bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Nanopore Identification of L‐, D‐Lactic Acids, D‐Glucose and Gluconic Acid in the Serum of Human and Animals
Authors: Jia Wendong , Ouyang Yusheng , Zhang Shanyu , Zhang Panke , Huang Shuo 
Published: June 2024

AbstractDL‐Lactic acid and D‐glucose are important human health indicators. Their aberrant levels in body fluids may indicate a variety of human pathological conditions, suggesting an urgent need of daily monitoring. However, simultaneous and rapid analysis of DL‐lactic acid and D‐glucose using a sole but simple sensing system has never been reported. Here, an engineered Mycobacterium smegmatis porin A (MspA) nanopore is used to simultaneously identify DL‐lactic acid and D‐glucose. Highly distinguishable nanopore event features are reported. Assisted with a custom machine learning algorithm, direct identification of DL‐lactic acid and D‐glucose is performed with human serum, demonstrating its sensing reliability against complex and heterogeneous samples. This sensing strategy is further applied in the analysis of different animal serum samples, according to which gluconic acid is further identified. The serum samples from different animals report distinguishable levels of DL‐lactic acid, D‐glucose and gluconic acid, suggesting its potential applications in agricultural science and breeding industry. This sensing strategy is generally direct, rapid, economic and requires only ≈µL of input serum, suitable for point of care testing (POCT) applications.
Self‐control or social control? Peer effects on temptation consumption
Authors: Chuang Yating 
Published: June 2024

AbstractThis paper examines peer effects on self‐control problems. I construct a theoretical model to describe how peer networks influence consumption behaviors through social norms. Using monthly survey data conducted in 16 Thai villages from 1999 through 2004, I find that peer's temptation consumption significantly impacts individuals' temptation consumption such as alcohol, tobacco, and gambling. A one baht (around $0.025 U.S. dollars) increase in peer's temptation consumption leads to a 1.5 times increase in one's own temptation consumption. With detailed household‐level social network information defined by actual transactions, this paper identifies peer effects using a friend of a friend (excluded network) as the instrument. The panel nature of this instrument overcomes various common identification challenges, such as reflection, correlated effects, and common unobservable shocks, in the literature. My findings suggest that these peer effects are driven primarily by social norms, rather than risk sharing.
An automated model‐based testing approach for the self‐adaptive behavior of the unmanned aircraft system application software
Authors: Javed Zainab , Iqbal Muhammad Zohaib , Khan Muhammad Uzair , Usman Muhammad , Jilani Atif Aftab Ahmed 
Published: June 2024

SummaryThe unmanned aircraft system (UAS) is rapidly gaining popularity in civil and military domains. A UAS consists of an application software that is responsible for defining a UAS mission and its expected behavior. A UAS during its mission experiences changes (or interruptions) that require the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in a UAS to self‐adapt, that is, to adjust both its behavior and position in real‐time, particularly for maintaining formation in the case of a UAS swarm. This adaptation is critical as the UAS operates in an open environment, interacting with humans, buildings, and neighboring UAVs. To verify if a UAS correctly makes an adaptation, it is important to test it. The current industrial practice for testing the self‐adaptive behaviors in UAS is to carry out testing activities manually. This is particularly true for existing UAS rather than newly developed ones. Manual testing is time‐consuming and allows the execution of a limited set of test cases. To address this problem, we propose an automated model‐based approach to test the self‐adaptive behavior of UAS application software. The work is conducted in collaboration with an industrial partner and demonstrated through a case study of UAS swarm formation flight application software. Further, the approach is verified on various self‐adaptive behaviors for three open‐source autopilots (i.e., Ardu‐Copter, Ardu‐Plane, and Quad‐Plane). Using the proposed model‐based testing approach we are able to test sixty unique self‐adaptive behaviors. The testing results show that around 80% of the behavior adaptations are correctly executed by UAS application software.
What's in a Name? Global Englishes—An Umbrella Term to Address Silo Mentality or a Misunderstood Paradigm Reinforcing Silos?
Authors: Galloway Nicola 
Published: June 2024

