bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Management of Casualties from Radiation Events
Authors: Dent Robert Alan
Published: November 2023

Radiation events such as nuclear war, nuclear reactor incidents, and the deployment of a radioactive dispersal device (dirty bomb) are all significant threats in today’s world. Each of these events would bring significant challenges to clinicians caring for patients with burns and traumatic injuries who are also contaminated or irradiated. The result of a nuclear exchange in a densely populated area could result in thousands of patients presenting with trauma, burns, and combined injury (trauma and burn in an irradiated patient). In this review, we will discuss the three major types of ionizing radiation: alpha, beta, and gamma, and their respective health hazards and biological effects. Additionally, we will discuss the types of burn injuries in a nuclear disaster, caring for the contaminated patient, and managing the combined injury of burn trauma with acute radiation syndrome. The reader will also be left with an understanding of how to prioritize lifesaving interventions, estimate the absorbed dose of radiation, and predict the onset of acute radiation syndrome. While some animal models for morbidity and mortality exist, there is limited modern day human data for patients with combined injury and burns associated with a nuclear disaster due to the infrequent nature of these events. It is extremely important to continue multidisciplinary research on the prevention of, preparedness for, and the response to nuclear events. Furthermore, continued exploration of novel treatments for radiation induced burns and the management of combined injury is necessary.
Oil Price Spillover Effects to the Stock Market Sentiment: The Case of Higher vs. Lower Oil Import EU Countries
Authors: Stojkov Stefan , Beker Pucar Emilija , Glavaški Olgica , Beljić Marina
Published: November 2023

The process of deepening the economic integration of European economies reached its peak with the formation of a supranational entity for conducting monetary policy. However, the high degree of financial integration of the market also implied the vulnerability of the economic union in terms of prompt reaction to external shocks with divergent effects. Oil price fluctuations are of essential importance for macroeconomic performance, which is particularly reflected in countries more dependent on the import of this raw material. This research aims to apostrophize the asymmetric effects of oil price fluctuations on the stock market indices on a sample of higher (Germany, Italy, France) vs. lower (Croatia, Bulgaria, Ireland) oil importers. The empirical findings are determined based on impulse response functions derived from the VAR model as well as the Granger causality test of the relationship between stock market indices and oil price fluctuations. In order to identify the isolated impact of oil price movements on stock market indices of selected European economies, the VAR (Vector AutoRegression) model is evaluated in the time period 2013M1-2023M1. The results of the research indicate an asymmetric mechanism of the impact of oil shocks on the financial markets of EU member states.
A Longitudinal Analysis of Economic Activities’ Relative Efficiency Using the DEA Approach
Authors: Zenzerović Robert , Rabar Danijela , Černe Ksenija
Published: November 2023

Economic activities’ efficiency represents the level of performance that uses the lowest quantity of inputs to achieve the highest possible amount of output. This paper presents the process of calculating the relative efficiency of separate non-financial activities in an economy using the DEA methodology. The purpose of this paper was to create the DEA model for monitoring the relative efficiency of individual non-financial activities of the economy. The purpose was achieved through the realization of two objectives. The first one included the determination of the relative efficiency of the above-mentioned activities in the period from 2002 to 2020 using the data from non-financial entities in the Republic of Croatia. The second objective consisted of ranking the economic activities according to their relative efficiency. An output variable that measures the efficiency was presented using the return on assets, while the total debt to EBITDA, EBITDA per employee, assets turnover and human capital efficiency were used as input variables. Research results indicate that the DEA methodology could be used as an economic activity’s relative efficiency measurement tool, giving the possibility to rank it according to its relative efficiency using the accounting ratios. Research results show that service sectors’ economic activities were the most efficient ones according to the lower assets engagement and the respective sources of financing that dominate. The highest average relative efficiency in 19 years was scored using wholesale, retail and repair activities as well as information, communication and education. The lowest average relative efficiency was achieved in construction, water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities as well as accommodation and food service activities, which is the consequence of their low level of activity and profitability and high indebtedness in the analyzed period. The relative efficiency scores calculated using the DEA methodology could be used as a benchmark for companies on a micro level, while on the macro level decision-makers can obtain a deeper insight into the relative efficiency of the nonfinancial activities.
Finding a Way: What Crisis Reveals about Teachers’ Emotional Wellbeing and Its Importance for Education
Authors: Hopman Jean , Clark Tom
Published: November 2023

In crisis, teachers are often positioned as frontline workers serving the community’s needs. The emotional work of teaching is widely recognised, an acknowledgement that teachers mediate emotionally loaded relational dynamics. A fast-growing body of research investigates strategies and interventions to emotionally support children and young people in times of crisis. Less explored is teachers’ emotional wellbeing during times of crisis. This research aims to better understand teachers’ needs to support their wellbeing in times of crisis. It utilises a narrative approach, threading together thematically analysed Twitter posts from teachers and teacher representative bodies engaged in discussion of their profession across the USA. Our findings show that teachers experienced a range of emotions around the pandemic when their daily work pivoted to accommodate government-mandated responses. Teaching is, of its nature, an emotionally taxing role, and this is heightened in crisis. Our research highlights the importance of teachers finding a way toward self-care that is nested within an institutional culture of collective care.
Improved Transient Performance of a DFIG-Based Wind-Power System Using the Combined Control of Active Crowbars
Authors: Ali Muhammad Arif Sharafat
Published: November 2023

