bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of plasma activated liquids for the elimination of mixed species biofilms within endoscopic working channels
Authors: Northage Naomi , Shvalya Vasyl , Modic Martina , Juergens Thorsten , Eschborn Sascha , Horsburgh Malcolm J. , Walsh James L. 
Published: November 2024

AbstractThe use of reusable flexible endoscopes has increased dramatically over the past decade, however despite improvements in endoscope reprocessing, the continued emergence of endoscopy-associated outbreaks as a result of multi-drug resistant bacteria has highlighted the need for a new approach to disinfection. Here, the use of plasma activated liquids (PALs) for the elimination of mixed species biofilm contamination within the working channels of endoscopes was evaluated. Cold atmospheric pressure plasma was used to chemically activate water and a commercially available pH buffered peracetic acid to create PALs. Polytetrafluoroethylene endoscope surrogate test pieces were contaminated with clinically relevant mixed species biofilms. The efficacy of PALs for the decontamination of narrow lumens was compared against the commercial disinfectant. Plasma activation was found to increase the antibiofilm capabilities of pH buffered peracetic acid by introducing reactive chemical species into the solution. Disinfection of endoscopic test pieces with plasma activated disinfectant (PAD) resulted in a 7.30 log10 reduction of biofilm contamination in 5 min, surpassing the 4.39 log10 reduction observed with the currently used endoscope disinfection method. PAD also resulted in reduced regrowth and recolonization of the surface of the endoscopic test pieces. Minimal changes to the surface morphology and composition were observed following exposure to PAD in comparison to the commercial disinfectant, suggesting the developed approach is no more aggressive than current disinfection approaches.
Daily intake of a dairy-based nutritional supplement improved self-reported gastrointestinal symptoms and modulated microbiota in adult Chinese volunteers
Authors: Borewicz Klaudyna , Zhao Yifan , Zhu Yaqiong 
Published: November 2024

AbstractMild and persisting gastrointestinal symptoms (MPGS) as bloating, constipation or diarrhea are widespread in older adults and often accompanied by gut microbiota dysbiosis. Nutritional interventions help to regulate and restore microbiota and gut function. In this non-randomized continuous prospective cohort study, we evaluated the effects of a 21-day intervention using a dietary dairy-based supplement (AGIJOY™) on self-reported gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms, fecal microbiota composition and short chain fatty acids (SCFA) levels in a cohort of Chinese adults (N = 46, age 27–73) suffering from MPGS. Questionnaire data and fecal samples were collected at baseline (D0), on day 7 and 21 of intervention (D7 and D21). The results showed significant improvement in the self-reported GI symptoms on D21 and a gradual shift in the fecal microbiota composition. In the first week of intervention, the relative abundance (RA) of fecal bifidobacteria significantly increased and the RA of Bacteroides and Helicobacter decreased (p < 0.05). The levels of fecal SCFA remained unchanged during the study. To our knowledge, this is the first study testing the effect of this prebiotic and postbiotic containing milk-based supplement blend on gut microbiota and MPGS among Chinese population under a real living environment.
Multimodal assessment of brain stiffness variation in healthy subjects using magnetic resonance elastography and ultrasound time-harmonic elastography
Authors: Klemmer Chandía Stefan , Schattenfroh Jakob , Brinker Spencer T. , Tzschätzsch Heiko , Sack Ingolf , Meyer Tom 
Published: November 2024

AbstractMagnetic resonance elastography (MRE) is a noninvasive brain stiffness mapping method. Ultrasound-based transtemporal time-harmonic elastography (THE) is emerging as a cost-effective, fast alternative that has potential applications for bedside monitoring of intracranial pressure. We aim to investigate the accuracy of THE in comparison to MRE performed in the brain. Ten healthy volunteers (25–40 years old) underwent multifrequency MRE (20–35 Hz) and THE (27–56 Hz). Fiducial-marker-based optical tracking of the ultrasound field of view was used to align THE to 3D MRE. THE- and MRE-derived shear wave speed (SWS) was determined as a measure of brain stiffness and averaged within regions of various depths for cross-modality correlation analysis. MRE-measured SWS ranged from 1.0 to 1.3 m/s and was negatively correlated with age (R2 = 0.44, p = 0.035). After registration of both modalities, SWS values were linearly correlated (MRE: 1.14 ± 0.08 m/s, THE: 1.13 ± 0.10 m/s; R2 = 0.62, p = 0.007). Best agreement between modalities was achieved at depths of 40–60 mm, suggesting this range provides a viable trade-off between ultrasound attenuation and near-field bias. Similar brain regions can be consistently measured with both elastography modalities, despite the regional and individual variations of stiffness. Transtemporal THE yields stiffness values in a range similar to those obtained with more expensive MRE.
Cellular and molecular roles of reactive oxygen species in wound healing
Authors: Hunt Matthew , Torres Monica , Bachar-Wikstrom Etty , Wikstrom Jakob D. 
Published: November 2024

