bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effect of Part Thickness and Build Angle on the Microstructure, Surface Roughness, and Mechanical Properties of Additively Manufactured IN-939
Authors: Fardan A. , Klement U. , Brodin H. , Hryha E.
Published: December 2022

Powder bed fusion-laser beam of metals (PBF-LB/M) has attracted significant interest due to the possibility of producing dedicated design features like thin-walled structures, even though their mechanical response and microstructure are not well understood. Hence, thin-walled IN-939 structures of different thicknesses (0.5, 1 and 2 mm) were manufactured at two build angles (90 and 45 deg) by PBF-LB/M. A preferred 〈100〉 crystallographic orientation was found along the build direction in all cases. The crystallographic texture intensity and surface roughness increased as the part thickness decreased for 90 deg and increased for 45 deg build angle. Reduction in wall thickness resulted in a decrease in the tensile properties, e.g., YS decreases by up to 33 pct and UTS decreases by up to 30 pct in comparison with the bulk specimen which had YS of 1051 ± 11 MPa and UTS of 1482 ± 9 MPa. Obtained results indicate that the apparent difference in tensile properties is primarily due to the overestimation of the load-bearing area. Two methods to estimate the accurate tensile properties based on roughness compensation are presented, using of which the corrected tensile performance of the thin-walled specimens was comparable with a standard tensile specimen.
Cancer Microenvironment Defines Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocyte Density and Tertiary Lymphoid Structure Formation in Laryngeal Cancer
Authors: Gkegka Anastasia G. , Koukourakis Michael I. , Katotomichelakis Michael , Giatromanolaki Alexandra
Published: December 2022

Background

The presence and activity of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) is a key parameter related to the antitumor immune response. A large number of studies reveal TIL density as a prognostic marker and predictor of response to radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy.

Methods

We examined the TIL and tertiary lymphoid structure TLS density in the invading front and inner tumor stroma, in a 33 squamous cell laryngeal carcinomas (LSCC) treated with laryngectomy. TIL and TLS densities were in parallel examined with markers of anaerobic metabolism, vascular density (VD), vascular survival ability (VSA), and histopathological parameters.

Results

TIL and TLS densities significantly decreased in inner tumor areas (p < 0.0001). TIL density in the invading tumor front was inversely related with lymph node involvement (p = 0.03), HIF1α expression (p = 0.008), vessel density (p = 0.02), and MIB1 (p = 0.006). TIL density in inner stroma was inversely linked to local invasion (marginal p = 0.05), tumor budding (TB) (p = 0.005), MIB1 (p = 0.02), and HIF1α expression (p = 0.02). Low-TLS density in the invading front and in inner tumor areas was related to high TB (p = 0.02 and 0.002, respectively), HIF1α (p = 0.003 and 0.01, respectively), and LDH5 expression (p = 0.003 and 0.007, respectively). CD4+, FOXP3+ TIL density, and FOXP3+/CD8+ ratio were directly associated with VSA (p = 0.008, 0.02, and 0.05, respectively).

Conclusion

Poor immune response is related to hypoxic background and anaerobic metabolism, as well as increased invasive and metastatic ability. Regulatory TIL markers are linked with increased angiogenic potential. The prognostic, predictive, and therapy-guiding value of TILs in clinical practice demands thorough investigation.
Productivity Enhancement in Directed Energy Deposition: The Oscillating Scanning Strategy Approach
Authors: Aversa Alberta , Carrozza Alessandro , Marchese Giulio , Felicioni Stefano , De Chirico Michele , Lombardi Mariangela , Bondioli Federica , Fino Paolo
Published: December 2022

Directed Energy Deposition (DED) is an additive manufacturing process that enables the production of large metal components by melting the feedstock material while being deposited. An improvement of the production speed of this process would further increase its applicability in many industrial fields. The DED building rate is strictly related to the building parameters adopted, in particular to the laser spot diameter, which also affects the build accuracy and the surface quality of the components. The possibility of using a variable laser spot would result in a significant increase in the production rate in bulky zones, while also providing a good surface quality where needed. In the present work, an oscillating scanning strategy was used to create a large apparent laser spot (+ 170% of the nominal value) to produce 316L stainless steel samples via DED. The optimisation of the DED parameters with the oscillating strategy was performed using the single scan tracks (SSTs) approach. The morphologies of the SSTs obtained with different process parameters were assessed and the geometrical features related to the melt pools were analysed in order to select the most suitable X and Z displacements for the production of the cubic samples. The analyses of the cubes revealed that, if the correct overlap among nearby scans is selected, it is possible to obtain dense samples with all the oscillating diameters tested. Finally, comparing the building rate and powder efficiency values confirmed that this method can accelerate the building process and improve its overall performance.

Graphical Abstract
Construction and validation of a prognostic model for osteosarcoma patients based on autophagy-related genes
Authors: Ning Biao , Liu Yixin , Xu Tianzi , Li Yi , Wei Dongyi , Huang Tianhe , Wei Yongchang
Published: December 2022

Background

Osteosarcoma is the most frequent primary bone malignancy with a poor prognosis because of pulmonary metastasis. Autophagy is strongly associated with tumor metastasis, and it is valuable to construct an autophagy-related gene risk model for predicting the prognosis of osteosarcoma.

