bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A combined adjuvant approach primes robust germinal center responses and humoral immunity in non-human primates
Authors: Phung Ivy , Rodrigues Kristen A. , Marina-Zárate Ester , Maiorino Laura , Pahar Bapi , Lee Wen-Hsin , Melo Mariane , Kaur Amitinder , Allers Carolina , Fahlberg Marissa , Grasperge Brooke F. , Dufour Jason P. , Schiro Faith , Aye Pyone P. , Lopez Paul G. , Torres Jonathan L. , Ozorowski Gabriel , Eskandarzadeh Saman , Kubitz Michael , Georgeson Erik , Groschel Bettina , Nedellec Rebecca , Bick Michael , Kaczmarek Michaels Katarzyna , Gao Hongmei , Shen Xiaoying , Carnathan Diane G. , Silvestri Guido , Montefiori David C. , Ward Andrew B. , Hangartner Lars , Veazey Ronald S. , Burton Dennis R. , Schief William R. , Irvine Darrell J. , Crotty Shane
Published: November 2023

Adjuvants and antigen delivery kinetics can profoundly influence B cell responses and should be critically considered in rational vaccine design, particularly for difficult neutralizing antibody targets such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Antigen kinetics can change depending on the delivery method. To promote extended immunogen bioavailability and to present antigen in a multivalent form, native-HIV Env trimers are modified with short phosphoserine peptide linkers that promote tight binding to aluminum hydroxide (pSer:alum). Here we explore the use of a combined adjuvant approach that incorporates pSer:alum-mediated antigen delivery with potent adjuvants (SMNP, 3M-052) in an extensive head-to-head comparison study with conventional alum to assess germinal center (GC) and humoral immune responses. Priming with pSer:alum plus SMNP induces additive effects that enhance the magnitude and persistence of GCs, which correlate with better GC-TFH cell help. Autologous HIV-neutralizing antibody titers are improved in SMNP-immunized animals after two immunizations. Over 9 months after priming immunization of pSer:alum with either SMNP or 3M-052, robust Env-specific bone marrow plasma cells (BM BPC) are observed. Furthermore, pSer-modification of Env trimer reduce targeting towards immunodominant non-neutralizing epitopes. The study shows that a combined adjuvant approach can augment humoral immunity by modulating immunodominance and shows promise for clinical translation.
Both chimpanzee adenovirus-vectored and DNA vaccines induced long-term immunity against Nipah virus infection
Authors: Lu Mingqing , Yao Yanfeng , Zhang Xuekai , Liu Hang , Gao Ge , Peng Yun , Chen Miaoyu , Zhao Jiaxuan , Zhang XiaoYu , Yin Chunhong , Guo Weiwei , Yang Peipei , Hu Xue , Rao Juhong , Li Entao , Chen Tong , Chiu Sandra , Wong Gary , Yuan Zhiming , Lan Jiaming , Shan Chao
Published: November 2023

Nipah virus (NiV) is a highly lethal zoonotic paramyxovirus that poses a severe threat to humans due to its high morbidity and the lack of viable countermeasures. Vaccines are the most crucial defense against NiV infections. Here, a recombinant chimpanzee adenovirus-based vaccine (AdC68-G) and a DNA vaccine (DNA-G) were developed by expressing the codon-optimized full-length glycoprotein (G) of NiV. Strong and sustained neutralizing antibody production, accompanied by an effective T-cell response, was induced in BALB/c mice by intranasal or intramuscular administration of one or two doses of AdC68-G, as well as by priming with DNA-G and boosting with intramuscularly administered AdC68-G. Importantly, the neutralizing antibody titers were maintained for up to 68 weeks in the mice that received intramuscularly administered AdC68-G and the prime DNA-G/boost AdC68-G regimen, without a significant decline. Additionally, Syrian golden hamsters immunized with AdC68-G and DNA-G via homologous or heterologous prime/boost immunization were completely protected against a lethal NiV virus challenge, without any apparent weight loss, clinical signs, or pathological tissue damage. There was a significant reduction in but not a complete absence of the viral load and number of infectious particles in the lungs and spleen tissue following NiV challenge. These findings suggest that the AdC68-G and DNA-G vaccines against NiV infection are promising candidates for further development.
Gap-free genome assembly of Salangid icefish Neosalanx taihuensis
Authors: Zhou Yanfeng , Zhang Xizhao , Jian Jianbo , Wang Chenhe , Fang Di’an , Jiang Shulun , Ren Long , Ge You , Wang Hongqi , You Yang , Chen Chunhai
Published: November 2023

Neosalanx taihuensisis widely distributed in freshwater and brackish water areas in China. Due to its high commercial value, it has been artificially introduced into many lakes and reservoirs, showing strong ecological adaptability. Here, a gap-free chromosome-level reference genome was constructed by combining short reads, PacBio HiFi long reads, Nanopore ultralong reads and Hi-C data. The reference genome ofN. taihuensiswas 397.29 Mb with a contig N50 of 15.61 Mb. The assembled sequences were anchored to 28 chromosomes. Furthermore, 20,024 protein-coding genes and 98.16% of the predicted genes were annotated in publicly available biological databases. This high-quality gap-free assembled genome will provide an essential reference for studying the evolution and ecological adaptability ofN. taihuensis.
Quantifying and correcting bias due to outcome dependent self-reported weights in longitudinal study of weight loss interventions
Authors: Tong Jiayi , Duan Rui , Li Ruowang , Luo Chongliang , Moore Jason H. , Zhu Jingsan , Foster Gary D. , Volpp Kevin G. , Yancy William S. , Shaw Pamela A. , Chen Yong
Published: November 2023

