bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Peripheral temperature dysregulation associated with functionally altered NaV1.8 channels
Authors: Loose Simon , Lischka Annette , Kuehs Samuel , Nau Carla , Heinemann Stefan H. , Kurth Ingo , Leipold Enrico
Published: September 2023

The voltage-gated sodium channel NaV1.8 is prominently expressed in the soma and axons of small-caliber sensory neurons, and pathogenic variants of the corresponding geneSCN10Aare associated with peripheral pain and autonomic dysfunction. While most disease-associatedSCN10Avariants confer gain-of-function properties to NaV1.8, resulting in hyperexcitability of sensory neurons, a few affect afferent excitability through a loss-of-function mechanism. Using whole-exome sequencing, we here identify a rare heterozygousSCN10Amissense variant resulting in alteration p.V1287I in NaV1.8 in a patient with a 15-year history of progressively worsening temperature dysregulation in the distal extremities, particularly in the feet. Further symptoms include increasingly intensifying tingling and numbness in the fingers and increased sweating. To assess the impact of p.V1287I on channel function, we performed voltage-clamp recordings demonstrating that the alteration confers loss- and gain-of-function characteristics to NaV1.8 characterized by a right-shifted voltage dependence of channel activation and inactivation. Current-clamp recordings from transfected mouse dorsal root ganglion neurons further revealed that NaV1.8-V1287I channels broaden the action potentials of sensory neurons and increase their firing rates in response to depolarizing current stimulations, indicating a gain-of-function mechanism of the variant at the cellular level in a heterozygous setting. The data support the hypothesis that the properties of NaV1.8 p.V1287I are causative for the patient’s symptoms and that nonpainful peripheral paresthesias should be considered part of the clinical spectrum of NaV1.8-associated disorders.
Central projections from Johnston’s organ in the locust: Axogenesis and brain neuroarchitecture
Authors: Boyan George , Williams Leslie , Ehrhardt Erica
Published: September 2023

Johnston’s organ (Jo) acts as an antennal wind-sensitive and/or auditory organ across a spectrum of insect species and its axons universally project to the brain. In the locust, this pathway is already present at mid-embryogenesis but the process of fasciculation involved in its construction has not been investigated. Terminal projections into the fine neuropilar organization of the brain also remain unresolved, information essential not only for understanding the neural circuitry mediating Jo-mediated behavior but also for providing comparative data offering insights into its evolution. In our study here, we employ neuron-specific, axon-specific, and epithelial domain labels to show that the pathway to the brain of the locust is built in a stepwise manner during early embryogenesis as processes from Jo cell clusters in the pedicel fasciculate first with one another, and then with the two tracts constituting the pioneer axon scaffold of the antenna. A comparison of fasciculation patterns confirms that projections from cell clusters of Jo stereotypically associate with only one axon tract according to their location in the pedicellar epithelium, consistent with a topographic plan. At the molecular level, all neuronal elements of the Jo pathway to the brain express the lipocalin Lazarillo, a cell surface epitope that regulates axogenesis in the primary axon scaffold itself, and putatively during fasciculation of the Jo projections to the brain. Central projections from Jo first contact the primary axon scaffold of the deutocerebral brain at mid-embryogenesis, and in the adult traverse mechanosensory/motor neuropils similar to those in Drosophila. These axons then terminate among protocerebral commissures containing premotor interneurons known to regulate flight behavior.
Higher regularity for weak solutions to degenerate parabolic problems
Authors: Gentile Andrea , Passarelli di Napoli Antonia
Published: September 2023

In this paper, we study two related features of the regularity of the weak solutions to the following strongly degenerate parabolic equation $$\begin{aligned} u_t-\textrm{div}\left( \left( \left| Du\right| -1\right) _+^{p-1}\frac{Du}{\left| Du\right| }\right) =f\qquad \text{ in } \Omega _T =\Omega \times (0,T), \end{aligned}$$

u
t

-
div

D
u

-
1

+

p
-
1

Du

D
u

=
f

in

Ω
T

=
Ω
×

(
0
,
T
)

,

where $$\Omega $$
Ω
is a bounded domain in $$\mathbb {R}^{n}$$

R

n

for $$n\ge 2$$

n
≥
2

, $$p\ge \text {and}\, T>0$$

p
≥
and

T
>
0

. We prove the higher differentiability of a nonlinear function of the spatial gradient of the weak solutions, assuming only that $$f\in L^{2}_{\textrm{loc}}\left( \Omega _T\right) $$

f
∈

L
loc
2

Ω
T

. This allows us to establish the higher integrability of the spatial gradient under the same minimal requirement on the datum f.
New embedding results for double phase problems with variable exponents and a priori bounds for corresponding generalized double phase problems
Authors: Ho Ky , Winkert Patrick
Published: September 2023

In this paper we present new embedding results for Musielak–Orlicz Sobolev spaces of double phase type. Based on the continuous embedding of $$W^{1,\mathcal {H}}(\Omega )$$

W

1
,
H

(
Ω
)

into $$L^{\mathcal {H}_*}(\Omega )$$

L

H

∗

(
Ω
)

