bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Watermelon Peel‐Derived Nitrogen‐Doped Porous Carbon as a Superior Oxygen Reduction Electrocatalyst for Zinc‐Air Batteries
Authors: Li Lu , Wu Zhiheng , Zhang Jin , Zhao Yige , Shao Guosheng
Published: November 2021

Metal‐free carbon materials derived from biomass wastes are considered as prospective electrocatalysts applied in the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) field on account of their extremely low costs and good stabilities. Herein, we develop a watermelon peel‐derived nitrogen‐doped hierarchically porous carbon (N‐WPAC) catalyst by using a simple chemical method without additional templates. The N‐WPAC catalyst exhibits an excellent ORR activity and more outstanding durability than the commercial Pt/C catalyst. The superior ORR performances of N‐WPAC are mainly ascribed to its hierarchically porous carbon structure with abundant defects, which is beneficial to expose sufficient active sites and accelerate the mass‐transfer process. Moreover, the Zn‐air battery based on N‐WPAC displays eminent discharge performances, which are close to those of the Zn‐air battery based on Pt/C. This work broadens our horizon to design efficient ORR catalysts derived from biomass wastes by a facile and scalable approach.
Efficacy of emotion‐focused therapy in the treatment of eating disorders: A systematic review
Authors: Osoro Andrea , Villalobos Dolores , Tamayo José Antonio
Published: November 2021

Background

The high incidence of eating disorders (EDs) means that its treatment is approached from various perspectives, among which we find emotion‐focused therapy (EFT). Therefore, the main objective of this systematic review was to know the effectiveness of EFT for eating disorders.

Method

A systematic review of PubMed, the Cochrane Library and the Psychology and Behavioural Sciences Collection was carried out without a time limit and in a population with an eating disorder diagnosis.

Results

Eight studies fulfilled the eligibility criteria: (1) six studies treated the population with binge eating disorder (BED) five were group treatments, and four included the combined modality; (2) one with BED, bulimia nervosa (BN) and Eating Disorder No Otherwise Specified (EDNOS); and (3) one for a single case of anorexia nervosa (AN). The duration of treatments ranged from 12 weeks to 18 months, and all studies used the original EFT protocol. Specific variables of each type of eating disorder were studied, as well as comorbid symptoms.

Conclusions

It seems that the results coincide in the existence of post‐treatment improvements both in eating psychopathology and in affective symptoms, although with variable data during follow‐up. More research is needed to affirm the efficacy of EFT as an empirically validated treatment for EDs.
Highly Selective Hydrogenative Conversion of Nitriles into Tertiary, Secondary, and Primary Amines under Flow Reaction Conditions
Authors: Yamada Tsuyoshi , Park Kwihwan , Furugen Chikara , Jiang Jing , Shimizu Eisho , Ito Naoya , Sajiki Hironao
Published: November 2021

Flow reaction methods have been developed to selectively synthesize tertiary, secondary, and primary amines depending on heterogeneous platinum‐group metal species under catalytic hydrogenation conditions using nitriles as starting materials. A 10 % Pd/C‐packed catalyst cartridge affords symmetrically substituted tertiary amines in good to excellent yields. A 10 % Rh/C‐packed catalyst cartridge enables the divergent synthesis of secondary and primary amines, with either cyclohexane or acetic acid as a solvent, respectively. Reaction parameters, such as the metal catalyst, solvent, and reaction temperature, and continuous‐flow conditions, such as flow direction and second support of the catalyst in a catalyst cartridge, are quite important for controlling the reaction between the hydrogenation of nitriles and nucleophilic attack of in situ‐generated amines to imine intermediates. A wide variety of aliphatic and aromatic nitriles could be highly selectively transformed into the corresponding tertiary, secondary, and primary amines by simply changing the metal species of the catalyst or flow parameters. Furthermore, the selective continuous‐flow methodologies are applied over at least 72 h to afford three different types of amines in 80–99 % yield without decrease in catalytic activities.
Peromyscus maniculatus (Rodentia: Cricetidae): An overlooked reservoir of tick‐borne pathogens in the Midwest, USA?
Authors: Larson Ryan T. , Bron Gebbiena M. , Lee Xia , Zembsch Tela E. , Siy Patricia N. , Paskewitz Susan M.
Published: November 2021

Mice belonging to the genus Peromyscus are one of the most important reservoirs of tick‐borne pathogens in the United States. However, the composition and abundance of Peromyscus species may vary geographically. The woodland deer mouse, Peromyscus maniculatus gracilis, is often abundant in the northern counties of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. In these states, multiple pathogens transmitted by the blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis, are endemic. In comparison to the well‐studied white‐footed mouse, Peromyscus leucopus, little is known about the importance of P. maniculatus in maintaining natural cycles of tick‐borne pathogens. We conducted small mammal trapping in north‐central Wisconsin and compared the modified reservoir potential of P. maniculatus to P. leucopus. Based on mixed‐model regression analysis, individual P. maniculatus were 2.07 (1.07–4.01) times more likely to be infected with Borrelia burgdorferi compared with P. leucopus. We report the first detection of three emerging tick‐borne pathogens (Babesia microti, Borrelia mayonii, and Ehrlichia muris eauclairensis) in P. maniculatus. Additionally, P. maniculatus infected with Ba. microti were 4.8 (2.74–8.50) times more likely to be concurrently infected with Bo. burgdorferi compared with P. leucopus. While we found individual P. leucopus to be more infested with both larval and nymphal I. scapularis, P. maniculatus was the more abundant species. As a result, P. maniculatus had a higher modified reservoir potential in our study area and was likely responsible for feeding and infecting more ticks with pathogens than P. leucopus. Overall, our results illustrate that P. maniculatus is an important reservoir in areas of the Midwest, where it occurs in high abundance.
Effect of angiotensin receptor neprilysin inhibitors on left atrial remodeling and prognosis in heart failure
Authors: Sun Yuxi , Song Shuang , Zhang Yanli , Mo Wenqiong , Zhang Xinxin , Wang Ning , Xia Yunlong , Tse Gary , Liu Ying
Published: November 2021

