bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Measuring Health System Efficiency; A Protocol Study
Authors: Hosseinzadeh Lotfi Farhad , Olyaeemanesh Alireza , Mohamadi Efat , Majdzadeh Reza , Akbari Sari Ali , Harirchi Iraj , Haghdoost Ali Akbar , Sharafi Hamid , Sadat Sajadi Haniye , Goodarzi Zahra , Noori Hekmat Somayeh , Kiani Mohammad Mehdi , Freidoony Leila , Takian Amirhossein
Published: November 2022

Background: To improve healthcare services’ quality, countries should measure their health systems’ efficiency and performance by robust methods.
Objectives: We aimed to develop a national study to measure the efficiency of the health system in Iran.
Methods: The literature review identified several methods for measuring efficiency; the most common one was data envelopment analysis (DEA). We adopted DEA, but its findings were simplistic and inaccurate, so we began to modify the method by determining the weight of each indicator. We identified the efficiency measurement indicators, in line with international standards and uniformed units, and then readjusted our input/output indicators according to the study context through four expert panels. We collected data and classified the input/output indicators, followed by determining each indicator’s weight and standard limits. Then we rationalized our previous results by applying the revised model. The initial new results of the refined model were valid, accurate, and consistent with previous studies, as approved by experts. We defined proper modeling to achieve the stated objectives. After investigating various DEA models, we finally designed a new model that was consistent with the existing data and conditions, entitled EDEA (extended DEA), to analyze other subprojects.
Conclusions: The conventional DEA methods may not be accurate enough to measure health systems’ efficiency. By modifying modeling process, we propose a modified DEA with a very low error rate. We suggest that others interested in measuring health system efficiency adopt our modified approach to increase accuracy and create more meaningful policy-oriented results.
Investigating the Status of Components of Educational Ethical Values Among Students of Southeastern Universities of Iran
Authors: Shahabinia Fereshteh , Mohammadi Mehdi , Jahani Jafar , Sarvestani Maryam Shafie
Published: November 2022

Background: Undoubtedly, ethical and ethical values play a significant role in directing any field of behavior and activity in which a person engages. Students are confronted with different situations and demands in the university environment, necessitating different ethical and immorality behaviors.
Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the components of ethical values among students at Zahedan universities.
Methods: In this descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study, 426 students were selected by stratified random sampling from Islamic Azad University, Sistan and Baluchestan University, and Medical Sciences University. Data were collected through a researcher-made questionnaire after calculating validity and reliability on four components: Academic honesty, academic dishonesty, research honesty, and research dishonesty. Data were analyzed using SPSS23 software with a one-sample t-test and MANOVA.
Results: From the perspective of students of different universities in Zahedan, the mean academic honesty, research honesty, academic dishonesty, and research dishonesty among students were less than the desired level. There was no significant difference between male and female students’ views on the mean of ethical value components among students. However, there was a significant difference between students’ views in different departments and universities about the average components of ethical value among students.
onclusions: Considering the low average of scientific and research honesty among students relative to the desired limit and the significance of this difference, we need to increase students’ awareness of ethical values, observe justice and practical implementation of examples of ethical values by professors, and encourage individuals to adhere to ethical values.
Designing a Justice-Oriented Organization Model with the Approach of Ethical Values Studied by Islamic Azad Universities of Sistan and Baluchestan Province
Authors: Shahraki Sanavi Farah , Fariborzi Elham , Nasseri Naziasadat
Published: November 2022

Background: University, as the foundation of the higher education system and a center for the training of specialized and efficient human resources, needs to establish justice that fits with cultural and moral teachings.
Objectives: The present study aimed to design a justice-oriented organizational model with the approach of moral values in the Islamic Azad university of Sistan and Baluchestan.
Methods: This was a descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study. Quantitative data were collected with a researcher-made questionnaire with appropriate validity and reliability. In this study, 248 managers and employees were enrolled using a simple random sampling method based on Morgan’s table, and SPSS21 and Lisrel8.5 were utilized to analyze the data, applying factor analysis tests, Pearson correlation, and a structural equation model.
Results: The results showed that the four components of organizational communication, servant leadership, human resource management, and Islamic work ethics with the values of 0.94, 0.82, 0.76, and 0.76, respectively, had the most prominent roles; however, organizational ethical values had the lowest role with the value of 0.16, as evidenced by the justice-oriented organizational model with the approach of moral values.
Conclusions: According to the findings, it is recommended that managers improve the understanding of organizational justice on the part of employees through proper communication with the servant leadership style and based on fairness in human resource management functions and Islamic work ethical issues.
Factors Contributing to the Married Men’s attitudes towards wife-beating in Indonesia
Authors: Ekonugraheni Dyah Hapsari , Lidya Eva , . Yusnaini , Yanti Mery
Published: November 2022

