bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Influence of heat treatment on the mechanical performance of Ti21S octet truss lattice structure fabricated by laser powder bed fusion
Authors: Jam A. , Pellizzari M. , Emanuelli L. , Valsecchi G. , du Plessis A. , Benedetti M.
Published: August 2023

Additive manufacturing allows the production of complex and custom designs including lattice structures—porous metallic structures with designed porosity and tailored mechanical properties. The bulk material has a key influence on the eventual properties of the porous lattice structure material. Among metallic biomaterials, beta-titanium alloys are gaining increasing interested because of their low Young’s modulus. In this work, the heat treatment of beta-Ti21S alloy is investigated in the context of octet truss lattice structures. The intention is to improve the performance of these structures for their reliable use in biomedical applications such as for bone implants. The study makes use of laser powder bed fusion of representative samples, uses microCT for physical characterization of manufacturing quality, while quasi-static and fatigue testing is performed to evaluate the performance of these lattice structures. The results indicate that the heat treatment significantly improves the fatigue properties of the lattice structures while changing the quasi-static failure mode more towards a stretch-based failure mode. These findings have practical implications for the implementation of this material and structure combination in medical implants. By enhancing the performance of the lattice structures, the study paves the way for their reliable use in biomedical applications.
Modeling self-propagating malware with epidemiological models
Authors: Chernikova Alesia , Gozzi Nicolò , Perra Nicola , Boboila Simona , Eliassi-Rad Tina , Oprea Alina
Published: August 2023

Self-propagating malware (SPM) is responsible for large financial losses and major data breaches with devastating social impacts that cannot be understated. Well-known campaigns such as WannaCry and Colonial Pipeline have been able to propagate rapidly on the Internet and cause widespread service disruptions. To date, the propagation behavior of SPM is still not well understood. As result, our ability to defend against these cyber threats is still limited. Here, we address this gap by performing a comprehensive analysis of a newly proposed epidemiological-inspired model for SPM propagation, the Susceptible-Infected-Infected Dormant-Recovered (SIIDR) model. We perform a theoretical analysis of the SIIDR model by deriving its basic reproduction number and studying the stability of its disease-free equilibrium points in a homogeneous mixed system. We also characterize the SIIDR model on arbitrary graphs and discuss the conditions for stability of disease-free equilibrium points. We obtain access to 15 WannaCry attack traces generated under various conditions, derive the model’s transition rates, and show that SIIDR fits the real data well. We find that the SIIDR model outperforms more established compartmental models from epidemiology, such as SI, SIS, and SIR, at modeling SPM propagation.
High-order Accurate Beam Models Based on Discontinuous Galerkin Methods
Authors: Gulizzi Vincenzo , Benedetti Ivano , Milazzo Alberto
Published: August 2023

A novel high-order accurate approach to the analysis of beam structures with bulk and thin-walled cross-sections is presented. The approach is based on the use of a variable-order polynomial expansion of the displacement field throughout both the beam cross-section and the length of the beam elements. The corresponding weak formulation is derived using the symmetric Interior Penalty discontinuous Galerkin method, whereby the continuity of the solution at the interface between contiguous elements as well as the application of the boundary conditions is weakly enforced by suitably defined boundary terms. The accuracy and the flexibility of the proposed approach are assessed by modeling slender and short beams with standard square cross-sections and airfoil-shaped thin-walled cross-sections subjected to bending, torsional and aerodynamic loads. The comparison between the obtained numerical results and those available in the literature or computed using a standard finite-element method shows that the present method allows recovering three-dimensional distributions of displacement and stress fields using a significantly reduced number of degrees of freedom.
COVID-19 and Pediatric Rheumatology: A Comprehensive Study from a Leading Tertiary Center in Saudi Arabia
Authors: Alqanatish Jubran , Almojali Abdullah , Alfadhel Abdulmajeed , Albelali Areej , Ahmed Amal , Alqahtani Abdullah , Alrasheed Abdulrhman , Alsewairi Wafaa , Alghnam Suliman
Published: August 2023

