bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
METTL3-mediated m6A modification regulates cell cycle progression of dental pulp stem cells
Authors: Luo Haiyun , Liu Wenjing , Zhang Yanli , Yang Yeqing , Jiang Xiao , Wu Shiqing , Shao Longquan
Published: March 2021

Background

Dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) are a promising cell source in endodontic regeneration and tissue engineering with limited self-renewal and pluripotency capacity. N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is the most prevalent, reversible internal modification in RNAs associated with stem cell fate determination. In this study, we aim to explore the biological effect of m6A methylation in DPSCs.

Methods

m6A immunoprecipitation with deep sequencing (m6A RIP-seq) demonstrated the features of m6A modifications in DPSC transcriptome. Lentiviral vectors were constructed to knockdown or overexpress methyltransferase like 3 (METTL3). Cell morphology, viability, senescence, and apoptosis were analyzed by β-galactosidase, TUNEL staining, and flow cytometry. Bioinformatic analysis combing m6A RIP and shMETTL3 RNA-seq functionally enriched overlapped genes and screened target of METTL3. Cell cycle distributions were assayed by flow cytometry, and m6A RIP-qPCR was used to confirm METTL3-mediated m6A methylation.

Results

Here, m6A peak distribution, binding area, and motif in DPSCs were first revealed by m6A RIP-seq. We also found a relatively high expression level of METTL3 in immature DPSCs with superior regenerative potential and METTL3 knockdown induced cell apoptosis and senescence. A conjoint analysis of m6A RIP and RNA sequencing showed METTL3 depletion associated with cell cycle, mitosis, and alteration of METTL3 resulted in cell cycle arrest. Furthermore, the protein interaction network of differentially expressed genes identified Polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1), a critical cycle modulator, as the target of METTL3-mediated m6A methylation in DPSCs.

Conclusions

These results revealed m6A methylated hallmarks in DPSCs and a regulatory role of METTL3 in cell cycle control. Our study shed light on therapeutic approaches in vital pulp therapy and served new insight into stem cell-based tissue engineering.
Development of the new CPTSD diagnosis for ICD-11
Authors: Maercker Andreas
Published: March 2021

Background

The diagnosis of complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) was proposed several decades ago by scientist-practitioners, almost parallel to the first description of the diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In the previous International Classification of Diseases, version 10 (ICD-10) issued by the World Health Organization (WHO), this symptom constellation was termed ‘enduring personality change after catastrophic experience’. This diagnosis has not been clinically influential, nor has it been subjected to much research. Thus, in a multi-stage process of ICD-11 development, the diagnosis of CPTSD was developed.

Methods

This paper provides a review of the historical lines of development that led to the CPTSD diagnosis, as well as the results since the ICD-11 publication in 2018.

Results

The CPTSD diagnosis comprises the core symptoms of the – newly, narrowly defined – PTSD diagnosis, the three symptom groups of affective, relationship, and self-concept changes. The diagnosis is clinically easy to use in accordance with the WHO development goals for the ICD-11 and has shown good psychodiagnostic properties in various studies, including good discrimination from personality disorder with borderline pattern.

Conclusion

The scholarly use of the new diagnosis has resulted in an increasing number of published studies on this topic in the diagnostic and therapeutic fields.
An analysis of COVID-19 economic measures and attitudes: evidence from social media mining
Authors: Domalewska Dorota
Published: March 2021

This paper explores the public perception of economic measures implemented as a reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic in Poland in March–June 2020. A mixed-method approach was used to analyse big data coming from tweets and Facebook posts related to the mitigation measures to provide evidence for longitudinal trends, correlations, theme classification and perception. The online discussion oscillated around political and economic issues. The implementation of the anti-crisis measures triggered a barrage of criticism pointing out the shortcomings and ineffectiveness of the solutions. The revised relief legislation was accompanied by a wide-reaching informative campaign about the relief package, which decreased negative sentiment. The analysis also showed that with regard to online discussion about risk mitigation, social media users are more concerned about short-term economic and social effects rather than long-term effects of the pandemic. The findings have significant implications for the understanding of public sentiment related to the COVID-19 pandemic, economic attitudes and relief support implemented to fight the adverse effects of the pandemic.
The role of net ecosystem productivity and of inventories in climate change research: the need for “net ecosystem productivity with harvest”, NEPH
Authors: Schulze E. D. , Valentini R. , Bouriaud O.
Published: March 2021

Background

There is an urgent need for quantifying the terrestrial carbon sink in the context of global carbon emissions. However, neither the flux measurements, nor the national wood balances fulfil this purpose. In this discussion article we point at various shortcomings and necessary improvements of these approaches in order to achieve a true quantification of the carbon exchange of land surfaces.

Results

We discuss the necessity of incorporating all lateral fluxes, but mainly the export of biomass by harvest, into the flux balance and to recognize feedbacks between management and fluxes to make flux measurements compatible with inventories. At the same time, we discuss the necessity that national reports of wood use need to fully recognize the use of wood for energy use. Both approaches of establishing an ecosystem carbon balance, fluxes and inventories, have shortcomings.

