bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Tumor size measurements of pancreatic cancer with neoadjuvant therapy based on RECIST guidelines: is MRI as effective as CT?
Authors: Yang Panpan , Mao Kuanzheng , Gao Yisha , Wang Zhen , Wang Jun , Chen Yufei , Ma Chao , Bian Yun , Shao Chengwei , Lu Jianping
Published: January 2023

Objectives

To compare tumor size measurements using CT and MRI in pancreatic cancer (PC) patients with neoadjuvant therapy (NAT).

Methods

This study included 125 histologically confirmed PC patients who underwent NAT. The tumor sizes from CT and MRI before and after NAT were compared by using Bland–Altman analyses and intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs). Variations in tumor size estimates between MRI and CT in relationship to different factors, including NAT methods (chemotherapy, chemoradiotherapy), tumor locations (head/neck, body/tail), tumor regression grade (TRG) levels (0–2, 3), N stages (N0, N1/N2) and tumor resection margin status (R0, R1), were further analysed. The McNemar test was used to compare the efficacy of NAT evaluations based on the CT and MRI measurements according to RECIST 1.1 criteria.

Results

There was no significant difference between the median tumor sizes from CT and MRI before and after NAT (P = 0.44 and 0.39, respectively). There was excellent agreement in tumor size between MRI and CT, with mean size differences and limits of agreement (LOAs) of 1.5 [-9.6 to 12.7] mm and 0.9 [-12.6 to 14.5] mm before NAT (ICC, 0.93) and after NAT (ICC, 0.91), respectively. For all the investigated factors, there was good or excellent correlation (ICC, 0.76 to 0.95) for tumor sizes between CT and MRI. There was no significant difference in the efficacy evaluation of NAT between CT and MRI measurements (P = 1.0).

Conclusion

MRI and CT have similar performance in assessing PC tumor size before and after NAT.
Fertility intention among married women in Ethiopia: a multilevel analysis of Ethiopian demographic health survey 2016
Authors: Tsegaye Negash Berhan
Published: January 2023

Background

Fertility intention is the central aspect of countries which determine their population demography. Therefore, proportion and factors associated with fertility intention should be studied at different level of community for designing of appropriate policies, strategies, and programs. Despite its importance, information is scarce about proportion and predictors of fertility intention among women of reproductive age in Ethiopia, in 2016.

Methods

A secondary data analysis was done on 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey/EDHS/ in this study. A total of 1423 fecund, married, and sexually active women were included this study. Multilevel mixed-effect logistic regression model was done to show association between fertility desire and explanatory variables. Adjusted Odds Ratio with 95% Confidence Interval (CI) was computed to assess the strength and significance of association.

Results

Prevalence of fertility intention was 63.5% (95%CI:62.2%,64.8%) in Ethiopia, in 2016. The response rate of this study was 100%. The odd of fertility desire was higher among women of age 20-34 years (AOR=2.5,95%CI:1.5,4.0), women of age 35-49 years (AOR= 9,95%CI:12.2,45.4), Muslim followers (AOR=5.4,95%CI:3.6,7.9), other religions followers (AOR= 1.8,95%CI:1.2,3.0), women who did not want to use modern contraceptive (AOR=3.1,95%CI:2.2,4.3). However, the likelihood of fertility intention was low among women who owned mobile phone (AOR=0.6,95%CI:0.4,0.87), and women with more than one partner (AOR=0.5,95%CI:0.41,0.8). At the community level factors like: Community education status (AOR= 1.67,95%CI:1.26,2.2) and region were factors strongly linked to fertility intention.

Conclusions

In this study, prevalence of fertility desire was higher compared to other countries. Participants age, religion, intention to use modern contraceptive, own mobile, and having multiple partners were individual factors associated with fertility preference. Furthermore, educational status and region were community factor associated significantly with intention of fertility. Hence, expansion of mobile networking and family planning messages through mobile. Furthermore, religious teaching should be enhanced to control family size among followers. Finally, the Ethiopian government should also work strongly to improve community education.
Reversible cardiomyopathy in a patient with chronic myelomonocytic leukemia treated with decitabine/cedazuridine: a case report
Authors: Sheel Ankur , Bae Junu , Asada Ashlee , Otterson Gregory A. , Baliga Ragavendra R. , Koenig Kristin L.
Published: January 2023

Background

Hypomethylating agents (HMAs) have shown efficacy in the treatment of hematological malignancies and are indicated for the treatment of chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML). While the HMA decitabine, in its intravenous formulation, has been used since 2006 for the treatment of CMML, use of its oral formulation has been limited by poor bioavailability due to first-pass metabolism by the enzyme cytidine deaminase. The dose of intravenous decitabine is limited by toxicities such as cardiomyopathy and heart failure. Therefore, cedazuridine was developed as an inhibitor of cytidine deaminase. Cedazuridine decreases the first-pass metabolism of oral decitabine allowing therapeutic levels to be achieved at lower doses, and thus, the novel oral combination of cedazuridine with decitabine was developed. While cardiomyopathy and heart failure are well-established adverse effects associated with intravenous decitabine alone, there to our knowledge there have been no documented incidences of reversible cardiomyopathy in the literature or in patients who participated in the phase 2 and phase 3 clinical trials of oral decitabine-cedazuridine.

