bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
EXploring the journeys of Patients who End their Calls prior to Triage by NHS111: The EXPECT study
Authors: Pilbery Richard , Lewis Jen , Simpson Rebecca
Published: October 2024

Background

The English National Health Service (NHS) 111 telephone service aims to assist members of the public with urgent medical care needs. However, each year nearly 18% of the 20.6 million calls to 111 are abandoned prior to speaking to a health advisor. There are concerns that callers who are not triaged may not appropriately seek the correct level of care for their needs.

The aim of this study was to explore the patient journey for callers who contact NHS 111 but end the call prior to speaking to a health advisor. The primary objective was to determine whether callers to NHS 111 who end the call prior to triage attend an ED with a non-avoidable cause sooner than who are triaged by an NHS 111 health advisor.

Methods

We obtained routine data pertaining to all NHS 111 calls made by adult patients registered with a General Practitioner (GP) in the Bradford region of Yorkshire, UK, between the 1st January 2022 and 30th June 2023. Subsequent healthcare access in the 72 hours following each caller’s first (index) call was identified using the Connected Yorkshire research database.

We conducted a time-to-event analysis comparing the two cohorts: those whose index call was triaged by an NHS 111 health advisor vs. callers who ended the index call prior to triage. The ‘event’ was defined as an Emergency Department (ED) attendance within 72 hours for a non-avoidable cause.

We utilised Kaplan–Meier (KM) curves and conducted log-rank tests to compare the time to first non-avoidable ED attendance between cohorts, and a Cox proportional hazards model adjusted for baseline characteristics. From this, we calculated the adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) of attending an ED with a non-avoidable cause.

Results

There were 19,056 index non-triaged and 168,609 triaged calls made to NHS 111 by an adult registered with a Bradford GP. A lower proportion of ED attendances in the non-triaged call cohort were non-avoidable compared with the triaged cohort (80.0% compared to 84.6% for triaged calls). In addition, callers in the non-triaged call cohort attended ED later than the triaged call cohort (median 10 vs 8 hours, p<0.001 by log rank test). The time-to-attend ED aHR for non-triaged calls vs triaged calls was 0.32 (95%CI 0.30–0.34).

Conclusion

The time-to-event analysis found that callers to NHS 111 who do not wait to be triaged, are slower to attend ED with a non-avoidable cause than those who are triaged, and are more likely to attend ED with an avoidable cause than triaged callers. This suggests that, for patients with a serious health problem that would be considered non-avoidable at ED, triaging by NHS 111 supports those patients to seek appropriate help more quickly. In turn, patients with such health conditions who end the call before triage may delay seeking appropriate levels of healthcare.
Association of COVID-19 risk factors with systemic fungal infections in hospitalized patients
Authors: Wilbourn Abbygail C , Tsodikov Oleg V , Garneau-Tsodikova Sylvie
Published: October 2024

Purpose: A new category of systemic co-infections that emerged with the COVID-19 pandemic is known as COVID-19-associated (CA) fungal infections, which include pulmonary aspergillosis (CAPA), candidiasis (CAC), and mucormycosis (CAM). We aimed to study the association between patient characteristics of hospitalized COVID-19 patients, COVID-19 comorbidities, and COVID-19 therapies with secondary non-superficial fungal infections. Methods: We performed descriptive and regression analyses of data from 4,999 hospitalized COVID-19 patients from the University of Kentucky Healthcare (UKHC) system. Results: The patients with secondary systemic fungal infections had a 6-fold higher risk of death than those without such infections. Generally, the risk factors for severe COVID-19 (age, obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and lack of COVID-19 vaccination) were strong predictors of a secondary fungal infection. However, several characteristics had much higher risks, suggesting that a causative link may be at play: ICU admission, mechanical ventilation, length of hospital stay, and steroid use. Conclusions: In sum, this study found that the known risk factors for severe COVID-19 disease, age, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity, ventilation, and high steroid doses were all predictors of a secondary fungal infection. Steroid therapy may need to be modified to account for a risk or a presence of a fungal infection in vulnerable patients.
Cardiovascular and non-cardiovascular risks among female breast cancer survivors in Japan: A matched cohort study
Authors: Kawamura Chitose , Bhaskaran Krishnan , Konishi Takaaki , Sagara Yasuaki , Bando Hiroko , Shinozaki Tomohiro , Nojiri Shuko , Adomi Motohiko , Wong Angel YS , Tamiya Nanako , Iwagami Masao
Published: October 2024

Background

The number of breast cancer (BC) survivors has increased worldwide, but the landscape of their non-cancer disease risks remains unclear, especially among Asian women.

Methods

In the JMDC claims database, which covers company employees and their family members in Japan, women aged 18–74 years with and without an incident BC were matched in a 1:4 ratio for age and entry timing to the database between January 2005 and December 2019. The risks for six cardiovascular diseases (myocardial infarction, heart failure, atrial fibrillation/flutter, ischemic stroke, intracranial hemorrhage, and pulmonary embolism) and six non-cardiovascular diseases (major osteoporotic fractures, other fractures, gastrointestinal bleeding, urinary tract infection, infectious pneumonia, and anxiety/depression) were compared between the groups.

