bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Blood–brain barrier damage and new onset refractory status epilepticus: An exploratory study using dynamic contrast‐enhanced magnetic resonance imaging
Authors: Li Huiping , Liu Xian , Wang Ruihong , Lu Aili , Ma Zhaohui , Wu Shibiao , Lu Hongji , Du Yaming , Deng Kan , Wang Lixin , Yuan Fang
Published: March 2023

Objective

This study was undertaken to characterize the blood–brain barrier (BBB) dysfunction in patients with new onset refractory status epilepticus (NORSE) using dynamic contrast‐enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE‐MRI).

Methods

This study included three groups of adult participants: patients with NORSE, encephalitis patients without status epilepticus (SE), and healthy subjects. These participants were retrospectively included from a prospective DCE‐MRI database of neurocritically ill patients and healthy subjects. The BBB permeability (Ktrans) in the hippocampus, basal ganglia, thalamus, claustrum, periventricular white matter, and cerebellum were measured and compared between these three groups.

Results

A total of seven patients with NORSE, 14 encephalitis patients without SE, and nine healthy subjects were included in this study. Among seven patients with NORSE, only one had a definite etiology (autoimmune encephalitis), and the rest were cryptogenic. Etiology of encephalitis patients without SE included viral (n = 2), bacterial (n = 8), tuberculous (n = 1), cryptococcal (n = 1), and cryptic (n = 2) encephalitis. Of these 14 encephalitis patients without SE, three patients had seizures. Compared to healthy controls, NORSE patients had significantly increased Ktrans values in the hippocampus (.73 vs. .02 × 10−3/min, p = .001) and basal ganglia (.61 vs. .003 × 10−3/min, p = .007) and a trend in the thalamus (.24 vs. .08 × 10−3/min, p = .017). Compared to encephalitis patients without SE, NORSE patients had significantly increased Ktrans values in the thalamus (.24 vs. .01 × 10−3/min, p = .002) and basal ganglia (.61 vs. .004 × 10−3/min, p = .013).

Significance

This exploratory study demonstrates that BBBs of NORSE patients were impaired diffusely, and BBB dysfunction in the basal ganglia and thalamus plays an important role in the pathophysiology of NORSE.
Range restriction, climate variability and human‐related risks imperil lizards world‐wide
Authors: Chen Chuanwu , Holyoak Marcel , Xu Junfeng , de Oliveira Caetano Gabriel Henrique , Wang Yanping
Published: March 2023

Aims

Identifying major reasons for species imperilment is a necessary step for conservation, but the degree to which we can generalize is hard for species‐rich yet less‐studied taxa, such as lizards. Here, we aim to bridge the gap by providing comprehensive analyses of the correlates and processes of species extinction and threats for global lizards.

Location

Global.

Time period

Current.

Major taxa studied

Lizards.

Methods

We compiled a dataset comprising extinction risk status, six intrinsic traits and seven extrinsic factors for 5256 lizard species. We carried out binomial distribution tests for 43 families and seven realms to check the non‐randomness in species extinction risk and used phylogenetic linear regressions to identify the key factors that relate to the extinction proneness of lizards and species subgroups. Based on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) threat assessment, we identified major threats for global lizards and for major families and regions.

Results

We found strong evidence of taxonomic and geographical non‐randomness in the extinction risk of lizards. Geographical range size, human footprint and density, insular endemism, temperature and precipitation seasonality, and body size were key predictors of extinction risk, and the first three factors were also important across families and realms. Moreover, newly described species were more likely to have a restricted range size and a higher extinction risk. Globally, the most detrimental threat was habitat destruction, while overexploitation, species invasion and climate change varied widely in importance among species groups.

Main conclusions

Overall, we highlight the detrimental influences of range restriction, climate variability and anthropogenic threats to species persistence. We suggest that lizards are potentially at high risk of extinction owing to widespread human disturbance and that species with extinction‐prone traits require conservation prioritization. Moreover, lizards of different families and regions require different management strategies because of variation in extinction‐risk correlates and threats.
Neurodiversity in the city: Exploring the complex geographies of belonging and exclusion in urban space
Authors: Kenna Therese
Published: March 2023

In this paper I develop an urban social geography of neurodiversity that attends to the plurality of neurodiversity and of neurodiverse experiences of the city. Geographers have remained relatively silent on issues of neurodiversity in the city and, as such, the perspectives and experiences of neurodiverse individuals remain vastly unreported. The city is a crucial spatial context of everyday life for those who are neurodiverse as it can present challenges due to its complex, unpredictable and fluid nature. Drawing on recent calls for the development of a relational geography of disability, this paper explores the intricate geographies of neurodiversity in the city, revealing ways urban spaces become spaces of belonging or exclusion for those who are neurodiverse. Urban spaces are experienced in diverse and complex ways, linked to a multitude of neurological differences and their intersections. The paper reveals social, spatial and temporal practices and processes through which urban spaces acquire meaning for those who are neurodiverse. The research offers important insights for urban planning and policy, particularly in terms of thinking complexly about neurodiversity and associated questions of inclusion and exclusion in the city. The paper concludes with a discussion of some future research directions for an urban geography of neurodiversity.
Cutaneous involvement in VEXAS syndrome: clinical and histopathologic findings
Authors: Hines Alexander S. , Mohandesi Nessa A. , Lehman Julia S. , Koster Matthew J. , Cantwell Hafsa M. , Alavi Afsaneh , Warrington Kenneth J. , Mangaonkar Abhishek A. , Go Ronald S. , Patnaik Mrinal M. , Sartori‐Valinotti Julio C.
Published: March 2023

Background

VEXAS (vacuoles, E1 enzyme, X‐linked, autoinflammatory, somatic) syndrome is an autoinflammatory disease with frequent cutaneous manifestations.

