bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Validation of online delivery of the Australian Pelvic Floor Questionnaire in an Irish obstetric population
Authors: O’Leary Bobby D. , Keane Declan P.
Published: April 2023

Introduction and hypothesis

Childbirth remains an important risk factor for the development of pelvic floor disorders, regardless of the mode of delivery. To accurately assess these symptoms, accurate, woman-centric assessments are needed. Online versions of these assessments may be especially useful in the COVID-19 era. Women may potentially answer questions differently in an online format, and this study aimed to validate an online version of the paper-based self-administered Australian Pelvic Floor Questionnaire (APFQ).

Methods

The questionnaire was completed antenatally and at 3 months postpartum by 647 and 481 women respectively. Test– validity was assessed in subgroups of 61 and 57 women in each period, using intraclass correlation coefficients and Cohen’s kappa. Sensitivity to change was assessed by comparing responses during pregnancy to those at 3 months postpartum. Internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha. Construct validity was assessed by comparing women with and without subjective bothersomeness.

Results

Intraclass correlation coefficients were above 0.9 for all domains and the overall questionnaire. Cohen’s kappa for individual questions ranged from 0.71–1.00 across the antenatal and postnatal questionnaires. Cronbach’s alpha was acceptable for all domains except the prolapse domain. The APFQ was sensitive to changes occurring between antenatal recruitment and 3 months postpartum. Effect sizes ranged from 0.83–7.99.

Conclusions

This online version of the APFQ is valid for assessing pelvic floor disorders in an Irish obstetric population. The APFQ is reproducible and responsive to change occurring with childbirth, and can be used to research longitudinal changes in pelvic floor disorders. As an online tool, this questionnaire may be useful in increasing response rates to clinical research.
A Data-Driven Approach to Viscous Fluid Mechanics: The Stationary Case
Authors: Lienstromberg Christina , Schiffer Stefan , Schubert Richard
Published: April 2023

We introduce a data-driven approach to the modelling and analysis of viscous fluid mechanics. Instead of including constitutive laws for the fluid’s viscosity in the mathematical model, we suggest directly using experimental data. Only a set of differential constraints, derived from first principles, and boundary conditions are kept of the classical PDE model and are combined with a data set. The mathematical framework builds on the recently introduced data-driven approach to solid-mechanics (Kirchdoerfer and Ortiz in Comput Methods Appl Mech Eng 304:81–101, 2016; Conti et al. in Arch Ration Mech Anal 229:79–123, 2018). We construct optimal data-driven solutions that are material model free in the sense that no assumptions on the rheological behaviour of the fluid are made or extrapolated from the data. The differential constraints of fluid mechanics are recast in the language of constant rank differential operators. Adapting abstract results on lower-semicontinuity and $${\mathscr {A}}$$
A
-quasiconvexity, we show a $$\Gamma $$
Γ
-convergence result for the functionals arising in the data-driven fluid mechanical problem. The theory is extended to compact nonlinear perturbations, whence our results apply not only to inertialess fluids but also to fluids with inertia. Data-driven solutions provide a new relaxed solution concept. We prove that the constructed data-driven solutions are consistent with solutions to the classical PDEs of fluid mechanics if the data sets have the form of a monotone constitutive relation.
On the way to SI traceable primary transfer standards for amount of substance measurements in inorganic chemical analysis
Authors: Matschat Ralf , Richter Silke , Vogl Jochen , Kipphardt Heinrich
Published: April 2023

During its 25 years of existence, the Inorganic Analysis Working Group of the Consultative Committee for Amount of Substance: Metrology in Chemistry and Biology (CCQM IAWG) has achieved much in establishing comparability of measurement results. Impressive work has been done on comparison exercises related to real-world problems in fields such as ecology, food, or health. In more recent attempts, measurements and comparisons were focused on calibration solutions which are the basis of most inorganic chemical measurements. This contribution deals with the question of how to achieve full and transparent SI traceability for the values carried by such solutions. Within this framework, the use of classical primary methods (CPMs) is compared to the use of a primary difference method (PDM). PDM is a method with a dual character, namely a metrological method with a primary character, based on the bundling of many measurement methods for individual impurities, which lead to materials with certified content of the main component. As in classical methods, where small corrections for interferences are accepted, in PDM, many small corrections are bundled. In contrast to classical methods, the PDM is universally applicable to all elements in principle. Both approaches can be used to certify the purity (expressed as mass fraction of the main element) of a high-purity material. This is where the metrological need of National Metrology Institutes (NMIs) for analytical methods meet the challenges of analytical methods. In terms of methods, glow discharge mass spectrometry (GMDS) with sufficient uncertainties for sufficiently small impurity contents is particularly noteworthy for the certification of primary transfer standards (PTS), and isotope dilution mass spectrometry (IDMS), which particularly benefits from PTS (back-spikes) with small uncertainties, is particularly noteworthy for the application. The corresponding relative uncertainty which can be achieved using the PDM is very low (< 10−4). Acting as PTS, they represent the link between the material aspect of the primary calibration solutions and the immaterial world of the International System of Units (SI). The underlying concepts are discussed, the current status of implementation is summarised, and a roadmap of the necessary future activities in inorganic analytical chemistry is sketched. It has to be noted that smaller measurement uncertainties of the purity of high-purity materials not only have a positive effect on chemical measurements, but also trigger new developments and findings in other disciplines such as thermometry or materials science.

