bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Germline de novo mutations in families with Mendelian cancer syndromes caused by defects in DNA repair
Authors: Sherwood Kitty , Ward Joseph C. , Soriano Ignacio , Martin Lynn , Campbell Archie , Rahbari Raheleh , Kafetzopoulos Ioannis , Sproul Duncan , Green Andrew , Sampson Julian R. , Donaldson Alan , Ong Kai-Ren , Heinimann Karl , Nielsen Maartje , Thomas Huw , Latchford Andrew , Palles Claire , Tomlinson Ian
Published: June 2023

DNA repair defects underlie many cancer syndromes. We tested whether de novo germline mutations (DNMs) are increased in families with germline defects in polymerase proofreading or base excision repair. A parent with a single germline POLE or POLD1 mutation, or biallelic MUTYH mutations, had 3-4 fold increased DNMs over sex-matched controls. POLE had the largest effect. The DNMs carried mutational signatures of the appropriate DNA repair deficiency. No DNM increase occurred in offspring of MUTYH heterozygous parents. Parental DNA repair defects caused about 20–150 DNMs per child, additional to the ~60 found in controls, but almost all extra DNMs occurred in non-coding regions. No increase in post-zygotic mutations was detected, excepting a child with bi-allelic MUTYH mutations who was excluded from the main analysis; she had received chemotherapy and may have undergone oligoclonal haematopoiesis. Inherited DNA repair defects associated with base pair-level mutations increase DNMs, but phenotypic consequences appear unlikely.
Charge density wave induced nodal lines in LaTe3
Authors: Sarkar Shuvam , Bhattacharya Joydipto , Sadhukhan Pampa , Curcio Davide , Dutt Rajeev , Singh Vipin Kumar , Bianchi Marco , Pariari Arnab , Roy Shubhankar , Mandal Prabhat , Das Tanmoy , Hofmann Philip , Chakrabarti Aparna , Roy Barman Sudipta
Published: June 2023

LaTe3 is a non-centrosymmetric material with time reversal symmetry, where the charge density wave is hosted by the Te bilayers. Here, we show that LaTe3 hosts a Kramers nodal line—a twofold degenerate nodal line connecting time reversal-invariant momenta. We use angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, density functional theory with an experimentally reported modulated structure, effective band structures calculated by band unfolding, and symmetry arguments to reveal the Kramers nodal line. Furthermore, calculations confirm that the nodal line imposes gapless crossings between the bilayer-split charge density wave-induced shadow bands and the main bands. In excellent agreement with the calculations, spectroscopic data confirm the presence of the Kramers nodal line and show that the crossings traverse the Fermi level. Furthermore, spinless nodal lines—completely gapped out by spin-orbit coupling—are formed by the linear crossings of the shadow and main bands with a high Fermi velocity.
Inflammatory cytokines and chemokines in obese adolescents with antibody against to adenovirus 36
Authors: Sanches Marcelo D’Alessandre , Goldberg Tamara Beres Lederer , Rizzo Anapaula da Conceição Bisi , da Silva Valéria Nóbrega , Mosca Luciana Nunes , Romagnoli Graziela Gorete , Gorgulho Carolina Mendonça , Araujo Junior João Pessoa , de Lima Gustavo Ramos , Betti Isabella Rodrigues , Kurokawa Cilmery Suemi
Published: June 2023

Obesity in adolescents has reached epidemic proportions and is associated with the inflammatory response and viral infections. The aim of this study was to understand the profile of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines associated with the inflammatory response and metabolic syndrome (MetS) in obese adolescents with positive serology for adenovirus 36 (ADV36). Thirty-six overweight, 36 obese, and 25 severe obesity adolescents aged 10 to 16 years were included in the study. The following variables were analyzed: sex, age, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, total cholesterol and fractions, triglycerides, glucose, serum cytokine concentrations, and ADV36 antibodies. Cytokines and chemokines were quantified by cytometry and ADV36 serology was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The results showed higher levels of the cytokines interleukin-1beta (IL-1β), IL-6, IL-10 and of the chemokine interferon-gamma-inducible protein 10 (IP-10) in severe obesity adolescents compared to the obese and overweight groups, as well as in the group with MetS compared to the group without this syndrome. The frequency of ADV36-positive individuals did not differ between groups. The findings revealed differences in BMI between the obese and severe obesity groups versus the overweight group in the presence of positivity for ADV36, suggesting an association with weight gain and possibly MetS installation.
The chromosome-scale genome assembly of cluster bean provides molecular insight into edible gum (galactomannan) biosynthesis family genes
Authors: Gaikwad Kishor , Ramakrishna Goriparthi , Srivastava Harsha , Saxena Swati , Kaila Tanvi , Tyagi Anshika , Sharma Priya , Sharma Sandhya , Sharma R. , Mahla H. R. , Kumar Kuldeep , SV Amitha Mithra , Solanke Amolkumar U. , Kalia Pritam , Rao A. R. , Rai Anil , Sharma T. R. , Singh N. K.
Published: June 2023