Methods

We obtained ARGs from the Human Autophagy Database and RNA-sequencing data of osteosarcoma patients from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Subsequently, univariate and multivariate cox regression analyses were performed to construct a three-gene prognostic model and its accuracy was further confirmed in the Therapeutic Applications Research to Generate Effective Treatments (TARGET) database. Afterward, we detected the expression levels and effects on osteosarcoma cells metastasis of MYC and MBTPS2, which were involved in the model.

Results

In both training and verification cohorts, patients with lower risk scores had longer OS, and the model was identified as an independent prognostic factor in osteosarcoma. Besides, the ROC curve demonstrated the reliability of the model. Furthermore, RT-qPCR, Western Blotting and IHC results indicated that MYC and MBTPS2 were differently expressed in osteosarcoma tissues and cell lines. MYC knockdown or MBTPS2 overexpression prevented the capacity of migration and invasion in osteosarcoma cell lines through inhibiting cellular autophagy.

Conclusion

The risk model based on three ARGs had a strong ability to predict the prognosis of osteosarcoma patients. Our findings also suggested that MYC and MBTPS2 were two major factors regulating autophagy in osteosarcoma, and could serve as potential therapeutic targets for osteosarcoma.
Unraveling the nature of spin excitations disentangled from charge contributions in a doped cuprate superconductor
Authors: Zhang Wenliang , Agrapidis Cliò Efthimia , Tseng Yi , Asmara Teguh Citra , Paris Eugenio , Strocov Vladimir N. , Giannini Enrico , Nishimoto Satoshi , Wohlfeld Krzysztof , Schmitt Thorsten
Published: December 2022

The nature of the spin excitations in superconducting cuprates is a key question toward a unified understanding of the cuprate physics from long-range antiferromagnetism to superconductivity. The intense spin excitations up to the over-doped regime revealed by resonant inelastic X-ray scattering bring new insights as well as questions like how to understand their persistence or their relation to the collective excitations in ordered magnets (magnons). Here, we study the evolution of the spin excitations upon hole-doping the superconducting cuprate Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δby disentangling the spin from the charge excitations in the experimental cross section. We compare our experimental results against density matrix renormalization group calculations for at-J-like model on a square lattice. Our results unambiguously confirm the persistence of the spin excitations, which are closely connected to the persistence of short-range magnetic correlations up to high doping. This suggests that the spin excitations in hole-doped cuprates are related to magnons—albeit short-ranged.
Outcome of multi-staged induced membrane technique based on post-debridement cultures for the management of critical-sized bone defect following fracture-related infection
Authors: Cho Jae-Woo , Kent William T. , Kim Jin-Kak , Jeong Seong-Ho , Sakong Seungyeob , Kim Hanju , Son Whee Sung , Lim Eic Ju , Choi Wonseok , Oh Jong-Keon
Published: December 2022

The authors’ institution utilizes multi-staged induced membrane technique protocol based on post-debridement culture in treating patients with critical-sized bone defect in lower extremity due to infected nonunion or post-traumatic osteomyelitis. This study aimed to evaluate the success rate of this limb reconstruction method and which risk factors are associated with recurrence of infection. 140 patients were treated with multi-staged induced membrane technique from 2013 to 2018 and followed up more than 24 months after bone grafting. The primary success rate of limb reconstruction was 75% with a mean follow-up of 45.3 months. The mean Lower Extremity Functional Scale in success group improved from 12.1 ± 8.5 to 56.6 ± 9.9 after the treatment. There were 35 cases of recurrence of infection at a mean of 18.5 months after bone grafting. Independent risk factors for recurrence of infection were infected free flap, surprise positive culture, deviation from our surgical protocol, and elevated ESR before final bone graft procedure. In conclusion, this study showed that multi-staged induced membrane technique protocol based on post-debridement culture resulted in 75% success rate and revealed a number of risk factors for recurrence of infection.
Cardiac magnetic resonance feature tracking global and segmental strain in acute and chronic ST-elevation myocardial infarction
Authors: Erley Jennifer , Starekova Jitka , Sinn Martin , Muellerleile Kai , Chen Hang , Harms Phillip , Naimi Lieda , Meyer Mathias , Cavus Ersin , Schneider Jan , Blankenberg Stefan , Lund Gunnar K. , Adam Gerhard , Tahir Enver
Published: December 2022

Strain is an important imaging parameter to determine myocardial deformation. This study sought to 1) assess changes in left ventricular strain and ejection fraction (LVEF) from acute to chronic ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and 2) analyze strain as a predictor of late gadolinium enhancement (LGE). 32 patients with STEMI and 18 controls prospectively underwent cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. Patients were scanned 8 $$\pm$$
±
5 days and six months after infarction (± 1.4 months). Feature tracking was performed and LVEF was calculated. LGE was determined visually and quantitatively on short-axis images and myocardial segments were grouped according to the LGE pattern (negative, non-transmural and transmural). Global strain was impaired in patients compared to controls, but improved within six months after STEMI (longitudinal strain from −14 ± 4 to −16 ± 4%, p < 0.001; radial strain from 38 ± 11 to 42 ± 13%, p = 0.006; circumferential strain from −15 ± 4 to −16 ± 4%, p = 0.023). Patients with microvascular obstruction showed especially attenuated strain results. Regional strain persisted impaired in LGE-positive segments. Circumferential strain could best distinguish between LGE-negative and -positive segments (AUC 0.73- 0.77). Strain improves within six months after STEMI, but remains impaired in LGE-positive segments. Strain may serve as an imaging biomarker to analyze myocardial viability. Especially circumferential strain could predict LGE.
Managing Oromandibular Hardware Failure after Free Flap Surgery
Authors: Domack Aaron M. , Silverman Dustin A. , Tang Alice L. , Zender Chad A. , Patil Yash J.
Published: December 2022

