bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Chronic IL-1-induced DNA double-strand break response in hippocampal neurons drives cognitive deficits
Authors: Marcy Belloy , Schmitt Benjamin A. M. , Marty Florent H. , Charlotte Paut , Emilie Bassot-Parra , Amel Aïda , Marine Alis , Romain Ecalard , Raphaël Boursereau , Daniel Gonzalez-Dunia , Nicolas Blanchard , Elsa Suberbielle
Published: February 2024

Chronic inflammation characterized by increased cytokine levels, such as interleukin-1 (IL-1), accompanies many neurological diseases but little is known about IL-1 contribution to cognitive impairment and its interplay with epigenetic processes, including the DNA double-strand break (DSB) response.

Here, we demonstrate that H2A.X-dependent DSB signaling in hippocampal neurons drives cognitive deficits upon chronically elevated IL-1. Mice persistently and latently infected withToxoplasma gondiidisplay impaired spatial memory consolidation along with elevated IL-1β in the hippocampus. We find that neuronal IL-1 signaling in excitatory neurons is required for the spatial memory deficits caused byT. gondiiinfection and by chronic systemic infusion of IL-1β. In both cases, the deficit in spatial memory was prevented by the abrogation of neuronal H2A.X-dependent signaling.

Our results highlight the instrumental role of cytokine-induced DSB-dependent signaling in spatial memory defects. This novel pathological mechanism in inflammation control of neuronal function may extend to several neurological diseases.
Automated neuropil segmentation of fluorescent images for Drosophila brains
Authors: Hsu Kai-Yi , Shih Chi-Tin , Chen Nan-Yow , Lo Chung-Chuan
Published: February 2024

The brain atlas, which provides information about the distribution of genes, proteins, neurons, or anatomical regions in the brain, plays a crucial role in contemporary neuroscience research. To analyze the spatial distribution of those substances based on images from different brain samples, we often need to warp and register individual brain images to a standard brain template. However, the process of warping and registration often leads to spatial errors, thereby severely reducing the accuracy of the analysis. To address this issue, we develop an automated method for segmenting neuropils in theDrosophilabrain using fluorescence images from theFlyCircuitdatabase. This technique allows future brain atlas studies to be conducted accurately at the individual level without warping and aligning to a standard brain template.

Our method, LYNSU (Locating by YOLO and Segmenting by U-Net), consists of two stages. In the first stage, we use the YOLOv7 model to quickly locate neuropils and rapidly extract small-scale 3D images as input for the second stage model. This stage achieves a 99.4% accuracy rate in neuropil localization. In the second stage, we employ the 3D U-Net model to segment neuropils. LYNSU can achieve high accuracy in segmentation using a small training set consisting of images from merely 16 brains. We demonstrate LYNSU on six distinct neuropils or structure, achieving a high segmentation accuracy, which was comparable to professional manual annotations with a 3D Intersection-over-Union(IoU) reaching up to 0.869.

Most notably, our method takes only about 7 seconds to segment a neuropil while achieving a similar level of performance as the human annotators. The results indicate the potential of the proposed method in high-throughput connectomics construction forDrosophilabrain optical imaging.
Neonatal Amygdala Mean Diffusivity: A Potential Predictor of Emotional Face Perception
Authors: Hashempour Niloofar , Tuulari Jetro J. , Merisaari Harri , Lewis John D. , Häikiö Tuomo , Scheinin Noora M. , Nolvi Saara , Korja Riikka , Karlsson Linnea , Karlsson Hasse , Kataja Eeva-Leena
Published: February 2024

The ability to differentiate between different facial expressions is an important part of human social and emotional development that begins in infancy. Studies have shown that within the first year of life, infants develop a distinctive attentional bias towards fearful facial expressions. Investigations into the neural basis for this bias have highlighted the significance of the amygdala. The amygdala’s role in directing attention towards fearful facial expressions underscores its importance in early emotional development, significantly influencing how infants interpret and react to facial expressions. To date, no studies have been conducted to investigate the associations between the amygdala microstructure and infants’ perception of emotional faces. This study aimed to elucidate this relationship while also investigating whether this association is sex specific. We measured the amygdala microstructural properties using diffusion tensor imaging mean diffusivity (MD) measurements in 40 healthy infants aged 2 to 5 weeks. Eye tracking was used to assess attention disengagement from fearful vs. non-fearful (happy and neutral) facial expressions as well as scrambled non-face control picture at 8 months. Generally, infants were age-typically less likely to disengage from fearful faces than from non-fearful faces towards salient distractors. A significant negative association was observed between the right amygdala MD measures and disengagement probability from fearful faces in the overall sample. Moreover, there was a positive association between the bilateral amygdala MD measures and the disengagement probability from scrambled non-face control picture in girls. These results indicate that the amygdala MD is associated with attention disengagement processes already in infancy, both in fear processing and in non-emotional conditions. Specifically, these findings highlight the role of the amygdala microstructure in modulating attentional processes, which may have implications for emotional regulation and susceptibility to emotional dysregulation later in life.
Psilocybin-enhanced fear extinction linked to bidirectional modulation of cortical ensembles
Authors: Rogers Sophie A. , Heller Elizabeth A. , Corder Gregory
Published: February 2024

