bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An Energetic Mesoscale Anticyclonic Eddy in the Southern Bay of Bengal in June 2020: A Case Study
Authors: Ye Ruijie , Zhou Feng , Ma Xiao , Shou Lu , Meng Qicheng , Zeng Dingyong , Liu Chenggang , Tian Di , Zhou Beifeng , Lin Feilong , Xu Mingquan , Hu Zhentao , Priyadarshani W. N. C. , Zhang Jiaying , Jayathilake R. M. R. M. , Pathirana Gayan , Iroshanie R. G. A.
Published: August 2023

The southern Bay of Bengal (BoB) is a region of rich mesoscale eddy activity that plays an important role in modulating water exchange between the BoB and the Arabian Sea. Although statistical surface characteristics of mesoscale eddies in the BoB have been sufficiently explored previously, most studies concentrated on the western and central BoB, but rarely in the southern BoB. In this study, an energetic mesoscale anticyclonic eddy (AE) was detected by long‐term mooring observations in the southern BoB during June 2020. The mooring observations revealed that the AE‐induced maximum temperature and salinity anomalies at 100 m were as large as 6.8°C and 0.3 psu, respectively. The available Argo profiles showed that the AE‐induced salinity anomalies had a three‐layer vertical structure, with a positive anomaly (maximum 0.28 psu) deeper than 100 m and (maximum 0.72 psu) shallower than 40 m, and a negative anomaly (maximum −0.86 psu) between 40 and 100 m, indicating that the AE could exert a significant effect on the redistribution of surface freshwater in the southern BoB. The AE formation was closely connected with remote forcing (equatorial Kelvin wave) and local processes (Rossby wave and local wind stress curl). Local energy conversion analysis demonstrated that baroclinic and barotropic instabilities, as well as wind stress work made comparable contributions to the generation of the AE. Given the frequent occurrence of the AEs to northwest of Sumatra, they could have significant effects on surface freshwater redistribution and regional ecosystem productivity in the southern BoB.
Seismically Imaged Crustal Breakup in the Southwest Taiwan Basin of the Northeastern South China Sea Margin
Authors: Chen Changliang , Yan Pin , Yu Junhui , Zhong Guangjian
Published: August 2023

The Southern Depression of the Southwest Taiwan Basin is an ENE‐trending wide rift in the northeastern South China Sea margin. Though known as highly thinned, the maximum degree of crustal extension remains unclear. Here, we present three NW‐trending multi‐channel seismic profiles crossing the depression askew, and another profile traversing it, all of which image the basement and Moho clearly. The basement deepens toward the rift axis while the Moho shoals toward the axis, indicating significant crustal thinning. Faults appear with only small throws and are usually untraceable to depth. As the integral fault offset seems insufficient to match the horizontal crustal extension, the high crustal thinning is mainly accommodated by detachment faults. Only small‐scale post‐rift magmatic bodies and sporadic sills are observed, and syn‐rift magmatism is poor. The depression shows a recumbent V‐shaped valley opening to the northeast with the width increasing from 50 km on the southwestern profile to 96 km on the northeastern profile. Along the valley axis, the crust thins from 8.1 to 3.6 km and more thinner to the northeast, demonstrating enhanced extensional degree toward the northeast. A unique conch‐shaped package (up to ∼2 s two‐way travel time thick) with moderately coherent reflections is imaged atop the axial mantle on the northeastern profile. It was possibly formed by mantle exhumation, syn‐rift sedimentary uplift, or volcanic eruption. All these possibilities indicate that the crust probably broke up there, which represents a special style of crustal thinning different from other magma‐poor margins.
Upper Mantle Anisotropy and Flow Beneath the Pacific Ocean Revealed by Differential PS‐SKS Splitting
Authors: Wolf Jonathan , Long Maureen D.
Published: August 2023

Upper mantle anisotropy has been mapped beneath continents at high spatial resolution. Beneath the oceans, however, shear wave splitting constraints on upper mantle anisotropy are sparse, due to the paucity of seismic receivers. A technique that does not require the availability of seismic stations close to the region under study is differential PS‐SKS splitting. Here, we use global wavefield simulations to investigate circumstances under which PS‐SKS splitting can be applied, and then use this technique to measure upper mantle anisotropy beneath the Pacific Ocean basin. Our results demonstrate that upper mantle anisotropy in our study region mostly reflects shearing due to the Pacific plate. North of Fiji, we observe a rotation of fast polarization directions, away from the direction of absolute plate motion of the Pacific plate. This may reflect far‐field mantle flow effects associated with the subduction of the Australian plate beneath the Pacific.
A Possible Unified Picture for the Connected Recurrent Magnetic Dipolarization, Quasi‐Periodic ENA Enhancement, SKR Low‐Frequency Extension and Narrowband Emission at Saturn
Authors: Xu Y. , Yao Z. H. , Ye S.‐Y. , Badman S. V. , Dialynas K. , Sergis N. , Ray L. C. , Guo R. L. , Pan D. X. , Dunn W. R. , Zhang B. , Bader A. , Kinrade J. , Wu S. Y. , Coates A. J. , Mitchell D. G. , Wei Y.
Published: August 2023

