bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Organic Fertilization with Residues of Cupuassu (Theobroma grandiflorum) and Inga (Inga edulis) for Improving Soil Fertility in Central Amazonia
Authors: Rodrigues da Silva Eleano , Iria da Costa Ayres Marta , Lima Neves Acácia , Uguen Katell , Antonio de Oliveira Luiz , Sena Alfaia Sonia
Published: October 2021

The cupuassu (Theobroma grandiflorum (Willd. Ex Spreng.) K. Schum.) is a native fruit tree which has, in the past years, acquired great social and economic importance for the regional farmers. The nutrient-rich and often wasted cupuassu tree fruit shell residues can contribute to the improvement of the low fertility soil of Amazonia. A trial was carried out on a small holder’s cupuassu plantation in Central Amazonia to ascertain the effect of organic fertilization on the recovery of soil fertility and plant nutrition by using material from cupuassu shell residues and Inga edulis pruning (branches and leaves). The fertilization with cupuassu rinds + Inga prunings improved soil fertility, mainly by the increase of K and Ca in the soil, but only with liming, which appears to favor the mineralization of these nutrients. At the 0–10 cm depth, the Ca level increased about 50% compared to the control and the K level increased 75% compared to the cupuassu shell treatments. The significant increase of about 30% in N absorption by trees in the plots without liming shows that the application of green manure can increase the mineralization of N in Oxisols. These results show that the organic residue sources used can result in a nutrient-bearing organic fertilizer and become a low-cost alternative for recycling cupuassu processing residues.
Plithogenic SWARA-TOPSIS Decision Making on Food Processing Methods with Different Normalization Techniques
Authors: Martin Nivetha
Published: October 2021

Decision making (DM) is a process of choosing the optimal alternative with the maximum extent of criteria satisfaction. The challenging aspect in making optimal decisions is the suitable choice of multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methods that consider the initial input as the expert’s opinion on criteria satisfaction by the alternatives. This initial decision-making matrix representation discriminates MCDM as fuzzy, intuitionistic, neutrosophic to handle the decision-making environment that is characterized by uncertainty, impreciseness, and indeterminacy, respectively. A generalized kind of representation by plithogenic sets optimizes the decision-making risks. This chapter aims in developing SWARA-TOPSIS with plithogenic representations and discusses the efficiency of this integrated approach over the method of TOPSIS with equal criterion weight. A comparative analysis of four different normalization techniques is likewise made. The proposed plithogenic integrated MCDM model is validated with the decision making on four food processing methods. The final ranks of the alternatives are also compared under the proposed plithogenic SWARA-TOPSIS and TOPSIS models with different normalization techniques. The results witness the efficiency of the proposed model over the existing models.
Swelling Behavior of Elastomers under Water, Oil, and Acid
Authors: Zahid Qamar Sayyad , Akhtar Maaz , Pervez Tasneem
Published: October 2021

It is very important to determine the behavior of elastomer materials under realistic well conditions in order to select appropriate swelling elastomers for a particular set of field conditions, for successful modeling and simulation of various downhole processes, and for design improvement of swell packers and other sealing applications. In collaboration with national and regional petroleum development and rubber engineering companies, a series of experimental studies were therefore conducted at Sultan Qaboos University for characterization of swelling related material behavior of different elastomers. Results from some of these investigations (studies A, B, and C) are reported and discussed in this chapter.
Long-Term Integrity Testing of Water-Swelling and Oil-Swelling Packers
Authors: Zahid Qamar Sayyad , Akhtar Maaz , Pervez Tasneem
Published: October 2021

As easy oil in many fields is dwindling, there is increasing stress worldwide on innovative enhanced oil recovery (EOR) techniques. One forward-looking EOR approach is the workover method. It tries to convert currently weak horizontal wells to maximum reservoir contact (MRC) wells, or abandoned vertical wells to horizontal ones or power water injectors. Where conventional techniques fail, swelling elastomer seals and packers provide effective water shutoff and zonal isolation in even very complex environments, resulting in significant savings in rig time and development cost. One major issue of interest is the service life of elastomer seals and packers. It can be attempted to predict the probable working life based on the theory of accelerated testing. However, this forecast will not be very dependable for swelling elastomers as the material performance is substantially different from other rubber-type polymers. A full-scale test rig (one of its kind in the world) was therefore designed and fabricated at Sultan Qaboos University (SQU), in collaboration with a regional petroleum development company, for long-term service life assessment of actual full-size water-swelling and oil-swelling packers.
Swelling Elastomers: Comparison of Material Models
Authors: Zahid Qamar Sayyad , Akhtar Maaz , Pervez Tasneem
Published: October 2021

Little data is available about the material properties and swelling response of the elsatomers used in swell packers. This information is necessary for modeling and simulation of these elastomers in different petroleum applications. An experimental setup was therefore designed and implemented at Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) to investigate the material behavior of these elastomers under tension and compression, so that these properties could be used for different simulations. Before developing a finite element model (FEM) of elastomer seal performance, it was felt that a thorough evaluation needs to be carried out to decide which of the currently available material models is most suitable for swelling elastomers. This comparison translates into the selection of the correct strain energy function for accurate determination of material coefficients. Different hyperelastic material models are compared here. Experimental investigations under tensile and compressive loads, along with their numerical analysis are presented in detail in this chapter.
Mastitis in Small Ruminants
Authors: T. Mwenge Kahinda Christine
Published: October 2021

