bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effects of increased intracranial pressure on cerebrospinal fluid influx, cerebral vascular hemodynamic indexes, and cerebrospinal fluid lymphatic efflux
Authors: Xiang Tangtang , Feng Dongyi , Zhang Xinjie , Chen Yupeng , Wang Hanhua , Liu Xuanhui , Gong Zhitao , Yuan Jiangyuan , Liu Mingqi , Sha Zhuang , Lv Chuanxiang , Jiang Weiwei , Nie Meng , Fan Yibing , Wu Di , Dong Shiying , Feng Jiancheng , Ponomarev Eugene D , Zhang Jianning , Jiang Rongcai
Published: August 2022

The glymphatic-lymphatic fluid transport system (GLFTS) consists of glymphatic pathway and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) lymphatic outflow routes, allowing biological liquids from the brain parenchyma to access the CSF along with perivascular space and to be cleaned out of the skull through lymphatic vessels. It is known that increased local pressure due to physical compression of tissue improves lymphatic transport in peripheral organs, but little is known about the exact relationship between increased intracranial pressure (IICP) and GLFTS. In this study, we verify our hypothesis that IICP significantly impacts GLFTS, and this effect depends on severity of the IICP. Using a previously developed inflating balloon model to induce IICP and inject fluorescent tracers into the cisterna magna, we found significant impairment of the glymphatic circulation after IICP. We further found that cerebrovascular occlusion occurred, and cerebrovascular pulsation decreased after IICP. IICP also interrupted the drainage of deep cervical lymph nodes and dorsal meningeal lymphatic function, enhancing spinal lymphatic outflow to the sacral lymph nodes. Notably, these effects were associated with the severity of IICP. Thus, our findings proved that the intensity of IICP significantly impacts GLFTS. This may have translational applications for preventing and treating related neurological disorders.
A New Method for the Quality of Service Assessment of Highly Frequented Bicycle Facilities in Germany
Authors: Brandenburg Alexander , Geistefeldt Justin , Zeidler Verena , Buck Sebastian , Vortisch Peter , Baier Michael M.
Published: August 2022

Owing to increasing bicycle traffic volumes in Germany, more and more bicycle facilities are being designed with widths beyond the standard values given in the existing design guidelines. However, the level of service assessment method for bicycle facilities in the current edition of the German Highway Capacity Manual, HBS, is based on empirical data from facilities with mostly low traffic demand and small widths. Therefore, a new quality of service assessment method for highly frequented bicycle facilities was developed. For this, the cycling behavior of cyclists at high traffic volumes was analyzed, considering different bicycle types. Bicycle traffic flow quality, which is mainly characterized by the ability for cyclists to pass, was examined on segments of bicycle facilities with different geometric parameters, including facility type, gradient, and width. The speed and lateral distance behavior of cyclists were analyzed by using radar and video measurements. It was found that a large variance in the bicycle speed distribution mainly resulted from an inhomogeneous composition of bicycle types. The bicycle facilities were modeled with the microscopic traffic simulation tool PTV Vissim and calibrated using the empirical data. The models were used to analyze the impact of different geometric parameters and high proportions of specific bicycle types. As expected, the simulations revealed that the quality of service was mainly influenced by the lane width. Based on the results, a method to assess the quality of service of bicycle facilities, in which traffic density is used as the measure of effectiveness, was developed.
Short-Term Passenger Flow Prediction Using a Bus Network Graph Convolutional Long Short-Term Memory Neural Network Model
Authors: Baghbani Asiye , Bouguila Nizar , Patterson Zachary
Published: August 2022

Short-term passenger flow prediction is critical to managing real-time bus networks, responding to emergencies quickly, making crowdedness-aware route recommendations, and adjusting service schedules over time. Some recent studies have attempted to predict passenger flow using deep learning models. The complexity of transportation networks, coupled with emerging real-time data collection and information dissemination systems, has increased the popularity of these approaches. There has also been a growing interest in using a new deep learning approach, the graph neural network that captures graph dependence by passing messages between its nodes. Researchers in various transportation domains have used such tools for modeling and predicting transportation networks, as many of these networks consist of nodes and links and can be naturally categorized as graphs. This paper develops a bus network graph convolutional long short-term memory (BNG-ConvLSTM) neural network model to forecast short-term passenger flows in bus networks. Validating the proposed model is done using real-world data collected from the Laval bus network in Canada. Based on a set of comparisons between the proposed model and some other popular deep learning approaches, it clearly indicates that the BNG-ConvLSTM model is more scalable and robust than other baselines in making network-wide predictions for short-term passenger flows.
Enabling Rapid Large-Scale Seismic Bridge Vulnerability Assessment Through Artificial Intelligence
Authors: Zhang Xin , Beck Corey , Lenjani Ali , Bonthron Leslie , Lund Alana , Liu Xiaoyu , Dyke Shirley J. , Ramirez Julio , Baah Prince , Hunter Jeremy
Published: August 2022

