bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Current Insights into Renal Resistive Index Significance in Kidney and Cardiovascular Disease
Authors: Darabont Roxana , Mihalcea Diana , Vinereanu Dragos
Published: April 2023

Initially, renal resistive index (RRI) was investigated to improve diagnosis in kidney diseases, but failed to meet this goal. Recently many papers highlighted the prognostic significance of RRI in chronic kidney disease, in the estimation of revascularization success of renal artery stenoses or the evolution of the graft and recipients in renal transplantation. Moreover, RRI gained importance in prediction of acute kidney injury in critically ill patients. Along with RRI study in renal pathology have been revealed correlations of this index with parameters of systemic circulation. The theoretical and experimental premises of this connection were reconsidered, and studies for analyzing the link between RRI and arterial stiffness, central and peripheral pressure or left ventricular flow were conducted with this purpose. A high amount of data is currently indicating that RRI is influenced more by pulse pressure and vascular compliance than by renal vascular resistance – assuming that RRI reflects the complex interplay between systemic circulation and renal microcirculation and should be considered as a marker of systemic cardiovascular risk beyond its prognostic relevance for kidney disease. In this review we will go through clinical research that revealed the implications of RRI in renal and cardiovascular disease.
Wind Speed Prediction Based VMD-BLS and Error Compensation
Authors: Jiao Xuguo , Zhang Daoyuan , Song Dongran , Mu Dongdong , Tian Yanbing , Wu Haotian
Published: April 2023

As one of the fastest-growing new energy sources, wind power technology has attracted widespread attention from all over the world. In order to improve the quality of wind power generation, wind speed prediction is an indispensable task. In this paper, an error correction based Variational Mode Decomposition and Broad Learning System (VMD-BLS) hybrid model is proposed for wind speed prediction. First, the wind speed is decomposed into multiple components by the VMD algorithm, and then an ARMA model is established for each component to find the optimal number of sequence divisions. Second, the BLS model is used to predict each component, and the prediction results are summed to obtain the wind speed forecast value. However, in some traditional methods, there is always time lag, which will reduce the forecast accuracy. To deal with this, a novel error correction technique is developed by utilizing BLS. Through verification experiment with actual data, it proves that the proposed method can reduce the phenomenon of prediction lag, and can achieve higher prediction accuracy than traditional approaches, which shows our method’s effectiveness in practice.
The Relationship Between Semantic Joke and Idiom Comprehension in Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorder
Authors: Mashal N. , Kasirer Anat , Mashal Nira
Published: April 2023

Semantic jokes involve resolving an incongruity emerging from wordplay or from violation of world knowledge. Research has shown individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) demonstrate lower performance on humor tasks involving social situations, but less is known about their semantic joke comprehension. This study examined semantic joke comprehension among adolescents with ASD, and its possible relationship to vocabulary size, theory of mind (ToM), and idiom comprehension. Thirty-two adolescents with ASD and 32 typically developed (TD) peers participated. Semantic joke comprehension was assessed via multiple-choice questionnaire and time-limited computer program. Vocabulary, ToM abilities, and idiom comprehension were also tested. Results revealed that adolescents with ASD were as fast in processing semantic jokes as their age- and vocabulary-matched TD peers but less accurate. Age and idiom comprehension contributed significantly to semantic joke comprehension among both groups. As semantic joke comprehension is based on incongruity resolution, the greater difficulties in comprehension among the adolescents with ASD may be due to deficits in simultaneously retaining two alternative interpretations and selecting the relevant one. Like the TD group, semantic joke comprehension among the ASD group appeared more developed with age. Future neuroimaging studies should test semantic brain region involvement in semantic joke comprehension in ASD.
Running Return of Service Schemes in Southern Africa: Lessons from Botswana, Eswatini and Lesotho
Authors: Mabunda Sikhumbuzo A. , Durbach Andrea , Chitha Wezile W. , Moaletsane Oduetse , Angell Blake , Joshi Rohina
Published: April 2023

Botswana, Eswatini and Lesotho are three Southern African countries which make use of re-turn-of-service (RoS) schemes to increase human resources for health in their countries. These initiatives bind beneficiaries to a pre-defined period of service upon completion of their studies based on the length of funding support received. We aim to review the history of these policies to understand the conceptualisation, intent and implementation of these schemes. We used a mul-ti-methods research design which consisted of a literature review, policy review and semi-structured interviews with policymakers and implementors. All three governments have a combination of grant-loan schemes and full bursaries or scholarships. The policies have all been operating for over 20-years, with Eswatini’s pre-service being the oldest since it was introduced in 1977 followed by Lesotho’s 1978 policy and Botswana’s 1995 pre-service policy. These policies have never been reviewed or updated. RoS schemes in these countries were introduced to ad-dress critical skills shortages, improve employability prospects for citizens, to have competent public sector employees by global standards, and to aid career progress of government employ-ees. Ministries of Health are passive role players. However, these schemes can only be efficient if there is clear cooperation and coordination between all stakeholders.
Therapeutic bath of mint hydrolate in the control of monogenea for four tilapia species
Authors: Jatobá Adolfo , Stockhausen Larissa , Silva Laura Rafaela da , Andrade Jaqueline Inês Alves de
Published: April 2023

