bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Development of a cylindrical mirror analyser electron spectrometer and associated data acquisition system to study inner shell electron emission following ion-atom collision
Authors: Tyagi Rohit , Kelkar A.H. 
Published: June 2024

Abstract
In this paper we report on the development and performance of a cylindrical mirror
analyser electron spectrometer for ion atom collision experiments. A low cost data acquisition
system using Arduino microcontroller has also been developed and tested. We have measured the
Auger emission spectra for various gaseous targets in collision with 1 MeV proton beams. Relative
total Auger emission cross sections have also been measured for N2 molecular target as a
function of incident proton energy. The projectile energy dependence agrees well with earlier
reported measurements.
Melt-extruded biocompatible surgical sutures loaded with microspheres designed for wound healing
Authors: Deng X , Gould M L , Katare R G , Ali M A 
Published: June 2024

Abstract
Sutures are commonly used in surgical procedures and have immense potential for direct drug delivery into the wound site. However, incorporating active pharmaceutical ingredients into the sutures has always been challenging as their mechanical strength deteriorates. This study proposes a new method to produce microspheres-embedded surgical sutures that offer adequate mechanical properties for effective wound healing applications. The study used curcumin, a bioactive compound found in turmeric, as a model drug due to its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-bacterial properties, which make it an ideal candidate for a surgical suture drug delivery system. Curcumin-loaded microspheres were produced using the emulsion solvent evaporation method with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) as the aqueous phase. The microspheres’ particle sizes, drug loading (DL) capacity, and encapsulation efficiency (EE) were investigated. Microspheres were melt-extruded with polycaprolactone and polyethylene glycol via a 3D bioplotter, followed by a drawing process to optimise the mechanical strength. The sutures’ thermal, physiochemical, and mechanical properties were investigated, and the drug delivery and biocompatibility were evaluated. The results showed that increasing the aqueous phase concentration resulted in smaller particle sizes and improved DL capacity and EE. However, if PVA was used at 3% w/v or below, it prevented aggregate formation after lyophilisation, and the average particle size was found to be 34.32 ± 12.82 μm. The sutures produced with the addition of microspheres had a diameter of 0.38 ± 0.02 mm, a smooth surface, minimal tissue drag, and proper tensile strength. Furthermore, due to the encapsulated drug-polymer structure, the sutures exhibited a prolonged and sustained drug release of up to 14 d. Microsphere-loaded sutures demonstrated non-toxicity and accelerated wound healing in the in vitro studies. We anticipate that the microsphere-loaded sutures will serve as an excellent biomedical device for facilitating wound healing.
Amorphous titanium oxide (aTiO2) thin films biofunctionalized with CAP-p15 induce mineralized-like differentiation of human oral mucosal stem cells (hOMSCs)
Authors: Ureiro-Cueto Guadalupe , Rodil Sandra E , Silva-Bermúdez Phaedra , Santana-Vázquez Maricela , Hoz-Rodríguez Lia , Arzate Higinio , Montoya-Ayala Gonzalo 
Published: June 2024

Abstract
Insufficient osseointegration of titanium-based implants is a factor conditioning their long-term success. Therefore, different surface modifications, such as multifunctional oxide coatings, calcium phosphates, and the addition of molecules such as peptides, have been developed to improve the bioactivity of titanium-based biomaterials. In this work, we investigate the behavior of human oral mucosal stem cells (hOMSCs) cultured on amorphous titanium oxide (aTiO2), surfaces designed to simulate titanium (Ti) surfaces, biofunctionalized with a novel sequence derived from cementum attachment protein (CAP-p15), exploring its impact on guiding hOMSCs towards an osteogenic phenotype. We carried out cell attachment and viability assays. Next, hOMSCs differentiation was assessed by red alizarin stain, ALP activity, and western blot analysis by evaluating the expression of RUNX2, BSP, BMP2, and OCN at the protein level. Our results showed that functionalized surfaces with CAP-p15 (1 µg ml−1) displayed a synergistic effect increasing cell proliferation and cell attachment, ALP activity, and expression of osteogenic-related markers. These data demonstrate that CAP-p15 and its interaction with aTiO2 surfaces promote osteoblastic differentiation and enhanced mineralization of hOMSCs when compared to pristine samples. Therefore, CAP-p15 shows the potential to be used as a therapeutical molecule capable of inducing mineralized tissue regeneration onto titanium-based implants.
Effect of nanodiamonds surface deposition on hydrophilicity, bulk degradation and in-vitro cell adhesion of 3D-printed polycaprolactone scaffolds for bone tissue engineering
Authors: ElBakry Hadiah A , Ammar Mohamed M , Moussa Taheya A 
Published: June 2024

