bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Parenting factors and meaning of life among Chinese adolescents: A six‐wave longitudinal study
Authors: Shek Daniel T.L. , Chai Catherine W.Y. , Dou Diya
Published: February 2021

Introduction

Using six‐wave data, the present study examined the influence of parent‐child subsystem relational qualities (indexed by parental behavioral control, psychological control, and parent‐child relationship) on the initial status and growth trajectory of meaning of life (MOL) in Chinese adolescents.

Methods

A total of 2023 high school students in Hong Kong (M age = 12.53 ± 0.66 years, 48.0% male students) responded to a questionnaire measuring their perceived parent‐child subsystem relational qualities and meaning of life for six consecutive years from 2009/2010. Individual growth curve (IGC) analyses and multiple regression analyses were used.

Results

Results of IGC analyses showed that parental behavioral control and parent‐child relationship quality at Wave 1 positively predicted the initial level of adolescent MOL but negatively influenced the growth trajectory of MOL. Parental psychological control at the initial level negatively predicted the initial status of MOL but not the developmental trajectory of adolescent MOL. However, compared with adolescents experiencing poorer parent‐child relational subsystem qualities, adolescents with better parent‐child relational subsystem qualities showed significantly higher MOL at each time point. Multiple regression analyses also showed that while parent‐child relationship quality and paternal behavioral control concurrently and longitudinally exhibited positive predictions on adolescent MOL, the impact of parental psychological control on adolescent MOL showed different patterns in early and late adolescence.

Conclusions

The pioneering findings underline the important role of different parent‐child subsystem relational qualities in influencing adolescent MOL.
Quantitative Analysis of Geopressure for Geoscientists and Engineers
Authors: Dutta Nader C. , Bachrach Ran , Mukerji Tapan
Published: February 2021

Geopressure, or excess pore pressure in subsurface rock formations that is higher than the hydrostatic pressure, is a worldwide phenomenon which impacts hydrocarbon resource estimation, drilling and drilling safety in operations. This book provides a comprehensive overview of geopressure analysis bringing together rock physics, seismic technology, quantitative basin modeling and geomechanics. It provides a fundamental physical and geological basis for understanding geopressure by explaining the coupled mechanical and thermal processes. It also brings together state-of-the-art tools and technologies for analysis and detection of geopressure, along with the associated uncertainty. Prediction and detection of shallow geohazards and gas hydrates is also discussed and field examples are used to illustrate how models can be practically applied. With supplementary MATLAB® codes and exercises available online, this is an ideal resource for students, researchers and industry professionals in geoscience and petroleum engineering looking to understand and analyse subsurface formation pressure.
Benefit–Cost Analysis of Social Media Facilitated Bystander Programs
Authors: Ebers Axel , Thomsen Stephan L.
Published: February 2021

Bystander programs contribute to crime prevention by motivating people to intervene in violent situations. Social media allow addressing very specific target groups, and provide valuable information for program evaluation. This paper provides a conceptual framework for conducting benefit–cost analysis of bystander programs and puts a particular focus on the use of social media for program dissemination and data collection. The benefit–cost model treats publicly funded programs as investment projects and calculates the benefit–cost ratio. Program benefit arises from the damages avoided by preventing violent crime. We provide systematic instructions for estimating this benefit. The explained estimation techniques draw on social media data, machine-learning technology, randomized controlled trials and discrete choice experiments. In addition, we introduce a complementary approach with benefits calculated from the public attention generated by the program. To estimate the value of public attention, the approach uses the bid landscaping method, which originates from display advertising. The presented approaches offer the tools to implement a benefit–costs analysis in practice. The growing importance of social media for the dissemination of policy programs requires new evaluation methods. By providing two such methods, this paper contributes to evidence-based decision-making in a growing policy area.
Do Disabled Candidates Represent Disabled Citizens?
Authors: Reher Stefanie
Published: February 2021

Whether citizens are better represented by politicians ‘like them’ has been the subject of much debate and analysis. Yet, this scholarship has largely ignored the 1 in 5 people who are disabled and experience economic, social and political marginalization. Linking voter and candidate data from the 2015 British general election, this study examines whether disabled citizens are better represented by disabled elites. It analyses the effects of disability on both preferences and preference congruence. The findings reveal that disabled citizens and candidates are more supportive of healthcare and general public spending, even within parties. At the same time, the views of disabled citizens are rarely more congruent with the positions of disabled candidates than those of non-disabled candidates, except on healthcare spending. The study provides ground-breaking insights into the role of disability in policy preferences and political representation while also highlighting broader implications of how the descriptive–substantive representation link is analysed.
Partisan Misalignment and the Counter-Partisan Response: How National Politics Conditions Majority-Party Policy Making in the American States
Authors: Miras Nicholas S. , Rouse Stella M.
Published: February 2021

When one political party gains control of American national governing institutions, it increases the prospects of enacting its policy agenda. Faced with this partisan misalignment, the authors expect state governments controlled by the national out-party to respond to the national partisan context with more state policy activism. The study examines changes in state policy liberalism from 1974 to 2019, and finds that both Republican- and Democratic-controlled states have pushed policy further in their preferred ideological directions when the opposing party has greater partisan control over the national policy agenda in Washington. It also identifies differences between the two parties. While the effect of Republican control modestly increases as Democrats gain power at the national level, Democratic-controlled states have shown dramatically larger shifts in policy liberalism during periods of Republican national control. This arrangement, however, appears to be a contemporary one, emerging in the more polarized political environment since the mid-1990s.
CRAFTING CHAOS: INTELLIGENT DESIGN IN OVID, METAMORPHOSES BOOK 1 AND PLATO'S TIMAEUS
Authors: Kelly Peter
Published: February 2021