, where $$\mathcal {H}_*$$

H

∗

is the Sobolev conjugate function of $$\mathcal {H}$$
H
, we present much stronger embeddings as known in the literature. Based on these results, we consider generalized double phase problems involving such new type of growth with Dirichlet and nonlinear boundary condition and prove appropriate boundedness results of corresponding weak solutions based on the De Giorgi iteration along with localization arguments.
The use of e-consent in surgery and application to neurosurgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Mirza Asfand Baig , Khoja Abbas Khizar , Ali Fizza , El-Sheikh Mustafa , Bibi-Shahid Ammal , Trindade Jandira , Rocos Brett , Grahovac Gordan , Bull Jonathan , Montgomery Alexander , Arvin Babak , Sadek Ahmed-Ramadan
Published: September 2023

Introduction

The integration of novel electronic informed consent platforms in healthcare has undergone significant growth over the last decade. Adoption of uniform, accessible, and robust electronic online consenting applications is likely to enhance the informed consent process and improve the patient experience and has the potential to reduce medico-legal ramifications of inadequate consent. A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the utility of novel electronic means of informed consent in surgical patients and discuss its application to neurosurgical cohorts.

Methods

A review of randomised controlled trials, non-randomised studies of health interventions, and single group pre-post design studies in accordance with the PRISMA statement. Random effects modelling was used to estimate pooled proportions of study outcomes. Patient satisfaction with the informed consent process and patients’ gain in knowledge were compared for electronic technologies versus non-electronic instruments. A sub-group analysis was conducted to compare the utility of electronic technologies in neurosurgical cohorts relative to other surgical patients in the context of patient satisfaction and knowledge gain.

Results

Of 1042 screened abstracts, 63 studies were included: 44 randomised controlled trials (n = 4985), 4 non-randomised studies of health interventions (n = 387), and 15 single group pre-post design studies (n = 872). Meta-analysis showed that electronic technologies significantly enhanced patient satisfaction with the informed consent process (P < 0.00001) and patients’ gain in knowledge (P < 0.00001) compared to standard non-electronic practices. Sub-group analysis demonstrated that neurosurgical patient knowledge was significantly enhanced with electronic technologies when compared to other surgical patients (P = 0.009), but there was no difference in patient satisfaction between neurosurgical cohorts and other surgical patients with respect to electronic technologies (P = 0.78).

Conclusions

Novel electronic technologies can enhance patient satisfaction and increase patients’ gain in knowledge of their surgical procedures. Electronic patient education tools can significantly enhance patient knowledge for neurosurgical patients. If used appropriately, these modalities can shorten and/or improve the consent discussion, streamlining the surgical process and improving satisfaction for neurosurgical patients.
Does context recollection depend on the base-rate of contextual features?
Authors: Nieznański Marek , Obidziński Michał , Ford Daria
Published: September 2023

Episodic recollection is defined by the re-experiencing of contextual and target details of a past event. The base-rate dependency hypothesis assumes that the retrieval of one contextual feature from an integrated episodic trace cues the retrieval of another associated feature, and that the more often a particular configuration of features occurs, the more effective this mutual cueing will be. Alternatively, the conditional probability of one feature given another feature may be neglected in memory for contextual features since they are not directly bound to one another. Three conjoint recognition experiments investigated whether memory for context is sensitive to the base-rates of features. Participants studied frequent versus infrequent configurations of features and, during the test, they were asked to recognise one of these features with (vs. without) another feature reinstated. The results showed that the context recollection parameter, representing the re-experience of contextual features in the dual-recollection model, was higher for frequent than infrequent feature configurations only when the binding of feature information was made easier and the differences in the base-rates were extreme, otherwise no difference was found. Similarly, base-rates of features influenced response guessing only in the condition with salient differences in base-rates. The Bayes factor analyses showed that the evidence from two of our experiments favoured the base-rate neglect hypothesis over the base-rate dependency hypothesis; the opposite result was obtained in the third experiment, but only when high base-rate disproportion and facilitated feature binding conditions were used.
Executive summary of the 14th HHT international scientific conference
Authors: Ola Roxana , Hessels Josefien , Hammill Adrienne , Friday Cassi , Clancy Marianne , Al-Samkari Hanny , Meadows Stryder , Iyer Vivek , Akhurst Rosemary
Published: September 2023

Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia (HHT) is an autosomal dominant vascular disorder characterized by small, dilated clustered vessels (telangiectasias) and by larger visceral arteriovenous malformations (AVMs), which directly connect the feeding arteries with the draining veins. These lesions are fragile, prone to rupture, and lead to recurrent epistaxis and/or internal hemorrhage among other complications. Germline heterozygous loss-of-function (LOF) mutations in Bone Morphogenic Protein 9 (BMP9) and BMP10 signaling pathway genes (endoglin-ENG, activin like kinase 1 ACVRL1 aka ALK1, and SMAD4) cause different subtypes of HHT (HHT1, HHT2 and HHT-juvenile polyposis (JP)) and have a worldwide combined incidence of about 1:5000. Expert clinicians and international scientists gathered in Cascais, Portugal from September 29th to October 2nd, 2022 to present the latest scientific research in the HHT field and novel treatment strategies for people living with HHT. During the largest HHT scientific conference yet, participants included 293 in person and 46 virtually. An impressive 209 abstracts were accepted to the meeting and 59 were selected for oral presentations. The remaining 150 abstracts were presented during judged poster sessions. This review article summarizes the basic and clinical abstracts selected as oral presentations with their new observations and discoveries as well as surrounding discussion and debate. Two discussion-based workshops were also held during the conference, each focusing on mechanisms and clinical perspectives in either AVM formation and progression or current and future therapies for HHT. Our hope is that this paper will represent the current progress and the remaining unanswered questions surrounding HHT, in order to serve as an update for those within the field and an invitation to those scientists and clinicians as yet outside of the field of HHT.
A defined clathrin-mediated trafficking pathway regulates sFLT1/VEGFR1 secretion from endothelial cells
Authors: Kinghorn Karina , Gill Amy , Marvin Allison , Li Renee , Quigley Kaitlyn , Singh Simcha , Gore Michaelanthony T. , le Noble Ferdinand , Gabhann Feilim Mac , Bautch Victoria L.
Published: September 2023

FLT1/VEGFR1 negatively regulates VEGF-A signaling and is required for proper vessel morphogenesis during vascular development and vessel homeostasis. Although a soluble isoform, sFLT1, is often mis-regulated in disease and aging, how sFLT1 is trafficked and secreted from endothelial cells is not well understood. Here we define requirements for constitutive sFLT1 trafficking and secretion in endothelial cells from the Golgi to the plasma membrane, and we show that sFLT1 secretion requires clathrin at or near the Golgi. Perturbations that affect sFLT1 trafficking blunted endothelial cell secretion and promoted intracellular mis-localization in cells and zebrafish embryos. siRNA-mediated depletion of specific trafficking components revealed requirements for RAB27A, VAMP3, and STX3 for post-Golgi vesicle trafficking and sFLT1 secretion, while STX6, ARF1, and AP1 were required at the Golgi. Live-imaging of temporally controlled sFLT1 release from the endoplasmic reticulum showed clathrin-dependent sFLT1 trafficking at the Golgi into secretory vesicles that then trafficked to the plasma membrane. Depletion of STX6 altered vessel sprouting in 3D, suggesting that endothelial cell sFLT1 secretion influences proper vessel sprouting. Thus, specific trafficking components provide a secretory path from the Golgi to the plasma membrane for sFLT1 in endothelial cells that utilizes a specialized clathrin-dependent intermediate, suggesting novel therapeutic targets.
MICROSTATELAB: The EEGLAB Toolbox for Resting-State Microstate Analysis
Authors: Nagabhushan Kalburgi Sahana , Kleinert Tobias , Aryan Delara , Nash Kyle , Schiller Bastian , Koenig Thomas
Published: September 2023

Microstate analysis is a multivariate method that enables investigations of the temporal dynamics of large-scale neural networks in EEG recordings of human brain activity. To meet the enormously increasing interest in this approach, we provide a thoroughly updated version of the first open source EEGLAB toolbox for the standardized identification, visualization, and quantification of microstates in resting-state EEG data. The toolbox allows scientists to (i) identify individual, mean, and grand mean microstate maps using topographical clustering approaches, (ii) check data quality and detect outlier maps, (iii) visualize, sort, and label individual, mean, and grand mean microstate maps according to published maps, (iv) compare topographical similarities of group and grand mean microstate maps and quantify shared variances, (v) obtain the temporal dynamics of the microstate classes in individual EEGs, (vi) export quantifications of these temporal dynamics of the microstates for statistical tests, and finally, (vii) test for topographical differences between groups and conditions using topographic analysis of variance (TANOVA). Here, we introduce the toolbox in a step-by-step tutorial, using a sample dataset of 34 resting-state EEG recordings that are publicly available to follow along with this tutorial. The goals of this manuscript are (a) to provide a standardized, freely available toolbox for resting-state microstate analysis to the scientific community, (b) to allow researchers to use best practices for microstate analysis by following a step-by-step tutorial, and (c) to improve the methodological standards of microstate research by providing previously unavailable functions and recommendations on critical decisions required in microstate analyses.
Ocean Biology Studied from Space
Authors: Sathyendranath Shubha , Brewin Robert J. W. , Ciavatta Stefano , Jackson Tom , Kulk Gemma , Jönsson Bror , Vicente Victor Martinez , Platt Trevor
Published: September 2023