Aims

The angiotensin receptor–neprilysin inhibitor (ARNI), sacubitril/valsartan, confers additional protective effects compared with angiotensin‐converting enzyme inhibitors/angiotensin II receptor blockers (ACEIs/ARBs) in terms of reversed left ventricular (LV) remodelling and improves the prognosis of patients with heart failure (HF). However, few studies have examined the effects of ARNI on the left atrium. Accordingly, this study compared the effects of ARNI and ACEI/ARB on left atrial (LA) remodelling in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF).

Methods and results

This was a single‐centre retrospective study of patients with HFrEF hospitalized at the First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University between 26 February 2016 and 8 July 2020. Patients were classified into ARNI and ACEI/ARB groups and further subgroups based on the left atrial volume index (LAVI): mildly abnormal (29 mL/m2 ≤ LAVI < 34 mL/m2), moderately abnormal (34 mL/m2 ≤ LAVI < 40 mL/m2), and severely abnormal (LAVI ≥ 40 mL/m2). The primary endpoint was changes in LA parameters by echocardiography. The secondary endpoint was all‐cause mortality. A total of 336 patients (mean age: 64.11 ± 12.86, 30.06% female) were included. Except those lost to follow‐up, 274 HFrEF patients remained, with 144 cases in the ARNI group and 130 cases in the ACEI/ARB group. Greater reductions from baseline were seen with ARNI in LA diameter (LAD) (P = 0.013, t‐test), superior and LA superior–inferior diameter (LASID) (P < 0.0001), LA transverse diameter (LATD) (P < 0.0001), LA volume (LAV) (P < 0.0001), LAVI (P < 0.0001), and LA sphericity index (LASI) (P < 0.0001). Over a mean follow‐up of 19.40 months, 97 patients (67.3%) in the ARNI group and 29 patients (22.3%) in the ACEI/ARB group showed LA reverse remodelling (LARR). Kaplan–Meier analysis showed significantly lower overall mortality in the ARNI group compared with the ACEI/ARB group (P = 0.048, log‐rank test). The mildly abnormal LAVI group of ARNI patients showed a reduction in mortality compared with ACEI/ARB patients (P = 0.044). However, no significant difference was observed for the moderately abnormal (P = 0.571) or severely abnormal LAVI groups (P = 0.609), suggesting that early initiation of ARNI was associated with a better prognosis.

Conclusions

In this proof‐of‐concept study, ARNI use showed greater effects on LARR and was associated with a better prognosis compared with ACEI/ARB use in HFrEF. Early initiation of ARNI in the HF disease process may produce greater benefit, but this needs to be confirmed in future studies.
Managing air quality: Predicting exceedances of legal limits for PM10 and O3 concentration using machine learning methods
Authors: Krylova Maryna , Okhrin Yarema
Published: November 2021

Air pollution imposes great costs on productivity, safety and health of individuals and dictates necessity of a proactive air pollution management. This, in turn, requires powerful tools for air quality modeling. In this article we develop a two‐stage procedure for predicting exceedances of the EU legal limits for PM10 and O concentrations using hourly data. Within the first stage we deploy machine learning methods to produce accurate 24‐h‐ahead forecasts of hourly pollutant concentrations at seven specific locations in the cities of Augsburg and Munich, Germany. The best performance was shown by the Stochastic Gradient Boosting Model—an ensemble tree‐based method, especially convenient because of its computational efficiency and robustness to overfitting. Its predictive ability was largely superior to that reported by similar studies. In the second stage, the hourly forecasts were used to predict the exceedances of the EU daily limits for PM10 and O concentrations. For both pollutants we could achieve the average probability of exceedances detection above 80%, while keeping the probability of false alarms at a reasonably low level. Such satisfactory results show that our approach can be successfully applied to anticipate the shocks, which would allow authorities to manage them in the most effective manner.
Tracing the progress of scenario research in business and management
Authors: Jashari Arbrie , Tiberius Victor , Dabić Marina
Published: November 2021

Business and management research on scenarios has been highly productive over the decades but led to a complex literature that is hard to oversee. To organize the field and identify distinguishable research clusters, we conducted a co‐citation analysis focusing on the long‐term history of research. We compare our findings with a previously published bibliographic coupling, focusing on the more recent research to trace its development over time. Our study revealed six research clusters: (1) Planning the Future with Scenarios, (2) Scenario Planning in Strategic Management, (3) Reinforcing the Scenario Technique, (4) Integration of Scenario Planning and MCDA, (5) Combination of Different Methods, and (6) Decision‐making through Stochastic Programming, whereas the bibliographic coupling generated 11 clusters. Some former research clusters were divided into separate new clusters, while others were united. Additionally, completely new clusters emerged. Future research on scenarios is expected (1) to further differentiate into strategy and operations, (2) to be based on “behavioral futures” or “behavioral foresight” as a new research stream, (3) to advance the scenario technique methodically and include new specific scenario generation methods, and (4) to put forth new application areas.
US students’ perceptions on environmental sustainability in dental school
Authors: Gershberg Nicole C. , Lee Jennifer , Murphree Jessica K. , Parchure Ashwini , Hackley Donna M.
Published: November 2021

