bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An extra long stringless pendulum
Authors: Cross Rod
Published: July 2022

A 2.7 m long stringless pendulum was set up to measure the coefficient of rolling friction of various balls, at higher rolling speeds than usually observed with a short stringless pendulum. The arrangement is easy to set up and makes an impressive classroom demonstration as well as an interesting laboratory experiment.
Video-assisted experiment to observe interaction force during the interaction of two objects
Authors: Aji Mahardika Prasetya , Rahmawati Ita , Imtinan Nisrina , Wulandari Yuvita Kiki , Yusmantoro  , Priyanto Aan
Published: July 2022

The momentum is often used to analyse the dynamics of the motion of an experimental interaction between objects. Meanwhile, the interaction force tends to be challenging to observe and obtain. In this study, a simple video-assisted experiment was used to observe the interaction forces during the interaction of two magnetic objects. The interaction force between magnetic dipoles was obtained for each object position during the interaction experiment. The maximum force interaction was obtained when the two objects were at the minimum distance. The velocity of the object significantly influences the minimum distance between two objects during the interaction. In addition, we found that the law of linear momentum conservation holds for this interaction. Furthermore, the total kinetic energy before and after the interaction is identical, indicating an elastic interaction. This study is hopefully beneficial for students to reduce the limitations in understanding the interaction forces between objects.
Source-detector trajectory optimization in cone-beam computed tomography: a comprehensive review on today’s state-of-the-art
Authors: Hatamikia S , Biguri A , Herl G , Kronreif G , Reynolds T , Kettenbach J , Russ T , Tersol A , Maier A , Figl M , Siewerdsen J H , Birkfellner W
Published: July 2022

Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) imaging is becoming increasingly important for a wide range of applications such as image-guided surgery, image-guided radiation therapy as well as diagnostic imaging such as breast and orthopaedic imaging. The potential benefits of non-circular source-detector trajectories was recognized in early work to improve the completeness of CBCT sampling and extend the field of view (FOV). Another important feature of interventional imaging is that prior knowledge of patient anatomy such as a preoperative CBCT or prior CT is commonly available. This provides the opportunity to integrate such prior information into the image acquisition process by customized CBCT source-detector trajectories. Such customized trajectories can be designed in order to optimize task-specific imaging performance, providing intervention or patient-specific imaging settings. The recently developed robotic CBCT C-arms as well as novel multi-source CBCT imaging systems with additional degrees of freedom provide the possibility to largely expand the scanning geometries beyond the conventional circular source-detector trajectory. This recent development has inspired the research community to innovate enhanced image quality by modifying image geometry, as opposed to hardware or algorithms. The recently proposed techniques in this field facilitate image quality improvement, FOV extension, radiation dose reduction, metal artifact reduction as well as 3D imaging under kinematic constraints. Because of the great practical value and the increasing importance of CBCT imaging in image-guided therapy for clinical and preclinical applications as well as in industry, this paper focuses on the review and discussion of the available literature in the CBCT trajectory optimization field. To the best of our knowledge, this paper is the first study that provides an exhaustive literature review regarding customized CBCT algorithms and tries to update the community with the clarification of in-depth information on the current progress and future trends.
Gravitational waves detectable in laser interferometers from axion-SU(2) inflation
Authors: Fujita Tomohiro , Imagawa Kaname , Murai Kai
Published: July 2022

Chromo-natural inflation (CNI) is an inflationary model where an axion coupled with SU(2) gauge fields acts as the inflaton.
In CNI, the gauge fields have nonzero vacuum expectation values (VEVs), which results in the enhancement of gravitational waves (GWs).
The original CNI is ruled out by the Planck observations due to the overproduction of GWs.
In this work, we consider an inflationary model where the gauge fields acquire nonzero VEVs after the CMB modes exit the horizon.
Moreover, we add to the model another field that dominates the universe and drives inflation after the axion starts to oscillate and the gauge field VEVs vanish.
By performing numerical simulations, we find a parameter space where the enhanced GWs do not violate the CMB constraints and can be detected by the future GWs observations such as BBO and ET.
An open-source, ready-to-use and validated ripple detector plugin for the Open Ephys GUI
Authors: Sousa Bruno Monteiro de , de Oliveira Eliezyer Fermino , Beraldo Ikaro Jesus da Silva , Polanczyk Rafaela Schuttenberg , Leite João Pereira , Lopes Aguiar Cleiton
Published: July 2022

Objective. Sharp wave-ripples (SWRs, 100–250 Hz) are oscillatory events extracellularly recorded in the CA1 subfield of the hippocampus during sleep and quiet wakefulness. Many studies employed closed-loop strategies to either detect and abolish SWRs within the hippocampus or manipulate other relevant areas upon ripple detection. However, the code and schematics necessary to replicate the detection system are not always available, which hinders the reproducibility of experiments among different research groups. Furthermore, information about performance is not usually reported. Here, we sought to provide an open-source, validated ripple detector for the scientific community. Approach. We developed and validated a ripple detection plugin integrated into the Open Ephys graphical user’s interface. It contains a built-in movement detector based on accelerometer or electromyogram data that prevents false ripple events (due to chewing, grooming, or moving, for instance) from triggering the stimulation/manipulation device. Main results. To determine the accuracy of the detection algorithm, we first carried out simulations in MATLAB with real ripple recordings. Using a specific combination of detection parameters (amplitude threshold of 5 standard deviations above the mean, time threshold of 10 ms, and root mean square block size of 7 samples), we obtained a 97% true positive rate and 2.48 false positives per minute. Next, an Open Ephys plugin based on the same detection algorithm was developed, and a closed-loop system was set up to evaluate the round trip (ripple onset-to-stimulation) latency over synthetic data. The lowest latency obtained was 34.5 ± 0.5 ms. The embedded movement monitoring was effective in reducing false positives and the plugin’s flexibility to detect pathological events was also verified. Significance. Besides contributing to increased reproducibility, we anticipate that the developed ripple detector plugin will be helpful for many closed-loop applications in the field of systems neuroscience.
Learning neural decoders without labels using multiple data streams
Authors: Peterson Steven M , Rao Rajesh P N , Brunton Bingni W
Published: July 2022

