bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy in the treatment of recurrent ovarian cancer: When, and for whom?
Authors: Ayhan Ali , Akilli Huseyin , Abasiyanik Mehmet Ali , Taskiran Cagatay
Published: October 2022

Objective

The aim of this study is to evaluate the progression‐free survival (PFS) of recurrent ovarian cancer (ROC) patients treated with cytoreductive surgery plus hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC).

Materials and Methods

ROC patients who underwent cytoreductive surgery plus HIPEC between 2015 and 2021 were retrospectively evaluated. Patients' demographic information and clinicopathological characteristics including cancer type, histology, platinum status, presence of ascites, type of surgery, complications, chemotherapy history, and disease progression were documented. PFS was calculated using the Kaplan–Meier method.

Results

A total of 104 patients with ROC were included. The median age was 57 years and the median follow‐up time was 15 months (range: 5–69 months). In Cox regression multivariate analyses, platinum resistance (hazard ratio [HR]: 3.32, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.91–5.76, p = 0.00), more than one relapse prior HIPEC (HR: 2.81, 95% CI: 1.65–4.87, p = 0.024), and presence of ascites (HR: 1.88, 95% CI: 1.08–3.26, p = 0.00) were found to be negative prognostic factors for PFS. In subgroup analyses of patients with the first recurrence, the median PFS was 21 months for platinum‐sensitive patients and 6 months for platinum‐resistant patients (p = 0.032).

Conclusion

HIPEC at the time of first platinum‐sensitive relapse may lead to favorable PFS in the treatment ROC. However, HIPEC as salvage treatment even with R0 cytoreductive surgery does not seem effective.
Dynamics and solutions structures of nonlinear system of difference equations
Authors: Elsayed Elsayed M. , Alofi Badriah S.
Published: October 2022

In the present paper, we prove the boundedness of the positive solutions as well as local and global asymptotic stable of the equilibrium points of difference equations system in the second order

Furthermore, we study the solutions for three special cases of system. Numerical examples are provided to illustrate results.
Ex vivo proton spectroscopy (1H‐NMR) analysis of inborn errors of metabolism: Automatic and computer‐assisted analyses
Authors: Cannet Claire , Frauendienst‐Egger Georg , Freisinger Peter , Götz Hermann , Götz Madalina , Himmelreich Nastassja , Kock Vanessa , Spraul Manfred , Bus Christine , Biskup Saskia , Trefz Friedrich
Published: October 2022

There are about 1500 genetic metabolic diseases. A small number of treatable diseases are diagnosed by newborn screening programs, which are continually being developed. However, most diseases can only be diagnosed based on clinical symptoms or metabolic findings. The main biological fluids used are urine, plasma and, in special situations, cerebrospinal fluid. In contrast to commonly used methods such as gas chromatography and high performance liquid chromatography mass spectrometry, ex vivo proton spectroscopy (1H‐NMR) is not yet used in routine clinical practice, although it has been recommended for more than 30 years. Automatic analysis and improved NMR technology have also expanded the applications used for the diagnosis of inborn errors of metabolism. We provide a mini‐overview of typical applications, especially in urine but also in plasma, used to diagnose common but also rare genetic metabolic diseases with 1H‐NMR. The use of computer‐assisted diagnostic suggestions can facilitate interpretation of the profiles. In a proof of principle, to date, 182 reports of 59 different diseases and 500 reports of healthy children are stored. The percentage of correct automatic diagnoses was 74%. Using the same 1H‐NMR profile‐targeted analysis, it is possible to apply an untargeted approach that distinguishes profile differences from healthy individuals. Thus, additional conditions such as lysosomal storage diseases or drug interferences are detectable. Furthermore, because 1H‐NMR is highly reproducible and can detect a variety of different substance categories, the metabolomic approach is suitable for monitoring patient treatment and revealing additional factors such as nutrition and microbiome metabolism. Besides the progress in analytical techniques, a multiomics approach is most effective to combine metabolomics with, for example, whole exome sequencing, to also diagnose patients with nondetectable metabolic abnormalities in biological fluids. In this mini review we also provide our own data to demonstrate the role of NMR in a multiomics platform in the field of inborn errors of metabolism.
Implement paperless veterans’ certification process
Authors: Pavlik Amelia
Published: October 2022

Wasted time and energy. These are two headaches that are likely common for both your staff and students when it comes to paper‐driven veterans’ certification processes.
Collaboration, not competition, will distinguish successful higher education institutions in the future
Authors: Dennis Marguerite J.
Published: October 2022

“You can either manage disruption or be victimized by it.”

