bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Modification of the glass surface by DCSBD plasma discharge to improve adhesion of decorative gold
Authors: Janík R , Vargová V , Šulcová J , Pajtášová M
Published: November 2021

The present work, as one of the first scientific works, deals with the modification of the glass surface induced by DCSBD plasma discharge to increase the adhesion of decorative gold layers on glass products. In the study of such a modification, it was necessary to monitor the effectiveness of the modification of the glass surface, and subsequently it was necessary to test the resistance of the deposited gold layers in tests performed directly in operation. In the present work, the adhesion of gold to DCSBD-modified glass surfaces by plasma discharge was uniquely evaluated by image analysis.
Modeling and analysis of motion with wheel slip of the mobile platform with four wheel drive
Authors: Jaskot A , Posiadała B
Published: November 2021

The problem of motion with wheel slip of the four wheeled mobile platform has been discussed in this work. Considering the model of dynamics, the formulation of the initial problem of the platform motion and the numerical algorithm for solving this problem has been presented. The Runge-Kutta 4th order method has been used to integrate the equations of motion. Possible cases of motion of the prototype of the mobile platform with four drive modules have been considered. Taking into account the variable values of the active forces caused by the drive torque and changes in the position of the wheels during the platform motion, as well as the resistant forces opposing the active forces at the contact points of the wheels with the ground, the platform motion simulation results have been obtained. Different wheel settings, with controlling the active forces and directions of their settings while driving have been implemented to the model. The results of motion simulations and their analysis have been included. The results presented in the paper show a significant influence of wheel slip on the parameters of the motion of the mobile platform. The computational model presented in the paper enables a good representation of the platform motion parameters, which has been confirmed by comparing the results of simulation tests with the results of experimental tests of motion in relation to a construction solution of the platform other than described in the paper. Further development of the computational model is planned, mainly in order to include the deformability of the wheel suspension systems in the dynamic model of the platform, which will allow for the implementation of wider studies of the motion of such objects, including, for example, in the case of wheels passing through obstacles.
Damping of layered porous composites and an application in machinery
Authors: Murčinková Z , Radchenko S , Kuchtová G
Published: November 2021

The structured composite can involve the porous materials providing the important internal damping that is usable in mechanical engineering applications. The stiff base material is equipped by layer/s of softer porous material/s covered by constrained layer. Such layered structure is characterized by increased internal damping in vibration process. Paper analyses some either measured or simulated mechanical properties of designed layered porous composites. Novelty provided in paper is a specific application of structured composite for damping the high frequency vibrations in resonance frequency obtaining the beneficial results, e.g. 40-48% of maximum amplitude reduction.
Modification of the structure and properties of hardfaced layers with TIG high frequency method
Authors: Gucwa M , Winczek J , Makles K , Mičian M , Yadav A
Published: November 2021

In this work the investigation is focused on changing the structure and hardness of the surface with high content of carbon and chromium. The use of welding methods to modify the properties of the surface layer allows for optimal use of the properties of materials or changing their properties by differentiate their structure. The surface and structure of hardfaced layers can be improved by additional treatment with another welding arc. The use of the new TIG methods with frequency up to 20000 Hz gives new possibility of the surfacing. The subject of the research were padding welds with the structure of chromium cast iron, which were subjected to the process of remelting the surface layer using the TIG high frequency method. The use of hardfacing and remelting with the TIG method allowed for a noticeable differentiation of the structure, hardness and wear resistance in relation to the initial state.
Drying Machines with Combined Hydrodynamic Regimes
Authors: Artyukhova N , Krmela J , Krmelová V , Artyukhov A
Published: November 2021

The article is devoted to the study of multistage dryers with vertical sectioning of the working space. The factors of influence of the design of the shelf contact and the consumption of the drying agent on the mode of movement of monodisperse and polydisperse material are analyzed. The achievement of the required hydrodynamic regime (at a constant consumption of the drying agent) was ensured by changing the length of the shelf contact, the angle of its inclination to the horizon, and the degree of perforation (free area of cross-section). The features of changing the mode of granular material movement at various stages of the gravitational shelf dryer are shown. A technique for the optimization calculation of a gravitational shelf dryer is proposed. As an objective function, the minimum residence time of the dispersed material in the dryer is taken, at which the required amount of moisture is removed. Variants of the designs of the stages of a gravitational shelf dryer are shown and the features of the movement of dispersed material on the steps are described. The results obtained can be used as the basis for the engineering design of gravitational shelf dryers.
Research of creating mold for crayons with use of additive manufacturing technique
Authors: Šašala M , Hrivniak L , Svetlík J , Ondočko Š
Published: November 2021

For crayons manufacturing are often used big mold from steel. These molds are good for mass production, however they tend to be expensive and not suitable for low volume of production. Goal of this paper is to figure out, if these molds can be created by additive manufacturing technique, what materials are suitable for the job and how final products compare with products on the market manufactured with traditional methods.
A survey on extensions of Riemannian manifolds and Bartnik mass estimates
Authors: Cabrera Pacheco Armando , Cederbaum Carla
Published: November 2021

Mantoulidis and Schoen developed a novel technique to handcraft asymptotically flat extensions of Riemannian manifolds

