bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Profiling Sociodemographic Risk Factors and Clinical Outcomes of Women with Endometrial Cancer in Puerto Rico: The Central Role of Obesity and Obstetric Features
Authors: García-Irizarry Kimberly D. , Rojas-Brenes María E. , Oliveras-Torres José A. , Ortiz-Ortiz Camila N. , Cress William D. , Gordián Edna , Martínez Ricardo Gómez , Quintana-González Francisco J. , Escobar-Rodríguez Pedro F. , Muñoz-Antonia Teresita , Flores Idhaliz
Published: January 2025

Introduction

Incidence of endometrial cancer (EC) in Hispanic/Latina (H/L) women are higher compared to other race/ethnicities in the United States. EC is the third most common cancer and the fourth cause of cancer-related deaths in Puerto Rican women, yet demographic and clinical information is limited. High rates of EC risk factors such as obesity, diabetes mellitus type 2 (DM2) and hypertension (HTN) have been documented in the Puerto Rican population.

Objective

To describe the demographic, clinical history, lifestyle, obstetrical-gynecological, pathologic, and molecular profiles of women with EC predominantly from Southern/Central Puerto Rico.

Methods

We conducted a retrospective secondary analysis of data abstracted from the Puerto Rico Central Cancer Registry (PRCCR), self-administered questionnaires and medical records of EC cases. Descriptive statistics were conducted using SPSS V28 and RStudio.

Results

We identified 105 EC cases aged 28–82. The major risk factors were BMI ≥ 30 (72%), HTN (33%), and DM2 (20%). Endometrioid adenocarcinoma was the main histological tumor type (80%), of which 74% were Type I. Obesity and nulliparity were associated with younger age at diagnosis. Older age at diagnosis (> 65 y/o) was associated with more advanced disease.

Conclusions

This study defined the clinical-demographic profile of women with EC from Puerto Rico and identified risks factors that are associated with younger or older age at diagnosis.

Impact

Profiling the risk factors for EC may help improve diagnostic accuracy and clinical management and result in better outcomes for this under-served, under-researched cancer patient population.
Adsorptive removal of malachite green dye from aqueous solution using Cordia africana leaf as biosorbent
Authors: Teweldebrihan Meseret Dawit , Gnaro Mikiyas Abewaa , Dinka Megersa Olumana
Published: January 2025

An untreated biosorbent derived from the leaves of Cordia africana was utilized in this study for the first time to remove malachite green (MG) dye from aqueous solutions via batchwise adsorption. Comprehensive characterizations of the biosorbent were conducted, including Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), and determination of the pH point of zero charge (pHpzc). The adsorption process was investigated under varying operational conditions: biosorbent dosage (0.25–0.65 g/100 mL), contact time (25–50 min), initial pollutant concentration (15–45 mg/L), and solution pH (4–9). Kinetic and isothermal models were employed to evaluate the adsorption mechanism. Characterization revealed an amorphous, heterogeneous surface. The biosorbent achieved an impressive MG removal efficiency of 98.9%, with a maximum Langmuir adsorption capacity (Q

max
) of 6.25 mg/g, indicating a monolayer chemisorption process in agreement with Langmuir and pseudo-second-order kinetics models. This study highlights the cost-effectiveness and potential of Cordia africana leaf-based biosorbent as a sustainable and efficient solution for the decolorization of MG-laden industrial effluents, providing a pathway for practical, large-scale applications.
Tuning the Citizen Science Radio: Inclusion, Methodological Pluralism and 8 Billion Brains
Authors: Johnson Mark William , Varga Eliza
Published: January 2025

Science has always been driven by human consciousness in the context of an ambiguous environment. In modern times, the environment is characterised by sociotechnical complexities and uncertainty, rendering science fundamentally information-driven and statistically-informed, which focuses on uncertainty in contrast to the certainties of the enlightenment. In the context of this, and in the spirit of the point made initially by Popper that all people are scientific in their approach to everyday life, we must ask ‘whose uncertainties are not relevant to scientific inquiry?’ While inclusion has been a key feature of citizen science, there is a tendency for scientific control to remain with professional scientists, rather than in the hands of citizens. This paper is about new forms of coordination of citizen science activity which coordinate by tuning into citizen-level inquiry. Using the metaphor of a radio tuner, we suggest that tuning can take the form of identifying different levels of uncertainty, and selecting methods which allow for the deeper exploration of uncertainties and coordination of communities. We argue that the nineteenth century science of psychophysics alongside a topological view of scientific selection derived from Lewin’s social field theory, provides a theoretical foundation for the selection of appropriate methods in different circumstances. Ranking uncertainty with AI can steer flexible selection of methods and results, providing an inclusive science where analysis, synthesis, and experiment are left in the hands of communities and individuals.
Insights into the effects of biomass feedstock and pyrolysis conditions on the energy storage capacity and durability of standard biochar-based phase-change composites
Authors: Atinafu Dimberu G. , Choi Ji Yong , Nam Jihee , Kang Yujin , Kim Sumin
Published: January 2025

