bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Remedies Cases and Materials in Australian Private Law
Authors: Barnett Katy , Yin Kenneth , Allcock Martin
Published: February 2023

Remedies Cases and Materials in Australian Private Law presents a selection of cases and legislation to introduce students to the remedies available under Australian law. It offers the depth and context required to understand and analyse the application of private law remedies. Developed to accompany the second edition of Remedies in Australian Private Law, and following its accessible and systematic structure, this casebook contains carefully curated extracts from landmark cases, legislation and secondary sources. The selected extracts offer a comprehensive yet concise guide to the application of remedies. Each chapter includes clear explanations of topics and links to material in the principles text, along with flowcharts and diagrams to summarise complex cases and concepts. Review questions encourage students to analyse decisions from important cases and test their knowledge. Written by an expert author team, Remedies Cases and Materials in Australian Private Law is an invaluable resource which enables students to understand remedial law.
Multi-scale temporal characters mining for bird activities based on historical avian radar system datasets
Authors: Xu Q. , Liu J. , Su M. , Chen W.S.
Published: February 2023

Avian radar systems are effective for wide-area bird detection and tracking, but application significances need further exploration. Existing radar data mining methods provide long-term functionalities, but they are problematic for bird activity modelling especially in temporal domain. This paper complements this insufficiency by introducing a temporal bird activity extraction and interpretation method. The bird behaviour is quantified as the activity degree which integrates intensity and uncertainty characters with an entropy weighing algorithm. The method is applicable in multiple temporal scales. Historical radar dataset from a system deployed in an airport is adopted for verification. Temporal characters demonstrate good consistency with understandings from local observers and ornithologists. Daily commuting and roosting characters of local birds are well reflected, evening bat activities are also extracted. Night migration activities are demonstrated clearly. Results indicate the proposed method is effective in temporal bird activity modelling and interpretation. Its integration with bird strike risk models might be more useful for airport safety management with wildlife interference.
Policy Dialogue: Racial Segregation in America's Schools
Authors: McClellan Cara , Delmont Matthew
Published: February 2023

America's schools are more segregated today than they were three decades ago. After initial progress in the wake of the Supreme Court's 1954 ruling in Brown v. Board of Education—further bolstered by the 1964 Civil Rights Act, as well as by several other rulings by the court—the nation's schools began a process of resegregation in the early 1990s. White resistance, reversals by the court, and growing residential segregation have ensured that many young people attend school with classmates from similar racial and class backgrounds. As a recent report from the UCLA's Civil Rights Project found, the average White student attends a school in which 69 percent of students are White, the average Latinx student attends a school in which 55 percent of students are Latinx, and the average Black student attends a school in which 47 percent of students are Black. Segregation is a fact of life in both the North and the South, in urban and rural communities, in red states and in blue states.

For this Policy Dialogue, HEQ's editors asked Cara McClellan and Matthew Delmont to discuss the segregation of K-12 schools by race. How, we wanted to know, has the past shaped the present and constrained the future? How are present-day efforts responding to that past and challenging the structures and cultures that reinforce racial segregation? What might the future hold? Cara McClellan is director of the Advocacy for Racial and Civil Justice Clinic at the University of Pennsylvania's Carey Law School, where she is also an associate professor of practice. Prior to this role, she served as assistant counsel at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, where she represented students and families in cases such as Sheff v. O'Neill. Matthew Delmont is the Sherman Fairchild Distinguished Professor of History at Dartmouth College. His work focuses on African American history and the history of civil rights, and he is the author of several books including Why Busing Failed: Race, Media, and the National Resistance to School Desegregation and, most recently, Half American: The Epic Story of African Americans Fighting World War II at Home and Abroad.

HEQ Policy Dialogues are, by design, intended to promote an informal, free exchange of ideas between scholars. At the end of the exchange, we offer a list of references for readers who wish to follow up on sources relevant to the discussion.
Targeting burrows improves detection in giant pangolin Smutsia gigantea camera-trap surveys
Authors: Matthews Naomi , Nixon Stuart , von Hardenberg Achaz , Isoke Sam , Geary Matthew
Published: February 2023

The Endangered giant pangolin Smutsia gigantea is rare and elusive across its Central African range. Because of its solitary and nocturnal nature, the species is difficult to study and so its ecology is little known. Pangolins are considered the most trafficked mammals in the world. Therefore, confirming presence accurately and monitoring trends in distribution and abundance are essential to inform and prioritize conservation efforts. Camera traps are popular tools for surveying rare and cryptic species. However, non-targeted camera-trap surveys yield low camera-trapping rates for pangolins. Here we use camera-trap data from surveys conducted within three protected areas in Uganda to test whether targeted placement of cameras improves giant pangolin detection probability in occupancy models. The results indicate that giant pangolin detection probability is highest when camera traps are targeted on burrows. The median number of days from camera deployment to first giant pangolin detection event was 12, with the majority of events captured within 32 days from deployment. The median interval between giant pangolin events at a camera-trap site was 33 days. We demonstrate that camera-trap surveys can be designed to improve the detection of giant pangolins and we outline a set of recommendations to maximize the effectiveness of efforts to survey and monitor the species.
Voter responses to female candidates' voice pitch: experimental evidence from Japan
Authors: Bowern Claire , Kage Rieko , Rosenbluth Frances , Tanaka Seiki
Published: February 2023