Magnetic Dipolarization, a hallmark indicator of the formation of field‐aligned currents, plays a crucial role in the energy dissipative processes that occur within planetary magnetospheres. Saturn's magnetic dipolarization was found to recur after one planetary rotation, suggesting a potential correlation with the corotating current systems. The observation of enhanced Energetic Neutral Atoms (ENA) within Saturn's inner magnetosphere serves as a diagnostic tool, revealing the existence of a rotating, dynamic Partial Ring Current (PRC) system. By utilizing multiple datasets from Cassini, this study advances the understanding of the interrelationship between ENA emission and magnetic dipolarization. Our results suggest the possibility of a coupling between the PRC system revealed by the ENA emission and magnetic dipolarization. Furthermore, a temporal correlation was found between the ENA emissions and two distinct radio emissions. This study discusses potential causal relationships among these phenomena and first time proposes a global unified physical picture.
Suprathermal Ions Observed Inside a Magnetic Flux Rope in the Earth's Magnetotail
Authors: Xie Yi , Wang Rongsheng , Wang Shimou , Li Xinmin , Gao Xinliang , Lu San
Published: August 2023

Suprathermal ions have not been observed inside magnetic flux ropes, although energetic electrons have been extensively detected and were thought to be accelerated inside magnetic flux ropes. In this paper, we present the first observation of the suprathermal ions inside a magnetic flux rope in the Earth's magnetotail with a spatial‐scale of tens of ion inertial length. This flux rope was propagating earthward, and its leading part was substantially compressed while its trailing part was significantly stretched. The suprathermal ions can be detected inside the whole flux rope and displayed distinct pitch angle distributions between its leading and trailing parts. In the leading part, the ion fluxes were enhanced primarily in the direction perpendicular to the magnetic field in the all measured energy range, while the ion fluxes increased in the parallel and antiparallel directions in the trailing parts. A large flow vortex was observed immediately behind the flux rope, consistent with Kármán vortex street. The observation suggested that a flux rope even with a large scale can still be highly dynamic, and the charged particles can be significantly accelerated during the flux rope evolution in magnetic reconnection.
A Zonal See‐Saw Variation of Tropical Cyclogenesis Over the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal‐South China Sea
Authors: Cao Xi , Wu Renguang , Wang Zhibiao , Lan Xiaoqing , Sun Ying , Zhao Junhu , Du Zhencai
Published: August 2023

The variation of tropical cyclone (TC) genesis over the North Indian Ocean (NIO) and South China Sea (SCS) during the post‐monsoon season is explored during 1979–2020. A zonal see‐saw variation of TC genesis is detected between the Arabian Sea (AS) and Bay of Bengal (BOB) –SCS (BOBSCS for brevity). More (less) TCs over the AS tend to concur with fewer (more) TCs over the BOBSCS. Analyses of both the observations and the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 outputs show that tripole sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies in the tropical Indian and Pacific Oceans play a crucial role in the zonal see‐saw variation of TC genesis. Positive western Indian (WI) Ocean and tropical central and eastern Pacific (CEP) Ocean SST anomalies and negative western Pacific (WP) SST anomalies induce anomalous ascending and descending motions and high and low humidity transportation to the middle troposphere over the AS and BOBSCS, respectively. Meantime, anticyclonic vorticity anomalies appear in the BOBSCS region and negative anomalies of vertical wind shear are induced over the NIO and SCS. The combined positive contributions of upward motion, mid‐level humidity increase, and low vertical wind shear favor higher TC genesis over the AS, whereas the joint negative effects of downward motion, mid‐level water vapor decrease, and lower‐level anticyclonic vorticity anomalies result in less TC genesis over the BOBSCS. Numerical experiments show a critical role of the WI SST anomalies in the dipole pattern of vertical motion, which is crucial for the zonal dipole variation of TC genesis.
Pathological complete response, category change, and prognostic significance of HER2-low breast cancer receiving neoadjuvant treatment: a multicenter analysis of 2489 cases
Authors: Zhu Siji , Lu Yujie , Fei Xiaochun , Shen Kunwei , Chen Xiaosong
Published: August 2023

Background

HER2-low breast cancers (BC) show a good response to novel anti-HER2 antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) in advanced setting. Nevertheless, little is known about the response, category change, and prognosis of HER2-low BC receiving neoadjuvant treatment (NAT).

Methods

Consecutive invasive BC patients who underwent ≥ 4 cycles of NAT and surgery from January 2009 to December 2020 were retrospectively reviewed. HER2-low was defined as IHC 1+ or 2+ and FISH negative. Concordance rates of HER2 and other biomarkers were analyzed by Kappa test. Kaplan–Meier analysis and Cox regression were used to assess the recurrence-free interval (RFI) and overall survival (OS).

Results

A total of 2489 patients were included, of whom 1023 (41.1%) had HER2-low tumors. HER2-low patients had a higher ER positivity rate than HER2-0 patients (78.5% vs. 63.6%, P < 0.001), and a similar breast pathological complete response (pCR) rate (20.6% vs. 21.8%, P = 0.617). Among non-pCR cases, 39.5% of HER2-0 tumors changed to HER2-low, and 14.3% of HER2-low tumors changed to HER2-0 after NAT. Low concordance rates of HER2-low status were found in both ER-positive (Kappa = 0.368) and ER-negative (Kappa = 0.444) patients. Primary HER2-low patients had a significantly better RFI than HER2-0 patients (P = 0.014), especially among ER-positive subset (P = 0.016). Moreover, HER2-low category change was associated with RFI in ER-positive subset (adjusted P = 0.043).