This work aimed to evaluate a therapeutic bath of mint (Mentha x villosa) hydrolate in the control of monogeneans for four tilapia species (Oreochromis niloticus, Oreochromis aureus, Oreochromis mossambicus, and Oreochromis hornorum) reared in the same environment (pond). After two months, 60 individuals of O. niloticus were divided into six groups of ten fish each. Three of them were submitted to a 1-hour therapeutic bath of mint hydrolate at the concentration of 20 mL·L-1, and the others were used as a control group. This process was repeated for O. aureus, O. mossambicus and O. hornorum. After that, mucus and gills were analyzed to determine parasitological indices (prevalence, mean abundance, and mean intensity) for monogeneans. The efficacy of mint hydrolate bath was set as 73.5, 79, 80.7, and 84.5% for O. hornorum, O. aureus, O. mossambicus and O. niloticus, respectively,against the monogeneans in the mucus. All species in this work demonstrated similar parasitic susceptibility when reared in the same environment. In addition, the use of mint therapeutic bath demonstrated efficacy in the control of monogeneans in mucus for all evaluated species.
Neonatal Iatrogenic Calcinosis Cutis and Heterotopic Calcification Causing Peripheral Brachial Palsy
Authors: Sakka Samir Akram , Haddad Waleed , Mansor Jeihad
Published: April 2023

Case:

Iatrogenic heterotopic calcification and calcinosis cutis secondary to extravasations of intravenous calcium is very rare. We report a case of a neonate treated with intravenous calcium resulting in extravasations causing heterotrophic calcification and calcinosis cutis with subcutaneous mass causing perinatal peripheral brachial palsy.

Conclusion:

We highlight these rare potential complications of calcium extravasations and recommend conservative treatment and the avoidance of the temptation of surgical excision of any bony lumps as they resolve spontaneously in time. These complications should not be confused as a fracture with callus formation and periosteal reaction.
Unsuccessful Osteochondral Allograft Cap to Prevent Overgrowth in a Pediatric Patient with Previous Transtibial Amputation
Authors: Pluta Natalia A. , Harrington Colin J. , Smith Douglas G. , Gantsoudes George D.
Published: April 2023

Case:

This case demonstrates the attempted utilization of an osteochondral allograft for the prevention of bony overgrowth in a patient with fibular hemimelia and previous transtibial amputation with failure of Teflon capping. Additionally, we describe a novel technique to provide additional padding and increase the width of the residual limb using a dermal allograft.

Conclusions:

Bony overgrowth after pediatric amputations is common and often necessitates revision procedures secondary to infection, ulceration, pain, and discomfort with prosthesis use. Our use of an osteochondral allograft cap to prevent bony overgrowth ultimately failed 13 months following the procedure, and further research on various graft options and other treatment modalities is warranted, especially if the proximal fibula is unavailable or there is concern for donor site morbidity associated with harvesting autologous grafts.
Cellular Bone Matrix Leading to Disseminated Tuberculosis After Spinal Fusion
Authors: Issa Tariq Z. , Lambrechts Mark J. , Toci Gregory R. , D'Antonio Nicholas D. , Kanhere Arun P. , Lingenfelter Kenneth , Schroeder Gregory D. , Vaccaro Alexander R.
Published: April 2023

Case:

Although implanted tuberculosis (TB) is rare, a single lot of cellular bone matrix was found to be infected with TB, leading to devastating outcomes. We present 2 cases referred to our institution because of instrumentation failure caused by TB inoculation of cellular bone matrix.

Conclusion:

Irrespective of spinal region of implanted TB infection, excision of infected bone, extensive irrigation and debridement, and instrumented stabilization are of primary importance to ensure TB eradication and adequate stabilization.
Increasing Quality and Frequency of Goals-of-Care Documentation in the Highest-Risk Surgical Candidates
Authors: Oyekan Anthony A. , Lee Joon Y. , Hodges Jacob C. , Chen Stephen R. , Wilson Alan E. , Fourman Mitchell S. , Clayton Elizabeth O. , Njoku-Austin Confidence , Crasto Jared A. , Wisniewski Mary Kay , Bilderback Andrew , Gunn Scott R. , Levin William I. , Arnold Robert M. , Hinrichsen Katie L. , Mensah Christopher , Hogan MaCalus V. , Hall Daniel E.
Published: April 2023

Background:

Patient values may be obscured when decisions are made under the circumstances of constrained time and limited counseling. The objective of this study was to determine if a multidisciplinary review aimed at ensuring goal-concordant treatment and perioperative risk assessment in high-risk orthopaedic trauma patients would increase the quality and frequency of goals-of-care documentation without increasing the rate of adverse events.

Methods:

We prospectively analyzed a longitudinal cohort of adult patients treated for traumatic orthopaedic injuries that were neither life- nor limb-threatening between January 1, 2020, and July 1, 2021. A rapid multidisciplinary review termed a “surgical pause” (SP) was available to those who were ≥80 years old, were nonambulatory or had minimal ambulation at baseline, and/or resided in a skilled nursing facility, as well as upon clinician request. Metrics analyzed include the proportion and quality of goals-of-care documentation, rate of return to the hospital, complications, length of stay, and mortality. Statistical analysis utilized the Kruskal-Wallis rank and Wilcoxon rank-sum tests for continuous variables and the likelihood-ratio chi-square test for categorical variables.

