bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Corruption and partisan polarization: evidence from the European Union
Authors: Apergis Nicholas , Pinar Mehmet
Published: May 2022

Recent work documents that even though partisan polarization may have detrimental economic and social outcomes, polarized societies lead to better governance and less corruption. However, the effect of corruption on partisan polarization has been mostly ignored by the literature. By using various measures of partisan polarization and corruption, this paper demonstrates that corrupt behaviours are associated with more partisan polarization in the European Union, indicating that a stronger presence of corruption leads to higher partisan polarization. The findings are robust to the use of different polarization measures, methodologies, and a battery of control variables. This paper’s main finding, increased corruption leading to increased partisan polarization, provides another important mechanism beyond the standard socio-economic factors that led to the current rise in support of parties opposing to European Union and rise of populist parties in European Union. Polarized societies tend to generate inefficient economic outcomes and the alleviation of corruption could improve economic outcomes by decreasing partisan polarization.
The Generalized Langevin Equation in Harmonic Potentials: Anomalous Diffusion and Equipartition of Energy
Authors: Didier Gustavo , Nguyen Hung D.
Published: May 2022

We consider the generalized Langevin equation (GLE) in a harmonic potential with power law decay memory. We study the anomalous diffusion of the particle’s displacement and velocity. By comparison with the free particle situation in which the velocity was previously shown to be either diffusive or subdiffusive, we find that, when trapped in a harmonic potential, the particle’s displacement may either be diffusive or superdiffusive. Under slightly stronger assumptions on the memory kernel, namely, for kernels related to the broad class of completely monotonic functions, we show that both the free particle and the harmonically bounded GLE satisfy the equipartition of energy condition. This generalizes previously known results for the GLE under particular kernel instances such as the generalized Rouse kernel or (exactly) a power law function.
Harnessing the liver to induce antigen-specific immune tolerance
Authors: Gottwick Cornelia , Carambia Antonella , Herkel Johannes
Published: May 2022

Autoimmune diseases develop when the adaptive immune system attacks the body’s own antigens leading to tissue damage. At least 80 different conditions are believed to have an autoimmune aetiology, including rheumatoid arthritis, type I diabetes, multiple sclerosis or systemic lupus erythematosus. Collectively, autoimmune diseases are a leading cause of severe health impairment along with substantial socioeconomic costs. Current treatments are mostly symptomatic and non-specific, and it is typically not possible to cure these diseases. Thus, the development of more causative treatments that suppress only the pathogenic immune responses, but spare general immunity is of great biomedical interest. The liver offers considerable potential for development of such antigen-specific immunotherapies, as it has a distinct physiological capacity to induce immune tolerance. Indeed, the liver has been shown to specifically suppress autoimmune responses to organ allografts co-transplanted with the liver or to autoantigens that were transferred to the liver. Liver tolerance is established by a unique microenvironment that facilitates interactions between liver-resident antigen-presenting cells and lymphocytes passing by in the low blood flow within the hepatic sinusoids. Here, we summarise current concepts and mechanisms of liver immune tolerance, and review present approaches to harness liver tolerance for antigen-specific immunotherapy.
Ultrastructural and biochemical classification of pathogenic tau, α-synuclein and TDP-43
Authors: Tarutani Airi , Adachi Tadashi , Akatsu Hiroyasu , Hashizume Yoshio , Hasegawa Kazuko , Saito Yuko , Robinson Andrew C. , Mann David M. A. , Yoshida Mari , Murayama Shigeo , Hasegawa Masato
Published: May 2022

Intracellular accumulation of abnormal proteins with conformational changes is the defining neuropathological feature of neurodegenerative diseases. The pathogenic proteins that accumulate in patients' brains adopt an amyloid-like fibrous structure and exhibit various ultrastructural features. The biochemical analysis of pathogenic proteins in sarkosyl-insoluble fractions extracted from patients’ brains also shows disease-specific features. Intriguingly, these ultrastructural and biochemical features are common within the same disease group. These differences among the pathogenic proteins extracted from patients’ brains have important implications for definitive diagnosis of the disease, and also suggest the existence of pathogenic protein strains that contribute to the heterogeneity of pathogenesis in neurodegenerative diseases. Recent experimental evidence has shown that prion-like propagation of these pathogenic proteins from host cells to recipient cells underlies the onset and progression of neurodegenerative diseases. The reproduction of the pathological features that characterize each disease in cellular and animal models of prion-like propagation also implies that the structural differences in the pathogenic proteins are inherited in a prion-like manner. In this review, we summarize the ultrastructural and biochemical features of pathogenic proteins extracted from the brains of patients with neurodegenerative diseases that accumulate abnormal forms of tau, α-synuclein, and TDP-43, and we discuss how these disease-specific properties are maintained in the brain, based on recent experimental insights.
Pharyngolaryngeal semiology and prognostic factors in multiple system atrophy
Authors: El Fassi N. , Gallois Y. , Crestani S. , Fichaux-Bourrin P. , Ory F. , Fabbri M. , Pavy le Traon A. , Woisard V.
Published: May 2022

Introduction

Multiple system atrophy (MSA) is a rare degenerative neurological disorder in adults. It induces parkinsonian and/or cerebellar syndrome associated with dysautonomia. Pharyngolaryngeal symptoms are common. Our aim is to describe the Pharyngolaryngeal semiology on one hand, and to ascertain whether the presence of these symptoms represents a prognostic factor for MSA on the other.