Bacterial mastitis in small ruminants is a complex disease, with massive economic loss in dairy sheep/goat industry due to poor productivity. The current mastitis prevention strategy relies on culling of infected ewes or does and or the use of antimicrobial agents to eliminate the bacterial infection. This has a potential risk for developing antibiotic resistant bacteria, posing human health risk from consumption of raw sheep or goat dairy products. Existing experimental and licensed vaccines on the market are ineffective against reducing the risk of mastitis in herds or flocks. Raising the needs for development of improved vaccines against mastitis for use in sheep and goats. This review examines, current understanding of the pathological processes and immunological responses against bacterial mastitis, using S. aureus as an example. By highlighting the protective defense mechanism induced in the udder against S. aureus mastitis. Based on evidence from published studies on pathological process and protective immune response mechanism, the need for improved vaccines for prevention of mastitis in small ruminant is highlighted and the development of a vaccine capable of enhancing immune response mechanism, that reduce the establishment of intramammary infection through induction of local IgA, IgG2 and Th17 immune responses is proposed.
Liver Fibrosis Assessment Using Transient Elastography by FibroScan and Shear Wave Elastography by Sonography: A Comparative Cross-sectional Study in an Outpatient Liver Clinic
Authors: Zarei Fariba , Moini Maryam , Abedi Mahsa , Ravanfar Haghighi Rezvan , Zeinali-Rafsanjani Banafsheh
Published: October 2021

Background: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the second most common cause of liver transplantation in the United States, with a continuously growing prevalence. There are several non-invasive methods to detect liver fibrosis, which is defined as the accumulation of extracellular matrix proteins, particularly collagens. It is most commonly associated with chronic liver diseases, such as NAFLD. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the concordance between transient elastography (TE) and shear wave elastography (SWE) for liver fibrosis staging and also to examine the congruence between the controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) and the B-mode hepatorenal ratio for hepatic steatosis grading in patients with NAFLD. Patients and Methods: In this cross-sectional study conducted during March 2018 - 2019, NAFLD patients, referred to the liver clinic of our center for the non-invasive assessment of hepatic fibrosis, were enrolled. However, patients with sonographic features of cirrhosis, multiple hepatic masses, or moderate to large ascites were excluded; also, patients who were uncooperative during the tests were excluded. Measurements obtained by different tools were recorded. Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Chi-square test, independent t-test, or Mann-Whitney tests, as well as Pearson’s correlation coefficient test, were used to analyze the data. Results: Sixty-five patients (male-to-female ratio, 1:13), with a median age of 47 years, were included in the study. The tools for assessing fibrosis (r = 0.9538, 95% CI: 0.9252 - 0.9717, P < 0.0001) and steatosis (r = 0.429, 95% CI: 0.2048 - 0.6104, P < 0.0001) were perfectly and moderately correlated, respectively. Sex, age, and body mass index (BMI) did not affect the results. Conclusion: The two elastography modalities showed a strong correlation for fibrosis staging in our study population. Also, the CAP and B-mode hepatorenal ratio were moderately correlated for grading hepatosteatosis. Overall, selection of the best assessment method among the studied modalities depends on factors other than internal validity.
Evaluation of Second-Trimester Maternal Serum AFP Value in the Detection of Congenital Heart Defects
Authors: Aghaamoo Shahrzad , Lotfi Maryam , Mirmohammadkhani Majid , Hemmatian Mohammad Nasir
Published: October 2021

Background: Congenital heart diseases, as the most common congenital anomaly, are a major cause of serious morbidity and mortality. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the level of alpha-fetoprotein in the second trimester of pregnancy and its association with congenital heart defects. Methods: Following a cross-sectional design, singleton pregnant women in the second-trimester were enrolled for the α-fetoprotein (AFP) screening test. Those with normal screening results at the first and second tests were assigned to the control group. Mothers with nuchal translucency (NT) screening equal or greater than 3% of the 99th percentile, without chromosomal anomalies, confirmed with amniocentesis, were referred for a fetal echocardiogram and in presence of congenital heart defects symptoms, assigned to the intervention group. The study groups were compared concerning the serum AFP level and maternal and neonatal outcomes in the second trimester of pregnancy. Statistical significance was considered when P-value < 0.05. Results: A total of 270 women were enrolled in the study, with a mean AFP level of 1.868 ± 0.87 and 1.374 ± 0.39 in the case and control groups, respectively. The mean level of AFP was significantly different between the two groups (P < 0.001). In the second trimester, an AFP level lower than 1 was associated with a significant increase in the likelihood of developing congenital heart anomalies in the fetus. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that the value of maternal AFP level in the second trimester can be considered as an appropriate screening test to predict the incidence of congenital heart defects in neonates.
In Vivo Antiplasmodial Activity of Detarium microcarpum (Fabaceae) Stem Bark Extract
Authors: Abdullahi Amira Rahana , Malami Sani , Alhassan Bichi Lawal
Published: October 2021

