bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The mediating role of gaze patterns in the association of child sleep disturbances and core symptoms of autism spectrum disorder
Authors: Wang Guangshuai , Chen Jingying , Zhang Kun , Tang Suyun , Wang Guanghai
Published: May 2022

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are at high risk for sleep disturbances, but the mechanism underlying the association between sleep disturbances and ASD core symptoms is largely unknown. This study examined the relationship between sleep disturbances and ASD core symptoms, and the mediating role of gaze patterns during the facial emotion recognition (FER) task. The study included 57 children with ASD and 59 age‐ and intelligence‐matched typically developing (TD) controls aged 3–7 years. Parents reported their children's sleep disturbances and ASD core symptoms using the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ) and Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ). Children's gaze patterns during the FER task were recorded by an eye tracking method. We found (1) ASD children had more severe sleep disturbances than TD children; (2) ASD children had atypical gaze patterns and poor FER task performance as determined by lower accuracy and longer reaction time; (3) sleep disturbances were significantly associated with ASD core symptoms of social interaction, communication, and restricted, repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior; and (4) atypical gaze patterns partially mediated the association between sleep disturbances and ASD core symptoms. These findings suggest the need for more comprehensive clinical interventions and more effective sleep interventions to improve ASD core symptoms.

Lay Summary

Sleep disturbances are very common in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The current study found that sleep disturbances were significantly associated with ASD core symptoms, and gaze patterns during facial emotion recognition task could partially mediate this relationship.
The chaperone Clusterin in neurodegeneration−friend or foe?
Authors: Yuste‐Checa Patricia , Bracher Andreas , Hartl F. Ulrich
Published: May 2022

Fibrillar protein aggregates are the pathological hallmark of a group of age‐dependent neurodegenerative conditions, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. Aggregates of the microtubule‐associated protein Tau are observed in Alzheimer's disease and primary tauopathies. Tau pathology propagates from cell to cell in a prion‐like process that is likely subject to modulation by extracellular chaperones such as Clusterin. We recently reported that Clusterin delayed Tau fibril formation but enhanced the activity of Tau oligomers to seed aggregation of endogenous Tau in a cellular model. In contrast, Clusterin inhibited the propagation of α‐Synuclein aggregates associated with Parkinson's disease. These findings raise the possibility of a mechanistic link between Clusterin upregulation observed in Alzheimer's disease and the progression of Tau pathology. Here we review the diverse functions of Clusterin in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases, focusing on evidence that Clusterin may act either as a suppressor or enhancer of pathology.
Verbal fluency response times predict incident cognitive impairment
Authors: Ayers Matthew R. , Bushnell Justin , Gao Sujuan , Unverzagt Frederick , Gaizo John Del , Wadley Virginia G. , Kennedy Richard , Clark David Glenn
Published: May 2022

Introduction

In recent decades, researchers have defined novel methods for scoring verbal fluency tasks. In this work, we evaluate novel scores based on speed of word responses.

Methods

We transcribed verbal fluency recordings from 641 cases of incident cognitive impairment (ICI) and matched controls, all participants in a large national epidemiological study. Timing measurements of utterances were used to calculate a speed score for each recording. Traditional raw and speed scores were entered into Cox proportional hazards (CPH) regression models predicting time to ICI.

Results

Concordance of the CPH model with speed scores was 0.599, an improvement of 3.4% over a model with only raw scores and demographics. Scores with significant effects included animals raw and speed scores, and letter F speed score.

Discussion

Novel verbal fluency scores based on response times could enable use of remotely administered fluency tasks for early detection of cognitive decline.

Highlights

 The current work evaluates prognostication with verbal fluency speed scores.

 These speed scores improve survival models predicting cognitive decline.

 Cases with progressive decline have some characteristics suggestive of Alzheimer's disease.

 The subset of acute decliners is probably pathologically heterogeneous.
Fine needle aspiration biopsy of epithelioid‐mesenchymal neoplasm with PTCH1‐GLI1 fusion: A case report
Authors: Shahabi Ali , Israel Anna‐Karoline , Sullivan Christopher Blake , McHugh Kelsey E.
Published: May 2022

Mesenchymal tumors harboring GLI1 gene fusions are a rare new entity that typically occur in the head and neck region of young to middle aged adults, with a particular predilection for the tongue. We report herein a case of epithelioid mesenchymal tumor with PTCH1‐GLI1 gene fusion of the right submental region in an 82‐year‐old male never smoker. Ultrasound‐guided fine needle aspiration (FNA) with concomitant core needle biopsy was performed. Cytology smears revealed a hypercellular, monotonous aspirate comprised of epithelioid to plasmacytoid cells with round regular nuclei and moderate amounts of cytoplasm. There were admixed granulomata. The patient underwent surgical resection with limited neck dissection and subsequent pathologic examination with performed next generation sequencing confirmed the presence of epithelioid mesenchymal tumor with PTCH1‐GLI1 gene fusion. To our knowledge, this is the first reported example of a mesenchymal tumor harboring GLI1 gene fusion initially evaluated by FNA.
Multitrophic diversity and biotic associations influence subalpine forest ecosystem multifunctionality
Authors: Luo Ya‐Huang , Cadotte Marc W. , Liu Jie , Burgess Kevin S. , Tan Shao‐Lin , Ye Lin‐Jiang , Zou Jia‐Yun , Chen Zhong‐Zheng , Jiang Xue‐Long , Li Juan , Xu Kun , Li De‐Zhu , Gao Lian‐Ming
Published: May 2022

