bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Tensor Product of Evolution Algebras
Authors: Cabrera Casado Yolanda , Martín Barquero Dolores , Martín González Cándido , Tocino Alicia
Published: December 2022

The starting point of this work is the fact that the class of evolution algebras over a fixed field is closed under tensor product. We prove that, under certain conditions, the tensor product is an evolution algebra if and only if every factor is an evolution algebra. Another issue arises about the inheritance of properties from the tensor product to the factors and conversely. For instance, nondegeneracy, irreducibility, perfectness and simplicity are investigated. The four-dimensional case is illustrative and useful to contrast conjectures, so we achieve a complete classification of four-dimensional perfect evolution algebras emerging as tensor product of two-dimensional ones. We find that there are four-dimensional evolution algebras that are the tensor product of two nonevolution algebras.
Travelling waves for Maxwell’s equations in nonlinear and nonsymmetric media
Authors: Mederski Jarosław , Reichel Wolfgang
Published: December 2022

We look for travelling wave fields $$\begin{aligned} E(x,y,z,t)&= U(x,y) \cos (kz+\omega t)+ {\widetilde{U}}(x,y)\sin (kz+\omega t),\\&\quad (x,y,z)\in \mathbb {R}^3,\, t\in \mathbb {R} \end{aligned}$$

E
(
x
,
y
,
z
,
t
)

=
U

(
x
,
y
)

cos

(
k
z
+
ω
t
)

+

U
~

(
x
,
y
)

sin

(
k
z
+
ω
t
)

,

(
x
,
y
,
z
)

∈

R

3

,

t
∈
R

satisfying Maxwell’s equations in a nonlinear medium which is not necessarily cylindrically symmetric. The nonlinearity of the medium enters Maxwell’s equations by postulating a nonlinear material law $$D=\varepsilon E+\chi (x,y, \langle |E|^2\rangle )E$$

D
=
ε
E
+

χ
(
x
,
y
,
⟨
|
E
|

2

⟩
)

E

between the electric field E, its time averaged intensity $$\langle |E|^2\rangle $$

⟨
|
E

|
2

⟩

and the electric displacement field D. We derive a new semilinear elliptic problem for the profiles $$U,{\widetilde{U}}:\mathbb {R}^2\rightarrow \mathbb {R}^3$$

U
,

U
~

:

R

2

→

R

3

$$\begin{aligned} Lu-V(x,y)u=f(x,y,u)\quad \hbox {with }u=\begin{pmatrix} U \\ {\widetilde{U}} \end{pmatrix}, \hbox { for }(x,y)\in \mathbb {R}^2, \end{aligned}$$

L
u
-
V

(
x
,
y
)

u
=
f

(
x
,
y
,
u
)

with

u
=

U

U
~

,

for

(
x
,
y
)

∈

R

2

,

where $$f(x,y,u)=\omega ^2\chi (x,y, |u|^2)u$$

f

(
x
,
y
,
u
)

=

ω
2

χ
(
x
,
y
,
|
u
|

2

)
u

. Solving this equation we can obtain exact travelling wave solutions of the underlying nonlinear Maxwell equations. We are able to deal with super quadratic and subcritical focusing effects, e.g. in the Kerr-like materials with the nonlinear susceptibility of the form $$\chi (x,y,\langle |E^2|\rangle E) = \chi ^{(3)}(x,y)\langle |E|^2\rangle E$$

χ
(
x
,
y
,
⟨
|

E
2

|
⟩
E
)

=

χ

(
3
)

(
x
,
y
)

⟨
|
E
|

2

⟩
E

. A variational approach is presented for the semilinear problem. The energy functional associated with the equation is strongly indefinite, since L contains an infinite dimensional kernel. The methods developed in this paper may be applicable to other strongly indefinite elliptic problems and other nonlinear phenomena.
Transcriptomic-based evaluation of trichloroethylene glutathione and cysteine conjugates demonstrate phenotype-dependent stress responses in a panel of human in vitro models
Authors: Capinha Liliana , Zhang Yaran , Holzer Anna-Katharina , Ückert Anna-Katharina , Zana Melinda , Carta Giada , Murphy Cormac , Baldovini Jenna , Mazidi Zahra , Grillari Johannes , Dinnyes Andras , van de Water Bob , Leist Marcel , Commandeur Jan N. M. , Jennings Paul
Published: December 2022

