bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Health outcomes and female genital mutilation/cutting: how much is due to the cutting itself?
Authors: Johnson-Agbakwu Crista E. , Michlig Georgia J. , Koukoui Sophia , Akinsulure-Smith Adeyinka M. , Jacobson Danielle S.
Published: January 2023

While Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) continues to garner global attention, FGM/C-affected migrant communities, who are often racialized minorities in the U.S., face additional challenges which may impact their physical and mental health and well-being. It has been proposed that an overly narrow focus on the female genitalia or FGM/C status alone, while ignoring the wider social experiences and perceptions of affected migrant women, will result in incomplete or misleading conclusions about the relationship between FGM/C and migrant women’s health. A cross-sectional study was conducted across two waves of Somali and Somali Bantu women living in the United States, (n = 879 [wave 1],n = 654 [wave 2]). Socio-demographics, self-reported FGM/C status, perceived psychological distress, and self-reported FGM/C-related health morbidity was examined against self-reported experiences of everyday discrimination and perceived psychosocial support. In statistical models including age and educational attainment as potentially confounding socio-demographic variables, as well as self-reported FGM/C status, self-reported discrimination, and perceived psychosocial support, self-reported discrimination was the variable most strongly associated with poor physical health and psychological distress (i.e., FGM/C-related health morbidity and psychological distress), with greater perceived psychosocial support negatively associated with psychological distress, when controlling for all the other variables in the model. FGM/C status was not significantly associated with either outcome. Discrimination, more frequently reported among ‘No FGM/C’ (i.e., genitally intact or unmodified) women, was most frequently perceived as linked to religion and ethnicity. Our findings are consistent with views that discrimination drives negative outcomes. In this population, discrimination may include the‘quadruple jeopardy’of intersecting relationships among gender, race, religion, and migration status. We find that self-reported experiences of discrimination—and not FGM/C status per se—is associated with adverse physical and mental health consequences in our sample drawn from Somali migrant communities living in the United States, and that social support may help to mitigate these consequences. Our findings thus reinforce calls to better contextualize the relationship between FGM/C and measures of health and well-being among Somali women in the United States (regardless of their FGM/C status), taking psychosocial factors more centrally into account.

Clinical Trials.Gov ID no. NCT03249649, Study ID no. 5252. Public website:https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03249649
Nucleus accumbens circuit disinhibits lateral hypothalamus glutamatergic neurons contributing to morphine withdrawal memory in male mice
Authors: Sheng Huan , Lei Chao , Yuan Yu , Fu Yali , Cui Dongyang , Yang Li , Shao Da , Cao Zixuan , Yang Hao , Guo Xinli , Chu Chenshan , Wen Yaxian , Cai Zhangyin , Chen Ming , Lai Bin , Zheng Ping
Published: January 2023

The lateral hypothalamus (LH) is physiologically critical in brain functions. The LH also plays an important role in drug addiction. However, neural circuits underlying LH involvement of drug addiction remain obscure. In the present study,our results showed that in male mice, during context-induced expression of morphine withdrawal memory, LH glutamatergic neurons played an important role; dopamine D1 receptor-expressing medium spiny neurons (D1-MSNs) projecting from the core of nucleus accumbens (NAcC) to the LH were an important upstream circuit to activate LH glutamatergic neurons; D1-MSNs projecting from the NAcC to the LH activated LH glutamatergic neurons through inhibiting LH local gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) neurons. These results suggest that disinhibited LH glutamatergic neurons by neural circuits from the NAcC importantly contribute to context-induced the expression of morphine withdrawal memory.
Auto-accelerated dehydrogenation of alkane assisted by in-situ formed olefins over boron nitride under aerobic conditions
Authors: Liu Zhankai , Liu Ziyi , Fan Jie , Lu Wen-Duo , Wu Fan , Gao Bin , Sheng Jian , Qiu Bin , Wang Dongqi , Lu An-Hui
Published: January 2023

Oxidative dehydrogenation (ODH) of alkane over boron nitride (BN) catalyst exhibits high olefin selectivity as well as a small ecological carbon footprint. Here we report an unusual phenomenon that the in-situ formed olefins under reactions are in turn actively accelerating parent alkane conversion over BN by interacting with hydroperoxyl and alkoxyl radicals and generating reactive species which promote oxidation of alkane and olefin formation, through feeding a mixture of alkane and olefin and DFT calculations. The isotope tracer studies reveal the cleavage of C-C bond in propylene when co-existing with propane, directly evidencing the deep-oxidation of olefins occur in the ODH reaction over BN. Furthermore, enhancing the activation of ethane by the in-situ formed olefins from propane is successfully realized at lower temperature by co-feeding alkane mixture strategy. This work unveils the realistic ODH reaction pathway over BN and provides an insight into efficiently producing olefins.
Progressive brain abnormalities in schizophrenia across different illness periods: a structural and functional MRI study
Authors: Shen Chen-Lan , Tsai Shih-Jen , Lin Ching-Po , Yang Albert C.
Published: January 2023

