bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Advancements in Inflammation Parallels Myopenia inWinnieMice Model of Spontaneous Chronic Colitis
Authors: Sharma Shilpa , Debruin Danielle , Devereaux Jeannie , Nurgali Kulmira , Hayes Alan , Duque Gustavo
Published: November 2024

Background

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is characterized by gastrointestinal inflammation and systemic complications, including muscle wasting. Musculoskeletal conditions have remained an unappreciated aspect of IBD. This study aimed to describe the Winnie mouse model’s skeletal muscle phenotype and functional alterations. This model spontaneously develops chronic colitis that closely resembles human IBD.

Methods

Winniemice and C57BL/6 (littermate) controls were evaluated at 5-6 weeks (pre-colitis) and 15-16 weeks (active colitis). Assessments included disease activity, inflammation, muscle function tests, andex vivoanalyses of the soleus (SOL) and tibialis anterior (TA) muscles for mass and histology.

Results

At 5-6 weeks,Winniemice showed no disease activity or muscle changes. At 15 weeks,Winniemice exhibited significantly higher disease activity index (DAI) and elevated lipocalin-2 (LCN-2) levels than controls. SOL and TA muscles showed decreased weights and fibre sizes, which correlated significantly with LCN-2 levels. Wheel-running activity was reduced, which correlated with increased LCN-2 levels and DAI. DAI negatively correlated with muscle mass and fibre size. Grip strength remained unaltered despite these changes.

Conclusion

TheWinniemouse model develops significant skeletal muscle alterations paralleling intestinal inflammation progression, characterized by reduced muscle mass and size with preserved strength but impaired functional endurance capacity. These findings establish theWinniemodel as a valuable tool for investigating IBD-associated muscle wasting.

Key Messages:

1. What is already known?

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is associated with systemic complications, including muscle dysfunction.

2. What is new here?

TheWinniemouse model of chronic colitis develops skeletal muscle alterations that correlate with the progression of intestinal inflammation.

Muscle changes inWinniemice include reduced muscle mass, decreased fibre size, and, functional decline but preserved grip strength.

3. How can this study help patient care?

This research highlights the importance of monitoring muscle health in IBD patients and suggests potential targets for interventions to preserve muscle function.

TheWinniemodel provides a valuable tool for testing therapies aimed at addressing muscle dysfunction in IBD.
ERGA-BGE Reference Genome of the Northern chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra): Europe’s most abundant mountain ungulate
Authors: Buzan Elena , Bončina Aja , Pokorny Boštjan , Escudero Nuria , Fernández Rosa , Böhne Astrid , Monteiro Rita , Gut Marta , Câmara Ferreira Francisco , Cruz Fernando , Gómez-Garrido Jèssica , Alioto Tyler S. , Haggerty Leanne , Martin Fergal , De Panis Diego
Published: November 2024

The reference genome ofRupicapra rupicapra(subsp.rupicapra) provides insights into the genetic makeup that enabled this iconic mountain ungulate to adapt to its harsh environment, including its ability to survive in extreme weather and high altitudes—factors that are increasingly important in the face of climate change. A total of 29 contiguous chromosomal pseudomolecules were assembled from the genome sequence. This chromosome-level assembly encompasses 2.62 Gb, composed of 124 contigs and 76 scaffolds, with contig and scaffold N50 values of 77 Mb and 101 Mb, respectively.
Pre-treatments of Ex vivo Vascularized Composite Allografts: A Scoping Review
Authors: Baker Caroline E , Stead Thor S , Shah Alay R , Pullmann Dominika , Chinta Sachin , Tran David L , Brydges Hilliard T , Laspro Matteo , Gelb Bruce E , Rodriguez Eduardo D , Rabbani Piul S
Published: November 2024

PURPOSE

The various physiological profiles comprising vascularized composite allografts (VCAs) pose unique challenges to preservation. Minimizing ischemia, reperfusion injury, and rejection remains a primary focus of graft pre-treatments (PTs). Currently, the gold standard PT consists of flushing the graft and placing it in static cold storage in the University of Wisconsin solution. With this method, graft viability is limited to four to six hours. Prolonging this time limit will increase donor allocation radius, access to care, and positive patient outcomes. We aimed to evaluate novel PTs that could potentially enhance and lengthen VCA viability.

METHODS

Following PRISMA guidelines, we conducted a comprehensive literature search of Embase, Cochrane, and PubMed. Studies had to be published prior to June 15, 2022. PTs had to target cell physiology, rather than immunogenicity. We extracted data including study design, PT details, evaluation metrics, and outcomes.

RESULTS

We identified thirteen studies, categorized into three groups: solution-based alterations to the gold standard, ex vivo perfusion, and other novel techniques. The incorporation of hydrogen sulfide and Perfadex as solutions in the gold standard protocol demonstrated a six-day delay in rejection and limited reperfusion injury markers, respectively. In one ex vivo perfusion study, after 24 hours of PT and 12 hours post-transplant, VCA muscle contractility remained close to normal. The gold standard PT did not demonstrate the same success. However, graft weight gain, up to 50% of baseline among the articles reviewed, is a prominent side effect of perfusion. Another technique, cryopreservation, displayed 90% graft failure by venous thrombosis, despite high free graft viability following two weeks of storage.

