bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Sunny-Day Flooding and Mortality Risk in Coastal Florida
Authors: Mueller Valerie , Hauer Mathew , Sheriff Glenn
Published: January 2024

Sea-level rise is likely to worsen the impacts of hurricanes, storm surges, and tidal flooding on coastal access to basic services. We investigate the historical impact of tidal flooding on mortality rates of the elderly population in coastal Florida using administrative records of individual deaths, demographics, and residential location combined with tidal gauge and high-resolution elevation data. We incorporate data capturing storm and precipitation events into our empirical model to distinguish between disruptions from routine sunny-day flooding and less predictable tropical storm–induced flooding. We find that a 1-standard-deviation (20-millimeter) increase in tidal flooding depth increases mortality rates by 0.46% to 0.60% among those aged 65 or older. Our estimates suggest that future sea-level rises may contribute to an additional 130 elderly deaths per year in Florida relative to 2019, all else being equal. The enhanced risk is concentrated among residents living more than nine minutes away from the nearest hospital. Results suggest that tidal flooding may augment elderly mortality risk by delaying urgent medical care.
Prevalence of Drug Use in Ultraendurance Athletes
Authors: ROBACH PAUL , TREBES GILLES , BUISSON CORINNE , MECHIN NATHALIE , MAZZARINO MONICA , GARRIBBA FLAMINIA , ROUSTIT MATTHIEU , QUESADA JEAN-LOUIS , LEFÈVRE BRICE , GIARDINI GUIDO , DE SEIGNEUX SOPHIE , BOTRÉ FRANCESCO , BOUZAT PIERRE
Published: January 2024

Purpose

In competitive sport, classic methods of measuring drug prevalence, such as doping controls or questionnaires, are challenging. Here we describe a novel urine sampling method to measure drug use in athletes. We hypothesize that the prevalence of drug use in ultramarathon runners is measured more accurately with our sampling method than randomized-response questionnaires.

Methods

Urine samples and associated demographic data were collected from male participants using blind, automated urinals at the start of ultramarathon races. Various nonprohibited and prohibited substances were subsequently screened. Concomitantly, 2931 male and female runners participating in the same ultramarathons completed an anonymized, randomized-response questionnaire regarding drug use.

Results

Among 412 individual urine samples, 205 (49.8%) contained at least one substance, and 16.3% of the samples contained one or more prohibited substances. Substances detected in urine included nonsteroid anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID) (22.1%), acetaminophen (15.5%), opioids (6.6%), diuretics (4.9%), hypnotics (4.4%), glucocorticoids (2.7%), beta-2 agonists (2.2%), cannabinoids (1.9%), and stimulants (1.2%). None of the samples contained erythropoietin-receptor agonists or suspicious testosterone. Drug use was not associated with the participants’ characteristics or ranking. Respondents to the questionnaire reported using acetaminophen (13.6%) and NSAID (12.9%); however, no prohibited substances were declared.

Conclusions

There was a high prevalence of drug use among male ultramarathon runners, in particular, NSAID and painkillers; however, performance-enhancing drugs were marginally used. Blind urine sampling highlighted prohibited drug use not declared in questionnaires, and it is useful to assess the prevalence of drug use and/or doping in competitive athletes.
Characterization of tRNA splicing enzymes RNA ligase and tRNA 2′-phosphotransferase from the pathogenic fungi Mucorales
Authors: Ghosh Shreya , Dantuluri Swathi , Jacewicz Agata , Sanchez Ana M. , Abdullahu Leonora , Damha Masad J. , Schwer Beate , Shuman Stewart
Published: January 2024

Fungal Trl1 is an essential trifunctional tRNA splicing enzyme that heals and seals tRNA exons with 2′,3′-cyclic-PO4and 5′-OH ends. Trl1 is composed of C-terminal cyclic phosphodiesterase and central polynucleotide kinase end-healing domains that generate the 3′-OH,2′-PO4and 5′-PO4termini required for sealing by an N-terminal ATP-dependent ligase domain. Trl1 enzymes are present in many human fungal pathogens and are promising targets for antifungal drug discovery because their domain structures and biochemical mechanisms are unique compared to the mammalian RtcB-type tRNA splicing enzyme. Here we report that Mucorales species (deemed high-priority human pathogens by WHO) elaborate a noncanonical tRNA splicing apparatus in which a monofunctional RNA ligase enzyme is encoded separately from any end-healing enzymes. We show thatMucor circinelloidesRNA ligase (MciRNL) is active in tRNA splicing in vivo in budding yeast in lieu of the Trl1 ligase domain. Biochemical and kinetic characterization of recombinant MciRNL underscores its requirement for a 2′-PO4terminus in the end-joining reaction, whereby the 2′-PO4enhances the rates of RNA 5′-adenylylation (step 2) and phosphodiester synthesis (step 3) by ∼125-fold and ∼6200-fold, respectively. In the canonical fungal tRNA splicing pathway, the splice junction 2′-PO4installed by RNA ligase is removed by a dedicated NAD+-dependent RNA 2′-phosphotransferase Tpt1. Here we identify and affirm by genetic complementation in yeast the biological activity of Tpt1 orthologs from three Mucorales species. RecombinantM. circinelloidesTpt1 has vigorous NAD+-dependent RNA 2′-phosphotransferase activity in vitro.
Effect of polyamine precursors and antioxidants on growth and metabolism of salt-stressed barley
Authors: Eldakkak Eman , El-Shourbagy Mohamed
Published: January 2024

