bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An observational, cross-sectional study to assess the quality of life (QoL) of family caregivers of patients diagnosed with cancer
Authors: Chepuri Ganesh Ashok , Mude Gaurav Sanjayrao
Published: February 2024

Globally, cancer has a major impact on society, and the burden continues to grow by exerting physical, emotional, and financial strain on patients, families, societies, and healthcare systems. Cancer greatly affects not only patients, but also their families. Family caregivers are invisible to healthcare teams, but play an important role in the recovery of cancer patients. Cancer can worsen a family caregiver’s health, impair social life, increase anxiety, and cause depression. It is important to identify and deal with various domains affected by cancer to enhance the quality of life (QoL) of family caregivers. This is a prospective, observational, cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study, to assess the impact of cancer on the quality of life of family caregivers. The primary objective is to measure the effect of cancer diagnosis and its treatment on family caregivers’ quality of life using the CarGOQoL (CareGiver Oncology Quality of Life) questionnaire. The secondary objective is to determine the relationship between quality of life, socio-demographic variables, and cancer disease variables. Family caregivers who are associated with the care of cancer patients for at least two–three hours a day will be recruited in the study after signing the voluntary informed consent form. The CarGOQoL questionnaire will be used to record the responses from the participants. Domains such as psychological well-being, burden, relationship with healthcare, administration and finances, coping, physical well-being, self-esteem, leisure, social support, and private life will be recorded. Approximately 100 participants will be recruited for the study. Data analysis will be performed at the end of participant recruitment. Healthcare and social workers can enhance the quality of life of family caregivers by using the results of the CarGOQoL questionnaire, and better understand the different domains of QoL impacted by cancer.
Snowball Sampling and Its Non-Trivial Nature
Authors: Pasikowski Sławomir
Published: February 2024

Snowball sampling (SS) is one of the popular methods of sampling in social research. The history of the development and implementation of this sampling model sheds light on the conditions of the evolution of the idea of sampling from hidden or hard-to-reach human populations. The seemingly uncomplicated procedure is the source of the method's popularity but also leads to its caricatured forms. This article presents selected elements of the theoretical basis of snowball sampling in its original version and its role in the development of theory related to sampling hard-to-reach populations based on chains of relationships. Special attention is given to the issue of sample representativeness and the conditions for determining the sample size obtained through snowball sampling. The aim of the presentation is to highlight the rational possibilities that the snowball sampling model offers for observational studies on education.
Strategic Expectation Setting of Delivery Time on Marketplaces
Authors: Xie Si , Sharma Siddhartha , Mehra Amit , Aziz Arslan
Published: February 2024

Delivery speed is an essential component of the service provided by online delivery platforms. Because improving actual delivery speed is expensive, platforms can instead create a perception of faster delivery by showing a conservative estimate of the delivery duration when a customer places an order. We use detailed transaction-level data from a major food delivery marketplace to examine the effects of setting conservative delivery speed expectations on customers’ likelihood of future purchases and restaurant choices. When delivery is faster than expected, we find that customers are more likely to purchase again from the platform and the same (focal) restaurant they ordered from. However, we find no significant effect on future purchases from other (nonfocal) restaurants. This is possibly because of a spillover effect, as customers may switch to other restaurants. Our findings thus highlight the effect of setting conservative expected delivery times in a platform setting. Finally, we investigate the trade-off between current and future demand because of setting of a conservative estimated delivery time and show that the gain in future demand is greater than the loss in current demand, establishing the efficacy of our suggested strategy.
The Value of Regulators as Monitors: Evidence from Banking
Authors: Bisetti Emilio
Published: February 2024

While conventional wisdom suggests that financial supervision is costly for bank shareholders, agency theory suggests that supervisors’ audits can reduce shareholder monitoring costs. I study this trade-off in the context of an unexpected decrease in off-site surveillance intensity by the U.S. Federal Reserve. Banks subject to reduced surveillance experience a 1% loss in bank Tobin’s q and a 7% loss in equity market-to-book. These banks engage in more earnings management, and appear to compensate lower regulatory surveillance with costly internal audits. My results document a novel substitution effect between public monitoring by regulators and private monitoring by shareholders.

This paper was accepted by Victoria Ivashina, finance.

Supplemental Material: The online appendix and data files are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2021.03083 .
Technical Note—The Generalized Sethi Advertising Model
Authors: Kennedy Adrian P. , Sethi Suresh P. , Siu Chi Chung , Yam Sheung Chi Phillip
Published: February 2024

New Flexible Advertising Model Unveiled: Enhancing Advertising Strategies

Researchers have generalized the classical Sethi advertising model (1983) to provide a flexible yet tractable approach to optimizing advertising strategies. Unlike traditional methods, the generalized Sethi advertising model is designed to adapt to different market conditions in various media and markets, offering advertisers greater flexibility. By assuming a constant-returns-to-scale relationship between advertising expenditure and untapped market potential, the generalized Sethi advertising model provides advertisers with more options without sacrificing tractability. The research team has made important breakthroughs by developing practical formulas for determining the best advertising strategies for both individual companies and groups of companies. They have also conducted analyses to better understand how different factors influence these strategies. The generalized Sethi advertising model opens up new opportunities for advertisers to fine-tune their campaigns and reach more customers. This research marks a significant step forward in advertising optimization, giving businesses a valuable tool to achieve better results and make informed decisions in their advertising efforts.
A Study on Performance Improvement of Prompt Engineering for Generative AI with a Large Language Model
Authors: Park Daeseung , An Gi-taek , Kamyod Chayapol , Kim Cheong Ghil
Published: February 2024