Conclusions

Compared with HER2-0 patients, HER2-low patients had a high proportion of ER-positive tumor and a similar pCR rate, which were related with better prognosis, especially in residual cases after NAT. A remarkable instability of HER2-low status was found between the primary and residual tumor, indicating re-testing HER2 status after NAT in the new era of anti-HER2 ADCs therapy.
Dexterous electrical-driven soft robots with reconfigurable chiral-lattice foot design
Authors: Wang Dong , Zhao Baowen , Li Xinlei , Dong Le , Zhang Mengjie , Zou Jiang , Gu Guoying
Published: August 2023

Dexterous locomotion, such as immediate direction change during fast movement or shape reconfiguration to perform diverse tasks, are essential animal survival strategies which have not been achieved in existing soft robots. Here, we present a kind of small-scale dexterous soft robot, consisting of an active dielectric elastomer artificial muscle and reconfigurable chiral-lattice foot, that enables immediate and reversible forward, backward and circular direction changes during fast movement under single voltage input. Our electric-driven soft robot with the structural design can be combined with smart materials to realize multimodal functions via shape reconfigurations under the external stimulus. We experimentally demonstrate that our dexterous soft robots can reach arbitrary points in a plane, form complex trajectories, or lower the height to pass through a narrow tunnel. The proposed structural design and shape reconfigurability may pave the way for next-generation autonomous soft robots with dexterous locomotion.
Hydrophobic interactions dominate the recognition of a KRAS G12V neoantigen
Authors: Wright Katharine M. , DiNapoli Sarah R. , Miller Michelle S. , Aitana Azurmendi P. , Zhao Xiaowei , Yu Zhiheng , Chakrabarti Mayukh , Shi WuXian , Douglass Jacqueline , Hwang Michael S. , Hsiue Emily Han-Chung , Mog Brian J. , Pearlman Alexander H. , Paul Suman , Konig Maximilian F. , Pardoll Drew M. , Bettegowda Chetan , Papadopoulos Nickolas , Kinzler Kenneth W. , Vogelstein Bert , Zhou Shibin , Gabelli Sandra B.
Published: August 2023

Specificity remains a major challenge to current therapeutic strategies for cancer. Mutation associated neoantigens (MANAs) are products of genetic alterations, making them highly specific therapeutic targets. MANAs are HLA-presented (pHLA) peptides derived from intracellular mutant proteins that are otherwise inaccessible to antibody-based therapeutics. Here, we describe the cryo-EM structure of an antibody-MANA pHLA complex. Specifically, we determine a TCR mimic (TCRm) antibody bound to its MANA target, the KRASG12Vpeptide presented by HLA-A*03:01. Hydrophobic residues appear to account for the specificity of the mutant G12V residue. We also determine the structure of the wild-type G12 peptide bound to HLA-A*03:01, using X-ray crystallography. Based on these structures, we perform screens to validate the key residues required for peptide specificity. These experiments led us to a model for discrimination between the mutant and the wild-type peptides presented on HLA-A*03:01 based exclusively on hydrophobic interactions.
Bioinspired rotary flight of light-driven composite films
Authors: Wang Dan , Chen Zhaomin , Li Mingtong , Hou Zhen , Zhan Changsong , Zheng Qijun , Wang Dalei , Wang Xin , Cheng Mengjiao , Hu Wenqi , Dong Bin , Shi Feng , Sitti Metin
Published: August 2023

Light-driven actuators have great potential in different types of applications. However, it is still challenging to apply them in flying devices owing to their slow response, small deflection and force output and low frequency response. Herein, inspired by the structure of vine maple seeds, we report a helicopter-like rotary flying photoactuator (in response to 0.6 W/cm2 near-infrared (NIR) light) with ultrafast rotation (~7200 revolutions per minute) and rapid response (~650 ms). This photoactuator is operated based on a fundamentally different mechanism that depends on the synergistic interactions between the photothermal graphene and the hygroscopic agar/silk fibroin components, the subsequent aerodynamically favorable airscrew formation, the jet propulsion, and the aerodynamics-based flying. The soft helicopter-like photoactuator exhibits controlled flight and steering behaviors, making it promising for applications in soft robotics and other miniature devices.
Body size and life history shape the historical biogeography of tetrapods
Authors: Weil Sarah-Sophie , Gallien Laure , Nicolaï Michaël P. J. , Lavergne Sébastien , Börger Luca , Allen William L.
Published: August 2023

Dispersal across biogeographic barriers is a key process determining global patterns of biodiversity as it allows lineages to colonize and diversify in new realms. Here we demonstrate that past biogeographic dispersal events often depended on species’ traits, by analysing 7,009 tetrapod species in 56 clades. Biogeographic models incorporating body size or life history accrued more statistical support than trait-independent models in 91% of clades. In these clades, dispersal rates increased by 28–32% for lineages with traits favouring successful biogeographic dispersal. Differences between clades in the effect magnitude of life history on dispersal rates are linked to the strength and type of biogeographic barriers and intra-clade trait variability. In many cases, large body sizes and fast life histories facilitate dispersal success. However, species with small bodies and/or slow life histories, or those with average traits, have an advantage in a minority of clades. Body size–dispersal relationships were related to a clade’s average body size and life history strategy. These results provide important new insight into how traits have shaped the historical biogeography of tetrapod lineages and may impact present-day and future biogeographic dispersal.
Experimental determination of concentration factors of Ni, Ru and Sb in the model diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum
Authors: Ali Y. , Thomas R. , Holgersson S. , Isaksson M. , Insulander Björk K.
Published: August 2023

