bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Intensive Care Experience Questionnaire(ICEQ)
Authors: Hu Aiping , Yang Shuang , Ma Yonghong , Xiang Mingfang , Wang Guorong
Published: April 2023

Background: Negative experiences of ICU patients seriously affect the quality of life and survival outcome of patients. The application of scientific, scalable, high-quality assessment tools to understand the status of ICU patients' experience, its influencing factors, and its impact on long-term adverse outcomes is important for clinical practitionersto improve patient experience. ICEQ is an existing and mature tool for assessing ICU patient’s experience. However, there is a lack of scientific assessment tools to quantify the ICU patient experience in China. Here, we introduced the ICEQ for cross-cultural adaption, and test its reliability and validity to provide a recommend tool for future research.
Methods: After obtaining the authorization of the author of the ICEQ, the Beaton's cross-cultural guidelines was adopted to modify the ICEQ. From November 2021 to May 2022, 356 patients who met the criteria in four Grade A hospitals in Sichuan were investigated by questionnaires. Including the characteristics data of patients and ICEQ. SPSS21.0 and Amos21.0 software were used to analyze the reliability and validity of the C- ICEQ, which including the Internal consistency reliability, Split half reliability, Construct validity, Convergent validity and Content validity tests.
Results: The C-ICEQ contains 21 items and 5 dimensions: Awareness of surroundings; Frightening experiences; Satisfaction with care; Needs for cognition and Recall of experiences. There were five common factors extracted from EFA, and cumulative explanatory variation rate was 60.634%. CFA showed that CMIN/DF was 2.567, RMSEA was 0.069, GFI was 0.888. Cronbach's α coefficient of five dimensions of the C-ICEQ ranged from 0.815 to 0.888, and the split half reliability ranged from 0.806 to 0.891. The I-CVI, S-CVI and S-CVI/Ave were all 1.0; AVE value is between 0.4 and 0.6, and CR value is above 0.7.
Conclusions: The C-ICEQ demonstrated acceptable reliability and validity to assess intensive care experience of ICU patient’s in China.
Exosomes derived from LPS-preconditioned bone marrow-derived MSC modulate macrophage plasticity to promote allograft survival via the NF-κB/NLRP3 signaling pathway
Authors: Zhang Peiyao , Wu Panfeng , Khan Umar Zeb , Zhou Zekun , Sui Xinlei , Li Cheng , Dong Kangkang , Liu Yongjun , Qing Liming , Tang Juyu
Published: April 2023

Objectives This study investigated whether exosomes from LPS pretreated bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (LPS pre-MSCs) could prolong skin graft survival.Methods The exosomes were isolated from the supernatant of MSCs pretreated with LPS. LPS pre-Exo and rapamycin were injected via the tail vein into C57BL/6 mice allografted with BALB/c skin; graft survival was observed and evaluated. The accumulation and polarization of macrophages were examined by immunohistochemistry. The differentiation of macrophages in the spleen was analyzed by flow cytometry. For in vitro, an inflammatory model was established. Specifically, bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs) were isolated and cultured with LPS (100 ng/ml) for 3 h, and were further treated with LPS pre-Exo for 24 h or 48 h. The molecular signaling pathway responsible for modulating inflammation was examined by Western blotting. The expressions of downstream inflammatory cytokines were determined by Elisa, and the polarization of macrophages was analyzed by flow cytometry.Results LPS pre-Exo could better ablate inflammation compared to untreated MSC-derived exosomes (BM-Exo). These loaded factors inhibited the expressions of inflammatory factors via a negative feedback mechanism. In vivo, LPS pre-Exo significantly attenuated inflammatory infiltration, thus improving the survival of allogeneic skin graft. Flow cytometric analysis of BMDMs showed that LPS pre-Exo were involved in the regulation of macrophage polarization and immune homeostasis during inflammation. Further investigation revealed that the NF-κB/NLRP3/procaspase-1/IL-1β signaling pathway played a key role in LPS pre-Exo-mediated regulation of macrophage polarization. Inhibiting NF-κB in BMDMs could abolish the LPS-induced activation of inflammatory pathways and the polarization of M1 macrophages while increasing the proportion of M2 cells.Conclusion LPS pre-Exo are able to switch the polarization of macrophages and enhance the resolution of inflammation. This type of exosomes provides an improved immunotherapeutic potential in prolonging graft survival.
Biochemical, inflammatory and oxidative stress biomarkers in obese patients after COVID-19
Authors: Dyakov Denis , Spirina Lyudmila , Akbasheva Olga , Merkulov Evgeny , Samoylova Yulia , Matveeva Maria , Ermolaeva Yulia , Ponomareva Darija , Novozhilova Polina
Published: April 2023

