bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Hubungan paritas dengan tingkat kecemasan ibu hamil trimester III dalam menghadapi persalinan di puskesmas Kandangan, Kabupaten Temanggung
Authors: Ashfia Lisma Itsna , Ismarwati Ismarwati
Published: February 2024

Latar belakang: Masalah yang sering dialami ibu selama masa kehamilannya salah satunya adalah kecemasan. Salah satu faktor penyebabnya adalah paritas ibu. Puskesmas Kandangan Temanggung merupakan salah satu puskesmas dengan jumlah persalinan yang banyak dan ibu bersalin mengalami kecemasan. Tujuan penelitian: Mengetahui hubungan paritas dengan tingkat kecemasan ibu hamil trimester III dalam menghadapi persalinan. Metode: Penelitian ini menggunakan metode analitik korelasional dengan pendekatan cross sectional. Populasi penelitian ini adalah ibu hamil trimester III dengan sampel sebanyak 53 responden menggunakan teknik simple random sampling. Analisa data menggunakan uji rank spearman. Hasil: Berdasarkan hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa paritas ibu sebagian besar berstatus primipara 62,3%, dan tingkat Kecemasan ibu hamil trimester III Sebagian besar tingkat ringan 54,7%. Hasil analisis uji rank spearman menunjukkan ada hubungan paritas dengan tingkat kecemasan ibu hamil trimester III dalam menghadapi persalinan (P value 0,000), dengan nilai Contingency Coefficient 0,533. Simpulan: Ada hubungan antara paritas dengan tingkat kecemasan ibu hamil trimester III dengan keeratan hubungan cukup kuat.
Pengaruh peran tenaga kesehatan terdahap kesehatan gizi ibu hamil: Scoping review
Authors: Sari Winda , Machfudloh Machfudloh , Diniayuningrum Anggie
Published: February 2024

Latar belakang: Gizi berperan penting dalam meningkatkan kesehatan ibu dan anak. Peran petugas kesehatan sangat dibutuhkan guna mengedukasi ibu hamil termasuk keluarga, agar memiliki persepsi dan perilaku positif dalam meningkatkan kesehatan melalui optimalisasi nutrisi ibu hamil dan monitoring kesejahteraan janin. Status gizi ibu hamil berpengaruh pada kesehatan ibu dan tumbuh kembang janin. Status gizi sebelum kehamilan di nilai melalui indikator pengukuran LILA (Lingkar Lengan Atas) dan IMT (Indeks Masa Tubuh) adapun selama kehamilan status gizi ibu hamil di nilai melalui indikator penambahan berat badan dan gizi yang cukup selama hamil. Tujuan penelitian: untuk mengetahui pengaruh langsung dan tidak langsung serta besaran peran tenaga kesehatan terhadap status kesehatan gizi ibu hamil. Metode: Metode yang digunakan dalam penulisan ini adalah scoping review. Scoping review ini menggunakan framework dari Arksey dan O’Malley yang dari 5 langkah. Hasil: 10 artikel terseleksi dan mempunyai grade A dan B, berasal dari negara Eritrea 1, Inggris 2, Indonesia 6 dan Ethopia 1 dengan menggunakan penelitian metode kualitatif 6, kuantitatif 3 dan campuran 1. Terdapat 3 tema dari hasil Scoping Review yaitu kebutuhan peran tenaga Kesehatan, hambatan pemberian Pendidikan Kesehatan dan upaya yang dilakukan. Simpulan: Petugas kesehatan memberikan pendidikan kesehatan terkait gizi dalam kehamilan terbukti mampu meningkatkan pengetahuan ibu hamil dengan harapan ibu hamil dapat meningkatkan gizi masa kehamilan.
State regulation of negative infrastructure-related externalities in the system of land relations
Authors: Bykova E. N.
Published: February 2024

The subject of the study is the system of land relations in Russia, the imperfection of which gives rise to negative infrastructural externalities caused by the modernization and development of linear engineering infrastructure The objective of the work is to develop methods for state regulation of the external effects, the main one of which is internalization through land taxation. In the work the concept of “negative infrastructure-related externalities”, their structure and economic nature in land relations are introduced. Also the consequences of negative infrastructure-related externalities on the economic interests of owners of encumbered land plots are determined. To overcome those issues the economic mechanism for regulating the use of land resources and their redistribution is developed. The scope of application of research results covers a lot of long-term aims: from the differentiation of land taxation for the internalization of negative infrastructure-related externalities to territorial planning at all levels.
Walras and Tugan-Baranovsky on socialism: Reconciling economic science and social ideal
Authors: Makasheva N. A.
Published: February 2024

Nowadays, Leon Walras (1839—1910) is well-known first and foremost for his “Elements of pure political economy, or the theory of public wealth” (1874, 1877) and Mikhail Ivanovich Tugan-Baranovsky (1865—1919) gained a wide recognition due to his book “Industrial crises in contemporary England: Their causes and influences on the life of the people” (1894), which had a significant impact on the development of economics. At the same time, both economists were deeply concerned not only with theoretical problems, but also with those that are now considered beyond the scope of theory, the problem of social ideal and that of a more just social system being among them. Walras and Tugan-Baranovsky associated the embodiment of the social ideal with socialism and strived for an economic system that corresponded to that ideal, albeit their conceptions of socialism being different. The principal opportunity to achieve reconciliation between science and ideal was associated with a synthetic approach reconciling the scientific method and ideal, economics being considered “a bridge” between them, or a «testing ground», where the reconciliation was to take place. Although history has shown that Walras’s and Tugan-Baranovsky’s ideas of socialism were utopian, the very fact that two eminent economists were deeply concerned with the problem of social ideal and socialism at a time when the foundations of modern economics were being laid, shows that the striving of economists to create objective and rigorous science was, to a measure, driven by their aspiration to solve the social problem and to set up a social and economic system which is rational and more just than the existing one
The Second Leontief Paradox: Economic Theory or Economic Engineering?
Authors: Parkhimenka U. A.
Published: February 2024