Methods

We conducted a retrospective study of all patients with genetically confirmed VEXAS syndrome seen at our institution. Available clinical photographs and skin biopsy slides were reviewed.

Results

Cutaneous manifestations developed in 22/25 (88%) patients with VEXAS syndrome. From this group, 10/22 (45%) developed skin involvement before or at the time of other clinical features of VEXAS. Twenty distinct dermatologic presentations of VEXAS from 14 patients were reviewed, and histopathologic patterns were classified as follows: neutrophilic urticarial dermatosis (n = 5, 25%), leukocytoclastic/urticarial vasculitis (n = 4, 20%), urticarial tissue reaction (n = 4, 20%), neutrophilic dermatosis (n = 3, 15%), neutrophilic panniculitis (n = 2, 10%), and nonspecific chronic septal panniculitis (n = 2, 10%). Common systemic findings included macrocytic anemia (96%), fever (88%), thrombocytopenia (76%), weight loss (76%), ocular inflammation (64%), pulmonary infiltrates (56%), deep venous thrombosis or pulmonary embolism (52%), and inflammatory arthritis (52%).

Conclusions

Cutaneous involvement is a common feature of VEXAS syndrome, and histopathologic findings exist on a spectrum of neutrophilic inflammatory dermatoses.
Synthesis, mechanical, and thermophysical properties of high‐entropy (Zr,Ti,Nb,Ta,Hf)C0.8 ceramic
Authors: Tan Yongqiang , Liao Wei , Teng Zhen , Zhang Haibin
Published: March 2023

Two high‐entropy carbides, including stoichiometric (Zr,Ti,Nb,Ta,Hf)C and nonstoichiometric (Zr,Ti,Nb,Ta,Hf)C0.8, were prepared from monocarbides and ZrH2. Their sinterability, microstructures, mechanical properties, thermophysical properties, and oxidation behaviors were systematically compared. With the introduction of carbon vacancy, the sintering temperature was lowered up to 300°C, Vickers hardness was almost unaffected, whereas the strength decreased significantly generally due to the decrease of covalent bonds. The thermal conductivity shows a 50% decrease for nonstoichiometry high‐entropy carbide, which is a major consequence of the lower electrical conductivity. The oxidation resistance in high temperature water vapor was not sensitive to carbon stoichiometry.
Tax1 binding protein 3 regulates osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation through inactivating Wnt/β‐catenin signalling
Authors: Wang Yi , Gan Ying , Dong Yuan , Zhou Jie , Zhu Endong , Yuan Hairui , Li Xiaoxia , Wang Baoli
Published: March 2023

Tax1 binding protein 3 (Tax1bp3) is a PDZ domain‐containing protein that is overexpressed in cancer. Previous studies recognized Tax1bp3 as an inhibitor of β‐catenin. Till now it is not known whether Tax1bp3 regulates osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation of mesenchymal progenitor cells. In the current study, the data showed that Tax1bp3 was expressed in bone and was increased in the progenitor cells when induced toward osteoblast and adipocyte differentiation. The overexpression of Tax1bp3 in the progenitor cells inhibited osteogenic differentiation and conversely stimulated adipogenic differentiation, and the knockdown of Tax1bp3 affected the differentiation of the progenitor cells oppositely. Ex vivo experiments using the primary calvarial osteoblasts from osteoblast‐specific Tax1bp3 knock‐in mice also demonstrated the anti‐osteogenic and pro‐adipogenic function of Tax1bp3. Mechanistic investigations revealed that Tax1bp3 inhibited the activation of canonical Wnt/β‐catenin and bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs)/Smads signalling pathways. Taken together, the current study has provided evidences demonstrating that Tax1bp3 inactivates Wnt/β‐catenin and BMPs/Smads signalling pathways and reciprocally regulates osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation from mesenchymal progenitor cells. The inactivation of Wnt/β‐catenin signalling may be involved in the reciprocal role of Tax1bp3.
Examining the potential for resource‐dependent female reproductive fluid‐sperm interactive effects in a livebearing fish
Authors: Fernlund Isaksson Erika , Fitzpatrick John L.
Published: March 2023

