bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
How did the landscape of student belonging shift during COVID‐19?
Authors: Misra Shruti , Kardam Neha , VanAntwerp Jennifer , Wilson Denise
Published: July 2023

Background

Belonging is a fundamental human motivation associated with a wide range of positive psychological, educational, social, and job outcomes. Frequent and predominantly conflict‐free interactions within a stable, relational framework of caring are required to facilitate belonging.

Purpose

The goal of this study was to understand if and how emergency remote teaching (ERT) used during the COVID‐19 pandemic changed the ways in which instructional support and interactions were linked to belonging among engineering students.

Methodology/Approach

This study used survey data from a cross‐sectional dataset at a single large institution comprised of sophomore to senior‐level students (n = 1485) enrolled in engineering courses between 2016 and 2021. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was used to study relationships among instructional support, instructor interactions, and belonging.

Findings/Conclusions

HLM models of ERT and traditional learning differed dramatically. In traditional classroom learning, race, interactions with faculty and teaching assistants (TAs), and instructional support were important factors in belonging. In ERT, certain motivations to study engineering (altruism, desire to build things) had nuanced associations with belonging, while race and interactions with faculty and TAs became largely irrelevant. Most concerning, faculty interactions in traditional learning were negatively associated with belonging.

Implications

Rather than returning to pre‐pandemic traditional learning, a hybrid model that offers a more level playing field for marginalized students to find belonging in the classroom is recommended. In developing such models, faculty must take special care to avoid having a potentially negative impact on student belonging.
Factors influencing agitation, de‐escalation, and physical restraint at a children's hospital
Authors: Dalton Evan M. , Worsley Diana , Krass Polina , Kovacs Brian , Raymond Kathleen , Feudtner Chris , Shea Judy A. , Doupnik Stephanie K.
Published: July 2023

Background

Children hospitalized in medical hospitals are at risk of agitation. Physical restraint may be used to maintain patient and staff safety during de‐escalation, but physical restraint use is associated with physical and psychological adverse events.

Objective

We sought to better understand which work system factors help clinicians prevent patient agitation, improve de‐escalation, and avoid physical restraint.

Design, Setting, and Participants

We used directed content analysis to extend the Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety model to clinicians working with children at risk for agitation at a freestanding children's hospital.

Intervention, Main Outcome, and Measures

We conducted semistructured interviews to examine how five clinician work system factors affected patient agitation, de‐escalation, and restraint: person, environment, tasks, technology and tools, and organization. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed until saturation.

Results

Forty clinicians participated in this study, including 21 nurses, 15 psychiatric technicians, 2 pediatric physicians, 1 psychologist, and 1 behavior analyst. Work system factors that contributed to patient agitation were medical tasks like vital signs and the hospital environment including bright lights and neighboring patients' noises. Supports that helped clinicians de‐escalate patients included adequate staffing and accessible toys and activities. Participants indicated that organizational factors were integral to team de‐escalation, drawing connections between units' teamwork and communication cultures and their likelihood of successful de‐escalation without the use of physical restraint.

Conclusion

Clinicians perceived that medical tasks, hospital environmental factors, clinician attributes, and team communication influenced patients' agitation, de‐escalation, and physical restraint. These work system factors provide opportunities for future multi‐disciplinary interventions to reduce physical restraint use.
Gene therapy for aromatic L‐amino acid decarboxylase deficiency: Requirements for safe application and knowledge‐generating follow‐up
Authors: Roubertie Agathe , Opladen Thomas , Brennenstuhl Heiko , Kuseyri Hübschmann Oya , Flint Lisa , Willemsen Michel A. , Leuzzi Vincenzo , Cazorla Angels Garcia , Kurian Manju A. , François‐Heude Marie Céline , Hwu Paul , Zeev Bruria Ben , Kiening Karl , Roujeau Thomas , Pons Roser , Pearson Toni S.
Published: July 2023

The autosomal recessive defect of aromatic L‐amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) leads to a severe neurological disorder with manifestation in infancy due to a pronounced, combined deficiency of dopamine, serotonin and catecholamines. The success of conventional drug treatment is very limited, especially in patients with a severe phenotype. The development of an intracerebral AAV2‐based gene delivery targeting the putamen or substantia nigra started more than 10 years ago. Recently, the putaminally‐delivered construct, Eladocagene exuparvovec has been approved by the European Medicines Agency and by the British Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. This now available gene therapy provides for the first time also for AADC deficiency (AADCD) a causal therapy, leading this disorder into a new therapeutic era. By using a standardized Delphi approach members of the International Working Group on Neurotransmitter related Disorders (iNTD) developed structural requirements and recommendations for the preparation, management and follow‐up of AADC deficiency patients who undergo gene therapy. This statement underlines the necessity of a framework for a quality‐assured application of AADCD gene therapy including Eladocagene exuparvovec. Treatment requires prehospital, inpatient and posthospital care by a multidisciplinary team in a specialized and qualified therapy center. Due to lack of data on long‐term outcomes and the comparative efficacy of alternative stereotactic procedures and brain target sites, a structured follow‐up plan and systematic documentation of outcomes in a suitable, industry‐independent registry study are necessary.
Ion transmission in an electrospray ionization‐mass spectrometry interface using an S‐lens
Authors: Yan Yihui , Schmitt Lucas , Khramchenkova Anastasiya , Lengyel Jozef
Published: July 2023