AbstractIn this article, I explore growing scholarship in various sub‐fields of Applied Linguistics and Second Language Acquisition (SLA) that explore the use of English in an increasingly globalized and multilingual world. With different, yet overlapping, conceptual frameworks to guide research, scholarship in various fields provide a growing evidence base on the need for change in TESOL curricula to better reflect the global use of English, and other languages, in an ever‐increasingly globalized world. I explore the introduction of Global Englishes (GE), an umbrella term and inclusive paradigm that was introduced to unite scholarship across the fields of World Englishes (WE), English as an International Language (EIL), English as a Lingua Franca (ELF), and to draw parallels with translanguaging and multilingualism. I provide clarity on the introduction of this broader paradigm, which aimed to unite such scholarship into a comprehensible framework to guide and facilitate a paradigm shift in TESOL curricula away from outdated “native” English norms. I end with a call to focus less on terminology and for scholars to work flexibly across academic boundaries to connect scholarship, particularly when it has a shared goal of achieving a more equitable English language education.
Ventral corporal reinforcement using a pericardium allograft (Tutoplast®) in a patient undergoing urethrectomy procedure with an inflatable penile prosthesis in place: A case report
Authors: Mahdi Mohammed , Leung Shannon , Pettaway Curtis , Wang Run 
Published: June 2024

AbstractBackgroundErectile dysfunction is a common consequence following radical cystectomy (RC), with inflatable penile prostheses (IPPs) placement considered as the gold standard for refractory cases. Urethral recurrence post‐RC necessitates urethrectomy, which poses challenges for patients with an IPP in place. The thinning of the ventral tunica albuginea during urethrectomy may increase the risk of corporal disruption and IPP cylinder aneurysm, affecting device functionality. This case report introduces a novel surgical technique using Tutoplast, a human‐derived pericardium allograft, for corporal reinforcement during urethrectomy in the presence of an in‐situ IPP.MethodsA 74‐year‐old male, with a history of robotic‐assisted RC and IPP presented with recurrent bleeding per urethra. Imaging revealed urethral masses. The patient underwent total urethrectomy which resulted in significant thinning of the ventral tunica albuginea. To prevent device aneurysm or mechanical failure, a Tutoplast graft was used intraoperatively to reinforce the thinned tunica. Patient was followed up six months postoperatively.ResultsFinal pathology showed urethral high‐grade papillary urothelial carcinoma. Postoperatively, the patient exhibited smooth recovery, with normal IPP functionality up to the 6‐month follow‐up period. While Tutoplast has been used in other settings, its application in preventing IPP malfunction posturethrectomy is a unique contribution.ConclusionCorporal reinforcement using Tutoplast during urethrectomy in patients with an existing IPP presents a simple and cost‐effective solution to mitigate the risks of corporal disruption and IPP cylinder aneurysms. The positive outcomes demonstrated in this case report warrant further studies on larger patient populations and longer follow‐up periods to assess the long‐term outcomes of this technique.
Dispensing antimicrobials to farmers in Wales: The roles and experiences of veterinary practice staff
Authors: Butler Deborah , Rees Gwen M. , Reyher Kristen , Bard Alison 
Published: June 2024

AbstractBackgroundVeterinary practice staff are directly involved in the dispensing of prescription veterinary medicines (POM‐Vs) to farmers as prescribed by registered veterinary surgeons to animals ‘under their care’. The role of veterinary practice staff has, to date, been underresearched. The objective of this study was to investigate the roles played by veterinary practice staff, exploring their expectations and perceptions of the front‐of‐house (FoH) role, their interactions with clients in day‐to‐day veterinary practice and their experiences relating to the dispensing of POM‐Vs.MethodsThematic analysis was used to analyse data from 20 semi‐structured interviews of veterinary practice staff. Participants were recruited from 80% of the large animal or mixed species veterinary practices across Wales.ResultsFour key themes—‘piggy in the middle’, learning on the job, practice organisation and facilitating change—were identified, illustrating the multifaceted and diverse nature of this type of employment.LimitationsThis study is not intended to be representative of the perceptions of FoH staff on the dispensing of antimicrobials. Larger‐scale studies are required to substantiate these findings.ConclusionUnderstanding the roles of non‐clinical veterinary staff allows practice managers and veterinary surgeons to better identify and meet training and staffing needs and improves recognition of this key area of practice work.
Trends in greater sage‐grouse lek counts relative to existing wind energy development in Wyoming
Authors: Smith Kurt T. , LeBeau Chad W. , Hoskovec Lauren , Beck Jeffrey L. 
Published: June 2024