— Scott Galloway
‘The giving layer of the internet’: A critical history of GoFundMe's reputation management, platform governance, and communication strategies in capturing peer‐to‐peer and charitable giving markets
Authors: Wade Matt
Published: October 2022

GoFundMe, founded in 2010, has already profoundly impacted giving practices, introducing many laypersons to the empowering potentials and user‐friendly affordances of peer‐to‐peer fundraising. Overall, GoFundMe's extraordinary success as a for‐profit company in traditionally nonprofit charitable giving markets can be attributed to: normalizing their platform as the go‐to destination for people seeking help; tasking the beneficiaries themselves with crafting appeals for support; restricting forms of support to money; deferring responsibility to donors to assess the legitimacy of appeals; and dominating the market by acquiring competitors and pursuing growth wherever possible. No charity could plausibly adopt such an operating model and GoFundMe's lean, hands‐off, self‐policing approach has attracted sharp criticism over the years. Nonetheless, the company has not humbly reined in their ambition but expanded it even further. This paper outlines three broad phases through which GoFundMe has defended their capture of “the giving layer of the internet.” Initially, GoFundMe espoused ideals of utopian disruption and soteriological solutionism, selling their platform as a “take‐action button” and user‐friendly means of empowering everyday citizens to improve the lives of others. Later, after attracting more divisive causes and criticisms of its revenue model, GoFundMe adopted forms of reputational repair and attempted neutrality, insisting that their for‐profit platform could be accommodative to all worldviews and persons willing to embrace “positive precarization.” More recently, as “neutral” stances became untenable and fundraising success rates increasingly grim, GoFundMe pivoted toward strategies of state critique and civic capture. Specifically, GoFundMe have: more pointedly highlighted state failures; actively aligned themselves with social movements; shifted away from relying solely on peer‐to‐peer fundraising; and instead partnered more with established nonprofits. However, as GoFundMe's expansion inevitably means becoming entangled in sensitive political matters, the company's ambition to become the key intermediary in all charitable giving is facing acute challenges.
TMT29 plex: Higher order multiplexing with inherent interference correction
Authors: Zhang Tian
Published: October 2022

Tandem mass tag (TMT) technology enables mass spectrometry‐based multiplexed sample profiling of protein abundance. The degree of isobaric labeling with TMT has increased from 2 to 6, 11, 16 [1] and recently 18 [2] channels, enabling the development of higher throughput assays. In TMT experiments, measurement of reporter tag intensities is confounded by ratio compression. Although both pre‐ and post‐acquisition methods have been developed to decrease interference, ratio compression remains a problem in complex samples. The work of Sun et al. presented a TMT29‐plex workflow that combines the TMT11‐plex and TMTpro18‐plex labeling strategies and uses their inherent features to address the ratio compression problem, increasing the TMT throughput and quantitative accuracy for potential applications [3].
Serum 25‐hydroxyvitamin D deficiency is associated with atopy, and sex may be an effect modifier of its association with asthma in teenagers from northeast Brazil
Authors: Alcantara Galvão Alana , de Andrade Belitardo Emília M. M. , de Araújo Sena Flávia , Santos Juliana M. , de Oliveira Costa Gustavo N. , Feitosa Caroline A. , Fiaccone Rosemeire L. , Cruz Álvaro A. , Barreto Maurício L. , Figueiredo Camila A. , Alcantara‐Neves Neuza M.
Published: October 2022

Objective

Sufficient vitamin D (25‐hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D]) serum levels are associated with decreased asthma symptoms. Our aim was to investigate associations between vitamin D and atopy, asthma, asthma severity, and asthma phenotypes in Brazilian teenagers.

Methods

This cross‐sectional study involved 942 individuals (11–19 years old) engaged in an asthma cohort. The ISAAC questionnaire was employed to diagnosis asthma and asthma severity. Serum allergen‐specific immunoglobulin E (sIgE) was measured by ImmunoCap and serum 25(OH)D was measured by ELISA. We calculated the correlation between sIgE and 25(OH)D. We used multivariate logistic regression analysis to assess associations of interest.

Results

We found that 25(OH)D deficiency was positively associated with atopy (OR 1.45, confidence interval [CI] 1.05–2.00) and high levels of this vitamin negatively correlated with sIgE to Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (r = −0.11, p = 0.019). The average 25(OH)D serum level was 27.0 ± 9.5 ng/ml; 366 individuals (38.8%) had a sufficient level. There was no association between 25(OH)D and asthma, asthma severity or asthma phenotypes in the population. However, sex was a possible effect modifier of the association between vitamin D and asthma: insufficiency in asthmatic women (86%) was higher than in asthmatic men (42%), and there was an association between insufficient vitamin D levels and greater asthma risk only in women (OR = 3.06, 95% CI 1.16–8.07).

Conclusion

We have shown that vitamin D deficiency was associated with greater risk of atopy in both sexes and vitamin D insufficiency was associated with asthma only in women. There was no association between vitamin D levels and asthma phenotypes or asthma severity.
Computed cancer interactome explains the effects of somatic mutations in cancers
Authors: Zhang Jing , Pei Jimin , Durham Jesse , Bos Tasia , Cong Qian
Published: October 2022

