bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Maybe So, Maybe Not: Canis lepophagus at Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument, Idaho, USA
Authors: Prassack Kari A. , Walkup Laura C.
Published: January 2022

A canid dentary is described from the Pliocene Glenns Ferry Formation at Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument, south-central Idaho, USA. The specimen possesses traits in alliance with and measurements falling within or exceeding those of Canis lepophagus. The dentary, along with a tarsal IV (cuboid) and an exploded canine come from the base of the fossiliferous Sahara complex within the monument. Improved geochronologic control provided by new tephrochronologic mapping by the U.S. Geological Survey-National Park Service Hagerman Paleontology, Environments, and Tephrochronology Project supports an interpolated age of approximately 3.9 Ma, placing it in the early Blancan North American Land Mammal Age. It is conservatively referred to herein as Canis aff. C. lepophagus with the caveat that it is an early and robust example of that species. A smaller canid, initially assigned to Canis lepophagus and then to Canis ferox, is also known from Hagerman. Most specimens of Canis ferox, including the holotype, were recently reassigned to Eucyon ferox, but specimens from the Hagerman and Rexroad faunas were left as Canis sp. and possibly attributed to C. lepophagus. We agree that these smaller canids belong in Canis and not Eucyon but reject placing them within C. lepophagus; we refer to them here as Hagerman-Rexroad Canis. This study confirms the presence of two approximately coyote-sized canids at Hagerman and adds to the growing list of carnivorans now known from these fossil beds.
Bayesian optimization with partially specified queries
Authors: Hayashi Shogo , Honda Junya , Kashima Hisashi
Published: January 2022

Bayesian optimization (BO) is an approach to optimizing an expensive-to-evaluate black-box function and sequentially determines the values of input variables to evaluate the function. However, it is expensive and in some cases becomes difficult to specify values for all input variables, for example, in outsourcing scenarios where production of input queries with many input variables involves significant cost. In this paper, we propose a novel Gaussian process bandit problem, BO with partially specified queries (BOPSQ). In BOPSQ, unlike the standard BO setting, a learner specifies only the values of some input variables, and the values of the unspecified input variables are randomly determined according to a known or unknown distribution. We propose two algorithms based on posterior sampling for cases of known and unknown input distributions. We further derive their regret bounds that are sublinear for popular kernels. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithms using test functions and real-world datasets.
On the benefits of representation regularization in invariance based domain generalization
Authors: Shui Changjian , Wang Boyu , Gagné Christian
Published: January 2022

A crucial aspect of reliable machine learning is to design a deployable system for generalizing new related but unobserved environments. Domain generalization aims to alleviate such a prediction gap between the observed and unseen environments. Previous approaches commonly incorporated learning the invariant representation for achieving good empirical performance. In this paper, we reveal that merely learning the invariant representation is vulnerable to the related unseen environment. To this end, we derive a novel theoretical analysis to control the unseen test environment error in the representation learning, which highlights the importance of controlling the smoothness of representation. In practice, our analysis further inspires an efficient regularization method to improve the robustness in domain generalization. The proposed regularization is orthogonal to and can be straightforwardly adopted in existing domain generalization algorithms that ensure invariant representation learning. Empirical results show that our algorithm outperforms the base versions in various datasets and invariance criteria.
The management of bone defect using long non-coding RNA as a potential biomarker for regulating the osteogenic differentiation process
Authors: Liu Jia-lin , Liu Yan-shi , Zheng Mei-jie , He Hui-yu
Published: January 2022

Tissue engineered bone brings hope to the treatment of bone defects, and the osteogenic differentiation of stem cells is the key link. Inducing osteogenic differentiation of stem cells may be a potential approach to promote bone regeneration. In recent years, lncRNA has been studied in the field increasingly, which is believed can regulate cell cycle, proliferation, metastasis, differentiation and immunity, participating in a variety of physiology and pathology processes. At present, it has been confirmed that certain lncRNAs regulate the osteogenesis of stem cells and take part in mediating signaling pathways including Wnt/β-catenin, MAPK, TGF-β/BMP, and Notch pathways. Here, we provided an overview of lncRNA, reviewed its researches in the osteogenic differentiation of stem cells, emphasized the importance of lncRNA in bone regeneration, and focused on the roles of lncRNA in signaling pathways, in order to make adequate preparations for applying lncRNA to bone tissue Engineering, letting it regulate the osteogenic differentiation of stem cells for bone regeneration.
Application of the WRF model rainfall product for the localized flood hazard modeling in a data-scarce environment
Authors: Umer Y. , Jetten V. , Ettema J. , Lombardo L.
Published: January 2022