The article analyzes the situation, conventionally called the "Second Leontief Paradox", when a recognized scientist, Nobel laureate and undisputed authority in the academic environment, it turns out, has practically no place in modern economic theory - neither within the "mainstream" nor in unorthodox directions. This paradox is considered in the context of four questions: (1) does Leontief have a “theory” at all; (2) to which theoretical school Leontief belongs or at least gravitates; (3) what is the main factor in the formation of the paradox under consideration; (4) what are the prospects for Leontief's approach in macroeconomics. To understand this paradox, it is proposed to use the terms introduced by G. Mankiw - an economist as a scientist and an economist as an engineer. It is concluded that there is still a gap between "theory" and "engineering" in economics. It is assumed that such a gap, including in connection with the rapid growth of a large amount of economic data and universal digitalization, may gradually decrease.
ГЛОБАЛІЗАЦІЯ ТА ЇЇ ВПЛИВ НА МІЖНАРОДНІ ЕКОНОМІЧНІ ВІДНОСИНИ
Authors: Антипенко Надія , Почерніна Наталія , Васильківський Дмитро
Published: February 2024

У дослідженні було розкрито основні підходи до визначення поняття «глобалізація», що існують в українській та міжнародній науковій думці. Визначено ключові прояви та основні риси глобалізації, а також передумови, що визначають цей процес. Охарактеризовано позицію України поміж країн світу стосовно рівня глобалізації за допомогою індексу KOF Globalisation Index. Описано тенденцію зміни значень цього індексу за період незалежності України. Деталізовано сутність індексу глобалізації для України через характеристику його субіндексів: індексів соціальної, економічної та політичної глобалізації. Зауважено тенденції до посилення процесів регіоналізації та деглобалізації, виявлено їх вплив на міжнародні економічні відносини в цілому та в Україні. За результатами проведеного аналізу визначено переваги та недоліки сучасних глобальних процесів для національної економіки.
Heuristic Planning for Continuous Systems in Hybrid Temporal Situation Calculus
Authors: Mathew Shaun
Published: February 2024

Given a description of domain and its dynamics, temporal numeric planning attempts to find a sequence of actions that satisfies a given set of constraints for a dynamical system. Current planners operate on grounded transition systems and discretized representations of the domain which lead to poor scalability. Furthermore, given the problem’s difficulty, most modern planners restrict their capabilities to a subset of hybrid domains, e.g. support for only polynomial evolution of numeric state variables and linear action conditions. To address these concerns, we present a lifted planner, NEAT (Non-linEAr Temporal) Planner, that utilizes a logical description of the domain described in Hybrid Temporal Situation Calculus. Furthermore, we develop AMPLEX, an interface to AMPL and several non-linear programming solvers, which allows us handle several non-linear functions. We also present a novel non-linear programming based heuristic to improve scalability. Lastly, we perform a detailed comparison between current state-of-the-art solvers and our planner.
News Recommender System Considering Temporal Dynamics and Accuracy-Diversity Tradeoff
Authors: Raza Shaina
Published: February 2024

News recommender systems aim to personalize users experience for online news readers and help them discover relevant and interesting news items from a broad and diverse search space. However, recommending news is a challenging task. There are hundreds of news articles published every day, many of which quickly become obsolete and irrelevant to the readers. Readers’ preferences (interests) also exhibit dynamic behavior and the relevance of readers’ preferences strongly depend on the context. Some of the readers’ preferences are long-term, reflecting the personality or behavior, whereas others are short-term, showing their current interests. External events, such as breaking news and trends, also influence readers’ interests. Although the high recommendation accuracy is appreciated, focusing on it too much sacrifices diversity and limits readers’ options. 

The main contribution of this research is to design a recommender system to tackle the specific challenges of news recommendations. To address these challenges, we propose a recommendation strategy that seamlessly integrates readers’ long-term and short-term preferences when recommending news items. In addition to high accuracy, we focus on promoting reasonable diversity in news recommendations. To achieve a balanced objective (high accuracy and reasonable diversity), we formulate a combined optimization strategy that includes both of these aspects in the recommendation process. 

More specifically, to achieve high accuracy, we propose novel latent factor models such as matrix factorization and a generalized linear model. In addition, we propose a regularized latent factor model to achieve reasonable diversity while maintaining high accuracy. Then, for the same purpose, we propose a deep learning-based framework composed of network components of news modelling and reader modelling. We use different regularization terms in the latent factor model to achieve accuracy-diversity balance, and the neural attention mechanism in deep neural networks for the same purpose. 