Schizophrenia is a chronic brain disorder, and neuroimaging abnormalities have been reported in different stages of the illness for decades. However, when and how these brain abnormalities occur and evolve remains undetermined. We hypothesized structural and functional brain abnormalities progress throughout the illness course at different rates in schizophrenia. A total of 115 patients with schizophrenia were recruited and stratified into three groups of different illness periods: 5-year group (illness duration: ≤5 years), 15-year group (illness duration: 12–18 years), and 25-year group (illness duration: ≥25 years); 230 healthy controls were matched by age and sex to the three groups, respectively. All participants underwent resting-state MRI scanning. Each group of patients with schizophrenia was compared with the corresponding controls in terms of voxel-based morphometry (VBM), fractional anisotropy (FA), global functional connectivity density (gFCD), and sample entropy (SampEn) abnormalities. In the 5-year group we observed only SampEn abnormalities in the putamen. In the 15-year group, we observed VBM abnormalities in the insula and cingulate gyrus and gFCD abnormalities in the temporal cortex. In the 25-year group, we observed FA abnormalities in nearly all white matter tracts, and additional VBM and gFCD abnormalities in the frontal cortex and cerebellum. By using two structural and two functional MRI analysis methods, we demonstrated that individual functional abnormalities occur in limited brain areas initially, functional connectivity and gray matter density abnormalities ensue later in wider brain areas, and structural connectivity abnormalities involving almost all white matter tracts emerge in the third decade of the course in schizophrenia.
Structural basis of broad-spectrum β-lactam resistance in Staphylococcus aureus
Authors: Alexander J. Andrew N. , Worrall Liam J. , Hu Jinhong , Vuckovic Marija , Satishkumar Nidhi , Poon Raymond , Sobhanifar Solmaz , Rosell Federico I. , Jenkins Joshua , Chiang Daniel , Mosimann Wesley A. , Chambers Henry F. , Paetzel Mark , Chatterjee Som S. , Strynadka Natalie C. J.
Published: January 2023

Broad-spectrum β-lactam antibiotic resistance in Staphylococcus aureus is a global healthcare burden1,2. In clinical strains, resistance is largely controlled by BlaR13, a receptor that senses β-lactams through the acylation of its sensor domain, inducing transmembrane signalling and activation of the cytoplasmic-facing metalloprotease domain4. The metalloprotease domain has a role in BlaI derepression, inducing blaZ (β-lactamase PC1) and mecA (β-lactam-resistant cell-wall transpeptidase PBP2a) expression3–7. Here, overcoming hurdles in isolation, we show that BlaR1 cleaves BlaI directly, as necessary for inactivation, with no requirement for additional components as suggested previously8. Cryo-electron microscopy structures of BlaR1—the wild type and an autocleavage-deficient F284A mutant, with or without β-lactam—reveal a domain-swapped dimer that we suggest is critical to the stabilization of the signalling loops within. BlaR1 undergoes spontaneous autocleavage in cis between Ser283 and Phe284 and we describe the catalytic mechanism and specificity underlying the self and BlaI cleavage. The structures suggest that allosteric signalling emanates from β-lactam-induced exclusion of the prominent extracellular loop bound competitively in the sensor-domain active site, driving subsequent dynamic motions, including a shift in the sensor towards the membrane and accompanying changes in the zinc metalloprotease domain. We propose that this enhances the expulsion of autocleaved products from the active site, shifting the equilibrium to a state that is permissive of efficient BlaI cleavage. Collectively, this study provides a structure of a two-component signalling receptor that mediates action—in this case, antibiotic resistance—through the direct cleavage of a repressor.
RNA recording in single bacterial cells using reprogrammed tracrRNAs
Authors: Jiao Chunlei , Reckstadt Claas , König Fabian , Homberger Christina , Yu Jiaqi , Vogel Jörg , Westermann Alexander J. , Sharma Cynthia M. , Beisel Chase L.
Published: January 2023

Capturing an individual cell’s transcriptional history is a challenge exacerbated by the functional heterogeneity of cellular communities. Here, we leverage reprogrammed tracrRNAs (Rptrs) to record selected cellular transcripts as stored DNA edits in single living bacterial cells. Rptrs are designed to base pair with sensed transcripts, converting them into guide RNAs. The guide RNAs then direct a Cas9 base editor to target an introduced DNA target. The extent of base editing can then be read in the future by sequencing. We use this approach, called TIGER (transcribed RNAs inferred by genetically encoded records), to record heterologous and endogenous transcripts in individual bacterial cells. TIGER can quantify relative expression, distinguish single-nucleotide differences, record multiple transcripts simultaneously and read out single-cell phenomena. We further apply TIGER to record metabolic bet hedging and antibiotic resistance mobilization inEscherichia colias well as host cell invasion bySalmonella. Through RNA recording, TIGER connects current cellular states with past transcriptional states to decipher complex cellular responses in single cells.
BfmRS encodes a regulatory system involved in light signal transduction modulating motility and desiccation tolerance in the human pathogen Acinetobacter baumannii
Authors: Perez Mora Bárbara , Giordano Rocío , Permingeat Valentín , Calderone Malena , Arana Natalia , Müller Gabriela , Rodríguez Ramiro E. , Krasauskas Renatas , Mussi María Alejandra
Published: January 2023

