bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of programmed death ligand 1 expression in cytology to determine eligibility for immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Liu Zhonghua , Williams Michelle , Stewart John , Glisson Bonnie S. , Fuller Clifton , Roy‐Chowdhuri Sinchita 
Published: August 2021

BackgroundImmune checkpoint inhibitors targeting the programmed cell death protein 1 (PD‐1)/programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD‐L1) pathway have recently emerged as a frontline treatment for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). The evaluation of PD‐L1 expression by immunohistochemistry in histologic samples is used to determine the eligibility of patients with HNSCC for immunotherapy. Patients with newly diagnosed HNSCC are frequently diagnosed by fine‐needle aspiration (FNA) of lymph nodes with metastatic disease. However, the evaluation of PD‐L1 expression with the proposed combined positive score (CPS) has not been well established in cytology specimens.MethodsThis study retrospectively identified 21 HNSCC patients with a known PD‐L1 status from histologic specimens and matched FNA specimens with tumor cells on cell blocks (CBs). The CB sections were stained with a PD‐L1 antibody (22C3 clone). All cases were scored with CPS and the tumor proportion score (TPS).ResultsThe data showed substantial concordance between cytologic and histologic specimens for CPS (agreement, 76.2%; κ = 0.607) and TPS (agreement, 76.2%; κ = 0.607). With histology used as a reference standard, the positive predictive value was 100% for both CPS and TPS, whereas the negative predictive value was 57.1% for CPS assessments and 50% for TPS assessments.ConclusionsPD‐L1 expression in HNSCC cytology samples has high concordance with paired histologic samples. PD‐L1 CPS evaluation is feasible in HNSCC cytology CBs and can act as a surrogate for determining eligibility for immunotherapy in cases in which a histologic specimen is not readily available.
Private‐encoder: Enforcing privacy in latent space for human face images
Authors: Zhao Yuan , Liu Bo , Zhu Tianqing , Ding Ming , Zhou Wanlei 
Published: August 2021

SummaryThe explosive growth of various computer vision technologies generates a tremendous amount of visual data online every day. In addition to bringing convenience and revolutionizing our daily life, image data also reveal a wide range of sensitive information and pose unprecedented privacy leakage risks. Particularly, in the case of photos contain human faces, people can easily access those face images on social media without any consent, and the misuse of personal information could cause serious privacy violation to individuals. Therefore, it is essential to consider sanitizing people's identity information when using images containing human faces. As a result, there has been rapid development in the area of facial anonymization, also called image de‐identification. However, due to the emergence of numerous deep‐learning based attacks, traditional anonymization methods such as blurring and mosaic are weak and ineffective to protect individual's privacy in face images. To respond to this challenge, this article proposes a novel de‐identification method that utilizes a deep neural network. The proposed framework encompasses two modules: encoder network and generator network. The encoder transforms a face image into a high‐semantic latent vector of codes, which will be de‐identified according to the differential privacy criterion. The generator leverages the unconditional generative adversarial network to synthesize high‐quality images based on the modified latent codes from the encoder. Extensive experimental results indicate that our proposed model can protect image privacy while keeping the processed image visual realistic.
Bis‐(triphenylphosphane) Aluminum Hydride: A Simple Way to Provide, Store, and Use Non‐Polymerized Alane for Synthesis
Authors: Anders Martin , Schwarzer Anke , Brendler Erica , Pollex Rolf , Schumann Erik , Sandig‐Predzymirska Lesia , Kaiser Stefan , Mertens Florian 
Published: August 2021

