bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Care-giver wellbeing: exploring gender, relationship-to-care-recipient and care-giving demands in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging
Authors: Chappell Neena L. , Penning Margaret , Kadlec Helena , Browning Sean D.
Published: December 2021

The three-way intersection of gender, relationship-to-care-recipient and care-giving demands has not, to our knowledge, been examined in relation to the wellbeing of family care-givers. We explore inequalities in depressive symptoms and life satisfaction, comparing wives, husbands, daughters and sons providing very-intensive care (36+ hours/week) with those providing less care and disparities between these groups in the factors related to disadvantage. Data from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (N = 5,994) support the existence of differences between the groups. Very-intensive care-giving wives report the most depressive symptoms and lowest life satisfaction; less-intensive care-giving sons report the fewest depressive symptoms, and less-intensive care-giving daughters report the highest life satisfaction. However, group differences in life satisfaction disappear among very-intensive care-givers. Drawing on Intersectionality and Stress Process theories, data from regression analyses reveal a non-significant gender–relationship–demand interaction term, but, health, socio-economic and social support resources play a strong mediating role between care demand and wellbeing. Analyses of the eight groups separately reveal diversity in the care-giving experience. Among less-intensive care-givers, the mediating role of resources remains strong even as differences are evident. Among very-intensive care-givers, the role of resources is less and differences in wellbeing between the groups are magnified. Policy implications emphasise the imperative to personalise services to meet the varied needs of care-givers.
Cardiac involvement in Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children cases
Authors: Erol Nurdan , Sari Erdal
Published: December 2021

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children is a rare form of COVID-19 that affects various organ systems and carries the risk of morbidity and mortality. Cardiac involvement is commonly observed in Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children cases; hence, this study was conducted to evaluate the cardiac findings of the Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children cases that were diagnosed and followed up in our hospital.

Materials and methods:

The medical histories, laboratory results, cardiac findings, and treatments of the cases that were diagnosed with Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children between December 2020 and August 2021 were evaluated retrospectively.

Results:

Our study group consisted of 14 males and 12 females whose median age was 3.67 years. Of the 26 patients, 24 had echocardiographic findings and 12 cases had cardiac pathologies that were mostly mild. Among these, mitral valve insufficiency, coronary artery pathology, and pericardial effusion were the most common. Perivascular brightness, aortic and tricuspid insufficiency, systolic dysfunction, and tricuspid thrombosis were less common. The cardiac pathologies of all patients resolved in less than a month following treatment.

Conclusion:

Although the cardiac pathologies of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children cases disappear fairly rapidly, the long-term cardiac effects of this disease are not known clearly. To improve our current understanding of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children, more multi-centred studies with long-term follow-up periods should be conducted, and treatment protocols for cases of different severities should be developed to maximise the treatments’ efficacy.
METASTART: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Diagnostic Accuracy of the Simple Triage and Rapid Treatment (START) Algorithm for Disaster Triage
Authors: Franc Jeffrey M. , Kirkland Scott W. , Wisnesky Uirá D. , Campbell Sandra , Rowe Brian H.
Published: December 2021

Introduction:

The goal of disaster triage at both the prehospital and in-hospital level is to maximize resources and optimize patient outcomes. Of the disaster-specific triage methods developed to guide health care providers, the Simple Triage and Rapid Treatment (START) algorithm has become the most popular system world-wide. Despite its appeal and global application, the accuracy and effectiveness of the START protocol is not well-known.

Objectives:

The purpose of this meta-analysis was two-fold: (1) to estimate overall accuracy, under-triage, and over-triage of the START method when used by providers across a variety of backgrounds; and (2) to obtain specific accuracy for each of the four START categories: red, yellow, green, and black.

Methods:

A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted that searched Medline (OVID), Embase (OVID), Global Health (OVID), CINAHL (EBSCO), Compendex (Engineering Village), SCOPUS, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global, Cochrane Library, and PROSPERO. The results were expanded by hand searching of journals, reference lists, and the grey literature. The search was executed in March 2020. The review considered the participants, interventions, context, and outcome (PICO) framework and followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Accuracy outcomes are presented as means with 95% confidence intervals (CI) as calculated using the binomial method. Pooled meta-analyses of accuracy outcomes using fixed and random effects models were calculated and the heterogeneity was assessed using the Q statistic.

Results:

Thirty-two studies were included in the review, most of which utilized a non-randomized study design (84%). Proportion of victims correctly triaged using START ranged from 0.27 to 0.99 with an overall triage accuracy of 0.73 (95% CI, 0.67 to 0.78). Proportion of over-triage was 0.14 (95% CI, 0.11 to 0.17) while the proportion of under-triage was 0.10 (95% CI, 0.072 to 0.14). There was significant heterogeneity of the studies for all outcomes (P < .0001).