Many attempts have been made to define the precise philosophical outlook of Ovid's account of cosmogony from the beginning of the Metamorphoses, while numerous different and interconnected influences have been identified including Homer, Hesiod, Empedocles, Apollonius Rhodius, Lucretius and Virgil. This has led some scholars to conclude that Ovid's cosmogony is simply eclectic, a magpie collection of various poetic and philosophical snippets haphazardly jumbled together, and with no significant philosophical dimension whatsoever. A more constructive approach could see Ovid's synthesis of many of the major cosmogonic works in the Graeco-Roman tradition as an attempt to match textually his all-encompassing history of the universe that purports to stretch from the first beginnings of the world up to the present day (Met. 1.3−4). Furthermore, if the beginning of the Metamorphoses is designed to be both cosmologically and intertextually all-encompassing, it is surprising that the influence of arguably the major philosophical work on cosmogony from the ancient world, Plato's Timaeus, remains to be evaluated.
HENRY VALOIS'S COURT AND ELECTIVE KINGSHIP IN THE POLISH–LITHUANIAN COMMONWEALTH, 1573–1574
Authors: KOSIOR KATARZYNA
Published: February 2021

Henry Valois (1551–89) was elected king of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1573 and arrived in Poland in January 1574. After five months, Henry fled Poland–Lithuania upon inheriting the French throne from his brother, Charles IX. As Henry III of France, he was branded a violent tyrant, who allowed his mignons to run the kingdom and isolated himself from his subjects. Historians have done much to rehabilitate Henry's reputation, but his first experience of kingship in the Commonwealth has been neglected in these reassessments. This article uses the previously unstudied treasury accounts of Henry's Polish court to re-examine his experience of the Polish–Lithuanian elective, parliamentary monarchy as crucial to the development of his characteristic style of kingship and court. Some of these practices were a response to the challenges posed by the Polish political system to a newly elected king. This allows us to recover a lost political connection between Poland and France. Secondly, the article demonstrates Henry's active engagement in the Polish–Lithuanian politics, challenging the narrative that he was a passive king anticipating his return to Paris. Instead, Henry planned to cement his rule in Poland by mounting his own faction and pursuing a bold diplomatic agenda.
WARTIME AND POST-WAR RAPE IN FRANCO'S SPAIN
Authors: ALCALDE ÁNGEL
Published: February 2021

By examining the experience of rape in Spain in the 1930s and 1940s, this article explains how the Spanish Civil War and Franco's dictatorship dramatically increased the likelihood of women becoming victims of sexual assault. Contrary to what historians often assume, this phenomenon was not the result of rape being deliberately used as a ‘weapon of war’ or as a blunt method of political repression against women. The upsurge in sexual violence was a by-product of structural transformations in the wartime and dictatorial contexts, and it was the direct consequence, rather than the instrument, of the violent imposition of a fascist-inspired regime. Using archival evidence from numerous Spanish archives, the article historicizes rape in a wider cultural, legal, and social context and reveals the essential albeit ambiguous political nature of both wartime and post-war rape. The experience of rape was mostly shaped not by repression but structural factors such as ruralization and social hierarchization, demographic upheavals, exacerbation of violent masculinity models, the proliferation of weapons, and the influence of fascist and national-Catholic ideologies. Rape became an expression of the nature of power and social and gender relations in Franco's regime.
A new empirical equation to describe the vertical leaf distribution profile of maize
Authors: Fan P. P. , Li Y. Y. , Evers J. B. , Ming B. , Wang C. X. , Li S. K. , Xie R. Z.
Published: February 2021

The characteristic traits of maize (Zea mays L.) leaves affect light interception and photosynthesis. Measurement or estimation of individual leaf area has been described using discontinuous equations or bell-shaped functions. However, new maize hybrids show different canopy architecture, such as leaf angle in modern maize which is more upright and ear leaf and adjacent leaves which are longer than older hybrids. The original equations and their parameters, which have been used for older maize hybrids and grown at low plant densities, will not accurately represent modern hybrids. Therefore, the aim of this paper was to develop a new empirical equation that captures vertical leaf distribution. To characterize the vertical leaf profile, we conducted a field experiment in Jilin province, Northeast China from 2015 to 2018. Our new equation for the vertical distribution of leaf profile describes leaf length, width or leaf area as a function of leaf rank, using parameters for the maximum value for leaf length, width or area, the leaf rank at which the maximum value is obtained, and the width of the curve. It thus involves one parameter less than the previously used equations. By analysing the characteristics of this new equation, we identified four key leaf ranks (4, 8, 14 and 20) for which leaf parameter values need to be quantified in order to have a good estimation of leaf length, width and area. Together, the method of leaf area estimation proposed here adds versatility for use in modern maize hybrids and simplifies the field measurements by using the four key leaf ranks to estimate vertical leaf distribution in maize canopy instead of all leaf ranks.
Ladin, varieties of Val di Fassa
Authors: Yang Yifan , Walker Rachel , Vietti Alessandro , Chiocchetti Armin
Published: February 2021