Visible spectral radiometric measurements from space, commonly referred to as ocean-colour measurements, provide a rich stream of information on ocean biota as well as on biological and ecosystem processes. The strength of the ocean-colour technology for observing marine life lies in its global reach, combined with its ability to sample the field at a variety of spatial and temporal scales that match the scales of the processes themselves. Another advantage lies in the growing length of the time series of ocean-colour-derived products, enabiling investigations into any long-term changes, if present. This paper presents an overview of the principles and applications of ocean-colour data. The concentration of chlorophyll-a, the major pigment present in phytoplankton–single-celled, free-floating plants that are present in the sunlit layers of the ocean–was the first, and remains the most common, biological variable derived from ocean-colour data. Over the years, the list of ocean-colour products have grown to encompass many measures of the marine ecosystem and its functions, including primary production, phenology and ecosystem structure. Applications that exploit the data are many and varied, and include ecosystem-based fisheries management, biogeochemical cycles in the ocean, ecosystem health and climate change. An integrated approach, incorporating other modes of ocean observations and models with satellite observations, is needed to investigate the mysteries of the marine ecosystem.
Behavior of Mothers after Infant Loss in Bonnet Macaques (Macaca radiata)
Authors: Arlet Malgorzata E. , Anand Ashvita , Saikia Anushka , Kaasik Ants , Sirigeri Sindhuja , Isbell Lynne A. , Singh Mewa
Published: September 2023

Mother–offspring bonds in primates often last for life and shape the behavior of both mother and offspring. Therefore, the death of an infant may trigger an emotional response from its mother akin to human grief, which is characterized by active distress and passive depression. Our goal was to investigate whether the behavior of female bonnet macaques (Macaca radiata) changed after the loss of their infants. In the Thenmala area, southern India, between 2020 and 2022, we observed 18 mothers in two groups who lost, in total, 19 infants and three juveniles aged < 18 months. We compared affiliative, aggressive, and stress-related behavior of females before and after the death of their infants. We also examined individual variation in responses to infant loss. After the death of their infants, females withdrew socially, stayed on the periphery of the group, and had fewer companions. Bereaved females were less involved in grooming and hugging and initiated aggressive behavior more frequently than before they lost their infants. Moreover, females who lost infants showed frequent stress-related behaviors, such as self-scratching and yawning compared with when their infants were alive. Our results suggest that female bonnet macaques react to deaths of their infants in a manner that is consistent with the interpretation of grief in humans and other primates.
Domestic Violence among LGBT + People in China: Results from a national court rulings review
Authors: Lu Yuliang
Published: September 2023

Purpose

Domestic violence has been an emerging area of study in recent decades for lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, and transgender people (LGBT +). While some research discussed domestic violence among LGBT + couples in Western countries, very little attention was paid to the patterns of domestic violence in the Chinese context. Against this backdrop, this study sought to elucidate the prevalence and distinctive features of family violence against LGBT + individuals that have been recorded by court rulings, as well as to scrutinize the responses of the judicial system towards these cases of violence.

Methods

This study utilized a qualitative research approach, relying on court rulings as the primary data source. Specifically, data were collected from the official website that publishes judgments from courts at all levels of China. Content analysis and discourse analysis were employed as analytical techniques to uncover the underlying patterns of family violence among LGBT + people and examine the responses of the judicial system concerning the protection of LGBT + individuals.

Results

Through an analysis of the court rulings, the findings reveal a total of fifty-three cases of family violence involving LGBT + individuals. These cases constitute approximately ten percent of all criminal cases concerning the LGBT + population. Among these cases, forty cases involve violence perpetrated by LGBT + intimate partners. The violence can be further classified into distinct categories, including break-up violence, sexual violence, and violence occurring in daily life. The consequences of such violence typically result in fatalities or physical injuries. Another form of violence examined in the study is observed within legal partnerships, such as between a heterosexual husband and his lesbian wife. This type of violence also tends to lead to severe outcomes, including deaths or bodily harm to the victim. Furthermore, one noteworthy case of family violence discussed in the research involves a parent–child relationship.

Conclusions

This study uncovers multiple sources of violence experienced by LGBT + individuals within the context of domestic relationships in China. While LGBT + individuals can employ criminal law to protect their rights as citizens, the legal recognition of same-sex relationships remains rare. Yet, this legal recognition could change the situation in same-sex families troubled by family violence.
Footprint of a topological phase transition on the density of states
Authors: De Moor Joris , Sadel Christian , Schulz-Baldes Hermann
Published: September 2023

For a generalized Su–Schrieffer–Heeger model, the energy zero is always critical and hyperbolic in the sense that all reduced transfer matrices commute and have their spectrum off the unit circle. Disorder-driven topological phase transitions in this model are characterized by a vanishing Lyapunov exponent at the critical energy. It is shown that away from such a transition the density of states vanishes at zero energy with an explicitly computable Hölder exponent, while it has a characteristic divergence (Dyson spike) at the transition points. The proof is based on renewal theory for the Prüfer phase dynamics and the optional stopping theorem for martingales of suitably constructed comparison processes.
The impact of shareholder litigation risk on income smoothing
Authors: Li Yiwei , Song Wei , Sun Tingyu , Zhang Qingjing
Published: September 2023