AbstractWound healing is a highly coordinated spatiotemporal sequence of events involving several cell types and tissues. The process of wound healing requires strict regulation, and its disruption can lead to the formation of chronic wounds, which can have a significant impact on an individual’s health as well as on worldwide healthcare expenditure. One essential aspect within the cellular and molecular regulation of wound healing pathogenesis is that of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and oxidative stress. Wounding significantly elevates levels of ROS, and an array of various reactive species are involved in modulating the wound healing process, such as through antimicrobial activities and signal transduction. However, as in many pathologies, ROS play an antagonistic pleiotropic role in wound healing, and can be a pathogenic factor in the formation of chronic wounds. Whilst advances in targeting ROS and oxidative stress have led to the development of novel pre-clinical therapeutic methods, due to the complex nature of ROS in wound healing, gaps in knowledge remain concerning the specific cellular and molecular functions of ROS in wound healing. In this review, we highlight current knowledge of these functions, and discuss the potential future direction of new studies, and how these pathways may be targeted in future pre-clinical studies.
Spontaneous flows and quantum analogies in heterogeneous active nematic films
Authors: Houston Alexander J. H. , Mottram Nigel J. 
Published: November 2024

AbstractIncorporating the inherent heterogeneity of living systems into models of active nematics is essential to provide a more realistic description of biological processes such as bacterial growth, cell dynamics and tissue development. Spontaneous flow of a confined active nematic is a fundamental feature of these systems, in which the role of heterogeneity has not yet been considered. We therefore determine the form of spontaneous flow transition for an active nematic film with heterogeneous activity, identifying a correspondence between the unstable director modes and solutions to Schrödinger’s equation. We consider both activity gradients and steps between regions of distinct activity, finding that such variations can change the signature properties of the flow. The threshold activity required for the transition can be raised or lowered, the fluid flux can be reduced or reversed and interfaces in activity induce shear flows. In a biological context fluid flux influences the spread of nutrients while shear flows affect the behaviour of rheotactic microswimmers and can cause the deformation of biofilms. All the effects we identify are found to be strongly dependent on not simply the types of activity present in the film but also on how they are distributed.
Enhancers and genome conformation provide complex transcriptional control of a herpesviral gene
Authors: Morgens David W , Gulyas Leah , Mao Xiaowen , Rivera-Madera Alejandro , Souza Annabelle S , Glaunsinger Britt A 
Published: November 2024

AbstractComplex transcriptional control is a conserved feature of both eukaryotes and the viruses that infect them. Despite viral genomes being smaller and more gene dense than their hosts, we generally lack a sense of scope for the features governing the transcriptional output of individual viral genes. Even having a seemingly simple expression pattern does not imply that a gene’s underlying regulation is straightforward. Here, we illustrate this by combining high-density functional genomics, expression profiling, and viral-specific chromosome conformation capture to define with unprecedented detail the transcriptional regulation of a single gene from Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV). We used as our model KSHV ORF68 – which has simple, early expression kinetics and is essential for viral genome packaging. We first identified seven cis-regulatory regions involved in ORF68 expression by densely tiling the ~154 kb KSHV genome with dCas9 fused to a transcriptional repressor domain (CRISPRi). A parallel Cas9 nuclease screen indicated that three of these regions act as promoters of genes that regulate ORF68. RNA expression profiling demonstrated that three more of these regions act by either repressing or enhancing other distal viral genes involved in ORF68 transcriptional regulation. Finally, we tracked how the 3D structure of the viral genome changes during its lifecycle, revealing that these enhancing regulatory elements are physically closer to their targets when active, and that disrupting some elements caused large-scale changes to the 3D genome. These data enable us to construct a complete model revealing that the mechanistic diversity of this essential regulatory circuit matches that of human genes.
Global atlas of predicted functional domains in Legionella pneumophila Dot/Icm translocated effectors
Authors: Patel Deepak T , Stogios Peter J , Jaroszewski Lukasz , Urbanus Malene L , Sedova Mayya , Semper Cameron , Le Cathy , Takkouche Abraham , Ichii Keita , Innabi Julie , Patel Dhruvin H , Ensminger Alexander W , Godzik Adam , Savchenko Alexei 
Published: November 2024

