bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Patient Characteristics Impacting Adherence to Serial Observation for Vestibular Schwannomas
Authors: Wang Ronald S. , Asfour Leena , Yang Wenqing , Zhang Yan , Santacatterina Michele , Jethanamest Daniel
Published: March 2024

Objective

To examine patient characteristics that impact serial observation adherence among vestibular schwannoma (VS) patients.

Study Design

Retrospective chart review.

Setting

Single tertiary care center.

Methods

We selected for VS patients from 201 to 2020 who elected for serial observation as initial management. Patients under 18, with previous management, bilateral or intralabyrinthine VS, and neurofibromatosis type 2 were excluded. Demographics, tumor characteristics, and follow‐up status were extracted. Single and multiple logistic regression was used to identify patient characteristics impacting follow‐up.

Results

We identified 507 VS patients who chose serial observation as initial management. Most were female (56.0%), white (73.0%), and married (72.8%). The mean age was 59.3 and most had private insurance (56.4%). Median Charlson Comorbidity Index was 2.00. Mean pure tone audiometry (PTA) average was 41.7 Hz. Average tumor size was 9.04 mm. Of 507 patients, 358 (70.6%) returned for at least one follow‐up. On multiple logistic regression analysis, patients with private insurance (odds ratio [OR]: 0.39, confidence interval [CI]: 0.22‐0.68; P = .001), racial minority background (OR: 0.54, CI: 0.35‐0.83; P = .005), worse PTA averages (OR: 0.99, CI: 0.98‐1.00; P = .044), and older age at diagnosis (OR: 0.97, CI: 0.95‐1.00; P = .038) were less likely to follow‐up.

Conclusion

Private health insurance, racial minority background, worse PTA average, and older age were associated with decreased follow‐up among adult VS patients electing serial observation. Patients with these characteristics may require additional support to ensure serial observation adherence.
Thrombin activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor plasma levels and TAFI Thr325Ile genetic polymorphism in a cohort of Egyptian sickle cell disease patients and impact on disease severity
Authors: Hamdy Mona , Shaheen Iman A. , Khallaf Mohamed , Selim Yasmeen M. M.
Published: March 2024

Background

Thrombin is a critical protease modulating thrombosis as well as inflammation, which are one of the main pathophysiological mechanisms in sickle vasculopathy, and its levels were reported to be high in sickle cell disease (SCD). The thrombin–thrombomodulin complex activates the TAFI inhibitor of fibrinolysis, which acts by reducing plasmin affinity for its substrate thus hindering fibrinolysis.

Objective

We aimed to determine the influence of the Thr325Ile single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) on TAFI antigen levels and potential effects on the severity of SCD in a cohort of Egyptian patients.

Methods

Genotyping of Thr325lle polymorphism using Taq‐Man SNP genotyping assay and TAFI level measurement using an enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay were performed for 80 SCD patients (45 homozygous HbSS, 16 S/β0 and 19 Sβ+) as well as 80 age‐ and gender‐matched healthy control subjects.

Results

Plasma TAFI levels were higher in SCD patients with Thr325Ile polymorphism, yet the difference was not statistically significant (p = .204). SCD patients with polymorphic genotypes had a greater number of hospital admissions (p = .03). Ten patients with acute chest syndrome had the homozygous polymorphic genotype (GG), and all patients with pulmonary hypertension had the polymorphic genotype (six were homozygous [GG] and five were heterozygous [GA]). Patients with SCD complicated with pulmonary hypertension showed significantly higher plasma TAFI levels (p = .044).

Conclusion

The analysis of Thr325Ile polymorphisms combined with plasma TAFI levels suggests that the analyzed SNP could influence plasma TAFL levels and SCD disease severity and hospitalization rates, which could be predictors for complex disease.
Discriminating extra virgin olive oils from common edible oils: Comparable performance of PLS‐DA models trained on low‐field and high‐field 1H NMR data
Authors: Head Thomas , Giebelhaus Ryland T. , Nam Seo Lin , de la Mata A. Paulina , Harynuk James J. , Shipley Paul R.
Published: March 2024

Introduction

Olive oil, derived from the olive tree (Olea europaea L.), is used in cooking, cosmetics, and soap production. Due to its high value, some producers adulterate olive oil with cheaper edible oils or fraudulently mislabel oils as olive to increase profitability. Adulterated products can cause allergic reactions in sensitive individuals and can lack compounds which contribute to the perceived health benefits of olive oil, and its corresponding premium price.

Objective

There is a need for robust methods to rapidly authenticate olive oils. By utilising machine learning models trained on the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra of known olive oil and edible oils, samples can be classified as olive and authenticated. While high‐field NMRs are commonly used for their superior resolution and sensitivity, they are generally prohibitively expensive to purchase and operate for routine screening purposes. Low‐field benchtop NMR presents an affordable alternative.

Methods

We compared the predictive performance of partial least squares discrimination analysis (PLS‐DA) models trained on low‐field 60 MHz benchtop proton (1H) NMR and high‐field 400 MHz 1H NMR spectra. The data were acquired from a sample set consisting of 49 extra virgin olive oils (EVOOs) and 45 other edible oils.