Material selection and production conditions are imperative for determining the functional performances of composite materials. Phase-change composites obtained from phase-change materials (PCMs) and supporting matrices exhibit high thermal energy storage density. They are used to overcome the intermittency issues of wind and solar energy, as well as to reduce waste heat dissipation to the environment. However, the large-scale utilization of composite and pristine materials has severe drawbacks, primarily stemming from the complex fabrication routes of the encapsulating agents, leakage, and inadequate thermal stability. In this study, biochar-based phase-change composites were fabricated using vacuum infiltration techniques, and the effects of biomass feedstock and pyrolysis temperature on the performance of the composite were elucidated using different types of biowastes and temperatures. This approach has several advantages, including facile production techniques, low-cost carbon sources, and environmental friendliness. The PCM adsorption ratio of biochars derived from rice husk (RH) and Miscanthus straw linearly correlated with the pyrolysis temperature (550–700 °C), while RH700 resulted in a composite with a high enthalpy per unit mass of hexadecane (HXD) in RH700/HXD (250.9 J g−1) owing to the high surface area of RH700 (74.66 m2 g−1). The crystalline temperature increased slightly from 10.7 °C in RH550/HXD to 10.9 °C in RH700/HXD, suggesting improved molecular motion and crystal growth of HXD. Wheat straw biomass pyrolyzed at a low temperature (550 °C), displaying a reduced surface area at 700 °C (7.35 m2 g−1) and exhibiting the lowest energy storage density. The latent heat efficiency reached 99.5–100%, where RH700/HXD exhibited 100% efficiency. The composites demonstrated strong leakage resistance at high heating temperatures (60 °C, above the melting temperature of HXD), good chemical compatibility between the biochar and HXD, and high durability after 500 thermal cycles. Therefore, the extent of PCM loading and energy storage density improvements primarily depends on the pyrolysis conditions, feedstock used, and pore size distribution of the biochar samples. This research provides insights into the fabrication of phase-change composites and optimization of the carbonization process of different biomasses used for thermal management applications, such as building energy savings.

Graphical Abstract
The experience of mothers of autistic children with a pathological demand avoidance profile: an interpretative phenomenological analysis
Authors: Curtis Sam , Izett Elizabeth
Published: January 2025

Purpose

Emergent research literature has identified emotional and behavioural challenges for autistic children with a pathological demand avoidance profile. However, understanding of their parents’ experience is limited. This study aimed to explore the experience of parents of autistic children with a pathological demand avoidance profile.

Methods

Semi-structured interviews were completed with ten parents of autistic children with a pathological demand avoidance profile, aged between 5 and 11 years (M = 8.5, SD = 1.90). All participants were mothers, aged 33–50 years (M = 42, SD = 5.35). To explore what meaning participants gave to their lived experience, an interpretative phenomenological analysis was conducted on interview data.

Results

Four main themes were developed from the interpretative phenomenological analysis; the benefit of a shared understanding about pathological demand avoidance to the parents and their children, the power of pathological demand avoidance and the impact on families, the emotional experience of mothers, and the various ways in which they coped.

Conclusion

The need for further recognition and understanding about pathological demand avoidance is emphasised through recommendations for future research. As is the need for flexible, informed, and appropriate support for demand avoidant children and their families.
Characterization of lysine acetyltransferase and deacetylase genes and their roles in anthocyanin biosynthesis in grape
Authors: Tang Wen , Li Feiyue , Yang Danni , Xu Mengyu , Fang Jinggui , Lu Suwen
Published: January 2025

Lysine acetylation is pivotal in regulating growth, development, and stress responses across numerous plant species. This modification, mediated by lysine acetyltransferases (KATs) and lysine deacetylases (KDACs), is both dynamic and reversible. Despite the economic significance of grape (Vitis vinifera) as a fruit crop, comprehensive insights into its KAT and KDAC gene families remain limited. In this study, 8 VvKATs and 14 VvKDACs were identified within the grape genome. Detailed analyses of their physicochemical properties, chromosomal distribution, phylogenetic synteny, evolutionary relationships, gene structures, and conserved motifs were conducted. Promoter region analysis revealed numerous cis-regulatory elements linked to light, hormone, and stress responsiveness. Transcriptomic data indicated that VvKATs and VvKDACs display distinct expression profiles across various tissues and developmental stages. Notably, VvSRT1, VvHDA19a, and VvHDA15 expression levels correlated strongly with anthocyanin accumulation in grape. Application of the deacetylase inhibitor sirtinol resulted in berry color changes and increased anthocyanin accumulation, suggesting that enhanced anthocyanin content in sirtinol-treated grape berry skins may result from post-translational modifications of genes involved in anthocyanin biosynthesis. These findings contribute to a deeper understanding of VvKAT and VvKDAC gene structures and properties, establishing a foundation for further exploration into lysine acetylation's role in fruit quality, particularly anthocyanin biosynthesis, in grape.
Displaying sound: the National Poetry Library's vinyl collection, 2019–2024
Authors: René Will
Published: January 2025

This article explores how the National Poetry Library has developed its historic collection of vinyl LPs over the course of four years, describing the challenges of balancing the preservation of audio objects with their accessibility and discoverability, and examining the opportunities this unique collection presents in building new audiences.
Category is… The Women's Art Library: Queering metadata with the Digital Archive of Artists’ Publishing
Authors: Mockridge Jessa
Published: January 2025