We have previously shown that Acinetobacter baumannii as well as other relevant clinical bacterial pathogens such as Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, perceive and respond to light at 37 °C, the normal temperature in mammal hosts. In this work, we present evidence indicating that the two-component system BfmRS transduces a light signal in A. baumannii at this temperature, showing selective involvement of the BfmR and BfmS components depending on the specific cellular process. In fact, both BfmR and BfmS participate in modulation of motility by light, while only BfmR is involved in light regulation of desiccation tolerance in this microorganism. Neither BfmR nor BfmS contain a photoreceptor domain and then most likely, the system is sensing light indirectly. Intriguingly, this system inhibits blsA expression at 37 °C, suggesting antagonistic functioning of both signaling systems. Furthermore, we present evidence indicating that the phosphorylatable form of BfmR represses motility. Overall, we provide experimental evidence on a new biological function of this multifaceted system that broadens our understanding of A. baumannii’s physiology and responses to light.
Both age and social environment shape the phenotype of ant workers
Authors: Quque Martin , Brun Charlotte , Villette Claire , Sueur Cédric , Criscuolo François , Heintz Dimitri , Bertile Fabrice
Published: January 2023

Position within the social group has consequences on individual lifespans in diverse taxa. This is especially obvious in eusocial insects, where workers differ in both the tasks they perform and their aging rates. However, in eusocial wasps, bees and ants, the performed task usually depends strongly on age. As such, untangling the effects of social role and age on worker physiology is a key step towards understanding the coevolution of sociality and aging. We performed an experimental protocol that allowed a separate analysis of these two factors using four groups of black garden ant (Lasius niger) workers: young foragers, old foragers, young nest workers, and old nest workers. We highlighted age-related differences in the proteome and metabolome of workers that were primarily related to worker subcaste and only secondarily to age. The relative abundance of proteins and metabolites suggests an improved xenobiotic detoxification, and a fuel metabolism based more on lipid use than carbohydrate use in young ants, regardless of their social role. Regardless of age, proteins related to the digestive function were more abundant in nest workers than in foragers. Old foragers were mostly characterized by weak abundances of molecules with an antibiotic activity or involved in chemical communication. Finally, our results suggest that even in tiny insects, extended lifespan may require to mitigate cancer risks. This is consistent with results found in eusocial rodents and thus opens up the discussion of shared mechanisms among distant taxa and the influence of sociality on life history traits such as longevity.
Hungarian, lazy, and biased: the role of analytic thinking and partisanship in fake news discernment on a Hungarian representative sample
Authors: Faragó Laura , Krekó Péter , Orosz Gábor
Published: January 2023

“Why do people believe blatantly inaccurate news headlines? Do we use our reasoning abilities to convince ourselves that statements that align with our ideology are true, or does reasoning allow us to effectively differentiate fake from real regardless of political ideology?” These were the questions of Pennycook and Rand (2019), and they are more than actual three years later in Eastern Europe (especially in Hungary) in the light of the rise of populism, and the ongoing war in Ukraine – with the flood of disinformation that follows. In this study, using a representative Hungarian sample (N = 991) we wanted to answer the same questions—moving one step forward and investigating alternative models. We aimed to extend the original research with the examination of digital literacy and source salience on media truth discernment. Most of the observations of Pennycook and Rand were confirmed: people with higher analytic thinking were better at discerning disinformation. However, the results are in line with the synergistic integrative model as partisanship interacted with cognitive reflection: anti-government voters used their analytic capacities to question both concordant and discordant fake news more than pro-government voters. Furthermore, digital literacy increased detection, but source salience did not matter when perceiving disinformation.
Changes in intracellular energetic and metabolite states due to increased galactolipid levels in Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942
Authors: Kondo Kumiko , Yoshimi Rina , Apdila Egi Tritya , Wakabayashi Ken-ichi , Awai Koichiro , Hisabori Toru
Published: January 2023

The lipid composition of thylakoid membranes is conserved from cyanobacteria to green plants. However, the biosynthetic pathways of galactolipids, the major components of thylakoid membranes, are known to differ substantially between cyanobacteria and green plants. We previously reported on a transformant of the unicellular rod-shaped cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942, namely SeGPT, in which the synthesis pathways of the galactolipids monogalactosyldiacylglycerol and digalactosyldiacylglycerol are completely replaced by those of green plants. SeGPT exhibited increased galactolipid content and could grow photoautotrophically, but its growth rate was slower than that of wild-type S. elongatus PCC 7942. In the present study, we investigated pleiotropic effects that occur in SeGPT and determined how its increased lipid content affects cell proliferation. Microscopic observations revealed that cell division and thylakoid membrane development are impaired in SeGPT. Furthermore, physiological analyses indicated that the bioenergetic state of SeGPT is altered toward energy storage, as indicated by increased levels of intracellular ATP and glycogen. We hereby report that we have identified a new promising candidate as a platform for material production by modifying the lipid synthesis system in this way.
Synergistic effects of applying static magnetic fields and diazepam to improve EEG abnormalities in the pilocarpine epilepsy rat model
Authors: de Labra Carmen , Cudeiro Javier , Rivadulla Casto
Published: January 2023

