bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Utilization of machine learning methods for predicting surgical outcomes after total knee arthroplasty
Authors: Mohammed Hina , Huang Yihe , Memtsoudis Stavros , Parks Michael , Huang Yuxiao , Ma Yan
Published: March 2022

Background

Predictive models could help clinicians identify risk factors that cause adverse events after total knee arthroplasty (TKA), allowing for appropriate preoperative preventive interventions and allocation of resources.

Methods

The National Inpatient Sample datasets from 2010–2014 were used to build Logistic Regression (LR), Gradient Boosting Method (GBM), Random Forest (RF), and Artificial Neural Network (ANN) predictive models for three clinically relevant outcomes after TKA—disposition at discharge, any post-surgical complications, and blood transfusion. Model performance was evaluated using the Brier scores as calibration measures, and area under the ROC curve (AUC) and F1 scores as discrimination measures.

Results

GBM-based predictive models were observed to have better calibration and discrimination than the other models; thus, indicating comparatively better overall performance. The Brier scores for GBM models predicting the outcomes under investigation ranged from 0.09–0.14, AUCs ranged from 79–87%, and F1-scores ranged from 41–73%. Variable importance analysis for GBM models revealed that admission month, patient location, and patient’s income level were significant predictors for all the outcomes. Additionally, any post-surgical complications and blood transfusions were significantly predicted by deficiency anemias, and discharge disposition by length of stay and age groups. Notably, any post-surgical complications were also significantly predicted by the patient undergoing blood transfusion.

Conclusions

The predictive abilities of the ML models were successfully demonstrated using data from the National Inpatient Sample (NIS), indicating a wide range of clinical applications for obtaining accurate prognoses of complications following orthopedic surgical procedures.
Inclusion strategies in multi-stakeholder dialogues: The case of a community-based participatory research on immunization in Nigeria
Authors: Akwataghibe Ngozi N. , Ogunsola Elijah A. , Broerse Jacqueline E. W. , Agbo Adanna I. , Dieleman Marjolein A.
Published: March 2022

Background

Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) has been used to address health disparities within several contexts by actively engaging communities. Though dialogues are recognized as a medium by which community members and other actors can make their voices heard through processes that support shared-decision making, power asymmetries often impede the achievement of this objective. Traditionally such relationship asymmetries exist between communities, health workers, and other professionals resulting in the exclusion of communities from decision making in participatory practices and dialogues. This study aimed to explore the experiences in the dialogues between different groups within communities, health workers and local government officials in a CBPR project on immunization in Nigeria. We adapted the framework by Elberse et al. (2011) to structure the possible exclusion mechanisms that could exist in dialogues between the three groups and we set up inclusion strategies to diminish the inequalities as much as possible.

Methods and findings

This is an exploratory and descriptive case study, using qualitative methods. Data was collected through observation and semi-structured interviews (SSI) with dialogue participants. All 24 participants in the multi-stakeholder dialogues were interviewed. Inclusion strategies involved creating enabling circumstances; influencing behaviour; and influencing use of language. Verbal and circumstantial strategies were of limited value in reducing exclusion. Behavioural inclusion strategies created more awareness of the importance of inclusion; and enabled different community stakeholders to direct their influences towards achieving the collective goals of the collaboration. An important learning is that if evidence is used in the dialogues, even when exclusion of certain individuals occurs, the outcomes could still favour them. A key issue is the difference between participation and representation and the need for more efficient ways of carrying out such interactive processes to ensure that the participation of the vulnerable groups is not merely symbolic. The study makes a case for the use of ‘boundary spanners’ in this dynamic—these are ‘elite’ individuals (or community champions) who can be a voice for the minorities and who could have the opportunity to influence decision making.

Conclusion

CBPR can enable local governments to develop effective partnerships with health workers and communities to achieve health-related goals even in the presence of asymmetries in relationships. Inclusion strategies in dialogues can improve participation and enable shared decision making, however exclusion of vulnerable groups may still occur. Intra-community dynamics and socio-cultural contexts can drive exclusion and less privileged community members require proper representation to enable their issues to be captured effectively.
Biosocial correlates of adolescent’s knowledge on pubertal changes in rural Bangladesh: A structural equation model
Authors: Methun Md Injamul Haq , Uddin M. Sheikh Giash , Hossain Md. Ismail , Habib Md. Jakaria , Saleheen Ahmed Abdus Saleh , Haq Iqramul
Published: March 2022

Background

The present study aimed to identify factors that are associated with puberty knowledge among school-going rural adolescents in Bangladesh.

Methods

This cross-sectional study was conducted on 2724 school-going (grades VI-IX) adolescents who were aged between 10–24 years. The adolescents resided only in rural areas of Bangladesh. In this study, relationship between socio-demographic factors and controlling behaviour was assessed considering Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological model. Considering the complex nature of Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological model the structural equation model to explore factors related to the Adolescents’ knowledge of pubertal changes.

Results

The structural equation model result showed a significant association among gender, education, age, and parental limit setting on daily activities with student’s knowledge on pubertal changes. peer connection, and peer regulation were associated with adolescent knowledge on puberty directly as well as through the mediator variables year of schooling, academic performance and, parental behavioural control.