Background Salt stress, a significant environmental problem was studied in barley cultivars Giza 124 and Giza 119 at various stages (seedling, pre-flowering, and yield). This study aimed to investigate the impact of salt stress on these cultivars, examine the effects of polyamine precursors (arginine, methionine, and ornithine) on their response to salt stress, and assess the efficacy of antioxidants (glutathione and ascorbic acid) in alleviating the harmful effects of salt stress on barley plants. Methods Barley grains were germinated and subjected to salinity stress, with subsequent treatment using glutathione, ascorbic acid, or an amino acid mixture. Growth criteria, photosynthetic pigments, metabolites, antioxidant enzymes, mineral content, and polyamines were analyzed. Results The impact of 100Mm NaCl, with or without glutathione, ascorbic acid, or amino acid mixtures, on various physiological parameters in G124 and G119 were investigated. The levels of chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and carotenoids significantly varied under different treatments. For instance, chlorophyll a in G 124 exhibited a 23% reduction under salt stress compared to the control, while the addition of glutathione mitigated this effect, resulting in a 17% increase compared to the NaCl treatment. Similar trends were observed for chlorophyll b and carotenoids. At the yield stage, both cultivars demonstrated a significant decrease in the the weight of grains per plant under salinity, which was alleviated by the addition of ascorbic acid, glutathione, or amino acid mixtures. Conclusion The application of glutathione, ascorbic acid, or an amino acid mixture mitigated the adverse effects of salt stress on various parameters. The results highlight the potentail of these compounds in enhancing plant tolerance to salinity stress and offer insights into the physiological response of barley cultivars under adverse conditions.
A guide to selecting high-performing antibodies for PLC-gamma-2 for use in Western Blot, immunoprecipitation and immunofluorescence
Authors: Ruíz Moleón Vera , Fotouhi Maryam , Alende Charles , Ayoubi Riham , Bedford Logan M. , Southern Kathleen , Richardson Timothy I. , Laflamme Carl ,   NeuroSGC/YCharOS/EDDU collaborative group,   ABIF consortium
Published: January 2024

Phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C gamma 2 (PLC-gamma-2) is an enzyme that regulates the function of immune cells. PLC-gamma-2 has been implicated in neurodegenerative and autoimmune disorders, yet investigation of this protein has been limited by a lack of independently characterized antibodies. Here we have characterized eleven PLC-gamma-2 commercial antibodies for use in Western Blot, immunoprecipitation, and immunofluorescence using a standardized experimental protocol based on comparing read-outs in knockout cell lines and isogenic parental controls. These studies are part of a larger, collaborative initiative seeking to address antibody reproducibility issues by characterizing commercially available antibodies for human proteins and publishing the results openly as a resource for the scientific community. While use of antibodies and protocols vary between laboratories, we encourage readers to use this report as a guide to select the most appropriate antibodies for their specific needs.
New Approaches to Developing the Global Skills and Intercultural Competence of Future Teachers (Virtual Exchange and Blended Intensive Programs as Possibilities for Future Research and Higher-Education Internationalization)
Authors: Slatinska Anna
Published: January 2024

In a dynamic world, pedagogically oriented universities which are educating future teachers for different types of schools (elementary, middle, high schools) must also adapt and be flexible to the fast-changing environment: cultural, social, religious, political, economic, etc. A new scientific discussion is therefore needed in order to reevaluate the methodologies and ways of collecting data in tertiary education in line with the internationalization of teacher training university education. In the current context of global unrest and uncertainty, it seems inevitable to leverage the potential of current generation of young people – the future teachers in our case and prepare experiential opportunities for them in order to support their global skills (critical thinking, creativity, communication and collaboration, self-regulation and wellbeing, digital literacies, etc.) and intercultural awareness together with soft skills. The aim of the contribution is to reflect on two virtual exchange programs (VEPs) and one blended intensive program (BIP) which were released at Matej Bel University and subsequent methodology that academics in charge used in order to collect and evaluate data from their projects. Multidisciplinary research is a challenging endeavor in pedagogically oriented disciplines, however, it can bring sustainability to initial teacher training. Virtual exchange programs (VEPs) require the teacher/researcher to apply new or modified approaches and gain knowledge which spans multiple research areas.
Virtual mesotherapy cocktails, chemical peels and professional cosmetics
Authors: Shenstone Jenefer
Published: January 2024

For professional use only, the Derma 2.0® product line allows you to achieve goals without having to resort to intricate, complex and expensive procedures from pre-treatment to post-treatment
Metabologenomics and network pharmacology to understand the molecular mechanism of cancer research
Authors: Tutar Yusuf
Published: January 2024

