bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Assessment of vestibulo-ocular reflex and its adaptation during stop-and-go car rides in motion sickness susceptible passengers
Authors: Ramaioli Cecilia , Steinmetzer Tobias , Brietzke Adrian , Meyer Paul , Pham Xuan Rebecca , Schneider Erich , Gorges Martin
Published: April 2023

Motion sickness is a physiological condition that negatively impacts a person's comfort and will be an emerging condition in autonomous vehicles without proper countermeasures. The vestibular system plays a key role in the origin of motion sickness. Understanding the susceptibility and (mal) adaptive mechanisms of the highly integrated vestibular system is a prerequisite for the development of countermeasures. We hypothesize a differential association between motion sickness and vestibular function in healthy individuals with and without susceptibility for motion sickness. We quantified vestibular function by measuring the high-frequency vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) using video head impulse testing (vHIT) in 17 healthy volunteers before and after a 11 min motion sickness-inducing naturalistic stop-and-go car ride on a test track (Dekra Test Oval, Klettwitz, Germany). The cohort was classified as motion sickness susceptible (n = 11) and non-susceptible (n = 6). Six (out of 11) susceptible participants developed nausea symptoms, while a total of nine participants were free of these symptoms. The VOR gain (1) did not differ significantly between participant groups with (n = 8) and without motion sickness symptoms (n = 9), (2) did not differ significantly in the factor time before and after the car ride, and showed no interaction between symptom groups and time, as indicated by a repeated measures ANOVA (F(1,15) = 2.19, p = 0.16. Bayesian inference confirmed that there was “anecdotal evidence” for equality of gain rather than difference across groups and time (BF10 < 0.77). Our results suggest that individual differences in VOR measures or adaptation to motion sickness provocative stimuli during naturalistic stop-and-go driving cannot predict motion sickness susceptibility or the likelihood of developing motion sickness.
A Game Representation for a Finite Horizon State Constrained Continuous Time Linear Regulator Problem
Authors: Dower Peter M. , McEneaney William M. , Cantoni Michael
Published: April 2023

A supremum-of-quadratics representation for a class of extended real valued barrier functions is developed and applied in the context of solving a continuous time linear regulator problem subject to a single state constraint of bounded norm. It is shown that this very simple state constrained regulator problem can be equivalently formulated as an unconstrained two-player game. By demonstrating equivalence of the upper and lower values, and exploiting existence and uniqueness of the optimal actions for both players, state feedback characterizations for the corresponding optimal policies for both players are developed. These characterizations are illustrated by a simple example.
Identification of Burkholderia cenocepacia non-coding RNAs expressed during Caenorhabditis elegans infection
Authors: Pita Tiago , Feliciano Joana R. , Leitão Jorge H.
Published: April 2023

Small non-coding RNAs (sRNAs) are key regulators of post-transcriptional gene expression in bacteria. Despite the identification of hundreds of bacterial sRNAs, their roles on bacterial physiology and virulence remain largely unknown, as is the case of bacteria of the Burkholderia cepacia complex (Bcc). Bcc is a group of opportunistic pathogens with relatively large genomes that can cause lethal lung infections amongst cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. To characterise sRNAs expressed by Bcc bacteria when infecting a host, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans was used as an infection model by the epidemic CF strain B. cenocepacia J2315. A total of 108 new and 31 previously described sRNAs with a predicted Rho independent terminator were identified, most of them located on chromosome 1. RIT11b, a sRNA downregulated under C. elegans infection conditions, was shown to directly affect B. cenocepacia virulence, biofilm formation, and swimming motility. RIT11b overexpression reduced the expression of the direct targets dusA and pyrC, involved in biofilm formation, epithelial cell adherence, and chronic infections in other organisms. The in vitro direct interaction of RIT11b with the dusA and pyrC messengers was demonstrated by electrophoretic mobility shift assays. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report on the functional characterization of a sRNA directly involved in B. cenocepacia virulence.

Key points

• 139 sRNAs expressed by B. cenocepacia during C. elegans infection were identified

• The sRNA RIT11b affects B. cenocepacia virulence, biofilm formation, and motility

• RIT11b directly binds to and regulates dusA and pyrC mRNAs
Outcomes of patients with hematological malignancies who undergo unrelated donor hematopoietic stem cell transplantation with ATG-Fresenius versus ATG-Genzyme
Authors: Wang Lu , Kong Peiyan , Zhang Cheng , Gao Li , Zhu Lidan , Liu Jia , Gao Shichun , Chen Ting , Liu Huanfeng , Yao Han , Liu Yuqing , Feng Yimei , Zhao Lu , Li Yuxia , Gao Lei , Zhang Xi
Published: April 2023

