bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Contemporary Transnational Historical Fiction: Forging Solidarities in the Global South Novel
Authors: Boer Nienke
Published: May 2023

This article diagnoses and discusses the emergence of a set of contemporary realist novels that engage with historical events, connect disparate parts of the global South through depicting travel or displacement, and feature subaltern protagonists. Exemplified by Amitav Ghosh's Ibis trilogy, these novels stage a reengagement with the archives of imperialism and oppression to discuss global rather than national histories, from the viewpoint of the marginalized. Frameworks such as the postcolonial historical novel or postmodern historiographical metafiction obscure the novelty of these texts, which signal a shift from the national to the transnational, from postmodernism to dense realism, and from the “middling” protagonist to marginal, subaltern protagonists. Working through close readings of two representative novels, Peter Kimani's Dance of the Jakaranda (2017) and Esi Edugyan's Washington Black (2018), the article proposes that the framework of the global South novel is more relevant, as these novels respond to the same stimuli—disillusionment with the nation-state and globalization, and a concrete investment in subaltern solidarity as a counternarrative to these earlier reactions to the end of colonialism and the Cold War—that global South theorists are addressing. It concludes by arguing for the value of defining the genre of the global South novel intrinsically, from the content and form of the work, rather than extrinsically, on the basis of the author's origin, the place of publication, or the setting of the work.
Something Worth Leaving in Shards: An Interview with Rachel Blau DuPlessis
Authors: Fest Bradley J. , DuPlessis Rachel Blau
Published: May 2023

This interview with poet, essayist, literary critic, and collagist Rachel Blau DuPlessis was conducted via email correspondence between June 11 and August 29, 2020. Author of over a dozen volumes of poetry and half a dozen books in modernist studies, poetics, and feminist criticism, DuPlessis reflects broadly on her career in this interview. She discusses the ongoing role of feminism in her writing and thought, the forms of the fold and the fragment, the relationship between her poetry and criticism, her work in and on the long poem, and her post-Drafts poetry, including her (at the time) most recent book, Late Work (2020). The interview concludes with a conversation about the relationship between poetry and theorizing practices and a meditation on writing during a global pandemic.
The New Negro: The Life of Alain Locke: An Unfinished Reading of Jeffrey Stewart's Troubled Biography
Authors: Outlaw Lucius T.
Published: May 2023

Jeffrey C. Stewart's book on Alain Locke is an unsuccessful endeavor. Stewart characterizes his book as a biography, leading the reader to expect an illuminating, accurate, and truthful account of Locke's life based on and disciplined by adherence to credible evidence and standards of scholarship. However, the life of Locke that Stewart recounts is, to a large extent, an imaginary construction that draws on but ventures far beyond the documentary evidence in narrating Locke's life, his “inner life” especially. Consequently, the chapters have the character of literary fiction—biographical fiction—seemingly plausible at times. Furthermore, numerous scholarly shortcomings and egregious misreadings and misrepresentations of W. E. B. Du Bois add to the book's failings. After reading twenty-eight of Stewart's forty-four chapters and “Epilogue,” this writer refused to suffer Stewart's book any further and ended his reading, his trust exhausted.
The Soviet Invention of Postcolonial Studies
Authors: Young Robert J. C.
Published: May 2023

The complex relations between the Soviet Union and the Soviet states of the Caucasus that were formerly parts of the Ottoman and Persian empires offer examples of complex cultural and political relations of antagonism and appropriation that go beyond simple binaries of resistance or nationalist anti-eurocentrism. Though their work is little known except to scholars in Slavic Studies, in the years following the Russian Revolution of 1917 Soviet Orientologists laid the foundations for the critique of Western Orientalism that would be introduced to the West many years later in 1978 by Edward W. Said. The Soviet critique of the imperialist foundations of Eurocentric culture and academic knowledge formed the basis for the huge World Literature publishing project pioneered by Maxim Gorky, an initiative which has been largely disregarded—both historically and theoretically—in the Western rediscovery of World Literature in the era of globalization. Similarly, Western postcolonial scholars have only recently begun to acknowledge the creative, cultural and political affiliations of Global South writers to internationalist organizations such as the Afro-Asian Writers Association which was supported by the Soviet Union in the Cold War period and the importance of publications such as Lotus magazine. The books reviewed here demonstrate the degree to which histories of “postcolonialism” and the late Western critique of Orientalism have now been rewritten to acknowledge their sources in earlier critiques by Soviet scholars in the first half of the twentieth century.
Lost: on what level should we aim to understand animal navigation?
Authors: Wynn Joe , Liedvogel Miriam
Published: May 2023

