bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A new species of Parabonzia and the first report of genus Bonzia from China (Acariformes: Cunaxidae)
Authors: Chen Jian-Xin , Yao Mao-Yuan , Yi Tian-Ci , Guo Jian-Jun , Jin Dao-Chao
Published: July 2022

This paper deals with a new species of genus Parabonzia and newly recorded genus Bonzia from China. Parabonzia bioxys Chen & Jin sp. nov., which is described and illustrated based on adult females collected from rotten wood in Hainan Province, China, differs from all other Parabonzia by the dorsal seta of the palp telofemur having two tines instead of three or more (most species) or being unbranched (P. mindanensis Corpuz-Raros, 1996). Bonzia halacaroides Oudemans, 1927 is redescribed based on adult females collected from fallen leaves in Jiangxi Province and Chongqing City, China, which represents a newly recorded genus Bonzia Oudemans, 1927 to China and adds more details and new illustrations to its original description.
New faunistical and taxonomic data on ptyctimous mites (Acari, Oribatida) of Malawi
Authors: Niedbała Wojciech , Starý Josef
Published: July 2022

Seven new species of the family Phthiracaridae, Arphthicarus diversus sp. nov., Arphthicarus parasculptilis sp. nov., Arphthicarus quasitrichosus sp. nov., Notophthiracarus dissimilis sp. nov., Notophthiracarus insolitus sp. nov., Notophthiracarus paralineolatus sp. nov., and Atropacarus (Hoplophorella) levidensus sp. nov., are described and figured from soils of Afromontane forests from Mulanje Mts., Zomba Mts., and Dedza Mts., in South Malawi. A comparison of morphological similarities with the most closely related species is presented. Two species Acrotritia paraardua Niedbała et Starý, 2015, and Phthiracarus anonymus Grandjean, 1933 are redescribed and figured. In total 22 species of ptyctimous mites are recorded from forest soil in Malawi, 11 of them are new records for oribatid fauna of Malawi.
Manipulation of flying and single excitons by GHz surface acoustic waves
Authors: Yuan Mingyun , Biermann Klaus , Santos Paulo V.
Published: July 2022

An important prerequisite for quantum communication networks is the transfer and manipulation of single particles on a chip as well as their interconversion to single photons for long-range information exchange. GHz acoustic waves are versatile tools for the implementation of these functionalities in hybrid quantum systems. In particular, flying excitons propelled by GHz surface acoustic waves (SAWs) can potentially satisfy this prerequisite. In this article, we review recent works on the application of GHz SAWs to realize flying excitons in semiconductor-based systems. Most importantly, we have identified suitable two-level centers for the storage of single excitons, thus forming single excitonic qubits, and interconverted them to single photons with a very high emission rate dictated by the GHz-SAW pumping. The work covered here paves the way for on-chip, exciton-based qubit manipulation.
Efficacy of a Mulligan Concept Sustained Natural Apophyseal Glide Technique for Cervicogenic Headache: A Critically Appraised Topic
Authors: North Kyle , Kawaguchi Koki , Perri Michelle , Mormile Megan , Baker Russell T. , May James , Nasypany Alan
Published: July 2022

Clinical Question: In adults with cervicogenic headache (CGH), what are the effects of a clinician-applied Mulligan Concept C1–C2 rotational sustained natural apophyseal glide on cervicogenic symptomology? Clinical Bottom Line: Both Level 2b and Level 4 evidence of Grade B quality exists to support using the C1–C2 rotational sustained natural apophyseal glide to decrease CGH severity and participant-reported neck disability immediately posttreatment, while also increasing cervical range of motion in adult patients with CGH headaches and a positive flexion–rotation test. Further research should examine the long-term effects of the C1–C2 rotational sustained natural apophyseal glide technique on cervical range of motion, flexion–rotation test results, and CGH frequency and severity. In addition, the flexion–rotation test should be explored as a standard diagnostic assessment in CGH cases.
Slow-Speed Compared With Fast-Speed Eccentric Muscle Actions Are Detrimental to Jump Performance in Elite Soccer Players In-Season
Authors: Segers Nick , Waldron Mark , Howe Louis P. , Patterson Stephen D. , Moran Jason , Jones Ben , Kidgell Dawson J. , Tallent Jamie
Published: July 2022

Purpose: To examine the effect of fast- versus slow-speed eccentric-muscle-action resistance training on lower-body strength, vertical jump height, sprint speed, and change-of-direction performance in elite soccer players during a competitive season. Methods: Twenty-two elite soccer players, from a single team, were randomly assigned to groups that undertook either 1- (fast speed) or 4-second (slow speed) eccentric resistance training during the in-season period. A 5-week program was conducted during an elite top-division European League soccer season. Performance measures including predicted 1-repetition-maximum back squat, countermovement jump, 20-m sprint, and change of direction were tested before and after the intervention period. Total match and training running distance and muscle soreness were also recorded during each week of the intervention. Results: An analysis of covariance showed significant group effects (P = .01) for countermovement jump with a greater jump height in the 1-second fast-speed group postintervention (95% CI, 1.1–6.9 cm). Despite an overall increase in 1-repetition maximum pretraining to posttraining (95% CI, 10.0–15.3 kg, effect size 0.69), there were no significant differences (P > .05) between groups after the intervention. Similarly, there were no differences between groups for change of direction, 20-m sprint, or muscle soreness. Conclusion: Faster eccentric muscle actions may be superior for increasing movements in elite soccer players in-season.
Reducing Screen-Based Sedentary Behavior Among Overweight and Obese Hispanic Adolescents Through a Family-Based Intervention
Authors: Perrino Tatiana , Brincks Ahnalee M. , Estrada Yannine , Messiah Sarah E. , Prado Guillermo
Published: July 2022