To compare the outcomes of patients with hematological malignancies who received ATG-Fresenius (ATG-F) 20 mg/kg versus those who received ATG-Genzyme (ATG-G) 10 mg/kg in an unrelated donor hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) procedure, a total of 186 patients who underwent their first allogeneic HSCT with an unrelated donor were retrospectively analyzed. One hundred and seven patients received ATG-F, and seventy-nine patients received ATG-G. Multivariate analysis showed that the type of ATG preparation had no effect on neutrophil engraftment (P = 0.61), cumulative incidence of relapse (P = 0.092), nonrelapse mortality (P = 0.44), grade II-IV acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) (P = 0.47), chronic GVHD (P = 0.29), overall survival (P = 0.795), recurrence-free survival (P = 0.945) or GVHD-free relapse-free survival (P = 0.082). ATG-G was associated with a lower risk of extensive chronic GVHD and a higher risk of cytomegaloviremia (P = 0.01 and HR = 0.41, P < 0.001 and HR = 4.244, respectively). The results of this study suggest that the preparation of rabbit ATG used for unrelated HSCT should be selected based on the incidence of extensive chronic GVHD of each center, and the posttransplant management strategy should be adjusted according to the ATG preparation.
A systematic review of the trophic ecology of eight ecologically and culturally important fish species in the North American Arctic
Authors: Wight Kevin J. , McNicholl Darcy G. , Dunmall Karen M.
Published: April 2023

Rapid climate change occurring in the Arctic may affect the diet of ecologically and culturally important northern fish species. Here, a systematic literature review was completed for eight fish species found across the North American Arctic, with a focus on Inuit Nunangat, to identify major prey items, summarize feeding strategies, and highlight data gaps. Arctic Char (Salvelinus alpinus), Dolly Varden Char (Salvelinus malma), Lake Trout (Salvelinus namaycush), Bull Trout (Salvelinus confluentus), Inconnu (Stenodus leucichthys), Lake Whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis), Broad Whitefish (Coregonus nasus), and Burbot (Lota lota), were selected as species of interest due to their ecological and cultural importance. The 74 studies reviewed indicate that these species are generalist feeders that demonstrate wide dietary niches, as well as the tendency to avoid agonistic interactions by partitioning resources when they co-occur with an overlapping species. Across coastal, lacustrine, and riverine systems, the most commonly consumed prey items are insects (Diptera spp.), as well as benthic forage fishes such as sculpins (Family: Cottidae). Insects are major prey items in riverine systems, where diets appear to be more generalized, compared to lakes. Anadromous species in coastal waters most commonly feed on various crustaceans and forage fishes. Benthic forage fishes, insects, zooplankton, and mollusks are widely consumed prey items in Arctic lakes. Burbot, Inconnu, and resident Dolly Varden had the most specialized feeding strategies, due in part to their habitat requirements and morphology, while Lake Trout and resident Arctic Char often form multiple ecotypes in lakes, some with different feeding behaviors. Knowledge gaps regarding northern fish trophic ecology are highlighted, and in particular include riverine systems and winter foraging behavior. This review is intended to inform predictions regarding the impacts of climate change on fish tropic ecology and to guide future research.
Emerging insights into nitrogen assimilation in gymnosperms
Authors: Valderrama-Martín José M. , Ortigosa Francisco , Cantón Francisco R. , Ávila Concepción , Cañas Rafael A. , Cánovas Francisco M.
Published: April 2023

Key message

The current status of molecular regulation of nitrogen assimilation and recent advances made in gymnosperms are reviewed.

Gymnosperms are a heterogeneous and ancient group of seed plants that includes conifers, ginkgos, cycads and gnetophytes. Molecular studies on extant gymnosperms have been constrained by some discouraging features for experimental research such as their long life cycles, large sizes, complex megagenomes and abundant phenolic compounds in their woody tissues. However, the development of high-throughput sequencing and refined multiomics technologies in the last few years has allowed to explore the molecular basis of essential processes in this ancient lineage of plants. Nitrogen is one of the main limiting factors determining vascular development and biomass production in woody plants. Therefore, nitrogen uptake, metabolism, storage and recycling are essential processes for fundamental gymnosperm biology. Here, recent progress in the molecular regulation of nitrogen assimilation in gymnosperms is reviewed and some future perspectives on this topic are outlined.
Blow-up of nonnegative solutions of an abstract semilinear heat equation with convex source
Authors: Lenz Daniel , Schmidt Marcel , Zimmermann Ian
Published: April 2023

We give a sufficient condition for non-existence of global nonnegative mild solutions of the Cauchy problem for the semilinear heat equation$$u' = Lu + f(u)$$u′=Lu+f(u)in$$L^p(X, m)$$Lp(X,m)for$$p \in [1,\infty )$$p∈[1,∞), where (X, m) is a$$\sigma $$σ-finite measure space,Lis the infinitesimal generator of a sub-Markovian strongly continuous semigroup of bounded linear operators in$$L^p(X, m)$$Lp(X,m), andfis a strictly increasing, convex, continuous function on$$[0,\infty )$$[0,∞)with$$f(0) = 0$$f(0)=0and$$\int _1^\infty 1/f < \infty $$∫1∞1/f<∞. Since we make no further assumptions on the behaviour of the diffusion, our main result can be seen as being about the competition between the diffusion represented byLand the reaction represented byfin a general setting. We apply our result to Laplacians on manifolds, graphs, and, more generally, metric measure spaces with a heat kernel. In the process, we recover and extend some older as well as recent results in a unified framework.
Natural and artificial OH defect incorporation into fluoride minerals at elevated temperature—a case study of sellaite, villiaumite and fluorite
Authors: Talla Dominik , Beran Anton , Škoda Radek
Published: April 2023