Sexually selected traits can be costly to produce and maintain. The amount of resources available to an individual is therefore expected to influence investment in costly sexual traits. While resource‐dependent expression of sexually selected traits has traditionally been examined in males, resource limitation can also influence how sexual selection operates in females. Female reproductive fluids are thought to be costly to produce and may play an important role in shaping the outcome of postcopulatory sexual selection by influencing sperm performance. However, we know surprisingly little about whether and how female reproductive fluids are influenced by resource limitation. Here, we examine if resource restriction influences female reproductive fluid‐sperm interactive effects in the pygmy halfbeak (Dermogenys collettei), a small internally fertilizing freshwater fish where females store sperm. After experimentally altering female diets (high vs. restricted diets), we compared how female reproductive fluids influence two key metrics of sperm quality: sperm viability and velocity. While female reproductive fluids enhanced sperm viability and velocity, we found no evidence that female diet influenced the interactive effect between female reproductive fluids and sperm viability or velocity. Our findings build on the growing evidence that female reproductive fluids influence sperm performance and call for further attention to be devoted to understanding how resource quantity and quality influence how female reproductive fluids affect sperm performance.
Immunostaining for hepatitis B viral antigens in liver: Association with clinical, biochemical, and virologic features of disease
Authors: Kleiner David E , Lisker‐Melman Mauricio , Wahed Abdus S , Bhan Atul K , Nalesnik Michael A , Choi Eun‐Young K , Leonard Kelsey K , Ghany Marc G , Chung Raymond T , Di Bisceglie Adrian M ,   for the Hepatitis B Research Network
Published: March 2023

Background and Aim

Staining for hepatitis B viral antigens is often done in liver biopsies from patients with chronic hepatitis B, but its correlates with clinical phenotypes are not well described.

Methods

Biopsies were collected from a large cohort of adults and children with chronic hepatitis B viral infection through the Hepatitis B Research Network. Immunohistochemical staining of sections was done for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and hepatitis B core antigen (HBcAg) and then centrally read by the pathology committee. The degree of liver injury and pattern of staining were then correlated with clinical characteristics, including the clinical phenotype of hepatitis B.

Results

Biopsies from 467 subjects were studied, including 46 from children. Immunostaining for HBsAg was positive in 417 (90%) with scattered hepatocyte staining being the most common pattern. HBsAg staining correlated best with serum levels of HBsAg and hepatitis B viral DNA; the absence of HBsAg staining was often a prelude to loss of HBsAg from serum. HBcAg staining was positive in 225 (49%), and, while cytoplasmic staining was more frequent than nuclear staining, both nuclear and cytoplasmic positivity were often seen in the same specimen. Staining for HBcAg correlated with both level of viremia and liver injury. No biopsies from inactive carriers had stainable HBcAg, while 91% of the biopsies from those with hepatitis B e antigen‐positive chronic hepatitis B stained positively for HBcAg.

Conclusion

Immunostaining for hepatitis B viral antigens may yield helpful insights into liver disease pathogenesis but appears to add little to commonly used serological and biochemical blood tests.
Period Product Resources and Needs in Schools: A Statewide Survey of Missouri's School Nurses
Authors: Sebert Kuhlmann Anne , Palovick Kirstin A. , Teni Mintesnot T. , Hunter Emily
Published: March 2023

Background

School nurses play a vital role in ensuring the health and well‐being of their students, but little is known about menstrual products and resources available in schools. This study assessed period product resources and needs in Missouri schools from the perspective of school nurses and analyzed differences by district enrollment characteristics.

Methods

An electronic survey was emailed to public, charter, private, and parochial school nurses in Missouri who served fourth grade or older. From January through March 2022, 976 self‐administered surveys were completed (40% response rate). Logistic regressions examined the associations between student needs and district characteristics.

Results

Among the sample, 70.7% knew students who could not afford period products, and 68.0% knew students who had missed school because of their period. When controlling for district size, race/ethnicity, and urban/rural classification, as the percentage free‐ or reduced‐lunch (FRL) eligibility increases in a school, awareness of students struggling to afford products increases (AOR = 1.008, 95% confidence interval 1.000, 1.015).

Implications for School Health Policy, Practice, and Equity

School nurses need the resources and educational materials to support students to help reduce menstruation‐related absences.

Conclusions

Issues of period poverty cut across districts of differing enrollment characteristics, yet FRL percentage is an important predictor.
The origin of semilingualism: Nils‐Erik Hansegård and the cult of the mother tongue
Authors: Karlander David , Salö Linus
Published: March 2023

‘Semilingualism’ is one of the most questionable theories produced in the language sciences. Yet, little is known about its origins. We present a critical account of the history of semilingualism, tracing its roots in the work of Nils Erik Hansegård, (1918–2002), inaugural chair of Sámi at Umeå University (1975–1979), who developed a theory of semilingualism (halvspråkighet) in the 1960s. We show how Hansegård theorized semilingualism using ideas from Nazi German linguistics, producing an unforgiving theory of linguistic pathology directed at minoritized bilinguals in Sweden's far north.
No alterations in potential indirect markers of locus coeruleus–norepinephrine function in insomnia disorder
Authors: Frase Lukas , Feige Bernd , Gioia Isabella , Loeck Viveka K. , Domschke Katharina , Dressle Raphael J. , Kilian Hannah , Spiegelhalder Kai , Schläpfer Thomas , Riemann Dieter
Published: March 2023

