bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Shear wave velocity prediction using bidirectional recurrent gated graph convolutional network with total information embeddings
Authors: Cova David , Liu Yang
Published: February 2023

Shear wave velocity is an essential elastic rock parameter for reservoir characterization, fluid identification, and rock physics model building. However, S-wave velocity logging data are often missing due to economic reason. Machine learning approaches have been successfully adopted to overcome this limitation. However, they have shortcomings in extracting meaningful spatial and temporal relationships. We propose a supervised data-driven method to predict S-wave velocity using a graph convolutional network with a bidirectional gated recurrent unit (GCN-BiGRU). This method adopts the total information coefficient to capture non-linear dependencies among well-log data and uses graph embeddings to extract spatial dependencies. Additionally, the method employs a bidirectional gated mechanism to map depth relationships in both upward and backward directions. Furthermore, the prediction performance is increased by an unsupervised graph neural network to handle outliers and the generation of additional features by the complete ensemble empirical mode decomposition with additive noise method. Finally, the GCN-BiGRU network is compared with Castagna’s empirical velocity formula, support vector regression, long-short-term memory (LSTM), GRU, and BiGRU methods over the North Sea open dataset. The results show that the proposed method performs better predicting S-wave velocity than the other ML and empirical methods.
Numerical study on heat storage efficiency of broken rock mass under different CO2 injection conditions
Authors: Geng Haozhe , Wu Yu , Hao Guan , Hao Yang , Li Decheng , Zhou Haiyang
Published: February 2023

The application of energy storage technology can solve the problems of randomness and volatility in the development and use of renewable energy, such as wind and solar energy, and effectively improve energy utilization. Rock heat storage is one of the primary forms of sensible heat storage. The heat storage efficiency and heat storage capacity of rock packed bed are important indicators to measure the energy storage effect of a rock energy storage system. This paper takes CO2 as the heat-carrying medium and broken granite grains as the packed bed matrix of the energy storage system. It establishes a porous medium thermal-hydraulic-mechanical coupling model of the broken rock bed. The heat injection and production process of the large-sized rock bed heat storage system is simulated using the COMSOL finite element software, and the heat storage efficiency and heat storage capacity of the broken rock bed is analyzed under different fluid injection pressures and injection temperatures. The results show that: 1) With the increase of CO2 injection pressure, the heat storage and heat production speed of the heat storage system will increase, and the heat storage rate changes from two stages of “low rise - slow decline” to four stages of “rapid increase—stability—rapid decrease—stability”; 2) With the increase of CO2 injection temperature, the maximum heat storage capacity of the rock bed heat storage system will increase. Due to the increase in the temperature gradient between CO2 and the rock bed, the heat storage and the heat production time of the heat storage system will increase, and its speed will decrease.
Optimal dispatch of integrated energy systems considering integrated demand response and stepped carbon trading
Authors: Ye Xianglei , Ji Zhenya , Xu Jinxing , Liu Xiaofeng
Published: February 2023

The integrated energy system is an effective way to achieve carbon neutrality. To further exploit the carbon reduction potentials of IESs, an optimal dispatch strategy that considers integrated demand response and stepped carbon trading is proposed. First, an integrated demand response (IDR) pricing approach is proposed based on the characteristics of different load types. Classify multi-energy loads into curtailable and substitutable loads, and incentivize both loads through a price elasticity matrix and low-price energy in the same period. Then, to better incentivize IESs to reduce carbon emissions, a stepped pricing mechanism was introduced in the carbon price. Finally, an optimal dispatch model is developed with an objective function that minimizes the sum of energy purchase cost, carbon trading cost, and operation and maintenance (O&M) cost. Considering the high-dimensional and non-linear characteristics of the model, an improved differential evolution (DE) algorithm is introduced in this paper. In addition, this paper also analyzes the effects of the stepped carbon trading parameters on the optimal dispatching results of the system in terms of carbon trading base price, carbon emission interval length, and carbon price growth rate. Compared to the case of adopting a single IDR model or a single stepped carbon trading, carbon emissions from the IESs decreased by 6.28% and 3.24%, respectively, while total operating costs decreased by 1.24% and 0.92%, The results show that the model proposed in this paper has good environmental and economic benefits, and the reasonable setting of stepped carbon trading parameters can effectively promote the low-carbon development of IESs.
Fibroblast growth factor 21 is expressed and secreted from skeletal muscle following electrical stimulation via extracellular ATP activation of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway
Authors: Arias-Calderón Manuel , Casas Mariana , Balanta-Melo Julián , Morales-Jiménez Camilo , Hernández Nadia , Llanos Paola , Jaimovich Enrique , Buvinic Sonja
Published: February 2023

Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is a hormone involved in the regulation of lipid, glucose, and energy metabolism. Although it is released mainly from the liver, in recent years it has been shown that it is a “myokine”, synthesized in skeletal muscles after exercise and stress conditions through an Akt-dependent pathway and secreted for mediating autocrine and endocrine roles. To date, the molecular mechanism for the pathophysiological regulation of FGF21 production in skeletal muscle is not totally understood. We have previously demonstrated that muscle membrane depolarization controls gene expression through extracellular ATP (eATP) signaling, by a mechanism defined as “Excitation-Transcription coupling”. eATP signaling regulates the expression and secretion of interleukin 6, a well-defined myokine, and activates the Akt/mTOR signaling pathway. This work aimed to study the effect of electrical stimulation in the regulation of both production and secretion of skeletal muscle FGF21, through eATP signaling and PI3K/Akt pathway. Our results show that electrical stimulation increases both mRNA and protein (intracellular and secreted) levels of FGF21, dependent on an extracellular ATP signaling mechanism in skeletal muscle. Using pharmacological inhibitors, we demonstrated that FGF21 production and secretion from muscle requires the activation of the P2YR/PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway. These results confirm skeletal muscle as a source of FGF21 in physiological conditions and unveil a new molecular mechanism for regulating FGF21 production in this tissue. Our results will allow to identify new molecular targets to understand the regulation of FGF21 both in physiological and pathological conditions, such as exercise, aging, insulin resistance, and Duchenne muscular dystrophy, all characterized by an alteration in both FGF21 levels and ATP signaling components. These data reinforce that eATP signaling is a relevant mechanism for myokine expression in skeletal muscle.
A role for misaligned gene expression of fetal gene program in the loss of female-specific cardiovascular protection in young obese and diabetic females
Authors: Pulakat Lakshmi
Published: February 2023

Healthy, premenopausal women have the advantage of female-specific cardiovascular protection compared to age-matched healthy men. However, pathologies such as obesity and Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) cause losing of this female-specific cardiovascular protection in young, obese and diabetic females. Molecular mechanisms underlying this loss of female-specific cardiovascular protection in young, obese and diabetic females are not clearly elucidated. This review takes a close look at the latest advances in our understanding of sex differences in adult cardiac gene expression patterns in health and disease. Based on the emerging data, this review proposes that female biased gene expression patterns in healthy adult hearts of human and pre-clinical models support the existence of active fetal gene program in healthy, premenopausal female heart compared to age-matched healthy male heart. However, the misalignment of gene expression pattern in this female-specific active cardiac fetal gene program caused by pathologies such as obesity and T2DM may contribute to the loss of female-specific cardiovascular protection in young, obese and diabetic females.
Long-acting recombinant human follicle-stimulating hormone (SAFA-FSH) enhances spermatogenesis
Authors: Kim Daham , Lee Soohyun , Cho Yoon Hee , Kang Min Jeong , Ku Cheol Ryong , Chi Hyunjin , Ahn Jungsuk , Lee Kyungsun , Han Jaekyu , Chi Susan , Song Moo Young , Cha Sang-Hoon , Lee Eun Jig
Published: February 2023

Introduction

Administration of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) has been recommended to stimulate spermatogenesis in infertile men with hypogonadotropic hypogonadism, whose sperm counts do not respond to human chorionic gonadotropin alone. However, FSH has a short serum half-life requiring frequent administration to maintain its therapeutic efficacy. To improve its pharmacokinetic properties, we developed a unique albumin-binder technology, termed “anti-serum albumin Fab-associated” (SAFA) technology. We tested the feasibility of applying SAFA technology to create long-acting FSH as a therapeutic candidate for patients with hypogonadotropic hypogonadism.

Methods

SAFA-FSH was produced using a Chinese hamster ovary expression system. To confirm the biological function, the production of cyclic AMP and phosphorylation of ERK and CREB were measured in TM4-FSHR cells. The effect of gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists on spermatogenesis in a hypogonadal rat model was investigated.

Results

In in vitro experiments, SAFA-FSH treatment increased the production of cyclic AMP and increased the phosphorylation of ERK and CREB in a dose-dependent manner. In animal experiments, sperm production was not restored by human chorionic gonadotropin treatment alone, but was restored after additional recombinant FSH treatment thrice per week or once every 5 days. Sperm production was restored even after additional SAFA-FSH treatment at intervals of once every 5 or 10 days.

Discussion

Long-acting FSH with bioactivity was successfully created using SAFA technology. These data support further development of SAFA-FSH in a clinical setting, potentially representing an important advancement in the treatment of patients with hypogonadotropic hypogonadism.
The coupling relationship between tourism economy and air quality in China: A province-level analysis
Authors: Zhao Shuhong , Li Qin , Kong Yingying , Chen Xi
Published: February 2023

Introduction: The development of tourism economy depends on air quality to a large extent, and good air quality is conducive to promoting the development of tourism economy. And it is crucial to understand the coupled and coordinated relationship between them. However, few studies have explored the coupling relationship between tourism and air quality. Therefore, it is necessary to further study the coupling relationship between tourism and air quality.

