bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Supply Chain Transparency from a Stakeholder's Perspective: Analyzing the Risks and Benefits of Supply Chain Information Disclosure
Authors:   , Porchia Jamie Montyl
Published: December 2023

Supply chain transparency is principally focused on a company's efforts toward disclosing information about their products, and their supply chain operations to the public. Essay 1 is a conceptual paper that examines the risks of disclosing supply chain mapping information to consumers and proposes an approach to developing risk mitigation strategies. This essay also develops a set of supply chain mapping conventions that support the development of an agility-focused supply chain map. Essay 2 employs an experimental design methodology to examine the impact of disclosing the ethnicity of a supplier on consumers' behaviors, while also capturing the extent to which a consumers' ethnic identity and prosocial disposition influence their behaviors. Finally, also using an experimental design, Essay 3 analyzes consumer outcomes based on disclosing no, partial, and full supply chain transparency information, and accounts for heterogenous consumer traits such as the importance of information to a consumer and their perceived quality of information. Collectively, these essays advance the body of knowledge that seeks to understand the risks and benefits of supply chain transparency, by conceptually identifying risks and proposing an approach to minimize the risks associated with supply chain transparency, and by illuminating the conditions that prompt favorable consumer outcomes.
Community College Presidents and Their Role in American Democracy: A Narrative Inquiry
Authors:   , Sanders Jonathon Mark
Published: December 2023

The American democracy is experiencing strain from the erosion of democratic norms and its political, judicial, social, and economic institutions. In short, the American democracy shows signs of democratic deconsolidation. Community colleges are higher education institutions that help consolidate the U.S. democracy by representing democratic values such as equality and opportunity. The purpose of my study was to explore how selected community college presidents understand and articulate the responsibility of their institutions to prepare students for a meaningful role in the American democracy. Qualitative narrative inquiry methods, including in-depth semistructured interviews and document analysis, were used to collect data for the study. Three primary themes emerged from the data that addressed the purpose of this study: 1) community college philosophy: blueprint for a vision, 2) consolidating local democracies, and 3) citizens as students, students as citizens. These three themes supported further interpretation of the data that was organized under these headings, 1) the community college democratic mission, 2) community colleges help deepen democracy, and 3) the role of community colleges in the American democracy: public goods, private goods. In summary, my research found that first, my participants believed that community colleges have a responsibility to the American democracy and this responsibility is reflected in their community college mission. Second, my participants framed the American democracy as a continual work in progress and that community colleges help deepen democracy. Third, for my participants, community colleges are not merely distinct in their institutional mission and philosophy, but in their role in supporting the American democracy.
Design and Synthesis of Gold (I) Acyclic Diamino Carbene Complexes as Metallodrugs for Cancer and for Asymmetric Catalysis
Authors:   , Asuramana Pedi Durayalage Roshani
Published: December 2023

Many previous studies have demonstrated that gold compounds possess successful results in catalysis and in medicinal chemistry. The central aim of this dissertation is the design and synthesis of novel gold (I) acyclic diamino carbene complexes as a chemotherapeutic agent for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and for catalysis. In this study, a series of chiral neutral and cationic gold (I) acyclic diamino carbene (ADC) complexes and neutral gold (I) bis- ADC complexes have been synthesized. As the chiral neutral gold (I) ADCs, four diastereomers of S binaphthyl L proline tertiary butyl ester gold (I) chloride, S binaphthyl D proline tertiary butyl ester gold (I) chloride, R binaphthyl L proline tertiary butyl ester gold (I) chloride, and R binaphthyl D proline tertiary butyl ester gold (I) chloride have been synthesized and characterized. Different chiral gold (I) ADC complexes with bulky chiral binaphthyl group and with different amine groups of morpholine, chiral proline methyl ester, and benzyl ester have been synthesized and characterized. After that four diastereomers of the nitrile adduct of cationic binaphthyl proline tertiary butyl ester nitrile and four diastereomers of the isonitrile versions of it have been synthesized and characterized. A series of gold (I) cationic bis ADC complexes have been synthesized and characterized. All these novel gold ADC complexes were tested for biological activity against TNBC cell line MDA-MB-231 and cationic S binaphthyl D proline ester isonitrile adduct, S binaphthyl D proline ester isonitrile adduct and R binaphthyl D proline ester isonitrile adduct gave promising inhibition rates. According to Lipinski's rule, lipophilicity determines the effectiveness of the drug absorption to the body through the lipid membrane. To determine the drug-likeness of the gold ADC complexes, log P values were calculated for some of the synthesized complexes using a modified shake flask method. Gold (I) ADC complexes have been renowned for their ability in catalysis, but enantioselective catalysis is not that well studied. A3 coupling reaction is a well-known reaction for the synthesis of propargyl amines. Here, A3 coupling reaction with a chiral amine has been performed using the previously synthesized four diastereomers of binaphthyl proline tertial butyl ester gold (I) ADCs (SL, RD, RL, SD) as the catalyst expecting four different diastereomers of the product. The reaction exhibited reasonable yields but with a low enantiomeric excess (ee%). However, it gave proof of the principle that asymmetric induction is possible with the synthesized novel chiral gold (I) ADC complexes.
Accessibility and Pedagogical Value in Virtuosic American Trombone Solo Literature: A Performance Guide to "Divertimento for Trombone and Band" (2012) by Jack Stamp
Authors:   , Umholtz Jeremiah L.
Published: December 2023