Environmental or occupational exposure of humans to trichloroethylene (TCE) has been associated with different extrahepatic toxic effects, including nephrotoxicity and neurotoxicity. Bioactivation of TCE via the glutathione (GSH) conjugation pathway has been proposed as underlying mechanism, although only few mechanistic studies have used cell models of human origin. In this study, six human derived cell models were evaluated as in vitro models representing potential target tissues of TCE-conjugates: RPTEC/TERT1 (kidney), HepaRG (liver), HUVEC/TERT2 (vascular endothelial), LUHMES (neuronal, dopaminergic), human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) derived peripheral neurons (UKN5) and hiPSC-derived differentiated brain cortical cultures containing all subtypes of neurons and astrocytes (BCC42). A high throughput transcriptomic screening, utilizing mRNA templated oligo-sequencing (TempO-Seq), was used to study transcriptomic effects after exposure to TCE-conjugates. Cells were exposed to a wide range of concentrations of S-(1,2-trans-dichlorovinyl)glutathione (1,2-DCVG), S-(1,2-trans-dichlorovinyl)-L-cysteine (1,2-DCVC), S-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)glutathione (2,2-DCVG), and S-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)-L-cysteine (2,2-DCVC). 1,2-DCVC caused stress responses belonging to the Nrf2 pathway and Unfolded protein response in all the tested models but to different extents. The renal model was the most sensitive model to both 1,2-DCVC and 1,2-DCVG, with an early Nrf2-response at 3 µM and hundreds of differentially expressed genes at higher concentrations. Exposure to 2,2-DCVG and 2,2-DCVC also resulted in the upregulation of Nrf2 pathway genes in RPTEC/TERT1 although at higher concentrations. Of the three neuronal models, both the LUHMES and BCC42 showed significant Nrf2-responses and at higher concentration UPR-responses, supporting recent hypotheses that 1,2-DCVC may be involved in neurotoxic effects of TCE. The cell models with the highest expression of γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT) enzymes, showed cellular responses to both 1,2-DCVG and 1,2-DCVC. Little to no effects were found in the neuronal models from 1,2-DCVG exposure due to their low GGT-expression. This study expands our knowledge on tissue specificity of TCE S-conjugates and emphasizes the value of human cell models together with transcriptomics for such mechanistic studies.
Combined assisted bone age assessment and adult height prediction methods in Chinese girls with early puberty: analysis of three artificial intelligence systems
Authors: Huang Shurong , Su Zhe , Liu Shuangyi , Chen Jinfeng , Su Qiru , Su Huiping , Shang Yue , Jiao Yanhua
Published: December 2022

Background

The applicability and accuracy of artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted bone age assessment and adult height prediction methods in girls with early puberty are unknown.

Objective

To analyze the performance of AI-assisted bone age assessment methods by comparing the corresponding methods for predicted adult height with actual adult height.

Materials and methods

This retrospective review included 726 girls with early puberty, 87 of whom had reached adult height at last follow-up. Bone age was evaluated using the Greulich–Pyle (GP), Tanner–Whitehouse (TW3–RUS) and China 05 RUS–CHN (RUS-CHN) methods. Predicted adult height was calculated using the China 05 (CH05), TW3 and Bayley–Pinneau (BP) methods.

Results

We analyzed 1,663 left-hand radiographs, including 155 from girls who had reached adult height. In the 6–8- and 9–11-years age groups, bone age differences were smaller than those in the 12–14-years group; however, the differences between predicted adult height and actual adult height were larger than those in the 12–14-years group. TW3 overestimated adult height by 0.4±2.8 cm, while CH05 and BP significantly underestimated adult height by 2.9±3.6 cm and 1.3±3.8 cm, respectively. TW3 yielded the highest proportion of predicted adult height within ±5 cm of actual adult height (92.9%), with the highest correlation between predicted and actual adult heights.

Conclusion

The differences in measured bone ages increased with increasing bone age. However, the corresponding method for predicting adult height was more accurate when the bone age was older. TW3 might be more suitable than CH05 and BP for predicting adult height in girls with early puberty. Methods for predicting adult height should be optimized for populations of the same ethnicity and disease.
Performance of a deep convolutional neural network for MRI-based vertebral body measurements and insufficiency fracture detection
Authors: Germann Christoph , Meyer André N. , Staib Matthias , Sutter Reto , Fritz Benjamin
Published: December 2022

Objectives

The aim is to validate the performance of a deep convolutional neural network (DCNN) for vertebral body measurements and insufficiency fracture detection on lumbar spine MRI.

Methods

This retrospective analysis included 1000 vertebral bodies in 200 patients (age 75.2 ± 9.8 years) who underwent lumbar spine MRI at multiple institutions. 160/200 patients had ≥ one vertebral body insufficiency fracture, 40/200 had no fracture. The performance of the DCNN and that of two fellowship-trained musculoskeletal radiologists in vertebral body measurements (anterior/posterior height, extent of endplate concavity, vertebral angle) and evaluation for insufficiency fractures were compared. Statistics included (a) interobserver reliability metrics using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), kappa statistics, and Bland-Altman analysis, and (b) diagnostic performance metrics (sensitivity, specificity, accuracy). A statistically significant difference was accepted if the 95% confidence intervals did not overlap.

Results

The inter-reader agreement between radiologists and the DCNN was excellent for vertebral body measurements, with ICC values of > 0.94 for anterior and posterior vertebral height and vertebral angle, and good to excellent for superior and inferior endplate concavity with ICC values of 0.79–0.85. The performance of the DCNN in fracture detection yielded a sensitivity of 0.941 (0.903–0.968), specificity of 0.969 (0.954–0.980), and accuracy of 0.962 (0.948–0.973). The diagnostic performance of the DCNN was independent of the radiological institution (accuracy 0.964 vs. 0.960), type of MRI scanner (accuracy 0.957 vs. 0.964), and magnetic field strength (accuracy 0.966 vs. 0.957).

Conclusions

A DCNN can achieve high diagnostic performance in vertebral body measurements and insufficiency fracture detection on heterogeneous lumbar spine MRI.

Key Points

• A DCNN has the potential for high diagnostic performance in measuring vertebral bodies and detecting insufficiency fractures of the lumbar spine.
Hepatic hydrothorax does not increase the risk of death after transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt in cirrhosis patients
Authors: Gou Xiaoyuan , Jia Wenyuan , He Chuangye , Yuan Xulong , Niu Jing , Xu Jiao , Han Na , Zhu Ying , Wang Wenlan , Tie Jun
Published: December 2022

Objectives

Hepatic hydrothorax (HH) is a predictor of poor survival in cirrhosis patients. However, whether HH increases the mortality risk of cirrhosis patients treated with transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) is unknown. Our objective was to evaluate the influence of HH on the survival of cirrhosis patients after TIPS.