Given that all interactions between an animal and its environment are mediated by movement, questions of how animals inherit, refine and execute trajectories through space are fundamental to our understanding of biology. As with any behavioural trait, navigation can be thought of on many conceptual levels – from the mechanistic to the functional, and from the static to the dynamic – as laid out by Niko Tinbergen in his four questions of animal behaviour. Here, we use a navigation-centric interpretation of Tinbergen's questions to summarise and critique advances in the field of animal navigation. We discuss the ‘state of the art’; consider how a proximal/mechanistic understanding of navigation is not a prerequisite to understanding ultimate questions of evolutionary/adaptive importance; propose that certain aspects of animal navigation research – and certain taxa – are being neglected; and suggest that extreme experimental manipulations might lead to the mischaracterisation of non-adaptive ‘spandrels’ as functional navigational mechanisms. More generally, we highlight pressing questions within the field, the answers to which we believe are within reach, and highlight the important role that novel methods will have in helping us elucidate them.
Chalcogen-Peierls Transition: Single-Crystal-to-Single-Crystal Transition from a Two-Dimensional to a One-Dimensional Network of Chalcogen Bonds at Low Temperature
Authors: Kawaguchi Soki , Shimajiri Takuya , Akutagawa Tomoyuki , Fukushima Takanori , Ishigaki Yusuke , Suzuki Takanori
Published: May 2023

Due to inherent structural instability, low-dimensional materials often undergo the Peierls transition upon cooling, which is suppressed by an increase in dimensionality of their solid-state electronic structures using secondary bonding interactions such as chalcogen bonds (ChB). We revealed here that ChB themselves have an inherent structural instability when a chalcogen atom participates in simultaneous formation of two ChB, demonstrating for the first time a Peierls-like transition (chalcogen-Peierls transition) of ChB-based organic solids upon cooling. Thus, a lattice dimerization occurs at 220–230 K that changes the two-dimensional ChB network into an accumulated one-dimensional ribbon network in the tetracyanoquinodimethane fused with two [1,2,5]thiadiazoles (1). Negative cooperativity of two ChB formation is weakened on the Se atom due to greater polarizability. Thus, the selenadiazole analogues (2 and 3) undergo a similar chalcogen-Peierls transition at lower temperatures, such as at 160–170 K and at 110–120 K, respectively, depending on the number of Se atom incorporated (one or two, respectively).
Pesticide exposure and rhinitis: A cross-sectional study among farmers in Pitsanulok, Thailand
Authors: Juntarawijit Yuwayong , Juntarawijit Chudchawal
Published: May 2023

Background: Pesticide exposure has been suspected to cause rhinitis, a common disease that affects the health and well-being of millions of people around the world. This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the association between pesticide use and rhinitis prevalence among farmers in Phitsanulok province, Thailand.  

Methods: Data on historical pesticide use and rhinitis were collected by an in-person interview questionnaire. Data from 9,649 participants were included in the analysis. The association between pesticide exposure and rhinitis was determined by multiple variable logistic regression, adjusted for potential confounding factors. 

Results: The study found a strong association between pesticide exposure and the prevalence of rhinitis. The association was consistent across various types of pesticides (insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, rodenticides, and molluscicides) and individual pesticides. Some of the relationships were in a dose-response pattern. This finding was new as previous studies often reported the association of only a few specific pesticides.

Conclusions: The results from this large cross-sectional study strongly support existing literature on the potential effects of pesticides on rhinitis. In addition, the analysis showed that the rhinitis effect was in fact related to the properties of the types of pesticides rather than individual chemical toxicity. The impact of pesticides on rhinitis should receive more attention from public health and other organizations responsible for the farmers’ health.
The genome sequence of the Ash-bark Knot-horn, Euzophera pinguis (Haworth, 1811)
Authors: Boyes Douglas , Holland Peter W.H. ,   University of Oxford and Wytham Woods Genome Acquisition Lab,   Darwin Tree of Life Barcoding collective,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life programme,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Scientific Operations: DNA Pipelines collective,   Tree of Life Core Informatics collective,   Darwin Tree of Life Consortium
Published: May 2023

We present a genome assembly from an individual male Euzophera pinguis (the Ash-bark Knot-horn; Arthropoda; Insecta; Lepidoptera; Pyralidae). The genome sequence is 464.7 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 30 chromosomal pseudomolecules, including the Z sex chromosome. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 15.2 kilobases in length.
The genome sequence of the fish leech, Piscicola geometra (Linnaeus, 1761)
Authors: Doe Jason ,   Natural History Museum Genome Acquisition Lab,   Darwin Tree of Life Barcoding collective,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life programme,   Wellcome Sanger Institute Scientific Operations: DNA Pipelines collective,   Tree of Life Core Informatics collective,   Darwin Tree of Life Consortium
Published: May 2023

We present a genome assembly from an individual Piscicola geometra (the fish leech; Annelida; Clitellata; Hirudinida; Piscicolidae). The genome sequence is 171.1 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 17 chromosomal pseudomolecules. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 15.1 kilobases in length.
Environmental accounting and analysis
Authors: Belousov Anatoliy , Sheluhina Elena , Blizno Liliya , Lescheva M.G. , Bogataya I.N.
Published: May 2023

