bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effects of an Adenosine A2A Receptor Antagonist on Striatal Dopamine D2-Type Receptor Availability: A Randomized Control Study Using Positron Emission Tomography
Authors: Okita Kyoji , Kato Koichi , Shigemoto Yoko , Sato Noriko , Matsumoto Toshihiko , Matsuda Hiroshi
Published: September 2021

Introduction: Altered dopaminergic neurotransmission, especially in the functioning of dopamine D2-type receptors, is considered central to the etiology of a variety of neuropsychiatric disorders. In particular, individuals with substance use disorders have been consistently observed to exhibit lower D2-type receptor availability (quantified as binding potential; BPND) using positron emission tomography (PET). Upregulation of D2-type receptor density thus may therefore provide a therapeutic effect for substance use disorders. Importantly, in vitro studies reveal that D2 receptors coexist with adenosine 2A (A2A) receptors to form the highest density of heteromers in the whole striatum, and there is a functional interaction between these two receptors. As such, blockade of A2A receptor’s function may prevent D2 receptor downregulation, yet no study has currently examined this hypothesis in humans.

Methods and Analysis: This double-blind, randomized controlled trial aims to evaluate the effect of the A2A receptor antagonist istradefylline (compared to placebo) on both dopamine D2-type receptor availability in the human brain and on neuropsychological measurements of impulsivity. It is hypothesized that istradefylline will both increase striatal D2-type BPND and improve control of impulsivity more than placebo. Forty healthy participants, aged 20–65 with no history of psychiatric or neurological disorders, will be recruited and randomized into two groups and will undergo [11C]raclopride PET, once before and once after administration of either 40 mg/day istradefylline or placebo for 2 weeks. Neuropsychological measurements will be administered on the same days of the PET scans.

Ethics and Dissemination: The study protocol was approved by the Certified Review Boards (CRB) of National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry (CR18-011) and prospectively registered with the Japan Registry of Clinical Trials (jRCTs031180131; https://jrct.niph.go.jp/latest-detail/jRCTs031180131). The findings of this study will be disseminated through peer reviewed scientific journals and conferences.

Clinical Trial Registration:www.ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier jRCTs031180131.
Machine Learning Models to Predict Cognitive Impairment of Rodents Subjected to Space Radiation
Authors: Matar Mona , Gokoglu Suleyman A. , Prelich Matthew T. , Gallo Christopher A. , Iqbal Asad K. , Britten Richard A. , Prabhu R. K. , Myers Jerry G.
Published: September 2021

This research uses machine-learned computational analyses to predict the cognitive performance impairment of rats induced by irradiation. The experimental data in the analyses is from a rodent model exposed to ≤15 cGy of individual galactic cosmic radiation (GCR) ions: 4He, 16O, 28Si, 48Ti, or 56Fe, expected for a Lunar or Mars mission. This work investigates rats at a subject-based level and uses performance scores taken before irradiation to predict impairment in attentional set-shifting (ATSET) data post-irradiation. Here, the worst performing rats of the control group define the impairment thresholds based on population analyses via cumulative distribution functions, leading to the labeling of impairment for each subject. A significant finding is the exhibition of a dose-dependent increasing probability of impairment for 1 to 10 cGy of 28Si or 56Fe in the simple discrimination (SD) stage of the ATSET, and for 1 to 10 cGy of 56Fe in the compound discrimination (CD) stage. On a subject-based level, implementing machine learning (ML) classifiers such as the Gaussian naïve Bayes, support vector machine, and artificial neural networks identifies rats that have a higher tendency for impairment after GCR exposure. The algorithms employ the experimental prescreen performance scores as multidimensional input features to predict each rodent’s susceptibility to cognitive impairment due to space radiation exposure. The receiver operating characteristic and the precision-recall curves of the ML models show a better prediction of impairment when 56Fe is the ion in question in both SD and CD stages. They, however, do not depict impairment due to 4He in SD and 28Si in CD, suggesting no dose-dependent impairment response in these cases. One key finding of our study is that prescreen performance scores can be used to predict the ATSET performance impairments. This result is significant to crewed space missions as it supports the potential of predicting an astronaut’s impairment in a specific task before spaceflight through the implementation of appropriately trained ML tools. Future research can focus on constructing ML ensemble methods to integrate the findings from the methodologies implemented in this study for more robust predictions of cognitive decrements due to space radiation exposure.
Inflammatory and Microbiota-Related Regulation of the Intestinal Epithelial Barrier
Authors: Barbara Giovanni , Barbaro Maria Raffaella , Fuschi Daniele , Palombo Marta , Falangone Francesca , Cremon Cesare , Marasco Giovanni , Stanghellini Vincenzo
Published: September 2021