Abstract
This study was designed to deposit nanodiamonds (NDs) on 3D-printed poly-ϵ-caprolactone (PCL) scaffolds and evaluate their effect on the surface topography, hydrophilicity, degradation, and in-vitro cell adhesion compared to untreated PCL scaffolds. The PCL scaffold specimens were 3D-printed by fused deposition modeling (FDM) technique with specific porosity parameters. The 3D-printed specimens’ surfaces were modified by NDs deposition followed by oxygen plasma post-treatment using a plasma focus device and a non-thermal atmospheric plasma jet, respectively. Specimens were evaluated through morphological characterization by field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), microstructure characterization by Raman spectroscopy, chemical characterization by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, hydrophilicity degree by contact angle and water uptake measurements, and in-vitro degradation measurements (n = 6). In addition, in-vitro bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells adhesion was evaluated quantitatively by confocal microscopy and qualitatively by FESEM at different time intervals after cell seeding (n = 6). The statistical significance level was set at p ⩽ 0.05. The FESEM micrographs, the Raman, and FTIR spectra confirmed the successful surface deposition of NDs on scaffold specimens. The NDs treated specimens showed nano-scale features distributed homogeneously across the surface compared to the untreated ones. Also, the NDs treated specimens revealed a statistically significant smaller contact angle (17.45 ± 1.34 degrees), higher water uptake percentage after 24 h immersion in phosphate buffer saline (PBS) (21.56% ± 1.73), and higher degradation rate after six months of immersion in PBS (43.92 ± 0.77%). Moreover, enhanced cell adhesion at all different time intervals was observed in NDs treated specimens with higher nuclei area fraction percentage (69.87 ± 3.97%) compared to the untreated specimens (11.46 ± 1.34%). Surface deposition of NDs with oxygen-containing functional groups on 3D-printed PCL scaffolds increased their hydrophilicity and degradation rate with significant enhancement of the in-vitro cell adhesion compared to untreated PCL scaffolds.
Pressure-dependent bandgap characteristics in photonic crystals with sensing applications
Authors: Sherawat Varnam , Bokolia Renuka , Sinha Ravindra Kumar 
Published: June 2024

Abstract
The present study elucidates a photonic crystal (PhC)-based pressure sensor exploiting the change in refractive index with pressure and the corresponding structural deformation of the dielectric material. The stress-sensitive refractive indices of the constituent materials of the PhC have been considered to study the effect of applied pressure on the photonic bandgap (PBG) characteristics of the structure. The designed pressure sensor, proposed using a two-dimensional hexagonal lattice arrangement of air holes in a dielectric slab, operates in the high-pressure range of 1–6 GPa. A comparative study of the PBG characteristics with the application of high pressure has been reported for three semiconducting materials—GaAs, Ge and Si, used for the dielectric slab in the proposed structure. GaAs is found to exhibit the highest sensitivity to pressure variations and shows more pronounced shifting of the midgap wavelength with pressure in comparison to Ge and Si. The largest PBG is seen in the Ge-based structure, closely followed by the GaAs and Si-based structures. The proposed structure is suitable for high-pressure sensing applications.
Magnetic field enhanced terahertz generation from shape-dependent metallic nanoparticles
Authors: Simon Moses , Chauhan Prashant 
Published: June 2024

Abstract
This communication deals with the analytical study of terahertz (THz) generation via frequency-difference mechanism using two circularly symmetric Gaussian laser beams with slightly different frequencies