Results:

A total of 133 patients were either eligible for the SP or referred by a clinician. Compared with SP-eligible patients who did not undergo an SP, patients who underwent an SP more frequently had goals-of-care notes identified (92.4% versus 75.0%, p = 0.014) and recorded in the appropriate location (71.2% versus 27.5%, p < 0.001), and the notes were more often of high quality (77.3% versus 45.0%, p < 0.001). Mortality rates were nominally higher among SP patients, but these differences were not significant (10.6% versus 5.0%, 5.1% versus 0.0%, and 14.3% versus 7.9% for in-hospital, 30-day, and 90-day mortality, respectively; p > 0.08 for all).

Conclusions:

The pilot program indicated that an SP is a feasible and effective means of increasing the quality and frequency of goals-of-care documentation in high-risk operative candidates whose traumatic orthopaedic injuries are neither life- nor limb-threatening. This multidisciplinary program aims for goal-concordant treatment plans that minimize modifiable perioperative risks.

Level of Evidence:

Therapeutic Level III. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.
A hybrid 1DCNN-GRU-Attention model for three-stage pregnancy pulse identification
Authors: Li Nan , Yu Jiarui , Mao Xiaobo , Zhao Yuping , Huang Luqi
Published: April 2023

Pregnancy pulse diagnosis is an important part of traditional Chinese medicine. In this literature, we propose a hybrid deep learning framework by combining the network advantages of one-dimensional convolutional neural network(1DCNN), gated recurrent unit(GRU) and attention mechanism(ATT), which realized automatic identification and classification of pregnancy period through wrist pulse data. First, the wrist pulse signals of 120 healthy pregnant women in different stages of pregnancy were collected. Second, a hybrid networks for classification in three stages of pregnancy pulse was designed, which is comprised of six 1DCNN blocks and GRU module and attention module. Specifically, the proposed 1DCNN layer are adopted to extract local features from the input wrist pulse data and GRU unit was utilized for overall pulse sequence learning. In addition, the attention mechanism assigned different weights to feature parts according to pulse trends to focus and highlight effective features. Finally, the designed network was used to realize the discrimination of pregnancy pulse. On our local research dataset evaluation, the accuracy of pulse classification of this network for the three stages achieves encouraging results of 93.7%, 93.6%, and 94%, respectively. Furthermore, the model reaches 90.4%, 90.7%, 90.6% and 98% in terms of average precision, sensitivity and F1 score and AUC, respectively. The experiment shows that the designed network has a good reference value for the auxiliary diagnosis of TCM pregnancy pulse diagnosis, which is conducive to promoting the development of modernization of TCM.
The benefits of traditional birth attendants on maternal and fetal outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Ateudjieu Jerome , Fodjo Joseph Nelson Siewe , Ambomatei Calson , Tchio-Nighie Ketina Hirma , Ebongo Zacheus Nanje , Kouanfack Charles , Bissek Anne-Cecile Zoung-Kanyi
Published: April 2023

Background The role of traditional birth attendants (TBA) in improving outcomes related to maternal and child health remains controversial. We performed an up-to-date systematic review to pool together available data on the impact of TBA interventions on materno-fetal outcomes. Methods A systematic literature search was conducted on PubMed, Cochrane, Scopus, and 3ie databases (search date: 22nd August 2022) to identify original research articles which studied health outcomes in populations of pregnant women and children following TBA-related interventions. Data on the frequency of the outcome (expressed as proportions) occurring in study populations with and without the intervention were extracted. The data were synthesized and used for meta-analysis, with the creation of sub-groups as appropriate for comparisons. The Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel method was used to generate Odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) for data analysis. Results Of the 744 studies found during the initial database search, data was extracted from 45 eligible studies representing observations from 194,699 women and 199,779 children. We found that the involvement and/or training of TBAs in maternal and child healthcare does not significantly contribute to reducing maternal mortality (pooled OR: 0.91, 95% CI: 0.42–1.98) or infant morbidity (pooled OR: 0.85, 95% CI: 0.57–1.27). However, TBA-related interventions proved useful in curbing both neonatal mortality (pooled OR: 0.77, 95% CI: 0.71–0.84) and maternal morbidity (pooled OR: 0.63, 95% CI: 0.43–0.93). Overall, TBA involvement was associated with increased uptake of some health interventions including antenatal consultations, delivery by a skilled birth attendant, early breastfeeding, and immunization (pooled OR: 2.42, 95% CI: 1.75–3.35). Conclusions Based on studies conducted in the past, it appears that proper training and supervision could render TBAs useful in addressing shortages in maternal and child health actors. This finding is particularly relevant for remote communities with few trained healthcare workers and even fewer health facilities. Large community-based prospective studies may be required to investigate the materno-fetal benefits and cost-effectiveness of integrating TBAs within present-day health systems in SSA. Registration: This systematic review was not registered.
Strong Product of Pythagorean Fuzzy Incidence Graphs With Application
Authors: NAZEER IRFAN , Hussain Muhammad Tanveer , RASHID TABASAM
Published: April 2023