This paper describes the experimental determination of concentration factors (CF) for nickel, ruthenium and antimony in the model diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum Bohlin (Bacillariophyceae), which was chosen as a representative of marine phytoplankton. Better determinations of these CF are needed to improve the modelling of marine ecosystems at release points, where radioactive pollutants enter the ecosystem, for more accurate predictions of radiation dose to humans caused by these pollutants. A literature study revealed that the currently implemented values of these CF are based on very scarce data, and a computational sensitivity study showed that the radiation dose caused by radioisotopes of these elements depend strongly on the phytoplankton CF. Nutrient-enriched water samples from Swedish coastal waters were used as a medium for growing of the diatom species P. tricornutum and radioactive isotopes of the studied elements were added to the cultures during the exponential growth phase. The radioactivity in the P. tricornutum and in the culture medium were measured separately and used for determination of CF. Conservative estimates of the CF based on this phytoplankton proxy on the present data are 6400 L/kg for nickel, 20,000 L/kg for ruthenium and 890 L/kg for antimony, with P. tricornutum biomass masses referring to dry weight. The estimates for nickel and ruthenium are similar to previously published values, which underpins the credibility of radiation dose calculations based on these values. The estimate for antimony is uncertain, but also, to our knowledge, represents the first published experimentally based data on this CF.
The connection between stress, density, and speed in crowds
Authors: Beermann Mira , Sieben Anna
Published: August 2023

Moving around in crowds is part of our daily lives, and we are used to the associated restriction of mobility. Nevertheless, little is known about how individuals experience these limitations. Such knowledge would, however, help to predict behavior, assess crowding, and improve measures for safety and comfort. To address this research gap, we conducted two studies on how constrained mobility affects physiological arousal as measured by mobile electrodermal activity (EDA) sensors. In study 1, we constrained walking speed by externally imposing a specific walking speed without physical proximity to another person, while, in study 2, we varied walking speed by increasing the number of people in a given area. In study 1, we confirmed previous findings showing that faster speeds led to statistically significantly higher levels of physiological arousal. The external limitations of walking speed, however, even if perceived as uncomfortable, did not increase physiological arousal. In the second study, subjects’ speed was gradually reduced by density in a single-lane experiment. This study shows that physiological arousal increased statistically significant with increasing density and decreasing speed, suggesting that people experience more stress when their movement is restricted by proximity to others. The result of study 2 is even more significant given the results of study 1: When there are no other people around, arousal increases with walking speed due to the physiology of walking. This effect reverses when the speed must be reduced due to other people. Then the arousal increases at lower speeds.
Soil micronutrients linked to human health in India
Authors: Morton Claire M. , Pullabhotla Hemant , Bevis Leah , Lobell David B.
Published: August 2023

Trace soil minerals are a critical determinant of both crop productivity and the mineral concentration of crops, therefore potentially impacting the nutritional status of human populations relying on those crops. We link health data from nearly 0.3 million children and one million adult women across India with over 27 million soil tests drawn from a nationwide soil health program. We find that soil zinc availability is positively associated with children’s linear height growth, and soil iron availability is positively associated with hemoglobin levels. The link between soil zinc and childhood stunting is particularly robust—a one standard deviation increase in satisfactory soil zinc tests is associated with approximately 11 fewer children stunted per 1000. We also find that this zinc-stunting relationship is strongest in wealthier households. Our results suggest that soil mineral availability impacts human nutritional status and health in at least some areas of India, and that agronomic fortification may be a beneficial intervention.
miR-33a-3p regulates METTL3-mediated AREG stability and alters EMT to inhibit pancreatic cancer invasion and metastasis
Authors: Su Xiaowen , Lai Tiantian , Tao Yue , Zhang Yong , Zhao Changyong , Zhou Junjing , Chen Enhong , Zhu Maoqun , Zhang Shuo , Wang Bei , Mao Yong , Hu Hao
Published: August 2023

Recent studies have shown that amphoteric regulatory protein (AREG), a member of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) family, is expressed in many cancers and is an independent prognostic indicator for patients with pancreatic cancer, but whether AREG is regulated at the epigenetic level to promote the development of pancreatic cancer (PC) has not been elucidated. Our results support the notion that AREG is overexpressed in pancreatic cancer tissues and cell lines. Functionally, the deletion of AREG impedes pancreatic cancer (PC) cell proliferation, migration, and invasion. In addition, we identified and validated that methyltransferase-like 3 (METTL3) induced the m6A modification on AREG and facilitated the stability of AREG mRNA after sequencing. Additionally, we obtained experimental evidence that miR-33a-3p targets and inhibits METTL3 from taking action, as predicted by using the miRDB and RNAinter. Remediation experiments showed that miR-33a-3p inhibits PC progression through METTL3. In summary, this research reveals that miR-33a-3p inhibits m6A-induced stabilization of AREG by targeting METTL3, which plays a key role in the aggressive progression of PC. AREG could be a potential target for PC treatment.
Transport properties and doping evolution of the Fermi surface in cuprates
Authors: Klebel-Knobloch B. , Tabiś W. , Gala M. A. , Barišić O. S. , Sunko D. K. , Barišić N.
Published: August 2023

