bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Views of Final Phase Undergraduate Medical Students’ of Bangladesh about the Socio-Economic and Institutional Factors that Influence Their Future Career
Authors: Ullah Hadi Md Habib , Mostafa Asma , Talukder Mohammad Abu Sayeed , Sohel Md Ibrahim
Published: July 2023

Background: Medical education is one of the most stressful field of education because of its highly demanding professional and academic requirements. There is a significant amount of factors as predictors of medical career decision-making: perceptions of specialty characteristics gained from curricular, extracurricular and personal experiences in health care, personal career needs (e.g Expected income, career options, status, work-life balance, labor content, lifestyle and working hours) and gender. An understanding of the factors which influence doctors’ career choices and how attitudes vary among doctors who choose different specialties, is important for all those involved in the teaching and training of doctors. This study was done to explore views of final phase undergraduate medical students of Bangladesh about the Socio-Economic & Institutional Factors that influence their future career selection.

Materials and methods: This descriptive cross sectional study was conducted among 784 students randomly selected from eight medical colleges of Bangladesh, in the period of January 2019 to December 2019 with a pre tested self-administered questionnaire.

Results: Study revealed that a total of 784 students responded, out of which 318(40.6%) males and 466(59.4%) female. Among them 726(92.6%) students wanted to do postgraduation. The leading reasons for selecting future career were future workload 255(38.2%), future workplace 272(39.8%) social status 242(35.6%) and scope of job 244(36.1%). Career choice also influenced by teachers as a role model 244(34.3%)

Conclusion: Study recommended that career counseling during and after completion of graduation in the medical college, this stimulate students to gain experiences in different specialties.

Chatt Maa Shi Hosp Med Coll J; Vol.22 (1); January 2023; Page 62-65
Perdamaian Dan Multikulturalisme Di Indonesia (Strategi Dakwah Multikulturalisme Dalam Pertentangan Laten Radikalisme Dan Bias Konflik)
Authors: Azharghany Rojabi
Published: July 2023

Indonesia adalah sebuah negara-bangsa yang memiliki keanekaragaman yang komplek. Keragaman di satu sisi merupakan modal sosial yang penting dalam menegakkan demokrasi, namun pada sisi lain merupakan tantangan karena memiliki potensi untuk membawa disintegrasi. Multikulturalisme akan selalu menghadapi tantangan dari para pendukung radikalisme baik radikalisme agama dan etnis. Konflik agama dan etnis di Indonesia membutuhkan konfigurasi baik secara vertikal dan horizontal. Dalam konflik agama, faktor yang paling dominan adalah intoleransi agama sedangkan konflik etnis menyebabkan banyak tindakan ketidakadilan ekonomi dan penyalahgunaan budaya. Bangsa Indonesia, sejak berdirinya, telah masuk ke dalam kehidupan multikultural di mana setiap tindakan radikalisme apakah atas nama agama atau etnis bertentangan dengan nilai-nilai luhur bangsa dan konstitusi negara. Melalui sudut pandang dakwah multikulturalisme, tulisan ini mengarahkan pada studi perdamaian terhadap pertentangan laten radikalisme dan bias konflik
Etika Diseminasi Informasi dalam Perspektif Komunikasi Islam dan Humanisme di Era Digital
Authors: Aditia Rafinita
Published: July 2023

This research aims to find out how the ethics of life from the perspective of Islamic communication. The method used in this research is a qualitative research method with the type of library research using data sources in the form of reference books related to the ethics of life in the perspective of Islamic communication. The results showed that the ethics of a Muslim's life is very closely related to the morals possessed in carrying out life as a human being created by Allah SWT. In carrying out these ethics, it must be in line with the perspective of Islamic communication, namely the point of view of seeing a process of conveying information from one party to another, whose process must be in accordance with the teachings of existing Islamic teachings and laws. In this research, the perspective used is qaulan sadidan, qaulan balighan, qaulan maysuuran, qaulan layyinan, qaulan kariman, and qaulan ma'rufan. A Muslim must have life ethics, while some of the ethics of life include the ethics of life towards oneself, ethics in family, and ethics in society.
Effectiveness of Humanistic Approach Assisted by Learning Media to Increase Motivation Student Learning in MTs Darul Huffaz Pesawaran
Authors: Hernadi Hernadi , Firdaus Rangga , Rusmianto Nurlaksona Eko
Published: July 2023

Learning motivation is an absolute requirement for learning and plays an important role in providing passion or enthusiasm in learning. Motivation to learn is not only a driving force to achieve good results but contains efforts to achieve learning goals in motivation contained a desire that activates, moves, channels and directs attitudes and behavior in individuals. The humanistic approach views humans as subjects who are free to determine the direction of their lives. Humans are responsible for their own lives and for the lives of others. This research aims to explain the humanistic approach assisted by learning media to increase students' learning motivation.This research uses the (SLR) method. regarding research methods: "Literature" which means it is a critical analysis of the research that is being carried out on a special topic or in the form of a question to a part of science. helps us in compiling a framework that is in accordance with the theory, findings, and results of previous research in solving the problem formulation in the research conducted. The results of the study described that, of course, learning motivation must be supported by anyone who provides teaching to students, especially by teachers as learning facilitators, through humanistic approaches the teacher will know and understand the characteristics of students who experience decreased interest in learning, the humanistic approach is designed to solve problems that arise from within a person with a humanistic approach, of course someone will carry out treatment by humanizing humans by humanizing the problems that occur, especially in the learning and learning process
The Influence of Snakes and Ladders Game Media, Concrete Media and Initial Skills on Mathematics Learning Outcomes
Authors: Sangiddah Siti , Leksono Ibut Priono , Rusmawati Retno Danu
Published: July 2023