Background: Malaria is a parasitic infection that is common in the tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world. It is estimated to kill one million individuals annually. Detarium microcarpum (Fabaceae family) is used traditionally for the treatment of malaria, diabetes, hypertension, convulsions, pneumonia, leprosy, and meningitis. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the antiplasmodial potential and safety profile of the methanol extract of D. microcarpum stem bark. Methods: The extract was subjected to phytochemical screening and oral median lethal dose (LD50) estimation. Using curative, suppressive, and prophylactic experimental animal models, antiplasmodial activity was assessed in mice infected with chloroquine-sensitive Plasmodium berghei berghei. Biochemical and hematological tests were conducted in rats orally administered with the extract for 28 days. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to analyze the data, followed by Dunnett's post hoc test. Results: Alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, tannins, triterpenes, and glycosides were found in the extract through phytochemical analysis. When compared to the negative control group, the extract at the tested doses (200, 400, and 800 mg/kg) showed a significant (P < 0.001) curative, suppressive, and prophylactic effect and significantly (P < 0.001) prolonged the survival time of mice in the treated groups. The extract had an insignificant (P > 0.05) effect on the biochemical and hematological parameters tested. Conclusion: The results suggest that the stem bark extract of D. microcarpum at the doses tested possesses antiplasmodial activity and is relatively safe after short-term use.
Histologic Changes in Core-Needle Liver Biopsies From Patients With Acute-on-Chronic Liver Failure and Independent Histologic Predictors of 28-Day Mortality
Authors: Baloda Vandana , Anand Abhinav , Yadav Rajni , Mehra Lalita , Rajeshwari Madhu , Vishnubhatla Sreenivas , Upadhyay Ashish Datt , Dwivedi Sada N. , Nayak Baibaswata , Saraya Anoop , Acharya Subrat K. , Datta Gupta Siddhartha , Shalimar  , Das Prasenjit
Published: October 2021

Context.—

The histologic features in patients with acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) are evolving, and histologic indicators of patients' poor prognosis are not yet fully established.

Objective.—

To evaluate the independent histologic predictors of 28-day mortality in ACLF patients on core-needle liver biopsies.

Design.—

Core-needle biopsies from patients with a diagnosis of ACLF (n = 152) as per the European Association for the Study of the Liver criteria were included during 8 years. Liver biopsies from 98 patients with compensated chronic liver disease were included as disease controls for histologic comparison. Features of ongoing changes, such as hepatic necrosis, hepatic apoptosis, cholestasis, hepatocyte degeneration, bile ductular proliferation, Mallory-Denk bodies, steatosis, and extent of liver fibrosis, were analyzed for predicting short-term mortality (28 days). A P value of <.05 was considered significant.

Results.—

In our cohort of ACLF patients, the following etiologies for acute decompensation were identified: alcohol, 47 of 152 (30.9%); sepsis, 24 of 152 (15.7%); hepatotropic viruses, 20 of 152 (13.1%); drug-induced liver injury, 11 of 152 (7.2%); autoimmune flare, 9 of 152 (5.9%); mixed etiologies, 5 of 152 (3.2%); and cryptogenic, 36 of 152 (23.6%). On histologic examination, hepatic necrosis (P < .001), dense lobular inflammation (P = .03), cholestasis (P < .001), ductular reaction (P = .001), hepatocyte degeneration (P < .001), and absence of advanced fibrosis stages (P < .001) were identified significantly more othen in ACLF patients than in disease controls on univariate analysis. On multivariate Cox regression analysis, the absence of advanced Ishak histologic activity index fibrosis stages (P = .02) and the presence of dense lobular inflammation (P = .04) were associated with increased 28-day mortality in ACLF patients. After adjusting the clinical causes of acute decompensation, only dense lobular inflammation was found as an independent predictor of short-term mortality (P = .04) in ACLF patients.

Conclusions.—

Dense lobular necroinflammatory activity is a clinically independent histologic predictor of 28-day short-term mortality in patients with ACLF.
Cinderela surda: aspectos políticos-identitários na literatura surda como obras de (re)existência
Authors: Gomides Paula Aparecida Diniz , Campello Ana Regina e Souza , Silva Erliandro Felix , Francioni William Velozo
Published: October 2021

Este artigo pretende mostrar as relações entre os recursos envolvidos na adaptação da obra ‘Cinderela Surda’, situando a escrita de sinais SignWriting e os elementos da cultura e Literatura Surda. Portanto, a partir de um estudo bibliográfico, o objetivo é analisar o livro Cinderela Surda, entendendo-o como parte da Literatura Surda e historicamente situado em um contexto de produção cultural típico de um grupo linguístico minoritário. De acordo com Bakhtin (2017), a literatura não está deslocada da cultura, devemos nos ater não apenas a obra, mas também, buscar compreender seus processos históricos basilares. A Literatura Surda, que começou a se desenvolver nos anos 2000, tem ajudado crianças surdas a se reconhecerem em sua diferença, bem como diminuído os preconceitos e estigmas, popularizando a Libras e favorecendo o reconhecimento e a luta por direitos das comunidades surdas no Brasil. Conforme explica Karnopp (2010), a popularização de obras e demais manifestações artísticas do povo surdo, pode ser uma consequência dos movimentos surdos, organizados em instituições e associações desde os anos 1990. Esses movimentos defenderam as línguas de sinais e a expressão cultural das comunidades surdas no país, culminando na publicação da Lei 10.436 de 2002, como língua de comunicação e instrução para as pessoas surdas. Obras como Cinderela Surda podem auxiliar na disseminação de conhecimentos acerca de aspectos importantes para a comunidade surda como a Libras e a cultura surda, promovendo identificação entre crianças surdas e os personagens principais das histórias, bem como auxiliar na diminuição do preconceito e exclusão, tão presentes nas trajetórias dos surdos em nosso país.
Prevalência de danos neurológicos graves e perfil clínico de pacientes em Unidade de Terapia Intensiva
Authors: Cabral Thaynan Silveira , Busanello Josefine , Cardoso Leticia Silveira , Harter Jenifer , Hummel Julia Richter , Muniz Ane Gabrielle
Published: October 2021