We also introduce a new evaluation metric to measure the tradeoff performance with respect to accuracy and diversity. Experiments on real-world data have demonstrated the effectiveness of our proposed approach on quality factors such as accuracy, diversity as well as this tradeoff metric. Our model has achieved an improvement on this new tradeoff metric by 10-30% when compared to traditional and state-of-the-art recommendation algorithms.
International Education and Brain Drain: A Case Study of Nigerians in Canada
Authors: Giwa Jaleelat
Published: February 2024

This Masters Research Paper investigates the factors that influence international students from Nigeria to stay back in Canada after their studies, instead of returning to Nigeria to join in the task of nation building. A semi-structured interview was conducted with 10 Nigerians (5 males and 5 females) who completed their studies in Canada during the past ten years, and who proceeded to apply for permanent resident status in Canada. Interview results show that the most critical factor that discourages these Nigerians from going back to their country after their studies in Canada is bad governance/corruption. Other factors include a lack of employment opportunities and a lack of well-functioning infrastructures in Nigeria. This study has significant implications for the Nigerian government and other development partners on how to motivate graduating students to return to Nigeria, and hopefully curb the incidence of brain drain and its baneful consequences on the economic development of the country. The paper concludes with policy recommendations for stakeholders such as the Nigerian government and other development partners on how to address the issue of brain drain.
The Impacts of Housing and Neighbourhood Environments on the Mental Health and Wellbeing of Somali Refugees and Immigrants Living in Etobicoke, Toronto
Authors: Faarah Fadumo
Published: February 2024

This research study aims to understand how housing conditions and neighbourhood environments in Etobicoke, Toronto, can impact Somali refugees’ and immigrants’ mental health and wellbeing. This includes considering factors such as access to secure and supportive housing, neighbourhood safety, transportation and greenspaces. Using a qualitative research design, this study interviewed six Somali refugees and immigrants living in Etobicoke, Toronto. Based on the research findings, Somali refugees and immigrants In Etobicoke live in substandard housing conditions, experience a lack of neighborhood safety and security and receive inadequate support from landlords or building and housing management. As a result, this directly correlates and links housing conditions, neighbourhood environments and adverse mental health and wellbeing outcomes for Somali refugees and immigrants living in Etobicoke, Toronto.
The Impacts of Ethnic Retail Access on Health & Well-Being Within the Chinese Newcomer Population in the GTA
Authors: Abu-Shaaban Nour
Published: February 2024

Accessible food options that are nutritional, affordable, and culturally appropriate are essential to supporting one’s mental health and well-being. The degree to which immigrants and newcomers can uphold ethnic and cultural food practices from their countries of origin within new host countries and the communities in which they settle may be an important factor in determining healthy food access. Chinese newcomer populations in the Greater Toronto Area face significant challenges accessing ethnic foods and consuming culturally appropriate foods due to many barriers. The purpose of this Major Research Paper is to examine: i) the experiences of Chinese newcomers in accessing ethnic grocery foods and culturally appropriate foods, and ii) perceived impacts on health and well-being. The findings demonstrate that Chinese newcomers face increasing barriers to accessing ethnoracial foods due to challenges related to transportation access, the lack of availability of ethnic groceries and ethnic options in mainstream stores, affordability of ethnic ingredients and the increased time it takes to access ethnic retailers. Policy leaders must recognize the need for increased ethnic grocery retailers in bridging better mental health and access to healthy foods within newcomer populations.
Unaccompanied Refugee Youth: Their Migration, Maturity, and Best Interests
Authors: McCarthy Raymond
Published: February 2024

In this Major Research Paper (MRP), I address the issue of unaccompanied refugee minors (URMs) who are adolescents between the ages of 14 and 18. Canada’s immigration and refugee board (IRB) and immigration officials rely on the convention on the rights of the child (CRC) as well as Canadian guidelines pertaining to age and, to a lesser degree, competence are used as the two main indicators of the child's capacity to be mature, reasonable, and independent before, during, and after their migration process. This can result in URMs being assessed as incompetent and incapable. It is not the purpose to argue that URMs should not be given all the rights of children, as they are minors. Rather, I argue that specific Articles of the UNHCR’s Convention on the Rights of the Child limit the recognition of the decision-making ability of unaccompanied refugees in their process of development into adulthood by ignoring the way their migration experiences speed and enhance their maturation. Therefore, I conclude that the maturity and capability of URMs should be properly assessed in a more sophisticated process, one to be developed through further research, a process that will afford them an opportunity to make clear what they deem best for themselves and why, rather than one that assigns them to the protocols appropriate for “children”.
The Nexus between the Racialized and Gendered Organization of Precarious Employment and the Lived Experiences of Racialized Immigrant Women in Canada: A Review of the Academic Literature
Authors: Marlay Shawna
Published: February 2024

Increasingly, highly educated racialized immigrant women are overrepresented in low-paying, low skill jobs that are situated in toxic work environments plagued by Ontario Employment Standards (ESA) violations and discriminatory employer practices. Various sites of oppression linked to socio-economic exclusion and class dislocation channel this population into racialized gendered professions that deepen their marginalization and increase employment precarity. This Major Research Paper consists of a literature review of peer-reviewed journal articles that specifically examine the lived experiences of racialized immigrant women in the Canadian labour market. Three themes emerged from the data: (1) labour market barriers, (2) social and structural barriers, and (3) labour market experiences. The results indicate that most studies focus on small groups of racialized immigrant women in one region vs. large-scale statistical analyses of various cities across Canada. Such an approach could provide pertinent information to help policy makers develop comprehensive labour market supports geared towards this population.
The Stressors and Challenges of Single Motherhood: The Lived Experiences of African Immigrant Women
Authors: Stennett-Thomas Anna-Lori
Published: February 2024