AbstractLegionella pneumophila utilizes the Dot/Icm type IVB secretion system to deliver hundreds of effector proteins inside eukaryotic cells to ensure intracellular replication. Our understanding of the molecular functions of the largest pathogenic arsenal known to the bacterial world remains incomplete. By leveraging advancements in 3D protein structure prediction, we provide a comprehensive structural analysis of 368 L. pneumophila effectors, representing a global atlas of predicted functional domains summarized in a database (https://pathogens3d.org/legionella-pneumophila). Our analysis identified 157 types of diverse functional domains in 287 effectors, including 159 effectors with no prior functional annotations. Furthermore, we identified 35 cryptic domains in 30 effector models that have no similarity with experimentally structurally characterized proteins, thus, hinting at novel functionalities. Using this analysis, we demonstrate the activity of thirteen functional domains, including three cryptic domains, predicted in L. pneumophila effectors to cause growth defects in the Saccharomyces cerevisiae model system. This illustrates an emerging strategy of exploring synergies between predictions and targeted experimental approaches in elucidating novel effector activities involved in infection.
Variation in the intensity ratio at each wavelength point of the Si IV 1394/1403 Å lines
Authors: Zhou Yi’an , Yan Xiaoli , Xue Zhike , Yang Liheng , Wang Jincheng , Xu Zhe 
Published: November 2024

Aims. This study aims to investigate the deviation of the intensity ratio of the Si IV 1394 Å and 1403 Å emission lines from the expected value of 2 in the optically thin regime, as has been observed in many recent studies.
Methods. We analyzed the integrated intensity ratio (R) and the wavelength-dependent ratio (r(Δλ)) in a small bifurcated eruption event observed by the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS).
Results. Despite the relatively complex line profiles, the intensity ratio, R, of Si IV lines mostly remains greater than 2 in the loops. The ratio r(Δλ) varies in the line core and wings, changing distinctly from 2.0 to 3.3 along the wavelength. At certain positions, the Si IV 1394 Å and 1403 Å lines exhibit different Doppler velocities.
Conclusions. When diagnosing the spectra of small active region events, not only the impact of opacity but also the influence of resonance scattering should be considered. We propose that the ratio r(Δλ) can serve as an indicator of the resonance scattering and opacity effect of the Si IV line.
Dimming events of evolved stars due to clouds of molecular gas
Authors: Freytag Bernd , Höfner Susanne , Aringer Bernhard , Chiavassa Andrea 
Published: November 2024

Context. The dramatic dimming episode of the red supergiant Betelgeuse in 2019 and 2020, caused by a partial darkening of the stellar disk, has highlighted gaps in the understanding of the evolution of massive stars.
Aims. We analyzed numerical models to investigate the processes behind the formation of dark surface patches and the associated reduction in the disk-integrated stellar light.
Methods. With the CO5BOLD code, we performed global 3D radiation-hydrodynamical simulations of evolved stars, including convection in the stellar interior, self-excited pulsations, and the resulting atmospheric dynamics with strong radiative shocks.
Results. We attribute dimming phenomena to obscuring clouds of cool gas in the lower atmosphere, forming according to three different scenarios. One process transports material outward in a strong shock, similar to what occurs in 1D simulations of radially pulsating asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars. However, in 3D models, deviations from spherical symmetry of the shock front can lead to further local density enhancements. Another mechanism is triggered by a large convective upflow structure, in combination with exceptionally strong radial pulsations. This induces Rayleigh-Taylor instabilities, causing plumes of material to be sent outward into the atmosphere. The third and rarest scenario involves large-amplitude convective fluctuations, leading to enhanced flows in deep downdrafts, which rebound and send material outward. In all cases, the dense gas above the stellar surface cools and darkens rapidly in visible light. AGB stars show localized dark patches regularly during intermediate phases of their large-amplitude pulsations, while more massive stars will only intermittently form such patches during luminosity minima.
Conclusions. The episodic levitation of dense gas clumps above the stellar surface, followed by the formation of complex molecules in the cooling gas and possibly dust grains at a later stage, can account for the dark patches and strong dimming events of supergiant stars such as Betelgeuse.
Euclid’s first year in space
Authors: Kuijken Koen 
Published: November 2024