Conclusions

Including harvest and feedbacks by management appears to be the main requirement for the flux approach. A better quantification of wood use for bioenergy seems a real need for integrating the national wood balances into the global carbon cycle.
Proposed virulence-associated genes of Streptococcus suis isolates from the United States serve as predictors of pathogenicity
Authors: Estrada April A. , Gottschalk Marcelo , Rendahl Aaron , Rossow Stephanie , Marshall-Lund Lacey , Marthaler Douglas G. , Gebhart Connie J.
Published: March 2021

Background

There is limited information on the distribution of virulence-associated genes (VAGs) in U.S.Streptococcus suisisolates, resulting in little understanding of the pathogenic potential of these isolates. This lack also reduces our understanding of the epidemiology associated withS. suisin the United States and thus affects the efficiency of control and prevention strategies.In this study we applied whole genome sequencing (WGS)-based approaches for the characterization ofS. suisand identification of VAGs.

Results

Of 208 S. suisisolates classified as pathogenic, possibly opportunistic, and commensal pathotypes, the genotype based on the classical VAGs (epf,mrp, andslyencoding the extracellular protein factor, muramidase-release protein, and suilysin, respectively) was identified in 9% (epf+/mrp+/sly+) of the pathogenic pathotype. Using the chi-square test and LASSO regression model, the VAGsofs(encoding the serum opacity factor) andsrtF(encoding sortase F) were selected out of 71 published VAGs as having a significant association with pathotype, and both genes were found in 95% of the pathogenic pathotype. Theofs+/srtF+ genotype was also present in 74% of ‘pathogenic’ isolates from a separate validation set of isolates.

Pan-genome clustering resulted in the differentiation of a group of isolates from five swine production companies into clusters corresponding to clonal complex (CC) and virulence-associated (VA) genotypes. The same CC-VA genotype patterns were identified in multiple production companies, suggesting a lack of association between production company, CC, or VA genotype.

Conclusions

The proposedofsandsrtFgenes were stronger predictors for differentiating pathogenic and commensalS. suisisolates compared to the classical VAGs in two sets of U.S. isolates. Pan-genome analysis in combination with metadata (serotype, ST/CC, VA genotype) was illustrated to be a valuable subtyping tool to describe the genetic diversity ofS. suis.
Dynamic connectedness between stock markets in the presence of the COVID-19 pandemic: does economic policy uncertainty matter?
Authors: Youssef Manel , Mokni Khaled , Ajmi Ahdi Noomen
Published: March 2021

This study investigates the dynamic connectedness between stock indices and the effect of economic policy uncertainty (EPU) in eight countries where COVID-19 was most widespread (China, Italy, France, Germany, Spain, Russia, the US, and the UK) by implementing the time-varying VAR (TVP-VAR) model for daily data over the period spanning from 01/01/2015 to 05/18/2020. Results showed that stock markets were highly connected during the entire period, but the dynamic spillovers reached unprecedented heights during the COVID-19 pandemic in the first quarter of 2020. Moreover, we found that the European stock markets (except Italy) transmitted more spillovers to all other stock markets than they received, primarily during the COVID-19 outbreak. Further analysis using a nonlinear framework showed that the dynamic connectedness was more pronounced for negative than for positive returns. Also, findings showed that the direction of the EPU effect on net connectedness changed during the pandemic onset, indicating that information spillovers from a given market may signal either good or bad news for other markets, depending on the prevailing economic situation. These results have important implications for individual investors, portfolio managers, policymakers, investment banks, and central banks.
Changes in anterior segment optical coherence tomography following pars plana vitrectomy without tamponade
Authors: Khodabande Alireza , Mohammadi Massood , Riazi-Esfahani Hamid , Karami Shahab , Mirghorbani Massood , Modjtahedi Bobeck S.
Published: March 2021

Background

To evaluate changes in anterior segment morphology on anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT) following pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) without tamponade.

Methods

Patients who underwent PPV without tamponade for epiretinal membrane were evaluated. Eligible patients underwent intraocular pressure (IOP) measurement and AS-OCT preoperatively as well as 1 month and 6 months post-operatively. Anterior chamber width (ACW), anterior chamber depth (ACD), trabecular iris angle (TIA), angle opening distance at 500 and 750 µm (AOD), and trabecular iris space area at 500 and 750 µm (TISA) at four quadrants were recorded and analyzed. Additionally, the mean values of TIA (MTIA), AOD (MAOD), and TISA (MTISA) for each eye (mean of four quadrants) were analyzed.

Results

23 patients completed the study. The mean age of participants was 56.4 ± 3.6 years of age and 13/23 (56%) were female. Mean IOP of patients was 18.1 ± 1.1, 18.3 ± 1.1, and 18.1 ± 1.2 preoperatively,1 month post-operatively, and 6 months post-operatively, respectively. (p = 0.83). No difference was detected post-operatively in measurements of ACW, ACD, MTIA, MAOD500, MAOD750, MTISA500, and MTISA750.

