bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Egg-laying and locomotory screens with C. elegans yield a nematode-selective small molecule stimulator of neurotransmitter release
Authors: Harrington Sean , Knox Jessica J. , Burns Andrew R. , Choo Ken-Loon , Au Aaron , Kitner Megan , Haeberli Cecile , Pyche Jacob , D’Amata Cassandra , Kim Yong-Hyun , Volpatti Jonathan R. , Guiliani Maximillano , Snider Jamie , Wong Victoria , Palmeira Bruna M. , Redman Elizabeth M. , Vaidya Aditya S. , Gilleard John S. , Stagljar Igor , Cutler Sean R. , Kulke Daniel , Dowling James J. , Yip Christopher M. , Keiser Jennifer , Zasada Inga , Lautens Mark , Roy Peter J.
Published: August 2022

Nematode parasites of humans, livestock and crops dramatically impact human health and welfare. Alarmingly, parasitic nematodes of animals have rapidly evolved resistance to anthelmintic drugs, and traditional nematicides that protect crops are facing increasing restrictions because of poor phylogenetic selectivity. Here, we exploit multiple motor outputs of the model nematode C. elegans towards nematicide discovery. This work yielded multiple compounds that selectively kill and/or immobilize diverse nematode parasites. We focus on one compound that induces violent convulsions and paralysis that we call nementin. We find that nementin stimulates neuronal dense core vesicle release, which in turn enhances cholinergic signaling. Consequently, nementin synergistically enhances the potency of widely-used non-selective acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors, but in a nematode-selective manner. Nementin therefore has the potential to reduce the environmental impact of toxic AChE inhibitors that are used to control nematode infections and infestations.
Morpho-functional traits of the coral Stylophora pistillata enhance light capture for photosynthesis at mesophotic depths
Authors: Kramer Netanel , Guan Jiaao , Chen Shaochen , Wangpraseurt Daniel , Loya Yossi
Published: August 2022

The morphological architecture of photosynthetic corals modulates the light capture and functioning of the coral-algal symbiosis on shallow-water corals. Since corals can thrive on mesophotic reefs under extreme light-limited conditions, we hypothesized that microskeletal coral features enhance light capture under low-light environments. Utilizing micro-computed tomography scanning, we conducted a novel comprehensive three-dimensional (3D) assessment of the small-scale skeleton morphology of the depth-generalist coral Stylophora pistillata collected from shallow (4–5 m) and mesophotic (45–50 m) depths. We detected a high phenotypic diversity between depths, resulting in two distinct morphotypes, with calyx diameter, theca height, and corallite marginal spacing contributing to most of the variation between depths. To determine whether such depth-specific morphotypes affect coral light capture and photosynthesis on the corallite scale, we developed 3D simulations of light propagation and photosynthesis. We found that microstructural features of corallites from mesophotic corals provide a greater ability to use solar energy under light-limited conditions; while corals associated with shallow morphotypes avoided excess light through self-shading skeletal architectures. The results from our study suggest that skeleton morphology plays a key role in coral photoadaptation to light-limited environments.
Initial community composition determines the long-term dynamics of a microbial cross-feeding interaction by modulating niche availability
Authors: Dolinšek Jan , Ramoneda Josep , Johnson David R
Published: August 2022

Multi-step substrate consumption pathways can promote microbial biodiversity via cross-feeding. If one cell type preferentially consumes a primary substrate rather than the subsequently formed intermediates, then other cell types can specialize in consuming the intermediates. While this mechanism for promoting biodiversity is established, predicting the long-term persistence of such cross-feeding interactions remains challenging. Under what conditions will the interaction (and thus biodiversity) persist or disappear? To address this question, we propagated co-cultures of two isogenic strains of the bacterium Pseudomonas stutzeri. One completely reduces nitrate to nitrogen gas but preferentially reduces nitrate rather than nitrite (referred to as the generalist), while the other only reduces nitrite to nitrogen gas (referred to as the specialist). We found that the two strains coexist via nitrite cross-feeding when grown together, but the initial ratio of specialist-to-generalist (rS/G) determines the long-term dynamics of the co-culture. Co-cultures with large initial rS/Gs converge to the same rS/G and persist thereafter. Co-cultures with small initial rS/Gs also converge to the same rS/G but then become increasingly dominated by the generalist. The likely cause of these different dynamics is that the initial rS/G determines the initial environment, which in turn determines the initial selection pressures and phenotypes acquired by the generalist. Our results demonstrate that initial community composition controls the long-term dynamics and persistence of a cross-feeding interaction, and is therefore an important factor for community development and for engineering communities to achieve desired outcomes.
A mitochondria targeted cascade reaction nanosystem for improved therapeutic effect by overcoming cellular resistance
Authors: Sun Zhen , Chen Weihua , Huang Dianshuai , Jiang Chunhuan , Lu Lehui
Published: August 2022

This nanoplatform can locate in mitochondria, alleviate heat resistance and multidrug resistance of cells, resulting in the enhanced therapeutic effect. It can also catalyze H2O2 to produce reactive oxygen species, which further promote apoptosis.
Crystal-size effect on the kinetics of CO2 adsorption in metal organic frameworks studied by NMR
Authors: Jiang Weiming , Takeda Kazuyuki
Published: August 2022

