FA cations substantially increase the portion of 3D‐like phase to 2D phases, and X‐ray diffraction (XRD) studies reveal that FA‐based 2D perovskite possesses an oblique crystal orientation. Nevertheless, the ultrafast interphase charge transfer results in an extremely long carrier‐diffusion length (≈1.98 µm). Also, chloride additives effectively suppress the yellow δ‐phase formation of pure FA‐based 2D PSCs. As a result, both FA/MA mixed and pure FA‐based 2D PSCs exhibit a greatly enhanced power conversion efficiency (PCE) over 20%. Specifically, the pure FA‐based 2D PSCs achieve a record PCE of 21.07% (certified at 20%), which is the highest efficiency for low‐dimensional PSCs (n ≤ 10) reported to date. Importantly, the FA‐based 2D PSCs retain 97% of their initial efficiency at 85 °C persistent heating after 1500 h. The results unambiguously demonstrate that pure‐FA‐based 2D PSCs are promising for achieving comparable efficiency to 3D perovskites, along with a better device stability.
Self‐Adaptive Plasma Chemistry and Intelligent Plasma Medicine
Authors: Lin Li , Yan Dayun , Lee Taeyoung , Keidar Michael
Published: October 2021

Plasma‐based biomedical applications rely on the reactive oxygen and nitrogen species generated in cold atmospheric plasmas, where complex chemical kinetic schemes occur. The optimization of plasma medicine is thus required for each specific biomedical purpose. In the view of pharmacology, it is to optimize the active pharmaceutical ingredients. This work is thus the first attempt of such a complex task utilizing the recent development of machine learning technologies. Herein, a general method of passive plasma chemical diagnostics and optimization in real time is proposed. Based on spontaneous emission spectroscopy, an artificial neural network provides the gas chemical compositions along with other information such as temperatures. The information further passes through the second neural network which outputs the adjustments of external control inputs including energy, gas injections, and extractions to optimize the plasma chemistry.
Genetic architecture of divergence: the selfing syndrome in Ipomoea lacunosa
Authors: Rifkin Joanna L. , Cao Gongyuan , Rausher Mark D.
Published: October 2021

Premise

Highly selfing plant species frequently display a distinctive suite of traits termed the selfing syndrome. Here we tested the hypothesis that these traits are grouped into correlated evolutionary modules and determined the degree of independence between such modules.

Methods

We evaluated phenotypic correlations and QTL overlaps in F2 offspring of a cross between the morning glories Ipomoea lacunosa and I. cordatotriloba and investigated how traits clustered into modules at both the phenotypic and genetic level. We then compared our findings to other QTL studies of the selfing syndrome.

Results

In the I. lacunosa selfing syndrome, traits grouped into modules that displayed correlated evolution within but not between modules. QTL overlap predicted phenotypic correlations, and QTLs affecting the same trait module were significantly physically clustered in the genome. The genetic architecture of the selfing syndrome varied across systems, but the pattern of stronger within‐ than between‐module correlation was widespread.

Conclusions

The genetic architecture we observe in the selfing syndrome is consistent with a growing understanding of floral morphological integration achieved via pleiotropy in clustered traits. This view of floral evolution is consistent with resource limitation or predation driving the evolution of the selfing syndrome, but invites further research into both the selective causes of the selfing syndrome and how genetic architecture itself evolves in response to changes in mating system.