Conclusion

Pars plana vitrectomy without tamponade was not associated with changes in anterior chamber morphology.
Point-of-care testing for emergency assessment of coagulation in patients treated with direct oral anticoagulants including edoxaban
Authors: Härtig Florian , Birschmann Ingvild , Peter Andreas , Hörber Sebastian , Ebner Matthias , Sonnleitner Matthias , Spencer Charlotte , Bombach Paula , Stefanou Maria-Ioanna , Tünnerhoff Johannes , Mengel Annerose , Kuhn Joachim , Ziemann Ulf , Poli Sven
Published: March 2021

Background

Direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC) including edoxaban are increasingly used for stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation. Despite treatment, annual stroke rate in these patients remains 1–2%. Rapid assessment of coagulation would be useful to guide thrombolysis or reversal therapy in this growing population of DOAC/edoxaban-treated stroke patients. Employing the Hemochron™ Signature Elite point-of-care test system (HC-POCT), clinically relevant plasma concentrations of dabigatran and rivaroxaban can be excluded in a blood sample. However, no data exists on the effect of edoxaban on HC-POCT results.

We evaluated whether edoxaban plasma concentrations above the current treatment thresholds for thrombolysis or anticoagulation reversal (i.e., 30 and 50 ng/mL) can be ruled out with the HC-POCT.

Methods

We prospectively studied patients receiving a first dose of edoxaban. Six blood samples were collected from each patient: before, 0.5, 1, 2, 8, and 24 h after drug intake. HC-POCT-based INR (HC-INR), activated clotting time (HC-ACT+ and HC-ACT-LR), activated partial thromboplastin time (HC-aPTT), and mass spectrometry for edoxaban plasma concentrations were performed at each time-point. We calculated correlations, receiver operating characteristics (ROC) and test-specific cut-offs for ruling out edoxaban concentrations > 30 and > 50 ng/mL in a blood sample.

Results

One hundred twenty blood samples from 20 edoxaban-treated patients were analyzed. Edoxaban plasma concentrations ranged from 0 to 512 ng/mL. HC-INR/HC-ACT+/HC-ACT-LR/HC-aPTT ranged from 0.7–8.3/78–310 s/65–215 s/19–93 s, and Pearson’s correlation coefficients showed moderate to very strong correlations with edoxaban concentrations (r = 0.95/0.79/0.70/0.60). With areas under the ROC curve of 0.997 (95% confidence interval: 0.991–0.971) and 0.989 (0.975–1.000), HC-INR most reliably ruled out edoxaban concentrations > 30 and > 50 ng/mL, respectively, and HC-INR results ≤1.5 and ≤ 2.1 provided specificity/sensitivity of 98.6% (91.2–99.9)/98.0% (88.0–99.9) and 96.8% (88.0–99.4)/96.5% (86.8–99.4).

Conclusions

Our study represents the first systematic evaluation of the HC-POCT in edoxaban-treated patients. Applying sufficiently low assay-specific cut-offs, the HC-POCT may not only be used to reliably rule out dabigatran and rivaroxaban, but also very low edoxaban concentrations in a blood sample. Because the assay-specific cut-offs were retrospectively defined, further investigation is warranted.

Trial registration

ClinicalTrials.gov, registration number: NCT02825394, registered on: 07/07/2016, URL
Modified U-Net for liver cancer segmentation from computed tomography images with a new class balancing method
Authors: Ayalew Yodit Abebe , Fante Kinde Anlay , Mohammed Mohammed Aliy
Published: March 2021

Background

Liver cancer is the sixth most common cancer worldwide. It is mostly diagnosed with a computed tomography scan. Nowadays deep learning methods have been used for the segmentation of the liver and its tumor from the computed tomography (CT) scan images. This research mainly focused on segmenting liver and tumor from the abdominal CT scan images using a deep learning method and minimizing the effort and time used for a liver cancer diagnosis. The algorithm is based on the original UNet architecture. But, here in this paper, the numbers of filters on each convolutional block were reduced and new batch normalization and a dropout layer were added after each convolutional block of the contracting path.

Results

Using this algorithm a dice score of 0.96, 0.74, and 0.63 were obtained for liver segmentation, segmentation of tumors from the liver, and the segmentation of tumor from abdominal CT scan images respectively. The segmentation results of liver and tumor from the liver showed an improvement of 0.01 and 0.11 respectively from other works.

Conclusion

This work proposed a liver and a tumor segmentation method using a UNet architecture as a baseline. Modification regarding the number of filters and network layers were done on the original UNet model to reduce the network complexity and improve segmentation performance. A new class balancing method is also introduced to minimize the class imbalance problem. Through these, the algorithm attained better segmentation results and showed good improvement. However, it faced difficulty in segmenting small and irregular tumors.
Differences in preoperative planning for high-tibial osteotomy between the standing and supine positions
Authors: Matsushita Takehiko , Watanabe Shu , Araki Daisuke , Nagai Kanto , Hoshino Yuichi , Kanzaki Noriyuki , Matsumoto Tomoyuki , Niikura Takahiro , Kuroda Ryosuke
Published: March 2021

Introduction

Previous studies have reported that alignment changes depend on the patient’s position in orthopedic surgery. However, it has not yet been well examined how the patient’s position affects the preoperative planning in high-tibial osteotomy (HTO). Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the patient’s position on preoperative planning in HTO.

