bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Advances and challenges in cancer treatment and nutraceutical prevention: the possible role of dietary phenols in BRCA regulation
Authors: Khan Haroon , Labanca Fabiana , Ullah Hammad , Hussain Yaseen , Tzvetkov Nikolay T. , Akkol Esra Küpeli , Milella Luigi 
Published: September 2021

AbstractOver the years, the attention towards the role of phytochemicals in dietary natural products in reducing the risk of developing cancer is rising. Cancer is the second primary cause of mortality worldwide. The current therapeutic options for cancer treatment are surgical excision, immunotherapy, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy. Unfortunately, in case of metastases or chemoresistance, the treatment options become very limited. Despite the advances in medical and pharmaceutical sciences, the impact of available treatments on survival is not satisfactory. Recently, natural products are a great deal of interest as potential anti-cancer agents. Among them, phenolic compounds have gained a great deal of interest, thanks to their anti-cancer activity. The present review focuses on the suppression of cancer by targeting BRCA gene expression using dietary polyphenols, as well as the clinical aspects of polyphenolic agents in cancer therapy. They regulate specific key processes involved in cancer progression and modulate the expression of oncogenic proteins, like p27, p21, and p53, which may lead to apoptosis, cell cycle arrest, inhibition of cell proliferation, and, consequently, cancer suppression. Thus, one of the mechanisms underlying the anti-cancer activity of phenolics involves the regulation of tumor suppressor genes. Among them, the BRCA genes, with the two forms (BRCA-1 and BRCA-2), play a pivotal role in cancer protection and prevention. BRCA germline mutations are associated with an increased risk of developing several types of cancers, including ovarian, breast, and prostate cancers. BRCA genes also play a key role in the sensitivity and response of cancer cells to specific pharmacological treatments. As the importance of BRCA-1 and BRCA-2 in reducing cancer invasiveness, repairing DNA damages, oncosoppression, and cell cycle checkpoint, their regulation by natural molecules has been examined.
Ground-Penetrating Radar as phenotyping tool for characterizing intraspecific variability in root traits of a widespread conifer
Authors: Lombardi Erica , Ferrio Juan Pedro , Rodríguez-Robles Ulises , Resco de Dios Víctor , Voltas Jordi 
Published: September 2021

AbstractBackground and AimDrought is the main abiotic stress affecting Mediterranean forests. Root systems are responsible for water uptake, but intraspecific variability in tree root morphology is poorly understood mainly owing to sampling difficulties. The aim of this study was to gain knowledge on the adaptive relevance of rooting traits for a widespread pine using a non-invasive, high-throughput phenotyping technique.MethodsGround-Penetrating Radar (GPR) was used to characterize variability in coarse root features (depth, diameter and frequency) among populations of the Mediterranean coniferPinus halepensisevaluated in a common garden. GPR records were examined in relation to aboveground growth and climate variables at origin of populations.ResultsVariability was detected for root traits among 56 range-wide populations categorized into 16 ecotypes. Root diameter decreased eastward within the Mediterranean basin. In turn, root frequency, but not depth and diameter, decreased following a northward gradient. Root traits also varied with climatic variables at origin such as the ratio of summer to annual precipitation, summer temperature or solar radiation. Particularly, root frequency increased with aridity, whereas root depth and diameter were maximum for ecotypes occupying the thermal midpoint of the species distribution range.ConclusionGPR is a high-throughput phenotyping tool that allows detection of intraspecific variation in root traits ofP. halepensisand its dependencies on eco-geographic characteristics at origin, thereby informing on the adaptive relevance of root systems for the species. It is also potentially suited for inferring population divergence in resource allocation above- and belowground in forest genetic trials.
Exploring Employee Perceptions towards Smart Working during the COVID-19 Pandemic: a Comparative Analysis of Two Italian Public Research Organizations
Authors: Cellini Marco , Pisacane Lucio , Crescimbene Massimo , Di Felice Fabio 
Published: September 2021