Methods

Cirrhosis patients with portal hypertension complications were selected from a prospective database of consecutive patients treated with TIPS in Xijing Hospital from January 2015 to June 2021. Cirrhosis patients with HH were treated as the experimental group. A control group of cirrhosis patients without HH was created using propensity score matching. Survival after TIPS and the related risk factors were analysed.

Results

There were 1292 cirrhosis patients with portal hypertension complications treated with TIPS, among whom 255 patients had HH. Compared with patients without HH, patients with HH had worse liver function (MELD, 12 vs. 10, p < 0.001), but no difference in survival after TIPS was observed. After propensity score matching, 243 patients with HH and 243 patients without HH were enrolled. There was no difference in cumulative survival between patients with and without HH. Cox regression analysis showed that HH was not associated with survival after TIPS, and main portal vein thrombosis (> 50%) was a prognostic factor of long-term survival after TIPS in cirrhosis patients (hazard ratio, 1.386; 95% CI, 1.030–1.865, p = 0.031).

Conclusion

Hepatic hydrothorax does not increase the risk of death after TIPS in cirrhosis patients.

Key Points

• Hepatic hydrothorax is a decompensated event of cirrhosis and increases the risk of death.

• Hepatic hydrothorax is associated with worse liver function.

• Hepatic hydrothorax does not increase the mortality of cirrhosis treated with TIPS.
Effective thermal conductivity of dimagnesium iron hexahydride (Mg2FeH6) for heat storage applications
Authors: Albert Rene , Wagner Christian , Urbanczyk Robert , Felderhoff Michael
Published: December 2022

The transient plane source method was applied to measure the effective thermal conductivity in dimagnesium iron hexahydride (Mg2FeH6) prepared in a high-pressure synthesis of 50 temperature-driven de-/hydrogenation cycles. Temperature- and pressure-dependent measurements of the effective thermal conductivity of the as-synthesized Mg2FeH6 powder have been performed. Measurements for as synthesized Mg2FeH6 were carried out between 2 and 100 bar in a temperature range from 50 °C to 300 °C and at 70 bar in a temperature range from 480 °C to 520 °C during the cycle test. The effective thermal conductivity of the as-synthesized Mg2FeH6 varied between 0.39 W m−1 K−1, recorded at 50 °C and 2 bar of hydrogen gas pressure, and 0.54 W m−1 K−1, measured at 300 °C and 100 bar hydrogen pressure. The effective thermal conductivity increased with elevated hydrogen gas pressure and temperature. An evidence was found that the presence of iron prevents the sintering of the powder, resulting in a constant effective thermal conductivity during all accomplished cycles. The advantage of a non-sintered material resulting in higher hydrogen diffusion, which leads to a faster reaction time. For 50 measured de-/hydrogenation cycles between 480 °C and 520 °C, the thermal conductivity was found to be constant at around ~ 1.0 W m−1 K−1 in the dehydrogenated state (70 bar/520 °C) and between 0.7 W m−1 K−1 and 0.8 W m−1 K−1 in the hydrogenated state (70 bar/480 °C).
High-latitude precipitation as a driver of multicentennial variability of the AMOC in a climate model of intermediate complexity
Authors: Mehling Oliver , Bellomo Katinka , Angeloni Michela , Pasquero Claudia , von Hardenberg Jost
Published: December 2022

Centennial-scale variability of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) in the absence of external forcing has been identified in several climate models, but proposed mechanisms differ considerably. Therefore, better understanding of processes governing AMOC variability at these timescales is needed. Here, we analyze numerical simulations with PlaSim-LSG, an Earth System Model Intermediate Complexity (EMIC), which exhibits strong multicentennial oscillations of AMOC strength under constant pre-industrial boundary conditions. We identify a novel mechanism in which these oscillations are driven by salinity anomalies from the Arctic Ocean, which can be attributed to changes in high-latitude precipitation. We further corroborate our findings by conducting a set of millennial-length sensitivity experiments, and we interpret the mechanism by formulating a three-box model which qualitatively reproduces regular oscillations of the AMOC. While PlaSim-LSG lacks complexity compared to state-of-the-art models, our results reveal that precipitation minus evaporation (P–E) change in the Arctic is a physically plausible driver of centennial-scale AMOC variability. We discuss how this mechanism might be most relevant in climate states warmer than the present-day, raising questions about the state-dependence of multicentennial AMOC variability.
On the Complexity of Binary Polynomial Optimization Over Acyclic Hypergraphs
Authors: Del Pia Alberto , Di Gregorio Silvia
Published: December 2022

In this work, we advance the understanding of the fundamental limits of computation for binary polynomial optimization (BPO), which is the problem of maximizing a given polynomial function over all binary points. In our main result we provide a novel class of BPO that can be solved efficiently both from a theoretical and computational perspective. In fact, we give a strongly polynomial-time algorithm for instances whose corresponding hypergraph is$$\beta $$β-acyclic. We note that the$$\beta $$β-acyclicity assumption is natural in several applications including relational database schemes and the lifted multicut problem on trees. Due to the novelty of our proving technique, we obtain an algorithm which is interesting also from a practical viewpoint. This is because our algorithm is very simple to implement and the running time is a polynomial of very low degree in the number of nodes and edges of the hypergraph. Our result completely settles the computational complexity of BPO over acyclic hypergraphs, since the problem is NP-hard on$$\alpha $$α-acyclic instances. Our algorithm can also be applied to any general BPO problem that contains$$\beta $$β-cycles. For these problems, the algorithm returns a smaller instance together with a rule to extend any optimal solution of the smaller instance to an optimal solution of the original instance.
Hyperlactatemia and altered lactate kinetics are associated with excess mortality in sepsis
Authors: Rezar Richard , Mamandipoor Behrooz , Seelmaier Clemens , Jung Christian , Lichtenauer Michael , Hoppe Uta C. , Kaufmann Reinhard , Osmani Venet , Wernly Bernhard
Published: December 2022