Graph operations give rise to the latest classification of graphs from the first ones, which may be beneficial for the modeling and identification of computer network designs. This research article proposed the definition of Pythagorean fuzzy incidence graph (PyFIG) by initiating prolific consequences and concepts associated with an operation on PyFIGs named the strong product. Together with completeness, regularity, and partial regularity of strong product PyFIGs, various ideas are obtained. The definition of full regular PyFIG along with some significant results is also acquired. In the end, an application of a strong product of two PyFIGs to choose the best Corona vaccination center among different centers is provided.
Altered dynamic network interactions in children with ASD during face recognition revealed by time-varying EEG networks
Authors: Chen Baodan , Jiang Lin , Lu Guoqing , Li Yuqin , Zhang Shu , Huang Xunan , Xu Peng , Li Fali , Yao Dezhong
Published: April 2023

Background: Although the electrophysiological event-related potential (ERP) in face processing (e.g., N170) is widely accepted as a face-sensitivity biomarker that is deficient in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), the time-varying brain networks during face recognition are still awaiting further investigation.Methods: To explore the social deficits in ASD, especially the time-varying brain networks during face recognition, the current study analyzed the N170, cortical activity, and time-varying networks under three tasks (face-upright, face-inverted, and house-upright) in ASD and typically developing (TD) children.Results: The results revealed a smaller N170 amplitude in ASD compared with TD, along with decreased cortical activity mainly in occipitotemporal areas. Concerning the time-varying networks, the atypically stronger information flow and brain network connections across frontal, parietal, and temporal regions in ASD were reported, which reveals greater effort was exerted by ASD to obtain comparable performance to the TD children, although the amplitude of N170 was still smaller than that of the TD children.Conclusion: Different brain activation states and interaction patterns of brain regions during face-processing were discovered between ASD and TD. These findings shed light on the face-processing mechanisms in children with ASD and provide new insight for understanding the social dysfunction of ASD.
Gaming in Pandemic Times: An International Survey Assessing the Effects of Covid-19 Lockdowns on Video Gamer's Health
Authors: DiFrancisco-Donoghue Joanne , Heras Bernat DE Las , Li Orville , Middleton Jake , Jung Min-Kyung
Published: April 2023

Background: The onset of COVID-19 coincided with the peak growth of video game usage with 2.7 billion gamers in 2020. During the pandemic, gaming and streaming platforms offered an entertaining, social, and safe alternative to recreation during severe lockdowns and social isolations.
This study aimed to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on health-related outcomes in self-proclaimed video gamers based on the type of lockdown experienced, and to discuss the potential role of video games during times of preventive lockdown measures.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional international survey constructed by two academic institutions NYIT (NY; USA); McGill University, (Montreal, Canada) and Adamas Esports (BC, Canada). The survey consisted of questions including demographics, multiple-choice, rating, and Likert scales relating to prior and during the COVID-19 lockdowns. Respondents included 897 replies from North America (72.7%), Europe (10.9%), Asia (4.9%) and other countries (11.5%) mean age 22 years.
Results: Significant increases in game time were reported in casual and competitive gamers during the first months of the pandemic. Level of gaming, type of lockdown, and physical activity level prior to the pandemic were examined as potential moderating factors. Significant increases in sedentary behaviors (video game time and sitting time) were observed, while physical activity levels remained unchanged in most participants regardless of the type of lockdown. Sleep time, but not sleep quality, increased, while mental health exhibited opposing effects, influenced by the type of lockdown and gaming competition levels.
Conclusions:Video games, when played moderately, could offer a cost-effective, safe strategy to promote socialization, mental health, and improve the overall well-being of the non-gaming and gaming population during pandemic times when strict lockdowns are in place.
Morphological and Genetic Characterization of Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) in Kayunga and Luwero districts of Uganda
Authors: Gwokyalya Racheal , Nanteza Ann , Wagaba Henry , Kayondo Siraj Ismail , Kazigaba Dan , Nakabonge Grace
Published: April 2023

Background
Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus), is an economically valuable fruit tree. Despite its potential, the production of jackfruit in Uganda is currently low, and may face further reduction due to deforestation. As a result, genetic erosion of the tree resource is predicted, before its documentation and exploitation for possible crop improvement and sustainable conservation. As a prerequisite for crop improvement and conservation, 100 A. heterophyllus tree isolates from Kayunga and Luwero districts in Uganda were characterized using 16 morphological and 10 microsatellite markers.
Results
The results from the morphological analysis showed variation in the tree height, diameter at breast height (DBH), and crown diameter traits, with coefficients of variation (CV) values of 20%, 41%, and 33% respectively. Except for taste, various forms of the 13 assessed qualitative traits were observed. Genotyping showed that the number of alleles amplified per microsatellite locus ranged from 2 to 5, with an average of 2.90, and totalling to 29. The mean observed (Ho) and expected (He) heterozygosity were 0.71 and 0.57 respectively. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) indicated that 81% of the variation occurred within individual trees, 19% among trees within populations and 0% between the two populations. The gene flow (Nm) in the two populations was 88.72. The results from further analysis using ‘Partitioning Around Medoids’ (PAM), Principal Coordinate Analysis (PCoA) and genetic cluster analysis further revealed no differentiation of the A. heterophyllus populations. In addition, the Mantel test revealed no significant correlation between the genetic and geographic distances, and the morphological and geographic distances, and a negligible correlation between the morphological and genetic distances.
Discussion
Diversity was observed in the assessed A. heterophyllus because the crop is crossly pollinated. However, there was no differentiation of the jackfruit populations probably because of continuous gene flow in the adjacently located districts. Morphological resemblance did not imply genetic similarity probably because morphology is influenced by the environment.
Conclusions
Both morphological and genetic analyses revealed variation of jackfruit within a single interbreeding population. The observed diversity can be exploited to establish breeding and conservation strategies to increase production of jackfruit. However, selecting germplasm depending on morphological assessment alone may be misleading.
Pulmonary actinomycosis with polymicrobial co-infection presenting as pulmonary abscess：a case report
Authors: Song Shuangshuang , He Yi , Xiong Wei
Published: April 2023