The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has emerged as a significant global health concern, impacting millions of individuals worldwide. However, there remains a notable gap in the literature regarding pediatric studies, specifically focusing on children with rheumatic diseases and the potential risk factors associated with COVID-19 contraction in this specific patient population. Patients with rheumatic diseases are often undergoing immunemodulator/immunosuppressant therapies, which can further complicate their immune system response to infections. This is a retrospective cohort study conducted at King Abdullah Specialized Children’s Hospital (KASCH), the largest tertiary care children’s hospital in Saudi Arabia. The aim was to investigate the rate, clinical manifestations, risk factors, and outcomes of COVID-19 infection in pediatric patients with rheumatic diseases. All rheumatology patients (< 19 years) who presented to the hospital as outpatients, inpatients, and/or ER visits during the period of March 2020 to March 2022 were reviewed for confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19. Among 482 patients included in this study, 126 (26.1%, 95% CI 21.8–31.1) had COVID-19 infection, and no factors were identified to increase the risk of contracting the virus. Fever (55.6%, n = 70) followed by respiratory symptoms (55.6%, n = 70) were the most common clinical manifestations, and around 30% of the patients were asymptomatic. Though most of the patients recovered without complications (97.6%, n = 123), mortality was reported in 3 patients (2.38%). The risk of hospitalization was almost 6 times higher in males (OR = 5.97), and higher in patients receiving t-DMARDs (OR = 17.53) or glucocorticoids (OR = 6.69). The study also revealed that vaccinated children were at lower risk of hospitalization due to COVID-19 than non-vaccinated children. The findings of this study help to identify the risk factors for COVID-19 among children with rheumatic diseases and provide insight into the impact of the pandemic on this group. Overall, while most cases were mild and resolved on their own, unvaccinated patients and those receiving t-DMARDs or glucocorticoids needs vigilant monitoring during the COVID-19 infection. Furthermore, we strongly advocate for the widespread promotion of COVID-19 vaccination among pediatric rheumatology patients as it significantly reduces their risk of COVID-19-related hospitalization.
Companion animal adoption and relinquishment during the COVID-19 pandemic: Households with children at greatest risk of relinquishing a cat or dog
Authors: Carroll Grace A , Torjussen Alice , Reeve Catherine
Published: August 2023

Understanding the factors associated with companion animal relinquishment is key in safeguarding animal welfare and human well-being. The aims of this study were to assess the effect of demographic variables on risk of relinquishment of cats and dogs during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to report characteristics of those that relinquished a cat or dog, and the experience of said relinquishment process. A series of surveys were administered to pet owners (n = 3,945) across several countries including the UK, USA, Canada, Italy, Spain and France. In total, n = 1,324 reported having acquired their cat or dog via online means. There was no association between online source (search engines, breeder websites, rescue websites, online ad sites and social media) and relinquishment status (NCR1 [Never Considered Relinquishment] compared to CR_R [Considering Relinquishment or already Relinquished]. More participants from the USA considered or already had relinquished their cat or dog compared to the UK and Italy. Of those that have already given up their pet, 76.2% agreed that it was an emotionally difficult decision, while 100% agreed that it was, logically, the correct decision. Demographic characteristics in those that reported considering relinquishment or that had already relinquished (CR_R; n = 146) were compared to a comparison group that had never considered relinquishing their pet (NCR2; n = 193). Being a male-gendered pet-owner and a younger pet age increased the risk of relinquishment. Cats and dogs from households with children were 4.6 times more likely to consider or have already relinquished a cat or dog compared to those from households without children. Further research is needed to explore risk of relinquishment of cats and dogs when children are present in the home.
Remarks on labelling and determinacy
Authors: Kruger William W.
Published: August 2023

Work by Chomsky et al. (2019) and Epstein et al. (2018) develops a third-factor principle of computational efficiency called “Determinacy”, which rules out “ambiguous” syntactic rule-applications by requiring one-to-one correspondences between the input or output of a rule and a single term in the domain of that rule. This article first adopts the concept of “Input Determinacy” articulated by Goto and Ishii (2019, 2020), who apply Determinacy specifically to the input of operations like Merge, and then proposes to extend Determinacy to the labeling procedure developed by Chomsky (2013, 2015). In particular, Input Determinacy can explain restrictions on labeling in contexts where multiple potential labels are available (labeling ambiguity), and it can also provide an explanation for Chomsky's (2013, 2015) proposal that syntactic movement of an item (“Internal Merge”) renders that item invisible to the labeling procedure.
Epidemiology and preventability of hospital-onset bacteremia and fungemia in 2 hospitals in India
Authors: Gandra Sumanth , Singh Sanjeev K. , Chakravarthy Murali , Moni Merlin , Dhekane Pruthu , Mohamed Zubair , Shameen Fathima , Vasudevan Anil K. , Senthil Priyadarshini , Saravanan Tejaswini , George Anu , Sinclair Dorothy , Stwalley Dustin , van Rheenen Jacaranda , Westercamp Matthew , Smith Rachel M. , Leekha Surbhi , Warren David K.
Published: August 2023

Objective:

Studies evaluating the incidence, source, and preventability of hospital-onset bacteremia and fungemia (HOB), defined as any positive blood culture obtained after 3 calendar days of hospital admission, are lacking in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

Design, setting, and participants:

All consecutive blood cultures performed for 6 months during 2020–2021 in 2 hospitals in India were reviewed to assess HOB and National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) reportable central-line–associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) events. Medical records of a convenience sample of 300 consecutive HOB events were retrospectively reviewed to determine source and preventability. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to identify factors associated with HOB preventability.

Results:

Among 6,733 blood cultures obtained from 3,558 hospitalized patients, there were 409 and 59 unique HOB and NHSN-reportable CLABSI events, respectively. CLABSIs accounted for 59 (14%) of 409 HOB events. There was a moderate but non-significant correlation (r = 0.51; P = .070) between HOB and CLABSI rates. Among 300 reviewed HOB cases, CLABSIs were identified as source in only 38 (13%). Although 157 (52%) of all 300 HOB cases were potentially preventable, CLABSIs accounted for only 22 (14%) of these 157 preventable HOB events. In multivariable analysis, neutropenia, and sepsis as an indication for blood culture were associated with decreased odds of HOB preventability, whereas hospital stay ≥7 days and presence of a urinary catheter were associated with increased likelihood of preventability.