The serotonin 2 receptor (5HT2R) agonist psilocybin displays rapid and persistent therapeutic efficacy across neuropsychiatric disorders characterized by cognitive inflexibility. However, the impact of psilocybin on patterns of neural activity underlying sustained changes in behavioral flexibility has not been characterized. To test the hypothesis that psilocybin enhances behavioral flexibility by altering activity in cortical neural ensembles, we performed longitudinal single-cell calcium imaging in the retrosplenial cortex across a five-day trace fear learning and extinction assay. A single dose of psilocybin induced ensemble turnover between fear learning and extinction days while oppositely modulating activity in fearand extinctionactive neurons. The acute suppression of fear-active neurons and delayed recruitment of extinction-active neurons were predictive of psilocybin-enhanced fear extinction. A computational model revealed that acute inhibition of fear-active neurons by psilocybin is sufficient to explain its neural and behavioral effects days later. These results align with our hypothesis and introduce a new mechanism involving the suppression of fear-active populations in the retrosplenial cortex.
Vagus nerve damage increases alcohol intake and preference in a nonpreferring rat line: Relationship to vagal regulation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis
Authors: Keller Bailey N. , Snyder Angela E. , Coker Caitlin R. , Aguilar Elizabeth A. , O'Brien Mary K. , Lookfong Nicole A. , Bingaman Sarah S. , Arnold Amy C. , Hajnal Andras , Silberman Yuval
Published: February 2024

Background

Clinical and preclinical research indicates that gastric weight loss surgeries, such as Roux‐en‐Y gastric bypass surgery, can induce alcohol use disorder (AUD). While numerous mechanisms have been proposed for these effects, one relatively unexplored potential mechanism is physical damage to the gastric branch of the vagus nerve, which can occur during bypass surgery. Therefore, we hypothesized that direct damage to the gastric branch of the vagus nerve, without altering other aspects of gastric anatomy, could result in increased alcohol intake.

Methods

To test this hypothesis, we compared alcohol intake and preference in multiple models in male Sprague–Dawley rats that received selective gastric branch vagotomy (VX) with rats who underwent sham surgery. Because the vagus nerve regulates hypothalamic‐pituitary‐adrenal (HPA) axis function, and alterations to HPA function are critical to the escalation of non‐dependent alcohol intake, we also tested the hypothesis that gastric VX increases HPA function.

Results

We found that VX increases alcohol intake and preference in the every‐other‐day, two‐bottle choice test and increases preference for 1 g/kg alcohol in the conditioned place preference test. The effects were selective for alcohol, as sucrose intake and preference were not altered by VX. We also found that VX increases corticotropin releasing factor (CRF) mRNA in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN), increases putative PVN CRF neuronal action potential firing, and increases corticosterone levels.

Conclusions

Overall, these findings suggest that the vagus nerve may play a critical role in regulating HPA axis function via modulation of PVN CRF mRNA expression and putative PVN CRF neuronal activity. Furthermore, disruptions to vagal regulation of HPA axis function may increase alcohol intake and preference.
Longitudinal stability of reward and relief drinking phenotypes in community and treatment‐seeking individuals who engage in heavy drinking
Authors: Hebden Hanna M. , Swan Julia E. , Claus Eric D. , Pentkowski Nathan S. , Witkiewitz Katie
Published: February 2024

Background

Precision medicine approaches aim to improve treatment outcomes by identifying which treatments work best for specific individual phenotypes. In the treatment of alcohol use disorder (AUD), precision medicine approaches have been proposed based on phenotypes characterized by individuals who drink primarily to enhance rewarding experiences (i.e., reward drinking) or those who drink primarily to relieve negative states (i.e., relief drinking). This study examined these phenotypes across treatment‐ and nontreatment‐seeking individuals and the stability of the phenotypes over time.

Methods

We used latent profile and latent transition analyses to identify and assess longitudinal stability (over 3 or 4 months) of reward and relief drinking subgroups within a nontreatment‐seeking community sample that engaged in hazardous drinking (n = 189) and two treatment‐seeking samples of individuals with AUD enrolled in two large clinical trials (n = 1726, n = 1383). We examined prospective associations with alcohol consumption and consequences at long‐term follow‐up (15 or 18 months).

Results

Results supported four subgroups: low reward/low relief, low reward/high relief, high reward/low relief, and high reward/high relief. The community sample contained more individuals classified within the high reward/low relief subgroup than treatment‐seeking samples. Subgroups were generally more stable over time in the community sample than in the treatment‐seeking samples. Alcohol consumption and consequences decreased over time for the treatment‐seeking samples, with consequences and drinking frequency decreasing for the community sample. Participants classified within the high reward/high relief and low reward/high relief groups reported the most consequences and consumption at long‐term follow‐up.

