bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Food insecurity moderates the relationship between momentary affect and adherence in a dietary intervention study
Authors: Andersen Coley C. , Cabeza de Baca Tomás , Votruba Susanne B. , Stinson Emma J. , Engel Scott G. , Krakoff Jonathan , Gluck Marci E.
Published: January 2022

Objective

Negative affect and food insecurity have been proposed to impede adherence to weight loss interventions. Therefore, this study examined the role of these variables on dietary adherence using Ecological Momentary Assessment.

Methods

A total of 50 participants (19 male participants; age = 49 [SD 14] years) participated in an outpatient dietary study. Lean participants (n = 22; BMI ≤ 25 kg/m2) received a weight‐maintaining energy needs (WMEN) diet, and participants with obesity (BMI ≥ 30) were randomized to receive either a WMEN diet (n = 14) or a 35% calorie‐reduced diet (n = 14). Food insecurity was measured, and, twice daily, Ecological Momentary Assessment captured real‐time affect ratings and adherence. Between‐person (trait‐level) and lagged within‐person (state‐level) scores were calculated.

Results

Greater food insecurity and trait‐level negative affect were associated with reduced adherence (p = 0.0015, p = 0.0002, respectively), whereas higher trait‐level positive affect was associated with greater adherence (p < 0.0001). Significant interactions between affect and food insecurity revealed an association between higher trait positive affect and increased adherence at lower levels of food insecurity. Higher trait negative affect was more strongly associated with decreased adherence in participants with greater levels of food insecurity (−1 SD: B = −0.21, p = 0.22; mean: B = −0.46, SE = 0.13, p = 0.0004; +1 SD: B = −0.71, SE = 0.17, p < 0.0001).

Conclusions

Trait‐level affect may be crucial in predicting dietary adherence, especially in those with greater food insecurity.
Exploring microRNAs as predictive biomarkers for type 2 diabetes mellitus remission after sleeve gastrectomy: A pilot study
Authors: Wojciechowska Gladys , Szczerbinski Lukasz , Kretowski Marek , Niemira Magdalena , Hady Hady Razak , Kretowski Adam
Published: January 2022

Objective

This study aimed to evaluate microRNAs (miRNAs) as predictive biomarkers for type 2 diabetes (T2D) remission 12 months after sleeve gastrectomy (SG).

Methods

A total of 179 serum miRNAs were profiled, and 26 clinical variables were collected from 46 patients. Two patients were later excluded because of hemolysis, and six patients with unclear remission status were set aside to evaluate the prediction models. The remaining 38 patients were included for model building. Variable selection was done using different approaches, including Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO). Prediction models were then developed using LASSO and assessed in the validation set.

Results

A total of 26 out of 38 patients achieved T2D remission 12 months after SG. The prediction model with only clinical variables misclassified two patients, which were correctly classified using miRNAs. Two miRNA‐only models achieved an accuracy of one but performed poorly for the validation set. The best miRNA model was a mixed model (accuracy: 0.974) containing four miRNAs (hsa‐miR‐32‐5p, hsa‐miR‐382‐5p, hsa‐miR‐1‐3p, and hsa‐miR‐21‐5p) and four clinical variables (T2D medication, sex, age, and fasting blood glucose). These miRNAs are involved in pathways related to obesity and insulin resistance.

Conclusions

This study suggests that four serum miRNAs might be predictive biomarkers for T2D remission 12 months after SG, but further validation studies are needed.
Dietary tryptophan and the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes: Total effect and mediation effect of sleep duration
Authors: Wang Weiqi , Wang Xinyue , Liu Lin , Liu Zengjiao , Han Tianshu , Sun Changhao , Yang Xue
Published: January 2022

Objective

The aims of this study were to examine the effects of tryptophan consumption on obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D) risk and whether sleep duration mediates these effects.

Methods

Overall, data of 7,908 participants were obtained from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (1997‐2011). A total of 6,373 and 4,398 participants who reported sleep duration and had blood samples, respectively, were incorporated into subgroup analyses. Multivariate Cox regression models were used to assess the associations between tertiles of tryptophan intake with obesity and T2D. General linear regression models were used to evaluate the effect of tryptophan on sleep time and plasma biomarkers.

Results

Dietary tryptophan was significantly associated with decreased risk of obesity and T2D risk (hazard ratio tertile 3 to tertile 1: 0.602 [95% CI: 0.500‐0.724]; 0.693 [95% CI: 0.565‐0.850]). Sleep duration was significantly higher, and hemoglobin A1c, total cholesterol, low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, and apolipoprotein B‐100 (APO‐B) were lower in the high tertile of tryptophan compared with the low tertile (p < 0.05). In addition, mediation effects on the associations of tryptophan intake with obesity and T2D risk were observed for sleep duration (estimated mediation percentage: 31.902% and 37.391%).

Conclusions

Dietary tryptophan showed advantageous effects on obesity and T2D risk. Furthermore, sleep duration potentially mediated for these effects.
Prenatal exome sequencing in fetuses with callosal anomalies
Authors: Lei Ting‐ying , She Qin , Fu Fang , Zhen Li , Li Ru , Yu Qiu‐xia , Wang Dan , Li Ying‐si , Cheng Ken , Zhou Hang , Yang Xin , Pan Min , Li Dong‐zhi , Liao Can
Published: January 2022

Objective

We aimed to investigate the value of exome sequencing (ES) in fetuses with callosal anomalies (CA) with or without other structural anomalies, but with normal findings by karyotyping and chromosome microarray analysis (CMA).