Graphical Abstract 

Primary Transfer Standards (PTSs) are the link between the immaterial world of the International System of Units (SI) and the material aspects of the primary calibration solutions.
Best Practices in Microbial Experimental Evolution: Using Reporters and Long-Read Sequencing to Identify Copy Number Variation in Experimental Evolution
Authors: Spealman Pieter , De Titir , Chuong Julie N. , Gresham David
Published: April 2023

Copy number variants (CNVs), comprising gene amplifications and deletions, are a pervasive class of heritable variation. CNVs play a key role in rapid adaptation in both natural, and experimental, evolution. However, despite the advent of new DNA sequencing technologies, detection and quantification of CNVs in heterogeneous populations has remained challenging. Here, we summarize recent advances in the use of CNV reporters that provide a facile means of quantifying de novo CNVs at a specific locus in the genome, and nanopore sequencing, for resolving the often complex structures of CNVs. We provide guidance for the engineering and analysis of CNV reporters and practical guidelines for single-cell analysis of CNVs using flow cytometry. We summarize recent advances in nanopore sequencing, discuss the utility of this technology, and provide guidance for the bioinformatic analysis of these data to define the molecular structure of CNVs. The combination of reporter systems for tracking and isolating CNV lineages and long-read DNA sequencing for characterizing CNV structures enables unprecedented resolution of the mechanisms by which CNVs are generated and their evolutionary dynamics.
Personal and Professional Mitigation Behavioral Intentions of Agricultural Experts to Address Climate Change
Authors: Zobeidi Tahereh , Yazdanpanah Masoud , Warner Laura A. , Lamm Alexa , Löhr Katharina , Sieber Stefan
Published: April 2023

Mitigation activities, whether at the personal level relating to lifestyle or on the professional level, especially in the agriculture sector, are widely encouraged by scientists and policymakers. This research empirically analyses the association between agricultural experts’ perceptions about climate change and their intention to implement climate change mitigation. Based on survey data, individuals’ reported intention to implement personal and professional mitigation behavior is explained using a conceptual model. The structural equation modeling results suggest that the new ecological paradigm (NEP), institutional trust, and risk salience indirectly influence climate change mitigation intentions. The findings indicate that risk perception, personal efficacy, responsibility, belief in climate change occurring, and low psychological distance trigger a significantly greater intention to support personal and professional mitigation behaviors. However, the research framework is much stronger at predicting the intention to mitigate climate change in professional affairs compared to personal activities. The findings suggest that hypothetical distance factors only have a moderating effect on the relationship between higher climate change environmental values, institutional trust, risk salience, and mitigation intention. This paper analytically explores the regulating role of risk perception, hypothetical distance, personal efficacy, and responsibility between institutional trust, risk salience, and the NEP as independent concepts and intention to personal and professional mitigation behaviors as dependent variables. The findings of the study have important implications for encouraging personal and professional mitigation behaviors.
Agroecology Can Promote Climate Change Adaptation Outcomes Without Compromising Yield In Smallholder Systems
Authors: Dittmer Kyle M. , Rose Sabrina , Snapp Sieglinde S. , Kebede Yodit , Brickman Sarah , Shelton Sadie , Egler Cecelia , Stier Milena , Wollenberg Eva
Published: April 2023

A critical question is whether agroecology can promote climate change mitigation and adaptation outcomes without compromising food security. We assessed the outcomes of smallholder agricultural systems and practices in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) against 35 mitigation, adaptation, and yield indicators by reviewing 50 articles with 77 cases of agroecological treatments relative to a baseline of conventional practices. Crop yields were higher for 63% of cases reporting yields. Crop diversity, income diversity, net income, reduced income variability, nutrient regulation, and reduced pest infestation, indicators of adaptative capacity, were associated with 70% or more of cases. Limited information on climate change mitigation, such as greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration impacts, was available. Overall, the evidence indicates that use of organic nutrient sources, diversifying systems with legumes and integrated pest management lead to climate change adaptation in multiple contexts. Landscape mosaics, biological control (e.g., enhancement of beneficial organisms) and field sanitation measures do not yet have sufficient evidence based on this review. Widespread adoption of agroecological practices and system transformations shows promise to contribute to climate change services and food security in LMICs. Gaps in adaptation and mitigation strategies and areas for policy and research interventions are finally discussed.
Percutaneous Transhepatic Gallbladder Intervention as a Bridge to Cholecystectomy: Aspiration or Drainage?
Authors: Nakamura Yuki , Kuwahara Mai , Ito Kyoji , Inagaki Fuyuki , Mihara Fuminori , Takemura Nobuyuki , Kokudo Norihiro
Published: April 2023

Background

Percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder aspiration (PTGBA) and percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage (PTGBD) are often the first‐line treatments for acute cholecystitis, instead of surgical cholecystectomy. This retrospective study aimed to compare the treatment outcomes of PTGBA and PTGBD and evaluate the risks of treatment failure among patients undergoing PTGBA before surgical cholecystectomy.