We present the design and performance of an in‐house built electrospray ionization‐mass spectrometry (ESI‐MS) interface equipped with an S‐lens ion guide. The ion source was designed specifically for our ion beam experiments to investigate the chemical reactivity and deposition of the clusters and nanoparticles. It includes standard ESI‐MS interface components, such as nanoelectrospray, ion transfer capillary, and the S‐lens. A custom design enables systematic optimization of all relevant factors influencing ion formation and transfer through the interface. By varying the ESI voltage and flow rate, we determined the optimal operating conditions for selected silica emitters. A comparison of the pulled silica emitters with different tip inner diameters reveals that the total ion current is highest for the largest tip, whereas a tip with the smallest diameter exhibited the highest transmission efficiency through the ESI‐MS interface. Ion transmission through the transfer capillary is strongly limited by its length, but the loss of ions can be reduced by increasing the capillary voltage and temperature. The S‐lens was characterized over a wide range of RF frequencies and amplitudes. Maximum ion current was detected at RF amplitudes greater than 50 V peak‐to‐peak (p/p) and frequencies above 750 kHz, with a stable ion transmission region of about 20%. A factor of 2.6 increase in total ion current is observed for 650 kHz as RF amplitudes reach 400 V p/p. Higher RF amplitudes also focus the ions into a narrow beam, which mitigates their losses when passing through the ion guide.
Dynamics of parainfluenza virus among hospitalized children with acute respiratory tract infection under two‐child policy and COVID‐19 pandemic in Hubei Province, China, 2014–2022
Authors: Yi Song , Zhang Shan‐Shan , Wang Xin‐Rui , Zhou Yiguo , Zhang Wan‐Xue , Du Juan , Hu Xing‐Wen , Lu Qing‐Bin
Published: July 2023

To analyze changes in the detection of parainfluenza virus (PIV) in children hospitalized with acute respiratory tract infection (ARTI) during 2014–2022 in Hubei Province, and explore the impact of the universal two‐child policy and the public health measures against COVID‐19 epidemic on the prevalence of PIV in China. The study was conducted at the Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei Province. Children aged <18 years with ARTI admitted from January 2014 to June 2022 were enrolled. The infection of PIV was confirmed by the direct immunofluorescence method in nasopharyngeal specimens. Adjusted logistic regression models were used to analyze the influence of the universal two‐child policy implementation and public health measurements against COVID‐19 on PIV detection. Totally 75 128 inpatients meeting the criteria were enrolled in this study from January 2014 to June 2022 with an overall PIV positive rate of 5.5%. The epidemic seasons of PIV prevalence lagged substantially in 2020. A statistically significant higher positive rate of PIV was observed in 2017–2019 compared to that in 2014–2015 (6.12% vs 2.89%, risk ratio = 2.12, p < 0.001) after the implementation of the universal two‐child policy in 2016. A steep decline occurred in PIV positive rate during the COVID‐19 epidemic in 2020 (0.92% vs 6.92%, p < 0.001) and it rebounded during the regular epidemic prevention and control period in 2021–2022 (6.35%, p = 0.104). In Hubei Province, the implementation of the universal two‐child policy might have led to an increase of PIV prevalence, and public health measures during the COVID‐19 epidemic might have influenced the fluctuation in PIV detection since 2020.
Convolutional neural network allows amylose content prediction in yam (Dioscorea alata L.) flour using near infrared spectroscopy
Authors: Houngbo Mahugnon Ezékiel , Desfontaines Lucienne , Diman Jean‐Louis , Arnau Gemma , Mestres Christian , Davrieux Fabrice , Rouan Lauriane , Beurier Grégory , Marie‐Magdeleine Carine , Meghar Karima , Alamu Emmanuel Oladeji , Otegbayo Bolanle O , Cornet Denis
Published: July 2023

Background

Yam (Dioscorea alata L.) is the staple food of many populations in the intertropical zone, where it is grown. The lack of phenotyping methods for tuber quality has hindered the adoption of new genotypes from breeding programs. Recently, near‐infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has been used as a reliable tool to characterize the chemical composition of the yam tuber. However, it failed to predict the amylose content, although this trait is strongly involved in the quality of the product.

Results

This study used NIRS to predict the amylose content from 186 yam flour samples. Two calibration methods were developed and validated on an independent dataset: partial least squares (PLS) and convolutional neural networks (CNN). To evaluate final model performances, the coefficient of determination (R2), the root mean square error (RMSE), and the ratio of performance to deviation (RPD) were calculated using predictions on an independent validation dataset. The tested models showed contrasting performances (i.e., R2 of 0.72 and 0.89, RMSE of 1.33 and 0.81, RPD of 2.13 and 3.49 respectively, for the PLS and the CNN model).

