bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Deep brain stimulation of symptom-specific networks in Parkinson’s disease
Authors: Rajamani Nanditha , Friedrich Helen , Butenko Konstantin , Dembek Till , Lange Florian , Navrátil Pavel , Zvarova Patricia , Hollunder Barbara , de Bie Rob M. A. , Odekerken Vincent J. J. , Volkmann Jens , Xu Xin , Ling Zhipei , Yao Chen , Ritter Petra , Neumann Wolf-Julian , Skandalakis Georgios P. , Komaitis Spyridon , Kalyvas Aristotelis , Koutsarnakis Christos , Stranjalis George , Barbe Michael , Milanese Vanessa , Fox Michael D. , Kühn Andrea A. , Middlebrooks Erik , Li Ningfei , Reich Martin , Neudorfer Clemens , Horn Andreas
Published: May 2024

Deep Brain Stimulation can improve tremor, bradykinesia, rigidity, and axial symptoms in patients with Parkinson’s disease. Potentially, improving each symptom may require stimulation of different white matter tracts. Here, we study a large cohort of patients (N = 237 from five centers) to identify tracts associated with improvements in each of the four symptom domains. Tremor improvements were associated with stimulation of tracts connected to primary motor cortex and cerebellum. In contrast, axial symptoms are associated with stimulation of tracts connected to the supplementary motor cortex and brainstem. Bradykinesia and rigidity improvements are associated with the stimulation of tracts connected to the supplementary motor and premotor cortices, respectively. We introduce an algorithm that uses these symptom-response tracts to suggest optimal stimulation parameters for DBS based on individual patient’s symptom profiles. Application of the algorithm illustrates that our symptom-tract library may bear potential in personalizing stimulation treatment based on the symptoms that are most burdensome in an individual patient.
Quantum computation of frequency-domain molecular response properties using a three-qubit iToffoli gate
Authors: Sun Shi-Ning , Marinelli Brian , Koh Jin Ming , Kim Yosep , Nguyen Long B. , Chen Larry , Kreikebaum John Mark , Santiago David I. , Siddiqi Irfan , Minnich Austin J.
Published: May 2024

The quantum computation of molecular response properties on near-term quantum hardware is a topic of substantial interest. Computing these properties directly in the frequency domain is desirable, but the circuits require large depth if the typical hardware gate set consisting of single- and two-qubit gates is used. While high-fidelity multipartite gates have been reported recently, their integration into quantum simulation and the demonstration of improved accuracy of the observable properties remains to be shown. Here, we report the application of a high-fidelity multipartite gate, the iToffoli gate, to the computation of frequency-domain response properties of diatomic molecules. The iToffoli gate enables a ~50% reduction in circuit depth and ~40% reduction in circuit execution time compared to the traditional gate set. We show that the molecular properties obtained with the iToffoli gate exhibit comparable or better agreement with theory than those obtained with the native CZ gates. Our work is among the first demonstrations of the practical usage of a native multi-qubit gate in quantum simulation, with diverse potential applications to near-term quantum computation.
Integrated omics of Saccharomyces cerevisiae CENPK2-1C reveals pleiotropic drug resistance and lipidomic adaptations to cannabidiol
Authors: Jordan Erin Noel , Shirali Hossein Zade Ramin , Pillay Stephanie , van Lent Paul , Abeel Thomas , Kayser Oliver
Published: May 2024

Yeast metabolism can be engineered to produce xenobiotic compounds, such as cannabinoids, the principal isoprenoids of the plant Cannabis sativa, through heterologous metabolic pathways. However, yeast cell factories continue to have low cannabinoid production. This study employed an integrated omics approach to investigate the physiological effects of cannabidiol on S. cerevisiae CENPK2-1C yeast cultures. We treated the experimental group with 0.5 mM CBD and monitored CENPK2-1C cultures. We observed a latent-stationary phase post-diauxic shift in the experimental group and harvested samples in the inflection point of this growth phase for transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis. We compared the transcriptomes of the CBD-treated yeast and the positive control, identifying eight significantly overexpressed genes with a log fold change of at least 1.5 and a significant adjusted p-value. Three notable genes were PDR5 (an ABC-steroid and cation transporter), CIS1, and YGR035C. These genes are all regulated by pleiotropic drug resistance linked promoters. Knockout and rescue of PDR5 showed that it is a causal factor in the post-diauxic shift phenotype. Metabolomic analysis revealed 48 significant spectra associated with CBD-fed cell pellets, 20 of which were identifiable as non-CBD compounds, including fatty acids, glycerophospholipids, and phosphate-salvage indicators. Our results suggest that mitochondrial regulation and lipidomic remodeling play a role in yeast’s response to CBD, which are employed in tandem with pleiotropic drug resistance (PDR). We conclude that bioengineers should account for off-target product C-flux, energy use from ABC-transport, and post-stationary phase cell growth when developing cannabinoid-biosynthetic yeast strains.
Polyanhydride nanovaccine against H3N2 influenza A virus generates mucosal resident and systemic immunity promoting protection
Authors: Lopez Christopher E. , Zacharias Zeb R. , Ross Kathleen A. , Narasimhan Balaji , Waldschmidt Thomas J. , Legge Kevin L.
Published: May 2024