Conclusion

Reward and relief drinking phenotypes can be identified within community and treatment‐seeking samples of individuals who drink heavily. The phenotypic subgroups appear to be stable over time in the absence of treatment, change somewhat during treatment, and provide utility in predicting alcohol consumption and consequences.
What makes a liberal feminist? Identifying predictors of heterosexual women and men's liberal feminist ideology
Authors: Russell Brenda , Oswald Debra , Cotter MaryKate
Published: February 2024

In the wake of the #MeToo movement, liberal feminism has garnered the spotlight on equal rights for women. However, what factors contribute to men and women developing liberal feminist ideologies? This is important to understand as this ideology is predictive of support for political and social policies that are currently under debate in the United States. In this survey study (149 heterosexual men and 233 heterosexual women) we examined attitudinal and ideological variables that underlie liberal feminist ideology. The results of this study indicate that heterosexual men scored significantly lower on liberal feminist ideology and significantly higher on traditional attitudes toward women, hostile and benevolent sexism, gender‐specific justification, rape myths, and conservative political affiliation compared to heterosexual women. Furthermore, traditional attitudes toward women, hostile and benevolent sexism, gender‐specific justification, rape myths, political leanings, and gender accounted for almost 70% of the variance in liberal feminist ideology. Participant gender did not moderate the regression analyses, suggesting that men and women are influenced similarly in determining what attitudes predict liberal feminist ideologies. Implications for support for public policy are addressed.
Trajectories of affective and cognitive well‐being at times of COVID‐19 containment policies in Italy
Authors: Riva Egidio , Lucchini Mario , Pancheva Marta G. , Piazzoni Carlotta , Lillard Dean
Published: February 2024

This paper draws on a subsample (N = 851) of respondents to ITA.LI—Italian Lives—a recently established panel study on a probability sample of individuals aged 16+ living in Italy—to track changes in the affective (positive and negative emotions such as energy and sadness) and cognitive (life satisfaction) components of well‐being during different COVID‐19 policy phases, classified according to the severity of key government responses.

An event‐study design is employed, which uses mixed‐effects ordered logistic models to investigate the change in SWB scores. Given the nested nature of the data, multilevel modeling is chosen as the most appropriate method of analysis.

The results reveal the levels of affective and cognitive well‐being were significantly lower during the lockdown period than before the pandemic outbreak potentially reflecting both the direct effects of the confinement and other potential sources of distress, such as trends in infection rates and related media alarm. Once the lockdown was lifted, there was no evidence of an immediate and general improvement in well‐being. In the following policy phase, with the lifting of most containment measures, there were significant signs of full recovery concerning energy, but the scores for the other well‐being components remained relatively lower than those observed before the onset of COVID‐19.
Experimental testing of three categorization‐based interventions to reduce prejudice and discrimination against the unvaccinated in the aftermath of COVID‐19
Authors: Sprengholz Philipp , Betsch Cornelia , Böhm Robert
Published: February 2024

For many people, COVID‐19 vaccination now informs social identity, triggering prejudice and discrimination toward those with a different vaccination status. As this may jeopardize social cohesion, we investigated the effects of three brief, theory‐informed interventions for reducing ingroup bias in a preregistered experimental intervention study in Germany, assigning vaccinated participants (N = 2016) to one of four conditions: crossed categorization (emphasizing commonalities between vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals), recategorization (framing vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals as members of a superordinate ingroup), counter‐stereotypic categorization (encouraging participants to think about mismatched stereotypes), or a control condition (no intervention). As compared to the control condition, crossed categorization and counter‐stereotypic categorization were found to reduce (evaluative) ingroup bias but the observed effects were weak and mostly diminished when controlling for demographic characteristics and vaccination status identification. Overall, the results indicate that none of the three interventions substantially reduced prejudice and discrimination toward the unvaccinated.
“I know what you did”: Associations between relationship satisfaction and reported and suspected extramarital sex
Authors: Whisman Mark A. , Sanchez Lizette
Published: February 2024

Although extradyadic sex has been repeatedly shown to be inversely associated with relationship quality, researchers have rarely evaluated partners' beliefs (or suspicions) of such behavior and the degree to which relationship quality varies as a function of suspected extradyadic sex. This study examined, in a United States probability sample of couples (National Couples Survey; N = 236 couples), the (a) prevalence of cross‐tabulations of wives' and husbands' reports of their own history of extramarital sex (i.e., sexual intercourse) and their beliefs about their partner's history of extramarital sex having ever occurred in the couple's relationship, and (b) associations between reported and suspected extramarital sex and current relationship satisfaction. The prevalence of different combinations of spouses' reported history of their own extramarital sex and suspicions of their partner's history of extramarital sex are presented. Results indicated that both spouses' reports of their own history of and their suspicion of their partner's history of extramarital sex were significantly and inversely associated with wives' and husbands' relationship satisfaction. These findings underscore the importance of examining not only respondents' report of their own extramarital sexual involvement but also their beliefs about their partner's extramarital sexual involvement in future research on relationship and individual functioning outcomes associated with extramarital sex.
The paradoxical effect of advertising and health consciousness on purchasing behaviour: Analysing frozen convenience foods attributes
Authors: Ghonim Mohamed A. , Elsotouhy Mohamed M. , Khashan Mohamed A.
Published: February 2024

