bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ecological study and forest degradation of the Waldiba Monastery woodland in Tigrai, Ethiopia
Authors: Berhe Daniel H. , Retta Abeba N. , Tefera Amare S. , Gidey Tesfay , Negussie Aklilu , Birhane Emiru , Hadgu Kiros M. , Gebrehiwot Kflay
Published: April 2024

Sacred sites like monasteries harbour a higher diversity of flora and fauna than nearby unprotected areas and sometimes even higher than protected areas. However, anthropogenic disturbance puts woodlands in these monasteries and churches under significant threat. To study the floristic composition and forest degradation of Waldiba monastery woodland in Tigrai, Ethiopia, 30 plots were established along transect lines. We recorded 39 native woody species (33 trees, 5 shrubs and 1 liana) belonging to 19 families. The woodland had a Shannon diversity index of 3.10, Simpson similarity index of 0.94, evenness of 0.58 and dominance of 0.06. The density of woody species was 922 stems ha−1 with a total basal area of 49.27 m2 ha−1. The tree species with higher importance value index (IVI) value were Dichrostachys cinerea (86.04%), Combretum fragrans (71.87%), Combretum hartmannianum (60.30%) and Combretum sp. (50.15%). The population structure of the woody species exhibited various patterns; bell shape, irregular shape, interrupted J shape, and J shape. Plant regeneration was inadequate for most of the tree species. Vachellia venosa is listed as endangered while C. hartmannianum as vulnerable in the IUCN red list species category. Waldiba dry woodland has underwent significant cover changes. Waldiba has lost much (65%) of its dense forest and open forest (44%) mainly due to anthropogenic disturbance. The woodland with its biodiversity is under threat. In effect, the species with low IVI, species listed in the IUCN red list and those species with none to poor regeneration status should be prioritized for in situ and ex situ conservation intervention to avert the threat. Research on reproductive ecology of the threatened indigenous species is imperative, as the woodland should be managed for ecosystem services and biodiversity conservation.
An Euler-Like Product with Fibonacci Exponents
Authors: Eğecioğlu Ömer
Published: April 2024

The pentagonal theorem for partitions is a consequence of the expansion of Euler’s famous product$$ (1-y) (1-y^2) (1-y^3)(1-y^4)(1-y^5) \cdots $$(1-y)(1-y2)(1-y3)(1-y4)(1-y5)⋯We investigate the nature of the coefficients of the series expansion of$$ (1-y) (1-y^2) (1-y^3)(1-y^5)(1-y^8) \cdots $$(1-y)(1-y2)(1-y3)(1-y5)(1-y8)⋯, in which the sequence of exponents is the Fibonacci numbers. As a part of the study of the combinatorial properties of the development of this product, we show that the series expansion coefficients are from$$ \{ -1, 0, 1\}$${-1,0,1}, and their behavior is determined by a monoid of twenty-five$$2\times 2$$2×2matrices.
The Social Psychology of Trauma
Authors: Muldoon Orla T.
Published: April 2024

Many of us have been affected by trauma and struggle to manage our health and well-being. The social psychological approach to health highlights how social and cultural forces, as much as individual ones, are central to how we experience and cope with adversity. This book integrates psychology, politics, and medicine to offer a new understanding that speaks to the causes and consequences of traumatic experiences. Connecting the personal with the political, Muldoon details the evidence that traumatic experiences can, under certain conditions, impact people's political positions and appetite for social change. This perspective reveals trauma as a socially situated phenomenon linked to power and privilege or disempowerment and disadvantage. The discussion will interest those affected by trauma and those supporting them, as well as students, researchers, practitioners, and policy makers in social psychology, health and clinical psychology, and political science. This title is available as open access on Cambridge Core.
Flow Control
Authors: Corke Thomas C.
Published: April 2024

This book provides a comprehensive treatment of passive and active flow control in fluid dynamics, with an emphasis on utilizing fluid instabilities for enhancing control performance. Examples are given from a wide range of technologically important flow fields occurring in aerospace applications, from low-subsonic to hypersonic Mach numbers. This essential book can be used for both research and teaching on the topics of fluid instabilities, fluid measurement and flow actuator techniques, and problem sets are provided at the end of each chapter to reinforce key concepts and further extend readers' understanding of the field. The solutions manual is available as a online resource for instructors. The text is well suited for both graduate students in fluid dynamics and for practising engineers in the aerodynamics design field.
Warship 3
Authors: van Zinderen-Bakker Rindert
Published: April 2024

The two ships of the Jacob van Heemskerck class of the Royal Netherlands Navy were built as specialized air defence frigates. A development of the Standard-type. Paid off after about twenty years' service and transferred to the Chilean Navy. Since 2005/2006 commissioned units of the Almirante Latorre class in the Chilean Navy.
Programmatic implementation of depression screening and remote mental health support sessions for persons recently diagnosed with TB in Lima, Peru during the COVID-19 pandemic
Authors: Contreras Carmen , Cruz Janeth Santa , Galea Jerome T. , Chu Alexander L. , Puma Daniela , Ramos Lourdes , Tovar Marco , Peinado Jesús , Lecca Leonid , Keshavjee Salmaan , Yuen Courtney M. , Raviola Giuseppe
Published: April 2024

Background

Few studies have explored a stepped care model for delivering mental health care to persons with tuberculosis (TB). Here, we evaluated depression screening and remote low-intensity mental health interventions for persons initiating TB treatment in Lima, Peru during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

We used the Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9) to screen participants for depressive symptoms (PHQ-9 ≥ 5). Participants with PHQ-9, 5–14 received remote Psychological First Aid (PFA) or Problem Management Plus (PM+). Participants were reevaluated 6 months after intervention completion. We then compared the change in median PHQ-9 scores before and after intervention completion. Those with PHQ-9 ≥ 15 were referred to higher-level care.