A significant electromotive force is induced in the rotor circuit of a doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) due to its high vulnerability to grid faults. Therefore, the system performance must be increased with appropriate control actions that can successfully offset such abnormalities in order to provide consistent and stable operations during grid disturbances. In this regard, this paper presents a solution based on a combination of an energy storage-based crowbar and a rotor-side crowbar that makes the effective transient current and voltage suppression for wind-driven DFIG possible. The core of the solution is its ability to restrict the transient rotor and stator overcurrents and DC-link overvoltages within their prescribed limits, thereby protecting the DFIG and power converters and improving the system’s ability to ride through faults. Further, the capacity of an energy storage device for transient suppression is estimated. The results confirmed that the proposed approach not only kept the transient rotor and stator currents within ±50% of their respective rated values in severe system faults but also limited the DC-link voltage variations under ±15% of its rated value, achieving transient control objectives precisely and maintaining a stable grid connection during the faults.
Research on Lightweight-Based Algorithm for Detecting Distracted Driving Behaviour
Authors: Lou Chengcheng , Nie Xin
Published: November 2023

In order to solve the existing distracted driving behaviour detection algorithms’ problems such as low recognition accuracy, high leakage rate, high false recognition rate, poor real-time performance, etc., and to achieve high-precision real-time detection of common distracted driving behaviours (mobile phone use, smoking, drinking), this paper proposes a driver distracted driving behaviour recognition algorithm based on YOLOv5. Firstly, to address the problem of poor real-time identification, the computational and parametric quantities of the network are reduced by introducing a lightweight network, Ghostnet. Secondly, the use of GSConv reduces the complexity of the algorithm and ensures that there is a balance between the recognition speed and accuracy of the algorithm. Then, for the problem of missed and misidentified cigarettes during the detection process, the Soft-NMS algorithm is used to reduce the problems of missed and false detection of cigarettes without changing the computational complexity. Finally, in order to better detect the target of interest, the CBAM is utilised to enhance the algorithm’s attention to the target of interest. The experiments show that on the homemade distracted driving behaviour dataset, the improved YOLOv5 model improves the mAP@0.5 of the YOLOv5s by 1.5 percentage points, while the computational volume is reduced by 7.6 GFLOPs, which improves the accuracy of distracted driving behaviour recognition and ensures the real-time performance of the detection speed.
Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Protecting Three-Dimensional Printers against Acoustic Infiltration
Authors: Stańczak Andrzej , Kubiak Ireneusz
Published: November 2023

Three-dimensional printers are increasingly used in design work when designers want to quickly and inexpensively verify their solutions. However, based on the sounds made by the printer during its operation, it is possible to determine the shape of the printed object with quite high accuracy. The above fact should be taken into account if information about this object needs to be protected. The article presents a way to protect a 3D (Three-Dimensional) printer against acoustic infiltration. The research study was carried out using the Zortrax M200 Plus printer for LPD (Layer Plastic Deposition) technology, which is an equivalent of the popular FDM/FFT (Fused Deposition Modeling/Fused Filament Fabrication) 3D printing technology using thermoplastic. The frequencies of acoustic signals related to the operation of stepper motors and the printing platform were identified. These signals enable the reconstruction of the shape of printed objects. It was examined whether the appropriate type and required level of masking noise can be selected for a given type of printer in order to protect it against acoustic infiltration. The masking properties of selected color noises were compared with those of white noise and the optimal intensity levels were determined at which the acoustic safety of the tested printer can be ensured. It was underlined that the research results refer only to the tested printer and should not be generalized to other types of 3D printers.
Optimization of the Generative Multi-Symbol Architecture of the Binary Arithmetic Coder for UHDTV Video Encoders
Authors: Pastuszak Grzegorz
Published: November 2023

Previous studies have shown that the application of the M-coder in the H.264/AVC and H.265/HEVC video coding standards allows for highly parallel implementations without decreasing maximal frequencies. Although the primary limitation on throughput, originating from the range register update, can be eliminated, other limitations are associated with low register processing. Their negative impact is revealed at higher degrees of parallelism, leading to a gradual throughput saturation. This paper presents optimizations introduced to the generative hardware architecture to increase throughputs and hardware efficiencies. Firstly, it can process more than one bypass-mode subseries in one clock cycle. Secondly, aggregated contributions to the codestream are buffered before the low register update. Thirdly, the number of contributions used to update the low register in one clock cycle is decreased to save resources. Fourthly, the maximal one-clock-cycle renormalization shift of the low register is increased from 32 to 64 bit positions. As a result of these optimizations, the binary arithmetic coder, configured for series lengths of 27 and 2 symbols, increases the throughput from 18.37 to 37.42 symbols per clock cycle for high-quality H.265/HEVC compression. The logic consumption increases from 205.6k to 246.1k gates when synthesized on 90 nm TSMC technology. The design can operate at 570 MHz.
Hierarchical Classification for Large-Scale Learning
Authors: Wang Boshi , Barbu Adrian
Published: November 2023