The purpose of the study was to research informative biochemical, inflammatory and oxidative stress indicators after SARS-CoV2 infection in obesity.
Methods. Forty people (37.0 8.9 years old) were examined after SARS-CV2 infection and twenty people (36.0 5.4 years old) who had no documented coronavirus infection during the pandemic. The antibody to SARS-CV2 level, biochemical and oxidative stress indicators were determined. The proteolysis was assessed by the trypsin and elastase-like proteases and α1-proteins inhibitor (α1-PI) activity.
Results. All subjects, regardless the COVID-19 infection in the anamnesis, had antibodies to SARS-CoV2. We found the TNF increased content, the trypsin- and elastase-like proteases activity, the increased MDA concentration and decreased catalase activity compared with the retrospective control. The biochemical parameters did not differ significantly from the normal values. But levels of C-reactive protein were three times higher in those who were ill than who probably had the disease in asymptomatic form (not vaccinated).
Elevated levels of antibodies were found in people in post-COVID with dermatological, neurological, gastroenterological, cardiological symptoms and shortness of breath. Overweight individuals had higher antibody titer to SARS-CoV2, increase in trypsin-like protease activity, and decrease in α1-PI activity than normal weight ones. An increase in the adipose tissue percentage correlates with a decrease in α1-PI activity. Obesity causes chronic inflammation and PI deficiency in the postoperative period.
Conclusion. In the COVID long period, the trypsin-like, elastic-like proteases activity, MDA and oxidative modified proteins level increased. Overweight individuals had elevated SARS-CoV2 antibodies, trypsin-like protein activity, and decreased α1-PI activity.
Shorebird Abundance is Associated With Nutritional Quality of Intertidal Biofilm on the Fraser River Estuary
Authors: Drever Mark , Mogle Matthew J. , Douglas Tristan J. , Flemming Scott A. , Hamilton Diana J. , Liefer Justin D. , Elner Robert W.
Published: April 2023

Dense congregations of shorebirds forage on tidal flats during long-distance migration, and their abundance is presumed to mirror the underlying ecological conditions. We quantified the nutritional content of intertidal biofilm (a thin layer of microalgae, bacteria, and other micro-organisms embedded in a mucilaginous matrix) to assess whether biofilm biomass and the abundance of macronutrients (lipid, protein, and carbohydrate) provide a measure of habitat quality for migrating shorebirds. We compared shorebird use, biofilm biomass, nutritional quality, and stable isotope signatures at two mudflats on the Fraser River estuary, British Columbia, Canada, during summer 2020 (southward migration) and spring 2021 (northward migration). The abundances of Western Sandpipers (Calidris mauri) and Dunlin (Calidris alpina) were consistently higher (6-100×) at Brunswick Point relative to the Iona Foreshore site during both migration periods. Biofilm biomass (chlorophyll a) was 2× higher at Brunswick Point than Iona Foreshore during southward migration, and was similar between sites during northward migration. Macronutrient content (lipid, protein, and carbohydrate) in intertidal biofilm was 1.4× to 3.8× higher at Brunswick Point than Iona Foreshore during both migration periods. Carbohydrate content was higher during southward migration at both tidal flats, whereas protein and lipid content at Iona Foreshore did not show significant differences between years/migration periods. Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope signatures during spring 2021 did not differ between the two sites, suggesting that nutrients had similar origins from marine and terrestrial inputs. The findings tie shorebird use to nutrients available in intertidal biofilm during migration periods.
AUF1 modulates apoptosis via regulating transcription and alternative splicing of immune response genes in auditory hair cells
Authors: Li Lihua , Wang Zhi , Xu Kai , Bai Xue , Wu Wenjing , Zhang Zhilin , Chen Xubo
Published: April 2023

Background:AU-rich element RNA-binding factor 1 (AUF1) is a multifunctional RNA binding proteins (RBPs) in post-transcriptional gene regulation. However, it remains unclear whether or not AUF1 has a function in the regulation of inflammation and apoptosis as a splicing factor in presbycusis and auditory hair cells.Methods:In this study, RNA-seq was used to analyze the global transcript level and alternative splicing in AUF1 siRNA-treated HEI-OC1 cells (siAUF1) and control cells. Integration analysis was carried out using published transcriptome and AUF1-RNA interactome datasets.Results:SiAUF1 was found to promote the level of apoptosis in HEI-OC1 cells. The RNA-seq results indicated the extensive regulation of the expression of hundreds of genes by AUF1 knocked down cells. The genes down-regulated by siAUF1 were significantly involved in immune responses and cellular apoptosis. AUF1 regulated the alternative splicing of genes, such as FASTK, MAP4, and hnRNPDL, that are involved in mitochondrial functioning and cellular apoptosis. Furthermore, the published transcriptomic data of aging mice demonstrated that the expression of AUF1 and immune response were highly exhibited in aging animals. Moreover, RBMS3 was also found to be an important gene target of AUF1 to modulate apoptosis.Conclusion:To our knowledge, this is the first investigation of its kind that has described the transcriptome-wide analysis of AUF1-regulated expression and alternative splicing profiles and has demonstrated the possible mechanisms of AUF1 regulating immune response, apoptosis, and alternative splicing, which could aid future researches on cellular biology and contribute to the deciphering of the aging process and presbycusis.
Novel insight into risk of major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events of patients with central retinal artery occlusion: regarding sex differences
Authors: Chen Ting , Wang Yuedan , Li Xuejie , Feng Jiaqing , Yang Hongxia , Li Ying , Feng Hui , Xiao Xuan
Published: April 2023