Findings

We found that 62 (45.9%) of the 135 participants had PHQ-9 ≥ 5 at baseline. Then, 54 individuals with PHQ-9, 5–9 received PFA, of which 44 (81.5%) were reevaluated. We observed significant reductions in median PHQ-9 scores from 6 to 2 (r = 0.98; p < 0.001). Four participants with PHQ-9, 10–14 received PM+ but were unable to be reevaluated. Four participants with PHQ-9 ≥ 15 were referred to higher-level care.

Conclusions

Depressive symptoms were common among persons recently diagnosed with TB. We observed improvements in depressive symptoms 6 months later for most participants who received remote sessions of PFA.
Sufism vs. Monism in ʿAzīz-i Nasafī's Works
Authors: Mansouri Mohammad Amin
Published: April 2024

While the 7th/13th-century Persian Muslim scholar of the Mongol era ʿAzīz-i Nasafī actively engaged with Sufi traditions in his writings, he also introduced an overlooked distinction by drawing a line between Sufis (ahl-i taṣavvuf) and monists (ahl-i vaḥdat), aligning himself with the latter. This paper argues that Nasafī's clear differentiation between these two groups reflects broader transformations in the intellectual landscape of the Persianate Mongol world. These changes marked the emergence of new modes of thought not easily explainable by the established linguistic conventions of classical Sufism. Consequently, Nasafī's works serve as a window into the intellectual and linguistic challenges faced by Muslim intellectuals as they endeavored to shape the pre-modern and early modern Islamic cosmopolis (7th/13th–9th/15th centuries), revealing points of convergence and divergence with their intellectual predecessors.
Scaling regimes in rapidly rotating thermal convection at extreme Rayleigh numbers
Authors: Song Jiaxing , Shishkina Olga , Zhu Xiaojue
Published: April 2024

The geostrophic turbulence in rapidly rotating thermal convection exhibits characteristics shared by many highly turbulent geophysical and astrophysical flows. In this regime, the convective length and velocity scales and heat flux are all diffusion-free, i.e. independent of the viscosity and thermal diffusivity. Our direct numerical simulations (DNS) of rotating Rayleigh–Bénard convection in domains with no-slip top and bottom and periodic lateral boundary conditions for a fluid with the Prandtl number

$Pr=1$

and extreme buoyancy and rotation parameters (the Rayleigh number up to

$Ra=3\times 10^{13}$

and the Ekman number down to

$Ek=5\times 10^{-9}$

) indeed demonstrate all these diffusion-free scaling relations, in particular, that the dimensionless convective heat transport scales with the supercriticality parameter

$\widetilde {Ra}\equiv Ra\, Ek^{4/3}$

as

$Nu-1\propto \widetilde {Ra}^{3/2}$

, where

$Nu$

is the Nusselt number. We further derive and verify in the DNS that with the decreasing

$\widetilde {Ra}$

, the geostrophic turbulence regime undergoes a transition into another geostrophic regime, the convective heat transport in this regime is characterized by a very steep

$\widetilde {Ra}$

-dependence,

$Nu-1\propto \widetilde {Ra}^{3}$

.
Reactivation of herpesvirus type 6 and IgA/IgM-mediated responses to activin-A underpin long COVID, including affective symptoms and chronic fatigue syndrome
Authors: Vojdani Aristo , Almulla Abbas F. , Zhou Bo , Al-Hakeim Hussein K. , Maes Michael
Published: April 2024

Background:

Persistent infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), reactivation of dormant viruses, and immune-oxidative responses are involved in long COVID.

Objectives:

To investigate whether long COVID and depressive, anxiety, and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) symptoms are associated with IgA/IgM/IgG to SARS-CoV-2, human herpesvirus type 6 (HHV-6), Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV), and immune-oxidative biomarkers.

Methods:

We examined 90 long COVID patients and ninety healthy controls. We measured serum IgA/IgM/IgG against HHV-6 and EBV and their deoxyuridine 5′-triphosphate nucleotidohydrolase (duTPase), SARS-CoV-2, and activin-A, C-reactive protein (CRP), advanced oxidation protein products (AOPP), and insulin resistance (HOMA2-IR).

Results:

Long COVID patients showed significant elevations in IgG/IgM-SARS-CoV-2, IgG/IgM-HHV-6, and HHV-6-duTPase, IgA/IgM-activin-A, CRP, AOPP, and HOMA2-IR. Neural network analysis yielded a highly significant predictive accuracy of 80.6% for the long COVID diagnosis (sensitivity: 78.9%, specificity: 81.8%, area under the ROC curve = 0.876); the topmost predictors were as follows: IGA-activin-A, IgG-HHV-6, IgM-HHV-6-duTPase, IgG-SARS-CoV-2, and IgM-HHV-6 (all positively) and a factor extracted from all IgA levels to all viral antigens (inversely). The top 5 predictors of affective symptoms due to long COVID were IgM-HHV-6-duTPase, IgG-HHV-6, CRP, education, IgA-activin-A (predictive accuracy of r = 0.636). The top 5 predictors of CFS due to long COVID were in descending order: CRP, IgG-HHV-6-duTPase, IgM-activin-A, IgM-SARS-CoV-2, and IgA-activin-A (predictive accuracy: r = 0.709).

