bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Associations Between Preterm Birth, Inhibitory Control-Implicated Brain Regions and Tracts, and Inhibitory Control Task Performance in Children: Consideration of Socioeconomic Context
Authors: Taylor Rita L. , Rogers Cynthia E. , Smyser Christopher D. , Barch Deanna M.
Published: November 2022

Background: Preterm birth (PTB) is associated with increased risk for unfavorable outcomes such as deficits in attentional control and related brain structure alterations. Crucially, PTB is more likely to occur within the context of poverty. The current study examined associations between PTB and inhibitory control (IC) implicated brain regions/tracts and task performance, as well as the moderating role of early life poverty on the relation between PTB and IC regions/tracts/task performance.
Methods: 2,899 children from the ABCD study were sampled for this study. Mixed effects models examined the relation between PTB and subsequent IC performance as well as prefrontal gray matter volume and white matter fractional anisotropy (FA). Household income was examined as a moderator.
Results: PTB was significantly associated with less improvement in IC task performance over time and decreased FA in right uncinate fasciculus and bilateral cingulum. Early life poverty moderated the relation between PTB and bilateral cingulum FA.
Nutritional Assessment Among Khalwa Students in Sudan, A Forgotten Risk of Malnutrition.
Authors: Gasoma ElMuhtadi B.Y.
Published: November 2022

Background : Nutritional assessment is the systematic process of collecting and interpreting information in order to make decisions about the nature and cause of nutrition related health issues. Khalawi are traditional religious schools, they are very popular in Sudan. khalwa students are considered to be at high risk of nutritional problems due to several factors the most important of them are poor self-hygiene, high contamination area and the type of food which mainly depend on sorghum .
Methods : Study population was 150 students . Informed consent was obtained. The study was In two stages and used complementary qualitative and quantitative methods. Stage one involved face-to-face, interview with key informants. Stage two involved assessment of nutritional status of students using interview questionnaire and anthropometric measurement.
Results : 38 students those represent substantial percentage (25 %) were underweight, which is exactly the quarter of the total sample size which indeed a devastating matter of fact, especially these khalawi were located at the center of the capital city.
Conclusion : The lack of informations , researches and knowledge regarding those particular group of people whom are at increasing risk of malnutrition necessitate the conduction of this study to work as a corner-stone for further researches later on which all directed toward improving and maintaining a proper studying and living environment .
WITHDRAWN: Vascular endothelial cell damage induced by ox-LDL through AMPK-Nrf2/Keap1-PGAM5 signaling axis
Authors: Mu Le , Li Zeyuan , Liu Lunjing , Yang Chunli , Wu Xiaomin , Zhu Lingqin , Li Guanghua
Published: November 2022

Objective
This study investigated the rat aortic endothelial cells (RAECs) barrier damage and apoptosis induced by ox-LDL and explored its underlying mechanism.
Methods
RAVECs was cultured in vitro and treated with ox-LDL. We evaluated cell viability and Nitric oxide levels with cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) and Detection kit, respectively. The Elisa assay was performed which determine the release of inflammatory factors. And then scratch assay and qPCR were used to assess cell migration. Western blot was performed to measure the relative protein. Mitochondrial proteins were monitored via fluorescence microscope.
Results
In vitro study, we found that ox-LDL reduced aortic endothelial cell viability and migration, NO release and up-regulated TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-1β. In addition, ox-LDL decreased the expression of aortic endothelial cell barrier proteins Occludin and ZO-1, as well as increasing mitochondrial damage. Furthermore, AMPK-Nrf2 / Keap1-PGAM5 suppressed the mitochondrial damage and attenuated the RAECs apoptosis.
Conclusion
Our results suggested that ox-LDL can damage endothelial cell barrier, apoptosis and mitochondrial damage through AMPK-Nrf2 / Keap1-PGAM5 signaling axis, which provided a theoretical basis for explaining ox-LDL-induced endothelial cell damage.
Altered MAM function shifts mitochondrial metabolism in SOD1-mutant models of ALS
Authors: Area-Gomez Estela , Larrea Delfina , Tamucci Kirstin , Kabra Khushbu , Velasco Kevin , yun Taekyung , Pera Marta , Montesinos Jorge , Agrawal Rishi , Smerdon John , Lowry Emily , Stepanova Anna , Sánchez Belem Yoval , Galkin Alexander , Wichterle Hynek
Published: November 2022

Mitochondria-associated ER membranes (MAM) are transient functional domains in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) in close apposition to mitochondria involved in multiple metabolic functions, including the regulation of mitochondria functionality. Specifically, MAM interactions with mitochondria contribute to the regulation of mitochondrial dynamics, calcium transference between both organelles and the composition of mitochondrial membranes. In addition, recent data indicate that alterations in MAM-mitochondria contacts are associated with impairments in glucose metabolism and insulin resistance phenotypes, but the mechanism behind these defects is unknown.
Human embryonic stem cell (ESC)-derived motor neurons (hMNs) and mouse models with pathogenic mutations in superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) have been shown to present with a progressive disruption of MAM structure and function, as it occurs in other models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). In this work, we have found that impairments in the activation of MAM in the context of SOD1 mutations, hinder the use of glucose-derived pyruvate as a mitochondrial fuel and trigger a shift in mitochondrial substrates from pyruvate to fatty acids. We also show that, over time, this change in mitochondrial fuels induces significant alterations in mitochondrial electron flow and in the active/de-active (A/D) status of complex I in mutant hMNs and spinal cord tissues, but not in brain. Our data agree with a role for MAM in the maintenance and regulation of cellular glucose metabolism and the selection of mitochondrial substrates and suggest that MAM disruption in ALS could be the underlying cause of the bioenergetic deficits observed in the disease.
AS3MT is related to relative RNAs and base modifications of p53 in workers exposed to arsenic
Authors: Wen Weihua , Zha Shun , Cheng Huirong , Qi Jun , Chen Qian , Gu Yun
Published: November 2022