Deep neural networks (DNNs) have drawn much attention due to their success in various vision tasks. Current DNNs are used on data with a relatively small number of classes (e.g., 1000 or less) and employ a fully connected layer for classification, which allocates one neuron for each class and thus, per-example, the classification scales as O(K) with the number of classes K. This approach is computationally intensive for many real-life applications where the number of classes is very large (e.g., tens of thousands of classes). To address this problem, our paper introduces a hierarchical approach for classification with a large number of classes that scales as O(K) and could be extended to O(logK) with a deeper hierarchy. The method, called Hierarchical PPCA, uses a self-supervised pretrained feature extractor to obtain meaningful features and trains Probabilistic PCA models on the extracted features for each class separately, making it easy to add classes without retraining the whole model. The Mahalanobis distance is used to obtain the classification result. To speed-up classification, the proposed Hierarchical PPCA framework clusters the image class models, represented as Gaussians, into a smaller number of super-classes using a modified k-means clustering algorithm. The classification speed increase is obtained by Hierarchical PPCA assigning a sample to a small number of the most likely super-classes and restricting the image classification to the image classes corresponding to these super-classes. The fact that the model is trained on each class separately makes it applicable to training on very large datasets such as the whole ImageNet with more than 10,000 classes. Experiments on three standard datasets (ImageNet-100, ImageNet-1k,and ImageNet-10k) indicate that the hierarchical classifier can achieve a superior accuracy with up to a 16-fold speed increase compared to a standard fully connected classifier.
Network Optimization of Carbon Monoxide Sensor Nodes in the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo
Authors: Borges Marco A. , Lopes Paulo B. , da Silva Leandro A.
Published: November 2023

Air pollution is one of the biggest problems affecting large urban areas. Better monitoring of regions suffering from this type of pollution is in the interest of public health. Although many cities employ sensors to monitor air pollution, a current concern is how to establish the ideal number of sensors to monitor a given geographical region. To address this concern, this research proposes a method to optimize the number of sensors in an air pollution monitoring network to cover a given region efficiently and precisely and uses the metropolitan region of São Paulo, Brazil, and CO sensors as an example. The model of Fragmentation into Groups via Routes is proposed to distribute sensors within micro-regions that display similar air pollution characteristics. A network of virtual sensors is created, and the output of each sensor is established using a method of spatial interpolation called IDW. To identify the optimum sensor configuration, a genetic algorithm is used to assess the topology with the lowest variance of data spread. A lesser number of sensor stations to be treated leads to faster responses to sudden changes in urban conditions. Therefore, municipality authorities can take quick measures to improve the population’s wellness.
Alleviating Effect of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum NXU0011 Fermented Wolfberry on Ulcerative Colitis in Mice
Authors: Nie Mingxia , Ji Quan , Guo Gang , Zhang Haiyan , Wang Yanhong , Zhai Ru , Pan Lin
Published: November 2023

As research into the relationship between the gut microbiome and health continues to evolve, probiotics are garnering increasing interest among consumers. Fermentation is recognized as an efficacious biotechnology for augmenting the nutritional and functional attributes of foods. In this study, the ameliorative effects of Lycium barbarum L. lyophilized powder fermented with Lactiplantibacillus plantarum NXU0011 (LP+Ly) on dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced ulcerative colitis (UC) in mice were investigated employing immunohistochemistry, qRT-PCR, macrogenomics, and metabolomics. The results revealed that LP+Ly intervention significantly ameliorated histopathological inflammation in the ulcerated colon, diminished the expression of inflammatory markers such as IL-6, P-STAT3, and miR-214, and enhanced the diversity of intestinal flora in the mouse model group. Moreover, there was an increase in the abundance of beneficial bacteria, including Lactobacillus, Prevotella, and Akkermansia. Metabolomic analysis indicated that 15 metabolites, including citrulline, D-xylose, and α-ketoisovaleric acid, exhibited significant variations following the LP+Ly intervention. The metabolic pathways that displayed substantial differences included tryptophan biosynthesis, arginine biosynthesis, and amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism. LP+Ly effectively improved the inflammatory state within the intestines by modulating arginine biosynthesis, thus alleviating the impact of UC.
Methods of Minimizing Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Content in Homogenized Smoked Meat Sausages Using Different Casings and Variants of Meat-Fat Raw Material
Authors: Ciecierska Marta , Dasiewicz Krzysztof , Wołosiak Rafał
Published: November 2023