The long-known presence of a sharp OH absorption band in the tetragonal fluoride mineral sellaite, MgF2, inspired us to conduct a detailed study of the OH incorporation modes into this IR-transparent (where IR stands for Infrared) material as well as to search for hydrogen traces in two other IR-translucent halides—villiaumite (NaF) and fluorite (CaF2). Among these three phases, sellaite is the only one to incorporate ‘intrinsic’ OH groups, most commonly as O–H∙∙∙F defects oriented nearly perpendicular to the c-axis along the shortest edge of the constituent MgF6 polyhedra, in analogy with the isostructural mineral rutile, TiO2. Another defect type, seen only scarcely in untreated natural material, develops when subjecting sellaite to temperatures above 900 °C. It involves an O–H∙∙∙O cluster along the 2.802 Å edge of the original MgF6 dipyramid, as fluorine atoms are progressively expelled from the structure, being replaced by O2- anions. This is corroborated by the appearance of spectral absorption features typical for brucite (Mg(OH)2) and ultimately periclase (MgO), the presence of which could be proven via powder diffraction of the heat-treated material. Except for a ‘dubious’ peak most probably caused by included phases, neither villiaumite (NaF) nor fluorite (CaF2) showed any presence of ‘intrinsic’ OH defects. They do however decompose along a similar route into the respective oxide and hydroxide phases at high temperature. This thermal decomposition of the studied halide phases is accompanied by the emission of gaseous (HF)n species at temperatures well below their established melting point - a subject which seems to be quite overlooked.
Prevention and health promotion regarding sexually transmitted infections (STI) among university students in Germany
Authors: Voegele Pascal , Polenz Wolf
Published: April 2023

Aim

University students are sexually active, and the sexual risk behavior of this group is higher than that of the general population. The prevention of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) emphasizes the need for comprehensive knowledge about behaviors for STI protection and the actual realization of these behaviors.

Subject and methods

First, an online questionnaire was developed to record the knowledge and realization of STI-protective behaviors among students at Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HUAS) to conduct quantitative cross-sectional interviews. The sample included 1532 students. Specific aspects of the interview are based on lower response rates. The correlations were then tested by Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient and Pearson’s chi-squared test.

Results

Significant positive correlations were identified between the self-efficacy (SE) and the use of condoms, STI vaccinations, STI tests, and HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Significant negative correlations were suggested between substance use and the use of condoms and the use of PrEP and the intake of antiretroviral therapy (ART). Significant positive correlations were identified between the knowledge about STI-protective behaviors and the usage of STI-protective vaccinations, STI tests, and ART. Significant positive correlations were identified between the experiences in terms of STIs and the knowledge about STI-protective vaccinations, use of PrEP, and use of ART.

Conclusion

Moreover, the results indicate that students with a divergent sexual identity have a higher level of knowledge about STI-protective behaviors. The sexual health of university students should be improved by preventive measures to improve the sexual health of individual students and their social environments.
How to counteract the lack of donor tissue in cardiac surgery? Initial experiences with a newly established homograft procurement program
Authors: Schmiady Martin O. , Jashari Ramadan , Lenherr Renato , Regenscheit Stefan , Hitendu Dave , Wendt Martin , Schiess Stefanie , Schweiger Martin , Hofmann Michael , Sromicki Juri , Flammer Andreas , Wilhelm Markus J. , Cesnjevar Robert , Carrel Thierry , Vogt Paul R. , Mestres Carlos A.
Published: April 2023

Homograft heart valves may have significant advantages and are preferred for the repair of congenital valve malformations, especially in young women of childbearing age, athletes and in patients with active endocarditis. A growing problem, however, is the mismatch between tissue donation and the increasing demand. The aim of this paper is to describe the initiation process of a homograft procurement program to attenuate the shortage of organs. A comprehensive description of the infrastructure and procedural steps required to initiate a cardiac and vascular tissue donation program combined with a prospective follow-up of all homografts explanted at our institution. Between January 2020 and May 2022, 28 hearts and 12 pulmonary bifurcations were harvested at our institution and delivered to the European homograft bank. Twenty-seven valves (19 pulmonary valves, 8 aortic valves) were processed and allocated for implantation. The reasons for discarding a graft were either contamination (n = 14), or morphology (n = 13) or leaflet damage (n = 2). Five homografts (3 PV, 2 AV) have been cryopreserved and stored while awaiting allocation. One pulmonary homograft with a leaflet cut was retrieved by bicuspidization technique and awaits allocation, as a highly requested small diameter graft. The implementation of a tissue donation program in cooperation with a homograft bank can be achieved with reasonable additional efforts at a transplant center with an in-house cardiac surgery department. Challenging situations with a potential risk of tissue injury during procurement include re-operation, harvesting by a non-specialist surgeon and prior central cannulation for mechanical circulatory support.
Diabetes mellitus, prediabetes and the risk of Parkinson’s disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis of 15 cohort studies with 29.9 million participants and 86,345 cases
Authors: Aune Dagfinn , Schlesinger Sabrina , Mahamat-Saleh Yahya , Zheng Bang , Udeh-Momoh Chinedu T. , Middleton Lefkos T.
Published: April 2023