Influenza A virus (IAV) causes significant morbidity and mortality worldwide due to seasonal epidemics and periodic pandemics. The antigenic drift/shift of IAV continually gives rise to new strains and subtypes, aiding IAV in circumventing previously established immunity. As a result, there has been substantial interest in developing a broadly protective IAV vaccine that induces, durable immunity against multiple IAVs. Previously, a polyanhydride nanoparticle-based vaccine or nanovaccine (IAV-nanovax) encapsulating H1N1 IAV antigens was reported, which induced pulmonary B and T cell immunity and resulted in cross-strain protection against IAV. A key feature of IAV-nanovax is its ability to easily incorporate diverse proteins/payloads, potentially increasing its ability to provide broad protection against IAV and/or other pathogens. Due to human susceptibility to both H1N1 and H3N2 IAV, several H3N2 nanovaccines were formulated herein with multiple IAV antigens to examine the “plug-and-play” nature of the polyanhydride nanovaccine platform and determine their ability to induce humoral and cellular immunity and broad-based protection similar to IAV-nanovax. The H3N2-based IAV nanovaccine formulations induced systemic and mucosal B cell responses which were associated with antigen-specific antibodies. Additionally, systemic and lung-tissue resident CD4 and CD8 T cell responses were enhanced post-vaccination. These immune responses corresponded with protection against both homologous and heterosubtypic IAV infection. Overall, these results demonstrate the plug-and-play nature of the polyanhydride nanovaccine platform and its ability to generate immunity and protection against IAV utilizing diverse antigenic payloads.
Gender board diversity across Europe throughout four decades
Authors: Drazkowski Hubert , Tyrowicz Joanna , Zalas Sebastian
Published: May 2024

We present a Gender Board Diversity Dataset (GBDD), which provides a cross-country perspective on women in management and supervisory boards that spans between 1985 and 2020. The data covers 43 European countries and accounts for private companies in addition to the stock-listed ones. GBBD was created using firm-level Orbis data. Our measures are based on a sample of more than 28 million unique firms observed for nearly seven years on average and reporting data about nearly 59 million individuals on management and supervisory boards. We provide the measures at the level of industry, country and year (firm-level data is proprietary). We provide three measures. The first is the share of women among all board members in a given industry, country, and year. The second one is the average of the shares of women across firms in a given industry, country and year. We also provide a new measure: the share of firms in a given industry, country and year which report no single woman on their board(s).
Using explainable machine learning and fitbit data to investigate predictors of adolescent obesity
Authors: Kiss Orsolya , Baker Fiona C. , Palovics Robert , Dooley Erin E. , Pettee Gabriel Kelley , Nagata Jason M.
Published: May 2024

Sociodemographic and lifestyle factors (sleep, physical activity, and sedentary behavior) may predict obesity risk in early adolescence; a critical period during the life course. Analyzing data from 2971 participants (M = 11.94, SD = 0.64 years) wearing Fitbit Charge HR 2 devices in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, glass box machine learning models identified obesity predictors from Fitbit-derived measures of sleep, cardiovascular fitness, and sociodemographic status. Key predictors of obesity include identifying as Non-White race, low household income, later bedtime, short sleep duration, variable sleep timing, low daily step counts, and high heart rates (AUCMean = 0.726). Findings highlight the importance of inadequate sleep, physical inactivity, and socioeconomic disparities, for obesity risk. Results also show the clinical applicability of wearables for continuous monitoring of sleep and cardiovascular fitness in adolescents. Identifying the tipping points in the predictors of obesity risk can inform interventions and treatment strategies to reduce obesity rates in adolescents.
Low density phases of TiO2 by cluster self-assembly
Authors: Aguilera-Granja Faustino , Ayuela Andres
Published: May 2024

The interest in titanium dioxide (TiO$$_2$$

2

) phases is growing due to the number of applications in cosmetics, food industry and photocatalysis, an increase that is driven by its exceptional properties when engineered at the nanoscale like in the form of nanoparticles. Our goal is to discover unknown low-density phases of TiO$$_2$$

2

, with potential for applications in various fields. We then use well-known TiO$$_2$$

2

clusters as fundamental building blocks to be self-assembled into unique structures to study their distinct characteristics. Density functional calculations are employed to relax the structures and identify the most stable TiO$$_2$$

2

structures within an energy range of 0.1 eV per atom from the rutile and anatase phases, which are confirmed, validating our methodology. Going beyond conventional phases, we found two-dimensional TiO$$_2$$

2

structures, previously explored in separate studies, and showing typical structures of transition metal dichalcogenide layers, that forge a bridge between different TiO$$_2$$

2

structures. It is noteworthy that our investigation uncovered an entirely novel class of TiO$$_2$$

2

structures featuring hexagonal cages like beehive channels, opening novel phases with huge potential. These discovered low-density phases are interesting, particularly the hexagonal cage structures with remarkable large gaps, because they introduce other dimensions for uncharted applications in the ever-growing TiO$$_2$$

2

landscape.
Passive and low-energy strategies to improve sleep thermal comfort and energy resilience during heat waves and cold snaps
Authors: Aijazi Arfa , Parkinson Thomas , Zhang Hui , Schiavon Stefano
Published: May 2024