Given the increasing academic and applied interest in convenience foods, this research aims to examine the personal and extrinsic factors concerning the consumption of frozen convenience foods (FCF). The study relies on theories to reveal the connection between the attributes of FCF and the real purchase behaviour of Egyptian customers. A total of 608 Egyptian customers participated in the methodological survey investigation. This study employed partial least square‐multi‐group analysis to compare different groups of respondents according to purchasing frequency. The study findings revealed the identification of important pathways of consumer behaviour towards frozen foods related first to its different attributes and second to the contradictory effect of both health awareness and the influence of advertising. The study presented its theoretical and practical contributions in this regard. Using the model, researchers drew four potential scenarios validating the theory and impacting business.
Collateral Legal Consequences and the Power to Punish
Authors: Poama Andrei , Tripkovic Milena
Published: February 2024

Collateral legal consequences attached to criminal convictions (CLCs) are often criticised because they expose criminal offenders to various forms of harmful and/or wrongful treatment. In this article, we argue that CLCs are problematic because they undermine the power to punish, a distinct normative power that allows the relevant powerholders to directly change the offender's normative situation. The article identifies important features of the power to punish construed as the normative ability that judges should hold in liberal polities. In particular, we examine how CLCs undermine two of the features –viz., robustness and attributability – that are central to the non‐deficient functioning of the normative power to punish. Acknowledging the implausibility of a forthcoming demise of CLCs, we conclude with an outline of non‐ideal proposals that would marginally mitigate the unwarranted effects that CLCs have on the exercise of the normative power to punish.
French Polynesian Scytosiphonaceae (Ectocarpales, Phaeophyceae): A combined molecular and morphological approach to their diversity and systematics
Authors: Vieira Christophe , Kim Myung Sook , Zubia Mayalen
Published: February 2024

This study revisited the taxonomy and diversity of brown macroalgae within the Scytosiphonaceae family in French Polynesia, which had previously been recognized as encompassing only six species. Using the chloroplast and mitochondrial genesrbcL,psbA, andcox3 as molecular markers in conjunction with morpho‐anatomical observations, we unveiled the presence of 11 species spanning six genera:Chnoospora minima,Colpomenia claytoniae,Co. sinuosa[groups IIIa and IIIb],Hydroclathrus rapanuii,H. tenuis,H. tilesii,Manzaea minuta,Pseudochnoospora implexa,Rosenvingea australis, and the newly described speciesR. polynesiensissp. nov. andR. tahitiensissp. nov. This encompasses the recognition of two previously unreported genera in this region:ManzaeaandPseudochnoospora. Sequences were successfully acquired for four taxa that had been documented previously, while the absence of sequences forH. clathratusandH. tumulisin French Polynesia raises queries about their presence in this region. With these additions, the total species count now stands at 13 (includingH. clathratusandH. tumulis), one being an endemic species. The molecular‐assisted alpha taxonomic approach used here allowed for a critical revision of the Scytosiphonaceae species checklist for French Polynesia. The diversity revealed in this region accounts for a substantial 20% of the family's global diversity. Additionally, our study presents an updated species‐level phylogeny for the Scytosiphonaceae.
Caregiving experiences of primary family caregivers caring for family members affected by COVID‐19 during home isolation: A phenomenology study
Authors: Sun Jia‐Jing , Hsiao Chun‐Ting , Liu Tsui‐Yao
Published: February 2024

During home isolation due to the coronavirus disease, family caregivers assumed the responsibility of caring for infected family members; however, the full extent of the difficulties and challenges they encountered remains unclear. This study applied a descriptive phenomenology approach, using semi‐structured, one‐on‐one, in‐depth interviews to explore the experiences of 16 primary family caregivers during home isolation amid the coronavirus disease. The key themes identified were as follows: (1) protecting family, comprising anxiety over preventing infection and bearing the responsibility of caregiving and a concern about the diagnosis; (2) seeking stability, encompassing the impact of epidemic control policies on daily routines, strategies to overcome obstacles caused by quarantine measures, and gathering resources and receiving support; and (3) reflections on life, including favoring love over discrimination, rediscovering oneself, cherishing family, and acknowledging personal growth and dedication. This study highlights that family members who took on caregiving roles due to obstacles or health risks faced significant pressure to protect their family members during isolation and actively sought professional consultation and acquired caregiving skills to enhance their confidence and adaptability.
Trends in Living Arrangements Around the World
Authors: Esteve Albert , Reher David S.
Published: February 2024

