bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A note on a performance recovery method for a class of nonaffine‐in‐control nonlinear systems with input saturation
Authors: Yang Hao , Pei Hailong , Cen Jian
Published: September 2022

This article proposes a feasible method for a class of nonaffine‐in‐control nonlinear systems in the presence of input saturation to obtain performance recovery. In the previous work, the plant is required to be affine‐in‐control to derive the difference between the desired and saturated inputs. Considering the nonaffine structure, we first build a fast subsystem with respect to the nominal system, where no saturation is presented. Then, an intermediate subsystem is established to compensate the influence of input saturation by approximating the difference between the original and nominal systems. In the slow time‐scale, a series of existing control methods can be combined to achieve the requested transient performance. The ability of performance recovery is proved rigorously by the singular perturbation theory. Numerical examples are illustrated to demonstrate the validity of the presented method.
The Risk of Osteopenia/Osteoporosis and Psoriatic Disease: A Systematic Review
Authors: Schauer Anna , Uthayakumar Aarthy K. , Boardman Glenn , Bunker Christopher B.
Published: September 2022

Background

Psoriasis (Ps) is a multisystem inflammatory disease associated with several comorbidities; however, its effect on bone health remains uncertain. This systematic review aimed to evaluate the risks of osteopenia (OPe) and osteoporosis (OP) in psoriasis.

Methods

A systematic search was performed for published studies evaluating cutaneous Ps and psoriatic arthritis (PsA) compared with healthy control groups utilizing a validated bone mineral density (BMD) assessment score. Meta-analysis was performed using a random-effects model; pooled estimates and their confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated. For analysis, Ps and PsA groups were combined due to the small number of studies.

Results

Twenty-one studies were included for final analysis; three Ps only, 15 PsA and three both. There was a significant difference between psoriatic disease (combination Ps and PsA group) compared with controls relating to an association with OP/OPe, with an overall odds ratio (OR) of 1.71 (95% CI 1.07–2.74: p-value = 0.026). The Ps group had significantly lower BMD than the control group at both the lumbar spine and femoral neck (mean difference −0.04; 95% CI −0.090 to 0.002 and −0.03; 95% CI −0.059 to 0.003 respectively).

Conclusion

Putative risks of OPe and OP in both Ps and PsA are supported but not confirmed. Significant heterogeneity of reported data limits definitive conclusions in this meta-analysis. This review contributes to the further understanding of Ps as a multisystem disease and future management of potential comorbidities, but highlights key gaps in the literature. Further studies addressing standardised OP reporting, specific disease group characteristics comparing Ps with PsA, patient characteristics and medication use, are required in order to make more certain conclusions with greater clinical impact.
Code samples summarization for knowledge exchange in developer community
Authors: Guo Shikai , Liu Zhongyan , Song Zixuan , Li Hui , Chen Rong
Published: September 2022

A question title's function is to generate readable titles and describe a problem encountered by the code. Previous studies often used an end‐to‐end sequence‐to‐sequence system to generate question title's from source code. However, long‐term dependencies are often difficult to capture, and this may result in an incomplete source code representation. To address this issue, we propose a Transformer for Generating Code Title (hereinafter referred to as TGCT) model. Specifically, the TGCT model uses the position coding mechanism to model paired relationships between source terms by applying relative position representations. Multiple self‐attention mechanism components are also used to capture long‐term dependencies of the code. Comprehensive experiments on datasets from five coding languages, namely Python, Java, JavaScript, C#, and SQL, are conducted, and the results show that TGCT outperforms state‐of‐the‐art models based on the measurements of BLEU and ROUGE in general. In addition, a cross‐sectional comparison experiment was conducted to verify the effects of different model parameters, different data set sizes, position coding mechanism, and self‐attention mechanism on model results.
Anaesthetic management in a dog with constrictive pericarditis complicated with bi‐atrial enlargement and atrial fibrillation undergoing subtotal pericardiectomy
Authors: Parra Martínez Cristina , Charlesworth Tim M. , Francis Andrew
Published: September 2022

A 2‐year 8‐month‐old female dobermann presented for a recheck after previous crown reduction and vital pulp therapy. On cardiac auscultation, rapid and irregularly irregular heart rhythm and irregular and asynchronous pulses were detected. On electrocardiogram and transthoracic echocardiogram, findings were suggestive of constrictive pericarditis complicated with bi‐atrial enlargement and atrial fibrillation. Subtotal pericardiectomy was performed. The patient was premedicated with methadone (0.2 mg/kg intravenously), and anaesthesia was induced with midazolam (0.2 mg/kg intravenously) and propofol (60 mg), and maintained with isoflurane in oxygen. Constant‐rate infusions of fentanyl (0.1–0.2 µg/kg/min) and lidocaine (50 µg/kg/min) were administered. Dobutamine (1–5 µg/kg/min) helped to maintain mean arterial blood pressure above 65 mmHg. Fluid resuscitation and noradrenaline infusion (0.1 µg/kg/min) started after constriction was released to optimise preload. Haemodynamic support and ventricular rate control continued during the immediate postoperative period. Recovery from general anaesthesia was uneventful.
Successful management of a unilateral persistent epithelial defect secondary to meibomian gland dysfunction in an Irish Sports Horse using a multi‐modal treatment plan
Authors: Armstrong Susan K. , Blacklock Ben , Keen John , Peck Fraser S.
Published: September 2022

