bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Association Between a History of Breast Cancer and Decreased Thyroid Cancer-specific Mortality
Authors: Lin Shuhuang , Wang Zhuo , Xing Mingzhao
Published: December 2023

Context

The clinical relevance of the well-known association between thyroid cancer (TC) and breast cancer (BC) remains to be further defined.

Objective

This work aimed to investigate the effect of history of BC on the prognosis of TC.

Methods

This was a comparative cohort study of tumor behaviors and TC-specific mortality in 5598 patients with papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) and 604 patients with follicular thyroid cancer (FTC), all with a history of BC (TC-BC patients), and their propensity score–matched TC patients without a history of BC (TCnoBC patients) in Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) 18. The main outcome measure was TC-specific mortality.

Results

Lower TC distant metastasis rates of 2.4% vs 3.0% in PTC and 6.1% vs 9.1% in FTC and TC-specific mortality rates of 1.3% vs 2.6% in PTC and 5.8% vs 8.4% in FTC were found in TC-BC patients vs matched TCnoBC patients (all P < .05). Comparing TC-BC patients with matched TCnoBC patients, hazard ratios (HRs) for mortality were 0.472 (95% CI, 0.370-0.601) in PTC and 0.656 (95% CI, 0.461-0.934) in FTC (all P < .05). Such HRs for mortality in PTC were 0.397 (95% CI, 0.268-0.588; P < .001) when TC occurred before BC vs 0.607 (95% CI, 0.445-0.827; P = .002) when BC occurred before TC.

Conclusion

This study demonstrates a robust protective effect of a history of BC on TC-specific patient survival, which has strong implications for more precise prognostication of TC in such patients.
TFAP2 paralogs regulate midfacial development in part through a conserved ALX genetic pathway
Authors: Nguyen Timothy T. , Mitchell Jennyfer M. , Kiel Michaela D. , Kenny Colin P. , Li Hong , Jones Kenneth L. , Cornell Robert A. , Williams Trevor J. , Nichols James T. , Van Otterloo Eric
Published: December 2023

Cranial neural crest development is governed by positional gene regulatory networks (GRNs). Fine-tuning of the GRN components underlies facial shape variation, yet how those networks in the midface are connected and activated remain poorly understood. Here, we show that concerted inactivation of Tfap2a and Tfap2b in the murine neural crest, even during the late migratory phase, results in a midfacial cleft and skeletal abnormalities. Bulk and single-cell RNA-seq profiling reveal that loss of both TFAP2 family members dysregulates numerous midface GRN components involved in midface morphogenesis, patterning and differentiation. Notably, Alx1, Alx3 and Alx4 (ALX) transcript levels are reduced, whereas ChIP-seq analyses suggest TFAP2 family members directly and positively regulate ALX gene expression. Tfap2a, Tfap2b and ALX co-expression in midfacial neural crest cells of both mouse and zebrafish implies conservation of this regulatory axis across vertebrates. Consistent with this notion, tfap2a zebrafish mutants present with abnormal alx3 expression patterns, Tfap2a binds ALX loci and tfap2a-alx3 genetic interactions are observed. Together, these data demonstrate TFAP2 paralogs regulate vertebrate midfacial development in part by activating expression of ALX transcription factor genes.
BRD4 binds to active cranial neural crest enhancers to regulate RUNX2 activity during osteoblast differentiation
Authors: Musa Rachel E. , Lester Kaitlyn L. , Quickstad Gabrielle , Vardabasso Sara , Shumate Trevor V. , Salcido Ryan T. , Ge Kai , Shpargel Karl B.
Published: December 2023

Cornelia de Lange syndrome (CdLS) is a congenital disorder featuring facial dysmorphism, postnatal growth deficits, cognitive disability and upper limb abnormalities. CdLS is genetically heterogeneous, with cases arising from mutation of BRD4, a bromodomain protein that binds and reads acetylated histones. In this study, we have modeled CdLS facial pathology through mouse neural crest cell (NCC)-specific mutation of BRD4 to characterize cellular and molecular function in craniofacial development. Mice with BRD4 NCC loss of function died at birth with severe facial hypoplasia, cleft palate, mid-facial clefting and exencephaly. Following migration, BRD4 mutant NCCs initiated RUNX2 expression for differentiation to osteoblast lineages but failed to induce downstream RUNX2 targets required for lineage commitment. BRD4 bound to active enhancers to regulate expression of osteogenic transcription factors and extracellular matrix components integral for bone formation. RUNX2 physically interacts with a C-terminal domain in the long isoform of BRD4 and can co-occupy osteogenic enhancers. This BRD4 association is required for RUNX2 recruitment and appropriate osteoblast differentiation. We conclude that BRD4 controls facial bone development through osteoblast enhancer regulation of the RUNX2 transcriptional program.
The Small Interactor of PKD2 protein promotes the assembly and ciliary entry of the Chlamydomonas PKD2–mastigoneme complexes
Authors: Das Poulomi , Mekonnen Betlehem , Alkhofash Rama , Ingle Abha V. , Workman E. Blair , Feather Alec , Zhang Gui , Chasen Nathan , Liu Peiwei , Lechtreck Karl F.
Published: December 2023