AbstractRapid increases in wind energy development globally highlight the need to evaluate how electricity generation may impact wildlife. The greater sage‐grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter, sage‐grouse) has experienced range‐wide population declines, primarily due to habitat loss and degradation. Studies have documented a negative association between oil and gas development and sage‐grouse populations. However, potential sage‐grouse population declines associated with wind energy development have not been adequately addressed. We investigated the relationship between wind energy infrastructure and changes in male sage‐grouse counted on leks from 2000–2020 in Wyoming, USA, using Bayesian state‐space models. Our study was conducted in central and southwest Wyoming in the vicinity of 10 wind energy facilities that were in proximity to sage‐grouse leks occurring outside of Wyoming's Core Areas (i.e., areas of high breeding densities of sage‐grouse designated for restricted development by the State of Wyoming) and dominated by big sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) communities. Facilities became operational between 1998 and 2010 and had an average of 67 turbines. Covariates describing wind energy infrastructure included distance to the nearest wind turbine, and the number and distribution (clustering) of turbines within 1.0, 2.0, 4.0, 6.0, 8.0, and 10.0 km. We also explored whether males attending leks exhibited lagged responses of 1–7 years following development. We used counts from 78 leks located within 15 km of the 10 wind energy facilities, consisting of 288 counts before and 845 counts after development. We expected that trends in male lek attendance would experience a delayed negative response following wind energy development like other forms of anthropogenic features. However, we failed to detect a relationship between male sage‐grouse lek attendance and proximity to, density of, or distribution of wind turbines following development in all models. Our findings were based on the average lek in our analysis being 6.5 km from a wind turbine and most turbines were clustered such that undisturbed habitat surrounding leks remained. Therefore, interpretation of our results should be restricted to siting practices of the facilities that we evaluated because direct habitat removal and fragmentation resulting from any form of energy development is unlikely to benefit sage‐grouse populations. Our study evaluated the response of low‐density, peripheral populations of sage‐grouse to wind energy development outside or near the edge of Core Areas. As such, our results should not be extrapolated to higher density sage‐grouse populations occurring in Core Areas.
N6-methyladenosine-driven miR-143/145-KLF4 circuit orchestrates the phenotypic switch of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells
Authors: Kang Kang , Sun Chuannan , Li Hui , Liu Xiaojia , Deng Jingyuan , Chen Silei , Zeng Le , Chen Jiahao , Liu Xinyi , Kuang Jiahao , Xiang Jingjing , Cheng Jingqian , Liao Xiaoyun , Lin Mujin , Zhang Xingshi , Zhan Chuzhi , Liu Sisi , Wang Jun , Niu Yanqin , Liu Cuilian , Liang Cai , Zhu Jinsheng , Liang Shuxin , Tang Haiyang , Gou Deming 
Published: June 2024