A novel equine multi‐modal protocol was implemented for management of unilateral equine dry eye disease and worsening persistent epithelial defects in a clinically well Irish Sports Horse. Utilising knowledge directly from human ophthalmic medicine for meibomian gland dysfunction, the meibomian glands were first mechanically debrided and expressed. Then a four‐point treatment protocol was instigated. The protocol comprised hot compressing, artificial tears, autologous serum and a topical azithromycin regimen, resulting in a significant improvement in persistent epithelial defects and clinical signs. This case highlights the benefits of a treatment plan containing both non‐pharmacological and pharmacological therapies targeting the lipid component of the tear film matrix in horses with dry eye disease.
A Model for the Asymmetry
Authors: Grandjean Vincent
Published: September 2022

As has been argued, there are good reasons to think that, assuming physical indeterminism, the asymmetry between the ‘open future’ and the ‘fixed past’ is to be characterized as a kind of worldly unsettledness: there being facts of the matter about what happened, but not about what will happen. However, the main models of the temporal structure of the world – eternalism and presentism – do not reflect any ontological asymmetry between the future and the past. According to these models, either both the future and the past exist, or neither the future nor the past exists. So, in this chapter, I argue that we should opt for an alternative model of the temporal structure of the world – the growing block theory (GBT) – that seems better designed to accommodate the asymmetry in openness between the future and the past.
Introduction: The European Paradox of Expecting Corrupt Political Elites to Lead the Fight Against Corruption
Authors: Martin-Russu Luana
Published: September 2022

Martin-Russu starts her analysis from an empirical puzzle: Romania’s abrupt shift from observing European norms and standards, towards increasingly diverging from them after having gained full EU membership. Romania’s pre-accession drive to curb corruption, very much aligned with the EU’s requirements, contrasts with the state’s post-accession backslide and the gradual deterioration of already adopted public integrity reforms.

The introduction sets the basis for discussion by arguing that in contexts corroded by high-level corruption, claims of successful Europeanization, particularly in the area of public integrity, are highly counter-intuitive. The priority attached by the EU to the rule of law and justice reform can hardly eliminate the fundamental incentive for political corruption. A self-serving political elite remains unable to genuinely commit to the implementation of substantial anti-corruption reforms.
Einführung
Authors: Diekmann Isabell
Published: September 2022

Spätestens seit dem 11. September 2001 sind Vorurteile gegenüber Muslim*innen und dem Islam in Deutschland und anderen Teilen der Welt weit verbreitet. 2018/19 zeigte knapp ein Fünftel der nicht-muslimischen Bevölkerung in Deutschland offen eine muslim*innenfeindliche Einstellung. Den Islam empfindet mehr als die Hälfte (51 Prozent) der Nicht-Muslim*innen als eher oder sehr bedrohlich.
Islam-/Muslim*innenfeindlichkeit als Gegenstand empirischer Sozialforschung
Authors: Diekmann Isabell
Published: September 2022

Nachdem im vorangegangen Kapitel die Relevanz unterschiedlicher, insbesondere quer zueinander verlaufender Kategorisierungen aufgezeigt wurde, widmet sich dieses Kapitel Konjunkturen von Kategorisierungen und Begrifflichkeiten im Zusammenhang mit Islam und Muslim*innen sowie feindlichen und abwertenden Einstellungen, Verhaltensweisen und Strukturen ihnen gegenüber. Obwohl viele Muslim*innen bereits in den 1960er Jahren nach Deutschland migrierten, war die Kategorie Muslim*in bis in die 1990er Jahre hinein kaum von Bedeutung. Auch die wissenschaftliche Bearbeitung der Konzepte Islam-/Muslim*innenfeindlichkeit und antimuslimischer Rassismus fand zuvor kaum statt.
Climate change impacts on thermal stress in four climatically diverse European cities
Authors: Katavoutas George , Founda Dimitra , Varotsos Konstantinos V. , Giannakopoulos Christos
Published: September 2022

The thermal conditions that prevail in cities pose a number of challenges to urban residents and policy makers related to quality of life, health and welfare as well as to sustainable urban development. However, the changes in thermal stress due to climate change are probably not uniform among cities with different background climates. In this work, a comparative analysis of observed and projected thermal stress (cold stress, heat stress, no thermal stress) across four European cities (Helsinki, Rotterdam, Vienna, and Athens), which are representative of different geographical and climatic regions of the continent, for a recent period (1975 − 2004) and two future periods (2029 − 2058, 2069 − 2098) has been conducted. Applying a rational thermal index (Universal Thermal Climate Index) and considering two models of the EURO-CORDEX experiment (RCA4-MOHC, RCA4-MPI) under two Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP4.5, RCP8.5), the projected future changes in thermal conditions are inspected. The distribution of thermal stress in the current climate varies greatly between the cities, reflecting their climatic and urban heterogeneity. In the future climate, a reduction in the frequency of cold stress is expected across all cities, ranging between − 2.9% and − 16.2%. The projected increase in the frequency of optimal thermal conditions increases with increasing latitude, while the projected increase in the frequency of heat stress (ranging from + 0.2 to + 14.6%) decreases with increasing latitudes. Asymmetrical changes in cold- and heat-related stress between cities were found to affect the annual percentage of optimal (no thermal stress) conditions in future. Although future projections are expected to partly bridge the gap between the less-privileged cities (with respect to annual frequency of optimal thermal conditions) like Helsinki and Rotterdam and the more privileged ones like Athens, the former will still lag behind on an annual basis.
Ethical Decision-Making in Indigenous Financial Services: QSuper Case Study
Authors: Burns Clare J. M. , Houghton Luke , Delaney Deborah , Shannon Cindy
Published: September 2022

