bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Pengaruh Beban Kerja dan Pembinaan Disiplin terhadap Kinerja Staf Bagian Kesatuan Pengamanan Rutan dan Subseksi Rutan Perempuan Kelas IIA Bandung
Authors: Sari Novianty Ratna , Romi Mochamad Vrans
Published: November 2024

The decline in staff performance reviewed from the aspect of assessing the performance of the Bandung Class IIA Women's Prison staff still needs to be improved. The purpose of this study is to see the influence of workload and discipline coaching on performance partially and simultaneously. The study uses quantitative methods and questionnaires with interval scales as data collection. The research population is 32 staff of the Bandung Class IIA Women's Detention Center. Samples were taken using a saturated sampling technique. Data processing was analyzed using multiple regression analysis and hypothesis tests using partial (t-test) and simultaneous (F-test). This study proves that workload has a negative and significant effect on staff performance partially. Discipline coaching has a positive and significant effect on staff performance. Meanwhile, simultaneously workload and discipline coaching have a significant effect on staff performance.
Pengaruh Nilai Iklan Smartphone terhadap Niat Beli Produk
Authors: Wachid Ainullah , Putra Harmanda Berima
Published: November 2024

This study examines the influence of smartphone advertising value on product purchase intentions. This research uses quantitative methods by distributing online questionnaires to 151 Indonesian citizens without specific regional characteristics. The results of the analysis using regression analysis show that informativeness, entertainment and incentives are proven to have a positive effect on advertising value. Meanwhile, credibility and irritation were not proven to have a positive effect on advertising value. And finally, advertising value is also not proven to have a positive effect on purchase intention
Nghiên cứu mối quan hệ giữa quá trình tuyển dụng và ý định nghỉ việc của thế hệ Z tại Việt Nam: Vai trò trung gian của cam kết tình cảm
Authors: Mạc Thị Hải Yến
Published: November 2024

Nghiên cứu này khám phá vai trò trung gian của cam kết tình cảm lên mối quan hệ giữa quá trình tuyển dụng và ý định nghỉ việc của thế hệ Z tại Việt Nam. Nghiên cứu tiến hành phân tích định lượng với quy mô mẫu 250 nhân viên thuộc thế hệ Z. Dữ liệu sau khi thu thập được xử lý và phân tích bằng phần mềm SPSS và AMOS để ước lượng mô hình, kiểm định giả thuyết và đánh giá tác động của các biến đến ý định nghỉ việc của thế hệ Z. Kết quả nghiên cứu cho thấy mô tả công việc, đánh giá công việc, đặc điểm công việc, phân tích công việc đều tác động tích cực tới cam kết tình cảm và cam kết tình cảm tác động tiêu cực đến ý định nghỉ việc. Từ đó, nghiên cứu đề xuất một số chính sách làm gia tăng cam kết tình cảm, bao gồm: (i) thường xuyên rà soát và cập nhật mô tả công việc; (ii) xóa bỏ rào cản văn hóa; (iii) tạo môi trường làm việc linh hoạt, hiện đại, hỗ trợ sự phát triển của nhân viên.
Envisioning the Future of the Neurosurgical Operating Room with the Concept of the Medical Metaverse
Authors: Nam Sun Mo , Byun Yoon Hwan , Dho Yun-Sik , Park Chul-Kee
Published: November 2024

The medical metaverse can be defined as a virtual spatiotemporal framework wherein higher-dimensional medical information is generated, exchanged, and utilized through communication among medical personnel or patients. This occurs through the integration of cutting-edge technologies such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), artificial intelligence (AI), big data, cloud computing, and others. We can envision a future neurosurgical operating room that utilizes such medical metaverse concept such as shared extended reality (AR/VR) of surgical field, AI-powered intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring, and real-time intraoperative tissue diagnosis. The future neurosurgical operation room will evolve into a true medical metaverse where participants of surgery can communicate in overlapping virtual layers of surgery, monitoring, and diagnosis.
Reading and Performing The Tempest in a Prison: Hag-seed by Margaret Atwood
Authors: Dongu Maria Grazia
Published: November 2024

This article aims to analyse Margaret Atwood's Hagseed as a rewriting of the educational project orchestrated by Prospero, and as a mirror of the process by which Elizabethan actors created and modified their performance in response to their own and their audiences' needs. Set in a prison and planned as both a rehabilitation for criminals and a vengeance, The Tempest is reenacted and adapted in a collective interpretation to suit the inmates' inner turmoil. Unlike Felix, they cannot leave the prison, but they dream of freedom. Freedom they will find by adapting Shakespeare's characters to their world of imagination and experience. Felix will allow them to find their own way of interpreting the text, which is very different from the attitude Prospero takes throughout The Tempest. In the end, the prisoners involved in adapting Caliban will write a sequel to his story, making him (and themselves) the protagonist and author/s of their own story. Undoubtedly functioning as a metatextual reading of the novel itself in relation to its hypotext, the Pirandellian scene allows us to see how a reader can become an author, and how a subordinate and inarticulate group of people can become confident and self-aware enough to reappropriate their own history. Then the Palimpsest is rewritten, bearing the memory of an educational project, but proposing a new one, more appropriate to our times, with new objectives and new tools.
The Equality Agenda: A Clear Case of Smoke and Mirrors
Authors: Canning Una P.
Published: November 2024