ω
1

and

ω
2

and wave vectors

k
→

1

and

k
→

2

simultaneously propagating through a mixture of spatially corrugated noble-metal nanoparticles. The mixture, consisting of spherical nanoparticles (SNPs) and cylindrical nanoparticles (CNPs), is placed in a host medium under the influence of an externally applied static magnetic field. The two co-propagating laser beams impart a nonlinear ponderomotive force on the electrons of the NPs, causing them to experience nonlinear oscillatory velocity. Furthermore, the consequent nonlinear current density excites THz radiation at the beat frequency

ω

(

=

ω
1

−

ω
2

)

. Magnetic fields influence the surface plasmon resonance condition associated with electrons of the nanoparticles due to enhancement in ponderomotive nonlinearities, thereby causing an increment in the amplitude of the generated THz field. It is observed that the generated THz radiation has a strong dependence on the shape and size of the NPs in addition to the magnetic field strength. CNPSs provide greater THz amplitude than SNPs due to additional resonance modes, and combining both kinds of nanostructures further enhances the amplitude. THz radiation plays an important role in biomedical and pharmaceutical fields, communications, security and THz spectroscopy.
Radical Politics from the 1930s to the 1960s
Authors: Browning Gary 
Published: June 2024

Abstract
From an early age, Murdoch was interested in politics. She was a progressive radical at Badminton School in the 1930s, learning from the School’s special interest in refugees. She joined the Communist Party shortly after going to Oxford University, where she was also active in the Labour Club. She wrote stirring political poetry. After Oxford, she went to the Treasury, spied for the Soviet Union, and wrote committed reviews of theology and politics for The Adelphi. She joined UNRRA (United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration) at the end of the war, working in Belgium and Austria. The experience of working in refugee camps reinforced her sensitivity to the plight of displaced persons. After the war she left the Communist Party but still supported radicalism, writing a number of essays, including, in 1958, the notable essay on utopian socialism, ‘A House of Theory’. She campaigned against the bomb, sexual discrimination, and American intervention in Vietnam.
Outsiders: Migrants, the Displaced, Refugees, and the Holocaust
Authors: Browning Gary 
Published: June 2024

Abstract
Murdoch’s novels include many outsiders. The displaced, refugees, and migrants appear in them all. The Flight From the Enchanter is notable for including multiple migrants and refugees. These migrants vary: some are powerful and aggressive; others are victims. They are all affected by their status, and other characters in the novels are affected by these outsiders. The question of how outsiders should be treated politically is frequently raised. Even sympathetic characters are often inattentive to the plight of these refugees. The situation of migrants in many of the novels is problematic. It is not clear if they have rights. The Italian Girl and The Time of the Angels show the desperation of Russian migrants. A late novel, The Message to the Planet, deals with the Holocaust. Many of its characters look at the Holocaust from a variety of different perspectives. Murdoch does not tell the reader what to think. She invites the reader to think for themselves about it.
Conclusion
Authors: Browning Gary 
Published: June 2024

Abstract
Is Murdoch a political thinker? Is she a notable political theorist? This book answers ‘yes’ to both these questions. The chapter reviews preceding chapters, highlighting how Murdoch in her fiction and non-fiction offers insightful analysis and striking images of politics and recognizes the impact of political developments in the twentieth century. She relates politics to other activities, such as art and philosophy, which can provide guidance and insight on political matters. In her early career she is original in diagnosing issues for socialism and highlighting how theory can provide an imaginative focus for socialism. In her later career, her philosophical recognition of the significance of political axioms, shows how political morality can be understood as separate from personal morals. The impact of politics in the twentieth century is shown in her novels, where the wave of post-war migration into the UK is represented by multiple characters in her novels hailing from overseas. Moreover, her novels explore the nature of sexuality and the regulation of sexuality in the post-war world. Murdoch takes on the thorny and difficult issue of the Holocaust, presenting different ways in which it might be understood. Overall, Murdoch is revealed as a notable political theorist, whose political insight sheds light on post-war politics. The originality and significance of Murdoch’s appreciation of politics is shown by a comparison of her ideas with those of Arendt, Weil, and Oakeshott.
The Puerto Rico Young Adults’ Stress, Contextual, Behavioral, and Cardiometabolic Risk (PR-OUTLOOK) Study: design and methods
Authors: Pérez Cynthia M , Kiefe Catarina I , Person Sharina D , Tucker Katherine L , Torres Polaris , Sandoval Estefanía , Boneu Claudia , Ramírez Zuleika , Mattei Josiemer , Rodríguez-Orengo José , Almodóvar-Rivera Israel , Rosal Milagros C 
Published: June 2024

