bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effective coverage of curative child health services in Ethiopia: analysis of the Demographic and Health Survey and Service Provision Assessment survey
Authors: Haile Tsegaye Gebremedhin , Benova Lenka , Mirkuzie Alemnesh H , Asefa Anteneh
Published: February 2024

Objectives

Despite a remarkable decline, childhood morbidity and mortality in Ethiopia remain high and inequitable. Thus, we estimated the effective coverage of curative child health services in Ethiopia.

Design

We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of data from the 2016 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) and the 2014 Ethiopia Service Provision Assessment Plus (SPA+) survey.

Setting

Nationally representative household and facility surveys.

Participants and outcomes

We included a sample of 2096 children under 5 years old (from DHS) who had symptoms of one or more common childhood illnesses (diarrhoea, fever and acute respiratory infection) and estimated the percentage of sick children who were taken to a health facility (crude coverage). To construct a quality index of child health services, we used the SPA+ survey, which was conducted in 1076 health facilities and included observations of care for 1980 sick children and surveys of 1908 mothers/caregivers and 5328 health providers. We applied the Donabedian quality of care framework to identify 58 quality parameters (structure, 31; process, 16; and outcome, 11) and used the weighted additive method to estimate the overall quality of care index. Finally, we multiplied the crude coverage by the quality of care index to estimate the effective coverage of curative child health services, nationally and by region.

Results

Among the 2096 sick children, only 38.4% (95% CI: 36.5 to 40.4) of them were taken to a health facility. The overall quality of care was 54.4%, weighted from structure (30.0%), process (9.2%) and outcome (15.2%). The effective coverage of curative child health services was estimated at 20.9% (95%CI: 19.9 to 22.0) nationally, ranging from 16.9% in Somali to 34.6% in Dire Dawa regions.

Conclusions

System-wide interventions are required to address both demand-side and supply-side bottlenecks in the provision of child health services if child health-related targets are to be achieved in Ethiopia.
Efficacy of avoiding chest drains after video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery wedge resection: protocol for a randomised controlled trial
Authors: Holbek Bo Laksáfoss , Huang Lin , Christensen Thomas Decker , Bendixen Morten , Hansen Henrik Jessen , Kehlet Henrik , Petersen Rene Horsleben
Published: February 2024

Introduction

The use of routine postoperative chest drains after video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) of the lung is a practice based on tradition with the aim of draining fluid and air. However, new evidence suggests that chest drains can be avoided in selected cases. With this randomised controlled trial, we wish to establish the efficacy and safety of avoiding postoperative chest drains compared with routine postoperative chest drains.

Methods and analysis

This is a two-centre randomised controlled trial without allocation concealment, but where randomisation occurs after the end of procedure leaving operative personnel blinded during surgery. The sample size is calculated to show a difference in pain measurements using the Numeric Rating Scale under different circumstances and at different time points to show superiority of the intervention. The trial is pragmatic by design to reflect the daily clinical scenario and with the aim of increasing the external validity of the results.

Ethics and dissemination

Approval by the local ethics committees has been obtained for both sites. The study was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05358158) prior to inclusion. The results of the trial will be disseminated by publication in an international journal and presentation at major international thoracic surgical meetings.

Article summary

This is a randomised controlled trial estimating the effects of avoiding a chest drain after VATS wedge resection of the lung on pain, total morphine use, quality of life and complications.

Trial registration number

NCT05358158.
Needs and views on eye health and women’s empowerment and theory of change map: implication on the development of a women-targeted eyecare programme for older Zanzibari craftswomen
Authors: Omar Fatma , McCluskey Kayleigh , Mashayo Eden , Yong Ai Chee , Mulewa Damaris , Graham Christine , Price-Sanchez Carlos , Othman Omar , Graham Ronnie , Chan Ving Fai
Published: February 2024

Objectives

To assess needs and views regarding eye health and empowerment from craftswomen’s perspectives to develop a theory of change (ToC) for a women-targeted eyecare programme.

Material and methods

Eighteen stakeholders participated in a 2-day consultation workshop in Zanzibar. The composition was (1) 15 women and 3 men; (2) Unguja (n=8), Pemba (n=6) and Tanzania mainland (n=4) and (3) craftswomen (n=14) and governmental stakeholders (n=4). Thematic analysis determined the craftswomen’s needs and views regarding eye health and empowerment and subsequently inputs, activities, outputs, outcomes and impact to develop the programme’s initial ToC. In refining the initial ToC, we used insights from a qualitative study suggesting that improved near vision is perceived by craftswomen as a potential source of empowerment across economic, psychological, social, political and educational dimensions.

Results

The eye conditions experienced by the craftswomen were eye irritation caused by foreign bodies, the need for near spectacles and other eye morbidities. They were advised by the cooperatives to visit eye health centres for treatment. The main barriers to accessing services were inaccessibility and unaffordability of eye services and a lack of eye health knowledge and practices. Nineteen subthemes on women empowerment (economic n=4, social n=4, psychological n=6, education n=2 and political n=3) were obtained. We created a ToC on how investing in improving craftswomen near vision could achieve empowerment.