Methods

Cases with CA with or without other structural anomalies were screened for eligibility. Fetuses with abnormal karyotyping or CMA results were excluded. We performed ES on DNA samples from eligible fetus‐parental trios and identified diagnostic genetic variants based on the ultrasonographic features.

Results

A total of 50 eligible fetus‐parental trios were successfully analyzed by ES. We found 17 likely pathogenic or pathogenic variants in 14 genes from 17 fetuses, with a total proportion of diagnostic genetic variants equal to 34.0% (17/50). Of the 17 cases with a diagnosis, 10 (29.4%, 10/35) were isolated and 7 (43.8%, 7/15) were non‐isolated. Pregnancy outcome data showed that 70.0% (7/10) of the surviving isolated CA fetuses with negative ES results had a good prognosis in early childhood.

Conclusions

Our study used ES prenatally for CA and showed that ES can be used diagnostically to define the molecular defects that underlie unexplained CA. Most subjects with isolated CA with negative results for genetic causes will have a favorable prognosis in early childhood.
Diagnostic yield of genome sequencing for prenatal diagnosis of fetal structural anomalies
Authors: Wang Yiming , Greenfeld Elena , Watkins Nicholas , Belesiotis Peter , Zaidi Syed H. , Marshall Christian , Thiruvahindrapuram Bhooma , Shannon Patrick , Roifman Maian , Chong Karen , Chitayat David , Stavropoulos Dimitri James , Noor Abdul
Published: January 2022

Objective

Genome sequencing (GS >30x) is beginning to be adopted as a comprehensive genome‐wide test for the diagnosis of rare disease in the post‐natal setting. Recent studies demonstrated the utility of exome sequencing (ES) in prenatal diagnosis, we investigate the potential benefits for GS to act as a comprehensive prenatal test for diagnosis of fetal abnormalities.

Methods

We performed GS on a prospective cohort of 37 singleton fetuses with ultrasound‐identified structural abnormalities undergoing invasive prenatal testing. GS was performed in parallel with standard diagnostic testing, and the prioritized variants were classified according to ACMG guidelines and reviewed by a panel of board‐certified laboratory and clinical geneticists.

Results

Diagnostic sequence variants were identified in 5 fetuses (14%), with pathogenic variants found in NIPBL, FOXF1, RERE, AMMECR1, and FLT4. A further 7 fetuses (19%) had variants of uncertain significance (VUS) that may explain the phenotypes. Importantly, GS also identified all pathogenic variants reported by clinical microarray (2 CNVs, 5%).

Conclusion

Prenatal GS offered diagnoses (sequence variants and CNVs) in 19% of fetuses with structural anomalies. GS has the potential of replacing multiple consecutive tests, including microarray, gene panels, and WES, to provide the most comprehensive analysis in a timely manner necessary for prenatal diagnosis.
Impact of schizophrenia relapse definition on the comparative effectiveness of oral versus injectable antipsychotics: A systematic review and meta‐analysis of observational studies
Authors: Cristarella Tiffany , Castillon Genaro , Nepveu Jean‐François , Moride Yola
Published: January 2022

Although relapse is an important outcome to measure the effectiveness of schizophrenia treatment, no standard definition exists. This review aimed at identifying definitions and measurements of schizophrenia relapse in observational studies of long‐acting injectables (LAIs) versus oral antipsychotics (OAPs) and at determining their impact on heterogeneity of comparative effectiveness estimates. A systematic review was conducted using MEDLINE and Embase (01 January 2010–11 November 2019 [date last searched]). Pragmatic searches of gray literature and snowballing were also conducted. Search outputs were screened independently by two assessors at first stage, and full‐text of potentially eligible sources at second stage. For each retained source, definition and measurement of relapse, study methods, and comparative effectiveness estimates were extracted. Heterogeneity of estimates was assessed using I2 statistic with a threshold of 50% for substantial heterogeneity. Literature search yielded 543 sources and pragmatic searches, 21, of which 35 were eligible. Twelve definitions of relapse were found based on hospitalization/emergency department (ED) data (28 studies) or clinical assessment (5 studies). No definition was provided in five studies. According to quantitative analyses, in studies defining relapse as schizophrenia‐related hospitalization and/or ED visits over 1‐year follow‐up, LAIs were significantly more effective than OAPs. For studies measuring relapse based on all‐cause hospitalization, heterogeneity was too high for pooling; yet this definition is the most frequently found in pooled estimates published in the literature. Schizophrenia relapse definitions led to substantial heterogeneity of comparative effectiveness estimates of LAIs versus OAPs. Creating study subgroups based on relapse definition effectively reduces statistical heterogeneity.
Airborne pollen can affect the abundance of predatory mites in vineyards: implications for conservation biological control strategies
Authors: Malagnini Valeria , Pozzebon Alberto , Facchin Paolo , Paganelli Arturo , Duso Carlo
Published: January 2022

BACKGROUND

The importance of pollen as alternative food for generalist phytoseiid mites occurring in vineyards has been investigated in northeastern Italy. We compared pollen and phytoseiid abundance in four vineyards and in plots located at different distance from flowering hop plants. Pollen (Carpinus betulus and Typha spp.) was sprayed onto the foliage to evaluate the potential impact of this food source on predatory mite abundance. Finally, grass management was investigated to analyze the effect of a reduced mowing frequency on predatory mite population densities.