Abstract
The Puerto Rico (PR) Young Adults’ Stress, Contextual, Behavioral and Cardiometabolic Risk Study (PR-OUTLOOK) is investigating overall and component-specific cardiovascular health (CVH) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in a sample of young Puerto Rican adults (aged 18-29 years) in PR (target n = 3000) and examining relationships between individual-, family- or social-, and neighborhood-level stress and resilience factors and CVH and CVD risk factors. The study researchers are conducting standardized measurements of CVH and CVD risk factors and demographic, behavioral, psychosocial, neighborhood, and contextual variables and establishing a biorepository of blood, saliva, urine, stool, and hair samples. The assessment methods are aligned with other National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute–funded studies: the Puerto Rico Observational Study of Psychosocial, Environmental, and Chronic Disease Trends of adults aged 30-75 years; the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos; the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study; and the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults. PR-OUTLOOK data and the study biorepository will facilitate future longitudinal studies of the temporality of associations between stress and resilient factors and CVH and CVD risk factors among young Puerto Ricans. These resources have potential for advancing the scientific understanding of these conditions in a high-risk but understudied young population.
Pollinator-mediated selection on Krameria oil flowers: a flower–pollinator fit adaptation to an atypical oil-collecting behaviour?
Authors: Carneiro Liedson Tavares , Cocucci Andrea Aristides , Sérsic Alicia N , Machado Isabel Cristina , Alves-Dos-Santos Isabel 
Published: June 2024

Abstract

Background and Aims
Spatial variation in plant–pollinator interactions is a key driver of floral trait diversification. A so far overlooked qualitative aspect of this variation is the behavioural component on flowers that relates to the pollinator fit. We tested the hypothesis that variation in pollinator behaviour influences the geographical pattern of phenotypic selection across the distribution range of the oil-producing Krameria grandiflora (Krameriaceae). This variation mainly involves the presence or absence of flag petal grasping, which is only performed by representatives of Centris (Centridini, Apidae), an oil-collecting bee group highly associated with Krameriaceae pollination.

Methods
We quantified variation in floral traits and fitness and estimated pollinator-mediated selection in five populations at a large geographical scale comprising the entire species range. In each population, we sampled individual pollen arrival and germination as a fitness measure, indicating pollination success and pollination performance, which was then relativized and regressed on standardized flower–pollinator fit (flag–stigma distance), advertisement (sepal length) and reward (oil volume) traits. This generated mean-scaled selection gradients used to calculate geographical selection dispersion.

Key Results
Unexpectedly, stronger selection was detected on the flower–pollinator fit trait in populations highly associated with the absence of flag petal grasping. Geographical variation in selection was mainly attributed to differential selection on the flag–stigma distance generating a selection mosaic. This may involve influences of a spatial variation in pollinator behaviour as well as composition and morphology.

Conclusions
Our results show the adaptive significance of the specialized flag petals of Krameria in the absence of the grasping behaviour and highlight the contribution of geographical variation in pollinator behaviour on flowers in driving selection mosaics, with implications for floral evolution, adaptation to pollinator fit and phenotypic diversity in specialized systems.
Shaping scientists: How faculty values influence graduate student recruitment and diversity, equity, and inclusion
Authors: Jensen Alex J , Bombaci Sara P 
Published: June 2024

Abstract
Recruitment is central to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives within higher education, but how faculty recruit their graduate students and consider DEI in this context remains unknown. We surveyed environmental science faculty across the United States, aiming to better understand what faculty value when recruiting, as well as when, how, and why they consider DEI. We show that faculty valued applicant character traits highest, followed by soft skills and relevant technical experience. DEI-related criteria were of low to medium importance and were generally rated lower by faculty who were White, male, and at R1 institutions, although there were nuances related to applicant degree (MS versus PhD), whether we were asking about the applicant’s commitment to DEI or their demographic identity, and the stage of the recruitment process. We identified opportunities for more inclusive graduate recruitment, including higher pay, more objective evaluation strategies, and a need for institutions to incentivize productivity without undermining the faculty’s ability to attract diverse graduate students.
A modeling framework for detecting and leveraging node-level information in Bayesian network inference
Authors: Xi Xiaoyue , Ruffieux Hélène 
Published: June 2024