Materials and methods

A total of 60 knees in 55 patients who underwent HTO were retrospectively examined. Virtual preoperative planning for medial open-wedge HTO (OWHTO), lateral closed-wedge HTO (CWHTO), and hybrid CWHTO were performed by setting the percentage of the weight-bearing line (%WBL) at 62% as an optimal alignment. The correction angle differences between the supine and standing radiographs were measured. The virtual %WBL (v%WBL) was determined by applying the correction angle obtained from the standing radiograph to the supine radiograph. The %WBL discrepancy (%WBLd) was calculated as v%WBL − 62 (%) to predict the possible correction errors during surgeries. A single regression analysis was performed to examine the correlation between the correction angle difference and %WBLd.

Results

The mean correction angle was significantly higher when the preoperative planning was based on standing radiographs than when based on supine radiographs (P < 0.001), and the mean difference was 2.2 ± 1.5°. The difference between the two conditions in the medial opening gaps for OWHTO, lateral wedge sizes (mm) for CWHTO, and hybrid CWHTO were 2.6 ± 2.0, 2.3 ± 1.6, and 1.9 ± 1.4, respectively. The mean v%WBL was 71.2% ± 7.3%, and the mean %WBLd was 10.1% ± 7.4%. A single regression analysis revealed a linear correlation between the correction angle difference and %WBLd (%WBLd = 4.72 × correction angle difference + 0.08). No statistically significant difference in the parameters was found between the supine and standing radiographs postoperatively.

Conclusions

We found significant differences in the estimated correction angles between the supine and standing radiographs in the planning for HTO. Therefore, surgeons should carefully consider the difference between supine and standing radiographs and estimate the possible correction error during surgery when planning a HTO.
Sepsis profile and outcome of preterm neonates admitted to neonatal intensive care unit of Cairo University Hospital
Authors: Salama Khaled , Gad Amira , El Tatawy Sarah
Published: March 2021

Background

This study demonstrates the experience of the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of a tertiary referral center in Egypt in management of prematures with neonatal sepsis. This retrospective study included preterm neonates admitted to NICU with clinical and/or laboratory diagnosis of sepsis. Blood culture was done followed by antimicrobial susceptibility testing for positive cases. Neonates with sepsis were classified into early onset sepsis (EOS) and late onset sepsis (LOS). Hematological scoring system (HSS) for detection of sepsis was calculated.

Results

The study included 153 cases of neonatal sepsis; 63 (41.2%) EOS and 90 (58.8%) LOS. The majority of the neonates had very low or moderately low birth weight (90.9%). All neonates received first-line antibiotics in the form of ampicillin-sulbactam, and gentamicin. Second-line antibiotics were administered to 133 neonates (86.9%) as vancomycin and imipenem-cilastatin. Mortalities were more common among EOS group (p < 0.017). Positive blood cultures were detected in 61 neonates (39.8%) with a total number of 66 cultures. The most commonly encountered organisms were Klebsiella MDR and CoNS (31.8% each). Klebsiella MDR was the most predominant organism in EOS (28.9%), while CoNS was the most predominant in LOS (39.2%) The detected organisms were divided into 3 families; Enterobacteriaceae, non-fermenters, and Gram-positive family. There 3 families were 100% resistant to ampicillin. The highest sensitivity in Enterobacteriaceae and Non-fermenters was for colistin and polymyxin-B. An HSS of 3–8 had a sensitivity and specificity of 62.3% and 57.6%, respectively for diagnosis of culture-proven sepsis.

Conclusion

Neonatal sepsis was encountered in 21.5% of admitted preterm neonates; LOS was more common (58.8%). Mortality was 51.6%. Klebsiella MDR and CoNS were the most commonly encountered organisms in both EOS and LOS. The isolated families were 100% resistant to ampicillin. The hematological scoring system (HSS) showed limited sensitivity for detection of sepsis.
Novel geometric classification of 3D seismic and its application to the Habshan clinoforms of Western Oman
Authors: Krayenbuehl Thomas , Balushi Nadeem , Gesbert Stephane
Published: March 2021

The principles and benefits of seismic sequence stratigraphy have withstood the test of time, but the application of seismic sequence stratigraphy is still carried out mostly manually. Several tool kits have been developed to semiautomatically extract dense stacks of horizons from seismic data, but they stop short of exploiting the full potential of seismo-stratigraphic models. We introduce novel geometric seismic attributes that associate relative geologic age models with seismic geomorphological models. We propose that a relative sea level curve can be derived from the models. The approach is demonstrated on a case study from the Lower Cretaceous Kahmah Group in the northwestern part of Oman where it helps in sweet-spotting and derisking elusive stratigraphic traps.
The magneto-seismic method in geoscience
Authors: Li Qiuzi , Deckman Harry W. , Ertaş Deniz , Feng Lang
Published: March 2021