Results

We demonstrate that PLS‐DA models trained on low‐field NMR spectra are highly predictive when classifying EVOOs from other oils and perform comparably to those trained on high‐field spectra. We demonstrated that variance was primarily driven by regions of the spectra arising from olefinic protons and ester protons from unsaturated fatty acids in models derived from data at both field strengths.
Silver‐lean metallization and hybrid contacts via plating on screen‐printed metal for silicon solar cells manufacturing
Authors: Chang Yuan‐Chih , Zhang Yuchao , Wang Li , Wang Sisi , Wang Haoran , Huang Chien‐Yu , Chen Ran , Chan Catherine , Hallam Brett
Published: March 2024

As PV manufacturing heads towards the multi‐TW scale, it is required to carefully evaluate a wide range of concepts including not only efficiency and cost but also material consumption to ensure sustainable manufacturing of PV technologies. The rapid growth of PV could significantly increase the demand for several materials required in solar cells such as silver, aluminium, copper and even silicon, thereby causing dramatic price fluctuations. Furthermore, the PV manufacturing capacity would be at risk of being limited by the supply of some scarce metals, e.g. with current industrial implementations – screen printing (SP) metallization, the capacities of PERC and TOPCon could be capped at 377 GW and 227 GW with 20% of global silver supply available to the PV industry. In addition, PV systems have ~25–30 years lifespan to ensure low LCOE and emissions. Recycling alone will not provide an immediate solution to overcome the limitation of material consumption in the exponentially growing PV market. It is expected that the Ag usage needs to be reduced to no more than 5 mg/W or even 2 mg/W for all solar cell technologies to allow a multi‐TW manufacturing scale without depleting the global silver supply. Therefore, further advancements in metallization technologies are critically and urgently required to significantly reduce the silver consumption of current screen‐printed contacts in industrial silicon solar cells. This paper firstly presents a roadmap towards the 5 mg/W and 2 mg/W silver consumption targets with various metallization technologies and screen‐printing designs. Subsequently, a hybrid plating on screen‐printed metallization design was proposed to improve the performance and reduce the silver consumption of screen‐printed contacts. The experimental results have demonstrated up to 1.08%abs improvements in fill factor and 0.3%abs gains in cell efficiency. In addition, up to 40%rel reductions in finger silver consumption have been achieved without any sacrifices in the electrical conductivity of such hybrid screen‐printed and plated fingers. This work proposes not only a roadmap but also a promising approach to significantly reduce the Ag demand and benefit sustainable production of industrial screen‐printed silicon solar cells in the TW era.
Engineering quorum quenching acylases with improved kinetic and biochemical properties
Authors: Sompiyachoke Kitty , Elias Mikael H.
Published: March 2024

Many Gram‐negative bacteria use N‐acyl‐L‐homoserine lactone (AHL) signals to coordinate phenotypes such as biofilm formation and virulence factor production. Quorum‐quenching enzymes, such as AHL acylases, chemically degrade these molecules which prevents signal reception by bacteria and inhibits undesirable biofilm‐related traits. These capabilities make acylases appealing candidates for controlling microbes, yet candidates with high activity levels and substrate specificity and that are capable of being formulated into materials are needed. In this work, we undertook engineering efforts against two AHL acylases, PvdQ and MacQ, to generate these improved properties using the Protein One‐Stop Shop Server. The engineering of acylases is complicated by low‐throughput enzymatic assays. Alleviating this challenge, we report a time‐course kinetic assay for AHL acylases that monitors the real‐time production of homoserine lactone. Using the assay, we identified variants of PvdQ that were significantly stabilized, with melting point increases of up to 13.2°C, which translated into high resistance against organic solvents and increased compatibility with material coatings. While the MacQ mutants were unexpectedly destabilized, they had considerably improved kinetic properties, with >10‐fold increases against N‐butyryl‐L‐homoserine lactone and N‐hexanoyl‐L‐homoserine lactone. Accordingly, these changes resulted in increased quenching abilities using a biosensor model and greater inhibition of virulence factor production of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA14. While the crystal structure of one of the MacQ variants, M1, did not reveal obvious structural determinants explaining the observed changes in kinetics, it allowed for the capture of an acyl‐enzyme intermediate that confirms a previously hypothesized catalytic mechanism of AHL acylases.
sAMP‐VGG16: Force‐field assisted image‐based deep neural network prediction model for short antimicrobial peptides
Authors: Pandey Poonam , Srivastava Anand
Published: March 2024

During the last three decades, antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have emerged as a promising therapeutic alternative to antibiotics. The approaches for designing AMPs span from experimental trial‐and‐error methods to synthetic hybrid peptide libraries. To overcome the exceedingly expensive and time‐consuming process of designing effective AMPs, many computational and machine‐learning tools for AMP prediction have been recently developed. In general, to encode the peptide sequences, featurization relies on approaches based on (a) amino acid (AA) composition, (b) physicochemical properties, (c) sequence similarity, and (d) structural properties. In this work, we present an image‐based deep neural network model to predict AMPs, where we are using feature encoding based on Drude polarizable force‐field atom types, which can capture the peptide properties more efficiently compared to conventional feature vectors. The proposed prediction model identifies short AMPs (≤30 AA) with promising accuracy and efficiency and can be used as a next‐generation screening method for predicting new AMPs. The source code is publicly available at the Figshare server sAMP‐VGG16.
Towards universal substituent constants: Parameterizing bond critical point properties with electronegativity descriptors
Authors: Lefrancois‐Gagnon Kevin , Mawhinney Robert
Published: March 2024