To estimate the association between central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO) and major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACCE), including their clinical characteristics, blood markers, and the contribution of CRAO to MACCE, as well as to assess any sex differences. This retrospective cohort study included continuous new-onset CRAO patients and 1:4controls during the same period. Correlations of CRAOwith the incidence of MACCE during follow-up and the sex-related differences were studied. One hundred and twenty-four CRAO patients and four hundred and ninety-six controls were enrolled. Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR, P = 0.014) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP, P = 0.038) were tended to be higher in CRAO patients. After the follow-up period, 78 patients experienced MACCE. Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that CRAO was a predictor of the occurrence of MACCE (HR: 2.321, 95% CI: 1.439 - 3.744, P = 0.001). Sex subgroups indicated that age, diabetes, current smoking, CRAO, NLR and hs-CRP increased the risk factor of MACCE in males (All P<0.05)and CRAO, NLR, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C)and hs-CRP were independent influencing factors for females (All P<0.05). New-onset CRAO significantly increases the probability of MACCE and is associated with a poor prognosis. The sex-related differences suggested that effective prevention of the occurrence of MACCE in high-risk patients requires that attention be given to individualized risk factors corresponding to sexes.
Assessment of the influence of non-ionizing radiation to the morbidity of MRI and ultrasound diagnostics specialists in Kazakhstan
Authors: Ibrayeva Lyazat , Grebeneva Olga , Omarkulov Bauyrzhan , Rybalkina Dina , Bacheva Irina , Minbayeva Larissa
Published: April 2023

The state of health of healthcare practitioners with occupational exposure to a complex of hazards may differ from the state of health of general population and justify the need to develop a number of preventive measures for healthcare practitioners. The purpose of the study was assessment of the prevalence of morbidity among medical specialists (MRI and ultrasound diagnostics). Design: retrospective (2018-2021), nonrandomized. Participants: MRI and ultrasound diagnostics specialists, ophthalmologists (as control). An analysis of data on healthcare practitioners seeking for medical care was done (diagnosis by ICD-10). Morbidity was also compared with general population of the RK. Higher morbidity of healthcare practitioners of the listed above specialties with genitourinary and musculoskeletal systems diseases, eye diseases and oncopathology was revealed. Comparing with ophthalmologists, ultrasound diagnostic specialists had higher morbidity with malignant and benign neoplasms (RR 2.74 and RR 9.58, respectively), MRI specialists had higher morbidity with malignant neoplasms and blood diseases (RR 4.73 and RR 1.89, respectively). The incidence rates of SARS-COV-2 in MRI and ultrasound diagnostic specialists and ophthalmologists exceeded those in the general population of the RK. Identified features of the morbidity of healthcare practitioners should be taken into account in labor ergonomics and organization of preventive and screening measures for diagnosing diseases.
Preoperative prediction of sinonasal papilloma by artificial intelligence using nasal video endoscopy: A retrospective study
Authors: Yui Ryosuke , Takahashi Masahiro , Noda Katsuhiko , Yoshida Kaname , Sakurai Rinko , Ohira Shinya , Omura Kazuhiro , Otori Nobuyoshi , Wada Kota , Kojima Hiromi
Published: April 2023

Sinonasal inverted papilloma (IP) is at risk of recurrence and malignancy, and early diagnosis using nasal endoscopy is essential. We thus developed a diagnostic system using artificial intelligence (AI) to identify nasal sinus papilloma. Endoscopic surgery videos of 53 patients undergoing endoscopic sinus surgery were edited to train and evaluate deep neural network models and then a diagnostic system was developed. The correct diagnosis rate based on visual examination by otolaryngologists was also evaluated using the same videos and compared with that of the AI diagnostic system patients. Main outcomes evaluated included the percentage of correct diagnosis compared to AI diagnosis and the correct diagnosis rate for otolaryngologist based on years of practice experience. The diagnostic system had an area under the curve of 0.874, accuracy of 0.843, false positive rate of 0.124, and false negative rate of 0.191. The average correct diagnosis rate among otolaryngologists was 69.4%, indicating that the AI was highly accurate. Evidently, although the number of cases was small, a highly accurate diagnostic system was created. Future studies with a larger sample size to improve the accuracy of the system and expand the range of diseases that can be detected for more clinical applications are warranted.
The utility of Galactomannan and Polymerase Chain Reaction Assays in Bronchoalveolar Lavage for diagnosis of Chronic Pulmonary Aspergillosis
Authors: CHOWDHURY MOHIT , Singh Gagandeep , Pandey Mragnayani , Mishra Himanshu , Meena Ved prakash , Sethi Prayas , Singh Amandeep , Prakash Bindu , upadhyay Ashish datt , Mohan Anant , Sinha Sanjeev , Xess Immaculata , Wig Naveet , Kabra Sushil Kumar , Ray Animesh
Published: April 2023

The diagnosis of Chronic pulmonary aspergillosis (CPA) is established by combined clinic-radio-microbiological criteria. Out of the different microbiological criteria, usually a positive serology for Aspergillus-specific IgG levels is the cornerstone of diagnosis . Alternatively, other microbiological evidence can also be employed viz. significantly positive Aspergillus antigen (broncho-alveolar lavage fluid/BALF galactomannan ≥ 1.0), histopathological demonstration of the fungi following lung biopsy or resection, or demonstration of hyaline septate hyphae in direct microscopy resembling Aspergillus spp. or its growth on respiratory specimen. However the role of BALF- GM and the newer BALF-PCR have not been confirmed by studies till date. The study enrolled 210 patients overall of suspected CPA. Of the participants, 88 patients met the criteria for chronic pulmonary aspergillosis, whereas 122 patients had an alternative diagnosis. The sensitivity - specificity of AsperGenius® PCR and "in-house” PCR were 52.27(36.69-67.54) % - 33.78(23.19-45.72) % and 36.36(22.41-52.23) % - 39.19(28.04-51.23) % respectively. The sensitivity / specificity of BALF(>1.0) and serum galactomannan(>1.0) were 46.55%(33.34-60.13) / 64.08%(54.03-73.3) and 62.96%(54.7671.17) / 62.96%(54.76-71.17) respectively. The optimal cut-off value for BALF Galactomannan and serum galactomannan in diagnosing CPA was found to be 0.69 (sensitivity: 64%; specificity: 53%) and 0.458 (sensitivity: 67%; specificity: 64%) respectively. Aspergillus PCR from BAL may not be a good “rule-in” test for diagnosing CPA. While the performances of GM in BAL and serum may be better than PCR, it is to be used in conjunction with other clinical, radiological and other microbiological characteristics.
Unusually High Room and Elevated-Temperature Tensile Properties Observed in Direct Aged Wire-Arc Directed Energy Deposited Inconel 718
Authors: Song Jie , Jimenez Xavier A. , Russell Carissa , To Albert C. , Fu Yao
Published: April 2023