In the realm of Generative AI, where various models are introduced, prompt engineering emerges as a significant technique within natural language processing-based Generative AI. Its primary function lies in effectively enhancing the results of sentence generation by large language models (LLMs). Notably, prompt engineering has gained attention as a method capable of improving LLM performance by modifying the structure of input prompts alone. In this study, we apply prompt engineering to Korean-based LLMs, presenting an efficient approach for generating specific conversational responses with less data. We achieve this through the utilization of the query transformation module (QTM). Our proposed QTM transforms input prompt sentences into three distinct query methods, breaking them down into objectives and key points, making them more comprehensible for LLMs. For performance validation, we employ Korean versions of LLMs, specifically SKT GPT-2 and Kakaobrain KoGPT-3. We compare four different query methods, including the original unmodified query, using Google SSA to assess the naturalness and specificity of generated sentences. The results demonstrate an average improvement of 11.46% when compared to the unmodified query, underscoring the efficacy of the proposed QTM in achieving enhanced performance.
Efficacy and safety comparison between silodosin and tamsulosin as medical expulsive therapy for distal ureteral stones
Authors: Rahman Farhan Haidar Fazlur , Leonardo Kevin , Ardaya Radhyaksa , Atmoko Widi , Parikesit Dyandra
Published: February 2024

BACKGROUND Ureteral stones are a common urological condition causing significant discomfort and morbidity. Medical expulsive therapy (MET) is a noninvasive approach to facilitate the passage of stones. This study aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of silodosin and tamsulosin as MET in patients with distal ureteral stones (DUS).
METHODS We searched CINAHL, Cochrane Library, PubMed, and ScienceDirect for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the administration of silodosin and tamsulosin for DUS. The primary outcomes analyzed were stone expulsion rates and expulsion times, measured as risk ratio (RR) and mean difference (MD), respectively. Statistical analyses were performed using Review Manager 5.4 and STATA 17.
RESULTS 14 RCTs comprising 1,535 patients (770 received silodosin) met the inclusion criteria. The silodosin group had notably higher stone expulsion rates (RR 1.20, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.13–1.27, p<0.00001, I² = 37%), shorter expulsion times (MD −2.98, 95% CI −4.35–−1.62, p<0.01, I² = 85%), and fewer colicky pain episodes (MD −0.35, 95% CI −0.59–−0.10, p<0.01, I² = 83%) than the tamsulosin group. Retrograde ejaculation was the only adverse event that had a significant difference between both groups, statistically favoring tamsulosin (RR 1.61, 95% CI 1.12–2.33, p = 0.01, I² = 0%).
CONCLUSIONS Silodosin should be preferred as the first-line MET agent for DUS owing to its better expulsion rate, shorter stone expulsion time, and fewer colicky pain episodes. However, tamsulosin may be used in selected cases where patients experience retrograde ejaculation after receiving silodosin.
Institutionalised violence and child imprisonment in England and Wales: a case for abolition
Authors: Hodgson Jodie
Published: February 2024

This article focuses on youth custody and the imprisonment of children. It applies an abolitionist, anti-carceral lens to exploring this injustice. In doing so the article critically explores the imprisonment of children and young people in England and Wales and the institutionalised violence to which these children are subject. It presents a case study of the youth secure estate, using document analysis focused on two recent reports of Werrington Young Offenders Institution, undertaken by the HM Inspectorate of Prisons in 2022. These reports are drawn upon to support the key critical arguments, concerning the imprisonment of children, presented within this article. Such arguments are centred on the failure of the state to afford legitimate safety and protection to children imprisoned in these institutions, and the deplorable role of the state in directly causing and perpetuating a range of harms against children, including ‘cultural, physical and institutionally structured violence’ (Scott, 2020: 58). Finally, the article will present a framework for abolitionist alternatives to the imprisonment of children which will ultimately serve to ensure their safety and protection.
China's State Capitalism and International Responses: A Comparative Analysis of Infrastructure Investment Strategies
Authors: Rech Maxmilian
Published: February 2024