This paper investigates whether and how shareholder litigation influences income smoothing. Using the ruling of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in 1999 as an exogenous shock to the threat of litigation, we find that the increasing difficulty of class action lawsuits decreases income smoothing. This finding is robust to different model specifications. We also show that such an effect is stronger for firms that are more likely to face greater pressure from the threat of shareholder litigation risk. Overall, our findings extend the literature on investigating how class action lawsuits can affect the motivation of income smoothing.
Laplace based Bayesian inference for ordinary differential equation models using regularized artificial neural networks
Authors: Kwok Wai M. , Streftaris George , Dass Sarat C.
Published: September 2023

Parameter estimation and associated uncertainty quantification is an important problem in dynamical systems characterised by ordinary differential equation (ODE) models that are often nonlinear. Typically, such models have analytically intractable trajectories which result in likelihoods and posterior distributions that are similarly intractable. Bayesian inference for ODE systems via simulation methods require numerical approximations to produce inference with high accuracy at a cost of heavy computational power and slow convergence. At the same time, Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) offer tractability that can be utilized to construct an approximate but tractable likelihood and posterior distribution. In this paper we propose a hybrid approach, where Laplace-based Bayesian inference is combined with an ANN architecture for obtaining approximations to the ODE trajectories as a function of the unknown initial values and system parameters. Suitable choices of customized loss functions are proposed to fine tune the approximated ODE trajectories and the subsequent Laplace approximation procedure. The effectiveness of our proposed methods is demonstrated using an epidemiological system with non-analytical solutions—the Susceptible-Infectious-Removed (SIR) model for infectious diseases—based on simulated and real-life influenza datasets. The novelty and attractiveness of our proposed approach include (i) a new development of Bayesian inference using ANN architectures for ODE based dynamical systems, and (ii) a computationally fast posterior inference by avoiding convergence issues of benchmark Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods. These two features establish the developed approach as an accurate alternative to traditional Bayesian computational methods, with improved computational cost.
Very few scientific publications and newspaper articles focus on catastrophic events and their effects on urban wildlife
Authors: Walters Marlene , Cen Christina , Lung Julia , Li Yaochi , Lea Julianne , Yeh Pamela
Published: September 2023

The COVID-19 pandemic upended daily life and disrupted human activity in urban centers all over the world. Stay-at-home orders emptied urban spaces, removing or decreasing stressors on urban wildlife associated with human presence. Anecdotal observations of unusual urban wildlife behavior spread virally across social media, but some of these reports were proven false or fabricated. Here we examined both scientific publications and local newspapers to understand how extensively urban catastrophes are covered with respect to their effects on wildlife. We read all article titles from January 1980–June 2023 in 100 high impact journals in biology to determine if prior research exists that could inform our understanding of this phenomenon. Additionally, we used a keyword search to find scientific journal articles about wildlife responses during events in which large-scale evacuations of urban environments occurred. We found 37 scientific articles on this topic, with 13 of those published in the highest impact biology journals. The majority of publications identified (70%) were about wildlife responses to the COVID-19 public health response. Finally, we searched local newspapers in areas where hurricanes struck urban centers. We found 25 newspaper articles reporting on wildlife in relation to urban natural disasters. These were typically anecdotes, but nearly always consulted a credible, expert source. Ultimately, more research focused on urban areas before and after catastrophic or sudden changes will allow biologists to develop a baseline expectation for urban wildlife behavior in the absence of humans.
EEG-based emotion recognition using a temporal-difference minimizing neural network
Authors: Ju Xiangyu , Li Ming , Tian Wenli , Hu Dewen
Published: September 2023

Electroencephalogram (EEG) emotion recognition plays an important role in human–computer interaction. An increasing number of algorithms for emotion recognition have been proposed recently. However, it is still challenging to make efficient use of emotional activity knowledge. In this paper, based on prior knowledge that emotion varies slowly across time, we propose a temporal-difference minimizing neural network (TDMNN) for EEG emotion recognition. We use maximum mean discrepancy (MMD) technology to evaluate the difference in EEG features across time and minimize the difference by a multibranch convolutional recurrent network. State-of-the-art performances are achieved using the proposed method on the SEED, SEED-IV, DEAP and DREAMER datasets, demonstrating the effectiveness of including prior knowledge in EEG emotion recognition.
The Occasional Democratisation of Party Leadership Selection: A Mechanism-Centred Approach
Authors: Küppers Anne
Published: September 2023

Membership ballots have gained increasing popularity for party leadership selection around the globe. Still, our understanding of why parties use primaries is limited. This is due to two shortcomings of existing research: First, previous research has failed to satisfactorily operationalise subjective concepts such as electoral defeat. Second, quantitative studies cannot account for causal complexity. Thus, to uncover the puzzle of why parties use party primaries, this article pursues a novel approach. I offer new insights by using theory-testing process tracing to uncover the complex causal mechanisms that explain the use of membership ballots, taking Germany as an example. In the four cases studied, I find that it is a combination of an electoral shock, internal conflict, and instrumental motives that explain the decision to hold a primary for party leadership selection.
Impact of glucose variability on the assessment of the glycemia risk index (GRI) and classic glycemic metrics
Authors: Pérez-López Paloma , Férnandez-Velasco Pablo , Bahillo-Curieses Pilar , de Luis Daniel , Díaz-Soto Gonzalo
Published: September 2023

Objective

To evaluate the impact of glucose variability on the relationship between the GRI and other glycemic metrics in a cohort of pediatric and adult patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D) using intermittent scanning continuous glucose monitoring (isCGM).

