bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The miR-290 and miR-302 clusters are essential for reprogramming of fibroblasts to induced pluripotent stem cells
Authors: Ye Julia , Boileau Ryan M. , Parchem Ronald J. , Judson-Torres Robert L. , Blelloch Robert 
Published: September 2024

AbstractThe miR-290 and miR-302 clusters of microRNAs are highly expressed in naïve and primed pluripotent stem cells, respectively. Ectopic expression of the embryonic stem cell-specific cell cycle regulating (ESCC) family of microRNAs arising from these two clusters dramatically enhances the reprogramming of both mouse and human somatic cells to induced pluripotency. Here, we used genetic knockouts to dissect the requirement for the miR-290 and miR-302 clusters during the reprogramming of mouse fibroblasts into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) with retrovirally introduced Oct4, Sox2, and Klf4. Knockout of either cluster alone did not negatively impact the efficiency of reprogramming. Resulting cells appeared identical to their embryonic stem cell microRNA cluster knockout counterparts. In contrast, the combined loss of both clusters blocked the formation of iPSCs. While rare double knockout clones could be isolated, they showed a dramatically reduced proliferation rate, a persistent inability to fully silence the exogenously introduced pluripotency factors, and a transcriptome distinct from individual miR-290 or miR-302 mutant ESC and iPSCs. Taken together, our data show that miR-290 and miR-302 are essential yet interchangeable in reprogramming to the induced pluripotent state.Impact StatementThe process by which somatic cell reprogramming yields induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) is incompletely understood. MicroRNAs from the miR-290 and miR-302 clusters have been shown to greatly increase reprogramming efficiency, but their requirement in the process has not been studied. Here, we examine this requirement by genetically removing the miRNA clusters in somatic cells. We discover that somatic cells lacking either, but not both, of these miRNA clusters can form iPSC cells. This work thus provides new important insight into mechanisms underlying reprogramming to pluripotency.
Current clinical practice of prurigo nodularis in Japan: A cross‐sectional web‐survey among dermatologists
Authors: Murota Hiroyuki , Matsumoto Mai , Arima Kazuhiko , Yoshida Takuo , Fujita Hiroyuki 
Published: September 2024

AbstractPrurigo nodularis (PN) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease associated with intense pruritic nodules. The unclear patho‐etiological mechanisms of PN cause difficulty in disease management; and there is a paucity of information on the current diagnosis and treatment options for PN in Japan. To describe the current management from a dermatologists' perspective we conducted a web‐based survey (UMIN Clinical Trial Registry UMIN000047643) in 2022 among dermatologists from a Japanese commercially available physician panel, who had seen at least one patient with PN within the last 3 months. The survey included 117 dermatologists. The dermatologists diagnosed PN mainly by confirming clinical signs and patient interviews, while to assess the severity of PN, the number of pruritic nodules and the degree of itching were primarily utilized. Topical corticosteroids and antihistamines were the most used drugs, as recommended in the current guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of prurigo. Dermatologists' treatment satisfaction decreased with increasing assumed severity of PN; almost 65% dermatologists were not satisfied with the treatment of severe PN. These results suggest the need of more effective medications and diagnostic tools for better management of PN in Japan.
Context‐dependent effects of below‐ground carbon transfer: Limited benefits from sunlit pines to shaded oaks
Authors: Livne‐Luzon Stav , Fox Hagar , Cahanovitc Rotem , Rapaport Alon , Klein Tamir 
Published: September 2024

Abstract

Despite gaining significant attention in recent years, it remains unclear whether mycorrhizal fungi distribute meaningful amounts of resources among trees in ways that increase the fitness of the receiving trees. To investigate this, we used pairs of shaded and unshaded Pinus halepensis or Quercus calliprinos saplings, growing in both inter‐ and intra‐specific combinations outdoors in forest soil. We examined the combined effects of indirect and direct below‐ground connections on tree performance and Non‐Structural Carbohydrate (NSC) pools.