Background: Sedentary behaviors, including screen-based activities, are associated with obesity, cardiovascular, and mental health risks. In the US, minority and socioeconomically disadvantaged youth engage in substantial sedentariness, requiring targeted interventions. Familias Unidas for Health and Wellness (FUHW) is a family intervention to reduce risks among Hispanic youth with overweight and obesity. Analyses examined (1) FUHW’s impact on parent and adolescent screen-based sedentary behavior and (2) differential intervention effects by adolescent gender, internalizing symptoms, and body mass index. Methods: A total of 280 overweight/obese Hispanic middle schoolers and parents were randomized to FUHW or control and assessed at baseline, 6, 12, and 24 months between 2015 and 2019. Results: Linear growth models showed that exposure to FUHW was not associated with parent sedentary behavior over time (b = −0.11, P = .32) but was associated with decreases in adolescent sedentary behavior (b = −0.27, P = .03). Neither gender nor internalizing symptoms moderated intervention effects, but there were differential effects by body mass index. Compared to controls, FUHW showed significant decreases in sedentary behavior among overweight (b = −0.85, P < .01) and obese (b = −0.79, P < .01) youth but not severely obese youth. Conclusions: FUHW reduced youth screen-based sedentary behavior. Youth with severe obesity require additional intervention.
How Much Do Severely Injured Athletes Experience Sport Injury-Related Growth? Contrasting Psychological, Situational, and Demographic Predictors
Authors: Pollak Katja M. , Boecker Lea , Englert Chris , Loschelder David D.
Published: July 2022

Sport injury-related growth (SIRG) describes the possibility for athletes to benefit psychologically from an injury. The present, preregistered online study examined an international sample of 335 athletes with impressive athletic biographies who sustained a severe sport-related injury. Expanding the extant literature, we empirically contrasted numerous psychological, situational, and demographic predictors of perceived SIRG—specifically, athletes’ optimism, coping style, self-efficacy, athletic identity, social support, need satisfaction, and injury centrality. Our data first provide empirical evidence for perceived SIRG, even when statistically controlling for a potential social-desirability bias in athletes’ responses. In addition, frequentist and Bayesian regression analyses showed that several psychological variables predicted perceived SIRG—particularly athletes’ informational social support, positive reframing, optimism, and injury centrality. Finally, post hoc mediation analyses showed how these psychological variables account for different levels of perceived SIRG as a function of demographic variables. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed, along with directions for future research.
Bone Turnover Markers and Osteokines in Adolescent Female Athletes of High- and Low-Impact Sports Compared With Nonathletic Controls
Authors: Kottaras Steven , Stoikos Joshua , McKinlay Brandon J. , Ludwa Izabella A. , Josse Andrea R. , Falk Bareket , Klentrou Panagiota
Published: July 2022

This study examined differences in resting concentrations of markers of bone formation and resorption, and osteokines between female adolescent (12–16 y) swimmers, soccer players, and nonathletic controls. Resting, morning blood samples were obtained after an overnight fast from 20 swimmers, 20 soccer players, and 20 nonathletic controls, matched for age. carboxyl-terminal cross-linking telopeptide of type I collagen (CTX), amino-terminal propeptide of type I collagen (P1NP), total osteocalcin (OC), sclerostin, osteoprotegerin (OPG), and receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa B ligand (RANKL) were analyzed in serum. After controlling for percent body fat, there were no significant differences between swimmers and nonathletic controls in any of the measured markers. In contrast, soccer players had significantly higher P1NP (89.5 [25.6] ng·mL−1), OC (57.6 [22.9] ng·mL−1), and OPG (1052.5 [612.6] pg·mL−1) compared with both swimmers (P1NP: 66.5 [20.9] ng·mL−1; OC: 24.9 [12.5] ng·mL−1; OPG: 275.2 [83.8] pg·mL−1) and controls (P1NP: 58.5 [16.2] ng·mL−1; OC: 23.2 [11.9] ng·mL−1; OPG: 265.4 [97.6] pg·mL−1), with no differences in CTX, sclerostin, and RANKL. These results suggest that bone formation is higher in adolescent females engaged in high-impact sports like soccer compared with swimmers and controls.
Recreating the heart’s helical structure-function relationship with focused rotary jet spinning
Authors: Chang Huibin , Liu Qihan , Zimmerman John F. , Lee Keel Yong , Jin Qianru , Peters Michael M. , Rosnach Michael , Choi Suji , Kim Sean L. , Ardoña Herdeline Ann M. , MacQueen Luke A. , Chantre Christophe O. , Motta Sarah E. , Cordoves Elizabeth M. , Parker Kevin Kit
Published: July 2022