Politicians' voice pitch is known to affect voters' evaluation of the candidates in the US. But to what extent is this true outside of the American context? To address this question, we conducted an original survey experiment in Japan. Our findings are threefold. First, in contrast to previous studies, voters in Japan do not systematically prefer lower-pitched over higher-pitched female politicians. Second, our findings suggest heterogeneity in the effect of voice pitch by voters' gender – while Japanese women are indifferent as to female candidates' pitch levels, men are more likely to prefer female candidates who speak at lower pitch. Third, preliminary analyses reveal limited evidence that female candidates' political experience conditions the effect of voice pitch over voters' willingness to vote for that candidate. Our findings suggest that lowering pitch is likely to increase female candidates' electoral prospects by attracting male voters without backlash from female voters.
On impact of largest claims reinsurance treaties on the ceding company’s loss reserve
Authors: Atatalab Fatemeh , Payandeh Najafabadi Amir T
Published: February 2023

This article examines the impact of the largest claims reinsurance treaties on loss reserve of the ceding company. The largest claims reinsurance, known as LCR, and ECOMOR reinsurance treaties are considered to be the two most appropriate reinsurance treaties for large or catastrophe claims. Then, it studies the impact of such treaties on loss reserves. Through a simulation study, it shown that, under a more general situation, the LCR treaty can be a more efficient (in some sense, see below) treaty than the ECOMOR treaty for the ceding company.
Joni Mitchell's Urges for Going, 1965–67: Coffeehouses, Counterculture, and Care
Authors: Behan Adam
Published: February 2023

Joni Mitchell's life was completely transformed in 1965–67: She became pregnant, was abandoned by the child's father, gave birth to her daughter, placed her baby for adoption, married and subsequently divorced Chuck Mitchell, and moved between several cities in North America. In this article, I center this often overlooked period of Joni's life—which she herself has referred to as “this three-year period of childhood's end”—and move away from the usual focus on her studio albums. I contextualize this discussion within 1960s counterculture and examine how these turbulent changes are refracted through her music making, specifically through a selection of early recordings of her song “Urge for Going.” In so doing, I seek alternatives to the prevalent and influential theories of musical persona in popular music studies, arguing instead for the merits of an approach which strives for an intellectual disposition of care.
Predictors for Unplanned Readmissions within 18 Days after Hospital Discharge: a Retrospective Cohort Study
Authors: Boesing Maria , Gregoriano Claudia , Minder Anna E. , Abshagen Christian , Dahl Sylwia , Dieterle Thomas , Eicher Frank , Leuppi-Taegtmeyer Anne B. , Rageth Luana , Miedinger David , Wirz Elina , Leuppi Joerg D.
Published: February 2023

Abstract. Since the introduction of the reimbursement system based on diagnosis-related groups (DRG) in Swiss hospitals in 2012, most readmissions occurring within 18 days and appertaining to the same major diagnostic category (MDC) are merged and thus often reimbursed to a lesser extent. While readmissions reflect increased distress for patients and their relatives, the causes are mainly patient-related and difficult to influence. However, it may be possible to identify cases at higher risk for readmission. Therefore, the aim of this study was to find predictors for early readmissions in the same MDC, to identify high-risk index hospitalizations and possibly prevent unnecessary readmissions. The data of all patients admitted to the Clinic of Internal Medicine at the University Hospital of Basel, Switzerland, hospitalized for longer than 24 hours during the pre-DRG period between October 2009 and September 2010 were retrospectively collected. Data were examined for predictors of unplanned readmission within 18 days under the same MDC (’relevant readmission’) by means of logistic regression. 7479 patients (median age 67.8 years, 56% male) were admitted to the Clinic of Internal Medicine, with 232 patients (3.1%) being readmitted at least once. Logistic regression revealed male sex (p =0.035) and a high number of prescribed drugs at discharge (p <0.005) as patient-related predictors. The MDCs respiratory system, cardiovascular system, and gastrointestinal/hepatobiliary system were identified as high-risk categories (each p <0.005). Age and length of index hospital stay added no significant explanatory value to the regression model. Unplanned readmissions under the same MDC within 18 days were infrequent and not related to patients’ age or length of hospital stay. Overall, multimorbid patients, and hospitalizations regarding the cardiovascular, respiratory, or gastrointestinal system appear to be most at risk and should therefore be specifically targeted in the prevention of early readmissions.
Multipoint Observations of Dispersive Scale Alfvénic Field‐Line Resonances Associated With Substorm Auroral Beads
Authors: Hull Arthur J. , Chaston Christopher C. , Damiano Peter A. , Frey Harald U. , Wing Simon
Published: February 2023