The properties of substituents have long been quantified by their effect elsewhere in a molecule. Ideally, intrinsic properties detailing the true properties of a substituent would be used. These properties are ideally transferable between molecules, to be robust and applied in different situations. Through a study on the bond critical point (BCP) properties of 117 substituents and 17 substrates we find that BCP properties from the quantum theory of atoms in molecules are not transferable between different bonded atoms. However, a substituent's changing electronegativity between substrates help quantify the observed variation. The relationship between changing electronegativities and critical point properties enables development of a relationship to predict critical point properties between a substituent and a new substrate, using only the electronegativity of a substituent attached to hydrogen, and the critical point property between the substituent and H.
Pharmacological advances in anti‐retroviral therapy for human immunodeficiency virus‐1 infection: A comprehensive review
Authors: Azzman Nursyuhada , Gill Muhammad Shoaib Ali , Hassan Sharifah Syed , Christ Frauke , Debyser Zeger , Mohamed Wan Ahmad Syazani , Ahemad Nafees
Published: March 2024

The discovery of anti‐retroviral (ARV) drugs over the past 36 years has introduced various classes, including nucleoside/nucleotide reverse transcriptase inhibitors, non‐nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, protease inhibitor, fusion, and integrase strand transfer inhibitors inhibitors. The introduction of combined highly active anti‐retroviral therapies in 1996 was later proven to combat further ARV drug resistance along with enhancing human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) suppression. As though the development of ARV therapies was continuously expanding, the variation of action caused by ARV drugs, along with its current updates, was not comprehensively discussed, particularly for HIV‐1 infection. Thus, a range of HIV‐1 ARV medications is covered in this review, including new developments in ARV therapy based on the drug's mechanism of action, the challenges related to HIV‐1, and the need for combination therapy. Optimistically, this article will consolidate the overall updates of HIV‐1 ARV treatments and conclude the significance of HIV‐1‐related pharmacotherapy research to combat the global threat of HIV infection.
Balancing efficiency and fairness: The role of tourism development in economic growth and urban–rural income gap
Authors: Gan Chang , Voda Mihai , Wang Kai
Published: March 2024

Social fairness and economic recovery stimulation constitute crucial challenges in countries all around the world, and tourism development has enormous potential for balancing efficiency and fairness. Based on the panel data at city level in Yangtze River Delta Region, China, this study uncovered the role that tourism development plays in economic growth and urban–rural income gap by adopting the dynamic SYS‐GMM model. In addition, the moderating effect model was employed to concentrate on the moderating role of urbanization on the relationship between tourism development and economic growth as well as urban–rural income gap. The main conclusions are as follows. First, tourism development does not only promote economic growth, but it also narrows the urban–rural income gap. Second, when it comes to the dynamic effect generated by tourism development, the economic growth‐promotion effect is stronger than the urban–rural income gap‐inhibiting effect. Third, urbanization can enhance the impact of tourism development on economic growth and the reduction of urban–rural income gap.
Income inequality and carbon emissions in Asia: Does financial inclusion matter?
Authors: Rasheed Shahida , Adeneye Yusuf , Farooq Rafi
Published: March 2024

The upsurge in the amount of carbon emissions in Asia has been potentially due to the increasing income disparities in the region. Meanwhile, with the increasing level of digital financial services, the digital approach to financial inclusion could complement the traditional approach. Therefore, we investigate the impact of income inequality on carbon emissions across 17 Asian countries for the period 2011 to 2022. We also investigate the effects of traditional and digital financial inclusions on the relationship between income inequality and CO2 emissions. This study employs the panel fixed‐effect estimator, Quantile regressions, and 2SLS to estimate the model specifications of the study. Findings reveal that income inequality has a positive and significant impact on CO2 emissions in both linear and non‐linear models. Findings also show that both traditional and digital financial inclusion significantly moderate the relationship between income inequality and CO2 emissions, with digital financial inclusion having a lesser impact. The study further finds that economic freedom is the transmission channel through which income inequality impacts CO2 emissions, suggesting that higher income disparities lower economic freedom, which further contributes to the amounts of CO2 emissions. Our findings theoretically support the marginal propensity to emit theory and the environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis. Our findings are robust to alternative measures of income inequality, CO2 emissions, and endogeneity concerns.
The European Union's Ecodesign Directive – Analysis of Carbon Footprint Assessment Methodology and Implications for Photovoltaic Module Manufacturers
Authors: Khan Abeer Ali , Molina Pamela , Reichel Christian , Protti Alexander Aguilar , Neuhaus Dirk Holger , Rentsch Jochen , Nold Sebastian
Published: March 2024

