bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Gravitational microlensing by dressed primordial black holes
Authors: Cai Rong-Gen , Chen Tan , Wang Shao-Jiang , Yang Xing-Yu
Published: March 2023

The accretion of dark matter around the primordial black holes (PBHs) could lead to the
formation of surrounding minihalos, whose mass can be several orders of magnitude higher than the
central PBH mass. The gravitational microlensing produced by such dressed PBHs could be quite
different from that of the bare PBHs, which may significantly affect the constraints on the PBH
abundance. In this paper, we study the gravitational microlensing produced by dressed PBHs in
detail. We find that all the microlensing effects by dressed PBHs have asymptotic behavior
depending on the minihalo size, which can be used to predict the microlensing effects by comparing
the halo size with the Einstein radius. When the minihalo radius and the Einstein radius are
comparable, the effect of the density distribution of the halo is significant to the microlensing.
Applying the stellar microlensing by dressed PBHs to the data of the Optical Gravitational Lensing
Experiment and Subaru/HSC Andromeda observations, we obtain the improved constraints on the PBH
abundance. It shows that the existence of dark matter minihalos surrounding PBHs can strengthen
the constraints on the PBH abundance from stellar microlensing by several orders, and can shift
the constraints to the well-known asteroid mass window where PBHs can constitute all the
dark matter.
Diffraction grating via position dependent incident light in a closed-loop quantum system
Authors: Kadhim Zainab Jawad , Al Kubaisy Munthir Mohammed Radhy , Mohammed Amjed Qasim , Izzat Samar Emad , Al-Majdi Kadhum , Abood Emad Salaam , Alhani Israa
Published: March 2023

We have proposed a new model for controlling the electromagnetically induced grating in a three-level closed-loop quantum system. The quantum system interacts with three-laser fields which one of them is the weak probe light and two of them are strong driving and coupling laser fields. These two strong laser fields have standing wave (SW) patterns in two x and y directions. This makes that the absorption and dispersion properties of the media change periodically which leads to diffraction of the transmitted light. We have shown that because of the closed-loop configuration of the quantum system the relative phase between applied lights can affect the diffraction grating pattern of the transmitted light. We have also discussed the Rabi-frequency effect of the driving and coupling lights on the different orders of the grating. We have shown that our proposed model may be used as a new tool for developing the future quantum information processing devices.
Commissioning of the new muon-to-central-trigger-processor interface at ATLAS
Authors: Koulouris A. , Afik Y. , Armbruster A. , Czodrowski P. , Ellis N. , Haas S. , Kulinska A. , Marzin A. , Pauly T. , Penc O. , Perrella S. , Ryjov V. , Sanfilippo L. , Simoniello R. , Spiwoks R. , Vichoudis P. , Wengler T. , Wyzlinski M.
Published: March 2023

The ATLAS trigger system includes a Level-1 (L1) trigger based on custom electronics and firmware, and a high-level software trigger running on off-the-shelf hardware. The L1 trigger system uses information from the forward detectors, the calorimeters and the muon trigger detectors. Once information from all muon trigger sectors has been received, trigger candidate multiplicities are calculated by the Muon-to-Central-Trigger-Processor Interface (MUCTPI). Muon multiplicity information is sent to the Central-Trigger-Processor (CTP) and trigger objects are sent to the L1 Topological Trigger Processor (L1Topo). The CTP combines the information received from the MUCTPI with the trigger information from the forward detectors, the calorimeters and the L1Topo, and takes the L1 trigger decision. As part of the ATLAS L1 trigger system upgrade for Run-3 of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) a new MUCTPI has been designed and commissioned. We discuss the commissioning and operation of the new MUCTPI used in ATLAS from the beginning of Run-3. In particular, we describe the integration tests which have been carried out for the commissioning and operation of the new MUCTPI.
Smooth self-similar imploding profiles to 3D compressible Euler
Authors: Buckmaster Tristan , Cao-Labora Gonzalo , Gómez-Serrano Javier
Published: March 2023

The aim of this note is to present the recent results by Buckmaster, Cao-Labora, and Gómez-Serrano [Smooth imploding solutions for 3D compressible fluids, Arxiv preprint arXiv:2208.09445, 2022] concerning the existence of “imploding singularities” for the 3D isentropic compressible Euler and Navier-Stokes equations. Our work builds upon the pioneering work of Merle, Raphaël, Rodnianski and Szeftel [Invent. Math. 227 (2022), pp. 247–413; Ann. of Math. (2) 196 (2022), pp. 567–778; Ann. of Math. (2) 196 (2022), pp. 779–889] and proves the existence of self-similar profiles for all adiabatic exponents

γ
>
1

\gamma >1

in the case of Euler; as well as proving asymptotic self-similar blow-up for

γ
=

7
5

\gamma =\frac 75

in the case of Navier-Stokes. Importantly, for the Navier-Stokes equation, the solution is constructed to have density bounded away from zero and constant at infinity, the first example of blow-up in such a setting. For simplicity, we will focus our exposition on the compressible Euler equations.
Race and the Educational Experiences of Multicultural Families and Biracial Children in Korea
Authors: Han Eun-Jeong , Kang Ellen
Published: March 2023

