bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Stress, Mental Health, and Resilience among Western Prairie Farmers in Canada: A Cross-Sectional Comparison Study
Authors: Purc-Stephenson R. J. , Dedrick S. , Hood D. 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Background
Farming is recognized as a stressful occupation, and a growing body of research shows that farmers report high levels of poor mental health. In Canada, two national studies of farmer mental health have been conducted, but an in-depth examination of the mental health of farmers from a single prairie province remains unexplored. Alberta is a central prairie province with significantly larger farms and slightly older farmers than the national average, with predominantly beef or grain farm operations. It is essential to understand regional variations from the national average among farmers to validate those findings and ensure interventions are appropriately tailored for sub-populations. The aim of our study was to (a) explore the types of farm stressors, (b) assess the prevalence of anxiety, depression, burnout, and resilience among farmers in Alberta, and (c) compare those findings to the national average of Canadian farmers and normative data.
Methods
We conducted a survey of validated scales to assess anxiety, depression, burnout, and resilience among farmers. Farm stresses were assessed through a new survey tool that underwent factor analysis to identify the underlying dimensions of stress. Descriptive statistics were summarized, and t tests and analysis of variance were used to compare survey results between genders, and the national average of farmers and normative data.
Results
Overall, 354 farmers completed the survey. Approximately 36.4% and 42.7% of participants reported moderate to severe levels of depression and anxiety, respectively. Participants reported higher levels of burnout and resilience compared to the national average of farmers. Women reported more severe mental health outcomes compared to men. Five categories of farm stresses were identified through factor analysis: Unexpected work disruptions, Occupational hazards, Farm and financial planning, isolation, and Regulations and public pressure. The five stress categories were associated with mental health outcomes.
Conclusions
Alberta farmers reported more severe mental health outcomes compared to the national average of farmers and normative data. Our Farm Stress Survey tool provides a new way of conceptualizing and succinctly communicating the range of stresses farmers face. Implications for community-based mental health interventions that help farmers manage the enduring stresses of agriculture is discussed.
Beyond the Granuloma: New Insights into Cardiac Sarcoidosis Using Spatial Proteomics
Authors: Peyster Eliot , Smith David , Bittermann Therese , Bravo Paco , Margulies Kenneth 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Cardiac sarcoidosis is poorly understood, challenging to diagnose, and portends a poor prognosis. A lack of animal models necessitates the use of residual human samples to study sarcoidosis, which in turn necessitates the use of analytical tools compatible with archival, fixed tissue. We employed high-plex spatial protein analysis within a large cohort of archival human cardiac sarcoidosis and control tissue samples, studying the immunologic, fibrotic, and metabolic landscape of sarcoidosis at different stages of disease, in different cardiac tissue compartments, and in tissue regions with and without overt inflammation. Utilizing a small set of differentially expressed protein biomarkers, we also report the development of a predictive model capable of accurately discriminating between control cardiac tissue and sarcoidosis tissue, even when no histologic evidence of sarcoidosis is present. This finding has major translational implications, with the potential to markedly improve the diagnostic yield of clinical biopsies obtained from suspected sarcoidosis patients.
Insights into Sickle-cell Disease Cardiomyopathy: Early 3-D Echocardiographic Indicators and Pathophysiological Understanding
Authors: Coppi Francesca , Tampieri Francesca , Palazzi Giovanni , Boschini Matteo , Pagnoni Gianluca , Manenti Antonio , Mattioli Anna Vittoria , Iughetti Lorenzo , Boriani Giuseppe 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Purpose
In sickle cell disease, 3-D transthoracic echocardiography is increasingly essential for early diagnosis and subsequent risk stratification of potential cardiac complications. This topic can be effectively explored by delving deeper into its pathophysiology.
Methods
With this aim the results of 3-D echocardiography explorations, performed in a cohort of 46 pediatric patients with homozygous or heterozygous sickle-cell disease, were reassessed using a predominant morpho-functional approach.
Results
Increased end-diastolic volume of the right ventricle appeared as the most obvious early cardiac pathology, promoted by a corresponding pulmonary hypertension and followed by its uncoupling with the pulmonary artery. Over the time, the dysfunction of the right ventricle extends to involve the left ventricle, leading in global heart failure, which can be described as “right ventricle-driven”.
Conclusions
3-D trans-thoracic ecocardiography is an essential tool for diagnosis, prognosis and follow-up of sickle cell disease patients. It aids in evaluating the optimal medical treatment and, in the long run, may suggest the possibility of a bone marrow transplant.
Evaluating the effect of ER,CR.YSGG LASER and conventional acid etching on shear bond strength of composite on enamel of primary teeth (in vitro study)
Authors: Shehata Yasmin M. , Rahman Amina M. Abd El , Mahmoud Sawsan H. , Kader Sally M. Abd El 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study is to compare the shear bond strength of composite resin bonded to enamel of primary teeth after etching using Erbium chromium –YSGG laser and conventional phosphoric acid.