Wire-arc directed energy deposition (DED) processed Inconel (IN) 718 is known to have coarse columnar grain, strong texture, significant chemical and microstructural inhomogeneity in as-fabricated condition. Homogenization treatment is commonly used prior to aging to eliminate the inhomogeneity and detrimental precipitation for better mechanical properties. In this study, however, direct aging (DA) at 700 °C without homogenization has resulted in room-temperature yield strength, ultimate tensile strength (UTS), and elongation that are comparable to wrought condition and among the highest reported properties for wire-arc DED IN718. The DA samples at between 650 °C and 750 °C aging also demonstrates remarkable ductility when deformed at elevated temperatures. In addition, when aged below 750 °C the DA IN718 possesses significantly higher UTS compared to those with homogenization treatment. These superior mechanical properties are highly likely due to the non-uniform and hierarchical precipitation consisting of disk-shaped γ″ in diameter from a few to tens of nm in the dendritic core area and micron-sized Laves phase and carbides in the inter-dendritic region.
Substituted salicylic acid analogs offer improved potency against multidrug-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae and good selectivity against commensal vaginal bacteria
Authors: Almolhim Hanan , Elhassanny Ahmed E.M. , Abutaleb Nader S. , Seleem Mohamed N. , Carlier Paul R.
Published: April 2023

Drug-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae represents a major threat to public health; without new effective antibiotics, untreatable gonococcal infections loom as a real possibility. In a previous drug-repurposing study, we reported that salicylic acid had good potency against azithromycin-resistant N. gonorrhoeae. We now report that the anti-gonococcal activity in this scaffold is easily lost by inopportune substitution, but that select substituted naphthyl analogs (3b,o,p) have superior activity to salicylic acid itself. Promisingly, these compounds also show very weak growth inhibition of commensal vaginal bacteria.
A promising anoikis-related prognostic signature predicts prognosis of cutaneous melanoma
Authors: Yue Zhanghui , Li Xuemei , Wang Dan
Published: April 2023

Skin cutaneous melanoma (SKCM) is a highly aggressive disease with a poor prognosis, especially for advanced tumors. Anoikis, which prevents detached cells from re-attaching to a new substrate in an incorrect location and inhibits their unwanted growth, plays a crucial role in organismal defense. However, little research has focused on the impact of anoikis on prognosis in SKCM. To address this, our study utilized the 27 anoikis-related genes (ARGs) identified from gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) to divide SKCM patients in the TCGA-SKCM cohort into two clusters, and obtain differentially expressed genes (DEGs) for each cluster. These DEGs were then used in stepwise Cox regression analysis to develop a prediction model for SKCM patients consisting of nine ARGs, called the Anoikis-Related Signature (ARS). Subsequently, we used the risk scores calculated from the ARS to divide SKCM patients into two groups and explored differences in immune microenvironment, immune checkpoint reactivity, and drug sensitivity between the groups. Our results revealed that immunotherapy was ineffective in patients with high ARS. In summary, the ARS can be used to classify the risk and predict the survival outcome of SKCM patients, providing a basis for targeted therapy in SKCM. Keywords: cutaneous melanoma, anoikis, immune response, risk model, prognosis.
Establishment and evaluation of a novel practical tool for the diagnosis of Pre-Sarcopenia in young people with Diabetes Mellitus
Authors: Li Ruina , Lin Sixian , Tu Jiayuan , Chen Yongzhuang , Cheng Bin , Mo Xiaoqiao , Xie Tian
Published: April 2023

Objective: Sarcopenia has been recognized as a third category of complications in people with diabetes. However, few studies focus on the reduction of skeletal muscle mass in young people with diabetes. The aim of this study was to investigate risk factors of pre-sarcopenia in young patients with diabetes and establish a practical tool to diagnose pre-sarcopenia in those people.
Methods: Patients (n = 1246) enrolled from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) cycle year of 2011 to 2018 were randomly divided into the training set and validation set. The all-subsets regression analysis was used to select the risk factors of pre-sarcopenia. A nomogram model for the prediction of pre-sarcopenia in the diabetic population was established based on the risk factors. The model was evaluated by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for discrimination, calibration curves for calibration, and decision curve analysis curves for clinical utility.
Results: In this study, gender, height, and waist circumference were elected as predictive factors for pre-sarcopenia. The nomogram model presented excellent discrimination in training and validation sets with areas under the curve of 0.907 and 0.912, respectively. The calibration curve illustrated excellent calibration, and the decision curve analysis showed a wide range of good clinical utility.
Conclusions: This study develops a novel nomogram that integrates gender, height, and waist circumference and can be used to easily predict pre-sarcopenia in diabetics. The novel screen tool is accurate, specific, and low-cost, highlighting its potential value in clinical application.
BiodentineTM as a temporary filling in deep carious lesions in permanent teeth: a long-term follow-up
Authors: Martens Luc C. , Cauwels Rita G.E.C. , Acker Jakob W.G. , Joshi Kumbha Raj , Hanet Peter N. , Rahasekharan Sivaprakash
Published: April 2023

