bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Serum and urine metabolomics analyses reveal metabolic pathways and biomarkers in relation to nasopharyngeal carcinoma
Authors: Liao Zhaohui , Zhao Li , Zhong Fangyan , Zhou Yumeng , Lu Tianzhu , Liu Lijuan , Gong Xiaochang , Li Jingao , Rao Jun
Published: January 2023

Rationale

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a malignant tumor that is endemic in Southeast Asia, North Africa, and southern China. There is an urgent need for effective early diagnosis and treatment of this disease since NPC is currently often detected at advanced stages.

Methods

To reveal the underlying metabolic mechanisms and discover potential diagnostic biomarkers of NPC, we employed ultrahigh‐performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC‐Q‐TOF‐MS) and UHPLC‐Q‐Exactive Orbitrap MS, respectively, to analyze 54 serum samples and 54 urine samples from 27 patients with NPC and 27 healthy control individuals.

Results

A total of 1230 metabolites were determined in serum samples, and 181 of the 1230 metabolites were significantly changed in NPC patients. The 181 metabolites were enriched in 16 pathways, including biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, cholesterol metabolism, and ferroptosis. A total of 2509 metabolites were detected in the urine samples. Among them, 179 metabolites were significantly altered in NPC patients, and these metabolites were enriched in eight pathways, including the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle and caffeine metabolism. Seven metabolites, including creatinine and paraxanthine, were found to be significantly changed in both NPC serum and urine samples. Based on them, further biomarker analysis revealed that the panel of three serum metabolites, octanoylcarnitine, creatinine, and decanoyl‐l‐carnitine, displayed a perfect diagnostic performance (area under the curve [AUC] = 0.973) to distinguish NPC patients from controls, while the other three‐metabolite biomarker panel, consisting of stachydrine, decanoyl‐l‐carnitine, and paraxanthine, had an AUC = 0.809 to distinguish NPC and control in urine samples.

Conclusion

This work highlights the key metabolites and metabolic pathways disturbed in NPC and presents potential biomarkers for effective diagnosis of this disease.
A benchmark analysis of data‐driven and geometric approaches for robot ego‐motion estimation
Authors: Legittimo Marco , Felicioni Simone , Bagni Fabio , Tagliavini Andrea , Dionigi Alberto , Gatti Francesco , Verucchi Micaela , Costante Gabriele , Bertogna Marko
Published: January 2023

In the last decades, ego‐motion estimation or visual odometry (VO) has received a considerable amount of attention from the robotic research community, mainly due to its central importance in achieving robust localization and, as a consequence, autonomy. Different solutions have been explored, leading to a wide variety of approaches, mostly grounded on geometric methodologies and, more recently, on data‐driven paradigms. To guide researchers and practitioners in choosing the best VO method, different benchmark studies have been published. However, the majority of them compare only a small subset of the most popular approaches and, usually, on specific data sets or configurations. In contrast, in this work, we aim to provide a complete and thorough study of the most popular and best‐performing geometric and data‐driven solutions for VO. In our investigation, we considered several scenarios and environments, comparing the estimation accuracies and the role of the hyper‐parameters of the approaches selected, and analyzing the computational resources they require. Experiments and tests are performed on different data sets (both publicly available and self‐collected) and two different computational boards. The experimental results show pros and cons of the tested approaches under different perspectives. The geometric simultaneous localization and mapping methods are confirmed to be the best performing, while data‐driven approaches show robustness with respect to nonideal conditions present in more challenging scenarios.
Perspectives and Current Trends on Hybrid Nanocomposite Materials for Photocatalytic Applications
Authors: Coy Emerson , Iatsunskyi Igor , Bechelany Mikhael
Published: January 2023

Photocatalysis can be understood as the acceleration of chemical reactions by incident light. These reactions typically perform poorly without photoactivation and the presence of catalysts. Photocatalysis could find applications in a wide range of fields, such as renewable energy and environmental remediation. The advance in the photocatalysis field is driven by the development of innovative materials allowing a broad range of absorption and efficient charge separation. The most developed photocatalysts are inorganic semiconductors. An alternative approach to increase the efficiency of these photocatalysts is the design of organic–inorganic hybrid materials. Two classes of hybrid materials are largely investigated: 1) small molecules and 2) organic macromolecules or polymers. The polymers can have protective roles as well as photocatalytic and conductive properties. The last type of material is known as conductive polymer. Different types of conductive polymers have been investigated in the literature. This perspective will focus on the new trend in this field by first describing the use of machine learning in designing and understanding polymeric hybrid systems toward catalytic applications, followed by the description of four types of the most used organic–inorganic hybrid materials as photocatalysts based on chitosan, polydopamine, polyaniline and covalent organic frameworks.
Exploring the structure, function of thiamine pyrophosphate riboswitch, and designing small molecules for antibacterial activity
Authors: Wakchaure Padmaja D. , Ganguly Bishwajit
Published: January 2023

