bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effective DNA extraction method for metagenomic analysis of rhizosphere bacteria from mangrove sediments
Authors: Maysaroh Siti , Ismet Meutia Samira , Subhan Beginer , Andini Rita , Sembiring Enny Rimita , Anggraini Nurlita Putri
Published: September 2023

Mangrove, Rhizophora mucronata, grows in the intertidal area, which contains much organic matter and varying salinity. The organic matter content is influenced by the bacterial community that inhabits the ecosystem, but information regarding the bacterial community, especially in the mangrove root system, is not widely available. There are several challenges in completing this information, one of which is that the method used is still in a conventional form. Developments in environmental DNA analysis can support and complement this information. However, this method must be optimized because the organic matter content and salt variations affect the extraction results. Thus, this study aimed to determine the optimal approach for extracting bacterial DNA from mangrove sediments. The analysis used two methodologies: manual DNA extraction techniques based on buffer modification and DNA extraction kits. There were four different treatments, namely the soil DNA isolation plus kit (M1), the fecal / soil microbial quick-DNA miniprep kit (M2), glass powder with charcoal (M3), and glass powder with skimmed milk (M4). DNA samples were obtained from each method and assessed for concentration and purity using a nanodrop. In addition, the resulting DNA's quality was analyzed using 1.5% agarose. The results obtained were in the M2 treatment, which showed optimal results compared to the others. M2 uses a bead-based beating and spin column method to achieve optimal DNA concentration through high molecular weight. The DNA obtained was also protein-free, and several samples were contaminated with humic acid, namely KL.S1, KL.S4, and T7.S4.Keywords:Bacteria 16SBead beatingDNA ExtractionSedimentSpin column
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Authors: . .
Published: September 2023

https://jurnal.usk.ac.id/depik/about/submissions#authorGuidelines
Anxious solidarities against the mental health crisis: connecting personal struggles to wider social and economic injustices
Authors: Kingsmith A.T.
Published: September 2023

Rates of anxiety have been steadily increasing over the past 20 years, prompting commentators to warn that we are in the throes of a global mental health crisis that is ruining well-being, threatening lives and damaging the economy. By highlighting how a person’s mental health, while nuanced and distinct, is always situated in a larger socio-emotional context or ‘structure of feeling’, this article argues that the issue of rising anxiety is a direct consequence of a biomedical model of treatment and care beholden to a neoliberal economic system that objectifies and isolates people. Through a framework termed ‘liberation health modelling’, it explores the progressive potential of ‘anxious solidarities’ as a way to reframe the problem of anxiety by connecting personal struggles to wider social and economic injustices. At a time when it is becoming impossible to deny the collective and widespread nature of people’s anxieties, the point of anxious solidarity is not simply to recount pain and suffering but to ‘make sense’ of it in relation to overarching structures of social oppression – calling into question the status quo in solidarity with other subjugated groups. Since struggles with anxiety have the advantage of being familiar to most, anyone can be a potential provocateur so long as they disavow an entirely personalised framing of their mental health.
Is There a Context for Gilead? Reading The Handmaid's Tale and Lila under the Christian Right
Authors: Horton Ray
Published: September 2023

Abstract: Studies of literature and the Christian Right, like most studies of literature and religion, tend to operate under what Joseph North has recently called the "historicist/contextualist" paradigm of literary study. Departing from that consensus, this essay examines two novels germane to the study of the Christian Right—Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale and Marilynne Robinson's Lila —not to demonstrate their embeddedness in historical context, but to illustrate how their narratives imagine reading, belief, and perception in ways that reassert the value of literary criticism at a time when the Christian Right has attained unprecedented political power.
"This Piece of Parchment Will Shake the World": The Mystery of Mar Saba and the Evangelical Prototype of a Secular Fiction Genre
Authors: Jacobs Andrew S.
Published: September 2023

Abstract: The 1940 evangelical novel The Mystery of Mar Saba by James H. Hunter shares with a later, secular genre of novels I call gospel thrillers a common plot (the discovery of a new gospel from the first century and a race to prove or disprove its authenticity) but also common anxieties about biblical authority mapped onto geopolitical, theological, and personal registers. I triangulate these themes with the modern professional study of the Bible, which has also produced a vulnerable yet authoritative biblical text and which has, in surprising fashion, resurrected for its own purposes The Mystery of Mar Saba .
Spectral Authority: The Presence of Shakespeare in Biblical Scholarship
Authors: Bloomfield Jem
Published: September 2023

Abstract: Recent scholarship has seen a spate of interest in the intertwined interpretation histories of Shakespeare and the Bible, especially in how biblical hermeneutics shaped Shakespeare's reception. This article inverts that trend by investigating the presence of Shakespeare as an analogy, reference and model in Biblical Studies at the end of the twentieth and beginning of the twenty-first century. It demonstrates how Shakespeare has provided a set of images around authority and performance on which biblical scholars have drawn to frame and articulate their ideas about the Bible, and it suggests future possibilities for interdisciplinary work.
Shir Ha-Elohim : A Prolegomenon to Biblical Aesthetics
Authors: Ferretter Luke
Published: September 2023