In Chlamydomonas, the channel polycystin 2 (PKD2) is primarily present in the distal region of cilia, where it is attached to the axoneme and mastigonemes, extracellular polymers of MST1. In a smaller proximal ciliary region that lacks mastigonemes, PKD2 is more mobile. We show that the PKD2 regions are established early during ciliogenesis and increase proportionally in length as cilia elongate. In chimeric zygotes, tagged PKD2 rapidly entered the proximal region of PKD2-deficient cilia, whereas the assembly of the distal region was hindered, suggesting that axonemal binding of PKD2 requires de novo assembly of cilia. We identified the protein Small Interactor of PKD2 (SIP), a PKD2-related, single-pass transmembrane protein, as part of the PKD2–mastigoneme complex. In sip mutants, stability and proteolytic processing of PKD2 in the cell body were reduced and PKD2–mastigoneme complexes were absent from the cilia. Like the pkd2 and mst1 mutants, sip mutant cells swam with reduced velocity. Cilia of the pkd2 mutant beat with an increased frequency but were less efficient in moving the cells, suggesting a structural role for the PKD2–SIP–mastigoneme complex in increasing the effective surface of Chlamydomonas cilia.
Η θρησκευτικότητα στο έργο του Erik Erikson
Authors: Αλκούρι Χάντερ
Published: December 2023

Η παρούσα διατριβή εξετάζει τή θρησκευτικότητα στη θεωρία τού E. Erikson. Από τή συστηματική διασκόπηση όλων των έργων τού Erikson (ποιοτική έρευνα), αξιοποιώντας επικουρικά και κάθε δευτερεύουσα πηγή, διαπιστώνεται: α) το προσωπικό και ερευνητικό ενδιαφέρον τού Erikson για τη θρησκεία και τις θρησκευτικές (νουμενικές) εμπειρίες, β) η συγκρητιστική (μικτή) ερμηνεία ―μαζί με ψυχαναλυτικά στοιχεία― της ιουδαιοχριστιανικής Παράδοσης, γ) η θετική ―τις περισσότερες φορές, όταν δηλ. δεν προδίδει τήν πίστη (εμπιστοσύνη) ή δεν περιπίπτει στην εκκοσμίκευση― εισφορά τής θρησκευτικότητας/πνευματικότητας στον ψυχικό, ηθικό, κοινωνικό, πολιτικό και πολιτισμικό βίο, και δ) ο σημαντικός ρόλος τής θρησκευτικότητας ―κυρίως μέσω τής «βασικής εμπιστοσύνης» και του τελετουργικού― στη διαμόρφωση, τόσο τής ψυχικής ταυτότητας του κάθε νέου ανθρώπου, όσο και στην ακεραιότητα των προσώπων τής τρίτης ηλικίας. Με τα ως άνω δεδομένα, η έρευνα αυτή απαντά στις αρχικές μας υποθέσεις, ότι ο Erikson: α) αποδέχεται ως προς τον ορισμό τής θρησκείας τήν πίστη σε μια «υπερβατική» πραγματικότητα, β) αναγνωρίζει ένα ηθικό σκοπό στη ζωή τού ανθρώπου, γ) συνομολογεί ότι ο άνθρωπος είναι δυνατόν αληθινά να βιώσει αυθεντικές νουμενικές εμπειρίες, δ) συμφωνεί ότι οι άνθρωποι υιοθετούν κάποιο πρότυπο στη ζωή τους, ε) επικροτεί τήν κοινωνική δομή και οργάνωση της θρησκείας, στ) εξαίρει τήν ψυχοπαιδαγωγική, ηθική, κοινωνικο-πολιτισμική και ψυχο-θεραπευτική αξία τού τελετουργικού, και ζ) τάσσεται υπέρ τής πανανθρώπινης ενότητας και ολοκληρίας.
Smart CAT
Authors: Γεωργιάδης Κωνσταντίνος
Published: December 2023