Methods

Thus, we carried out a retrospective, single-centre study, on a cohort receiving care at the centre of reference for MSA. The patients were referred for otorhinolaryngology assessment. The data was collected over the year 2020 with the help of computer software from the university hospital centre (UHC). Firstly, we described the Pharyngolaryngeal semiology specific to MSA by questioning patients, and by the results of nasofibroscopic examinations and swallowing tests. We then used multivariate analysis of variance to describe the prognostic factors of MSA progression (in UMSARS I and II points per month of progression) and survival (number of years between the first symptoms and death).

Results

This study included a hundred and one patients and made it possible to define a Pharyngolaryngeal semiology profile of MSA, which is: a reduction in laryngeal mobility (primarily vocal cord abduction defects), abnormal movements (particularly at rest or when initiating a movement) and a defect in the protection mechanisms of the upper airways. The swallowing difficulties are moderate and the main mechanisms are delayed pharyngeal swallow and/or an oro-pharyngeal transport defect. In the multivariate analyses, the contributing factors are laryngeal anomalies, modification of solid food to fluid food and nutritional complication.

Conclusion

ENT specialists should pay close attention to problems in the Pharyngolaryngeal dynamic and then consider a neurological cause. They can also itemize the clinical factors that could have a negative effect on the prognosis of the patient with MSA. Indeed, early detection makes it possible to provide care for respiratory and nutritional complications.
Genetic modifiers of upper limb function in Duchenne muscular dystrophy
Authors: Sabbatini Daniele , Fusto Aurora , Vianello Sara , Villa Matteo , Janik Joanna , D’Angelo Grazia , Diella Eleonora , Magri Francesca , Comi Giacomo P. , Panicucci Chiara , Bruno Claudio , D’Amico Adele , Bertini Enrico , Astrea Guja , Battini Roberta , Politano Luisa , Masson Riccardo , Baranello Giovanni , Previtali Stefano C. , Messina Sonia , Vita Gianluca , Berardinelli Angela , Mongini Tiziana , Pini Antonella , Pane Marika , Mercuri Eugenio , Hoffman Eric P. , Morgenroth Lauren , Gordish-Dressman Heather , Duong Tina , McDonald Craig M. , Bello Luca , Pegoraro Elena
Published: May 2022

Genetic modifiers of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) are variants located in genes different from the disease-causing gene DMD, but associated with differences in disease onset, progression, or response to treatment. Modifiers described so far have been tested mainly for associations with ambulatory function, while their effect on upper limb function, which is especially relevant for quality of life and independence in non-ambulatory patients, is unknown. We tested genotypes at several known modifier loci (SPP1, LTBP4, CD40, ACTN3) for association with Performance Upper Limb version 1.2 score in an Italian multicenter cohort, and with Brooke scale score in the Cooperative International Neuromuscular Group Duchenne Natural History Study (CINRG-DNHS), using generalized estimating equation (GEE) models of longitudinally collected data, with age and glucocorticoid treatment as covariates. CD40 rs1883832, previously linked to earlier loss of ambulation, emerged as a modifier of upper limb function, negatively affecting shoulder and distal domains of PUL (p = 0.023 and 0.018, respectively) in the Italian cohort, as well as of Brooke score (p = 0.018) in the CINRG-DNHS. These findings will be useful for the design and interpretation of clinical trials in DMD, especially for non-ambulatory populations.
Train timetabling with passenger data and heterogeneous rolling stocks circulation on urban rail transit line
Authors: Yuhua Yang , Marcella Samà , Dario Pacciarelli , Shaoquan Ni
Published: May 2022

The planning process in urban rail transportation can be split into several stages, including line planning, timetabling, rolling stock scheduling and so on. The outcome of a stage provides inputs or constraints to the subsequent ones. However, while the output can be good or optimal at each stage, it rarely considers the global quality for the overall planning process. Furthermore, problems tackled at planning phase often use a more aggregate representation of reality, to achieve a more general overview. An integrated approach, while more complex to solve, may mitigate the gap between solution of different stages and a validation of a plan would still be required before its implementation in practice. In this paper, we focus on integrated optimization of train timetabling and rolling stock circulation for urban rail transit line with time-based origin-destination-dependent passenger travel demand and heterogeneous rolling stocks. The aim is to generate a comfortable timetable for passengers and an efficient timetable for operators. The objective is to minimize the total waiting time for passengers and the costs for operators, while constraints regarding train movements, passenger boarding and alighting, available rolling stocks and their capacity are considered. A mixed integer linear programming model is formulated and solved by an iterative programming approach. Computational experiments are performed on the Chongqing Rail Transit Line 2 to verify the efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed model and solving method. With respect to CPLEX, results show the proposed iterative programming approach has advantages both on computation time and solution quality.
Spatial-temporal attention-based convolutional network with text and numerical information for stock price prediction
Authors: Lin Chin-Teng , Wang Yu-Ka , Huang Pei-Lun , Shi Ye , Chang Yu-Cheng
Published: May 2022