Ladin (ISO 639-3: lld) is a Romance language spoken in the Italian Central-Eastern Alps by a community of about 30,000 speakers (Dell’Aquila 2010). The classification of Ladin within Western Romance has been the subject of a long-lasting scientific and at times ideological debate, particularly because at the end of the 19th century the region was contested between the new-born Italian state and the Habsburg empire. The varieties of Ladin share phonetic-phonological, morphological, syntactic and lexical features with the other languages spoken in the Central-Eastern Alps, such as Friulian and Romansh, thus leading to the identification of the Rhaeto-Romance group (Haiman & Benincà 1992). However, in Ladin there are still many linguistic phenomena that connect it to the Romance dialects of Northern Italy. Therefore, a clear assignment of Ladin to a group is by no means a simple and uncontroversial operation (Salvi 2016).
Helminth-derived cystatins: the immunomodulatory properties of an Ascaris lumbricoides cystatin
Authors: Caraballo Luis , Zakzuk Josefina , Acevedo Nathalie
Published: February 2021

Helminth infections such as ascariasis elicit a type 2 immune response resembling that involved in allergic inflammation, but differing to allergy, they are also accompanied with strong immunomodulation. This has stimulated an increasing number of investigations, not only to better understand the mechanisms of allergy and helminth immunity but to find parasite-derived anti-inflammatory products that could improve the current treatments of chronic non-communicable inflammatory diseases such as asthma. A great number of helminth-derived immunomodulators have been discovered and some of them extensively analysed, showing their potential use as anti-inflammatory drugs in clinical settings. Since Ascaris lumbricoides is one of the most successful parasites, several groups have focused on the immunomodulatory properties of this helminth. As a result, several excretory/secretory components and purified molecules have been analysed, revealing interesting anti-inflammatory activities potentially useful as therapeutic tools. One of these molecules is A. lumbricoides cystatin, whose genomic, cellular, molecular, and immunomodulatory properties are described in this review.
ICESat‐2 Elevation Retrievals in Support of Satellite‐Derived Bathymetry for Global Science Applications
Authors: Babbel Benjamin J. , Parrish Christopher E. , Magruder Lori A.
Published: February 2021

Bathymetry retrievals from 2D, multispectral imagery, referred to as Satellite‐Derived Bathymetry (SDB), afford the potential to obtain global, nearshore bathymetric data in optically clear waters. However, accurate SDB depth retrievals are limited in the absence of “seed depths.” The Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite‐2 (ICESat‐2) space‐based altimeter has proven capable of accurate bathymetry, but methods of employing ICESat‐2 bathymetry for SDB retrievals over broad spatial extents are immature. This research aims to establish and test a baseline methodology for generating bathymetric surface models using SDB with ICESat‐2. The workflow is operationally efficient (17–37 min processing time) and capable of producing bathymetry of sufficient vertical accuracy for many coastal science applications, with RMSEs of 0.96 and 1.54 m when using Sentinel‐2 and Landsat 8, respectively. The highest priorities for further automation have also been identified, supporting the long‐range goal of global coral reef habitat change analysis using ICESat‐2‐aided SDB.
Weakened ENSO‐Ningaloo Niño/Niña Teleconnection Under Greenhouse Warming
Authors: Liu Yi , Li Ziguang , Cai Wenju , Lin Xiaopei , Yang Jun‐Chao
Published: February 2021

Ningaloo Niño/Niña is a mode of climate variability in the southeastern Indian Ocean with huge impacts on Australian climate. El Niño‐Southern Oscillation (ENSO), as the dominant remote forcing, triggers Ningaloo Niño/Niña. However, how this teleconnection will respond to greenhouse warming is unclear. Using Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 5 (CMIP5) multimodel simulations, we find a weakened ENSO‐Ningaloo Niño/Niña teleconnection under greenhouse warming, which manifests as weakened atmospheric teleconnection from La Niña to Ningaloo Niño. Such weakened teleconnection can be linked to the tropical Pacific mean state changes including an El Niño‐like warming pattern and more stable atmosphere in the future climate, both suppressing the atmospheric convection in the western tropical Pacific, leading to a weaker Matsuno‐Gill response in the southeastern Indian Ocean. Our results suggest that Ningaloo Niño/Niña becomes more challenging to predict as greenhouse warming continues.
Electron‐Only Tail Current Sheets and Their Temporal Evolution
Authors: Hubbert M. , Qi Y. , Russell C. T. , Burch J. L. , Giles B. L. , Moore T. E.
Published: February 2021

The Earth's magnetotail contains a current sheet separating the anti‐Sunward field of the southern lobe from the sunward‐pointing northern lobe. Herein, we report tail current sheets that are supported only by electron currents. We examine one electron‐only current sheet in detail and briefly discuss 10 others. Three current sheets are interpreted in terms of the time‐evolution of reconnection onset. These current sheets show evidence of parallel electron heating, perpendicular ion heating, and current sheet expansion. These features are consistent with electron and ion behavior during traditional “electron‐ion” reconnection. Ground‐based and in‐situ data show that electron‐ion reconnection occurs shortly after each “pre‐ion reconnection” electron‐only reconnection event. This suggests that electron‐only reconnection can act as a precursor to electron‐ion reconnection. We note that five events occur shortly after a period of electron‐ion reconnection, which suggests that electron‐only reconnection is more than merely a precursor to ion reconnection.
Damaged Speleothems and Collapsed Karst Chambers Indicate Paleoseismicity of the NE Bohemian Massif (Niedźwiedzia Cave, Poland)
Authors: Szczygieł Jacek , Sobczyk Artur , Hercman Helena , Mendecki Maciej J. , Gąsiorowski Michał
Published: February 2021

