bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Dysregulation of the IFN-I signaling pathway byMycobacterium tuberculosisleads to exacerbation of HIV-1 infection of macrophages
Authors: Dupont Maeva , Rousset Stella , Manh Thien-Phong Vu , Monard Sarah Catherine , Pingris Karine , Souriant Shanti , Vahlas Zoï , Velez Tomàs , Poincloux Renaud , Maridonneau-Parini Isabelle , Neyrolles Olivier , Lugo-Villarino Geanncarlo , Vérollet Christel
Published: May 2022

While tuberculosis (TB) is a risk factor in HIV-1-infected individuals, the mechanisms by which Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the agent of TB in humans, worsens HIV-1 pathogenesis still need to be fully elucidated. Recently, we showed that HIV-1 infection and spread are exacerbated in macrophages exposed to TB-associated microenvironments. Transcriptomic analysis of macrophages conditioned with medium of Mtb-infected human macrophages (cmMTB) revealed an up-regulation of the typeI interferon (IFN-I) pathway, characterized by the overexpression of IFN-inducible genes. Historically, IFN-I are well known for their antiviral functions, but our previous work showed that this is not the case in the context of coinfection with HIV-1. Here, we show that the IFN-I response signature in cmMTB-treated macrophages matches the one observed in the blood of active TB patients, and depends on the timing of incubation with cmMTB. This suggests that the timing of macrophage's exposure to IFN-I can impact their capacity to control HIV-1 infection. Strikingly, we found that cmMTB-treated macrophages are hyporesponsive to extrastimulation with exogenous IFN-I, used to mimic HIV-1 infection. Yet, depleting STAT1 by gene silencing to block the IFN-I signaling pathway reduced TB-induced exacerbation of HIV-1 infection. Altogether, by aiming to understand why TB-derived IFN-I preexposure of macrophages did not induce antiviral immunity against HIV-1, we demonstrated that these cells are hyporesponsive to exogenous IFN-I, a phenomenon that prevents macrophage activation against HIV-1.
Development of a highly sensitive glucose nanocomposite biosensor based on recombinant enzyme from corn
Authors: Izadyar Anahita , Van My Ni , Miranda Marcela , Weatherford Scout , Hood Elizabeth E. , Seok Ilwoo
Published: May 2022

BACKGROUND

Enzymes are biocatalysts that play a vital role in the production of biomolecules. Plants can be a valuable and cost‐effective source for producing well‐structured recombinant enzymes. Glucose is one of the most important biological molecules, providing energy to most living systems. An electrochemical method for immobilization of enzyme is promising because it is economic, generates less component waste, improves the signal‐to‐noise ratio, leads to a lower limit of detection, and stabilizes and protects the enzyme structure.

RESULTS

A glucose biosensor was constructed using polyaniline (PANI) and a recombinant enzyme from corn, plant‐produced manganese peroxidase (PPMP), with polymerization of aniline as a monomer in the presence of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs)‐glucose oxidase (GOx), and bovine serum albumin. Using linear sweep voltammetry and cyclic voltammetry techniques, PANI‐AuNPs‐GOx‐PPMP/Au electrode exhibited a superior sensing property with a wider linear range of 0.005–16.0 mm, and a lower detection limit of 0.001 mm compared to PANI‐GOx‐PPMP/Au electrode and PANI‐GOx‐PPMP/AuNPs/Au electrode. The biosensor selectivity was assessed by determining glucose concentrations in the presence of ascorbic acid, dopamine, aspartame, and caffeine.

CONCLUSION

We conclude that a plant‐produced Mn peroxidase enzyme combined with conductive polymers and AuNPs results in a promising nanocomposite biosensor for detecting glucose. The use of such devices for quality control in the food industry can have a significant economic impact. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.
Impact of local treatment modality on overall‐ and disease‐specific survival for nonmetastatic pelvic and sacral Ewing sarcoma
Authors: Jawad Muhammad Umar , Pollock Brad H. , Zeitlinger Lauren N. , O'Donnell Edmond F. , Traven Sophia A. , Carr‐Ascher Janai R. , Alvarez Elysia , Malogolowkin Marcio H. , Thorpe Steven W. , Randall R. Lor
Published: May 2022

Purpose

The ideal local treatment modality for pelvic and sacral Ewing sarcoma (EWS) is controversial.

Methods

We present the data from the American College of Surgeon's National Cancer Database (NCDB) and the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Result (SEER) database to investigate the impact of local treatment modalities on survival for nonmetastatic pelvic and sacral Ewing sarcoma. Local treatment includes “surgery,” “radiation,” and a combination of “surgery and radiation.”

Results

A total of 235 cases from SEER and 285 cases from NCDB were analyzed. Patients with “localized” stage (intraosseous) in the SEER database did not show any statistically significant difference in the disease‐specific survival (DSS) for any of the local treatment modalities. Similar findings were observed for overall survival among patients with American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) stage II and III in the NCDB database. However, patients with nonmetastatic disease, particularly regional disease (extraosseous), showed improved DSS with surgery only, in the SEER.

Conclusion

We found similar levels of efficacy for different treatment modalities for patients with intraosseous and AJCC II and III pelvic and sacral EWS. “Radiotherapy” is the most common local treatment modality employed in the United States. A prospective, randomized controlled trial with a direct head‐to‐head comparison is needed for a definitive conclusion.
Associations Between Chronic Rhinosinusitis and Cancers: A Nationwide Population‐Based Cohort Study
Authors: Jeon Yung Jin , Joo Yeon‐Hee , Cho Hyun‐Jin , Kim Sang‐Wook , Park Bumjung , Choi Hyo Geun
Published: May 2022

Objective

Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is one of the most common chronic inflammatory diseases. The effect of chronic inflammation caused by CRS on the occurrence of various cancers has not been thoroughly evaluated. This study aimed to investigate the increased incidences of 10 types of cancers among CRS patients with/without nasal polyps (NP) using a national population‐based database from the Korean Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service.