This study aims to determine the use of snakes and ladders game media, concrete media, and initial skills can improve student learning outcomes. This methode f research is experimental research using a positivism-quantitative approach. The subjects of this study were students at SDN Jumputrejo class VB and class VC and SDN Sukodono I in-class VA and VB, amount 80 students. The data collection technique in this study is a questionnaire and the test technique is a questionnaire. Technical data analysis using SPSS. Based on the results of the study it was concluded that there were differences in the average score of mathematics learning outcomes in classes taught using snakes and ladders learning media and concrete media with the initial skills of students in the experimental group, students who were taught with the snakes and ladders game media obtained higher learning outcomes compared to the control group or the group taught with concrete media and there was an interaction effect between the snakes and ladders game media and concrete media and initial abilities in mathematics learning outcomes.
Development of Professional Ethics and Aesthetics E-Modules Based on Problem Based Learning to Improve Students' Critical Thinking Ability
Authors: Silvia Febri , Astuti Murni , Dewi Siska Miga
Published: July 2023

Most students of the Department of Cosmetology and Beauty (TRK) Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality (FPP) Universitas Negeri Padang (UNP) are still unable to think critically in lectures, especially in analyzing problems related to the profession in the field of cosmetology and beauty. In addition, based on the explanation from the supporting lecturers, in Professional Ethics and Aesthetics lectures there are limited learning resources that can support students' critical thinking skills. The purpose of this research is to produce E-modules of Professional Ethics and Aesthetics based on Problem Based Learning that are appropriate, effective, and practical. Data collection in this study used validation questionnaires, critical thinking questions, and response questionnaires from students. The research method used is Research and Development. The data analysis technique used is descriptive quantitative and N-gain scores. The results showed that the average percentage of e-module feasibility was 94%, so it was included in the feasible category with a little revision. The effectiveness of the E-module in improving critical thinking skills is quite effective with an average percentage of 62.80 % and an N-gain score of 0.67. While the Practicality of the E-module shows a percentage of 90% with practical criteria.
Laser Cladding of Alloy 82 Powder for Corrosion Protection in Small Modular Reactors
Authors: Choi Insung , Jeong Won-Chan , Song Dan-Bi , Suh Jeong , Lee Kwang-Hyeon , Kim Yongjai , Jung In-Chul
Published: July 2023

There has been an increased demand for surface modification technologies to enhance corrosionresistance and wear-resistance. Among the representative surface coating technologies, laser cladding has attracted great attention because of its multiple advantages including low heat input, low dilution ratio, controllable clad height, etc. Recently, laser cladding has been considered as a surface coating technology for the next-generation small modular reactor, although submerged arc welding was utilized for the 3rd generation nuclear reactor. Cobalt-free materials are required as cladding materials in the nuclear reactor because cobalt has a long half-life. In this work, nickel based cobalt-free Alloy 82 powder was utilized. The main experimental parameters for laser cladding were intensively investigated by varying laser power, scan speed, powder supply, carrier and shield gas, overlap ratio, etc. Additionally, cross-sectional area calculation and EPMA analysis were carried out to examine the dilution ratio. Mechanical properties were also evaluated using microhardness tests and wear tests at high temperatures. Finally, corrosion tests were performed to compare a laser clad surface with an uncoated carbon steel surface. Our study indicates that the laser cladding using Alloy 82 powder is feasible for corrosion protection in next-generation small modular reactors.
Development of Numerical Analysis Model for New Magnesium Electrolysis Process Using COMSOL
Authors: Cho MaeHyun , Jeoung Hyeong-Jun , Kang Jungshin , Chang Kunok
Published: July 2023

Magnesium (Mg) has good physical properties including light weight, excellent specific strength and high stiffness, and Mg is used in many fields. But current production methods of Mg have disadvantages, such as the generation of sulfur oxide and chlorine gas. In this situation, The Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM) developed a Molten Salt Electrolysis Using Liquid Metal Cathode (MSELMC) method to produce high-purity magnesium. The MSE-LMC method can obtain 99.998-99.999% highpurity magnesium by the electrolysis of MgO dissolved in (MgF2)-LiF molten salt at 1053-1083 K, and by vacuum distilling an alloy generated by reacting with a metallic liquid cathode at 1200-1300 K. This study developed a numerical analysis model using COMSOL Multiphysics electrodeposition module to optimize the design of the electrolysis process. The model temperature was 1053K and molten salt was 54MgF2-46LiF with a 0.6wt% MgO system. 10A constant current was applied at the anode. This model uses the Butler-Volmer equation and the Nernst equation for the electric reaction. The Stokes-Einstein equation and Nernst-Einstein relation were used to calculate the diffusivity and electric mobility of salts. Unlike the experiment, in this model chlorine gas was generated. However, this model satisfied Faraday’s law. Therefore we define a new parameter using electric flux and voltage to conduct a quantitative evaluation according to the electrode shape, and compared that parameter by the changing angle of the anode.
Downward counterfactual analysis of multi-risk cascades
Authors: Gargiulo M. V. , Woo G. , Battimelli E. , Amoroso O. , Napolitano F. , Russo R. , Capuano P.
Published: July 2023