Conclusions:

HOB may have utility as a healthcare-associated infection metric in LMIC settings because it captures preventable bloodstream infections beyond NHSN-reportable CLABSIs.
Pregnancy and breastfeeding in mental health policy: a narrative review
Authors: McGuire E. , Murray S. , Duffy R. M.
Published: August 2023

Objectives:

Mental health difficulties are often exacerbated during the perinatal period. Policy and guidelines are increasingly being used to enhance the quality of healthcare. We conducted a literature review of published research relating to pregnancy and breastfeeding in mental health policy.

Methods:

Relevant terms were searched in Medline, CINAHL, APA PsycINFO and EMBASE for articles published in English from 1970 until 2020. Only papers that referenced policy, guidance, legislation or standards were included. While a systematic approach was used, the nature of the results necessitated a narrative review.

Results:

Initially, 262 papers were identified, 44 met the inclusion criteria. Reproductive health is given sparse consideration in research relating to mental health policy. Despite this, some key areas emerged. These included: the need for proactive preconception psychoeducation, proactive screening of mothers of infants and young children for perinatal mental health issues, enhanced prescribing practice for women of child-bearing age, enhanced monitoring during pregnancy, development of safe modification of coercive practices should they need to be employed in emergency circumstances and targeted measures to reduce substance misuse. Themes that arose relating to breastfeeding and bonding are also described.

Conclusions:

Female reproductive health is often ignored in research relating to mental health policy, guidelines and standards. These tools need to be harnessed to promote good healthcare. Reproductive health should be included in the care plan of all mental health patients. These topics need to be integrated into existing relevant policies and not isolated to a separate policy.
The potential and pitfalls of unit asking in reducing scope insensitivity
Authors: Moche Hajdi , Erlandsson Arvid , Dickert Stephan , Västfjäll Daniel
Published: August 2023

This article revisits and further investigates the extent to which scope insensitivity in helping contexts can be reduced by the unit asking (UA) method. UA is an intervention that first asks people to help one unit and then asks for willingness to help multiple units. In 3 studies (N = 3,442), participants took on the role of policymakers to allocate help (motivation to help and willingness to pay) to local aid projects. They underwent either UA or a control condition (in which they stated their willingness to help only to the multiple units). Against expectations, the first 2 studies found a reversed UA effect for helping motivation, such that help decreased when participants were in the UA condition. However, the third study found a UA effect for helping motivation when participants made the sequential assessments within one project (when the individual unit belonged to the multiple units-group), rather than between projects (when the individual unit belonged to another group). Thus, our results suggest that the 2 assessments critical for the UA method should be done within the same project rather than between 2 projects to successfully reduce scope insensitivity. Further, the age of the unit (child or adult), the number of the unit(s), the composition of the group (homogeneous or heterogeneous), and the size of the group did not substantially reduce scope insensitivity with UA.
Normal and stable approximation to subgraph counts in superpositions of Bernoulli random graphs
Authors: Bloznelis Mindaugas , Karjalainen Joona , Leskelä Lasse
Published: August 2023

Real networks often exhibit clustering, the tendency to form relatively small groups of nodes with high edge densities. This clustering property can cause large numbers of small and dense subgraphs to emerge in otherwise sparse networks. Subgraph counts are an important and commonly used source of information about the network structure and function. We study probability distributions of subgraph counts in a community affiliation graph. This is a random graph generated as an overlay of m partly overlapping independent Bernoulli random graphs (layers)
$G_1,\dots,G_m$
with variable sizes and densities. The model is parameterised by a joint distribution of layer sizes and densities. When m grows linearly in the number of nodes n, the model generates sparse random graphs with a rich statistical structure, admitting a nonvanishing clustering coefficient and a power-law limiting degree distribution. In this paper we establish the normal and
$\alpha$
-stable approximations to the numbers of small cliques, cycles, and more general 2-connected subgraphs of a community affiliation graph.
Colorful path detection in vertex-colored temporal
Authors: Dondi Riccardo , Hosseinzadeh Mohammad Mehdi
Published: August 2023

Finding paths is a fundamental problem in graph theory and algorithm design due to its many applications. Recently, this problem has been considered on temporal graphs, where edges may change over a discrete time domain. The analysis of graphs has also taken into account the relevance of vertex properties, modeled by assigning to vertices labels or colors. In this work, we deal with a problem that, given a static or temporal graph, whose vertices are colored graph looks for a path such that (1) the vertices of the path have distinct colors and (2) that path includes the maximum number of colors. We analyze the approximation complexity of the problem on static and temporal graphs, and we prove an inapproximability bound. Then, we consider the problem on temporal graphs, and we design a heuristic for it. We present an experimental evaluation of our heuristic, both on synthetic and real-world graphs. The experimental results show that for many instances of the problem, our method is able to return near-optimal solutions.
Statistical analysis of kicked black holes from TNG300 simulation
Authors: Smole M. , Micic M.
Published: August 2023

