bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Off-purpose activity of industrial and agricultural chemicals against human gut bacteria
Authors: Lindell Anna E. , Kamrad Stephan , Roux Indra , Krishna Shagun , Grießhammer Anne , Smith Tom , Guan Rui , Rad Deniz , Faria Luisa , Blasche Sonja , Kleinstreuer Nicole C. , Maier Lisa , Patil Kiran R.
Published: September 2024

Contamination by industrial and agricultural chemicals like pesticides are a cause of great concern due to the risk to human and environmental health. While these chemicals are often considered to have restricted activity and are labelled as such, there are concerns over a broader toxicity range. Here we report the impact of 1076 pollutants spanning diverse chemistries and indicated applications on 22 prevalent commensal gut bacteria. Our systematic investigation uncovered 588 interactions involving 168 chemicals, the majority of which were not previously reported to have antibacterial properties. Fungicides and industrial chemicals showed the largest impact with circa 30% exhibiting anti-commensal properties. We find that the sensitivity to chemical pollutants across species surprisingly correlates with that to human-targeted drugs, suggesting common susceptibility mechanisms. Using a genome-wide chemical-genetic screen, we identified membrane transport and fatty acid metabolism as major modulators of the off-target toxicity of chemicals. Mutants exhibiting chemical resistance include those defective in producing human-health-relevant metabolites like branched short-chain fatty acids, indicating that chronic exposure could lead to selection against production of beneficial metabolites. Toxicokinetic modelling suggested gut bacteria could be used as more sensitivein vitrotoxicity indicators for chemicals of concern than animal models. Together, our data uncovers the off-target activity of industrial and agricultural chemicals with widespread exposure against human gut bacteria. Impact on the structure and function of the microbiota should therefore be considered in assessing chemical safety.
Conserved role of spike S2 domain N-glycosylation across beta-coronavirus family
Authors: Yang Qi , Kelkar Anju , Manicassamy Balaji , Neelamegham Sriram
Published: September 2024

Besides acting as an immunological shield, the N-glycans of SARS-CoV-2 are also critical for viral life cycle. As the S2 subunit of spike is highly conserved across beta-coronaviruses, we determined the functional significance of the five ‘stem N-glycans’ located in S2 between N1098-N1194. Studies were performed with 31 Asn-to-Gln mutants, beta-coronavirus virus-like particles and single-cycle viral replicons. Deletions of stem N-glycans enhanced S1 shedding from trimeric spike, reduced ACE2 binding and abolished syncytia formation. When three or more N-glycans were deleted, spike expression on cell surface and incorporation into virions was both reduced. Viral entry function was progressively lost upon deleting the N1098 glycan in combination with additional glycosite modifications. In addition to SARS-CoV-2, deleting stem N-glycans in SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV spike also prevented viral entry into target cells. These data suggest multiple functional roles for the stem N-glycans, and evolutionarily conserved properties for these complex carbohydrates across human beta-coronaviruses.

Author Summary

Previous work shows that the N-linked glycans of SARS-CoV-2 are essential for viral life cycle. Few natural mutations have been observed in the S2-subunit of the viral spike glycoprotein in GISAID data, and mutations are absent in the five ‘stem N-glycans’ located between N1098-N1194. In the post-fusion spike structure these glycans lie equidistant, ~4 nm apart, suggesting functional significance. Upon testing the hypothesis that these glycans are critical for SARS-CoV-2 function, we noted multiple roles for the complex carbohydrates including regulation of S1-subunit shedding, spike expression on cells and virions, syncytial formation/cell-cell fusion and viral entry. Besides SARS-CoV-2, these glycans were also critical for other human beta-coronaviruses. Thus, these carbohydrates represent targets for the development of countermeasures against future outbreaks.
The Social and Nutritional Factors Controlling the Growth of Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Queens
Authors: Kama Omer , Shpigler Hagai Y.
Published: September 2024

The honey bee queen is essential for colony function, laying thousands of eggs daily and determining the colony’s genetic composition. Beekeepers cultivate and trade queens to enhance colony health and productivity. Despite its significance, artificial queen rearing in foster queenless colonies has remained largely unchanged for over a century, offering limited control over the environmental conditions influencing larval development. In this study, we developed a laboratory-based method for queen bee rearing, establishing a protocol for rearing queens in cages in the lab under controlled environmental conditions. We first investigated the minimal number of worker bees required to rear a single queen and found that groups of 200 workers raise queens with comparable success and weight to those reared in colonies. As a proof of concept, we examined the impact of larval age on rearing success in our new system. We found that the age of the larvae affects the success rate of queen development and that younger larvae developed into heavier queens than older larvae, as published in the past using the traditional queen-rearing method. Additionally, we assessed the influence of pollen nutrition on queen-rearing success, finding that a high pollen concentration is crucial for queen development. These findings and the new method provide a foundation for studying queen bee development in a controlled environment and offer potential applications for improving queen-rearing practices.
Complete Genome Sequence of SixPseudomonas aeruginosaBacteriophages aim for research and treatments
Authors: Rimon Amit , Yerushalmy Ortal , Belin Jonathan , Alkalay-Oren Sivan , Coppenhagen-Glazer Shunit , Hazan Ronen
Published: September 2024

Introduction

Pseudomonas aeruginosais a major opportunistic pathogen associated with healthcare-associated infections. The rise of antibiotic-resistant strains necessitates alternative treatment strategies, with bacteriophage therapy being a promising approach.