Study Design

A case–control cohort study.

Methods

We compared the prevalence of various comorbidities between CRS and control participants from a national cohort dataset of the Korean Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service.

Methods

CRS participants (n = 6,919) and non‐CRS (n = 27,676) participants were selected from among the 514,866 participants from 2002 to 2015. A stratified Cox proportional hazards model was utilized to assess the hazard ratio (HR) of CRS for 10 types of cancers.

Results

A stratified Cox proportional hazard model demonstrated that the adjusted HR for hematologic malignancy was significantly higher in the CRS patients than in the controls regardless of the presence of NP (2.90 for total CRS; 2.15 for CRS with NP; 4.48 for CRS without NP). The HR for thyroid cancer was significantly higher in the CRS patients without NP but not in those with NP (1.50 for total CRS; 1.78 for CRS without NP).

Conclusion

This study showed that CRS participants had a significantly higher prevalence of hematologic malignancy and thyroid cancer.

Level of Evidence

4 Laryngoscope, 133:1044–1051, 2023
Role of Microbial Metabolites of Histidine in the Development of Colitis
Authors: Wu Jiaqi , Wu Yuzheng , Feng Wen , Chen Qian , Wang Dan , Liu Mengyang , Yu Haiyang , Zhang Yi , Wang Tao
Published: May 2022

Scope

Colitis is a chronic relapsing inflammatory disease of colon. Clinical studies show that meat‐rich diet plays a critical role in the relapse of colitis. However, it is unclear whether the microbial metabolites of histidine, which is an amino acid widely found in meat, have an impact on the health of the intestine.

Methods and results

Six metabolites of histidine are given to IEC‐6 cells. The cell activity measurement shows that imidazole propionate (IMP) is the most detrimental metabolite. Then, IMP is injected to mice by rectal administration, with blood and colon tissues collected for the measurement of colitis related parameters. The results show that treatment with IMP significantly increased NF‐κB, iNOS, and IL‐6, decreased number of goblet cell, and inhibited expressions of miR‐146b. However, overexpression of miR‐146b in mice rescues the decline of the physical condition. Additionally, Notch receptor 1 (Notch1) is identified as a target gene of miR‐146b. Further analysis shows that miR‐146b restored the abundance of goblet cells by regulating Notch1 signaling pathway.

Conclusion

IMP is able to induce intestinal inflammation, impairs the intestinal barrier, and affects the proliferation of goblet cells. The underlined mechanism may partially contribute to the dysregulation of miR‐146b/Notch1 axis.
Medicine, black magic and supernatural beings: Cultural rituals as a significant threat to slender lorises in India
Authors: Gnanaolivu Smitha D. , Campera Marco , Nekaris K. Anne‐Isola , Nijman Vincent , Satish Roopa , Babu Sharath , Singh Mewa
Published: May 2022

Trade of wildlife for use in traditional medicines, rituals, magical spells and cultural practices occurs globally and has been studied mostly in Africa and Asia.

The grey slender lorisLoris lydekkerianusis used for both medicinal and ritual purposes, but little information is available on how the user is meant to extract their medicinal properties, or the potential impact these practices have on the species' populations.

From 2014–2021, we used open‐ended interviews with 293 informants in three slender loris range states in Southern India to collect qualitative information on people's beliefs regarding the use of slender lorises in traditional medicine, black magic rituals and other cultural practices. To understand this further, we analysed data on 139 live slender loris rescues from three rescue and rehabilitation centres and one government organization in Bengaluru, India collected over an 18‐year period.

We found that 116/139 live individuals had been involved in black magic rituals, including piercing, or burning the body and the eyes. These ritual practices occurred more often to female slender lorises and during the new moon. Data from 293 interviews revealed that astrologers regularly use live lorises for fortune‐telling or for warding off evil. Slender loris body parts are used to make traditional folk medicine, develop black magic potions that bring people harm, hypnotize people or to thwart evil.

Habitat loss and anthropogenic pressures, coupled with the existing slender loris trade for cultural practices, are a cause for grave concern. Numerous deep‐rooted superstitious beliefs and rituals continue to thrive in modern India, and this is potentially one of the major threats to India's already imperilled slender loris population. More research into the prevalence of loris use for black magic is needed to assess the impact on species sustainability.

Read the freePlain Language Summaryfor this article on the Journal blog.
Glycine ester ionic liquid as new co‐initiator used in initiating radical and cationic photopolymerization
Authors: Nan Xuying , Luo Youping , Wu Mingshu , Chen Guangying
Published: May 2022