In this editorial I comment on the article “Network pharmacological and molecular docking study of the effect of Liu-Wei-Bu-Qi capsule on lung cancer” published in the recent issue of the World Journal of Clinical Cases 2023 November 6; 11 (31): 7593-7609. Almost all living forms are able to manufacture particular chemicals-metabolites that enable them to differentiate themselves from one another and to overcome the unique obstacles they encounter in their natural habitats. Numerous methods for chemical warfare, communication, nutrition acquisition, and stress prevention are made possible by these specialized metabolites. Metabolomics is a popular technique for collecting direct measurements of metabolic activity from many biological systems. However, confusing metabolite identification is a typical issue, and biochemical interpretation is frequently constrained by imprecise and erroneous genome-based estimates of enzyme activity. Metabolite annotation and gene integration uses a biochemical reaction network to obtain a metabolite-gene association so called metabologenomics. This network uses an approach that emphasizes metabolite-gene consensus via biochemical processes. Combining metabolomics and genomics data is beneficial. Furthermore, computer networking proposes that using metabolomics data may improve annotations in sequenced species and provide testable hypotheses for specific biochemical processes.
Simultaneous type III congenital esophageal atresia and patent ductus arteriosus in a low-weight patient: A case report
Authors: Ma Yong-Yu , Chen Jun-Ru , Yang Shi-Wu , Wang Shu-Yu , Cao Xin , Wu Jun
Published: January 2024

BACKGROUND

We report a low-birth-weight child (1.8 kg) with neonatal type III congenital esophageal atresia (CEA) combined with symptomatic patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). After comprehensive evaluation, esophageal anastomosis was performed on postnatal day 11 after excluding surgical contraindications, and arterial catheter ligation was performed at the same time. Concurrent surgery for CEA combined with PDA has not been clearly reported in the literature.

CASE SUMMARY

We report a 6-day-old female child with type III CEA and PDA. The patient presented with foam at the mouth after birth, cough and shortness of breath after feeding. At another hospital, she was considered to have neonatal pneumonia, neonatal jaundice and congenital heart disease and transferred to our hospital. After iodine oil radiography of the esophagus and echocardiography we confirmed diagnosis of CEA and PDA. The diameter of the PDA was 8 mm, with obvious left to right shunting. We performed right rear extrapleural orificium fistula ligation and esophageal anastomosis, and ligation of PDA via left axilla straight incision after 5 d of hospitalization. The operations were successful, and the incision healed after 12 d, and the patient was discharged. We re-examined the patient 1 mo after surgery. She did not vomit when she ate rice flour. Esophageal angiography showed no stricture of the anastomotic stoma. The patient weighed 3.2 kg.

CONCLUSION

For CEA patients with multiple risk factors, comprehensive, timely and accurate diagnosis and evaluation, and early treatment may improve prognosis.
Adult rhabdomyosarcoma combined with acute myeloid leukemia: A case report
Authors: Zheng Lu , Zhang Fen-Juan
Published: January 2024

BACKGROUND

Rhabdomyosarcoma is a tumor of mesenchymal origin. Secondary leukemia is a complication of previous transformation to other hematologic disorders or is a treatment-related acute myeloid leukemia secondary to cytotoxic chemotherapy or radiation therapy for other malignancies.

CASE SUMMARY

We present the case of a 36-year-old female patient who was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma and acute myeloid leukemia. Further disease progression was observed after multiline chemotherapy. Eventually, the patient suffered cerebral hemorrhage, which resulted in death.

CONCLUSION

The incidence of rhabdomyosarcoma in adults is extremely low, and secondary leukemia caused by rhabdomyosarcoma is even rarer. Secondary leukemia has a very poor prognosis and a low overall survival rate.
Brain abscess from oral microbiota approached by metagenomic next-generation sequencing: A case report and review of literature
Authors: Zhu Xue-Min , Dong Chun-Xia , Xie Lei , Liu Hao-Xin , Hu Huai-Qiang
Published: January 2024

BACKGROUND

Brain abscess is a serious and potentially fatal disease caused primarily by microbial infection. Although progress has been made in the diagnosis and treatment of brain abscesses, the diagnostic timeliness of pathogens needs to be improved.

CASE SUMMARY

We report the case of a 54-year-old male with a brain abscess caused by oral bacteria. The patient recovered well after receiving a combination of metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS)-assisted guided medication and surgery.

CONCLUSION

Therefore, mNGS may be widely applied to identify the pathogenic microorganisms of brain abscesses and guide precision medicine.
Photon noise correlations in millimeter-wave telescopes
Authors: Hill Charles A. , Kusaka Akito
Published: January 2024

Many modern millimeter and submillimeter (“mm-wave”) telescopes for
astronomy are deploying more detectors by increasing the detector
pixel density and, with the rise of lithographed detector
architectures and high-throughput readout techniques, it is becoming
increasingly practical to overfill the focal plane. However, when the
pixel pitch ppix is small compared to the product of
the wavelength λ and the focal ratio F, or ppix≲1.2Fλ, the Bose term of the photon noise
correlates between neighboring detector pixels due to the Hanbury
Brown and Twiss (HBT) effect. When this HBT effect is non-negligible,
the array-averaged sensitivity scales with the detector count Ndet less favorably than the uncorrelated
limit of Ndet−1/2. In this paper, we present a general
prescription to calculate this HBT correlation based on a quantum
optics formalism and extend it to polarization-sensitive detectors. We
then estimate the impact of HBT correlations on the sensitivity of a
model mm-wave telescope and discuss the implications for a focal plane
design.
Broad/narrowband switchable terahertz absorber based on Dirac semimetal and strontium titanate for temperature sensing
Authors: Zhang Yong Gang , Liu Wei , Yao Hai Yun , Liang Lan Ju , Yan Xin , Zong Ming Ji , Gao Shan , Huang Cheng Cheng , Qiu Fu , Feng Zhen Wei , Zhang Rui , Hu Xiao Fei , Li Zhen Hua , Wang Zi Qun
Published: January 2024