The Digital Archive of Artists’ Publishing (DAAP) is an ethical, open source, artist-driven database of artist books and publications. DAAP recently received Heritage Lottery Funding to support the Women's Art Library (WAL) to build their own archives on the platform. Through a series of workshops, tutorials and drop-ins, artists represented in the WAL generated anecdotal, ‘gossipy’ histories which act as access points to artists’ books that may be out of print, limited in availability within institutional or public archives or libraries, or shared digitally for the first time. I will draw on a selection of records – an archive of examples – from the Women's Art Library on the Digital Archive of Artists’ Publishing to show how the database evolves in response to artists’ needs. These gorgeous, unruly catalogue records trouble, disrupt and bend metadata for queer use.1
Optimal feeding in swimming and attached ciliates
Authors: Liu Jingyi , Man Yi , Costello John H. , Kanso Eva
Published: January 2025

Ciliated microorganisms near the base of the aquatic food chain either swim to encounter prey or attach at a substrate and generate feeding currents to capture passing particles. Here, we represent attached and swimming ciliates using a popular spherical model in viscous fluid with slip surface velocity that affords analytical expressions of ciliary flows. We solve an advection–diffusion equation for the concentration of dissolved nutrients, where the Péclet number (

$Pe$

) reflects the ratio of diffusive to advective time scales. For a fixed hydrodynamic power expenditure, we ask what ciliary surface velocities maximize nutrient flux at the microorganism's surface. We find that surface motions that optimize feeding depend on

$Pe$

. For freely swimming microorganisms at finite

$Pe$

, it is optimal to swim by employing a ‘treadmill’ surface motion, but in the limit of large

$Pe$

, there is no difference between this treadmill solution and a symmetric dipolar surface velocity that keeps the organism stationary. For attached microorganisms, the treadmill solution is optimal for feeding at

$Pe$

below a critical value, but at larger

$Pe$

values, the dipolar surface motion is optimal. We verified these results in open-loop numerical simulations and asymptotic analysis, and using an adjoint-based optimization method. Our findings challenge existing claims that optimal feeding is optimal swimming across all Péclet numbers, and provide new insights into the prevalence of both attached and swimming solutions in oceanic microorganisms.
The Demand for Insurance: Incorporating the Severity of Losing Office into the Insurance Model of Judicial Independence
Authors: Epperly Brad , Zeng Yuleng
Published: January 2025

Popular insurance models of judicial independence contend that electoral competition induces executives to establish or maintain independence as insurance against the risks associated with losing office. Existing accounts, however, focus only on variation in the likelihood of losing office, treating risks associated with losing as constant. This inattention to the model’s causal logic limits theoretical development and empirical conclusions. We model the demand for insurance rather than simply the likelihood of losing office, with empirical implications tested via instrumental variables. This paper offers a major development of the insurance account, with important implications for the study of judicial independence.
The Political and Pragmatic Determinants of Chinese Development Finance in Latin America and the Caribbean, 2008–2019
Authors: Albright Zara C.
Published: January 2025

Much scholarly attention has been paid to how great powers have used development finance as a tool for projecting power and shaping the international order, with less given to how smaller countries navigate these dynamics. This article investigates the conditions under which Latin American countries borrow from institutions led by the declining hegemon, the United States, or the rising power, China. Specifically, it uses mixed methods to analyze 518 loans from the World Bank and Chinese banks, and interviews with policymakers in Ecuador to highlight the mechanisms of decisions, outline interactions between different factors, and identify factors that cannot be readily tested statistically. Results show that countries are diversifying their development finance between the two great powers, motivated by domestic political considerations such as party ideology and economic development priorities, as well as by international structures including the balance of power and the borrowing country’s foreign policy alignment with the United States.
El espacio urbano en la protesta social: Bogotá y Cali en las manifestaciones de 2021
Authors: Campos Rivera Omar Andrés
Published: January 2025

Esta investigación plantea que el espacio urbano contribuye a la caracterización de movimientos sociales urbanos. Para ello, hace un análisis espacial cartográfico del Paro Nacional de 2021 en Bogotá y Cali (Colombia), el cual se realizó a partir de un mapeo de los lugares y tipos de protesta mediante revisión de prensa y redes sociales. Se encontraron patrones que permiten evidenciar estrategias de ocupación espacial de la protesta, así como una dispersión que caracteriza la agencia ciudadana. También se evidenció cómo la pobreza determina la selección de lugares por proximidad y visibilidad, mas no intersección, y que los sistemas de transporte guían la dispersión en función de su significado como materialidad del Estado. Finalmente, se identificó cómo tensiones sobre los bordes territoriales consolidan desplazamiento de las acciones del interior de los barrios o a los límites, lo que apoya procesos de territorialización que identifican a los movimientos sociales urbanos emergentes.
Reproduction and Senescence: The Meeting of Thomistic Philosophy and Modern Biogerontological Evolutionary Theories
Authors: Carreño Juan Eduardo , Alliende María José , Stoppel Sergio
Published: January 2025