Asymmetric emission of gravitational waves during mergers of black holes (BHs) produces a recoil kick, which can set a newly formed BH on a bound orbit around the centre of its host galaxy, or even completely eject it. To study this population of recoiling BHs we extract properties of galaxies with merging BHs from Illustris TNG300 simulation and then employ both analytical and numerical techniques to model unresolved process of BH recoil. This comparative analysis between analytical and numerical models shows that, on cosmological scales, numerically modelled recoiling BHs have a higher escape probability and predict a greater number of offset active galactic nuclei (AGN). BH escaped probability

$>$

40% is expected in 25

$\%$

of merger remnants in numerical models, compared to 8

$\%$

in analytical models. At the same time, the predicted number of offset AGN at separations

${>}5$

kpc changes from 58

$\%$

for numerical models to 3

$\%$

for analytical models. Since BH ejections in major merger remnants occur in non-virialised systems, static analytical models cannot provide an accurate description. Thus we argue that numerical models should be used to estimate the expected number density of escaped BHs and offset AGN.
What Do Americans Want from (Private) Government? Experimental Evidence Demonstrates that Americans Want Workplace Democracy
Authors: MAZUMDER SOUMYAJIT , YAN ALAN N.
Published: August 2023

A majority of Americans spend a substantial amount of time at work where they have little to no say over many issues—a phenomenon that philosophers have likened to a “private government” that resembles a dictatorship. Is this because Americans are indifferent to or even prefer to work for firms that resemble dictatorships? To answer this question, we field a conjoint experiment on a nationally-representative sample of Americans to isolate public preferences over “corporate regime type.” We find that Americans prefer workplace democracy. In a second experiment, we find that most Americans support workplace democracy even after being exposed to framing emphasizing democratization’s costs. The results suggest that social scientists must look beyond public opinion to understand the lack of workplace democracy in the United States. This article forges new ground by applying a political science lens to corporate governance—a field ripe with politics but bereft of political science.
Informational Holdup by Venture Capital Syndicates
Authors: Hong Suting , Mella-Barral Pierre
Published: August 2023

We argue that syndicates associate venture capitalists (VCs) with uneven skill levels in order to lower their expected gains from threatening to stop financing: Non-continued participation would send a milder negative signal to alternative financiers. This can explain the empirical observations that i) early-round syndicates regularly associate VCs with different levels of experience and ii) follow-on syndicates often involve none of the early-round VCs. Consistent with the theory, we find empirically that the heterogeneity of VC experience levels in a syndicate is i) negatively related to the extent to which the founders of the VC-backed firm are professionally well connected and ii) positively related to the likelihood of syndicate switching in a later round.
Democrats’ Mistakes and the Birth of Authoritarian Rule: Ramón S. Castillo and the Fall of Conservative Democracy in Argentina
Authors: Taccone Nicolás , López Ignacio A.
Published: August 2023

On 4 June 1943, a military coup crushed Argentina's democracy, marking the end of the oligarchic era and ‘planting the seeds’ of Peronism. This case sheds light on how rulers’ mistakes can operate as a key independent variable in producing regime changes. We argue that the former conservative president, Ramón S. Castillo, provoked an otherwise avoidable democratic breakdown. Specifically, Castillo's misguided relationships with regime insiders and outsiders unintentionally eroded political stability and triggered the fall of democracy. Until now, agent-based scholarship has fallen short in tracing incumbents’ mistakes and linking them to regime-change processes. We test the argument by conducting a within-case analysis of Argentina's democratic fall in the early 1940s, scrutinising the president's errors at five critical events. We conclude that critical-event analysis can help disentangle the role of leaders’ mistakes in other episodes of regime change.
Rich Poverty: 2 Corinthians 8.1–15 and the Social Meaning of Poverty and Wealth
Authors: Barclay John M.G.
Published: August 2023

This article, originally presented as the Presidential Address at the 2022 SNTS Meeting in Leuven, explores the ways in which Paul configures giving and ‘wealth’, both in relation to the Macedonians and Corinthians (as contributors to the Jerusalem collection) and in relation to Christ. Drawing on the dream-interpretations of Artemidorus, it illustrates how ‘wealth’ could be understood in antiquity as performance rather than possession: one is wealthy in giving and not (or not only) in having. In this light, Paul offers a striking image of the Macedonians who in their poverty were ‘rich’ in their unreserved commitment to the collection, fulfilling the dream of the poor by acquiring the dignity of giving. The Christological statement of 2 Cor 8.9 can also be understood (and integrated) in a new way: it was in his wealth (of self-sharing) that Christ became poor (in the weakness of the cross), so that the Corinthians, participating in this momentum, might become ‘rich’ in the same self-giving of Christ. Although grace and money are not identical, neither are they unrelated ‘economies’: the grace of the Christ-event transforms its beneficiaries into givers, rich in multiple forms of generosity, including material gift. The text thus evidences principles of a non-competitive mode of social relations operative in the material sphere, with the capacity to stimulate a theological challenge to dehumanising forms of capitalism.
The Second Teacher's Story in the Infancy Gospel of Thomas: A Contribution to the Recent Discussion on the Developmental Interpretation
Authors: Cielontko David
Published: August 2023

