bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Self-collected penile-meatal swabs are suitable for the detection of STIs in Ugandan men with high rates of STI coinfections
Authors: Melendez Johan H , Muñiz Tirado Adamaris , Onzia Annet , Mande Emmanuel , Hardick Justin P , Parkes-Ratanshi Rosalind , Hamill Matthew M , Manabe Yukari C
Published: December 2024

Background

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a global health challenge. Testing is not routinely performed in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), which bear a disproportionate burden of STIs. Self-collected penile-meatal swabs (SCPMS) are an alternative to urine for STI testing, but data from LMICs are limited.

Methods

Between October 2019 and September 2020, recruited participants with urethral discharge syndrome at government health facilities in Kampala, Uganda, provided urine and SCPMS. Samples were retrospectively analysed forChlamydia trachomatis(CT),Neisseria gonorrhoeae(NG),Mycoplasma genitalium(MG) andTrichomonas vaginalis(TV) using Aptima assays. Paired SCPMS and urine samples with discordant STI results were analysed using real-time PCR assays.

Results

Of the 250 participants, 66.8% (n=167), 22.8% (n=57), 12.8% (n=32) and 2.4% (n=6) tested positive for NG, CT, MG and TV, respectively, on testing of their SCPMS and urine samples. The overall agreement between urine and SCPMS for all STIs using the Aptima assays was 98.7% (987/1000). After adjudication with PCR assays, the agreement between urine and SCPMS for NG, CT, MG and TV was 100% (250/250), 97.6% (244/250), 99.6% (249/250), and 99.6% (249/250), respectively. There was no significant difference between SCPMS and urine (p=0.9996). For paired samples with one STI (n=164) or ≥2 STIs (n=39), concordance was 100% (656/656) and 97.2% (175/180), respectively. There was no association between number of STIs and agreement between sample types (p=0.8606).

Conclusions

This study revealed a high level of agreement between SCPMS and urine for detection of STIs in symptomatic Ugandan men, even in the presence of multiple concurrent STIs. SCPMS may be a suitable alternative to urine, with ease of collection, transporting, and processing of samples.
Privacy-Preserving Sequential Recommendation with Collaborative Confusion
Authors: Wang Wei , Lin Yujie , Ren Pengjie , Chen Zhumin , Mine Tsunenori , Zhao Jianli , Zhao Qiang , Zhang Moyan , Ben Xianye , Li Yujun
Published: December 2024

Sequential recommendation has attracted a lot of attention from both academia and industry, however the privacy risks associated with gathering and transferring users’ personal interaction data are often underestimated or ignored. Existing privacy-preserving studies are mainly applied to traditional collaborative filtering or matrix factorization rather than sequential recommendation. Moreover, these studies are mostly based on differential privacy or federated learning, which often lead to significant performance degradation, or have high requirements for communication.

In this work, we address privacy-preserving from a different perspective. Unlike existing research, we capture collaborative signals of neighbor interaction sequences and directly inject indistinguishable items into the target sequence before the recommendation process begins, thereby increasing the perplexity of the target sequence. Even if the target interaction sequence is obtained by attackers, it is difficult to discern which ones are the actual user interaction records. To achieve this goal, we introduce a novel sequential recommender system called
CoLlaborative-cOnfusion seqUential recommenDer (CLOUD)
, which incorporates a collaborative confusion mechanism to modify the raw interaction sequences before conducting recommendation. Specifically, CLOUD first calculates the similarity between the target interaction sequence and other neighbor sequences to find similar sequences. Then, CLOUD considers the shared representation of the target sequence and similar sequences to determine the operation to be performed: keep, delete, or insert. A copy mechanism is designed to make items from similar sequences have a higher probability to be inserted into the target sequence. Finally, the modified sequence is used to train the recommender and predict the next item.

We conduct extensive experiments on three benchmark datasets. The experimental results show that CLOUD achieves a maximum modification rate of 66.57% on interaction sequences and obtains over 99% recommendation accuracy compared to the state-of-the-art sequential recommendation methods. This proves that CLOUD can effectively protect user privacy at minimal recommendation performance cost, which provides a new solution for privacy-preserving for sequential recommendation. Our implementation is available at
https://github.com/weiwang0927/CLOUD
.
Leveraging Modular Architecture for Bug Characterization and Analysis in Automated Driving Software
Authors: Jiang Yingjie , Mo Ran , Zhan Wenjing , Wang Dongyu , Li Zengyang , Ma Yutao
Published: December 2024

With the rapid advancement of automated driving technology, numerous manufacturers deploy vehicles with auto-driving features. This highlights the importance of ensuring the quality of automated driving software. To achieve this, characterizing bugs in automated driving software is important, as it can facilitate bug detection and bug fixes, thereby ensuring software quality. Automated driving software typically has a modular architecture, where software is divided into multiple modules, each designed for its own functionality for automated driving. This may lead to varying bug characteristics. Additionally, our recent study has shown a correlation between bugs caused by code clones and the functionalities of modules in automated driving software. Hence, we consider the modular structure when analyzing bug characteristics. In this paper, we analyze 3,078 bugs from two representative open-source Level-4 automated driving systems, Apollo and Autoware. By analyzing the bug report description, title, and developers’ discussions, we have identified 20 bug symptoms and 17 bug-fixing strategies, and analyzed their relationships with the respective modules. Our analysis achieves 12 main findings offering a comprehensive view of bug characteristics in automated driving software. We believe our findings can help developers better understand and manage bugs in automated driving software, thereby improving software quality and reliability.
End-to-Same-End Encryption: Modularly Augmenting an App with an Efficient, Portable, and Blind Cloud Storage
Authors: Chen Long , Li Ya-Nan , Tang Qiang , Yung Moti
Published: December 2024