Severe hyperlactatemia (>10mmol/L) or impaired lactate metabolism are known to correlate with increased mortality. The maximum lactate concentration on day 1 of 10,724 septic patients from the eICU Collaborative Research Database was analyzed and patients were divided into three groups based on maximum lactate in the first 24 h (<5mmol/l; ≥5mmol/l & <10mmol/l; ≥10mmol/l). In addition, delta lactate was calculated using the following formula: (maximum lactate day 1 minus maximum lactate day 2) divided by maximum lactate day 1. A multilevel regression analysis was performed, with hospital mortality serving as the primary study end point. Significant differences in hospital mortality were found in patients with hyperlactatemia (lactate ≥10mmol/l: 79%, ≥5mmol/l & <10mmol/l: 43%, <5mmol/l, 13%; p<0.001). The sensitivity of severe hyperlactatemia (≥10mmol/l) for hospital mortality was 17%, the specificity was 99%. In patients with negative delta lactate in the first 24 h, hospital mortality was excessive (92%). In conclusion, mortality in patients with severe hyperlactatemia is very high, especially if it persists for more than 24 h. Severe hyperlactatemia, together with clinical parameters, could therefore provide a basis for setting treatment limits.
Prevalence and dynamics of NAFLD-associated fibrosis in people living with HIV in Vienna from first presentation to last follow-up
Authors: Schwarz Caroline , Chromy David , Bauer David , Duong Nikki , Schmidbauer Victor Ulrich , Schwarz Michael , Mandorfer Mattias , Rieger Armin , Trauner Michael , Gschwantler Michael , Reiberger Thomas
Published: December 2022

Background/aims

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is frequent in people living with HIV (PLWH) and may be aggravated by metabolic comorbidities and antiretroviral therapy (ART)-associated adverse effects.

Methods

We retrospectively assessed epidemiological, clinical and laboratory parameters and ART regimens at HIV diagnosis (BL) and at last follow-up (FU) in 1458 PLWH without viral hepatitis coinfection attending our HIV clinic in 2014–2016. Fibrosis was non-invasively assessed by the NAFLD fibrosis score (NFS).

Results

The median age of subjects was 37.8 years, 77.4% were male and 67.2% on ART, median CD4+ count was 356.0 cells/µL. At BL, 503 (34.5%) and 20 (1.4%) PLWH had dyslipidemia and diabetes, respectively. According to the NFS 16 (1.3%) showed advanced fibrosis (NFS ≥ 0.676), among which 1 (6.3%) had diabetes, 7 (43.8%) had dyslipidemia, and 5 (31.3%) were on HIV-protease inhibitors (PI). In addition, 191(15.1%) had intermediate NFS results, while fibrosis was ruled out (NFS ≤ 1.455) in 1065 (83.7%) PLWH.

After a median follow-up of 6.3 years, 590 (42.8%) had dyslipidemia and 61 (4.4%) had diabetes. Also, 21 (1.6%) showed advanced fibrosis, of which 10 (47.6%) had diabetes, 4 (19.0%) had dyslipidemia, and 9 (42.9%) were on PI-based ART, 223 (17.4%) had intermediate NFS results, while 1039 (81.0%) showed no fibrosis.

Conclusion

During FU, advanced NAFLD fibrosis occurred in 1.3–1.6% of PLWH. Dyslipidemia, diabetes, and PI-based ART were associated with advanced NAFLD fibrosis. Prospective investigations of NAFLD severity and risk factors in PLWH are warranted.
A prospective study of shared decision-making in brain tumor surgery
Authors: Leu Severina , Cahill Julian , Grundy Paul L.
Published: December 2022

Purpose

Shared decision-making (SDM) is a key tenet of personalized care and is becoming an essential component of informed consent in an increasing number of countries. The aim of this study is to analyze patient and healthcare staff satisfaction with the SDM process before and after SDM was officially introduced as the standard of care. Decision grids are important tools in the SDM process, and we developed them for three different types of intracranial tumors.

Methods

This prospective study was conducted in a high-volume neuro-oncological center on all consecutive eligible patients undergoing consideration of treatment for intracranial glioma and metastases. Twenty-two patients participated before and 74 after the introduction of SDM. Six and 5 staff members respectively participated in the analysis before and after team training and the introduction of SDM. The main outcome was patient and healthcare staff satisfaction with the SDM process.

Results

Patients reported high satisfaction with the SDM process before (mean CollaboRATE score 26 of 27 points) and after (mean CollaboRATE score 26.3 of 27 points, p = 0.23) the introduction of SDM. Interestingly, staff attitude toward SDM improved significantly from 61.68 before to 90.95% after the introduction of SDM (p-value < 0.001). Decision grids that were developed for three different types of intracranial tumors are presented.