A broadband and narrowband switchable terahertz (THz) absorber based on a bulk Dirac semimetal (BDS) and strontium titanate (STO) is proposed. Narrowband and broadband absorption can be switched by adjusting the Fermi level of the BDS. When the Fermi level of the BDS is 100 meV, the device is an absorber with three narrowband absorption peaks. The frequencies are 0.44, 0.86, and 1.96 THz, respectively, when the temperature of STO is 250 K. By adjusting the temperature of STO from 250 to 500 K, the blue shifts of the frequencies are approximately 0.14, 0.32, and 0.60 THz, respectively. The sensitivities of the three absorption peaks are 0.56, 1.27, and 2.38 GHz/K, respectively. When the Fermi level of the BDS is adjusted from 100 to 30 meV, the device can be switched to a broadband absorber with a bandwidth of 0.70 THz. By adjusting the temperature of STO from 250 to 500 K, the central frequency shifts from 1.40 to 1.79 THz, and the bandwidth broadens from 0.70 to 0.96 THz. The sensitivity of the central frequency is 1.57 GHz/K. The absorber also has a wide range of potential applications in multifunctional tunable devices, such as temperature sensors, stealth equipment, and filters.
Stress analysis of a large diameter aspheric plastic lens in the variable temperature assisted injection molding process
Authors: Wang Longfei , Hu Yuwang , Xue Changxi
Published: January 2024

The technology known as precision injection molding (PIM) has shown great promise in the large-scale manufacturing of optical plastic lenses. The primary challenge with the PIM process is accurately predicting and reducing residual stress in optical plastic lenses. In this work, the finite element method (FEM) was used to analyze the residual stress distribution in plastic lenses. A three-dimensional model was created using COMSOL software to investigate how residual stress and temperature varied in optical plastic lenses during the packing and cooling stages. Based on the results, variable temperature assisted injection molding experiments were conducted. The results show that the average residual stress in the optical plastic lenses has decreased by 56%, while the minimum and maximum residual stress levels have decreased by 60% and 61%, respectively. Since this method does not require the extra heat treatment of the optical lenses, it offers considerable cost and efficiency benefits.
Demonstration of a compact double-reflection transmissive beam scanner operating at 1550  nm wavelength
Authors: Baker Jordan L. , Lang Kenneth A. , Dickensheets David L. , Nakagawa Wataru
Published: January 2024

A compact forward-directed
transmissive beam scanner
operating at a wavelength of 1550 nm was constructed and
characterized. The scanner consists of two wire-grid polarizers (WGPs)
surrounding a 45° Faraday rotator, causing incident light to reflect
once from each WGP before transmitting through the second polarizer.
Scanning is achieved by tilting one of the WGPs. Measured efficiency
remained above 73% over a 90° forward scan range (−45∘ to +45∘) for vertically polarized incident
light. Additionally, we measured the efficiency versus beam deflection
for four different incident linear polarization configurations, three
of which maintained >70% efficiency for deflection angles up
to −60∘.
Modeling and oblique transmission characteristics of an underwater wireless optical communication channel based on ocean depth layering
Authors: Chen Dan , Zhao Peiyan , Tang Linhai , Wang Minyan
Published: January 2024

Underwater wireless optical communication is widely considered in the field of underwater communication due to its high bandwidth and low latency. In a real transmission link, the temperature and salinity of seawater, chlorophyll concentration, and bubble density vary with ocean depth. Therefore, the depth of the optical transmitter in seawater and the tilt angle of the beam will exhibit different beam transmission characteristics. In this paper, an underwater oblique-range layered channel model considering the combined effects of dynamic turbulence, absorption, and scattering is developed based on real data of seawater at different depths measured by the Global Ocean Observing Buoy Argo and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution BCO-DMO. The effects of transmission distance, transmitter tilt angle, and transmitter depth on the oblique-range transmission characteristics of the beam in seawater are discussed. The simulation results show that, at the same transmission distance, the beam centroid displacement increases with an increase in transmitter depth only when the transmitter is located above the interior of the thermocline. When the transmitter is located below the interior of the thermocline, the influence of the transmitter tilt angle on the beam centroid displacement decreases. This indicates that at different depths within the interior of the thermocline, the optical beam transmission characteristics exhibit significant variations.
Generation and propagation of circular Airy derivative beams carrying rotationally-symmetric power-exponent-phase vortices
Authors: Yu Jian , Tong Shandong , Long Huihong , Bai Zhiyong , Wu Luping , Liu Yu
Published: January 2024