The textbook deals with topical issues of the organization of environmental accounting, environmental analysis and preparation of financial and non-financial reporting, taking into account the environmental imperative.
The theory of sustainable development of economic entities and the possibility of describing this process in the system of accounting coordinates as a prerequisite for the formation of an environmental accounting system of environmental protection activities of business units are reflected.
Special attention is paid to the formation of professional competencies of an accountant sufficient for the preparation of non-financial statements reflecting the effectiveness of the results of environmental activities of business units.
Meets the requirements of the federal state educational standards of higher education of the latest generation.
For students studying in the areas of preparation 38.03.01 and 38.04.01 "Economics" (bachelor's and master's degree level), teachers to help organize the educational process, as well as for anyone interested in the current problems of modern development of environmental accounting and analysis.
Money. Credit. Cans
Authors: Sokolov Boris , Sokolova Svetlana , Ivanov Viktor , Lyukevich Igor'
Published: May 2023

The textbook has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the federal state educational standards of higher education of the latest generation and covers all sections of the standard training course "Money. Credit. Banks".
The material is structured and gives a comprehensive view of the main elements that make up the country's monetary system and its institutions.
For students and teachers of economic universities, researchers and practitioners.
General geology. New about the Earth
Authors: Koronovskiy Nikolay , Bryanceva Galina , Dubinin E. , Zaharov V.
Published: May 2023

The textbook discusses in detail some specially selected sections of the discipline "General Geology" that seem to be the most important. The features of the formation of the Universe, our Galaxy, the structure, origin and development of the Earth and the most important processes that occur on it and which are briefly described or not discussed at all in standard textbooks are revealed. Special attention is paid to in-depth consideration of the main, most interesting and important geological problems, since there are still a lot of unresolved and controversial issues in geology. For many problems, there is no one proven idea, many particular results appear, and the general "noise" from a large number of publications leads to their "overproduction", which drowns out one true result.
Meets the requirements of the federal state educational standards of higher education of the latest generation.
For students studying at the natural sciences faculties of universities, mining and geological universities and technical schools, graduate students, students of professional retraining and advanced training programs, as well as all those who are interested in improving their personal efficiency and want to replenish their knowledge about the most important problems of geology.
The Russian economy and the pension system for 30 years
Authors: Egorshin Aleksandr , Gus'kova Irina , Eliseev Yuriy , Volgin Nikolay , Masyutin Svyatoslav
Published: May 2023

The monograph is devoted to the Russian pension system. In the first section, the economic and social analysis of reforms in Russia over 30 years is carried out, the transformation of the economy and the replacement of the administrative economy with a market economy carried out in 1991-2000, the financial crisis and the rise of the Russian economy in 2001-2010 are considered. The sources of growth of the Russian economy and the economic strategy and the future of Russia under Western sanctions after 2022 are revealed.
The second section examines the formation of the pension system of Russia during the transformation of the economy, examines the reform of the pension system of Russia in 2001-2021. The methods of calculating the earnings and pension capital of scientists and military personnel are proposed. The basics of the pension systems of Asian and European countries and recommendations for improving the pension system of Russia for the future are outlined.
It is intended for specialists and scientists working in the field of macroeconomics and the pension system of Russia.
Insulin resistance, does it exist? The current state of knowledge
Authors: Michalska Milena , Stec Albert , Lubaszka Zuzanna , Żurek Urszula , Fiega Jakub , Szewczyk Dorota , Gil Aleksandra , Sikorski Piotr , Sikorska Ewa
Published: May 2023

Insulin resistance is a growing concern worldwide, affecting millions of people and increasing the risk of various metabolic disorders, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and fatty liver disease. This paper aims to display the symptoms of insulin resistance and the importance of early detection through various diagnostic tests such as fasting insulin levels, oral glucose tolerance tests, and HOMA-IR scores. Despite the high prevalence of insulin resistance, there is currently no known cure for this condition as it is not a disease in itself. However, lifestyle modifications, including exercise and dietary changes, can effectively manage and prevent the progression of insulin resistance and its associated complications. This study emphasizes the importance of raising awareness about insulin resistance and its adverse effects on individuals' health and the healthcare system's burden. Early detection and management of insulin resistance can significantly reduce the risk of developing metabolic disorders and prevent serious health complications.
Organizacje polskiej diaspory: Stan i perspektywy rozwoju
Authors: Żaliński Adam
Published: May 2023

The book presents the current conditions and the future perspectives of development of Polish diaspora organisations. To achieve this goal, a wide-ranging study in 36 countries, on six continents, was employed. The survey delivered an up-to-date information concerning a comprehensive spectrum of social, political, and cultural phenomena determining the functioning of these organisations. Still, the first goal, both explanatory and diagnostic, was to build a coherent view of Polish immigrant organisations. The organisations were presented from a global perspective, but also with a consideration of their geographic and functional differences. The second objective of the work was to examine the state of the organisations from a perspective of an explanatory model describing the state of immigrant organisations present in the source literature. In addition, another task was to verify hypotheses drawn from the analysis of the available literature on Polish immigrant organisations. A broad sample created a chance for an adequate testing environment. The obtained results showed a very complex situation of the surveyed organisations, but also shed a new light on some of the aspects of their functioning. The discussion utilizes main insights from the study of the changing Polish diaspora organisations and puts emphasis on an intra-organisational perspective of their functioning.
The Janus Effect of Generative AI: Charting the Path for Responsible Conduct of Scholarly Activities in Information Systems
Authors: Susarla Anjana , Gopal Ram , Thatcher Jason Bennett , Sarker Suprateek
Published: May 2023