In the financial market, the stock price prediction is a challenging task which is influenced by many factors. These factors include economic change, politics and global events that are usually recorded in text format, such as the daily news. Therefore, we assume that real-world text information can be used to forecast stock market activity. However, only a few works considered both text and numerical information to predict or analyse stock trends. These works used preprocessed text features as the model inputs; therefore, latent information in text may be lost because the relationships between the text and stock price are not considered. In this paper, we propose a fusion network, i.e. a spatial-temporal attention-based convolutional network (STACN) that can leverage the advantages of an attention mechanism, a convolutional neural network and long short-term memory to extract text and numerical information for stock price prediction. Benefiting from the utilisation of an attention mechanism, reliable text features that are highly relevant to stock value can be extracted, which improves the overall model performance. The experimental results on real-world stock data demonstrate that our STACN model and training scheme can handle both text and numerical data and achieve high accuracy on stock regression tasks. The STACN is compared with CNNs and LSTMs with different settings, e.g. a CNN with only stock data, a CNN with only news titles and LSTMs with only stock data. CNNs considering only stock data and news titles have mean squared errors of 28.3935 and 0.1814, respectively. The accuracy of LSTMs is 0.0763. The STACN can achieve an accuracy of 0.0304, outperforming CNNs and LSTMs in stock regression tasks.
A quasiconformal Hopf soap bubble theorem
Authors: Gálvez José A. , Mira Pablo , Tassi Marcos P.
Published: May 2022

We show that any compact surface of genus zero in $${\mathbb {R}}^3$$

R

3

that satisfies a quasiconformal inequality between its principal curvatures is a round sphere. This solves an old open problem by H. Hopf, and gives a spherical version of Simon’s quasiconformal Bernstein theorem. The result generalizes, among others, Hopf’s theorem for constant mean curvature spheres, the classification of round spheres as the only compact elliptic Weingarten surfaces of genus zero, and the uniqueness theorem for ovaloids by Han, Nadirashvili and Yuan. The proof relies on the Bers-Nirenberg representation of solutions to linear elliptic equations with discontinuous coefficients.
Existence of minimizers for causal variational principles on compact subsets of momentum space in the homogeneous setting
Authors: Langer Christoph
Published: May 2022

We prove the existence of minimizers for the causal action in the class of negative definite measures on compact subsets of momentum space in the homogeneous setting under several side conditions (constraints). The method is to employ Prohorov’s theorem. Given a minimizing sequence of negative definite measures, we show that, under suitable side conditions, a unitarily equivalent subsequence thereof is bounded. By restricting attention to compact subsets, from Prohorov’s theorem we deduce the existence of minimizers in the class of negative definite measures.
Indeterminacy estimates, eigenfunctions and lower bounds on Wasserstein distances
Authors: De Ponti Nicolò , Farinelli Sara
Published: May 2022

In the paper we prove two inequalities in the setting of $$\mathsf {RCD}(K,\infty )$$

RCD
(
K
,
∞
)

spaces using similar techniques. The first one is an indeterminacy estimate involving the p-Wasserstein distance between the positive part and the negative part of an $$L^{\infty }$$

L
∞

function and the measure of the interface between the positive part and the negative part. The second one is a conjectured lower bound on the p-Wasserstein distance between the positive and negative parts of a Laplace eigenfunction.
Granuloma anulare bei Kindern: eine seltene Läsion
Authors: Beqo Besiana P. , Tschauner Sebastian , Gasparella Paolo , Brcic Iva , Singer Georg , Till Holger , Haxhija Emir Q.
Published: May 2022

Das Granuloma anulare (GA) ist eine seltene, gutartige, selbstlimitierende granulomatöse Erkrankung des kutanen und subkutanen Gewebes, die in verschiedenen Varianten vorkommt und alle Altersgruppen betrifft. Die lokalisierte Variante des GA ist durch Pappeln mit typischem ringförmigem Aussehen gekennzeichnet und ist insbesondere für einen Dermatologen leicht zu diagnostizieren. Die subkutane Form des GA tritt fast exklusiv im Kindesalter auf und findet sich auf gut exponierten, dem Trauma leicht zugänglichen Körperstellen, wie Schienbeinvorderseite, ulnare Unterarmseite, Schädel, Hände und Füße. Diese Läsionen können nach einigen Monaten verschwinden oder auch jahrelang verbleiben. Es werden im Rahmen der Abklärung unterschiedliche bildgebende Verfahren angewendet und letztendlich wird zur Diagnosesicherung oft auch die Chirurgie benötigt, wie im folgenden Fallbeispiel illustriert wird. Die Erstvorstellung eines Mädchens erfolgte im Alter von 3,5 Jahren aufgrund einer seit 2 Monaten nach einem Sturz aufgetretenen prätibialen Schwellung rechts. Aufgrund der derben Konsistenz der schmerzlosen Vorwölbung wurden eine Röntgenaufnahme, eine Ultraschalluntersuchung und ein Magnetresonanztomogramm in Narkose durchgeführt, die allesamt eine unspezifische epifasziale subkutane Weichteilläsion zeigten. Eine weiterführende Biopsie in Narkose ergab die Diagnose des subkutanen GA. Im weiteren Verlauf entwickelte das Mädchen in den nächsten 10 Jahren noch mehrere subkutane und kutane GA-Läsionen, die sich allesamt von selbst zurückbildeten. Bei subkutanen Läsionen an den für das subkutane GA typischen Stellen, insbesondere prätibial, sollte es möglich sein, dass diese Diagnose klinisch vermutet wird und den Patienten somit ein chirurgischer Eingriff zur Diagnosesicherung in der Regel erspart bleibt.
Influence of water content on the basic friction angle of porous limestones—experimental study using an automated tilting table
Authors: Rabat Á. , Tomás R. , Cano M. , Pérez-Rey I. , Siles J. S. , Alejano L. R.
Published: May 2022