RESULTS

Arboreal pollen was found mostly during the spring and the grapevine blossoming period. Nonarboreal pollen dominated throughout the growing seasons. In vineyards, the abundance of Amblyseius andersoni, Kampimodromus aberrans, Phytoseius finitimus, Typhlodromus pyri eggs and motile forms increased after a phase of large pollen availability. Hop pollen promoted K. aberrans population increases in vineyards. Pollen applications increased predatory mite egg and motile form densities and similar effects were obtained by reducing mowing frequency in vineyards.

CONCLUSION

Pollen availability positively affects the biology of four phytoseiid species, promoting stable predatory mite populations in vineyards. However, natural pollen availability and predatory mite abundance often decrease in summer, and pollen supply can mitigate this trend. A higher pollen availability could be guaranteed by inserting hedges comprising species having scalar bloom, reducing mowing of inter‐row groundcover and spraying pollen. The presence of flowering plants surrounding vineyards and in their inter‐rows should be considered as a relevant factor to enhance the success of biocontrol tactics against phytophagous mites in viticulture.
Electron–Electron Interaction and Weak Antilocalization Effect in a Transition Metal Dichalcogenide Superconductor
Authors: Li Chushan , Boubeche Mebrouka , Zeng Lingyong , Ji Yi , Li Qixuan , Guo Donghui , Zhu Qizhong , Zhong Dingyong , Luo Huixia , Wang Huichao
Published: January 2022

In disordered transition‐metal dichalcogenide (TMD) superconductor, both the strong spin‐orbit coupling (SOC) and the disorder show remarkable effects on superconductivity. However, the features of SOC and disorder are rarely detected directly. Herein, the quantum transport behaviors arising from the interplay of SOC and disorder in the TMD superconductor 1T‐NbSeTe are reported. Before entering the superconducting state, the single crystal at low temperature shows a resistivity upturn, which is T
1/2 dependent and insensitive to the applied magnetic fields. The magnetoresistance (MR) at low temperatures shows an H
1/2 dependence at high magnetic fields. The characteristics are in good agreement with the electron–electron interaction (EEI) in a disordered conductor. In addition, the upturn changes and MR at low magnetic fields suggest the contribution of the weak antilocalization (WAL) effect arising from the strong SOC in the material. Moreover, the quantitative analyses of the transport features in different samples imply anomalous disorder‐enhanced superconductivity that needs to be further understood. The results reveal the disorder‐enhanced EEI and the strong SOC‐induced WAL effect in 1T‐NbSeTe, which illustrates the resistivity minimum in the widely studied doped superconductors. The work also provides insights into the disorder effect on superconductivity.
Bootstrap control charts for quantiles based on log‐symmetric distributions with applications to the monitoring of reliability data
Authors: Leiva Víctor , Santos Rafael A. dos , Saulo Helton , Marchant Carolina , Lio Yuhlong
Published: January 2022

In this work, a methodology to monitor a shift in the quantile of a distribution that is a member of the log‐symmetric family is proposed. Because the sampling distribution of a quantile estimator is often not available, the parametric bootstrap method is used to determine this sampling distribution and to establish the control limits when the process measurements follow a log‐symmetric distribution. The mentioned family is helpful for describing the behavior of data following a distribution with positive support and that is skewed to the right. Monte Carlo simulations are carried out to investigate the performance of the proposed bootstrap control charts for quantiles. An application regarding failure data due to stress on carbon fibers is presented for illustration when monitoring reliability data. This illustration shows that non‐conventional models, other than the Birnbaum‐Saunders, log‐normal and Weibull distributions, have potential to be used in practice. Two model selection procedures are considered to assess adequacy to the data. To facilitate the public use of the proposed methodology, we have created an R package named chartslogsym whose main functions are detailed in this paper.
Mass spectrometry based fragmentation patterns of nitrosamine compounds
Authors: Asare Shardrack O. , Hoskins Jessica N. , Blessing Richard A. , Hertzler Russell L.
Published: January 2022

Rationale

Nitrosamines are a class of mutagenic substances that can display high carcinogenic potential. New chemical entities may have the potential to form unique nitrosamines specific to the drug substance. It is therefore essential to understand the gas‐phase fragmentation behavior of nitrosamine compounds to enable the development of analytical methods to characterize novel nitrosamine compounds.

Methods

The gas‐phase fragmentation behavior of eight model nitrosamine compounds representing the common substructures seen in many small molecule pharmaceutical compounds was studied with positive electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (ESI‐MS/MS). The fragmentation patterns of these compounds under various collision parameters available in commercially available mass spectrometers were studied.

Results

Protonated nitrosamine compounds produced diagnostic fragment ions upon MS/MS. Three primary structure‐dependent fragmentation pathways were observed. The first pathway involves the loss of 30 Da which corresponds to the loss of the NO radical from the protonated nitrosamine compound (Group 1). The second and third fragmentation pathways, which have not been reported for nitrosamine compounds, proceed via the loss of H2O from the protonated nitrosamine compound (Group 2), and elimination and a loss of 46 Da (loss of NH2NO) from the nitrosamine compound (Group 3).