AS3MT, the key enzyme involved in the methylation of arsenic, is closely associated with DNA methylation. However, the relationship between them is not known. In this study, we recruited workers from four arsenic plants and individuals who resided in villages far away from the four plants. Arsenic compounds, relative indices, 28 relative RNAs, and base modifications of exons 5–8 of p53 were detected separately. Several methods were used to analyze the associations between them. We found that the AS3MT RNA was closely associated with lncRNAs, miRNAs, and mRNAs related to miRNA production and maturation, tumorigenesis, and base modifications of p53, they probably have causal relationships. Arsenic compounds and the relative indices of metabolic transformation might have limited roles. Base modifications of exons 7 and 8 of p53 had significant synergistic effects on the expression of the AS3MT RNA and a series of genetic indices. But miR-190, miR-548, and the base modifications of exon 5 of p53 had substantial inhibitory effects. This study showed that the AS3MT RNA could strongly affect genotoxicity and carcinogenesis, which is initiated by arsenic or AS3MT but greatly influenced by other factors. There was a close interaction among the AS3MT RNA, relative mRNAs, lncRNAs, the miRNA networks, and the base modifications of different fragments of p53.
Adaptive Auto-encoder for Extraction of Arabic Text: invariant, font, and segment
Authors: zerdoumi saber , Jhanjhi Noor Zaman , Ahmed Riyaz , Hashem Ibrahim Abaker Targio , Gabralla Lubna Abdelkareim
Published: November 2022

Adaptive auto-en-codor research strategy for categorizing Arabic text into three components: invariant, font, and signature are discussed in this article. We began our investigation by studying pattern recognition methods. Using the collected data, a mathematical model for Arabic pattern recognition was created. Once the model has been created, it is used to generate the algorithm. Segmentation of area composite ligatures and open/closed characters was used to develop and test the algorithm's primary engine. The algorithm was tested to see if it could distinguish between text and other objects. The evaluation method is also described, which is based on a widely used benchmark data-set and a variety of other data sources. Word-level archiving's most critical feature is the ability to recognize each word as a separate unit and component with a consistency that allows the entire pixel to be comprehensively identified and its value to be adjusted. Figure 1 illustrates the detection of Arabic words in ads, as well as the subsequent determination of words after training and matching the algorithm. Using a vertical projection and a base line determination or automatic correction for each issue In the upper baseline or lower pass line with the respective center THAA that is generated using the pre-characteristics learning for Arabic writing, there may be existing or missing dots. On the basis of educational and descriptive value, these dots have been placed. BAA and YAA, for example, both contain dots above the baseline. If the sequence does not contain continuous curves from top to bottom, this value will not be considered. as Jim, it'll be decided. P1 to P10 consider the earlier zoning of cropping from right to left as an issue. Consequences of the alphabets' display Before we could even consider the exploratory form, our investigation was compelled by an important issue raised in this Arabic script. Because they are modified, the end points of P1 must be identified. P2 consists of novel elements that are connected and characterized as novel elements. It is necessary to alter the novel components in some way in order to identify them as errors in P2. It is necessary to make adjustments such as decreasing p3, increasing the distance from p4 to greater distances, decreasing weight, and changing the value of white to black, as well as white to white. You can find a wealth of useful Arabic-language content on p5. A overlapping zoning pattern results from cropping. This issue is addressed in the manual's P6 section. Using slop equations, connect all of the pixels in the image to form a single image (1). If the skew is not zero and the base line depends on the skew, the focus will be adjusted by reversing the absolute value of the skew value into the direction of contact. The diagram depicts the entire alphabet extraction process.
E-government Use in Vietnam: Do External Variables Drive a Positive Attitude Towards Technology?
Authors: Borazon Elaine Q. , Nguyen Hoai Than Than
Published: November 2022

E-government system adoption, despite its progress and ramped up efforts by various governments, is still facing major challenges. This study intends to identify the external variables and demographic factors that would enable a successful adoption of e-government services across population groups, on the basis of Technology Adoption Model. A non-randomized convenience sampling of 383 e-government service users of age 18–70 years old were surveyed and hypotheses were tested using a two-stage Structural Equation Modeling. Results show that structural assurance and government regulations drives perceived ease of use (PEU) and a positive attitude towards technology. Moreover, perceived ease of use (PEU) partially mediates the relationships of structural assurance with attitude towards technology and government regulations with attitude towards technology. Also, a positive attitude towards technology drives e-government service use. In terms of the demographic factors, education level moderates the association between perceived ease of use and users’ attitudes toward technology while income positively influences the relationship between the citizen’s attitudes toward technology and usage behavior based on their level of access to technology. These findings reveal that users’ external variables can enhance e-government adoption and that demographic factors are critical in bridging the gap among users.
Uncovering the molecular mechanisms of Salidroside against diabetic retinopathy using network pharmacology and experimental validation
Authors: Cong Fu , Huang Ying , Liu Wenqiang , Wang Yufei , Lv Pan , Zhao Lipan , Meng Lu , Hou Yang , Wang Ting-Hua , Zuo Zhongfu , Liu Xuezheng
Published: November 2022