In response to the escalating global obesity crisis and its associated health and financial burdens, this paper presents a novel methodology for analyzing longitudinal weight loss data and assessing the effectiveness of financial incentives. Drawing from the Keep It Off trial—a three-arm randomized controlled study with 189 participants—we examined the potential impact of financial incentives on weight loss maintenance. Given that some participants choose not to weigh themselves because of small weight change or weight gains, which is a common phenomenon in many weight-loss studies, traditional methods, for example, the Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) method tends to overestimate the effect size due to the assumption that data are missing completely at random. To address this challenge, we proposed a framework which can identify evidence of missing not at random and conduct bias correction using the estimating equation derived from pairwise composite likelihood. By analyzing the Keep It Off data, we found that the data in this trial are most likely characterized by non-random missingness. Notably, we also found that the enrollment time (i.e., duration time) would be positively associated with the weight loss maintenance after adjusting for the baseline participant characteristics (e.g., age, sex). Moreover, the lottery-based intervention was found to be more effective in weight loss maintenance compared with the direct payment intervention, though the difference was non-statistically significant. This framework's significance extends beyond weight loss research, offering a semi-parametric approach to assess missing data mechanisms and robustly explore associations between exposures (e.g., financial incentives) and key outcomes (e.g., weight loss maintenance). In essence, the proposed methodology provides a powerful toolkit for analyzing real-world longitudinal data, particularly in scenarios with data missing not at random, enriching comprehension of intricate dataset dynamics.
Dynamic response and liquefaction potential of porous seabed induced by partial standing ocean waves
Authors: Wang Guocai , Liu Yiyang , Liu Kai , Xu Chate
Published: November 2023

The analysis of ocean wave-induced dynamic response of a porous seabed is particularly important for coastal and geotechnical engineers when designing and constructing maritime structures. In this study, an analytical solution is presented to analyze the dynamic response and liquefaction potential of a poro-elastic seabed induced by partial standing waves with arbitrary reflectivity. The porous seabed is modeled using Biot’s theory describing the propagation of elastic waves, and coupled deformation and water flow of porous media, whereas the ocean waves are described using linear ocean wave theory. Based on the mixed boundary-value conditions, explicit expressions of displacements, effective stresses and excess pore water pressure of seabed are derived with consideration of the effects of inertial forces, compressibility of solid and fluid, and arbitrary reflectivity of standing waves. The results of degenerated analytical solutions are compared with the existing ones to verify the correctness of the proposed method. The effects of several pertinent parameters of ocean wave-seabed system, including reflection coefficient, phase lag and period of standing waves, depth of water, permeability, degree of saturation, and shear modulus of seabed deposits, etc., on the dynamic response of seabed and liquefaction potential, are examined and discussed. It is found that the reflection of standing wave has a significant effect on the dynamic response and liquefaction potential of porous elastic seabed. Compared with that of no wave reflection, the liquefaction depth of seabed induced by fully-reflected standing waves increases 82.49% under certain conditions of wave-seabed system. In addition, phase lag, wave period, water depth and mechanical and physical properties of seabed soil such as saturation, permeability and shear modulus have different effects on the dynamic response and liquefaction potential of porous elastic seabed. The investigation of the dynamic response and liquefaction of the porous elastic seabed under partial standing ocean waves will help to better predict the influence of standing waves on breakwaters and seabed soil, and can provide some guidance for the design of offshore structures.
Compositional induced structural phase transitions in (1 − x)(K0.5Na0.5)NbO3–x(Ba0.5Sr0.5)TiO3 ferroelectric solid solutions
Authors: Sahoo Satyaranjan , Pradhan Dhiren K. , Kumari Shalini , Samantaray Koyal Suman , Singh Charanjeet , Mishra Anupam , Rahaman Md. Mijanur , Behera Banarji , Kumar Ashok , Thomas Reji , Rack Philip D. , Pradhan Dillip K.
Published: November 2023

Ferroelectric materials exhibiting switchable and spontaneous polarization have strong potential to be utilized in various novel electronic devices. Solid solutions of different perovskite structures induce the coexistence of various phases and enhance the physical functionalities around the phase coexistence region. The construction of phase diagrams is important as they describe the material properties, which are linked to the underpinning physics determining the system. Here we present the phase diagram of (K0.5Na0.5NbO3)–(Ba0.5Sr0.5TiO3) (KNN-BST) system as a function of composition and their associated physical properties. Lead-free (1 − x)KNN–xBST (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.3) solid solution ceramics were synthesized by conventional solid-state reaction technique. The X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopic studies indicate composition-dependent structural phase transitions from an orthorhombic phase for x = 0 to orthorhombic + tetragonal dual-phase (for 0.025 ≤ x ≤ 0.15), then a tetragonal + cubic dual-phase (x = 0.2) and finally a cubic single phase for x ≥ 0.25 at room temperature (RT). Among these, the orthorhombic + tetragonal dual-phase system shows an enhanced value of the dielectric constant at room temperature. The phase transition temperatures, orthorhombic to tetragonal (TO-T) and tetragonal to cubic (TC), decrease with the increase in BST concentrations. The ferroelectric studies show a decrease of both 2Pr and EC values with a rise in BST concentration and x = 0.025 showed a maximum piezoelectric coefficient.
Production of activated carbon from date palm stones by hydrothermal carbonization and microwave assisted KOH/NaOH mixture activation for dye adsorption
Authors: Aloud Saud S. , Alharbi Hattan A. , Hameed Bassim H. , Giesy John P. , Almady Saad S. , Alotaibi Khaled D.
Published: November 2023