Conclusion:

This meta-analysis suggests that START is not accurate enough to serve as a reliable disaster triage tool. Although the accuracy of START may be similar to other models of disaster triage, development of a more accurate triage method should be urgently pursued.
Cabinet Composition, Collegiality, and Collectivity: Examining Patterns in Cabinet Committee Structure
Authors: Ie Kenny William
Published: December 2021

This article examines one arena of decision-making in cabinet government: cabinet committees. It assesses the relationship between the composition of cabinets – their party make-up – and the structure of cabinet committees. Cabinet committees are groups of ministers tasked with specific policy or coordination responsibilities and can be important mechanisms of policymaking and cabinet management. Thus, the structure of committees informs our understanding of how cabinets differ in their distributions of policy influence among ministers and parties, a central concern in parliamentary government. We investigate two such dimensions: collegiality – interaction among ministers – and collectivity, the (de)centralization of influence. We find that cabinet committees in coalitions are significantly more collegial, on average, than single-party cabinets, though this is driven by minority coalitions. At the same time, influence within cabinet committees is less collectively distributed in most types of coalitions than in single-party cabinets.
The Australian Twins Economic Preferences Survey
Authors: Kettlewell Nathan , Tymula Agnieszka
Published: December 2021

This article describes the Australian Twins Economic Preferences Survey (ATEPS). The data set comprises a wide variety of preference and behavioral measures (risk aversion, impatience, ambiguity aversion, trust, confidence) elicited using incentivized decision tasks. One-thousand one-hundred twenty Australian adult twins (560 pairs) completed the survey, making it one of the largest data sets containing incentivized preference measures of twins. As the survey was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, we also collected information on experiences related to the pandemic, along with a variety of questions on political attitudes and mental wellbeing. We hope that ATEPS can make a valuable contribution to social science and genetics research.
Individual Differences in Lexical Repetition Priming
Authors: Pautz Nikolas , Durrheim Kevin
Published: December 2021

Abstract. The current research investigated whether individual differences in working memory capacity (WMC) and affective states have differential effects on lexical-semantic repetition priming outcomes based on whether participants were first- or second-language English speakers. Individual differences in priming effects have often been overlooked in the priming literature. Using logistic mixed-effects models to account for within-subject variation, the current paper investigated a three-way interaction between WMC, negative affect (NA) score, and language primacy on lexical-semantic repetition priming outcomes. The results indicate that a statistically significant three-way interaction exists between language primacy, WMC, and NA scores. No significant interaction effect was found for positive affect scores. We present an argument which posits that an individual’s primary language and subsequent familiarity with the primed concepts, in conjunction with individual differences in WMC and mood, plays an important role in determining the most effective strategy used to complete a word-stem completion task. The implications of the findings presented highlight that second-language English speakers are more susceptible to priming effects when prime-inducing stimuli are constructed using English lexicon; however, larger WMC and heighted negative affective states help to mitigate these priming effects.
Is the Suppression Effect of the Color Red on Snack Food Consumption Reliable?
Authors: Steele Kenneth M. , Rash Laura L.
Published: December 2021

Abstract. Two articles hypothesized that exposure to the color red would induce a state of avoidance motivation and reported that snack food consumption was decreased when the food was served on red plates, relative to white and blue plates. The current experiment combined their procedures and approximately tripled their group sizes. Participants were provided with pretzels on red, white, or blue plates in a mock sensory analysis task. The results indicated that more pretzels were consumed when presented on red plates, in direct contradiction of previous results. Alternative explanations, such as group differences in hunger or preference for pretzels, could not account for the results. The facilitation effect of red indicates that the color red does not always reduce snack food consumption and suggests that the reported inhibitory effect of red on snack consumption may not be reliable.
Personality Assessment To-Go
Authors: Altmann Tobias , Kapoor Niket
Published: December 2021

Abstract. A particular feature of unproctored Internet Testing (UIT) is the participants’ freedom to decide on the formal aspects of their participation, such as time of day, device, and whether, how often, and for how long they might intermit their participation. A main point of discussion has been how these aspects alter the quality and content of an assessment. The issue remains understudied while simultaneously maintaining great importance for many fields. We examined this question in a UIT assessment of the Big Five personality factors in the present study. A sample of 441 participants who completed the assessment and 527 participants who aborted their participation was used to analyze quality (internal consistency, response styles) and content (mean score) differences. Results revealed several dependencies among small effect sizes. The discussion focuses on the potential practical implications of the present findings.
On the (Mis)Use of Deception in Web-Based Research
Authors: Hilbig Benjamin E. , Thielmann Isabel
Published: December 2021

Abstract. The deception of research participants remains a controversial issue in the behavioral sciences. Current ethics codes consistently limit the use of deception to cases in which non-deceptive alternatives are unfeasible and, crucially, require that participants subjected to deception be debriefed correspondingly along with an option to withdraw their data after learning about the deception. These conditions pose a particular challenge in the context of web-based research because participants can typically discontinue a study unilaterally (i.e., dropout by simply closing the browser window) in which case full debriefing and an option to withdraw one’s data are no longer available. As a consequence, the study would no longer be compatible with ethical standards. Based on recent meta-analytical data, we provide an existence proof of this problem, showing that deception is used in web-based research with little to no indication of safeguards ensuring full debriefing and subsequent data withdrawal options. We close by revisiting recommendations for the (non-)use of deception in web-based research and offer solutions to implement such safeguards in case deception is truly unavoidable.
Are Minority Opinions Shared Less?
Authors: Zapf Birka , Hütter Mandy , Sassenberg Kai
Published: December 2021