With an increasing shift away from fossil fuels toward renewable energy sources within the European Union (EU), photovoltaics (PV) are projected to see substantial growth with estimates of nearly 600 GWp of capacity by 2030. As the use of PV technology continues to expand, the European Commission has introduced various policy instruments, enabling consumers to make informed choices. Among those, the Ecodesign directive 2009/125/EC sets a carbon footprint threshold as a minimum qualification for the European market to cut out the least sustainable PV modules. For this directive, the methodological guidelines for the complex carbon footprint calculation of PV modules are under development. To this end, this analysis compares the two methodologies, namely Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) and the Ecodesign adaptation of Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules (PEFCR), emphasizing the implications of choosing one over the other for the PV industry. This study illustrates how varying parameters, like module lifetime, degradation rate, and purchased renewable electricity certificate allowance limit, stemming from the differing methodological approaches can influence the carbon footprint calculation. Apart from the strengths and weaknesses of each methodology, this article emphasizes the need for globally harmonized standards to ensure consistency in evaluating the carbon footprint of PV modules. The observations made in this study should be considered not just for Ecodesign directive but for any such market regulation policy like the recently passed EU Net Zero Industry Act or the EU Ecolabel for PV modules. It underlines the significance of choosing a transparent and fair approach to ensure the credibility of carbon footprint labels and meet the EU's decarbonization objectives successfully, propelling the transition toward a more sustainable energy landscape.
Highly Stable Perovskite Solar Cells with Protective Layers Obtained via Interfacial Modification
Authors: Wang Yulin , Ran Hongbing , Zhao Yue , Lu Yu , Chen Xiangjie , Tang Yiwen
Published: March 2024

Currently, achieving both high efficiency and long‐term stability is crucial for the successful application of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Grain boundary (GB) defects significantly impact the stability of PSCs, and passivating these GBs remains a major challenge. Herein, the surfactant dodecyltrimethylammonium chloride (DTAC) is dissolved in low‐polarity chlorobenzene (CB) at 58 °C to modify the interface of MAPbI3 film, and DTAC reacts with MAPbI3 film surface to generate a protective layer that can be covered on the perovskite grains, effectively reducing the expose GBs. Additionally, the hydrophobic alkyl chains of DTA+ and the strong chemical bond between the Cl− and Pb2+ ions further enhance the resistance of the perovskite surface layer to heat, moisture, and oxidation. Due to the passivation of iodine vacancy defects, the photo‐stability of unencapsulated DTAC devices is significantly improved. By passivating surface and GBs defects of the MAPbI3 perovskite crystals, the power conversion efficiency of the low‐temperature carbon‐based PSCs treated by DTAC is 15.03% compared to 13.97% for the control device. This study offers another referable strategy for enhancing the thermal, moisture, light, and oxygen stability of perovskite materials while considering the photovoltaic performance of devices.
Fatigue Properties at Elevated Temperatures of Secondary Tempered Nanostructured Bainite: A Study of Deformation Mechanisms
Authors: Kuntz Matthias , Wicks Garry , Sourmail Thomas , Garcia‐Mateo Carlos
Published: March 2024

Nanostructured bainitic steel obtained through austempering or bainitic transformation of high Si steels consists of bainitic ferrite and carbon‐enriched retained austenite. Secondary tempering of those microstructures tailors their mechanical properties through its unique nanostructure and austenite stability. Herein, fatigue and tensile properties of a nanobainitic steel in different secondary tempering conditions are presented and the results are discussed based on the deformation mechanisms taking place due to the microstructure evolution during secondary tempering. Influence of secondary tempering and elevated testing temperature on tensile and fatigue properties at room temperature and 250 °C is presented. Based on the present deformation, mechanism results are discussed supported by microstructure evolution results obtained through dilatometry, X‐ray diffraction, and microscopy. Depending on secondary tempering temperature, main influencing mechanisms are martensite formation after secondary tempering during cooling, transformation‐induced plasticity effect, and precipitation hardening obtained by secondary tempering.
A regular screening for hepatitis delta virus among chronic hepatitis B carriers improves the diagnostic of this infection and of subsequent cirrhosis development
Authors: Weichselbaum Laura , Njimi Hassane , van den Wijngaert Sigi , Dahma Hafid , Nkuize Marcel , Van Gossum Marc , Eisendrath Pierre , Mulkay Jean‐Pierre , Sersté Thomas
Published: March 2024

Background and Objective

The prevalence of Hepatitis Delta Virus (HDV) is underestimated and the assessment of fibrosis is recommended for this infection. We tested the diagnostic impact of an annual screening for HDV serology in Hepatitis B Surface Antigen (HBs Ag) chronic carriers and followed the progression of fibrosis in these patients.

Methods

Between January 2014 and October 2021, we annually tested all chronic HBs Ag‐positive patients for HDV antibody (HDV Ab). Each HDV Ab positive patient underwent annually repeated elastometry. Patients with detectable HDV RNA levels (group 1) were compared to those with undetectable HDV RNA (group 2).

Results

We identified 610 chronic HBs Ag‐positive patients, and repeated screening for HDV Ab was performed in 534 patients. Sixty (11%) patients were HDV Ab positive at baseline and were considered as “coinfected”. Seven cases of HDV superinfection were diagnosed through repeated screening. In co‐infected patients, cirrhosis was initially diagnosed in 12/60 patients and developed in six patients during follow‐up. HDV RNA PCR was performed in 57/67 patients and 27 had detectable levels (group 1). Cumulative incidence of cirrhosis at 7 years was 13.8% (95% CI 0–30) in group 1 and 0 (95% CI 0–0) in group 2 (p = 0.026).