AbstractOf all the socio-economic changes caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the disruption to workforce organizations will probably leave the largest indelible mark. The way work will be organized in the future will be closely linked to the experience of working under the same institution’s response to the pandemic. This paper aims to fill the gap in knowledge about smart working (SW) in public organizations, with a focus on the experience of the employees of two Italian research organizations, CNR and INGV. Analysing primary data, it explored and assessed how SW had been experienced following the implementation of governmental measures aimed at limiting the spread of COVID-19.
The Crit coefficient in Mokken scale analysis: a simulation study and an application in quality-of-life research
Authors: Crișan Daniela R. , Tendeiro Jorge N. , Meijer Rob R. 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
Purpose
In Mokken scaling, the Crit index was proposed and is sometimes used as evidence (or lack thereof) of violations of some common model assumptions. The main goal of our study was twofold: To make the formulation of the Crit index explicit and accessible, and to investigate its distribution under various measurement conditions.

Methods
We conducted two simulation studies in the context of dichotomously scored item responses. We manipulated the type of assumption violation, the proportion of violating items, sample size, and quality. False positive rates and power to detect assumption violations were our main outcome variables. Furthermore, we used the Crit coefficient in a Mokken scale analysis to a set of responses to the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), a self-administered questionnaire for assessing current mental health.

Results
We found that the false positive rates of Crit were close to the nominal rate in most conditions, and that power to detect misfit depended on the sample size, type of violation, and number of assumption-violating items. Overall, in small samples Crit lacked the power to detect misfit, and in larger samples power differed considerably depending on the type of violation and proportion of misfitting items. Furthermore, we also found in our empirical example that even in large samples the Crit index may fail to detect assumption violations.

Discussion
Even in large samples, the Crit coefficient showed limited usefulness for detecting moderate and severe violations of monotonicity. Our findings are relevant to researchers and practitioners who use Mokken scaling for scale and questionnaire construction and revision.
CEO age, shareholder monitoring, and the organic growth of European firms
Authors: Barba Navaretti Giorgio , Castellani Davide , Pieri Fabio 
Published: September 2021

AbstractThe question of why some firms grow faster than others is of high theoretical and practical importance. Beyond a wealth of studies based on stochastic models, firm growth has mostly been explained by looking at the structural characteristics of firms, sectors, and countries. The role of managers’ characteristics in fostering firms’ growth has been explored much less. In this study, we adopt one key characteristic of managers, the age of the chief executive officer (CEO) and examine its relationship with the firm’s organic growth. Using data from a large sample of European manufacturing firms, we find that firms managed by young CEOs grow faster in terms of sales and assets, but not in terms of profitability. These results hold with the inclusion of a large vector of firm and CEO characteristics, and a battery of robustness checks, including issues related to the time horizon and appointment of CEOs, the educational attainment of younger cohorts of managers, and endogeneity. We hypothesize that young CEOs are incentivized to boost firm growth to signal their talent in the managerial market and to secure a longer stream of future compensation benefits. To the extent that firm growth does not translate into higher profitability, this may create an agency problem, due to the divergence of this corporate strategy from shareholders’ targets. In line with this hypothesis, we find that a more concentrated ownership that allows for more effective monitoring moderates the relationship between CEO age and firm growth.
Error bounds for the spectral approximation of the potential of a homogeneous almost spherical body
Authors: Bucha Blažej , Rossi Lorenzo , Sansò Fernando 
Published: September 2021

AbstractSeveral kinds of approximation of the gravitational potential of a homogeneous body by truncated spherical harmonics series are in use in physical geodesy. However, only one of them is capable of a representation converging to the true potential in the whole layer between the Brillouin sphere and the Bjerhammar sphere of the body. We aim at providing various majorizations, namely upper bounds, of the error with the double purpose of proving explicitly the convergence in the sense of different norms and of giving computable bounds, that might be used in numerical studies. The first aim is reached for all the norms. For the second, however, it turns out that among the bounds, when applied to the example of the terrain correction of the Earth, only those referring to the mean absolute error and the mean squared error at the level of Brillouin sphere of minimum radius give significant and useful results. In order to make the computation an easy exercise, a simple approximate formula has been developed requiring only the use of the distribution function of the heights of the surface of the body with respect to the Bjerhammar sphere.
Heterogeneity in Trajectories of Life Satisfaction After Reunification: The Role of Individual Resources and Life Stage in Former East Germany
Authors: Wetzel Martin , Wörn Jonathan , Hünteler Bettina , Hank Karsten 
Published: September 2021