During the last decade, riboswitches emerged as new small‐molecule sensing RNA in bacteria. Thiamine pyrophosphate (TPP) riboswitch is widely distributed and occurs in plants, bacteria, fungi, and archaea. Extensive biochemical, structural, and genetic studies have been carried out to elucidate the recognition mechanism of TPP riboswitches. However, a comprehensive report summarizing all information on recognition principles and newly designed ligands for TPP riboswitch is scarce in the literature. This review gives a comprehensive understanding of the TPP riboswitch's structure, mechanism, and methods applied to design ligands for the TPP riboswitch. The ligand‐bound TPP riboswitch was studied with various experimental and theoretical techniques to elucidate the conformational dynamics. The mutation studies shed light on the significance of pyrimidine sensing helix for the binding of ligands. Further, the structure–activity relationship study and fragment‐based approach lead to the development of ligands with Kd values at the sub‐micromolar level. However, there is a need to design more potent inhibitors for TPP riboswitch for therapeutic applications. The recent advancements in ligand design highlight the TPP riboswitch as a promising target for developing new antibiotics.

This article is categorized under:

Regulatory RNAs/RNAi/Riboswitches > Riboswitches

Regulatory RNAs/RNAi/Riboswitches > Regulatory RNAs
Preservers of Triple Transition Pseudo-Probabilities in Connection with Orthogonality Preservers and Surjective Isometries
Authors: Peralta Antonio M.
Published: January 2023

We prove that every bijection preserving triple transition pseudo-probabilities between the sets of minimal tripotents of two atomic JBW$$^*$$∗-triples automatically preserves orthogonality in both directions. Consequently, each bijection preserving triple transition pseudo-probabilities between the sets of minimal tripotents of two atomic JBW$$^*$$∗-triples is precisely the restriction of a (complex-)linear triple isomorphism between the corresponding JBW$$^*$$∗-triples. This result can be regarded as triple version of the celebrated Wigner theorem for Wigner symmetries on the posets of minimal projections inB(H). We also present a Tingley type theorem by proving that every surjective isometry between the sets of minimal tripotents in two atomic JBW$$^*$$∗-triples admits an extension to a real linear surjective isometry between these two JBW$$^*$$∗-triples. We also show that the class of surjective isometries between the sets of minimal tripotents in two atomic JBW$$^*$$∗-triples is, in general, strictly wider than the set of bijections preserving triple transition pseudo-probabilities.
Das Shishaphänomen: Gefahren einer unterschätzten Droge
Authors: Rabenhorst D. , Mandilaras G. , Haas N. , Kuhlee I.
Published: January 2023

Der Konsum von Wasserpfeifen hat in den letzten Jahren v. a. bei Jugendlichen deutlich zugenommen. Die Risiken und Gefahren werden nicht nur bei den Konsumenten unterschätzt. Neben einer besseren Aufklärung der potenziellen Nutzergruppe sind für die im Gesundheitswesen Tätigen eine Sensibilisierung für mögliche Komplikationen und eine genaue Kenntnis des Vorgehens bei möglicher Intoxikation durch Kohlenmonoxid nach Shishagebrauch unerlässlich.

Eine unklare Bewusstseinsstörung ist ein häufiger Einlieferungsgrund in die Notaufnahme. Durch gezielte Anamnese und genauen Blick auf die Blutgasanalyse konnte bei einem jugendlichen Patienten eine Kohlenstoffmonoxidintoxikation nach Shishakonsum als Ursache gefunden werden. Unter intensivmedizinischer Überwachung und Sauerstoffgabe verlief dieser Fall komplikationslos.
Final efficacy and safety results and biomarker analysis of a phase 2 study of cabozantinib in Japanese patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma
Authors: Nakaigawa Noboru , Tomita Yoshihiko , Tamada Satoshi , Tatsugami Katsunori , Osawa Takahiro , Oya Mototsugu , Kanayama Hiroomi , Miura Yuji , Sassa Naoto , Nishimura Kazuo , Nozawa Masahiro , Masumori Naoya , Miyoshi Yasuhide , Kuroda Shingo , Kimura Akiko
Published: January 2023

Background

Cabozantinib was established as the standard of care for the treatment of patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) whose disease had progressed after vascular endothelial growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor (VEGFR-TKI) therapy in the global randomized trial METEOR. A phase 2 study was conducted to bridge the findings in METEOR to Japanese patients. Here, we report a biomarker analysis and update the efficacy and safety results of cabozantinib treatment.

Methods

Japanese patients with RCC who received at least one prior VEGFR-TKI were enrolled and received cabozantinib 60 mg orally once daily. The primary endpoint was objective response rate. Secondary endpoints included progression-free survival, overall survival, and safety. Exploratory analyses included the relationship between plasma protein hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) levels and treatment responses.

Results

In total, 35 patients were enrolled. The median treatment duration was 58.3 (range 5.1–131.4) weeks. The objective response rate was 25.7% (90% confidence interval [CI] 14.1–40.6). Kaplan–Meier estimate of median progression-free survival was 11.1 months (95% CI 7.4–18.4). The estimated progression-free survival proportion was 73.1% (95% CI 54.6–85.0) at 6 months. Median overall survival was not reached. Adverse events were consistent with those in METEOR and the safety profile was acceptable. Nonresponders to cabozantinib showed relatively higher HGF levels than responders at baseline.