Most people coreside with other kin in private households while others live alone. The incidence of coresidence with kin and solo living varies noticeably across societies. Scholars have long theorized about the role of modernization and cultural change for living arrangements, suggesting a trend toward the nuclearization of households (coresidence only with primary kin) or solo living as societies attain higher levels of development. There is little empirical evidence about global variations in living arrangements and about how such variations unfold at different levels of development. Here we address these fundamental questions. Using IPUMS census microdata for 279 samples and 90 countries, we develop a new metric for assessing the part of the lifetime a person can expect to reside with primary kin, nonprimary kin, or alone assuming exposure rates, from birth to death, to the living arrangements observed in a given year. Results show that coresidence patterns differ substantially across societies, with exposure to primary kin alone and to solo living substantially higher at higher levels of development (as measured with Human Development Index [HDI]). They also reveal a sustained decline in coresidence with nonprimary kin and/or with others nearly everywhere, supporting the idea of an increasing importance of nuclear living arrangements. This trend is most pronounced at medium levels of HDI. At very high levels of development, nuclear family coresidence tends to be stalling or is in decline in favor of more time spent living alone and, rather unexpectedly, to a modest increase in exposure to nonprimary kin within the household. We suggest different interpretations for these results.
Treatment of nonmelanoma skin cancer with pro‐differentiation agents and photodynamic therapy: Preclinical and clinical studies (Review)
Authors: Anand Sanjay , Hasan Tayyaba , Maytin Edward V.
Published: February 2024

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a nonscarring cancer treatment in which a pro‐drug (5‐aminolevulinic acid, ALA) is applied, converted into a photosensitizer (protoporphyrin IX, PpIX) which is then activated by visible light. ALA‐PDT is now popular for treating nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC), but can be ineffective for larger skin tumors, mainly due to inadequate production of PpIX. Work over the past two decades has shown that differentiation‐promoting agents, including methotrexate (MTX), 5‐fluorouracil (5FU) and vitamin D (Vit D) can be combined with ALA‐PDT as neoadjuvants to promote tumor‐specific accumulation of PpIX, enhance tumor‐selective cell death, and improve therapeutic outcome. In this review, we provide a historical perspective of how the combinations of differentiation‐promoting agents with PDT (cPDT) evolved, including Initial discoveries, biochemical and molecular mechanisms, and clinical translation for the treatment of NMSCs. For added context, we also compare the differentiation‐promoting neoadjuvants with some other clinical PDT combinations such as surgery, laser ablation, iron‐chelating agents (CP94), and immunomodulators that do not induce differentiation. Although this review focuses mainly on the application of cPDT for NMSCs, the concepts and findings described here may be more broadly applicable towards improving the therapeutic outcomes of PDT treatment for other types of cancers.
Comparison of four inoculation methods and three Fusarium species for phenotyping stalk rot resistance among 22 maize hybrids (Zea mays)
Authors: Asiedu Desmond Darko , Akohoue Félicien , Frank Sebastian , Koch Silvia , Lieberherr Bärbel , Oyiga Benedict , Kessel Bettina , Presterl Thomas , Miedaner Thomas
Published: February 2024

Fusarium stalk rot (FSR) is among the most destructive maize diseases causing significant global yield losses. Resistance of 22 maize hybrids to FSR was tested using four inoculation methods in each of two locations in 2021 and 2022. The inoculation methods included needle injection (NI), toothpick method (TM), stick method (SM) and mycelium method (MM), and the inoculated fungi were Fusarium culmorum, F. graminearum and F. temperatum. NI displayed the highest FSR infection among maize hybrids followed by TM and SM. MM showed the least infection. From five stalk rot‐related traits, full‐length infection and internode proportion, that is, the percentage of visible infection summed up over internodes, captured most of the genetic variation. The latter was the trait with the highest heritability (0.90). No significant (p > 0.05) genotype × method and genotype × fungus interaction variances were observed for any traits. For F. graminearum inoculation, NI showed the highest internode proportion followed by TM and SM, with F. culmorum responding in a similar way. For F. temperatum, TM outranked all other methods. F. graminearum was the most aggressive fungal pathogen compared to F. culmorum and F. temperatum. For phenotyping maize lines with varying degrees of resistance to FSR, we recommend needle injection and internode proportion.
Adjusting Injectable Contraceptive Use for Months Since the Last Injection
Authors: Karra Mahesh , Canning David
Published: February 2024

Injectables are one of the most popular methods of contraception worldwide, particularly in sub‐Saharan Africa. An advantage of injectables over shorter‐acting methods is that they provide additional flexibility by not requiring re‐supply as frequently. However, there is a risk that injectable users may delay their next injection and may therefore have reduced or no protection from pregnancy. In surveys, women may report that they are using contraception in the form of injectables when the time since they had their last injection (more than four months) would imply that they have reduced protection against the risk of pregnancy. We carried out two field studies in urban Malawi, and we record reported injectable contraceptive use while also asking the number of months since women received their last injection. We observe that 13.8 percent of women who report using injectables also report that they received their last injection more than four months ago, and 11 percent report that they received their last injection more than six months ago. Our analysis highlights the need for additional follow‐up with women who report using injectables in surveys to confirm whether they are, in fact, using the method effectively.
Dot Scanner: open‐source software for quantitative live‐cell imaging in planta
Authors: Allen Holly , Davis Brian , Patel Jenna , Gu Ying
Published: February 2024