Conclusions

Team training in SDM and the introduction of techniques into daily practice can increase staff satisfaction with the SDM process. High levels of patient satisfaction were observed before, with a non-significant increase after the introduction of SDM. Decision grids are an important tool to facilitate the conveyance and understanding of complex information and to achieve SDM in daily clinical practice.
Khurayyimite Ca7Zn4(Si2O7)2(OH)10·4H2O: a mineral with unusual loop-branched sechser single chains
Authors: Krüger Biljana , Galuskina Irina O. , Galuskin Evgeny V. , Vapnik Yevgeny , Murashko Mikhail N.
Published: December 2022

The new mineral khurayyimite Ca7Zn4(Si2O7)2(OH)10·4H2O occurs in colorless spherulitic aggregates in small cavities of altered spurrite marbles located in the northern part of the Siwaqa pyrometamorphic rock area, Central Jordan. It is a low-temperature, hydrothermal mineral and is formed at a temperature lower than 100 °C. Synchrotron single-crystal X-ray diffraction experiments have revealed that khurayyimite crystallizes in space group P21/c, with unit cell parameters a = 11.2171(8), b = 9.0897(5), c = 14.0451(10) Å, β = 113.297(8)º, V = 1315.28(17) Å3 and Z = 2. The crystal structure of khurayyimite exhibits tetrahedral chains of periodicity 6. The sequence of SiO4 and ZnO2(OH)2-tetrahedra along the chain is Si–Si-Zn. The neighboring SiO4-tetrahedra of the corrugated chains are bridged by additional ZnO2(OH)2-tetrahedra to form 3-connected dreier rings. The chains can be addressed as loop-branched sechser single chains {lB, 11∞}[6Zn4Si4O21]. The chains are linked by clusters of five CaO6 and two CaO7 polyhedra with additional OH groups and H2O molecules in the coordination environment. Based on the connectedness and one-dimensional polymerisations of tetrahedra (TO4)n−, chains of khurayyimite belong to the same group as vlasovite Na2ZrSi4O11, since they can be described with geometrical repeat unit cTr = 2T43T4 and topological repeat unit cVr = 2V23V2.
Simultaneous regulation of ferroptosis suppressor protein 1 and glutathione peroxidase 4 as a new therapeutic strategy of ferroptosis for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Miyauchi Wataru , Shishido Yuji , Matsumi Yoshiaki , Matsunaga Tomoyuki , Makinoya Masahiro , Shimizu Shota , Miyatani Kozo , Sakamoto Teruhisa , Umekita Yoshihisa , Hasegawa Toshimichi , Fujiwara Yoshiyuki
Published: December 2022

Background

Ferroptosis suppressor protein 1 and glutathione peroxidase 4 have been identified as key molecules in two independent pathways associated with ferroptosis inhibition. This study investigated the prognostic significance and clinical associations of FSP1 and GPX4 expression in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) and assessed the therapeutic potential of regulating these molecules in ESCC cells.

Methods

Immunohistochemical analysis was performed on surgical specimens of 97 patients with ESCC for FSP1 and GPX4 expression. To identify the change in ESCC cell viability, FSP1 and GPX4 inhibitors were administered to three cell lines. In addition, ferroptosis as the cause of reduced cell viability by FSP1 and GPX4 inhibition was confirmed.

Results

Prognosis was significantly worse for patients in the group positive for both FSP1 and GPX4 compared with the other groups (p < 0.001). In multivariate analysis, positivity for both FSP1 and GPX4 was an independent poor prognostic factor (p = 0.002). The combination of FSP1 and GPX4 inhibitors induced cell death more potently than each inhibitor did alone. Furthermore, the ferroptosis inhibitor markedly canceled this cell death.

Conclusions

Overexpression of FSP1 and GPX4 is a poor prognostic factor for patients with ESCC. Simultaneous suppression of both FSP1 and GPX4 caused potent cell death, which was markedly abrogated by ferroptosis inhibitors. These findings indicate that simultaneous regulation of FSP1 and GPX4 may be a new therapeutic target in ESCC.
Seasonal measurements of the nitrogenous osmolyte glycine betaine in marine temperate coastal waters
Authors: Airs Ruth L. , Beale Rachael , Polimene Luca , Chen Yin , Mausz Michaela A. , Scanlan David J. , Widdicombe Claire E. , Tarran Glen A. , Woodward E. Malcolm S. , Harris Carolyn , McEvoy Andrea
Published: December 2022

Glycine betaine (GBT) is a nitrogenous osmolyte ubiquitous throughout the marine environment. Despite its widespread occurrence and significance in microbial cycling, knowledge of the seasonality of this compound is lacking. Here, we present a seasonal dataset of GBT concentrations in marine suspended particulate material. Analysing coastal waters in the Western English Channel, GBT peaked in summer and autumn but did not follow the observed maxima in total phytoplankton biomass or chlorophyll a. Instead, we found evidence that GBT concentrations were associated with specific phytoplankton groups or species, particularly in the summer when GBT correlated with dinoflagellate biomass. In contrast, autumn maxima corresponded with a period of rapidly changing salinity and nutrient availability, with potential contributions from some phytoplankton species and Harpacticoid copepods. This suggests distinct environmental drivers for different periods of the GBT seasonality. Building on evidence that GBT and dinoflagellate biomass peak in summer, concomitantly with low nutrients, we propose that GBT positively affects dinoflagellate fitness, allowing them to outcompete other plankton when inorganic nutrients are depleted. By using this assumption, we improved the performance of a marine ecosystem model to reproduce the observed increase in dinoflagellates biomass in the transition from spring to summer. This work sheds light on the interplay between phytoplankton succession, competitive advantage and changing environmental factors relevant to climate change. It paves the way for future multidisciplinary research aiming to understand the importance of dinoflagellates in key coastal ecosystems and their potential significance for methylamine production, compounds relevant for particle growth in atmospheric chemistry.
A retrospective study in tumour characteristics and clinical outcomes of overweight and obese women with breast cancer
Authors: Luís Carla , Dias João , Firmino-Machado João , Fernandes Rute , Pereira Deolinda , Baylina Pilar , Fernandes Rúben , Soares Raquel
Published: December 2022

Introduction

Obesity and breast cancer are two major pathologies closely associated with increasing incidence and mortality rates, especially amongst women. The association between both diseases have been thoroughly discussed but much is still to uncover.