Abstract: This article discusses the thought of a series of biblical writers on human art. I analyze the account of the tabernacle by the Priestly writer of the Pentateuch; the stories about David as a poet and musician in the Deuteronomistic History; and the Chronicler’s account of the poetry, song, music, and dance appointed by David for the Jerusalem Temple. I argue that the biblical writers have a high view of art, thinking of it as a central part of covenant life.
Transubstantiating Bottom: Eucharistic Weavings in A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Authors: Rinkevich Matthew J.
Published: September 2023

Abstract: This article offers Nick Bottom, the donkey-headed weaver of A Midsummer Night’s Dream , as a textual and performative site that echoes and amplifies Eucharistic theologies. It interprets him, and Shakespeare’s comedy, alongside Reformation theology and current phenomenology, especially Jean-Luc Marion’s concept of saturated phenomena. Bottom and the Eucharist are signs, but they frustrate interpretive methods grounded in sense perception. Instead, they inaugurate unreasonable and transformative encounters of love. While this article contributes to the study of England’s religious and cultural history, more crucially, it offers a contemporary spiritual hermeneutic for interpreting the sacramental poetics of A Midsummer Night’s Dream .
"Parsimonious / Presentations": Mina Loy's Crisis of [Christian] Representation
Authors: Steinke Annarose F.
Published: September 2023

Abstract: For poet Mina Loy, Christian visual culture posed unique and critical complications to the "crisis of representation" that she and her modernist peers attempted to negotiate. In poems featuring Christian iconography, Loy engages directly with high modernist theory, most prominently with Ezra Pound's injunction in "A Retrospect" to employ "Direct treatment of the thing." This paper situates two of Loy's poems, "The Prototype" and "Christ's Regrettable Reticence," as problematizing Pound's "direct treatment" in order to render spaces for Christian representations that remain accessible yet do not elide the distance she deems necessary between humanity and the divine.
Faith and Doubt in Gilead: Beyond Spiritual Dichotomies
Authors: Scott Mark S.M.
Published: September 2023

Abstract: In this article, I explore the question of faith and doubt in Marilynne Robinson’s acclaimed Gilead tetralogy: Gilead (2004), Home (2008), Lila (2014), and Jack (2020). While the central characters serve as literary symbols for faith and doubt, at a deeper level they subvert their surface symbolic import, problematizing the well-worn dichotomy between “faith versus doubt.” I argue that Robinson’s theological fiction disrupts spiritual dichotomies, which creates space for open, collegial, and constructive engagement between religious and non-religious persons.
Modernism’s Missing Myth: A Reception History of Graham Greene’s The Power and the Glory
Authors: Anderson Annesley
Published: September 2023

Abstract: This paper uses a reception history approach to argue that Graham Greene’s novel The Power and the Glory should be considered a modernist text. The intense but varied affective responses of readers, along with the mythic status they attribute to the work, reveal that the novel has long been read both within and as a response to a modernist framework. Furthermore, reader responses all point to the same tension within the novel: the collision of a traditional and specific religious creed, Catholicism, with the thematic uncertainty and fragmentation of literary modernism. This tension is Greene’s contribution to the period.
Sinclair Lewis's Elmer Gantry : A Study of the Fundamentalist-Modernist Controversy
Authors: Bembridge Steven
Published: September 2023

Abstract: Sinclair Lewis's Elmer Gantry (1927) is a novel famous for its eponymous anti-hero. It received widespread criticism upon its release from America's clergy and their congregations for its characterization of Elmer himself and for its associated representation of his religious practices and beliefs. Indeed, this critical reception of Elmer Gantry has almost become a codified interpretation of the novel. This interpretation, however, is incorrect. Elmer Gantry is not a novel that ridicules Christianity. Drawing from the battle between theological conservatism and liberalism, it reveals the complexity of American belief at the turn of the twentieth century in surprisingly sensitive ways.
On Poems (System and Environment)
Authors: Chen Jack W.
Published: September 2023

Abstract: In this essay, I propose a different approach to how we might conceptualize poetry, one that understands the poem not simply in terms of human-centered agency (that is, the complex of author-persona-reader) but as an emergent informatic-system. I focus on how the material and immaterial media of language, prosodic rules, and generic constraints all possess their own kinds of agency, comprising a set of limitations for what words the poet may select in composing the poem. Taking a poem by the Tang dynasty poet Wang Wei, I build upon a number of theoretical framings to argue that these strictures function as the constitute the field of what is possible in terms of poetic composition, that the compositional loop between an individual poet and poem is a cybernetic system and the set of constraints that delimit what is compositionally possible is the cybernetic environment.
"2 < n < infinity": A Multilayered "Phyllo Dough of the Analog and the Digital" in Alison Knowles and James Tenney's The House of Dust
Authors: Smailbegović Ada
Published: September 2023

Abstract: One of the stanzas in Alison Knowles and James Tenney's computer-generated poem "The House of Dust" suggests a sense of a shiny, metallic, unevenly reflective enclosure, filled with light characteristic of the desert environment, and yet one that somehow shelters both aquatic and avian species: "A HOUSE OF TIN / IN A DESERT / USING NATURAL LIGHT / INHABITED BY VARIOUS BIRDS AND FISH." One distinct mood, one world of atmospheric and affective effects opens up here through the specific juxtapositions of entities and materials. Following Eve Sedgwick's sense, in her book Touching Feeling , of an intimacy that "seems to subsist between textures and emotions," this essay enumerates the affective qualities generated through patterns of recombination that structure "The House of Dust." Seen through the lens of cybernetics and affect theory this early computer-generated poem offers an interesting example of the complex layering of the analogue and the digital, as it translates between the binary code of early computer languages and the discrete, analogue properties of specific configurations of materials and the concomitant affective states they evoke. As such, the poem and the concomitant performances it has generated over time in which aspects of the poem were frequently recreated out of elements of the material universe complicate any kind of a binary relationship between the analogue and digital, materiality and code, or even original creation and reception.
Small-size LD-based automobile headlamp design with long illumination distance and wide illumination range
Authors: Wei Yingwan , Liu Dengfei , Xie Tongtong , Wang Hong
Published: September 2023

