bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
TFE3 and TFEB-rearranged renal cell carcinomas: an immunohistochemical panel to differentiate from common renal cell neoplasms
Authors: Caliò Anna , Marletta Stefano , Brunelli Matteo , Pedron Serena , Portillo Sofia Canete , Segala Diego , Bariani Elena , Gobbo Stefano , Netto George , Martignoni Guido
Published: August 2022

TFE3/TFEB-rearranged renal cell carcinomas are characterized by translocations involving TFE3 and TFEB genes. Despite the initial description of typical morphology, their histological spectrum is wide, mimicking common subtypes of renal cell tumors. Thus, the diagnosis is challenging requiring the demonstration of the gene rearrangement, usually by FISH. However, this technique is limited in most laboratories and immunohistochemical TFE3/TFEB analysis is inconsistent. We sought to identify a useful immunohistochemical panel using the most common available markers to recognize those tumors. We performed an immunohistochemical panel comparing 27 TFE3-rearranged and 10 TFEB-rearranged renal cell carcinomas to the most common renal cell tumors (150 clear cell, 100 papillary, 50 chromophobe renal cell carcinomas, 18 clear cell papillary renal cell tumors, and 50 oncocytomas). When dealing with neoplasms characterized by cells with clear cytoplasm, CA9 is a helpful marker to exclude clear cell renal cell carcinoma. GATA3, AMACR, and CK7 are useful to rule out clear cell papillary renal cell tumor. CK7 is negative in TFE3/TFEB-rearranged renal cell carcinoma and positive in papillary renal cell carcinoma, being therefore useful in this setting. Parvalbumin and CK7/S100A1 respectively are of paramount importance when TFE3/TFEB-rearranged renal cell carcinoma resembles oncocytoma and chromophobe renal cell carcinoma. Moreover, in TFEB-rearranged renal cell carcinoma, cathepsin K and melanogenesis markers are constantly positive, whereas TFE3-rearranged renal cell carcinoma stains for cathepsin K in roughly half of the cases, HMB45 in 8% and Melan-A in 22%. In conclusion, since TFE3/TFEB-rearranged renal cell carcinoma may mimic several histotypes, an immunohistochemical panel to differentiate them from common renal cell tumors should include cathepsin K, CA9, CK7, and parvalbumin.
Older meningioma patients: a retrospective population-based study of risk factors for morbidity and mortality after neurosurgery
Authors: Löfgren David , Valachis Antonios , Olivecrona Magnus
Published: August 2022

Background

Meningioma is the most common primary CNS tumour. Most meningiomas are benign, and most patients are 65 years or older. Surgery is usually the primary treatment option. Most prior studies on early surgical outcomes in older patients with meningioma are small, and there is a lack of larger population-based studies to guide clinical decision-making. We aimed to explore the risks for perioperative mortality and morbidity in older patients with meningioma and to investigate changes in surgical incidence over time.

Methods

In this retrospective population-based study on patients in Sweden, 65 years or older with surgery 1999–2017 for meningioma, we used data from the Swedish Brain Tumour Registry. We analysed factors contributing to perioperative mortality and morbidity and used official demographic data to calculate yearly incidence of surgical procedures for meningioma.

Results

The final study cohort included 1676 patients with a 3.1% perioperative mortality and a 37.6% perioperative morbidity. In multivariate analysis, higher age showed a statistically significant association with higher perioperative mortality, whereas larger tumour size and having preoperative symptoms were associated with higher perioperative morbidity. A numerical increased rate of surgical interventions after 2012 was observed, without evidence of worsening short-term surgical outcomes.

Conclusions

Higher mortality with increased age and higher morbidity risk in larger and/or symptomatic tumours imply a possible benefit from considering surgery in selected older patients with a growing meningioma before the development of tumour-related symptoms. This study further underlines the need for a standardized method of reporting and classifying complications from neurosurgery.
Health occupations salary outcomes: intersections of student race, gender, and first-generation status
Authors: Gesing Peggy , Pant Mohan D. , Burbage Amanda K.
Published: August 2022

Greater diversity in the healthcare workforce has been identified as a critical need in serving an increasingly diverse population. Higher education institutions have been tasked with increasing the number of underrepresented students in the health occupations pipeline to better align with the demographics of the general population and meet the need for a diverse health occupations workforce. This study used the National Science Foundation’s National Survey of College Graduates dataset to capture data across time, examining the intersectionality of race, gender, and first-generation status on the salary outcomes of students who earn degrees related to health occupations. Results indicate that the intersecting identities of students who earn a bachelor’s degree or higher in the health professions impact salary outcomes. Results of this study have implications for higher education policies that can impact increased diversity in the health occupations workforce pipeline.
A discussion on the robust vector autoregressive models: novel evidence from safe haven assets
Authors: Chang Le , Shi Yanlin
Published: August 2022