Key concepts and potential applications associated with a phenomenon hitherto unexplored by the geoscience community, which we have named the magneto-seismic effect, are introduced. The method is based on the simple principle that when an electric charge moves in the presence of an external magnetic field, the charge carrier experiences an instantaneous force, which is equal to the vector cross product of the current it carries and the magnetic field that is present. This “Lorentz force” can create both compressional and shear sound waves in electrical conductors by passing an alternating current through them via an electromagnetic source. In laboratory settings, this magneto-seismic effect can produce readily detectable rock frame displacements. This opens up the possibility of developing new experimental methods to interrogate elastic and poroelastic response of rocks in a broad frequency range from subhertz to megahertz, potentially closing the frequency gap between traditional ultrasonic characterization and properties of interest in the seismic frequency band. In exploration settings, electric current dipole/bipole sources, or novel rotating magnetic dipole sources, can be used to generate electric currents at depth. These currents produce seismic waves at interfaces (or boundaries) where conductivity abruptly changes. The amplitude and propagation directions of these generated seismic waves depend on the relative orientation of the interfaces (or boundaries) with respect to the earth's magnetic field. These seismic waves can then be recorded by receivers at the surface and, in principle, might be processed to yield a resistivity map with seismic resolution. It is shown that processing to obtain a signal from deep targets is significantly limited by seismic background noise. However, an acceptable signal-to-noise ratio might be achieved for shallower targets. The difference between the magneto-seismic response and the previously well-studied electro-seismic response will be discussed.
Constructing a geophysical test site for a coastal community's research and education activities
Authors: Ahmed Mohamed , Turner Ryan , Haley Michael , Shyrigh Samantha , Colmenero Dionel , Penchala Tejaswini
Published: March 2021

A geophysical test site (GTS) contains subsurface targets of known materials, orientations, and depths. GTSs offer unique opportunities for geophysical research, training, and educational activities. They provide platforms to investigate the penetration and resolution of different geophysical techniques for characterizing the shallow subsurface. GTS-based field exercises represent an interesting, motivating, rewarding, and enjoyable experience for students and instructors. We have constructed a GTS at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi that contains several objects (e.g., steel drums, plastic drums, plastic buckets, steel pipes, and well covers) buried at depths ranging from 0.5 to 3 m to simulate real-life situations. In this article, we provide a thorough description of the site location, subsurface geology, surface topography, and construction methodology, as well as the types, locations, orientations, and depths of the subsurface targets. Research and education significance and implications of the GTS are also described. This article could serve as a reference for the construction of new GTSs worldwide.
Behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia: a new framework for holistic understanding and non-pharmacological management
Authors: James Ian Andrew , Gray Kristina , Moniz-Cook Esme , Lee Katy , Reichelt Katharina , Richardson Jonathan
Published: March 2021

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) informs us that the first-line treatments for behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) are non-pharmacological. Although psychotropics used to be the main strategy in the management of behaviours that challenge, there has been an increase in the use of biopsychosocial formulations since 2010, and there are now over a dozen to choose from. However, many are overly focused on obtaining information about the agitation, and less specific about providing details of the actions required to manage the behaviours. The NICE guidelines too fail to provide specific guidance on which non-pharmacological approaches to use. This article argues for giving equal weight to both the collection of meaningful information and the development of ‘informed actions’, because it is the actions that lead to change. The article outlines a management programme providing a framework for the assessment, formulation and treatment of agitation in dementia. The work draws on theory, evidence-based practice and practice-based evidence to provide a model with sufficient structure and flexibility to be useful for clinicians across a range of settings and professional groups.
Liqui-Tablet: the Innovative Oral Dosage Form Using the Newly Developed Liqui-Mass Technology
Authors: Lam Matthew , Asare-Addo Kofi , Nokhodchi Ali
Published: March 2021

In this study, an attempt was made to produce Liqui-Tablets for the first time. This was carried out through the compaction of naproxen Liqui-Pellets. The incentive to convert the novel Liqui-Pellet into Liqui-Tablet was due to the array of inherent advantages of the popular and preferred tablet dosage form. The study showed that naproxen Liqui-Tablet could be successfully produced and the rapid drug release rate (100% drug release ~ 20 min) could be achieved under pH 1.2, where naproxen is insoluble. It was observed that the different pH of the dissolution medium affected the trend of drug release from formulations with varying amounts of liquid vehicle. The order of the fastest drug-releasing formulations was different depending on the pH used. The presence of Neusilin US2 showed considerable enhancement in the drug release rate as well as improving Liqui-Tablet robustness and hardness. Furthermore, images from X-ray micro-tomography displayed a uniform distribution of components in the Liqui-Tablet. The accelerated stability studies showed acceptable stability in terms of dissolution profile.
Electric quadrupole moment of a neutral non-relativistic particle in the presence of screw dislocation
Authors: Hassanabadi H. , Zare S. , Kříž J. , Lütfüoğlu B. C.
Published: March 2021

In this contribution, we investigate the interaction between electric and magnetic fields with an electric quadrupole moment of a spinless particle moving in an elastic medium which has a topological defect (screw dislocation). By considering this interaction, the Schrödinger equation is exactly solved by using the analytical method. Thus, the eigenfunction and energy eigenvalues for two configurations are found. Meanwhile, by observing a shift in the angular momentum quantum number, the energy eigenvalues and the wave function of the system are modified, due to the screw dislocation in the medium.
Revisiting the minimal universal extra dimensions with mass-dimension-five operators
Authors: Dias M. , Duarte Laura , de Campos F.
Published: March 2021

We examine a minimally modified version of the minimal universal extra dimension, using electric and magnetic dipole moments and Higgs portals operators to describe new interactions between fermionic dark matter and Standard Model particles. We assume the dark matter in the form of weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP). This suggests that the four-dimensional