Findings

Comparing 24,017 BC survivors and 96,068 matched women (mean age, 50·5 years), the incidence rates of heart failure, atrial fibrillation/flutter, and all non-cardiovascular diseases were higher in the BC survivor group. The highest adjusted hazard ratio (HR) was noted for heart failure (4·09 [95% confidence interval 2·58–6·50]), followed by gastrointestinal bleeding (3·55 [3·10–4·06]), and anxiety/depression (3·06 [2·86–3·27]). The HRs in the first year were larger than those for 1–10 years for most outcomes, whereas the HRs for fracture outcomes were larger in the 1–10 years group.

Interpretation

BC survivors in Japan showed an increased risk of many non-cancer diseases compared to women without BC. Most risks increased more steeply during the first year following diagnosis, whereas the risk of fractures increased later.

Funding

Competitive research funding from Pfizer Health Research Foundation in Japan.
Chemical circularization of in vitro transcribed RNA opens new avenues for circular mRNA design
Authors: Mamot Adam , Wasinska-Kalwa Malgorzata , Czubak Karol , Frankowska Katarzyna , Spiewla Tomasz , Warminski Marcin , Nowis Dominika , Golab Jakub , Kowalska Joanna , Jemielity Jacek
Published: October 2024

Circularization is at the frontier of therapeutic messenger RNA (mRNA) enhancements. Currently available enzymatic and ribozymatic methods for generating circular RNAs (circRNAs) face several challenges related to sequence limitations, purification, and sub-optimal biological activity. The chemical circularization of synthetic RNA fragments potentially overcomes these limitations but is applicable only to extremely short sequences. Here, we report a novel approach for accessing circular RNAs based on the chemical circularization of in vitro transcribed RNA. We efficiently accessed chemically circularized RNAs (chem-circRNAs) by making in vitro transcribed precursor RNAs modified at the 5′ end with an ethylenediamine moiety, which undergoes an intramolecular reaction with the periodate-oxidized RNA 3′ end under reductive amination conditions. We demonstrate that this method is modification-compatible and applicable to various sequences. Additionally, we report methods for the effective separation of chem-circRNAs from their linear precursors. Using this approach, we prepared multiple chemically-obtained circular RNAs (chem-circRNAs; 35–1500 nt long) with circularization efficiencies reaching up to 60%. We show that protein-coding chem-circRNAs are translationally active in living cells and exhibit increased durability, similar to enzymatically circularized mRNAs. We also demonstrate that this approach enables unprecedented access to chemically modified circRNAs, such as circ-mRNAs incorporating a functional endocyclic N7-methylguanosine cap or modified with N1-methylpseudouridine within the RNA body. Notably, circRNAs containing an endocyclic cap structure engage in the most efficient, cap-dependent mechanism of translation. Our approach makes chemically-modified circularized full-length protein-coding RNAs easily accessible, thereby opening new avenues for the design, modification, and functionalization of circular mRNAs.
The role of GPR87 in Pulmonary Fibrosis
Authors: Khoury Johad , Ahangari Farida , Adams Taylor , Justet Aurelien , Manning Edward , McDonough John , Barnthaler Thomas , Anderson Sabina , Nikola Fadi , Beermann Mary Lou , Gomez Jose L , Kaminski Naftali
Published: October 2024

Rationale

G- protein coupled receptor 87 (GPR87), an alternative lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) receptor previously implicated in cancer, is highly expressed in basal and aberrant basaloid cells in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). We sought to determine whether signaling through GPR87 is important to the development of pulmonary fibrosis.

Methods

Reanalysis of bulk and single cell RNA sequencing dataset was performed to confirm the increased expression of GPR87 in pulmonary fibrosis. The role of GPR87 in fibrosisin-vivowas assessed using global GPR87 knockout (GPR87-/-) and wildtype mice in the bleomycin model of pulmonary fibrosis,in-vitroin induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) derived airway basal cells (iBC) using GPR87 siRNAs, andex-vivoin human precision cut slices using disease free tissues in the fibrotic cocktail model as well as IPF tissues treated with GPR87 siRNA.

Results

GPR87 is highly expressed in IPF lungs, and its expression correlates with disease severity. Furthermore, It is highly expressed in basal and aberrant basaloid cells. GPR87-/-mice are protected against bleomycin induced pulmonary fibrosis. GPR87 knockdown is protective against fibrosis development in normal PCLS treated with fibrotic cocktail and leads to fibrosis regression in IPF PCLS. In iBC, GPR87 knockdown leads to decreased expression of fibrosis related genes, proteins and microRNAs. GPR87 stimulation with LPA leads to the opposite results. The main downstream pathways are PI3K, mTOR, and TNF/NFkB; stimulation or inhibition of PI3K pathway mimics GPR87 stimulation or inhibition responses, respectively.