Objectives The study aimed to evaluate temporary fillings using Biodentine™ in asymptomatic deep carious lesions after 12, 24 and 36 months in school children from the remote village of Kerung, Nepal.
Material and Methods From November 2018 to November 2019, 96 temporary fillings were placed using Biodentine™ (a hydraulic calcium silicate cement) in permanent molars with deep carious lesions of schoolchildren in the remote district of Kerung, Nepal. These restorations were performed after selective caries removal in a non-dental setting with hand instruments and cotton roll isolation, as electric motors and saliva ejection systems were unavailable. In total, 81 single-surface and 15 multi-surface fillings were placed. Clinical and radiographic follow-up periods encompassed 12, 21 and 33 months, respectively.
Results After 12 months, all single-surface fillings (100%) survived, while all multi-surface fillings were partially or entirely lost. The survival rate of single-surface restorations after 21 and 33 months was 67,6% and 50%, respectively. Radiographically no pathology was observed.
Conclusion This study showed that Biodentine could be used in deep carious lesions as a temporary filling in single surface lesions for at least up to one year and in a substantial number of cases for up to 21 and 33 months.
Clinical relevance The present findings are very advantageous in paediatric patients, even in challenging conditions. Further, this study supports the clinical use of tricalcium silicates for selective caries removal in deep carious lesions.
A Data-driven Approach to Revamp the ACO Risk Adjustment Model
Authors: Park Yubin , Buchan Kevin , Piconne Jason , Sim Brandon
Published: April 2023

Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) involve groups of healthcare providers who voluntarily come together to deliver coordinated, high-quality care to aligned beneficiaries. Many ACOs, such as the Medicare Shared Savings Program and the ACO REACH program, can participate in alternative payment models that differ from the prevalent Fee-for-Service model. In these alternative payment models, providers and payers share financial risk to align the ACOs' financial incentives with the dual aims of reducing the total cost of care and improving the quality of care. In other words, ACOs could profit by keeping their patients healthy and preventing unnecessary hospitalization. However, to make this financial structure work as intended, there needs to be a Risk Adjustment (RA) model to change reimbursement proportional to a beneficiary's risk; otherwise, ACOs may enroll only healthy patients, i.e., adverse selection. While most ACOs adopt RA models for this reason, the original RA methodology has mostly stayed the same over the last several decades. As a result, some ACO participants have found ways to ``game'' the system: to receive disproportional payments for the risk they bear. To mitigate the waste, the federal government has added various post-adjustment mechanisms, such as mixing the risk-adjusted benchmark with historical spending, adjusting by a coding intensity factor, capping risk score growth rate, and incorporating health equity incentives. Unfortunately, those mechanisms build on top of each other in nonlinear and discontinuous ways, causing their actual effects - and efficacy - to be difficult to disentangle and evaluate. In this paper, we will summarize our lessons from operating one of the most successful ACOs in the nation to help rebuild the RA model based on a data-driven approach. Next, we outline the characteristics of an ideal RA model. Then, we propose a new one that addresses such requirements, eliminating the need for a multi-step process involving nonlinear and discontinuous staging. Finally, we provide experimental results by applying this model to our ACO data and comparing them with the current RA implementation.
Untargeted metabolomic approach based on UHPL-ESI-HRMS to investigate metabolic profiles of different Coffea species and terroir
Authors: Artêncio Mateus Manfrin , Cassago Alvaro Luis Lamas , Silva Renata Kelly , Giraldi Janaina de Moura Engracia , Costa Fernando Batista Da
Published: April 2023

Coffee (Coffea spp) has evolved from an agricultural commodity to a specialty beverage, regarding the product’s trading, appreciation, philosophies, and purposes of consumption. Consequently, part of the coffee industry has focused on the sensory complexion and high-quality to meet engaged consumers. To evaluate the chemical profiles and distinctiveness of natural products from plants, metabolomics has emerged as a valuable tool. In this work, we carried out an untargeted metabolomic approach based on reversed-phase liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry, followed by multivariate statistical analysis to obtain the metabolic fingerprints of 21 coffee samples belonging to two species and five botanical varieties, as follows: C. arabica (var. yellow catuai, yellow bourbon, and yellow obata) and C. canephora (var. conilon, and robusta). The samples were obtained in the 2022 Edition of the “Brazilian International Conference of Coffee Tasters”, state of Rondônia, Brazil. Principal Component Analysis and Orthogonal Projections Latent Structures Discriminant Analysis were performed using the metabolomic data, resulting in the discrimination of coffee samples based on their chemical profiles. Caffeine, DIMBOA-Gl, roemerine, and cajanin were determined as chemical markers for C. canephora samples, and toralactone, cnidilide, LysoPC(18:2(9Z,12Z)), Lysophosphatidylcholine(16:0/0:0), and 2,3-Dehydrosilybin for C. arabicasamples. In addition to the genetic variability, our results show the possible influence of a terroir factor in the production of secondary metabolites of coffee samples, mainly for individuals of C. canephora.
Novel sequence agnostic computational approach based on the proportion of amino acids of the spike protein for reliable discrimination of SARS-CoV2
Authors: C Benedict Paul , P Abusheikh S , R Harini , D Ramya Lakshmi , Fletcher G John
Published: April 2023