Methods: In this study, an index system was constructed to evaluate the development status of tourism economy and air quality system, and the entropy value method was used to weight the indexes. Using panel data of Chinese provinces from 2014 to 2020, a coupled coordination model was established, focusing on the degree of coordination between tourism economy and air quality.

Results: The empirical results show that during the sample period, China’s tourism economic index is decreasing, and the regional development is unbalanced, showing the gradient of eastern region > central region > western region. The air quality index, on the other hand, fluctuates and increases, showing a spatial distribution pattern of “weekly high, high and low” of western region > eastern region > central region. The coupling coordination level of both regions shows an increasing trend, with the eastern region having the highest coupling coordination level and always in the stage of barely balanced development; the central region has the second highest coupling coordination level and the coupling coordination level is steadily increasing; the western region has the worst coupling coordination level and the coupling system tends to decline. The main type of coupling coordination effect is tourism economy lagged type, and the overall performance shows that the ambient air quality condition is better than the tourism economy development.

Discussion: This study clearly reveals the evolution, degree and types of coupling coordination in the tourism economy and air quality of the two systems, which contributes to the understanding of coupling and synergy of industrial development and ecological environment. This research also expands the application field of the CCDM model, and has a certain methodology contribution for further exploring the synergy and symbiosis mechanism of tourism economy development and environmental change.
Digitalization and green innovation of enterprises: Empirical evidence from China
Authors: Fan Yaojun , Su Quan , Wang Xiaohong , Fan Min
Published: February 2023

With the acceleration of the digital technology construction process, digitalization has given impetus to the transformation and upgrading of China’s economy and micro businesses. China’s social and economic sectors have begun to integrate and develop in-depth with digital technology. Whether the digitalization of enterprises can drive their green innovation is an urgent question to be explored. The aim of our study is to answer this question and investigate whether digitalization has finally affected corporate green innovation. On the basis of theoretical discussion, the data of 3,547 Chinese listed companies from 2014 to 2019 were selected as samples. The fixed effect model was used to empirically test the relationship between digitization and green innovation, and then the intermediary effect model was used to analyze the influence mechanism. Research has found that digitalization is genuinely driving green innovation in business. After the robustness test, the conclusion remains the same. In order to deepen the understanding of the impact of digitalization on the green innovation of enterprises, this study additionally analyzed the impact mechanism. We find that digitization can promote corporate green innovation by easing corporate financing constraints and enhancing corporate awareness of fulfilling social responsibility. Moreover, we also find that the impact of digitalization on firm performance is more obvious in the samples with high level of internal control, state-owned enterprises and senior executives with IT background. The findings of this study enrich the related theories of digitalization and sustainability and provide empirical evidence for the positive externalities of digitalization.
Planted pollinator habitat in agroecosystems: How does the pollinator community respond?
Authors: Levenson Hannah K. , Tarpy David R.
Published: February 2023

Pollinators are important both ecologically and economically. Nonetheless, documented pollinator population decline threatens ecosystem functioning and human well-being. In response, conservation methods such as augmented pollinator habitat are becoming popular tools to combat pollinator losses. While previous research has shown added habitat can benefit bee communities, there are still aspects of the habitat implementation that require further research, particularly how this will impact bee communities in real-world settings beyond researcher-led efforts. In our study, we use a 2016 initiative mandating the planting of pollinator habitat on research stations across North Carolina, United States to act as an outdoor laboratory to investigate this exact question. From 2016 to 2018, we found significant increases in bee abundance and diversity. However, these increases depended on the quality of habitat, with areas of higher flower cover and diversity supporting larger, more diverse bee communities. Although the habitats positively supported bee communities, we found that resources within the habitats were lower later in the sampling season, highlighting the need of developing seed mixes that include late season resources. Weedy plants were documented to establish within the habitats, demonstrating the need for regular upkeep and maintenance of pollinator habitat in order to appropriately support bee communities. It is likely that planting pollinator habitat will not be a one-size-fits-all conservation solution, as bee species can respond differently to some habitat characteristics. Future long-term studies on pollinators will be important as natural fluctuations in bee populations may limit findings and many knowledge gaps on native bees still persist.
Variations of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi following succession stages in a tropical lowland rainforest ecosystem of South China
Authors: Yang Huai , Mai Siwei , Liu Wenjie , Fu Jialin , Yang Qiu , Zhang Bin , Huang Biao
Published: February 2023

Introduction

The grasslands in the Nature Reserve of Ganshenling, in the south of Hainan Island, were first formed after deforestation disturbance before a natural restoration of shrubs and secondary forests. However, the stages of grassland and shrubs in some parts of Ganshenling regions could not be naturally restored to secondary forests. In addition, the forest form of the secondary forest after 40 years (40a) of succession was similar to that of the secondary forest of 60 years (60a). However, it was not known whether the microorganisms recovered to the level of the secondary forest of 60a. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are plant root symbionts that can improve the nitrogen and phosphorus absorption of plants and play a key role in secondary forest succession. An understanding of the essential role of soil AMF in secondary forest succession of tropical rainforest in Ganshenling regions is still limited.