Conclusion

GPR87 is highly expressed in basal and aberrant basaloid cells in IPF lungs and seems to mediate profibrotic effects based onin-vivo, ex-vivoandin-vitromodels of disease, suggesting that it should be studied as a potential epithelial specific therapeutic target in pulmonary fibrosis.
Diffusion and Viscosity in Mixed Protein Solutions
Authors: Wozniak Spencer , Feig Michael
Published: October 2024

The viscosity and diffusion properties of crowded protein systems were investigated with molecular dynamics simulations of SH3 mixtures with different crowders, and results were compared with experimental data. The simulations accurately reproduced experimental trends across a wide range of protein concentrations, including highly crowded environments up to 300 g/L. Notably, viscosity increased with crowding but varied little between different crowder types, while diffusion rates were significantly reduced depending on protein-protein interaction strength. Analysis using the Stokes-Einstein relation indicated that the reduction in diffusion exceeded what was expected from viscosity changes alone, with the additional slow-down attributable to transient cluster formation driven by weakly attractive interactions. Contact kinetics analysis further revealed that longer-lived interactions contributed more significantly to reduced diffusion rates than short-lived interactions. This study also highlights the accuracy of current computational methodologies for capturing the dynamics of proteins in highly concentrated solutions and provides insights into the molecular mechanisms affecting protein mobility in crowded environments.
Modulation of SpyCatcher Ligation Kinetics by SpyTag Thioamide Substitution
Authors: Fiore Kristen E. , Francis Denver Y. , Casimir Sobrielle M. , Perez Ryann M. , Petersson E. James
Published: October 2024

Thioamide substitutions have been shown to impart valuable properties on peptides for biophysical experiments as well as cell or in vivo studies, but a rational understanding of thioamide effects on protein structure and protein-protein interactions is lacking. To elucidate their effects in β-sheet structures, we have used SpyCatcher003-SpyTag003 as a host-guest system to study individual thioamide incorporation at eight different positions in the SpyTag peptide. We have demonstrated that incorporating thioamides into SpyTag at specific positions can result in a ∼2-fold faster ligating complex, as well as >2000-fold slower ligating complex. Biophysical analysis and structural modeling provide a reasonable explanation for most of the thioamide effects, altering hydrogen bond networks as well as modulating an n→π* interaction within the SpyTag peptide. Our findings have important implications for potential applications of thioamide SpyTag variants, where the thioamide could impart protease stability in cells while also controlling the rate of ligation to SpyCatcher. These SpyCatcher-SpyTag host-guest experiments will also help to build a database for predicting thioamide effects on protein structure and function.
Full-length Cryptochrome 1 in the outer segments of the retinal blue cone photoreceptors in humans and great apes suggests a role beyond transcriptional repression
Authors: Bartölke Rabea , Nießner Christine , Reinhard Katja , Wolfrum Uwe , Meimann Sonja , Bolte Petra , Feederle Regina , Mouritsen Henrik , Dedek Karin , Peichl Leo , Winklhofer Michael
Published: October 2024

Mammalian cryptochrome 1 (CRY1) is a central player in the circadian transcription-translation feedback loop, crucial for maintaining a roughly 24-hour rhythm. CRY1 was suggested to also function as blue-light photoreceptor in humans and has been found to be expressed at the mRNA level in various cell types of the inner retina. However, attempts to detect CRY1 at the protein level in the human retina have remained unsuccessful so far. Using various C-terminal specific antibodies recognizing full-length CRY1 protein, we consistently detected selective labelling in the outer segments of short wavelength-sensitive (SWS1, “blue”) cone photoreceptor cells across human, bonobo, and gorilla retinae. No other retinal cell types were stained, which is in contrast to what would be expected of a ubiquitous clock protein. Subcellular fractionation experiments in transfected HEK cells using a C-terminal specific antibody located full-length CRY1 in the cytosol and membrane fractions. Our findings indicate that human CRY1 has several different functions including at least one non-clock function. Our results also raise the likely possibility that several different versions of CRY1 exists in humans. We suggest that truncation of the C-terminal tail, maybe to different degrees, may affect the localization and function of human CRY1.
Spheroplasted cells: a game changer for DNA delivery to diatoms
Authors: Walker E.J.L. , Pampuch M. , Tran G. , Karas B.J.K.
Published: October 2024

