bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
COUNT MICHAŁ JAN BORCH AS PATRON AND COLLECTOR: ART BETWEEN ITALY AND THE INFLANTY VOIVODESHIP IN THE AGE OF PARTITION
Authors: Sargent Noyes Ruth
Published: October 2023

This article reevaluates the lifelong artistic patronage and collectingpractices of Polish-Lithuanian Count Michał Jan Borch (1753–1810/11)against the historical background of Enlightenment Europe morebroadly and specifically the Age of Partition (c. 1750–1810). This articleexamines how despite persistent financial shortcomings and politicaldifficulties, Borch staked for himself a strategic position as patron andcollector, staging a renovation of the present by engaging with latebaroque, rococo, and neoclassical Italianate forms that inflected Italyand the antique not as fixed entities but as a malleable or notionalfragments that could be arbitrated, reassembled and transformedthrough the intermediating agency of persons and objects, and relatedto the past in form, style and language, thematizing the temporalpassage between venerable and modern in a way that reanimatedthe grandeur of the past in honor of Borch’s re-envisioning of hisrestored homeland. As a case study in period self-fashioning, thearticle is structured around four portraits of Borch and his familyexecuted at crucial inflection points in his life and career.
Ukrainian Iconography of the Late 20th and Early 21st Centuries: Trends and Leading Schools
Authors: Kovalchuk Ihor , Patyk Roksolana , Benyakh Nataliia
Published: October 2023

The article deals with the development of modern Ukrainianiconography and the formation of the main centres and regionalschools, tracing artistic and stylistic features and trends. Thearticle analyses the activities of the Kyiv and Lviv art schools inthe field of sacred art. The main features of the development ofmodern iconography are identified, and the creativity of leadingspecialists and iconographers, genres, and technological specificsof iconography are studied. The scientific novelty of this researchconsists in a comprehensive study of modern Ukrainian iconography,taking into account artistic and stylistic, regional, technological,and canonical aspects. Features of the formation of art schools andassociations of sacred art in Ukraine are traced.The aim of the study is to determine the main trends in thedevelopment of modern Ukrainian iconography and to identify theinfluence of the leading schools in the field of sacred art.The methodological basis is a comprehensive analysis of culturaland artistic phenomena in chronological and theoretical aspects ofthe development of modern sacred art in Ukraine.
Jean-Baptiste Du Bos: Reflections on Genius and Art
Authors: Rajavee Holger
Published: October 2023

In 1719 Jean-Baptiste Du Bos publishes his treatise Réflexions Critiquessur la Poésia et sur la Peinture, which Voltaire has called ‘the mostuseful book that has ever be written on the subject by any Europeannation’. In his book the author deals with the problem of artisticgenius, a phenomenon that was in focus from late 17th century inmany treatises on theory of art, especially in France and England.This article concentrates on the interpretation of this particularidea in the work of Du Bos, who tries to explain it through a widerange of empirical examples, using the latest achievements fromdifferent branches of science. His concept of ‘physiological genius’and ‘climatic genius’ can be seen as unique. His reflections onsensation-based aesthetic experience and the new way of definingthe relationship between the artist-genius and the dilettante artexperiencer, influenced later 18th century authors who wrote aboutart theory and aesthetics (Lessing, Home, Herder, even Kant). DuBos's idea of wider public engagement with art, and art appreciation,becomes relevant in the 18th and 19th centuries, so one can say that inmany respects Du Bos's treatment is ahead of its time and that theseideas are also relevant in the contemporary context.
THE RENAISSANCE GARDEN AND ITS CONTRADICTIONS
Authors: Nutt Nele
Published: October 2023

This article looks at the contradictory essence of the Renaissancegarden, which is reflected in the dialogue of the garden’s formand content, and which is in constant change. While the gardenof the Quattrocento with its formal language of rigid geometricrules stimulates free thought and the emotional world, remaininga modest background itself, the garden of the Cinquecento dictatesthe direction of thought and produces concrete frames for it. The

thought of the Early Renaissance, boundlessly freewheeling in theworld of fantasy, is increasingly tied to the garden’s form. The gentleemotion of the inner world is suffocated by the intruders from theouter world and the garden that carried the free thought of EarlyRenaissance becomes an area of restraint.
URBAN SPACE AND CULTURAL ARCHETYPES
Authors: Broner-Bauer Kaisa
Published: October 2023