Biodiversity across multiple trophic levels is required to maintain multiple ecosystem functions. Yet it remains unclear how multitrophic diversity and species interactions regulate ecosystem multifunctionality. Here, combining data from 9 different trophic groups (including trees, shrubs, herbs, leaf mites, small mammals, bacteria, pathogenic fungi, saprophytic fungi, and symbiotic fungi) and 13 ecosystem functions related to supporting, provisioning, and regulating services, we used a multitrophic perspective to evaluate the effects of elevation, diversity, and network complexity on scale‐dependent subalpine forest multifunctionality. Our results demonstrated that elevation and soil pH significantly modified species composition and richness across multitrophic groups and influenced multiple functions simultaneously. We present evidence that species richness across multiple trophic groups had stronger effects on multifunctionality than species richness at any single trophic level. Moreover, biotic associations, indicating the complexity of trophic networks, were positively associated with multifunctionality. The relative effects of diversity on multifunctionality increased at the scale of the larger community compared to a scale accounting for neighboring interactions. Our results highlight the paramount importance of scale‐ and context‐dependent multitrophic diversity and interactions for a better understanding of mountain ecosystem multifunctionality in a changing world.
Lipidomics analysis of facial lipid biomarkers in females with self‐perceived skin sensitivity
Authors: Ma Yuchen , Cui Le , Tian Yan , He Congfen
Published: May 2022

Background and Aims

Self‐perception of sensitive skin (SPSS) has several consequences, including skin barrier damage, which is prevented by barrier sebum. We analyzed lipidome profiles of skin surface lipids (SSLs) in patients with SPSS and healthy controls and explored the mechanism of action of potential lipid markers on the repair of damaged barrier cells to better understand SSL abnormity in these patients.

Methods

Ultraperformance liquid chromatography–quadrupole time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry was used to investigate SSL variations in major lipid classes, subclasses, and species. Reverse‐transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) was used to examine changes in intracellular gene expression following cell barrier damage repair by potential lipid markers.

Results

There were significant differences in the lipidomes of individuals between groups. Individuals with SPSS showed significantly increased levels of two diacylglycerols and one very‐short‐chain free fatty acid and significantly decreased levels of three ceramides (Cers), four glycerophospholipids, and one very‐long‐chain free fatty acid. RT‐PCR revealed that after damage repair by Cer/Glucosylceramide (GlcCer), the expression of two genes in the sterol regulatory element‐binding protein and three in the peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor pathway significantly increased. Causes of skin barrier damage in patients with SPSS are related to the amount and type of lipids.

Conclusion

Cer/GlcCer can promote lipid synthesis and secretion by upregulating lipid‐related gene expression to repair barrier damage.
Th1, Th2, and Th17 cells are dysregulated, but only Th17 cells relate to C‐reactive protein, D‐dimer, and mortality risk in Stanford type A aortic dissection patients
Authors: Song Mowei , Deng Li , Shen Hongtao , Zhang Guofu , Shi Hang , Zhu Erjun , Xia Qingping , Han Hongguang
Published: May 2022

Background

T helper (Th) cells are closely involved in vascular inflammation, endothelial dysfunction, and atherogenesis, which are the hallmarks of aortic dissection (AD). This study aimed to evaluate the clinical value of Th1, Th2, and Th17 cell measurements in Stanford type A AD patients.

Methods

Stanford type A AD patients (N=80) and non‐AD patients with chest pain (N = 40) were recruited. Then, Th1, Th2, and Th17 cells in peripheral blood CD4+ T cells from all participants were detected by flow cytometry. The 30‐day mortality of Stanford type A AD patients was recorded.

Results

Th1 and Th17 cells were higher, while Th2 cells were lower in Stanford type A AD patients compared with non‐AD patients (all p < 0.001). Meanwhile, Th1 cells (area under curve (AUC): 0.734, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.640–0.828), Th2 cells (AUC: 0.841, 95% CI: 0.756–0.925), and Th17 cells (AUC: 0.898, 95% CI: 0.839–0.957) could distinguish Stanford type A patients from non‐AD patients. Moreover, Th1 cells (p = 0.037) and Th17 cells (p = 0.001) were positively related to CRP, and Th17 cells (p = 0.039) were also positively associated with D‐dimer in Stanford type A AD patients. Furthermore, Th17 cells were elevated in deaths compared with survivors (p = 0.001), also, it could estimate 30‐day mortality risk in Stanford type A AD patients with an AUC of 0.741 (95% CI: 0.614–0.867), which was similar to the value of CRP (AUC: 0.771, 95% CI: 0.660–0.882), but lower than the value of D‐dimer (AUC: 0.818, 95% CI: 0.722–0.913).