Diatoms, vital to global carbon fixation and climate change mitigation, produce 20% of the world’s fixed organic carbon annually. Their potential as cell factories for biofuels, proteins, and other high value chemicals remains underutilized due to a lack of genetic engineering tools, with DNA delivery being the biggest challenge. Here, we present an optimized, highly efficient electroporation method for delivering DNA constructs as large as 55.6 kb toPhaeodactylum tricornutum, a model diatom species and emerging chassis for algal biotechnology. We also demonstrate that with this optimized protocol, episomes can be assembledde novo, forgoing the need for time-consuming traditional cloning steps inEscherichia coliandSaccharomyces cerevisiae. By incorporating other technologies, such as CRISPR genome editing, this method will accelerate diatom-based synthetic biology projects and, therefore, the development of sustainable technologies. This method should also be applicable to other diatom species.
Functional screen for mediators of onco-mRNA translation specificity
Authors: Kovalski Joanna R. , Sarioglu Goksu , Subramanyam Vishvak , Hernandez Grace , Rademaker Gilles , Oses-Prieto Juan A. , Slota Macey , Mohan Nimmy , Yiakis Kaylee , Liu Isabelle , Wen Kwun Wah , Kim Grace E. , Miglani Sohit , Burlingame Alma L. , Goodarzi Hani , Perera Rushika M. , Ruggero Davide
Published: October 2024

Oncogenic protein dosage is tightly regulated to enable cancer cells to adapt and survive. Whether this is regulated at the level of translational control and the key factors incisandtransremain unknown. The Myc oncogene is a central paradigm of an exquisitely regulated oncogene and a major driver of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). Using a functional genome-wide CRISPRi screen in PDAC cells, we identified activators of selectiveMYCtranslation through its 5’ untranslated region (5’UTR) and validated four RNA binding proteins (RBPs), including epitranscriptome modifiers. Among these RBPs, our top hit was RBM42, which is highly expressed in PDAC and predicts poor survival. Combining polysome sequencing and CLIP-seq analyses, we find that RBM42 binds and selectively regulates the translation ofMYCand a precise, yet vital suite of pro-oncogenic transcripts, includingJUNandEGFR. Mechanistically, employing IP-mass spectrometry analysis, we find that RMB42 is a novel ribosome-associated protein (RAP). Using DMS-Seq and mutagenesis analysis, we show that RBM42 directly binds and remodels theMYC5’UTR RNA structure, facilitating the formation of the translation pre-initiation complex. Importantly, RBM42 is necessary for human PDAC cell growth and fitness and PDAC tumorigenesis in xenograft mouse models in a Myc-dependent mannerin vivo. In PDAC patient samples, RBM42 expression is correlated with Myc protein levels and transcriptional activity. This work transforms our understanding of the translational code in cancer and offers a new therapeutic opening to target the expression of oncogenes.
Longitudinal monitoring of respiratory syncytial virus, SARS-CoV-2 and influenza in wastewater of a Southern Indian city
Authors: Venkatesh Apoorva , Sreelekshmi RS , Movva Parishuddha Babu , Madhukar Manas K , Panda Aruna , Mohan S. Venkata , Mishra Rakesh , Moharir Shivranjani C
Published: October 2024

The detection of diverse pathogens and chemical compounds in community wastewater facilitates the monitoring of public health trends of emerging diseases and health conditions. During the COVID-19 pandemic, detection of viral RNA in wastewater assisted in monitoring the infection rates in different geographies and this drew attention to the method of wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE). In contrast to individual clinical testing, WBE offers an affordable, population-wide overview of the infection status of a community including asymptomatic carriers and those without access to healthcare facilities. To understand the community status of the infections caused by respiratory syncytial virus, SARS-CoV-2 and influenza virus subtypes in the monsoon season in Vijayawada city in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India, we longitudinally analyzed wastewater samples once a week between July-August 2024 from 7 sewage treatment plants in the city. The data obtained from the multiplexed RT-qPCR was used to calculate the viral loads in the wastewater samples at the city level and the proportion of population shedding the virus was estimated. All three viruses RSV A+B, SARS-CoV-2 and Influenza A+B were detected in the wastewater during our sampling period. Amongst the three viruses, the city had the largest load of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in the wastewater followed by RSV A+B and Influenza A+B. The study demonstrates the potential of utilizing wastewater surveillance system coupled to multiplexed RT-PCR to understand the population level dynamics of co-existence of multiple pathogens during the monsoon season in the urban settings.
Protein aggregation drives cell aging in a size-specific manner inEscherichia coli
Authors: Wagener Linda , Nath Arpita , Tuğrul Murat , Aertsen Abram , Steiner Ulrich K. , Proenca Audrey M.
Published: October 2024

Aging, the decline in physiological function over time, is marked by the intracellular accumulation of damaged components. It can be attributed to a trade-off between the investment into organismal maintenance and the production of high-quality offspring, where the parent accumulates damage over time and retains it upon reproduction, while the offspring is rejuvenated. Asymmetric damage partitioning has been observed even in simple unicellular organisms, such asEscherichia colicells that retain aggregates of misfolded proteins during cell division. However, recent studies presented conflicting evidence on the effect of protein aggregates on fitness, ranging from detrimental effects on cell growth to enhanced stress survival. Here, we show that the decisive factor driving growth decline inE. coliis not the presence of a protein aggregate, but the proportion of the intracellular space occupied by it. By following single-cellE. colilineages expressing fluorescently labeled DnaK chaperones, we quantified damage accumulation and partitioning across generations in microfluidic devices. Our results suggest that the aggregation of damaged proteins allows cells to keep damage separate from vital processes and compensate for the lost intracellular space by growing to larger sizes, a process which results in morphologically asymmetrical divisions. In line with other recent evidence, this points to a more complex role of protein aggregation, with implications for our understanding of the cellular mechanisms underlying aging as well as its evolutionary origins.
Identification of targetable epigenetic vulnerabilities for uveal melanoma
Authors: Yenisehirli G. , Borges S. , Braun S. , Zuniga A. N. , Quintana G. I. , Kutsnetsoff J. N. , Rodriguez S. , Adis E. V. , Lopez S. , Dollar J. J. , Stathias V. , Volmar C. H. , Karaca E. , Brothers S. P. , Bilbao D. C. , Harbour J. W. , Correa Z. M. , Kurtenbach S.
Published: October 2024