Methods

We performed a cross-sectional study of 202 patients with T1D under intensive insulin treatment (25.2% CSII) using isCGM. Clinical, metabolic, and glycemic metrics were collected, and the GRI was calculated with its hypoglycemia (CHypo) and hyperglycemia (CHyper) components. The correlation between the GRI and other classical glycometrics in relation to the coefficient of variation (CV) was evaluated.

Results

A total of 202 patients were included (53% male; 67.8% adults) with a mean age of 28.6 ± 15.7 years and 12.5 ± 10.9 years of T1D evolution (TIR 59.0 ± 17.0%; CV 39.8 ± 8.0%; GMI 7.3 ± 1.1%). The mean GRI was 54.0 ± 23.3 with a CHypo and CHyper component of 5.7 ± 4.8 and 23.4 ± 14.3, respectively. A strong negative correlation was observed between the GRI and TIR (R = −0.917; R2 = 0.840; p < 0.001), showing differences when dividing patients with low glycemic variability (CV < 36%) (R = −0.974; R2 = 0.948; p < 0.001) compared to those with greater CV instability (≥36%) (R = −0.885; R2 = 0.784; p < 0.001). The relationship of GRI with its two components was strongly positive with CHyper (R = 0.801; R2 = 0.641; p < 0.001) and moderately positive with CHypo (R = 0.398; R2 = 0.158; p < 0.001). When the GRI was evaluated with the rest of the classic glycemic metrics, a strong positive correlation was observed with HbA1c (R = 0.617; R2 = 0.380; p < 0.001), mean glucose (R = 0.677; R2 = 0.458; p < 0.001), glucose standard deviation (R = 0.778; R2 = 0.605; p < 0.001), TAR > 250 (R = 0.801; R2 = 0.641; p < 0.001), and TBR < 54 (R = 0.481; R2 = 0.231; p < 0.001).

Conclusions

The GRI correlated significantly with all the glycemic metrics analyzed, especially with the TIR. Glycemic variability (GV) significantly affected the correlation of the GRI with other parameters and should be taken into consideration.
Expression and function of CCN2-derived circRNAs in chondrocytes
Authors: Kato Soma , Kawata Kazumi , Nishida Takashi , Mizukawa Tomomi , Takigawa Masaharu , Iida Seiji , Kubota Satoshi
Published: September 2023

Cellular communication network factor 2 (CCN2) molecules promote endochondral ossification and articular cartilage regeneration, and circular RNAs (circRNAs), which arise from various genes and regulate gene expression by adsorbing miRNAs, are known to be synthesized from CCN2 in human vascular endothelial cells and other types of cells. However, in chondrocytes, not only the function but also the presence of CCN2-derived circRNA remains completely unknown. In the present study, we investigated the expression and function of CCN2-derived circRNAs in chondrocytes. Amplicons smaller than those from known CCN2-derived circRNAs were observed using RT-PCR analysis that could specifically amplify CCN2-derived circRNAs in human chondrocytic HCS-2/8 cells. The nucleotide sequences of the PCR products indicated novel circRNAs in the HCS-2/8 cells that were different from known CCN2-derived circRNAs. Moreover, the expression of several Ccn2-derived circRNAs in murine chondroblastic ATDC5 cells was confirmed and observed to change alongside chondrocytic differentiation. Next, one of these circRNAs was knocked down in HCS-2/8 cells to investigate the function of the human CCN2-derived circRNA. As a result, CCN2-derived circRNA knockdown significantly reduced the expression of aggrecan mRNA and proteoglycan synthesis. Our data suggest that CCN2-derived circRNAs are expressed in chondrocytes and play a role in chondrogenic differentiation.

Graphical abstract
Politics and Psychology
Authors: Busch-Jensen Peter , Røn-Larsen Maja
Published: September 2023

This article presents a discussion inspired by the invitation formed by Kevin Carriere’s book: “Psychology in Policy – Redefining Politics Through The Individual”. From a theoretical standpoint in culture psychology Carriere challenges the idea of politics as a particular practice carried out by mainly politicians. Instead, he attempts to anchor processes of politics in the everyday lives of individuals, directed at changing their worlds. In this article, we discuss how this ambition could evolve even further by relating it to other theoretical approaches working with similar ambitions.
Three Kinds of Arguments for Panpsychism
Authors: Jarocki Jacek
Published: September 2023