The lithium-pilocarpine rat model is a well-known model of temporal epilepsy. Recently we found that transcranial static magnetic stimulation (tSMS) delay and reduce the signs of EEG in this model. We aim to test the effect of combining the therapeutic action of tSMS and diazepam, a drug used to treat status epilepticus. We induce epilepsy in 12 Sprague–Dawley rats. Animals were classified as “magnet” when a magnetic neodymium cylinder was placed over the skull or “control” when a stainless-steel replica was used. Diazepam was injected 60-min after the second doses of pilocarpine injection. We found a reduction in the number of spikes/minute for magnet condition compared with sham condition, reaching significance at 60 min after diazepam injection. The Root-Mean-Square shown a significant reduction in magnet animals compared with those receiving diazepam (Tukey’s-test 30 and 60 min after diazepam injection, p < 0.01; 40 and 50 min after diazepam injection, p < 0.05). Furthermore, the power spectrum analysis shown a reduction in delta, theta, alpha and beta bands, on the diazepam + magnet animals compared to the diazepam + sham group. Analysis of high-frequency oscillations revealed an increased in the ripples due to pilocarpine being reduced by diazepam. Our results demonstrate that application of tSMS previously to diazepam potentiates the effect of the drug by reducing the electroencephalographic pattern associated with epileptiform discharges. We suggest a new synergistic cooperation between pharmacology and neuromodulation as a future treatment for epilepsy.
Post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 associates with physical inactivity in a cohort of COVID-19 survivors
Authors: Gil Saulo , Gualano Bruno , de Araújo Adriana Ladeira , de Oliveira Júnior Gersiel Nascimento , Damiano Rodolfo Furlan , Pinna Fabio , Imamura Marta , Rocha Vanderson , Kallas Esper , Batistella Linamara Rizzo , Forlenza Orestes V. , de Carvalho Carlos R. R. , Busatto Geraldo Filho , Roschel Hamilton ,   HCFMUSP COVID-19 Study Group, Utiyama Edivaldo , Segurado Aluisio , Perondi Beatriz , Morais Anna Miethke , Montal Amanda , Letaif Leila , Fusco Solange , da Silva Marjorie Fregonesi Rodrigues , Rocha Marcelo , Marcilio Izabel , Rios Izabel Cristina , Kawano Fabiane Yumi Ogihara , de Jesus Maria Amélia , Kallas Ésper Georges , Carmo Carolina , Tanaka Clarice , de Souza Heraldo Possolo , Marchini Julio F. M. , Carvalho Carlos , Ferreira Juliana Carvalho , de Oliveira Maura Salaroli , Guimarães Thaís , dos Santos Lázari Carolina , da Silva Duarte Alberto José , Sabino Ester , Magri Marcello Mihailenko Chaves , Barros-Filho Tarcisio E. P. , Francisco Maria Cristina Peres Braido
Published: January 2023

The aim of this study was to determine whether Post-acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 Infection (PASC) are associated with physical inactivity in COVID-19 survivors. This is a cohort study of COVID-19 survivors discharged from a tertiary hospital in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Patients admitted as inpatients due to laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 between March and August 2020 were consecutively invited for a follow-up in-person visit 6 to 11 months after hospitalization. Ten symptoms of PASC were assessed using standardized scales. Physical activity was assessed by questionnaire and participants were classified according to WHO Guidelines. 614 patients were analyzed (age: 56 ± 13 years; 53% male). Frequency of physical inactivity in patients exhibiting none, at least 1, 1–4, and 5 or more symptoms of PASC was 51%, 62%, 58%, and 71%, respectively. Adjusted models showed that patients with one or more persistent PASC symptoms have greater odds of being physically inactive than those without any persistent symptoms (OR: 1.57 [95% CI 1.04–2.39], P = 0.032). Dyspnea (OR: 2.22 [1.50–3.33], P < 0.001), fatigue (OR: 2.01 [1.40–2.90], P < 0.001), insomnia (OR: 1.69 [1.16–2.49], P = 0.007), post-traumatic stress (OR: 1.53 [1.05–2.23], P = 0.028), and severe muscle/joint pain (OR: 1.53 [95% CI 1.08–2.17], P = 0.011) were associated with greater odds of being physically inactive. This study suggests that PASC is associated with physical inactivity, which itself may be considered as a persistent symptom among COVID-19 survivors. This may help in the early identification of patients who could benefit from additional interventions tailored to combat inactivity (even after treatment of PASC), with potential beneficial impacts on overall morbidity/mortality and health systems worldwide.
Adjusted green HPLC determination of nirmatrelvir and ritonavir in the new FDA approved co-packaged pharmaceutical dosage using supported computational calculations
Authors: Imam Mohamed S. , Batubara Afnan S. , Gamal Mohammed , Abdelazim Ahmed H. , Almrasy Ahmed A. , Ramzy Sherif
Published: January 2023