Conclusions

Results presented in this work provide an overview of the gas‐phase fragmentation patterns of nitrosamine compounds and may be useful in identifying novel nitrosamine compounds in complex matrices.
Normalized passivity control for robust tuning in real‐time hybrid tests
Authors: Peiris Lokukankanamge Dushyantha Hashan , Plummer Andrew R. , du Bois Jonathan L.
Published: January 2022

Real‐time hybrid testing involves the separation of a system into an experimental component and a numerically simulated substructure which are coupled and run together. The coupling between substructures is achieved using actuators and force sensors which comprise the transfer system. Close synchronization is required between substructures for reliable hybrid testing. However, actuator lag may cause tracking errors and instability in hybrid tests. Existing lag compensation schemes require identification of the coupled dynamics of the transfer system and experimental component and can be sensitive to changes in these components. Passivity control is a technique intended to maintain stability without the need for system identification or assumptions about the actuators or test specimens. Yet, the tuning of existing passivity controllers is sensitive to both the system being tested and the amplitude and frequency range excited. This paper presents a new, normalized passivity controller which behaves well across a much broader range of operating conditions once tuned for a single‐test scenario. The proposed approach uses a virtual damping element on the numerical substructure to dissipate spurious power injected by the actuator into the system, based on the ratio of net power output to mean power throughput. The scheme has been shown to result in identical performance for a linear hybrid test with a range of step excitations from 0.5 mm up to 500 mm. The proposed method can be used to improve test stability and fidelity in isolation or alongside other compensation schemes to further improve performance.
Active fault tolerant control design using switching linear parameter varying controllers with inexact fault‐effect parameters
Authors: Che Junxing , Zhu Yanzheng , Zhou Donghua , He Xiao
Published: January 2022

In this article, a novel active fault‐tolerant control (AFTC) design method is developed by using the switching linear parameter varying (LPV) controller with inexact fault‐effect parameters. The LPV controller is not only considered as a gain‐scheduled controller varying with the operating points, but also an AFTC controller varying with the fault‐effect parameters, which can be obtained via the fault estimator in real‐time. The inexact measurement of fault‐effect parameters is considered for the first time in this article. To cover large parameters variation, a class of switched LPV fault‐tolerant controller is designed to work in the multiple partitioned parameters subregions. The dynamic output feedback controller model is constructed to perform the switched LPV fault‐tolerant control task under the mode‐dependent average dwell time constraint. By using the multiple parameter‐dependent Lyapunov function approach, sufficient conditions with less conservatism are obtained, such that the corresponding closed‐loop systems are globally uniformly exponentially stable and satisfy an upper bound of weighted ‐gain performance indexes. Finally, effectiveness and applicability of the developed approaches are validated via an active magnetic bearing system.
Geomorphological change and rural settlement patterns: Study of the formation mechanisms of strip villages in Jiangsu, China
Authors: Tang Lian , Li Jiaying , Ding Wowo
Published: January 2022

As a morphological type of rural settlement, the strip village, first defined by European scholars, is a typical research object that results from the interaction between human cultural activities and natural topographies. By mapping and the quantitative analysis of the village and water systems of three typical strip village samples in multiscale and multilayer, combined with an examination of historical documents, the specific roles of water construction, agricultural systems, land policies, and local living culture on the formation of the strip villages in Jiangsu, China were, analyzed. Based on the results, two main conclusions were drawn. First, the strip villages are distributed on relatively new lands along the rivers, lakes, and coasts, where the geometry of the dense water network is the result of the artificial construction of irrigation canals, with natural rivers providing only a large skeleton. This distinguishing feature of the formation mechanism of strip villages separates them from other village types. Second, a strong morphological correlation is between the strip villages and the artificial water system. Morphological differences in the strip villages are related to the structure and orientation of the water network, the density of the population, and the habits of the regional settlement. These results reveal the unique pattern of human–land relations during the period of large‐scale agricultural production in New China and provide a morphological basis for further rural regeneration and development.
Preserving data privacy when using multi‐site data to estimate individualized treatment rules
Authors: Danieli Coraline , Moodie Erica E. M.
Published: January 2022

Precision medicine is a rapidly expanding area of health research wherein patient level information is used to inform treatment decisions. A statistical framework helps to formalize the individualization of treatment decisions that characterize personalized management plans. Numerous methods have been proposed to estimate individualized treatment rules that optimize expected patient outcomes, many of which have desirable properties such as robustness to model misspecification. However, while individual data are essential in this context, there may be concerns about data confidentiality, particularly in multi‐center studies where data are shared externally. To address this issue, we compared two approaches to privacy preservation: (i) data pooling, which is a covariate microaggregation technique and (ii) distributed regression. These approaches were combined with the doubly robust yet user‐friendly method of dynamic weighted ordinary least squares to estimate individualized treatment rules. In simulations, we extensively evaluated the performance of the methods in estimating the parameters of the decision rule under different assumptions. The results demonstrate that double robustness is not maintained in data pooling setting and that this can result in bias, whereas the distributed regression provides good performance. We illustrate the methods via an analysis of optimal Warfarin dosing using data from the International Warfarin Consortium.
Development of a Topical Bacteriophage Gel Targeting Cutibacterium Acnes for Acne Prone Skin and Results of a Phase 1 Cosmetic Randomized Clinical Trial
Authors: Golembo M. , Puttagunta S. , Rappo U. , Weinstock E. , Engelstein R. , Gahali-Sass I. , Moses A. , Kario E. , Ben-Dor Cohen E. , Nicenboim J. , Ben David H. , Sudakov K. , Cohen A. , Bassan M. , Zak N. B.
Published: January 2022

