bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Untargeted metabolomics identifies succinate as a biomarker and therapeutic target in aortic aneurysm and dissection
Authors: Cui Hongtu , Chen Yanghui , Li Ke , Zhan Rui , Zhao Mingming , Xu Yangkai , Lin Zhiyong , Fu Yi , He Qihua , Tang Paul C , Lei Ienglam , Zhang Jifeng , Li Chenze , Sun Yang , Zhang Xinhua , Horng Tiffany , Lu Hong S , Chen Y Eugene , Daugherty Alan , Wang Daowen , Zheng Lemin
Published: September 2021

Aims

Aortic aneurysm and dissection (AAD) are high-risk cardiovascular diseases with no effective cure. Macrophages play an important role in the development of AAD. As succinate triggers inflammatory changes in macrophages, we investigated the significance of succinate in the pathogenesis of AAD and its clinical relevance.

Methods and results

We used untargeted metabolomics and mass spectrometry to determine plasma succinate concentrations in 40 and 1665 individuals of the discovery and validation cohorts, respectively. Three different murine AAD models were used to determine the role of succinate in AAD development. We further examined the role of oxoglutarate dehydrogenase (OGDH) and its transcription factor cyclic adenosine monophosphate-responsive element-binding protein 1 (CREB) in the context of macrophage-mediated inflammation and established p38αMKO  Apoe  –/– mice. Succinate was the most upregulated metabolite in the discovery cohort; this was confirmed in the validation cohort. Plasma succinate concentrations were higher in patients with AAD compared with those in healthy controls, patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI), and patients with pulmonary embolism (PE). Moreover, succinate administration aggravated angiotensin II-induced AAD and vascular inflammation in mice. In contrast, knockdown of OGDH reduced the expression of inflammatory factors in macrophages. The conditional deletion of p38α decreased CREB phosphorylation, OGDH expression, and succinate concentrations. Conditional deletion of p38α in macrophages reduced angiotensin II-induced AAD.

Conclusion

Plasma succinate concentrations allow to distinguish patients with AAD from both healthy controls and patients with AMI or PE. Succinate concentrations are regulated by the p38α–CREB–OGDH axis in macrophages.
Care and management of adults with autism spectrum disorder in family practice: difficulties experienced by general practitioners
Authors: Voillemont Cyrielle , Imbault Eric , Schoenberger Marie , Di Patrizio Paolo
Published: September 2021

Background and objectives

Few studies exist regarding the management and support of adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in family practice. Most of them concern the management of children. As a primary care professional however, the general practitioner (GP) has a role to play at every step of the autistic adult’s care pathway. With this study, we sought to identify GPs’ experienced difficulties in caring for and managing their adult patients with ASD.

Methods

We conducted a qualitative study of 11 French GPs caring for adults with ASD via semistructured interviews and a thematic content analysis. GPs were recruited from 5 counties of the Grand Est Region (Marne, Haute-Marne, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Meuse and Vosges).

Results

All of the GPs described difficulties with the diagnostic process and the lack of initial training. Most of the respondents expressed difficulties with medical consultations of patients presenting an intellectual disability (ID) and with the lack of communication between GPs and mental health specialists during the patient care process. More than half of the GPs described difficulties with referral pathways for diagnosis due to lengthy delays and patient reluctance to seek psychiatric care. More than half of the respondents also experienced difficulties with providing proper social care, and with responding to patient distress due to their healthcare experiences.

Conclusion

Improving awareness and training about ASD in adults, as well as harmonizing the diagnostic process and referral pathways, might reduce GPs’ experienced difficulties in caring for this population.
Biomodification of acenocoumarol by bifidobacteria
Authors: Fragomeno Melisa , Assad Sabrina , Mobili Pablo , Peruzzo Pablo J , Minnaard Jessica , Pérez Pablo Fernando
Published: September 2021

The increased interest of consumers in probiotic foods requires a deeper knowledge on the possible interactions with drugs, because their pharmacological properties could be modified. In this context, these studies are relevant for drugs such as acenocoumarol, whose dosage must be controlled due to, among other factors, food-drug interactions. Acenocoumarol is an oral anticoagulant with a narrow therapeutic range. The aim of the present research is to evaluate, in vitro, the effect of bifidobacteria on acenocoumarol. The drug was incubated with Bifidobacterium bifidum CIDCA 5310 or Bifidobacterium adolescentis CIDCA 5317 in MRS broth at 37°C for 24 h in anaerobic conditions. The effect of incubation with sterilized spent culture supernatants (SSCS) was also evaluated. Analysis by RP-HPLC showed that both bifidobacterial strains reduced the area of the acenocoumarol peak and two new peaks were evidenced. In addition, a decrease in the intensity of the bands at 1650, 1390 and 1110/cm was observed in the FTIR spectroscopic determinations. Moreover, a new band appeared at 1720/cm. No effect on the drug was observed when incubation was performed with SSCS. The present study showed a significant change in the concentration of the anticoagulant after incubation with bifidobacteria and results are compatible with biomodification of the drug due to enzymatic activity of bifidobacteria.
Theories of Community Collaboration to Advance Age-Friendly Community Change
Authors: Greenfield Emily A , Black Kathy , Oh Patricia , Pestine-Stevens Althea
Published: September 2021