The intestinal epithelial barrier (IEB) is one of the largest interfaces between the environment and the internal milieu of the body. It is essential to limit the passage of harmful antigens and microorganisms and, on the other side, to assure the absorption of nutrients and water. The maintenance of this delicate equilibrium is tightly regulated as it is essential for human homeostasis. Luminal solutes and ions can pass across the IEBviatwo main routes: the transcellular pathway or the paracellular pathway. Tight junctions (TJs) are a multi-protein complex responsible for the regulation of paracellular permeability. TJs control the passage of antigens through the IEB and have a key role in maintaining barrier integrity. Several factors, including cytokines, gut microbiota, and dietary components are known to regulate intestinal TJs. Gut microbiota participates in several human functions including the modulation of epithelial cells and immune system through the release of several metabolites, such as short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). Mediators released by immune cells can induce epithelial cell damage and TJs dysfunction. The subsequent disruption of the IEB allows the passage of antigens into the mucosa leading to further inflammation. Growing evidence indicates that dysbiosis, immune activation, and IEB dysfunction have a role in several diseases, including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and gluten-related conditions. Here we summarize the interplay between the IEB and gut microbiota and mucosal immune system and their involvement in IBS, IBD, and gluten-related disorders.
Green Extraction Strategies for Sea Urchin Waste Valorization
Authors: Marzorati Stefania , Martinelli Giordana , Sugni Michela , Verotta Luisella
Published: September 2021

Commonly known as “purple sea urchin,”Paracentrotus lividusoccurs in the Mediterranean Sea and the eastern Atlantic Ocean. This species is a highly appreciated food resource and Italy is the main consumer among the European countries. Gonads are the edible part of the animal but they represent only a small fraction (10–30%) of the entire sea urchin mass, therefore, the majority ends up as waste. Recently, an innovative methodology was successfully developed to obtain high-value collagen from sea urchin by-products to be used for tissue engineering. However, tissues used for the collagen extraction are still a small portion of the sea urchin waste (<20%) and the remaining part, mainly the carbonate-rich test and spines, are discarded. Residual cell tissues, tests, and spines contain polyunsaturated fatty acids, carotenoids, and a class of small polyphenols, called polyhydroxynaphthoquinones (PHNQ). PHNQ, due to their polyhydroxylated quinonoid nature, show remarkable pharmacologic effects, and have high economic significance and widespread application in several cosmetic and pharmaceuticals applications. A green extraction strategy aimed to obtain compounds of interest from the wastes of sea urchins was developed. The core strategy was the supercritical CO2technique, characterized by low environmental impacts. Fatty acids and carotenoids were successfully and selectively extracted and identified depending on the physical parameters of the supercritical CO2extraction. Finally, the exhausted powder was extracted by solvent-based procedures to yield PHNQ. The presence of Spinochrome A and Spinochrome B was confirmed and extracts were characterized by a remarkably high antioxidant activity, measured through the 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) assay. Overall, the selective and successive extraction methods were validated for the valorization of waste from sea urchins, demonstrating the feasibility of the techniques targeting added-value compounds.
Tripartite Motif Protein 6 Promotes Colorectal Cancer Cell Migration and Metastasis via SOCS2-STAT3 Signaling
Authors: Zhao Hongjian , Huang Junjun , Chen Ming , Li Baoru , Chen Xinran , Zhou Mingqing
Published: September 2021

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the leading causes of cancer death worldwide, with most mortalities being caused by metastases. However, the underlying molecular mechanism of CRC metastases remains largely unknown. Emerging evidence has shown the role of the tripartite motif family, especially tripartite motif protein 6 (TRIM6), in carcinogenesis. In this study, we used CRC cell lines with TRIM6 knockdown and overexpression to investigate the function of TRIM6 in CRC metastasis. We found that TRIM6 promotes CRC cell migration and invasion bothin vitroandin vivo. TRIM6 knockdown slows down the migration and invasion processes, whereas TRIM6 overexpression accelerates CRC cell migration and invasion. TRIM6 is potentially the upstream regulatory factor for signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3)viathe suppressor of cytokine signaling 2 (SOCS2). A total of 70 samples from patients with CRC further confirmed that TRIM6 expression level is positively correlated with STAT3 phosphorylation and negatively correlated with SOCS2 expression. Therefore, TRIM6 could be a potential therapeutic target for CRC metastasis.
P2RY12-Inhibitors Reduce Cancer-Associated Thrombosis and Tumor Growth in Pancreatic Cancers
Authors: Palacios-Acedo Ana Luisa , Mezouar Soraya , Mège Diane , Crescence Lydie , Dubois Christophe , Panicot-Dubois Laurence
Published: September 2021