This dissertation is an examination of Divertimento for Solo Trombone and Wind Band by renowned wind band composer and conductor Jack Stamp. The result of this study is the illumination of a 21st-century composition for solo trombone and band that is made accessible for future performers, accomplished by constructing original musical exercises that are influenced by current trombone pedagogical materials that have either been edited, annotated or created by current performers and pedagogues such as Joseph Alessi, Brad Edwards and Michael Mulcahy. The piece also incorporates 20th -century American wind band influences. The careful selection of pedagogical materials serves the purpose of making this challenging solo accessible for the advanced academic trombonist and can serve as a template for surveying advanced literature of the present and future. Additionally, the pedagogical materials selected for use in this dissertation were considered based on their value in the present academic trombone repertory. Thus, this performance guide reflects on the validity of the modern trombone pedagogical literature to guide a performer's study, interpretation, and performance of a 21st-century work for solo trombone.
Implementing the Difference in Differences (Dd) Estimator in Observational Education Studies: Evaluating the Effects of Small, Guided Reading Instruction for English Language Learners
Authors:   , Sebastian Princy
Published: December 2023

The present study provides an example of implementing the difference in differences (DD) estimator for a two-group, pretest-posttest design with K-12 educational intervention data. The goal is to explore the basis for causal inference via Rubin's potential outcomes framework. The DD method is introduced to educational researchers, as it is seldom implemented in educational research. DD analytic methods' mathematical formulae and assumptions are explored to understand the opportunity and the challenges of using the DD estimator for causal inference in educational research. For this example, the teacher intervention effect is estimated with multi-cohort student outcome data. First, the DD method is used to detect the average treatment effect (ATE) with linear regression as a baseline model. Second, the analysis is repeated using linear regression with cluster robust standard errors. Finally, a linear mixed effects analysis is provided with a random intercept model. Resulting standard errors, parameter estimates, and inferential statistics are compared among these three analyses to explore the best holistic analytic method for this context.
Hypoxia-Induced Cardiac Arrest Alters Central Nervous System Concentrations of the GLYT2 Glycine Transporter in Zebrafish (Danio rerio)
Authors:   , Auzenne Alexis
Published: December 2023

Hypoxia as a stressor has physiological implications that have been a focal point for many physiological studies in recent years. In some studies, hypoxia had large effects on the organ tissue degeneration, which ultimately effects multiple ecological processes. These organ tissue studies played a part in the development of new fields like neurocardiology, a specialty that studied the relationship between the brain and the heart. This thesis focuses on how hypoxia-induced cardiac arrest alters the amounts of GLYT2, a glycine reuptake transporter, in the central nervous system of zebrafish, Danio rerio. At 7 days post-fertilization (dpf), zebrafish were exposed to acute, severe hypoxia until they lost equilibrium, and minutes later, subsequent cardiac arrest occurred. Zebrafish were then placed into recovery groups to measure the GLYT2 levels at multiple points in zebrafish recovery. Fish were then sacrificed, and their brains dissected. Using immunofluorescence, the outer left optic tectum of the zebrafish was imaged, and mean image pixel fluorescent intensity was taken. There were significant changes (one-way ANOVA) in the levels of GLYT2 compared to that of the control groups during the course of recovery. GLYT2 levels continued to rise through the 24-hour recovery mark but did not show significant difference after 3 hours of recovery. This suggest that GLYT2 levels increased rapidly in the first 3 hours of recovery and continued to increase through 24 hours at a slower rate. Changes in GLYT2 levels may affect motor and sensory information, movement, visualization, and audition in these zebrafish. Further research should be conducted to determine how long it takes for GLYT2 levels to return to baseline, as well as behavioral measurements through each recovery period as it relates to glycine function.
Children's Experiences in Child-Centered Play Therapy: An Artwork-Based Phenomenological Investigation
Authors:   , Quinn Carol
Published: December 2023

Child-centered play therapy (CCPT) is an empirically endorsed approach for children facing specific clinical concerns and life circumstances alike. The majority of research to date has accrued data about clients from secondary sources, such as adult report and observation. The purpose of this study was to explore children's perceptions of participating in CCPT by implementing a developmentally accessible interview medium, allowing children to share their experiences directly. Ten children between the ages of 4 and 7 who had completed at least eight sessions of CCPT were invited to create a drawing and respond to an interview protocol with their counselor. Data sources included the picture produced, a transcript of the interview between the child and counselor, and observation notes of the interview process. Using a phenomenological approach, three themes were identified to describe children's awareness and experience of the intervention: expressions of relationship, experiences in the playroom, and reluctance to engage in counselor-directed activity. The first two themes reflect children's report of the intervention and the third represents reactions to the research activity. Findings from this study support conclusions that children are aware of relationship between themselves and their counselor and recognize the uniquely unstructured features of play therapy and the playroom, which are defining components of CCPT.
Deterring the Gray Market: Product Diversion Detection via Learning Disentangled Representations of Multivariate Time Series
Authors: Lin Hao , Liu Guannan , Wu Junjie , Zhao J. Leon
Published: December 2023

