bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Microstructure and mechanical properties of TiC reinforced NbC-Ni4VC4Mo2C cermets
Authors: Malik Asad , Basit Abdul , Ijaz Muhammad Farzik , Anwar Furqan , Umer Malik Adeel , Shao Yang 
Published: September 2024

Abstract
The class of NbC-Ni cermets has emerged as a promising environmentally friendly alternative to WC-Co cemented carbide tools, although some inherent properties i.e. room temperature hardness and flexural strength, of NbC-Ni cermets may require further enhancements. To enhance the properties of NbC-Ni cermets, diverse methodologies were applied, including grain inhibition and the strengthening of the cermet through the use of reinforcements. This study systematically examined the impact of TiC additions, specifically at 10% and 20%, on both the microstructure and mechanical properties of NbC-12Ni-4VC-4Mo2C cermets. NbC-12Ni cermets were fabricated via vacuum liquid phase sintering (LPS) at 1400 °C and 1450 °C. Enhancements by incorporating 4% VC and 4% Mo2C, followed by TiC at 10% and 20% concentrations to the NbC-Ni-4VC4Mo2C cermet were made. XRD and SEM results confirm the formation of (Nb, X, Y) C solid solution cubic FCC carbides. Significant grain refinement was evident in the cermet samples, subjected to grain inhibition. The observed grain sizes ranged from a maximum of 6.84 μm (in NbC12Ni) to a minimum of 2.154 μm (in the sample containing 20% TiC) at 1450 °C. The incorporation of 20TiC at 1450 °C led to a remarkable 26.5% enhancement in average hardness compared to NbC-Ni cermet, and a 4.2% improvement over the 4VC4Mo2C cermet. At 1450 °C, 20TiC reinforcement led to an average fracture toughness of 9.331 MPa√m, representing a 4.56% improvement over the 4VC4Mo2C cermet. However, there was a marginal reduction in toughness compared to the NbC-Ni cermet. Moreover, the addition of TiC led to a decrease in the flexural strength of the cermets, with a maximum flexural strength of 939 N mm−2 recorded for NbC-Ni-4VC4Mo2C, representing an 11.6% increase compared to the NbC-Ni cermet.
Precursor boundary layer conditions for shallow and deep convection: inferences from CAIPEEX field measurements over the Indian Peninsula
Authors: Gayatri K , Malap Neelam , Murugavel P , Karipot A , Prabhakaran Thara 
Published: September 2024

Abstract
The diurnal cycle of environmental conditions for shallow and deep convection regimes within the Indian monsoon environment is investigated using comprehensive observations from the surface, boundary layer, and cloud layers. For shallow convection (SC) and deep convection (DC) in the afternoon hours, thermodynamics, moisture convergence, and several other environmental variables provide information on the factors that control the vertical extent of convection in both regimes. The SC regime is characterized by high sensible heat flux, leading to stronger boundary layer turbulence, a higher mixed layer, and increased dry air entrainment from the free troposphere. Evaluation of several pre-conditioning parameters with T-test statistics suggests that stronger mid-level meridional wind shear and lack of mid-level moistening are detrimental to the growth of clouds in the SC regime. Conversely, the DC regime is driven by low surface fluxes and low surface-level buoyancy, with higher boundary layer and mid-layer moisture and more mid-layer instability, supporting larger Convective Available Potential Energy (CAPE). Morning precursor conditions for the preference of SC versus DC regime in the afternoon reveal that total column water vapor, relative humidity and CAPE are significantly higher on DC days. Large-scale moisture transport in the early morning within and above the boundary layer, driven by stronger westerly winds, is a key factor for the development of DC later in the day. This investigation enhances our understanding of boundary layer controls on shallow and deep convection within the Indian Monsoon environment.
Soil characterization, CBR modeling, and spatial variability analysis for road subgrade: a case study of Danchuwa – Jajere Road, Yobe State, Nigeria
Authors: Umar Ibrahim Haruna , Salisu Ibrahim Mu’azzam , Lin Hang , Hassan Jubril Izge 
Published: September 2024