This study examines the settlement experiences of immigrant women of African heritage and more specifically the challenges and stressors of parenting as a single mother. The work and home dynamic expose issues of parental stress, economic instability, increased effects on mental health, and a strained parent-child relationship. To examine this research problem further, I conducted 3 semi-structured interviews with immigrant African women. This study was guided by three theoretical frameworks: transnational feminist theory, intersectionality, and family stress theory. The results of this study highlight the impact of intersectionality on one’s experience of parenting and integration. Additionally, this study brings attention to the lack of focus on single African immigrant women in immigration discourse. The potential benefits of this research include increased visibility of this unseen population, policy implications aimed at improving childcare accessibility, culturally relevant mental health support and reduce the funnelling of racialized immigrant women in precarious work.
Constructing Low-Skilled Occupations: Migrant Work Within a Classified Occupational System
Authors: Sotomayor Joana
Published: February 2024

Through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP), labour shortages in caregiving and agriculture have been managed steadily. Some occupations in these areas are deemed low-skilled. The goal of this study was to understand the role of the occupational classification in relation to the TFWP low-skilled occupations, and how the construction of work influences occupations. Through the lens of critical discourse analysis (CDA) on both the TFWP electronic guidelines for agriculture and caregivers and the National Occupational Classification (NOC) profile for selected codes, inconsistencies and asymmetrical practices were uncovered. The results demonstrate that “temporary” “foreign” workers are seen as migrant and foreign, but not as workers.
PERTEMPURAN LAUT TEBING MERAH PADA ERA PENGHUJUNG DINASTI HAN
Authors: Yulyadi Deni , Yudho Lukman , Rudiawan Beni
Published: February 2024

Pertempuran Tebing Merah, Juga dikenal dengan Pertempuran Chibi, adalah pertempuran Laut yang mentukan pada musim dingin tahun 208-209 Masehi di masa penghujung Dinasti Han, Sekitar dua belas tahun sebelum sebelum dimulainya Periode Tiga kerajaan dalam sejarah Tiongkok, pertempuran terjadi antara pasukan sekutu Sun Quan, Liu Bei dan Liu Qi melawan pasukan yang lebih unggul dari Panglima perang Utara Perdana Menteri Cao Cao. Liu Bei bersama Sun Quan Menggagalkan Upaya Cao Cao untuk menaklukan wilayah Selatan Sungai Yangtze dan Menyatukan kembali Wilayah Kerajaan Dinasti Han Timur, bagaimana kekuatan Superior yang lebih unggul di kalahkan oleh Kekuatan Imperior yang lebih lemah mari kita bahas lebih lanjut dalam tulisan dibawah ini.
Partial Soft Derivative
Authors: ARSLAN Burak , ENGİNOĞLU Serdar
Published: February 2024

The concept of soft derivative, introduced by Molodtsov in 1999, is one of the fundamental concepts in soft analysis. The handled paper defines partial soft derivative and studies some of its basic properties, such as the relation between partial soft derivative and boundedness, some basic partial soft derivative rules, e.g., sum rule, constant multiple rule, and difference rule, the relation between soft derivative and partial soft derivative, the relation between classical partial derivative and partial soft derivative, and the geometric interpretation of partial soft derivative. Moreover, it exemplifies the theoretical part of the study and provides figures for the geometric interpretation. Finally, this study discusses the need for further research.
Larval trophic ecology of small pelagic fishes: a review of recent advances and pathways to fill remaining knowledge gaps
Authors: Garrido S , Albo-Puigserver M , Moyano M
Published: February 2024

Early life stages constitute a bottleneck for most fish populations, particularly for small pelagic fish (SPF), for which the interannual variability in recruitment strength is very high, and recruits frequently constitute the bulk of the population biomass. Finding the right prey (in terms of size and quality) during these early stages is critical for recruitment success. In this work, we synthesize the available literature on the trophic ecology of the early life stages of SPF, particularly clupeiforms. Works published during the last decade (2013-2022, 37 papers) were compared to those published previously (1920-2012, 107 papers). Gut content analysis of field-caught larvae is still the most commonly used technique (44%), while the use of biomarkers (e.g. stable isotopes and fatty acid composition), molecular tools (e.g. metabarcoding) and multitrophic approaches has increased in the last decade. Significant new knowledge was gained recently, such as that on larval feeding rates and behavior through laboratory experiments for species kept in culture (e.g. Atlantic herring, Pacific and Atlantic sardines), but some old challenges remain, such as the high vacuity rates of field-caught larvae. Lastly, we provide recommendations for future studies, such as the use of complementary techniques, the importance of studying ontogenetic shifts, the use of metabarcoding for analyzing the diet of early larvae that depend on microplankton, and the identification of prey with high taxonomic resolution. Such studies are essential to better understand larval growth and survival at sea, and thus to better understand and predict SPF population dynamics.
THE DUALISTIC MYTHOMODEL OF S. CHERKASENKO’S DRAMA “THE PRICE OF BLOOD”, PARTICULARLY IN ITS PHILOSOPHICAL, SPATIO-TEMPORAL CHARACTERISTICS
Authors: MOSHNORIZ MARIIA , ZOZULIA IRYNA , RYMAR NATALIYA , KARPENKO SVITLANA , STADNII ALLA
Published: February 2024