Abstract: By introducing the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), an international infrastructure investment strategy, China attracted a lot of attention. China's approach to state capitalism has opened a window of opportunity for other infrastructure investment strategies. In response, the world's largest and liberally minded economies, such as the United States of America, Japan, and the European Union, have focused on connectivity and embarked on similar strategies. In this article, I conduct a comparative analysis of infrastructure investment strategies. I analyze key tenets of the BRI and international responses through the prism of principles, priorities, funding, financing, governance, and implementation. The comparison of strategies highlights more commonalities than differences, and I identify several instances in which liberal economies act in contradiction to their variety of capitalism. The results suggest that China has opened a window of opportunity for proactive infrastructure investment strategies, and major economies have responded in kind. With overlapping emphases in similar geographic regions, these strategies lead to competition. Consequently, recipient countries profit from an advantageous negotiating position when seeking to attract foreign direct investment in infrastructure projects.
Deep learning-assisted low-cost autofluorescence microscopy for rapid slide-free imaging with virtual histological staining
Authors: Wong Ivy H. M. , Chen Zhenghui , Shi Lulin , Lo Claudia T. K. , Kang Lei , Dai Weixing , Wong Terence T. W.
Published: February 2024

Slide-free imaging techniques have shown great promise in improving the histological workflow. For example, computational high-throughput autofluorescence microscopy by pattern illumination (CHAMP) has achieved high resolution with a long depth of field, which, however, requires a costly ultraviolet laser. Here, simply using a low-cost light-emitting diode (LED), we propose a deep learning-assisted framework of enhanced widefield microscopy, termed EW-LED, to generate results similar to CHAMP (the learning target). Comparing EW-LED and CHAMP, EW-LED reduces the cost by 85×, shortening the image acquisition time and computation time by 36× and 17×, respectively. This framework can be applied to other imaging modalities, enhancing widefield images for better virtual histology.
Anomalous layer-dependent photoluminescence spectra of supertwisted spiral WS2
Authors: Qi Minru , Tong Tong , Fan Xiaopeng , Li Xiangdong , Wang Shen , Zhang Guofeng , Chen Ruiyun , Hu Jianyong , Yang Zhichun , Zeng Ganying , Qin Chengbing , Xiao Liantuan , Jia Suotang
Published: February 2024

Twisted stacking of two-dimensional materials with broken inversion symmetry, such as spiral MoTe2 nanopyramids and supertwisted spiral WS2, emerge extremely strong second- and third-harmonic generation. Unlike well-studied nonlinear optical effects in these newly synthesized layered materials, photoluminescence (PL) spectra and exciton information involving their optoelectronic applications remain unknown. Here, we report layer- and power-dependent PL spectra of the supertwisted spiral WS2. The anomalous layer-dependent PL evolutions that PL intensity almost linearly increases with the rise of layer thickness have been determined. Furthermore, from the power-dependent spectra, we find the power exponents of the supertwisted spiral WS2 are smaller than 1, while those of the conventional multilayer WS2 are bigger than 1. These two abnormal phenomena indicate the enlarged interlayer spacing and the decoupling interlayer interaction in the supertwisted spiral WS2. These observations provide insight into PL features in the supertwisted spiral materials and may pave the way for further optoelectronic devices based on the twisted stacking materials.
Integrated visible-light polarization rotators and splitters for atomic quantum systems
Authors: Hattori Ashton , Sneh Tal , Notaros Milica , Corsetti Sabrina , Callahan Patrick T. , Kharas Dave , Mahony Thomas , McConnell Robert , Chiaverini John , Notaros Jelena
Published: February 2024

In this work, we design and experimentally demonstrate the first, to the best of our knowledge, integrated polarization splitters and rotators at blue wavelengths. We develop compact and efficient designs for both a polarization splitter and rotator at a 422-nm wavelength, an important laser-cooling transition for 88Sr+ ions. These devices are fabricated in a 200-mm wafer-scale process and experimentally demonstrated, resulting in a measured polarization-splitter transverse-electric thru-port coupling of 98.0% and transverse-magnetic tap-port coupling of 77.6% for a compact 16-µm-long device and a polarization-rotator conversion efficiency of 92.2% for a separate compact 111-µm-long device. This work paves the way for more sophisticated integrated control of trapped-ion and neutral-atom quantum systems.
All-dielectric geometric metasurfaces for the generation and manipulation of perfect high-order Poincaré sphere beams
Authors: Cheng Kaixiang , Li Yan , Zhang Zhendong , Liu Yi , Han Yanhua , Wang Xiaosai
Published: February 2024

A high-order Poincaré sphere (HOPS) can be used to describe high-order modes of waveguides and vector beams, since it generalizes the feature of spin and the orbital angular momentum of light. HOPS beams are such beams with polarization states on the HOPS, which have potential applications in optical manipulation and optical communication. In general, the intensity distribution of this kind of beam changes with the topological charge, which limits their practical applications. Based on the concept of perfect vortex beams (PVBs), perfect HOPS beams have been proposed to solve this problem. Here, a flexible and compact scheme based on all-dielectric metasurfaces for realizing and manipulating perfect HOPS beams at near-infrared wavelength was demonstrated. Geometric-phase-only manipulation was employed for simultaneously controlling the phase and polarization of the incident light. By varying the incident polarization, several selected polarization states on the HOPS could be realized by the proposed metasurface. Further, the single ultra-thin metasurface can also realize high quality multiplexing perfect HOPS beams that carry different topological charges. Finally, a cascaded metasurface system has been proposed for generating and manipulating multiple HOPS beams. This compact flat-optics-based scheme for perfect HOPS beam generation and manipulation demonstrated here can be used for on-chip optical manipulation and integrated optical communication in the future.
Validation of artificial intelligence-based digital microscopy for automated detection of Schistosoma haematobium eggs in urine in Gabon
Authors: Meulah Brice , Oyibo Prosper , Hoekstra Pytsje T. , Moure Paul Alvyn Nguema , Maloum Moustapha Nzamba , Laclong-Lontchi Romeo Aime , Honkpehedji Yabo Josiane , Bengtson Michel , Hokke Cornelis , Corstjens Paul L. A. M. , Agbana Temitope , Diehl Jan Carel , Adegnika Ayola Akim , van Lieshout Lisette
Published: February 2024