Confocal microscopy has greatly aided our understanding of the major cellular processes and trafficking pathways responsible for plant growth and development. However, a drawback of these studies is that they often rely on the manual analysis of a vast number of images, which is time‐consuming, error‐prone, and subject to bias. To overcome these limitations, we developed Dot Scanner, a Python program for analyzing the densities, lifetimes, and displacements of fluorescently tagged particles in an unbiased, automated, and efficient manner. Dot Scanner was validated by performing side‐by‐side analysis in Fiji‐ImageJ of particles involved in cellulose biosynthesis. We found that the particle densities and lifetimes were comparable in both Dot Scanner and Fiji‐ImageJ, verifying the accuracy of Dot Scanner. Dot Scanner largely outperforms Fiji‐ImageJ, since it suffers far less selection bias when calculating particle lifetimes and is much more efficient at distinguishing between weak signals and background signal caused by bleaching. Not only does Dot Scanner obtain much more robust results, but it is a highly efficient program, since it automates much of the analyses, shortening workflow durations from weeks to minutes. This free and accessible program will be a highly advantageous tool for analyzing live‐cell imaging in plants.
Import competition, state‐owned enterprise prevalence and employment: Evidence from China
Authors: Zhu Ting , Li Tan
Published: February 2024

Does state‐owned enterprise (SOE) prevalence affect the employment adjustments of firms after trade liberalisation? This paper estimates the role of the prevalence of SOEs in the labour market in import competition by using city‐industry level panel data in China from 2000 to 2006. Our results indicate that import competition decreases employment in the manufacturing industry and that SOE prevalence could partially offset the negative effect on employment. This offsetting effect is demonstrated at both extensive and intensive margins. Moreover, SOE prevalence has a positive externality for the employment of non‐SOEs under the import competition shock. Therefore, we verify the positive externality of SOEs in labour market adjustment in response to import competition.
Radio News in the Slovak Republic in the 21st Century
Authors: Janáčková Ľubica , Furtáková Lucia , Brník Andrej , Cimerman Michal
Published: February 2024

The present scientific study focuses on the issue of radio news in the 21st century. The ambition is to evaluate, at the time of writing this study, the current situation concerning news coverage in the most listened radio entities in the Slovak Republic. In this context, the basic characteristics of a public radio broadcaster and a private radio entity are also described. The results focus on the current state of radio news and its diverse interpretation in selected radio entities in Slovakia based on quantitative content analysis. The study details information on the nature of broadcast news in our research sample of the main news programmes of a public and a private radio broadcaster in Slovakia. It also sets out research questions and hypotheses focusing on the representation of news with a domestic and foreign focus, as well as which foreign countries dominate the foreign news coverage, and the themes in the foreign news coverage. The study summarizes the results of the research, generalizes the data, and also formulates conclusions that define radio news in the 21st century. The research section also includes interviews with executives from two selected media entities to support the results of the quantitative content analysis.
Strain-tuned optical properties of bilayer silicon at midinfrared wavelengths
Authors: Vishal K. , Ji Z. H. , Zhuang Y.
Published: February 2024

Optical properties of two-dimensional bilayer silicon have been explored at midinfrared wavelengths using density functional theory. In this work, progressive atomic structural deformation and the resultant variations in the optical properties of the bilayer silicon films were investigated under external in-plane strain. A phase transformation of the atomic structure has been observed at an applied in-plane tensile strain of 5.17%, at which the atomic lattice is changed from a low buckled to a buckle-free honeycomb structure. Evaluations of the optical properties were carried out by taking into account the inter- and intraband transitions. An abrupt change in the optical refraction index was observed at the phase transition. In addition, the buckle-free honeycomb structure presents a strain-resistive absorption edge pinned at 1.14 μm wavelength. Exceeding a strain threshold of 12.26% results in the development of both direct- and indirect-energy bandgap openings. The direct bandgap induced interband optical transitions, resulting in absorption peaks at midinfrared wavelengths and a drastic increase in the refraction index. Moreover, by adjusting the strain, the optical absorptions can be tuned in a wide range of wavelength at midinfrared from 1.5 to 11.5 μm.
Revisitation of reactive direct current magnetron sputtering discharge: Investigation of Mg–CF4, Mg–O2, and Ti–O2 discharges by probe measurements
Authors: Kusano Eiji
Published: February 2024