Conclusion

Adolescents Age, years of schooling, and teachers concerns are positively associated with adolescents’ knowledge on puberty. Whereas, parents’ and peers’ controlling behaviors are negatively associated with adolescents’ understanding of pubertal changes. Therefore, there is needed an effective plan to raise the attention of parents and teachers on adolescents’ pubertal issues to ensure adolescents’ informed pubertal period.
Scheduling management and optimization analysis of intermediate products transfer in a shipyard for cruise ships
Authors: Liu Jiajie , Yin Jingbo , Khan Rafi Ullah
Published: March 2022

Shipbuilding is a complex and large-scale operation involving many intermediate products (blocks) and the frequent transfer of blocks among workshops and stockyards. The reasonable use of methods to complete the transfer scheduling of intermediate products is of great importance. In this paper, the blocks and the flat transporters are the research objects. Based on organizing the various logistical processes for blocks and the circulation process in the shipyard, we established a model that takes the task time window and other factors as constraints, and minimizes the sum of delay time and no-load time of flat transporters while satisfying the punctuality of scheduling tasks. Three conclusions are reached: (1)The flat transporter utilization rate is inversely related to the value of the objective function. The smaller the value of the objective function, the more the usage rate of a particular one (2) loading is the biggest obstacle to the overall working time of flat transporters, and a simple optimization model cannot solve this problem; and (3) based on the optimization model, the load efficiency of flat transporters can be improved, and the delivery time can be reduced.
Effect of COVID-19 pandemic on the implementation of a multimorbidity person-centered care model: A qualitative study from health teams’ perspective
Authors: Zamorano Paula , Tellez Alvaro , Muñoz Paulina , Sapag Jaime C. , Martinez Mayra
Published: March 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic has abruptly changed care priority and delivery, delaying others like the multimorbidity approach. The Centro de Innovación en Salud ANCORA UC, the Health National Fund, and the Servicio de Salud Metropolitano Sur Oriente implemented a Multimorbidity Patient-Centered Care Model as a pilot study in the public health network from 2017 to 2020. Its objective was to reorganize the single diagnosis standard care into a new one based on multimorbidity integrated care. It included incorporating new roles, services, and activities according to each patient’s risk stratification. This study aims to describe the perception of the health care teams regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on four main topics: how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the MCPM implementation, how participants adapted it, lessons learned, and recommendations for sustainability. We conducted a qualitative study with 35 semi-structured interviews between October and December 2020. Data analysis was codified, triangulated, and consolidated using MAXQDA 2020. Results showed that the pandemic paused the total of the implementation practically. Positive effects were the improvement of remote health care services, the activation of self-management, and the cohesion of the teamwork. In contrast, frequent abrupt changes and reorganization forced by pandemic evolution were negative effects. This study revealed the magnitude of the pandemic in the cancelation of health services and identified the urgent need to restart chronic services incorporating patient-centered care in our system.
Mast cell granule motility and exocytosis is driven by dynamic microtubule formation and kinesin-1 motor function
Authors: Ibanga Jeremies , Zhang Eric L. , Eitzen Gary , Guo Yitian
Published: March 2022

Mast cells are tissue-resident immune cells that have numerous cytoplasmic granules which contain preformed pro-inflammatory mediators. Upon antigen stimulation, sensitized mast cells undergo profound changes to their morphology and rapidly release granule mediators by regulated exocytosis, also known as degranulation. We have previously shown that Rho GTPases regulate exocytosis, which suggests that cytoskeleton remodeling is involved in granule transport. Here, we used live-cell imaging to analyze cytoskeleton remodeling and granule transport in real-time as mast cells were antigen stimulated. We found that granule transport to the cell periphery was coordinated by de novo microtubule formation and not F-actin. Kinesore, a drug that activates the microtubule motor kinesin-1 in the absence of cargo, inhibited microtubule-granule association and significantly reduced exocytosis. Likewise, shRNA knock-down of Kif5b, the kinesin-1 heavy chain, also reduced exocytosis. Imaging showed granules accumulated in the perinuclear region after kinesore treatment or Kif5b knock-down. Complete microtubule depolymerization with nocodazole or colchicine resulted in the same effect. A biochemically enriched granule fraction showed kinesin-1 levels increase in antigen-stimulated cells, but are reduced by pre-treatment with kinesore. Kinesore had no effect on the levels of Slp3, a mast cell granule cargo adaptor, in the granule-enriched fraction which suggests that cargo adaptor recruitment to granules is independent of motor association. Taken together, these results show that granules associate with microtubules and are driven by kinesin-1 to facilitate exocytosis.
Evaluating the impact of social determinants, conditional cash transfers and primary health care on HIV/AIDS: Study protocol of a retrospective and forecasting approach based on the data integration with a cohort of 100 million Brazilians
Authors: Rasella Davide , Morais Gabriel Alves de Sampaio , Anderle Rodrigo Volmir , Silva Andréa Ferreira da , Lua Iracema , Coelho Ronaldo , Rubio Felipe Alves , Magno Laio , Machado Daiane , Pescarini Julia , Souza Luis Eugênio , Macinko James , Dourado Inês
Published: March 2022

Background

Despite the great progress made over the last decades, stronger structural interventions are needed to end the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Low and Middle-Income Countries (LMIC). Brazil is one of the largest and data-richest LMIC, with rapidly changing socioeconomic characteristics and an important HIV/AIDS burden. Over the last two decades Brazil has also implemented the world’s largest Conditional Cash Transfer programs, the Bolsa Familia Program (BFP), and one of the most consolidated Primary Health Care (PHC) interventions, the Family Health Strategy (FHS).