Conclusion

The participants provided insights into their needs and how they would like the eyecare programme to be implemented and how they see they could be empowered in the process.
Evaluating the implementation of personalised outcomes forecasts to optimise supervised exercise therapy in patients with intermittent claudication in the Netherlands: a multimethods study
Authors: Marcellis Laura H M , Sinnige Anneroos , Rutgers Katrien M , Kittelson Andrew , Spruijt Steffie , Teijink Joep A W , van der Wees Philip J , Hoogeboom Thomas J
Published: February 2024

Background

To support the optimisation of supervised exercise therapy (SET) in patients with intermittent claudication, we developed personalised outcomes forecasts (POFs), which visualise estimated walking distance and quality of life for individual patients. The POFs may enable healthcare professionals, such as physical and exercise therapists, to improve shared decision-making and patient outcomes.

Objectives

To assess differences in patient outcomes (functional walking distance, maximal walking distance and health-related quality of life) and the level of shared decision-making before and after the implementation of POFs in the conservative treatment of patients with intermittent claudication.

Methods

An interrupted time series design was used to compare preimplementation and postimplementation differences on patient outcomes. Using routinely collected data, differences from baseline to 6 months were compared between patients before and patients after the implementation. To compare levels of shared decision-making, we conducted observations of initial consults within a sample of physical or exercise therapists both before and after the implementation. Audiorecords of observations were scored on shared decision-making using the OPTION-5 instrument.

Results

Differences in improvements between patients with whom POFs were discussed (n=317) and patients before the implementation of POFs (n=721) did not reach statistical significance for both functional walking distance (experimental vs. control=+23%, p=0.11) and maximal walking distance (experimental vs. control=+21%, p=0.08). For health-related quality of life, the POFs-informed patients showed a statistically significant greater improvement of 4% (p=0.04). Increased levels of shared decision-making were observed in postimplementation consults (n=20) when compared with preimplementation consults (n=36), as the median OPTION-5 total score showed a statistically significant increase from 45 to 55 points (p=0.01).

Conclusions

Integrating POFs into daily practice of SET for patients with intermittent claudication could assist in improving health-related quality of life and enhancing patient involvement. Using POFs did not result in statistically significant different improvements between groups on walking distances.

Trial registration number

NL8838.
Modification of the Paediatric Gastro-oesophageal Reflux Disease Symptom and Quality of Life Questionnaire (PGSQ) for children with cerebral palsy: a preliminary study
Authors: Mills Sarah , Tuffrey Catherine , Tbaily Lee , Tighe Mark
Published: February 2024

Objective

Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) is a common condition affecting children, characterised by the passage of gastric contents into the oesophagus causing pain, vomiting and regurgitation. Children with neurodisability (such as cerebral palsy; CP) are predisposed to more severe GORD due to coexisting gut dysmotility and exclusive/supplementary liquid diet; however, there are no existing tools or outcome measures to assess the severity of GORD in this patient group. For children without CP, the ‘Paediatric Gastro-oesophageal Symptom and Quality of Life Questionnaire’ (PGSQ) assesses symptoms and response to treatment, but the questions are not suitable for children with significant cognitive impairment. We aimed to adapt the existing PGSQ assessment tool to enable use in evaluating children with CP and GORD.

Patients/interventions

Cognitive interviews were conducted by the research team with six parents/carers of children (aged 3–15) with CP (Gross Motor Function Classification System level V) who have current or past symptoms of reflux. They were asked to interpret the questionnaire using a ‘think-aloud technique,’ and offer suggestions on alterations to questions. Reasons for changing questions included confusing/difficult to understand questions, differing interpretations of questions and response choices not applying to the patient group.

Results

The PGSQ was modified iteratively following each interview. Overall, parents/carers reported that it was acceptable to recall information over the past 7 days. In the final version, it was felt the questions were relevant, useful and related to symptoms that they observed. It was easy to comprehend with no uncomfortable questions. Suggestions for future work included a section specifically focusing on the school day answered by school staff and home life answered by carers who assist them in the home.

Conclusions

We have adapted the PGSQ to improve relevance and acceptability for families/carers of children with symptoms of GORD and neurodisability. Further work is needed to validate the questionnaire for this patient group.
New blood biomarkers and imaging for disease stratification and monitoring of giant cell arteritis
Authors: Tomelleri Alessandro , Dejaco Christian
Published: February 2024

Relapses and late complications remain a concern in giant cell arteritis (GCA). Monitoring strategies are required to effectively tailor treatment and improve patients’ outcomes. Current monitoring of GCA is based on clinical assessment and evaluation of traditional inflammatory markers such as C reactive protein and erythrocyte sedimentation rate; however, this approach has limited value in patients receiving interleukin (IL)-6 blocking agents. New blood biomarkers that are less dependent on the IL-6 axis such as IL-23, B cell activating factor, osteopontin and calprotectin have been explored, but none of them has yet accumulated sufficient evidence to qualify as a routine follow-up parameter. Imaging techniques, including ultrasound and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography, potentially offer additional insights; however, the choice of the imaging method as well as its interpretation must be investigated further. Future studies are required to investigate the outcome of patients with GCA whose treatment decisions are based on traditional plus novel (laboratory and imaging) biomarkers as compared with those undergoing conventional monitoring strategies.
Patients with ankylosing spondylitis present a distinct CD8 T cell subset with osteogenic and cytotoxic potential
Authors: Martini Veronica , Silvestri Ylenia , Ciurea Adrian , Möller Burkhard , Danelon Gabriela , Flamigni Flavio , Jarrossay David , Kwee Ivo , Foglierini Mathilde , Rinaldi Andrea , Cecchinato Valentina , Uguccioni Mariagrazia
Published: February 2024