Introduction

Schistosomiasis is a significant public health concern, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. Conventional microscopy is the standard diagnostic method in resource-limited settings, but with limitations, such as the need for expert microscopists. An automated digital microscope with artificial intelligence (Schistoscope), offers a potential solution. This field study aimed to validate the diagnostic performance of the Schistoscope for detecting and quantifying Schistosoma haematobium eggs in urine compared to conventional microscopy and to a composite reference standard (CRS) consisting of real-time PCR and the up-converting particle (UCP) lateral flow (LF) test for the detection of schistosome circulating anodic antigen (CAA).

Methods

Based on a non-inferiority concept, the Schistoscope was evaluated in two parts: study A, consisting of 339 freshly collected urine samples and study B, consisting of 798 fresh urine samples that were also banked as slides for analysis with the Schistoscope. In both studies, the Schistoscope, conventional microscopy, real-time PCR and UCP-LF CAA were performed and samples with all the diagnostic test results were included in the analysis. All diagnostic procedures were performed in a laboratory located in a rural area of Gabon, endemic for S. haematobium.

Results

In study A and B, the Schistoscope demonstrated a sensitivity of 83.1% and 96.3% compared to conventional microscopy, and 62.9% and 78.0% compared to the CRS. The sensitivity of conventional microscopy in study A and B compared to the CRS was 61.9% and 75.2%, respectively, comparable to the Schistoscope. The specificity of the Schistoscope in study A (78.8%) was significantly lower than that of conventional microscopy (96.4%) based on the CRS but comparable in study B (90.9% and 98.0%, respectively).

Conclusion

Overall, the performance of the Schistoscope was non-inferior to conventional microscopy with a comparable sensitivity, although the specificity varied. The Schistoscope shows promising diagnostic accuracy, particularly for samples with moderate to higher infection intensities as well as for banked sample slides, highlighting the potential for retrospective analysis in resource-limited settings.

Trial registration

NCT04505046 ClinicalTrials.gov.
Predicting COVID-19 cases in Belo Horizonte—Brazil taking into account mobility and vaccination issues
Authors: Dias Eder , Diniz Alexandre M. A. , Souto Giovanna R. , Guerra Henrique L. , Marques-Neto Humberto Torres , Malinowski Simon , Guimarães Silvio Jamil F.
Published: February 2024

The pandemic caused millions of deaths around the world and forced governments to take drastic measures to reduce the spread of Coronavirus. Understanding the impact of social distancing measures on urban mobility and the number of COVID-19 cases allows governments to change public policies according to the evolution of the pandemic and plan ahead. Given the increasing rates of vaccination worldwide, immunization data may also represent an important predictor of COVID-19 cases. This study investigates the impact of urban mobility and vaccination upon COVID-19 cases in Belo Horizonte, Brazil using Prophet and ARIMA models to predict future outcomes. The developed models generated projections fairly close to real numbers, and some inferences were drawn through experimentation. Brazil became the epicenter of the COVID-19 epidemic shortly after the first case was officially registered on February 25th, 2020. In response, several municipalities adopted lockdown (total or partial) measures to minimize the risk of new infections. Here, we propose prediction models which take into account mobility and vaccination data to predict new COVID-19 cases.
The Utilisation of INR to identify coagulopathy in burn patients
Authors: Wermine Kendall , Song Juquan , Gotewal Sunny , Huang Lyndon , Corona Kassandra , Bagby Shelby , Villarreal Elvia , Chokshi Shivan , Efejuku Tsola , Chaij Jasmine , Joglar Alejandro , Iglesias Nicholas J. , Keys Phillip , De La Tejera Giovanna , Golovko Georgiy , El Ayadi Amina , Wolf Steven E.
Published: February 2024

