bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Integration of CD4+ T cells and molecular subtype predicts benefit from PD‐L1 blockade in muscle‐invasive bladder cancer
Authors: Liu Ge , Jin Kaifeng , Liu Zhaopei , Su Xiaohe , Xu Ziyue , Li Bingyu , Xu Jingtong , Liu Hailong , Chang Yuan , Zhu Yu , Xu Le , Wang Zewei , Wang Yiwei , Zhang Weijuan 
Published: February 2024

AbstractMuscle‐invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) is a disease characterized by molecular and clinical heterogeneity, posing challenges in selecting the most appropriate treatment in clinical settings. Considering the significant role of CD4+ T cells, there is an emerging need to integrate CD4+ T cells with molecular subtypes to refine classification. We conducted a comprehensive study involving 895 MIBC patients from four independent cohorts. The Zhongshan Hospital (ZSHS) and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) cohorts were included to investigate chemotherapeutic response. The IMvigor210 cohort was included to assess the immunotherapeutic response. NCT03179943 was used to evaluate the clinical response to a combination of immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) and chemotherapy. Additionally, we evaluated genomic characteristics and the immune microenvironment to gain deeper insights into the distinctive features of each subtype. We unveiled four immune‐molecular subtypes, each exhibiting distinct clinical outcomes and molecular characteristics. These subtypes include luminal CD4+ Thigh, which demonstrated benefits from both immunotherapy and chemotherapy; luminal CD4+ Tlow, characterized by the highest level of fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (FGFR3) mutation, thus indicating potential responsiveness to FGFR inhibitors; basal CD4+ Thigh, which could benefit from a combination of ICB and chemotherapy; and basal CD4+ Tlow, characterized by an immune suppression microenvironment and likely to benefit from transforming growth factor‐β (TGF‐β) inhibition. This immune‐molecular classification offers new possibilities for optimizing therapeutic interventions in MIBC.
Community and individual socioeconomic inequalities and dental caries from childhood to adolescence: A 10‐year cohort study
Authors: Brondani Bruna , Knorst Jessica K. , Ardenghi Thiago M. , Mendes Fausto M. , Brondani Mário A. 
Published: February 2024

AbstractPurposeTo evaluate the effect of individual and contextual socioeconomic inequalities in the occurrence of untreated dental caries during the transition from childhood to adolescence.MethodsThis 10‐year prospective cohort study followed up an initial sample of 639 1–5 years old schoolchildren from southern Brazil. After 7 and 10 years from the baseline (T1), two other reassessments were conducted (T2 and T3), respectively. Untreated dental caries was measured through the International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS‐ scores 3, 5 and 6) at T1 and T3. Socioeconomic status (SES) at the contextual and individual level was assessed at T1. At T2, socioeconomic, behavioural and psychosocial characteristics were evaluated as possible pathways of explanation. Structural equation modelling was used to estimate the direct and indirect effects among the variables over 10 years.ResultsA total of 429 adolescents were reevaluated at 10‐year follow‐up (cohort retention rate of 67.1%). About 30.6% presented untreated dental caries at T3. Low individual SES at T1 directly impacted a higher occurrence of dental caries at T3. Non‐white skin colour at T1 also indirectly impacted a higher occurrence of dental caries at T3 through low individual SES at T1 and lower household income at T2. Contextual SES did not predict, directly or indirectly, dental caries at T3.ConclusionThere is strong evidence that socioeconomic inequalities at the individual level play an important role on the occurrence of dental caries from childhood to adolescence. On the other hand, there was no evidence that contextual SES influences the occurrence of dental caries over time.
Analysing bully‐victim formation through symbolic interactionism: A case study in China
Authors: He Erlin , Hao Han , Pan Kunkun , Li Xiaoqiong , Zhao Xun 
Published: February 2024

AbstractBullying is a pervasive public behaviour that raises significant global concerns, inflicting harm on bullies, victims, and bully‐victims. This qualitative case study investigates bully‐victim role formation through the lens of symbolic interactionism. Data were collected via interviews and observations with a Chinese adolescent boy identified as a bully‐victim, by his family, teachers, and peers. Findings revealed the case subject experienced relational and physical victimization, while perpetrating financial, verbal, and physical bullying. Family violence, school exclusion, and an aggressive community culture shaped the subject's aggressive responses over time. Unique aspects of the Chinese cultural context, including parent–child dynamics within migrant families and teacher–student relationships, influenced role development. This novel application of symbolic interactionism sheds light on the complex interplay between multisystem interactions, emotions, and confrontational actions underlying the case subject's bully‐victim status. The study underscores the value of qualitative explorations, giving voice to bully‐victims' perspectives. Findings can inform culturally specific bullying prevention and highlight how contextual interactions shape adolescents' roles. This rare glimpse into bully‐victim experiences in China advances theoretical perspectives and has important implications for research and practice addressing the worldwide problem of bullying.
Exploring children's experiences of schooling in Tanzania: How the ‘hidden curriculum’ undermines aspirations for sustainable development
Authors: Adamson Laela , Brown Rhona 
Published: February 2024