Abstract. Product evaluation portals on the web that collect product ratings provide an excellent opportunity to observe opinion sharing in a natural setting. Evidence across different paradigms shows that minority opinions are shared less than majority opinions. This article reports a study testing whether this effect holds on product evaluation portals. We tracked the ratings of N = 76 products at 12 measurement points. We predicted that the higher (lower) the mean initial rating of a product, the more positive (negative) the newly contributed ratings will differ from this baseline – as an indication of the preferred sharing of majority compared to minority opinions. We found, however, that newly added ratings were on average less extreme than earlier ratings. These results can either be interpreted as regression to the mean or evidence for the preferred sharing of minority opinions.
Tropical Cirrus in Global Storm‐Resolving Models: 1. Role of Deep Convection
Authors: Nugent J. M. , Turbeville S. M. , Bretherton C. S. , Blossey P. N. , Ackerman T. P.
Published: December 2021

Pervasive cirrus clouds in the upper troposphere and tropical tropopause layer (TTL) influence the climate by altering the top‐of‐atmosphere radiation balance and stratospheric water vapor budget. These cirrus are often associated with deep convection, which global climate models must parameterize and struggle to accurately simulate. By comparing high‐resolution global storm‐resolving models from the Dynamics of the Atmospheric general circulation Modeled On Non‐hydrostatic Domains (DYAMOND) intercomparison that explicitly simulate deep convection to satellite observations, we assess how well these models simulate deep convection, convectively generated cirrus, and deep convective injection of water into the TTL over representative tropical land and ocean regions. The DYAMOND models simulate deep convective precipitation, organization, and cloud structure fairly well over land and ocean regions, but with clear intermodel differences. All models produce frequent overshooting convection whose strongest updrafts humidify the TTL and are its main source of frozen water. Intermodel differences in cloud properties and convective injection exceed differences between land and ocean regions in each model. We argue that, with further improvements, global storm‐resolving models can better represent tropical cirrus and deep convection in present and future climates than coarser‐resolution climate models. To realize this potential, they must use available observations to perfect their ice microphysics and dynamical flow solvers.
Remote Sensing Could Predict Well Water Quality After Floods
Authors: Rocheleau Jackie
Published: December 2021

After a flood, most people rely on officials to test public water sources. Private well owners are on their own, with little data to guide testing and treatment. New research seeks to change that.
Central Equatorial Pacific Warming and Freshening in the Twentieth Century: Insights From a Coral Ensemble Approach
Authors: Hitt Nicholas T. , Sayani Hussein R. , Atwood Alyssa R. , Grothe Pamela R. , Maupin Christopher , O’Connor Gemma K. , Walter Rachel M. , Gebregiorgis Daniel , Hardt Madeleine E. , Lu Yanbin , Cheng Hai , Edwards R. Lawrence , Cobb Kim M.
Published: December 2021

The tropical Pacific influences climate patterns across the globe, yet robust constraints on decadal to centennial‐scale climate variations are difficult to extract from sparse instrumental observations in this region. Oxygen isotope (δ18O) records from long‐lived corals enable the quantitative reconstruction of tropical Pacific climate variability and trends over the twentieth century and beyond, but such corals are exceedingly rare. Here, we use multiple short coral δ18O records to create a coral ‘ensemble’ reconstruction of twentieth century climate in the central tropical Pacific. Ten U/Th‐dated fossil coral δ18O records from Kiritimati Island (2°N, 157°W) span 1891 CE to 2006 CE, with the younger samples enabling quantitative comparison to a large ensemble of modern coral records and instrumental sea surface temperature. A composite record constructed of modern and fossil Kiritimati coral δ18O records shows a shift toward warmer and fresher conditions from 1970 CE onward, consistent with previously published records in this region.
Parker Ice Tongue Collapse, Antarctica, Triggered by Loss of Stabilizing Land‐Fast Sea Ice
Authors: Gomez‐Fell Rodrigo , Rack Wolfgang , Purdie Heather , Marsh Oliver
Published: December 2021

After a likely multi‐century period of intermittent calving, the full length of Parker Ice Tongue (18 km or 41 km2), calved in March 2020 co‐incident with repeated summer break‐outs of the surrounding land‐fast sea ice. A complete ice tongue collapse for these otherwise stable glaciological landmarks along the Victoria Land Coast is previously unrecorded. Prior to break‐off, we found an inverse correlation between fast ice extent and ice tongue velocities (R = −0.62; R2 = 0.39). The short summer period, characterized by decreased land‐fast sea ice extent, showed around 11% higher velocities compared to winter. Any previous events of comparable magnitude could not have occurred since at least ∼1,850, assuming continuous growth (∼193m yr−1) derived from the last 60 years of satellite observations. We highlight the vulnerability of the ice tongue once left exposed to oceanic processes, which poses questions about the fate of other ice tongues if land‐fast sea ice decreases more broadly in the future.
First Evidence of Correlation Between Evapotranspiration and Gravity at a Daily Time Scale From Two Vertically Spaced Superconducting Gravimeters
Authors: Carrière Simon D. , Loiseau Bertille , Champollion Cédric , Ollivier Chloé , Martin‐StPaul Nicolas K. , Lesparre Nolwenn , Olioso Albert , Hinderer Jacques , Jougnot Damien
Published: December 2021

