bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Developing organizational change capability: towards a dynamic, multi-faceted and multi-temporal model
Authors: Montreuil Véra-Line
Published: February 2024

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a dynamic, multi-faceted and multi-temporal model of organizational change capability (OCC) to better grasp the complexity of this construct which is still mainly defined through its facilitating conditions rather than its own characteristics.

Design/methodology/approach

Building on the literature on organizational learning, punctuated equilibrium, continuous transformation, organizational ambidexterity and dynamic capabilities, this paper critically analyzes the OCC construct by challenging the ways it is currently studied.

Findings

This paper highlights that OCC contains five dynamically and temporally interrelated dimensions: learning from past change experience, managing continuous change, managing episodic change, managing change without compromising core organizational activities as well as anticipating future change. A set of propositions that link the construct to its facilitators and outcomes are also suggested.

Originality/value

This conceptual analysis shows that recognizing the existence of tensions in change management constructs is crucial to gaining a deeper understanding of the complexities that organizations are facing today. In addition, by proposing a model both in continuity with the literature by adopting a dynamic conception of OCC, but also in discontinuity by shifting the focal point of analysis towards the essence of the construct rather than its peripheral variables, this research takes a step forward to tackle the remaining misconceptions around the interpretation of change capability.
State of the Field: Histories of the Future
Authors: Puttevils Jeroen , Bischoff Max‐Quentin , Budts Sara , Heijmans Elisabeth , Hermans Sanne , Zennaro Nicolò
Published: February 2024

In the last decade, future thinking has rapidly gained importance as a topic of historical study. This article provides an overview of the existing historiographies of future thinking as well as the actions and practices that follow such thoughts. We trace the pedigree of histories of the future back to the German historian of ideas Reinhart Koselleck and show how his conceptual framework has been adopted and adapted by later scholars. We highlight the sources and methods that are typically used. A particularly fruitful approach that emerges from our meta study revolves around the concept of pluritemporality – the coexistence of different layers of time. The article also seeks to uncover some weaknesses and biases that are still present in the field. The most urgent issue being probably the lack of consensus on a conceptual apparatus; other blind spots concern the relationship between future thinking and its linguistic expression in historical sources, the question of whose future thinking we are talking about, how future thinking relates to human action in the past, and how short‐term futures interact with their long‐term futures equivalents. Overall, however, the aim of this survey is to emphasise the potential of this burgeoning field for future historical research. Much is to be gained from new theories of historical time which are themselves the consequence of ideas about climate change and the dangers of the Anthropocene, human extinction and trans‐ and post‐humanism and about artificial intelligence and the digital world.
Do clean energy and dependence on natural resources stimulate environmental sustainability? A new approach with load capacity factor and temperature
Authors: Inuwa Nasiru , Rej Soumen , Onwe Joshua Chukwuma , Hossain Md. Emran
Published: February 2024

India, not being an exception from the rest of the globe, has also been suffering from the unprecedented challenges of survival of the ecosphere, which is highly threatened by a continuous weakening of the environmental quality as a result of accelerated accumulation of anthropogenic emissions in the biosphere. As an immediate aftermath of the famous Glasgow Conference of Parties (COP26), while the Government of India is aiming to find realistic solutions to achieve net zero emissions goals by 2070 without much confrontion with its ambitious economic progression goals, accordingly proposes the alternative pathway to achieve environmental sustainability goals, this study has considered one of the three pivotal drivers of economic sustainability in the modern era of digitization, that is, natural resources rent, renewable energy consumption, and economic growth and examined their role on rendering environmental sustainability. Instead of CO2 emissions, load capacity factor and temperature have been considered proxies of environmental quality. This study has employed a novel dynamic autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) estimation technique to portray the short‐ and long‐run elasticity of environmental quality indicators by considering 48 years of annual time series data from 1970 to 2017. The findings of this study have documented that while natural resources rent and economic growth stimulate environmental squalor, renewable energy consumption promotes environmental sustainability. This study also unveiled different causal relationships using the frequency domain causality analysis. Subsequently, this study designs some vital policy measures and integration of which in the existing energy‐climate framework may assist Indian policymakers in achieving the net zero climate goal.
A qualitative assessment of emergency physicians’ experiences with robust emergency department buprenorphine bridge programs
Authors: Heil Jessica Marie , Lassiter Jonathan M. , Salzman Matthew S. , Herring Andrew , Hoppe Jason , Lynch Michael , Weiner Scott G. , Roberts Brian , Haroz Rachel
Published: February 2024

Objectives

Emergency departments (EDs) are a critical point of entry into treatment for patients struggling with opioid use disorder (OUD). When initiated in the ED, buprenorphine is associated with increased addiction treatment engagement at 30 days when initiated. Despite this association, it has had slow adoption. The barriers to ED buprenorphine utilization are well documented; however, the benefits of prescribing buprenorphine for emergency physicians (EPs) have not been explored. This study utilized semistructured interviews to explore and understand how EPs perceive their experiences working in EDs that have successfully implemented ED bridge programs (EDBPs) for patients with OUD.