AbstractAlH3(PPh3)2 was synthesized as a stable solid being the first known 1 : 2 alane arylphosphane adduct. Although only weakly intra‐molecularly coordinated, it displays as a molecular crystal significant inertness against atmospheric humidity and oxygen due to strong steric screening of the alane unit. The compound readily dissociates PPh3 in solution allowing for its use as a Lewis acidic reducing agent. These features lead to an easy to store, easy to use reducing agent that may enable the quantitative investigation of aluminum hydride chemistry including reduction, complexation and hydroalumination reactions. The structure contains two non‐equivalent penta‐coordinated aluminum centers that despite long Al−P distances of ca. 2.7 Å display unusually high quadrupolar coupling constants CQ of 25.1 and 26.5 in 27Al solid state NMR measurements. The product was also tested as a reducing agent on a small set of selected compounds with various functional groups.
Comparative analysis of morphology, cytology, and mitochondrial transcriptome of sterile male flowers of rubber tree
Authors: Li Fei , Zhang Yuhang , Wang Ying , Gao Heqiong , Zhuang Nansheng 
Published: August 2021

AbstractRubber tree [Hevea brasiliensis (Willd. ex A. Juss.) Müll. Arg.] is the exclusive commercial source of natural rubber. Male‐sterile (MS) germplasm has proven to be valuable for rubber tree hybrid breeding, but its male sterility mechanism remains unclear. Here, morphological observations of a new MS clone Reyan93‐114 showed shriveled anthers, short filaments, and withered male flowers. Transmission electron microscopy revealed the tapetal cells of the anthers were hypertrophic and vacuolated. Microspore protoplasts reduced in size, and the microspore wall had obvious defects: the incomplete intine and the insufficiently deposited exine. Organelles had disappeared in both tapetal cells and microspores. Comparative mitochondrial transcriptome analysis identified three differentially expressed genes in the MS clones: orf126, orf51, and atp8. In particular, orf126 and orf51 were unique insertions in the MS mitochondrial genomes. The former was an unknown open reading frame, and the latter was a fusion gene that contained a portion of atp9. These two genes should be studied as candidate male sterility genes in rubber tree. These results clarified the cytological causes of male sterility and expanded to understand the relationship between mitochondrial genes and male sterility in rubber tree.
Inferring pesticide toxicity to honey bees from a field‐based feeding study using a colony model and Bayesian inference
Authors: Minucci Jeffrey M. , Curry Robert , DeGrandi‐Hoffman Gloria , Douglass Cameron , Garber Kris , Purucker S. Thomas 
Published: August 2021

AbstractHoney bees are crucial pollinators for agricultural crops but are threatened by a multitude of stressors including exposure to pesticides. Linking our understanding of how pesticides affect individual bees to colony‐level responses is challenging because colonies show emergent properties based on complex internal processes and interactions among individual bees. Agent‐based models that simulate honey bee colony dynamics may be a tool for scaling between individual and colony effects of a pesticide. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) are developing the VarroaPop + Pesticide model, which simulates the dynamics of honey bee colonies and how they respond to multiple stressors, including weather, Varroa mites, and pesticides. To evaluate this model, we used Approximate Bayesian Computation to fit field data from an empirical study where honey bee colonies were fed the insecticide clothianidin. This allowed us to reproduce colony feeding study data by simulating colony demography and mortality from ingestion of contaminated food. We found that VarroaPop + Pesticide was able to fit general trends in colony population size and structure and reproduce colony declines from increasing clothianidin exposure. The model underestimated adverse effects at low exposure (36 µg/kg), however, and overestimated recovery at the highest exposure level (140 µg/kg), for the adult and pupa endpoints, suggesting that mechanisms besides oral toxicity‐induced mortality may have played a role in colony declines. The VarroaPop + Pesticide model estimates an adult oral LD50 of 18.9 ng/bee (95% CI 10.1–32.6) based on the simulated feeding study data, which falls just above the 95% confidence intervals of values observed in laboratory toxicology studies on individual bees. Overall, our results demonstrate a novel method for analyzing colony‐level data on pesticide effects on bees and making inferences on pesticide toxicity to individual bees.
Recovering ecosystem functions in a restored salt marsh by leveraging positive effects of biodiversity
Authors: Fitzgerald Megan , Gonzalez Karla , Funk Jennifer L. , Whitcraft Christine R. , Allen Bengt J. 
Published: August 2021