Background

Topical antibiotics are frequently used to treat acne vulgaris. Their prolonged use, often for longer durations than recommended, has led to antibiotic resistance in Cutibacterium acnes (C. acnes), a bacterium implicated in acne pathophysiology. Bacteriophage (phage), which specifically target C. acnes by a different mechanism of action and do not harm potentially beneficial bacteria, may offer an alternative approach for improvement of the appearance of acne prone skin.

Objectives

To identify and characterize C. acnes targeting phage, carry out a comprehensive preclinical safety evaluation of phages selected for further development and examine their safety, tolerability and ability to target facial C. acnes when applied topically in a cosmetic clinical study including participants with mild-to-moderate acne.

Methods

Phages were isolated by conventional microbiological methods also used to examine their breadth of host range on different C. acnes strains and specificity to this bacterial species. Safety assessment of three selected phages was carried out by complete genomic analysis to assure the absence of undesired sequences and by ex vivo models employed to evaluate the safety, irritability and potential systemic bioavailability of phage applied topically. A randomized, controlled clinical study assessed safety, tolerability and efficacy in targeting facial C. acnes.

Results

Wide host range phages that also target antibiotic resistant C. acnes were identified. Their genomes were shown to be free of undesired genes. The three-phage cocktail, BX001, was not irritant to human skin or ocular tissues in ex vivo models and did not permeate through human epidermis. In a cosmetic clinical study, topically applied BX001 was safe and well tolerated and reduced the facial burden of C. acnes.

Conclusions

Combined in silico and ex vivo approaches successfully predicted the observed safety and efficacy of C. acnes targeting phage when these were topically administered in a well-controlled cosmetic clinical study.
New Insight on K2Zn2V10O28 as an Advanced Cathode for Rechargeable Aqueous Zinc‐Ion Batteries
Authors: Zhou Tao , Zhu Limin , Xie Lingling , Han Qing , Yang Xinli , Cao Xiaoyu , Ma Jianmin
Published: January 2022

Aqueous zinc‐ion batteries (ZIBs) have recently attracted people's extensive attention in their application in energy storage systems resulting from their exclusive characteristics of low cost and environmental compatibility. However, finding suitable cathode materials continues to be the major challenge. Polyoxovanadates (POVs), as an important branch of polyoxometalates (POMs), are considered as a promising electrode material for reversible aqueous ZIBs relying on the flexible valence state of V. Herein, POVs (K2Zn2V10O28: KZVO) are reported as an advanced cathode for storing Zn2+, which delivers a high discharge capacity of 223.4 mAh g−1 at 0.1 A g−1, considerable energy density (182.9 Wh kg−1) and power density (40.38 W kg−1), and robust cyclic performance. In addition, the dynamic properties of the KZVO/Zn battery are revealed by pseudocapacitance analysis and GITT tests. Meanwhile, the storage mechanism of Zn2+ is further analyzed by ex situ XRD, XPS, TEM, and HRTEM. Overall, this work not only draws up a cathode material for the POMs system in aqueous ZIBs, but also demonstrates that POMs are the rising star in energy storage and electric energy applications.
An Electroactive Filter with Tunable Porosity Based on Glycolated Polythiophene
Authors: Gladisch Johannes , Oikonomou Vasileios K. , Moser Maximilian , Griggs Sophie , McCulloch Iain , Berggren Magnus , Stavrinidou Eleni
Published: January 2022

The porosity of filters is typically fixed; thus, complex purification processes require application of multiple specialized filters. In contrast, smart filters with controllable and tunable properties enable dynamic separation in a single setup. Herein, an electroactive filter with controllable pore size is demonstrated. The electroactive filter is based on a metal mesh coated with a polythiophene polymer with ethylene glycol sidechains (p(g3T2)) that exhibit unprecedented voltage‐driven volume changes. By optimizing the polymer coating on the mesh, controllable porosity during electrochemical addressing is achieved. The pores reversibly open and close, with a dynamic range of more than 95%, corresponding to over 30 μm change of pores’ widths. Furthermore, the pores’ widths could be defined by applied potential with a 10 μm resolution. From among hundreds of pores from different samples, about 90% of the pores could be closed completely, while only less than 1% are inactive. Finally, the electroactive filter is used to control the flow of a dye, highlighting the potential for flow control and smart filtration applications.
A Longitudinal Study on the Effect of Mode of Reading on Incidental Collocation Learning and Predictors of Learning Gains
Authors: Vu Duy Van , Peters Elke
Published: January 2022