Τα εκπαιδευτικά παιχνίδια βρίσκονται στην πρώτη γραμμή της ψηφιακής εκπαίδευσης καθώς παρέχουν νέες ευκαιρίες για ενεργητική μάθηση και μπορούν να υποστηρίξουν αποτελεσματικά την ανάπτυξη σύνθετων ικανοτήτων που θεωρούνται κρίσιμες για τους ανθρώπους του 21ου αιώνα. Ωστόσο, η αξιολόγηση αυτών των ικανοτήτων με τυποποιημένα τεστ (π.χ. ερωτηματολόγια πολλαπλών επιλογών) είναι μια δύσκολη, αν όχι αδύνατη, εργασία. Συνεπώς, έχει μεγάλη σημασία η ανάπτυξη νέων εργαλείων αξιολόγησης που βασίζονται σε εκπαιδευτικές μεθοδολογίες αξιολόγησης. Σε αυτή τη διατριβή, χρησιμοποιούμε μια μεθοδολογία αξιολόγησης που ονομάζεται Stealth Assessment (SA) και αναπτύσσουμε ένα λογισμικό αξιολόγησης για εκπαιδευτικά παιχνίδια. Η SA είναι μια μεθοδολογία αξιολόγησης που χρησιμοποιεί (α) σχεδιασμό που βασίζεται σε στατιστικά μοντέλα που επιτρέπουν τη διαμόρφωση αξιολογήσεων σε διαφορετικές δομές ικανότητας και (β) τεχνολογία τεχνητής νοημοσύνης για την παραγωγή συμπερασμάτων σχετικά με τα επίπεδα γνώσης των μαθητών σε αντίστοιχες ικανότητες. Παρά το γεγονός ότι η SA αποτελεί αποδεδειγμένη μεθοδολογία, η εφαρμογή της είναι ακόμη πολύπλοκη, επίπονη και χρονοβόρα. Για την αντιμετώπιση αυτού του προβλήματος, αυτή η εργασία παρουσιάζει ένα πλαίσιο για την ανάπτυξη και εφαρμογή ενός λογισμικού που ονομάζεται Smart CAT (Smart Configurable Assessment Tool), το οποίο μειώνει τα εμπόδια της χρήσης της SA και διευκολύνει την ευρύτερη εφαρμογή της. Το Smart CAT επιτρέπει την ευέλικτη ρύθμιση της αξιολόγησης με βάση τα δεδομένα μέσω του οδηγού του λογισμικού (ο οποίος βελτιώνεται από αντίστοιχο GUI) και εκτελεί αυτόματα λειτουργίες τεχνητής νοημοσύνης στο back-end υποσύστημα του. Το Smart CAT εξετάστηκε για την ευρωστία του χρησιμοποιώντας μια προσέγγιση προσομοίωσης και διαπιστώθηκε ότι ήταν σε θέση να αντιμετωπίσει αποτελεσματικά ένα σύνολο διαφορετικών συνθηκών δοκιμής. Επίσης, όταν δοκιμάστηκε για εμπειρική εγκυρότητα με δεδομένα πραγματικού κόσμου από δύο ξεχωριστά σοβαρά παιχνίδια, βρέθηκε ότι η Smart CAT ήταν σε θέση να παρέχει ακριβείς και έγκυρες αξιολογήσεις, λαμβάνοντας υπόψη αξιόπιστα υλικά εισόδου (δεδομένα και στατιστικό μοντέλο). Επιπλέον, όταν εξετάστηκε για τη συνολική χρηστικότητα του, το Smart CAT βρέθηκε χρήσιμο, εύκολο στη χρήση, εύκολο στην εκμάθηση και ικανοποιητικό για τους τελικούς χρήστες του. Τα αποτελέσματα αυτής της εργασίας δείχνουν ότι το Smart CAT επιτρέπει αποτελεσματικά τη εφαρμογή της SA και μπορεί ήδη να εφαρμοστεί στην εκπαίδευση και την έρευνα. Ωστόσο, απαιτούνται μελλοντικές εργασίες για την αναβάθμιση της λειτουργικότητας και της χρηστικότητας του ώστε να μετατραπεί σε ένα ολοκληρωμένο προϊόν έτοιμο για την αγορά. Για να συνοψίσουμε, αυτή η εργασία παρέχει μια νέα προοπτική στις αξιολογήσεις που βασίζονται σε δεδομένα απο εκπαιδευτικά παιχνίδια και συμβάλλει ουσιαστικά στην πρακτικότητα τους συνδυάζοντας εκπαιδευτικές μεθόδους και τεχνολογία αιχμής. Κατά συνέπεια, προσθέτει στην προώθηση της εκπαιδευτικής αξίας των εκπαιδευτικών παιγνίων και ως εκ τούτου προωθεί τη χρήση τους στην επικρατούσα εκπαίδευση.
Temperature mapping model of cables considering the coupling of electromagnetic and thermal field
Authors: Hua Xu , Wang Li , Yang Shanshui , Zhang Shaojie
Published: December 2023

Background During cable operation, its internal temperature reflects the actual working condition of the cable. Once overload occurs, its conductor temperature will rise rapidly. Under high temperature conditions, the insulation material is very prone to breakdown accidents, which seriously threatens the safety of the power system. The traditional method of calculating the internal temperature of cables suffers from low accuracy and time-consuming problems. Methods To quickly and accurately calculate the cable’s internal temperature, a cable temperature mapping model is proposed with the coupling of electromagnetic and thermal field taken into consideration. Firstly, a finite element model is formulated based on the cable structure and material parameters. Secondly, the coupling between electromagnetic and thermal field is analyzed, and multiple coupling calculations are performed iteratively according to the operating conditions. Finally, the mapping between temperature and current is established using the exponential function. The cable surface temperatures under five operating conditions are measured online and compared with the calculated results of the temperature mapping model. Results Under five operating conditions, the average absolute error of the proposed model is 0.628 °C, and the average calculation time is 0.005 s. The average absolute error of the traditional model is 0.635 °C, and the average calculation time is 201.86 s. Conclusions The temperature mapping model developed in this paper can quickly and accurately calculate the cable’s internal temperature and forms an important part of the digital twin model of the cable.
Performative Print: A Printing Anomaly in The Coblers Prophesie
Authors: Eastwood Frances
Published: December 2023

Signature F2r of The Coblers Prophesie (1594) by Robert Wilson brings the reader to an abrupt halt – it contains a page-stopping stage direction in gargantuan type. This article examines whether the outsized print was a botched job by the printer Thomas Scarlet or an intentional ploy to engage the reader. The anomaly suggests that printers exercised agency in textual production and collaborated in the creative impact of printed material. Play-texts exist at the intersection of print and performance, and this case study poses larger questions about the complex relationship between the theatre and the printing house in early modern England.
Editorial
Authors: Kelly Erin E.
Published: December 2023

An overview of news about Early Theatre, including announcements of new book review co-editors and two new assistant editors.
Hope Against Hope: Abraham Cowley and the Metaphysics of Poetry
Authors: Tregear Ted
Published: December 2023

Abstract: In a poem to his friend Richard Crashaw, Abraham Cowley offered a critique of hope in ostentatiously metaphysical terms. He thus initiated an exchange, "On Hope," whose philosophical tenor offers new insights on the dialectic between poetry and metaphysics in seventeenth-century England. Following Cowley's lead, this essay explores the principle of hope in metaphysical poetry. It reads his poem against the metaphysical tradition, from Aristotle to Theodor Adorno, to clarify its engagement with the Aristotelian notion of potentiality. And it shows how, even in writing against hope, Cowley's poetry can think, and hope, in ways that metaphysics cannot.
Exclusive Interiorities: Forgotten Novels and the Walter Scott Importance Trope
Authors: Kozaczka Adam
Published: December 2023

Abstract: This paper studies how and why Walter Scott's Waverley Novels remain outside of the canon despite a burgeoning Scott studies subfield on the rise in the literary studies community. The article identifies the disconnect between Scott scholarship and Scott pedagogy as a way into a larger set of problems involving how late nineteenth-century and modernist aesthetics set enduring standards for "good writing." If we take Scott's de-canonization as a test case, we gain insight into how literary interiority—itself a carefully disguised construct—obfuscates and displaces older standards of writerly quality and learn how to find new, twenty-first-century applications for now forgotten novels.
Dialect, Victorian Poetry, and the Voices of Print
Authors: Dubois Martin
Published: December 2023