Background: Pulmonary actinomycosis is very rare. It is often misdiagnosed as lung cancer, tuberculosis, pulmonary aspergillosis or pulmonary abscess. Predisposing factors are immunosuppressive conditions, poor oral hygiene and chronic lung disease. Co-infection with different strains of actinomycetes, aspergillus and bacteria is rarely reported, which is a major cause of treatment failure.
Case presentation：We reported a case of 63-year old woman with 3-month history of cough, expectoration and occasional hemoptysis. Pulmonary actinomycosis with polymicrobial co-infection including actinomyces mucous, actinomyces graevenitzii, aspergillus, klebsiella pneumoniae and streptococcus constellations in left inferior lobe was confirmed by etiological culture. Combined antibiotic therapy and bronchoalveolar lavage were administrated successfully. The clinical symptoms and radiologic abnormalities had improved significantly.
Conclusions:Pulmonary actinomycosis is often misdiagnosed because of the nonspecific clinical manifestations and laboratory tests.Bronchoscopy plays a key role in the diagnostic and therapeutic pathways. Co-infection make the treatment more difficult. This case improves our understanding of the diagnosis and comprehensive therapeutic strategies for pulmonary actinomycosis with polymicrobial co-infection in the elderly.
Novel strategy for in-vitro validation of Babesia orientalis heat shock proteins chaperone activity and thermostability
Authors: Hu Jinfang , Fan Lizhe , Huang Yuan , He Pei , He Lan , Zhao Junlong
Published: April 2023

Background: Babesia orientalis, an intracellular protozoan, which infects red blood cells and causes water buffalo babesiosis. The genome of B. orientalis has been reported and various genes have been accurately annotated, including heat shock proteins (HSP). Three B. orientalis HSPs (HSP90, HSP70 and HSP20) have been previously identified as potential antigenic targets. Here, a new validation strategy for the chaperone activities and cell protection characteristics of the three B. orientalis HSPs was developed in vitro.
Methods: BoHSP20, BoHSP70 and BoHSP90B were amplified from cDNA, followed by cloning them into the pEGFP-N1 vector and transfecting the vector plasmid separately into 293T and Hela mammalian cells. Their expression and localization were determined by fluorescence microscopy. The biological functions and protein stability were testified through an analysis of the fluorescence intensity duration. Their role in the protection of cell viability from heat-shock treatments was examined by MTT assay.
Results: Fusion proteins pEGFP-N1-BoHSP20, pEGFP-N1-BoHSP70, and pEGFP-N1-BoHSP90B (pBoHSPs: pBoHSP20; pBoHSP70 and pBoHSP90B) were identified as 47 kDa/97 kDa/118 kDa with a 27 kDa GFP tag, respectively. Prolonged fluorescent protein half-time was observed specifically in pBoHSPs under heat shock treatment at 55 ℃, and BoHSP20 showed relatively better thermotolerance than BoHSP70 and BoHSP90B. Significant difference was found between pBoHSPs and controls in the cell survival curve after 2 h of 45 ℃ heat shock.
Conclusion: Significant biological properties of heat stress-associated genes of B. orientalis were identified in eukaryote by a new strategy. Fusion proteins pBoHSP20, pBoHSP70 and pBoHSP90B showed good chaperone activity and thermo-stability in this study, implying that BoHSPs played a key role in protecting B. orientalis against heat-stress environment during parasite life cycle. In a word, the in-vitro model explored in this study provides a new way to investigate the biological functions of B. orientalis proteins during the host -parasite interaction.
Estimating the renewables pull in future global green value chains
Authors: Verpoort Philipp C. , Gast Lukas , Hofmann Anke , Ueckerdt Falko
Published: April 2023