Objective
The present study was designed to explore the mechanism underlying the therapeutic effects of Salidroside in the treatment of diabetic retinopathy (DR) through network pharmacology analysis combined with in vivo experimental verification.
Methods
Diabetic rat models were established and treated with Salidroside. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) was employed to demonstrate the changes of retina with treatment or not. The drug targets of SAL and disease targets of DR were obtained from public databases. Venn diagrams were generated online to obtain the common targets of SAL and DR, which were then imported into String for protein-protein interaction (PPI) network generation Meanwhile, these common targets were analyzed using Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis to further elucidate their biological functions. Finally, gene-pathway networks were established to capture core pathways that common targets were enriched in. Molecular docking predicts the binding degree between drugs and proteins, and the expression levels of key genes are verified by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) in vivo.
Results
OCT imaging demonstrated that Salidroside administration significantly increased retinal thickness and significantly reduce the number of new blood vessels in fundus images in diabetic rats. We obtained 87 common targets after intersecting the targets of Salidroside and DR, and PPI network screened out 7 core targets, including GAPDH, CASP3, VEGFA, HRAS, HIF1A, MTOR and MMP9. The functional annotation of target genes demonstrated they were enriched in such biological processes as cellular response to oxidative stress, epithelial cell proliferation, and response to reactive oxygen species, along with significantly enriched pathways like HIF-1 signaling pathway, AGE-RAGE signaling pathway in diabetic complications, Type II diabetes mellitus, and VEGF signaling pathway. Molecular docking prediction results indicated that Salidroside was stably bound to these core targets. Importantly, mRNA levels of core targets in diabetic rats were differentially expressed before and after Salidroside treatment.
Conclusions
Collectively, our work demonstrated Salidroside could protect the retina from diabetes-induced damage, and preliminarily uncovered that Salidroside might exert therapeutic efficacy in DR through a multi-target and multi-pathway approach.
Genetic screening revealed widespread mosaicism in human early embryos
Authors: Qiao Jie , Zhai Fan , Kong Siming , Song Shi , Guo Qianying , Ding Ling , Yang Ming , Wang Jing , Zhang Jiaqi , Lian Ying , Li Rong , Zhu Xiaohui , Wang Yuqian , Wang Nan , Kuo Ying , Guan Shuo , Yuan Yifeng , Huang Jin , Yuan Peng , Yan Liying , Yan Zhiqiang
Published: November 2022

Pre-implantation Genetic Testing for Aneuploidy (PGT-A) is widely used in half of in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycles, leading to the unwarranted disposal of embryos with pregnancy potential. Due to the limited understanding of genetics of human embryo, current PGT-A is built on biologically uncertain assumptions and on unvalidated guidelines1. Here, we sequenced all single cells (1,072) from 20 human blastocysts and analyzed 13,897 single cells from post-implantation embryos as well as fetal organs. Unexpectedly, all blastocysts contained mitotic aneuploid cells and showed about 25% aneuploidy rate per embryo. Among the 20 blastocysts, 70% (14/20) contained chromosome ‘complementary’ cells, suggesting the possible underestimation of mosaicism in traditional PGT-A. All the post-implantation embryos and fetal organs were mosaic, and over 80% of their aneuploid cells harbored ≤ 2 chromosome errors. Our findings showed all human embryos are naturally aneuploid-mosaic and this may provide guidance to the implementation of PGT-A in clinical practice.
Androgen dihydrotestosterone promotes bladder cancer cell proliferation and invasion via EPPK1-mediated MAPK/JUP signaling
Authors: Yang Long , Huang Wen , Bai Xiaoyu , Wang Haoyu , Wang Xiaolei , Xiao Huiyuan , Li Yanlei
Published: November 2022

The incidence of bladder cancer (BLCA) in men is higher than that of women. Differences in androgen levels between men and women are considered the main causes of incidence rate differences. In this study, dihydrotestosterone (DHT) could significantly increase cell proliferation and invasion of BLCA cell line. In addition, BLCA formation and metastatic rates were higher in N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl) nitrosamine (BBN) treated male mice than in female and castrated male mice in vivo. However, immunohistochemistry showed that androgen receptor (AR) was found low expressed in normal and BLCA cancer tissues of men and women. Here, a non-AR combination pathway of androgen that promoted BLCA development was investigated. The protein EPPK1 was bombinated with DHT determined by biotinylated DHT-binding pull-down experiments. EPPK1 was highly expressed in BLCA tissues, and EPPK1 knockdown significantly inhibited BLCA cell proliferation and invasion promoted by DHT. Moreover, JUP expression was elevated in DHT-treated high-EPPK1 expression cells, and JUP knockdown inhibited cell proliferation, and invasion. EPPK1 over-expression could increase tumor growth in nude mice and JUP expression. Furthermore, DHT increased the expression of MAPK signals p38, p-p38, and c-Jun expression, and c-Jun could combine with the JUP promoter. However, no functions in EPPK1 knockdown cells and p38 inhibitor could suppress the DHT-treated increase, indicating that p38 MAPK may be involved in the regulation of DHT-dependent EPPK1-JUP-promoting BLCA cell proliferation and invasion. The growth of bladder tumors in BBN-treated wild mice was inhibited by the addition of the hormone inhibitor Goserelin. Our findings indicated the potential oncogenic role and mechanism of DHT in BLCA pathogenesis through a non-AR pathway, which may serve as a novel therapeutic target for BLCA. Androgen inhibitors may be used as endocrine therapy for bladder cancer.
Global Research on Osteosarcoma, 1999–2019: A Bibliometric and Visual Analysis
Authors: Zhang Jixiang , Li Yongbo , Wu Han
Published: November 2022