The article explains the problematic Second Teacher episode in the so-called developmental interpretation of IGT recently proposed by M. R. Whitenton and J. R. C. Cousland. The article shows that the killing of the second teacher in the text of Gs, which is appropriately identified as problematic for the developmental interpretation, appears to be a later version of the episode that most likely already sought to supplement a more original account. In the earliest recoverable form, preserved in the early versions (Syriac, Latin and Ethiopic), the story consistently does not blame Jesus for the death of the second teacher, either in the episode itself or in the other passages. So in the earliest surviving version(s), the teacher dies but not because of a curse from Jesus. Therefore, this episode does not disturb the so-called developmental interpretation.
Modelling mass drug administration strategies for reducing scabies burden in Monrovia, Liberia
Authors: Tellioglu Nefel , Chisholm Rebecca H. , Campbell Patricia Therese , Collinson Shelui , Timothy Joseph , Kollie Karsor , Zayzay Samuel , Devine Angela , McVernon Jodie , Marks Michael , Geard Nicholas
Published: August 2023

Scabies is a parasitic infestation with high global burden. Mass drug administrations (MDAs) are recommended for communities with a scabies prevalence of >10%. Quantitative analyses are needed to demonstrate the likely effectiveness of MDA recommendations. In this study, we developed an agent-based model of scabies transmission calibrated to demographic and epidemiological data from Monrovia. We used this model to compare the effectiveness of MDA scenarios for achieving scabies elimination and reducing scabies burden, as measured by time until recrudescence following delivery of an MDA and disability-adjusted-life-years (DALYs) averted. Our model showed that three rounds of MDA delivered at six-month intervals and reaching 80% of the population could reduce prevalence below 2% for three years following the final round, before recrudescence. When MDAs were followed by increased treatment uptake, prevalence was maintained below 2% indefinitely. Increasing the number of and coverage of MDA rounds increased the probability of achieving elimination and the number of DALYs averted. Our results suggest that acute reduction of scabies prevalence by MDA can support a transition to improved treatment access. This study demonstrates how modelling can be used to estimate the expected impact of MDAs by projecting future epidemiological dynamics and health gains under alternative scenarios.
Neighbors, the Jedwabne Massacre of Jews and the Controversy that Changed Poland
Authors: Machcewicz Paweł
Published: August 2023

There are not many other cases when one single book about history, written by an academic, not only provoked a massive and stormy nationwide debate involving mass media, political leaders and bishops, but also unleashed processes that strongly influenced the self-perceptions of a nation, opening the way for ground-breaking new historical research and, at the same time, for political responses which had a tangible impact on the direction in which the whole country moved. It was all achieved by a not very long historical essay (around 100 pages in Polish, 170 pages in the subsequent English-language edition, excluding photographs, maps, indexes) by Jan Tomasz Gross.1 Its subject was the massacre of almost all Jews (the number is still debatable: between several hundred to 1,600 – the latter number claimed by Gross) living in the small town of Jedwabne in German-occupied Poland, committed by their Polish neighbours in July 1941. After its Polish debut, the book was translated into thirteen languages.
Are There Any Conventional Obligations?
Authors: Monti Ezequiel
Published: August 2023

There are reasons to believe that conventional obligations are impossible. Thus, it could be argued that for me to have an obligation to Φ in virtue of the fact that a convention so requires, it must be the case that I have a convention-independent obligation to do something else such that, given the existence of the convention, Φing is a way of doing just that. But, then, my obligation to Φ would not really be conventional at all. On closer inspection, so-called conventional obligations turn out to be no more than a specification of what our nonconventional obligations require given the circumstances. In this paper, I shall argue that contra to what this argument suggests, there can be genuinely conventional obligations. To do so, I develop a second-personal account of conventional obligations, according to which obligations are grounded by conventions in virtue of an explanation that does not follow the indicated pattern.
Orbital Forcing and Evolution of the Southern African Monsoon From Late Miocene to Early Pliocene
Authors: de Azevedo Allana Queiroz , Jiménez‐Espejo Francisco J. , Bulian Francesca , Sierro Francisco J. , Tangunan Deborah , Takashimizu Yasuhiro , Albuquerque Ana Luiza S. , Kubota Kaoru , Escutia Carlota , Norris Richard D. , Hemming Sidney R. , Hall Ian R.
Published: August 2023