The norepinephrine locus coeruleus system (LC NE) represents a promising treatment target in patients with insomnia disorder (ID) due to its well understood links to arousal and sleep regulation. However, consistent markers of LC NE activity are lacking. This study measured three potential indirect markers of LC NE activity – REM sleep, P3 amplitude during an auditory oddball paradigm (as a marker of phasic LC activation), and baseline pupil diameter (as a marker of tonic LC activation). The parameters were then combined in a statistical model and tested to compare LC NE activity between 20 subjects with insomnia disorder (13 female; age 44.2 ± 15.1 year) and 20 healthy, good sleeping controls (GSC; 11 female; age 45.4 ± 11.6 year). No group differences regarding the primary outcome parameters were detected. Specifically, insomnia disorder did not display the hypothesised changes in markers of LC NE function. While increased LC NE function remains an interesting speculative pathway for hyperarousal in insomnia disorder, the investigated markers do not appear closely related to each other and fail to discriminate between insomnia disorder and good sleeping controls in these samples.
Marketing of commercial milk formula during COVID‐19 in Indonesia
Authors: Hidayana Irma , Prawindarti Lianita , Umar Nia , Ambarwati Kusmayra , Rosatriani Fitria
Published: March 2023

Baby food marketing poses a substantial barrier to breastfeeding, which adversely affects mothers' and children's health. Over the last decade, the baby food industry has utilised various marketing tactics in Indonesia, including direct marketing to mothers and promoting products in public spaces and within the healthcare system. This study examined the marketing of commercial milk formula (CMF) and other breast‐milk substitute products during the COVID‐19 pandemic in Indonesia. Using a local, community‐based reporting platform, information on publicly reported violations of the International Code of Marketing of Breast‐milk Substitutes and subsequent World Health Assembly resolutions (the Code) was collected. It was found that a total of 889 reported cases of unethical marketing of such products were recorded primarily through social media from May 20 through December 31, 2021. Our results suggest that the COVID‐19 pandemic has provided more opportunities for the baby food industry in Indonesia to attempt to circumvent the Code aggressively through online marketing strategies. These aggressive marketing activities include online advertisements, maternal child health and nutrition webinars, Instagram sessions with experts, and heavy engagement of health professionals and social media influencers. Moreover, product donations and assistance with COVID‐19 vaccination services were commonly used to create a positive image of the baby food industry in violation of the Code. Therefore, there is an urgent need to regulate the online marketing of milk formula and all food and beverage products for children under the age of 3.
Provision of low‐aflatoxin local complementary porridge flour reduced urinary aflatoxin biomarker in children aged 6–18 months in rural Tanzania
Authors: Kassim Neema , Ngure Francis , Smith Laura , Turner Paul C. , Stoltzfus Rebecca , Makule Edna , Makori Nyabasi , Phillips Erica
Published: March 2023

Aflatoxins are toxic secondary metabolites of fungi that colonize staple food crops, such as maize and groundnut, frequently used in complementary feeding. In preparation for a large trial, this pilot study examined if provision of a low‐aflatoxin infant porridge flour made from local maize and groundnuts reduced the prevalence of a urinary aflatoxin biomarker in infants. Thirty‐six infants aged 6–18 months were included from four villages in Kongwa District, Tanzania. The study was conducted over 12 days with a three‐day baseline period and a 10 days where low‐AF porridge flour was provided. Porridge intake of infants was assessed using quantitative 24‐h recalls by mothers. Household food ingredients used in infant porridge preparation and urine samples were collected on Days 1–3 (baseline) and 10–12 (follow‐up). Aflatoxins were measured in household foods, and AFM1 was measured in urine. At baseline and follow‐up, 78% and 97%, respectively, of the infants consumed porridge in the previous 24 h, with a median volume of 220 mL (interquartile range [IQR]: 201, 318) and 460 mL (IQR: 430, 563), respectively (p < 0.001). All 47 samples of homemade flour/ingredients were contaminated with AFs (0.3–723 ng/g). The overall prevalence of individuals with detectable urinary AFM1 was reduced by 81%, from 15/36 (42%) at baseline to 3/36 (8%) at follow‐up (p = 0.003). Provision of low‐aflatoxin porridge flour was acceptable to caregivers and their infants and successfully reduced the prevalence of detectable urinary AFM1 in infants, thus, confirming its potential to be tested in future large‐scale health outcomes trial.
A brief compassion focused therapy intervention can help self‐critical parents and their children: A randomised controlled trial
Authors: Kirby James N. , Hoang April , Ramos Norman
Published: March 2023

Background

Parents can be highly self‐critical of their own parenting, which can negatively impact parenting style and child outcomes.

Aims

The aim of this randomised controlled trial (RCT) was to examine the efficacy of a brief 2‐hour Compassion Focused Therapy intervention (CFT) for parents to determine if it can reduce self‐criticism, improve parenting and improve child social, emotional and behavioural outcomes.

Materials & Methods

In total, 102 parents (87 mothers) were randomised to either a CFT intervention (n = 48) or waitlist control group (n = 54). Participants were measured at pre‐, 2‐week post‐intervention and the CFT group again at 3‐month follow‐up.

Results

At 2‐week post‐intervention parents in the CFT group compared to waitlist control had significantly reduced levels of self‐criticism, significant reductions in child emotional and peer problems, but no changes in parental style. At 3‐month follow‐up, these outcomes improved, with self‐criticism further decreasing, parental hostility and verbosity decreasing, as well as a range of childhood improvements.