Background: Domestic violence is a common problem in Indonesia, especially intimate partner violence (IPV). This study aims to analyze the predictors of attitudes of married men towards wife-beating (WB) for neglecting their children.
Methods: The research data comes from the 7th Demography and Health Survey collected by the U.S. Agency for International Development in 2017. The respondents were 10,009 married male respondents aged 15-54 and responded to question 618 (Do you agree WB by husband for neglecting their children?).
Results: The results showed that of the ten independent variables identified as predictors of married men’s attitude towards WB for neglecting their children, only six independent variables had a significant relationship, including adultery, age, smoking habit, location of residence, education level, and polygamy. Of these six independent variables, two independent variables (level of education and age) had a negative relationship, and four variables had a positive relationship with dependent variable significantly, p <0.01, with respective contributions of 82% (adultery), 121% (smoking habit), 125% (location of residence), and 233% (polygamy). The final logistic regression model can explain dependent variable of 2.06% significantly, X2 (6) = 170.43, p <0.01.
Conclusion: This study suggests government institutions to make policy change in several sectors, such as education, social, information, tourism, health, economic, and regional development policy.
Socioeconomic Status as Predictors of Adherence to COVID-19 Protocols by Market Men and Women in Ogun State, Nigeria
Authors: Adesina Okueso Samuel , Buraimo Olayinka , Olugbemiga Adeleye Adewale , Adekoya Folajimi Adebolu
Published: November 2022

Background:     Adherence to COVID-19 protocols is a serious issue in Nigeria and this has been worrisome to public health practitioners, including health educators. Obeying precautionary measures has been a great challenge especially among market men and women, including their customers, which appears to be due to several variables. This study examined the impact of socioeconomic status, including income level, level of education, religious affiliation, gender, family structure, cultural background, and age group of market men and women on adherence to COVID-19 protocols in Ogun State, Nigeria.
Methods: The study adopted descriptive survey research design where structured and validated questionnaire was used as the instrument for data collection. Multi-stage sampling procedure was employed to select the sample for the study from the old Ijebu and Egba components of the State, including Ita-Osu new market in Ijebu-Ode and Oba Lipede Market in Abeokuta were purposively selected for the study. In each of the market, n=250 market men and women were randomly selected using simple random sampling technique to make a total sample of n=500, out of this, n=481 questionnaires were retrieved to make a total of 96.0% rate of return.
Results: The results revealed that socioeconomic factors, including gender, income level, type of business, and family structure significantly predicted adherence to COVID-19 protocols at P< 0.05.
Conclusion: It was concluded that market men and women in Ogun State do not significantly adhere to COVID-19 protocols, and the identified socioeconomic factors significantly predicted adherence to the protocols. Recommendation was made to involve health educators at all levels to disseminate health information to promote improved health literacy and carry out interventions considering the aforementioned socioeconomic variables towards improving adherence to the protocols.
Internet Pornography Viewing, Mental Health of Viewers, and Socio-Demographic Determinants of the Behaviour among Youths in Ogun State, Nigeria
Authors: Okunola John Lola , Oduntan Muideen , Olayode Adeoye Adeponle , Fakunle Sunday Olutayo
Published: November 2022

Background: Internet use has become pervasive in the society and has facilitated unrestricted access to sexual images and videos. Studies have discussed the social and psychological issues associated with this behaviour, especially among youths. However, there is paucity of studies on the prevalence of internet pornography viewing in Nigeria, the socio-demographic determinants of the behaviour, and its psycho-social effects on Nigerian youths. This study examined pornography viewing, socio-demographic determinants of the behaviour, and mental health of viewers.
Methods: The study adopted a cross-sectional descriptive survey design and a multistage sampling technique. The study was conducted among undergraduate students of two tertiary institutions in Ogun State Nigeria. Three hundred and fifty (350) copies of questionnaires were administered. Data were collected on internet utilization, prevalence of pornography viewing, and mental health of viewers. Data were analysed through descriptive statistics for categorical data and chi-square test of independence. Basic ethical principles were adhered to.
Results: The prevalence rate of internet pornography viewing was 82.93%. There were significant relationships between gender, marital status and pornography viewing (p<0.05) as pornography viewing was higher among males (80%) than females (32%) and higher among engaged (68%), single (65%) than married (18.5%). Majority of the respondents (60%) complained about their mental health.
Conclusion: Internet pornography utilization is endemic among youths in Ogun state Nigeria as both males and females patronize internet pornography sites. Pornography viewing also has mental health implication on youths in Ogun State Nigeria. The findings of this study suggest the need for public sensitization among youths about the risks associated pornography viewing.
Solution of complex differential equations with variable coefficients by using reduced differential transform
Authors: Düz Murat
Published: November 2022

In this article, solution of complex partial derivative equations with variable coefficients from the first and second order have been investigated. For this solution, an iteration relation was obtained using the reduced differential transform method. This method also was been applied for ordinary complex differential equations which examined in the literature. The solution which has been obtained has been seen compatible with the literature.
New existence and uniqueness result for fractional Bagley-Torvik differential equation
Authors: Baghani Hamid , Feckan Michal , Farokhi-Ostad Javad , Alzabut Jehad
Published: November 2022