Since the mid-1990s, Korea has been transitioning from an ethnically homogenous nation to a multicultural society, mostly due to the growing number of multicultural families. There are a number of issues associated with students from multicultural families (SMFs) in education: (a) lack of Korean language proficiency; (b) lower academic performance; (c) higher rates of mental or psychological issues; (d) higher rates of being bullied, discriminated against, and school dropout; and (e) lack of knowledge of support programs, the stigma of utilizing them, and program efficacy. Existing governmental programs utilize an assimilationist approach, which implies the problems reside in SMFs, when the emphasis should also be applied to an orchestrated shift in cultural values that would embrace multiculturalism.
Post-Slavery
Authors: Lecocq Baz , Pelckmans Lotte
Published: March 2023

Post-slavery is an academic analytical concept that signifies the fragmented legacies and continuities of past slavery and slave trade in contemporary societies after its formal legal abolition, and beyond emancipation processes. Legacies can take the form of discourses based in collective memories and ideologies of past slavery, while continuities can take the shape of continued relations of social hierarchy and dependency between people of slave descent and the descendants of slaveholders and other people of free descent, to the disadvantage of the formerly enslaved and their descendants. The social mechanisms of exclusion that uphold post-slavery situations include the invisibility of such situations to outsiders; structural racism and other forms of stigmatization; struggles surrounding gender relations; the social importance of genealogy, marriage, and family formation across the historical free-unfree divide; uneven access to physical and social capital, such as land and positions of authority; and the politics of history and memory. Post-slavery legacies and continuities form points on a continuum, ranging from explicit forms of exploitation that could qualify as slavery outside the law (de facto, but not de jure slavery), via structural racism and other forms of structural exclusion in society (post-slavery continuities), to the residual histories and memories that can continue to mark differences between the descendants of slave and free today (post-slavery legacies).
The Sources of International Disorder
Authors: McKeil Aaron
Published: March 2023

Debates on the decline and future of the “liberal” international order have produced increasing interest in the concept and sources of disorder in world politics. While the sources of disorder in world politics remain debated and pluralistic, the concept is increasingly used with more analytical clarity and theoretical interest. This growing research on the intended and unintended sources of disorder in world politics contributes to advancing thinking about the problem and future of international order in world politics.
The Past, Present, and Future of China–Latin America Relations
Authors: Wise Carol
Published: March 2023

The theme of China’s relations with Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) may be analyzed across three distinct phases. The first is 1949–1978, which entailed the efforts of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to reach out economically to LAC in its pursuit of raw material inputs; the CCP also made political gestures toward leftist parties in countries like Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Mexico; and there was considerable sociocultural interaction between the two. The second phase spans 1979–2000, which encompasses the first 2 decades of economic opening and structural reform in China. The LAC scenario during this time was one of economic volatility as well as a transition to democracy in a majority of countries. Economically, LAC’s debt-riddled “lost decade” of the 1980s gave way to the Washington Consensus in 1990, based on policies of liberalization, privatization, and deregulation. Similar to China’s reform thrust, LAC policymakers sought to incorporate the market more assertively into their respective economies. A third phase began in the wake of China’s 2001 accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). As China gained market access to the entire WTO membership, its demand exploded for those raw materials needed to ratchet-up the country’s export-led manufacturing strategy to produce more sophisticated and higher value-added products. Within this third phase, the main highlights of China–LAC relations in the 21st century included the following: positive economic shocks and aftershocks; China’s public diplomacy and foreign policy toward LAC; China–LAC “Strategic Partnerships;” and the so-called triangle with the United States. The article concludes with a final tally on LAC progress vis-à-vis closer economic integration with China since the turn of the new millennium.
Abolitionist Social Work
Authors: Toraif Noor , Mueller Justin C.
Published: March 2023

Abolitionist social work is a theoretical framework and political project within the field of social work and an extension of the project of carceral abolitionism more broadly. Abolitionists seek to abolish punishment, prisons, police, and other carceral systems because they view these as being inherently destructive systems. Abolitionists argue that these carceral systems cause physiological, cognitive, economic, and political harms for incarcerated people, their families, and their communities; reinforce White supremacy; disproportionately burden the poor and marginalized; and fail to produce justice and healing after social harms have occurred. In their place, abolitionists want to create material conditions, institutions, and forms of community that facilitate emancipation and human flourishing and consequently render prisons, police, and other carceral systems obsolete. Abolitionist social workers advance this project in multiple ways, including critiquing the ways that social work and social workers are complicit in supporting or reinforcing carceral systems, challenging the expansion of carceral systems and carceral logics into social service domains, dismantling punitive and carceral institutions and methods of responding to social harms, implementing nonpunitive and noncarceral institutions and methods of responding to social harms, and strengthening the ability of communities to design and implement their own responses to social conflict and harm in the place of carceral institutions. As a theoretical framework, abolitionist social work draws from and extends the work of other critical frameworks and discourses, including anticarceral social work, feminist social work, dis/ability critical race studies, and transformative justice.
SoCube: an innovative end-to-end doublet detection algorithm for analyzing scRNA-seq data
Authors: Zhang Hongning , Lu Mingkun , Lin Gaole , Zheng Lingyan , Zhang Wei , Xu Zhijian , Zhu Feng
Published: March 2023