Methods

Therefore, the soil of 0–10 cm was collected with the help of a 5-point sampling method in grassland, shrubs, and second tropical lowland rainforest of 40a and 60a. We studied community changes in AMF with the succession and explored the impacts of soil physicochemical properties on soil AMF.

Results

Our findings were as follows: (1) Different successional stages showed divergent effects on soil AMF communities. (2) After 40a recovery, the alpha-diversity indices of AMF recovered to the level of secondary forest of 60a, but the similarity of soil AMF communities only recovered to 25.3%. (3) Species richness of common species, rare species, and all the species of AMF showed a significantly positive correlation with soil nitrogen. (4) OTU10; OTU6, OTU9, and OTU141; OTU3 and OTU38; and OTU2, OTU15, OTU23, and OTU197 were significantly unique AMF for grasslands, shrubs, and secondary forests of 40a and 60a, respectively. (5) The phylogenetic tree and the heatmap of AMF showed that the OTUs in grasslands and shrubs were in contrast to the OTUs in secondary forests of 40a and 60a.

Discussion

We concluded that the succession of a secondary forest after deforestation disturbance was probably limited by its AMF community.
Mathematical approach of fiber optics for renewable energy sources using general adversarial networks
Authors: Hasanin Tawfiq , Manoharan Hariprasath , Alterazi Hassan A. , Srivastava Gautam , Selvarajan Shitharth , Lin Jerry Chun-Wei
Published: February 2023

It is significantly more challenging to extend the visibility factor to a higher depth during the development phase of a communication system for subterranean places. Even if there are numerous optical fiber systems that provide the right energy sources for intended panels, the visibility parameter is not optimized past a certain point. Therefore, the suggested method looks at the properties of a fiber optic communication system that is integrated with a certain energy source while having external panels. A regulating state is established in addition to characteristic analysis by minimizing the reflection index, and the integration of the general adversarial network (GAN) optimizes both central and layer formations in exterior panels. Thus, the suggested technique uses the external noise factor to provide relevant data to the control center via fiber optic shackles. As a result, the normalized error is smaller, boosting the suggested method's effectiveness in all subsurface areas. The created mathematical model is divided into five different situations, and the results are simulated using MATLAB to test the effectiveness of the anticipated strategy. Additionally, comparisons are done for each of the five scenarios, and it is found that the proposed fiber-optic method for energy sources is far more effective than current methodologies.
Mitogenomic phylogeny of Cypraeidae (Gastropoda: Mesogastropoda)
Authors: Ma Qingxia , Li Fengping , Zheng Jiawen , Liu Chunsheng , Wang Aimin , Yang Yi , Gu Zhifeng
Published: February 2023

Cowries (Family Cypraeidae) are widely distributed in tropical and subtropical seas, with the highest diversity of cowries in the Indo-Pacific region. However, the classification of Cypraeidae, especially at the lower taxonomic levels, is still controversial. In the present study, we determined the complete mitochondrial genomes of 10 cowries. All the newly sequenced mtDNA encode 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 22 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes, two ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes, and several non-coding regions. The reconstructed mitogenomic phylogeny of Cypraeidae recognized two monophyletic clades, with the first clade comprised of Erroneinae, Cypraeinae and Luriinae and the second clade formed by the single subfamily Erosarinae. The congeneric genetic distance values fall within 0.118–0.144, lower than those above genus level ranging from 0.163 to 0.271, consistent with the current division of genera within Cypraeidae. The divergence time estimated here indicated that the ancestor of Indo-Pacific cowries diversified during the Paleocene, and the closure of the Tethys Seaway might lead to the speciation events of several Indo-Pacific species. This study suggests that the complete mtDNA is a promising tool to improve the phylogenetic resolution of Cypraeidae, and mtDNA could also provide important information for future species delimitation especially within the cowries that possess different morphological phenotypes.
Regularized survival learning and cross-database analysis enabled identification of colorectal cancer prognosis-related immune genes
Authors: Ai Dongmei , Wang Mingmei , Zhang Qingchuan , Cheng Longwei , Wang Yishu , Liu Xiuqin , Xia Li C.
Published: February 2023