Abstract: This essay addresses the status of voice and print in dialect poetry through a study of its mid-nineteenth-century heyday in British literature. Dialect poems are often imagined to render oral forms into print, so that their writtenness appears secondary and belated. This essay argues differently, proposing that the Victorian poets it considers—William Barnes, Janet Hamilton, and Ralph Ditchfield—instead develop original forms of expression from the interaction of speech and text. Rather than needing to be liberated from print by voice, Victorian dialect poems play on the difficulty of their being spoken, thriving on the difference between types of language and varieties of audience.
Assessing the inferential strength of epistemic must
Authors: Ricciardi Giuseppe , Ryskin Rachel , Gibson Edward
Published: December 2023

Abstract: This article presents four experiments that investigate the meaning of English and Italian statements containing the epistemic necessity auxiliary verb must/dovere , a topic of long-standing debate in the philosophical and linguistics literature. Our findings show that the endorsement of such statements in a given scenario depends on the participants’ subjective assessment about whether they are convinced that the conclusion suggested by the scenario is true, independently from their objective assessment of the conclusion’s likelihood. We interpret these findings as suggesting that English and Italian speakers use epistemic necessity verbs to communicate neither conclusions judged to be necessary (contrary to the prediction of the standard modal logical view) nor conclusions judged to be highly probable (contrary to the prediction of recent analyses using probabilistic models) but conclusions whose truth they believe in (as predicted by the analysis of epistemic must as an inferential evidential). We suggest that this evidential meaning of epistemic must/dovere might have arisen in everyday conversation from a reiterated hyperbolic use of the words with their original meaning as epistemic necessity verbs.
Listener beliefs and perceptual learning: Differences between device and human guises
Authors: Zellou Georgia , Cohn Michelle , Pycha Anne
Published: December 2023

Abstract: Listeners have a remarkable ability to adapt to novel speech patterns, such as a new accent or an idiosyncratic pronunciation. In almost all of the previous studies examining this phenomenon, the participating listeners had reason to believe that the speech signal was produced by a human being. However, people are increasingly interacting with voice-activated artificially intelligent (voice-AI) devices that produce speech using text-to-speech (TTS) synthesis. Will listeners also adapt to novel speech input when they believe it is produced by a device? Across three experiments, we investigate this question by exposing American English listeners to shifted pronunciations accompanied by either a ‘human’ or a ‘device’ guise and testing how this exposure affects their subsequent categorization of vowels. Our results show that listeners exhibit perceptual learning even when they believe the speaker is a device. Furthermore, listeners generalize these adjustments to new talkers, and do so particularly strongly when they believe that both old and new talkers are devices. These results have implications for models of speech perception, theories of human-computer interaction, and the interface between social cognition and linguistic theory.
SOUTHEAST ASIA AND WORLD POLITICS
Authors: Pepinsky Thomas B.
Published: December 2023

This essay reviews research on Southeast Asia that has appeared in World Politics , with a
focus on articles published since the mid-1970s. Drawing on debates about the nature
of the region that are commonly found within the field of Southeast Asian area studies,
the essay identifies two axes along which Southeast Asian politics research varies: in its
emphasis on the connectedness versus autonomy of the region, and in its focus on individual country experiences versus common regional dynamics. Characterizing the Southeast Asia–focused research in World Politics in this way helps us to understand more generally the relationship between area studies and political science over the past fifty years.
Improved optical performance of CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite-germanium heterostructure photodetectors assisted by a periodic nanosphere array
Authors: Chen Yangxi , Wang Jing , Liu Weina , Li Zhichao , Du Chaoling
Published: December 2023

The methylammonium lead iodide (CH3NH3PbI3)-germanium (Ge) heterojunction with a layer of periodic nanospheres was numerically studied to achieve improved performance over broadband from 300 nm to 1600 nm by the 3D finite element method (FEM). Under AM 1.5 g illumination, the total absorbed power increased 14% in heterojunction photodetectors assisted by an Al2O3 antireflection (AR) array, after optimizing the thickness of perovskite and Ge, as well as the radius, period and material type (metal or dielectric permittivity) of nanosphere array by genetic algorithm, with reference to a corresponding device without nanospheres. The enhanced optical properties were further elaborated and demonstrated by comparatively analyzing broadband absorptance, electric field distributions, absorbed power distributions and the optical generation rate of charge carriers in the two photodetector models. The proposed perovskite-Ge heterojunction with spheres shows great promise for optoelectronic devices.
Optical single-sideband (OSSB) Raman laser based on atomic filter for atom gravimeters
Authors: Cong Yi , Zhao Yang , Zhuang Wei , Chen Jingbiao , Shi Tian , Qin Xiaomin
Published: December 2023

Phase-modulator-generated Raman laser is widely used in atom gravimeters to simplify system and improve robustness. However, the induced additional sidebands (ASBs) lead to systematic errors in gravity measurement. This work presents a novel method to generate optical single-sideband (OSSB) Raman laser based on Faraday anomalous dispersion atomic filter (FADOF). The experimental result indicates that it can reduce the additional sidebands to lower than -50 dB, and the phase shift caused by ASBs is demonstrated to be effectively suppressed from 358.8 mrad to 2.2 mrad. Furthermore, this system has already applied on atom gravimeter to achieve primary gravity measurement. It shows that FADOF-based Raman laser is a new scheme for a compact atom absolute gravimeter.
Quantitative Analysis of NKX2-3 Expression in Human Colon: An Immunohistochemical Study
Authors: Gábris Fanni , Kajtár Béla , Kellermayer Zoltán , Balogh Péter
Published: December 2023

