bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Community and familial dynamics influencing risk behavior for HIV acquisition among adolescent girls and young women in Uganda: Qualitative analysis using Protective Motivation Theory
Authors: Apondi Rose , Bastiaens Hilde , Nöstlinger Christiana , Galbraith Jennifer , Aholou Tiffiany M. , Medley Amy , Wanyenze Rhoda K. , Awor Anna C. , Serwadda David M. , Aluzimbi George , Cheptoris Juliet , Ogwal Moses , Nakyanjo Neema , Patel Pragna
Published: January 2025

Background

In Uganda, adolescent girls’, and young women’s (AGYW-15-24 years) current HIV prevalence is fourfold compared with their male counterparts due to compounded social, economic, and environmental factors. Using the Protective Motivation Theory (PMT), we explored HIV-acquisition risk sources and perceived protective factors from AGYW and caregivers’ perspective.

Materials and methods

During 2018, we conducted a qualitative study guided by PMT to explore factors influencing HIV acquisition among AGYW. We purposively sampled two groups of key informants, AGYW at high-risk for HIV acquisition (uninfected) and AGYW living with HIV, varied by age and place of residence (urban/rural). We conducted 34 focus group discussions with AGYW, nine with AGYW parents, and 25 key informant interviews. Data were analyzed using the framework method based on the PMT and developed from participants’ narratives.

Results

AGYW were knowledgeable about HIV, HIV acquisition risk factors, and HIV prevention interventions. Nonetheless, few AGYW knew about pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Imbalance in power relations between the genders explained inability of AGYW making safe healthy decisions, with social norms giving men power over women. Parents modelling positively influenced HIV risk behavior. Many AGYW viewed staying in school a protective factor both while at school and further for life. AGYW identified alcohol use, desire for material possessions, discounting HIV disease severity, social norms, and poverty as barriers to engaging in self-protective behaviors. Several AGYW believed that access to AGYW-focused programs would facilitate healthy sex-positive, protective behaviors.

Discussion

While PMT focuses on individual factors confirmed by our findings, we found HIV risk behavior to be influenced by complex contextual factors including poverty, gender inequality and cultural norms. Distinct HIV risk factors among AGYW require policy and comprehensive targeted interventions addressing violence, alcohol consumption, increased economic opportunities, educational opportunities, safe-sex practices, and PrEP scale-up which may prevent HIV in AGYW and facilitate HIV epidemic control.
Acceptability, feasibility and appropriateness of intensified health education, SMS/phone tracing and transport reimbursement for uptake of voluntary medical male circumcision in a sexually transmitted infections clinic in Malawi: A mixed methods study
Authors: Matoga Mitch M. , Kudowa Evaristar , Tsidya Mercy , Tseka Jennifer , Ndalama Beatrice , Bonongwe Naomi , Mathiya Esther , Jere Edward , Yatina Dumbo , Kamtambe Blessings , Hosseinipour Mina C. , Chasela Charles S. , Jewett Sara
Published: January 2025

Introduction

Uptake of voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) remains a challenge in many settings. Innovative implementation strategies are required to scale-up VMMC uptake.

Methodology

RITe was a multi-faceted intervention comprising transport reimbursement (R), intensified health education (IHE) and SMS/Telephone tracing (Te), which increased the uptake of VMMC among uncircumcised men with sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in Malawi. Using a concurrent exploratory mixed-method approach, we assessed the intervention’s acceptability, feasibility and appropriateness among men with STIs and healthcare workers (HCWs) at Bwaila District Hospital. Participants completed Likert scale surveys and participated in-depth interviews (IDIs) and focus group discussions (FGDs). We calculated percentages of responses to survey items and summarized common themes using thematic analysis. Median scores and interquartile ranges (IQR) were calculated for acceptability, feasibility and appropriateness of each strategy at baseline and end-line and compared using the Wilcoxon signed rank test.

Results

A total of 300 surveys, 17 IDIs and 4 FGDs were conducted with men and HCWs between baseline and end-line. The mean age for men in the survey was 29 years (SD ±8) and most were married/cohabiting (59.3%). Mean age for HCWs was 38.5 years (SD ±7), and most were female (59.1%). For acceptability, participants agreed that RITe was welcome, approvable, and likable. Despite participants agreeing that RITe was a good idea, fit and suitability influenced appropriateness, particularly at baseline, which improved at end-line for Te and R. For feasibility, HCWs agreed that RITe was easy to implement, but expressed concerns that R (end-line median = 4, IQR: 2, 4) and Te (end-line median = 4, IQR: 4, 4), were unsustainable. Interviews corroborated the survey results. Participants reported that IHE provided important information, Te was a good reminder and R was attractive, but they reported barriers to R and Te such as electricity, limited access to phones and distrust in the government.