Hardware failure after oromandibular reconstruction using free tissue transfer can delay additional therapies directed at cancer treatment and prevent patients from returning to normal oral function. Understanding and strict adherence to principles of rigid fixation is critical in preventing complications. Early surgical intervention for hardware exposure as well as utilization of locoregional flaps may prevent the need for more extensive revision surgery.
A comprehensive investigation of statistical and machine learning approaches for predicting complex human diseases on genomic variants
Authors: Wang Chonghao , Zhang Jing , Veldsman Werner Pieter , Zhou Xin , Zhang Lu
Published: December 2022

Quantifying an individual’s risk for common diseases is an important goal of precision health. The polygenic risk score (PRS), which aggregates multiple risk alleles of candidate diseases, has emerged as a standard approach for identifying high-risk individuals. Although several studies have been performed to benchmark the PRS calculation tools and assess their potential to guide future clinical applications, some issues remain to be further investigated, such as lacking (i) various simulated data with different genetic effects; (ii) evaluation of machine learning models and (iii) evaluation on multiple ancestries studies. In this study, we systematically validated and compared 13 statistical methods, 5 machine learning models and 2 ensemble models using simulated data with additive and genetic interaction models, 22 common diseases with internal training sets, 4 common diseases with external summary statistics and 3 common diseases for trans-ancestry studies in UK Biobank. The statistical methods were better in simulated data from additive models and machine learning models have edges for data that include genetic interactions. Ensemble models are generally the best choice by integrating various statistical methods. LDpred2 outperformed the other standalone tools, whereas PRS-CS, lassosum and DBSLMM showed comparable performance. We also identified that disease heritability strongly affected the predictive performance of all methods. Both the number and effect sizes of risk SNPs are important; and sample size strongly influences the performance of all methods. For the trans-ancestry studies, we found that the performance of most methods became worse when training and testing sets were from different populations.
Inferring gene regulatory networks from single-cell gene expression data via deep multi-view contrastive learning
Authors: Lin Zerun , Ou-Yang Le
Published: December 2022

The inference of gene regulatory networks (GRNs) is of great importance for understanding the complex regulatory mechanisms within cells. The emergence of single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) technologies enables the measure of gene expression levels for individual cells, which promotes the reconstruction of GRNs at single-cell resolution. However, existing network inference methods are mainly designed for data collected from a single data source, which ignores the information provided by multiple related data sources. In this paper, we propose a multi-view contrastive learning (DeepMCL) model to infer GRNs from scRNA-seq data collected from multiple data sources or time points. We first represent each gene pair as a set of histogram images, and then introduce a deep Siamese convolutional neural network with contrastive loss to learn the low-dimensional embedding for each gene pair. Moreover, an attention mechanism is introduced to integrate the embeddings extracted from different data sources and different neighbor gene pairs. Experimental results on synthetic and real-world datasets validate the effectiveness of our contrastive learning and attention mechanisms, demonstrating the effectiveness of our model in integrating multiple data sources for GRN inference.
The Standard Genetic Code Lacks Redundancy For Amino Acid Codons
Authors: Laibelman Alan M.
Published: December 2022

The Standard Genetic Code contains sixty-one codons used to translate twenty amino acids. A 3:1 ratio is presumed to mean all of them except methionine and tryptophan exhibit redundancy (also known as degeneracy) such that multiple codons are interchangeable with respect to cognate amino acids. Since the process of translation converting codon triplets into amino acids involves a 1:1 relationship between mRNA-containing codons and tRNA-containing anticodons, any physicochemical variability in tRNA molecules associated with the same amino acid must break redundancy among codons. By studying the characteristics of 186 tRNA sequences from Archaea, it is demonstrated that multiple features lead to the conclusion that every anticodon triplet is unique, and therefore that every codon triplet must likewise be unlike all others, even if coding for the same amino acid. Many implications necessarily accrue from this result related to the mechanism for translation, codon usage, and the evolution of the genetic code, all of which are discussed.
First-line arteriovenous access and risks of hospitalization and death in patients starting hemodialysis – a nationwide cohort study
Authors: de Pinho Natalia Alencar , Prezelin-Reydit Mathilde , Harambat Jerome , Couchoud Cécile , Glaudet Florence , Combe Christian , Rondeau Virginie , Leffondré Karen
Published: December 2022