Methods

Six bacteriophages were isolated from sewage samples. Phage isolation involved centrifugation, filtration, and plaque assays. The morphology of each was examined using Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). Genomic DNA was sequenced analyzed and compared. Phages lytic activity was assessed using growth curve analysis.

Results

The six phages displayed distinct genomic and morphological characteristics, in three genomic clusters. No known virulence or antibiotic resistance genes were detected, indicating their safety for therapeutic use. TEM analysis revealed diverse morphologies, with some phages belonging to the Siphoviridae family and others to the Myoviridae family. Lysogenic phages demonstrated less effective lytic activity.

Conclusion

Some of these phages are promising candidates for the research of phage therapy efficacy, and the lytic phages can be used againstP. aeruginosainfections.
Enhancing efficacy of the MEK inhibitor trametinib with paclitaxel inKRAS-mutated colorectal cancer
Authors: Ghosh Susmita , Fan Fan , Powell Reid , Park Yong , Stephan Clifford , Kopetz E. Scott , Ellis Lee M. , Bhattacharya Rajat
Published: September 2024

Background

KRASis frequently mutated in the tumors of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) and thus represents a valid target for therapy. However, the strategies of targeting KRAS directly and targeting the downstream effector mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (MEK) via monotherapies have shown limited efficacy. Thus, there is a strong need for novel, effective combination therapies to improve MEK-inhibitor efficacy in patients withKRAS-mutated mCRC.

Objective

Our objective was to identify novel drug combinations that enhance MEK-inhibitor efficacy in patients withKRAS-mutated mCRC.

Design

In this study, we performed unbiased high-throughput screening (HTS) to identify drugs that enhance the efficacy of MEK inhibitorsin vitro, and we validated the efficacy of the drugsin vivo.

Methods

HTS was performed using 3-dimensional CRC spheroids. Trametinib, the anchor drug, was probed with 2 clinically ready libraries of 252 drugs to identify effective drug combinations. The effects of the drug combinations on CRC cell proliferation and apoptosis were further validated using cell growth assays, flow cytometry, and biochemical assays. Proteomic and immunostaining studies were performed to determine the effects of the drugs on molecular signaling and cell division. The effects of the drug combinations were examinedin vivousing CRC patient-derived xenografts.

Results

HTS identified paclitaxel as being synergistic with trametinib.In vitrovalidation showed that, compared with monotherapies, this drug combination demonstrated strong inhibition of cell growth, reduced colony formation, and enhanced apoptosis in multipleKRAS-mutated CRC cell lines. Mechanistically, combining trametinib with paclitaxel led to alterations in signaling mediators that block cell cycle progression and increases in microtubule stability that resulted in significantly higher defects in the mitosis. Finally, the combination of trametinib with paclitaxel exhibited significant inhibition of tumor growth in severalKRAS-mutant patient-derived xenograft mouse models.

Conclusion

Our data provide evidence supporting clinical trials of trametinib with paclitaxel as a novel therapeutic option for patients withKRAS-mutated, metastatic CRC.
NIRSTORM: a Brainstorm extension dedicated to functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) data analysis, advanced 3D reconstructions, and optimal probe design
Authors: Delaire Édouard , Vincent Thomas , Cai Zhengchen , Machado Alexis , Hugueville Laurent , Schwartz Denis , Tadel Francois , Cassani Raymundo , Bherer Louis , Lina Jean-Marc , Pélégrini-Issac Mélanie , Grova Christophe
Published: September 2024

Significance

We propose NIRSTORM, a software package built within Brainstorm environment, enabling full data analysis of functional Near InfraRed Spectroscopy (fNIRS) data from experiment planning to 3D reconstruction of hemodynamic fluctuations on the cortical surface using optical tomographic approaches. NIRSTORM enables the integration of fNIRS analysis within a multimodal setup making it easy to study fNIRS in combination with other multimodal data such as electroencephalography (EEG) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Aim

NIRSTORM aims to provide an easy-to-use and fully modular toolbox for fNIRS analysis from experimental planning to optical tomography 3D reconstruction extending Brainstorm capacity for multimodal analysis.

Approach

NIRSTORM was developed in MATLAB® and integrated as a plugin of the software Brainstorm. Brainstorm is a GUI-oriented, widely used software originally dedicated to statistical analysis and source imaging of EEG and magnetoencephalography (MEG) data.