The age-friendly communities movement has grown rapidly in global prominence over the past 2 decades. However, theories to guide multisectoral action toward age-friendly community change have been slower to develop. We demonstrate the value of drawing on theories of community collaboration to inform age-friendly community efforts across engagement, planning, implementation, and measurement. We introduce 3 theories—Asset-Based Community Development, Strategic Doing, and Collective Impact—each with principles and strategies for guiding multisectoral group processes toward long-term and systematic community change. While distinct from each other, these theories collectively suggest the importance of incorporating a more explicit community-building approach within the age-friendly communities movement. We describe the implications of this integrative theory development for bolstering sustainable and comprehensive practices and policies to improve environments for aging across diverse communities.
Comment on ‘Piezoelectricity as a mechanism on generation of electromagnetic precursors before earthquakes’ by J.H. Wang
Authors: Yamazaki Ken'ichi
Published: September 2021

Wang (2021, hereafter JHW) recently investigated elastic–electric coupling (EEC) in terms of the piezoelectric effect to assess both the plausibility of and necessary conditions for generating pre-earthquake electromagnetic phenomena, including variations in the total electron content (TEC). The study considered a 1-D model to simulate the piezoelectric effect, and derived a quantitative relationship between the dislocation and intensity of the electric field. One of JHW's conclusions was that the piezoelectric effect is a potential mechanism for generating previously reported pre-earthquake TEC anomalies. However, the quantitative discussion in JHW contains a serious error. JHW had chosen an incorrect mode between the two solutions during the derivation of a quantitative relationship between the displacement and the electric field, which subsequently led to an incorrect estimation of the ratio of the generated electric field to the displacement. The opposite conclusion to that drawn by JHW is attained when a correct mode is used.
Moving from community-based to health centre-based management: impact on urban community health worker performance in Ethiopia
Authors: Ludwick Teralynn , Endriyas Misganu , Morgan Alison , Kane Sumit , McPake Barbara
Published: September 2021

Community health worker (CHW) performance is influenced by the way in which management arrangements are configured vis-a-vis the community and health services. While low-/middle-income contexts are changing, the literature provides few examples of country efforts to strategically modify management arrangements to support evolving CHW roles (e.g. chronic disease care) and operating environments (e.g. urbanization). This paper aims to understand the performance implications of changing from community-based to health centre-based management, on Ethiopia’s Urban Health Extension Professionals (UHEPs), and the tensions/trade-offs associated with the respective arrangements. We conducted semi-structured interviews/focus groups to gather perspectives and preferences from those involved with the transition (13 managers/administrators, 5 facility-based health workers and 20 UHEPs). Using qualitative content analysis, we deductively coded data to four programme elements impacted by changed management arrangements and known to affect CHW performance (work scope; community legitimacy; supervision/oversight/ownership and facility linkages) and inductively identified tensions/trade-offs. Community-based management was associated with wider work scope, stronger ownership/regular monitoring, weak technical support and weak health centre linkages, with opposite patterns observed for health centre-led management. Practical trade-offs included: heavy UHEP involvement in political/administrative activities under Kebele-based management; resistance to working with UHEPs by facility-based workers and health centre capacity constraints in managing UHEPs. Whereas the Ministry of Health/UHEPs favoured the health centre-led management to capitalize on UHEPs’ technical skills, Kebele officials were vested in managing UHEPs and argued for community interests over UHEPs’ professional interests; health facility managers/administrators held divided opinions. Management arrangements influence the nature of CHW contributions towards the achievement of health, development and political goals. Decisions about appropriate management arrangements should align with the nature of CHW roles and consider implementation setting, including urbanization, political decentralization and relative capacity of managing institutions.
Influence of Preseason Antibodies Against Influenza Virus on Risk of Influenza Infection Among Healthcare Personnel
Authors: Gorse Geoffrey J , Rattigan Susan M , Kirpich Alexander , Simberkoff Michael S , Bessesen Mary T , Gibert Cynthia , Nyquist Ann-Christine , Price Connie Savor , Gaydos Charlotte A , Radonovich Lewis J , Perl Trish M , Rodriguez-Barradas Maria C , Cummings Derek A T
Published: September 2021

Background

The association of hemagglutination inhibition (HAI) antibodies with protection from influenza among healthcare personnel (HCP) with occupational exposure to influenza viruses has not been well-described.

Methods

The Respiratory Protection Effectiveness Clinical Trial was a cluster-randomized, multisite study that compared medical masks to N95 respirators in preventing viral respiratory infections among HCP in outpatient healthcare settings for 5180 participant-seasons. Serum HAI antibody titers before each influenza season and influenza virus infection confirmed by polymerase chain reaction were studied over 4 study years.

Results

In univariate models, the risk of influenza A(H3N2) and B virus infections was associated with HAI titers to each virus, study year, and site. HAI titers were strongly associated with vaccination. Within multivariate models, each log base 2 increase in titer was associated with 15%, 26% and 33%–35% reductions in the hazard of influenza A(H3N2), A(H1N1), and B infections, respectively. Best models included preseason antibody titers and study year, but not other variables.