Conclusion

According to the quality standard for NIRS model prediction used in food science, the PLS method proved unsuccessful (RPD < 3 and R2 < 0.8) for predicting amylose content from yam flour but the CNN model proved to be reliable and efficient method. With the application of deep learning methods, this study established the proof of concept that amylose content, a key driver of yam textural quality and acceptance, can be predicted accurately using NIRS as a high throughput phenotyping method. © 2023 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.
Effect of moderate beer consumption (with and without ethanol) on cardiovascular health in postmenopausal women
Authors: Trius‐Soler Marta , Martínez‐Carrasco Pamela , Tresserra‐Rimbau Anna , Moreno Juan J. , Estruch Ramon , Lamuela‐Raventós Rosa M.
Published: July 2023

BACKGROUND

The main aim of this 2‐year non‐randomized parallel controlled clinical pilot trial was to evaluate the long‐term effect of a moderate daily intake of beer (with and without alcohol) on cardiovascular health in postmenopausal women. A total of 34 participants were grouped into three study arms: 16 were administered alcoholic beer, 6 consumed non‐alcoholic beer, and 12 were in the control group. Changes in glucose metabolism, lipid profile, liver enzymes, anthropometric measurements, body composition, and blood pressure variables were monitored. Data on medical history, diet, and exercise were collected, and gustatory capacities were determined.

RESULTS

Moderate consumption of beer, both alcoholic and non‐alcoholic, seemed to have positive effects on biochemical indicators of cardiovascular health in postmenopausal women, with 660 mL day−1 of non‐alcoholic beer reducing low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol blood levels, and 330 mL day−1 of alcoholic beer increasing high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol. The evolution of changes in android and gynoid fat percentage and their ratio differed significantly between study groups, which was attributable to either the interventions or the disparity between groups regarding the time elapsed since menopause onset. Iso‐α‐acids recognition threshold could be involved in intervention group election, whereas the sensory phenotypes studied were not associated with alcohol drinking frequency.

CONCLUSIONS

Moderate beer consumption was found to improve the lipid profile of postmenopausal women, although their effects in preventing cardiometabolic alterations deserve further research (trial registration number: ISRCTN13825020; https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN13825020). © 2023 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.
Mandibular Osteoradionecrosis: Defining the Microbial Milieu and Antimicrobial Resistance at the Time of Rescue Flap Surgery
Authors: Arianpour Khashayar , Liu Sara W. , Ciolek Peter J. , Prendes Brandon L. , Fritz Michael A.
Published: July 2023

Objective

To report the microorganisms and their antibiotic sensitivity profile from tissue cultures and stains at the time of anterolateral thigh fascia lata (ALTFL) rescue flap for management of mandibular osteoradionecrosis (ORN).

Methods

Retrospective chart review of patients who underwent ALTFL rescue flap for native mandibular ORN between 2011 and 2022.

Results

Twenty‐six cases comprising 24 patients (mean age 65.4 years, 65.4% male) with mandibular ORN from whom tissue cultures and gram stain were obtained at the time of ALTFL rescue flap. 57.7% grew bacterial species, while 34.6% grew fungal species. Multibacterial speciation was noted in 26.9% of cultures. A combination of bacterial and fungal growth was also seen in 15.4% of cases. All gram‐positive cocci (GPC) were pansensitive to antibiotics except for one case of Staphylococcus aureus, which was resistant to levofloxacin. Gram‐negative bacilli (GNB) species were isolated in 50.0% of cases. All fungal growth was due to Candida species. No growth was noted in 23.1% of cases. Multidrug resistance was noted in 53.8% of cases when GNB was isolated.

Conclusion

We report 76.9% of our cases of mandibular ORN had microbial growth from tissue cultures obtained at the time of the ALTFL rescue flap. Fungal growth was noted in a substantial number of cases and should be obtained as a specimen when pursuing culture‐driven antibiotic therapy. Most GPCs were pansensitive to antibiotics, while GNBs were often the harbinger of multidrug resistant mandibular ORN.

Level of Evidence

4 Laryngoscope, 134:166–169, 2024
Research grants, research collaboration, and publication in predatory journals: Evidence from publications by Indonesian social scientists
Authors: Fahlevi Heru , Faradisa Fira , Dawood Rahmad
Published: July 2023

This study investigates the role of research funding and research collaboration in the potential for publication in predatory journals among Indonesian social science academia. A total of 2953 articles published by at least one Indonesian author in the social science field between 2010 and 2020 in Scopus‐indexed journals were collected. The SCImago quartiles of 2019 for the Scopus database and Beall's list of potential predatory journals 2021 were used to evaluate the quality and credibility of the publication outlets. Descriptive statistics and decision tree analysis were performed to classify and predict the quality and credibility of the publications. A contrast in the quality and credibility of publications was identified between research funded by Indonesian and foreign institutions. Research publications that were financially supported by Indonesian ministries and authored by a single author and/or via local and national collaboration were more likely to appear in lower‐ranked journals and predatory journals than publications funded by international sponsors and/or that involved foreign author(s)/international collaboration. This study therefore highlights the need for significant changes in monitoring and evaluation systems, timelines, and output targets of Indonesian government research grant schemes, alongside the enhanced involvement of foreign researchers and reviewers in the research funding schemes.
Super‐Resolved Bulk States of Photonic Crystals With Cathodoluminescence Microscopy
Authors: He Xiao , Liu Dong‐Lin , Dang Zhi‐Bo , Huang Yi‐jing , Liu Zhi‐xin , Zheng Li‐heng , Liu Zheng‐chang , Dai Yu‐chen , Fang Zhe‐yu
Published: July 2023