Ionic liquids using amino acid ester as cations is a new generation of green ionic liquids. It is found for the first time that they can be used as co‐initiators to initiate radical photopolymerization in the presence of commercial type II sensitizer, camphorquinone (CQ) under mild irradiation conditions. To intensively investigate this new function, we synthesized a series of glycine ester ionic liquids by a very simple method, and then evaluated their performance as co‐initiators in radical photopolymerization. The polymerization studies show that their co‐initiation abilities depend strongly on the structures of N‐terminal substituents and ester groups, as well as the type of anion moiety. And the pH values of the formula also have a heavy influence on their performances. More interestingly, when a small amount of hydroxyethyl acrylate (HEA) was added, under irradiation this multicomponent system composed of CQ, ionic liquids when anion moiety is PF6−, BF4− or SbF6−, and HEA, can release H+ to initiate cationic polymerization. These facts demonstrated that the investigated glycine ester ionic liquids can be considered as valid, environmentally friendly alternatives to toxic aromatic amines co‐initiators. Besides, the corresponding photoinitiation mechanism is suggested.
When you hear hoofbeats, think zebras – pulmonary veno‐occlusive disease: A case report
Authors: Scelsi Laura , Lanzillo Giuseppe , Arbustini Eloisa , D'Armini Andrea , Greco Alessandra , Meloni Federica , Turco Annalisa , Valentini Adele , Oltrona Visconti Luigi , Ghio Stefano
Published: May 2022

Pulmonary veno‐occlusive disease (PVOD) is a rare disease. It may be idiopathic or associated, in particular, with connective tissue disease, or it may develop after radiation exposure; in heritable forms of PVOD, the inheritance is autosomal recessive due to the presence of homozygous or compound heterozygous pathogenic variants in the EIF2AK4 gene. We describe the case of a young man whose PVOD was initially misdiagnosed as chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension despite worsening after riociguat, nonspecific computed tomography pulmonary angiogram findings, and parental consanguinity could suggest an autosomal recessive disease. The correct diagnosis and the correct treatment are crucial given the high mortality rate of this disease.
Interaction between Cucurbit[7]uril and Bile Salts: An Isothermal Titration Calorimetry Study
Authors: Jana Rabindranath , Ahmed Sayeed Ashique , Seth Debabrata
Published: May 2022

The interaction of three very well‐known bile salts namely sodium deoxycholate (NaDC), sodium cholate (NaC) and sodium taurocholate (NaTC) with cucurbit[7]uril (CB7) have been investigated using isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC). The change in heat during the titration was recorded using microcal ITC200, from which several important thermodynamic parameters of the complexation process like enthalpy, Gibbs free energy, and entropy were obtained with very good precision. The ITC measurement showed that CB7 formed the complex with all the three bile salts at 1 : 1 stoichiometry but with a different binding affinity. The binding affinity of CB7 with the studied bile salts was found to be in the following order NaDC>NaC>NaTC. The overall investigation recommended that the complexation of bile salts with CB7 was highly influenced by both the degree of hydroxylation of bile salt and conjugation in bile salt.
A Highly Active Nitrogen‐Doped Mixed‐Phase Mixed‐Valence Cobalt Nanocatalyst for Olefins and Nitroarenes Hydrogenation
Authors: Ghosh Topi , Kedarnath Gotluru , Mobin Shaikh M.
Published: May 2022

Development of an inexpensive, environmentally friendly and robust recyclable heterogeneous catalyst for alkene and nitroarene hydrogenation is in high demand for the sustainable future of chemical industries. Herein, we have synthesize and characterized a trinuclear mixed valence cobalt complex 1 and nitrogen doped mixed phase cobalt (β‐Co(OH)2 and CoO) nanocatalyst (N@MPCoNC) as reported earlier. N@MPCoNC was synthesized via single source molecular precursor by reducing 1 by aq. N2H4 followed by calcinations. Both mixed‐valence cobalt metal complex (1) and nitrogen doped mixed phase cobalt nanocatalyst (N@MPCoNC) were utilized for alkenes and nitroarenes hydrogenation reaction, however excellent catalytic activity was noticed by N@MPCoNC with the 100 % conversion of styrene and 4‐nitrotoluene to the corresponding ethylbenzene and 4‐aminotoluene with 100 % selectivity under mild reaction condition. The scope of the heterogeneous N@MPCoNC was further evaluated for other alkenes and nitroarenes to obtain corresponding alkanes and aminoarenes with an excellent conversion and high selectivity at room temperature.
Design of Au Surface‐doped PtFe Catalyst to Modulate Oxygen Binding Energy for Highly Efficient Oxygen Reduction Reaction
Authors: Shi Junjie , Zhang Jie , Chen Yihan , Xue Yali , Zhang Jin , Zhang Chenyang , Chen Jinwei , Wang Ruilin
Published: May 2022

As ideal cathode catalysts for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs), the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity and durability of Pt‐based alloys can be improved further. This study presents the catalyst with Au doping on the surface of an ordered PtFe alloy (Au‐PtFe/C) utilizing a synergistic process of microwave reduction and chemical replacement, as well as the reorganization of a Pt‐rich surface using acid etching and high temperature annealing. Physical characterization indicated that the oxygen binding energy on the surface of Au‐PtFe/C was more effective at promoting the ORR reaction than commercial Pt/C, which contributes significantly to its enhanced activity. Further electrochemical tests revealed that the Au‐PtFe/C catalyst exposes abundant active sites for ORR, with mass and specific activity up to 12 and 8 times that of commercial Pt/C, respectively. Additionally, the catalyst demonstrated remarkable durability following 10,000 cycles of accelerated durability tests (ADT) in acidic circumstances. In PEMFC test, the single cell with an Au‐PtFe/C cathode also performed admirably when compared with commercial Pt/C. Owing to its facile synthesis, low cost, and exceptional performance, this bimetal‐doped ordered Pt‐based alloy has the capability to be a promising component in fuel cells commercialization.
Hydrogenation of Lignin‐derived Phenolic Compounds over Ru/C Enhanced by Al2O3 Catalyst at Room Temperature
Authors: You Hongyun , Yang Zhi , Lin Jingjun , Shu Riyang , Yin Tao , Tian Zhipeng , Wang Chao , Chen Ying
Published: May 2022