Estimating evapotranspiration (ET) is a primary challenge in modern hydrology. Hydrogravimetry is an integrative approach providing highly precise continuous measurement of gravity acceleration. However, large‐scale effects (e.g., tides, polar motion, atmospheric loading) limit the fine time‐scale interpretation of the gravity data and processing leads to residual signal noise. To circumvent this limitation, we exploited the difference between two superconducting gravimeters (SGs) vertically spaced by 512 m. The gravity difference allows to remove common large‐scale effects. Daily variation of the gravity difference is significantly correlated with daily evapotranspiration as estimated using the water balance model SimpKcET (p‐value = 4.10−10). However, this approach is effective only during rain‐free periods. In the future, comparison with direct ET measurements (e.g., eddy‐covariance, scintillometer) may confirm and strengthen our interpretation. Improved hydrogravimetric data processing could extend the proposed approach to other experimental sites equipped with a single SG.
Ecosystem Response Through a Resilience Lens: Do Differences in the Illinois River Over 150 Y Indicate Regime Shifts?
Authors: DeBoer Jason A. , Thoms Martin C. , Delong Michael D.
Published: December 2021

Most of the world's large river ecosystems are subject to multiple anthropogenic stressors including climate change, disconnection between the main river channel and floodplain, flow regulation, and land‐use modification. Viewed through a resilience lens, these ecosystems are potentially in a new regime, exhibiting a different structure, function, and set of feedbacks. We investigated the trophic status and food web character response to anthropogenic stressors over 150 years in the Illinois River. Differences in stable isotope ratios, community niche space, basal resource contribution to higher levels in the food web, mean trophic position of fish functional feeding guilds, and food chain length among four stressor phases suggest changes in ecosystem function in the Illinois River. Moreover, the river did not return to pre‐stressor conditions following watershed‐wide restoration efforts. Differences in trophic status and food web character also varied between the upper‐ and lower‐river zones of the Illinois River over time. This spatial divergence further highlights the complexity of responses to multiple stressors in this ecosystem. Overall, differences in trophic status and food web character suggest a shift to a new regime–an Anthropocene regime–and one that has a reduced capacity to absorb additional disturbances. Given human pressures are a global issue, our results based on a 150 years data set, could assist in the management of riverine landscapes that face regime shifts due to human stressors.
SARS-CoV-2-triggered mast cell rapid degranulation induces alveolar epithelial inflammation and lung injury
Authors: Wu Meng-Li , Liu Feng-Liang , Sun Jing , Li Xin , He Xiao-Yan , Zheng Hong-Yi , Zhou Yan-Heng , Yan Qihong , Chen Ling , Yu Guo-Ying , Chang Junbiao , Jin Xia , Zhao Jincun , Chen Xin-Wen , Zheng Yong-Tang , Wang Jian-Hua
Published: December 2021

SARS-CoV-2 infection-induced hyper-inflammation links to the acute lung injury and COVID-19 severity. Identifying the primary mediators that initiate the uncontrolled hypercytokinemia is essential for treatments. Mast cells (MCs) are strategically located at the mucosa and beneficially or detrimentally regulate immune inflammations. In this study, we showed that SARS-CoV-2-triggered MC degranulation initiated alveolar epithelial inflammation and lung injury. SARS-CoV-2 challenge induced MC degranulation in ACE-2 humanized mice and rhesus macaques, and a rapid MC degranulation could be recapitulated with Spike-RBD binding to ACE2 in cells; MC degranulation altered various signaling pathways in alveolar epithelial cells, particularly, the induction of pro-inflammatory factors and consequential disruption of tight junctions. Importantly, the administration of clinical MC stabilizers for blocking degranulation dampened SARS-CoV-2-induced production of pro-inflammatory factors and prevented lung injury. These findings uncover a novel mechanism for SARS-CoV-2 initiating lung inflammation, and suggest an off-label use of MC stabilizer as immunomodulators for COVID-19 treatments.
Diel investments in metabolite production and consumption in a model microbial system
Authors: Uchimiya Mario , Schroer William , Olofsson Malin , Edison Arthur S , Moran Mary Ann
Published: December 2021

Organic carbon transfer between surface ocean photosynthetic and heterotrophic microbes is a central but poorly understood process in the global carbon cycle. In a model community in which diatom extracellular release of organic molecules sustained growth of a co-cultured bacterium, we determined quantitative changes in the diatom endometabolome and the bacterial uptake transcriptome over two diel cycles. Of the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) peaks in the diatom endometabolites, 38% had diel patterns with noon or mid-afternoon maxima; the remaining either increased (36%) or decreased (26%) through time. Of the genes in the bacterial uptake transcriptome, 94% had a diel pattern with a noon maximum; the remaining decreased over time (6%). Eight diatom endometabolites identified with high confidence were matched to the bacterial genes mediating their utilization. Modeling of these coupled inventories with only diffusion-based phytoplankton extracellular release could not reproduce all the patterns. Addition of active release mechanisms for physiological balance and bacterial recognition significantly improved model performance. Estimates of phytoplankton extracellular release range from only a few percent to nearly half of annual net primary production. Improved understanding of the factors that influence metabolite release and consumption by surface ocean microbes will better constrain this globally significant carbon flux.
Dental Policy Lab 1 - towards a cavity-free future
Authors: Vernazza Christopher R. , Pitts Nigel B. , Mayne Catherine , Mazevet Marco E.
Published: December 2021