Abstract
Road construction projects require a thorough understanding of soil properties to ensure the stability and longevity of the infrastructure. This study investigates soil properties along a proposed 34 km road alignment in Yobe State, Nigeria, to characterize soil variability for road construction and develop a predictive model for California Bearing Ratio (CBR). Of the 34 soil samples analyzed, 30 were classified as A-3(1) and four as A-1(1) according to the AASHTO system. Geotechnical testing, including particle size distribution (grading percentages: gravel 0.02%–75.34%, sand 15.5%–90.88%, fines 8.92%–34.84%), Atterberg limits (liquid limits 17%–33%, plastic limits 14%–27%, plasticity index <12%), specific gravity (2.01 to 2.73), compaction (maximum dry density 1.83–2.19 Mg m−3, optimum moisture content 7.29%–14.42%), and CBR tests (values ranging from 5%–62%), were conducted. Correlation analyses revealed strong positive relationships between maximum dry density (r = 0.82) and specific gravity (r = 0.89) with CBR values. Cluster analysis segmented the samples into four distinct groups: Cluster 0 (11 samples), Cluster 1 (9 samples), Cluster 2 (5 samples), and Cluster 3 (9 samples). A linear regression model predicted CBR using maximum dry density and specific gravity (mean squared error = 9.82, R2 = 0.92). Based on CBR criteria, 8 out of 34 samples (CBR 20%–53%) satisfied subbase requirements, while none met the recommended minimum CBR of 80% for base course materials. This study enhances road construction planning through soil variability analysis, effective soil categorization via cluster analysis, and a reliable CBR prediction model. While on-site materials are unsuitable for subgrade and subbase layers, alternative materials or ground improvement techniques are recommended for the base course layer to enhance bearing capacity.
India Institute of the Deutsche Akademie
Authors: Roy Baijayanti 
Published: September 2024

Abstract
The India Institute was a part of the Deutsche Akademie (DA), a private cultural organization established in 1925 in Munich. As part of the DA, the India Institute claimed to be a non-political entity which had the sole aim of promoting cultural ties with India. In reality, as this chapter shows, both the DA and the India Institute identified with various political concerns of successive German governments. After 1933, the Nazi regime started to utilize the India Institute’s apolitical façade to conduct pro-Nazi propaganda as well as espionage in India, using different Indian religious sects, particularly certain Hindu revivalist groups and individuals, as conduits. This chapter traces the interface of National Socialist politics, Indian nationalist aspirations, and Hindu revivalism, with particular focus on certain German Indologists, Indian nationalists, and Nazi agents who were the main mediators in this process. One of the concerns of the chapter is to analyse the knowledge discourses on India that were called on or generated by these German and Indian individuals. Among them are Jakob Wilhelm Hauer and Walther Wüst, the two German Indologists involved in the Institute’s administration, Koodavuru Anantrama Bhatta or Pandit Bhatta, a beneficiary of the Institute who turned into a prominent Nazi propagandist, as well as Horst Pohle and Alfred Würfel, the German lectors sent by the DA to India, who evolved into propagandists and informers for the Nazi regime.
Conclusion
Authors: Roy Baijayanti 
Published: September 2024

Abstract
The Conclusion sums up the answers to the research questions posited by this monograph. Such quests include those that are commonly raised by historians probing the connections between scholars of humanities and Nazi politics, as well as some additional ones generated by the particular context of this study. The former category includes the persecution of the Jewish Indologists, the self-mobilization of certain knowledge providers, and the fortunes of politically compromised scholars after the war. The conclusion discusses the fates of these individuals in the context of West Germany’s Vergangenheitsbewältigung or efforts to cope with the Nazi past. The second category comprises knowledge discourses on India which were turned into political resources, as well as the exchange of such resources and capital between individual knowledge providers and different representatives of the Nazi regime. Other distinctive aspects of the study included the role of the Indians involved in this nexus of knowledge and power and an analysis of the scholars’ projections of the ‘usefulness’ of Indology (and Indologists) to the Nazi authorities. The Conclusion outlines the key findings on these issues and ends with an examination of the possible impact of the knowledge generated by the ‘experts’, from both German and Indian perspectives.
Improving the validity of noninterventional comparative effectiveness research by basing study design on a specified existing randomized controlled trial
Authors: Wing Kevin , Leyrat Clémence 
Published: September 2024