Helical alignments within the heart’s musculature have been speculated to be important in achieving physiological pumping efficiencies. Testing this possibility is difficult, however, because it is challenging to reproduce the fine spatial features and complex structures of the heart’s musculature using current techniques. Here we report focused rotary jet spinning (FRJS), an additive manufacturing approach that enables rapid fabrication of micro/nanofiber scaffolds with programmable alignments in three-dimensional geometries. Seeding these scaffolds with cardiomyocytes enabled the biofabrication of tissue-engineered ventricles, with helically aligned models displaying more uniform deformations, greater apical shortening, and increased ejection fractions compared with circumferential alignments. The ability of FRJS to control fiber arrangements in three dimensions offers a streamlined approach to fabricating tissues and organs, with this work demonstrating how helical architectures contribute to cardiac performance.
A two-phase model that unifies and extends the classical models of membrane transport
Authors: Hegde Varun H. , Doherty Michael F. , Squires Todd M.
Published: July 2022

Two models describe solvent transport through swollen, nonporous membranes. The pore-flow model, based on fluid mechanics, works for porous membranes, whereas the solution-diffusion model invokes molecular diffusion to treat nonporous membranes. Both approaches make valid arguments for swollen polymer membranes, but they disagree in their predictions of intramembrane pressure and concentration profiles. Using a fluid-solid model that treats the solvent and membrane matrix as separate phases, we show both classical models to be valid, to represent complementary approaches to the same phenomenon, and to make identical predictions. The fluid-solid model clarifies recent reverse osmosis measurements; provides a predictive and mechanistic basis for empirical high-pressure limiting flux phenomena, in quantitative agreement with classic measurements; and gives a framework to treat nonporous but mechanically heterogeneous membrane materials.
Dilution-induced gel-sol-gel-sol transitions by competitive supramolecular pathways in water
Authors: Su Lu , Mosquera Jesús , Mabesoone Mathijs F. J. , Schoenmakers Sandra M. C. , Muller Cyprien , Vleugels Marle E. J. , Dhiman Shikha , Wijker Stefan , Palmans Anja R. A. , Meijer E. W.
Published: July 2022

Fascinating properties are displayed by synthetic multicomponent supramolecular systems that comprise a manifold of competitive interactions, thereby mimicking natural processes. We present the integration of two reentrant phase transitions based on an unexpected dilution-induced assembly process using supramolecular polymers and surfactants. The co-assembly of the water-soluble benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxamide (BTA-EG
4
) and a surfactant at a specific ratio yielded small-sized aggregates. These interactions were modeled using the competition between self-sorting and co-assembly of both components. The small-sized aggregates were transformed into supramolecular polymer networks by a twofold dilution in water without changing their ratio. Kinetic experiments show the in situ growth of micrometer-long fibers in the dilution process. We were able to create systems that undergo fully reversible hydrogel-solution-hydrogel-solution transitions upon dilution by introducing another orthogonal interaction.
Shared TIR enzymatic functions regulate cell death and immunity across the tree of life
Authors: Essuman Kow , Milbrandt Jeffrey , Dangl Jeffery L. , Nishimura Marc T.
Published: July 2022

In the 20th century, researchers studying animal and plant signaling pathways discovered a protein domain that is shared across diverse innate immune systems: the Toll/interleukin-1/resistance gene (TIR) domain. The TIR domain is found in several protein architectures and was defined as an adaptor that mediates protein-protein interactions in animal innate immunity and developmental signaling pathways. However, studies of nerve degeneration in animals—and subsequent breakthroughs in plant, bacterial, and archaeal systems—revealed that TIR domains possess enzymatic activities. We provide a synthesis of TIR functions and the role of various related TIR enzymatic products in evolutionarily diverse immune systems. These studies may ultimately guide interventions that would span the tree of life, from treating human neurodegenerative disorders and bacterial infections to preventing plant diseases.
Identification and receptor mechanism of TIR-catalyzed small molecules in plant immunity
Authors: Huang Shijia , Jia Aolin , Song Wen , Hessler Giuliana , Meng Yonggang , Sun Yue , Xu Lina , Laessle Henriette , Jirschitzka Jan , Ma Shoucai , Xiao Yu , Yu Dongli , Hou Jiao , Liu Ruiqi , Sun Huanhuan , Liu Xiaohui , Han Zhifu , Chang Junbiao , Parker Jane E. , Chai Jijie
Published: July 2022

Plant nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat-containing (NLR) receptors with an N-terminal Toll/interleukin-1 receptor (TIR) domain sense pathogen effectors to enable TIR-encoded nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide hydrolase (NADase) activity for immune signaling. TIR-NLR signaling requires the helper NLRs N requirement gene 1 (NRG1), Activated Disease Resistance 1 (ADR1), and Enhanced Disease Susceptibility 1 (EDS1), which forms a heterodimer with each of its paralogs Phytoalexin Deficient 4 (PAD4) and Senescence-Associated Gene 101 (SAG101). Here, we show that TIR-containing proteins catalyze the production of 2′-(5′′-phosphoribosyl)-5′-adenosine monophosphate (pRib-AMP) and diphosphate (pRib-ADP) in vitro and in planta. Biochemical and structural data demonstrate that EDS1-PAD4 is a receptor complex for pRib-AMP and pRib-ADP, which allosterically promote EDS1-PAD4 interaction with ADR1-L1 but not NRG1A. Our study identifies TIR-catalyzed pRib-AMP and pRib-ADP as a missing link in TIR signaling through EDS1-PAD4 and as likely second messengers for plant immunity.
High figure-of-merit and power generation in high-entropy GeTe-based thermoelectrics
Authors: Jiang Binbin , Wang Wu , Liu Shixuan , Wang Yan , Wang Chaofan , Chen Yani , Xie Lin , Huang Mingyuan , He Jiaqing
Published: July 2022