On the path to climate neutrality, global patterns of industrial production and trade might change due to the heterogeneous distribution of renewable energy resources. Here we estimate the “renewables pull”, i.e. the cost savings when relocating low-carbon production from a renewable-scarce region and instead importing energy-intensive basic materials from renewable-rich regions. For an electricity-price difference of 50 EUR/MWh, these relocation savings are roughly -20 % for imported steel and -50 % for urea and ethylene. Conserving production patterns by importing green hydrogen via ship is substantially costlier. A middle way could be a relocation of only the most energy-intensive parts of industrial production, while keeping substantial value creation in importing regions. Despite inhibiting factors such as benefits of short and integrated supply chains, the renewables pull is likely to incentivise green relocation without policy interventions. A societal debate on macroeconomic, industrial and geopolitical implications is needed, potentially resulting in selective policies of green-relocation protection.
A new detection of flexible Weibull model with application
Authors: Alomani Ghadah , Emam Walid
Published: April 2023

The new family of distributions may provide a better fit to the data than existing families of distributions. This can lead to more accurate modeling and prediction. The new family of distributions may provide insights into the underlying mechanisms that generate the data. This can lead to improved understanding of the phenomenon being studied. The new family of distributions may generalize existing families, allowing for more flexible modeling and analysis. The new family of distributions may have applications in areas where existing families are not suitable or have not been explored. Overall, a new family of distributions can expand the toolkit available to researchers and practitioners, leading to improved modeling, analysis, and understanding in a variety of fields. In this paper, we introduce a new family of distributions, which we call the generalized Weibull exponential family. This family includes several well-known distributions as special cases. One advantage of the generalized Weibull exponential family is its flexibility in modeling a wide range of shapes and scales. It can handle both increasing and decreasing hazard rates, which are important in reliability analysis. Moreover, it can capture heavy-tailed or light-tailed behavior depending on the choice of parameters. In conclusion, we believe that the generalized Weibull exponential family is a useful addition to the existing families of distributions. Its flexibility and tractability make it a promising candidate for modeling data in various applications. Based on the proposed family, we introduce a new model with five parameters, named the generalized Weibull exponential distribution. Some mathematical properties were obtained. Maximum likelihood estimates for the model parameters were derived. A Monte Carlo simulation study was derived to assess the performance of the maximum likelihood estimates. A simulation study based on the parameters of the proposed model was performed. Finally, an application to real data set was performed.
Prognosis of patients with septic shock predicted by bioinformatics analysis based on gene expression profiling
Authors: Li Yang , Chen Whenhao , Guo Wentao , Wang Chenglin , Li Shilin , Chen Muhu
Published: April 2023

Objective: The aim of this study was to perform bioinformatic analysis of gene expression profiles in septic shock in order to explore potential characteristic genes in patients with septic shock and thus to predict prognosis of septic shock. Methods: Peripheral blood specimens from patients with septic shock (n=11) and normal human volunteers (n=10) were sequenced for RNA, and the R-language based integrated differential expression and pathway analysis (iDEP) (http://bioinformatics.sdstate.edu/idep/) web tool was used to perform gene high and low expression groups Screening analysis ultimately yielded differentially expressed genes (DEGs, log2FC ≥ 4, q-value ≤ 0.01). DEGs were analysed by gene ontology enrichment and screened for potential core genes using protein-protein interactions (PPI). In addition, survival data in GSE95233 were used to observe the correlation between core genes and prognosis.
Results: The analysis resulted in the screening of four differential genes that are indicative of the diagnosis, differential diagnosis and prognosis of septic shock disease, namely: CD6, CD247, LCK and CD3E.
Conclusion: This study identified five signalling pathways and four core genes through bioinformatic analysis of gene expression profiles that may represent molecular mechanisms for the onset, progression and risk prediction of septic shock.
Diurnal naps and sleep interruption as precipitating factors of sleep paralysis in elite Japanese athletes
Authors: Hoshikawa Masako , Fukuda Kazuhiko , Kogure Takamasa
Published: April 2023

Background Sleep paralysis and hypnagogic hallucinations are observed during sleep-onset rapid eye movement (REM) periods (SOREMPs). SOREMPs are associated with sleep pattern disruption. This study aimed to assess the occurrence of sleep paralysis and several sleep parameters in elite athletes and control groups to determine the relationship between sleep paralysis and specific sleep characteristics.Methods Eighty-four (47 male) elite and 116 (49 male) non-athletes (controls) were recruited. A questionnaire regarding the occurrence of sleep paralysis and several sleep parameters was administered.Results A relationship between sleep paralysis and long diurnal nap frequency was revealed. A small proportion (6.5%) of participants with sleep paralysis did not routinely take long naps, while 24.3% of those without sleep paralysis did not routinely take long naps. This proportion was rather striking in athletes compared with that in non-athletes. Participants with sleep paralysis experienced more frequent sleep interruptions than those without sleep paralysis, a difference that was more pronounced in athletes than in non-athletes.Conclusion The prevalence of sleep paralysis was reported to be high among elite Japanese athletes and non-athletes, a finding that is in accordance with previous reports. Long nap routines and sleep interruptions are closely associated with sleep paralysis, especially in elite athletes. A lengthy nap routine is sometimes recommended for sleep loss compensation, especially among elite athletes; however, since the occurrence of sleep paralysis may be a sign of sleep-wake rhythm disruption, caution is suggested when recommending long nap routines, even to athletes.
An Enhanced Privacy Preservation Method Using Data Anonymization with Oppositional Fruit Fly Technique
Authors: Kiran Ajmeera , Khan Mudassir , Babu J. Chinna , Kumar B. P. Santosh
Published: April 2023