Conclusions

HAI titers were associated with protection from influenza among HCP with routine exposure to patients with respiratory illness and influenza season contributed to risk. HCP can be reassured about receiving influenza vaccination to stimulate immunity.
Effect of the Mini-Nutritional Assessment-Short Form in Elderly Burn Patients
Authors: Wei Jia-Yu , Shi Shu-Ting , Sun Dan , Lyu Guo-Zhong
Published: September 2021

Nutritional assessment can early identify patients who are malnourished and at risk of malnutrition. To examine the effect of nutritional status on wound healing in elderly burn patients, we used the Mini-Nutritional Assessment-Short Form (MNA-SF) to measure the nutritional status of elderly patients. This study aimed to examine the role of MNA-SF in elderly burn patients through the correlation analysis of wound healing indicators and MNA-SF score. This was a prospective observational and cross-sectional study. This study used the MNA-SF to investigate the elderly burn patients at the department of burn. According to the score, the patients fell into three groups: good nutritional status (more than 12 points), malnutrition risk (8–11 points), and malnutrition (0–7 points). At the same time, we measured and compared the wound healing indicators among the three groups of patients, and detected the correlation. The results showed gender had a slight influence on the score of nutritional status, while age was negatively correlated with the MNA-SF score and nutrition-related indicators. There was a low positive linear correlation between the wound healing percent area change or wound healing rate of patients and the score of the MNA-SF. This study finds malnutrition is common among hospitalized elderly burn patients. The application of the MNA-SF in elderly burn patients is efficient and accurate to identify malnutrition early and prevent further obstruction of the normal wound healing, which can provide reference points for early nutrition intervention programs.
The Impact of Race/Ethnicity on the Outcomes of Burn Patients: A Systematic Review of the Literature
Authors: Peters Jasmine , Bello Mariel S , Spera Leigh , Gillenwater T Justin , Yenikomshian Haig A
Published: September 2021

Racial and ethnic disparities are endemic to the United States and are only beginning to attract the attention of researchers. With an increasingly diverse population, focused and tailored medicine to provide more equitable care is needed. For surgical trauma populations, this topic is a small but expanding field and still rarely mentioned in burn medicine. Disparities in prevention, treatment, and recovery outcomes between different racial and ethnic minorities who are burned are rarely discussed. The purpose of this study is to determine the current status of identified disparities of care in the burn population literature and areas of future research. A systematic review was conducted of literature utilizing PubMed for articles published between 2000 and 2020. Searches were used to identify articles that crossed the burn term (burn patient OR burn recovery OR burn survivor OR burn care) and a race/ethnicity and insurance status-related term (race/ethnicity OR African-American OR Black OR Asian OR Hispanic OR Latino OR Native American OR Indigenous OR Mixed race OR 2 or more races OR socioeconomic status OR insurance status). Inclusion criteria were English studies in the United States that discussed disparities in burn injury outcomes or risk factors associated with race/ethnicity. One thousand one hundred and sixty-nine papers were populated, 55 were reviewed, and 36 articles met inclusion criteria. Most studies showed minorities had poorer inpatient and outpatient outcomes. While this is a concerning trend, there is a paucity of literature in this field and more research is needed to create culturally tailored medical care and address the needs of disadvantaged burn survivors.
Cranial variation in the Altai weaselMustela altaica(Carnivora: Mustelidae) and its possible taxonomic implications
Authors: Abramov Alexei V , Puzachenko Andrey Y U
Published: September 2021

The Altai weasel, Mustela altaicaPallas 1811 (Carnivora: Mustelidae), is widely distributed across open landscapes of central and eastern Asia. The geographical variation in skull morphology and taxonomic composition of this small mustelid remain poorly known. Based on extensive sampling in museum collections, we analyzed morphometric variation in 23 cranial characters of 232 M. altaica specimens from across its entire range. The multivariate analysis (nonmetric multidimensional scaling) revealed a geographical pattern of variation in cranial size and shape. Based on this result, two morphological groups have been comprehensively characterized. Weasels of the first group differ from those of the second in having larger skulls, wider neurocrania, elongated toothrows, and larger carnassial teeth, as well as in sexual size dimorphism. The first group is confined to the southwestern part of the species range (Tien Shan Mountains, Pamir, the Himalayas, and southern Tibet). The second group is widespread from the foothills of Tien Shan in the west to Khingan and Manchuria in the east. The distribution of the two groups of M. altaica is consistent with the “Out-of-Tibet” hypothesis. The first group presumably can be attributed to M. a. temonHodgson, 1857, whereas the second group can be treated as nominotypical M. a. altaicaPallas, 1811.
Mechanism of dasabuvir inhibition of acetaminophen glucuronidation
Authors: Zhang Qingchen , Duan Su Xiang , Harmatz Jerold S , Wei Zixuan , Singleton Christopher A , Greenblatt David J
Published: September 2021

Objectives

Acetaminophen (APAP) (paracetamol) is a widely used non-prescription drug for pain relief and antipyretic effects. The clearance of APAP is mainly through phase-2 biotransformation catalysed by UDP-glucuronosyl transferases (UGT). Dasabuvir is an anti-hepatitis C drug reported to inhibit several UGT isoforms. The study evaluated the in-vitro inhibitory capacity of dasabuvir versus APAP glucuronidation.