This case study details how and why integrating storytelling, empathy, and inclusive practice shifted QSuper, a large Australian finance organisation, from minimal awareness to moral awareness then moral capability in the delivery of services to Indigenous customers. During the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation, and Financial Services Industry, QSuper were recognised for their exemplary service with Indigenous customers (Hayne, Interim report: Royal commission into misconduct in the banking, superannuation and financial services industry, Volume 1. Commonwealth of Australia, 2018;Transcript of Proceedings, 13 August, Commonwealth of Australia, 2018). This position was in stark contrast to the inaccessible service offerings of other financial organisations where some used predatory practices to sell unethical financial products to Indigenous Australians (Hayne, Interim report: Royal commission into misconduct in the banking, superannuation and financial services industry, Volume 1. Commonwealth of Australia, 2018; Hayne, Final report: Royal commission into misconduct in the banking, superannuation and financial services industry, Volume 1. Commonwealth of Australia, 2019a). Storytelling garned from visiting customers in remote communities and other meaningful activities involving inclusive practice to facilitate ethical decision-making in finance is different to standard functionalist finance approaches (Schinckus, Int Rev Financ Anal 40:103–106, 2015). Two empathetic questions asked within QSuper complementing the storytelling, were: “What is the right thing to do by the customer?” and “How would I feel if this were my mother?” Exploration into the lived reality of moral capacity is important based on the Commission finding many of the 490,000 finance staff do not know how to provide ethical services to vulnerable customers, in particular remote Indigenous customers (Australian Bureau of Statistics. Labour force, Australia, detailed. ABS. Retrieved fromhttps://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment/labour-force-australia-detailed/latest-release, 2021; Hayne, Final report: Royal commission into misconduct in the banking, superannuation and financial services industry, Volume 1. Commonwealth of Australia, 2019a). Furthermore, there is minimal literature on the role of Indigenous storytelling to heighten moral awareness in the finance industry which was found to lead to better ethical outcomes.
Exploring the effectiveness of demand-side retail pharmaceutical expenditure reforms
Authors: Berger Michael , Pock Markus , Reiss Miriam , Röhrling Gerald , Czypionka Thomas
Published: September 2022

Increasing expenditures on retail pharmaceuticals bring a critical challenge to the financial stability of healthcare systems worldwide. Policy makers have reacted by introducing a range of measures to control the growth of public pharmaceutical expenditure (PPE). Using panel data on European and non-European OECD member countries from 1990 to 2015, we evaluate the effectiveness of six types of demand-side expenditure control measures including physician-level behaviour measures, system-level price-control measures and substitution measures, alongside a proxy for cost-sharing and add a new dimension to the existing empirical evidence hitherto based on national-level and meta-studies. We use the weighted-average least squares regression framework adapted for estimation with panel-corrected standard errors. Our empirical analysis suggests that direct patient cost-sharing and some—but not all—demand-side measures successfully dampened PPE growth in the past. Cost-sharing schemes stand out as a powerful mechanism to curb PPE growth, but bear a high risk of adverse effects. Other demand-side measures are more limited in effect, though may be more equitable. Due to limitations inherent in the study approach and the data, the results are only explorative.
Humidity and measurement of volatile propofol using MCC-IMS (EDMON)
Authors: Teucke Tobias , Maurer F , Müller-Wirtz LM , Volk T , Sessler DI , Kreuer S
Published: September 2022

The bedside Exhaled Drug MONitor – EDMON measures exhaled propofol in ppbv every minute based on multi-capillary column – ion mobility spectrometry (MCC-IMS). The MCC pre-separates gas samples, thereby reducing the influence of the high humidity in human breath. However, preliminary analyses identified substantial measurement deviations between dry and humid calibration standards. We therefore performed an analytical validation of the EDMON to evaluate the influence of humidity on measurement performance. A calibration gas generator was used to generate gaseous propofol standards measured by an EDMON device to assess linearity, precision, carry-over, resolution, and the influence of different levels of humidity at 100% and 1.7% (without additional) relative humidity (reference temperature: 37°C). EDMON measurements were roughly half the actual concentration without additional humidity and roughly halved again at 100% relative humidity. Standard concentrations and EDMON values correlated linearly at 100% relative humidity (R²=0.97). The measured values were stable over 100min with a variance ≤ 10% in over 96% of the measurements. Carry-over effects were low with 5% at 100% relative humidity after 5min of equilibration. EDMON measurement resolution at 100% relative humidity was 0.4 and 0.6 ppbv for standard concentrations of 3 ppbv and 41 ppbv. The influence of humidity on measurement performance was best described by a second-order polynomial function (R²≥0.99) with influence reaching a maximum at about 70% relative humidity. We conclude that EDMON measurements are strongly influenced by humidity and should therefore be corrected for sample humidity to obtain accurate estimates of exhaled propofol concentrations.
Performance evaluation of PDM/SAC-OCDMA-FSO communication system using DPS code under fog, dust and rain
Authors: Abd El-Mottaleb Somia A. , Métwalli Ahmed , ElDallal Tarek A. , Hassib Mostafa , Fayed Heba A. , Aly Moustafa H.
Published: September 2022