Date palm stones are regarded as possible alternatives to activated carbon (AC) precursors with high potential for various environmental applications. In this research study, date palm stones derived activated carbon (DPSAC) was used as adsorbent for removing toxic remazol brilliant blue R (RBBR). The synthesis of DPSAC involved a chemical treatment using KOH and NaOH (1:1). Characterization of DPSAC revealed that it exhibited a BET surface area of 715.30 m2/g, Langmuir surface area of 1061.93 m2/g, total pore volume of 0.39 cm3/g, and average pore diameter of 2.15 nm. Adsorption uptake of RBBR increased (from 24.54 to 248.54 mg/g), whereas the removal percentage decreased (from 98.16 to 82.85%) when the initial RBBR concentration increased (from 25 to 300 mg/L). The adsorption process performed best under acidic conditions (pH 3), with an RBBR uptake of 98.33 mg/g. Because of the high R2 values (0.9906 and 0.9779) and low average errors (6.24 and 13.95%), this adsorption process followed the Freundlich isotherm and pseudo-first-order (PFO) models, respectively. The Langmuir adsorption capacity (Qm) was 319.63 mg/g. Thermodynamic parameters were − 11.34 kJ/mol for ∆H° (exothermic in nature), 0.05 kJ/mol K for ∆S° (increasing randomness level at solid–liquid interface), − 27.37 kJ/mol for ∆G° (spontaneous), and 6.84 kJ/mol for Ea (controlled by physisorption).
Stability of mechanically exfoliated layered monochalcogenides under ambient conditions
Authors: Hlushchenko Daria , Siudzinska Anna , Cybinska Joanna , Guzik Malgorzata , Bachmatiuk Alicja , Kudrawiec Robert
Published: November 2023

Monochalcogenides of groups III (GaS, GaSe) and VI (GeS, GeSe, SnS, and SnSe) are materials with interesting thickness-dependent characteristics, which have been applied in many areas. However, the stability of layered monochalcogenides (LMs) is a real problem in semiconductor devices that contain these materials. Therefore, it is an important issue that needs to be explored. This article presents a comprehensive study of the degradation mechanism in mechanically exfoliated monochalcogenides in ambient conditions using Raman and photoluminescence spectroscopy supported by structural methods. A higher stability (up to three weeks) was observed for GaS. The most reactive were Se-containing monochalcogenides. Surface protrusions appeared after the ambient exposure of GeSe was detected by scanning electron microscopy. In addition, the degradation of GeS and GeSe flakes was observed in the operando experiment in transmission electron microscopy. Additionally, the amorphization of the material progressed from the flake edges. The reported results and conclusions on the degradation of LMs are useful to understand surface oxidation, air stability, and to fabricate stable devices with monochalcogenides. The results indicate that LMs are more challenging for exfoliation and optical studies than transition metal dichalcogenides such as MoS2, MoSe2, WS2, or WSe2.
Machine learning models to predict post-dialysis blood pressure in children and young adults on maintenance hemodialysis
Authors: Bou-Matar Raed , Dell Katherine M. , Bobrowski Amy
Published: November 2023

Hypertension is associated with significant cardiovascular morbidity. Blood pressure (BP) control on maintenance hemodialysis (HD) is strongly impacted by volume status. The objective of this study was to assess whether machine learning (ML) is effective in predicting post-HD BP in children and young adults on HD. We collected data on BP, IDWG, pulse, and weights for patients on maintenance HD (> 3 months). Input features included DW, pre-post weight difference, IDWG and pre-HD BP. Seven models were trained and tuned using open-source libraries. Model performance was evaluated using time-series cross-validation on a rolling basis (3–12 month training, 1-day testing). Various regression scores were compared between models. Data for 35 patients (14,375 HD sessions) were analyzed. Extreme gradient boosting (XGB) and vector autoregression with exogenous regressors (VARX) achieved better accuracy in predicting post-dialysis systolic BP than K-nearest neighbor, support vector regression (SVR) with radial basis function kernel and random forest (p < 0.001 for each). The differences in accuracy between XGB, VARX, SVR with linear kernel, random forest and linear regression were not significant. Using clinical parameters, ML models may be useful in predicting post-HD BP, which may help guide DW adjustment and optimizing BP control for maintenance HD patients.
Prediction of human health risk and disability-adjusted life years induced by heavy metals exposure through drinking water in Fars Province, Iran
Authors: Radfard Majid , Hashemi Hassan , Baghapour Mohammad Ali , Samaei Mohammad Reza , Yunesian Masud , Soleimani Hamed , Azhdarpoor Abooalfazl
Published: November 2023

