bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Investigation of the Effect of Vitamin D on Testicular Damage Caused by Cisplatin in Rats
Authors: Cirik Rümeyza Hilal , Karaca Elif Taslidere , Vardi Nigar , Gürel Elif , Bağ Harika Gözükara , Gül Mehmet 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

Aim: In our study, we aimed to investigate the effects of VD against testicular damage caused by cisplatin by histopathological, immunohistochemical and biochemical methods.
Material and Method: 28 rats were divided into four groups, control, VD, cisplatin and cisplatin+ VD groups. At the end of the 10-day experiment, the rats were sacrificed under ketamine/xylazine anesthesia. Right testicles were used for biochemical analyzes and left testicles were used for histological analyses. Sperm vitality and morphology were evaluated from semen samples obtained from the cauda part of the epididymis. Number of sperms was also counted. Biochemically, TOS, TAS, FSH, LH, testosterone, estrogen, VD, Ca and P levels were measured by ELISA test kits using spectrophotometric methods.
Results: In histopathological analysis; a decrease in seminiferous tubule diameter and germinal epithelial thickness, decrease in Johnsen score, and degenerative changes in germinal cells were observed in the cisplatin group. While caspase-3 immune positivity increased, VDR immunostaining decreased. In biochemical analysis; while a significant increase was observed in TOS in the cisplatin group, no significant difference was found in terms of TAS. It was observed that VD application reduced histological damage and caused a significant increase in Johnsen score. In this group, caspase-3 immunostaining decreased while VDR immunostaining increased. Biochemically, a significant decrease in TOS level and a significant increase in VD level were detected.
Conclusion: In conclusion, this study shows that VD administration alleviates testicular damage in rats with cisplatin-induced testicular damage. However, further studies are needed to add VD to clinical treatment protocols.
Detection of Pre-Seismic TEC Anomalies Using Isolation Forest: Virtual Station Analysis for Elazig and Maras Earthquakes
Authors: YALÇIN EMRAH , CANYILMAZ Murat 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between Total Electron Content (TEC) anomalies in the ionosphere and seismic activity, with a particular focus on the Elazig (2020) and Maras (2023) earthquakes. An unsupervised machine learning approach, namely the Isolation Forest (iForest) algorithm, was employed to analyze TEC data from Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) stations situated in the regions affected by the seismic events. The analysis has been conducted over a two-month period, encompassing one month prior to and one month following each earthquake. A novel methodology is introduced, whereby TEC data from multiple stations is aggregated into virtual stations, with each station weighted according to its proximity to the earthquake epicenter. The findings reveal a distinctive pattern of TEC anomalies occurring especially 10–15 days before both earthquakes, followed by a reduction in fluctuations as the seismic event approaches. It is noteworthy that significant anomaly synchronization is observed across all virtual stations, which lends support to the hypothesis that TEC variations may serve as a pre-seismic indicator.
CAR-NK cells with dual targeting of PD-L1 and MICA/B in human lung cancer H1299 cell tumor model
Authors: Zhi Lingtong , Zhang Zikang , Gao Qing , Shang Chongye , He Wenhui , Wang Yuqing , Guo Changjiang , Niu Zhiyuan , Zhu Wuling 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

Background
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) engineered natural killer (NK) cells have shown their efficacy and superiority against cancer and possess the potential to become off-the-shelf immunotherapy products. Nonetheless, some challenges associated with CAR-NK cells still exist including inhibitory receptor engagement, antigen escape, and inadequate activation.
Methods
Given this, based on the concept of synthetic biology, we rationally designed a novel dual-targeted CAR (dtCAR), primarily comprising PD-L1 nanoantibody (PD-L1Nb) and NKG2D as the ectodomain, transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains (CP) of CD28, and the CP of 41BB and CD3ζ. NK92 cells were engineered to express this third-generation of dtCAR. We then elucidated the role of dtCAR-modified NK92 cells against cancer cells in vitro and in vivo.
Results In vitro
, the dtCAR-NK92 cells could still retain the characteristics of parental NK cells and exhibit improved NK cell cytotoxicity and produce more cytokines than NK92 cells when they were co-cultured with human lung cancer H1299 cells. Notably, the dtCAR-NK92 cell therapy might elicit clearance of H1299 cells by pyroptosis. Additionally, dtCAR-NK92 cells could considerably inhibit tumor growth in the human lung cancer H1299 cell tumor model.
Conclusions
We confirmed that expression of dtCAR enhanced NK92-cell activation and killing in vitro and in vivo, which provides a novel immunotherapeutic strategy for using NK-tailored CAR-engineered NK92 cells to treat human lung cancer.
Androgen Deprivation Therapy Does Not Increase Rates for Reintervention, Complication, or Infection in Primary Penile Implant or Artificial Urinary Sphincter Surgery
Authors: Prebay Zachary , Fu David , Hochberg Aaron , Chung Paul 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