Funding: A. Susarla was funded by an R01 grant from the National Library of Medicine, through [Grant R01LM013443].
Development of Slow-Release Fertilizer from Animal Origin Wastes: Sustainable Organic Agriculural Perspective
Authors: C. B Neethu , Vardhanan Y. Shibu
Published: May 2023

Improved crop quality and quantity is the main target of soil fertilization in conventional agriculture. However, in organic agriculture, adding nutrients to the soil is the threshold replenishment of nutrients lost through every crop. Mineral fertilizers provide essential macro and microelements to plants for their active growth and development. Unfortunately, these kinds of fertilizers easily run off from plant vicinity because of frequent watering and rain. This leads to the recurrent application of fertilizers, which causes severe environmental problems. To resolve these issues many researchers developed different slow-release fertilizers, which can provide nutrients to plants for an extended period. However, slow-release fertilizers are much more expensive than normal mineral fertilizers. The present work attempts to develop new slow-release fertilizer using mariculture waste mussel shell and cow urine. Significant macronutrient adsorption was observed in the shell saturation experiment and the leaching experiment proves that shell powder after nutrient impregnation with urine had a slow nutrient-releasing capacity. The formation of struvite crystals is another highlight of this study, which provides a long-term nutrient supply in the soil. BET analysis confirms the nutrient scrubbing and releasing ability of shell powder. Independently cow urine and mussels shells are used in agriculture for different purposes. Mussel shells are regularly used to reduce soil acidity and cow urine is applied to plants as a cheap nitrogen supplement in a diluted manner. However, cow urine components quickly run off from the plant root proximity. Nutrient impregnated shell powder has both characters of mussel shell powder and cow urine and it is truly formed from animal origin waste products. Because of no usage of synthetic chemicals, new slow-release fertilizer couldn’t make any environmental problems.
Alignment-free twisted-split-ring metasurface on single substrate with 2π phase range for linearly polarized sub-terahertz wave
Authors: Kitayama Daisuke , Pander Adam , Hama Yuto , Takahashi Hiroyuki
Published: May 2023

To achieve high-speed, large-capacity communication, next-generation mobile communication systems will require manipulation of the propagation of sub-terahertz waves in the propagation channel. In this paper, we propose the use of a novel split-ring resonator (SRR) structure as a metasurface unit cell for manipulating the linearly polarized incident and transmission waves used in mobile communication systems. In this SRR structure, the gap is twisted by 90° to efficiently use cross-polarized scattered waves. By changing the twist direction and gap size of the unit cell, 2π phase designability can be achieved, which enables linear polarization conversion efficiencies of -2 dB with a backside polarizer and -0.2 dB with two polarizers. In addition, a complementary pattern of the unit cell was fabricated, and a measured conversion efficiency of more than -1 dB at the peak with only the backside polarizer on a single substrate was verified. In the proposed structure, the 2π phase designability and efficiency gain are obtained independently by the unit cell and polarizer, respectively, thus enabling alignment-free characteristics, which are highly advantageous from an industrial viewpoint. Metasurface lenses with binary phase profiles of 0 and π were fabricated using the proposed structure with a backside polarizer on a single substrate. The lenses’ focusing, deflection, and collimation operations were experimentally verified with a lens gain of 20.8 dB, which agreed well with our calculated results. Our metasurface lens has the great advantages of easy fabrication and implementation, and it has the potential to enable dynamic control by combining it with active devices because of the simple design methodology, which entails only changing the twist direction and the gap’s capacitance component.
Reflection of stepwise twisted stratified anisotropic optical media
Authors: Hu Lang , Zhou Ziyuan , Zhang Xinfang , Halder Suman , Shin Yunho , Yang Deng-Ke
Published: May 2023

Stratified optical films have fascinating optical properties and many important applications. Here we report a theoretical study of stepwise twisted stratified anisotropic optical media. We used Fourier transform to analyze the helical component of the dielectric tensor of the media. We then used the Berreman 4 × 4 method to calculate the reflection spectrum of the media. We discovered that right-handed and left-handed helices could coexist in stepwise twisted layers, which producing a simultaneous reflection of right-handed and left-handed circularly polarized light. This feature can be used to produce films with superior reflection properties, such as high reflectance, broad bandwidth reflection and short wavelength reflection.
Transparency window in the THz frequency based on asymmetric dark-dark modes interaction
Authors: Khanpour Mohammad Amin , Karimzadeh Rouhallah
Published: May 2023

In this study, we investigate the impact of asymmetry on plasmonic-induced transparency (PIT) in structures with double dark modes. We have identified the ideal structural parameters for the single and double asymmetric dark mode structures, and it has been demonstrated that the usage of these factors improves sensing performance. The suggested structure is made up of a number of parallel black phosphorus nano-ribbons (BPNRs) with similar length, and it has been found that double asymmetric dark-dark systems creates a more stable and consistent transparency window, making it a strong contender to serve as a refractive index sensor. The proposed structure is simple and easy to manufacture, making it a more viable design for refractive index sensors for the terahertz range.
Reconfigurable flexible PON downlink by using a wavelength selective switch and single intensity modulator
Authors: Shimizu Satoshi , Shinada Satoshi , Furukawa Hideaki
Published: May 2023