We present a case study of the field‐aligned current (FAC) systems that transpire within the high‐altitude auroral acceleration region of an “auroral bead” initiated double oval substorm observed on 23 February 2001 by the Cluster fleet. Conjunctive Cluster measurements and auroral images from IMAGE reveal that auroral bead current system formation and evolution is a multi‐scale, injection‐mediated process. The FACs at large scales vary on substorm evolution time scales (∼minutes) in response to the injection and evolution of hotter denser magnetospheric plasma. Embedded within the large‐scale FACs are intense short‐scale (≲ few 10s of km) currents comprising dispersive scale Alfvén wave (DAW) fluctuations. The DAWs are a complex mixture of ingoing and reflected components that regularly interfere to form a broad spectrum of kinetic (dispersive) scale Alfvénic field‐line resonances (KFLRs). The Alfvénic currents appear as a nested series of upward and downward FAC densities with amplitudes reaching a few 100 nA/m2. Energized field‐aligned or counterstreaming electrons near keV energies and below are observed with parallel skews that vary in concert with variations in the DAW current sense. Positive correlations between DAW electric field energy densities and the energies of energized H+, He+, and O+ outflow are observed, indicative of ion energization within the DAW fields. Due to their L‐shell location (L ∼5.8–7.0) and associations with injections, the KFLRs are interpreted as the high‐altitude auroral zone analog of KFLRs observed in the equatorial inner magnetosphere.
New Insights Into Crustal Deformation of the Indonesia–Australia–New Guinea Collision Zone From a Broad‐Scale Kinematic Model
Authors: Zhao Siyuan , McClusky Simon , Cummins Phil R. , Miller Meghan S. , Nugroho Hendro
Published: February 2023

The Indonesia‐Australia‐New Guinea collision zone comprises a complex system of tectonic blocks whose relative motion accommodates convergence of the Sunda Block, Pacific, Australian, and Philippine Sea plates. Previous studies have considered either the western or eastern ends of this system, in eastern Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, respectively. However, these studies had limited ability to characterize either the kinematics of the central part of the system or transitions in tectonic regime across it. In this study, we perform a simultaneous inversion of 492 earthquake slip vectors and 267 GPS velocities to quantify the block movement spanning the Sunda‐Banda Arc, Western New Guinea, and Papua New Guinea. Our best‐fitting kinematic block model comprises 23 elastic blocks, for which we estimate the rotation rates and block boundary slip rates. We show how the Cenderawasih Bay sphenochasm was likely formed by a combination of both rotations (2.82 ± 0.11°/Myr anticlockwise) of the Bird's Head Block and southwest‐directed convergence (39.9 ± 1.7 mm/yr) along the Lowlands fault. Our estimated relative slip vectors across the New Guinea Fold‐and‐Thrust Belt indicate a transition in the tectonic regime of the block boundary from predominately thrust faulting at its western segment, with a convergence rate up to 19.5 ± 0.6 mm/yr, to predominately sinistral motion in the center segment with slip rate ∼7 mm/yr, and returning to thrust in the eastern segment with a convergence rate up to 9.0 ± 0.5 mm/yr, implying the combined effect of multiple driving mechanisms.
Vertically Resolved Pelagic Particle Biomass and Size Structure Across a Continental Shelf Under the Influence of a Western Boundary Current
Authors: Schilling Hayden T. , Everett Jason D. , Schaeffer Amandine , Hinchliffe Charles , Yates Peter , Baird Mark E. , Suthers Iain M.
Published: February 2023

Continental shelves are key to societal interactions with the oceans, supporting >90% of the world's fisheries through highly productive ecosystems. Previous research has shown that phytoplankton biomass is generally higher on the inner continental shelves, often due to increased nutrient inputs from upwelling or coastal run‐off. However, consistency in observed vertical and horizontal gradients (in abundance, biomass or size) of larger particulates, including zooplankton, on continental shelves has not been established. Using an optical plankton counter and CTD mounted on an undulating towed body, we present high‐resolution vertically resolved profiles of pelagic particle size structure across a continental shelf. Biomass was highest inshore, declining with distance from shore and with depth in the top 100 m of the water column, although the presence of frontal zones can alter this pattern. In the region adjacent to the East Australian Current (EAC), uplift generated by either the EAC interacting with the continental slope or upwelling‐favorable winds, correlated with smaller geometric mean sizes and steeper size spectrum slopes, particularly in the presence of frontal features. South of the EAC separation, the continental shelf water mass was more homogenous but still displayed the same horizontal and vertical patterns in particulate biomass and mean size. By combining our observations in a global comparison, we demonstrate consistent particulate distributions on continental shelves where the inner shelf has higher biomass with a steeper size spectrum slope compared to offshore. The highly productive inner shelf supports zooplankton communities vital to temperate ecosystems and coastal fisheries, through their consistently high biomass.
Understanding the Natural Variability of Still Water Levels in the San Francisco Bay Over the Past 500 yr: Implications for Future Coastal Flood Risk
Authors: Mukhopadhyay Sudarshana , Leung Meredith , Cagigal Laura , Kucharski John , Ruggiero Peter , Steinschneider Scott
Published: February 2023