Objectives

At present, there are no published reports assessing pre‐doctoral curricular experience or participatory involvement with Environmental Sustainability in Dentistry (ESD) in the United States. This study aims to assess whether students enrolled in US dental schools receive any training with ESD and gauge dental students’ level of interest and attitudes regarding ESD within their dental education.

Methods

A descriptive cross‐sectional study utilizing a 16‐questions validated survey was conducted on Qualtrics. Data analysis included descriptive statistics.

Results

A total of 378 dental students from 17 US dental schools participated (response rate 5%). Students reported that ESD was “quite” or “extremely” important (83%). However, 75% of students reported being “not at all” or “slightly” knowledgeable. Only 5% reported ESD content in their dental education. Students suggested that ESD could be integrated into existing coursework relating to infection control, practice management, and dental public health.

Conclusion

By understanding students’ level of interest, attitudes toward importance, and current level of curricular content on ESD, dental educators can develop best practices for educating future practitioners on environmental sustainability.
Productive tensions? Analyzing the arguments made about the field of engineering education research
Authors: Klassen Mike , Case Jennifer M.
Published: November 2021

Background

A body of literature has arisen analyzing and legitimating the emerging field of engineering education research (EER). Using concepts from the sociology of knowledge, EER can be described as a region because it has relationships both to other academic fields and to its field of practice. Of interest is the strength of boundaries between these fields, described by the sociologist Bernstein's concept of classification.

Purpose/Hypothesis

This study addresses the research questions: (1) How, when and by whom are arguments made to strengthen or weaken the boundaries, first between EER and other academic fields and second between EER and engineering teaching? (2) How do these arguments change across time and national contexts?

Design/Method

Drawing on a survey of 21 EER experts, this sociological discourse analysis focuses on a purposive dataset of 17 papers from 2000 to 2020.

Results

The study identified three main arguments in this literature, favoring: (1) strong classification (a singular in sociological terms); (2a) a region linked outward to teaching practice; and (2b) a region linked inward to other social science disciplines.

Conclusions

The argument for EER as a strongly classified field has served value in establishing legitimacy and associated resources in some contexts but has not yet delivered a unique knowledge base for such legitimation. An alternative framing holds together the productive tension between two directions in which EER as a region can face: Looking inward to parent disciplines for theoretical and methodological direction and looking outward to the world of practice for meaningful problems to guide its studies.
Artificial intelligence enhances the accuracy of portal and hepatic vein extraction in computed tomography for virtual hepatectomy
Authors: Kazami Yusuke , Kaneko Junichi , Keshwani Deepak , Takahashi Ryugen , Kawaguchi Yoshikuni , Ichida Akihiko , Ishizawa Takeaki , Akamatsu Nobuhisa , Arita Junichi , Hasegawa Kiyoshi
Published: November 2021

Background/Purpose

Current conventional algorithms used for 3‐dimensional simulation in virtual hepatectomy still have difficulties distinguishing the portal vein (PV) and hepatic vein (HV). The accuracy of these algorithms was compared with a new deep‐learning based algorithm (DLA) using artificial intelligence.

Methods

A total of 110 living liver donor candidates until 2017, and 46 donor candidates until 2019 were allocated to the training group and validation groups for the DLA, respectively. All PV or HV branches were labeled based on Couinaud's segment classification and the Brisbane 2000 Terminology by hepato‐biliary surgeons. Misclassified and missing branches were compared between a conventional tracking‐based algorithm (TA) and DLA in the validation group.

Results

The sensitivity, specificity, and Dice coefficient for the PV were 0.58, 0.98, and 0.69 using the TA; and 0.84, 0.97, and 0.90 using the DLA (P < .001, excluding specificity); and for the HV, 0.81, 087, and 0.83 using the TA; and 0.93, 0.94 and 0.94 using the DLA (P < .001 to P = .001). The DLA exhibited greater accuracy than the TA.

Conclusion

Compared with the TA, artificial intelligence enhanced the accuracy of extraction of the PV and HVs in computed tomography.
The relative impact of different ‘resistant behavioural responses’ on interrogative suggestibility in children: The powerful contribution of ‘direct explanation’ replies to unanswerable questions
Authors: Gudjonsson Gisli , Vagni Monia , Maiorano Tiziana , Giostra Valeria , Pajardi Daniela
Published: November 2021