Doublets formed during single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) severely affect downstream studies, such as differentially expressed gene analysis and cell trajectory inference, and limit the cellular throughput of scRNA-seq. Several doublet detection algorithms are currently available, but their generalization performance could be further improved due to the lack of effective feature-embedding strategies with suitable model architectures. Therefore, SoCube, a novel deep learning algorithm, was developed to precisely detect doublets in various types of scRNA-seq data. SoCube (i) proposed a novel 3D composite feature-embedding strategy that embedded latent gene information and (ii) constructed a multikernel, multichannel CNN-ensembled architecture in conjunction with the feature-embedding strategy. With its excellent performance on benchmark evaluation and several downstream tasks, it is expected to be a powerful algorithm to detect and remove doublets in scRNA-seq data. SoCube is freely provided as an end-to-end tool on the Python official package site PyPi (https://pypi.org/project/socube/) and open-source on GitHub (https://github.com/idrblab/socube/).
Structural covariances of prefrontal subregions selectively associate with dopamine-related gene coexpression and schizophrenia
Authors: Liu Huaigui , Li Wei , Liu Nana , Tang Jie , Sun Lixin , Xu Jiayuan , Ji Yuan , Xie Yingying , Ding Hao , Ye Zhaoxiang , Yu Chunshui , Qin Wen
Published: March 2023

Evidence highlights that dopamine (DA) system dysregulation and prefrontal cortex (PFC) dysfunction may underlie the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. However, the associations among DA genes, PFC morphometry, and schizophrenia have not yet been fully clarified. Based on the brain gene expression dataset from Allen Human Brain Atlas and structural magnetic resonance imaging data (NDIS = 1727, NREP = 408), we first identified 10 out of 22 PFC subregions whose gray matter volume (GMV) covariance profiles were reliably associated with their DA genes coexpression profiles, then four out of the identified 10 PFC subregions demonstrated abnormally increased GMV covariance with the hippocampus, insula, and medial frontal areas in schizophrenia patients (NCASE = 100; NCONTROL = 102). Moreover, based on a schizophrenia postmortem expression dataset, we found that the DA genes coexpression of schizophrenia was significantly reduced between the middle frontal gyrus and hippocampus, in which 21 DA genes showed significantly unsynchronized expression changes, and the 21 genes’ brain expression were enriched in brain activity invoked by working memory, reward, speech production, and episodic memory. Our findings indicate the DA genes selectively regulate the structural covariance of PFC subregions by their coexpression profiles, which may underlie the disrupted GMV covariance and impaired cognitive functions in schizophrenia.
FinTech platform regulation: regulating with/against platforms in the UK and China
Authors: Langley Paul , Leyshon Andrew
Published: March 2023

This paper develops case studies of the UK and China to analyse divergent national financial regulatory approaches to FinTech as a novel political economy of platforms. Regulating with platforms is core to the approach taken in the UK, where start-up and early-career platforms are enrolled into an innovation-friendly financial regulation regime that promotes consumption and competition balanced with stability. In China, meanwhile, measures are being instituted to enhance rules and restrictions imposed on FinTech platforms. BigTech-led FinTech expansion was encouraged to expedite financial reforms to fuel economic growth and ensure authoritarian state control, but regulation is now shown to be working against the furtherance of platform power.
The role of salinity in recovery of white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) from stimulated angling stress
Authors: Shartau Ryan B , Shu Jacelyn , Baker Daniel W
Published: March 2023

White sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) in the Lower Fraser River are the focus of a catch-and-release angling fishery in British Columbia, Canada. However, the lower region of the catch area includes areas where tidal waters invade, and the consequence of salinity levels on recovery from an angling challenge are not characterized in sturgeon, despite theoretical implications of its import. We acclimated white sturgeon to various salinities (0, 10 and 20‰ (parts per thousand)) to investigate the effects of acclimation on recovery from stimulated angling stress that was induced through manual chasing. This challenge elicited the traditional physiological responses such as ion homeostasis disturbance, increases in secondary stress indicators and metabolic acidosis; however, environmental salinity altered the timing of recovery in some of the parameters measured. In addition, the severity of the intracellular pH disturbance in both heart and red blood cell seemed to be mediated in fresh water, yet the recovery pattern of plasma chloride and bicarbonate ions seemed to be facilitated by higher salinity. In general, responses were similar but not identical, leading us to conclude that the role of salinity on recovery from exercise is complex but not insignificant. Salinity may be important to behaviours exhibited by white sturgeon (such as migrations) in their respective saline environments, but less so around the impact of an angling stressor. Further exploration of this response may provide insight on whether the current tidal boundaries for angling white sturgeon are appropriate.
Periodontitis exacerbates atherosclerosis through Fusobacterium nucleatum-promoted hepatic glycolysis and lipogenesis
Authors: Zhou Lu-Jun , Lin Wen-Zhen , Meng Xiao-Qian , Zhu Hong , Liu Ting , Du Lin-Juan , Bai Xue-Bing , Chen Bo-Yan , Liu Yan , Xu Yuanzhi , Xie Yufeng , Shu Rong , Chen Fa-Ming , Zhu Ya-Qin , Duan Sheng-Zhong
Published: March 2023

Aims

Positive associations between periodontitis (PD) and atherosclerosis have been established, but the causality and mechanisms are not clear. We aimed to explore the causal roles of PD in atherosclerosis and dissect the underlying mechanisms.