Conclusion:

Reactivation of HHV-6, SARS-CoV-2 persistence, and autoimmune reactions to activin-A combined with activated immune-oxidative pathways play a major role in the pathophysiology of long COVID as well as the severity of its affective symptoms and CFS.
SQUEAKY CLEAN CELLULOSE: COMPARING PRETREATMENT EFFECTIVENESS ON SINGLE TREE RINGS AND WOODEN LATHS
Authors: Khumalo Wendy Hlengiwe , Svarva Helene Løvstrand , Zurbach Damaris , Nadeau Marie-Josée
Published: April 2024

Obtaining accurate radiocarbon (14C) results from wood samples requires the extraction of cellulose. In the past, this has been done using different combinations of methods including acidified bleaching, acid-base-acid, and strong bases. This often becomes a time-consuming task in most analyses, especially when single ring isotope chronologies are needed from wood samples. Using 14C and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), we tested four different pretreatment methods to determine their ability to produce high quality cellulose. We then adjusted the best methods to determine a method for pretreating wood laths of multiple rings. A sequence of base-acid-base-acid-bleach + strong base (BABAB+) and BABAB produced the most accurate results when compared to the Bomb20 Northern Hemisphere Zone 1 curve with an average difference in Δ14C of 1.3‰ and 5.8‰ respectively. These methods were adjusted to pretreat an entire wood lath and a comparison of the FTIR results suggest that our adjusted BABAB+ and BABAB produced high quality cellulose comparable to that of an individually pretreated ring. The possibility to pretreat wood lath samples has the potential to more than double the number of tree rings which can be pretreated in a week. This is a significant reduction in time when creating long tree ring chronologies.
Robust evidence for the simple view of second language reading: Secondary meta-analysis of Jeon and Yamashita (2022)
Authors: Hamada Akira , Shimizu Haruka , Hoshino Yuko , Takaki Shuichi , Ushiro Yuji
Published: April 2024

This paper reports a complete secondary analysis of Jeon and Yamashita’s (2022) systematic review to build the second language (L2) model of the simple view of reading (SVR). The same meta-analytic methodologies were maintained, with the exception of applying meta-analytic structural equation modeling (MASEM). This study successfully replicated some of the aggregated correlations but not others, owing to (a) the recoding of the original raw data to recreate a dataset and (b) the motivated change in sample selection from a longitudinal study for MASEM. The MASEM results extended previous findings that L2 comprehension skills contribute more to L2 reading comprehension than L2 decoding skills, and together explain a large amount of variance in L2 reading comprehension. The SVR model with metalinguistic skills showed their contribution to L2 decoding and comprehension skills, but no direct impact on L2 reading comprehension, supporting the parsimonious structure of SVR in L2.
Clarifying the role of inhibitory control in L2 phonological processing: A preregistered, close replication of Darcy et al. (2016)
Authors: Huensch Amanda
Published: April 2024

Darcy et al. (2016) examined the relationship between language abilities and general cognition, or specifically, how inhibitory control might relate to L2 speech perception and production. Given that their findings unexpectedly indicated a stronger relationship between inhibitory control and perception in comparison to inhibitory control and production, and because inhibitory control was measured using a single, retrieval-induced inhibition task, the current study is a close replication with the inclusion of two additional tasks of intentional inhibition: the Stroop task and the Simon task. A comparison of the descriptive statistics for the tests of phonological processing and retrieval-induced inhibition between the initial study and current replication indicated negligible differences between the two participant samples. However, results of the partial correlation analyses in the current replication did not indicate clear relationships between phonological variables and inhibitory control. Possible explanations for the different patterning of results and implications for future replications are discussed.
Embodied technological progress, heterogeneous multiworker firms, and unemployment
Authors: Tanaka Kosho
Published: April 2024

This paper studies the impact of technological progress on unemployment in a search-matching model with heterogeneous multiworker firms. In the model, some firms continue to reap rewards from new technologies over time and contribute to job creation, while other firms obsolesce and reduce their employment. Thus, the model captures an endogenous change in the aggregate composition of firms (the firm-composition effect). Considering this effect along with the two canonical effects—the capitalization and creative-destruction effects—I examine the importance of each through a simulation. The results show that the firm-composition effect explains almost all the variation in unemployment in the model, mainly through shrinking the number of obsolescing firms relative to surviving firms and increasing the aggregate technology adoption rate when technology progresses rapidly.
Simulation of Drying‐Rewetting Processes in Numerical Groundwater Models Using a New Picard Iteration‐Based Method
Authors: Lu Chuiyu , Lu Wen , Sun Qingyan , He Xin , Yan Lingjia , Qin Tao , Wu Chu , Han Shangqi , Wu Zhenjiang , Wu Weichen
Published: April 2024