Measured transport properties of three representative cuprates are reproduced within the paradigm of two electron subsystems, itinerant and localized. The localized subsystem evolves continuously from the Cu 3d$$^9$$

9

hole at half-filling and corresponds to the (pseudo)gapped parts of the Fermi surface. The itinerant subsystem is observed as a pure Fermi liquid (FL) with material-independent universal mobility across the doping/temperature phase diagram. The localized subsystem affects the itinerant one in our transport calculations solely by truncating the textbook FL integrals to the observed (doping- and temperature-dependent) Fermi arcs. With this extremely simple picture, we obtain the measured evolution of the resistivity and Hall coefficients in all three cases considered, including LSCO which undergoes a Lifshitz transition in the relevant doping range, a complication which turns out to be superficial. Our results imply that prior to evoking polaronic, quantum critical point, quantum dissipation, or even more exotic scenarios for the evolution of transport properties in cuprates, Fermi-surface properties must be addressed in realistic detail.
A nontraditional method for reducing thermoelastic stresses of variable thickness rotating discs
Authors: Eldeeb A. M. , Shabana Y. M. , El-Sayed T. A. , Elsawaf A.
Published: August 2023

Stresses reductions and/or raising the load-carrying capacity for a mechanical structure are always great dilemmas for researchers. In this article, a novel method is proposed, and its efficiency is examined for achieving these goals on functionally graded rotating nonuniform thickness discs. The originality of this method relies on comprising a geometrically well-defined area, into the whole structure, with certain homogeneous properties including density, thermal expansion coefficient, and elasticity matrix. This area acts as a reducer of the maximum values of various stress components. The solution of the magnetoelastic/magneto-thermoelastic problem is accomplished using the finite element method. The disc is subjected to partial uniform outer pressure, whereas, upon applying thermal loads; the thermal boundary conditions are considered symmetric. The proposed method is found to be beneficial as the obtained results demonstrated the ability to reduce the maximum stresses with different percentages depending on the location, angular width, and properties of the predefined area. This is reflected by an attainable decrease in the maximum compressive tangential stress and the von Mises stress by approximately 20.7% and 12.5%, respectively, under certain conditions.
Reducing particulate emissions by using advanced engine oil nanoadditives based on molybdenum disulfide and carbon nanotubes
Authors: Bojarska Zuzanna , Goławska Weronika , Mazurkiewicz-Pawlicka Marta , Makowski Łukasz
Published: August 2023

Nanoadditives can be used to enhance lubricating properties of engine oils. Although many additives have been developed, molybdenum disulfide and carbon nanotubes have attracted significant attention. In this study, we demonstrate that hybrid nanostructures based on these unique materials (MoS2/CNTs) positively affect engine oil lubricating properties. Hybrid nanostructures were produced via wet chemical synthesis in impinging jet reactor. This method is characterized by easy scalability and possible continuous operation, which are crucial in material commercialization. The application of 0.5 wt% suspension exhibited the best results, reducing the friction coefficient at the engine operating temperature by up to 26%. Nanoadditives protected the lubricated parts, causing their wear to be considerably lower than the base oil. The effect of nanoadditives on the quality of exhaust gases was also investigated, which has not yet been researched. The application of the oil with MoS2/CNT reduced the emissions of solid particles in the gasoline engine exhaust gas. The total volume of particles in the exhaust gas was reduced by 91% and 49% under idling and load-running conditions. This research showed that MoS2/CNTs can be successfully used as nanoadditives in engine oils for improving tribological properties, enhancing anti-wear performance, and reducing particle emissions in exhaust gas.
Insights into cellular behavior and micromolecular communication in urothelial micrografts
Authors: Juul Nikolai , Willacy Oliver , Mamand Doste R. , Andaloussi Samir El , Eisfeldt Jesper , Chamorro Clara I. , Fossum Magdalena
Published: August 2023

Autologous micrografting is a technique currently applied within skin wound healing, however, the potential use for surgical correction of other organs with epithelial lining, including the urinary bladder, remains largely unexplored. Currently, little is known about the micrograft expansion potential and the micromolecular events that occur in micrografted urothelial cells. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the proliferative potential of different porcine urothelial micrograft sizes in vitro, and, furthermore, to explore how urothelial micrografts communicate and which microcellular events are triggered. We demonstrated that increased tissue fragmentation subsequently potentiated the yield of proliferative cells and the cellular expansion potential, which confirms, that the micrografting principles of skin epithelium also apply to uroepithelium. Furthermore, we targeted the expression of the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway and demonstrated that ERK activation occurred predominately at the micrograft borders and that ERK inhibition led to decreased urothelial migration and proliferation. Finally, we successfully isolated extracellular vesicles from the micrograft culture medium and evaluated their contents and relevance within various enriched biological processes. Our findings substantiate the potential of applying urothelial micrografting in future tissue-engineering models for reconstructive urological surgery, and, furthermore, highlights certain mechanisms as potential targets for future wound healing treatments.
Burden of diseases attributable to second-hand smoke exposure in Iran adolescents from 2009 to 2020
Authors: Janjani Hosna , Nabizadeh Ramin , Shamsipour Mansour , Kashani Homa , Aghaei Mina , Yunesian Masud
Published: August 2023