Protein sequencing is integral to discovery pipelines. We have developed a sequence agnostic computational approach based on the proportion of amino acids of the spike protein for the reliable discrimination of SARS-CoV2 and other coronaviruses. A total of 717 Complete Spike Protein sequences of Coronaviruses were retrieved from the NCBI Virus database. A Python based algorithm was developed to read the FASTA files and to extract the percentage of individual amino acid residues (https://github.com/ABUSHEIKHSP/aminoacidProfiler). A Go based computer algorithm was developed to analyze the sequences for discriminatory thresholds of signature amino acid proportions (https://github.com/drbenedictpaul/AminoacidSignatureGenerator). The algorithm developed was able to specifically discriminate SARS-CoV2 from other coronaviruses at the threshold of ≥ 7.4% with an amino acid signature comprising Leu, Ser, Thr, Val. In addition, it returned specific signatures for SARS-CoV and MERS as Leu, Ser, Thr and Leu, Ser respectively. The seasonal coronaviruses had exclusively asparagine along with their unique signatures. Study findings demonstrate that this novel pragmatic computational approach can be used assertively to discriminate SARS-CoV2 from other coronaviruses. Considering its versatile applications, the usefulness need not be restrictive but it can be leveraged for diverse applications in protein biology.
Effect of hyperhidrosis on quality of life and its correlation with anxiety
Authors: MONGA PRABHNOOR
Published: April 2023

Hyperhidrosis is a benign disorder (of no danger to health), is rare and is less known and understood however, it does affect a small percentage of people and carries serious implications for an individual’s quality of life and psychosocial well-being. The overhanging question that formed the basis of the study was how it affected various aspects of an individual’s life, their quality of life, and how it correlated to anxiety along with increasing its awareness amongst the general public.
The results were conclusive with the fact that the condition impaired daily activities and in doing so had a negative impact on quality of life. The results showed that associated negative emotions like embarrassment, frustration, and nervousness become second nature. People who experienced excessive sweating reported a lowered self-image, self-esteem, and self-confidence. Some people even reported that they avoided social situations altogether, and people reported that they avoided being in public view entirely pertaining of the fear of judgment and being ridiculed by others. The results were consistent with very few people approaching a doctor for their condition, those who did were suggested how they could greatly benefit from counselling or therapy in order to lessen the personal burden of dealing with excessive sweating during all aspects of their lives.
Analyzing scene image features with adaptive nonlinear diffusion equation filters for public safety project scheduling
Authors: Li Jinmei , Li Qiang , You Yayun , Li Jie
Published: April 2023

The current image feature detection methods fail to perform image edge filtering in all directions, leading to target deviation of the feature detection results, and narrower brightness level range of gray images. Hence, a novel approach based on adaptive nonlinear diffusion equation filtering is proposed for detecting security events in public safety project scheduling. An edge detection operator is developed that can work in any direction, and adaptive nonlinear diffusion image edge morphological composite filtering is implemented using lag threshold and NMS. The shape response of the image edge is calculated to select the adaptive threshold of feature extraction. A gaussian function pyramid is constructed to obtain the feature distribution sequence considering multi-scale factors. The wavelet analysis is used to analyze the gray scale and detail features of the scene images of public security events, and the gray projection method is utilized to detect the target features of dynamic images, completing the scene image feature detection of public security events. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed feature detection method has high accuracy, shorter time, and ideal application performance.
Futuristic deep learning algorithms for long-term solar power prediction
Authors: Kumar V Suresh , Leelavathi M
Published: April 2023

Solar power(SP) prediction using a futuristic deep-learning(DL) algorithm is an important piece of research. The SP data is accumulated in real-time with a 1 kW capacity that is available in our laboratory. The collected data is pre-processed via, initialization, normalization, and validation for accurate prediction. Data sets are normalized in order to fill in missing values using the K-nearest neighbor(KNN) algorithm and the interpolation method. Then, the data is validated using a newly proposed deep long short-term memory(DLSTM) with a recurrent neural network(RNN) algorithm for solar power prediction(SPP). To express the superiority of the DLSTM-RNN model, it is contrasted to other exciting models. All the DL algorithms are trained and tested using three different activation functions: Sigmoid, ReLU, and tanh with varying values of an epoch. Finally, the precision is evaluated in terms of different performance error indexes, such as the basic error index(BEI) and promoting percentage error index(PPEI).
DNA methylation regulates Vip3Aa resistance in fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda)
Authors: Zou Luming , Liu Zhenxing , Jin Minghui , Wang Peng , Shan Yinxue , Xiao Yutao
Published: April 2023