Conclusions

Updated analyses demonstrate the long-term efficacy and safety of cabozantinib in Japanese patients with advanced RCC after at least one VEGFR-TKI therapy. Responders tended to show lower baseline HGF levels ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03339219.
Spotted cucumber beetle (Diabrotica undecimpunctata howardi) is attracted to vittatalactone, the pheromone of striped cucumber beetle (Acalymma vittatum)
Authors: Haber Ariela I. , Pasteur Kayla , Guzman Filadelfo , Boyle Sean M. , Kuhar Thomas P. , Weber Donald C.
Published: January 2023

Spotted cucumber beetle (Diabrotica undecimpunctata howardi; also known as southern corn rootworm) is a pest feeding on many crops, including cucurbits, corn (maize), peanuts, beans, and other crops and wild plants in North America. On cucurbit crops, where it co-occurs with striped cucumber beetle (Acalymma vittatum), both are key pests that vector Erwinia tracheiphila, a destructive pathogen that causes bacterial wilt. Here we deployed synthetic vittatalactone, the male-produced aggregation pheromone of A. vittatum, as lures in the field, to measure attraction of the target and non-target insects. Both sexes of D. u. howardi were strongly attracted to the vittatalactone lures (5–7.5-fold compared to blank trap) throughout the growing season in Maryland and Virginia, USA. Moreover, D. u. howardi was more attracted to live A. vittatum males feeding on squash plants than to plants with females or without any beetles, confirming the genuine organismal cross-attraction between these two key pests. The kairomonal attraction to vittatalactone suggests that it functions as a “keystone semiochemical,” mediating the colonization of cucurbits by multiple herbivore species. Such cross attraction could allow for use of vittatalactone in management of multiple pest species, with potential reduction of pesticide use in cucurbit crops.
Landslide monitoring techniques in the Geological Surveys of Europe
Authors: Auflič Mateja Jemec , Herrera Gerardo , Mateos Rosa María , Poyiadji Eleftheria , Quental Lídia , Severine Bernardie , Peternel Tina , Podolszki Laszlo , Calcaterra Stefano , Kociu Arben , Warmuz Bartłomiej , Jelének Jan , Hadjicharalambous Kleopas , Becher Gustaf Peterson , Dashwood Claire , Ondrus Peter , Minkevičius Vytautas , Todorović Saša , Møller Jens Jørgen , Marturia Jordi
Published: January 2023

Landslide monitoring is a mandatory step in landslide risk assessment. It requires collecting data on landslide conditions (e.g., areal extent, landslide kinematics, surface topography, hydrogeometeorological parameters, and failure surfaces) from different time periods and at different scales, from site-specific to local, regional, and national, to assess landslide activity. In this analysis, we collected information on landslide monitoring techniques from 17 members of the Earth Observation and Geohazards Expert Group (from EuroGeoSurveys) deployed between 2005 and 2021. We examined the types of the 75 recorded landslides, the landslide techniques, spatial resolution, temporal resolution, status of the technique (operational, non-operational), time of using (before the event, during the event, after the event), and the applicability of the technique in early warning systems. The research does not indicate the accuracy of each technique but, rather, the extent to which Geological Surveys conduct landslide monitoring and the predominant techniques used. Among the types of landslides, earth slides predominate and are mostly monitored by geological and engineering geological mapping. The results showed that Geological Surveys mostly utilized more traditional monitoring techniques since they have a broad mandate to collect geological data. In addition, this paper provides new insights into the role of the Geological Surveys on landslide monitoring in Europe and contributes to landslide risk reduction initiatives and commitments (e.g., the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020).
The Swedish medical birth register during five decades: documentation of the content and quality of the register
Authors: Cnattingius Sven , Källén Karin , Sandström Anna , Rydberg Henny , Månsson Helena , Stephansson Olof , Frisell Thomas , Ludvigsson Jonas F.
Published: January 2023

Pregnancy-related factors are important for short- and long-term health in mothers and offspring. The nationwide population-based Swedish Medical Birth Register (MBR) was established in 1973. The present study describes the content and quality of the MBR, using original MBR data, Swedish-language and international publications based on the MBR.

The MBR includes around 98% of all births in Sweden. From 1982 onwards, the MBR is based on prospectively recorded information in standardized antenatal, obstetric, and neonatal records. When the mother and infant are discharged from hospital, this information is forwarded to the MBR, which is updated annually. Maternal data include information from first antenatal visit on self-reported obstetric history, infertility, diseases, medication use, cohabitation status, smoking and snuff use, self-reported height and measured weight, allowing calculation of body mass index. Birth and neonatal data include date and time of birth, mode of delivery, singleton or multiple birth, gestational age, stillbirth, birth weight, birth length, head circumference, infant sex, Apgar scores, and maternal and infant diagnoses/procedures, including neonatal care. The overall quality of the MBR is very high, owing to the semi-automated data extraction from the standardized regional electronic health records, Sweden’s universal access to antenatal care, and the possibility to compare mothers and offspring to the Total Population Register in order to identify missing records. Through the unique personal identity numbers of mothers and live-born offspring, the MBR can be linked to other health registers. The Swedish MBR contains high-quality pregnancy-related information on more than 5 million births during five decades.
Celsr2 Knockout Alleviates Inhibitory Synaptic Stripping and Benefits Motoneuron Survival and Axon Regeneration After Branchial Plexus Avulsion
Authors: Yu Lingtai , Liu Mengfan , Li Fuxiang , Wang Qianghua , Wang Meizhi , So Kwok-Fai , Qu Yibo , Zhou Libing
Published: January 2023