July 1st, 2023. Cape Canaveral. 11:11 am.
10..9..8..7..6..5..4..3..2..1.. LIFT-OFF!
Against a beautiful blue sky, the Falcon-9 rocket carrying our ‘baby’ streaks into the sky, 8 miles away from our vantage point. Almost one minute later the crackling sound of the rocket engines arrives. I manage to follow the disappearing rocket with my binoculars for two minutes, until the main engine cuts off. Half an hour later, on the big screen set up next to our bleachers full of colleagues and family at the Banana Creek viewing site, we see the upper stage rocket switch off and deliver its precious cargo into space. Soon after, ultrarelieved mission managers at ESA receive the first radio signals. We have a spacecraft, we have a mission!
Costs and benefits of a formal quality framework for colonoscopy: Economic evaluation
Authors: Pakneshan Sahar , Moy Naomi , O'Connor Sam , Hourigan Luke , Messmann Helmut , Shah Ayesha , Dulleck Uwe , Holtmann G.J. 
Published: November 2024

Abstract
Background and study aims Reduction of colorectal cancer morbidity and mortality is one of the primary objectives of colonoscopy. Post-colonoscopy colorectal cancers (PCCRCs) are critical outcome parameters. Analysis of PCCRC rates can validate quality assurance measures in colonoscopy. We assessed the effectiveness of implementing a gastroenterologist-led quality framework that monitors key procedure quality indicators (i.e., bowel preparation quality, adenoma detection rates, or patient satisfaction) by comparing the PCCRC rate before and after implementation.
Patients and methods Individuals who had a colonoscopy between 2010 and 2017 at a single tertiary center in Queensland, Australia, were included and divided into two groups: baseline (2010–2014) and redesign phase (2015–2017). Data linkage of the state-wide cancer registry and hospital records enabled identification of subjects who developed colorectal cancers within 5 years of a negative colonoscopy. Costs associated with quality improvement were assessed for effectiveness.
Results A total of 19,383 individuals had a colonoscopy during the study period. Seventeen PCCRCs were detected. The PCCRC rate was 0.376 per 1,000 person-years and the average 5-year PCCRC risk ranged from 0.165% to 0.051%. The rate of PCCRCs was higher at the beginning (0.166%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.15%-0.17%) compared with the later period with full implementation of quality control measures (0.027%; 95% CI 0.023%-0.03%). The quality process determined an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of -$5,670.53 per PCCRC avoided.
Conclusions This large cohort study demonstrated that a formal gastroenterologist-led quality assurance framework embedded into the routine operations of a clinical department not only reduces interval cancers but is also cost-effective regarding life years gained and quality-adjusted life years.
Whose reality is it anyway? The decline and fall of the common ground in public diplomacy
Authors: Manor Ilan 
Published: November 2024

AbstractPublic diplomacy scholars have argued that the strategic use of disinformation by nefarious states and non-state actors contributed to the decline of social media as a public diplomacy tool. Social media sites, once viewed as a tool to democratize and revolutionize diplomacy, are now viewed as a societal ill. Yet this article argues that many states contributed to this process. The reason being that digitalized public diplomacy activities shifted from online interactions to the creation and dissemination of mediated realities. As a result, social media became home to multiple and conflicting mediated realities while social media users began subscribing to very different depictions of reality, driving societal tensions. This article concludes by arguing that the study of digitalized public diplomacy must redefine public diplomacy as an attempt by diplomats and digital publics to reach an agreed upon definition of reality that they choose to act on. Moreover, it calls on scholars to conceptualize the middle ground as that place where diplomats and digital publics can express their different perceptions of reality and narrow gaps between conflicting perceptions of realities. This suggests that the practice of public diplomacy in the digital age should not focus on disseminating appealing narratives but on creating a shared definition of reality which is not divorced from other mediated realities such as the ones shared online by states, non-state actors and the media. Ultimately, public diplomacy in the digital age is a quest for meaning and collective sense making that can only emerge from open discourse.
Discovery of the Hailin impact crater in northeast
China
Authors: Yin Feng , Chen Ming , Yang Wenge , Mao Ho-kwang 
Published: November 2024