In his book “The madness of crowds: gender, race and identity,” the author Douglas Murray (2020) suggests that much of contemporary society is obsessed with a particular idea of diversity and equality that is all-encompassing and all-consuming. Embedded in current social policy, it is a view, he argues, that propagates the belief that ‘everybody is the same above the neck’ and that: ‘everybody is equal and […] given the right encouragement and opportunity, everybody can be whatever they want; that life is entirely about environment, opportunity, and privilege.’ In this work I trace the broad outline of the emerging equality agenda as it occurred in America and the UK with a particular emphasis on Northern Ireland and argue Murray (2020) is wrong in his assessment. The work highlights the differences between the two countries. It claims equality of opportunity, understood here as improved education, healthcare, childcare etc. and equality of outcome, are more rhetoric than reality.
Md. Nazmul ISLAM, Power of Bonding and Non-Western Emerging Great Powers Engagement: Comparing China and India’s Soft Power Strategy in Pakistan
Authors: Fuad Abdur Rahman
Published: November 2024

Power of Bonding and Non-Western Emerging Great Powers Engagement: Comparing China and India’s Soft Power Strategy in Pakistan by Md. Nazmul Islam is a scholarly exploration that pioneers new perspectives in International Relations. It offers a unique and fresh insight into how non-Western emerging great powers, specifically China and India, utilize soft power strategies to engage with Pakistan. The significance of this four-chapter book lies in its departure from traditional Western-centric viewpoints, providing a distinct lens to comprehend the geopolitical and cultural strategies of these major Asian powers. This unique perspective on non-Western soft power will intrigue scholars, policymakers, and individuals interested in international relations.
INFORMATION LITERACY ANALYSIS OF STUDENT’S EFFECTIVE COGNITIVE ABILITY IN ONLINE LEARNING IN MADRASAH TSANNAWIYAH NEGERI 2 MALANG CITY
Authors: Setiawan Setiawan , Martutik Martutik , Safii Moh.Safii , Inawati Inawati , Ahmad Reza Fawzia
Published: November 2024

Any efforts have been made by MTsN 2 Malang so that their students have affective and cognitive abilities in online learning, but they have not yet fully obtained maximum results, there are still many students whose cognitive and affective aspects are still low. For this reason, this study seeks to find a way to analyze information literacy for students at MTsN 2 Malang City.
The method used is action research which is a type of qualitative research. The sampling technique used is purposive sampling
The results of the research in cycle 1 with several actions/observations, written tests, it was found that there were 17 out of 25 students who had information literacy analysis scores still below the value of 75 (below the KKM) so that cycle 2 actions were needed, in cycle 2 with various actions and accumulated scores. an increase in the ability of students was obtained as many as 18 students with affective and effective abilities above the KKM score of 75. This means that this activity was completed with a percentage of more than 50% of the number of students.
Pazarlamada Kadın Girişimciler Odaklı Akademik Çalışmaların Betimsel Analiz Yöntemiyle İncelenmesi
Authors: Akbulut Başak Bengisu , Orhan Arzu , Başanbaş Şükran , Bozbay Zehra
Published: November 2024

Bu çalışma kapsamında ele alınan makalelerde, kadın girişimcilerin pazarlama stratejileri, karşılaşılan engeller ve başarıya ulaşma yolları gibi konular yer almaktadır. Çalışmamız bu konuların yer aldığı çalışmaları irdelemesi bakımından, literatürdeki önemli bir boşluğu doldurmayı hedeflemektedir. Kadın girişimcilerin erkek girişimcilere göre daha fazla zorlukla karşılaştığı ve bu zorlukların başarılarını doğrudan etkileyebildiği çalışmaların bulgularında saptanmıştır. Mevcut çalışmalara dayanarak girişimci pazarlama bağlamında cinsiyetin rolü de ayrıca derinlemesine incelenmiştir. Bu araştırma, kadın girişimciliği ve pazarlama stratejileri arasındaki ilişkiyi aydınlatarak, kadın girişimcilerin daha etkili pazarlama kararları alabilmeleri için gerekli bilgileri sağlamaktadır. Bu bağlamda, çalışmanın akademisyenlere, politika yapıcılara ve sektör profesyonellerine, kadın girişimciliğinin teşvik edilmesi ve desteklenmesi konusunda kapsamlı bir rehberlik sağlama potansiyeli bulunmaktadır. Bu şekilde, kadın girişimcilerin pazarlama alanında karşılaştıkları özel zorlukları anlama ve bu zorlukların üstesinden gelme yollarını bulma konusunda önemli bir katkı sunmayı amaçlamaktadır. Araştırmanın yöntemi, Scopus veri tabanında yapılan kapsamlı bir literatür taramasına dayanır. Scopus veri tabanında yapılan taramada “kadın girişimciler + pazarlama” anahtar kelimeleri sonucu 122 adet içeriğe ulaşılmıştır. İlk olarak İspanyolca ve İtalyanca dillerinde yazılmış çalışmalar elenmiş ve geriye 120 adet İngilizce içerik kalmıştır. Bu içeriklerden ana konu bakımından “İşletme Yönetimi ve Muhasebe” ve “Sosyal Bilimler” alanında yayımlanmış ana dergiler ile sınırlandırılan çalışmalar 90 adede düşmüş ve içerisinden kitap bölümleri, konferans bildirileri çıkarılıp yalnızca akademik makaleler seçildiğinde 69 makale incelenmek üzere seçilmiştir. 69 makale içerisinden 19 makale konu dışı ya da araştırma makalesi olmadığı için elenmiş, belirtilen 4 makaleye ise ulaşılamamıştır. Kalan 46 makale için betimsel analiz çalışması yapılmış; makaleler yıllara, yayımlandıkları indeksli dergilere, konu edinilen sektörlere, konulara, çalışmalarda seçilen veri toplama yöntemi ve gerçekleştirilen analiz yöntemlerine göre kategorize edilmiştir. Çalışmada yer alan tüm tablo ve şekiller yazarlar tarafından orijinal olarak bu çalışmada elde edilen bulgulara göre hazırlanmıştır. Bulgular, kadın girişimcilerin karşılaştıkları zorluklar, fırsatlar ve başarı faktörleri üzerine yoğunlaşmış, özellikle dijital pazarlama ve sosyal medya kullanımının önemini vurgulamıştır. Ayrıca, sektörel çeşitlilik gösteren çalışmaların, metodolojik yaklaşımların geniş bir yelpazede olduğunu ve niceliksel yöntemlerle birlikte niteliksel yöntemlerin de ön plana çıktığını göstermiştir. Bu çalışma, kadın girişimciliği ve pazarlama alanındaki araştırmalara yönelik bir temel oluşturarak gelecekteki çalışmalar için yol gösterici bir kaynak teşkil ettiği düşünülmektedir.
Overview of Nutritional Status of Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease Who Undergoing Hemodialisis
Authors: Ismunandar Ismunandar , Collein Irsanty , Khaira Nuswatul
Published: November 2024