Methods

Procedures included human liver microsomal incubations with APAP and isoform-selective probe substrates.

Key findings

Dasabuvir inhibited APAP metabolism by a reversible, mixed-type (competitive and non-competitive) partial inhibition, with an inhibition constant Ki = 3.4 µM. The index constant ‘a’ was 6.7, indicating the relative contribution of competitive and non-competitive inhibition. The enzyme-inhibitor complex was still able to catalyse the reaction by 12% of the control capacity. Dasabuvir produced strong partial inhibition effect of UGT1A1 and UGT1A9 and relatively complete inhibition of UGT1A6.

Conclusions

Consistent with previous reports, dasabuvir inhibits the activity of 3 UGT isoforms associated with APAP metabolism. In-vitro to in-vivo scaling by 2 different approaches showed identical results, predicting an increased AUC of APAP by a factor of 1.3-fold with coadministration of dasabuvir. Until the findings are confirmed in clinical drug interaction studies, APAP dosage should not exceed 3 g per day in dasabuvir-treated patients to avoid potentially hepatotoxic APAP exposures.
Surgical correction of foot equino-cavocarus deformity in Klippel-Trénaunay-Weber syndrome: a case report
Authors: Arafa Orfan M , Alzuhair Abduljabar R , Alharbi Sultan K , Alromaih Norah I
Published: September 2021

Klippel-Trénaunay-Weber syndrome (KTWS) is a rare condition characterized by a classic clinical triad. However, it can also have other features, such as cavocarus foot deformity, which is a rare presentation in a patient with KTWS. In this case report, we present our surgical technique of correcting such a complex deformity. Also, there are no other similar cases reported in the literature. An 18-year-old girl who is a known case of KTWS with a complaint of progressive unilateral left foot deformity. Her examination, revealed a rigid pes cavus with an equinus deformity in the left foot. Radiography of the left foot revealed marked cavus as well as hindfoot and forefoot varus. A successful surgical correction of the deformity was described in a stepwise fashion. The management of foot cavocarus deformity in KTWS patients is associated with high intra- and post-operative risk due to its complexity. Therefore, the management requires a multidisciplinary team approach.
Linguistic features evaluation for hadith authenticity through automatic machine learning
Authors: Mohamed Emad , Sarwar Raheem
Published: September 2021

There has not been any research that provides an evaluation of the linguistic features extracted from the matn (text) of a Hadith. Moreover, none of the fairly large corpora are publicly available as a benchmark corpus for Hadith authenticity, and there is a need to build a ‘gold standard’ corpus for good practices in Hadith authentication. We write a scraper in Python programming language and collect a corpus of 3,651 authentic prophetic traditions and 3,593 fake ones. We process the corpora with morphological segmentation and perform extensive experimental studies using a variety of machine learning algorithms, mainly through automatic machine learning, to distinguish between these two categories. With a feature set including words, morphological segments, characters, top N words, top N segments, function words, and several vocabulary richness features, we analyze the results in terms of both prediction and interpretability to explain which features are more characteristic of each class. Many experiments have produced good results and the highest accuracy (i.e. 78.28%) is achieved using word n-grams as features using the Multinomial Naive Bayes classifier. Our extensive experimental studies conclude that, at least for Digital Humanities, feature engineering may still be desirable due to the high interpretability of the features. The corpus and software (scripts) will be made publicly available to other researchers in an effort to promote progress and replicability.
High-resolution parameter study of the vertical shear instability – II: dependence on temperature gradient and cooling time
Authors: Manger Natascha , Pfeil Thomas , Klahr Hubert
Published: September 2021

A certain appeal to the alpha model for turbulence and related viscosity in accretion discs was that one scales the Reynolds stresses simply on the thermal pressure, assuming that turbulence driven by a certain mechanism will attain a characteristic Mach number in its velocity fluctuations. Besides the notion that there are different mechanism driving turbulence and angular momentum transport in a disc, we also find that within a single instability mechanism, here the vertical shear instability, stresses do not linearly scale with thermal pressure. Here, we demonstrate in numerical simulations the effect of the gas temperature gradient and the thermal relaxation time on the average stresses generated in the non-linear stage of the instability. We find that the stresses scale with the square of the exponent of the radial temperature profile at least for a range of dlog T/dlog R = [−0.5, −1], beyond which the pressure scale height varies too much over the simulation domain, to provide clear results. Stresses are also dependent on thermal relaxation times, provided they are longer than 10−3 orbital periods. The strong dependence of viscous transport of angular momentum on the local conditions in the disc (especially temperature, temperature gradient, and surface density/optical depth) challenges the ideas of viscosity leading to smooth density distributions, opening a route for structure (ring) formation and time variable mass accretion.
Can high-velocity protostellar jets help to drive low-velocity outflow?
Authors: Machida Masahiro N
Published: September 2021