Loss outcomes from geohazards are compounded by an array of human risk factors. The combination of geohazards and human risk factors can generate multi-risk cascades. In the historical record, disasters arising from such multi-risk cascades are comparatively rare. However, far more common are near-misses, where a disaster tipping point to massive destructive energy release and expanding losses was narrowly averted. What happened historically is only one realization of what might have happened. Due to psychological outcome bias, people pay far less attention to near-misses than to actual losses. A downward counterfactual is a psychological term for a thought about the past, where things turned for the worse. Exploration of downward counterfactuals enhances risk awareness and can contribute to risk preparedness. There are no databases of multi-risk cascade near-misses, but insights can be gained from downward counterfactual analysis. Geohazard examples of multi-risk downward counterfactuals are given, including cases of critical infrastructure damage. A downward counterfactual can drive a minor hazard event beyond the disaster tipping point boundary, and turn a disaster into a major catastrophe. To illustrate the latter, a downward counterfactual analysis is presented of the Fukushima nuclear accident of 11 March 2011, which might have crossed the tipping point boundary into a multi-risk cascade catastrophe.
3D Printing as an element of teaching—perceptions and perspectives of teachers at German schools
Authors: Thyssen Christoph , Meier Monique
Published: July 2023

Digital technologies that are very close to the teacher’s analog field of activity, such as digital presentation, are increasingly taking place in the classroom, while digital, innovative technologies (e.g., 3D Printing) lacking such equivalents are used much less. Although such technologies are associated with more intense methodological and didactic changes, little is known about the extent to which 3D Printing is being used in German schools and how it is changing teaching and perspectives, which complicates the design of education and training measures. The use of such innovative technologies in the classroom is decisively influenced by the openness and acceptance of the teacher toward student-centered forms of learning and these technologies. The aim of the present study was to find out what expectations teachers (already) have about the use and potential of 3D Printing in the classroom and to what extent these are related to personal and/or external factors (e.g., 3D printers available in the school, number of STEM subjects). Therefore, an online-based questionnaire study was conducted with teachers in Germany (N = 100) who had different experiences with 3D Printing. The evaluation is based on descriptive, inferential and correlative analyses. Almost half of the teachers are equipped with 3D printers in their schools, while their use is even less widespread. In the perceptions of 3D Printing in the classroom from a methodological and didactic perspective, among other things, differences were revealed between teachers with different expertise in the knowledge and use of 3D Printing. In particular, the use of 3D Printing technology in their own lessons leads to a broader conception, especially with regard to the promotion of competencies. The results suggest theoretical models describing how to integrate 3D Printing into the classroom and concepts for 3D Printing trainings.
Relationships between serum Klotho concentrations and cognitive performance among older chronic kidney disease patients with albuminuria in NHANES 2011-2014
Authors: Zhang Jialing , Zhang Aihua
Published: July 2023

Background

The potential relationship between Klotho and cognitive function is limited and controversial. This study aimed to quantify the association of Klotho and cognitive impairment in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients with albuminuria.

Methods

Serum Klotho was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Patients with urine albumin to creatinine ratio (UACR) > 30mg/g from the National Health and Nutrition Survey (NHANES) 2011-2014 were divided into 4 groups according to the quartile of Klotho. Cognitive function was examined using the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer’s Disease (CERAD), Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST), and Animal Fluency Test. The relationship between Klotho and cognitive function was analyzed by multivariable regression and subgroup analysis.

Results

Among 368 CKD patients with albuminuria, we found that Klotho was negatively associated with creatinine, and positively associated with hemoglobin, and estimated glomerular filtration rate. No significant linear relationship was showed between Klotho (as a continuous variable) and cognitive function. When regarded Klotho as a category variable, patients in the quartile 3 group were at a better cognitive performance for CEARD-word learning subset and DSST, especially in the CKD patients with 30 mg/g < UACR <300 mg/g, but not in participants with UACR > 300 mg/g.