Due to the large size of an automobile headlamp that has a laser as the light source, it is difficult to reflect the advantages of high laser brightness into the effect of automobile illumination, so it has not been promoted. We propose a laser headlamp system that integrates low-beam and high-beam structures with superior illumination effects (longer illumination distance and wider illumination range) by designing freeform optical components and optical structure. The small-volume headlamp can meet the requirements of the Economic Commission for Europe regulation (ECE) R112. The structure volume of the headlamp proposed in this study is only 100∗70∗70mm3, and the maximum luminance is 120 lx (simulation result) and 78.5 lx (test result). The view angle of the low beam is 13.6°, and the high beam is 15.6°, indicating that the solution is suitable for automotive illumination.
Rydberg excitation through detuned microwave transition in rubidium
Authors: Brekke E. , Umland C.
Published: September 2023

We study the excitation of Rydberg states in warm rubidium vapor. Using an inverted wavelength excitation scheme, we observe the effect of microwave coupling between Rydberg states through electromagnetically induced transparency. We observe AC stark shifts of the Rydberg states from the microwave coupling, and demonstrate detuned excitation to a secondary Rydberg state. These results show flexibility in the excitation process and state selection necessary for a variety of wave-mixing processes using Rydberg states.
Highly sensitive trace gas detection based on a miniaturized 3D-printed Y-type resonant photoacoustic cell
Authors: Wu Guojie , Wu Xue , Gong Zhenfeng , Xing Jiawei , Fan Yeming , Ma Junsheng , Peng Wei , Yu Qingxu , Mei Liang
Published: September 2023

We report, what we believe to be, a novel miniaturized 3D-printed Y-type resonant photoacoustic cell (YRPAC) consisting of a frustum of cone-type buffer chamber and a cylindrical resonant chamber. The volume of the designed YRPAC is about 7.0 cm3, which is only about a half of the T-resonant photoacoustic cell (TRPAC). The finite element simulation of the sound field distribution of the TRPAC and YRPAC based on COMSOL shows that the photoacoustic signal is enhanced with the shape of the buffer chamber changing from the traditional cylinder to a frustum of cone. The photoacoustic spectroscopy (PAS) system, utilizing the YRPAC and TRPAC as the photoacoustic reaction units, a 1653.7 nm distributed feedback (DFB) laser as the excitation light source, a cantilever beam acoustic sensor as the acoustic sensing unit, and a high-speed spectrometer as the demodulation unit, has been successfully developed for high-sensitivity trace CH4 sensing. When the CH4 concentration is 1000 ppm, the 2f signal of YRPAC in the first-order resonance mode is 2.3 nm, which is 1.7 times higher than the 2f signal amplitude of TRPAC. The detection sensitivity and minimum detection limit for the PAS system are 2.29 pm/ppm and 52.8 parts per billion (ppb) at 100 s of averaging time. The reported YRPAC has higher sensitivity, smaller size, and faster response time compared to the conventional TRPAC, which can provide a new solution for PAS development.
Mesoporous black TiO2 hollow shells with controlled cavity size for enhanced visible light photocatalysis
Authors: Hu Yiwen , Yan Zhiyao , Du Lianghui , Yu Yongliu , Huang Wanxia , Shi Qiwu
Published: September 2023

Black TiO2 formed by introducing lattice disorder into pristine TiO2 has a narrowed band gap and suppresses the recombination of charge carriers. This provides a potential strategy for visible light photocatalysis. However, the microstructural design of black TiO2 for a higher optimization of visible light is still in high demand. In this work, we proposed the preparation of black TiO2 hollow shells with controllable cavity diameters using silica spheres as templates for the cavities and the NaBH4 reduction method. The decreased cavity size resulted in a hollow shell with an enhanced visible–light absorption and improved photocatalytic performance. Moreover, we demonstrated that this cavity can be combined with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) to form AuNPs@black TiO2 yolk–shells. The AuNPs provided additional visible light absorption and promoted the separation of photogenerated carriers in the yolk–shell structures. This further improved the photocatalysis, the degradation rate of Cr(VI) can reach 0.066 min-1. Our work evaluated the effect of the cavity size on the photocatalytic performance of hollow and yolk–shell structures and provided concepts for the further enhancement of visible–light photocatalysis.
Multimode resonance transition to collapsed snaking in normal dispersive Kerr cavities: bright versus dark solitons
Authors: Sun Yifan , Wabnitz Stefan , Parra-Rivas Pedro
Published: September 2023