Protein–protein interactions (PPIs) are involved in almost all essential cellular processes. Perturbation of PPI networks plays critical roles in tumorigenesis, cancer progression, and metastasis. While numerous high‐throughput experiments have produced a vast amount of data for PPIs, these data sets suffer from high false positive rates and exhibit a high degree of discrepancy. Coevolution of amino acid positions between protein pairs has proven to be useful in identifying interacting proteins and providing structural details of the interaction interfaces with the help of deep learning methods like AlphaFold (AF). In this study, we applied AF to investigate the cancer protein–protein interactome. We predicted 1,798 PPIs for cancer driver proteins involved in diverse cellular processes such as transcription regulation, signal transduction, DNA repair, and cell cycle. We modeled the spatial structures for the predicted binary protein complexes, 1,087 of which lacked previous 3D structure information. Our predictions offer novel structural insight into many cancer‐related processes such as the MAP kinase cascade and Fanconi anemia pathway. We further investigated the cancer mutation landscape by mapping somatic missense mutations (SMMs) in cancer to the predicted PPI interfaces and performing enrichment and depletion analyses. Interfaces enriched or depleted with SMMs exhibit different preferences for functional categories. Interfaces enriched in mutations tend to function in pathways that are deregulated in cancers and they may help explain the molecular mechanisms of cancers in patients; interfaces lacking mutations appear to be essential for the survival of cancer cells and thus may be future targets for PPI modulating drugs.
CRISPR/Cas9‐mediated D472N substitution in the Rdl1 of Plutella xylostella confers low resistance to abamectin
Authors: Sun Xi , Hua Wenjuan , Zhu Bin , Liang Pei , Gao Xiwu
Published: October 2022

Background

Abamectin is one of the main insecticides used for the control of Plutella xylostella, a destructive pest of cruciferous crops. Target‐site mutation plays an important role in insecticide resistance. A point mutation (D472N) has been reported in the Rdl1 γ‐aminobutyric acid receptor (GABAR) in P. xylostella, but its roles in insecticide resistance remain unknown.

Results

In this study, the D472N mutation of the Rdl1 GABAR was detected in several field populations of P. xylostella and showed a positive correlation with abamectin resistance. A knock‐in homozygous mutation strain (D472N‐KI) of P. xylostella was successfully constructed using CRISPR/Cas9 coupled with homology‐directed repair, and the bioassay results demonstrated that compared with the susceptible strain, the D472N‐KI strain had 11.1‐ and 3.7‐fold increased resistance to abamectin and endosulfan, respectively. There was no difference in resistance to fipronil, broflanilide or isocycloseram, which also target the GABAR. In addition, the total fecundity of the D472N‐KI strain was significantly reduced by 50.0%.

Conclusion

Our results suggest that the homozygous D472N mutation in Rdl1 confers a low level of resistance to abamectin in P. xylostella but causes significant fecundity disadvantages, which may delay the development of resistance to some extent. These results lay a foundation for further understanding the mechanisms of abamectin resistance in insect pests. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.
Chemical proteomics reveals interactors of the alarmone diadenosine triphosphate in the cancer cell line H1299†
Authors: Albrecht Christoph J. , Stumpf Florian M. , Krüger Lena , Niedermeier Marie L. , Stengel Florian , Marx Andreas
Published: October 2022

Intracellular dinucleoside polyphosphates (NpnNs) have been known for decades but the functional role remains enigmatic. Diadenosine triphosphate (Ap3A) is one of the most prominent examples, and its intercellular concentration was shown to increase upon cellular stress. By employment of previously reported Ap3A‐based photoaffinity‐labeling probes (PALPs) in chemical proteomics, we investigated the Ap3A interactome in the human lung carcinoma cell line H1299. The cell line is deficient of the fragile histidine triade (Fhit) protein, a hydrolase of Ap3A and tumor suppressor. Overall, the number of identified potential interaction partners was significantly lower than in the previously investigated HEK293T cell line. Gene ontology term analysis revealed that the identified proteins participate in similar pathways as for HEK293T, but the percentage of proteins involved in RNA‐related processes is higher for H1299. The obtained results highlight similarities and differences of the Ap3A interaction network in different cell lines and give further indications regarding the importance of the presence of Fhit.
Fault detection problem for discrete‐time impulsive system using mixed dissipativity approach
Authors: Yao Meng , Wei Guoliang , Li Wangyan
Published: October 2022

This article studies the fault detection problem for a class of discrete‐time impulsive systems using mixed dissipativity theory. First, under the impulsive effects, a fault diagnosis observer is designed such that it is insensitive to disturbances, and sensitive to faults. Then, a mixed dissipativity concept is introduced to deal with impulsive effects, disturbances insensitivity condition and faults sensitive condition in one framework such that the impulsive error dynamic is dissipative with respect to the proposed mixed supply rate. Based on the proposed mixed supply rate, sufficient conditions are obtained to guarantee the dissipativity of the impulsive estimation error dynamic. Moreover, sufficient conditions are established for the existence of the desired fault observer. The corresponding solubility conditions for the designs of the desired observer are also obtained. Finally, simulation results are proposed to demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed strategy.
Gastrulation and hatch as critical thermal windows for salmonid embryo development
Authors: Bloomer Jack , Anderson James J. , Sear David , Greene Sheila , Gantner Drew , Hanson Charles
Published: October 2022