A gray market emerges when some distributors divert products to unauthorized distributors/retailers to make sneaky profits from the manufacturers’ differential channel incentives, such as quantity discounts. Traditionally, manufacturers rely heavily on internal audits to periodically investigate the flows of products and funds so as to deter the gray market; however, this is too costly given the large number of distributors and their huge volumes of orders. Owing to the advances in data analytics techniques, the ordering quantities of a distributor over time, which form multivariate time series, can help reveal suspicious product diversion behaviors and narrow the audit scope drastically. To that end, in this paper, we build on the recent advancement of representation learning for time series and adopt a sequence autoencoder to automatically characterize the overall demand patterns. To cope with the underlying entangled factors and interfering information in the multivariate time series of ordering quantities, we develop a disentangled learning scheme to construct more effective sequence representations. An interdistributor correlation regularization is also proposed to ensure more reliable representations. Finally, given the highly scarce anomaly labels for the detection task, an unsupervised deep generative model based on the learned representations of the distributors is developed to estimate the densities of distributions, which enables the anomaly scores generated through end-to-end learning. Extensive experiments on a real-world distribution channel data set and a larger simulated data set empirically validate our model’s superior and robust performances compared with several state-of-the-art baselines. Additionally, our illustrative economic analysis demonstrates that the manufacturers can launch more targeted and cost-effective audits toward the suspected distributors recommended by our model so as to deter the gray market.

History: Accepted by Ram Ramesh, Area Editor for Data Science & Machine Learning.

Funding: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [Grants 72031001, 72301017, 72371011, and 72242101].

Supplemental Material: The software that supports the findings of this study is available within the paper and its Supplemental Information ( https://pubsonline.informs.org/doi/suppl/10.1287/ijoc.2022.0155 ) as well as from the IJOC GitHub software repository ( https://github.com/INFORMSJoC/2022.0155 ). The complete IJOC Software and Data Repository is available at https://informsjoc.github.io/ .
Advances and future directions in keloid research: Pathogenesis, diagnosis and personalized treatment strategies
Authors: Zhao Song-Yun , Wu Dan , Cheng Chao , Xie Jia-Heng
Published: December 2023

Keloids, which are abnormal manifestations of wound healing, can result in significant functional impairment and aesthetic deformities. The pathogenesis of keloids is multifaceted and complex and influenced by various factors, such as genetics, the environment, and immune responses. The evolution of keloid treatment has progressed from traditional surgical excision to a contemporary combination of therapies including injection and radiation treatments, among others. This article provides a comprehensive review of keloid pathogenesis and treatment, emphasizing the latest advances in the field. Ultimately, this review underscores the necessity for continued research to enhance our understanding of keloid pathogenesis and to devise more effective treatments for this challenging condition.
Mental health implications of suicide rates in South Africa
Authors: Edeh Nkechinyere C , Eseadi Chiedu
Published: December 2023

Mental health challenges are a severe issue that could lead to suicide if not properly addressed. South Africa has a significant burden of mental health issues, which contributes to the soaring rate of suicide. Adequate mental health-care provision could reduce the high suicide rate in South Africa. Since the apartheid regime, the country has made a series of efforts to improve mental health. This study aimed to review and examine available literature on mental health and suicide issues in South Africa and demonstrate the policy implications. This study adopted a narrative review approach. Electronic databases (PubMed, Scilit, Google Scholar and Semantic Scholar) were used to identify published articles in the English language with crucial search terms that included mental health, South African mental health policy, South Africa, suicide and policy. Literature suggests that at the provincial level, there are no adequate mental health policies, and the implementation of the country’s mental health policy is faced with many challenges, such as a shortage of professionals and finances. The review also showed that task sharing and counselling have been pilot-tested and shown to be effective methods for the prevention of mental illness and promotion of positive mental health. This study concludes that the mental health treatment gap still exists in South Africa, and this needs to be tackled using effective, multi-level counselling interventions and policy initiatives. Adequate mental health-care provision and effective implementation of mental health policy could reduce the high rate of suicide in South Africa.
Repeated atrial arrhythmia induced by cochineal red poisoning: A case report
Authors: Yang Hao , Wang Yu-Jiao , Xu Bao-Ping , Peng Huai-Wen , Xu Qing , Yu Huai-Bin
Published: December 2023

BACKGROUND

Cochineal red is an organic compound widely used in food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, textiles, and other fields due to its excellent safety profile. Poisoning caused by eating foods containing cochineal red is rare, and repeated atrial arrhythmia due to cochineal red poisoning is even rarer.