The cloud has become pervasive, and we ask: how can we protect cloud data against the cloud itself? For secure user-to-user communication via a cloud server, End-to-End encryption has been formally studied, building on existing TLS channels without requiring new primitives. However, enabling user-to-same-user secure outsourced data storage–solving the analogous problem of “privacy from the server” while (1) relying on existing infrastructure and (2) supporting user mobility, remains open. Existing proposals, like password-protected secret sharing, target the same goal but are incompatible with existing cloud storage services. Specifically, they lack the simplicity needed to directly utilize existing cloud
storage
without requiring changes on the cloud side.

Here, we propose a novel system for securely storing private data in existing cloud storage with the help of a key server (necessary, given the requirements). In our system, user data is secure against threats from the cloud server, the key server, and illegitimate users. Only the legitimate user can access the data on any device using a correct passphrase. Most importantly, our system does not require the storage server to support any newly programmable operations. Moreover, leveraging the existing App login, our system requires only one passphrase, which never leaves the user’s device and remains hidden from both servers. The security is proved under formal models, and its efficiency is demonstrated by experiments conducted on Amazon S3. Notably, a preliminary variant, based on our principles, was deployed by Snapchat in their
My Eyes Only
module, serving hundreds of millions of users!
Comparison of 68Ga-DOTANOC and 18F-FDOPA PET/CT for Detection of Recurrent or Metastatic Paragangliomas
Authors: Bian Linjie , Xu Junyan , Li Panli , Bai Liyan , Song Shaoli
Published: December 2024

In patients with recurrent or metastatic paragangliomas, 68Ga-DOTA-NaI3-octreotide PET/CT showed higher sensitivity than 18F-fluoro-l-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (18F-FDOPA) PET/CT for detecting bone metastases, and 18F-FDOPA PET/CT was more sensitive for detecting liver metastases.
Impact of different muscle-lengthening amplitudes combined with electrical nerve stimulation on torque production
Authors: Pineau Antoine , Martin Alain , Lepers Romuald , Papaiordanidou Maria
Published: December 2024

This study demonstrates that combining wide-pulse low-frequency NMES and muscle lengthening can increase torque production compared with the sole application of NMES. Torque enhancement is most likely linked to the persistent firing of muscle afferents. Although muscle lengthening superimposition also permitted torque increases during wide-pulse high-frequency NMES, increasing the muscle lengthening amplitude did not allow further torque enhancements, probably due to presynaptic inhibitory mechanisms.
A Decentralized Control of Cascaded‐Type AC Microgrids Integrating Dispatchable and Nondispatchable Generations
Authors: Li Lang , Tian Peng , Yan Genglong , Shen Shixun
Published: December 2024

Existing studies on decentralized control of islanded cascaded‐type AC microgrids mainly focus on either dispatchable or nondispatchable DGs. However, islanded cascaded‐type AC microgrids may contain both types of DGs. To address this issue, a decentralized control scheme is proposed that integrates both dispatchable and nondispatchable DGs for the islanded cascaded‐type AC microgrids. By performing this method, frequency synchronization and power factor angle consistency for all DGs are obtained in a communication‐free manner. One dispatchable DG is regulated to maintain constant voltage amplitudes at the point of common coupling (PCC). A high‐quality power supply for load demands is achieved. Meanwhile, the nondispatchable DG is controlled to output active power based on its available capacity for using renewable energy efficiently. Next, a stability analysis of the proposed control for the cascaded‐type AC microgrids is performed. Finally, simulations and experiments are executed to showcase the efficacy of the proposed scheme.
Table S5 from Pan-Cancer Analysis of Homologous Recombination Deficiency in Cell Lines
Authors: Dodson Anne E. , Shenker Sol , Sullivan Pamela , Nayak Sumeet U. , Middleton Chris , McGuire Michael , Chipumuro Edmond , Mishina Yuji , Tobin Erica R. , Cadzow Louise , Wylie Andrew A. , Sangurdekar Dipen
Published: December 2024

HRDsum scores for cell lines.
Figure S1 from Pan-Cancer Analysis of Homologous Recombination Deficiency in Cell Lines
Authors: Dodson Anne E. , Shenker Sol , Sullivan Pamela , Nayak Sumeet U. , Middleton Chris , McGuire Michael , Chipumuro Edmond , Mishina Yuji , Tobin Erica R. , Cadzow Louise , Wylie Andrew A. , Sangurdekar Dipen
Published: December 2024

CHORD MSI predictions
Figure 6 from Pan-Cancer Analysis of Homologous Recombination Deficiency in Cell Lines
Authors: Dodson Anne E. , Shenker Sol , Sullivan Pamela , Nayak Sumeet U. , Middleton Chris , McGuire Michael , Chipumuro Edmond , Mishina Yuji , Tobin Erica R. , Cadzow Louise , Wylie Andrew A. , Sangurdekar Dipen
Published: December 2024