Methods and results

A mouse model of PD was established by ligation of molars in combination with application of subgingival plaques collected from PD patients and then combined with atherosclerosis model induced by treating atheroprone mice with a high-cholesterol diet (HCD). PD significantly aggravated atherosclerosis in HCD-fed atheroprone mice, including increased en face plaque areas in whole aortas and lesion size at aortic roots. PD also increased circulating levels of triglycerides and cholesterol, hepatic levels of cholesterol, and hepatic expression of rate-limiting enzymes for lipogenesis. Using 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene sequencing, Fusobacterium nucleatum was identified as the most enriched PD-associated pathobiont that is present in both the oral cavity and livers. Co-culture experiments demonstrated that F. nucleatum directly stimulated lipid biosynthesis in primary mouse hepatocytes. Moreover, oral inoculation of F. nucleatum markedly elevated plasma levels of triglycerides and cholesterol and promoted atherogenesis in HCD-fed ApoE−/− mice. Results of RNA-seq and Seahorse assay indicated that F. nucleatum activated glycolysis, inhibition of which by 2-deoxyglucose in turn suppressed F. nucleatum-induced lipogenesis in hepatocytes. Finally, interrogation of the molecular mechanisms revealed that F. nucleatum-induced glycolysis and lipogenesis by activating PI3K/Akt/mTOR signalling pathway in hepatocytes.

Conclusions

PD exacerbates atherosclerosis and impairs lipid metabolism in mice, which may be mediated by F. nucleatum-promoted glycolysis and lipogenesis through PI3K/Akt/mTOR signalling in hepatocytes. Treatment of PD and specific targeting of F. nucleatum are promising strategies to improve therapeutic effectiveness of hyperlipidaemia and atherosclerosis.
In perspective: the patient at the heart of research in acute cardiovascular care
Authors: Thomson Ross J , Warren Alex , Pimento Steven , Fan Eddy , Proudfoot Alastair
Published: March 2023

Patient and public involvement is a fundamental part of research design and is increasingly required by research funders and regulators. In addition to the moral and ethical arguments in its favour, it has the potential to improve the accessibility and transparency of research and to optimize study recruitment and retention. Whilst clinical trials in acute cardiovascular care have traditionally focussed on ‘hard’ outcomes, such as mortality or major adverse cardiovascular events, there is increasing recognition that these fail to capture the full breadth of patient experience. Patient-centred outcomes aim to measure things of greater value to patients, using validated tools to quantify symptoms, patient self-reports, or novel outcomes such as days alive and outside hospital. This In Perspective commentary explores the rationale behind patient and public involvement and the background to and evidence supporting the use of patient-centred outcomes and discusses potential challenges and how they can be mitigated.
Mid-regional pro-adrenomedullin and lactate levels for risk stratification in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest
Authors: Zelniker Thomas A , Schwall Dominik , Hamidi Fardin , Steinbach Simone , Scheller Pascal , Spaich Sebastian , Michels Guido , Giannitsis Evangelos , Katus Hugo A , Frey Norbert , Preusch Michael R
Published: March 2023

Aims

Adrenomedullin (ADM) is a free-circulating peptide that regulates endothelial barrier function and vascular tone. Here, we sought to study the relationship of ADM in combination with lactate and the risk of death in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA).

Methods and results

Mid-regional pro-adrenomedullin (MR-proADM) and lactate concentrations were measured in patients with OHCA who survived at least 24 h after the return of spontaneous circulation. The outcome of interest was all-cause death. Patients were characterized by the quartiles (Q) of MR-proADM and lactate concentrations. Cox models were adjusted for age, sex, shockable rhythm, bystander resuscitation, simplified acute physiology score II (SAPS II), and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). A total of 232 patients were included in the present study (28% women, 67 years, SAPS II 80). The median MR-proADM and lactate levels at 24 h were 1.4 nmol/L [interquartile range (IQR) 0.8–2.8 nmol/L] and 1.8 mmol/L (IQR 1.3–3.4 mmol/L), respectively. Mid-regional pro-adrenomedullin concentrations correlated weakly with lactate levels (r = 0.36, P < 0.001). High (Q4) vs. low (Q1–Q3) MR-proADM concentrations were significantly associated with an increased rate of death at 28 days (75.9 vs. 45.4%; P < 0.001). After multivariable adjustment (including lactate levels at 24 h), higher MR-proADM levels were significantly associated with an increased risk of death [Q4 vs. Q1–Q3: adjusted hazard ratio (adj-HR) 1.67, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.12–2.50; adj-HR for a 1-unit increase in a standardized biomarker 1.44, 95% CI 1.19–1.73]. This relationship remained significant even after further adjustment for baseline NT-proBNP and high-sensitivity troponin T levels. The combination of high MR-proADM and high lactate (Q4) concentrations identified patients at a particularly elevated risk (adj-HR 3.50; 95% CI 1.92–6.39).