The article deconstructs the poetic mytho-model of world of the drama “The Price of Blood” by S. Cherkasenko, in particular in its philosophical characteristics: reveals the artistic features of the author's dualistic model of the world, examines the reinterpretation of biblical Christological themes, motifs and images. This thematic exploration adds depth to the understanding of the drama and underscores the profound philosophical questions S. Cherkasenko raises. The analysis shows that dualistic myths are represented through the forms of binary oppositions, such as cosmological (e.g. the space and chaos, the moon and the sun, heaven and earth, day and night), biological (e.g. male and female), social (e.g. dual organization of society) and ethical (e.g. good and evil). The drama “The Price of Blood” is based on the mythological plot of the Gospel story of Judas Iscariot’s betrayal, in which S. Cherkasenko uses dualistic mythological thinking to contrast “faith – mind”, which is reproduced through the following oppositions: “good - evil”, “sin – righteousness”, “truth – lie”, “God - Devil”, “life – death”, “freedom – slavery”, “love – hate”, “loyalty – betrayal”. This is a confrontation between faith and mind in a kind of search for the salvation of humanity. The relevance of this topic lies in the study of the author's dualistic model and the disclosure of biblical motifs in the drama “The Price of Blood” by S. Cherkasenko; comprehension of the problem of betrayal in a mythopoetic way. The results of the study showed that the author describes the universe as a unity of opposites, which is typical for a dualistic myth, where the victory of good implies the elimination of evil. The archetypal characters – Jesus Christ (faith) and Judas the Tempter (mind) – are encoded by the binary opposition “good – evil” and their confrontation can be seen as an antagonistic duality.
PERFORMANCE STYLE OF A CONTEMPORARY CHORAL CONDUCTOR IN THE CONTEXT OF THE CURRENT ARTISTIC SPACE: FROM REHEARSAL TO MEDIA PRESENTATION
Authors: PUCHKO-KOLESNYK YULIIA , SKORYK ADRIANA , SHUMSKA LYUDMYLA , SHEVCHUK IRYNA , ANTIPINA INNA
Published: February 2024

The article examines the performing style of contemporary choral conductors, including their typology and evolution in the modern artistic space. It explores the theoretical foundation and definitions of conducting styles and discusses the two main types: emotional and rationalistic. Additionally, it presents the perspectives of past conductors on the conducting process that remain relevant today. The skills of a conductor are evaluated by categorizing them into hard and soft skills. Hard skills include mastery of gesture, facial expression, general music theory preparation, and skills in analysing musical scores. Soft skills consider emotionality, charisma, and organizational abilities. The text traces the connection between the conductor's conducting style and their soft and hard skills. This study examines the impact of digital technologies on the role of choral conductors and the formation of conducting styles. It investigates the peculiarities of the rehearsal and concert process in remote music-making conditions, which are characterized by the asynchrony of the creative process. The study reveals the influence of asynchrony on the character and style of the conductor's work. It has been demonstrated that asynchronous performing processes can reduce feedback between the conductor and performers, resulting in aberrations in conducting style and a shift from managerial to decorative specificity.
Note for the P versus NP Problem
Authors: Vega Frank
Published: February 2024

P versus NP is considered as one of the most important open problems in computer science. This consists in knowing the answer of the following question: Is P equal to NP? It was essentially mentioned in 1955 from a letter written by John Nash to the United States National Security Agency. However, a precise statement of the P versus NP problem was introduced independently by Stephen Cook and Leonid Levin. Since that date, all efforts to find a proof for this problem have failed. Another major complexity class is NP-complete. It is well-known that P is equal to NP under the assumption of the existence of a polynomial time algorithm for some NP-complete. We show that the Monotone one-in-three 3-satisfiability (M-1IN3-3SAT) is NP-complete and P at the same time.
REEP4 variant analysis in blepharospasm and other neurological disorders
Authors: Saeirad Samira , LeDoux Mark S.
Published: February 2024

Introduction: In preceding work, a deleterious REEP4 variant [GRCh38/hg38, NC_000008.11:g.22140245G>A, NM_025232.4:c.109C>T, p.Arg37Trp] was found to co-segregate with blepharospasm (BSP) in a large African-American pedigree. Other REEP4 variants have been reported in genetic screening studies of dystonia. The REEP4 paralogs, REEP1 and REEP2, are associated with spastic paraplegia. The causal contributions of REEP4 variants to dystonia and other neurological disorders remains indecisive.

Methods: Sanger sequencing was used to screen subjects (N = 307) with BSP and BSP-plus dystonia affecting additional anatomical segments (BSP+) phenotypes for variants in REEP4. In silico tools were used to examine the deleteriousness of reported (ClinVar) and previously published REEP4 variants.

Results: No highly deleterious variant was identified in coding or contiguous splice site regions of REEP4 in our cohort of 307 subjects. In silico analysis identified numerous deleterious REEP4 variants in published screening studies of dystonia and several highly deleterious single nucleotide REEP4 variants in ClinVar.