Studies conflict on the significance of burn-induced coagulopathy. We posit that burn-induced coagulopathy is associated with injury severity in burns. Our purpose was to characterize coagulopathy profiles in burns and determine relationships between % total burn surface area (TBSA) burned and coagulopathy using the International Normalized Ratio (INR). Burned patients with INR values were identified in the TriNetX database and analyzed by %TBSA burned. Patients with history of transfusions, chronic hepatic failure, and those on anticoagulant medications were excluded. Interquartile ranges for INR in the burned study population were 1.2 (1.0–1.4). An INR of ≥ 1.5 was used to represent those with burn-induced coagulopathy as it fell outside the 3rd quartile. The population was stratified into subgroups using INR levels <1.5 or ≥1.5 on the day of injury. Data are average ± SD analyzed using chi-square; p < .05 was considered significant. There were 7,364 burned patients identified with INR <1.5, and 635 had INR ≥1.5. Comparing TBSA burned groups, burn-induced coagulopathy significantly increased in those with ≥20% TBSA; p = .048 at 20–29% TBSA, p = .0005 at 30–39% TBSA, and p < .0001 for 40% TBSA and above. Age played a significant factor with average age for those with burn-induced coagulopathy 59 ± 21.5 years and 46 ± 21.8 for those without (p < .0001). After matching for age, TBSA, and demographics, the risk of 28 day-mortality was higher in those with burn-induced coagulopathy compared to those without (risk difference 20.9%, p < .0001) and the odd ratio with 95% CI is 4.45 (3.399–5.825). Investigation of conditions associated with burn-induced coagulopathy showed the effect of heart diseases to be significant; 53% of patients with burn-induced coagulopathy had hypertension (p < .0001). Burn-induced coagulopathy increases with %TBSA burned. The information gained firmly reflects a link between %TBSA and burn-induced coagulopathy, which could be useful in prognosis and treatment decisions.
Examination of social worlds of risky drinking. Insights from Twitter data analysis
Authors: Ahmed Ashir , Martin Jenny , Towl David , Haussegger Zac , Babar Muhammad
Published: February 2024

Rich nature of social media data offers a great opportunity to examine social worlds of its users. Further to wide range of topics being discussed on social media, alcohol-related content is prevalent on social media and studies have found an association between this content and increased consumption of alcohol, cravings for alcohol and addiction. This study analyses social media data to examine social worlds of risky drinking in Victoria, Australia. This study conducted a scoping literature review and two online surveys, one with the general community and the other with health professionals, to determine key words to search for on social media sites. These keywords were used in a social media analytics tool called Talkwalker to generate quantitative and qualitative data on the social media users and their conversations. NVIVO was used for developing categories and themes in a sample of 172 posts. A total of 1,021 results were obtained from Twitter. The main demographic group found to be involved in conversations about drinking alcohol on Twitter was young fathers aged 25–34 years. The culture of alcohol consumption in Victoria for Twitter users is reflective of Australia’s drinking culture within which risky drinking, and in particular binge drinking, is normalised.
Measurement invariance of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder symptom criteria as rated by parents and teachers in children and adolescents: A systematic review
Authors: Garcia-Rosales Alexandra , Cortese Samuele , Vitoratou Silia
Published: February 2024

This systematic review aimed to establish the extent to which each Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) symptom criterion is being assessed without being influenced (biased) by factors such as informant, sex/gender, and age. Measurement invariance (MI) testing using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) is the prime statistical method to ascertain how these factors may affect the measurement and colour the perception or interpretation of symptom criteria. Such effects (non-invariance) can be operationalised in the form of altered association of a symptom criterion with the measured trait (expressed via variations in CFA loadings which represent the weight of each symptom criterion) due to the factor(s) and/or artificially alter the probability of endorsement of a particular symptom criterion (expressed via variations in the CFA threshold(s) representing how mild or severe a given symptom is). Based on a pre-registered protocol (CRD42022276105), we searched PubMed, Global Health, Embase and PsycInfo up to 21-02-23 for studies that included MI assessments on specific ADHD symptom criteria in individuals aged 0–18 years old, using parental and/or teacher report. Self-reports were excluded, given the poor reliability of self-report in ADHD. All included studies met specific COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement Instruments (COSMIN) criteria. Results were synthesised in tabular form, grouping results by factors (e.g. informant) from 44 studies retained. Most comparisons indicated both metric (same loadings) and scalar invariance (same thresholds) with regard to informant, gender, age, temporal (repeated assessments) and co-morbidity. Therefore, the available evidence supports the current diagnostic criteria. However, findings could have been improved by systematic reporting of the direction of bias and its effect size. There appears to be a bias towards reporting MI instead of non-invariance. More studies in the literature are needed where the amalgamation of information provided by different informs and the association of specific symptoms with comorbidity are analysed.
External costs of electricity generation in 27 European countries from 2010–2030: Pathway toward sustainability or business as usual?
Authors: Baumgärtner Frank , Letmathe Peter
Published: February 2024

Electricity generation in Europe is undergoing a fundamental change. The aim is to increase sustainability by reducing emissions. Each country has a different electricity mix, and there is no established method for measuring environmental impacts of electricity production with a single monetary indicator, in a uniform manner, and with country-specific data. To address this gap, a model that measures the costs of 19 environmental externalities (usually, types of emissions) has been developed. Using country-specific technologies, electricity mixes, and external cost rates, the development of external costs of generating electricity in 27 European countries between 2010 and 2030 is assessed and analyzed. The simulation results show that the external costs vary heavily between 2.1 and 22.4 euro cents per kWh in this period. Despite the initiated transformation of the energy systems in many EU countries, external costs per kWh are decreasing in only eight of them. This fact underlines the need for a drastic change in national energy strategies. Overall, the results show that more far-reaching policy measures are needed in order to significantly reduce the external costs of the energy sector in Europe. The article raises the level of granularity of research on the external costs of electricity in Europe by combining extensive country-specific emission data and country-specific external cost rates.
Predictors of unplanned emergency hospital admissions among patients aged 65+ with multimorbidity and depression in Northwest London during and after the Covid-19 lockdown in England
Authors: Cicek Meryem , Greenfield Geva , Nicholls Dasha , Majeed Azeem , Hayhoe Benedict
Published: February 2024