Prostate cancer treatment-related erectile dysfunction and stress urinary incontinence are commonly treated with inflatable penile prosthesis (IPP) or artificial urinary sphincter (AUS). Given the association with androgens and penile/urethral health, we aim to evaluate whether patients on Androgen Deprivation Therapy (ADT) undergoing IPP or AUS are at increased risk for reintervention, complication, or infection. We queried the TriNetX database for adult males receiving IPP or AUS. The ADT cohort included those on ADT 3 months before or any time after surgery. We performed sub-analysis for leuprolide and bicalutamide. Cohorts and outcomes were defined by Current Procedural Terminology and International Classification of Diseases codes. Propensity score matching was performed using age, prostate cancer, history of prostatectomy, and history of radiation. Outcomes were reintervention (revision, removal, or replacement), infection, and complication. Analytics were performed in March 2024. 13,432 patients received an IPP and 5676 received an AUS, 465 and 745 of whom were on ADT, respectively. Patients receiving an IPP with ADT had fewer reinterventions (7.2% vs 12%, RR = 0.60 [0.39, 0.92]) and complications (12.7% vs 18.5%, RR = 0.68 [0.49, 0.95]). Patients receiving an IPP on Bicalutamide or Leuprolide had fewer reinterventions (< 5.2%* vs 10.8%, RR = 0.48 [0.23, 0.99]) and complications (12.2% vs 19.3%, RR = 0.63 [0.43, 0.91]). The remainder of analyses, including comparisons of patients on antiandrogens against those not on ADT, GnRH antagonists against those not on ADT, and abiraterone against those not on ADT, showed no significant differences. There were ≤10 instances of reintervention for IPP patients on bicalutamide, thus TriNetX rounded up to 10 (denoted by *) to protect patient identity. Patients with IPP or AUS do not fare worse on ADT. Further evaluation into the duration of ADT may provide clinical context, but based on these results, ADT should not limit implant surgery.
Association between Oxidative Balance Scores (OBS) and Gamma- Glutamyltransferase (GGT) among US adults in NHANES 2013– 2018
Authors: Gan Xinli , Li Xiaowen , Wen^ Haibin , Wang Zhonglin , Tan Ning , Mao Zhongqi 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

The Oxidative Balance Score (OBS) quantifies the balance between antioxidants and pro-oxidants, which is influenced by diet and lifestyle, and is used to evaluate the overall oxidative stress status. Elevated levels of γ-glutamyl transferase (GGT) are considered a primary indicator of oxidative stress. This study aims to explore the association between OBS and GGT using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) conducted between 2013 and 2018. A total of 7,998 people were included in the study. Research has revealed a significant linear negative correlation was found between OBS scores and GGT. Fully adjusted weighted logistic regression analysis showed that each unit increase in OBS was associated with a 3% decrease in the odds of abnormal GGT [OR = 0.97, 95%CI: 0.95, 0.99, P < 0.001]. By exploring this link, this could provide valuable insights into developing preventive strategies and interventions for GGT abnormalities.
Gamma-synuclein promotes Bevacizumab resistance by activating vascular endothelial growth factor receptor in colorectal cancer
Authors: liu Caiyun , Wang Lixin , Dong Bin , Meng Lin , Qu Like , Zhao Chuanke , shou chengchao 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