NMR studies reveal the crystal-size effect on the kinetics of carbon dioxide adsorbed in metal organic frameworks.
Role of hydrazone substituents in determining the nuclearity and antibacterial activity of Zn(ii) complexes with pyrazolone-based hydrazones
Authors: Marchetti Fabio , Pettinari Riccardo , Verdicchio Federico , Tombesi Alessia , Scuri Stefania , Xhafa Sonila , Olivieri Laura , Pettinari Claudio , Choquesillo-Lazarte Duane , García-García Amalia , Rodríguez-Diéguez Antonio , Galindo Agustín
Published: August 2022

Zn(ii) complexes with different pyrazolone-based hydrazones display nuclearity and antibacterial activities related to particular hydrazone substituents.
POPs in Antarctic ecosystems: is climate change affecting their temporal trends?
Authors: Corsolini Simonetta , Ademollo Nicoletta
Published: August 2022

Climate change is affecting Antarctica and the Southern Ocean and effects have been already reported for the abiotic compartments of the ecosystems, e.g. ice loss and iceberg calving.
Hyperspectral dark field optical microscopy for orientational imaging of a single plasmonic nanocube using a physics-based learning method
Authors: Mehta Nishir , Mahigir Amirreza , Veronis Georgios , Gartia Manas Ranjan
Published: August 2022

A machine learning approach using hyperspectral data to find orientation with single nanoparticle resolution.
Biological activity of non-radical vs. stable radical of a pyridazine-sulfonamide aminophenol-type compound
Authors: Chatterjee Himadri Sekhar , Maity Suvendu , Halder Satyajit , Ghosh Prasanta , Jana Kuladip , Mahapatra Pradip Kumar , Sinha Chittaranjan
Published: August 2022

A redox-non-innocent 2-aminophenolate derivative 4-(3,5-di-tert-butyl-2-hydroxyphenylamino)-N-(6-methoxypyridazin-3-yl)benzenesulfonamide (LSOAPH2) is more activity against cancer cell lines than one electron-oxidized form o-iminosemiquinonate monoanion (LSOISQ).
Multidimensional characterization of noble metal alloy nanoparticles by multiwavelength analytical ultracentrifugation
Authors: Cardenas Lopez P. , Uttinger M. J. , Traoré N. E. , Khan H. A. , Drobek D. , Apeleo Zubiri B. , Spiecker E. , Pflug L. , Peukert W. , Walter J.
Published: August 2022

A method based on analytical ultracentrifugation with multiwavelength detection is presented for the simultaneous size-composition characterization of gold-silver alloy nanoparticles.
Spray-driven halide exchange in solid-state CsPbX3 nanocrystal films
Authors: Sánchez-Alarcón R. I. , Noguera-Gomez J. , Chirvony V. S. , Pashaei Adl H. , Boix Pablo P. , Alarcón-Flores G. , Martínez-Pastor J. P. , Abargues R.
Published: August 2022

An open-air and annealing-free method towards CsPbBr3−xIx NC thin films by a spray-driven halide exchange in CsPbBr3 NC films. Outstanding optical quality and enhanced PLQYs allows to reach a low-threshold amplified spontaneous emission.
Post-synthetically modified metal–porphyrin framework GaTCPP for carbon dioxide adsorption and energy storage in Li–S batteries
Authors: Király Nikolas , Capková Dominika , Almáši Miroslav , Kazda Tomáš , Čech Ondej , Čudek Pavel , Fedorková Andrea Straková , Lisnichuk Maxim , Meynen Vera , Zeleňák Vladimír
Published: August 2022

Metal–porphyrin framework GaTCPP was used for carbon dioxide adsorption and as a host for preparation of a Li–S battery cathode material.
One-pot two-step catalytic synthesis of 6-amino-2-pyridone-3,5-dicarbonitriles enabling anti-cancer bioactivity
Authors: Nicely Lynden G. , Vala Ruturajsinh M. , Upadhyay Dipti B. , Nogales Joaquina , Chi Celestine , Banerjee Sourav , Patel Hitendra M.
Published: August 2022

The one-pot synthetic strategy of amino-pyridones with potent anti-cancer activity against breast, brain, liver, and lung cancer cells either alone or in combination with clinically relevant receptor tyrosine kinase and proteasome inhibitors.
Green synthesis of coumarin derivatives using Brønsted acidic pyridinium based ionic liquid [MBSPy][HSO4] to control an opportunistic human and a devastating plant pathogenic fungus Macrophomina phaseolina
Authors: Uroos Maliha , Javaid Arshad , Bashir Amina , Tariq Javaria , Khan Iqra Haider , Naz Sadia , Fatima Sameeta , Sultan Misbah
Published: August 2022

An eco-friendly simple protocol has been devised for the preparation of coumarin derivatives using doubly Brønsted acidic task specific ionic liquid (TSIL) as a catalyst.
Simple yttrium salts as highly active and controlled catalysts for the atom-efficient synthesis of high molecular weight polyesters
Authors: Wood Zachary A. , Assefa Mikiyas K. , Fieser Megan E.
Published: August 2022

Two simple yttrium salts, YCl3THF3.5and YCl3·6H2O, are highly active and controlled catalysts for the perfectly alternating ring-opening copolymerization of epoxides and cyclic anhydrides.
Phase-engineered high-entropy metastable FCC Cu2−yAgy(InxSn1−x)Se2S nanomaterials with high thermoelectric performance
Authors: Zhang Wanjia , Lou Yue , Dong Hongliang , Wu Fanshi , Tiwari Janak , Shi Zhan , Feng Tianli , Pantelides Sokrates T. , Xu Biao
Published: August 2022