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed 99 patients who underwent PTGBA or PTGBD as the first‐line treatment before surgical cholecystectomy, between January 2014 and December 2019. Patient characteristics, computed tomography (CT) findings, and post‐treatment outcomes were compared between the PTGBA and PTGBD groups. Additionally, risk factors, including CT findings for PTGBA failure, were assessed using multivariate univariate analysis with a backward selection model.

Results

Acute cholecystitis was not controlled in 21 of 47 (44.7%) patients in the PTGBA group and one of 52 patients (1.9%) in the PTGBD group (P < .001). Subsequent multiple logistic regression analysis identified the contrast effect of the gallbladder bed in the arterial phase of contrast‐enhanced CT (odds ratio [OR] 9.17, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.08–40.4, P = 0.003) and onset within 3 days (odds ratio [OR] 6.29, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.37–29.0, P = 0.018) as independent risk factors for PTGBA failure.

Conclusions

PTGBA is more prone to failure than PTGBD; however, it is a simpler gallbladder drainage treatment method without the need for X‐ray fluoroscopy and catheter management after the procedure. Evaluating the risk of PTGBA failure using CT findings and onset date would help us choose a drainage approach more effectively.
Radiofrequency Ablation Provides Rapid and Durable Pain Relief for the Palliative Treatment of Lytic Bone Metastases Independent of Radiation Therapy: Final Results from the OsteoCool Tumor Ablation Post-Market Study
Authors: Levy Jason , David Elizabeth , Hopkins Thomas , Morris Jonathan , Tran Nam D. , Farid Hamed , Massari Francesco , O’Connell William G. , Vogel Alexander , Gangi Afshin , Sunenshine Peter , Dixon Robert , Von der Höh Nicolas , Bagla Sandeep
Published: April 2023

Purpose

The OsteoCool Tumor Ablation Post-Market Study (OPuS One) was a prospective, multi-national, single-arm study to investigate safety and effectiveness of radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for palliation of painful lytic bone metastases with 12 months of follow-up. RFA has demonstrated effective palliation of osseous metastases in small clinical studies with short-term follow-up; however, a long-term assessment with robust subject numbers is lacking.

Materials and Methods

Prospective assessments were conducted at Baseline, 3 days, 1 week, and 1, 3, 6, and 12-months. Pain and quality of life were measured prior to RFA and postoperatively using the Brief Pain Inventory, European Quality of Life—5 Dimension, and European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Care Quality of Life Questionnaire for palliative care. Radiation, chemotherapy and opioid usage, and related adverse events were collected.

Results

206 subjects were treated with RFA at 15 institutions in OPuS One. Worst pain, average pain, pain interference and quality of life significantly improved at all visits starting 3 days post-RFA and sustained to 12 months (P < 0.0001). Post hoc analysis found neither systemic chemotherapy nor local radiation therapy at the index site of RFA influenced worst pain, average pain, or pain interference. Six subjects had device/procedure-related adverse events.

Conclusion

RFA for lytic metastases provides rapid (within 3 days) and statistically significant pain and quality of life improvements with sustained long-term relief through 12 months and a high degree of safety, independent of radiation.

Level of Evidence: 2b, Prospective, Non-Randomized, Post-Market study

This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266.
Safe and secure system architectures for cyber-physical systems
Authors: Furrer Frank J.
Published: April 2023

Cyber-physical systems are at the core of our current civilization. Countless examples dominate our daily life and work, such as driverless cars that will soon master our roads, implanted medical devices that will improve many lives, and industrial control systems that control production and infrastructure. Because cyber-physical systems manipulate the real world, they constitute a danger for many applications. Therefore, their safety and security are essential properties of these indispensable systems. The long history of systems engineering has demonstrated that the system quality properties—such as safety and security—strongly depend on the underlying system architecture. Satisfactory system quality properties can only be ensured if the fundamental system architecture is sound! The development of dependable cyber-physical architectures in recent years suggests that two harmonical architectures are required: a design-time architecture and a run-time architecture. The design-time architecture defines and specifies all parts and relationships, assuring the required system quality properties. However, in today’s complex systems, ensuring all quality properties in all operating conditions during design time will never be possible. Therefore, an additional line of defense against safety accidents and security incidents is indispensable: This must be provided by the run-time architecture. The run-time architecture primarily consists of a protective shell that monitors the run-time system during operation. It detects anomalies in system behavior, interface functioning, or data—often using artificial intelligence algorithms—and takes autonomous mitigation measures, thus attempting to prevent imminent safety accidents or security incidents before they occur. This paper’s core is the protective shell as a run-time protection mechanism for cyber-physical systems. The paper has the form of an introductory tutorial and includes focused references.
Development of a chitosan derivative bearing the thiadiazole moiety and evaluation of its antifungal and larvicidal efficacy
Authors: Ibrahim Ahmed G. , Elgammal Walid E. , Hashem Amr H. , Mohamed Ahmad E. , Awad Mohmed A. , Hassan Saber M.
Published: April 2023