Although we did not observe any growth benefits, shaded recipient oaks exhibited higher levels of root and branch NSC compared to their control counterparts, which were not connected below‐ground. This finding suggests a potential benefit of establishing below‐ground connections. However, no such benefits were observed among the unshaded pairs or in the other inter‐ and intra‐specific pairs of pines and oaks.

We monitored the carbon (C) flow from a 13CO2‐labelled donor pine tree to a below‐ground connected oak tree and demonstrated C transfer from pines to shaded oaks. We also identified the main fungal symbionts interacting with pines and oaks.

Our findings indicate that the effects of below‐ground C transfer are context‐dependent, manifesting in nuanced alterations in plant NSC that are not readily apparent through conventional growth metrics.

Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
Envelope normalized reflection waveform inversion
Authors: Wang Yilin , Chi Benxin , Dong Liangguo 
Published: September 2024

AbstractThe reflection waveform inversion has the capability to reconstruct the background velocity model using only the reflection data by employing a migration/demigration process. Utilizing the waveform discrepancy to update the background velocity model, the conventional reflection waveform inversion method heavily relies on the true‐amplitude migration/demigration technique to reproduce the primary amplitude information from the observed reflections. We can reproduce the amplitude of observed reflections by performing least‐squares reverse time migration to estimate the reflectivity in each iteration. However, this strategy is quite time‐consuming. To avoid the need for the true‐amplitude migration/demigration or least‐squares reverse time migration, we develop an amplitude‐independent reflection waveform inversion method that uses an envelope‐normalized objective function. The envelope‐normalized waveform difference can extract the phase residuals accurately as a function of time. Compared with the global energy–normalized misfit, our proposed envelope‐normalized objective function is essentially a phase‐matched measurement. At the same time, due to the amplitude independence of our proposed objective function, the subsequent weak reflections contribute with a similar weight to the total value of the misfit as the strong early reflections do. This makes it possible to recover the deep subsurface velocity. Synthetic data of the Sigsbee model and marine streamer field data applications validate that our amplitude‐independent reflection waveform inversion method can further improve the resolution and accuracy by aligning the reflection events of synthetic and observed data phase to phase without the need to perform true‐amplitude migration/demigration or least‐squares reverse time migration as in conventional reflection waveform inversion.
Viviparity is associated with larger female size and higher sexual size dimorphism in a reproductively bimodal lizard
Authors: Roitberg Evgeny S. , Recknagel Hans , Elmer Kathryn R. , Braña Florentino , Rodríguez Díaz Tania , Žagar Anamarija , Kuranova Valentina N. , Epova Lidiya A. , Bauwens Dirk , Giovine Giovanni , Orlova Valentina F. , Bulakhova Nina A. , Eplanova Galina V. , Arribas Oscar J. 
Published: September 2024

Abstract

Squamate reptiles are central for studying phenotypic correlates of evolutionary transitions from oviparity to viviparity because these transitions are numerous, with many of them being recent. Several models of life‐history theory predict that viviparity is associated with increased female size, and thus more female‐biased sexual size dimorphism (SSD). Yet, the corresponding empirical evidence is overall weak and inconsistent. The lizard Zootoca vivipara, which occupies a major part of Northern Eurasia and includes four viviparous and two non‐sister oviparous lineages, represents an excellent model for testing these predictions.

We analysed how sex‐specific body size and SSD is associated with parity mode, using body length data for nearly 14,000 adult individuals from 97 geographically distinct populations, which cover almost the entire species' range and represent all six lineages. Our analyses controlled for lineage identity, climatic seasonality (the strongest predictor of geographic body size variation in previous studies of this species) and several aspects of data heterogeneity.

Parity mode, lineage and seasonality are significantly associated with female size and SSD; the first two predictors accounted for 14%–26% of the total variation each, while seasonality explained 5%–7%. Viviparous populations exhibited a larger female size than oviparous populations, with no concomitant differences in male size. The variation of male size was overall low and poorly explained by our predictors.