Progress in photonic crystals (PhCs) enables the advanced manipulation of light propagation, leading to strong light–matter interactions and unconventional applications. To explore the physical nature and realize the precise and efficient control of position‐dependent light–matter interactions, the direct deep‐subwavelength characterization of PhC states is pivotal. Here, the super‐resolved visualization of bulk states in the z‐direction asymmetric dielectric PhC is realized by characterizing the radiative local density of optical states, including the etched hole area. An accelerating voltage scanning approach is proposed to selectively probe bulk states and substrates, elucidating the electron–matter interactions affected by the electron‐beam energy. The bulk state energy is demonstrated to be confined inside structure holes as shown by the cathodoluminescence intensity mappings of PhCs with different geometrical parameters, enabling the design of a silicon‐based high‐quality cavity in the visible range. This work provides a deep investigation of the depth‐dependent interaction between the electron beam and dielectric PhCs, promoting the characterization of PhC delocalized modes. The deep‐subwavelength detail of bulk state benefits the future nanoscale manipulation of light–matter interactions and the optimization of quantum emission devices.
Self‐adjointness of non‐semibounded covariant Schrödinger operators on Riemannian manifolds
Authors: Milatovic Ognjen
Published: July 2023

In the context of a geodesically complete Riemannian manifold M, we study the self‐adjointness of , where ∇ is a metric covariant derivative (with formal adjoint ) on a Hermitian vector bundle over M, and V is a locally square integrable section of such that the (fiberwise) norm of the “negative” part belongs to the local Kato class (or, more generally, local contractive Dynkin class). Instead of the lower semiboundedness hypothesis, we assume that there exists a number and a positive function q on M satisfying certain growth conditions, such that , the inequality being understood in the quadratic form sense over . In the first result, which pertains to the case , we use the elliptic equation method. In the second result, which pertains to the case , we use the hyperbolic equation method.
IL‐8 correlates with nonresponse to neoadjuvant nivolumab in HPV positive HNSCC via a potential extracellular vesicle miR‐146a mediated mechanism
Authors: Hill Brianna L. , Calder Alyssa N. , Flemming Joseph P. , Guo Yiyang , Gilmore Sydney L. , Trofa Melissa A. , Daniels Sean K. , Nielsen Torbjoern N. , Gleason Laura K. , Antysheva Zoya , Demina Ksenia , Kotlov Nikita , Davitt Christopher J. H. , Cognetti David M. , Prendergast George C. , Snook Adam E. , Johnson Jennifer M. , Kumar Gaurav , Linnenbach Alban J. , Martinez‐Outschoorn Ubaldo , South Andrew P. , Curry Joseph M. , Harshyne Larry A. , Luginbuhl Adam J. , Mahoney Mỹ G.
Published: July 2023

Therapy using anti‐PD‐1 immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) has revolutionized the treatment of many cancers including head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC), but only a fraction of patients respond. To better understand the molecular mechanisms driving resistance, we performed extensive analysis of plasma and tumor tissues before and after a 4‐week neoadjuvant trial in which HNSCC patients were treated with the anti‐PD‐1 inhibitor, nivolumab. Luminex cytokine analysis of patient plasma demonstrated that HPVpos nonresponders displayed high levels of the proinflammatory chemokine, interleukin‐8 (IL‐8), which decreased after ICI treatment, but remained higher than responders. miRNAseq analysis of tetraspanin‐enriched small extracellular vesicles (sEV) purified from plasma of HPVpos nonresponders demonstrated significantly lower levels of seven miRNAs that target IL‐8 including miR‐146a. Levels of the pro‐survival oncoprotein Dsg2, which has been to down‐regulate miR‐146a, are elevated with HPVpos tumors displaying higher levels than HPVneg tumors. Dsg2 levels decrease significantly following ICI in responders but not in nonresponders. In cultured HPVpos cells, restoration of miR‐146a by forced expression or treatment with miR‐146a‐loaded sEV, reduced IL‐8 level, blocked cell cycle progression, and promoted cell death. These findings identify Dsg2, miR‐146a, and IL‐8 as potential biomarkers for ICI response and suggest that the Dsg2/miR‐146a/IL‐8 signaling axis negatively impacts ICI treatment outcomes and could be targeted to improve ICI responsiveness in HPVpos HNSCC patients.
The HDAC2–MTA3 interaction induces nonsmall cell lung cancer cell migration and invasion by targeting c‐Myc and cyclin D1
Authors: Wang Bin , Shen Xiao‐yong , Pan Lin‐yue , Li Zheng , Chen Chun‐ji , Yao Yuan‐shan , Tang Dong‐fang , Gao Wen
Published: July 2023

Genome‐wide association studies have identified numerous single‐nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with lung cancer; however, the functions of histone deacetylase 2 (HDAC2) rs13213007 and HDAC2 in nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remain unclear. Here we identified HDAC2 rs13213007 as a risk SNP and showed that HDAC2 was upregulated in both peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and NSCLC tissues with the rs13213007 A/A genotype compared with those with the rs13213007 G/G or G/A genotype. Patient clinical data indicated strong associations between rs13213007 genotype and N classification. Immunohistochemical staining confirmed that higher expression of HDAC2 was associated with NSCLC progression. Furthermore, we generated 293T cells with the rs13213007 A/A genotype using CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats)/Cas9 gene editing. Chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing followed by motif analysis showed that HDAC2 can bind to c‐Myc in rs13213007 A/A 293T cells. Cell Counting Kit‐8, colony formation, wound‐healing, and Transwell assays revealed that HDAC2 upregulates c‐Myc and cyclin D1 expression and promotes NSCLC cell proliferation, migration, and invasion. Co‐immunoprecipitation, quantitative reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction, and western blot analysis assays showed that MTA3 interacts with HDAC2, decreases HDAC2 expression, and rescues the migration and invasion abilities of NSCLC cells. Taken together, these findings identify HDAC2 as a potential therapeutic biomarker in NSCLC.
Effects of Different Exercise Programs on Symptoms, Sleep, and Quality of Life in Patients with Primary Restless Legs Syndrome
Authors: Çoban Özge , Ün Yıldırım Necmiye , Yaşa Mustafa Ertuğrul , Sonkaya Ali Rıza
Published: July 2023

Background

Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a sensorimotor disorder that can have a significant detrimental impact on the quality of life and sleep.