Axotomy-induced synaptic stripping modulates survival and axon regeneration of injured motoneurons. Celsr2 is supposed to mediate homophilic interactions of neighboring cells during development, and its role in synaptic stripping remains unknow. In a model of brachial plexus avulsion, Celsr2 knockout improved functional recovery, motoneuron survival, and axon regeneration. Celsr2 was indicated to express in spinal motoneurons, excitatory and inhibitory interneurons, astrocytes, and a subset of oligodendrocytes using Celsr2LacZ mice. Double immunostaining showed that the coverage of inhibitory and excitatory vesicles on injured motoneurons were remarkably reduced after injury, whereas more inhibitory vesicles were maintained in Celsr2−/− mutants than control mice. In the ultrastructure, the density of inhibitory F-boutons on injured motoneurons was higher in Celsr2−/− mutants than controls. Conditional knockout of Celsr2 in astrocytes or oligodendrocytes showed the similar axotomy-induced synaptic withdrawal to the control. RNAseq of injured spinal samples identified 12 MHC I molecules with significant changes between Celsr2−/− and control mice. After injury, expression of MHC I surrounding injured motoneurons was increased, particularly high in Celsr2−/− mutants. In conclusion, Celsr2 knockout enhances MHC I signaling, alleviates inhibitory synaptic stripping cell-autonomously, and contributes to motoneuron survival and regeneration, and Celsr2 is a potential target for neural repair.
Operational planning for public holidays in grocery retailing - managing the grocery retail rush
Authors: Obermair Elisabeth , Holzapfel Andreas , Kuhn Heinrich
Published: January 2023

Public holiday weeks cause specific challenges in grocery retailing as sales are raising and working days for logistics processes are reduced. The paper analyzes the operational planning challenges and solutions for demand planning and disposition as well as for warehouse and transportation management of grocery retailers in public holiday seasons. A total of 22 top managers representing 20 sales lines of 17 of the top 30 grocery retailers in Germany participated in the study. Semi-structured, face-to-face interviews with logistics managers were conducted and analyzed. Uncertainties and missing resources can be identified as the two main challenges of public holiday seasons in grocery retailing. Retailers implement numerous measures that can be summarized in three categories, i.e., the adjustment of workload profiles, the adaptation of resources and modifying processes. Literature has so far considered public holidays only to a limited extent, e.g., as a parameter in forecasting models or for the application of marketing instruments. This study is the first developing a framework and providing insights into operational planning in grocery retailing.
High GLI-1 Expression is a Reliable Indicator of Bad Prognosis in Newly Diagnosed Acute Leukemia Patients
Authors: El Zaiat Reham S. , Nabil Reem , Khalifa Khaled A. , El Feshawy Aliaa A.
Published: January 2023

Purpose: To explore the expression and prognostic significance of Hedgehog signaling transcription factor GLI-1 in newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients. Methods: Clinical specimens were obtained from 46 recently diagnosed AML patients. Real-time qPCR was used to measure the GLI-1 mRNA expression in bone marrow mononuclear cells.Also, the relationship between GLI-1 mRNA levels and clinical variables and prognostic variables was assessed. Results: GLI-1 was overexpressed in the bone marrow samples of our patients. GLI-1mRNA expression did not differ significantly across different age groups, between both sexes, or between different FAB subtypes (P = 0.882, P = 0.246, and P = 0.890, respectively). GLI-1 expression varied significantly in different risk categories, with the greatest levels observed in 11 patients with poor risk (24.6 versus 22.7) compared to intermediate risk (5.2 versus 3.9; P = 0.006) and favorable risk (4.2 versus 3; P = 0.001). Comparing patients with the wild FLT3 allele to those with the mutant one, GLI-1 gene levels were considerably greater in those with the mutant allele of FLT3.Following induction chemotherapy, the levels of GLI-1 mRNA were significantly higher in 22 patients who did not experience complete remission (CR) diagnosed with de novo non-acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) compared to 17 patients who did (P = 0.017). Significantly greater levels of expression were observed in each category of the patients with favorable risk; wild FLT3 allele (P = 0.033) and CR failure P = 0.005). Conclusion: GLI-1 overexpression is a risk factor for poor prognosis and could be a novel therapeutic target for AML.
A numerical study on the effects of DP steel microstructure on the yield locus and the stress–strain response under strain path change
Authors: Saai Afaf , Hopperstad Odd Sture , Fritz Jenny , Larsson Joachim
Published: January 2023