Platelet function can be modified by cancer cells to support tumor growth, causing alterations in the delicate hemostatic equilibrium. Cancer-cell and platelet interactions are one of the main pillars of Trousseau’s syndrome: a paraneoplastic syndrome with recurring and migrating episodes of thrombophlebitis. Altogether, this leads to a four-fold risk of thrombotic events in cancer patients, which in turn, portend a poor prognosis. We previously demonstrated that anti-P2RY12 drugs inhibit cancer-associated-thrombosis and formation of tumor metastasis in pancreatic cancer models. Here, we aimed to (1) compare the effects of aspirin and clopidogrel on pancreatic cancer prevention, (2) characterize the effects of clopidogrel (platelet P2RY12 inhibitor) on cancer-associated thrombosis and cancer growth in vivo, (3) determine the effect of P2RY12 across different digestive-tract cancers in vitro, and (4) analyze the expression pattern of P2RY12 in two different cancer types affecting the digestive system. Clopidogrel treatment resulted in better survival rates with smaller primary tumors and less metastasis than aspirin treatment. Clopidogrel was also more effective than aspirin at dissolving spontaneous endogenous thrombi in our orthotopic advanced cancer mouse model. P2RY12 expression gives pancreatic adenocarcinomas proliferative advantages. In conclusion, we propose the hypothesis that clopidogrel should be further studied to target and prevent Trousseau’s syndrome; as well as diminish cancer growth and spread. However, more studies are required to determine the implicated pathways and effects of these drugs on cancer development.
18F-FDG PET/CT Radiomics for Preoperative Prediction of Lymph Node Metastases and Nodal Staging in Gastric Cancer
Authors: Liu Qiufang , Li Jiaru , Xin Bowen , Sun Yuyun , Feng Dagan , Fulham Michael J. , Wang Xiuying , Song Shaoli
Published: September 2021

Objectives

The accurate assessment of lymph node metastases (LNMs) and the preoperative nodal (N) stage are critical for the precise treatment of patients with gastric cancer (GC). The diagnostic performance, however, of current imaging procedures used for this assessment is sub-optimal. Our aim was to investigate the value of preoperative 18F-FDG PET/CT radiomic features to predict LNMs and the N stage.

Methods

We retrospectively collected clinical and 18F-FDG PET/CT imaging data of 185 patients with GC who underwent total or partial radical gastrectomy. Patients were allocated to training and validation sets using the stratified method at a fixed ratio (8:2). There were 2,100 radiomic features extracted from the 18F-FDG PET/CT scans. After selecting radiomic features by the random forest, relevancy-based, and sequential forward selection methods, the BalancedBagging ensemble classifier was established for the preoperative prediction of LNMs, and the OneVsRest classifier for the N stage. The performance of the models was primarily evaluated by the AUC and accuracy, and validated by the independent validation methods. Analysis of the feature importance and the correlation were also conducted. We also compared the predictive performance of our radiomic models to that with the contrast-enhanced CT (CECT) and 18F-FDG PET/CT.

Results

There were 185 patients—127 men, 58 women, with the median age of 62, and an age range of 22–86 years. One CT feature and one PET feature were selected to predict LNMs and achieved the best performance (AUC: 82.2%, accuracy: 85.2%). This radiomic model also detected some LNMs that were missed in CECT (19.6%) and 18F-FDG PET/CT (35.7%). For predicting the N stage, four CT features and one PET feature were selected (AUC: 73.7%, accuracy: 62.3%). Of note, a proportion of patients in the validation set whose LNMs were incorrectly staged by CECT (57.4%) and 18F-FDG PET/CT (55%) were diagnosed correctly by our radiomic model.

Conclusion

We developed and validated two machine learning models based on the preoperative 18F-FDG PET/CT images that have a predictive value for LNMs and the N stage in GC. These predictive models show a promise to offer a potentially useful adjunct to current staging approaches for patients with GC.
Upregulation of Small Ubiquitin-Like Modifier 2 and Protein SUMOylation as a Cardioprotective Mechanism Against Myocardial Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury
Authors: Zhao Wei , Zhao Jia , Zhang Xiuying , Fan Ni , Rong Jianhui
Published: September 2021

Background: Small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) proteins modify proteins through SUMOylation as an essential protein post-translational modification (PTM) for regulating redox status, inflammation, and cardiac fibrosis in myocardial infarction. This study aimed to investigate whether natural product puerarin could alleviate myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury (MI-RI) by targeting protein SUMOylation.

Methods: Mouse MI-RI model was induced by ligating the left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery and subsequently treated with puerarin at the dose of 100 mg/kg. Rat cardiomyocyte H9c2 cells were challenged by hypoxia/reoxygenation and treated with puerarin at concentrations of 10, 20, and 40 μM. The infarction area of mouse hearts was assessed by 2% TTC staining. Cell damage was analyzed for the release of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in serum and cell culture medium. Western blot technique was employed to detect the expression of SUMO2, phospho-ERK, pro-inflammatory biomarker COX2, fibrosis index galectin-3, apoptosis-related protein cleaved PARP-1. The activation of the estrogen receptor (ER) pathway was assayed by the dual-luciferase reporter system.

Results: The present study validated that puerarin effectively reduced myocardial infarct size and LDH release in the mouse MI-RI model. In the cell culture system, puerarin effectively decreased the release of LDH and the protein level of COX2, galectin-3, and cleaved PARP-1. Mechanistic studies revealed that puerarin increased the expression of SUMO2, SUMOylation of proteins and the activation of ER/ERK pathway in cardiomyocytes. ER, ERK and SUMO2 inhibitors attenuated the cardioprotective effects of puerarin.