Objective

We will evaluate the effects of socioeconomic determinants, BFP exposure and FHS coverage on HIV/AIDS incidence, treatment adherence, hospitalizations, case fatality, and mortality using unprecedently large aggregate and individual-level longitudinal data. Moreover, we will integrate the retrospective datasets and estimated parameters with comprehensive forecasting models to project HIV/AIDS incidence, prevalence and mortality scenarios up to 2030 according to future socioeconomic conditions and alternative policy implementations.

Methods and analysis

We will combine individual-level data from all national HIV/AIDS registries with large-scale databases, including the “100 Million Brazilian Cohort”, over a 19-year period (2000–2018). Several approaches will be used for the retrospective quasi-experimental impact evaluations, such as Regression Discontinuity Design (RDD), Random Administrative Delays (RAD) and Propensity Score Matching (PSM), combined with multivariable Poisson regressions for cohort analyses. Moreover, we will explore in depth lagged and long-term effects of changes in living conditions and in exposures to BFP and FHS. We will also investigate the effects of the interventions in a wide range of subpopulations. Finally, we will integrate such retrospective analyses with microsimulation, compartmental and agent-based models to forecast future HIV/AIDS scenarios.

Conclusion

The unprecedented datasets, analyzed through state-of-the-art quasi-experimental methods and innovative mathematical models will provide essential evidences to the understanding and control of HIV/AIDS epidemic in LMICs such as Brazil.
Larger visual changes compress time: The inverted effect of asemantic visual features on interval time perception
Authors: Malpica Sandra , Masia Belen , Herman Laura , Wetzstein Gordon , Eagleman David M. , Gutierrez Diego , Bylinskii Zoya , Sun Qi
Published: March 2022

Time perception is fluid and affected by manipulations to visual inputs. Previous literature shows that changes to low-level visual properties alter time judgments at the millisecond-level. At longer intervals, in the span of seconds and minutes, high-level cognitive effects (e.g., emotions, memories) elicited by visual inputs affect time perception, but these effects are confounded with semantic information in these inputs, and are therefore challenging to measure and control. In this work, we investigate the effect of asemantic visual properties (pure visual features devoid of emotional or semantic value) on interval time perception. Our experiments were conducted with binary and production tasks in both conventional and head-mounted displays, testing the effects of four different visual features (spatial luminance contrast, temporal frequency, field of view, and visual complexity). Our results reveal a consistent pattern: larger visual changes all shorten perceived time in intervals of up to 3min, remarkably contrary to their effect on millisecond-level perception. Our findings may help alter participants’ time perception, which can have broad real-world implications.
Odorant Binding Proteins (OBPs) and Odorant Receptors (ORs) of Anopheles stephensi: Identification and comparative insights
Authors: Zafar Zeeshan , Fatima Sidra , Bhatti Muhammad Faraz , Shah Farooq A. , Saud Zack , Butt Tariq M.
Published: March 2022

Anopheles stephensi is an important vector of malaria in the South Asia, the Middle East, and Eastern Africa. The olfactory system of An. stephensi plays an important role in host-seeking, oviposition, and feeding. Odorant binding proteins (OBPs) are globular proteins that play a pivotal role in insect olfaction by transporting semiochemicals through the sensillum lymph to odorant receptors (ORs). Custom motifs designed from annotated OBPs of Aedes aegypti, Drosophila melanogaster, and Anopheles gambiae were used for the identification of putative OBPs from protein sequences of the An. stephensi Indian strain. Further, BLASTp was also performed to identify missing OBPs and ORs. Subsequently, the presence of domains common to OBPs was confirmed. Identified OBPs were further classified into three sub-classes. Phylogenetic and syntenic analyses were carried out to find homology, and thus the evolutionary relationship between An. stephensi OBPs and ORs with those of An. gambiae, Ae. aegypti and D. melanogaster. Gene structure and physicochemical properties of the OBPs and ORs were also predicted. A total of 44 OBPs and 45 ORs were predicted from the protein sequences of An. stephensi. OBPs were further classified into the classic (27), atypical (10) and plus-C (7) OBP subclasses. The phylogeny revealed close relationship of An. stephensi OBPs and ORs with An. gambiae homologs whereas only five OBPs and two ORs of An. stephensi were related to Ae. aegypti OBPs and ORs, respectively. However, D. melanogaster OBPs and ORs were distantly rooted. Synteny analyses showed the presence of collinear block between the OBPs and ORs of An. stephensi and An. gambiae as well as Ae. aegypti’s. No homology was found with D. melanogaster OBPs and ORs. As an important component of the olfactory system, correctly identifying a species’ OBPs and ORs provide a valuable resource for downstream translational research that will ultimately aim to better control the malaria vector An. stephensi.
Biomechanical interactions of Schistosoma mansoni eggs with vascular endothelial cells facilitate egg extravasation
Authors: Yeh Yi-Ting , Skinner Danielle E. , Criado-Hidalgo Ernesto , Chen Natalie Shee , Garcia-De Herreros Antoni , El-Sakkary Nelly , Liu Lawrence , Zhang Shun , Kandasamy Adithan , Chien Shu , Lasheras Juan C. , del Álamo Juan C. , Caffrey Conor R.
Published: March 2022