To ensure food safety and protect human health, the levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) contamination in model smoked-pork meat products were examined to select which type of casing and variant of raw material contributes to minimizing the content of PAHs in the final products. The sausages were smoked in a steam smoke chamber with an external smoke generator. The determination of PAHs was performed using the QuEChERS–HPLC–FLD/DAD method. The analyzed products met the requirements of Commission Regulation (EU) No. 835/2011 on the maximum permissible levels of PAHs. Statistically higher sums of 19 PAHs, including 15 heavy and 4 marker PAHs, were stated in smoked sausages in natural and cellulose casings. Synthetic casings like collagen and polyamide exhibited better barriers against PAH contamination than cellulose and natural casings. For each type of casing, significantly higher concentrations of PAHs were found in the external parts of the products. An increase in the fat content of the raw material increased the levels of PAH contamination in the products, regardless of the casing. Therefore, in industrial practice, the selection of an appropriate type of casing and raw material with the lowest possible fat content can be an effective method for reducing PAH levels in the interior of smoked meat products.
Forecasting the Traffic Flow by Using ARIMA and LSTM Models: Case of Muhima Junction
Authors: Katambire Vienna N. , Musabe Richard , Uwitonze Alfred , Mukanyiligira Didacienne
Published: November 2023

Traffic operation efficiency is greatly impacted by the increase in travel demand and the increase in vehicle ownership. The continued increase in traffic demand has rendered the importance of controlling traffic, especially at intersections. In general, the inefficiency of traffic scheduling leads to traffic congestion, resulting in a rise in fuel consumption, exhaust emissions, and poor quality of service. Various methods for time series forecasting have been proposed for adaptive and remote traffic control. The prediction of traffic has attracted profound attention for improving the reliability and efficiency of traffic flow scheduling while reducing congestion. Therefore, in this work, we studied the problem of the current traffic situation at Muhima Junction one of the busiest junctions in Kigali city. Future traffic rates were forecasted by employing long short-term memory (LSTM) and autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) models, respectively. Both the models’ performance criteria for adequacy were the mean absolute error (MAE), mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), and root mean squared error (RMSE). The results revealed that LSTM is the best-fitting model for monthly traffic flow prediction. Within this analysis, we proposed an adaptive traffic flow prediction that builds on the features of vehicle-to-infrastructure communication and the Internet of Things (IoT) to control traffic while enhancing the quality of service at the junctions. The real-time actuation of traffic-responsive signal control can be assured when real-time traffic-based signal actuation is reliable.
On Mixed Fractional Lifting Oscillation Spaces
Authors: Alzughaibi Imtithal , Ben Slimane Mourad , Algahtani Obaid
Published: November 2023

We introduce hyperbolic oscillation spaces and mixed fractional lifting oscillation spaces expressed in terms of hyperbolic wavelet leaders of multivariate signals on Rd, with d≥2. Contrary to Besov spaces and fractional Sobolev spaces with dominating mixed smoothness, the new spaces take into account the geometric disposition of the hyperbolic wavelet coefficients at each scale (j1,⋯,jd), and are therefore suitable for a multifractal analysis of rectangular regularity. We prove that hyperbolic oscillation spaces are closely related to hyperbolic variation spaces, and consequently do not almost depend on the chosen hyperbolic wavelet basis. Therefore, the so-called rectangular multifractal analysis, related to hyperbolic oscillation spaces, is somehow ‘robust’, i.e., does not change if the analyzing wavelets were changed. We also study optimal relationships between hyperbolic and mixed fractional lifting oscillation spaces and Besov spaces with dominating mixed smoothness. In particular, we show that, for some indices, hyperbolic and mixed fractional lifting oscillation spaces are not always sharply imbedded between Besov spaces or fractional Sobolev spaces with dominating mixed smoothness, and thus are new spaces of a really different nature.
A Sustainable Future for Food Tourism: Promoting the Territory through Cooking Classes
Authors: Bardolet-Puigdollers Marina , Fusté-Forné Francesc
Published: November 2023

Food tourism is becoming more popular because of the growing interest of people in organic products and achieving healthier habits. This paper aims to analyze the potential of cooking classes for the planning and development of a sustainable future for food tourism. The research is based on six interviews with providers of cooking classes and six interviews with food tourists in the region of Catalonia. Results show that cooking classes contribute to the process of awarding tourism value to local products and recipes, creating and authentic and educational experience. This engages producers and consumers in a sustainable, and regenerative experience, that appreciates local people, places and practices. Cooking classes are activities that can create a tourism attraction factor, and consequently, allow locals and visitors to know the culture of the country they visit from a unique point of view, which this paper analyses from both perspectives.
Life History Research and the Violence of War: Experiencing Binary Thinking on Pain and Privilege, Being and Knowing
Authors: Korac Maja , Horst Cindy
Published: November 2023