Associations of HRD predictions with drug sensitivities. A, HRDsum scores in relation to PARPi response, as determined by a clonogenic assay. Breast and ovarian cancer cell lines are shown in the left (both), and all other cell lines are shown in the right. Point shapes indicate biallelic loss of BRCA1/2 (BRCA1/2MT), likely epigenetic silencing of BRCA1 (BRCA1me), and likely BRCA1/2 proficiency (proficient). Black bars represent the mean. Mann–Whitney U test P values are shown. ns, not significant. B, Pearson correlation coefficients between HRDsum scores and drug sensitivities (log2 fold change in viability for treatment vs. DMSO) determined by the PRISM Repurposing 23Q2 dataset. Positive coefficients indicate an association between HRDsum scores and drug resistance, whereas negative coefficients indicate an association between HRDsum scores and drug sensitivity. Colors highlight different drug types of interest. C, Correlation between HRDsum scores and sensitivity to the MDM2 inhibitor milademetan (PRISM Repurposing 23Q2). Sensitivity is shown as the log2 fold change in viability (treatment vs. DMSO). Pearson correlation coefficient (R) and Benjamini–Hochberg–adjusted P value (q) are shown in gray. D, Correlation between HRDsum scores and MDM2 dependency scores (DepMap 22Q4). Pearson correlation coefficient (R) and Benjamini–Hochberg–adjusted P value (q) are shown in gray.
The impact of ureteral access sheaths on radiation exposure in the ureterorenoscopic treatment of urolithiasis
Authors: Eismann Lennert , Rodler Severin , Buchner Alexander , Strittmatter Frank , Alghamdi Abdulmajeed , Lennartz Simon , Grunz Jan-Peter , Waidelich Raphaela , Becker Armin , Weinhold Philipp , Kretschmer Alexander , Stief Christian G. , Westhofen Thilo
Published: December 2024

Introduction:
Ureteral access sheaths (UAS) are widely used in the endoscopic treatment of urolithiasis. In modern medicine, radiation exposure from diagnostics and therapy is increasing; however, the impact of UAS on procedure duration, fluoroscopy time, and radiation exposure is still uncertain.

Methods:
This retrospective study included 1,026 patients who received ureterorenoscopic treatment for urolithiasis between 2016 and 2018 at a large academic center. Patients were dichotomized according to the use of UAS, and propensity score matching was performed based on age, BMI and stone size. Patient demographics, stone size, radiographic density, perioperative complications, and postoperative outcome were assessed. Procedure time and radiation exposure, recorded as the fluoroscopy time and area dose product, were analyzed.

Results:
In total, 300 patients were successfully matched to the cohort with UAS (n=150) and the cohort without UAS (n=150). Patients’ demographics were similar for age, gender, BMI and ASA score (each p>0.05). Median stone size was 8mm and 7.5mm in the cohort with and without UAS (p=0.335). Procedure time showed no differences between the two cohorts (p=0.749). Fluoroscopy time and area dose product were significantly lower in patients treated with the use of UAS (p=0.004; p<0.001).

Conclusion:
The use of a UAS does not prolong operation time in patients with equivalent stone burden. In addition, the use of a UAS reduces fluoroscopy time and radiation exposure. In the future, to reduce radiation exposure to the patient and medical staff, the use of a UAS should also be considered for limited stone disease.
Orientações gerais para elaboração de trabalhos acadêmicos
Authors:   Universidade de São Paulo. Escola de Artes, Ciências e Humanidades, Faria Regis Rossi Alves
Published: December 2024

Este guia apresenta orientações gerais sobre como elaborar trabalhos acadêmicos e relatórios técnico-científicos, cobrindo da escrita de monografias e trabalhos de conclusão de curso a outros tipos de trabalhos, como projetos de pesquisa, programas artísticos, pôsteres e artigos científicos. Verificam-se muitas dúvidas básicas sobre como deve ser organizado o texto, como apresentar resultados, figuras, dados técnicos, conclusões, referências, etc., além de dificuldades ao lidar com a criação e a natural evolução do manuscrito, desde suas concepções iniciais (como textos de projetos) até uma versão final (monografias e relatórios). Motivado por estas questões, e de maneira complementar à literatura existente sobre redação técnica e científica, trazem-se aqui esclarecimentos e sugestões para diversos tópicos onde ocorrem dúvidas e erros mais frequentes.
Arquitetura do acaso e utopia concreta na obra Teoria Geral do Esquecimento, de José Eduardo Agualusa
Authors: Silva Ana Paula Rodrigues da
Published: December 2024

O presente artigo tem como objetivo, a partir da observação das estratégias de construção do romance Teoria Geral do Esquecimento, de José Eduardo Agualusa, iluminar as relações entre literatura e história, destacando as conexões entre a consciência do narrar, a importância da escrita e o papel da literatura como espaço de reflexão. Enfatizamos as transformações que marcam as vidas das personagens e os impactos na arquitetura do edifício onde mora a personagem central, relacionando essas mudanças àquelas que marcam a transformação de Luanda.
Gênesis do homem moçambicano nos contos de João Dias e Luís Bernardo Honwana
Authors: Neves Letícia Maria dos Santos
Published: December 2024