Increasing exposure to coastal flood hazards will potentially induce an enormous socio‐economic toll on vulnerable communities. To accurately characterize the hazard, we must consider both natural water level variability and climate change‐induced sea‐level rise. In this study, we develop a paleo‐proxy‐based reconstruction of coastal flood events over the last 500 yr to capture natural water level variability and superimpose that reconstruction onto expected sea‐level rise to explore interannual and multidecadal variability in plausible future coastal flood risk. We first develop reconstructions of leading principal components (PCs) of sea surface temperature anomalies from 1500 CE onwards, using tree‐ring, coral, and sclerosponge chronology‐based El Niño Southern Oscillation reconstructions as predictors in a wavelet autoregression model. These reconstructions of PCs are then used in a stochastic water level emulator to develop ensemble simulations of hourly still water levels (SWLs) in the San Francisco Bay. The emulator accounts for multiple relevant processes, including monthly mean sea level (MMSL) anomalies, storm surge, and tide, all varying at different timescales. Accounting for natural variability in water levels over 1500–2000 CE increases coastal flood risk beyond that suggested by instrumental records alone. When superimposed on 0.22 m of sea‐level rise (approximately the amount experienced over the previous century), the simulations show that while high tides and large storm surges cause the smaller extreme SWLs, the larger extreme SWLs occur during concurrent high MMSL, high tides, and significant storm surges. Our findings thus highlight the need to consider natural water level variability for coastal adaptation and planning.
Sensitivity of Real‐Time Forecast for Typhoons Around Korea to Cumulus and Cloud Microphysics Schemes
Authors: Park Jinyoung , Moon Jihong , Cho Woojin , Cha Dong‐Hyun , Lee Myong‐In , Chang Eun‐Chul , Kim Joowan , Park Sang‐Hun , An Jooneun
Published: February 2023

In numerical weather prediction models, the typhoon track and intensity forecast performances are highly sensitive to physics parameterization schemes. To investigate the impact of physics parameterization schemes on the real‐time short‐term forecasts, we simulated six typhoons which directly/indirectly affected the South Korea region in recent years using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. Three cumulus parameterization schemes (CPSs) of Kain‐Fritsch (KF), Betts‐Miller‐Janjić (BMJ), modified Tiedtke (TDK), and two cloud microphysics parameterization schemes (MPSs) of WRF‐single‐moment‐microphysics class 6 (WSM6), Predicted Particle Properties (P3) 1‐category were selected for the sensitivity experiment. The results showed that there was a significant difference in simulated typhoon track and intensity performances depending on the physics schemes. On average, the typhoon forecast performances were improved when applying the KF scheme for CPS and WSM6 scheme for MPS in our experimental setup. The BMJ‐applied runs showed the worst performances, which simulated westward shifted typhoon tracks compared to other runs. Overall, the typhoon track and intensity spreads tended to be more sensitive to CPSs and MPSs, respectively. We conducted additional sensitivity experiments using the BMJ scheme with modified reference and temperature profiles. The result showed that the overactivity of the BMJ scheme at low latitudes was reasonably reduced, leading to the improved simulation of typhoons and synoptic fields.
TRPV1 regulates ApoE4-disrupted intracellular lipid homeostasis and decreases synaptic phagocytosis by microglia
Authors: Wang Chenfei , Lu Jia , Sha Xudong , Qiu Yu , Chen Hongzhuan , Yu Zhihua
Published: February 2023

Although the ε4 allele of the apolipoprotein E (ApoE4) gene has been established as a genetic risk factor for many neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, the mechanism of action remains poorly understood. Transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) was reported to regulate autophagy to protect against foam cell formation in atherosclerosis. Here, we show that ApoE4 leads to lipid metabolism dysregulation in microglia, resulting in enhanced MHC-II-dependent antigen presentation and T-cell activation. Lipid accumulation and inflammatory reactions were accelerated in microglia isolated from TRPV1flox/flox; Cx3cr1cre-ApoE4 mice. We showed that metabolic boosting by treatment with the TRPV1 agonist capsaicin rescued lipid metabolic impairments in ApoE4 neurons and defects in autophagy caused by disruption of the AKT-mTOR pathway. TRPV1 activation with capsaicin reversed ApoE4-induced microglial immune dysfunction and neuronal autophagy impairment. Capsaicin rescued memory impairment, tau pathology, and neuronal autophagy in ApoE4 mice. Activation of TRPV1 decreased microglial phagocytosis of synapses in ApoE4 mice. TRPV1 gene deficiency exacerbated recognition memory impairment and tau pathology in ApoE4 mice. Our study suggests that TRPV1 regulation of lipid metabolism could be a therapeutic approach to alleviate the consequences of the ApoE4 allele.
Efficient dispersion modeling in optical multimode fiber
Authors: Lee Szu-Yu , Parot Vicente J. , Bouma Brett E. , Villiger Martin
Published: February 2023