(
Σ
≅

S

2

,
g
)

(\Sigma \cong \mathbb {S}^2,g)

, with

g
g

satisfying

λ
1

≔

λ
1

(
−

Δ
g

+
K
(
g
)
)
>
0

\lambda _1 ≔\lambda _1(-\Delta _g + K(g))>0

, where

λ
1

\lambda _1

is the first eigenvalue of the operator

−

Δ
g

+
K
(
g
)

-\Delta _g+K(g)

and

K
(
g
)

K(g)

is the Gaussian curvature of

g
g

, with control on the ADM mass of the extension. Remarkably, this procedure allowed them to compute the Bartnik mass in this so-called minimal case; the Bartnik mass is a notion of quasi-local mass in General Relativity which is very challenging to compute. In this survey, we describe the Mantoulidis–Schoen construction, its impact and influence in subsequent research related to Bartnik mass estimates when the minimality assumption is dropped, and its adaptation to other settings of interest in General Relativity.
Four-dimensional homogeneous Kähler Ricci solitons
Authors: Calviño-Louzao Esteban , García-Río Eduardo , Gutiérrez-Rodríguez Ixchel , Vázquez-Lorenzo Ramón
Published: November 2021

We show that four-dimensional homogeneous Kähler Ricci solitons are Einstein, rigid or an algebraic Ricci soliton on the only

3
3

-symmetric space.
Short survey on the existence of slices for the space of Riemannian metrics
Authors: Corro Diego , Kordaß Jan-Bernhard
Published: November 2021

We review the well-known slice theorem of Ebin for the action of the diffeomorphism group on the space of Riemannian metrics of a closed manifold. We present advances in the study of the spaces of Riemannian metrics, and produce a more concise proof for the existence of slices.
Langlands program and Ramanujan Conjecture: A survey
Authors: Lomelí Luis
Published: November 2021

We present topics in the Langlands Program to graduate students and a wider mathematically mature audience. We study both global and local aspects in characteristic zero as well as characteristic

p
p

. We look at modern approaches to the generalized Ramanujan conjecture, which is an open problem over number fields, and present known cases over function fields. In particular, we study automorphic

L
L

-functions via the Langlands-Shahidi method. Hopefully, our approach to the Langlands Program can help guide the interested reader into an exciting field of mathematical research.
The least quadratic non-residue
Authors: McGown Kevin , Treviño Enrique
Published: November 2021

For a prime number

p
p

, we say

a
a

is a quadratic non-residue modulo

p
p

if there is no integer

x
x

such that

x
2

≡
a
mod

p

x^2\equiv a\bmod {p}

. The problem of bounding the least quadratic non-residue modulo

p
p

has a rich mathematical history. Moreover, there have been recent results, especially concerning explicit estimates. In this survey paper we give the history of the problem and explain many of the main achievements, giving explicit versions of these results in most cases. The paper is intended as a self-contained collection of the main ideas that have been used to attack the problem.
ChIP-AP: an integrated analysis pipeline for unbiased ChIP-seq analysis
Authors: Suryatenggara Jeremiah , Yong Kol Jia , Tenen Danielle E , Tenen Daniel G , Bassal Mahmoud A
Published: November 2021

Chromatin immunoprecipitation coupled with sequencing (ChIP-seq) is a technique used to identify protein–DNA interaction sites through antibody pull-down, sequencing and analysis; with enrichment ‘peak’ calling being the most critical analytical step. Benchmarking studies have consistently shown that peak callers have distinct selectivity and specificity characteristics that are not additive and seldom completely overlap in many scenarios, even after parameter optimization. We therefore developed ChIP-AP, an integrated ChIP-seq analysis pipeline utilizing four independent peak callers, which seamlessly processes raw sequencing files to final result. This approach enables (1) better gauging of peak confidence through detection by multiple algorithms, and (2) more thoroughly surveys the binding landscape by capturing peaks not detected by individual callers. Final analysis results are then integrated into a single output table, enabling users to explore their data by applying selectivity and sensitivity thresholds that best address their biological questions, without needing any additional reprocessing. ChIP-AP therefore presents investigators with a more comprehensive coverage of the binding landscape without requiring additional wet-lab observations.
Automated extraction of genes associated with antibiotic resistance from the biomedical literature
Authors: Brincat Andre , Hofmann Markus
Published: November 2021