Multiphase speleothem damage and passage collapse in Niedźwiedzia Cave (NE Bohemian Massif, Poland) were dated with U‐series methods, revealing five events: (1) 320–306 ka, (2) 253–236 ka, (3) 162–158 ka, (4) 132–135 ka, and (5) >21 ka. Events 1, 3 and 4 are robustly constrained, and events 2 and 5 are less certain. Although we cannot unambiguously exclude other agents (frost or gravity collapses), the most likely trigger of damage in the cave was an earthquake, which is supported by timing (the damage occurred independently from climatic conditions in cold and warm periods) and deformation style (damage to the ceiling and walls as well as the passage floor). We applied ground motion models to determine the probable seismic source size, which is most likely the Sudetic Marginal Fault ‐ one of the most pronounced tectonic structures in Central Europe. Located <20 km from the cave and with documented earthquakes of M > 6, the Sudetic Marginal Fault can produce peak ground acceleration values high enough to break speleothems. The other plausible seismic sources are faults in the Upper Nysa Kłodzka Graben located to the east and the Trzebieszowice‐Biela Fault. Although there are sparse historical data that would allow estimating linked seismic hazards, the <8 km distance between the cave and faults should suffice to destroy the speleothems. Niedźwiedzia Cave shielded environmental earthquake effects from erosion. This study shows the advantage of employing speleoseismology in moderate seismic regions, where earthquake effects are rarely preserved in the geological record.
Improving Remotely Sensed River Bathymetry by Image‐Averaging
Authors: Legleiter C. J. , Kinzel P. J.
Published: February 2021

Basic data on river bathymetry is critical for numerous applications in river research and management and is increasingly obtained via remote sensing, but the noisy, pixelated appearance of image‐derived depth maps can compromise subsequent analyses. We hypothesized that this noise originates from reflectance from an irregular water surface and introduced a framework for mitigating these effects by Inferring Bathymetry from Averaged River Images (IBARI). This workflow produces time‐averaged images from video frames stabilized to account for platform motion and/or computes a spatial average from an ensemble simulated by randomly shifting images relative to themselves. We used field observations of water depth and helicopter‐based videos from a clear‐flowing river to assess the potential of this approach to improve depth retrieval. Our results indicated that depths inferred from averaged images were more accurate and precise than those inferred from single frames; observed versus predicted regression R2 increased from 0.80 to 0.88. In addition, IBARI significantly enhanced the texture of image‐derived depth maps, leading to smoother, more coherent representations of channel morphology. Depth retrieval improved with image sequence duration, but the number of images was more important than the length of time encompassed; shorter acquisitions at higher frame rates would economize data collection. We also demonstrated the potential to scale up the IBARI workflow by producing a mosaic of bathymetric maps derived from averaged images acquired at several hovering waypoints distributed along a 2.36 km reach. This approach is well‐suited to data collected from helicopters and small unmanned aircraft systems.
Pore‐Scale MultiResolution Rock‐Typing of Layered Sandstones via Minkowski Maps
Authors: Jiang Han , Arns C. H.
Published: February 2021

A challenge in utilizing pore‐scale information in subsurface transport calculations is the small field‐of‐view of tomographic imaging methods resolving pore‐scale features. While low‐resolution tomography provides a larger field‐of‐view, critical connectivity information may not be resolved, or lost in the upscaling process. In this study, we present a multiscale upscaling approach utilizing regional morphological measures—Minkowski maps—at two different resolutions. The workflow consists of the definition of high‐resolution rock‐types and their characterization, followed by an image registration process to lower resolution tomograms, a projection of the high‐resolution rock‐types to low‐resolution Minkowski maps via support vector machines, and application of high‐resolution transport characteristics to the low‐resolution rock‐types, followed by upscaling. The method is applied to a complex thinly laminated reservoir sandstone. Upscaled permeability and electrical conductivity agree well with full‐resolution calculations.
ZRSR2 overexpression is a frequent and early event in castration-resistant prostate cancer development
Authors: He Haiqing , Hao Jun , Dong Xin , Wang Yu , Xue Hui , Qu Sifeng , Choi Stephen Yiu Chuen , Ci Xinpei , Wang Yong , Wu Rebecca , Shi Mingchen , Zhao Xiaokun , Collins Colin , Lin Dong , Wang Yuzhuo
Published: February 2021

Background

Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) remains the leading systemic therapy for locally advanced and metastatic prostate cancers (PCa). While a majority of PCa patients initially respond to ADT, the durability of response is variable and most patients will eventually develop incurable castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). Our research objective is to identify potential early driver genes responsible for CRPC development.

Methods

We have developed a unique panel of hormone-naïve PCa (HNPC) patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models at the Living Tumor Laboratory. The PDXs provide a unique platform for driver gene discovery as they allow for the analysis of differentially expressed genes via transcriptomic profiling at various time points after mouse host castration. In the present study, we focused on genes with expression changes shortly after castration but before CRPC has fully developed. These are likely to be potential early drivers of CRPC development. Such genes were further validated for their clinical relevance using data from PCa patient databases. ZRSR2 was identified as a top gene candidate and selected for further functional studies.