CASE SUMMARY

An 88-year-old Asian female patient was admitted to hospital due to a disturbance of consciousness. Twelve hours prior to presentation, the patient consumed 12 eggs containing cochineal red over a period of 2 h. At presentation, the patient was in a coma and had a score of 6 on the Glasgow Coma Scale (E2 + VT + M4). The patient’s skin and mucous membranes were pink. Electrocardiography (ECG) revealed rapid atrial fibrillation without any signs of ischemia. We prescribed cedilan and fluid replacement for arrhythmia correction. Shortly after admission, the atrial fibrillation corrected to a normal sinus rhythm. On the day 2 of admission, the patient had a sudden atrial flutter accompanied by hemodynamic instability and rapidly declining arterial oxygen saturation between 85% and 90%. The sinus rhythm returned to normal after two electrical cardioversions. Six days after admission, the skin color of the patient returned to normal, and the ECG results were normal. The patient was transferred out of the intensive care unit and eventually discharged after 12 d in hospital. At the 2-mo follow-up visit, the patient was in good health with no recurrence of arrhythmia.

CONCLUSION

Although cochineal red is a safe, natural food additive, excessive consumption or occupational exposure can induce cardiac arrhythmias.
Long-term survival of the Sister Mary Joseph nodule originating from breast cancer: A case report
Authors: Kanayama Koji , Tanioka Maki , Hattori Yoshitsugu , Iida Takuya , Okazaki Mutsumi
Published: December 2023

BACKGROUND

A Sister Mary Joseph nodule (SMJN) is an uncommon cutaneous metastasis found in the umbilicus, indicating an advanced malignancy. SMJNs typically originate from intra-abdominal sources, rarely from breast cancer. Diagnosis suggests a poor prognosis with a median survival of approximately 8 mo after detection. Managing patients with SMJNs is challenging, as most receive limited palliative care only. The optimal strategy for long-term survival of these patients remains unclear.

CASE SUMMARY

A 58-year-old female, previously diagnosed with right breast cancer 17 years ago and underwent breast-conserving surgery, adjuvant radiotherapy, and endocrine therapy, presented with a 2-cm umbilical nodule. Thirteen years previously, metastases were detected in the right supraclavicular, infraclavicular, hilar, and mediastinal lymph nodes. An umbilical nodule emerged four years before the date of presentation, confirmed as a skin metastasis of primary breast cancer upon excisional biopsy. Despite initial removal, the nodule recurred and grew, leading to her referral to our hospital. The patient underwent extensive excision of the umbilical tumor and immediate abdominal wall reconstruction. Endocrine therapy was continued postoperatively. Five years later, no local recurrence was observed, and the patient continued to work full-time, achieving over 9 years of survival following SMJN diagnosis.

CONCLUSION

This case study aimed to identify the optimal strategy for achieving extended survival outcomes in patients with SMJN through comprehensive treatment. We presented a case of the longest survival in a patient after undergoing a multidisciplinary treatment regimen. Our findings underscore the significance of adopting a multimodal treatment approach comprising timely and wide excision along with adjunctive therapy. This approach can control the disease, prolong survival, and improve the quality of life in patients with SMJN.
Sensory Overload and Poe's Mechanics of Terror
Authors: Duffy Caitlin
Published: December 2023

ABSTRACT: Critics and authors alike have labeled Edgar Allan Poe a master of horror fiction, foregrounding in particular his creation and deployment of the affect of terror. In his 1846 essay, "The Philosophy of Composition," Poe discloses a relevant principle: rather than following "the usual mode of constructing a story" by focusing on plot, he "prefer[s] commencing with the consideration of an effect." This emphasis on "effect" is crucial to understanding Poe's ability to create terror. But how was he able to imbue his work with an affect strong enough to trigger the transmission of terror so successfully across his texts? To explain the origin of Poe's terror, it might seem obvious to point to his preoccupation with death, to his inherently creepy interest in macabre topics. But these are the stuff of narrative—of plot—and the writer has given us cause to go beyond such explanation. In this article, I employ methods of data analysis and close reading—focused on "The Fall of the House of Usher" (1839) and "The Premature Burial" (1844)—to address the question, paying close attention to Poe's deployment of overwhelming sensorial description and perspectival variety in his fiction.
Falling Houses: Linden Hills and Poe's Legacy in Black Women's Speculative Fiction
Authors: Sherrard-Johnson Cherene
Published: December 2023

ABSTRACT: This article examines Gloria Naylor's Linden Hills (1986) as an intertextual response to Edgar Allan Poe's sinister aesthetic and gothicism that anticipates innovations in late-twentieth-century Black women's speculative fiction and horror. Naylor explores the corrosive side effects of Black capitalism and assimilation while simultaneously illustrating the conflicting desires and patriarchal aspirations embedded within Black nationalist rhetoric. Poe's gothic interiors and narrative perspective provide a template for how Naylor's chapters work as cautionary tales about the obsessive and accumulative qualities of American individualism. Reading Naylor's depiction of the Nedeed home that is at the center of the Dantesque planned community of Linden Hills through "The Fall of the House of Usher" (1839) also illuminates the influence of earlier authors, like Pauline Elizabeth Hop-kins and Ann Petry, in shaping the African American gothic tradition. The concluding section focuses on Tananarive Due's deployment of the falling house trope in The Good House (2004), a novel that reckons with residual trauma resulting from the palimpsestic nature of racial violence and settler colonialism.
Advocacy Case Study: Ensuring Safe Abortion Provision at the Local Level—Madhesh Province, Nepal
Authors: Puri Mahesh , Tamang Anand ,   Center for Research on Environment, Health and Population Activities (CREHPA), Singh Susheela , Remez Lisa
Published: December 2023