Conclusion

A systematic screening for HDV in chronic HB Ag carriers revealed a high prevalence of HDV Ab. Repeated serological screening enables the diagnosis of superinfections in asymptomatic patients. Regular assessment of fibrosis using elastometry leads to the identification of incidental cirrhosis in patients with detectable HDV RNA.
Evaluation of the immune response of layer chickens to Newcastle disease virus vaccines using the new vaccination regimens
Authors: Geletu Abel Sorsa , Robi Dereje Tulu
Published: March 2024

Background

The study aimed to evaluate the immunological response of layer chickens to live Newcastle disease virus vaccine using a newly developed vaccine schedule administered via the ocular route, as well as assess the persistence of passive antibodies in layer chickens and the effectiveness of protection against strains of the virus.

Methods

A total of 140‐day‐old Lohmann Brown chicks were randomly divided into seven groups, 20 chicks each. Groups 1–3 received a single eye instillation of the vaccine at ages 5, 26 and 54 days, respectively, whereas groups 4–6 received a double eye instillation. Group 7 served as non‐vaccinated control group. Ten days after immunization, samples were taken from hens that had received the vaccine at ages 15, 36 and 64, as well as from control chickens that had not received the vaccine at ages 5, 15, 21 and 31.

Results

A total of 10 serum samples from all chickens exhibited protective antibodies, and booster doses resulted in the highest haemagglutination inhibition titre. No significant change in antibody production was observed among layer hens (p > 0.05). The study found that the La Sota (GMT ± SD: 6.71 ± 4.96), La Sota (GMT ± SD: 8.00 ± 0.00) and thermostable I2 (GMT ± SD: 7.60 ± 6.02), vaccination schedules provided the maximum immune response in single eye instillation, whereas the HB1 (GMT ± SD: 7.11 ± 4.77), La Sota (GMT ± SD: 7.83 ± 5.76) and La Sota (GMT ± SD: 7.60 ± 6.02), combination was the second‐best vaccination schedule in double eye instillation. Furthermore, maternally‐derived antibodies were maintained up to 31 days of age, indicating the level of passive immunity prior to vaccination. Characteristic lesions, such as edematous and diphtheria mucosal membranes of the trachea, along with petechial and necrotic haemorrhages of the proventriculus, were observed during the necropsy of the birds that died from the challenged virus.

Conclusion

This study suggests that subsequent live virus vaccine by ocular route immunization is required to effectively protect against velogenic viscerotropic Newcastle disease infection. The results also highlight the importance of developing effective vaccination schedules and routes to enhance immunity against ND in layer chickens.
Addressing privacy concerns with wearable health monitoring technology
Authors: Sivakumar C. L. V. , Mone Varda , Abdumukhtor Rakhmanov
Published: March 2024

The growing popularity of wearable health devices like fitness trackers and smartwatches enables continuous personal health monitoring but also raises significant privacy concerns due to the real‐time collection of sensitive data. Many users are unaware of vulnerabilities that could lead to unauthorized access or discrimination if health information is revealed without consent. However, even informed users may willingly share data despite understanding privacy risks. The recent implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the EU and states taking initiatives to regulate privacy shows growing regulatory efforts to address these threats. This paper evaluates the key privacy threats posed specifically by consumer wearable devices. It provides a focused analysis of how health data could be exploited or shared without users' knowledge and the security flaws that enable such risks. Potential solutions including improving protections, empowering user control, enhancing transparency, and strengthening regulations are examined. However, it is argued that effective change requires balancing privacy risks with health benefits while also considering human decision‐making behaviors. The paper concludes by proposing a multifaceted approach to enable informed choices about wearable health data.

This article is categorized under:

Application Areas > Health Care

Commercial, Legal, and Ethical Issues > Fairness in Data Mining

Commercial, Legal, and Ethical Issues > Legal Issues
Causal relationship of obesity and adiposity distribution on risk of ventral hernia
Authors: Shi Hekai , Wu Qian , Guo Nuojin , Liu Ligang , Widjaja Jason , Yang Jianjun , Gu Yan
Published: March 2024

Purpose

Ventral hernia (VH) is a common surgical disease. Previous studies suggested that obesity is an important risk factor for VH. However, the causal relationship between fat distribution and the risk of VH is still unclear. This study used Mendelian randomization (MR) to evaluate their causal relationship.

Methods

We used the body mass index (BMI), body fat percentage, and body fat mass to represent general obesity and utilized the volume of abdominal subcutaneous adiposity tissue, visceral adiposity tissue, waist circumference, hip circumference, and waist‐to‐hip ratio to represent abdominal adiposity. The data were extracted from the large‐scale genome‐wide association study of European ancestry. We used two‐sample MR to infer causality, using multivariate MR to correct the effects of confounding factors.

Results

Increased BMI, body fat percentage, body fat mass, visceral adiposity tissue, waist circumference, and hip circumference rather than subcutaneous adiposity tissue or waist‐to‐hip ratio, were causally associated with a higher risk of VH. The results of multivariate MR suggested that body fat percentage was causally associated with a higher risk of VH after adjusting for body mass index, diabetes, and smoking.