Conclusion

Th1, Th2, and Th17 cells are dysregulated, but only the Th17 cells relate to CRP, D‐dimer, and 30‐day mortality risk in Stanford type A AD patients.
Understanding de novo onset of anxiety during COVID‐19: Pre‐pandemic socio‐emotional functioning in vulnerable children
Authors: Adegboye Dolapo , Lennon Jessica , Batterbee Olivia , Thapar Anita , Collishaw Stephan , Shelton Katherine , Langley Kate , Hobson Christopher , Higgins Andrea , van Goozen Stephanie
Published: May 2022

Background

There is a need to understand and mitigate the psychological impacts of the COVID‐19 pandemic for children known to be vulnerable. Data from prior to the pandemic are required to provide robust assessments of the socio‐emotional impacts of COVID‐19 and identify those who are more vulnerable.

Method

This study capitalises on an ongoing UK study of primary school children (4–8 years) identified prior to the pandemic as “at risk” for mental health problems by teachers. We collected mental health and social‐emotional functioning data prior to the pandemic (Time 1) and re‐assessed this cohort (N = 143) via researcher‐led videocalls during lockdown (Time 2, summer 2020) and post‐lockdown, 12 months later (Time 3; summer 2021).

Results

Mental health problems, particularly clinically significant anxiety, increased from 34% to 43% during lockdown and to 48% post‐lockdown. Parental mental health difficulties (anxiety and depression) were prevalent during lockdown (40%) but had decreased 1 year later (20%). Children who developed clinically significant anxiety during the pandemic had impaired socio‐emotional functioning at Time 1 (i.e., impaired emotion recognition, low self‐esteem and social problems) and a high proportion (44%) had no contact with any peers during lockdown, which may have contributed to their anxiety, especially their school anxiety.

Conclusion

The pandemic appears to have exacerbated anxiety in already vulnerable children. A profile of socio‐emotional problems identified a group of children who developed significant anxieties during the pandemic. These socio‐emotional processes can be targeted for intervention to mitigate the negative mental health consequences of the pandemic and contribute to resilience in children.
siRNA against CD40 delivered via a fungal recognition receptor ameliorates murine acute graft‐versus‐host disease
Authors: Heissig Beate , Salama Yousef , Tateno Masatoshi , Takahashi Satoshi , Hattori Koichi
Published: May 2022

Acute graft‐versus‐host disease (aGvHD) remains a major threat to a successful outcome after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Although antibody‐based targeting of the CD40/CD40 ligand costimulatory pathway can prevent aGvHD, side effects hampered their clinical application, prompting a need for other ways to interfere with this important dendritic T‐cell costimulatory pathway. Here, we used small interfering RNA (siRNA) complexed with β‐glucan allowing the binding and uptake of the siRNA/β‐glucan complex (siCD40/schizophyllan [SPG]; chemical modifications called NJA‐312, NJA‐302, and NJA‐515) into Dectin1+ cells, which recognize this pathogen‐associated molecular pattern receptor. aGvHD was induced by the transplantation of splenocytes and bone marrow cells from C57BL/6J into CBF1 mice. Splenic dendritic cells retained Dectin1 expression after HSCT but showed lower expression after irradiation. The administration of siCD40/SPG, NJA‐312, and NJA‐302 ameliorated aGvHD‐mediated lethality and tissue damage of spleen and liver, but not skin. Multiple NJA‐312high injections prevented aGvHD but resulted in early weight loss in allogeneic HSCT mice. In addition, NJA‐312 treatment caused delayed initial donor T and B‐cell recovery but resulted in stable chimerism in surviving mice. Mechanistically, NJA‐312 reduced organ damage by suppressing CCR2+, F4/80+, and IL17A‐expressing cell accumulation in spleen, liver, and thymus but not the skin of mice with aGvHD. Our work demonstrates that siRNA targeting of CD40 delivered via the PAMP‐recognizing lectin Dectin1 changes the immunological niche, suppresses organ‐specific murine aGvHD, and induces immune tolerance after organ transplantation. Our work charts future directions for therapeutic interventions to modulate tissue‐specific immune reactions using Pathogen‐associated molecular pattern (PAMP) molecules like 1,3‐β‐glucan for cell delivery of siRNA.
Spatiotemporal variations of extreme events in surface mass balance over Greenland during 1958–2019
Authors: Wei Ting , Noël Brice , Ding Minghu , Yan Qing
Published: May 2022

Greenland surface mass balance (SMB) is undergoing dramatic change due to the amplified Arctic warming, with more frequent record‐breaking melt events. To comprehensively understand the behaviour of the Greenland ice sheet, we develop a suite of indices to examine the spatiotemporal variations of extreme events in SMB over Greenland during 1958–2019 based on the RACMO2.3p2 model outputs. We illustrate that the climatological distributions of extreme ablation‐dominated events (i.e., extremes with SMB < 0) share large similarity with the mean SMB in terms of intensity and frequency, showing a coastal‐to‐inland decreasing pattern. This pattern holds for the intensity of the extreme accumulation‐dominated events (i.e., extremes with SMB > 0), but not for the frequency which increases from the coastal to inland Greenland. Regarding the temporal evolution, the intensity and frequency of extreme ablation‐dominated events show a decreasing trend over Greenland during 1958–1978, whereas the trend increases afterwards, especially during the last two decades (2001–2019). However, these trends fluctuate regionally across the GrIS both in terms of magnitude and sign, with the most pronounced variations occurring in southwest Greenland. In contrast, extreme accumulation‐dominated events show, on average, a long‐term increasing trend from 1958 to 2019 in terms of intensity and frequency. However, obvious spatial fluctuations exist across the GrIS during 1958–2019, especially between the southwest and northeast Greenland where an opposite trend is observed. Additionally, the variations of SMB extremes in boreal summer are linked with the changes in regional temperature and precipitation and the associated atmospheric circulations, and the dominating factor varies with different extreme indices and time intervals. Our results may advance our understanding on SMB variability over Greenland and contribute to the design of future Greenland observational networks.
A Simple and Feasible Synthetic Strategy towards Poly(4‐thiostyrene)
Authors: Li Jincai , Richardson Joseph J. , Ejima Hirotaka
Published: May 2022