Although many dental professionals argue that prevention of oral diseases, including dental caries, will benefit both the patient and public finances, a paradigm shift has yet to happen in most countries. The literature has demonstrated that caries prevention and control is possible, but authorities have yet to implement health systems that allow patients to stay in a good health state. 'Policy Labs' are an innovative policy-making initiative that allow a positive collaboration between the many stakeholders around a given policy issue. In July 2017, 24 international experts, including representatives of both international and European Chief Dental Officers associations, were gathered for the first Alliance for a Cavity-Free Future/King's College London Dental Policy Lab to identify the main barriers for a change, and concrete actions to facilitate a policy shift towards increased resource allocation in prevention. A comprehensive report and well-received infographic summarising the key recommendations (explored in this paper) were produced to explain the situation and highlight the value of a cavity-free world to policymakers, demonstrating where change is needed. The first Dental Policy Lab proved to be an efficient way to generate new ideas and concrete ways to implement them, and has led to several subsequent initiatives worldwide.
Dental Policy Lab 2 - towards paying for health in dentistry
Authors: Mazevet Marco E. , Pitts Nigel B. , Mayne Catherine
Published: December 2021

The first Alliance for a Cavity-Free Future (ACFF)/King's College London Dental Policy Lab, held in 2017, identified the need for a review of dental payment systems in order to see progress towards achieving improvements in caries and cavities. The lack of incentivisation for preventive intervention and care has long been a barrier to progress. The second Dental Policy Lab, held in July 2018, focused on this issue with the overarching question: 'How can we create and implement acceptable prevention-based dental payment systems to achieve and maintain health outcomes?' Using a design approach and participatory research, 29 participants from five stakeholder categories developed a blueprint report that aims to serve as a framework to adapt or create remuneration systems that are compatible with evidence-based dentistry with a focus on preventive care. Aimed at policymakers and policy entrepreneurs, this blueprint provides guidance and potential solutions using several international examples. The report and accompanying infographic explored in this paper have been well received and have helped to frame discussions in several country settings, with a direct implementation which is being trialled in France in 2021.
New UK Chapter of the Alliance for a Cavity-Free Future
Authors: Pitts Nigel B. , Banerjee Avijit
Published: December 2021

The Alliance for a Cavity-Free Future (ACFF), started in 2010, has been based at King's College London since 2013. It is a dental caries-focused charity promoting integrated clinical and public health action. ACFF Chapters seek to improve caries prevention and management locally, based on best global evidence. The UK Chapter has been created in response to a continuing need combined with opportunities including the implementation of the latest UK version of theDelivering better oral healthguidance on prevention (version 4). The Chapter has been formed through a coordinating committee with UKwide representation combining expertise in dental caries management across the patient life course. This committee co-created the Chapter Values Statement: 'in pursuit of a cavity-free future across the UK we value: collaboration and innovation; realistic and implementable prevention-based solutions; approaches that reduce health inequalities; action across both oral and general health settings; and working comprehensively from the population through to the individual level.' The agreed Chapter focus is on advocating for the implementation of appropriate, effective, pragmatic caries prevention and care across three themes: 1) in everyday dental practice; 2) in health and social care curricula; and 3) for vulnerable people across their life course on the basis of increased caries risk/susceptibility.
The ejection of large non-oscillating droplets from a hydrophobic wedge in microgravity
Authors: Torres Logan J. , Weislogel Mark M.
Published: December 2021

When confined within containers or conduits, drops and bubbles migrate to regions of minimum energy by the combined effects of surface tension, surface wetting, system geometry, and initial conditions. Such capillary phenomena are exploited for passive phase separation operations in micro-fluidic devices on earth and macro-fluidic devices aboard spacecraft. Our study focuses on the migration and ejection of large inertial-capillary drops confined between tilted planar hydrophobic substrates (a.k.a., wedges). In our experiments, the brief nearly weightless environment of a 2.1 s drop tower allows for the study of such capillary dominated behavior for up to 10 mL water drops with migration velocities up to 12 cm/s. We control ejection velocities as a function of drop volume, substrate tilt angle, initial confinement, and fluid properties. We then demonstrate how such geometries may be employed as passive no-moving-parts droplet generators for very large drop dynamics investigations. The method is ideal for hand-held non-oscillatory ‘droplet’ generation in low-gravity environments.
Late presentation of chronic HBV and HCV patients seeking first time specialist care in Spain: a 2-year registry review
Authors: Picchio Camila A. , Lens Sabela , Hernandez-Guerra Manuel , Arenas Juan , Andrade Raúl J. , Crespo Javier , García-Samaniego Javier , Romero-Gómez Manuel , Turnes Juan , Calleja José Luis , Simón Miguel Ángel , White Trenton M. , Riveiro-Barciela Mar , Pocurull Anna , Morales-Arraez Dalia , Gómez Alexandra , Buti Maria , Lazarus Jeffrey V.
Published: December 2021