The high-entropy concept provides extended, optimized space of a composition, resulting in unusual transport phenomena and excellent thermoelectric performance. By tuning electron and phonon localization, we enhanced the figure-of-merit value to 2.7 at 750 kelvin in germanium telluride–based high-entropy materials and realized a high experimental conversion efficiency of 13.3% at a temperature difference of 506 kelvin with the fabricated segmented module. By increasing the entropy, the increased crystal symmetry delocalized the distribution of electrons in the distorted rhombohedral structure, resulting in band convergence and improved electrical properties. By contrast, the localized phonons from the entropy-induced disorder dampened the propagation of transverse phonons, which was the origin of the increased anharmonicity and largely depressed lattice thermal conductivity. We provide a paradigm for tuning electron and phonon localization by entropy manipulation, but we have also demonstrated a route for improving the performance of high-entropy thermoelectric materials.
A fungal safari
Authors: Popkin Gabriel
Published: July 2022

A new nonprofit has launched an ambitious effort to raise the profile of often invisible soil fungi
Bad news for Paxlovid? Resistance may be coming
Authors: Service Robert F.
Published: July 2022

In lab studies, SARS-CoV-2 finds ways to evade key drug. Some of the viral mutations are already found in people
Nitric Oxide Attenuates Human Cytomegalovirus Infection yet Disrupts Neural Cell Differentiation and Tissue Organization
Authors: Mokry Rebekah L. , O’Brien Benjamin S. , Adelman Jacob W. , Rosas Suzette , Schumacher Megan L. , Ebert Allison D. , Terhune Scott S.
Published: July 2022

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is the leading cause of virus-mediated congenital birth defects. Congenitally infected infants can have a variety of symptoms manifesting within the central nervous system.
A Single Dose of Anti-HBsAg Antibody-Encoding mRNA-LNPs Suppressed HBsAg Expression: a Potential Cure of Chronic Hepatitis B Virus Infection
Authors: Chen Binfan , Chen Yuchen , Li Jian , Wang Chunyu , Song Wenping , Wen Yumei , Lin Jinzhong , Wu Yanling , Ying Tianlei
Published: July 2022

It is the first time that mRNA-LNPs have been used to express anti-HBsAg antibodies (G12-scFv, G12-scFv-Fc, and G12-IgG). G12-scFv-Fc- and G12-IgG-encoding mRNA-LNPs exerted a sustained effect on HBsAg serum clearance in the adeno-associated virus (AAV)/HBV mouse model with persistent HBsAg expression.
mSphere
of Influence: There’s More to (a Pathogen’s) Life than Growing Fast
Authors: Wale Nina
Published: July 2022

Nina Wale works in the field of infectious disease evolution and ecology. In this mSphere of Influence article, she reflects on how the paper by Roller and Schmidt, “The physiology and ecological implications of efficient growth” (B. R. Roller and T. M. Schmidt, ISME J 9:1481–1487, 2015,
https://doi.org/10.1038/ismej.2014.235
) broadened her thinking about how microbes acquire and allocate resources and, in so doing, set her research on pathogen virulence evolution in a new direction.
Changes in the Mucosa-Associated Microbiome and Transcriptome across Gut Segments Are Associated with Obesity in a Metabolic Syndrome Porcine Model
Authors: Xu Song-Song , Wang Nan , Huang Lei , Zhang Xiu-Ling , Feng Shu-Tang , Liu Sha-Sha , Wang Yue , Liu Zhi-Guo , Wang Bing-Yuan , Wu Tian-Wen , Mu Yu-Lian , Hou Shao-Hua , Li Kui
Published: July 2022

Obesity is a major risk factor for metabolic syndrome, which is the most common cause of death worldwide, especially in developed countries. The link between obesity and gut mucosa-associated microbiota is unclear due to challenges associated with the collection of intestinal samples from humans.
Ophthalmologists’ and patients’ perspectives on treatments for diabetic retinopathy and maculopathy in Vietnam: a descriptive qualitative study
Authors: Curran Katie , Lohfeld Lynne , Congdon Nathan , Peto Tunde , Hoang Tung Thanh , Nguyen Hue Thi , Nguyen Quan Nhu , Nguyen Van Thu , Dardis Catherine , Tran Hoang , Tran Hoang Huy , Vu Anh Tuan , Tung Mai Quoc
Published: July 2022

Introduction

Globally, diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the leading cause of blindness in working-aged adults. Early detection and treatment of DR is essential for preventing sight loss. Services must be available, accessible and acceptable to patients if we are to ensure they seek such care.

Objectives

To understand patients’ knowledge and attitudes towards laser versus antivascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) injections to treat DR in Vietnam, and to identify factors Vietnamese ophthalmologists consider when making treatment decisions.

Methods

This is a descriptive qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews with 18 patients (12 from Ho Chi Minh City and 6 from Hanoi) plus individual interviews with 24 ophthalmologists working in eye clinics in these cities. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data.