Methods

Semistructured interviews were conducted with EPs from four geographically diverse academic hospitals with established EDBPs. Interviews were recorded and transcribed, and emergent themes were identified using codebook thematic analysis. Analysis credibility and transparency were confirmed with peer debriefing.

Results

Twenty‐two interviews were conducted across the four sites. Three key themes were constructed during the analyses: (1) provided EPs agency; (2) transformed EPs’ emotions, attitudes, and behaviors related to treating patients with OUD; and (3) improved EPs’ professional quality of life.

Conclusions

Participants in this study reported several common themes related to participation in their hospital's BP. Overall our results suggest that physicians who participate in EDBPs may feel a renewed sense of fulfillment and purpose in their personal and professional lives. These positive changes may lead to increased job satisfaction in hospitals that have successfully launched EDBP.
Alcohol use, alcohol use disorder and heavy episodic drinking in the Eastern Mediterranean region: A systematic review
Authors: Rostam‐Abadi Yasna , Gholami Jaleh , Shadloo Behrang , Mohammad Aghaei Ardavan , Mardaneh Jobehdar Maral , Ardeshir Maryam , Sangchooli Arshiya , Amin‐Esmaeili Masoumeh , Taj Mahshid , Saeed Khalid , Rahimi‐Movaghar Afarin
Published: February 2024

Background and ams

Despite the evident public health impact, the extent and patterns of alcohol use in the Eastern Mediterranean countries remain understudied. The latest estimation for the last 12‐month use of alcohol in the region was 2.9% in 2016 by the World Health Organization. We reviewed the main indicators for alcohol consumption in the region since 2010.

Methods

We systematically searched on‐line databases until September 2023, together with other global and regional sources for studies on the adult general population (aged ≥ 15 years) and young general populations (aged < 18 years) and studies on the treatment‐seeking individuals with substance use in Eastern Mediterranean countries. Studies were included from 22 countries: Afghanistan, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

Results

A total of 148 were included (n = 95 on the prevalence of alcohol use, n = 46 on the prevalence of alcohol use disorder, regular use and heavy episodic drinking, n = 35 on alcohol use pattern among people who use substances and one report on alcohol per capita consumption, n = 29 had data for more than one category). The pooled prevalence of the last 12‐month alcohol use in the adult general population was 9.5% [95% confidence interval (CI) = 6.4–13.7] among males, 2.8% (95% CI = 1.3–5.5\) among females and 6.2% (95% CI = 3.9–9.6) in both sexes in the region, with notable subregional variations. Data on the prevalence of alcohol use disorder and heavy drinking were limited to several countries, with heterogeneous indicators. The pooled estimate of alcohol as the primary substance of use among treatment‐seeking people who used substances was 16.9% (95% CI = 8.8–26.9).

Conclusions

More than 30 million adults in the Eastern Mediterranean region used alcohol in the last 12 months, with a prevalence of 6.2%. This is far fewer than the global estimate of 43% of the population aged 15 years and above, but is approximately two times more than the previous estimate (2.9%), reported by the World Health Organization in 2016, which might show an increasing trend.
Classification of fragmented pottery with the use of Kohonen self‐organising maps (case study from the Hlyboke Ozero‐2 settlement in Eastern Ukraine)
Authors: Korokhina Anastasiia V.
Published: February 2024

The paper is devoted to testing Kohonen self‐organising maps, with elliptic Fourier coefficients as quantitative variables, for the task of morphological classification of fragmented and non‐standardised ceramics. The advantage of the methodology used is its ability to account for the systematic statistical relationships inherent in the dataset, build models of varying degrees of generalisation and visualise multivariate data. The approbation of the method was carried out on materials from the Hlyboke Ozero‐2 settlement in Eastern Ukraine. The results are compared with the results obtained using principal component analysis + k‐means clustering.
Landings: The moor and the ecological therapeutic practice of Richard Skelton
Authors: Ingham James
Published: February 2024

Richard Skelton's 2009 recording, Landings, is recognised as being intimately connected with landscape and the experience of place. This paper explores the use of therapeutic practice within the creation of the recording of Landings. Building on the work of cultural geographers who have emphasised the cultural and symbolic significance of landscape, as well as incorporating the work of geographers who have studied sound and music, the paper develops a non‐representational analysis, emphasising the interplay of human experiences and therapeutic practice. The paper explores how Skelton's music transcends a simple representation of the moorland landscape. It shows how the music, created through Skelton's therapeutic practice, channels the essence of the landscape. Skelton acknowledges the healing nature of this creative process. It offers catharsis and solace while, at the same time, connecting to living systems and exhibiting an ecological principle. By exploring the music created by Skelton's therapeutic practice and its profound alignment with nature, Landings offers valuable insights for geographers and beyond.
Impact of prostatic shape on the difficulty of robot‐assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy
Authors: Kamisawa Ken , Matsumoto Kazuhiro , Takeda Toshikazu , Takamatsu Kimiharu , Niwa Naoya , Yasumizu Yota , Tanaka Nobuyuki , Morita Shinya , Kosaka Takeo , Mizuno Ryuichi , Asanuma Hiroshi , Oya Mototsugu
Published: February 2024

Introduction

To investigate the impact of prostatic shape observed on preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) on the difficulty of robot‐assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (RALP).