The explosive increase in life expectancy over the 20th century led to the formulation of multiple gerontological theories. Of these, it is the evolutionary theories of senescence that enjoy the greatest theoretical and empirical support today. It is striking that these models put reproduction at the center of their postulates, an emphasis shared with the Aristotelian and Thomistic doctrines of the living being; this meeting point inspires our model. In particular, we hypothesize that the corporeal living being, precisely because of its mortality, can only fulfill the universal vocation to similitudo Dei through the generation of another living being of the same species. Once this purpose is fulfilled, its biological organization – understood here as a minimal entitative disposition that allows the actualization of matter by substantial form – decays and is exposed to random damage, as predicted by evolutionary models. This gradual decline is what is known as senescence. Such an approach opens up the possibility of addressing aging positively, with an emphasis on organizational prolongation resulting in a healthier old age. At the same time, such a perspective could illuminate our current understanding of biological organization and the pathologies that affect it.
Impaired folate status in patients with mental disorders
Authors: Rajen Narvini , Velure Hanne Wrengler , Johnsen Erik , Bjørke-Monsen Anne-Lise
Published: January 2025

Objective:

Folate and cobalamin deficiency or impaired function due to genetic variants in key enzymes, have been associated with neuropsychiatric symptoms. The aim of this study was to compare folate and cobalamin status in patients admitted to an acute psychiatric unit to patients from primary health care, in order to reveal factors which may be important in the follow-up of patents with mental disorders.

Methods:

Anonymous blood samples tested for folate, cobalamin, the metabolic marker total homocysteine (tHcy), creatinine and glomerular filtration rate, as well as age and gender in patients admitted to a psychiatric acute unit (n=981) and patients from primary health care (controls) (n=32201) were reviewed retrospectively.

Results:

Median serum folate was 18% lower and median serum cobalamin was 11% higher in patients with mental disorders compared to controls. Folate deficiency was associated with 54% higher median tHcy levels among patients with mental disorders compared to controls. The prevalence of folate deficiency was 31% and of cobalamin deficiency 6% in patients admitted to a psychiatric acute unit in a Norwegian hospital in 2024.

Conclusion:

Folate, but not cobalamin deficiency, was prevalent in Norwegian patients with mental disorders. The higher tHcy levels in folate deficient patients with mental disorders indicate an impaired folate metabolism, which might be related to genetic factors, such as polymorphisms in the MTHFR gene. Ensuring a serum folate concentration above 15 nmol/L and a serum cobalamin above 250 pmol/L might improve symptoms in patients with mental disorders.
${\mathbb {Q}}$
-FANO THREEFOLDS AND LAURENT INVERSION
Authors: HEUBERGER LIANA
Published: January 2025

We construct families of non-toric

${\mathbb {Q}}$

-factorial terminal Fano (

${\mathbb {Q}}$

-Fano) threefolds of codimension

$\geq 20$

corresponding to 54 mutation classes of rigid maximally mutable Laurent polynomials. From the point of view of mirror symmetry, they are the highest codimension (non-toric)

${\mathbb {Q}}$

-Fano varieties for which we can currently establish the Fano/Landau–Ginzburg correspondence. We construct 46 additional

${\mathbb {Q}}$

-Fano threefolds with codimensions of new examples ranging between 19 and 5. Some of these varieties are presented as toric complete intersections, and others as Pfaffian varieties.
Changes in climate drove vegetation and land use dynamics at the onset of farming in Europe
Authors: van Vugt Lieveke , Gobet Erika , Morales-Molino César , Ganz Kathrin , Giagkoulis Tryfon , Knetge Antonietta , Lotter André F. , Vogel Hendrik , Grosjean Martin , Bogaard Amy , Kotsakis Kostas , Hafner Albert , Tinner Willy
Published: January 2025

Here we present the first high-resolution continuous palaeoecological study from Greece covering the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition at Limni Zazari, a small lake in western Macedonia. We study how interactions between vegetation and climate might have affected the introduction of agriculture to Europe ca. 8500 years ago. We found that mixed deciduous oak woodlands established around the lake once moisture availability began to increase at ~10,300 cal yr BP. Between 8600 and 8000 cal yr BP, climate change, causing drier conditions, led to the decline of the woodlands and the expansion of steppe and grassland vegetation. Concurrently, in agreement with the archaeological record, pollen indicative of arable and pastoral farming indicate the onset of Neolithic farming. After 8000 cal yr BP the forest composition changed, with a major expansion of pine forests and increases in disturbance-adapted trees like Ostrya and Fagus. This change might be linked to changes in moisture availability, but it is likely that land use also facilitated these shifts. We conclude that the introduction of Neolithic farming was advantaged by climate-induced vegetation changes. While the vegetation structure around Zazari was very sensitive to changes in moisture, early anthropogenic disturbances led to changes in the vegetation composition that are still important today.
Landscape evolution and ancient settlement patterns in a small river basin of the Huangshui River and the prehistoric Wangjinglou City, Central China
Authors: Liao Yinan , Lu Peng , Mo Duowen , Wu Qian , Zhao Xiangli , Li Ye , Chen Panpan , Wang Hui
Published: January 2025