Chronic viral hepatitis infection affects an estimated 325 million people globally. People who initiate treatment after significant disease progression face increased risk of severe liver complications and death. Data are scarce on the characteristics and risk factors of people who present late to care in Spain and globally. Data were collected from January 2018 to December 2019 to report late presentation (LP) to specialist care at 11 large university hospitals in Spain to assess related risk factors using a multivariable logistic regression model. 2290 (CHB = 505, CHC = 1785) patients were analysed, with 581 (25.2%) presenting late. Hepatitis C patients more frequently reported LP compared to hepatitis B patients (28.1% vs 15.0%; p < 0.001). Older age (p < 0.001), being male (p < 0.001), being Spanish-born (p < 0.001), and having an unknown origin of referral (p = 0.08) were associated with a higher likelihood of LP. Advanced liver disease was identified in 533 (23%) patients and late-stage liver disease in 124 (5.4%). LP, including with irreversible liver damage, to viral hepatitis specialist care is frequent in Spain, despite being a country with unrestricted treatment access. Initiatives to reduce LP should specifically target men, older individuals, foreign-born populations for CHB, and Spanish nationals for CHC.
MapReduce-based big data classification model using feature subset selection and hyperparameter tuned deep belief network
Authors: Rajendran Surendran , Khalaf Osamah Ibrahim , Alotaibi Youseef , Alghamdi Saleh
Published: December 2021

In recent times, big data classification has become a hot research topic in various domains, such as healthcare, e-commerce, finance, etc. The inclusion of the feature selection process helps to improve the big data classification process and can be done by the use of metaheuristic optimization algorithms. This study focuses on the design of a big data classification model using chaotic pigeon inspired optimization (CPIO)-based feature selection with an optimal deep belief network (DBN) model. The proposed model is executed in the Hadoop MapReduce environment to manage big data. Initially, the CPIO algorithm is applied to select a useful subset of features. In addition, the Harris hawks optimization (HHO)-based DBN model is derived as a classifier to allocate appropriate class labels. The design of the HHO algorithm to tune the hyperparameters of the DBN model assists in boosting the classification performance. To examine the superiority of the presented technique, a series of simulations were performed, and the results were inspected under various dimensions. The resultant values highlighted the supremacy of the presented technique over the recent techniques.
Detection of maternal and fetal stress from the electrocardiogram with self-supervised representation learning
Authors: Sarkar Pritam , Lobmaier Silvia , Fabre Bibiana , González Diego , Mueller Alexander , Frasch Martin G. , Antonelli Marta C. , Etemad Ali
Published: December 2021

In the pregnant mother and her fetus, chronic prenatal stress results in entrainment of the fetal heartbeat by the maternal heartbeat, quantified by the fetal stress index (FSI). Deep learning (DL) is capable of pattern detection in complex medical data with high accuracy in noisy real-life environments, but little is known about DL’s utility in non-invasive biometric monitoring during pregnancy. A recently established self-supervised learning (SSL) approach to DL provides emotional recognition from electrocardiogram (ECG). We hypothesized that SSL will identify chronically stressed mother-fetus dyads from the raw maternal abdominal electrocardiograms (aECG), containing fetal and maternal ECG. Chronically stressed mothers and controls matched at enrolment at 32 weeks of gestation were studied. We validated the chronic stress exposure by psychological inventory, maternal hair cortisol and FSI. We tested two variants of SSL architecture, one trained on the generic ECG features for emotional recognition obtained from public datasets and another transfer-learned on a subset of our data. Our DL models accurately detect the chronic stress exposure group (AUROC = 0.982 ± 0.002), the individual psychological stress score (R2 = 0.943 ± 0.009) and FSI at 34 weeks of gestation (R2 = 0.946 ± 0.013), as well as the maternal hair cortisol at birth reflecting chronic stress exposure (0.931 ± 0.006). The best performance was achieved with the DL model trained on the public dataset and using maternal ECG alone. The present DL approach provides a novel source of physiological insights into complex multi-modal relationships between different regulatory systems exposed to chronic stress. The final DL model can be deployed in low-cost regular ECG biosensors as a simple, ubiquitous early stress detection and monitoring tool during pregnancy. This discovery should enable early behavioral interventions.
Characterization and tissue localization of zebrafish homologs of the human ABCB1 multidrug transporter
Authors: Robey Robert W. , Robinson Andrea N. , Ali-Rahmani Fatima , Huff Lyn M. , Lusvarghi Sabrina , Vahedi Shahrooz , Hotz Jordan M. , Warner Andrew C. , Butcher Donna , Matta Jennifer , Edmondson Elijah F. , Lee Tobie D. , Roth Jacob S. , Lee Olivia W. , Shen Min , Tanner Kandice , Hall Matthew D. , Ambudkar Suresh V. , Gottesman Michael M.
Published: December 2021