Uveal melanoma (UM) is the most common primary intraocular malignancy in adults, with a strong predilection for hepatic metastasis, occurring in approximately 50% of cases. Metastatic UM remains highly resistant to therapy and is almost invariably fatal. The strongest genetic drivers of UM metastasis are loss-of-function mutations in tumor suppressorBAP1, an epigenetic regulator that serves as the ubiquitin hydrolase subunit of the polycomb repressive deubiquitinase (PR-DUB) complex, and a key player in global epigenetic regulation. Inactivation of BRCA Associated Protein 1 (BAP1) has been shown to induce widespread epigenetic alterations across multiple model systems. To identify novel therapeutic strategies, we investigated whether targeting the epigenome could reveal new vulnerabilities in UM. We performed high-throughput compound screening using a curated epigenetic inhibitor library and identified BET (bromodomain and extra-terminal domain) inhibition as a particularly promising approach. Interestingly, we observed significant heterogeneity in the efficacy of different BET inhibitors in UM. While previous clinical trials with two BET inhibitors have failed to show efficacy in UM, our findings highlight substantial differences in the potency of specific BET inhibitors for this malignancy. Notably, the BET inhibitor mivebresib (ABBV-075) significantly improved survival rates by 50% in a metastatic UM xenograft mouse model and completely prevented detectable metastases in the bones, spinal cord, and brain. Unexpectedly, RNA sequencing revealed a strong transcriptional overlap between BET inhibition and histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibition--an approach currently under clinical evaluation for UM treatment. Both BET and HDAC inhibitors reversed gene expression signatures associated with high metastatic risk and induced a neuronal differentiation-like phenotype in UM cells. Together, our findings demonstrate that UM cells exhibit a distinct vulnerability to BET inhibition and establish BET inhibitors as promising candidates for further clinical evaluation for metastatic UM.
Role of chirping in pulsed single-photon spectroscopy
Authors: Darsheshdar Elnaz , Khan Aiman , Albarelli Francesco , Datta Animesh
Published: October 2024

We investigate the precision of estimating the interaction strength between a two-level system (TLS) and a single-photon pulse when the latter is subject to chirping. We consider linear, quadratic, and sinusoidal temporal phases applied to Gaussian and exponential temporal profiles. At the asymptotic time, when the TLS has fully decayed to its ground state, the fundamental precision depends solely on the magnitude of its spectral amplitude. For quadratically phase-modulated Gaussian pulses, this is entirely determined by the spectral bandwidth. We provide expressions for evaluating the fundamental precision for general temporal profiles and phase modulations. Finally, we show that experimentally feasible mode-resolved measurements are optimal, or close to it, for chirped, pulsed single-photon spectroscopy.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Reducing the error rate of a superconducting logical qubit using analog readout information
Authors: Ali Hany , Marques Jorge , Crawford Ophelia , Majaniemi Joonas , Serra-Peralta Marc , Byfield David , Varbanov Boris , Terhal Barbara M. , DiCarlo Leonardo , Campbell Earl T.
Published: October 2024

Quantum error correction enables the preservation of logical qubits with a lower logical error rate than the physical error rate, with performance depending on the decoding method. Traditional decoding approaches rely on the binarization (“hardening”) of readout data, thereby ignoring valuable information embedded in the analog (“soft”) readout signal. We present experimental results showcasing the advantages of incorporating soft information into the decoding process of a distance-3 (d=3) bit-flip surface code with flux-tunable transmons. We encode each of the 16 computational states that make up the logical state |0L⟩, and protect them against bit-flip errors by performing repeated Z-basis stabilizer measurements. To infer the logical fidelity for the |0L⟩ state, we average across the 16 computational states and employ two decoding strategies: minimum-weight perfect matching and a recurrent neural network. Our results show a reduction of up to 6.8% in the extracted logical error rate with the use of soft information. Decoding with soft information is widely applicable, independent of the physical qubit platform, and could allow for shorter readout durations, further minimizing logical error rates.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Fluctuation-induced piezomagnetism in local moment altermagnets
Authors: Yershov Kostiantyn V. , Kravchuk Volodymyr P. , Daghofer Maria , van den Brink Jeroen
Published: October 2024