Conclusions

The increased Klotho was associated with an increased cognitive function in CKD patients with microalbuminuria. Further studies are needed to demonstrate whether Klotho may be a beneficial biomarker of cognitive health and neurodegeneration.
Emerging diagnostic methods and imaging modalities in cushing’s syndrome
Authors: Wright Kyla , van Rossum Elisabeth F. C. , Zan Elcin , Werner Nicole , Harris Alan , Feelders Richard A. , Agrawal Nidhi
Published: July 2023

Endogenous Cushing’s syndrome (CS) is a rare disease characterized by prolonged glucocorticoid excess. Timely diagnosis is critical to allow prompt treatment and limit long-term disease morbidity and risk for mortality. Traditional biochemical diagnostic modalities each have limitations and sensitivities and specificities that vary significantly with diagnostic cutoff values. Biochemical evaluation is particularly complex in patients whose hypercortisolemia fluctuates daily, often requiring repetition of tests to confirm or exclude disease, and when delineating CS from physiologic, nonneoplastic states of hypercortisolism. Lastly, traditional pituitary MRI may be negative in up to 60% of patients with adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)-secreting pituitary adenomas (termed “Cushing’s disease” [CD]) whereas false positive pituitary MRI findings may exist in patients with ectopic ACTH secretion. Thus, differentiating CD from ectopic ACTH secretion may necessitate dynamic testing or even invasive procedures such as bilateral inferior petrosal sinus sampling. Newer methods may relieve some of the diagnostic uncertainty in CS, providing a more definitive diagnosis prior to subjecting patients to additional imaging or invasive procedures. For example, a novel method of cortisol measurement in patients with CS is scalp hair analysis, a non-invasive method yielding cortisol and cortisone values representing long-term glucocorticoid exposure of the past months. Hair cortisol and cortisone have both shown to differentiate between CS patients and controls with a high sensitivity and specificity. Moreover, advances in imaging techniques may enhance detection of ACTH-secreting pituitary adenomas. While conventional pituitary MRI may fail to identify microadenomas in patients with CD, high-resolution 3T-MRI with 3D-spoiled gradient-echo sequence has thinner sections and superior soft-tissue contrast that can detect adenomas as small as 2 mm. Similarly, functional imaging may improve the identification of ACTH-secreting adenomas noninvasively; Gallium-68-tagged corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) combined with PET-CT can be used to detect CRH receptors, which are upregulated on corticotroph adenomas. This technique can delineate functionality of adenomas in patients with CD from patients with ectopic ACTH secretion and false positive pituitary lesions on MRI. Here, we review emerging methods and imaging modalities for the diagnosis of CS, discussing their diagnostic accuracy, strengths and limitations, and applicability to clinical practice.
RETRACTED: Application of VMD–SSA–BiLSTM algorithm to smart grid financial market time series forecasting and sustainable innovation management
Authors: Yin Chengran , Wang Guangming , Liao Jiacheng
Published: July 2023

Introduction: This paper proposes a deep learning algorithm based on the VMD-SSA-BiLSTM model for time series forecasting in the smart grid financial market. The algorithm aims to extract useful information from power grid signals to improve the timing prediction accuracy and meet the needs of sustainable innovation management.

Methods: The proposed algorithm employs the variational mode decomposition (VMD) method to decompose and reduce the dimensionality of historical data, followed by singular spectrum analysis (SSA) to perform singular spectrum analysis on each intrinsic mode function component. The resulting singular value spectrum matrices serve as input to a bidirectional long short-term memory (BiLSTM) neural network, which learns the feature representation and prediction model of the smart grid financial market through forward propagation and backpropagation.

Results: The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm effectively predicts the smart grid financial market's time series, achieving high prediction accuracy and stability. The approach can contribute to sustainable innovation management and the development of the smart grid.

Discussion: The VMD-SSA-BiLSTM algorithm's efficiency in extracting useful information from power grid signals and avoiding overfitting can improve the accuracy of timing predictions in the smart grid financial market. The algorithm's broad application prospects can promote sustainable innovation management and contribute to the development of the smart grid.
Russia’s military conflict against Ukraine and its impact on the European Union’s wealth. Can good governance counteract the effects of the war?
Authors: Negri Camelia , Dincă Gheorghiţa
Published: July 2023

Russia’s war against Ukraine, which originated in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, is undoubtedly one of the defining events of this current period, expected to exert a significant impact on the entire world’s economies. This study aims to determine whether the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has a significant impact on European Union (EU) Member States, particularly on the economic output of the EU countries, in the post-pandemic context. Difference-in-difference methodology alongside panel data econometric techniques are used to study the relationship between the effects of war, reflected in the deepening energy crisis, inflation, limited trade relations, restructuring of governmental expenditures, and the migrant crisis, together with economic freedom and governance quality as elements of neoliberal doctrine, and the economic wealth of EU Member States for the 1995–2021 period. In light of current research, the results prove that war has a significant impact on the economic output of the European Union structure, especially for the EU countries that rely the most on Russia’s energy imports. Using the difference in difference analysis, the impact of war on gdp_cap is evaluated as a drop in economic output of −405.08 euros per capita in the considered European countries. Applying panel regression analysis, defense and military expenditures, inflation, lack of trade openness, and increased levels of energy dependence negatively impact economic growth in the EU economies. In addition, this study provides essential information for public officials in order to prepare the EU economy for the recovery from war shocks in the forthcoming period, taking into account the study’s policy recommendations regarding energy reliance, restructuring public expenditure, prioritizing investment, and improving governance quality.
Disparities in high risk prenatal care adherence along racial and ethnic lines
Authors: Stegman Molly M. , Lucarelli-Baldwin Elizabeth , Ural Serdar H.
Published: July 2023