A new chitosan derivative bearing a new thiadiazole compound was developed, and its antifungal and larvicidal activities were investigated. The chitosan derivative (coded here as PTDz-Cs) was synthesized by the reaction between the carboxylic derivative of the thiadiazole moiety and chitosan. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), nuclear magnetic resonance (1H/13C-NMR), gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS), elemental analysis, X-Ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to characterize the developed derivatives. Compared to chitosan, the PTDz-Cs derivative has a less crystalline structure and less thermal stability. The antifungal results revealed that PTDz-Cs exhibited potential activity against Rhizopus microspores, Mucor racemosus, Lichtheimia corymbifera, and Syncephalastrum racemosum where inhibition zones were 17.76, 20.1, 38.2, and 18.3 mm, respectively. The larvicidal efficacy of the PTDz-Cs derivative against A. stephensi larvae was tested, and the results exposed that the LC50 and LC90 values (first instar) were 5.432 and 10.398 ppm, respectively, indicating the high susceptibility of early instar mosquito larvae to PTDz-Cs. These results emphasize that this study provided a new chitosan derivative that could be potentially used in the biomedical fields.
A functional perspective on the meaning of the term ‘herbivore’: patterns versus processes in coral reef fishes
Authors: Tebbett Sterling B. , Bennett Scott , Bellwood David R.
Published: April 2023

Herbivorous fishes are a key functional group in coral reef ecosystems and have been the focus of a vast body of research. While substantial progress has been made in research, challenges persist, especially in respect to quantifying patterns versus processes. Despite this challenge being recognised over 40 years ago. To help clarify such challenges, and work towards solutions, in this perspective we explore how the definition of ‘herbivorous reef fishes’ precludes an easy translation between patterns of herbivore abundance and the process of herbivory. Indeed, if herbivorous fishes are defined as, a fish in which the diet is predominantly based on plant material, then this encompasses a diverse suite of fishes which all remove primary producers to varying extents and have markedly different impacts on reef functioning. Given this situation, we explore how our approaches to directly quantifying herbivory on reefs have progressed. We highlight how lessons learnt from macroalgal assays could be applied to the direct quantification of herbivory from algal turfs in the epilithic algal matrix (EAM); a community of primary producers that are invariably difficult to work with and quantify. Nevertheless, given the abundance of turfs on coral reefs, and their relative importance in herbivore dynamics, widespread process-based assessment of EAM herbivory represents an avenue for expanding future research. Recognising the difficulty of translating patterns in herbivore abundance to the process of herbivory, and an enhanced focus on EAM herbivory, will be necessary to comprehensively quantify the process of herbivory on Anthropocene coral reefs.
Inference of improved adaptive progressively censored competing risks data for Weibull lifetime models
Authors: Elshahhat Ahmed , Nassar Mazen
Published: April 2023

Recently, an improved adaptive Type-II progressive censoring scheme is proposed to ensure that the experimental time will not pass a pre-fixed time and ends the test after recording a pre-fixed number of failures. This paper studies the inference of the competing risks model from Weibull distribution under the improved adaptive progressive Type-II censoring. For this goal, we used the latent failure time model with Weibull lifetime distributions with common shape parameters. The point and interval estimation problems of parameters, reliability and hazard rate functions using the maximum likelihood and Bayesian estimation methods are considered. Moreover, making use of the asymptotic normality of classical estimators and delta method, approximate intervals are constructed via the observed Fisher information matrix. Following the assumption of independent gamma priors, the Bayes estimates of the scale parameters have closed expressions, but when the common shape parameter is unknown, the Bayes estimates cannot be formed explicitly. To solve this difficulty, we recommend using Markov chain Monte Carlo routine to compute the Bayes estimates and to construct credible intervals. A comprehensive Monte Carlo simulation is conducted to judge the behavior of the offered methods. Ultimately, analysis of electrodes data from the life-test of high-stress voltage endurance is provided to illustrate all proposed inferential procedures.
Hybrid modeling of hetero-agglomeration processes: a framework for model selection and arrangement
Authors: Rhein Frank , Hibbe Leonard , Nirschl Hermann
Published: April 2023

Modeling of hetero-agglomeration processes is invaluable for a variety of applications in particle technology. Traditionally, population balance equations (PBE) are employed; however, calculation of kinetic rates is challenging due to heterogeneous surface properties and insufficient material data. This study investigates how the integration of machine learning (ML) techniques—resulting in so-called hybrid models (HM)—can help to integrate experimental data and close this gap. A variety of ML algorithms can either be used to estimate kinetic rates for the PBE (serial HM) or to correct the PBE’s output (parallel HM). As the optimal choice of the HM architecture is highly problem-dependent, we propose a general and objective framework for model selection and arrangement. A repeated nested cross-validation with integrated hyper-parameter optimization ensures a fair and meaningful comparison between different HMs. This framework was subsequently applied to experimental data of magnetic seeded filtration, where prediction errors of the pure PBE were reduced by applying the hybrid modeling approach. The framework helped to identify that for the given data set, serial outperforms parallel arrangement and that more advanced ML algorithms provide better interpolation ability. Additionally, it enables to draw inferences to general properties of the underlying PBE model and a statistical investigation of hyper-parameter optimization that paves the way for further improvements.
Seasonal and regional contrasts of future trends in interannual arctic climate variability
Authors: Kolbe Marlen , Bintanja Richard , van der Linden Eveline C.
Published: April 2023