Introduction

Individuals with multimorbidity have an increased likelihood of using unplanned secondary care including emergency department visits and emergency hospitalisations. Those with mental health comorbidities are affected to a greater extent. The Covid-19 pandemic has negatively impacted on psychosocial wellbeing and multimorbidity care, especially among vulnerable older individuals.

Aim

To examine the risk of unplanned hospital admissions among patients aged 65+ with multimorbidity and depression in Northwest London, England, during- and post-Covid-19 lockdown.

Methods

Retrospective cross-sectional data analysis with the Discover-NOW database for Northwest London was conducted. The overall sample consisted of 20,165 registered patients aged 65+ with depression. Two time periods were compared to observe the impact of the Covid-19 lockdown on emergency hospital admissions between 23rd March 2020 to 21st June 2021 (period 1) and equivalent-length post-lockdown period from 22nd June 2021 to 19th September 2022 (period 2). Multivariate logistic regression was conducted on having at least one emergency hospital admission in each period against sociodemographic and multimorbidity-related characteristics.

Results

The odds of having an emergency hospitalisation were greater in men than women (OR = 1.19 (lockdown); OR = 1.29 (post-lockdown)), and significantly increased with age, higher deprivation, and greater number of comorbidities in both periods across the majority of categories. There was an inconclusive pattern with ethnicity; with a statistically significant protective effect among Asian (OR = 0.66) and Black ethnicities (OR = 0.67) compared to White patients during post-lockdown period only.

Conclusion

The likelihood of unplanned hospitalisation was higher in men than women, and significantly increased with age, higher deprivation, and comorbidities. Despite modest increases in magnitude of risk between lockdown and post-lockdown periods, there is evidence to support proactive case-review by multi-disciplinary teams to avoid unplanned admissions, particularly men with multimorbidity and comorbid depression, patients with higher number of comorbidities and greater deprivation. Further work is needed to determine admission reasons, multimorbidity patterns, and other clinical and lifestyle predictors.
Mindfully and confidently digital: A mixed methods study on personal resources to mitigate the dark side of digital working
Authors: Marsh Elizabeth , Perez Vallejos Elvira , Spence Alexa
Published: February 2024

A growing body of research demonstrates the potential of mindfulness to reduce employee stress. However, with work increasingly migrating from the physical to the digital workplace, evidence is lacking on how mindfulness might help employees live healthy digital working lives. In addition, employees’ confidence when using the digital workplace is seen as important for productivity but may also play a role in reducing well-being impacts from digital working. Using the Job-Demands Resources model as a theoretical foundation, 142 workers were surveyed regarding their levels of trait mindfulness and digital workplace confidence, along with their experiences of the dark side effects (stress, overload, anxiety, Fear of Missing Out and addiction) and well-being outcomes (burnout and health). 14 workers were also interviewed to provide qualitative insights on these constructs. Results from regression analyses indicated that more digitally confident workers were less likely to experience digital workplace anxiety, while those with higher mindfulness were better protected against all of the dark side of digital working effects. Interview data indicated ways in which digital mindfulness helps protect well-being, as well as how digital workplace confidence enables healthier digital habits.
Characterization of the inheritance of field-evolved resistance to diamides in the fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) population from Puerto Rico
Authors: Posos-Parra Omar , Mota-Sanchez David , Pittendrigh Barry R. , Wise John C. , DiFonzo Christina D. , Patterson Eric
Published: February 2024

The fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) is one of the most destructive pests of corn. New infestations have been reported in the East Hemisphere, reaching India, China, Malaysia, and Australia, causing severe destruction to corn and other crops. In Puerto Rico, practical resistance to different mode of action compounds has been reported in cornfields. In this study, we characterized the inheritance of resistance to chlorantraniliprole and flubendiamide and identified the possible cross-resistance to cyantraniliprole and cyclaniliprole. The Puerto Rican (PR) strain showed high levels of resistance to flubendiamide (RR50 = 2,762-fold) and chlorantraniliprole (RR50 = 96-fold). The inheritance of resistance showed an autosomal inheritance for chlorantraniliprole and an X-linked inheritance for flubendiamide. The trend of the dominance of resistance demonstrated an incompletely recessive trait for H1 (♂ SUS × ♀ PR) × and an incompletely dominant trait for H2 (♀ SUS × ♂ PR) × for flubendiamide and chlorantraniliprole. The PR strain showed no significant presence of detoxification enzymes (using synergists: PBO, DEF, DEM, and VER) to chlorantraniliprole; however, for flubendiamide the SR = 2.7 (DEM), SR = 3.2 (DEF) and SR = 7.6 (VER) indicated the role of esterases, glutathione S- transferases and ABC transporters in the metabolism of flubendiamide. The PR strain showed high and low cross-resistance to cyantraniliprole (74-fold) and cyclaniliprole (11-fold), respectively. Incomplete recessiveness might lead to the survival of heterozygous individuals when the decay of diamide residue occurs in plant tissues. These results highlight the importance of adopting diverse pest management strategies, including insecticide rotating to manage FAW populations in Puerto Rico and other continents.
Efficacy of BETTER transitional care intervention for diverse patients with traumatic brain injury and their families: Study protocol of a randomized controlled trial
Authors: Oyesanya Tolu O. , Ibemere Stephanie O. , You HyunBin , Emerson Maralis Mercado , Pan Wei , Palipana Anushka , Kandel Melissa , Ingram Darius , Soto Mayra , Pioppo Anne , Albert Brittany , Walker-Atwater Tamia , Hawes Jodi , Komisarow Jordan , Ramos Katherine , Byom Lindsey , Gonzalez-Guarda Rosa , Van Houtven Courtney H. , Agarwal Suresh , Prvu Bettger Janet
Published: February 2024

Objective

The purpose of this study is to examine the efficacy of BETTER (Brain Injury,Education,Training, andTherapy toEnhanceRecovery) vs. usual transitional care management among diverse adults with traumatic brain injury (TBI) discharged home from acute hospital care and families.

Methods

This will be a single-site, two-arm, randomized controlled trial (N = 436 people, 218 patient/family dyads, 109 dyads per arm) of BETTER, a culturally- and linguistically-tailored, patient- and family-centered, TBI transitional care intervention for adult patients with TBI and families. Skilled clinical interventionists will follow a manualized protocol to address patient/family needs. The interventionists will co-establish goals with participants; coordinate post-hospital care, services, and resources; and provide patient/family education and training on self- and family-management and coping skills for 16 weeks following hospital discharge. English- and Spanish-speaking adult patients with mild-to-severe TBI who are discharged directly home from the hospital without inpatient rehabilitation or transfer to other settings (community discharge) and associated family caregivers are eligible and will be randomized to treatment or usual transitional care management. We will use intention-to-treat analysis to determine if patients receiving BETTER have a higher quality of life (primary outcome, SF-36) at 16-weeks post-hospital discharge than those receiving usual transitional care management. We will conduct a descriptive, qualitative study with 45 dyads randomized to BETTER, using semi-structured interviews, to capture perspectives on barriers and facilitators to participation. Data will be analyzed using conventional content analysis. Finally, we will conduct a cost/budget impact analysis, evaluating differences in intervention costs and healthcare costs by arm.

Discussion

Findings will guide our team in designing a future, multi-site trial to disseminate and implement BETTER into clinical practice to enhance the standard of care for adults with TBI and families. The new knowledge generated will drive advancements in health equity among diverse adults with TBI and families.

Trial registration

NCT05929833.
Host transcriptome response to heat stress and Eimeria maxima infection in meat-type chickens
Authors: Ghareeb Ahmed F. A. , Foutz James C. , Schneiders Gustavo H. , Richter Jennifer N. , Milfort Marie C. , Fuller Alberta L. , Rekaya Romdhane , Aggrey Samuel E.
Published: February 2024

Eimeria (E.) maximaparasite infects chickens’ midgut disrupting the jejunal and ileal mucosa causing high morbidity and mortality. Heat stress (HS) is a seasonal stressor that impacts biological functions leading to poor performance. This study elucidates how HS,E.maximainfection, and their combination affect the ileum transcriptome. Two-hundred and forty 2-week-old males Ross708 chickens were randomly allocated into four treatment groups: thermoneutral-control (TNc), thermoneutral-infected (TNi), heat-stress control (HSc), and heat stress-infected (HSi), with 6 replicates each of 10 birds. Infected groups received 200x103sporulatedE.maximaoocysts/bird, and heat-treated groups were raised at 35°C. At 6-day post-treatment, ileums of five randomly selected chickens per group were sampled, RNA was extracted and sequenced. A total of 413, 3377, 1908, and 2304 DEGs were identified when applying the comparisons: TNc vs HSc, TNc vs TNi, HSi vs HSc, and TNi vs HSi, respectively, at cutoff ≥1.2-fold change (FDR: q<0.05). HSc vs TNc showed upregulation of lipid metabolic pathways and degradation/metabolism of multiple amino acids; and downregulation of most immune-related and protein synthesis pathways. TNc vs TNi displayed upregulation of most of immune-associated pathways and eukaryotic mRNA maturation pathways; and downregulation of fatty acid metabolism and multiple amino acid metabolism pathways including tryptophan. Comparing HSi versus HSc and TNi revealed that combining the two stressors restored the expression of some cellular functions, e.g., oxidative phosphorylation and protein synthesis; and downregulate immune response pathways associated withE.maximainfection. DuringE.maximainfection under HS the calcium signaling pathway was downregulated, including genes responsible for increasing the cytoplasmic calcium concentration; and tryptophan metabolism was upregulated, including genes that contribute to catabolizing tryptophan through serotonin and indole pathways; which might result in reducing the cytoplasmic pool of nutrients and calcium available for the parasite to scavenge and consequently might affect the parasite’s reproductive ability.
QTL analysis of femaleness in monoecious spinach and fine mapping of a major QTL using an updated version of chromosome-scale pseudomolecules
Authors: Yamano Kaoru , Haseda Akane , Iwabuchi Keisuke , Osabe Takayuki , Sudo Yuki , Pachakkil Babil , Tanaka Keisuke , Suzuki Yutaka , Toyoda Atsushi , Hirakawa Hideki , Onodera Yasuyuki
Published: February 2024