Colon adenocarcinoma is the most common type of colorectal cancer. The prognosis of advanced colorectal cancer patients who received treatment is still very poor. Therefore, identifying new biomarkers for prognosis prediction has important significance for improving treatment strategies. However, the power of biomarker analyses was limited by the used sample size of individual database. In this study, we combined Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) databases to expand the number of healthy tissue samples. We screened differentially expressed genes between the GTEx healthy samples and TCGA tumor samples. Subsequently, we applied least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression and multivariate Cox analysis to identify nine prognosis-related immune genes: ANGPTL4, IDO1, NOX1, CXCL3, LTB4R, IL1RL2, CD72, NOS2, and NUDT6. We computed the risk scores of samples based on the expression levels of these genes and divided patients into high- and low-risk groups according to this risk score. Survival analysis results showed a significant difference in survival rate between the two risk groups. The high-risk group had a significantly lower overall survival rate and poorer prognosis. We found the receiver operating characteristic based on the risk score was showed to accurately predict patients’ prognosis. These prognosis-related immune genes may be potential biomarkers for colorectal cancer diagnosis and treatment. Our open-source code is freely available from GitHub at https://github.com/gutmicrobes/Prognosis-model.git.
ICT applications and the COVID-19 pandemic: Impacts on the individual's digital data, digital privacy, and data protection
Authors: Cheshmehzangi Ali , Su Zhaohui , Zou Tong
Published: February 2023

A prominent move amid the COVID-19 pandemic is related to the wide use of ICT applications for various reasons. Such services are context-specific and sector-specific, but we see transformative directions leading to digital data collection, monitory, and management platforms. For now, these have been beneficial to evaluate trends and issues related to the pandemic. Some aggregated data could also help decision-making processes, which are helpful to contain such disruptive events. However, the main concern is the use of the individual's data and information, which means we may shift to micro-management and eventual controlling tools that could harm data protection processes. Undoubtedly, the use of ICTs during the COVID-19 pandemic has been primarily positive at multiple scales, but we have to evaluate the pros and cons before accepting all data collection processes. Such ICT-mediated platforms and/or applications must remain beneficial to all and avoid breaching the individual's data protection. This short communication paper first introduces ICT applications during the COVID-19 before providing an overview and further analysis of the situation of the ICT applications. Afterward, it discusses issues of data privacy, data collection, and data use, which are the backbone of ICT applications. The discussions highlight that future research in this area could look into associated issues related to digital privacy, data-driven approaches, and data protection regulations.
Comprehensive protocols for culturing and molecular biological analysis of IBD patient-derived colon epithelial organoids
Authors: Gopalakrishnan Shreya , Bakke Ingunn , Hansen Marianne Doré , Skovdahl Helene Kolstad , Granlund Atle van Beelen , Sandvik Arne K. , Bruland Torunn
Published: February 2023

There are many unanswered questions regarding responses to proinflammatory signals in intestinal epithelial cells (IECs). For example, chemokines secreted by IECs upon external stimuli play multifunctional roles in both homeostasis and during inflammation. Several chemokines are upregulated during active inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which is associated with an increased influx of immune cells into the gut mucosa. Therefore, studies on how chemokines are regulated in the intestinal epithelium may identify putative treatment targets in IBD. More recently, patient-derived ex vivo models such as intestinal organoids have facilitated molecular analysis of epithelial alterations in IBD patients own cells. Here, we describe refined experimental protocols and methods for the generation and maintenance of IBD patient-derived colonic organoids (colonoids) culture. We also give detailed description of medium, and supplements needed for colonoid establishment, growth, and differentiation, including production of Wnt-3A and Rspondin1 enriched media. Further, we present protocols for RNA and protein isolation from human colonoids, and subsequent gene expression analysis and Western blotting for e.g., signal transduction studies. We also describe how to process colonoids for chemokine protein expression analysis such as immunostaining, confocal imaging, and detection of secreted chemokines by e.g., enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). As proof of principle, we give examples of how the chemoattractant CCL20 can be regulated and expressed in colonoids derived from IBD-patients and healthy controls upon ligands-driven inflammation.
Advances in immune checkpoint inhibitors induced-cardiotoxicity
Authors: Li Xiang , Peng Wenying , Wu Jiao , Yeung Sai-Ching Jim , Yang Runxiang
Published: February 2023

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are approved as the first-line drug for treating many cancers and has shown significant survival benefits; however, it also causes immune-related adverse events (irAEs) while activating the immune system, involving multiple organs. Among them, cardiovascular immune-related adverse events (CV-irAE) are rare, but common causes of death in ICIs treated cancer patients, which manifest as myocardial, pericardial, vascular and other cardiovascular toxicities. Therefore, it is important that irAEs, especially CV-irAE should be carefully recognized and monitored during the whole ICIs treatment because early detection and treatment of CV-irAE can significantly reduce the mortality of such patients. Consequently, it is urgent to fully understand the mechanism and management strategies of CV-irAE. The effects of ICIs are multifaceted and the exact mechanism of CV-irAE is still elusive. Generally, T cells identify tumor cell antigens as well as antigen in cardiomyocytes that are the same as or homologous to those on tumor cells, thus causing myocardial damage. In addition, ICIs promote formation of cardiac troponin I (cTnI) that induces cardiac dysfunction and myocardial dilatation; moreover, ICIs also increase the production of cytokines, which promote infiltration of inflammation-linked molecules into off-target tissues. Currently, the management and treatment of cardiovascular toxicity are largely dependent on glucocorticoids, more strategies for prevention and treatment of CV-irAE, such as predictive markers are being explored. This review discusses risk factors, potential pathophysiological mechanisms, clinical manifestations, and management and treatment of CV-irAE, guiding the development of more effective prevention, treatment and management strategies in the future.
Imaging assessment of toxicity related to immune checkpoint inhibitors
Authors: Berz Antonia M. , Boughdad Sarah , Vietti-Violi Naïk , Digklia Antonia , Dromain Clarisse , Dunet Vincent , Duran Rafael
Published: February 2023