Capillary endothelial cells of the human blood–brain barrier (BBB) express high levels of P-glycoprotein (P-gp, encoded by ABCB1) and ABCG2 (encoded by ABCG2). However, little information is available regarding ATP-binding cassette transporters expressed at the zebrafish BBB, which has emerged as a potential model system. We report the characterization and tissue localization of two genes that are similar to ABCB1, zebrafish abcb4 and abcb5. When stably expressed in HEK293 cells, both Abcb4 and Abcb5 conferred resistance to P-gp substrates; however, Abcb5 poorly transported doxorubicin and mitoxantrone compared to zebrafish Abcb4. Additionally, Abcb5 did not transport the fluorescent P-gp probes BODIPY-ethylenediamine or LDS 751, while they were transported by Abcb4. High-throughput screening of 90 human P-gp substrates confirmed that Abcb4 has an overlapping substrate specificity profile with P-gp. In the brain vasculature, RNAscope probes for abcb4 colocalized with staining by the P-gp antibody C219, while abcb5 was not detected. The abcb4 probe also colocalized with claudin-5 in brain endothelial cells. Abcb4 and Abcb5 had different tissue localizations in multiple zebrafish tissues, potentially indicating different functions. The data suggest that zebrafish Abcb4 functionally phenocopies P-gp and that the zebrafish may serve as a model to study the role of P-gp at the BBB.
Optimal ferrofluids for magnetic cooling devices
Authors: Pattanaik M. S. , Varma V. B. , Cheekati S. K. , Chaudhary V. , Ramanujan R. V.
Published: December 2021

Superior passive cooling technologies are urgently required to tackle device overheating, consequent performance degradation, and service life reduction. Magnetic cooling, governed by the thermomagnetic convection of a ferrofluid, is a promising emerging passive heat transfer technology to meet these challenges. Hence, we studied the performance metrics, non-dimensional parameters, and thermomagnetic cooling performance of various ferrite and metal-based ferrofluids. The magnetic pressure, friction factor, power transfer, and exergy loss were determined to predict the performance of such cooling devices. We also investigated the significance of the magnetic properties of the nanoparticles used in the ferrofluid on cooling performance. γ-Fe2O3, Fe3O4, and CoFe2O4nanoparticles exhibited superior cooling performance among ferrite-based ferrofluids. FeCo nanoparticles had the best cooling performance for the case of metallic ferrofluids. The saturation magnetization of the magnetic nanoparticles is found to be a significant parameter to enhance heat transfer and heat load cooling. These results can be used to select the optimum magnetic nanoparticle-based ferrofluid for a specific magnetic cooling device application.
High-performance silver nanowires transparent conductive electrodes fabricated using manufacturing-ready high-speed photonic sinterization solutions
Authors: Gerlein Luis Felipe , Benavides-Guerrero Jaime Alberto , Cloutier Sylvain G.
Published: December 2021

On the long road towards low-cost flexible hybrid electronics, integration and printable solar energy harvesting solutions, there is an urgent need for high-performance transparent conductive electrodes produced using manufacturing-ready techniques and equipment. In recent years, randomly-distributed metallic nanowire-based transparent mesh electrodes have proven highly-promising as they offer a superb compromise between high performances and low fabrication costs. Unfortunately, these high figure-of-merit transparent mesh electrodes usually rely heavily on extensive post-deposition processing. While conventional thermal annealing yields good performances, it is especially ill-suited for deposition on low-temperature substrates or for high-throughput manufacturing solutions. Similarly, laser-induced annealing severely limits the processing time for electrodes covering large surfaces. In this paper, we report the fabrication of ultra high-performance silver nanowires-based transparent conductive electrodes fabricated using optimized manufacturing-ready ultrafast photonic curing solutions. Using conventional indium tin oxide (ITO) as our benchmark for transparent electrodes, we demonstrate a 2.6–2.7 $$\times $$
×
performance gain using two different figure-of-merit indicators. Based on these results, we believe this research provides an ideal manufacturing-ready approach for the large-scale and low-cost fabrication of ultra high-performance transparent electrodes for flexible hybrid electronics and solar-energy harvesting applications.
Plasticity in organic composition maintains biomechanical performance in shells of juvenile scallops exposed to altered temperature and pH conditions
Authors: Lagos Nelson A. , Benítez Samanta , Grenier Cristian , Rodriguez-Navarro Alejandro B. , García-Herrera Claudio , Abarca-Ortega Aldo , Vivanco Juan F. , Benjumeda Isabel , Vargas Cristian A. , Duarte Cristian , Lardies Marco A.
Published: December 2021