This reflective piece explores the ‘I am the evidence’ side of the process of knowing. It offers the story of the Yugoslav wars of secession (1991–1999) and their human consequences from the point of view of someone who refuses to surrender ground to the socio-political conditions of life in which ethno-national and cultural differences have to be transgressed. The core of this article is based on the life history of Maja Korac, developed in conversation with Cindy Horst. It approaches the intersections of her life and research from a narrative research perspective. We engage in a contrapuntal discussion of how Maja’s family background, gender, social class, and ethnic/national identity affected her life choices in terms of political engagement, research trajectories, and mobility paths. In doing so, we follow Barad’s argument that we do not obtain knowledge by standing outside the world; we know because we are part of the world. Hence, our discussion and analysis enables the multivocal articulation of the interweaving of personal, collective, geopolitical, and historical contexts in Maja’s research. This process made Maja feel visible after a very long time, because it opened the possibility of (re)gaining the vocabulary to express who she is, and how it has been for her as a human being within a professional role and identity, as well as within an ascribed ethnic identity during a specific historic time. This opportunity for understanding and knowing while being inside the world allowed Maja to repossess her life and identity—individual, professional, collective. It also re-opened the possibility to challenge further the notion of ‘true knowledge’ that is presumably based on ‘methodologically sound paradigms’, all of which exclude the researcher as a person, as who, as a life.
Transcriptome-Based Comparative Expression Profiling of Sweet Potato during a Compatible Response with Root-Knot Nematode Meloidogyne incognita Infection
Authors: Sung Yeon Woo , Kim Jaewook , Yang Jung-Wook , Shim Donghwan , Kim Yun-Hee
Published: November 2023

M. incognita, a root-knot nematode (RKN), infects the roots of several important food crops, including sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas Lam.), and severely reduces yields. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying infection remain unclear. Previously, we investigated differential responses to RKN invasion in susceptible and resistant sweet potato cultivars through RNA-seq-based transcriptome analysis. In this study, gene expression similarities and differences were examined in RKN-susceptible sweet potato cultivars during the compatible response to RKN infection. Three susceptible cultivars investigated in previous research were used: Dahomi (DHM), Shinhwangmi (SHM), and Yulmi (YM). Of the three cultivars, YM had the highest number of genes with altered expression in response to infection. YM was also the cultivar with the highest susceptibility to RKN. Comparisons among cultivars identified genes that were regulated in more than one cultivar upon infection. Pairwise comparisons revealed that YM and DHM shared the most regulated genes, whereas YM and SHM shared the lowest number of regulated genes. Five genes were up-regulated, and two were down-regulated, in all three cultivars. Among these, four genes were highly up-regulated in all cultivars: germin-like protein, anthranilate synthase α subunit, isocitrate lyase, and uncharacterized protein. Genes were also identified that were uniquely regulated in each cultivar in response to infection, suggesting that susceptible cultivars respond to infection through shared and cultivar-specific pathways. Our findings expand the understanding of the compatible response to RKN invasion in sweet potato roots and provide useful information for further research on RKN defense mechanisms.
Variants of IFNL4 Gene in Amazonian and Northern Brazilian Populations
Authors: Angelim Carolina Cabral , Martins Letícia Dias , Andrade Álesson Adam Fonseca , Moreira Fabiano Cordeiro , Guerreiro João Farias , de Assumpção Paulo Pimentel , Santos Sidney Emanuel Batista dos , Costa Greice de Lemos Cardoso
Published: November 2023

Since the discovery of the polymorphic nature of the IFNL4 gene, its variants have been investigated and associated with several viral diseases, with an emphasis on hepatitis C. However, the impacts of these variants on mixed-race and native populations in the northern region of Brazil are scarce. We investigated three variants of the IFNL4 gene in populations from this location, which were among the 14 most frequent variants in worldwide populations, and compared the frequencies obtained to populational data from the 1000 Genomes Project, gnomAD and ABraOM databases. Our results demonstrate that mixed-race and native populations from the northern region of Brazil present frequencies like those of European and Asian groups for the rs74597329 and rs11322783 variants, and like all populations presented for the rs4803221 variant. These data reinforce the role of world populations in shaping the genetic profile of Brazilian populations, indicate patterns of illness according to the expressed genotype, and infer an individual predisposition to certain diseases.
Comparison of Rating Systems for Alberta Rock Slopes, and Assessment of Applicability for Geotechnical Asset Management
Authors: Wollenberg-Barron Taylor Del Gerhard , Macciotta Pulisci Renato , Gräpel Chris , Tappenden Kristen , Skirrow Roger
Published: November 2023