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed the operative records of 211 patients who underwent RALP. We excluded patients who received neoadjuvant therapy. All surgeries in this study were performed by two surgeons. Each patient clinicopathological and surgical data were reviewed. Prostate sphericity was evaluated by measuring the roundness of the prostate at the largest axial slice by MRI. The console time was adopted as an objective indicator for assessing surgical difficulty.

Results

The mean prostate volume was 34 cc (range 14–88) and the mean prostate roundness was 0.55 (range 0.24–0.90). The mean console time was 194 min (range 95–296). To assess the relationship between prostate volume and console time, scatter plot analysis was performed. The prostate volume had a weak positive correlation with the console time (r = .165, p = .016). Similarly, scatter plot analysis between the prostate roundness and console time demonstrated a weak positive correlation (r = .167, p = .015). Next, we performed subgroup analysis of 56 patients with a large prostate volume (≥40 cc), and the positive correlation between the prostate volume and the console time disappeared (r = .142, p = .296). On the other hand, the prostate roundness was more strongly correlated with the console time (r = .439, p = .001).

Conclusions

The spherical shape of the prostate is associated with the surgical difficulty of RALP, especially in patients with a large prostate volume.
Inhibiting acid‐sensing ion channel exerts neuroprotective effects in experimental epilepsy via suppressing ferroptosis
Authors: Shi Xiaorui , Liu Ru , Wang Yingting , Yu Tingting , Zhang Kai , Zhang Chao , Gu Yuyu , Zhang Limin , Wu Jianping , Wang Qun , Zhu Fei
Published: February 2024

Background

Epilepsy is a chronic neurological disease characterized by repeated and unprovoked epileptic seizures. Developing disease‐modifying therapies (DMTs) has become important in epilepsy studies. Notably, focusing on iron metabolism and ferroptosis might be a strategy of DMTs for epilepsy. Blocking the acid‐sensing ion channel 1a (ASIC1a) has been reported to protect the brain from ischemic injury by reducing the toxicity of [Ca2+]i. However, whether inhibiting ASIC1a could exert neuroprotective effects and become a novel target for DMTs, such as rescuing the ferroptosis following epilepsy, remains unknown.

Methods

In our study, we explored the changes in ferroptosis‐related indices, including glutathione peroxidase (GPx) enzyme activity and levels of glutathione (GSH), iron accumulation, lipid degradation products‐malonaldehyde (MDA) and 4‐hydroxynonenal (4‐HNE) by collecting peripheral blood samples from adult patients with epilepsy. Meanwhile, we observed alterations in ASIC1a protein expression and mitochondrial microstructure in the epileptogenic foci of patients with drug‐resistant epilepsy. Next, we accessed the expression and function changes of ASIC1a and measured the ferroptosis‐related indices in the in vitro 0‐Mg2+ model of epilepsy with primary cultured neurons. Subsequently, we examined whether blocking ASIC1a could play a neuroprotective role by inhibiting ferroptosis in epileptic neurons.

Results

Our study first reported significant changes in ferroptosis‐related indices, including reduced GPx enzyme activity, decreased levels of GSH, iron accumulation, elevated MDA and 4‐HNE, and representative mitochondrial crinkling in adult patients with epilepsy, especially in epileptogenic foci. Furthermore, we found that inhibiting ASIC1a could produce an inhibitory effect similar to ferroptosis inhibitor Fer‐1, alleviate oxidative stress response, and decrease [Ca2+]i overload by inhibiting the overexpressed ASIC1a in the in vitro epilepsy model induced by 0‐Mg2+.

Conclusion

Inhibiting ASIC1a has potent neuroprotective effects via alleviating [Ca2+]i overload and regulating ferroptosis on the models of epilepsy and may act as a promising intervention in DMTs.
GDF15 is a dynamic biomarker of the integrated stress response in the central nervous system
Authors: Asundi Jyoti , Zhang Chunlian , Donnelly‐Roberts Diana , Solorio Josè Zavala , Challagundla Malleswari , Connelly Caitlin , Boch Christina , Chen Jun , Richter Mario , Maneshi Mohammad Mehdi , Swensen Andrew M. , Lebon Lauren , Schiffmann Raphael , Sanyal Subhabrata , Sidrauski Carmela , Kolumam Ganesh , Baruch Amos
Published: February 2024

Aim

Characterize Growth Differentiation Factor 15 (GDF15) as a secreted biomarker of the integrated stress response (ISR) within the central nervous system (CNS).

Methods

We determined GDF15 levels utilizing in vitro and in vivo neuronal systems wherein the ISR was activated. Primarily, we used the murine model of vanishing white matter disease (VWMD), a neurological disease driven by persistent ISR in the CNS, to establish a link between levels of GDF15 in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and ISR gene expression signature in the CNS. GDF15 was also determined in the CSF of VWM patients.

Results

GDF15 expression was increased concomitant to ISR activation in stress‐induced primary astrocytes as well as in retinal ganglion cells following optic nerve crush, while treatment with 2Bact, a specific eIF2B activator, suppressed both the ISR and GDF15. In the VWMD model, CSF GDF15 levels corresponded with the magnitude of the ISR and were reduced by 2BAct. In VWM patients, mean CSF GDF15 was elevated >20‐fold as compared to healthy controls, whereas plasma GDF15 was undifferentiated.