This article reports on a longitudinal study on the impact of reading mode on incidental collocation learning and predictors of learning gains. The experiment lasted 11 weeks and involved 118 Vietnamese EFL learners who were assigned to an experimental group and a no‐treatment control group. The experimental group encountered 32 target collocations in three graded readers in three reading modes: reading‐while‐listening, reading with textual input enhancement (i.e., underlining), and reading‐while‐listening plus textual input enhancement in a counterbalanced fashion. Incidental learning was assessed at the level of form recall. The findings indicated a significant effect of reading mode on the learning of collocations. Significantly more collocations were learned in reading‐while‐listening plus textual input enhancement and reading with textual input enhancement modes than in reading‐while‐listening mode. Reading‐while‐listening plus textual input enhancement, however, did not differ significantly from reading with textual input enhancement. The results also revealed that learners’ prior vocabulary knowledge and collocational congruency significantly affected learning.
Three Zn(II) coordination polymers as dual‐responsive luminescent probes for highly selective detection of Fe3+ cation and MnO4− anion
Authors: Ma Jian‐Xin , Xu Na , Wang Yue , Liu Guo‐Cheng , Wang Xiu‐Li
Published: January 2022

Effective detection of Fe3+ cation and MnO4− anion from water are desirable. As another way to solve this problem, three Zn‐based luminescent coordination polymers (LCPs), [Zn2(3‐bpat)2(1,3‐bdc)2]⋅H2O (1), [Zn(3‐bpat)(5‐hip)]⋅H2O (2), and [Zn(3‐bpat)(5‐mip)] (3) (3‐bpat=N,N′‐bis(3‐pyridylamide)‐3,4‐thiophene, 1,3‐H2bdc=isophthalic acid, 5‐H2hip=5‐hydroxyisophthalic acid, 5‐H2mip=5‐methylisophthalic acid), were successfully prepared as optical sensors to detect target analytes. Three LCPs were characterized by single crystal X‐ray diffraction, powder X‐ray diffraction (PXRD) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Prominently, three LCPs showed good fluorescence quenching response to Fe3+ cation and MnO4− anion with high selectivity and sensitivity. The detection limits on Fe3+ are 1.45×10−6 M for LCP 1, 2.04×10−6 M for LCP 2, and 4.25×10−6 M for LCP 3, respectively. The detection limits on MnO4− are 3.93×10−6 M for LCP 1, 6.62×10−5 M for LCP 2, and 3.64×10−6 M for LCP 3, respectively. Furthermore, the quick and accurate probing capability of LCPs 1–3 also have been proved even under nine anions or cations. The possible fluorescence quenching mechanisms were studied, the energy resonance transfer theory were regarded as the primary cause for high efficiency fluorescence quenching.
Searching for dark matter signals in timing spectra at neutrino experiments
Authors: Dutta Bhaskar , Kim Doojin , Liao Shu , Park Jong-Chul , Shin Seodong , Strigari Louis E. , Thompson Adrian
Published: January 2022

Abstract

The sensitivity to dark matter signals at neutrino experiments is fundamentally challenged by the neutrino rates, as they leave similar signatures in their detectors. As a way to improve the signal sensitivity, we investigate a dark matter search strategy which utilizes the timing and energy spectra to discriminate dark matter from neutrino signals at low-energy, pulsed-beam neutrino experiments. This strategy was proposed in our companion paper Phys. Rev. Lett.124 (2020) 121802 [1], which we apply to potential searches at COHERENT, JSNS2, and CCM. These experiments are not only sources of neutrinos but also high intensity sources of photons. The dark matter candidate of interest comes from the relatively prompt decay of a dark sector gauge boson which may replace a Standard-Model photon, so the delayed neutrino events can be suppressed by keeping prompt events only. Furthermore, prompt neutrino events can be rejected by a cut in recoil energy spectra, as their incoming energy is relatively small and bounded from above while dark matter may deposit a sizable energy beyond it. We apply the search strategy of imposing a combination of energy and timing cuts to the existing CsI and LAr data of the COHERENT experiment as concrete examples, and report a mild excess beyond known backgrounds. We then investigate the expected sensitivity reaches to dark matter signals in our benchmark experiments.
Structure of Chern-Simons scattering amplitudes from topological equivalence theorem and double-copy
Authors: Hang Yan-Feng , He Hong-Jian , Shen Cong
Published: January 2022

Abstract

We study the mechanism of topological mass-generation for 3d Chern-Simons (CS) gauge theories, where the CS term can retain the gauge symmetry and make gauge boson topologically massive. Without CS term the 3d massless gauge boson has a single physical transverse polarization state, while adding the CS term converts it into a massive physical polarization state and conserves the total physical degrees of freedom. We formulate the mechanism of topological mass-generation at S-matrix level. For this, we propose and prove a Topological Equivalence Theorem (TET) which connects the N-point scattering amplitude of the gauge boson’s physical polarization states ($$ {A}_{\mathrm{P}}^a $$

A
P
a

) to that of the transverse polarization states ($$ {A}_{\mathrm{T}}^a $$

A
T
a

) under high energy expansion. We present a general 3d power counting method on the leading energy dependence of the scattering amplitudes in both topologically massive Yang-Mills (TMYM) and topologically massive gravity (TMG) theories. With these, we uncover a general energy cancellation mechanism for N -gauge boson scattering amplitudes which predicts the cancellation E4→ E4−N at tree level. Then, we compute the 4-gauge boson amplitudes of $$ {A}_{\mathrm{P}}^a $$