Results

In addition to conventional fNIRS preprocessing steps, including standard channel space and statistical analyses, NIRSTORM provides advanced methods dedicated to optimal probe placement, allowing personalized fNIRS study designs and accurate near-infrared optical tomography within the Maximum Entropy on the Mean (MEM) framework.

Conclusion

NIRSTORM is an open-access, user-friendly plugin extending the capacity of Brainstorm, for fNIRS analysis, therefore narrowing the gap between EEG/MEG and hemodynamics.
Inactivation of necroptosis-promoting protein MLKL creates a therapeutic vulnerability in colorectal cancer cells
Authors: Jiang Peijia , Chipurupalli Sandhya , Yoo Byong Hoon , Liu Xiaoyang , Rosen Kirill V.
Published: September 2024

Mortality from colorectal cancer (CRC) is significant, and novel CRC therapies are needed. A pseudokinase MLKL typically executes necroptotic cell death, and MLKL inactivation protects cells from such death. However, we found unexpectedly that MLKL gene knockout enhanced CRC cell death caused by a protein synthesis inhibitor homoharringtonine used for chronic myeloid leukemia treatment. In an effort to explain this finding, we observed that MLKL gene knockout reduced CRC cell autophagy and rendered such autophagy critically dependent on the presence of VPS37A, a component of the ESCRT-I complex. Moreover, homoharringtonine-induced activation of p38 MAP kinase (p38MAPK) prevented VPS37A from supporting autophagy in MLKL-deficient cells and triggered their parthanatos, a cell death type driven by poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase hyperactivation. Finally, a pharmacological MLKL inhibitor necrosulfonamide strongly cooperated with homoharringtonine in suppressing CRC cell tumorigenicity in mice. Thus, while MLKL mediates necroptosis, MLKL protects CRC cells from death caused by drugs blocking basal autophagy, e.g., homoharringtonine, and MLKL inhibition creates a therapeutic vulnerability that could be utilized for CRC treatment.
Adiponectin signaling modulates fat taste responsiveness in mice
Authors: Lin Fangjun , Masterson Emeline , Gilbertson Timothy A.
Published: September 2024

We previously reported that the adiponectin receptor agonist AdipoRon selectively enhances cellular responses to fatty acids in a human taste cell line. The enhancement role of AdipoRon on fatty acid-induced cell responses is mediated by the activation of AMPK and translocation of CD36 on human taste cells. It has also been shown that adiponectin selectively increases taste behavioral responses to intralipid in mice. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the physiological effects of adiponectin on fat taste in mice remains unclear. Here we define AdipoR1 as the mediator responsible for the enhancement role of adiponectin/AdipoRon on fatty acid-induced responses in mouse taste bud cells. Calcium imaging data demonstrate that AdipoRon enhances linoleic acid-induced calcium responses in a dose-dependent fashion in mouse taste cells isolated from circumvallate and fungiform papillae. Similar to the human taste cells, the enhancement role of AdipoRon on fatty acid-induced responses was impaired by the co-administration of an AMPK inhibitor (Compound C) or a CD36 inhibitor (SSO). Utilizing Adipor1-deficient animals we determined the enhancement role of AdipoRon/adiponectin is dependent on AdipoR1 since AdipoRon/adiponectin failed to increase fatty acid-induced calcium responses in taste bud cells isolated from these mice. Brief-access taste tests were performed to determine whether AdipoRon’s enhancement role was correlated with any differences in taste behavioral responses to fat. Although AdipoRon enhances the cellular responses of taste bud cells to fatty acids, it does not appear to alter fat taste behavior in mice. However, fat naïveAdipor1−/−animals were indifferent to increasing concentrations of intralipid, suggesting that adiponectin signaling may have profound effects on the ability of mice to detect fatty acids in the absence of previous exposure to fatty acids and fat-containing diets.
Hippocampal neuronal activity is aligned with action plans
Authors: Zutshi Ipshita , Apostolelli Athina , Yang Wannan , Zheng Zheyang (Sam) , Dohi Tora , Balzani Edoardo , Williams Alex H , Savin Cristina , Buzsáki György
Published: September 2024

Neurons in the hippocampus are correlated with different variables, including space, time, sensory cues, rewards, and actions, where the extent of tuning depends on ongoing task demands. However, it remains uncertain whether such diverse tuning corresponds to distinct functions within the hippocampal network or if a more generic computation can account for these observations. To disentangle the contribution of externally driven cues versus internal computation, we developed a task in mice where space, auditory tones, rewards, and context were juxtaposed with changing relevance. High-density electrophysiological recordings revealed that neurons were tuned to each of these modalities. By comparing movement paths and action sequences, we observed that external variables had limited direct influence on hippocampal firing. Instead, spiking was influenced by online action plans modulated by goal uncertainty. Our results suggest that internally generated cell assembly sequences are selected and updated by action plans toward deliberate goals. The apparent tuning of hippocampal neuronal spiking to different sensory modalities might emerge due to alignment to the afforded action progression within a task rather than representation of external cues.
Study of the measurement of the
τ
lepton anomalous magnetic moment in high energy lead-lead collisions at the LHC
Authors: Verducci Monica , Roda Chiara , Cavasinni Vincenzo , Vignaroli Natascia
Published: September 2024