The aim of this study was to investigate the different types of resistant behavioural responses to unanswerable questions, their respective individual contribution to the overall variance in resistance efficacy, and their differential protective effect on repeated questioning, interrogative pressure, and delayed suggestibility. The participants were 360 children aged between 7 and 17 years, 180 of whom were suspected victims of sexual abuse and 180 matched peers for age, sex and IQ. All children completed the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scale 2. Delayed suggestibility was measured after a 1‐week delay. The findings show that ‘don't know’, ‘direct explanation’, and ‘no’ answers are unrelated response styles that have individual effects on resistance to misleading questions. ‘Direct explanation’ answers are most stable and robust and increase incrementally with age in children, whilst ‘no’ answers decline. The findings suggest that ‘Don't know’, ‘direct explanation’, and ‘no’ answers are driven by different cognitive and social processes.
Tumor margins that lead to reoperation in breast cancer: A retrospective register study of 4,489 patients
Authors: Lepomäki Maiju , Karhunen‐Enckell Ulla , Tuominen Jalmari , Kronqvist Pauliina , Oksala Niku , Murtola Teemu , Roine Antti
Published: November 2021

Background and Objectives

Optimal margins for ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) remain controversial in breast‐conserving surgery (BCS) and mastectomy. We examine the association of positive margins, reoperations, DCIS and age.

Methods

A retrospective study of histopathological reports (4489 patients). Margin positivity was defined as ink on tumor for invasive carcinoma. For DCIS, we applied 2 mm anterior and side margin thresholds, and ink on tumor in the posterior margin.

Results

The incidence of positive side margins was 20% in BCS and 5% in mastectomies (p < 0.001). Of these patients, 68% and 14% underwent a reoperation (p < 0.001). After a positive side margin in BCS, the reoperation rates according to age groups were 74% (<49), 69% (50–64), 68% (65–79), and 42% (80+) (p = 0.013). Of BCS patients with invasive carcinoma in the side margin, 73% were reoperated on. A reoperation was performed in 70% of patients with a close (≤1 mm) DCIS side margin, compared to 43% with a wider (1.1–2 mm) margin (p = 0.002). The reoperation rates were 55% in invasive carcinoma with close DCIS, 66% in close extensive intraductal component (EIC), and 83% in close pure DCIS (p < 0.001).

Conclusions

Individual assessment as opposed to rigid adherence to guidelines was used in the decision on reoperation.
Institutional environment, the ultimate controller's characteristics and CSR disclosure in China
Authors: Bin‐Feng Chai , Mirza Sultan Sikandar , Ahsan Tanveer , Gull Ammar Ali , Al‐Gamrh Bakr
Published: November 2021

Using a dataset of Chinese listed companies from 2009 to 2018, this study empirically examines the relationship between a company's institutional environment, the ultimate controller's characteristics and its level of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure in China. The results show that Chinese companies operating in better institutional environments have higher CSR disclosure. Moreover, the type of the ultimate controller of a company is significantly related to the level of CSR disclosure, which is higher in state‐controlled companies than in nonstate‐controlled companies. The results are robust to different proxies of CSR disclosure.
Globally exponential stabilization of a class of uncertain time delay systems via periodically intermittent control
Authors: Lu Xiaomei , Chen Wu‐Hua
Published: November 2021

The problem of periodically intermittent stabilization of a class of uncertain time‐delay systems is investigated. Two cases of time‐varying delays are considered: the fast‐varying delays and the slowly‐varying delays. For the former case, a piecewise exponential‐type Lyapunov function combined with a novel Razumikhin‐type technique is proposed to analyze the stability of the periodically intermittently controlled systems. For the latter case, the stability analysis is performed by employing a piecewise time‐dependent exponential‐type Lyapunov functional. The exponential‐type Lyapunov functions/functionals are able to capture more information on switching modes than the conventional Lyapunov functions/functionals, and thus lead to less conservative stability criteria. Next, based on the newly established stability criteria, novel sufficient conditions on the existence of periodically intermittent feedback controllers are presented in terms of linear matrix inequalities. Finally, two numerical examples are given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed results.
Electromyographic analysis of maximal voluntary contraction of female pelvic floor muscles: Intrarater and interrater reliability study
Authors: Volpato Maria P. , Menezes Michele , Prado Tirza Sathler , Piccini Adriana , Ferreira Arthur Sá , Botelho Simone
Published: November 2021

Aims

To investigate the intrarater and interrater reliability of the surface electromyography (sEMG) of female pelvic floor muscles (PFM) by visual determination of the onset‐offset during maximal voluntary contraction (MVC).

Methods

Intrarater and interrater reliability study. Three MVC, recorded for 5 s (s) each and separated by intervals of 60 s, were requested. Two independent raters visually determined the onset and offset of each MVC. The agreement between raters on the quality of the signals was analyzed both qualitatively (visual inspection) and quantitatively (signal‐to‐noise ratio, SNR). The reliability of integral and median frequency (MDF) of sEMG signals during MVC was analyzed using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) models (ICC2,1, ICC2,3) and repeated measures analysis of variance.

Results

A total of 58 women (mean age of 54 years) and two independent raters participated in the analyses. Of the total, 22 (37.9%) were considered of high quality by both raters and the SNR ranged 34.3–22.2 decibels (dB). The agreement of qualitative visual evaluation of the sEMG signal was fair (Cohen's κ = 0.306 [0.148; 0.463]). Intrarater and interrater reliability were excellent for the average of the three MVC, both for integral (ICC2,3 = 0.884 [0.821; 0.925]; ω2 = −0.006, p = 0.558) and MDF (ICC2,3 = 0.998 [0.998; 0.999]; ω2 = −0.009, p = 0.992).