CONCLUSIONS

This study of pre-treatment modalities found a variety of encouraging preservation techniques for grafts with high levels of tissue diversity. Ex vivo perfusion dominated PT innovation with promising results in preserving the viability and functionality of muscle, which is central to the restoration of movement. Future studies are necessary to evaluate long-term graft outcomes and to optimize PT protocols for extended preservation times to ensure clinical relevance.
Home range spillover in habitats with impassable boundaries: Causes, biases, and corrections using autocorrelated kernel density estimation
Authors: Hollins Jack P.W. , Fleming Christen H. , Calabrese Justin M. , Harris Les N. , Moore Jean Sebastien , Malley Brendan K. , Noonan Michael J. , Fagan William F. , Alston Jesse M. , Hussey Nigel E.
Published: November 2024

An animal’s home range plays a fundamental role in determining its resource use and overlap with conspecifics, competitors and predators, and is therefore a common focus of movement ecology studies. Autocorrelated kernel density estimation addresses many of the shortcomings of traditional home range estimators when animal tracking data is autocorrelated, but other challenges in home range estimation remain.

One such issue is known as ‘spillover bias’, in which home range estimates do not respect impassable movement boundaries (e.g., shorelines, fences), and occurs in all forms of kernel density estimation. While several approaches to addressing spillover bias are used when estimating home ranges, these approaches introduce bias throughout the remaining home range area, depending on the amount of spillover removed, or are otherwise inaccessible to most ecologists. Here, we introduce local corrections to home range kernels to mitigate spillover bias in (autocorrelated) kernel density estimation in the continuous time movement model (ctmm) package, and demonstrate their performance using simulations with known home range extents and distributions, and a real world case study.

Simulation results showed that local corrections minimised bias in bounded home range area estimates, and resulted in more accurate distributions when compared to commonly usedpost-hoccorrections, particularly at small-intermediate sample sizes.

Comparison of the impacts of local vs post-hoc corrections to bounded home ranges estimated from lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) demonstrated that local corrections constrained bias within the remaining home range area, resulting in proportionally smaller home range areas compared to when post-hoc corrections are used.
Effect of Western diet on body composition, locomotor performance and blood biochemical profile in the bank vole
Authors: Hseiky Alaa , Lipowska Małgorzata M. , Sadowska Edyta T. , Józkowicz Alicja , Nowak Witold N. , Koteja Paweł
Published: November 2024

Objective

The adverse effects of diets high in both fat and simple sugars (“Western diets”, WD), which are one of the causes of the epidemics of obesity and related disorders, have been extensively studied in laboratory rodents, but not in non-laboratory animals, which limits the scope of conclusions. For example, a few studies have shown that, unlike the laboratory mice or rats, non-laboratory rodents that reduce body mass for winter do not develop obesity when fed a high-fat diet. However, it is not known whether these rodents are also resistant to the adverse effects of WD. Here, we investigated the effects of WD on body composition, locomotor performance and blood biochemical profile in such a rodent, the bank vole (Clethrionomys = Myodes glareolus).

Methods

Young voles were fed either a standard diet or one of six versions of WD (varying in fat, sucrose, and cholesterol content) from the age of 21 days until adulthood (16 individuals per group), and then several morpho-physiological and biochemical traits were analyzed.

Results

Neither body mass, fat content nor blood glucose were elevated by WD (p≥0.11). Basal metabolic rate, sprint speed, endurance distance, and aerobic exercise capacity were also not significantly affected by the diet (p≥0.2). However, altered respiratory exchange rates indicated altered metabolic pathways, and the liver and spleen were enlarged in the groups fed WD with added cholesterol (p≤0.002). Similarly, concentrations of cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), non-HDL, glutamic pyruvic transaminase, glutamic oxaloacetate transaminase (GOT), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were elevated in the WD groups, especially the cholesterol-supplemented WD (p≤0.0001), indicating altered liver function.

Conclusions

Bank voles appeared to be resistant to diet-induced obesity and diabetes, but not to other adverse effects of WD, especially cholesterol-supplemented WD. Therefore, the bank vole is a promising model species to study diet-induced liver disease in lean individuals.
Transcriptional landscape of the archaeal cell cycle is broadly conserved in eukaryotes
Authors: Gomez-Raya-Vilanova Miguel V. , Teulière Jérôme , Medvedeva Sofia , Dai Yuping , Corel Eduardo , Lopez Philippe , Lapointe François-Joseph , Bhattacharya Debashish , Haraoui Louis-Patrick , Turc Elodie , Monot Marc , Cvirkaite-Krupovic Virginija , Bapteste Eric , Krupovic Mart
Published: November 2024