D theory is naturally suppressed by the size of the extra dimension R, without adding new free parameters to the model. We show the LHC potential to discover the fermionic WIMP considering the mono-jet +

channel, highlighting the existence of a viable mass range and compactification scale,

, in this new scenario. Using ATLAS data for this channel, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of

in the

analysis, we found a lower bound for

. We identify that for a compactification scale of

, our fermionic particle is a viable candidate to a dark matter constituent which has been shown to be compatible with relic abundance measurements from the Planck Collaboration.
Association Between Ionized Calcium Concentrations During Hemostatic Transfusion and Calcium Treatment With Mortality in Major Trauma
Authors: Chanthima Phuriphong , Yuwapattanawong Kornkamon , Thamjamrassri Thanyalak , Nathwani Rajen , Stansbury Lynn G. , Vavilala Monica S. , Arbabi Saman , Hess John R.
Published: March 2021

BACKGROUND:

Transfusion of citrated blood products may worsen resuscitation-induced hypocalcemia and trauma outcomes, suggesting the need for protocolized early calcium replacement in major trauma. However, the dynamics of ionized calcium during hemostatic resuscitation of severe injury are not well studied. We determined the frequency of hypocalcemia and quantified the association between the first measured ionized calcium concentration [iCa] and calcium administration early during hemostatic resuscitation and in-hospital mortality.

METHODS:

We performed a retrospective cohort study of all admissions to our regional level 1 trauma center who (1) were ≥15 years old; (2) presented from scene of injury; (3) were admitted between October 2016 and September 2018; and (4) had a Massive Transfusion Protocol activation. They also (1) received blood products during transport or during the first 3 hours of in-hospital care (1st3h) of trauma center care and (2) had at least one [iCa] recorded in that time. Demographic, injury severity, admission shock and laboratory data, blood product use and timing, and in-hospital mortality were extracted from Trauma Registry and Transfusion Service databases and electronic medical records. Citrate load was calculated on a unit-by-unit basis and used to calculate an administered calcium/citrate molar ratio. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses for the binary outcome of in-hospital death were performed.

RESULTS:

A total of 11,474 trauma patients were admitted to the emergency department over the study period, of whom 346 (3%; average age: 44 ± 18 years; 75% men) met all study criteria. In total, 288 (83.2%) had hypocalcemia at first [iCa] determination; 296 (85.6%) had hypocalcemia in the last determination in the 1st3h; and 177 (51.2%) received at least 1 calcium replacement dose during that time. Crude risk factors for in-hospital death included age, injury severity score (ISS), new ISS (NISS), Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) head, admission systolic blood pressure (SBP), pH, and lactate; all P < .001. Higher in-hospital mortality was significantly associated with older age, higher NISS, AIS head, and admission lactate, and lower admission SBP and pH. There was no relationship between mortality and first [iCa] or calcium dose corrected for citrate load.

CONCLUSIONS:

In our study, though most patients had hypocalcemia during the 1st3h of trauma center care, neither first [iCa] nor administered calcium dose corrected for citrate load were significantly associated with in-patient mortality. Clinically, hypocalcemia during early hemostatic resuscitation after severe injury is important, but specific treatment protocols must await better understanding of calcium physiology in acute injury.
Contextualizing Instruction for Struggling Writers
Authors: Nienkark Lisa
Published: March 2021

During the past decade, much reform has taken place within reading and writing developmental education at community colleges. One area of reform has focused on reducing the number of developmental education credits taken while accelerating the students’ literacy growth. This article describes a pilot project where, instead of taking a developmental education reading and writing course, the students co-enrolled in a zero-credit social sciences skills lab and at least one college-level gateway course. The lab focuses on reading and writing in the disciplines. Using classroom examples, the article also outlines the pedagogical approaches used in the lab. This 2018–19 pilot was characterized as promising, using prescribed institutional success metrics; as a result, version 2.0 will be implemented for 2021–22.
A Love Letter to the Future (from the Surgical Team of the Trans Sciences Collective)
Authors: Weaver Harlan
Published: March 2021

“A Love Letter to the Future” speculatively fabulates a future that has undergone a (the?) surgery at the hands of a team of trans scientists. Explicating the how and why of decisions to remove organs of oppression, systems that engender violence, and individual nodules of violence, the letter details the scientists' work in remaking the future into a space and place where trans thrives. The letter also delineates how the trans sciences that unite the collective—experiments in building and reworking the self/body through (re-)mappings of community, ways of being in the world, and networks of care that challenge larger social orders—involve unique temporal and geographical expertise. The letter details how this unique expertise, which emerges through ongoing labors challenging the construction of trans - “modern,” identifying the work of quick and slow systemic violences, and mapping community and connectivity well outside understandings that join family with blood with the domestic, led to the collective's nomination for the surgery in the first place. Finally, the letter details processes necessary to the future's recovery and also extends love to this future, the multitudes it contains, and its emergent connectivities between trans and justice.
Is Early Partnership Formation Instrumental for Fertility in Germany?
Authors: Zimmermann Okka
Published: March 2021

Using panel data from childless respondents of the German Family Panel (pairfam, n=3,802 respondents), this paper investigates whether fertility orientations (biographical orientations with respect to fertility) influence the risk of different partnership transitions among German men and women over the age of 18 (for n=14,572 observation periods between two panel waves). Significant influences are found for both gender and partnership transition types, and are generally stronger among men than women and for the transition to a coresidential as opposed to a romantic partnership. Uncertainty about anticipated fertility has a stronger negative impact on transition risks among men than among women.