Results

ZRSR2 is significantly upregulated in our PDX models during the early phases of CRPC development after mouse host castration and remains consistently high in fully developed CRPC PDX models. Moreover, high ZRSR2 expression is also observed in clinical CRPC samples. Importantly, elevated ZRSR2 in PCa samples is correlated with poor patient treatment outcomes. ZRSR2 knockdown reduced PCa cell proliferation and delayed cell cycle progression at least partially through inhibition of the Cyclin D1 (CCND1) pathway.

Conclusion

Using our unique HNPC PDX models that develop into CRPC after host castration, we identified ZRSR2 as a potential early driver of CRPC development.
Symbiotic bacteria mediate volatile chemical signal synthesis in a large solitary mammal species
Authors: Zhou Wenliang , Qi Dunwu , Swaisgood Ronald R , Wang Le , Jin Yipeng , Wu Qi , Wei Fuwen , Nie Yonggang
Published: February 2021

Mammalian chemosignals—or scent marks—are characterized by astounding chemical diversity, reflecting both complex biochemical pathways that produce them and rich information exchange with conspecifics. The microbiome of scent glands was thought to play prominent role in the chemical signal synthesis, with diverse microbiota metabolizing glandular products to produce odorants that may be used as chemosignals. Here, we use gas chromatography–mass spectrometry and metagenomic shotgun sequencing to explore this phenomenon in the anogenital gland secretions (AGS) of the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca). We find that this gland contains a diverse community of fermentative bacteria with enzymes that support metabolic pathways (e.g., lipid degradation) for the productions of volatile odorants specialized for chemical communication. We found quantitative and qualitative differences in the microbiota between AGS and digestive tract, a finding which was mirrored by differences among chemical compounds that could be used for olfactory communication. Volatile chemical compounds were more diverse and abundant in AGS than fecal samples, and our evidence suggests that metabolic pathways have been specialized for the synthesis of chemosignals for communication. The panda’s microbiome is rich with genes coding for enzymes that participate in the fermentation pathways producing chemical compounds commonly deployed in mammalian chemosignals. These findings illuminate the poorly understood phenomena involved in the role of symbiotic bacteria in the production of chemosignals.
StressNet - Deep learning to predict stress with fracture propagation in brittle materials
Authors: Wang Yinan , Oyen Diane , Guo Weihong , Mehta Anishi , Scott Cory Braker , Panda Nishant , Fernández-Godino M. Giselle , Srinivasan Gowri , Yue Xiaowei
Published: February 2021

Catastrophic failure in brittle materials is often due to the rapid growth and coalescence of cracks aided by high internal stresses. Hence, accurate prediction of maximum internal stress is critical to predicting time to failure and improving the fracture resistance and reliability of materials. Existing high-fidelity methods, such as the Finite-Discrete Element Model (FDEM), are limited by their high computational cost. Therefore, to reduce computational cost while preserving accuracy, a deep learning model, StressNet, is proposed to predict the entire sequence of maximum internal stress based on fracture propagation and the initial stress data. More specifically, the Temporal Independent Convolutional Neural Network (TI-CNN) is designed to capture the spatial features of fractures like fracture path and spall regions, and the Bidirectional Long Short-term Memory (Bi-LSTM) Network is adapted to capture the temporal features. By fusing these features, the evolution in time of the maximum internal stress can be accurately predicted. Moreover, an adaptive loss function is designed by dynamically integrating the Mean Squared Error (MSE) and the Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE), to reflect the fluctuations in maximum internal stress. After training, the proposed model is able to compute accurate multi-step predictions of maximum internal stress in approximately 20 seconds, as compared to the FDEM run time of 4 h, with an average MAPE of 2% relative to test data.
Unprotected sidewalls of implantable silicon-based neural probes and conformal coating as a solution
Authors: Ghelich Pejman , Nolta Nicholas F. , Han Martin
Published: February 2021

Silicon-based implantable neural devices have great translational potential as a means to deliver various treatments for neurological disorders. However, they are currently held back by uncertain longevity following chronic exposure to body fluids. Conventional deposition techniques cover only the horizontal surfaces which contain active electronics, electrode sites, and conducting traces. As a result, a vast majority of today’s silicon devices leave their vertical sidewalls exposed without protection. In this work, we investigated two batch-process silicon dioxide deposition methods separately and in combination: atomic layer deposition and inductively-coupled plasma chemical vapor deposition. We then utilized a rapid soak test involving potassium hydroxide to evaluate the coverage quality of each protection strategy. Focused ion beam cross sectioning, scanning electron microscopy, and 3D extrapolation enabled us to characterize and quantify the effectiveness of the deposition methods. Results showed that bare silicon sidewalls suffered the most dissolution whereas ALD silicon dioxide provided the best protection, demonstrating its effectiveness as a promising batch process technique to mitigate silicon sidewall corrosion in chronic applications.
Small molecule inhibitor of OGG1 blocks oxidative DNA damage repair at telomeres and potentiates methotrexate anticancer effects
Authors: Baquero Juan Miguel , Benítez-Buelga Carlos , Rajagopal Varshni , Zhenjun Zhao , Torres-Ruiz Raúl , Müller Sarah , Hanna Bishoy M. F. , Loseva Olga , Wallner Olov , Michel Maurice , Rodríguez-Perales Sandra , Gad Helge , Visnes Torkild , Helleday Thomas , Benítez Javier , Osorio Ana
Published: February 2021