An accurate evaluation of the shear strength of discontinuities is frequently a key aspect for determining the safety of mining and civil engineering works and for solving instability issues at rock mass scale. This is usually done by using empirical shear strength criteria in which the basic friction angle (φb) is a relevant input parameter. Tilt testing is probably the most widespread method to obtain the φb due to its simplicity and low cost, but previous research has demonstrated that the results are strongly affected by several factors (e.g. surface finishing, cutting speed, specimen geometry, wear, time and rock type). In this connection, despite it is well known that water significantly reduces the mechanical properties of sedimentary rocks, very scarce research has focused on assessing the impact of the variations in water content on tilt test results. With the aim to fill this gap, saw-cut slabs of three limestone lithotypes were tilt tested in dry state, wet condition (fully water saturated, non-submerged samples) and under exposure to an environmental relative humidity (RH) of 90%. The results revealed that full water saturation caused moderate φb reductions in two lithotypes and a φb increase in one lithotype. This can be explained by their different microstructure and mineralogy, which makes that lubrication effect prevails over suction effect or vice versa. However, the exposure to a high RH environment did not cause significant φb variations. In addition, some important considerations related to tilt testing are provided and discussed, such as the intrinsic variability of the sliding angle (β) and the impact of multiple sliding on the same rock surfaces on β.
Individual recognition and long-term memory of inanimate interactive agents and humans in dogs
Authors: Abdai Judit , Bartus Dalma , Kraus Sylvain , Gedai Zsuzsanna , Laczi Beatrix , Miklósi Ádám
Published: May 2022

Investigation of individual recognition (IR) is difficult due to the lack of proper control of cues and previous experiences of subjects. Utilization of artificial agents (Unidentified Moving Objects: UMOs) may offer a better approach than using conspecifics or humans as partners. In Experiment 1, we investigated whether dogs are able to develop IR of UMOs (that is stable for at least 24 h) or that they only retain a more generalised memory about them. The UMO helped dogs to obtain an unreachable ball and played with them. One day, one week or one month later, we tested whether dogs display specific behaviour toward the familiar UMO over unfamiliar ones (four-way choice test). Dogs were also re-tested in the same helping context and playing interaction. Subjects did not approach the familiar UMO sooner than the others; however, they gazed at the familiar UMO earlier during re-testing of the problem solving task, irrespectively of the delay. In Experiment 2, we repeated the same procedure with human partners, applying a two-way choice test after a week delay, to study whether lack of IR was specific to the UMO. Dogs did not approach the familiar human sooner than the unfamiliar, but they gazed at the familiar partner earlier during re-testing. Thus, dogs do not seem to recognise an individual UMO or human after a short experience, but they remember the interaction with the novel partner in general, even after a long delay. We suggest that dogs need more experience with a specific social partner for the development of long-term memory.
Pelvic floor physical therapy in patients with chronic anal fissure: a randomized controlled trial
Authors: van Reijn-Baggen Daniëlle A. , Elzevier Henk W. , Putter H. , Pelger Rob C. M. , Han-Geurts Ingrid J. M.
Published: May 2022

Background

A chronic anal fissure is a common, painful condition with great impact on daily life. The exact pathogenesis has not been fully elucidated and treatment varies. A large percentage of patients experience pelvic floor dysfunction (dyssynergia and increased pelvic floor muscle tone). The aim of our study was to investigate the effect of pelvic floor physical therapy in patients with chronic anal fissure.

Methods

Between December 2018 and July 2021, at the Proctos Clinic in the Netherlands, patients with chronic anal fissure and pelvic floor dysfunction were randomly assigned to an intervention group, receiving 8 weeks of pelvic floor physical therapy including electromyographic biofeedback or assigned to a control group receiving postponed pelvic floor physical therapy. The primary outcome was muscle tone at rest during electromyographic registration of the pelvic floor before and after pelvic floor physical therapy. Secondary outcomes contained healing of the fissure, pain ratings, improvement of pelvic floor function, and complaint reduction measured with a proctology-specific patient-reported outcome measurement. Endpoints were measured at 8- and 20-week follow-up.

Results

One hundred forty patients were included in the study, 68 men (48.6%) and 72 women (51.4%) with a mean age of 44.5 ± 11.1 (range 19–79) years. Mean resting electromyographic values of the pelvic floor in the intervention group significantly improved from pre- to post-treatment (p < 0.001) and relative to controls (mean estimated difference between groups − 1.88 µV; 95% CI, − 2.49 to − 1.27 (p < 0.001) at first follow-up and remained significant from baseline at 20-week follow-up (p < 0.001). The intervention group performed better compared to the control group on all secondary outcomes, i.e., healing of the fissure (55.7% of the patients vs 21.4% in control, pain ratings (p < 0.001), diminished dyssynergia (p < 0.001), complaint reduction (p < 0.001), and decrease of pelvic floor muscle tone (p < 0.05) at first follow-up.