The detection of bacterial antibiotic resistance phenotypes is important when carrying out clinical decisions for patient treatment. Conventional phenotypic testing involves culturing bacteria which requires a significant amount of time and work. Whole-genome sequencing is emerging as a fast alternative to resistance prediction, by considering the presence/absence of certain genes. A lot of research has focused on determining which bacterial genes cause antibiotic resistance and efforts are being made to consolidate these facts in knowledge bases (KBs). KBs are usually manually curated by domain experts to be of the highest quality. However, this limits the pace at which new facts are added. Automated relation extraction of gene-antibiotic resistance relations from the biomedical literature is one solution that can simplify the curation process. This paper reports on the development of a text mining pipeline that takes in English biomedical abstracts and outputs genes that are predicted to cause resistance to antibiotics. To test the generalisability of this pipeline it was then applied to predict genes associated with Helicobacter pylori antibiotic resistance, that are not present in common antibiotic resistance KBs or publications studying H. pylori. These genes would be candidates for further lab-based antibiotic research and inclusion in these KBs. For relation extraction, state-of-the-art deep learning models were used. These models were trained on a newly developed silver corpus which was generated by distant supervision of abstracts using the facts obtained from KBs. The top performing model was superior to a co-occurrence model, achieving a recall of 95%, a precision of 60% and F1-score of 74% on a manually annotated holdout dataset. To our knowledge, this project was the first attempt at developing a complete text mining pipeline that incorporates deep learning models to extract gene-antibiotic resistance relations from the literature. Additional related data can be found at https://github.com/AndreBrincat/Gene-Antibiotic-Resistance-Relation-Extraction
Long-term Oncological Outcome of Segmental Versus Extended Colectomy for Colorectal Cancer in Crohn’s Disease: Results from an International Multicentre Study
Authors: Sensi Bruno , Khan Jim , Warusavitarne Janindra , Nardi Alessandra , Spinelli Antonino , Zaghiyan Karen , Panis Yves , Sampietro Gianluca , Fichera Alessandro , Garcia-Granero Eduardo , Espin-Basany Eloy , Konishi Tsuyoshi , Siragusa Leandro , Stefan Samuel , Bellato Vittoria , Carvello Michele , Adams Evan , Frontali Alice , Artigue Michael , Frasson Matteo , Marti-Gallostra Marc , Pellino Gianluca , Sica Giuseppe S
Published: November 2021

Background and Aims

Crohn’s disease increases colorectal cancer risk, with high prevalence of synchronous and metachronous cancers. Current guidelines for colorectal cancer in Crohn’s disease recommend pan-proctocolectomy. The aim of this study was to evaluate oncological outcomes of a less invasive surgical approach.

Methods

This was a retrospective database analysis of Crohn’s disease patients with colorectal cancer undergoing surgery at selected European and US tertiary centres. Outcomes of segmental colectomy were compared with those of extended colectomy, total colectomy, and pan-proctocolectomy. Primary outcome was progression-free survival. Secondary outcomes included overall survival, synchronous and metachronous colorectal cancer, and major postoperative complications.

Results

Ninety-nine patients were included: 66 patients underwent segmental colectomy and 33 extended colectomy. Segmental colectomy patients were older [p = 0.0429], had less extensive colitis [p = 0.0002] and no preoperatively identified synchronous lesions [p = 0.0109].

Median follow-up was 43 [31–62] months. There was no difference in unadjusted progression-free survival [p = 0.2570] or in overall survival [p = 0.4191] between segmental and extended colectomy. Multivariate analysis adjusting for age, sex, ASA score, and AJCC staging, confirmed no difference for progression-free survival (hazard ratio [HR] 1.00, p = 0.9993) or overall survival [HR 0.77, p = 0.6654]. Synchronous and metachronous cancers incidence was 9% and 1.5%, respectively. Perioperative mortality was nil and major complications were comparable [7.58% vs 6.06%, p = 0.9998].

Conclusions

Segmental colectomy seems to offer similar long-term outcomes to more extensive surgery. Incidence of synchronous and metachronous cancers appears much lower than previously described. Further prospective studies are warranted to confirm these results.
Daily sitting time and its association with non-communicable diseases and multimorbidity in Catalonia
Authors: Poses-Ferrer Elisa , Parisi Rosa , Gonzalez-Viana Angelina , Castell Conxa , Arias de la Torre Jorge , Jones Andrew , Serra-Sutton Vicky , Espallargues Mireia , Cabezas Carmen
Published: November 2021

Background

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) account for 71% of deaths worldwide and individual behaviours such as sedentariness play an important role on their development and management. However, the detrimental effect of daily sitting on multiple NCDs has rarely been studied. This study sought (i) to investigate the association between sitting time and main NCDs and multimorbidity in the population of Catalonia and (ii) to explore the effect of physical activity as a modifier of the associations between sitting time and health outcomes.

Methods

Cross-sectional data from the 2016 National Health Survey of Catalonia were analyzed, and multivariable logistic regression, adjusting for socio-demographics and individual risk factors (tobacco and alcohol consumption, diet, hyperlipidaemia, hypertension, body mass index) was used to estimated odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of the association between sitting time and NCDs.

Results

A total of 3320 people ≥15 years old were included in the study. Sitting more than 5 h/day was associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease (OR 1.90, 95% CI: 1.21–2.97), respiratory disease (OR 1.61, 95% CI: 1.13–2.30) and multimorbidity (OR 2.80, 95% CI: 1.53–5.15). Sitting more than 3 h/day was also associated with a higher risk of multimorbidity (OR 2.26, 95% CI: 1.23–4.16). Physical activity did not modify the associations between sitting time and any of the outcomes.