The most common oxidative DNA lesion is 8-oxoguanine which is mainly recognized and excised by the 8-oxoG DNA glycosylase 1 (OGG1), initiating the base excision repair (BER) pathway. Telomeres are particularly sensitive to oxidative stress (OS) which disrupts telomere homeostasis triggering genome instability. In the present study, we have investigated the effects of inactivating BER in OS conditions, by using a specific inhibitor of OGG1 (TH5487). We have found that in OS conditions, TH5487 blocks BER initiation at telomeres causing an accumulation of oxidized bases, that is correlated with telomere losses, micronuclei formation and mild proliferation defects. Moreover, the antimetabolite methotrexate synergizes with TH5487 through induction of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation, which potentiates TH5487-mediated telomere and genome instability. Our findings demonstrate that OGG1 is required to protect telomeres from OS and present OGG1 inhibitors as a tool to induce oxidative DNA damage at telomeres, with the potential for developing new combination therapies for cancer treatment.
Prevalence of obesity and an interrogation of the correlation between anthropometric indices and blood pressures in urban Lagos, Nigeria
Authors: Adegoke Oluseyi , Ozoh Obianuju B. , Odeniyi Ifedayo A. , Bello Babawale T. , Akinkugbe Ayesha O. , Ojo Oluwadamilola O. , Agabi Osigwe P. , Okubadejo Njideka U.
Published: February 2021

Adverse cardiovascular outcomes are linked to higher burden of obesity and hypertension. We conducted a secondary analysis of data for 5135 participants aged ≥ 16 years from our community-based hypertension prevalence study to determine the prevalence of obesity and association between multiple anthropometric indices and blood pressure (BP). The indices were waist circumference (WC), body mass index (BMI), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), a body shape index(ABSI), abdominal volume index (AVI), body adiposity index (BAI), body roundness index (BRI), visceral adiposity index (VAI) and conicity index (CI). We performed statistical analyses to determine the association, predictive ability, cutoff values and independent determinants of hypertension. Crude prevalence of obesity was 136 per 1000 (95% confidence interval 126–146). BMI had the strongest correlation with systolic and diastolic BP (rs = 0.260 and 0.264, respectively). Indices of central adiposity (AVI, WC, WHtR, BRI) were the strongest predictors of hypertension (≥ 140/90 mmHg), and their cut-off values were generally higher in females than males. WHR, age, BMI and CI were independent determinants of hypertension ≥ 140 mmHg (p < 0.05). We conclude that, based on this novel study, measures of central adiposity are the strongest predictors and independent determinants of hypertension in our population, and cut-off values vary from previously recommended standards.
Origami paper analytical assay based on metal complex sensor for rapid determination of blood cyanide concentration in fire survivors
Authors: Sheini Azarmidokht , Aseman Marzieh Dadkhah , Bordbar Mohammad Mahdi
Published: February 2021

Cyanide-based blood poisoning can seriously damage fire victims and cause death if not detected quickly. Previous conventional methods require laboratory equipment, which are expensive and increase the duration of the analysis. Here, a simple origami based microfluidic device was introduced for point of need detection of blood cyanide concentration in people involved in fire. The device is made of four layers of paper. Each layer was in the size of 1 × 1 cm folded on each other. In this work, the blood sample was acidified by trichloroacetic acid to separate cyanide from methaemoglobin in the form of HCN gas. The produced gas released into borate buffer to recover free cyanide ions which interacted with the Pt complex ([Pt(p-MeC6H4)2(phen)]) used as a receptor in this study. Optimized conditions were applied to have a suitable interaction causing the color of the receptor to change from yellow to colorless. The color changes were recorded by a smartphone, and the sensor response was calculated by the routine image analysis software. The assay was capable of determining cyanide ions at different concentrations in the range of 1.0 to 100.0 µmol L−1. The detection limit of these determination was equal to 0.4 µmol L−1. The assay responses were not affected by the interfering species. As a practical analysis, the proposed sensor was applied to determine cyanide ions in the blood sample of 20 studied fire survivors and 10 controls with high accuracy.
Doppler imaging detects bacterial infection of living tissue
Authors: Choi Honggu , Li Zhe , Hua Zhen , Zuponcic Jessica , Ximenes Eduardo , Turek John J. , Ladisch Michael R. , Nolte David D.
Published: February 2021

Living 3D in vitro tissue cultures, grown from immortalized cell lines, act as living sentinels as pathogenic bacteria invade the tissue. The infection is reported through changes in the intracellular dynamics of the sentinel cells caused by the disruption of normal cellular function by the infecting bacteria. Here, the Doppler imaging of infected sentinels shows the dynamic characteristics of infections. Invasive Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis and Listeria monocytogenes penetrate through multicellular tumor spheroids, while non-invasive strains of Escherichia coli and Listeria innocua remain isolated outside the cells, generating different Doppler signatures. Phase distributions caused by intracellular transport display Lévy statistics, introducing a Lévy-alpha spectroscopy of bacterial invasion. Antibiotic treatment of infected spheroids, monitored through time-dependent Doppler shifts, can distinguish drug-resistant relative to non-resistant strains. This use of intracellular Doppler spectroscopy of living tissue sentinels opens a new class of microbial assay with potential importance for studying the emergence of antibiotic resistance.
Systematic auditing is essential to debiasing machine learning in biology
Authors: Eid Fatma-Elzahraa , Elmarakeby Haitham A. , Chan Yujia Alina , Fornelos Nadine , ElHefnawi Mahmoud , Van Allen Eliezer M. , Heath Lenwood S. , Lage Kasper
Published: February 2021