Conclusion: Puerarin may alleviate myocardial injury by promoting protein SUMOylation through ER/ERK/SUMO2-dependent mechanism.
Gold Compounds and the Anticancer Immune Response
Authors: Zhou Ling , Liu Huiguo , Liu Kui , Wei Shuang
Published: September 2021

Gold compounds are not only well-explored for cytotoxic effects on tumors, but are also known to interact with the cancer immune system. The immune system deploys innate and adaptive mechanisms to protect against pathogens and prevent malignant transformation. The combined action of gold compounds with the activated immune system has shown promising results in cancer therapy through in vivo and in vitro experiments. Gold compounds are known to induce innate immune responses; however, these responses may contribute to adaptive immune responses. Gold compounds play the role of a major hapten that acts synergistically in innate immunity. Gold compounds support cancer cell antigenicity and promote anti-tumor immune response by inducing the release of CRT, ATP, HMGB1, HSP, and NKG2D to enhance immunogenicity. Gold compounds affect various immune cells (including suppressor regulatory T cells), inhibit myeloid derived suppressor cells, and enhance the function and number of dendritic cells. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have potential for improving the effect of immunotherapy and reducing the toxicity and side effects of the treatment process. Thus, AuNPs provide an ideal opportunity for exploring the combination of anticancer gold compounds and immunotherapeutic interventions.
The Role of cAMP-PKA Pathway in Lactate-Induced Intramuscular Triglyceride Accumulation and Mitochondria Content Increase in Mice
Authors: Chen Siyu , Zhou Lei , Sun Jingquan , Qu Yaqian , Chen Min
Published: September 2021

The glycolytic product of exercise, lactate, has long been recognized to promote lipid accumulation by activation of G-protein-coupled receptor 81 (GPR81) and inhibition of the cyclic adenosine monophosphate-protein kinase A (cAMP –PKA) pathway in adipose tissue. Whether lactate causes a similar process in skeletal muscle is unclear. Lactate might also improve mitochondria content in skeletal muscle; however, the mechanism is not clarified either. In this study, using intramuscular injection of lactate to the gastrocnemius and intraperitoneal injection of forskolin (activator of cAMP-PKA pathway), we identified the role of the cAMP-PKA pathway in lactate-induced intramuscular triglyceride accumulation and mitochondrial content increase. The intramuscular triglyceride level in the gastrocnemius increased after 5weeks of lactate injection (p<0.05), and this effect was blocked by forskolin injection (p<0.05). Corresponding expression level changes of GPR81, P-PKA/PKA, P-CREB/cAMP-response element binding protein (CREB), and proteins related to lipid metabolism suggest that lactate could induce intramuscular triglyceride accumulation partly through the inhibition of the cAMP-PKA pathway. Meanwhile, the intramuscular expression of citrate synthase (CS) and the activity of CS increased after 5weeks of lactate injection (p<0.05), but the change of CS expression was not blocked by forskolin injection, suggesting other mechanisms might exist. Consequently, exploration for other potential mechanisms that might contribute to the lactate-induced mitochondria content increase was conducted. We found an increase in the contents of lactate-related metabolites in skeletal muscle mitochondria after acute lactate injection (the p-value of each analysis is less than 0.05). LHDA was also validated to exist in mitochondria in this study. These results provide a possibility for metabolism-related mechanisms of lactate-induced mitochondria content increase. Future study is needed to validate this hypothesis. In conclusion, lactate-induced intramuscular triglyceride accumulation is achieved by inhibition of lipolysis, and this process is regulated by the cAMP-PKA pathway. Promoted lipogenesis also contributes to lactate-induced triglyceride accumulation, and this process might also be regulated by the cAMP-PKA pathway. Lactate injection might increase mitochondria content and cAMP-PKA pathway might have a limited contribution, while other metabolism-related mechanisms might play a prominent role.
Loss of Growth Differentiation Factor 11 Shortens Telomere Length by Downregulating Telomerase Activity
Authors: Wang Di-Xian , Zhu Xu-Dong , Ma Xiao-Ru , Wang Li-Bin , Dong Zhao-Jun , Lin Rong-Rong , Cao Yi-Na , Zhao Jing-Wei
Published: September 2021

Maintenance of telomere length is essential to delay replicative cellular senescence. It is controversial on whether growth differentiation factor 11 (GDF11) can reverse cellular senescence, and this work aims to establish the causality between GDF11 and the telomere maintenance unequivocally. Using CRISPR/Cas9 technique and a long-term in vitro culture model of cellular senescence, we show here that in vitro genetic deletion of GDF11 causes shortening of telomere length, downregulation of telomeric reverse transcriptase (TERT) and telomeric RNA component (TERC), the key enzyme and the RNA component for extension of the telomere, and reduction of telomerase activity. In contrast, both recombinant and overexpressed GDF11 restore the transcription of TERT in GDF11KO cells to the wild-type level. Furthermore, loss of GDF11-induced telomere shortening is likely caused by enhancing the nuclear entry of SMAD2 which inhibits the transcription of TERT and TERC. Our results provide the first proof-of-cause-and-effect evidence that endogenous GDF11 plays a causal role for proliferative cells to maintain telomere length, paving the way for potential rejuvenation of the proliferative cells, tissues, and organs.
The wHole Story About Fenestrations in LSEC
Authors: Szafranska Karolina , Kruse Larissa D. , Holte Christopher Florian , McCourt Peter , Zapotoczny Bartlomiej
Published: September 2021