This paper analyses cultural and aesthetic phenomena and theirinherent meanings within the Japanese city. In the introduction, Ifirst briefly define the key concepts used in the analysis: culturalarchetype, collective memory, and cultural identity. I will approach

the theme from a comparative point of view by examining Japaneseurban features and archetypal principles in contrast to the Europeancity.Early Japanese urbanisation centred around imperial palaces, withthe first cities founded by successive emperors from the 7th centuryonwards in the Nara region, near present-day Kyoto. The orthogonalplan for the imperial capital was copied from the contemporaneousChinese dynasties. Spatial organisation was hierarchical, imperialquarters were located at the northern end of the central south–northaxis of the city, and the most prestigious plots were around theEmperor’s palace. Kyoto, the historical Heian-Kyô, was founded asthe imperial capital in 794.Tokyo, the historical Edo, became a “castle city” in 1457 when amilitary castle was built, and subsequently the capital when theshôgun moved government from Kyoto to Edo in 1603. The shôgun’scastle, the centre of power, intertwined with the hierarchical urbanorder spiralling around it. Edo gradually became a modern capital,Tokyo, while Kyoto remained the traditional centre of high cultureand the seat of the powerless Emperor until 1868.The Japanese city is a cultural metaphor. Psychological uncertainty,due to the country’s location in a precarious earthquake and volcaniczone, and an awareness of the perishability of life based on Buddhistphilosophy, have all deeply influenced both Japanese culture andthe Japanese mind. Emptiness, the Taoist ideal linked to Buddhistthinking, is also reflected in the urban space. For instance, a Japanesecity has no designated urban centre whereas in the European citythis is a culturally and economically accentuated place.In this paper, I also analyse the Japanese spatial concepts ma andoku, along with their archetypal manifestations in urban tissue andstreet scape. While ma means experiencing space in time, oku refers tothe hidden dimension of the urban experience, or the psychologicalstate of processing a path whereby the urban core remains hiddenand only partially discovered.Regardless of Japan’s recent historical and economic development,the cultural characteristics of urban spaces have not changed a greatdeal. Tokyo is still a mosaic city of small village-type communitieswith an inherent feeling of togetherness. Hidenoby Jinnai has calledthis phenomenon an “ethnic continuity” whereby the new and theold are mixed in an ethnic order.
Price Delegation with Learning Agents
Authors: Atasu Atalay , Ciocan Dragos Florin , Désir Antoine
Published: October 2023

Many firms delegate pricing decisions to sales agents that directly interact with customers. A premise behind this practice is that sales agents can gather informative signals about the customer’s valuation for the good of interest. The information acquired through this interaction with the customer can then be used to make better pricing decisions. We study the underlying principal-agent problem that arises in such situations. In this setting, the agent can exert costly effort to learn a customer’s valuation and then decide on the price to quote to the customer, whereas the firm needs to offer a contract to the agent to induce its desired joint learning and pricing behavior. We analyze two versions of this problem: a base model where there is a single customer and a single good, and a generalization where there are multiple customers and limited inventory of the good. For both problems, we find a family of contracts whose payoffs can approach first-best payoffs arbitrarily closely even if the agent has limited liability, that is, garners nonnegative payments in all states of the world, and shed light on the structure and implementation of such contracts. Under reasonable assumptions, these contracts can be implemented with commissions that are convex increasing in revenues up to some cap. These contracts continue to perform well under practical adjustments such as commissions with a revenue-sharing structure.

This paper was accepted by Itai Ashlagi, revenue management and market analytics.

Supplemental Material: The e-companion and data are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2023.4939 .
Analyzing the trends in intervention studies of rehabilitation nursing: a literature review
Authors: Kim Da-Jung
Published: October 2023

The present study reviewed the literature to determine the trends in re-habilitation nursing intervention programs by systematically analyzing previous studies including rehabilitation nursing interventions, seeking insight to reconstruct future rehabilitation programs, and exploring re-search directions for future rehabilitation nursing intervention studies. About 94 intervention studies published from the inaugural issue of the Journal of the Korean Society of Rehabilitation Nursing to 2022 were analyzed. Among them, 33 studies were published between 2001 and 2005, followed by 25 studies between 2011 and 2015. All studies were authored by nurses. Concerning the types of rehabilitation nursing in-tervention programs, exercise interventions were more common than educational interventions. The exercise intervention programs im-proved performance in daily activities and decreased pain. The educa-tion intervention programs improved knowledge and increased the im-plementation of health behaviors. Based on these findings, we intend to ascertain the roles and functions of rehabilitation nurses in the mid-to-long-term and develop a specialized rehabilitation nurse system with expertise and science that meets the current trends of an increasing demand for rehabilitation nursing in various institutions such as rehabil-itation hospitals, homes, welfare rehabilitation centers, and long-term care facilities, taking the field of rehabilitation nursing to another level.
Physical activity trajectories of different grade levels of male adolescents in association of academic performance and mental health
Authors: Jee Haemi
Published: October 2023