Prehistoric humans seem to have preferred inhabiting small river basins, which were closer in distance to most settlements compared to larger rivers. The Holocene landscape evolution is considered to have played a pivotal role in shaping the spatiotemporal patterns of these settlements. In this study, we conducted comprehensive research on the relationship between landscape evolution and settlement distribution within the Huangshui River basin, which is a representative small river in Central China with numerous early settlements, including a prehistoric city known as the Wangjinglou site (WJL). Using geoarchaeological investigations, optically stimulated luminescence dating, pollen analysis, and grain-size analysis, we analyzed the characteristics of the Holocene environment. The results indicate the presence of two distinct geomorphic systems, namely the red clay hills and the river valley. The red clay hills, formed in the Neogene, represent remnants of the Songshan piedmont alluvial fan that was eroded by rivers. There are three grades of terraces within the river valley. T3 is a strath terrace and formed around 8.0 ka. Both T2 and T1 are fill terraces, which were developed around 4.0 ka and during the historical period, respectively. The sedimentary features and pollen analysis indicate the existence of an ancient lake-swamp on the platform during 11.0–9.0 ka. This waterbody gradually shrank during 9.0–8.0 ka, and ultimately disappeared after 8.0 ka. Since then, the development of large-scale areas of water ceased on the higher geomorphic units. River floods also cannot reach the top of these high geomorphic units, where numerous prehistoric settlements are located, including the Xia–Shang cities of the WJL site. Our research demonstrates that landscape stability supported the long-term and sustainable development of ancient cultures and facilitated the establishment of the WJL ancient cities in the region.
A 350 14C yr discrepancy between bone and tooth dates from the same grave at the Early Neolithic cemetery of Shamanka II, Lake Baikal, southern Siberia: reservoir effects or a misplaced mandible?
Authors: Schulting Rick J , Scharlotta Ian , Lieverse Angela , Jessup Erin , Bronk Ramsey Christopher , Bazaliiskii Vladimir I , Weber Andrzej W
Published: January 2025

A 350 14C yr discrepancy was found between dates on postcranial remains and mandibular teeth on what was thought to be the same individual from the Early Neolithic cemetery of Shamanka II, Lake Baikal. Stable nitrogen isotope results suggested a major shift in diet between childhood (when the teeth formed) and adulthood (represented by the postcrania), which could have resulted in different 14C ages through a freshwater reservoir effect. Subsequent additional dating on the mandible and postcranial elements, however, indicated that the mandible actually belonged to a different individual. More subtle reservoir effects can be seen on the sequentially forming teeth and mandible. The practice by prehistoric hunter-gatherers of Lake Baikal of re-opening graves and removing cranial elements has long been known, but this is the first evidence for the inclusion of a mandible from a separate individual, though whether it was intentional or incidental is uncertain. As well as providing new insights into mid-Holocene mortuary practices in the region, our findings raise a cautionary note for the examination of disturbed graves.
Curation Bubbles
Authors: GREEN JON , MCCABE STEFAN , SHUGARS SARAH , CHWE HANYU , HORGAN LUKE , CAO SHUYANG , LAZER DAVID
Published: January 2025

Information on social media is characterized by networked curation processes in which users select other users from whom to receive information, and those users in turn share information that promotes their identities and interests. We argue this allows for partisan “curation bubbles” of users who share and consume content with consistent appeal drawn from a variety of sources. Yet, research concerning the extent of filter bubbles, echo chambers, or other forms of politically segregated information consumption typically conceptualizes information’s partisan valence at the source level as opposed to the story level. This can lead domain-level measures of audience partisanship to mischaracterize the partisan appeal of sources’ constituent stories—especially for sources estimated to be more moderate. Accounting for networked curation aligns theory and measurement of political information consumption on social media.
Misconduct by Voters' Own Representatives Does Not Affect Voters' Generalized Political Trust
Authors: Kelly Edmund , Tilley James
Published: January 2025

One reason given for declining levels of trust in politicians and institutions is the incidence of scandals involving voters' representatives. Politicians implicated in scandals, especially financial scandals, typically see their constituents' support for them decrease. It has been suggested that these specific negative judgements about a representative's misconduct spill over onto diffuse political trust in the system as a whole. We argue that the 2009 Parliamentary expenses scandal in the United Kingdom is a strong test of these scandal spillover effects in a non-experimental context. Yet, using a multilevel analysis of survey and representative implication data, we find no evidence for these effects. This is despite voters being aware of their MP's scandal implication, and this awareness affecting voters' support for their own MP. We conclude that voters' judgements about their constituency representatives are unlikely to affect their diffuse political trust.
Quercetin: An anthelmintic potential against zoonotic tapeworm Hymenolepis diminuta (Rudolphi, 1819)
Authors: Ray M.S. , Mondal C. , Saha S. , Mandal S. , Lyndem L.M.
Published: January 2025