A new hybrid polarization division multiplexing (PDM) spectral amplitude coding optical code division multiple access (SAC-OCDMA) is proposed for free space optical (FSO) for capacity enhancement. Two polarization signals are utilized; one is x-polarization and carries three different channels at 0° azimuthal angle while the other is y-polarization at 90° azimuthal angle, and carries the same three channels. Each channel is assigned with a diagonal permutation shift (DPS) code and carries 10 Gbps. The suggested system is simulated, and its performance is evaluated in terms of maximum allowable number of users, propagation range, bit error rate (BER), Q-factor, and received power for the different channels under various fog, dust storm, and rain scenarios. The reported results indicate that the system can support a signal travelling up to 2, 0.9, and 1.3 km, respectively, under light fog (LF), light dust (LD), and light rain (LR). As the level of these weather conditions is increased from light to moderate, the FSO link length decreases to 1.3, 0.25, and 1.8 km under medium fog (MF), medium dust (MD), and medium rain (MR), respectively. Furthermore, the shortest propagation range is achieved as the level of weather conditions becomes heavy, where the FSO link range becomes 1, 0.095, and 1.1 km under heavy fog (HF), heavy dust (HD), and heavy rain (HR), respectively. All these ranges are considered at BER ≤ 10–3and a received power ≤ − 27 dBm with 60 Gbps overall data transmission. This new hybrid FSO system is suggested to be implemented in desert areas that affects by dust storms and in 5G wireless transmission communications.
Uncovering the link between intra-individual heterogeneity and variety seeking: the case of new shared mobility
Authors: Song Fangqing , Hess Stephane , Dekker Thijs
Published: September 2022

Preferences can vary both across respondents (i.e. inter-respondent preference heterogeneity) and across choice tasks within respondents (i.e. intra-respondent preference heterogeneity). Ignoring the existence of intra-respondent preference heterogeneity could bias preference elicitation and demand forecast. Thus far, most studies covering inter- and intra-respondent preference heterogeneity have applied the mixed multinomial logit model. Meanwhile, the behavioural explanations for such preference variations remain under-explored. This paper accommodates inter- and intra-respondent preference heterogeneity through a two-layer latent class modelling structure, where the continuous random distributions are replaced with discrete mixtures in both layers. A latent variable representing variety-seeking is included to explain class membership probabilities, offering additional behavioural insights concerning the source of preference heterogeneity both across and within respondents. Two aspects associated with variety-seeking are examined: novelty-seeking (i.e. the inclination to adopt new modes) and alternation (i.e. the tendency to vary one’s behaviour regularly by selecting different modes continuously). In the context of new shared mobility, this paper finds the role of both aspects in preference heterogeneity. Specifically, novelty seekers are found to be more likely to fall into the class with higher probabilities of switching from existing modes to the new air taxi service than novelty avoiders, and alternation seekers are more likely to belong to the class with higher probabilities to exhibit intra-respondent preference heterogeneity than alternation avoiders. This paper, therefore, provides empirical evidence to identify the target customers of the new air taxi service.
The BepiColombo Environment Radiation Monitor, BERM
Authors: Pinto Marco , Sanchez-Cano Beatriz , Moissl Richard , Benkhoff Johannes , Cardoso Carlota , Gonçalves Patrícia , Assis Pedro , Vainio Rami , Oleynik Philipp , Lehtolainen Arto , Grande Manuel , Marques Arlindo
Published: September 2022

The BepiColombo Environment Radiation Monitor (BERM) on board the European Space Agency’s Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO), is designed to measure the radiation environment encountered by BepiColombo. The instrument measures electrons with energies from $\sim150~\text{keV}$
∼
150

keV
to $\sim10~\text{MeV}$
∼
10

MeV
, protons with energies from $\sim1.5~\text{MeV}$
∼
1.5

MeV
to $\sim100~\text{MeV}$
∼
100

MeV
, and heavy ions with Linear Energy Transfer from 1 to $50~\text{MeV}\cdot\text{mg}^{-1}\cdot\text{cm}^{2}$
50

MeV
⋅

mg

−
1

⋅

cm
2

. BERM is operated continuously, being responsible for monitoring the radiation levels during all phases of the mission, including the cruise, the planetary flybys of Earth, Venus and Mercury, and the Hermean environment. In this paper, we describe the scientific objectives, instrument design and calibration, and the in-flight scientific performance of BERM. Moreover, we provide the first scientific results obtained by BERM during the BepiColombo flyby of Earth in April 2020, and after the impact of a solar energetic particle event during the cruise phase in May 2021. We also discuss the future plans of the instrument including synergies with other instruments on the BepiColombo and on other missions.
The Emerging Field of Psychedelic Psychotherapy
Authors: Barber Gregory S. , Aaronson Scott T.
Published: September 2022

Purpose of Review

Few treatments are available for patients with mood disorders or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) who have already failed multiple interventions. After several decades when research into psychedelics was effectively halted by federal legislation, the past several years have shown the re-emergence of thoughtful investigations studying the utility of compounds such as 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and psilocybin.

Recent Findings

Several studies have coupled the safe administration of psychedelic compounds in a controlled environment after several hours of preparation of study participants and followed by multiple sessions to integrate the psychedelic experience. The improvement participants experience appear related to the often profound perspective changes experienced and seem unlike the improvements seen in the currently available care paradigms. Studies cited include treatment resistant depression, end of life despair, and PTSD.