Regularly performed daily moderate to vigorous physical activity (PA) is recommended to promote physical and mental health in adolescents. However, sedentary behavior has been reported with ever-increasing demand for competition without clear understanding of the relationship between PA and mental health and academic performance. Therefore, this study observed the changes in the amount PA in 6 grade levels in relation to mental health and academic performance. This study ana-lyzed the amount of moderate and vigorous PA, sedentary time, mental health, and academic performance in male adolescents of 6 middle to high school grade levels by sedentary group (SG: 2 or less min/wk) and physical activity group (PG: 3 or more min/wk) groups depending on the days of weekly PA. The most weekly moderate and vigorous PA dura-tion significant reduced by 29.4% (*p<0.01) and -43.8% (*p<0.01) for H2 in comparison to M1 in SG. The greatest increase in sitting duration 744.95±470.27 min/wk (*p<0.01) was shown by SG. Significant increase in loneliness degree was shown throughout the grade levels of M3 to H3 (2.41±1.08 to 2.50±1.06, *p<0.01) in SG. Degree of stress also sig-nificantly increased from M3 to H3 (2.69±0.98, *p<0.01 to 2.90±0.96, *p<0.01) in SG. Finally, perceived academic performance by the days of PA did not show clear difference between SG and PG. In conclusion, regularly performed PA male adolescents showed greater duration of moderate and vigorous PA without negatively influencing mental health and academic performance. Moreover, well controlled academic per-formance and sitting duration were shown.
Reproducibility of cardiopulmonary exercise testing between one after and 1–3 weeks after elective percutaneous coronary intervention
Authors: Tanaka Ryou , Waki Isao , Kamikawa Shigeshi , Yamashita Daiki , Tabita Natsumi , Nishimura Saori , Higashiya Shunich , Yamaji Hirosuke , Murakami Takashi , Kusachi Shozo
Published: October 2023

Prompt prescription and early initiation of exercise training are essen-tial for patients undergoing elective percutaneous coronary interven-tion (PCI). We hypothesized that cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) parameters determined the day after elective PCI during hospi-talization would not differ from those obtained 1–3 weeks post-PCI in patients with stable coronary heart disease (CHD). CPET was performed the day after and 1–3 weeks (13±4.6; 7–21 days) after PCI. CPET was performed with a bicycle ergometer up to the ventilatory aerobic thresh-old (VAT) on the day after PCI. Symptom-limited CPET was conducted 1–3 weeks after PCI. No complications arose from the tests. There were no significant differences in %VAT (next day: 88.6±16.7 vs. 1–3 weeks later: 91.4%±18.7%), the workload at the VAT (51.8±11.0 W vs. 52.9± 11.6 W), heart rate (HR) at the VAT (95.3±105 beats/min vs. 94.1±11.3 beats/min), or metabolic equivalent (METs) at the VAT (3.69±0.69 vs. 3.84±0.78) between the two sessions. The slope of linear regression for two repeated measurements was close to 1 (%VAT, 1.02; workload at the VAT, 0.95; METs at the VAT, 1.03), except for HR (0.70). Bland–Altman plots revealed the reproducibility of all four CPET measurements between the two sessions. In conclusion, CPET up to the VAT can be performed safely 1-day post-PCI in patients with stable CHD. CPET parameters do not significantly differ between testing performed the day after and 1–3 weeks after PCI. Next-day CPET during hospitalization after PCI may enable prompt exercise prescription without the need for another CPET 1–3 weeks later.
Web-based Non-contact Edge Computing Solution for Suspected COVID-19 Infection Classification Model
Authors: Hwang Tae-Ho , Lee KangYoon
Published: October 2023

The recent outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic has necessitated the development of web-based, non-contact edge analytics solutions. Non-contact sensors serve as the interface between web servers and edge analytics through web engineering technology. The need for an edge device classification model that can identify COVID-19 patients based on early symptoms has become evident. In particular a non-contact implementation of such a classification model is required to efficiently prevent viral infection and minimize cross-infection. In this work, we investigate the use of diverse non-contact biosensors (e.g., remote photoplethysmography, radar, and infrared sensors) for reducing effective physical contact with patients and for measuring their biometric data and vital signs. We further explain a classification method for suspected COVID-19 infection based on the measured vital signs and symptoms. The results of this study can be applied in patient classification by mobile-based edge computing applications. The correlation between symptoms comprising cough, sore throat, fever, headache, myalgia, and arthralgia are analyzed in the model. We implement a machine learning classification model using vital signs for performance evaluation, and propose an ensemble model realized by fine-tuning the high-performing classification models. The proposed ensemble model successfully distinguishes suspected patients with an accuracy, area under curve, and F1 scores of 94.4%, 98.4%, and 94.4%, respectively.
Federated Latent Dirichlet Allocation for User Preference Mining
Authors: Wu Xing , Fan Yushun , Zhang Jia , Gao Zhenfeng
Published: October 2023

In the field of Web services computing, a recent demand trend is to mine user preferences based on user requirements when creating Web service compositions, in order to meet comprehensive and ever evolving user needs. Machine learning methods such as the latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) have been applied for user preference mining. However, training a high-quality LDA model typically requires large amounts of data. With the prevalence of government regulations and laws and the enhancement of people’s awareness of privacy protection, the traditional way of collecting user data on a central server is no longer applicable. Therefore, it is necessary to design a privacy-preserving method to train an LDA model without massive collecting or leaking data. In this paper, we present novel federated LDA techniques to learn user preferences in the Web service ecosystem. On the basis of a user-level distributed LDA algorithm, we establish two federated LDA models in charge of two-layer training scenarios: a centralized synchronous federated LDA (CSFed-LDA) for synchronous scenarios and a decentralized asynchronous federated LDA (DAFed-LDA) for asynchronous ones. In the former CSFed-LDA model, an importance-based partially homomorphic encryption (IPHE) technique is developed to protect privacy in an efficient manner. In the latter DAFed-LDA model, blockchain technology is incorporated and a multi-channel-based authority control scheme (MCACS) is designed to enhance data security. Extensive experiments over a real-world dataset ProgrammableWeb.com have demonstrated the model performance, security assurance and training speed of our approach.
Embedding a Microblog Context in Ephemeral Queries for Document Retrieval
Authors: Sethi Shilpa
Published: October 2023