Urban flood hazard model needs rainfall with high spatial and temporal resolutions for flood hazard analysis to better simulate flood dynamics in complex urban environments. However, in many developing countries, such high-quality data are scarce. Data that exist are also spatially biased toward airports and urban areas in general, where these locations may not represent flood-prone areas. One way to gain insight into the rainfall data and its spatial patterns is through numerical weather prediction models. As their performance improves, these might serve as alternative rainfall data sources for producing optimal design storms required for flood hazard modeling in data-scarce areas. To gain such insight, we developed Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) design storms based on the spatial distribution of high-intensity rainfall events simulated at high spatial and temporal resolutions. Firstly, three known storm events (i.e., 25 June 2012, 13 April 2016, and 16 April 2016) that caused the flood hazard in the study area are simulated using the WRF model. Secondly, the potential gridcell events that are able to trigger the localized flood hazard in the catchment are selected and translated to the WRF design storm form using a quantile expression. Finally, three different WRF design storms per event are constructed: Lower, median, and upper quantiles. The results are compared with the design storms of 2- and 10-year return periods constructed based on the alternating-block method to evaluate differences from a flood hazard assessment point of view. The method is tested in the case of Kampala city, Uganda. The comparison of the design storms indicates that the WRF model design storms properties are in good agreement with the alternating-block design storms. Mainly, the differences between the produced flood characteristics (e.g., hydrographs and the number of flood gird cells) when using WRF lower quantiles (WRFLs) versus 2-year and WRF upper quantiles (WRFUs) versus 10-year alternating-block storms are very minimal. The calculated aggregated performance statistics (F scores) for the simulated flood extent of WRF design storms benchmarked with the alternating-block storms also produced a higher score of 0.9 for both WRF lower quantiles versus 2-year and WRF upper quantile versus 10-year alternating-block storm. The result suggested that the WRF design storms can be considered an added value for flood hazard assessment as they are closer to real systems causing rainfall. However, more research is needed on which area can be considered as a representative area in the catchment. The result has practical application for flood risk assessment, which is the core of integrated flood management.
Prevalence of comorbidities and concomitant medication use in acromegaly: analysis of real-world data from the United States
Authors: Fleseriu Maria , Barkan Ariel , del Pilar Schneider Maria , Darhi Yannis , de Pierrefeu Amicie , Ribeiro-Oliveira Antonio , Petersenn Stephan , Neggers Sebastian , Melmed Shlomo
Published: January 2022

Purpose

Patients receiving treatment for acromegaly often experience significant associated comorbidities for which they are prescribed additional medications. We aimed to determine the real-world prevalence of comorbidities and concomitant medications in patients with acromegaly, and to investigate the association between frequency of comorbidities and number of concomitantly prescribed medications.

Methods

Administrative claims data were obtained from the IBM® MarketScan® database for a cohort of patients with acromegaly, identified by relevant diagnosis codes and acromegaly treatments, and a matched control cohort of patients without acromegaly from January 2010 through April 2020. Comorbidities were identified based on relevant claims and assessed for both cohorts.

Results

Overall, 1175 patients with acromegaly and 5875 matched patients without acromegaly were included. Patients with acromegaly had significantly more comorbidities and were prescribed concomitant medications more so than patients without acromegaly. In the acromegaly and control cohorts, respectively, 67.6% and 48.4% of patients had cardiovascular disorders, the most prevalent comorbidities, and 89.0% and 68.3% were prescribed > 3 concomitant medications (p < 0.0001). Hypopituitarism and hypothalamic disorders, sleep apnea, malignant neoplasms and cancer, and arthritis and musculoskeletal disorders were also highly prevalent in the acromegaly cohort. A moderate, positive correlation (Spearman correlation coefficient 0.60) was found between number of comorbidities and number of concomitant medications in the acromegaly cohort.

Conclusion

Compared with patients without acromegaly, patients with acromegaly have significantly more comorbidities and are prescribed significantly more concomitant medications. Physicians should consider the number and type of ongoing medications for individual patients before prescribing additional acromegaly treatments.
Social Development with Public Value: An International Comparison
Authors: Wang Bing , Xia Longmei , Wu Alfred M.
Published: January 2022

Social development around the world has been stunted by the lack of a comprehensive understanding and definition of public value. Public value theory can provide guidance, and inform a universal standard for social development. However, it is difficult to define and measure public value due to its philosophical complexity. Public values are driven by various economic, political, and social forces, and can be created by many stakeholders including enterprises, governments and non-governmental organisations. Government is central to human society and is primarily responsible for inclusive social development, which requires setting and maintaining public values orderly and synchronously according to the plurality of views held by those in society. Social development failure may occur when some key public values are ignored. This study uses thirty economic, social, and political indicators to measure public value, and the results demonstrate strong correlations among them. Through a principal component analysis and a cluster analysis, these thirty indicators can be reduced to four principal components. The first one, which represents economic value, can explain 65.8% of the total information, identifying that economic value is playing a fundamental role among plural public values. Countries are clustered and their development neighbors are identified in order to compare countries with similar levels of development. Public value theory can help to understand the advantages and disadvantages of different countries, and advance the social and economic progress steadily and authentically.
Enacting Ought: Ethics, Anti-Racism, and Interactional Possibilities
Authors: Fourlas George N. , Cuffari Elena Clare
Published: January 2022