The term “high-risk pregnancy” describes a pregnancy at increased risk for complications due to various maternal or fetal medical, surgical, and/or anatomic issues. In order to best protect the pregnant patient and the fetus, frequent prenatal visits and monitoring are often recommended. Unfortunately, some patients are unable to attend these appointments for various reasons. Moreover, it has been documented that patients from ethnically and racially diverse backgrounds are more likely to miss medical appointments than are Caucasian patients. For instance, a case-control study retrospectively identified the race/ethnicity of patients who no-showed for mammography visits in 2018. Women who no-showed were more likely to be African American than patients who kept their appointments, with an odds ratio of 2.64 (4). Several other studies from several other primary care and specialty disciplines have shown similar results. However, the current research on high-risk obstetric no-shows has focused primarily on why patients miss their appointments rather than which patients are missing appointments. This is an area of opportunity for further research. Given disparities in health outcomes among underrepresented racial/ethnic groups and the importance of prenatal care, especially in high-risk populations, targeted attempts to increase patient participation in prenatal care may improve maternal and infant morbidity/mortality in these populations.
Multi-omic analysis of the tumor microenvironment shows clinical correlations in Ph1 study of atezolizumab +/- SoC in MM
Authors: Wong Sandy , Hamidi Habib , Costa Luciano J. , Bekri Selma , Neparidze Natalia , Vij Ravi , Nielsen Tina G. , Raval Aparna , Sareen Rajan , Wassner-Fritsch Elisabeth , Cho Hearn J.
Published: July 2023

Multiple myeloma (MM) remains incurable, and treatment of relapsed/refractory (R/R) disease is challenging. There is an unmet need for more targeted therapies in this setting; deep cellular and molecular phenotyping of the tumor and microenvironment in MM could help guide such therapies. This phase 1b study (NCT02431208) evaluated the safety and efficacy of the anti-programmed death-ligand 1 monoclonal antibody atezolizumab (Atezo) alone or in combination with the standard of care (SoC) treatments lenalidomide (Len) or pomalidomide (Pom) and/or daratumumab (Dara) in patients with R/R MM. Study endpoints included incidence of adverse events (AEs) and overall response rate (ORR). A novel unsupervised integrative multi-omic analysis was performed using RNA sequencing, mass cytometry immunophenotyping, and proteomic profiling of baseline and on-treatment bone marrow samples from patients receiving Atezo monotherapy or Atezo+Dara. A similarity network fusion (SNF) algorithm was applied to preprocessed data. Eighty-five patients were enrolled. Treatment-emergent deaths occurred in 2 patients; both deaths were considered unrelated to study treatment. ORRs ranged from 11.1% (Atezo+Len cohorts, n=18) to 83.3% (Atezo+Dara+Pom cohort, n=6). High-dimensional multi-omic profiling of the tumor microenvironment and integrative SNF analysis revealed novel correlations between cellular and molecular features of the tumor and immune microenvironment, patient selection criteria, and clinical outcome. Atezo monotherapy and SoC combinations were safe in this patient population and demonstrated some evidence of clinical efficacy. Integrative analysis of high dimensional genomics and immune data identified novel clinical correlations that may inform patient selection criteria and outcome assessment in future immunotherapy studies for myeloma.
Research on the dynamic co-evolution of the complex system of economy-innovation-environment of the marine industry in China
Authors: Qirong Wang , Jingrong Xu , Yang Zhang
Published: July 2023

Introduction

In the context of accelerating the construction of a marine power, relying on scientific and technological innovation to drive the high-quality growth of the marine economy and paying attention to the protection of the marine ecological environment are the strategic requirements for promoting the sustainable development of the marine industry in China.

Methods

This paper describes the development of marine industry as a complex system of marine economy-innovation-environment, that is, it describes the marine economy, marine innovation and marine environment as a complex system that interacts and restricts each other. Based on the theory of synergetics, a dynamic co-evolution model of the complex system of marine economy-innovation-environment is constructed, and the accelerating genetic algorithm is used to solve the model, so that the contribution degree of each subsystem and interaction effect between them are calculated. This paper uses this model to conduct an empirical study on the current situation of co-evolution of the complex system of marine economy-innovation-environment from 2003 to 2019 in China.

Results

The research results show that: (1) The order degree of the systems of economy, innovation and environment of the marine industry in China is on the rise; (2) At present, the systems of innovation and environment of the marine industry in China are in an evolutionary state, while the system of economy is showing a “recession” trend; (3) There are competition and cooperation between the system of economy-innovation-environment of the marine industry in China at the same time. The system of economy-environment is in a lose-lose state. The system of economy and innovation and the system of innovation and environment are in a win-lose complementary relationship.