Conclusions

Daily sitting time might be an independent risk factor for some NCDs, such as cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease and multimorbidity, independently of the level risk of physical inactivity.
Anomaly detection with vision-based deep learning for epidemic prevention and control
Authors: Samani Hooman , Yang Chan-Yun , Li Chunxu , Chung Chia-Ling , Li Shaoxiang
Published: November 2021

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people were advised to keep a social distance from others. People’s behaviors will also be noticed, such as lying down because of illness, regarded as abnormal conditions. This paper proposes a visual anomaly analysis system based on deep learning to identify individuals with various anomaly types. In the study, two types of anomaly detections are concerned. The first is monitoring the anomaly in the case of falling in an open public area. The second is measuring the social distance of people in the area to warn the individuals under a short distance. By implementing a deep model named You Only Look Once, the related anomaly can be identified accurately in a wide range of open spaces. Experimental results show that the detection accuracy of the proposed method is 91%. In the social distance, the actual social distance is calculated by calculating the plane distance to ensure that everyone can meet the specification. Integrating the two functions and implementing the environmental monitoring system will make it easier to monitor and manage the disease-related abnormalities on the site.
Human-provisioned foods reduce gut microbiome diversity in American black bears (Ursus americanus)
Authors: Gillman Sierra J , McKenney Erin A , Lafferty Diana J R
Published: November 2021

The distal gut is home to the dynamic and influential gut microbiome, which is intimately linked to mammalian health by promoting and facilitating countless physiological functions. In a time of increased anthropogenic pressures on wildlife due to widespread habitat destruction, loss of natural prey/foods, and rapid urbanization, the study of wildlife gut microbiomes could prove to be a valuable tool in wildlife management and conservation. Diet is one of the most influential determinants of a host’s gut microbiome; yet many wildlife agencies allow baiting to facilitate wildlife harvest, although the impact of human-provisioned foods on wildlife gut health is largely unknown. We used stable isotope analysis derived from carbon (δ 13C) to index the use of human-provisioned foods by 35 legally harvested American black bears (Ursus americanus), and16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing to examine the impact of human-provisioned foods on the gut microbial diversity of black bears. We found that greater long-term consumption of human-provisioned foods was associated with significantly reduced microbial species richness and phylogenetic diversity. Our results indicate that consumption of anthropogenic foods through baiting significantly alters the mammalian gut microbiome.
Electron microscopic visualization of single molecules by tag-mediated metal particle labeling
Authors: Shigemoto Ryuichi
Published: November 2021

Genetically encoded tags have introduced extensive lines of application from purification of tagged proteins to their visualization at the single molecular, cellular, histological and whole-body levels. Combined with other rapidly developing technologies such as clustered regularly interspaced palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein 9 (Cas9) system, proteomics, super-resolution microscopy and proximity labeling, a large variety of genetically encoded tags have been developed in the last two decades. In this review, I focus on the current status of tag development for electron microscopic (EM) visualization of proteins with metal particle labeling. Compared with conventional immunoelectron microscopy using gold particles, tag-mediated metal particle labeling has several advantages that could potentially improve the sensitivity, spatial and temporal resolution, and applicability to a wide range of proteins of interest (POIs). It may enable researchers to detect single molecules in situ, allowing the quantitative measurement of absolute numbers and exact localization patterns of POI in the ultrastructural context. Thus, genetically encoded tags for EM could revolutionize the field as green fluorescence protein did for light microscopy, although we still have many challenges to overcome before reaching this goal.
ASSESSMENT OF OCCUPATIONAL RADIATION DOSE FROM CAMERA MODEL INTRAORAL HANDHELD X-RAY DEVICE WITHOUT STRAY RADIATION PROTECTION SHIELD
Authors: Moshfeghi Mahkameh , Safi Yaser , Afzalan Alireza , Ghazizadeh Ahsaie Mitra
Published: November 2021

The aim of this study was to assess the occupational exposure from portable X-ray device without stray radiation protection shield measured using thermoluminescent dosemeters (TLDs). A total of 108 intraoral periapical radiographies of six sextants were performed. The TLDs were located on right index finger and left palm, between the pupils of the eyes at the edges of the Nasion point, Manubrium of Sternum bone and genital area. The detected mean doses per procedure were 70, 99, 60, 51, 51 and 58 μSv in the right finger, left palm, level of the Nasion point, under left clavicle, above the sternum manubrium and at the gonad area, respectively. Maximum number of radiographic images that the operator is allowed to perform depends on eye exposure and in accordance with International Commission on Radiological Protection is 0.16 (0.12–0.23) per hour or 1.28 (0.96–1.84) per day.
Management of a Pelvic Abscess and Abdominal Fistula after Palliative Total Pelvic Exenteration with Intraoperative Radiotherapy in Recurrent Rectal Cancer Without NPWT: A Case Report
Authors: Yang Hui , Rui Yuanyi , Chen Hong
Published: November 2021

A 59-year-old man with recurrent rectal cancer and type 2 diabetes mellitus underwent palliative total pelvic exenteration and intraoperative radiotherapy. After surgery, he experienced a pelvic abscess and abdominal-perineal fistula. Profuse exudate contaminated the midline abdominal incision through the abdominal-perineal fistula and delayed healing. Because of a residual tumor and the high cost, negative-pressure wound therapy was not performed. After 76 days of local treatment that involved removing necrotic tissue, controlling inflammation with an antimicrobial silver dressing, absorbing and draining exudate with a hypertonic saline dressing, promoting granulation and preventing infection with a silver alginate dressing, and promoting re-epithelialization with recombinant human epidermal growth factor gel, the abdominal wound and abdominal-perineal fistula healed successfully.
Graded Chronic Pain Scale
Authors: Sharma Sonia , Kallen Michael A. , Ohrbach Richard
Published: November 2021

Objectives:

The 1-month Graded Chronic Pain Scale (GCPS) commonly used in clinical studies has never been validated. This study compares the GCPS 1-month with the 6 months version for reliability and validity.