Objective. Recent advances in neural decoding have accelerated the development of brain–computer interfaces aimed at assisting users with everyday tasks such as speaking, walking, and manipulating objects. However, current approaches for training neural decoders commonly require large quantities of labeled data, which can be laborious or infeasible to obtain in real-world settings. Alternatively, self-supervised models that share self-generated pseudo-labels between two data streams have shown exceptional performance on unlabeled audio and video data, but it remains unclear how well they extend to neural decoding. Approach. We learn neural decoders without labels by leveraging multiple simultaneously recorded data streams, including neural, kinematic, and physiological signals. Specifically, we apply cross-modal, self-supervised deep clustering to train decoders that can classify movements from brain recordings. After training, we then isolate the decoders for each input data stream and compare the accuracy of decoders trained using cross-modal deep clustering against supervised and unimodal, self-supervised models. Main results. We find that sharing pseudo-labels between two data streams during training substantially increases decoding performance compared to unimodal, self-supervised models, with accuracies approaching those of supervised decoders trained on labeled data. Next, we extend cross-modal decoder training to three or more modalities, achieving state-of-the-art neural decoding accuracy that matches or slightly exceeds the performance of supervised models. Significance. We demonstrate that cross-modal, self-supervised decoding can be applied to train neural decoders when few or no labels are available and extend the cross-modal framework to share information among three or more data streams, further improving self-supervised training.
Evaluation of twisted Gaussian Schell model beams produced with phase randomized coherent fields
Authors: Cañas G , Gómez E S , dos Santos G H , de Oliveira A G , Rubiano da Silva N , Joshi Stuti , Ismail Yaseera , Ribeiro P H S , Walborn S P
Published: July 2022

The twisted Gaussian Schell Model describes a family of partially coherent beams that present several interesting characteristics, and as such have attracted attention in classical and quantum optics. Recent techniques have been demonstrated to synthesize these beams from a coherent source using a discrete set of ‘pseudo-modes’, where the phase of each mode is randomized so that they are mutually incoherent. Here we investigate this technique and evaluate the resulting beam parameters, such as divergence, coherence length and twist phase. We show that for a finite set of modes there is also some residual coherence, which can have an observable effect. A theoretical model is developed for the output field that includes residual coherence and agrees very well with experimental data. In addition, we demonstrate a simple method to measure the twist phase using double slit interference.
Enhancement of resistive switching behavior of organic resistive random access memory devices through UV-Ozone treatment
Authors: Park Joong Hyeon , Khan Sobia Ali , Rahmani Mehr Khalid , Cho Jihwan , Kang Moon Hee
Published: July 2022

We fabricated organic resistive random-access memory (RRAM) devices using a low-cost solution-process method. All the processes were performed at temperatures below 135 °C under ambient atmospheric conditions. The RRAM resistive switching layer was formed from a polymer-fullerene bulk heterojunction using poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (P3HT) and (6,6)-phenyl C61 butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM). The fabricated organic RRAM device exhibited typical nonvolatile bipolar resistive switching behavior with an ON/OFF ratio of ∼40, but it provided a low endurance of 27 cycles. Therefore, for enhanced stability, simple UV–Ozone (UVO) treatment was applied to the P3HT:PCBM organic bulk heterojunction layer. The organic RRAM device with UVO treatment exhibited an enhanced performance with an ON/OFF ratio of ∼400 and an endurance of 47 cycles. In addition, complementary resistive switching behavior was observed. The conduction mechanisms of the organic RRAM device were investigated by fitting the measured I–V data to numerical equations, and Schottky emission and Ohmic conduction were the main conduction mechanisms for the high-resistance and low-resistance states for the RRAM device with or without UVO treatment.
Fabrication of Pt/InGaZnO/PZT/LNO hetero-structure by one-step photochemical method
Authors: Li Zhen , Yue Jianshe , Eka Nusrat Rafsani , Zhang Qi
Published: July 2022

The transparent InGaZnO (IGZO) film was fabricated on the surface of PZT film by photochemical sol-gel method, hence more UV light can penetrate IGZO film reaching the IGZO/PZT junction and produce photo-induced charge carrier to obtain a high photocurrent. To decrease the crystalline temperature of PZT film, and simplify the fabrication process, the UV photochemical treatment of IGZO and PZT happened at the same time. During photochemical process, the organic agents of both IGZO and PZT gel film were decomposed greatly, forming an active metal-oxygen bond, which facilitate crystallization at a low temperature. The obtained IGZO film show a uniform surface with homogeneous particles, the obtained Pt/IGZO/PZT/LNO hetero-structure shows a good photoelectric property.
Effects of process parameters and carbon nanotubes content on microstructure and properties of laser cladding composite coatings using Ni-Ti-Cr-carbon nanotubes
Authors: Zhou Kexin , Shen Yifu
Published: July 2022

