bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Oral Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Awareness and Acceptability Among Persons who Inject Drugs (PWID) in Kenya: A Qualitative Investigation
Authors: Cosmas Mugambi , Loice Mbogo , William Sinkele , Esther Gitau , Carey Farquhar , Tecla Temu , David Bukusi , John Kinuthia , Aliza Monroe-Wise
Published: February 2023

Background:People who inject drugs (PWID) are disproportionately affected by HIV despite the availability of multiple efficacious biomedical prevention interventions including oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Little is known about the knowledge, acceptability, and uptake of oral PrEP among this population in Kenya. To inform the development of oral PrEP uptake optimization interventions for PWID in Kenya, we conducted a qualitative assessment to establish oral PrEP awareness and willingness to take PrEP by this group in Nairobi City.Methodology:Guided by the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation, and Behaviour (COM-B) model of health behavior change, we conducted8 focus group discussions (FGDs) among randomly constituted samples of PWID in four harm reduction drop-in centers (DICs) in Nairobi in January 2022. The domains explored were: perceived risks (behaviour), oral PrEP awareness and knowledge (capability), motivation to use oral PrEP (behaviour), and perceptions on community uptake (motivation and opportunity). Completed FGD transcripts were uploaded to Atlas.ti version 9 and thematic analysis was conducted through an iterative process of review and discussion by two coders.Findings:There was a low level of oral PrEP awareness with only 4 of the 46 PWID having heard of PrEP; only 3 out of 46 participants had ever used oral PrEP and 2 out of 3 were no longer using it, indicating a low capacity to make decisions on oral PrEP. Most study participants were aware of the risk posed by unsafe drug injection and expressed willingness to take oral PrEP. Nearly all participants demonstrated low understanding of the role oral PrEP plays in complementing condoms in HIV prevention, presenting an opportunity for awareness creation. While the PWID were eager to learn more about oral PrEP, they favored DICs as places where they would like to obtain information and oral PrEP if they chose to use it, identifying an opportunity for oral PrEP programming interventions.Conclusion:Creation of oral PrEP awareness among PWID in Kenya is likely to improve uptake since the PWID are receptive. Oral PrEP should be offered as part of combination prevention approaches, and effective messaging through DICs, integrated outreaches, and social networks are recommended to mitigate displacement of other prevention and harm reduction practices by this population.Trial Registration:ClinicalTrials.gov Protocol Record STUDY0001370.
Effects of KIR2DL4-Stimulated NK-92 Cells on the Apoptotic Pathways of HER2+/HER2- Breast Cancer Cells
Authors: Kilic Nil , Dastouri Mohammadreza , Kandemir Irfan , Yilmaz Erkan
Published: February 2023

Natural killer (NK) cells are immune cells that have attracted significant attention due to their cytotoxic properties. They are believed to be highly effective in cancer therapy. In this study, anti-KIR2DL4 (Killer cell Immunoglobulin like Receptor, 2 Ig Domains and Long cytoplasmic tail 4) was used to stimulate the NK-92 activator receptor to increase their cytotoxicity on breast cancer cell lines. Unstimulated and stimulated NK-92 cells (sNK-92) were cocultured with breast cancer (MCF-7 and SK-BR-3) and normal breast (MCF-12A) cell lines at 1:1, 1:5, and 1:10 (Target: Effector) ratios. The most effective cell cytotoxicity ratio (1:10) was used in the immunostaining and western blot assays to evaluate apoptosis pathway proteins. The sNK-92 cells showed higher cytotoxic activity on breast cancer cells than NK-92 cells. sNK-92 cells had a selective significant cytotoxicity effect on MCF-7 and SK-BR-3 cells but not MCF-12A cells. While sNK-92 cells were effective at all cell concentrations, they were most effective at a 1:10 ratio. Immunostaining and western blots showed significantly higher BAX, caspase 3, and caspase 9 protein levels in all breast cancer cell groups cocultured with sNK-92 than with NK-92 cells. NK-92 cells stimulated with KIR2DL4 showed elevated cytotoxic activity. The cytotoxic activity of sNK-92 cells on breast cancer cells is via apoptosis pathways. However, their effect on normal breast cells is limited. While the obtained data contains only basic information, additional clinical studies are needed to provide a basis for a new treatment model.
Pediatric Patient-Derived-Xenograft development in MAPPYACTS – international pediatric cancer precision medicine trial in relapsed and refractory tumors
Authors: Costa Maria Eugenia Marques da , Zaidi Sakina , Scoazec Jean-Yves , Droit Robin , Lim Wan Ching , Marchais Antonin , Salmon Jérome , Cherkaoui Sarah , Morscher Raphael , Laurent Anouchka , Malinge Sébastien , Mercher Thomas , Tabone-Eglinger Séverine , Goddard Isabelle , Pflumio Francoise , Calvo Julien , Rédini Françoise , Entz-Werle Natacha , Soriano Aroa , Villanueva Alberto , Cairo Stefano , Chastagner Pascal , Moro Massimo , Owens Cormac , Casanova Michela , Hladun Raquel , Berlanga Pablo , Daudigeos-Dubus Estelle , Dessen Philippe , Zitvogel Laurence , Lacroix Ludovic , Pierron Gaelle , Delattre Olivier , Schleiermacher Gudrun , Surdez Didier , Geoerger Birgit
Published: February 2023