Sleep is a pillar of human health and wellbeing. In high- and middle-income countries, there is a great reliance on heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems (HVAC) to control the interior thermal environment in the bedroom. However, these systems are expensive to buy, maintain, and operate while being energy and environmentally intensive—problems that may increase due to climate change. Easily-accessible passive and low-energy strategies, such as fans and electrical heated blankets, address these challenges but their comparative effectiveness for providing comfort in sleep environments has not been studied. We used a thermal manikin to experimentally show that many passive and low-energy strategies are highly effective in supplementing or replacing HVAC systems during sleep. Using passive strategies in combination with low-energy strategies that elevate air movement like ceiling or pedestal fans enhances the cooling effect by three times compared to using fans alone. We extrapolated our experimental findings to estimate heating and cooling effects in two historical case studies: the 2015 Pakistan heat wave and the 2021 Texas power crisis. Passive and low-energy strategies reduced sleep-time heat or cold exposure by 69–91%. The low-energy strategies we tested require one to two orders of magnitude less energy than HVAC systems, and the passive strategies require no energy input. These strategies can also help reduce peak load surges and total energy demand in extreme temperature events. This reduces the need for utility load shedding, which can put individuals at risk of hazardous heat or cold exposure. Our results may serve as a starting point for evidence-based public health guidelines on how individuals can sleep better during heat waves and cold snaps without relying on HVAC.
Recurrence plot embeddings as short segment nonlinear features for multimodal speaker identification using air, bone and throat microphones
Authors: Nawas K. Khadar , Shahina A. , Balachandar Keshav , Maadeshwaran P. , Devanathan N. G. , Kumar Navein , Khan A. Nayeemulla
Published: May 2024

Speech is produced by a nonlinear, dynamical Vocal Tract (VT) system, and is transmitted through multiple (air, bone and skin conduction) modes, as captured by the air, bone and throat microphones respectively. Speaker specific characteristics that capture this nonlinearity are rarely used as stand-alone features for speaker modeling, and at best have been used in tandem with well known linear spectral features to produce tangible results. This paper proposes Recurrent Plot (RP) embeddings as stand-alone, non-linear speaker-discriminating features. Two datasets, the continuous multimodal TIMIT speech corpus and the consonant-vowel unimodal syllable dataset, are used in this study for conducting closed-set speaker identification experiments. Experiments with unimodal speaker recognition systems show that RP embeddings capture the nonlinear dynamics of the VT system which are unique to every speaker, in all the modes of speech. The Air (A), Bone (B) and Throat (T) microphone systems, trained purely on RP embeddings perform with an accuracy of 95.81%, 98.18% and 99.74%, respectively. Experiments using the joint feature space of combined RP embeddings for bimodal (A–T, A–B, B–T) and trimodal (A–B–T) systems show that the best trimodal system (99.84% accuracy) performs on par with trimodal systems using spectrogram (99.45%) and MFCC (99.98%). The 98.84% performance of the B–T bimodal system shows the efficacy of a speaker recognition system based entirely on alternate (bone and throat) speech, in the absence of the standard (air) speech. The results underscore the significance of the RP embedding, as a nonlinear feature representation of the dynamical VT system that can act independently for speaker recognition. It is envisaged that speech recognition too will benefit from this nonlinear feature.
Identification of mine water source based on TPE-LightGBM
Authors: Wang Man , Zhang Jianguo , Li Han , Zhang Bo , Yang Zhenwei
Published: May 2024

Mine water inrush is a serious threat to mine safety production. It is very important to identify water inrush source types quickly to prevent and control water damage. In this study, the aqueous chemical components Na+ + K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Cl−, SO42− and HCO3− of different aquifers in Pingdingshan coalfield were selected as the characteristic values, and the Surface water, Quaternary pore water, Carboniferous limestone karst water, Permian sandstone water, and Cambrian limestone karst water were used as the labels. An intelligent water source discrimination model is proposed by combining data mining, classification models, and reinforcement learning. As outlier data in the samples may interfere with the model recognition ability, the data distribution range was analyzed using box plots, and 20 groups of abnormal samples were excluded. The processed water chemistry data were divided into 80% learning samples and 20% test samples, and the learning samples were fed into a light gradient boosting machine (LightGBM) for training. The tree-structured parson estimator (TPE) obtains the optimal values of the main parameters of LightGBM in a very short time. Substituting the hyperparameters back into the model yields a 13.9% improvement in the accuracy of the model, proving the effectiveness of the TPE algorithm. To further validate the performance of the model, TPE-LightGBM is compared and analyzed with a Random Search-Multi Layer Perceptron Machine (RS-MLP) and Genetic Algorithm-Extreme Gradient Boosting Tree (GA-SVM). The accuracy of TPE-LightGBM, RS-MLP, and GA-SVM is 0.931, 0.759, 0.724 in that order, and the generalization error RMSE is 0.415, 1.05, and 1.313 in that order. The results show that TPE-LightGBM is more advantageous in water source identification and is more resistant to overfitting. By calculating and comparing the information gain of each variable, the contribution of Ca2+ is the highest, so it is necessary to pay attention to the change in Ca2+ concentration. TPE-LightGBM’s high accuracy and generalization ability have a good prospect for the identification of sudden water source types.
Effects of dietary fermented Saccharomyces cerevisiae extract (Hilyses) supplementation on growth, hematology, immunity, antioxidants, and intestinal health in Nile tilapia
Authors: Abd El-Naby Asmaa S. , El Asely Amel M. , Hussein Mona N. , Khattaby Abd El-Rahman A. , Sabry Eman A. , Abdelsalam Mohamed , Samir Fatma
Published: May 2024