Conclusions

These data suggest that CSF GDF15 is a dynamic marker of ISR activation in the CNS and may serve as a pharmacodynamic biomarker for ISR‐modulating therapies.
Brain–computer interface digital prescription for neurological disorders
Authors: Chai Xiaoke , Cao Tianqing , He Qiheng , Wang Nan , Zhang Xuemin , Shan Xinying , Lv Zeping , Tu Wenjun , Yang Yi , Zhao Jizong
Published: February 2024

Neurological and psychiatric diseases can lead to motor, language, emotional disorder, and cognitive, hearing or visual impairment By decoding the intention of the brain in real time, the Brain–computer interface (BCI) can first assist in the diagnosis of diseases, and can also compensate for its damaged function by directly interacting with the environment; In addition, provide output signals in various forms, such as actual motion, tactile or visual feedback, to assist in rehabilitation training; Further intervention in brain disorders is achieved by close‐looped neural modulation. In this article, we envision the future BCI digital prescription system for patients with different functional disorders and discuss the key contents in the prescription the brain signals, coding and decoding protocols and interaction paradigms, and assistive technology. Then, we discuss the details that need to be specially included in the digital prescription for different intervention technologies. The third part summarizes previous examples of intervention, focusing on how to select appropriate interaction paradigms for patients with different functional impairments. For the last part, we discussed the indicators and influencing factors in evaluating the therapeutic effect of BCI as intervention.
Pharmazeutische Behandlung der akuten Radiodermatitis in der deutschsprachigen strahlentherapeutischen Gemeinschaft
Authors: Layer Julian P. , Layer Katharina , Glasmacher Andrea R. , Sarria Gustavo R. , Böhner Alexander M. C. , Layer Yonah L. , Dejonckheere Cas S. , Wiegreffe Shari , Nour Youness , Caglayan Lara , Grau Franziska , Feyer Petra , Baumert Brigitta G. , Baumann René , Krug David , Scafa Davide , Leitzen Christina , Landsberg Jennifer , Giordano Frank A. , Schmeel Leonard Christopher ,   für die German‐speaking Radiation Dermatitis Survey Group
Published: February 2024

Hintergrund

Die Radiodermatitis (RD) ist die häufigste Nebenwirkung der Strahlentherapie (RT), wobei verschiedene pharmazeutische Optionen zur Vorbeugung/Behandlung zur Verfügung stehen. Unser Ziel war, die pharmazeutischen Behandlungsmuster für die RD unter strahlentherapeutischen Fachleuten zu ermitteln.

Methodik

Wir haben eine Umfrage zum Thema RD in der deutschsprachigen radioonkologischen Gemeinschaft durchgeführt und ihre Meinung zu präventiven und therapeutischen pharmazeutischen Therapieansätzen betreffend die akute RD erfragt.

Ergebnisse

244 Angehörige zugehöriger Gesundheitsberufe nahmen teil. Dexpanthenol‐Lotion ist das am häufigsten verwendete Mittel sowohl zur Vorbeugung (53%) als auch zur Behandlung (76,9%) der RD, gefolgt von Harnstoff (29,8%) zur Vorbeugung und Kortikosteroiden (46,9%) zur Behandlung. Die Teilnehmer verwenden eine breite Palette an Substanzen, haben aber insgesamt wenig Erfahrung mit diesen. 32,5% der Teilnehmer empfehlen generell keine präventive Behandlung. 53,4% der Teilnehmer empfehlen Alternativmedizin. Obwohl selten eingesetzt, wurden Kortikosteroide als wirksamstes Behandlungsmittel angesehen, gefolgt von Dexpanthenol und Low‐Level‐Lasertherapie. Die Mehrheit der Teilnehmer bevorzugt die feuchte gegenüber der trockenen Behandlung der feuchten Desquamation und 43,8% verschreiben Antiseptika.

Schlussfolgerungen

Die pharmazeutische Behandlung der RD in der deutschsprachigen strahlentherapeutischen Fachwelt ist nach wie vor umstritten, sowie mitunter inkonsistent und nicht durch evidenzbasierte Medizin gestützt. Ein interdisziplinärer Konsens ist erforderlich, um die bestehenden Behandlungskonzepte zu verbessern.
County‐level socio‐environmental factors and obesity prevalence in the United States
Authors: Salerno Pedro R. V. O. , Qian Alice , Dong Weichuan , Deo Salil , Nasir Khurram , Rajagopalan Sanjay , Al‐Kindi Sadeer
Published: February 2024

Aims

To investigate high‐risk sociodemographic and environmental determinants of health (SEDH) potentially associated with adult obesity in counties in the United States using machine‐learning techniques.

Materials and Methods

We performed a cross‐sectional analysis of county‐level adult obesity prevalence (body mass index ≥30 kg/m2) in the United States using data from the Diabetes Surveillance System 2017. We harvested 49 county‐level SEDH factors that were used in a classification and regression trees (CART) model to identify county‐level clusters. The CART model was validated using a ‘hold‐out’ set of counties and variable importance was evaluated using Random Forest.