Conclusion

The results from this first RCT evaluation of a brief 2‐hour CFT intervention for parents show promise for not only improving how parents relate to themselves with self‐criticism and self‐reassurance, but also for improving parenting styles and child outcomes.
The Molly Hootch Schools After 40 Years: Successes, Failures, and Opportunities
Authors: Drew Jody , Allen Erica , Matt John
Published: March 2023

This quantitative study was designed to understand the relationship between the variables of student attendance, educator experience and turnover, and student achievement at the Molly Hootch schools in rural Alaska, to better understand the current state of achievement according to data from 2002–2019, collected from the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development (AKDEED) database. Data revealed that Molly Hootch school attendance was at 90% and that proficiency among students dropped from 40% to 15% during the years under review. The drop in proficiency during a time period where attendance level was strong leads to further qualitative exploration of the causes of the phenomenon.
The Impact of Digital Media Learning Apps on Students' Behaviors in Distance Learning During COVID-19 at the University of Jordan
Authors: Habes Mohammed , Alghizzawi Mahmoud , Ahmad Amer Khaled , Almuhaisen Orouba
Published: March 2023

The Corona pandemic created many challenges for all sectors. However, confronting these challenges was easy due to the availability of Information Communication Technology. ICT penetration and usage are largely facilitated especially, in the educational arenas are attaining several benefactions. In the current research, the researcher focused on the Microsoft Team application and the extent to which students accept the e-learning process through it. To achieve the research objectives, the experimental method was adopted by designing an electronic questionnaire distributed among n= 250 students from the College of Languages, University of Jordan. The researcher further executed Structural Equation Modelling for the data analysis and assessing the study model. The results revealed that usability, perceived ease of use, and usefulness, all are major factors that motivate students to use Microsoft Teams Application. As they widely depend on the Microsoft Teams application, it also helps them to continue their educational activities through digital means.
The Role of Jordanian Electronic Newspapers in Educating the Jordanian Public about Security Issues
Authors: Haddad Ismat Thalji Farhan
Published: March 2023

The study aimed to find out the degree of follow-up of the Jordanian public to security issues in Jordanian electronic newspapers, and the effects of this follow-up through the use of the media audience survey method by applying it to a sample of (450) individuals of the Jordanian public. The study found that the vast percentage of respondents (82.7%) follow up on different degrees of security issues in Jordanian electronic newspapers for many reasons, most notably "understanding security issues affecting society. Al-Rai newspaper came at the forefront of the newspapers through which respondents follow these issues, and the issues of protests and sit-ins came at the forefront of the issues they follow, and the most prominent cognitive effects of the respondents' follow-up to security issues were "increasing knowledge of security issues inside Jordan. The most prominent emotional effects were in "arousing sympathy for victims of terrorist operations," while the most prominent behavioral effects were "sharing security topics through social media platforms."
Facebook as a Contemporary Public Sphere for Opinion Expression and Participation: Jordan as a Case Study
Authors: Aljalabneh Abd Allah Sultan , Alzoubi Ashraf Faleh , Shlool Hatem
Published: March 2023

Social media has been changing the way Jordanians consume news and engage in politics. The ongoing debate surrounding social media's potential as a public sphere and as a tool for contributing to democracy motivates this paper's inquiry. Drawing on Dahlgren's three dimensions of the Public Sphere, this paper examines a case study in which young Jordanians used Facebook to express their opinions and participate in a news story about the new drafts of the election and political parties' laws in Jordan. This qualitative study utilized semi-structured interviews to investigate students at Zarqa University. The study found that the participants used Facebook to express their voices, stay informed, and engage in news stories. Facebook was found to be a platform that provides news information and enables communication, which leads to participation (the structural dimension). Additionally, the study revealed that Facebook, as a social media platform, provides an unrestricted space for the public to share information and express their voices (the representational dimension). Finally, the study found that the participants primarily engaged with news stories through posting, commenting, or sharing videos but were lacking in offline participation in real-life settings such as seminars, conferences, and public discussions (the interactional dimension).
Why New Media app during the Healthcare Crisis? WhatsApp Based Study
Authors: Al Adwan Muhammad Noor , Safori Amjad , Habes Mohammed , Ali Sana
Published: March 2023

WhatsApp is one of the most popular mobile applications providing instant messaging and ease of access. It uses web-based systems to send and receive texts, calls, and videos and even offers video chat. However, during the current healthcare crisis, WhatsApp's role is comparatively more prominent and needs more consideration. In this context, we conducted this research to examine the factors motivating students to rely more on WhatsApp during the Covid-19 pandemic. Based on the Uses and Gratifications Approach, we adopted a cross-sectional design and gathered data from university students in Islamabad, Pakistan. Findings from n= 302 university-level students affirmed communication (p≥ .000), learning (p≥ .002), Teamwork (p≥ .041), and information sharing (p≥ .000) as the motivating factors behind increased WhatsApp usage (p≥ .011) during the healthcare crisis. Similarly, path analysis results also validated a strong correlation between the variables, further affirming the strength of the proposed conceptual framework. Thus, WhatsApp not only provided ease of communication during Covid-19 but also helped sustain educational activities. Here we recommend more studies to examine other different factors, especially personality factors that can affect one's WhatsApp usage.
'A Taste of Hell': Fires, Landscapes, Emotions, and Renewal
Authors: Moore Grace
Published: March 2023