Case

This case study presents an 85 year-old Caucasian female with CMML who developed cardiomyopathy and heart failure with reduced ejection fraction after completing 5 cycles of therapy with decitabine/cedazuridine. Furthermore, her symptoms and cardiac function recovered upon discontinuation of the drug.

Conclusions

We present an occurrence of reversible cardiomyopathy in a patient who completed 5 cycles of decitabine/cedazuridine, an oral combination therapy developed to enhance oral bioavailability of decitabine thereby limiting its adverse effects. As the decitabine/cedazuridine combination therapy rises in popularity due to its convenient oral formulation, more trials are needed to understand the prevalence of cardiomyopathy with this drug and to discover preventative strategies for cardiotoxic effects.
Universal HIV testing and the impact of late diagnosis on disease stage among adults in urban Ethiopia
Authors: Getaneh Yimam , Ayalew Jemal , He Qianxin , Tayachew Adamu , Rashid Abdur , Kassa Desta , Leulseged Sileshi , Liao Lingjie , Yi Feng , Shao Yiming
Published: January 2023

Background

Treatment as prevention evolved into the universal HIV test-and-treat (UTT) strategy, which entails testing to the general population and treatment to every people living with HIV. We investigated universal testing (UT) performance and its determinants in urban Ethiopia and explore magnitude of late diagnosis and its impact on disease stages.

Method

We used data from the Ethiopia Population Based HIV Impact assessment (EPHIA), conducted in 2017/2018 which was a cross-sectional and household-based study. For current analysis, we considered self-report first diagnosis to estimate universal testing irrespective of their serostatus and also consider HIV LAg avidity vs viral load vs plasma antiretroviral drug level algorithm to categorize the late diagnosis. We finally evaluate disease stages using CD4 count and viral load. A 2-level multilevel mixed-effect logistic regression model was employed. The effects of individual-level predictors were quantified by the estimates from the fixed-effect part of the model with p-value < 0.05.

Result

Data were collected from 18,926 adults among those 29.4% of people living in Urban Ethiopia were never tested for HIV. Never tested females was 26.4% (95% CI = 25.3; 27.5). Never tested among divorced and widowed were 19.4% (95% CI: 17.3; 21.8) and 28.3% (95% CI: 24.6; 32.2), respectively. Never tested among elderly and youth were high (28.3% among 45–54 years old) to (41.2% among 55–64 years old) to 47.8% among 15–24 years old. Overall, late HIV diagnosis among adults in urban Ethiopia was 25.9% (95% CI: 21.7, 30.2). Late diagnosis varies by region ranged from 38.1% in the Gambella to 5.8% in Benishangul Gumuz. Advanced immune suppression (CD4 count < 350 cells/µl) among newly diagnosed long-term infection were significantly higher compared to those who were recently infected which accounted 47.8% (95%CI = 33.2–52.1) and 30.9% (95%CI = 21.3–32.2), respectively. Moreover, Viral load suppression were significantly lower among those who were late diagnosed 26.1% (95%CI = 13.6–33.8) compared to those of newly infected 89.6% (95%CI = 76.2; 93.4).

Conclusion

With the aim of UT for high risk and priority population, the low rate of HIV testing among widowed, elderly, young adolescent and women in urban Ethiopia calls for enhanced HIV testing. Moreover, the low HIV testing and high late diagnosis among the high-burden regions calls for region-specific intervention. Advanced disease stages as a result of the high proportion of late diagnosis may impact on fueling community transmission and hinder treatment outcome among PLHIV.
Association between antipsychotic medication and clinically relevant weight change: meta-analysis
Authors: Campforts Bea , Drukker Marjan , Crins Joost , van Amelsvoort Therese , Bak Maarten
Published: January 2023

Background

Previous meta-analyses have shown that almost all antipsychotics are associated with weight gain. However, mean weight gain is not informative about clinically relevant weight gain or weight loss.

Aims

To provide further insight into the more severe body weight changes associated with antipsychotic use, we assessed the proportion of patients with clinically relevant weight gain (CRWG) and clinically relevant weight loss (CRWL), defined as ≥7% weight gain and ≥7% weight loss.

Method

We searched PubMed, Embase and PsycInfo for randomised controlled trials of antipsychotics that reported CRWG and CRWL in study populations aged 15 years or older. We conducted meta-analyses stratified by antipsychotic and study duration using a random-effects model. We performed meta-regression analyses to assess antipsychotic-naive status and psychiatric diagnosis as modifiers for CRWG. PROSPERO: CRD42020204734.

Results

We included 202 articles (201 studies). Almost all included antipsychotics were associated with CRWG. For CRWL, available data were too limited to draw firm conclusions. For some antipsychotics, CRWG was more pronounced in individuals who were antipsychotic-naive than in individuals switching to another antipsychotic. Moreover, a longer duration of antipsychotic use was associated with more CRWG, but not CRWL. For some antipsychotics, CRWG was higher in people diagnosed with schizophrenia, but this was inconsistent.