Study design:Experimental in vitro study.
Materials and Methods: A total of thirty extracted or exfoliated primary teeth were divided into three groups according to the type of etching techniques. Group I Er,Cr:YSGG Laser etching with power set at 1W, Group II Er,Cr:YSGG laser with power set at 1.5W and group III acid etching using phosphoric acid.
Evaluation: The 30 specimens were assigned for shear bond strength (SBS) evaluation test using a universal testing machine. Mode of failure was evaluated using stereomicroscope and only six specimens were evaluated qualitatively to asses enamel surface topography using scanning electron microscopy.
Results: Shear bond strength of acid etching group showed the highest followed by 1.5W laser-etching group, while 1W laser etching group demonstrated the least mean shear bond strength. The acid etched enamel was statistically significantly higher (P < <0.0001) than that other groups.
Conclusions: The mean SBS of composite with acid etching is significantly higher in comparison to Er, Cr: YSGG (operated at 1W & 1.5W for 10 s) laser‑etched enamel.
Synthesis, structure-activity relationship and evaluation of antifungal activity of tryptanthrin derivatives against drug-resistant Candida albicans
Authors: Wu Yandan , Ni Guanghui , Jiang Luyi , Liu Ruina , Yang Lijiao , Zou Fei , Zhang Tianyu , Fan Zefei , Zhang Tianbao , Yang Huan , Yin Shuyun , Wang Ruirui , Li Ganpeng 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

With the increasing of Candida albicans infections year by year, and the widespread use of azole drugs, especially fluconazole has led to the emergence of drug resistance. Therefore, new antifungal agents are urgent needed. In this work, we synthesized a series of tryptanthrin derivatives, and all compounds were evaluated for antifungal activities against Candida albicans in vitro. The results indicated that most compounds combined with fluconazole showed good antifungal activity against drug-resistant Candida albicans. Especially, compound 5b combined with fluconazole had an excellent synergistic effect, with MIC50 value of 0.94 µg/mL, and the FICI value of 0.005. Further mechanism study demonstrated that compound 5b significantly inhibited the hyphal growth and biofilm formation of C. albicans. Compound 5b combined with fluconazole could be considered as a novel antifungal agent.
Viral RNA polymerase as a SUMOylation decoy inhibits RNA quality control to promote potyvirus infection in plants
Authors: Li Fangfang , ge linhao , Jia Mingxuan , Gao Weifang , Jiang Lu , Cui Hongguang , Cheng Xiaofei , Uzest Marilyne , Zhou Xueping , Wang Aiming , Li Fangfang 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Potyvirids (viruses in the Potyviridae family) are the largest group of plant RNA viruses. Our recent study has shown that Pelota, a core component of RNA quality controls (RQC), promotes the degradation of potyvirids’ genomic RNA by recognizing a specific G1-2A6-7 motif within the P3 cistron. Here, using turnip mosaic virus (TuMV) as a potyvirid model, we demonstrated that potyvirids have evolved a counteracting mechanism to inhibit Pelota-mediated RQC antiviral activities and promote virus infection. In this mechanism, the viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (also known as NIb) acts as a SUMOylation decoy to effectively reduce Pelota SUMOylation by competing with SCE1, the only SUMO E2 conjugating enzyme to inhibit Pelota-mediated RQC. TuMV NIb is comprised of two functional SUMO interacting motif (SIM) sites: SIM2 and SIM3. The former is identified as the key site for NIb’s SUMOylation, whereas the latter is responsible for the interaction with SCE1. These two SIMs are conserved among the majority of potyvirids-encoded NIbs. The other potyvirid NIb orthologs and their SIMs have similar functions in interacting with SCE1 and perturbing the Pelota-mediated RQC. Thus, virus protein-mediated SUMOylation decoy strategy to suppress host defense may be a common feature in plant virus pathosystems. Taken together, these findings highlight a dynamic interplay between plant defense mechanism and viral counter-strategy by orchestrating the post-translational modifications of virus and host defense components.
An image transforming scheme for mobile projection mapping applications
Authors: Kang Moonho 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

This paper introduces a technique that can easily transform images used for mobile projection mapping. In order to project various images to fit the plane of an irregular shaped object, the bilinear patch and the biquadratic Bezier patch were used, and a patch-merging method that combines multiple patches was developed. A merged patch is obtained by combining the mesh coordinates of the individual patches. Once an image to be projected is determined, then the image can be easily placed on the merged patch using an Android function. Afterwards, the image can be transformed into various shapes by adjusting the positions of the control points of the merged patch on the screen of a smartphone or a tablet PC. As the number of control points increases as patches are merged, a much more diverse image can be created. An Android App dedicated to projection mapping was created so that users can easily implement image transformations with mobile devices. It was shown that various shapes of images can be easily created through the App and finally, a shirt image was designed to demonstrate its usefulness.