In mice, Nkx2-3 homeodomain transcription factor defines the vascular specification of secondary and tertiary lymphoid tissues of the intestines. In human studies, polymorphisms in NKX2-3 have been identified as a susceptibility factor in inflammatory bowel diseases, whereas in mice, its absence is associated with protection against experimental colitis and enhanced intestinal epithelial proliferation. Here, we investigated the expression of NKX2-3 in normal, polyp, and adenocarcinoma human colon samples using immunohistochemistry and quantitative morphometry, correlating its expression with endothelial and mesenchymal stromal markers. Our results revealed that the expression of NKX2-3 is regionally confined to the lamina propria and lamina muscularis mucosae, and its production is restricted mostly to endothelial cells and smooth muscle cells with variable co-expression of CD34, alpha smooth muscle antigen (αSMA), and vascular adhesion protein-1 (VAP-1). The frequency of NKX2-3-positive cells and intensity of expression correlated inversely with aging. Furthermore, in most colorectal carcinoma samples, we observed a significant reduction of NKX2-3 expression. These findings indicate that the NKX2-3 transcription factor is produced by both endothelial and non-endothelial tissue constituents in the colon, and its expression changes during aging and in colorectal malignancies. (J Histochem Cytochem XX: XXX–XXX, XXXX)
Inflammatory cytokines and a diverse cervicovaginal microbiota associate with cervical dysplasia in a cohort of Hispanics living in Puerto Rico
Authors: Tosado-Rodríguez Eduardo , Mendez Loyda B. , Espino Ana M. , Dorta-Estremera Stephanie , Aquino Edna E. , Romaguera Josefina , Godoy-Vitorino Filipa
Published: December 2023

Cervical cancer (CC) is women’s fourth most common cancer worldwide. A worrying increase in CC rates in Hispanics suggests that besides Human papillomavirus infections, there may be other cofactors included in the epithelial microenvironment that could play a role in promoting the disease. We hypothesized that the cervical microbiome and the epithelial microenvironment favoring inflammation is conducive to disease progression in a group of Hispanics attending gynecology clinics in Puerto Rico. Few studies have focused on the joint microbiota and cytokine profile response in Hispanics outside the US, especially regarding the development of precancerous lesions. We aimed to investigate the relationship between the cervicovaginal microbiome and inflammation in Hispanic women living in PR while considering cervical dysplasia and HPV genotype risk. Cervical samples collected from 91 participants coming to gynecology clinics in San Juan, underwent 16S rRNA genes (V4 region) profiling, and cytokines were measured using Luminex MAGPIX technology. Cytokines were grouped as inflammatory (IL-1β, TNFα, IFNγ, IL-6), anti-inflammatory (IL- 4, IL-10, TGFβ1), and traffic-associated (IL-8, MIP1a, MCP1, IP10). They were related to microbes via an inflammation scoring index based on the quartile and tercile distribution of the cytokine’s concentration. We found significant differences in the diversity and composition of the microbiota according to HPV type according to carcinogenic risk, cervical disease, and cytokine abundance. Community State Types (CSTs) represents a profile of microbial communities observed within the vaginal microbiome ecological niche, and Lactobacillus-depleted CST IV had ~ 90% dominance in participants with high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions and high-risk HPV. The increasing concentration of pro-inflammatory cytokines was associated with a decrease in L. crispatus. In contrast, dysbiosis-associated bacteria such as Gardnerella, Prevotella, Atopobium concomitantly increased with pro-inflammatory cytokines. Our study highlights that the cervical microbiota of Hispanics living in Puerto Rico is composed mostly of diverse CST profiles with decreased Lactobacillus and is associated with a higher pro-inflammatory environment. The joint host-microbe interaction analyses via cytokine and microbiota profiling have very good translational potential.
The contact hypothesis and the virtual revolution: Does face-to-face interaction remain central to improving intergroup relations?
Authors: Bond Julian , Dixon John , Tredoux Colin , Andreouli Eleni
Published: December 2023

Research on the contact hypothesis has traditionally prioritized the role of positive, direct, face-to-face interactions in shaping intergroup prejudices, but it has recently expanded to study indirect vicarious, negative, and online contact experiences. In the majority of studies though, there has been little direct comparison of the relationship between these different forms of contact and prejudice. The present research set out to compare the amount and effects of negative, online, and vicarious contact in the context of positive, face-to-face and direct contact in two studies. Study 1 comprised a national cross-sectional survey of relations between White and Black UK residents (n = 1014), and Study 2 comprised a national longitudinal survey of relations between Catholic and Protestant residents of Northern Ireland (n = 1030). The results of both studies indicated that positive face-to-face contact occurred more frequently and had a comparatively stronger relationship with prejudice than other forms of contact. However, they also indicated the effects of online, negative and vicarious forms of contact existed independently of those of direct, positive face-to-face contact. Moreover, online negative contact generally had a stronger relationship to prejudice than negative contact experienced face-to-face. Exploratory mediation analyses suggested the affective pathways from contact to prejudice may vary for different forms of contact.
Accuracy of artificial intelligence CT quantification in predicting COVID-19 subjects’ prognosis
Authors: Arian Arvin , Mehrabi Nejad Mohammad-Mehdi , Zoorpaikar Mostafa , Hasanzadeh Navid , Sotoudeh-Paima Saman , Kolahi Shahriar , Gity Masoumeh , Soltanian-Zadeh Hamid
Published: December 2023

Background

Artificial intelligence (AI)-aided analysis of chest CT expedites the quantification of abnormalities and may facilitate the diagnosis and assessment of the prognosis of subjects with COVID-19.

Objectives

This study investigates the performance of an AI-aided quantification model in predicting the clinical outcomes of hospitalized subjects with COVID-19 and compares it with radiologists’ performance.