The aim of this article is to analyze how the short stories of João Dias and Luís Bernardo Honwana dialogue with African revolutionary movements in the 20th century. By analyzing two short stories, Gênesis and As Mãos dos Pretos, we seek to understand how colonial structures are articulated and how Mozambican intellectuals respond to the historical and cultural erasure imposed by the Portuguese colonial government.
It could only be at Africa: An analysis of representations in “The Almost End of the World” (2008), from Pepetela
Authors: Baptista Joanna Moreira
Published: December 2024

Este artigo pretende analisar as figuras de representação racial presentes no romance O quase fim do mundo do angolano Pepetela, a partir da construção das identidades complexas dos sobreviventes da tentativa de extermínio. Para isso, os estudos sobre regime de representação racial (HALL, 2016) e construção do inimigo (ECO, 2021) serão abordados para observar a inversão dos estereótipos e a proposição de uma nova forma de representação e de humanidade possíveis nesse futuro distópico africano.
20 de Novembro de 2023
Authors: Souza Alessandra Corrêa de
Published: December 2024

This poem is the result of an activity carried out on November 20, 2023. It is an excerpt from my anti-racist practices and the daily confrontations of an anti-racist educator teaching Afro-Latin American literature at the Federal University of Sergipe. The methodology used was based on critical listening to undergraduate students in the sixth period of Spanish-American literature IV, who were supposed to watch videos with Afro-centered songs and poems such as: Rincon Sapiência, Victoria Santa Cruz, Shirley Campbell Barr and Elza Soares to discuss November 20th as a date to value struggles and achievements to effectively celebrate Black Consciousness Day. The episode on screen was a discursive disaster, since a racist student did not do what was agreed and required by the teacher and brought a report from a Brazilian actress who discussed her late process of understanding herself as a black woman.  From this episode of structural racism. We changed the course plan of the subject and included readings such as Cida Bento, the narcissistic pact of Whiteness, colorism by Alessandra Devulsky and others.
Entrevista com Eliane Potiguara
Authors: Santos Fernanda Sampaio Gomes dos , Breda Fernando Cambauva
Published: December 2024

A escritora Eliane Potiguara, que atualmente é uma das maiores ativistas pela garantia dos direitos dos povos indígenas no Brasil, fala sobre os seus projetos literários e o futuro da educação indígena no pa´ís.
A arquitetura religiosa no sudoeste de Goiás: Igreja de São Sebastião em Rio Verde e Igreja do Divino Espírito Santo de Torres do Rio Bonito (séc. xix e xx)
Authors: Pinto Junior Rafael Alves
Published: December 2024

This article analyzes the religious architecture produced in southwestern Goiás in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, especially the Churches of São Sebastião in Rio Verde and Divino Espírito Santo in Torres do Rio Bonito, present-day Caiapônia. We aim to understand, based on the constitution of ecclesiastical heritage, the plans, parties, volumes, formal elements and modifications of the only examples of this architecture in the region. We thus seek to record an architectural production with vernacular bases and contribute to the historiography on the subject.
Word Repetition and Isolation are Intertwined in Children’s Early Language Experiences
Authors: Nencheva Mira L. , Schwab Jessica F. , Lew-Williams Casey , Fausey Caitlin M.
Published: December 2024

Infants experience language in the context of a dynamic environment in which many cues co-occur. However, experimenters often reduce language input to individual cues a priori without considering how children themselves may experience incoming information, leading to potentially inaccurate conclusions about how learning works outside of the lab. Here, we examined the shared temporal dynamics of two historically separated cues that are thought to support word learning: repetition of the same word in nearby utterances, and isolation of individual word tokens (i.e., single-word utterances). In a large database of North American English, we found that word repetition and isolation frequently co-occurred in children’s natural language experiences, and the extent to which they did so was linked to words’ earlier age of acquisition. This investigation emphasizes children’s experiences in time as a way to understand the learning cues in the language environment, which may help researchers build learning theories that are grounded in real-world structure.
Secular-Sacred Hybridity of Ren’ai: Charitable Organisations, Religious Networks and Ethical Identities in Contemporary China
Authors: Stapleton Theo
Published: December 2024

This article explores the growth of religious philanthropy in contemporary China over the first two decades of the twenty-first century. By describing the strategies of one of China’s most important Buddhist-inspired charities at macro, meso, and micro scales, I argue that the Ren’ai Charity Foundation’s success is due to its strategic blurring of the boundaries between the sacred and the secular. This strategy is manifest in its negotiations with the secular state, internal organizational structures, and ethical discourse. Sacred-secular hybridity, the central concept advanced in this article, is an important feature of China’s religious revival, and an important example of innovative strategies employed by non-government organizations in the policy gray areas of contemporary China. The sacred-secular hybridity of Ren’ai not only reveals the latest developments within Chinese religious philanthropy, but also serves as a theoretical framework to better understand the contested category of religion in contemporary China.
A Note on the Qumran Version of Isa 5:18
Authors: von Büttner Cyrill
Published: December 2024