The greening of analytical methods has gained interest in the quantitative analysis field to reduce environmental impact and improve safety health conditions for analysts. Nirmatrelvir plus ritonavir is a new FDA approved co-packaged medication developed for the treatment of COVID-19. The aim of this research was to develop green fitted HPLC method using pre experimental computational testing of different stationary phases as well as selecting mobile phase regarding to green analytical chemistry principles.Computational study was designed to test the physical interaction between nirmatrelvir and ritonavir and different columns (C8, C18, Cyano column). The study showed that the C18 column was better for simultaneous HPLC analysis of the cited drugs. Regarding to green point of view, mobile phase consisted of ethanol: water (80:20, v/v) provided an efficient chromatographic separation of nirmatrelvir and ritonavir within a short analytical run time, reasonable resolution and excellent sensitivity. Isocratic elution was performed on a selected C18 column and a green adjusted mobile phase at flow rate of 1 mL/min and UV detection at 215 nm. The chromatographic system allowed complete baseline separation with retention times of 4.9 min for nirmatrelvir and 6.8 min for ritonavir. The method succeeded to determine nirmatrelvir and ritonavir over the concentration range of 1.0–20.0 μg/mL in the pure form and in pharmaceutical dosage form. Greenness profiles of the applied HPLC method was assessed using analytical eco-scale, the green analytical procedure index and the AGREE evaluation method. The results revealed adherence of the described method to the green analytical chemistry principles. The authors hope to provide a promising challenge for achieving green goals through integrating computational tools and applying them with green assessment metrics.
Increased end-stage renal disease risk in age-related macular degeneration: a nationwide cohort study with 10-year follow-up
Authors: Jung Wonyoung , Park Junhee , Jang Hye Ryoun , Jeon Junseok , Han Kyungdo , Kim Bongseong , Yoon Je Moon , Lim Dong Hui , Shin Dong Wook
Published: January 2023

Common etiologies between age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and kidney disease advocate a close link between AMD and end-stage renal disease (ESRD). However, the risk of ESRD in people with AMD was not reported. Here, we investigated the association between AMD and the risk of ESRD by using a nationwide, population-based cohort data in Korea. 4,206,862 participants aged 50 years or older were categorized by presence of AMD and visual disability. Risk of ESRD was the primary outcome. Cox regression hazard model was used to examine the hazard ratios (HRs) with adjustment for potential confounders. Stratified analyses by age, sex, baseline kidney function, and cardiometabolic comorbidities were performed. During the mean 9.95 years of follow-up, there were 21,759 incident ESRD events (0.52%). AMD was associated with 33% increased risk of ESRD (adjusted HR [aHR] 1.33, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.24–1.44), and the risk was even higher when accompanied by visual disability (aHR 2.05, 95% CI 1.68–2.50) than when not (aHR 1.26, 95% CI 1.17–1.37). Age, baseline kidney function, and cardiometabolic comorbidities significantly interact between AMD and the risk of ESRD. Our findings have clinical implications on disease prevention and risk factor management of ESRD in patients with AMD.
Magnetic moment impact on spin-dependent Seebeck coefficient of ferromagnetic thin films
Authors: Portavoce Alain , Assaf Elie , Bertoglio Maxime , Narducci Dario , Bertaina Sylvain
Published: January 2023

Magnetic materials may be engineered to produce thermoelectric materials using spin-related effects. However, clear understanding of localized magnetic moments (µI), free carriers, and Seebeck coefficient (S) interrelations is mandatory for efficient material design. In this work, we investigate µI influence on the spin-dependent S of model ferromagnetic thin films, allowing µI thermal fluctuations, ordering, and density variation influence to be independently investigated. µI influence on free carrier polarization is found to be of highest importance on S: efficient coupling of free carrier spin and localized magnetic moment promotes the increase of S, while spin-dependent relaxation time difference between the two spin-dependent conduction channels leads to S decrease. Our observations support new routes for thermoelectric material design based on spin-related effects in ferromagnetic materials.
Exposure to polystyrene microplastic beads causes sex-specific toxic effects in the model insect Drosophila melanogaster
Authors: El Kholy Samar , Al Naggar Yahya
Published: January 2023

The toxicity of MPs on aquatic creatures has been extensively studied, but little attention was paid to terrestrial organisms. To fill this gab, we conducted a series of experiments using Drosophila as a model organism to understand whether exposure to different concentrations (0.005, 0.05, 0.5 µg/ml) of polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs) beads (2 µm in size) can impact flies feeding activity, digestion and excretion. The ability of flies to distinguish between normal and PS-MPs treated food media was tested first, and then we evaluated the effects of a 7-day short-term exposure to PS-MPs on food intake, mortality, starvation resistance, fecal pellet count, and the cellular structure of mid gut cells. The results revealed that flies can really differentiate and ignore MPs-treated food. We discovered sex-specific effects, with male flies being more sensitive to PS-MPs, with all males dying after 14 days when exposed to 0.5 µg/ml of PS-MPs, whereas female flies survived more. All male flies exposed to PS-MPs died after 24 h of starvation. Midgut cells showed concentration-dependent necrosis and apoptosis in response to PS-MPs. Our findings provide new insights into MPs toxicity on terrestrial organisms and giving a warning that management measures against MPs emission must be taken.
Time to diagnosis of Duchenne muscular dystrophy in Austria and Germany
Authors: Hiebeler Miriam , Thiele Simone , Reilich Peter , Bernert Günther , Walter Maggie C.
Published: January 2023