AbstractFor people living in the former East Germany, reunification with the former West Germany fundamentally transformed the sociopolitical system and most domains of everyday life. Previous research has revealed temporal shifts in average life satisfaction after reunification in the former East German population as a whole, but so far little is known about heterogeneity in patterns of adjustment within the population. Building on evidence of considerable diversity in trajectories of adjustment to other critical life events, in the current study we use longitudinal data from the German Socio-Economic Panel Study and growth mixture models to identify typical yet distinct trajectories of life satisfaction among former East Germans, covering the period just before reunification and four years thereafter. We identified four trajectories: continuously satisfied (experienced by 17% of the sample), upward adjusters (24%), downward adjusters (34%), and continuously dissatisfied (25%). Results of logistic regression analyses indicate that the propensity to follow a particular trajectory was strongly predicted by an individual’s baseline economic (employment, but not income), socio-relational (loneliness) and personal (education, satisfaction with health) resources. Whereas former East Germans with more resources just prior to reunification were more likely to maintain high or increase in life satisfaction, their peers with fewer resources were more apt to either maintain low or decrease in life satisfaction. People in their mid-twenties through mid-fifties (i.e., prime working age) at the time of reunification were also more likely to maintain low life satisfaction. Accordingly, reunification affected the unfolding of individual lives differently.
Advanced hemodialysis equipment for more eco-friendly dialysis
Authors: Gauly Adelheid , Fleck Nicole , Kircelli Fatih 
Published: September 2021

AbstractHealthcare in general and dialysis care in particular are contributing to resource consumption and, thus, have a notable environmental footprint. Dialysis is a life-saving therapy but it entails the use of a broad range of consumables generating waste, and consumption of water and energy for the dialysis process. Various stakeholders in the healthcare sector are called upon to develop and to take measures to save resources and to make healthcare and dialysis more sustainable. Among these stakeholders are manufacturers of dialysis equipment and water purification systems. Dialysis equipment and consumables, together with care processes need to be advanced to reduce waste generation, enhance recyclability, optimize water purification efficiency and water use. Joint efforts should thus pave the way to enable delivering green dialysis and to contribute to environmentally sustainable health care.
Assignment Flow for Order-Constrained OCT Segmentation
Authors: Sitenko Dmitrij , Boll Bastian , Schnörr Christoph 
Published: September 2021

AbstractAt the present time optical coherence tomography (OCT) is among the most commonly used non-invasive imaging methods for the acquisition of large volumetric scans of human retinal tissues and vasculature. The substantial increase of accessible highly resolved 3D samples at the optic nerve head and the macula is directly linked to medical advancements in early detection of eye diseases. To resolve decisive information from extracted OCT volumes and to make it applicable for further diagnostic analysis, the exact measurement of retinal layer thicknesses serves as an essential task be done for each patient separately. However, manual examination of OCT scans is a demanding and time consuming task, which is typically made difficult by the presence of tissue-dependent speckle noise. Therefore, the elaboration of automated segmentation models has become an important task in the field of medical image processing. We propose a novel, purely data driven geometric approach to order-constrained 3D OCT retinal cell layer segmentation which takes as input data in any metric space and can be implemented using only simple, highly parallelizable operations. As opposed to many established retinal layer segmentation methods, we use only locally extracted features as input and do not employ any global shape prior. The physiological order of retinal cell layers and membranes is achieved through the introduction of a smoothed energy term. This is combined with additional regularization of local smoothness to yield highly accurate 3D segmentations. The approach thereby systematically avoid bias pertaining to global shape and is hence suited for the detection of anatomical changes of retinal tissue structure. To demonstrate its robustness, we compare two different choices of features on a data set of manually annotated 3D OCT volumes of healthy human retina. The quality of computed segmentations is compared to the state of the art in automatic retinal layer segmention as well as to manually annotated ground truth data in terms of mean absolute error and Dice similarity coefficient. Visualizations of segmented volumes are also provided.
Fatty acid metabolism and colon cancer protection by dietary methyl donor restriction
Authors: Aladelokun Oladimeji , Hanley Matthew , Mu Jinjian , Giardina John C. , Rosenberg Daniel W. , Giardina Charles 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
Introduction
A methyl donor depleted (MDD) diet dramatically suppresses intestinal tumor development in Apc-mutant mice, but the mechanism of this prevention is not entirely clear.