The late Miocene‐early Pliocene (7.4‐4.5 Ma) is a key interval in Earth's history where intense reorganization of atmospheric and ocean circulation occurred within a global cooling scenario. The Southern African monsoon (SAFM) potentially played an important role in climate systems variability during this interval. However, the dynamics of this important atmospheric system is poorly understood due to the scarcity of continuous records. Here, we present an exceptional continuous late Miocene to early Pliocene reconstruction of SAFM based on elemental geochemistry (Ca/Ti and Si/K ratios), stable isotope geochemistry (δ18O and δ13C recorded in the planktonic foraminiferaOrbulina universa), and marine sediment grain size data from the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Site U1476 located at the entrance of the Mozambique Channel. Spectral characteristics of the Si/K ratio (fluvial input) was used to identify the main orbital forcing controlling SAFM. Precession cycles governed precipitation from 7.4 to ∼6.9 Ma and during the early Pliocene. From ∼6.9 to ∼5.9 Ma, the precession and long eccentricity cycles drove the SAFM. The major Antarctic ice sheet expansion across this interval appear to influence the isotopic records ofO. universaimprinting its long‐term variability signal as a response to the ocean and atmospheric reorganization. Precession cycles markedly weakened from 5.9 to 5.3 Ma, almost the same period when the Mediterranean Outflow Water ceased. These findings highlight important teleconnections among the SAFM, Mediterranean Sea, and other tropical regions.
The Influence of Confining Pressure and Preexisting Damage on Strain Localization in Fluid‐Saturated Crystalline Rocks in the Upper Crust
Authors: McBeck Jessica , Cordonnier Benoît , Ben‐Zion Yehuda , Renard François
Published: August 2023

The spatial organization of deformation may provide key information about the timing of catastrophic failure in the brittle regime. In an ideal homogenous system, deformation may continually localize toward macroscopic failure, and so increasing localization unambiguously signals approaching failure. However, recent analyses demonstrate that deformation, including low‐magnitude seismicity, and fractures and strain in triaxial compression experiments, experience temporary phases of delocalization superposed on an overall trend of localization toward large failure events. To constrain the conditions that promote delocalization, we perform a series of X‐ray tomography experiments at varying confining pressures (5–20 MPa) and fluid pressures (0–10 MPa) on Westerly granite cores with varying amounts of preexisting damage. We track the spatial distribution of the strain events with the highest magnitudes of the population within a given time step. The results show that larger confining pressure promotes more dilation, and promotes greater localization of the high strain events approaching macroscopic failure. In contrast, greater amounts of preexisting damage promote delocalization. Importantly, the dilative strain experiences more systematic localization than the shear strain, and so may provide more reliable information about the timing of catastrophic failure than the shear strain.
High Q-factor reconfigurable microresonators induced in side-coupled optical fibres
Authors: Vassiliev Victor , Sumetsky Michael
Published: August 2023

High Q-factor monolithic optical microresonators found numerous applications in classical and quantum optical signal processing, microwave photonics, ultraprecise sensing, as well as fundamental optical and physical sciences. However, due to the solid structure of these microresonators, attaining the free spectral range tunability of most of them, critical for several of these applications, was, so far, unfeasible. To address this problem, here we experimentally demonstrate that the side-coupling of coplanar bent optical fibres can induce a high Q-factor whispering gallery mode optical microresonator. By changing the curvature radius of fibres from the centimetre order to the millimetre order, we demonstrate fully mechanically reconfigurable optical microresonators with dimensions varying from the millimetre order to 100-micron order and free spectral range varying from a picometre to ten picometre order. The developed theory describes the formation of the discovered microresonators and their major properties in a reasonable agreement with the experimental data. The new microresonators may find applications in cavity QED, microresonator optomechanics, frequency comb generation with tuneable repetition rate, tuneable lasing, and tuneable processing and delay of optical pulses.
T-cell phenotype including CD57+ T follicular helper cells in the tumor microenvironment correlate with a poor outcome in follicular lymphoma
Authors: Yang Zhi-Zhang , Kim Hyo Jin , Wu Hongyan , Tang Xinyi , Yu Yue , Krull Jordan , Larson Daniel P. , Moore Raymond M. , Maurer Matthew J. , Pavelko Kevin D. , Jalali Shahrzad , Pritchett Joshua C. , Mudappathi Rekha , Wang Junwen , Villasboas Jose C. , Mondello Patrizia , Novak Anne J. , Ansell Stephen M.
Published: August 2023

T-lymphocytes are prevalent in the tumor microenvironment of follicular lymphoma (FL). However, the phenotype of T-cells may vary, and the prevalence of certain T-cell subsets may influence tumor biology and patient survival. We therefore analyzed a cohort of 82 FL patients using CyTOF to determine whether specific T-cell phenotypes were associated with distinct tumor microenvironments and patient outcome. We identified four immune subgroups with differing T-cell phenotypes and the prevalence of certain T-cell subsets was associated with patient survival. Patients with increased T cells with early differentiation stage tended to have a significantly better survival than patients with increased T-cells of late differentiation stage. Specifically, CD57+ TFH cells, with a late-stage differentiation phenotype, were significantly more abundant in FL patients who had early disease progression and therefore correlated with an inferior survival. Single cell analysis (CITE-seq) revealed that CD57+ TFH cells exhibited a substantially different transcriptome from CD57− TFH cells with upregulation of inflammatory pathways, evidence of immune exhaustion and susceptibility to apoptosis. Taken together, our results show that different tumor microenvironments among FL patients are associated with variable T-cell phenotypes and an increased prevalence of CD57+ TFH cells is associated with poor patient survival.
Long-term outcomes of allogeneic stem cell transplant in multiple myeloma
Authors: Schmidt Walker M. , Perera Nirosha D. , Buadi Francis K. , Hayman Suzanne R. , Kumar Shaji K. , Dispenzieri Angela , Dingli David , Cook Joselle , Lacy Martha Q. , Kapoor Prashant , Leung Nelson , Muchtar Eli , Warsame Rahma M. , Kourelis Taxiarchis , Binder Moritz , Gonsalves Wilson I. , Hogan William J. , Gertz Morie A.
Published: August 2023