Conclusions

Switching antipsychotic medication is associated with both weight gain and weight loss, but the level of CRWG is higher than CRWL in antipsychotic-switch studies. CRWG was more pronounced in antipsychotic-naive patients, highlighting their vulnerability to weight gain. The impact of diagnosis on CRWG remains inconclusive.
Health-risk behaviours among people with severe mental ill health: understanding modifiable risk in the Closing the Gap Health Study
Authors: Peckham Emily , Lorimer Ben , Spanakis Panagiotis , Heron Paul , Crosland Suzanne , Walker Lauren , Gilbody Simon
Published: January 2023

Background

People with severe mental ill health (SMI) experience some of the largest health inequalities of any sector within society. For these inequalities to be reduced, an understanding of the behavioural determinants of health in this population is needed.

Aims

Utilising data from the Closing the Gap Health Study, we aimed to assess the extent to which people with SMI report health-risk factors and behaviours, their interest in modifying them, and the factors associated with being motivated to modify these behaviours.

Method

Adult (≥18 years old) participants were recruited via primary and secondary care in the English National Health Service. To be eligible, participants needed to have a documented diagnosis of schizophrenia, psychotic disorders or bipolar disorder. Data were collected by survey on demographics, general physical health, diet, physical activity, alcohol, smoking and body mass index.

Results

Between April 2016 and March 2020, n = 9914 participants were recruited. Among people with SMI, high rates of obesity (37.5%), infrequent physical activity (62.0%), not meeting current guidelines (≥5) for the consumption of fruit and vegetables (85.0%) and smoking (42.2%) were observed. However, most participants were motivated to reduce health-risk behaviours. Perceiving the importance of health-promoting behaviours, being of poorer general health and being female were significantly associated with being motivated to modify health-risk behaviours.

Conclusions

Despite experiencing poor physical and mental health outcomes compared with the general population, and contrary to popular misconceptions, people with SMI perceive health as important and are motivated to make behavioural changes to improve health.
Impact of adverse childhood experiences on educational achievements in young people at clinical high risk of developing psychosis
Authors: Tognin Stefania , Catalan Ana , Kempton Matthew J. , Nelson Barnaby , McGorry Patrick , Riecher-Rössler Anita , Bressan Rodrigo , Barrantes-Vidal Neus , Krebs Marie-Odile , Nordentoft Merete , Ruhrmann Stephan , Sachs Gabriele , Rutten Bart P. F. , van Os Jim , de Haan Lieuwe , van der Gaag Mark ,   EU-GEI High-Risk Study, McGuire Philip , Valmaggia Lucia R.
Published: January 2023

Background

Adverse childhood experiences (ACE) can affect educational attainments, but little is known about their impact on educational achievements in people at clinical high risk of psychosis (CHR).

Methods

In total, 344 CHR individuals and 67 healthy controls (HC) were recruited as part of the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme-funded multicenter study the European Network of National Schizophrenia Networks Studying Gene–Environment Interactions (EU-GEI). The brief version of the Child Trauma Questionnaire was used to measure ACE, while educational attainments were assessed using a semi-structured interview.

Results

At baseline, compared with HC, the CHR group spent less time in education and had higher rates of ACE, lower rates of employment, and lower estimated intelligence quotient (IQ). Across both groups, the total number of ACE was associated with fewer days in education and lower level of education. Emotional abuse was associated with fewer days in education in HC. Emotional neglect was associated with a lower level of education in CHR, while sexual abuse was associated with a lower level of education in HC. In the CHR group, the total number of ACE, physical abuse, and neglect was significantly associated with unemployment, while emotional neglect was associated with employment.

Conclusions

ACE are strongly associated with developmental outcomes such as educational achievement. Early intervention for psychosis programs should aim at integrating specific interventions to support young CHR people in their educational and vocational recovery. More generally, public health and social interventions focused on the prevention of ACE (or reduce their impact if ACE occur) are recommended.
Image-Based Deep Neural Network for Individualizing Radiotherapy Dose Is Transportable Across Health Systems
Authors: Randall James , Teo P. Troy , Lou Bin , Shah Jainil , Patel Jyoti , Kamen Ali , Abazeed Mohamed E.
Published: January 2023

PURPOSE

We developed a deep neural network that queries the lung computed tomography–derived feature space to identify radiation sensitivity parameters that can predict treatment failures and hence guide the individualization of radiotherapy dose. In this article, we examine the transportability of this model across health systems.

METHODS

This multicenter cohort-based registry included 1,120 patients with cancer in the lung treated with stereotactic body radiotherapy. Pretherapy lung computed tomography images from the internal study cohort (n = 849) were input into a multitask deep neural network to generate an image fingerprint score that predicts time to local failure. Deep learning (DL) scores were input into a regression model to derive iGray, an individualized radiation dose estimate that projects a treatment failure probability of < 5% at 24 months. We validated our findings in an external, holdout cohort (n = 271).

RESULTS

There were substantive differences in the baseline patient characteristics of the two study populations, permitting an assessment of model transportability. In the external cohort, radiation treatments in patients with high DL scores failed at a significantly higher rate with 3-year cumulative incidences of local failure of 28.5% (95% CI, 19.8 to 37.8) versus 10.2% (95% CI, 5.9 to 16.2; hazard ratio, 3.3 [95% CI, 1.74 to 6.49]; P < .001). A model that included DL score alone predicted treatment failures with a concordance index of 0.68 (95% CI, 0.59 to 0.77), which had a similar performance to a nested model derived from within the internal cohort (0.70 [0.64 to 0.75]). External cohort patients with iGray values that exceeded the delivered doses had proportionately higher rates of local failure ( P < .001).