Conclusion: Highly deleterious REEP4 variants are rare in BSP and BSP+ phenotypes.
Exploration of commercial cyclen-based chelators for mercury-197 m/g incorporation into theranostic radiopharmaceuticals
Authors: Randhawa Parmissa , Carbo-Bague Imma , Davey Patrick R. W. J. , Chen Shaohuang , Merkens Helen , Uribe Carlos F. , Zhang Chengcheng , Tosato Marianna , Bénard François , Radchenko Valery , Ramogida Caterina F.
Published: February 2024

A comprehensive investigation of the Hg2+ coordination chemistry and 197m/gHg radiolabeling capabilities of cyclen-based commercial chelators, namely, DOTA and DOTAM (aka TCMC), along with their bifunctional counterparts, p-SCN-Bn-DOTA and p-SCN-Bn-TCMC, was conducted to assess the suitability of these frameworks as bifunctional chelators for the 197m/gHg2+ theranostic pair. Radiolabeling studies revealed that TCMC and DOTA exhibited low radiochemical yields (0%–6%), even when subjected to harsh conditions (80°C) and high ligand concentrations (10–4 M). In contrast, p-SCN-Bn-TCMC and p-SCN-Bn-DOTA demonstrated significantly higher 197m/gHg radiochemical yields (100% ± 0.0% and 70.9% ± 1.1%, respectively) under the same conditions. The [197 m/gHg]Hg-p-SCN-Bn-TCMC complex was kinetically inert when challenged against human serum and glutathione. To understand the differences in labeling between the commercial chelators and their bifunctional counterparts, non-radioactive natHg2+ complexes were assessed using NMR spectroscopy and DFT calculations. The NMR spectra of Hg-TCMC and Hg-p-SCN-Bn-TCMC suggested binding of the Hg2+ ion through the cyclen backbone framework. DFT studies indicated that binding of the Hg2+ ion within the backbone forms a thermodynamically stable product. However, competition can form between isothiocyanate binding and binding through the macrocycle, which was experimentally observed. The isothiocyanate bound coordination product was dominant at the radiochemical scale as, in comparison, the macrocycle bound product was seen at the NMR scale, agreeing with the DFT result. Furthermore, a bioconjugate of TCMC (TCMC-PSMA) targeting prostate-specific membrane antigen was synthesized and radiolabeled, resulting in an apparent molar activity of 0.089 MBq/nmol. However, the complex demonstrated significant degradation over 24 h when exposed to human serum and glutathione. Subsequently, cell binding assays were conducted, revealing a Ki value ranging from 19.0 to 19.6 nM. This research provides crucial insight into the effectiveness of current commercial chelators in the context of 197m/gHg2+ radiolabeling. It underscores the necessity for the development of specific and customized chelators to these unique “soft” radiometals to advance 197m/gHg2+ radiopharmaceuticals.
Elevated hyaluronic acid levels in severe SARS-CoV-2 infection in the post-COVID-19 era
Authors: Li Yanyan , Cui Xinyu , Zhu Na , Lin Yingying , Li Xin
Published: February 2024

Objective

Human identical sequences of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) promoted the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) progression by upregulating hyaluronic acid (HA) via NamiRNA-enhancer network, based on previous experimental research. This study aimed to investigate the predictive value of HA for the severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection in the post-COVID-19 era.

Methods

A total of 217 consecutive patients with COVID-19 were enrolled at Beijing Ditan Hospital between July 2023 and October 2023. HA levels were analyzed using biochemical detector. Logistic regression analysis was used to screen independent factors for severe COVID-19. The predictive performance of HA for severe infection was assessed by ROC curve. Furthermore, the relationship between HA levels and COVID-19 severity was investigated using multivariate logistic regression models after adjustment for potential confounders.

Results

According to the cut-off value of HA, COVID-19 patients were divided into HA < 90 ng/mL group (80 cases) and HA ≥ 90 ng/mL group (137 cases). High HA levels were positively associated with the severe SARS-CoV-2 infection, including elevated inflammatory indicators, severe lung involvement, prolonged clinical course, and higher incidence of respiratory failure and death (P < 0.05). Logistic regression analysis suggested that HA was an independent predictor of severe COVID-19 (OR = 4.540, 95% CI = 2.105-9.790, P < 0.001). ROC curve analysis showed that the AUC of HA for severe infection was 0.724. HA levels were significantly higher in COVID-19 cases compared to the healthy population (123.9 (82.6, 174.1) vs. 50.5 (37.8, 66.8), P < 0.001), but similar to those with non-SARS-CoV-2 lung infection (121.6 (78.5, 175.6) vs. 106.0 (66.5, 149.7), P = 0.244). We also found that the first COVID-19 infections had higher HA levels (118.8 (79.5, 174.3) vs. 85.0 (61.1, 128.8), P < 0.001) and a higher proportion of severe infection (37.1% vs. 21.3%, P = 0.043) than re-infections. However, HA expression failed to fully return to normal levels with infection recovery (204.7 (152.9, 242.2) vs. 97.0 (69.3, 137.3), P < 0.001).

Conclusion

HA was associated with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection and could be used as a novel serum biomarker to predict the risk of COVID-19 progression in the post-COVID-19 era.
Smoking and BMI mediate the causal effect of education on lower back pain: observational and Mendelian randomization analyses
Authors: Xu Zhangmeng , Qi Luming , Zhang Huiwu , Yu Duoduo , Shi Yushan , Yu Yaming , Zhu Tianmin
Published: February 2024

Objective

Low back pain (LBP) has been associated with education in previous observational studies, but the causality remains unclear. This study aims to assess the impact of education on LBP and to explore mediation by multiple lifestyle factors.