Conclusions

The RITe intervention was acceptable, feasible and appropriate. However, culture/religion and structural barriers affected perceptions of appropriateness and feasibility, respectively. Continued awareness raising on VMMC and addressing setting-specific structural factors are required to overcome barriers that impede demand-creation interventions for VMMC.
Optimization of cold chain logistics distribution path considering traffic condition and replenishment along the way
Authors: Kai Wu , Zhijiang Lu , E. Bai
Published: January 2025

Road traffic congestion on the cold chain logistics not only increase the cost and time, but also creates certain negative impact on the national carbon emissions. To fully utilize the traffic resources, this study has classified urban road traffic congestion and defined the various vehicle delivery speeds with dynamic congestion levels. Simultaneously, it has developed the cold chain products replenishment strategy by considering delivery route, multi-depot condition and even vehicle types, aiming to minimize the total cost and carbon emissions, and maximizing the cold chain products freshness. To achieve this, this study build up a multi-objective vehicle routing optimization model and designed a hybrid algorithm combining large-scale neighborhood search and NAGA-II. Through computational analysis, this algorithm effectively overcomes the weak local search capability of NAGA-II and efficiently solves multi-objective problems. Moreover, under the simulated random traffic congestion conditions, this model able to demonstrate relatively stable planning results and address complex road traffic situations. Finally, this study able to analyze the impacts of various replenishment strategies, by considering multiple depots and sensitivity coefficients of cold chain products from delivery objectives. The analysis results also provides valuable insights for actual cold chain logistics distribution industry.
Time series segmentation for recognition of epileptiform patterns recorded via microelectrode arrays in vitro
Authors: Galeote-Checa Gabriel , Panuccio Gabriella , Canal-Alonso Angel , Linares-Barranco Bernabe , Serrano-Gotarredona Teresa
Published: January 2025

Epilepsy is a prevalent neurological disorder that affects approximately 1% of the global population. Approximately 30-40% of patients respond poorly to antiepileptic medications, leading to a significant negative impact on their quality of life. Closed-loop deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a promising treatment for individuals who do not respond to medical therapy. To achieve effective seizure control, algorithms play an important role in identifying relevant electrographic biomarkers from local field potentials (LFPs) to determine the optimal stimulation timing. In this regard, the detection and classification of events from ongoing brain activity, while achieving low power consumption through computationally inexpensive implementations, represents a major challenge in the field. To address this challenge, we here present two algorithms, the ZdensityRODE and the AMPDE, for identifying relevant events from LFPs by utilizing time series segmentation (TSS), which involves extracting different levels of information from the LFP and relevant events from it. The algorithms were validated validated against epileptiform activity induced by 4-aminopyridine in mouse hippocampus-cortex (CTX) slices and recorded via microelectrode array, as a case study. The ZdensityRODE algorithm showcased a precision and recall of 93% for ictal event detection and 42% precision for interictal event detection, while the AMPDE algorithm attained a precision of 96% and recall of 90% for ictal event detection and 54% precision for interictal event detection. While initially trained specifically for detecting ictal activity, these algorithms can be fine-tuned for improved interictal detection, aiming at seizure prediction. Our results suggest that these algorithms can effectively capture epileptiform activity, supporting seizure detection and, possibly, seizure prediction and control. This opens the opportunity to design new algorithms based on this approach for closed-loop stimulation devices using more elaborate decisions and more accurate clinical guidelines.
Notch dimerization provides robustness against environmental insults and is required for vascular integrity
Authors: Preusse Kristina , Cochran Kim , Dai Quanhui , Kopan Raphael
Published: January 2025

The Notch intracellular domain (NICD) regulates gene expression during development and homeostasis in a transcription factor complex that binds DNA either as monomer, or cooperatively as dimers. Mice expressing Notch dimerization-deficient (NDD) alleles of Notch1 and Notch2 have defects in multiple tissues that are sensitized to environmental insults. Here, we report that cardiac phenotypes and DSS (Dextran Sodium Sulfate) sensitivity in NDD mice can be ameliorated by housing mice under hypo-allergenic conditions (food/bedding). However, compound heterozygote NDD mice (N1RA/–; N2RA/–) in hypo-allergenic conditions subsequently develop severe hydrocephalus and hemorrhages. Further analysis revealed multiple vascular phenotypes in NDD mice including leakage, malformations of brain vasculature, and vasodilation in kidneys, leading to demise around P21. This mouse model is thus a hypomorphic allele useful to analyze vascular phenotypes and gene-environment interactions. The possibility of a non-canonical Notch signal regulating barrier formation in the gut, skin, and blood systems is discussed.
Comparative study of bovine and synthetic hydroxyapatite in micro- and nanosized on osteoblasts action and bone growth
Authors: Gani Maria Apriliani , Lee Gyubok , Ardianto Chrismawan , Rantam Fedik Abdul , Lestari Maria Lucia Ardhani Dwi , Addimaysqi Rafi , Adnyana I Ketut , Lee Kangwon , Khotib Junaidi
Published: January 2025