Abstract
This issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology includes 3 articles (2 reporting original analyses and 1 systematic review) in which noninterventional studies used an existing randomized controlled trial (RCT) as a reference standard to inform noninterventional study design and against which to benchmark results. This commentary provides a brief background on the challenges of noninterventional comparative effectiveness research, before elaborating on (1) the potential benefits and challenges of basing noninterventional study design on a specified existing RCT and (2) the distinction between designing analysis based upon a specified existing RCT and studies based solely upon a hypothetical target trial. Finally, several recommendations for the conduct and reporting of noninterventional studies based on existing RCTs are provided.
This article is part of a Special Collection on Pharmacoepidemiology.
Mating system, morphological and genetic evidence endorse clonality as an essential reproductive mode in Daphnopsis filipedunculata (Thymelaeaceae), a dioecious and endemic species from the Amazon
Authors: Carvalho Carolina da Silva , da Costa Lucas Erickson Nascimento , Leal Bárbara Simões Santos , Silva Kleber Resende , Valentin-Silva Adriano , Costa Ana Carolina Galindo , Tyski Lourival , dos Santos Fernando Marino Gomes , Watanabe Mauricio Takashi Coutinho 
Published: September 2024

Abstract
Background and Aims: Clonality is characterized by the formation of independent individuals of the same genotype that are capable of reproducing and propagating vegetatively. Although clonality is an important mechanism that facilitates the persistence of a population, its extensive use can lead to negative impacts on sexual reproduction due to trade-offs in the investment of resources. Therefore, studies on the sexual reproduction of species that exhibit clonality can provide information about resilience to environmental changes, information about fecundity, the risk of the absence of pollinators and the ability to persist in unfavourable conditions and to successfully occupy new areas. Here, we investigated the role of clonal propagation and sexual reproduction in Daphnopsis filipedunculata (Thymelaeaceae), a dioecious species distributed only in Serra dos Carajás. Methods: We evaluated the extent of clonality in this species using molecular tools and anatomical analyses of the underground system responsible for developing new ramets. Furthermore, we analysed the sexual system and its contribution to reproductive success through morphometric analyses of floral types and pollination experiments in the field. Key Results: Overall, we found that clonal propagation plays an important role in maintaining the population of D. filipedunculata. Specifically, we demonstrated that this species presents functional male and female plants, indicating that D. filipedunculata is an obligate xenogamous species but has low reproductive success. We also showed that clonal vegetative propagation is the main form of asexual reproduction in this species, with roots responsible for clonal growth. Finally, our results indicated that this species presents an intermediate phalanx–guerrilla clonal architecture. Conclusions: Our study provides the first insights into sexual reproduction and clonal propagation in D. filipedunculata and can inform management practices, conservation and the restoration of endemic species.
Polarization of circulating follicular helper T cells correlates with bullous pemphigoid severity
Authors: Pérals Corine , le Jan Sébastien , Muller Céline , Le Naour Richard , Bernard Philippe , Viguier Manuelle , Fazilleau Nicolas 
Published: September 2024

Abstract

Background
Follicular helper T (Tfh) cells form a distinct population of T-helper cells with different polarizations (type 1, type 2 and type 17) that regulates humoral responses and may participate in the pathophysiology of B-cell-mediated autoimmune diseases such as bullous pemphigoid (BP), a dermatosis mediated by autoantibodies specific for hemi-desmosomal proteins.

Objectives
To evaluate the impact on circulating Tfh cells of super potent topical corticosteroid (TCS) treatment, which is more effective and safer than high doses of oral corticosteroids, and is the recommended first-line treatment of BP.

Methods
Using flow cytometry, we compared the frequency, polarization and activation of Tfh cells in the blood of patients with BP with age- and sex-matched control participants without BP at baseline and longitudinally, after the initiation of TCS treatment.