Objectives

Our aim was to examine the effects of aerobic exercise and stretching exercise programs on symptom severity, sleep, and quality of life in patients with primary RLS.

Methods

A total of 18 patients between the ages of 22 and 61 were randomly divided into 3 groups as aerobic exercise, stretching exercises, and control. All exercise programs were applied 3 times a week for 8 weeks. Evaluations were performed before and after treatment. Symptom severity of the patients was evaluated by the International Restless Legs Syndrome Study Group Rating Scale, sleep was evaluated with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and actigraphy, and quality of life was evaluated with the John Hopkins Restless Legs Syndrome Quality of Life Questionnaire. Recovery status of the patients was determined using the post treatment global change scale.

Results

Aerobic exercise and the stretching exercise program were found to be effective in decreasing RLS symptoms (P = 0.025, P = 0.034) and improving subjective sleep quality (P = 0.034, P = 0.025), overall sleep quality (P < 0.001, P = 0.034), and quality of life (P = 0.009, P = 0016). Aerobic exercises were found to be more effective in reducing wake after sleep onset of sleep (P = 0.048), whereas stretching exercises reduced sleep disorders (P = 0.025).

Conclusion

Both exercise approaches have been identified as highly effective approaches in patients with RLS. The treatment can be planned according to the choice of the available facilities, patient and clinician preference, and the advantages of the 2 exercise approaches.
Natural‐Language Processing (NLP) based feature extraction technique in Deep‐Learning model to predict the Blood‐Brain‐Barrier permeability of molecules
Authors: Singh Ravi , Ghosh Powsali , Ganeshpurkar Ankit , Anand Asha , Swetha Rayala , Singh Ravi Bhushan , Kumar Dileep , Singh Sushil Kumar , Kumar Ashok
Published: July 2023

Blood‐Brain‐Barrier (BBB) permeability is one of the critical factors in the success and failure of CNS drug development. The most accurate method of measuring BBB permeability involves clinical experiments, which are labour‐intensive and time‐consuming. Thus, numerous efforts were made to use artificial intelligence (AI) to predict molecules′ BBB permeability. Most of the previous models are based on calculated descriptors and molecular fingerprints. In the present work, we have developed an NLP‐based feature extraction technique in Deep‐Learning models to predict BBB permeability. We have used the B3DB database and generated SELFIES to extract features from the molecules. We have employed word level and N‐gram tokenization to represent words into numeric vectors. The extracted features were fed into several Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and Bi‐directional Long Short‐Term Memory (LSTM) models. The model, ANN‐10 built using ANN and 6‐gram tokenization, performed best on the independent test set. The accuracy, precision, recall, F1, specificity and AUC of ROC scores were found to be 0.89, 0.91, 0.91, 0.91, 0.85 and 0.90. Thus, the developed model can be used for the early screening of CNS drugs.
A constitutive model for structured soils under saturated and unsaturated conditions
Authors: Mu Qing‐Yi , Dai Bao‐Lin , Zhou Chao
Published: July 2023

Many constitutive models for unsaturated soils have been reported in the literature, but only a few of them attempted to incorporate the influence of soil structure, which is a combination of fabric and bonding. Some important aspects of unsaturated soil behaviour, such as the effects of soil structure on the loading collapse (LC) curve, cannot be well captured by the existing models. This study developed a new elastoplastic model for isotropic structured soils under saturated and unsaturated conditions. In particular, several new equations were proposed to model (i) the influence of soil structure on the LC curve; (ii) the evolution of the LC curve during structure degradation. Therefore, the initial soil structure and its evolution under hydro‐mechanical loads can be properly simulated. To validate this new model, it was applied to simulate the behaviour of structured and unsaturated soils along different suction and stress paths, including constant‐stress wetting, constant‐suction isotropic compression, one‐dimensional (1D) compression and triaxial shearing. The measured and computed results are well matched, demonstrating the good capability of the proposed model.
Ketamine uropathy: Clinical experience in a high prevalence center
Authors: Sturgess George , Beckley Ian , Shepherd Robin , Downey Alison
Published: July 2023

Objectives

Ketamine uropathy causes inflammatory changes to the urothelium, manifesting as significant lower urinary tract symptoms, small bladder capacity, and pelvic pain. Upper tract involvement and hydronephrosis can occur. Data from UK centers are limited, and no formal treatment guidelines exist.

Patients and Methods

All patients with ketamine uropathy presenting to our unit over an 11‐year period were identified through operative and clinic lists, emergency presentations, and a prospectively collected local database. Demographic data, biochemical findings, imaging techniques, and both medical and surgical management were recorded.