The cell cycle is a series of events that occur from the moment of cell birth to cell division. In eukaryotes, cell growth, genome replication, genome segregation, and cytokinesis are strictly coordinated, defining discrete cell cycle phases. In contrast, these key processes may occur concurrently in bacteria. Thermoacidophilic archaea in the genusSaccharolobusfollow a defined cell cycle program, with the first pre-replicative growth (G1) phase, followed by the chromosome replication (S) phase, the second growth (G2) phase, and rapid genome segregation (M) and cytokinesis (D) phases. However, whether other processes, such as metabolism, catabolism, protein translation, and antiviral defense also occur at specific cell cycle phases, as in eukaryotes, or are active throughout the cell cycle, as in bacteria, remains unclear. To address this question, we synchronized cultures ofS. islandicusand performed an in-depth transcriptomic analysis of samples enriched in cells undergoing the M-G1, S, and G2 phases. Differential gene expression and consensus gene co-expression network analyses provided a holistic view of theS. islandicuscell cycle. In addition to the core transcriptome network, which is expressed throughout the cell cycle, we show that diverse metabolic pathways, protein synthesis, cell motility and even antiviral defense systems, are expressed in a cell cycle dependent fashion. Our data also refines understanding of the processes previously known to be linked to the cell cycle, such as DNA replication. We show that most DNA replication genes are expressed prior to the S phase, during the M-G1, whereas expression of the major chromatin genes, and accordingly, chromatinization are concomitant with replication. A statistical model was used to define sets of signature genes characteristic of each of the analyzed cell cycle phases, emphasizing transcriptional stratification of the phases. Signature genes are more conserved across Thermoproteota than non-signature genes and their peak expression, especially for the M-G1 and G2 specific genes, matches that of homologs in yeast. Collectively, our data elucidate the complexity of theS. islandicuscell cycle and suggest that it more closely resembles the cell cycle of eukaryotes than previously appreciated.
Ancient climate changes and relaxed selection shape cave colonisation in North American cavefishes
Authors: Hart Pamela , Rincon-Sandoval Melissa , Melendez-Vazquez Fernando , Armbruster Jonathan , Troyer Emily , Bierstein Orran , Gough Brendan , Betancur-R Ricardo , Niemiller Matthew , Arcila Dahiana
Published: November 2024

Extreme environments serve as natural laboratories for studying evolutionary processes, with caves offering replicated instances of independent colonisations. The timing, mode, and genetic underpinnings underlying cave-obligate organismal evolution remains enigmatic. We integrate phylogenomics, fossils, paleoclimatic modeling, and newly sequenced genomes to elucidate the evolutionary history and adaptive processes of cave colonisation in the study group, the North American Amblyopsidae fishes. Amblyopsid fishes present a unique system for investigating cave evolution, encompassing surface, facultative cave-dwelling, and cave-obligate (troglomorphic) species. Using 1,105 exon markers and total-evidence dating, we reconstructed a robust phylogeny that supports the nested position of eyed, facultative cave-dwelling species within blind cavefishes. We identified three independent cave colonisations, dated to the Early Miocene (18.5 Mya), Late Miocene (10.0 Mya), and Pliocene (3.0 Mya). Evolutionary model testing supported a climate-relict hypothesis, suggesting that global cooling trends since the Early-Middle Eocene may have influenced cave colonisation. Comparative genomic analyses of 487 candidate genes revealed both relaxed and intensified selection on troglomorphy-related loci. We found more loci under relaxed selection, supporting neutral mutation as a significant mechanism in cave-obligate evolution. Our findings provide empirical support for climate-driven cave colonisation and offer insights into the complex interplay of selective pressures in extreme environments.
Cingulate and striatal hubs are linked to early skill learning
Authors: Sugata Hisato , Iwane Fumiaki , Hayward William , Azzollini Valentina , Dash Debadatta , Salamanca-Giron Roberto F , Bönstrup Marlene , Buch Ethan R , Cohen Leonardo G
Published: November 2024

Early skill learning develops in the context of activity changes in distributed cortico-subcortical regions. Here, we investigated network hubs—centers of information integration and transmission—within the brain network supporting early skill learning. We recorded magnetoencephalographic (MEG) brain activity in healthy human subjects who learned a moderately difficult sequence skill with their non-dominant left hand. We then computed network hub strength by summing top 10% functional connectivity over 86 parcellated brain regions (AAL3 atlas) and five brain oscillatory frequency bands (alpha, low-, high-beta, low- and high-gamma). Virtually all skill gains developed during rest intervals of early learning (micro-offline gains). MEG hub strength in the alpha band (8-13Hz) in bilateral anterior cingulate (ACC) and caudate and in the low-beta band (13-16Hz) in bilateral caudate and right putamen correlated with micro-offline gains. These regions linked strongly with the hippocampus, parahippocampal cortex, and lingual and fusiform gyri. Thus, alpha and low-beta brain oscillatory activity in cingulate and striatal regions appear to contribute as hubs of information integration and transmission during early skill learning.