Quercetin, a vital flavonoid found in many medicinal plants, has shown anti-inflammatory, anti-cancerous, anti-aging, anti-tumour, anti-viral, anti-fungal, anti-bacterial, anti-obesity, anti-diabetic, and anti-protozoal activity. However, very little is known of its anthelmintic activity; there is no literature against tapeworm infection so far. The present study was performed to expose its cestocidal role by using the zoonotic tapeworm Hymenolepis diminuta as a parasite model. The parasite was exposed to different concentrations of 0.125, 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2.5, 5, 10, 20, and 40 mg/mL Quercetin prepared in RPMI 1640, with 1% Tween 20. Another set of parasites was treated with a standard dose of Praziquantel (0.001 mg/ml), and another set of parasites was kept as control. All experiments were maintained at 37°C ± 1°C in the incubator. Quercetin activity was assessed through viability test, and time of motility was observed through paralysis. After the experiment, worms were processed for light and electron microscopic analysis to observe the post-treatment effect on their tegument. Dose-dependent efficacy was observed in all the treatments. Time of paralysis and time of mortality for 20 mg/mL Quercetin dose was 1.40±0.03h and 2.35±0.03h, respectively, which is at par with the drug Praziquantel. Histological study showed constrictions in the tegument, while extensive damage in suckers and neck region with deformed and shrunken proglottids, sloughed-off microtriches and undistinguished nucleus with loss of envelope architecture were observed in treated parasites under electron microscopic studies, which indicates the negative activity of Quercetin on the parasite thus suggesting its cestocidal activity.
Is the risk of bank vole infection with cestodes related to the population dynamics regime?
Authors: Davydova Yu.A. , Kshnyasev I.A.
Published: January 2025

The bank vole (Clethrionomys glareolus (Schreber, 1780)) is the dominant species in the primary fir-spruce forests of the Visim State Biosphere Reserve in the Middle Urals. Here, we studied the long-term population dynamics of small mammals and infection rates with cestode larvae (Cestoida) of bank voles from 1995 to 2021. In addition to the traditionally studied risk factors of parasite infection (e.g., age and sex, phase of population cycle of the host), we assessed the possible influence of the intermediate host population dynamics by contrasting parts of the time series with regular 3-year cyclicity and noncyclic regime. The overall risk of larval cestode infections was 5.0% (95% CI: 4–6%, Ninfected = 97, Ntotal = 1938). The infection rate was associated with the animals’ age and, unexpectedly, with the intermediate host population dynamics regime. The odds of finding cestode larvae in overwintered individuals were 4.3 times (2.8–6.6) higher than in young of the year, and in the noncyclic regime, the odds were 2.3 times (1.5–3.5) higher than in the 3-year cyclicity regime. No statistically significant higher risk of infection was found for males compared to females as the infection rate was only 1.4 times (0.9–2.1, ≈ 1) higher. The higher infection rates of overwintered individuals were as expected for individuals associated with longer exposure to the invasive parasite stages. We hypothesised that the noncyclic regime in long-term fluctuations of rodent numbers better resonates with the characteristic period of the cestodes’ life cycle, resulting in higher infection rates.
Voice Onset Time (VOT) in Bahdini Kurdish
Authors: Naser Lureen Ibrahim , Saaed Saaed A.
Published: January 2025

This study investigates the voice onset time (VOT) of stops in Bahdini Kurdish, which are characterized by a three-way laryngeal contrast of voiceless unaspirated, voiceless aspirated and voiced stops. Thirty native speakers read a forty-word list three times, which included three examples of each stop in pre-vocalic onset position. Words were chosen based on specific contextual factors to account for place of articulation, laryngeal state, following vowel height, and length contrasts. The findings show that VOT distinguishes stop categories in Kurdish, with voicing lead indicating voiced stops, short lag for voiceless unaspirated stops and long lag for voiceless aspirated stops. Results of the linear mixed-effects model show that laryngeal state, place of articulation, following vowel height and length had significant effects on VOT. The gender of the participants, however, showed no significant effect on VOT. In line with most research on the effect of place of articulation on VOT, in voiceless aspirated stop categories, bilabials had the shortest VOT, followed by dentals and velars. Voiceless unaspirated bilabials had the shortest VOT values, followed by dentals, uvulars and then velars. Voiced stops do not show such a pattern. These results are compatible with other research on Indo-Iranian languages with three-way laryngeal categories.
The effects of L2 proficiency on L2 word reading strategies: evidence from Chinese–English bilinguals
Authors: Zhao Rong , Wei Hang , Yao Zhao
Published: January 2025

The dual route cascaded (DRC) model proposes that the mapping from orthography to phonology occurs through two pathways: the sublexical and lexical routes. Cross-linguistic studies have found that Chinese character reading relies more on the lexical pathway, whereas English word reading relies more on the sublexical pathway. However, it remains unclear how these two pathways collaborate in the L2 word reading of Chinese–English bilinguals and whether their reading strategies are influenced by L2 proficiency. In the current study, 72 Chinese–English bilinguals with varying levels of L2 proficiency were tested. They were asked to name English words that varied in frequency and spelling-sound consistency. The results showed that participants with lower L2 proficiency were more sensitive to frequency, indicating a greater reliance on lexical processing in L2 word reading. In contrast, participants with higher L2 proficiency were more sensitive to consistency, suggesting a greater reliance on sublexical processing. These findings suggest that L2 word reading strategies vary as a function of L2 proficiency. As L2 proficiency increases, Chinese–English bilinguals’ reading strategies may shift from primarily relying on lexical to sublexical processing. This study provides evidence from L2 readers for the DRC model, helping to broaden the explanatory scope of the model.
Politics Should Be a Drag: Why Political Science Needs to Take Drag Seriously
Authors: Kammerer Edward F. , Michelson Melissa R. , Harrison Brian F.
Published: January 2025