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is an X-linked genetic disorder manifesting in early childhood with progressive muscular weakness and atrophy, and resulting in early loss of ambulation. The collection and evaluation of epidemiological data for this disease is crucial for an early diagnosis and disease management. In Germany, data are collected via the TREAT-NMD DMD patient registry (www.dmd-register.de). In contrast, data collection in Austria has not yet been performed systematically. For collecting data from Austrian DMD patients, an online survey of the patient’s caregivers was conducted. Data of 57 patients were collected entailing initial symptoms, diagnosis and therapeutic measures. Comparable data has been collected for Germany via the TREAT-NMD DMD patient registry. 57 DMD patients aged 4–34 years completed the Austrian survey. On average, first symptoms of the disease appeared at the age of 3.1 years. As the most frequent first symptom, 46% of the patients described problems in climbing stairs. In 40% of the patients, DMD was diagnosed early due to an accidentally detected hyperCKemia in infancy or early childhood. Corticosteroids represented the main therapeutic option in our cohort. At the time of the survey, only 52% of the patients were treated with corticosteroids. Patients from Germany reported that first symptoms appeared at the age of 3.06 years. Diagnosis was established by genetic testing or muscle biopsy. 47% of the patients were treated with corticosteroids. Time between first symptoms and diagnosis was 7 months in Austria, and 4.7 months in Germany, respectively. Compared to earlier international studies, the Austrian data show encouraging results regarding earlier start of corticosteroid therapy in a larger percentage of patients. Austrian and German data show a trend towards an earlier diagnosis of DMD, while the age at symptom onset was similar to previous studies. The collection and evaluation of epidemiological data of DMD patients is important and will hopefully contribute to accelerate DMD diagnosis and treatment access for the patients.
School grades and educational attainments of adolescents and young adults born preterm
Authors: Alenius Suvi , Kajantie Eero , Sund Reijo , Nurhonen Markku , Haaramo Peija , Näsänen-Gilmore Pieta , Lemola Sakari , Räikkönen Katri , Schnitzlein Daniel D. , Wolke Dieter , Gissler Mika , Hovi Petteri
Published: January 2023

Attendance in special education (SE) is more common among individuals born preterm than among those born at term. Less is known about school grades of those born preterm in mainstream education (ME), and how these grades predict later educational attainment. This population-based register-linkage study assessed (1) attendance in SE, and then focused on those in ME by assessing (2) school grades at 16 year, (3) completed educational level at 25 year, and (4) school grades as predictors for completed education by gestational age (GA) with full-term birth (39–41 completed weeks) as reference. The sample comprised 223,744 individuals (10,521 preterm, 4.7%) born in Finland (1/1987–9/1990). Of the sample, 4.9% attended SE. Those born preterm had up to 5.5-fold rates for SE. In ME, those born extremely preterm (EPT) had marginally lower mathematics grades compared with full-term counterparts, whilst those born late preterm or early term had slightly higher grades. Those born EPT or very preterm had lower physical education grades in ME. However, the minor differences in school grades according to GA appear not to translate into educational differences in young adulthood. The associations between school grades at 16 year and completed education at 25 year did not vary by GA.
Enhanced dissolution of arsenic in anaerobic soils upon organic amendment application: acid detergent-soluble organic matter as a potential indicator
Authors: Suda Aomi , Baba Koji , Sakurai Gen , Furuya Manami , Yamaguchi Noriko
Published: January 2023

Application of organic amendments (OAMs) often enhances arsenic (As) dissolution in paddy soils. Therefore, understanding the properties of OAMs that determine the extent of As dissolution is essential for appropriate soil management. Since As dissolution increases with decrease in soil redox potential caused by microbial respiration, the decomposability of OAMs might be a critical factor controlling As dissolution in amended soils. We hypothesized that contents of acid detergent-soluble organic matter (ADSOM, mainly composed of non-fiber organic matter and hemicellulose) in OAMs can help estimate the potential of OAMs in accelerating As dissolution in soils with added OAMs. Therefore, two contrasting soil types, Andosol and Fluvisol, were mixed with 24 different OAMs and subjected to anaerobic incubation for 14 weeks. Changes in soil Eh and dissolved As contents were monitored throughout the incubation period, and As species in solid phases and ferrous iron (Fe(II)) contents in soils were measured after 2 and 6 weeks of incubation. The higher the ADSOM content in soils with OAMs, the higher the dissolved As contents in soils and the lower the Eh values. Dissolved As also positively correlated with the proportion of As(III) in solid phases and Fe(II) content after 2 and 6 weeks of incubation, indicating that decomposition of ADSOM led to reducing soil conditions, thereby promoting the reduction of As(V) and As-bearing Fe oxides and subsequent As dissolution. The results were consistent between the two types of soils, despite dissolved As content in the Andosol being two orders lower than that in Fluvisol. This is the first study to demonstrate that ADSOM can be a prominent indicator of the potential of OAMs, for promoting As dissolution, when applied to paddy soils.
Automatic segmentation of trabecular and cortical compartments in HR-pQCT images using an embedding-predicting U-Net and morphological post-processing
Authors: Neeteson Nathan J. , Besler Bryce A. , Whittier Danielle E. , Boyd Steven K.
Published: January 2023

High-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT) is an emerging in vivo imaging modality for quantification of bone microarchitecture. However, extraction of quantitative microarchitectural parameters from HR-pQCT images requires an accurate segmentation of the image. The current standard protocol using semi-automated contouring for HR-pQCT image segmentation is laborious, introduces inter-operator biases into research data, and poses a barrier to streamlined clinical implementation. In this work, we propose and validate a fully automated algorithm for segmentation of HR-pQCT radius and tibia images. A multi-slice 2D U-Net produces initial segmentation predictions, which are post-processed via a sequence of traditional morphological image filters. The U-Net was trained on a large dataset containing 1822 images from 896 unique participants. Predicted segmentations were compared to reference segmentations on a disjoint dataset containing 386 images from 190 unique participants, and 156 pairs of repeated images were used to compare the precision of the novel and current protocols. The agreement of morphological parameters obtained using the predicted segmentation relative to the reference standard was excellent (R2between 0.938 and > 0.999). Precision was significantly improved for several outputs, most notably cortical porosity. This novel and robust algorithm for automated segmentation will increase the feasibility of using HR-pQCT in research and clinical settings.
A combined qualitative–quantitative fuzzy method for urban flood resilience assessment in Karaj City, Iran
Authors: Khatooni Kousha , Hooshyaripor Farhad , MalekMohammadi Bahram , Noori Roohollah
Published: January 2023