Departments of transportation (DOTs) throughout the United States maintain vast bridge databases that house information such as bridge services, dimensions, materials, inspection reports, and photographs. These databases are expensive to maintain and have evolved quite gradually over the years. They are meant to be substantial enough, at a bare minimum, to support typical asset management activities and to prioritize maintenance tasks. There is great potential to make use of them to support other decisions. However, these databases often lack certain detailed information related to substructure elements, which is necessary for seismic vulnerability assessment, for example, and would be time-consuming to gather for thousands of bridges in a given region or state. In this study, a technique was demonstrated and validated that reduces the time needed to collect this information, by leveraging artificial intelligence to automate the identification of substructure types using images. We defined categories appropriate for vulnerability assessment task, classifiers were trained to identify visual content, and their performance evaluated. In this paper we illustrate a method to determine whether to use artificial intelligence, human visual confirmation, or a combination of the two, to identify bridge substructure types based on accuracy, cost, and risk tolerance. The technical approach was validated using images from Indiana. This leveraging of artificial intelligence for automated identification of critical bridge characteristics from readily available images could empower asset owners, such as DOTs, to assess their inventory more frequently and with confidence.
Mass psychology and psychosocial assemblies
Authors: Frosh Stephen
Published: August 2022

In the 100 years since Freud’s Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego (1921) was published, much has changed and much has stayed the same. This article explores the resonance of Freud’s book with contemporary issues around inclusion and exclusion, masses and assemblies, and the question of how a practice of ethical relationality can emerge across a shared social terrain. Drawing on concepts from psychosocial studies and leaning especially on Judith Butler’s recent work on assemblies and on grievability, I argue that patterns of division and exclusion, notably along racialized lines, emerge from insistently violent responses to vulnerability. Understanding the intricate intersection between what are usually differentiated as ‘personal’ and ‘social’ domains in ways recognizable within group analysis, is an important move towards contesting this violence and towards a situation in which all lives become grievable.
Primed for Backlash: Among Whom Does Demographic Change Provoke Anti-Immigration Attitudes?
Authors: Maggio Christopher
Published: August 2022

Past research has explored which factors are important in understanding immigration attitudes, incorporating economic, cultural, and political components, among others. Simultaneously, a literature linking local demographic context to immigration attitudes has developed, in part to identify under what conditions demographic change might increase immigration Backlash. I combine these literatures by examining what characteristics and/or contexts for U.S.-born Whites predict Backlash to demographic change. I find evidence that county-level Hispanic growth predicts a preference for reducing immigration among three groups: those without a four-year degree, those identifying as political Independents, and those reporting a decrease in household income. These results provide a framework for understanding how immigration policy attitudes may evolve for different groups in the context of demographic change.
Effects of manufacturing on the structural performance of composites in vacuum assisted resin transfer molding
Authors: Rouhi Mohammad S , Liu JL , Bin Hamzah M Ridhwan , Tan Vincent BC , Tay Tong-Earn
Published: August 2022

This work focuses on developing a seamlessly integrated modeling platform for manufacturing, designing, and analyzing fiber-reinforced composite structures. The manufacturing method is vacuum assisted resin transfer molding, and the analysis method is the finite element method. The unique integration of two commercial software (Moldex3D and ABAQUS) with additional interfaces and physics-based micromechanics enables variabilities during the manufacturing to be directly embedded into the structural analysis. The manufacturing output is the resin pressure which is used to predict the compaction pressure and calculate local fiber volume fractions. The predicted non-uniform volume fractions provide local mechanical properties allowing seamless transfer of process effects and properties variability to the final structural analysis. Three demonstrators are presented as examples for simulation and validation against experiments, both in manufacturing and structural performance. The results show very good agreement between simulations and experiments regarding resin flow times and measurements (within 17%) and demonstrators’ structural stiffness (within 15%).
Driving, Residential Location, and Employment Outcomes Among Older Adults
Authors: Schouten Andrew , Blumenberg Evelyn , Wachs Martin
Published: August 2022

The ability to drive is positively associated with workforce participation among older adults. However, residence in neighborhoods where destinations are easy to reach by public transit could potentially narrow the employment gap between older drivers and non-drivers. This study examines the relationship between driving, residential location characteristics, and employment outcomes among older adults. Findings show that both drivers and non-drivers are more likely to be employed if they live in neighborhoods with high levels of access to jobs via public transit. However, the positive relationship between transit access to jobs and employment outcomes is particularly strong among non-drivers. These findings indicate that although older adult drivers are more likely to work than their non-driving counterparts, the gap in employment outcomes is mitigated by living in dense, transit-rich neighborhoods. Results suggest that policies supporting both automobile access and transit-rich residential environments can facilitate labor force participation among older adults.
Chemotherapy-Induced Toxicities: An Imaging Primer
Authors: Patil Nikhil S. , Larocque Natasha , van der Pol Christian B. , Torres Carlos , Raptis Demetrios A. , Patlas Michael N.
Published: August 2022