When simulating groundwater flow in unconfined and convertible aquifers using a groundwater model with the block‐centered finite‐difference approach, such as MODFLOW, it frequently encounters drying and rewetting of cells. Although many drying and rewetting simulation methods have been proposed in the past, balancing simulation accuracy and convergence capability all at once is difficult. MODFLOW‐2005, which has second‐order accuracy, employs a trial‐and‐error method, but it suffers from computational instability when large quantities of grid cells are dried. MODFLOW‐NWT adopts the upstream‐weighting approach and Newton iteration method to ensure the stability of the drying and rewetting simulations. However, the upstream‐weighting approach has only first‐order accuracy, and the Newton iteration method is complex to implement because it necessitates the establishment of an additional Jacobian matrix. The methods employed by MODFLOW‐NWT are also available in MODFLOW 6, therefore it inherits both the strengths and weaknesses of MODFLOW‐NWT. In this study, a new method, Picard iteration‐based always active cell (PAAC), is proposed. Similar to MODFLOW‐NWT, the PAAC method also uses dry cells as active cells. The PAAC method, however, does not use the upstream‐weighting approach and has second‐order accuracy. Moreover, it ensures good convergence stability even under the Picard iteration method. In addition to discussing the algorithm, five cases were used to comprehensively compare the simulation effects of the PAAC method with MODFLOW‐2005 and MODFLOW‐NWT, including an analytical solution, repeated drying‐rewetting of multi‐layer grids, pumping well problem, perched aquifer problem and a nearly dry single‐layer grid, which verified the practicability of the PACC method.
Observed Global Changes in Sector‐Relevant Climate Extremes Indices—An Extension to HadEX3
Authors: Dunn Robert J. H. , Herold Nicholas , Alexander Lisa V. , Donat Markus G. , Allan Rob , Bador Margot , Brunet Manola , Cheng Vincent , Ibadullah Wan Maisarah Wan , Ibrahim Muhammad Khairul Izzat Bin , Kruger Andries , Kubota Hisayuki , Lippmann Tanya J. R. , Marengo Jose , Mbatha Sifiso , McGree Simon , Ngwenya Sandile , Pabon Caicedo Jose Daniel , Ramos Andrea , Salinger Jim , van der Schrier Gerard , Srivastava Arvind , Trewin Blair , Yáñez Ricardo Vásquez , Vazquez‐Aguirre Jorge , Jiménez Claudia Villaroel , Vose Russ , Yussof Mohd Noor’Arifin Bin Hj , Zhang Xuebin
Published: April 2024

Global gridded data sets of observed extremes indices underpin assessments of changes in climate extremes. However, similar efforts to enable the assessment of indices relevant to different sectors of society have been missing. Here we present a data set of sector‐specific indices, based on daily station data, that extends the HadEX3 data set of climate extremes indices. These additional indices, which can be used singly or in combinations, have been recommended by the World Meteorological Organization and are intended to empower decision makers in different sectors with accurate historical information about how sector‐relevant measures of the climate are changing, especially in regions where in situ daily temperature and rainfall data are hard to come by. The annual and/or monthly indices have been interpolated on to a 1.875° × 1.25° longitude‐latitude grid for 1901–2018. We show changes in globally‐averaged time series of these indices in comparison with reanalysis products. Changes in temperature‐based indices are consistent with global scale warming, with days with Tmax > 30°C (TXge30) increasing virtually everywhere with potential impacts on crop fertility. At the other end of the scale, the number of days with Tmin < −2°C (TNltm2) are reducing, decreasing potential damage from frosts. Changes in heat wave characteristics show increases in the number, duration and intensity of these extreme events in most places. The gridded netCDF files and, where possible, the underlying station indices are available from https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/hadobs/hadex3 and https://www.climdex.org.
Mass Estimation From Simultaneous Optical and Radar Meteor Observations
Authors: Tarnecki L. K. , Marshall R. A. , Brown P. , Stober G.
Published: April 2024

The total mass flux due to meteoric input is not well constrained and estimates vary greatly depending on the measurement technique used. The source of this discrepancy remains an open question in the field. Previous studies investigating the discrepancy by directly comparing mass estimates made using two techniques have been limited by extremely small sample sizes. This work presents a set of 166 meteors observed simultaneously by the MAARSY radar (53.5 MHz) and two nearby optical cameras. Independent masses are estimated using observations from both systems and compared against each other. The resulting mass estimates using both methods agree to within a factor of three on average. The results show two dominant trends: better agreement as meteoroid velocity increases and underestimation of the radar mass for the largest meteoroids observed (>10 mg). These trends had not been quantified by previous studies limited by very small sample sizes, and could help to explain the historic discrepancy between mass estimates by different systems. The general agreement between the radar and photometric masses indicates that both methods perform well independently, and can reliably be applied to radar or optical observations without restriction of simultaneous observations by two systems.
Improving Earth System Model Selection Methodologies for Projecting Hydroclimatic Change: Case Study in the Pacific Northwest
Authors: Lybarger Nicholas D. , Smith Abigail , Newman Andrew J. , Gutmann Ethan D. , Wood Andrew W. , Frans Christopher D. , Warner Michael D. , Arnold Jeffrey R.
Published: April 2024