Conclusions

The findings of this study provide strong evidence that pelvic floor physical therapy is effective in patients with chronic anal fissure and pelvic floor dysfunction and supports its recommendation as adjuvant treatment besides regular conservative treatment.
Asset allocation of Australian superannuation funds: a markov regime switching approach
Authors: Bissoondoyal-Bheenick Emawtee , Brooks Robert , Do Hung
Published: May 2022

We extend an observable Markov Regime Switching framework to assess the switching behaviour of asset classes of Australian superannuation funds across different fund sizes. We identify the most prominent asset class which contributes to the performance of the investment options and what factors trigger funds’ decisions on rebalancing their portfolio. We find that smaller funds tend to be more active in switching to aggressive options and the larger funds are more conservative. However, in periods of volatility, the large funds are the risk seekers and tend to switch their asset classes and hence their investment strategies. The asset classes whose values add to the performance of the investment options are equity markets and bond markets with the domestic equity market having better performance than international equity market. The switch for the larger funds is driven by volatility of the equity market.
Cross-talk between the microbiome and chronic inflammation in esophageal cancer: potential driver of oncogenesis
Authors: Sharma Tarang , Gupta Ashna , Chauhan Ravi , Bhat Ajaz A. , Nisar Sabah , Hashem Sheema , Akhtar Sabah , Ahmad Aamir , Haris Mohammad , Singh Mayank , Uddin Shahab
Published: May 2022

Esophageal cancer (EC) is frequently considered a lethal malignancy and is often identified at a later stage. It is one of the major causes of cancer-related deaths globally. The conventional treatment methods like chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery offer limited efficacy and poor clinical outcome with a less than 25% 5-year survival rate. The poor prognosis of EC persists despite the growth in the development of diagnostic and therapeutic modalities to treat EC. This underlines the need to elucidate the complex molecular mechanisms that drive esophageal oncogenesis. Apart from the role of the tumor microenvironment and its structural and cellular components in tumorigenesis, mounting evidence points towards the involvement of the esophageal microbiome, inflammation, and their cross-talk in promoting esophageal cancer. The current review summarizes recent research that delineates the underlying molecular mechanisms by which the microbiota and inflammation promote the pathophysiology of esophageal cancer, thus unraveling targets for potential therapeutic intervention.
Horizontal transmission and expression of Epichloë typhina in orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata)
Authors: Merlet Léa , Dombrowski James E. , Bushman B. Shaun , Gilmore Barbara S. , Rivedal Hannah M. , Martin Ruth C.
Published: May 2022

Choke disease, which is caused by Epichloë typhina, was first reported in orchardgrass seed production fields in the Willamette Valley, Oregon in 1997 and has continued to persist in the system. The disease can cause up to 30% losses in seed yield. Unlike many Epichloë species that are seed transmitted, it is unclear how infection of orchardgrass by E. typhina occurs in the field, or how the disease spreads within plants. In this study, the overall incidence of choke on trap plants placed in a choke-infested field was 41% in 2018 and 9% in 2019. Similar incidence of infection occurred when exposed before (39%) or after (43%) swathing in 2018. Contrary to our hypothesis, plants sprayed with an artificial honeydew had a significantly lower incidence of infection (32%) when compared to the controls (48%). An examination of the spread of E. typhina within tillering plants revealed that development of infected tillers was greater than development of uninfected tillers, which could contribute to the gradual increase in choke in fields over time. These studies contribute to a better understanding of how choke is spread within plants and in orchardgrass seed production fields, which is an important step towards developing control methods to reduce choke in orchardgrass seed production fields.
From ECHo-1k to ECHo-100k:Optimization of High-Resolution Metallic Magnetic Calorimeters with Embedded 163Ho for Neutrino Mass Determination
Authors: Griedel M. , Mantegazzini F. , Barth A. , Bruer E. , Holzmann W. , Hammann R. , Hengstler D. , Kovac N. , Velte C. , Wickenhäuser T. , Fleischmann A. , Enss C. , Gastaldo L. , Dorrer H. , Kieck T. , Kneip N. , Düllmann Ch. E. , Wendt K.
Published: May 2022

The ECHo experiment aims at determining the effective electron neutrino mass by analyzing the endpoint of the 163Ho electron capture spectrum. High energy resolution detectors with a well-tailored detector response are the essential ingredient for the success of the ECHo experiment. Metallic magnetic calorimeter arrays enclosing 163Ho have been chosen for the ECHo experiment. The first MMC array, ECHo-1k, showed excellent performances with an average energy resolution of 5.5 eV FWHM @ 5.9 keV. Based on the results obtained with the ECHo-1k array, optimization studies have paved the way towards a new detector design for the next experimental phase, ECHo-100k. The ECHo-100k chip features an optimized single pixel design to improve the detector performance as well as an upgraded on-chip thermalization layout. The newly fabricated ECHo-100k detectors have been fully characterized at room temperature, at 4 K and at millikelvin temperature. The obtained results show that the ECHo-100k array achieved the expected performance with an average energy resolution of 3.5 eV FWHM @ 5.9 keV, fulfilling the requirements for the ECHo-100k experimental phase.
Teaching writing in primary education (grades 1–6) in Australia: a national survey
Authors: de Abreu Malpique Anabela , Valcan Debora , Pino-Pasternak Deborah , Ledger Susan
Published: May 2022