The vector autoregressive (VAR) model has been popularly employed in operational practice to study multivariate time series. Despite its usefulness in providing associated metrics such as the impulse response function (IRF) and forecast error variance decomposition (FEVD), the traditional VAR model estimated via the usual ordinary least squares is vulnerable to outliers. To handle potential outliers in multivariate time series, this paper investigates two robust estimation methods of the VAR model, the reweighted multivariate least trimmed squares and the multivariate MM-estimation. The robust information criteria are also proposed to select the appropriate number of temporal lags. Via extensive simulation studies, we show that the robust VAR models lead to much more accurate estimates than the original VAR in the presence of outliers. Our empirical results include logged daily realized volatilities of six common safe haven assets: futures of gold, silver, Brent oil and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil and currencies of Swiss Francs and Japanese Yen. Our sample covers July 2017–June 2020, which includes the history-writing price drop of WTI on April 20, 2020. Our baseline results suggest that the traditional VAR model may significantly overestimate some parameters, as well as IRF and FEVD metrics. In contrast, robust VAR models provide more reliable results, the validity of which is verified via various approaches. Empirical implications based on robust estimates are further illustrated.
The PROactive cohort study: rationale, design, and study procedures
Authors: Nap- van der Vlist Merel M. , Hoefnagels Johanna W. , Dalmeijer Geertje W. , Moopen Neha , van der Ent Cornelis K. , Swart Joost F. , van de Putte Elise M. , Nijhof Sanne L.
Published: August 2022

Children with a chronic condition face more obstacles than their healthy peers, which may impact their physical, social-emotional, and cognitive development. The PROactive cohort study identifies children with a chronic disease at high risk of debilitating fatigue, decreased daily life participation and psychosocial problems, as well as children who are resilient and thrive despite the challenges of growing up with a chronic condition. Both groups will teach us how we can best support children, adolescents and parents to adapt to and manage a disease, as well as tailor interventions to their specific needs.

This cohort follows a continuous longitudinal design. It is based at the Wilhelmina Children’s Hospital (WKZ) in the Netherlands and has been running since December 2016. Children with a chronic condition (e.g. cystic fibrosis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, chronic kidney disease, or congenital heart disease) as well children with medically unexplained fatigue or pain in a broad age range (2–18 years) are included, as well as their parent(s). Data are collected from parents (of children between 2 and 18 years) and children (8–18 years), as well as data from their electronic health record (EHR). Primary outcome measures are fatigue, daily life participation, and psychosocial well-being, all assessed via patient- and proxy-reported outcome measures. Generic biological/lifestyle, psychological, and social factors were assessed using clinical assessment tools and questionnaires. In the PROactive cohort study the research assessment is an integrated part of clinical care. Children are included when they visit the outpatient clinic and are followed up annually.
The impact of a healthy lifestyle on the risk of esophageal and gastric cancer subtypes
Authors: van den Brandt Piet A.
Published: August 2022

Few prospective studies have been conducted on a combined healthy lifestyle and risk of esophageal and gastric cancer, and even less on subtypes: esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC), gastric cardia adenocarcinoma (GCA), and gastric non-cardia adenocarcinoma (GNCA). The relationship of a healthy lifestyle score (HLS) with risk of these cancers was investigated in the Netherlands Cohort Study. In 1986, 120,852 men and women aged 55–69 years provided information on dietary and lifestyle habits. The HLS was derived from information on smoking, body mass index, physical activity, Mediterranean diet adherence, and alcohol intake. After 20.3 years of follow-up, multivariable case-cohort analyses were based on 333 incident esophageal and 777 gastric cancer cases, and 3720 subcohort members with complete data on lifestyles and confounders. The impact of changing to healthy lifestyles was estimated with the rate advancement period (RAP). The HLS was significantly inversely associated with risk of esophageal and gastric cancer, and subtypes (except EAC), in a linear fashion. The observed HR decrease per 1-point increase in HLS was 31% for esophageal, and 19% for gastric cancer, 49% for ESCC, 23% for GCA, and 18% for GNCA. The RAP per 1-point increase in HLS ranged from − 11.75 years for ESCC to − 2.85 years for GNCA. Also after excluding smoking, inverse associations between the HLS and esophageal and gastric cancer risk were still apparent. These results suggest that adhering to a combination of healthy modifiable lifestyle factors may substantially reduce the risk of esophageal and gastric cancer.
Bridging the gap between single- and multi-model predictive runtime verification
Authors: Ferrando Angelo , Cardoso Rafael C. , Farrell Marie , Luckcuck Matt , Papacchini Fabio , Fisher Michael , Mascardi Viviana
Published: August 2022

This paper presents an extension of the Predictive Runtime Verification (PRV) paradigm to consider multiple models of the System Under Analysis (SUA). We call this extension Multi-Model PRV. Typically, PRV attempts to predict the satisfaction or violation of a property based on a trace and a (single) formal model of the SUA. However, contemporary node- or component-based systems (e.g. robotic systems) may benefit from monitoring based on a model of each component. We show how a Multi-Model PRV approach can be applied in either a centralised or a compositional way (where the property is compositional), as best suits the SUA. Crucially, our approach is formalism-agnostic. We demonstrate our approach using an illustrative example of a Mars Curiosity rover simulation and evaluate our contribution via a prototype implementation.
Preparation of new modified silica gel terminated with phenylphosphonic acid-amide moieties for adsorption of uranium(VI) from aqueous solutions
Authors: Ammar Huda , Shaaban A. F. , Lasheen T. A. , Nouh El Said A.
Published: August 2022