The mechanical response of dual phase (DP) steel exhibits a complex dependence on the microstructure. The chemical composition and microstructure characteristics of the phases have significant effects on the contrast between the response of the phases, which affects, not only the strength and ductility, but also the anisotropic response of DP steel under strain path changes. In this work, extended dislocation-based models of the ferrite and martensite phases of DP steel are proposed and used in a finite element based representative volume element approach to account for the contrast between the local response of the phases. The flow stress of each phase is computed as a function of the amount of substitutional and interstitial solute elements and the microstructural characteristics of the phase. Particular attention is paid to the phase model of the martensite phase. The model parameter controlling the storage of dislocations is related to the carbon content, which appears to be the most important parameter affecting the strength of martensite and its contrast with the local response of the ferrite phase. The model predicts a significant effect of the contrast between the local responses of the phases and the microstructure characteristics of each phase on the yield locus after prestraining and on the stress–strain behaviour after strain path change, i.e., forward-reverse shear loading and cyclic uniaxial tension–compression loading.
Patient Understanding of Chemotherapy and Goals of Care as Provided by Different Care Team Members
Authors: Suhail Shanzay , Basu Sandeep , Batoo Sameer A. , Al-Hattab Eyad S. , Kanj Ahmed Ola , Eidahl Barbara J. , Okuno Scott H.
Published: January 2023

Chemotherapy can be challenging and overwhelming for patients, but when patients are knowledgeable about chemotherapy, their comfort level, overall satisfaction, and coping improve. It is currently unknown whether patients prefer information about chemotherapy to be provided by specific care team members and whether demographic characteristics affect learning preferences. We developed a 31-question questionnaire that asked patients when chemotherapy information was discussed and who they wanted that information to come from. The questionnaire was given to 50 patients who had completed 1 cycle of chemotherapy. Patients were evenly distributed among age categories of 45 to 64 years, 65 to 74 years, and 75 years or older. Thirty participants (60%) were women, 33 (66%) had high school degrees, and 23 (46%) were receiving their first chemotherapy regimen. Sixty percent of patients best understood goals of care from oncologists, 70% wanted goals of care to come from oncologists, and 61% best understood and wanted to understand logistics of chemotherapy from oncologists. Sixty-six percent of patients understood adverse effects when they were explained by nursing staff, and 56% wanted explanations of adverse effects to come from nursing staff. Patients did not prefer a specific care team member or information source when receiving financial cost information. Patients often preferred to receive chemotherapy information from their oncologist; however, other members of the care team also provided information to patients in a way that was understood.
Protamine 1 as a secreted colorectal cancer-specific antigen facilitating G1/S phase transition under nutrient stress conditions
Authors: Ren Shengnan , Yang Dingquan , Dong Yongli , Ni Weidong , Wang Meiqi , Xing Lei , Liu Tong , Hou Wenjia , Sun Weixuan , Zhang Haolong , Yu Zhentao , Liu Yi , Cao Jingrui , Yan Hongbo , Feng Ye , Fang Xuedong , Wang Quan , Chen Fangfang
Published: January 2023

Purpose

Cancer testis antigens (CTAs) are optimal tumor diagnostic markers and involved in carcinogenesis. However, colorectal cancer (CRC) related CTAs are less reported with impressive diagnostic capability or relevance with tumor metabolism rewiring. Herein, we demonstrated CRC-related CTA, Protamine 1 (PRM1), as a promising diagnostic marker and involved in regulation of cellular growth under nutrient deficiency.

Methods

Transcriptomics of five paired CRC tissues was used to screen CRC-related CTAs. Capability of PRM1 to distinguish CRC was studied by detection of clinical samples through enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Cellular functions were investigated in CRC cell lines through in vivo and in vitro assays.

Results

By RNA-seq and detection in 824 clinical samples from two centers, PRM1 expression were upregulated in CRC tissues and patients` serum. Serum PRM1 showed impressive accuracy to diagnose CRC from healthy controls and benign gastrointestinal disease patients, particularly more sensitive for early-staged CRC. Furthermore, we reported that when cells were cultured in serum-reduced medium, PRM1 secretion was upregulated, and secreted PRM1 promoted CRC growth in culture and in mice. Additionally, G1/S phase transition of CRC cells was facilitated by PRM1 protein supplementation and overexpression via activation of PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway in serum deficient medium.

Conclusions

In general, our research presented PRM1 as a specific CRC antigen and illustrated the importance of PRM1 in CRC metabolism rewiring. The new vulnerability of CRC cells was also provided with the potential to be targeted in future.

Graphical abstract

Diagnostic value and grow factor-like biofunction of PRM1 A represents the secretion process of PRM1 regulated by nutrient deficiency. B represents activation of PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway of secreted PRM1.
High work satisfaction despite high workload among European organic mixed livestock farmers: a mixed-method approach
Authors: Schanz Lisa , Oehen Bernadette , Benoit Marc , Bernes Gun , Magne Marie-Angélina , Martin Guillaume , Winckler Christoph
Published: January 2023