Focusing on political and interpersonal conflict in the U.S., particularly racial conflict, but with an eye to similar conflicts throughout the world, we argue that the enactive approach to mind as life can be elaborated to provide an exigent framework for present social-political problems. An enactive approach fills problematic lacunae in the Western philosophical ethics project by offering radically refigured notions of responsibility and language. The dual enactive, participatory insight is that interactional responsibility is not singular and language is not an individual property or ability, something that someone simply and uniformly 'has' or 'controls'. These points have not been integrated into our self-understanding as moral actors, to everyone’s detriment. We first advocate for adequate appreciation of Colombetti and Torrance’s 2009 suggestion that participatory sense-making necessarily implies shared responsibility for interactional outcomes. We argue that the enactive approach presents open-ended cultivation of virtue as embodied, contextualized, and dynamic know-how and destabilizes an individualist metaphysics. Putting this framework to work, we turn to the interactional challenges of conversations that concern differences and that involve potentially oppositional parties, offering a reading of Claudia Rankine’s Just Us. Finally, we make explicit Rankine’s normative project of mindful navigation of multiple perspectives in an interaction. We abstract three interrelated spheres of participatory intervention: location, language, and labor. These also indicate routes for empirical investigation into complex perspective-taking in dynamic interactions.
Rank-sensitive proportional aggregations in dynamic recommendation scenarios
Authors: Balcar Stepan , Skrhak Vit , Peska Ladislav
Published: January 2022

In this paper, we focus on the problem of rank-sensitive proportionality preservation when aggregating outputs of multiple recommender systems in dynamic recommendation scenarios. We believe that individual recommenders may provide complementary views on the user’s preferences or needs, and therefore, their proportional (i.e. unbiased) aggregation may be beneficial for the long-term user satisfaction. We propose an aggregation framework (FuzzDA) based on a modified D’Hondt’s algorithm (DA) for proportional mandates allocation. Specifically, we adjusted DA to register fuzzy membership of items and modified the selection procedure to balance both relevance and proportionality criteria. Furthermore, we propose several iterative votes assignment strategies and negative implicit feedback incorporation strategies to make FuzzDA framework applicable in dynamic recommendation scenarios. Overall, the framework should provide benefits w.r.t. long-term novelty of recommendations, diversity of recommended items as well as overall relevance. We evaluated FuzzDA framework thoroughly both in offline simulations and in online A/B testing. Framework variants outperformed baselines w.r.t. click-through rate (CTR) in most of the evaluated scenarios. Some variants of FuzzDA also provided the best or close-to-best iterative novelty (while maintaining very high CTR). While the impact of the framework variants on user-wise diversity was not so extensive, the trade-off between CTR and diversity seems reasonable.
CrowdMed-II: a blockchain-based framework for efficient consent management in health data sharing
Authors: Hu Chaochen , Li Chao , Zhang Guigang , Lei Zhiwei , Shah Mira , Zhang Yong , Xing Chunxiao , Jiang Jinpeng , Bao Renyi
Published: January 2022

The healthcare industry faces serious problems with health data. Firstly, health data is fragmented and its quality needs to be improved. Data fragmentation means that it is difficult to integrate the patient data stored by multiple health service providers. The quality of these heterogeneous data also needs to be improved for better utilization. Secondly, data sharing among patients, healthcare service providers and medical researchers is inadequate. Thirdly, while sharing health data, patients’ right to privacy must be protected, and patients should have authority over who can access their data. In traditional health data sharing system, because of centralized management, data can easily be stolen, manipulated. These systems also ignore patient’s authority and privacy. Researchers have proposed some blockchain-based health data sharing solutions where blockchain is used for consensus management. Blockchain enables multiple parties who do not fully trust each other to exchange their data. However, the practice of smart contracts supporting these solutions has not been studied in detail. We propose CrowdMed-II, a health data management framework based on blockchain, which could address the above-mentioned problems of health data. We study the design of major smart contracts in our framework and propose two smart contract structures. We also introduce a novel search contract for searching patients in the framework. We evaluate their efficiency based on the execution costs on Ethereum. Our design improves on those previously proposed, lowering the computational costs of the framework. This allows the framework to operate at scale and is more feasible for widespread adoption.
Usefulness of quantitative 99mTc-pyrophosphate SPECT/CT for predicting the prognosis of patients with wild-type transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis
Authors: Ogasawara Kouji , Shiraishi Shinya , Tsuda Noriko , Sakamoto Fumi , Oda Seitarou , Takashio Seiji , Tsujita Kenichi , Hirai Toshinori
Published: January 2022

Purpose

Wild-type transthyretin-related amyloidosis cardiomyopathy (ATTRwt-CM) is an increasingly recognized cause of heart failure especially in elderly patients. The purpose of the present study was to determine retrospectively whether the quantitative indices of 99mTc-pyrophosphate (PYP) SPECT/CT help to predict the prognosis of ATTRwt-CM patients when compared with other clinical parameters.

Materials and methods

Sixty-eight patients with biopsy-proven ATTRwt-CM who underwent PYP SPECT/CT were enrolled. Baseline clinical characteristics, echocardiographic parameters, and qualitative and/or quantitative indices of planar and SPECT/CT imaging in PYP scintigraphy for each patient were included. For quantitative analysis of SPECT/CT, the accumulation ratio of PYP in the septum, posterior, anterior, lateral, and apex walls to the cavity pool was calculated as the septal wall-to-cavity ratio (Se/C), lateral wall-to-cavity ratio (La/C), anterior wall-to-cavity ratio (An/C), inferior wall-to-cavity ratio (In/C), and apical wall-to-cavity ratio (Ap/C), respectively. Endpoints for prognostic accuracy evaluation were cardiac death or hospitalization due to heart failure. Event-free survival rate was evaluated through Cox proportional hazards regression analysis, providing estimated hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and Kaplan–Meier curves.