Psychedelic psychotherapy, a unique remarriage of biological therapy and psychotherapy, has the potential to transform mental health care.
A new combination in Rockhausenia (Compositae: Senecioneae: Senecioninae)
Authors: Hind D. J. Nicholas
Published: September 2022

The recently described Werneria praetermissa (Compositae: Senecioneae: Senecioninae) from northwestern Argentina (Jujuy, Salta) and southern Bolivia (Tarija) is transferred to Rockhausenia.
Merkmale der Inanspruchnahmepopulation einer Eltern-Kind-Station: Frühe interaktionszentrierte Behandlung als Chance in der Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie
Authors: Taferner Christina , Jahnke-Majorkovits Ann-Christin , Nakamura Sanae , Sevecke Kathrin
Published: September 2022

Grundlagen

Bei einer stationären kinderpsychiatrischen Eltern-Kind Behandlung wird das Kind als Patient und die Eltern als Begleitperson aufgenommen, um der Bedeutung der Eltern-Kind-Interaktion bei der Entstehung und Aufrechterhaltung von psychischen Störungen von Kindern gerecht zu werden und Eltern in die Behandlung von Kindern mit emotionalen und/oder Verhaltensauffälligkeiten zentraler zu integrieren. Um diese Behandlungsform zukünftig weiter auszubauen und effektiver zu gestalten, wurden in der vorliegenden Studie die Merkmale der bisherigen Inanspruchnahmepopulation der kinderpsychiatrischen Eltern-Kind-Station in Tirol hinsichtlich der kindlichen Symptomatik mittels ICD-10 und DC:0–5 und der Belastung der Eltern genauer untersucht.

Methodik

Zur Überprüfung der kindlichen Symptomausprägung sowie der Belastung der Eltern wurden die Ergebnisse der Child Behavior Checklist 1 ½–5, der Child Behavior Checklist 6–18R sowie des Eltern-Belastungsinventars von Tröster (2011) von 96 Eltern-Kind-Paaren herangezogen.

Ergebnisse

Die 6–10-jährigen Patienten wiesen bei der Gesamtskala des CBCL höhere T‑Werte (M = 76,9, SD = 7,1) auf als die 0–5-jährigen Patienten (M = 63,1, SD = 12,4), t (50) = −3,52, p < 0,001. Bei der EBI-Gesamtskala unterschieden sich die 0–5-jährigen Patienten und die 6–10-jährigen Patienten hinsichtlich der T‑Werte nicht, t (54) = −0,75, p = 0,459, ebenso wie im EBI-Kinderbereich t (54) = −1,75, p = 0,087 und im EBI-Elternbereich, t (54) = 0,19, p = 0,846. Auch die vier Diagnosegruppen unterschieden sich weder in der Gesamtskala des EBI, F (4,58) = 1,34, p = 0,266, noch im Elternbereich des EBI, F (4,58) = 1,44, p = 0,232, oder im Kinderbereich des EBI, F (4,58) = 2,81, p = 0,033.

Schlussfolgerungen

Eine frühzeitige Erkennung und Behandlung von Verhaltensauffälligkeiten bzw. psychischen Störungen bei sehr jungen Kindern scheint maßgeblich, um langfristige negative Folgen sowie eine Chronifizierung zu verhindern. Eltern-Kind-Therapien sollten im Allgemeinen auf die Aufdeckung und Veränderung aktueller dysfunktionaler Interaktionsmuster zwischen Eltern und Kind fokussieren.
COVID-19 Serosurvey of Frontline Healthcare Workers in Western Australia
Authors: Ludewick Herbert , Hahn Rebecca , Italiano Claire , Pereira Lynette , Fatovich Daniel , Saxton Jemma , Hunt Richard , Ho Kwok M. , Boan Peter , Pavey Warren
Published: September 2022

We aimed to study COVID-19 infection in healthcare workers (HCWs) during the first wave in a setting of low community incidence prior to HCW vaccination. We performed a cross-sectional study of frontline HCWs in two tertiary hospitals in Western Australia with questionnaire and testing for SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies, using a screening assay followed by confirmatory assays for initial reactive results. 799 Frontline HCWs were enrolled in the study, working in the emergency department (n = 194, 24.2%), ICU (n = 176, 22.0%), respiratory ward (n = 20, 2.5%), COVID clinic (n = 37, 4.6%), and theatre (n = 222, 28%). 189 (23.6%) were doctors, 327 (41.0%) nurses, and 283 (35.4%) other. Contact with a known COVID-19-positive patient occurred at work for 337 (42.1%), and outside work for 10 (1.2%). Four were diagnosed with COVID-19 by PCR, acquired overseas in two cases and related to healthcare work in two cases (one acquired from a colleague and one possibly acquired from patient contact in the healthcare setting). Nine HCWs had reactive screening serology, and three had confirmed positive IgG (these three were PCR-positive cases). Infection control procedures in the setting of low community incidence were effective at preventing HCW acquisition of COVID-19 infection.
Facilitating Real-Time, Multidirectional Learning for Clinicians in a Low-Evidence Pandemic Response
Authors: Hunt Richard C , Braunstein Sofia P , Cuddy Egbert Lauren , Gorbach Katherine A , Rao Monisha , Pearson Jonathan D , Armistad Amy J , Arora Sanjeev , Bennett Celine A , Dezan Amanda M , Herrmann Jack , Redd John T , Jolly B. Tilman , Krohmer Jon R , Struminger Bruce B
Published: September 2022