Hydroxyapatite (HA) is widely used as a bone graft. However, information on the head-to-head osteoinductivity and in vivo performance of micro- and nanosized natural and synthetic HA is still lacking. Here, we fabricated nanosized bovine HA (nanoBHA) by using a wet ball milling method and compared its in vitro and in vivo performance with microsized BHA, nanosized synthetic HA (nanoHA), and microsized synthetic HA (HA). The results showed that the wet ball milling method successfully reduced the particle size of BHA to 40 nm without changing its natural characteristics. NanoBHA was able to maintain cell viability and induce cell proliferation and calcium deposits. NanoBHA promoted osteogenic differentiation via OPN as a specific regulator, with a 13-fold greater expression level. NanoBHA and HA also activated ERK1/2 indicated corresponding to the proliferation-differentiation and death of cells, respectively. The calvarial bone defect model showed that nanoBHA induced bone growth based on CT images, which is in line with the histological results showing the presence of bone cells and connective tissue at the nanoBHA implantation site. In conclusion, natural HA outperformed synthetic HA. Our findings will attract interest in further research into nanomaterials and their mechanism of action in bone remodeling.
Low-cost and scalable machine learning model for identifying children and adolescents with poor oral health using survey data: An empirical study in Portugal
Authors: Lavado Susana , Costa Eduardo , Sturm Niclas F. , Tafferner Johannes S. , Rodrigues Octávio , Pita Barros Pedro , Zejnilovic Leid
Published: January 2025

This empirical study assessed the potential of developing a machine-learning model to identify children and adolescents with poor oral health using only self-reported survey data. Such a model could enable scalable and cost-effective screening and targeted interventions, optimizing limited resources to improve oral health outcomes. To train and test the model, we used data from 2,133 students attending schools in a Portuguese municipality. Poor oral health (the dependent variable) was defined as having a Decayed, Missing, and Filled Teeth index for deciduous teeth (dmft) or permanent teeth (DMFT) above expert-defined thresholds (dmft/DMFT ≥ 3 or 4). The survey provided information about the students’ oral health habits, knowledge, beliefs, and food and physical activity habits, which served as independent variables. Logistic regression models with variables selected through low-variance filtering and recursive feature elimination outperformed various others trained with complex machine learning algorithms based on precision@k metric, outperforming also random selection and expert rule-based models in identifying students with poor oral health. The proposed models are inherently explainable, broadly applicable, which given the context, could compensate their lower performance (Area Under the Curve = 0.64—0.70) compared to similar approaches and models. This study is one of the few in oral health care that includes bias auditing of classification models. The audit surfaced potential biases related to demographic factors such as age and social assistance status. Addressing these biases without significantly compromising model performance remains a challenge. The results confirm the feasibility of survey-based machine learning models for identifying individuals with poor oral health, but further validation of this approach and pilot testing in field trials are necessary.
Treatment of refractory poly articular course juvenile idiopathic arthritis with tofacitinib: Extended experience from Bangladesh
Authors: Iman Kazi , Akter Laboni , Rahman Mohammad Masudur , Laila Kamrul , Islam Mohammad Imnul , Rahman Shahana A.
Published: January 2025

Background

Juvenile Idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is one of the most common chronic diseases in children. It still remains a challenge to treat refractory poly-articular course JIA patients, especially in Bangladesh, where patients from low socio-economic backgrounds are unable to manage biological agents. Tofacitinib is one of the alternative options to biological agents, which can be taken orally and is cost effective. The purpose of this prospective observational study was to evaluate the efficacy of tofacitinib in the treatment of refractory poly-articular course JIA cases.

Materials and methods

This study was carried out in the Department of Pediatrics, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU). A total number of 50 refractory polyarticular course JIA patients received JAK-2 inhibitor, tofacitinib along with other drugs according to the recommended doses. The disease activity level was measured by Juvenile Arthritis Disease Activity Score-27 (JADAS-27). All the cases were assessed at baseline, 6th, 12th and52nd week of tofacitinib therapy. The relevant statistical tests were applied for data analysis.

Results

After treating the refractory cases with tofacitinib, arthritis subsided, and laboratory parameters improved in all the cases. Overall JADAS-27 score improvement was 40.67%, 56.38% and 96% at 6th, 12th and 52nd week of follow-up respectively. It was also possible to taper the dose of steroid gradually and stopped it by 24 weeks. Tofacitinib was well tolerated with minimum side effects.

Conclusions

Tofacitinib was effective to all the children with poly-articular course JIA. It was well tolerated and had very few tolerable adverse effects.
Expanded non-invasive prenatal testing offers better detection of fetal copy number variations but not chromosomal aneuploidies
Authors: Yang Shaozhe , Zhuang Yuan , Li Junfeng , Fu Xiuhong
Published: January 2025

Purpose

To evaluate the clinical performance of expanded non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT-plus) and compare its effectiveness in screening for chromosomal aneuploidies with that of NIPT.

Methods

Screening results, confirmatory invasive testing results, and follow-up data from pregnant women who underwent either NIPT (6792 cases) or NIPT-Plus (5237 cases) testing at Luohe Central Hospital, China, from January 2019 to June 2023 were collected. The positive predictive value (PPV), sensitivity, specificity, and other indicators for different types of chromosomal abnormalities in NIPT/NIPT-plus screening were calculated. The willingness of pregnant women with various types of abnormalities to undergo confirmatory invasive testing and the proportion of pregnancy terminations were investigated.

Results

The average number of unique reads in NIPT-plus samples was 5.26 times greater than that in NIPT samples. There was no significant difference in the PPV or positive rate between NIPT-plus and NIPT for screening chromosomal aneuploidies. Compared with the low-risk group, the high-risk group had a greater PPV; however, in the NIPT-plus group, there was no significant disparity in the PPV between the low-risk and high-risk groups. Compared with rare autosomal aneuploidies (RAAs), pregnant women had a higher rate of confirmatory invasive testing for common trisomies, sex chromosomal abnormalities (SCAs), and copy number variations (CNVs). However, the rate of pregnancy termination for common trisomies, RAAs, and CNVs was higher than that for SCAs.