Design

Univariable Mendelian randomization (MR) was performed to examine the overall effect of education on LBP. Subsequently, multivariable MR was conducted to assess both the direct effect of education on LBP and the influence of potential mediators. Indirect effects were estimated using either the coefficient product method or the difference method, and the proportion of mediation was calculated by dividing the indirect effect by the total effect. The observational study utilized data from the NHANES database collected between 1999 and 2004, and included 15,580 participants aged 20 years and above.

Results

Increasing education by 4.2 years leads to a 48% reduction in the risk of LBP (OR=0.52; 95% CI: 0.46 to 0.59). Compared to individuals with less than a high school education, those with education beyond high school have a 28% lower risk of LBP (OR=0.72; 95% CI: 0.63 to 0.83). In the MR study, smoking accounts for 12.8% (95% CI: 1.04% to 20.8%) of the total effect, while BMI accounts for 5.9% (95% CI: 2.99% to 8.55%). The combined mediation effect of smoking and BMI is 27.6% (95% CI: 23.99% to 32.7%). In the NHANES study, only smoking exhibits a mediating effect, accounting for 34.3% (95% CI: 21.07% to 41.65%) of the effect, while BMI does not demonstrate a mediating role.

Conclusions

Higher levels of education provide a protective effect against the risk of LBP. Additionally, implementing interventions to reduce smoking and promote weight loss among individuals with lower levels of education can also decrease this risk.
Psychiatric adverse events associated with GLP-1 receptor agonists: a real-world pharmacovigilance study based on the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System database
Authors: Chen Wei , Cai Peishan , Zou Wenbin , Fu Zhiwen
Published: February 2024

Background

Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) are widely used due to their profound efficacy in glycemic control and weight management. Within real-world contexts, the manifestation of certain psychiatric adverse events (AEs) has been observed, which is potentially linked to the administration of GLP-1 RAs. The objective of this study was to undertake a comprehensive investigation and characterization of the psychiatric AEs associated with GLP-1 RAs.

Methods

We retrieved reports of AEs associated with treatment with GLP-1 RAs during the period from the first quarter (Q1) of 2004 to Q1 2023 from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) database. Descriptive analysis was performed to examine the clinical characteristics and time to onset of the psychiatric AEs caused by GLP-1 RAs. Moreover, disproportionality analyses were performed using the reporting odds ratio (ROR) to identify GLP-1 RA-related psychiatric AEs.

Results

A total of 8,240 reports of psychiatric AEs were analyzed out of 181,238 AE reports with treatment with GLP-1 RAs. Among these cases, a higher percentage was represented by women compared to men (65.89% vs. 30.96%). The median age of these patients was 56 years, with an interquartile range (IQR) of 48–67 years, based on data available in 286 case reports. This study showed that the median time to onset of the overall GLP-1 RA-related AEs was 31 days (IQR = 7–145.4 days), which varied among GLP-1 RA regimens. Specifically, exenatide had a significantly longer onset time at 45 days (IQR = 11–213 days), with statistically significant differences from the onset times of the other five GLP-1 RAs (p< 0.0001). Moreover, eight categories of psychiatric AEs, namely, nervousness (ROR = 1.97, 95% CI = 1.85–2.11), stress (ROR = 1.28, 95% CI = 1.19–1.38), eating disorder (ROR = 1.57, 95% CI = 1.40–1.77), fear of injection (ROR = 1.96, 95% CI = 1.60–2.40), sleep disorder due to general medical condition—insomnia type (ROR = 2.01, 95% CI = 1.60–2.52), binge eating (ROR = 2.70, 95% CI = 1.75–4.16), fear of eating (ROR 3.35, 95% CI = 1.65–6.78), and self-induced vomiting (ROR = 3.77, 95% CI = 1.77–8.03), were defined as GLP-1 RA-related psychiatric AEs through disproportionality analysis.

Conclusion

Our findings demonstrate a significant association between GLP-1 RAs and the development of specific psychiatric AEs. Despite the observational nature of this pharmacovigilance study and the inherent limitations of the FAERS database, our preliminary findings in this work could provide a better basis for understanding the potential psychiatric AEs that may occur with GLP-1 RA treatment, assisting clinicians to focus on these AEs and provide early intervention for optimal risk management.
Novel approach to energy consumption estimation in smart homes: application of data mining and optimization techniques
Authors: Lin Mengyuan , Peng Liyuan , Liu Tingting , Zhang Lili
Published: February 2024

Buildings account for a significant portion of total energy consumption, and the introduction of intelligent buildings represents a significant step forward in efficiently managing energy utilization. The proposed solutions represent a significant step forward in the development of intelligent residential environments. Beginning the process of achieving improved building intelligence necessitates a thorough evaluation and prediction of the necessary heating and cooling energy requirements, taking into account all relevant influencing factors. This study describes methodologies for using data mining models to predict the heating and cooling energy requirements of intelligent buildings during the construction phase. Data mining techniques, specifically Support Vector Machines (SVM) and Random Forest, are used, demonstrating their superior efficiency over alternative methods. Metaheuristic algorithms, particularly the Owl Search Algorithm (OSA), are described as effective tools for optimizing results across a wide range of problem resolutions. OSA is described and proposed alongside novel data mining methods, demonstrating that this combination of algorithms improves the performance of Random Forest and SVM-based models by 11% and 24%, respectively. The proposed models can generate predictions with a small number of parameters, eliminating the need for complex software and tools. This user-friendly approach makes the prediction process more accessible to a wider audience. While specialized equipment and professional-grade tools will be used, the proposed models are accessible to a wide range of individuals interested in participating in the prediction process.
Causal association of gut microbiota on spondyloarthritis and its subtypes: a Mendelian randomization analysis
Authors: Tang Jun , Mo Shiyan , Fan Lina , Fu Shihui , Liu Xiaofei
Published: February 2024

Background

Despite establishing an association between gut microbiota and spondyloarthritis (SpA) subtypes, the causal relationship between them remains unclear.