Using three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamics simulations, the driving of protostellar jets is investigated in different star-forming cores with the parameters of magnetic field strength and mass accretion rate. Powerful high-velocity jets appear in strongly magnetized clouds when the mass accretion rate on to the protostellar system is lower than $\dot{M} \lesssim 10^{-4}\, {\rm M}_\odot$ yr−1. On the other hand, even at this mass accretion rate range, no jets appear for magnetic fields of prestellar clouds as weak as μ0 ≳ 5–10, where μ0 is the mass-to-flux ratio normalized by the critical value (2πG1/2)−1. For $\dot{M}\gtrsim 10^{-4}\, {\rm M}_\odot$ yr−1, although jets usually appear just after protostar formation independent of the magnetic field strength, they soon weaken and finally disappear. Thus, they cannot help drive the low-velocity outflow when there is no low-velocity flow just before protostar formation. As a result, no significant mass ejection occurs during the early mass accretion phase either when the prestellar cloud is weaky magnetized or when the mass accretion rate is very high. Thus, protostars formed in such environments would trace different evolutionary paths from the normal star formation process.
Mass accretion rates and multiscale halo environment in cold and warm dark matter cosmologies
Authors: Dhoke Payaswinee , Paranjape Aseem
Published: September 2021

We study the evolving environment dependence of mass accretion by dark haloes in simulations of cold and warm dark matter (CDM and WDM) cosmologies. The latter allows us to probe the nature of halo growth at scales below the WDM half-mode mass, which form an extreme regime of non-linear collisionless dynamics and offer an excellent test-bed for ideas relating to hierarchical growth. As environmental proxies, we use the local halo-centric matter density δ and tidal anisotropy α, as well as large-scale halo bias b1. Our analysis, while reproducing known trends for environment-dependent accretion in CDM, as well as the comparison between accretion in CDM and WDM, reveals several interesting new features. As expected from excursion set models, WDM haloes have higher specific accretion rates, dominated by the accretion of diffuse mass, as compared to CDM haloes. For low-mass WDM haloes, we find that the environment-dependence of both diffuse mass accretion as well as accretion by mergers is almost fully explained by α. For the other cases, δ plays at least a comparable role. We detect, for the first time, a significant and evolving assembly bias due to diffuse mass accretion for low-mass CDM and WDM haloes (after excluding splashback objects), with a z = 0 strength higher than with almost all known secondary variables and largely explained by α. Our results place constraints on semi-analytical merger tree algorithms, which in turn could affect the predictions of galaxy evolution models based on them.
A panoramic view of the Local Group dwarf galaxy NGC 6822
Authors: Zhang Shumeng , Mackey Dougal , Da Costa Gary S
Published: September 2021

We present a panoramic survey of the isolated Local Group dwarf irregular galaxy NGC 6822. Our photometry reaches ∼2–3 mag deeper than most previous studies and spans the widest area around the dwarf compared to any prior work. We observe no stellar overdensities in the outskirts of NGC 6822 to V ∼ 30 mag arcsec−2 and a projected radius of 16.5 kpc. This indicates that NGC 6822 has not experienced any recent interaction with a companion galaxy, despite previous suggestions to the contrary. Similarly, we find no evidence for any dwarf satellites of NGC 6822 to a limiting luminosity MV ≈ −5. NGC 6822 contains a disc of H i gas and young stars, oriented at ∼60○ to an extended spheroid composed of old stellar populations. We observe no correlation between the distribution of young stars and spheroid members. Our imaging allows us to trace the spheroid to nearly 11 kpc along its major axis, commensurate with the extent of the NGC 6822 globular cluster system. We find that the spheroid becomes increasingly flattened at larger radii, and its position angle twists by up to 40○. We use Gaia EDR3 astrometry to measure a proper motion for NGC 6822, and then sample its orbital parameter space. While this galaxy has spent the majority of its life in isolation, we find that it likely passed within the virial radius of the Milky Way ∼3–4 Gyr ago. This may explain the apparent flattening and twisting observed in the outskirts of its spheroid.
MIGHTEE-H i: the baryonic Tully–Fisher relation over the last billion years
Authors: Ponomareva Anastasia A , Mulaudzi Wanga , Maddox Natasha , Frank Bradley S , Jarvis Matt J , Teodoro Enrico M Di , Glowacki Marcin , Kraan-Korteweg Renée C , Oosterloo Tom A , Adams Elizabeth A K , Pan Hengxing , Prandoni Isabella , Rajohnson Sambatriniaina H A , Sinigaglia Francesco , Adams Nathan J , Heywood Ian , Bowler Rebecca A A , Hatfield Peter W , Collier Jordan D , Sekhar Srikrishna
Published: September 2021

Using a sample of 67 galaxies from the MeerKAT International GigaHertz Tiered Extragalactic Exploration Survey Early Science data, we study the H i-based baryonic Tully–Fisher relation (bTFr), covering a period of ∼1 billion years (0 ≤ z ≤ 0.081). We consider the bTFr based on two different rotational velocity measures: the width of the global H i profile and Vout, measured as the outermost rotational velocity from the resolved H i rotation curves. Both relations exhibit very low intrinsic scatter orthogonal to the best-fitting relation (σ⊥ = 0.07 ± 0.01), comparable to the SPARC sample at z ≃ 0. The slopes of the relations are similar and consistent with the z ≃ 0 studies ($3.66^{+0.35}_{-0.29}$ for W50 and $3.47^{+0.37}_{-0.30}$ for Vout). We find no evidence that the bTFr has evolved over the last billion years, and all galaxies in our sample are consistent with the same relation independent of redshift and the rotational velocity measure. Our results set-up a reference for all future studies of the H i-based bTFr as a function of redshift that will be conducted with the ongoing deep SKA pathfinders surveys.
Lyman-alpha emitters and the 21 cm power spectrum as probes of density–ionization correlation in the epoch of reionization
Authors: Pagano Michael , Liu Adrian
Published: September 2021