This study aims to analyze flood resilience (FR) in Karaj City, Iran, using a new fuzzy method which combines several qualitative and quantitative indices. The qualitative part was estimated by a questionnaire consisting of 42 questions distributed into five indices (social-cultural, economic, infrastructural-physical, organizational-institutional, and hydraulic). A fuzzy method was used for analyzing the results. To quantify the hydraulic index, a 25-year flood was simulated in the Storm Water Management Model and the flooding volume at every grid was estimated. The idea was that the flooding amount could be representative of structural FR of drainage network that cannot be evaluated through a questionnaire well. To calculate the FR of different districts, the obtained FR indices were fuzzified then aggregated. Considering that clustering can assist managers and decision makers for more effective flood risk management, a fuzzy equivalence matrix concept was used for clustering FR in the city. Friedman test showed the significance of differences between FR of every two districts. Based on the results, northwestern and southeastern districts had the highest and the lowest resilience, respectively. Although the impact of infrastructure-physical index on the FR was similar in most of the districts, the contribution of social-cultural, organizational-institutional, and hydraulic indices was significantly different. Also, districts with low scores in the infrastructure-physical, organizational-institutional, and hydraulic indices need more attention for flood risk management.
Motion control and positioning system of multi-sensor tunnel defect inspection robot: from methodology to application
Authors: Liu Ke-Qiang , Zhong Shi-Sheng , Zhao Kun , Song Yang
Published: January 2023

As the mileage of subway is increasing rapidly, there is an urgent need for automatic subway tunnel inspection equipment to ensure the efficiency and frequency of daily tunnel inspection. The subway tunnel environment is complex, it cannot receive GPS and other satellite signals, a variety of positioning sensors cannot be used. Besides, there are random interference, wheel and rail idling and creep. All the above results in poor performance of conventional speed tracking and positioning methods. In this paper, a multi-sensor motion control system is proposed for the subway tunnel inspection robot. At the same time, a trapezoidal speed planning and a speed tracking algorithm based on MPC (Model Predictive Control) are proposed, which simplify longitudinal dynamics model to overcome the complex and variable nonlinear problems in the operation of the maintenance robot. The optimal function of speed, acceleration and jerk constraint is designed to make the tunnel inspection robot achieve efficient and stable speed control in the subway tunnel environment. In this paper, the "INS (inertial navigation system) + Odometer" positioning method is proposed. The difference between the displacement measured by the inertial navigation system and the displacement calculated by the odometer is taken as the measurement value, which reduces the dimension of the conventional algorithm. The closed-loop Kalman filter is used to establish the combined positioning model, and the system error can be corrected in real time with higher accuracy. The algorithms were verified on the test line. The displacement target was set to be 1 km and the limit speed was 60 km/h. The overshooting error of the speed tracking algorithm based on trapezoidal velocity planning and MPC was 0.89%, and the stability error was 0.32%. It improved the accuracy and stability of the speed following, and was much better than the PID speed tracking algorithm. At the speed of 40 km/h, the maximum positioning error of the robot within 2 km is 0.15%, and the average error is 0.08%. It is verified that the multi-sensor fusion positioning algorithm has significantly improved the accuracy compared with the single-odometer positioning algorithm, and can effectively make up for the position error caused by wheel-rail creep and sensor error.
Single-cell-led drug repurposing for Alzheimer’s disease
Authors: Parolo Silvia , Mariotti Federica , Bora Pranami , Carboni Lucia , Domenici Enrico
Published: January 2023

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia. Notwithstanding the huge investments in drug development, only one disease-modifying treatment has been recently approved. Here we present a single-cell-led systems biology pipeline for the identification of drug repurposing candidates. Using single-cell RNA sequencing data of brain tissues from patients with Alzheimer’s disease, genome-wide association study results, and multiple gene annotation resources, we built a multi-cellular Alzheimer’s disease molecular network that we leveraged for gaining cell-specific insights into Alzheimer’s disease pathophysiology and for the identification of drug repurposing candidates. Our computational approach pointed out 54 candidate drugs, mainly targeting MAPK and IGF1R signaling pathways, which could be further evaluated for their potential as Alzheimer’s disease therapy.
Using improved CRITIC method to evaluate thermal coal suppliers
Authors: Zhong Shuheng , Chen Yiyu , Miao Yinjun
Published: January 2023