This study investigated the effects of dietary supplementation with the product Hilyses on growth performance, feed utilization, nutrient composition, hematological parameters, serum biochemistry, immune function, antioxidant status, and digestive enzyme activity in juvenile Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus, initial body weight 4.24 ± 0.01 g). The fish were fed diets supplemented with Hilyses at concentrations of 0, 1, 2, or 3 g/kg for a period of 8 weeks. The results showed that supplementation with Hilyses at levels up to 2 g/kg diet significantly improved final body weight, weight gain, specific growth rate, feed efficiency ratio, protein efficiency ratio, apparent protein utilization, and energy utilization compared to the control diet without Hilyses. Carcass crude protein content and moisture were significantly higher in Hilyses-fed groups, while crude lipid content decreased at the 3 g/kg supplementation level. Hilyses supplementation enhanced various hematological parameters, including increased red blood cell count, total leukocyte count, hemoglobin concentration, hematocrit, and mean corpuscular volume. Serum biochemistry and immune function markers like total protein, albumin, complement component C3, IgM, and IgG were significantly elevated in the 2 and 3 g/kg Hilyses groups. Antioxidant enzyme activities (catalase, glutathione peroxidase, total superoxide dismutase) were enhanced, and lipid peroxidation was reduced, in the 2 g/kg Hilyses group. Digestive enzyme activities, particularly protease and lipase, were also improved with Hilyses supplementation. Histological examination showed reduced lipid deposition in the liver and increased branching of intestinal villi at the 2 g/kg Hilyses level. Overall, these results indicated that dietary Hilyses supplementation at 2 g/kg diet optimizes growth, feed utilization, nutrient composition, hematology, immunity, antioxidant status, and digestive function in juvenile Nile tilapia.
PIK3CA mutations in endocrine-resistant breast cancer
Authors: Schagerholm Caroline , Robertson Stephanie , Toosi Hosein , Sifakis Emmanouil G. , Hartman Johan
Published: May 2024

Around 75% of breast cancer (BC) patients have tumors expressing the predictive biomarker estrogen receptor α (ER) and are offered endocrine therapy. One-third eventually develop endocrine resistance, a majority with retained ER expression. Mutations in the phosphatidylinositol bisphosphate 3-kinase (PI3K) catalytic subunit encoded by PIK3CA is a proposed resistance mechanism and a pharmacological target in the clinical setting. Here we explore the frequency of PIK3CA mutations in endocrine-resistant BC before and during treatment and correlate to clinical features. Patients with ER-positive (ER +), human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative primary BC with an ER + relapse within 5 years of ongoing endocrine therapy were retrospectively assessed. Tissue was collected from primary tumors (n = 58), relapse tumors (n = 54), and tumor-free lymph nodes (germline controls, n = 62). Extracted DNA was analyzed through panel sequencing. Somatic mutations were observed in 50% (31/62) of the patients, of which 29% occurred outside hotspot regions. The presence of PIK3CA mutations was significantly associated with nodal involvement and mutations were more frequent in relapse than primary tumors. Our study shows the different PIK3CA mutations in endocrine-resistant BC and their fluctuations during therapy. These results may aid investigations of response prediction, facilitating research deciphering the mechanisms of endocrine resistance.
Implementing vision transformer for classifying 2D biomedical images
Authors: Halder Arindam , Gharami Sanghita , Sadhu Priyangshu , Singh Pawan Kumar , Woźniak Marcin , Ijaz Muhammad Fazal
Published: May 2024

In recent years, the growth spurt of medical imaging data has led to the development of various machine learning algorithms for various healthcare applications. The MedMNISTv2 dataset, a comprehensive benchmark for 2D biomedical image classification, encompasses diverse medical imaging modalities such as Fundus Camera, Breast Ultrasound, Colon Pathology, Blood Cell Microscope etc. Highly accurate classifications performed on these datasets is crucial for identification of various diseases and determining the course of treatment. This research paper presents a comprehensive analysis of four subsets within the MedMNISTv2 dataset: BloodMNIST, BreastMNIST, PathMNIST and RetinaMNIST. Each of these selected datasets is of diverse data modalities and comes with various sample sizes, and have been selected to analyze the efficiency of the model against diverse data modalities. The study explores the idea of assessing the Vision Transformer Model’s ability to capture intricate patterns and features crucial for these medical image classification and thereby transcend the benchmark metrics substantially. The methodology includes pre-processing the input images which is followed by training the ViT-base-patch16-224 model on the mentioned datasets. The performance of the model is assessed using key metrices and by comparing the classification accuracies achieved with the benchmark accuracies. With the assistance of ViT, the new benchmarks achieved for BloodMNIST, BreastMNIST, PathMNIST and RetinaMNIST are 97.90%, 90.38%, 94.62% and 57%, respectively. The study highlights the promise of Vision transformer models in medical image analysis, preparing the way for their adoption and further exploration in healthcare applications, aiming to enhance diagnostic accuracy and assist medical professionals in clinical decision-making.
Controlling stimulus ambiguity reduces spurious creative ideation variance in a cyclic adaptation of the alternative uses task
Authors: Witczak Olga , Krzysik Iga , Bromberek-Dyzman Katarzyna , Thierry Guillaume , Jończyk Rafał
Published: May 2024