A diagnosis of diabetes mellitus and prediabetes has been associated with increased risk of Parkinson’s disease (PD) in several studies, but results have not been entirely consistent. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies on diabetes mellitus, prediabetes and the risk of PD to provide an up-to-date assessment of the evidence. PubMed and Embase databases were searched for relevant studies up to 6th of February 2022. Cohort studies reporting adjusted relative risk (RR) estimates and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the association between diabetes, prediabetes and Parkinson’s disease were included. Summary RRs (95% CIs) were calculated using a random effects model. Fifteen cohort studies (29.9 million participants, 86,345 cases) were included in the meta-analysis. The summary RR (95% CI) of PD for persons with diabetes compared to persons without diabetes was 1.27 (1.20–1.35, I2 = 82%). There was no indication of publication bias, based on Egger’s test (p = 0.41), Begg’s test (p = 0.99), and inspection of the funnel plot. The association was consistent across geographic regions, by sex, and across several other subgroup and sensitivity analyses. There was some suggestion of a stronger association for diabetes patients reporting diabetes complications than for diabetes patients without complications (RR = 1.54, 1.32–1.80 [n = 3] vs. 1.26, 1.16–1.38 [n = 3]), vs. those without diabetes (pheterogeneity=0.18). The summary RR for prediabetes was 1.04 (95% CI: 1.02–1.07, I2 = 0%, n = 2). Our results suggest that patients with diabetes have a 27% increased relative risk of developing PD compared to persons without diabetes, and persons with prediabetes have a 4% increase in RR compared to persons with normal blood glucose. Further studies are warranted to clarify the specific role age of onset or duration of diabetes, diabetic complications, glycaemic level and its long-term variability and management may play in relation to PD risk.
Mobile application e-grocery retail adoption challenges and coping strategies: a South African small and medium enterprises’ perspective
Authors: Mkansi Marcia , Nsakanda Aaron Luntala
Published: April 2023

This paper explores how small and medium-sized e-grocery mobile application retailers evolving within the geographical context of South Africa and operating in the urban, township, and rural areas respond to theoretically and emerging field-based e-business and e-grocery adoption challenges, respectively. The study used semi-structured qualitative interviews to explore the coping strategies of e-grocery mobile application retailers to mitigate technological, organizational, and environmental (TOE) adoption challenges. The significance of small grocery adoption strategies related to context informs e-grocery adoption from the evidence generated in other small e-grocers and for the superior grade of TOE (or theoretical) knowledge sought from the inevitable evolving mobile application and digital grocery markets. The findings reveal that specialist skills and unified team production are crucial conduits for lowering the TOE barriers to e-business and e-grocery adoption. They also reveal the interconnected resource orchestration, shared value, and social inclusion strategies used to mitigate various e-business and e-grocery challenges.
Examining linkages among multiple sustainable development outcomes: does the productive safety net program increase on-farm agrobiodiversity?
Authors: Kozicka M. , Gotor E. , Pagnani T. , Occelli M. , Caracciolo F.
Published: April 2023

In Ethiopia, on-farm agrobiodiversity and the Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP) play a key role in building smallholders’ resilience. However, the impact of PSNP on on-farm agrobiodiversity is not yet well investigated. In this paper, we develop an analytical framework that links PSNP participation to on-farm agrobiodiversity. Both diverse farming systems and PSNP require labour inputs while providing income stabilization, which might result in a negative relationship between the two. Conversely, higher income from PSNP might allow farmers to increase their long-term on-farm investments, as opposed to the strategies oriented toward the highest immediate profit or calorie intake outcome. We base our empirical analysis on the World Bank’s Ethiopian Socioeconomic Survey, a panel dataset encompassing nearly 3000 respondents and a Tobit model, based on Difference-in-Difference and the Propensity-Score Matching methods. We find that Ethiopia’s PSNP has a negative impact on farm labour input, both in terms of labour intensity and duration. Furthermore, our results show that participation in the program is associated, on average, with lower on-farm crop diversity. We conclude that the PSNP participation may be crowding-out production stabilizing farming activities, such as intercropping or cover cropping, that are more labour intensive. Our findings call for embedding tools in the new phase of the PSNP (2021–2025) that could incentivise on-farm resilience-oriented investments, in particular leading to higher crop diversification.
Credibility in second-price auctions: an experimental test
Authors: Dianat Ahrash , Freer Mikhail
Published: April 2023