Conclusion

Qualitative visual analysis of the sEMG signal presents fair interrater agreement and reflects the SNR. Visual determination of the onset and offset of the MVC of PFM using the standard interface of the sEMG software has excellent reliability for determination of muscle activation variables.
Dynamic contrast‐enhanced CEST MRI using a low molecular weight dextran
Authors: Han Zheng , Chen Chuheng , Xu Xiang , Bai Renyuan , Staedtke Verena , Huang Jianpan , Chan Kannie W. Y. , Xu Jiadi , Kamson David O. , Wen Zhibo , Knutsson Linda , van Zijl Peter C. M. , Liu Guanshu
Published: November 2021

Natural and synthetic sugars have great potential for developing highly biocompatible and translatable chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST) MRI contrast agents. In this study, we aimed to develop the smallest clinically available form of dextran, Dex1 (molecular weight, MW ~ 1 kDa), as a new CEST agent. We first characterized the CEST properties of Dex1 in vitro at 11.7 T and showed that the Dex1 had a detectable CEST signal at ~1.2 ppm, attributed to hydroxyl protons. In vivo CEST MRI studies were then carried out on C57BL6 mice bearing orthotopic GL261 brain tumors (n = 5) using a Bruker BioSpec 11.7 T MRI scanner. Both steady‐state full Z‐spectral images and single offset (1.2 ppm) dynamic dextran‐enhanced (DDE) images were acquired before and after the intravenous injection of Dex1 (2 g/kg). The steady‐state Z‐spectral analysis showed a significantly higher CEST contrast enhancement in the tumor than in contralateral brain (∆MTRasym1.2 ppm = 0.010 ± 0.006 versus 0.002 ± 0.008, P = 0.0069) at 20 min after the injection of Dex1. Pharmacokinetic analyses of DDE were performed using the area under the curve (AUC) in the first 10 min after Dex1 injection, revealing a significantly higher uptake of Dex1 in the tumor than in brain tissue for tumor‐bearing mice (AUC[0‐10 min] = 21.9 ± 4.2 versus 5.3 ± 6.4%·min, P = 0.0294). In contrast, no Dex1 uptake was foundling in the brains of non‐tumor‐bearing mice (AUC[0‐10 min] = −1.59 ± 2.43%·min). Importantly, the CEST MRI findings were consistent with the measurements obtained using DCE MRI and fluorescence microscopy, demonstrating the potential of Dex1 as a highly translatable CEST MRI contrast agent for assessing tumor hemodynamics.
Reversible addition‐fragmentation chain transfer cyclopolymerization of dimethacryloyl open‐cage silsesquioxane
Authors: Okamoto Keigo , Igarashi Amato , Imoto Hiroaki , Naka Kensuke
Published: November 2021

We recently reported a bifunctional methacrylate monomer having a side‐opened cage‐silsesquioxane as a scaffold. Although free‐radical polymerization proceeded mainly through cyclopolymerization, cross‐linking structures were included. In this work, we have optimized the reaction conditions for reversible addition‐fragmentation chain transfer cyclopolymerization using 2‐cyano‐2‐propyl dithiobenzoate. As a result, polymers with relatively low polydispersity indices were successfully obtained. After removal of dithiobenzoate end groups, the transparency was high (>98%) in the range of visible range (400–800 nm). The content of the unreacted dangling vinyl groups, which was controlled by monomer concentration, affected the thermal stability of the resulting polymers. In addition, the bifunctional cage‐silsesquioxane monomer can be readily copolymerized with methyl methacrylate without cross‐linking.
A multicenter retrospective study of clinical features, laboratory characteristics, and outcomes of 166 hospitalized children with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19): A preliminary report from Iranian Network for Research in Viral Diseases (INRVD)
Authors: Sedighi Iraj , Fahimzad Alireza , Pak Neda , Khalili Mitra , Shokrollahi Mohammad R. , Heydari Hosein , Movahedi Zahra , Dashti Anahita S. , Cheraghali Fatemeh , Shamsizadeh Ahmad , Mirkarimi Mohammadreza , Alisamir Mohsen , Hashemian Houman , Soltani Jafar , Hosseininasab Ali , Hamedi Abdolkarim , Rezai Mohammad S. , Sayyahfar Shirin , Kahbazi Manijeh , Abedini Aliakbar , Akhondzadeh Afsaneh , Sherkatolabbasieh Hamid R. , Razlansari Ali Akbar , Alibeik Mina , Malayeri Soheil Omid , Shalchi Zohreh , Shahabinezhad Ali , Asl Parinaz K. , Monfared Fatemeh N. , Maleki Shiva , Kakavand Rezvan , Farahmand Mohammad , Shahbaz Babak , Tavakoli Ahmad , Rezayat Sara A. , Karimi Mohammad R. , Erfani Yousef , Jafarpour Ali , Soltani Saber , Zandi Milad , Ghaziasadi Azam , Dowran Razieh , Azimi Shohreh , Marvi Shima S. , Abazari Mohammad F. , Norouzi Mehdi , Azhar Iman R. , Jazayeri Seyed M.
Published: November 2021

Background

The objectives of this study were to analyze the clinical features and laboratory profiles and risk factors associated with critical illness of children with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2).

Methods

One hundred and sixty‐six coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) Iranian pediatric patients were recruited through a collaborative research network between March and May 2020. Demographics, clinical, laboratory, and radiological results were obtained from patient files.