Climate change and impoundment increase river temperatures, shifting the bioclimatic envelope in which freshwater biota have evolved and increasing salmonid egg mortality. To mitigate this, conservation flows from reservoirs are often implemented to maintain favourable water temperatures downstream from impoundments throughout salmonid embryo development. However, as water to maintain conservation flows becomes scarcer, there is a need to understand the requirements of salmonid embryos and balance these with anthropogenic demands. This study combines a laboratory‐based and a modelling approach to test the effect of different temperatures on the survival from fertilisation to hatch of a model salmonid species. Further, the effect of dropping temperatures from high to optimal conditions at hatch—a perceived period of greater sensitivity to high temperatures—is tested. The study shows embryo mortality increases with temperature and is greatest during gastrulation and hatch. Also, embryos that experienced high temperatures during gastrulation had high mortality rates at hatch, even when hatch conditions were optimal. This indicates sublethal developmental abnormalities caused by high temperatures during gastrulation increase mortality at hatch. Therefore, to maintain high rates of salmonid embryo survival, cold water resources from reservoirs ideally will target both gastrulation and hatch developmental stages.
Direct detection of pseudo-Nambu-Goldstone dark matter in a two Higgs doublet plus singlet extension of the SM
Authors: Biekötter Thomas , Gabriel Pedro , Olea Romacho María Olalla , Santos Rui
Published: October 2022

Abstract

We calculate the leading radiative corrections to the dark-matter-nucleon scattering in the pseudo-Nambu-Goldstone dark matter model augmented with a second Higgs doublet (S2HDM). In this model, the cross sections for the scattering of the dark-matter on nuclei vanishes at tree-level in the limit of zero momentum-transfer due to a U(1) symmetry. However, this symmetry is softly broken in order to give a mass to the dark-matter particle. As a consequence, non-vanishing scattering cross sections arise at the loop level. We find that the current cross-section limits from dark-matter direct-detection experiments can hardly constrain the parameter space of the S2HDM. However, the loop-corrected predictions for the scattering cross sections can be well within the reach of future direct-detection experiments. As a consequence, future phenomenological analyses of the S2HDM should take into account cross-section predictions beyond tree-level and the experimental constraints from dark-matter direct-detection experiments.
Kidney Transplantation and Obesity: Are There Any Differences in Outcomes?
Authors: Moein Mahmoudreza , Otero Melanie Tacher , Rood Gavrielle J. , Hanlon Matthew , Saidi Reza
Published: October 2022

Introduction

Kidney transplantation (KT) is the gold standard treatment for end‐stage renal disease (ESRD) patients. Obesity is a strong risk factor for developing cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, and ESRD. This study aimed to investigate the outcomes of kidney transplantation in obese recipients.

Material and methods

We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of recipients from January 2016 to December 2021 in a single center. Outcomes in recipients of a kidney allograft with BMI ≥ 30 were compared with the outcomes in recipients with 30 < BMI.

Results

A total of 467 consecutive kidney transplantation recipients’ files were studied. 213 (45.6%) allograft recipients had a BMI ≥ 30, and 254 (54.4%) allograft recipients had a BMI < 30. DGF rate was 29.1% in the BMI ≥ 30 and 30.7% in the BMI < 30 group (P = 0.41). On the other hand, 30 days readmission rate also did not show a significant difference between the BMI ≥ 30 and BMI < 30 allograft recipients (37 vs. 33.8%, P = 0.46). The mean overall costs of transplantation in the BMI ≥ 30 group was $254,395, and it was $256,029 in the BMI < 30 group (P = 0.84).

Conclusion

Our study shows that the outcomes of renal allograft transplant were comparable between recipients with BMI ≥ 30 and BMI < 30 in terms of DGF, LOS, 30 days readmission, acute rejection rate, and survival rates, and BMI should not be a single independent criterion for decision making to select an optimal recipient.
Untersuchung des Einflusses von unterschiedlichen Fahrbahnzuständen auf die Fahrbarkeitsfunktionen elektrifizierter Fahrzeugantriebssysteme mittels eines Hardware-in-the-Loop-Prüfstands
Authors: Jakstas Gabrielius , Koch Andreas , Falkenstein Jens
Published: October 2022

Der Antriebsstrang von Elektrofahrzeugen unterscheidet sich deutlich von Fahrzeugen mit Verbrennungsmotor. Aktuelle Konzepte im Bereich der elektrischen Fahrzeugantriebsstränge weisen aufgrund der einfachen Triebstrangmechanik meist eine geringe Reibung und damit wenig Dämpfung auf. Typischerweise gibt es keine Kupplung, um die träge Masse der elektrischen Antriebsmaschine vom restlichen Fahrzeugantriebsstrang zu trennen. Äußere (Fahrbahnunebenheiten, Schlaglöcher, etc.) und innere Anregungen (Drehmomentänderungen der elektrischen Maschine, Bremseingriffe) führen zu Dreh- bzw. Ruckelschwingungen und teilweise hohen Bauteilbelastungen. Diese können durch geeignete Fahrbarkeitsfunktionen reduziert werden. Ein gängiger, aus konventionellen Antriebssträngen bekannter Ansatz besteht in der Begrenzung der Steigung und weiteren Modifikationen des Solldrehmomentes bzw. des Fahrerwunschmoments, um den Drehmomentaufbau der Antriebsmaschine zu beeinflussen und die Anregung von Ruckelschwingungen zu reduzieren. Ein zweiter Ansatz ist die Verwendung eines Vorfilters. Das hier genutzte Vorfilter basiert auf der inversen Dynamik des Antriebsstrangs, um das Sollmoment der Antriebsmaschine zu beeinflussen, vernachlässigt jedoch die Einflüsse des Reifens, des Reifen-Fahrbahnkontakts und der Fahrzeuglängsdynamik. Dies hat den Vorteil, dass Beobachter und Schätzverfahren zur Bestimmung des Reifen-Fahrbahn-Kontaktes usw. nicht erforderlich sind. Jedoch muss die Wirksamkeit des Ansatzes bei unterschiedlichen Fahrbahnbeschaffenheiten sichergestellt sein. Ergänzt wird das Vorfilter durch eine aktive Anti-Ruckel-Regelung.