Conclusion

Higher MR-proADM concentrations are associated with an increased risk of death in patients with OHCA, and the combination of high MR-proADM and lactate levels identifies patients at a distinctly elevated risk.
Postoperative myocardial fibrosis assessment in aortic valvular heart diseases—a cardiovascular magnetic resonance study
Authors: Pires Lucas T , Rosa Vitor E E , Morais Thamara C , Bello Juliana H S M , Fernandes Joao R C , de Santis Antonio , Lopes Mariana P , Gutierrez Paulo S , Rochitte Carlos E , Nomura Cesar H , Pomerantzeff Pablo M A , Sampaio Roney O , Tarasoutchi Flávio
Published: March 2023

Aims

Left ventricular remodelling occurs during the chronic course of aortic regurgitation (AR) and aortic stenosis (AS), leading to myocardial hypertrophy and fibrosis. Several studies have shown that extracellular volume fraction (ECV) and indexed extracellular volume (iECV) are important surrogate markers of diffuse myocardial fibrosis (MF). Postoperative data on these cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) extracellular expansion parameters for either AS or AR are scarce. This study aimed to demonstrate the postoperative changes that occur in diffuse MF, and the influence of preoperative MF on the reversal of LV remodelling, in patients with AR or AS.

Methods and results

Patients with severe AR or AS and indications for surgery were prospectively enrolled. Patients underwent pre- and postoperative CMR, and ECV and iECV were quantified. Data from 99 patients were analysed (32 with AR and 67 with AS). After surgery, the left ventricle mass index decreased in both groups (AR: 110 vs. 91 g/m2; AS: 86 vs. 68 g/m2, both P < 0.001). The late gadolinium enhancement fraction (AR: preoperative 1.9% vs. postoperative 1.7%, P = 0.575; AS: preoperative 2.4% vs. postoperative 2.4%, P = 0.615) and late gadolinium enhancement mass (AR: preoperative 3.8 g vs. postoperative 2.5 g, P = 0.635; AS: preoperative 3.4 g vs. postoperative 3.5 g, P = 0.575) remained stable in both groups. Preoperative iECV and ECV were greater in the AR group (iECV: 30 mL/m2 vs. 22 mL/m2, P = 0.001; ECV: 28.4% vs. 27.2%, P = 0.048). Indexed extracellular volume decreased after surgery in both groups (AR: 30–26.5 mL/m2, AS: 22–18.2 mL/m2, both P < 0.001); it was still greater in the AR group (AR: 26.5 mL/m2 vs. AS: 18.2 mL/m2, P < 0.001). Postoperative ECV remained stable in the AR group (preoperative 28.4% vs. postoperative 29.9%; P = 0.617) and increased in the AS group (preoperative 27.2% vs. postoperative 28.6%; P = 0.033).

Conclusion

Patients with both AR or AS presented reduction in iECV after surgery, unfolding the reversible nature of diffuse MF. In contrast to patients with AS, those with AR developed postoperative iECV regression with stable ECV, suggesting a balanced reduction in both intracellular and extracellular myocardial components.
Prediction of coronary artery disease using urinary proteomics
Authors: Wei Dongmei , Melgarejo Jesus D , Van Aelst Lucas , Vanassche Thomas , Verhamme Peter , Janssens Stefan , Peter Karlheinz , Zhang Zhen-Yu
Published: March 2023

Aims

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is multifactorial, caused by complex pathophysiology, and contributes to a high burden of mortality worldwide. Urinary proteomic analyses may help to identify predictive biomarkers and provide insights into the pathogenesis of CAD.

Methods and results

Urinary proteome was analysed in 965 participants using capillary electrophoresis coupled with mass spectrometry. A proteomic classifier was developed in a discovery cohort with 36 individuals with CAD and 36 matched controls using the support vector machine. The classifier was tested in a validation cohort with 115 individuals who progressed to CAD and 778 controls and compared with two previously developed CAD-associated classifiers, CAD238 and ACSP75. The Framingham and SCORE2 risk scores were available in 737 participants. Bioinformatic analysis was performed based on the CAD-associated peptides. The novel proteomic classifier was comprised of 160 urinary peptides, mainly related to collagen turnover, lipid metabolism, and inflammation. In the validation cohort, the classifier provided an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.82 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.78–0.87] for the CAD prediction in 8 years, superior to CAD238 (AUC: 0.71, 95% CI: 0.66–0.77) and ACSP75 (AUC: 0.53 and 95% CI: 0.47–0.60). On top of CAD238 and ACSP75, the addition of the novel classifier improved the AUC to 0.84 (95% CI: 0.80–0.89). In a multivariable Cox model, a 1-SD increment in the novel classifier was associated with a higher risk of CAD (HR: 1.54, 95% CI: 1.26–1.89, P < 0.0001). The new classifier further improved the risk reclassification of CAD on top of the Framingham or SCORE2 risk scores (net reclassification index: 0.61, 95% CI: 0.25–0.95, P = 0.001; 0.64, 95% CI: 0.28–0.98, P = 0.001, correspondingly).