Significance Statement

Early learning of moderately difficult skill sequences develops over periods of rest interspersed with practice (micro-offline gains). We demonstrate here a link between alpha and low-beta oscillatory activity in a cingulate-hippocampo-striato network hubs and rest intervals of early learning.
Syntopic call diversity among morphologically similar calling morphs of the paleotropical katydid of genusMecopoda(Tettigoniidae) from an Indo-Burma biodiversity hotspot
Authors: Ghosh Aarini , Dasoju Vivek , Borgohain Jishnu , Rahman Ashique , Rajaraman Bittu Kaveri
Published: November 2024

The acoustically diverse family of Tettigoniidae (Ensifera, Orthoptera) (commonly called bushcrickets or katydids), constitutes an excellent system to study the evolution of calling songs.Mecopodais a genus that is particularly interesting because of the many morphologically cryptic calling morphs that have been described across South, East, and Southeast Asia, some of which are considered endemic to India. We describe five new syntopic and sympatric calling morphs of the genusMecopodathat are morphologically similar but acoustically diverse from a sub-tropical forest in Meghalaya, in the Indo-Burma biodiversity hotspot. We report the morphological and acoustic characterization of these five call types, finding morphological overlap but well-separated acoustic clusters based on a PCA analysis of call temporal and spectral features. We also sequenced the COI gene mitochondrial gene of these five call types as well as other call types previously reported from India and performed a phylogenetic analysis of this gene relative to previously reported COI gene sequences from genusMecopoda.Phylogenetic results suggest our five call types are not mutually monophyletic and relate from different subspecies ofMecopoda, of which three call types are genetically well separated from other calling morphs. This broadens our understanding of the evolution of acoustic diversity among paleotropical katydids.
Characterization of the Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus terminase complex component ORF29
Authors: Iwaisako Yuki , Suzuki Youichi , Nakano Takashi , Fujimuro Masahiro
Published: November 2024

Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) belongs to the gammaherpesvirinae subfamily. In the lytic phase of herpesviruses, viral capsids are formed in the nucleus of the host cell and the replicated viral genome is packaged into capsids. The herpesviral genome is replicated as a precursor head-to-tail concatemer consisting of tandemly repeated genomic units, and each genomic unit is flanked by terminal repeats (TRs). The herpesvirus terminase complex packages one genomic unit into a capsid, by cleavage of the TRs in a precursor genome. Although the terminase complexes of alpha- and beta-herpesviruses are well characterized, in KSHV, the terminase complex is poorly understood. KSHV ORF7, ORF67.5, and ORF29 are thought to be components of the terminase complex. We previously reported that ORF7- or ORF67.5-deficient KSHV formed immature soccer ball-like capsids and failed to cleave the TRs, resulting in decreased virion production. Moreover, ORF7 interacted with ORF29 and ORF67.5. However, ORF29 and ORF67.5 did not interact with each other. Thus, although ORF7 and ORF67.5 are important for KSHV terminase function, the function of ORF29 remains largely unknown. Here, we constructed ORF29-deficient BAC16 and analyzed its virological properties. ORF29 was essential for virion production and TR cleavage. Numerous immature soccer ball-like capsids were observed in ORF29-deficient KSHV-harboring cells. The N-terminal region of ORF29 was important for its interaction with ORF7, although full-length ORF29 was required for effective complexation of the KSHV terminase. Furthermore, ORF29 preferentially interacted with itself rather than with ORF7. Thus, our data shows that ORF29 functions as a fundamental terminase component.

IMPORTANCE

Since the role of ORF29 in the KSHV terminase complex remains unknown, we constructed ORF29-deficient KSHV. Our results demonstrated that ORF29 functions as a component of the KSHV terminase and is critical for capsid formation, TR cleavage, and terminase complexation. Moreover, ORF29 robustly interacted with itself. In HSV-1, a terminase complex containing UL15, UL28, and UL33 forms a trimer, and six trimers assemble into a hexameric ring. The HSV-1 genome passes through this ring and undergoes TR cleavage and genome packaging into a capsid. The self-interaction of ORF29 may be involved in the multimerization of a terminase complex or formation of the KSHV terminase ring. In addition, a novel KSHV protein, which we refer to as ORF29.5, was expressed during the lytic state. ORF29.5 mRNA shares the same stop codon with the ORF29 mRNA. Moreover, a part of the ORF29.5 coding region may overlap with the C-terminal ORF29 coding region.
ReachUHC - A randomized controlled trial study protocol of mobile phone-based reminder and automatic renewal interventions to increase health insurance renewal rates in Kumasi, Ghana
Authors: Nübler Laura , Kwawukume Mawumenyo Aku , Ibrahim Fati , Neumann Anne , Okoe-Boye Bernard , Addo-Cobbiah Vivian , Owusu-Dabo Ellis , Mensah Kofi Akohene , Struckmann Verena , Knauss Samuel , Emmrich Julius Valentin , Waitzberg Ruth , Affanyi Enoch , Afflu Orison , Annor-Darkwah Joe , Blankson Daniel , Asenso-Boadi Francis , Cazier Juliette , Bencivenga Jennifer , Pioch Carolina , Siegel Martin , Quentin Wilm , Opoku Daniel
Published: November 2024

Background

Since the Ghanaian National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) was introduced in 2004, coverage rates have remained low, despite affordable premiums and payment exemptions for minor, senior, poor and pregnant individuals. While 82% of the population have registered with the NHIS, many fail to complete the annual renewal and thus lose their coverage. A mobile renewal service introduced in 2018 simplified the previously cumbersome renewal procedure. Still, 40% of active member experience gaps in coverage in a given year, and 19% fail to renew at all. Baseline research suggests that forgetfulness is a major barrier to renewal.