The Ni-Ti-Cr-carbon nanotubes (CNTs) composite coatings was successfully fabricated by laser cladding. The optical microscope was used to observe the metallographic structure of the composite coating, the phase composition of the composite layer was detected by XRD, the microstructures of the composite coatings were observed by SEM, and the point distribution and line distribution of elements were analyzed by EDS. With the increase of laser specific energy (Es) and CNTs content, the TiC enhanced particles in the composite coatings evolves into coarse dendrites. Compared with the mild steel substrate, the microhardness and wear resistance of the composite coatings are obviously improved. The maximum microhardness obtained by the composite coating is approximately 5 times that of the mild steel substrate. The increase of Es and the excessive content of CNTs will reduce the microhardness and wear resistance of the composite coatings. The in situ synthesis of TiC particles not only enhance the microhardness of the composite coatings, but also improve the wear resistance of the coatings.
Validation of four-dimensional computed tomography without external reference respiratory signals for radiation treatment planning of lung tumors
Authors: Doi Yasuhiro , Shimohigashi Yoshinobu , Kai Yudai , Maruyama Masato , Toya Ryo
Published: July 2022

Deviceless four-dimensional (4D) computed tomography (CT) allows the acquisition of respiratory signals from six features without requiring an external device for cine CT processing. This method has been recently introduced in radiation treatment planning of lung tumors. To validate deviceless 4D CT, it must be compared with conventional 4D CT, which requires an external monitoring device. We compared the two methods using a multicell 4D phantom that simulates patient’s movement during respiration regarding the target volume (TV), target position (TP), and internal TV for lung tumor radiation therapy. We retrospectively obtained images of 10 patients who underwent radiation treatment planning of lung tumors and compared the two methods, as in the phantom study. For the phantom study, the mean TV, root mean square errors of the TP, and mean internal TV differences between the two methods ranged from −4.5% to 1.2%, 0.7 to 2.6 mm, and −1.1% to 3.4%, respectively. The corresponding results of the clinical study ranged from −1.5% to 14.9%, 0.1 to 5.9 mm, and −9.7% to 10.1%, respectively. The results of deviceless 4D CT for the clinical study were consistent with those of conventional 4D CT, except for target movements with high excursions. Therefore, deviceless 4D CT can be an alternative to conventional 4D CT for radiation treatment planning of lung tumors.
Variational certification of quantum devices
Authors: Kundu Akash , Miszczak Jarosław Adam
Published: July 2022

One of the requirements imposed on the realistic quantum computers is to provide computation results which can be repeated and reproduced. In the situation when one needs to repeat the quantum computation procedure several times, it is crucial that the copies of the quantum devices are similar in the sense of the produced results. In this work, we describe a simple procedure based on variational quantum eigensolver which can be utilized to compare quantum devices. The procedure is developed by combining Choi–Jamiołkowski isomorphism with the variational hybrid quantum–classical procedure for matrix diagonalization. We compare the introduced procedure with the scheme based on the standard bounds for the similarity between quantum operations by analysing its action on random quantum channels. We also discuss the sensitivity of the described procedure to the noise, and we provide numerical results demonstrating its feasibility in realistic scenarios by running the procedure on IBM quantum computer.
Electron wave spin in a quantum well
Authors: Gao Ju
Published: July 2022

The particle-wave duality of the electron poses a principle question of whether the spin is a property of the particle or the wave. In this paper, the wave nature of the spin is studied for an electron inside a two-dimensional quantum well. By solving the exact 4 − spinor eigen solution to the Dirac equation, we show that a stable circulating total current density exists inside the well with a donut shaped topography. A spin value is modified by the confining geometry of the well. Our analysis also shows that a free electron Gaussian wavepacket is unstable and experiences quick decoherence.
Interface engineering of antimony selenide solar cells: a review on the optimization of energy band alignments
Authors: Wang Yazi , Ji Seunghwan , Shin Byungha
Published: July 2022

Earth-abundant and environmentally benign antimony selenide (Sb2Se3) has emerged as a promising light-harvesting absorber for thin-film photovoltaic (PV) devices due to its high absorption coefficient, nearly ideal bandgap for PV applications, excellent long-term stability, and intrinsically benign boundaries if properly aligned on the substrate. The record power conversion efficiency of Sb2Se3 solar cells has currently reached 9.2%, however, it is far lower than the champion efficiencies of other chalcogenide thin-film solar cells such as CdTe (22.1%) and Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (23.35%). The inferior device performance of Sb2Se3 thin-film solar cells mainly results from a large open-circuit voltage deficit, which is strongly related to the interface recombination loss. Accordingly, constructing proper band alignments between Sb2Se3 and neighboring charge extraction layers through interface engineering to reduce carrier recombination losses is one of the key strategies to achieving high-efficiency Sb2Se3 solar cells. In this review, the fundamental properties of Sb2Se3 thin films, and the recent progress made in Sb2Se3 solar cells are outlined, with a special emphasis on the optimization of energy band alignments through the applications of electron-transporting layers and hole-transporting layers. Furthermore, the potential research directions to overcome the bottlenecks of Sb2Se3 thin-film solar cell performance are also presented.
Synthesis of porous cobalt oxide nanosheets: highly sensitive sensors for the detection of hydrazine
Authors: Kumar Raj , Parkash Anand , Almani Sikander , Baloch Muhammad Yousuf Jat , Khan Rizwan , Soomro Suhail Ahmed
Published: July 2022