Providing adequate writing instruction and practice in schools is an essential cornerstone of writing development and it affords a diagnostic approach for teachers. But what writing instruction is being practiced in Australian primary schools? The aim of this study was to survey a sample of teachers (n = 310) about their instructional practices for writing and their preparation and self-efficacy to teach writing. The majority of the teachers surveyed indicated they allocated on average less than three hours per week for writing practice in their classrooms, with findings further showing a large variability in the frequency of writing practice ranging from 15 min to 7.5 h per week. Findings suggested an emphasis placed on teaching foundational skills, such as spelling, over the teaching of process skills, such as planning and revising. Results further indicated that less emphasis is placed on teaching handwriting and typing. The majority of participating teachers reported implementing only six of the 20 different instructional practices included in the survey on a weekly basis, with school-home strategies being the least frequently reported strategies to foster students’ writing development. Most teachers expressed positive beliefs about their preparation and self-efficacy for teaching writing. Results from multiple regression analysis showed that preparation and self-efficacy for teaching writing significantly and statistically accounted for variability in using evidence-based practices, teaching foundational skills, and teaching process skills. However, only self-efficacy made a statically significant contribution to predicting strategies to extend writing to the home environment. Implications for teaching and recommendations for research are provided.
Eco-Evolutionary Dynamics of the Human-Gut Microbiota Symbiosis in a Changing Nutritional Environment
Authors: Franck Maximilien , de Toro-Martín Juan , Vohl Marie-Claude
Published: May 2022

The operational harmony between living beings and their circumstances, their ever-changing environment, is a constitutive condition of their existence. Nutrition and symbiosis are two essential aspects of this harmony. Disruption of the symbiosis between host and gut microbiota, the so-called dysbiosis, as well as the inadequate diet from which it results, contribute to the etiology of immunometabolic disorders. Research into the development of these diseases is highly influenced by our understanding of the evolutionary roots of metabolic functioning, thereby considering that chronic non-communicable diseases arise from an evolutionary mismatch. However, the lens has been mostly directed toward energy availability and metabolism, but away from our closest environmental factor, the gut microbiota. Thus, this paper proposes a narrative thread that places symbiosis in an evolutionary perspective, expanding the traditional framework of humans’ adaptation to their food environment.
The multimodal EchoBorg: not as smart as it looks
Authors: Falcone Sara , Kolkmeier Jan , Bruijnes Merijn , Heylen Dirk
Published: May 2022

In this paper we present a Multimodal Echoborg interface to explore the effect of different embodiments of an Embodied Conversational Agent (ECA) in an interaction. We compared an interaction where the ECA was embodied as a virtual human (VH) with one where it was embodied as an Echoborg, i.e, a person whose actions are covertly controlled by a dialogue system. The Echoborg in our study not only shadowed the speech output of the dialogue system but also its non-verbal actions. The interactions were structured as a debate between three participants on an ethical dilemma. First, we collected a corpus of debate sessions with three humans debaters. This we used as baseline to design and implement our ECAs. For the experiment, we designed two debate conditions. In one the participant interacted with two ECAs both embodied by virtual humans). In the other the participant interacted with one ECA embodied by a VH and the other by an Echoborg. Our results show that a human embodiment of the ECA overall scores better on perceived social attributes of the ECA. In many other respects the Echoborg scores as poorly as the VH except copresence.
Investigation into the Health Effects of Reduced Chymase Function Using Predicted Loss-of-Function Mutations in CMA1
Authors: Fairhurst-Hunter Zammy , Walters Robin G. , Zink Alexander , Lin Kuang , Guo Yu , Yu Canqing , Lv Jun , Li Liming , Freitag Daniel F. , Chen Zhengming , Millwood Iona Y.
Published: May 2022

Tissue remodelling and fibrosis which occur in response to injury play a central role in the development of many diseases. Chymase is a key enzyme believed to mediate these pathological processes. As such, chymase inhibitors have been under active development for the treatment of a number of conditions. To investigate the impact of reduced chymase function, we constructed a genetic score from two pLoF mutations in the gene encoding chymase and tested its association with diseases and biomarkers. Our study found no association between the genetically-predicted reduced chymase function score and heart failure, chronic kidney disease or other predefined conditions. We additionally found no association of the score with any physical measurements or biomarkers. Our results provide no evidence in support of chymase inhibition as a novel therapeutic strategy for the treatment or prevention of heart failure, chronic kidney disease or major cardiovascular events, as previously proposed.
Periprocedural and 30-day outcomes of robotic-assisted percutaneous coronary intervention used in the intravascular imaging guidance
Authors: Koeda Yorihiko , Ishida Masaru , Sasaki Koto , Kikuchi Sayaka , Yamaya Shohei , Tsuji Keiko , Ishisone Takenori , Goto Iwao , Kimura Takumi , Shimoda Yudai , Doi Akio , Morino Yoshihiro
Published: May 2022