The eggs of the parasitic blood fluke, Schistosoma, are the main drivers of the chronic pathologies associated with schistosomiasis, a disease of poverty afflicting approximately 220 million people worldwide. Eggs laid by Schistosoma mansoni in the bloodstream of the host are encapsulated by vascular endothelial cells (VECs), the first step in the migration of the egg from the blood stream into the lumen of the gut and eventual exit from the body. The biomechanics associated with encapsulation and extravasation of the egg are poorly understood. We demonstrate that S. mansoni eggs induce VECs to form two types of membrane extensions during encapsulation; filopodia that probe eggshell surfaces and intercellular nanotubes that presumably facilitate VEC communication. Encapsulation efficiency, the number of filopodia and intercellular nanotubes, and the length of these structures depend on the egg’s vitality and, to a lesser degree, its maturation state. During encapsulation, live eggs induce VEC contractility and membranous structures formation in a Rho/ROCK pathway-dependent manner. Using elastic hydrogels embedded with fluorescent microbeads as substrates to culture VECs, live eggs induce VECs to exert significantly greater contractile forces during encapsulation than dead eggs, which leads to 3D deformations on both the VEC monolayer and the flexible substrate underneath. These significant mechanical deformations cause the VEC monolayer tension to fluctuate with the eventual rupture of VEC junctions, thus facilitating egg transit out of the blood vessel. Overall, our data on the mechanical interplay between host VECs and the schistosome egg improve our understanding of how this parasite manipulates its immediate environment to maintain disease transmission.
Targeting the BspC-vimentin interaction to develop anti-virulence therapies during Group B streptococcal meningitis
Authors: Manzer Haider S. , Villarreal Ricardo I. , Doran Kelly S.
Published: March 2022

Bacterial infections are a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide and the rise of antibiotic resistance necessitates development of alternative treatments. Pathogen adhesins that bind to host cells initiate disease pathogenesis and represent potential therapeutic targets. We have shown previously that the BspC adhesin in Group BStreptococcus(GBS), the leading cause of bacterial neonatal meningitis, interacts with host vimentin to promote attachment to brain endothelium and disease development. Here we determined that the BspC variable (V-) domain contains the vimentin binding site and promotes GBS adherence to brain endothelium. Site directed mutagenesis identified a binding pocket necessary for GBS host cell interaction and development of meningitis. Using a virtual structure-based drug screen we identified compounds that targeted the V-domain binding pocket, which blocked GBS adherence and entry into the brainin vivo. These data indicate the utility of targeting the pathogen-host interface to develop anti-virulence therapeutics.
‘Moments in the Woods’: Gay cruising, Into the Woods and AIDS
Authors: Montondo Mark
Published: March 2022

Using drag performance as a tool to recuperate the meaning of queer subtext and readings, this article explores thematic intersections between staging coded queerness and the offstage queer practice of cruising in James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim’s 1987 musical Into the Woods. Though the temporal correlation of the musical’s 1987 Broadway production and the AIDS crisis raises the stakes of comparisons between cruising practices and the setting of the musical, this article does not aim to argue a subjectification of Into the Woods as AIDS parable; rather it asserts the necessity of performances that deliberately queer the canon.
‘Welcome to the Rock’: Come from Away as happiness machine
Authors: Renyk Grahame
Published: March 2022

Mainstream musicals rely on popular appeal. Even when the content is serious or tragic, the affective experience generated is generally pleasant. Almost by default, they are happy objects – veritable happiness-circulating machines capable of adhering their own pleasant affects to other objects, whether physical (e.g. things, bodies) or conceptual (e.g. values, ideals, myths). In this article, I explore Come from Away as a happiness-making machine capable of adhering its own happy affects to a homegrown mythos that imagines Canada (not unproblematically) as a welcoming utopia of tolerance and togetherness.
Rock Star/Movie Star: Power and Performance in Cinematic Rock Stardom, Landon Palmer (2020)
Authors: Sammartino Eleonora
Published: March 2022

Review of: Rock Star/Movie Star: Power and Performance in Cinematic Rock Stardom, Landon Palmer (2020)

New York: Oxford University Press, 274 pp.,

IBSN 978-0-19088-841-1, p/bk £22.99
Addressing environmental awareness through immersive VR experiences, gamification and hypothetical scenario development
Authors: Esmaeili Human , Thwaites Harold
Published: March 2022