Results

Overall, we analysed 2752 counties in the United States, identifying a national median (interquartile range) obesity prevalence of 34.1% (30.2%, 37.7%). The CART method identified 11 clusters with a 60.8% relative increase in prevalence across the spectrum. Additionally, seven key SEDH variables were identified by CART to guide the categorization of clusters, including Physically Inactive (%), Diabetes (%), Severe Housing Problems (%), Food Insecurity (%), Uninsured (%), Population over 65 years (%) and Non‐Hispanic Black (%).

Conclusion

There is significant county‐level geographical variation in obesity prevalence in the United States, which can in part be explained by complex SEDH factors. The use of machine‐learning techniques to analyse these factors can provide valuable insights into the importance of these upstream determinants of obesity and, therefore, aid in the development of geo‐specific strategic interventions and optimize resource allocation to help battle the obesity pandemic.
Mutual insurance for catastrophe hazards: Case of deposit insurance
Authors: Park Sangkyun
Published: February 2024

Deposit insurance involves catastrophe risk because bank failures spike during a banking crisis. Although mutual insurance is ill‐suited for catastrophe risk, the US government structures deposit insurance like a mutual company owned by policyholders. Furthermore, an intertemporal mispricing resulting from a dividend‐surcharge arrangement produces several problems. Most importantly, it worsens moral hazard. Through dividends and surcharges, deposit insurance transfers the premium burden from high‐risk banks to low‐risk banks and in effect erodes the charter value of low‐risk banks. In addition, high‐risk banks taking catastrophe risk can outperform low‐risk banks for many years in a row, putting pressures on managers of low‐risk banks. Owing to these factors, an underpricing of catastrophe risk before its realization can ratchet up risk‐taking by banks. Other problems with the intertemporal mispricing include making the banking business more procyclical, distorting the prices of banking products, and exposing taxpayers to asymmetric downside risk. To ensure fair competition and improve economic efficiency, the government should set the insurance premium based not on the realized loss but on the expected loss.
Exercise behaviours and motivation after a first psychotic episode: A digital intervention
Authors: Ruiz‐Yu Bernalyn , Le Thanh P. , Ventura Joseph , Arevian Armen , Hellemann Gerhard S. , Nuechterlein Keith H.
Published: February 2024

Aim

Research has demonstrated that participation in aerobic exercise can have significant beneficial effects across both physical and mental health domains for individuals who are in the early phase of schizophrenia. Despite these notable benefits of exercise, deficits in motivation and a lack of methods to increase engagement are significant barriers for exercise participation, limiting these potentially positive effects. Fortunately, digital health tools have the potential to improve adherence to an exercise program. The present study examined the role of motivation for exercise and the effects of an automated digital text messaging program on participation in an aerobic exercise program.

Methods

A total of 46 first‐episode psychosis participants from an ongoing 12‐month randomized clinical trial (Enhancing Cognitive Training through Exercise Following a First Schizophrenia Episode (CT&E‐RCT)) were included in an analysis to examine the efficacy of motivational text messaging. Personalized motivational text message reminders were sent to participants with the aim of increasing engagement in the exercise program.

Results

We found that participants with higher levels of intrinsic motivation to participate in a text messaging program and in an exercise intervention completed a higher proportion of individual, at‐home exercise sessions. In a between groups analysis, participants who received motivational text messages, compared to those who did not, completed a higher proportion of at‐home exercise sessions.

Conclusion

These results indicate the importance of considering a person's level of motivation for exercise and the potential utility of using individualized and interactive mobile text messaging reminders to increase engagement in aerobic exercise in the early phase of psychosis. We emphasize the need for understanding how individualized patient preferences and needs interplay between intrinsic motivation and digital health interventions for young adults.
Acting from knowledge
Authors: Rödl Sebastian
Published: February 2024

This essay explores the idea of acting from knowledge. This idea is a thought of ourselves: the distinctive way in which we act, in which we live, resides in this, that our actions, our life, may rest on knowledge. Yet the idea of action resting on knowledge is puzzling, even mysterious. The difficulty springs from the character of judgment that is knowledge: its objectivity. The objectivity of a judgment is a character of its validity: it is objectively valid. Yet it is equally, and therefore, a character of the source of the reality of a valid judgment: a judgment that is knowledge is explained by nothing other than that which constitutes its validity. Now, action from knowledge partakes of this character of the knowledge on which it rests: it is explained by nothing other than what constitutes its validity, that is, its goodness. This dissolves the idea that action springs from a natural power, a power of change, a physis. That is the mystery. What could action be but the act of a natural power, and what could we be but agents of such a power?
Soil reuse effects on determination of saturated hydraulic conductivity of different loamy soils
Authors: Bagarello Vincenzo , Caltabellotta Gaetano , Iovino Massimo
Published: February 2024