This article discusses a potentially difficult reading that occurs in the Great Isaiah Scroll (1QIsaa) in Isa 5:18, namely, the word ‮השי‬‎. This manuscript is the oldest Hebrew copy of the book of Isaiah, dating from the second half of the second century BCE. The reading ‮השי‬‎ was previously thought to be the result of a scribe’s error (written instead of ‮השו‬‎ “deceit, worthlessness, vanity,” cf. ‮השוא‬‎ in the Masoretic Text). The article discusses alternative explanations for this reading: a) the form of the noun ‮שֶׂה‬‎ “sheep, goat,” b) the form of the noun ‮שַׁי‬‎ “tribute.”
“Bravo pour votre incompétence!” Exploring the French-Speaking Customer Service Interactions of Three European Train Operating Companies Online
Authors: Lutzky Ursula , Ruytenbeek Nicolas
Published: December 2024

Today, customer service interactions take place in the digital sphere to a considerable extent. In fact, several social networking platforms have been reappropriated to this end, allowing businesses to engage in conversations with their customers. In this study, we investigate the nature of these conversations on Twitter (now X) in three different French-speaking countries. We focus on the national train operating companies in France (SNCF), Belgium (SNCB) and Switzerland (CFF) and study their Twitter interactions with customers in French, using a corpus linguistic methodology. Our study is based on a corpus of more than half a million tweets addressed to and posted by the respective companies between 2018 and 2022. The aim of this contrastive study is to highlight the linguistic features and communicative strategies used by the respective companies and their customers, with a view to uncovering potential features pertaining to the discourse of customer service tweets in French.
Anyway as a Pragmatic Marker in Nigerian and Ghanaian Englishes
Authors: Unuabonah Foluke Olayinka , Daniel Florence Oluwaseyi
Published: December 2024

This paper examines pragmatic variation in the use of anyway between Nigerian English and Ghanaian English, in terms of its frequency, position, collocational patterns, pragmatic functions and occurrence in different text types. The data for the study, which are retrieved from the Nigerian and Ghanaian components of the International Corpus of English, are examined from a variational pragmatic framework. The results indicate that overall, there is no significant variance in the frequency of anyway between Nigerian English and Ghanaian English; however, there are significant differences in the frequency of anyway across different text types between the two varieties. Moreover, while anyway occurs most frequently at clause-initial position in Ghanaian English, it occurs most often at clause-final position in Nigerian English. Anyway performs different pragmatic functions in Nigerian English and Ghanaian English, including signalling affirmation, which is a function that has not been identified in other varieties of English. The study, thus, contributes to the research on anyway as a pragmatic marker as well as pragmatic variation in Nigerian English and Ghanaian English.
Taxonomic novelties of soil-inhabiting pleosporalean fungi in Thailand using baiting method
Authors: YASANTHIKA W.A.E. , CHETHANA K.W.T. , WANASINGHE D.N. , TENNAKOON D.S. , AL-OTIBI F. , HYDE K.D.
Published: December 2024

Ascomycota exhibit a cosmopolitan distribution across soil ecosystems, with notably higher diversity in tropical forests. The climatic and edaphic conditions in the natural forests of Thailand create a favorable niche for soil-dwelling Ascomycota. This study explores cellulophilic and keratinophilic pleosporalean taxa in tropical forest soils of Thailand. Species isolation was conducted using the soil baiting method, followed by a polyphasic approach for species identification. This included morphological characterization and phylogenetic analyses using maximum likelihood and Bayesian methods. The study identifies a new species, Neptunomyces soli (Didymosphaeriaceae) and a new habitat record for Curvularia dactylocteniicola (Pleosporaceae). The species are presented with comprehensive descriptions and micrographs, and their potential cellulophilic and keratinophilic characteristics are discussed.
Two new freshwater dematiaceous hyphomycetes of Pleosporales from Yunnan Province, China
Authors: WANG WEN-PENG , LUAN SHA , SHEN HONG-WEI , LIU NING-GUO , LI YUN-XIA , LUO ZONG-LONG
Published: December 2024

The diversity of lignicolous freshwater fungi in southwestern China is currently being studied. In this paper, two fungal isolates were collected from freshwater habitats in Yunnan Province, China. Based on morphological comparisons and the results of phylogenetic analysis of combined ITS, LSU, rpb2, SSU, and tef1-α sequence data, we introduce two new species, Aquadictyospora nujiangensis and Dendryphion verrucosum. Aquadictyospora nujiangensis is characterized by micronematous conidiophores and muriform, cheiroid conidia composed of compactly adpressed, curved rows of cells. Dendryphion verrucosum is characterized by erect, apically branched conidiophores, polytretic conidiogenous cells, and solitary or catenate to branched, monilioid conidia. This study contributes to the lignicolous freshwater fungal diversity in southwestern China.
Fund Allocation Between the Central and Local Government and Its Impact on the Local Public Service Delivery: The Case of Chittagong City Corporation, Bangladesh
Authors: Ahmed Mamtaj Uddin , Hoque Morshadul , Sanusi Zainal Abidin Bin
Published: December 2024