The porosity of liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSEC) ensures bidirectional passive transport of lipoproteins, drugs and solutes between the liver capillaries and the liver parenchyma. This porosity is realized via fenestrations – transcellular pores with diameters in the range of 50–300 nm – typically grouped together in sieve plates. Aging and several liver disorders severely reduce LSEC porosity, decreasing their filtration properties. Over the years, a variety of drugs, stimulants, and toxins have been investigated in the context of altered diameter or frequency of fenestrations. In fact, any change in the porosity, connected with the change in number and/or size of fenestrations is reflected in the overall liver-vascular system crosstalk. Recently, several commonly used medicines have been proposed to have a beneficial effect on LSEC re-fenestration in aging. These findings may be important for the aging populations of the world. In this review we collate the literature on medicines, recreational drugs, hormones and laboratory tools (including toxins) where the effect LSEC morphology was quantitatively analyzed. Moreover, different experimental models of liver pathology are discussed in the context of fenestrations. The second part of this review covers the cellular mechanisms of action to enable physicians and researchers to predict the effect of newly developed drugs on LSEC porosity. To achieve this, we discuss four existing hypotheses of regulation of fenestrations. Finally, we provide a summary of the cellular mechanisms which are demonstrated to tune the porosity of LSEC.
Pearl Millet: A Climate-Resilient Nutricereal for Mitigating Hidden Hunger and Provide Nutritional Security
Authors: Satyavathi C. Tara , Ambawat Supriya , Khandelwal Vikas , Srivastava Rakesh K.
Published: September 2021

Pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum(L.) R. Br.] is the sixth most important cereal crop after rice, wheat, maize, barley and sorghum. It is widely grown on 30 million ha in the arid and semi-arid tropical regions of Asia and Africa, accounting for almost half of the global millet production. Climate change affects crop production by directly influencing biophysical factors such as plant and animal growth along with the various areas associated with food processing and distribution. Assessment of the effects of global climate changes on agriculture can be helpful to anticipate and adapt farming to maximize the agricultural production more effectively. Pearl millet being a climate-resilient crop is important to minimize the adverse effects of climate change and has the potential to increase income and food security of farming communities in arid regions. Pearl millet has a deep root system and can survive in a wide range of ecological conditions under water scarcity. It has high photosynthetic efficiency with an excellent productivity and growth in low nutrient soil conditions and is less reliant on chemical fertilizers. These attributes have made it a crop of choice for cultivation in arid and semi-arid regions of the world; however, fewer efforts have been made to study the climate-resilient features of pearl millet in comparison to the other major cereals. Several hybrids and varieties of pearl millet were developed during the past 50 years in India by both the public and private sectors. Pearl millet is also nutritionally superior and rich in micronutrients such as iron and zinc and can mitigate malnutrition and hidden hunger. Inclusion of minimum standards for micronutrients—grain iron and zinc content in the cultivar release policy—is the first of its kind step taken in pearl millet anywhere in the world, which can lead toward enhanced food and nutritional security. The availability of high-quality whole-genome sequencing and re-sequencing information of several lines may aid genomic dissection of stress tolerance and provide a good opportunity to further exploit the nutritional and climate-resilient attributes of pearl millet. Hence, more efforts should be put into its genetic enhancement and improvement in inheritance to exploit it in a better way. Thus, pearl millet is the next-generation crop holding the potential of nutritional richness and the climate resilience and efforts must be targeted to develop nutritionally dense hybrids/varieties tolerant to drought using different omics approaches.
Physiological and Proteomic Analyses of Different Ecotypes of Reed (Phragmites communis) in Adaption to Natural Drought and Salinity
Authors: Li Huan , Lin Wen-Fang , Shen Zhi-Jun , Peng Hao , Zhou Jia-Jie , Zhu Xue-Yi
Published: September 2021

Drought and salinity are the two major abiotic stresses constraining the crop yield worldwide. Both of them trigger cellular dehydration and cause osmotic stress which leads to cytosolic and vacuolar volume reduction. However, whether plants share a similar tolerance mechanism in response to these two stresses under natural conditions has seldom been comparatively reported. There are three different ecotypes of reed within a 5 km2 region in the Badanjilin desert of Northwest China. Taking the typical swamp reed (SR) as a control, we performed a comparative study on the adaption mechanisms of the two terrestrial ecotypes: dune reed (DR) and heavy salt meadow reed (HSMR) by physiological and proteomic approaches coupled with bioinformatic analysis. The results showed that HSMR and DR have evolved C4-like photosynthetic and anatomical characteristics, such as the increased bundle sheath cells (BSCs) and chloroplasts in BSCs, higher density of veins, and lower density and aperture of stomata. In addition, the thylakoid membrane fluidity also plays an important role in their higher drought and salinity tolerance capability. The proteomic results further demonstrated that HSMR and DR facilitated the regulation of proteins associated with photosynthesis and energy metabolism, lipid metabolism, transcription and translation, and stress responses to well-adapt to the drought and salinity conditions. Overall, our results demonstrated that HSMR and DR shaped a similar adaption strategy from the structural and physiological levels to the molecular scale to ensure functionality in a harsh environment.
Politics Without Meso-Level? No Politics at the Meso?
Authors: Pálné Kovács Ilona
Published: September 2021