Albeit fully expected from theory, the strong female bias of the body size differences between oviparous and viviparous populations found in Z. vivipara is not evident from available data on three other lizard systems of closely related lineages differing in parity mode. We confront this pattern with the data on female reproductive traits in the considered systems and the frequencies of evolutionary changes of parity mode in the corresponding lizard families and speculate why the life‐history correlates of live‐bearing in Z. vivipara are distinct.

Comparing conspecific populations, our study provides the most direct evidence for the predicted effect of parity mode on adult body size but also demonstrates that the revealed pattern may not be general. This might explain why across squamates, viviparity is only weakly associated with larger size.
Sustainable development goals, sustainable finance, and financial inclusion: An awareness perspective of business graduates
Authors: Faheem Muhammad , Zahid Muhammad , Rahman Haseeb Ur , Jan Amin , Ali Syed Emad Azhar 
Published: September 2024

AbstractThe study aims to inquire about the level of understanding of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Sustainable Finance (SF), and Financial Inclusion (FI) among business graduates. The data were collected through a self‐administered questionnaire from 342 business graduates from different universities in a developing country like Pakistan. The findings revealed that the respondents have a no‐to‐low understanding of SF, FI, and the role or importance of these in achieving the 17 SDGs. The findings suggest major revisions in the structure and contents of different business degrees in Pakistan. Overall, the study opens new avenues for research and provides important insights for all the key stakeholders, including universities, higher education institutions (HEIs), the Higher Education Commission (HEC), students, and parents. The study also has social and practical implications for various stakeholders in the HEIs.
Traumatic experiences, quality of life, and organizational commitment among midwives: A cross‐sectional study
Authors: Segal Kinneret , Kagan Ilya 
Published: September 2024

AbstractBackgroundThe work of midwives is emotionally challenging. Midwives share moments of joy, when a baby is born, and attend complex events of loss and trauma. Exposure to childbirth complications, emergencies, and loss can affect their professional quality of life and functioning. This aspect of midwives' practice has not been sufficiently researched.AimTo examine the associations between exposures to traumatic events, post‐traumatic symptoms, and personal resilience with professional quality of life and organizational commitment among hospital midwives.MethodsParticipants in this cross‐sectional study conducted in 2020 included 131 midwives from three large hospitals in central Israel. Data were collected using a structured self‐administered questionnaire that examined socio‐demographic characteristics, exposure to traumatic events during childbirth, personal resilience, post‐traumatic symptoms, professional quality of life, and organizational commitment.ResultsThe three most traumatic events for midwives were: neonatal death or feared death, maternal death or feared death, and stillbirth. The more frequent the exposure to traumatic events, the more numerous and intense the post‐traumatic symptoms. The more numerous and intense the post‐traumatic symptoms, the higher the level of professional burnout and compassion fatigue and the lower the compassion satisfaction. Higher compassion satisfaction and lower professional burnout were associated with higher organizational commitment. Personal resilience, country of birth, post‐traumatic symptoms, and organizational commitment predicted compassion satisfaction.ConclusionsMidwives' exposure to traumatic events is associated with the onset of post‐traumatic symptoms, impaired professional quality of life, and reduced organizational commitment, and is accompanied by burnout and compassion fatigue. There is a need to address this issue in training programs and to develop organizational support and policies to improve midwives' well‐being and quality of care.
Three‐dimensional conservation planning of fish biodiversity metrics to achieve the deep‐sea 30×30 conservation target
Authors: Mathon Laetitia , Baletaud Florian , Lebourges‐Dhaussy Anne , Lecellier Gaël , Menkes Christophe , Bachelier Céline , Bonneville Claire , Dejean Tony , Dumas Mahé , Fiat Sylvie , Grelet Jacques , Habasque Jérémie , Manel Stéphanie , Mannocci Laura , Mouillot David , Peran Maëlis , Roudaut Gildas , Sidobre Christine , Varillon David , Vigliola Laurent 
Published: September 2024