In recent years, a wide range of cancer immunotherapies have been developed and have become increasingly important in cancer treatment across multiple oncologic diseases. In particular, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) offer promising options to improve patient outcomes. However, a major limitation of these treatments consists in the development of immune-related adverse events (irAEs) occurring in potentially any organ system and affecting up to 76% of the patients. The most frequent toxicities involve the skin, gastrointestinal tract, and endocrine system. Although mostly manageable, potentially life-threatening events, particularly due to neuro-, cardiac, and pulmonary toxicity, occur in up to 30% and 55% of the patients treated with ICI-monotherapy or -combination therapy, respectively. Imaging, in particular computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and 2-deoxy-2-[18F]fluoro-D-glucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (18F-FDG-PET/CT), plays an important role in the detection and characterization of these irAEs. In some patients, irAEs can even be detected on imaging before the onset of clinical symptoms. In this context, it is particularly important to distinguish irAEs from true disease progression and specific immunotherapy related response patterns, such as pseudoprogression. In addition, there are irAEs which might be easily confused with other pathologies such as infection or metastasis. However, many imaging findings, such as in immune-related pneumonitis, are nonspecific. Thus, accurate diagnosis may be delayed underling the importance for adequate imaging features characterization in the appropriate clinical setting in order to provide timely and efficient patient management. 18F-FDG-PET/CT and radiomics have demonstrated to reliably detect these toxicities and potentially have predictive value for identifying patients at risk of developing irAEs. The purpose of this article is to provide a review of the main immunotherapy-related toxicities and discuss their characteristics on imaging.
Optical inspection of the braid formation zone during manufacturing of preforms from reinforcement fibers for defect detection purposes
Authors: Maidl Stephan , Hilbck Maximilian , Kind Kalle , Drechsler Klaus
Published: February 2023

Braiding is a highly automated process for manufacturing preforms directly from reinforcement yarns at large production volumes. The quality of braided textiles and the stability of the process can however be negatively affected by defects that occur during braiding. If such defects can be detected from fine process anomalies early during their formation, the process can be interrupted and countermeasures can be introduced before the defect aggravates and gets braided into the product. Current sensor modules for defect detection during braiding however involve problems of either late response times, process impairments or a lack of applicability to braiding of composite parts. In an effort to overcome these drawbacks, the paper at hand proposes to optically monitor the braid formation zone by means of a single camera (no process impairments). An associated image analysis algorithm creates a measure for the angular distance of each individual braiding yarn to its neighboring yarns and tracks the yarns as they rotate around the overbraidable mandrel (typical for braiding of composite parts). Since braiding yarns typically exhibit distinct curvatures as they span from the bobbins towards the center of the braiding machine due to frictional yarn-yarn interaction, a change in yarn curvature and thus in angular yarn distance is an early sign of a defect-characteristic anomaly in yarn tension (early response). If implemented on a real-time capable computing device, an apparatus according to the presented method can be retrofitted to existing production lines for braiding process monitoring. It then contributes to the reduction of error correction times since countermeasures are quicker to implement as long as the defect has not aggravated, yet. Furthermore, scrap material rates can be reduced as anomalies can be detected before they manifest in the braided structure.
Does Etelcalcetide reverse myelofibrotic bone changes due to hyperparathyroidism? A case report
Authors: Panuccio Vincenzo Antonio , Tripepi Rocco , Postorino Adele , Greve Bruna , Sabattini Elena , Oliva Esther Natalie
Published: February 2023

Secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) in dialysis is common. A young man on chronic hemodialysis with SHPT developed pancytopenia with resistant anemia requiring transfusions. A bone marrow biopsy showed grade 3 fibrosis, depleted cellularity, osteosclerosis, and decreased myelopoiesis. He initiated Etelcalcetide 7⋅5 mg 3 times weekly with improvement in SHPT concomitant with near normalization of blood counts. Marrow biopsy at 12 months showed clearance of marrow reticulin, improvement of osteosclerosis and normalization of bone trabeculae, cellularity and myelopoiesis. This is a unique case in which Etelcalcetide treatment is comparable to parathyroidectomy on SHPT and is associated with significant improvement in severe myelofibrosis.
Multimodal MRI radiomic models to predict genomic mutations in diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma with missing imaging modalities
Authors: Khalid Fahad , Goya-Outi Jessica , Escobar Thibault , Dangouloff-Ros Volodia , Grigis Antoine , Philippe Cathy , Boddaert Nathalie , Grill Jacques , Frouin Vincent , Frouin Frédérique
Published: February 2023

Purpose

Predicting H3.1, TP53, and ACVR1 mutations in DIPG could aid in the selection of therapeutic options. The contribution of clinical data and multi-modal MRI were studied for these three predictive tasks. To keep the maximum number of subjects, which is essential for a rare disease, missing data were considered. A multi-modal model was proposed, collecting all available data for each patient, without performing any imputation.