PAMAM dendrimers modified silica gel terminated phenylphosphonic acid-amide moieties (Si-6G PAMAM-PPAAM) was prepared for uranium(VI) adsorption from aqueous solutions by batch and fixed-bed column methods. The experimental results showed that the maximum capacity was 434.78 mg g−1. Equilibrium isotherm data obeyed Langmuir isotherm model. Kinetic adsorption followed pseudo-second order model and thermodynamic parameters implied the adsorption was spontaneous, endothermic. The adsorption performance of the new adsorbent toward uranium using fixed-bed column method was also investigated. The investigated adsorbent (Si-6G PAMAM-PPAAM) was successfully used to extract uranium from leach liquor of granitic rock sample.
Spiking neural P systems: main ideas and results
Authors: Leporati Alberto , Mauri Giancarlo , Zandron Claudio
Published: August 2022

Spiking neural P systems are parallel and distributed computation devices which are inspired by the neuro-physiological behavior of biological neurons. In this paper we will present, with a tutorial approach, the main underlying ideas and the most interesting variants that have been proposed in the literature. In particular, we will discuss the results on the computational power of these models, both in terms of Turing completeness and of efficiency in solving hard problems, under different assumptions for information encoding, form and application of rules, and bounds on the main parameters defining the systems.
Seismic and geomorphic assessment for coseismic landslides zonation in tropical volcanic contexts
Authors: Arroyo-Solórzano Mario , Quesada-Román Adolfo , Barrantes-Castillo Gustavo
Published: August 2022

The Poás volcano is an active volcano of Costa Rica with intense tectonic activity in its flanks. Historically, the volcano has presented strong, surficial earthquakes provoking many landslides with associated casualties and immense economic impacts. One example is the Cinchona earthquake in 2009 (Mw 6.2 and 4.6 km depth). We aim to determine a landslide zonation according to seismic data and a geomorphic assessment in the NW sector of the Poás volcano based on a combination of qualitative methods and morphometric parameters. The results estimate the possible outcome of a 6.8 Mw earthquake. The susceptibility mapping and models showed a positive relationship between this methodology and others previously developed for the area that surrounds the Poás volcano as well as a correspondence with the landslides caused by the Cinchona earthquake in 2009. The final coseismic landslides susceptibility zoning indicated that 52% of the area is prone to landslides. Furthermore, there is a relationship between the areas with high exposure to landslides with conical volcanic geomorphologies, active faulting structural and/or tectonic geomorphological units with slopes greater than 15°. The proposed zoning can be useful for land use planning and by civil protection entities to orientate quick response and reduce the impact of future landslides. Moreover, this method can be applied in active tectonic and volcanic areas worldwide.
From goods to goats: examining post-disaster livelihood recovery in the aftermath of the Nepal earthquake 2015
Authors: Karki Jeevan , Matthewman Steve , Grayman Jesse Hession
Published: August 2022

Disasters can have substantial impacts on people’s livelihoods in developing countries. Further, if the need for livelihood interventions is ignored or delayed, the crisis may trigger unexpected harmful consequences in the affected households in the aftermath. Therefore, restoring livelihoods should remain a priority in the post-disaster recovery process. However, such recoveries in rural contexts and developing countries, like Nepal, are complex as the livelihood restoration process is affected by serious spatial, socio-economic, and political factors. We employed qualitative research methods in four highly affected districts in the 2015 Nepal Earthquake (7.8 Mw) to examine post-disaster livelihoods recovery. Our paper critically assesses the humanitarian response based on the narratives and lived experiences of affected households. The findings show that humanitarian assistance was crucial in addressing several unmet needs of disaster-affected rural households in resource-poor settings in Nepal. However, the interventions were generally fragmented, insufficient, neoliberal led (forcing market dependencies), and largely business-as-usual in their orientation. Previous studies in Nepal paid insufficient attention to the goods provided to affected households in the name of recovery. Therefore, our paper scrutinises selected humanitarian objects, such as power tillers, and unpacks their political economy and effectiveness in local contexts. Further, our findings show that some livelihood policies reinforced the gap between the haves and have-nots, thereby reproducing pre-disaster inequalities in the post-disaster field.
Distinguishing Nature of Science Beliefs, Knowledge and Understandings
Authors: Brock Richard , Park Wonyong
Published: August 2022

Whilst teaching about the nature of science (NOS) is a significant goal of science education, there remains debate about specifying the NOS and appropriate pedagogies and approaches to researching the NOS. A neglected, but conceptually and practically significant, problem is the proliferation of NOS-related learning goals such as NOS beliefs, views, understandings and knowledge. In this theoretical paper, we argue that such goals are often poorly defined, and different goals cohere with different pedagogical and research strategies. We propose a novel three-part taxonomy of NOS learning goals (as NOS beliefs, knowledge and understandings) and contend that different approaches are appropriate for teaching and assessing NOS beliefs, views and knowledge. An NOS belief refers to a positive attitudinal stance towards some proposition that lacks justificatory support or cannot easily be judged true or false. NOS knowledge indicates justified true beliefs related to the NOS. NOS understanding denotes a grasping of how a collection of NOS knowledge is related. The goals vary by the extent to which they can be judged true or false and the degree of justification they require. For NOS beliefs, a range of stances is acceptable; NOS knowledge must be a true and justified belief; in the case of NOS understanding, teaching and assessment should focus on the appreciation of relationships between justified true beliefs. The novel taxonomy brings needed clarity to a confused aspect of NOS research and may lead to the development of NOS pedagogies and assessment tools more precisely targeted to well-defined learning goals.
An Improved Method for Estimating the Velocity Field of Coronal Propagating Disturbances
Authors: Morgan Huw , Korsós Marianna B.
Published: August 2022