Methods

342,818 NHIS members from Kumasi will be randomized into the reminder, autorenewal or control groups. The reminder arm receives SMS prompts to complete the mobile renewal process and payment before expiration. The autorenewal arm is eligible to sign up for automatic renewal and give the NHIS permission to deduct the premium from their mobile money account, and will receive SMS prompt to do so. The intervention lasts 6 months. NHIS routine data will be used to evaluate the effect of the interventions on renewals. A follow-up survey household survey in Kumasi will evaluate additional aspects user experience.

Discussion

Improving insurance retention has the potential to substantially increase health insurance coverage rates, as 45% of the Ghanaians currently have expired insurance. Assessing these tools will identify enabling factors and barriers of the intervention and inform the transferability of the intervention to other health insurance systems in sub-Saharan African countries.

Trial registration

Pan African Clinical Trials Registry (PACTR)
Horizontal transfer of accessory chromosomes in fungi – a regulated process for exchange of genetic material?
Authors: Habig Michael , Patneedi Satish Kumar , Stam Remco , De Fine Licht Henrik Hjarvard
Published: November 2024

Horizontal transfer of entire chromosomes has been reported in several fungal pathogens, often significantly impacting the fitness of the recipient fungus. All documented instances of horizontal chromosome transfers (HCTs) showed a marked propensity for accessory chromosomes, consistently involving the transfer of an accessory chromosome while other chromosomes were seldom, if ever, co-transferred. The mechanisms underlying HCTs, as well as the factors regulating the specificity of HCTs for accessory chromosomes, remain unclear. In this perspective, we provide an overview of the observed propensity in reported cases of horizontal chromosome transfers. We hypothesize the existence of a signal that distinguishes mobile, i.e., horizontally transferred, accessory chromosomes from the rest of the donor genome. Recent findings inMetarhizium robertsiiandMagnaporthe oryzae, suggest that a mobile accessory chromosome may contain putative histones and/or histone modifiers, which could generate such a signal. Based on this, we propose that mobile accessory chromosomes may encode the machinery required for their own horizontal transmission, implying that HCT could be a regulated process. Finally, we present evidence of substantial differences in codon usage bias between core and accessory chromosomes in 14 out of 19 analysed fungal species and strains. Such differences in codon usage bias could indicate past horizontal transfers of these accessory chromosomes. Interestingly, HCT was previously unknown for many of these species, suggesting that the horizontal transfer of accessory chromosomes may be more widespread than previously thought and, therefore, an important factor in fungal genome evolution.
Unravelling the molecular activation of the reparative cardiac fibroblasts after myocardial infarction
Authors: Hernández Silvia C , Ainciburu Marina , Sudupe Laura , Planell Nuria , Vilas-Zornoza Amaia , López-Moreno María , Sarvide Sarai , Diaz-Martinez Luis , Cobos-Figueroa Jorge , Martin-Uriz Patxi San , Muinos-López Emma , Abizanda Gloria , Ripalda-Cemboráin Purificación , Lagani Vincenzo , Romero Juan P. , Tegner Jesper , Pérez-Pomares José Mª , Wu Ming , Janssens Stefan , Prósper Felipe , Ruiz-Villalba Adrián , Gómez-Cabrero David
Published: November 2024

Activated cardiac fibroblasts (Postn+CFs) are responsible for the healing of the heart tissue after a myocardial infarction (MI). However, so far little is known about the moment that CFs are activated, and the genes involved in this process. This is especially relevant in the context of CF heterogeneity and their role in the response to the damage. In this context, we have described a subpopulation of activated CFs responsible for the healing scar and for preventing the rupture of the ventricle after the damage: the Reparative Cardiac Fibroblasts (RCFs). Our new data indicate that RCFs directly derived from activated CFs, and this transcriptional shift happens in a close window after damage. Interestingly, our results exhibited two different molecular dynamics that would give rise to this activation and, consequently, the appearance of definitive RCFs. Using bulk RNA-Seq, RNAScope and Spatial Transcriptomics, we anatomically localized some of the genes related to both dynamics in the infarcted heart and highlight the potential role ofAspnas a new marker of this transcriptional transition in mice, pigs and patients.
Aspergillus nidulansTranscription Factor BrlA is Utilized in a Conidiation-Independent Response to Cell-Wall Stress
Authors: Edwards Harley , Zavorskas Joseph , Huso Walker , Doan Alexander G. , Grey Kelsey , Lee JungHun , Morse Meredith , Wilkinson Heather H. , Ebbole Danniel , Shaw Brian D. , Harris Steven D. , Srivastava Ranjan , Marten Mark R.
Published: November 2024