In recent years, there have been several reports on robotic-assisted percutaneous coronary intervention (R-PCI), but few studies have been conducted on R-PCI performed under intravascular imaging guidance. To elucidate the periprocedural and postoperative 30-day outcomes of intravascular imaging-guided R-PCI, we performed a retrospective observational study on all patients in 102 consecutive cases who underwent R-PCI under intravascular imaging guidance at a single center in Japan from June 12, 2019 to February 18, 2021. The primary end point was 30-day survival, and the secondary end point was the incidence of complications. Intravascular imaging-guided R-PCI was performed 110 times in total on 125 lesions. The medians of procedural time, fluoroscopy time, contrast volume, patient entrance skin dose, and radiation exposure to the main operator were 49 min, 16 min, 67 mL, 0.62 Gy, and 0 μSv, respectively. Furthermore, 60.0% of target lesion branches were American College of Cardiology Foundation/American Heart Association classification type B2 or type C. However, in all cases, lesion dilatation was successful, and the final Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction flow grade was 3. The combination of manual operation was required in 12.7% of all cases, but 30-day survival was confirmed in all cases. There were two problems at the puncture site. One small distal branch artery dissection occurred due to manual operation, but no cardiovascular events (myocardial infarction, stroke) occurred and no target lesion restenosis was observed within 30 days of R-PCI. Hence, R-PCI using intravascular imaging demonstrated highly satisfactory treatment outcomes, and no complication caused by robotic operation was observed.
Behaviour of inradius, circumradius, and diameter in generalized Minkowski spaces
Authors: Brandenberg René , Merino Bernardo González
Published: May 2022

We provide a study of Blaschke–Santaló diagrams, i.e. complete systems of inequalities, for the inradius, diameter, and circumradius, measured with respect to different gauges. This contrasts previous works on those diagrams, which are all considered for the Euclidean measure. By proving several new inequalities and properties between these three functionals, we compute the intersection and the union over all possible gauges of those diagrams, showing that they coincide with the corresponding diagrams of a parallelotope and (in the planar case) a triangle, respectively. We also show that the planar spaces whose unit balls are regular pentagons or hexagons play an important role in the understanding of further extreme behaviours.
Effect of some mutagenic compounds on lipase production by fluconazole-treated Candida catenulata
Authors: Hafez Rehab M. , Abdel-Rahman Tahany M. A. , Atef Alaa , Abed Nermine N.
Published: May 2022

Lipases (triacylglycerol acylhydrolases, E.C. 3.1.1.3) are enzymes widely applied in industry and medicine. Our previous study showed that Candida catenulata produced much higher lipase activity in presence of 150 mg fluconazole than that in untreated control. Consequently in this study, optimization of fluconazole-treated C. catenulata for maximum lipase production was carried out. Fluconazole-treated C. catenulate cultured on medium containing 2.5% Tween 80 as carbon source, 0.7% yeast extract as nitrogen source, and 10 mM CuSO4.5H2O. pH 5.5, dark incubation at 37 °C under dark agitation for 3 days expressed the optimum physiological variables for maximum lipase production. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) of the native cell (control) of C. catenulata declared a typical morphology of Candida cell with a uniform central density, typical structured nucleus, and a cytoplasm with several elements of endomembrane system and enveloped by a regular intact cell wall. The TEM photomicrograph of 150 mg fluconazole-treated cells of C. catenulata showed that the ultrastructures of treated C. catenulata displayed many noticeable morphological changes. The effect of mutagens [sodium azide (SA), ethidium bromide (EtBr), ethanol (EtOH)] was assayed on the lipase activity from C. catenulata. All mutagenic compounds with different concentrations decreased the lipase activity. Yeast specific activity, protein concentrations, and dry biomass gradually reached their highest decline at mutagen-elevated concentrations. Combination of lower concentrations of mutagen (0.1 µg/ml EtBr + 0.5 mM SA + 10% EtOH, Comb-Fl) exerted synergistic inhibition action and reduced C. catenulata virulent factor (lipase) over their single treatment. When 150 mg fluconazole was added to the mutagen’s combination mixture (Comb + Fl), an increase in the production of the virulence factor lipase by C. catenulata was detected. This action indicated the antagonistic effect of fluconazole over the mutagen combination mixture in increasing the fungal pathogenicity.
Solvent production from rice straw by a co-culture of Clostridium acetobutylicum and Saccharomyces cerevisiae: effect of pH control
Authors: Capilla Miguel , Valles Alejo , San-Valero Pau , Álvarez-Hornos Francisco Javier , Gabaldón Carmen
Published: May 2022