Abstract
Bayesian graphical models are powerful tools to infer complex relationships in high dimension, yet are often fraught with computational and statistical challenges. If exploited in a principled way, the increasing information collected alongside the data of primary interest constitutes an opportunity to mitigate these difficulties by guiding the detection of dependence structures. For instance, gene network inference may be informed by the use of publicly available summary statistics on the regulation of genes by genetic variants. Here we present a novel Gaussian graphical modeling framework to identify and leverage information on the centrality of nodes in conditional independence graphs. Specifically, we consider a fully joint hierarchical model to simultaneously infer (i) sparse precision matrices and (ii) the relevance of node-level information for uncovering the sought-after network structure. We encode such information as candidate auxiliary variables using a spike-and-slab submodel on the propensity of nodes to be hubs, which allows hypothesis-free selection and interpretation of a sparse subset of relevant variables. As efficient exploration of large posterior spaces is needed for real-world applications, we develop a variational expectation conditional maximization algorithm that scales inference to hundreds of samples, nodes and auxiliary variables. We illustrate and exploit the advantages of our approach in simulations and in a gene network study which identifies hub genes involved in biological pathways relevant to immune-mediated diseases.
COL10A1 expression distinguishes a subset of cancer-associated fibroblasts present in the stroma of high-risk basal cell carcinoma
Authors: Esposito Mauro , Yerly Laura , Shukla Prachi , Hermes Victoria , Sella Federica , Balazs Zsolt , Lattmann Evelyn , Tastanova Aizhan , Turko Patrick , Lang Ramon , Kolm Isabel , Staeger Ramon , Kuonen François , Krauthammer Michael , Hafner Juerg , Levesque Mitchell P , Restivo Gaetana 
Published: June 2024

Abstract

Background
Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most frequently diagnosed skin cancer and the most common malignancy in humans. Different morphological subtypes of BCC are associated with a low or high risk of recurrence and aggressiveness, but the underlying biology of how the individual subtypes arise remains largely unknown. As the majority of BCCs appear to arise from mutations in the same pathway, we hypothesized that BCC development, growth and invasive potential is also influenced by the tumour microenvironment and, in particular, by cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) and the factors they secrete.

Objectives
To characterize the stroma of the different BCC subtypes with a focus on CAF populations.

Methods
To investigate the stromal features of the different BCC subtypes, we used laser capture microdissection (LCM) followed by RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq). Fifteen BCC samples from five different ‘pure’ subtypes (i.e. superficial, nodular, micronodular, sclerosing and basosquamous; n = 3 each) were selected and included in the analysis. Healthy skin was used as a control (n = 6). The results were confirmed by immunohistochemistry (IHC). We validated our findings in two independent public single-cell RNA-Seq (scRNA-Seq) datasets and by RNAscope.

Results
The stroma of the different BCC subtypes were found to have distinct gene expression signatures. Nodular and micronodular appeared to have the most similar signatures, while superficial and sclerosing the most different. By comparing low- and high-risk BCC subtypes, we found that COL10A1 is overexpressed in the stroma of sclerosing/infiltrative and basosquamous but not in micronodular high-risk subtypes. Those findings were confirmed by IHC in 93 different BCC and 13 healthy skin samples. Moreover, scRNA-Seq analysis of BCCs from two independent datasets found that the COL10A1-expressing population of cells is associated with the stroma adjacent to infiltrative BCC and shows extracellular matrix remodelling features.

Conclusions
We identified COL10A1 as a marker of high-risk BCC, in particular of the sclerosing/infiltrative and basosquamous subtypes. We demonstrated at the single-cell level that COL10A1 is expressed by a specific CAF population associated with the stroma of infiltrative BCC. This opens up new, tailored treatment options, and suggests COL10A1 as a new prognostic biomarker for BCC progression.