With the proliferation of information globally, the search engine had become an indispensable tool that helps the user to search for information in a simple, easy and quick way. These search engines employ sophisticated document ranking algorithms based on query context, link structure and user behavior characterization. However, all these features keep changing in the real scenario. Ideally, ranking algorithms must be robust enough to time-sensitive queries. Microblog content is typically short-lived as it is often intended to provide quick updates or share brief information in a concise manner. The technique first determines if a query is currently in high demand, then it automatically appends a time-sensitive context to the query by mining those microblogs whose torrent matches with query-in-demand. The extracted contextual terms are further used in re-ranking the search results. The experimental results reveal the existence of a strong correlation between ephemeral search queries and microblog volumes. These volumes are analyzed to identify the temporal proximity of their torrents. It is observed that approximately 70% of search torrents occurred one day before or after blog torrents for lower threshold values. When the threshold is increased, the match ratio of torrent is raised to ∼90%. In addition, the performance of the proposed model is analyzed for different combining principles namely, aggregate relevance (AR) and disjunctive relevance (DR). It is found that the DR variant of the proposed model outperforms the AR variant of the proposed model in terms of relevance and interest scores. Further, the proposed model’s performance is compared with three categories of retrieval models: log-logistic model, sequential dependence model (SDM) and embedding based query expansion model (EQE1). The experimental results reveal the effectiveness of the proposed technique in terms of result relevancy and user satisfaction. There is a significant improvement of ∼25% in the result relevance score and ∼35% in the user satisfaction score compared to underlying retrieval models. The work can be expanded in many directions in the future as various researchers can combine these strategies to build a recommendation system, auto query reformulation system, Chatbot, and NLP professional toolkit.
Proposition of Rubustness Indicators for Immersive Content Filtering
Authors: Kim Youngmo , Kim Seok-Yoon , Kamyod Chyapol , Park Byeongchan
Published: October 2023

With the full-fledged service of mobile carrier 5G networks, it is possible to use large-capacity, immersive content at high speed anytime, anywhere. It can be illegally distributed in web-hard and torrents through DRM dismantling and various transformation attacks; however, evaluation indicators that can objectively evaluate the filtering performance for copyright protection are required. Since applying existing 2D filtering techniques to immersive content directly is not possible, in this paper we propose a set of robustness indicators for immersive content. The proposed indicators modify and enlarge the existing 2D video robustness indicators to consider the projection and reproduction method, which are the characteristics of immersive content. A performance evaluation experiment has been carried out for a sample filtering system and it is verified that an excellent recognition rate of 95% or more is achieved in about 3 s of execution time.
Switching and vector characteristics of bound-state solitons in a graphene-based mode-locked fiber laser
Authors: Li Geng , Li Xingwei , Li Shuguang , Li Jianshe , Guo Ying , Meng Xiaojian , Pei Menglei , Cui Xingwang , Qin Ling , Li Meng
Published: October 2023

A passive mode-locked erbium-doped fiber laser based on graphene operating in the anomalous dispersion state is designed in this paper. In this experiment, the complete convert process from traditional soliton pulses to soliton rains and bound-state (BS) soliton pulses, and ultimately to traditional soliton pulses, is achieved by adjusting the pump power and polarization controller (PC) to control factors such as nonlinearity, dispersion, and birefringence in the cavity. In the BS soliton state, switching between the 0 phase and π phase BS solitons is achieved. We also replaced the 20/80 coupler with the 30/70 coupler to achieve the soliton rains by varying the energy alteration of the intracavity pulse. When the pump power is increased to 350 mW, the laser generates multi-pulses and eventually forms a new BS. In addition, we also studied the soliton vector characteristics during this conversion process and found the polarization-locked vector soliton (PLVS). The research results enrich nonlinear vector soliton dynamics and provide valuable data for further theoretical studies.
Design of arbitrary energy distribution beam splitters base on multilayer metagratings by a hybrid evolutionary particle swarm optimization
Authors: Xu Weijie , Hu Liantian , Shao Kun , Liang Haigang , He Tao , Dong Siyu , Zhu Jingyuan , Wei Zeyong , Wang Zhanshan , Cheng Xinbin
Published: October 2023