Objectives

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a chronic inflammatory rheumatic disease affecting mainly the axial skeleton. Peripheral involvement (arthritis, enthesitis and dactylitis) and extra-musculoskeletal manifestations, including uveitis, psoriasis and bowel inflammation, occur in a relevant proportion of patients. AS is responsible for chronic and severe back pain caused by local inflammation that can lead to osteoproliferation and ultimately spinal fusion. The association of AS with the human leucocyte antigen-B27 gene, together with elevated levels of chemokines, CCL17 and CCL22, in the sera of patients with AS, led us to study the role of CCR4+T cells in the disease pathogenesis.

Methods

CD8+CCR4+T cells isolated from the blood of patients with AS (n=76) or healthy donors were analysed by multiparameter flow cytometry, and gene expression was evaluated by RNA sequencing. Patients with AS were stratified according to the therapeutic regimen and current disease score.

Results

CD8+CCR4+T cells display a distinct effector phenotype and upregulate the inflammatory chemokine receptors CCR1, CCR5, CX3CR1 and L-selectin CD62L, indicating an altered migration ability. CD8+CCR4+T cells expressing CX3CR1 present an enhanced cytotoxic profile, expressing both perforin and granzyme B. RNA-sequencing pathway analysis revealed that CD8+CCR4+T cells from patients with active disease significantly upregulate genes promoting osteogenesis, a core process in AS pathogenesis.

Conclusions

Our results shed light on a new molecular mechanism by which T cells may selectively migrate to inflammatory loci, promote new bone formation and contribute to the pathological ossification process observed in AS.
Subcutaneous lacosamide for seizures
Authors: McCarthy Natalie , Freshwater Elizabeth , McCarron Nial
Published: February 2024

The management of seizures at the end of life is vital for patient comfort and to reduce carer distress. The use of high -dose subcutaneous benzodiazepines is standard, but not always effective. We present a case where lacosamide was used subcutaneously to prevent seizure activity.
Increasing aerobic exercise intensity fails to consistently improve the glycemic response in people living with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes mellitus: the INTENSITY trial
Authors: Hrubeniuk Travis J. , Bouchard Danielle R. , Gurd Brendon J. , Sénéchal Martin
Published: February 2024

Some individuals with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) who engage in exercise will not experience the anticipated improvements in glycemic control, referred to as non-responders. Increasing exercise intensity may improve the proportion of individuals who become responders. The objectives were to ( i) identify responders and non-responders based on changes in glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) in individuals with prediabetes or T2DM following 16 weeks of aerobic exercise; ( ii) investigate if increasing exercise intensity enhances the responders’ status for individuals not previously responding favourably to the intervention. Participants ( n = 40; age = 58.0 years (52.0–66.0); HbA1c = 7.0% (6.0–7.2)) engaged in a two-phase, randomized study design. During phase one, participants performed 16 weeks of treadmill-based, supervised, aerobic exercise at 4.5 metabolic equivalents (METs) for 150 min per week. Thereafter, participants were categorized as responders, non-responders, or unclear based on the 90% confidence interval above, below, or crossing a 0.3% reduction in HbA1c. For phase two, participants were randomized to a maintained intensity (4.5 METs) or increased intensity (6.0 METs) group for 12 weeks. Following phase one, two (4.1%) participants were categorized as responders, four (8.2%) as non-responders, and 43 (87.7%) as unclear. Following phase two, two from the increased intensity group and one from the maintained intensity group experienced an improvement in response categorization. There were no significant between or within group (maintained vs. increased) differences in HbA1c. For most people with prediabetes or T2DM, increasing exercise intensity by 1.5 METs does not improve response categorization.
Constraints on the speed of sound in the k-essence model of dark energy
Authors: Dinda Bikash R. , Banerjee Narayan
Published: February 2024

We consider a k-essence scalar field model for the late-time cosmic acceleration in which the sound speed, parametrized as $$c_s$$

c
s

is constant. We compute the relevant background and perturbation quantities corresponding to the observables like cosmic microwave background, type Ia supernova, cosmic chronometers, baryon acoustic oscillations, and the $$f\sigma _8$$

f

σ
8

. We put constraints on the $$c_s^2$$

c
s
2

parameter from these observations along with other parameters. We find lower values of $$c_s^2$$

c
s
2

which are close to zero are tightly constrained. Particularly, we find mean value of $$\log _\textrm{10} (c_s^2)$$

log
10

(

c
s
2

)

to be $$-0.61$$

-
0.61

and $$c_s^2 \le 10^{-3}$$

c
s
2

≤

10

-
3

is more than 3$$\sigma $$
σ
away from this mean value. This means these observations favor a homogeneous dark energy component compared to the clustering one.
Comment on “photons can tell ‘contradictory’ answer about where they have been”
Authors: Reznik Gregory , Versmold Carlotta , Dziewior Jan , Huber Florian , Weinfurter Harald , Dressel Justin , Vaidman Lev
Published: February 2024