In this paper, the circular Airy derivative beams carrying rotationally-symmetric power-exponent-phase vortices are proposed for the first time, whose evolutionary properties are explored by theoretical analysis as well as experimental verification. The intensity and phase distributions of this kind of beam can be flexibly modulated by controlling its parameters such as derivative order, topological charge, and power order. Intriguingly, the evolution of such beams with different fractional topological charges is also investigated in detail by means of phase singularities distribution. In addition, from the perspective of transverse gradient force, the proposed beam is capable of efficiently protecting the trapped Rayleigh particles located at the beam center from the impact by surrounding particles. Furthermore, the beam width, orbital angular momentum (OAM) density and spiral spectrum are also compared and analyzed under different beam parameters. The proposed beams are expected to be useful for extending applications of optical vortices and autofocusing beam, especially for multi-regional particle gathering and central particle protecting.
Controlling nonlinear collapse of ellipticity and orientation of a co-variant vector optical field
Authors: Wang Dan , Li Rui-Wei , Zhang Xin , Feng Fan , Feng Hui , Lu Lin , Feng Biao , Liu Shao-Ding , Nie Zhong-Quan
Published: January 2024

A vector optical field with inhomogeneous spatial polarization distribution offers what we believe to be a new paradigm to form controllable filaments. However, it is challenging to steer multiple performances (e.g. number, orientation, and interval) of filaments in transparent nonlinear media at one time. Herein, we theoretically self-design and generate a kind of believed to be novel ellipticity and orientation co-variant vector optical field to interact with Kerr medium to solve this issue. The collapsing behaviors of such a new hybrid vector optical field reveal that, by judiciously adjusting the inherent topological charge and initial phase of incident optical field, we are able to give access to stable collapsing filamentation with tunable numbers, orientations and interval. Additionally, the collapsing patterns presented are immune nearly to the extra random noise. The relevant mechanism behind the collapse of the vector optical field is elucidated as well. The findings in this work may have huge potential in optical signal processing, laser machining, and other related applications.
Frequency tripled semiconductor disk laser with over 0.5 W ultraviolet output power
Authors: Zhang Peng , Cheng Jia , Wu Yadong , Yan Ri , Zhu Renjiang , Wang Tao , Jiang Lidan , Tong Cunzhu , Song Yanrong
Published: January 2024

Semiconductor disk lasers can produce high output power and good beam quality simultaneously. The high intracavity circulating power of about hundreds of watts, along with the flexibility of tailorable emitting wavelengths, make it an attractive light source for obtaining ultraviolet (UV) radiation from near-infrared lasers through nonlinear frequency conversion. This work reports a frequency tripled 327 nm semiconductor disk laser with record output power and wavelength tuning range by using a type-I phase-matched LiB3O5 (LBO) crystal and a type-I phase-matched β-BaB2O4 (BBO) crystal as the frequency-doubling and -tripling crystals respectively. Thanks to the obviously larger nonlinear coefficient of the type-I phase-matched BBO compared to the commonly used type-II phase-matched LBO, as well as the small spot size specifically designed at the crystal location, the maximum output power of UV lasers reaches 538 mW, corresponding to an optical-to-optical conversion efficiency from pump to UV laser of about 1.14%. A wavelength tuning range of about 8.6 nm and good power stability with a standard deviation of about 0.94 are also achieved.
FURION: modeling of FEL pulses propagation in dispersive soft X-ray beamline systems
Authors: Zhu Ye , Yang Chuan , Hu Kai , Wu Chen , Luo Junyao , Hao Zhou , Xing Zhenjiang , Li Qinming , Xu Zhongmin , Zhang Weiqing
Published: January 2024

Modern X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs) can generate pulses with durations ranging from femtoseconds to attoseconds. The numerical evaluation of ultra-short XFEL pulses through beamline systems is a critical process of beamline system design. However, the bandwidth of such ultra-short XFEL pulses is often non-negligible, and the propagation cannot be simply approximated using the central wavelength, especially in dispersive beamline systems. We developed a numerical model which is called Fourier optics based Ultrashort x-Ray pulse propagatION tool (FURION). This model can not only be used to simulate dispersive beamline systems but also to evaluate non-dispersive beamline systems. The FURION model utilizes Fresnel integral and angular spectrum integral to perform ultra-short XFEL pulse propagation in free space. We also present the method for XFEL pulse propagation through different types of dispersive gratings, which are commonly used in soft X-ray beamline systems. By using FURION, a start-to-end simulation of the FEL-1 beamline system at Shenzhen superconducting soft X-ray free electron laser (S3FEL) is carried out. This model can also be used to evaluate gratings-based spectrometers, beam splitters, pulse compressors, and pulse stretchers. This work provides valuable insights into the start-to-end simulation of X-ray beamline systems.
GHz repetition rate, sub-100-fs Ho:CALGO laser at 2.1 µm with watt-level average power
Authors: Yao Weichao , Khalili Mohsen , Wang Yicheng , Hoffmann Martin , van Delden Marcel , Musch Thomas , Saraceno Clara J.
Published: January 2024