Objectives
We sought to gain insight into the mechanisms of cancer suppression by the MDD diet and to identify biomarkers of cancer risk reduction.

Methods
A plasma metabolomic analysis was performed on ApcΔ14/+ mice maintained on either a methyl donor sufficient (MDS) diet or the protective MDD diet. A group of MDS animals was also pair-fed with the MDD mice to normalize caloric intake, and another group was shifted from an MDD to MDS diet to determine the durability of the metabolic changes.

Results
In addition to the anticipated changes in folate one-carbon metabolites, plasma metabolites related to fatty acid metabolism were generally decreased by the MDD diet, including carnitine, acylcarnitines, and fatty acids. Some fatty acid selectivity was observed; the levels of cancer-promoting arachidonic acid and 2-hydroxyglutarate were decreased by the MDD diet, whereas eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) levels were increased. Machine-learning elastic net analysis revealed a positive association between the fatty acid-related compounds azelate and 7-hydroxycholesterol and tumor development, and a negative correlation with succinate and β-sitosterol.

Conclusion
Methyl donor restriction causes dramatic changes in systemic fatty acid metabolism. Regulating fatty acid metabolism through methyl donor restriction favorably effects fatty acid profiles to achieve cancer protection.
Accumulation pattern of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons using Plantago lanceolata L. as passive biomonitor
Authors: Hubai Katalin , Kováts Nora , Sainnokhoi Tsend-Ayush , Teke Gábor 
Published: September 2021

AbstractBiomonitors are considered a cheap alternative of active air samplers, especially where spatial pattern of air quality is to be monitored, requiring numerous parallel measurements. Of higher plants,Plantago lanceolataL. has been proven a good monitor species with proper accumulation capacity. While biomonitoring studies are difficult to compare due to inherent errors such as the diverse plant material used in different studies, the No. 227 OECD GUIDELINE FOR THE TESTING OF CHEMICALS: Terrestrial Plant Test: Vegetative Vigour Test provides a tool to test extract of aerosol samples under controlled laboratory conditions. In our study, this guideline was followed to experimentally treatPlantagowith the aqueous extract of a diesel exhaust sample. Accumulation pattern of polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was assessed and compared to samples collected in the field. Unlike most studies reported in the literature, both in the experimentally treated and fieldPlantagosamples, high ratio of high molecular weight PAHs was experienced. Distribution pattern of accumulated PAHs showed strong correlation between the experimentally treated sample and most of the field plantain samples, underlying the usefulness of laboratory treatments for bioaccumulation studies.
DNA methylation age analysis of rapamycin in common marmosets
Authors: Horvath Steve , Zoller Joseph A. , Haghani Amin , Lu Ake T. , Raj Ken , Jasinska Anna J. , Mattison Julie A. , Salmon Adam B. 
Published: September 2021