Results

Of 166 patients, 102 (61%) and 64 (39%) were males and females, respectively. Ninety‐six (57.8%) and 70 (42.2%), had moderate and severe conditions, respectively. Thirty (18%) of patients died. The common symptoms were fever (73%), cough (54%), and shortness of breath, headache decrease in neutrophil and platelet counts; increase values in lactate dehydrogenase, decrease in the blood pH and HCO3 were significantly associated with the disease severity. 54% and 56% of patients showed abnormal radiographic appearance in Chest X‐ray and in chest computed tomography scan, respectively. Sixty‐one (36.7%) of patients were referred to intensive care unit (ICU). The coexistence of comorbidity was the main factor associated with ICU admission, shock, arrhythmia, acute kidney injury, acute respiratory distress syndrome, acute cardiac injury, and death.

Conclusions

We describe a higher than previously recognized rate of COVID‐19 mortality in Iranian pediatric patients. Epidemiological factors, such as the relatively high case fatality rate in the country and the presence of underlying diseases were the main factors for the high death rate.
The importance of residue‐level filtering and the Top2018 best‐parts dataset of high‐quality protein residues
Authors: Williams Christopher J. , Richardson David C. , Richardson Jane S.
Published: November 2021

We have curated a high‐quality, “best‐parts” reference dataset of about 3 million protein residues in about 15,000 PDB‐format coordinate files, each containing only residues with good electron density support for a physically acceptable model conformation. The resulting prefiltered data typically contain the entire core of each chain, in quite long continuous fragments. Each reference file is a single protein chain, and the total set of files were selected for low redundancy, high resolution, good MolProbity score, and other chain‐level criteria. Then each residue was critically tested for adequate local map quality to firmly support its conformation, which must also be free of serious clashes or covalent‐geometry outliers. The resulting Top2018 prefiltered datasets have been released on the Zenodo online web service and are freely available for all uses under a Creative Commons license. Currently, one dataset is residue filtered on main chain plus Cβ atoms, and a second dataset is full‐residue filtered; each is available at four different sequence‐identity levels. Here, we illustrate both statistics and examples that show the beneficial consequences of residue‐level filtering. That process is necessary because even the best of structures contain a few highly disordered local regions with poor density and low‐confidence conformations that should not be included in reference data. Therefore, the open distribution of these very large, prefiltered reference datasets constitutes a notable advance for structural bioinformatics and the fields that depend upon it.
A continued learning approach for model‐informed precision dosing: Updating models in clinical practice
Authors: Maier Corinna , de Wiljes Jana , Hartung Niklas , Kloft Charlotte , Huisinga Wilhelm
Published: November 2021

Model‐informed precision dosing (MIPD) is a quantitative dosing framework that combines prior knowledge on the drug‐disease‐patient system with patient data from therapeutic drug/ biomarker monitoring (TDM) to support individualized dosing in ongoing treatment. Structural models and prior parameter distributions used in MIPD approaches typically build on prior clinical trials that involve only a limited number of patients selected according to some exclusion/inclusion criteria. Compared to the prior clinical trial population, the patient population in clinical practice can be expected to also include altered behavior and/or increased interindividual variability, the extent of which, however, is typically unknown. Here, we address the question of how to adapt and refine models on the level of the model parameters to better reflect this real‐world diversity. We propose an approach for continued learning across patients during MIPD using a sequential hierarchical Bayesian framework. The approach builds on two stages to separate the update of the individual patient parameters from updating the population parameters. Consequently, it enables continued learning across hospitals or study centers, because only summary patient data (on the level of model parameters) need to be shared, but no individual TDM data. We illustrate this continued learning approach with neutrophil‐guided dosing of paclitaxel. The present study constitutes an important step toward building confidence in MIPD and eventually establishing MIPD increasingly in everyday therapeutic use.
Antitumor effect of acanthoic acid against primary effusion lymphoma via inhibition of c‐FLIP
Authors: Sittithumcharee Gunya , Kariya Ryusho , Kasemsuk Teerapich , Saeeng Rungnapha , Okada Seiji
Published: November 2021

Acanthoic acid (AA) is an active substance that is extracted from Croton oblongifolius Roxb., a traditional plant in Thailand. The antiinflammatory effect of AA on NF‐κB pathway has been exclusively reported, however, its anticancer effect is still lacking. PEL is a B cell lymphoma that is mostly found in HIV patients. The prognosis and progression of PEL patients are terribly poor with a median survival time less than 6 months, so the new effective treatment is urgently needed. In this study, we found that AA effectively inhibited PEL cell proliferation with IC50s at 120–130 μM in well‐representative cells, while the IC50s of AA in PBMC were higher (>200 μM). AA increased percentages of Annexin V/PI positive cells, whereas adding of caspase inhibitor (Q‐VD‐OPh) prevented AA‐induced cell death. The antiapoptotic protein, c‐FLIP, was downregulated by AA which leading to the activation of caspase‐8 and ‐3. Combination of AA and TRAIL dramatically enhanced apoptotic cell death. In PEL xenograft model, AA at the dose of 250 mg/kg effectively inhibited PEL tumor growth without detectable toxicities assessed by mice weight and appearance.
Tropical precipitation clusters as islands on a rough water‐vapor topography
Authors: Li Ziwei , O'Gorman Paul A. , Rothman Daniel H.
Published: November 2021