In the alternative uses task (AUT), a well-established creativity assessment, participants propose alternative uses for common items (e.g., a brick) within a 2–3 min timeframe. While idea evaluation is likely involved, the emphasis is strongly on idea generation. Here, we test the value of presenting a word overlapping an image compared to a word only prompt, and we introduce a cyclic adaptation of the AUT explicitly calling on participants to choose their best idea. In Experiment 1, as compared to word only, word + image prompts increased idea fluency but reduced idea originality and variability within a group of native Polish speakers. Thus, word + image prompts improve AUT baselining. In Experiment 2, different participants produced as many ideas as possible within two minutes (List) or their single best idea at the end of each of three 30 s ideation cycles (Cycle). Although originality did not differ between List and Cycle overall, the first three ideas in List were rated as less creative than the ideas in Cycle. Overall, we conclude that using disambiguating images reduces spurious interindividual variability in the AUT while introducing idea evaluation in the task allows us to assess creativity beyond idea generation.
Adherence to dietary recommendations mediates the effect of affective temperaments on infertility treatment outcomes
Authors: Szabo Georgina , Szigeti F. Judit , Sipos Miklos , Varbiro Szabolcs , Gonda Xenia
Published: May 2024

Affective temperaments have been shown to robustly affect infertility treatment success. However, identification of possible mediating factors through which they exert their influence is still lacking. A growing number of results suggest that adherence to recommended treatments may be such a mediator, on the one hand, because affective temperaments are known to influence adherence and, on the other hand, because non-adherence negatively influences the treatment outcome. Recommended treatment of infertility involves, beyond medications, dietary and lifestyle changes. The aim of this retrospective cohort study was to evaluate whether adherence to physician-prescribed diet and physical activity recommendations mediates the effect of affective temperaments on infertility treatment outcomes. Among 308 women who underwent infertility treatment in an Assisted Reproduction Center, affective temperaments, adherence to diet, adherence to physical exercise, and infertility treatment success (clinical pregnancy) were assessed besides detailed medical history and demographic parameters. Associations between affective temperaments, adherence to diet and recommended physical activity, and assisted reproduction outcomes were analyzed using generalized linear models and causal mediation analysis. Adherence to physical activity didn’t have an effect, but diet adherence increased the odds of infertility treatment success by 130% suggesting its role as a potential mediator. Based on causal mediation analysis, higher depressive and anxious temperament scores were directly associated with 63% and 45% lower odds of achieving clinical pregnancy, respectively, with effects not mediated by diet adherence. Higher irritable temperament scores indirectly decreased the odds of achieving clinical pregnancy by 14%, mediated by diet adherence; while higher cyclothymic temperament scores decreased the odds of achieving clinical pregnancy both directly by 51% and indirectly, mediated by diet adherence by 11%. Our results suggest that diet adherence mediates the mechanism by which irritable and cyclothymic affective temperaments influence IVF treatment success. Since adherence is a modifiable risk factor of infertility treatment success, screening for affective temperaments may help to identify potentially high-risk non-adherent patient groups and offer patient-tailored treatment, which may help increase the chances of a successful pregnancy and live birth in women undergoing IVF treatment.
Flavivirus Zika NS4A protein forms large oligomers in liposomes and in mild detergent
Authors: Surya Wahyu , Honey Shwe Sin , Torres Jaume
Published: May 2024

In flaviviruses such as Dengue or Zika, non-structural (NS) NS4A protein forms homo-oligomers, participates in membrane remodelling and is critical for virulence. In both viruses, mature NS4A has the same length and three predicted hydrophobic domains. The oligomers formed by Dengue NS4A are reported to be small (n = 2, 3), based on denaturing SDS gels, but no high-resolution structure of a flavivirus NS4A protein is available, and the size of the oligomer in lipid membranes is not known. Herein we show that crosslinking Zika NS4A protein in lipid membranes results in oligomers at least up to hexamers. Further, sedimentation velocity shows that NS4A in mild detergent C14-betaine appears to be in fast equilibrium between at least two species, where one is smaller, and the other larger, than a trimer or a tetramer. Consistently, sedimentation equilibrium data was best fitted to a model involving an equilibrium between dimers (n = 2) and hexamers (n = 6). Overall, the large, at least hexameric, oligomers obtained herein in liposomes and in mild detergent are more likely to represent the forms of NS4A present in cell membranes.
LASSO-derived model for the prediction of bleeding in aspirin users
Authors: Liang Chen , Wanling Lei , Maofeng Wang
Published: May 2024

Aspirin is widely used for both primary and secondary prevention of panvascular diseases, such as stroke and coronary heart disease (CHD). The optimal balance between reducing panvascular disease events and the potential increase in bleeding risk remains unclear. This study aimed to develop a predictive model specifically designed to assess bleeding risk in individuals using aspirin. A total of 58,415 individuals treated with aspirin were included in this study. Detailed data regarding patient demographics, clinical characteristics, comorbidities, medical history, and laboratory test results were collected from the Affiliated Dongyang Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University. The patients were randomly divided into two groups at a ratio of 7:3. The larger group was used for model development, while the smaller group was used for internal validation. To develop the prediction model, we employed least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression followed by multivariate logistic regression. The performance of the model was assessed through metrics such as the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC), calibration curves, and decision curve analysis (DCA). The LASSO-derived model employed in this study incorporated six variables, namely, sex, operation, previous bleeding, hemoglobin, platelet count, and cerebral infarction. It demonstrated excellent performance at predicting bleeding risk among aspirin users, with a high AUC of 0.866 (95% CI 0.857–0.874) in the training dataset and 0.861 (95% CI 0.848–0.875) in the test dataset. At a cutoff value of 0.047, the model achieved moderate sensitivity (83.0%) and specificity (73.9%). The calibration curve analysis revealed that the nomogram closely approximated the ideal curve, indicating good calibration. The DCA curve demonstrated a favorable clinical net benefit associated with the nomogram model. Our developed LASSO-derived predictive model has potential as an alternative tool for predicting bleeding in clinical settings.
Transgenerational effects of early life stress on the fecal microbiota in mice
Authors: Otaru Nize , Kourouma Lola , Pugin Benoit , Constancias Florentin , Braegger Christian , Mansuy Isabelle M. , Lacroix Christophe
Published: May 2024