Exposure to heavy metals in contaminated drinking water is strongly correlated with various cancers, highlighting the burden of disease. This study aimed to assess the non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks associated with exposure to heavy metals (As, Pb, Cd, and Cr) in drinking water of Fars province and evaluate the attributed burden of disease. Non-carcinogenic risk assessment was performed using the hazard quotient (HQ) method, while the carcinogenic risk assessment utilized the excess lifetime cancer risk approach. The burden of disease was evaluated in terms of years of life lost, years lived with disability, and disability-adjusted life years (DALY) for three specific cancers: skin, lung, and kidney cancer. The average drinking water concentrations of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr) and lead (Pb) were determined to be 0.72, 0.4, 1.10 and 0.72 μg/L, respectively. The total average HQ of heavy metals in drinking water in the study area were 0.127, 0.0047, 0.0009 and 0.0069, respectively. The average ILCRs of heavy metal in the entire country were in the following order: 1.15 × 10−5 for As, 2.22 × 10−7 for Cd and 3.41 × 10−7 for Cr. The results also indicated that among the various counties analyzed, Fasa experiences the greatest burden of disease in terms of DALYs, with a value of 87.56, specifically attributed to cancers caused by exposure to arsenic. Generally, it can be said that the burden of disease is a critical aspect of public health that requires comprehensive understanding and effective intervention.
Novel PD-L1- and collagen-expressing patient-derived cell line of undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma (JBT19) as a model for cancer immunotherapy
Authors: Taborska Pavla , Lukac Pavol , Stakheev Dmitry , Rajsiglova Lenka , Kalkusova Katerina , Strnadova Karolina , Lacina Lukas , Dvorankova Barbora , Novotny Jiri , Kolar Michal , Vrana Milena , Cechova Hana , Ransdorfova Sarka , Valerianova Marie , Smetana Karel , Vannucci Luca , Smrz Daniel
Published: November 2023

Soft tissue sarcomas are aggressive mesenchymal-origin malignancies. Undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma (UPS) belongs to the aggressive, high-grade, and least characterized sarcoma subtype, affecting multiple tissues and metastasizing to many organs. The treatment of localized UPS includes surgery in combination with radiation therapy. Metastatic forms are treated with chemotherapy. Immunotherapy is a promising treatment modality for many cancers. However, the development of immunotherapy for UPS is limited due to its heterogeneity, antigenic landscape variation, lower infiltration with immune cells, and a limited number of established patient-derived UPS cell lines for preclinical research. In this study, we established and characterized a novel patient-derived UPS cell line, JBT19. The JBT19 cells express PD-L1 and collagen, a ligand of the immune checkpoint molecule LAIR-1. JBT19 cells can form spheroids in vitro and solid tumors in immunodeficient nude mice. We found JBT19 cells induce expansion of JBT19-reactive autologous and allogeneic NK, T, and NKT-like cells, and the reactivity of the expanded cells was associated with cytotoxic impact on JBT19 cells. The PD-1 and LAIR-1 ligand-expressing JBT19 cells show ex vivo immunogenicity and effective in vivo xenoengraftment properties that can offer a unique resource in the preclinical research developing novel immunotherapeutic interventions in the treatment of UPS.
Stagnation point flow of hybrid nanofluid flow passing over a rotating sphere subjected to thermophoretic diffusion and thermal radiation
Authors: Alharbi Khalid Abdulkhaliq M. , Bilal Muhammad , Ali Aatif , Eldin Sayed M. , Soliman Amal F. , Rahman Mati Ur
Published: November 2023

The effects of thermal radiation and thermophoretic particles deposition (TPD) on the hybrid nanofluid (HNF) flow across a circling sphere have momentous roles in research and engineering. Such as electrical devices, projectiles, thermal conveyance, sheet production, renewable energy, and nuclear-powered plants. Therefore, the current study presents the stagnation point flow of HNF flows about an orbiting sphere. The HNF is organized with the accumulation of aluminum alloys (AA70772 and AA7075) nanoparticles in the water. The HNF flow model equations are changed into the non-dimensional form of ODEs through the similarity variables and then numerically solved through the parametric simulation. It has been perceived that the significance of the rotation factor boosts the velocity curve, while the flow motion drops with the increasing numbers of AA7072 and AA7075 nanoparticles. Furthermore, the addition of AA7072 and AA70775 nano particulates in water lessens with the temperature profile. The energy distribution rate in case of hybrid nanoliquid enhances from 3.87 to 13.79%, whereas the mass dissemination rate enhances from 4.35 to 11.24% as the nanoparticles concentration varies from 0.01 to 0.03.
A nationwide study on time spent on social media and self-harm among adolescents
Authors: Tørmoen Anita Johanna , Myhre Martin Øverlien , Kildahl Anine Therese , Walby Fredrik Andreas , Rossow Ingeborg
Published: November 2023

Self-harm among adolescents has increased in many countries, but few studies have examined possible explanations. One explanation could be the changes in the way adolescents socialize and use of social media. We explored the relationship between past year self-harm and time spent on social media, employing data from a nationwide cross-sectional survey among students in grades 8 through 11 in Norway (N = 37,268). The association was estimated in logistic regression models and we adjusted for identified confounders and stratified on gender, age group and depressive symptoms. A total of 16.1% of the study population reported to have self-harmed in the past year. This proportion was elevated among those spending more than 3 h daily on social media (unadjusted OR = 2.74 (CI 2.58.–2.90)). Adjustment for confounders modified the association (OR = 1.49 (CI 1.39–1.60)). In stratified analyses, adjusted OR did not differ significantly by gender or age The association between time spent on social media and self-harm was weaker among adolescents with severe depressive symptoms (adjusted OR = 1.38 (CI 1.22–1.55)), than among those with mild or no symptoms (adjusted OR = 1.70 (CI 1.56–1.86)). Risk of self-harm was elevated among those who spent 3 or more hours daily on social media, also after controlling for other factors. Further studies are needed to explore the nature and underlying mechanisms of this association. Strengthening the evidence will help informing the development of adequate measures to prevent self-harm.
Quad-port MIMO antenna with high isolation characteristics for sub 6-GHz 5G NR communication
Authors: Upadhyaya Trushit , Sorathiya Vishal , Al-shathri Samah , El-Shafai Walid , Patel Upesh , Pandya Killol Vishnuprasad , Armghan Ammar
Published: November 2023