Organic mixed livestock farming offers a range of potential benefits for the environment. Due to the diversification of enterprises, this farming system can be associated with a high workload, which means that it could be socially unsustainable. The aim of this study was to understand and explain work satisfaction of farmers running an organic mixed livestock farm. Using a mixed-method approach, quantitative and qualitative data were collected from 102 farmers in seven European countries during face-to-face interviews. We showed for the first time that across Europe and different animal species and category combinations, organic mixed livestock farms can provide a high work satisfaction, despite a high workload. By using a mixed-method approach and a clear framework, we aimed at better understanding work satisfaction. Underlying reasons for work satisfaction included the diversity of tasks, opportunities to learn, autonomy in the work schedule, perceived acknowledgement by consumers, and the contribution to sustainable food production. Factors contributing to work satisfaction identified in the analysis of quantitative data included workload, number of livestock units, mental complexity, proportion of work peaks per year, and the match between wanted free time and time taken off work. The combination of qualitative and quantitative data allowed a deeper understanding of farmers’ work satisfaction and revealed consistent findings. Future research should investigate the relationship between farmers’ work satisfaction and capacity for innovation, flexibility, and adaptation potential.
The chemical structures and biological activities of indole diterpenoids
Authors: Niu Jingwen , Qi Jianzhao , Wang Pengchao , Liu Chengwei , Gao Jin-ming
Published: January 2023

Indole diterpenoids (IDTs) are an essential class of structurally diverse fungal secondary metabolites, that generally appear to be restricted to a limited number of fungi, such as Penicillium, Aspergillus, Claviceps, and Epichloe species, etc. These compounds share a typical core structure consisting of a cyclic diterpene skeleton of geranylgeranyl diphosphate (GGPP) and an indole ring moiety derived from indole-3-glycerol phosphate (IGP). 3-geranylgeranylindole (3-GGI) is the common precursor of all IDTs. On this basis, it is modified by cyclization, oxidation, and prenylation to generate a large class of compounds with complex structures. These compounds exhibit antibacterial, anti-insect, and ion channel inhibitory activities. We summarized 204 compounds of IDTs discovered from various fungi over the past 50 years, these compounds were reclassified, and their biological activities were summarized. This review will help to understand the structural diversity of IDTs and provide help for their physiological activities.

Graphical Abstract
Many Paths to Anticipatory Behavior: Anticipatory Model Acquisition Across Phylogenetic and Ontogenetic Timescales
Authors: Sims Matthew
Published: January 2023

Under the assumption that anticipatory models are required for anticipatory behavior, an important question arises about the different manners in which organisms acquire anticipatory models. This article aims to articulate four different non-exhaustive ways that anticipatory models might possibly be acquired over both phylogenetic and ontogenetic timescales and explore the relationships among them. To articulate these different model-acquisition mechanisms, four schematics will be introduced, each of which represents a particular acquisition structure that can be used for the purposes of comparison, analysis, and hypothesis formulation. By bringing to the fore the differences and similarities between each of the four ways that anticipatory models are acquired, a more complete picture of both anticipatory behavior and its pervasive role in biological self-maintenance can be offered. In doing so, this article helps not only to shed light on how anticipatory behavior might arise in the wide range of organisms that it has been observed in but also to throw into relief the subtle and often still overlooked causal interplay between ontogenetic and phylogenetic plasticity.
Metalaxyl-resistant mutant strains of Phytophthora boehmeriae are as aggressive and fit as their metalaxyl-sensitive wild-type parents
Authors: Chen Fangxin , Qi Yongxia , Jiang Bingxin , Cao Shun , Liu Xiao , Gao Zhimou
Published: January 2023

Phytophthora boehmeriae Sawada is an important pathogenic oomycete, and causes Phytophthora blight of cotton and ramie, which are main limiting factors to the production of cotton and ramie in China. The aggressiveness and fitness of the metalaxyl-resistant (MR) mutants of P. boehmeriae obtained by inducing on LBA amended with sublethal dose (10 µg·mL−1) of metalaxyl were studied in this paper. The results showed that there were no significant differences between the MR mutants and their metalaxyl-sensitive (MS) wild-type parents in temperature for mycelial growth, zoosporangium production, sensitivity to malachite green, and the pathogenicity to cotton seedlings. However, the oospore productions of the mutants were much lower than those of their MS parents. The growth rates and the colony morphology of MR mutants and their MS parents all displayed obvious variation or separation, and were inherited unsteadily in their single-zoospore and single-oospore progenies. At the same time, the homothallic character of MR mutants could inherit steadily as well as that of the MS wild-type isolates did in asexual and sexual progenies. It was suggested that the MR mutants of P. boehmeriae possessed equal aggressiveness and fitness with their MS parental isolates, and would develop the MR population easily in a short time as long as the MR mutants formed. Thereby, there would be a high risk of development of metalaxyl resistance in populations of P. boehmeriae in the field, when metalaxyl was long and continuously applied for the control of the diseases caused by P. boehmeriae.
Pointing to the Ahmarian. Lithic Technology and the El-Wad Points of Al-Ansab 1
Authors: Gennai Jacopo , Schemmel Marcel , Richter Jürgen
Published: January 2023