As COVID-19 was declared a health emergency in March 2020, there was immense demand for information about the novel pathogen. This paper examines the clinician-reported impact of Project ECHO COVID-19 Clinical Rounds on clinician learning. Primary sources of study data were Continuing Medical Education (CME) Surveys for each session from the dates of March 24, 2020 to July 30, 2020 and impact surveys conducted in November 2020, which sought to understand participants’ overall assessment of sessions. Quantitative analyses included descriptive statistics and Mann-Whitney testing. Qualitative data were analyzed through inductive thematic analysis. Clinicians rated their knowledge after each session as significantly higher than before that session. 75.8% of clinicians reported they would ‘definitely’ or ‘probably’ use content gleaned from each attended session and clinicians reported specific clinical and operational changes made as a direct result of sessions. 94.6% of respondents reported that COVID-19 Clinical Rounds helped them provide better care to patients. 89% of respondents indicated they ‘strongly agree’ that they would join ECHO calls again.COVID-19 Clinical Rounds offers a promising model for the establishment of dynamic peer-to-peer tele-mentoring communities for low or no-notice response where scientifically tested or clinically verified practice evidence is limited.
Training of Medical Students for Mass Casualty Incidents Using Table-Top Gamification
Authors: Castro Delgado Rafael , Fernández García Lucía , Cernuda Martínez José Antonio , Cuartas Álvarez Tatiana , Arcos González Pedro
Published: September 2022

Introduction:

“Table-top” exercises can improve knowledge and skills related to mass casualty incidents (MCIs) with little logistical efforts. We aim to evaluate the learning process of 5th year medical school students related to MCI response using table-top simulation and measure their methodology perception.

Methods:

A theoretical part plus an MCI simulation board exercise was organized. Knowledge pretest and 1 mo after posttest was scored, and an assessment questionnaire with 27 questions with a Likert-type scale with 3 dimensions: methodology, knowledge acquisition, and skills acquisition was administered. Students did not receive any written or training material between pretest and posttest.

Results:

A total of 108 (80%) completed the evaluation questionnaire, pretest, and posttest. For the pretest, average grade was 4.25 (SD = 1.71) and 42% passed, and for the posttest, average grade was 8.33 (SD = 1.28) and 97 % pass (P < 0.0001). All variables measuring methodology perception scored more than 8, except for the duration of the exercise (7.3). Most knowledge acquisition scored above 9. Self-perception skill acquisition scores were slightly lower, although all above 7.

Conclusions:

“Table-top” methodology is useful for acquiring knowledge and skills related to MCI response. Retention of knowledge is very high. Students consider that this methodology can be very useful for medical studies. Active or nonactive role is a factor that only influences final results in specific items.
Topological dynamics of cosine maps
Authors: PARDO-SIMÓN LETICIA
Published: September 2022

The set of points that escape to infinity under iteration of a cosine map, that is, of the form
$C_{a,\,b} \colon z \mapsto ae^z+be^{-z}$
for
$a,\,b\in \mathbb{C}^\ast$
, consists of a collection of injective curves, called dynamic rays. If a critical value of
$C_{a,\,b}$
escapes to infinity, then some of its dynamic rays overlap pairwise and split at critical points. We consider a large subclass of cosine maps with escaping critical values, including the map
$z\mapsto \cosh(z)$
. We provide an explicit topological model for their dynamics on their Julia sets. We do so by first providing a model for the dynamics near infinity of any cosine map, and then modifying it to reflect the splitting of rays for functions of the subclass we study. As an application, we give an explicit combinatorial description of the overlap occurring between the dynamic rays of
$z\mapsto \cosh(z)$
, and conclude that no two of its dynamic rays land together.
RA33, an analogue of resveratrol, improves the development of in vitro-fertilized bovine embryos
Authors: Patrocinio Tais Aparecida , Fernandes Carlos Antônio de Carvalho , Macedo Gilson Costa , Silva Adilson David da , Barbosa Nadia Rezende Raposo , Quintao Carolina Capobiango Romano , Ribeiro Marcela Eduarda da Silva , Camargo Luiz Sergio Almeida
Published: September 2022

Oxidative stress is an undesirable effect of in vitro culture, which requires antioxidant supplementation. This study investigated the analogue of resveratrol (RA33) as an alternative to resveratrol, an antioxidant molecule, for the in vitro culture of in vitro-fertilized bovine embryos. The effect of different concentrations of RA33 on embryo development was evaluated and a comparison between RA33 and resveratrol was performed. The cleavage rate was higher (P < 0.05) with 2.5 μM (69.0 ± 4.4%) than at 0, 0.1 or 0.5 μM RA33 (62.1 ± 2.0%, 60.7 ± 5.9% and 56.7 ± 5.8%, respectively). The blastocyst rates on days 7 and 8 post-fertilization with 2.5 μM RA33 (19.4 ± 3.3% and 24.6 ± 3.3%, respectively) were higher (P < 0.05) than for 0 μM (12.4 ± 2.5% and 15.2±2.5%, respectively). When 2.5 μM RA33 was compared with 0.5 μM resveratrol, similar (P > 0.05) cleavage and blastocyst rates were found between them, but the cleavage rate was higher (P < 0.05) in the control (80.8 ± 3.4%) than for the resveratrol treatment (76.4 ± 3.6%). The numbers of apoptotic cells and the apoptotic index were lower (P < 0.05) with RA33 (6.5 ± 0.6 cells and 6.4 ± 0.7%, respectively) and resveratrol (5 ± 0.8 cells and 5.5 ± 1.0%, respectively) than in the control group (9.8 ± 1.2 cells and 8.9 ± 1.1%, respectively). In conclusion, RA33 can enhance the preimplantation development of in vitro-fertilized bovine embryos and be an alternative to resveratrol in embryo culture medium.
What do others think? The why, when and how of using surveys in CBT
Authors: Murray Hannah , Kerr Alice , Warnock-Parkes Emma , Wild Jennifer , Grey Nick , Clark David M. , Ehlers Anke
Published: September 2022