Exposure to second-hand smoke (SHS) is prevalent in many countries, but the problem’s scope is poorly understood globally, especially in developing countries. We aimed to estimate SHS exposure and its national and subnational burden of diseases in Iran, the second-largest country in the Middle East, during 2009–2020. The burden of diseases from SHS was estimated as disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) for adolescents (10–18) year’s non-smokers. Using comparative risk assessment methodologies, the calculations were based on disease-specific relative risk estimates with national and subnational SHS exposure data, and the uncertainty and sensitivity analysis was performed. The results of study showed that the trend of exposure to SHS is increasing in Iran. The highest DALY was related to lower respiratory infection (LRI), asthma, and otitis media, respectively. The national average asthma burden (DALY/100,000) has increased from 17.4 (11.8_23.9) in 2009 to 21.3 (13.9_30) in 2020, LRI decreased from 25.8 (21.5_30.2) to 19.8 (16.7_23.1), and national average burden of otitis media (DALY/100,000) has increased from 3.1(1.9_4.6) to 3.9(2.4_5.6). The increasing trend of otitis media and asthma DALYs attributable to SHS exposure in Iran requires more attention from policymakers to protect the population.
Breast cancer histopathology image-based gene expression prediction using spatial transcriptomics data and deep learning
Authors: Rahaman Md Mamunur , Millar Ewan K. A. , Meijering Erik
Published: August 2023

Tumour heterogeneity in breast cancer poses challenges in predicting outcome and response to therapy. Spatial transcriptomics technologies may address these challenges, as they provide a wealth of information about gene expression at the cell level, but they are expensive, hindering their use in large-scale clinical oncology studies. Predicting gene expression from hematoxylin and eosin stained histology images provides a more affordable alternative for such studies. Here we present BrST-Net, a deep learning framework for predicting gene expression from histopathology images using spatial transcriptomics data. Using this framework, we trained and evaluated four distinct state-of-the-art deep learning architectures, which include ResNet101, Inception-v3, EfficientNet (with six different variants), and vision transformer (with two different variants), all without utilizing pretrained weights for the prediction of 250 genes. To enhance the generalisation performance of the main network, we introduce an auxiliary network into the framework. Our methodology outperforms previous studies, with 237 genes identified with positive correlation, including 24 genes with a median correlation coefficient greater than 0.50. This is a notable improvement over previous studies, which could predict only 102 genes with positive correlation, with the highest correlation values ranging from 0.29 to 0.34.
Yeast lacking the sterol C-5 desaturase Erg3 are tolerant to the anti-inflammatory triterpenoid saponin escin
Authors: Johnston Emily J. , Tallis Jess , Cunningham-Oakes Edward , Moses Tessa , Moore Simon J. , Hosking Sarah , Rosser Susan J.
Published: August 2023

Escin is a mixture of over 30 glycosylated triterpenoid (saponin) structures, extracted from the dried fruit of horse chestnuts. Escin is currently used as an anti-inflammatory, and has potential applications in the treatment of arthritis and cancer. Engineered yeast would enable production of specific bioactive components of escin at industrial scale, however many saponins have been shown to be toxic to yeast. Here we report that a Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain specifically lacking the sterol C-5 desaturase gene ERG3, exhibits striking enhanced tolerance to escin treatment. Transcriptome analyses, as well as pre-mixing of escin with sterols, support the hypothesis that escin interacts directly with ergosterol, but not as strongly with the altered sterols present in erg3Δ. A diverse range of saponins are of commercial interest, and this research highlights the value of screening lipidome mutants to identify appropriate hosts for engineering the industrial production of saponins.
A new approach for determination of orthophosphate based on mixed valent molybdenum oxide/poly 1,2-diaminoanthraquinone in seawater
Authors: Altahan Mahmoud Fatehy , AbdelAzzem Magdi
Published: August 2023

Orthophosphate is an essential macronutrient in natural water that controls primary production and strongly influences the global ocean carbon cycle. Electrochemical determination of orthophosphate is highly recommended because electrochemistry provides the simplest means of determination. Here the determination of orthophosphate based on the formation of a phosphomolybdate complex is reported. Mixed-valent molybdenum oxide (MoxOy) was prepared by cyclic voltammetry on poly-1,2-diaminoanthraquinone (1,2-DAAQ), which was performed by cyclic voltammetry on the surface of a glassy carbon electrode under pre-optimized conditions for the thickness of the modified electrode layers. The proposed modified electrode was used for square-wave voltammetry of orthophosphate ions under pre-optimized square-wave parameters (i.e., frequency and amplitude) in strongly acidic medium (pH < 1). The linear range was 0.05–4 µM with a limit of quantification (LOD) of 0.0093 µM with no effect on two peaks due to cross interference from silicate. Furthermore, MoxOy/PDAAQ shows good reproducibility with a relative standard deviation (RSD) of 2.17% for the peak at 0.035 V and 3.56% for the peak at 0.2 V. Real seawater samples were also analyzed for PO43− analysis by UV spectrophotometry and the results were compared with the measurement results of our proposed electrode, with good recoveries obtained.
HLA-DRB1*04:05 is involved in the development of Vogt–Koyanagi–Harada disease-like immune-related adverse events in patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors
Authors: Takeuchi Masaki , Meguro Akira , Nakamura Jutaro , Chikagawa Rei , Osada Raiga , Shibuya Etsuko , Hasumi Yukiko , Yamada Norihiro , Ishihara Mami , Mizuki Nobuhisa
Published: August 2023