The Ahmarian is the earliest fully fledged Upper Palaeolithic Levantine industry, and its hallmark is the el-Wad point, assumed to be a projectile implement. The Ahmarian is a blade-bladelet volumetric industry; however, bladelet production has frequently been portrayed as undifferentiated or secondary to blade production. El-Wad points are blades or bladelets with a fine to steep lateral retouch, often further shaping the tip. The role of bladelets and blades, both in the retouched and unretouched assemblages, is highly debated in order to refine Early Upper Palaeolithic (EUP) taxonomical and technological issues. Here, we use data coming from our excavations at the southern Ahmarian site of Al-Ansab 1 to reconsider the role of bladelets and el-Wad points in the assemblage. We show that bladelet production was key, and blades were mostly used to shape the convexities to produce convergent bladelets. El-Wad point blanks mostly stemmed from an early stage of the reduction sequence, being conventionally classified as small blades or big bladelets. Modification of these blanks likely improved their suboptimal shape, while smaller bladelets were not modified. Our detailed review of the existing literature produced corresponding evidence regarding lithic technology, while the exact function of el-Wad points is still pending on complementary use-wear analyses. With our new data, we expect to provoke a reconsideration of the Ahmarian technological system. As bladelets attract more and more attention in EUP research, we propose that the southern Ahmarian had already fully completed the technological and cultural shift to the preferred use of small projectile inserts.
Wave Radiation from Bottom Vibrations in Open-Channel Flow with Uniform Vorticity
Authors: Tyvand Peder A.
Published: January 2023

The linearized water-wave radiation problem for a 2D oscillating source in an inviscid shear flow with a free surface is investigated analytically. The singular source is located at the bottom, with constant fluid depth. The velocity of the basic flow varies linearly with depth, assuming uniform vorticity. The far-field surface waves radiated out from the 2D bottom source are calculated, based on Euler’s equation of motion with the application of radiation conditions. The present analysis extends the work by Tyvand and Sveen to include a nonzero surface flow. Doppler effects will arise in a system at rest with the undisturbed free surface. Resonance with zero group velocity will occur at a critical Froude number for the surface flow. In the presence of a basic surface flow, there are in total four radiated waves when the surface flow is subcritical. With supercritical flow, there are only two emitted waves, with downstream propagation. The critical Froude number depends on the surface velocity, the shear rate and the oscillation frequency of the bottom source.
Patient-specific finite element modeling of scoliotic curve progression using region-specific stress-modulated vertebral growth
Authors: D’Andrea Christian R. , Samdani Amer F. , Balasubramanian Sriram
Published: January 2023

Purpose

This study describes the creation of patient-specific (PS) osteo-ligamentous finite element (FE) models of the spine, ribcage, and pelvis, simulation of up to three years of region-specific, stress-modulated growth, and validation of simulated curve progression with patient clinical angle measurements. Research Question: Does the inclusion of region-specific, stress-modulated vertebral growth, in addition to scaling based on age, weight, skeletal maturity, and spine flexibility allow for clinically accurate scoliotic curve progression prediction in patient-specific FE models of the spine, ribcage, and pelvis?

Methods

Frontal, lateral, and lateral bending X-Rays of five AIS patients were obtained for approximately three-year timespans. PS-FE models were generated by morphing a normative template FE model with landmark points obtained from patient X-rays at the initial X-ray timepoint. Vertebral growth behavior and response to stress, as well as model material properties were made patient-specific based on several prognostic factors. Spine curvature angles from the PS–FE models were compared to the corresponding X-ray measurements.

Results

Average FE model errors were 6.3 ± 4.6°, 12.2 ± 6.6°, 8.9 ± 7.7°, and 5.3 ± 3.4° for thoracic Cobb, lumbar Cobb, kyphosis, and lordosis angles, respectively. Average error in prediction of vertebral wedging at the apex and adjacent levels was 3.2 ± 2.2°. Vertebral column stress ranged from 0.11 MPa in tension to 0.79 MPa in compression.

Conclusion

Integration of region-specific stress-modulated growth, as well as adjustment of growth and material properties based on patient-specific data yielded clinically useful prediction accuracy while maintaining physiological stress magnitudes. This framework can be further developed for PS surgical simulation.
A multi-output network with U-net enhanced class activation map and robust classification performance for medical imaging analysis
Authors: Schraut Jaiden Xuan , Liu Leon , Gong Jonathan , Yin Yiqiao
Published: January 2023

Computer vision in medical diagnosis has achieved a high level of success in diagnosing diseases with high accuracy. However, conventional classifiers that produce an image-to-label result provide insufficient information for medical professionals to judge and raise concerns over the trust and reliability of a model with results that cannot be explained. To gain local insight of cancerous regions, separate tasks such as imaging segmentation needs to be implemented to aid the doctors in treating patients which doubles the training time and costs which renders the diagnosis system inefficient and difficult to be accepted by the public. To tackle this issue and drive the AI-first medical solutions further, this paper proposes a multi-output network which follows a U-Net architecture for image segmentation output and features an additional CNN module for auxiliary classification output. Class Activation Maps or CAMs are a method of providing insight into a convolutional neural network’s feature maps that lead to its classification but in the case of lung diseases, the region of interest is enhanced by U-net assisted Class Activation Mapping (CAM) visualization. Therefore, our proposed model combines image segmentation models and classifiers to crop out only the lung region of a chest X-ray’s class activation map to provide a visualization that improves the explainability and can generate classification results simultaneously which builds trust for AI-led diagnosis system. The proposed U-Net model achieves 97.72% accuracy and a dice coefficient of 0.9691 on a testing data from the COVID-QU-Ex Dataset which includes both diseased and healthy lungs.
Design optimization and CFD analysis of the dynamic behavior of a standing wave thermoacoustic engine with various geometry parameters and boundary conditions
Authors: Bouramdane Zahra , Bah Abdellah , Alaoui Mohammed , Martaj Nadia
Published: January 2023