Conclusion

By enhancing sequencing data, NIPT-plus can effectively screen for CNVs as well as chromosomal aneuploidies. However, NIPT-plus does not have an advantage over standard NIPT in screening for chromosomal aneuploidies.
Maize quality detection based on MConv-SwinT high-precision model
Authors: Zhang Ning , Chen Yuanqi , Zhang Enxu , Liu Ziyang , Yue Jie
Published: January 2025

The traditional method of corn quality detection relies heavily on the subjective judgment of inspectors and suffers from a high error rate. To address these issues, this study employs the Swin Transformer as an enhanced base model, integrating machine vision and deep learning techniques for corn quality assessment. Initially, images of high-quality, moldy, and broken corn were collected. After preprocessing, a total of 20,152 valid images were obtained for the experimental samples. The network then extracts both shallow and deep features from these maize images, which are subsequently fused. Concurrently, the extracted features undergo further processing through a specially designed convolutional block. The fused features, combined with those processed by the convolutional module, are fed into an attention layer. This attention layer assigns weights to the features, facilitating accurate final classification. Experimental results demonstrate that the MC-Swin Transformer model proposed in this paper significantly outperforms traditional convolutional neural network models in key metrics such as accuracy, precision, recall, and F1 score, achieving a recognition accuracy rate of 99.89%. Thus, the network effectively and efficiently classifies different corn qualities. This study not only offers a novel perspective and technical approach to corn quality detection but also holds significant implications for the advancement of smart agriculture.
Anatomical description and digital reconstruction of the skull of Jeholosaurus shangyuanensis (Dinosauria, Ornithopoda) from China
Authors: Bertozzo Filippo , Kecheng Niu , Gillette Nathan Vallée , Godefroit Pascal
Published: January 2025

Ornithopod dinosaurs appeared during the Middle Jurassic, but it was in the Lower Cretaceous they started their successful evolutionary history. Different phylogenies describing the evolutionary relationships of Ornithopoda are mostly based on cranial features, however there is a lack of well-preserved and complete skulls for the basal member of the clade, hampering our knowledge on the mode and tempo of these herbivorous dinosaurs. Here we describe YLSNHM 01942, a well-preserved skull of a juvenile neornithischian from the Liaoning Province of China. The specimen was scanned with a μCT scan, and all the elements were segmented and extrapolated for description. The specimen shows a ventral deformation due to the compression of the sediment, and a few rostral elements were artificially added. The specimen is attributed to the basal ornithopod Jeholosaurus shangyuanensis because of the presence of a large foramen in the quadratojugal, however it lacks the nodular ornamentation on the postorbital and jugal, herein interpreted as an ontogenetic feature. This, together with the disarticulation degree of the cranial elements, suggest YLSNHM 01942 represents a juvenile Jeholosaurus. The endosseous labyrinth is tentatively reconstructed, although the disarticulation of the neurocranial bones hampers its complete reconstruction. Thanks to the analysis of previously undescribed inner neurocranial bones (such as the prootics, the exoccipital/ophistotic, basioccipital, and basisphenoid), we improve the previous phylogenetical scoring for J. shangyuanensis, and perform a phylogenetical analysis adding the basal ornithopod Changmiania liaoningensis and the recently re-evaluated Ajkaceratops kozmai. The phylogenetical analysis reports a well-supported base of Ornithopoda, with C. liaoningensis as the most basal ornithopod, and a resolved topology for Nanosaurus agilis, Changchunsaurus parvus, Haya griva, Yandusaurus hongheensis and J. shangyuanensis.
Prediction of mortality and prioritisation to tertiary care using the ‘OUR-ARCad’ risk score gleaned from the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic—A retrospective cohort study from South India
Authors: Gopalan Narendran , Viswanathan Vinod Kumar , Srinivasalu Vignes Anand , Arumugam Saranya , Bhaskar Adhin , Manoharan Tamizhselvan , Chandrasekar Santosh Kishor , Bujagaruban Divya , Arumugham Ramya , Jagadeeswaran Gopi , Pandian Saravanan Madurai , Ponniah Arunalatha , Senguttuvan Thirumaran , Chinnaiyan Ponnuraja , Dhanraj Baskaran , Chadha Vineet Kumar , Purushotham Balaji , Murhekar Manoj Vasanth
Published: January 2025

Background

Judicious utilisation of tertiary care facilities through appropriate risk stratification assumes priority, in a raging pandemic, of the nature of delta variant-predominated second wave of COVID-19 pandemic in India. Prioritisation of tertiary care, through a scientifically validated risk score, would maximise recovery without compromising individual safety, but importantly without straining the health system.

Methods

De-identified data of COVID-19 confirmed patients admitted to a tertiary care hospital in South India, between April 1, 2021 and July 31, 2021, corresponding to the peak of COVID-19 second wave, were analysed after segregating into ‘survivors’ or ‘non-survivors’ to evaluate the risk factors for COVID-19 mortality at admission and formulate a risk score with easily obtainable but clinically relevant parameters for accurate patient triaging. The predictive ability was ascertained by the area under the receiver operator characteristics (AUROC) and the goodness of fit by the Hosmer-Lemeshow test and validated using the bootstrap method.