Australian settler fiction and poetry stage shifting notions of temporality in relation to bushfires. The fire was an important plot device in settler writing, initially adding a touch of local colour for readers back home in England through stories of melodramatic rescue. However, by the end of the nineteenth century, understandings of fire had begun to change, as settlers began to learn that fires were not simply one-off catastrophes, but rather they were recurring phenomena. Underpinning my arguments with theories of affect, in particular Brian Massumi’s work on ‘fear of future fire’ and the philosopher Alexander Bain’s work on trauma, I argue that as settlers became increasingly conscious of the cyclicality of bushfires, their understandings of time and its relation to landscape altered. Realist writing responded to this deepening knowledge of the Australian environment, and instead of emphasizing the fleeting drama of a fire, fiction began to focus on its seasonal return. These stories and poems highlight the extreme vigilance that accompanies heightened knowledge and memories of the land. We see characters waiting for fires to arrive in scenes that are often agonizing in their slow pace, leaving them caught, as Barbara Eckstein expresses it, ‘between bushfire and approaching’ (Eckstein 2014, 256). Yet we also see bushfires, both actual and anticipated, accumulate memories of fires that have come before, and the devastation they have caused.
 
 
Memory and nostalgia play important and complicated roles in attempts to mediate and manage the Australian landscape, exposing the fiction of a land that could be tamed or pastoralized to become just like the home settlers had left behind. Drawing on the fire historian Tom Griffiths’ notion of the amnesia that enables survivors of bushfires to return to the site of the blaze and to build anew, I examine representations of characters who doggedly rebuild their old lives. In particular, I consider the fraught nature of ‘willed amnesia’ or the denial of the reality that fire will return, while also considering connections between memory and place.
 
 
Keywords: bushfires; memory; disaster; fear; Australian settler culture
Last Fish, Phantom Islands, and Reef Ruins: Unsettling Logics of Permanence
Authors: Allen Jeffner
Published: March 2023

At the core of this contribution are reflections about catastrophe in the context of the coral reef communities of eastern Sulawesi, and about modes of thinking, imagining, understanding, and being-in-relation. To that end, the writing unsettles and challenges expectations of a stable point of view from which catastrophic events, which are inseparable from how they are conceived, might be overseen. Local sayings and transregional scholarship regarding those say-ings offer a vital repository of knowledge and ways of knowing that is integral to this work. A proverb, Sama tales, and multiple narratives of the volcanic eruptions on the island of Una-Una foreground the navigation of change and impermanence by the communities and creatures of land and sea that inhabit the surrounding waters. The author, a philosopher, poet, and diver, begins the composition gazing upward from within the currents, as the reef awakens just before dawn.
Keywords: reef communities; Sulawesi; proverb; volcanic eruption; living-through
Introduction: Refiguring Disaster Temporalities
Authors: Prentice Chris
Published: March 2023

The introduction to this special section notes the wide range of disciplines and interdisciplinary fields that have begun to address questions of disaster, including questions of time, or temporality, that emerge in relation to definitions, understandings, and experiences of disaster. Following a discussion of selected scholarly works that focus on the role of arts, creative activities, or more generally aesthetic considerations in relation to disaster experiences, including ethical as well as formal or technical challenges facing the representation of disaster, the three essays that make up this special section are introduced.
The three essays explore questions of temporality that emerge in the context and aftermath of ‘environmental’ disaster — Australian bushfires, the Canterbury earthquakes of 2010–11, and reef ruins of eastern Sulawesi. More specifically, they address the ways that aesthetic responses to, or treatment of, disaster in creative arts both reveal and refigure disaster temporalities in affective terms, often with ethical implications.
 
Keywords: disaster, environment, temporality, art, affect
Development of Nanobodies as Theranostic Agents against CMY-2-Like Class C β-Lactamases
Authors: Cawez Frédéric , Mercuri Paola Sandra , Morales-Yãnez Francisco Javier , Maalouf Rita , Vandevenne Marylène , Kerff Frederic , Guérin Virginie , Mainil Jacques , Thiry Damien , Saulmont Marc , Vanderplasschen Alain , Lafaye Pierre , Aymé Gabriel , Bogaerts Pierre , Dumoulin Mireille , Galleni Moreno
Published: March 2023

Three soluble single-domain fragments derived from the unique variable region of camelid heavy-chain antibodies (VHHs) against the CMY-2 β-lactamase behaved as inhibitors. The structure of the complex VHH cAb
CMY-2
(254)/CMY-2 showed that the epitope is close to the active site and that the CDR3 of the VHH protrudes into the catalytic site.
mSphere of Influence: the Young Investigators in Parasitology Meeting—Investing in the Future of Our Scientific Community by Lifting Up and Connecting Junior Faculty
Authors: Mugnier Monica R. , Ho Chi-Min
Published: March 2023

Drs. Monica Mugnier and Chi-Min Ho work in the field of parasitology.
Ultrahigh-pressure mantle metasomatism in continental collision zones recorded by post-collisional mafic rocks
Authors: Gao Mingdi , Xu Haijin , Foley Stephen F. , Zhang Junfeng , Wang Yu
Published: March 2023