Results
We found that, at baseline, circulating Tfh cells were more frequent in patients with BP than in participants without BP and exhibited an activated phenotype. We further showed a decrease in type 1 and an increase in type 17 Tfh cells in the blood of patients with BP, which resulted in a higher type 2 + type 17 to type 1 Tfh cell ratio. This ratio correlated positively with disease severity, as measured by the Bullous Pemphigoid Disease Area Index. Remarkably, with TCS treatment, although the frequency of Tfh cells in patients with BP returned to a level similar to that of control participants, the activated phenotype persisted. Interestingly, serum interleukin-21 levels and the Tfh cell subset ratio, similarly to disease activity and serum anti-BP180 and anti-BP230 autoantibodies, decreased with TCS treatment.

Conclusions
Overall, our findings suggest the involvement Tfh cell polarization in the pathophysiology of BP and open the door to modulation of Tfh cell activity for treatment purposes.
BJS 3 - The ScotCap registry: an evaluation of over 1000 colon capsule endoscopy procedures carried out in Scotland
Authors: Macleod Campbell , Rajapaksha Nipuni , Brown Caroll , Watson Angus , Asif Zarin , Hudson Jemma 
Published: September 2024

Abstract

Aims
To report on the outcomes of patients undergoing colon capsule endoscopy (CCE) in Scotland (ScotCap) using a national CCE registry.

Methods
Patients undergoing CCE in NHS Scotland between August 1st, 2021 and August 1st, 2022 were included in this study. Patients were vetted to undergo CCE by clinicians in 5 NHS Scotland health boards. Patient data were collected prospectively by an eHealth system managing CCE referral and report sign off. CCE procedure data were collected by the ScotCap managed service carrying out CCE procedures. Data from both sources were compiled in the national CCE registry managed by Public Health Scotland.

Results
1290 patients were included in this study. The median age of patients was 59 years and 58.5% of patients were female. A haemoglobin count was available for 1062 (82.3%) patients and the mean value was 139g/L. Faecal immunochemical test results were available for 1105 (85.7%) patients and of those with a test result, 903 (81.7%) had a result ≥10 µgHb/g. The rate of complete test, adequate bowel preparation and successful test (complete test with adequate bowel preparation) was 66.4%, 63.8% and 62.1%, respectively. Following CCE, 41.2%, 36.7%, 20.9% and 1.1% of patients required no further test, colonoscopy, flexible sigmoidoscopy and gastroscopy, respectively. One patient was reported to have experienced capsule retention with obstruction.

Conclusions
These are the first reported outcomes from the Scottish national CCE registry, and the largest reported series of CCE to date, which demonstrate a significant proportion of patients avoid colonoscopy when CCE is deployed nationally.
SP1.7 - Cholecystectomy in Children: Tertiary Institutional Review of 10-years
Authors: Omran Kareem , Faruqi Duaa , Ladipo-Ajayi Oluwaseun , Holbrook Charlotte , Upadhyaya Manasvi 
Published: September 2024

Abstract

Aim
This study evaluates cholecystectomy necessity in pediatric patients with gallstones, correlating clinical symptoms, diagnostic imaging, histological findings, and postoperative outcomes.

Method
A decade-long (2013-2023) retrospective analysis at our tertiary Pediatric institution focused on patients aged 0-16 years undergoing cholecystectomy. Data from electronic patient records included demographics, preoperative symptoms, ultrasound findings, liver function tests, associated health conditions, surgical techniques, and postoperative developments.

Results
Our review encompassed 52 patients (35/52 females). Their ages ranged from 3 to 16 years (median = 13). Recurrent abdominal pain was the predominant symptom, reported in 49 patients. A minority (3 patients) were asymptomatic. 18 patients exhibited jaundice, while 5 cases each were associated with pancreatitis and cholecystitis, both clinically and biochemically.
Comorbid conditions were identified in 24 patients, including sickle cell disease (15 cases), hereditary spherocytosis (6 cases), and metachromatic leukodystrophy (3 cases).
Ultrasound findings revealed gallstones in 48 out of 52 patients, with the remaining 4 (3 metachromatic leukodystrophy) showing no stones. Histologically, cholecystitis was confirmed in 32 patients, but gallstones were only verified in 34 cases.
Laparoscopic cholecystectomy was performed in 49 cases, and 13 of these also involved splenectomy. In 3 cases, laparoscopy was converted to open surgery due to splenectomy-related factors.
During follow-up, 2 patients reported recurrent symptoms. One of these, initially diagnosed with chronic cholecystitis, was later found to have irritable bowel syndrome. Another patient required subsequent splenectomy.