Resistance to Bevacizumab (Bev) is emerging as a major clinical problem. Gamma-synuclein (SNCG) is overexpressed in the tumor vasculature and various cancer cells. There are no studies on the role of SNCG in Bev resistance. Here, we analyzed the effect of SNCG on Bev resistance in vitro and in vivo, assessed the impact of combining an anti-SNCG monoclonal antibody (McAb, 42#) with Bev on mouse xenograft models derived from HT29 cells with intrinsic resistance to Bev, and explored the mechanism of SNCG-regulated Bev therapy resistance. We found that SNCG overexpression induced tumor resistance to Bev, while SNCG knockout restored sensitivity to Bev by inhibiting both vascularization and SNCG-vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) signaling pathway. Interestingly, SNCG activated VEGFR2, whereas SNCG expression was upregulated after Bev treatment, thus generating a reciprocal feedback between SNCG and Bev, which in turn promoted Bev treatment resistance. Importantly, combining Bev with 42# significantly blocked tumor growth, impeded distant tumor metastasis, and extended mouse survival time by reducing vessel formation and decreasing the levels of SNCG-VEGFR2 signaling pathway proteins in Bev-resistant xenograft models. Our findings provide a theoretical basis to overcome Bev resistance by combining Bev with anti-SNCG antibodies in colorectal cancer (CRC).
Geochemical and radiological assessment of source rocks from the Middle Magdalena Valley Basin (Colombia): implications for unconventional hydrocarbon exploration
Authors: Guerrero J. L. , Echavez R. A. , Barba-Lobo A. , Mosqueda F. , Rincón M. , Cárdenas J. C. , Ortiz O. P , Bolívar J. P. 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

Colombia is exploring unconventional hydrocarbon reservoirs, however after more than 50 years of oil and gas operations, radiological assessments of these oilfields have been lacking. To address this, eight rock samples from the Tablazo and La Luna formations in the Middle Magdalena Valley Basin were analyzed using gamma and alpha spectrometry to quantify natural radionuclides from the 238U and 232Th decay series. Additional ICP-MS and XRD analyses provided elemental and mineralogical data. The mineralogical composition varied, with quartz, kaolinite, pyrite, calcite, illite, and gypsum identified. Major elements included Ca, Fe, Al, and S, with V and Zn as prominent trace elements. The source rocks were notably enriched in Ca, S, V, and Zn compared to the upper continental crust. The average 238U concentration was 220 ± 80 Bq kg− 1, approximately six times higher than the global average, with two wells showing values near 600 Bq kg− 1, suggesting localized geochemical variation. The average 232Th concentration was 50 ± 4 Bq kg− 1, and 40K ranged from 180 to 350 Bq kg− 1, similar to global soil levels. Significant correlations were found between 238U series radionuclides and elements like V, Cr, Ni, Mo, and Tl, while 232Th series radionuclides correlated with Bi and Al. 40K was linked to K and showed positive correlations with Ti, Li, and Ba. In contrast, elements such as Pb, Hg, Fe, Mg, Mn, and Na displayed negative correlations. These findings highlight the strong relationship between radionuclide activity concentrations and the chemical composition of the rocks, reflecting diverse geological sources.
Exploring the Nexus: Diversity and carbon Stock Potential of Woody Plants across diverse land uses in Farmscape of South East Oromia, Ethiopia
Authors: Telila Habte , Haji Adam , Tilahun Ahmed , Kumsa Lemessa 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