The τ lepton anomalous magnetic moment aτ=gτ−22 was measured, so far, with a precision of only several percents, despite its high sensitivity to physics beyond the Standard Model such as compositeness or supersymmetry. A new study is presented to improve the sensitivity of the aτ measurement with photon-photon interactions from ultraperipheral lead-lead collisions at the LHC. The theoretical approach used in this work is based on an effective Lagrangian and on a photon flux implemented in the adraph5 Monte Carlo simulation. Using a multivariate analysis to discriminate the signal from the background processes, a sensitivity to the anomalous magnetic moment aτ=0+0.015−0.019 is obtained at 95% confidence level with a dataset corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2  nb−1 of lead-lead collisions and assuming a conservative 10% systematic uncorrelated uncertainty for signal and background. The present results using multivariate analysis are compared to similar results obtained using sequential cuts, as done in previous measurements, showing an improvement of about 35% in the sensitivity to aτ.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Hele-Shaw flow of a nematic liquid crystal
Authors: Cousins Joseph R. L. , Mottram Nigel J. , Wilson Stephen K.
Published: September 2024

Motivated by the variety of applications in which nematic Hele-Shaw flow occurs, a theoretical model for Hele-Shaw flow of a nematic liquid crystal is formulated and analyzed. We derive the thin-film Ericksen-Leslie equations that govern nematic Hele-Shaw flow, and consider two important limiting cases in which we can make significant analytical progress. First, we consider the leading-order problem in the limiting case in which elasticity effects dominate viscous effects, and find that the nematic liquid crystal anchoring on the plates leads to a fixed director field and an anisotropic patterned viscosity that can be used to guide the flow of the nematic. Second, we consider the leading-order problem in the opposite limiting case in which viscous effects dominate elasticity effects, and find that the flow is identical to that of an isotropic fluid and the behavior of the director is determined by the flow. As an example of the insight which can be gained by using the present approach, we then consider the flow of nematic according to a simple model for the squeezing stage of the one-drop-filling method, an important method for the manufacture of liquid crystal displays, in these two limiting cases.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Effectiveness of conceptual-framework-based instruction on promoting knowledge integration in learning simple electric circuit
Authors: Liu Zengze , Pan Sudong , Bao Lei
Published: September 2024

Student learning in simple electric circuits has been an important area in physics education research. This study builds off a previous investigation that applied the conceptual framework model to examine knowledge integration in student learning of simple electric circuits and developed a multiple-choice concept test for assessing knowledge integration in simple electric circuits. In this study, a conceptual-framework-based teaching intervention was developed and implemented in a controlled study with high school students in China to evaluate the effectiveness of the new instruction. Using the instrument developed in the previous study, a pretest, a post-test, and a delayed post-test were conducted with both groups of students. The delayed post-test was included to further evaluate knowledge retention as evidence of knowledge integration. The results suggest that the conceptual-framework-based teaching intervention was effective in promoting knowledge integration compared to the existing instruction.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Nonlinear dynamics as a ground-state solution on quantum computers
Authors: Pool Albert J. , Somoza Alejandro D. , Mc Keever Conor , Lubasch Michael , Horstmann Birger
Published: September 2024

For the solution of time-dependent nonlinear differential equations, we present variational quantum algorithms (VQAs) that encode both space and time in qubit registers. The spacetime encoding enables us to obtain the entire time evolution from a single ground-state computation. We describe a general procedure to construct efficient quantum circuits for the cost function evaluation required by VQAs. To mitigate the barren plateau problem during the optimization, we propose an adaptive multigrid strategy. The approach is illustrated for the nonlinear Burgers equation. We classically optimize quantum circuits to represent the desired ground-state solutions, run them on IBM Q System One and Quantinuum System Model H1, and demonstrate that current quantum computers are capable of accurately reproducing the exact results.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Probabilistic inference in the era of tensor networks and differential programming
Authors: Roa-Villescas Martin , Gao Xuanzhao , Stuijk Sander , Corporaal Henk , Liu Jin-Guo
Published: September 2024

Probabilistic inference is a fundamental task in modern machine learning. Recent advances in tensor network (TN) contraction algorithms have enabled the development of better exact inference methods. However, many common inference tasks in probabilistic graphical models (PGMs) still lack corresponding TN-based adaptations. In this paper, we advance the connection between PGMs and TNs by formulating and implementing tensor-based solutions for the following inference tasks: (A) computing the partition function, (B) computing the marginal probability of sets of variables in the model, (C) determining the most likely assignment to a set of variables, (D) the same as (C) but after having marginalized a different set of variables, and (E) generating samples from a learned probability distribution using a generalized method. Our study is motivated by recent technical advances in the fields of quantum circuit simulation, quantum many-body physics, and statistical physics. Through an experimental evaluation, we demonstrate that the integration of these quantum technologies with a series of algorithms introduced in this study significantly improves the performance efficiency of existing methods for solving probabilistic inference tasks.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Linking network- and neuron-level correlations by renormalized field theory
Authors: Dick Michael , van Meegen Alexander , Helias Moritz
Published: September 2024