Pediatric patients with recurrent and refractory cancers are in most need for new treatments. This study developed patient-derived-xenograft (PDX) models within the European MAPPYACTS cancer precision medicine trial (NCT02613962). To date, 131 PDX models were established following heterotopical and/or orthotopical implantation in immunocompromised mice: 76 sarcomas, 25 other solid tumors, 12 central nervous system tumors, 15 acute leukemias, and 3 lymphomas. PDX establishment rate was 43%. Histology, whole exome and RNA sequencing revealed a high concordance with the primary patient’s tumor profile, human leukocyte-antigen characteristics and specific metabolic pathway signatures. A detailed patient molecular characterization, including specific mutations prioritized in the clinical molecular tumor boards are provided. Ninety models were shared with the IMI2 ITCC Paediatric Preclinical Proof-of-concept Platform (IMI2 ITCC-P4) for further exploitation. This new PDX biobank of unique recurrent childhood cancers provides an essential support for basic and translational research and new treatments development in advanced pediatric malignancies.
Bio-inspired rotary flight of light-driven nanocomposite films
Authors: Wang Dan , Chen Zhaomin , Li Mingtong , Hou Zhen , Zhan Changsong , Zheng Qijun , Wang Dalei , Wang Xin , Cheng Mengjiao , Hu Wenqi , Dong Bin , Shi Feng , Sitti Metin
Published: February 2023

Light-driven photoactuators are promising in a wide range of applications. However, it is still challenging to apply them in flying devices owing to their slow response, small deflection/force and low frequency response. Herein, inspired by the structure of vine maple seeds, we report a nanocomposite film-based soft photoactuator, which exhibits an unprecedented ‘helicopter’-like rotary flight behavior in response to near-infrared (NIR) light (0.6 W/cm2) with ultrafast rotation (~7200 revolutions per minute) and rapid response (~650 ms). This photoactuator is operated based on a fundamentally different mechanism that harnesses the outcome of a series of sequential synergistic interactions between the ternary constituents, i.e., the aerodynamic favorable ‘airscrew’ formation of the hygroscopic agar/silk fibroin film followed by the jet propulsion, which is caused by the photothermal effect of the embedded graphene in the actuator. The soft helicopter-like device exhibits controlled flight and steering behaviors, making it promising for applications in soft robotics, controlled cargo delivery, and other miniature devices.
Detecting thermal anomalies using thermochronometry around hydrothermal veins in the Kii Peninsula, southwest Japan – An attempt
Authors: SUEOKA Shigeru , Iwano Hideki , Danhara Tohru , Niwa Masakazu , Kanno Mizuho , Kohn Barry Paul , Kawamura Makoto , Yokoyama Tatsunori , Kagami Saya , Ogita Yasuhiro , Hirata Takafumi
Published: February 2023

Fluid-inclusion and thermochronometric analyses have been applied to hydrothermal veins and their host rocks outcropping in the Hongu area in the Kii Peninsula, southwestern Japan in an attempt to detect thermal anomalies related to hydrothermal events and to quantify the thermal effects on the host rocks. Hydrothermal events at ~150°C and ~200°C were identified by fluid-inclusion microthermometry of quartz veins. Zircon yielded U–Pb ages of ~74.7–59.2 Ma in the youngest population, fission-track ages of ~27.2–16.6 Ma in the youngest population, and (U–Th)/He single-grain ages of ~23.6–8.7 Ma. Apatite yielded pooled fission-track ages of ~14.9–9.0 Ma. The zircon U–Pb ages constrain the maximum depositional ages of the samples. However, the fission-track and (U–Th)/He dates show no clear trend as a function of distance from the veins. Namely, no thermal anomaly was detected in the surrounding host rocks based on thermochronometry data patterns. The fission-track and (U–Th)/He dates are thought to record the regional thermal and exhumation histories rather than a direct thermal imprint of fluid flow, probably because the duration of such activity was too short or occurred before subsequent regional cooling events when they were thermally overprinted. Apatite fission-track ages of ~10 Ma might reflect regional mountain uplift and exhumation related to rapid subduction of the Philippine Sea slab which was associated with clockwise rotation of the Southwest Japan Arc.
Acute cold stress induces intestinal injury via CIRP-TLR4-IRE1 signaling pathway in pre-starter broilers: short communication
Authors: Wu Juanjuan , Li Guiyao , Guo Haoneng , Huang Bo , Li Guanhong , Dai Sifa
Published: February 2023

Background Cold stress is a common environmental stress in broiler chicks. Cold-inducible RNA-binding protein (CIRP) is a conserved cold shock protein that can regulate inflammatory response through Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4). The mechanism that how CIRP involves in the regulation of cold stress in broilers remains unclear.
Methods and Results In this study, 360 7-day-old healthy male SZ901 chicks were selected and randomly allocated to 4 groups, and then subjected to acute cold exposure at the ambient temperature of 12 ± 1℃ for 0 h, 4 h, 8 h, and 12 h, respectively. After cold exposure, abdominal temperature, gene expression of CIRP-TLR4-IRE1 signaling pathway in ileum mucosa, and small intestinal structure were measured. The results showed that cold exposure decreased abdominal temperature, upregulated the gene expression of endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) markers IRE1, inflammatory factors IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, TNF-α, and tight junction proteins ZO-1 and Occludin in ileum of chicks compared with the control group with no (0 h) cold exposure. Compared with the control group, a long time cold exposure upregulated the gene expression of CIRP, TLR4, GRP78, NF-κB in ileum mucosa, and decreased the villus height and V/C of small intestine.
Conclusions The above results suggest that acute cold stress induces endoplasmic reticulum stress via upregulating the gene expression of CIRP-TLR4-IRE1 signaling pathway, and results in the structural damage of chick intestine.
Application of hybrid BOPPPS teaching model in clinical internship in gynecology
Authors: Xu Zhengfen , Wang Xiaoxia , Yang Xiaodi , Che Xuan
Published: February 2023