CONCLUSION

Our results support the development and implementation of new DL-guided treatment guidance tools in the image-replete and highly standardized discipline of radiation oncology.
High PD-L2 Predicts Early Recurrence of ER-Positive Breast Cancer
Authors: Chervoneva Inna , Peck Amy R. , Sun Yunguang , Yi Misung , Udhane Sameer S. , Langenheim John F. , Girondo Melanie A. , Jorns Julie M. , Chaudhary Lubna N. , Kamaraju Sailaja , Bergom Carmen , Flister Michael J. , Hooke Jeffrey A. , Kovatich Albert J. , Shriver Craig D. , Hu Hai , Palazzo Juan P. , Bibbo Marluce , Hyslop Terry , Nevalainen Marja T. , Pestell Richard G. , Fuchs Serge Y. , Mitchell Edith P. , Rui Hallgeir
Published: January 2023

PURPOSE

T-cell–mediated cytotoxicity is suppressed when programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) is bound by PD-1 ligand-1 (PD-L1) or PD-L2. Although PD-1 inhibitors have been approved for triple-negative breast cancer, the lower response rates of 25%-30% in estrogen receptor–positive (ER+) breast cancer will require markers to identify likely responders. The focus of this study was to evaluate whether PD-L2, which has higher affinity than PD-L1 for PD-1, is a predictor of early recurrence in ER+ breast cancer.

METHODS

PD-L2 protein levels in cancer cells and stromal cells of therapy-naive, localized or locoregional ER+ breast cancers were measured retrospectively by quantitative immunofluorescence histocytometry and correlated with progression-free survival (PFS) in the main study cohort (n = 684) and in an independent validation cohort (n = 273). All patients subsequently received standard-of-care adjuvant therapy without immune checkpoint inhibitors.

RESULTS

Univariate analysis of the main cohort revealed that high PD-L2 expression in cancer cells was associated with shorter PFS (hazard ratio [HR], 1.8; 95% CI, 1.3 to 2.6; P = .001), which was validated in an independent cohort (HR, 2.3; 95% CI, 1.1 to 4.8; P = .026) and remained independently predictive after multivariable adjustment for common clinicopathological variables (HR, 2.0; 95% CI, 1.4 to 2.9; P < .001). Subanalysis of the ER+ breast cancer patients treated with adjuvant chemotherapy (n = 197) revealed that high PD-L2 levels in cancer cells associated with short PFS in univariate (HR, 2.5; 95% CI, 1.4 to 4.4; P = .003) and multivariable analyses (HR, 3.4; 95% CI, 1.9 to 6.2; P < .001).

CONCLUSION

Up to one third of treatment-naive ER+ breast tumors expressed high PD-L2 levels, which independently predicted poor clinical outcome, with evidence of further elevated risk of progression in patients who received adjuvant chemotherapy. Collectively, these data warrant studies to gain a deeper understanding of PD-L2 in the progression of ER+ breast cancer and may provide rationale for immune checkpoint blockade for this patient group.
Evidence for a Founder Effect of SDHB Exon 1 Deletion in Brazilian Patients With Paraganglioma
Authors: Fagundes Gustavo F C , Freitas-Castro Felipe , Santana Lucas S , Afonso Ana Caroline F , Petenuci Janaina , Funari Mariana F A , Guimaraes Augusto G , Ledesma Felipe L , Pereira Maria Adelaide A , Victor Carolina R , Ferrari Marcela S M , Coelho Fernando M A , Srougi Victor , Tanno Fabio Y , Chambo Jose L , Latronico Ana Claudia , Mendonca Berenice B , Fragoso Maria Candida B V , Hoff Ana O , Almeida Madson Q
Published: January 2023

Context

Limited information is available concerning the genetic spectrum of pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma (PPGL) patients in South America. Germline SDHB large deletions are very rare worldwide, but most of the individuals harboring the SDHB exon 1 deletion originated from the Iberian Peninsula.

Objective

Our aim was to investigate the spectrum of SDHB genetic defects in a large cohort of Brazilian patients with PPGLs.

Methods

Genetic investigation of 155 index PPGL patients was performed by Sanger DNA sequencing, multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification, and/or target next-generation sequencing panel. Common ancestrality was investigated by microsatellite genotyping with haplotype reconstruction, and analysis of deletion breakpoint.

Results

Among 155 index patients, heterozygous germline SDHB pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants were identified in 22 cases (14.2%). The heterozygous SDHB exon 1 complete deletion was the most frequent genetic defect in SDHB, identified in 8 out of 22 (36%) of patients. Haplotype analysis of 5 SDHB flanking microsatellite markers demonstrated a significant difference in haplotype frequencies in a case-control permutation test (P = 0.03). More precisely, 3 closer/informative microsatellites were shared by 6 out of 8 apparently unrelated cases (75%) (SDHB-GATA29A05-D1S2826-D1S2644 | SDHB-186-130-213), which was observed in only 1 chromosome (1/42) without SDHB exon 1 deletion (X2 = 29.43; P < 0.001). Moreover, all cases with SDHB exon 1 deletion had the same gene breakpoint pattern of a 15 678 bp deletion previously described in the Iberian Peninsula, indicating a common origin.