Subjects and methods

A total of 90 subjects with COVID-19 (men, n = 59 [65.6%]; age, 52.9±16.7 years) were recruited in this cross-sectional study. Quantification of the total and compromised lung parenchyma was performed by two expert radiologists using a volumetric image analysis software and compared against an AI-assisted package consisting of a modified U-Net model for segmenting COVID-19 lesions and an off-the-shelf U-Net model augmented with COVID-19 data for segmenting lung volume. The fraction of compromised lung parenchyma (%CL) was calculated. Based on clinical results, the subjects were divided into two categories: critical (n = 45) and noncritical (n = 45). All admission data were compared between the two groups.

Results

There was an excellent agreement between the radiologist-obtained and AI-assisted measurements (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.88, P < 0.001). Both the AI-assisted and radiologist-obtained %CLs were significantly higher in the critical subjects (P = 0.009 and 0.02, respectively) than in the noncritical subjects. In the multivariate logistic regression analysis to distinguish the critical subjects, an AI-assisted %CL ≥35% (odds ratio [OR] = 17.0), oxygen saturation level of <88% (OR = 33.6), immunocompromised condition (OR = 8.1), and other comorbidities (OR = 15.2) independently remained as significant variables in the models. Our proposed model obtained an accuracy of 83.9%, a sensitivity of 79.1%, and a specificity of 88.6% in predicting critical outcomes.

Conclusions

AI-assisted measurements are similar to quantitative radiologist-obtained measurements in determining lung involvement in COVID-19 subjects.
Rural health care worker wellness during COVID-19: Compassion fatigue, compassion satisfaction & utilization of wellness resources
Authors: Bailey Bridget C. , Cox Stephanie , Terris Lisa , van Oppen Dorothy , Howsare Janie , Berry James H. , Winstanley Erin L.
Published: December 2023

Objective

The goal of this study was to identify factors associated with compassion fatigue (CF) and compassion satisfaction (CS) among rural health care workers (HCWs) during the COVID-19 pandemic. The secondary purpose was to assess utilization of wellness resources and preferences for new resources.

Methods

A survey was distributed (October-December 2020) and completed by faculty, clinicians and staff (n = 406) at a rural university. Measures included a modified version of the Professional Quality of Life Scale (PROQOL-21), the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 and the Brief Resilience Coping Scale. Respondents reported their use of wellness resources and their preferences for new resources.

Results

The mean CF score was 21.1, the mean CS score was 26.8 and 42.0% screened positive for depression or anxiety. Few of the existing wellness resources were utilized and respondents’ preferences for new wellness resources included time off (70.7%), onsite food trucks (43.0%) and support animals (36.5%). Younger age, depression and anxiety were associated with higher CF. Older age, better mental health and resilience were associated with higher CS.

Conclusions

Rural HCWs have high CF, yet few utilize wellness resources. Rural health care organizations may foster wellness by providing time off for self-care, expanding mental health services and building resilience.
A comparative analysis of converters of tabular data into image for the classification of Arboviruses using Convolutional Neural Networks
Authors: Medeiros Neto Leonides , Rogerio da Silva Neto Sebastião , Endo Patricia Takako
Published: December 2023

Tabular data is commonly used in business and literature and can be analyzed using tree-based Machine Learning (ML) algorithms to extract meaningful information. Deep Learning (DL) excels in data such as image, sound, and text, but it is less frequently utilized with tabular data. However, it is possible to use tools to convert tabular data into images for use with Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) which are powerful DL models for image classification. The goal of this work is to compare the performance of converters for tabular data into images, select the best one, optimize a CNN using random search, and compare it with an optimized ML algorithm, the XGBoost. Results show that even a basic CNN, with only 1 convolutional layer, can reach comparable metrics to the XGBoost, which was trained on the original tabular data and optimized with grid search and feature selection. However, further optimization of the CNN with random search did not significantly improve its performance.
Rapid detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis using recombinase polymerase amplification: A pilot study
Authors: Sciaudone Michael , Carpena Renzo , Calderón Maritza , Sheen Patricia , Zimic Mirko , Coronel Jorge , Gilman Robert H. , Bowman Natalie M.
Published: December 2023

Tuberculosis remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Tuberculosis treatment and control efforts are hindered by the difficulty in making the diagnosis, as currently available diagnostic tests are too slow, too expensive, or not sufficiently sensitive. Recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) is a novel technique that allows for the amplification of DNA rapidly, at constant temperature, and with minimal expense. We calculated and compared the limit of detection, sensitivity, and specificity of two RPA-based assays for the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis, using two sets of published primers. We also calculated and compared the assays’ limits of detection and compared their performance using two different DNA extraction methods prior to amplification (a commercially available DNA extraction kit vs. the chelex method). The RPA-lateral flow assay had a limit of detection of 5 fg/μL of DNA, a sensitivity of 53.2%, and a specificity of 93.3%, while the real time-RPA assay had a limit of detection of 25 fg/μL of DNA, a sensitivity of 85.1%, and a specificity of 93.3%. There was no difference in assay performance when DNA extraction was carried out using the commercial kit vs. the chelex method. The real-time RPA assay has adequate sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis and could be a viable diagnostic tool in resource-limited settings, but the lateral flow assay did not perform as well, perhaps due to the fact we used stored sputum specimens from a biorepository. More work is needed to optimize the RPA-lateral flow assay, to get a more accurate estimate of its specificity and sensitivity using prospectively collected specimens, and to develop both assays into point-of-care tests that can be easily deployed in the field.
A multi-view convolutional neural network method combining attention mechanism for diagnosing autism spectrum disorder
Authors: Wang Mingzhi , Ma Zhiqiang , Wang Yongjie , Liu Jing , Guo Jifeng
Published: December 2023