Post-collisional mafic magmas are melts of mixed sources formed by the interaction between crust and mantle. We report the first identification of metasomatic sources formed at >200 km in continental collision zones that led to the Triassic post-collisional Shidao mafic magmas in the Sulu ultrahigh-pressure terrane, eastern China. The Shidao magmas are ultrapotassic with low Rb/K2O and Rb/Sr ratios, highlighting a major contribution of K-richterite to the melts, and with high Dy/Yb ratios indicating residual garnet in the source. Experiments have demonstrated that K-richterite coexists with garnet only at pressures higher than 6−7 GPa, which indicates that the Yangtze continental crust was subducted to >200 km, where it interacted with the overlying mantle to produce K-richterite + garnet-bearing assemblages. This ultra-deep source of the Shidao magmas spotlights an alternative mechanism for the genesis of post-collisional magmas, which are generally of shallow origin.
Insights into magma dynamics at Etna (Sicily) from SO2 and HCl fluxes during the 2008–2009 eruption
Authors: Spina A. La , Burton M. , Salerno G. , Caltabiano T.
Published: March 2023

Magma convection, where low-viscosity, gas-rich magma ascends, degasses, and crystallizes before sinking down the same conduit in either annular or side-by-side flows, has been proposed for active basaltic volcanoes, where excess gas fluxes relative to erupted lava volume can be observed. Experimental studies show that convection is produced by buoyant ascending gas-rich magma and descending degassed magmas following density difference contrast, while geophysical studies point to the endogenous growth of active volcanoes through magma accumulation in plutons. However, many aspects of the convection process remain unclear, in particular, the depth to which magma ascends before overturning. Models have been proposed where overturn occurs near the surface and also at depths greater than 2 km from the top of the magma-filled conduit. The long-term monitoring of volcanic gas compositions may reveal new insights into the convection process, as each gas has a unique solubility-pressure profile. We report measurements of SO2 and HCl gas fluxes from Etna between October 2007 and May 2011, in which an ~90% collapse in halogen flux was observed together with an effusive eruption. This observation indicates that the halogen fluxes, during quiescent periods on Etna, require both magma supply to the shallowest levels and a period of residence. The lava effusion has the effect of reducing the shallow residence time, drastically reducing the halogen flux. These results provide a new interpretative framework for the degassing process and gas composition monitoring to explain subtle variations in magma supply and residence times in basaltic volcanism.
Hydrothermal sulfate surges promote rare earth element transport and mineralization
Authors: Wan Ye , Chou I-Ming , Wang Xiaolin , Wang Ruoheng , Li Xiaochun
Published: March 2023

The generation of sulfate-rich hydrothermal fluids is of great significance to investigate because it is closely associated with the formation of many important ore deposits, such as hydrothermal rare earth element (REE) deposits. However, the transport of REEs in sulfate-rich hydrothermal fluids is complicated by the retrograde solubility of common sulfate minerals depicted in current thermodynamic models. We present in situ and ex situ hydrothermal experimental evidence suggesting that the solubility of alkali sulfate changes from retrograde at low pressures to prograde at elevated pressures. Accordingly, we propose a sulfate surge temperature and pressure (T-P) window (250 °C, 90 MPa), above which the solubility of alkali sulfate increases significantly with increasing P and T. Although REE sulfates are weakly soluble in water, sulfate-rich hydrothermal fluids can transport high contents of REEs under the T-P conditions above the sulfate-surge window. Our results indicate that depressurization, cooling, and alkali loss are key factors controlling REE mineralization, which agrees well with geological observations.
Identifying high-risk profile in primary antiphospholipid syndrome through cluster analysis: French multicentric cohort study
Authors: Guedon Alexis F , Ricard Laure , Laurent Charlotte , De Moreuil Claire , Urbanski Geoffrey , Deriaz Sophie , Gerotziafas Grigorios , Elalamy Ismail , Audemard Alexandra , Chasset Francois , Alamowitch Sonia , Sellam Jérémie , Boffa Jean Jacques , Cohen Ariel , Wahl Clémentine , Abisror Noemie , Maillot François , Fain Olivier , Mekinian Arsène
Published: March 2023

Introduction

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune disease characterised by thrombosis (arterial, venous or small vessel) or obstetrical events and persistent antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL), according to the Sydney classification criteria. Many studies have performed cluster analyses among patients with primary APS and associated autoimmune disease, but none has focused solely on primary APS. We aimed to perform a cluster analysis among patients with primary APS and asymptomatic aPL carriers without any autoimmune disease, to assess prognostic value.

Methods

In this multicentre French cohort study, we included all patients with persistent APS antibodies (Sydney criteria) measured between January 2012 and January 2019. We excluded all patients with systemic lupus erythematosus or other systemic autoimmune diseases. We performed hierarchical cluster analysis on the factor analysis of mixed data coordinates results with baseline patient characteristics to generate clusters.

Results

We identified four clusters: cluster 1, comprising ‘asymptomatic aPL carriers’, with low risk of events during follow-up; cluster 2, the ‘male thrombotic phenotype’, with older patients and more venous thromboembolic events; cluster 3, the ‘female obstetrical phenotype’, with obstetrical and thrombotic events; and cluster 4, ‘high-risk APS’, which included younger patients with more frequent triple positivity, antinuclear antibodies, non-criteria manifestations and arterial events. Regarding survival analyses, asymptomatic aPL carriers relapsed less frequently than the others, but no other differences in terms of relapse rates or deaths were found between clusters.