Cluster bean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (L.) Taub 2n = 14, is commonly known as Guar. Apart from being a vegetable crop, it is an abundant source of a natural hetero-polysaccharide called guar gum or galactomannan. Here, we are reporting a chromosome-scale reference genome assembly of a popular cluster bean cultivar RGC-936, by combining sequencing data from Illumina, 10X Genomics, Oxford Nanopore technologies. An initial assembly of 1580 scaffolds with an N50 value of 7.12 Mb was generated and these scaffolds were anchored to a high density SNP linkage map. Finally, a genome assembly of 550.31 Mb (94% of the estimated genome size of ~ 580 Mb (through flow cytometry) with 58 scaffolds was obtained, including 7 super scaffolds with a very high N50 value of 78.27 Mb. Phylogenetic analysis using single copy orthologs among 12 angiosperms showed that cluster bean shared a common ancestor with other legumes 80.6 MYA. No evidence of recent whole genome duplication event in cluster bean was found in our analysis. Further comparative transcriptomics analyses revealed pod-specific up-regulation of genes encoding enzymes involved in galactomannan biosynthesis. The high-quality chromosome-scale cluster bean genome assembly will facilitate understanding of the molecular basis of galactomannan biosynthesis and aid in genomics-assisted improvement of cluster bean.
Process optimization in poultry feed mill
Authors: Amin Sameh A. Salaheldein , Sobhi Nahed
Published: June 2023

The poultry feed industry is pretty much active in a lot of countries and it is achieved market acceptance. The final products are supposed to meet certain specifications to fulfill the nutritional need of animals at different life periods. The final product for poultry is shipped in the form of pelleted feed for the convenience of consumption. One of the major challenges of poultry feed production is the principal complement of equipment necessary for the local production. Imported poultry pellets are quite expensive and unaffordable for many poultry feed industries. Hence, the need to be able to produce poultry feed at lower cost yet achieve the objective of quantity and quality expected of pelleted feeds is critical to the viability of the enterprise. The study aims to investigate the effects of some operating parameters (pressure and temperature of the compounded feed) and die hole size on the pelleting efficiency, throughput capacity, and to optimize the conditions. The improvement approach is conducted by observing the main operating parameters of productivity; statistical analysis is conducted to observe the effect of those parameters on the production rate and the quality of the product. Comparison between parameter levels is done through analysis of variance to determine the significance of the tested parameters. The optimization of parameters was applied with Minitab and designed expert software to determine the best operating conditions. The obtained results showed that the downtime decreased by 77% monthly and productivity increased by 32.5% per hour and the pellet durability index increased by 1.23%. The total sales increased by 6,750,600 LE/Month.
Fundus autofluorescence imaging using red excitation light
Authors: Birtel Johannes , Bauer Tobias , Pauleikhoff Laurenz , Rüber Theodor , Gliem Martin , Charbel Issa Peter
Published: June 2023

Retinal disease accounts significantly for visual impairment and blindness. An important role in the pathophysiology of retinal disease and aging is attributed to lipofuscin, a complex of fluorescent metabolites. Fundus autofluorescence (AF) imaging allows non-invasive mapping of lipofuscin and is a key technology to diagnose and monitor retinal disease. However, currently used short-wavelength (SW) excitation light has several limitations, including glare and discomfort during image acquisition, reduced image quality in case of lens opacities, limited visualization of the central retina, and potential retinal light toxicity. Here, we establish a novel imaging modality which uses red excitation light (R-AF) and overcomes these drawbacks. R-AF images are high-quality, high-contrast fundus images and image interpretation may build on clinical experience due to similar appearance of pathology as on SW-AF images. Additionally, R-AF images may uncover disease features that previously remained undetected. The R-AF signal increases with higher abundance of lipofuscin and does not depend on photopigment bleaching or on the amount of macular pigment. Improved patient comfort, limited effect of cataract on image quality, and lack of safety concerns qualify R-AF for routine clinical monitoring, e.g. for patients with age-related macular degeneration, Stargardt disease, or for quantitative analysis of AF signal intensity.
Phase retrieval from single interferogram without carrier using Lissajous ellipse fitting technology
Authors: Liu Fengwei , Kuang Yu , Wu Yongqian , Chen Xiaojun , Zhang Rongzhu
Published: June 2023

Phase extraction from single interferogram is of high significance and increasingly interest in optical metrology. In this contribute we propose an advanced Pixel-level Lissajous Ellipse Fitting (APLEF) method to extract the phase from single interferogram without carrier. At each pixel, a Lissajous figure is created by plottingNagainstD, whereNandDare subtractions and additions of intensities of adjacent pixels in a small window. The so created Lissajous figure is already in phase quadrature because of the subtraction and addition process, and the Lissajous Figure is forced to be closed by taking the opposite values ofNandD,i.e.–Nand-Dinto account. The closed and in phase quadrature Lissajous Figure is the key point for APLEF to demodulate the single inteferogram without carrier in theoretically. The simulation shows its higher accuracy than existed SPT and Garbusi’s method and the experiments finally corroborate its effectiveness.
Synthesis and antimicrobial activity of new series of thiazoles, pyridines and pyrazoles based on coumarin moiety
Authors: Sayed Mariam T. , Elsharabasy Salwa A. , Abdel-Aziem Anhar
Published: June 2023