Stress in early life can affect the progeny and increase the risk to develop psychiatric and cardiometabolic diseases across generations. The cross-generational effects of early life stress have been modeled in mice and demonstrated to be associated with epigenetic factors in the germline. While stress is known to affect gut microbial features, whether its effects can persist across life and be passed to the progeny is not well defined. Here we show that early postnatal stress in mice shifts the fecal microbial composition (binary Jaccard index) throughout life, including abundance of eight amplicon sequencing variants (ASVs). Further effects on fecal microbial composition, structure (weighted Jaccard index), and abundance of 16 ASVs are detected in the progeny across two generations. These effects are not accompanied by changes in bacterial metabolites in any generation. These results suggest that changes in the fecal microbial community induced by early life traumatic stress can be perpetuated from exposed parent to the offspring.
Cryo-EM structure of cadmium-bound human ABCB6
Authors: Choi Seung Hun , Lee Sang Soo , Lee Hyeon You , Kim Subin , Kim Ji Won , Jin Mi Sun
Published: May 2024

ATP-binding cassette transporter B6 (ABCB6), a protein essential for heme biosynthesis in mitochondria, also functions as a heavy metal efflux pump. Here, we present cryo-electron microscopy structures of human ABCB6 bound to a cadmium Cd(II) ion in the presence of antioxidant thiol peptides glutathione (GSH) and phytochelatin 2 (PC2) at resolutions of 3.2 and 3.1 Å, respectively. The overall folding of the two structures resembles the inward-facing apo state but with less separation between the two halves of the transporter. Two GSH molecules are symmetrically bound to the Cd(II) ion in a bent conformation, with the central cysteine protruding towards the metal. The N-terminal glutamate and C-terminal glycine of GSH do not directly interact with Cd(II) but contribute to neutralizing positive charges of the binding cavity by forming hydrogen bonds and van der Waals interactions with nearby residues. In the presence of PC2, Cd(II) binding to ABCB6 is similar to that observed with GSH, except that two cysteine residues of each PC2 molecule participate in Cd(II) coordination to form a tetrathiolate. Structural comparison of human ABCB6 and its homologous Atm-type transporters indicate that their distinct substrate specificity might be attributed to variations in the capping residues situated at the top of the substrate-binding cavity.
Centroid of the bacterial growth curves: a metric to assess phage efficiency
Authors: Hosseini Nava , Chehreghani Mahdi , Moineau Sylvain , Charette Steve J.
Published: May 2024

Phage replication can be studied using various approaches, including measuring the optical density (OD) of a bacterial culture in a liquid medium in the presence of phages. A few quantitative methods are available to measure and compare the efficiency of phages by using a single index based on the analysis of OD curves. However, these methods are not always applicable to non-canonical OD curves. Using the concept of center of area (centroid), we developed a metric called Centroid Index (CI), sensitive to the trend of the growth curves (OD distribution) including bacterial regrowth, which is not considered by the methods already available. We also provide a user-friendly software to facilitate the calculation of CI. This method offers an alternative and more precise way to determine phage efficiency by considering the OD variations over time, which may help in the selection of phages for biocontrol applications.
Autonomous mining through cooperative driving and operations enabled by parallel intelligence
Authors: Chen Long , Xie Yuting , He Yuhang , Ai Yunfeng , Tian Bin , Li Lingxi , Ge Shirong , Wang Fei-Yue
Published: May 2024

Autonomous mining is promising to address several current issues in the mining sector, such as low productivity, safety concerns, and labor shortages. Although partial automation has been achieved in some mining operations, fully autonomous mining remains challenging due to its complexity and scalability in field environments. Here we propose an autonomous mining framework based on the parallel intelligence methodology, employing self-evolving digital twins to model and guide mining processes in the real world. Our framework features a virtual mining subsystem that learns from simulating real-world scenarios and generates new ones, allowing for low-cost training and testing of the integrated autonomous mining system. Through initial validation and extensive testing, particularly in open-pit mining scenarios, our framework has demonstrated stable and efficient autonomous operations. We’ve since deployed it across more than 30 mines, resulting in the extraction of over 30 million tons of minerals. This implementation effectively eliminates the exposure of human operators to hazardous conditions while ensuring 24-hour uninterrupted operation.
Market-ready U-AST kit: simple, fast, cost-effective solution for concurrently detecting urinary tract infection and antibiotic resistance
Authors: Behere Maheshawari J. , Haldar Soumya
Published: May 2024

There is an increasing demand for an inexpensive, quick, accessible, and simple method for the detection of urinary tract infection (UTI) together with the antibiotic-resistance profile of the infection-causing bacteria.
Self-assembled metal–phenolic network nanoparticles for delivery of a cisplatin prodrug for synergistic chemo-immunotherapy
Authors: Zhang Xingzu , Zong Qingyu , Lin Taian , Ullah Ihsan , Jiang Maolin , Chen Siyi , Tang Wenjie , Guo Yuan , Yuan Youyong , Du Jinzhi
Published: May 2024