Drag has a long history in the LGBTQ community as a means of political engagement, activism, protest, and community building. Today, drag is popular in the LGBTQ community and in the rest of society. At the same time, it is routinely a target of conservative backlash against the LGBTQ community. Despite drag’s inherently political nature, political science has failed to engage substantially with the influence of drag. This article offers a justification and research agenda to bring drag into the mainstream of political science.
‘Di game show ’bout spellin’ and ting’: Jamaican Creole and cultural stereotypes in Jamaican Countdown
Authors: GERFER ANIKA , JANSEN LISA
Published: January 2025

This study examines the representation of Jamaican Creole and cultural stereotypes about Jamaicans in the BBC Three sketch Jamaican Countdown, produced for the British show Famalam. The parody, which sharply contrasts with the original intellectual and orderly game show Countdown, employs features of Jamaican Creole for comedic effect. However, it has faced criticism for reinforcing cultural stereotypes about Jamaicans. This article focuses on the linguistic features – phonetic, morphosyntactic and lexical – used in the sketch. Through qualitative methods, it examines these features and investigates how linguistic and visual elements contribute to the portrayal of cultural stereotypes. The results show that Jamaican Countdown introduces complex indexical relationships by enriching the portrayal of Jamaicans in popular culture but also perpetuating stereotypes. The sketch contrasts the original British game show’s formality with a sexualized, unruly Jamaican parody, which exhibits various semiotic resources to both parody and reinforce cultural stereotypes.
Drivers of Atlantic Tropical Cyclogenesis: African Easterly Waves and the Environment
Authors: Bercos‐Hickey Emily , Patricola Christina M.
Published: January 2025

Tropical cyclone (TC) genesis requires favorable environmental conditions and an initial disturbance, which, in the North Atlantic, is often an African easterly wave (AEW). Although studies have examined how AEWs and the environment affect TC genesis, their relative importance is less understood. Here, we examine whether AEW strength or sea surface temperatures (SSTs) are the primary drivers of TC genesis. Regional model simulations were performed to address how increased AEW strength and SSTs affect the frequency of AEWs that develop into TCs in a year with below‐average TCs with AEW origins and SSTs. We found that environmental favorability plays a larger role than AEW strength in driving the frequency of TCs with AEW origins. Strengthening the AEWs did not affect the frequency of AEWs that develop into TCs due to low environmental favorability. Warmer SSTs led to increased environmental favorability and a statistically significant increase in TCs with AEW origins.
Epigenetic regulation of HOXA2 expression affects tumor progression and predicts breast cancer patient survival
Authors: De Palma Fatima Domenica Elisa , Pol Jonathan G. , Carbonnier Vincent , Scuderi Sarah Adriana , Mannino Deborah , Montégut Léa , Sauvat Allan , Perez-Lanzon Maria , Uribe-Carretero Elisabet , Guarracino Mario , Granata Ilaria , Calogero Raffaele , Del Monaco Valentina , Montanaro Donatella , Stoll Gautier , Botti Gerardo , D’Aiuto Massimiliano , Baldi Alfonso , D’Argenio Valeria , Guigó Roderic , Rezsohazy René , Kroemer Guido , Maiuri Maria Chiara , Salvatore Francesco
Published: January 2025

Accumulating evidence suggests that genetic and epigenetic biomarkers hold potential for enhancing the early detection and monitoring of breast cancer (BC). Epigenetic alterations of the Homeobox A2 (HOXA2) gene have recently garnered significant attention in the clinical management of various malignancies. However, the precise role of HOXA2 in breast tumorigenesis has remained elusive. To address this point, we conducted high-throughput RNA sequencing and DNA methylation array studies on laser-microdissected human BC samples, paired with normal tissue samples. Additionally, we performed comprehensive in silico analyses using large public datasets: TCGA and METABRIC. The diagnostic performance of HOXA2 was calculated by means of receiver operator characteristic curves. Its prognostic significance was assessed through immunohistochemical studies and Kaplan-Meier Plotter database interrogation. Moreover, we explored the function of HOXA2 and its role in breast carcinogenesis through in silico, in vitro, and in vivo investigations. Our work revealed significant hypermethylation and downregulation of HOXA2 in human BC tissues. Low HOXA2 expression correlated with increased BC aggressiveness and unfavorable patient survival outcomes. Suppression of HOXA2 expression significantly heightened cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in BC cells, and promoted tumor growth in mice. Conversely, transgenic HOXA2 overexpression suppressed these cellular processes and promoted apoptosis of cancer cells. Interestingly, a strategy of pharmacological demethylation successfully restored HOXA2 expression in malignant cells, reducing their neoplastic characteristics. Bioinformatics analyses, corroborated by in vitro experimentations, unveiled a novel implication of HOXA2 in the lipid metabolism of BC. Specifically, depletion of HOXA2 leaded to a concomitantly decreased expression of PPARγ and its target CIDEC, a master regulator of lipid droplet (LD) accumulation, thereby resulting in reduced LD abundance in BC cells. In summary, our study identifies HOXA2 as a novel prognosis-relevant tumor suppressor in the mammary gland.
Camel milk is a neglected source of brucellosis among rural Arab communities
Authors: Holloway Peter , Gibson Matthew , Holloway Tanja , Pickett Iain , Crook Brittany , Cardwell Jacqueline M. , Nash Stephen , Musallam Imadidden , Al-Omari Bilal , Al-Majali Ahmad , Hayajneh Wail , Abu-Basha Ehab , Mangtani Punam , Guitian Javier
Published: January 2025