Dispersion remains an enduring challenge for the characterization of wavelength-dependent transmission through optical multimode fiber (MMF). Beyond a small spectral correlation width, a change in wavelength elicits a seemingly independent distribution of the transmitted field. Here we report on a parametric dispersion model that describes mode mixing in MMF as an exponential map and extends the concept of principal modes to describe the fiber’s spectrally resolved transmission matrix (TM). We present computational methods to fit the model to measurements at only a few, judiciously selected, discrete wavelengths. We validate the model in various MMF and demonstrate an accurate estimation of the full TM across a broad spectral bandwidth, approaching the bandwidth of the best-performing principal modes, and exceeding the original spectral correlation width by more than two orders of magnitude. The model allows us to conveniently study the spectral behavior of principal modes, and obviates the need for dense spectral measurements, enabling highly efficient reconstruction of the multispectral TM of MMF.
Structural inequities contribute to racial/ethnic differences in neurophysiological tone, but not threat reactivity, after trauma exposure
Authors: Harnett Nathaniel G. , Fani Negar , Carter Sierra , Sanchez Leon D. , Rowland Grace E. , Davie William M. , Guzman Camilo , Lebois Lauren A. M. , Ely Timothy D. , van Rooij Sanne J. H. , Seligowski Antonia V. , Winters Sterling , Grasser Lana R. , Musey Paul I. , Seamon Mark J. , House Stacey L. , Beaudoin Francesca L. , An Xinming , Zeng Donglin , Neylan Thomas C. , Clifford Gari D. , Linnstaedt Sarah D. , Germine Laura T. , Bollen Kenneth A. , Rauch Scott L. , Haran John P. , Storrow Alan B. , Lewandowski Christopher , Hendry Phyllis L. , Sheikh Sophia , Jones Christopher W. , Punches Brittany E. , Swor Robert A. , Hudak Lauren A. , Pascual Jose L. , Harris Erica , Chang Anna M. , Pearson Claire , Peak David A. , Merchant Roland C. , Domeier Robert M. , Rathlev Niels K. , Bruce Steven E. , Miller Mark W. , Pietrzak Robert H. , Joormann Jutta , Barch Deanna M. , Pizzagalli Diego A. , Harte Steven E. , Elliott James M. , Kessler Ronald C. , Koenen Karestan C. , McLean Samuel A. , Jovanovic Tanja , Stevens Jennifer S. , Ressler Kerry J.
Published: February 2023

Considerable racial/ethnic disparities persist in exposure to life stressors and socioeconomic resources that can directly affect threat neurocircuitry, particularly the amygdala, that partially mediates susceptibility to adverse posttraumatic outcomes. Limited work to date, however, has investigated potential racial/ethnic variability in amygdala reactivity or connectivity that may in turn be related to outcomes such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Participants from the AURORA study (n = 283), a multisite longitudinal study of trauma outcomes, completed functional magnetic resonance imaging and psychophysiology within approximately two-weeks of trauma exposure. Seed-based amygdala connectivity and amygdala reactivity during passive viewing of fearful and neutral faces were assessed during fMRI. Physiological activity was assessed during Pavlovian threat conditioning. Participants also reported the severity of posttraumatic symptoms 3 and 6 months after trauma. Black individuals showed lower baseline skin conductance levels and startle compared to White individuals, but no differences were observed in physiological reactions to threat. Further, Hispanic and Black participants showed greater amygdala connectivity to regions including the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (PFC), dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, insula, and cerebellum compared to White participants. No differences were observed in amygdala reactivity to threat. Amygdala connectivity was associated with 3-month PTSD symptoms, but the associations differed by racial/ethnic group and were partly driven by group differences in structural inequities. The present findings suggest variability in tonic neurophysiological arousal in the early aftermath of trauma between racial/ethnic groups, driven by structural inequality, impacts neural processes that mediate susceptibility to later PTSD symptoms.
Impact of short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) on antimicrobial activity of new β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combinations and on virulence of Escherichia coli isolates
Authors: Kadry Ashraf A. , El-Antrawy May A. , El-Ganiny Amira M.
Published: February 2023

In a healthy gut microbiota, short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) are produced. The antibacterial action of SCFAs against intestinal pathogens makes them useful for ensuring the safety of food and human health. In this study, we aimed to assess the in vitro inhibitory activity of SCFAs, and to report, for the first time, their impact on the activity of new β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combinations. The minimum inhibitory concentrations of acetic, propionic, and butyric acids were determined against E. coli clinical isolates recovered from gastrointestinal infections. Cefoperazone/sulbactam, ceftazidime/avibactam and cefepime/enmetazobactam are new β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combinations that were studied for their combined therapeutic effects. Also, the effects of pH and concentration of SCFAs were evaluated on in vitro bacterial growth and expression of genes encoding for motility, adhesion, invasion, and biofilm formation. SCFAs were tested at concentrations of 12 mM at pH 7.4 (ileum-conditions), in addition to 60 mM and 123 mM, at pH 6.5 (colon-conditions). The tested SCFAs showed the same MIC (3750 μg ml−1 ≃ 60 mM) against all isolates. Furthermore, the addition of SCFAs to the tested β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combinations greatly restored the susceptibility of the isolates. SCFAs had significant effect on bacterial growth and virulence in a pH and concentration-dependent manner; low ileal concentration potentiated E. coli growth, while higher colonic concentration significantly suppressed growth and down-regulated the expression of virulence genes (fliC, ipaH, FimH, BssS). Therefore, the significant inhibitory effect of colonic SCFAs on β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combinations might lead to the development of promising treatment strategies.
Population structure and hybridisation in a population of Hawaiian feral chickens
Authors: Martin Cerezo Maria Luisa , López Saioa , van Dorp Lucy , Hellenthal Garrett , Johnsson Martin , Gering Eben , Henriksen Rie , Wright Dominic
Published: February 2023