The retention in size caused by the residual ligands drives the stability of metastable phase, enhancing structure symmetry and leading to good electrical transport. The distorted lattice and multidimensional defects intensify phonon scattering.
Correction: Jahn-Teller distortion and dissociation of CCl4+ by transient X-ray spectroscopy simultaneously at the carbon K- and chlorine L-edge
Authors: Ross Andrew D. , Hait Diptarka , Scutelnic Valeriu , Haugen Eric A. , Ridente Enrico , Balkew Mikias B. , Neumark Daniel M. , Head-Gordon Martin , Leone Stephen R.
Published: August 2022

Correction for ‘Jahn-Teller distortion and dissociation of CCl4+ by transient X-ray spectroscopy simultaneously at the carbon K- and chlorine L-edge’ by Andrew D. Ross et al., Chem. Sci., 2022, https://doi.org/10.1039/d2sc02402k.
Zwitterionic surface chemistry enhances detachment of bacteria under shear
Authors: Shave Molly K. , Zhou Yitian , Kim Jiwon , Kim Ye Chan , Hutchison Jaime , Bendejacq Denis , Goulian Mark , Choi Jonghoon , Composto Russell J. , Lee Daeyeon
Published: August 2022

A microfluidic approach is used to evaluate the effectiveness in facilitating bacteria detachment by shear of an antifouling surface treatment using a zwitterionic silane. The zwitterionic group significantly enhances bacteria detachment under shear.
Non-equilibrium shapes and dynamics of active vesicles
Authors: Iyer Priyanka , Gompper Gerhard , Fedosov Dmitry A.
Published: August 2022

Active vesicles, consisting of self-propelled particles inside a lipid membrane shell, exhibit a large variety of non-equilibrium shapes, ranging from the formation of local tethers and dendritic conformations, to prolate and bola-like structures.
Validation of Male Talker Recordings of the Spanish Pediatric Speech Recognition Threshold Test and the Spanish Pediatric Picture Identification Test
Authors: Mendel Lisa Lucks , Pousson Monique A. , Jones Skye E. , Bass Johnnie K.
Published: August 2022

Purpose:

The purpose of this study was to validate recordings of the Spanish Pediatric Speech Recognition Threshold (SPSRT) test and Spanish Pediatric Picture Identification Test (SPPIT) for Spanish-speaking children using a native, bilingual Spanish–English male talker of Castilian peninsular dialect from Spain.

Method:

Seventy native Spanish-speaking children from a variety of countries participated. Fifty-eight participants had normal hearing, and the remaining 12 had mild hearing loss in at least one ear. Male talker recordings of the SPSRT and SPPIT were administered to obtain baseline validation data. Participants listened to the stimuli and pointed to the appropriate item on the picture boards that represented the word they heard.

Results:

Mean SRTs were within 5 dB of mean pure-tone averages resulting in a positive correlation. Performance–intensity functions for the SPPIT showed minimal significant differences across the three test lists, and performance increased as the sensation level increased.

Conclusions:

The male talker recordings of the SPSRT and SPPIT are valid speech perception picture-pointing assessments that can be used with Spanish-speaking children. The recordings present the Spanish target word while simultaneously presenting the English interpretation for ease of scoring.
Effects of Segmental and Suprasegmental Speech Perception on Reading in Pediatric Cochlear Implant Recipients
Authors: Grantham Heather , Davidson Lisa S. , Geers Ann E. , Uchanski Rosalie M.
Published: August 2022

Purpose:

The aim of this study was to determine whether suprasegmental speech perception contributes unique variance in predictions of reading decoding and comprehension for prelingually deaf children using two devices, at least one of which is a cochlear implant (CI).

Method:

A total of 104, 5- to 9-year-old CI recipients completed tests of segmental perception (e.g., word recognition in quiet and noise, recognition of vowels and consonants in quiet), suprasegmental perception (e.g., talker and stress discrimination, nonword stress repetition, and emotion identification), and nonverbal intelligence. Two years later, participants completed standardized tests of reading decoding and comprehension. Using regression analyses, the unique contribution of suprasegmental perception to reading skills was determined after controlling for demographic characteristics and segmental perception performance.

Results:

Standardized reading scores of the CI recipients increased with nonverbal intelligence for both decoding and comprehension. Female gender was associated with higher comprehension scores. After controlling for gender and nonverbal intelligence, segmental perception accounted for approximately 4% and 2% of the variance in decoding and comprehension, respectively. After controlling for nonverbal intelligence, gender, and segmental perception, suprasegmental perception accounted for an extra 4% and 7% unique variance in reading decoding and reading comprehension, respectively.