In diesem Artikel wird der Einfluss von variierenden Fahrbahnzuständen auf die Wirksamkeit des hier angewandten Vorfilters realitätsnah untersucht. Diese Untersuchungen sind notwendig, um eine sicherere Aussage über die Funktionalität der entwickelten Steuerungsalgorithmen in realen Fahrzeugen bei unterschiedlichen Fahrbahnzuständen treffen zu können. Vergleichbare reale oder realitätsnahe Untersuchungen sind bisher nur begrenzt verfügbar. Für realitätsnahe Fahrzeugbedingungen werden Fahrmanöver auf einem Hardware-in-the-Loop-Prüfstand durchgeführt.
Specific Pandemic-Related Worries Predict Higher Attention-Related Errors and Negative Affect Independent of Trait Anxiety in UK-Based Students
Authors: Brown Chris R. H. , Feng Ya-Chun , Costin Vlad , Hirsch Colette R. , Wang Yun-Han , Wang Yun-Lin , Chew Jowinn , Kenny Jordan , Allen Paul
Published: October 2022

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in many individuals experiencing increased symptoms of anxiety. We predict that this increase may be underpinned by pandemic-related worry (PRW), characterised by repetitive negative thinking about pandemic-specific outcomes; and that this relationship is mediated through reduced attentional capacity required to regulate negative affect.

Methods

We developed a novel scale to measure the contents of PRW in an initial sample of 255 participants, and explored its relationship with cognitive functioning and negative affect in a sample of 382 UK-based university students, whilst controlling for recalled pre-pandemic trait anxiety.

Results

A five-factor model of PRW was identified, with factors reflecting worry about decline in quality of life (QoL) and probability of infection correlating with attention and memory-related errors. Importantly, attention-related errors partially mediated the positive relationship between PRW and negative affect, even when controlling for pre-pandemic trait anxiety.

Conclusion

PRW’s relationship with negative affect was partially mediated through attentional function, consistent with models of anxiety and attentional control. In UK-based students PRW may be predominantly focused on the decline in QoL; therefore, interventions targeting worry about the decline in QoL caused by COVID-19 are especially important in this population in the wake of the pandemic.
Exploiting surface textures dynamics for dry friction control
Authors: Menga N. , Bottiglione F. , Carbone G.
Published: October 2022

We study the dynamic behavior of a lattice of bristle-like elastic elements disposed at the interface between a rigid still substrate and a rigid sliding slab, in steady conditions. Due to normal and frictional interactions with the moving slab, complex bristles dynamics occur, which may eventually alter the overall frictional response of the structured interface. Indeed, up to three main mechanisms of friction control can be identified, depending on the specific bristles dynamics: the relative velocity-dependent modulation of local friction force; the misalignment between the local relative velocity and the slab velocity, due to the emergence of transverse vibration; the local friction coefficient variation due to the normal load acting on the bristle. Results show that, depending on the interface dynamic properties (i.e., bristles stiffness, normal load, slab velocity, etc.), a significant reduction of the friction force opposing the slab motion can be achieved, also involving self-excited bristle vibration. Since the present formulation is scale independent, this result may suggest possible mechanisms of friction control in different practical application fields, ranging from bio-inspired micro-structured interfaces to macro-scale features, such as brush seals in electric motors.
Natural acylated flavonoids: their chemistry and biological merits in context to molecular docking studies
Authors: Essa Ahmed F. , Teleb Mohamed , El-Kersh Dina M. , El Gendy Abd El-Nasser G. , Elshamy Abdelsamed I. , Farag Mohamed A.
Published: October 2022

Acylated flavonoids are widely distributed natural dietary bioactives with several health attributes. A large diversity of acylated flavonoids with interesting biological potentialities were reported. Of these, 123 compounds with potential antimicrobial, antiparasitic, anti-inflammatory, anti-nociceptive, analgesic and anti-complementary effects were selected from several databases. Based upon these data, the possible mechanistic evidence for their effects were reported. Generally, aromatic acyls i.e., galloyl derivatives appeared to improve efficacy through enhancement of the binding affinities to molecular targets due to plenty of donating and accepting centers. Docking simulations conducted by Molecular Operating Environment (MOE) of acylated flavonoids revealed that compound 12 is at the top of the list into the antibacterial target DNA gyrase subunit B (GyrB), from E. coli, followed by compounds 10, 4 and 23. Compounds 81, 88, 96, 92, 99, 100, 102 and 103 have the strongest binding affinities into Human matrix metallopeptidase (MMP) 2 and 9 catalytic domains. Compound 103 exerted the most balanced predicted dual MMP-2/MMP-9 inhibition action. Compound 95 recorded the strongest binding affinity into metabotropic glutamate receptor (mglur1) with the lowest energy conformer. The data presented in this review suggests that these candidate acylated flavonoids ought to be considered in future drug developments especially as anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial agents.
Is the World a Just Place? The Italian Adaptation of the Personal and General Belief in a Just World Scales
Authors: Esposito Ciro , Di Martino Salvatore , Arcidiacono Caterina , Di Napoli Immacolata
Published: October 2022