Although spinach is predominantly dioecious, monoecious plants with varying proportions of female and male flowers are also present. Recently, monoecious inbred lines with highly female and male conditions have been preferentially used as parents for F1-hybrids, rather than dioecious lines. Accordingly, identifying the loci for monoecism is an important issue for spinach breeding. We here used long-read sequencing and Hi-C technology to construct SOL_r2.0_pseudomolecule, a set of six pseudomolecules of spinach chromosomes (total length: 879.2 Mb; BUSCO complete 97.0%) that are longer and more genetically complete than our previous version of pseudomolecules (688.0 Mb; 81.5%). Three QTLs, qFem2.1, qFem3.1, and qFem6.1, responsible for monoecism were mapped to SOL_r2.0_pseudomolecule. qFem3.1 had the highest LOD score and corresponded to the M locus, which was previously identified as a determinant of monoecious expression, by genetic analysis of progeny from female and monoecious plants. The other QTLs were shown to modulate the ratio of female to male flowers in monoecious plants harboring a dominant allele of the M gene. Our findings will enable breeders to efficiently produce highly female- and male-monoecious parental lines for F1-hybrids by pyramiding the three QTLs. Through fine-mapping, we narrowed the candidate region for the M locus to a 19.5 kb interval containing three protein-coding genes and one long non-coding RNA gene. Among them, only RADIALIS-like-2a showed a higher expression in the reproductive organs, suggesting that it might play a role in reproductive organogenesis. However, there is no evidence that it is involved in the regulation of stamen and pistil initiation, which are directly related to the floral sex differentiation system in spinach. Given that auxin is involved in reproductive organ formation in many plant species, genes related to auxin transport/response, in addition to floral organ formation, were identified as candidates for regulators of floral sex-differentiation from qFem2.1 and qFem6.1.
The accuracy of 10 g monofilament use for clinical screening of diabetes peripheral neuropathy among Indian population
Authors: Hazari Animesh , Mishra Vinaytosh , Kumar Praveen , Maiya Arun
Published: February 2024

Objective

The purpose of this study was to test the diagnostic accuracy of the 10g monofilament to screen for diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) in India. The study further assessed the effect of physical activity, footwear use, and occupation on the outcome.

Methods

Non-probabilistic purposive sampling was used to recruit patients with T2DM to assess the diagnostic utility of the 10 g monofilament. 160 participants were recruited divided into 4 groups. Each group consisted of 40 participants with 20 under each category described as “Physical Worker Vs Non- physical worker” (n = 40), “Barefoot Vs Footwear” (n = 40), “Use of Slipper at Home Vs No-slippers use at home” (n = 40), “Agriculture Vs Non- agriculture” (n = 40). 10 g monofilament was used to detect the presence of protective sensation towards screening of DPN against biothesiometer (Vibration Pressure Threshold).

Results

The area under the ROC (receiver operating characteristic) curve was 0.6 for identifying DPN using the 10 g monofilament. Physical work (p = 0.04), footwear (p = 0.04), slipper use at home (p = 0.02) and occupation (p = 0.02) impacted on the diagnostic utility of the 10g monofilament.

Conclusions

This study shows that the 10 g monofilament has limited accuracy for detecting DPN in the Indian population and this is further affected by occupation, socioeconomic and religious practice.
Online learning success model for adults in open and distance education in Western China
Authors: Yuebo Li , Halili Siti Hajar , Abdul Razak Rafiza
Published: February 2024

This study investigates the factors influencing online learning (OL) success among non-full-time adult students in open and distance education in Western China. To utilize a structural equation model with seven construction elements that combine the information system success (ISS) model and TPACK theory. Data from 245 participants were analyzed using PLS-SEM. Results reveal that system quality, service quality, and teachers’ TPACK ability have varying degrees of positive impact on OL success. The main contribution of this study is its innovative combination of TPACK theory and the ISS Model, which has not been extensively explored in previous research. Additionally, this study emphasizes the significance of addressing the distinctive requisites and attributes of part-time adult learners engaged in online learning (OL). The findings of this study can help educational practitioners and policymakers create more effective and efficient OL environments that meet the needs of adult learners and bridge the gap between theory and practice.