We study the dynamics of Kerr cavity solitons in the normal dispersion regime in the presence of an intracavity phase modulation. The associated parabolic potential introduces multimode resonances, which promote the formation of high-order bright solitons. By gradually reducing the potential strength, bright solitons undergo a transition into dark solitons. We describe this process as a shift from a multimode resonance to a collapsed snaking bifurcation structure. This work offers a comprehensive overview of cavity dynamics and may provide a potential pathway to access multi-stable states by effectively varying the phase modulation.
Structural transitions upon guide RNA binding and their importance in Cas12g-mediated RNA cleavage
Authors: Liu Mengxi , Li Zekai , Chen Jing , Lin Jinying , Lu Qiuhua , Ye Yangmiao , Zhang Hongmin , Zhang Bo , Ouyang Songying
Published: September 2023

Cas12g is an endonuclease belonging to the type V RNA-guided CRISPR–Cas family. It is known for its ability to cleave RNA substrates using a conserved endonuclease active site located in the RuvC domain. In this study, we determined the crystal structure of apo-Cas12g, the cryo-EM structure of the Cas12g-sgRNA binary complex and investigated conformational changes that occur during the transition from the apo state to the Cas12g-sgRNA binary complex. The conserved zinc finger motifs in Cas12g undergo an ordered-to-disordered transition from the apo to the sgRNA-bound state and their mutations negatively impact on target RNA cleavage. Moreover, we identified a lid motif in the RuvC domain that undergoes transformation from a helix to loop to regulate the access to the RuvC active site and subsequent cleavage of the RNA substrate. Overall, our study provides valuable insights into the mechanisms by which Cas12g recognizes sgRNA and the conformational changes it undergoes from sgRNA binding to the activation of the RNase active site, thereby laying a foundation for the potential repurposing of Cas12g as a tool for RNA-editing.
Early warning and response system for dengue outbreaks: Moving from research to operational implementation in Mexico
Authors: Sanchez Tejeda Gustavo , Benitez Valladares David , Correa Morales Fabian , Toledo Cisneros Jacqueline , Espinoza Tamarindo Brisia E. , Hussain-Alkhateeb Laith , Merle Corinne S. , Kroeger Axel
Published: September 2023

Dengue disease epidemics have increased in time and space due to climatic and non-climatic factors such as urbanization. In the absence of an effective vaccine, preventing dengue outbreak relies on vector control activities. Employing computerized tools to predict outbreaks and respond in advance has great potential for improving dengue disease control. Evidence of integrating or implementing such applications into control programs and their impact are scarce, and endemic countries demand for experience sharing and know-how transfer. Mexico has extensive experience of pre-validated EWARS (Early Warning And Response System), a tool that was developed in 2012 as part of a collaboration with the Special Program for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases Unit (TDR) at the World Health Organization and used at national level. The advancement of EWARS since 2014 and its stepwise integration into the national surveillance system has increased the appreciation of the need for integrated surveillance (including disease, vector and climate surveillance), and for linking inter-institutional and trans-sectoral information for holistic epidemiological intelligence. The integration of the EWARS software into the national surveillance platform in Mexico was a remarkable milestone and a successful experience. This manuscript describes the implementation process of EWARS in Mexico, which started in 2012 and further demonstrates benefits, threats, and opportunities of integrating EWARS into existing national surveillance programs.
The seroprevalence of anti-Histoplasma capsulatum IgG antibody among pulmonary tuberculosis patients in seven referral tuberculosis hospitals in Indonesia
Authors: Kusmiati Tutik , Burhan Erlina , Sugiyono Retna Indah , Arlinda Dona , Naysilla Adhella Menur , Wibisono Banteng Hanang , El Khair Riat , Candrawati Ni Wayan , Sinaga Bintang Yinke Magdalena , Djaharrudin Irawaty , Lokida Dewi , Kosasih Herman , Susanto Nugroho Harry , Butar Butar Deni Pepy , Adawiyah Robiatul , Fatril Ayu Eka , Karyana Muhammad , Denning David W. , Wahyuningsih Retno
Published: September 2023

Background

Histoplasma capsulatum exposure is rarely suspected in Indonesia. Pulmonary histoplasmosis can occur simultaneously with pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) or as an alternative diagnosis in clinically-diagnosed TB patients with no microbiological evidence of TB. This study aimed to determine the seroprevalence of anti-H. capsulatum IgG antibody among pulmonary TB patients.

Methodology

This was a sub-study of 306 participants from a prospective cohort pulmonary TB study conducted at seven TB referral hospitals in Indonesia. The study population was presumptive pulmonary TB adult patients who underwent microbiological TB examinations and were categorized as drug-sensitive (DS), drug-resistant (DR), and clinically-diagnosed TB. Anti-H. capsulatum IgG antibody levels at baseline were measured using MVista Histoplasma Ab enzyme immunoassays. Data were summarized using descriptive statistics. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were performed to assess factors associated with anti-H. capsulatum IgG antibody positive result.

Results

12.7% (39/306) of pulmonary TB patients were positive for anti-H. capsulatum IgG antibodies (DR-TB patients (15.9%, 18/114), DS-TB (13.0%, 15/115), and clinically-diagnosed TB (7.8%, 6/77)). The median unit value of anti-H. capsulatum IgG antibody for all positive samples was 15.7 (IQR 10.2–28.9) EU. This median unit value was higher in clinically-diagnosed TB patients compared to DS-TB or DR-TB patients (38.1 (IQR 25.6–46.6) EU, 19.7 (IQR 12.3–28.9) EU, and 10.9 (IQR 9.2–15.4), respectively). There were 10 patients (3.3%) with anti-H. capsulatum IgG antibody levels above 30 EU. Factors associated with the anti-H. capsulatum IgG antibody positive result were malignancies (OR 4.88, 95% CI 1.09–21.69, p = 0.037) and cavitary lesions (OR 2.27, 95% CI 1.09–4.70, p = 0.028).