Inspired by the paper of Fazli and Nieto in [Open Math. 17 (2019) 499–512], we establish new existence and uniqueness result for a type of fractional Bagley–Torvik differential equation. Reported result not only generalizes previous results but also adopts different technique. We finish this study by concluding remarks which discuss the preference of our theorem compared to previous results. An example is constructed with specific parameters that requires weaker conditions for the existence of a unique solution. Meanwhile, we construct an iterative sequence that converges to the unique solution and can not be commented via the results of Fazli and Nieto.
Existence and nonexistence of positive solutions for the second-order m-point eigenvalue impulsive boundary value problem
Authors: Oz Dondu , Karaca Ilkay Yaslan
Published: November 2022

This paper is devoted to the study of the existence and nonexistence of positive solutions for a second-order m-point eigenvalue impulsive boundary value problem. We use the fixed point theorems on the cones in order to achieve our results.
Join-semilattices whose principal filters are pseudocomplemented lattices
Authors: Chajda Ivan , Länger Helmut
Published: November 2022

This paper deals with join-semilattices whose sections, i.e. principal filters, are pseudocomplemented lattices. The pseudocomplement of a∨b in the section [b,1] is denoted by a → b and can be considered as the connective implication in a certain kind of intuitionistic logic. Contrary to the case of Brouwerian semilattices, sections need not be distributive lattices. This essentially allows possible applications in non-classical logics. We present a connection of the semilattices mentioned in the beginning with the so-called non-classical implication semilattices which can be converted into I-algebras having everywhere defined operations. Moreover, we relate our structures to sectionally and relatively residuated semilattices which means that our logical structures are closely connected with substructural logics. We show that I-algebras form a congruence distributive, 3-permutable and weakly regular variety.
Blow-up and decay of solutions for a delayed Timoshenko equation with variable-exponents
Authors: Yüksekkaya Hazal , Piskin Erhan
Published: November 2022

This work deals with a Timoshenko equation with delay term and variable exponents. Firstly, we obtain the blow up of solutions for negative initial energy in a finite time. Later, we establish the decay results by using an integral inequality due to Komornik. These, improve and extend the previous studies in the literature.
Energy concentration of the p-Landau-Lifschitz functional with radial structure
Authors: Han Haiyan , Chen Qinghua
Published: November 2022

This paper is concerned with the asymptotic behavior of a p-Landau-Lifschitz type functional with radial structure as parameter goes to zero. We study the concentration compactness and give several global properties in the case of p > 2.
Desempenho produtivo dos agronegócios da formação sócio-espacial do sul catarinense (2003-2016)
Authors: Espíndola Carlos José , Volk Schatz Patrícia
Published: November 2022

Os agronegócios do sul catarinense representam 12,6% do Valor Adicionado Bruto total da agropecuária catarinense, com participação significativa na produção de arroz (61,1%), no processamento da mandioca (31,1%), de fumo (18,3%), de bovinos (13,1%), de frango (12,2%) e de suínos (6,4%). Desvendar o desempenho produtivo desses agronegócios na dinâmica urbana da formação sócio-espacial do Sul do estado de Santa Catarina pós-2003 é o objetivo deste artigo. Para tanto, trabalhou-se com informações como área plantada, valor bruto da produção, produtividade e participação na pauta exportadora catarinense. Esse desempenho veio acompanhado de alterações significativas nas estruturas produtivas rurais, indicando um processo de expansão, concentração e dispersão da produção, que por sua vez, teve efeito direto na estrutura urbana no que diz respeito à questão geoeconômica.
Socialna država in revščina
Authors: Etelka Korpič-Horvat Etelka , Leskošek Vesna , Senčur Peček Darja , Antončič Vojko Anton , Orešek Natalija
Published: November 2022

V Ustavi Republike Slovenije je določba, po kateri je Slovenija pravna in socialna država. Pobuda za izdajo te monografije je vzniknila iz spoznanja, da je v Sloveniji senzibilnost za pomanjkljivo upoštevanje načel socialne države precej manjša kot senzibilnost za kršitve načel pravne države. Majhna senzibilnost za neupoštevanje načel socialne države se med drugim kaže v dopuščanju revščine in socialne izključenosti ali, kot pravi avtor enega od prispevkov v monografiji, kaže se v obravnavanju revščine kot smole posameznika. In kaže se tudi v ustavnosodnih zadevah. Avtorice in avtorji prispevkov v monografiji poudarjajo, da je revščina večplasten in kompleksen socialni problem. Ne glede na razlike med državami in družbami velja, da revščina vedno prizadene dostojanstvo človeka. Avtorice in avtorji posameznih prispevkov v monografiji podajajo analizo stanja in predlagajo možne rešitve za različne probleme, ki so posledica revščine in družbene izključenosti. Gre za iskanje sistemske rešitve za zmanjšanje revščine v Sloveniji. Skratka, obravnava pravnih vidikov socialne države, sistemsko tematiziranje revščine, zmanjšanje revščine kot izziv za socialno politiko in ozaveščanje o revščini v Sloveniji, o čemer govorijo avtorji prispevkov v tej monografiji, so teme, ki predstavljajo teoretično in empirično podlago za uveljavljanje načel socialne države in ustavnih socialnih pravic.
Zarządzanie miastem w erze wiedzy i postępu techniczno-technologicznego po doświadczeniach pandemii COVID–19
Authors: Stawasz Danuta
Published: November 2022