Aim

The aim of this study is to analyse tumour characteristics and clinical outcomes of overweight and obese women to disclosure potential associations and better understand the impact of obesity in breast cancer.

Materials and methods

Clinicopathological information of 2246 women were extracted from the institutional database of comprehensive cancer centre in Portugal diagnosed between 2012 and 2016. Women were stratified according to body mass index as normal, overweight, and obese. Patients’ demographic information and tumour features (age, family history, topographic localization, laterality, histological type, and receptor status) were taken as independent variables and overall survival, tumour stage, differentiation grade and bilaterality were considered clinical outcomes.

Results

The main results reveal that overweight and obesity are predominantly associated with worse outcomes in breast cancer patients. Obese patients present larger (p-value: 0.002; OR 1.422; 95% CI 1.134–1.783) and more poorly differentiated tumours (p-value: 0.002; OR 1.480; 95% CI 1.154–1.898) and tend to have lower overall survival although without statistical significance (p-value: 0.117; OR 1.309; 95% CI 0.934–1.833). Overweighted women are more likely to have bilateral breast cancer (p-value: 0.017; OR 3.076; 95% CI 1.225–7.722) than obese women. The results also reveal that overweight women present less distant metastasis (p-value: 0.024; OR 0.525; 95%CI 0.299–0.920). Topographic localization and laterality did not achieve statistical significance.
The Invisible Racialized Minority Entrepreneur: Using White Solipsism to Explain the White Space
Authors: Garcia Rosanna , Baack Daniel W.
Published: December 2022

Few studies in the business ethics literature explore marginalized populations, such as the racially minoritized entrepreneur. This absence is an ethical issue for the business academy as it limits the advancement of racial epistemologies. This study explores how this exclusionary space emerges within the academy by identifying white solipsistic behavior, an ‘othering’ of minoritized populations. Using a multi-method approach, we find the business literature homogenizes the racially minoritized business owner regardless of race/ethnic origin and categorizes them as lacking in comparison to White entrepreneurs. A critical discourse analysis of university entrepreneurship website language and images reveals that the racially minoritized are presented as the outgroup. The language used to describe entrepreneurs was found to be predominantly agentic, building a hegemonic categorization of White men dominating entrepreneurship. Troublingly, but consistent with the literature review, when racialized minorities were present in images, we found them to be marginalized. Employing an experimental design to mock-up four websites featuring student entrepreneurs differing by race and gender, we ask ‘what if we make these under-represented entrepreneurs visible?’ Results show that women, and specifically racially minoritized women, have a greater impact on the entrepreneurial interests of university students compared to men. Overall, the results provide empirical evidence for white solipsism in the business academy. We call for self-reflexivity to transparentize the ‘invisible’ racially minoritized entrepreneur and fill the ‘white space’ by changing the framing and context of business research to be more inclusive.
Electoral reform: the case for majority judgment
Authors: Laraki Rida
Published: December 2022

The majority judgment (MJ) voting method works well in theory and in practice. Not only does MJ avoid the classical Condorcet and Arrow paradoxes, but it also overcomes the domination paradox, from which paired comparisons by majority rule, approval voting, and all Condorcet consistent methods suffer. This article also shows why MJ best reduces the impact of strategic manipulation and minimizes ties to the extreme. The article illustrates the resistance of MJ to manipulations in a real example, discusses other salient properties of MJ, and summarizes several recent applications that show MJ to be, despite its newness, the right basis of electoral reform.
A comparative analysis of different recommender systems for university major and career domain guidance
Authors: Lahoud Christine , Moussa Sherin , Obeid Charbel , Khoury Hicham El , Champin Pierre-Antoine
Published: December 2022

Academic advising is inhibited at most of the high schools to help students identify appropriate academic pathways. The choice of a career domain is significantly influenced by the complexity of life and the volatility of the labor market. Thus, high school students feel confused during the shift period from high school to university, especially with the enormous amounts of data available on the Web. In this paper, an extensive comparative study is conducted to investigate five approaches of recommender systems for university study field and career domain guidance. A novel ontology is constructed to include all the needed information for this purpose. The developed approaches considered user-based and item-based collaborative filtering, demographic-based recommendation, knowledge base supported by case-based reasoning, ontology, as well as different hybridizations of them. A case study on Lebanese high school students is analyzed to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of the implemented approaches. The experimental results indicate that the knowledge-based hybrid recommender system, combined with the user-based collaborative filtering and braced with case-based reasoning as well as ontology, generated 98% of similar cases, 95% of them are personalized based on the interests of the high school students. The average usefulness feedback and satisfaction level of the students concerning this proposed hybrid approach reached 95% and 92.5% respectively, which could be a solution to similar problems, regardless of the application domain. Besides, the constructed ontology could be reused in other systems in the educational domain.
How Low Can You Go? A Limbo Dance for Low-Latency Network Functions
Authors: Gallenmüller Sebastian , Wiedner Florian , Naab Johannes , Carle Georg
Published: December 2022