It is frequently hypothesized that cortical networks operate close to a critical point. Advantages of criticality include rich dynamics well suited for computation and critical slowing down, which may offer a mechanism for dynamic memory. However, mean-field approximations, while versatile and popular, inherently neglect the fluctuations responsible for such critical dynamics. Thus, a renormalized theory is necessary. We consider the Sompolinsky-Crisanti-Sommers model which displays a well studied chaotic as well as a magnetic transition. Based on the analog of a quantum effective action, we derive self-consistency equations for the first two renormalized Greens functions. Their self-consistent solution reveals a coupling between the population level activity and single neuron heterogeneity. The quantitative theory explains the population autocorrelation function, the single-unit autocorrelation function with its multiple temporal scales, and cross correlations.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Board gender diversity and financial stability COVID-19 vs pre-COVID-19 era
Authors: Khanchel Imen , Massoudi Amal , Lassoued Naima , Kharrat Achraf
Published: September 2024

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate the impact of board gender diversity (BGD) on firm financial stability during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the pre-pandemic period.

Design/methodology/approach

Difference-in-differences method was used for a sample of 891 US companies observed from 2018 to 2021.

Findings

The results indicate significant negative relationships between BGD and financial stability. The authors put in evidence a nonlinear relationship between BGD and financial stability. Also, the authors found that internal women directors as well as external ones decrease financial stability.

Practical implications

The results emphasize the beneficial effect of having more women on corporate boards during health crises and suggest that policymakers should take measures to promote BGD.

Originality/value

This paper highlights the impact of BGD on financial stability and provides additional evidence on the usefulness of BGD as an effective tool for crisis management.
Impact of service quality, relational trust and attitude on the intention to pursue higher education within a country, than abroad
Authors: Singh Sonali , Manohar Sridhar
Published: September 2024

Purpose

Education is one among the major service sectors which is continuously growing and contributing significantly to a country’s economy. Students’ positive feedback through word-of-mouth (WOM) is one of the key influences attracting new admissions thereby providing competitive advantage for a university to sustain. There are numerous antecedents identified and implemented to enhance positive WOM and increase intakes in higher education however the students’ choice is still being unpredicted. This study attempts to develop a framework that exemplifies the links between service quality (SQ), relational trust (RT) and students' attitudes toward institutions.

Design/methodology/approach

A correlational research design was adopted with a non-probability convenience sampling technique, the data were collected from students in public and private higher education institutions (HEIs) across India. Multivariate regression was the statistical tool used to estimate the path model. SmartPLS 3.0 software performing structural equation modelling (SEM) helped in determining the coefficient values.

Findings

The result of the study indicated the magnitude and directional relationship between SQ and trust and justified that they are the key determinants of building a positive attitude towards the institution, enhancing the intention to recommend it among peer groups.

Research limitations/implications

Academic institutions and their public relations departments must prioritize reducing SQ gaps and create strategies to build strong RT among all institution stakeholders to gain a competitive advantage. Socially, this study aims in assisting universities in establishing high-quality education.

Originality/value

The empirical estimation of the relationships between trust, attitude, quality and intention provides the reasons for incorporating and building positive WOM among students’ benefit institutions over the long run.
MFLD: lightweight object detection with multi-receptive field and long-range dependency in remote sensing images
Authors: Wang Weixing , Chen Yixia , Lin Mingwei
Published: September 2024

Purpose

Based on the strong feature representation ability of the convolutional neural network (CNN), generous object detection methods in remote sensing (RS) have been proposed one after another. However, due to the large variation in scale and the omission of relevant relationships between objects, there are still great challenges for object detection in RS. Most object detection methods fail to take the difficulties of detecting small and medium-sized objects and global context into account. Moreover, inference time and lightness are also major pain points in the field of RS.

Design/methodology/approach

To alleviate the aforementioned problems, this study proposes a novel method for object detection in RS, which is called lightweight object detection with a multi-receptive field and long-range dependency in RS images (MFLD). The multi-receptive field extraction (MRFE) and long-range dependency information extraction (LDIE) modules are put forward.

Findings

To concentrate on the variability of objects in RS, MRFE effectively expands the receptive field by a combination of atrous separable convolutions with different dilated rates. Considering the shortcomings of CNN in extracting global information, LDIE is designed to capture the relationships between objects. Extensive experiments over public datasets in RS images demonstrate that our MFLD method surpasses the state-of-the-art methods. Most of all, on the NWPU VHR-10 dataset, our MFLD method achieves 94.6% mean average precision with 4.08 M model volume.