This study examines how Central–local relations, mainly the financial control of the Central government, impact the local public service delivery of the local government institutions, particularly the city corporation in Bangladesh. The case study method has been employed to study the impact for which the semi-structured questionnaires for interviews were used mainly to collect qualitative data from one of the oldest city corporations in Bangladesh, Chittagong City Corporation (CCC). A total of 117 respondents were included from three diverse groups: elected representatives, government officials and citizens from the survey area. The study reveals that central–local relationships, particularly the Central government’s financial control, severely impact the CCC’s service delivery in five significant sectors: waste management, streetlighting, infrastructure construction and maintenance, education and health care services. This research concludes with some policy recommendations that will be helpful to the policymaking community not only in Bangladesh but also in other South Asian countries.
Characterization of the effect of creep and multiaxial loading situations on fatigue of short fiber reinforced thermoplastics
Authors: Spancken Dominik , Abdul Hamid Zalikha M , Rohrmüller Benedikt , Richter Harald , De Monte Matthias , Hohe Jörg , Laveuve Dominik M
Published: December 2024

The present study is concerned with an experimental study into the effect of superimposed creep deformation, varying local fiber orientation distributions, and more complex multiaxial stress states on the fatigue of short fiber reinforced thermoplastics. The cross-interaction of these effects is a relevant feature in all fields of applications of short fiber composites since molding related variations of the local fiber orientation states cannot be avoided for injection molded structures. Long term loading will result in a combined occurrence of fatigue and creep and thus an interaction of the related effects. The study is based on a short glass fiber reinforced polyamide 66 as reference material which is a common material grade in many automotive applications. A basic characterization is performed by means of tensile and DMA experiments. Subsequently, creep and creep fatigue experiments are performed at ambient and elevated temperatures. In order to include the effects of locally varying fiber orientation situations and locally multiaxial loading situations, the coupon experiments are complemented by experiments on breadboard specimens featuring notches, holes, and structural component related external geometries. Superimposed creep deformation might accelerate fatigue failure, however, for notched specimens might also result in an increased fatigue lifetime due to creep-induced stress relief at the notch roots. The results reveal that care has to be taken when transferring the results on idealized coupon specimens to generalized, realistic problems. The results also serve as a development and validation data base for a continuum damage mechanics material model presented in an oncoming contribution.
Electrolyzed Saline Prevents Virus Transmission in Dental Procedures: An In Vitro Study
Authors: Munjaković H. , Mikuletič T. , Zayed N. , Kolenc M. , Manevski D. , Triglav T. , Steyer A. , Teughels W. , Seme K. , Fidler A. , Gašperšič R.
Published: December 2024

In dentistry, disinfection with antimicrobials is employed under different conditions and at different time points. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of disinfectant dental sprays was proposed, among other measures, to help prevent the transmission of infections during dental procedures that require highly effective antiseptics at particularly short contact times. The study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of electrolyzed saline (EOS) compared with other antiseptics in terms of the spread of enveloped and nonenveloped viruses by ultrasonic scaler (USS)–generated dental spray. Suspension tests were performed to evaluate the antiviral efficacy of EOS against herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) and human adenovirus (HAdV), which served as models for enveloped and nonenveloped viruses, respectively. EOS, mostly composed of hypochlorous acid (HOCl), reduced the amount of both virus types in the presence or absence of artificial saliva by > 4 log10 50% tissue culture infectious dose ( P < 0.001). In addition, the mechanism of virucidal effect was investigated using transmission electron microscopy. Following this assessment, a virus-laden dental spray transmission model was used to simulate virus-infected patients undergoing dental procedures with USS. Attenuation was achieved by substituting the USS coolant with one of the effective, pretested antiseptics. Due to safety concerns, nonhuman viral pathogens—equine arteritis virus (EAV) and feline calicivirus (FCV)—served as enveloped and nonenveloped virus models, respectively. Viral infection was evaluated by direct droplet/aerosol infection of RK-13 or CRFK cells. In addition, the biocompatibility of the antiseptics was tested with exposure to human oral keratinocytes. EOS demonstrated strong virucidal activity against both enveloped and nonenveloped viruses and was able to absolutely prevent airborne transmission of EAV and FCV through dental spray in the splatter and droplet/aerosol samples. The study emphasized that EOS, a chlorine-based antiseptic, is a promising, reasonably safe, broad-spectrum agent for preventing dental spray–mediated viral transmission.
Primary Thyroid Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma: A Case Report
Authors: Tbini Makram , Bessioud Salma , El Mabrouk Oumayma , Laamouri Rihab , Ksentini Meriem , Blel Ahlem , Ben Salah Mamia
Published: December 2024

Primary thyroid lymphoma is rare. Hashimoto’s disease is usually found as a risk factor. Among thyroid lymphoma, diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most aggressive and frequent one. A 56-year-old man with a medical history of Hashimoto’s disease presented with a neck mass and dysphonia. A computed tomography scan revealed a large thyroid mass. Fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) was consistent with lymphoma, confirmed by a core needle as a DLBCL. The patient was transferred to the Department of Hematology and Oncology for chemotherapy with good results. Primary thyroid lymphoma accounts for less than 5% of all thyroid gland malignancies and less than 2% of extranodal lymphomas. It frequently affects women in the sixth or seventh decade. Hashimoto’s disease is a major risk factor. DLBCL is the most common histological subtype with aggressive evolution. Radiology and FNAC are not usually very precise and a biopsy is needed. Treatment includes surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and targeted therapy.
Nighttime safety of daridorexant: Evaluation of responsiveness to an external noise stimulus, postural stability, walking, and cognitive function
Authors: Magliocca Massimo , Koopmans Ingrid , Vaillant Cedric , Lemoine Vincent , Zuiker Rob , Dingemanse Jasper , Muehlan Clemens
Published: December 2024

Background:

Daridorexant is a dual orexin receptor antagonist approved for the treatment of chronic insomnia disorder.