Objetivo: identificar os danos neurológicos prevalentes em pacientes internados em Unidade de Terapia Intensiva e a relação destes com as características sociais e clínicas, os cuidados e o desfecho clínico. Método: estudo transversal com análise de 83 prontuários de pacientes com danos neurológicos e internados no período de 2016 a 2018. Resultados: predomínio do Acidente Vascular Encefálico Hemorrágico (55,4%). O Traumatismo Cranioencefálico acometeu apenas homens (16,9%). A Hipertensão Arterial Sistêmica foi a principal comorbidade evidenciada (51,8%). A alteração da força muscular foi o principal sinal de dano neurológico grave (36,2%). A analgesia prevaleceu entre os cuidados intensivos dedicados aos pacientes com danos neurológicos graves (95,1%). Predomínio do óbito como desfecho clínico (85,6%). Conclusão: predomina o Acidente Vascular Encefálico Hemorrágico, especialmente em mulheres. A analgesia é o principal cuidado evidenciado, e a taxa de mortalidade foi superior à dos índices encontrados na literatura.
Sensory Properties and Consumer Liking of Buffalo Stracchino Cheese
Authors: Di Cairano M. , Pacelli C. , Bragaglio A. , Napolitano F. , Braghieri A.
Published: October 2021

The present study aims to characterize buffalo Stracchino cheese (BS) from a sensory point of view and verify how much consumers like it compared with the standard Stracchino cheese obtained from cow milk (CS). Nine panelists specifically trained to evaluate Stracchino cheese were used to conduct a quantitative descriptive sensory analysis, whereas 80 untrained consumers balanced for gender participated in the hedonic consumer test. Stracchino appearance was affected by milk type with higher intensities perceived for BS in terms of whiteness (P<0.0001) and shininess (P<0.001). As to taste and texture, BS showed higher sourness and oiliness intensities than CS, respectively (P<0.0001). Milk type did not affect the overall liking or the liking in terms of taste/flavor, texture, and appearance, but consumers rated both products at scores well above the neutral point. In addition, the liking expressed in blind conditions (i.e., without information on the milk type) was significantly lower as compared with the liking elicited by the expectations (i.e., based only on the information on the milk type) (P<0.05 and P<0.10, for CS and BS, respectively). We conclude that the good eating quality of buffalo Stracchino cheese as assessed by the consumer panel and the lack of differences between CS and BS in terms of a consumer may anticipate a possible good positioning of this novel product in the market of fresh cheese.
The Form of DO Employed to Form the Weak Preterit
Authors: White David L.
Published: October 2021

In all of the various sub-cases that comprise the case of what PIE tense of DO was employed to form the weak preterit, perfect origin falls somewhere in the range of “almost certain” to “quite possible”. By contrast, non-perfect origin is in most cases de- pendent on propositions that are either ad hoc or otherwise problematic. In the only case that at first appears to strongly favor non-perfect origin, 2SG /-dɛɛs/ can be seen as orig- inating by “opportunistic re-interpretation” of /-dɛd-t/ > /-dɛss/ as /-dɛɛs/, with 2SG /-s/. Obscure phonological changes of the traditional kind permit the 1SG, 3SG, and 3PL to be seen as having perfect origin. All forms can be seen as having perfect origin.
My meetings with Prof. Lotfi Zadeh
Authors:   Institute of Biophysics and Biomedical Engineering, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Atanassov Krassimir
Published: October 2021

In 2021, we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Prof. Lotfi Zadeh. On this occasion, in this short note, I will share memories from my brief meetings with one of the few persons whose endless enthusiasm, hard work, purposefulness and capacity to innovate I have always admired.
Research on intuitionistic fuzzy negations
Authors:   Faculty of Mathematics and Informatics, Sofia University, Angelova Nora , Atanassov Krassimir ,   Institute of Biophysics and Biomedical Engineering, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences
Published: October 2021

In the theories of intuitionistic fuzzy sets and intuitionistic fuzzy logics, there are 54 different negations. Here, we check the relationship between every two of them.
On а study on intuitionistic fuzzy r-normal spaces
Authors:   Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University, Islam M. S. , Islam R. ,   Department of Mathematics, Pabna University of Science and Technology, Hossain M. S. ,   Department of Mathematics, University of Rajshahi
Published: October 2021

The purpose of this paper is to give some new inferences of intuitionistic fuzzy normal spaces based on the concept of the most studied topics as fuzzy topological spaces. After that, the authors embed an implication among these notions and show that all these conceptions are good extensions of normal spaces. Moreover, the image and the pre-image of intuitionistic fuzzy normal space are also intuitionistic fuzzy normal space.
On intuitionistic fuzzy version of Zadeh's extension principle
Authors:   University of Turkish Aeronautical Association, Bayeğ Selami , Mert Raziye ,   Adana Alparslan Turkes Science and Technology University
Published: October 2021