Conclusions

We identified four clusters among patients with primary APS, one of which was ‘high-risk APS’. Clustering-based treatment strategies should be explored in future prospective studies.
Stable incidence but increase in prevalence of ANCA-associated vasculitis in southern Sweden: a 23-year study
Authors: Rathmann Jens , Segelmark Mårten , Englund Martin , Mohammad Aladdin J
Published: March 2023

Objective

To update the epidemiology of anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis (AAV) in a defined geographical area of southern Sweden.

Methods

The study area comprised 14 municipalities with a combined adult population (≥18 years) of 623 872 in 2019. All cases diagnosed with AAV in 1997–2019 in the study area were included in the estimate of incidence. Diagnosis of AAV was verified by case record review, and cases were classified using the European Medicines Agency algorithm. Point prevalence was estimated on 01 January 2020.

Results

Three hundred and seventy-four patients (median age 67.5 years, 47% female) were diagnosed with new-onset AAV during the study period. One hundred and ninety-two were classified as granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA), 159 as microscopic polyangiitis (MPA) and 23 as EGPA. The average annual incidence/million adults was 30.1 (95% CI 27.0 to 33.1) for AAV: 15.4 (95% CI 13.3 to 17.6) for GPA, 12.8 (95% CI 10.8 to 14.8) for MPA and 1.8 (95% CI 1.1 to 2.6) for eosinophilic GPA (EGPA). Incidence was stable during the study period, 30.3/million 1997–2003, 30.4/million 2004–2011 and 29.5/million 2012–2019. The incidence increased with age and was highest in age group 70–84 years (96/million adults). On 1 January 2020, the prevalence was 428/million adults and was higher in males than in females (480 vs 378/million).

Conclusions

The incidence of AAV in southern Sweden was found stable over the course of 23 years; while the prevalence has increased, which might indicate better management and treatment of AAV resulting in improved survival.
On the breakdown of space–time in general relativity
Authors: Chishtie Farrukh A.
Published: March 2023

Based on the canonical quantization of d > 2-dimensional general relativity (GR) via the Dirac constraint formalism (also termed as ‘constraint quantization’), we propose the loss of covariance as a fundamental property of the theory. This breakdown occurs for the first-order Einstein–Hilbert action, whereby the loss of diffeomorphism invariance, besides first-class constraints, second-class constraints also exist leading to non-standard ghost fields that render the path integral non-covariant. We also attempt, for the first time, the canonical quantization via calculation of the path integral for the equivalent Hamiltonian formulation of GR, for which only first-class constraints exist. However, loss of covariance still occurs in this action due to loss of diffeomorphism invariance and structures arising from non-covariant constraints in the path integral. In contrast, we find that covariance as a symmetry is restored and quantization with perturbative calculations is possible in the weak limit of the gravitational field of these actions. Hence, we first establish, for the first time, that the breakdown in space–time is a property of GR itself as its limitation, indicating it to be an effective field theory (EFT). We further propose that the breakdown of space–time occurs as a non-perturbative feature of GR in the strong field limit of the theory. Besides GR, we also note that covariance is preserved when constraint quantization is conducted for non-Abelian gauge theories, such as the Yang–Mills theory. These findings are novel from a canonical gravity formalism and EFT approach, and are consistent with GR singularity theorems, yet are general and extend them, as the singularity theorems indicate breakdown at a strong field limit of GR in black holes. Our findings are in contrast to the asymptotic safety program. They support emergent theories of space–time and gravity, though are unique, as they do not require thermodynamics such as the entropic gravity program. From an EFT view, these indicate that new degrees of freedom and(or) principles in the non-perturbative sector of the full theory are a requirement, whereby covariance as a symmetry is broken in the high-energy (strong field) sector of GR.
First-principle calculations on doped CrB4
Authors: Xiao ChenDa , Xu Min , Feng ShiQuan , Deng FeiRan , Huang Yi , Miao Feng , Xiang LingWei
Published: March 2023

The structural stability, electronic properties, the elastic properties, and the hardness of three C-doped CrB4 compounds were calculated by first-principle calculations method. The electronic properties were carried out to discuss the effect of doped C on the conductivity, chemical bonding components, and orbital hybridization of CrB4. What is more, we employed a semiempirical method to evaluate the hardness of these three crystals. Mechanical properties and large hardness of them indicate that they are hard materials. In addition, the influence of pressure on the elastic constants of the three structures is different. The c-axis direction of CrCB3 and CrC2B2 is relatively more difficult to compress.
Diverse wave structures to the modified Benjamin–Bona–Mahony equation in the optical illusions field
Authors: Wang Kang-Jia
Published: March 2023

In this work, the modified Benjamin–Bona–Mahony equation (MBBME), which has an important role in the optical illusions field, is investigated by three analytical methods, namely, the Bernoulli sub-equation function method, variational method and the Hamiltonian method. Abundant wave solutions expressed in the form of the exponential function, hyperbolic function and trigonometric function are obtained. Finally, the dynamic behaviors of the solutions are illustrated via the 3D plots, 2D contours and 2D curves with the help of Mathematica software, and their corresponding physical interpretations are also given. The ideas in this work are expected to provide some new enlightenment for the study of the exact solutions of the PDEs in optical physics.