AbstractAccelerating rate of human impact and environmental change severely affects marine biodiversity and increases the urgency to implement the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) 30×30 plan for conserving 30% of sea areas by 2030. However, area‐based conservation targets are complex to identify in a 3‐dimensional (3D) ocean where deep‐sea features such as seamounts have been seldom studied mostly due to challenging methodologies to implement at great depths. Yet, the use of emerging technologies, such as environmental DNA combined with modern modeling frameworks, could help address the problem. We collected environmental DNA, echosounder acoustic, and video data at 15 seamounts and deep island slopes across the Coral Sea. We modeled 7 fish community metrics and the abundances of 45 individual species and molecular operational taxonomic units (MOTUs) in benthic and pelagic waters (down to 600‐m deep) with boosted regression trees and generalized joint attribute models to describe biodiversity on seamounts and deep slopes and identify 3D protection solutions for achieving the CBD area target in New Caledonia (1.4 million km2). We prioritized the identified conservation units in a 3D space, based on various biodiversity targets, to meet the goal of protecting at least 30% of the spatial domain, with a focus on areas with high biodiversity. The relationship between biodiversity protection targets and the spatial area protected by the solution was linear. The scenario protecting 30% of each biodiversity metric preserved almost 30% of the considered spatial domain and accounted for the 3D distribution of biodiversity. Our study paves the way for the use of combined data collection methodologies to improve biodiversity estimates in 3D structured marine environments for the selection of conservation areas and for the use of biodiversity targets to achieve area‐based international targets.
Evaluating models of expert judgment to inform assessment of ecosystem viability and collapse
Authors: Dorrough Josh , Travers Samantha K. , Val James , Scott Mitchell L. , Moutou Claudine J. , Oliver Ian 
Published: September 2024

AbstractExpert judgment underpins assessment of threatened ecosystems. However, experts are often narrowly defined, and variability in their judgments may be substantial. Models built from structured elicitation with large diverse expert panels can contribute to more consistent and transparent decision‐making. We conducted a structured elicitation under a broad definition of expertise to examine variation in judgments of ecosystem viability and collapse in a critically endangered ecosystem. We explored whether variation in judgments among 83 experts was related to affiliation and management expertise and assessed performance of an average model based on common ecosystem indicators. There were systematic differences among individuals, much of which were not explained by affiliation or expertise. However, of the individuals affiliated with government, those in conservation and environmental departments were more likely to determine a patch was viable than those in agriculture and rural land management. Classification errors from an average model, in which all individuals were weighted equally, were highest among government agriculture experts (27%) and lowest among government conservation experts (12%). Differences were mostly cases in which the average model predicted a patch was viable but the individual thought it was not. These differences arose primarily for areas that were grazed or cleared of mature trees. These areas are often the target of restoration, but they are also valuable for agriculture. These results highlight the potential for conflicting advice and disagreement about policies and actions for conserving and restoring threatened ecosystems. Although adoption of an average model can improve consistency of ecosystem assessment, it can fail to capture and convey diverse opinions held by experts. Structured elicitation and models of ecosystem viability play an important role in providing data‐driven evidence of where differences arise among experts to support engagement and discussion among stakeholders and decision makers and to improve the management of threatened ecosystems.
Understanding Residents' and Supervisors' Views on Developing Support–Autonomy Balance Through Supervision Methods in Postgraduate Dental Training: A Qualitative Study
Authors: Amir‐Rad Fatemeh , Gordon Lisi 
Published: September 2024