The solar corona is host to a continuous flow of propagating disturbances (PD). These are continuous and ubiquitous across broad regions of the corona, including the quiet Sun. The aim of this article is to present an improved, efficient method to create velocity vector field maps based on the direction and magnitude of the PD as observed in time series of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) images. The method presented here is for use with the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA)/Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) EUV channels and takes as input $\approx 2$
≈
2
hours of images at the highest 12 s cadence. Data from a region near disc centre is extracted, and a process called time normalisation is applied to the co-aligned data. Following noise reduction using à trous decomposition, the PD are effectively revealed. A modified Lucas–Kanade algorithm is then used to map the velocity field. The method described here runs comfortably on a desktop computer in a few minutes and offers an order of magnitude improvement in efficiency compared to a previous implementation. As applied to a region of the quiet Sun, we find that the velocity field describes a mosaic of cells of coherent outwardly-diverging PD flows of typical size 50 to $100''$

100
″

(36 to 72 Mm). The flows originate from points and narrow corridors in the cell centres and end in the narrow boundaries between cells. Visual comparison with ultraviolet AIA images shows that the flow sources are correlated with the bright photospheric supergranular network boundaries. Assuming that the PD follow the local magnetic field, the velocity flow field is a proxy for the plane-of-sky distribution of the coronal magnetic field, and therefore the maps offer a unique insight into the topology of the corona. These are particularly valuable for quiet Sun regions where the appearance of structures in EUV images is hard to interpret.
Numerical Simulation of Pulverized Coal Injection in the Dome Zone of a COREX Melter Gasifier
Authors: Zhou Heng , Hu Yifan , Tian Xu , Kou Mingyin , Liu Yiran , Wu Shengli , Shen Yansong
Published: August 2022

The dome zone is the freeboard at the top of the COREX melter gasifier (MG), and the secondary injection systems are installed in the dome zone to recycle dust and oxygen. Pulverized coal injection (PCI) in the dome zone of the COREX MG is used to transform the oxygen burners (OBs) into oxygen–coal burners (OCBs) and cooperates with the dust burners (DBs) to realize the function of gasification. In this work, a three-dimensional (3-D) steady-state mathematical model was developed to simulate the transport phenomenon in the dome zone with and without PCI. The results show that when 150 kg/t of pulverized coal is injected into the dome zone, the impinging stream area expands and the average temperature in the dome zone increases by about 40 K. The proportion of CO2in the reduction gas decreases by 7.8 pct, while the proportion of H2increases by 7.4 pct at the outlet of the MG with the PCI in the dome zone. The total effective volume fraction of reducing gas at the outlet of MG can reach 83.3 pct, which is a benefit to improving the reduction processes in the shaft furnace. Due to the intensification of circulation and the complexity of particle behavior, the residence time of particles increases by about 10 seconds in the case of PCI and the burnout rate of recycling dust and pulverized coal can reach above 99 pct.

Graphical abstract
Towards Automated Brain Aneurysm Detection in TOF-MRA: Open Data, Weak Labels, and Anatomical Knowledge
Authors: Di Noto Tommaso , Marie Guillaume , Tourbier Sebastien , Alemán-Gómez Yasser , Esteban Oscar , Saliou Guillaume , Cuadra Meritxell Bach , Hagmann Patric , Richiardi Jonas
Published: August 2022

Brain aneurysm detection in Time-Of-Flight Magnetic Resonance Angiography (TOF-MRA) has undergone drastic improvements with the advent of Deep Learning (DL). However, performances of supervised DL models heavily rely on the quantity of labeled samples, which are extremely costly to obtain. Here, we present a DL model for aneurysm detection that overcomes the issue with “weak” labels: oversized annotations which are considerably faster to create. Our weak labels resulted to be four times faster to generate than their voxel-wise counterparts. In addition, our model leverages prior anatomical knowledge by focusing only on plausible locations for aneurysm occurrence. We first train and evaluate our model through cross-validation on an in-house TOF-MRA dataset comprising 284 subjects (170 females / 127 healthy controls / 157 patients with 198 aneurysms). On this dataset, our best model achieved a sensitivity of 83%, with False Positive (FP) rate of 0.8 per patient. To assess model generalizability, we then participated in a challenge for aneurysm detection with TOF-MRA data (93 patients, 20 controls, 125 aneurysms). On the public challenge, sensitivity was 68% (FP rate = 2.5), ranking 4th/18 on the open leaderboard. We found no significant difference in sensitivity between aneurysm risk-of-rupture groups (p = 0.75), locations (p = 0.72), or sizes (p = 0.15). Data, code and model weights are released under permissive licenses. We demonstrate that weak labels and anatomical knowledge can alleviate the necessity for prohibitively expensive voxel-wise annotations.
Single-Cell Transcriptional Profiling and Gene Regulatory Network Modeling in Tg2576 Mice Reveal Gender-Dependent Molecular Features Preceding Alzheimer-Like Pathologies
Authors: Ali Muhammad , Huarte Oihane Uriarte , Heurtaux Tony , Garcia Pierre , Rodriguez Beatriz Pardo , Grzyb Kamil , Halder Rashi , Skupin Alexander , Buttini Manuel , Glaab Enrico
Published: August 2022