Conclusion

A novel urinary proteomic classifier related to collagen metabolism, lipids, and inflammation showed potential for the risk prediction of CAD. Urinary proteome provides an alternative approach to personalized prevention.
ViReMa: a virus recombination mapper of next-generation sequencing data characterizes diverse recombinant viral nucleic acids
Authors: Sotcheff Stephanea , Zhou Yiyang , Yeung Jason , Sun Yan , Johnson John E , Torbett Bruce E , Routh Andrew L
Published: March 2023

Background

Genetic recombination is a tremendous source of intrahost diversity in viruses and is critical for their ability to rapidly adapt to new environments or fitness challenges. While viruses are routinely characterized using high-throughput sequencing techniques, characterizing the genetic products of recombination in next-generation sequencing data remains a challenge. Viral recombination events can be highly diverse and variable in nature, including simple duplications and deletions, or more complex events such as copy/snap-back recombination, intervirus or intersegment recombination, and insertions of host nucleic acids. Due to the variable mechanisms driving virus recombination and the different selection pressures acting on the progeny, recombination junctions rarely adhere to simple canonical sites or sequences. Furthermore, numerous different events may be present simultaneously in a viral population, yielding a complex mutational landscape.

Findings

We have previously developed an algorithm called ViReMa (Virus Recombination Mapper) that bootstraps the bowtie short-read aligner to capture and annotate a wide range of recombinant species found within virus populations. Here, we have updated ViReMa to provide an “error density” function designed to accurately detect recombination events in the longer reads now routinely generated by the Illumina platforms and provide output reports for multiple types of recombinant species using standardized formats. We demonstrate the utility and flexibility of ViReMa in different settings to report deletion events in simulated data from Flock House virus, copy-back RNA species in Sendai viruses, short duplication events in HIV, and virus-to-host recombination in an archaeal DNA virus.
Preparation of water-quenched manganese slag and fly ash ultrafine mineral admixture and its application in UHPC
Authors: Li Hang , Ming Yang , Li Ling , Chen Ping , Zhang Zhanqiang , Zhou Libo , Li Juntong , Yao Kai , Dun Linan
Published: March 2023

In this paper, S95 grade ultrafine mineral admixture (UMA) was prepared by water quenched manganese slag and fly ash 1:1 compound mechanical ball milling to a specific surface area of 714 m2/kg. Its activity index was 86.8% at 7d and 96.3% at 28d. The S95 UMA prepared by ball milling has the characteristics of small particle size, high specific surface and high activity. Mixing with powders of different particle sizes, such as cement and silica fume (SF), is helpful to improve particle gradation, reduce its pore structure and increase its compacting property for ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) whose raw materials are fine aggregate. UHPC was prepared by using the obtained UMA based on orthogonal test. The effects of different factors on the workability, mechanical properties, hydration heat and microstructure of UHPC were studied. The results show that when the SF content is 10%, the mineral admixture content is 10%, the binder–sand ratio is 1.1, and the water–binder ratio is 0.17, the fluidity of UHPC slurry can reach 261 mm, the compressive strength of 7d and 28d age can reach 128 MPa and 154.6 MPa, respectively. The hydration heat release of cementitious materials in 3d was 139.8 J/g. In terms of solid waste resource utilization, S95 grade UMA prepared by water-quench manganese slag and fly ash can replace 10% SF for the preparation of UHPC. It can not only solve the utilization problem of high added value of water quench manganese slag but also reduce the preparation cost of UHPC to a certain extent.
Local Viterbi property in decoding
Authors: Lember Jüri
Published: March 2023

The article studies the decoding problem (also known as the classification or the segmentation problem) with pairwise Markov models (PMMs). A PMM is a process where the observation process and the underlying state sequence form a two-dimensional Markov chain, a natural generalization of hidden Markov model. The standard solutions to the decoding problem are the so-called Viterbi path—a sequence with maximum state path probability given the observations—or the pointwise maximum a posteriori (PMAP) path that maximizes the expected number of correctly classified entries. When the goal is to simultaneously maximize both criterions—conditional probability (corresponding to Viterbi path) and pointwise conditional probability (corresponding to PMAP path)—then they are combined into one single criterion via the regularization parameter $C$. The main objective of the article is to study the behaviour of the solution—called the hybrid path—as $C$ grows. Increasing $C$ increases the conditional probability of the hybrid path and when $C$ is big enough then every hybrid path is a Viterbi path. We show that hybrid paths also approach the Viterbi path locally: we define $m$-locally Viterbi paths and show that the hybrid path is $m$-locally Viterbi whenever $C$ is big enough. This all might lead to an impression that when $C$ is relatively big then any hybrid path that is not yet Viterbi differs from the Viterbi path by a few single entries only. We argue that this intuition is wrong, because when unique and $m$-locally Viterbi, then different hybrid paths differ by at least $m$ entries. Thus, when $C$ increases then the different hybrid paths tend to differ from each other by larger and larger intervals. Hence the hybrid paths might offer a variety of rather different solutions to the decoding problem.
Eco-efficiency considering NetZero and data envelopment analysis: a critical literature review
Authors: Emrouznejad Ali , Marra Marianna , Yang Guo-liang , Michali Maria
Published: March 2023