In this paper, by using \alpha- and \beta-cuts approach and the intuitionistic fuzzy Zadeh’s extension principle, we have proved a result which reveals that the \alpha- and \beta-cuts of an intuitionistic fuzzy number obtained by the intuitionistic fuzzy Zadeh’s extension principle coincide with the images of the \alpha- and \beta-cuts by the crisp function. Then we have given a corollary about monotonicity of the extension principle. Finally, we have extended these results to IF_N(\mathbb{R}) \times IF_N(\mathbb{R}).
Humans use forward thinking to exploit social controllability
Authors: Na Soojung , Chung Dongil , Hula Andreas , Perl Ofer , Jung Jennifer , Heflin Matthew , Blackmore Sylvia , Fiore Vincenzo G , Dayan Peter , Gu Xiaosi
Published: October 2021

The controllability of our social environment has a profound impact on our behavior and mental health. Nevertheless, neurocomputational mechanisms underlying social controllability remain elusive. Here, 48 participants performed a task where their current choices either did (Controllable), or did not (Uncontrollable), influence partners’ future proposals. Computational modeling revealed that people engaged a mental model of forward thinking (FT; i.e., calculating the downstream effects of current actions) to estimate social controllability in both Controllable and Uncontrollable conditions. A large-scale online replication study (n=1342) supported this finding. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (n=48), we further demonstrated that the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) computed the projected total values of current actions during forward planning, supporting the neural realization of the forward-thinking model. These findings demonstrate that humans use vmPFC-dependent FT to estimate and exploit social controllability, expanding the role of this neurocomputational mechanism beyond spatial and cognitive contexts.
Ask me in your own words: paraphrasing for multitask question answering
Authors: Hudson G. Thomas , Al Moubayed Noura
Published: October 2021

Multitask learning has led to significant advances in Natural Language Processing, including the decaNLP benchmark where question answering is used to frame 10 natural language understanding tasks in a single model. In this work we show how models trained to solve decaNLP fail with simple paraphrasing of the question. We contribute a crowd-sourced corpus of paraphrased questions (PQ-decaNLP), annotated with paraphrase phenomena. This enables analysis of how transformations such as swapping the class labels and changing the sentence modality lead to a large performance degradation. Training both MQAN and the newer T5 model using PQ-decaNLP improves their robustness and for some tasks improves the performance on the original questions, demonstrating the benefits of a model which is more robust to paraphrasing. Additionally, we explore how paraphrasing knowledge is transferred between tasks, with the aim of exploiting the multitask property to improve the robustness of the models. We explore the addition of paraphrase detection and paraphrase generation tasks, and find that while both models are able to learn these new tasks, knowledge about paraphrasing does not transfer to other decaNLP tasks.
Relatively low tooth replacement rate in a sauropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Ruyang Basin of central China
Authors: Chang Huali , You Hai-Lu , Xu Li , Ma Waisum , Gao Diansong , Jia Songhai , Xia Mengli , Zhang Jiming , Li Yu , Wang Xirui , Liu Di , Li Jie , Zhang Jianhua , Yang Lili , Wei Xuefang
Published: October 2021

Tooth replacement rate is an important feature related to feeding mechanics and food choices for dinosaurs. However, only a few data points are available for sauropod dinosaurs, partially due to rarity of relevant fossil material. Four somphospondylan sauropod species have been recovered from the Lower Cretaceous Aptian–Albian Haoling Formation in the Ruyang Basin, Henan Province of central China, but no cranial material has been reported except for a single crown. Here we report the discovery of the rostral portion of a left dentary with replacement teeth in its first five alveoli. Comparative anatomical study shows the partial dentary can be assigned to a member of early diverging somphospondylans. The non-destructive tooth length-based approach to estimating tooth formation time and replacement rate is adopted here. The estimated tooth replacement rate is 76 days, faster than that of Brachiosaurus (83 days) and much lower than typical late diverging lithostrotian titanosaurians (20 days). Thus, this discovery adds an intermediate tooth replacement rate in the evolution of titanosauriform sauropods and supports the idea that evolution of tooth replacement rate is clade-specific. This discovery also provides more information to understand the Ruyang sauropod assemblage, which includes one of the most giant dinosaurs to have walked our Earth (Ruyangosaurus giganteus).
Bixa também pixa: a pixação gay nos banheiros masculinos como uma contestação do espaço heteronormativo
Authors: Almeida Vinicius Santos
Published: October 2021

Neste artigo, analisamos as inscrições nas paredes de cabines de banheiros públicos masculinos, que chamamos aqui de pixo. Em um primeiro momento, apresentamos um breve histórico da pixação e do grafite e o trabalho de artistas gays nesse meio. Em seguida, discutimos a arquitetura do banheiro público para apreender seus significados. A partir disso, discutimos o sexo entre homens que ocorre nos banheiros públicos, conhecido como ‘banheirão’. Por fim, analisamos as pixações fotografadas entre os meses de janeiro e outubro de 2017 em banheiros públicos masculinos de São Paulo. Concluímos que, apesar de o banheiro público ser uma ferramenta de regulação e vigilância do gênero e da sexualidade, as pixações com conteúdo gay são produtoras de um discurso e uma materialidade que desafia a premissa heterossexual desse espaço. Assim como os pixos, o sexo entre homens no banheiro é uma transgressão desse espaço regulador e produtor de identidades.
A ‘Ideologia de Gênero’ no Brasil: conflitos, tensões e confusões terminológicas
Authors: Silva Elder Luan dos Santos
Published: October 2021