Conclusions

Our results provide evidence of exposure to H. capsulatum among pulmonary TB patients in Indonesia. Further studies are needed to provide a comprehensive picture of this fungal disease in other populations and regions to enhance awareness among clinicians and public health officials.
Effects of mating on female reproductive physiology in the insect model, Rhodnius prolixus, a vector of the causative parasite of Chagas disease
Authors: Leyria Jimena , Guarneri Alessandra A. , Lorenzo Marcelo G. , Nouzova Marcela , Noriega Fernando G. , Benrabaa Samiha A. M. , Fernandez-Lima Francisco , Valadares Tose Lilian , Orchard Ian , Lange Angela B.
Published: September 2023

The blood-sucking hemipteran Rhodnius prolixus is one of the main vectors of Chagas disease, a neglected tropical disease that affects several million people worldwide. Consuming a blood meal and mating are events with a high epidemiological impact since after each meal, mated females can lay fertile eggs that result in hundreds of offspring. Thus, a better knowledge of the control of R. prolixus reproductive capacity may provide targets for developing novel strategies to control vector populations, thereby reducing vector-host contacts and disease transmission. Here, we have used a combination of gene transcript expression analysis, biochemical assays, hormone measurements and studies of locomotory activity to investigate how mating influences egg development and egg laying rates in R. prolixus females. The results demonstrate that a blood meal increases egg production capacity and leads to earlier egg laying in mated females compared to virgins. Virgin females, however, have increased survival rate over mated females. Circulating juvenile hormone (JH) and ecdysteroid titers are increased in mated females, a process mainly driven through an upregulation of the transcripts for their biosynthetic enzymes in the corpus allatum and ovaries, respectively. Mated females display weaker locomotory activity compared to virgin females, mainly during the photophase. In essence, this study shows how reproductive output and behaviour are profoundly influenced by mating, highlighting molecular, biochemical, endocrine and behavioral features differentially expressed in mated and virgin R. prolixus females.
Experiences of family caregivers in caring for patients with heart failure admitted at Jakaya Kikwete Cardiac Institute, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania: A qualitative study
Authors: Mcharo Tunzo L. , Iseselo Masunga K. , Kahema Samwel Edward , Tarimo Edith A. M.
Published: September 2023

Background

Heart failure (HF) continues to be a global health problem with its ramifications more pronounced in underdeveloped countries. Family members play a pivotal part in patient management which may influence the patient’s overall quality of life. Prolonged delay in attendance to health care facilities among patients indicates ineffective support from family caregivers. In the Tanzanian context, there is limited information about the experiences of family caregivers in caring for patients with HF. This study explored family caregivers’ experiences in caring for HF patients.

Methods

A qualitative descriptive study design was conducted at Jakaya Kikwete Cardiac Institute in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. A purposive sampling technique was used to select the potential participants. A sample size of 10 family caregivers of patients with HF was included in the study. Thematic analysis was used to derive the main theme and sub-themes.

Results

Three major themes were identified: demands for supportive care, new caring role and lifestyle, and professional support in caring for patients with HF. Caregivers needed social and financial support to facilitate the caring process. Learning to provide the required care at the right time was the new role acquired by caregivers while failing to participate in social events and caregiving in an unfavourable environment were reported as challenges in caregiving. However, compliance with instruction and effective interaction among the nurses and caregivers were considered to be positive professional support.

Conclusion

Caregivers need social and financial support to provide effective care to their patients. Caregiving is a learning process that needs continuous educational support to adapt to the new caring roles and challenges. Nurses should conduct regular assessments to explore caregivers’ needs, challenges, and concerns and provide timely counselling that can facilitate coping.
Successful 3D culture and transplantation of mouse isolated preantral follicles in hydrogel of bioengineered Wharton’s jelly
Authors: Zand Elnaz , Rajablou Elias , Siadat Seyedeh Fatemeh , Beiki Bahare , Akbarinejad Vahid , Amorim Christiani Andrade , Rezazadeh Valojerdi Mojtaba , Tahaei Leila Alsadat , Fathi Rouhollah
Published: September 2023

Main objective

Due to Human Wharton’s Jelly (HWJ) could be applied in tissue engineering as a bio scaffold, the present study was conducted to investigate the effects of HWJ hydrogel on in vitro culture and auto-transplantation of mouse ovarian follicles.

Materials and methods

HWJ was isolated from umbilical cord and decellularized with SDS/Tris/EDTA. DNA, Collagen and Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) were measured. Decellularized Wharton’s Jelly (DWJ) was dissolved to make Wharton’s Jelly Hydrogel (WJH), and composited with Alginate (ALG) (1.5%) in equal ratio (WJH+ALG). Then, mouse preantral follicles were isolated and encapsulated in 10μL droplets of WJH and randomly considered for both 14 days culture and auto-transplantation.