Biases in data used to train machine learning (ML) models can inflate their prediction performance and confound our understanding of how and what they learn. Although biases are common in biological data, systematic auditing of ML models to identify and eliminate these biases is not a common practice when applying ML in the life sciences. Here we devise a systematic, principled, and general approach to audit ML models in the life sciences. We use this auditing framework to examine biases in three ML applications of therapeutic interest and identify unrecognized biases that hinder the ML process and result in substantially reduced model performance on new datasets. Ultimately, we show that ML models tend to learn primarily from data biases when there is insufficient signal in the data to learn from. We provide detailed protocols, guidelines, and examples of code to enable tailoring of the auditing framework to other biomedical applications.
Global mapping of protein–metabolite interactions in Saccharomyces cerevisiae reveals that Ser-Leu dipeptide regulates phosphoglycerate kinase activity
Authors: Luzarowski Marcin , Vicente Rubén , Kiselev Andrei , Wagner Mateusz , Schlossarek Dennis , Erban Alexander , de Souza Leonardo Perez , Childs Dorothee , Wojciechowska Izabela , Luzarowska Urszula , Górka Michał , Sokołowska Ewelina M. , Kosmacz Monika , Moreno Juan C. , Brzezińska Aleksandra , Vegesna Bhavana , Kopka Joachim , Fernie Alisdair R. , Willmitzer Lothar , Ewald Jennifer C. , Skirycz Aleksandra
Published: February 2021

Protein–metabolite interactions are of crucial importance for all cellular processes but remain understudied. Here, we applied a biochemical approach named PROMIS, to address the complexity of the protein–small molecule interactome in the model yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. By doing so, we provide a unique dataset, which can be queried for interactions between 74 small molecules and 3982 proteins using a user-friendly interface available at https://promis.mpimp-golm.mpg.de/yeastpmi/. By interpolating PROMIS with the list of predicted protein–metabolite interactions, we provided experimental validation for 225 binding events. Remarkably, of the 74 small molecules co-eluting with proteins, 36 were proteogenic dipeptides. Targeted analysis of a representative dipeptide, Ser-Leu, revealed numerous protein interactors comprising chaperones, proteasomal subunits, and metabolic enzymes. We could further demonstrate that Ser-Leu binding increases activity of a glycolytic enzyme phosphoglycerate kinase (Pgk1). Consistent with the binding analysis, Ser-Leu supplementation leads to the acute metabolic changes and delays timing of a diauxic shift. Supported by the dipeptide accumulation analysis our work attests to the role of Ser-Leu as a metabolic regulator at the interface of protein degradation and central metabolism.
Scalable reservoir computing on coherent linear photonic processor
Authors: Nakajima Mitsumasa , Tanaka Kenji , Hashimoto Toshikazu
Published: February 2021

Photonic neuromorphic computing is of particular interest due to its significant potential for ultrahigh computing speed and energy efficiency. The advantage of photonic computing hardware lies in its ultrawide bandwidth and parallel processing utilizing inherent parallelism. Here, we demonstrate a scalable on-chip photonic implementation of a simplified recurrent neural network, called a reservoir computer, using an integrated coherent linear photonic processor. In contrast to previous approaches, both the input and recurrent weights are encoded in the spatiotemporal domain by photonic linear processing, which enables scalable and ultrafast computing beyond the input electrical bandwidth. As the device can process multiple wavelength inputs over the telecom C-band simultaneously, we can use ultrawide optical bandwidth (~5 terahertz) as a computational resource. Experiments for the standard benchmarks showed good performance for chaotic time-series forecasting and image classification. The device is considered to be able to perform 21.12 tera multiplication–accumulation operations per second (MAC ∙ s−1) for each wavelength and can reach petascale computation speed on a single photonic chip by using wavelength division multiplexing. Our results are challenging for conventional Turing–von Neumann machines, and they confirm the great potential of photonic neuromorphic processing towards peta-scale neuromorphic super-computing on a photonic chip.
A novel vertical flow assay for point of care measurement of iron from whole blood
Authors: Serhan Michael , Jackemeyer David , Abi Karam Karam , Chakravadhanula Kasyap , Sprowls Mark , Cay-Durgun Pinar , Forzani Erica
Published: February 2021

We present a novel vertical flow assay to measure iron levels in whole blood from a finger-prick sample. The system leverages a sensor strip, detection chamber and in-house app that detects color change and outputs iron concentration in five minutes.
Gold leaf electrochemical sensors: applications and nanostructure modification
Authors: Prasertying Paithoon , Jantawong Nanthatchaphon , Sonsa-ard Thitaporn , Wongpakdee Thinnapong , Khoonrueng Nuttamon , Buking Supatana , Nacapricha Duangjai
Published: February 2021

A gold leaf sensor with structure modification enabling on-site identification of types of bullet from gunshot residues.
Bifunctional amino sulfonamide-catalyzed asymmetric conjugate addition to alkenyl alkynyl ketimines as enone surrogates
Authors: Homma Chihiro , Kano Taichi , Maruoka Keiji
Published: February 2021