The rapid expansion of Earth system model (ESM) data available from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) necessitates new methods to evaluate the performance and suitability of ESMs used for hydroclimate applications as these extremely large data volumes complicate stakeholder efforts to use new ESM outputs in updated climate vulnerability and impact assessments. We develop an analysis framework to inform ESM sub‐selection based on process‐oriented considerations and demonstrate its performance for a regional application in the US Pacific Northwest. First, a suite of global and regional metrics is calculated, using multiple historical observation datasets to assess ESM performance. These metrics are then used to rank CMIP6 models, and a culled ensemble of models is selected using a trend‐related diagnostics approach. This culling strategy does not dramatically change climate scenario trend projections in this region, despite retaining only 20% of the CMIP6 ESMs in the final model ensemble. The reliability of the culled trend projection envelope and model response similarity is also assessed using a perfect model framework. The absolute difference in temperature trend projections is reduced relative to the full ensemble compared to the model for each SSP scenario, while precipitation trend errors are largely unaffected. In addition, we find that the spread of the culled ensemble temperature and precipitation trends includes the trend of the “truth” model ∼83%‐92% of the time. This analysis demonstrates a reliable method to reduce ESM ensemble size that can ease use of ESMs for creating and understanding climate vulnerability and impact assessments.
Methane Emissions From the Qinghai‐Tibet Plateau Ponds and Lakes: Roles of Ice Thaw and Vegetation Zone
Authors: Li Yang , Wang Genxu , Sun Shouqin , Lin Shan , Huang Peng , Xiao Jinwang , Guo Linmao , Li Jinlong , Song Chunlin
Published: April 2024

Comprehensive seasonal observation is essential for accurately quantifying methane (CH4) emissions from ponds and lakes in permafrost regions. Although CH4 emissions during ice thaw are important and highly variable in high‐latitude freshwater ponds and lakes (north of ∼50°N), their contribution is seldom included in estimates of aquatic‐atmospheric CH4 exchange across different alpine ecosystems. Here, we characterized annual CH4 emissions, including emissions during ice thaw, from ponds and lakes across four alpine vegetation zones in the Qinghai‐Tibet Plateau (QTP) permafrost region. We observed significant spatial variability in annual CH4 emission rates (8.44−421.05 mmol m−2 yr−1), CH4 emission rates during ice thaw (0.26−144.39 mmol m−2 yr−1), and the contribution of CH4 emissions during ice thaw to annual emissions (3−33%) across different vegetation zones. Dissolved oxygen concentration under ice, along with substrate availability and water salinity, played critical roles in influencing CH4 flux during ice thaw. We estimated annual CH4 emissions from ponds and lakes in the QTP permafrost region as 0.04 (0.03−0.05) Tg CH4 yr−1 (median (first quartile−third quartile)), with approximately 20% occurring during ice thaw. Notably, the average areal CH4 emission rate from ponds and lakes in the QTP permafrost region amounts to only 8% of that from high‐latitude waterbodies, primarily due to the dominance of large saline lakes with lower CH4 emission rates in the alpine permafrost region. Our findings emphasize the significance of incorporating comprehensive seasonal observation of CH4 emissions across different vegetation zones in better predicting CH4 emissions from alpine ponds and lakes.
Protein neddylation and its role in health and diseases
Authors: Zhang Shizhen , Yu Qing , Li Zhijian , Zhao Yongchao , Sun Yi
Published: April 2024

NEDD8 (Neural precursor cell expressed developmentally downregulated protein 8) is an ubiquitin-like protein that is covalently attached to a lysine residue of a protein substrate through a process known as neddylation, catalyzed by the enzyme cascade, namely NEDD8 activating enzyme (E1), NEDD8 conjugating enzyme (E2), and NEDD8 ligase (E3). The substrates of neddylation are categorized into cullins and non-cullin proteins. Neddylation of cullins activates CRLs (cullin RING ligases), the largest family of E3 ligases, whereas neddylation of non-cullin substrates alters their stability and activity, as well as subcellular localization. Significantly, the neddylation pathway and/or many neddylation substrates are abnormally activated or over-expressed in various human diseases, such as metabolic disorders, liver dysfunction, neurodegenerative disorders, and cancers, among others. Thus, targeting neddylation becomes an attractive strategy for the treatment of these diseases. In this review, we first provide a general introduction on the neddylation cascade, its biochemical process and regulation, and the crystal structures of neddylation enzymes in complex with cullin substrates; then discuss how neddylation governs various key biological processes via the modification of cullins and non-cullin substrates. We further review the literature data on dysregulated neddylation in several human diseases, particularly cancer, followed by an outline of current efforts in the discovery of small molecule inhibitors of neddylation as a promising therapeutic approach. Finally, few perspectives were proposed for extensive future investigations.
Discovery and structural mechanism of DNA endonucleases guided by RAGATH-18-derived RNAs
Authors: Ren Kuan , Zhou Fengxia , Zhang Fan , Yin Mingyu , Zhu Yuwei , Wang Shouyu , Chen Yan , Huang Tengjin , Wu Zixuan , He Jiale , Zhang Anqi , Guo Changyou , Huang Zhiwei
Published: April 2024

CRISPR-Cas systems and IS200/IS605 transposon-associated TnpBs have been utilized for the development of genome editing technologies. Using bioinformatics analysis and biochemical experiments, here we present a new family of RNA-guided DNA endonucleases. Our bioinformatics analysis initially identifies the stable co-occurrence of conserved RAGATH-18-derived RNAs (reRNAs) and their upstream IS607 TnpBs with an average length of 390 amino acids. IS607 TnpBs form programmable DNases through interaction with reRNAs. We discover the robust dsDNA interference activity of IS607 TnpB systems in bacteria and human cells. Further characterization of the Firmicutes bacteria IS607 TnpB system (ISFba1 TnpB) reveals that its dsDNA cleavage activity is remarkably sensitive to single mismatches between the guide and target sequences in human cells. Our findings demonstrate that a length of 20 nt in the guide sequence of reRNA achieves the highest DNA cleavage activity for ISFba1 TnpB. A cryo-EM structure of the ISFba1 TnpB effector protein bound by its cognate RAGATH-18 motif-containing reRNA and a dsDNA target reveals the mechanisms underlying reRNA recognition by ISFba1 TnpB, reRNA-guided dsDNA targeting, and the sensitivity of the ISFba1 TnpB system to base mismatches between the guide and target DNA. Collectively, this study identifies the IS607 TnpB family of compact and specific RNA-guided DNases with great potential for application in gene editing.
Spectral stability of V2 centres in sub-micron 4H-SiC membranes
Authors: Heiler Jonah , Körber Jonathan , Hesselmeier Erik , Kuna Pierre , Stöhr Rainer , Fuchs Philipp , Ghezellou Misagh , Ul-Hassan Jawad , Knolle Wolfgang , Becher Christoph , Kaiser Florian , Wrachtrup Jörg
Published: April 2024