Poly(4‐thiostyrene), a historically challenging to synthesize polymer, is synthesized herein via a feasible three‐step protocol. Based on the newly developed protection–deprotection strategy, the precursor polymer containing thiomethyl groups is deprotected using Li/naphthalene to yield poly(4‐thiostyrene) after acidification. This newly developed procedure is crucial for preventing crosslinking of the thiol groups and therefore the resulting polymer is soluble in common organic solvents (e.g., chloroform, tetrahydrofuran) and can be stored long‐term, which has been challenging to accomplish over the past 60 years. The successful synthesis is confirmed by various characterization techniques including NMR, Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and Raman analysis, which collectively are new and useful data that have generally been unavailable in previous reports. This work provides a robust approach for synthesizing this promising polymer and offers a new route to investigate thiol‐containing polymers.
Non‐classical Lie symmetries for nonlinear time‐fractional Heisenberg equations
Authors: Hashemi Mir Sajjad , Haji‐Badali Ali , Alizadeh Farzaneh , Yang Xiao‐Jun
Published: May 2022

The current work is based on performing the non‐classical and classical Lie group analysis for a system of nonlinear time‐fractional Heisenberg equation. Here, we apply analysis of the Lie group symmetry as one of the powerful tools dealing with the large class of fractional order differential equations in the Riemann–Liouville (RL) sense. Indeed, classical and non‐classical Lie symmetries group is used to similarity reduction of nonlinear time‐fractional Heisenberg equation. Especially, based on the obtained Lie symmetry generators, we construct conservation laws for the classical and non‐classical vector fields related to the Heisenberg time‐fraction equation.
Molecular scale study on the interactions of biocompatible nanoparticles with macrophage membrane and blood proteins
Authors: Khedri Mohammad , Afsharchi Fatemeh , Souderjani Amirhosein Hasanpour , Rezvantalab Sima , Didandeh Mohsen , Maleki Reza , Musaie Kiyan , Santos Hélder A. , Shahbazi Mohammad‐Ali
Published: May 2022

Macrophage targeting and researches centered on immunological responses have received interest thanks to studies unveiling the significant role of macrophages in inflammatory diseases and cancer. In this regard, we have selected four types of nanoparticles (NPs), including acetalated dextran‐based nano‐carrier functionalized with atrial natriuretic peptide and linTT1(AcDEX‐PEG‐TT1‐ANP), PEGylated acetalated dextran (AcDEX‐PEG), acetalated dextran (AcDEX), and hyaluronic acid (HA) to investigate their interactions with macrophage membrane. Using microsecond coarse‐grained molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, we studied the interactions between the NPs and the macrophage membrane and subsequent immunological reactions that occur after the penetration of the NPs within the macrophage cell. Different parameters that determine the strength and amount of macrophage membrane interaction were measured and compared for all four types of NPs. The results showed that AcDEX‐PEG‐TT1‐ANP has the most favorable interaction with the macrophage membrane while HA has the least favorable results by comparison. Moreover, drug encapsulation and release in different pH conditions showed the pH‐responsivity of the considered NPs for drug delivery in acidic environments. On the other hand, evaluations with human serum albumin (HSA), fibrinogen (Fib), and transferrin (Tf) declared that peptide modified AcDEX polymers are the most probable NPs to absorb a layer of the protein corona.
Furfurylammonium as a Spacer for Efficient 2D Ruddlesden–Popper Perovskite Solar Cells
Authors: Zheng Yi , Chen Shan-Ci , Ma Yunlong , Zheng Qingdong
Published: May 2022

2D perovskites have recently emerged as promising materials for solar cells due to their appealing ambient stability and structural diversity. The organic spacer cation plays an important role in the stability and properties of the 2D perovskites. Herein, a new organic ammonium cation, 2‐furfurylammonium (FuMA+), is developed as the spacer cation for 2D Ruddlesden–Popper perovskites. Thin films of (FuMA)2(MA)4Pb5I16 with increased crystal size and enhanced vertical orientation are obtained via an additive‐assisted film forming technique, which dramatically improves the efficiency of 2D perovskite solar cells from 4.90% to 15.66%. Moreover, the perovskite films based on FuMA+ can be prepared in ambient air, and the devices based on the perovskite films prepared in ambient air with 30% relative humidity can perform a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 15.24%.
A new artificial intelligence system successfully detects and localises early neoplasia in Barrett's esophagus by using convolutional neural networks
Authors: Hussein Mohamed , González‐Bueno Puyal Juana , Lines David , Sehgal Vinay , Toth Daniel , Ahmad Omer F. , Kader Rawen , Everson Martin , Lipman Gideon , Fernandez‐Sordo Jacobo Ortiz , Ragunath Krish , Esteban Jose Miguel , Bisschops Raf , Banks Matthew , Haefner Michael , Mountney Peter , Stoyanov Danail , Lovat Laurence B. , Haidry Rehan
Published: May 2022