Originality/value

This paper proposed a method called lightweight object detection with multi-receptive field and long-range dependency in RS images.
Intervention programs and women empowerment: the role of skills acquisition and development and financial independence
Authors: Sanze Nikita , Bamfo Bylon Abeeku , Takyi Lydia Nyankom
Published: September 2024

Purpose

This study aims to assess the impact of intervention programs on women empowerment in northern Ghana and the role of skills training and financial independence on women empowerment.

Design/methodology/approach

A structured questionnaire, observations and informal interviews were used to gather data using the survey method. The sample consists of 321 girls from the non-formal track STAGE project in the Kasena Nankana West District of the Upper East Region. The data were analyzed using a structural equation model.

Findings

The results show that NGO intervention programs have a significant impact on women’s empowerment, skills acquisition mediates the relationship between NGO intervention programs and women empowerment. Financial independence does not mediate relationships but significantly affects women’s empowerment.

Originality/value

The discussion on women’s empowerment is not without mentioning the support of NGOs intervention programs. However, there is inadequate literature to explore the basic impacts of sponsored intervention programs on women’s empowerment in Ghana. The findings will provide directions for NGOs intervention programs to support women empowerment in Ghana.
Educational leadership during a time of war in Ukraine
Authors: Hudson Christopher , Tigchelaar David , Zastavnyi Anton
Published: September 2024

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore how two educational leaders are leading their school communities during a time of war in Ukraine.

Design/methodology/approach

Through the use of narratives, two of the co-authors of this paper explore the tensions and opportunities they have encountered, and continue to encounter, as educational leaders during a time of war in Ukraine. Particular emphasis is placed upon how the two co-authors are responding in contextually sensitive and productive ways to build a sense of safety and community in their schools.

Findings

The two narratives in this paper demonstrate both leaders displaying a proclivity for building and sustaining collaborative and networked practices to build a sense of safety, stability and belonging for all members of their respective school communities.

Originality/value

This paper offers international insights into school leadership, at all times but especially during the current state of war in Ukraine.
First-gen and the library: a survey of student perceptions of academic library services
Authors: Stocking Edward Harold , Bucy Rosalind , Ramirez-Reyes Carlos
Published: September 2024

Purpose

Although a significant share of undergraduates, first-generation college students (FGCS) remain difficult to characterize. Consequently, academic libraries are challenged to identify the services most important to FGCS. This study measured the perceived importance of and satisfaction with library services among undergraduate students at an R1 land-grant university. The study further compared FGCS’s perceptions of library services with those of their non-first generation peers.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors measured importance and satisfaction using the Measuring Information Services Outcomes (“MISO”) Survey. They further analyzed responses according to first-generation status. The authors then compared mean scores and used the Wilcoxon rank-sum test to find statistical differences in perceived importance and satisfaction between first-generation and non-first-generation respondents.

Findings

The difference between first-generation and non-first-generation student responses was statistically significant for 35% of library services. FGCS rated library services higher than their non-first-generation peers for both importance and satisfaction. FGCS perceived library services related to physical spaces and access/discovery as most important. Library services that provide student support or access to technology showed strong evidence of difference between first-generation and non-first-generation student responses. The authors also determined the MISO Survey is a measure for assessing FGCS perceptions of library services.

Originality/value

This study adds quantitative evidence to research on FGCS and academic libraries, further demonstrating the importance of library services to FGCS.
Fostering sustainable employability: the nexus of social support and career competencies in healthcare
Authors: Jabeen Qudsia , Nadeem Muhammadi Sabra , Raziq Muhammad Mustafa , Rice John Lewis
Published: September 2024

Purpose

This study examines the impact of career competencies (CC) (in the form of personal resources) on sustainable employability (SE) under the tenets of the Conservation of Resources theory. Further, we assess the moderating impact of coworker support and supervisor support (work-related social resources) in this relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected using survey method from 362 doctors employed in private hospitals in Pakistan. The data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM).

Findings

The results suggests a significant influence of CC on SE. Further, results also reveal that social support received from coworkers moderates the relationship between CC and SE. However, we find that supervisor support does not moderate the said relationship.

Originality/value

This research has clear novelty as SE is a recently defined construct and is still an area with insufficient empirical research. There is increasing interest in identifying the determinants and underlying mechanism of SE. Thus, this study makes contributions to knowledge by investigating CC and social resources as antecedents of SE. This study also offers implications for theory generally, and within the medical practitioner context more specifically.
Destination image branding for world heritage sites: a methodology combining GIS with sentiment analysis
Authors: Sang Kun , Woon Pei Ying , Tan Poh Ling
Published: September 2024

Purpose

Against the background of the popularity of social media and heritage tourism, this study aims to focus on world heritage sites, proposing a method to examine and compare the digital spatial footprints left by tourists using geographic information systems.