Discussion

This result is conducive to the current transformation and development of China's marine industry, adjusting the direction of marine science and technology inputs, optimizing the structure of marine science and technology outputs, enhancing the coordinated development level of regional and even national marine systems, and providing policy reference for promoting multi-objective collaborative governance in marine management department and accelerating the process of high-quality marine development.
Characterization and performance evaluation of fully biocompatible gelatin-based humidity sensor for health and environmental monitoring
Authors: Khan Maryam , Rehman Muhammad Muqeet , Khan Shenawar Ali , Saqib Muhammad , Kim Woo Young
Published: July 2023

Biomaterials will have far reaching effects on solving the ever-rising environmental problems caused by the presently used toxic materials. Disposal of hazardous materials based electronic devices is causing a huge environmental problem in the form of electronic wastes (E-wastes). This study is an effort to contribute in the reduction of E-wastes by presenting the design, fabrication, and performance evaluation of a fully biocompatible humidity sensor with gelatin as the active layer. Gelatin is an excellent choice for humidity sensing because it is a hygroscopic material with the natural ability to attract and absorb water molecules, allowing for an effective detection and measurement of humidity levels in its surrounding environment. We patterned highly conductive (2.05 μΩ-cm) gold (Au) interdigitated electrode (IDE) (50 nm thickness) structure on a glass substrate by using thermal vacuum evaporation followed by the deposition of gelatin thin film by using cost effective technique of spin coating (at 1,500 rpm for 15 s). The device size was 25 mm × 22 mm with a line spacing of 1.50 mm between IDEs. Electrical characterisation was carried out to determine necessary performance parameters of the fully biocompatible humidity sensor and the obtained results exhibited a fast response/recovery time (4/6.30 s), wide operating range (15 %RH to 86 %RH), highly repeatable behaviour of 3 different samples and long lifetime (1 month). Wide variation in the resistance of sensor was observed at extreme humidity sensors ranging from 2.45 MΩ (15 %RH) to 0.12 MΩ (86 %RH). The fabricated sensor was used for the practical applications of health monitoring, touch less sensing, and environment monitoring. Moisture content of multiple commercially available moisturizers was determined by using gelatin based fully biocompatible humidity sensor and the obtained results showed that moisturizing cream had highest moisture content of 87 %RH (0.1 MΩ), followed by 80 %RH (0.30 MΩ) of rose water, and 72 %RH (0.67 MΩ) of baby oil.
Autologous blood clots: a natural biomaterial for wound healing
Authors: Richter David M. , Ku Jennifer C. , Keckler Kayla E. , Burke Lacey R. , Abd Genevieve M. , Li Yong
Published: July 2023

Repair after injury in mammalian tissue involves a complex cascade of events, with the formation of local blood clots being essential for the initial phases of wound healing. As a result, emerging research has sought to harness this biological activity to generate a pro-regenerative biomaterial to speed up wound healing. According to recent studies, “blood clots” created in vitro can be employed as an orthobiologic-based biomaterial for promoting tissue regeneration. Even though such research is still in its early phases, numerous studies show encouraging results that suggest autologous blood clots created in vitro might be a valuable treatment for soft tissue and orthopedic injuries. In this article, we discuss the function of blood clots in physiologic healing, how exogenous material can affect this process, and the most recent clinical research that proposes the use of autologous blood clots as a therapeutically beneficial biomaterial.
Retinal and choroidal microvascular characterization and density changes in different stages of diabetic retinopathy eyes
Authors: Wang Hui , Liu Xuhui , Hu Xiaofeng , Xin Hua , Bao Han , Yang Shuo
Published: July 2023

Background

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the changes in fundus vascular density and micromorphological structure of all vascular plexuses during the different stages of diabetic retinopathy (DR), and the correlation between fundus blood flow and the DR severity.

Methods

This observational cross-sectional study was conducted of 50 eyes with different stages of DR, 25 diabetes mellitus (DM) patients without clinical signs of DR and 41 healthy eyes. The foveal avascular zone (FAZ), vessel density of superficial capillary plexus (SCP), and deep retinal capillary plexus (DCP) were acquired by RTVue XR Avanti OCTA device. The perfusion density (PD), skeleton vessel density (SVD) was manually calculated using ImageJ. The area under receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to determine the diagnostic value of OCTA parameters in distinguishing DR and healthy eyes.

Results

The choroidal VD were significantly higher in the healthy group than in the DM without DR, NPDR, and PDR groups (p < 0.001). The mean retinal parafovea VD, PD, and retinal SVD were higher in healthy and DM without DR eyes compared with NPDR and DR eyes in all vascular layers (p < 0.001). The parafoveal VD of SCP, and DCP decreased, and FAZ area increased with the exacerbation of DR. The OCTA parameters, including FAZ area, parafovea VD, PD, and SVD in all vascular layers showed significant correlation with DR severity (all p < 0.001). ROC curves of OCTA parameters (FAZ area, retinal parafovea VD, retinal PD, and SVD in all vascular layers) for had high sensitivity and specificity in distinguishing DR versus healthy eyes.

Conclusion

The choroidal parafovea VD, retinal parafovea VD, retinal PD, and SVD in the two plexuses decreased, and retinal FAZ area increased significantly with worsening DR. VD, PD, and SVD might be potential early biomarkers indicating the progression of DR before appearance of clinically PDR in patients with DM. In this study, OCTA parameters had high sensitivity and specificity in distinguishing DR and healthy eyes.
A deep learning model for predicting COVID-19 ARDS in critically ill patients
Authors: Zhou Yang , Feng Jinhua , Mei Shuya , Tang Ri , Xing Shunpeng , Qin Shaojie , Zhang Zhiyun , Xu Qiaoyi , Gao Yuan , He Zhengyu
Published: July 2023

Background

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an acute infectious pneumonia caused by a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection previously unknown to humans. However, predictive studies of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in patients with COVID-19 are limited. In this study, we attempted to establish predictive models to predict ARDS caused by COVID-19 via a thorough analysis of patients' clinical data and CT images.