Background and aims

Seattle protocol biopsies for Barrett's Esophagus (BE) surveillance are labour intensive with low compliance. Dysplasia detection rates vary, leading to missed lesions. This can potentially be offset with computer aided detection. We have developed convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to identify areas of dysplasia and where to target biopsy.

Methods

119 Videos were collected in high‐definition white light and optical chromoendoscopy with i‐scan (Pentax Hoya, Japan) imaging in patients with dysplastic and non‐dysplastic BE (NDBE). We trained an indirectly supervised CNN to classify images as dysplastic/non‐dysplastic using whole video annotations to minimise selection bias and maximise accuracy. The CNN was trained using 148,936 video frames (31 dysplastic patients, 31 NDBE, two normal esophagus), validated on 25,161 images from 11 patient videos and tested on 264 iscan‐1 images from 28 dysplastic and 16 NDBE patients which included expert delineations. To localise targeted biopsies/delineations, a second directly supervised CNN was generated based on expert delineations of 94 dysplastic images from 30 patients. This was tested on 86 i‐scan one images from 28 dysplastic patients.

Findings

The indirectly supervised CNN achieved a per image sensitivity in the test set of 91%, specificity 79%, area under receiver operator curve of 93% to detect dysplasia. Per‐lesion sensitivity was 100%. Mean assessment speed was 48 frames per second (fps). 97% of targeted biopsy predictions matched expert and histological assessment at 56 fps. The artificial intelligence system performed better than six endoscopists.

Interpretation

Our CNNs classify and localise dysplastic Barrett's Esophagus potentially supporting endoscopists during surveillance.
Enabling Studies of Genome-Scale Regulatory Network Evolution in Large Phylogenies with MRTLE
Authors: Zhang Shilu , Knaack Sara , Roy Sushmita
Published: May 2022

Transcriptional regulatory networks specify context-specific patterns of genes and play a central role in how species evolve and adapt. Inferring genome-scale regulatory networks in non-model species is the first step for examining patterns of conservation and divergence of regulatory networks. Transcriptomic data obtained under varying environmental stimuli in multiple species are becoming increasingly available, which can be used to infer regulatory networks. However, inference and analysis of multiple gene regulatory networks in a phylogenetic setting remains challenging. We developed an algorithm, Multi-species Regulatory neTwork LEarning (MRTLE), to facilitate such studies of regulatory network evolution. MRTLE is a probabilistic graphical model-based algorithm that uses phylogenetic structure, transcriptomic data for multiple species, and sequence-specific motifs in each species to simultaneously infer genome-scale regulatory networks across multiple species. We applied MRTLE to study regulatory network evolution across six ascomycete yeasts using transcriptomic measurements collected across different stress conditions. MRTLE networks recapitulated experimentally derived interactions in the model organism S. cerevisiae as well as non-model species, and it was more beneficial for network inference than methods that do not use phylogenetic information. We examined the regulatory networks across species and found that regulators associated with significant expression and network changes are involved in stress-related processes. MTRLE and its associated downstream analysis provide a scalable and principled framework to examine evolutionary dynamics of transcriptional regulatory networks across multiple species in a large phylogeny.
Heterologous Expression, Purification, and Characterization of Type II Polyketide Synthase Acyl Carrier Proteins
Authors: Hamrick Grayson S. , Londergan Casey H. , Charkoudian Louise K.
Published: May 2022

The enzymes that comprise type II polyketide synthases (PKSs) are powerful biocatalysts that, once well-understood and strategically applied, could enable cost-effective and sustainable access to a range of pharmaceutically relevant molecules. Progress toward this goal hinges on gaining ample access to materials for in vitro characterizations and structural analysis of the components of these synthases. A central component of PKSs is the acyl carrier protein (ACP), which serves as a hub during the biosynthesis of type II polyketides. Herein, we share methods for accessing type II PKS ACPs via heterologous expression in E. coli. We also share how the installation of reactive and site-specific spectroscopic probes can be leveraged to study the conformational dynamics and interactions of type II PKS ACPs.
Classifying resilience approaches for protecting smart grids against cyber threats
Authors: Syrmakesis Andrew D. , Alcaraz Cristina , Hatziargyriou Nikos D.
Published: May 2022