The Coronavirus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused significant delays in the delivery of cancer treatments in Canada. As cancer treatment and imaging volumes return to normal, radiologists will encounter more cases of chemotherapy-induced toxicities. These toxicities have varied appearances on imaging, and can affect multiple organ systems. The purpose of this review is to offer a unified resource for general radiologists regarding the imaging appearances of chemotherapy-induced toxicities.
Entrepreneurship education: Which educational elements influence entrepreneurial intention?
Authors: Thomas Oliver
Published: August 2022

Entrepreneurship is considered a critical factor in stimulating economic growth and creating employment. Entrepreneurship education is viewed as one of the key instruments for increasing entrepreneurial intention and activities. However, it remains unclear which elements of entrepreneurship education are most influential in shaping a participant’s intention to start a venture. This study aims to fill this gap by examining the impact of entrepreneurship education and the mediating role of alertness, inspiration, social networks and the acquisition of knowledge and skills (the rational “learning” component of entrepreneurship education) in a participant’s intention to start a venture. Drawing on entrepreneurship education theory, the author proposes that entrepreneurship education increases entrepreneurial intention if it induces a perceived increase in alertness, inspiration, social networks or knowledge and skills among participants. The empirical results of the multiple hierarchical regression analysis provide support for a full mediation effect of inspiration, social networks and knowledge and skills on the relationship between entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurial intention. These findings contribute to research in entrepreneurship education, enhance understanding of the main success factors in entrepreneurship education and offer useful insights for practitioners when developing effective entrepreneurship programs.
Recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis with Candida glabrata – a management conundrum
Authors: Taghinejadi Neda , Andersson Monique I , Lord Emily
Published: August 2022

High rates of azole-resistance and limited availability of pharmacological agents within the UK can make recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis (RVVC) with Candida glabrata a challenging infection to treat. In this report, we describe our experience in managing C. glabrata RVVC and present the case of a patient with poor response to therapy and a protracted treatment course, spanning almost 4 years. We also highlight the need for evidence-based management protocols that consider the national availability of alternative treatments.
Trade union project-based revitalization strategies in Central and Eastern Europe: The Case of Slovenia and Estonia
Authors: Samaluk Barbara , Kall Kairit
Published: August 2022

This article studies trade union revitalization within broader trends of projectification that marks a shift towards project work and its temporary organization. It accordingly compares instances of project-based organizational restructuring in post-crisis Estonia and Slovenia in order to identify their drivers, power resources employed and their outcomes and wider impact. In both countries, project-based organizational restructuring was driven by proactive activists capable of innovatively utilizing available power resources and new opportunity structures that had opened up with EU integration. While Slovenian unions utilized a more diverse set of power resources and revitalization strategies, activists in both countries stimulated trade union project-based organizational restructuring in order to initiate and sustain their main, context specific, revitalization strategies. Findings also show that project-based organizational restructuring can be an interim phase for unions to increase their resources and use them to turn their revitalization strategies into more permanent ones.
Temperature calibration for guided wave hybrid system with FBG-based Fabry-Perot sensor
Authors: Cheng Xu , Sharif Khodaei Zahra
Published: August 2022

In a guided-wave-based damage detection hybrid system which combines piezoelectric transducers (PZT) and fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors, changes of temperature will affect both the propagation of Lamb waves and the fiber optic (FO) sensor’s spectrum. These variations will mask the changes caused by the occurrence of damage and thus make the damage detection unreliable, if not compensated for. This paper addresses the temperature effect calibration for Lamb wave signals measured by FBG-based Fabry Perot (FP) sensors. First, the temperature effect on the sensor’s spectrum is investigated, and a corresponding calibration method is derived and validated experimentally. After that, FBG-based FP sensor’s capability in measuring both Lamb wave signal (i.e. strain wave) and temperature separately is demonstrated. Finally, a validation test is conducted in which the current state signals are measured under a random temperature, different from that of the baseline temperature. Temperature effect on both sensor sensitivity and guided wave is calibrated based on the proposed calibration algorithm. The compensated signal is then tested with different types of damage index and its reliability in damage detection after applying the compensation algorithm is demonstrated.
Interventions, Barriers, and Proposed Solutions Associated With the Implementation of a Protocol That Uses Clinical Decision Support and a Stress Biomarker Test to Identify ICU Patients at High-Risk for Drug Associated Acute Kidney Injury
Authors: Williams Victoria L. , Smithburger Pamela L. , Imhoff Allison N. , Groetzinger Lara M. , Culley Colleen M. , Burke Clayton X. , Murugan Raghavan , Lamberty Phillip E. , Mahmud Mujtaba , Benedict Neal J. , Kellum John A. , Kane-Gill Sandra L.
Published: August 2022

Background:

Damage biomarkers are helpful in early identification of patients who are at risk of developing acute kidney injury (AKI). Investigations are ongoing to identify the optimal role of stress/damage biomarkers in clinical practice regarding AKI risk prediction, surveillance, diagnosis, and prognosis.