Due to the large cross-section of Ly α photons with hydrogen, Lyman-alpha emitters (LAEs) are sensitive to the presence of neutral hydrogen in the intergalactic medium (IGM) during the epoch of reionization (EoR): the period in the Universe’s history where neutral hydrogen in the IGM is ionized. The type of correlation between the ionized regions of the IGM with respect to the underlying intrinsic LAEs has a pronounced effect on the number of observed LAEs and their apparent clustering. As a result, observations of LAEs during the EoR can be used as a probe of the EoR morphology. Here, we build on previous works where we parametrize the density–ionization correlation during the EoR, and study how the observed number density and angular correlation function (ACF) of LAEs depend on this parametrization. Using Subaru measurements of the number density of LAEs and their ACF at z = 6.6, we place constraints on the EoR morphology. We find that measurements of LAEs at z = 6.6 alone cannot distinguish between different density–ionization models at $68{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$ credibility. However, adding information regarding the number density, and ACF, of LAEs at z = 6.6 to 21 cm power spectrum measurements using the hydrogen Epoch of Reionization Array at the mid-point of reionization can rule out uncorrelated and outside-in reionization at $99{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$ credibility.
Parker Solar Probe observations of helical structures as boundaries for energetic particles
Authors: Pecora F , Servidio S , Greco A , Matthaeus W H , McComas D J , Giacalone J , Joyce C J , Getachew T , Cohen C M S , Leske R A , Wiedenbeck M E , McNutt R L , Hill M E , Mitchell D G , Christian E R , Roelof E C , Schwadron N A , Bale S D
Published: September 2021

Energetic particle transport in the interplanetary medium is known to be affected by magnetic structures. It has been demonstrated for solar energetic particles in near-Earth orbit studies, and also for the more energetic cosmic rays. In this paper, we show observational evidence that intensity variations of solar energetic particles can be correlated with the occurrence of helical magnetic flux tubes and their boundaries. The analysis is carried out using data from Parker Solar Probe orbit 5, in the period 2020 May 24 to June 2. We use FIELDS magnetic field data and energetic particle measurements from the Integrated Science Investigation of the Sun (IS⊙IS) suite on the Parker Solar Probe. We identify magnetic flux ropes by employing a real-space evaluation of magnetic helicity, and their potential boundaries using the Partial Variance of Increments method. We find that energetic particles are either confined within or localized outside of helical flux tubes, suggesting that the latter act as transport boundaries for particles, consistent with previously developed viewpoints.
Identifying distinct metrics for assessing night sky brightness
Authors: Hung Li-Wei
Published: September 2021

Studying light pollution is an interest to researchers in a wide range of fields including astronomy, biology, civil engineering, ecology, and social science. Consequently, numerous sky brightness metrics have been developed over the years. However, what metrics are truly representative of the night sky quality and unique to the measured feature? The US National Park Service Night Skies Program has collected more than 1500 sets of night skies data throughout the United States. For each data set, a maximum of 56 metrics were measured through the combination of the captured images, Sky Quality Meter readings, and visual observations. This paper analyses these measurements and identifies a distinctive set of night sky brightness metrics based on the principal component analysis. Three major findings emerge. First, the commonly used metrics, such as the zenith brightness, horizontal illuminance, maximum vertical illuminance, all-sky light pollution ratio, Bortle class, and limiting magnitude, are highly correlated. Secondly, the observed sky brightness often offers a good estimate of the artificial light level despite the natural varying night sky background. Thirdly, a set of six metrics that consists of the zenith brightness and sky brightness percentiles are more distinctive when used to concisely describe night sky characteristics. These findings suggest that long-term night sky monitoring can be efficiently carried out by measuring the sky brightness percentiles on the observed all-sky images.
Revisiting the Cygnus OB associations
Authors: Quintana Alexis L , Wright Nicholas J
Published: September 2021

OB associations play an important role in Galactic evolution, though their origins and dynamics remain poorly studied, with only a small number of systems analysed in detail. In this paper, we revisit the existence and membership of the Cygnus OB associations. We find that of the historical OB associations only Cyg OB2 and OB3 stand out as real groups. We search for new OB stars using a combination of photometry, astrometry, evolutionary models, and an SED-fitting process, identifying 4680 probable OB stars with a reliability of >90 per cent. From this sample, we search for OB associations using a new and flexible clustering technique, identifying six new OB associations. Two of these are similar to the associations Cyg OB2 and OB3, though the others bear no relationship to any existing systems. We characterize the properties of the new associations, including their velocity dispersions and total stellar masses, all of which are consistent with typical values for OB associations. We search for evidence of expansion and find that all are expanding, albeit anisotropically, with stronger and more significant expansion in the direction of Galactic longitude. We also identify two large-scale (160 pc and 25 km s−1) kinematic expansion patterns across the Cygnus region, each including three of our new associations, and attribute this to the effects of feedback from a previous generation of stars. This work highlights the need to revisit the existence and membership of the historical OB associations, if they are to be used to study their properties and dynamics.
Advances in control of a pyramid single conjugate adaptive optics system
Authors: Agapito Guido , Rossi Fabio , Plantet Cedric , Puglisi Alfio , Pinna Enrico
Published: September 2021