Conclusion
Our study reveals a notable disparity between preoperative ultrasound findings and histological results. Nevertheless, cholecystectomy remains a safe and effective intervention in judiciously selected symptomatic paediatric patients, with most experiencing symptom resolution post-surgery.
SP1.10 - Patient Perceptions of Shared Decision-Making in Emergency Surgery
Authors: Spence Rachel , Bisset Carly , Moug Susan 
Published: September 2024

Abstract

Background
Shared decision-making (SDM), a concept becoming increasingly more prevalent in medical practice, is now considered the ‘gold standard’ approach. Research into patient perceptions of SDM is lacking and barriers to its implementation remain, specifically in emergency general surgery. Considering procedures with high mortality risks makes research into patients understanding of SDM here a critical step for its implementation.

Aim
Explore what emergency surgery patients understand about SDM and their experience of it.

Methods
A literature review and scoping review determined the quantity and quality of research in this area enabling long-listing of known SDM concepts. This developed questions and structured discussions for the patient and public involvement (PPI) exercise.
This exercise was developed following research, patient representative input and discussions with experienced researchers. Twenty-five participants, identified from the local ELLSA database, were invited with their support-person. Small-group discussions considered how surgeons make decisions, what SDM means to patients, and improving this process. Responses were transcribed, then analysed.

Results
Nine patients and four supporters attended the exercise. Thematic analysis identified two key themes: patient perceptions of how surgeons make decisions, and patient experiences of emergency surgical decision-making. Subtheme analysis showed participants weren’t aware of surgeons’ use of “30-day mortality” and couldn’t quantify surgical risk, feeling time pressures and out-of-control. They relied on surgeons to make their decision.

Conclusions
Patients who’ve undergone emergency surgery don’t understand how surgeons make emergency surgical decisions. Many reported not experiencing SDM at all. This work provides the first patient-insights into an area requiring more research – on a larger scale.
SP2.1 - Endoscopic retrograde appendicitis therapy for peri-appendiceal abscess
Authors: Yang Baohong , Li Deliang , Podda Mauro , Liu Bingrong 
Published: September 2024

Abstract

Aims
ERAT is a novel technique primarily for uncomplicated appendicitis, but it is starting to be used also for peri-appendiceal abscesses. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and clinical outcomes of ERAT in treating patients with peri-appendiceal abscess.

Methods
Between January 2018 and April 2023, twenty-eight patients with peri-appendiceal abscess were treated with ERAT. We retrospectively analyzed the location and size of the peri-appendiceal abscess, success rate of ERAT, median operative time, postoperative hospital stay and complications. We defined success of ERAT as finding the appendiceal orifice and successful performance of ERAT without conversion to appendectomy or percutaneous drainage of the appendiceal abscess within one month. All patients were followed up at least 6 months, with a median follow-up of 31.5 months.

Results
The success rate of ERAT was 75.0% (95% CI, 54.8%-88.6%; n = 21/28). 35.7% (95% CI, 19.3%-55.9%; n = 10/28) of peri-appendiceal abscesses were located in the lower ileum, and the median size of appendiceal abscesses was 43.5 mm (95% CI: 33-53). 80.8% (95% CI, 60.0%-92.7%; n = 21/26) of patients had a visual analogue scale pain score of ≤3 at 24 hours after treatment. The median procedure time was 69.5 minutes (95% CI: 51-76), and the median hospital stay was 6.5 days (95% CI: 5-9). During the follow-up period, a total of four (17.1%; 95% CI, 0.9%-13.1%; 4/21) patients presented with abdominal pain associated with peri-appendiceal abscesses.

Conclusions
ERAT is a technically feasible treatment for peri-appendiceal abscesses.