Patients undergoing hemodialysis for a period of more than 3 years tend to experience malnutrition due to inadequate food intake, diseases of the digestive tract, eating restrictions, drugs that cause impaired nutrient absorption, inadequate dialysis, and comorbidities. This study aimed to determine the relationship between nutritional status and the quality of life of chronic kidney disease patients undergoing hemodialysis in Palu. This study used a quasy experiment design to determine the the 2-mean difference test.. The sample formula determined the number of samples to test the hypothesis on the average of two populations with 100 respondents. This study was carried out in 2 hemodialysis units in Palu. The samples involved in this study were selected by simple random sampling. The KDQOL SF-36 is used to measure quality of life, whereas the malnutrition inflammation score is employed in the questionnaire used to assess nutritional status. The results of this study show that most respondents are in the age range of > 55 years, with 60 people (60%); are female, with 48 people (48%). 48% have a poor quality of life, and 52% have a good quality of life. The p-value for MIS is 0.001, so it can be concluded that at 5% alpha, there is a significant difference between the malnutrition inflammation score before and after education, while there is no significant difference for quality of life and kt/v values. There is an influence of health education on patient nutrition, there is no influence of health education using the KADOic application on quality of life and kt/v.
Development and validation of a model for predicting in-hospital mortality in patients with sepsis-associated kidney injury receiving renal replacement therapy: a retrospective cohort study based on the MIMIC-IV database
Authors: Li Caifeng , Zhao Ke , Ren Qian , Chen Lin , Zhang Ying , Wang Guolin , Xie Keliang
Published: November 2024

Background

SAKI is a common and serious complication of sepsis, contributing significantly to high morbidity and mortality, especially in patients requiring RRT. Early identification of high-risk patients enables timely interventions and improvement in clinical outcomes. The objective of this study was to develop and validate a predictive model for in-hospital mortality in patients with SAKI receiving RRT.

Methods

Patients with SAKI receiving RRT from the MIMIC-IV database were retrospectively enrolled and randomly assigned to either the training cohort or the testing cohort in a 7:3 ratio. LASSO regression and Boruta algorithm were utilized for feature selection. Subsequently, three machine learning models—CART, SVM and LR—were constructed, and their predictive efficacy was assessed using a comprehensive set of performance indicators. Feature importance analysis was performed to determine the contribution of each feature to a model’s predictions. Finally, DCA was employed to evaluate the clinical utility of the prediction models. Additionally, a clinical nomogram was developed to facilitate the interpretation and visualization of the LR model.

Results

A total of 1663 adults were ultimately enrolled and randomly allocated into the training cohort (n = 1164) or the testing cohort (n = 499). Twenty-eight variables were evaluated for feature selection, with eight ultimately retained in the final model: age, MAP, RR, lactate, Cr, PT-INR, TBIL and CVP. The LR model demonstrated commendable performance, exhibiting robust discrimination in both the training cohort (AUROC: 0.73 (95% CI 0.70–0.76); AUPRC: 0.75 (95% CI 0.72–0.79); accuracy: 0.66 (95% CI 0.63–0.68)) and the testing cohort (AUROC: 0.72 (95% CI 0.68-0.76); AUPRC: 0.73 (95% CI 0.67–0.79); accuracy: 0.65 (95% CI 0.61–0.69)). Furthermore, there was good concordance between predicted and observed values in both the training cohort (χ2 = 4.41, p = 0.82) and the testing cohort (χ2 = 4.16, p = 0.84). The results of the DCA revealed that the LR model provided a greater net benefit compared to other prediction models.