A bifunctional amino sulfonamide-catalyzed asymmetric conjugate addition of aldehydes to alkenyl alkynyl ketimines as reactive surrogates for enones has been developed.
High-efficiency Pd nanoparticles loaded porous organic polymers membrane catalytic reactors
Authors: Chen Yaohan , Li Yonggang , Dai Lei , Qin Guorui , Guo Jing , Zhang Qifeng , Li Shenghai , Sherazi Tauqir A. , Zhang Suobo
Published: February 2021

Cross-linked porous organic polymer membranes were fabricated via interfacial azo-coupling polymerization and demonstrated to be a high-performance membrane catalytic reactor with a flux of 27.3 t m−2 day−1 for reducing the nitrophenols.
pH-Dependent ion permeability control of a modified amphotericin B channel through metal complexation
Authors: Koshiyama Tomomi , Inoue Yuki , Asada Sana , Kawahara Koki , Ide Shogo , Yasuhara Kazuma , Ohba Masaaki
Published: February 2021

Amphotericin B incorporated with a metal-binding site within a membrane exhibited pH-dependent ion permeability with a response to Cu2+ ions selectively.
Cathodic synthesis of a Cu-catecholate metal–organic framework
Authors: Li Pingping , Shi Xiaofei , Wu Yunling , Song Min , Lai Yapeng , Yu Huijun , Lu Guang
Published: February 2021

Uniform copper-catecholate metal–organic framework (Cu-CAT-1) films with tunable thickness were prepared by oxygen-assisted cathodic synthesis.
Nonadiabatic molecular dynamics simulation for the ultrafast photoisomerization of dMe-OMe-NAIP based on TDDFT on-the-fly potential energy surfaces
Authors: Hu Ying , Xu Chao , Ye Linfeng , Gu Feng Long , Zhu Chaoyuan
Published: February 2021

Global switching on-the-fly trajectory surface hopping molecular dynamics simulation was performed on the accurate TD-B3LYP/6-31G* potential energy surfaces for E-to-Z and Z-to-E photoisomerization of dMe-OMe-NAIP up to S1(ππ*) excitation.
Structural, elastic and electronic properties of atomically thin pyridyne: theoretical predictions
Authors: Liu Chuan , Wang Shuaishuai , Wang Xuchun , Ye Xiangju , Li Zirong , Wei Jumeng , Cheng Ping , Li Yingjie
Published: February 2021

Pyridyne is a soft two-dimensional carbon material. It possesses a direct band gap of 0.91 eV with a high electron mobility up to 6.08 × 104 cm2 V−1 s−1. These features will provide pyridyne new opportunity for flexible electronic devices.
The synthesis of a novel titanium oxide aerogel with highly enhanced removal of uranium and evaluation of the adsorption mechanism
Authors: Liao Jun , Zhang Yong , He Xiaoshan , Zhang Lin , He Zhibing
Published: February 2021

A TiO2 aerogel with a high removal percentage and adsorption capacity was manufactured via template synthesis.
Structural flexibility in crystalline coordination polymers: a journey along the underlying free energy landscape
Authors: Hobday Claire L. , Kieslich Gregor
Published: February 2021

In this perspective, we discuss structural flexibility in crystalline coordination polymers. We identify that the underlying free energy landscape unites scientific disciplines, and discuss key areas to advanced the field.
One-step plasma-enabled catalytic carbon dioxide hydrogenation to higher hydrocarbons: significance of catalyst-bed configuration
Authors: Wang Jiajie , AlQahtani Mohammad S. , Wang Xiaoxing , Knecht Sean D. , Bilén Sven G. , Song Chunshan , Chu Wei
Published: February 2021

C2+ hydrocarbons are selectively produced in one-step catalytic CO2 conversion via designing the catalyst-bed configuration under non-thermal DBD plasma operating at low temperature and atmospheric pressure.
Modular metal-free catalytic radical annulation of cyclic diaryliodoniums to access π-extended arenes
Authors: Zhu Daqian , Peng Hui , Sun Yameng , Wu Zhouming , Wang Yun , Luo Bingling , Yu Tiantian , Hu Yumin , Huang Peng , Wen Shijun
Published: February 2021

Tert-butylamine-catalyzed free radical annulations with cyclic diaryliodoniums occur in environmentally friendly ethyl acetate and do not require transition metal, providing diversified polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by modulating substituents.
Fusogenic porous silicon nanoparticles as a broad-spectrum immunotherapy against bacterial infections
Authors: Kim Byungji , Yang Qinglin , Chan Leslie W. , Bhatia Sangeeta N. , Ruoslahti Erkki , Sailor Michael J.
Published: February 2021

RNAi-mediated immunotherapy provided by fusogenic porous silicon nanoparticles demonstrates superior therapeutic efficacy against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial infections compared with first-line antibiotics.
Palladium nanoparticlesin situsynthesized onCyclea barbatapectin as a heterogeneous catalyst for Heck coupling in water, the reduction of nitrophenols and alkynes
Authors: Le Van-Dung , Le T. Cam-Huong , Chau Van-Trung , Le T. Ngoc-Duyen , Dang Chi-Hien , Vo T. To-Nguyen , Nguyen Trinh Duy , Nguyen Thanh-Danh
Published: February 2021

This study develops an effective method forin situsynthesis of PdNPs usingCyclea barbatapectin as green reducing and stabilizing reagent. The catalytic activity of nanocomposite was evaluated for Heck coupling reaction, reduction of nitrophenols and reduction of alkynes.