Conclusion

General obesity, increased visceral adiposity tissue, waist circumference, and hip circumference rather than subcutaneous adiposity tissue or the waist‐to‐hip ratio were causally associated with a higher risk of VH. These findings provided a deeper understanding of the role that the distribution of adiposity plays in the mechanism of VH.
Fibre-Like Cylinders, Their Packings and Coverings in $$\widetilde{\textbf{S}\textbf{L}_2\textbf{R}}$$ Space
Authors: Szirmai Jenő
Published: March 2024

In this paper we define the notion of infinite or bounded fibre-like geodesic cylinder in $$\widetilde{\textbf{S}\textbf{L}_2\textbf{R}}$$

S

L
2

R

~

space, develop a method to determine its volume and total surface area. We prove that the common part of the above congruent fibre-like cylinders with the base plane are Euclidean circles and determine their radii. Using the former classified infinite or bounded congruent regular prism tilings with generating groups $$\mathbf {pq2_1}$$

pq

2
1

we introduce the notions of cylinder packings, coverings and their densities. Moreover, we determine the densest packing, the thinnest covering cylinder arrangements in $$\widetilde{\textbf{S}\textbf{L}_2\textbf{R}}$$

S

L
2

R

~

space, their densities, their connections with the extremal hyperbolic circle arrangements and with the extremal fibre-like cylinder arrangements in $$\textbf{H}^3$$

H
3

and $$\textbf{H}^2\!\times \!\textbf{R}$$

H
2

×

R

spaces. We prove that in these three previous Thurston geometries, the densities of the optimal fiber-like cylinder packings are equal and the same is true for optimal coverings. In our work we use the projective model of $$\widetilde{\textbf{S}\textbf{L}_2\textbf{R}}$$

S

L
2

R

~

introduced by Molnár (Beitr Algebra Geom 38(2):261–288, 1997).
Cost management and working capital management: ebony and ivory in perfect harmony?
Authors: Berg Terje , Gustafsson Emil , Wahlstrøm Ranik Raaen
Published: March 2024

The﻿ aim of this paper is to empirically investigate the potential association between a firm’s cost behavior, characterized as cost stickiness or anti-stickiness, and working capital management (WCM), as measured by the working capital to total assets ratio and the trade cycle measures net trade cycle and cash conversion cycle. We measure cost stickiness using four widely accepted models and a sample of non-financial firms sourced from Compustat. Our findings highlight the significant influence of WCM on cost behavior. Specifically, we observe an inverse relationship between a firm’s WCM aggressiveness and both its cost stickiness and degree of cost adjustment. These relationships are consistent for both operating costs and the costs of goods sold.
The role of enterprise risk management in enabling organisational resilience: a case study of the Swedish mining industry
Authors: Monazzam Aynaz , Crawford Jason
Published: March 2024

This study empirically examines the role of enterprise risk management (ERM) in developing and maintaining resilience resources and capabilities that are necessary for an organisation’s strategic transformation towards sustainability. Data was collected through 25 semi-structured interviews, one non-participant observation, and secondary sources in the context of a Swedish mining company undergoing a high-risk strategic transformation towards full decarbonisation. Following thetemporal bracketingapproach (Langley in Academy of Management Review 24:691–70, 1999) and employingthematic analysis(Gioia in Organizational Research Methods 16:15–31), the data was structured and analysed according to three phases from 2012 to 2023. The findings show: first, different ERM practices, such as risk governance frameworks, risk culture, risk artefacts, and risk awareness, influence resilience resources and capabilities. Second, the evolution of risk management practices from traditional risk management to ERM is an ongoing developmental process to ensure that risk management continues to be aligned with the company’s strategy. Third, in tandem with strategic changes, resilience in terms of resources and capabilities emerges over time and develops through a series of events, gradually enhancing the company’s ability to manage risks and uncertainties associated with multidimensional sustainability challenges. These results contribute to the ERM literature that follows the dynamic capability approach and also focuses on the relationship between ERM and strategy by adding more detailed empirical evidence from the risk management literature in relation to resilience resources and capabilities. Additionally, the results contribute to the resilience literature that follows a developmental perspective.
Stimulus mediation, specificity and impact of menthol in rats trained to discriminate puffs of nicotine e-cigarette aerosol from nicotine-free aerosol
Authors: Alkhlaif Yasmin , Shelton Keith L.
Published: March 2024

Rationale

It is unclear if e-cigarettes have reduced abuse liability relative to traditional cigarettes, especially when considering advanced devices which deliver nicotine more efficiently. Translatable and predictive animal models are needed to addresses this question.

Objectives

Our goal was to explore the subjective stimulus effects of e-cigarettes by training rats to discriminate puffs of nicotine aerosol from vehicle aerosol using an aerosol delivery system designed to model e-cigarette use patterns in humans.

Methods

Rats were trained to discriminate between ten, 10 s puffs of aerosol generated from 3 mg/ml nicotine e-liquid and nicotine-free e-liquid using a food-reinforced operant procedure. Following acquisition, tests were conducted to determine the specificity of the nicotine aerosol stimulus as well as the impact to the stimulus effects of nicotine resulting from the addition of menthol to e-liquid.