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental condition whose current psychiatric diagnostic process is subjective and behavior-based. In contrast, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) can objectively measure brain activity and is useful for identifying brain disorders. However, the ASD diagnostic models employed to date have not reached satisfactory levels of accuracy. This study proposes the use of MAACNN, a method that utilizes multi-view convolutional neural networks (CNNs) in conjunction with attention mechanisms for identifying ASD in multi-scale fMRI. The proposed algorithm effectively combines unsupervised and supervised learning. In the initial stage, we employ stacked denoising autoencoders, an unsupervised learning method for feature extraction, which provides different nodes to adapt to multi-scale data. In the subsequent stage, we perform supervised learning by employing multi-view CNNs for classification and obtain the final results. Finally, multi-scale data fusion is achieved by using the attention fusion mechanism. The ABIDE dataset is used to evaluate the model we proposed., and the experimental results show that MAACNN achieves superior performance with 75.12% accuracy and 0.79 AUC on ABIDE-I, and 72.88% accuracy and 0.76 AUC on ABIDE-II. The proposed method significantly contributes to the clinical diagnosis of ASD.
HBV prevalence in Sub-continental countries: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Hogan Sam , Page Andrew , Dixit Sameer , McBride Kate A.
Published: December 2023

Background

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a major source of disease burden worldwide, with an estimated 296 million individuals living with infections worldwide. Although vaccine programs exist to control infections, certain sub-populations around the world continue to have very high prevalence of HBV infection.

Methods

A systematic search of studies of HBV published after 2010 was conducted for India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bhutan. Each paper was independently screened for risk of bias and inclusion. Data were extracted from included studies before being analysed to estimate pooled prevalence, and to conduct sub-group analyses. Random-effects models were used for estimating summary prevalence due to a high level of heterogeneity between studies, and funnel plots were combined with Egger’s test to assess publication bias. Meta-regression was conducted to investigate sources of between-study heterogeneity.

Results

The pooled prevalence of HBV across all studies was 3% (95% CI 0.02, 0.05). For countries with multiple studies, the pooled prevalence in India was 3% (95% CI 0.02, 0.04), in Pakistan 6% (95% CI 0.03, 0.09), in Bangladesh 5% (95% CI of 0.02, 0.12), and in Nepal 1% (95% CI 0.00, 0.08). There was some evidence of publication bias, and a high level of heterogeneity across studies. Risk of bias analysis found most studies to be of fair or moderate quality.

Conclusions

The prevalence of HBV among countries in the sub-continent was higher than the global average, but was not as high as some other regions. Countries with greater numbers of displaced persons had higher prevalence of HBV, with a wide range of prevalence between subpopulations likely reflecting differential uptake, and implementation, of vaccination programs.
Sisworo Gautama Putra’s Primitives and the paradox of savagery
Authors: Kelly David
Published: December 2023

This article discusses the lone outlier associated with the cannibal boom of European exploitation films in the 1970s and 1980s – with the main point of diversion being that Sisworo Gautama Putra’s film is an Indonesian production rather than the typical Italian fare. Being an Asian film that emulates the traditionally European style of cannibal film, Primitives opens a larger discussion about the role of the theoretical savage and the implications thereof, put in place by ghosts of imperialism and cinematic mimicry. The author explores these concepts with psychoanalytic input, opting to unpack the rationality behind an Indonesian film following the same imperialist notions utilized by the preceding Italian directors, which ultimately results in a subdivision of the artificial–natural dichotomy: the meta-natural.
How Do We Look? Resisting Visual Biopolitics, Fatimah Tobing Rony (2022)
Authors: Byabartta Debarati
Published: December 2023

Review of: How Do We Look? Resisting Visual Biopolitics, Fatimah Tobing Rony (2022)

Durham: Duke University Press, 248 pp.,

ISBN 978-1-47801-460-7, p/bk, $26.95

ISBN 978-1-47801-367-9, h/bk, $102.95

ISBN 978-1-47802-190-2, e-book, $26.95
NEM AMANHECER, NEM ANOITECER... UMA BNCC CREPUSCULAR?
Authors: Martins Jander Fernandes , Wingert Vitória Duarte
Published: December 2023

O presente texto é fruto da análise do documento Base Nacional Comum Curricular (BNCC), a qual vigora desde meados de 2018, o qual norteia o fazer-escolar brasileiro. Desde então, há uma profusão de estudos que a tomam como objeto de análises. Tomou-se por objeto de análise, desta Documentação – o capítulo Ensino Fundamental I, compreendendo a seriação entre 1º-5º ano da Educação Básica. Metodologicamente, aplicou-se os protocolos analíticos pautados na Teoria Geral do Imaginário. Resultante desse empreendimento, evidenciou-se ser uma Documentação estruturada, verbalmente, em ideário, fundamentos pedagógicos, áreas, unidades temáticas e componentes curriculares, diurnos. Em contrapartida, a justificativa e seus objetivos apresentam uma estrutura verbal noturna. Portanto, sendo essa tensão o cerne das incongruências em torno de sua promulgação, implantação e implementação. Por fim, nossa proposta analítica se faz inaugural, uma vez que os estudos acerca da BNCC, interdisciplinares, à luz da teoria durandiana, carecem de mais discussões e reflexões.
Uses and impacts of the GEM research for entrepreneurship
Authors: Lopes Rose Mary Almeida , Lima Edmilson de Oliveira , Greco Simara Maria de Souza Silveira , Gimenez Fernando Antonio Prado , Bedê Marco Aurélio
Published: December 2023