Results

A total of 81 patients with ketamine uropathy were identified from 2011 to 2022; however, a large proportion presented from 2018 onwards. The average age at presentation was 26 years (interquartile range [IQR]: 27–34), 72.8% were male, and average follow‐up time was 34 months (IQR: 8–46). Therapeutic interventions included anticholinergic medication, cystodistension, and intravesical sodium hyaluronate. Hydronephrosis was present in 20 (24.7%) patients and nephrostomy insertion was required in six. One patient underwent bladder augmentation surgery. Serum gamma‐glutamyl transferase and length of follow‐up were significantly higher in patients with hydronephrosis. Adherence to follow‐up was poor.

Conclusions

We present a large cohort of patients with ketamine uropathy from a small town in the UK which is unusual. The incidence appears to be rising, in‐keeping with increasing recreational ketamine use and should be of concern to urologists. Abstinence is a key aspect of management, and a multi‐disciplinary approach works best particularly as many patients are lost to follow‐up. The development of formal guidance would be helpful.
Deuterium imaging of the Warburg effect at sub‐millimolar concentrations by joint processing of the kinetic and spectral dimensions
Authors: Montrazi Elton T. , Bao Qingjia , Martinho Ricardo P. , Peters Dana C. , Harris Talia , Sasson Keren , Agemy Lilach , Scherz Avigdor , Frydman Lucio
Published: July 2023

Deuterium metabolic imaging (DMI) is a promising molecular MRI approach, which follows the administration of deuterated substrates and their metabolization. [6,6’‐2H2]‐glucose for instance is preferentially converted in tumors to [3,3’‐2H2]‐lactate as a result of the Warburg effect, providing a distinct resonance whose mapping using time‐resolved spectroscopic imaging can diagnose cancer. The MR detection of low‐concentration metabolites such as lactate, however, is challenging. It has been recently shown that multi‐echo balanced steady‐state free precession (ME‐bSSFP) increases the signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) of these experiments approximately threefold over regular chemical shift imaging; the present study examines how DMI's sensitivity can be increased further by advanced processing methods. Some of these, such as compressed sensing multiplicative denoising and block‐matching/3D filtering, can be applied to any spectroscopic/imaging methods. Sensitivity‐enhancing approaches were also specifically tailored to ME‐bSSFP DMI, by relying on priors related to the resonances' positions and to features of the metabolic kinetics. Two new methods are thus proposed that use these constraints for enhancing the sensitivity of both the spectral images and the metabolic kinetics. The ability of these methods to improve DMI is evidenced in pancreatic cancer studies carried at 15.2 T, where suitable implementations of the proposals imparted eightfold or more SNR improvement over the original ME‐bSSFP data, at no informational cost. Comparisons with other propositions in the literature are briefly discussed.
Examining paradoxical session attendance and weight loss relationships in a clinic based lifestyle modification intervention
Authors: Azar Kristen M. J. , Sudat Sylvia , Huang Qiwen , Pressman Alice P. , Szwerinski Nina K. , Nasrallah Catherine , Venditti Elizabeth M. , Romanelli Robert J.
Published: July 2023

Objective

Evaluations of lifestyle modification interventions (LMIs), modeled after the Diabetes Prevention Program, have repeatedly shown a dose‐response relationship between session attendance and weight loss. Despite this, not all participants had “average” weight loss experiences. Nearly one‐third of LMI participants experienced unexpected, paradoxical outcomes (i.e., high attendance with little weight loss, and low attendance with clinically significant weight loss). Paradoxical weight‐loss outcomes were characterized based on session attendance among participants in a group‐based LMI in a real‐world healthcare setting. This group‐based LMI was delivered over 1 year to participants with the possibility of attending up to 25 sessions total.

Methods

LMI participants identified in 2010–2017 from electronic health records were characterized as having low (<75%) or high (≥75%) session attendance. Weight‐loss outcomes were defined as expected (≥5%, high‐attendance; <5%, low‐attendance) or paradoxical (≥5%, low‐attendance; <5%, high‐attendance). Paradoxical‐outcome‐associated characteristics were identified using logistic regression.

Results

Among 1813 LMI participants, 1498 (82.6%) had low and 315 (17.4%) high session attendance; 555 (30.6%) had paradoxical outcomes, comprising 415 (74.8%) responders (≥5% weight‐loss) and 140 (25.2%) non‐responders (<5% weight‐loss). Among participants with high session attendance, paradoxical non‐responders were more likely to be female (odds ratio [OR]: 2.76; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.32, 5.77) and have type 2 diabetes (OR: 3.32; 95% CI: 1.01, 10.95). Among low‐attendance participants, paradoxical responders were more likely to be non‐Hispanic White and less likely to be non‐Hispanic Black (OR: 0.35; 95% CI: 0.18, 0.69), non‐Hispanic Asian (OR: 0.40; 95% CI: 0.22, 0.73), or Hispanic (OR: 0.53; 95% CI: 0.35, 0.80).