Yuan and Feng (Eur. Phys. J. Plus 138:70, 2023) recently proposed a modification of the nested Mach–Zehnder interferometer experiment performed by Danan et al. (Phys. Rev. Lett. 111:240402, 2013) and argued that photons give “contradictory” answers about where they have been, when traces are locally imprinted on them in different ways. They concluded that their results are comprehensible from what they call the “three-path interference viewpoint,” but difficult to explain from the “discontinuous trajectory” viewpoint advocated by Danan et al. We argue that the weak trace approach (the basis of the “discontinuous trajectory” viewpoint) provides a consistent explanation of the Yuan–Feng experiment. The contradictory messages of the photons are just another example of photons lying about where they have been when the experimental method of Danan et al. is applied in an inappropriate setup.
Simultaneous Gamma-Neutron Vision device: a portable and versatile tool for nuclear inspections
Authors: Lerendegui-Marco Jorge , Babiano-Suárez Víctor , Balibrea-Correa Javier , Caballero Luis , Calvo David , Ladarescu Ion , Domingo-Pardo César
Published: February 2024

This work presents GN-Vision, a novel dual γ-ray and neutron imaging system, which aims at simultaneously obtaining information about the spatial origin of γ-ray and neutron sources. The proposed device is based on two position sensitive detection planes and exploits the Compton imaging technique for the imaging of γ-rays. In addition, spatial distributions of slow- and thermal-neutron sources (<100 eV) are reconstructed by using a passive neutron pin-hole collimator attached to the first detection plane. The proposed gamma-neutron imaging device could be of prime interest for nuclear safety and security applications. The two main advantages of this imaging system are its high efficiency and portability, making it well suited for nuclear applications were compactness and real-time imaging is important. This work presents the working principle and conceptual design of the GN-Vision system and explores, on the basis of Monte Carlo simulations, its simultaneous γ-ray and neutron detection and imaging capabilities for a realistic scenario where a 252Cf source is hidden in a neutron moderating container.
The temperature effect on the q-deformed optomechanical oscillator motion
Authors: Batouli J. , Rfifi S. , El Baz M. , Boulezhar A.
Published: February 2024

In this paper, we study the quantum mechanical behavior of a deformed bare optomechanical oscillator interacting with a heat bath. This statistical study takes into account the temperature effect and the time dependency. Many material realizations can be inspired from our work during the experimental process to adjust many physical parameter values to have the right mechanical sensitivity of these materials.
Intelligent Library Service Transformation Strategies Based on Convolutional Networks in the Information Age in the Context of Digital Transformation
Authors: Miao Ruiqiang
Published: February 2024

At present, the sorting work of library books heavily relies on manual labour, and the sorting process is time-consuming and laborious. To address the above issues, in the context of digital transformation in the information age, a strategy research of intelligent library service transformation based on convolutional network is proposed to achieve intelligent daily maintenance regarding libraries. In particular, the arrangement of books based on category and order is resolved. First, the Canny operator detection algorithm combined with straight line is used to extract the book spine from the book image. Second, the Faster-RCNN-based target detection algorithm is selected to locate the claim number. The positioning accuracy also reaches 96% in the positioning test, which is also better than other algorithms. The specific detection time is 100s. Then the method is used to segment the characters, and the accuracy is 97%. Finally, in the character recognition of library book request numbers, the feature extraction effect of character images based on convolutional networks is the best. Compared with 95% and 96% of other algorithms, the average recognition rate is 97%, which also improves network performance. The comparative experimental findings suggest that the convolutional network algorithm can effectively achieve the information detection and book order recognition of library common claim numbers, providing a feasible solution for library intelligence.
Finite size corrections for real eigenvalues of the elliptic Ginibre matrices
Authors: Byun Sung-Soo , Lee Yong-Woo
Published: February 2024

In this paper, we consider the elliptic Ginibre matrices in the orthogonal symmetry class that interpolates between the real Ginibre ensemble and the Gaussian orthogonal ensemble. We obtain the finite size corrections of the real eigenvalue densities in both the global and edge scaling regimes, as well as in both the strong and weak non-Hermiticity regimes. Our results extend and provide the rate of convergence to the previous recent findings in the aforementioned limits. In particular, in the Hermitian limit, our results recover the finite size corrections of the Gaussian orthogonal ensemble established by Forrester, Frankel and Garoni.
"How fancy you are to make us use your fancy tool": Coordinating Individuals' Tool Preference over Group Boundaries
Authors: Zhang Qianqia (Queenie) , Park Soya , Muller Michael , Karger David R.
Published: February 2024