Background The traditional gynecological teaching model is not conducive to the cultivation of interns’ clinical skills, thinking patterns and doctor-patient communication ability. This study is aim to explore the application effect of hybrid BOPPPS (Bridge-in, Objective, Pre-assessment, Participant learning, Post assessment, Summary) teaching model in a clinical internship in gynecology.
Methods This observational study was conducted among the final year undergraduate medical interns from September 2020 to June 2022 at Jiaxing Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital. The control group consisted 114 interns of grade 2017 who received the traditional teaching model. The experimental group consisted 121 interns of grade 2018 were introduced to the hybrid BOPPPS teaching model. interns’ final examination scores and teaching satisfaction were compared.
Results The final examination scores of interns in the experimental group were significantly higher than those of interns in the control group (P <0.05). In the experimental group, the final theoretical exam scores were significantly higher than the pre-assessment scores (P <0.01). Compared with the control group, 93.4% of interns in the experimental group thought the hybrid BOPPPS teaching model could help them to improve case analysis ability, and the difference is statistically significant (P < 0.05). 89.3% of interns in the experimental group supported the promotion and application of hybrid BOPPPS model in the practice of other disciplines.
Conclusion The hybrid BOPPPS teaching model helps to stimulate interns' learning interest and learning initiative, improve interns’ clinical skills, and have high interns’ satisfaction, which is worth of promotion and application in the practice of other disciplines.
Investigation of human hair keratin based nanofiberous scaffold for skin tissue engineering application
Authors: AADIL KESHAW Ram , Nathani Akash , Rajendran Archana , Sharma Chandra S. , Lenka Nibedita , Gupta Pratima
Published: February 2023

Keratin-based nanofibers were fabricated using the electrospinning technique and their potential as scaffolds for tissue engineering was investigated. Keratin, extracted from the human hair was blended with poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) in an aqueous medium. Morphological characterization of the fabricated PVA-keratin nanofiber (PK-NFs) random and aligned scaffolds was performed [1,2]using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis. Functional groups and structural studies were done by infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. SEM study revealed the formation of uniform and randomly oriented nanofibers with an interconnected three-dimensional network structure. The mean diameter of the nanofibers ranged from 100 to 250 nm. FTIR study suggested that PVA interacted with keratin by hydrogen bonding. Moreover, the in-vitro cell culture study of PK-NFs scaffolds was tested on murine embryonic stem cells (ESCs), human keratinocytes (HaCaT) and dermal fibroblast (NHDF) cell lines. Results revealed that PK-NFs scaffolds were non-toxic and biocompatible by supporting the growth of murine ESCs, HaCaT and NHDF cells. Further, the immunocytochemical characterization revealed the successful adhesion and growth of ESCs, HaCaT and NHDF cells on PK-NFs scaffolds. Moreover, there was no noteworthy difference in terms of cell growth and viability irrespective of the random and aligned internal fibril arrangement of the PK-NFs scaffolds. The in-vitro cell culture study demonstrated the potential of PK-NFs as a scaffold for skin tissue engineering and it can also be a favorable material for different tissue engineering applications.
Does Cr2AlN Have the Highest Possible Superconducting Transition Temperature in the M2AX family?
Authors: Karaca E. , Byrne P. J. P. , Hasnip P. J. , Probert M. I. J.
Published: February 2023

We have developed a high-throughput computational method to predict the superconducting transition temperature in stable hexagonal M2AX phases and applied it to all the known possible choices for M (M: Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Y, Zr, Nb, Mo, Lu, Hf and Ta). We combine this with the best candidates for A (A: Al, Cu, Ge and Sn) and X (X: C and N) from our previous work, and predict Tc for 60 M2AX-phase materials, 53 of which have never been studied before. From all of these, we identify Cr2AlN as the best candidate for the highest Tc, and confirm its high Tc with more detailed density functional theory electron-phonon coupling calculations. Our detailed calculations predict Tc = 14.8 K for Cr2AlN, which is significantly higher than any Tc value known or predicted for any material in the M2AX family to date.
Sec1 Regulates Intestinal Mucosal Immunity in A Mouse Model of Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Authors: Cai Jing , Wu Hao , Wang Chenxing , Chen Yujiao , Zhang Dingli , Guan Shiwei , Fu Beilei , Jin Yingli , Cao Qian
Published: February 2023