Nowadays, information is critical in every organization's decision-making process, especially in the business world. We are currently living in an information-processing civilization. Any organization or corporation relies on information about its most essential source of revenue. Every day, a large amount of sensitive information is generated by various corporate organizations such as banking, health care, and other similar organizations. This type of information is disseminated among numerous sources via various communication channels. As a result, safeguarding such sensitive information is critical in any data mining application. The data anonymization using the opposition fruitfly technique is described in detail in this article, including an upgraded privacy protection technique. For clustering, the suggested method uses an updated Fuzzy C-Means algorithm. The oppositional fruitfly algorithm, the proposed approach's privacy, has been validated for effectiveness. Comparing the suggested article with two existing methodologies demonstrates that the submitted article increased accuracy and privacy level. The suggested privacy preservation employing data anonymization methodology outperforms the existing method by 94.17% while the existing method outperforms it by 82.17%.
A Machine Learning-based Predictor to Support University Students with Dyslexia with Personalized Tools and Strategies
Authors: Zingoni Andrea , Taborri Juri , Calabrò Giuseppe
Published: April 2023

Dyslexia is a specific learning disorder that causes issues related to reading, which affects around 10% of the worldwide population. This can compromise comprehension and memorization skills, and result in anxiety and lack of self-esteem, if no support is provided. Moreover, this support should be highly personalized, to be actually helpful. In this paper, a predictor of the most useful methodologies to support students with dyslexia has been created, with a focus on university alumni. The prediction algorithm is based on supervised machine learning techniques; starting from the issues that dyslexic students experience during their career, it is capable of suggesting customized support digital tools and learning strategies for each of them. The algorithm was trained and tested on data acquired through a self-evaluation questionnaire, which was designed and then spread to more than 1200 university students. It allowed 17 useful tools and 22 useful strategies to be detected. The results of the testing showed an average prediction accuracy higher than 92%, which rises to almost 95% by renouncing to guess the less-predictable 5 tools/strategies. In the light of this, it is possible to state that the implemented algorithm can achieve the set goal and, thus, reduce the gap between dyslexic and non-dyslexic students. This achievement paves the way for a new modality of facing the problem of dyslexia by university institutions, which aims at modifying teaching activities toward students’ needs, instead of simply reducing their study load or duties. This complies with the definition and the aims of inclusivity.
GCN-based multi-label node classification in heterogeneous networks
Authors: Bastami Sajad , dowlatshahi mohammad bagher
Published: April 2023

Graph structure data is created in many real applications. Graphs represent data by displaying entities (nodes) and their relationships (edges). Several methods are available for effective searching in these networks when graphs are large and heterogeneous and when the patterns are complex and noisy. Graph embedding provides an effective solution to this problem. In graph embedding, the nodes in the graph are evaluated based on their significance. There will be a wide range of graph-related works presented, including classifications in latent space and neural network representations. A variety of methods can be used to integrate node features and label information. In heterogeneous networks, the learned latent space becomes closer to similar nodes. Due to their rich semantic information and heterogeneity, there are challenges associated with analyzing heterogeneous graphs embedded in latent space. Most of the existing methods consider nodes with a single label. Therefore, these methods cannot manage a network of multilabel nodes that describes complex concepts associated with samples. It improves the embedding of heterogeneous networks by combining labels and modeling heterogeneous networks. This is a challenging task. This article presents a node embedding method based on a graph neural network (GCN) to address these issues. By incorporating label information into heterogeneous network embedding, relationships between labels are improved. In comparison to embedded heterogeneous network algorithms, the presented method performed well with real-world data. Graph embedding is discussed in the first section of this paper. The final portion of this paper discusses the application of multi-label embedding to heterogeneous graphs and future research directions.
Rodent control of chamber brightness leads to the emergence of unique circadian rhythms
Authors: Ogasawara Jun , Takeuchi Yuki , Matsumoto Nobuyoshi , Yasui Masato , Ikegaya Yuji
Published: April 2023

Internal circadian rhythms deviate slightly from 24 h, depending on species and individuals; thus, an environment with a 24-h light/dark cycle may not be ideal. In this study, we enabled mice to control room brightness via nose pokes and investigated subsequent biological rhythms as well as physiological and cognitive functions. The mice immediately learned the relationship between nose pokes and the resulting illuminance change and generated 24.5 ± 0.4 h-cycles in both illuminance and locomotor activity, with the illuminance phase preceding the locomotion phase. This circadian rhythm emerged during the first 3 d and was maintained for at least 30 d. Compared to mice whose light cycle was controlled by other mice (in a separate chamber) or those maintained on a regular 12 h-light/12 h-dark cycle, mice that controlled their own light cycle exhibited fewer mid-sleep awakenings, lower levels of stress-related steroids, and improved cognitive performance. These emergent circadian rhythms provide insight into the evolution of ecological circadian dynamics and may inform the development of efficient lifestyles in humans.
Bacillus Coagulans as potent intervention for irritable bowel syndrome: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized control trials
Authors: AbdelQadir Yossef Hassan , Nabhan Ayman Essa , Althawadi Yusuf Jasim , Belal Mohamed Mohamed , Feiter Yasmeen Yasser , Madian Mohamed Salem , Omran Hoda Aly , AbdelAzim Ahmed Alaa , Abdelghafar Yomna Ali , Nashwan Abdulqadir J.
Published: April 2023