We report on a GHz fundamental repetition rate Kerr-lens mode-locked Ho:CALGO laser emitting at 2.1 µm. The laser employs a ring cavity to increase the fundamental repetition rate to 1.179 GHz and can be made to oscillate in both directions stably with nearly identical performance: for the counterclockwise oscillation, it generates 93-fs pulses at 1.68 W of average power, whereas 92 fs and 1.69 W were measured for the clockwise operation. Our current results represent the highest average power from a 2-µm GHz oscillator and, to our knowledge, the first sub-100-fs pulse duration from a Ho-based oscillator.
Virome Data Explorer: A web resource to longitudinally explore respiratory viral infections, their interactions with other pathogens and host transcriptomic changes in over 100 people
Authors: Galanti Marta , Patiño-Galindo Juan Angel , Filip Ioan , Morita Haruka , Galianese Angelica , Youssef Mariam , Comito Devon , Ligon Chanel , Lane Benjamin , Matienzo Nelsa , Ibrahim Sadiat , Tagne Eudosie , Shittu Atinuke , Elliott Oliver , Perea-Chamblee Tomin , Natesan Sanjay , Rosenbloom Daniel Scholes , Shaman Jeffrey , Rabadan Raul
Published: January 2024

Viral respiratory infections are an important public health concern due to their prevalence, transmissibility, and potential to cause serious disease. Disease severity is the product of several factors beyond the presence of the infectious agent, including specific host immune responses, host genetic makeup, and bacterial coinfections. To understand these interactions within natural infections, we designed a longitudinal cohort study actively surveilling respiratory viruses over the course of 19 months (2016 to 2018) in a diverse cohort in New York City. We integrated the molecular characterization of 800+ nasopharyngeal samples with clinical data from 104 participants. Transcriptomic data enabled the identification of respiratory pathogens in nasopharyngeal samples, the characterization of markers of immune response, the identification of signatures associated with symptom severity, individual viruses, and bacterial coinfections. Specific results include a rapid restoration of baseline conditions after infection, significant transcriptomic differences between symptomatic and asymptomatic infections, and qualitatively similar responses across different viruses. We created an interactive computational resource (Virome Data Explorer) to facilitate access to the data and visualization of analytical results.
Engineering of a chitin deacetylase to generate tailor-made chitosan polymers
Authors: Bonin Martin , Irion Antonia L. , Jürß Anika , Pascual Sergi , Cord-Landwehr Stefan , Planas Antoni , Moerschbacher Bruno M.
Published: January 2024

Chitin deacetylases (CDAs) emerge as a valuable tool to produce chitosans with a nonrandom distribution of N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) and glucosamine (GlcN) units. We hypothesized before that CDAs tend to bind certain sequences within the substrate matching their subsite preferences for either GlcNAc or GlcN units. Thus, they deacetylate or N-acetylate their substrates at nonrandom positions. To understand the molecular basis of these preferences, we analyzed the binding site of a CDA from Pestalotiopsis sp. (PesCDA) using a detailed activity screening of a site-saturation mutagenesis library. In addition, molecular dynamics simulations were conducted to get an in-depth view of crucial interactions along the binding site. Besides elucidating the function of several amino acids, we were able to show that only 3 residues are responsible for the highly specific binding of PesCDA to oligomeric substrates. The preference to bind a GlcNAc unit at subsite −2 and −1 can mainly be attributed to N75 and H199, respectively. Whereas an exchange of N75 at subsite −2 eliminates enzyme activity, H199 can be substituted with tyrosine to increase the GlcN acceptance at subsite −1. This change in substrate preference not only increases enzyme activity on certain substrates and changes composition of oligomeric products but also significantly changes the pattern of acetylation (PA) when N-acetylating polyglucosamine. Consequently, we could clearly show how subsite preferences influence the PA of chitosans produced with CDAs.
A panel data study on the effect of climate change on life expectancy
Authors: Roy Amit
Published: January 2024

The life and health of billions of people is endangered by climate change today. Life expectancy is generally used as the best metric for assessing the population health status of a nation. Against this backdrop, this paper investigates the effect of climate change on life expectancy using the panel data model. To do so, imprimis, this paper develops a conceptual framework linking direct and indirect pathways by which climate change affects health. The direct pathways are through weather variables and natural disasters. The indirect pathways are mediated through economic systems and ecosystems. Then this paper estimates the effect of climate change on life expectancy using cross-national data from 191 countries covering the period 1940–2020 and employing the fixed-effect method. The finding of this study suggests that if the annual average temperature increases by 1°C, then the life expectancy at birth will decline by 0.44 years. Moreover, the temperature rise will further negatively impact life expectancy by interacting with the rainfall cycle. If the composite climate change index, an index of the geometric mean of temperature and rainfall, increases by 10 points, the life expectancy at birth will decline by 0.50 years. Moreover, climate change will disproportionately reduce the life expectancy of females more than the life expectancy of males. A negative relationship between a composite climate change index and life expectancy underscores the urgency of addressing climate change as a public health crisis. Mitigation efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to changing conditions are essential to minimize the health risks associated with climate change. Thus, countries should come forward with prompt initiatives to contain global temperature rise and protect the health of the population on the verge of climate change.
Failure to mate enhances investment in behaviors that may promote mating reward and impairs the ability to cope with stressors via a subpopulation of Neuropeptide F receptor neurons
Authors: Ryvkin Julia , Omesi Liora , Kim Yong-Kyu , Levi Mali , Pozeilov Hadar , Barak-Buchris Lital , Agranovich Bella , Abramovich Ifat , Gottlieb Eyal , Jacob Avi , Nässel Dick R. , Heberlein Ulrike , Shohat-Ophir Galit
Published: January 2024