Aims:

Investigate the auditory awakening threshold (AAT), postural stability, and cognitive function during the night following evening administration of daridorexant 25 and 50 mg.

Methods:

Double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized, 3-way (placebo, 25, 50 mg) crossover study in 36 healthy male and female nonelderly adult and elderly subjects (1:1 sex/age ratio). Four hours after bedtime administration, the AAT was determined, followed by investigation of the main pharmacodynamic endpoint nocturnal postural stability (body sway) as well as functional mobility using the Timed Up and Go (TUG) test, and cognitive function/memory using the Visual Verbal Learning Test (VVLT).

Results:

All 36 subjects completed the study. The average AAT was approximately 60 dB across treatments, i.e., there were no differences between daridorexant and placebo. Daridorexant marginally increased body sway by approximately 22%, while it had no clinically meaningful effect on the time to complete the TUG test (⩽1 s increase), and the VVLT (immediate and delayed number of correctly recalled words) showed minimal and clinically not meaningful differences of up to one word, all compared to placebo. Delayed word recognition was not different from placebo. The increase in body sway in the overall population was driven by nonelderly adults, as effects in elderly subjects were similar to placebo.

Conclusions:

Following bedtime administration, daridorexant maintained the ability to awaken to an external noise stimulus in the middle of the night, allowing subjects to function safely.

ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:

NCT05702177.
Real-World Treatment of Schizophrenia in Adults With a 22q11.2 Microdeletion: Traitement dans le monde réel de la schizophrénie chez des adultes atteints du syndrome de microdélétion 22q11.2
Authors: Van Lily , Heung Tracy , Reyes Nikolai Gil D. , Boot Erik , Chow Eva W. C. , Corral Maria , Bassett Anne S.
Published: December 2024

Objective

One in every 4 individuals born with a 22q11.2 microdeletion will develop schizophrenia. Thirty years of clinical genetic testing capability have enabled detection of this major molecular susceptibility for psychotic illness. However, there is limited literature on the treatment of schizophrenia in individuals with a 22q11.2 microdeletion, particularly regarding the issue of treatment resistance.

Methods

From a large, well-characterized adult cohort with a typical 22q11.2 microdeletion followed for up to 25 years at a specialty clinic, we studied all 107 adults (49 females, 45.8%) meeting the criteria for schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. We performed a comprehensive review of lifetime (1,801 patient-years) psychiatric records to determine treatments used and the prevalence of treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS). We used Clinical Global Impression–Improvement (CGI-I) scores to compare within-individual responses to clozapine and nonclozapine antipsychotics. For a subgroup with contemporary data ( n = 88, 82.2%), we examined antipsychotics and dosage at the last follow-up.

Results

Lifetime treatments involved on average 4 different antipsychotic medications per individual. Sixty-three (58.9%) individuals met the study criteria for TRS, a significantly greater proportion than for a community-based comparison (42.9%; χ2 = 10.38, df = 1, p < 0.01). The non-TRS group was enriched for individuals with genetic diagnosis before schizophrenia diagnosis. Within-person treatment response in TRS was significantly better for clozapine than for nonclozapine antipsychotics ( p < 0.0001). At the last follow-up, clozapine was the most common antipsychotic prescribed, followed by olanzapine, risperidone, and paliperidone. Total antipsychotic chlorpromazine equivalent dosages were in typical clinical ranges (median: 450 mg; interquartile range: 300, 750 mg).

Conclusion

The results for this large sample indicate that patients with 22q11.2 microdeletion have an increased propensity to treatment resistance. The findings provide evidence about how genetic diagnosis can inform clinical psychiatric management and could help reduce treatment delays. Further research is needed to shed light on the pathophysiology of antipsychotic response and on strategies to optimize outcomes.
Exploring collaborative practices for chronic disease management: Results from a new survey to primary care physicians and specialists in Italy
Authors: Longhi Sofia , Seghieri Chiara , Ferrè Francesca , Taddeucci Lorenzo , Nuti Sabina
Published: December 2024

Background: Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) represent a global health challenge that requires coordination across various healthcare settings.

Purpose: This study in Tuscany, Italy, investigates professional integration between primary care physicians (PCPs) and specialists in NCD management.

Research Design: A self-developed survey was used to explore professionals’ views on clinical and organizational collaboration, accountability, and service improvement.

Study Sample: The study involved primary care physicians (PCPs) and specialists working in the field of NCD management.

Data Collection and/or Analysis: The survey gathered data on professionals' perceptions of clinical protocol use, care integration effectiveness, and other aspects of collaboration in NCD management.

Results: Findings reveal disparities between PCPs and specialists in clinical protocol use and care integration effectiveness.