Category Contrastive Distillation with Self-Supervised Classification
Authors: Chen Weiwei , Xu Jiazhen , Zheng Yujie , Wang Chong 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Knowledge distillation aims to transfer the knowledge from one model to another, which is widely used in model compression and transfer learning. Recent knowledge distillation algorithms mainly focused on the inter-sample or intra-sample knowledge, which haven't efficiently exploited supervised labels. In this work, we introduce the self-supervised tasks into conventional knowledge distillation framework to construct a new category-based knowledge distillation algorithm. To be specific, two new memory banks are constructed to store the category embedding predicted by the teacher and student models, respectively. Then, the student model can absorb the knowledge from the teacher's memory bank instead of the model itself. It utilizes the cross-batch knowledge based on the contrast of category embedding among various batches.Moreover, additional self-supervised tasks with various data augmentation strategies are are designed to combine with the knowledge distillation process, which guides the model training in a multi-task manner. In the experiments, our proposed algorithm outperforms most of the sample-based knowledge distillation on both CIFAR-100 and ImageNet datasets.
Explaining emigration intentions through the lens of the theory of planned behavior: Scales' validation in a developing Arab country context
Authors: Hemade Ali , Hallit Souheil , Fawaz Mirna , Fekih-Romdhane Feten 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Background
Emigration is a multifaceted phenomenon that is changing the demographics of many countries. The Intention to Emigrate (ITE), Attitude Towards Emigration (ATE), Perceived Behavioral Control (PBC), and Subjective Social Norms (SSN) are measures that have been developed to assess the emigration intent and its possible contributors in a cultural setting. These scales lack a validated Arabic version suitable for the Arab context. This study aimed to translate, psychometrically validate, and culturally adapt the ITE, ATE, PBC, and SSN scales in Arabic in a sample of Lebanese university students.
Methods
Following the Snowball sampling method, participants (n = 471) were Lebanese students who answered demographic questions and completed the Arabic versions of the ITE, ATE, PBC, SSN, as well as the following measures for concurrent validity testing: dark Future, personality traits, risk propensity and depression.
Results
Confirmatory Factor Analysis showed a one-factor model of the ITE, ATE, PBC, and SSN. We found good internal consistency reliability for all scales: ITE (ω = .89; α = .89), ATE (ω = .86; α = .86), PBC (ω = .84; α = .84) and SSN (ω = .87; α = .87). Convergent validity and concurrent validity were proved through positive correlations with depression, Neuroticism, Agreeableness, risk propensity scores, and negative correlations with Openness scores. All scales showed invariance across sexes. Males scored significantly higher than females on the PBC scale, while no significant difference between sexes was observed for the ITE, ATE and SSN.
Conclusion
Our validated Arabic versions of the ITE, ATE, PBC, and SSN offer invaluable, culturally appropriate instruments for assessing emigration intentions and factors behind this intention. This shall boost research on emigration intentions and behaviors among Arabic*-speaking youth, help shape policies on emigration, and help social workers design targeted interventions for supporting potential emigrants.
Type 2 diabetes and risk of post-herpetic neuralgia: A Mendelian randomization study
Authors: ZHANG Yuanqi , XIANG Guohong , QIU Ling 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Objective A two-sample Mendelian randomization method was used to study the causal relationship between Type 2 diabetes and post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN).
Method Genome-wide association statistics of type 2 diabetes with PHN were obtained, and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) strongly associated with type 2 diabetes were used as instrumental variables(IVS).TSMR method with inverse variance weighting (IVW) as the primary analytical approach to evaluate the causal association between type 2 diabetes and PHN. Sensitivity analysis was also conducted to evaluate the strength and reliability of the findings.
Results 39 SNPs strongly associated with type 2 diabetes were included in the analysis, which showed that type 2 diabetes was significantly associated with PHN(IVW: OR=1.508,95%CI=1.003-2.267), P=0.04). Sensitivity analyses demonstrated the strength and reliability of the causal relationship.
Conclusion There was a correlation between type 2 diabetes and PHN, and type 2 diabetes was linked to a higher risk of PHN.