The paper examines the role of meso-level governance in the Hungarian political system focusing on the county self-governments. The objective of the author is to introduce the consequences of the lack of meso-level politics for the backslide of the democratic system. The paper focusing on Hungarian counties seeks to explore the three-decade-long process leading to the progressive elimination of these bodies from the public power arena. The Hungarian case demonstrates how the overall administrative and political centralisation process has contributed to the hollowing-out of meso-level political actors. The Hungarian case study underlines the complex interrelations between the macro-political system, and the territorial political governmental arenas from the aspect of the centre and periphery power relations. Many European regional governments are not only platforms for territorial interest representation but also a counterweight to the central level contributing to the quality and stability of democratic governance. The study reviewing the situation of Hungarian counties draws on the author’s previous empirical research experiences and is a part of the ongoing research on governance issues of peripheral areas1. The results of the analyses discuss the implications of the hollowing-out of county governments on the electoral and party system, the modification of the institutional channels of interest representation. The Hungarian example appears to corroborate the analogy with the theory of second order elections. The theory of second order elections recognized the impact on the turnout and electoral preferences based on the changing role of different governance levels, by the same token, it seems that the weakening power position of the meso contributes to the decline of political competition and publicity by minimizing the interest of the public in general. The objective of the present study is to enrich the assessment of the relationship between territorial governance and democracy with some analytical options by demonstrating the implications of the “second order nature” of the meso.
Like Taking a Magnifying Glass Into Everyday Life: Vulnerable Parents’ Experiences With Video Guidance in an Infant Mental Health Clinic
Authors: Simhan Indra , Vik Kari , Veseth Marius , Hjeltnes Aslak
Published: September 2021

Background: Parents are a central focus in clinical infant mental health interventions because of the key importance of the caregiver-infant relationship, especially when dyads are burdened by psychosocial and parental mental health problems. However, knowledge is scarce about the lived experience of vulnerable parents who undergo video-based guidance.

Aim: The study explores how parents in an infant-psychiatric outpatient clinic who struggled to mentalize and remain emotionally connected to their infant experienced helpful and challenging elements in video guidance.

Method: We analyzed the interviews of a strategic sample of 12 parents after undergoing Marte Meo video guidance, using a team-based, reflexive thematic analysis (TA).

Results: We identified four main themes: (a) Handling initial feelings of fear and loss of control; (b) Filming as a disturbing or agentic experience; (c) Feeling validated or devalued in the therapeutic relationship; and (d) Bringing insights from video guidance into everyday life. Therapeutic and existential factors became apparent in the main themes of adjustment to the guidance, experiences with filming, the therapeutic relationship and integration of new experiences.

Conclusion: The parents’ sense of agency, dignity, and shame may be important for their ability to integrate new ideas about themselves.

Implications: Video guidance for vulnerable parents in specialized clinical treatment should address relational challenges, parental mental health, and issues of recognition.
Feelings of Contrast at Test Reduce False Memory in the Deese/Roediger-McDermott Paradigm
Authors: Cadavid Sara , Beato Maria Soledad , Suarez Mar , Albuquerque Pedro B.
Published: September 2021

False memories in the Deese/Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm are explained in terms of the interplay between error-inflating and error-editing (e.g., monitoring) mechanisms. In this study, we focused on disqualifying monitoring, a decision process that helps to reject false memories through the recollection of collateral information (i.e., recall-to-reject strategies). Participants engage in recall-to-reject strategies using one or two metacognitive processes: (1) applying the logic of mutual exclusivity or (2) experiencing feelings of contrast between studied items and unstudied lures. We aimed to provide, for the first time in the DRM literature, evidence favorable to the existence of a recall-to-reject strategy based on the experience of feelings of contrast. One hundred and forty participants studied six-word DRM lists (e.g., spy, hell, fist, fight, abduction, mortal), simultaneously associated with three critical lures (e.g., WAR, BAD, FEAR). Lists differed in their ease to identify their critical lures (extremely low-BAS lists vs. high-BAS lists). At recognition test, participants saw either one or the three critical lures of the lists. Participants in the three-critical-lure condition were expected to increase their monitoring, as they would experience stronger feelings of contrast than the participants in the one-critical-lure condition. Results supported our hypothesis, showing lower false recognition in the three-critical-lure condition than in the one-critical-lure condition. Critically, in the three-critical-lure condition, participants reduced even more false memory when they could also resort to another monitoring strategy (i.e., identify-to-reject). These findings suggest that, in the DRM context, disqualifying monitoring could be guided by experiencing feelings of contrast between different types of words.
The Remission of Social Anxiety Disorder After Trauma: A Case Report of Posttraumatic Growth?
Authors: Hühne Verônica , Vigne Paula , de Menezes Gabriela B. , Fontenelle Leonardo F.
Published: September 2021