Under synchronized conidiation, over 2500 gene products show differential expression, including transcripts for bothbrlAandabaA, which increase steadily over time. In contrast, during wall-stress induced by the echinocandin micafungin, thebrlAtranscript is upregulated while theabaAtranscript is not. In addition, whenmpkA(last protein kinase in the cell wall integrity signaling pathway) is deleted,brlAexpression is not upregulated in response to wall stress. Together, these data imply BrlA may play a role in a cellular stress-response which is independent of the canonical BrlA-mediated conidiation pathway. To test this hypothesis, we performed a genome-wide search and found 332 genes with a putative BrlA response element (BRE) in their promoter region. From this set, we identified 28 genes which were differentially expressed in response to wall-stress, but not during synchronized conidiation. This set included seven gene products whose homologues are involved in transmembrane transport and 14 likely to be involved in secondary metabolite biosynthesis. We selected six of these genes for further examination and find that they all show altered expression behavior in thebrlAdeletion strain. Together, these data support the idea that BrlA plays a role in various biological processes outside asexual development.

Importance

TheAspergillus nidulanstranscription factor BrlA is widely accepted as a master regulator of conidiation. Here, we show that in addition to this function BrlA appears to play a role in responding to cell-wall stress. We note that this has not been observed outsideA. nidulans. Further, BrlA-mediated conidiation is highly conserved acrossAspergillusspecies, so this new functionality is likely relevant in otherAspergilli. We identified several transmembrane transporters that have altered transcriptional responses to cell-wall stress in abrlAdeletion mutant. Based on our observation, together with what is known about thebrlAgene locus’ regulation, we identifybrlAβas the likely intermediary in function ofbrlAin the response to cell-wall stress.
Novel standard candle: Collapsing axion stars
Authors: Di Haoran , Shao Lijing , Yi Zhu , Kong Shi-Bei
Published: November 2024

The Hubble constant, H0, is a crucial parameter in cosmology. However, various cosmic observations have produced differing posterior values for H0, resulting in what is referred to as the H0 tension. To resolve this discrepancy, utilizing other cosmological probes to constrain H0 is advantageous. In the quest to identify dark matter candidates, the QCD axion and axionlike particles, collectively referred to as axions, have become leading contenders. These elusive particles can coalesce into dense structures known as axion stars via Bose-Einstein condensation. When these axion stars exceed a critical mass, typically through accretion or merging, they experience a self-induced collapse. This process results in short radio bursts, assuming a decay constant fa≲1013  GeV, with the frequency depending on the axion mass and the luminosity determined by both the axion mass and decay constant. Therefore, we propose that collapsing axion stars could serve as a novel standard candle to constrain H0. Even more interesting is that the radio bursts emitted by collapsing axion stars with specific parameters match the characteristics of observed nonrepeating fast radio bursts. Thus, fast radio bursts generated by collapsing axion stars have the potential to be used as standard candles to constrain H0.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Enhanced predictive capability for chaotic dynamics by modified quantum reservoir computing
Authors: Wang Longhan , Sun Yifan , Zhang Xiangdong
Published: November 2024

Deducing the states of spatiotemporally chaotic systems (SCSs) as they evolve in time is crucial for various applications. However, generally achieving this is a dramatic challenge due to the complexity of nonperiodic dynamics and the hardness of obtaining robust solutions. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in approaching the problem using both classical and quantum machine learning methods. Although effective for predicting SCSs within a relatively short time, the current schemes are not capable of providing robust solutions for longer times than the training time. Here we propose an approach for advancing the prediction of chaotic behavior. Our approach can be viewed as a unique quantum reservoir computing scheme, which can simultaneously capture the linear and the nonlinear features of input data and evolve under a modified Hamiltonian. Our work presents an alternative approach to handling SCSs.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Realization of High-Fidelity CZ Gate Based on a Double-Transmon Coupler
Authors: Li Rui , Kubo Kentaro , Ho Yinghao , Yan Zhiguang , Nakamura Yasunobu , Goto Hayato
Published: November 2024

Striving for higher gate fidelity is crucial not only for enhancing existing noisy intermediate-scale quantum devices, but also for unleashing the potential of fault-tolerant quantum computation through quantum error correction. A recently proposed theoretical scheme, the double-transmon coupler (DTC), aims to achieve both suppressed residual interaction and a fast high-fidelity two-qubit gate simultaneously, particularly for highly detuned qubits. Harnessing the state-of-the-art fabrication techniques and a model-free pulse-optimization process based on reinforcement learning, we translate the theoretical DTC scheme into reality, attaining fidelities of 99.90% for a controlled-Z gate and 99.98% for single-qubit gates. The performance of the DTC scheme demonstrates its potential as a competitive building block for superconducting quantum processors.