Results

Of 617 COVID-19 patients (325 survivors, 292 non-survivors), treated as per prevailing national guidelines, with a slight male predilection (358/617 [58.0%]), fatalities in the age group above and below 50 years were (217/380 [57.1%]) and (75/237 [31.6%]), p<0.001. The relative distribution of the various parameters among survivors and non-survivors including self-reported comorbidities helped to derive the individual risk scores from parameters significant in the multivariable logistic regression. The ‘OUR-ARCad’ risk score components were—Oxygen saturation SaO2<94%-23, Urea > 40mg/dL-15, Neutrophil/Lymphocytic ratio >3–23, Age > 50 years-8, Pulse Rate >100–8 and Coronary Artery disease-15. A summated score above 50, mandated tertiary care management (sensitivity-90%, specificity-75%; AUC-0.89), validated in 2000 bootstrap dataset.

Conclusions

The OUR-ARCad risk score, could potentially maximize recovery in a raging COVID-19 pandemic, through prioritisation of tertiary care services, neither straining the health system nor compromising patient’s safety, delivering and diverting care to those who needed the most.
Healthcare resource utilization and costs in immunodeficient patients receiving subcutaneous Ig: Real-world evidence from France
Authors: Lefèvre Guillaume , Borget Isabelle , Lefèvre Cinira , Maherzi Chahrazed , Nucit Arnaud , Hennaoui Mouna , Schmidt Aurélie , Lennon Hannah , Grenier Benjamin , Daydé Florent , Mahlaoui Nizar
Published: January 2025

Background

Subcutaneous immunoglobulin (SCIg) replacement therapy is indicated for patients with hypogammaglobulinemia caused by primary (PID) and secondary immunodeficiencies (SID).

Objective

To compare healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) and related direct medical costs of patients in France treated with weekly conventional SCIg (cSCIg) vs monthly hyaluronidase-facilitated SCIg (fSCIg).

Methods

This retrospective study of Ig-naïve patients with PID or SID newly receiving a SCIg between 2016 and 2018, extracted from the French National Healthcare reimbursement database (SNDS), analyzed the SCIg-related HCRU and reimbursed costs generated from in-hospital (hospitalizations and SCIg doses) or at-home (nurse visits [NV] and pump provider visits [PPV], drug doses) SCIg administration.

Results

Overall, 2,012 patients (PID:534; SID:1,478) were analyzed. The follow-up duration varied between 7.5 and 8.7 months according to sub-groups. Compared with fSCIg-treated patients, monthly mean rates of NV and PPV were respectively 2.5 and 3.1 times higher in PID, and 1.6 and 3.1 times higher in SID cSCIg-treated patients. Monthly mean rates for SCIg administration-related hospitalizations were lower overall, while their costs were 1.6 and 1.8 times higher for cSCIg than fSCIg subgroups, in PIDs and SIDs respectively; these results are due to more frequent hospitalizations with fSCIg being mainly shorter, without stayover. Total HCRU costs from the French NHI’s perspective were estimated to be lower with fSCIg vs cSCIg, in PIDs and SIDs.

Conclusion

This study provides real-world evidence of SCIg administration in a large French population. Patients with PID or SID treated with fSCIg had fewer at-home HCRU and lower overall costs for in-hospital or at-home SCIg administration compared with cSCIg-treated patients.
Magnetic resonance angiography in diagnostic long-term follow-up of primary patency of the MOTIV drug-eluting bioresorbable vascular scaffold in the region below the knee: 5 years of experience
Authors: Nasel Christian , Kirschner Mario , Rizzi Karoline , Schweinhammer Nicola , Moser Ewald
Published: January 2025

Purpose

Treatment of peripheral artery disease (PAD) in the region below the knee (BTK) is dissatisfying as failure of treated target lesions (TLF) is frequent and diagnostic imaging is often challenging. In the BTK-region metallic drug-eluting stents (mDES) yielded best results concerning primary patency (PP), but also annihilate signal in magnetic resonance angiography (MR-A). A recently introduced non-metallic drug eluting bioresorbable Tyrocore® vascular scaffold (deBVS), that offers an option for re-treatment of lesions due to its full degradation within 3–4 years after placement, was investigated with respect to its compatibility with MR-A to unimpededly depict previously treated target lesions.

Methods

Patency of the deBVS in the BTK-region was assessed retrospectively using contrast enhanced MR-A of the lower limbs in patients with PAD of Lafontaine-grades II-IV (n = 19). Clinically driven MR-A censoring was triggered by an assumed target lesion failure (CD-TLF), which served to compute the probability of PP during the observation period of 5 years. Compatibility of this particular deBVS with MRI was additionally proven via in-vitro experiments.

Results

The scaffold was found to be fully compatible with MRI. The normalised intra-luminal signal measured in MR-A increased significantly after successful deBVS-placement. The retrospective 5-years PP-probability was 0.87 (CI95%: [0.71,1.0]) with 2 stent-occlusions observed after 90 days. No major adverse events occurred.