Methods

A retrospective cohort of 80 patients with confirmed DIPG and at least one of the four MR modalities (T1w, T1c, T2w, and FLAIR), acquired with two different MR scanners was built. A pipeline including standardization of MR data and extraction of radiomic features within the tumor was applied. The values of radiomic features between the two MR scanners were realigned using the ComBat method. For each prediction task, the most robust features were selected based on a recursive feature elimination with cross-validation. Five different models, one based on clinical data and one per MR modality, were developed using logistic regression classifiers. The prediction of the multi-modal model was defined as the average of all possible prediction results among five for each patient. The performances of the models were compared using a leave-one-out approach.

Results

The percentage of missing modalities ranged from 6 to 11% across modalities and tasks. The performance of each individual model was dependent on each specific task, with an AUC of the ROC curve ranging from 0.63 to 0.80. The multi-modal model outperformed the clinical model for each prediction tasks, thus demonstrating the added value of MRI. Furthermore, regardless of performance criteria, the multi-modal model came in the first place or second place (very close to first). In the leave-one-out approach, the prediction of H3.1 (resp. ACVR1 and TP53) mutations achieved a balanced accuracy of 87.8% (resp. 82.1 and 78.3%).

Conclusion

Compared with a single modality approach, the multi-modal model combining multiple MRI modalities and clinical features was the most powerful to predict H3.1, ACVR1, and TP53 mutations and provided prediction, even in the case of missing modality. It could be proposed in the absence of a conclusive biopsy.
Association between pre-stroke sarcopenia risk and stroke-associated infection in older people with acute ischemic stroke
Authors: Song Xiaodong , Chen Xufeng , Bai Jie , Zhang Jun
Published: February 2023

Background

Stroke-associated infection (SAI) is a common complication after a stroke. The incidence of infection was higher in people with sarcopenia than in the general population. However, the relationship between pre-stroke sarcopenia risk and SAI in older patients has not been confirmed. This study aimed to investigate the association between pre-stroke sarcopenia risk and SAI in older patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS).

Methods

This retrospective study was conducted by the Peking University People’s Hospital. We evaluated the pre-stroke sarcopenia risk by applying the SARC-F questionnaire. Multivariate logistic regression was applied to explore the association between pre-stroke sarcopenia risk and SAI.

Results

A total of 1,002 elder patients with AIS (592 men; 72.9 ± 8.6 years) were enrolled in our study. Pre-stroke sarcopenia risk was found in 29.1% of the cohort. The proportion of patients with pre-stroke sarcopenia risk was larger in the SAI group than in the non-SAI group (43.2 vs. 25.3%, p   < 0.001). In multivariate logistic analysis, pre-stroke sarcopenia risk was shown to be independently associated with SAI (OR = 1.454, 95% CI: 1.008–2.097, p = 0.045) after adjusting for potential factors. This association remained consistent across the subgroups based on age, sex, body mass index, smoking status, drinking status, diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia.

Conclusion

Pre-stroke sarcopenia risk was independently associated with SAI in older patients with AIS. Our findings highlight the significance of pre-stroke sarcopenia identification in the prevention and management of SAI in this population.
Effect of larger corneal spherical aberration in improving the near visual acuity of eyes implanted with the TECNIS Symfony
Authors: Wang Dandan , Liu Chunlu , Guan Weichen , Lu Ziyi , Zhao Yinying , Zhao Yune
Published: February 2023

Purpose

To explore the effect of corneal spherical aberration on the visual acuity and visual quality of eyes implanted with the TECNIS Symfony intraocular lens (IOL).

Methods

A total of 43 patients with age-related cataract (60 eyes) undergoing phacoemulsification and TECNIS Symfony IOL implantation were enrolled in this study. The uncorrected distance (UDVA), intermediate (UIVA), near visual acuity (UNVA), corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA), contrast sensitivity, and ocular spherical aberration were recorded 3 months after surgery. Preoperative and postoperative corneal spherical aberration were also measured using the iTrace device. Objective scattering index (OSI), modulation transfer function cut-off frequency (MTF cut-off), and Strehl ratio (SR) were measured by the Optical Quality Analyzing System. Catquest-9SF questionnaire were applied too. Spearman’s correlation analysis was used to evaluate the relationship between spherical aberration and visual quality parameters.