Laboratory measurement of saturated hydraulic conductivity, Ks, of sieved and packed soil is important for many scientific purposes. A given soil mass can be used once or several times. Little is known of the dependence of the Ks data on the reuse of the same soil mass. For three loamy soils, this investigation tested reuse effects of exactly the same soil mass on determination of Ks with the simplified falling head technique. For a given soil, the Ks values of 15 repacked soil samples were determined by using the same soil for a total of eight times. The means of Ks, initially equal to 45–159 mm/h, depending on the soil, decreased by nearly two or three times with the reuse of the same material, and they settled on values of 23–59 mm/h by the end of the experiment. Low, stable and little variable (coefficients of variation ≤15%) Ks values were obtained after the soil was used three to five times although there was some sign that stabilization of Ks could also require more reuses. The soil became finer with more reuses and the textural characteristics of the undispersed soil explained a large amount of the mean Ks results (coefficient of determination between means of Ks and the mean weight diameter = 0.65–0.76, depending on the soil). Taking into account that the best procedure for determination of Ks of sieved and packed soil samples yields the lowest variability of the individual Ks data, the conclusion was that a soil pre‐treatment including several wetting and drying cycles should be realized to obtain a soil mass usable repeatedly. The history of the used soil mass should be reported in the investigations dealing with sieved and repacked soil samples.
Unravelling substrate availability and redox interactions on methane production in peat soils of China
Authors: Tang Xiaoqiao , Yu Jieyu , Wang Hongyan , Kumar Amit , Wang Mengjiao , Kattel Giri R. , Han Lei , Lin Junjie , Yu Zhi‐Guo
Published: February 2024

The availability of electron acceptors (EAs) in peatlands determines the potential of methane (CH4) formation under waterlogged conditions. Previous studies suggested that EAs can suppress CH4 production based on Gibbs free energy under the Redox Ladder Theory. However, growing evidence challenges this theory, raising the question of how the coupling of soil substrates with EAs influences CH4 emissions. To answer this key question, peat soils were collected across different climatic zones with different degrees of soil degradation. Anoxic incubation experiments were set up, and continuous addition of SO42−, Fe3+ and humic acid (HA) at different concentrations was followed by characterization of dissolved organic matter using fluorescence spectroscopy. Results suggest that low concentrations of SO42− (1000 μmol L−1), Fe3+ (100 μmol L−1) and HA (30 mgC L−1) promoted CH4 production in most of the peat soils. With the addition of SO42− and HA, increased CH4 emissions were attributed to the facilitation of dissolved organic carbon and increased quinone‐like component C1, which increased the substrate availability for methanogenesis. Furthermore, strengthened microbial activity as indicated by fluorescence component C2 led to higher CH4 production under Fe3+ treatments. On the other hand, at high concentrations of SO42− (5000 μmol L−1), Fe3+ (500 μmol L−1) and HA (50 mgC L−1), CH4 emissions rapidly decreased by 70.65 ± 1.57% to 96.25 ± 0.45% compared to control group without EAs addition, accompanied by increased δ13C‐CH4 signatures indicating the outweighed CH4 production under anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) when coupling with reduced EAs. The effect of EAs on CH4 emissions in peat soils could also be related to lability and characteristics of natural organic matter. Our results suggest that the CH4 production in waterlogged peatlands could be facilitated by regulating organic substrates at low EAs concentrations, but excessive EAs will reduce net CH4 emissions through AOM. The valuable discovery of CH4 production and oxidation processes provides insights for mitigating methane emissions from peatlands and regulating global climate change.
A study on the role of serum uric acid in differentiating acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy from acute‐onset chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy
Authors: Zhang Weiyun , Tao Wen , Wang Jun , Nie Ping , Duan Lihui , Yan Lanyun
Published: February 2024

Background and purpose

Clinical symptoms and laboratory indices for acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (AIDP), a variant of Guillain−Barré syndrome, and acute‐onset chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (A‐CIDP) were analyzed to identify factors that could contribute to early differential diagnosis.

Methods

A retrospective chart review was performed on 44 AIDP and 44 A‐CIDP patients looking for any demographic characteristics, clinical manifestations or laboratory parameters that might differentiate AIDP from acutely presenting CIDP.

Results

In Guillain−Barré syndrome patients (N = 63), 69.84% (N = 44) were classified as having AIDP, 19.05% (N = 12) were found to have acute motor axonal neuropathy, 6.35% (N = 4) were found to have acute motor and sensory axonal neuropathy, and 4.76% (N = 3) were found to have Miller Fisher syndrome. Serum uric acid (UA) was higher in A‐CIDP patients (329.55 ± 72.23 μmol/L) than in AIDP patients (221.08 ± 71.32 μmol/L) (p = 0.000). Receiver operating characteristic analyses indicated that the optimal UA cutoff was 283.50 μmol/L. Above this level, patients were more likely to present A‐CIDP than AIDP (specificity 81.80%, sensitivity 81.80%). During the follow‐up process, serum samples were effectively collected from 19 AIDP patients during the rehabilitation phase and 28 A‐CIDP patients during the remission stage, and it was found that UA levels were significantly increased in A‐CIDP (remission) (298.9 ± 90.39 μmol/L) compared with AIDP (rehabilitation) (220.1 ± 108.2 μmol/L, p = 0.009).