Methods:

The Validation Project included 521 participants with at least one temporomandibular disorder for cross-sectional data and 74 participants for test-retest data. Internal reliability, stability, and construct validity were used for testing the 1-month version. Comparisons were made between the 2 versions for characteristic pain intensity (CPI), interference, and chronic pain grade (CPG).

Results:

For GCPS 1-month, internal consistency for pain intensity and interference was high (Cronbach α=0.87 and 0.94, respectively), and temporal stability was high for CPI (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC]=0.91), interference (ICC=0.85), and CPG (weighted κ=0.88). ICC or κ between the 2 versions was 0.78 (CPI), 0.66 (interference), and 0.69 (CPG); high-impact pain, in contrast, was 0.50. Construct validity exhibited higher correlations with predictor variables for 1-month version attributes of CPI, interference, and CPG. Modified Bland-Altman plots indicated that both versions measure CPI well.

Discussion:

Overall, reliability of the 1-month GCPS is equal to or better than the 6-months version for pain intensity, disability days, pain interference, CPG, and high-impact pain. However, consistency between versions is lower for measures of disability days and interference, and for the derived measures of CPG and high-impact pain; highly skewed distributions and increasing disagreement in reported status over the time periods affect the measures of function. Therefore, we recommend that GCPS-1 month only be used to calculate pain intensity and pain interference.
Falsely Undetectable Vancomycin Levels in a Pediatric Patient With Chronic Granulomatous Disease
Authors: Riollano Cruz Mariawy , Mendu Damodara Rao , Tosi Michael F.
Published: November 2021

A child with chronic granulomatous disease on vancomycin treatment had V trough levels that became undetectable, as measured in our hospital’s clinical laboratory by a commonly employed particle-enhanced turbidometric inhibition assay. An alternative laboratory method yielded appropriate results. Recognizing and resolving erroneously low V trough levels could prevent needless adjustments in dosing that could increase risk for acute kidney injury.
Food Insecurity Negatively Impacts Gluten Avoidance and Nutritional Intake in Patients With Celiac Disease
Authors: Ma Christopher , Singh Siddharth , Jairath Vipul , Radulescu Gabriela , Ho Stephanie K.M. , Choi May Y.
Published: November 2021

Background:

Food insecurity is a major public health challenge. For patients with celiac disease (CeD), food insecurity may be particularly detrimental as it threatens the cornerstone of their treatment: adoption of a gluten-free diet (GFD). We aimed to characterize the prevalence of food insecurity in patients with CeD and evaluate its impact on GFD adoption and nutritional intake.

Methods:

We analyzed data from patients with CeD participating in the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2009 to 2014. Food insecurity was defined using the US Department of Agriculture 18-Item Standard Food Security Survey Module. Survey-weighted logistic regression was used to assess differences in demographic characteristics of CeD patients living with food insecurity and the impact of food security on GFD adoption. Multivariable survey-weighted linear regression was used to evaluate the effect of food insecurity on nutritional intake of macronutrients and micronutrients.

Results:

Overall, 15.9% (95% confidence interval: 10.6%, 23.1%) of patients with CeD in the United States [weighted N=2.9 million (95% confidence interval: 2.2, 3.5 million)] are food insecure. Food insecure patients with CeD were disproportionately younger, poorly educated, nonwhite, living in poverty, and were significantly less likely to adopt a GFD (24.1% vs. 67.9%, P=0.02). Food insecurity was associated with significantly lower consumption of protein, carbohydrates, fat, and most vitamins and minerals.

Conclusions:

One in 6 patients with CeD are food insecure, negatively impacting GFD adoption and the ability to meet recommended daily intake of most micronutrients. Less than one quarter of food insecure CeD patients adhere to a GFD.
Longitudinal Trends in Pediatric Return Visits to US Emergency Departments
Authors: Holmstrom Sara E. , Varma Selina , Augustine Erin , Wilson Paria M. , Ramgopal Sriram
Published: November 2021

Objectives

This study aimed to evaluate trends in pediatric emergency department (ED) 72-hour return visits and factors associated with return visits.

Methods

We performed a cross-sectional study from 2002 to 2018 using the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, a complex survey of nonfederal US ED encounters. Patients 18 years or older were excluded. Our outcome of interest was 72-hour return ED encounter. We assessed changes in proportions of return visits over time using the Spearman rank-correlation test. We performed survey-weighted univariable and multivariable logistic regressions to identify factors associated with 72-hour return visit status.