Despite cisplatin's pivotal role in clinically proven anticancer drugs, its application has been hampered by severe side effects and a grim prognosis.
Seleno-relaxin analogues: effect of internal and external diselenide bonds on the foldability and a fibrosis-related factor of endometriotic stromal cells
Authors: Satoh Yuri , Ono Yosuke , Takahashi Rikana , Katayama Hidekazu , Iwaoka Michio , Yoshino Osamu , Arai Kenta
Published: May 2024

The [C11UA,C11UB] and [C10UA,C15UA] variants of human relaxin-2, which were synthesized via a one-pot assembly of the component A- and B-chains, efficiently reduced the expression of a tissue fibrosis-related factor in endometriotic stromal cells.
Site-selective synthesis of indanyl-substituted indole derivatives via 1,3-dithiane induced Nazarov cyclization
Authors: Li Jia , Li Liang , Mao Mingming , Li Rui-Peng , Huo Xing , Tang Shouchu
Published: May 2024

We report an efficient site-selective synthetic method to C2 and C3 indanyl-substituted indole derivatives via 1,3-dithianyl induced Nazarov-type cyclization.
Evaluating the contributions to conductivity in room temperature ionic liquids
Authors: Simonis Emily D. , Blanchard G. J.
Published: May 2024

The conductivity of room temperature ionic liquids is not described adequately by the Nernst–Einstein equation, which accounts only for Brownian motion of the ions.
Tracking protein–protein interactions by NMR: conformational selection in human steroidogenic cytochrome P450 CYP17A1 induced by cytochrome b5
Authors: Richard Alaina M. , Estrada D. Fernando , Flynn Liam , Pochapsky Susan Sondej , Scott Emily E. , Pochapsky Thomas C.
Published: May 2024

Extensive sequential NMR resonance assignments in the human steroidogenic cytochrome P450 CYP17A1 permit detailed analysis of the interaction of cytochrome b5 with CYP17A1 that stimulates the ultimate production of testosterone and estrogen.
Thermally activated delayed fluorescence emitters for efficient sensitization of europium(iii)
Authors: Kalluvettukuzhy Neena K. , Maciejczyk Michal R. , Robertson Neil
Published: May 2024

A novel approach for the molecular design of antenna ligands for Ln(iii) ions was demonstrated. TADF emitters have been used for sensitizing Eu(iii) efficiently for the first time with a sensitization efficiency of ∼95% and total PLQY of 85%.
The effect of the DNA support on Pd/DNA catalyzed organic transformations
Authors: Mart Mehmet
Published: May 2024

DNA-supported palladium catalysts (Pd/DNA) have been used in imination, hydrogenation, cross-coupling, and carbonylation reactions. In this mini review, the effectiveness of Pd/DNA catalysts and the impact of the DNA support on the reusability of palladium in recent years has been examined.
Spatially distributed freshwater demand for electricity in Africa
Authors: Gerbens-Leenes P. W. , Vaca-Jiménez S. D. , Holmatov Bunyod , Vanham Davy
Published: May 2024

Annual water withdrawal for the 2534 individual power plants covering Africa.
Removal rate constants are not necessarily constant: the case of organic micropollutant removal in wastewater treatment plants
Authors: van Bergen Tamara J. H. M. , Schipper A. M. , Mooij D. , Ragas A. M. J. , Kuiper M. W. , Hendriks A. J. , Huijbregts M. A. J. , van Zelm R.
Published: May 2024

Removal of organic micropollutants (OMP) in wastewater treatment plants is important to prevent environmental pollution. Removal rate constants are not necessarily constant and OMP concentration positively affects the removal of OMPs in most cases.
Associations between dietary macronutrient quality and asthenozoospermia risk: a hospital-based case-control study
Authors: Li Xiao-Ying , Zhang Yi-Xiao , Wang Xiao-Bin , Nan Yu-Xin , Wang Dong-Dong , Sun Ming-Hun , Chen Hong-Yu , Guo Ren-Hao , Leng Xu , Du Qiang , Pan Bo-Chen , Wu Qi-Jun , Zhao Yu-Hong
Published: May 2024

Dietary macronutrient quality and asthenozoospermia risk.
Efficient oxygen evolution activity of CoFe-PBA heterojunctions using a bimetallic probe (Mo/Cu) at room temperature: construction of multilayered activated structures and cationic vacancies
Authors: Wei Lihai , Liu Zhihao , Wu Xiaodong , Huang Huabo , Jiang Qianqian , Tang Jianguo
Published: May 2024

Multilayer active heterojunctions and Co ionic vacancies (VCo) were successfully constructed by bimetallic probes (Mo/Cu) in CoFe-PBA precursors. This makes it a new strategy for doping various types of isotropic metals at room temperature.
A microfluidic co-culture model for investigating colonocytes–microbiota interactions in colorectal cancer
Authors: Penarete-Acosta Daniel , Stading Rachel , Emerson Laura , Horn Mitchell , Chakraborty Sanjukta , Han Arum , Jayaraman Arul
Published: May 2024

Changes in the abundance of certain bacterial species within the colorectal microbiota correlate with colorectal cancer (CRC) development.
Green synthesis of a thermo/photochromic doped cellulose polymer: a biocompatible film for potential application in cold chain visual tracking
Authors: Azzali A. , Di Filippo M. F. , Bertuccioli L. , Lilburn S. , Panzavolta S. , Grepioni F. , d'Agostino S.
Published: May 2024