This research article presents part of a series of VR experiences that are focusing on persisting and globally recognized environmental issues. The main objective of this project is to visualize and address the situation through a different window compared to traditional awareness programmes. Although increased consciousness about environmental issues has been widely achieved through various forms of media, the sense of being confronted with the ‘situation’ may have not been created yet. This means that traditional awareness programmes can visualize the environmental impacts of unsustainable human activities but may not be able to fabricate scenarios in which individuals can face relevant consequences. Encountering undesired environmental impacts such as glacier meltdown, sea level rise, or landfill crisis, are not part of the daily routine of urban inhabitants living in artificially harnessed lands. This was the main notion for this research project. The initial idea was to create inhabitable lands that are severely damaged by human activities furnished with elements such as deforestation, deceased animals, water pollution, etc. However, this idea seems to be slightly raw and non-constructive. Therefore, in the second approach, multiple hypothetical scenarios, including an actual, were developed to gradually lead the users to the destinations created by themselves. For the first milestone of this project a recycling VR game targeting the majority of age groups, while still containing dark and bright elements without leaving undesired memories, was developed. The game was first presented during Malaysia’s biggest United Nations concert/event Rock the Goals held on 25 September 2019 in Sunway University. The results from the pilot study and the data collected through user experience opened few windows for discussing possibilities of addressing environmental issues through VR. This article partly focuses on confrontation with undesired environmental impacts in full immersive VR experiences. The main discussion is centred around the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of various scenarios among different target audiences. Should we create virtual phobia from the environmental issues? Or must we focus on constructive educational experiences? Or a combination of both?
An art installation in action: Prototyping a virtual embodiment generator for the prevention of intrusive technology
Authors: Kenke Ralph
Published: March 2022

By engaging with network technologies on computers and digital devices, equipped with sensors such as cameras, we are part of the telematic society that can connect with people in real-time near as well as far apart. While digital technology enables us to connect and maintain relationships with other people, we still rely on virtual embodiment to represent our persona in the digital world. There is a range of visual representations that function as a virtual embodiment in the digital world, often a profile image, an avatar or a graphic device are used as a proxy. In this particular practice-based research project, I am exploring how the risks of sharing biometric data can be prevented, by prototyping an abstract virtual embodiment in an art installation. The computational design applied to procedures such as facial recognition driven by artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning can result in intrusive experiences. If the act of being detected or identified by AI becomes intrusive, are there ways we can use abstract virtual embodiments to represent ourselves without being detected? This visual essay is positioning the practice-based research in an art context while documenting the conceptual process of an interactive prototype.
Cybernetics of the Poor, Diedrich Diederichsen and Oier Etxeberria (eds) (2021)
Authors: Arar Raphael
Published: March 2022

Review of: Cybernetics of the Poor, Diedrich Diederichsen and Oier Etxeberria (eds) (2021)

Dijon: Les Presses du réel, 264 pp.,

ISBN 978-3-95679-593-0, p/bk, $24.95
Emersive VR: An expanded immersive VR practice
Authors: Chang Haoran
Published: March 2022

Creating an immersive isolated virtual environment is the canon in the current mainstream virtual reality (VR) practice and design. Audiences are usually situated in a singular and complete form of space in VR to receive the fully immersive experience. Nevertheless, in this article, I propose a different way of thinking about the practice and design of VR. Rather than seeing VR as a singular and isolated space in relation to other spaces, I am considering a potentiality to have a more expansive and reflexive VR practice and design. I call this emersive VR in contrast to immersive VR. Emersion is a concept borrowing from body ecology, which is a field based on the philosophy of awakening and consciousness. Emersion in body ecology is different from immersion in that people can still sustain self-consciousness without being subsumed by the other. In the notion of emersive VR, audiences are not located in a singular and complete virtual space but in a differential space between the physical and the virtual. The spatial difference is folded through the VR experience perceived by the audiences. In this article, I highlight two different approaches to construct an emersive VR experience: expanded sensory VR and reflexive storytelling. In both, audiences are not isolated in a singular virtual world but in a differential space with multiple embodiments. Emersive VR is a reconfiguration of immersive VR. It is to expand the idea of immersive VR and sketch a more dynamic future of VR as a critical medium.
Effects of testosterone and exercise training on bone microstructure of rats
Authors: Jota-Baptista Catarina , Faustino-Rocha Ana I. , Fardilha Margarida , Ferreira Rita , Oliveira Paula A. , Regueiro-Purriños Marta , Rodriguez-Altonaga José A. , Gonzalo-Orden José M. , Ginja Mário
Published: March 2022

Background and Aim: Male hypogonadism results from failure to produce physiological levels of testosterone. Testosterone in men is essential in masculine development, sperm production, and adult man's health. Osteoporosis is one of the consequences of hypogonadism. Regular physical exercise and exogenous testosterone administration are frequently used to prevent or treat this condition. This study aimed to understand the effects of lifelong exercise training and testosterone levels (isolated and together) in the main bone structure parameters.