A uniquely shaped impact structure, the Hailin impact crater, has been discovered in northeast China. The crater was formed on a granodiorite hillside and is an oval depression with asymmetric rim height and a maximum diameter of 1360 m. The bottom of the crater is filled by Quaternary sediments with large amounts of rock fragments underneath. The discovery of quartz planar deformation features in rock clasts on the crater floor provides diagnostic evidence for the impact origin of the structure. The shape of the crater is largely due to the impact having occurred on a ridge terrain. The impact event probably occurred in the late Cenozoic Era. The Hailin impact crater is the fourth confirmed Chinese impact crater.
1.2.7. Italian traditions
Authors: Italia Paola 
Published: November 2024

The history of genetic criticism in the Italian tradition starts with Humanism, and from Francesco Petrarch’s “Codice degli Abbozzi” (fourteenth century). This chapter traces the framework of this tradition, highlighting how, with the simple but revolutionary gesture of leaving even the ugliest copies of his own masterpieces – the so-called “scartafacci” – to posterity, Petrarch created a model of an intellectual, a champion of classicism, the “style to be imitated”. Petrarch’s model left a trace of the toil of writing, the labor limae, which is considered the secret of style. From Machiavelli to Guicciardini, from Ariosto to Tasso, the “authorial function” has delivered a model of conservation and philology. After the triumph of the “scartafacci”, two exemplary nineteenth-century cases (Manzoni and Leopardi) will be discussed, as well as the twentieth-century text production, in which the study of manuscripts, tormented by countless revisions, reveals a possible “grammar of corrections” and is flanked by crucial problems of authorship.
1.4.4. Kleine Prosa
Authors: Göttsche Dirk 
Published: November 2024

This chapter explores the poetics of the draft in the transgeneric field of modern small prose forms from the aphoristic “fragments” of the Romantic period, through the prose sketches and prose poems of the nineteenth century, to microfiction (flash fiction), emblematic short prose, literary notes (Aufzeichnungen) and digital formats in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. The German notion of Kleine Prosa, which moves beyond the narrow focus on narrative forms in the English term “short prose”, provides the conceptual framework. The chapter foregrounds German literature but also considers other European-language literatures in comparative perspective. The point of departure is the overlap between the poetics of these modernist short forms – which undercut established genre patterns, experiment with innovative modes of writing and invite reader participation in the construction of meaning – and the history of the draft, note-taking, rewriting in modern literary practice since the eighteenth century.
From affirmation to concession
Authors: Long Haiping , Zhou Weihua 
Published: November 2024

Abstract
The Modern Chinese concessive connective kě shì (e.g., kàn shàngqù bù zěnmeyàng, kě
shì chī qǐlái què tǐng bùcuò [‘it looks not so good, but it tastes quite good’]) did not
develop from a clause-initial emphatic kě shì structure that has a pragmatic counter expectation meaning (e.g.,

kě shì tā shuōde [‘it was really she who said it’]), but from an affirmative
response marker kě shì in Early Modern Chinese (e.g.,
kě shì ne, míng’er nǐ sòngwǒ
shénme? [‘quite right, what do you send me as gifts tomorrow?’]). Shì in the connective
did not develop from a copula shì, but from an adjective shì meaning ‘right, true’ (e.g.,
rán, shì yě [‘right, it’s true’]). The hypothesised pathway may be explained as the
grammaticalisation of an affirmative response marker used in the context of token agreement, and may be adopted to account for the
formation of an Old Chinese concessive connective rán (e.g.,
rán Zhèng wáng, zǐ yì yǒu bùlì
yān [‘but if Zheng State perishes, it serves you no good, either’]). It gives support to an
extra-clausal source for the formation of a sentence connective.