Multilayer metagratings have strong wavefront manipulation capabilities and find important applications in beam splitters. Traditional methods rely on the phase gradient design of generalized Snell’s law, which can achieve highly efficient beam splitters with uniform energy distribution. However, designing arbitrary energy distributions in different channels under two orthogonal polarizations remains a challenge because it requires more complex structures to modulate the energy flow. In this work, we employed a hybrid evolutionary particle swarm optimization (HEPSO) from the combination of particle swarm optimization (PSO) and genetic algorithm (GA) which has a strong ability to find the optimal structures that satisfy the specific energy flow distributions. We used the crossover and mutation operators of GA to improve the global search capabilities, and the velocity updating formula of PSO to replace the selection operator of GA to avoid local optimization. Using this approach, we successfully designed a uniform beam splitter with an efficiency of over 90% and two beam splitters with arbitrary energy distributions, achieving an average error of about 0.5%. The optimal and average efficiencies obtained from running 10 optimizations are 2.2% and 4% higher than those obtained using PSO alone with 30 populations and 75 iterations. We envision that the proposed method can also provide an idea for other photonics design problems.
Metasurfaces for generating higher-order Poincaré beams by polarization-selective focusing and overall elimination of co-polarization components
Authors: Gu Manna , Zhang Ruirui , Cheng Chuanfu , Dong Qingrui , Zeng Xiangyu , Zhang Yuqin , Zhan Zijun , Liu Chunxiang , Cheng Chen
Published: October 2023

Focused higher-order Poincaré (HOP) beams are of particular interest because they facilitate understanding the exotic properties of structured light and their applications in classical physics and quantum information. However, generating focused HOP beams using metasurfaces is challenging. In this study, we proposed a metasurface design comprising two sets of metal nanoslits for generating coaxially focused HOP beams. The nanoslits were interleaved on equispaced alternating rings. The initial rings started at the two adjacent Fresnel zones to provide opposite propagation phases for overall elimination of the co-polarization components. With the designed hyperbolic and helical profiles of the geometric phases, the two vortices of the opposite cross-circular-polarizations were formed and selectively focused, realizing HOP beams of improved quality. Simulations and experimental results demonstrated the feasibility of the proposed metasurface design. This study is of significance in the integration of miniaturized optical devices and enriches the application areas of metasurfaces.
Side-emitting fiber-based distributed receiver for visible light communication uplink
Authors: Komanec Matěj , Guerra Yánez Carlos , Eöllös-Jarošíková Klára , Zvánovec Stanislav
Published: October 2023

We present a distributed receiver for visible light communication based on a side-emitting optical fiber. We show that 500 kbps data rate can be captured with a bit-error rate below the forward-error correction limit of 3.8·10−3 with a light-emitting diode (LED) transmitter 25 cm away from the fiber, whereas by increasing the photodetector gain and reducing the data rate down to 50 kbps, we improve the LED-fiber distance significantly up to 4 m. Our results lead to a low-cost distributed visible-light receiver with a 360° field of view for indoor low-data rate, Internet of Things, and sensory networks.
Optical fiber-integrated achromatic metalens based on catenary metasurfaces
Authors: Luo Zhongyue , Zhang Wentao , Chen Yun , Chen Dawei , Song Niannian , Zhao Zihui , Yuan Libo , Deng Hongchang
Published: October 2023

A challenge in all-fiber-integrated metasurface devices is to efficiently control dispersion in the limited fiber end area to build metasurfaces, therefore, the design of metasurfaces with a special structure becomes crucial to meet the demands of dispersion control. A unique phase response of circularly polarized light in catenary metasurfaces can offer new opportunities for polarization-sensitive arbitrary chromatic dispersion control. Herein, we proposed an optical achromatic metalens based on equal width catenary metasurfaces integrated on the large-mode optical fiber (LMF) end. To reduce phase distortions, the LMF is designed to generate quasi-plane waves (QPW), and then QPW converts from catenary metasurfaces to realize achromatic focusing. A notable feature of this device is its axial focal length shift as low as 0.09% across the working wavelength range from 1.33 µm to 1.55 µm, commonly used in optical fiber communication, demonstrating its excellent dispersion control capability. Furthermore, the device exhibits exceptional capabilities to break through the diffraction limit of the output field. This research has potential applications in the fields of achromatic devices, chromatic aberration correction, fiber lasers, and optical communication and modulation.
Terahertz metasurface polarization detection employing vortex pattern recognition
Authors: Zheng Chenglong , Liu Jingyu , Li Hui , Wang Mengguang , Zang Huaping , Zhang Yan , Yao Jianquan
Published: October 2023

The manipulation and detection of polarization states play a crucial role in the application of 6G terahertz communication. Nonetheless, the development of compact and versatile polarization detection devices capable of detecting arbitrary polarizations continues to be a challenging endeavor. Here, we demonstrate a terahertz polarization detection scheme by performing mode purity analysis and multidimensional analysis of the transmitted vortex field. The power of the proposed polarization recognition is verified by using three polarization trajectories, including linear polarizations, circular polarizations, and elliptical polarizations. Using the reconstructed complete polarization parameters, the detected polarization states are characterized using polarization ellipses, Poincaré sphere, and full-Stokes parameters. The experimental results validate the power of this scheme in polarization detection. This scheme holds promise for applications in polarization imaging and terahertz communication.
Evaluation of oxidative stress markers in Rwanda during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: A cross-sectional study
Authors: Habyarimana Thierry , Nshimiyimana Alexis , Niyonzima William , Kankindi Janvere , Izere Cedrick , Spaggiari Chiara , Costantino Gabriele
Published: October 2023