A reconfigurable passive optical network (PON) downlink has been experimentally demonstrated. A multi-carrier signal is generated in the digital domain and converted to an optical signal by a Mach-Zehnder intensity modulator. A wavelength selective switch (WSS) demultiplexes the sub-carriers for a distribution network. Each sub-carrier signal is a duo-binary filtered binary phase shift keying and directly detected at the receiver side. By changing the sub-carrier allocation and WSS port setting, the PON network can be easily reconfigured without changing the hardware configuration. The maximum capacity of 75-Gb/s with 10-km transmission and 128-way split has been achieved.
Anomalous plasmon coupling and Fano resonance under structured light
Authors: Yang Da-Jie , Im Song-Jin , Huang Hai-Wen , Ri Chol-Song , Kim Kum-Dong , Song Kil-Song , Liu Ji-Cai , Wang Qu-Quan
Published: May 2023

Structured light carrying orbital angular momentum (OAM) opens up a new physical dimension for studying light–matter interactions. Despite this, the complex fields created by OAM beams still remain largely unexplored in terms of their effects on surface plasmons. This paper presents a revelation of anomalous plasmon excitations in single particles and plasmon couplings of neighboring nanorods under OAM beams, which are forbidden using non-OAM sources. The plasmon excitation of single nanoparticles is determined both by photon spin angular momentum (SAM) and OAM and influenced by the locations of the nanoparticles. Specifically, when SAM and OAM are equal in magnitude and opposite in direction, a pure plasmon excitation along light propagation direction is achieved. Two plasmon dipoles show end-to-end antibonding coupling and side-by-side bounding coupling, which are the opposite of the typical couplings. Furthermore, we observe Fano resonance with a nanorod dimer: one aligned along light propagation direction acting as the bright mode and the other aligned along the global polarization direction of light acting as the dark mode, which is the opposite of the usual plasmonic Fano resonance. By taking advantage of the unique property of the OAM source, this investigation presents a novel way to control and study surface plasmons, and the research of plasmon behavior with OAM would open new avenues for controlling electromagnetic waves and enriching the spectroscopies with more degrees of freedom.
A divide and conquer approach to maximise deep learning mammography classification accuracies
Authors: Jaamour Adam , Myles Craig , Patel Ashay , Chen Shuen-Jen , McMillan Lewis , Harris-Birtill David
Published: May 2023

Breast cancer claims 11,400 lives on average every year in the UK, making it one of the deadliest diseases. Mammography is the gold standard for detecting early signs of breast cancer, which can help cure the disease during its early stages. However, incorrect mammography diagnoses are common and may harm patients through unnecessary treatments and operations (or a lack of treatment). Therefore, systems that can learn to detect breast cancer on their own could help reduce the number of incorrect interpretations and missed cases. Various deep learning techniques, which can be used to implement a system that learns how to detect instances of breast cancer in mammograms, are explored throughout this paper. Convolution Neural Networks (CNNs) are used as part of a pipeline based on deep learning techniques. A divide and conquer approach is followed to analyse the effects on performance and efficiency when utilising diverse deep learning techniques such as varying network architectures (VGG19, ResNet50, InceptionV3, DenseNet121, MobileNetV2), class weights, input sizes, image ratios, pre-processing techniques, transfer learning, dropout rates, and types of mammogram projections. This approach serves as a starting point for model development of mammography classification tasks. Practitioners can benefit from this work by using the divide and conquer results to select the most suitable deep learning techniques for their case out-of-the-box, thus reducing the need for extensive exploratory experimentation. Multiple techniques are found to provide accuracy gains relative to a general baseline (VGG19 model using uncropped 512 × 512 pixels input images with a dropout rate of 0.2 and a learning rate of 1 × 10−3) on the Curated Breast Imaging Subset of DDSM (CBIS-DDSM) dataset. These techniques involve transfer learning pre-trained ImagetNet weights to a MobileNetV2 architecture, with pre-trained weights from a binarised version of the mini Mammography Image Analysis Society (mini-MIAS) dataset applied to the fully connected layers of the model, coupled with using weights to alleviate class imbalance, and splitting CBIS-DDSM samples between images of masses and calcifications. Using these techniques, a 5.6% gain in accuracy over the baseline model was accomplished. Other deep learning techniques from the divide and conquer approach, such as larger image sizes, do not yield increased accuracies without the use of image pre-processing techniques such as Gaussian filtering, histogram equalisation and input cropping.
The relationship between study findings and publication outcome in anesthesia research following implementation of mandatory trial registration: A systematic review of publication bias
Authors: Chong Simon W. , Imberger Georgina , Karahalios Amalia , Wang Andrew , Burggraf Millicent , Louis Maleck , Liskaser Grace M. , Bianco Anthony , Peyton Philip J.
Published: May 2023