Results

Collagen, GAGs and DNA evaluations showed majority of WJ cells have been removed and MTT approved no toxicity. Degradation rate and rheological analysis represented optimal hydrogel compatibility. The data from in vitro culture revealed significant antral formation in WJH+ALG (P≤0.05). In transplantation, follicles failed to survive in ALG; however, survived in WJH+ALG to antral stage (P<0.05). VEGF and CD34 had greater expression in WJH+ALG than ALG (P< 0.05).

Conclusion

Wharton’s jelly hydrogel and Alginate compound is interesting composite for successful development of mouse preantral follicles in both 3D in vitro culture and transplantation.
Cardiopulmonary bypass in a rat model may shorten the lifespan of stored red blood cells by activating caspase-3
Authors: Han Lu , Li Lianlian , Linghu Hangya , Zheng Lei , Gou Daming
Published: September 2023

Background

Red blood cell transfusion is required for many types of surgery against cardiovascular disease, and the function of transfused cells appears to decline over time. The present study examined whether transfusion also reduces red blood cell lifespan in a rat model.

Material and methods

Bypass in rats were established by connecting a roll pump to the femoral artery and vein. Then FITC-labeled stored red blood cells from rats were transfused in the animals, and the cells in circulation were counted after transfusion. In separate experiments, stored red blood cells were incubated with bypass plasma in vitro, and the effects of incubation were assessed on cell morphology, redox activity, ATP level, caspase-3 activity, and phosphatidylserine exposure on the cell surface. These in vivo and in vitro experiments were also performed after pretreating the stored red blood cells with the caspase-3 inhibitor Z-DEVD-FMK.

Results

Bypass significantly decreased the number of circulating FITC-labeled stored red blood cells and increased the proportions of monocytes, neutrophils and splenic macrophages that had phagocytosed the red blood cells. In vitro, bypass plasma altered the morphology of red blood cells and increased oxidative stress, caspase-3 activity and phosphatidylserine exposure, while decreasing ATP level. Pretreating stored red blood cells with Z-DEVD-FMK attenuated the effects of bypass on caspase-3 activity, but not oxidative stress, in stored red blood cells.

Discussion

Bypass appears to shorten the lifespan of stored red blood cells, at least in part by activating caspase-3 in the cells.
Did the popularization of the Internet impact Chinese citizens’ attitude towards foreign countries? An empirical study based on two surveys
Authors: Qin Bowen , Ge Xiaochang
Published: September 2023

Citizens’ attitudes towards foreign countries are considered an important factor in making foreign policy. This also holds in China, where public opinion is given significant weight in foreign policy-making. On the other hand, the media serves as a gateway for citizens to access the outside world, shaping their attitudes towards foreign countries. The rise of the Internet since the mid-2000s has brought about radical changes in the media landscape. The Internet, characterized by its loose control and the strong patriotic sentiment among netizens, is viewed as a breeding ground for popular nationalism. Scholars and analysts worry that the prevalence of online popular nationalism may lead to xenophobia and hostility towards Western countries portrayed as out-group others in this narrative. This study aims to investigate the impact of popular nationalism narratives flooding the Internet on citizens’ attitudes, and the differential influence of the Internet compared to traditional mass media. Furthermore, this study also examines the dynamics of citizens’ foreign attitudes and the role of media channels in shaping these attitudes. Through a quantitative analysis based on the data collected in 2010 and 2020, the study challenges concerns about xenophobic sentiments resulting from online nationalism, finding them to be unnecessary. Additionally, this study also discovers that, compared to traditional mass media, the influence of the Internet on attitude is more open to change in the international environment.
Discovery of neutralizing SARS-CoV-2 antibodies enriched in a unique antigen specific B cell cluster
Authors: Lende Stine Sofie Frank , Barnkob Nanna Møller , Hansen Randi Westh , Bansia Harsh , Vestergaard Mike , Rothemejer Frederik Holm , Worsaae Anne , Brown Deijona , Pedersen Maria Lange , Rahimic Anna Halling Folkmar , Juhl Anna Karina , Gjetting Torben , Østergaard Lars , Georges Amédée Des , Vuillard Laurent-Michel , Schleimann Mariane Høgsbjerg , Koefoed Klaus , Tolstrup Martin
Published: September 2023

Despite development of effective SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, a sub-group of vaccine non-responders depends on therapeutic antibodies or small-molecule drugs in cases of severe disease. However, perpetual viral evolution has required continuous efficacy monitoring as well as exploration of new therapeutic antibodies, to circumvent resistance mutations arising in the viral population. We performed SARS-CoV-2-specific B cell sorting and subsequent single-cell sequencing on material from 15 SARS-CoV-2 convalescent participants. Through screening of 455 monoclonal antibodies for SARS-CoV-2 variant binding and virus neutralization, we identified a cluster of activated B cells highly enriched for SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies. Epitope binning and Cryo-EM structure analysis identified the majority of neutralizing antibodies having epitopes overlapping with the ACE2 receptor binding motif (class 1 binders). Extensive functional antibody characterization identified two potent neutralizing antibodies, one retaining SARS-CoV-1 neutralizing capability, while both bind major common variants of concern and display prophylactic efficacy in vivo. The transcriptomic signature of activated B cells harboring broadly binding neutralizing antibodies with therapeutic potential identified here, may be a guide in future efforts of rapid therapeutic antibody discovery.
AlignStatPlot: An R package and online tool for robust sequence alignment statistics and innovative visualization of big data
Authors: Alsamman Alsamman M. , El Allali Achraf , Mokhtar Morad M. , Al-Sham’aa Khaled , Nassar Ahmed E. , Mousa Khaled H. , Kehel Zakaria
Published: September 2023