Throughput is a commonly used performance indicator for networks. However, throughput may be considered insignificant if data is outdated or networks become unpredictable or unreliable. Critical services may even prioritize latency, predictability, and reliability at the expense of throughput to avoid detrimental effects on service operation. Latency, predictability, and reliability are distinct qualities realized in real-time systems. Real-time systems often require additional effort using non-standard interfaces, requiring customized software, or providing low throughput figures. This work picks up the challenge and investigates a single-server network function—a building block for end-to-end low-latency network applications. Assessing reliability and quantifying low latency is equally challenging, as sub-microsecond latency and $$1/10^{5}$$

1
/

10
5

loss probability leave little room for error. Both, our measurement and the investigated platforms, rely on Linux running on off-the-shelf components. Our paper provides a comprehensive study on the impact of various components on latency and reliability, such as the central processing unit (CPU), the Linux Kernel, the network card, virtualization features, and the networking application itself. We chose Suricata, an intrusion prevention system (IPS), representing a widely deployed, typical network application as our primary subject of investigation.
Mathematically productive relationships (MPRs): a potentially effective classroom management approach
Authors: Liu Jinqing , Francis Dionne Cross , Lloyd Kemol , Eker Ayfer
Published: December 2022

Positive teacher–student relationships are considered essential for effective classroom management. Thus, focusing efforts to understand better and strengthen teacher–student relationships in order to improve student outcome metrics is prudent. This study examined seven elementary teachers’ descriptions and enactment of mathematically productive relationships (MPRs), a type of teacher-student relationship, and their influence on classroom management practices. Teachers’ descriptions of MPRs incorporated four themes: (a) creating safe, mistake-friendly environments, (b) developing trust and respect between the teacher and the students, (c) establishing and maintaining clear and high expectations, and (d) ensuring that classrooms remain safe spaces. However, these features did not always appear in the teachers’ classrooms. The enactment of MPRs varied across cases, with the participants’ classroom management priorities lying along a continuum from behavioural management to cognitive engagement. Implications of MPRs and the influence of different classroom management practices on students’ learning opportunities are discussed.
People underestimate their capability to motivate themselves without performance-based extrinsic incentives
Authors: Kuratomi Kei , Johnsen Laura , Kitagami Shinji , Hatano Aya , Murayama Kou
Published: December 2022

Research has shown that we are endowed with a remarkable capacity to motivate ourselves in the absence of extrinsic incentives (i.e. intrinsic motivation). However, little research has been conducted to investigate whether we accurately appreciate the power of intrinsic motivation. The current research aimed to examine the metacognitive accuracy of the extent to which people can motivate themselves without performance-based extrinsic incentives. Participants were presented with a relatively long and repetitive task without extrinsic incentives, and before doing the task, they were asked to predict their motivation on completion of the task. Across seven experiments using a variety of tasks with different populations from different countries, participants were consistently engaged in the task more actively than they predicted. When participants were provided with performance-based monetary rewards, however, this bias was diminished. These results indicate that we tend to underappreciate our capability to sustain our motivation without extrinsic incentives.
Hyperbolic summation for functions of the GCD and LCM of several integers
Authors: Heyman Randell , Tóth László
Published: December 2022

Let $$k\ge 2$$

k
≥
2

be a fixed integer. We consider sums of type $$\sum _{n_1\cdots n_k\le x} F(n_1,\ldots ,n_k)$$

∑

n
1

⋯

n
k

≤
x

F

(

n
1

,
…
,

n
k

)

, taken over the hyperbolic region $$\{(n_1,\ldots ,n_k)\in {\mathbb {N}}^k: n_1\cdots n_k\le x\}$$

{

(

n
1

,
…
,

n
k

)

∈

N

k

:

n
1

⋯

n
k

≤
x
}

, where $$F:{\mathbb {N}}^k\rightarrow {\mathbb {C}}$$

F
:

N

k

→
C

is a given function. In particular, we deduce asymptotic formulas with remainder terms for the hyperbolic summations $$\sum _{n_1\cdots n_k\le x} f((n_1,\ldots ,n_k))$$

∑

n
1

⋯

n
k

≤
x

f

(

(

n
1

,
…
,

n
k

)

)

and $$\sum _{n_1\cdots n_k\le x} f([n_1,\ldots ,n_k])$$

∑

n
1

⋯

n
k

≤
x

f

(

[

n
1

,
…
,

n
k

]

)

, involving the GCD and LCM of the integers $$n_1,\ldots ,n_k$$

n
1

,
…
,

n
k

, where $$f:{\mathbb {N}}\rightarrow {\mathbb {C}}$$

f
:
N
→
C

belongs to certain classes of functions. Some of our results generalize those obtained by the authors (Heyman and Tóth in Results Math 76(1): 22, 2021) for $$k=2$$

k
=
2

.
A novel application of a bioactive material as a pit and fissure sealant: in vitro pilot study evaluating the sealing ability and penetration
Authors: Bishayi D. , Srinivasan A. , Mahabala K. Y. , Natarajan S. , Rao A. , Nayak A. P.
Published: December 2022

Purpose

To compare the sealing ability and penetration of a bioactive material used as pit and fissure sealant to those of glass ionomer sealant.

Methods

This was an in vitro experimental study conducted on 20 permanent teeth. For Group I of ten teeth, ACTIVA BioACTIVE-Base/Liner was applied as a sealant on pits and fissures, and the remaining ten teeth of Group II were sealed using glass ionomer cement. After thermocycling, the apex of the teeth was sealed using composite resin and they were immersed in 1% methylene blue solution, buffered at pH 7 for 24 h. Longitudinal sections were obtained from each tooth for evaluating the sealing ability and penetration, using a binocular light microscope at 4 × magnification. The obtained data were subjected to analysis using the Chi-square test and independent t test.