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) onset and progression is influenced by a complex interplay of several environmental and genetic factors, one of them gender. Pronounced gender differences have been observed both in the relative risk of developing AD and in clinical disease manifestations. A molecular level understanding of these gender disparities is still missing, but could provide important clues on cellular mechanisms modulating the disease and reveal new targets for gender-oriented disease-modifying precision therapies. We therefore present here a comprehensive single-cell analysis of disease-associated molecular gender differences in transcriptomics data from the neocortex, one of the brain regions most susceptible to AD, in one of the most widely used AD mouse models, the Tg2576 model. Cortical areas are also most commonly used in studies of post-mortem AD brains. To identify disease-linked molecular processes that occur before the onset of detectable neuropathology, we focused our analyses on an age with no detectable plaques and microgliosis. Cell-type specific alterations were investigated at the level of individual genes, pathways, and gene regulatory networks. The number of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) was not large enough to build context-specific gene regulatory networks for each individual cell type, and thus, we focused on the study of cell types with dominant changes and included analyses of changes across the combination of cell types. We observed significant disease-associated gender differences in cellular processes related to synapse organization and reactive oxygen species metabolism, and identified a limited set of transcription factors, including Egr1 and Klf6, as key regulators of many of the disease-associated and gender-dependent gene expression changes in the model. Overall, our analyses revealed significant cell-type specific gene expression changes in individual genes, pathways and sub-networks, including gender-specific and gender-dimorphic changes in both upstream transcription factors and their downstream targets, in the Tg2576 AD model before the onset of overt disease. This opens a window into molecular events that could determine gender-susceptibility to AD, and uncovers tractable target candidates for potential gender-specific precision medicine for AD.
Szegő Kernel Asymptotics on Complete Strictly Pseudoconvex CR Manifolds
Authors: Hsiao Chin-Yu , Marinescu George , Wang Huan
Published: August 2022

We prove a Bochner–Kodaira–Nakano formula and establish Szegő kernel expansions on complete strictly pseudoconvex CR manifolds with transversal CR $$\mathbb {R}$$
R
-action under certain natural geometric conditions. As a consequence we show that such manifolds are locally CR embeddable.
The Dorothy Garrod Site: a new Middle Stone Age locality in Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania
Authors: Maíllo-Fernández José Manuel , Marín Juan , Martín-Perea David Manuel , Uribelarrea David , Solano-Megías Irene , Asiaín Raquel , Baquedano Enrique , Domínguez-Rodrigo Manuel , Gidna Agness , Medialdea Alicia , Steven Hekima Mwamakimbula , Chilonzi Daniel Haruni , Arteaga Carlos , Mabulla Audax
Published: August 2022

Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania) is a key site for the study of human evolution as well as the origin of modern humans and the Middle Stone Age (MSA). In this study, we present a new MSA location named Dorothy Garrod Site (DGS), found in the main branch of Olduvai Gorge. The site has only one archaeological level, located stratigraphically in the Upper Ndutu. Although it has not yet been possible to radiometrically date it, it has yielded numerous archaeological remains with a functional association between the faunal remains and the lithic industry. The fauna identified includes Alcelaphini, Hippotragini, and Equidae, some of which present percussion marks and evidence of burning. The lithic industry involved knapping using discoid methods. The retouched blanks are denticulates and retouched flakes with, up to now, a total absence of points. DGS is therefore a new site that will aid our understanding of modern human occupations in northern Tanzania in a period for which there is a dearth of properly contextualised archaeological evidence.
Exploring the Possibility to Shorten the Duration and Reduce the Number of Replicates in Biomethane Potential Tests (BMP)
Authors: Calabrò Paolo Salvatore , Folino Adele , Maesano Mariangela , Pangallo Domenica , Zema Demetrio Antonio
Published: August 2022

Biochemical methane potential (BMP) tests are the most reliable method for the direct evaluation of the methane yield from a specific feedstock in anaerobic digestion. However, these tests are time-consuming (about 1 month) and quite expensive (need of no less than two or three replicates). This study evaluates the accuracy of the “first-order kinetic”, “logistic” and “Gompertz” models in predicting the BMP values, calibrating the models’ parameters with the data collected in shorter BMP tests (i.e., 5, 7, 10, 14 and 21 days) than usually (28 days or more). Moreover, the influence of the number of replicates (i.e., two or three) on the model prediction accuracy was also evaluated. A database from 32 BMP tests, previously carried out on different substrates, was adopted for these evaluations. The test duration significantly influences the prediction accuracy for two models (Gompertz and first-order kinetic), while the number of replicates is less influencing. The ultimate methane production is not accurate if the models use parameters from short (less than 10 days) BMP tests. The increase in test duration to 21 days gives BMP predictions with errors below 10% for Gompertz and logistic models.