We provide the first direct test of how the credibility of an auction format affects bidding behavior and final outcomes. To do so, we conduct a series of laboratory experiments where the role of the seller is played by a human subject who receives the revenue from the auction and who (depending on the treatment) has agency to determine the outcome of the auction. Contrary to theoretical predictions, we find that the non-credible second-price auction fails to converge to the first-price auction. We provide a behavioral explanation for our results based on sellers’ aversion to rule-breaking, which is confirmed by an additional experiment.
Raman spectroscopy in pure and doped zinc ferrites nanoparticles
Authors: Albini B. , Restelli S. , Ambrosetti M. , Bini M. , D’Amico F. , Mozzati M. C. , Galinetto P.
Published: April 2023

Raman spectroscopy was applied on nanostructured ZnFe2O4 system in order to correlate its structural, chemical, and vibrational properties to the functional behaviour, in view of the high sensitivity of the Raman probe to the cationic order in iron oxides. In particular we investigated pure and Ga/Mg doped zinc ferrite nanoparticles synthesised by co-precipitation route by means of Raman spectroscopy with a particular focus on the correlation between their structural and magnetic properties. We firstly studied the homogeneity of the samples at the micrometer scale and their stability under laser irradiation disregarding the presence of spurious iron oxides in favour of a highly defective external shell of the nanoparticles. This hypothesis was corroborated by varying the incident laser wavelength therefore changing the investigated volume. Furthermore, we estimated the inversion degree of the spinel structure finding good agreements with the trend of the magnetic features. All the evidence found through Raman spectroscopy are supported by the results obtained with X-Ray Powder Diffraction, Electron Paramagnetic Resonance and SQUID magnetometry.
Image-Based Sexual Abuse Associated Factors: A Systematic Review
Authors: Paradiso Maria Noemi , Rollè Luca , Trombetta Tommaso
Published: April 2023

Purpose

Image-Based Sexual Abuse (IBSA) is a recently studied form of violence and abuse perpetrated using technology. This systematic review aims to examine and systematize studies exploring factors associated with IBSA (e.g., victimization, perpetration, and propensity to perpetrate).

Method

Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) statement, 17 articles were included.

Results

The results of this study highlighted conceptual and methodological limitations in the literature on IBSA. Aside from these limitations, this systematic review identified factors associated with IBSA, focusing on four macro-areas: victimization, perpetration, propensity to perpetrate IBSA, and IBSA implications. The results demonstrated the role of psychological, relational, and social variables, although the effect sizes observed in the quantitative studies were small or in few cases moderate.

Conclusions

These results suggest further research should be carried out to explore the multidimensionality of IBSA and its associated factors, which may assist in guiding interventions to promote preventive and rehabilitative methods to lower the prevalence of this crime and its consequences.
Potential impact of property management on the market value of dwellings in multi-owned housing
Authors: Muczyński Andrzej
Published: April 2023

The expanding role of property management services and the increasing share of multi-owned housing in many housing markets raises issues concerning the impact of such services on property value in this sector. The presented study investigated the potential impact of property management on the market value of dwellings in multi-owned housing developments. This impact was identified based on estimated implicit values of the extracted common property attributes dependent on property management services. An original research methodology tailored to the institutional arrangement in multi-owned housing developments was used, involving the estimation of hedonic regression models. Empirical research was conducted on representative samples of multi-owned housing developments in the housing market of the city of Olsztyn, Poland. The results showed that common property attributes such as building condition, building accessibility, cleanliness and orderliness, and land development significantly influenced dwelling prices and thus their market value. In extreme cases, the cumulative potential impact of property management services estimated on this basis can reach up to ca. 30% of the dwellings’ value. These findings have far-reaching policy and practical implications for urban development policies, including the built environment, land use and local housing, as well as for housing market investors and developers, homeowners associations, dwelling owners and property managers. Hence, it is recommended to expand research on this topic to other housing markets functioning in different institutional arrangements.
Evaluating Mentors in Violence Prevention: A Longitudinal, Multilevel Assessment of Outcome Changes
Authors: Pagani Stefania , Hunter Simon C. , Lawrence David , Elliott Mark A.
Published: April 2023

There is a need to increase understanding of the effectiveness of bystander programmes targeting gender-based violence in the United Kingdom. There is also a need to utilise a robust theoretical models of decision-making while doing so. Changes were examined in bystanders’ attitudes, beliefs, motivations towards intervening, and intervention behavior in situations of gender-based violence. To achieve this, a quantitative examination of Mentors in Violence Prevention was conducted. There were 1396 participants (50% female, 50% male) who were aged 11 to 14 years old (M = 12.25, SD = 0.84) attending high school at the first time point. Participants were attending 17 schools (53% Mentors in Violence Prevention and 47% control) in Scotland. Outcome variables were assessed approximately one year apart using questionnaires. Multilevel linear regressions revealed that Mentors in Violence Prevention did not change outcomes reflecting bystanders’ attitudes, beliefs, motivations towards intervening, or intervention behavior in gender-based violence. Discrepancies between the current findings and those of other evaluations may be due to other studies including small numbers of schools that may be more motivated to implement the program. This study also identified two key issues that need to be addressed at stakeholder level before concluding that Mentors in Violence Prevention is ineffective at targeting gender-based violence. That the program has moved towards a more gender-neutral approach in the United Kingdom could explain the null results of this study. Furthermore, the current findings could be attributed to a failure to adequately address the theoretical model underpinning the program in practice.
Readability and Clarity of Individual Pension Product Contracts
Authors: Hadryan Milena , Rutecka-Góra Joanna
Published: April 2023