Multiple sequence alignment (MSA) is essential for understanding genetic variations controlling phenotypic traits in all living organisms. The post-analysis of MSA results is a difficult step for researchers who do not have programming skills. Especially those working with large scale data and looking for potential variations or variable sample groups. Generating bi-allelic data and the comparison of wild and alternative gene forms are important steps in population genetics. Customising MSA visualisation for a single page view is difficult, making viewing potential indels and variations challenging. There are currently no bioinformatics tools that permit post-MSA analysis, in which data on gene and single nucleotide scales could be combined with gene annotations and used for cluster analysis. We introduce “AlignStatPlot,” a new R package and online tool that is well-documented and easy-to use for MSA and post-MSA analysis. This tool performs both traditional and cutting-edge analyses on sequencing data and generates new visualisation methods for MSA results. When compared to currently available tools, AlignStatPlot provides a robust ability to handle and visualise diversity data, while the online version will save time and encourage researchers to focus on explaining their findings. It is a simple tool that can be used in conjunction with population genetics software.
Peri-operative pharmacokinetics of cefazolin prophylaxis during valve replacement surgery
Authors: Alli Ahmad , Paruk Fathima , Roger Claire , Lipman Jeffrey , Calleemalay Daren , Wallis Steven C. , Scribante Juan , Richards Guy A. , Roberts Jason A.
Published: September 2023

Objective

There is little prospective data to guide effective dosing for antibiotic prophylaxis during surgery requiring cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). We aim to describe the effects of CPB on the population pharmacokinetics (PK) of total and unbound concentrations of cefazolin and to recommend optimised dosing regimens.

Methods

Patients undergoing CPB for elective cardiac valve replacement were included using convenience sampling. Intravenous cefazolin (2g) was administered pre-incision and re-dosed at 4 hours. Serial blood and urine samples were collected and analysed using validated chromatography. Population PK modelling and Monte-Carlo simulations were performed using Pmetrics® to determine the fractional target attainment (FTA) of achieving unbound concentrations exceeding pre-defined exposures against organisms known to cause surgical site infections for 100% of surgery (100% fT>MIC).

Results

From the 16 included patients, 195 total and 64 unbound concentrations of cefazolin were obtained. A three-compartment linear population PK model best described the data. We observed that cefazolin 2g 4-hourly was insufficient to achieve the FTA of 100% fT>MIC for Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli at serum creatinine concentrations ≤ 50 μmol/L and for Staphylococcus epidermidis at any of our simulated doses and serum creatinine concentrations. A dose of cefazolin 3g 4-hourly demonstrated >93% FTA for S. aureus and E. coli.

Conclusions

We found that cefazolin 2g 4-hourly was not able to maintain concentrations above the MIC for relevant pathogens in patients with low serum creatinine concentrations undergoing cardiac surgery with CPB. The simulations showed that optimised dosing is more likely with an increased dose and/or dosing frequency.
Effect of gas exchange data selection methods on resting metabolic rate estimation in young athletes
Authors: Bittencourt Victor Zaban , Freire Raul , Alcantara Juan M. A. , Loureiro Luiz Lannes , de Oliveira Taillan Martins , Cahuê Fábio Luiz Candido , Itaborahy Alex , Pierucci Anna Paola Trindade Rocha
Published: September 2023

This cross-sectional study analysed the effect of the gas exchange data selection methods on the resting metabolic rate (RMR) estimation and proposed a protocol shortening providing a suitable RMR estimation for young athletes. Sixty-six healthy young Brazilian athletes performed a 30-minute RMR assessment. Different methods of gas exchange data selection were applied: short and long-time intervals, steady-state (SSt), and filtering. A mixed one-way ANOVA was used to analyse the mean differences in gas exchange, RMR, respiratory exchange ratio (RER), and coefficients of variation across all methods. Additionally, paired Student’s t-test were used to compare the first and best SSt RMR values for each SSt method (3, 4, and 5-min). The 5-min SSt method provided the lowest RMR estimate (1454 kcal.day-1). There was a statistical difference between methods (F = 2.607, p = 0.04), but they presented a clinically irrelevant absolute difference (~36 kcal.day-1). There were no differences in RER among methods. In addition, using the SSt method, 12 minutes of assessment were enough to obtain a valid estimation of RMR. The 5-min SSt method should be employed for assessing the RMR among young athletes, considering the possibility of obtaining a shortened assessment (~12 min) with an acceptable and low coefficient of variation.
Myeloblasts transition to megakaryoblastic immunophenotypes over time in some patients with myelodysplastic syndromes
Authors: Ogata Kiyoyuki , Mochimaru Yuto , Sei Kazuma , Kawahara Naoya , Ogata Mika , Yamamoto Yumi
Published: September 2023

Objectives

In myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), neoplastic myeloblast (CD34+CD13+CD33+ cells) numbers often increase over time, leading to secondary acute myeloid leukemia (AML). In recent studies, blasts in some MDS patients have been found to express a megakaryocyte-lineage molecule, CD41, and such patients show extremely poor prognosis. This is the first study to evaluate whether myeloblasts transition to CD41+ blasts over time and to investigate the detailed immunophenotypic features of CD41+ blasts in MDS.