Results

A total of 501 million (95% confidence interval [CI], 452–551 million) pediatric survey-weighted ED encounters occurred during the 17-year study period, of which 14,353,697 (3.2%; 95% CI, 2.7%–3.7%) represented 72-hour return visits. The proportion of pediatric ED return visits increased from 22.9 to 36.5 per 1000 pediatric encounters over the study period (ρ = 0.68, P < 0.01). Most return visits were of lower acuity (73.0%; 95% CI, 68.6%–11.5%), and 8.1% (95% CI, 6.3%–9.9%) of return visits were admitted to the hospital or transferred to a different facility. In multivariable analyses, older age, abnormal heart rate, and abnormal temperature had lower adjusted odds ratio (aOR) of 72-hour return visits compared with encounters not classified as return visit. Complaints of returning for test results, treatment, and diagnostic screening/administrative purposes were associated with a higher aOR of return visit. Admission/transfer (in comparison with discharge) had a higher odds of return visit status in univariable (odds ratio, 1.59; 95% CI, 1.24–2.04) and multivariable (aOR, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.03–1.68) analyses.

Conclusions

The proportion of 72-hour US pediatric ED return visits is increasing over time. Return visit status was associated with admission/transfer, but otherwise with markers of lower patient acuity. These findings inform quality improvement efforts aimed at improving pediatric transition to outpatient care after an ED encounter.
Genotyping strategies for detecting CRISPR mutations in polyploid species: a case study-based approach in hexaploid wheat
Authors: Gupta Ajay , Li Wanlong
Published: November 2021

As a versatile tool for genome engineering, CRISPR-Cas9 has been revolutionizing the field of molecular biology, biotechnology, and crop improvement. By precisely targeting pre-selected genomic sites, CRISPR-Cas9 primarily induces insertions or deletions (indels) of variable size. Despite the significant advance in the technology per se, detecting these indels is the major and difficult part of the CRISPR program in polyploid species, like wheat, with relatively low mutation rates. A plethora of methods are available for detecting mutations, but no method is perfect for all mutation types. In this case study, we demonstrated a new, protocol for capturing length polymorphism from small indels using a nested PCR approach. This new method is tractable, efficient, and cost-effective in detecting and genotyping indels >3-bp. We also discussed the major genotyping platforms used in our wheat CRISPR projects, such as mismatch cleavage assay, restriction enzyme assay, ribonucleoprotein assay, and Sanger sequencing, for their advantages and pitfalls in wheat CRISPR mutation detection.
A method to estimate the cellular composition of the mouse brain from heterogeneous datasets
Authors: Rodarie Dimitri , Verasztó Csaba , Roussel Yann , Reimann Michael , Keller Daniel , Ramaswamy Srikanth , Markram Henry , Gewaltig Marc-Oliver
Published: November 2021

The mouse brain contains a rich diversity of inhibitory neuron types that have been characterized by their patterns of gene expression. However, it is still unclear how these cell types are distributed across the mouse brain. We developed a computational method to estimate the densities of different inhibitory neuron types across the mouse brain. Our method allows the unbiased integration of diverse and disparate datasets into one framework to predict inhibitory neuron densities for uncharted brain regions. We constrained our estimates based on previously computed brain-wide neuron densities, gene expression data from in situ hybridization image stacks together with a wide range of values reported in the literature. Using constrained optimization, we derived coherent estimates of cell densities for the different inhibitory neuron types. We estimate that 20.3% of all neurons in the mouse brain are inhibitory. Among all inhibitory neurons, 18% predominantly express parvalbumin (PV), 16% express somatostatin (SST), 3% express vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), and the remainder 63% belong to the residual GABAergic population. We find that our density estimations improve as more literature values are integrated. Our pipeline is extensible, allowing new cell types or data to be integrated as they become available. The data, algorithms, software, and results of our pipeline are publicly available and update the Blue Brain Cell Atlas. This work therefore leverages the research community to collectively converge on the numbers of each cell type in each brain region.

Author summary

Obtaining a global understanding of the cellular composition of the brain is a very complex task, not only because of the great variability that exists between reports of similar counts but also because of the numerous brain regions and cell types that make up the brain. Previously, we presented a model of a cell atlas, which provided an estimate of the densities of neurons, glia and their subtypes for each region in the mouse brain. Here, we describe an extension of this model to include more inhibitory neuron types. We collected estimates of inhibitory neuron counts from literature and built a framework to combine them into a consistent cell atlas. Using brain slice images, we also estimated inhibitory neuron density in regions where no literature data are available. We estimated that in the mouse brain 20.3% of all neurons are inhibitory. Among all inhibitory neurons, 18% predominantly express parvalbumin (PV), 16% express somatostatin (SST), 3% express vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), and the remainder 63% belong to the residual GABAergic population.