Materials and Methods: A total of 24 rats were used and randomly divided into four groups: Control group (CG; n=6), exercised group (EG, n=6), testosterone group (TG, n=6), and testosterone EG (TEG, n=6). A micro-computed tomography equipment was used to evaluate 15 bone parameters.

Results: Both factors (exercise training and testosterone) seem to improve the bone resistance and microstructure, although in different bone characteristics. Testosterone influenced trabecular structure parameters, namely, connectivity density, trabecular number, and trabecular space. The exercise promoted alterations in bone structure as well, although, in most cases, in different bone structure parameters as bone mineral density and medullar mineral density.

Conclusion: Overall, exercise and testosterone therapy seems to have a synergistic contribution to the general bone structure and resistance. Further studies are warranted, comparing different individual factors, as gender, lifestyle, or testosterone protocols, to constantly improve the medical management of hypogonadism (and osteoporosis).
Identification of Streptomyces spp. from garbage dump soils in Surabaya, Indonesia
Authors: Kurnijasanti R. , Sudjarwo S. A.
Published: March 2022

Background and Aim: Streptomyces is a well-known agent of secondary metabolite production. This study aimed to identify Streptomyces spp. from garbage dump soils in Surabaya based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence. Moreover, the structure of new chemical compounds used for treating infectious diseases in humans, animals, and plants was elucidated.

Materials and Methods: We isolated Streptomyces spp. from garbage dump soils in Surabaya. In this study, all isolates were characterized according to phenotype, and they were also confirmed by 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis using real-time polymerase chain reaction. Multiple sequence alignment and molecular phylogeny analyses were conducted using the MEGA 5.0 software, and then the TREE VIEW program was used to display the phylogenetic tree. The level of DNA similarity was also evaluated using the basic local alignment search tool (BLAST) program and then compared with nucleotide sequences stored in the GenBank database using National Center for Biotechnology Information BLAST.

Results: The eight Streptomyces spp. showed different nucleotide sequence lengths in gel electrophoresis and photography, which is in accordance with the results observed in the phylogenetic tree. New types of Streptomyces spp., Sp-C, Sp-D, Sp-Ep, Sp-G, and Sp-I, were found from the waste heap in Surabaya. Of these, Sp-Ep was very closely related to Streptomyces indonesiasis and Streptomyces nashvillensis. Sp-F was identified as Streptomyces levis strain NRRL B-24299, and Sp-C was identified as Synodontis filamentosus. Sp-D was related to Sida javensis and Staphylococcus roseus. Sp-G was related to Streptomyces roseoviridis strain NBRC 12911 and Streptomyces thermocarboxydovorans strain AT52. Sp-I was related to Streptomyces cangkringensis and Streptomyces asiaticus. Finally, Sp-A was related to Sansevieria laurentii strain LMG 19959.

Conclusion: Based on the phylogenetic tree, new strains of Streptomyces isolate, namely, Sp-D, Sp-Ep, Sp-G, and Sp-I, were found in the garbage dump soils of Surabaya. This new strain can produce antibiotics to be used as an alternative to antibiotics; however, further research is needed to confirm the activity.
German social pedagogy and social work: the academic discourses mapping a changing historical relationship
Authors: Frampton Magnus
Published: March 2022

The term ‘social pedagogy’ was coined in Germany, a country which also provided fertile ground for the early development of social work. This article reconstructs the evolution of the two disciplines, which existed alongside one another for much of the twentieth century. It starts with their identities at the time of their early emergence, and then focuses on two formative periods: the early twentieth century, when both disciplines were in the nascent stages of independent development; and the late twentieth century, when they appeared to be in a state of amalgamation. In the course of this examination, Hämäläinen’s recent suggestion that social pedagogy can be regarded as a science, as a profession and in terms of its education is investigated. So too is Lorenz’s framework for considering a nation’s social professions in terms of social policy, civil society and academic discourse elements. Those academic discourses tied to the identity of the two professions offer an opportunity to pin down the slippery German concept of social pedagogy, demarcate it from social work and consider the path dependencies of each profession. This is carried out with particular reference to the early figures who shaped the disciplines, specifically Paul Natorp, Herman Nohl and Alice Salomon. The case of Germany reveals not only few uncontested definitions of the two professions, but also a clear formal separation for much of the twentieth century, which is best understood by considering historical, not contemporary arrangements.
O Cebrim Responde
Authors: CFF Cebrim /
Published: March 2022

O Cebrim Responde
The (in)coherence of Canadian refugee education policy with the United Nations’ strategy
Authors: Schutte Valerie Rose , Milley Peter , Dulude Eliane
Published: March 2022