Arteriovenous (AV) access choice has sparked controversy with recent evidence suggesting overestimation of benefits associated with AV fistula versus graft in certain populations. We assessed outcomes associated with first-line AV access type in patients who started hemodialysis with a catheter in France, overall and by subgroups of age, sex, and comorbidities. In this retrospective cohort study, we included incident patients who initiated hemodialysis with a catheter from 2010 through 2018, followed by the French REIN Registry. Our main exposure was the first-line (first-created) AV graft versus fistula, ascertained through the linkage with the French national health-administrative database. Outcomes were all-cause and cause-specific hospitalization, and all-cause mortality. We used joint frailty models to deal with recurrent hospitalizations and informative censoring by death, Cox proportional hazard (PH) models, and inverse probability weighting. From the 18,625 patients included (mean age was 68±15 years, 35% were women), 5% had a first-line AV graft. Patients with AV graft had an 11%-higher weighted hazard of all-cause hospitalization (95% CI 1.09 to 1.13), 16% higher weighted hazard of cardiovascular (95% CI 1.05 to 1.29) and infection-related (95% CI 1.01 to 1.33) hospitalization, 34% higher weighted hazard of vascular access-related hospitalization, and a 9%-higher weighted hazard of all-cause death (95% CI 0.97 to 1.23). Results were consistent for most subgroups, except that the highest hazard of hospitalization with AV graft was blunted in patients with comorbidities (i.e. diabetes, weighted HR of all-cause hospitalization 1.03, 95% CI 0.95-1.12).- To conclude, in patients starting hemodialysis with a catheter, first-line AV graft is associated with increased hazard of hospitalization vs. patients with AV fistula. This may, however, not be the case for patients with a poor vascular condition, i.e., those with diabetes, who have a similar hospitalization and mortality rates with either graft or fistula.
Automated assessment of chest CT severity scores in patients suspected of COVID-19 infection
Authors: Ajmera Pranav , Rathi Snehal , Dosi Udayan , Kalli Suvarna Lakshmi , Luthra Avinav , Khaladkar Sanjay , Pant Richa , Seth Jitesh , Mishra Pranshu , Gawali Manish , Pargaonkar Yash , Kulkarni Viraj , Kharat Amit
Published: December 2022

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed numerous lives in the last three years. With new variants emerging every now and then, the world is still battling with the management of COVID-19.

Purpose

To utilize a deep learning model for the automatic detection of severity scores from chest CT scans of COVID-19 patients and compare its diagnostic performance with experienced human readers.

Methods

A deep learning model capable of identifying consolidations and ground-glass opacities from the chest CT images of COVID-19 patients was used to provide CT severity scores on a 25-point scale for definitive pathogen diagnosis. The model was tested on a dataset of 469 confirmed COVID-19 cases from a tertiary care hospital. The quantitative diagnostic performance of the model was compared with three experienced human readers.

Results

The test dataset consisted of 469 CT scans from 292 male (average age: 52.30 ± 15.90 years) and 177 female (average age: 53.47 ± 15.24) patients. The standalone model had an MAE of 3.192, which was lower than the average radiologists’ MAE of 3.471. The model achieved a precision of 0.69 [0.65, 0.74] and an F1 score of 0.67 [0.62, 0.71], which was significantly superior to the average reader precision of 0.68 [0.65, 0.71] and F1 score of 0.65 [0.63, 0.67]. The model demonstrated a sensitivity of 0.69 [95% CI: 0.65, 0.73] and specificity of 0.83 [95% CI: 0.81, 0.85], which was comparable to the performance of the three human readers, who had an average sensitivity of 0.71 [95% CI: 0.69, 0.73] and specificity of 0.84 [95% CI: 0.83, 0.85].

Conclusion

The AI model provided explainable results and performed at par with human readers in calculating CT severity scores from the chest CT scans of patients affected with COVID-19. The model had a lower MAE than that of the radiologists, indicating that the CTSS calculated by the AI was very close in absolute value to the CTSS determined by the reference standard.
Using passive acoustic monitoring to estimate the abundance of a critically endangered parrot, the great green macaw (Ara ambiguus)
Authors: Lewis Thomas C. , Vargas Ignacio Gutiérrez , Williams Sam , Beckerman Andrew P. , Childs Dylan Z.
Published: December 2022

Most conservation relies on being able to estimate population size accurately. The development, implementation and adaptation of effective conservation strategies rely on quantifying the impacts of different threats on population dynamics, identifying species that need conservation management, and providing feedback on the effectiveness of any management actions. However, current approaches are not suitable for wide-ranging species that reside in tropical ecosystems. Here we use the great green macawAra ambiguusas a case study to show that passive acoustic monitoring is an effective tool for collecting data that can then estimate abundance. We estimate a population of 485.65 ± 61 SE great green macaws in Costa Rica during the breeding, suggesting the population here is larger than previously estimated. We have also highlighted potentially important areas for the species in regions that had not previously been studied. We have demonstrated at a population scale that passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) offers conservationists an efficient and effective way to understand population dynamics. With a high proportion of parrot species threatened globally, passive acoustic monitoring will enable effective monitoring and become an essential tool in conservation planning and evaluation. PAM technology has enormous potential to facilitate such assessments because it is easily scalable, recordings can be stored and re-analysed as machine learning, and abundance estimation techniques become more advanced.
Residue communities reveal evolutionary signatures ofγδT-Cell receptor
Authors: Cheung Ngaam J. , Huang Si-Yu
Published: December 2022