A
P
a

-states and $$ {A}_{\mathrm{T}}^a $$

A
T
a

-states, with which we explicitly demonstrate the TET and establish such energy cancellations for N = 4. We further extend the double-copy approach to reconstruct the massive 4-graviton amplitude of TMG from the massive 4-gauge boson amplitude of TMYM. With these, we uncover striking large energy cancellations in the 4-graviton amplitude: E12→ E1, and establish its correspondence to the leading energy cancellation E4→ E0in the 4-gauge boson amplitude of TMYM.
Saturation of thermal complexity of purification
Authors: Haque S. Shajidul , Jana Chandan , Underwood Bret
Published: January 2022

Abstract

We purify the thermal density matrix of a free harmonic oscillator as a two-mode squeezed state, characterized by a squeezing parameter and squeezing angle. While the squeezing parameter is fixed by the temperature and frequency of the oscillator, the squeezing angle is otherwise undetermined, so that the complexity of purification is obtained by minimizing the complexity of the squeezed state over the squeezing angle. The resulting complexity of purification of the thermal state is minimized at non-zero values of the squeezing angle and saturates to an order one number at low frequencies, indicating that there is no additional operator cost required to build thermal mixed states when the oscillator probes length scales that are large compared to the thermal length scale. We also review applications in which thermal density matrices arise for quantum fields on curved spacetimes, including Hawking radiation and a simple model of decoherence of cosmological density perturbations in the early Universe. The complexity of purification for these mixed states also saturates as a function of the effective temperature, which may have interesting consequences for the quantum information stored in these systems.
Large N optimization for multi-matrix systems
Authors: de Mello Koch Robert , Jevicki Antal , Liu Xianlong , Mathaba Kagiso , Rodrigues João P.
Published: January 2022

Abstract

In this work we revisit the problem of solving multi-matrix systems through numerical large N methods. The framework is a collective, loop space representation which provides a constrained optimization problem, addressed through master-field minimization. This scheme applies both to multi-matrix integrals (c = 0 systems) and multi-matrix quantum mechanics (c = 1 systems). The complete fluctuation spectrum is also computable in the above scheme, and is of immediate physical relevance in the later case. The complexity (and the growth of degrees of freedom) at large N have stymied earlier attempts and in the present work we present significant improvements in this regard. The (constrained) minimization and spectrum calculations are easily achieved with close to 104 variables, giving solution to Migdal-Makeenko, and collective field equations. Considering the large number of dynamical (loop) variables and the extreme nonlinearity of the problem, high precision is obtained when confronted with solvable cases. Through numerical results presented, we prove that our scheme solves, by numerical loop space methods, the general two matrix model problem.
Sialic acid blockade in dendritic cells enhances CD8+ T cell responses by facilitating high-avidity interactions
Authors: Balneger N. , Cornelissen L. A. M. , Wassink M. , Moons S. J. , Boltje T. J. , Bar-Ephraim Y. E. , Das K. K. , Søndergaard J. N. , Büll C. , Adema G. J.
Published: January 2022

Sialic acids are negatively charged carbohydrates that cap the glycans of glycoproteins and glycolipids. Sialic acids are involved in various biological processes including cell–cell adhesion and immune recognition. In dendritic cells (DCs), the major antigen-presenting cells of the immune system, sialic acids emerge as important regulators of maturation and interaction with other lymphocytes including T cells. Many aspects of how sialic acids regulate DC functions are not well understood and tools and model systems to address these are limited. Here, we have established cultures of murine bone marrow-derived DCs (BMDCs) that lack sialic acid expression using a sialic acid-blocking mimetic Ac53FaxNeu5Ac. Ac53FaxNeu5Ac treatment potentiated BMDC activation via toll-like receptor (TLR) stimulation without affecting differentiation and viability. Sialic acid blockade further increased the capacity of BMDCs to induce antigen-specific CD8+ T cell proliferation. Transcriptome-wide gene expression analysis revealed that sialic acid mimetic treatment of BMDCs induces differential expression of genes involved in T cell activation, cell-adhesion, and cell–cell interactions. Subsequent cell clustering assays and single cell avidity measurements demonstrated that BMDCs with reduced sialylation form higher avidity interactions with CD8+ T cells. This increased avidity was detectable in the absence of antigens, but was especially pronounced in antigen-dependent interactions. Together, our data show that sialic acid blockade in BMDCs ameliorates maturation and enhances both cognate T cell receptor–MHC-dependent and independent T cell interactions that allow for more robust CD8+ T cell responses.
A20 undermines alternative NF-κB activity and expression of anti-apoptotic genes in Helicobacter pylori infection
Authors: Lim Michelle C. C. , Maubach Gunter , Birkl-Toeglhofer Anna M. , Haybaeck Johannes , Vieth Michael , Naumann Mchael
Published: January 2022