Adaptive optics systems are an essential technology for the modern astronomy for ground-based telescopes. One of the most recent revolution in the field is the introduction of the pyramid wavefront sensor. The higher performance of this device is paid with increased complexity in the control. In this work, we report about advances in the adaptive optics (AO) system control obtained with SOUL at the Large Binocular Telescope. The first is an improved Tip/Tilt temporal control able to recover the nominal correction even in presence of high temporal frequency resonances. The second one is a modal gain optimization that has been successfully tested on sky for the first time. Pyramid wavefront sensors are the key technology for the first light AO systems of all Extremely Large Telescopes and the reported advances can be relevant contributions for such systems.
Structure of an inactive RNA polymerase II dimer
Authors: Aibara Shintaro , Dienemann Christian , Cramer Patrick
Published: September 2021

Eukaryotic gene transcription is carried out by three RNA polymerases: Pol I, Pol II and Pol III. Although it has long been known that Pol I can form homodimers, it is unclear whether and how the two other RNA polymerases dimerize. Here we present the cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) structure of a mammalian Pol II dimer at 3.5 Å resolution. The structure differs from the Pol I dimer and reveals that one Pol II copy uses its RPB4-RPB7 stalk to penetrate the active centre cleft of the other copy, and vice versa, giving rise to a molecular handshake. The polymerase clamp domain is displaced and mobile, and the RPB7 oligonucleotide-binding fold mimics the DNA–RNA hybrid that occupies the cleft during active transcription. The Pol II dimer is incompatible with nucleic acid binding as required for transcription and may represent an inactive storage form of the polymerase.
Quantitative assessment of engineered Cas9 variants for target specificity enhancement by single-molecule reaction pathway analysis
Authors: Bak So Young , Jung Youngri , Park Jinho , Sung Keewon , Jang Hyeon-Ki , Bae Sangsu , Kim Seong Keun
Published: September 2021

There have been many engineered Cas9 variants that were developed to minimize unintended cleavage of off-target DNAs, but detailed mechanism for the way they regulate the target specificity through DNA:RNA heteroduplexation remains poorly understood. We used single-molecule FRET assay to follow the dynamics of DNA:RNA heteroduplexation for various engineered Cas9 variants with respect to on-target and off-target DNAs. Just like wild-type Cas9, these engineered Cas9 variants exhibit a strong correlation between their conformational structure and nuclease activity. Compared with wild-type Cas9, the fraction of the cleavage-competent state dropped more rapidly with increasing base-pair mismatch, which gives rise to their enhanced target specificity. We proposed a reaction model to quantitatively analyze the degree of off-target discrimination during the successive process of R-loop expansion. We found that the critical specificity enhancement step is activated during DNA:RNA heteroduplexation for evoCas9 and HypaCas9, while it occurs in the post-heteroduplexation stage for Cas9-HF1, eCas9, and Sniper-Cas9. This study sheds new light on the conformational dynamics behind the target specificity of Cas9, which will help strengthen its rational designing principles in the future.
Timing of ENDS Uptake by Sexual Orientation among Adolescents and Young Adults in Urban Texas
Authors: Tami-Maury Irene , Chen Baojiang , Sumbe Aslesha , Harrell Melissa B
Published: September 2021

Introduction

Early-onset of Electronic Nicotine Delivering Systems (ENDS) use puts users at higher risk of developing a regular ENDS use pattern and/or transitioning to combusted tobacco products. Previous studies on ENDS use among adolescents have not considered sexual orientation as a fluid trait that can change over time. Our objective was to evaluate whether ENDS initiation differed by sexual orientation in a longitudinal, population-based cohort of adolescents transitioning into young adulthood in Texas.

Methods

Sample (n = 1712) was drawn from the Texas Adolescent Tobacco and Marketing Surveillance System (waves 5–11) and stratified into three groups, representing sexual orientation: (1) respondents who reported being heterosexuals at each wave (straight), (2) those who consistently self-identified as lesbian, gay or bisexual individuals (LGB), and (3) subjects who reported sexual orientation mobility across waves (mobile). Nonparametric models for interval-censored data were used to estimate the cumulative distribution of age at ENDS initiation by sexual orientation group. Cox models for interval-censored data were used to evaluate whether ENDS initiation varied by sexual orientation group after adjusting for sex assigned at birth, race/ethnicity, cohort, and socioeconomic status.

Results

Compared to Straight adolescents, the risk of earlier-onset of ENDS use was higher among mobile individuals (HR = 1.43, 95% CI: 1.12 to 1.83) and LGB individuals (HR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.13 to 1.98), respectively, after adjusting for sociodemographic risk factors. Differences between Straight adolescents and LGB/mobile individuals became more pronounced with increasing age.