Conclusions:

Suprasegmental perception operates independently from segmental perception to facilitate good reading outcomes for these children with CIs. Clinicians and educators should be mindful that early perceptual skills may have long-term benefits for literacy. Research on how to optimize suprasegmental perception, perhaps through hearing-device programming and/or training strategies, is needed.
Younger Age at Cochlear Implant Activation Results in Improved Auditory Skill Development for Children With Congenital Deafness
Authors: Culbertson Shannon R. , Dillon Margaret T. , Richter Margaret E. , Brown Kevin D. , Anderson Melissa R. , Hancock Sandra L. , Park Lisa R.
Published: August 2022

Purpose:

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration indications for cochlear implantation in children is currently 9 months of age and older for children with bilateral profound sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). Studies have shown that earlier activation of a cochlear implant (CI) can lead to better spoken language outcomes. As auditory skills are a precursor to the development of spoken language, this study was developed to investigate the influence of age at CI activation on auditory skill acquisition in young children. A secondary aim was to describe the auditory skills of children implanted prior to 9 months of age as compared to children with older ages of activation.

Method:

Functional Listening Index (FLI) scores obtained during routine clinical visits were reviewed for 78 pediatric CI recipients with congenital bilateral profound hearing loss who were activated before 2 years of age. A linear mixed-effects model assessed the effect of age at CI activation on cumulative FLI scores over time.

Results:

There was a significant interaction between age at activation and chronological age at the time of evaluation, indicating that children with earlier access to sound achieved a greater number of auditory skills than those with later CI activations when measured at the same chronological age. Children activated before the age of 9 months approximated scores expected of children with typical hearing, whereas children activated between 9 and 24 months of age did not.

Conclusions:

Younger age at CI activation is associated with increased auditory skills over time. Children who undergo cochlear implantation and CI activation before 9 months achieve more auditory skills by 4 years of age than children who are activated at later ages. These data suggest that reducing the approved age at cochlear implantation for children with congenital bilateral profound SNHL may support optimal auditory skill acquisition.
Observer‐based sliding mode control for permanent magnet synchronous motor speed regulation system with a novel reaching law
Authors: Zou Quan , Wei Kai , Zhou Guangzu
Published: August 2022

A novel reaching law‐based sliding mode controller is proposed for a permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) speed regulation system with uncertainties and unknown load torque in this paper. The proposed reaching law is the improvement of the traditional power rate reaching law (PRL) by using a simple tuning function of the sliding variable. The tuning function is designed such that the reaching speed is fast when the system states are far away from the sliding surface, and vice versa. Theoretical analysis shows that the reaching time of the proposed reaching law is always shorter than that of the traditional PRL with the same gains. Moreover, unlike the traditional PRL and some existing auto‐tuning PRLs, the proposed reaching law can provide globally bounded reaching time independently on the initial conditions, and the reaching time can be effectively reduced by tuning the reaching law gains. Based on this novel reaching law, a disturbance observer is designed to estimate the total disturbance, and then based on the estimated disturbance and the novel reaching law, a sliding mode speed controller is designed for the robust control of PMSM speed regulation system. Simulations and experiments are carried out to demonstrate the superiority of the proposed control method.
Toward a multidimensional analysis of transmission spectroscopy
Authors: Zingales Tiziano , Falco Aurélien , Pluriel William , Leconte Jérémy
Published: August 2022

New-generation spectrographs dedicated to the study of exoplanetary atmospheres require a high accuracy in the atmospheric models to better interpret the input spectra. Thanks to space missions such as James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), ARIEL, and Twinkle, the observed spectra will indeed cover a large wavelength range from visible to mid-infrared with an higher precision compared to the old-generation instrumentation, revealing complex features coming from different regions of the atmosphere. For hot and ultra hot Jupiters (HJs and UHJs), the main source of complexity in the spectra comes from thermal and chemical differences between the day and the night sides. In this context, 1D plane parallel retrieval models of atmospheres may not be suitable to extract the complexity of such spectra. In addition, Bayesian frameworks are computationally intensive and prevent us from using complete 3D self-consistent models to retrieve exoplanetary atmospheres, and they require us to use simplified models to converge at a set of atmospheric parameters. We thus propose the TauREx 2D retrieval code, which uses 2D atmospheric models as a good compromise between computational cost and model accuracy to better infer exoplanetary atmospheric characteristics for the hottest planets. TauREx 2D uses a 2D parametrization across the limb which computes the transmission spectrum from an exoplanetary atmosphere assuming azimuthal symmetry. It also includes a thermal dissociation model of various species. We demonstrate that, given an input observation, TauREx 2D mitigates the biases between the retrieved atmospheric parameters and the real atmospheric parameters. We also show that having prior knowledge of the link between local temperature and composition is instrumental in inferring the temperature structure of the atmosphere. Finally, we apply such a model on a synthetic spectrum computed from a global climate model (GCM) simulation of WASP-121b and show how parameter biases can be removed when using 2D forward models across the limb.
A general maximum principle for progressive optimal stochastic control problems with Markov regime-switching
Authors: Song Yuanzhuo , Wu Zhen
Published: August 2022

In this paper, we give a general maximum principle for optimal controls of stochastic systems driven by Markov chains. The control is allowed to enter both diffusion and jump terms and the control domain is not necessarily convex. We apply a new spike variation and the stochastic integral of progressive processes to obtain the main result.
Hydrocephalus in Neurofibromatosis Type 1 Caused by a Cyst Formation Similar to Late-Onset Aqueductal Membranous Occlusion: A Case Report and Review of Literature
Authors: Kuwahara Kiyonori , Ohba Shigeo , Ganaha Tsukasa , Murayama Kazuhiro , Abe Masato , Hasegawa Mitsuhiro , Hirose Yuichi
Published: August 2022