A four-port MIMO antenna with high isolation is presented. The antenna is primarily envisioned to cover the n48 band of Frequency Range-1 (FR-1) with TDD duplex mode. The engineered antenna has electrical dimensions of 90 × 90 × 1.57 mm3. The size miniaturization of a single antenna unit is achieved through an optimized placement of slots and extended arms. The quad-antennas are then placed orthogonally to achieve antenna diversity. The antenna resonates at 3.56 GHz and 5.28 GHz having 2:1 VSWR fractional bandwidth of 1.82% and 2.12%. The proposed resonator provides 88.34% and 79.28% efficiency at lower and upper bands, respectively. The antenna is an exceptional radiator regarding MIMO diversity performance owing to high inter-element isolation. The values of envelope correlation coefficient < 0.05, channel capacity loss is nearly 0.1 bits/sec/Hz, and total active reflection coefficient is − 24.26. The full ground plane profile aids in high directivity and cross-pol isolation. The antenna exhibits a gain of 4.2 dBi and 2.8 dBi, respectively, justifying intended application requirements. There is a good coherence between simulation and experimental results. The self-decoupled antenna poses its application in 5G and WLAN Communication Applications.
Major dietary patterns and dietary inflammatory index in relation to dyslipidemia using cross-sectional results from the RaNCD cohort study
Authors: Pasdar Yahya , Moradi Fardin , Cheshmeh Sahar , Sedighi Mohammad , Saber Amir , Moradi Shima , Bonyani Mitra , Najafi Farid
Published: November 2023

Dyslipidemia can increase the risk of heart attack and stroke due to the restriction of blood flow through the blood vessels. Dietary modification is an appropriate approach to reducing this phenomenon. This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate major dietary patterns and the dietary inflammatory index (DII) in relation to dyslipidemia. 5954 participants in the Ravansar non-communicable diseases (RaNCD) cohort study were eligible for this study. Dyslipidemia was diagnosed based on the lipid profile under consideration of the RaNCD physician. Dietary patterns were assessed by principal component analysis. The three identified dietary patterns included (1) plant-based pattern; (2) high protein and sugar pattern; and (3) energy-dense dense pattern. DII was also calculated based on the dietary information from a validated semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). We found that higher adherence to DII was significantly associated with increased odds of dyslipidemia after adjusting for age, sex, and physical activity (OR: 1.24; CI 95% 1.09–1.42). Additionally, higher adherence to the high protein and sugar diet and an energy-dense diet was significantly associated with higher odds for dyslipidemia (OR: 1.31; CI 95% 1.16–1.49) and (OR: 1.28; CI 95% 1.12–1.46). Nevertheless, according to our results, following plant-based diet had no association with dyslipidemia in both crude and adjusted models. Our findings revealed that greater adherence to DII, a high-protein, high-sugar diet, and an energy-dense diet can have undesirable effects on dyslipidemia.
Identification of genetic biomarkers, drug targets and agents for respiratory diseases utilising integrated bioinformatics approaches
Authors: Ahmed Fee Faysal , Das Arnob Dip , Sumi Mst. Joynab , Islam Md. Zohurul , Rahman Md. Shahedur , Rashid Md. Harun , Alyami Salem A. , Alotaibi Naif , Azad A. K. M. , Moni Mohammad Ali
Published: November 2023

Respiratory diseases (RD) are significant public health burdens and malignant diseases worldwide. However, the RD-related biological information and interconnection still need to be better understood. Thus, this study aims to detect common differential genes and potential hub genes (HubGs), emphasizing their actions, signaling pathways, regulatory biomarkers for diagnosing RD and candidate drugs for treating RD. In this paper we used integrated bioinformatics approaches (such as, gene ontology (GO) and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis, molecular docking, molecular dynamic simulation and network-based molecular interaction analysis). We discovered 73 common DEGs (CDEGs) and ten HubGs (ATAD2B, PPP1CB, FOXO1, AKT3, BCR, PDE4D, ITGB1, PCBP2, CD44 and SMARCA2). Several significant functions and signaling pathways were strongly related to RD. We recognized six transcription factor (TF) proteins (FOXC1, GATA2, FOXL1, YY1, POU2F2 and HINFP) and five microRNAs (hsa-mir-218-5p, hsa-mir-335-5p, hsa-mir-16-5p, hsa-mir-106b-5p and hsa-mir-15b-5p) as the important transcription and post-transcription regulators of RD. Ten HubGs and six major TF proteins were considered drug-specific receptors. Their binding energy analysis study was carried out with the 63 drug agents detected from network analysis. Finally, the five complexes (the PDE4D-benzo[a]pyrene, SMARCA2-benzo[a]pyrene, HINFP-benzo[a]pyrene, CD44-ketotifen and ATAD2B-ponatinib) were selected for RD based on their strong binding affinity scores and stable performance as the most probable repurposable protein-drug complexes. We believe our findings will give readers, wet-lab scientists, and pharmaceuticals a thorough grasp of the biology behind RD.
Single-shot, coherent, pop-out 3D metrology
Authors: Balakrishnan Deepan , Chee See Wee , Baraissov Zhaslan , Bosman Michel , Mirsaidov Utkur , Loh N. Duane
Published: November 2023