A hallmark of infection by the pathogen Helicobacter pylori, which colonizes the human gastric epithelium, is the simultaneous activation of the classical and alternative nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) pathways, underlying inflammation and cell survival. Here, we report that the classical NF-κB target gene product A20 contributes to the negative regulation of alternative NF-κB signaling in gastric epithelial cells infected by H. pylori. Mechanistically, the de novo synthesized A20 protein interacts with tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor-interacting protein with forkhead-associated domain (TIFA) and thereby interferes with the association of TIFA with the NIK regulatory complex. We also show that alternative NF-κB activity contributes to the up-regulation of anti-apoptotic genes, such as baculoviral IAP repeat containing 2 (BIRC2), BIRC3 and B-cell lymphoma 2-related protein A1 (BCL2A1) in gastric epithelial cells. Furthermore, the observed over-expression of RelB in human gastric biopsies with type B gastritis and RelB-dependent suppression of apoptotic cell death emphasize an important role of the alternative NF-κB pathway in H. pylori infection.
DNA Methyltransferase 3 (MET3) is regulated by Polycomb group complex during Arabidopsis endosperm development
Authors: Tirot Louis , Bonnet Diane M. V. , Jullien Pauline E.
Published: January 2022

Complex epigenetic changes occur during plant reproduction. These regulations ensure the proper transmission of epigenetic information as well as allowing for zygotic totipotency. In Arabidopsis, the main DNA methyltransferase is called MET1 and is responsible for methylating cytosine in the CG context. The Arabidopsis genome encodes for three additional reproduction-specific homologs of MET1, namely MET2a, MET2b and MET3. In this paper, we show that the DNA methyltransferase MET3 is expressed in the seed endosperm and its expression is later restricted to the chalazal endosperm. MET3 is biallelically expressed in the endosperm but displays a paternal expression bias. We found that MET3 expression is regulated by the Polycomb complex proteins FIE and MSI1. Seed development is not impaired in met3 mutant, and we could not observe significant transcriptional changes in met3 mutant. MET3 might regulates gene expression in a Polycomb mutant background suggesting a further complexification of the interplay between H3K27me3 and DNA methylation in the seed endosperm.

Key message

The DNA METHYLTRANSFERASE MET3 is controlled by Polycomb group complex during endosperm development.
A differentially private indoor localization scheme with fusion of WiFi and bluetooth fingerprints in edge computing
Authors: Zhang Xuejun , He Fucun , Chen Qian , Jiang Xinlong , Bao Junda , Ren Tongwei , Du Xiaogang
Published: January 2022

As an enabling technology for edge computing scenarios, indoor localization has a broad prospect in a variety of location-based applications, such as tracking, navigating, and monitoring in indoor environments. In order to improve the location accuracy, numerous machine learning (ML)-based indoor localization schemes with fingerprint fusion have been proposed recently, which take advantage of the fusion of signal gathered from multiple wireless technologies (e.g., WiFi and BLE) and require a site survey to construct the fingerprint database. However, most solutions are based on cloud framework and thus pose a serious privacy leakage because users’ sensitive information (e.g., locations) is computed from the fingerprint database by the untrusted localization service provider. Furthermore, the site survey is time-consuming and labor-intensive. In this paper, we propose a differentially private fingerprint fusion semi-supervised extreme learning machine for indoor localization in the edge computing, called Adp-FSELM. The Adp-FSELM firstly employs a multi-level edge network-based privacy-preserving system framework to meet the requirements of ML-based fingerprint indoor localization for lightweight, low latency, and real-time response. Then, the Adp-FSELM extends the $$\varepsilon$$
ε
-differential privacy to the fingerprint fusion semi-supervised extreme learning machine for indoor localization in edge computing through a three-phase private process consisting of private labeled sample obfuscation, differentially private feature fusion, and differentially private model training. Theoretical and comprehensive experimental results in real indoor environments demonstrate that the Adp-FSELM provides a high $$\varepsilon$$
ε
-differential privacy guarantee for users’ location privacy while reducing human calibration effort and effectively resists Bayesian inference attacks. Compared with the existing semi-supervised learning-based localization methods, the mean absolute error of location accuracy of the Adp-FSELM is restricted to 2.22% at most, and the additional time consumption can be almost ignored. Thus, our mechanism can balance the trade-off among location privacy, location accuracy, and time consumption.
Modeling the oxidation of a polymer-derived ceramic with chemo-mechanical coupling and large deformations
Authors: Voges Jannik , Smokovych Iryna , Duvigneau Fabian , Scheffler Michael , Juhre Daniel
Published: January 2022

To get a better insight into the coating behavior of a polymer-derived ceramic material, we model and simulate the diffusion, oxidation and reaction-induced volume expansion of a specimen without outer mechanical loads. In this macroscale approach, we use an oxidation state variable which determines the composition of the starting material and the oxide material. The model contains a reaction rate which is based on the change of the free energy due to a change of the concentrations of the starting material, the oxide material and a diffusing gaseous material. Using this, we model a growing oxide layer in a perhydropolysilazane (PHPS)-based polymer-derived ceramic (PDC), containing silicon filler particles. Within the mechanical part of the modeling, we use the Neo-Hookean material law which allows for the consideration of volume expansion and the diffusion kinematics in terms of finite deformations. We derive this continuum formulation in 3D and reduce it later to 1D, as we show that a 1D formulation is sufficient for thin oxide layers in our consideration. In such a case, the reaction-induced volume expansion is mostly limited to strains orthogonal to the oxide layer, as the bulk material hinders transversal deformation. Both formulations, i.e., 1D and 3D, are implemented in the finite element software FEAP. We perform a parameter study and fit the results with experimental data. We investigate the diffusion kinematics in the presence of volume expansion. Additionally, we discuss the influence of the elastic energy on the reaction rate.