Published by the American Physical Society
2024
Development and evaluation of an enhanced haptic-based virtual reality flight simulator for stratospheric airships
Authors: Rostami Mohsen , Kamoonpuri Jafer Mujtaba , Pradhan Pratik , Chung Joon
Published: November 2024

Purpose

The ground control station (GCS) is an important part of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) which provides the facility for human control. In previous work, the authors developed an enhanced virtual reality GCS (VR-GCS) for airships. Here, the authors incorporated haptic gloves to control the aerial vehicle with the use of a virtual controller defined within the virtual environment.

Design/methodology/approach

The VR headset was connected to the haptics and the flight simulation tool. The VR headset was used to visualize basic flight simulation while the vehicle was controlled via the haptic gloves and a virtual controller defined in the virtual environment. Here, using the previous experience, the position and orientation data from the VR headset was sent to the FlightGear flight simulator (FGFS) via extensible markup language codes. This was used to drive the heads-up-display (HUD) as well within the VR headset. Then, the inputs from the pilot on the virtual controller were sent to the FGFS using an embedded code. To accurately simulate the final goal of deploying the haptic-based VR solution to monitor and pilot the airship in beyond visual line-of-sight scenarios, a VR application was developed using the Unity game engine. Finally, the integration of VR, haptics and FGFS was performed using another embedded code.

Findings

A test procedure was conducted with a similar rating technique based on the NASA TLX questionnaire that identifies the pilot’s spare mental capacity when completing an assigned task to assure the comfortability of the proposed haptics VR-HMD (HVR-HMD). Accordingly, 10 users participated in the test and a comparison has been made for the aircraft control using the physical remote control (RC) controller and the virtual one. The results from the repeated measures analysis of variance and Tukey’s honestly significant difference post hoc tests revealed significant differences in mental demand, physical demand, effort and frustration across the different simulation conditions. Notably, the HVR-HMD system significantly lowered workload and frustration levels compared to both the desktop and VR-HMD setups, underscoring its effectiveness as a training tool. Results from the NASA TLX questionnaire showed that the current iteration of the system is ideal for training amateur users to replace traditional RC controllers by using similar virtual systems in a safe and immersive environment.

Originality/value

Such an advanced portable system may increase the situational awareness of pilots and allow them to complete flights with the same data transmission procedures using virtual systems in simulation.
Marx's original theoretical contributions to Das Kapital
Authors: Li Jianping
Published: November 2024

Purpose

This paper expounds three theoretical contributions of Das Kapital from a new perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

First, Karl Marx’s scientific labor theory of value encompasses both abstract and concrete forms; second, the dialectics in Das Kapital serves not only as a methodology but as a theory, and the third is the organic structure of Das Kapital, hailed as “a triumph of German science”.

Findings

The organic structure of Marx’s Das Kapital is not only a remarkable achievement of German science but also a brilliant accomplishment of human science that is hard for future generations to surpass. It serves as an exemplar and illuminates the path and objectives for constructing a scientific system of political economy with Chinese characteristics.

Originality/value

These three theoretical contributions have practical guiding significance in the research on the socialist market economy and the construction of the socialist political economy system with Chinese characteristics.
Interest-bearing capital and monetary policy: a heterogeneous agent Marxian model
Authors: Qiao Xiaonan
Published: November 2024

Purpose

In terms of understanding the new issues emerging in the practice of monetary policies and how to evaluate the latest theories of monetary policy, this paper proposes referring to Das Kapital and developing a monetary policy theory grounded in Marxist political economy.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the discussion of interest-bearing capital in Das Kapital and using a heterogeneous agent model, this paper tries to explain the determining mechanism of interest rate, leverage ratio, and asset price.

Findings

The research finds that if there are differences in the techniques possessed by capital, the resulting disparities in production efficiency will lead to differences in profit rates and further influence the functional choices of capital in the movement of social total capital. Thus, with the formation of lending relationships, interest rates, leverage ratios, and asset prices will be endogenously determined simultaneously. Moreover, as the degree of technological diffusion influences the industrial capitalists’ willingness to take loans as well as the level of profit rates, there may be counter-cyclical changes in the returns on productive investment and financial investment at different stages of the technology life cycle, contributing to diverting funds out of the real economy. Besides, this paper discusses the challenges, tools, and goals of monetary policy within the credit money system.

Originality/value

Clarify the intrinsic mechanism of the functional differentiation of capital determined by heterogeneous technologies and exogenous capital-labor relation and analyze the impact of capital differentiation on the economy.
An incremental software defect detection model based on support vector machine
Authors: Zaibi Dorra , Salhi Maroua , Tbarki Khaoula , Ksantini Riadh
Published: November 2024

Purpose

(1) developing a dynamic and progressive software defect prediction model to successfully manage novel and huge amounts of software defect data and lessen the computational time. (2) to avoid the great diminish of static batch learning algorithms efficiency once the amount of data achieves a certain level.

Design/methodology/approach

This study explores the proficiency of the incremental classification based approach to elaborate anincremental software defect prediction system which helps recognizing and treating real-time software data streams.