Results

High-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT), La/C, age, interventricular septal thickness in diastole, and E/e′ ratio in the septal wall were significantly associated with event-free survival (P < 0.05). For a multivariable Cox proportional hazards analysis, hs-cTnT (HR 1.153; 95% CI 1.034–1.286; P < 0.01), La/C (HR 2.091; 95% CI 1.012–4.322; P = 0.046), and age (HR 1.116; 95% CI 1.007–1.238; P = 0.037) were significant independent prognostic factors.

Conclusion

This study indicated that the quantitative indices of PYP SPECT/CT can help to predict the prognosis of ATTRwt-CM patients.
Sustainability impacts of ecosystem approaches to small-scale aquaculture in Bangladesh
Authors: Dam Lam Rodolfo , Barman Benoy Kumar , Lozano Lazo Denise P. , Khatun Zohura , Parvin Lutfa , Choudhury Afrina , Rossignoli Cristiano M. , Karanja Alice , Gasparatos Alexandros
Published: January 2022

This study explores the sustainability impacts of adopting an ecosystem approach in underutilized homestead ponds (ecoponds) operated by women in Bangladesh. Households with ecoponds have significantly higher fish productivity, fish diversity, and income generation potential compared to households with similar underutilized ponds. Furthermore, certain dimensions of women’s empowerment are improved at the individual and household level (e.g., control of income and productive assets), without, however, addressing wider structural inequalities. Food security impacts are rather inconclusive, as despite the higher consumption of more diverse fish species among ecopond households, there is no significant effect on overall dietary diversity.
Application of Bayesian Super-Resolution to Spectroscopic Data for Precise Characterization of Spectral Peak Shape
Authors: Tsujimori Kota , Hirotani Jun , Harada Shunta
Published: January 2022

The number of data points of digitally recorded spectra have been limited by the number of multichannel detectors employed, which sometimes impedes the precise characterization of spectral peak shape. Here we describe a methodology to increase the number of data points as well as the signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio by applying Bayesian super-resolution in the analysis of spectroscopic data. In our present method, first, the hyperparameters for the Bayesian super-resolution are determined by a virtual experiment imitating actual experimental data, and the precision of the super-resolution reconstruction is confirmed by the calculation of errors from the ideal values. For validation of the super-resolution reconstruction of spectroscopic data, we applied this method to the analysis of Raman spectra. From 200 Raman spectra of a reference Si substrate with a data interval of about 0.8 cm−1, super-resolution reconstruction with a data interval of 0.01 cm−1was successfully achieved with the promised precision. From the super-resolution spectrum, the Raman scattering peak of the reference Si substrate was estimated as 520.55 (+0.12, −0.09) cm−1, which is comparable to the precisely determined value reported in previous works. The present methodology can be applied to various kinds of spectroscopic analysis, leading to increased precision in the analysis of spectroscopic data and the ability to detect slight differences in spectral peak positions and shapes.
Effects of enrichmemt planting with native tree species on bacterial community structure and potential impact on Eucalyptus plantations in southern China
Authors: Xu Yuxing , Li Chao , Zhu Wankuan , Wang Zhichao , Wu Lichao , Du Apeng
Published: January 2022

Multi-generational planting of Eucalyptus species degrades soil quality but the introduction of legumes can improve soil fertility and microbial diversity. However, the effects of introducing non-legume native tree species on soil nutrients and bacterial community structure remain poorly understood. This study investigated the impacts of the conversion of third generation monoculture Eucalyptus plantations to mixed systems including Eucalyptus urograndis with Cinnamomum camphora (EC) and E. urograndis with Castanopsis hystrix (EH), on soil chemical and biochemical properties and bacterial community structure, diversity and functions. First generation E. urophylla plantations were the control. Results show that planting the third generation Eucalyptus led to a significant decrease in pH, organic matter, nutrient content, enzyme activities (invertin, acid phosphataes, and urease), and bacterial α-diversity compare to the controls. However, the mixed planting showed significant improvement in soil chemical and biochemical attributes and bacterial α-diversity, although the E. urograndis and C. hystrix planting had no improvement. Chloroflexi (oligotrophic bacteria) were significantly enriched in third generation Eucalyptus and Eucalyptus + C. hystrix, while proteobacteria increased significantly in the E. urograndis with C. camphora plantings. The relative abundance of multiple metabolic pathways increased significantly in the third generation Eucalyptus plantations whereas membrane transport-related genes were enriched in soils of the mixed systems. The changes in bacterial community structures in the two mixed systems were driven by diversity, organic matter and acid phosphatase, while bacterial functions were affected by invertase, $${\mathrm{NO}}_{3}^{-}$$