Results

The comparison of the sealing ability and sealant penetration, between the two groups, showed statistically no significant difference (p = 0.104 and p = 1.0, respectively).

Conclusion

Bioactive material as a pit and fissure sealant, performed on par with glass ionomer sealant in terms of tested properties like sealing ability and penetration.
A cross-domain fruit classification method based on lightweight attention networks and unsupervised domain adaptation
Authors: Wang Jin , Zhang Cheng , Yan Ting , Yang Jingru , Lu Xiaohui , Lu Guodong , Huang Bincheng
Published: December 2022

Image-based fruit classification offers many useful applications in industrial production and daily life, such as self-checkout in the supermarket, automatic fruit sorting and dietary guidance. However, fruit classification task will have different data distributions due to different application scenarios. One feasible solution to solve this problem is to use domain adaptation that adapts knowledge from the original training data (source domain) to the new testing data (target domain). In this paper, we propose a novel deep learning-based unsupervised domain adaptation method for cross-domain fruit classification. A hybrid attention module is proposed and added to MobileNet V3 to construct the HAM-MobileNet that can suppress the impact of complex backgrounds and extract more discriminative features. A hybrid loss function combining subdomain alignment and implicit distribution metrics is used to reduce domain discrepancy during model training and improve model classification performance. Two fruit classification datasets covering several domains are established to simulate common industrial and daily life application scenarios. We validate the proposed method on our constructed grape classification dataset and general fruit classification dataset. The experimental results show that the proposed method achieves an average accuracy of 95.0% and 93.2% on the two datasets, respectively. The classification model after domain adaptation can well overcome the domain discrepancy brought by different fruit classification scenarios. Meanwhile, the proposed datasets and method can serve as a benchmark for future cross-domain fruit classification research.
Conceptualisations of curriculum co-creation: ‘it’s not them and us, it’s just us’
Authors: Lubicz-Nawrocka Tanya
Published: December 2022

Building on the growing field of curriculum co-creation in higher education, this research analyses current conceptualisations of this concept based on the perceptions of student and staff co-creation practitioners. It draws on a rigorous review of international curriculum co-creation literature and describes in-depth research on experiences and conceptualisations of fifteen curriculum co-creation initiatives across eight subject areas at five universities in Scotland. Following an inductive analysis, the findings highlight conceptualisations of curriculum co-creation that focus on (A) developing shared values, (B) enhancing creativity through collaboration and (C) negotiating power for mutual benefit. These findings are discussed with respect to how they contribute to a new definition: curriculum co-creation is a relational way of working underpinned by shared responsibility, reciprocity in learning from each other, mutual respect, care, trust and empathy. This values-based, creative process helps staff and students work together to share and negotiate decision-making about aspects of curricula, which often leads to mutual benefits for learners and teachers. This new definition encompasses current conceptualisations of curriculum co-creation in the rapidly-changing higher education sector, with implications for fostering resilient, authentic and meaningful pedagogies that are relevant to today’s challenges in higher education and beyond.
Domain adversarial training for classification of cracking in images of concrete surfaces
Authors: Oliveira Santos Bruno , Valença Jónatas , Costeira João P. , Julio Eduardo
Published: December 2022

The development of automatic methods to recognize cracks in surfaces of concrete has been under focus in recent years, firstly through computer vision methods and more recently focusing on convolutional neural networks that are delivering promising results. Challenges are still persisting in crack recognition, namely due to the confusion added by the myriad of elements commonly found on concrete surfaces. The robustness of these methods would deal with these elements if access to correspondingly heterogeneous datasets was possible. Even so, this would be a cumbersome methodology, since training would be needed for each particular case and models would be case dependent. Thus, efforts from the scientific community are focusing on generalizing neural network models to achieve high performance in images from different domains, slightly different from those in which they were effectively trained. The generalization of networks can be achieved by domain adaptation techniques at the training stage. Domain adaptation enables finding a feature space in which features from both domains are invariant, and thus, classes become separable. The work presented here proposes the DA-Crack method, which is a domain adversarial training method, to generalize a neural network for recognizing cracks in images of concrete surfaces. The domain adversarial method uses a convolutional extractor followed by a classifier and a discriminator, and relies on two datasets: a source labeled dataset and a target unlabeled small dataset. The classifier is responsible for the classification of images randomly chosen, while the discriminator is dedicated to uncovering to which dataset each image belongs. Backpropagation from the discriminator reverses the gradient used to update the extractor. This enables fighting the convergence promoted by the updating backpropagated from the classifier, and thus generalizing the extractor enabling it for crack recognition of images from both source and target datasets. Results show that the DA-Crack training method improved accuracy in crack classification of images from the target dataset in 54 percentage points, while accuracy on the source dataset remains unaffected.
On a quasilinear elliptic problem involving the 1-Laplacian operator and a discontinuous nonlinearity
Authors: Pimenta Marcos T. O. , dos Santos Gelson Conceição G. , Santos Júnior João R.
Published: December 2022

In this work, we study a quasilinear elliptic problem involving the 1-Laplacian operator, with a discontinuous, superlinear and subcritical nonlinearity involving the Heaviside function $H(\cdot - \beta )$. Our approach is based on an analysis of the associated p-Laplacian problem, followed by a thorough analysis of the asymptotic behaviour or such solutions as $p \to 1^+$. We study also the asymptotic behaviour of the solutions, as $\beta \to 0^+$ and we prove that it converges to a solution of the original problem, without the discontinuity in the nonlinearity.