In 1999, Alberta Transportation and Economic Corridors (TEC) implemented the Geohazard Risk Management Program (GRMP) to identify, assess, monitor, and prioritize the mitigation of risk resulting from geohazard events at specific sites along the provincial highway network. The GRMP was developed to address a variety of geohazard types including rockfall hazards that occur at natural and constructed (cut) highway backslopes. An evaluation of various methods for the condition assessment of rockfall geohazards, including TEC’s current GRMP risk rating system, has been completed with the intent of better understanding the suitability of each method as TEC transitions to a formalized GAM program. The GRMP risk rating values for selected rockfall geohazard sites along highway corridors in Alberta were compared to values developed from the results of five established rock mass and rock slope rating systems. The results of this study demonstrate that TEC’s current GRMP risk rating system is a viable tool for the condition assessment and performance monitoring of rockfall geohazards, which could be utilized within a formalized GAM program, further benefitting from years of recorded application in Alberta. Of the other rating systems tested, the rockfall hazard rating system (RHRS) showed a strong correlation with the GRMP risk rating while Q-Slope, the Geological Strength Index (GSI) and Rock Mass Rating (RMR) correlation were marginal but displayed a potential for use as condition assessment tools. The work presented in this paper provides the first evaluation of rock slope rating systems for rockfall hazards along corridors in Alberta, directly comparing them to the slope performance as observed by TEC in a quantitative manner.
An Unsupervised Classifier for Whole-Genome Phylogenies, the Maxwell© Tool
Authors: Gardes Joël , Maldivi Christophe , Boisset Denis , Aubourg Timothée , Demongeot Jacques
Published: November 2023

The development of phylogenetic trees based on RNA or DNA sequences generally requires a precise and limited choice of important RNAs, e.g., messenger RNAs of essential proteins or ribosomal RNAs (like 16S), but rarely complete genomes, making it possible to explain evolution and speciation. In this article, we propose revisiting a classic phylogeny of archaea from only the information on the succession of nucleotides of their entire genome. For this purpose, we use a new tool, the unsupervised classifier Maxwell, whose principle lies in the Burrows–Wheeler compression transform, and we show its efficiency in clustering whole archaeal genomes.
Overactivation or Apoptosis: Which Mechanisms Affect Chemotherapy-Induced Ovarian Reserve Depletion?
Authors: Kashi Oren , Meirow Dror
Published: November 2023

Dormant primordial follicles (PMF), which constitute the ovarian reserve, are recruited continuously into the cohort of growing follicles in the ovary throughout female reproductive life. Gonadotoxic chemotherapy was shown to diminish the ovarian reserve pool, to destroy growing follicle population, and to cause premature ovarian insufficiency (POI). Three primary mechanisms have been proposed to account for this chemotherapy-induced PMF depletion: either indirectly via over-recruitment of PMF, by stromal damage, or through direct toxicity effects on PMF. Preventative pharmacological agents intervening in these ovotoxic mechanisms may be ideal candidates for fertility preservation (FP). This manuscript reviews the mechanisms that disrupt follicle dormancy causing depletion of the ovarian reserve. It describes the most widely studied experimental inhibitors that have been deployed in attempts to counteract these affects and prevent follicle depletion.
Patterns of Variation in the Usage of Fatty Acid Chains among Classes of Ester and Ether Neutral Lipids and Phospholipids in the Queensland Fruit Fly
Authors: Prasad Shirleen , Taylor Matthew , Colombo Valentina , Yeap Heng , Pandey Gunjan , Lee Siu , Taylor Phillip , Oakeshott John
Published: November 2023

Modern lipidomics has the power and sensitivity to elucidate the role of insects’ lipidomes in their adaptations to the environment at a mechanistic molecular level. However, few lipidomic studies have yet been conducted on insects beyond model species such as Drosophila melanogaster. Here, we present the lipidome of adult males of another higher dipteran frugivore, Bactrocera tryoni. We describe 421 lipids across 15 classes of ester neutral lipids and phospholipids and ether neutral lipids and phospholipids. Most of the lipids are specified in terms of the carbon and double bond contents of each constituent hydrocarbon chain, and more ether lipids are specified to this degree than in any previous insect lipidomic analyses. Class-specific profiles of chain length and (un)saturation are broadly similar to those reported in D. melanogaster, although we found fewer medium-length chains in ether lipids. The high level of chain specification in our dataset also revealed widespread non-random combinations of different chain types in several ester lipid classes, including deficits of combinations involving chains of the same carbon and double bond contents among four phospholipid classes and excesses of combinations of dissimilar chains in several classes. Large differences were also found in the length and double bond profiles of the acyl vs. alkyl or alkenyl chains of the ether lipids. Work on other organisms suggests some of the differences observed will be functionally consequential and mediated, at least in part, by differences in substrate specificity among enzymes in lipid synthesis and remodelling pathways. Interrogation of the B. tryoni genome showed it has comparable levels of diversity overall in these enzymes but with some gene gain/loss differences and considerable sequence divergence from D. melanogaster.
In Vivo Bioassay of the Repellent Activity of Caraway Essential Oil against Green Peach Aphid
Authors: Girardi Jessica , Berķe-Ļubinska Kristīne , Mežaka Ieva , Nakurte Ilva , Skudriņš Gundars , Pastare Laura
Published: November 2023