Results strongly suggest that the early stages of the partnership formation process are instrumental in terms of future fertility in Germany, at least to some degree. This indicates that a more comprehensive conceptualisation and analysis of fertility within the life course paradigm (as suggested by Huinink/Kohli 2014) should consider the impacts of fertility orientations on life course events in other dimensions, especially among men. Viewed more broadly, the results also underline two factors: the role of agency in coordinating life course dimensions in time and space in order to maximise individual welfare; and the importance of considering the impacts that anticipation of future life course events will have, as suggested by different theoretical approaches.
The Effect of Unsuccessful Past Repurchases on Future Repurchasing Decisions
Authors: Friesen Geoffrey C. , Jeutang Noel Pavel , Unlu Emre
Published: March 2021

We find that managers are less likely to repurchase stocks when they lose money on past stock repurchases but find no robust evidence that past gains on repurchases influence future repurchasing activity. This asymmetric sensitivity is strongest for young CEOs and those with the shortest tenure. Also, future repurchases are more sensitive to past repurchase losses for CEOs whose previous lifetime experience with the stock market is unfavorable. The sensitivity of future repurchases to past losses costs firms, on average, about 3.7% per year. When this cost is decomposed into systematic and idiosyncratic components, we find that nearly half (1.8%) comes from mistiming idiosyncratic shocks. Past losses on repurchases have a significant and negative impact on the CEO’s future bonus and increase the likelihood that future CEO termination is involuntary. We also find that negative outcomes from past repurchases encourage the subsequent use of dividends. Our findings suggest that outcomes of past repurchases have economically significant consequences through both nonbehavioral (career concerns) and behavioral (snakebite effect) factors.

This paper was accepted by Tyler Shumway, finance.
Effectiveness of Digital and Paper-Based Identification Keys for Plants with Slovenian Pre-service Teachers
Authors: Torkar Gregor
Published: March 2021

Teaching about biodiversity and its conservation could be an effective way to teach the importance of different species and human dependence on ecological support systems. This study compares the effectiveness of a digital and a paper-based dichotomous identification key for teaching pre-service teachers about plant species diversity. Twenty-four Slovenian teachers in pre-service training used a digital version of the key on tablet computers and twenty-nine used a paper-based version to identify woody species in the garden near their university faculty. Both keys contained the same species, identical photographs and the same sequence of steps to identify the species. The accuracy and time taken to identify the five species were measured. The participants also completed a questionnaire about the usability of the identification key. Overall, both versions of the key were equally good for determining species names. The digital version of the key was found to be more time-effective than the paper version only when multiple identification steps were required to identify species. The results confirm that those who scored better on the identification tasks have a better general opinion about the usability of the key; especially students using digital version of the key. Implications for teachers using or creating identification keys are discussed in the conclusion.
Time-division and color multiplexing light-field display using liquid-crystal display panels to induce focal accommodation: publisher’s note
Authors: Watanabe Yuta , Kakeya Hideki
Published: March 2021

This publisher’s note identifies an error in Appl. Opt.
60, 1966 (2021)APOPAI0003-693510.1364/AO.413352.
Multi-spectral intravascular photoacoustic/ultrasound/optical coherence tomography tri-modality system with a fully-integrated 0.9-mm full field-of-view catheter for plaque vulnerability imaging
Authors: Leng Ji , Zhang Jinke , Li Chenguang , Shu Chengyou , Wang Boquan , Lin Riqiang , Liang Yanmei , Wang Keqiang , Shen Li , Lam Kwok-ho , Xie Zhihua , Gong Xiaojing , Ge Junbo , Song Liang
Published: March 2021

Myocardial infarctions are most often caused by the so-called vulnerable plaques, usually featured as non-obstructive lesions with a lipid-rich necrotic core, thin-cap fibroatheroma, and large plaque size. The identification and quantification of these characteristics are the keys to evaluate plaque vulnerability. However, single modality intravascular methods, such as intravascular ultrasound, optical coherence tomography and photoacoustic, can hardly achieve all the comprehensive information to satisfy clinical needs. In this paper, for the first time, we developed a novel multi-spectral intravascular tri-modality (MS-IVTM) imaging system, which can perform 360° continuous rotation and pull-backing with a 0.9-mm miniature catheter and achieve simultaneous acquisition of both morphological characteristics and pathological compositions. Intravascular tri-modality imaging demonstrates the ability of our MS-IVTM system to provide macroscopic and microscopic structural information of the vessel wall, with identity and quantification of lipids with multi-wavelength excitation. This study offers clinicians and researchers a novel imaging tool to facilitate the accurate diagnosis of vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques. It also has the potential of clinical translations to help better identify and evaluate high-risk plaques during coronary interventions.
High-sensitivity, fast-response ethanol gas optical sensor based on a dual microfiber coupler structure with the Vernier effect
Authors: Jiang Yuxuan , Yi Yating , Brambilla Gilberto , Wang Pengfei
Published: March 2021