The Advocacy Case Study series provides practical examples from different country contexts of policy or programmatic efforts to advance sexual and reproductive health and rights. By describing the rationale for the actions taken, evidence used, any progress achieved and recommended next steps, these cases illustrate advocacy efforts to achieve specific outcomes, offer useful guidance and spur new thinking and strategies.
Optical tomography in a single camera frame using fringe-encoded deep-learning full-field OCT
Authors: Mazlin Viacheslav
Published: December 2023

Optical coherence tomography is a valuable tool for in vivo examination thanks to its superior combination of axial resolution, field-of-view and working distance. OCT images are reconstructed from several phases that are obtained by modulation/multiplexing of light wavelength or optical path. This paper shows that only one phase (and one camera frame) is sufficient for en face tomography. The idea is to encode a high-frequency fringe patterns into the selected layer of the sample using low-coherence interferometry. These patterns can then be efficiently extracted with a high-pass filter enhanced via deep learning networks to create the tomographic full-field OCT view. This brings 10-fold improvement in imaging speed, considerably reducing the phase errors and incoherent light artifacts related to in vivo movements. Moreover, this work opens a path for low-cost tomography with slow consumer cameras. Optically, the device resembles the conventional time-domain full-field OCT without incurring additional costs or a field-of-view/resolution reduction. The approach is validated by imaging in vivo cornea in human subjects. Open-source and easy-to-follow codes for data generation/training/inference with U-Net/Pix2Pix networks are provided to be used in a variety of image-to-image translation tasks.
Family planning uptake and its associated factors among women of reproductive age in Uganda: An insight from the Uganda Demographic and Health Survey 2016
Authors: Ochen Anthony Mark , Primus Che Chi
Published: December 2023

Despite the government efforts to reduce the high fertility levels and increase the uptake of family planning services in Uganda, family planning use was still low at 30% in 2020 which was the lowest in the East African region. This study was undertaken to determine the prevalence and factors associated with the uptake of family planning methods among women of reproductive age in Uganda. This community-based cross-sectional study utilized secondary data from the Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (UDHS) of 2016. The survey data was downloaded from the Measure Demographic Health Survey website after data use permission was granted. Data was collected from a representative sample of women of the reproductive age group (15–49 years) from all 15 regions in Uganda. A total of 19,088 eligible women were interviewed but interviews were completed with 18,506 women. Data analysis was performed using SPSS statistical software version 32.0 where univariable, bivariable, and multivariable analyses were conducted. The prevalence of family planning use was found to be 29.3% and that of modern contraceptive use was found to be 26.6%. Multivariable analysis showed higher odds of current family planning use among older women (40–44 years) (aOR = 2.09, 95% CI: 1.40–3.12); women who had attained the secondary level of education (aOR = 1.91, 95% CI: 1.32–2.76); those living in households with the highest wealth index (aOR = 1.87, 95% CI: 1.29–2.72); and awareness of the availability of family planning methods (aOR = 1.41, 95% CI: 1.17–1.72). In conclusion, the study suggests improving women’s education attainment, socio-economic position, and awareness may help increase use in the population.
Patient experiences of diabetes and hypertension care during an evolving humanitarian crisis in Lebanon: A qualitative study
Authors: Willis Ruth , Akik Chaza , El-Dirani Zeinab , Truppa Claudia , Zmeter Carla , Fleri Fabrizio , Perone Sigiriya Aebischer , Paci Roberta , Frederiksen Signe , Haidar Celine Abi , Hamadeh Randa S. , Fouad Fouad M. , Perel Pablo , Roberts Bayard , Ansbro Éimhín
Published: December 2023

Humanitarian health care models increasingly incorporate care for non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Current research evidence focuses on burden of disease, service provision and access to care, and less is known about patient’s experience of the continuum of care in humanitarian settings. To address this gap, this study explored experiences of displaced Syrian and vulnerable Lebanese patients receiving care for hypertension and/or diabetes at four health facilities supported by humanitarian organisations in Lebanon. We conducted in-depth, semi-structured qualitative interviews with a purposive sample of patients (n = 18) and their informal caregivers (n = 10). Data were analysed thematically using both deductive and inductive approaches. Both Syrian and Lebanese patients reported interrupted pathways of care. We identified three typologies of patient experience at the time of interview; (1) managing adequately from the patient’s perspective; (2) fragile management and (3) unable to manage their condition(s) adequately, with the majority falling into typologies 2 and 3. Patients and their families recognised the importance of maintaining continuity of care and self-management, but experienced substantial challenges due to changing availability and cost of medications and services, and decreasing economic resources during a period of national crises. Family support underpinned patient’s response to challenges. Navigating the changing care landscape was a significant burden for patients and their families. Interactions were identified between mental health and NCD management. This study suggests that patients experienced disrupted, non-linear pathways in maintaining care for hypertension and diabetes in a humanitarian setting, and family support networks were key in absorbing treatment burden and sustaining NCD management. Recommendations are made to reduce treatment burden for patients and their families and to support sustainable condition management.
Impact of inundation range of overtopping dam break of tailings pond under actual terrain conditions
Authors: Du Changbo , Niu Ben , Yi Fu , Jiang Xinqi , Liang Lidong
Published: December 2023