Conclusion

The germline heterozygous SDHB exon 1 deletion was the most frequent genetic defect in the Brazilian PPGL cohort. Our findings demonstrated a founder effect for the SDHB exon 1 deletion in Brazilian patients with paragangliomas.
Complementary and Alternative Medicine for Gliomas: Systematic Review and Critical Appraisal of Current Literature
Authors: Kerezoudis Panagiotis , Kerezoudi Evangelia N. , Choudhry Abdurehman , Himes Benjamin T. , Parney Ian F.
Published: January 2023

BACKGROUND:

Many patients with glioma and their caregivers seek complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) methods to comfort themselves, cope with cancer medication side effects, and feel they are taking control of their disease.

OBJECTIVE:

To summarize existing evidence on safety and efficacy of CAM treatments for gliomas.

METHODS:

We performed an exhaustive electronic literature search for in vitro, animal, and clinical studies (English language, all years available) on CAM modalities for gliomas.

RESULTS:

A total of 378 studies (315 unique articles) were analyzed. Distribution was as follows: in vitro—274 (73%), animal—77 (20%), and clinical—26 (7%, 2491 patients). Most studies were conducted in China (n = 135, 43%), followed by the United States (n = 62, 20%) and Spain (n = 17, 5%-6%). Resveratrol was the most commonly investigated CAM therapy in the in vitro (n = 62) and in vivo (n = 17) setting. Safety/toxicity was examined in 21% of in vitro (cytotoxic at same dose in 48%), 39% of in vivo (no evidence of organ toxicity), and 50% of clinical studies (adverse events reported in 6). Cytotoxicity was the most frequent end point among in vitro (60%) and animal studies (56%), followed by synergistic action with chemotherapy and inhibition of invasiveness and migration. Finally, 7 of 26 studies found no clinical effect, whereas 5 reported possible impact on progression-free or overall survival, 3 demonstrated decrease or arrest of tumor progression, and 2 showed positive impact on symptoms and quality of life.

CONCLUSION:

These findings will hopefully educate providers and patients and stimulate further research in the field of CAM therapy for gliomas.
The C-terminus of the cargo receptor Erv14 affects COPII vesicle formation and cargo delivery
Authors: Lagunas-Gomez Daniel , Yañez-Dominguez Carolina , Zavala-Padilla Guadalupe , Barlowe Charles , Pantoja Omar
Published: January 2023

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the start site of the secretory pathway, where newly synthesized secreted and membrane proteins are packaged into COPII vesicles through direct interaction with the COPII coat or aided by specific cargo receptors. Little is known about how post-translational modification events regulate packaging of cargo into COPII vesicles. The Saccharomyces cerevisiae protein Erv14, also known as cornichon, belongs to a conserved family of cargo receptors required for the selection and ER export of transmembrane proteins. In this work, we show the importance of a phosphorylation consensus site (S134) at the C-terminus of Erv14. Mimicking phosphorylation of S134 (S134D) prevents the incorporation of Erv14 into COPII vesicles, delays cell growth, exacerbates growth of sec mutants, modifies ER structure and affects localization of several plasma membrane transporters. In contrast, the dephosphorylated mimic (S134A) had less deleterious effects, but still modifies ER structure and slows cell growth. Our results suggest that a possible cycle of phosphorylation and dephosphorylation is important for the correct functioning of Erv14.
Evaporative cooling via panting and its metabolic and water balance costs for lizards in the American Southwest
Authors: Loughran Caleb L. , Wolf Blair O.
Published: January 2023

In lizards there is considerable variation in the ability to dissipate environmental/endogenous heat loads through evaporative cooling via panting, which effects how long lizards can spend exposed to high solar heat loads. We recently described the differing capacities of lizards to depress body temperature (Tb) through evaporative cooling via panting. Here, we link panting and Tb depression with rates of evaporative water loss and its metabolic costs under high heat loads. We used flow-through respirometry to measure evaporative water loss rates and metabolism of 17 lizard species from the American Southwest while simultaneously measuring Tb. We exposed lizards to air temperatures (Ta) ranging from 35°C to their critical thermal maximum (CTmax) while marking the onset of panting. We then estimated pre-panting Q10 values for metabolism to partition increases in metabolism associated with the van't Hoff effect from the mechanical cost of panting with increasing heat loads. We found that evaporative cooling costs substantially varied among species, with panting effort significantly affecting lizards' evaporative capacity. Lizard evaporation rates ranged from 0.32 to 1.5 g H2O h−1, with individuals losing as much as 6% h−1 of body mass while panting. Lizards also experienced an increase of up to 7.9-fold in metabolic rate while panting, although the overall energetic costs of panting remained relatively low compared with evaporative water costs. Across species, there was a significant positive relationship between the overall rate of evaporative heat loss and the maximum Ta–Tb gradient a species could maintain. While evaporative cooling may be an effective mechanism for reducing Tb and extending activity in hot environments for many species, it has significant metabolic and water balance costs that should be considered, as habitats with high environmental heat loads can be especially costly to an animal's water budgets.
The added costs of winter ocean warming for metabolism, arm regeneration and survival in the brittle star Ophionereis schayeri
Authors: Christensen Ana Beardsley , Taylor Georgie , Lamare Miles , Byrne Maria
Published: January 2023