Cyst formation in the third ventricle and the histopathological findings were rarely reported. We report a similar case of late-onset aqueductal membranous occlusion (LAMO) caused by a thin gliotic cyst and a review of related literature. A 28-year-old woman with enlarged lateral ventricles was referred to our hospital with complaints of headache and dizziness. In our hospital, the obvious cause of the hydrocephalus was unknown on any examination and we decided performing endoscopic third ventriculostomy for hydrocephalus. A thin cyst covering the entrance of the aqueduct was identified and we perforated it. Histopathological finding of the cyst wall was gliosis and our case was similar to LAMO, although not typical. The postoperative symptoms and ventricle size improved for 4 years. When suspecting cases similar to definition of LAMO, neuroendoscopic surgery would be the first-choice treatment and might detect causes undetectable on preoperative imaging such as our thin membrane.
Panoramic Indices: An Aid to Early Detection of Patients with Low Bone Mineral Density
Authors: Bangeennavar Bheemappa F. , Ullah Md. Kalim , Gokak Kajal V. , Ahmed Hina , Meshram Ashish D. , Pavani Bellamkonda , Hassan Irfan , Hassan Syed Sirajul
Published: August 2022

Objective An early identification of patients who are at an obvious increased risk of osteoporosis and subsequent high risk of pathological bone fractures is important to prevent morbidity and its subsequent impact on the quality of life of the affected patients. Dental professionals have a chance of identifying such cases in their very initial stages through routinely prescribed dental radiographs. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of gender and age on different parameters of alveolar bone loss using orthopantomograph (OPG) as an aid to identify patients with low bone mineral density (BMD).

Materials and Methods This study included eighty subjects in whom after taking OPGs, mandibular cortical index (MCI), mandibular cortical width (MCW), and panoramic mandibular index were assessed, while the results obtained were subjected to statistical analysis. One-way analysis of variance followed by Tukey's test was used to compare the means, while p-value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results The findings of this study revealed a significant association between MCI and age for females, with C2 and C3 categories being more common with advancing age. Also, a significant difference could be seen in relation to gender (p-value = 0.0315) for MCW with a concomitant decrease in the values of MCW in females over 60 years of age.

Conclusion Panoramic radiographic measurements could provide valuable information and help in screening patients with low BMD.
A Factorial Analysis on Visual Outcomes of Transsphenoidal Surgery for Pituitary Macroadenoma
Authors: Ng Ben Chat Fong , Mak Calvin Hoi-Kwan , Steffi Chong Shing Yee , Wing See Ka , Shing Tse Tat , Ching Cheung Fung
Published: August 2022

Objective Sellar lesions are possible reversible causes of vision loss. This study is to provide quantitative objective measurement of efficacy of surgery for non-functioning pituitary adenoma and discuss different factors that could affect visual outcome of non-functioning pituitary adenoma.

Method This is a single centre, retrospective study conducted at a tertiary neurosurgery referral centre. 108 cases of sellar tumors which underwent surgery during the 3-year period from early June 2015 to late May 2018 were reviewed. Pituitary adenoma that were non-functioning and without apoplexy at initial presentation were selected for the study. We have analyzed the correlation of different factors with the visual outcome, including the extent of vertical decompression in terms of change in tumor height post operation and the extent of lateral decompression in terms of change in Knosp grading. Visual outcome was represented by the visual impairment score (VIS), an integrated measurement of visual acuity and visual field deficit.

Results Preoperative absolute tumor height and supracarotid height correlated with preoperative VIS scale (p ≤ 0.01). Absolute Knosp grading correlates significantly with VA (p = 0.001) and VF (p ≤ 0.001) of that particular eye. Although most patients had an objective improvement in visual acuity (VA) (88%) and visual field (VF) (99%) after operation, a larger reduction in tumor height and successful Knosp downgrading after surgery is associated with better VIS improvement. (p = 0.025) Change in supracarotid height shows trend in correlating with change in VIS (p = 0.084).

Conclusion Height of tumor measured from genu of cavernous ICA correlates better with visual outcome than absolute tumor height. The extent of both vertical and lateral decompression of non-functioning pituitary adenoma are important determinants that lead to better visual outcome. As endoscopic approach is able to achieve a greater degree of lateral decompression, it is a preferred approach in pituitary surgery to achieve a better visual outcome.
Nonvascular Nervous System Complications in Pediatric Patients with COVID-19 Infection
Authors: Palabiyik Figen , Koral Korgün , Pruthi Sumit
Published: August 2022

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is caused by a novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 virus which primarily targets the lungs. However, the central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral nervous system involvement due to COVID-19, however, has been reported as early as the cases of respiratory system involvement. In addition, there have been many reports describing neuroimaging features of COVID-19, but data beyond case studies in the pediatric population are still limited, indicating limited CNS involvement. The CNS involvement and complications include, but are not limited to, encephalopathy, meningoencephalitis, ischemic stroke, venous sinus thrombosis, acute necrotizing encephalopathy, acute disseminated encephalomyelitis, posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome, acute cerebellitis, acute hemorrhagic myelitis, and Guillain–Barré syndrome. In this manuscript, we will discuss the imaging characteristics of some of these entities with a known diagnosis of COVID-19.
Metabolic Injury of Hepatocytes Promotes Progression of NAFLD and AALD
Authors: Carvalho-Gontijo Raquel , Han Cuijuan , Zhang Lei , Zhang Vivian , Hosseini Mojgan , Mekeel Kristin , Schnabl Bernd , Loomba Rohit , Karin Michael , Brenner David A. , Kisseleva Tatiana
Published: August 2022