NO

3

-

-N, diversity and urease. These results suggest that the transformation of successive monoculture Eucalyptus plantations into mixed plantations reduces the depletion of soil nutrients and enhances the ecological function of soil microorganisms.
Natural regeneration in logging gaps of different sizes in Subri River Forest Reserve (Ghana)
Authors: Hammond Maame Esi , Pokorný Radek , Abugre Simon , Gyedu Augustine
Published: January 2022

Subri River Forest Reserve (SR) is the most extensive forest area in Ghana with an accompanying rich floral species. Over the years, logging from both legally prescribed and illegal operations remain the predominant forest disturbance in SR. Gap creation following logging is crucial in determining tree species composition and diversity. Hence, the study evaluated the composition and diversity of naturally regenerated tree species in logging gaps of different sizes and, again examined the roles of these tree species in fulfilling the economic and ecological agenda of sustainable forest management after logging in SR. Twelve gaps were randomly selected: 4 each were grouped into small size (≤ 200 m2), medium size (201–300 m2), and large size (≥ 300 m2). Data were gathered from 1 m2 circular area at gap centres and repeatedly inside 1 m width strip along 20 m individual N-S-E-W transects. Species diversity differed significantly between gap sizes. Higher diversity indices were measured in large size gaps. Gap sizes shared similar species. There were significant differences among various height groupings of tree species across all three gap sizes. Pioneers preferred medium to large size gaps, while shade-tolerant tree species preferred small size gaps for their abundance. Vulnerable and Lower Risk Near Threatened tree species under Conservation Status and, Premium and Commercial tree species under Utilisation Status preferred small size gaps for their proliferation and conservation. Therefore, we recommend the single tree-based selective logging for ensuring creations of small to medium size (200–300 m2) gaps through adjustments to the logging permit process, revision of Allocation Quota Permit, strict adherence to the 40-year polycyclic selection system, along with more dedicated enforcement and monitoring. Changes along these protocols would tremendously facilitate natural regeneration of different suites of timber species resulting in the improvement of the overall biodiversity conservation associated with the forest, more sustainable forest harvests and more income to those who receive permits.
Revisional Surgery After One Anastomosis/Minigastric Bypass: an Italian Multi-institutional Survey
Authors: Musella Mario , Vitiello Antonio , Susa Antonio , Greco Francesco , De Luca Maurizio , Manno Emilio , Olmi Stefano , Raffaelli Marco , Lucchese Marcello , Carandina Sergio , Foletto Mirto , Pizza Francesco , Bardi Ugo , Navarra Giuseppe , Schettino Angelo Michele , Gentileschi Paolo , Sarro Giuliano , Chiappetta Sonja , Tirone Andrea , Berardi Giovanna , Velotti Nunzio , Foschi Diego , Zappa Marco , Piazza Luigi ,   SICOB Collaborative group for the study of OAGB/MGB, Giulia Bagaglini, Domenico Benavoli, Amanda Belluzzi, Cosimo Callari, Mariapaola Giusti, Enrico Facchiano, Leo Licari, Giuseppe Iovino, Giacomo Piatto, Francesco Stanzione, Matteo Uccelli, Gastone Veroux, Costantino Voglino
Published: January 2022

Background

Efficacy and safety of OAGB/MGB (one anastomosis/mini gastric bypass) have been well documented both as primary and as revisional procedures. However, even after OAGB/MGB, revisional surgery is unavoidable in patients with surgical complications or insufficient weight loss.

Methods

A questionnaire asking for the total number and demographics of primary and revisional OAGB/MGBs performed between January 2006 and July 2020 was e-mailed to all S.I.C. OB centres of excellence (annual caseload > 100; 5-year follow-up > 50%). Each bariatric centre was asked to provide gender, age, preoperative body mass index (BMI) and obesity-related comorbidities, previous history of abdominal or bariatric surgery, indication for surgical revision of OAGB/MGB, type of revisional procedure, pre- and post-revisional BMI, peri- and post-operative complications, last follow-up (FU).

Results

Twenty-three bariatric centres (54.8%) responded to our survey reporting a total number of 8676 primary OAGB/MGBS and a follow-up of 62.42 ± 52.22 months. A total of 181 (2.08%) patients underwent revisional surgery: 82 (0.94%) were suffering from intractable DGER (duodeno-gastric-esophageal reflux), 42 (0.48%) were reoperated for weight regain, 16 (0.18%) had excessive weight loss and malnutrition, 12 (0.13%) had a marginal ulcer perforation, 10 (0.11%) had a gastro-gastric fistula, 20 (0.23%) had other causes of revision. Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) was the most performed revisional procedure (109; 54%), followed by bilio-pancreatic limb elongation (19; 9.4%) and normal anatomy restoration (19; 9.4%).

Conclusions

Our findings demonstrate that there is acceptable revisional rate after OAGB/MGB and conversion to RYGB represents the most frequent choice.