The study was taken place in the farmscape of Dallo Manna district, Southeast Ethiopia aimed to understand the connection between the diversity and carbon sequestration potential of woody species. A total of 45 plots (20 m x 20 m) were established along five-line transects to collect woody species within seven land use systems. A total of 50 woody plant (DBH greater than 2.5 cm) species, belonging to 33 families, were recorded in the farmscape. The most frequently encountered woody species was Vachellia abyssinica, followed by Albizia gummifera, and the most abundant species was Coffea arabica followed by Mangifera indica, and Ricinus communis. The dominant land use in the farmscape of the study area was perennial crop and grazing lands. The study area had an average above ground carbon (AGC) stock potential of 49.21 Mg C ha − 1 and a total of 2460.98 21 Mg C ha− 1. Syzygium guineense, Celtis africana, and Ehretia cymosa, sequestered the highest AGC. Perennial cropland uses showed the highest species richness and diversity and accumulated the highest AGC followed by patches of natural forest. The study highlights the value of farmscapes, which have the potential to be a climate-smart and successful land use strategy by significantly reducing carbon emissions through dense and diverse woody plant communities. Coffee cultivation, which relies on shade trees, plays a particularly important role. The findings suggest that conservation efforts should extend beyond protected areas to encompass Dallo Manna's agricultural lands, promoting biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation alongside sustainable agricultural practices.
Optimization of Adaptive Lossless Quantization based on Genetic Algorithm-enhanced K-meansClustering for Secret Key Sharing in Vehicular AdHoc Networks
Authors: Abdelazeem Ibraheem , Zhang Weibin , Chuan Ma , Khader Abdolraheem , Mohamedsalih Abdeldime , Abdalwohab Mohamed , ABUOBIEDA AHMEDALMANSOUR 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks (VANETs) are essential for improving efficiency and safety across various applications. However, securing communications within VANETs poses significant challenges, particularly in key generation. Current key generation techniques, especially those relying on the Physical-Layer Model (PLM), often need more generation rates and randomness. This paper introduces an innovative key generation method that employs enhanced K-means clustering optimized by Genetic Algorithms (GA) to bolster the security of VANET communications. Our approach utilizes the elbow method to dynamically determine the optimal number of quantization levels for Received Signal Strength (RSS) measurements, ensuring the preservation of critical information. We compare the performance of traditional K-means clustering with our GA-optimized enhanced K-means clustering, resulting in significant improvements in key uniqueness and randomness. The average Hamming distance increases from 132.45 to 165.88, and key entropy rises from 2.5 to 2.9. Additionally, our method significantly reduces key generation time from 70 ms to 40 ms in medium-density scenarios and lowers communication overhead, thereby enhancing overall system performance. These advancements highlight the superiority of our proposed method in terms of bit generation rate, entropy, and secrecy rate while effectively minimizing unnecessary measurements. This work lays a solid foundation for developing more secure communication protocols in dynamic vehicular environments by integrating GA-optimized clustering techniques, addressing the pressing need for robust and efficient key management solutions.
D2Net: a dual-branch lightweight network for conveyor belt rotation detection in pipe belt conveyors
Authors: Wang Xingyu , Hao Nini , Yun Yu , Zhang Mengchao , Zhang Yuan , Zhong Zeqing 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

Due to the swift advancement of artificial intelligence technology, semantic segmentation has emerged as a critical method for identifying rotational flaws in conveyor belts of pipe belt conveyors. Nonetheless, current segmentation algorithm models typically exhibit issues of excessive model parameters and sluggish inference speed, making it challenging to simultaneously satisfy the accuracy demands of conveyor belt edge segmentation and real-time requirements, thereby complicating their adaptation to the real-time monitoring needs of actual production lines. This research offers an efficient backbone network, D2Net, for real-time semantic segmentation of conveyor belt edges to address this issue. The network comprises a dual-branch Deep Dual-Resolution Network that facilitates information exchange across the branches via several bilateral fusion processes. A Multi-Scale Attention Aggregation Module (MSAAM) is developed to effectively broaden the network's sensory field and improve segmentation performance via multi-scale contextual fusion of low-resolution feature maps. This research constructs a dataset of pipe belt conveyor operations at a steel factory across three locations to validate the model's performance, and the suggested network is trained and tested using this dataset. The experimental findings indicate that the network attains an average intersection over union (mIoU) of 75.34% on a dataset with a resolution of 512 × 512, while the inference speed reaches 169.5 frames per second (fps), and the model comprises merely 22.9 MB of parameters. This research demonstrates that the D2Net achieves an effective equilibrium between speed and accuracy in the belt edge segmentation of rpipe belt conveyors. It exhibits optimal equilibrium and delivers robust technical assistance for real-time semantic segmentation in edge computing environments.
Optimizing Levodopa Dosage and Dosing Cycles for Parkinson’s Disease Treatment
Authors: Suksai S. , Salikupata C. , Wandee P. 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder commonly affecting elderly individuals, characterized by the progressive degeneration of the dopaminergic neurostriatal system and a consequent depletion of dopamine. L-dopa has been widely used to alleviate symptoms; however, prolonged use often reduces its efficacy and increases side effects. To address these issues, an objective algorithm was developed to assess and manage patients' motor function using wearable sensors. This approach enables the creation of personalized patient profiles, supporting two distinct dosing algorithms for oral and injectable administration of L-dopa. The proposed automated dosing methods, which can be implemented in both clinical and home settings via wearable devices, were compared with treatment adjustments typically made by movement disorder specialists. Both algorithms demonstrated promising results, producing dosage recommendations closely aligned with those provided by physicians. This suggests that automated dosing guided by wearable technology may offer a viable supplement to specialist-led treatment.
Improved vortex lattice method for drag prediction of supersonic wings using shock cone modelling
Authors: Joshi Hemant , Thomas Peter , Tan Christabel , Wu Hongwei 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