Living in dynamic environments such as the social domain, where interaction with others determines the reproductive success of individuals, requires the ability to recognize opportunities to obtain natural rewards and cope with challenges that are associated with achieving them. As such, actions that promote survival and reproduction are reinforced by the brain reward system, whereas coping with the challenges associated with obtaining these rewards is mediated by stress-response pathways, the activation of which can impair health and shorten lifespan. While much research has been devoted to understanding mechanisms underlying the way by which natural rewards are processed by the reward system, less attention has been given to the consequences of failure to obtain a desirable reward. As a model system to study the impact of failure to obtain a natural reward, we used the well-established courtship suppression paradigm in Drosophila melanogaster as means to induce repeated failures to obtain sexual reward in male flies. We discovered that beyond the known reduction in courtship actions caused by interaction with non-receptive females, repeated failures to mate induce a stress response characterized by persistent motivation to obtain the sexual reward, reduced male-male social interaction, and enhanced aggression. This frustrative-like state caused by the conflict between high motivation to obtain sexual reward and the inability to fulfill their mating drive impairs the capacity of rejected males to tolerate stressors such as starvation and oxidative stress. We further show that sensitivity to starvation and enhanced social arousal is mediated by the disinhibition of a small population of neurons that express receptors for the fly homologue of neuropeptide Y. Our findings demonstrate for the first time the existence of social stress in flies and offers a framework to study mechanisms underlying the crosstalk between reward, stress, and reproduction in a simple nervous system that is highly amenable to genetic manipulation.
Impact on wine sales of removing the largest serving size by the glass: An A-B-A reversal trial in 21 pubs, bars, and restaurants in England
Authors: Mantzari Eleni , Ventsel Minna , Pechey Emily , Lee Ilse , Pilling Mark A. , Hollands Gareth J. , Marteau Theresa M.
Published: January 2024

Background

Interventions that alter aspects of the physical environments in which unhealthy behaviours occur have the potential to change behaviour at scale, i.e., across populations, and thereby decrease the risk of several diseases. One set of such interventions involves reducing serving sizes, which could reduce alcohol consumption. The effect of modifying the available range of serving sizes of wine in a real-world setting is unknown. We aimed to assess the impact on the volume of wine sold of removing the largest serving size by the glass from the options available in licensed premises.

Methods and findings

The study was conducted between September 2021 and May 2022 in 21 licensed premises in England that sold wine by the glass in serving sizes greater than 125 ml (i.e., 175 ml or 250 ml) and used an electronic point of sale till system. It used an A-B-A reversal design, set over 3 four-weekly periods. “A” represented the nonintervention periods during which standard serving sizes were served and “B” the intervention period when the largest serving size for a glass of wine was removed from the existing range in each establishment: 250 ml (18 premises) or 175 ml (3 premises). The primary outcome was the daily volume of wine sold, extracted from sales data. Twenty-one premises completed the study, 20 of which did so per protocol and were included in the primary analysis. After adjusting for prespecified covariates, the intervention resulted in −420·8 millilitres (ml) (95% confidence intervals (CIs) −681·4 to −160·2 p = 0·002) or −7·6% (95% CI −12·3%, −2·9%) less wine being sold per day. There was no evidence that sales of beer and cider or total daily revenues changed but the study was not powered to detect differences in these outcomes. The main study limitation is that we were unable to assess the sales of other alcoholic drinks apart from wine, beer, and cider, estimated to comprise approximately 30% of alcoholic drinks sold in participating premises.

Conclusions

Removing the largest serving size of wine by the glass from those available reduced the volume of wine sold. This promising intervention for decreasing alcohol consumption across populations merits consideration as part of alcohol licensing regulations.

Trial registration

ISRCTN https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN33169631; OSF https://osf.io/xkgdb.
Quality of life in Arab children with congenital heart disease
Authors: Dardas Latefa Ali , Pan Wei , Hamdan Ahmad Imad , Abu Jabeh Raghed Abdel Hay , Eid Ashakhanba Ahmad , Sami Abdelhai Omar , Naim Abid Mohammad , Ahmad Mohammad Hashim , Al-Ammouri Iyad
Published: January 2024

Background and purpose

Management strategies for children with congenital health diseases (CHDs) should encompass more than just the medical aspect of the disease and consider how heart diseases affect their everyday activities and, subsequently, their quality of life (QoL). Global studies witnessed a greater emphasis on studying the QoL associated with CHD. However, there is still a great lag in such data in the Arab region. The purpose of this study was to evaluate QoL in children with CHD using an Arab sample from Jordan. The specific objectives were twofold: (1) to contrast the assessments of children’s QoL reported by their parents with those reported by the children themselves, and (2) to assess the factors that influence the QoL of children with CHD.

Methods

A total of 79 children aged 2–18 with a confirmed diagnosis of CHD were included in the study, along with their mothers. Of them, 38.0% were girls, 67.1% were diagnosed with non-cyanotic CHD, 58.2% had a severe CHD, 92.4% had undergone at least one operation, 81.0% had repaired defects, 13.9% underwent palliated procedures, and 24.1% were admitted to a neonatal intensive care unit after delivery. The Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory was used to assess QoL of children with CHD. Both children’s and parents’ reports of QoL were analyzed using paired-sample t-tests, ANOVAs, and multiple linear regression.