Findings

The proposed method, as demonstrated by experimental results, is clearly competitive with the relevant two-class classifiers currently in use for software defect diagnosis. Detailed experimental findings clearly demonstrated the performance and efficiency of the suggested software defect detection approach: Incremental Discriminant-based Support Vector Machine (IDSVM) to differentiate between defective and non-defective objects.

Originality/value

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first a real-time prediction method that investigates incremental classification in software defect prediction research
Fashion cloth image categorization and retrieval with enhanced intensity using SURF and CNN approach
Authors: Kaur Navneet , Pandey Shreelekha , Kalra Nidhi
Published: November 2024

Purpose

The attraction of online shopping has raised the demand for customized image searches, mainly in the fashion industry. Daily updates in this industry increase the size of the clothing database at a rapid rate. Hence, it is crucial to design an efficient and fast image retrieval system owing to the short-listing of images depending upon various parameters such as color, pattern, material used, style, etc.

Design/methodology/approach

This manuscript introduces an improved algorithm for the retrieval of images. The inherited quality of images is first enhanced through intensity modification and morphological operations achieved with the help of a light adjustment algorithm, followed by the speeded up robust feature (SURF) extraction and convolutional neural networks (CNN).

Findings

The results are validated under three performance parameters (precision, recall and accuracy) on a DeepFashion dataset. The proposed approach helps to extract the most relevant images from a larger dataset based on scores conferred by multiple cloth features to meet the demands of real-world applications. The efficiency of the proposed work is deduced from its effectiveness in comparison to existing works, as measured by performance parameters including precision, recall and F1 score. Further, it is also evaluated against other recent techniques on the basis of performance metrics.

Originality/value

The presented work is particularly advantageous in the fashion industry for creating precise categorization and retrieving visually appealing photographs from a diverse library based on different designs, patterns and fashion trends. The proposed approach is quite better than the other existing ML/DL-based approaches for image retrieval and classification. This further reflects a significant improvement in customized image retrieval in the field of the fashion industry.
Leader trustworthiness and intrapreneurial behaviour in the manufacturing industry: the roles of psychological safety and psychological availability
Authors: Ansong Abraham , Adu Peter , Ansong Linda Obeng , Andoh Raphael Papa Kweku
Published: November 2024

Purpose

The main purpose of the study was to analyse the mediating effects of psychological safety (PS) and psychological availability (PA) on the relationship between leader trustworthiness (LT) and intrapreneurial behaviour (IB) among employees from the manufacturing industry in Ghana.

Design/methodology/approach

A sample of 291 who were employees from five manufacturing companies in the industrial hub of Ghana provided data for the study. A closed-ended questionnaire, specifically a seven-point Likert-type scale, was the instrument used for the data collection. The seven hypotheses developed were tested using a structural equation model.

Findings

The study established that LT was related to PS and PA but not IB. Like PS, PA was found to be related to IB. Similarly, both PS and PA were related to IB. Again, both PS and PA fully mediated the relationship between LT and IB. Also, gender had a confounding effect on IB.

Practical implications

LT yields direct positive outcomes such as PS and PA as well as indirect IB for employees and organisations. For organisations, especially in the manufacturing sector, to have employees who are psychologically safe, psychologically available and intrapreneurial, there should be a focus on trustworthy leaders. The leaders should be encouraged to be transparent and communicate by way of their actions and inactions and trustworthy values. Leadership training, colleague supervisor support and participation in professional and or management development programmes should be used to acquire trustworthy values.

Originality/value

This study investigated the mediating roles of PS and PA on the relationship between LT and IB among employees of manufacturing firms in Ghana, which has not received the needed attention in the literature despite the challenges manufacturing firms encounter.
Examination of the effects of innovative work behavior and leadership support on employees
Authors: Adiguzel Zafer , Sonmez Cakir Fatma , Kucukoglu Irem
Published: November 2024

Purpose

The purpose of the study is to examine the effects of innovative working behavior and leader support of employees in marketing and advertising companies, one of the sectors where creative ideas and innovative thoughts are common.

Design/methodology/approach

Within the scope of the research, a questionnaire was applied to 443 authorized employees working in marketing and advertising companies headquartered in Istanbul in order to examine innovative work behavior and leader support. The collected data were analyzed using the SmartPLS 3.3.9 package program.

Findings

As a result of the analysis of the collected data, it is supported by hypotheses that innovative work behavior and leadership support have positive effects on employees.

Research limitations/implications

It is not possible to make generalizations because a questionnaire was administered to 443 authorized employees working in marketing and advertising companies whose research centers are located in Istanbul. However, it should be taken into account as a source to provide a basic idea for future research.

Practical implications

As a result of the analysis of the data collected from the marketing and advertising sectors, where creativity and innovation are common, it can be explained that innovative work behavior has positive effects, and that the positive effects continue with the effect of leader support on innovative work behaviors.

Originality/value

The research is original since it is carried out in marketing and advertising companies where traditional activities are not accepted, constantly innovative ideas and thoughts are stated and innovative behavior of employees is important in terms of raising awareness.