Methodology

By analyzing user-generated content from social media, this research explores how digital data shapes the destination image of WHS and the spatial relationships between the components of this destination image. Drawing on the cognitive-affective model (CAM), it investigates through an analysis of integrated data with more than 20,000 reviews and 2,000 photos.

Innovation

The creativity of this research lies in the creation of a comprehensive method that combines text and image analytics with machine learning and GIS to examine spatial relationships within the CAM framework in a visual manner.

Results

The results reveal tourists' perceptions, emotions, and attitudes towards George Town and Malacca in Malaysia, highlighting several key cognitive impressions, such as history, museums, churches, sea, and food, as well as the primary emotions expressed. Their distributions and relationships are also illustrated on maps.

Implications

Tourism practitioners, government officials, and residents can gain valuable insights from this study. The proposed methodology provides a valuable reference for future tourism studies and help to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage for other heritage destinations.
Role of Child Marriage and Adolescent Childbearing on Hysterectomy Among Married Women in India: A Cross‐Sectional and Time‐to‐Event Analysis
Authors: Datta Biplab Kumar , Tiwari Ashwini
Published: September 2024

Objective

Child marriage forces a girl into adult roles before physical and psychological maturity, which can take a toll on women's health over the life course. This article aims to assess whether child marriage and adolescent childbearing are associated with elevated risk of gynaecologic disorders leading to hysterectomy.

Design

Cross‐sectional and time‐to‐event analysis.

Setting

India.

Population

528 816 ever‐married women, aged 20–49 years.

Methods

Women were grouped in four mutually exclusive categories: (i) married adult—not an adolescent mother (reference category), (ii) married adult—adolescent mother, (iii) married child—not an adolescent mother and (iv) married child—adolescent mother. Multivariable logistic regressions were fitted to assess the odds of hysterectomy for these groups. Nonparametric Kaplan–Meier survivor functions were estimated to evaluate survival rates across the groups.

Main Outcome Measures

Whether had a hysterectomy and age when hysterectomy was performed.

Results

Compared to women married as adults, not an adolescent mother, women married in childhood and gave birth in adolescence were 1.87 (95% CI: 1.78–1.96) times more likely to have a hysterectomy. The latter group also had the lowest survival probability for hysterectomy at all ages (e.g., 85.80% [95% CI: 85.41–86.18] at age 49 years as compared to 91.65% [95% CI: 91.37–91.89] for the former group). Women married as children but not adolescent mothers and married as an adult but gave birth in adolescence also had higher odds of hysterectomy—1.40 (95% CI: 1.31–1.50) and 1.53 (95% CI: 1.40–1.66) times of that of the reference group, respectively.

Conclusions

Our results, showing a strong relationship between child marriage and hysterectomy, contribute to the literature on later‐life health consequences of child marriage.
Neuropeptides regulate embryonic salivary gland branching through the FGF/FGFR pathway in aging klotho‐deficient mice
Authors: Toan Nguyen Khanh , Kim Soo‐A , Ahn Sang‐Gun
Published: September 2024

Salivary gland branching morphogenesis is regulated by the functional integration of neuronal signaling, but the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood in aging accelerated klotho‐deficient (Kl−/−) mice. Here, we investigated whether the neuropeptides substance P (SP) and neuropeptide Y (NPY) affect the branching morphogenesis of embryonic salivary glands in aging Kl−/− mice. In the salivary glands of embryonic Kl−/− mice, morphological analysis and immunostaining revealed that epithelial bud formation, neuronal cell proliferation/differentiation, and the expression of the salivary gland functional marker ZO‐1 were decreased in embryonic ductal cells. Incubation with SP/NPY at E12‐E13d promoted branching morphogenesis, parasympathetic innervation, and epithelial proliferation in salivary glands of embryonic Kl−/− mice. The ERK inhibitor U0126 specifically inhibited neuronal substance‐induced epithelial bud formation in the embryonic salivary gland. RNA‐seq profiling analysis revealed that the expression of fibroblast growth factors/fibroblast growth factors (FGFs/FGFRs) and their receptors was significantly regulated by SP/NPY treatment in the embryonic salivary gland (E15). The FGFR inhibitor BGJ389 inhibited new branching formation induced by SP and NPY treatment and ERK1/2 expression. These results showed that aging may affect virtually the development of salivary gland by neuronal dysfunction. The neuropeptides SP/NPY induced embryonic salivary gland development through FGF/FGFR/ERK1/2‐mediated signaling.
Letter: Association between terlipressin and multidrug‐resistant organism rectal colonization: Authors' reply
Authors: Mücke Marcus M. , Gu Wenyi , Fernandez Javier , Trebicka Jonel
Published: September 2024

LINKED CONTENT

This article is linked to Mücke et al papers. To view these articles, visithttps://doi.org/10.1111/apt.17899andhttps://doi.org/10.1111/apt.18200
Immune system of fish with special reference to estrogenic immune regulation: A review
Authors: Sinha Ragini , Mandal Dipak Kumar
Published: September 2024