Results

Older children reported significantly lower QoL scores, whereas there were no differences in parents-reported QoL scores across different children age groups. There was a divergence in perceptions of QoL between parents-reported and children-reported scores with parents reporting significantly lower scores. The children-reported QoL in this study seemed to be significantly associated with their gender, age, and the presence of learning difficulties, whereas the parent-reported QoL was only associated with the presence of learning difficulties.

Conclusions

Responses from both children and parents need to be considered to understand the similarities and differences between them and to provide further insight into the optimal way to help children with CHD effectively navigate the transition into adulthood. Future research studies of outcomes for survivors of children with CHD are needed to identify high-risk survivors for worse psychosocial functioning and assess prevention measures and treatment interventions to improve their QoL.
USP22 overexpression fails to augment tumor formation in MMTV-ERBB2 mice but loss of function impacts MMTV promoter activity
Authors: Kuang Xianghong , Salinger Andrew , Benavides Fernando , Muller William J. , Dent Sharon Y. R. , Koutelou Evangelia
Published: January 2024

The Ubiquitin Specific Peptidase 22 (USP22), a component of the Spt-Ada-Gcn5 Acetyltransferase (SAGA) histone modifying complex, is overexpressed in multiple human cancers, but how USP22 impacts tumorigenesis is not clear. We reported previously thatUsp22loss in mice impacts execution of several signaling pathways driven by growth factor receptors such as erythroblastic oncogene B b2 (ERBB2). To determine whether changes in USP22 expression affects ERBB2-driven tumorigenesis, we introduced conditional overexpression or deletion alleles ofUsp22into mice bearing the Mouse mammary tumor virus-Neu-Ires-Cre (MMTV-NIC) transgene, which drives both rat ERBB2/NEU expression and Cre recombinase activity from the MMTV promoter resulting in mammary tumor formation. We found that USP22 overexpression in mammary glands did not further enhance primary tumorigenesis in MMTV-NIC female mice, but increased lung metastases were observed. However, deletion ofUsp22significantly decreased tumor burden and increased survival of MMTV-NIC mice. These effects were associated with markedly decreased levels of bothErbb2mRNA and protein, indicatingUsp22loss impacts MMTV promoter activity.Usp22loss had no impact on ERBB2 expression in other settings, including MCF10A cells bearing a Cytomegalovirus (CMV)—drivenERBB2transgene or in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)+ human SKBR3 and HCC1953 cells. Decreased activity of the MMTV promoter in MMTV-NIC mice correlated with decreased expression of known regulatory factors, including the glucocorticoid receptor (GR), the progesterone receptor (PR), and the chromatin remodeling factor Brahma-related gene-1 (BRG1). Together our findings indicate that increased expression of USP22 does not augment the activity of an activated ERBB2/NEU transgene but impacts of Usp22 loss on tumorigenesis cannot be assessed in this model due to unexpected effects on MMTV-driven Erbb2/Neu expression.
High-resolution genomic analysis to investigate the impact of the invasive brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) and other wildlife on microbial water quality assessments
Authors: Moinet Marie , Rogers Lynn , Biggs Patrick , Marshall Jonathan , Muirhead Richard , Devane Megan , Stott Rebecca , Cookson Adrian
Published: January 2024

Escherichia coli are routine indicators of fecal contamination in water quality assessments. Contrary to livestock and human activities, brushtail possums (Trichosurus vulpecula), common invasive marsupials in Aotearoa/New Zealand, have not been thoroughly studied as a source of fecal contamination in freshwater. To investigate their potential role, Escherichia spp. isolates (n = 420) were recovered from possum gut contents and feces and were compared to those from water, soil, sediment, and periphyton samples, and from birds and other introduced mammals collected within the Mākirikiri Reserve, Dannevirke. Isolates were characterized using E. coli-specific real-time PCR targeting the uidA gene, Sanger sequencing of a partial gnd PCR product to generate a gnd sequence type (gST), and for 101 isolates, whole genome sequencing. Escherichia populations from 106 animal and environmental sample enrichments were analyzed using gnd metabarcoding. The alpha diversity of Escherichia gSTs was significantly lower in possums and animals compared with aquatic environmental samples, and some gSTs were shared between sample types, e.g., gST535 (in 85% of samples) and gST258 (71%). Forty percent of isolates gnd-typed and 75% of reads obtained by metabarcoding had gSTs shared between possums, other animals, and the environment. Core-genome single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis showed limited variation between several animal and environmental isolates (<10 SNPs). Our data show at an unprecedented scale that Escherichia clones are shared between possums, other wildlife, water, and the wider environment. These findings support the potential role of possums as contributors to fecal contamination in Aotearoa/New Zealand freshwater. Our study deepens the current knowledge of Escherichia populations in under-sampled wildlife. It presents a successful application of high-resolution genomic methods for fecal source tracking, thereby broadening the analytical toolbox available to water quality managers. Phylogenetic analysis of isolates and profiling of Escherichia populations provided useful information on the source(s) of fecal contamination and suggest that comprehensive invasive species management strategies may assist in restoring not only ecosystem health but also water health where microbial water quality is compromised.