Posttraumatic growth (PTG) describes positive psychological change and improvement beyond one's previous functioning. It manifests as a change of self-perception, improvement in the relationship with others, and a better outlook on life. Despite consistent literature on the occurrence of PTG in healthy subjects, there is still a dearth of studies in people with pre-existing mental disorders, especially anxiety disorders. We report the case of a patient previously diagnosed with social anxiety disorder (SAD), whose symptoms remitted, and life view improved after a traumatic event, illustrating a case of PTG. The trauma shattered the patient's previous belief system, allowing the emergence of a new cognitive schema. Although PTG and symptom remission do not necessarily correspond to the same construct, we believe that these phenomena were related to each other in this case, probably because of a notable change in our patient's underlying belief system.
Clubhouse Model of Psychiatric Rehabilitation in China to Promote Recovery of People With Schizophrenia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Yan Haohao , Ding Yudan , Guo Wenbin
Published: September 2021

Background: Whether the clubhouse model of psychiatric rehabilitation is well-implemented in China and whether patients with schizophrenia successfully achieve symptom remission and functional recovery through engaging in the clubhouse remain unclear.

Methods: Seven electronic databases were searched for relevant articles from inception to April 21, 2021. Quality assessment, data synthesis, and subgroup analysis were performed on the included studies.

Results: Seven randomized controlled studies with 682 participants were included in the present meta-analysis. The clubhouse model of psychiatric rehabilitation has a significant effect on promoting the remission of psychiatric symptoms, especially negative symptoms. However, it does not show a definite effect on promoting recovery of positive symptoms. The clubhouse model of psychiatric rehabilitation has a significant effect on promoting social functioning recovery, reducing the family burden, improving the quality of life, and promoting the remission of depressive and anxiety symptoms of patients with schizophrenia in China.

Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the clubhouse model of psychiatric rehabilitation can promote the remission of symptoms and functional recovery of Chinese with schizophrenia. It may be suitable to address the urgent need for better mental health services in China.
Electromagnetic Fields Modify Redox Balance in the Rat Gastrointestinal Tract
Authors: Sieroń Karolina , Knapik Katarzyna , Onik Grzegorz , Romuk Ewa , Birkner Ewa , Kwiatek Sebastian , Sieroń Aleksander
Published: September 2021

Objective: The aim of the study was to assess the influence of electromagnetic fields with divergent physical properties on the prooxidative and antioxidative balances in homogenates of the tongue, salivary glands, esophagus, stomach, and small and large intestines of rats.

Material and Methods: Forty rats were randomly divided into four equal groups, namely, a control group, a group exposed to low-frequency electromagnetic fields (LF-EMFs; frequency: 50 Hz; intensity: 10 kV/m; magnetic induction: 4.3 pT), a group exposed to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) emitted by mobile phones (frequency: 900 MHz), and a group exposed simultaneously to LF-EMFs and RF-EMFs emitted by mobile phones. After 28 consecutive days of the experiment, the following pro- and antioxidative markers were assessed in the gastrointestinal tract homogenates: superoxide dismutase (SOD) and its two isoenzymes (Mn-SOD, Cu,Zn-SOD) catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione reductase (GR), glutathione S-transferase (GST), total antioxidative capacity (TAC), total oxidative status (TOS), and malondialdehyde (MDA).

Results: In rats exposed to LF-EMFs, higher concentrations of the markers of prooxidant processes, MDA or TOS, were observed in the salivary glands, esophagus, and small intestine homogenates in comparison with the control group. Additionally, in the group of rats opposite to the control, antioxidant activity was observed. The main differences included a higher activity of Cu,Zn-SOD in homogenates of the tongue, salivary glands, and esophagus as well as decreased activity of CAT in homogenates of the tongue, esophagus, and small intestine. In animals exposed to RF-EMFs, the concentration of TOS was higher in the large intestine than in control rats. The main difference of antioxidant activity was presented by decreased Cu,Zn-SOD in homogenates of the salivary glands, stomach, small and large intestine as well as CAT in homogenates of the tongue, esophagus, stomach, and small and large intestine. Moreover, in rats exposed simultaneously to LF-EMFs and RF-EMFs, a lower concentration of TOS was observed. Antioxidant activity was presented by a decreased activity of CAT in homogenates of the tongue, esophagus, stomach, and small and large intestine in comparison to the control group.

Conclusion: Among those applied in the study, electromagnetic fields of a low-frequency caused the most significant disturbances of oxidative stress in the rat gastrointestinal tract.
Data-Driven Prediction of Fatigue in Parkinson’s Disease Patients
Authors: Lee Dong Goo , Lindsay Adrian , Yu Adam , Neilson Samantha , Sundvick Kristen , Golz Ella , Foulger Liam , Mirian Maryam , Appel-Cresswell Silke
Published: September 2021

Introduction: Numerous non-motor symptoms are associated with Parkinson’s disease (PD) including fatigue. The challenge in the clinic is to detect relevant non-motor symptoms while keeping patient-burden of questionnaires low and to take potential subgroups such as sex differences into account. The Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) effectively detects clinically significant fatigue in PD patients. Machine learning techniques can determine which FSS items best predict clinically significant fatigue yet the choice of technique is crucial as it determines the stability of results.