Method

The data of included patients were retrospectively collected from the intensive care unit in our hospital from April 2022 to June 2022. The primary outcome was the development of ARDS after ICU admission. We first established two individual predictive models based on extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) and convolutional neural network (CNN), respectively; then, an integrated model was developed by combining the two individual models. The performance of all the predictive models was evaluated using the area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), confusion matrix, and calibration plot.

Results

A total of 103 critically ill COVID-19 patients were included in this research, of which 23 patients (22.3%) developed ARDS after admission; five predictive variables were selected and further used to establish the machine learning models, and the XGBoost model yielded the most accurate predictions with the highest AUC (0.94, 95% CI: 0.91–0.96). The AUC of the CT-based convolutional neural network predictive model and the integrated model was 0.96 (95% CI: 0.93-0.98) and 0.97 (95% CI: 0.95–0.99), respectively.

Conclusion

An integrated deep learning model could be used to predict COVID-19 ARDS in critically ill patients.
Ecological differentiation and assembly processes of abundant and rare bacterial subcommunities in karst groundwater
Authors: Zhong Sining , Hou Bowen , Zhang Jinzheng , Wang Yichu , Xu Xuming , Li Bin , Ni Jinren
Published: July 2023

The ecological health of karst groundwater has been of global concern due to increasing anthropogenic activities. Bacteria comprising a few abundant taxa (AT) and plentiful rare taxa (RT) play essential roles in maintaining ecosystem stability, yet limited information is known about their ecological differentiation and assembly processes in karst groundwater. Based on a metabarcoding analysis of 64 groundwater samples from typical karst regions in southwest China, we revealed the environmental drivers, ecological roles, and assembly mechanisms of abundant and rare bacterial communities. We found a relatively high abundance of potential functional groups associated with parasites and pathogens in karst groundwater, which might be linked to the frequent regional anthropogenic activities. Our study confirmed that AT was dominated by Proteobacteria and Campilobacterota, while Patescibacteria and Chloroflexi flourished more in the RT subcommunity. The node-level topological features of the co-occurrence network indicated that AT might share similar niches and play more important roles in maintaining bacterial community stability. RT in karst groundwater was less environmentally constrained and showed a wider environmental threshold response to various environmental factors than AT. Deterministic processes, especially homogeneous selection, tended to be more important in the community assembly of AT, whereas the community assembly of RT was mainly controlled by stochastic processes. This study expanded our knowledge of the karst groundwater microbiome and was of great significance to the assessment of ecological stability and drinking water safety in karst regions.
Biocontrol of fungal phytopathogens by Bacillus pumilus
Authors: Dobrzyński Jakub , Jakubowska Zuzanna , Kulkova Iryna , Kowalczyk Paweł , Kramkowski Karol
Published: July 2023

Plant growth-promoting bacteria are one of the most interesting methods of controlling fungal phytopathogens. These bacteria can participate in biocontrol via a variety of mechanisms including lipopeptide production, hydrolytic enzymes (e.g., chitinase, cellulases, glucanase) production, microbial volatile organic compounds (mVOCs) production, and induced systemic resistance (ISR) triggering. Among the bacterial genera most frequently studied in this aspect are Bacillus spp. including Bacillus pumilus. Due to the range of biocontrol traits, B. pumilus is one of the most interesting members of Bacillus spp. that can be used in the biocontrol of fungal phytopathogens. So far, a number of B. pumilus strains that exhibit biocontrol properties against fungal phytopathogens have been described, e.g., B. pumilus HR10, PTB180, B. pumilus SS-10.7, B. pumilus MCB-7, B. pumilus INR7, B. pumilus SE52, SE34, SE49, B. pumilus RST25, B. pumilus JK-SX001, and B. pumilus KUDC1732. B. pumilus strains are capable of suppressing phytopathogens such as Arthrobotrys conoides, Fusarium solani, Fusarium oxysporum, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, Rhizoctonia solani, and Fagopyrum esculentum. Importantly, B. pumilus can promote plant growth regardless of whether it alters the native microbiota or not. However, in order to increase its efficacy, research is still needed to clarify the relationship between the native microbiota and B. pumilus. Despite that, it can already be concluded that B. pumilus strains are good candidates to be environmentally friendly and commercially effective biocontrol agents.
Microbial signature of intestine in children with allergic rhinitis
Authors: Zhang Panpan , Zhou Xuehua , Tan Hong , Jian Fangfang , Jing Zenghui , Wu Huajie , Zhang Yao , Luo Jianfeng , Zhang Juan , Sun Xin
Published: July 2023

Introduction

Previous studies have found that unique patterns of gut microbial colonization in infancy associated with the development of allergic diseases. However, there is no research on the gut microbiota characteristics of AR children in Chinese Mainland.