It was recently discovered that, depending on their symmetries, collinear antiferromagnets may break spin degeneracy in momentum space, even in the absence of spin-orbit coupling. Such systems, dubbed altermagnets, have electronic bands with a spin-momentum texture set mainly by the combined crystal-magnetic symmetry. This discovery motivates the question of which novel physical properties derive from altermagnetic order. Here we show that one consequence of altermagnetic order is a fluctuation-driven piezomagnetic response. Using two Heisenberg models of d-wave altermagnets, a checkerboard one and one for rutiles, we determine the fluctuation-induced piezomagnetic coefficients considering temperature-induced transversal spin fluctuations. We establish in addition that magnetic fluctuations induce an anisotropic thermal spin conductivity.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Synthesis, crystal structure and absolute configuration of (3aS,4R,5S,7aR)-7-(but-3-en-1-yn-1-yl)-2,2-dimethyl-3a,4,5,7a-tetrahydro-2H-1,3-benzodioxole-4,5-diol
Authors: Peixoto de Abreu Lima Alejandro , Pandolfi Enrique , Schapiro Valeria , Suescun Leopoldo
Published: October 2024

The absolute configuration of the title compound, C13H16O4, determined as 1S,2R,3S,4R based on the synthetic pathway, was confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The molecule is a relevant intermediary for the synthesis of speciosins, epoxyquinoides or their analogues. The molecule contains fused five- and six-membered rings with two free hydroxyl groups and two protected as an isopropylidenedioxo ring. The packing is directed by hydrogen bonds that define double planes of molecules laying along the ab plane and van der Waals interactions between aliphatic chains that point outwards of the planes.
(Z)-N-(2,6-Diisopropylphenyl)-1-[(2-methoxyphenyl)amino]methanimine oxide
Authors: Juma David O. , Omondi Bernard , Zamisa Sizwe J. , Munzeiwa Wisdom
Published: October 2024

The molecular structure of the title compound, C20H26N2O2 reveals non-co-planarity between the central formamidine backbone and each of the outer methoxy- and i-propyl- substituted benzene rings with dihedral angles of 7.88 (15) and 81.17 (15)°, respectively, indicating significant twists in the molecule. In the crystal, intermolecular C—H...O interactions, forming an R
3
4(30) graph set, occur within a two-dimensional layer that extends along the ac plane.
Institutional quality and economic growth in upper-middle-income African countries
Authors: Gebrue Negussie
Published: October 2024

Purpose

To determine which proxy institutional quality variables are most significant for a country’s economic growth, the paper aims to investigate the effect of institutional quality on economic growth in upper-middle-income African nations between 2002 and 2021.

Design/methodology/approach

In an attempt to account for countries' heterogeneity, the study uses a random and fixed effect model estimated by the generalized least squares.

Findings

The empirical findings demonstrate that the institutional quality measures of political stability, voice and accountability, corruption control and violence absence are statistically and favorably significant factors influencing the economic growth of upper-middle-income African countries.

Originality/value

This paper is unique in that it uses both random and fixed effects models to determine the effect of institutional quality on economic growth in the context of upper-middle-income African countries between 2002 and 2021.
Nutritional behavior: a child’s play? A systematic review on the effectiveness of digital edutainment games in improving nutrition behavior among school-going children
Authors: Mohapatra Subhashree , Mohandas Rahul
Published: October 2024

Purpose

Since youngsters are being extensively engaged with digital devices these days, integrating digital technologies into food and nutrition education programs, stands out as a viable method. The current systematic review aimed to assess the available literature on the effectiveness of digital edutainment games on nutrition behavior of school-going children.

Design/methodology/approach

From the earliest date available until September 30, 2023, a comprehensive search was conducted in databases such as PubMed, Cochrane, Scopus, Lilacs, Science Direct, Web of Science and Google Scholar to identify relevant articles. Only randomized controlled studies were included in the review. Seven full-text publications that fulfilled the eligibility criteria were subjected to additional data extraction processing.

Findings

Children’s dietary behavior was found to be improved by playing digital games because they are entertaining and pleasurable. The majority of the studies' favored game type was game-based simulations. In terms of pedagogical role, all the studies were independent and not complementary to traditional conventional classroom lectures.

Research limitations/implications

Based on the results, digital educational games show promising results in terms of acceptability and early impacts on reducing sugar intake and enhancing dietary habits in school-age children. However, it is necessary to conduct more research to determine the essential elements of these games, their duration of usefulness and their generalizability.

Originality/value

This review contributes to the researchers and academicians by providing relevant information regarding effectiveness of digital edutainment games on nutrition behavior of school-going children. This is the first systematic review conducted to assess the effectiveness of digital edutainment games on nutrition behavior of school-going children.
Ambivalent perception of cause-related marketing: investigating the (in)congruence of opposite motivational perceptions on consumer evaluations
Authors: Wang Yuting , Chen Yao , Fang Jie , Xiong Bingqing
Published: October 2024

Purpose

Despite the popularity of leveraging cause-related marketing (CRM) to make societal contributions and bolster business profits, sellers face a profound dilemma when conducting CRM due to consumers’ ambivalent understanding of sellers’ motivation for the initiative. Therefore, it is imperative to unravel consumers’ ambivalent understanding of CRM and determine how sellers can effectively employ CRM to elicit positive evaluations from consumers.