Conclusions

The LR model exhibited superior performance in predicting in-hospital mortality in patients with SAKI receiving RRT, suggesting its potential utility in identifying high-risk patients and guiding clinical decision-making.
Multifaced roles of adipokines in endothelial cell function
Authors: Yan Yu , Wang Lihui , Zhong Ni , Wen Donghua , Liu Longhua
Published: November 2024

Obesity significantly contributes to the progression of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and elevates the risk of cardiovascular mortality. Atherosclerosis, the primary pathogenic process underlying CVDs, initiates with vascular endothelial dysfunction, serving as the cornerstone of vascular lesions. Adipokines, bioactive molecules secreted by adipose tissue that regulate metabolic and endocrine functions, play a pivotal role in modulating endothelial function during atherosclerosis. This review comprehensively examines the distinct roles of various adipokines in regulating endothelial function in atherosclerosis. We categorize these adipokines into two main groups: protective adipokines, including adiponectin, FGF21, CTRP9, PGRN, Omentin, and Vaspin, and detrimental adipokines such as leptin, Chemerin, Resistin, FABP4, among others. Targeting specific adipokines holds promise for novel clinical interventions in the management of atherosclerosis-related CVDs, thereby providing a theoretical foundation for cardiovascular disease treatment strategies.
Strategic optimization of PV integrated fuel cell systems for energy surplus utilization in grid failure scenarios
Authors: Gulzar Muhammad Majid , Naeem Muhammad Muzammil , Shahid Kamal , Naeem Farwa Amna , Alqahtani Mohammed , Khalid Muhammad
Published: November 2024

Effective energy management in grid-connected renewable energy systems is essential for achieving cost-efficiency and reliability. This work presents a versatile control technique to tackle power system difficulties in grid-connected and grid-failure modes. The concept employs a digital iterative approach to optimize the operation of a DC-DC converter, guaranteeing the attainment of maximum power output and stability. During a grid breakdown, the system injects carefully adjusted active power into the grid to ensure that voltage and current levels are maintained at appropriate levels, hence preventing overloading. The proposed strategy exhibits a 99% enhancement in system responsiveness and a 96% decrease in overshoot when compared to conventional methods, thus substantiating its efficacy in practical scenarios.
IP-10 acts early in CV-A16 infection to induce BBB destruction and promote virus entry into the CNS by increasing TNF-α expression
Authors: Hu Yajie , Hu Yunguang , Yin Anguo , Lv Yaming , Li Jiang , Fan Jingyuan , Qian Baojiang , Song Jie , Zhang Yunhui
Published: November 2024

The mechanisms underlying pathological changes in the central nervous system (CNS) following Coxsackievirus A16 (CV-A16) infection have not yet been elucidated. IFN-γ-inducible protein-10 (IP-10) is often used as a predictive factor to monitor early virus infection. It has also been reported that IP-10 plays a pivotal role in neuroinflammation. In this study, we aimed to explore the role of IP-10 in the neuropathogenesis of CV-A16 infection. We observed that the level of IP-10, as well as the TLR3-TRIF-TRAF3-TBK1-NF-κB and RIG-I/MDA5-MAVS-TRAFS-TBK1-NF-κB pathways, which are the upstream of IP-10, were significantly elevated during the course of CV-A16 infection. This increase was accompanied by an increase in a series of inflammatory cytokines at different time-points during CV-A16 infection. To determine whether IP-10 influences BBB integrity, we examined junctional complexes. Our results revealed that the expression levels of Claudin5, Occludin, ZO-1 and VE-Cadherin were notably decreased in CV-A16-infected HUVECs, but these indicators were restored in CV-A16-infected HUVECs with Eldelumab treatment. Nevertheless, IP-10 is only a chemokine that primarily traffics CXCR3-positive immune cells to inflammatory sites or promotes the production of inflammatory cytokines. Therefore, the interactions between IP-10 and inflammatory cytokines were evaluated. Our data revealed that IP-10 mediated the production of TNF-α, which was also observed to change the junctional complexes. Moreover, in a suckling mouse model, IP-10 and TNF-α treatments exacerbated clinical symptoms, mortality and pathological changes in the brain of CV-A16-infected mice, but Anti-IP-10 and Anti-TNF-α treatments alleviated these changes. Our data also revealed that IP-10 may be detected early in CV-A16 infection, whereas TNF-α was detected late in CV-A16 infection, and the production of TNF-α was also found to be positively correlated with IP-10. In addition, IP-10 and TNF-α were observed to reduce junctional complexes and enhance virus entry into the CNS. Taken together, this study provides the first evidence that CV-A16 activates the IP-10/TNF-α regulatory axis to cause BBB damage and accelerate the formation of neuroinflammation in infected hosts, which not only provides a new understanding of the neuropathogenesis caused by CV-A16, but also offers a promising target for the development of CV-A16 antiviral drugs.
Identification and validation of interferon-stimulated gene 15 as a biomarker for dermatomyositis by integrated bioinformatics analysis and machine learning
Authors: Wang Xingwang , Hu Hao , Yan Guangning , Zheng Bo , Luo Jinxia , Fan Jianyong
Published: November 2024

Background

Dermatomyositis (DM) is an autoimmune disease that primarily affects the skin and muscles. It can lead to increased mortality, particularly when patients develop associated malignancies or experience fatal complications such as pulmonary fibrosis. Identifying reliable biomarkers is essential for the early diagnosis and treatment of DM. This study aims to identify and validate pivotal diagnostic biomarker for DM through integrated bioinformatics analysis and clinical sample validation.

Methods

Gene expression datasets GSE46239 and GSE142807 from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database were merged for analysis. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified and subjected to enrichment analysis. Advanced machine learning methods were utilized to further pinpoint hub genes. Weighted gene co‐expression network analysis (WGCNA) was also conducted to discover key gene modules. Subsequently, we derived intersection gene from these methods. The diagnostic performance of the candidate biomarker was evaluated using analysis with dataset GSE128314 and confirmed by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in skin lesion biopsy specimens. The CIBERSORT algorithm was used to analyze immune cell infiltration patterns in DM, then the association between the hub gene and immune cells was investigated. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was performed to understand the biomarker’s biological functions. Finally, the drug-gene interactions were predicted using the DrugRep server.