Surveys are a powerful technique in cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). A form of behavioural experiment, surveys can be used to test beliefs, normalise symptoms and experiences, and generate compassionate perspectives. In this article, we discuss why and when to use surveys in CBT interventions for a range of psychological disorders. We also present a step-by-step guide to collaboratively designing surveys with patients, selecting the appropriate recipients, sending out surveys, discussing responses and using key learning as a part of therapy. In doing so, we hope to demonstrate that surveys are a flexible, impactful, time-efficient, individualised technique which can be readily and effectively integrated into CBT interventions.

Key learning aims

After reading this article, it is hoped that readers will be able to:

(1)

Conceptualise why surveys can be useful in cognitive behavioural therapy.

(2)

Implement collaborative and individualised survey design, delivery and feedback as part of a CBT intervention.
Seasonal Landslide Activity Lags Annual Precipitation Pattern in the Pacific Northwest
Authors: Luna L. V. , Korup O.
Published: September 2022

Seasonal variations in landslide activity remain understudied compared to recent advances in landslide early warning at hourly to daily timescales. Here, we learn the seasonal pattern of monthly landslide activity in the Pacific Northwest from five heterogeneous landslide inventories with differing spatial and temporal coverage and reporting protocols combined in a Bayesian multi‐level model. We find that landslide activity is distinctly seasonal, with credible increases in landslide intensity, inter‐annual variability, and probability marking the onset of the landslide season in November. Peaks in landslide probability in January and intensity in February lag the annual peak in mean monthly precipitation and landslide activity is more variable in winter than in summer, when landslides are rare. For a given monthly rainfall, landslide intensity at the season peak in February is up to 10 times higher than at the onset in November, underlining the importance of antecedent seasonal hillslope conditions.
Moist Static Energy Transport Trends in Four Global Reanalyses: Are They Downgradient?
Authors: Clark Joseph P. , Feldstein Steven B. , Lee Sukyoung
Published: September 2022

Trends in moist static energy (MSE) transport are investigated for the years 1980 through 2018 using four different reanalysis data sets. The reanalysis data sets show agreement in the eddy MSE transport trends and the latitudinal structure of the MSE trends, but vary widely in the trend of the flux of the climatological zonal mean MSE by the anomalous zonal mean meridional wind. The latter dominates the total MSE transport trends in all four data sets. Therefore, none of the four total MSE flux trends is downgradient of the corresponding MSE trend. Further analysis of the MSE trends reveals that dry static energy increases strongly dominate MSE trends at all latitudes, including in the tropics where climate models and theory predict latent energy increases to dominate. As changes in MSE transport are routinely assumed to be downgradient when interpreting changes in climate, including Arctic amplification, further investigation of reanalysis MSE transport is warranted.
Using Inverse Modeling and Dual Isotopes (δ15N and δ18O of NO3) to Determine Sources of Nitrogen Export From a Complex Land Use Catchment
Authors: Adiyanti Sri , Maruya Yasuyuki , Eyre Bradley D. , Mangion Perrine , Turner Jeffrey V. , Hipsey Mathew R.
Published: September 2022

Attributing nitrogen export to specific land use within heterogeneous catchments remains a challenge due to the spatio‐temporal variability in conditions influencing the mobilization and fate of nitrogen species. This study demonstrates that the measurement of dual stable isotopes of nitrate, taken along with routine tributary measurement of nitrogen in nitrate (NO3−‐N) and ammonium (NH4+‐N), aids in apportioning sources of the overall nitrogen load during wet periods. An inverse modeling technique was developed to estimate the land use‐specific export rates of NO3−‐N and NH4+‐N from the Caboolture River Catchment in Queensland, Australia. Measurements of nitrogen in streamflow at 51 locations during six sampling campaigns (May 2012 to April 2013) were made along with catchment geospatial data that was used to disaggregate sub‐catchments into six land use fractions. A hydrological model was applied to compute the runoff from each fraction and water routing through the stream network. This data was used within a nitrogen mixing model with inclusion δ15NNO3 and δ18ONO3. The land uses specific export rate was computed inversely as the posterior of a Bayesian interference applied to the model. During higher rainfall periods when export rates were highest, the main land use exporting nitrogen was wetland (110 g/ha/day NO3−‐N, 27 g/ha/day NH4+‐N) resulted from mineralization and nitrification of organic N, followed by urban (16 g/ha/day NO3−‐N, 2.3 g/ha/day NH4+‐N). The advantage of using the dual isotopes in conjunction with the nitrogen concentration data was demonstrated by reduced uncertainty in the computed rates during the higher rainfall periods, relative to calculations without δ15NNO3 and δ18ONO3.
Gene set enrichment analysis of pathophysiological pathways highlights oxidative stress in psychosis
Authors: Pistis Giorgio , Vázquez-Bourgon Javier , Fournier Margot , Jenni Raoul , Cleusix Martine , Papiol Sergi , Smart Sophie E. , Pardiñas Antonio F. , Walters James T. R. , MacCabe James H. , Kutalik Zoltán , Conus Philippe , Crespo-Facorro Benedicto , Q Do Kim
Published: September 2022