Three-dimensional (3D) imaging of thin, extended specimens at nanometer resolution is critical for applications in biology, materials science, advanced synthesis, and manufacturing. One route to 3D imaging is tomography, which requires a tilt series of a local region. However, capturing images at higher tilt angles is infeasible for such thin, extended specimens. Here, we explore a suitable alternative to reconstruct the 3D volume using a single, energy-filtered, bright-field coherent image. We show that when our specimen is homogeneous and amorphous, simultaneously inferring local depth and thickness for 3D imaging is possible in the near-field limit. We demonstrated this technique with a transmission electron microscope to fill a glaring gap for rapid, accessible 3D nanometrology. This technique is applicable, in general, to any coherent bright field imaging with electrons, photons, or any other wavelike particles.
Artificial intelligence exceeds humans in epidemiological job coding
Authors: Langezaal Mathijs A. , van den Broek Egon L. , Peters Susan , Goldberg Marcel , Rey Grégoire , Friesen Melissa C. , Locke Sarah J. , Rothman Nathaniel , Lan Qing , Vermeulen Roel C. H.
Published: November 2023

Background

Work circumstances can substantially negatively impact health. To explore this, large occupational cohorts of free-text job descriptions are manually coded and linked to exposure. Although several automatic coding tools have been developed, accurate exposure assessment is only feasible with human intervention.

Methods

We developed OPERAS, a customizable decision support system for epidemiological job coding. Using 812,522 entries, we developed and tested classification models for the Professions et Catégories Socioprofessionnelles (PCS)2003, Nomenclature d’Activités Française (NAF)2008, International Standard Classifications of Occupation (ISCO)-88, and ISCO-68. Each code comes with an estimated correctness measure to identify instances potentially requiring expert review. Here, OPERAS’ decision support enables an increase in efficiency and accuracy of the coding process through code suggestions. Using the Formaldehyde, Silica, ALOHA, and DOM job-exposure matrices, we assessed the classification models’ exposure assessment accuracy.

Results

We show that, using expert-coded job descriptions as gold standard, OPERAS realized a 0.66–0.84, 0.62–0.81, 0.60–0.79, and 0.57–0.78 inter-coder reliability (in Cohen’s Kappa) on the first, second, third, and fourth coding levels, respectively. These exceed the respective inter-coder reliability of expert coders ranging 0.59–0.76, 0.56–0.71, 0.46–0.63, 0.40–0.56 on the same levels, enabling a 75.0–98.4% exposure assessment accuracy and an estimated 19.7–55.7% minimum workload reduction.

Conclusions

OPERAS secures a high degree of accuracy in occupational classification and exposure assessment of free-text job descriptions, substantially reducing workload. As such, OPERAS significantly outperforms both expert coders and other current coding tools. This enables large-scale, efficient, and effective exposure assessment securing healthy work conditions.
Adaptive neuro‐fuzzy inference system and particle swarm optimization: A modern paradigm for securing VANETs
Authors: Thiruppathy Kesavan V , Murugavalli S , Premkumar Manoharan , Selvarajan Shitharth
Published: November 2023

Vehicular Adhoc Networks (VANET) facilitate inter‐vehicle communication using their dedicated connection infrastructure. Numerous advantages and applications exist associated with this technology, with road safety particularly noteworthy. Ensuring the transportation and security of information is crucial in the majority of networks, similar to other contexts. The security of VANETs poses a significant challenge due to the presence of various types of attacks that threaten the communication infrastructure of mobile vehicles. This research paper introduces a new security scheme known as the Soft Computing‐based Secure Protocol for VANET Environment (SC‐SPVE) method, which aims to tackle security challenges. The SC‐SPVE technique integrates an adaptive neuro‐fuzzy inference system and particle swarm optimisation to identify different attacks in VANETs efficiently. The proposed SC‐SPVE method yielded the following average outcomes: a throughput of 148.71 kilobits per second, a delay of 23.60 ms, a packet delivery ratio of 95.62%, a precision of 92.80%, an accuracy of 99.55%, a sensitivity of 98.25%, a specificity of 99.65%, and a detection time of 6.76 ms using the Network Simulator NS2.
A long‐term memory enhanced echo state network and its optimization
Authors: Lun Shuxian , Cai Jianning , Hu Bo
Published: November 2023

This paper proposes a new type of echo state network called Long‐Term Memory Enhanced Echo State Network (LTME‐ESN). By extending the ideas of the forget gate and the input gate from the LSTM, LTME‐ESN modifies the equation for updating the state in a Leaky Integral Echo State Network (Leaky‐ESN). By regulating the accumulation of information, the construction of extended periods of dependency between states may be delayed, allowing for adaptive management of the data transported from the previous state to the present one. In order to optimize parameters by using Stochastic Gradient Descent (SGD), this research presents a necessary condition for LTME‐ESN to meet the properties of the echo state network. The study uses low‐frequency sinusoidal, high‐frequency sinusoidal, and chaotic time series to demonstrate the model's efficiency. Simulations show that LTME‐ESN outperforms Leaky‐ESN in prediction accuracy and variation.
Exploitation of SAS interferometric phase statistics for coherent change detection
Authors: Shouldice Emma , Myers Vincent
Published: November 2023