Methods: 182 records of PD patients were analyzed with two machine learning algorithms: random forest (RF) and Boruta. RF and Boruta calculated feature importance scores, which measured how much impact an FSS item had in predicting clinically significant fatigue. Items with the highest feature importance scores were the best predictors. Principal components analysis (PCA) grouped highly related FSS items together.

Results: RF, Boruta and PCA demonstrated that items 8 (“Fatigue is among my three most disabling symptoms”) and 9 (“Fatigue interferes with my work, family or social life”) were the most important predictors. Item 5 (“Fatigue causes frequent problems for me”) was an important predictor for females, and item 6 (“My fatigue prevents sustained physical functioning”) was important for males. Feature importance scores’ standard deviations were large for RF (14–66%) but small for Boruta (0–5%).

Conclusion: The clinically most informative questions may be how disabling fatigue is compared to other symptoms and interference with work, family and friends. There may be some sex-related differences with frequency of fatigue-related complaints in females and endurance-related complaints in males yielding significant information. Boruta but not RF yielded stable results and might be a better tool to determine the most relevant components of abbreviated questionnaires. Further research in this area would be beneficial in order to replicate these findings with other machine learning algorithms, and using a more representative sample of PD patients.
Comparing Deep Reinforcement Learning Algorithms’ Ability to Safely Navigate Challenging Waters
Authors: Larsen Thomas Nakken , Teigen Halvor Ødegård , Laache Torkel , Varagnolo Damiano , Rasheed Adil
Published: September 2021

Reinforcement Learning (RL) controllers have proved to effectively tackle the dual objectives of path following and collision avoidance. However, finding which RL algorithm setup optimally trades off these two tasks is not necessarily easy. This work proposes a methodology to explore this that leverages analyzing the performance and task-specific behavioral characteristics for a range of RL algorithms applied to path-following and collision-avoidance for underactuated surface vehicles in environments of increasing complexity. Compared to the introduced RL algorithms, the results show that the Proximal Policy Optimization (PPO) algorithm exhibits superior robustness to changes in the environment complexity, the reward function, and when generalized to environments with a considerable domain gap from the training environment. Whereas the proposed reward function significantly improves the competing algorithms’ ability to solve the training environment, an unexpected consequence of the dimensionality reduction in the sensor suite, combined with the domain gap, is identified as the source of their impaired generalization performance.
Planetary Boundary Layer Height Estimates From ICESat-2 and CATS Backscatter Measurements
Authors: Palm Stephen P. , Selmer Patrick , Yorks John , Nicholls Stephen , Nowottnick Edward
Published: September 2021

The lowest layer of the atmosphere in which all human activity occurs is called the Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL). All physical interactions with the surface, such as heat and moisture transport, pollution dispersion and transport happen in this relatively shallow layer. The ability to understand and model the complex interactions that occur in the PBL is very important to air quality, weather prediction and climate modeling. A fundamental and physically important property of the PBL is its thickness or height. This work presents two methods to obtain global PBL height using satellite lidar data from the Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) and the Cloud-Aerosol Transport System (CATS). The first method is a straightforward backscatter threshold technique and the second is a machine learning approach known as a Convolutional Neural Network. The PBL height retrievals from the two methods are compared with each other and with PBL height from the NASA GEOS MERRA-2 reanalysis. The lidar-retrieved PBL heights have a high degree of spatial correlation with the model heights but are generally higher over ocean (∼400 m) and over northern hemisphere high latitude regions (∼1,000 m). Over mid-latitude and tropical land areas, the satellite estimated PBL heights agree well with model mid-day estimates. This work demonstrates the feasibility of using satellite lidar backscatter measurements to obtain global PBL height estimates, as well as determining seasonal and regional variability of PBL height.
Magnetic Field Reconstruction for a Realistic Multi-Point, Multi-Scale Spacecraft Observatory
Authors: Broeren T. , Klein K. G. , TenBarge J. M. , Dors Ivan , Roberts O. W. , Verscharen D.
Published: September 2021

Future in situ space plasma investigations will likely involve spatially distributed observatories comprised of multiple spacecraft, beyond the four and five spacecraft configurations currently in operation. Inferring the magnetic field structure across the observatory, and not simply at the observation points, is a necessary step towards characterizing fundamental plasma processes using these unique multi-point, multi-scale data sets. We propose improvements upon the classic first-order reconstruction method, as well as a second-order method, utilizing magnetometer measurements from a realistic nine-spacecraft observatory. The improved first-order method, which averages over select ensembles of four spacecraft, reconstructs the magnetic field associated with simple current sheets and numerical simulations of turbulence accurately over larger volumes compared to second-order methods or first-order methods using a single regular tetrahedron. Using this averaging method on data sets with fewer than nine measurement points, the volume of accurate reconstruction compared to a known magnetic vector field improves approximately linearly with the number of measurement points.