Conclusion

Assessment of PAD in the BTK-region after placement of the Tyrocore®-deBVS using MRA is feasible. The promising high PP-probability after 5-years and the persistent full interpretability of treated target lesions by MR-A after stent-placement encourage further prospective assessment of this deBVS in treatment of PAD in the BTK-region.
Relationship between floating toe score and performance in track and field athletes
Authors: Yamazaki Yohei , Noro Hiroaki , Hata Keiichiro , Ishikawa Misato , Inaba Hiyo , Yamazaki Kazuhiko , Murayama Ryoichi , Arikawa Hideyuki , Miyamoto Aya , Yanagiya Toshio
Published: January 2025

This study explored the relationship between floating toes and athletic performance among collegiate track and field athletes. A total of 422 athletes (sprinters, jumpers, and distance runners) and 136 controls participated in this study. Plantar surface images were captured using a specially designed foot scanner during standing to calculate the floating toe score. The score, which sums the floating toe points of all toes, categorizes them into ‘floating toe’, ‘incomplete contact’, or ‘normal toe’. The World Athletics score served as a measure of athletic performance. Overall, collegiate track and field athletes had a significantly higher mean floating toe score (14.22 ± 4.87 points) than controls (11.06 ± 6.05 points) (p < 0.05), suggesting that fewer floating toes may confer a performance advantage. Within the track and field events, sprinters and jumpers showed significantly higher floating toe scores than distance runners (p < 0.05), emphasizing the variations in floating toes across different events. Although no significant correlation between floating toe score and World Athletics score was observed overall, a significantly negative correlation was found among distance runners (r = -0.25, p = 0.006), indicating that distance runners with higher athletic performance tend to have more pronounced floating toes. These findings suggest a nuanced relationship between floating toes and various aspects of track and field performance, particularly in distance running.
Investigating the moments of “aha” and “hmm” through acoustic analysis of voice and speech in pre-service physics teacher education–A novel method for identifying significant learning moments
Authors: Järvinen Kati , Laukkanen Anne-Maria , Kähkönen Anna-Leena , Nieminen Pasi , Mäntylä Terhi
Published: January 2025

The aim of the study was to find whether certain meaningful moments in the learning process are noticeable through features of voice and how acoustic voice analyses can be utilized in learning research. The material consisted of recordings of nine university students as they were completing tasks concerning direct electric circuits as part of their course of teacher education in physics. Prosodic features of voice—fundamental frequency (F0), sound pressure level (SPL), acoustic voice quality measured by LTAS, and pausing—were investigated. The results showed that instances of confusion and understanding were manifested in acoustic parameters. F0 was significant in characterizing the both kind of learning instances. Confusion had lower SPL and alpha ratio, indicating that voice quality was softer than in understanding. Degree of voice pauses was lower in understanding, suggesting less hesitation or need for clarification for understanding compared to confusion. Voice research adds to the research of learning as speaker´s voice is affected by the different instances in the process of learning. This research approach can be used for identification of important instances of learning and directing these instances to closer analysis of content or interaction to further understand the learning processes. Therefore, this study is a novel contribution to the study of learning as it adds acoustic voice and speech analyses to the discipline.
Travel medicine training and experience among primary care physicians in Qatar
Authors: Al-Dahshan Ayman , Kehyayan Vahe , Al-Kubaisi Noora , Mahfoud Ziyad , Selim Nagah
Published: January 2025

Background

Travel medicine (TM) focuses on preventing and managing travel-related issues. Evidence has become more important than expert opinions in the development of TM standards. This study aimed to evaluate the training and experience of TM among Primary Care Physicians (PCPs) in Qatar and their associated factors.

Methods

A cross-sectional study design was employed. A structured questionnaire was utilized to gather data from all PCPs working in publicly funded primary health centers.

Results

The study involved 360 PCPs (response rate: 89.5%). Of these, 42.3% reported postgraduate training (15.1%) or experience (27.5%) in TM, with common training forms including workshops (67%), postgraduate programs (24%), and short courses (15%). About 81.8% expressed interest in TM training. Regarding confidence in practicing TM, 20% felt very confident, while 50% felt moderately confident. In practice, 25.8% conducted comprehensive pre-travel risk assessments, and 22.5% responded to traveler queries without formal consultations. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that PCPs who graduated from medical schools in Arab countries, conducting more than ten TM consultations per month, performing comprehensive pre-travel assessments, and those expressing high confidence were more likely to be associated with TM training or experience.

Conclusion

Many PCPs in Qatar lack prior training and experience in TM, raising concerns about their ability to provide adequate care to traveling patients. There is a significant need for targeted TM training for PCPs, especially since the majority express a keen interest in receiving such training.
A pangenome analysis reveals the center of origin and evolutionary history of Phytophthora infestans and 1c clade species
Authors: Coomber Allison L. , Saville Amanda C. , Carbone Ignazio , Martin Michael , Bieker Vanessa C. , Ristaino Jean Beagle
Published: January 2025