The study presents the Italian adaptation of the Personal and General Belief in a Just World (P-BJW and G-BJW) Scales. Dalbert and colleagues developed these scales to capture the belief in a just world for oneself and a just world in general. After the translation and back-translation, the P-BJW and G-BJW scales were administered first to a pilot sample of 213 university students and then to a national sample of 2683 Italian people. Results showed that it was necessary to make some revisions to the predicted two correlated factor structure. These changes entailed correlating the error terms for some manifest variables and removing the first item of the P-BJW factor. The final structure of the P-BJW and G-BJW scales presented satisfactory indexes of model fit as well as high reliability and moderate validity values. Additionally, this structure proved to fit the data better than an alternative one-factor or a bi-factor model with two orthogonal-specific factors. As predicted, well-being strongly predicted scores on the BJW, but age and gender did not. Multigroup comparisons among Northern, Central, and Southern Italy respondents indicated that Italian people interpret scale items equivalently, regardless of their geographical location. Introducing the P-BJW and G-BJW scales to the Italian justice scholarship is very useful to unpack the reasons why Italy reports lower levels of social justice than other European countries and also to investigate the link between justice, well-being, and other socio-psychological variables.
Associations of metal profiles in blood with thyroiditis: a cross-sectional study
Authors: Luo Yaosheng , Zeng Huixian , Ye Yanshi , Yu Genfeng , Song Cheng , Liu Siyang , Chen Xingying , Jiang Yuqi , Duan Hualin , Li Yue , He Shengqing , Chen Zhi , Liu Lingling , Liang Yongqian , Lin Xu , Wan Heng , Shen Jie
Published: October 2022

Autoimmune thyroiditis (AIT) is increasingly common, and serological markers include thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPOAb) and thyroglobulin antibody (TgAb). To determine if selected metals influence thyroiditis antibody positivity, this cross-sectional study investigated associations between metals and thyroiditis antibody status. Healthy individuals (n = 1104) completed a questionnaire and underwent checkups of anthropometric parameters, thyroid function status, and levels of seven metals in blood (magnesium, iron, calcium, copper, zinc, manganese, and lead). Associated profiles of glyco- and lipid metabolism were also established. Logistic regression and restricted cubic spline (RCS) regression analysis were applied to adjudge associations between metals and TPOAb and TgAb status. It was found that, after adjusting for likely cofounding factors, participants with antibody positivity had significantly lower serum concentrations of magnesium and iron. When serum magnesium levels were analyzed in quartiles, the odds ratios of quartile 4 were 0.329–fold (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.167–0647) and 0.259-fold (95% CI 0.177–0.574) that of quartile 1 regarding TPOAb and TgAb positivity (P = 0.004, 0.003). After adjustment, the RCS analysis detected nonlinear associations between iron and TPOAb and TgAb positivity (P < 0.01, both). In stratified analyses, these associations regarding magnesium and iron remained for women of reproductive age, but not for postmenopausal women and men. We conclude that lower serum levels of magnesium and iron are associated with incremental positivity of thyroiditis antibodies and may be among the most important metals contributing to AIT in women of reproductive age.
Psychological Profile, Emotion Regulation, and Aggression in Police Applicants: A Swiss Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Ceschi Grazia , Meylan Stephanie , Rowe Charlotte , Boudoukha Abdel Halim
Published: October 2022

Although police officers are recurrently exposed to traumatic situations during their duties, only a minority report notable emotional complaints. This can be explained either by strong emotional coping skills or by a repressive self-presentation style. The current study describes the emotional profile and personality dispositions of police candidates (i.e., prior to exposure to occupational trauma) and explores the possible association between these personal characteristics and predisposition to aggression. In a cross-section design, 149 Swiss police applicants were compared to 110 individuals of the community matched by age, gender and level of education. Validated scales were used to obtain self-report markers of emotions and attitudes (anxiety, happiness/depression, aggressive attitudes) and personal dispositions (sensitivity to reinforcement, impulsivity, social desirability). Compared to civilian individuals, police candidates self-reported being happier, less anxious, less aggressive, and less impulsive. They declared being less sensitive to reinforcement, whether punishment or reward, but showed a higher degree of social desirability. Their aggressive tendencies were influenced by anxiety, urgency, and sensitivity to reward. The findings will be discussed within the framework of a diathesis-stress model of emotion regulation. It suggests that the repressive coping style described in police candidates may be a protective factor against negative and overwhelming emotions in the short term, but a risk factor for emotional imbalance in the long term, particularly if exposed to recurrent adverse events.
Trends and Clinical Characteristics of HIV and Cerebrovascular Disease in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) Between 1990 and 2021
Authors: Ransley George , Zimba Stanley , Gadama Yohane , Saylor Deanna , Benjamin Laura
Published: October 2022

Purpose of the Review

To describe trends and clinical characteristics of HIV and cerebrovascular disease between 1990 and 2021 in LMICs and identify the gaps in our understanding.