Colour centres in silicon carbide emerge as a promising semiconductor quantum technology platform with excellent spin-optical coherences. However, recent efforts towards maximising the photonic efficiency via integration into nanophotonic structures proved to be challenging due to reduced spectral stabilities. Here, we provide a large-scale systematic investigation on silicon vacancy centres in thin silicon carbide membranes with thicknesses down to 0.25 μm. Our membrane fabrication process involves a combination of chemical mechanical polishing, reactive ion etching, and subsequent annealing. This leads to highly reproducible membranes with roughness values of 3–4 Å, as well as negligible surface fluorescence. We find that silicon vacancy centres show close-to lifetime limited optical linewidths with almost no signs of spectral wandering down to membrane thicknesses of ~0.7 μm. For silicon vacancy centres in thinner membranes down to 0.25 μm, we observe spectral wandering, however, optical linewidths remain below 200 MHz, which is compatible with spin-selective excitation schemes. Our work clearly shows that silicon vacancy centres can be integrated into sub-micron silicon carbide membranes, which opens the avenue towards obtaining the necessary improvements in photon extraction efficiency based on nanophotonic structuring.
The adult environment promotes the transcriptional maturation of human iPSC-derived muscle grafts
Authors: Crist Sarah B. , Azzag Karim , Kiley James , Coleman Ilsa , Magli Alessandro , Perlingeiro Rita C. R.
Published: April 2024

Pluripotent stem cell (PSC)-based cell therapy is an attractive option for the treatment of multiple human disorders, including muscular dystrophies. While in vitro differentiating PSCs can generate large numbers of human lineage-specific tissue, multiple studies evidenced that these cell populations mostly display embryonic/fetal features. We previously demonstrated that transplantation of PSC-derived myogenic progenitors provides long-term engraftment and functional improvement in several dystrophic mouse models, but it remained unknown whether donor-derived myofibers mature to match adult tissue. Here, we transplanted iPAX7 myogenic progenitors into muscles of non-dystrophic and dystrophic mice and compared the transcriptional landscape of human grafts with respective in vitro-differentiated iPAX7 myotubes as well as human skeletal muscle biospecimens. Pairing bulk RNA sequencing with computational deconvolution of human reads, we were able to pinpoint key myogenic changes that occur during the in vitro–to–in vivo transition, confirm developmental maturity, and consequently evaluate their applicability for cell-based therapies.
Potent and long-lasting humoral and cellular immunity against varicella zoster virus induced by mRNA-LNP vaccine
Authors: Bhattacharya Anannya , Jan Lonzaric , Burlak Olga , Li Jilong , Upadhyay Ghanshyam , Williams Katherine , Dong Jinhui , Rohrer Harrison , Pynn Michelle , Simon Andrew , Kuhlmann Nathan , Pustylnikov Sergei , Melo Mariane B. , Dey Antu K.
Published: April 2024

Varicella zoster virus (VZV) is a highly contagious human herpes virus responsible for causing chickenpox (varicella) and shingles (herpes zoster). Despite the approval of a highly effective vaccine, Shingrix®, the global incidence of herpes zoster is increasing and the economic burden to the health care system and society are substantial due to significant loss of productivity and health complications, particularly among elderly and immunocompromised individuals. This is primarily because access to the vaccines remains mostly limited to countries within developed economies, such as USA and Canada. Therefore, similarly effective vaccines against VZV that are more accessible to the rest-of-the-world are necessary. In this study, we aimed to evaluate immunogenicity and memory response induced by three mRNA-LNP-based vaccine candidates targeting VZV’s surface glycoprotein E (gE). C57BL/6 mice were immunized with each candidate vaccine, and humoral and cellular immune responses were assessed. Our results demonstrate that the mRNA-LNP-based vaccine candidates elicited robust and durable humoral responses specific to the gE antigen. Notably, mice vaccinated with the mRNA-LNP vaccines exhibited significantly higher antigen-specific T-cell cytokine production compared to the group receiving Shingrix®, the current standard of care vaccine. Additionally, mRNA-LNP vaccines induced long-lasting memory response, as evidenced by detection of persistent gE-specific Long-Lived Plasma Cells (LLPCs) and memory T cells four months after final immunization. These findings underscore the potential of our mRNA-LNP-based vaccine candidates in generating potent immune responses against VZV, offering promising prospects for their clinical development as an effective prophylactic vaccine against herpes zoster.
COVID-19 impact on blood donor characteristics and seroprevalence of transfusion-transmitted infections in southern Thailand between 2018 and 2022
Authors: Burananayok Suparat , Nachatri Wilaiwan , Choothanorm Pimpilalai , Kusolthammarat Kantarat , Jaruthamsophon Kanoot , Yodsawad Chaninporn , Limsakul Praopim , Charupanit Krit
Published: April 2024