Our approach can be further extended to any other cell type and provides a resource to build tissue-level models of the rodent brain.
Humans can track but fail to predict accelerating objects
Authors: Kreyenmeier Philipp , Kämmer Luca , Fooken Jolande , Spering Miriam
Published: November 2021

Objects in our visual environment often move unpredictably and can suddenly speed up or slow down. The ability to account for acceleration when interacting with moving objects can be critical for survival. Here, we investigate how human observers track an accelerating target with their eyes and predict its time of reappearance after a temporal occlusion by making an interceptive hand movement. Before occlusion, the target was initially visible and accelerated for a brief period. We tested how observers integrated target motion information by comparing three alternative models that predicted time-to-contact (TTC) based on the (1) final target velocity sample before occlusion, (2) average target velocity before occlusion, or (3) target acceleration. We show that visually-guided smooth pursuit eye movements reliably reflect target acceleration prior to occlusion. However, systematic saccade and manual interception timing errors reveal an inability to consider acceleration when predicting TTC. Interception timing is best described by the final velocity model that relies on extrapolating the last available velocity sample before occlusion. These findings provide compelling evidence for differential acceleration integration mechanisms in vision-guided eye movements and prediction-guided interception and a mechanistic explanation for the function and failure of interactions with accelerating objects.
A deep learning framework for inference of single-trial neural population dynamics from calcium imaging with sub-frame temporal resolution
Authors: Zhu Feng , Grier Harrison A. , Tandon Raghav , Cai Changjia , Agarwal Anjali , Giovannucci Andrea , Kaufman Matthew T. , Pandarinath Chethan
Published: November 2021

In many brain areas, neural populations act as a coordinated network whose state is tied to behavior on a moment-by-moment basis and millisecond timescale. Two-photon (2p) calcium imaging is a powerful tool to probe network-scale computation, as it can measure the activity of many individual neurons, monitor multiple cortical layers simultaneously, and sample from identified cell types. However, estimating network state and dynamics from 2p measurements has proven challenging because of noise, inherent nonlinearities, and limitations on temporal resolution. Here we describe RADICaL, a deep learning method to overcome these limitations at the population level. RADICaL extends methods that exploit dynamics in spiking activity for application to deconvolved calcium signals, whose statistics and temporal dynamics are quite distinct from electrophysiologically-recorded spikes. It incorporates a novel network training strategy that capitalizes on the timing of 2p sampling to recover network dynamics with high temporal precision. In synthetic tests, RADICaL infers network state more accurately than previous methods, particularly for high-frequency components. In real 2p recordings from sensorimotor areas in mice performing a “water grab” task, RADICaL infers network state with close correspondence to single-trial variations in behavior, and maintains high-quality inference even when neuronal populations are substantially reduced.
Anxiety attenuates learning advantages conferred by statistical stability and induces loss of volatility-attuning in brain activity
Authors: Rowe Elise G. , Harris Clare D. , Dzafic Ilvana , Garrido Marta I.
Published: November 2021

Anxiety can alter an individual’s perception of their external sensory environment. Previous studies suggest that anxiety can increase the magnitude of neural responses to unexpected (or surprising) stimuli. Additionally, surprise responses are reported to be boosted during stable compared to volatile environments. Few studies, however, have examined how learning is impacted by both threat and volatility. To investigate these effects, we used threat-of-shock to transiently increase subjective anxiety in healthy adults during an auditory oddball task, in which the regularity could be stable or volatile, while undergoing functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) scanning. We then used Bayesian Model Selection (BMS) mapping to pinpoint the brain areas where different models of anxiety displayed the highest evidence. Behaviourally, we found that threat-of-shock eliminated the accuracy advantage conferred by environmental stability over volatility in the task at hand. Neurally, we found that threat-of-shock led to both attenuation and loss of volatility-attuning of neural activity evoked by surprising sounds across most subcortical and limbic brain regions including the thalamus, basal ganglia, claustrum, insula, anterior cingulate, hippocampal gyrus and also the superior temporal gyrus. Conversely, within two small clusters in the left medial frontal gyrus and extrastriate area, threat-of-shock boosted the neural activity (relative to the safe and volatile condition) to the levels observed during the safe and stable condition, while also inducing a loss of volatility-attuning. Taken together, our findings suggest that threat eliminates the learning advantage conferred by statistical stability compared to volatility. Thus, we propose that anxiety disrupts behavioural adaptation to environmental statistics, and that multiple subcortical and limbic regions are implicated in this process.
Immunogenomic, single-cell and spatial dissection of CD8+T cell exhaustion reveals critical determinants of cancer immunotherapy
Authors: Naulaerts Stefan , Borras Daniel M , Martinez Asier Antoranz , Messiaen Julie , Van Herck Yannick , Gelens Lendert , Venken Tom , Vanmeerbeek Isaure , More Sanket , Sprooten Jenny , Bechter Oliver , Bergers Gabriele , Liston Adrian , De Vleeschouwer Steven , Van Den Eynde Benoit J , Lambrechts Diether , Borst Jannie , Bosisio Francesca , Tejpar Sabine , De Smet Frederik , Garg Abhishek D
Published: November 2021