Introduction: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is the most common functional GIT disorder. Bacillus coagulans (BC) is a potent spore-forming probiotic that has been proposed as a potent supplement that can improve GIT dysbiosis and relieve IBS symptoms. We aim to assess the effect of BC on different IBS symptoms.
Methods: We searched seven databases for RCTs that compare the use of BC versus placebo in the management of IBS symptoms.
Results: Our search finally retrieved seven RCTs after extensive screening. Our analysis revealed that BC significantly improved the severity of IBS symptoms such as urgency {MD: -1.05, 95% CI: -1.33; -0.77}, bowel habit satisfaction {MD: -1.40, 95% CI: -1.68; -1.13}, straining {MD: -1. 22, 95% CI: -1.61; -0.82}, the passage of gas {MD: -1.25, 95% CI: -1.51; -0.99}, incomplete evacuation {MD: -1.06, 95% CI: -1.55; -0.57}, and the total score of symptom severity {MD: -10.13, 95% CI: -11.61; -8.66, (P < 0.00001)}. We also found a significant improvement in the physician’s global assessment score at 8 weeks {MD: 1.61, 95% CI: 0.61; 2.60, (P = 0.002)}; however, results were not significant at 4 weeks (P = 0.48). Moreover, our results indicate a significant decrease in the discomfort score after 4 and 8 weeks, the bloating score after 2, 4, 8, and 11 weeks and the vomiting score. Regarding abdominal pain, BC significantly lowered pain score after 2, 4, 8, and (11-13) weeks.
Conclusion: BC is a very effective probiotic in reducing the severity of IBS symptoms and abdominal pain with no serious adverse events. Future studies are needed to assess the use of BC as a long-term regimen and compare different subspecies of BC.
Contribution of infection and vaccination to population-level seroprevalence through two COVID waves in Tamil Nadu, India
Authors: TS Selvavinayagam , A Somasundaram , Selvam Jerard Maria , P Sampath , V. Vijayalakshmi , C. Ajith Brabhu Kumar , Subramaniam Sudharshini , K. Pathpan , S. Raju , R. Avudaiselvi , N. Yogananth , Subramanian Gurunathan , A. Roshini , D.N. Dhiliban , Imad Sofia , Tandel Vaidehi , Parasa Rajeswari , Sachdeva Stuti , Ramachandran Sabareesh , Malani Anup , V. Prakash
Published: April 2023

Four rounds of serological surveys were conducted, spanning two COVID waves (October 2020 and April-May 2021), in Tamil Nadu (population 72 million) state in India. Each round included representative populations in each district of the state, totaling ≥20,000 persons per round. State-level seroprevalence was 31.5% in round 1 (October-November 2020), after India’s first COVID wave. Seroprevalence fell to 22.9% in 2 (April 2021), consistent with waning of SARS-Cov-2 antibodies from natural infection. Seroprevalence rose to 67.1% by round 3 (June-July 2021), reflecting infections from the Delta-variant induced second COVID wave. Seroprevalence rose to 93.1% by round 4 (December 2021-January 2022), reflecting higher vaccination rates. Antibodies also appear to wane after vaccination. Seroprevalence in urban areas was higher than in rural areas, but the gap shrunk over time (35.7 v. 25.7% in round 1, 89.8% v. 91.4% in round 4) as the epidemic spread even in low-density rural areas. The study documents substantial waning of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at the population level and demonstrates how to calculate the extent to which infection and vaccination separately contribute to seroprevalence estimates.
Unsupervised Deep Cross-Modal Hashing Retrieval with Multiple Dense Networks
Authors: Li Bo , Yao Dan , Li Zhixin
Published: April 2023

Cross-modal retrieval is a hot research direction at present, and unsupervised cross-modal hashing has better practical value for its storage, training cost, and query efficiency. However, many current unsupervised cross-modal hashing retrieval methods calculate the similarity by traditional convolution neural networks, which can hardly represent case feature relationships comprehensively. This paper proposes large-scale unsupervised deep cross-modal hashing retrieval with multiple dense networks (MUCH) based on DenseNet and TxtDenseNet. Considering that apply various similarity measures to exploit the structural information of multiple modalities from different perspectives, we design multiple dense feature sampling for cross-modal retrieval. Essentially, MUCH can achieve Feature Augmentation and addresses the inaccurate similarity problem by multiple deep dense networks (MDNs), which are pseudo-graph networks combining the advantages of GCN and CNN. When MUCH transforms data from high-dimensional space into the binary space, MDNs are tasked to abundantly extract feature embeddings for intermodal and inner-modal data, and regulate comprehensive similarity-preserving losses by auxiliary matrices and joint training. It is worth noting that this method applies DenseNet to the whole model for unsupervised cross-modal hash retrieval for the first time. Extensive experiments on three baseline datasets demonstrate that the proposed method significantly outperforms most of the state-of-the-art unsupervised methods.