Recent Findings

In the era of antiretroviral therapy (ART), people living with HIV (PLWH) live longer and risk excess cerebrovascular events due to ageing and HIV-driven factors. Despite the highest burden of HIV infection in low-to-middle income countries, there is underreporting in the literature of cerebrovascular events in this population. We systematically reviewed published literature for primary clinical studies in adult PLWH and cerebrovascular disease in LMICs.

The clinical phenotype of cerebrovascular disease among PLWH over the last three decades in LMICs has evolved and transitioned to an older group with overlapping cerebrovascular risk factors. There is an important need to increase research in this population and standardise reporting to facilitate understanding, guide development of appropriate interventions, and evaluate their impact.
A case of percutaneous transhepatic stomal varices embolization and partial splenic artery embolization for rectal cancer after CAPOX/BEV chemotherapy: the summary of the stomal varices related to oxaliplatin administration
Authors: Mizukami Shoichiro , Shonaka Tatsuya , Tani Chikayoshi , Ihara Kazuki , Takeda Tomohiro , Ohara Mizuho , Hasegawa Kimiharu , Tanino Mishie , Sawada Koji , Sumi Yasuo
Published: October 2022

Capecitabine and oxaliplatin (CAPOX) plus bevacizumab (BEV) therapy (CAPOX/BEV) is a standard treatment recommended as the first-line treatment for colorectal cancer recurrence. Recently, sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (SOS) and resulting portal hypertension have been reported as important side effects of oxaliplatin. We herein report a rectal cancer patient who underwent percutaneous transhepatic stoma variceal embolization (PTO) and partial splenic artery embolization (PSE) for stomal variceal bleeding and splenomegaly due to portal hypertension caused by SOS after CAPOX therapy. A 43-year-old man who underwent robot-assisted laparoscopic abdominoperineal resection for advanced lower rectal cancer was started on CAPOX/BEV therapy for early recurrence 1 month after surgery. In the sixth course, splenomegaly rapidly worsened, stomal varices appeared, and the stoma began bleeding. At 5 months after the appearance of stomal varices, the splenomegaly worsened, the frequency of stomal bleeding increased, and PTO was performed. Five months later, PSE was performed for splenomegaly and thrombocytopenia. At 5 months since the PSE, the stoma bleeding has not recurred, and the thrombocytopenia has been corrected. The patient has been able to continue chemotherapy. We suggest that staged treatment by PTO and PSE be considered an important treatment option for stomal varices and splenomegaly associated with SOS.
Peatland Plant Functional Type Effects on Early Decomposition Indicators are Non-Pervasive, but Microhabitat Dependent
Authors: Sahar Najam e , Robroek Bjorn J. M. , Mills Robert T. E. , Dumont Marc G. , Barel Janna M.
Published: October 2022

Ombrotrophic peatlands are important long-term sinks for atmospheric carbon as plant productivity exceeds litter decomposition. Changes in plant community composition may alter decomposition rates through alterations in microbial communities and activity. Such plant community driven changes in decomposition rates may however differ between microhabitats. Nevertheless, the microhabitat-context-dependency of plant community composition effects on decomposition remains poorly understood. We used a long-term (> 10 year) plant removal experiment to study how vascular plant functional types (PFTs, i.e. graminoids and ericoids) influence decomposition processes in wet lawns and hummocks. We employed the Tea Bag Index (TBI) as an indicator for early litter decomposition and carbon stabilization and assessed the potential activity of five hydrolytic extracellular enzymes (EEAs) as indicators for microbial activity. PFT removal had no effect on the TBI decomposition rate constant (k), nor on the stabilization factor (S). Yet, k increased slightly when both PFTs were absent. In the lawns, we observed higher values of k and S as compared to hummocks. PFT composition influenced four out of five hydrolytic EEAs that can drive decomposition. Yet, this influence was non-pervasive and microhabitat dependent. In wet lawns, PFT removal generally increased enzyme activities, while opposite trends were detected in the hummocks. Our results suggest an important role for vegetation change, through their influence on enzyme activity, along the lawn-hummock gradient in regulating decomposition processes in northern peatlands. This implies that potential consequences of vegetation changes on organic matter turnover, hence the peatland carbon sink function, cannot be generalized across peatland microhabitats.
Evolution of Alkali Release by an Illitic Rock for Use as Supplementary Cementitious Material
Authors: Lemma Roxana , Marfil Silvina , Rahhal Viviana
Published: October 2022

The levels of CO2 emissions generated by the cement industry and the growth in demand for its products have led to a search for ways to reduce these emissions. The use of supplementary cementitious materials has become one of the solutions proposed for this problem. Illite, which is found all over the world, is a possible supplementary cementitious material. Before illite can be used, it must be milled and treated thermally in order to activate it, so that the alkalis (Na+ and K+) are free and available to react. Alkalis in cement participate in deleterious reactions (alkali-silica reaction) or have a beneficial effect (alkaline activation). The alkalis present in the rocks can play an active role in these phenomena, however. In addition, the material could be influenced by the alkaline environment produced by the cement. The current study was aimed at analyzing whether an alkali release occurs and if so, how it is affected when a milled and thermally treated illitic rock is in contact with water or an alkaline solution. The material was characterized by X-ray fluorescence, polarizing microscopy, and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The sample was treated thermally at 300, 600, and 900°C, and the thermal activation was evaluated through XRD, density, and Atterberg limits. The evolution of alkali release was studied by determining the sodium and potassium concentration of contact water obtained by mixing the samples with different pH solutions for various lengths of time. In addition, the calcium concentration was determined. The concentrations of sodium and potassium in the contact water were determined by flame photometry, and of calcium by EDTA (ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) titration. The results showed that with increasing age, increasing solution pH, and higher treatment temperatures, alkali release occurred and increased, whereas Ca2+ concentration decreased.
A History of Chile 1808–2018
Authors: Sater William F. , Collier Simon
Published: October 2022