Graphical abstract
Investigation of Numerical Conditions of Moving Particle Semi-implicit for Two-Dimensional Wedge Slamming
Authors: Iida Takahito , Yokoyama Yudai
Published: January 2022

The sensitivity of moving particle semi-implicit (MPS) simulations to numerical parameters is investigated in this study. Although the verification and validation (V&V) are important to ensure accurate numerical results, the MPS has poor performance in convergences with a time step size. Therefore, users of the MPS need to tune numerical parameters to fit results into benchmarks. However, such tuning parameters are not always valid for other simulations. We propose a practical numerical condition for the MPS simulation of a two-dimensional wedge slamming problem (i.e., an MPS-slamming condition). The MPS-slamming condition is represented by an MPS-slamming number, which provides the optimum time step size once the MPS-slamming number, slamming velocity, deadrise angle of the wedge, and particle size are decided. The simulation study shows that the MPS results can be characterized by the proposed MPS-slamming condition, and the use of the same MPS-slamming number provides a similar flow.
Experimental Study of a Sphere Bouncing on the Water
Authors: Lyu Xujian , Yun Honglu , Wei Zhaoyu
Published: January 2022

In this paper, the flow physics and impact dynamics of a sphere bouncing on a water surface are studied experimentally. During the experiments, high-speed camera photography techniques are used to capture the cavity and free surface evolution when the sphere impacts and skips on the water surface. The influences of the impact velocity (v1) and impact angle (θ1) of the sphere on the bouncing flow physics are also investigated, including the cavitation evolution, motion characteristics, and bounding law. Regulations for the relationship between v1 and θ1 to judge whether the sphere can bounce on the water surface are presented and analyzed by summarizing a large amount of experimental data. In addition, the effect of θ1 on the energy loss of the sphere is also analyzed and discussed. The experiment results show that there is a fitted curve of $${v}_{1}=17.5{\theta }_{1}-45.5$$

v
1

=
17.5

θ
1

-
45.5

determining the relationship between the critical initial velocity and angle whether the sphere bounces on the water surface.
iWeek experience: the innovation challenges of digital transformation in industry
Authors: Lara-Prieto Vianney , Flores-Garza Gilberto E.
Published: January 2022

Information Technology, communication, and innovation require specific, essential competencies that employers look for in engineers. Responding to this, Tecnologico de Monterrey has been implementing the Tec21 Educational model to foster students' competencies by involving them in challenge-based learning (CBL). The iWeek is one of the first implementations of this model, where students experience immersive learning for a whole week. This study presents the iWeek Innovation Challenge to improve students' innovation and information technology and communication skills through a CBL didactic technique. During this iWeek, a group of students developed efficient solutions with Microsoft Power Apps to solve real challenges confronting a global company. The results proved that students could quickly learn and apply knowledge and develop practical, innovative solutions to real problems in Industry. It was a revelation to the stakeholders to notice how fast students can become familiar with new information technology tools to propose solutions that positively impact the company. Strong partnerships between academia and industry are crucial to developing student disciplinary and transversal competencies by challenging them to solve real-life problems in real-world environments. This work presents a roadmap for planning and designing a CBL iWeek with an educational partner from Industry. It includes the implementation details, assessment instruments, and results analysis. Finally, we also highlight the significant contributions of iWeek to explain the value of this immersive experience in the teaching–learning process.
Effect of Sodium Selenite on the Metabolite Profile of Epichloë sp. Mycelia from Festuca sinensis in Solid Culture
Authors: Zhou Lianyu , Jiao Lu , Ju Jiasheng , Ma Xuelan
Published: January 2022

Selenium (Se) is an essential micronutrient with many beneficial effects for humans and other living organisms. Numerous microorganisms in culture systems enrich and convert inorganic selenium to organic selenium. In this study, Epichloë sp. from Festuca sinensis was exposed to increasing Na2SeO3 concentrations (0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, and 0.4 mmol/L) in Petri dishes with potato dextrose agar (PDA) for 8 weeks. Epichloë sp. mycelia were immediately collected after mycelial diameters were measured at 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 weeks of cultivation, respectively. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometer (GC-MS) analysis was performed on different groups of Epichloë sp. mycelia. Different changes were observed as Epichloë sp. was exposed to different selenite conditions and cultivation time. The colony diameter of Epichloë sp. decreased in response to increased selenite concentrations, whereas the inhibitory effects diminished over time. Seventy-two of the 203 identified metabolites did not differ significantly across selenite treatments within the same time point, while 82 compounds did not differ significantly between multiple time points of the same Se concentration. However, the relative levels of 122 metabolites increased the most under selenite conditions. Specifically, between the 4th and 8th weeks, there were increases in 2-keto-isovaleric acid, uridine, and maltose in selenite treatments compared to controls. Selenium increased glutathione levels and exhibited antioxidant properties in weeks 4, 5, and 7. Additionally, we observed that different doses of selenite could promote the production of carbohydrates such as isomaltose, cellobiose, and sucrose; fatty acids such as palmitoleic acid, palmitic acid, and stearic acid; and amino acids such as lysine and tyrosine in Epichloë sp. mycelia. Therefore, Epichloë sp. exposed to selenite stress may benefit from increased levels of some metabolite compounds.
Mesenchymal Stromal Cells: a Possible Reservoir for HIV-1?
Authors: Kallmeyer K. , Ryder M. A. , Pepper M. S.
Published: January 2022