Results

In total, 10/24 (41.7%) ophthalmologists were female, and their median age was 41 years (range 29–69 years). The median age of patients was 56.5 years (range 28–72 years), and 7/18 (38.9%) were female. Briefly, factors that influence DR treatment decisions for ophthalmologists are medical considerations (ie, severity of disease, benefits and risks), availability (ie, treatment and resources) and patient-related factors (ie, costs and adherence). Patient’s perceived barriers and facilitators to treatments were based on patient and family related factors (ie, treatment and transportation costs) and previous treatment experiences (ie, positive and negative). Recommendations by all participants included ensuring that both laser and anti-VEGF injections are widely available across the country and controlling costs for patients and the healthcare system.

Conclusions

Reducing DR treatment costs, optimising treatments options, and expanding the network of clinics offering treatment outside metropolitan areas were the main issues raised by participants. These findings can help inform policy changes in Vietnam and may be generalisable to other low-resource settings.
Pivotal role of environmental toxicants on developing infectious diseases in LMICs: a protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Sarah Rehnuma Haque , Shariful Islam Md , Zamiur Rahaman Md , Afrin Sadia , Rahman Mahbubur , Saif-Ur-Rahman K M
Published: July 2022

Introduction

Environmental toxicants such as chemical pollution have an enormous impact on the health of people and the planet. Emerging findings suggest that non-communicable diseases are linked to early and chronic environmental exposures. However, the rapid globalisation in developing countries, environmental change and the emergence, spread, persistence and severity of infectious diseases are not yet well understood. The aim of this study is to understand which environmental toxicants are commonly associated with infectious diseases in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs).

Methods and analysis

A total of four electronic databases, MEDLINE through PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and CENTRAL (the Cochrane Library) be searched to identify relevant studies and will be screened by two independent reviewers. The Cochrane risk of bias (ROB) tool for randomised control trials (RCTs) and ROB assessment tool for non-randomised studies for non-RCTs will be used to assess the ROB. A meta-analysis will be used to determine the pooled effect if we find out the included articles have similar environmental exposure, participant groups, study design and outcome measures. A narrative synthesis of the findings will be provided, along with summaries of the intervention effect. Heterogeneity between the studies will be assessed, and sensitivity analysis will be conducted based on study quality.

Ethics and dissemination

Findings will be summarised in a single manuscript. This review attempts to explore the pivotal role of environmental toxicants in predisposing, developing, persistent and severity of infectious diseases in LMICs. Findings from this study will highlight the effects of individual environmental toxicants’ role on infectious disease outcomes for the early prevention and limit toxic exposure to guide individual, community, and occupational health policy for future strategies.

PROSPERO registration number

CRD42021274359.
Natural high-avidity T-cell receptor efficiently mediates regression of cancer/testis antigen 83 positive common solid cancers
Authors: Li Qingyang , Hu Wei , Liao Baoyi , Song Chanchan , Li Liangping
Published: July 2022

Background

T-cell receptor-engineered T cells (TCR-Ts) have achieved encouraging success in anticancer clinical trials. The antigenic targets, however, were primarily focused on human leukocyte antigen (HLA) A*02:01 restricted epitopes from a few cancer/testis antigens (CTAs) which are not widely expressed in common solid cancers; the tested T-cell receptors (TCRs) were frequently from tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes of old patients and were not assured to have higher avidity. Here, we propose the isolation of high-avidity TCRs against CTAs that are frequently expressed in common solid cancers.

Methods

We selected the CT83 protein, which is frequently expressed in common solid cancers, as a model antigen for screening of its specific TCR. The predicted CT83 epitopes with strong or weak binding to HLA-I molecules, popular in the Chinese population, were integrated into three synthetic long peptides. CT83 reactive CD8+ T cells were stimulated with peptide-loaded dendritic cells (DCs) and sorted using the CD137 biomarker for single-cell sequencing to obtain the paired TCRαβ sequence. The higher frequency TCRs were reconstructed for characterization of the CT83 epitope and for assessment of in vitro and in vivo antitumor activities.

Results

CT83 reactive T cells from young healthy donors (YHDs) were generated by repeated stimulation with DCs and peptides. The single-cell TCR sequencing results of reactive T cells indicated that a single TCR clonotype dominated the paired TCRs. T cells engineered with this dominant TCR led to HLA-A*11:01-restricted recognition of the CT8314-22epitope, with higher avidity. Functional assays showed powerful cytotoxicity in vitro against the targets of several CT83-positive solid cancer cell lines. Furthermore, TCR-Ts showed therapeutic efficacy in three xenograft solid tumor models. The meta-analysis of gene expression of 92 CTAs indicated that most CTAs did not or at low levels in the thymus, which suggested that those CTAs may experience incomplete thymic central tolerance.

Conclusions

High-avidity TCR against CT83 could be isolated from YHDs and efficiently mediate regression of well-established xenograft common solid tumors. The high-avidity TCR repertoire in the peripheral blood of some donors for CT83 and other CTAs provides the basis for the efficient isolation of high-avidity TCRs to target numerous solid cancers.
Your note, your way: how to write an inpatient progress note accurately and efficiently as an intern
Authors: Wei Miao , Salgado Efrain , Girard Christine E , Santoro Jonathan D , Lepore Natasha
Published: July 2022