AbstractHuman DNA methylation data have previously been used to develop highly accurate biomarkers of aging (“epigenetic clocks”). Subsequent studies demonstrate that similar epigenetic clocks can also be developed for mice and many other mammals. Here, we describe epigenetic clocks for common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) based on novel DNA methylation data generated from highly conserved mammalian CpGs that were profiled using a custom Infinium array (HorvathMammalMethylChip40). From these, we developed and present here two epigenetic clocks for marmosets that are applicable to whole blood samples. We find that the human-marmoset clock for relative age exhibits moderately high age correlations in two other non-human primate species: vervet monkeys and rhesus macaques. In a separate cohort of marmosets, we tested whether intervention with rapamycin, a drug shown to extend lifespan in mice, would alter the epigenetic age of marmosets, as measured by the marmoset epigenetic clocks. These clocks did not detect significant effects of rapamycin on the epigenetic age of marmoset blood. The common marmoset stands out from other mammals in that it is not possible to build accurate estimators of sex based on DNA methylation data: the accuracy of a random forest predictor of sex (66%) was substantially lower than that observed for other mammals (which is close to 100%). Overall, the epigenetic clocks developed here for the common marmoset are expected to be useful for age estimation of wild-born animals and for anti-aging studies in this species.
Life cycle assessment and process simulation of prospective battery-grade cobalt sulfate production from Co-Au ores in Finland
Authors: Rinne Marja , Elomaa Heini , Lundström Mari 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
Purpose
The soaring demand for cobalt for lithium-ion batteries has increased interest in the utilization of non-conventional cobalt sources. Such raw materials include complex ores containing minerals such as cobaltite and skutterudite, which, while rare, occur around the world, including in Finland, Canada, and the USA. The goal of this study was to evaluate the cradle-to-gate impacts of cobalt sulfate recovery from unutilized cobalt- and gold-bearing ores with the use of process simulation.

Methods
A literature analysis was conducted to establish the state-of-the-art processing methods for complex cobalt ores containing significant amounts of gold. The drafted process was simulated using HSC Sim software to obtain a mass and energy balance, which was compiled into a life cycle inventory (LCI). The environmental impact categories (global warming, acidification, eutrophication, ozone depletion, photochemical smog creation, water use) were calculated in GaBi software. Uncertainty regarding the possible future raw material composition was studied, and the simulation was used to investigate process performance and to evaluate the effect of variation in the process parameters on the environmental impact indicators.

Results and discussion
The results indicated that the main cobalt mineral type (cobaltite, linnaeite) had only minor effects on the evaluated impact categories. With cobaltite-dominated ores (High As case), the global warming potential (GWP) was estimated to be 20.9 kg CO2-eq, of which 12.7 kg CO2-eq was attributed to the hydrometallurgical process. With linnaeite-dominated ores, the equivalent values were 20.4 kg CO2-eq and 11.0 kg CO2-eq. The production of a high grade concentrate was observed to greatly decrease the impacts of the hydrometallurgical process, but the cobalt losses in the beneficiation stage and the mineral processing impacts would likely increase. The simulation showed that there is still potential to improve the cobalt recovery (to approximately 96%), which would also affect the indicator values.

Conclusions
The impacts were estimated prior to intensive metallurgical testing to determine the possible high impact areas in the process. Based on this, it is suggested that, during hydrometallurgical processing, improved treatment of cobalt-containing wash waters and the optimization of oxygen utilization efficiency in pressure leaching are the most significant ways to decrease the environmental impacts. Optimal solutions for the concentrate could be found when experimental data on the minerals processing steps becomes available.
Cu/Pd-catalyzed borocarbonylative trifunctionalization of alkynes and allenes: synthesis of β-geminal-diboryl ketones
Authors: Yuan Yang , Wu Fu-Peng , Spannenberg Anke , Wu Xiao-Feng 
Published: September 2021

AbstractFunctionalized bisboryl compounds have recently emerged as a new class of synthetically useful building blocks in organic synthesis. Herein, we report an efficient strategy to synthesize β-geminal-diboryl ketones enabled by a Cu/Pd-catalyzed borocarbonylative trifunctionalization of readily available alkynes and allenes. This reaction promises to be a useful method for the synthesis of functionalized β-geminal-diboryl ketones with broad functional group tolerance. Mechanistic studies suggest that the reaction proceeds through borocarbonylation/hydroboration cascade of both alkynes and allenes.