Graphical Abstract
On the Pacific Decadal Oscillation Simulations in CMIP6 Models: A New Test-Bed from Climate Network Analysis
Authors: Ma Yiling , Yuan Naiming , Dong Tianyun , Dong Wenjie
Published: August 2022

As a dominant pattern of the North Pacific sea surface temperature decadal variability, the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) has remarkable influences on the marine and terrestrial ecosystems. However, the PDO is highly unpredictable. Here, we assess the performance of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) models in simulating the PDO, with an emphasis on the evaluation of CMIP6 models in reproducing a recently detected early warning signal based on climate network analysis for the PDO regime shift. Results show that the skill of CMIP6 historical simulations remains at a low level, with a skill limited in reproducing PDO’s spatial pattern and nearly no skill in reproducing the PDO index. However, if the warning signal for the PDO regime shift by climate network analysis is considered as a test-bed, we find that even in historical simulations, a few models can represent the corresponding relationship between the warning signal and the PDO regime shift, regardless of the chronological accuracy. By further conducting initialization, the performance of the model simulations is improved according to the evaluation of the hindcasts from two ensemble members of the Decadal Climate Prediction Project (NorCPM1 and BCC-CSM2-MR). Particularly, we find that the NorCPM1 model can capture the early warning signals for the late-1970s and late-1990s regime shifts 5–7 years in advance, indicating that the early warning signal somewhat can be captured by some CMIP6 models. A further investigation on the underlying mechanisms of the early warning signal would be crucial for the improvement of model simulations in the North Pacific.
Development of markers using microsatellite loci of two rove beetle species, Paederus fuscipes Curtis and Aleochara (Aleochara) curtula Goeze (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae), followed by analyses of genetic diversity and population structure
Authors: Choi Yeon‐Jae , Yi Jeesoo , Lee Chan-Jun , Kim Ji-Wook , Jeon Mi-Jeong , Park Jong-Seok , Cho Sung-Jin
Published: August 2022

Background

The family Staphylinidae is the most speciose beetle group in the world. The outbreaks of two staphylinid species, Paederus fuscipes and Aleochara (Aleochara) curtula, were recently reported in South Korea. None of research about molecular markers and genetic diversity have been conducted in these two species.

Objective

To develop microsatellite markers and analyze the genetic diversity and population structures of two rove beetle species.

Methods

NGS was used to sequence whole genomes of two species, Paederus fuscipes and Aleochara (Aleochara) curtula. Microsatellite loci were selected with flanking primer sequences. Specimens of P. fuscipes and A. curtula were collected from three localities, respectively. Genetic diversity and population structure were analyzed using the newly developed microsatellite markers.

Results

The number of alleles ranged 5.727–6.636 (average 6.242) and 2.182–5.364 (average 4.091), expected heterozygosity ranged 0.560–0.582 (average 0.570) and 0.368–0.564 (average 0.498), observed heterozygosity ranged 0.458–0.497 (average 0.472) and 0.418–0.644 (average 0.537) in P. fuscipes and A. curtula, respectively. Population structure indicates that individuals of A. curtula are clustered to groups where they were collected, but those of P. fuscipes are not.

Conclusion

Population structures of P. fuscipes were shallow. In A. curtula, however, it was apparent that the genetic compositions of the populations are different significantly depending on collection localities.
A social-ecological engagement with reef passages in New Caledonia: Connectors between coastal and oceanic spaces and species
Authors: Breckwoldt Annette , Dombal Yvy , Sabinot Catherine , David Gilbert , Riera Léa , Ferse Sebastian , Fache Elodie
Published: August 2022

Healthy and protected coral reefs help island systems in the tropics thrive and survive. Reef passages link the open ocean to lagoon and coastal areas in these ecosystems and are home to an exceptionally diverse and abundant marine life, hosting emblematic species and fish spawning aggregations. Their multiple benefits for the islands and their peoples (e.g., for transport, fishing, socio-cultural aspects) remain yet understudied. Drawing from qualitative interviews with fishers, scuba divers, and surfers along the coast of Grande Terre in New Caledonia, this study highlights the multi-faceted importance of these keystone places. It shows that reef passages are locally deemed ‘communication zones’ between coastal and oceanic spaces and species, and have significant un(der)explored ecological and socio-cultural roles. Understanding and protecting these ecological and cultural keystone places will strengthen both the reef ecosystems and the people dependent on them.
Sitotroga cerealella-resistant mexican maize races (Zea mays L.), new sources of resistance for commercial maize breeding
Authors: Macías-Estrada Paola , Orozco-González Francisco , Castellanos-Pérez Gloria , Castillo-Rosales Adán , Ortega-Ortega Adalberto , Malvar Rosa A. , Padilla-Chacón Daniel , Jiménez-Galindo José C.
Published: August 2022