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) activate anti-tumor activity by inhibiting immune checkpoint molecules that suppress inflammatory T-cell activity. However, ICIs can initiate excessive immune responses, thereby causing immune-related adverse events (irAEs). ICI-associated uveitis (ICIU) is an irAE that affects the eyes. Although Vogt–Koyanagi–Harada disease (VKH)-like uveitis is a common form of ICIU, it is unclear which factors determine the ICIU form. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of nine ICIU cases treated with ICIs for malignancies. We also performed HLA typing in seven cases to investigate the association between HLA and disease type. Fisher's exact test was used for the statistical analysis. Five of the ICIU cases were VKH-like ICIUs, and four were non-VKH-like ICIUs. No association was found between mean age, sex, primary disease, ICI, time to onset, and disease type. Four patients with VKH-like uveitis underwent HLA genotyping and were all positive for HLA-DRB1*04:05. All 3 patients with non-VKH-like uveitis were negative for HLA-DRB1*04:05. Statistical analysis showed that HLA-DRB1*04:05 was significantly associated with developing VKH-like ICIU (P = 0.029). In ICIU, HLA-DRB1*04:05 was associated with the pathogenesis of VKH-like uveitis, suggesting that ICI-associated VKH-like uveitis has a similar pathogenesis to VKH.
Least squares reverse time migration imaging with illumination preconditioned based on improved PRP conjugate gradients
Authors: Zhang Xiaodan , Li Rui , Cui Lin , Liu Dongxiao , Liu Guizhong , Zhang Zhiyu
Published: August 2023

Least squares reverse time migration (LSRTM) imaging is the one of the most accurate methods for migration imaging at present, and Polak–Ribiere–Polyak conjugate gradient (PRPCG) for LSRTM has the good numerical performance but weak convergence, so we construct an optimization factor to improve the iteration direction of the gradient, which can automatically generate a sufficient descent direction. The improved PRPCG (IPRPCG) can reduce the data residual values and speed up the iteration. And the illumination preconditioned (IP) operator is employed to IPRPCG-LSRTM which solves the problem of low resolution due to the insufficient iterative gradient information. In this paper, the experiments show that the imaging results of the proposed method (IPRPCG-IP-LSRTM) is improved greatly in detail characterization and events continuity, the iterative curve converged faster significantly, and the normalized data residual was reduced by 6.55% on average, which improved the accuracy of migration imaging effectively.
Subtractive panning for the isolation of monoclonal PEPITEM peptide antibody by phage display
Authors: Alassiri Mohammed , Lai Jing Yi , Ch’ng Angela Chiew Wen , Choong Yee Siew , Alanazi Asma , Lim Theam Soon
Published: August 2023

Antibody phage display is a key tool for the development of monoclonal antibodies against various targets. However, the development of anti-peptide antibodies is a challenging process due to the small size of peptides for binding. This makes anchoring of peptides a preferred approach for panning experiments. A common approach is by using streptavidin as the anchor protein to present biotinylated peptides for panning. Here, we propose the use of recombinant expression of the target peptide and an immunogenic protein as a fusion for panning. The peptide inhibitor of trans-endothelial migration (PEPITEM) peptide sequence was fused to the Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) α-crystalline (AC) as an anchor protein. The panning process was carried out by subtractive selection of the antibody library against the AC protein first, followed by binding to the library to PEPITEM fused AC (PEPI-AC). A unique monoclonal scFv antibodies with good specificity were identified. In conclusion, the use of an alternative anchor protein to present the peptide sequence coupled with subtractive panning allows for the identification of unique monoclonal antibodies against a peptide target.
Remote data possession checking scheme with supporting efficient group user authority management for shared cloud data
Authors: Yuan Yilin , Zhang Zhenzhen
Published: August 2023

Under the shared big data environment, the existing shared data auditing schemes rarely consider the authorization management of group users. Thus, in this paper, we propose a novel remote shared data checking possession scheme that support group authority management. To implement group user rights management, we firstly introduce a trusted entity group manager. To assist the group manager in authorization management, we formalize a new algebraic structure operator named authorization invisible authenticator (AIA). Meanwhile, we provide a basic AIA scheme for general security scenarios and a standard AIA scheme suitable for high-level security scenarios respectively. The standard AIA scheme can fully meet the needs of the group manager to safely perform rights management work. It is composed of the User Information Table (UIT) and the basic AIA scheme, which has higher security and is applicable to a wider range of scenarios. By distributing AIA through the standard AIA scheme, the group manager can easily carry out authority management, including enrolling, revoking, updating. After solving the problem of authorization management, the detailed design of the scheme based on identity-based encryption (IBE) is given. Furthermore, the security analysis and performance evaluation demonstrate that the scheme is safe and feasible.
Structure/epitope analysis and IgE binding activities of three cyclophilin family proteins from Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus
Authors: Li Yuwei , Sun Xizhuo , Yang Liteng
Published: August 2023