Previously, we reviewed 1052 randomized-controlled trial abstracts presented at the American Society of Anesthesiologists annual meetings from 2001–2004. We found significant positive publication bias in the period examined, with the odds ratio for abstracts with positive results proceeding to journal publication over those with null results being 2.01 [95% confidence interval: 1.52, 2.66; P < 0.001]. Mandatory trial registration was introduced in 2005 as a required standard for publication. We sought to examine whether mandatory trial registration has decreased publication bias in the anesthesia and perioperative medicine literature. We reviewed all abstracts from the 2010–2016 American Society of Anesthesiologists meetings that reported on randomized-controlled trials in humans. We scored the result of each abstract as positive or null according to a priori definitions. We systematically searched for any subsequent publication of the studies and calculated the odds ratio for journal publication, comparing positive vs null studies. We compared the odds ratio from the 2010–2016 abstracts (post-mandatory trial registration) with the odds ratio from the 2001–2004 abstracts (pre-mandatory trial registration) as a ratio of odds ratios. We defined a 33% decrease in the odds ratio as significant, corresponding to a new odds ratio of 1.33. We reviewed 9789 abstracts; 1049 met inclusion criteria as randomized-controlled trials, with 542 (51.7%) of the abstracts going on to publication. The odds ratio for abstracts with positive results proceeding to journal publication was 1.28 [95% CI: 0.97, 1.67; P = 0.076]. With adjustment for sample size and abstract quality, the difference in publication rate between positive and null abstracts was statistically significant (odds ratio 1.34; 95% CI: 1.02, 1.76; P = 0.037). The ratio of odds ratios, comparing the odds ratio from the 2010–2016 abstracts (post-mandatory trial registration) to the odds ratio from the 2001–2004 abstracts (pre-mandatory trial registration), was 0.63 (95% CI: 0.43, 0.93); P = 0.021). We present the first study in the anesthesia and perioperative medicine literature that examines and compares publication bias over two discrete periods of time, prior to and after the implementation of mandatory trial registration. Our results suggest that the amount of publication bias has decreased markedly following implementation of mandatory trial registration. However, some positive publication bias in the anesthesia and perioperative medicine literature remains.
Prevalence of psychological distress, quality of life, and satisfaction among patients and family members following comprehensive genomic profiling testing: Protocol of the Quality of life for Cancer genomics and Advanced Therapeutics (Q-CAT) study
Authors: Nishino Makoto , Fujimori Maiko , Koyama Takafumi , Hirata Makoto , Tanabe Noriko , Shimizu Toshio , Yamamoto Noboru , Uchitomi Yosuke
Published: May 2023

Precision medicine is rapidly changing the diagnostic and treatment spectrum of oncology. In May 2019, comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) (somatic and/or germline) was approved for reimbursement in Japan. While the promise of novel and targeted therapies has elevated hopes for the benefits of CGP, the lack of relevant genomic findings and/or limited access to relevant therapies remain important themes in this field. These challenges may also negatively influence the psychology of both cancer patients and their family members. However, few studies have reported longitudinal data on quality of life (QOL) with CGP. Here, we report the protocol of a prospective study, Q-CAT (QOL for Cancer genomics and Advanced Therapeutics among patients and their family members), which aims to explore the mental burden on patients and families arising from the implementation of CGP testing by collecting real-world longitudinal data using outcomes obtained with an electronic patient report, known as ePRO. This study has been registered with the Japan Registry of Clinical Trials (jRCT1030200039).
The lung microbiota in nontuberculous mycobacterial pulmonary disease
Authors: Kim Bo-Guen , Kang Noeul , Kim Su-Young , Kim Dae Hun , Kim Hojoong , Kwon O. Jung , Huh Hee Jae , Lee Nam Yong , Jhun Byung Woo
Published: May 2023

Background

The role of bacterial microbiota in the pathogenesis of nontuberculous mycobacterial pulmonary disease (NTM-PD) is unclear. We aimed to compare the bacterial microbiome of disease-invaded lesions and non-invaded lung tissue from NTM-PD patients.

Methods

We analyzed lung tissues from 23 NTM-PD patients who underwent surgical lung resection. Lung tissues were collected in pairs from each patient, with one sample from a disease-involved site and the other from a non-involved site. Lung tissue microbiome libraries were constructed using 16S rRNA gene sequences (V3–V4 regions).

Results

Sixteen (70%) patients had Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC)-PD, and the remaining seven (30%) had Mycobacterium abscessus-PD. Compared to non-involved sites, involved sites showed greater species richness (ACE, Chao1, and Jackknife analyses, all p = 0.001); greater diversity on the Shannon index (p = 0.007); and genus-level differences (Jensen-Shannon, PERMANOVA p = 0.001). Analysis of taxonomic biomarkers using linear discriminant analysis (LDA) effect sizes (LEfSe) demonstrated that several genera, including Limnohabitans, Rahnella, Lachnospira, Flavobacterium, Megamonas, Gaiella, Subdoligranulum, Rheinheimera, Dorea, Collinsella, and Phascolarctobacterium, had significantly greater abundance in involved sites (LDA >3.00, p <0.05, and q <0.05). In contrast, Acinetobacter had significantly greater abundance at non-involved sites (LDA = 4.27, p<0.001, and q = 0.002). Several genera were differentially distributed between lung tissues from MAC-PD (n = 16) and M. abscessus-PD (n = 7), and between nodular bronchiectatic form (n = 12) and fibrocavitary form (n = 11) patients. However, there was no genus with a significant q-value.