Naturally co-occurring amino acids, term coevolution, in a protein family play a significant role in both protein engineering and folding, and it is expanding in recent years from the studies of the effects of single-site mutations to the complete re-design of a protein and its folding, especially in three-dimensional structure prediction. Here, to better characterize such coevolving interactions, wein silicodecipher evolutionary couplings from massive homologous sequences using spectral analysis to capture signatures that are important for specific molecular interactions and binding activities. We implement the present approach on the G7 gamma delta T-cell receptor to identify functionally important residues that contribute to its highly distinct binding mode. The analysis indicates the evolutionary signatures (highly ordered networks of coupled amino acids, termed residue communities) of the protein confirm previously identified functional sites that are relevant to dock the receptor underneath the major histocompatibility complex class I-related protein-1 (MR1) antigen presenting groove. Moreover, we analyze the correlation of inter-residue contacts with the activation states of receptors and show that contact patterns closely correlating with activation indeed coincide with these sites. The theoretical results demonstrate our method provides an alternative path towards bridging protein sequence with its function at residue-level without requiring its tertiary structure or highly accurate measurement of its biological activitiesin vivo/vitro.
On temporal changes in the role of different age groups in propagating the Omicron epidemic waves in England
Authors: Goldstein Edward
Published: December 2022

Background

There is limited information on the role of individuals in different age groups in the spread of infection during the Omicron epidemics, especially ones beyond the winter epidemic wave in 2021-2022. COVID-19 booster vaccination in England during the Autumn 2022 was restricted to persons aged over 50y, and persons in clinical risk groups.

Methods

We used previously developed methodology to evaluate the role of individuals in different age groups in propagating the Spring, Summer, and Autumn waves of the Omicron epidemic in England. This methodology utilizes the relative risk (RR) statistic that measures the change in the proportion of cases in each age group among all COVID-19 cases in the population before the peak of an epidemic wave vs. after the peak of an epidemic wave. Higher values for the RR statistic represent age groups that experienced a disproportionate depletion of susceptible individuals during the ascent of the epidemic (due to increased contact rates and/or susceptibility to infection).

Results

For the 2022 Spring wave, the highest RR estimate belonged to children aged 5-9y (RR=2.05 (95%CI (2.02,2.08)), followed by children aged 10-14y (RR=1.68 (1.66,1.7)) and children aged 0-4y (RR=1.38 (1.36,1.41)). For the Summer wave, the highest RR estimates belonged to persons aged 20-34y: (RR=1.09 (1.07,1.12) in aged 20-24y, RR=1.09 (1.07,1.11) in aged 25-29y, RR=1.09(1.07,1.11) in aged 30-34y). For the Autumn wave, the highest RR estimates belonged to those aged 70-74y (RR=1.10 (1.07,1.14)), followed by adults aged 35-39y (RR=1.09 (1.06,1.12)), adults aged 40-44y (RR=1.09 (1.06,1.12)), and adults aged 65-69y (RR=1.08 (1.05,1.11)).

Conclusions

As time progressed, the greatest relative roles in propagating different waves of the Omicron epidemic in England shifted from school-age children to younger adults to adults aged 35-44y and 65-74y. Extending booster vaccination to all adults, and possibly to children should help limit the spread of Omicron infections in the community.
The impact of social pension scheme on the quality of labor supply: empirical evidence based on health human capital
Authors: Xu Shulin , Tong Zefeng , Li Cheng , Chen Shuoqi
Published: December 2022

Purpose

High-quality labor supply is inevitable to maintain sustainable and steady economic growth. This study mainly explores the impact of the social pension system on the health of human capital, and further explores its impact mechanism.

Design/methodology/approach

On the basis of the data from China Family Panel Studies from 2012 to 2018, this article uses the fixed effect model and the mediation effect model to empirically study the influence of the social pension scheme on the health of human capital and further explore its influence mechanism.

Findings

This study shows that the social pension scheme can significantly improve the physical and mental health of laborers, especially for low-income and agricultural groups. The implementation of the social pension scheme contributes to increasing medical services and reducing the labor supply for the benefit of human health capital. Therefore, the government should continue to expand the coverage of the social pension scheme and comprehensively improve the importance of human health capital on economic growth.

Practical implications

Medical costs and labor supply play a mediating effect in the relationship between social pension and rural labors' health status, which indicates that medical costs and labor supply level are still important factors affecting the health status of rural labor. There are essential factors affecting the health status of the rural labor force, and their role should be given more consideration in the process of system design and improvement.