Tumoural-CD8+T cells exhibit exhausted or dysfunctional states. Contrary to immunotherapy-responsive exhausted-CD8+T cells, the clinical features of dysfunctional-CD8+T cells are disputed. Hence, we conducted large-scale multi-omics and multi-dimensional mapping of CD8+T cell-states across multiple cancer patient-cohorts. This identified tumour-specific continuum of CD8+T cell-states across 6 human cancers, partly imprinted by organ-specific immuno-modulatory niches. Herein, melanoma and glioblastoma enriched prototypical exhausted (CD8+TEXT) and severely-dysfunctional (CD8+TSDF) states, respectively. Contrary to CD8+TEXT, CD8+TSDF displayed transcriptomic and epigenetic effector/cytolytic dysfunctions, and dysregulated effector/memory single-cell trajectories, culminating into maladaptive prodeath stress and cell-cycle defects. Suboptimal antigen-priming underscored CD8+TSDF, which was distinct from immune-checkpoints “rich” CD8+TEXT, reflecting chronic antigen-stimulation. Continuum variation also existed on tumour spatial-level, with convergent (CD8+TEXT-supportive vascular regions) and divergent features (dysfunctional CD4+T::CD8+TSDFcell-to-cell interactions) between melanoma and glioblastoma. Globally, IFNγ-IL2 disparities, paucity of intra-tumoural CD4+/CD8+T cells, and myeloid TGFβ/wound healing responses, distinguished CD8+TSDF-landscape. Within immuno-oncology clinical-trials, anti-PD1 immunotherapy failed to “reinvigorate” CD8+TSDF-landscape, and instead facilitated effector-dysfunction and TGFβ/wound healing. However, cellular immunotherapies (dendritic cell-vaccines, adoptive T-cell therapy) ameliorated assorted CD8+TSDF-landscape disparities, highlighting a roadmap for anti-glioblastoma multimodal-immunotherapy. Collectively, our study comprehensively expands clinical-knowledge on CD8+T cell-exhaustion and suggests that tumour-specific, pre-existing CD8+TEXT/TSDF-states, determine immunotherapy-responses.
Ion-bridges and lipids drive aggregation of same-charge nanoparticles on lipid membranes
Authors: Lavagna Enrico , Bochicchio Davide , De Marco Anna L. , Güven Zekiye P. , Stellacci Francesco , Rossi Giulia
Published: November 2021

The control of the aggregation of biomedical nanoparticles (NP) in physiological conditions is crucial as clustering may change completely the way they interact with the biological environment. Here we show that Au nanoparticles, functionalized by an anionic, amphiphilic shell, spontaneously aggregate in fluid zwitterionic lipid bilayers. We use Molecular Dynamics and enhanced sampling techniques to disentangle the short-range and long-range driving forces of aggregation. At short inter-particle distances, ion-mediated, charge-charge interactions (ion bridging) stabilize the formation of large NP aggregates, as confirmed by cryo-electron microscopy. Lipid depletion and membrane curvature are the main membrane deformations driving long-range NP-NP attraction. Ion bridging, lipid depletion, and membrane curvature stem from the configurational flexibility of the nanoparticle shell. Our simulations show, more in general, that the aggregation of same-charge membrane inclusions can be expected as a result of intrinsically nanoscale effects taking place at the NP-NP and NP-bilayer soft interfaces.
Do naps benefit novel word learning? Developmental differences and white matter correlates
Authors: van Rijn E. , Gouws A. , Walker S. , Knowland V. C. P. , Cairney S. A. , Gaskell M. G. , Henderson L. M.
Published: November 2021

Behavioural and neuroimaging data suggest that memory representations of newly learned words undergo changes during nocturnal sleep, including improvements in explicit recall and lexical integration (i.e., after sleep, novel words compete with existing words during online word recognition). Some studies have revealed larger sleep-benefits in children relative to adults. However, whether daytime naps play a similar facilitatory role is unclear. We investigated the effect of a daytime nap (relative to wake) on explicit memory (recall/recognition) and lexical integration (lexical competition) of newly learned novel words in young adults and children aged 10-12 years, also exploring white matter correlates of the pre- and post-nap effects of word learning in the child group with diffusion weighted MRI. In both age groups, a nap maintained explicit memory of novel words and wake led to forgetting. However, there was an age group interaction when comparing change in recall over the nap: children showed a slight improvement whereas adults showed a slight decline. There was no evidence of lexical integration at any point. Although children spent proportionally more time in slow-wave sleep (SWS) than adults, neither SWS nor spindle parameters correlated with over-nap changes in word learning. For children, increased fractional anisotropy (FA) in the uncinate fasciculus and arcuate fasciculus were associated with the recognition of novel words immediately after learning, and FA in the right arcuate fasciculus was further associated with changes in recall of novel words over a nap, supporting the importance of these tracts in the word learning and consolidation process. These findings point to a protective role of naps in word learning, and emphasize the need to advance theories of word learning by better understanding both the active and passive roles that sleep plays in supporting vocabulary consolidation over development.
Ties, status, and internationalization of Chinese private firms
Authors: Zhang Zhu , Xue Jiaqi , Qi Baoxin
Published: November 2021

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the role of network in affecting private firms’ internationalization decision. Specifically, it investigates the way that business ties, political ties and status influence an internationalization decision.

Design/methodology/approach

On the basis of the survey data collected from Chinese private firms, this study distinguishes business ties from political ties and introduces network status. Binary logistic regression is used to test the hypotheses.

Findings

Results show that private firms that have business ties are more likely to internationalize, whereas private firms that have political ties are less likely to internationalize. High-status private firms are more likely to internationalize. Political ties negatively moderate the relationship between business ties and internationalization. High-status firms with political ties are more likely to internationalize.

Originality/value

This study provides theoretical and practical contributions. Results complement previous research on social networks in the context of Chinese private firms and have implications for managers who exert effort to internationalize their firms.