Smart grids (SG) draw the attention of cyber attackers due to their vulnerabilities, which are caused by the usage of heterogeneous communication technologies and their distributed nature. While preventing or detecting cyber attacks is a well-studied field of research, making SG more resilient against such threats is a challenging task. This paper provides a classification of the proposed cyber resilience methods against cyber attacks for SG. This classification includes a set of studies that propose cyber-resilient approaches to protect SG and related cyber-physical systems against unforeseen anomalies or deliberate attacks. Each study is briefly analyzed and is associated with the proper cyber resilience technique which is given by the National Institute of Standards and Technology in the Special Publication 800-160. These techniques are also linked to the different states of the typical resilience curve. Consequently, this paper highlights the most critical challenges for achieving cyber resilience, reveals significant cyber resilience aspects that have not been sufficiently considered yet and, finally, proposes scientific areas that should be further researched in order to enhance the cyber resilience of SG.
Climate Change and the Cost-Effective Governance Mode for Biodiversity Conservation
Authors: Schöttker Oliver , Wätzold Frank
Published: May 2022

Climate change poses a key challenge for biodiversity conservation. Conservation agencies, in particular, have to decide where to carry out conservation measures in a landscape to enable species to move with climate change. Moreover, they can choose two main governance modes: (1) buy land to implement conservation measures themselves on that land, or (2) compensate landowners for voluntarily carrying out conservation measures on their land. We develop a dynamic, conceptual ecological-economic model to investigate the influence of changes in climatic parameters on the cost-effectiveness of these governance modes and specific patch selection strategies (price prioritisation, species abundance prioritisation, climate suitability prioritisation, climate change direction prioritisation). We identify five effects that explain the cost-effectiveness performance of the combinations of governance mode and patch selection strategy and find that their cost-effectiveness depends on climate parameters and is thus case-specific.
Wave-like motion and secondary currents in arrays of emergent cylinders induced by large scale eddying motion
Authors: Taborda Cátia , Fael Cristina , Ricardo Ana M. , Ferreira Rui M. L.
Published: May 2022

Free-surface flows with riparian corridors are known to develop large eddies resulting from the instability associated to the inflectional profile of the longitudinal velocity in the spanwise direction. They periodically generate strong momentum exchanges inside the vegetation corridor, triggering a wave-like motion, detectable as free-surface oscillations and out-of-phase velocity components. We propose a characterization of the flow inside the vegetation corridor, focusing on the wave-like motion and its influence on secondary currents. We conditionally sample the fluid motion to highlight the structure of the phase-averaged coherent structure. Quadrant analysis shows that there is a strong variation of Reynolds stress anisotropy in the spanwise direction, which is one of the key generation mechanisms of secondary currents. Spectrograms of longitudinal and lateral velocity fluctuations reveal that the oscillatory motion is imposed on the whole of the vegetated layer, because of continuity. The analysis of the phase-averaged 2D vertical-longitudinal flow reveals that there is a complex 3D pattern of mass fluxes associated to each large eddy. In particular there is an anti-symmetric net mass imbalance which, by mass conservation, generates a mass flux directed outwards, to the main channel, near the bottom of the channel. The Eulerian expression of this motion is obtained as the spatial average of the flow over the length of the large eddy, resulting in the pattern of the secondary current in the vertical-spanwise plane. It is shown that the secondary motion is a necessary feature of free-surface turbulent flows that develop large-scale inflectional instabilities.
Transparent electrodes based on molybdenum–titanium–oxide with increased water stability for use as hole-transport/hole-injection components
Authors: Goetz Selina , Wibowo Rachmat Adhi , Bauch Martin , Bansal Neha , Ligorio Giovanni , List-Kratochvil Emil , Linke Christian , Franzke Enrico , Winkler Jörg , Valtiner Markus , Dimopoulos Theodoros
Published: May 2022

Recently, dielectric/metal/dielectric (DMD) transparent electrodes based on MoO3 have been applied in solar cells and organic light emitting diodes, by virtue of the favourable properties of MoO3 as hole-transport/hole-injection material. However, amorphous MoO3 layers are easily dissolved in water, thus inhibiting device processing with water-based solutions. To improve the stability in water, the present study introduces DMD electrodes based on mixed molybdenum–titanium–oxide (MTO), fabricated by DC magnetron sputtering from a conductive oxide target. It is demonstrated that the addition of Ti strongly increases the stability in water, while the desirable electronic properties of MoO3, specifically the high work function and wide bandgap, are maintained. The DMD electrodes, with Ag as metal layer, were fabricated on both rigid and flexible substrates, namely glass and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The obtained electrodes have low sheet resistance around 5 Ω/sq and high average visible transmittance well above 0.7 (including the substrate). As a result of the MTO stability, processing with water-based solutions takes place without electrode degradation. To demonstrate the process compatibility for large-scale, industrial production, the DMDs were sputter-deposited by a roll-to-roll process on a 300 mm-wide PET foil, achieving similar electrode properties with the laboratory-scale samples.