Microbial infections are currently a widespread disease in hospitals and community health centres and are a major cause of death worldwide. In pursuit of searching new antimicrobial agents, coumarin linked to thiazoles, pyridines and pyrazoles have been developed and evaluated for their antimicrobial properties against two Gram + bacteria, two Gram − bacteria as well as two fungi. Some of the prepared coumarins displayed high to moderate activity against the tested microorganisms with respect to the reference drugs. However, compound 3 exhibited antimicrobial effect equal to the reference drug Ciprofloxacin for Gram − baceria Enterobacter cloacae. Compound 12 was found to be the most potent compound against Bacillus pumilis with MIC of 7.69 (µmol/ml). Compounds 3, 4 and 12 showed remarkable activity against Streptococcus faecalis with MIC of 14.34, 3.67 and 15.36 (µmol/ml), respectively. Regarding Escherichia coli, most compounds recorded high to moderate MIC values (4.73–45.46 µmol/ml). Moreover, in case of E. cloacae compound 9 was the most potent compound with MIC value of 22.76 (µmol/ml).
A novel defined pyroptosis-related gene signature predicts prognosis and correlates with the tumour immune microenvironment in lung adenocarcinoma
Authors: Chen Zi , Ge Linyang , Xu Shuanglan , Li Qin , Zhou Linfu
Published: June 2023

Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) is one of the most common causes of cancer-related death. The role of pyroptosis in LUAD remains unclear. Our study aimed to identify a prognostic signature of pyroptosis-related genes (PRGs) and explore the connection of PRGs with the tumour microenvironment in LUAD. Gene expression and clinical information were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas database. Consensus clustering was applied to classify LUAD patients. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator Cox and multivariate Cox regression models were used to generate a PRG-related prognostic signature. The correlations between PRGs and tumour-infiltrating immune cells or the tumour mutational burden were analysed by Spearman’s correlation analysis. In this study, 44 PRGs significantly differed in expression between LUAD and normal tissues. Based on these genes, patients were clustered into three clusters with significantly different distributions of tumour-infiltrating immune cells and immune checkpoint regulators. A total of four PRGs (NLRP1, HMGB1, CYCS, and BAK1) were used to construct a prognostic model. Significant correlations were observed between these prognostic PRGs and immune cell infiltration or the tumour mutational burden. Predictive nomogram results showed that BAK1 could be an independent prognostic biomarker in LUAD. Additionally, the expression level of BAK1 was validated in two independent Gene Expression Omnibus cohorts. Our identified prognostic PRG signature may provide insight for future studies targeting pyroptosis and the tumour microenvironment in LUAD. Future studies are needed to verify our current findings.
Neural correlates of visual and tactile path integration and their task related modulation
Authors: Rosenblum Lisa , Kreß Alexander , Arikan B. Ezgi , Straube Benjamin , Bremmer Frank
Published: June 2023

Self-motion induces sensory signals that allow to determine travel distance (path integration). For veridical path integration, one must distinguish self-generated from externally induced sensory signals. Predictive coding has been suggested to attenuate self-induced sensory responses, while task relevance can reverse the attenuating effect of prediction. But how is self-motion processing affected by prediction and task demands, and do effects generalize across senses? In this fMRI study, we investigated visual and tactile self-motion processing and its modulation by task demands. Visual stimuli simulated forward self-motion across a ground plane. Tactile self-motion stimuli were delivered by airflow across the subjects’ forehead. In one task, subjects replicated a previously observed distance (Reproduction/Active; high behavioral demand) of passive self-displacement (Reproduction/Passive). In a second task, subjects travelled a self-chosen distance (Self/Active; low behavioral demand) which was recorded and played back to them (Self/Passive). For both tasks and sensory modalities, Active as compared to Passive trials showed enhancement in early visual areas and suppression in higher order areas of the inferior parietal lobule (IPL). Contrasting high and low demanding active trials yielded supramodal enhancement in the anterior insula. Suppression in the IPL suggests this area to be a comparator of sensory self-motion signals and predictions thereof.
Taming Fabry–Pérot resonances in a dual-metasurface multiband antenna with beam steering in one of the bands
Authors: Gonçalves Licursi de Mello Rafael , Lepage Anne Claire , Begaud Xavier
Published: June 2023

Metasurfaces are artificial materials that can provide properties not readily available in nature for the interaction with acoustic, elastodynamic, or electromagnetic waves. In Electromagnetics, metasurfaces allow particular functionalities to antennas, which in turn lately have been increasingly pushed to a multiband operation. To fully exploit metasurfaces’ capabilities, the use of a metasurface reflector and a metasurface superstrate surrounding a radiating element in multiband antennas is interesting. However, such topology generally creates multiple reflections inside the formed cavity, known as Fabry–Pérot resonances. Here we show that one should tame this phenomenon to use two parallel metasurfaces surrounding a planar radiating element. We present the conditions to obtain directive, multiband antennas under such circumstances. The concepts are validated with a compact device for 5G/4G/Wi-Fi 2.4/5/6E performing a beam steering in the 5G without disturbing the radiation patterns of the other bands. This device demonstrates that the functionalities of two metasurfaces may be exploited in a single design if the presented conditions are respected. We also anticipate our work to be a starting point for other studies in the wave domain. For example, compact, multiband, beam-steerable microphones or sonar transducers with two parallel metasurfaces could be investigated in the future.
Match running performance profiles of amputee football players at the national level
Authors: Muracki Jarosław , Nowak Michał , Kawczyński Adam , Silva Ana Filipa , Clemente Filipe Manuel
Published: June 2023