Fish, first jawed vertebrate group appearing in evolution, have immune system similar to those of mammals. These early animals' innate and adaptive immune systems are completely developed, having head kidney and thymus as primary, spleen and mucosa associated lymphoid tissue as secondary immune organs. The adaptive immunity performs key role in defence against recurring infections and elimination of fish pathogens with the help of its memory cells, T‐cell‐receptors and immunoglobulins. Epidermal secretions including antibacterial peptides, lysozymes, lectins, complement and C‐reactive proteins which function in disruption of antigens, phagocytosis, inflammatory response and mending of tissue injury play a significant role as elements of fish immune system. Fish, however, have greater innate immunity than humans do. Estrogens play crucial role in immunomodulation through nuclear oestrogen receptors, which are found in majority of immune cells and lymphoid organs in fish. There is mounting proof that xenoestrogens, that can attach as agonists to oestrogen receptors, pose significant ecotoxicological risk by disrupting the defence mechanism in fish. Though less potent than natural oestrogen, they can bioaccumulate to finally reach a substantial dose. This review's objective is to give an overview of the fish defence system, its estrogenic regulation and estrogenic‐endocrine disruption.
Translocation (11;14) is a common cytogenetic abnormality in clonal plasma cells in monoclonal immunoglobulin deposition disease
Authors: Bhutani Divaya , Liu Yusha , Chakraborty Rajshekhar , Radhakrishnan Jai , Lentzsch Suzanne , Peters Daniel , Rubinstein Samuel
Published: September 2024

Monoclonal Immunoglobulin deposition disease (MIDD) is characterised by deposits of intact monoclonal light chains in the kidney leading to renal dysfunction. In this study, we retrospectively investigated the underlying plasma cell cytogenetic abnormalities in MIDD. CyclinD1 (11;14) translocation was identified in 12/27 (45%) patients. Among the patients without translocation, del13q and hyperdiploidy were the most common abnormalities. Patients in the non‐t (11;14) group had a higher baseline light‐chain ratio, higher proteinuria and lower eGFR as compared to patients with t (11;14). Haematological VGPR or higher was seen in 58% of t (11;14), and 30% without t (11;14), possibly related to higher use of Daratumumab‐based therapy in the t (11;14) group. With a median follow‐up of 750 days, 30% (8/24) progressed to end stage renal disease (ESRD). eGFR <20 mL/min (HR 25, 95% CI 2.09–298, p = 0.01) and 24 urine protein >3 g/24 h (HR 9, 95% CI 1.27–63.90, p = 0.02) at diagnosis were significantly associated with progression to ESRD. Renal survival was better in t (11;14) as compared to the non‐t (11;14) group (HR 0.11, p = 0.06). Translocation (11;14) is a common abnormality in MIDD and affects the presentation and outcomes. Identification of this abnormality should lead to exploration of BCL2 inhibitors in this disease.
Association of N‐terminal pro‐B natriuretic peptide with all‐cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality in obese and non‐obese populations and the development of a machine learning prediction model: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999–2004
Authors: Zhou Han , Yang Chen , Li Jingjie , Sun Lin
Published: September 2024

Aims

To explore the potential of N‐terminal pro‐B natriuretic peptide (NTproBNP) in identifying adverse outcomes, particularly cardiovascular adverse outcomes, in a population with obesity, and to establish a risk prediction model.

Methods

The data for this study were obtained from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) for 6772 participants without heart failure, for the years 1999 to 2004. Multivariable Cox regression models, cubic spline restricted models and Kaplan–Meier curves were used to evaluate the relationship between NTproBNP and both all‐cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality. Predictive models were established using seven machine learning methods, and evaluation was conducted using precision, recall, F1 score, accuracy, and area under the curve (AUC) values.

Results

During the population follow‐up, out of 6772 participants, 1554 died, with 365 deaths attributed to cardiovascular disease. After adjusting for relevant covariates, NTproBNP levels ≥300 pg/mL were positively associated with both all‐cause mortality (hazard ratio [HR] 3.00, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.48, 3.67) and cardiovascular mortality (HR 6.05, 95% CI 3.67, 9.97), and remained significant across different body mass index (BMI) strata. However, in participants without abdominal obesity, the correlation between NTproBNP and cardiovascular mortality was significantly reduced. Among the seven machine learning methods, logistic regression demonstrated better predictive performance for both all‐cause mortality (AUC 0.86925) and cardiovascular mortality (AUC 0.85115). However, establishing accurate cardiovascular mortality prediction models for non‐abdominal obese individuals proved challenging.

Conclusion

The study showed that NTproBNP can serve as a predictive factor for all‐cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality in individuals with different BMIs, including obese individuals. However, significant cardiovascular mortality correlation was observed only for NTproBNP levels ≥300 pg/mL, and only among participants with abdominal obesity.