Conclusions

In a healthcare setting, nearly one‐third of LMI participants experienced paradoxical outcomes. More research is needed to understand the facilitators and barriers to weight loss above and beyond session attendance.
Asthma medication use and health care utilization evolution during pandemic times
Authors: Ulrich Lisa , Yell Joshua , Holtzlander Melissa
Published: July 2023

Pediatric asthma care was significantly impacted by the Coronavirus Disease (COVID‐19) pandemic, with significant decline in asthma health care utilization noted early in the pandemic. We compared Emergency Department (ED) utilization rates and prescription fill rates of controller and quick relief asthma medications between March and December 2020 versus 2021 in a county‐specific pediatric Medicaid population to evaluate for changes later in the pandemic. Our data showed an increase in ED utilization by 46.7% (p‐.0371) in the second year of the pandemic. There was no significant change in prescription fills for reliever medications (p‐.1309) during this time with increased ED utilization for asthma but there was a significant decline in controller medication fills (p‐.0039). This data suggests a potential explanation for resurgence of asthma health care utilization because of decreased controller medication fill and use during a time frame that also saw increased viral positivity rates. The poor medication adherence rates despite this increase in ED visits suggests that new interventions may be needed to assist patients with asthma medication adherence.
Pulmonary cystic echinococcosis in a child
Authors: Peulier‐Maitre Elora , Hervieux Erik , Bigot Jeanne , Sileo Chiara , Denamur Sophie , Corvol Harriet
Published: July 2023

This case report describes the presentation, diagnosis, and treatment of a 13‐year‐old boy with pulmonary cystic echinococcosis. The patient presented with low‐volume hemoptysis, and lung imaging revealed a large cystic mass, as well as smaller pseudo‐nodular lesions, suggesting a large intrathoracic hydatid cyst and ruptured cysts. The diagnosis was confirmed by a positive echinococcosis Western Blot assay, despite equivocal serology. The treatment consisted of surgical removal of the large cyst using thoracoscopy, along with a two‐week course of albendazole and praziquantel, followed by albendazole alone for two years. Analysis of the cyst membrane revealed an Echinococcus granulosus protoscolex. The patient had a successful recovery.
Enhancement of explosive effect of thermobaric explosive by metal reactive material
Authors: Jiao Xiaolong , Xu Yuxin , Zhou Tong , Li Xudong , Wu Zongya
Published: July 2023

Reactive materials have mechanical properties comparable to metal materials and also have the reaction‐release energy characteristics of energetic materials. The calorific value of reactive materials is even higher than that of explosives. They can react under high pressure/high temperature and release a large amount of chemical energy. Therefore, reactive materials have a wide range of potential applications in aviation and national defense fields. This study examines the energy release characteristics of the metal reactive material casing (MRMC) under thermobaric explosives and compares them to traditional steel casing. The test specimens had the same casing‐charge mass ratio and size, with the only difference being the casing material: reactive material (with reactive elements Zr and Al) and AISI 1020 steel. The physical and chemical properties of the reactive materials were tested and analyzed using ICP‐MS, oxygen bomb calorimeter, and SHPB. Through explosion tests, the characteristic parameters of explosion fireball and ground shock wave overpressure were measured. And the reactive fragments recovered from the experiment were subjected to XRD testing. The results show that MRMC can significantly increase the diameter, duration, and temperature of the explosion fireball compared to steel casing data. The maximum fireball diameter of the MRMC specimen increased by 31.9 %, while the duration before attenuation increased by 47.3 %. MRMC can increase the area ratio of high‐temperature areas (greater than 1300 °C) in the fireball. MRMC increases the overall temperature of the fireball, not just in specific local areas. Additionally, MRMC significantly enhances far‐field shock waves. At a scaled distance of 2.54, the peak overpressure and positive impulse of the MRMC specimen were 50 % and 52 % higher than those of the steel specimen, respectively. This study provides new insights into the application, design, and energy release research of MRMC.
Structural and functional validation of a cloned parasporin from Bacillus thuringiensis isolate KAU 41 native to Western Ghats of India
Authors: Girija Devaki , Deepa Kizhakkeettil , Chubicka Thomas , Shidhi P. R. , Hussan Safna , Raghavamenon Achuthan Chathrattil , Babu Thekkekara Devassy
Published: July 2023

Parasporins of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) exhibit specific toxicity to cancer cells. PCR based mining has identified apoptosis inducing parasporin in KAU41 Bt isolate from the Western Ghats of India. The study aimed to clone and overexpress the parasporin of native KAU41 Bt isolate for determining structural and functional characteristics of the protein. Parasporin gene was cloned in pGEM‐T, sequenced, sub‐cloned in pET30+ and overexpressed in Escherichia coli. The expressed protein was characterized by SDS‐PAGE and in silico methods. Cytotoxicity of cleaved peptide was assessed by MTT assay. SDS‐PAGE displayed a 31 kDa protein (rp‐KAU41) overexpressed. Upon proteinase K digestion, the protein was cleaved into 29 kDa peptide which was found to be cytotoxic to HeLa cells. The protein has a deduced sequence of 267 amino acids with β‐strands folding pattern of crystal protein. Even though rp‐KAU41 shared a 99.15% identity to chain‐A of non‐toxic crystal protein, it only showed a less similarity to the existing parasporins like PS4 (38%) and PS5 (24%) in UPGMA analysis, emphasizing the novelty of rp‐KAU41. The protein is predicted to have more similarity to the pore forming toxins of Aerolysin superfamily and an additional loop in rp‐KAU41 may be contributing towards its cytotoxicity. The molecular docking with caspase 3 resulted in higher Z dock and Z rank score substantiating its role in the activation of intrinsic pathway of apoptosis. The recombinant parasporin protein, rp‐KAU41 is presumed to belong to the Aerolysin superfamily. An interaction with caspase 3 substantiates its role in activating the intrinsic pathway of apoptosis in cancer cells.
Chelerythrine chloride inhibits the progression of colorectal cancer by targeting cancer‐associated fibroblasts through intervention with WNT10B/β‐catenin and TGFβ2/Smad2/3 axis
Authors: Liang Dan , Liu Lu , Zheng Qiao , Zhao Maoyuan , Zhang Gang , Tang Shiyun , Tang Jianyuan , Chen Nianzhi
Published: July 2023