Originality/value

The existing studies have more frequently studied the effect of the implementation of social pension schemes from the perspective of economic performance, but this paper evaluates the policy effect of social pension schemes based on the perspective of health human capital, which enriches research on health performance in related fields.
Structural clarity is brought to adhesion G protein‐coupled receptor tethered agonism
Authors: Gupta Charu , Bernadyn Tyler F. , Tall Gregory G.
Published: December 2022

An elusive problem in the adhesion G protein‐coupled receptor (AGPCR) field is full understanding of the activation mechanisms of the 33‐member receptor class. With the recent solution of active‐state structures of nearly one quarter of AGPCRs, clarity has been brought to how AGPCRs are activated in response to endogenous full agonists. AGPCRs are self‐activated via a tethered peptide agonist (TA) that transitions from a concealed or encrypted location to a decrypted state that binds to a typical GPCR orthosteric binding pocket. Here, we summarize the key milestones that led to the discovery of the AGPCR TA activation mechanism and discuss how extracellular shear forces may initiate TA decryption in physiological contexts. We compare the new active‐state AGPCR structures and note that the orthosteric site‐engaged TAs adopt a remarkably similar partial α‐helical hook‐like conformation, despite divergence of overall receptor similarity. Further, we contrast the TA‐bound AGPCR structures to a partially active AGPCR structure to highlight the transitions AGPCRs may undergo during activation. Finally, we provide commentary on the validity of alternative AGPCR activation mechanisms.
Stabilized Direct Learning for Efficient Estimation of Individualized Treatment Rules
Authors: Shah Kushal S. , Fu Haoda , Kosorok Michael R.
Published: December 2022

In recent years, the field of precision medicine has seen many advancements. Significant focus has been placed on creating algorithms to estimate individualized treatment rules (ITRs), which map from patient covariates to the space of available treatments with the goal of maximizing patient outcome. Direct learning (D-Learning) is a recent one-step method which estimates the ITR by directly modeling the treatment–covariate interaction. However, when the variance of the outcome is heterogeneous with respect to treatment and covariates, D-Learning does not leverage this structure. Stabilized direct learning (SD-Learning), proposed in this paper, utilizes potential heteroscedasticity in the error term through a residual reweighting which models the residual variance via flexible machine learning algorithms such as XGBoost and random forests. We also develop an internal cross-validation scheme which determines the best residual model among competing models. SD-Learning improves the efficiency of D-Learning estimates in binary and multi-arm treatment scenarios. The method is simple to implement and an easy way to improve existing algorithms within the D-Learning family, including original D-Learning, Angle-based D-Learning (AD-Learning), and Robust D-learning (RD-Learning). We provide theoretical properties and justification of the optimality of SD-Learning. Head-to-head performance comparisons with D-Learning methods are provided through simulations, which demonstrate improvement in terms of average prediction error (APE), misclassification rate, and empirical value, along with a data analysis of an acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) randomized clinical trial.
Experimental investigation on the mechanical properties of thermally damaged granite specimens containing pre‐existing holes
Authors: Huang Yan‐Hua , Yang Sheng‐Qi , Tian Wen‐Ling , Wu Shi‐Yan
Published: December 2022

A comprehensive understanding of the mechanical behavior of thermally damaged rock is crucial for the design, prediction, and stability control of rock engineering. However, the strength and fracture characteristics of rock containing pre‐existing flaws have not been studied systematically. Therefore, in this study, uniaxial compression tests were conducted on preholed granite specimens using MTS816 rock mechanics testing and acoustic emission (AE) monitoring systems. The mechanical properties, AE characteristics, and failure patterns of thermally damaged granite specimens were analyzed, and the alteration of the mechanical behavior was explained by the P‐wave velocity, effective porosity, mineral components, and thermal cracking. The results show that the peak strength and elastic modulus of preholed granite specimens first increased and then decreased with the increasingly high temperature. Cracks were always initiated from the left and right perimeters of the pre‐existing hole, and the crack coalescence modes between the two pre‐existing holes were independent of the high temperature. After 150°C treatment, thermal cracks were observed, and the complexity and interconnectivity of the fracture surface increased with temperature. The variations of the mineral component and crystal structure induced by increasing the high temperature contributed to the thermal damage of the granite. The experimental results are expected to enhance the understanding of the macromechanical and mesomechanical behaviors of rock with respect to high temperature.
TCR gene segment usage and HLA alleles that are associated with cancer survival rates also represent racial disparities
Authors: Angelakakis George , Serraneau Karisa S. , Barker Vayda R. , Callahan Blake M. , Tong Wei Lue , Zaman Saif , Huda Taha I. , Blanck George
Published: December 2022

Understanding racial disparities in cancer outcomes continues to be a challenge, with likely many factors at play, including socioeconomic factors and genetic polymorphisms impacting basic cellular and molecular functions. Additionally, it is possible that specific combinations of environment and genetics have specific impacts. T‐cell receptor (TCR) gene segment usage, HLA allele combinations have been associated with autoimmune and infectious disease courses, and more recently, TCR gene segment usage, HLA allele combinations have been associated with distinct survival outcomes in cancer as well. We examined several such, previously reported cancer‐related TCR gene segment usage, HLA allele combinations for evidence of racial disparities, with regard to the prevalence of the combination in different racial groups. Results indicated that TCR gene segment usage, potentially reflecting environmental factors related to previous pathogen exposure, in combination with certain HLA alleles or independently, may represent a novel explanation for racial disparities in cancer outcomes. Overall, at this point, a genetic connection to racial disparities in cancer outcomes is detectable but remains modest, suggesting that other factors, such as socioeconomic factors, remain as important considerations.
An evaluation framework for juvenile defense: A theory of change and logic model measurements
Authors: Pelletier Emily K.
Published: December 2022