Tailing ponds are a major hazard source with the risk of dam breaks. To predict the impact of tailings pond dam breaks more accurately, one needs to quantitatively understand the dam-breaking process of the tailings reservoir and its downstream impact. This study is based on an old tailings pond that is about to be put out of service and the proposed new tailings pond next to it. Study the inundation range of the new and old tailing ponds with simultaneous overtopping dam breaks under actual terrain conditions. First, fine-grained tailings and expanded perlite were selected as the model sand materials, and the appropriate model sand ratio was determined through laboratory tests. Second, the two tailings ponds were tested (at a scale of 1:200), for flood overtopping and simultaneous dam breaks. The dam break, flow, section morphology evolution, submerged elevation, and range were analyzed. Finally, a numerical model was developed using MIKE 21 to simulate the simultaneous overtopping and collapse of the new and old tailings ponds, and the impact of rainfall intensity on the inundation range of the simultaneous overtopping of the dam was analyzed. The research results will guide disaster prevention and mitigation in tailings reservoirs.
Citrullination profile analysis reveals peptidylarginine deaminase 3 as an HSV-1 target to dampen the activity of candidate antiviral restriction factors
Authors: Pasquero Selina , Gugliesi Francesca , Biolatti Matteo , Dell’Oste Valentina , Albano Camilla , Bajetto Greta , Griffante Gloria , Trifirò Linda , Brugo Bianca , Raviola Stefano , Lacarbonara Davide , Yang Qiao , Sudeshna Sen , Barasa Leonard , Haniff Hafeez , Thompson Paul R. , Landolfo Santo , De Andrea Marco
Published: December 2023

Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) is a neurotropic virus that remains latent in neuronal cell bodies but reactivates throughout an individual’s life, causing severe adverse reactions, such as herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE). Recently, it has also been implicated in the etiology of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The absence of an effective vaccine and the emergence of numerous drug-resistant variants have called for the development of new antiviral agents that can tackle HSV-1 infection. Host-targeting antivirals (HTAs) have recently emerged as promising antiviral compounds that act on host-cell factors essential for viral replication. Here we show that a new class of HTAs targeting peptidylarginine deiminases (PADs), a family of calcium-dependent enzymes catalyzing protein citrullination, exhibits a marked inhibitory activity against HSV-1. Furthermore, we show that HSV-1 infection leads to enhanced protein citrullination through transcriptional activation of three PAD isoforms: PAD2, PAD3, and PAD4. Interestingly, PAD3-depletion by specific drugs or siRNAs dramatically inhibits HSV-1 replication. Finally, an analysis of the citrullinome reveals significant changes in the deimination levels of both cellular and viral proteins, with the interferon (IFN)-inducible proteins IFIT1 and IFIT2 being among the most heavily deiminated ones. As genetic depletion of IFIT1 and IFIT2 strongly enhances HSV-1 growth, we propose that viral-induced citrullination of IFIT1 and 2 is a highly efficient HSV-1 evasion mechanism from host antiviral resistance. Overall, our findings point to a crucial role of citrullination in subverting cellular responses to viral infection and demonstrate that PAD inhibitors efficiently suppress HSV-1 infection in vitro, which may provide the rationale for their repurposing as HSV-1 antiviral drugs.
UMA ANÁLISE DA MÍDIA EVANGÉLICA:
Authors: Da Cruz Alves Siqueira Marcos , Carolina Calsa Geiva
Published: December 2023

O presente texto é resultado da tese de doutoramento em educação e tem como objetivo problematizar algumas publicações do site Gospel Prime – GP no período de 2015 e 2018 sobre o conceito de gênero associado a Biologia e suas implicações na educação para diversidade sexual. A questão central do artigo é: como a mídia evangélica representa gênero associado a Biologia em seus textos midiáticos e quais interferências ocorre no debate sobre educação? Compreendemos como mídia evangélica um conjunto de ferramentas utilizadas pela religião cristã, neste caso a evangélica, para expressar e comunicar sobre seus princípios religiosos, por meio de sites, rádios, jornais, redes de televisão, blogs entre outros. Para este trabalho nos limitaremos apenas a problematizar por meio de alguns textos elencados no site e suas representações de gênero associado a Biologia e como isso afeta de modo direto os debates sobre educação e diversidade sexual. Para capturar as representações no site GP utilizamos a metodologia de Análise de Conteúdo (AC) proposta por Laurence Bardin. Por fim, ao analisarmos as mídias evangélicas compreendemos suas representações sobre o conceito de gênero e como utilizam a Biologia para tentar fundamentar seus princípios religiosos.
POLÍTICA ESTADUAL DE PROMOÇÃO DA EQUIDADE EM SAÚDE COMO PROPOSIÇÃO DE RESISTÊNCIA AO EXÍLIO DA DIVERSIDADE
Authors: De Souza Müller Guilherme
Published: December 2023