O discurso da ideologia de gênero tem se reproduzido entre os setores conservadores, especialmente entre cristãos das igrejas católicas e protestantes, e parlamentares das bancadas do Boi, Bala e Bíblia, que durante (e após) o processo de aprovação do Plano Nacional de Educação (2014) e da Base Nacional Comum Curricular (2017) se posicionaram contra o estudo e discussão de questões relacionadas a gênero e sexualidade nas escolas públicas brasileiras. Nesse processo, uma série de inverdades sobre as noções de gênero e sexualidade foram produzidas e localizadas como parte da teoria feminista e dos estudos sobre gênero e sexualidade. Meu objetivo nesse trabalho é produzir um contra discurso à Ideologia de Gênero, apontando as suas deficiências, incompreensões e confusões terminológicas produzidas com o intuito de instaurar um pânico moral e combater os direitos das mulheres e LGBTs, que em consequência acabam incentivando e legitimando a violência de gênero e lgbtfobia. O texto está organizado nas seguintes partes:   introduzo a discussão refletindo sobre a transformação do gênero, sexo e sexualidade em objetos discursivos; apresento a construção discursiva de gênero como um aparelho ideológico; reflito sobre o cenário brasileiro e as principais tensões em torno da chamada “Ideologia de Gênero”; em seguida, apresento as construções teóricas em torno do conceito de gênero no movimento feminista; e por fim, sinalizo as incompreensões encontradas na noção de Ideologia de Gênero e as potencialidades que os estudos de gênero têm para o projeto político de eliminação da opressão, subordinação e subalternização das mulheres, e para a construção de uma sociedade mais igualitária.
Violências cruzadas e obstáculos para a proteção de refugiados LGBTI
Authors: Brum Stéphany
Published: October 2021

As relações sexuais consensuais entre adultos do mesmo sexo são criminalizadas em quase 70 países, com punições que podem variar entre o encarceramento e a pena de morte. No que diz respeito à população trans, a ONG Transgender Europe contabilizou 2.892 assassinatos de pessoas não cisgêneras em 74 países entre janeiro de 2008 e setembro de 2018. Não obstante, foi apenas partir dos anos 2000 que a comunidade LGBTI passou a figurar nos estudos migratórios, principalmente com o debate acerca do sexílio, isto é, quando indivíduos de gênero e/ou sexualidade dissidentes deixam seus lares em busca de uma vida plena e segura. Nesse sentido, este trabalho consiste em uma tentativa de extrapolar o debate puramente teórico e compreender os desafios enfrentados por essa população desde seus lugares de origem até o processo de integração nos países de destino. A importância deste estudo justifica-se por sua contribuição para o debate já existente na academia sobre o refúgio de indivíduos LGBTI e, além disso, por evidenciar a necessidade de criação de novas estratégias, bem como políticas públicas por parte dos Estados, que tornem possível o acolhimento mais seguro e humano dessa população.
Perversão teológica: notas sobre a Teologia Indecente de Marcella Althaus-Reid
Authors: Freire Ana Ester Pádua
Published: October 2021

A análise das relações que se dão entre a religião cristã hegemônica e as dissidentes sexuais revela um campo disputas hermenêuticas, no qual Marcella Althaus-Reid desponta como um dos principais nomes da Teologia Queer da América Latina. Nesse sentido, o objetivo deste artigo é apresentar a proposta teológica de Marcella Althaus-Reid recorrendo ao seu método de indecientamiento, que rompe com a tradição moralizante cristã propondo o que a teóloga nomeia de Teologia Indecente. A aplicabilidade de suas ideias se dará em uma des/reconstrução da Eucaristia cristã. Conhecer Marcella Althaus-Reid torna-se imperativo diante da irrupção discursiva que se dá em torno dos temas cristianismo, Bíblia e sexualidade.
O reconhecimento de si de pessoas trans* : infância, sexualidade e alteridade
Authors: Oliveira Barbara de Paula , Carneiro Rosamaria Giatti
Published: October 2021

O reconhecimento de si de pessoas trans* ocorre a partir das normas binárias de gênero mostrando que desde a infância há uma demanda do olhar do outro para que pessoas trans* se definam dentro das normas de gênero em apenas duas possibilidades de existir. Desse modo o presente artigo tem por objetivo descrever como as pessoas trans* reconhecem a si mesmas e a sua relação com as normas binárias de gênero. Trata-se de um estudo qualitativo de cunho etnográfico, realizada no grupo de apoio a pessoas trans* do Hospital Universitário de Brasília (HUB), em que, para esse trabalho, foram utilizadas as narrativas de 7 pessoas trans*. Foram encontradas duas unidades temáticas em relação ao reconhecimento de si de pessoas trans*: a primeira unidade mostra que desde a infância as pessoas trans* se reconhecem como sujeitos fora das normas binárias de gênero e a segunda mostra que a sexualidade também aparece como fator importante para o reconhecimento de si. Em ambas as categorias a alteridade se apresentou como elemento chave para o reconhecimento de si. Todos esses conflitos e necessidade de definição vem da maneira como a sociedade lê e entende as pessoas como inteligíveis. Toda e qualquer pessoa que não se enquadrar na ideia universal de que ser mulher é ter vagina e se sentir atraída sexualmente por alguém que tem pênis, será questionada e interpelada a se definir dentro de alguma das duas possibilidades para que possa existir como ser humano em nossa sociedade
Mutation of the conserved Asp‐Asp pair impairs the structure, function, and inhibition of CTX‐M Class A β‐lactamase
Authors: Kemp M. Trent , Nichols Derek A. , Zhang Xiujun , Defrees Kyle , Na Insung , Renslo Adam R. , Chen Yu
Published: October 2021