The study analyses the readability and clarity of economic specialised texts on supplementary individual pensions. The research includes agreements on individual pension products available on the Polish market at the beginning of 2017. The level of comprehensibility of language has been assessed using the “Jasnopis” application, based, among others, on the FOG index, while the structure of the content of the agreements has been assessed by an expert linguist (the expert linguist is one of the authors of this and a number of other publications on clear and understandable texts). In addition, one of the texts was subject to a survey, the so-called cloze text, which provided more accurate information about readability for a specific reader group. The results obtained allow the conclusion that the language of agreements on individual pension products is very difficult and their understanding requires higher education or expertise in the field of finance.
Resurfacing History and Volcanic Activity of Venus
Authors: Herrick Robert R. , Bjonnes Evan T. , Carter Lynn M. , Gerya Taras , Ghail Richard C. , Gillmann Cédric , Gilmore Martha , Hensley Scott , Ivanov Mikhail A. , Izenberg Noam R. , Mueller Nils T. , O’Rourke Joseph G. , Rolf Tobias , Smrekar Suzanne E. , Weller Matthew B.
Published: April 2023

Photogeologic principles can be used to suggest possible sequences of events that result in the present planetary surface. The most common method of evaluating the absolute age of a planetary surface remotely is to count the number of impact craters that have occurred after the surface formed, with the assumption that the craters occur in a spatially random fashion over time. Using additional assumptions, craters that have been partially modified by later geologic activity can be used to assess the time frames for an interpreted sequence of events. The total number of craters on Venus is low and the spatial distribution taken by itself is nearly indistinguishable from random. The overall implication is that the Venusian surface is much closer to Earth in its youthfulness than the other, smaller inner solar system bodies. There are differing interpretations of the extent to which volcanism and tectonics have modified the craters and of the regional and global sequences of geologic events. Consequently, a spectrum of global resurfacing views has emerged. These range from a planet that has evolved to have limited current volcanism and tectonics concentrated in a few zones to a planet with Earth-like levels of activity occurring everywhere at similar rates but in different ways. Analyses of the geologic record have provided observations that are challenging to reconcile with either of the endmember views. The interpretation of a global evolution with time in the nature of geologic activity relies on assumptions that have been challenged, but there are other observations of areally extensive short-lived features such as canali that are challenging to reconcile with a view of different regions evolving independently. Future data, especially high-resolution imaging and topography, can provide the details to resolve some of the issues. These different global-evolution viewpoints must tie to assessments of present-day volcanic and tectonic activity levels that can be made with the data from upcoming missions.
An objection to the modal account of risk
Authors: Smith Martin
Published: April 2023

In a recent paper in this journal Duncan Pritchard responds to an objection to the modal account of risk pressed by Ebert, Smith and Durbach (2020). In this paper, I expand upon the objection and argue that it still stands. I go on to consider a more general question raised by this exchange – whether risk is ‘objective’, or whether it is something that varies from one perspective to another.
Experimental validation of computer-vision methods for the successful detection of endodontic treatment obturation and progression from noisy radiographs
Authors: Hasan Habib Al , Saad Farhan Hasin , Ahmed Saif , Mohammed Nabeel , Farook Taseef Hasan , Dudley James
Published: April 2023

Purpose

(1) To evaluate the effects of denoising and data balancing on deep learning to detect endodontic treatment outcomes from radiographs. (2) To develop and train a deep-learning model and classifier to predict obturation quality from radiomics.

Methods

The study conformed to the STARD 2015 and MI-CLAIMS 2021 guidelines. 250 deidentified dental radiographs were collected and augmented to produce 2226 images. The dataset was classified according to endodontic treatment outcomes following a set of customized criteria. The dataset was denoised and balanced, and processed with YOLOv5s, YOLOv5x, and YOLOv7 models of real-time deep-learning computer vision. Diagnostic test parameters such as sensitivity (Sn), specificity (Sp), accuracy (Ac), precision, recall, mean average precision (mAP), and confidence were evaluated.

Results

Overall accuracy for all the deep-learning models was above 85%. Imbalanced datasets with noise removal led to YOLOv5x’s prediction accuracy to drop to 72%, while balancing and noise removal led to all three models performing at over 95% accuracy. mAP saw an improvement from 52 to 92% following balancing and denoising.