Allogeneic stem cell transplant (allo SCT) for multiple myeloma (MM) is potentially curative in some, while toxic in many others. We retrospectively analyzed 85 patients diagnosed with MM who underwent allo SCT as frontline or salvage therapy between 2000 and 2022 at Mayo Clinic Rochester and examined patient outcomes and prognostic markers. Overall survival (OS), progression free survival (PFS), treatment related mortality (TRM), and relapse rates (RR) were estimated using the Kaplan Meier method and competing risk models. Median follow-up was 11.5 years. Median OS and PFS were 1.7 and 0.71 years, respectively. Five-year OS and PFS were 22.2% and 15.1%, respectively. One-year TRM was 23.5%. Twelve patients demonstrated durable overall survival, living 10+ years beyond their allo SCT. This subgroup was more likely to have no or one prior auto SCT (p = 0.03) and to have been transplanted between 2000 and 2010 (p = 0.03). Outcomes were poor in this cohort with long follow-up, with few patients surviving 5 years or more, and most relapsing or dying within 2 years. We would expect better outcomes and tolerability with an expanded array of novel therapeutics and would prefer them to allo SCT.
Ascitic autotaxin as a potential prognostic, diagnostic, and therapeutic target for epithelial ovarian cancer
Authors: Choi Jung-A , Kim Hyosun , Kwon Hyunja , Lee Elizabeth Hyeji , Cho Hanbyoul , Chung Joon-Yong , Kim Jae-Hoon
Published: August 2023

Background

Malignant ascites contributes to the metastatic process by facilitating the multifocal dissemination of ovarian tumour cells onto the peritoneal surface. However, the prognostic and diagnostic relevance of ascitic fluid remains largely unknown. Herein, we investigated the potential clinical value and therapeutic utility of ascitic autotaxin (ATX) in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC).

Methods

ATX expression was assessed in clinical samples. Spheroid-forming assay, real-time PCR, western blot analysis, invadopodia assay, and adhesion assays were performed.

Results

Ascitic ATX expression was highly elevated in patients with ovarian cancer compared to those with benign ascites and was associated with advanced stage, high grade, and a short disease-free period in patients with EOC. Combining the diagnostic ability of ascitic ATX and serum CA-125 levels significantly improved the area under the curve (AUC) value for EOC compared to serum CA125 level alone. This marker combination showed a large odds ratio for short disease-free period in high-risk EOC groups. Functional studies revealed that ascitic ATX was required for maintaining cancer stem cell-like characteristics and invadopodia formation.

Conclusion

Ascitic ATX levels may serve as a useful prognostic indicator for predicting aggressive behaviour in EOC. ATX-linked invadopodia are a potential target to prevent peritoneal dissemination in ovarian cancer.
Reactivated endogenous retroviruses promote protein aggregate spreading
Authors: Liu Shu , Heumüller Stefanie-Elisabeth , Hossinger André , Müller Stephan A. , Buravlova Oleksandra , Lichtenthaler Stefan F. , Denner Philip , Vorberg Ina M.
Published: August 2023

Prion-like spreading of protein misfolding is a characteristic of neurodegenerative diseases, but the exact mechanisms of intercellular protein aggregate dissemination remain unresolved. Evidence accumulates that endogenous retroviruses, remnants of viral germline infections that are normally epigenetically silenced, become upregulated in neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and tauopathies. Here we uncover that activation of endogenous retroviruses affects prion-like spreading of proteopathic seeds. We show that upregulation of endogenous retroviruses drastically increases the dissemination of protein aggregates between cells in culture, a process that can be inhibited by targeting the viral envelope protein or viral protein processing. Human endogenous retrovirus envelopes of four different clades also elevate intercellular spreading of proteopathic seeds, including pathological Tau. Our data support a role of endogenous retroviruses in protein misfolding diseases and suggest that antiviral drugs could represent promising candidates for inhibiting protein aggregate spreading.
High-throughput analysis of Fröhlich-type polaron models
Authors: de Melo Pedro Miguel M. C. , de Abreu Joao C. , Guster Bogdan , Giantomassi Matteo , Zanolli Zeila , Gonze Xavier , Verstraete Matthieu J.
Published: August 2023