Thermoacoustic devices are converters of thermal energy into acoustic energy and vice versa. Although these machines contain simple components, the design of these machines is very challenging. In order to predict the behavior and optimize the efficiency of a standing-wave thermoacoustic engine designed to drive a thermally driven thermoacoustic refrigerator, considering changes in geometrical parameters and operating conditions, two analogies have been presented in this paper. The first analogy is based on a CFD simulation carried out to investigate the influence of stack parameters, working gas and boundary conditions on the thermoacoustic process. The second analogy is performed by the use of an optimization algorithm based on the simplified linear thermoacoustic theory to design and optimize the parameters investigated by the CFD study. Stack of parallel plates of normalized stack center positions of 0.007 to 0.26, normalized stack lengths of 0.018 to 0.11, and several gaps and thicknesses of plates and working gases are used. The results from the algorithm give the ability to design any thermoacoustic engine with high efficiency by picking the appropriate parameters. Simulation results show that decreasing thickness and position of the plates gives a significant efficiency. However, there are optimum values for length of the stack and the gap between two plates. The material chosen for the construction of plates should have a low thermal conductivity and gases with higher ratios of specific heats and lower Prandtl numbers are well suitable for thermoacoustic systems.
A methodology to detect pilot perception of warning information by eye movement data and deep residual shrinkage networks
Authors: Yan C.-Q. , Sun Y.-C. , Zhang X. , Mao H.-Y. , Jiang J.-Y.
Published: January 2023

This paper studied the use of eye movement data to form criteria for judging whether pilots perceive emergency information such as cockpit warnings. In the experiment, 12 subjects randomly encountered different warning information while flying a simulated helicopter, and their eye movement data were collected synchronously. Firstly, the importance of the eye movement features was calculated by ANOVA (analysis of variance). According to the sorting of the importance and the Euclidean distance of each eye movement feature, the warning information samples with different eye movement features were obtained. Secondly, the residual shrinkage network modules were added to CNN (convolutional neural network) to construct a DRSN (deep residual shrinkage networks) model. Finally, the processed warning information samples were used to train and test the DRSN model. In order to verify the superiority of this method, the DRSN model was compared with three machine learning models, namely SVM (support vector machine), RF (radom forest) and BPNN (backpropagation neural network). Among the four models, the DRSN model performed the best. When all eye movement features were selected, this model detected pilot perception of warning information with an average accuracy of 90.4%, of which the highest detection accuracy reached 96.4%. Experiments showed that the DRSN model had advantages in detecting pilot perception of warning information.
Application of wavy leading edge to enhance winglet aerodynamic performance
Authors: Flores-Mezarina J.A. , Bravo-Mosquera P.D. , Garcia-Ribeiro D. , Cerón-Muñoz H.D.
Published: January 2023

The wavy leading edge (WLE, also known as leading edge protuberances) is a passive flow control device inspired by the humpback whale pectoral flippers. It reduces the flow of three-dimensional effects on wings and increases their aerodynamic performance at high angles of attack. Despite the numerous studies on its aerodynamic benefits, research on its possible applications is still incipient. Therefore, this article addresses an evaluation of the WLE effects on the aerodynamic performance of a winglet. A rectangular wing, a base smooth leading edge winglet, and a winglet with WLE were designed and manufactured for CFD simulations and wind tunnel measurements. The winglet with WLE increased the maximum aerodynamic efficiency, i.e. this configuration reduced the induced drag by increasing wingtip vortex dissipation at a given angle-of-attack. Such results were used in re-evaluations of the aerodynamic performance of an original agricultural aircraft initially configured with a multi-winglet device. The winglet with WLE showed to be effective at increasing the aircraft operational time and range under a simulated actual condition.
Does plant-based milk reduce sales of dairy milk? Evidence from the almond milk craze
Authors: Slade Peter
Published: January 2023

In recent years, there has been significant growth in the sales of plant-based alternatives to meat and dairy products. However, it remains unclear whether these alternatives are actually reducing sales of livestock-derived products. This paper examines the relationship between the sales of one particular livestock-derived product – unflavored dairy milk – and its plant-based alternative – nondairy milk. Using data from a panel of US consumers between 2004 and 2018, I find that a 1-gallon increase in nondairy milk sales is associated with a 0.43–0.60 gallon reduction in dairy milk sales. The inverse relationship between dairy and nondairy milk purchases is strongest among households with high initial expenditure on dairy milk. Despite the inverse relationship between dairy and nondairy milk purchases, the rapid increase in nondairy milk sales between 2009 and 2018 explains little of the concomitant decline in dairy milk sales.