Nowadays the complex international political situation has caused the shortage of coal supply in the European region. Scholars have done a lot of research on supplier evaluation. However, these studies don’t reflect the variability of the indicators, such as interruption caused by recent war. Coal-electricity-integrated companies have a large demand for thermal coal and high requirements for stable supply, so they need to conduct timely and effective short-term evaluation of suppliers. This paper improves the CRITIC method and uses short-term transaction data for a coal-electricity-integrated firm to evaluate its coal suppliers. The results show that the improved CRITIC method effectively avoids the problem of weight changes caused by conflicting value ranges of indicators, and its evaluation results are more consistent with the actual situation, which can meet the requirements of large coal enterprises for evaluating suppliers.
The association between early onset of alcohol, smokeless tobacco and marijuana use with adult binge drinking in United States
Authors: Dai Zheng , Wang Kesheng
Published: January 2023

Binge drinking is a deadly pattern of excessive alcohol use that is associated with multiple diseases in the United States. To date, little is known about the associations between the early onset of substance use and other factors with the severity of adult binge drinking. The 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health data was used to identify binge drinking (binary and in number of days in the past month). Age at onset was categorized into four groups as 1–12, 13–14, 15–17, or beyond 18. Weighted multivariate logistic regression and Poisson regression analyses were performed to examine the associations between early onset of alcohol, smokeless tobacco, and marijuana use with binge drinking. The severity of binge drinking was statistically significantly associated with substance use (4.15 days in a month), early onset of alcohol, smokeless tobacco, and marijuana use (2.15–4.93 days, all p-values < 0.0001), after accounting for the covariates. Past year substance use disorder is strongly associated with binge drinking. The severity of adult binge drinking is significantly associated with early onset of substance use including alcohol, smokeless tobacco, and marijuana. Continued efforts are warranted to improve substance use prevention and treatment tailored for adolescents and youths to prevent development of adult binge drinking.
Magnetic sustentation as an adsorption characterization technique for paramagnetic metal-organic frameworks
Authors: Barroso Nagore , Andreo Jacopo , Beobide Garikoitz , Castillo Oscar , Luque Antonio , Pérez-Yáñez Sonia , Wuttke Stefan
Published: January 2023

Nowadays, there are many reliable characterization techniques for the study of adsorption properties in gas phase. However, the techniques available for the study of adsorption processes in solution, rely on indirect characterization techniques that measure the adsorbate concentration remaining in solution. In this work, we present a sensing method based on the magnetic properties of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) containing paramagnetic metal centres, which stands out for the rapidity, low cost and in situ direct measurement of the incorporated adsorbate within the porous material. To illustrate this sensing technique, the adsorption in solution of four MOFs have been characterized: MIL-88A(Fe), MOF-74(Cu, Co) and ZIF-67(Co). Our simple and efficient method allows the direct determination of the adsorbed mass, as well as the measurement of adsorption isotherm curves, which we hope will greatly advance the study of adsorption processes in solution, since this method is independent of the chemical nature of the adsorbate that often makes its quantification difficult.
Assessment and scenario hypothesis of food waste in China based on material flow analysis
Authors: Jiang Shiyan , Chen Hong , Yang Shuhan , Wang Yujie , Xu Ming
Published: January 2023

Field research limits the possibility of clarifying the current food waste situation in China. Material flow analysis was used to assess the magnitude and characteristics of waste in five stages from 2010–2019 by seven selected types. Wheat was wasted the most at 38%, while milk was wasted the least at 4%. During post-harvest handling and storage, processing and packaging, and consumption, wheat was wasted the most (56%, 36%, and 48%), while during production and marketing, tomatoes were wasted the most (28% and 25%). Wheat, apples, tomatoes, pork, and milk were wasted the most in consumption, while soybeans were wasted the most in processing and packaging, and freshwater fish were wasted the most in production. A scenarios hypothesis proved that a 5% reduction in each stage would reduce import demand for soybeans by 7%. This study provides a data reference and theoretical basis for food waste intervention and food security strategies.
Smartphone-read phage lateral flow assay for point-of-care detection of infection
Authors: Chabi Maede , Vu Binh , Brosamer Kristen , Smith Maxwell , Chavan Dimple , Conrad Jacinta C. , Willson Richard C. , Kourentzi Katerina
Published: January 2023

A new, universal class of M13 phage-based LFA reporters was validated in the point-of-care detection of SARS-CoV-2 nucleoprotein in clinical samples using a smartphone-based reader.
Correction: Fusogenic peptide modification to enhance gene delivery by peptide-DNA nano-coassemblies
Authors: Feng Ruilu , Ni Rong , Chau Ying
Published: January 2023

Correction for ‘Fusogenic peptide modification to enhance gene delivery by peptide-DNA nano-coassemblies’ by Ruilu Feng et al., Biomater. Sci., 2022, 10, 5116–5120, https://doi.org/10.1039/D2BM00705C.
Charge transfer in metal–organic frameworks
Authors: Haldar Ritesh , Ghosh Adrija , Maji Tapas Kumar
Published: January 2023

Design strategies and applications of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) showing charge transfer properties are discussed.
Surface fluorine preservation dependence of Ti3C2TxMXene for high electrochemical properties in ionic liquid electrolytes
Authors: Wang Guangyu , Wu Hao , Liu Yiming , Pang Yiwei , Hao Junsheng , Cheng Fangqin , Qian Aniu , Shi Hu
Published: January 2023

We demonstrated a replacement mechanism of surface-terminated –CF3in the Ti3C2Txsurface structure with good hydrophobicity and small flake size, which contributed to enhancing the capacitive properties of the material in ionic liquid electrolyte.