Sitotroga cerealella (Oliv.) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) is one of the most important post-harvest pests of maize Zea mays L. Some Mexican maize races (Z. mays) could be a novel source of resistance against S. cerealella to improve commercial maize varieties, lines and hybrids. We studied the resistance of Mexican maize races, recollected at Chihuahua State to S. cerealella. We focused on antibiosis and tolerance of maize to S. cerealella. Cristalino-079 maize race shows low level of consumption in grams and percentage, increased larvae mortality before to entering the seed. In addition, Cristalino-079 reduced first adult’s generation and show the largest biological cycle. Due to the small number of emerged adults, there was very little grain weight loss in resistant maize race. The compound that causes high mortality of larvae before to entering the grain is in the pericarp of resistant maize races. The compound that causes longest development time is in the endosperm and embryo. Cristalino-079 show the better level of resistance to S. cerealella infestation in almost all traits studied and this can be used as source of resistance for maize breeding.
Influence of previous laparoscopic surgical and pathological diagnosis of endometriosis on pregnancy outcomes in women with adenomyosis
Authors: Tian Zhao , Lai Jin , Zhai Qing-Jie , Li Yi , Wang Yue , Chang Xiao-Hong , Zhu Hong-Lan , Cui Heng
Published: August 2022

Objectives

Previous studies demonstrated that endometriosis and adenomyosis are closely linked to lots of adverse pregnancy outcomes while the role of endometriosis in pregnant women with adenomyosis has not been explored yet. The present study aimed to evaluate the influence of previous laparoscopic surgical and pathological diagnosis of endometriosis on pregnancy outcomes in women with adenomyosis.

Methods

A total of 60 pregnant women who were diagnosed with adenomyosis before or during pregnancy were included in this study. Among them, 8 were also diagnosed with endometriosis by previous laparoscopic surgery. The demographic characteristics and pregnancy outcomes were compared between women with adenomyosis only and those with the surgical history of endometriosis.

Results

Compared with women with adenomyosis only, those concomitant with the surgical history of endometriosis had significantly higher age at delivery [37.5(36.25–39.75) vs. 35(33.25–37), P ​= ​0.016] and an increased risk of postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) (adjusted OR: 5.992, 95% CI: 1.03–34.857, P ​= ​0.046) while no significant differences were found in other adverse pregnancy outcomes between these two groups. Then we further detected the risk factor of PPH in women with adenomyosis and found that the surgical history of endometriosis (OR: 6.995, 95% CI: 1.16–42.171, P ​= ​0.034) and assisted reproductive technology (ART) (OR: 5.062, 95% CI: 1.494–17.146, P ​= ​0.009) were the parameters closely associated with the occurrence of PPH.

Conclusions

The history of previous laparoscopic surgical and pathological diagnosis of endometriosis in pregnant women with adenomyosis may increase the risk of PPH, which still needs to be verified by future studies with a large sample size. Besides, pregnancy through ART is also an increased risk factor for PPH in women with adenomyosis. Pregnant women with adenomyosis who conceived with the surgical history of endometriosis or by ART should be closely monitored for the reason of being at high risk of PPH.
Embodied Injustice
Authors: Crossley Mary
Published: August 2022

Black people and people with disabilities in the United States are distinctively disadvantaged in their encounters with the health care system. These groups also share harsh histories of medical experimentation, eugenic sterilizations, and health care discrimination. Yet the similarities in inequities experienced by Black people and disabled people and the harms endured by people who are both Black and disabled have been largely unexplored. To fill this gap, Embodied Injustice uses an interdisciplinary approach, weaving health research with social science, critical approaches, and personal stories to portray the devastating effects of health injustice in America. Author Mary Crossley takes stock of the sometimes-vexed relationship between racial justice and disability rights advocates and interrogates how higher disability prevalence among Black Americans reflects unjust social structures. By suggesting reforms to advance health equity for disabled people, Black people, and disabled Black people, this book lays a crucial foundation for intersectional, cross-movement advocacy to advance health justice in America.
Lourenço da Silva Mendonça and the Black Atlantic Abolitionist Movement in the Seventeenth Century
Authors: Lingna Nafafé José
Published: August 2022

This groundbreaking study tells the story of the highly organised, international legal court case for the abolition of slavery spearheaded by Prince Lourenço da Silva Mendonça in the seventeenth century. The case, presented before the Vatican, called for the freedom of all enslaved people and other oppressed groups. This included New Christians (Jews converted to Christianity) and Indigenous Americans in the Atlantic World, and Black Christians from confraternities in Angola, Brazil, Portugal and Spain. Abolition debate is generally believed to have been dominated by white Europeans in the eighteenth century. By centring African agency, José Lingna Nafafé offers a new perspective on the abolition movement, showing, for the first time, how the legal debate was begun not by Europeans, but by Africans. In the first book of its kind, Lingna Nafafé underscores the exceptionally complex nature of the African liberation struggle, and demystifies the common knowledge and accepted wisdom surrounding African slavery.
The Stock Market and the Space Age
Authors: Lotfi Sarvnaz
Published: August 2022