Methods

We performed a retrospective cohort study, in which time-dependent changes in blast immunophenotypes were analyzed using multidimensional flow cytometry (MDF) in 74 patients with MDS and AML (which progressed from MDS).

Results

CD41+ blasts (at least 20% of CD34+ blasts expressing CD41) were detected in 12 patients. In five of these 12 patients, blasts were CD41+ from the first MDF analysis. In the other seven patients, myeloblasts (CD34+CD33+CD41- cells) transitioned to megakaryoblasts (CD34+CD41+ cells) over time, which was often accompanied by disease progression (including leukemic transformation). These CD41+ patients were more frequently observed among patients with monosomal and complex karyotypes. CD41+ blasts were negative for the erythroid antigen, CD235a, and positive for CD33 in all cases, but CD33 expression levels were lower in three cases when compared with CD34+CD41- blasts. Among the five CD41+ patients who underwent extensive immunophenotyping, CD41+ blasts all expressed CD61, but two cases had reduced CD42b expression, three had reduced/absent CD13 expression, and three also expressed CD7.

Conclusions

Myeloblasts become megakaryoblastic over time in some MDS patients, and examining the megakaryocyte lineage (not only as a diagnostic work-up but also as follow-up) is needed to detect CD41+ MDS. The immunophenotypic features revealed in this study may have diagnostic relevance for CD41+ MDS patients.
Spatial distribution characteristics and analysis of influencing factors on different manufacturing types in Shandong Province
Authors: Zhang Yanghua , Zheng Qiwen , Ye Shuai , Zhang Kewei , Lin Weipeng
Published: September 2023

Investigating the spatial distribution characteristics and influencing factors of various industry types is critical for promoting the high-quality transformation and development of China’s industry. This study combined the Getis-Ord Gi* statistic method, the random forest-based importance assessment method, and the geographically weighted regression method to determine the spatial distribution characteristics of four industry types and their influencing factors. The results revealed that the raw material industry was primarily concentrated in the surrounding districts and counties of Linyi and Qingdao. The food and light textile industry was mainly concentrated in the surrounding districts and counties of Qingdao, and a few were concentrated in some counties of Linyi. The processing and manufacturing industry was also concentrated in the surrounding districts and counties of Qingdao, and a few were concentrated in the belt regions connecting Jinan, Zibo, and Weifang. The high-tech industry was mainly concentrated in the surrounding districts and counties of Jinan and Qingdao. The key spatial influencing factors of the four industry types were different. The number of employees in the secondary industry and road density were most important in determining the spatial distribution of the raw material industry. The financial environment and number of research institutions were most important to the spatial distribution of the food and light textile industry. The gross domestic product and number of medical facilities were most important to the spatial distribution of the processing and manufacturing industry. Urbanization rate, number of research institutions, and gross domestic product were most important to the spatial distribution of the high-tech industry. Geographically weighted regression analysis revealed that the impact intensity of these key factors on the industry exhibits significant spatial heterogeneity. Taken together, these results are useful for formulating the development strategy for each industrial type in different regions.
Durability of the deltamethrin-treated polypropylene long-lasting net LifeNet® in a pyrethroid resistance area in south western Benin: A phase III trial
Authors: Djènontin Armel , Alfa Daleb , Bouraima Aziz , Soares Christophe , Dahounto Amal , Cornélie Sylvie , Egrot Marc , Damien Georgia , Remoué Franck , Sagna André Barembaye , Moiroux Nicolas , Pennetier Cédric
Published: September 2023

Background

Long-lasting insecticidal bed nets (LLINs) are a key measure for preventing malaria and their evaluation is coordinated by the World Health Organization Pesticide Evaluation Scheme (WHOPES). LifeNet® was granted WHOPES time-limited interim recommendation in 2011 after successful Phase I and Phase II evaluations. Here, we evaluated the durability and community acceptance of LifeNet® in a Phase III trial from June 2014 to June 2017 in Benin rural area.

Methods

A prospective longitudinal, cluster-randomized, controlled trial with households as the unit of observation was designed to assess the performance of LifeNet® over a three-year period, using a WHOPES fully recommended LLIN (PermaNet® 2.0) as a positive control. The primary outcomes were the bioassay performance using WHO cone assays and tunnel tests, the insecticide content and physical integrity.

Results

At baseline, 100% of LLINs were within the tolerance limits of their target deltamethrin concentrations. By 36 months only 17.3% of LifeNet® and 8.5% of PermaNet® LLINs still were within their target deltamethrin concentrations. Despite these low rates, 100% of both LLINs meet WHO efficacy criteria (≥ 80% mortality or ≥ 95% knockdown or tunnel test criteria of ≥ 80% mortality or ≥ 90% blood-feeding inhibition) after 36 months using WHO cone bio-assays and tunnel tests. The proportion of LLINs in good physical condition was 33% for LifeNet® and 29% for PermaNet® after 36 months. After 36 M the survivorship was 21% and 26% for LifeNet® and PermaNet® respectively. Although both LLINs were well accepted by the population, complaints of side effects were significantly higher among LifeNet® users than PermaNet® ones.

Conclusion

LifeNet® LLINs did meet WHO criteria for bio-efficacy throughout the study period and were well accepted by the population. This is an important step towards getting a full WHO recommendation for use in malaria endemic countries.