Este ensaio retrata o percurso de construção da primeira Política Estadual de Promoção da Equidade em Saúde do país, publicada pela Secretaria Estadual de Saúde do Rio Grande do Sul em 2020, trazendo para o cenário os elementos da sua constituição, os primeiros resultados e as perspectivas para sua implementação ao longo dos próximos anos. A política reúne um conjunto de populações específicas, dentre elas a população de Lésbicas, Gays, Bissexuais, Travestis e Transsexuais (LGBT), povos indígenas, população em situação de rua, população negra, povos ciganos, população privada de liberdade, egressos do sistema prisional, população de migrantes, refugiados e apátridas e população do campo, da floresta e das águas. Como desafios colocados para essa política pública está a de acolher a interseccionalidade e a de recriar diferentes modos de intervenção a partir da constante movimentação da vida e da diversidade.
Towards a reframing of Eryri: how historic framings of landscape influence perceptions and expectations of a Welsh national park
Authors: Ioannou Alex , Neuhaus Fabian , Robertson Natalie
Published: December 2023

The landscape decision-making system in northwest Wales is insufficiently democratised and the main framings of Eryri (Snowdonia) are grounded in the perception and expectation that it is a sublime, distant and static landscape. Eryri, however, is changing. The landscape of the national park is already being impacted by climate change and the loss of biodiversity. Anticipated future change will also bring the need for further adaptation and transformation in land management. Historic framings of Eryri perpetuate ideologies and ambivalences that have, and could, continue to hamper the much-needed landscape change required to tackle today’s multiple crises. This article explores how past modes of representation, newly specialised industries and government legislation have perpetuated a limited understanding of Eryri. It links the eighteenth-century ‘top-down’, elitist rationalisation of the environment and the legacies of longing to find a ‘truly British’ landscape, with people’s current perceptions and expectations of the landscape. This article begins the journey of exposing the dominant ideologies of landscape, helping to define the underlying problem with the current prevailing framings of the landscape of the national park. It concludes by going beyond defining the problem and proposes an approach to actively reframe Eryri. To do this, it acknowledges the need to empower multiple voices, involving diverse forms of knowledge and incorporating new ways of representation within the landscape decision-making process.
A systematic review of pedagogical interventions on the learning of historical literacy in schools
Authors: Wilson Kim , Dudley Dean , Dutton Janet , Preval-Mann Renee , Paulsen Elizabeth
Published: December 2023

Over the past thirty years, there has been a growing body of research investigating the efficacy of pedagogical interventions to enhance the historical literacy skills of primary and secondary school students. However, there exists no systematic review or meta-analysis summarising the impact of such research or the efficacy of interventions trialled. The purpose of this systematic review is to identify pedagogies that have a demonstrable effect on students’ historical literacy skills, with a particular interest in those pedagogies that have a measurable positive effect on historical epistemological knowledge and skills. Findings of this review indicate that when a discrete historical epistemological knowledge or skill is targeted by a pedagogical intervention that utilises a discipline-specific scaffolded heuristic, there is greater likelihood of positive outcomes for student learning. However, the significant heterogeneity between studies, and the diversity in the comparisons being made by the included studies, make it difficult to identify the most effective intervention. This systematic review establishes the characteristic features of pedagogical historical literacy interventions from the available research reporting credible findings.
Transmembrane protein 14A protects glomerular filtration barrier integrity
Authors: Khalil Ramzi , Bonnemaijer Josephine D. D. , Kreutz Reinhold , Spaink Herman P. , Hogendoorn Pancras C. W. , Baelde Hans J.
Published: December 2023

Transmembrane protein 14A (TMEM14A) is a relatively unknown protein that is now identified to be required for maintaining the integrity of the glomerular filtration barrier. It is an integral transmembrane protein of 99 amino acids with three transmembrane domains. TMEM14A has been implied to suppress Bax‐mediated apoptosis in other studies. Other than that, little is currently known of its function. Here, we show that its expression is diminished before onset of proteinuria in a spontaneously proteinuric rat model. Knocking down tmem14a mRNA translation results in proteinuria in zebrafish embryos without affecting tubular reabsorption. Also, it is primarily expressed by podocytes. Lastly, an increase in glomerular TMEM14A expression is exhibited in various proteinuric renal diseases. Overall, these results suggest that TMEM14A is a novel factor in the protective mechanisms of the nephron to maintain glomerular filtration barrier integrity.
A NEW ELECTRO-MECHANICAL METHOD FOR MEASURING YARN THICKNESS
Authors: Mahmoudi M.R. , Oxenham W.
Published: December 2023

Measuring the thickness of a wire using a micrometer is simple, but textile workers cannot use the same technique. The current report describes a possible method of measuring yarn thickness under lateral force using a range of loads. The effect of twist on thickness and compressibility of yarns is studied.
OPTIMISING THE FIBRE-TO-YARN PRODUCTION PROCESS: FINDING A BLEND OF FIBRE QUALITIES TO CREATE AN OPTIMAL PRICE/QUALITY YARN
Authors: Sette S. , Langenhove L. van
Published: December 2023