We highlight the state of the art in the eco-efficiency measurement using data envelopment analysis, including Malmquist–Luenberger productivity index. We also consider productivity change over time, provide directions for future studies in the field and gather the most recent policy suggestions for governments, organizations and sectors for reducing CO2 emissions. A structured literature search of the Web of Science academic database reveals 311 papers published between 1989 and 2022. We carry out network analysis of citations to show the evolution of the literature in this research topic. In doing so, we (a) examine the key-route main path of knowledge flows, (b) provide basic bibliometric information about the most active journals and authors, (c) conduct a qualitative in-depth analysis of the identified most important studies and (d) identify the research fronts and relate them to the emerging issues on the topic researched, focusing on the most recent period between 2000 and 2022. Based on the insights of the literature review, the second part of this paper critically analyses the papers on the key-route (main path) of this subject. This review can be used as guidance and a starting point for researchers and practitioners who want to further investigate optimal policies to reach NetZero.
Optimal Regularity for Elliptic Equations With Measurable Nonlinearities Under Nonstandard Growth
Authors: Byun Sun-Sig , Lee Ho-Sik
Published: March 2023

We are concerned with weak solutions of elliptic equations involving measurable nonlinearities with Orlicz growth to address what would be the weakest regularity condition on the associated nonlinearity for the Calderón–Zygmund theory. We prove that the gradient of weak solution is as integrable as the nonhomogeneous term under the assumption that the nonlinearity is only measurable in one of the variables while it has a small BMO assumption in the other variables. To this end, we develop a nonlinear Moser-type iteration argument for such a homogeneous reference problem with one variable–dependent nonlinearity under Orlicz growth to establish $W^{1,q}$–regularity for every $q>1$. Our results open a new path into the comprehensive understanding of the problem with nonstandard growth in the literature of optimal regularity theory in highly nonlinear elliptic and parabolic equations.
SPIDR is required for homologous recombination during mammalian meiosis
Authors: Huang Tao , Wu Xinyue , Wang Shiyu , Bao Ziyou , Wan Yanling , Wang Ziqi , Li Mengjing , Yu Xiaochen , Lv Yue , Liu Zhaojian , Chen Xiangfeng , Chan Wai-Yee , Gao Fei , Lu Gang , Chen Zi-Jiang , Liu Hongbin
Published: March 2023

Meiotic recombinases RAD51 and DMC1 mediate strand exchange in the repair of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) by homologous recombination. This is a landmark event of meiosis that ensures genetic diversity in sexually reproducing organisms. However, the regulatory mechanism of DMC1/RAD51-ssDNA nucleoprotein filaments during homologous recombination in mammals has remained largely elusive. Here, we show that SPIDR (scaffold protein involved in DNA repair) regulates the assembly or stability of RAD51/DMC1 on ssDNA. Knockout of Spidr in male mice causes complete meiotic arrest, accompanied by defects in synapsis and crossover formation, which leads to male infertility. In females, loss of Spidr leads to subfertility; some Spidr−/− oocytes are able to complete meiosis. Notably, fertility is rescued partially by ablation of the DNA damage checkpoint kinase CHK2 in Spidr−/− females but not in males. Thus, our study identifies SPIDR as an essential meiotic recombination factor in homologous recombination in mammals.
Cavity hairpin ThT-light nucleic acid switches: the construction of label- and enzyme-free sensing and imaging platforms
Authors: Lan Xinyue , Zhu Longjiao , Zhang Yangzi , Chen Keren , Wang Jia , Du Zaihui , Li Shuting , Chen Xu , Xu Wentao
Published: March 2023

Thioflavin T (ThT) is a classical fluorescent dye gaining prominence in current research regarding nucleic acid conformations (NACs). However, most NACs with the ability to excite ThT fluorescent are unique or form in demanding conditions, limiting the extensiveness and depth of ThT application in sensing and imaging. Therefore, this study proposed CGG-AAA mismatched cavity hairpin ThT-light nucleic acid switches (CHTLNAS) with excellent fluorescence excitation over 500-fold higher than spontaneous, 17∼20-fold higher than ssDNA and 2.5∼5-fold higher than complementary duplex. Based on the excellent fluorescence excitation, convenient conformation formation, good sequence programmability, and flexible allosteric ability (known as the Worm-crack pod mechanism mediated by the target), it achieved the label- and enzyme-free detection of tetracycline (TET) and berberine (BB) at the pM level within 10 min. Moreover, it was found enable to realize the sensitive tracking of intracellular carriers at the nM level of ThT entry concentration, and prolongated its cell nuclear-entry time of ThT over 8 h, overcoming the non-specific high background signal interference of ThT in the nuclear region, and expanding the diversified application of ThT in cell biology research. Therefore, CHTLNAS is a more universal, practical tool than G-quadruplex or other kinds of NACs for ThT development and utilization in sensing and imaging platforms.
Doxastic Voluntarism
Authors: Nottelmann Nikolaj
Published: March 2023