Tropical precipitation clusters exhibit power‐law frequency distributions in area and volume (integrated precipitation), implying a lack of characteristic scale in tropical convective organization. However, it remains unknown what gives rise to the power laws and how the power‐law exponents for area and volume are related to one another. Here, we explore the perspective that precipitation clusters are islands above a convective threshold on a rough column‐water‐vapor (CWV) topography. This perspective is supported by the agreement between the precipitation clusters and CWV islands in their frequency distributions as well as fractal dimensions. Power laws exist for CWV islands at different thresholds through the CWV topography, suggesting that the existence of power laws is not specifically related to local precipitation dynamics, but is rather a general feature of CWV islands. Furthermore, the frequency distributions and fractal dimensions of the clusters can be reproduced when the CWV field is modeled to be self‐affine with a roughness exponent of 0.3. Self‐affine scaling theory relates the statistics of precipitation clusters to the roughness exponent; it also relates the power‐law slopes for area and volume without involving the roughness exponent. Thus, the perspective of precipitation clusters as CWV islands provides a useful framework to consider many statistical properties of these precipitation clusters, particularly given that CWV is well‐observed over a wide range of length‐scales in the Tropics. However, the statistics of CWV islands at the convective threshold imply a smaller roughness than is inferred from the power spectrum of the bulk CWV field, and further work is needed to understand the scaling of the CWV field.
Quantitative structure–property relationship of edge weighted and degree‐based entropy of benzene derivatives
Authors: Rauf Abdul , Naeem Muhammad , Aslam Adnan
Published: November 2021

Topological indices are used to predict the physical properties of chemical compounds. It is an efficient technique in avoiding expensive and long laboratory experiments. For this, we computed the weighted degree and weighted edge‐based topological indices and developed a quantitative structure–property relationship between these entropy indices and the scaling physical properties of benzene derivatives. We developed a Maple based algorithm to compute these indices and the correlation between topological indices and physical properties have been developed with the software SPSS. Our study reveals that the redefined third Zagreb entropy is the most significant parameter and has good prediction ability for the physical properties boiling point and molecular weight.
Contrasting ecological processes shape the Eucalyptus phyllosphere bacterial and fungal community assemblies
Authors: Yan Zhen‐Zhen , Chen Qing‐Lin , Li Chao‐Yu , Thi Nguyen Bao‐Anh , He Ji‐Zheng , Hu Hang‐Wei
Published: November 2021

Introduction

Phyllosphere microbiome is intrinsically linked to plant performance and ecosystem functioning. However, our knowledge about the role of ecological processes in shaping the biogeography of different phyllosphere microbial communities is scarce.

Materials and Methods

Here, we compared the biogeographic patterns of bacterial and fungal communities in phyllosphere samples of plants belonging to the genus of Eucalyptus of the Myrtaceae family collected from an over 4000 km transect. We investigated the relative importance of two major ecosystem processes (stochastic vs. deterministic) in shaping phyllosphere microbial community assemblies.

Results

Our results demonstrated that the neutral community model, which can quantify the degree of a community assembly determined by stochastic processes, explained 64.2% of the variations in bacterial community assembly, which had a normalized stochasticity ratio of 71.8%. These results suggest that the dominant role of stochastic processes in shaping bacterial community assembly. In contrast, phyllosphere fungal community assembly was mainly shaped by deterministic processes as revealed by a relatively small explanation rate of the neutral community model (48.7%) and a normalized stochasticity ratio of 25.1%. Variation partitioning analysis and random forest modelling results indicated that climatic factors, particularly mean annual precipitation and aridity index, were important in driving both bacterial and fungal biogeographic patterns in the phyllosphere. Edaphic factors, such as soil organic and mineral nitrogen content, were more closely related to fungal community assembly than to bacterial community assembly. The differential responses of bacterial and fungal communities to environmental factors could be attributed to the different traits of bacteria and fungi, that is, the higher potential dispersal rate and wider habitat niche of bacteria than fungi.

Conclusion

Our findings demonstrated that phyllosphere bacterial and fungal communities followed distinct community assembly processes, which is supported by the ‘size plasticity’ hypothesis that smaller organisms (bacteria) are less influenced by environmental conditions and are more homogeneous across space than larger organisms (fungi). These findings provide new insights into the microbial ecology of plant phyllosphere microbiomes.
Biomaterial‐Interrelated Bacterial Sweeper: Simplified Self‐Assembled Octapeptides with Double‐Layered Trp Zipper Induces Membrane Destabilization and Bacterial Apoptosis‐Like Death
Authors: Fang Yuxin , Zhu Yunhui , Li Ling , Lai Zhenheng , Dong Na , Shan Anshan
Published: November 2021