Background
Osteosarcoma is a primary malignant bone tumor that occurs in children and adolescents. Increasing numbers of scholars have studied its development and treatment. To fully understand the current status of osteosarcoma research and global trends therein, we performed a bibliometric and visual analysis of osteosarcoma studies published between 1999 and 2019.
Methods
We searched the Web of Science database for publications on osteosarcoma. The basic characteristics of this sample of publications, such as H indices, annual outputs, languages of publication, and authors, journals, institutions, and countries of origin, were determined. Co-citation, collaboration, and keyword co-occurrence were analyzed using CiteSpace software.
Results
The sample comprised 16,934 articles. The number of publications increased annually. H indices and total numbers of citations were far higher for articles from the United States than for those from other countries. Among institutions, the largest proportion of articles originated from Shanghai Jiaotong University. R. Gorlick was the author with the highest H index and total number of citations. Oncology Letters published the largest number of articles and Cancer Research was the most frequently cited journal. The five most frequently appearing keywords were “osteosarcoma,” “cancer,” “expression,” “apoptosis,” and “metastasis.” The analysis generated 10 major clusters of keywords and 23 clusters of co-cited references.
Conclusions
The findings of this study have guiding significance for researchers seeking cooperating institutions and partners for osteosarcoma research, popular journals and important literature in the field, an understanding of the knowledge base for this research, and up-to-date identification of research hotspots and trends.
Sex modulates the human genome regulatory network during heart failure and aging.
Authors: Efimov Igor , Gams Anna , Deviatiiarov Ruslan , Kulakovskiy Ivan , Buyan Andrey , Singh Ramesh , Shah Palak , Gusev Oleg , Tatarinova Tatiana
Published: November 2022

Heart failure and other cardiomyopathies have distinct presentations in males versus females that are often overlooked, leading to ineffective treatment and the growing mortality from heart diseases. Understanding the sex dimorphism in the pathogenesis of heart disease can guide improved diagnostics and sex-specific therapy. Thus, we aimed to investigate the sex dimorphism of promoter and enhancer activity in the pathogenesis of heart failure and aging. We applied cap analysis of gene expression (CAGE) to characterize the sex-specific activity of transcribed regulatory elements (TRE) in 17 male and 14 female healthy and failing hearts. We show that TREs exhibit significant sex dimorphism spread throughout the entire genome in healthy and failing atria and ventricles and are related to the immune system, metabolic, cardiomyocyte function, and developmental pathways. Moreover, we found 720 genes with sex-dependent promoter switching, of which 40 switched dominant promoters. One example was CREM, a transcription factor with a short repressive dominant isoform exclusive for males. CREM is related to extensive β-adrenergic receptor stimulation that leads to heart failure, hypertrophy, and arrhythmia. Furthermore, we identified that aging in the female and male hearts is associated with metabolic and developmental pathways, respectively. We also showed sex-specific aging patterns, such as age-specific promoter usage of 1,100 genes that behaved differently depending on sex, including UCKL1 and HAND2 linked to uridine metabolism and cardiac development, respectively. In conclusion, we report evidence of significant sex dimorphism exhibited in hundreds of transcribed genome regulatory elements in health, heart failure pathogenesis, and aging.
Dissociable neural mechanisms of selective visual information processing underlie the effects of attention on visual appearance and response bias
Authors: Itthipuripat Sirawaj , Wiwatphonthana Preawpiraya , Sawetsuttipan Prapasiri , Chang Kai-Yu , Störmer Viola , Woodman Geoffrey , Serences John
Published: November 2022

It has been debated if attention can penetrate early perceptual representations to alter visual appearance or it simply induces response biases. Here, we tested these alternative accounts by evaluating attentional modulations of EEG responses recorded from human subjects while they compared the perceived contrasts of cued and uncued visual stimuli of varying physical contrasts. We found that attention enhanced the response gain of neural contrast response functions (CRFs) computed based on the amplitude of the P1 component, an early visually evoked potential. Quantitative models suggested that the response gain of the P1-based CRFs could account for attention-induced changes in perceived contrast. Instead, attentional cues induced changes in the baseline offset of the CRFs based on 9-12Hz alpha-band oscillations and these baseline-offset changes better accounted for cue-induced response biases. Together, these results suggest that different neural mechanisms underlie the effects of attention on perceptual experience and on response biases.
Participant characteristics and reasons for non-consent to health information linkage for research: experiences from the ATHENA COVID-19 Study.
Authors: Greaves Kim , King Amanda , Bourne Zoltan , Welsh Jennifer , Morgan Mark , Tolosa M.Ximena , Bonner Carissa , Stanton Tony , Fryer Michael , Korda Rosemary
Published: November 2022