Chickens are believed to have inhabited the Hawaiian island of Kauai since the first human migrations around 1200AD, but numbers have peaked since the tropical storms Iniki and Iwa in the 1980s and 1990s that destroyed almost all the chicken coops on the island and released large numbers of domestic chickens into the wild. Previous studies have shown these now feral chickens are an admixed population between Red Junglefowl (RJF) and domestic chickens. Here, using genetic haplotypic data, we estimate the time of the admixture event between the feral population on the island and the RJF to 1981 (1976–1995), coinciding with the timings of storm Iwa and Iniki. Analysis of genetic structure reveals a greater similarity between individuals inhabiting the northern and western part of the island to RJF than individuals from the eastern part of the island. These results point to the possibility of introgression events between feral chickens and the wild chickens in areas surrounding the Koke’e State Park and the Alaka’i plateau, posited as two of the major RJF reservoirs in the island. Furthermore, we have inferred haplotype blocks from pooled data to determine the most plausible source of the feral population. We identify a clear contribution from RJF and layer chickens of the White Leghorn (WL) breed. This work provides independent confirmation of the traditional hypothesis surrounding the origin of the feral populations and draws attention to the possibility of introgression of domestic alleles into the wild reservoir.
Lipid-induced transcriptomic changes in blood link to lipid metabolism and allergic response
Authors: Dekkers Koen F. , Slieker Roderick C. , Ioan-Facsinay Andreea , van Iterson Maarten ,   BIOS consortium, Ikram M. Arfan , van Greevenbroek Marleen M. J. , Veldink Jan H. , Franke Lude , Boomsma Dorret I. , Slagboom P. Eline , Jukema J. Wouter , Heijmans Bastiaan T.
Published: February 2023

Immune cell function can be altered by lipids in circulation, a process potentially relevant to lipid-associated inflammatory diseases including atherosclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. To gain further insight in the molecular changes involved, we here perform a transcriptome-wide association analysis of blood triglycerides, HDL cholesterol, and LDL cholesterol in 3229 individuals, followed by a systematic bidirectional Mendelian randomization analysis to assess the direction of effects and control for pleiotropy. Triglycerides are found to induce transcriptional changes in 55 genes and HDL cholesterol in 5 genes. The function and cell-specific expression pattern of these genes implies that triglycerides downregulate both cellular lipid metabolism and, unexpectedly, allergic response. Indeed, a Mendelian randomization approach based on GWAS summary statistics indicates that several of these genes, including interleukin-4 (IL4) and IgE receptors (FCER1A,MS4A2), affect the incidence of allergic diseases. Our findings highlight the interplay between triglycerides and immune cells in allergic disease.
Generalized extinction of fear memory depends on co-allocation of synaptic plasticity in dendrites
Authors: Xu Zhiwei , Geron Erez , Pérez-Cuesta Luis M. , Bai Yang , Gan Wen-Biao
Published: February 2023

Memories can be modified by new experience in a specific or generalized manner. Changes in synaptic connections are crucial for memory storage, but it remains unknown how synaptic changes associated with different memories are distributed within neuronal circuits and how such distributions affect specific or generalized modification by novel experience. Here we show that fear conditioning with two different auditory stimuli (CS) and footshocks (US) induces dendritic spine elimination mainly on different dendritic branches of layer 5 pyramidal neurons in the mouse motor cortex. Subsequent fear extinction causes CS-specific spine formation and extinction of freezing behavior. In contrast, spine elimination induced by fear conditioning with >2 different CS-USs often co-exists on the same dendritic branches. Fear extinction induces CS-nonspecific spine formation and generalized fear extinction. Moreover, activation of somatostatin-expressing interneurons increases the occurrence of spine elimination induced by different CS-USs on the same dendritic branches and facilitates the generalization of fear extinction. These findings suggest that specific or generalized modification of existing memories by new experience depends on whether synaptic changes induced by previous experiences are segregated or co-exist at the level of individual dendritic branches.
Proteogenomics of diffuse gliomas reveal molecular subtypes associated with specific therapeutic targets and immune-evasion mechanisms
Authors: Wang Yunzhi , Luo Rongkui , Zhang Xuan , Xiang Hang , Yang Bing , Feng Jinwen , Deng Mengjie , Ran Peng , Sujie Akesu , Zhang Fan , Zhu Jiajun , Tan Subei , Xie Tao , Chen Pin , Yu Zixiang , Li Yan , Jiang Dongxian , Zhang Xiaobiao , Zhao Jian-Yuan , Hou Yingyong , Ding Chen
Published: February 2023

Diffuse gliomas are devastating brain tumors. Here, we perform a proteogenomic profiling of 213 retrospectively collected glioma tumors. Proteogenomic analysis reveals the downstream biological events leading by EGFR-, IDH1-, TP53-mutations. The comparative analysis illustrates the distinctive features of GBMs and LGGs, indicating CDK2 inhibitor might serve as a promising drug target for GBMs. Further proteogenomic integrative analysis combined with functional experiments highlight the cis-effect of EGFR alterations might lead to glioma tumor cell proliferation through ERK5 medicates nucleotide synthesis process. Proteome-based stratification of gliomas defines 3 proteomic subgroups (S-Ne, S-Pf, S-Im), which could serve as a complement to WHO subtypes, and would provide the essential framework for the utilization of specific targeted therapies for particular glioma subtypes. Immune clustering identifies three immune subtypes with distinctive immune cell types. Further analysis reveals higher EGFR alteration frequencies accounts for elevation of immune check point protein: PD-L1 and CD70 in T-cell infiltrated tumors.
Monometallic interphasic synergy via nano-hetero-interfacing for hydrogen evolution in alkaline electrolytes
Authors: Dastafkan Kamran , Shen Xiangjian , Hocking Rosalie K. , Meyer Quentin , Zhao Chuan
Published: February 2023