As Chile has continued to grow and prosper in the twenty-first century, this new edition of the definitive history of the country brings the story of its political, social and cultural development up to date. It describes how Ricardo Lagos and Michelle Bachelet, both highly educated Socialists, modernized the country and integrated new interests into Chilean political life, and how the billionaire, Harvard-trained economist Sebastian Piñera, who succeeded Bachelet, addressed the problems caused by the 2010 tsunami. In the last twenty years Chile diversified its economy, replaced a number of Pinochet's organizations with more inclusive institutions, cultivated Chilean culture, modernized its constitution, and fomented reconciliation of the various political factions – until economic crisis in early 2018 caused political chaos and occasionally violent public protest. Based on new statistics to measure Chile's economic and social development, this volume celebrates Chile's achievements and dissects its failures.
A NEW LOOK AT THE AKKADIAN ROYAL RITUAL FOR AVERTING DIVINE ANGER
Authors: Ni Chunrong
Published: October 2022

The Babylonian royal ritual text edited in this article prescribes the performance of two kinds of prayers: Šigû prayers and Emesal prayers. The text has four cycles, in each of which the target is one of the great gods (Marduk, Anu, Enlil, and Ea), as well as the minor gods functioning as intercessors on behalf of the king. The Marduk cycle is distinctive, compared with the other cycles, probably because of the special relation of Marduk with the king, kingship, and Babylon.
A Network Analysis of Judicial Cross-Citations in Europe
Authors: Siems Mathias
Published: October 2022

Recent years have seen a growing literature on citations between courts from different countries. What explains why such cross-citations occur between some courts but not others? This article addresses this question with original data on 2,967 citations between the private law supreme courts of the twenty-eight member states of the European Union. These cross-citations form a valued network of twenty-eight nodes, which can be analyzed with tools of network analysis. The article uses the method of a multiple regression quadratic assignment procedure in order to address the dependency of observations in a network. The explanatory variables distinguish between variables that proxy for legal similarities between countries and other factors, and, thus, this article contributes to the wider debate about the predominance of either legal or nonlegal factors in judicial decision-making. The main finding is that nonlegal factors play a decisive role, notably a common native language and overlapping language skills, while legal families are not found to be a significant determinant.
Discovery of peculiar radio morphologies with ASKAP using unsupervised machine learning
Authors: Gupta Nikhel , Huynh Minh , Norris Ray P. , Rosalind Wang X. , Hopkins Andrew M. , Andernach Heinz , Koribalski Bärbel S. , Galvin Tim J.
Published: October 2022

We present a set of peculiar radio sources detected using an unsupervised machine learning method. We use data from the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) telescope to train a self-organizing map (SOM). The radio maps from three ASKAP surveys, Evolutionary Map of Universe pilot survey (EMU-PS), Deep Investigation of Neutral Gas Origins pilot survey (DINGO), and Survey With ASKAP of GAMA-09 + X-ray (SWAG-X), are used to search for the rarest or unknown radio morphologies. We use an extension of the SOM algorithm that implements rotation and flipping invariance on astronomical sources. The SOM is trained using the images of all ‘complex’ radio sources in the EMU-PS which we define as all sources catalogued as ‘multi-component’. The trained SOM is then used to estimate a similarity score for complex sources in all surveys. We select 0.5% of the sources that are most complex according to the similarity metric and visually examine them to find the rarest radio morphologies. Among these, we find two new odd radio circle (ORC) candidates and five other peculiar morphologies. We discuss multiwavelength properties and the optical/infrared counterparts of selected peculiar sources. In addition, we present examples of conventional radio morphologies including: diffuse emission from galaxy clusters, and resolved, bent-tailed, and FR-I and FR-II type radio galaxies. We discuss the overdense environment that may be the reason behind the circular shape of ORC candidates.
Robotic rotorcraft
Authors: Austin R. G.
Published: October 2022

A few of us, like Tennyson, have the gift of foreseeing the future. (see Fig. I). Another few, like Juan de la Cierva have the gift of delivering the future. They are the innovators.

Those who know Tennyson's verse will recall that his vision was of transportation by air of people and freight and also sadly of weapons. These were the tasks for which aircraft have primarily been developed – that is until recently.

Let us move back a few years from Cierva's day to view the work of another innovator – Von Karman. His machine was a harbinger of the future in that it was not designed for a transport task but for a surveillance task (Fig. 2). It did not survive for long since Von Karman lacked the light-weight, compact, electro-optical sensors available today and he was forced to carry aloft two mk 1 eyeballs attached to a heavy and bulky man.