Conclusion

The current study of computer vision applied to radiomic datasets successfully classified endodontic treatment obturation and mishaps according to a custom progressive classification system and serves as a foundation to larger research on the subject matter.
Maternal environmental, occupational, and urinary metabolite levels of benzene compounds and their association with congenital heart diseases in offspring: a case‒control study in China
Authors: Wang Meixian , Li Lu , Kang Hong , Xu Hongmei , Huang Qian , Li Nana , Deng Ying , Yu Ping , Liu Zhen
Published: April 2023

The conclusions about the association of maternal pregnancy environment, occupation, and benzene compounds with fetal CHD are not entirely consistent. Eight hundred seven CHD cases and 1008 controls were included in this study. All occupations were classified and coded against the Occupational Classification Dictionary of the People’s Republic of China (2015 version). Logistic regressions were used to explore the correlation among environmental factors, occupation types, and CHDs in offspring. We found that living near public facilities and having exposure to chemical reagents and hazardous substances were significant risk factors for CHDs in offspring. We found that offspring of mothers who worked in agriculture and similar work during pregnancy suffered from CHD. The risk of all CHDs in the offspring of pregnant women working in production manufacturing and related work was significantly higher than that in unemployed pregnant women, the risk was also observed in 4 subtypes of CHDs. We compared the concentrations of the five metabolite (MA, mHA, HA, PGA, and SPMA) levels of benzene compounds in the urine of mothers in case and control groups and found no significant differences. Our study suggests that maternal exposure during pregnancy and certain environmental and occupational conditions are risk factors for CHD in offspring, but did not support an association between concentrations of metabolites of benzene compounds in the urine of pregnant women and CHDs in their offspring.
Modelling Radiation Cancer Treatment with a Death-Rate Term in Ordinary and Fractional Differential Equations
Authors: Wilson Nicole , Drapaca Corina S. , Enderling Heiko , Caudell Jimmy J. , Wilkie Kathleen P.
Published: April 2023

Fractional calculus has recently been applied to the mathematical modelling of tumour growth, but its use introduces complexities that may not be warranted. Mathematical modelling with differential equations is a standard approach to study and predict treatment outcomes for population-level and patient-specific responses. Here, we use patient data of radiation-treated tumours to discuss the benefits and limitations of introducing fractional derivatives into three standard models of tumour growth. The fractional derivative introduces a history-dependence into the growth function, which requires a continuous death-rate term for radiation treatment. This newly proposed radiation-induced death-rate term improves computational efficiency in both ordinary and fractional derivative models. This computational speed-up will benefit common simulation tasks such as model parameterization and the construction and running of virtual clinical trials.
Hairy Cell Leukemia: Where Are We in 2023?
Authors: Mendez-Hernandez Andres , Moturi Krishna , Hanson Valeria , Andritsos Leslie A.
Published: April 2023

Purpose of Review

This article summarizes the current state of knowledge of hairy cell leukemia (HCL) regarding presentation, diagnosis, therapy, and monitoring, including perspectives on emergent therapies.

Recent Findings

Over the past decade, there has been enormous progress in the understanding of the biology of HCL which has led to the development of novel therapeutic strategies. The maturation of data regarding existing management strategies has also lent considerable insight into therapeutic outcomes and prognosis of patients treated with chemo- or chemoimmunotherapy. Purine nucleoside analogs remain the cornerstone of treatment, and the addition of rituximab has deepened and prolonged responses in the upfront and relapsed setting. Targeted therapies now have a more defined role in the management of HCL, with BRAF inhibitors now having a potential in the first-line setting in selected cases as well as in relapse. Next-generation sequencing for the identification of targetable mutations, evaluation of measurable residual disease, and risk stratification continue to be areas of active investigation.

Recent advances in HCL have led to more effective therapeutics in the upfront and relapsed setting. Future efforts will focus on identifying patients with high-risk disease who require intensified regimens. Multicenter collaborations are the key to improving overall survival and quality of life in this rare disease.
A Taxonomy for Research Integrity Training: Design, Conduct, and Improvements in Research Integrity Courses
Authors: van den Hoven Mariëtte , Lindemann Tom , Zollitsch Linda , Prieß-Buchheit Julia
Published: April 2023

Trainers often use information from previous learning sessions to design or redesign a course. Although universities conducted numerous research integrity training in the past decades, information on what works and what does not work in research integrity training are still scattered. The latest meta-reviews offer trainers some information about effective teaching and learning activities. Yet they lack information to determine which activities are plausible for specific target groups and learning outcomes and thus do not support course design decisions in the best possible manner. This article wants to change this status quo and outlines an easy-to-use taxonomy for research integrity training based on Kirkpatrick’s four levels of evaluation to foster mutual exchange and improve research integrity course design. By describing the taxonomy for research integrity training (TRIT) in detail and outlining three European projects, their intended training effects before the project started, their learning outcomes, teaching and learning activities, and their assessment instruments, this article introduces a unified approach. This article gives practitioners references to identify didactical interrelations and impacts and (knowledge) gaps in how to (re-)design an RI course. The suggested taxonomy is easy to use and enables an increase in tailored and evidence-based (re-)designs of research integrity training.
Research Ethics in the Age of Digital Platforms
Authors: Molina José Luis , Tubaro Paola , Casilli Antonio , Santos-Ortega Antonio
Published: April 2023