AbstractNatural and managed ecosystems provide a variety of ecological, economic, and cultural benefits; yet most have been altered by human activity such that they exhibit deficits in both biodiversity and functionality. Identifying factors accelerating the recovery of key species and associated functions in degraded systems is therefore a global priority. We tested the hypotheses that explicitly incorporating biodiversity into restoration design will lead to greater ecosystem function and that positive effects of diversity will strengthen over time due to an increase in the importance of complementarity relative to selection effects. We did this by manipulating salt marsh plant species richness across a tidal elevation gradient as part of a coastal wetland restoration project in southern California. Overall, diversity enhanced biomass accumulation in experimental plots, with the magnitude of the effect strengthening from one to three years post‐restoration due to a combination of decreasing performance in monocultures and increasing performance in multispecies mixtures over time. Positive diversity effects were initially due exclusively to selection, as mixtures were dominated by species also exhibiting high performance in monoculture, although the identity of the highest performing species varied across tidal elevations and over time. By the end of the study, complementarity, indicative of niche partitioning and/or positive interactions among species, contributed to productivity at least as much as selection effects. Our study provides real‐world support for a recent theoretical model predicting strong positive biodiversity effects when functionally different species coexist in a heterogeneous landscape. Incorporating biodiversity into restoration designs can result in net gains in ecosystem function especially in low diversity systems, yet shorter experiments lacking broad environmental and species trait variability may both underestimate the strength of and misidentify the mechanisms underlying positive diversity effects.
Impacts of run‐of‐river hydropower on coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch): the role of density‐dependent survival
Authors: Gibeau Pascale , Palen Wendy J. 
Published: August 2021

AbstractPredicting whether anthropogenic sources of mortality have negative consequences at the level of population dynamics is challenged by mechanisms like density‐dependent survival that can amplify or offset the loss of individuals from anthropogenic disturbances. Run‐of‐river (RoR) hydropower is a growing industry that can cause frequent mortality of salmonid fry through rapid reductions in streamflow, leading to stranding on dewatered shores. However, whether individual‐level impacts reduce population growth rates or increase local extinction risk is difficult to predict. We used a stochastic stage‐structured matrix model to evaluate how the timing and magnitude of anthropogenic flow fluctuations impacted population abundance and extinction risk of coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch), which spend up to 1.5 yr in many streams regulated by RoR hydropower. We additionally assessed how the timing (spring, winter) and strength (weak, moderate, high) of natural density‐dependent bottlenecks experienced by salmon in freshwaters tempers or amplifies the potential for RoR‐induced mortality to scale to emergent population dynamics. We compared population sizes and the 45‐yr probability of quasi‐extinction under 12 scenarios that varied the frequency (0–20 events per year) and magnitude (1–10% mortality per event) of RoR‐induced flow fluctuations, as well as the timing and strength of density‐dependent bottlenecks occurring during the first year in freshwater. We found that even mild flow fluctuations by RoR hydropower can impact coho salmon population dynamics, especially if density dependence is weak or occurs early in freshwater residency (spring). When density dependence was strong and during winter, the potential for population‐level impact was lessened, but populations still declined by 13–42% when RoR‐induced mortality was severe (5–10%) or frequent (10–20 events/yr). We conclude that strong density‐dependent survival bottlenecks could partially mitigate the loss of fry from anthropogenic flow fluctuations, especially if bottlenecks occur late in freshwater residency, but not for all intensities of flow fluctuations. Even with strong density dependence in winter, our models predict declining populations by up to 70% under strong and very frequent flow fluctuations, which should serve to caution those tasked with regulating flows in streams affected by RoR hydropower.
Accounting for dispersal and local habitat when evaluating tributary use by riverine fishes
Authors: Dunn Corey G. , Paukert Craig P. 
Published: August 2021