When a group makes a decision, it necessitates the understanding and amalgamation of information from different group members. This process becomes particularly intricate in cross-boundary teams, which consist of individuals from diverse organizational backgrounds, each bringing in unique informational tools and representation modalities. People share information generated from their personal tools, and the variance in representation of such information makes it challenging to form cohesive group decisions. We conducted workshop studies with 11 knowledge workers to understand current practices of tool adaptation and negotiation in such teams. The results indicate a reluctance to adopt new tools due to perceived violations of social acceptance, often leading to negative judgments of those suggesting new tools. Consequently, participants in cross-boundary teams gravitated towards their preferred tools, complicating the aggregation of inputs and impeding cohesive decision-making. To address these challenges, we developed a platform facilitating sensemaking and decision-making without necessitating compromises on tool preferences. In our mixed-method within-subject experiments, this approach enabled faster, more informed decision-making with reduced mental load and increased engagement through enhanced social interaction and acknowledgment of diverse contributions.
To Share or Not to Share: Understanding and Modeling Individual Disclosure Preferences in Recommender Systems for the Workplace
Authors: Musick Geoff , Duan Wen , Najafian Shabnam , Sengupta Subhasree , Flathmann Christopher , Knijnenburg Bart , McNeese Nathan
Published: February 2024

Newly-formed teams often encounter the challenge of members coming together to collaborate on a project without prior knowledge of each other's working and communication styles. This lack of familiarity can lead to conflicts and misunderstandings, hindering effective teamwork. Derived from research in social recommender systems, team recommender systems have shown the ability to address this challenge by providing personality- derived recommendations that help individuals interact with teammates with differing personalities. However, such an approach raises privacy concerns as to whether teammates would be willing to disclose such personal information with their team. Using a vignette survey conducted via a research platform that hosts a team recommender system, this study found that context and individual differences significantly impact disclosure preferences related to team recommender systems. Specifically, when working in interdependent teams where success required collective performance, participants were more likely to disclose personality information related to Emotionality and Extraversion unconditionally. Drawing on these findings, this study created and evaluated a machine learning model to predict disclosure preferences based on group context and individual differences, which can help tailor privacy considerations in team recommender systems prior to interaction.
Who's Got My Back? Measuring the Adoption of an Internet-wide BGP RTBH Service
Authors: Anghel Radu , Zhauniarovich Yury , Gañán Carlos
Published: February 2024

Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks continue to threaten the availability of Internet-based services. While countermeasures exist to decrease the impact of these attacks, not all operators have the resources or knowledge to deploy them. Alternatively, anti-DDoS services such as DDoS clearing houses and blackholing have emerged. Unwanted Traffic Removal Service (UTRS), being one of the oldest community-based anti-DDoS services, has become a global free collaborative service that aims at mitigating major DDoS attacks through the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP). Once the BGP session with UTRS is established, UTRS members can advertise part of the prefixes belonging to their AS to UTRS. UTRS will forward them to all other participants, who, in turn, should start blocking traffic to the advertised IP addresses. In this paper, we develop and evaluate a methodology to automatically detect UTRS participation in the wild. To this end, we deploy a measurement infrastructure and devise a methodology to detect UTRS-based traffic blocking. Using this methodology, we conducted a longitudinal analysis of UTRS participants over ten weeks. Our results show that at any point in time, there were 562 participants, including multihomed, stub, transit, and IXP ASes. Moreover, we surveyed 245 network operators to understand why they would (not) join UTRS. Results show that threat and coping appraisal significantly influence the intention to participate in UTRS.
Heavy-Traffic Optimal Size- and State-Aware Dispatching
Authors: Xie Runhan , Grosof Isaac , Scully Ziv
Published: February 2024

Dispatching systems, where arriving jobs are immediately assigned to one of multiple queues, are ubiquitous in computer systems and service systems. A natural and practically relevant model is one in which each queue serves jobs in FCFS (First-Come First-Served) order. We consider the case where the dispatcher is size-aware, meaning it learns the size (i.e. service time) of each job as it arrives; and state-aware, meaning it always knows the amount of work (i.e. total remaining service time) at each queue. While size- and state-aware dispatching to FCFS queues has been extensively studied, little is known about optimal dispatching for the objective of minimizing mean delay. A major obstacle is that no nontrivial lower bound on mean delay is known, even in heavy traffic (i.e. the limit as load approaches capacity). This makes it difficult to prove that any given policy is optimal, or even heavy-traffic optimal. In this work, we propose the first size- and state-aware dispatching policy that provably minimizes mean delay in heavy traffic. Our policy, called CARD (Controlled Asymmetry Reduces Delay), keeps all but one of the queues short, then routes as few jobs as possible to the one long queue. We prove an upper bound on CARD's mean delay, and we prove the first nontrivial lower bound on the mean delay of any size- and state-aware dispatching policy. Both results apply to any number of servers. Our bounds match in heavy traffic, implying CARD's heavy-traffic optimality. In particular, CARD's heavy-traffic performance improves upon that of LWL (Least Work Left), SITA (Size Interval Task Assignment), and other policies from the literature whose heavy-traffic performance is known.
SCADA World: An Exploration of the Diversity in Power Grid Networks
Authors: Ortiz Neil , Cardenas Alvaro A. , Wool Avishai
Published: February 2024