Even though running performance and positional profiles in football are well described, amputee football (AF) has different characteristics of the movement, pitch dimensions, and time played. There is a gap in the scientific literature about positional profiles based on running performance in AF. This study aimed to investigate the differences between positions, the influence of the amputation level or defect of the lower limb (LD), the differences in running performance between halves, and the relationship with the final match result. Thirteen AF National Team players were monitored by Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), tracking 24 official international matches for 17 months. Values of top speed, peak acceleration, peak deceleration, average distance per minute, sprint mean speed, GPS load per minute, inertial load per minute (Gs load/min), number of sprints per minute, and a number of impacts per minute were analyzed for defenders (DEF), midfielders (MID) and forwards (FOR). Additional factors analyzed were amputation level (below the knee, low amputation—LA or over the knee, high amputation—HA or defect of the lower limb—LD) and the match's final result. Midfielders had significantly higher running performance parameters compared to other positions (greater top speed than DEF (+ 0.3 m/s; p < 0.001) and FOR (+ 0.2 m/s; p = 0.045), greater peak acceleration and deceleration than DEF (+ 0.5 m/s2 for both measures; p < 0.001) and FOR (+ 0.4 and + 0.3 m/s2; p < 0.001 and p = 0.036, respectively), greater GPS load/minute than DEF (+ 0.2 load/min; p = 0.001) and FOR (+ 0.3 load/min; p < 0.001), greater Gs load per minute than DEF (+ 2.7 load/min; p < 0.001) and FOR (+ 1.8 load/min; p < 0.001), greater number of impacts per minute than DEF (+ 0.2 n/min; p < 0.001) and FOR (+ 0.2 n/min; p < 0.001). Players with LD had significantly higher running performance than those with LA or HA. In the match's second half, a decrease in running performance was registered. The trend of running more when losing could be observed—AF players had higher running parameters in lost matches, but the differences were not statistically significant. Further research complied with contextual game analysis is needed to assess the running performance of AF players deeply.
Influence of rubber’s viscoelasticity and damping on vertical dynamic stiffness of air spring
Authors: Hu Yinghao , Zhang Jianhong , Long Jiangqi
Published: June 2023

Using the diaphragm-type air spring as the research object. The ratio of the vertical stiffness change caused by compressed air to the total vertical stiffness change was calculated, and it was determined that the nonlinearity of air spring vertical stiffness was mainly caused by the deformation stiffness of the rubber airbag. The variation law of vertical dynamic stiffness of air spring was predicted by theory: due to the material's viscoelasticity, the vertical dynamic stiffness rises as the excitation frequency rises, and the vertical dynamic stiffness decreases with the increase of excitation amplitude due to the damping of the material. An air spring finite element analysis (FEA) and experiment were conducted. The results show that the vertical dynamic stiffness obtained through simulation and experiment is consistent with the theoretical prediction, when various factors such as material nonlinearity, element coupling, and stiffness value sensitivity were considered. This proves that the predicted vertical dynamic stiffness variation law is reliable. The vertical dynamic stiffness obtained from both simulation and experiment showed a strong correlation in numerical values, which verified the accuracy of the FEA model of air spring established in this paper.
Probability density function for random photon steps in a binary (isotropic-Poisson) statistical mixture
Authors: Binzoni Tiziano , Mazzolo Alain
Published: June 2023

Monte Carlo (MC) simulations allowing to describe photons propagation in statistical mixtures represent an interest that goes way beyond the domain of optics, and can cover, e.g., nuclear reactor physics, image analysis or life science just to name a few. MC simulations are considered a “gold standard” because they give exact solutions (in the statistical sense), however, in the case of statistical mixtures their implementation is often extremely complex. For this reason, the aim of the present contribution is to propose a new approach that should allow us in the future to simplify the MC approach. This is done through an explanatory example, i.e.; by deriving the ‘exact’ analytical expression for the probability density function of photons’ random steps (single step function, SSF) propagating in a medium represented as a binary (isotropic-Poisson) statistical mixture. The use of the SSF reduces the problem to an ‘equivalent’ homogeneous medium behaving exactly as the original binary statistical mixture. This will reduce hundreds MC simulations, allowing to obtain one set of wanted parameters, to only one equivalent simple MC simulation. To the best of our knowledge the analytically ‘exact’ SSF for a binary (isotropic-Poisson) statistical mixture has never been derived before.
Spatio-temporal evolution of eutrophication and water quality in the Turawa dam reservoir, Poland
Authors: Buta Bogna , Wiatkowski Mirosław , Gruss Łukasz , Tomczyk Paweł , Kasperek Robert
Published: June 2023

The objectives of the article are: to assess spatio-temporal evolution of eutrophication and water quality of the Turawa dam reservoir, located in south-western Poland on the Mała Panew River; to identify location and relationship between potential sources of physicochemical pollution related to the progressing process of eutrophication; and to determine trophic status and water quality indices of the selected research object. The analysis (Mann–Whitney U test, PCA, HCA, Spearman correlation matrix) showed a high susceptibility of the reservoir to eutrophication processes, especially due to the influence of dangerous loads of compounds emerging from areas with high tourist intensity and pollutants flowing from the Mała Panew River. The parameters deteriorating the ecological status were TP, DO, BOD5, and COD. Considering the cumulative results of water quality indices for the period 1998–2020, the average water quality was in classes II or III. A noticeable deterioration appeared in water quality for the years 2016–2020, which proves the progressing eutrophication in the Turawa reservoir. In 1998–2020, the reservoir was classified as eutrophic or mesoeutrophic based on the calculated three trophic status indices. This article would help in developing a strategy for dealing with water blooms, a reliable system for monitoring pressures causing eutrophication, and optimal technologies for the reconstruction of multifunctional reservoirs.
Distrust as a form of inequality
Authors: Kubota Jennifer T. , Venezia Samuel A. , Gautam Richa , Wilhelm Andrea L. , Mattan Bradley D. , Cloutier Jasmin
Published: June 2023