Panpsychism may be roughly defined as a view that at least some of the properties constituting the fundamental level of reality are mental or proto-mental. Despite its long history, it has been revived in recent discussions as a solution to the problems raised by the mind, especially to the so-called hard problem of consciousness. Contemporary panpsychism differs significantly from incarnations known from the history of philosophy mainly due to the fact that the former is often combined with so-called Russellian monism. According to Russellian monism, the intrinsic properties of physical things remain unknown. This encourages panpsychists to argue that those properties are in fact mental. In my paper, I examine the three most common arguments for panpsychism: the Continuity Argument, the Hegelian Argument, and the Agnostic Argument. I take a closer look at each of them to assess their advantages and weaknesses. As I point out, the way in which one argues implies the version of panpsychism one adopts. This turns out to be especially important with regard to the Hegelian Argument and the Agnostic Argument. Both can be combined with Russellian monism, resulting in Russellian panpsychism. However, I claim that the philosophical consequences of these arguments are different, so it is legitimate to distinguish two kinds of Russellian panpsychism. In conclusion, I hold that there are reasons to prefer panpsychism based on the Agnostic Argument, which is more promising, as it responds to some general problems of panpsychism.
The Effectiveness of Low-Intensity Psychological Interventions for Comorbid Depression and Anxiety in Patients with Long-Term Conditions: A Real-World Naturalistic Observational Study in IAPT Integrated Care
Authors: Lee Chi Tak , Harty Siobhan , Adegoke Adedeji , Palacios Jorge , Gillan Claire M. , Richards Derek
Published: September 2023

Background

Low-intensity psychological interventions may be a cost-effective, accessible solution for treating depression and anxiety in patients with long-term conditions, but evidence from real-world service settings is lacking. This study examined the effectiveness of low-intensity psychological interventions provided in the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme in England for patients with and without long-term conditions.

Methods

A retrospective analysis was conducted on patients (total N = 21,051, long-term conditions n = 4024) enrolled in three low-intensity psychological interventions, i.e. Internet-delivered cognitive behavioural therapy (iCBT), guided self-help (GSH), and psychoeducational group therapy (PGT) within a Talking Therapies service from 2016 to 2020. Primary outcomes included pre–post-treatment changes in depression (Patient Health Questionnaire-9) and anxiety (Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7).

Results

Overall, both cohorts significantly improved on all outcomes post-treatment, with large effect sizes. Patients with long-term conditions experienced a greater reduction in depression while those without experienced a greater reduction in anxiety, but these differences were marginal (< 1 score difference on both measures). No difference between the cohorts was shown when comparing the differential effectiveness across interventions, but those engaging in iCBT showed greater reduction in depression and anxiety than those in GSH and PGT, while those in GSH improved more than PGT.

Conclusions

Low-intensity psychological interventions, particularly iCBT, were effective in treating depression and anxiety in patients with long-term conditions in a real-world service setting. Our large-scale study supports the continued and increased implementation of low-intensity psychological interventions for this subpopulation via integrated care.
Coupled hydro-mechanical simulation in the carbonate reservoir of a giant oil field in southwest Iran
Authors: Saadatnia Narges , Sharghi Yousef , Moghadasi Jamshid , Ezati Mohsen
Published: September 2023

The Asmari reservoir in southwest Iran has been producing oil continuously for over 50 years. However, due to an essential pressure decline, the reservoir is now a potential candidate for injection projects. The geomechanical analysis is essential for a successful injection operation to enhance reservoir production and address possible challenges. An accurate estimation of the injection pressure is necessary to maintain optimal conditions during the injection process and reduce possible risks. In this work, a coupled reservoir-geomechanical model, as well as rock mechanical tests, is performed to evaluate not only pressure variation and the associated in situ stress changes but also their potential influences on fault reactivation, reservoir–caprock stability, and surface displacement. For geomechanical evaluation, empirical correlations are derived between static and dynamic rock properties based on core data and existing petrophysical logs for the studied reservoir–caprock system. Based on the hydro-mechanical results, the maximum displacement is limited to the vicinity of the injection wells, where the highest pressure changes occur. The geomechanical analysis of the reservoir–caprock system shows that this system is stable until the injection pressure reaches 4.3× the initial reservoir pressure. Also, the injection pressure is not high enough to compromise the integrity of faults, indicating that the loading on the fault planes is too low to reactivate the pre-existing faults. The approach followed in this study can be applied to future field development strategies and feasibility considerations for CO2 sequestration and underground gas storage projects.
The InsightsNet Climate Change Corpus (ICCC)
Authors: Volkanovska Elena , Tan Sherry , Duan Changxu , Bartsch Sabine , Stille Wolfgang
Published: September 2023

The discourse on climate change has become a centerpiece of public debate, thereby creating a pressing need to analyze the multitude of messages created by the participants in this communication process. In addition to text, information on this topic is conveyed multimodally, through images, videos, tables and other data objects that are embedded within documents and accompany the text. This paper presents the process of building a multimodal pilot corpus to the InsightsNet Climate Change Corpus (ICCC) and using natural language processing (NLP) tools to enrich corpus (meta)data, thus creating a dataset that lends itself to the exploration of the interplay between the various modalities that constitute the discourse on climate change. We demonstrate how the pilot corpus can be queried for relevant information in two types of databases, and how the proposed data model promotes a more comprehensive sentiment analysis approach.
Ceftazidime-avibactam alone or in combination with Aztreonam versus Polymyxins in the management of carbapenem-Resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae nosocomial Infections (CAPRI study): a retrospective cohort study from South India
Authors: Sree Racha Amarthya , Gupta Anand , Gupta Nitin , Veturi Sadhana , Reddy L. Siva Kumar , Begum Masrath , Shravani Etrouth , Challa HariPriya Reddy , Reddy Satti Santhosh , Singamsetty Adarsh , Arumilli Murthy , Reddy P. Naveen , Tirlangi Praveen Kumar
Published: September 2023