Results

Interferon-stimulated gene 15 (ISG15) was identified by intersecting DEGs, advanced machine learning-selected genes and key module genes from WGCNA. ROC analysis showed ISG15 had a high Area under the curve (AUC) of 0.950. IHC findings confirmed uniformly positive expression of ISG15, particularly in perivascular regions and lymphocytes, contrasting with universally negative expression in controls. Further analysis revealed that ISG15 is involved in abnormalities in various immune cells and inflammation-related pathways. We also predicted three drugs targeting ISG15, supported by molecular docking studies.

Conclusion

Our study identifies ISG15 as a highly specific diagnostic biomarker for DM, ISG15 may be closely related to the pathogenesis of DM, demonstrating promising potential for clinical application.
Leveraging long-acting IL-15 agonists for intratumoral delivery and enhanced antimetastatic activity
Authors: Hangasky John A. , Fernández Rocío del Valle , Stellas Dimitris , Hails Guillermo , Karaliota Sevasti , Ashley Gary W. , Felber Barbara K. , Pavlakis George N. , Santi Daniel V.
Published: November 2024

Introduction

IL-15 agonists hold promise as immunotherapeutics due to their ability to induce the proliferation and expansion of cytotoxic immune cells including natural killer (NK) and CD8+ T cells. However, they generally have short half-lives that necessitate frequent administration to achieve efficacy. To address this limitation, we have developed a half-life extension technology using hydrogel microspheres (MS). Here, the therapeutic is tethered to MSs by a releasable linker with pre-programed cleavage rates. We previously showed the MS conjugate of single-chain IL-15, MS~IL-15, effectively increased the half-life of IL-15 to approximately 1 week and enhanced the pharmacodynamics. We sought to determine whether the same would be true with a MS conjugate of the IL-15 agonist, receptor-linker IL-15 (RLI).

Methods

We prepared a long acting MS conjugate of RLI, MS~RLI. The pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of MS~RLI were measured in C57BL/6J mice and compared to MS~IL-15. The antitumor efficacy of MS~RLI was measured when delivered subcutaneously or intratumorally in the CT26 tumor model and intratumorally in the orthotopic EO771 tumor model.

Results

MS~RLI exhibited a half-life of 30 h, longer than most IL-15 agonists but shorter than MS~IL-15. The shorter than expected half-life of MS~RLI was shown to be due to target-mediated-disposition caused by an IL-15 induced cytokine sink. MS~RLI resulted in very potent stimulation of NK and CD44hiCD8+ T cells, but also caused significant injection-site toxicity that may preclude subcutaneous administration. We thus pivoted our efforts toward studying the MS~RLI for long-acting intra-tumoral therapy, where some degree of necrosis might be beneficial. When delivered intra- tumorally, both MS~IL-15 and MS~RLI had modest anti-tumor efficacy, but high anti- metastatic activity.

Conclusion

Intra-tumoral MS~RLI and MS~RLI combined with systemic treatment with other agents could provide beneficial antitumor and anti-metastatic effects without the toxic effects of systemic IL-15 agonists. Our findings demonstrate that intra-tumorally administered long-acting IL-15 agonists counter two criticisms of loco-regional therapy: the necessity for frequent injections and the challenge of managing metastases.
Dynamics trajectory of patient-reported quality of life and its associated risk factors among hepatocellular carcinoma patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors: a prospective cohort study
Authors: You Xue-Mei , Lu Fei-Chen , Li Fan-Rong , Zhao Feng-Juan , Huo Rong-Rui
Published: November 2024

Objective

We aimed to characterize quality of life (QOL) trajectories among patients
with intermediate and advanced hepatocellular carcinoma patients treated with immunotherapy.

Methods

Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) stage B-C HCC patients receiving
immunotherapy at Guangxi Medical University Cancer Hospital were included. Trajectories of QOL,
assessed using the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Hepatobiliary (FACT-Hep) questionnaire,
were identified through iterative estimations of group-based trajectory models. Associations with trajectory group membership were analyzed using multivariable multinomial logistic regression.

Results

Three trajectory groups were identified (n=156): excellent (35.3%), poor
(43.6%), and deteriorating (21.1%) QOL. The deteriorating trajectory group reported a mean QOL score
of 124.79 (95% CI, 116.58–133.00), but then declined significantly at month-2 (estimated QOL
score 98.67 [95% CI, 84.33–113.00]), and the lowest mean score is reached at month-6 (estimated QOL score 16.58 [95% CI, 0–46.07]). Factors associated with membership to the deteriorating group included no drinking (odds ratio [OR] vs yes [95% CI], 3.70 [1.28–11.11]), no received radiotherapy (OR vs yes [95% CI], 8.33 [1.41–50.00]), diabetes (OR vs no [95% CI], 6.83 [1.57–29.73]), and extrahepatic metastasis (OR vs no [95% CI], 3.08 [1.07–8.87]). Factors associated with membership to the poor group also included body mass index ≤24.0 kg/m2 (OR vs no [95% CI], 4.49 [1.65–12.22]).