AbstractConservation practitioners increasingly recognize the conservation value of tributaries for supporting mainstem, large‐river specialist fishes. A tributary’s discharge at its mouth is a coarse indicator of the richness of large‐river specialists found within the tributary, but the relative influences of regional dispersal and local habitat underpinning this species–discharge relationship are often unknown. We sampled large‐river specialist fishes at sites within two nonwadeable tributaries of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers with contrasting prairie (Grand River) vs. upland (Meramec River) habitats to address four research questions: (1) Do alpha diversity (mean site‐level species richness) and beta diversity (among‐site species compositional differences) vary between tributaries? (2) Does mean annual discharge correlate with local habitat and downstream distance to mainstem rivers (i.e., mainstem connectivity)? (3) Are slopes of species–discharge relationships consistent between tributaries? And (4) Do local habitat and downstream distance explain residual richness at sites beyond variation already explained by species–discharge relationships? We detected 30 of 42 potential large‐river specialist fishes, demonstrating most mainstem species use tributaries. Mean site richness was higher in the Grand River (12.5 species vs. 9.8 species in Meramec River), but partitioning of lower reaches (sites < 116 km from river mouth) and dispersal limitation in upper reaches (sites ≥ 145 km from river mouth) caused Meramec River beta diversity to be three times higher. Mean annual discharge correlated with habitat availability at sites and downstream distance to a mainstem. Although site‐level alpha richness generally increased with discharge in both tributaries, slopes of species–discharge relationships varied between tributaries. Analyzing species–discharge residuals revealed downstream distance explained additional variation in site‐level richness not accounted for by local discharge. For example, discharge alone underrepresented richness in lower‐discharge sites accessible to dispersers (maximum underestimate = 8.7 species) and overrepresented richness in isolated sites (maximum overestimate = 5.8 species). Thus, predictive performance of species–discharge relationships can be improved by accounting for varying habitats among tributaries and downstream distance of sites to mainstems when valuing tributaries for fishes with dispersal‐dependent life cycles.
Differential influence of human impacts on age‐specific demography underpins trends in an African elephant population
Authors: Wittemyer George , Daballen David , Douglas‐Hamilton Iain 
Published: August 2021

AbstractDiagnosing age‐specific influences on demographic trends and their drivers in at‐risk wildlife species can support the development of targeted conservation interventions. Such information also underpins understanding of life history. Here, we assess age‐specific demography in wild African elephants, a species whose life history is marked by long life and extreme parental investment. During the 20‐yr study, survival and its variation were similar between adults and juveniles in contrast to relationships found among many large‐bodied mammals. Prospective analysis on age‐specific Leslie matrices for females demonstrated survival is more influential than fecundity on λ, with sensitivity of both decreasing with age. Results aggregated by stage classes indicate young adults (9–18 yr) demonstrated the highest elasticity, followed by preparous juveniles (3–8 yr). Mature adults (36+ yr) had the lowest aggregate elasticity value. Retrospective analysis parameterized by data from the early and latter periods of the study, characterized by low then high human impact (faster and slower growth, respectively), demonstrated fecundity (particularly for adults; 19–35 yr) explained the greatest variation in λ observed during the period of low human impact, while survival (particularly juvenile and adult) was more influential during the high human impact period. The oldest females (mature adult stage) weakly influenced population growth despite demonstrating the highest fecundity and their behavioral importance in elephant society. Multiple regression models on survival showed the negative effects of human impacts and population size were the strongest correlates across sexes and ages. Annual rainfall, our metric for environmental conditions, was weakly informative. The presence of dependent young was positively correlated with survival for breeding females, suggesting condition‐based mortality filtering during pregnancy. Notwithstanding the stabilizing effect of high juvenile survival on elephant population growth, demographic processes in elephants were similar to those shaping life history in other large herbivores. Implications of the study results with respect to the conservation of elephants and analysis of demographic impact of poaching are discussed, along with the study's relevance to theories regarding the evolution of life history and parental care.
Probing Limits of a C=C Bond Activation by N‐Coordinated Organopnictogen(I) Compounds
Authors: Kremláček Vít , Hejda Martin , Rychagova Elena , Ketkov Sergey , Jambor Roman , Růžička Aleš , Dostál Libor 
Published: August 2021