We examined the evolutionary history of Phytophthora infestans and its close relatives in the 1c clade. We used whole genome sequence data from 69 isolates of Phytophthora species in the 1c clade and conducted a range of genomic analyses including nucleotide diversity evaluation, maximum likelihood trees, network assessment, time to most recent common ancestor and migration analysis. We consistently identified distinct and later divergence of the two Mexican Phytophthora species, P. mirabilis and P. ipomoeae, from P. infestans and other 1c clade species. Phytophthora infestans exhibited more recent divergence from other 1c clade species of Phytophthora from South America, P. andina and P. betacei. Speciation in the 1c clade and evolution of P. infestans occurred in the Andes. P. andina–P. betacei–P. infestans formed a species complex with indistinct species boundaries, hybridizations between the species, and short times to common ancestry. Furthermore, the distinction between modern Mexican and South American P. infestans proved less discrete, suggesting gene flow between populations over time. Admixture analysis indicated a complex relationship among these populations, hinting at potential gene flow across these regions. Historic P. infestans, collected from 1845–1889, were the first to diverge from all other P. infestans populations. Modern South American populations diverged next followed by Mexican populations which showed later ancestry. Both populations were derived from historic P. infestans. Based on the time of divergence of P. infestans from its closest relatives, P. andina and P. betacei in the Andean region, we consider the Andes to be the center of origin of P. infestans, with modern globalization contributing to admixture between P. infestans populations today from Mexico, the Andes and Europe.
The green response of financial inclusion, infrastructure development and renewable energy to the environmental sustainability: A newly evidence from OECD economies
Authors: Li Chun , Ayub Bakhtawer
Published: January 2025

Recently, economic environmental degradation is being considered a leading chellenge in forefront of policy analysts. Thus, the present study introduces core environmental determinants such as infrastructure development, finacail inclusion, gross domestic product, population, and renewable energy consumption. Financial inclusion (FI) is crucial for attaining a environment. The present study selects the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) over period of 2004–2022. The results show that financial inclusin, infrastructure development(ID), and renewable energy (RE) play a vital influence in decreasing carbon emissions. The OECD nations should surge their investment in renewable energy and infrastructure development. Furthermore, to ensure long-term environmental sustainability, it is imperative to broaden the scope of FI. Thus, the inclusion of green infrastructure is essential in order to shift from the utilization of fossil fuels to RE sources. Similarly, policymakers should incorporate FI into climate actions at the local, national, and regional levels. However, it is crucial to promote the economic shift towards RE sources in order to mitigate the environmental impact from humn and economic activities. This study is conducive to the execution of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
Weak acid and pepsin reflux induce laryngopharyngeal mucosal barrier injury: A rabbit-model-based study
Authors: Hou Chenjie , Zhou Liqun , Zheng Yujin , Chen Ting , Hu Renyou , Zheng Jingyi , Liu Chaofeng , Liu Yaqi
Published: January 2025

Objective

Using rabbit models, this study simulated the laryngopharynx’s response to the synergistic effects of various acidic reflux environments and pepsin to investigate the response mechanism underlying weak acid reflux and pepsin in the mucosal barrier injury of laryngopharyngeal reflux.

Methods

The rabbits were divided into six groups, and the original larynx was recorded for each group. During the study period, rabbits were sprayed with different doses of acid and pepsin solutions and monitored for hypopharyngeal mucosal transient impedance before and after modeling. After the experiment, laryngeal mucosal tissues were collected, observed using hematoxylin and eosin staining, and assessed for E-cadherin expression. The width of the intercellular space and lanthanum staining penetrating the intercellular space were also observed using electron microscopy.

Results

Eight weeks post-modeling, evidence of laryngopharyngeal mucosa inflammatory responses was observed in each group. Downregulation of E-cadherin expression significantly positively correlated with acid strength (p < 0.05). The pepsin and acid intervention groups showed a significantly widened space between mucosal epithelial cells in the posterior ring area (p < 0.05). Meanwhile, in the experimental group, a large amount of stained lanthanum penetrated the intercellular spaces; however, no significant difference was observed in the mucosal impedance (MI).

Conclusion

This study demonstrated that acid, weak acid, and pepsin could damage the laryngeal mucosal barrier; pepsin was an independent factor associated with tissue damage; the downregulation of hypopharyngeal cadherin was associated with acid-intensity exposure. Transient LP-MI cannot be applied directly.
Genetic diversity and population structure analyses of tropical maize inbred lines using Single Nucleotide Polymorphism markers
Authors: Gunundu Rodreck , Shimelis Hussein , Tesfamariam Seltene Abady
Published: January 2025

Analyses of the genetic distance and composition of inbred lines are a prerequisite for parental selection and to exploit heterosis in plant breeding programs. The study aimed to assess genetic diversity and population structure of a maize germplasm panel comprising 182 founder lines and 866 derived inbred lines using Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) markers to identify genetically unique lines for hybrid breeding. The founder lines were genotyped with 1201 SNPs, and the derived lines with 1484 SNPs. Moderate genetic variation, with genetic diversity ranging from 0.004 to 0.44 with a mean of 0.25, was recorded for the founder lines, while corresponding values of 0.004 to 0.34 with a mean of 0.13 were recorded for the derived lines. Heterozygosity values ranging from 0.00 to 0.24 and a mean of 0.08 were recorded for both lines. Of the SNP markers used, 82% of the 1201 markers and 84% of the 1484 markers exhibited polymorphism information content ranging from 0.25 to 0.50. Analysis of molecular variance revealed significant genetic differences (P ≤ 0.001) among and within populations in the founder and derived lines. Most detected variations, i.e., 97% and 88.38%, were attributed to within populations in the founder and derived lines, respectively. Population structure analysis identified three distinct subpopulations among founder lines and two among derived lines. Cluster analysis supported the population structure The following genetically distant founder and derived inbred lines were selected: G15NL337 and G15NL312 (Cluster 1), 15ARG152 and RGS-PL44 (Cluster 2), RGS-PL44 and 15ARG149 (Cluster 2), and RGS-PL33 and RGS-PL44 (Cluster 2), respectively. The selected lines are genetically distinct and recommended for marker-assisted hybrid maize breeding to exploit the frequency of beneficial alleles. This study provides valuable insights for maize breeding programs, enabling the exploitation of beneficial alleles and contributing to improved crop yields and food security through hybrid breeding.
Long-term wage inequality in imperial China: From 202 BCE to 1912 CE
Authors: Wu Qiang , Tong Guangyu , Zhou Peng
Published: January 2025