Nonalcoholic liver disease is a component of metabolic syndrome associated with obesity, insulin resistance, and hyperlipidemia. Excessive alcohol consumption may accelerate the progression of steatosis, steatohepatitis, and fibrosis. While simple steatosis is considered a benign condition, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis with inflammation and fibrosis may progress to cirrhosis, liver failure, and hepatocellular cancer. Studies in rodent experimental models and primary cell cultures have demonstrated several common cellular and molecular mechanisms in the pathogenesis and regression of liver fibrosis. Chronic injury and death of hepatocytes cause the recruitment of myeloid cells, secretion of inflammatory and fibrogenic cytokines, and activation of myofibroblasts, resulting in liver fibrosis. In this review, we discuss the role of metabolically injured hepatocytes in the pathogenesis of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and alcohol-associated liver disease. Specifically, the role of chemokine production and de novo lipogenesis in the development of steatotic hepatocytes and the pathways of steatosis regulation are discussed.
Design and performance evaluation of bionics-based combined blade for horizontal axis tidal current hydroturbine
Authors: Zhang Kaisheng , Li Jing , Gao Zhen , Zhang Baocheng
Published: August 2022

Horizontal axis tidal current hydroturbines are widely used to extract tidal current energy. The blade is an important component of the hydroturbine, and its performance primarily depends on the airfoil pattern of the blade. Based on previous studies and elements of bionic technology, this study proposes a design method using bionic technology in the blade design to obtain a composite blade with NACA and shark airfoils and good hydrodynamic performance. An airfoil with a high lift-drag-ratio or a high torque coefficient is selected from multiple airfoil designs, and the optimal combination airfoil blade model is generated according to the blade element momentum theory and Wilson blade theory. The pressure and velocity fields of different combinations of the airfoil blades are investigated using numerical simulation and underwater experiments. The results demonstrate that the combined blade offers optimal performance when the pitch angle is 60°. Its torque coefficient and turbine speed are higher than those of conventional blades, and its energy coefficient is increased by approximately 14.5%.
Role of phosphorylation of Cdc20 in the regulation of the action of APC/C in mitosis
Authors: Shevah-Sitry Danielle , Miniowitz-Shemtov Shirly , Teichner Adar , Kaisari Sharon , Hershko Avram
Published: August 2022

The ubiquitin ligase APC/C (anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome) is essential for the control of mitosis, and its activity is subject to tight regulation. In early mitosis, APC/C is inhibited by the mitotic checkpoint system, but subsequently it regains activity and promotes metaphase-anaphase transition by targeting cyclin B and securin for degradation. The phosphorylation of APC/C by the mitotic protein kinase Cdk1-cyclin B facilitates its interaction with its coactivator Cdc20, while the phosphorylation of Cdc20 inhibits its binding to APC/C. This raises the question of how Cdc20 binds to APC/C under conditions of high Cdk1 activity. It seemed possible that the opposing action of protein phosphatases produces a fraction of unphosphorylated Cdc20 that binds to APC/C. We found, however, that while inhibitors of protein phosphatases PP2A and PP1 increased the overall phosphorylation of Cdc20 in anaphase extracts from
Xenopus
eggs, they did not decrease the levels of Cdc20 bound to APC/C. Searching for alternative mechanisms, we found that following the binding of Cdc20 to APC/C, it became significantly protected against phosphorylation by Cdk1. Protection was mainly at threonine sites at the N-terminal region of Cdc20, known to affect its interaction with APC/C. A model is proposed according to which a pool of unphosphorylated Cdc20, originating from initial stages of mitosis or from phosphatase action, combines with phosphorylated APC/C and thus becomes stabilized against further phosphorylation, possibly by steric hindrance of Cdk1 action. This pool of APC
Cdc20
appears to be required for the regulation of APC/C activity at different stages of mitosis.
L’acquisition des objets directs et indirects en français L1
Authors: Bello Sophia , Pirvulescu Mihaela
Published: August 2022

Cet article compare la production des clitiques objets directs (OD) et indirects (OI) chez les enfants
francophones. L’analyse s’appuie, d’une part, sur des données spontanées du corpus York de la base de données CHILDES, et d’autre
part, sur des données induites récoltées auprès de 48 enfants francophones âgés de 3;03 à 5;02 ans. Les résultats montrent que les
enfants préfèrent l’omission des clitiques OD et OI à toute autre possibilité, et maintiennent l’omission des clitiques OI pendant
plus longtemps que celle des clitiques OD. Nous concluons qu’il existe une asymétrie dans l’acquisition des clitiques objets. Nous
proposons que cette asymétrie provient d’une asymétrie structurelle dans la grammaire cible en ce que les enfants possèdent la
configuration computationnelle, mais doivent toujours apprendre le contenu lexical de chaque verbe afin de restreindre la portée
des omissions.
Audiovisual input in L2 learning
Authors: Muñoz Carmen
Published: August 2022