Hydrogenation is a promising strategy for the lignin‐derived phenolic compounds to produce platform chemical compounds and high‐value biofuel precursors. In this study, an efficient hydrogenation of phenol over Ru/C enhanced by Al2O3 catalyst at room temperature was proposed, with phenol conversion and cyclohexanol selectivity both close to 100 %. The addition of Al2O3 can make a significant difference on the phenol adsorption by the introduction of abundant Lewis acid site, which enabled to activate aromatic rings by changing the electrophilic substitution reaction of aromatic groups and trigger the occurrence of phenol hydrogenation under the catalysis of Ru/C. The Lewis acid site and metal site cooperated with each other and promoted the conversion of phenol to cyclohexanol as the final products. Moreover, a variety of other phenolic or aromatic compounds were also tested. The steric effects derived from the different substituted groups on aromatic rings had a significant influence on the hydrogenation performances.
Cucurbit[7]uril as Nanoreactor for the Fixation of CO2 with Oxirane: A Density Functional Theory Investigation
Authors: Faizan Mohmmad , Pawar Ravinder
Published: May 2022

To sustain the environment, enormous efforts have been devoted to control the atmospheric CO2 levels. Various catalysts and catalytic systems have been developed so far but the state of art development is far from satisfactory and further enhancement is needed. Considering all the catalytic systems, in the present work a relatively novel nanoreactor (i. e. cucurbit[7]uril) is introduced and investigated for the reaction of CO2 with oxirane. To the best of our knowledge this is the very first report on the fixation reaction of CO2 with oxirane in cucurbit[7]uril (CB[7]) confinement. Density functional theory (DFT) based calculation were carried out to probe the reaction mechanism and the role of the confinement offered by the CB[7] macromolecule. Results show that the fixation reaction of CO2 with epoxide is efficiently catalyzed in the CB[7] confinement. The activation energy for the initiation of the reaction was found to be 32.61 kcal/mol. A reactive intermediate (IM) was observed in the reaction pathway. The relative energy of the IM was 4.26 kcal/mol more than the transition state (TS). The IM undergo further transformation with the energy requirement of ∼1 kcal/mol to give the final product of the reaction.
Enhanced social engineering framework mitigating against social engineering attacks in higher education
Authors: Matyokurehwa Kanos , Rudhumbu Norman , Gombiro Cross , Chipfumbu‐Kangara Colletor
Published: May 2022

The purpose of this paper was to develop and validate an enhanced social engineering framework to mitigate against social engineering attacks. The study formulated a theoretical framework which was informed by the strengths and weaknesses of existing social engineering frameworks, the framework was also guided by the Dhillon's balanced control theory. The theoretical framework was validated by experts using the Delphi technique which comprised of three rounds. A sample of 25 experts from three higher education institutions which met the inclusion criteria were selected. The study was guided by the interpretivism philosophy to get a deep understanding of the phenomenon under study. The findings reveal that social engineering awareness, organizational security policy and Internet of Things (IOT) security succor in reducing social engineering attacks. The findings from this study will be utilized by decision makers in higher education sector to come up with engaging social engineering training programs, set up an organizational security policy and preclude IOT attacks to mitigate social engineering attacks in higher education. The study contributes to the field of social engineering with an enhanced social engineering framework that mitigate against social engineering attacks. The study adds to under‐represented social engineering framework in higher education.
Flexible multivariate zero to k inflated power series regression model with applications
Authors: Saboori Hadi , Doostparast Mahdi
Published: May 2022

Inflated distributions are applied in various fields, including insurance, traffic networks and survival analyses. First, they are defined by a baseline discrete distribution, and then, extra masses are added to some points of interest, called inflated points, to achieve more flexible models for data analyses. The baseline distribution is arbitrary and application dependent. Here, the rich family of power series distributions is considered as the baseline, which includes various common discrete distributions such as Poisson, negative binomial, multinomial and logarithmic series distributions. This paper deals with an extension of previous works in two directions. The former is an extension of the univariate inflated distributions to multivariate ones, and the latter is the generalization of the inflated points from the zero single point to the set
. Under this setting, various inflated distributions in the literature fall into the proposed family of distributions. These extensions make the proposed model flexible and practically useful in data analyses. To do this, the problem of estimating parameters with various approaches as well as hypotheses testing is studied in detail. Multivariate‐generalized linear models with inflated multivariate discrete responses are also discussed. To assess the performance of the proposed family of inflated distributions, simulation studies are conducted, and a real data set on an Australian health survey study is also analysed.
Toward an integrated project complexity narrative – A case study of academic organizations
Authors: Fossum Knut Robert , Honoré‐Livermore Evelyn , Veitch Erik , Haskins Cecilia , Palmer Erika K.
Published: May 2022

The last decade has seen a growing interest in the benefits of applying project management (PM) and system engineering (SE) in an integrated way toward complex projects and programs. The concept of project complexity dimensions, with roots in both disciplines, is suggested as a component of an integrated project complexity narrative. This paper investigates how such a project complexity narrative is reflected when informants talk about the role of PM and SE in two academic organizations. Most informants address uncertainty and social‐political risks as part of their work, but any consistent use of a project complexity narrative is related to environmental and technical systems. The findings also indicate difficulty differentiating between the concepts of complicated and complex. The paper further contemplates how these findings inform efforts to manage complex research projects and programs.
Beneficial and toxicological aspects of zinc oxide nanoparticles in animals
Authors: Rahman Heshu Sulaiman , Othman Hemn Hassan , Abdullah Rasedee , Edin Hareth Yahya Ahmed Shujaa , AL‐Haj Nagi A.
Published: May 2022