Future changes in interannual variability (IAV) of Arctic climate indicators such as sea ice and precipitation are still fairly uncertain. Alongside global warming-induced changes in means, a thorough understanding of IAV is needed to more accurately predict sea ice variability, distinguish trends and natural variability, as well as to reduce uncertainty around the likelihood of extreme events. In this study we rank and select CMIP6 models based on their ability to replicate observations, and quantify simulated IAV trends (1981–2100) of Arctic surface air temperature, evaporation, precipitation, and sea ice concentration under continued global warming. We argue that calculating IAV on grid points before area-averaging allows for a more realistic picture of Arctic-wide changes. Large model ensembles suggest that on shorter time scales (30  years), IAV of all variables is strongly dominated by natural variability (e.g. 93% for sea ice area in March). Long-term trends of IAV are more robust, and reveal strong seasonal and regional differences in their magnitude or even sign. For example, IAV of surface temperature increases in the Central Arctic, but decreases in lower latitudes. Arctic precipitation variability increases more in summer than in winter; especially over land, where in the future it will dominantly fall as rain. Our results emphasize the need to address such seasonal and regional differences when portraying future trends of Arctic climate variability.
Pulmonary vein isolation for atrial fibrillation using true high-power short-duration vs. cryoballoon ablation
Authors: Wörmann Jonas , Lüker Jakob , van den Bruck Jan-Hendrik , Filipovic Karlo , Erlhöfer Susanne , Scheurlen Cornelia , Dittrich Sebastian , Schipper Jan-Hendrik , Steven Daniel , Sultan Arian
Published: April 2023

Aims

Pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) is achievable and effective using radiofrequency (RF) catheter (CA) or cryoballoon (CB) ablation. The newly introduced high RF-power short-duration ablation (HPSD) technique has shown promising results. Data comparing HPSD- to CB-PVI is sparse. We sought to investigate success rates and procedural differences of HPSD-PVI vs. CB-PVI in patients undergoing ablation for PAF and persAF.

Methods

Consecutive patients undergoing de novo PVI (HPSD or CB) were included. A power setting of 70W/7 s (70W/5 s at posterior wall) using a flexible tip catheter with enhanced irrigation was considered as true HPSD. Follow-up consisted of out-clinic pts visits, tele-consultation, 48-h Holter ECG, app-based telemonitoring and cardiac implanted electronic devices (CIED) interrogation.

Results

721 patients (46 HPSD, 675 CB) were analyzed. In all HPSD (27 persAF [59%]) and CB patients (423 persAF [63%]), PVI was successfully achieved. Procedure duration was significantly longer for HPSD (91 ± 19 min vs. 72 ± 18 min, p < 0.01). Ablation time was similar in both groups (HPSD: 44 ± 19 min vs. CB: 40 ± 17 min; p = 0.347). No major complications occurred in HPSD. For CB-PVI, in 25 (3.7%; p = 0.296) patients, complications occurred. At a follow-up of 290 ± 135 days, arrhythmia-free survival using HPSD was non-inferior to CB-PVI in the Kaplan–Meier survival analysis (p = 0.096).

Conclusion

PVI using HPSD is equally effective and safe to CB-PVI. This analysis revealed a similar arrhythmia-free survival after HPSD and CB with low complication rates. Procedure duration for CB was significantly shorter while LA dwell time excluding mapping was equal. Currently, a prospective trial is conducted to corroborate these findings.
Dienogest versus norethisterone acetate in management of endometrial hyperplasia without atypia
Authors: Girbash Ehab F. , Sherif Hala E. , Radwan Ahmed M. , Abdeldayem Hussein M.
Published: April 2023

Objectives

To compare the effectiveness of dienogest (DIE) and norethisterone acetate (NETA) regimens in the treatment of endometrial hyperplasia (EH) without atypia.

Methods

Participants were premenopausal women with irregular uterine bleeding, and endometrial hyperplasia without atypia on endometrial biopsy. Enrolled patients were randomly allocated into two groups: group I got DIE 2 mg/day (orally Visanne) for 14 days (10th to the 25th day of cycle) while group II received between the 16th and 25th day of the cycle, norethisterone acetate (NETA) 15 mg/d (orally Primolut Nor) was administered for 10 days. Both groups continued the therapy for six months.

Results

The DIE group showed a higher resolution (32.7%) and regression (57.7%) than NETA group (31% & 37.9%, respectively) with significant regression (p = 0.039). No progression in DIE group while four (6.9%) women in NETA group were recorded a progression to complex type without a significance. Also, NETA group showed a significant persistence rate (22.5%) than DIE group (3.8%) (p = 0.005). Also number in NETA group managed by hysterectomy with significant difference (p = 0.042).