W artykule zaprezentowano rozważania związane z koniecznością redefinicji polityki miejskiej w okresie przesilenia cywilizacyjnego oraz kryzysu związanego z pandemią COVID–19. Analiza odnosi się do wskazania, iż nauka i wiedza oraz postęp techniczno‑technologiczny stwarzają liczne szanse na przezwyciężanie sytuacji kryzysowych, chociażby takich jak zmiany klimatyczne oraz zmiany związane z dostępem do wody, pozyskiwaniem energii, ochroną środowiska czy też opanowaniem pandemii. Podniesiona została także kwestia konieczności pokonywania oporu różnych grup społecznych przed akceptacją i implementacją nowoczesnych idei i rozwiązań. Polityka miasta powinna być ukierunkowana na rozwój usług publicznych, uwzględniających rozwiązania wpisujące się w koncepcję smart city. Aktywne uczestnictwo świadomych mieszkańców w decydowaniu o rozwiązaniach wprowadzanych przez władze miejskie jest jednym z warunków rozwoju miasta.
Análisis del comportamiento de empresas peruanas y argentinas en su camino hacia un desempeño más sustentable
Authors: Morales-Alvarado Lorenza , Scavone Graciela M. , Sanabria Verónica R.
Published: November 2022

En la actualidad, las empresas asumen el compromiso hacia la sustentabilidad mediante la adopción de buenas prácticas de responsabilidad social con sus grupos de interés. Asimismo, diversos organismos internacionales promueven iniciativas que van desde cómo y qué consideraciones deben contemplar las organizaciones al incorporar en sus estrategias de negocio las prácticas responsables en su cadena de valor, hasta cómo informar y rendir cuentas a los grupos interesados. Esto impulsa a las empresas a divulgar su desempeño sobre la gestión de sus impactos económicos, sociales, medioambientales y de gobernanza. La presente investigación centra su objetivo en analizar cómo las empresas integran iniciativas responsables en su información reportada, según las contribuciones registradas sobre el desarrollo sostenible. Se emplea como universo de análisis las memorias que las empresas envían al repositorio del Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) para determinar la muestra entre empresas representativas peruanas y argentinas. Se concluye que el 100% de empresas integran las principales iniciativas de los organismos internacionales en sus estrategias de negocios e informan mediante la metodología del GRI. Sin embargo, un 78% divulgan de manera esencial y no exhaustiva, lo que muestra que es necesario que los organismos internacionales y los países alineados con estrategias de sustentabilidad sigan impulsando a las empresas a adoptar un mayor compromiso y transparencia a fin de emitir informes de desempeño de mejor calidad para una comunicación más eficiente y eficaz con sus grupos de interés.
Antioxidant Status of Black Gram in Response to Bio Sulphur Granules Developed with Methylobacterium thiocyanatum in Sulphur Deficient Calcareous Vertisol
Authors: Akila G. , Thiyageshwari S. , Selvi D. , Anandham R. , Djanaguiraman M.
Published: November 2022

Background: Sulphur (S) is an essential macronutrient required for growth and development of plants. This study was carried out to investigate the effect of Bio Sulphur Granules (BSG) developed with elemental sulphur and sulphur oxidizing bacteria (SOB) on the antioxidative defense system in blackgram under sulphur deficient calcareous soil. Methods: Bio Sulphur Granule (BSG) was developed using ES plus SOB and its efficacy was tested in a pot experiment with blackgram as a test crop from April to June 2022. Plant samples were collected and analyzed in the laboratory for anti-oxidant status of blackgram, how sulphate stress affects the physiological and metabolic processes of plants, which in- turn affects crop yield. Results: Photo assimilatory pigments were decreased and carbohydrates (sugar and starch) were accumulated in leaves of no sulphur treated plants. Hydrogen peroxide in without S supplied plant caused oxidative damage in plants, which also evident by the increase in activity of super oxide dismutase, catalase, peroxidase and ascorbate. The findings showed that by applying S as BSG granules (ES @ 40 kg S ha-1 + Methylobacterium thiocyanatum VRI7-A4) to S-deficient calcareous vertisols might prevent the oxidative damage of plant cells there by improve the growth of blackgram by S-oxidation.
Epidemiology-Based Analysis of the Risks and Elimination Strategies of the Monkeypox Outbreak in 2022
Authors: Chen Ji-Ming , Chen Rui-Xu , Gong Huan-Yu , Zhao Meng-Meng , Ji Yu-Fei , Sun Ming-Hui , Li Guo-Hui , Tan Su-Mei , Zhang Gui-Hong , Chen Ji-Wang
Published: November 2022