As the climate continues to change, it is not just the magnitude of these changes that is important – equally critical is the timing of these events. Conditions that may be well tolerated at one time can become detrimental if experienced at another, as a result of seasonal acclimation. Temperature is the most critical variable as it affects most aspects of an organism's physiology. To address this, we quantified arm regeneration and respiration in the Australian brittle star Ophionereis schayeri for 10 weeks in response to a +3°C warming (18.5°C, simulating a winter heatwave) compared with ambient winter temperature (15.5°C). The metabolic scaling rate (b=0.635 at 15.5°C and 0.746 at 18.5°C) with respect to size was similar to that of other echinoderms and was not affected by temperature. Elevated temperature resulted in up to a 3-fold increase in respiration and a doubling of regeneration growth; however, mortality was greater (up to 44.2% at 18.5°C), especially in the regenerating brittle stars. Metabolic rate of the brittle stars held at 18.5°C was much higher than expected (Q10≈23) and similar to that of O. schayeri tested in summer, which was near their estimated thermotolerance limits. The additional costs associated with the elevated metabolism and regeneration rates incurred by the unseasonably warm winter temperatures may lead to increased mortality and predation risk.
Unlocking the potential of chemically modified peptide nucleic acids for RNA-based therapeutics
Authors: Pradeep Sai Pallavi , Malik Shipra , Slack Frank J. , Bahal Raman
Published: January 2023

RNA therapeutics have emerged as next-generation therapy for the treatment of many diseases. Unlike small molecules, RNA targeted drugs are not limited by the availability of binding pockets on the protein, but rather utilize Watson–Crick (WC) base-pairing rules to recognize the target RNA and modulate gene expression. Antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) present a powerful therapeutic approach to treat disorders triggered by genetic alterations. ASOs recognize the cognate site on the target RNA to alter gene expression. Nine single-stranded ASOs have been approved for clinical use and several candidates are in late-stage clinical trials for both rare and common diseases. Several chemical modifications, including phosphorothioates, locked nucleic acid, phosphorodiamidate, morpholino, and peptide nucleic acids (PNAs), have been investigated for efficient RNA targeting. PNAs are synthetic DNA mimics where the deoxyribose phosphate backbone is replaced by N-(2-aminoethyl)-glycine units. The neutral pseudopeptide backbone of PNAs contributes to enhanced binding affinity and high biological stability. PNAs hybridize with the complementary site in the target RNA and act by a steric hindrance­–based mechanism. In the last three decades, various PNA designs, chemical modifications, and delivery strategies have been explored to demonstrate their potential as an effective and safe RNA-targeting platform. This review covers the advances in PNA-mediated targeting of coding and noncoding RNAs for a myriad of therapeutic applications.
First sighting of a pelagic seabird entangled in a disposable COVID-19 facemask in the Mediterranean Sea
Authors: KARRIS GEORGIOS , SAVVA IOANNIS , KAKALIS ELEFTHERIOS , BAIRAKTARIDOU KYRIAKI , ESPINOSA CHLOE , SMITH Matthew Stephen , BOTSIDOU PETROULA , MOSCHOUS STAMATIOS , VOULGARIS Marios-Dimitrios , PEPPA ELENI , PANAYIDES PANICOS , HADJISTYLLIS HARIS , IOSIFIDES MARIOS
Published: January 2023

Seabirds are increasingly recognized as important bio-indicators of marine ecosystems that are useful in assessing environmental disturbance on the marine biota. Over the period 2020-22 and during the first national systematic recording of the sea waters surrounding the Republic of Cyprus, we recorded the spatio-temporal presence, abundance and behaviour of seabirds using the  ESAS (European Seabirds At Sea) methodology. Here we present the observation of an accidentally entangled pelagic seabird in COVID-19 material which to the best of our knowledge is the first incident in the Mediterranean Basin. The systematic recording of entangled marine birds in personal protective equipment (PPE) used to prevent COVID-19 transmission worldwide seems to be of crucial importance for one of the most important emerging threats for the conservation of seabirds at global scale.
The translational roadmap of the gut models, focusing on gut-on-chip
Authors: Malaguarnera Giulia , Graute Miriam , Homs Corbera Antoni
Published: January 2023

It is difficult to model in vitro the intestine when seeking to include crosstalk with the gut microbiota, immune and neuroendocrine systems. Here we present a roadmap of the current models to facilitate the choice in preclinical and translational research with a focus on gut-on-chip. These micro physiological systems (MPS) are microfluidic devices that recapitulate in vitro the physiology of the intestine. We reviewed the gut-on-chips that had been developed in academia and industries as single chip and that have three main purpose: replicate the intestinal physiology, the intestinal pathological features, and for pharmacological tests.
Inferior Vena Cava Atresia: A Rare Vascular Malformation
Authors: Alves Telma , Leal Diogo , Rodrigues Ricardo , Terra Carolina , Santos Sandra , Cascais Costa Joana , Silva Fàtima
Published: January 2023