Background
The linkage of primary care, hospital and other health registry data is a global goal, and a consent-based approach is often used. Understanding the attitudes of why participants take part is important, yet little is known about reasons for non-participation. The ATHENA COVID-19 feasibility study investigated: 1) health outcomes of people diagnosed with COVID-19 in Queensland, Australia through primary care health data linkage using consent, and 2) created a cohort of patients willing to be re-contacted in future to participate in clinical trials. This report describes the characteristics of participants declining to participate and reasons for non-consent.
Methods
Patients diagnosed with COVID-19 from January 1st, 2020, to December 31st, 2020, were invited to consent to having their primary healthcare data extracted from their GP into a Queensland Health database and linked to other data sets for ethically approved research. Patients were also asked to consent to future recontact for participation in clinical trials. Outcome measures were proportions of patients consenting to data extraction, permission to recontact, and reason for consent decline.
Results
996 participants were approached and 853(86%) reached a consent decision. 581(69%), 623(73%) and 567(67%) consented to data extraction, recontact, or both, respectively. Mean (range) age of consenters and non-consenters were 50.6(range) and 46.1(range) years, respectively. Adjusting for age, gender and remoteness, older participants were more likely to consent than younger (aOR 1.02, 95%CI 1.01 to 1.03). The least socio-economically disadvantaged were more likely to consent than the most disadvantaged (aOR 2.20, 95% 1.33 to 3.64). There was no difference in consent proportions regarding gender or living in more remote regions. The main reasons for non-consent were ‘not interested in research’ (37%), ‘concerns about privacy’ (15%), ‘not registered with a GP’ (8%) and ‘too busy/no time’ (7%). ‘No reason’ was given in 20%.
Conclusion
Younger participants and the more socio-economically deprived are more likely to non-consent to primary care data linkage. Lack of patient interest in research, time required to participate and privacy concerns, were the most common reasons cited for non-consent. Future health care data linkage studies addressing these issues may prove helpful.
Trial registration details:
not applicable
Comparison of QuickNAT and FSL-FIRST for segmentation of subcortical structures in patients with epilepsy
Authors: Joković Zorica , Pejović Aleksa , Jerković Vera Miler , Sokić Dragoslav , Vojvodić Nikola , Mijaljević Marija , Ristić Aleksandar
Published: November 2022

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder that causes seizures and involves widespread structural alteration. Magnetic resonance (MR) is the preferred imaging tool for investigating patients with epilepsy and is also used for segmentation. We used to compare QuickNAT and FSL-FIRST software for the segmentation of subcortical structures in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE-R and TLE-L) and healthy control. We found that there were statistically significant differences among the automated methods in all groups (TLE-R, TLE-L, and control; mean ± SD) at the left pallidum (16.397 ± 9.326; 18.333 ± 11.062;39.322 ± 23.711) left putamen (29.561 ± 13.642;27.713 ± 13.696;22.499 ± 7.994), right amygdala (26.173 ± 19.743;22.822 ± 12.787;19.429 ± 11.617), right pallidum (24.205 ± 11.674;24.706 ± 10.647;38.976 ± 20.405), and right putamen (37.223 ± 19.498;31.143 ± 18.714;20.914 ± 9.885). We found the superiority of FSL-FIRST software over QuickNAT in calculating both volumes (raw and normalized) of subcortical structures.
The Genome Stability-Related lncRNA ZFPM2-AS1 Promotes Tumor Progression via miR-3065-5p/XRCC4 in Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Authors: Liu Jie , Zhang Hao , Xia Peng , Zhu Yimin , Xu Kequan , Liu Zhisu , Yuan Yufeng
Published: November 2022

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have a certain link to genomic stability (GS). However, the regulatory relationship of lncRNAs and GS has not been thoroughly investigated in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We retrieved the TCGA samples that had somatic mutations and lncRNA expression data. The RNA levels were determined by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and protein levels were detected by Western blotting (WB). Cell counting kit 8 (CCK8) and colony formation assays were used to assess cell viability. Cell apoptosis and cell cycle progression were measured by flow cytometry. GS was detected by alkaline comet and chromosomal aberration assays. The xenograft model and lung metastasis model were used to assess the role of ZFPM2-AS1 in tumor growth in vivo. The molecular mechanism underlying the biological functions of ZFPM2-AS1 was investigated through bioinformatic prediction, RNA pull down and luciferase reporter assays. We identified 85 genomic instability-related lncRNAs and developed a prognostic model. The prognostic model showed good predictive power (area under the curve [AUC] = 0.797). ZFPM2-AS1 was significantly highly expressed in tumor tissues (P < 0.001), and it promoted DNA damage repair (P = 0.004) and tumor progression in vitro and in vivo. Luciferase reporter assays demonstrated that miR-3065-5p could bind directly with ZFPM2-AS1 and X-ray repair cross complementing 4 (XRCC4). ZFPM2-AS1 upregulated XRCC4 expression by acting as a sponge (P < 0.001). We developed and validated a prognostic model for HCC and experimentally investigated one lncRNA of its components. ZFPM2-AS1 in the model regulates XRCC4 by sponging miR-3065-5p to promote GS and HCC progression.
Quality of life and anxiety in an underdeveloped city in IRAN during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study
Authors: Abdi Mohammadamin , Dahouei Arefeh Arabpour , Araghi Navid Mirzakhani
Published: November 2022