Introduction

Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) infections commonly cause hospital-acquired infections. The study aimed to compare the outcomes of CRKP infections between patients receiving ceftazidime avibactam +/− aztreonam and polymyxins in a hospital setting with a high prevalence of New Delhi Metallo Beta Lactamase production.

Methods

We conducted a retrospective cohort study from January 2020 to September 2022 in critically ill adult patients admitted to a non-COVID-19 medical intensive care unit with CRKP infection. The patients were followed up for a total of 30 days or death, whichever was later.

Results

Of a total of 106 patients included in the study, 65 patients received polymyxins and 41 patients received ceftazidime–avibactam +/− aztreonam. Higher 30-day mortality was noted in the polymyxin group (56.9% vs. 29.2%, P = 0.005). The mean time to event (mortality) in ceftazidime–avibactam +/− aztreonam was 23.9 + 1.5 days which was significantly higher compared to polymyxins (17.9 + 1.2 days, p = 0.006). On Cox regression analysis, after adjusting for the covariates, the hazard ratio for time to event with the use of polymyxin was 2.02 (95% CI: 1.03–3.9).

Conclusion

Ceftazidime–avibactam + aztreonam is possibly associated with better clinical outcomes in patients infected with CRKP.
A modularity total environment network model for sustainable forest transportation
Authors: Tsiotas Dimitrios , Kantartzis Apostolos , Kolkos Georgios , Lemonakis Panagiotis , Arabatzis Garyfallos
Published: September 2023

Forest road network planning and development is important in providing accessibility to remote forest areas for timber harvesting, transportation to markets, and recreational activities, as well as preventing environmental degradation, soil erosion, water pollution, and an increased risk of forest fires and wildlife habitat fragmentation. Within the context that careful forest road transportation planning and design promotes sustainable forest management and development, this paper develops a multilayer network model for supporting sustainable forest transportation development. The model builds on a total environment conceptualization and the network paradigm, and it is composed of several layers, each containing information from an environmental aspect or a forest road network land use. By using community detection analysis from network science, the model provides insights into the decomposition of the forest network into functional areas, highlights the importance of places that connect different communities to maintain market integration, and provides a list of policies and good practices for the resulting communities. Overall, this paper presents a quantitative methodological framework that can be used for sustainable forest transportation.
Research on low-carbon evaluation of green buildings based on the whole life cycle theory
Authors: Jamaludin Farah Adilah Binti , Li Jiabo
Published: September 2023

Cities are highly dense areas with significant energy consumption and waste generation. Therefore, developing buildings with low energy consumption and reduced pollutant emissions is an important approach for China to achieve its goals of carbon neutrality, peak carbon emissions, and sustainable development. In this context, the concept and practice of green buildings have emerged. This research is based on the whole life cycle assessment method of the whole life cycle theory, integrating relevant indicators for calculating carbon emissions in buildings. It conducts a multidimensional evaluation and analysis of the low-carbon level of green buildings. Quantitative analysis is carried out based on five stages and five dimensions of the entire construction process. A conceptual model for the low-carbon evaluation of green buildings is established, and grey relational analysis and analytic hierarchy process are employed to rank and evaluate projects. The study aims to identify the key factors in the low-carbon evaluation of green buildings and discusses the focus and suggestions for future low-carbon management throughout the whole life cycle of green buildings.
Recent advances in efficient and scalable solar hydrogen production through water splitting
Authors: Zheng Yihao , Ma Ming , Shao Huaiyu
Published: September 2023

Solar hydrogen production through water splitting is the most important and promising approach to obtaining green hydrogen energy. Although this technology developed rapidly in the last two decades, it is still a long way from true commercialization. In particular, the efficiency and scalability of solar hydrogen production have attracted extensive attention in the field of basic research. Currently, the three most studied routes for solar hydrogen production include photocatalytic (PC), photoelectrochemical (PEC), and photovoltaic-electrochemical (PV-EC) water splitting. In this review, we briefly introduce the motivation of developing green hydrogen energy, and then summarize the influential breakthroughs on efficiency and scalability for solar hydrogen production, especially those cases that are instructive to practical applications. Finally, we analyze the challenges facing the industrialization of hydrogen production from solar water splitting and provide insights for accelerating the transition from basic research to practical applications. Overall, this review can provide a meaningful reference for addressing the issues of efficiency improvement and scale expansion of solar hydrogen production, thereby promoting the innovation and growth of renewable hydrogen energy industry.

Graphical Abstract