Human monkeypox, caused by monkeypox virus, has spread unprecedentedly to more than 100 countries since May 2022. Here we summarized the epidemiology of monkeypox through a literature review and elucidated the risks and elimination strategies of this outbreak mainly based on the summarized epidemiology. We demonstrated that monkeypox virus became more contagious and less virulent in 2022, which could result from the fact that the virus entered a special transmission network favoring close contacts (i.e., sexual behaviors of men who have sex with men outside Africa) and the possibility that the virus accumulated a few adaptive mutations. We gave the reasons to investigate whether cattle, goats, sheep, and pigs are susceptible to monkeypox virus and whether infection with monkeypox virus could be latent in some primates. We listed six potential scenarios for the future of the outbreak (e.g., the outbreak could lead to endemicity outside Africa with increased transmissibility or virulence). We also listed multiple factors aiding or impeding the elimination of the outbreak. We showed that the control measures strengthened worldwide after the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) could eliminate the outbreak in 2022. We clarified eight strategies, i.e., publicity and education, case isolation, vaccine stockpiling, risk-based vaccination or ring vaccination, importation quarantine, international collaboration, and laboratory management, for the elimination of the outbreak.
Extinction through Climate Change: Review of Evidence and Analysis of Two Land Snails from the Seychelles Islands
Authors: Altaba Cristian R.
Published: November 2022

Several extinctions have already been attributed, at least in part, to global warming, as climate change constitutes a serious threat for species living in isolated ecosystems and thus unable to track habitat changes. However, in all these cases extinction was due to human impacts, often directly but generally also through exotic invasive species. For two arboreal land snails in Indian Ocean islands a link has been proposed with decreasing rainfall. The decline (but probably not extinction) of Pachnodus velutinus, a specialist of moist forests on the summits of northwestern Mahé, was most likely caused instead by invasive plants altering its habitat and alien predators decimating the population in the small remaining moist forests. An alternative explanation assuming genetic swamping through hybridization with a species from lower elevations has no basis, as the presumed hybrid constitutes a distinct species able to survive in the altered, dryer habitat. On Aldabra Atoll, the endemic Rhachistia aldabrae was claimed to have been the first extinction due to climate change, but is still extant. No relationship can be detected between number of sightings and annual rainfall, although a weighted measure that takes into account rainfall in previous years suggests a limited impact of weather. Analysis of the sighting record in various ways yields a probability of survival over time that never dropped below 0.3. The decline was caused instead by intense impacts of exotic invasive species. Alternative shortcuts to evaluate extinction rates among poorly known species are shown to be unreliable. Although no contemporary extinction can still be attributed to climate change, indirect and synergistic impacts on biodiversity are expected, especially through promoting biological invasions.
Opportunities for Comprehensive Medication Management (CMM) for Children with Special Healthcare Needs and Medical Complexity (CSHCN-CMC): The Methodology of a Prospective Case Series within a Collaborative Practice Agreement (CPA)
Authors: Quinn Jena , Bodenstab Heather Monk , Kuhn Catherine , Parrish II Richard H
Published: November 2022

Care coordination (CC) for children with special healthcare needs and medical complexity (CSHCN-CMC) is challenging, and medication management is especially difficult for providers, parents/caregivers, and patients alike. While numerous strategies for CC have been suggested and implemented, barriers to medication optimization remain. The report describes the creation of a pediatric clinical pharmacotherapy practice, related standard operating procedures to assure consistent application of screening tools and care provision through comprehensive medication management (CMM), and establishment of a collaborative practice agreement (CPA) to guide drug therapy delegation, monitoring, and modification. The methodology of a prospective case series is also presented to highlight drug therapy problems and their resolution in CSHCN-CMC. Future opportunities to expand the practice for engagement in population health management as well as prior authorization activities on behalf of physicians will be discussed.
Finding the Proportion of Females with Autistic Spectrum Disorder Who Develop Anorexia Nervosa, the True Prevalence of Female ASD and Its Clinical Significance.
Authors: McCrossin Robert
Published: November 2022

It appears that up to 80% of females with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) have not been diagnosed by 18 years of age. This translates to a prevalence of about 5-6%, and if true has serious implications for female mental health. One way of finding the true value is to use Bayes’ Theorem with a comorbid condition as a more easily recognizable flag. An obvious choice is anorexia nervosa (AN), but it transpires that the proportion of women with ASD who develop AN is unknown. This study uses published data in novel ways to provide two methods of estimating a range for this variable, and gives a median value of 8.3% for AN in ASD and with four other methods a median prevalence of 6% for female ASD. The clinical implications for diagnosis and management of ASD and comorbidities are discussed and a solution is provided for the rate of ASD in generalized joint hypermobility.
Human-based New Approach Methodologies in Developmental Toxicity Testing: A Step Ahead from the State-of-the-art with a Feto-placental Organ-on-a-chip Platform
Authors: Luconi Michaela , Sogorb Miguel Angel , Markert Udo R. , Benfenati Emilio , May Tobias , Wolbank Susanne , Roncaglioni Alessandra , Schmidt Astrid , Straccia Marco , Tait Sabrina
Published: November 2022