The Asp233‐Asp246 pair is highly conserved in Class A β‐lactamases, which hydrolyze β‐lactam antibiotics. Here, we characterize its function using CTX‐M‐14 β‐lactamase. The D233N mutant displayed decreased activity that is substrate‐dependent, with reductions in kcat/Km ranging from 20% for nitrocefin to 6‐fold for cefotaxime. In comparison, the mutation reduced the binding of a known reversible inhibitor by 10‐fold. The mutant structures showed movement of the 213‐219 loop and the loss of the Thr216‐Thr235 hydrogen bond, which was restored by inhibitor binding. Mutagenesis of Thr216 further highlighted its contribution to CTX‐M activity. These results demonstrate the importance of the aspartate pair to CTX‐M hydrolysis of substrates with bulky side chains, while suggesting increased protein flexibility as a means to evolve drug resistance.
What is the evidence that counter‐wildlife crime interventions are effective for conserving African, Asian and Latin American wildlife directly threatened by exploitation? A systematic map protocol
Authors: Rytwinski Trina , Öckerman Siri L. A. , Taylor Jessica J. , Bennett Joseph R. , Muir Matthew J. , Miller Jennifer R. B. , Pokempner Amy , Lam Wai Yee , Pickles Robert S. A. , Cooke Steven J.
Published: October 2021

Human activities are driving a global biodiversity crisis. In response, a broad range of conservation actions have been implemented. With finite resources available, and a rapidly narrowing window, the scientific and policy communities have acknowledged the need to better understand the effectiveness of interventions for conserving threatened species.

Given the recent emphasis on the use of counter wildlife crime interventions (i.e. those that directly protect wildlife from illegal harvest, detect and sanction rule‐breakers, and interdict and control illegal wildlife commodities), there is a clear need to summarize the available evidence on biological and threat reduction outcomes of such actions to help make evidence‐informed management and funding decisions.

Here, we present a protocol for a systematic map that will collate the existing body of literature addressing the effectiveness of counter‐wildlife crime interventions for protecting targeted species. Our focus will be on select species or species groups directly threatened by exploitation (i.e. illegal harming whether by harvest as a resource or for control/persecution) and native to Africa, Asia and Latin America, which are regions that have experienced significant wildlife populations declines.

The systematic map will aim to capture available evidence found in commercially published and grey literature. We will search for the literature using four publication databases, Google Scholar, 36 specialist websites and databases and sources identified through a call for evidence among relevant networks. Eligibility screening will be conducted at two stages: (1) title and abstract and (2) full text. Relevant information from included papers will be extracted and entered into a searchable, coded database (MS‐Excel).

Narrative synthesis and descriptive statistics will describe the key characteristics of the relevant evidence base (e.g. geographic location, species, interventions, direct threats, outcomes and study designs). Using visual heat maps, we will identify key knowledge gaps warranting further research and clusters of evidence that could serve as topics for future systematic reviews.

The resulting map will guide further exploration on evaluating the effectiveness of counter‐wildlife crime interventions, and aid in building an evidence base that supports both management and funding decisions to ensure efficient use of limited resources and maximal conservation benefits.
In‐Liquid Plasma for Surface Engineering of Cu Electrodes with Incorporated SiO2 Nanoparticles: From Micro to Nano
Authors: Menezes Pramod V. , Elnagar Mohamed M. , Al‐Shakran Mohammad , Eckl Maximilian J. , Menezes Prashanth W. , Kibler Ludwig A. , Jacob Timo
Published: October 2021

A robust and efficient route to modify the chemical and physical properties of polycrystalline copper (Cu) wires via versatile plasma electrolysis is presented. Silica (SiO2) nanoparticles (11 nm) are introduced during the electrolysis to tailor the surface structure of the Cu electrode. The influence of these SiO2 nanoparticles on the structure of the Cu electrodes during plasma electrolysis over a wide array of applied voltages and processing time is investigated systematically. Homogeneously distributed 3D coral‐like microstructures are observed by scanning electron microscopy on the Cu surface after the in‐liquid plasma treatment. These 3D microstructures grow with increasing plasma processing time. Interestingly, the microstructured copper electrode is composed of CuO as a thin outer layer and a significant amount of inner Cu2O. Furthermore, the oxide film thickness (between 1 and 70 µm), the surface morphology, and the chemical composition can be tuned by controlling the plasma parameters. Remarkably, the fabricated microstructures can be transformed to nanospheres assembled in coral‐like microstructures by a simple electrochemical treatment.
Nanomedicine Strategies to Circumvent Intratumor Extracellular Matrix Barriers for Cancer Therapy
Authors: Xu Xiaoxuan , Wu Yao , Qian Xindi , Wang Yuqi , Wang Jiaoying , Li Jie , Li Yaping , Zhang Zhiwen
Published: October 2021