Could you form some belief for a prize when you have no evidence supporting it? Say, the belief that all intelligent lifeforms in the Andromeda Galaxy are tripods? Could you immediately make yourself form some belief, which you know to be false, say, the belief that the present king of England rules the United States? Obviously not. On the other hand, when carefully deliberating about some issue before finally making up your mind, it often seems like the ensuing belief formation is not something that merely happens to you, like a blush rising up your cheeks. Rather, it seems like something you do, a matter of your personal decision. The debate over doxastic voluntarism is fueled by this tension. Doxastic voluntarists argue that the differences between standard involuntary occurrences versus events like making up your mind indicate that at least sometimes the latter type of event is genuinely agential or voluntary. In contrast, doxastic involuntarists maintain that, even when carefully “making up your mind,” a chasm separates what you here do from ordinary actions like lifting your arm or going for a walk: the gulf between the involuntary and the voluntary. The debate over doxastic voluntarism concerns the extent of human mental powers. It would seem to belong squarely within empirical psychology. Yet, historically, the debate has been entangled with wider debates in normative disciplines like ethics and epistemology. There are at least two reasons for this. First, the central notions of belief and voluntariness are contested. There is no universal agreement whether these notions are at bottom purely descriptive or partly normative. Secondly, debaters may be guided by their desire to make sense of apparent truisms in ethics and epistemology. It has seemed obvious to many that we are somehow responsible for what we believe, and that this must require our ability somehow to control what we believe. Moreover, moral ignorance is often a matter of belief: An agent can be ignorant that she is doing wrong since she holds no beliefs relevant to the ways in which her action constitutes wrongdoing. Such ignorance seems like a valid moral excuse. Yet, what if the agent is responsible for her ignorance? At least this weakens her excuse. Since, moral ignorance is a widespread phenomenon and a typical excuse, the ethics of belief has consequences for the general theory of human responsibility and accountability for actions.
Kings’ Sagas
Authors: Jakobsson Ármann
Published: March 2023

The Norse-Icelandic kings’ sagas originated in the 12th century, reached their zenith in the 13th century, and then kept being amplified and rewritten into new compilations throughout the Middle Ages. They have been defined by their subject matter, the kings of Norway and Denmark from the 9th century until the 13th century, since it is hard to refer to them as a literary genre as these are works of disparate length and are composed in different languages (Icelandic or Latin) with few shared common features apart from the subject matter. The kings’ sagas are believed to have originated in the early 12th century although there are no extant texts from that period. It has been postulated that Icelandic historians Sæmundr Sigfússon (b. 1056–d. 1133) and Ari Þorgilsson (b. c. 1067–d. 1148) each wrote a kings’ saga even though the outlines of those are not known. Shortly after the mid-12th century the otherwise unknown Icelander Eiríkur Oddsson wrote a saga about the royal pretender Sigurðr Slembir and his short reign in Norway (1136–1139), a text that was possibly influenced by Danish interests. The late 12th century saw the emergence of short synoptical histories of Norway and biographies of the royal saints St Óláfr and Óláfr Tryggvason influenced by hagiography, whereas the first saga of a secular king was Sverris saga, authored by Karl Jónsson (d. 1213), possibly co-authored by King Sverrir himself, and first drafted in the 1180s. The 13th century witnessed ever expanding royal biographies, culminating in the three large compendia Morkinskinna (c 1220), Fagrskinna ( c. 1225) and Heimskringla (c. 1230), each of which collects several royal biographies in a period from 150–300 years. In Morkinskinna and Heimskringla in particular, the biography of the king is augmented by skaldic verse and narratives about various other people, thus expanding royal biographies into a history of the kingdom of Norway in the medieval fashion. Kings’ sagas continued to be written throughout the 13th century, with Hákonar saga and Knýtlinga saga by brothers Ólafur Þórðarson (b. 1212–d. 1259) and Sturla Þórðarson (b. 1214–d. 1284), lawspeakers, scholars, and skaldic poets of particular interest. However, after Iceland became a dependency of the kings of Norway in 1262–1264, interest in kingship as an institution seems to gradually wane. Most of the 14th-century kings’ sagas are large compendia that join together various 13th-century texts. Thus, the kings’ sagas are the oldest category of secular sagas but also declined first whereas other saga writing in general thrived in the 14th century.
Nuclear Proliferation
Authors: Hymans Jacques , Barnum Miriam
Published: March 2023

This bibliography reviews the scholarly literature on the meaning, causes, and consequences of nuclear proliferation. Specifically, the bibliography focuses on “horizontal” nuclear weapons proliferation, which can be defined as the acquisition of nuclear weapons by states and other political entities that did not previously have them. Overshadowed by the superpower nuclear arms race during the Cold War, nuclear proliferation has become a major field of interdisciplinary international relations (IR) research since the 1990s. Much nuclear proliferation research has revolved around the empirical puzzle of why so many states that could build nuclear weapons have refrained from doing so. Despite proliferation’s surprisingly slow pace, however, the number of de facto nuclear-weapon states has gradually grown larger over time, and a slow pace in the past does not guarantee a slow pace in the future. On the other side of the coin, proliferation reversal, also known as nuclear renunciation, is also possible. In addition to studying the causes of nuclear proliferation, scholars have also investigated the effects of nuclear proliferation on numerous dimensions of policy and politics. But the literature on the consequences of proliferation remains much thinner than the literature on its causes.