Navigating social hierarchies is a ubiquitous aspect of human life. Social status shapes our thoughts, feelings, and actions toward others in various ways. However, it remains unclear how trust is conferred within hierarchies and how status-related cues are used when resources are on the line. This research fills this knowledge gap by examining how ascribed, consensus-based status appearance, and perceived status appearance impact investment decisions for high- and low-status partners during a Trust Game. In a series of pre-registered experiments, we examined the degree to which participants trusted unfamiliar others with financial investments when the only available information about that person was their socioeconomic status (SES). In Study 1, SES was ascribed. Studies 2 and 3 conveyed SES with visual antecedents (clothing). Across all three experiments, participants trusted high SES partners more than low SES partners. In addition, subjective perceptions of status based on visual cues were a stronger predictor of trust than consensus-based status judgments. This work highlights a high status-trust bias for decisions where an individual’s money is on the line. In addition, high-status trust bias may occur simply because of an individual’s subjective assumptions about another’s rank.
Serological response following COVID-19 vaccines in patients living with HIV: a dose–response meta-analysis
Authors: Zhou Qian , Zeng Furong , Meng Yu , Liu Yihuang , Liu Hong , Deng Guangtong
Published: June 2023

To quantify the pooled rate and risk ratio of seroconversion following the uncomplete, complete, or booster dose of COVID-19 vaccines in patients living with HIV. PubMed, Embase and Cochrane library were searched for eligible studies to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis based on PRIMSA guidelines. The pooled rate and risk ratio of seroconversion were assessed using the Freeman-Tukey double arcsine method and Mantel–Haenszel approach, respectively. Random-effects model was preferentially used as the primary approach to pool results across studies. A total of 50 studies involving 7160 patients living with HIV were analyzed. We demonstrated that only 75.0% (56.4% to 89.9%) patients living with HIV achieved a seroconversion after uncomplete vaccination, which improved to 89.3% (84.2% to 93.5%) after complete vaccination, and 98.4% (94.8% to 100%) after booster vaccination. The seroconversion rates were significantly lower compared to controls at all the stages, while the risk ratios for uncomplete, complete, and booster vaccination were 0.87 (0.77 to 0.99), 0.95 (0.92 to 0.98), and 0.97 (0.94 to 0.99), respectively. We concluded that vaccine doses were associated with consistently improved rates and risk ratios of seroconversion in patients living with HIV, highlighting the significance of booster vaccination for patients living with HIV.
First-principles study on the electronic and optical properties of AlSb monolayer
Authors: Mohebpour Mohammad Ali , Tagani Meysam Bagheri
Published: June 2023

Using density functional theory and many-body perturbation theory, we systematically investigate the optoelectronic properties of AlSb monolayer, which has been recently synthesized by molecular beam epitaxy [ACS Nano 2021, 15, 5, 8184–8191]. After confirming the dynamical stability of the monolayer, we analyze its electronic properties at different levels of theory without (PBE, HSE03, HSE06) and with (G$$_0$$

0

W$$_0$$

0

, GW$$_0$$

0

, and GW) electron-electron interaction. The results show that AlSb monolayer is a semiconductor with a direct quasiparticle band gap of 1.35 eV while its electronic structure is dominated by spin-orbit coupling. Also, we study the optical properties of the monolayer by solving the Bethe–Salpeter equation. In this regard, the effects of spin-orbit coupling, electron–electron correlation, and electron–hole interaction on the optical spectrum of the monolayer are evaluated. Based on the highest level of theory, the first bright exciton is found to be located at 0.97 eV, in excellent agreement with the experimental value (0.93 eV). Moreover, the exciton binding energy, effective mass, and Bohr radius are obtained 0.38 eV, 0.25 m$$_0$$

0

, and 6.31 Å, respectively. This work provides a better understanding of the electronic, optical, and excitonic properties of AlSb monolayer and may shed light on its potential applications.
Neural bases of reward anticipation in healthy individuals with low, mid, and high levels of schizotypy
Authors: Carruzzo F. , Giarratana A. O. , del Puppo L. , Kaiser S. , Tobler P. N. , Kaliuzhna M.
Published: June 2023