Conclusions

This latent-class analysis identified a high-risk cluster of patients with
severe, persistent post-immunotherapy QOL deterioration. Screening relevant patient-level
characteristics may inform tailored interventions to mitigate the detrimental impact of
immunotherapy and preserve QOL.
Comparative transcriptome analysis of low- and high-latitude populations of Charybdis japonica under temperature stress
Authors: Sun Shaolei , He Zhiqi , Zhang Feijun , Han Zhiqiang
Published: November 2024

Global climate change has caused rapid temperature changes in marine environments. Understanding how marine organisms respond to temperature changes can help predict their richness of future biodiversity. In this study, we examined the gene expression levels and the difference in the pathways that are responsive to acute temperature stress in low- and high-latitude populations of the shore swimming crab, Charybdis japonica. The two populations of C. japonica were exposed to low- and high-temperature stresses (15°C and 28°C) and used for transcriptome sequencing. Genetic regulatory ability changes were compared to determine the diverse response of the two crab populations to temperature change. The gene expression levels and functional enrichment analysis showed that the low-latitude crab regulated more genes (938) that were mainly enriched in DNA replication and metabolic pathways, whereas the high-latitude crab regulated less genes (309) that were mainly enriched in genetic information processing at low-temperature stress. Furthermore, the low-latitude crab regulated less genes (33) that were mainly enriched in genetic information processing, whereas the high-latitude crab regulated more genes (280) that were mainly enriched in signal transduction and cellular process at high-temperature stress. These results implied that the low-latitude population was more resilient to high-temperature stress, while the high-latitude population was more resilient to low-temperature stress. This study enhances our understanding of how different geographic C. japonica populations respond to varying temperature environments in their living zone, which could be helpful for predicting future biodiversity trends of intertidal crustaceans under global climate change.
Overcoming drug resistance of cancer cells by targeting the FGF1/FGFR1 axis with honokiol or FGF ligand trap
Authors: Szymczyk Jakub , Sochacka Martyna , Biadun Martyna , Sluzalska Katarzyna Dominika , Witkowska Danuta , Zakrzewska Malgorzata
Published: November 2024

Background

Chemoresistance of cancer cells, resulting from various mechanisms, is a significant obstacle to the effectiveness of modern cancer therapies. Targeting fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) and their receptors (FGFRs) is becoming crucial, as their high activity significantly contributes to cancer development and progression by driving cell proliferation and activating signaling pathways that enhance drug resistance.

Methods

We investigated the potential of honokiol and FGF ligand trap in blocking the FGF1/FGFR1 axis to counteract drug resistance. Using PEAQ-ITC, we verified direct interaction of honokiol with the FGFR1 kinase domain. We then demonstrated the effect of FGF1/FGFR1 inhibition on taltobulin resistance in cells expressing FGFR1. Finally, we generated drug-resistant clones by prolonged exposure of cells with negligible FGFR levels to taltobulin alone, taltobulin and honokiol, or taltobulin and FGF ligand trap.

Results

We demonstrated for the first time a direct interaction of honokiol with the FGFR1 kinase domain, resulting in inhibition of downstream signaling pathways. We revealed that both honokiol and FGF ligand trap prevent FGF1-dependent protection against taltobulin in cancer cells expressing FGFR1. In addition, we showed that cells obtained by long-term exposure to taltobulin are resistant to both taltobulin and other microtubule-targeting drugs, and exhibit elevated levels of FGFR1 and cyclin D. We also found that the presence of FGF-ligand trap prevents the development of long-term resistance to taltobulin.

Conclusion

Our results shed light on how blocking the FGF1/FGFR1 axis by honokiol and FGF ligand trap could help develop more effective cancer therapies, potentially preventing the emergence of drug-resistant relapses.
The genetically programmed rhythmic alteration of diurnal gene expression in the aged Arabidopsis leaves
Authors: Jung Sukjoon , Kim Hyunmin , Lee Juhyeon , Kang Myeong Hoon , Kim Jungyeon , Kim Jong Kyoung , Lim Pyung Ok , Nam Hong Gil
Published: November 2024

The circadian clock regulates the daily pattern of temporal gene expression. In Arabidopsis, aging is associated with a shortening of the endogenous period of circadian rhythms under circadian conditions. However, the functional link between the circadian clock and aging under diurnal conditions and its physiological relevance remain elusive. In this study, we investigate and characterize the effect of aging on the waveforms of rhythmic gene expression patterns under light/dark cycles. Our analysis revealed that the diurnal rhythmic patterns of core clock genes undergo significant rhythmic alteration with phase shift and change of waveforms in aged plants compared to younger plants. Transcriptomic analysis indicated that this age-dependent rhythmic alteration occurs not only in core clock genes but also globally. Due to the rhythmic alteration patterns of the diurnal rhythmic gene expression, aged plants experience subjectively a shorter day and longer night. We also observed that genetic mutants of core clock component genes exhibited broadly yet distinctively altered changes in diurnal rhythmic gene expression patterns as aging progresses. Collectively, our findings support that age-dependent rhythmic alteration of diurnal gene expression rhythms reprograms the timetable of daily gene expression, leading to the physiological changes required for plant senescence.
The behavioral and physiological correlates of affective mood switching in premenstrual dysphoric disorder
Authors: Brown Robin Dara , Bondy Erin , Prim Julianna , Dichter Gabriel , Schiller Crystal Edler
Published: November 2024

Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), a more severe manifestation of premenstrual syndrome (PMS), is characterized by emotional, behavioral, and physical symptoms that begin in the mid-to-late luteal phase of the menstrual cycle, when estradiol and progesterone levels precipitously decline, and remit after the onset of menses. Remotely monitoring physiologic variables associated with PMDD depression symptoms, such as heart rate variability (HRV), sleep, and physical activity, holds promise for developing an affective state prediction model. Switching into and out of depressive states is associated with an increased risk of suicide, and therefore, monitoring periods of affective switching may help mitigate risk. Management of other chronic health conditions, including cardiovascular disease and diabetes, has benefited from remote digital monitoring paradigms that enable patients and physicians to monitor symptoms in real-time and make behavioral and medication adjustments. PMDD is a chronic condition that may benefit from real-time, remote monitoring. However, clinical practice has not advanced to monitoring affective states in real-time. Identifying remote monitoring paradigms that can detect within-person affective state change may help facilitate later research on timely and efficacious interventions for individuals with PMDD. This narrative review synthesizes the current literature on behavioral and physiological correlates of PMDD suitable for remote monitoring during the menstrual cycle. The reliable measurement of heart rate variability (HRV), sleep, and physical activity, with existing wearable technology, suggests the potential of a remote monitoring paradigm in PMDD and other depressive disorders.
Research on the evaluation of emergency management capability for urban public health emergencies under the perspective of resilience—a case study of Henan Province, China
Authors: Hao Yu , Tie Yuxin , Zhang Lijun , Zhang Fan , Sun Chaolun
Published: November 2024

With the rapid development of the economy and society, the likelihood of sudden public health emergencies in urban areas continues to rise. In particular, major infectious diseases that have gained global attention, such as the SARS virus, H1N1 influenza, Ebola outbreak, and COVID-19 pandemic, have presented significant challenges to urban emergency management systems. Evaluating emergency management capability is a fundamental requirement for developing emergency response capacity. To this end, this study combines the theory of resilience with the theory of full-process equilibrium emergency management, selects 31 evaluation indicators from six key aspects: preparedness, forewarning, mitigation, disposal, recovery, and learning. The indicator weights are determined using the AHP-Entropy Weight Method, and a TOPSIS model is constructed to assess the emergency management capability of urban public health emergencies. The model’s applicability is validated by examining 18 cities in Henan Province. The findings suggest that Jiaozuo, Hebi, Zhengzhou, and Luohe possess relatively robust emergency management capabilities for sudden public health incidents, whereas Kaifeng, Pingdingshan, and Shangqiu exhibit weaker capabilities.
Effect of NR1D1 on the proliferation and differentiation of yak skeletal muscle satellite cells
Authors: Zhe Yuqi , Wu Zhijuan , Yasenjian Sibinuer , Zhong Jincheng , Jiang Hui , Zhang Ming , Chai Zhixin , Xin Jinwei
Published: November 2024

The severe conditions at high altitudes, where yaks inhabit, contribute to delayed muscular growth and compromised tenderness of their muscle tissue. Myosatellite cells are responsible for the growth and regeneration of skeletal muscle after birth and have the potential to proliferate and differentiate, its development is closely related to meat quality, and the nuclear receptor gene NR1D1 is involved in muscle formation and skeletal muscle regulation. Therefore, in order to understand the effect of NR1D1 on muscle satellite cells, we identified the mRNA expression levels of marker genes specifically expressed in muscle satellite cells at different stages to determine the type of cells isolated. Eventually, we successfully constructed a primary cell line of yak muscle satellite cells. Then we constructed NR1D1 overexpression vector and interference RNA, and introduced them into isolated yak skeletal muscle satellite cells. We performed qPCR, CCK8, and fluorescence-specific to detect the expression of genes or abundance of proteins as markers of cell proliferation and differentiation. Compared with those in the control group, the expression levels of proliferation marker genes KI-67, CYCLIND1, and CYCLINA were significantly inhibited after NR1D1 overexpression, which was also supported by the CCK-8 test, whereas differentiation marker genes MYOD, MYOG, and MYF5 were significantly inhibited. Fluorescence-specific staining showed that KI-67 protein abundance and the number of microfilaments both decreased, while the opposite trend was observed after NR1D1 interference. In conclusion, we confirmed that NR1D1 inhibited the proliferation and differentiation of yak skeletal muscle satellite cells, which provides a theoretical basis for further research on the effect of NR1D1 on improving meat quality traits and meat production performance of yaks.
The Evolving Applications of Laparoscopic Intracorporeal Rectus Aponeuroplasty (LIRA) in Ventral Hernia Repair—A Systematic Review
Authors: Balthazar da Silveira Carlos A. , Rasador Ana C. D. , Marcolin Patrícia , Kasakewitch João P. G. , Lima Diego L. , Morales-Conde Salvador , Malcher Flavio
Published: November 2024

Purpose

Laparoscopic intracorporeal rectus aponeuroplasty (LIRA), emerged as a method that combines benefits from minimally invasive and abdominal wall reconstruction with defect closure, restoring the midline without tension by folding the posterior aponeurosis of both abdominal rectus muscles and using intraperitoneal mesh repair. We aimed to perform a systematic review of the existing evidence on LIRA results and potential applications.

Source

A thorough search of Cochrane Central, Scopus, SciELO, LILACS, and PubMed/MEDLINE, focusing on studies that explored LIRA’s possible applications and results was performed. Key outcomes evaluated included recurrence, seroma, hematoma, surgical site infection (SSI), and length of hospital stay. We included both analytic data and descriptive studies.