A novel photochromic compound has been embedded in a biocompatible cellulose film, creating a composite material that functions as a reusable colorimetric sensor with potential applications in cold chain monitoring.
A Zn(ii) pillared-layer ultramicroporous metal–organic framework with matching molecular pockets for C2H2/CO2 separation
Authors: Yang Rong , Wang Yu , Zhang Tao , Xu Zhen , Cao Jian-Wei , Chen Kai-Jie
Published: May 2024

A pillar-layered ultramicroporous MOF material featuring a C2H2-matching cavity was reported to efficiently separate C2H2 from C2H2/CO2 mixtures.
Possibilities and limitations of solution-state NMR spectroscopy to analyze the ligand shell of ultrasmall metal nanoparticles
Authors: Wolff Natalie , Beuck Christine , Schaller Torsten , Epple Matthias
Published: May 2024

Unlike larger plasmonic nanoparticles, ultrasmall nanoparticles with a diameter of 1–2 nm can be well analyzed by NMR spectroscopy. This gives deep insight into the nature of the organic ligand shell.
Structural regulation of NHC-protected copper(i) clusters through substitution for photoluminescence enhancement
Authors: Yang Yan-Yan , Hao Rui-Chen , Wu Qing-Qing , Luo Peng , Xu Jun , Dong Xi-Yan , Zhang Chuan-Xiang
Published: May 2024

The Cu(i) clusters with Cu2, Cu3 and Cu4 kernel can be synthesized by simply changing the N-substituents onto benzimidazole ring, which could be explained by synergistic effect of steric and electronic properties. Among them, Cu2 exhibited admirable luminescence and processability.
The synthesis and evaluation of novel ALK inhibitors containing the sulfoxide structure
Authors: Yao Han , Ren Yuanyuan , Wu Feng , Liu Jiadai , Cao Longcai , Yan Ming , Li Xingshu
Published: May 2024

With ceritinib as the lead, a series of novel compounds containing the sulfoxide structure were synthesized and evaluated as anaplastic lymphoma kinase inhibitors.
Process optimization and mechanism for the selective extraction of copper(ii) from polymetallic acidic solutions using a polymer inclusion membrane (PIM) with Mextral®5640H as the carrier
Authors: Zhu Shan , Hu Jiugang
Published: May 2024

This study integrates solvent extraction and polymer inclusion membrane (PIM) separation technologies to engineer an innovative PIM membrane material for the selective separation copper from polymetallic acidic solutions.
Comprehensive assessment of enhancing dewaterability of dredged sediments by starch-based flocculant
Authors: Tang Shilei , Huang Shaobin , Chen Pengfei , Wu Zhipeng , Zhao Tianyu
Published: May 2024

Starch-based flocculants markedly improve the dewatering performance of dredged sediments, altering their rheology, and zeta potential among other relevant metrics.
Improving the electrochemical performance of an anionic redox P3-type layered oxide cathode by the synergistic effect by sodium metaborate coating and boron doping
Authors: Ling Zhenxiao , Wu Langyuan , Xiang Yuxuan , Dong Wendi , Qin Lunjie , Qi Xiaodong , Hu Chaogen , Zhang Xiaogang
Published: May 2024

Surface NaBO2 coating and bulk phase boron doping effectively inhibit side reactions on the electrode surface, enhance the participation of manganese in the redox process, and mitigate the irreversible migration of lithium.
MXenes as a hole transport interfacial layer for efficient and air-stable quasi-2D perovskite solar cells
Authors: Sahare Sanjay , Solovan Mykhailo , Smirnova Marina , Scheibe Błażej , Jancelewicz Mariusz , Nowaczyk Grzegorz , Kempiński Mateusz , Ziółek Marcin
Published: May 2024

This work demonstrates the utilization of MXenes as a hole transport interfacial layer for performance and stability improvement in regular device (n–i–p) structures.
ZIF-derived carbon-coated Co9S8 for a silicon anode with superior performance in lithium-ion batteries
Authors: Sun Xiaojie , Chen Ping , Zhou Xue , Liu Ying , Dong Weixiao
Published: May 2024

During the charge and discharge process, silicon reacts with lithium ions, and the volume of the product LixSi after the reaction is much larger than that of silicon before the reaction (∼300%).
Influence of the electronic structures of diketopyrrolopyrrole-based donor–acceptor conjugated polymers on thermoelectric performance
Authors: Kim Sang Beom , Song Seunghoon , Lee Taek Seong , Joenata Muhamad Kiki Afindia , Suh Eui Hyun , Jeong Yong Jin , Jang Jaeyoung , Kim Yun-Hi
Published: May 2024

Understanding how the electronic structure of the polymer backbone influences charge transport can provide valuable insights for designing high-performance organic thermoelectric materials.
Adaptive attack recognition method based on probability model for autonomous vehicle
Authors: Miao Zujia , Shao Cuiping , Li Huiyun , Cui Yunduan
Published: May 2024

The perception system is essential for autonomous vehicle safety and stability. However, on‐board sensors are vulnerable to external attacks, compromising driving strategies and security. Traditional attack detection methods, relying on static anomaly thresholds from data distributions, falter in complex driving scenarios. Recent studies have sought more nuanced detection techniques, including deep learning and inter‐vehicle communication, but these approaches face limitations related to data security and environmental dependency. This letter introduces an innovative, adaptive method for sensor attack detection in autonomous vehicles. By modelling the perception system's functions and employing the Gaussian process for probabilistic modelling, we generate dynamic uncertainty estimates that serve as adaptable anomaly boundaries. Our method's efficacy and resilience are validated through quantitative analysis of the real‐world KITTI dataset, demonstrating superior adaptive detection capabilities.