Nanotechnology is a far‐reaching technology with tremendous applications in various aspects, including general medicine, veterinary medicine, agriculture, aquaculture, and food production. Nanomaterials have exceptional physicochemical characteristics, including increased intestinal absorption, biodistribution, bioavailability, and improved antimicrobial and catalytic properties. Although nanotechnology is gaining ground in animal management, husbandry, and production, its wide use is still hampered by occasional toxicity and side effects. Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO‐NPs) have long been utilized in animal production, aquaculture, and pet animal medicine. However, the use ZnO‐NPs in animals has been associated with reports of toxicity and side effects. ZnO‐NPs may have shown numerous beneficial effects in animals; its use must be regulated with care to avoid unwanted consequences. Thus, this review emphasizes the usage of ZnO‐NPs in animal production and laboratory animals and the potential side effects associated with the use of nanoparticles as a feed supplement and therapeutic compound.
Hydrothermal synthesis of novel heterostructured Ag/TiO2/CuFe2O4 nanocomposite: Characterization, enhanced photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue dye, and efficient antibacterial studies
Authors: Adarsha J. R. , Ravishankar T. N. , Ananda A. , Manjunatha C. R. , Shilpa B. M. , Ramakrishnappa T.
Published: May 2022

In this work, we reported the successful synthesis of novel Ag/TiO2/CuFe2O4 ternary nanocomposite by hydrothermal technique by using TiO2/CuFe2O4 binary nanocomposite precursor that was also prepared by hydrothermal treatment by using TiO2 nanoparticles and CuFe2O4 nanoparticles synthesized via sol–gel method. The synthesized nanomaterials were accessed for their morphological, structural, and optical properties. X‐ray diffraction (XRD) study reveals the formation of pure Ag/TiO2/CuFe2O4 ternary nanocomposite in which the Ag, TiO2, and CuFe2O4 are in anatase, spinal, and cubic crystal phases, respectively. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high‐resolution TEM (HRTEM) analyses of Ag/TiO2/CuFe2O4 ternary nanocomposite indicated granule‐shaped morphology with bright spots of silver. The existence of Ti, O, Cu, Fe, and Ag without any other elements in the energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy (EDS) spectra of the prepared ternary nanocomposite depict its purity and its polycrystalline nature was confirmed by its selected area electron diffraction (SAED) pattern. The ternary nanocomposite was utilized for the methylene blue dye degradation with an optimum dose of 1.00 g/100 ml under ultraviolet (UV) light; the enhanced photocatalytic activity of the composite is attributed mainly due to the appreciable magnitudinal difference of positive charge of the valence band and negative charge of the conduction band of TiO2 and CuFe2O4; meanwhile, the interfacially placed Ag acts as a sink for the elections. Also, the ternary nanocomposite showed satisfactory antibacterial activities.

Practitioner Points

The prepared ternary nanocomposite showed effective results in dye degradation and satisfactory antibacterial property.

The concentration of methylene dye has decreased considerably in every degradation process which was accessed through UV‐vis studies.

The highest degradation by using the ternary nanocomposite archived at pH = 6

Appreciable antibacterial activity was achieved against a few Gram‐positive strains and Gram‐negative strains of bacteria.

This research activity can open a broad area of research towards textile dye degradation and antibacterial studies.
The Masterly Perspective and Design of Bramante’s “Mirabile Artificio” in Milan
Authors: Buratti Giorgio , Mele Giampiero , Rossi Michela
Published: May 2022

In the Bramante’s church of Santa Maria Presso San Satiro, a successful integration between architecture and perspective solves the lack of space for the choir building. The surprising effectiveness of the trick that simulates a choir depth comparable to the transept’s length was a “Mirabile artificio”. Just because of the perceived room, historians tied the church to the debate on the central plan and the development of the building of San Pietro in Rome. The present research elaborated an accurate laser scanner architectural survey and subsequent digital modeling to find perspective variables and verify the original design concept. 3D reconstruction of virtual architecture unveils the point of view of the simulation, confirming the common hypothesis about architecture, despite the different point of view. The digital model highlights metric evidence, which leads to a vantage point that collimates fake choir in nave perspective, identifying the “Mirabile artificio” as a case of anamorphosis.
The Faber–Krahn inequality for the short-time Fourier transform
Authors: Nicola Fabio , Tilli Paolo
Published: May 2022

In this paper we solve an open problem concerning the characterization of those measurable sets $$\Omega \subset {\mathbb {R}}^{2d}$$

Ω
⊂

R

2
d

that, among all sets having a prescribed Lebesgue measure, can trap the largest possible energy fraction in time-frequency space, where the energy density of a generic function $$f\in L^2({\mathbb {R}}^d)$$

f
∈

L
2

(

R

d

)

is defined in terms of its Short-time Fourier transform (STFT) $${\mathcal {V}}f(x,\omega )$$

V
f
(
x
,
ω
)

, with Gaussian window. More precisely, given a measurable set $$\Omega \subset {\mathbb {R}}^{2d}$$

Ω
⊂

R

2
d

having measure $$s> 0$$

s
>
0

, we prove that the quantity $$\begin{aligned} \Phi _\Omega =\max \Big \{\int _\Omega |{\mathcal {V}}f(x,\omega )|^2\,dxd\omega : f\in L^2({\mathbb {R}}^d),\ \Vert f\Vert _{L^2}=1\Big \}, \end{aligned}$$