ABSTRACTBackgroundSupervisors continuously need to decide when to provide clinical opportunities for unsupervised patient care to facilitate residents' development in the complex clinical learning context. The aim of this study is to explore residents' and supervisors' views and understanding of the influence of clinical supervision on affording a balanced support–autonomy from the cognitive apprenticeship (CA) theoretical lens.MethodsResidents and supervisors, representing all disciplines, participated in five focus groups and four semi‐structured individual interviews. Purposive and convenience sampling methods were used for recruiting participants. The reflexive thematic analysis approach was used for inductive data analysis.ResultsA total of 15 residents and 8 supervisors participated in this study. All agreed that CA teaching methods can be applied across all levels. Participants experienced changes in their supervision methods and supervisor–resident interactions at different levels of training. They related the selection of supervision to task‐, resident‐ and supervisor‐related factors. Learning facilitating factors in clinical learning environment were identified and suggestions to enrich residents' learning experiences were also reported.ConclusionThe current study found that a one‐size‐fits‐all paradigm may not be effective for clinical supervision. It contributes to our understanding of how the CA model may be used to guide supervisor behaviour and how such practices can be modified to residents' level of development and competencies.
Agile work and gender gap in Italy. An empirical sociological study on downsides and future scenarios
Authors: Colella Francesca , Falci Laura 
Published: September 2024

AbstractThe article discusses an empirical study on agile work (remote working) in Italy, with a sociological perspective. As is well known, the COVID‐19 pandemic shock has led to a significant increase in the attention paid to this issue, as long as it has “forced” millions of people to experience this kind of work. This great social experimentation has also triggered a reconsideration of important concepts of everyday life such as those of time and space, among many others. Starting from this preliminary assumption, a national empirical study on agile work was conducted at the Department of Human Sciences at the Italian University of L’Aquila resorting to a qualitative approach. The research was achieved by conducting 64 in‐depth interviews with women across the country, highlighting and exploring the multiple critical elements and strengths of the agile work experience from March 2020 lockdown to September 2021. It is clear from the research that emergency strategies on the topic of agile working are not adequate: a paradigm shift is needed.
Conformity‐Based Out‐Group Aggression: Does an In‐Group Audience Intensify Out‐Group Aggression as a Result of Conformity?
Authors: Otsubo Kai , Nawata Kengo , Yamaguchi Hiroyuki 
Published: September 2024

AbstractResearch has repeatedly shown that people tend to conform to local norms. In intergroup conflicts, where most group members engage in some type of aggressive behavior towards out‐group members (out‐group aggression), individuals are predicted to conform to other in‐group members engaging in out‐group aggression. In this study, we defined out‐group aggression that was a result of conformity to in‐group members as “conformity‐based out‐group aggression” and examined its emergence and the possibility that being observed by in‐group members (in‐group audience) strengthens such out‐group aggression in an experimental setting. We conducted an online experiment with 108 Japanese undergraduates. The results showed that when their in‐group members engaged in out‐group aggression, participants perceived a stronger pro‐aggression norm and exhibited more intense out‐group aggression. This effect was slightly more pronounced among those with a greater disposition to avoid rejection. However, the effect of the in‐group audience was non‐significant. Our findings highlight the difficulty of intergroup conflict resolution.
Endocannabinoid signaling in stress, nausea, and vomiting
Authors: DeVuono Marieka V. , Venkatesan Thangam , Hillard Cecilia J. 
Published: September 2024

AbstractBackgroundClassical antiemetics that target the serotonin system may not be effective in treating certain nausea and vomiting conditions like cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS) and cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS). As a result, there is a need for better therapies to manage the symptoms of these disorders, including nausea, vomiting, and anxiety. Cannabis is often used for its purported antiemetic and anxiolytic effects, given regulation of these processes by the endocannabinoid system (ECS). However, there is considerable evidence that cannabinoids can also produce nausea and vomiting and increase anxiety in certain instances, especially at higher doses. This paradoxical effect of cannabinoids on nausea, vomiting, and anxiety may be due to the dysregulation of the ECS, altering how it maintains these processes and contributing to the pathophysiology of CVS or CHS.PurposeThe purpose of this review is to highlight the involvement of the ECS in the regulation of stress, nausea, and vomiting. We discuss how prolonged cannabis use, such as in the case of CHS or heightened stress, can dysregulate the ECS and affect its modulation of these functions. The review also examines the evidence for the roles of ECS and stress systems' dysfunction in CVS and CHS to better understand the underlying mechanisms of these conditions.