Despite a growing interest in understanding the industrial control networks that monitor and control our critical infrastructures (such as the power grid), to date, SCADA networks have been analyzed in isolation from each other. They have been treated as monolithic networks without taking into consideration their differences. In this paper, we analyze real-world data from different parts of a power grid (generation, transmission, distribution, and end-consumer) and show that these industrial networks exhibit a variety of unique behaviors and configurations that have not been documented before. To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first to tackle the analysis of power grid networks at this level. Our results help us dispel several misconceptions proposed by previous work, and we also provide new insights into the differences and types of SCADA networks.
Approximations to Study the Impact of the Service Discipline in Systems with Redundancy
Authors: Gast Nicolas , Van Houdt Benny
Published: February 2024

As job redundancy has been recognized as an effective means to improve performance of large-scale computer systems, queueing systems with redundancy have been studied by various authors. Existing results include methods to compute the queue length distribution and response time but only when the service discipline is First-Come-First-Served (FCFS). For other service disciplines, such as Processor Sharing (PS), or Last-Come-First-Served (LCFS), only the stability conditions are known. In this paper we develop the first methods to approximate the queue length distribution in a queueing system with redundancy under various service disciplines. We focus on a system with exponential job sizes, i.i.d. copies, and a large number of servers. We first derive a mean field approximation that is independent of the scheduling policy. In order to study the impact of service discipline, we then derive refinements of this approximation to specific scheduling policies. In the case of Processor Sharing, we provide a pair and a triplet approximation. The pair approximation can be regarded as a refinement of the classic mean field approximation and takes the service discipline into account, while the triplet approximation further refines the pair approximation. We also develop a pair approximation for three other service disciplines: First-Come-First-Served, Limited Processor Sharing and Last-Come-First-Served. We present numerical evidence that shows that all the approximations presented in the paper are highly accurate, but that none of them are asymptotically exact (as the number of servers goes to infinity). This makes these approximations suitable to study the impact of the service discipline on the queue length distribution. Our results show that FCFS yields the shortest queue length, and that the differences are more substantial at higher loads.
Fair Resource Allocation in Virtualized O-RAN Platforms
Authors: Aslan Fatih , Iosifidis George , Ayala-Romero Jose A. , Garcia-Saavedra Andres , Costa-Perez Xavier
Published: February 2024

O-RAN systems and their deployment in virtualized general-purpose computing platforms (O-Cloud) constitute a paradigm shift expected to bring unprecedented performance gains. However, these architectures raise new implementation challenges and threaten to worsen the already-high energy consumption of mobile networks. This paper presents first a series of experiments which assess the O-Cloud's energy costs and their dependency on the servers' hardware, capacity and data traffic properties which, typically, change over time. Next, it proposes a compute policy for assigning the base station data loads to O-Cloud servers in an energy-efficient fashion; and a radio policy that determines at near-real-time the minimum transmission block size for each user so as to avoid unnecessary energy costs. The policies balance energy savings with performance, and ensure that both of them are dispersed fairly across the servers and users, respectively. To cater for the unknown and time-varying parameters affecting the policies, we develop a novel online learning framework with fairness guarantees that apply to the entire operation horizon of the system (long-term fairness). The policies are evaluated using trace-driven simulations and are fully implemented in an O-RAN compatible system where we measure the energy costs and throughput in realistic scenarios.
Recurrent Urolithiasis Revealing Primary Hyperparathyroidism in a Nephrology Department
Authors: Meriam Hajji , Kaaroud Hayet , Karray Rahma , Ben Hamida Fethi , Bouzid Kahena , Abderrahim Ezzeddine
Published: February 2024

Background. Urinary lithiasis constitutes a recurrent pathology affecting a relatively young population. The risk of progression to chronic renal failure and the cost of treatment are the most important issues. Primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) is responsible for urolithiasis and nephrocalcinosis in 7% of patients, and it represents the 7th cause of urolithiasis in Tunisia. Unfortunately, it remains an underdiagnosed pathology although it is curable. We aim to determine the clinical, biological, therapeutic, and evolutionary particularities of urinary lithiasis associated with PHPT in a nephrology setting. Methods. This is a monocentric, retrospective, descriptive study which took place in our nephrology department during the period from January 2010 to January 2023. Ten patients were included. All of them underwent blood and urine tests and a morphoconstitutional study of the urinary stones if possible. Results. The median age at diagnosis of PHPT was 42 years (34–54). The median time from the onset of kidney stones to the diagnosis of PHPT was 6.2 years (1–17). The male/female gender ratio was 0.66. Five patients had hypertension, two patients had obesity, one patient had diabetes, and three patients had urinary tract infections. Kidney stones were bilateral in eight cases and unilateral in two cases. Nine patients underwent urological intervention: surgery in 5 cases associated with nephrectomy in one case, extracorporeal lithotripsy in 4 cases, and percutaneous nephrolithotomy in two cases. The diagnosis of PHPT was retained with high or uncontrolled PTH associated with hypercalcemia in 8 cases and normocalcemic PHPT was found in 2 patients. Two patients had parathyroid adenoma and one patient had mediastinal adenoma. Radiology exploration was normal for the others patients. Surgery was performed in 7 patients and histology revealed an adenoma in 5 cases and hyperplasia in one case. The predominant urinary risk factors in our study were hypercalciuria in 6 cases and insufficient diuresis in 4 cases. Conclusion. This study underlines the role of the nephrologist in the exploration of urinary lithiasis and the prevention of recurrences, especially as PHPT is a curable aetiology of urolithiasis and affects a relatively young population. The determination of the epidemiological profile of patients with stones associated with primary PHPT and lithogenic risk factors allows the primary and secondary prevention of stone formation.
Mechanistics of pH-Dependent Sulfmyoglobin Formation: Spin Control and His64 Proton Relay
Authors: Rodriguez-Mackenzie Angel D. , Santos-Velazquez Lysmarie , Arbelo-Lopez Héctor D. , Wymore Troy , Lopez-Garriga Juan
Published: February 2024