Conclusion

These results suggest that serum UA level can help to differentiate AIDP from A‐CIDP with high specificity and sensitivity, which is helpful for early diagnosis and guidance of treatment.
Neuropsychiatric disorders, chronotype and sleep: A narrative review of GWAS findings and the application of Mendelian randomization to investigate causal relationships
Authors: Crinion Shane , Morris Derek W. , Lopez Lorna M.
Published: February 2024

Genome‐wide association studies (GWAS) have been important for characterizing the genetic component and enhancing our understanding of the biological aetiology of both neuropsychiatric disorders and sleep‐related phenotypes such as chronotype, which is our preference for morning or evening time. Mendelian randomization (MR) is a post‐GWAS analysis that is used to infer causal relationships between potential risk factors and outcomes. MR uses genetic variants as instrumental variants for exposures to study the effect on outcomes. This review details the main results from GWAS of neuropsychiatric disorders and sleep‐related phenotypes, and the application of MR to investigate their bidirectional relationship. The main results from MR studies of neuropsychiatric disorders and sleep‐related phenotypes are summarized. These MR studies have identified 37 causal relationships between neuropsychiatric disorders and sleep‐related phenotypes. MR studies identified evidence of a causal role for five neuropsychiatric disorders and symptoms (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, bipolar disorder, depressive symptoms, major depressive disorder and schizophrenia) on sleep‐related phenotypes and evidence of a causal role for five sleep‐related phenotypes (daytime napping, insomnia, morning person, long sleep duration and sleep duration) on risk for neuropsychiatric disorders. These MR results show a bidirectional relationship between neuropsychiatric disorders and sleep‐related phenotypes and identify potential risk factors for follow‐up studies.
Diagnosis of verruciform acanthotic vulvar intra‐epithelial neoplasia (vaVIN) using CK17, SOX2 and GATA3 immunohistochemistry
Authors: Cook Eleanor , Van de Vijver Koen , Parra‐Herran Carlos
Published: February 2024

Aims

Verruciform acanthotic vulvar intra‐epithelial neoplasia (vaVIN) is an HPV‐independent, p53 wild‐type lesion with distinct morphology and documented risk of recurrence and cancer progression. vaVIN is rare, and prospective distinction from non‐neoplastic hyperplastic lesions can be difficult. CK17, SOX2 and GATA3 immunohistochemistry has emerging value in the diagnosis of HPV‐independent lesions, particularly differentiated VIN. We aimed to test the combined value of these markers in the diagnosis of vaVIN versus its non‐neoplastic differentials in the vulva.

Methods and results

CK17, SOX2 and GATA3 immunohistochemistry was evaluated on 16 vaVINs and 34 mimickers (verruciform xanthoma, lichen simplex chronicus, lichen sclerosus, psoriasis, pseudo‐epitheliomatous hyperplasia). CK17 was scored as 3+ = full‐thickness, 2+ = partial‐thickness, 1+ = patchy, 0 = absent; SOX2 as 3+ = strong staining ≥ 10% cells, 2+ = moderate, 1 + =weak, 0 = staining in < 10% cells; and GATA3 as pattern 0 = loss in < 25% basal cells, 1 = loss in 25–75% basal cells, 2 = loss in > 75% basal cells. For analysis, results were recorded as positive (CK17 = 3+, SOX2 = 3+, GATA3 = patterns 1/2) or negative (CK17 = 2+/1+/0, SOX2 = 2+/1+/0, GATA3 = pattern 0). CK17, SOX2 and GATA3 positivity was documented in 81, 75 and 58% vaVINs, respectively, versus 32, 17 and 22% of non‐neoplastic mimickers, respectively; ≥ 2 marker positivity conferred 83 sensitivity, 88 specificity and 86% accuracy in vaVIN diagnosis. Compared to vaVIN, SOX2 and GATA3 were differentially expressed in lichen sclerosus, lichen simplex chronicus and pseudo‐epitheliomatous hyperplasia, whereas CK17 was differentially expressed in verruciform xanthoma and adjacent normal mucosa.

Conclusions

CK17, SOX2 and GATA3 can be useful in the diagnosis of vaVIN and its distinction from hyperplastic non‐neoplastic vulvar lesions. Although CK17 has higher sensitivity, SOX2 and GATA3 are more specific, and the combination of all markers shows optimal diagnostic accuracy.
Effect of phosphorylation of long‐chain inulin on the rheological properties of wheat flour doughs with different gluten
Authors: Pei Lina , Luo Denglin , Wei Yifan , Li Peiyan , Yue Chonghui , Wang Libo , Bai Zhouya
Published: February 2024

In this study, double long‐chain inulin phosphate (PDFXL) was prepared by chemically modifying long‐chain inulin (FXL) through phosphorylation. The effects of FXL and PDFXL on the rheological properties of low gluten (L‐G), medium gluten (M‐G), and high gluten (H‐G) dough were investigated using Fourier Transform Infrared (FT‐IR) and rheometer. The FT‐IR and solubility results indicated that PDFXL exhibited stronger hydrophilicity and promoted protein cross‐linking. Rheological tests revealed that the apparent viscosity of L‐G, M‐G, and H‐G dough decreased with increasing shear rate. Notably, M‐G PDFXL doughs exhibited higher shear thinning behaviour. Additionally, in the frequency and temperature sweep test, M‐G and H‐G PDFXL doughs showed higher elasticity and viscous modulus. This study reveals the modification effect of phosphorylation on FXL, providing a scientific foundation for the comprehensive application of PDFXL in flour products.
Recent developments in the application of natural pigments as pH‐sensitive food freshness indicators in biopolymer‐based smart packaging: challenges and opportunities
Authors: Ndwandwe Bongekile K. , Malinga Soraya P. , Kayitesi Eugenie , Dlamini Bhekisisa C.
Published: February 2024