AbstractThe C=C bond in selectedN‐alkyl/aryl‐maleimides RN(C(O)CH)2(R=Me,tBu, Ph) is activated by organopnictogen(I) compounds producing bridged bicyclic [2.2.1] products exhibiting bothendoandexoorientations. This is achieved by a synergic element‐ligand cooperation, thereby resembling a hetero‐Diels‐Alder reaction. A wide range of pnictogen(I) complexes is considered in this study including the bis(aldiminine) pincer compounds ArE (1) (Ar=2,6‐(R'N=CH)2C6H3, R’=tBu, E=P (P‐1), As (As‐1), Sb (Sb‐1), Bi (Bi‐1) or R’=Dmp, E=P (P‐1’), As (As‐1’), Sb (Sb‐1’), where Dmp=2,6‐Me2C6H3) and theC,N‐coordinated compounds Ar'E (2) (Ar’=2‐(DippN=CH)C6H4, E=P (P‐2), As (As‐2), where Dipp=2,6‐iPr2C6H3). On this set of compounds, the reversibility of C=C bond activation was examined mainly by means of the1H variable temperature (VT) NMR spectroscopy and this study revealed trends showing a dependence both on the E atom and on the structure of the ligand. The structure of the addition products was elucidated by multinuclear NMR and single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction analysis. The whole study is accompanied by a theoretical survey targeting decisive factors for the C=C bond activation and a preference forendo/exoforms by the particular pnictogen(I) compound.
Catalytic Hydrogenation of Urea Derivatives and Polyureas
Authors: Kumar Amit , Luk James 
Published: August 2021

AbstractWe present herein the catalytic hydrogenation of various urea derivatives to amines and methanol. The reaction is catalyzed by a ruthenium or an iridium Macho pincer complex and produces amine and methanol in very good to excellent yields. Moreover, we also expand this concept to demonstrate the first example of the hydrogenative depolymerization of polyureas to produce diamines and methanol in moderate yields.
Experimental investigation on burning characteristics of diesel pool fires in naturally ventilated compartment
Authors: Tiwari Mahesh Kumar , Gupta Akhilesh , Kumar Ravi , Sharma Pavan Kumar 
Published: August 2021

SummaryIn this study, experiments were performed in a 4 m × 4 m × 4 m compartment having a door size of 2 m × 1 m in the front wall. The pan diameter has been varied from 0.2 to 1.0 m in order to evaluate parameters, such as mass loss rate, CO/CO2 yield, global equivalence ratio (GER), flame height, flame pulsation frequency and total heat flux within the compartment. Experimental mass loss flux was found to be 0.23 times lesser than the mass loss flux obtained with an open fire test. A correlation was developed to estimate the flame height for compartment fire as the function of pool diameter and heat release rate. Pulsation frequency has been well correlated with previous studies for smaller pool sizes, due to no interaction between the flame tip and upper smoke layer. However, for a larger pool, this seems to be deviated due to a larger smoke layer thickness. Heat flux variations were observed to follow power law trends for all the inner surfaces of the compartment with respect to pool diameters. This investigation is also essential for better understanding of diesel (sooty) fuel burning effects with respect to pool size in a compartment having well‐ventilated door opening.
The experience of a sample of individuals in the United Kingdom living in the pre‐manifest stage of Huntington’s disease: An interpretative phenomenological analysis
Authors: Wieringa Gina , Dale Maria , Eccles Fiona J. R. 
Published: August 2021

AbstractThis paper explores the experience of ten individuals living in the UK who were in the pre‐manifest stage of Huntington's disease (HD), a genetic neurodegenerative condition. Data were gathered using semi‐structured interviews and analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Three themes were reported from the data: ‘feeling limited by time’, ‘the perception of stalling time’, and ‘making the most of time’, all highlighting the way in which time holds significant meaning when living in the pre‐manifest stage of HD. This study has highlighted the difficulties experienced by individuals when adjusting to the pre‐manifest stage of HD. Feeling able to manage their anxieties and dealing with ongoing uncertainty related to future deterioration was key to supporting their wellbeing, facilitated by factors such as positivity and hope. Individuals may benefit from counseling which supports them to develop proactive coping strategies to manage their anxieties and acceptance of an uncertain future.