The chemistry of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) has been directed towards physiologically relevant hemeproteins, including myoglobin, hemoglobin, and other similar proteins. Despite substantial efforts, there remains a need to elucidate the mechanism and identify the species involved in the reaction between oxy-hemeproteins and H2S. Here, we summarize both our experimental data and computational modeling results revealing the mechanisms by which sulfmyoglobin (sulfMb) and sulfhemoglobin (sulfHb) are formed. Our experimental data at pH 7.4 reveal differences in intensity between sulfMb and sulfHb chromophores in the 620 nm charge transfer region. This behavior could be attributed to the incomplete reaction of tetrameric oxy-Hb with H2S, where not all heme groups form sulfheme. The data also show that, for the reaction of oxy-myoglobin (oxy-Mb) and H2S, the 622 nm charge transfer band increases in intensity from a pH of 6.6 to 5.0. This increase is attributed to the presence of the heme pocket distal His64εδ, which is positively charged, resulting in an elevated yield of sulfMb formation compared to the mono-protonated tautomer, His64ε. Computational hybrid QM/MM methods support the conclusion, indicating that oxy-Mb His64εδ (pH 5.0) reacts with H2S in the triplet state, favored by −31.0 kcal/mol over the singlet His64ε (pH 6.6) species. The phenomenon is facilitated by a hydrogen bonding network within the heme pocket, between His64εδ, heme Fe(II)O2, and H2S. The results establish an energetically favored quantitative mechanism to produce sulfMb (−69.1 kcal/mol) from the reactions of oxy-Mb and H2S. Curiously, the mechanism between met-aquo Mb, H2O2, and H2S shows similar reaction pathways and leads to sulfheme formation (−135.3 kcal/mol). The energetic barrier towards intermediate Cpd-0 is the limiting step in sulfheme formation for both systems. ‬Both mechanisms show that the thiyl radical, HS•, is the species attacking the β-β double bond of heme pyrrole B, leading to the sulfheme structure.
A Competitive Bilevel Programming Model for Green, CLSCs in Light of Government Incentives
Authors: Rahmani Arsalan , Hosseini Meysam , Sahami Amir
Published: February 2024

The growth of world population has fueled environmental, legal, and social concerns, making governments and companies attempt to mitigate the environmental and social implications stemming from supply chain operations. The state-run Environmental Protection Agency has initially offered financial incentives (subsidies) meant to encourage supply chain managers to use cleaner technologies in order to minimize pollution. In today’s competitive markets, using green technologies remains vital. In the present project, we have examined a class of closed-loop supply chain competitive facility location-routing problems. According to the framework of the competition, one of the players, called the Leader, opens its facilities first. The second player, called the Follower, makes its decision when Leader’s location is known. Afterwards, each customer chooses an open facility based on some preference huff rules before returning the benefits to one of the two companies. The follower, under the influence of the leader’s decisions, performs the best reaction in order to obtain the maximum capture of the market. So, a bilevel mixed-integer linear programming model is formulated. The objective function at both levels includes market capture profit, fixed and operating costs, and financial incentives. A metaheuristic quantum binary particle swarm optimization (PSO) is developed via Benders decomposition algorithm to solve the proposed model. To evaluate the convergence rate and solution quality, the method is applied to some random test instances generated in the literature. The computational results indicate that the proposed method is capable of efficiently solving the model.
Different Methods of Winning, Losing, and Training in Combat Sports and Their Relationship with Overall Competitive Winningness
Authors: Barley Oliver R. , Harms Craig A.
Published: February 2024

This study aimed to investigate how overall competitive winningness in combat sports depended on patterns of victory and loss, as well as training habits. Competitors (N = 280) from several combat sports participated in the study. The online survey included questions on self-reported patterns of victory (and loss), training habits, general demographics (e.g., age), and sport-specific information (e.g., stage of career and competitive style). Overall, it was found across four models that reflected diversity of winningness in combat sports that the most important predictors of competitive winningness were loss by points (negative), loss by submission (negative), loss (negative) or victory (positive) by throw or technical fall, and loss (negative) or victory (positive) by knockout. The findings applied to amateur and regional/state athletes, and rarely to karate or tae kwon do. Findings around demographics or training habits were largely unremarkable, outside of a relationship between higher training loads and less career winning in wrestlers. Results show that while winning via a finishing sequence (e.g., knockout or submission) is preferable to the judge’s decision or points, the matter of victory is less important than the methods by which an athlete loses. In grappling-only sports, we observed a trend that more losses via finishing sequence were worse for careers than losing by points. In fact, having most of one’s losses coming via judge’s decision or points was beneficial in wrestling and judo, perhaps due to athletes taking less risks and having better defence. These findings may aid practitioners developing effective tactics and training programs.
Periostin Is a Candidate Regulator of the Host Microenvironment in Regeneration of Pulp and Dentin Complex and Periodontal Ligament in Transplantation with Stem Cell‐Conditioned Medium
Authors: Sakatoku Shintarou , Hayashi Yuki , Futenma Taku , Sugita Yoshihiko , Ishizaka Ryo , Nawa Hiroyuki , Iohara Koichiro
Published: February 2024