Blood safety is a critical aspect of healthcare systems worldwide involving rigorous screening, testing, and processing protocols to minimize the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections (TTIs). The present study offers a comprehensive assessment of the prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and syphilis among blood donors in southern Thailand. It explores the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on the blood transfusion service, donor characteristics, and the prevalence of TTIs. A retrospective analysis of 65,511 blood donors between 2018 and 2022 was conducted at Songklanagarind Hospital, Thailand. The socio-demographic characteristics of the donors were examined using the Chi-square test to assess the relationship between TTIs serological positivity and donor characteristics. The donors were divided into pre-COVID-19 (2018–2019) and during COVID-19 (2020–2022) groups to evaluate the impacts of COVID-19. The study found that HBV had the highest overall prevalence at 243 per hundred thousand (pht), followed by syphilis (118 pht), HCV (32 pht), and HIV (31 pht) over a five-year period of study. After COVID-19, the prevalence of HBV decreased by 21.8%; HCV decreased by 2.1%; HIV increased by 36.4%; and syphilis increased by 9.2%. The socio-demographic characteristics and TTIs prevalence were significantly altered over time. This study provides insights into blood donor characteristics and TTIs prevalence in southern Thailand, highlighting the understanding of the impact of COVID-19 on the spread of TTIs.
Sclerotic bone: a sign of bone reaction in patients with medication related osteonecrosis of the jaw
Authors: Obermeier Katharina Theresa , Dewenter Ina , Malenova Yoana , Fliefel Riham , Kaeppler Gabriele , Otto Sven
Published: April 2024

Medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (MRONJ) is a serious adverse reaction associated with antiresorptive drugs such as bisphosphonates and denosumab. When dealing with advanced and/or multiple MRONJ lesions undergoing surgical therapy, the extent of surgery is often a topic of discussion. The aim of this study was to identify the differences in bone density in and around the MRONJ lesion before and after surgical treatment to evaluate the needed surgical extend of the modelling osteotomy. In this retrospective study 26 patients with MRONJ lesions that were surgically treated in our department were observed. Length, width and bone density were measured in panoramic radiograph pre and postoperatively with the Imaging processing software Sidexis and ImageJ (Fiji). The necrotic area, the surrounding sclerotic area as well as the healthy contralateral side were observed. Measurements were performed by two independent observers. Pearson correlation was calculated to determine the interobserver variability. Bone density was significantly reduced in the necrotic bone area compared to the healthy unaffected contralateral reference side. The sclerotic bone area surrounding the necrosis showed increased bone density compared to the contralateral unaffected reference side. The density of the sclerotic bone area was increased in the previously affected MRONJ area in the postoperative panoramic radiograph. The pre and postoperative density showed no significant correlation to healing behaviour. The focus of the modelling osteotomy in surgical treatment of mature MRONJ lesions should be predominantly on the parts that appear necrotic and less dense in the panoramic radiograph as sclerotic areas might be an expression of bone reaction.
Visible light-induced photocatalytic and antibacterial adhesion properties of superhydrophilic TiO2 nanoparticles
Authors: Zhou Mingzhu , Zhang Xingran , Quan Yuanxia , Tian Yu , Chen Jie , Li Li
Published: April 2024

Bacterial infections triggered by patient or healthcare worker contact with surfaces are a major cause of medically acquired infections. By controlling the kinetics of tetrabutyl titanate hydrolysis and condensation during the sol–gel process, it is possible to regulate the content of Ti3+ and oxygen vacancies (OVs) in TiO2, and adjust the associated visible light-induced photocatalytic performance and anti-bacterial adhesion properties. The results have shown that the Ti3+ content in TiO2 was 9.87% at the calcination temperature of the reaction system was 300 °C and pH was 1.0, corresponding to optimal photocatalytic and hydrophilic properties. The formation of a hydrated layer on the superhydrophilic surface provided resistance to bacterial adhesion, preventing cross-contamination on high-touch surfaces. The excellent photocatalytic self-cleaning performance and anti-bacterial adhesion properties can be attributed to synergistic effects associated with the high specific surface area of TiO2 nanoparticles, the mesoporous structure, and the presence of Ti3+ and OVs. The formation of superhydrophilic self-cleaning surfaces under visible light can serve as the basis for the development of a new class of anti-bacterial adhesion materials.
Medical image fusion with deep neural networks
Authors: Liang Nannan
Published: April 2024

Medical image fusion aims to fuse multiple images from a single or multiple imaging modes to enhance their corresponding clinical applications in diagnosing and evaluating medical problems, a trend that has attracted increasing attention. However, most recent medical image fusion methods require prior knowledge, making it difficult to select image features. In this paper, we propose a novel deep medical image fusion method based on a deep convolutional neural network (DCNN) for directly learning image features from original images. Specifically, source images are first decomposed by low rank representation to obtain the principal and salient components, respectively. Following that, the deep features are extracted from the decomposed principal components via DCNN and fused by a weighted-average rule. Then, considering the complementary between the salient components obtained by the low rank representation, a simple yet effective sum rule is designed to fuse the salient components. Finally, the fused result is obtained by reconstructing the principal and salient components. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method outperforms several state-of-the-art medical image fusion approaches in terms of both objective indices and visual quality.
Handloomed fabrics recognition with deep learning
Authors: Mahanta Lipi B. , Mahanta Deva Raj , Rahman Taibur , Chakraborty Chandan
Published: April 2024