Coherent change detection (CCD) takes advantage of the interferometric processing of synthetic aperture sonar (SAS) images and enables the detection of small scale changes to the scene between image pairs. This paper builds upon interferometric phase statistics developed for synthetic aperture radar and presents a method to differentiate between possible sources of decorrelation. A single‐pass pair of SAS images is categorized into four zones based on acoustic amplitude and coherence properties. Results suggest that regions of low coherence caused by a scene change can be differentiated from regions of low coherence due to other sources of decorrelation. Phase statistics could provide a technique to reduce the false alarm rate in CCD. Further studies are required to validate the approach for repeat‐pass SAS imagery and consider the effects of temporal decorrelation and misregistration errors on the phase distributions.
Multi‐objective optimization method for control parameters of flexible direct current transmission converters based on intelligent algorithms
Authors: Yu Linlin , Tang Xiaojun , Si Ruihua , Xie Yan , Jia Peng , Li Lixin , Huo Qidi , Zhu Shaoxuan
Published: November 2023

In order to meet the current needs of power transmission, people have turned their attention to direct current (DC) transmission. When the alternating current(AC) power grid (PG) fails, it is easy to cause commutation failure in the DC system, thereby increasing the fault scope of the system. Therefore, this article adopts a flexible DC transmission system. Flexible DC converters have many control parameters, and there are mutual influences and conflicts between these parameters. By applying intelligent algorithms to multi‐objective optimization (MOP), these complex MOP problems can be effectively solved and an optimal set of control parameter combinations can be found. This method has an important contribution and novelty for optimizing the converter control parameters of flexible DC transmission systems. This article achieves fast and accurate MOP of the control parameters of flexible DC transmission converters by continuously detecting the similarities between antibodies and maintaining the diversity of the population. The research results show that the average DC side current is about 405A in the first 20 seconds, and the DC side current fluctuates regularly after 20 seconds. This article lays the foundation for establishing a real‐time simulation model of flexible DC transmission systems suitable for real‐time simulation systems.
CSFFNet: Lightweight cross‐scale feature fusion network for salient object detection in remote sensing images
Authors: Wang Longbao , Long Chong , Li Xin , Tang Xiaodan , Bai Zhipeng , Gao Hongmin
Published: November 2023

Salient object detection (SOD), one of the most important applications in the field of computer vision, aims to extract the most visually appealing regions of scenes. However, the improvement of the accuracy of existing salient object detection in optical remote sensing images (ORSI‐SOD) is usually accompanied by an increase of network complexity, which affects the application of these models. Motivated by this, a novel lightweight edge‐supervised neural network for ORSI‐SOD is proposed, named CSFFNet. Specifically, the backbone (ResNet34) is first lightened by feature encoding module (FEM), building a lightweight subnet for feature extraction. Then, in the transformer‐based feature pyramid enhancement module (FPEM), the convolutional features obtained in the FEM are enhanced by long‐distance dependence to obtain multi‐scale features containing rich saliency cues. Based on this, the feature fusion module (FFM) is designed to capture cross‐scale long‐range dependencies and effectively fuse high‐level semantic information with low‐level detail information. Thus, the increase in network complexity due to multi‐level decoding is avoided. Finally, the segmentation results are optimized by using salient edges as auxiliary information, which effectively improves the contrast and completeness of the results. Experimental results on two public datasets demonstrate that the lightweight CSFFNet achieves competitive or even better performance compared with state‐of‐the‐art methods.
3D path planning problem for fighter aircraft with multiple constraints
Authors: Yang Ping , Xiao Bing , Chen Xin , Guo LiangLiang
Published: November 2023

Path planning is a crucial component for ensuring the safety and efficiency of flight missions, especially for fighter aircraft. To enhance the combat effectiveness of fighter aircraft, it is important to consider how to avoid danger sources an terrain obstacles, reduce fuel consumption, and utilize the aircraft's own performance to accomplish the mission objectives. In the modern battlefield environment, the shortest path is not the only criterion for planning, but also other factors such as the threat level to the aircraft, fuel consumption, mission completion time, and minimum turning radius. In this paper, the authors propose a multi‐constraint path planning method for fighter aircraft that incorporates these factors into an improved particle swarm algorithm. The authors transform the constraints of three‐dimensional terrain, threat source, fuel consumption, and mission time into an aggregated fitness function. The authors construct a limit curvature matrix to evaluate the feasibility of the generated path. The authors also introduce an adaptive adjustment strategy based on the activation function for the parameters in the particle swarm algorithm. The weights of each constraint are determined according to the actual demand. The experiment results show that the authors’ method can efficiently plan the optimal path that satisfies the requirements. Compared with other improved particle swarm algorithms, the authors’ method has higher optimal search efficiency and better convergence effect. The authors also provide optimal values for important parameters such as mission energy consumption, mission time, flight speed and others to support the overall mission planning. The authors’ method has a certain practical application value.
Interventions to Reduce Electronic Health Record-Related Burnout: A Systematic Review
Authors: Kang Chaerim , Sarkar Indra Neil
Published: November 2023

Background Electronic health records are a significant contributing factor in clinician burnout, which negatively impacts patient care.