An important aspect of the fibre-to-yarn production process is the quality and price of the resulting yarn. The yarn should have optimal product characteristics, while maintaining as low a price as possible. Early optimisation models of the fibre-to-yarn process, based on neural networks and genetic algorithms, were severely limited in their potential applications as they generated unrealistic (ideal) conditions for the process. In this paper, a method is presented to model and optimise the fibre-to-yarn production process which avoids the aforementioned problems. A neural network is used to model the process, with the machine settings and fibre quality parameters as input and yarn tenacity and elongation as output. A constrained optimisation algorithm is used afterwards to optimise the blend of fibre qualities to obtain the best yarns. This results in an optimal price-yarn quality surface where each point corresponds with a set of blend coefficients and machine settings. Furthermore, constraints can easily be adjusted to correspond to real-life production environments.
INFLUENCE OF YARN KIND ON THE DYNAMIC OF THE TWISTINGAND- WINDING SYSTEM OF THE RINGSPINNING MACHINE
Authors: Król Beata , Przybył Krystyna
Published: December 2023

In the article presented, the influence of yarn material parameters on the dynamic and stability of the working conditions in the twisting-and-winding system of the ringspinning frame during package (cop) formation was analysed. A computer programme simulating the dynamic phenomena during the spinning process formed the basis for this analysis. Changes of tension and balloon shape dependent on the yarn kind, characterised by yarn material density, the modulus of initial yarn rigidity and yarn friction coefficient were tested and analysed.
INTENSIFICATION OF MASS TRANSFER IN WET TEXTILE PROCESSES BY POWER ULTRASOUND
Authors: Moholkar V. S. , Nierstrasz V. A. , Warmoeskerken M. M. C. G.
Published: December 2023

In industrial textile pre-treatment and finishing processes, mass transfer and mass transport are often rate-limiting. As a result, these processes require a relatively long residence time, large amounts of water and chemicals, and are also energy-consuming. In most of these processes, diffusion and convection in the inter-yarn and intra-yarn pores of the fabric are the limiting mass transport mechanisms. Intensification of mass transport, preferentially in the intra yarn pores, is key to the improvement of the efficiency of wet textile processes. Power ultrasound is a promising technique for accelerating mass transport in textile materials. In this paper, the intensification of mass transfer in textiles under the influence of ultrasound on the basis of a total system approach is described. EMPA 101-test fabric was selected as a model for the cleaning process. This study focuses on two aspects, the mechanism of the ultrasound-assisted cleaning process and the effect of the presence of the cloth on the ultrasound wave field generated in a bath. It has been found that the dissolved gas content in the system plays a dominant role in the cleaning process. The cleaning effects observed are explained by two different mechanisms: small-amplitude acoustic bubble oscillations and micro-jets (resulting from the collapse of acoustic bubbles in the boundary layer between the fabric and the bulk fluid) that give rise to convective mass transfer in the intra-yarn pores. It has also been observed that the overall power consumption of the system varies with the position of the fabric in the acoustic field. This variation is explained on the basis of a model involving the specific flow resistance of the fabric and the physical properties of the standing waves.
ELECTROACTIVE FABRICS AND WEARABLE BIOMONITORING DEVICES
Authors: Rossi Danilo De , Carpi Federico , Lorussi Federico , Mazzoldi Alberto , Paradiso Rita , Pasquale Scilingo Enzo , Tognetti Alessandro
Published: December 2023

Abstract

The implementation of truly wearable, instrumented garments which are capable of
recording biomechanical variables is crucial in several fields of application, from multimedia
to rehabilitation, from sport to artistic fields. In this paper we discuss wearable
devices (a smart shirt, a leotard and a glove) which can read and record the vital signs
and movements of a subject wearing the system. The sensing function of the garments is
based on piezo-resistive fabric sensors, based on carbon-loaded rubbers (CLR) and
different conductive materials.
SURFACE CHARACTERISATION OF LOW-TEMPERATURE PLASMA TREATED WOOL FIBRE
Authors: Chi-wai Kan , Kwong Chan , Chun-wah Marcus Yuen
Published: December 2023

Abstract

Previous investigation results revealed that after the Low-Temperature Plasma (LTP)
treatment, the hydrophilicity of wool fibres was improved significantly. Such an
improvement enhances the wool dyeing and finishing processes which might be due to
the wool surface changing to a more reactive one. In this paper, wool fibres were treated
with LTP with different gases, namely oxygen, nitrogen and a mixture of gases (25%
hydrogen, 75% nitrogen). Investigations showed that the chemical composition of the
wool fibre surface varied differently with different plasma. The variation of surface
composition influences the hydrophilicity of the wool fibres. The surface chemical
composition of the LTP-treated wool fibres was characterised by different
characterisation methods, namely FTIR-ATR, XPS and saturated adsorption value. The
experimental results of these methods are thoroughly discussed.