The introduction of antiretroviral therapy (ART) and highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has transformed human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 into a chronic, well-managed disease. However, these therapies do not eliminate all infected cells from the body despite suppressing viral load. Viral rebound is largely due to the presence of cellular reservoirs which support long-term persistence of HIV-1. A thorough understanding of the HIV-1 reservoir will facilitate the development of new strategies leading to its detection, reduction, and elimination, ultimately leading to curative therapies for HIV-1. Although immune cells derived from lymphoid and myeloid progenitors have been thoroughly studied as HIV-1 reservoirs, few studies have examined whether mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (MSCs) can assume this function. In this review, we evaluate published studies which have assessed whether MSCs contribute to the HIV-1 reservoir. MSCs have been found to express the receptors and co-receptors required for HIV-1 entry, albeit at levels of expression and receptor localisation that vary considerably between studies. Exposure to HIV-1 and HIV-1 proteins alters MSC propertiesin vitro,including their proliferation capacity and differentiation potential. However,in vitroandin vivoexperiments investigating whether MSCs can become infected with and harbour latent integrated proviral DNA are lacking. In conclusion, MSCs appear to have the potential to contribute to the HIV-1 reservoir. However, further studies are needed using techniques such as those used to prove that cluster of differentiation (CD)4+T cells constitute an HIV-1 reservoir before a reservoir function can definitively be ascribed to MSCs.

Graphical abstract

MSCs may contribute to HIV-1 persistencein vivoin the vasculature, adipose tissue, and bone marrow by being a reservoir for latent HIV-1. To harbour latent HIV-1, MSCs must express HIV-1 entry markers, and show evidence of productive or latent HIV-1 infection. The effect of HIV-1 or HIV-1 proteins on MSC properties may also be indicative of HIV-1 infection.
Ballistic trauma caused by military rifles: experimental study based on synthetic skull proxies
Authors: Taylor Seth C. , Ondruschka Benjamin , Kieser David C. , Hammer Niels , Lee Matthew , Hooper Gary J. , Kranioti Elena
Published: January 2022

Rifles are often involved in violent deaths such as homicide and suicide. Consequently, expert knowledge and experimental forensic investigations are important to clarify the nature of ballistic trauma when applied to the human head and neurocranium. This study investigated differences in entrance wound morphology with Synbone® spheres which are described as being comparable to human flat bones. A series of ballistic experiments were conducted using two different rifle calibers (5.56 × 45 mm and 7.62 × 39 mm Full Metal Jacket (FMJ)). Synbone® spheres were used for close-range 0.3 m simulated executions as well as at 25 m and 35 m to simulate urban and military engagements. Results were compared with previously published experimental studies using similar military ammunition. In our study, entry wound morphology closely resembles real forensic cases compared to exit wound and overall shape morphology independently of the distance and the caliber. Circumferential delamination was clearly visible with full metal jacket (FMJ) rounds, yielding similar damage pattern morphology to the human crania. This study documented the presence of hydraulic burst or shock in all ten rounds from all three distances. Krönlein shots were also observed in some cases. Synbone® spheres constitute an acceptable synthetic surrogate for ballistic experiments. The present study offers new initial data on the behavior of Synbone® proxies in ballistic testing of military ammunitions; FMJ gunshot injuries to the human head, for distances that have not previously been published, suggesting that efficient tests can take place under these conditions. Further research on experimental ballistics with a larger number of controlled factors and multiple repetitions is recommended to verify the results of this pilot study before applied in forensic simulations.
Is DNA repair controlled by a biological logic circuit?
Authors: Penketh Philip G.
Published: January 2022

The possible utilization of biological logic circuit(s) in the integration and regulation of DNA repair is discussed. The author believes this mode of regulation likely applies to many other areas of cell biology; however, there are currently more experimental data to support its involvement in the control of DNA repair. Sequential logic processes always require a clock to orchestrate the orderly processing of events. In the proposed hypothesis, the pulses in the expression of p53 serve this function. Given the many advantages of logic type control, one would expect that in the course of ~ 3 billion years of evolution, where single cell life forms were likely the only forms of life, a biological logic type control system would have evolved to control at least some biological processes. Several other required components in addition to the ‘clock’ have been identified, such as; a method to temporarily inactivate repair processes when they are not required (e.g. the reversible inactivation of MGMT, a suicide repair protein, by phosphorylation); this prevents complex DNA repair systems with potentially overlapping repair functions from interfering with each other.
Patients with polyclonal hepatocellular carcinoma are at a high risk of early recurrence and have a poor recurrence-free survival period
Authors: Kaibori Masaki , Sakai Kazuko , Matsushima Hideyuki , Kosaka Hisashi , Matsui Kosuke , De Velasco Marco A. , Sekimoto Mitsugu , Nishio Kazuto
Published: January 2022

Background/purpose of the study

Tumor heterogeneity based on copy number variations is associated with the evolution of cancer and its clinical grade. Clonal composition (CC) represents the number of clones based on the distribution of B-allele frequency (BAF) obtained from a genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array. A higher CC number represents a high degree of heterogeneity. We hypothesized and evaluated that the CC number in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues might be associated with the clinical outcomes of patients.