A growing body of research has placed the ventral striatum at the center of a network of cerebral regions involved in anticipating rewards in healthy controls. However, little is known about the functional connectivity of the ventral striatum associated with reward anticipation in healthy controls. In addition, few studies have investigated reward anticipation in healthy humans with different levels of schizotypy. Here, we investigated reward anticipation in eighty-four healthy individuals (44 females) recruited based on their schizotypy scores. Participants performed a variant of the Monetary Incentive Delay Task while undergoing event-related fMRI.Participants showed the expected decrease in response times for highly rewarded trials compared to non-rewarded trials. Whole-brain activation analyses replicated previous results, including activity in the ventral and dorsal striatum. Whole-brain psycho-physiological interaction analyses of the left and right ventral striatum revealed increased connectivity during reward anticipation with widespread regions in frontal, parietal and occipital cortex as well as the cerebellum and midbrain. Finally, we found no association between schizotypal personality severity and neural activity and cortico-striatal functional connectivity. In line with the motivational, attentional, and motor functions of rewards, our data reveal multifaceted cortico-striatal networks taking part in reward anticipation in healthy individuals. The ventral striatum is connected to regions of the salience, attentional, motor and visual networks during reward anticipation and thereby in a position to orchestrate optimal goal-directed behavior.
A novel hermit crab optimization algorithm
Authors: Guo Jia , Zhou Guoyuan , Yan Ke , Shi Binghua , Di Yi , Sato Yuji
Published: June 2023

High-dimensional optimization has numerous potential applications in both academia and industry. It is a major challenge for optimization algorithms to generate very accurate solutions in high-dimensional search spaces. However, traditional search tools are prone to dimensional catastrophes and local optima, thus failing to provide high-precision results. To solve these problems, a novel hermit crab optimization algorithm (the HCOA) is introduced in this paper. Inspired by the group behaviour of hermit crabs, the HCOA combines the optimal search and historical path search to balance the depth and breadth searches. In the experimental section of the paper, the HCOA competes with 5 well-known metaheuristic algorithms in the CEC2017 benchmark functions, which contain 29 functions, with 23 of these ranking first. The state of work BPSO-CM is also chosen to compare with the HCOA, and the competition shows that the HCOA has a better performance in the 100-dimensional test of the CEC2017 benchmark functions. All the experimental results demonstrate that the HCOA presents highly accurate and robust results for high-dimensional optimization problems.
Paraoxonase 2 (PON2) plays a limited role in murine lung tumorigenesis
Authors: Whitt Aaron G. , Neely Aaron M. , Sarkar Omar Sadi , Meng Shuhan , Arumugam Sengodagounder , Yaddanapudi Kavitha , Li Chi
Published: June 2023

Paraoxonase 2 (PON2) is a multifunctional intracellular enzyme that has received growing attention for its ability to modulate various aspects of normal and malignant cellular physiology. Recent research has revealed that PON2 is upregulated in tissues from patients with various types of solid tumors and hematologic cancers, likely due to its ability to suppress oxidative stress and evade apoptosis. However, the effects of PON2 on pulmonary oncogenesis are unknown. Here, we conducted studies to investigate how PON2 influences lung cancer cell proliferation in vitro and lung tumorigenesis in vivo using a variety of cellular and animal models. It was found that PON2 expression deficiency hampered the proliferation of cultured lung cancer cells with concomitant cell cycle arrest at the G1 phase. In addition, the loss of endogenous PON2 expression impaired key aspects of oxidative metabolism in lung adenocarcinoma cells. Moreover, we investigated how the interplay between PON2 expression in lung tumors and host mice influences lung tumor initiation and progression. PON2 status in both transplanted tumor cells and mice failed to influence the development of subcutaneously grafted Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) tumors, orthotopically implanted LLC tumors, and oncogenic Kras-driven primary lung adenocarcinoma tumors. Importantly, the frequencies of tumor-infiltrating myeloid subsets that include myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) and tumor-associated macrophages were not impacted by PON2 expression in LLC tumor-bearing mice. Overall, our studies indicate that PON2 plays a limited role in murine lung tumorigenesis.
Second harmonic generation on crystalline organic nanoclusters under extreme nanoconfinement in functionalized silica–benzil composites
Authors: El Karout Houda , Shchur Yaroslav , Andrushchak Anatoliy , Sahraoui Bouchta , Wielgosz Robert , Kityk Olha , Jędryka Jarosław , Slyvka Yurii , Kityk Andriy V.
Published: June 2023

We demonstrate a series of organic–inorganic nanocomposite materials combining the mesoporous silica (PS) and benzil (BZL) nanocrystals embedded into its nanochannels (6.0–13.0 nm in diameter) by capillary crystallization. One aims to design novel, efficient nonlinear optical composite materials in which inactive amorphous host PS-matrix provides a tubular scaffold structure, whereas nonlinear optical functionality results from specific properties of the deposited guest BZL-nanocrystals. A considerable contraction of the BZL melt during its crystallization inside the silica nanochannels results in a formation of the texture consisting of (221)- and (003)-oriented BZL nanoclusters (22 nm in length), separated by voids. Specificity of the textural morphology similarly to the spatial confinement significantly influences the nonlinear optical features of composite PS:BZL materials being explored in the second harmonic generation (SHG) experiment. The light polarization anisotropy of the SHG response appears to be considerably reduced at channel diameters larger than 7 nm apparently due to the multiple scattering and depolarization of the light on randomly distributed and crystallographically oriented BZL-nanoclusters. The normalized SHG response decreases nonlinearly by more than one order of magnitude as the channel diameter decreases from 13.0 to 6.0 nm and vanishes when spatial cylindrical confinement approaches the sizes of a few molecular layers suggesting that the embedded BZL clusters indeed are not uniformly crystalline but are characterized by more complex morphology consisting of a disordered SHG-inactive amorphous shell, covering the channel wall, and SHG-active crystalline core. Understanding and controlling of the textural morphology in inorganic–organic nanocrystalline composites as well as its relationships with nonlinear optical properties can lead to the development of novel efficient nonlinear optical materials for the light energy conversion with prospective optoelectronic and photonic applications.
Partial least squares enhance multi-trait genomic prediction of potato cultivars in new environments
Authors: Ortiz Rodomiro , Reslow Fredrik , Montesinos-López Abelardo , Huicho José , Pérez-Rodríguez Paulino , Montesinos-López Osval A. , Crossa José
Published: June 2023