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a common immune-mediated condition with its molecular pathogenesis remaining to be fully elucidated. This study aimed to deepen our understanding of the role of fut2 in human IBD, by studying a new surrogate gene sec1 in mice. CRISPR/Cas9 was used to prepare sec1 knockout (Sec1-/-) mice. IBD was induced in mice using 3% w/v dextran sulphate sodium. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) was employed to silence Sec1 in murine colon cancer cell lines CT26.WT and CMT93. IBD-related symptoms, colonic immune responses, proliferation and apoptosis of colon epithelial cells were assessed respectively to determine the role of Sec1 in mouse IBD. Impact of Sec1 on the expression of death receptor 5 (DR5) and other apoptosis-associated proteins were determined. Sec1 knockout was found to be associated with deterioration of IBD in mice and elevated immune responses in the colonic mucosa. Silencing Sec1 in CT26.WT and CMT93 cells led to less secretion of inflammatory cytokines IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α. CCK8 assay, flow cytometry and TUNEL detection suggested that Sec1 expression promoted the proliferation of colon epithelial cells, inhibited cell apoptosis, reduced cell arrest in G0/G1 phase and facilitated repair of inflammatory injury. Over-expression of DR5 and several apoptosis-related effector proteins was noticed in Sec1-/- mice and Sec1-silenced CT26.WT and CMT93 cells, supporting a suppressive role of Sec1 in cell apoptosis. Our results depicted important regulatory roles of Sec1 in mouse IBD, reflecting the importance of Fut2 in the pathogenesis of human IBD.
Chicken pituitary transcriptomic responses to acute heat stress
Authors: Pritchett Elizabeth M. , Goor Angelica Van , Schneider Blair K. , Young Meaghan , Lamont Susan J. , Schmidt Carl J.
Published: February 2023

Background
Poultry production is vulnerable to increasing temperatures in terms of animal welfare and in economic losses. With the predicted increase in global temperature and the number and severity of heat waves, it is important to understand how chickens raised for food respond to heat stress. This knowledge can be used to determine how to select chickens that are adapted to thermal challenge. As neuroendocrine organs, the hypothalamus and pituitary provide systemic regulation of the heat stress response.
Methods and Results
Here we report a transcriptome analysis of the pituitary response to acute heat stress. Chickens were stressed for 2 hours at 35˚C (HS) and transcriptomes compared with birds maintained in thermoneutral temperatures (25˚C).
Conclusions
The observations were evaluated in the context of ontology terms and pathways to describe the pituitaries response to heat stress. The pituitaries of heat stressed birds exhibited responses to hyperthermia through altered expression of genes coding for chaperones, cell cycle regulators, cholesterol synthesis, transcription factors, along with the secreted peptide hormones. prolactin, and proopiomelanocortin.
Experimental Study on Liquid Sloshing Characteristics in a Propellant Tank with Perforated Damping Structure on a Satellite
Authors: Qu Zhen , Li Yong , Liu Jintao , Cai Kun , Long Jun , Yao Can
Published: February 2023

The liquid in the satellite propellant tank is inevitably sloshing due to the vibration excitation of the rocket body. During the process of launch and satellite orbit change, the vibration excitation will be transmitted to the propellant tank. The resulting sloshing of liquid in the tank will generate additional sloshing force and moment applied on the satellite, which will have a serious impact on the satellite's attitude. In this paper, the sloshing performance of liquid in the large capacity propellant tank on the satellite is tested. The liquid sloshing tests were carried out on upper and lower tanks with a porous damping structure under different filling ratios, respectively. The mechanics data was collected by the sensor and analyzed using the classic pendulum model. Based on the test data and classic theory, the sloshing frequency, sloshing quality and sloshing damping parameters of upper and lower tanks were computed and compared. The results showed that the sloshing performance of the propellant tank was significantly affected by the internal damping structure. The research results of sloshing provide reference and support for the design and optimization of satellite attitude control.
Subclinical microvascular changes in ANCA-vasculitides: the role of optical coherence tomography angiography and nailfold capillaroscopy in the detection of disease-related damage.
Authors: Triggianese Paola , D'Antonio Arianna , Nesi Carolina , Kroegler Barbara , Marino Matteo Di , Conigliaro Paola , Modica Stella , Greco Elisabetta , Nucci Carlo , Bergamini Alberto , Chimenti Maria Sole , Cesareo Massimo
Published: February 2023

Background
Both cardiovascular and complement-mediated disorders might lead to microvascular damages in anti-neutrophil cytoplasm autoantibodies (ANCA)-associated vasculitides (AAV). We aimed at investigating, for the first time, subclinical microvascular abnormalities with non-invasive techniques in AAV patients by analyzing both retinal and nailfold capillary changes. Retinal plexi were investigated using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-A), while nailfold capillary changes by video-capillaroscopy (NVC). Potential correlations between microvessels’ abnormalities and disease damage were also explored.
Methods
An observational study was conducted on consecutive patients who met the inclusion criteria of defined diagnosis of eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA), granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA), and microscopic polyangiitis (MPA), age ≥ 18 ≤ 75 yrs, and no ophthalmological disorders. Disease activity was assessed by Birmingham Vasculitis Activity Score (BVAS), damage by Vasculitis Damage Index (VDI), and poorer prognosis by the Five Factor Score (FFS). Quantitative analysis of vessel density (VD) was performed by OCT-A in both superficial and deep capillary plexi. Figures and detailed analysis from NVC were performed for all subjects in the study.
Results
Included AAV patients (n = 23) were compared with 20 age/sex-matched healthy controls (HC). Retinal VD in superficial whole and parafoveal plexi resulted significantly decreased in AAV compared to HC (P = 0.02 and P = 0.01, respectively). Furthermore, deep whole and parafoveal vessel density was strongly reduced in AAV than HC (P ≤ 0.0001 for both). In AAV patients, significant inverse correlations occurred between VDI and OCTA-VD in both superficial (parafoveal, P = 0.03) and deep plexi (whole, P = 0.003, and parafoveal P = 0.02). Non-specific NVC pattern abnormalities occurred in 82% of AAV patients with a similar prevalence (75%) in HC. In AAV, common abnormalities were edema and tortuosity in a comparable distribution with HC. Correlations between NVC changes and OCT-A abnormalities have not been described.
Conclusion
Subclinical microvascular retinal changes occur in patients with AAV and correlate with the disease-related damage. In this context, the OCT-A can represent a useful tool in the early detection of vascular damage. AAV patients present microvascular abnormalities at NVC, whose clinical relevance requires further studies.
Antioxidant effects of silver nanoparticles obtained by green synthesis from the aqueous extract of Eryngium carlinae on the brain mitochondria of streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats
Authors: Cruz-Hurtado Jenaro Lemus-de la , Trejo-Hurtado Mitchell , Landa-Moreno Cinthia , Peña-Montes Donovan , Landeros-Páramo José Luis , Cortés-Rojo Christian , Montoya-Pérez Rocío , Rosas Gerardo , Saavedra-Molina Alfredo
Published: February 2023

Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder characterized by chronic hyperglycemia that affects practically all tissues and organs, being the brain one of most susceptible, due to overproduction of reactive oxygen species induced by diabetes. Eryngium carlinae is a plant used in traditional Mexican medicine to treat diabetes, which has already been experimentally shown have hypoglycemic, antioxidant and hypolipidemic properties. The green synthesis of nanoparticles is a technique that combines plant extracts with metallic nanoparticles, so that the nanoparticles reduce the absorption and distribution time of drugs or compounds, increasing their effectiveness. In this work, the antioxidant effects and mitochondrial function in the brain were evaluated, as well as the hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic effect in serum of both the aqueous extract of the aerial part of E. carlinae, as well as its combination with silver nanoparticles of green synthesis. Administration with both, extract and the combination significantly decreased the production of reactive oxygen species, lipid peroxidation, and restored the activity of superoxide dismutase 2, glutathione peroxidase, and electron transport chain complexes in brain, while that the extract-nanoparticle combination decreased blood glucose and triglyceride levels. The results obtained suggest that both treatments have oxidative activity and restore mitochondrial function in the brain of diabetic rats.
Design and application of laser scanning strategy for machining deep surface grooves with a continuous-wave fiber laser
Authors: Liu Si Qing , Han Sang Wook , Hwang Tae Woo , Abolhasani Daniyal , Moon Young Hoon
Published: February 2023

A laser scanning strategy for fabricating deep surface grooves using a continuous-wave fiber laser was investigated in this study. Because the low productivity of short-pulsed-wave lasers limits their application to a small scale, a continuous-wave (CW) fiber laser that can provide a high power density was used for rapid fabrication of deep grooves. An innovative tailored laser-scanning strategy of fabricating patterned deep grooves was analytically designed based on the power density and interaction time. Considering the thermophysical properties of the material, controlled laser processing parameters were determined for fabricating surface grooves with rectangular and chevron cross-sectional patterns. To confirm the usefulness of the research results, the scanning strategy obtained in this study was applied for achieving high-quality joining between injection-molded metal-plastic hybrids (MPHs). A deep-surface-grooved A5052 aluminum alloy sheet was bonded to two plastics, polyamide and polypropylene, via injection molding. Lap shear tensile tests of the MPHs revealed their significantly enhanced joining strength owing to a better mechanical interlocking of the groove. The developed laser scanning strategy using a CW fiber laser can be widely applied in the fabrication of deep grooves of various cross-sections with high reliability.
Research on automatic classification of Chinese papers based on LDA model and TF-IDF algorithm
Authors: Qizheng Li , Weilin Hu , Hao Dai
Published: February 2023

To ensure the automatic classification of research directions in designated fields along with the natural semantic machine recognition of research papers, this research proposes an automatic classification method based on topic probability. Initially, the feature words and their topic probabilities are calculated through the LDA topic model, and the weight of feature words in each paper is calculated by means of the TF-IDF algorithm. Finally, the topic probabilities of each feature word in the paper are weighted and normalized, thus accomplishing the topic probability distribution from words to papers. Through unsupervised classification experiments on 53,780 papers in the field of clothing, the accuracy rate reaches 92.4%, and the F-score reaches 85.0% in comparison with professional manual classification. Consequently, the probability classification of paper topics proposed in this research can be directly used to solve the automatic classification of papers and the automatic classification of research directions.
Effects of gabapentin on slow-wave sleep period in critically ill adult patients: a randomized controlled trial
Authors: Susantitapong Kanyarat , Sutherasan Yuda , Liamsombut Somprasong , Dilokpattanamongkol Pitchaya , Suthisisang Chuthamanee
Published: February 2023