A high-sensitivity ethanol gas sensor based on two microfiber couplers and the Vernier effect is examined in this Letter using the unique variation rate conversion point characteristics. The output spectrum of the two couplers connected in parallel are superimposed to form a symmetrical envelope curve, showing high responsivity to variations in the external environment. Ethanol sensitivity was achieved by coating the waist region of the coupler with a mixture of Nile red and polymethyl methacrylate. When the concentration of ethanol gas changes, the envelope spectrum shifts. Experimental results show that a high responsivity of 160 pm/ppm can be obtained by tracing the reference peaks in the envelope curve and that the response and recovery times are on the order of seconds.
Rhombic optical path difference bias white light interferometric fiber-optic gyroscope
Authors: Li Ang , Jing Zhenguo , Liu Qiang , Liu Yueying , Cheung Yang , Huang Zhiyuan , Zhou Da-Peng , Peng Wei
Published: March 2021

We present a novel, to the best of our knowledge, white light interferometric fiber-optic gyroscope (IFOG) scheme using a fiber-optic rhombic optical path difference (OPD) bias structure to interrogate with a sensing coil to realize rotation rate measurement without a phase modulator. The OPD bias structure composed of four (

2

×
1

) 3 dB single-mode fiber couplers was constructed to implement non-reciprocal OPD bias. White light interferometric demodulation was utilized to acquire the change in OPD due to the Sagnac-phase shift. Absolute linear output can be obtained. We produced the principle prototype of rhombic OPD bias white light IFOG without utilizing a phase modulator. An experimental demonstration of the IFOG prototype system achieves linear output with respect to the OPD difference in detecting rotation rate.
Signal-to-signal neural networks for improved spike estimation from calcium imaging data
Authors: Sebastian Jilt , Sur Mriganka , Murthy Hema A. , Magimai-Doss Mathew
Published: March 2021

Spiking information of individual neurons is essential for functional and behavioral analysis in neuroscience research. Calcium imaging techniques are generally employed to obtain activities of neuronal populations. However, these techniques result in slowly-varying fluorescence signals with low temporal resolution. Estimating the temporal positions of the neuronal action potentials from these signals is a challenging problem. In the literature, several generative model-based and data-driven algorithms have been studied with varied levels of success. This article proposes a neural network-based signal-to-signal conversion approach, where it takes as input raw-fluorescence signal and learns to estimate the spike information in an end-to-end fashion. Theoretically, the proposed approach formulates the spike estimation as a single channel source separation problem with unknown mixing conditions. The source corresponding to the action potentials at a lower resolution is estimated at the output. Experimental studies on the spikefinder challenge dataset show that the proposed signal-to-signal conversion approach significantly outperforms state-of-the-art-methods in terms of Pearson’s correlation coefficient, Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient and yields comparable performance for the area under the receiver operating characteristics measure. We also show that the resulting system: (a) has low complexity with respect to existing supervised approaches and is reproducible; (b) is layer-wise interpretable, and (c) has the capability to generalize across different calcium indicators.
Comprehensive analysis of cancer breakpoints reveals signatures of genetic and epigenetic contribution to cancer genome rearrangements
Authors: Cheloshkina Kseniia , Poptsova Maria
Published: March 2021

Understanding mechanisms of cancer breakpoint mutagenesis is a difficult task and predictive models of cancer breakpoint formation have to this time failed to achieve even moderate predictive power. Here we take advantage of a machine learning approach that can gather important features from big data and quantify contribution of different factors. We performed comprehensive analysis of almost 630,000 cancer breakpoints and quantified the contribution of genomic and epigenomic features–non-B DNA structures, chromatin organization, transcription factor binding sites and epigenetic markers. The results showed that transcription and formation of non-B DNA structures are two major processes responsible for cancer genome fragility. Epigenetic factors, such as chromatin organization in TADs, open/closed regions, DNA methylation, histone marks are less informative but do make their contribution. As a general trend, individual features inside the groups show a relatively high contribution of G-quadruplexes and repeats and CTCF, GABPA, RXRA, SP1, MAX and NR2F2 transcription factors. Overall, the cancer breakpoint landscape can be represented by well-predicted hotspots and poorly predicted individual breakpoints scattered across genomes. We demonstrated that hotspot mutagenesis has genomic and epigenomic factors, and not all individual cancer breakpoints are just random noise but have a definite mutation signature. Besides we found a long-range action of some features on breakpoint mutagenesis. Combining omics data, cancer-specific individual feature importance and adding the distant to local features, predictive models for cancer breakpoint formation achieved 70–90% ROC AUC for different cancer types; however precision remained low at 2% and the recall did not exceed 50%. On the one hand, the power of models strongly correlates with the size of available cancer breakpoint and epigenomic data, and on the other hand finding strong determinants of cancer breakpoint formation still remains a challenge. The strength of predictive signals of each group and of each feature inside a group can be converted into cancer-specific breakpoint mutation signatures. Overall our results add to the understanding of cancer genome rearrangement processes.