Developmental toxicity testing urgently requires the implementation of human relevant new approach methodologies (NAMs) that better recapitulate the peculiar nature of human physiology during pregnancy, especially the placenta and the maternal/fetal interface, which represent a key stage for the human lifelong health. Fit-for-purpose NAMs for the placental-fetal interface are desirable to improve the biological knowledge of environmental exposure at molecular level and to reduce the high cost, time and ethical impact of animal studies. This article reviews the state of the art on the available in vitro (placental, fetal and amniotic cell-based systems) and in silico NAMs of human relevance for developmental toxicity testing purposes, as well as of the available Adverse Outcome Pathways related to developmental toxicity. The OECD TG 414 for the identification and assessment of deleterious effects of prenatal exposure to chemicals on developing organisms will be discussed to delineate the regulatory context and to better debate what is missing and needed in the context of the developmental origins of health and disease hypothesis to significantly improve this sector. Starting from this analysis, the development of a novel human feto-placental organ-on-chip platform will be introduced as an innovative alternative tool for developmental toxicity testing, considering possible implementation and validation strategies to overcome the limitation of the current animal studies and NAMs available in regulatory toxicology and in the biomedical field.
Rural Areas and Well-Being: Empirical Models and Policies
Authors: Marino Domenico , Tebala Domenico
Published: November 2022

Predominantly rural areas make up half of Europe and account for about 20 per cent of the population. Yet most of them are among the least privileged regions in the European Union, with a GDP per capita significantly below the European average and with an average population age higher than in urban areas, although this gap will only slowly begin to narrow in the next decade. Together with a lack of connectivity, inadequate infrastructure, lack of diversified job opportunities and limited access to services, this makes rural areas a less attractive place to live and work. At the same time, however, rural areas actively participate in the EU's green and digital transition. Achieving the EU's digital goals for 2030 can offer more opportunities for the sustainable development of rural areas in areas other than agriculture, livestock and forestry, opening up new perspectives for the growth of manufacturing and, even more, service industries, and contributing to a better geographical distribution of services and industries. In this context, the objective of this work is the construction of a synthetic index of the welfare of European nations, through the Wroclaw taxonomic method and through the use of logit models, for the identification of best practices of local realities and the interpretation in a more im-mediated way of the fair and sustainable welfare of each European nation at a rural level
Characterization and Analysis of the Mortars of the Church of Santo Domingo in Quito (Ecuador)
Authors: Lara Calderón M. Lenin , Sanz-Arauz David , López-Andrés Sol , Pino Martínez Inés del
Published: November 2022

The pride of power of the Spanish preachers of religious art is reflected in the church of Santo Domingo built between 1541 and 1688. This work of heritage architecture, one of the first to be built in the colonized city, was affected by multiple earthquakes, interventions, and constructions that do not have a clear record. A total of 13 samples were taken from the lining mortar inside the cloister, central nave, and side chapel, following the nondestructive testing protocols and standards suggested by the research team. The analysis included mineral characterization studies and quantitative analysis by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy with microanalysis of the samples. The results showed the presence of volcanic aggregates and lime lining and joint mortars, mortars of rustic composition and coarse manufacture. The resolution of the data of mineralogical composition and texture has allowed us to corroborate the historical information described by the chroniclers and to date relatively the studied sites and to establish a hypothesis of constructive stages.
A Mixed Comparison of Non-surgical Interventions for Pain Caused by Temporomandibular Disorders: Systematic Review and Network Meta-analysis
Authors: THARMO KOMNIVOC
Published: November 2022

Abstract: Background: Pain management is one of the main parts of treatments for Temporomandibular Disorders (TMDs). However, there is still a lack of high-quality evidence that compare the overall effects of these non-surgical treatments. The objective of this systematic review is to identify the most potential treatment protocol in dealing with pain caused by TMDs through a mixed comparison of interventions based on network meta-analysis. Methods: A systematic review and network meta-analysis of studies identified by searching PubMed, Embase, Medline, Ovid, and CINAHL. All the included studies should have characteristics that: (1) participants with TMDs of any age; (2) non-surgical treatments; (3) score of Visual Analog Scale (VAS) as the outcome measure; (4) randomized controlled trials. The Cochrane Bias Assessment Toll was used to assess the bias, the CINeMA website was applied to rate the confidence of evidence, and ADDIS software was used to conduct the network meta-analysis. Results: 46 studies were included in this review. The agreement between authors reached a kappa value of 0.78. The results of the network meta-analysis showed that wearable therapy devices are more likely to be the best choice for reducing the pain of patients with myogenic TMDs, whereas a combination of platelet-rich plasma injection and wearable therapy devices is more likely to be the best choice for reducing the pain in a long term after treatment for patients with mix-type TMDs. Moreover, the application of therapy equipment has the most potential in reducing pain in a long term after treatment for patients with articular TMDs. Discussion: Wearable devices have a great potential for pain syndrome caused by TMDs, the mechanism might come from a biomechanical perspective. However, the overall confidence rating of evidence is low. Studies with high quality are still needed in the future. Other: The PROSPERO Registration Number of this systematic review is CRD42021253442.
SG-ColBase: A Relational Column Database Kernel
Authors: Zhou Tong , Liu Tingzhen
Published: November 2022