Background: Sleep deprivation is a prevalent problem in critically ill patients, which leads to delayed recovery and delirium. Delirium prolongs the intensive care unit (ICU) and hospital lengths of stay and may increase mortality. Slow-wave sleep (SWS) is essential to energy restoration, tissue repair, and immune system strengthening. This study aimed to investigate the effects of gabapentin on SWS in critically ill patients.
Methods: We performed a prospective open-label randomized controlled study to compare SWS and the clinical outcomes of gabapentin (initial dose 100 mg at bedtime) versus a control intervention in critically ill adult patients admitted to the ICU within 24 hours. The patients’ characteristics and sleep-related outcomes were recorded. The sleep-related outcomes, namely bispectral analysis (BIS), the Richards-Campbell Sleep Questionnaire (RCSQ), and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) levels, were evaluated. Furthermore, clinical outcomes, 28-day ICU-free days, 28-day mechanical ventilator (MV)-free days, 28-day hospital-free days, and safety were assessed.
Results: Sixty patients from 348 cases were eligible for randomization. On day 3 of the study, patients in the gabapentin group had significantly increased SWS (66.79 vs. 0.00 min; P < 0.001), total sleep time (TST) (331.39 vs. 46.16 min; P = 0.001), RCSQ score (55.05 ± 20.18 vs. 32.80 ± 15.31; P < 0.001), and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) concentrations (84.33 ± 12.40 vs. 44. 00 ± 10.20 ng/mL, P < 0.001) compared with the control group. There was a trend in the improvement of clinical outcomes, such as delirium, ICU-free days, MV-free days, and hospital-free days; however, the differences were not significant. Over-sedation was reported in one case in the gabapentin group.
Conclusions: Gabapentin (100–200 mg) at bedtime increased SWS, TST, and IGF-1 concentrations in critically ill patients. This regimen might be beneficial to critically ill patients for improving their sleep quality.
Trial registration: The study was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04818450), registered on March 25, 2021, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04818450
How does road accessibility increase air pollution in the Yangtze River Delta Region, China ?-Evidence from digital elevation model and points-of-interest data
Authors: Tao Jing , Gu Xiaoyan
Published: February 2023

Empirical evidences on how urban road accessibility affects air pollution is scarce for the specific Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region that is characterised by high density in economic activities and rapid urban expansion. Using novel Digital Elevation Model (DEM), road network and points-of-interest (POI) datasets to measure road accessibility, moderating and mediating effect models then were conducted to explore direct and indirect effects of road accessibility on environmental externality expressed by air pollution through urban connection and urban agglomeration. When exploiting exogenous variable in urban populations, the result of moderating effect model shows that road accessibility decreases air quality-to-connection elasticity by around -5.2% which indicates that road accessibility increases air pollution through internal connection. However, the finding of mediating effect model indicates that road accessibility slightly improves air quality through decreasing urban agglomeration. The findings of this paper suggest that high levels of road accessibility may have negative consequence for live-ability of YRD cities because of current urban internal connection and urban decision makers should consider the improvement of urban connection for obtaining better air quality.
Arterial tortuosity syndrome: phenotypic and cardiovascular features in 4 newly identified patients
Authors: Esmel-Vilomara Roger , Valenzuela Irene , Riaza Lucia , Rodriguez-Santiago Benjamin , Roses-Noguer Ferran , Boronat Susana , Sabate-Rotes Anna
Published: February 2023

Arterial tortuosity syndrome (ATS) is an autosomal recessive connective tissue disease caused by biallelic variants in the SLC2A10gene and characterized by tortuosity and elongation of the aorta and medium-sized arteries. It’s considered an extremely rare disease; only 106 individuals with genetically confirmed ATS have been identified to date. The aim of this study is to contribute to the phenotypic, cardiovascular and genetic characterization of this disease.
Four cases of ATS from two families are described, contributing to the clinical delineation of the entity. Two cases with diaphragmatic hernia and a case with complex uropathy, reported in the literature only 11 times, are highlighted. Regarding the vascular involvement, a predominant supra-aortic affectation stands out and only 1 case of focal stenosis is detected (renal artery). All presented severe intracranial tortuosity. To reduce hemodynamic stress on the arterial wall, beta-adrenergic blocking treatment was prescribed.
A not previously described mutation (c.899T>G (p.Leu300Trp)) is presented in a proband; it has an allegedly deleterious effect in compound heterozygosis with the pathogenic variant c.417T>A (p.Tyr139Ter). The 3 other patients, siblings born from healthy consanguineous parents, had an homozygous variant in SLC2A10: c.510G>A (p.Trp170Ter).
Mineral and heavy metal content in dry dog foods with different main animal components
Authors: Kępińska-Pacelik Jagoda , Biel Wioletta , Witkowicz Robert , Podsiadło Cezary
Published: February 2023

Dogs’ caregivers, mainly for economic reasons and easy availability, choose dry, over the counter diets (OTC). The mineral composition of OTC foods depends primarily on the components used in the production of the pet food. Regardless of the main component of the food, it must meet the recommended minimum mineral content, established by nutritional guidelines. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the mineral (Ca, K, Mg, Na, Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, Mo) and heavy metal content (Pb, Co, Cd, Cr, Ni) using the methods of colorimetry and mass spectrometry, of OTC dry dog foods and to compare with the FEDIAF and AAFCO nutritional guidelines. Dry foods pose no risk to dogs in terms of heavy metal content. The worst results in term of mineral content were obtained in mixed foods, therefore it is worth considering feeding the dog a mono-protein food. The PCA analysis disproved our hypothesis and revealed that the main animal source did not statistically significantly affect the levels of minerals and their ratios. However, the analysis of contrasts confirms the differentiation of the content of individual minerals between the groups of foods. For the first time, we proved that pet food with a mineral composition similar to the MIN-RL may be characterized by unfavorable mineral ratios. When feeding dogs with extruded dry foods, supplementation with calcium may be necessary due to its deficiency in foods, especially in mixed foods, with components from at least two different types of animals.
On finetuning Adapter-based Transformer models for classifying Abusive Social Media Tamil Comments
Authors: Subramanian Malliga , Shanmugavadivel Kogilavani , Subbarayan Nandhini , Ganesan Adhithiya , Ravi Deepti , Palanikumar Vasanth , Chakravarthi Bharathi Raja
Published: February 2023