COVID-19 is mainly described as endothelial dysfunction, and due to the bidirectional link between oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction, we initiated a program directed to the evaluation of the oxidative status of the population of Rwanda by measuring spectrophotometrically their plasma Reactive Oxygen Metabolites (d-ROMs) and Plasma Antioxidant Potential (PAT). The reference population was chosen to reflect the absence of actual or past SARS-CoV-2 infections as well as other clinically established infective status and reference intervals for d-ROM and PAT were identified. The average d-ROM was 378.6 UCARR with a standard deviation of 105.2, a value significantly higher than that reported for Caucasian or East Asian population (260–300 UCARR). The average PAT value was 2853.6, with a standard deviation of 635.7 UCOR, at the upper limit according to the averaged values for healthy Caucasian populations. The results of this study, the first so far reported on a sub-Saharan population, can effectively be used as a baseline value for clinical management of inflammatory conditions, for the stratification of at-risk individuals and to inform recommendations for effective use of public health resources.
A cross-sectional analysis of publication of pediatric global health abstracts from seven major international conferences
Authors: Shari Catherine , Prynn Tory , Abbas Sarah Mohammedahmed , Davis Tommy , Lee Jeesoo , Melhem Gandolina , Manji Hussein K. , Murray Brittany L. , Omore Richard , Patel Shayli , Sirna Stephanie J. , Westbrook Adrianna L. , Ugwu Chidiebere V. , Versi Sabira A. , Manji Karim P. , Rees Chris A.
Published: October 2023

Research presented at conferences may increase context-specific evidence in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where global childhood disease burden is greatest and where massive relative deficits in research persist. Publication of studies presented at conferences is necessary for complete results dissemination. Our objective was to determine the frequency of publication of pediatric global health conference abstracts and to identify factors associated with publication. We conducted a cross-sectional study of abstracts that reported pediatric research conducted in at least one LMIC presented at seven major scientific conferences in 2017, 2018, and 2019. We used PubMed, EMBASE and Google Scholar to search for publications of the results presented as abstracts. We created a Kaplan-Meier curve to determine the cumulative incidence of publications and used predetermined abstract-level factors to create a multivariable Cox proportional hazard model to identify factors associated with time to publication. There were 8,105 abstracts reviewed and 1,433 (17.7%) reported pediatric research conducted in one or more LMICs. The probability of publication of pediatric global health abstracts was 33.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 31.2–36.1%) at 24 months and 46.6% (95% CI 44.0–49.3%) at 48 months. Abstracts that reported research conducted in East Asia and Pacific (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 3.06, 95% CI 1.74–5.24), South Asia (aHR 2.25, 95% CI 1.30–3.91%), and upper-middle-income countries (1.50, 95% CI 1.12–2.02) were published sooner than those that reported research in LMICs in Europe and Central Asia and lower-middle-income countries, respectively. Fewer than half of pediatric global health abstracts were published in peer-reviewed journals up to four years after presentation at international conferences. Efforts are urgently needed to promote the widespread and long-lasting dissemination of pediatric research conducted in LMICs presented as abstracts to provide a more robust evidence base for both clinical care and policy related to child health.
A country-wide health policy in Chile for deaf adults using cochlear implants: Analysis of health determinants and social impacts
Authors: Bustos-Rubilar Mario , Kyle Fiona , Luna Eliazar , Allel Kasim , Hormazabal Ximena , Tapia-Mora Daniel , Mahon Merle
Published: October 2023

Background

Post-lingual deafness represents a critical challenge for adults’ well-being with substantial public health burdens. One treatment of choice has been cochlear implants (CI) for people with severe to profound hearing loss (HL). Since 2018, Chile has implemented a high-cost policy to cover CI treatment, the “Ley Ricarte Soto" (LRS) health policy. However, wide variability exists in the use of this device. To date, no related study has been published on policy evaluation in Chile or other Latin American countries.

Objectives

This study aimed to evaluate the impact of the LRS policy on the treatment success and labour market inclusion among deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) adults using CI. We examined and characterised outcomes based on self-reports about treatment success and occupation status between 2018 and 2020.

Design

We performed a prospective study using hospital clinical records and an online questionnaire with 76 DHH adults aged >15 who had received CIs since the introduction of the LRS policy in 2018. Using univariate and multivariate regression models, we investigated the relationship between demographic, audiological, and social determinants of health and outcomes, including treatment success for social inclusion (International Outcome inventory for Hearing Aids and CIs assessment: IOI-HA) and occupation status for labour market inclusion.

Results

Our study showed elevated levels of treatment success in most of the seven sub-scores of the IOI-HA assessment. Similarly, around 70% of participants maintained or improved their occupations after receiving their CI. We found a significant positive association between treatment success and market inclusion. Participants diagnosed at younger ages had better results than older participants in both outcomes. Regarding social determinants of health, findings suggested participants with high social health insurance and a shorter commute time to the clinic had better results in treatment success. For labour market inclusion, participants with high education levels and better pre- CI occupation had better post-CI occupation status.