Scientific research is growingly increasingly reliant on "microwork" or "crowdsourcing" provided by digital platforms to collect new data. Digital platforms connect clients and workers, charging a fee for an algorithmically managed workflow based on Terms of Service agreements. Although these platforms offer a way to make a living or complement other sources of income, microworkers lack fundamental labor rights and basic safe working conditions, especially in the Global South. We ask how researchers and research institutions address the ethical issues involved in considering microworkers as "human participants." We argue that current scientific research fails to treat microworkers in the same way as in-person human participants, producing de facto a double morality: one applied to people with rights acknowledged by states and international bodies (e.g., the Helsinki Declaration), the other to guest workers of digital autocracies who have almost no rights at all. We illustrate our argument by drawing on 57 interviews conducted with microworkers in Spanish-speaking countries.
Rat Hair Metabolomics Analysis Reveals Perturbations of Unsaturated Fatty Acid Biosynthesis, Phenylalanine, and Arachidonic Acid Metabolism Pathways Are Associated with Amyloid-β-Induced Cognitive Deficits
Authors: Tan Tian-Hoe , Li Shih-Wen , Chang Chih-Wei , Chen Yuan-Chih , Liu Yu-Hsuan , Ma Jui-Ti , Chang Ching-Ping , Liao Pao-Chi
Published: April 2023

Hair is a noninvasive valuable biospecimen for the long-term assessment of endogenous metabolic disturbance. Whether the hair is suitable for identifying biomarkers of the Alzheimer’s disease (AD) process remains unknown. We aim to investigate the metabolism changes in hair after β-amyloid (Aβ1-42) exposure in rats using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry–based untargeted and targeted methods. Thirty-five days after Aβ1-42 induction, rats displayed significant cognitive deficits, and forty metabolites were changed, of which twenty belonged to three perturbed pathways: (1) phenylalanine metabolism and phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan biosynthesis—l-phenylalanine, phenylpyruvate, ortho-hydroxyphenylacetic acid, and phenyllactic acid are up-regulated; (2) arachidonic acid (ARA) metabolism—leukotriene B4 (LTB4), arachidonyl carnitine, and 5(S)-HPETE are upregulation, but ARA, 14,15-DiHETrE, 5(S)-HETE, and PGB2 are opposite; and (3) unsaturated fatty acid biosynthesis— eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), FA 18:3 + 1O, and FA 18:3 + 2O are downregulated. Linoleic acid metabolism belonging to the biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acid includes the upregulation of 8-hydroxy-9,10-epoxystearic acid, 13-oxoODE, and FA 18:2 + 4O, and downregulation of 9(S)-HPODE and dihomo-γ-linolenic acid. In addition, cortisone and dehydroepiandrosterone belonging to steroid hormone biosynthesis are upregulated. These three perturbed metabolic pathways also correlate with cognitive impairment after Aβ1-42 stimulation. Furthermore, ARA, DHA, EPA, l-phenylalanine, and cortisone have been previously implicated in the cerebrospinal fluid of AD patients and show a similar changing trend in Aβ1-42 rats’ hair. These data suggest hair can be a useful biospecimen that well reflects the expression of non-polar molecules under Aβ1-42 stimulation, and the five metabolites have the potential to serve as novel AD biomarkers.
Transjugular intrahepatic collateral-systemic shunt is effective for cavernous transformation of the portal vein with variceal bleeding
Authors: Tie Jun , Gou Xiaoyuan , He Chuangye , Li Kai , Yuan Xulong , Jia Wenyuan , Niu Jing , Han Na , Xu Jiao , Zhu Ying , Wang Wenlan
Published: April 2023

Background

The transjugular intrahepatic portal collateral-systemic shunt (transcollateral TIPS) is used to treat portal hypertension-related complications in patients with cavernous transformation of the portal vein (CTPV) and whose main portal vein cannot be recanalized. It is still not clear whether transcollateral TIPS can be as effective as portal vein recanalization–transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (PVR–TIPS). This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of transcollateral TIPS in the treatment of refractory variceal bleeding with CTPV.

Methods

Patients with refractory variceal bleeding caused by CTPV were selected from the database of consecutive patients treated with TIPS in Xijing Hospital from January 2015 to March 2022. They were divided into the transcollateral TIPS group and the PVR–TIPS group. The rebleeding rate, overall survival, shunt dysfunction, overt hepatic encephalopathy (OHE) and operation-related complications were analyzed.

Results

A total of 192 patients were enrolled, including 21 patients with transcollateral TIPS and 171 patients with PVR–TIPS. Compared with the patients with PVR–TIPS, the patients with transcollateral TIPS had more noncirrhosis (52.4 vs. 19.9%, p = 0.002), underwent fewer splenectomies (14.3 vs. 40.9%, p = 0.018), and had more extensive thromboses (38.1 vs. 15.2%, p = 0.026). There were no differences in rebleeding, survival, shunt dysfunction, or operation-related complication rates between the transcollateral TIPS and PVR–TIPS groups. However, the OHE rate was significantly lower in the transcollateral TIPS group (9.5 vs. 35.1%, p = 0.018).

Conclusion

Transcollateral TIPS is an effective treatment for CTPV with refractory variceal bleeding.