Design/methodology/approach

This study gathered survey data from 217 participants and applied a polynomial regression model and response surface analysis for disentangling ambivalent perception of CRM by investigating the influence of (in)congruence between perceived egoistic and altruistic motivation.

Findings

The incongruence between perceived egoistic and altruistic motivation can positively influence consumers’ evaluations of sellers. Moreover, when perceived egoistic and altruistic motivations are congruent, increasing their absolute level also enhances consumers’ evaluation of sellers. Moreover, sellers’ platform function usage behavior can amplify the positive effect of incongruence but has no salient moderating role on the congruence effect.

Originality/value

Differing from prior literature that predominantly focused on either the positive or negative interpretation of CRM, this study reveals the coexistence of both positive and negative viewpoints and disentangles the congruence and incongruence effect between the two motivational understandings.
Does the disclosure of ESG information by private equity firms impact the success of their fundraising efforts?
Authors: Noh Jung-Hee , Park Heejin
Published: October 2024

This study examines the impact of private equity fund managers' (GPs') ESG disclosure on fundraising. To this end, a sample of global private equity and venture capital funds that completed fundraising between 2020 and 2022 is employed. Our findings indicate that an increase in ESG disclosure by GPs is associated with an increase in fundraising. This indicates that GPs' ESG disclosure diminishes information asymmetry and has a favorable impact on fundraising. Conversely, the level of ESG disclosure among limited partners (LPs) has no significant impact on the relationship between GPs' ESG disclosure level and fundraising. The findings of this study have significant implications for private equity stakeholders, including GPs, given the current context of declining investment demand due to rising interest rates, recessionary concerns, poor performance and tighter regulations on private equity management. In this environment, ESG disclosure is becoming increasingly challenging for private equity firms to utilize as a fundraising strategy.
The impact of R&D organizational structure on developing technological capabilities and the moderation of R&D slack
Authors: Tsai-Lin Tung-Fei , Chen Ming-Huei , Chi Hui-Ru , Chiang Pei-Shan
Published: October 2024

Purpose

Developing technological capabilities to enhance innovation performance is essential for firms to respond to external changes and competition. Based on the effect of organizational structure on organizational capability development, this study assesses whether a specific R&D organizational structure design can be used to develop different technological capabilities.

Design/methodology/approach

Combining organizational theory and the resource-based view as an integrated view, we propose several contrasting hypotheses to show the effects of three general R&D organizational structure designs (centralized, decentralized, and hybrid) on developing exploitative and explorative capabilities. We propose R&D slack as a moderator. 82 Taiwanese listed manufacturing firms were selected. Data on the firms' annual reports and their patent applications to the Taiwan Patent Office from 2005 to 2017 were collected.

Findings

Firms’ adoption of centralized and decentralized R&D structures has a significant positive effect on developing exploitative capability and an opposite effect on developing explorative capability. A high or low R&D slack can moderate the impact of R&D organizational structure on non-routine capability development.

Research limitations/implications

This study concludes that R&D organizational structure affects the development of different technological capabilities and that the effect of R&D organizational structure on the development of technological capabilities can be changed under the moderation of R&D slack, which means that the possibility of developing different technological capabilities under the same organizational structure will increase.

Practical implications

The top manager should consider the relationship between R&D structure design and technological capability development to manage the R&D routines to influence the generation of technological capabilities. Also, they must utilize the provision of R&D slack to modulate technological capability development.

Originality/value

This study reexamines the relationship between organizational structure and capability development. It shows that organizational structure can shape unique technological capabilities and that firms may be able to change structural elements through slack resources, enabling ambidexterity or dynamic capability development without organizational change.
Approaching beyond reality to connect realism in the library
Authors: De Sarkar Tanmay
Published: October 2024

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to investigate how libraries adopt beyond reality technologies like virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality and extended reality to provide an engaging environment and transform user service provision.

Design/methodology/approach

The study explained different facets of beyond reality. It surveyed various library websites and analysed literature dealing with varying forms of beyond reality technology to gain an idea of how libraries perceive the relevance of this emerging technology for incorporation in its workflow.

Findings

The study presented some use case studies to give an overview of the adoption of this technology in libraries. The study also outlines the scope of future possibilities for the expansion of applications.