Results

Patients were satisfied with their postoperatively visual quality. And the postoperative logMAR UDVA, UIVA, UNVA, and CDVA was 0.05 ± 0.07, 0.04 ± 0.06, 0.15 ± 0.07, and 0.03 ± 0.05, respectively. The mean preoperative corneal spherical aberration was 0.24 ± 0.10 μm, which is the only factor influencing postoperatively UNVA, and it was negatively correlated with UNVA and glare contrast sensitivity under 18 cpd (cycle/degree, cpd) spatial frequency (r = −0.403, −0.300, −0.360; all P < 0.05). Additionally, the greater the residual spherical aberration of the cornea, the better the near vision after operation. The mean postoperative ocular spherical aberration was −0.03 ± 0.07 μm, it was not correlated with visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, and visual quality (all P > 0.05).

Conclusion

Preoperative positive spherical aberration can benefit near vision while decrease contrast sensitivities at high spatial frequencies when implanted with the TECNIS Symfony IOL.
Alterations in intestinal microbiota and metabolites in individuals with Down syndrome and their correlation with inflammation and behavior disorders in mice
Authors: Cai Shaoli , Lin Jinxin , Li Zhaolong , Liu Songnian , Feng Zhihua , Zhang Yangfan , Zhang Yanding , Huang Jianzhong , Chen Qi
Published: February 2023

The intestinal microbiota and fecal metabolome have been shown to play a vital role in human health, and can be affected by genetic and environmental factors. We found that individuals with Down syndrome (DS) had abnormal serum cytokine levels indicative of a pro-inflammatory environment. We investigated whether these individuals also had alterations in the intestinal microbiome. High-throughput sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA gene in fecal samples from 17 individuals with DS and 23 non-DS volunteers revealed a significantly higher abundance of Prevotella, Escherichia/Shigella, Catenibacterium, and Allisonella in individuals with DS, which was positively associated with the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines. GC-TOF-MS-based fecal metabolomics identified 35 biomarkers (21 up-regulated metabolites and 14 down-regulated metabolites) that were altered in the microbiome of individuals with DS. Metabolic pathway enrichment analyses of these biomarkers showed a characteristic pattern in DS that included changes in valine, leucine, and isoleucine biosynthesis and degradation; synthesis and degradation of ketone bodies; glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism; tyrosine metabolism; lysine degradation; and the citrate cycle. Treatment of mice with fecal bacteria from individuals with DS or Prevotella copri significantly altered behaviors often seen in individuals with DS, such as depression-associated behavior and impairment of motor function. These studies suggest that changes in intestinal microbiota and the fecal metabolome are correlated with chronic inflammation and behavior disorders associated with DS.
Adherent-invasive E. coli – induced specific IgA limits pathobiont localization to the epithelial niche in the gut
Authors: Tanaka Rika , Imai Jin , Tsugawa Hitoshi , Eap Karl Bil , Yazawa Masaki , Kaneko Motoki , Ohno Masashi , Sugihara Kohei , Kitamoto Sho , Nagao-Kitamoto Hiroko , Barnich Nicolas , Matsushima Masashi , Suzuki Takayoshi , Kagawa Tatehiro , Nishizaki Yasuhiro , Suzuki Hidekazu , Kamada Nobuhiko , Hozumi Katsuto
Published: February 2023

Background and aim

Adherent-invasive E. coli (AIEC) has been identified as a pathobiont associated with Crohn’s disease (CD), that prefers to grow in inflammatory conditions. Although the colonization by AIEC is implicated in the progression of the disease and exacerbates inflammation in murine colitis models, the recognition and response of host immunity to AIEC remains elusive.

Methods

Antibiotic treated female C57BL/6 mice were inoculated by commensal E. coli and LF82 AIEC strains. Luminal-IgA fractions were prepared from feces and their binding to AIEC and other strains was assessed to confirm specificity. IgA binding to isogenic mutant strains was performed to identify the functional molecules that are recognized by AIEC specific IgA. The effect of IgA on epithelial invasion of LF82 strain was confirmed using in vitro invasion assay and in vivo colonization of the colonic epithelium.

Results

Persistent colonization by AIEC LF82 induced secretion of luminal IgA, while commensal E. coli strain did not. Induced anti-LF82 IgA showed specific binding to other AIEC strains but not to the commensal, non-AIEC E. coli strains. Induced IgA showed decreased binding to LF82 strains with mutated adhesin and outer membrane proteins which are involved in AIEC – epithelial cell interaction. Consistently, LF82-specific IgA limited the adhesion and invasion of LF82 in cultured epithelial cells, which seems to be required for the elimination in the colonic epithelium in mice.

Conclusion

These results demonstrate that host immunity selectively recognizes pathobiont E. coli, such as AIEC, and develop specific IgA. The induced IgA specific to pathobiont E. coli, in turn, contributes to preventing the pathobionts from accessing the epithelium.