AbstractPulmonary hypertension (PH) is characterized by vascular remodeling predominantly driven by a phenotypic switching in pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs). However, the underlying mechanisms for this phenotypic alteration remain incompletely understood. Here, we identified that RNA methyltransferase METTL3 is significantly elevated in the lungs of hypoxic PH (HPH) mice and rats, as well as in the pulmonary arteries (PAs) of HPH rats. Targeted deletion of Mettl3 in smooth muscle cells exacerbated hemodynamic consequences of hypoxia-induced PH and accelerated pulmonary vascular remodeling in vivo. Additionally, the absence of METTL3 markedly induced phenotypic switching in PASMCs in vitro. Mechanistically, METTL3 depletion attenuated m6A modification and hindered the processing of pri-miR-143/145, leading to a downregulation of miR-143-3p and miR-145-5p. Inhibition of hnRNPA2B1, an m6A mediator involved in miRNA maturation, similarly resulted in a significant reduction of miR-143-3p and miR-145-5p. We demonstrated that miR-145-5p targets Krüppel-like factor 4 (KLF4) and miR-143-3p targets fascin actin-bundling protein 1 (FSCN1) in PASMCs. The decrease of miR-145-5p subsequently induced an upregulation of KLF4, which in turn suppressed miR-143/145 transcription, establishing a positive feedback circuit between KLF4 and miR-143/145. This regulatory circuit facilitates the persistent suppression of contractile marker genes, thereby sustaining PASMC phenotypic switch. Collectively, hypoxia-induced upregulation of METTL3, along with m6A mediated regulation of miR-143/145, might serve as a protective mechanism against phenotypic switch of PASMCs. Our results highlight a potential therapeutic strategy targeting m6A modified miR-143/145-KLF4 loop in the treatment of PH.
Measuring economic country-specific uncertainty in Türkiye
Authors: Kilic Ilhan , Balli Faruk 
Published: June 2024

AbstractIn this paper, a new measure for uncertainty that affects the economy is proposed, constructed, and applied to an emerging economy, Türkiye. We have constructed an index of economic country-specific uncertainty (ECSU) that is in line with the methodology used in constructing economic policy uncertainty indexes. As the economic uncertainty is of the Knightian type, the essence of measuring it lies in counting the frequency of joint appearances of words related to economics and uncertainty in Turkish-language newspapers. The uncertainty index constructed using local language sources- Turkish performs significantly better in measuring country-specific uncertainty in Türkiye. However, some indexes use English language sources to measure uncertainty in Türkiye- did not make them country-specific. The ECSU was tested by evaluating the dynamic real effects of the uncertainty. This evaluation was performed by the analysis of impulse responses from uncertainty to some economic variables in a vector autoregressive model describing the economy of Türkiye. We find that an unexpected increase in uncertainty in the Turkish-language press is related to decreases in industrial production, employment, and trade. If the uncertainty measure is based on the articles from the English-language press only, no such relationship can be confirmed. We also find that an increase in uncertainty leads to increase in inflation and stock and oil prices.
Double Jeopardy: A Distinct Mortality Pattern Among Preterm Infants with Congenital Heart Disease
Authors: Higgins Brennan V. , Levy Philip T. , Ball Molly K. , Kim Minso , Peyvandi Shabnam , Steurer Martina A. 
Published: June 2024

AbstractContemporary United States (US) data on the survival of preterm infants with congenital heart disease (CHD) are unavailable despite the over-representation of CHD and improving surgical outcomes in the preterm population. The aim of this study is to use population-based data to compare 1-year survival and early mortality (< 3 days) by gestational age (GA) between preterm infants with and without cyanotic CHD (CCHD) in the US. This national retrospective cohort included all liveborn, preterm infants between 21 and 36 weeks GA with a birth certificate indicating the presence or absence of CCHD (n = 2,654,253) born between 2014 and 2019 in the US. Data were provided by the US Center for Disease Control database linking birth and death certificates. Of liveborn preterm infants, 0.13% (n = 3619) had CCHD. 1-year survival was significantly lower in infants 23–36 weeks with CCHD compared to those without. The greatest survival gap occurred between 28 and 31 weeks (28 weeks adjusted risk difference 37.5%; 95% CI 28.4, 46.5; 31 weeks 37.9%; 30.5, 45.3). Early mortality accounted for more than half of deaths among infants 23–31 weeks with CCHD (23 weeks-68%, CI 46.7, 83.7; 31 weeks-63.9%, 52.9, 73.6). Survival trends demonstrated worsened 1-year survival in infants 35–36 weeks with CCHD over the study period. The pattern of mortality for preterm infants with CCHD is distinct from those without. The significant survival gap in the very preterm population and notably high rate of early death in the infants with CCHD calls for renewed attention to early neonatal intensive care for this dually affected population.
Thermal tolerance of larval Antarctic cryonotothenioid fishes
Authors: Corso Andrew D. , Mowatt-Larssen Tor , Brill Richard W. , Steinberg Deborah K. , Hilton Eric J. 
Published: June 2024