An in vivo dual choice bioassay with white cabbage as a host plant was used to determine the repellent effect of three different accessions of caraway (Carum carvi L.) essential oils (EOs) against the green peach aphid Myzus persicae (Sulzer). The dominant components of the EO were D-Carvone (47.3–74.4%) and D-limonene (25.2–51.9%), which accounted for 99.2–99.5% of the EOs determined by GC/MS. The EO with the highest D-limonene content (51.9%) showed the highest repellence (Repellency Index (RI) = +41%), which was stable up to 330 min. The incorporation of several surfactants with different hydrophilic-lipophilic balance values (from 12.4 to 16.7) with caraway EO caused a general inhibition of the repellent effect during the testing period (RI from +41% to −19%). Overall, the findings indicate that caraway EO could be used as a green peach aphid repellent, but more work is needed to formulate the EO into a ready-to-use product.
Cannabis and Endometriosis: The Roles of the Gut Microbiota and the Endocannabinoid System
Authors: Farooqi Toobah , Bhuyan Deep Jyoti , Low Mitchell , Sinclair Justin , Leonardi Mathew , Armour Mike
Published: November 2023

Endometriosis, a chronic condition affecting around 10–14% of women, is challenging to manage, due to its complex pathogenesis and limited treatment options. Research has suggested a potential role of the gut microbiota and the endocannabinoid system in the development and progression of endometriosis. This narrative review aims to explore the role of, and any potential interactions between, the endocannabinoid system (ECS) and the gut microbiota in endometriosis. This review found that both the ECS and microbiota influence endometriosis, with the former regulating inflammation and pain perception and the latter influencing immune responses and hormonal balance. There is evidence that a dysregulation of the endocannabinoid system and the gut microbiota influence endometriosis symptoms and progression via changes in CB1 receptor expression and increased circulating levels of endocannabinoids. Microbial imbalances in the gut, such as increases in Prevotella, have been directly correlated to increased bloating, a common endometriosis symptom, while increases in E. coli have supported the bacterial contamination hypothesis as a potential pathway for endometriosis pathogenesis. These microbial imbalances have been correlated with increases in inflammatory markers such as TNF-α and IL-6, both often raised in those with endometriosis. Protective effects of the ECS on the gut were observed by increases in endocannabinoids, including 2-AG, resulting in decreased inflammation and improved gut permeability. Given these findings, both the ECS and the gut microbiota may be targets for therapeutic interventions for endometriosis; however, clinical studies are required to determine effectiveness.
Oral Findings in Hemodialyzed Patients Diagnosed with Diabetes Mellitus and/or Hypertension—A Systematic Review
Authors: Trzcionka Agata , Mączkowiak Dagmara , Korkosz Rafał , Rahnama Mansur , Duława Jan , Tanasiewicz Marta
Published: November 2023

Chronic kidney disease is classified as a civilization disease and is being diagnosed in an increasing number of patients. Hypertension and diabetes mellitus often coexist in hemodialyzed patients. The aim of the present study was to identify publications on the oral cavity status of multimorbid hemodialyzed adult patients additionally diagnosed with hypertension and/or diabetes mellitus, published between 2012 and 2022 to establish evidence of the impact of hypertension and diabetes mellitus on the oral status of hemodialyzed patients. Scopus and Web of Science databases were searched. Eight articles were included in the review. In total, 3 articles discussed oral hygiene in hemodialyzed patients, 4 discussed periodontal status, 3 discussed mucosa condition and saliva parameters, and 3 discussed the problem of Candidiasis infections. The conclusions were as follows: there is still a limited number of publications discussing the oral status of hemodialyzed patients diagnosed with hypertension; involved articles have proven that coexisting diseases can influence the oral cavity status of hemodialyzed patients and cause periodontal disorders, lower hygiene status, saliva parameters and make the risk of Candida infections higher.
Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation for Bicuspid Aortic Valve Disease: Procedural Planning and Clinical Outcomes
Authors: Gutierrez Lola , Boiago Mauro , De Biase Chiara , Oliva Omar , Laforgia Pietro , Feliachi Souheib , Beneduce Alessandro , Dumonteil Nicolas , Tchetche Didier
Published: November 2023

Bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) is the most common congenital heart disease, with a prevalence of 1–2% and occurring in >20% of octogenarians referred for aortic valve replacement. However, BAV patients have been systematically excluded from pivotal randomized trials. Since TAVI indications are moving toward low-risk patients, an increase in the number of BAV patients who undergo TAVI is expected. BAV represents a challenge due to its unique morphological features (raphe, extreme asymmetrical valve calcifications, cusp asymmetry and aortopathy) and the lack of consensus about the accurate sizing method. The role of multi-slice computed tomography (MSCT) in the planification of the TAVI procedure is well-established, being useful to define the optimal valve sizing and the implantation strategy. New-generation devices, more experience of the operators and better planification of the procedure have been associated with similar clinical outcomes in bicuspid and tricuspid patients undergoing TAVI.
Special Issue: “Latest Advances on Urinary Incontinence”
Authors: Bientinesi Riccardo , Gavi Filippo , Li Marzi Vincenzo , Sacco Emilio
Published: November 2023