Conclusions: The study emphasizes the need to reduce bureaucratic obstacles and enhance information sharing. Promoting peer relationships and innovative performance evaluation tools is vital for improving chronic disease management. This survey contributes valuable insights for the development of integrated care models, aiding healthcare decision-makers in enhancing chronic care system performance.
Mechanical properties analysis of PP-LGF40 and DC01 automotive front-end frames based on lightweight technology
Authors: Ding Xinqiao , Liu Xia , Wu Zixiang
Published: December 2024

In this paper, a front-end frame of a new energy vehicle is designed, and the CATIA model is established by combining the relevant parameters of the target material, and the mechanical properties of different materials under different working conditions are analyzed in depth by using ANSYS workbench software. Through parametric design, geometric modeling, material properties, and boundary conditions, the mechanical properties of all-metal, all-plastic, and mixed plastic and steel front-end frames were simulated for comparative analysis and research. In the simulation process, the static mechanical performance of the front-end frame is analyzed using the parameter indexes under different working conditions. The study shows that PP-LGF40 material has insufficient stiffness but very light mass, according to the observed stress maximum point and deformation maximum location in the vicinity of the hood main lock and upper frame, the combination of steel DC01 + PP-LGF40 is finally adopted, the main lock and upper frame part with the largest deformation is made of steel DC01 material, while the lower frame part with smaller deformation is made of lighter PP-LGF40 material. The mass of the optimized front-end frame is 5.1201 kg, which is 35.52% lighter than the steel DC01 front-end frame of 7.9417 kg, and the lightweight effect is obvious. After ANSYS analysis and calculation of the main lock of the front-end frame in 2500 N load, the maximum compressive force can be 523.38 MPa, and the maximum deformation of the main lock is 1.3552 mm.The model of the automobile front-end frame made of a mixture of plastic and steel materials uses steel in the area of the larger force, and uses plastic in the other areas, which can not only ensure the mechanical properties of the requirements, but also achieve the requirements of lightweight.
Optimization-based two-dimensional symmetric tossing motion prediction and validation
Authors: Lee Seunghun , Yang James
Published: December 2024

Human motion has been analyzed for decades based on experimentally collected subject data, serving various purposes, from enhancing athletic performance to assisting patients’ recovery in rehabilitation and many individuals can benefit significantly from study advancements. Human motion prediction, is a more challenging task because no experimental data are available in advance, particularly concerning repetitive tasks, such as box lifting and tossing, to prevent injury risks. Tossing, a common task in various industries, involves the simultaneous vertical and horizontal movement of objects but often results in bodily strain. This paper presents an optimization-based method for predicting two-dimensional (2D) symmetric tossing motion without relying on experimental data. The method employs sequential quadratic programming, which optimizes dynamic effort by incorporating both static and dynamic joint torque limits. To validate the proposed model, experimental data were collected from 10 subjects performing tossing tasks using a motion capture system and force plates. The predicted joint angles and ground reaction forces considering dynamic joint strength constraints were compared with their corresponding experimental data to validate the model. In addition, the predicted joint torques differences are compared between joint dynamics strengths and static strengths. The results showed that the predicted optimal tossing motions range between the maximum and minimum of the experimental standard deviation for kinematic data across all subjects and the ground reaction forces are also within the experimental data range. This supports the validity of the prediction model. The findings of this study could have practical applications, especially in preventing the potential risk of injuries among workers who have daily tossing jobs.
Learning and Transfer: A Perspective From Action Video Game Play
Authors: Bavelier Daphne , Green C. Shawn
Published: December 2024

A growing body of research documents the positive impact that action video game play has on a range of cognitive skills. Such a result, in which training on one task promotes a broad variety of benefits, is a rarity in the cognitive training domain. Instead, the more typical result is that training on one task promotes benefits on that task alone with only limited transfer to untrained tasks. We have proposed that action video game play promotes broad generalization by first enhancing attentional control abilities. This in turn allows for more information to be accrued as one experiences a new task and thus faster learning of that new task. Possible theoretical and practical considerations of such a view are discussed.
The Challenge of Social Integration: Enhancing Employability in Work Integration Social Enterprises in Spain
Authors: Hernaiz-Agreda Nerea , Llinares-Insa Lucía Inmaculada , Belver- Domínguez José Luis , Zacarés-González Juan José , Córdoba-Iñesta Ana Isabel
Published: December 2024

Purpose: Work Integration Social Enterprises (WISEs) are a profitable social initiative as a business. However, there are no studies that analyze their effectiveness. The aim was to assess the effectiveness of the support and guidance processes implemented within WISEs. We hypothesized that insertion workers will perceive improvements at the personal employability dimensions as protective behaviors and a decrease at the employment risks or lack of self-control dimensions. Methods: This study assesses the effectiveness of intervention and training processes across three phases of a training program among 225 insertion workers from 46 WISEs in Spain. Results: Significant improvements in employability factors perceived by both insertion workers and external evaluators were observed across the three evaluation moments, including improved job protection behaviors ( p = .01), reduced employment risk ( p = .03), or reduced barriers to job search ( p = .01). Conclusions: Suggestions for optimizing program effectiveness include tailored training itineraries, continuous monitoring, and promoting soft skills.