AbstractCryonotothenioids constitute a subgroup of notothenioid fishes endemic to the Southern Ocean that are specialized to exist in a narrow range of near-freezing temperatures. Due to the challenges of reliably collecting and maintaining larval cryonotothenioids in good condition, most thermal tolerance studies have been limited to adult and juvenile stages. With increasing environmental pressures from climate change in Antarctic ecosystems, it is important to better understand the impacts of a warming environment on larval stages as well. In this study, we determine the critical thermal maxima (CTmax) of cryonotothenioid larvae collected in pelagic net tows during three research cruises near the western Antarctic Peninsula. We sampled larvae of seven species representing three cryonotothenioid families—Nototheniidae, Channichthyidae, and Artedidraconidae. For channichthyid and nototheniid species, CTmax values ranged from 8.6 to 14.9 °C and were positively correlated with body length, suggesting that younger, less motile larvae may be especially susceptible to rapid warming events such as marine heatwaves. To our knowledge, this is the first published test of acute thermal tolerance for any artedidraconid, with CTmax ranging from 13.2 to 17.8 °C, which did not correlate with body length. Of the two artedidraconid species we collected, Neodraco skottsbergi showed remarkable tolerance to warming and was the only species to resume normal swimming following trials. We offer two hypotheses as to why N. skottsbergi has such an elevated thermal tolerance: (1) their unique green coloration serves as camouflage within near-surface phytoplankton blooms, suggesting they occupy an especially warm near-surface niche, and (2) recent insights into their evolutionary history suggest that they are derived from taxa that may have occupied warm tide-pool habitats. Collectively, these results establish N. skottsbergi and larval channichthyids as groups of interest for future physiological studies to gain further insights into the vulnerability of cryonotothenioids to a warming ocean.
Automatic segmentation and implicit surface representation of dynamic cardiac data
Authors: Thai Andy , Gradus-Pizlo Irmina , Pizlo Zygmunt , Sahin Hakan , Gopi M. 
Published: June 2024

AbstractSegmentation of anatomical structures on 2D images of cardiac exams is necessary for performing 3D volumetric analysis, enabling the computation of parameters for diagnosing cardiovascular disease. In this work, we present robust algorithms to automatically segment cardiac imaging data and generate a volumetric anatomical reconstruction of a patient-specific heart model by propagating active contour output within a patient stack through a self-supervised learning model. Contour initializations are automatically generated, then output segmentations on sparse image slices are transferred and merged across a stack of images within the same heart data set during the segmentation process. We demonstrate whole-heart segmentation and compare the results with ground truth manual annotations. Additionally, we provide a framework to represent segmented heart data in the form of implicit surfaces, allowing interpolation operations to generate intermediary models of heart sections and volumes throughout the cardiac cycle and to estimate ejection fraction.
Looking back on 51 years of the Carol Nachman Prize in Rheumatology—significance for the field of spondyloarthritis research
Authors: Braun Jürgen , Sieper Joachim , Märker-Hermann Elisabeth 
Published: June 2024

AbstractThe city and casino of Wiesbaden, capital of the German state Hessen, have endowed the Carol Nachman Prize to promote research work in the field of rheumatology since 1972. The prize, endowed with 37,500 €, is the second highest medical award in Germany and serves to promote clinical, therapeutic, and experimental research work in the field of rheumatology. In June 2022, the 50-year anniversary was celebrated. In the symposium preceding the award ceremony, an overview was given on the significance of spondyloarthritis for the work of the awardees in the past 30 years. This overview has now been put together to inform the interested community of the work performed, including the opinion of the awardees regarding what they consider to be their most important contribution.