Objective

To investigate the changes of gut microbial of AR children in Chinese Mainland and evaluate the correlation between gut microbial and clinical indexes.

Methods

In this clinical study, fecal samples from 24 AR children and 25 healthy control children (HCs) were comparative via next generation sequencing of the V3-V4 regions of the 16S rRNA gene. Analyzed the relationship between clinical features and gut microbial using Spearman correlation.

Results

Compared to HCs, AR children showed significant decreases in Shannon index and significant increases in Simpson index at both the family and genera levels (all p < 0.05). In terms of bacterial composition, at the phylum level, AR children had higher abundance of Bacteroidetes than that in the HCs group (p < 0.05) and were significantly positively correlated with TNSS (p < 0.05). At the family level, AR children had higher abundance of Prevotellaceae and Enterobacteriaceae higher than that in the HCs group (all p < 0.05) and had a significantly positive correlation with TNSS, eosinophils (EOS) and total immunoglobulin E (tIgE) (all p < 0.05). At the genus level, reduced abundance of Agathobacter, Parasutterella, Roseburia and Subdoligranulum were also observed in the AR cohorts compared to HCs (all p < 0.05) and significantly negatively associated with TNSS, EOS, tIgE, QOL, and FeNO (all p < 0.05).

Conclusion

AR children in Chinese Mainland were characterized by reduced microbial diversity and distinguished microbial characteristics in comparison with HCs. The observations of this study offer proof that distinctive gut microbiota profiles were present in AR children and necessitate further investigation in the form of mechanistic studies.
Label-efficient deep semantic segmentation of intracranial hemorrhages in CT-scans
Authors: Spahr Antoine , Ståhle Jennifer , Wang Chunliang , Kaijser Magnus
Published: July 2023

Intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) is a common finding in traumatic brain injury (TBI) and computed tomography (CT) is considered the gold standard for diagnosis. Automated detection of ICH provides clinical value in diagnostics and in the ability to feed robust quantification measures into future prediction models. Several studies have explored ICH detection and segmentation but the research process is somewhat hindered due to a lack of open large and labeled datasets, making validation and comparison almost impossible. The complexity of the task is further challenged by the heterogeneity of ICH patterns, requiring a large number of labeled data to train robust and reliable models. Consequently, due to the labeling cost, there is a need for label-efficient algorithms that can exploit easily available unlabeled or weakly-labeled data. Our aims for this study were to evaluate whether transfer learning can improve ICH segmentation performance and to compare a variety of transfer learning approaches that harness unlabeled and weakly-labeled data. Three self-supervised and three weakly-supervised transfer learning approaches were explored. To be used in our comparisons, we also manually labeled a dataset of 51 CT scans. We demonstrate that transfer learning improves ICH segmentation performance on both datasets. Unlike most studies on ICH segmentation our work relies exclusively on publicly available datasets, allowing for easy comparison of performances in future studies. To further promote comparison between studies, we also present a new public dataset of ICH-labeled CT scans, Seq-CQ500.
Structured light enhanced entoptic stimuli for vision science applications
Authors: Pushin Dmitry A. , Cory David G. , Kapahi Connor , Kulmaganbetov Mukhit , Mungalsingh Melanie , Silva Andrew E. , Singh Taranjit , Thompson Benjamin , Sarenac Dusan
Published: July 2023

The dichroic macular pigment in the Henle fiber layer in the fovea enables humans to perceive entoptic phenomena when viewing polarized blue light. In the standard case of linearly polarized stimuli, a faint bowtie-like pattern known as the Haidinger's brush appears in the central point of fixation. As the shape and clarity of the perceived signal is directly related to the health of the macula, Haidinger's brush has been used as a diagnostic marker in studies of early stage macular degeneration and central field visual dysfunction. However, due to the weak nature of the perceived signal the perception of the Haidinger's brush has not been integrated with modern clinical methods. Recent attempts have been made to increase the strength of the perceived signal by employing structured light with spatially varying polarization profiles. Here we review the advancements with the structured light stimuli and describe the current challenges and future prospects.
Biodosimetry, can it find its way to the nuclear medicine clinic?
Authors: Bolcaen Julie , Combrink Nastassja , Spoormans Kaat , More Stuart , Vandevoorde Charlot , Fisher Randall , Kleynhans Janke
Published: July 2023

Personalised dosimetry based on molecular imaging is a field that has grown exponentially in the last decade due to the increasing success of Radioligand Therapy (RLT). Despite advances in imaging-based 3D dose estimation, the administered dose of a therapeutic radiopharmaceutical for RLT is often non-personalised, with standardised dose regimens administered every 4–6 weeks. Biodosimetry markers, such as chromosomal aberrations, could be used alongside image-based dosimetry as a tool for individualised dose estimation to further understand normal tissue toxicity and refine the administered dose. In this review we give an overview of biodosimetry markers that are used for blood dose estimation, followed by an overview of their current results when applied in RLT patients. Finally, an in-depth discussion will provide a perspective on the potential for the use of biodosimetry in the nuclear medicine clinic.