Objectives To identify and appraise published solutions that aim to reduce EHR-related burnout in clinicians.

Methods A literature search strategy was developed following the guidelines of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. Six databases were searched for articles published between January 1950 and March 2023. The inclusion criteria were peer-reviewed, full-text, English language articles that described interventions targeting EHR-related burnout in any type of clinician, with reported outcomes related to burnout, wellness, EHR satisfaction, or documentation workload. Studies describing interventions without an explicit focus on reducing burnout or enhancing EHR-related satisfaction were excluded.

Results We identified 44 articles describing interventions to reduce EHR-related burnout. These interventions included the use of scribes, EHR training, and EHR modifications. These interventions were generally well received by the clinicians and patients, with subjective improvements in documentation time and EHR satisfaction, although objective data were limited.

Conclusion The findings of this review underscore the potential benefits of interventions to reduce EHR-related burnout as well as the need for further research with more robust study designs involving randomized trials, control groups, longer study durations, and validated, objective outcome measurements.
General three-dimensional thermal illusion metamaterials
Authors: Liu 刘 Tianfeng 天丰 , Wang 王 Zhaochen 兆宸 , Zhu 朱 Zhan 展 , Hu 胡 Run 润
Published: November 2023

Thermal illusion aims to create fake thermal signals or hide the thermal target from the background thermal field to mislead infrared observers, and illusion thermotics was proposed to regulate heat flux with artificially structured metamaterials for thermal illusion. Most theoretical and experimental works on illusion thermotics focus on two-dimensional materials, while heat transfer in real three-dimensional (3D) objects remains elusive, so the general 3D illusion thermotics is urgently demanded. In this study, we propose a general method to design 3D thermal illusion metamaterials with varying illusions at different sizes and positions. To validate the generality of the 3D method for thermal illusion metamaterials, we realize thermal functionalities of thermal shifting, splitting, trapping, amplifying and compressing. In addition, we propose a special way to simplify the design method under the condition that the size of illusion target is equal to the size of original heat source. The 3D thermal illusion metamaterial paves a general way for illusion thermotics and triggers the exploration of illusion metamaterials for more functionalities and applications.
Haemodynamic changes after atrial fibrillation initiation in patients eligible for catheter ablation: a randomized controlled study
Authors: Almroth Henrik , Karlsson Lars O , Carlhäll Carl-Johan , Charitakis Emmanouil
Published: November 2023

Aims

Atrial fibrillation (AF) haemodynamics is less well studied due to challenges explained by the nature of AF. Until now, no randomized data are available. This study evaluates haemodynamic variables after AF induction in a randomized setting.

Methods and results

Forty-two patients with AF who had been referred for ablation to the University Hospital, Linköping, Sweden, and had no arrhythmias during the 4-day screening period were randomized to AF induction vs. control (2:1). Atrial fibrillation was induced by burst pacing after baseline intracardiac pressure measurements. Pressure changes in the right and left atrium (RA and LA), right ventricle (RV), and systolic and diastolic blood pressures (SBP and DBP) were evaluated 30 min after AF induction compared with the control group. A total of 11 women and 31 men (median age 60) with similar baseline characteristics were included (intervention n = 27, control group n = 15). After 30 min in AF, the RV end-diastolic pressure (RVEDP) and RV systolic pressure (RVSP) significantly reduced compared with baseline and between randomization groups (RVEDP: P = 0.016; RVSP: P = 0.001). Atrial fibrillation induction increased DBP in the intervention group compared with the control group (P = 0.02), unlike reactions in SBP (P = 0.178). Right atrium and LA mean pressure (RAm and LAm) responses did not differ significantly between the groups (RAm: P = 0.307; LAm: P = 0.784).

Conclusion

Induced AF increased DBP and decreased RVEDP and RVSP. Our results allow us to understand some paroxysmal AF haemodynamics, which provides a haemodynamic rationale to support rhythm regulatory strategies to improve symptoms and outcomes.

Trial registration number (clinicaltrials.gov)

No NCT01553045. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01553045?term=NCT01553045&rank=1
Prevalence and factors associated with rural mothers’ protection against tetanus: a cross-national analysis in 33 sub-Saharan African countries
Authors: Agbemavi Wonder , Ayebeng Castro , Okyere Joshua , Acheampong Emmanuella , Bediako Vincent Bio
Published: November 2023

Background

Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and South Asia account for most new cases of tetanus. Despite efforts by the World Health Organization to eradicate tetanus, it still causes many maternal mortalities. We examined the prevalence and risk factors associated with tetanus protection among rural mothers in 33 SSA countries.

Methods

Data were extracted from the most recent Demographic and Health Surveys of 33 SSA countries. A sample of 162 601 women from rural areas was drawn. Both descriptive and binary logistic regression analyses were conducted.

Results

Overall, approximately half (49.3%) of rural mothers were protected against tetanus. The association between maternal age, education, marital status, working status, distance to the health facility and number of antenatal visits were statistically significant with rural mothers’ protection from tetanus. Also, relationship to the household head, household size and frequency of listening to radio, reading a newspaper and watching television were statistically significant in predicting rural mothers’ protection from tetanus.

Conclusions

Policies and interventions by stakeholders must target high-risk populations, including adult women, those of poorer wealth status, those without media exposure and mothers with low educational attainment.
Please, carefully, pass the P5C
Authors: Verslues Paul E
Published: November 2023

This article comments on:

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