The dense and heterogeneous physical network of the extracellular matrix (ECM) in tumors represents a formidable barrier that limits intratumor drug delivery and the therapeutic efficacy of many anticancer therapies. Here, the two major nanomedicine strategies to circumvent intratumor ECM barriers: regulating the physiochemical properties of nanomedicines and remodeling the components and structure of the ECM are summarized. Nanomedicines can be rationally regulated by optimizing physiochemical properties or designed with biomimetic features to promote ECM permeation capability. Meanwhile, they can also be designed to remodel the ECM by modulating signaling pathways or destroying the components and architecture of the ECM via chemical, biological, or physical treatments. These efforts produce profound improvements in intratumor drug delivery and anticancer efficacy. Moreover, to aid in their anticancer efficacy, feasible approaches for improving ECM‐circumventing nanomedicines are proposed.
Biomimic Binding Affinity Gradients Triggered GSH‐Response of Core–Shell Nanoparticles for Cascade Chemo/Chemodynamic Therapy
Authors: Wang Qinghua , Li Xianglong , Mao Jiayi , Qin Xing , Yang Shaobo , Hao Jina , Guan Mengjia , Cao Yuanyuan , Li Yongsheng
Published: October 2021

In eukaryotes and prokaryotes, some copper transportations driven by gradient copper‐binding affinities exhibit typical glutathione (GSH)‐responsive features. Inspired by these delicate endogenous processes, a biomimic copper‐ion mediated GSH‐responsive nanomedicine is designed based on the gradient copper‐binding strengths between polydopamine (PDA) species and GSH. The nanomedicine is constructed as core‐shell nanoparticles with copper‐polydopamine (Cu‐PDA) coordinated shell and micellar core encapsulating chemotherapeutic drug of β‐lapachone (β‐lapa). In tumor cells, the excess intracellular GSH will reduce and extract the Cu(II) from the Cu‐PDA network, triggered by the binding affinity gradients between Cu‐PDA and Cu‐GSH, resulting in the breaking of the shell and the releasing of β‐lapa and Fenton agent copper. The additional Fenton reaction of copper ions induces excess oxidative damage of tumor cells assisted by the abundant H2O2 amplified by β‐lapa, achieving cascade anticancer effects combining chemodynamic therapy with chemotherapy. This multilevel anticancer system exhibits an efficient tumor inhibitory rate and a negligible systematic toxicity for normal organs in vivo, presenting a new bioinspired GSH‐responsive strategie to develop stimuli‐responsive structures.
Well‐Defined Mannosylated Polymer for Peptide Vaccine Delivery with Enhanced Antitumor Immunity
Authors: Lv Shixian , Song Kefan , Yen Albert , Peeler David J. , Nguyen Dinh Chuong , Olshefsky Audrey , Sylvestre Meilyn , Srinivasan Selvi , Stayton Patrick S. , Pun Suzie H.
Published: October 2021

Peptide‐based cancer vaccines offer production and safety advantages but have had limited clinical success due to their intrinsic instability, rapid clearance, and low cellular uptake. Nanoparticle‐based delivery vehicles can improve the in vivo stability and cellular uptake of peptide antigens. Here, a well‐defined, self‐assembling mannosylated polymer is developed for anticancer peptide antigen delivery. The amphiphilic polymer is prepared by reversible addition‐fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization, and the peptide antigens are conjugated to the pH‐sensitive hydrophobic block through the reversible disulfide linkage for selective release after cell entry. The polymer–peptide conjugates self‐assemble into sub‐100 nm micelles at physiological pH and dissociate at endosomal pH. The mannosylated micellar corona increases the accumulation of vaccine cargoes in the draining inguinal lymph nodes and facilitates nanoparticle uptake by professional antigen presenting cells. In vivo studies demonstrate that the mannosylated micelle formulation improves dendritic cell activation and enhances antigen‐specific T cell responses, resulting in higher antitumor immunity in tumor‐bearing mice compared to free peptide antigen. The mannosylated polymer is therefore a simple and promising platform for the delivery of peptide cancer vaccines.
Di(Thioether Sulfonate)‐Substituted Quinolinedione as a Rapidly Dissoluble and Stable Electron Mediator and Its Application in Sensitive Biosensors
Authors: Nandhakumar Ponnusamy , Lee Woohyeong , Nam Sangwook , Bhatia Aman , Seo Jia , Kim Gyeongho , Lee Nam‐Sihk , Yoon Young Ho , Joo Jung Min , Yang Haesik
Published: October 2021

The commonly required properties of diffusive electron mediators for point‐of‐care testing are rapid dissolubility, high stability, and moderate formal potential in aqueous solutions. Inspired by nature, various quinone‐containing electron mediators have been developed; however, satisfying all these requirements remains a challenge. Herein, a strategic design toward quinones incorporating sulfonated thioether and nitrogen‐containing heteroarene moieties as solubilizing, stabilizing, and formal potential‐modulating groups is reported. A systematic investigation reveals that di(thioether sulfonate)‐substituted quinoline‐1,4‐dione (QLS) and quinoxaline‐1,4‐dione (QXS) display water solubilities of ≈1 m and are rapidly dissoluble. By finely balancing the electron‐donating effect of the thioethers and the electron‐withdrawing effect of the nitrogen atom, formal potentials suitable for electrochemical biosensors are achieved with QLS and QXS (−0.15 and −0.09 V vs Ag/AgCl, respectively, at pH 7.4). QLS is stable for >1 d in PBS (pH 7.4) and for 1 h in tris buffer (pH 9.0), which is sufficient for point‐of‐care testing. Furthermore, QLS, with its high electron mediation ability, is successfully used in biosensors for sensitive detection of glucose and parathyroid hormone, demonstrating detection limits of ≈0.3 × 10−3 m and ≈2 pg mL−1, respectively. This strategy produces organic electron mediators exhibiting rapid dissolution and high stability, and will find broad application beyond quinone‐based biosensors.