Principal Findings

Out of 128 screened studies, three met the inclusion criteria and comprised 113 patients, of which 69 (61.1%) were operated using LIRA. Three studies comprised two case series of conventional and robotic LIRA repair, and one comparative study of LIRA versus intraperitoneal underlay mesh repair (IPUM plus). No surgical site infections were reported. Seroma rates ranged between 11.1% and 50%, while no bleeding or hematoma was noted. There were no patients presenting recurrence in a median follow-up ranging from 12 to 15 months, despite the comparative study reporting a 4.4% rate of bulging without clinical recurrence. The mean length of hospital stay ranged from 12 to 36 h. LIRA presented no differences in postoperative complications compared to the IPUM plus technique.

Conclusion

LIRA is linked to low recurrence and postoperative complications. It is a novel approach with potential applications in various types of primary and incisional ventral hernias.
An Autoencoder-Based Task-Oriented Semantic Communication System for M2M Communication
Authors: Samarathunga Prabhath , Rezaei Hossein , Lokumarambage Maheshi , Sivalingam Thushan , Rajatheva Nandana , Fernando Anil
Published: November 2024

Semantic communication (SC) is a communication paradigm that has gained significant attention, as it offers a potential solution to move beyond Shannon’s formulation in bandwidth-limited communication channels by delivering the semantic meaning of the message rather than its exact form. In this paper, we propose an autoencoder-based SC system for transmitting images between two machines over error-prone channels to support emerging applications such as VIoT, XR, M2M, and M2H communications. The proposed autoencoder architecture, with a semantically modeled encoder and decoder, transmits image data as a reduced-dimension vector (latent vector) through an error-prone channel. The decoder then reconstructs the image to determine its M2M implications. The autoencoder is trained for different noise levels under various channel conditions, and both image quality and classification accuracy are used to evaluate the system’s efficacy. A CNN image classifier measures accuracy, as no image quality metric is available for SC yet. The simulation results show that all proposed autoencoders maintain high image quality and classification accuracy at high SNRs, while the autoencoder trained with zero noise underperforms other trained autoencoders at moderate SNRs. The results further indicate that all other proposed autoencoders trained under different noise levels are highly robust against channel impairments. We compare the proposed system against a comparable JPEG transmission system, and results reveal that the proposed system outperforms the JPEG system in compression efficiency by up to 50% and in received image quality with an image coding gain of up to 17 dB.
Enhancing Arabic Sentiment Analysis of Consumer Reviews: Machine Learning and Deep Learning Methods Based on NLP
Authors: Almaqtari Hani , Zeng Feng , Mohammed Ammar
Published: November 2024

Sentiment analysis utilizes Natural Language Processing (NLP) techniques to extract opinions from text, which is critical for businesses looking to refine strategies and better understand customer feedback. Understanding people’s sentiments about products through emotional tone analysis is paramount. However, analyzing sentiment in Arabic and its dialects poses challenges due to the language’s intricate morphology, right-to-left script, and nuanced emotional expressions. To address this, this study introduces the Arb-MCNN-Bi Model, which integrates the strengths of the transformer-based AraBERT (Arabic Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers) model with a Multi-channel Convolutional Neural Network (MCNN) and a Bidirectional Gated Recurrent Unit (BiGRU) for Arabic sentiment analysis. AraBERT, designed specifically for Arabic, captures rich contextual information through word embeddings. These embeddings are processed by the MCNN to enhance feature extraction and by the BiGRU to retain long-term dependencies. The final output is obtained through feedforward neural networks. The study compares the proposed model with various machine learning and deep learning methods, applying advanced NLP techniques such as Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency (TF-IDF), n-gram, Word2Vec (Skip-gram), and fastText (Skip-gram). Experiments are conducted on three Arabic datasets: the Arabic Customer Reviews Dataset (ACRD), Large-scale Arabic Book Reviews (LABR), and the Hotel Arabic Reviews dataset (HARD). The Arb-MCNN-Bi model with AraBERT achieved accuracies of 96.92%, 96.68%, and 92.93% on the ACRD, HARD, and LABR datasets, respectively. These results demonstrate the model’s effectiveness in analyzing Arabic text data and outperforming traditional approaches.
A Proposal for a New Python Library Implementing Stepwise Procedure
Authors: Fávero Luiz Paulo , Santos Helder Prado , Belfiore Patrícia , Duarte Alexandre , Costa Igor Pinheiro de Araújo , Terra Adilson Vilarinho , Moreira Miguel Ângelo Lellis , Tarantin Junior Wilson , Santos Marcos dos
Published: November 2024

Carefully selecting variables in problems with large volumes of data are extremely important, as it reduces the complexity of the model, improves the interpretation of the results, and increases computational efficiency, ensuring more accurate and relevant analyses. This paper presents a comprehensive approach to selecting variables in multiple regression models using the stepwise procedure. As the main contribution of this study, we present the stepwise function implemented in Python to improve the effectiveness of statistical analyses, allowing the intuitive and efficient selection of statistically significant variables. The application of the function is exemplified in a real case study of real estate pricing, validating its effectiveness in improving the fit of regression models. In addition, we presented a methodological framework for treating joint problems in data analysis, such as heteroskedasticity, multicollinearity, and nonadherence of residues to normality. This framework offers a robust computational implementation to mitigate such issues. This study aims to advance the understanding and application of statistical methods in Python, providing valuable tools for researchers, students, and professionals from various areas.