Introduction: Previous Studies have widely explored the Quality of life in wealthy communities during the COVID-19 pandemic; the present study selected the earthquake-prone and underdeveloped city of Zarand (Iran) and aimed to evaluate the Quality of life and anxiety.
Methods: 291 patients infected with COVID-19 in the last 14 days were included in the study. They were selected using systematic non-random sampling. The participants' Quality of life and anxiety were evaluated using the online WHO-Quality of Life-BREF and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). The analysis was not limited to the significance and included the effect size. Data were analyzed by SPSS software version 26 using Spearman's correlation, T-test, and Kruskal-Wallis.
Results: On average, the Quality of life scores were less than 50 out of 100. 58% of patients reported moderate to severe anxiety, and there was a negative correlation between all of the four physical (P-value<0.001), psychological(P-value<0.001), social(P-value<0.007), and environmental(P-value<0.001) domains of Quality of life and anxiety, respectively. Education and Quality of life were positively correlated in all domains except for the environmental part. Participants' Age ranged from 18 to 58, and the correlation between Age and the physical and psychological domain was significant. No significant correlation was found between the Quality of life, sex, and marital status.
Conclusions: The current study provides evidence of low Quality of life and high anxiety levels in patients who experienced COVID-19. This consequence implicates immediate considerations to be considered by policymakers and officials.
Longitudinal efficacy and toxicity of SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in cancer patients treated with immunotherapy
Authors: Spiliopoulou Pavlina , Rensburg Helena Janse van , Avery Lisa , Kulasingam Vathany  , Razak Albiruni , Bedard Philippe , Hansen Aaron , Chruscinski Andrzej , Wang Ben , Kulikova Maria , Chen Rachel , Speers Vanessa , Nguyen Alisa , Lee Jasmine , Coburn Bryan , Spreafico Anna , Siu Lillian
Published: November 2022

Background
Despite more than 2 years having elapsed since the onset of SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, a level of hesitation around increased SARS-CoV-2 vaccine toxicity in cancer patients receiving immunotherapy (IO) remains. Here, we explore serological responses to SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in patients treated with IO and we describe blood cytokines, autoantibody levels and immune-related adverse events (irAEs) post vaccination.
Methods
Serum anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) protein receptor binding domain (RBD) antibodies, surrogate viral neutralization test (sVNT), Th1/Th2 cytokines and antibodies against self-antigens were quantified at baseline, between 1st and 2nd vaccine doses, at 1 week (1W), 1 month (1M), 4–6 months and 10–12 months after the 2nd dose. Grade 2 or higher (≥ gr2+) irAEs were captured prospectively.
Results
Fifty-one evaluable patients were enrolled in this longitudinal study, 35 on immunotherapy (IO) and 16 on non-immunotherapy (non-IO) treatment. Absolute levels and neutralization potential of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were not significantly different in the IO group compared to non-IO. Chemotherapy adversely affects seroconversion when compared to IO and/or targeted treatment with antibody levels of 67.6 U/mL vs 1441 U/mL (p = 0.006) and sVNT of 70.9% vs 94.5% (p = 0.009), at 1M after 2nd vaccine dose. Following vaccination, the prevalence of grade ≥ 2 irAEs in patients treated with IO was not higher than the usual reported IO toxicity. We report, for the first time, that post-vaccination, IgM autoantibodies against beta 2 glycoprotein (p = 0.02), myeloperoxidase (p = 0.03), nucleosome (p = 0.041), SPLUNC2 (p < 0.001) and IgG autoantibody against Myosin Heavy Chain 6 (MYH6) (p < 0.001), were significantly elevated and this increase was unrelated to the type of treatment.
Discussion
Comprehensive analysis of a small cohort showed that co-administration of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine and IO is not associated with increased irAEs. The detection of autoantibodies post anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccination warrants further investigation. (NCT03702309)
Ultrasonography characteristics of cystic components in primary salivary gland tumors
Authors: Ding AngAng , Lv Huan , Cao Jinye , Wang Xin , Xiong Ping
Published: November 2022