This article provides an overview of research showing the advantages of audiovisual input in enhancing
second/foreign language learning. It reviews the theoretical frameworks that explain the processing of audiovisual input and its
language learning outcomes, presents the multimodal complexity of audiovisual input, and discusses its various components,
focusing largely on research findings that indicate the potential of subtitles and captions for enhancing language learning. The
paper goes on to address the learning that occurs through audiovisual input and issues related to processing and attention,
examined primarily through eye-tracking data. Lastly, it discusses learner-specific factors, namely the role of working memory and
aptitude, and learner perceptions of the viewing experience.
Responding to radiation accidents: what more do we need to know?
Authors: Thorne M C
Published: August 2022

A short review of the various types of radiation incidents and accidents that have occurred is used to provide a context for discussing the findings on medical management of the victims of such incidents and accidents reported in a recent Special Issue of the Journal of Radiological Protection. The review demonstrates that accidents and incidents giving rise to high radiation doses may involve over-exposure of a single individual, a few individuals, or very large numbers. In general, these exposures will be relatively short-term, ranging from a few seconds to a few days, but chronic situations resulting in high exposures can occur. Some of these exposures may be highly localised, whereas others may result in almost uniform whole-body irradiation. This diversity of situations means that it is not feasible to have a single protocol for the diagnosis and treatment of over-exposed individuals. If the over-exposures are limited to one or a few individuals, these can be addressed on a case-by-case basis. However, where large numbers have been exposed or may have been exposed, there is a need to implement a rapid and effective system of triage. Furthermore, this system is likely to have to be implemented by individuals who have little or no direct experience of radiation-induced injuries. For those individuals who may have been significantly exposed, the key consideration is not to determine the radiation dose that they have received, but to establish their present clinical status and how it is likely to develop with time. There is at most a very limited role for bone-marrow transplantation in the treatment of acute radiation syndrome, whereas there are good arguments for administering various treatments to boost bone marrow function together with other supportive interventions, e.g. in control of infections and handling both fluid loss and bleeding. However, there is concern that the focus to date has been only on the licencing of drugs related to the management of haematopoietic effects. Although a great deal is known about the diagnosis and treatment of injuries arising from high dose exposures, this knowledge is biased towards situations in which there is relatively uniform, external whole-body exposure. More attention needs to be given to assessing the implications of various inhomogeneous exposure regimes and to developing medical countermeasures optimised for addressing the complex, multi-organ effects likely to arise from such inhomogeneous exposures.
Modeling and simulations of a nonlinear granular metamaterial: application to geometric phase-based mass sensing
Authors: Hasan M Arif , Deymier Pierre A
Published: August 2022

Dynamical simulations of an externally harmonically driven model granular metamaterial composed of four linearly and nonlinearly coupled granules show that the nonlinear normal mode can be expressed in a linear normal mode orthonormal basis with time dependent complex coefficients. These coefficients form the components of a state vector that spans a 22 dimensional Hilbert space parametrically with time. Local π jumps in the phase of these components occurring periodically are indicative of topological features in the manifold spanned by the geometric phase of the vibrational state of the metamaterial. We demonstrate that these topological features can be exploited to realize high sensitivity mass sensor. The effect of dissipation on sensitivity is also reported. Nonlinear granular metamaterials with very low dissipation could serve as mass sensors with considerable sensitivity to small mass changes via large changes in geometric phase.
Cluster-enabled patterning of copper nanostructures from aqueous solution using a femtosecond laser
Authors: Luo Zhijun , Zeng Zhihao , Liu Ziyu , Wang Duan , Gan Zongsong , Xie Changsheng
Published: August 2022

A one-step method for patterning low-resistivity nanoscale copper wire is proposed herein to solve the challenging issues of using common metals rather than noble metal nanostructures fabricated by direct laser writing in solution. A complexing and a reducing agent were introduced for the single-photon absorption of copper solution in the visible range and to enable two-photon absorption with a femtosecond laser. Copper clusters were generated prior to direct laser writing to decrease induced laser energy during two-photon absorption and accelerate copper nanowire patterning to avoid the boiling of copper solution. A surfactant was used to restrain the overgrowth of copper clusters to obtain written nanowires with high uniformity. By controlling the laser writing parameters, the obtained copper wire had a minimum width of 230 nm and a resistivity of 1.22 × 10−5 Ω·m. Our method paves the way for the fabrication of common metal nanodevices by direct laser writing.
Prediction of response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer with recurrent neural networks and raw ultrasound signals
Authors: Byra Michal , Dobruch-Sobczak Katarzyna , Piotrzkowska-Wroblewska Hanna , Klimonda Ziemowit , Litniewski Jerzy
Published: August 2022