Conclusions

In evaluating the LRS policy for providing CIs for DHH adults in Chile, we found positive effects relating to treatment success and occupation status. Our study supports the importance of age at diagnosis and social determinants of health, which should be assessed by integrating public services and bringing them geographically closer to each beneficiary. Although evidence-based guidelines for candidate selection given by the LRS policy might contribute to good results, these guidelines could limit the policy access to people who do not meet the requirements of the guidelines due to social inequalities.
Clinical significance of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio on the risk of abdominal aortic calcification and decreased bone mineral density in patients with end-stage kidney disease
Authors: Ban Tae Hyun , Choi Bum Soon , Yoon Sun Ae , Kim Yaerim , Jin Kyubok , Kim Gheun-Ho , Lee Young-Ki , Oh Kook-Hwan , Lee Sang-Ho , Jung Ji Yong , Park Hyeong Cheon , Ahn Shin Young , Ko Gang-Jee , Kwon Young Joo , Hong Yu Ah ,   on behalf of The ORCHESTRA Study Investigators
Published: October 2023

Inflammation plays a major role in the pathogenesis of chronic kidney disease (CKD), but the relationship between systemic inflammation and CKD-mineral bone disease is unclear. We aimed to investigate whether the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is related to abdominal aortic calcification (AAC) and bone mineral density (BMD) in dialysis patients. In this cross-sectional analysis using baseline data of a multicenter cohort, a total of 759 patients were divided into three groups according to NLR level, and the associations between NLR and Kauppila AAC score (AACS) and BMD were assessed. The highest tertile NLR group had more males, alcohol consumers, higher diabetes prevalence, and higher comorbidity index than the lowest tertile NLR group. Fasting glucose and C-reactive protein levels were higher, while serum albumin, serum iron, and lipid profiles except triglycerides were lower in the highest tertile group. AACS was significantly higher in the highest tertile group than in the lowest and middle tertile groups (p = 0.017), but the mean areal BMD and T-score of the lumbar spine and femur were not different between groups. NLR level was positively correlated with AACS in all aortic wall segments except L1 and L3 anterior. In multivariable logistic regression analysis, the highest tertile NLR group was independently associated with AAC (odds ratio 2.876, 95% confidence interval 1.250–6.619, p = 0.013) but was not associated with osteoporosis in the lumbar spine and femur after adjusting for confounding factors. The NLR can be used as a potential indicator of AAC in dialysis patients.
Profile and outcome of multiple myeloma with and without HIV treated at a tertiary hospital in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
Authors: Chili Lungisile Hildegard , Mackraj Irene , Rapiti Nadine
Published: October 2023

Objectives

To profile the outcome of multiple myeloma (MM) patients treated at a South African tertiary hospital in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) and to compare MM in HIV-negative patients and MM in people living with HIV (PLWH).

Methods

A retrospective analysis of patients with MM was conducted over 5 years (2015–2020). Patient demographics, presenting complaints, symptom duration, disease stage, molecular profile, treatment, and survival data were captured. Statistical analysis was conducted using R Statistical software of the R Core Team, 2020, version 3.6.3.

Results

135 patients; 79% (n = 106) HIV-negative and 21% (n = 29) PLWH were investigated. 54% (n = 74) females and 57% (n = 76) 51–70-year-olds. The 40-50-year-old patient group had a significantly higher proportion of PLWH (p = 0.032). Pathological fractures were the commonest presenting complaint, 47% (n = 57 and 49% (n = 49) had International Staging System, stage III disease. Fluorescent in-situ hybridization (FISH) MM profiling was completed in 58% (n = 78). Positivity for del 11q22 was found in 23.7% (n = 14) with significantly more HIV-negative patients having the mutation (p = 0.027). Overall, 42.2% (n = 57) achieved 2-year overall survival (OS). There were no significant differences in treatment (p = 0.926) and 2-year survival outcome (p = 0.792) between the two groups.

Conclusion

The incidence of HIV in newly diagnosed MM patients in KZN was increasing. KZN patient profile differed from other reports by showing female predominance but was similar in advanced-stage presentation and bone fracture predominance. Statistically significant differences between the HIV-negative patients and PLWH were observed in age distribution and mutational landscape. Further studies are required in this area.
Unilateral divorce laws affect women’s welfare
Authors: Ciacci Riccardo , Martín Rodrigo María José , Núñez Partido Antonio
Published: October 2023