This paper presents an evaluation framework for juvenile defense. The evaluation framework establishes a theory of change, logic model categories, and potential measurements for understanding the systemic variation in juvenile defense across the US. Grounded in the US Supreme Court case affirming the due process right to defense counsel, In re Gault, the evaluation framework offers a method of studying juvenile defense to assist youth in delinquency court, defenders, policymakers, and researchers. The methodological shift to an evaluation framework asserts a refocus on the legal objectives for provision of defense counsel in delinquency court.
“We're not your traditional police department.” A qualitative implementation evaluation of a juvenile diversion program
Authors: Barrett James G. , Lee Esther , Odayar Varshini , Moyer Margo , Cook Benjamin Lê , Cortés Dharma E.
Published: December 2022

Youth in the juvenile criminal justice system experiencing mental health conditions are often neglected and offered few resources to seek treatment for behavioral health and substance use disorders. This leads to greater recidivism rates, pointing to the need for diversion programs that work directly with youth, family members, schools, and police. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the Safety Net Program upon three implementation outcomes: acceptability, adoption, and appropriateness through qualitative interviews. Additionally, the study aims to amplify the stories of those with lived experiences, adding to the existing body of quantitative research in support of diversion models. Ten in‐depth semi‐structured qualitative interviews with police officers, school partners, and one parent were conducted to understand perspectives from the key stakeholders participating in the Safety Net model. The study found that integrating police officers in schools allows for the development of close relationships with students, families, and police which further facilitates better outcomes for youth.
Using loop‐mediated isothermal amplification combined with gold nanoparticles for optically rapid detection of shrimp Vibrio parahaemolyticus
Authors: Sun Yu‐Ling , Lu Chug‐Lun , Lee Chia‐Hung , Tu En‐I , Lin Chih‐Sheng
Published: December 2022

Shrimp is one of the most important aquatic products in the world. Early detection, prevention, and treatment of shrimp pathogens is important. One major shrimp pathogen, Vibrio parahaemolyticus causes acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (VPAHPND) has been studied, but research into pathogen detection needs to be strengthened. Therefore, we were targeting to VPAHPND and using emerging molecular biotechnologies to develop a method for pathogens detection for the shrimp industry. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have an unique color change property. Free AuNPs in solution are the color of claret‐red, while the aggregated AuNPs appear slight purple. Based on the characteristics of visible color difference of AuNPs, we worked on establishing a simple, fast, and specific loop‐mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) detection method for VPAHPND diagnosis using AuNPs. This method, amplified the target DNA of VPAHPND by LAMP and the DNA were directly added onto AuNPs solution for detection. The test results show a color change, so that the results can be visually inspected by naked eye. Using the methods, shrimp VPAHPND can be early detected and treated, boost the economic benefits, and efficiency of shrimp farming.
Prevalence and predictors of Twiddler's syndrome
Authors: Gomez Jorge O. , Doukky Rami , Pietrasik Grzegorz , Wigant Rebecca R. , Mungee Sudhir , Baman Timir S.
Published: December 2022

Background

Twiddler's syndrome is a poorly understood clinical phenomenon when patients either consciously or subconsciously rotate their cardiac device resulting in lead dislodgement. We aimed to determine the true prevalence and risk factors associated with Twiddler's syndrome in a real‐world population.

Methods

A retrospective chart review was performed on all patients who underwent cardiac device implantation from January 1st 2017 until Jan 1st 2022. We specifically searched for the terms “Twiddler” or “Twiddler's” imbedded within the text of the medical chart. Demographic and clinical variables were collected from the electronic medical record system. We utilized multivariable logistic regression analysis as well as Kaplan‐Meier prediction models to determine independent clinical predictors of Twiddler's syndrome as well as associated mortality, respectively.

Results

Twenty one out of 1793 patients (1.2%) were identified as having Twiddler's syndrome after chart review. Independent variables associated with Twiddler's syndrome were female sex (OR 3.76; 95% CI 1.29–10.95), antidepressant medications (OR 3.58; 95% CI 1.07–11.99), and BMI (OR 1.08; 95% CI 1.03–1.31). There was no increased six‐month mortality via Kaplan‐Meier analysis.

Conclusion

Our study shows that 1.2% of patients in our real‐world population had evidence of Twiddler's syndrome. Independent predictors of Twiddler's syndrome include female sex, antidepressant medications as well as BMI.
Arbitrary-order Darboux transformations for Dunkl–Schrödinger equations with position-dependent mass
Authors: Schulze-Halberg Axel
Published: December 2022

We use a symmetrized Hamiltonian containing Dunkl operators to generate a Dunkl–Schrödinger equation with position-dependent mass. Our equation is shown to admit arbitrary-order Darboux transformations if the mass either has odd parity or is an inverse-square function. We construct the Darboux transformations and apply them to a Dunkl–Schrödinger system featuring a rational double well potential.
How Can the Indo-Pacific Structure Keep the United States Engaged and China Compliant?: Japan’s Geoeconomic Challenges with the CPTPP and IPEF
Authors: KATADA Saori N
Published: December 2022