Electrocatalytic synergy is a functional yet underrated concept in electrocatalysis. Often, it materializes as intermetallic interaction between different metals. We demonstrate interphasic synergy in monometallic structures is as much effective. An interphasic synergy between Ni(OH)2 and Ni-N/Ni-C phases is reported for alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction that lowers the energy barriers for hydrogen adsorption-desorption and facilitates that of hydroxyl intermediates. This makes ready-to-serve Ni active sites and allocates a large amount of Ni d-states at Fermi level to promote charge redistribution from Ni(OH)2 to Ni-N/Ni-C and the co-adsorption of Hads and OHads intermediates on Ni-N/Ni-C moieties. As a result, a Ni(OH)2@Ni-N/Ni-C hetero-hierarchical nanostructure is developed, lowering the overpotentials to deliver −10 and −100 mA cm−2 in alkaline media by 102 and 113 mV, respectively, compared to monophasic Ni(OH)2 catalyst. This study unveils the interphasic synergy as an effective strategy to design monometallic electrocatalysts for water splitting and other energy applications.
Conjugated dual size effect of core-shell particles synergizes bimetallic catalysis
Authors: Zhang Xiaohui , Sun Zhihu , Jin Rui , Zhu Chuwei , Zhao Chuanlin , Lin Yue , Guan Qiaoqiao , Cao Lina , Wang Hengwei , Li Shang , Yu Hancheng , Liu Xinyu , Wang Leilei , Wei Shiqiang , Li Wei-Xue , Lu Junling
Published: February 2023

Core-shell bimetallic nanocatalysts have attracted long-standing attention in heterogeneous catalysis. Tailoring both the core size and shell thickness to the dedicated geometrical and electronic properties for high catalytic reactivity is important but challenging. Here, taking Au@Pd core-shell catalysts as an example, we disclose by theory that a large size of Au core with a two monolayer of Pd shell is vital to eliminate undesired lattice contractions and ligand destabilizations for optimum benzyl alcohol adsorption. A set of Au@Pd/SiO2 catalysts with various core sizes and shell thicknesses are precisely fabricated. In the benzyl alcohol oxidation reaction, we find that the activity increases monotonically with the core size but varies nonmontonically with the shell thickness, where a record-high activity is achieved on a Au@Pd catalyst with a large core size of 6.8 nm and a shell thickness of ~2–3 monolayers. These findings highlight the conjugated dual particle size effect in bimetallic catalysis.
Dosage differences in 12-OXOPHYTODIENOATE REDUCTASE genes modulate wheat root growth
Authors: Gabay Gilad , Wang Hanchao , Zhang Junli , Moriconi Jorge I. , Burguener German F. , Gualano Leonardo D. , Howell Tyson , Lukaszewski Adam , Staskawicz Brian , Cho Myeong-Je , Tanaka Jaclyn , Fahima Tzion , Ke Haiyan , Dehesh Katayoon , Zhang Guo-Liang , Gou Jin-Ying , Hamberg Mats , Santa-María Guillermo E. , Dubcovsky Jorge
Published: February 2023

Wheat, an essential crop for global food security, is well adapted to a wide variety of soils. However, the gene networks shaping different root architectures remain poorly understood. We report here that dosage differences in a cluster of monocot-specific 12-OXOPHYTODIENOATE REDUCTASE genes from subfamily III (OPRIII) modulate key differences in wheat root architecture, which are associated with grain yield under water-limited conditions. Wheat plants with loss-of-function mutations in OPRIII show longer seminal roots, whereas increased OPRIII dosage or transgenic over-expression result in reduced seminal root growth, precocious development of lateral roots and increased jasmonic acid (JA and JA-Ile). Pharmacological inhibition of JA-biosynthesis abolishes root length differences, consistent with a JA-mediated mechanism. Transcriptome analyses of transgenic and wild-type lines show significant enriched JA-biosynthetic and reactive oxygen species (ROS) pathways, which parallel changes in ROS distribution. OPRIII genes provide a useful entry point to engineer root architecture in wheat and other cereals.
Highly-scaled and fully-integrated 3-dimensional ferroelectric transistor array for hardware implementation of neural networks
Authors: Kim Ik-Jyae , Kim Min-Kyu , Lee Jang-Sik
Published: February 2023

Hardware-based neural networks (NNs) can provide a significant breakthrough in artificial intelligence applications due to their ability to extract features from unstructured data and learn from them. However, realizing complex NN models remains challenging because different tasks, such as feature extraction and classification, should be performed at different memory elements and arrays. This further increases the required number of memory arrays and chip size. Here, we propose a three-dimensional ferroelectric NAND (3D FeNAND) array for the area-efficient hardware implementation of NNs. Vector-matrix multiplication is successfully demonstrated using the integrated 3D FeNAND arrays, and excellent pattern classification is achieved. By allocating each array of vertical layers in 3D FeNAND as the hidden layer of NN, each layer can be used to perform different tasks, and the classification of color-mixed patterns is achieved. This work provides a practical strategy to realize high-performance and highly efficient NN systems by stacking computation components vertically.
Identification of key immune-related genes in dilated cardiomyopathy using bioinformatics analysis
Authors: Li Feng , Du Tong-Yue , Wu Li-Da , Zhang Lei , Liu Huan-Huan , Zhang Zhen-Ye , Zhang Jie , Zhang Zhi-Yuan , Qian Ling-Ling , Wang Ru-Xing , Hao Jian-Feng
Published: February 2023

Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is characterized by the left ventricular dilatation and impaired myocardial systolic dysfunction with high mortality and morbidity. However, the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. We first identified the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the DCM and control group using two expression profiles from GSE3585 and GSE84796. Enrichment analysis was conducted to explore the potential mechanisms underlying DCM. A total of four algorithms, including key module of MCODE, degree, maximum neighborhood component (MNC), and maximal clique centrality (MCC), were used to identify the hub genes within Cytoscape. The correlation between hub genes and infiltrated immune cells was evaluated to determine potential immune-related genes. The expression analysis and diagnosis value analysis of potential immune-related genes were performed. Finally, the expression analysis with GSE57338 and relationship analysis with the comparative toxicogenomics database (CTD) were performed to identify the key immune-related genes in DCM. A total of 80 DEGs were screened for DCM. Enrichment analysis revealed that DEGs were involved in the immune-related pathological process. Immune infiltration analysis indicated a potentially abnormal immune response in DCM. Four up-regulated genes (COL1A2, COL3A1, CD53, and POSTN) were identified as potential immune-related genes. Finally, three genes (COL1A2, COL3A1, and POSTN) were determined as the key immune-related genes in DCM via expression analysis with a validation set (GSE57338) and relationship analysis with CTD. Our study suggested that the upregulated COL1A2, COL3A1, and POSTN might be the key immune-related genes for DCM. Further studies are needed to validate the underlying mechanisms.
Appropriate screening mammography method for patients with breast implants
Authors: Park Jihee , Ko Eun Young , Han Boo-Kyung , Ko Eun Sook , Choi Ji Soo , Kim Haejung
Published: February 2023

In this study, we aimed to evaluate the benefits and losses of mammography with and without implant displacement (ID) and propose an appropriate imaging protocol for the screening of breasts with implants. We evaluated mammograms of 162 breasts in 96 patients including 71 breasts with biopsy-proven cancers. Mammography of each breast included standard MLO and ID MLO images. We reviewed the mammograms using clinical image quality criteria, which consist of parameters that evaluate the proper positioning of the breast and the image resolution. Standard MLO images showed significantly higher scores for proper positioning but showed significantly lower scores for image resolution than the ID MLO images. Moreover, standard MLO images showed significantly higher kVp, mAs, and compressed breast thickness than the ID MLO images. The organ dose was also higher in the standard MLO images than in the ID MLO images, but the difference was not statistically significant. In mammography with proven cancer, ID MLO images showed significantly higher degree of cancer visibility than standard MLO images. For screening mammography in patients with breast implants, ID MLO view alone is sufficient for MLO projection with reducing the patient’s radiation dose without compromising the breast cancer detection capability, especially in dense breasts with subpectoral implants.
Genetic algorithm optimization of broadband operation in a noise-like pulse fiber laser
Authors: Lapre Coraline , Meng Fanchao , Hary Mathilde , Finot Christophe , Genty Goëry , Dudley John M.
Published: February 2023

The noise-like pulse regime of optical fiber lasers is highly complex, and associated with multiscale emission of random sub-picosecond pulses underneath a much longer envelope. With the addition of highly nonlinear fiber in the cavity, noise-like pulse lasers can also exhibit supercontinuum broadening and the generation of output spectra spanning 100’s of nm. Achieving these broadest bandwidths, however, requires careful optimization of the nonlinear polarization rotation based saturable absorber, which involves a very large potential parameter space. Here we study the spectral characteristics of a broadband noise-like pulse laser by scanning the laser operation over a random sample of 50,000 polarization settings, and we quantify that these broadest bandwidths are generated in only $$\sim$$
∼
 0.5% of cases. We also show that a genetic algorithm can replace trial and error optimization to align the cavity for these broadband operating states.
Synthesis of new diphenyl urea-clubbed imine analogs and its Implications in diabetic management through in vitro and in silico approaches
Authors: Pasha Anam Rubbab , Khan Ajmal , Ullah Saeed , Halim Sobia Ahsan , Hussain Javid , Khalid Muhammad , Naseer Muhammad Moazzam , El-kott Attalla F. , Negm Sally , Al-Harrasi Ahmed , Shafiq Zahid
Published: February 2023

Type II diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a global health issue with high rate of prevalence. The inhibition of α-glucosidase enzyme has prime importance in the management of T2DM. This study was established to synthesize Schiff bases of 1,3-dipheny urea (3a–y) and to investigate their in vitro anti-diabetic capability via inhibiting α-glucosidase, a key player in the catabolism of carbohydrates. The structures of all compounds were confirmed through various techniques including, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass-spectrometry (MS) methods. Interestingly all these compounds displayed potent inhibition IC50 values in range of 2.14–115 µM as compared to acarbose used as control. Additionally, all the compounds were docked at the active site of α-glucosidase to predict their mode of binding. The docking results indicates that Glu277 and Asn350 play important role in the stabilization of these compounds in the active site of enzyme. These molecules showed excellent predicted pharmacokinetics, physicochemical and drug-likeness profile. The anti-diabetic potential of these molecules signifies their medical importance and provide insights into prospective therapeutic options for the treatment of T2DM.