Φ
Ω

=
max

{

∫
Ω

|
V
f

(
x
,
ω
)

|

2

d
x
d
ω
:
f
∈

L
2

(

R

d

)

,

‖
f
‖

L
2

=
1

}

,

is largest possible if and only if $$\Omega $$
Ω
is equivalent, up to a negligible set, to a ball of measure s, and in this case we characterize all functions f that achieve equality. This result leads to a sharp uncertainty principle for the “essential support” of the STFT (when $$d=1$$

d
=
1

, this can be summarized by the optimal bound $$\Phi _\Omega \le 1-e^{-|\Omega |}$$

Φ
Ω

≤
1
-

e

-
|
Ω
|

, with equality if and only if $$\Omega $$
Ω
is a ball). Our approach, using techniques from measure theory after suitably rephrasing the problem in the Fock space, also leads to a local version of Lieb’s uncertainty inequality for the STFT in $$L^p$$

L
p

when $$p\in [2,\infty )$$

p
∈
[
2
,
∞
)

, as well as to $$L^p$$

L
p

-concentration estimates when $$p\in [1,\infty )$$

p
∈
[
1
,
∞
)

, thus proving a related conjecture. In all cases we identify the corresponding extremals.
Temporal Trends in the Investigation, Management and Outcomes of Acute Appendicitis over 15 Years in the North of England: A Retrospective Cohort Study
Authors: Bhaskar Jared , McLean Ross C. , Bhaskar Keir , Brown Leo R.
Published: May 2022

Background

Acute appendicitis is a common surgical emergency with an estimated lifetime prevalence of 8.6% for males and 6.7% for females. Despite the frequency of presentation, considerable variation in clinical practice exists. Our study aimed to explore temporal trends in the investigation, treatment and outcomes for patients with appendicitis between 2002 and 2016.

Methods

Data collected included all patients aged ≥16 years across the NHS trusts in Northern England between 01/01/2002 and 31/12/2016 diagnosed with appendicitis. Patient demographics, co‐morbidity and management strategies were included. Outcomes of interest were length of stay and inpatient mortality.

Results

Over a 15 years period, 22,137 patients were admitted with acute appendicitis. A consistent male preponderance (n = 11,952, 54%) was observed, and median age increased over time (2002–2006: 36.4 vs. 2012–2016: 39.5, p < 0.001). Comorbidity of patients also increased (p < 0.001) in recent years. Computed tomography (CT) use increased from 0.8 to 21.9% (p < 0.001) over the study period. Following CT scanning, there was a longer time to theatre (1.22 vs. 0.70 days, p < 0.001), and patients were more frequently managed non‐operatively (23.8% vs. 5.7%, p < 0.001). The utilisation of laparoscopic approaches significantly increased from 4.1 to 70.4% (p < 0.001). Laparoscopic patients had a shorter median length of stay (2.97 days) when compared with open surgery (4.44 days) or non‐operative (6.19 days) patients. The 30‐day mortality rate was 0.33% overall and decreased with time (p = 0.004).

Conclusions

CT and laparoscopic surgery are increasingly utilised in the management of appendicitis. Along with other advances in clinical practice, they have led to reduced lengths of stay and mortality.
Is ultra-hypo-fractionated radiotherapy more cost-effective relative to conventional fractionation in treatment of prostate cancer? A cost–utility analysis alongside a randomized HYPO-RT-PC trial
Authors: Sun Sun , Jonsson Håkan , Salén Klas-Göran , Andén Mats , Beckman Lars , Fransson Per
Published: May 2022

Background

Economic evidence for comparing low fraction with ultra-hypo fractionated (UHF) radiation therapy in the treatment of intermediate-to-high-risk prostate cancer (PC) is lacking, especially in Europe. This study presents an economic evaluation performed alongside an ongoing clinical trial.

Aim

To investigate up to 6 years’ follow-up whether conventional fractionation (CF, 78.0 Gy in 39 fractions, 5 days per week for 8 weeks) is more cost-effective than UHF (42.7 Gy in 7 fractions, 3 days per week for 2.5 weeks inclusive of 2 weekends) radiotherapy in treatment for patients with intermediate-to-high-risk PC.

Method

HYPO-RT-PC trial is an open-label, randomized, multicenter (10 in Sweden; 2 in Denmark) phase-3 trial. Patients from Sweden (CF 434; UHF 445) were included in this study. The trial database was linked to the National Patient Registry (NPR). Costs for inpatient/non-primary outpatient care for each episode were retrieved. For calculating Quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), the EORTC QLQ-C30 questionnaire was mapped to the EQ-5D-3L index. Multivariable regression analyses were used to compare the difference in costs and QALYs, adjusting for age and baseline costs, and health status. The confidence interval for the difference in costs, QALYs and incremental cost-effectiveness ratio effectiveness ratio (ICER) was estimated by the bootstrap percentile method.

Results

No significant differences were found in ICER between the two arms after 6 years of follow-up.