This paper attempts to describe and explain the long-term evolution of wage inequality in imperial China, covering over two millennia from the Han dynasty to the Qing dynasty (202 BCE-1912 CE). Based on historical government records of official salaries, commodity prices, and agricultural productivity, we convert various forms of salaries to equivalent rice volumes and comparable salary benchmarks. Wage inequality is measured by salary ratios and (partial) Gini coefficients between official and peasant classes as well as within the official class. The inter-class wage inequality features an “inverted U-u” pattern—first rose before the Tang dynasty and then declined afterwards (the “inverted U” trends) with “inverted u” dynastic cycles. The intra-class wage inequality has a secular decline trend. We propose a unified framework incorporating technological, institutional, political, and social (TIPS) mechanisms to explain both long-term and short-term patterns. It is concluded that the technological mechanism dominated the rise of wage inequality, while the political mechanism (emperor-bureaucracy power tensions) drove the decline.
Respiratory extracellular vesicle isolation optimization through proteomic profiling of equine samples and identification of candidates for cell-of-origin studies
Authors: Hickman Elise , Carberry Victoria , Carberry Celeste , Cooper Bethanie , Mordant Angie L. , Mills Allie , Sokolsky Marina , Herring Laura E. , Alexis Neil E. , Rebuli Meghan E. , Jaspers Ilona , Sheats Katie , Rager Julia E.
Published: January 2025

Growing evidence supports the importance of extracellular vesicle (EV) as mediators of communication in pathological processes, including those underlying respiratory disease. However, establishing methods for isolating and characterizing EVs remains challenging, particularly for respiratory samples. This study set out to address this challenge by comparing different EV isolation methods and evaluating their impacts on EV yield, markers of purity, and proteomic signatures, utilizing equine/horse bronchoalveolar lavage samples. Horses can serve as effective translational animal models for respiratory studies due to similarities with human immune responses, shared environmental exposures, and naturally occurring respiratory diseases including asthma. Further, horses are long-lived large animals that allow for longitudinal sample collection, and provide large sample volume and cell yield, which are particularly useful since EV research is commonly limited by low sample yields. Here, EVs were isolated from horse bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) using four different methods (ultracentrifugation, microcentrifugation, and two sizes of size exclusion chromatography columns) and characterized by measuring particle counts, EV purity, total protein yield, and proteomic cargo, with a specific focus on vesicle surface marker expression potentially informing cell type of origin. We found that size exclusion chromatography yielded the highest particle counts, greatest EV purity markers and elevated vesicle surface marker expression. Overall proteomic profiles differed across isolation methods, with size exclusion chromatography clustering separately from centrifugation. Taken together, our results demonstrate that different isolation methods impact characteristics of EVs, notably that size exclusion chromatography, compared to centrifugation methods, resulted in higher EV purity and better characterized proteomic diversity, including information on EV cell-of-origin. This is the first study to characterize proteomic profiles of EVs following different isolation methods using equine BALF. The results of this study will pave the way for future studies using equine and human samples to characterize respiratory tract EVs.
Machine learning model to predict the adherence of tuberculosis patients experiencing increased levels of liver enzymes in Indonesia
Authors: Perwitasari Dyah Aryani , Faridah Imaniar Noor , Dania Haafizah , Setiawan Didik , Safaria Triantoro
Published: January 2025

Indonesia is still the second-highest tuberculosis burden country in the world. The antituberculosis adverse drug reaction and adherence may influence the success of treatment. The objective of this study is to define the model for predicting the adherence in tuberculosis patients, based on the increased level of liver enzymes. The longitudinal study using adult tuberculosis patients treated with the first line of antituberculosis was conducted prospectively. The pregnant women and patients with complications such as gout, diabetes mellitus, liver disorder and HIV were excluded. We measured the total bilirubin, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and adherence over the 2nd, 4th, and 6th months of the treatment. We used the ORANGE Data mining as the machine learning to predict the adherence. We recruited 201 patients, whereas the male participants and less than 61 years old as the dominant participants. Around 33%, 35% and 35% tuberculosis patients experienced the increase level of bilirubine, ALT and AST, respectively. There were significant differences in ALT and AST between good and poor adherence groups, especially in the female patients. The Neural Network and Random Forests were the most suitable models to predict tuberculosis patients’ adherence with good Area Under The Curve (AUC).