Conclusions

We identified differential microbial distributions between disease-invaded and normal lung tissues from NTM-PD patients, and microbial diversity was significantly higher in disease-invaded tissues.

Trial registration

Clinical Trial registration number: NCT00970801.
Bacteria in the oral cavity of individuals consuming intoxicating substances
Authors: Khan Reyaz Ahmad , Devi Kangjam Rekha , Pratim Barman Manash , Bhagawati Madhusmita , Sarmah Rajeev
Published: May 2023

Food habits and oral hygiene are critical attributes for physiochemical environment of the oral cavity. Consumption of intoxicating substances such as betel nut (’Tamul’), alcohol, smoking and chewing tobacco may strongly influence the oral ecosystem including commensal microbes. Therefore, a comparative assessment of microbes in the oral cavity between individuals consuming intoxicating substances and non-consumers may indicate the influence of these substances. Oral swabs were collected from consumers of intoxicating substances and non- consumers of Assam, India, microbes were isolated by culturing on Nutrient agar and identified by phylogenetic analysis of their 16S rRNA gene sequences. The risks of consumption of intoxicating substance on occurrence of microbes and health conditions were estimated using binary logistic regression. Mostly pathogens and opportunistic pathogens were found in the oral cavity of consumers and oral cancer patients which includedPseudomonas aeruginosa,Serratia marcescens,Rhodococcus antrifimi,Paenibacillus dendritiformis,Bacillus cereus,Staphylococcus carnosus,Klebsiella michiganensisandPseudomonas cedrina.Enterobacter hormaecheiwas found in the oral cavity of cancer patients but not in other cases.Pseudomonas sp. were found to be widely distributed. The risk of occurrence of these organisms were found in between 0.01 and 2.963 odds and health conditions between 0.088 and 10.148 odds on exposure to different intoxicating substances. When exposed to microbes, the risk of varying health conditions ranged between 0.108 and 2.306 odds. Chewing tobacco showed a higher risk for oral cancer (10.148 odds). Prolonged exposure to intoxicating substances conduce a favorable environment for the pathogens and opportunistic pathogens to colonize in the oral cavity of individuals consuming intoxicating substances.
The development of adolescents’ loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of peer status and contact with friends
Authors: Lorijn Sofie J. , Laninga-Wijnen Lydia , Engels Maaike C. , Lodder Gerine M. A. , Veenstra René
Published: May 2023

The COVID-19 measures raised societal concerns about increases in adolescents’ loneliness. This study examined trajectories of adolescents’ loneliness during the pandemic, and whether trajectories varied across students with different types of peer status and contact with friends. We followed 512 Dutch students (Mage = 11.26, SD = 0.53; 53.1% girls) from before the pandemic (Jan/Feb 2020), over the first lockdown (March-May 2020, measured retrospectively), until the relaxation of measures (Oct/Nov 2020). Latent Growth Curve Analyses (LGCA) showed that average levels of loneliness declined. Multi-group LGCA showed that loneliness declined mostly for students with a victimized or rejected peer status, which suggests that students with a low peer status prior to the lockdown may have found temporary relief from negative peer experiences at school. Students who kept all-round contact with friends during the lockdown declined in loneliness, whereas students who had little contact or who did not (video) call friends did not.
How does a pair of near-vision spectacle correction empower older Zanzibari craftswomen?: A qualitative study on perception
Authors: Martins Michelle Fernandes , Omar Fatma , Othman Omar , Virgili Gianni , Yong Ai Chee , Mulewa Damaris , Graham Christine , Price-Sanchez Carlos , Graham Ronnie , Farmer Adrianna , Mashayo Eden , Chan Ving Fai
Published: May 2023

Background

Studies have shown that correcting presbyopia among women could increase short-term income and quality of life. However, it is unclear whether these short-term outcomes translate to long-term empowerment. This is partly due to women’s empowerment being under-studied in the eye health field. Hence, we attempted to understand Zanzibari craftswomen’s perception of how near-vision spectacle correction could empower them.

Methods

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 24 craftswomen with presbyopia (7 to 21 April 2022), identified from Zanzibari cooperatives using quota and heterogeneity sampling. We included a sample of tailors, beaders/weavers, and potters who were 40 years and older. Directed content analysis was performed on interview transcripts.

Results

Two themes and seven sub-themes emerged from the data. Craftswomen perceived that at the personal level, near-vision spectacle correction could improve their economic empowerment (better income and savings and buying things for themselves), psychological empowerment (more self-confidence and decision-making), political empowerment (taking up leadership roles), and educational empowerment (acquiring new skills). At a relational level, they perceived that near-vision spectacle correction could bring about economic empowerment (ability to buy things for the family), social empowerment (ability to participate in social activities), and educational empowerment (ability to educate other women).