Treatment of microbial‐associated infections continues to be hampered by impaired antibacterial efficiency and the variability in nanomedicines. Herein, an octapeptide library with a double‐layered zipper, constructed via a systematic arrangement, simplifying the sequence and optimizing the structure (diverse motifs including surfactant‐like, central‐bola, and end‐bola), is assessed in terms of biological efficiency and self‐assembly properties. The results indicate that peptides with double‐layered Trp zipper exhibit significant antimicrobial activity. Extracellularly, affinity interactions between micelles and bacteria induce the lateral flow of the membrane and electric potential perturbation. Intracellularly, lead molecules cause apoptosis‐like death, as indicated by excessive accumulation of reactive oxygen species, generation of a DNA ladder, and upregulation of mazEF expression. Among them, RW‐1 performs the best in vivo and in vitro. The intersecting combination of Trp zipper and surfactants possesses overwhelming superiority with respect to bacterial sweepers (therapeutic index [TI] = 52.89), nanostructures (micelles), and bacterial damage compared to RW‐2 (central‐bola) and RW‐3 (end‐bola). These findings confirm that the combination of double‐layered Trp zipper and surfactants has potential for application as a combined motif for combating microbial infection and connects the vast gap between antimicrobial peptides and self‐assembly, such as Jacob's ladder.
Promoting Sustainable Mobility in Tourist Destinations: Mobility Center 2.0
Authors: Briesner Ingrid
Published: November 2021

Over the past decades, leisure-related mobility in European regions has increased continuously, especially in tourist destinations. New mobility patterns put enormous strain on sustainability issues in tourist regions, which are particularly vulnerable in this regard since the amount of individual mobility often is higher than in non-tourist regions leading to road congestion, seasonal changes of transport demand causing capacity problems, and high level of private car use increasing the need for parking spaces, etc. The rising importance of ecological tourism demands new perspectives of the tourist destinations in establishing new sustainable mobility structures and strategies for supporting regional economic development. Mobility Centers 2.0 are an efficient tool to reduce individual car use and the negative impact of visitor’s travel in tourist regions, as well as to upgrade the quality of the leisure offer and the external image of the region. They can help to strengthen tourist regions as growth poles and improve the economic vitality of the targeted destination.
Nodes
Authors: Lovell Heather
Published: November 2021

Nodes within smart grids play an important role in providing stability—keeping things the same—as well as innovating. The theme of nodes is closely related to that of networks, as nodes are fixed, stable points on networks. But whereas the network metaphor encourages us to think about connections and flows, the concept of nodes focuses our attention on the key organisations, people, and technologies that provide stable anchor points and typically act as brokers at crucial intersections within the energy sector. In this chapter, I examine social and technical nodes using three examples: the digital electricity meter, with a focus on household transitions in the UK and Australia, an energy authority (the Australian Energy Market Operator), and islands, specifically looking at the smart grid on King Island, Australia.
Elliptic blowup equations for 6d SCFTs. Part IV. Matters
Authors: Gu Jie , Haghighat Babak , Klemm Albrecht , Sun Kaiwen , Wang Xin
Published: November 2021

Abstract

Given the recent geometrical classification of 6d (1, 0) SCFTs, a major question is how to compute for this large class their elliptic genera. The latter encode the refined BPS spectrum of the SCFTs, which determines geometric invariants of the associated elliptic non-compact Calabi-Yau threefolds. In this paper we establish for all 6d (1, 0) SCFTs in the atomic classification blowup equations that fix these elliptic genera to large extent. The latter fall into two types: the unity and the vanishing blowup equations. For almost all rank one theories, we find unity blowup equations which determine the elliptic genera completely. We develop several techniques to compute elliptic genera and BPS invariants from the blowup equations, including a recursion formula with respect to the number of strings, a Weyl orbit expansion, a refined BPS expansion and an ϵ1, ϵ2 expansion. For higher-rank theories, we propose a gluing rule to obtain all their blowup equations based on those of rank one theories. For example, we explicitly give the elliptic blowup equations for the three higher-rank non-Higgsable clusters, ADE chain of −2 curves and conformal matter theories. We also give the toric construction for many elliptic non-compact Calabi- Yau threefolds which engineer 6d (1, 0) SCFTs with various matter representations.
Symptom burden, psychological distress, and health-related quality of life in cancer survivors with pelvic late radiation tissue injuries
Authors: Velure Grete K. , Müller Bernd , Hauken May Aa.
Published: November 2021

Purpose

Curative radiotherapy for cancer may lead to severe late radiation tissue injuries (LRTIs). However, limited knowledge exists about pelvic cancer survivors’ LRTI symptoms, distress, and health-related quality of life (HRQOL). We sought to assess the symptom burden, distress, and HRQOL in survivors with established pelvic LRTIs compared to norm populations and to investigate the relation between these factors.

Methods

Cancer survivors referred for treatment of established pelvic LRTIs were recruited nationwide. LTRIs were assessed with the Expanded Prostate Cancer Index Composite (EPIC), psychological distress was assessed with the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), and HRQOL was assessed with the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORCT-QLQ-C30).

Results

A total of 107 participants (mean age 64, 53% men) were included. Compared to norms, participants reported more urinary (mean 68.7 vs. 89.5; p = 0.00; d = 1.4) and bowel symptoms (mean 62.5 vs. 92.4; p = 0.00; d = 2.7), increased psychological distress (mean 13.4 vs. 10.3; p = 0.00; d = 0.6), and overall poorer HRQOL (mean 54.9 vs. 71.2; p = 0.00; d = 0.7). Higher symptom burden and higher levels of psychological distress were associated with lower HRQOL (r2 = 46%), but psychological distress did not moderate the influence of symptoms on HRQOL.

Conclusion

Cancer survivors with established pelvic LRTIs are highly burdened compared to norms. The association of the LRTI-related symptom burden with HRQOL is independent of the level of psychological distress. Both coping and treatment interventions are crucial to promoting long-term health and HRQOL.

Trial registration

NCT03570229.