At present, diversified and highly concurrent businesses in the Internet industry often require heterogeneous databases formed by multiple databases to meet the needs. This report introduces database kernel SG-ColBase we developed. After achieving read and write concurrency control, data rollback, atomic log writing, and downtime data redo to ensure complete transaction support. The parallelism of database kernel execution is extended through field level locks and snapshot reads. Use the Bloom filter, resource cache pool, memory pool, skip list, non blocking log cache, and asynchronous data writing mechanism to improve the overall execution efficiency of the system. In terms of data storage, column storage, logical key and LSM-tree are introduced. While improving the data compression ratio and reducing data gaps, all disk data operations are written in incremental order. With the characteristics of asynchronous batch operation, the data writing speed is greatly improved. Thanks to the continuous feature of vertical data brought by column storage, the disk scanning brought by vertical traversal is reduced, which is a qualitative leap in efficiency compared with traditional relational databases in the big data analysis scenario. SG-ColBase can reduce the use of heterogeneous databases in business and improve R&D efficiency.
Effects of Caulerpa Taxifolia on Physiological Processes and Gene Expression of Acroproa Hyacinthus during Thermal Stress
Authors: Fu JianRong , Zhou Jie , Zhang YanPing , Liu Li
Published: November 2022

An increasing ecological phase-shift from coral dominated reefs to macroalgae dominated reefs as a result of anthropogenic impacts, such as eutrophication, sedimentation, and overfishing, has been observed in many reef systems around the world. Ocean warming is a universal threat to both corals and macroalgae, which may alter the outcome of competition between them. Therefore, in order to explore the effects of indirect and direct exposure to macroalgae on the physiological, biochemical, and genetic expression of corals at elevated temperature, the coral Acroproa hyacinthus and highly invasive green algae Caulerpa taxifolia have been chosen. Physiologically, the results exhibited that distinguish from control and direct contact treatments, the density and chlorophyll a content of zooxanthella decreased by 53.1% and 71.2% respectively, when coral indirect contacted with algae at ambient temperature (27°C). Besides, enzyme activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) in coral tissue were enhanced by interacting with algae. After an increase of 3°C, the density and chlorophyll a content of zooxanthella reduced by 84.4% and 93.8% respectively, whereas the enzmy activities of SOD and CAT increased by 2.3 and 3.1-fold. However, only the zooxanthellae density and pigment content decreased when C.taxifolia co-culture with A.hyacinthus at 30°C. Molecularly, different from the control group, the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) such as Rab family, ATG family and Casp7 were significantly enriched in endocytosis, autophagy and apoptosis pathways , regardless whether A.hyacinthus was indirect or indirect exposure to C.taxifolia at 27°C. Under thermal stress without algae interaction, the DEGs were significantly enriched in microbial immune signal transduction pathways, such as Toll-like receptor signaling pathway and TNF signaling pathway, while multiple cellular immunity (IFI47, TRAF family) and oxidative stress (CAT, SODC, HSP70) genes were up-regulated. Inversely, compared with corals without interaction with algae at 30°C, the DEGs of corals interacted with C.taxifolia at 30°C, were remarkably enriched in apoptosis, NOD-like receptor signaling pathway, including the transcription factors such as Casp family, TRAF family. In conclusion, the density and chlorophyll a content of zooxanthella remained a fading tendency induced by macroalgae at ambient temperature. The oxidative stress and immune response levels of coral has been elevated at 30°C, but macroalgae alleviated the negative effects triggered by thermal stress.
Incompatibilities and Interactions Drugs-Artificial Enteral Nutrition in a Hospital Institution in Cartagena/Colombia
Authors: Manrique J. Elin Y. , Duran-Lengua Marlene , Ballesteros Andres
Published: November 2022

Artificial enteral nutrition (AEN) is defined as the delivery of nutrients through feeding tubes for special medical purposes. Patients usually suffer from chronic or critical illnesses and are generally polymedicated, which represents a high probability of interactions and incompati-bilities with the AEN that can cause adverse events and loss of effectiveness of pharmacological treatment. This study aimed to determine the potential incompatibilities and drug-enteral nu-trition interactions in patients hospitalized in a clinic in the city of Cartagena. A retrospective cross-sectional study design was used, in a sample of 218 patients with a stay of at least three days, who were prescribed at least five medications and AEN. The data was collected from medical records. The information was screened with the CheckTheMeds software, using the APPs: drug-interactionchecker and https://www.rccc.eu/ppc/Drogas/DrogasxSNG.htm. A prevalence of pharmaceutical type incompatibilities of 50% and physicochemical type of 31.65%, interactions of pharmacokinetic type 10.55% and physiological type of 6.42% was re-vealed. The adverse events identified were tube obstruction 54.78% (n=126), mobility disorders and/or gastric emptying disorders 22.61% (n=52), diarrhea 12.51% (n=29), mesenteric ischemia with 0.87% (n=2) and seizures 6.96% (n=16). The p and OR values were variable according to the interaction and/or incompatibility vs. adverse events. Drugs-AEN incompatibilities and inter-actions were frequent, which is why active pharmacovigilance is necessary to intervene in the safety, quality and cost-effectiveness of the care provided in the different care services.
A Study of Deep Learning Model Performance for Remote Sensing Image Segmentation
Authors: Selea Teodora , Iuhasz Gabriel , Neagul Marian
Published: November 2022