Objective:

To determine the impact of utilizing a clinical decision support system (CDSS) to guide stress biomarker testing in intensive care unit (ICU) patients at risk for drug-induced acute kidney injury (D-AKI).

Methods:

A protocol was designed utilizing a clinical decision support system (CDSS) alert to identify patients that were ordered 3 or more potentially nephrotoxic medications, suggesting risk for progressing to AKI from nephrotoxic burden. Once alerted to these high-risk patients, the pharmacist determined if action was needed by ordering a stress biomarker test, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-2-insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 7 (TIMP-2•IGFBP7). If the biomarker test result was elevated, the pharmacist provided nephrotoxin stewardship recommendations to the team. Pharmacists recorded the response to the clinical decision support alert, ordering, and interpreting the TIMP-2•IGFBP7, and information regarding clinical interventions. An alert in conjunction with TIMP-2•IGFBP7 as a strategy for AKI risk prediction and stimulant for patient care management was assessed. In addition, barriers and solutions to protocol implementation were evaluated.

Results:

There were 394 total activities recorded by pharmacists for 345 unique patients. Ninety-three (93/394; 23.6%) actionable alerts resulted in a TIMP-2•IGFBP7 test being ordered. Thirty-one TIMP-2•IGFBP7 results were >0.3 (31/81; 38.3%), suggesting a high-risk of progression to AKI, which prompted 191 pharmacist/team interventions. On average, there were 1.64 interventions per patient in the low-risk patients, 3.43 in high-risk patients, and 3.75 in the highest-risk patients.

Conclusion and Relevance:

Stress biomarkers can be used in conjunction with CDSS alerts to affect therapeutic decisions in ICU patients at high-risk for D-AKI.
A Framework of Facilitators and Barriers to Career Adaptability: Migrant Hotel Workers During COVID-19
Authors: Jones Janice , Manoharan Ashokkumar , Jiang Zhou , Singal Manisha
Published: August 2022

We examine internal and external factors that build or thwart the career adaptability resources of migrant hotel workers. Drawing on qualitative data at two points in time over a 12-month period during COVID-19, results show that while some migrant workers changed roles and exited hotels, for most, job changes were a shorter-term, separation phenomenon, with migrants transitioning back to their employer within a year. Psychological, social, and human capital resources facilitated career adaptability, while psychoemotional support from managers and peers fostered the confidence of temporary migrants, and facilitated positive affect, which was integral to their openness to exploring alternate hospitality careers. Inhibitors to career adaptability included a lack of agency among temporary migrants, and career entrenchment of mid-career permanent migrants. Our model provides a fine-grained, holistic understanding of the antecedents of career adaptability, enriching career construction theory by clarifying the contexts that drive career adaptability in the evolving, COVID-19 context.
The significance of dynamic mind-body cultivation of Li—based on archetypal mind-body mutual shaping development theory
Authors: Xie Wei , Zhang Yancui , Wu Yue , Guo Benyu
Published: August 2022

Li (礼) in Chinese culture is an integrated concept of mind and body. Based on C. G. Jung’s idea of mind-body unity, post-Jungians’ archetypal image schema and Chinese self-cultivation view, the study attempts to construct an archetypal mind-body mutual shaping development model in the hope of providing wisdom and theoretical support for the dynamic mind-body cultivation process through Li and its significance for psychological healing, so as to make Li more contemporary and inherited.
Accountability versus learning in aid evaluation: A practice-oriented exploration of persistent dilemmas
Authors: Reinertsen Hilde , Bjørkdahl Kristian , McNeill Desmond
Published: August 2022

Learning and accountability are customarily defined as ‘the dual purpose’ of development aid evaluation, yet this notion is contested. Based on an overview of the existing literature, we identify four ideal type positions in this debate: (1) accountability and learning are complementary objectives, (2) there is a reconcilable tension, (3) there are problematic trade-offs and (4) the two are irreconcilable. Drawing on empirical evidence from Sweden and Norway relating to evaluation processes, evaluation reports and evaluation systems within the sector of development aid, we conclude that pursuing this dual purpose in practice involves trade-offs which need to be recognised. We end with implications for aid evaluation policy and practice.
Morning Connections: How do you support hospital staff working remotely during a global pandemic without providing ‘staff support’?
Authors: Flannery Halina , McParland James , Baker Hannah , Hitchcock Megan , Portnoy Sara
Published: August 2022