A physician’s progress note is an essential piece of documentation regarding key events and the daily status of patients during their hospital stay. It serves not only as a communication tool between care team members, but also chronicles clinical status and pertinent updates to their medical care. Despite the importance of these documents, little literature exists on how to help residents to improve the quality of their daily progress notes. A narrative literature review of English language literature was performed and summated to provide recommendations on how to write an inpatient progress note more accurately and efficiently. In addition, the authors will also introduce a method to build a personal template with the goal of extracting relevant data automatically to reduce clicks for an inpatient progress note in the electronic medical record system.
Incorporating anthropogenic thresholds to improve understanding of cumulative effects on seagrass beds
Authors: Murphy Grace E.P. , Kelly Noreen E. , Lotze Heike K. , Wong Melisa C.
Published: July 2022

Cumulative human impact analysis is a promising management tool to estimate the impacts of stressors on ecosystems caused by multiple human activities. However, connecting cumulative impact scores to actual ecosystem change at appropriate spatial scales remains challenging. Here, we calculated cumulative effects (CE) scores for 187 seagrass beds in Atlantic Canada that accounts for both bay-scale and local-scale anthropogenic activities. We then developed a CE threshold to evaluate where degradation of seagrass beds from multiple human activities is more likely. Overall, the CE score was the best predictor of human impacts for seagrass beds. Locations with high watershed land alteration and nitrogen loading had the highest CE scores; however, we also identified seagrass beds with high CE scores in regions characterized by generally low levels of human activities. Forty-nine seagrass beds exceeded the CE threshold and, of these, 86% had CE scores that were influenced by three or more stressors that cumulatively amounted to a large score. This CE threshold approach can provide a simplified metric to identify areas where management of cumulative effects should be prioritized and further highlights the need to consider multiple human activities when assessing anthropogenic impacts to coastal habitats.
A Batch-dynamic Suitor Algorithm for Approximating Maximum Weighted Matching
Authors: Angriman Eugenio , Boroń Michał , Meyerhenke Henning
Published: July 2022

Matching is a popular combinatorial optimization problem with numerous applications in both commercial and scientific fields. Computing optimal matchings w.r.t. cardinality or weight can be done in polynomial time; still, this task can become infeasible for very large networks. Thus, several approximation algorithms that trade solution quality for a faster running time have been proposed. For networks that change over time, fully dynamic algorithms that efficiently maintain an approximation of the optimal matching after a graph update have been introduced as well. However, no semi- or fully dynamic algorithm for (approximate) maximum weighted matching has been implemented.

In this article, we focus on the problem of maintaining a

\( 1/2 \)

-approximation of a maximum weighted matching (MWM) in fully dynamic graphs. Limitations of existing algorithms for this problem are (i) high constant factors in their time complexity, (ii) the fact that none of them supports batch updates, and (iii) the lack of a practical implementation, meaning that their actual performance on real-world graphs has not been investigated. We propose and implement a new batch-dynamic

\( 1/2 \)

-approximation algorithm for MWM based on the Suitor algorithm and its local edge domination strategy [Manne and Halappanavar, IPDPS 2014]. We provide a detailed analysis of our algorithm and prove its approximation guarantee. Despite having a worst-case running time of

\( \mathcal {O}(n + m) \)

for a single graph update, our extensive experimental evaluation shows that our algorithm is much faster in practice. For example, compared to a static recomputation with sequential
Suitor
, single-edge updates are handled up to

\( 10^5\times \)

to

\( 10^6\times \)

faster, while batches of

\( 10^4 \)

edge updates are handled up to

\( 10^2\times \)

to

\( 10^3\times \)

faster.
Learning on the Rings
Authors: Zhou Hao , Lu Taiting , Liu Yilin , Zhang Shijia , Gowda Mahanth
Published: July 2022

This paper presents ssLOTR (self-supervised learning on the rings), a system that shows the feasibility of designing self-supervised learning based techniques for 3D finger motion tracking using a custom-designed wearable inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensor with a minimal overhead of labeled training data. Ubiquitous finger motion tracking enables a number of applications in augmented and virtual reality, sign language recognition, rehabilitation healthcare, sports analytics, etc. However, unlike vision, there are no large-scale training datasets for developing robust machine learning (ML) models on wearable devices. ssLOTR designs ML models based on data augmentation and self-supervised learning to first extract efficient representations from raw IMU data without the need for any training labels. The extracted representations are further trained with small-scale labeled training data. In comparison to fully supervised learning, we show that only 15% of labeled training data is sufficient with self-supervised learning to achieve similar accuracy. Our sensor device is designed using a two-layer printed circuit board (PCB) to minimize the footprint and uses a combination of Polylactic acid (PLA) and Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) as housing materials for sturdiness and flexibility. It incorporates a system-on-chip (SoC) microcontroller with integrated WiFi/Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) modules for real-time wireless communication, portability, and ubiquity. In contrast to gloves, our device is worn like rings on fingers, and therefore, does not impede dexterous finger motion. Extensive evaluation with 12 users depicts a 3D joint angle tracking accuracy of 9.07° (joint position accuracy of 6.55mm) with robustness to natural variation in sensor positions, wrist motion, etc, with low overhead in latency and power consumption on embedded platforms.
Effects of Scene Detection, Scene Prediction, and Maneuver Planning Visualizations on Trust, Situation Awareness, and Cognitive Load in Highly Automated Vehicles
Authors: Colley Mark , Rädler Max , Glimmann Jonas , Rukzio Enrico
Published: July 2022