Deep Learning is an extremely important research topic in Earth Observation. Current use-cases range from semantic image segmentation, object detection to more common problems found in computer vision such as object identification. Earth Observation is an excellent source for different types of problems and data for Machine Learning in general and Deep Learning in particular. It can be argued that both Earth Observation and Deep Learning as fields of research will benefit greatly from this recent trend of research. In this paper we take several state of the art Deep Learning network topologies and provide a detailed analysis of their performance for semantic image segmentation for building footprint detection. The dataset used is comprised of high resolution images depicting urban scenes. We focused on single model performance on simple RGB images. In most situations several methods have been applied to increase the accuracy of prediction when using deep learning such as ensembling, alternating between optimisers during training and using pretrained weights to bootstrap new models. These methods although effective, are not indicative of single model performance. Instead, in this paper, we present different topology variations of these state of the art topologies and study how these variations effect both training convergence and out of sample, single model, performance.
Assessment of Knowledge, Stigmatizing Attitudes and Health-Seeking Behaviors Regarding Hepatitis B Virus Infection in a Community and Pharmacy Setting in Sierra Leone: A Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Ghazzawi Manal , Yendewa Sahr , James Peter B. , Massaquoi Samuel P. , Babawo Lawrence S. , Sahr Foday , Deen Gibrilla F. , Kabba Mustapha , Ocama Ponsiano , Lakoh Sulaiman , Salata Robert A. , Yendewa George A.
Published: November 2022

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a major global health challenge. Emerging evidence suggests that poor knowledge and stigma are impacting HBV control efforts in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), however their role is not well understood. We conducted a cross-sectional study of adults aged ≥ 18 years in a community and pharmacy setting in Freetown, Sierra Leone. A structured questionnaire was used to assess knowledge, stigmatizing attitudes, and health-seeking behaviors regarding HBV. Logistic regression was used to identify predictors of HBV knowledge and related stigma. A total of 306 adult participants were enrolled (50.7% male, 7.5% HBV positive and 11.7% vaccinated). Overall, 52.2% had comprehensive HBV knowledge and 49.3% expressed a stigmatizing attitude towards people with HBV. Notwithstanding, 72.2% stated they would receive the HBV vaccine if offered, 80.4% would take anti-HBV medication and 78.8% would be willing to attend clinic regularly. Comprehensive HBV knowledge was associated with HBV positive status (aOR 4.41; p = 0.029) and being vaccinated against HBV (aOR 3.30; p = 0.034). HBV-related stigma was associated with secondary or higher level of education (aOR 2.36; p < 0.001), good HBV knowledge (aOR 2.05; p = 0.006) and pharmacy setting (aOR 1.74, p = 0.037). These findings suggest that education and stigma reduction may benefit HBV elimination efforts in SSA.
Pre-Service University Training, Body Expression and Self-Concept
Authors: Romero-Martín M. Rosario , Caballero-Juliá Daniel
Published: November 2022

Body Expression (BE) has been defined in the past decades as a discipline within Physical Education (PE) with very particular characteristics and a strong emotional component. In this study, a programme of this discipline was applied to university Physical Activity and Sports Sciences (PASS) students from six consecutive academic years: three prior to and three during the pandemic. A pre-post design was used to determine how the BE programme affected the university students' self-concept (SC). To do so, a questionnaire with a multidimensional approach to this construct was administered, whose dimensions were closely related to the BE programme's characteristics. The results revealed significant improvements in the final SC, compared to the initial SC. Men reported lower SC values than women before the programme implementation, but higher at the end. Therefore, the change was larger in men, so the programme may have had an equalising effect between groups. It was also verified that the pandemic had particularly affected women.
ULAN: A Universal Local Adversarial Network for SAR Target Recognition Based on Layer-wise Relevance Propagation
Authors: Du Meng , Bi Daping , Du Mingyang , Xu Xinsong , Wu Zilong
Published: November 2022

Recent studies have proven that synthetic aperture radar (SAR) automatic target recognition (ATR) models based on deep neural networks (DNN) are vulnerable to adversarial examples. However, existing attacks are easily failed in the case where adversarial perturbations cannot be fully fed to victim models. We call this situation perturbation offset. Moreover, since background clutter takes up most of the areas in SAR images and has low relevance to recognition results, fooling models with global perturbations is quite inefficient. This paper proposes a semi-whitebox attack network, called Universal Local Adversarial Network (ULAN), to generate universal adversarial perturbations (UAP) for the target regions of SAR images. In the proposed network, we calculate the model’s attention heatmaps through layer-wise relevance propagation (LRP), which is used to locate the target regions of SAR images that have high relevance to recognition results. In particular, we utilize a generator based on the U-Net to learn the mapping from noise to UAPs and craft adversarial examples by adding the generated local perturbations to target regions. Experiments indicate that the proposed method fundamentally prevents perturbation offset and achieves comparable attack performance to conventional global UAPs by perturbing only a quarter or less of SAR image areas.