A highly sensitive, reliable, and reproducible sensor for detecting hydrazine was fabricated using a porous cobalt oxide (Co2O3) nanosheets electrode. The Caffeine assisted Co2O3 nanosheets were prepared by a low-temperature aqueous chemical growth method. The morphology, phase purity, and porosity of Co2O3 nanosheets were examined via SEM, XRD, and BET techniques. SEM results reveal the hexagonal sheet-like morphology of synthesized Co2O3 nanosheets, while the XRD technique illustrates high phase purity. Furthermore, the BET technique demonstrated the increased surface area exhibited by the newly synthesized Co2O3 nanomaterial. The hydrazine sensor based on the Co3O4 nanosheet electrode demonstrated relatively high sensitivity (1.632 μA cm−2
μM−1) and a rather low detection limit (0.05 μM) due to the fast electro-oxidation of hydrazine catalyzed by Co3O4 nanosheets. The unique porous structure of Co3O4 nanosheets offers a promising probe candidate for efficient electrochemical sensors of hydrazine.
Analysis of astragaloside IV metabolism to cycloastragenol in human gut microorganism, bifidobacteria, and lactic acid bacteria
Authors: Takeuchi Daniel M , Kishino Shigenobu , Ozeki Yuuki , Fukami Hiroyuki , Ogawa Jun
Published: July 2022

This study investigated different gut bacteria in an anaerobic environment to identify specific candidates that could transform astragaloside IV (AIV) to cycloastragenol (CA). Two representative gut microbes, lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and bifidobacteria, could metabolize AIV to CA. Multiple screenings showed two metabolic pathways to metabolize AIV in two groups of bacteria. LAB metabolized AIV initiated by removing the C-6 glucose, whereas bifidobacteria indicated the initial removal of C-3 xylose. The final products differed between the two groups as bifidobacteria showed the production of CA, whereas LAB demonstrated preferential production of 20R, 24S-epoxy-6α, -16β, -25-trihydroxy-9, -19-cycloartan-3-one (CA-2H).
ViReMaShiny: an interactive application for analysis of viral recombination data
Authors: Yeung Jason , Routh Andrew L
Published: July 2022

Motivation

Recombination is an essential driver of virus evolution and adaption, giving rise to new chimeric viruses, structural variants, sub-genomic RNAs and defective RNAs. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) of virus samples, either from experimental or clinical settings, has revealed a complex distribution of recombination events that contributes to intrahost diversity. We and others have previously developed alignment tools to discover and map these diverse recombination events in NGS data. However, there is no standard for data visualization to contextualize events of interest, and downstream analysis often requires bespoke coding.

Results

We present ViReMaShiny, a web-based application built using the R Shiny framework to allow interactive exploration and point-and-click visualization of viral recombination data provided in BED format generated by computational pipelines such as ViReMa (Viral-Recombination-Mapper).

Availability and implementation

The application is hosted at https://routhlab.shinyapps.io/ViReMaShiny/ with associated documentation at https://jayeung12.github.io/. Code is available at https://github.com/routhlab/ViReMaShiny.

Supplementary information

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Multidrug representation learning based on pretraining model and molecular graph for drug interaction and combination prediction
Authors: Ren Shujie , Yu Liang , Gao Lin
Published: July 2022

Motivation

Approaches for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases often adopt the multidrug therapy method because it can increase the efficacy or reduce the toxic side effects of drugs. Using different drugs simultaneously may trigger unexpected pharmacological effects. Therefore, efficient identification of drug interactions is essential for the treatment of complex diseases. Currently proposed calculation methods are often limited by the collection of redundant drug features, a small amount of labeled data and low model generalization capabilities. Meanwhile, there is also a lack of unique methods for multidrug representation learning, which makes it more difficult to take full advantage of the originally scarce data.

Results

Inspired by graph models and pretraining models, we integrated a large amount of unlabeled drug molecular graph information and target information, then designed a pretraining framework, MGP-DR (Molecular Graph Pretraining for Drug Representation), specifically for drug pair representation learning. The model uses self-supervised learning strategies to mine the contextual information within and between drug molecules to predict drug–drug interactions and drug combinations. The results achieved promising performance across multiple metrics compared with other state-of-the-art methods. Our MGP-DR model can be used to provide a reliable candidate set for the combined use of multiple drugs.

Availability and implementation

Code of the model, datasets and results can be downloaded from GitHub (https://github.com/LiangYu-Xidian/MGP-DR).