Purpose. The microenvironment is required for tissues to maintain their properties in vivo. This microenvironment encompasses the types and three‐dimensional arrangement of cells forming the tissues, and their interactions with neighboring cells and extracellular matrices, as represented by the stem cell niche. Tissue regeneration depends not on the original tissue source of the transplanted cells, but on the microenvironment in which they are transplanted. We have previously reported pulp regeneration in a heterotopic root graft model by transplantation of conditioned medium alone, which suggests that host‐derived cells expressing receptors for migration factors in conditioned medium migrate into the root canal and cause pulp regeneration. Regenerative medicine is needed to restore the original function of complex tissues. To achieve this, it is necessary to reproduce the changes in the microenvironment of the host tissue that accompany the regenerative response. Therefore, it is important to reproduce the microenvironment in vivo for further development of tissue regeneration therapy. Periostin is also found in the epithelial–mesenchymal junction, with expression sites that differ depending on the mineralized matrix stage, and is involved in regulation of calcification. Methods. We investigate whether periostin contributes to microenvironmental changes in regenerated pulp tissue. Dental pulp stem cells were induced into dentin, and gene expression of DSPP, nestin, DMP1, Runx2, and periostin was analyzed by qPCR and protein expression by IHC. Similarly, gene expression was analyzed using qPCR and protein expression using IHC in regenerated dental pulp obtained by ectopic transplantation. Results. Since these regenerated tissues were observable on the same slice, it was possible to understand changes in the microenvironment within the tissues. Conclusions. Periostin promoted proliferation of pulp stem cells, migration in type I collagen, and calcification in regenerated pulp, which strongly suggests that periostin is a promising candidate as a factor that contributes to the microenvironment of regenerated pulp.
ANXA3-Rich Exosomes Derived from Tumor-Associated Macrophages Regulate Ferroptosis and Lymphatic Metastasis of Laryngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Authors: Xu Licheng , Li Wenjing , Liu Danxi , Cao Jing , Ge Jingchun , Liu Xinyu , Wang Yue , Teng Yujian , Liu Pengyan , Guo Xinyue , He Chen , Liu Ming , Tian Linli
Published: February 2024

Tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) induce immunosuppression in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC). The interaction between LSCC cells and TAMs affects the progression of laryngeal cancer through exosomes, but the underlying molecular mechanism remains unclear. Proteomics analysis of TAMs isolated from human laryngeal tumor tissues obtained from patients with confirmed lymphatic metastasis revealed an upregulation of annexin A3 (ANXA3). In TAMs, ANXA3 promoted macrophages to polarize to an M2-like phenotype by activating the AKT–GSK3β–β-catenin pathway. In addition, ANXA3-rich exosomes derived from TAMs inhibited ferroptosis in laryngeal cancer cells through an ATF2–CHAC1 axis, and this process was associated with lymphatic metastasis. Mechanistically, ANXA3 in exosomes inhibited the ubiquitination of ATF2, whereas ATF2 acted as a transcription factor to regulate the expression of CHAC1, thus inhibiting ferroptosis in LSCC cells. These data indicate that abnormal ANXA3 expression can drive TAM reprogramming and promote an immunosuppressive microenvironment in LSCC. Meanwhile, ANXA3-rich exosomes inhibit ferroptosis of LSCC cells and promote lymphatic metastasis, thus promoting tumor progression.
Table S4 from NRF2 Activation in Trp53;p16-deficient Mice Drives Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Authors: Hamad Samera H. , Sellers Rani S. , Wamsley Nathan , Zolkind Paul , Schrank Travis P. , Major Michael B. , Weissman Bernard E.
Published: February 2024

Table S4 shows other invasive tumors developed by CP and CPN mice.
Table S3 from NRF2 Activation in Trp53;p16-deficient Mice Drives Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Authors: Hamad Samera H. , Sellers Rani S. , Wamsley Nathan , Zolkind Paul , Schrank Travis P. , Major Michael B. , Weissman Bernard E.
Published: February 2024

Table S3 shows IHC-NRF2 score in control tissues from CP & CPN mice treated with TMX
Table S1 from NRF2 Activation in Trp53;p16-deficient Mice Drives Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Authors: Hamad Samera H. , Sellers Rani S. , Wamsley Nathan , Zolkind Paul , Schrank Travis P. , Major Michael B. , Weissman Bernard E.
Published: February 2024

Table S1 shows mouse SIL catalogue.