One of the challenges in biofuel production from lignocellulosic wastes is to improve its conversion to solvents; therefore, new strategies to enhance xylose uptake are required due to be the secondary abundant sugar. In this context, a novel fermentation strategy integrating a co-culture of Clostridium acetobutylicum and Saccharomyces cerevisiae with pH control was developed. Initially, two different buffers, ammonium acetate and calcium carbonate, were tested under pHmin > 4.8 by fermenting 60 g L−1 of glucose with the C. acetobutylicum monoculture. Ammonium acetate was selected for fermenting media as butanol production was increased from 9.8 to 10.9 g L−1 over the calcium carbonate test. Comparing with the spontaneous acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE) fermentation with C. acetobutylicum when no xylose consumption was observed, xylose consumption was efficiently increased by controlling pHmin > 4.8. The xylose consumption was > 47% either by using a 45:15 g L−1 glucose:xylose mixture or with rice straw (RS) hydrolysate. Clostridium monoculture using RS hydrolysate and pHmin > 4.8 produced a butanol (ABE) concentration of 6.5 (9.5) g L−1. While it increased to 7.0 (13.1) g L−1 when the co-culture with S. cerevisiae was used using same pH regulation strategy mainly due to ethanol increase up to 2.7 g L−1. Moreover, the xylose uptake doubled to 94% due to amino-acid secretion by yeast. Overall, this combined strategy was a very effective method for promoting sugar consumption and ABE solvent production from lignocellulosic waste.
Expeditious microwavable one-pot synthesis and biological exploration of spiro[indoline-3,4′-pyrazolo[3,4-b] pyridine derivatives
Authors: Naglaa F. H. Mahmoud , Rizk Sameh A. , Galal A. Elsayed , Ali Ali Kh.
Published: May 2022

A rapid and efficient microwave-promoted one-pot strategy has been utilized to synthesize differentially functionalized spiro[indoline-3,4′-pyrazolo[3,4-b] pyridine derivatives. Different optimized reaction conditions have been exploited when one-pot four-component (hydrazines, 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds, isatin, and malononitrile) reactions took place to afford satisfying yields of compounds [5–28]. Among different methodologies, the catalyst-free microwave-assisted fusion process has been proved to be the strategy with desirable traits to give good-to-excellent yields of the target compounds. Structural features of the obtained compounds were confirmed by the basis of elemental analyses, mass,1H-NMR, and13C-NMR spectrometry.
Use of industrial residues for heavy metals immobilization in contaminated site remediation: a brief review
Authors: Schlögl S. , Diendorfer P. , Baldermann A. , Vollprecht D.
Published: May 2022

The increasing use of industrial residues for the remediation of landscapes contaminated with heavy metals diminishes the negative environmental impact of the contamination itself, reduces the demand for primary raw materials and minimizes the costs for the disposal of the residues. On the other hand, industrial residues often contain heavy metals themselves, which make their application for contaminated site remediation controversial. This study assembles and compares results of different investigations, such as laboratory tests, greenhouse tests and full-scale field tests, concerning heavy metals immobilization in soils all over the world. This review begins with an overview of the principles of immobilization and then focusses on two major groups of industrial residues: (i) residues from metallurgy (slags and red mud) and (ii) residues from thermal processes, i.e. incineration and pyrolysis. The feasibility of industrial residue applications in contaminated site remediation is presented exemplarily for the immobilization of arsenic, cadmium, cobalt, chromium, copper, manganese, nickel, lead and zinc. Red mud and steel slag additives show a high removal efficiency for specific heavy metals at contaminated field sites, whereas fly ash and biochar applications exhibit a high performance for various heavy metals uptake at laboratory scale, bearing a high potential for the extension to full-industrial scale. The latter materials may increase the soil pH, which favours the sorption of cationic heavy metals, but may decrease the sorption of hazardous oxyanions.

Graphical abstract
A Comprehensive Cancer-Associated MicroRNA Expression Profiling and Proteomic Analysis of Human Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Derived Exosomes
Authors: Jothimani Ganesan , Pathak Surajit , Dutta Suman , Duttaroy Asim K. , Banerjee Antara
Published: May 2022

Background:

The mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have enormous therapeutic potential owing to their multi-lineage differentiation and self-renewal properties. MSCs express growth factors, cytokines, chemokines, and non-coding regulatory RNAs with immunosuppressive, anti-tumor, and migratory properties. MSCs also release several anti-cancer molecules via extracellular vesicles, that act as pro-apoptotic/tumor suppressor factors. This study aimed to identify the stem cell-derived secretome that could exhibit anti-cancer properties through molecular profiling of cargos in MSC-derived exosomes.

Methods:

Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUCMSCs) were isolated from umbilical cord tissues and culture expanded. Subsequently, exosomes were isolated from hUCMSC conditioned medium and characterized by DLS, electron microscopy. Western blot for exosome surface marker protein CD63 expression was performed. The miRNA profiling of hUCMSCs and hUCMSC-derived exosomes was performed, followed by functional enrichment analysis.

Results:

The tri-lineage differentiation potential, fibroblastic morphology, and strong expression of pluripotency genes indicated that isolated fibroblasts are MSCs. The isolated extracellular vesicles were 133.8 ± 42.49 nm in diameter, monodispersed, and strongly expressed the exosome surface marker protein CD63. The miRNA expression profile and gene ontology (GO) depicted the differential expression patterns of high and less-expressed miRNAs that are crucial to be involved in the regulation of apoptosis. The LCMS/MS data and GO analysis indicate that hUCMSC secretomes are involved in several oncogenic and inflammatory signaling cascades.

Conclusion:

Primary human MSCs released miRNAs and growth factors via exosomes that are increasingly implicated in intercellular communications, and hUCMSC-exosomal miRNAs have a critical influence in regulating cell death and apoptosis of cancer cells.

Graphical abstract