Speaking or expressing oneself in an abusive manner is a form of verbal abuse that targets individuals or groups on the basis of their membership in a particular social group, which is differentiated by traits such as culture, gender, sexual orientation, religious affiliation etc. In today's world, the dissemination of evil and depraved content on social media has increased exponentially. Abusive language on the internet has been linked to an increase in violence against minorities around the world, including mass shootings, murders, and ethnic cleansing. People who use social media in places where English is not the main language often use a code-mixed form of text. This makes it harder to find abusive texts, and when combined with the fact that there aren't many resources for languages like Tamil, the task becomes significantly challenging. This work makes use of abusive Tamil language comments released by the workshop “Tamil DravidianLangTech@ACL 2022” and develops adapter-based multilingual transformer models namely Muril, XLMRoBERTa and mBERT to classify the abusive comments. These transformers have been utilized as fine-tuners and adapters. This study shows that in low-resource languages like Tamil, adapter-based strategies work better than fine-tuned models. In addition, we use Optuna, a hyperparameter optimization framework to find the ideal values of the hyper-parameters that lead to better classification. Of all the proposed models, MuRIL (Large) gives 74.7%, which is comparatively better than other models proposed for the same dataset.
Relationship of topography and soil chemistry with plant richness and distribution in the temperate forest of Chandragiri hill, Kathmandu, Nepal
Authors: Gharti Parvati , Dani Ram Sharan , Baniya Chitra Bahadur
Published: February 2023

Species richness in mountain region is governed by topographic, edaphic and climatic factors. The present study aims to find the relationship of topography and soil chemistry with species richness and distribution in the study area. The study was carried out in the temperate community forest of Chandragiri hill, Central Nepal. Altogether, 35 quadrats of 100 m2 each were established between 1500–2500 m. Quadrats of 10 m × 10 m, 5 m × 5 m and 1 m × 1 m were established for the assessment of trees, shrubs and herbs respectively. Soil was collected from the four corners of the quadrat and mixed to form a composite soil sample. Soil chemical properties were determined in the laboratory. Data analysis was carried out using correlation, generalized linear model and ordination. Altogether, 180 species were recorded from the study site. Among variables studied, soil pH showed statistical significant negative relationship with total species richness and richness of shrubs, herbs and climbers. Richness of herbs and climbers showed statistical significant relation with SOM and TN. Plant species composition on the other hand affected by altitude, pH and TN. The relationship of species richness found to be more prominent to soil than topography of the studied area. However, plant distribution determined both by topography and soil. At the local level, soil heterogeneity is the factor determining species richness. Present study provides information about species richness in the study site and hence can be precious for the development of conservation strategies. In addition, it also helps in prioritizing the site on the basis of biodiversity.
Non-invasive biomechanical intervention leads to low rates of total knee replacement and reduced utilization of healthcare resources among older adults with chronic knee pain: a 5-year follow-up study
Authors: Shema-Shiratzky Shirley , Mor Amit , Elbaz Avi
Published: February 2023

BACKGROUND: Chronic knee pain, primarily associated with knee osteoarthritis (OA), is a leading cause of disability among older adults and place an immense burden on patients and healthcare systems, exceeding $80 billion in direct medical costs annually. Current non-surgical solutions to treat chronic knee pain provide limited relief of symptoms. The present study aims to assess the long-term effect of a biomechanical, non-invasive intervention on total knee replacement (TKR) incidence and the utilization of healthcare resources over five years.
METHODS: This was a retrospective study among older adults with chronic knee pain, primarily due to OA, who received the biomechanical intervention between 2014 and 2017. An independent survey institute contacted patients between August and September 2022 to confirm their surgical status and utilization of other healthcare services, covering at least five years of follow-up. During the intervention, patients were provided with a FDA-cleared shoe-like device, which includes two convex pods attached to the sole. The pods are attached to the shoe in a customized manner based on the patient's gait and pain (i.e., calibrated). The device shifts the foot's center of pressure to reduce the knee joint load and alleviate pain. The device also creates controlled perturbation that challenges gait and posture stability and creates neuromuscular training. Patients were instructed to wear the device for up to 2-3 hours a day during their daily routine and invited to follow-up sessions for treatment modifications.
RESULTS: Four hundred and fourteen patients responded to the survey. Their mean (SD) age was 66.5 (4.2) years, 65% were women and 82% of patients were diagnosed with knee OA. At five years since inception, the TKR incidence rate was 18.4% with 95% CI (14.6%, 22.1%). Most responders (79%) reported using other healthcare resources and services to treat their knee pain before the intervention. Of them, 64% ceased receiving intra-articular injections to the knee, 44% discontinued using pain medication and 46% stopped receiving physiotherapy.
CONCLUSION: This biomechanical, non-invasive intervention is a beneficial and sustainable intervention that reduces healthcare resource utilization, including avoidance of TKR and chronic knee pain. With the constant increase in the prevalence of chronic knee pain, offering this intervention to patients can help address the increasing burden on the healthcare system and society.
TRIAL REGISTRATION: NIH protocol no. NCT00767780
A note on striction curves
Authors: Shaikh Absos Ali , Ghosh Pinaki Ranjan
Published: February 2023