It is of paramount importance in plant breeding to have methods dealing with large numbers of predictor variables and few sample observations, as well as efficient methods for dealing with high correlation in predictors and measured traits. This paper explores in terms of prediction performance the partial least squares (PLS) method under single-trait (ST) and multi-trait (MT) prediction of potato traits. The first prediction was for tested lines in tested environments under a five-fold cross-validation (5FCV) strategy and the second prediction was for tested lines in untested environments (herein denoted as leave one environment out cross validation, LOEO). There was a good performance in terms of predictions (with accuracy mostly > 0.5 for Pearson’s correlation) the accuracy of 5FCV was better than LOEO. Hence, we have empirical evidence that the ST and MT PLS framework is a very valuable tool for prediction in the context of potato breeding data.
Analysis of the surgical approach in prostate cancer staging: results from the surveillance, epidemiology and end results program
Authors: da Luz Felipe Andrés Cordero , Nascimento Camila Piqui , da Costa Marinho Eduarda , Felicidade Pollyana Júnia , Antonioli Rafael Mathias , de Araújo Rogério Agenor , Silva Marcelo José Barbosa
Published: June 2023

Surgery is not used as a criterion for staging prostate cancer, although there is evidence that the number of analyzed and affected lymph nodes have prognosis value. The aim of this study was to determine whether there are significant differences in staging criteria in patients who underwent prostatectomy compared to those who did not, and whether the number of affected and analyzed lymph nodes (LN) plays a prognostic role. In this retrospective study, a test cohort consisting of 404,210 newly diagnosed men with prostate cancer, between 2004 and 2010, was obtained from the 17 registries (Nov 2021 submission); a validation consisting of 147,719 newly diagnosed men with prostate cancer between 2004 and 2019 was obtained from the 8 registries (Nov 2021 submission). Prostate cancer-specific survival was analyzed by Kaplan–Meier curves, survival tables and Cox regression; overall survival was analyzed only to compare Harrell's C-index between different staging criteria. In initial analyses, it was observed that the prognostic value of lymph node metastasis changes according to the type of staging (clinical or pathological), which is linked to the surgical approach (prostatectomy). Compared with T4/N0/M0 patients, which are also classified as stage IVA, N1/M0 patients had a shorter [adjusted HR: 1.767 (1429–2184), p < 0.0005] and a longer [adjusted HR: 0.832 (0.740–0.935), p = 0.002] specific survival when submitted to prostatectomy or not, respectively. Analyzing separately the patients who were submitted to prostatectomy and those who were not, it was possible to obtain new LN metastasis classifications (N1: 1 + LN; N2: 2 + LNs; N3: > 2 + LNs). This new (pathological) classification of N allowed the reclassification of patients based on T and Gleason grade groups, mainly those with T3 and T4 disease. In the validation group, this new staging criterion was proven to be superior [specific survival C-index: 0.908 (0.906–0.911); overall survival C-index: 0.788 (0.786–0.791)] compared to that currently used by the AJCC [8th edition; specific survival C-index: 0.892 (0.889–0.895); overall survival C-index: 0.744 (0.741–0.747)]. In addition, an adequate number of dissected lymph nodes results in a 39% reduction in death risk [adjusted HR: 0.610 (0.498–0.747), p < 0.0005]. As main conclusion, the surgery has a major impact on prostate cancer staging, mainly modifying the effect of N on survival, and enabling the stratification of pathological N according to the number of affected LN. Such a factor, when considered as staging criteria, improves the prognosis classification.
Inorganic Materials
Authors: Walton Richard I
Published: June 2023

This series provides authoritative coverage of topical and emerging research areas in inorganic materials chemistry and its related disciplines in physics, biology and materials science. The series covers the three key areas of materials class, function and methodology, with each volume themed around a specific type of material, characterisation method, preparation technique or application. The books are written at a level accessible to advanced undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers wishing to learn about the subject.
A trimodal detection paper chip for undisclosed drug “sibutramine” in nutraceuticals
Authors: Elbalkiny Heba T. , Yehia Ali M. , Tantawy Mahmoud A.
Published: June 2023

A sibutramine trimodal paper device for nutraceutical adulteration.
Active and durable copper phosphate catalysts modified with metal oxides for methane oxidation with oxygen into formaldehyde
Authors: Shimakawa Mana , Takenaka Sakae
Published: June 2023

Copper phosphates as active catalysts for methane oxidation with O2 into formaldehyde were deposited on silica supports or dispersed with aluminum oxides in order to enhance their catalytic performance.
Evaluation of the performance of the human gastric simulator using durum wheat-based foods of contrasting food structure
Authors: Nadia Joanna , Singh Harjinder , Bornhorst Gail M.
Published: June 2023