Supplementary information

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Digital Relationality, Rights, Resilience: Conceptualising a Digital Social Ecology for Children’s Birth Family Relationships When in Care or Adopted
Authors: MacDonald Mandi , Wright Amy Conley , Taylor-Beswick Amanda , Gillespie Kathryn , Collings Susan
Published: July 2022

The use of digital communication technology by children residing in out-of-home care or adopted from foster care has mainly been approached hesitantly and from a risk paradigm. The Covid-19 pandemic catalysed many digital and social work intersections, including practices used for birth family contact where in-person visits were supplemented or replaced with ‘virtual’ contact via digital devices. Whilst technology-mediated contact is characterised as ‘virtual’, the relationships it facilitates and emotions it generates are very real within children’s social ecology. Digital ubiquity in social life and the rapid pace of technological change presents significant ethical and practical tensions. To help social workers navigate this complexity of ‘contact-in-reality’ and facilitate safe, ethical use of digital communication technology for birth family contact, we connect an understanding of the dynamics of birth family contact with literature on children’s use of digital technology and ecological concepts of person-in-environment to offer a digital social ecology heuristic for social work practice. Three key aspects cut across all systems and levels, referred to here as the three Digital R’s: digital relationality; digital rights; and digital resilience. Future research is needed to understand how these dynamics play out.
Comparison of Reversed-Phase and Mixed-Mode SPE for Enrichment and Clean-Up of Surrogate Peptides in CysC Quantified by LC–MS/MS
Authors: Tang Zijie , Ji Huoyan
Published: July 2022

Accurate quantification of low-abundance protein Cystatin-C (CysC) in serum by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) method is very difficult. After sample processing and tryptic digestion, the matrix of CysC surrogate peptides is very complexity, and the concentrations of them are very low, so solid-phase extraction (SPE) must be used to make the surrogate peptides purification and enrichment. In this paper, we used C18 reversed-phase SPE (RP-SPE) and mixed-mode SPE as SPE cartridges. We quantitatively assessed and compared the CysC surrogate peptides recoveries and matrix effects by different SPE cartridges. The sequence of CysC surrogate peptide is ALDFAVGEYNK, and sequence-specific subions y6 (VGEYNK+, m/z 709.3) and y9 (DFAVGEYNK+, m/z 1042.4) were selected for quantification of CysC, because the two fragment ions showed the highest sensitivity. In neat solution, the highest recoveries were similarly for y9 and y6 when used RP-SPE and mixed-mode SPE. However, in serum matrix, the recoveries were significantly higher when used mixed-mode SPE than RP-SPE, which was caused by matrix effects. Results showed that both RP-SPE and mixed-mode SPE were resulted in ion enhancement for CysC surrogate peptides quantification by LC–MS/MS, but mixed-mode SPE reduced more matrix effects. So mixed-mode SPE was more suitable SPE type for purification and enrichment of CysC surrogate peptides.
Metabolic-Related Outcomes After Switching From Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate to Tenofovir Alafenamide in Adults With Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV): A Multicenter Prospective Cohort Study
Authors: Martínez-Sanz Javier , Serrano-Villar Sergio , Muriel Alfonso , García Fraile Lucio J , Orviz Eva , Mena de Cea Álvaro , Campins Antoni A , Moreno Santiago
Published: July 2022

Background

Tenofovir alafenamide (TAF) has replaced tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) in many clinical settings. However, concerns remain about potential metabolic complications of TAF. We aimed to evaluate changes in weight, laboratory markers, and metabolic-related clinical events after replacing TDF with TAF.

Methods

Multicenter prospective cohort study in the Spanish CoRIS cohort. We included virologically suppressed adults with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) receiving TDF for more than 12 months who either switched to TAF or maintained TDF, with no changes in the core agent. Participants were matched by propensity score. We fitted generalized equation models to assess changes in weight, blood lipids, and hepatic steatosis index, and to compare the incidence of diabetes, hypertension, and lipid-lowering drug use after 144 weeks.

Results

In total, 1446 participants were matched in each group. Median age was 38 years, 85% were male, mean weight at baseline was 73 kg. Participants who switched to TAF had a mean weight increase of +0.5 kg at 144 weeks over those who maintained TDF, with no difference in the occurrence of overweight or obesity. Individuals who switched to TAF had a significant increase in total cholesterol (+7.9 mg/dL) and triglycerides (+11.2 mg/dL), with no differences in the total cholesterol-high-density lipoprotein (HDL) ratio. However, no increased incidence of diabetes, hypertension, or lipid-lowering drug use was observed after the follow-up period.

Conclusions

Switching from TDF to TAF is associated with modest weight gain and increases in total cholesterol and triglycerides, without an impact on the incidence of obesity or metabolic-related clinical events, in this Spanish cohort with a majority White male population.
Diabetes Duration and Subclinical Myocardial Injury: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study (ARIC)
Authors: Hamo Carine E , Echouffo-Tcheugui Justin B , Zhang Sui , Florido Roberta , Pankow James S , Michos Erin D , Goldberg Ronald , Nambi Vijay , Gerstenblith Gary , Post Wendy S , Blumenthal Roger S , Ballantyne Christie , Selvin Elizabeth , Coresh Josef , Ndumele Chiadi E
Published: July 2022

Background

Diabetes exerts adverse effects on the heart, and a longer diabetes duration is associated with greater heart failure risk. We studied diabetes duration and subclinical myocardial injury, as reflected by high-sensitivity cardiac troponin (hs-cTnT).

Methods

We analyzed 9052 participants without heart failure or coronary heart disease (mean age 63 years, 58% female, 21% Black, 15% with diabetes) at The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study (ARIC) Visit 4 (1996 to 1998). Diabetes duration was calculated based on diabetes status at Visits 1 (1987 to 1989) through 4, or using self-reported age of diabetes diagnosis prior to Visit 1. We used multinomial logistic regression to determine the association of diabetes duration with increased (≥14 ng/L) or detectable (≥6 ng/L) Visit 4 hs-cTnT, relative to undetectable hs-cTnT, adjusted for demographics and cardiovascular risk factors.