Vegetative insecticidal proteins (Vips) are widely used in pest management, but Vip resistance is a big threat. DNA methylation plays important roles in regulating the response of biological organisms to environmental stress. In this study, DNA methylation map was developed for fall armyworm (FAW, Spodoptera frugiperda), and its function in regulating FAW Vip3Aa resistance was explored. FAW was screened by Vip3Aa for 10 generations, and bioassays indicated that Vip3Aa resistance increased trans-generationally. Based on the comparison of DNA methylation maps between Vip3Aa-resistant and -susceptible strains showed that gene body methylation was positively correlated with its expression. Moreover, the study demonstrated that a reduction in the methylation density within the gene body of a 3'5'-cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase gene resulted in decreased expression and increased resistance of FAW to Vip3Aa, which was validated through RNAi experiments. The mechanism of Vip3Aa resistance will improve the understanding of DNA methylation and its function in lepidoptera and provide a new perspective for making strategies to pest management.
Uptake of modern contraceptive methods among women of reproductive age (18-45) at Chake District-Pemba Tanzania
Authors: Abeid Rehema Abdalla , Sumari Emmanuel I. , Qin Chunxiang
Published: April 2023

Background: The uptake of the modern contraceptive method provides chances for women and couples to reach optimal child spacing, achieve the desired family size and prevent unsafe abortions and maternal deaths. Despite the effort taken to improve the uptake of modern contraceptives, still, prevalence rate (CPR) in Zanzibar remains low (9.1%). In Pemba, few studies have been done on modern contraceptive uptake and little is known about factors that hinder the uptake of modern contraceptives among women of reproductive age. This study investigated the uptake of modern contraceptive methods among women of reproductive age (18-45) and its associated factors.
Methods: This was a quantitative cross-sectional study conducted in Chake District Hospital, Pemba Tanzania. A stratified random sampling technique was used to recruit 214 eligible participants for the study. After we informed the participants, data were collected using a structured English questionnaire. The collected data was analyzed using SPSS version 25, descriptive analysis was done to determine frequencies. A chi-square test was done to determine the association between the study variables and multivariate logistic regression to check the nature and strength of the association. The p<0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results: This study included 214 women of with majority 79(36.9%) at the age group of 21-30 years, 100(46.7%) had secondary education and 187(87.4%) married. Most of the participants 212(99.1%) have heard about modern contraceptives, with health professionals 191(43.5) being the common source of information. More than half 120(56.1%) of the participants were not using any modern contraceptive method and injectable 38(17.8%) was the commonly reported method among users. Among the users of modern contraceptives reported that self-motivation 47(47.5%) is the midst drive while lack of power to decide 180(84%), fear of divorce 141(66%), and social perception of users as the cause of reduced workforce in future 160(75%) were common barriers. Participants provided suggestions to improve modern contraceptive uptake including male involvement 203(95%) and community awareness 182(85%). Further analysis revealed women with college/university education were 2 times more likely to use modern contraceptives method compare to those with primary or not attended school(p=0.023, OR=2.437, 95% CI: 1.129-5.259). Moreover employed women were 2 times more likely to uptake modern contraceptives uptake compared to unemployed/housewives (p=0.028, OR=1.844, CI=1.068-3.185).
Conclusion: Despite the campaigns and women having awareness of modern contraceptives, still its uptake remains low in Chake district Pemba. Lack of power to decide, fear of divorce, and social perception of users as the cause of reduced workforce in the future were common barriers; male involvement and community engagement in awareness were suggestions to increase modern contraceptive uptake.
Multiparametric MRI Radiomics in Prostate Cancer for Predicting Ki-67 Expression and Gleason Score: a Multicenter Retrospective Study
Authors: Zhou Chuan , Zhang Yun-Feng , Sheng Guo , Wang Dong , Lv Hao-Xuan , Qiao Xiao-Ni , Wang Rong , Chang De-Hui , Zhao Li-Ming , Zhou Fenghai
Published: April 2023

Purpose Prostate cancers (PCas) with high Ki-67 expression and high Gleason Scores (GS) tend to have aggressive clinicopathological characteristics and a dismal prognosis. In order to predict the Ki-67 expression status and the GS in PCa, we sought to construct and verify MRI-based radiomics signatures.Methods and materials: We collected T2-weighted imaging (T2WI), diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI), and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) images from 170 PCa patients at three institutions and extracted 321 original radiomic features from each image modality. We used support vector machine (SVM) and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) logistic regression to select the most informative radiomic features and built predictive models using up sampling and feature selection techniques. Using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, the discriminating power of this feature was determined. Subsequent decision curve analysis (DCA) assessed the clinical utility of the radiomic features. The Kaplan-Meier (KM) test revealed that the radiomics-predicted Ki-67 expression status and GS were prognostic factors for PCa survival.Result The hypothesized radiomics signature, which included 15 and 9 selected radiomics features, respectively, was significantly correlated with pathological Ki-67 and GS outcomes in both the training and validation datasets. Areas under the curve (AUC) for the developed model were 0.813 (95% CI:0.681,0.930) and 0.793 (95% CI:0.621, 0.929) for the training and validation datasets, respectively, demonstrating discrimination and calibration performance. The model's clinical usefulness was verified by means of DCA. In both the training and validation sets, high Ki-67 expression and high GS predicted by radiomics using SVM models were substantially linked with poor overall survival (OS).Conclusions Both Ki-67 expression status and high GS correlate with PCa patient survival outcomes; therefore, the ability of the SVM classifier-based model to estimate Ki-67 expression status and the Lasso classifier-based model to assess high GS may enhance clinical decision making.
Dynamic migration of microservices for end-to-end latency control in 5G/6G networks
Authors: Kaur Kiranpreet , Guillemin Fabrice , Sailhan Francoise
Published: April 2023