Graphical abstract
Review of the use of solid wood as an external cladding material in the built environment
Authors: Hill Callum , Kymäläinen Maija , Rautkari Lauri
Published: May 2022

Timber cladding has been used since historical times as a locally available, affordable weather protection option. Nowadays, interest in timber cladding is again increasing because of ecological reasons as well as naturalistic viewpoints. This review presents a comprehensive report on timber cladding in a European context, beginning with a brief overview of the history before considering contemporary use of timber cladding for building envelopes. The basic principles of good design are considered, paying attention to timber orientation, fixings and environmental risk factors. The relationship of timber with moisture is discussed with respect to sorption behaviour, dimensional instability and design methods to minimise the negative consequences associated with wetting. The behaviour of timber cladding in fires, the effects of environmental stresses and weathering, as well as the cladding properties and the variation thereof with different types of wood and anatomical factors (including exposure of different timber faces), are examined. The review then moves on to considering different methods for protecting timber, such as the use of coatings, preservatives, fire retardants and wood modification. A brief discussion of various environmental considerations is also included, including life cycle assessment, embodied carbon and sequestered atmospheric carbon. The review finishes by making concluding remarks, providing a basis for the selection of appropriate cladding types for different environments.
Relevance assessments, bibliometrics, and altmetrics: a quantitative study on PubMed and arXiv
Authors: Breuer Timo , Schaer Philipp , Tunger Dirk
Published: May 2022

Relevance is a key element for analyzing bibliometrics and information retrieval (IR). In both domains, relevance decisions are discussed theoretically and sometimes evaluated in empirical studies. IR research is often based on test collections for which explicit relevance judgments are made, while bibliometrics is based on implicit relevance signals like citations or other non-traditional quantifiers like altmetrics. While both types of relevance decisions share common concepts, it has not been empirically investigated how they relate to each other on a larger scale. In this work, we compile a new dataset that aligns IR relevance judgments with traditional bibliometric relevance signals (and altmetrics) for life sciences and physics publications. The dataset covers PubMed and arXiv articles, for which relevance judgments are taken from TREC Precision Medicine and iSearch, respectively. It is augmented with bibliometric data from the Web of Science and Altmetrics. Based on the reviewed literature, we outline a mental framework supporting the answers to our research questions. Our empirical analysis shows that bibliometric (implicit) and IR (explicit) relevance signals are correlated. Likewise, there is a high correlation between biblio- and altmetrics, especially for documents with explicit positive relevance judgments. Furthermore, our cross-domain analysis demonstrates the presence of these relations in both research fields.
Ectonucleotidases as bridge between the ATP and adenosine world: reflections on Geoffrey Burnstock
Authors: Schrader Jürgen
Published: May 2022

Historically, mainly by the work of Robert Berne, extracellular adenosine was the first purine compound recognized as an important signaling molecule linking energy metabolism to function by acting on membrane bound receptors. Geoffrey Burnstock by his vision and endurance pioneered the idea that cells release ATP that also acts as an extracellular signaling molecule under many physiological and pathophysiological circumstances. Only later, it was appreciated that extracellular ATP and adenosine are metabolically linked by the activity of several ectoenzymes which critically determine the concentrations of these purines at their respective receptors. In this brief review, I will report some personal recollections on Geoffrey Burnstock and his impressive personality. In addition, I will give a brief overview on our present knowledge of extracellular purine metabolism and its control and will address some still open issues.
Präventive Hausbesuche im ländlichen Raum
Authors: Blotenberg Britta , Seeling Stefanie , Naber Maike , Paul Annika
Published: May 2022

Hintergrund

Präventive Hausbesuche zeichnen sich durch eine aufsuchende Beratung von älteren Menschen im häuslichen Umfeld aus. International stellen sie bereits ein implementiertes Konzept dar und dienen der Früherkennung der Risikofaktoren von Pflegebedürftigkeit sowie chronischen Erkrankungen. So ist eine gezielte gesundheitliche Beeinflussung von Merkmalen des Lebensstils, der Lebenslage und der Umwelt möglich. Dieses niedrigschwellige Beratungs- und Begleitkonzept für ältere Menschen wurde innerhalb des Kooperationsprojektes „DaHeim – in Emlichheim“ weiterentwickelt, erprobt und evaluiert.

Methodik

Das Projekt basierte auf der Intervention von vier Beratungsgesprächen innerhalb von 10 Monaten, durchgeführt von einer akademisch qualifizierten Pflegefachkraft. Das Konzept schloss die Empfehlungen und Instrumente aus der Literatur ein. Die Begleitforschung analysierte mithilfe eines Mixed-method-Designs den Verlauf des Gesundheitszustands der Studienteilnehmer*innen und die Akzeptanz des Angebotes.

Ergebnisse

Das Angebot einen präventiven Hausbesuch zu erhalten, stieß auf breites Interesse in der Bevölkerung. Im Fokus der Beratungsgespräche standen primär die Themenschwerpunkte „Bewegung“, „Ernährung“ und „soziale Teilhabe“. Die Beratungen verbesserten insbesondere den psychischen Gesundheitszustand und lösten deutlich positive Effekte wie den Prozess von Empowerment, Wohlbefinden und Zufriedenheit bei den Teilnehmenden aus. Die Pflegefachkraft wurde als Ansprechpartnerin vor Ort akzeptiert und ihre hohe Fachlichkeit schaffte Vertrauen.