The reactive direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering discharges of Mg–CF4, Mg–O2, and Ti–O2 were investigated using probe measurements as a function of reactive gas flow ratio. The emission spectroscopy, which was conducted before the probe measurements, demonstrates that all the three DC discharges transit from nonreactive to reactive discharge mode with increasing reactive gas flow ratio. The probe measurements show that the plasma potentials of the Mg–O2 and Ti–O2 DC discharges slightly increase or remain almost constant with increasing reactive gas flow ratio, whereas that of the Mg–CF4 DC discharge drastically decreases at the mode transition. For the same change in reactive gas flow ratio, the discharge voltage of the Mg–CF4 DC discharge slightly increases and that of the Mg–O2 DC discharge drastically increases at the mode transition, whereas that of the Ti–O2 DC discharge slightly decreases at the mode transition. The changes in the cathode sheath potential difference at the mode transition differ between the Mg–CF4 and Ti–O2 DC discharges and the Mg–O2 DC discharge because of the difference in the probability of secondary electron emission at the cathode surface; furthermore, the changes in the anode sheath potential difference at the mode transition differ between the Mg–CF4 DC discharge and the Mg–O2 and Ti–O2 DC discharges because of the difference in the probability of negative-ion formation in the plasma bulk. The most informative results obtained in this study were the differences in the potential differences at the cathode and anode sheaths among the Mg–CF4, Mg–O2, and Ti–O2 DC discharges. They well demonstrated the effects of the change in secondary-emitted species at the cathode surface and the change in reactive gas concentration in the plasma on the potential configuration.
Tailoring the performances of Ti-V-Al base shape memory alloys by defects engineering
Authors: Wang Yunfei , Liu Wei , Wu Yanqing , Zhang Guohao , Sun Bin , Gao Weihong , Feng Xinxin , Wang Haizhen , Yi Xiaoyang , Meng Xianglong , Gao Zhiyong
Published: February 2024

In the present study, various defects such as dislocations were controlled in Ti-V-Al-based shape memory alloy by thermomechanical treatment and introduction of interstitial oxygen (O) atom to optimize the performances. The results revealed that the Ti-V-Al-O shape memory alloys gradually evolved from α” martensite phase to the β parent phase with increasing annealing temperature. Moreover, the degree of lattice distortion can be tailored by changing annealing temperatures. Upon the annealing temperature reached 900 °C, masses of ω precipitates and a nano-sized ordered domain, characteristic of strain glass, can be found. As a result of suppression effect of multiple varieties of defects to the martensitic transformation, no obvious endothermic and exothermic peaks were observed in differential scanning calorimetry curves. The yield strength and maximum tensile fracture strength of the Ti-V-Al-O shape memory alloy increased with the increase of annealing temperatures. Meanwhile, Ti-V-Al-O shape memory alloys annealed at 900 °C possessed superior strain recovery characteristics and corrosion resistance. The excellent performances in Ti-V-Al-O shape memory alloys annealed at 900 °C can be attributed to the formation nanoscale nanodomain.
Effect of growth temperature on the microstructure and properties of epitaxial MoS2 monolayers grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition
Authors: Chen Chen , Trainor Nicholas , Kumari Shalini , Myja Henrik , Kümmell Tilmar , Zhang Zhiyu , Zhang Yuxi , Bisht Anuj , Sadaf Muhtasim Ul Karim , Sakib Najam U. , Han Ying , Mc Knight Thomas V. , Graves Andrew R. , Leger Meghan E. , Redwing Nicholas D. , Kim Myeongok , Kowalczyk Dorota Anna , Bacher Gerd , Alem Nasim , Yang Yang , Das Saptarshi , Redwing Joan M.
Published: February 2024

Metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) is a promising technique for wafer-scale synthesis of MoS2 monolayers for 2D field-effect transistors (2D-FETs) and related devices. Epitaxial growth of MoS2 on sapphire provides films that are crystallographically well-oriented but typically contain low-angle grain boundaries (e.g., mirror twins), voids, and other defects depending on growth conditions and substrate characteristics. In this study, we investigate microstructure, optical properties, and field-effect characteristics of wafer-scale MoS2 monolayers grown by MOCVD on c-plane sapphire over a narrow window of growth temperatures (900–1000 °C). The density of low-angle grain boundaries in the MoS2 monolayer was found to decrease dramatically from 50% areal coverage for films grown at 900 °C to 5% at 1000 °C. This decrease in low-angle grain boundary density is correlated with an increase in the room-temperature photoluminescence intensity of A excitons and a decrease in the full-width-half maximum (FWHM) of the Raman A1g peak, which are typically indicative of a general reduction in defects in MoS2. However, the best transport properties (e.g., mean field-effect mobility mFE = 17.3 cm2/V s) were obtained in MoS2 monolayers grown at an intermediate temperature of 950 °C. It was found that as the growth temperature increased, small regions bound by high-angle boundaries begin to appear within the monolayer and increase in areal coverage, from ∼2% at 900 °C to ∼5% at 950 °C to ∼10% at 1000 °C. The growth temperature of 950 °C, therefore, provides an intermediate condition where the combined effects of low-angle and high-angle boundaries are minimized. The results of this study provide guidance on MOCVD growth and characterization that can be used to further optimize the performance of MoS2 2D-FETs.
Investigation of silicon-on-insulator back-gate nano vacuum channel transistor array
Authors: Weng Kaifang , Shen Changsheng , Chen Zhaofu , Bai Ningfeng
Published: February 2024