The successful introduction of automated vehicles (AVs) depends on the user's acceptance. To gain acceptance, the intended user must trust the technology, which itself relies on an appropriate understanding. Visualizing internal processes could aid in this. For example, the functional hierarchy of autonomous vehicles distinguishes between perception, prediction, and maneuver planning. In each of these stages, visualizations including possible uncertainties (or errors) are possible. Therefore, we report the results of an online study (N=216) comparing visualizations and their combinations on these three levels using a pre-recorded real-world video with visualizations shown on a simulated augmented reality windshield. Effects on trust, cognitive load, situation awareness, and perceived safety were measured. Situation Prediction-related visualizations were perceived as worse than the remaining levels. Based on a negative evaluation of the visualization, the abilities of the AV were also judged worse. In general, the results indicate the presence of overtrust in AVs.
Quali-Mat
Authors: Zhou Bo , Suh Sungho , Rey Vitor Fortes , Altamirano Carlos Andres Velez , Lukowicz Paul
Published: July 2022

While sports activity recognition is a well studied subject in mobile, wearable and ubiquitous computing, work to date mostly focuses on recognition and counting of specific exercise types. Quality assessment is a much more difficult problem with significantly less published results. In this work, we present Quali-Mat: a method for evaluating the quality of execution (QoE) in exercises using a smart sports mat that can measure the dynamic pressure profiles during full-body, body-weight exercises. As an example, our system not only recognizes that the user is doing push-ups, but also distinguishes 5 subtly different types of push-ups, each of which (according to sports science literature and professional trainers) has a different effect on different muscle groups. We have investigated various machine learning algorithms targeting the specific type of spatio-temporal data produced by the pressure mat system. We demonstrate that computationally efficient, yet effective Conv3D model outperforms more complex state-of-the-art options such as transfer learning from the image domain. The approach is validated through an experiment designed to cover 47 quantifiable variants of 9 basic exercises with 12 participants. Overall, the model can categorize 9 exercises with 98.6% accuracy / 98.6% F1 score, and 47 QoE variants with 67.3% accuracy / 68.1% F1 score. Through extensive discussions with both the experiment results and practical sports considerations, our approach can be used for not only precisely recognizing the type of exercises, but also quantifying the workout quality of execution on a fine time granularity. We also make the Quali-Mat data set available to the community to encourage further research in the area.
WiAdv
Authors: Zhou Yuxuan , Chen Huangxun , Huang Chenyu , Zhang Qian
Published: July 2022

WiFi-based gesture recognition systems have attracted enormous interest owing to the non-intrusive of WiFi signals and the wide adoption of WiFi for communication. Despite boosted performance via integrating advanced deep neural network (DNN) classifiers, there lacks sufficient investigation on their security vulnerabilities, which are rooted in the open nature of the wireless medium and the inherent defects (e.g., adversarial attacks) of classifiers. To fill this gap, we aim to study adversarial attacks to DNN-powered WiFi-based gesture recognition to encourage proper countermeasures. We design WiAdv to construct physically realizable adversarial examples to fool these systems. WiAdv features a signal synthesis scheme to craft adversarial signals with desired motion features based on the fundamental principle of WiFi-based gesture recognition, and a black-box attack scheme to handle the inconsistency between the perturbation space and the input space of the classifier caused by the in-between non-differentiable processing modules. We realize and evaluate our attack strategies against a representative state-of-the-art system, Widar3.0 in realistic settings. The experimental results show that the adversarial wireless signals generated by WiAdv achieve over 70% attack success rate on average, and remain robust and effective across different physical settings. Our attack case study and analysis reveal the vulnerability of WiFi-based gesture recognition systems, and we hope WiAdv could help promote the improvement of the relevant systems.
MobiVQA
Authors: Cao Qingqing , Khanna Prerna , Lane Nicholas D. , Balasubramanian Aruna
Published: July 2022

Visual Question Answering (VQA) is a relatively new task where a user can ask a natural question about an image and obtain an answer. VQA is useful for many applications and is widely popular for users with visual impairments. Our goal is to design a VQA application that works efficiently on mobile devices without requiring cloud support. Such a system will allow users to ask visual questions privately, without having to send their questions to the cloud, while also reduce cloud communication costs. However, existing VQA applications use deep learning models that significantly improve accuracy, but is computationally heavy. Unfortunately, existing techniques that optimize deep learning for mobile devices cannot be applied for VQA because the VQA task is multi-modal---it requires both processing vision and text data. Existing mobile optimizations that work for vision-only or text-only neural networks cannot be applied here because of the dependencies between the two modes. Instead, we design MobiVQA, a set of optimizations that leverage the multi-modal nature of VQA. We show using extensive evaluation on two VQA testbeds and two mobile platforms, that MobiVQA significantly improves latency and energy with minimal accuracy loss compared to state-of-the-art VQA models. For instance, MobiVQA can answer a visual question in 163 milliseconds on the phone, compared to over 20-second latency incurred by the most accurate state-of-the-art model, while incurring less than 1 point reduction in accuracy.
EarIO
Authors: Li Ke , Zhang Ruidong , Liang Bo , Guimbretière François , Zhang Cheng
Published: July 2022