Conclusion

Older craftswomen perceived that correcting near vision could empower them at personal and relational levels that encompass economic, psychological, social, political and educational empowerment. The findings laid the foundation for future research into eye health and women’s empowerment.
Chronic exposure to multiple stressors alters the salivary proteome of piglets
Authors: Prims Sara , Van Ostade Xaveer , Ayuso Miriam , Dom Martin , Van Raemdonck Geert , Van Cruchten Steven , Casteleyn Christophe , Van Ginneken Chris
Published: May 2023

Monitoring chronic stress in pigs is not only essential in view of animal welfare but is also important for the farmer, given that stress influences the zootechnical performance of the pigs and increases their susceptibility to infectious diseases. To investigate the use of saliva as a non-invasive, objective chronic stress monitoring tool, twenty-four 4-day-old piglets were transferred to artificial brooders. At the age of 7 days, they were assigned to either the control or the stressed group and reared for three weeks. Piglets in the stressed group were exposed to overcrowding, absence of cage enrichment, and frequent mixing of animals between pens. Shotgun analysis using an isobaric labelling method (iTRAQ) for tandem mass spectrometry performed on saliva samples taken after three weeks of chronic stress identified 392 proteins, of which 20 proteins displayed significantly altered concentrations. From these 20 proteins, eight were selected for further validation using parallel reaction monitoring (PRM). For this validation, saliva samples that were taken one week after the start of the experiment and samples that were taken at the end of the experiment were analysed to verify the profile over time. We wanted to investigate whether the candidate biomarkers responded fast or rather slowly to the onset of chronic exposure to multiple stressors. Furthermore, this validation could indicate whether age influenced the baseline concentrations of these salivary proteins, both in healthy and stressed animals. This targeted PRM analysis confirmed that alpha-2-HS-glycoprotein was upregulated in the stressed group after one and three weeks, while odorant-binding protein, chitinase, long palate lung and nasal epithelium protein 5, lipocalin-1, and vomeromodulin-like protein were present in lower concentrations in the saliva of the stressed pigs, albeit only after three weeks. These results indicate that the porcine salivary proteome is altered by chronic exposure to multiple stressors. The affected proteins could be used as salivary biomarkers to identify welfare problems at the farm and facilitate research to optimise rearing conditions.
HIV community index testing reaches proportionally more males than facility-based testing and is cost-effective: A study from Gaza province, Mozambique
Authors: Songane Mário , Magaia Célia C. , Couto Aleny , Dengo Nataniel , Cassamo Abdul R. , Nhantumbo Rene , Mahumane Carlos , Mabote Atanásio , Mikusova Silvia , Nhangave Amâncio , Bhatt Nilesh , Mukherjee Sushant S.
Published: May 2023

Background

In Mozambique, 38.7% of women and 60.4% of men ages 15–59 years old living with HIV do not know their HIV status. A pilot home-based HIV counseling and testing program based on index cases in the community was implemented in eight districts in Gaza province (Mozambique). The pilot targeted the sexual partners, biological children under 14 years old living in the same household, and parents (for pediatric cases) of people living with HIV. The study aimed to estimate the cost-efficiency and effectiveness of community index testing and compare the HIV testing outputs with facility-based testing.

Methods

Community index testing costs included the following categories: human resources, HIV rapid tests, travel and transportation for supervision and home visits, training, supplies and consumables, and review and coordination meetings. Costs were estimated from a health systems perspective using a micro-costing approach. All project costs were incurred between October 2017 and September 2018 and converted to U.S. dollars ($) using the prevailing exchange rate. We estimated the cost per individual tested, per new HIV diagnosis, and per infection averted.

Results

A total of 91,411 individuals were tested for HIV through community index testing, of which 7,011 were newly diagnosed with HIV. Human resources (52%), purchase of HIV rapid tests (28%) and supplies (8%) were the major cost drivers. The cost per individual tested was $5.82, per new HIV diagnosis was $65.32, and per infection averted per year was $1,813. Furthermore, the community index testing approach proportionally tested more males (53%) than facility-based testing (27%).

Conclusion

These data suggest that expansion of the community index case approach may be an effective and efficient strategy to increase the identification of previously undiagnosed HIV-positive individuals, particularly males.
Designing “The People”: Constitutive Fractures in Contemporary Collectives
Authors: DeVinney Daniel J.
Published: May 2023

At the 2017 Women's March, Shepard Fairey's We The People posters generated a great deal of excitement for their patriotic depiction of a diverse “people.” But the posters’ success exists in tension with the broader critiques of the Women's March. This essay argues that our current understanding of constitutive rhetoric is ill-equipped to explain this tension. Using the ideas of Danielle Allen and feminist scholars Aimee Carrillo Rowe, Karma Chávez, and Alyssa A. Samek, I perform several readings of the posters to explicate the fractures within our theories of constitutive rhetoric. I demonstrate that our current understanding of “the people” through oneness is hampered by a unity/difference binary that limits our ability to understand heterogenous collectives. Instead, I argue that an approach of wholeness better captures the complex collective life of contemporary coalitions and better attunes scholars to the intricate ways “the people” come into being. I argue that shifting the key terms of constitutive rhetoric to solidarity, vision, and health can help critics develop a more nuanced understanding of diverse coalitions. Overall, this essay offers scholars an opportunity to rethink our theories of “the people” to better account for the emerging strategies, needs, and values of contemporary collectives.