Every nation treasures its handloom heritage, and in India, the handloom industry safeguards cultural traditions, sustains millions of artisans, and preserves ancient weaving techniques. To protect this legacy, a critical need arises to distinguish genuine handloom products, exemplified by the renowned “gamucha” from India’s northeast, from counterfeit powerloom imitations. Our study’s objective is to create an AI tool for effortless detection of authentic handloom items amidst a sea of fakes. Six deep learning architectures—VGG16, VGG19, ResNet50, InceptionV3, InceptionResNetV2, and DenseNet201—were trained on annotated image repositories of handloom and powerloom towels (17,484 images in total, with 14,020 for training and 3464 for validation). A novel deep learning model was also proposed. Despite respectable training accuracies, the pre-trained models exhibited lower performance on the validation dataset compared to our novel model. The proposed model outperformed pre-trained models, demonstrating superior validation accuracy, lower validation loss, computational efficiency, and adaptability to the specific classification problem. Notably, the existing models showed challenges in generalizing to unseen data and raised concerns about practical deployment due to computational expenses. This study pioneers a computer-assisted approach for automated differentiation between authentic handwoven “gamucha”s and counterfeit powerloom imitations—a groundbreaking recognition method. The methodology presented not only holds scalability potential and opportunities for accuracy improvement but also suggests broader applications across diverse fabric products.
Super-resolution neural networks improve the spatiotemporal resolution of adaptive MRI-guided radiation therapy
Authors: Grover James , Liu Paul , Dong Bin , Shan Shanshan , Whelan Brendan , Keall Paul , Waddington David E. J.
Published: April 2024

Background

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) offers superb non-invasive, soft tissue imaging of the human body. However, extensive data sampling requirements severely restrict the spatiotemporal resolution achievable with MRI. This limits the modality’s utility in real-time guidance applications, particularly for the rapidly growing MRI-guided radiation therapy approach to cancer treatment. Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) could reduce the trade-off between the spatial and the temporal resolution of MRI, thus increasing the clinical utility of the imaging modality.

Methods

We trained deep learning-based super-resolution neural networks to increase the spatial resolution of real-time MRI. We developed a framework to integrate neural networks directly onto a 1.0 T MRI-linac enabling real-time super-resolution imaging. We integrated this framework with the targeting system of the MRI-linac to demonstrate real-time beam adaptation with super-resolution-based imaging. We tested the integrated system using large publicly available datasets, healthy volunteer imaging, phantom imaging, and beam tracking experiments using bicubic interpolation as a baseline comparison.

Results

Deep learning-based super-resolution increases the spatial resolution of real-time MRI across a variety of experiments, offering measured performance benefits compared to bicubic interpolation. The temporal resolution is not compromised as measured by a real-time adaptation latency experiment. These two effects, an increase in the spatial resolution with a negligible decrease in the temporal resolution, leads to a net increase in the spatiotemporal resolution.

Conclusions

Deployed super-resolution neural networks can increase the spatiotemporal resolution of real-time MRI. This has applications to domains such as MRI-guided radiation therapy and interventional procedures.
Impact of polyethylene glycol and polydopamine coatings on the performance of camptothecin-loaded liposomes for localised treatment of colorectal cancer
Authors: Maurelli Anna Maria , Ferreira Bárbara , Dias Sofia , Almeida Helena , De Leo Vincenzo , Sarmento Bruno , Catucci Lucia , das Neves José
Published: April 2024

Orally delivered therapeutics offer great promise for localized treatment of colorectal cancer. However, various natural barriers along the gastrointestinal tract need to be tackled to allow effective drug delivery to tumoral sites.
Prevention of amyloid β fibril deposition on the synaptic membrane in the precuneus by ganglioside nanocluster-targeting inhibitors
Authors: Miyamoto Erika , Hayashi Hideki , Murayama Shigeo , Yanagisawa Katsuhiko , Sato Toshinori , Matsubara Teruhiko
Published: April 2024

Investigation of synaptosomal plasma membrane-induced Aβ fibrils emphasizes the importance of specifically targeting ganglioside nanoclusters in precuneus against Alzheimer's disease.
Selective induction of apoptotic cell death in lung carcinoma cells by curcumin-loaded PEGylated lipid nanoparticles with minimal normal tissue toxicity: in vitro and in vivo toxicity evaluation by oral delivery
Authors: Dutta Bijaideep , Kumar Das Sourav , Temgire Mayur , Bellare Jayesh , Barick K. C. , Kumar Amit , Hassan P. A.
Published: April 2024

Selective induction of apoptotic cancer cell death by curcumin-loaded PEGylated lipid nanoparticles.
Electrochemical frontiers in the nitrogen cycle
Authors: Sun Xuping , Qiu Jieshan , Sun Chenghua
Published: April 2024

Xuping Sun, Jieshan Qiu and Chenghua Sun introduce this Inorganic Chemistry Frontiers themed collection on nitrogen cycle electrocatalysis.
Tetrazine-derived chromones as conditionally activated solvatochromic fluorescent probes for dual imaging of lipid droplets and mitochondria
Authors: Zhang Rongrong , Teng Yu , Shao Gaochang , Wang Yanhong , Yang Hong , Tian Yulin
Published: April 2024

Tetrazine-derived chromones were developed as conditionally activated solvatochromic fluorescent probes and applied for LD and mitochondrial imaging.