When lockdown was announced in the United Kingdom, kitchen tables transformed into offices overnight, as many National Health Service (NHS) workers adapted to new ways of working from home. To respond to the developing situation, we established a programme of weekly ‘Connections’ meetings where staff could be together, remotely. This article describes the evolution of our Morning Connections and Oncology Connections virtual meetings, including the content of sessions, how they were evaluated and whether they met their intention to support colleagues during a particularly challenging time, both personally and professionally, for NHS staff.
Love and agency in ethnographic fieldwork with children
Authors: Spray Julie
Published: August 2022

Analysing emotions such as love can enable new ways of understanding human relationships and deepen reflexive ethnographic practice. Love in research with children, however, carries a unique set of implications due to children’s structural vulnerability, the power imbalances and abuses that manifest in many adult-child relationships, and cultural taboos on love expressed between adults and children. Yet, the ability to elicit love and affective care from adults is an essential component of children’s survival, and children actively coproduce relationships, making researchers into whom they need them to be. How, then, can we approach love in fieldwork with children? Drawing from fieldwork experiences at a New Zealand primary school with participants aged 8-12, I analyse how children recruited me into their survival systems by cultivating love and associated processes of empathy, care, and attachment. I suggest that ethical fieldwork with children means attending to how we feel and respond to love.
“You need to learn the spelling”: Playing, teaching, and learning of trilingual siblings with refugee backgrounds
Authors: Cun Aijuan
Published: August 2022

Though a limited amount of literature has examined the family literacy practices of students with refugee backgrounds in the United States, little research has focused on play and conversations of Burmese siblings with refugee backgrounds. Drawing upon theoretical perspectives from new literacy studies, Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory, and Gregory’s concept of synergy, this qualitative study explores siblings’ social literacy practices and their conversations within these literacy practices. The data analysis revealed three types of literacy practices: digital literacy practices, religious literacy practices, and home-school literacy practices. The siblings’ conversations clearly demonstrated all three practices, which highlighted the children’s multiple identities as siblings and trilingual speakers, skillful at articulating their thoughts, taking the lead, playing out roles based on their experiences, and making meaning together. Further, the conversations supported both siblings’ literacy learning. Implications include the importance of expanding the understanding of siblings’ home literacy and continuing research on children with refugee backgrounds.
Australian Trends in Academic Literature Concerned With Family and Domestic Violence Perpetrators: A Bibliometric Literature Review
Authors: Patmisari Emi , McLaren Helen
Published: August 2022

In this article, we used a novel hybrid approach to review literature concerned with family and domestic violence (FADV) perpetrators. Our intention was to chart the research and publication activity of authors with Australian affiliation to identify homegrown evidence related to stopping the perpetration of violence. This involved systematic searching of literature from the Scopus electronic database, utilization of VOSviewer to sort keyword co-occurrences and authorship linking for 1,494 publication records over a 30-year period, and the review of 21 articles with perpetrator focus, identified from the 50 most cited publications. We found that Australians’ authoring interests in FADV, over the last three decades, with perpetrator focus were predominantly concentrated on gender, rape and sexual assault, coercive control, and child abuse. In the most cited literature, six major themes were identified: perpetrator motivations, perpetrator interventions, patterns of violence, pandemic duet, perception of blame, and cyberstalking and violence. An upward curve in Australian authoring activity in the period under review aligns with societal shifts in which FADV was once considered a private issue and has now become ubiquitous in the public domain. Our findings revealed that research into perpetrators is insufficient to promote a zero-tolerance approach to FADV. Our corresponding in-depth literature review provides valuable insights surrounding perpetrator intervention programs with the goal of more effectively addressing the emerging challenge of technology-facilitated coercive control.
Siddha Self-Inquiry for Flow, Bliss, and Uvagai: Mindfulness for Intuitive Lifestyle in Complex Cardiac Disease
Authors: Chockalingam Anand , Bettencourt B. Ann , Anand Kavin , Dorairajan Smrita , Anbuganapathi Govindaraju , Srinivas Sharan , Chockalingam Venkatachalam
Published: August 2022