Conclusion

Analyzing sexual mobility overtime is necessary for understanding the risk associated with youth ENDS initiation and subsequent use.

Implications

Future research should use more accurate sexual orientation assessments to explore further the relationship between sexual orientation mobility and early-onset Electronic Nicotine Delivering Systems (ENDS) use. Understanding the implications of sexual orientation mobility on ENDS initiation will be critical for developing inclusive public health programs aimed at preventing or delaying ENDS use and for providing practical recommendations at state and local levels.
A Comprehensive Qualitative Review of Studies Evaluating the Impact of Local US Laws Restricting the Sale of Flavored and Menthol Tobacco Products
Authors: Rogers Todd , Brown Elizabeth M , Siegel-Reamer Leah , Rahman Basmah , Feld Ashley L , Patel Minal , Vallone Donna , Schillo Barbara A
Published: September 2021

Objectives

To assess the quality of evidence on the effectiveness of local US laws restricting the sale of flavored tobacco products.

Methods

We conducted a systematic search and qualitative scoping review of English-language papers published through May 2020 that evaluated flavored tobacco sales policies implemented by US jurisdictions during 2010–2019. We constructed a conceptual model for flavored and menthol tobacco sales restriction outcomes, assigned GRADE quality of evidence ratings to policy outcomes evaluated through the included studies, and summarized factors that might explain weak or inconsistent findings.

Results

We found moderate to high quality of evidence associating policy implementation with reduced availability, marketing, and sales of policy-restricted products, and decreased youth and adult tobacco use of these products; however, policy exclusions and exemptions, implementation challenges, tobacco industry actions (e.g., marketing of concept-named flavored products; exploiting policy exemptions for certain store types), and consumer responses (e.g., cross-border or illicit purchasing) might undermine or mitigate intended policy effects.

Conclusions

Flavored and menthol tobacco product sales restrictions implemented and evaluated in US jurisdictions appear to have achieved some of their intended outcomes; however, deficiencies in study designs, methods, and metrics could contribute to equivocal findings on quality of evidence associating policy implementation and outcomes. Gaps in the evidence are beginning to be filled with research using more rigorous study designs, improved measurement and analytic methods, and longer-term follow-up.

Implications

In the absence of comprehensive federal action, US jurisdictions have the obligation to restrict flavored and menthol product sales to protect vulnerable populations from tobacco-related harms. The considerable expenditure of financial resources, political will, and time dedicated to policy adoption and implementation argue for evaluation studies designed to maximize the quality of evidence. This review offers generalizable insights into evaluation findings that can inform efforts to enhance tobacco control policy implementation and impact in the US and globally.
Lobbying in the UK: Towards Robust Regulation
Authors: Solaiman Barry
Published: September 2021

This article argues that the transparency regime regulating the activities of lobbyists in the UK and the devolved administrations fails to address the core problems of political lobbying and should be replaced. This is particularly important following Brexit because the regulatory landscape will change significantly in the years to come. The Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014 establishes a registry-based system of regulating lobbyists seeking to communicate with the government in Westminster. The Scotland (Lobbying) Act 2016 establishes a similar system, with calls for a lobbying register in Wales also growing. Analyses of existing laws reveal several flaws with those registry-based systems resulting in inadequate levels of transparency. To remedy the shortfall and to get transparency right, this article argues for two changes. First, a more robust register for professional lobbyists premised on greater transparency that is harmonised for Westminster and the devolved administrations. Secondly, the creation of a centralised public website acting as the official forum for advocacy tied to specific legislative proposals.
Insights into Gene Regulation of Jasmonate-Induced Whole-Plant Senescence of Tobacco under Non-Starvation Conditions
Authors: Wang Chunkai , Ding Yongqiang , Wang Wenjing , Zhao Xue , Liu Yanhua , Timko Michael P , Zhang Zhongfeng , Zhang Hongbo
Published: September 2021

Jasmonate (JA)-induced plant senescence has been mainly studied with a dark/starvation-promoted system using detached leaves; yet, the induction of whole-plant senescence by JA remains largely unclear. This work reports the finding of a JA-induced whole-plant senescence of tobacco under light/non-starvation conditions and the investigation of underlying regulations. Methyl jasmonate (MeJA) treatment induces the whole-plant senescence of tobacco in a light-intensity–dependent manner, which is suppressed by silencing of NtCOI1 that encodes the receptor protein of JA-Ile (the bioactive derivative of JA). MeJA treatment could induce the senescence-specific cysteine protease gene SAG12 and another cysteine protease gene SAG-L1 to high expression levels in the detached leaf patches under dark conditions but failed to induce their expression in tobacco whole plants under light conditions. Furthermore, MeJA attenuates the RuBisCo activase (RCA) level in the detached leaves but has no effect on this protein in the whole plant under light conditions. A genome-wide transcriptional assay also supports the presence of a differential regulatory pattern of senescence-related genes during MeJA-induced whole-plant senescence under non-starvation conditions and results in the finding of a chlorophylase activity increase in this process. We also observed that the MeJA-induced senescence of tobacco whole plants is reversible, which is accompanied by a structural change of chloroplasts. This work provides novel insights into JA-induced plant senescence under non-starvation conditions and is helpful to dissect the JA-synchronized process of whole-plant senescence.