Conclusion

The current study did not support that the ultra-hypo-fractionated treatment was more cost-effective than the conventional fraction treatment up to the sixth year of the trial.
Subclinical myocardial dysfunction is revealed by speckle tracking echocardiography in patients with Cornelia de Lange syndrome
Authors: Trujillano Laura , Ayerza-Casas Ariadna , Puisac Beatriz , García Gonzalo González , Ascaso Ángela , Latorre-Pellicer Ana , Arnedo María , Lucia-Campos Cristina , Gil-Salvador Marta , Kaiser Frank J. , Ramos Feliciano J. , Pié Juan , Bueno-Lozano Gloria
Published: May 2022

This study assesses a possible cardiac dysfunction in individuals with Cornelia de Lange syndrome (CdLS) without diagnosed congenital heart disease (CHD) and its association with other factors. Twenty patients and 20 controls were included in the study divided into three age-dependent groups (A: < 10 yrs, B: 10–20 yrs, C: > 20 yrs), and were evaluated using conventional echocardiography, tissue doppler imaging (TDI), two-dimensional speckle tracking and genetic and biochemical analyses. The left ventricular global longitudinal strain (GLS) was altered (< 15.9%) in 55% of patients, being pathological in the older group (A: 19.7 ± 6.6; B: -17.2 ± 4.7; C: -13.6 ± 2.9). The speckle tracking technique revealed a downward trend in the values of strain, strain rate and velocity, especially in the oldest group. Likewise, the ejection fraction (LVEF) and shortening fraction (LVFS) values, although preserved, also showed a decreased with age (p < 0.05). The analytical markers of cardiovascular risk and cardiac function showed no alterations. The molecular analyses revealed 16 individuals carrying pathogenic variants in NIPBL, two with variants in SMC1A, one with a variant in RAD21 and one with a HDAC8 variant. This is the first systematic approach that demonstrates that individuals with CdLS may present early cardiomyopathy, which can be detected by speckle tracking technique even before the appearance of clinical symptoms and the alteration of other echocardiographic or analytical parameters. For all these reasons, cardiological followup is suggested even in the absence of CHD, especially from adolescence onwards.
Long-Term Protective Effect of Human Dystrophin Expressing Chimeric (DEC) Cell Therapy on Amelioration of Function of Cardiac, Respiratory and Skeletal Muscles in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy
Authors: Siemionow Maria , Langa Paulina , Brodowska Sonia , Kozlowska Katarzyna , Zalants Kristina , Budzynska Katarzyna , Heydemann Ahlke
Published: May 2022

Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) is a lethal disease caused by mutations in dystrophin encoding gene, causing progressive degeneration of cardiac, respiratory, and skeletal muscles leading to premature death due to cardiac and respiratory failure. Currently, there is no cure for DMD. Therefore, novel therapeutic approaches are needed for DMD patients.

We have previously reported functional improvements which correlated with increased dystrophin expression following administration of dystrophin expressing chimeric (DEC) cells of myoblast origin to the mdx mouse models of DMD.

In the current study, we confirmed dose-dependent protective effect of human DEC therapy created from myoblasts of normal and DMD-affected donors, on restoration of dystrophin expression and amelioration of cardiac, respiratory, and skeletal muscle function at 180 days after systemic-intraosseous DEC administration to mdx/scid mouse model of DMD. Functional improvements included maintenance of ejection fraction and fractional shortening levels on echocardiography, reduced enhanced pause and expiration time on plethysmography and improved grip strength and maximum stretch induced contraction of skeletal muscles. Improved function was associated with amelioration of mdx muscle pathology revealed by reduced muscle fibrosis, reduced inflammation and improved muscle morphology confirmed by reduced number of centrally nucleated fibers and normalization of muscle fiber diameters. Our findings confirm the long-term systemic effect of DEC therapy in the most severely affected by DMD organs including heart, diaphragm, and long skeletal muscles.

These encouraging preclinical data introduces human DEC as a novel therapeutic modality of Advanced Therapy Medicinal Product (ATMP) with the potential to improve or halt the progression of DMD and enhance quality of life of DMD patients.

Graphical Abstract

Human DEC as a novel therapeutic modality with the potential to improve or halt progression of the DMD disease and enhance quality of life of DMD patients. Graphical abstract represents manufacturing process of the human DEC therapy for the future clinical applications. 1. We report the long-term efficacy of human DEC therapy resulting in increased dystrophin expression and reduced mdx muscle pathology after systemic-intraosseous administration of human Dystrophin Expressing Chimeric (DEC) Cells to the mdx/scid mouse model of DMD. 2. Systemic administration of human DEC therapy resulted in amelioration of cardiac, respiratory and skeletal muscle function as confirmed by echocardiography, plethysmography and standard muscle strength tests respectively. 3. We introduce human DEC as a novel Advanced Therapy Medicinal Product (ATMP) for future clinical application in DMD patients.
Constraining spacetime deformation based on astrophysical observations from radio pulsars
Authors: Juraeva Nozima , Rayimbaev Javlon , Kamoliddin Haydarov , Umaraliyev Maksud , Abdujabbarov Ahmadjon
Published: May 2022

The present work is devoted to investigations of cut-off for plasma magnetospheric radiations around magnetized neutron stars in the presence of spacetime deformation. In this way, we first analysed behaviour deathline conditions of curvature radiations (CR), and inverse Compton scattering (ICS) around deformed neutron stars. Through the analyses, we have obtained upper limits for the deformation parameter which causes switchingof pulsars in radio to $$\gamma $$
γ
-rays bands of the electromagnetic spectrum. It is observed that the upper limits for the radio waves and $$\gamma $$
γ
-rays cut off are not the same, but they are different, the limit is higher for radio wave cut off than $$\gamma $$
γ
-rays. Moreover, our detailed analyses show that this limit also depends on the period of pulses from pulsars and its delay (period derivation). Finally, we have obtained upper limits for the deformation parameter for selected several millisecond pulsars using the deathline conditions.
Terapia farmacologica dell’obesità: attualità e prospettive future
Authors: Vinciguerra Federica , Frittitta Lucia
Published: May 2022