This study assesses the coherence of Canada’s educational policy regime with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ (UNHCR) Refugee Education 2030 strategy. We articulate a theoretical framework that combines theories about policy coherence, policy attributes, and policy tools, which informs a two-phase methodology. First, we conducted jurisdiction-based scoping reviews of policies in Canada’s 13 provinces and territories which have constitutional authority over education. This yielded a sample of 155 documents, which we then analyzed for its vertical coherence with Refugee Education 2030. Our analysis focused on five categories of need in the UNHCR strategy with respect to refugee students, namely access to education, accelerated education, language education, mental health and psychosocial support, and special education. The findings reveal there are policies across Canada that target responses to the five categories of need. Although some policies are exemplary in their coherence with Refugee Education 2030, Canada’s refugee education policy regime is characterized by many inconsistencies and significant gaps. Policymakers in Canada could use the specific findings to develop or revise policies to address shortcomings. Researchers and policymakers in other countries who find value in our approach could replicate the study’s method in their own jurisdictions, using the instruments provided in appendices to identify strengths and gaps.
Women’s knowledge of the development and communication of children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)
Authors: Cybulska Justyna , Zając Ewelina
Published: March 2022

The aim of the article is to analyze the results of surveys on women’s knowledge about FAS and its consequences for the development of a child’s speech and communication. 130 women between 18 and 50 years old took part in the survey. A significant proportion of the surveyed women are aware of the problems and consequences of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome caused by the mother’s alcohol consumption during pregnancy.
Financial Literacy and Economic Growth: How Eastern Europe is Doing?
Authors: Pașa Adina Teodora , Picatoste Xose , Gherghina Elena Mădălina
Published: March 2022

In this study, we aim to analyse financial literacy as a driver of financial wellbeing and economic growth in three of the most recent EU Member States, namely Romania, Bulgaria, and Croatia. Our particular interest in studying more in-depth these three countries is generated by their difficult pathway in the transition to the Euro and economic convergence on one side and by the limited analysis carried out so far in relation to them on the other side. Various studies indicate that financial literacy is associated with wealth accumulation, and financial education can help achieve economic growth. To conduct the empirical analysis, in this study, we have used primary data provided by the OECD for our specific research purposes. The raw data were collected in a survey carried out in 2019 in seven South Eastern European countries reaching over 1,000 respondents for each country. We used two-stage least-squares regression to test our hypothesis and cluster analysis for comparisons among countries. Conclusions of our research reveal the main differences between countries in terms of financial literacy and reverse causality between financial literacy and economic growth for the analysed countries. Finally, the study gives some insights into the future design of public policies on financial education in these countries.
Crystal structure of (2,2′-((naphthalen-1-ylmethyl)azanediyl)diacetato-κ3
N,O,O′)-(1,10-phenanthroline-κ2
N,N′)-copper(II) trihydrate, CuC27H27N3O7
Authors: Xu Xingman , Sun Renqiang
Published: March 2022

CuC27H27N3O7, orthorhombic, Pca21 (no. 29), a = 22.9142(18) Å, b = 7.3271(6) Å, c = 14.7386(11) Å, V = 2474.5(3) Å3, Z = 4, R

gt
(F) = 0.0443, wR

ref
(F
2) = 0.0990, T = 294(2) K.
Nonlinear dynamic and crack behaviors of carbon nanotubes-reinforced composites with various geometries
Authors: Maharjan Ashish , Yu Piljo , Lee Sang-Youl
Published: March 2022

This study carried out finite element dynamic analyses of carbon nanotubes/fiber/polymer composites (CNTFPC) with various geometries. In the first application, the effects of CNTs on the nonlinear transient responses of doubly curved shells for various cutout sizes and curvatures are studied. The numerical results obtained are in good agreement with those reported by other investigators. For the practical application, the focus of this study is to evaluate various performances of concrete structures reinforced with a rebar-type CNTFPC. The new results reported in this article show the interactions between CNT weight ratios and crack sizes in CNTFPC-reinforced concrete structures. Key observation points are discussed and a brief design guideline is given.
The Eneolithic cemetery at Khvalynsk on the Volga River
Authors: Anthony David W. , Khokhlov A. A. , Agapov S. A. , Agapov D. S. , Schulting R. , Olalde I. , Reich D.
Published: March 2022

The genetically attested migrations of the third millennium BC have made the origins and nature of the Yamnaya culture a question of broad relevance across northern Eurasia. But none of the key archaeological sites most important for understanding the evolution of Yamnaya culture is published in western languages. These key sites include the fifth-millennium BC Khvalynsk cemetery in the middle Volga steppes. When the first part of the Eneolithic cemetery (Khvalynsk I) was discovered in 1977–1979, the graves displayed many material and ritual traits that were quickly recognized as similar and probably ancestral to Yamnaya customs, but without the Yamnaya kurgans. With the discovery of a second burial plot (Khvalynsk II) 120 m to the south in 1987–1988, Khvalynsk became the largest excavated Eneolithic cemetery in the Don-Volga-Ural steppes (201 recorded graves), dated about 4500–4300 BCE. It has the largest copper assemblage of the fifth millennium BC in the steppes (373 objects) and the largest assemblage of sacrificed domesticated animals (at least 106 sheep-goat, 29 cattle, and 16 horses); and it produced four polished stone maces from well-documented grave contexts. The human skeletons have been sampled extensively for ancient DNA, the basis for an analysis of family relationships. This report compiles information from the relevant Russian-language publications and from the archaeologists who excavated the site, two of whom are co-authors, about the history of excavations, radiocarbon dates, copper finds, domesticated animal sacrifices, polished stone maces, genetic and skeletal studies, and relationships with other steppe cultures as well as agricultural cultures of the North Caucasus (Svobodnoe-Meshoko) and southeastern Europe (Varna and Cucuteni-Tripol’ye B1). Khvalynsk is described as a coalescent culture, integrating and combining northern and southern elements, a hybrid that can be recognized genetically, in cranio-facial types, in exchanged artifacts, and in social segments within the cemetery. Stone maces symbolized the unification and integration of socially defined segments at Khvalynsk.
Influence of ettringite on the crack self-repairing of cement-based materials in a hydraulic environment
Authors: Zhang Yanfang , Wang Anhui , Zhan Qiwei , Zhou Juanlan , Zhang Yongsheng , Gu Weiyang
Published: March 2022