Urinary incontinence (UI) has a great impact on patients’ quality of life [...]
The Effect of Anxiolytics on Tinnitus
Authors: Psillas George , Vlachou Chrysoula
Published: November 2023

Tinnitus is a perceptual disorder in which sound is perceived by the patient in the absence of an external or internal acoustic stimulation [...]
Ozone Therapy as an Adjuvant in the Treatment of Periodontitis
Authors: Alsakr Abdulaziz , Gufran Khalid , Alqahtani Abdullah Saad , Alasqah Mohammed , Alnufaiy Banna , Alzahrani Hanadi Ghurmallah , Alahmari Ali Ayidh , Alhumaidani Faisal Khaled , Alhumaidani Rakan Khaled , Althobiti Mishari Jameel
Published: November 2023

The current study aimed to assess the efficacy of ozone therapy in the treatment of stage II and stage III periodontitis. This prospective split-mouth study selected patients who were diagnosed with either stage II or stage III periodontitis. All patients were treated with scaling and root-planing (SRP) on the control side and SRP with ozone therapy on the test side. Probing depth (PD), clinical attachment loss (CAL), O’Leary plaque index (PI), and bleeding on probing (BOP) scores were recorded at baseline and six weeks after the SRP treatment. A total of 46 patients were selected for this study, including 31 males and 15 females. All periodontal variables (PD, CAL, PI, and BOP) showed significant changes (p < 0.0001) from baseline to six weeks. Moreover, significant changes (PD = 0.0001, CAL = 0.0001, PI = 0.042 and BOP = 0.0001) were also observed between the control and test sides. Gender showed no significance on periodontal variables (p > 0.05) except PD on the test side (p = 0.030). In addition, periodontal stages and grades showed no significant changes (p > 0.05) in any periodontal variables on both sides. Ozone therapy significantly improves the periodontal condition compared to SRP treatment alone. However, the stages and grades of periodontitis do not influence the outcome of ozone therapy.
Working Mechanisms of Exposure and Response Prevention in the Treatment of Tourette Syndrome and Tic Disorders Revisited: No Evidence for within-Session Habituation to Premonitory Urges
Authors: van de Griendt Jolande M. T. M. , van den Berg Nelleke M. E. , Verdellen Cara W. J. , Cath Daniëlle C. , Verbraak Marc J. P. M.
Published: November 2023

Background: Exposure and response prevention (ERP) has been shown to be an effective treatment for Tourette syndrome (TS) and chronic tic disorders (CTD). ERP is based on voluntary tic suppression in combination with prolonged exposure to premonitory urges preceding tics. A prevailing hypothesis of the working mechanism underlying ERP in tics is habituation to the premonitory urges as a result of prolonged exposure. However, results so far are equivocal. This study aims to further explore the relation between urges and ERP in tics, by investigating the course of premonitory urges during ERP sessions. Methods: Using a data-driven approach, within-session habituation to premonitory urge intensity was investigated. In total, 29 TS patients rated urge intensity at seven timepoints during ten 1 h ERP sessions. Results/Conclusions: Latent growth modeling showed an increase in urge intensity during the first 15 min of each session followed by a plateau in the remaining 45 min of the session. This does not support the idea of within-session habituation to premonitory urges as a working mechanism of ERP. Other potential underlying working mechanisms are discussed and should be tested in future research.
Pain Management, Functional Recovery, and Stress Response Expressed by NLR and PLR after the iPACK Block Combined with Adductor Canal Block for Total Knee Arthroplasty—A Prospective, Randomised, Double-Blinded Clinical Trial
Authors: Domagalska Malgorzata , Reysner Tomasz , Kowalski Grzegorz , Daroszewski Przemysław , Mularski Aleksander , Wieczorowska-Tobis Katarzyna
Published: November 2023

Introduction: This study aimed to investigate pain management, functional recovery, and stress response expressed by the neutrophile-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) after the popliteal artery and posterior knee capsule infiltration (iPACK) block combined with adductor canal block (ACB) in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Patients and Methods: This was a prospective, double-blinded, randomised, controlled trial in a tertiary referral hospital. Three hundred and sixty-six patients were randomly allocated into the sham block group and iPACK combined with the ACB group. The primary outcome was postoperative pain scores. The secondary outcomes were opioid consumption, functional recovery expressed by a range of motion, and quadriceps strength. Also, the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) were calculated. Results: There were significant differences between the sham block and iPACK + ACB group in pain scores p < 0.0001 at all time points. Therefore, there was a significant difference in opioid consumption (p < 0.0001) and functional recovery (p < 0.0001). Also, NLR and PLR levels 12 h (p < 0.0001) and 24 h (24 h) after surgery (p < 0.0001) were much lower in the iPACK + ACB group. Conclusion: After total knee arthroplasty, the iPACK combined with ACB block group improved pain management, functional recovery, and stress response. Therefore, we strongly recommend this technique as a part of a multimodal analgesia protocol in knee surgery.