Chronic stimulation desensitizes β2 adrenergic receptor responses in Natural Killer cells
Authors: Watzl Carsten , Jürgens Martin , Claus Maren , Wingert Sabine , Niemann Jens , Picard Lea , Hennes Elisabeth , Haasler Ina , Hellwig Birte , Overbeck Nina , Reinders Jörg , Rahnenführer Jörg , Schedel Michaela , Capellino Silvia 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Psychosocial stress affects the function of the immune system via activation of the sympathetic nervous system and the release of the neurotransmitter epinephrine. Acute and chronic stress can have opposing effects on the immune system and chronic stress is correlated with higher incidences of infections and cancer. Here, we study the effect of epinephrine on the function of human Natural Killer (NK) cells as important innate lymphocytes for immune reactions against infections and cancer. Epinephrine-mediated stimulation of the β2 adrenergic receptor (β2AR) on NK cells inhibited early signaling events and blocked the function of the integrin LFA-1. This led to a reduced adhesion of NK cells to ICAM-1, explaining how NK cells are mobilized into the peripheral blood upon acute stress. Additionally, epinephrine stimulation transiently reduced NK cell degranulation, serial killing, cytokine production, and affected metabolic changes upon NK cell activation via the cAMP-PKA pathway. Repeated exposure to β2AR agonists resulted in the desensitization of the β2AR via a PKA feedback loop-initiated G-protein switch. Therefore, acute epinephrine stimulation of chronically β2AR stimulated NK cells no longer resulted in inhibited signaling and reduced LFA-1 activity, recapitulating the opposing effects of acute versus chronic stress. Sustained stimulation by long-acting β2 agonists (LABA) not only inhibited NK cell functions but also resulted in desensitization of the β2AR. However, peripheral NK cells from LABA-treated asthma patients still reacted unchanged to epinephrine stimulation, demonstrating that local LABA administration does not result in detectable systemic effects on NK cells.
First case of human infection with avian influenza H10N3 post COVID-19 pandemic ：A case report
Authors: Zhao Zhenxi , Luo Siyi , Gao Yudong , Dai Min , Yan Jun , Yang Ying , Li Hongwei , Zhang Yan , Mao Zhipeng 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Background:
On March 16th 2024, the first case of Human infection with avian influenza H10N3 since the end of the global COVID-19 Pandemic was reported in Kunming, China. To enhance comprehension of the source of infection and risk factors of the H10N3 virus infection, this case report summarizes the clinical features, epidemiological investigation, and laboratory test results. Provides recommendations for the prevention and control of Human infection with avian influenza H10N3.
Case presentation:
A 51-year-old male with a history of COVID-19 infection and a smoking habit of 30 years, worked in livestock breeding and was exposed to sick and dead poultry before falling ill with fever and chills on 28th February 2024. A week later, he was diagnosed with severe pneumonia, influenza, and respiratory failure by the Third People's Hospital of Kunming(KM-TPH). He was discharged on 17th April and none of his 6 close contacts showed any symptoms of illness. Environmental samples taken from the epidemic spot revealed that peacock feces tested positive for avian influenza sub-type H9 and waterfowl specimens showed positive results for avian influenza sub-type H5. Gene sequencing conducted on positive specimens from the patient's respiratory tract by the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CCDC) showed a high degree of similarity (98.6-99.5%) with the strain responsible for the second global case of human infected with H10N3 (reported from Zhejiang, China 2022).
Conclusions:
According to the available epidemiological information, there is limited evidence to suggest that H10N3 viruses are excessively lethal. However, adaptive site mutations have been observed in the H10N3 isoform of mammals. While it is unlikely that the H10N3 virus will spread among humans, the possibility of additional cases cannot be entirely ruled out. Symptoms of human infection with H10N3 avian influenza are similar to those of common respiratory infections, which may result in them being overlooked during initial clinical consultations. Therefore, it is essential to improve surveillance of the H10 sub-type of avian influenza and to increase the awareness of hospital-related workers of cases of pneumonia of unknown origin.
Virtual Reality in Stroke Recovery: A meta-review of Systematic Reviews
Authors: Khan Ammar , Imam Yahia Z. , Muneer Mohamed , Jerdi Salman Al , Gill Sumanjit K 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Background
Virtual Reality (VR) is an emerging technology in post stroke recovery. However, its precise role in stroke rehabilitation is not well defined. The aim of this paper is to conduct an overview of systematic reviews on the role of VR in stroke rehabilitation.
Methods
A meta-review with results from a search of 7 databases from inception till 5th December 2022 with subsequent quality appraisal was conducted. The primary outcome was to produce a narrative review on the efficacy of VR versus usual or other care in stroke recovery. Data was synthesized in a descriptive fashion and high-quality systematic reviews were emphasized. The AMSTAR-2 tool was used for quality assessment of the included studies.
Results
Evidence from high-quality systematic reviews suggests that there is benefit from VR in upper limb, lower limb, gait, and balance recovery particularly when additive to conventional therapy. There is also limited evidence to suggest that VR has a positive effect in those with impaired cognition.
Conclusion
VR is safe and effective as an adjunct to conventional therapy for adults after stroke and should be used routinely for upper and lower limb motor recovery. Further high-quality studies that evaluate its efficacy and explore ways to increase its positive impact in areas such as cognition are required. There is also a scope for the development of stroke-specific virtual environments. (PROSPERO registration # CRD42022372926).