Inferior vena cava (IVC) atresia is a rare congenital vascular malformation. We describe the case of a 20-year-old woman with IVC atresia who presented with a 3-month history of fatigue, oedema of the lower limbs and episodes of lipothymia. Transthoracic echocardiography and cardiac catheterization were performed, revealing interruption of the IVC with circulation through the azygos and hemiazygos system. An abdominal and pelvic computerized tomography (CT) scan confirmed the findings, demonstrating the absence of the IVC below the renal veins. Blood tests did not reveal any relevant results. These findings are consistent with the diagnosis of IVC atresia, a rare condition with no standard treatment. As a surgical approach was not possible, pharmacological measures were implemented for primary prevention of possible thrombotic events.
Asymmetric Bilateral Chronic Shoulder Dislocation in a Young Patient – A Rare Case Report
Authors: Diniz Sara Elisa , Vale João , Fonte Hélder , Xará-Leite Francisco , Barros Luís , Claro Rui
Published: January 2023

Introduction:Chronic shoulder dislocations are infrequent and can be easily overlooked unless a carefully clinical history, physical examination, and radiographic evaluation are undertaken. Bilateral simultaneous instability is almost pathognomonic for a convulsive disorder. To the best of our knowledge, we describe the first case of asymmetric bilateral chronic dislocation. Case Report: A 34-year-old male patient with a history of epilepsy and schizophrenia and multiple seizure episodes, suffered a bilateral asymmetric shoulder dislocation. Radiological examination revealed a posterior shoulder dislocation of the right shoulder with a severe reverse Hill-Sachs lesion comprising more than 50% of the humeral head surface, while on the left shoulder, a chronic anterior shoulder dislocation with a Hill-Sachs lesion of moderate dimension. On the right shoulder, a hemiarthroplasty was performed, and on the left, a stabilization with Remplissage Technique, subscapularis plication, and temporary trans-articular Steinmann pin fixation was done. After bilateral rehabilitation, the patient showed residual pain in the left shoulder and slight range of motion limitation. There were no new episodes of shoulder instability. Conclusion: Our aim is to emphasize the importance of being alert to flag patients and make a prompt and accurate diagnosis of acute shoulder instability episodes, to avoid unnecessary morbidity, as well as of a high index of suspicion when a history of seizures is present. Despite the uncertain prognosis of a bilateral chronic shoulder dislocation functional results, the surgeon must take into consideration the patient’s age, functional demand, and expectations to define the best treatment strategy. Keywords: Chronic bilateral dislocation, anterior shoulder dislocation, posterior shoulder dislocation, asymmetric dislocation.
Coherent optics for access from P2P to P2MP [Invited]
Authors: Campos Luis Alberto , Jia Zhensheng , Zhang Haipeng , Xu Mu
Published: January 2023

Coherent optics is being re-designed to future proof access networks using point-to-point and point-to-multi-point systems. Coherent optics’ higher speeds and link budgets provide significant deployment flexibility. Here, its access optimized components, coherent access architectures, operations, and service implication benefits are discussed.
Reaction time measures of non-chromatic contamination in opponent stimuli
Authors: Murray Ian J. , Parry Neil R. A.
Published: January 2023

Simple visual reaction times (RTs) are highly sensitive to the presence of transient activity. Transient and sustained visual mechanisms generate different RT versus contrast functions because they have different gains. To identify non-chromatic (transient) activity, we can compare RT versus contrast functions obtained with either fast or slow onset stimuli. To test this, the stimulus adopted was a temporal modulation along the red–green axis, introducing non-chromatic components by varying the red–green ratio. The technique was sensitive to departures from isoluminance for all observers; therefore, we present this method as a way to detect transient contamination in a chromatic stimulus.
Synthetic hyperspectral array video database with applications to cross-spectral reconstruction and hyperspectral video coding
Authors: Sippel Frank , Seiler Jürgen , Kaup André
Published: January 2023

In this paper, a synthetic hyperspectral video database is introduced. Since it is impossible to record ground-truth hyperspectral videos, this database offers the possibility to leverage the evaluation of algorithms in diverse applications. For all scenes, depth maps are provided as well to yield the position of a pixel in all spatial dimensions as well as the reflectance in spectral dimension. Two novel algorithms for two different applications are proposed to prove the diversity of applications that can be addressed by this novel database. First, a cross-spectral image reconstruction algorithm is extended to exploit the temporal correlation between two consecutive frames. The evaluation using this hyperspectral database shows an increase in peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) of up to 5.6 dB dependent on the scene. Second, a hyperspectral video coder is introduced, which extends an existing hyperspectral image coder by exploiting temporal correlation. The evaluation shows rate savings of up to 10% depending on the scene.
Demonstration of the bluish color on veins
Authors: Phuangsuwan Chanprapha , Ikeda Mitsuo , Mepean Janejira
Published: January 2023

This study aimed to demonstrate and quantify the greenish-blue color of veins using tissue paper and stocking via the simultaneous color contrast phenomenon. The colors of real skin and veins were accurately measured in the experiment and used as a reference to simulate the color of the skin and the veins. Subcutaneous veins were simulated using gray paper covered with tissue paper for Experiment 1 and stockings for Experiment 2. The color appearance was quantitatively measured by the elementary color naming method. The results suggest that tissue paper and stockings were used to enhance a stronger simultaneous color contrast of the veins. Moreover, the color of the veins appeared complementary to the color of the skin.
Fast numerical calculation of the offset linear canonical transform
Authors: Chen Jian-Yi , Li Bing-Zhao
Published: January 2023