Originality/value

The practical examples will help improve the understanding of practicing librarians who are contemplating implementation or preparing to cover more areas under this technology in libraries and encourage researchers to explore the integration of artificial intelligence and machine learning with this technology in a cloud infrastructure to leverage maximum outcome in a broader perspective from this immersive technology.
A unified calibration method for robot manipulators: hand-eye parameters, kinematic parameters and TCP position calibration
Authors: Min Kang , Ni Fenglei , Chen Zhaoyang , Liu Hong
Published: October 2024

Purpose

The purpose of the paper is to propose an efficient, simple and concise unified robot calibration method that simultaneously considers errors in hand-eye parameters, kinematic parameters and tool center point (TCP) position.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper proposes a unified robot calibration method. First, the initial hand-eye matrix and TCP position are computed without considering kinematic parameter errors. Second, the nominal TCP positions in the laser tracker coordinate system {S} are computed. The actual TCP positions in {S} are directly measured. Third, a unified parameter error calibration model is established, and the sequential quadratic programming algorithm is used for error identification. Finally, the identified errors are used for direct error compensation.

Findings

Simulation results prove that the proposed scheme can accurately calibrate the hand-eye parameters, kinematic parameters and TCP position simultaneously. Experimental results reveal that the maximum value of the absolute positioning errors is reduced from 5.4725 mm to 0.4095 mm (reduced by 92.52%). Thus, the proposed approach meets the accuracy requirements of most robotic applications.

Originality/value

The main contributions of this paper are: (1) this scheme is efficient. The method can achieve fully automatic calibration by incorporating Kronecker products for the initial hand-eye matrix and TCP position computation. Thereby significantly improving the calibration efficiency and liberating the labor force. (2) This scheme is simple and concise. The hand-eye parameters, kinematic parameters and TCP position errors are modeled in a unified framework. Furthermore, the related redundant parameters are deleted.
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance and abnormal positive tone
Authors: Yang Xin , Bao Jingwei , Zhang Kezhen
Published: October 2024

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance and tone management in the annual report. This is based on the notion that managers, driven by personal interests, may use their ESG accomplishments by using an abnormal positive tone to enhance their reputation or career prospects.

Design/methodology/approach

Using panel data from Chinese listed companies from 2010 to 2022, this study first investigates the relationship between ESG performance and abnormal tone management. The study then uncovers this relationship is mediated through the mechanisms of equity-based incentive and analyst coverage. The conclusions of this paper hold even after a series of robustness tests, such as propensity score matching, Heckman two-stage method and two-stage least squares with instrumental variables.

Findings

This study finds a positive correlation between ESG performance and the presence of abnormal positive tone in annual reports. Furthermore, the mechanistic analysis reveals that managers in companies with strong ESG performance are motivated to use an overly positive tone, largely due to their vested interests in equity-based compensation. Moreover, in an effort to alleviate the pressure stemming from heightened financial analyst coverage and enhance the impression conveyed through analysts' reports, managers with superior ESG performance also tend to inflate the tone within their annual reports.

Practical implications

This study provides significant insights into the ongoing dialogue surrounding ESG-related equity incentives, which incentivize managerial manipulation of stock prices through the use of abnormal positive tone. The findings call upon investors to exercise greater vigilance in examining narrative information in annual reports, as abnormally positive tones may not always faithfully represent performance but rather reflect managerial self-interest.

Social implications

There is an emphasis on the importance of robust oversight mechanisms within corporate governance bodies to curb the manipulation of tone for managers’ personal gain.

Originality/value

This study enhances the theoretical foundation of ESG studies, offering a holistic perspective on the intricate interplay among ESG performance, managerial behavior and financial markets, with potential implications for researchers, investors and regulators.
Research on underwater acoustic detection technology based on optical waveguide resonator cavity
Authors: Yajie Wang , Zhang Wendong , Cui Jiangong , Chu Xiaoxia , Zhang Guojun , Wang Renxin , Huang Haoming , Zhai Xiaoping
Published: October 2024

Purpose

In acoustic detection technology, optical microcavities offer higher detection bandwidth and sensitivity than traditional acoustic sensors. However, research on acoustic detection technologies involving optical microcavities has not yet been reported. Therefore, this paper aims to design and construct an underwater acoustic detection system based on optical microcavities and study its acoustic detection technology to improve its performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the principles of optical microcavity acoustic sensors, a signal-detection circuit was designed to form a detection system in conjunction with a laser, an optical waveguide resonator and an oscilloscope. This circuit consists of two modules: a photodetection module and a filter amplification module.

Findings

The photodetection module features a baseline noise of −106.499 dBm and can detect device spectral line depths of up to 2410 mV. The gain stability of the filter amplification module was 58 dB ± 1 dB with a noise gain of −107.626 dBm. This design allows the acoustic detection system to detect signals with high sensitivity within the 10 Hz−1.2 MHz frequency band, achieving a maximum sensitivity of −126 dB re 1 V/µPa at 800 Hz and a minimum detectable pressure (MDP) of 0.37 mPa/Hz1/2, corresponding to a noise equivalent pressure (NEP) of 51.36 dB re 1 V/µPa.

Originality/value

This study designs and constructs a broadband underwater acoustic detection system specifically for optical waveguide resonators based on the sensing principles of silicon dioxide optical waveguide resonators. Experiments demonstrated that the signal detection module improves the sensitivity of underwater acoustic detection based on optical waveguides.