As a green and environmental protection method, the self-repairing technology has great expectations to be met. In this study, the influence of ettringite on the crack self-repairing of cement-based materials in a hydraulic environment was systematically analyzed. First, the composition and pore characteristics of the self-repairing carrier was studied by XRD, XRF, and the mercury injection method. The composition was basically consistent with cement-based materials, and the structure of the self-repairing carrier was relatively dense. Second, the products were analyzed by SEM and EDS, and it was found that the distribution range of crystal size was from 1 to 20 µm, the cube and flocculent accumulation was calcite, while the rod and flake crystals were ettringite. Finally, the repair effect on the surface and inside of the crack was demonstrated by the crack area repair rate and water permeability resistance. Compared with single microbial mineralization, the synergistic repair effect of microbial mineralization and ettringite formation was better in water permeability resistance. With the further increase of water pressure, its advantages would be more obvious.
Long-term opioid treatment and endocrine measures in patients with cancer-related pain: a systematic review
Authors: Abou-Kassem Dalia , Kurita Geana P. , Sjøgren Per , Diasso Pernille D. K.
Published: March 2022

Objectives

Opioid analgesics are the main stay for cancer pain management; however, long-term opioid treatment (L-TOT) may suppress the endocrine system. This systemic review aimed at investigating effects of L-TOT on the endocrine system in patients with cancer-related pain.

Methods

A search on MEDLINE, EMBASE and Web of Science databases was performed. Inclusion criteria were clinical studies investigating endocrine measures in adult patients with cancer-related pain in L-TOT (≥4 weeks). Outcomes and quality of evidence were assessed.

Results

A total of 252 abstracts were identified; out of which 247 were excluded and five cross-sectional studies were included and analyzed. L-TOT was associated with lower serum concentration levels of total- and free testosterone in males, follicular stimulating hormone in females, and luteinizing hormone in both sexes. Moreover, higher morphine equivalent daily doses (MEDDs) were correlated with higher levels of cortisol and lower levels of LH in both sexes, and lower levels of total- and free testosterone in males. Sexual dysfunction was associated with low sex hormone levels. Level of evidence was low/very low.

Conclusions

The studies identified demonstrated that patients with cancer-related pain in L-TOT may have gonadal hypofunction causing sexual dysfunction, which may be correlated with opioid dose level. In addition, high serum concentrations of cortisol were positively correlated with high opioid dose levels. However, the evidence was weak and further research is necessary. PROSPERO, ID-number: CRD42020213059.
Diagnose des Produktionsfaktors Information
Authors: Mertens Sven , Magdeburg Jörg
Published: March 2022

Erfolgreiches Informationsmanagement ist kein Zufallsprodukt des betrieblichen Geschehens, sondern ein Ergebnis einer bedarfsorientierten Informationsstrukturgestaltung. Der Artikel beschreibt die Methode einer Kommunikationsdiagnostik, deren Zielsetzung die Gestaltung der Ablauf- und Aufbauorganisation sowie im Anschluß deren technische Unterstützung ist.
Die partizipative Fabrik
Authors: Kuhn Axel , Beckmann Holger
Published: March 2022

Angesichts des globalen Wettbewerbs gilt es, Standortvorteile konsequent zu nutzen. Das im folgenden dargelegte Konzept der partizipativen Fabrik skizziert hierzu einen Ansatz, der insbesondere für kleine und mittlere Unternehmen bedenkenswert erscheint. Dabei wird aufgezeigt, wie sie durch eine spezifische Art der Kooperation ihre Wettbewerbsposition nachhaltig verbessern können.
Prozeßmanager stabilisieren den BPR-Erfolg
Authors: Binner Hartmut F.
Published: March 2022

Die intensive Auseinandersetzung mit den Ansatzpunkten des Lean Management und der Lean Production haben deutlich gemacht, daß sich das bisherige Paradigma der Organisationslehre verändert hat. Das in diesem Beitrag beschriebene integrierte Organisations- und Prozeßmanagement nach dem CIM-house-Vorgehensmodell mit dem Sycat-Tool zielt auf die Umsetzung notwendiger Neuorganisationen und die Durchsetzung schlanker Unternehmensstrukturen.