In this paper, we have studied the striction curves of a normal ruled surface. We have shown that the evolute of a base curve is the striction curve of a normal ruled surface and the singularities of such surface lie on the evolute of the base curve. We have proved that the striction curves orthogonally cut the planar base curves. Also, we have proved that the surface area between a planar base curve and striction curve of a normal ruled surface is identical to the surface area between the evolutes of the base curve and striction curve. We have obtained different conditions for which the striction curve coincides with the base curve of some ruled surfaces. We have proved that the striction curve of a tangential Darboux developable of a space curve coincides with the base curve if and only if the space curve is a helix. We have deduced a beautiful form of surface area between the base curve and striction curve of a tangential Darboux developable.
The validation of predictive potential via the system of self-consistent models: the simulation of blood-brain barrier permeation of organic compounds
Authors: Toropova Alla P. , Toropov Andrey A. , Roncaglioni Alessandra , Benfenati Emilio , Leszczynska Danuta , Leszczynski Jerzy
Published: February 2023

In order to apply quantitative relationships "structure-endpoint" approach its reliability of prediction is necessary but sometimes challenging to achieve. Here, an attempt is made to accomplish the reliability of forecasts by creating a set of random partitions of data into training and validation sets, followed by constructing random models. A system of random models for a useful approach should be self-consistent, giving a similar or at least comparable statistical quality of the predictions for models obtained using different splits of available data into training and validation sets. Developed computer experiments aimed at obtaining blood-brain barrier permeation models showed that, in principle, such an approach can be used for the above purpose taking advantage of specific algorithms to optimize the modelling steps. Results so obtained are good, and better than what reported previously. The suggested approach to validation of models is non-identic to traditionally applied manners of the checking up models. The concept of validation can be used for arbitrary models (not only for models of the blood-brain barrier).
Rapid screening methods for universal binding peptide aptamers against SARS-CoV-2 variant spikes, including omicron variants, and their application to diagnostic and therapeutic agents.
Authors: Hayashi Nakanobu
Published: February 2023

The development of mRNA vaccines and oral drugs against SARS-CoV-2 has been useful in protecting against Covid-19 infection. Since then, however, many variants of delta and omicron strains with enhanced infectivity and immune escape capacity have emerged. A 7-amino acid random peptide ribosome display library screening system was used to perform a rapid in vitro screening of peptide aptamers that universally bind to the SARS-CoV-2 wild-type, delta, and Omicron variant BA.1, BA.2, and BA.5 spike RBD (Receptor Binding Domain). Screening resulted in four peptide aptamers that showed positive binding reactions in ELISA. Interestingly, Amino Acid Sequence Determination of the four clones predicted that three of the four clones contain 2 ~ 3 Cys residues in their sequences, forming a complex higher-order structure with disulfide (S-S) bonds. The 7-amino acid random peptide ribosome display library screening system allows for rapid in vitro screening of peptide aptamers that bind to other unknown emerging infectious disease pathogens that may be pandemic in the future. The peptide aptamers are as small as 30 amino acids and can be easily synthesized and purified as peptides or proteins, or simply used as mRNA drugs.
How Do Plants Reduce Erosion? A Rapid Evidence Assessment
Authors: Dahanayake A. C. , Webb J. A. , Greet J. , Brookes J. D.
Published: February 2023

The authors have requested that this preprint be removed from Research Square.
Do High-Performance-Work-Practices (HPWPs) really work?
Authors: Odiaka Kika , Chang Kirk , Tamimi Hussein Al Tamimi , Cheng Kuo-Tai
Published: February 2023

Purpose:

High-performance-work-practices (HPWPs) are popular managerial strategies, in which employees are invited to participate in decision-making-process and contribute to the policy implementation, aiming to maximize employee potential. HPWPs sound ideal but their importance to employee engagement and performance in the service industry is still unclear.

Method:

To further understand the importance and influence of HPWPs, the current project adopts the AMO Model to review the knowledge gaps and develop research questions. Research data are collected from hotels in Nigeria, an emerging but little-known sector in the service industry. Employee’s experiences of HPWPs are collected through semi-structured interviews and then thematically analyzed.

Findings:

Engaged employees are keen to support the implementation of HPWPs, recognizing their imperativeness and behaving conscientiously in delivering hotel services. Managers’ positive attitudes (i.e., appreciation of employees’ effort & managers’ trust in employees’ capability) both facilitate the efficacy of HPWPs, leading to higher levels of engagement and more service-oriented citizenship behavior (S-OCB). However, when the level of employee engagement is low and managers’ positive attitudes are absent, HPWPs barely work.

Originality:

Unlike prior studies which link HPWPs to performance directly, we have proposed an alternative rationale to clarify the HPWPs-performance relationship. Specifically, research findings have helped clarify how HPWPs affect S-OCB by explaining the role of employee engagement and managers’ positive attitude as the underlying mechanism,

Practical implications:

Our research findings have clarified two important factors (i.e., employee engagement & managers’ positive attitudes) during the implementation of HPWPs, hence bringing new insights into the “HPWPs-Employee engagement” literature. Suggestions for implementing HPWPs in the service industry are also discussed.