Recently, the assimilation of pH‐sensitive natural pigments into biopolymers has shown promising prospects for pH‐reactive based smart packaging material. Unlike synthetic pigments, which have potential safety problems due to migration, natural pigments have negligible toxicity levels both to humans and the environment and some even possess nutritional and pharmacological properties. To complement the advantages of natural pigments, natural biopolymers have proven to be ideal candidates for the development of smart packaging because of their biocompatibility, availability, biodegradability, stability, minimum toxicity and good film‐forming capability. Smart packaging gives consumers real‐time signals on the quality of packaged food via food deterioration indicators like pH alteration. This review will consider the recent progress in the development of pH‐responsive smart packaging based on natural pH‐sensitive pigments and natural biopolymers from 2013 to the present. It will further discuss the challenges and opportunities of colorimetric smart packaging.
Shared residence and social security policy: A comparative analysis from 13 countries
Authors: Hakovirta Mia , Meyer Daniel R. , Haapanen Mari
Published: February 2024

Increasingly, children live in both parents' homes equally after parental separation, but little is known about whether social security policy supports these shared‐residence families. We propose that a determination of support for shared residence in various policies can be based on two criteria: whether both parents can receive benefits and whether the total amount received is greater than what would have been received if children lived with only one parent. We categorise support for shared residence in child benefits, housing assistance, social assistance, and guaranteed child support in 13 countries (Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Iceland, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States), using a 2017 questionnaire, policy documents, and previous research. Norway is the only country supporting shared residence in all four policy domains; three countries do not support shared residence in any. Policies on shared residence across domains are inconsistent. This research highlights the need to clarify policy for these families and to consider whether parents who manage shared parental responsibilities post‐separation should be assisted in new ways.
Sustained looking at faces at 5 months of age is associated with socio‐communicative skills in the second year of life
Authors: Viktorsson Charlotte , Portugal Ana Maria , Taylor Mark J. , Ronald Angelica , Falck‐Ytter Terje
Published: February 2024

Efficiently processing information from faces in infancy is foundational for nonverbal communication. We studied individual differences in 5‐month‐old infants' (N = 517) sustained attention to faces and preference for emotional faces. We assessed the contribution of genetic and environmental influences to individual differences in these gaze behaviors, and the association between these traits and other concurrent and later phenotypes. We found an association between the mean duration of looking at a face (before looking away from it) at 5 months and socio‐communicative abilities at 14 months (β = 0.17, 95% CI: 0.08; 0.26, p < 0.001). Sustained attention to faces predicted socio‐communicative abilities over and above variance captured by mean fixation duration. We also found a statistically significant but weak tendency to prefer looking at smiling faces (relative to neutral faces), but no indication that variability in this behavior was explained by genetic effects. Moderate heritability was found for sustained attention to faces (A = 0.23, CI: 0.06; 0.38), while shared environmental influences were non‐significant for both phenotypes. These findings suggest that sustained looking at individual faces before looking away is a developmentally significant ‘social attention’ phenotype in infancy, characterized by moderate heritability and a specific relation to later socio‐communicative abilities.
Influence of quality of life related to perceived foot health between in a rural an urban population: A case–control research
Authors: Andreo‐García María Victoria , Navarro‐Flores Emmanuel , Losa‐Iglesias Marta Elena , Becerro‐de‐Bengoa‐Vallejo Ricardo , López‐López Luis , Saavedra‐García Miguel Ángel , López‐López Daniel , Gómez‐Salgado Juan
Published: February 2024

Foot problems are very common in the community. Studies indicate that between 18% and 63% of people have foot pain or stiffness and that foot problems have a large impact on people's functional decline and a significant detrimental impact on measures of quality of life related to health. The general objective of this research was to compare foot health in people from the rural population compared to people from the urban population and its relationship with quality of life. A case–control descriptive study was developed with a sample of 304 patients, 152 patients from the rural population and 152 patients from the urban population. Quality of life was measured through the SF‐36 Health Questionnaire in its Spanish version. The rural population group had a mean age of 46.67 ± 13.69 and the urban population group 49.02 ± 18.29. Regarding the score of the lowest levels of quality of life related to foot problems, the rural population group compared to the urban population group showed: for body pain (52.21 ± 30.71 vs. 67.80 ± 25.28, p < 0.001); and for mental health (69.58 ± 18.98 vs. 64.60 ± 14.88, p < 0.006). Differences between groups were analysed using Student's t‐test for independent samples, which showed statistical significance (p < 0.05). This research offers evidence that the rural population presents better levels of mental health and lower levels of bodily pain in the domains of the SF‐36 Health Questionnaire comparing with the urban population.