Objectives The present study aimed to characterize the ultrasonography (US) features of cystic components in salivary gland tumors (SGTs).
Material and methods A total of 207 patients (218 lesions) with pathologically confirmed primary SGTs were analyzed. Preoperative US revealed the presence of cystic components in lesions. Lesion size, shape, margin, and US findings of the cystic components, including number, distribution, margin, occupying rate, and internal characteristics, were evaluated.
Results Similarities were observed between the US performance of benign SGTs (B-SGTs) and malignant SGTs (M-SGTs) with cystic components. Differences in sex and age of patients, number, distribution, and internal characteristics of cystic components were statistically significant. For SGTs with cystic components, the proportions of M-SGTs to ill-defined margins (P = 0.002), eccentric distribution (P = 0.019), and none of the internal characteristics (P = 0.019) were significantly higher than those of B-SGTs. For every one-year increase in age, the presence of B-SGTs increased by 4.9%
(95% confidence interval for the odds ratio, 1.020-1.078). The risk of ill-defined margins for the presence of M-SGTs was 10.030 times higher than that for well-defined margins (95% confidence interval for odds ratio, 3.377-29.787). Cystic component features needed to be combined with lesion indicators (border and shape) to improve diagnostic sensitivity.
Conclusions US features of the B-SGTs and M-SGTs were significantly different. Cystic component is of interest in the US-related differential diagnosis of B-SGT and M-SGT.
Clinical Relevance Cystic components are potentially valuable in the differential diagnosis of B-SGTs and M-SGTs on US.
Who Provides Anesthesia Services in Canada?
A Methodology to Identify the Physician Anesthesia Workforce Using Health Administrative Data
Authors: Simkin Sarah , Orser Beverley A. , Wilson C. Ruth , Bourgeault Ivy Lynn
Published: November 2022

Background
Safe and timely anesthesia services are an integral component of modern health care systems. There are, however, increasing concerns about the availability of anesthesia services in Canada. Thus, a comprehensive approach to assess the capacity of the anesthesia workforce to provide service is of critical need. Data regarding the anesthesia services provided by specialists and family physicians are available through the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) but collating these across delivery jurisdictions has proven challenging. As a result, critical information related to physician anesthesia providers is routinely excluded from annual physician workforce reports. Our goal was to develop a novel approach to identifying and characterizing the anesthesia workforce on a pan-Canadian scale.
Methods
The study was approved by the University of Ottawa Office of Research Ethics and Integrity. We developed a methodology to identify physicians who provided anesthesia services in Canada between 1996 and 2018 using data elements from the CIHI National Physician Database. We iteratively consulted with expert advisors and compared the results with Scott’s Medical Database, the Canadian Medical Association Masterfile, and the College of Family Physicians of Canada membership database.
Results
The methodology identified providers of anesthesia services using data elements from the CIHI National Physician Database, including categories of the National Grouping System, specialty designations, activity levels and participation thresholds. Physicians who provided anesthesia services only sporadically and medical residents-in-training were excluded. This methodology produced estimates of anesthesia providers that aligned with other sources. The process we followed was sequential, transparent, and intuitive, and was strengthened by collaboration and iterative consultation with experts and stakeholders.
Conclusions
Using physician activity patterns, this novel methodology allows stakeholders to identify which physician provide anesthesia services in Canada. It is an essential step in developing a pan-Canadian anesthesia workforce strategy which will examine patterns and trends related to the workforce and support evidence-informed workforce decision-making. It also establishes a foundation for assessing the effectiveness of policy interventions aimed at optimizing physician anesthesia services in Canada.
Short-term exposure to Air Pollution and COVID-19 in India: A Spatio-temporal analysis of Relative Risk from 20 Metropolitan cities
Authors: Prasad Peri Subrahmanya Hari
Published: November 2022

Since the emergence of Coronavirus, numerous studies have been in progress to predict the possible association between air pollution and COVID-19 cases/ deaths. There is significant importance in finding the relative risk due to air pollution by considering the meteorological conditions. In the present study, an attempt is made to find the effects of air pollution on COVID-19 deaths on the country scale with high temporal datasets. The short-term air pollution exposure study with the combined effect of temperature and humidity is considered. The daily observed maximum concentration of air pollution and meteorological variables data of twenty major cities across India were collected between 26-Apr-2020 and 1-Nov- 2021. The generalized additive model (GAM) is applied to the individual pollutant data and non-cumulative daily new COVID-19 incidence/ deaths. All major pollutants PM2.5, PM10, SO2, and O3 are positively attributed to COVID-19 cases and deaths. For every 10 µg/m3 increment in pollutant concentration, there is an increment in incidences by for PM2.5, PM10, CO, and O3, are 1%, 1.5%, 7.7%, 8% respectively. Similarly, for every 10 µg/m3 increment in pollutant concentration, there is an increment in deaths for PM2.5, PM10, CO, and O3, which are 1.5%, 2.3%, 7.7%, 8%, respectively. The Relative maximum risk is attributed to O3, and the minimum relative risk is due to PM2.5. These results suggest that policymakers should take appropriate measures to mitigate outdoor air pollution.
Characterization and phylogenetic analysis of the complete mitochondrial genome of Aythya marila
Authors: Zhang Lei , Xia Tian , Gao Xiaodong , Yang Xiufeng , Sun Guolei , Zhao Chao , Liu Guangshuai , Zhang Honghai
Published: November 2022