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mental health disorders contribute to significant healthcare expenses. Lifestyle approaches that empower and enable patients to participate in their recovery are needed with the increasing complexity of cardiac patients. Traditional Tamil medical practice of Siddha self-inquiry meditation targets holistic health through intuitive lifestyle transformation. We describe 4 complex cardiac patients who explored Siddha based Hunger Gratitude Experience (HUGE) mindful eating and reported elevated levels of optimism and deeper experience of life as outlined by the 5000-year-old secular Siddha medical tradition. We cannot exclude the role of suggestion and placebo effect in descriptive series. However, the simultaneous improvement in physical health and emotional wellbeing along with demonstrated resilience against unforeseen adversities suggests this is Uvagai, the true essence of Siddha higher consciousness. Uvagai is extreme happiness and may be accessible universally with little formal training and targets positive psychology to improve wellbeing. While flow and bliss states are transient transcendental experiences, Uvagai may be more profound and therapeutic in CVD despite age and comorbidities. Seeking Uvagai can potentially overcome health disparities, including rural, minority, and underprivileged populations for better health. HUGE allows CVD patients to safely engage in Uvagai, experience higher consciousness and intuitively sustain lifestyle transformation.
The engagement of nursing and healthcare researchers with digital technologies: lessons learnt in an Australian university
Authors: Roesler Anna , Lange Belinda
Published: August 2022

Background

The use of digital technologies has expanded rapidly in recent years, particularly with the onset of COVID-19. Digital technologies have been implemented in nursing and healthcare to support necessary care.

Aims

This research explored how nursing and healthcare researchers engage with digital technologies, including the types of technologies, facilitators, barriers and suggested improvements to enable engagement.

Methods

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 36 nursing and healthcare researchers from an Australian University. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, coded and thematically analysed using the COREQ checklist.

Results

Four major types of digital technologies were engaged by nursing and healthcare researchers. These included monitoring, intervention, communication and data collection and analysis technologies. The research setting provided the overarching systems and policies that could delay actions or provide necessary supports. Access to experts, good communication, sharing digital technology information, and time and funding were identified as important.

Conclusion

This research highlights that nursing and healthcare researchers are engaging with digital technologies but there are areas for improvement that are underpinned by the research setting and need to be considered to ensure effective use of digital technologies in nursing and healthcare research.
Pregnant women’s knowledge, attitudes, and associated factors toward physical exercise during pregnancy among those attending antenatal care at Bahir Dar city, Northwest Ethiopia
Authors: Bayisa Diriba , Waltengus Fikadu , Lake Selamawit , Wakuma Bizuneh , Bayisa Lami , Chala Merga , Regasa Misganu Teshoma , Besho Merga , Mosisa Getu
Published: August 2022

Background:

Exercise during pregnancy is among the cost-effective options that can significantly reduce the burden of chronic metabolic diseases leading to an adverse birth outcome. Despite the negative consequences of sedentary life among pregnant women, little is known about the pregnant mothers’ knowledge, attitude, and associated factors toward exercise during pregnancy in Ethiopia, particularly in the study area.

Objective:

To assess knowledge, attitude, and associated factors toward exercise during pregnancy among women attending antenatal care at Bahir Dar city, Northwest Ethiopia, 2020.

Methodology:

A health facility-based cross-sectional study design was employed among 475 pregnant women from March 12 to May 12, 2020. A systematic random sampling technique was used to select the study participants. Interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect the data from pregnant women attending the antenatal care unit. Data were coded and entered using Epidata version 3.1 and analyzed by Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 25. Binary and multivariable logistic regressions were used to identify possible determinants and an odds ratio was used to measure the strength of associations at a p-value of <0.05

Result:

The study showed that 55.8% (95% CI: 48.45–59.12) of pregnant women were knowledgeable about benefits and contraindication of exercise during pregnancy; 53.3% (95% CI: 49.05–57.62) of them had positive attitudes toward exercise during pregnancy. Educational status adjusted odd ratio (AOR) = 3.95 (95% CI: 1.712–9.108), practicing physical exercise before becoming pregnant AOR = 3.64 (95% CI: 1.091–12.118), and women who heard about exercise during pregnancy AOR = 4.74 (95% CI: 2.563–8.756) were found to have statistically significant association with knowledge of women about exercise during pregnancy. Women who were knowledgeable about exercise during pregnancy AOR = 4.45 (95% CI: 2.39–8.29) and women who heard about exercise during pregnancy AOR = 4.2 (95% CI: 2.19–8.08) were more likely to have a positive attitude toward benefits of exercise during pregnancy.