The World Health Organization describes brucellosis as one of the world’s leading zoonotic diseases, with the Middle East a global hotspot. Brucella melitensis is endemic among livestock populations in the region, with zoonotic transmission occurring via consumption of raw milk, amongst other routes. Control is largely via vaccination of small ruminant and cattle populations. Due to sociocultural and religious influences camel milk (camelus dromedarius) is widely consumed raw, while milk from other livestock species is largely boiled. To investigate the potential public health impact of Brucella in camels we conduct a cross-sectional study in southern Jordan including 227 herds and 202 livestock-owning households. Here we show daily consumption of raw camel milk is associated with Brucella seropositive status among the study population, ORadj 2.19 (95%CI 1.23–3.94) on multivariable analysis, highlighting the need for socioculturally appropriate control measures; targeted interventions among the camel reservoir being crucial for effective control.
A dendritic hexamer acceptor enables 19.4% efficiency with exceptional stability in organic solar cells
Authors: Jia Tao , Lin Tao , Yang Yang , Wu Lunbi , Cai Huimin , Zhang Zesheng , Lin Kangfeng , Hai Yulong , Luo Yongmin , Ma Ruijie , Li Yao , Dela Peña Top Archie , Liu Sha , Zhang Jie , Liu Chunchen , Chen Junwu , Wu Jiaying , Liu Shengjian , Huang Fei
Published: January 2025

To achieve the commercialization of organic solar cells (OSCs), it is crucial not only to enhance power conversion efficiency (PCE) but also to improve device stability through rational molecular design. Recently emerging giant molecular acceptor (GMA) materials offer various advantages, such as precise chemical structure, high molecular weight (beneficial to film stability under several external stress), and impressive device efficiency, making them a promising candidate. Here, we report a dendritic hexamer acceptor developed through a branch-connecting strategy, which overcomes the molecular weight bottleneck of GMAs and achieves a high production yield over 58%. The dendritic acceptor Six-IC exhibits modulated crystallinity and miscibility with the donor, thus better morphology performance compared to its monomer, DTC8. Its charge transport ability is further enhanced by additional channels between the armed units. Consequently, the binary OSCs based on D18:Six-IC achieves a cutting-edge efficiency of 19.4% for high-molecular weight acceptor based systems, as well as decent device stability and film ductility. This work reports high-performance OSCs based on dendritic molecule acceptor with a molecular weight exceeding 10000 g/mol and shares the understanding for designing comprehensively high-performing acceptor materials.
A high-performance brain–computer interface for finger decoding and quadcopter game control in an individual with paralysis
Authors: Willsey Matthew S. , Shah Nishal P. , Avansino Donald T. , Hahn Nick V. , Jamiolkowski Ryan M. , Kamdar Foram B. , Hochberg Leigh R. , Willett Francis R. , Henderson Jaimie M.
Published: January 2025

People with paralysis express unmet needs for peer support, leisure activities and sporting activities. Many within the general population rely on social media and massively multiplayer video games to address these needs. We developed a high-performance, finger-based brain–computer-interface system allowing continuous control of three independent finger groups, of which the thumb can be controlled in two dimensions, yielding a total of four degrees of freedom. The system was tested in a human research participant with tetraplegia due to spinal cord injury over sequential trials requiring fingers to reach and hold on targets, with an average acquisition rate of 76 targets per minute and completion time of 1.58 ± 0.06 seconds—comparing favorably to prior animal studies despite a twofold increase in the decoded degrees of freedom. More importantly, finger positions were then used to control a virtual quadcopter—the number-one restorative priority for the participant—using a brain-to-finger-to-computer interface to allow dexterous navigation around fixed- and random-ringed obstacle courses. The participant expressed or demonstrated a sense of enablement, recreation and social connectedness that addresses many of the unmet needs of people with paralysis.
Subliminal visual stimulation produces behavioural oscillations in multiple frequencies in a visual integration task
Authors: Johannknecht Michelle , Schnitzler Alfons , Lange Joachim
Published: January 2025

We perceive our surrounding as a continuous stream of information. Yet, it is under debate, whether our brain processes the incoming information continuously or rather in a discontinuous way. In recent years, the idea of rhythmic perception has regained popularity, assuming that parieto-occipital alpha oscillations are the neural mechanism defining the rhythmicity of visual perception. Consequently, behavioural response should also fluctuate in the rhythm of alpha oscillations (i.e., at ~ 10 Hz). To test this hypothesis, we employed a visual integration task. Crucially we investigated if a subliminal stimulus preceding the target stimulus modulates behaviour. Our results show that behaviour fluctuates as a function of delay between subliminal and target stimuli. These fluctuations were found in the range of theta, alpha and beta oscillations. Our results further support the idea, that alpha oscillations are a functional rhythm for visual perception, leading to rhythmic fluctuations of perception and behaviour. In addition, other frequencies seem to play a role for temporal perception.