In this study, we sequenced and annotated the complete mitochondrial genome of Aythya marila, which contained 22 tRNAs, 13 protein-coding genes, two ribosomal RNAs, and one D-loop, with a length of 16617 bp. The sizes of the PCGs ranged from 297 to 1824 bp, and all PCGs, except ND6, were located on the heavy chain (H). ATG and TAA were the most common start and termination codons of the 13 PCGs, and the fastest-evolving gene was ATP8, whereas the slowest-evolving gene was COI. Codon usage analysis indicated that CUA, AUC, GCC, UUC, CUC, and ACC were the six most frequent codons. The nucleotide diversity values indicated a high level of genetic diversity in Aythya marila. FST analysis suggested that there was widespread gene exchange between A. baeri and A. nyroca. Phylogenetic reconstructions using the mitochondrial genomes of all available Anatidae species showed that four major clades among Anatidae: Dendrocygninae, Oxyurinae, Anserinae, and Anatinae, in addition to A. marila, were closely related to A. fuligula. In general, this research will provide valuable information on the evolution of A. marila and therefore provide new insights into the phylogeny of Anatidae.
Oxygen Deficit Area Spatial-temporal Heterogeneity in Bohai Sea: Formation and their Drivers
Authors: Zhao Zihan , Xiao Rushui , Guo Junting , Zhang Yuming , Zhang Shufang , Lv Xianqing , Shi Honghua
Published: November 2022

In recent years, oxygen deficit in coastal seas has seriously affected the marine ecological environment. Using a large number of observed data in May and August from 2015 to 2018, we obtain the vertical distribution of DO and related hydrological factors in the central section of the Bohai Sea by three-dimensional spatial interpolation to analyze the variation characteristics and its potential changing drivers. The results show that there are two typical oxygen deficit regions in the bottom water of the central Bohai Sea in summer, which are located off Qinhuangdao (QHD) and off the Yellow River estuary (YRE). We analyze the main mechanisms for the formation of oxygen deficit regions: continuous strong stratification and high temperature in summer as well as the aerobic decomposition of organic matter produced after the death of the massive phytoplankton in spring and summer during the slow sedimentation process. In addition, the physical-biological mechanisms of QHD and YRE, the two oxygen deficit core regions, are obviously different. This comparison highlights the influence of the initiation time of stratification enhancement and phytoplankton species on the degree of oxygen deficit, which provides a new understanding for perfecting the formation mechanism of oxygen deficit. Finally, two oxygen deficit regions are simply predicted, which highlights the seriousness of oxygen deficit in Bohai Sea.
Towards universal synthetic heterotrophy using a metabolic coordinator
Authors: Sullivan Sean , Shetty Anuj , Bharadwaj Tharun , Krishna Naveen , Trivedi Vikas , Gopinarayanan Venkatesh Endalur , Sellers Daniel , R. Pravin Kumar , Nair Nikhil
Published: November 2022

Engineering the utilization of non-native substrates, or synthetic heterotrophy, in proven industrial microbes such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae represents an opportunity to valorize plentiful and renewable sources of carbon and energy as potential inputs to biotechnological processes. We previously demonstrated that activation of the galactose (GAL) regulon, a regulatory structure used by this yeast to coordinate substrate utilization with biomass formation during growth on galactose, during growth on the non-native substrate xylose results in a vastly altered gene expression profile and faster growth compared with constitutive overexpression of the same heterologous catabolic pathway. However, this effort involved the creation of a xylose-inducible variant of Gal3p (Gal3pSyn4.1), the sensor protein of the GAL regulon, preventing this semi-synthetic regulon approach from being easily adapted to additional non-native substrates. Here, we report the construction of a variant Gal3pMC (metabolic coordinator) that exhibits robust GAL regulon activation in the presence of structurally diverse substrates and recapitulates the dynamics of the native system. Multiple molecular modeling studies confirm that Gal3pMC occupies conformational states corresponding to galactose-bound Gal3p in an inducer-independent manner. Using Gal3pMC to test a regulon approach to the assimilation of the non-native lignocellulosic sugars xylose, arabinose, and cellobiose yields higher growth rates and final cell densities when compared with a constitutive overexpression of the same set of catabolic genes. The subsequent demonstration of rapid and complete co-utilization of all three non-native substrates suggests that Gal3pMC-mediated dynamic global gene expression changes by GAL regulon activation may be universally beneficial for engineering synthetic heterotrophy.
Research on an intelligent diagnosis method of mechanical faults for small sample data sets
Authors: Zhao jun , Shi Yuhua , Tan Feng , Wang Xufeng , Zhang Youqiang , Liao Jiean , Yang Fan , Guo Zhanhong
Published: November 2022

The difficulty of feature extraction and the small sample size are two challenges in the field of mechanical fault diagnosis for a long time. Here we propose an intelligent mechanical fault diagnosis method for scenario with small sample datasets. This method can not only diagnose bearing faults but also gear faults, and has strong generalization performance. We use convolutional neural network to realize automatic feature extraction. Through sliding window scanning, one sample set is expanded to three sub-sample sets with different scales to meet the needs of deep learning training. Three convolutional networks are used to extract the features of the subsets respectively to ensure that their useful features are fully extracted. After feature extraction, the feature is reconstructed through feature splicing. Because of the unique advantages of SVM in dealing with small sample sets, we use SVM to classify the reconstructed features.We use the bearing data set collected by Case Western Reserve University in the United States, the bearing fault data set collected by Xi'an Jiaotong University in China, and the gearbox fault data collected by the University of Connecticut in the United States to conduct experiments. The experimental results show that the accuracy of training, validation and testing of the proposed method on the three data sets all reach 100%. This proves that our method can not only tackle the two challenges, but also has high fault diagnosis accuracy and strong generalization performance. It is hoped that our proposed method can contribute to the development of mechanical fault diagnosis.