Chelerythrine chloride (CHE) is a benzodiazepine alkaloid derived from natural herbs with significant anti‐tumor and anti‐inflammatory activities. However, the exact role and underlying mechanisms of CHE in colorectal cancer (CRC) remain unclear. Therefore, this study is aimed to investigate the influence of CHE on the progression of CRC. Cell Counting Kit‐8 assay (CCK‐8), transwell, apoptosis rate, cell cycle distribution, reactive oxygen species (ROS), and colony formation determined the anti‐proliferative activity of CHE in CRC cell lines. Transcriptome sequencing and western blot were used to explore the mechanism. Finally, H&E staining, Ki67, TUNEL, and immunofluorescence were conducted to verify the anti‐CRC activity and potential mechanisms of CHE in vivo. CHE had a prominent inhibitory effect on the proliferation of CRC cells. CHE induces G1 and S phase arrest and induces cell apoptosis by ROS accumulation. Cancer‐associated fibroblasts (CAFs) play a key role in CRC metastasis. Then, this study found that CHE regulates WNT10B/β‐catenin and TGFβ2/Smad2/3 axis, thereby decreasing the expression of α‐SMA, which is a maker of CAFs. Taken together, CHE is a candidate drug and a potent compound for metastatic CRC, which can intervene CAFs in a dual pathway to effectively inhibit the invasion and migration of cancer cells, which can provide a new choice for future clinical treatment.
Fast Wide‐Field Quantum Sensor Based on Solid‐State Spins Integrated with a SPAD Array
Authors: Wang Guoqing , Madonini Francesca , Li Boning , Li Changhao , Xiang Jinggang , Villa Federica , Cappellaro Paola
Published: July 2023

Achieving fast, sensitive, and parallel measurement of a large number of quantum particles is an essential task in building large‐scale quantum platforms for different quantum information processing applications such as sensing, computation, simulation, and communication. Current quantum platforms in experimental atomic and optical physics based on CMOS sensors and charged coupled device cameras are limited by either low sensitivity or slow operational speed. Here an array of single‐photon avalanche diodes is integrated with solid‐state spin defects in diamond to build a fast wide‐field quantum sensor, achieving a frame rate up to 100 kHz. The design of the experimental setup to perform spatially resolved imaging of quantum systems is presented. A few exemplary applications, including sensing DC and AC magnetic fields, temperature, strain, local spin density, and charge dynamics, are experimentally demonstrated using a nitrogen‐vacancy ensemble diamond sample. The developed photon detection array is broadly applicable to other platforms such as atom arrays trapped in optical tweezers, optical lattices, donors in silicon, and rare earth ions in solids.
Sliding mode boundary control for exponential stabilization of linear parabolic distributed parameter systems subject to external disturbance
Authors: Bao Chunxia , Cui Baotong , Lou Xuyang , Wu Wei , Jia Jiajia
Published: July 2023

In this article, we are concerned with the exponential stabilization of parabolic distributed parameter systems with Neumann/mixed boundary conditions and external disturbance. To deal with the bounded disturbance, a sliding mode boundary control scheme is adopted based on the backstepping method. Firstly, the exponential stability of the considered system is proven along the selected sliding surface. Secondly, a sliding mode boundary controller is designed to regulate the closed‐loop system trajectory to a suitable sliding surface within a prescribed time and then maintain the sliding motion on the surface. Thirdly, on the chosen sliding surface, the closed‐loop system with the sliding mode boundary controller is exponentially stable. Finally, some numerical simulations are provided to verify the effectiveness of the theoretical results.
Periodically intermittent control for stochastic nonlinear delay systems with dynamic event‐triggered mechanism
Authors: Liu Xiongding , Deng Feiqi , Wei Wu , Wan Fangzhe , Yu Peilin
Published: July 2023

In this article, the mean‐square exponential stability of the stochastic nonlinear delay systems with dynamic event‐triggered mechanism under periodically intermittent control scheme is concerned. First, to avoid Zeno behavior, the triggered mechanism contains with a fixed positive lower bound for the inter‐execution time is constructed. Then, an auxiliary system with dynamic event‐triggering mechanism under continuous control is introduced. Combining the Lyapunov theorem with Halanay inequality, the sufficient conditions and the mean‐square exponential stability of the auxiliary system are obtained. In addition, by using the comparison theorem, the exponential stability of the system under intermittent control is also proved. Meanwhile, the lower bound of the duty cycle for a fixed period under intermittent controller is obtained. Furthermore, we apply the theoretical results to the consensus of stochastic nonlinear delay networked multi‐agent systems (MASs) with dynamic event‐triggered mechanism. Finally, numerical examples are given to verify the effectiveness of the proposed methods.