Recent advances in nanofabrication have made it possible to combine planar solid-state devices with vacuum electronics to create planar nano vacuum channel transistors that offer the advantages of cold-field emission and ballistic transmission. However, the current research is mainly limited to the study of a single field emission transistor, which has problems such as low current and poor gate control capability. To solve the above problems, a multitip field emission array is used in this work, and gate modulation is performed by a back-gate structure to fabricate and process a back-gate nano vacuum transistor array. First, we conducted simulation modeling of the back-gate nano vacuum transistor, investigated the impact of its structural parameters on its performance, and obtained the optimal simulation results. Then, structural parameters of the back-gate nano vacuum channel transistor array (BG-NVCTA) are selected based on the simulation results and fabricated by electron beam lithography on the silicon wafer. The experimental results, agreed well with the simulation results, show that the BG-NVCTA device has excellent gate control characteristics and a high current density. Its anode current is greater than 5 μA, and the transconductance is 1.05 μS when the anode voltage is 5 V.
REVIEWS OF ACOUSTICAL PATENTS
Authors: Fulop Sean A.
Published: February 2024

The purpose of these acoustical patent reviews is to provide enough information for a Journal reader to decide whether to seek more information from the patent itself. Any opinions expressed here are those of the reviewers as individuals and are not legal opinions. Patents are available via the internet at the USPTO website.
Time domain turbo equalization based on vector approximate message passing for multiple-input multiple-output underwater acoustic communications
Authors: Li Wei-Zhe , Han Xiao , Zhu Guang-jun , Yin Jing-wei
Published: February 2024

This paper proposes a high-performance receiver for underwater acoustic communications based on time reversal processing for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems. The receiver employs the vector approximate message passing (VAMP) algorithm as a soft equalizer in turbo equalization. By performing self-iteration between the inner soft slicer and the inner soft equalizer, the VAMP algorithm achieves near-optimal performance. Furthermore, an iterative channel-estimation-based soft successive interference cancellation method is incorporated to suppress co-channel interference in the MIMO system. Additionally, the introduction of passive time reversal technology can combine multiple channels into a single channel, which greatly reduces the computational complexity of the MIMO system, especially for large MIMO systems. The effectiveness of the proposed receiver is verified using experimental data collected in Songhua Lake, China in 2019. The results demonstrate that the proposed receiver significantly reduces the complexity of the traditional parallel-VAMP receiver without sacrificing performance and outperforms other receivers of the same type. Moreover, our experimental results also verify that the VAMP-turbo outperforms the generalized approximate message passing (GAMP)-turbo in terms of bit error rate and convergence performance.
The perception of ultrasonic vocalizations by laboratory mice following intense noise exposures
Authors: Charlton Payton E. , Burke Kali , Kobrina Anastasiya , Lauer Amanda M. , Dent Micheal L.
Published: February 2024

Noise-induced hearing loss interacts with age, sex, and listening conditions to affect individuals' perception of ecologically relevant stimuli like speech. The present experiments assessed the impact of age and sex on vocalization detection by noise-exposed mice trained to detect a downsweep or complex ultrasonic vocalization in quiet or in the presence of a noise background. Daily thresholds before and following intense noise exposure were collected longitudinally and compared across several factors. All mice, regardless of age, sex, listening condition, or stimulus type showed their poorest behavioral sensitivity immediately after the noise exposure. There were varying degrees of recovery over time and across factors. Old-aged mice had greater threshold shifts and less recovery compared to middle-aged mice. Mice had larger threshold shifts and less recovery for downsweeps than for complex vocalizations. Female mice were more sensitive, had smaller post-noise shifts, and had better recovery than males. Thresholds in noise were higher and less variable than thresholds in quiet, but there were comparable shifts and recovery. In mice, as in humans, the perception of ecologically relevant stimuli suffers after an intense noise exposure, and results differ from simple tone detection findings.
Acoustic contrast control with a sound intensity constraint for personal sound systems
Authors: Huang Yang , Zhao Sipei , Lu Jing
Published: February 2024

Personal sound systems have received significant research interest in the past two decades due to their promising applications in a variety of scenarios. Various methods have been proposed to generate personal sound zones, most of which are based on sound pressure manipulation in both the acoustically bright and dark zones. Since sound intensity is closely related to human perception of sound localization, this paper proposes an acoustic contrast control method with a sound intensity constraint to increase the spatial planarity in the bright zone. In the proposed method, the sound intensity in the bright zone is projected to a specific direction while the sound pressure level in the dark zone is minimized. Simulations and experiments are carried out to compare the proposed method with the existing planarity control and pressure matching methods in terms of acoustic contrast, array effort, and planarity. The results demonstrate that the proposed method improves the planarity in the bright zone compared to existing planarity control method, while exhibitig a higher acoustic contrast and a lower array effort than the pressure matching method.