Quantitative comparison of in vitro–in vivo gastric digesta properties reveals the usefulness and physiological relevance of generalized gastric digestion parameters to simulate in vivo gastric digestion of solid foods.
Modulatory effect of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on depressive-like behaviors in rats with chronic sleep deprivation: potential involvement of melatonin receptor pathway and brain lipidome
Authors: Chang Chia-Hsuan , Wu Hua-Chien , Hsieh Yin-Ru , Lai Wen-De , Tung Te-Hsuan , Huang Jun-Jie , Kao Wei-Yu , Huang Shih-Yi
Published: June 2023

Clinical evidence suggests that a bidirectional relationship is present between sleep loss and psychiatric disorders.
High-fat diet alters the radiation tolerance of female mice and the modulatory effect of melatonin
Authors: Lu Lu , Ren Jingming , Yuan Tong , Lu Xinran , Dong Yinping , Li Wenxuan , Wang Xinyue , Huo Qidong , Zhang Junling , Li Deguan , Fan Saijun
Published: June 2023

High-fat diet alters the radiation tolerance of female mice and the modulatory effect of melatonin.
Preparation of chitosan/retinoic acid @ nanocapsules/TiO2 self-cleaning one-dimensional photonic crystals and the study of the visual detection of acute promyelocytic leukemia
Authors: Li Shuai , Wang Zhiqiang , Chen Yanying , Zou Qing , Zou Qianqian , Wang Long , Zhu Yanxi , Wang Lijuan
Published: June 2023

The visualization sensor cannot only detect acute promyelocytic leukemia conveniently, quickly and accurately, but also kill bacteria and decompose organic residues in blood samples under the influence of sunlight.
Hybridized sulfated-carboxymethyl cellulose/MWNT nanocomposite as highly selective electrochemical probe for trace detection of arsenic in real environmental samples
Authors: Al-Ghamdi Youssef O. , Jabli Mahjoub , Alhalafi Mona H. , Khan Ajahar , Alamry Khalid A.
Published: June 2023

A highly selective and ultra-sensitive electrochemical sensing probe was proposed by combining sulfated-carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC-S) and a functionalized-multiwalled carbon nanotube (f-MWNT) nano-composite with high conductivity and durability.
Swelling induced debonding of thin hydrogel films grafted on silicon substrates
Authors: Augustine Anusree , Veillerot Marc , Gauthier Nicolas , Zhu Bangguo , Hui Chung-Yuen , Tran Yvette , Verneuil Emilie , Chateauminois Antoine
Published: June 2023

We report on the delamination of thin (≈μm) hydrogel films grafted to silicon substrates under the action of swelling stresses.
Correction: In(iii)-dictated formation of double Cs2AgxNa1−xFeyIn1−yCl6 perovskites
Authors: Stroyuk Oleksandr , Raievska Oleksandra , Barabash Anastasia , Hauch Jens , Brabec Christoph J.
Published: June 2023

Correction for ‘In(iii)-dictated formation of double Cs2AgxNa1−xFeyIn1−yCl6 perovskites’ by Oleksandr Stroyuk et al., J. Mater. Chem. C, 2023, 11, 6867–6873, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/D3TC01138K.
Biosynthesis and characterization of cobalt nanoparticles using combination of different plants and their antimicrobial activity
Authors: Ali Huma , Yadav Yashwant Kumar , Ali Daoud , Kumar Gokhlesh , Alarifi Saud
Published: June 2023

It has become crucial to biosynthesize efficient, secure, and affordable nanoparticles that we use for the treatment of various infections, including surgical site infection and wound infection, due to the rapid development of microbial resistance to numerous antibiotic drugs. The objective of the present study is to biosynthesize cobalt nanoparticles using an extract from the combined peels of garlic (Allium sativum) and onion (Allium cepa). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and X-ray diffraction were used to confirm the synthesis of cobalt nanoparticle (XRD). Well diffusion was used to measure antimicrobial activity. Escherichia coli, Proteus, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus cohnii, and Klebsiella pneumonia were the bacterial strains employed Both the crude prepared extract and the biosynthesized cobalt nanoparticles demonstrated efficacy against all strains of bacteria, but the crude prepared extract displayed a low zone of inhibition ranging from 10 to 13 mm, while the biosynthesized cobalt nanoparticles displayed a high zone of inhibition ranging from 20 to 24 mm.
A direct synthesis method of multi‐port filtering power divider with arbitrary phase shift, power division and reference impedances
Authors: Zhang Gang , Shu Minghan , Tam Kam Weng , Chen Wang , Tang Wanchun , Yang Jiquan
Published: June 2023

In this study, a direct synthesis approach is proposed to extract the coupling matrix of multi‐port filtering power divider (FPD) with arbitrary phase shift, power division as well as reference impedances, for the first time. This method provides an attractive technique to synthesise a multi‐functional device that combines the characteristics of bandpass filter, multi‐port power divider and ideal phase shifters as well as the impedance matching network, which can effectively diminish the overall size and improve the performance of the microwave front‐end network. A newly defined coupling matrix corresponding to arbitrary multi‐port topologies that introduces ideal phase shift by virtue of constant frequency‐independent reactance at the source and load is developed in FPD synthesis process. The coupling matrix is obtained directly by optimising the presented cost‐function in this paper, avoiding complex similar transformation process of coupling matrix. Finally, several numerical examples of multi‐port FPD with equal/unequal power division ratio, arbitrary phase shift and reference impedances are synthesised to well verify the proposed synthesis method, and a practical example is given to verify the validity of arbitrary phase shift and arbitrary reference impedance.