Polygenic risk prediction remains an important aim of genetic association studies. Currently, the predictive power of schizophrenia polygenic risk scores (PRSs) is not large enough to allow highly accurate discrimination between cases and controls and thus is not adequate for clinical integration. Since PRSs are rarely used to reveal biological functions or to validate candidate pathways, to fill this gap, we investigated whether their predictive ability could be improved by building genome-wide (GW-PRSs) and pathway-specific PRSs, using distance- or expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs)- based mapping between genetic variants and genes. We focused on five pathways (glutamate, oxidative stress, GABA/interneurons, neuroimmune/neuroinflammation and myelin) which belong to a critical hub of schizophrenia pathophysiology, centred on redox dysregulation/oxidative stress. Analyses were first performed in the Lausanne Treatment and Early Intervention in Psychosis Program (TIPP) study (n = 340, cases/controls: 208/132), a sample of first-episode of psychosis patients and matched controls, and then validated in an independent study, the epidemiological and longitudinal intervention program of First-Episode Psychosis in Cantabria (PAFIP) (n = 352, 224/128). Our results highlighted two main findings. First, GW-PRSs for schizophrenia were significantly associated with early psychosis status. Second, oxidative stress was the only significantly associated pathway that showed an enrichment in both the TIPP (p = 0.03) and PAFIP samples (p = 0.002), and exclusively when gene-variant linking was done using eQTLs. The results suggest that the predictive accuracy of polygenic risk scores could be improved with the inclusion of information from functional annotations, and through a focus on specific pathways, emphasizing the need to build and study functionally informed risk scores.
Allopurinol and prostate cancer survival in a Finnish population-based cohort
Authors: Kukko Ville , Kaipia Antti , Talala Kirsi , Taari Kimmo , Tammela Teuvo L. J. , Auvinen Anssi , Murtola Teemu J.
Published: September 2022

Background

Allopurinol is gout medication that inhibits uric acid formation. Its possible anti-carcinogenic properties have been under research in past years. Studies based on Taiwanese registries showed that long term allopurinol use might reduce prostate cancer (PCa) incidence. However, our studies based on Finnish registries did not support those findings. In this study, we evaluate whether allopurinol use is associated with prostate cancer-specific survival (CSS) or overall survival (OS) in a Finnish population-based cohort.

Methods

The study cohort was originally enrolled for the Finnish Randomized Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer (FinRSPC). We included all newly diagnosed PCa cases during 1996–2015, 9252 men in total. Information on allopurinol purchases was from the national prescription registry of the Social Insurance Institution of Finland. Information about deaths, treatments, and use of other medications was obtained from registries, and tumor stage and PSA at diagnosis from medical records. Follow-up started at diagnosis, and we analysed separately two endpoints: PCa-specific death and overall death. We used an extended Cox regression with adjustment for age at diagnosis, Charlson comorbidity index, FinRSPC trial arm, use of other drugs and EAU PCa risk group.

Results

During a median follow-up of 9.86 years, 2942 deaths occurred, including 883 from PCa. There was no difference in CSS between allopurinol user and non-users, but allopurinol users had lower OS (multivariable-adjusted hazard ratio 1.77; 95% CI: 1.57–2.00). However, this decrease in OS was mitigated along with increasing intensity of allopurinol use.

Conclusions

We found no marked difference in CSS by allopurinol use. Allopurinol users had lower OS but there were no significant differences by duration or intensity of allopurinol use. Allopurinol use may not have anticancer effects against prostate cancer; instead, it may be a surrogate for metabolic problems causing shorter OS among men with PCa.
Accelerated functional brain aging in major depressive disorder: evidence from a large scale fMRI analysis of Chinese participants
Authors: Luo Yunsong , Chen Wenyu , Qiu Jiang , Jia Tao
Published: September 2022

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is one of the most common mental health conditions that has been intensively investigated for its association with brain atrophy and mortality. Recent studies suggest that the deviation between the predicted and the chronological age can be a marker of accelerated brain aging to characterize MDD. However, current conclusions are usually drawn based on structural MRI information collected from Caucasian participants. The universality of this biomarker needs to be further validated by subjects with different ethnic/racial backgrounds and by different types of data. Here we make use of the REST-meta-MDD, a large scale resting-state fMRI dataset collected from multiple cohort participants in China. We develop a stacking machine learning model based on 1101 healthy controls, which estimates a subject’s chronological age from fMRI with promising accuracy. The trained model is then applied to 1276 MDD patients from 24 sites. We observe that MDD patients exhibit a +4.43 years (p < 0.0001, Cohen’s d = 0.31, 95% CI: 2.23–3.88) higher brain-predicted age difference (brain-PAD) compared to controls. In the MDD subgroup, we observe a statistically significant +2.09 years (p < 0.05, Cohen’s d = 0.134525) brain-PAD in antidepressant users compared to medication-free patients. The statistical relationship observed is further checked by three different machine learning algorithms. The positive brain-PAD observed in participants in China confirms the presence of accelerated brain aging in MDD patients. The utilization of functional brain connectivity for age estimation verifies existing findings from a new dimension.