Conclusion:

The level of mothers’ knowledge and attitude toward exercise during pregnancy in the study area was low. Educational status, physical exercise before pregnancy, ever heard about exercise during pregnancy were independent determinants of women’s knowledge, while ever heard and knowledgeable about exercise during pregnancy were determinants of favorable attitude toward exercise during pregnancy. Empowering women through health education about physical exercise during pregnancy should get due attention.
Using party press releases and Wikipedia page view data to analyse developments and determinants of parties’ issue prevalence: Evidence for the right-wing populist ‘Alternative for Germany’
Authors: Debus Marc , Florczak Christoffer
Published: August 2022

We make use of party press releases and Wikipedia page view data to study issue dynamics and its determinants of a relatively young right-wing populist party. By applying structural topic models, we analyse 2262 press releases of the ‘Alternative for Germany’ (AfD) from 2013 until 2019. The findings reveal, first, that European integration, EU economic policy, and migration are prevalent topics, but that a change occurs over time so that the focus on economic policy decreases as the focus on migration policy increases. In addition, we show – by using novel data that provides information on the number of daily hits of entries in the German Wikipedia – that the AfD took the attention into account that people attached to European integration and migration issues when preparing their press releases. The results support the findings of existing studies and imply that the content of press releases can be used for measuring changes in the policy profile of parties during a legislative period when normally no manifestos are published, and that the interest in Wikipedia articles can serve as a proxy for the dynamics of issue salience among the population. Furthermore, the findings indicate that a combination of these two data sources is a fruitful approach for studying the determinants of short-term issue dynamics.
Evaluation of PROMIS Cognitive Function Scores and Correlates in a Clinical Sample of Older Adults
Authors: Edelen Maria O. , Harrison Jordan M. , Rodriguez Anthony , Weir Rebecca , Lai Jin-Shei , Langer Michelle M. , Hanmer Janel
Published: August 2022

In this study we assessed the utility of self-reported cognitive function using two PROMIS® Cognitive Function (PROMIS-CF) items in an observational clinical sample of patients aged 65 and older ( n = 16,249) at a large health system. We evaluated the association of PROMIS-CF scores with clinical characteristics and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scores, and we used logistic regression to examine predictors of 1-year decline in PROMIS-CF scores among patients with available data. PROMIS-CF scores were associated with clinical characteristics as hypothesized, with lower (more impaired) scores for patients with cognitive impairment (CI) diagnoses, multiple comorbidities, and those taking cognitive enhancing or interfering medications. PROMIS-CF scores were also positively associated with MoCA scores. Predictors of 1-year decline in PROMIS-CF scores included CI diagnoses, use of cognitive enhancing medications, higher depression scores, and lower social role function. Our findings suggest potential utility of PROMIS-CF items in a brief patient-administered screening tool for CI.
Metacells untangle large and complex single-cell transcriptome networks
Authors: Bilous Mariia , Tran Loc , Cianciaruso Chiara , Gabriel Aurélie , Michel Hugo , Carmona Santiago J. , Pittet Mikael J. , Gfeller David
Published: August 2022

Background

Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) technologies offer unique opportunities for exploring heterogeneous cell populations. However, in-depth single-cell transcriptomic characterization of complex tissues often requires profiling tens to hundreds of thousands of cells. Such large numbers of cells represent an important hurdle for downstream analyses, interpretation and visualization.

Results

We develop a framework called SuperCell to merge highly similar cells into metacells and perform standard scRNA-seq data analyses at the metacell level. Our systematic benchmarking demonstrates that metacells not only preserve but often improve the results of downstream analyses including visualization, clustering, differential expression, cell type annotation, gene correlation, imputation, RNA velocity and data integration. By capitalizing on the redundancy inherent to scRNA-seq data, metacells significantly facilitate and accelerate the construction and interpretation of single-cell atlases, as demonstrated by the integration of 1.46 million cells from COVID-19 patients in less than two hours on a standard desktop.

Conclusions

SuperCell is a framework to build and analyze metacells in a way that efficiently preserves the results of scRNA-seq data analyses while significantly accelerating and facilitating them.
The composition of braconid wasp communities in three forest fragments in a tropical lowland forest of Panama
Authors: Rodríguez Louise A. , Medianero Enrique
Published: August 2022

Background

In the last 171 years, the forests along the eastern bank of the Panama Canal have been pressured by anthropic activities. Studies of the influence of habitat fragmentation on braconid wasp communities in Central America is scarce, showing the existing information gap on these communities required to implement strategic plans for ecosystem sustainability and conservation. This study investigated how fragmentation affects braconid wasp communities in three areas in Panama City: Metropolitan Natural Park, Albrook and Corozal. Two permanent Malaise Traps were installed in the center of each fragment and were reviewed weekly from May 2019 to March 2020. Alpha and beta diversity indices and the similarity index were used to demonstrate the composition of braconid wasp communities in three forest fragments.

Results

A similarity of 94% was estimated for the subfamily composition and 74% was estimated for the morphospecies composition of wasp community in the fragments studied. Wasp subfamily and morphospecies assemblages were more similar between fragments of Albrook and Metropolitan Natural Park. Richness and abundance of braconid wasps observed were statistically different between the fragments studied.