With the adoption of the microservice paradigm by the telecom industry in the design of 5G/6G networks, complex network functions are decomposed into sets of chained sub-functions, which are further deployed using containerized technologies over geographically distributed cloud clusters. Latency-sensitive applications require to carefully orchestrate the allocation and re-arrangement of (micro)services to prevent from a largely segmented placement of microservices. To address this issue in the context of network functions, we introduce a novel placement and migration strategy that chooses those specific microservice(s) to migrate and the optimal destination (data center) while considering the impact of the migration on other microservices.We devise fast and effective heuristics that are extensively studied via simulation experiments, that show that our proposed approach significantly reduces the service latency.
Ergometrine stimulates histamine H 2 receptors in the isolated human atrium
Authors: Jacob Hannes , Braekow Pauline , Hofmann Britt , Kirchhefer Uwe , Forster Lisa , Mönnich Denise , Humphrys Laura J. , Pockes Steffen , Neumann Joachim , Gergs Ulrich
Published: April 2023

Introduction
Ergometrine (6aR,9R)-N-((S)-1-Hydroxypropan-2-yl)-7-methyl-4,6,6a,7,8,9-hexa-hydro-indolo-[4,3-fg]chinolin-9-carboxamide or lysergide acid β-ethanolamide or ergonovine) activates several types of serotonin and histamine receptors in the animal heart. We tested the hypotheses that ergometrine might activate human serotonin 5-HT4 receptors (h5-HT4R) and/or human histamine H2 receptors (hH2R) in the heart of transgenic mice and/or in the human isolated atrium.
Methods
Force of contraction or beating rates were studied in electrically stimulated left atrial or spontaneously beating right atrial preparations or spontaneously beating isolated retrogradely perfused hearts (Langendorff-set up) of mice with cardiac specific overexpression of the h5-HT4R (5-HT4-TG) or of mice with cardiac specific overexpression of the hH2R (H2-TG) or in electrically stimulated human right atrial preparations obtained during cardiac surgery. Western blots to assess phospholamban (PLB) phosphorylation on serine 16 were performed.
Results
Ergometrine exerted concentration- and time-dependent positive inotropic effects and positive chronotropic effects in atrial preparations starting at 0.3 µM and reaching a plateau at 10 µM in H2-TGs (n = 7). This was accompanied by an increase in PLB phosphorylation at serine 16. Ergometrine up 10 µM failed to increase force of contraction in left atrial preparations from 5-HT4-TGs (n = 5). 10 µM ergometrine increased the force of contraction in isolated retrogradely perfused spontaneously beating heart preparations (Langendorff set-up) from H2-TG but not 5-HT4-TG. In the presence of the phosphodiesterase inhibitor cilostamide (1 µM), 10 µM ergometrine exerted positive inotropic effects in isolated electrically stimulated human right atrial preparations, obtained during cardiac surgery, and these effects were attenuated by 10 µM of the H2R antagonist cimetidine but not by 10 µM of the 5-HT4R antagonist tropisetron. Furthermore, ergometrine showed binding to human histamine H2 receptors (at 100 µM and 1 mM) using HEK cells in a recombinant expression system (pKi < 4.5, n = 3).
Conclusion
Ergometrine is an agonist at cardiac human H2Rs.
Alteration in expression of pattern-recognition-receptors-signaling- pathways-related genes is associated with immune microenvironment and predicts clinical outcomes in bladder cancer
Authors: Qiu Yifeng , Li Biao , Huang Pengcheng , Xie Ming , Sun Qi , Zhou Zhipeng , Yu Yao , Wang Benlin , Xue Jingwen , Zhu Zhangrui , Feng Zhengyuan , Zhao Jie , Wu Peng
Published: April 2023

Background Although immune checkpoint inhibitors have been utilized to treat advanced bladder cancer, a considerable proportion of patients have resistance to anti-PD1/PD-L1 immunotherapy. Pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) are correlated with host anti-tumor immune response and tumor progression. This study was designed to investigate the impact of PRRs-related genes on tumor immune microenvironment and clinical outcomes of bladder cancer.
Methods We obtained transcriptome data and clinicopathological information of bladder cancer from TCGA database.Pattern-recognition-receptors-signaling-pathwaygene sets were downloaded from the official website of GSEA. Consensus clustering was employed to identify distinct subtypes based on the expression of the PRRs-related genes. CIBERSORT and ssGSEA analyses were employed to evaluate infiltration of various types of immune cellsin the tumor microenvironment. ESTIMATE algorithm was applied to assess intratumoral infiltration of stromal, immune cells and tumor purity. LASSO and stepwise regression analyses were employed to select the prognostic PRRs-related genes, and we constructed a risk model based on these genes via multivariate Cox regression analysis.
Results Two distinct subtypes were identified through consensus clustering. There was significant difference in clinical outcomes, infiltration of immune cells, expression of immune checkpoints and functional pathways between two subtypes. In addition, we identified 9 prognostic genes and constructed a prognostic risk model based on these genes. PRRs-related risk score was confirmed as an independent risk factor for OS of bladder cancer through multivariate Cox analysis.
Conclusions Expression of pattern-recognition-receptors-related genes is closely associated with immune microenvironment and clinical prognosis of bladder cancer.