Methods

Gut microbiota data were obtained from the MiBioGen collaboration, and SpA genome-wide association study (GWAS) summary data were obtained from the FinnGen collaboration. We conducted a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis using the inverse-variance-weighted method supplemented with four additional MR methods (MR-Egger, weighted median, simple mode, and weighted mode). Pleiotropy and heterogeneity were also assessed. Reverse MR analysis was used to detect reverse causal relationships.

Results

We identified 23 causal links between specific gut microbiota taxa and SpA levels. Of these, 22 displayed nominal causal associations, and only one demonstrated a robust causal connection. Actinobacteria id.419 increased the risk of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) (odds ratio (OR) = 1.86 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.29–2.69); p = 8.63E−04). The family Rikenellaceae id.967 was associated with a reduced risk of both AS (OR = 0.66 (95% CI: 0.47–0.93); p = 1.81E−02) and psoriatic arthritis (OR = 0.70 (95% CI: 0.50–0.97); p = 3.00E−02). Bacillales id.1674 increased the risk of AS (OR = 1.23 (95% CI: 1.00–1.51); p = 4.94E−02) and decreased the risk of enteropathic arthritis (OR = 0.56 (95% CI: 0.35–0.88); p = 1.14E−02). Directional pleiotropy, or heterogeneity, was not observed. No reverse causal associations were observed between the diseases and the gut microbiota.

Conclusion

Our MR analysis suggested a genetic-level causal relationship between specific gut microbiota and SpA, providing insights into the underlying mechanisms behind SpA development mediated by gut microbiota.
Targeting MYC at the intersection between cancer metabolism and oncoimmunology
Authors: Venkatraman Simran , Balasubramanian Brinda , Thuwajit Chanitra , Meller Jaroslaw , Tohtong Rutaiwan , Chutipongtanate Somchai
Published: February 2024

MYC activation is a known hallmark of cancer as it governs the gene targets involved in various facets of cancer progression. Of interest, MYC governs oncometabolism through the interactions with its partners and cofactors, as well as cancer immunity via its gene targets. Recent investigations have taken interest in characterizing these interactions through multi-Omic approaches, to better understand the vastness of the MYC network. Of the several gene targets of MYC involved in either oncometabolism or oncoimmunology, few of them overlap in function. Prominent interactions have been observed with MYC and HIF-1α, in promoting glucose and glutamine metabolism and activation of antigen presentation on regulatory T cells, and its subsequent metabolic reprogramming. This review explores existing knowledge of the role of MYC in oncometabolism and oncoimmunology. It also unravels how MYC governs transcription and influences cellular metabolism to facilitate the induction of pro- or anti-tumoral immunity. Moreover, considering the significant roles MYC holds in cancer development, the present study discusses effective direct or indirect therapeutic strategies to combat MYC-driven cancer progression.
Bibliometric analysis of evolutionary trajectory and prospective directions of LAG-3 in cancer
Authors: Wang Jin , Wang Siying , Zhang Yuting , Zhang Wei
Published: February 2024

Objectives

Perform a bibliometric analysis on the role of LAG-3 in the domain of cancer, elucidate the prevailing areas of research, and visually depict the evolutionary trajectory and prospective directions of LAG-3 research over the past twenty-three decades.

Materials and methods

Between 2000 and 2023, a comprehensive review of scholarly articles pertaining to LAG-3 research in the context of cancer was carried out using the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database. Bibliometric analysis can be conducted by taking advantage of VOSviewer (version 1.6.16) and CiteSpace (version 6.2.R4). Create a network diagram to visually represent various authors, countries, and organizations while assessing the publishing years, journals, references, and keywords.

Results

In conclusion, 1841 records were identified and published in 587 publications. These records were authored by 12,849 individuals affiliated with 2491 institutes across 74 countries. There has been a substantial surge in publications subsequent to 2013. The USA, China, and Germany gave the majority of records, amounting to 69.69%. American institutions actively engage in collaboration with institutions located in other countries. Triebel, F., Vignali, Dario A. A., Workman, Creg J. Drake, Charles G., and Elkord, Eyad are highly regarded authors in their respective fields. However, it is worth noting that Triebel exhibits limited collaboration with other writers. The examination of the role of LAG-3 in cancer and its potential for use in clinical settings is a discernible trend, as seen by keyword analysis.

Conclusion

The scientific interest in and attention towards LAG-3 has experienced a significant rise since 2013. The United States is leading the way, with China following closely behind. Promoting collaboration among writers, nations, and institutions with varied backgrounds is imperative. The discipline of immunotherapy is currently seeing ongoing progress. A thorough investigation of the distinctive cis ligand TCR-CD3 complex of LAG-3 and its signal transduction mechanism is necessary. Additionally, it is worthwhile to explore novel combinations of LAG-3 therapy.