Conclusion

If used as first-line treatment, Dienogest produces a better rate of regression and a lower incidence of hysterectomy than Norethisterone Acetate does when used in EH without atypia.
MMP-9 plasma level as biomarker of cochlear implantation outcome in cohort study of deaf children
Authors: Matusiak Monika , Oziębło Dominika , Ołdak Monika , Rejmak Emilia , Kaczmarek Leszek , Dobek Dominik , Skarżyński Henryk
Published: April 2023

Purpose

If before cochlear implantation it was possible to assay biomarkers of neuroplasticity, we might be able to identify those children with congenital deafness who, later on, were at risk of poor speech and language rehabilitation outcomes.

Methods

A group of 40 children aged up to 2 years with DFNB1-related congenital deafness was observed in this prospective cohort study over three follow-up intervals (0, 8, and 18 months) after cochlear implant (CI) activation. Children were assessed for auditory development using the LittlEARS Questionnaire (LEAQ) score, and at the same time, measurements were made of matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) plasma levels.

Results

There were significant negative correlations between plasma levels of MMP-9 at 8-month follow-up and LEAQ score at cochlear implantation (p = 0.04) and LEAQ score at 18-month follow-up (p = 0.02) and between MMP-9 plasma levels at 18-month follow-up and LEAQ score at cochlear implantation (p = 0.04). As already reported, we confirmed a significant negative correlation between MMP-9 plasma level at cochlear implantation and LEAQ score at 18-month follow-up (p = 0.005). Based on this latter correlation, two clusters of good and poor CI performers could be isolated.

Conclusions

The study shows that children born deaf who have an MMP-9 plasma level of less than 150 ng/ml at cochlear implantation have a good chance of attaining a high LEAQ score after 18 months of speech and language rehabilitation. This indicates that MMP-9 plasma level at cochlear implantation is a good prognostic marker for CI outcome.
TRPS1 expression in cytokeratin 5 expressing triple negative breast cancers, its value as a marker of breast origin
Authors: Almási Szintia , Kuthi Levente , Sejben Anita , Vörös András , Nagy Ákos , Zombori Tamás , Cserni Gábor
Published: April 2023

The lack of oestrogen receptor, progesterone receptor and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 expression in breast cancer (BC) is the basis for the categorization of the tumour as triple negative breast carcinoma (TNBC). The majority of TNBCs are aggressive tumours with common metastases and decreased expression of markers that could help in identifying the metastatic lesion as of mammary origin. Breast markers, such as gross cystic disease fluid protein-15 (GCDPF-15), GATA binding protein 3 (GATA3), mammaglobin (MGB) and SOX10, are not uniquely specific to BC. Our aim was to evaluate trichorhinophalangeal syndrome type 1 (TRPS1) protein as a breast marker in a series of cytokeratin-5-expressing TNBC, mostly corresponding to basal-like TNBCs, previously characterized for the expression of other breast markers. One hundred seventeen TNBCs in tissue microarrays were immunostained for TRPS1. The cut-off for positivity was ≥ 10%. The reproducibility of this classification was also assessed. TRPS1 positivity was detected in 92/117 (79%) cases, and this exceeded the expression of previously tested markers like SOX10 82 (70%), GATA3 11 (9%), MGB 10 (9%) and GCDFP-15 7 (6%). Of the 25 TRPS1-negative cases, 11 were positive with SOX10, whereas 5 to 6 dual negatives displayed positivity for the other makers. The evaluation showed substantial agreement. Of the five markers compared, TRPS1 seems the most sensitive marker for the mammary origin of CK5-expressing TNBCs. Cases that are negative are most often labelled with SOX10, and the remainder may still demonstrate positivity for any of the 3 other markers. TRPS1 has a place in breast marker panels.
β-CATENIN is a positive prognostic marker for HPV-positive head and neck squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Stoiber Stefan , Brkic Faris F. , Maier Tobias , Schnoell Julia , Gurnhofer Elisabeth , Heiduschka Gregor , Kadletz-Wanke Lorenz , Kenner Lukas
Published: April 2023

Purpose

The evolutionary-conserved Wnt/β-CATENIN (WBC) pathway has been implicated in the pathogenesis of different solid malignant tumors. We evaluated the prognostic relevance of β-CATENIN, a pivotal mediator of WBC activation, in patients with human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).

Methods

We analyzed if patients with HPV-positive HNSCC from the “The Cancer Genome Atlas” (TCGA cohort, n = 41) can be stratified based on their CTNNB1 mRNA expression. Moreover, in a tissue microarray (TMA) of primary tumor sections from HPV-positive HNSCC patients treated in a tertiary academic center (in-house cohort, n = 31), we evaluated the prognostic relevance of β-CATENIN expression on protein level.

Results

In silico mining of CTNNB1 expression in HPV-positive HNSCC revealed that high CTNNB1 expression was linked to better overall survival (OS, p = 0.062). Moreover, high β-CATENIN expression was significantly associated with a better OS in our in-house cohort (p = 0.035).