Schlussfolgerungen

Präventive Hausbesuche ermöglichen älteren Menschen ein selbstbestimmtes Leben im eigenen Zuhause, da die erweiterten Kenntnisse über präventives Verhalten und die erhöhte Motivation dieses umzusetzen ihre Autonomie verbessern. Dieses Angebot der Sensibilisierung im Hinblick auf Gesundheitsförderung und -erhaltung sollte über Leistungen des Sozialgesetzbuchs nicht nur für alle Bürger*innen zugänglich, sondern vor allem umgesetzt werden.
Transcription Factor Expression in Sinonasal Neuroendocrine Neoplasms and Olfactory Neuroblastoma (ONB): Hyams’ Grades 1–3 ONBs Expand the Spectrum of SATB2 and GATA3-Positive Neoplasms
Authors: Uccella Silvia , Facco Carla , Chiaravalli Anna Maria , Pettenon Fabiana , La Rosa Stefano , Turri-Zanoni Mario , Castelnuovo Paolo , Cerati Michele , Sessa Fausto
Published: May 2022

Sinonasal neuroendocrine neoplasms (SN-NENs) are rare and mostly include neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC), whereas neuroendocrine tumor (NET) is exceptional in this site. Olfactory neuroblastoma (ONB) is a malignant neuroectodermal neoplasm arising in the nasal cavity. Albeit crucial for correct patients’ management, the distinction of high grade ONB from NEC is challenging and requires additional diagnostic markers. The transcription factor SATB2 has been recently introduced in routine diagnostics as an immunohistochemical marker of distal intestine differentiation. No specific data are available about SATB2 and GATA3 expression in SN-NENs. GATA3, SATB2, and, for comparison, CDX2 expression were investigated in a series of epithelial and non-epithelial SN-NENs. We collected 26 cases of ONB and 7 cases of epithelial SN-NENs diagnosed and treated in our Institution. ONBs were graded according to Hyams’ system and epithelial NENs were reclassified into 5 NECs, 1 MiNEN, and 1 amphicrine carcinoma. Immunohistochemistry was performed using standard automated protocols. Hyams’ grades 1–3 ONBs stained diffusely and intensely for SATB2, whereas grade 4 ONBs and NECs were globally negative. The non-neuroendocrine component of MiNEN and the amphicrine carcinoma were strongly positive. GATA3 was heterogeneously and unpredictably expressed in Hyams’ grades 1–3 ONBs, whereas grade 4 ONBs and NECs were completely negative. CDX2 was negative in all cases. Our study identifies, for the first time, SATB2 and GATA3 expression as features of Hyams’ grades 1–3 ONBs, expands the spectrum of SATB2 and GATA3-positive neoplasms, and suggests that Hyams’ grade 4 ONBs are not only clinically but also biologically different from low graded ONBs.
„… move from this hellish life!“
Authors: Leitner Susanne , Jalalzai Saleem
Published: May 2022

Dieser Text gibt Einblicke in die Lebenssituation (junger) Menschen, die als Binnenvertriebene in Camps in und um Kabul leben. Anhand von Interviews mit Helferinnen vor Ort werden insbesondere existentielle Notlagen sowie besondere Gefährdungen für Mädchen und Frauen dargestellt.
Epidemiology, Clinical Features, and Outcomes of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) and Adolescents—a Live Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Authors: Jiang Li , Tang Kun , Irfan Omar , Li Xuan , Zhang Enyao , Bhutta Zulfiqar
Published: May 2022

Purpose of Review

A multisystem inflammatory condition occurring in children and adolescents with COVID-19 has become increasingly recognized and widely studied globally. This review aims to investigate and synthesize evolving evidence on its clinical characteristics, management, and outcomes in pediatric patients.

Recent Findings

We retrieved data from PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, WHO COVID-19 Database, Google Scholar, and preprint databases, covering a timeline from December 1, 2019, to July 31, 2021. A total of 123 eligible studies were included in the final descriptive and risk factor analyses. We comprehensively reviewed reported multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) cases from published and preprint studies of various designs to provide an updated evidence on epidemiology, clinical, laboratory and imaging findings, management, and short-term outcomes. Latest evidence suggests that African black and non-Hispanic white are the two most common ethnic groups, constituting 24.89% (95% CI 23.30–26.48%) and 25.18% (95% CI 23.51–26.85%) of the MIS-C population, respectively. Typical symptoms of MIS-C include fever (90.85%, 95% CI 89.86–91.84%), not-specified gastrointestinal symptoms (51.98%, 95% CI 50.13–53.83%), rash (49.63%, 95% CI 47.80–51.47%), abdominal pain (48.97%, 95% CI 47.09–50.85%), conjunctivitis (46.93%, 95% CI 45.17–48.69%), vomiting (43.79%, 95% CI 41.90–45.68%), respiratory symptoms (41.75%, 95% CI 40.01–43.49%), and diarrhea (40.10%, 95% CI 38.23–41.97%). MIS-C patients are less likely to develop conjunctivitis (OR 0.27, 95% CI 0.11–0.67), cervical adenopathy (OR 0.21, 95% CI 0.07–0.68), and rash (OR 0.44, 95% CI 0.26–0.77), in comparison with Kawasaki disease patients. Our review revealed that the majority of MIS-C cases (95.21%) to be full recovered while only 2.41% died from this syndrome. We found significant disparity between low- and middle-income countries and high-income countries in terms of clinical outcomes.

MIS-C, which appears to be linked to COVID-19, may cause severe inflammation in organs and tissues. Although there is emerging new evidence about the characteristics of this syndrome, its risk factors, and clinical prognosis, much remains unknown about the causality, the optimal prevention and treatment interventions, and long-term outcomes of the MIS-C patients.