The electron–phonon interaction is central to condensed matter, e.g. through electrical resistance, superconductivity or the formation of polarons, and has a strong impact on observables such as band gaps or optical spectra. The most common framework for band energy corrections is the Fröhlich model, which often agrees qualitatively with experiments in polar materials, but has limits for complex cases. A generalized version includes anisotropic and degenerate electron bands, and multiple phonons. In this work, we identify trends and outliers for the Fröhlich models on 1260 materials. We test the limits of the Fröhlich models and their perturbative treatment, in particular the large polaron hypothesis. Among our extended dataset most materials host perturbative large polarons, but there are many instances that are non-perturbative and/or localize on distances of a few bond lengths. We find a variety of behaviors, and analyze extreme cases with huge zero-point renormalization using the first-principles Allen-Heine-Cardona approach.
Strategic considerations on developing a CHIKV vaccine and ensuring equitable access for countries in need
Authors: Cherian Neil , Bettis Alison , Deol Arminder , Kumar Arun , Di Fabio Jose Luis , Chaudhari Amol , Yimer Solomon , Fahim Raafat , Endy Timothy
Published: August 2023

Chikungunya is an arboviral disease caused by the chikungunya virus (CHIKV) afflicting tropical and sub-tropical countries worldwide. It has been identified as a priority pathogen by the Coalition for Epidemics Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and as an emerging infectious disease (EID) necessitating further action as soon as possible by the World Health Organization (WHO). Recent studies suggest that disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) due to CHIKV infection are as high as 106,089 DALYs lost globally. Significant progress has been made in the development of several vaccines, aimed at preventing CHIKV infections. This perspective article summarizes CEPI’s efforts and strategic considerations for developing a CHIKV vaccine and ensuring equitable access for CHIKV endemic countries.
One-carbon metabolizing enzyme ALDH1L1 influences mitochondrial metabolism through 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleotide accumulation and serine depletion, contributing to tumor suppression
Authors: Sasaki Masato , Yamamoto Kazuo , Ueda Takeshi , Irokawa Hayato , Takeda Kouki , Sekine Ryoya , Itoh Fumie , Tanaka Yutaka , Kuge Shusuke , Shibata Nobuyuki
Published: August 2023

Tumor cells generally require large amounts of nucleotides, and thus activate de novo purine synthesis (dnPS). In the dnPS reactions, 10-formyltetrahydorofolate (10-fTHF) supplied by one-carbon metabolism is utilized as a formyl group donor. We focused on aldehyde dehydrogenase 1 family member L1 (ALDH1L1), which metabolizes 10-fTHF to tetrahydrofolate and whose expression is often attenuated in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We generated ALDH1L1-expressing HuH-7 cells to perform metabolome analysis and found that intracellular levels of serine were reduced and glycine was increased. In addition, 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleotide (ZMP), a dnPS intermediate, accumulated due to the consumption of 10-fTHF by ALDH1L1, which inhibited ZMP formylation. Importantly, ALDH1L1-expressing cells showed reduced ZMP sensitivity and higher mitochondrial activity. The suppression of mitochondrial serine catabolism by ALDH1L1 expression was speculated to be closely related to this phenotype. Gene set enrichment analysis utilizing The Cancer Genome Atlas data revealed that genes related to oxidative phosphorylation were enriched in HCC patients with high ALDH1L1 expression. Moreover, drug sensitivity data analysis demonstrated that HCC cell lines with low expression of ALDH1L1 were sensitive to ZMP and cordycepin, a structural analog of ZMP and AMP. Our study revealed that ZMP and AMP analogs might be effective in the pharmacotherapy of HCC patients with low expression of ALDH1L1.
Antimicrobial and mechanical assessment of cellulose-based thermoformable material for invisible dental braces with natural essential oils protecting from biofilm formation
Authors: Astasov-Frauenhoffer Monika , Göldi Livia , Rohr Nadja , Worreth Sarah , Dard Elise , Hünerfauth Selina , Töpper Tino , Zurflüh Jonas , Braissant Olivier
Published: August 2023

Controlling biofilm formation in the oral cavity during orthodontic treatments is crucial. Therefore, antimicrobial surfaces for invisible dental appliances are of interest to both therapists and patients. Here we present a cellulose-based thermoformable material used for invisible braces that can be loaded with essential oils (EOs) having antibacterial and antifungal properties. We hypothesize that this material can absorb and release EOs, thus providing an antimicrobial effect without compromising the safety and mechanical properties necessary for dental invisible braces. Conventional microbiology and isothermal microcalorimetry analyses revealed that the thermoformable material loaded with essential oils significantly delayed the biofilm formation of oral streptococci (S. mutans and S. mitis) under static conditions (p < 0.05) and while simulating saliva flow (p < 0.05). In addition, cytotoxicity tests (ISO 10993-5), revealed that the loaded material is well tolerated by human gingival fibroblasts. Finally, the loading with antibacterial agents did not significantly alter the mechanical properties and stability of the material (initial force (p = 0.916); initial stress (p = 0.465)). Compared to gold-standard clear aligner materials, this material offers a reliable transmission of forces for orthodontic treatments. Moreover, this approach exhibits the potential for acting as an oral drug delivery platform for multiple compounds.