Results

The prevalence of increased Visit 4 hs-cTnT was higher in persons with longer diabetes duration, from 12% for those with diabetes 0 to <5 years up to 31% among those with diabetes for ≥15 years (P for trend <0.0001). New onset diabetes at Visit 4 was associated with 1.92× higher relative risk (95% CI, 1.27–2.91) of increased hs-cTnT than no diabetes. Longer diabetes duration was associated with greater myocardial injury, with duration ≥15 years associated with 9.29× higher risk (95% CI, 5.65–15.29) for increased hs-cTnT and 2.07× (95% CI, 1.24–3.16) for detectable hs-cTnT, compared to no diabetes.

Conclusions

Longer diabetes duration is strongly associated with subclinical myocardial injury. Interventional studies are needed to assess whether the prevention and delay of diabetes onset can mitigate early myocardial damage.
SPDPOA: Student Psychology Dragonfly Political Optimizer Algorithm-Based Soil Moisture and Heat-Level Prediction for Plant Health Monitoring in Internet of Things
Authors: Muppidi Satish , Bhamidipati Kishore , Arumugam Sajeev Ram
Published: July 2022

This article devised an effective Student Psychology-based Dragonfly Political Optimizer (SPDPOA) for predicting heat level and soil moisture to monitor plant health in the Internet of Things (IoT). The developed SPDPOA is modeled by integrating the Student Psychology-based Optimization (SPBO) algorithm, Dragonfly Algorithm (DA) and Political optimizer (PO), respectively. The prediction process is done in the base station (BS), which gathers the IoT nodes’ information through optimal Cluster Head (CH) using Deep Recurrent Neural Network (Deep RNN). Moreover, the CH selection and routing process are established using a developed SPDPOA scheme. The data transformation and feature selection processes are done based on Box-Cox transformation and wrapper model, correspondingly, which helps in the selection of best features. Moreover, the developed SPDPOA scheme attained better performance in Packet Delivery Ratio (PDR), energy and testing accuracy of 0.7232, 0.6342 J and 0.9372, respectively.
On The Maximum Cliques Of The Subgraphs Induced By Binary Constant Weight Codes In Powers Of Hypercubes
Authors: Shi Juanjuan , Kou Yongfang , Hu Yulan , Yang Weihua
Published: July 2022

The problem of finding the maximum independent sets (or maximum cliques) of a given graph is fundamental in graph theory and is also one of the most important in terms of the application of graph theory. Let $A(n,d,w)$ be the size of the maximum independent set of $Q_{n}^{(d-1,w)}$, which is the induced subgraph of points of weight $w$ of the $d-1^{th}$-power of $n$-dimensional hypercubes. In order to further understand and study the dependent set of $Q_{n}^{(d-1,w)}$, we explore its clique number and the structure of the maximum clique. This paper obtains the clique number and the structure of the maximum clique of $Q_{n}^{(d-1,w)}$ for $5\leq d\leq 6$. Moreover, the characterizations for $A(n,d,w)=2$ and $3$ are also given.
An Improved Lattice-Based Ring Signature With Unclaimable Anonymity in the Standard Model
Authors: Hu Mingxing , Zhang Weijiong , Liu Zhen
Published: July 2022

Ring signatures enable a user to sign messages on behalf of an arbitrary set of users, called the ring, without revealing exactly which member of that ring actually generated the signature. The signer-anonymity property makes ring signatures have been an active research topic. Recently, Park and Sealfon (PS; CRYPTO’19) presented an important anonymity notion named signer-unclaimability and constructed a lattice-based ring signature scheme with unclaimable anonymity in the standard model; however, it did not consider the unforgeable w.r.t. adversarially chosen-key attack (the public key ring of a signature may contain keys created by an adversary) and the signature size grows quadratically in the size of ring and message. In this work, we propose a new lattice-based ring signature scheme with unclaimable anonymity in the standard model. In particular, our work improves the security and efficiency of PS work, which is unforgeable w.r.t. adversarially chosen-key attack, and the ring signature size grows linearly in the ring size.
Quantifying the impact of gut microbiota on inflammation and hypertensive organ damage
Authors: Avery Ellen G , Bartolomaeus Hendrik , Rauch Ariana , Chen Chia-Yu , N’Diaye Gabriele , Löber Ulrike , Bartolomaeus Theda U P , Fritsche-Guenther Raphaela , Rodrigues André F , Yarritu Alex , Zhong Cheng , Fei Lingyan , Tsvetkov Dmitry , Todiras Mihail , Park Joon-Keun , Markó Lajos , Maifeld András , Patzak Andreas , Bader Michael , Kempa Stefan , Kirwan Jennifer A , Forslund Sofia K , Müller Dominik N , Wilck Nicola
Published: July 2022

Aims

Hypertension (HTN) can lead to heart and kidney damage. The gut microbiota has been linked to HTN, although it is difficult to estimate its significance due to the variety of other features known to influence HTN. In the present study, we used germ-free (GF) and colonized (COL) littermate mice to quantify the impact of microbial colonization on organ damage in HTN.