The exposure to environmental variations in pH and temperature has proven impacts on benthic ectotherms calcifiers, as evidenced by tradeoffs between physiological processes. However, how these stressors affect structure and functionality of mollusk shells has received less attention. Episodic events of upwelling of deep cold and low pH waters are well documented in eastern boundary systems and may be stressful to mollusks, impairing both physiological and biomechanical performance. These events are projected to become more intense, and extensive in time with ongoing global warming. In this study, we evaluate the independent and interactive effects of temperature and pH on the biomineral and biomechanical properties of Argopecten purpuratus scallop shells. Total organic matter in the shell mineral increased under reduced pH (~ 7.7) and control conditions (pH ~ 8.0). The periostracum layer coating the outer shell surface showed increased protein content under low pH conditions but decreasing sulfate and polysaccharides content. Reduced pH negatively impacts shell density and increases the disorder in the orientation of calcite crystals. At elevated temperatures (18 °C), shell microhardness increased. Other biomechanical properties were not affected by pH/temperature treatments. Thus, under a reduction of 0.3 pH units and low temperature, the response of A. purpuratus was a tradeoff among organic compounds (biopolymer plasticity), density, and crystal organization (mineral plasticity) to maintain shell biomechanical performance, while increased temperature ameliorated the impacts on shell hardness. Biopolymer plasticity was associated with ecophysiological performance, indicating that, under the influence of natural fluctuations in pH and temperature, energetic constraints might be critical in modulating the long-term sustainability of this compensatory mechanism.
Efficiency studies of modified IFAS-OSA system upgraded by an anoxic sludge holding tank
Authors: Fazelipour Mansour , Takdastan Afshin , Borghei Seyed Mehdi , Kiasat Neda , Glodniok Marcin , Zawartka Paweł
Published: December 2021

An upgraded integrated fixed-film activated sludge-oxic settling anoxic (IFAS-OSA) system is a new technology for reducing nutrients and excess sludge. The results showed that the average TN removal efficiency of the IFAS-OSA system was gradually increased up to 7.5%, while the PO4–3-P removal efficiency increased up-to 27%, compared with that of the IFAS system. The COD removal efficiency of the IFAS-OSA system was slightly increased up-to 5.4% and TSS removal efficiency increased up to 10.5% compared with the control system. Biomass yield coefficient (Yobs) in the IFAS and IFAS-OSA systems were 0.44 and 0.24 (gr MLSS/ gr COD). Hence, sludge production decreased by 45%. The average SVI was decreased by 48% in IFAS-OSA system compared with IFAS. This study demonstrated the better performance of the IFAS-OSA system compared to that of the IFAS system.
Effect of topography and weather on delivery of automatic electrical defibrillator by drone for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest
Authors: Choi Dong Sun , Hong Ki Jeong , Shin Sang Do , Lee Chang-Gun , Kim Tae Han , Cho Youngeun , Song Kyoung Jun , Ro Young Sun , Park Jeong Ho , Kim Ki Hong
Published: December 2021

Delivery of automatic electrical defibrillator (AED) by unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was suggested for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). The goal of this study is to assess the effect of topographic and weather conditions on call to AED attach time by UAV-AED. We included OHCA patients from 2013 to 2016 in Seoul, South Korea. We developed a UAV-AED flight simulator using topographic information of Seoul for Euclidean and topographic flight pathway including vertical flight to overcome high-rise structures. We used 4 kinds of UAV flight scenarios according to weather conditions or visibility. Primary outcome was emergency medical service (EMS) call to AED attach time. Secondary outcome was pre-arrival rate of UAV-AED before current EMS based AED delivery. Call to AED attach time in topographic pathway was 7.0 min in flight and control advanced UAV and 8.0 min in basic UAV model. Pre-arrival rate in Euclidean pathway was 38.0% and 16.3% for flight and control advanced UAV and basic UAV. Pre-arrival rate in the topographic pathway was 27.0% and 11.7%, respectively. UAV-AED topographic flight took longer call to AED attach time than Euclidean pathway. Pre-arrival rate of flight and control advanced UAV was decreased in topographic flight pathway compared to Euclidean pathway.
Dual role of neutrophils in modulating liver injury and fibrosis during development and resolution of diet-induced murine steatohepatitis
Authors: Kim Andrea D. , Kim Sung Eun , Leszczynska Aleksandra , Kaufmann Benedikt , Reca Agustina , Kim Dong Joon , Feldstein Ariel E.
Published: December 2021

Inflammatory changes in the liver represent a key feature of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), the progressive form of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Innate immune activation including hepatic neutrophilic infiltration acts as an important inflammatory trigger as well as a potential mediator of inflammation resolution. In this study, we dissected the effects of neutrophil depletion via anti-lymphocyte antigen 6 complex locus G6D (Ly6G) antibodies administration during ongoing high fat-fructose-cholesterol (FFC) diet-induced murine NASH and during inflammation resolution by switching into a low-fat control diet. During NASH progression, protective effects were shown as HSC activation, cell infiltration and activation of pro-inflammatory macrophages were ameliorated. Furthermore, these changes were contrasted with the effects observed when neutrophil depletion was performed during the resolution phase. Impaired resolving mechanisms, such as a failure to balance the pro and anti-inflammatory cytokines ratio, deficient macrophage phenotypic switch into a pro-restorative profile, and defective repair and remodeling processes were observed when neutrophils were depleted in this scenario. This study described phase-dependent contrasting roles of neutrophils as triggers and pro-resolutive mediators of liver injury and fibrosis associated with diet-induced NASH in mice. These findings have important translational implications at the time of designing NASH therapeutic strategies.