Results

Rats learned the nicotine aerosol puff vs vehicle puff discrimination in a mean of 25 training sessions. Injected nicotine fully substituted for the stimulus effects of nicotine aerosol. The stimulus effects of nicotine aerosol were blocked by the nicotinic receptor antagonist mecamylamine. The nicotinic receptor partial agonist, varenicline as well as the stimulant d-amphetamine substituted more robustly for nicotine aerosol puffs than did the NMDA antagonist, ketamine. Menthol enhanced the stimulus effects of nicotine aerosol without altering nicotine blood plasma levels.

Conclusions

Nicotine aerosol puffs can function as a training stimulus in rats. The stimulus effects were CNS-mediated and receptor specific. Menthol appears to enhance the stimulus effects of nicotine aerosol through a pharmacodynamic rather than pharmacokinetic mechanism.
Inorganic arsenic in seaweed: a fast HPLC-ICP-MS method without coelution of arsenosugars
Authors: Sim Rebecca , Weyer Marta , Pétursdóttir Ásta H.
Published: March 2024

Seaweed is becoming increasingly popular in the Western diet as consumers opt for more sustainable food sources. However, seaweed is known to accumulate high levels of arsenic—which may be in the form of carcinogenic inorganic arsenic (iAs). Here we propose a fast method for the routine measurement of iAs in seaweed using HPLC-ICP-MS without coelution of arsenosugars that may complicate quantification. The developed method was optimised using design of experiments (DOE) and tested on a range of reference materials including TORT-3 (0.36 ± 0.03 mg kg−1), DORM-5 (0.02 ± 0.003 mg kg−1), and DOLT-5 (0.07 ± 0.007 mg kg−1). The use of nitric acid in the extraction solution allowed for the successful removal of interferences from arsenosugars by causing degradation to an unretained arsenosugar species, and a recovery of 99 ± 9% was obtained for iAs in Hijiki 7405-b when compared with the certified value. The method was found to be suitable for high-throughput analysis of iAs in a range of food and feed matrices including Asparagopsis taxiformis seaweed, grass silage, and insect proteins, and offers a cost-effective, fast, and robust option for routine analysis that requires minimal sample preparation. The method may be limited with regards to the quantification of dimethylarsenate (DMA) in seaweed, as the acidic extraction may lead to overestimation of this analyte by causing degradation of lipid species that are typically more abundant in seaweed than other marine matrices (i.e. arsenophospholipids). However, the concentrations of DMA quantified using this method may provide a better estimation with regard to exposure after ingestion and subsequent digestion of seaweed.
Polyhydroxyalkanoate involvement in stress-survival of two psychrophilic bacterial strains from the High Arctic
Authors: Grzesiak Jakub , Rogala Małgorzata Marta , Gawor Jan , Kouřilová Xenie , Obruča Stanislav
Published: March 2024

An ever-growing body of literature evidences the protective role of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) against a plethora of mostly physical stressors in prokaryotic cells. To date, most of the research done involved bacterial strains isolated from habitats not considered to be life-challenging or extremely impacted by abiotic environmental factors. Polar region microorganisms experience a multitude of damaging factors in combinations rarely seen in other of Earth’s environments. Therefore, the main objective of this investigation was to examine the role of PHAs in the adaptation of psychrophilic, Arctic-derived bacteria to stress conditions. Arctic PHA producers: Acidovorax sp. A1169 and Collimonas sp. A2191, were chosen and their genes involved in PHB metabolism were deactivated making them unable to accumulate PHAs (ΔphaC) or to utilize them (Δi-phaZ) as a carbon source. Varying stressors were applied to the wild-type and the prepared mutant strains and their survival rates were assessed based on CFU count. Wild-type strains with a functional PHA metabolism were best suited to survive the freeze–thaw cycle — a common feature of polar region habitats. However, the majority of stresses were best survived by the ΔphaC mutants, suggesting that the biochemical imbalance caused by the lack of PHAs induced a permanent cell-wide stress response thus causing them to better withstand the stressor application. Δi-phaZ mutants were superior in surviving UV irradiation, hinting that PHA granule presence in bacterial cells is beneficial despite it being biologically inaccessible. Obtained data suggests that the ability to metabolize PHA although important for survival, probably is not the most crucial mechanism in the stress-resistance strategies arsenal of cold-loving bacteria.

Key points

• PHA metabolism helps psychrophiles survive freezing

• PHA-lacking psychrophile mutants cope better with oxidative and heat stresses

• PHA granule presence enhances the UV resistance of psychrophiles
Wildlife Conservation on Private Land: A Social-Ecological Systems Study
Authors: Taylor Matthew , Brook Barry , Johnson Christopher , de Little Siobhan
Published: March 2024