Methods and results

4-week-old male GF C57BL/6J littermates were randomized to remain GF or receive microbial colonization. HTN was induced by subcutaneous infusion with angiotensin (Ang) II (1.44 mg/kg/day) and 1% NaCl in the drinking water; sham-treated mice served as control. Renal damage was exacerbated in GF mice, whereas cardiac damage was more comparable between COL and GF, suggesting that the kidney is more sensitive to microbial influence. Multivariate analysis revealed a larger effect of HTN in GF mice. Serum metabolomics demonstrated that the colonization status influences circulating metabolites relevant to HTN. Importantly, GF mice were deficient in anti-inflammatory faecal short-chain fatty acids (SCFA). Flow cytometry showed that the microbiome has an impact on the induction of anti-hypertensive myeloid-derived suppressor cells and pro-inflammatory Th17 cells in HTN. In vitro inducibility of Th17 cells was significantly higher for cells isolated from GF than conventionally raised mice.

Conclusion

The microbial colonization status of mice had potent effects on their phenotypic response to a hypertensive stimulus, and the kidney is a highly microbiota-susceptible target organ in HTN. The magnitude of the pathogenic response in GF mice underscores the role of the microbiome in mediating inflammation in HTN.
Early versus late acute coronary syndrome risk patterns of coronary atherosclerotic plaque
Authors: van den Hoogen Inge J , Stuijfzand Wijnand J , Gianni Umberto , van Rosendael Alexander R , Bax A Maxim , Lu Yao , Tantawy Sara W , Hollenberg Emma J , Andreini Daniele , Al-Mallah Mouaz H , Cademartiri Filippo , Chinnaiyan Kavitha , Chow Benjamin J W , Conte Edoardo , Cury Ricardo C , Feuchtner Gudrun , Gonçalves Pedro de Araújo , Hadamitzky Martin , Kim Yong Jin , Leipsic Jonathon , Maffei Erica , Marques Hugo , Plank Fabian , Pontone Gianluca , Villines Todd C , Lee Sang Eun , Al’Aref Subhi J , Baskaran Lohendran , Danad Ibrahim , Gransar Heidi , Budoff Matthew J , Samady Habib , Virmani Renu , Berman Daniel S , Chang Hyuk Jae , Narula Jagat , Min James K , Bax Jeroen J , Lin Fay Y , Shaw Leslee J ,   ICONIC Investigators
Published: July 2022

Aims

The temporal instability of coronary atherosclerotic plaque preceding an incident acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is not well defined. We sought to examine differences in the volume and composition of coronary atherosclerosis between patients experiencing an early (≤90 days) versus late ACS (>90 days) after baseline coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA).

Methods and results

From a multicenter study, we enrolled patients who underwent a clinically indicated baseline CCTA and experienced ACS during follow-up. Separate core laboratories performed blinded adjudication of ACS events and quantification of CCTA including compositional plaque volumes by Hounsfield units (HU): calcified plaque >350 HU, fibrous plaque 131–350 HU, fibrofatty plaque 31–130 HU and necrotic core <30 HU. In 234 patients (mean age 62 ± 12 years, 36% women), early and late ACS occurred in 129 and 105 patients after a mean of 395 ± 622 days, respectively. Patients with early ACS had a greater maximal diameter stenosis and maximal cross-sectional plaque burden as compared to patients with late ACS (P < 0.05). Larger total, fibrous, fibrofatty, and necrotic core volumes were observed in the early ACS group (P < 0.05). Findings for total, fibrous, fibrofatty, and necrotic core volumes were reproduced in an external validation cohort (P < 0.05).

Conclusions

Volumetric differences in composition of coronary atherosclerosis exist between ACS patients according to their timing antecedent to the acute event. These data support that a large burden of non-calcified plaque on CCTA is strongly associated with near-term plaque instability and ACS risk.
A papillary fibroelastoma with myxoma camouflage: a case report
Authors: Urmeneta Ulloa Javier , Martínez de Vega Vicente , Forteza Gil Alberto , Cabrera José Ángel
Published: July 2022

Background

Benign cardiac tumours are infrequent in clinical practice and, of these, cardiac myxoma is the one with the highest incidence. Given that a left intraventricular presentation is rare, other differential diagnoses such as papillary fibroelastoma should be considered.

Case summary

A 73-year-old woman patient with cardiac mass detected in transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) after a transient ischaemic attack. At TTE 2D–3D, a left intraventricular mass anchored at the level of the anterolateral papillary muscle was detected. Subsequently, cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) was performed for mass characterization. This revealed behaviour in T1 (isointense with respect to myocardium), T2 (hyperintense), very prolonged T1-mapping (1848 msg), and T2-mapping (161 msg) values, without gadolinium uptake in the first-pass perfusion sequence, but with intense uptake in late enhancement sequences. Previous findings were compatible with a diagnosis of papillary fibroelastoma. The mass was resected intraoperatively and, although its macroscopic appearance pointed to a diagnosis of cardiac myxoma, it was finally confirmed to be a papillary fibroelastoma by pathological anatomy.

Discussion

In cases where the size of the mass and its mobility allow tissue characterization by CMR, a diagnosis of papillary fibroelastoma and its differentiation with cardiac myxoma are feasible by this cardiac imaging technique.
Evaluations of coronary microvascular dysfunction in a patient with thrombotic microangiopathy and cardiac troponin elevation: a case report
Authors: Otsuka Kenichiro , Kono Yasushi , Hirata Kumiko
Published: July 2022

Background

Thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA) syndromes include thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) and haemolytic uremic syndrome, and contribute to myocardial infarction and multiple organ failure. Although coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) is the key for understanding the pathophysiology of cardiac involvement in TMA, there is limited knowledge on the recovery from CMD in patients with TMA.