This paper studies whether unilateral divorce affects women’s welfare. Unilateral divorce refers to a divorce regime where each of the spouses can dissolve the marriage unilaterally (i.e. without mutual consent). First, it builds a simple theoretical model that finds that women are better off under unilateral divorce than under mutual consent. Second, it makes use of data from the U.S. between 2003 and 2014 to explore empirically whether unilateral divorce affects the amount of time women devote to three different activities that might be seen as proxies of their level of welfare, such as, housework, leisure and relaxing activities, and personal care. We find causal evidence suggesting that unilateral divorce improves women’s welfare. Namely, it reduces housework carried out by women, while it increases their amount of time devoted to leisure and relaxing activities, and personal care. Further results suggest these changes are not due to improvements in gender equality per se. Moreover, we find that the decrease in housework and the surges in leisure and relaxing activities are permanent, whereas the increase in personal care is temporary. These findings are important from a policy perspective to motivate the introduction of unilateral divorce laws.
Airborne influenza virus shedding by patients in health care units: Removal mechanisms affecting virus transmission
Authors: Hanna Francis , Alameddine Ibrahim , Zaraket Hassan , Alkalamouni Habib , El-Fadel Mutasem
Published: October 2023

In this study, we characterize the distribution of airborne viruses (influenza A/B) in hospital rooms of patients with confirmed infections. Concurrently, we monitored fine particulate matter (PM2.5 & PM10) and several physical parameters including the room air exchange rate, temperature, and relative humidity to identify corresponding correlations with virus transport and removal determinants. The results continue to raise concerns about indoor air quality (IAQ) in healthcare facilities and the potential exposure of patients, staff and visitors to aerosolized viruses as well as elevated indoor PM levels caused by outdoor sources and/or re-suspension of settled particles by indoor activities. The influenza A virus was detected in 42% of 33 monitored rooms, with viruses detectible up to 1.5 m away from the infected patient. Active coughing was a statistically significant variable that contributed to a higher positive rate of virus detection in the collected air samples. Viral load across patient rooms ranged between 222 and 5,760 copies/m3, with a mean of 820 copies/m3. Measured PM2.5 and PM10 levels exceeded IAQ daily exposure guidelines in most monitored rooms. Statistical and numerical analyses showed that dispersion was the dominant viral removal pathway followed by settling. Changes in the relative humidity and the room’s temperature were had a significant impact on the viral load removal. In closure, we highlight the need for an integrated approach to control determinants of IAQ in patients’ rooms.
Design and application of secondary operation and maintenance supervision system based on AR modeling and indoor positioning
Authors: Han Meng , Zhou Xianfei , Jiao Jianlin , Chen Jiabo , Xu Kai
Published: October 2023

In order to facilitate the observation in the process of secondary equipment operation and maintenance supervision and the detection and tracking of operation and maintenance personnel, a secondary operation and maintenance supervision system based on AR modeling and indoor positioning is designed. The whole system is divided into seven levels and a unified information base, in which the basic level contains all kinds of secondary equipment; AR modeling layer uses augmented reality technology to create models for each secondary equipment in the basic layer, and determines the equipment position information based on ranging positioning technology; The data acquisition layer collects all kinds of original management data based on the constructed secondary equipment model; The data analysis layer reads and analyzes the information of the data acquisition layer through the data bus; The process support layer provides task scheduling support for the integrated management application based on the data analysis results; The integrated application layer uniformly monitors the secondary equipment based on the task scheduling results; The presentation layer is responsible for the interface presentation of all operation and maintenance and security management information of the system, and the unified information base provides data support for the whole system. The experimental results show that the secondary equipment model in the designed system has high definition, can obtain more image details, can realize the 3D display and real-time interaction of the secondary equipment operation and maintenance supervision results, and accurately mark the target and track for the staff.
In vitro and in silico scolicidal effect of sanguinarine on the hydatid cyst protoscoleces
Authors: Hassanzadeh Elham , Khademvatan Shahram , Jafari Behzad , Jafari Abbas , Yousefi Elham
Published: October 2023

We aimed to investigate the scolicidal effects of sanguinarine on hydatid cyst protoscoleces (PSCs) in vitro and in silico. Different targets were docked into the active sites of sanguinarine. Molecular docking processes and visualization of interactions were performed using AutoDock Vina and Discovery Studio Visualizer. Binding energy was calculated and compared (kcal/mol). PSCs were aspirated from the hydatid cysts and washed. The sediments of PSCs were then exposed to various concentrations (50, 25, 12, 6, 3, and 1 μg/mL) of sanguinarine. The viability test was finally evaluated by the Trypan blue solution 4%. Levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione (GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), and catalase were analyzed to assess the level of oxidative stress-treated PSCs. Caspase-3 activity rate was determined to evaluate cell apoptosis in treated PSCs. Among the receptors, acetylcholinesterase was identified as the excellent target, with Vina score of -11.8. Sanguinarine showed high scolicidal effects after 12, 24, and 48 h. Also, in the first hour of exposure to the drug, caspase-3 activity and MDA level significantly increased, but the levels of GSH and GPx had a significant reduction after 12, 24, and 48 h (P < 0.05). The findings of this study revealed that sanguinarine have potent scolicidal effects in vitro and in silico and could be considered an opportunity for the introduction of a novel and safe therapeutic agent for the treatment of cystic echinococcosis. However, supplementary studies will be desired to prove the current findings by examining sanguinarine in a clinical setting.