Having emerged from World War II as a permanent feature of American political and economic life, the “glamour” of research and development (R&D) would soon take hold of Wall Street. By the 1960s, shares of high-tech electronics and aerospace firms became irresistible to the flood of young men entering the securities business with the hopes of getting rich quick off capital gains. For this generation, R&D spending today came to mean earnings growth tomorrow, and in periods of financial hardship, executives under pressure to meet earnings expectations changed R&D accounting policies to boost their bottom lines. With this change, firms experiencing significant losses could maintain the appearance of profitability while reinforcing public perceptions of R&D as a magic bullet for growth. Contrary to the mythology of the “space age,” however, those intimately involved in R&D and tracking its costs insisted that expenditures so incurred failed in practice to qualify as assets. Drawing from arguments made by industrial researchers and cost accountants, this article problematizes the “R&D underinvestment” consensus that emerged in the wake of the space age and suggests dropping the R&D asset view wherever it circulates, including in academic scholarship.
Crafting a Postcolonial (Inter)national Identity: Malaysian Pewter Company Royal Selangor’s Branding Strategies (1970–1992)
Authors: Yong Yen Nie
Published: August 2022

Conventional viewpoints on global branding for design-focused consumer goods presuppose national identities as a given and prerequisite to market expansion, the key examples being Danish design furniture, Swiss watches, and Parisian fashion. Through the case study of Royal Selangor—a Malaysian family firm specializing in manufacturing pewter tableware and gifts—this study analyzes how businesses in former colonies adapt their branding strategies to transitioning ideas on national identities and economic development in the postcolonial era by drawing upon cosmopolitan worldviews of malleable identities and utilizing ties with former colonizers to gain cultural capital domestically and abroad. This study engages with theoretical frameworks of business history, organizational studies, and nationalism to explore how companies in developing countries in Southeast Asia that are also former colonies interact with colonial histories and participate in postcolonial nation-building through branding and entrepreneurship.
Avocado consumption is associated with a reduction in hypertension incidence in Mexican women
Authors: Monge Adriana , Stern Dalia , Cortés-Valencia Adrian , Catzín-Kuhlmann Andrés , Lajous Martín , Denova-Gutiérrez Edgar
Published: August 2022

Avocado is a fruit rich in dietary fibre, potassium, Mg, mono and PUFA and bioactive phytochemicals, which are nutritional components that have been associated with cardiovascular health. Yet, despite the boom in avocado consumption, we lack evidence on its association with CVD risk in the general population. To estimate the prospective association between avocado consumption and incident hypertension in Mexican women, we estimated the association in participants from the Mexican Teachers’ Cohort who were ≥ 25 years, free of hypertension, CVD and cancer at baseline (n 67 383). We assessed baseline avocado consumption with a semi-quantitative FFQ (never to six or more times per week). Incident hypertension cases were identified if participants self-reported a diagnosis and receiving treatment. To assess the relation between categories of avocado consumption (lowest as reference) and incident hypertension, we estimated incidence rate ratios (IRR) and 95 % CI using Poisson regression models and adjusting for confounding. We identified 4002 incident cases of hypertension during a total of 158 706 person-years for a median follow-up of 2·2 years. The incidence rate of hypertension was 25·1 cases per 1000 person-years. Median avocado consumption was 1·0 (interquartile range: 0·23, 1·0) serving per week (half an avocado). After adjustment for confounding, consuming 5 + servings per week of avocado was associated with a 17 % decrease in the rate of hypertension, compared with non- or low consumers (IRR = 0·83; 95 % CI: 0·70, 0·99; Ptrend = 0·01). Frequent consumption of avocado was associated with a lower incidence of hypertension.
Influence of multi-trend major fault reactivation during multiphase rifting: Beier Depression, Hailar Basin, NE China
Authors: Lou Rui , Sun Yonghe , Fan Tingen , Fan Hongjun , Liu Lu
Published: August 2022

Complex fault patterns associated with rift development in the Hailar Basin were largely influenced by the Mongolia–Okhotsk Ocean and Palaeo-Pacific tectonic regimes during the Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous periods. Based on 3D seismic data from the Beier Depression in the Hailar Basin, we characterized the reactivation history of multi-trend major faults and examined the evolution of the Beier Depression during the Early Cretaceous period. NE–SW-, NW–SE- and ENE–WSW-oriented major faults originated from strike-slip-associated structures that were pre-existing fabrics and then were reactivated and propagated upward under extensional regimes in the Late Jurassic. During the syn-rift stage (K1t–K1n), the Hailar Basin was in a NNW–SSE- to NW–SE-oriented extensional setting, and major faults of all orientations were active. There was tectonic quiescence (K1n1L) between the syn-rift stages (a rifting transition stage). The short compression stage after the syn-rift stage caused regional compressional deformation. During the post-rift stage (K1d–K1y), the extension direction rotated to an E–W orientation, and a new population of N–S-trending faults formed together with the reactivation of NE–SW- and ENE–WSW-trending major faults. Structural analysis shows that the major ENE–WSW-trending major faults were polycyclic growth faults reactivated via an upward propagation mode and that the NE–SW-trending faults were dip linkage faults reactivated via a dip linkage mode. The reactivation intensity of the NE–SW-trending major faults was stronger than that of the ENE–WSW-trending major faults. These results demonstrate the differences in the evolution of the different trending faults in the same tectonic regime, and the complexity of the final fault patterns in the Beier Depression was produced by differences in the reactivation of major faults. The originate interpretation of the multi-trend major faults in the Hailar Basin provides new insights into fault generation, and the classification of fault growth also has useful implications for future research on multiphase rifts.