Cyclophilins (CyPs) are involved in basic cellular functions and a wide variety of pathophysiological processes. Many CyPs have been identified as the aetiological agent and influence on the immune system. In the present study, the physicochemical and immunologic characteristics of three proteins of CyPs family (CyPA, CyPB and CyPE) were analyzed. The results indicated that CyPE showed a closer evolutionary relationship with allergenic CyPA. The structure and antigenicity of CyPE was significantly similar with CyPA. B-cell epitopes of CyPE and CyPA were predicted via multiple immunoinformatics tools. Three consensus B-cell epitopes of CyPE and CyPAs were finally determined. To verify results of in silico analysis, three proteins of CyPs family (CyPA, CyPE and CyPB) were cloned and expressed from Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus. ELISA results indicated that the positive reaction rates of the three proteins to patient serum are CyPA (21.4%), CyPE (7.1%), and CyPB (0%), illustrating that the IgE activity was exhibited in CypA and CypE excluding CyPB. Structure and immunoinformatics analysis demonstrated that the RNA-binding motif of CyPE could reduce the immunogenicity of PPIase domain of CyPE. The reason that CyPB has no IgE activity might be the structure mutation of CyPB on B-cell epitopes.
Identification of the blasting vibration characteristics of groundwater-sealed tunnel
Authors: Rao Xiaokang , Huang Shengxiang
Published: August 2023

Blasting is widely used in mining, subway, demolition and groundwater-sealed tunnel, among them, the last one is widely concerned because of its many adjacent tunnels, high anti-seepage requirements, strict blasting control, etc. The identification of blasting characteristics is of great significance to the blasting construction and the safety evaluation of the groundwater-sealed tunnel. In view of the problem that conventional feature identification methods are less explored in groundwater-sealed tunnel, a complementary ensemble empirical mode decomposition with adaptive noise and multiscale permutation entropy and Hilbert–Huang transform (HHT) method was proposed. Then, the proposed method was verified by the numerical simulation and the Huangdao groundwater-sealed tunnel engineering. The results show that the proposed method can suppress modal aliasing and signal noise and identify the blasting characteristics of groundwater-sealed tunnel effectively. In addition, the blasting vibration energy which accounts for 94.7% in the frequency range of 0–200 Hz, 72.5% of 0–50 Hz was summarized. Furthermore, the safety status of each monitoring point was evaluated through HHT and the feasibility of millisecond blasting was identified. The method proposed can identify the vibration characteristics and safety status of groundwater-sealed tunnel from the perspective of time–frequency and energy effectively.
Ancient DNA re-opens the question of the phylogenetic position of the Sardinian pika Prolagus sardus (Wagner, 1829), an extinct lagomorph
Authors: Utzeri Valerio Joe , Cilli Elisabetta , Fontani Francesco , Zoboli Daniel , Orsini Massimiliano , Ribani Anisa , Latorre Adriana , Lissovsky Andrey A. , Pillola Gian Luigi , Bovo Samuele , Gruppioni Giorgio , Luiselli Donata , Fontanesi Luca
Published: August 2023

Palaeogenomics is contributing to refine our understanding of many major evolutionary events at an unprecedented resolution, with relevant impacts in several fields, including phylogenetics of extinct species. Few extant and extinct animal species from Mediterranean regions have been characterised at the DNA level thus far. The Sardinian pika, Prolagus sardus (Wagner, 1829), was an iconic lagomorph species that populated Sardinia and Corsica and became extinct during the Holocene. There is a certain scientific debate on the phylogenetic assignment of the extinct genus Prolagus to the family Ochotonidae (one of the only two extant families of the order Lagomorpha) or to a separated family Prolagidae, or to the subfamily Prolaginae within the family Ochotonidae. In this study, we successfully reconstructed a portion of the mitogenome of a Sardinian pika dated to the Neolithic period and recovered from the Cabaddaris cave, an archaeological site in Sardinia. Our calibrated phylogeny may support the hypothesis that the genus Prolagus is an independent sister group to the family Ochotonidae that diverged from the Ochotona genus lineage about 30 million years ago. These results may contribute to refine the phylogenetic interpretation of the morphological peculiarities of the Prolagus genus already described by palaeontological studies.
Feature-aware unsupervised lesion segmentation for brain tumor images using fast data density functional transform
Authors: Huang Shin-Jhe , Chen Chien-Chang , Kao Yamin , Lu Henry Horng-Shing
Published: August 2023

We demonstrate that isomorphically mapping gray-level medical image matrices onto energy spaces underlying the framework of fast data density functional transform (fDDFT) can achieve the unsupervised recognition of lesion morphology. By introducing the architecture of geometric deep learning and metrics of graph neural networks, gridized density functionals of the fDDFT establish an unsupervised feature-aware mechanism with global convolutional kernels to extract the most likely lesion boundaries and produce lesion segmentation. An AutoEncoder-assisted module reduces the computational complexity from $$\mathcal{O}\left({N}^{3}\right)$$

O

N

3

to $$\mathcal{O}\left(N\mathrm{log}N\right)$$

O

N
log
N

, thus efficiently speeding up global convolutional operations. We validate their performance utilizing various open-access datasets and discuss limitations. The inference time of each object in large three-dimensional datasets is 1.76 s on average. The proposed gridized density functionals have activation capability synergized with gradient ascent operations, hence can be modularized and embedded in pipelines of modern deep neural networks. Algorithms of geometric stability and similarity convergence also raise the accuracy of unsupervised recognition and segmentation of lesion images. Their performance achieves the standard requirement for conventional deep neural networks; the median dice score is higher than 0.75. The experiment shows that the synergy of fDDFT and a naïve neural network improves the training and inference time by 58% and 51%, respectively, and the dice score raises to 0.9415. This advantage facilitates fast computational modeling in interdisciplinary applications and clinical investigation.