During the first few years of the 2020s, in the middle of COVID-induced supply chain disruptions, complex and overlapping economic arrangements have taken shape. The Japanese government has a vital role to play as a promoter of the Free and Open Indo-Pacific regional concept. This article examines Japan’s geoeconomic strategy in the overlapping initiatives to keep the United States engaged and make China compliant of the emerging regional economic order.
An Analysis of the Guidelines of China’s Unified Market
Authors: XU Le
Published: December 2022

The new plan of building a national unified market was released in early 2022, indicating the urgency of breaking down local protectionism and market segmentation at the current stage of economic development. This article examines the driving forces of the new plan and the plan’s relationship with the “dual circulation” strategy proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping. It also analyses the major barriers to building a unified market and the impacts on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in the short run and in the long run.
The Expression of Myoz1 and ApoB is Positively Correlated with Meat Quality of Broiler Chicken
Authors: Fatchiyah Fatchiyah , Rohmah Rista Nikmatu , Triprisila Lidwina Faraline , Virgirinia Regina Putri , Rahayudi Bayu , Kurnianingsih Nia , Safitri Anna , Abdul Razis Ahmad Faizall
Published: December 2022

Broiler chicken (Gallus gallus) is a source of animal protein with a high nutritional content. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the quality of broiler chicken meat (Gallus gallus) by analyzing its nutritional value, genetic profile, and protein level. The chicken meat samples were obtained from four different districts in Malang city, Indonesia. We analysed the proximate composition of chicken meat to detect its nutrition content. Furthermore, we have examined the sequence of the Myoz1 gene as well as the level of ApoB proteins in the same meat. The nutritional analysis of chicken meat showed that in the four locations different levels of protein, ash, water, and lipids were observed. The Myoz1 gene of femur chicken broilers from the second and third districts has five and twenty-one substitution mutations, respectively. The ApoB expression level in locations 2 and 3 was higher than that in the other districts. In conclusion, Myoz1 and ApoB levels were correlated with the nutritional content and quality of broiler chicken meat.
Cyber Loss Distribution Fitting: A General Framework towards Cyber Bonds and Their Pricing Models
Authors: Kolesnikov Oleg , Markov Alexander , Smagulov Daulet , Solovjovs Sergejs
Published: December 2022

Motivated by the considerable amount of losses in (finance) industry caused every year by the fast growing number of malicious cyber events and the need of an insurance against such cyber losses, we propose a general framework of cyber bond, whose main purpose is to insure (compensate) losses of a cyber attack. Based on a database of publicly available cyber events, we determine cyber loss distribution parameters and use them to numerically simulate cyber bond price, yield, and other characteristics. We also study two approaches to cyber bond coupon calculation.
Therapeutic Role of Additional Mirror Therapy on the Recovery of Upper Extremity Motor Function after Stroke: A Single-Blind, Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Wen Xin , Li Li , Li Xuelian , Zha Huanghong , Liu Zicai , Peng Yang , Liu Xuejin , Liu Huiyu , Yang Quan , Wang Jing
Published: December 2022

Background. Rehabilitation of upper extremity hemiplegia after stroke remains a great clinical challenge, with only 20% of patients achieving a basic return to normal hand function. How to promote the recovery of motor function at an early stage is crucial to the life of the patient. Objectives. To invest the effects of additional mirror therapy in improving upper limb motor function and activities of daily living in acute and subacute stroke patients, and further explore the effects of other factors on the efficacy of MT. Methods. Participants who presented with unilateral upper extremity paralysis due to a first ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke were included in the study. They were randomly allocated to the experimental or control group. Patients in the control group received occupational therapy for 30 minutes each session, six times a week, for three weeks, while patients in the experimental group received 30 minutes of additional mirror therapy based on occupational therapy. The primary outcome measures were Fugl-Meyer Assessment—upper extremity (FMA-UE), Action Research Arm Test (ARAT), and Instrumental Activity of Daily Living (IADL) which were evaluated by two independent occupational therapists before treatment and after 3-week treatment. A pairedt-test was used to compare the values between pretreatment and posttreatment within an individual group. Two-samplet-test was utilized to compare the changes (baseline to postintervention) between the two groups. Results. A total of 52 stroke patients with unilateral upper extremity motor dysfunction who were able to actively cooperate with the training were included in this study. At baseline, no significant differences were found between groups regarding demographic and clinical characteristics (P>0.05for all). Upper limb motor function and ability to perform activities of daily living of the patients were statistically improved in both groups towards the third week (P<0.05). In addition, statistical analyses showed more significant improvements in the score changes of FMA-UE and IADL in the experimental group compared to the control group after treatment (P<0.05), but no significant difference was observed in the ARAT score changes between the two groups (P>0.05). The subgroup analysis showed that no significant heterogeneity was observed in age, stroke type, lesion side, and clinical stage (P>0.05). Conclusion. In conclusion, some positive changes in aspects of upper limb motor function and the ability to perform instrumental activities of daily living compared with routine occupational therapy were observed in additional mirror therapy. Therefore, the application of additional mirror therapy training should be reconsidered to improve upper extremity motor in stroke patients.