Sommario

L’obesità è una malattia cronica, progressiva e recidivante che necessita, come tale, di un trattamento multidisciplinare a lungo termine. L’intervento sullo stile di vita e le modifiche comportamentali rappresentano le pietre miliari nella gestione di tale patologia ma non consentono di ottenere un decremento ponderale rilevante e duraturo in tutti i pazienti. D’altra parte, la chirurgia bariatrica, sebbene efficace nel determinare una significativa perdita di peso, è indicata nelle forme più gravi di obesità. La terapia farmacologica rappresenta, quindi, l’opzione terapeutica in grado di colmare il divario tra questi due estremi di trattamento. Negli ultimi anni, grazie all’ampliamento delle conoscenze sui meccanismi fisiologici che regolano il metabolismo energetico, lo scenario farmacologico si sta arricchendo di molecole innovative in grado di agire su nuovi bersagli terapeutici e di determinare risultati altamente competitivi con quelli sino ad ora garantiti soltanto dalla chirurgia bariatrica.
Gradient-supervised person re-identification based on dense feature pyramid network
Authors: Hou Shaoqi , Yin Kangning , Liang Jie , Wang Zhiguo , Pan Yixi , Yin Guangqiang
Published: May 2022

In the monitoring scene, parameters of different cameras are vary greatly, which makes Person re-identification (Re-ID) tasks extremely susceptible to factors such as scale, blur, and occlusion. To alleviate the these problems, this paper proposes a Dense Feature Pyramid Network (DFPN), which can converge to a better performance without pretraining. To be more specific, DFPN is composed of three main parts. First, a new Residual Convolutional Block (RCB) is designed by referring to the construction method of ResBlock. Taking RCB as a basic unit and combining it with the convolution layer structure of VGGNet, we construct the backbone RVNet (Residual VGGNet) to realize the rapid convergence of the network and solve the disappearance of the gradient. Second, based on Feature Pyramid Network, we design the Dense Pyramid Fusion Module by integrating the connection mode of DenseNet, which aims at the improvement of the richness and scale diversity of feature maps by taking semantic information and detail information into account. Finally, to increase the receptive field of the feature map, we introduce an improved retinal receptive field structure Improved RFB (IRFB) on the basis of Receptive Field Block (RFB), which can effectively solve the problem of pedestrian occlusion. In experiments on the public datasets Market1501, DukeMTMC-reID and Occluded-Duke, the Rank-1 accuracy can reach 94.12%, 87.25% and 51.72% with pretraining, respectively. A series of ablation experiments and comparative experiments have proved the effectiveness of our modules and overall scheme.
Arbeitspläne und Leitideen in der Weimarer Republik – Divergente Richtungen der Volkshochschulen in Bremen und in Gießen
Authors: Käpplinger Bernd
Published: May 2022

Der folgende Beitrag knüpft an neuere Forschungsarbeiten und Ansätze der Programmforschung von Ebner von Eschenbach und Dinkelaker in einer Art Replikationsstudie an und diskutiert diese kritisch-konstruktiv. Es wird herausgearbeitet, warum Programme und Arbeitspläne mehr als lediglich Angebotskommunikationen sind. Außerdem wird an den beiden gewählten Volkshochschulen deutlich, wie unterschiedlich Volkshochschulen in der Vergangenheit, fern einer einheitsstiftenden Leitidee, sein konnten. Gleichzeitig wurde die innere Umschlagseite unisono zur Selbstdarstellung anhand von Leitideen und Leitsätzen genutzt. Die sich regional unter mehreren Gründungen durchsetzende Volkshochschule Bremen stellt sich historisch von Anfang an als eine „völkische“ Einrichtung dar, während an der Volkshochschule Gießen eher bürgerlich-humanistische Bildungsaspirationen in Abgrenzung zu anderen Bildungseinrichtungen leitend waren. In der Zeit der Weimarer Republik wandelten sich beide Konzeptionen in Bremen und Gießen kaum.
Multimodale Therapiekonzepte beim Rektumkarzinom
Authors: Limani Perparim , Garcia Schüler Helena , Fritsch Ralph , Turina Matthias
Published: May 2022

Das kolorektale Karzinom (KRK) ist in der Schweiz das dritthäufigste Malignom bezüglich der Sterblichkeitsrate bei Männern und Frauen. Beim Kolonkarzinom ist weiterhin die primäre chirurgische Resektion der Goldstandard der Therapie. Beim Rektumkarzinom hingegen kommt ein differenziertes, stadienadaptiertes multimodales Therapiekonzept zur Anwendung. Frühe Tumoren (Stadium I + II ohne Lymphknotenbefall) können mit exzellenten Langzeitergebnissen alleinig chirurgisch behandelt werden. Fortgeschrittene Rektumkarzinome (Stadium III) im unteren und mittleren Rektumdrittel erfordern eine multimodale Therapie aus neoadjuvanter Behandlung (Radiotherapie, Radiochemotherapie, Chemotherapie), gefolgt von Resektion und ggf. adjuvanter Chemotherapie. Die totale neoadjuvante Therapie (TNT) erreicht durch Intensivierung der Vorbehandlung (sequenziell neoadjuvante Radio[chemo]therapie und neoadjuvante Chemotherapie) ein verbessertes Ansprechen und progressionsfreies Überleben. Nach komplettem Ansprechen auf neoadjuvante Therapie kann ein „Watch-and-wait-Konzept“ die chirurgische Resektion ersetzen. Dieser Übersichtsartikel befasst sich mit den aktuellen Standards der multimodalen Behandlungsschemata beim Rektumkarzinom.