Conclusion

Based on these findings, we postulate that β-CATENIN expression could serve (potentially in conjunction with other WBC pathway members) as a marker for better survival outcomes in patients with HPV-positive HNSCC. However, it is evident that future studies on bigger cohorts are warranted.
Reticulinasus salahi (Acarina: Argasidae), a tick of bats and man in the Palaearctic and Afrotropics: review of records with the first pathogens detected
Authors: Ševčík Martin , Špitalská Eva , Kabát Peter , Lučan Radek K. , Maliterná Michaela , Reiter Antonín , Uhrin Marcel , Benda Petr
Published: April 2023

The soft ticks of the genus Reticulinasus Schulze, 1941 (family Argasidae Koch, 1844) are ectoparasites of the fruit bats of the Old World (Pteropodidae). Reticulinasus salahi (Hoogstraal, 1953) is the only representative of this genus that occurs in the western part of the Palaearctic. This unusual distribution reflects the distributon range of its primary host, Rousettus aegyptiacus (Geoffroy, 1810). In this contribution, we present a revised review of records of this tick that were made in two periods, 1951–1966 (records from Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Spain) and 2005–2019 (Cyprus, Iran, Oman), and additionally, we present notes, re-determinations, new records, and summary of hosts of this tick. Besides the primary host, the revised list of hosts comprises two bats (Taphozous perforatus Geoffroy, 1818, Otonycteris hemprichii Peters, 1859) and the human (Homo sapiens Linnaeus, 1758). We also tried to identify pathogens in specimens of this tick collected from R. aegyptiacus in Oman. The DNA of the Mouse herpesvirus strain 68 (MHV-68), of two bacteria, Borellia burgdorferii sensu lato, and Ehrlichia sp. almost identical (98%) with Candidatus Ehrlichia shimanensis was detected in several larvae specimens.
A modified cap plasticity description coupled with a localizing gradient-enhanced approach for concrete failure modeling
Authors: Zhao Dong , Yin Bo , Tarachandani Sumit , Kaliske Michael
Published: April 2023

The modeling of concrete has always been of great interest. In this work, a yield criterion with three surfaces is proposed to capture the plastic yielding behavior under different loading conditions, including uniaxial tension/compression, biaxial tension/compression and tension-compression. Material failure, characterized by the degradation and finally the complete loss of material integrity, can be modeled by the continuum damage approach. Within finite element methods, the nonlocal enhancement of integral-type or gradient-type is often required for the well-posedness of the partial differential equation system. In this work, a localizing gradient damage model has been adopted to obtain mesh-insensitive material responses, while ruling out the unphysical broadening of the damage zone often observed in constant length scale gradient damage models. Following a consistent derivation, the plasticity-damage coupled model has been implemented into an in-house finite element framework. Several representative and demonstrative examples serve to illustrate the capability of the proposed description in concrete modeling, followed by the conclusion, where some final insights are provided.
Recurrent and convolutional neural networks in structural dynamics: a modified attention steered encoder–decoder architecture versus LSTM versus GRU versus TCN topologies to predict the response of shock wave-loaded plates
Authors: Tandale Saurabh Balkrishna , Stoffel Marcus
Published: April 2023

The aim of the present study is to analyse and predict the structural deformations occurring during shock tube experiments with a series of recurrent and temporal convolutional neural networks. The goal is to determine the architecture that can best learn and predict physically and geometrically nonlinear deformations. For this approach, four different architectures are proposed. Firstly, the multi-layered long-short term memory is developed followed by the multi-layered gated recurrent unit (GRU). Both the RNNs allow accounting for history dependent behaviors through their corresponding internal variables. Further, a multilayered temporal convolutional network is initialized, where the dilated convolution operation is responsible for tracing the path dependent behavior. In the mentioned architectures a sequence of mechanical data is passed through the network and a transformation to corresponding displacements is established. These sequences and corresponding deflections belong to a wide range of strain rates in the dynamic response of structures consisting of steel, aluminum, and copper plates including geometrical and physical non-linearities. Finally, an encoder–decoder architecture consisting of GRU layers is introduced with a modified attention mechanism which showed the best result for predicting the dynamic response. Employing comparative calculations between the neural network (NN) enhanced predictions and the measurements, the nature of approximation of each mentioned NN architecture is discussed and the capabilities of these developed surrogate models are demonstrated by its prediction on validation experiments. These validation experiments have displacement and input data ranges beyond the range of data used for training the aforementioned models.
Levels of explicability for medical artificial intelligence: What do we normatively need and what can we technically reach?
Authors: Ursin Frank , Lindner Felix , Ropinski Timo , Salloch Sabine , Timmermann Cristian
Published: April 2023

Definition of the problem

The umbrella term “explicability” refers to the reduction of opacity of artificial intelligence (AI) systems. These efforts are challenging for medical AI applications because higher accuracy often comes at the cost of increased opacity. This entails ethical tensions because physicians and patients desire to trace how results are produced without compromising the performance of AI systems. The centrality of explicability within the informed consent process for medical AI systems compels an ethical reflection on the trade-offs. Which levels of explicability are needed to obtain informed consent when utilizing medical AI?

Arguments

We proceed in five steps: First, we map the terms commonly associated with explicability as described in the ethics and computer science literature, i.e., disclosure, intelligibility, interpretability, and explainability. Second, we conduct a conceptual analysis of the ethical requirements for explicability when it comes to informed consent. Third, we distinguish hurdles for explicability in terms of epistemic and explanatory opacity. Fourth, this then allows to conclude the level of explicability physicians must reach and what patients can expect. In a final step, we show how the identified levels of explicability can technically be met from the perspective of computer science. Throughout our work, we take diagnostic AI systems in radiology as an example.