Case summary

An 80-year-old woman was brought to the emergency department due to worsening back pain, dyspnoea on exertion, jaundice, and fever. Although she had typical TTP symptoms and elevated cardiac troponin level, ADAMTS13 activity was preserved (34%), leading to the diagnosis of TMA with myocardial infarction. She underwent plasma exchange and was administered aspirin and prednisolone. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed iliopsoas abscess, which is a possible aetiologic factor of sepsis-related TTP. She had impaired coronary flow reserve (CFR) with angiographically non-obstructive epicardial coronary arteries. Improved CFR was observed on follow-up, suggesting existence of transient CMD caused by TMA. After treatment of the iliopsoas abscess with antibiotics for 3 months, she was discharged without any adverse complications.

Discussion

Coronary microvascular dysfunction is an underlying mechanism of myocardial infarction, with or without epicardial obstructive coronary artery stenosis. TMA is characterized by pathological lesions caused by endothelial cell damage in small terminal arteries and capillaries, with complete or partial occlusion caused by platelet and hyaline thrombi. CMD and its recovery are keys for understanding the natural history of cardiac involvement in TMA. In vivo evaluations of CMD can provide mechanistic insights into the cardiac involvement in TMA.
Rapid risk stratification of acute coronary syndrome: adoption of an adapted European Society of Cardiology 0/1-hour troponin algorithm in a real-world setting
Authors: Couch Liam S , Sinha Aish , Navin Roshan , Hunter Laura , Perera Divaka , Marber Michael S , Kaier Thomas E
Published: July 2022

Aims

To evaluate the clinical feasibility of implementing the 2020 ESC 0/1 hr algorithm for rapid rule-out/rule-in of acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

Methods and results

Data were collected retrospectively from 5496 patients in 2020 and 7363 patients in 2021 who received cardiac troponin measurements through the ACS algorithm in acute care settings within a large tertiary cardiac centre in the United Kingdom. This period overlapped the introduction of the 2020 ESC 0/1 hr algorithm. After exclusion of haemolysis, 1905 patients underwent repeat troponin measurement within the study period in 2020 and 2658 in 2021. Median time to repeat was significantly reduced from 3 h 14 min for intermediate low risk patients (5–12 ng/L) in 2020 to 1 h 22 min in 2021, and from 3 h 30 min to 1 h 59 min in intermediate high-risk patients (12–51 ng/L). Less than 15% of patients requiring repeat testing had dynamic changes in troponin of sufficient magnitude to change their initial risk category. Of all patients, 58.1% of patients in 2020 were ultimately classified as ‘low risk’, 19.2% deemed ‘ACS likely’, and 22.7% as ‘ACS possible’, with similar distributions in 2021.

Conclusion

Whilst an efficient algorithm, our study demonstrates multi-faceted, practical limitations of achieving the 1 h target for the triage of patients with suspected ACS. Despite challenges predominantly of logistic nature, the algorithm enables rapid, streamlined, and efficient triage of large patient cohorts. Further work is required to streamline this process and achieve the targeted 1 h repeat in a resource-constrained healthcare environment, which would invariably require second blood draw before the result of first, as recommended by the ESC.
Impact of outcome definitions on cardiovascular risk prediction in a contemporary primary prevention population
Authors: Sud Maneesh , Chu Anna , Austin Peter C , Naimark David M , Thanassoulis George , Wijeysundera Harindra C , Ko Dennis T
Published: July 2022

Background

Estimation of an individual's cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk may enhance risk discussion and treatment decisions. Yet, common cardiovascular outcomes such as heart failure (HF) or coronary revascularization are not included in the estimation of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk. Our objective was to determine the incidence of ASCVD in a contemporary primary prevention population with >10 years of follow-up and how incidence estimates change when incorporating additional cardiovascular endpoints.

Methods

We used the population-level Cardiovascular Health in Ambulatory Care Research Team database of all Ontario residents alive 1 January 2008, aged 30–99 years, and with no prior history of CVD. Individuals were followed to 31 December 2018 for incident first and recurrent cardiovascular events. ASCVD outcomes were defined by hospitalizations for myocardial infarction, stroke, and circulatory death, while global CVD outcomes also included hospitalizations for unstable angina, transient ischemic attacks, peripheral arterial disease, out-of-hospital cardiac arrests, HF, and coronary revascularization.

Results

Among 7496 165 individuals free of CVD, their mean age was 50 years (SD: 13.9 years) and 52.3% were women. After 11 years of follow-up, the rate of an incident ASCVD event was 3.95 per 1000 person-years, while the rate of a global CVD event was almost doubled at 6.67 per 1000 person-years. The most common additional first manifestations of CVD were HF, which accounted for 12.0% of additional events and coronary revascularization, which accounted for 12.7%. When considering first and recurrent events, the rate of ASCVD was 5.20 per 1000 person-years, while the rate of all global CVD events was more than double at 10.90 per 1000 person-years. This was mainly due to a higher proportion of recurrent HF (13.8%) and coronary revascularization (23.2%) events.

Conclusions

ASCVD accounts for just over half of all preventable first cardiovascular events and even fewer first and recurrent cardiovascular events in contemporary practice. Estimating broader CVD endpoints may enhance risk-discussions with patients and improve informed decision-making.