In the realm of supersonic design, obtaining data for numerous supersonic configurations amidst intricate flow conditions proves time-consuming due to the excessive costs associated with high-fidelity computational demands. Running iterative simulations over an extended period is often impractical or entails substantial expenses. This inherent challenge necessitates the adoption of low-order potential solvers with reasonable accuracy to generate datasets. In support of this objective, This study addresses the high computational costs of obtaining data for supersonic configurations by developing a low-order solver that combines the Taylor-Maccoll hypervelocity method (TMHM) with the supersonic vortex lattice method. This approach aims to provide accurate drag predictions in supersonic flows while minimizing computational demands. By integrating TMHM to calculate wave drag and skin friction drag and enhancing the vortex lattice method to handle shockwave impacts through panel matching, the solver achieves improved accuracy in lift and drag computations. Validation against experimental data shows a 20% reduction in drag prediction error compared to traditional vortex lattice methods, with a 2.01% error for low-shock angles. The method achieves accuracy rates between 90% and 95% across various configurations, including a 90% accuracy for delta wings, 85% for positive dihedral wings, and 95% for large sweptback angle designs, as confirmed by comparisons with high-fidelity CFD data.
Optimal Task Generalisation in Cooperative Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning
Authors: Rosen Simon , Njupoun Abdel Mfougouon , Tasse Geraud Nangue , James Steven , Rosman Benjamin 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

\looseness=-1 While task generalisation is widely studied in the context of single-agent reinforcement learning (RL), little research exists in the context of multi-agent RL. The research that does exist usually considers task generalisation implicitly as a part of the environment, and when it is considered explicitly there are no theoretical guarantees. We propose Goal-Oriented Learning for Multi-Task Multi-Agent RL (GOLeMM), a method that achieves provably optimal task generalisation that, to the best of our knowledge, has not been achieved before in multi-agent RL (MARL). After learning an optimal goal-oriented value function for a single arbitrary task, our method can zero-shot infer the optimal policy for any other task in the distribution---given only knowledge of the terminal rewards for each agent for the new task and learnt task. Empirically in a tabular domain we show that our method is able to generalise over a full task distribution, while representative baselines are only able to learn a small subset of the task distribution---given the same knowledge about tasks. Additionally, while leveraging function approximation we demonstrate our method in a high-dimensional continuous domain and obtain superior task generalisation than a representative baseline.
Experiment of 2×40Gbd PAM8 MISO-FSO system reinfored by high-spead optical signal coupling and precoder-shaped multi-level polar codes
Authors: Yang Weiying , Liu Xiaoyu , Xiao Shilin , Liu Zhiyang 
Published: November 2024

Abstract

This paper proposes and successfully demonstrates a high-speed optical signalcoupling (HS-OSC) of 2x40Gbaud PAM8 with precoder-shaped multi-level polarcodes (PS-MLPC) in a gain-oriented multiple-input single-output free space optical (MISO-FSO) system. With the pilot-based correction (PBC), the system getsa multi-path error (MPE) detecting and correcting module, which can minimizethe MPE and achieve the gain-oriented HS-OSC. On the other hand, PS-MLPCis deployed in the MISO-FSO system to provide the non-uniform PAM-8 symbols and save the power budget. In the experiment, the PBC module is provento ensure the HS-OSC process by comparing the captured waveforms. Resultsin the static FSO channel validate that the bit error rate (BER) of the MISOFSO system is improved from 4.76 × 10-3 to below 10-5 and the PS-MLPCPAM-8 saves most 0.85 dB effective signal-to-noise ratio (ESNR). Under turbulent conditions, the gain-oriented MISO-FSO system not only enhances themean ESNR of about 4.3 ∼ 5.4dB but also mitigates the standard deviation ofESNR by 40.6% ∼ 61.4%, on which the PS-MLPC provides a Q-factor gain of1.17 ∼ 1.64 dB.