Conclusion

Richness, abundance, and composition of braconid wasps differ among habitat fragments with high similarity between subfamilies and morphospecies. Therefore, the fragments studied can be used as stepping stones to maintain remaining populations of braconid wasp communities. Monitoring is recommended to assess the effect of fragmentation on the remaining forests.
Overlaps in olfactive signalling coupled with geographic variation may result in localised pollinator sharing between closely related Ficus species
Authors: Deng Xiaoxia , Cheng Yufen , Peng Yan-Qiong , Yu Hui , Proffit Magali , Kjellberg Finn
Published: August 2022

Background

In brood site pollination mutualisms, pollinators are attracted by odours emitted at anthesis. In Ficus, odours of receptive figs differ among species and the specific pollinators generally only enter figs of their host species ensuring a pre-zygotic barrier to plant interspecific hybridisation. However, field observations recorded that, in Guangdong province in China, Valisia javana hilli, the local pollinator of F. hirta, entered and reproduced successfully in the figs of the closely related F. triloba on a regular basis. We propose that closely related Ficus species produce similar receptive fig odours. Under particular contexts of odours locally present, the receptive fig odours of non-host figs of a Ficus species may become attractive to pollinators of closely related Ficus species. We used the headspace technique to collect in situ receptive fig odours of F. triloba in a series of locations in China. Under controlled conditions, we tested the attraction of fig pollinating wasps from F. hirta and F. triloba to host figs and non-host figs in Y tube experiments.

Results

Receptive fig odours of F. triloba though different from those of F. hirta, were mainly composed of a same set of volatile organic compounds. When given the choice between receptive fig odours and air, the pollinating wasps were only attracted by their host’s odours. However, when given a choice between host and non-host figs the pollinators of F. hirta were equally attracted by the two odours while the pollinators of F. triloba tended to be more attracted by their host’s fig odours.

Conclusions

Receptive fig odours vary geographically within species and the differentiation of receptive fig odours between closely related Ficus species is often incomplete. This allows localised or occasional pollinator sharing following different modalities. Cross stimulation when wasps are exposed simultaneously to odours of host and non-host species may be important. While occasional pollinator sharing may play a marginal role when wasp populations are robust, it may ensure the provisioning of new pollinators from the closest relative of a Ficus species if its pollinators go extinct.
Mitochondrial genome sequencing, mapping, and assembly benchmarking for Culicoides species (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae)
Authors: Milián-García Yoamel , Hempel Christopher A. , Janke Lauren A. A. , Young Robert G. , Furukawa-Stoffer Tara , Ambagala Aruna , Steinke Dirk , Hanner Robert H.
Published: August 2022

Background

Mitochondrial genomes are the most sequenced genomes after bacterial and fungal genomic DNA. However, little information on mitogenomes is available for multiple metazoan taxa, such as Culicoides, a globally distributed, megadiverse genus containing 1,347 species.

Aim

 Generating novel mitogenomic information from single Culicoides sonorensis and C. biguttatus specimens, comparing available mitogenome mapping and de novo assembly tools, and identifying the best performing strategy and tools for Culicoides species.

Results

We present two novel and fully annotated mitochondrial haplotypes for two Culicoides species, C. sonorensis and C. biguttatus. We also annotated or re-annotated the only available reference mitogenome for C. sonorensis and C. arakawae. All species present a high similarity in mitogenome organization. The general gene arrangement for all Culicoides species was identical to the ancestral insect mitochondrial genome. Only short spacers were found in C. sonorensis (up to 30 bp), contrary to C. biguttatus (up to 114 bp). The mitochondrial genes ATP8, NAD2, NAD6, and LSU rRNA exhibited the highest nucleotide diversity and pairwise interspecific p genetic distance, suggesting that these genes might be suitable and complementary molecular barcodes for Culicoides identification in addition to the commonly utilized COI gene.

We observed performance differences between the compared mitogenome generation strategies. The mapping strategy outperformed the de novo assembly strategy, but mapping results were partially biased in the absence of species-specific reference mitogenome. Among the utilized tools, BWA performed best for C. sonorensis while SPAdes, MEGAHIT, and MitoZ were among the best for C. biguttatus. The best-performing mitogenome annotator was MITOS2. Additionally, we were able to recover exogenous mitochondrial DNA from Bos taurus (biting midges host) from a C. biguttatus blood meal sample.

Conclusions

Two novel annotated mitogenome haplotypes for C. sonorensis and C. biguttatus using High-Throughput Sequencing are presented. Current results are useful as the baseline for mitogenome reconstruction of the remaining Culicoides species from single specimens to HTS and genome annotation. Mapping to a species-specific reference mitogenome generated better results for Culicoides mitochondrial genome reconstruction than de novo assembly, while de novo assembly resulted better in the absence of a closely related reference mitogenome. These results have direct implications for molecular-based identification of these vectors of human and zoonotic diseases, setting the basis for using the whole mitochondrial genome as a marker in Culicoides identification.