Objective. Prediction of the response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) in breast cancer is important for patient outcomes. In this work, we propose a deep learning based approach to NAC response prediction in ultrasound (US) imaging. Approach. We develop recurrent neural networks that can process serial US imaging data to predict chemotherapy outcomes. We present models that can process either raw radio-frequency (RF) US data or regular US images. The proposed approach is evaluated based on 204 sequences of US data from 51 breast cancers. Each sequence included US data collected before the chemotherapy and after each subsequent dose, up to the 4th course. We investigate three pre-trained convolutional neural networks (CNNs) as back-bone feature extractors for the recurrent network. The CNNs were pre-trained using raw US RF data, US b-mode images and RGB images from the ImageNet dataset. The first two networks were developed using US data collected from malignant and benign breast masses. Main results. For the pre-treatment data, the better performing network, with back-bone CNN pre-trained on US images, achieved area under the receiver operating curve (AUC) of 0.81 (±0.04). Performance of the recurrent networks improved with each course of the chemotherapy. For the 4th course, the better performing model, based on the CNN pre-trained with RGB images, achieved AUC value of 0.93 (±0.03). Statistical analysis based on the DeLong test presented that there were no significant differences in AUC values between the pre-trained networks at each stage of the chemotherapy (p-values > 0.05). Significance. Our study demonstrates the feasibility of using recurrent neural networks for the NAC response prediction in breast cancer US.
Towards an automatic narcolepsy detection on ambiguous sleep staging and sleep transition dynamics joint model
Authors: Shen Ning , Luo Tian , Chen Chen , Zhang Yanjiong , Zhu Hangyu , Zhou Yuanfeng , Wang Yi , Chen Wei
Published: August 2022

Objective. Mixing/dissociation of sleep stages in narcolepsy adds to the difficulty in automatic sleep staging. Moreover, automatic analytical studies for narcolepsy and multiple sleep latency test (MSLT) have only done automatic sleep staging without leveraging the sleep stage profile for further patient identification. This study aims to establish an automatic narcolepsy detection method for MSLT. Approach. We construct a two-phase model on MSLT recordings, where ambiguous sleep staging and sleep transition dynamics make joint efforts to address this issue. In phase 1, we extract representative features from electroencephalogram (EEG) and electrooculogram (EOG) signals. Then, the features are input to an EasyEnsemble classifier for automatic sleep staging. In phase 2, we investigate sleep transition dynamics, including sleep stage transitions and sleep stages, and output likelihood of narcolepsy by virtue of principal component analysis (PCA) and a logistic regression classifier. To demonstrate the proposed framework in clinical application, we conduct experiments on 24 participants from the Children’s Hospital of Fudan University, considering ten patients with narcolepsy and fourteen patients with MSLT negative. Main results. Applying the two-phase leave-one-subject-out testing scheme, the model reaches an accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of 87.5%, 80.0%, and 92.9% for narcolepsy detection. Influenced by disease pathology, accuracy of automatic sleep staging in narcolepsy appears to decrease compared to that in the non-narcoleptic population. Significance. This method can automatically and efficiently distinguish patients with narcolepsy based on MSLT. It probes into the amalgamation of automatic sleep staging and sleep transition dynamics for narcolepsy detection, which would assist clinic and neuroelectrophysiology specialists in visual interpretation and diagnosis.
Kinematics of individual muscle units in natural contractions measured in vivo using ultrafast ultrasound
Authors: Lubel Emma , Grandi Sgambato Bruno , Barsakcioglu Deren Y , Ibáñez Jaime , Tang Meng-Xing , Farina Dario
Published: August 2022

Objective. The study of human neuromechanical control at the motor unit (MU) level has predominantly focussed on electrical activity and force generation, whilst the link between these, i.e. the muscle deformation, has not been widely studied. To address this gap, we analysed the kinematics of muscle units in natural contractions. Approach. We combined high-density surface electromyography (HDsEMG) and ultrafast ultrasound (US) recordings, at 1000 frames per second, from the tibialis anterior muscle to measure the motion of the muscular tissue caused by individual MU contractions. The MU discharge times were identified online by decomposition of the HDsEMG and provided as biofeedback to 12 subjects who were instructed to keep the MU active at the minimum discharge rate (9.8 ± 4.7 pulses per second; force less than 10% of the maximum). The series of discharge times were used to identify the velocity maps associated with 51 single muscle unit movements with high spatio-temporal precision, by a novel processing method on the concurrently recorded US images. From the individual MU velocity maps, we estimated the region of movement, the duration of the motion, the contraction time, and the excitation–contraction (E–C) coupling delay. Main results. Individual muscle unit motions could be reliably identified from the velocity maps in 10 out of 12 subjects. The duration of the motion, total contraction time, and E–C coupling were 17.9

±

5.3 ms, 56.6

±

8.4 ms, and 3.8

±

3.0 ms (n = 390 across ten participants). The experimental measures also provided the first evidence of muscle unit twisting during voluntary contractions and MU territories with distinct split regions. Significance. The proposed method allows for the study of kinematics of individual MU twitches during natural contractions. The described measurements and characterisations open new avenues for the study of neuromechanics in healthy and pathological conditions.
Optimization and design on multi-layers of dielectric metasurface as broadband terahertz quarter wave plate
Authors: Zhang Zhuo , Gong Yandong , Pang Kai
Published: August 2022

Planar metasurface-based quarter wave plates (QWPs) have significant advantages over conventional devices in terms of compactness, flexibility, and simplicity of manufacture; however, they offer a relatively narrow operational bandwidth. A broadband terahertz achromatic QWP is realized in the 0.68–1.48 THz spectral region in this work, which consists of several separate metasurface layers of dielectric elliptic pillars stacked together with various rotation angles. Meanwhile, an improved simulated annealing method is proposed, which introduces the evolutionary strategies to optimize the distinct fundamental microstructural unit cells, and the running speed is greatly increased. Furthermore, the proposed multi-layers metasurface may pave the way for arbitrary polarization control of incident waves and be ideally suited for application by virtue of subwavelength thickness in the other frequency bands as well.