Methods

Somatic mutation, whole transcriptome, and CC number based on copy number variations of 36 frozen tissue samples of operably resected HCC tissues were analyzed by targeted deep sequencing, transcriptome analysis, and SNP array.

Results

The samples were classified into the heterogeneous tumors as poly-CC (n = 26) and the homogeneous tumors as mono-CC (n = 8). The patients with poly-CC had a higher rate of early recurrence and a significantly shorter recurrence-free survival period than the mono-CC patients (7.0 months vs. not reached, p = 0.0084). No differences in pathogenic non-synonymous mutations, such as TP53, were observed between the two groups when targeted deep sequencing was applied. A transcriptome analysis showed that cell cycle-related pathways were enriched in the poly-CC tumors, compared to the mono-CC tumors. Poly-CC HCC is highly proliferative and has a high risk of early recurrence.

Conclusion

CC is a possible candidate biomarker for predicting the risk of early postoperative recurrence and warrants further investigation.
The link between the brain volume derived index and the determinants of social performance
Authors: Kokubun Keisuke , Yamakawa Yoshinori , Nemoto Kiyotaka
Published: January 2022

Motivation, defined as the energizing of behavior in pursuit of a goal, is a fundamental element of our interaction with the world and with each other. Furthermore, as it is known that cooperation leads to higher levels of performance than do individual conditions, empathic concern is also crucial to all forms of helping relationships. A growing number of studies indicate that motivation and empathy are associated not only with organizational performance and study achievements, but also with the human brain. However, to date, no definite neuroimaging-derived measures are available to measure motivation and empathy objectively. The current research evaluated the association of motivation and empathy with the whole brain using the gray-matter brain healthcare quotient (GM-BHQ), an MRI-based quotient. Participants were 47 healthy adults. All subjects underwent structural T1-weighted imaging. Motivation levels were evaluated using four motivation scales: Behavioral Activation System (BAS), Self-Monitoring Scale (SMS), Self-Control Scale (SCS), and Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS). Interaction levels, including empathic concern, were evaluated using four subscales of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). It was found that the GM-BHQ was most significantly sensitive to the BAS scale (p = 0.002). Furthermore, the GM-BHQ was moderately sensitive to the SMS (p = 0.028) and subscales of the IRI (p = 0.044 for Fantasy and p = 0.036 for Empathic Concern). However, no significant association was found between the GM-BHQ and other variables (BIS and SCS). These results suggest that the GM-BHQ might reflect motivation and empathic concern.
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) Sample Preparation and Analysis in Beverages: A Review
Authors: Peng Pau Lian , Lim Lee Hoon
Published: January 2022

The monitoring of food contaminants is of interests to both food regulatory bodies and the consumers. This literature review covers polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) with regard to their background, sources of exposures, and occurrence in food and environment as well as health hazards. Furthermore, analytical methods focusing on the analysis of PAHs in tea, coffee, milk, and alcoholic samples for the last 16 years are presented. Numerous experimental methods have been developed aiming to obtain better limits of detections (LODs) and percent recoveries as well as to reduce solvent consumption and laborious work. These include information such as the selected PAHs analyzed, food matrix of PAHs, methods of extraction, cleanup procedure, LOD, limits of quantitation (LOQ), and percent recovery. For the analysis of tea, coffee, milk, and alcoholic samples, a majority of the research papers focused on the 16 US Environmental Protection Agency PAHs, while PAH4, PAH8, and methylated PAHs were also of interests. Extraction methods range from the classic Soxhlet extraction and liquid–liquid extraction to newer methods such as QuEChERS, dispersive solid-phase microextraction, and magnetic solid-phase extraction. The cleanup methods involved mainly the use of column chromatography and SPE filled with either silica or Florisil adsorbents. Gas chromatography and liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry or fluorescence detectors are the main analytical instruments used. A majority of the selected combined methods used are able to achieve LODs and percent recoveries in the ranges of 0.01–5 ug/kg and 70–110%, respectively, for the analysis of tea, coffee, milk, and alcoholic samples.
Composition of Sexual Fluids in Cycas revoluta Ovules During Pollination and Fertilization
Authors: von Aderkas Patrick , Little Stefan , Nepi Massimo , Guarnieri Massimo , Antony Madeline , Takaso Tokushiro
Published: January 2022

The composition of fluids that mediate fertilization in cycads is described for the first time. Using tandem mass spectrometry, proteomes of two stages of fluid production, megagametophyte fluid and archegonial chamber fluid production, are compared in Cycas revoluta. These were compared with the proteome of another sexual fluid produced by ovules, the pollination drop proteins. Cycad ovules produce complex liquids immediately prior fertilization. Compared with the pollination drops that mainly had few proteins in classes involved in defense and carbohydrate modification, megagametophyte fluid and archegonial chamber fluid had larger proteomes with many more protein classes, e.g. proteins involved in programmed cell death. Using high-performance liquid chromatography, megagametophyte fluid and archegonial chamber fluid were shown to have elevated concentrations of smaller molecular weight molecules including glucose, pectin and glutamic acid. Compared to megagametophyte fluid, archegonial chamber fluid had elevated pH as well as higher osmolality.