As human activity accelerates the global crisis facing wildlife populations, private land conservation provides an example of wildlife management challenges in social-ecological systems. This study reports on the research phase of ‘WildTracker’ - a co-created citizen science project, involving 160 landholders across three Tasmanian regions. This was a transdisciplinary collaboration between an environmental organisation, university researchers, and local landholders. Focusing on mammal and bird species, the project integrated diverse data types and technologies: social surveys, quantitative ecology, motion sensor cameras, acoustic recorders, and advanced machine-learning analytics. An iterative analytical methodology encompassed Pearson and point-biserial correlation for interrelationships, Non-Metric Multidimensional Scaling (NMDS) for clustering, and Random Forest machine learning for variable importance and prediction. Taken together, these analyses revealed complex relationships between wildlife populations and a suite of ecological, socio-economic, and land management variables. Both site-scale habitat characteristics and landscape-scale vegetation patterns were useful predictors of mammal and bird activity, but these relationships were different for mammals and birds. Four focal mammal species showed variation in their response to ecological and land management drivers. Unexpectedly, threatened species, such as the eastern quoll (Dasyurus viverrinus), favoured locations where habitat was substantially modified by human activities. The research provides actionable insights for landowners, and highlights the importance of ‘messy,’ ecologically heterogeneous, mixed agricultural landscapes for wildlife conservation. The identification of thresholds in habitat fragmentation reinforced the importance of collaboration across private landscapes. Participatory research models such as WildTracker can complement efforts to address the wicked problem of wildlife conservation in the Anthropocene.
Disentangling and quantifying the relative cognitive impact of concurrent mixed neurodegenerative pathologies
Authors: Maldonado-Díaz Carolina , Hiya Satomi , Yokoda Raquel T. , Farrell Kurt , Marx Gabriel A. , Kauffman Justin , Daoud Elena V. , Gonzales Mitzi M. , Parker Alicia S. , Canbeldek Leyla , Kulumani Mahadevan Lakshmi Shree , Crary John F. , White Charles L. , Walker Jamie M. , Richardson Timothy E.
Published: March 2024

Neurodegenerative pathologies such as Alzheimer disease neuropathologic change (ADNC), Lewy body disease (LBD), limbic-predominant age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy neuropathologic change (LATE-NC), and cerebrovascular disease (CVD) frequently coexist, but little is known about the exact contribution of each pathology to cognitive decline and dementia in subjects with mixed pathologies. We explored the relative cognitive impact of concurrent common and rare neurodegenerative pathologies employing multivariate logistic regression analysis adjusted for age, gender, and level of education. We analyzed a cohort of 6,262 subjects from the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center database, ranging from 0 to 6 comorbid neuropathologic findings per individual, where 95.7% of individuals had at least 1 neurodegenerative finding at autopsy and 75.5% had at least 2 neurodegenerative findings. We identified which neuropathologic entities correlate most frequently with one another and demonstrated that the total number of pathologies per individual was directly correlated with cognitive performance as assessed by Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR®) and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). We show that ADNC, LBD, LATE-NC, CVD, hippocampal sclerosis, Pick disease, and FTLD-TDP significantly impact overall cognition as independent variables. More specifically, ADNC significantly affected all assessed cognitive domains, LBD affected attention, processing speed, and language, LATE-NC primarily affected tests related to logical memory and language, while CVD and other less common pathologies (including Pick disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, and corticobasal degeneration) had more variable neurocognitive effects. Additionally, ADNC, LBD, and higher numbers of comorbid neuropathologies were associated with the presence of at least one APOE ε4 allele, and ADNC and higher numbers of neuropathologies were inversely correlated with APOE ε2 alleles. Understanding the mechanisms by which individual and concomitant neuropathologies affect cognition and the degree to which each contributes is an imperative step in the development of biomarkers and disease-modifying therapeutics, particularly as these medical interventions become more targeted and personalized.
Cochlear implant cost analysis in adults: a European narrative review
Authors: Gatto Annalisa , Tofanelli Margherita , Valentinuz Giorgio , Mascherin Anna , Costariol Ludovica , Rizzo Serena , Borsetto Daniele , Boscolo-Rizzo Paolo , Tirelli Giancarlo
Published: March 2024

Purpose

The aim of this study was to provide an updated European narrative review spanning the last decade, focusing on the cost-effectiveness of cochlear implants (CIs) for adults with severe to profound post-lingual hearing loss.

Methods

This review encompasses both prospective and retrospective approaches, as well as cross-sectional and longitudinal trials conducted on CIs in adults. All studies related to European countries (Austria, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Sweden, the UK and Poland) were conducted in English and were published between 2012 and June 2023.

Results

Nine studies were included in the analysis. The patients’ ages ranged from 18 years to over 67 years, with sample sizes ranging from 20 to 100 patients; two of these studies were focused on single-sided deafness in adults. The Markov model was identified as the most commonly utilized analysis method.

Conclusions

This review identified a general consensus on CI cost-effectiveness, despite substantial variability among countries in factors such as observation time horizons, cost-effectiveness thresholds, methods of cost collection, discount rates, CI eligibility criteria and country-specific health systems. Generally, CIs yield positive societal benefits for working-age individuals, potentially less for seniors. Early unilateral CI enhances cost-effectiveness, highlighting the importance of prompt candidate identification. A consistent undersupply of CIs relative to the percentage of potential recipients emerged across countries. Therefore, further investigation into subcategories such as single-sided deafness is warranted, along with country-specific cost analyses. Emphasizing the significance of detailed information on health systems and associated costs and benefits is crucial for facilitating comparisons across different settings.