This paper presents EarIO, an AI-powered acoustic sensing technology that allows an earable (e.g., earphone) to continuously track facial expressions using two pairs of microphone and speaker (one on each side), which are widely available in commodity earphones. It emits acoustic signals from a speaker on an earable towards the face. Depending on facial expressions, the muscles, tissues, and skin around the ear would deform differently, resulting in unique echo profiles in the reflected signals captured by an on-device microphone. These received acoustic signals are processed and learned by a customized deep learning pipeline to continuously infer the full facial expressions represented by 52 parameters captured using a TruthDepth camera. Compared to similar technologies, it has significantly lower power consumption, as it can sample at 86 Hz with a power signature of 154 mW. A user study with 16 participants under three different scenarios, showed that EarIO can reliably estimate the detailed facial movements when the participants were sitting, walking or after remounting the device. Based on the encouraging results, we further discuss the potential opportunities and challenges on applying EarIO on future ear-mounted wearables.
One-handed Input for Mobile Devices via Motion Matching and Orbits Controls
Authors: Esteves Augusto , Bouquet Elizabeth , Pfeuffer Ken , Alt Florian
Published: July 2022

We introduce a novel one-handed input technique for mobile devices that is not based on pointing, but on motion matching -where users select a target by mimicking its unique animation. Our work is motivated by the findings of a survey (N=201) on current mobile use, from which we identify lingering opportunities for one-handed input techniques. We follow by expanding on current motion matching implementations - previously developed in the context of gaze or mid-air input - so these take advantage of the affordances of touch-input devices. We validate the technique by characterizing user performance via a standard selection task (N=24) where we report success rates (>95%), selection times (~1.6 s), input footprint, grip stability, usability, and subjective workload - in both phone and tablet conditions. Finally, we present a design space that illustrates six ways in which motion matching can be embedded into mobile interfaces via a camera prototype application.
Passages
Authors: Groce Alex S.
Published: July 2022

Ross Anderson's Security Engineering (now in its third edition, but the second edition is reviewed here; I have only glanced at the third edition, but am certain it is also excellent, and more up-to-date) is something this column seldom considers: a fairly exhaustive, very long, and quite technical book on an actual computer science topic. It is also a book any serious "lay reader" can enjoy, unlike some of the other more technical software engineering classics we've looked at previously.
Major Challenges Currently Facing the Software Industry
Authors: El-Deeb Ahmed
Published: July 2022

66% of software projects fail, according to the Standish Group's 2020 Chaos Report [1]. When we see that number, it comes to our mind the 1968 NATO conference on Software Engineering where leaders came together to discuss the state of software development which they described as "Software Crisis". If more than 50 years from that conference we estimate failed software projects to 66%, we cannot say that the "Software Crisis" is over. To evaluate that statement, we can look at the list of problems that conference listed and see whether they continue to be manifested. The conference formulated that software projects are: Unreliable, delivered late, impossible to maintain, costly to modify, performing at an inadequate level, and exceeding budget costs. Does any of this family of problem sound familiar? This paper surveys major challenges currently facing the software industry.
An interview with Xin Xia - 2022 SIGSOFT Awardee
Authors: Soldani Jacopo
Published: July 2022

Xin Xia received the 2022 SIGSOFT Early Career Researcher Award for his contributions to AI and SE, mining software repositories, and empirical software engineering. He is the Director of the Software Engineering Application Technology Lab at Huawei, China. He received the Ph.D. degree in Computer Science in 2014 from the College of Computer Science and Technology (Zhejiang University, China), and - prior to joining Huawei - he was an ARC DECRA Fellow and a lecturer at the Faculty of Information Technology, Monash University, Australia.
Summary of the 12th Brazilian Conference on Software and the 1st Latin American School on Software Engineering
Authors: Steinmacher Igor Steinmacher , Prikladnicki Rafael , Conte Tayana
Published: July 2022

The main goal of the Brazilian Conference on Software: Practice and Theory (CBSoft) is to bring together researchers, practitioners, and students aiming at fostering the exchange of experience about the most recent research, tendencies, and theoretical and practical innovations in software. The conference is the top conference in the field of Latin America. In 2021, the conference was organized virtually by Dr. Karine Roggia, Dr. Cristiano Vasconcellos (UDESC), and Dr. Paulo Boulsfield (Univille). This year, we had more than 450 participants registered to attend CBSoft. CBSoft 2021 held four traditional Brazilian symposia: (i) 35th Brazilian Symposium on Software Engineering (SBES); (ii) 25th Brazilian Symposium on Programming Languages (SBLP); (iii) 15th Brazilian Symposium on Software Components, Architectures, and Reuse (SBCARS); (iv) 6th Brazilian Symposium on Systematic Automated Software Testing (SAST).
A Survey on High-dimensional Gaussian Process Modeling with Application to Bayesian Optimization
Authors: Binois Mickaël , Wycoff Nathan
Published: July 2022

Bayesian Optimization (BO), the application of Bayesian function approximation to finding optima of expensive functions, has exploded in popularity in recent years. In particular, much attention has been paid to improving its efficiency on problems with many parameters to optimize. This attention has trickled down to the workhorse of high-dimensional BO, high-dimensional Gaussian process regression, which is also of independent interest. The great flexibility that the Gaussian process prior implies is a boon when modeling complicated, low-dimensional surfaces but simply says too little when dimension grows too large. A variety of structural model assumptions have been tested to tame high dimensions, from variable selection and additive decomposition to low-dimensional embeddings and beyond. Most of these approaches in turn require modifications of the acquisition function optimization strategy as well. Here, we review the defining structural model assumptions and discuss the benefits and drawbacks of these approaches in practice.