Conclusion

We determined four levels of explicability that need to be distinguished for ethically defensible informed consent processes and showed how developers of medical AI can technically meet these requirements.
Random search immune algorithm for community detection
Authors: Spampinato Antonio G. , Scollo Rocco A. , Cutello Vincenzo , Pavone Mario
Published: April 2023

Community detection is a prominent research topic in Complex Network Analysis, and it constitutes an important research field on all those areas where complex networks represent a powerful interpretation tool for describing and understanding systems involved in neuroscience, biology, social science, economy, and many others. A challenging approach to uncover the community structure in complex network, and then revealing the internal organization of nodes, is Modularity optimization. In this research paper, we present an immune optimization algorithm (opt-IA) developed to detect community structures, with the main aim to maximize the modularity produced by the discovered communities. In order to assess the performance of opt-IA, we compared it with an overall of 20 heuristics and metaheuristics, among which one Hyper-Heuristic method, using social and biological complex networks as data set. Unlike these algorithms, opt-IA is entirely based on a fully random search process, which in turn is combined with purely stochastic operators. According to the obtained outcomes, opt-IA shows strictly better performances than almost all heuristics and metaheuristics to which it was compared; whilst it turns out to be comparable with the Hyper-Heuristic method. Overall, it can be claimed that opt-IA, even if driven by a purely random process, proves to be reliable and with efficient performance. Furthermore, to prove the latter claim, a sensitivity analysis of the functionality was conducted, using the classic metrics NMI, ARI and NVI.
Incremental class learning using variational autoencoders with similarity learning
Authors: Huo Jiahao , van Zyl Terence L.
Published: April 2023

Catastrophic forgetting in neural networks during incremental learning remains a challenging problem. Previous research investigated catastrophic forgetting in fully connected networks, with some earlier work exploring activation functions and learning algorithms. Applications of neural networks have been extended to include similarity learning. Understanding how similarity learning loss functions would be affected by catastrophic forgetting is of significant interest. Our research investigates catastrophic forgetting for four well-known similarity-based loss functions during incremental class learning. The loss functions are Angular, Contrastive, Center, and Triplet loss. Our results show that the catastrophic forgetting rate differs across loss functions on multiple datasets. The Angular loss was least affected, followed by Contrastive, Triplet loss, and Center loss with good mining techniques. We implemented three existing incremental learning techniques, iCaRL, EWC, and EBLL. We further proposed a novel technique using Variational Autoencoders (VAEs) to generate representation as exemplars passed through the network’s intermediate layers. Our method outperformed three existing state-of-the-art techniques. We show that one does not require stored images (exemplars) for incremental learning with similarity learning. The generated representations from VAEs help preserve regions of the embedding space used by prior knowledge so that new knowledge does not “overwrite” it.
Digitalisierung und regionaler Wissenstransfer: Interdependenzen und Herausforderungen
Authors: Bäumle Philipp , Hirschmann Daniel , Feser Daniel , Winkler-Portmann Simon J. , Bizer Kilian
Published: April 2023

Die Digitalisierung von Unternehmen und der Wissenstransfer (WT) zwischen akademischen und nichtakademischen Akteuren sind zentral für regionale Innovationsstrategien. Dennoch ist weder klar, wie der WT zur Digitalisierung beitragen kann, noch wie digitale Arbeitsweisen den WT unterstützen können. Um beide Fragestellungen näher zu beleuchten, untersuchen wir sechs regionale Wissenstransfersysteme in Deutschland. Die Analyse zeigt, dass Maßnahmen des WT auf unterschiedliche Weise zu Digitalisierungsprozessen regionaler Akteure beitragen und sich die Akteure des WT vielfach digitaler Arbeitsweisen bedienen. Innerhalb regionaler Wissenstransfersysteme werden sowohl Informationen zu digitalisierungsrelevanten Themen vermittelt und in Netzwerken vertieft als auch konkrete Digitalisierungsprojekte unterstützt. Digitale Tools und Arbeitsweisen spielen eine wichtige Rolle, einerseits für die Durchführung entsprechender Veranstaltungsformate und andererseits für die Zusammenarbeit zwischen Organisationen. Die Analyse zeigt jedoch auch, dass die Möglichkeiten der Unterstützung durch WT begrenzt sind und auch hinsichtlich der Nutzung digitaler Instrumente verschiedene Herausforderungen bestehen. Letztere konzentrieren sich auf die Auswahl und Umsetzung bestehender Lösungen, die von wissenschaftlicher Seite nur begrenzt sinnvoll unterstützt werden können. Themen von größerem wissenschaftlichem Interesse finden nur bei wenigen, bereits stark digitalisierten Unternehmen intensivere Beachtung. Darüber hinaus gestaltet es sich schwierig, vertrauensbasierte Netzwerkbeziehungen über digitale Kanäle zu initiieren und für Kooperationen zwischen Organisationen nutzbar zu machen.