Objectives: (1) to describe the research conducted by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), (2) to map its use in Brazilian publications, and (3) to exemplify its application in public policies and other forms of support for entrepreneurship in different countries. Methodology: It is a bibliographic survey of Brazilian studies supplemented by examples of GEM use in other countries. Main findings: Some types of data and results usage from GEM prevail: citations in the theoretical framework or in the introduction/contextualization of published studies; inclusion in the final list of references, but not in the main text; and indirect reference through the citation of previous studies that used GEM. The finding of Gimenez and Inácio Júnior (2017) of a lower presence of GEM data usage for specific studies in the surveyed articles was replicated. Relevance/originality: The historical background of GEM implementation in Brazil is presented, along with the update of results in Brazilian entrepreneurship studies and examples of GEM's impact on the formulation of actions and public policies in various countries. Theoretical-methodological contributions: The scarcity of more sophisticated uses of GEM's database in Brazilian studies is indicated. Therefore, it is recommended to explore its longitudinal data and to increase the number of studies exploring GEM in addressing specific entrepreneurship topics, as well as to expand the use of GEM data to guide the formulation and monitoring of public policies.
Seven faces of victimhood
Authors: Roth Maria , Laszlo Eva
Published: December 2023

Trafficking in human beings is one of the phenomena of our society with serious consequences which, understandably, gives rise to urgent prevention and treatment measures. The main goal of this study is to contribute to a better understanding of the process of victimization. During the analysis of the interview with 36 victims1 we aim to map the vulnerability factors that act as markers for recruiters using different recruitment strategies, emphasis is also placed on the dynamics and environmental characteristics of the relationship between victim and offender. The study has been conducted in Romania, a country which in the last 20 years has been one of the major suppliers to the European sex trafficking (EUROSTAT, 2015). In the analysis, carried out within the theoretical framework of victimology, vulnerability was assessed on the basis of 3 main categories of analysis (the motivated trafficker, the absence of capable guardians and the victim’s attractiveness) and the dynamic interaction between them. The results outline seven clusters of victims: 1. victims in need; 2. nearby victims; 3. runaways from domestic violence; 4. social innovators; 5. abandoned, lost and displaced victims; 6. rebels; 7. the helpers (the risky altruists). The conclusion includes suggestions for intervention and prevention of victimisation.
“DEER” STONE FROM TUVA: MODERN POSSIBILITIES OF OBTAINING GRAPHIC DRAWINGS
Authors:   Altai State University, A. TISHKIN , S. BONDARENKO , A. Tishkin (J)
Published: December 2023

The article demonstrates the experience of obtaining graphic images based on a digital copy of the “deer” stone exhibited in the stelary of one of the branches of the National Museum of the Tyva Republic (Kyzyl), where a large collection of ancient stone sculptures. This work reflects the search for optimal techniques of automatic computer drawing based on photogrammetry data. “Deer” stones with clearly distinguishable images no longer cause certain difficulties for their comprehensive presentation and publication, including the demonstration of the sweep. The statues with different reliefs and multiple images require a more sophisticated algorithm for the application of available and new digital technologies. The results of such developments will be presented in other publications.
In vitro and In silico Studies of Kayu Raja (Cassia fistula L.) Leaves Extract as Potential Antifungal Agent Against Candida albicans
Authors: Christian Tan David , Kasiyati Kasiyati , Yuliani Tri , Saputri Ariyanti , Priyoatmojo Dadang , Angelina Marissa
Published: December 2023

Candida albicans is one of the most common fungal species causing opportunistic infections, such as candidiasis. Candida albicans has the ability to produce and secrete hydrolytic enzymes, namely secrete aspartate protease (SAP). SAP3 is a virulence factor for mucosal or disseminated infections. Cassia fistula leaves have bioactive compounds that can be used as antimicrobial agents, such as hyperoside, delphin, epicatechin, isoquercitrin, and astragalin. This study aims to determine the potential of bioactive compounds in Cassia fistula L. as an antifungal by in silico method molecular docking and Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) analysis with FE-SEM test for microscopical visual results. The results showed that the delphin compound had the best binding energy of -7.73 and an inhibition constant of 2.17 M, almost equivalent to ketoconazole as a positive control. MIC test of ethanol and ethyl acetate extracts of Cassia fistula leaves resulted in 100 ppm in the ethanol extract and 50 ppm in the ethyl acetate fraction. This result was supported by FE-SEM results, which showed that the ethanol extract at 100 ppm could damage the structure of Candida albicans colony.
Zastúpenie morálnych prvkov v rozprávkach pre deti
Authors: Belešová Mária
Published: December 2023

Rozprávky majú v živote detí nezastupiteľnú hodnotu. Na celom svete slúžia mnohým deťom ako príbehy, ktoré ich vtiahnu do magického sveta zázrakov, nadprirodzených javov, pozoruhodných bytostí a nečakaných rozuzlení. Témy rozprávok zobrazujú často dodnes platné všeobecné pravdy a hodnoty ľudí a kultúr, z ktorých pochádzajú. Väčšina tém sa týka morálnych hodnôt a materiálnych ziskov, víťazstva dobra nad zlom a prevládnutím spravodlivosti. Poukazujú na to, že inteligencia a pokora sú dôležitejšie než fyzická sila, a že dobrosrdečnosť a tvrdá práca bývajú odmenené. Cieľom príspevku je poukázať na základné zastúpenie morálnych prvkov v rozprávkach pre deti. Stručne je priblížená charakteristika niektorých rozprávok s poukázaním na ich morálne posolstvo. Výskumnú časť tvorilo skupinové interview s deťmi predškolského veku, ktoré sa vyjadrovali k rozprávke Vlk a sedem kozliatok, v ktorej posudzovali a zhodnocovali prvky dobra a zla. Zistili sme, že deti predškolského veku v tejto rozprávke dokážu správne identifikovať dobro a jeho prejavy, rovnako správne vedia zhodnotiť zlo a jeho prejavy.