The offset linear canonical transform (OLCT) is an important research topic in many fields, and it has a more universal and elastic performance due to its extra parameters. However, although much work has been done concerning the OLCT, its fast algorithms are rarely addressed. In this paper, an

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fast OLCT (FOLCT) algorithm that can significantly reduce the amount of calculation and improve accuracy is proposed. First, the discrete form of the OLCT is provided, and several important properties of its kernel are advanced. Next, the FOLCT based on the fast Fourier transform (FT) is derived for its numerical implementation. Then, the numerical results indicate that the FOLCT is a serviceable tool for signal analysis; additionally, the FOLCT algorithm can be used for the FT, fractional FT, linear canonical transform, and other transforms. Finally, its application to the detection of linear frequency modulated signals and optical image encryption, which is a basic case in signal processing, is discussed. The FOLCT can be effectively applied for the fast numerical calculation of the OLCT with valid and accurate results.
Tuning the magnetic toroidal dipole response in dielectric metasurfaces
Authors: Wang Xinfeng , Chen Deliang , Ma Wenbin , You Shaojun , Zhou Mimi , Wang Liyang , Zhang Qing , Luo Shengyun , Zhou Chaobiao
Published: January 2023

A toroidal dipole is a fundamental electromagnetic excitation independent of electric and magnetic dipoles. At present, a great deal of attention has been paid to the characteristics and applications of electric toroidal dipole resonance, while investigation of magnetic toroidal dipole (MTD) resonance is limited. The dielectric metasurface provides a good platform for the excitation of MTD. In this work, we numerically study the MTD response on a silicon tetramer metasurface. The near-field distribution and multipole decomposition fully confirm that the MTD dominates the resonance mode. Also, by integrating the phase-change material

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film onto this metasurface, the modulation properties of relative transmission, MTD far-field scattering, phase, and local electric and magnetic fields of this hybrid device are effectively studied. The maximum modulation depth of transmission reaches 88%, which is attributed to the strong resonance of MTD. Our work provides a route for the achievement of actively tunable optical nano-devices.
Testing a hypothetical transient deviation from quantum mechanics: preliminary results
Authors: Agüero M. , Hnilo A. , Kovalsky M. , Nonaka M.
Published: January 2023

The conflict between quantum mechanics (QM) and the intuitive concepts of locality and realism is most noticeable in the correlation between measurements performed in remote regions of a spatially spread entangled state of photons. It has been hypothesized that a transient deviation (from the value predicted by QM) may occur if the correlation is measured in a time shorter than

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, where

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is the spatial spread of the entangled state, and

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is the speed of light. This hypothesis solves the conflict by minimally modifying the interpretation of QM, and opens the door to interesting possibilities. Technical reasons make the hypothesis impossible to test directly nowadays, but a stroboscopic observation is attainable. We present preliminary, nonconclusive results of an experiment in progress aimed to perform that test.
Optical transmitter for time-bin encoding quantum key distribution
Authors: Morales Julián , Aparicio M. Guadalupe , Longo Carlos F. , Arrieta Cristian L. , Larotonda Miguel A.
Published: January 2023

We introduce an electro-optical arrangement that can produce time-bin encoded symbols with the decoy state method over a standard optical fiber in the C-band telecom window. The device consists of a specifically designed pulse pattern generator for pulse production and a field-programmable gate array that controls timing and synchronization. The electrical pulse output drives a sequence of intensity modulators acting on a continuous laser that deliver bursts of weak optical pulse pairs of discrete intensity values. Such a transmitter allows for the generation of all the quantum states needed to implement a discrete variable quantum key distribution (QKD) protocol over a single-mode fiber channel. Symbols are structured in bursts; the minimum relative delay between pulses is 1.25 ns, and the maximum symbol rate within a burst is 200 MHz. We tested the transmitter on simulated optical channels of  7 dB and 14 dB loss, obtaining maximum extractable secure key rates of 3.0 kb/s and 0.57 kb/s, respectively. Time-bin-state parameters such as the symbol rate, pulse separation, and intensity ratio between the signal and decoy states can be easily accessed and changed, allowing the transmitter to adapt to different experimental conditions and contributing to the standardization of QKD implementations.
Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy and digital image data fusion for determination of the Al, Ca, Fe, Mg, and P in mineral fertilizer: overcome matrix effects in solid direct analysis
Authors: Babos Diego Victor , Ramos Jéssica Franciele Kaminski , Francisco Gabriel Carlos , de Melo Benites Vinícius , Milori Débora Marcondes Bastos Pereira
Published: January 2023

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) and digital images were evaluated in the modeling for the prediction of Al, Ca, Fe, Mg, and P contents in mineral fertilizer samples. For modeling, univariate [matrix-matching calibration (MMC)] and multivariate [multiple linear regression (MLR) using only LIBS data, and data fusion (LIBS + digital image)] calibration strategies were evaluated. The predictive capacity of the models was increased in the following order: MMC<MLR (LIBS) < data fusion. Compared with the MMC and MLR (LIBS data only), the root mean square error (data fusion) values were 17% to 80% lower, demonstrating the improvement in accuracy.