AbstractIn the context of aspirations that firmly position education as the key to multiple global development goals, we raise concerns about how education is experienced by many children, particularly in low‐income, postcolonial contexts. Drawing from two, in‐depth qualitative studies in Tanzania, we demonstrate that existing pedagogical practices, including the use of an unfamiliar language of learning and teaching, constitute a ‘hidden curriculum’ that powerfully undermines the vision of education embedded in the sustainable development agenda. We argue that research that foregrounds children's experiences should have a more prominent role as it enables us to understand the lived implications of global policy‐making.
PCSK9 increases vulnerability of carotid plaque by promoting mitochondrial dysfunction and apoptosis of vascular smooth muscle cells
Authors: Xu Ran , Li Tianhua , Luo Jichang , Zhang Xiao , Wang Tao , Wang Yabing , Ma Yan , Yang Bin , Jia Jinzhu , Dmytriw Adam A. , Li Wenjing , Jiao Liqun 
Published: February 2024

AbstractBackgroundProprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) has been recognized as a novel lipid‐lowing target. Recent clinical studies suggested the value of inhibiting PCSK9 in decreasing the vulnerability of coronary plaques. However, the evidence of PCSK9‐regulated evolution of unstable carotid plaques is unclear, which has limited the use of PCSK9 inhibitor in carotid plaques. This study aimed to determine the effect and molecular mechanisms of PCSK9 on vulnerability of carotid plaques, to provide potential therapeutic targets for stabilizing carotid plaques.MethodsThe expression of PCSK9 in stable and unstable carotid plaques were examined in tissue and plasma. Human aortic vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and carotid VSMCs were employed to transfect lentivirus for overexpression and knockdown of PCSK9, respectively. Morphological and functional changes of mitochondria were observed by live‐cell imaging. Cell apoptosis was evaluated by propidium iodide staining. RNA‐sequencing and biological examinations were performed to explore and validate the underlying mechanisms. Truncated plasmids were employed to identify the functional domain of PCSK9 in regulation of VSMCs' mitochondrial morphology, function and apoptosis.ResultsClinically, PCSK9 was closely related with vulnerability of human carotid plaques. Increased expression of PCSK9 in human VSMCs was accompanied by higher level of apoptosis. At subcellular level of VSMCs, the morphology of mitochondria was shifted toward the fission state, followed by mitochondrial dysfunction. Inhibition of p38 MAPK activation partially rescued the above morphological and behavioral changes caused by PCSK9. Furthermore, inhibiting of dynamin‐related protein 1 (DRP1) attenuated PCSK9‐related mitochondrial dysfunction and cell apoptosis. The 1‐149aa domain of PCSK9 protein was essential to achieve functional regulation to VSMCs.ConclusionOur findings demonstrated that PCSK9 induced morphology‐related mitochondrial dysfunction and apoptosis of VSMCs, which may be related to increased vulnerability of carotid plaque.
The Information‐Processing Perspective on Categorization
Authors: Martínez Manolo 
Published: February 2024

AbstractCategorization behavior can be fruitfully analyzed in terms of the trade‐off between as high as possible faithfulness in the transmission of information about samples of the classes to be categorized, and as low as possible transmission costs for that same information. The kinds of categorization behaviors we associate with conceptual atoms, prototypes, and exemplars emerge naturally as a result of this trade‐off, in the presence of certain natural constraints on the probabilistic distribution of samples, and the ways in which we measure faithfulness. Beyond the general structure of categorization in these circumstances, the same information‐centered perspective can shed light on other, more concrete properties of human categorization performance, such as the results of certain prominent experiments on supervised categorization.
How Prior Knowledge, Gesture Instruction, and Interference After Instruction Interact to Influence Learning of Mathematical Equivalence
Authors: Cook Susan Wagner , Wernette Elle M. D. , Valentine Madison , Aldugom Mary , Pruner Todd , Fenn Kimberly M. 
Published: February 2024

AbstractAlthough children learn more when teachers gesture, it is not clear how gesture supports learning. Here, we sought to investigate the nature of the memory processes that underlie the observed benefits of gesture on lasting learning. We hypothesized that instruction with gesture might create memory representations that are particularly resistant to interference. We investigated this possibility in a classroom study with 402 second‐ and third‐grade children. Participants received classroom‐level instruction in mathematical equivalence using videos with or without accompanying gesture. After instruction, children solved problems that were either visually similar to the problems that were taught, and consistent with an operational interpretation of the equal sign (interference), or visually distinct from equivalence problems and without an equal sign (control) in order to assess the role of gesture in resisting interference after learning. Gesture facilitated learning, but the effects of gesture and interference varied depending on type of problem being solved and the strategies that children used to solve problems prior to instruction. Some children benefitted from gesture, while others did not. These findings have implications for understanding the mechanisms underlying the beneficial effect of gesture on mathematical learning, revealing that gesture does not work via a general mechanism like enhancing attention or engagement that would apply to children with all forms of prior knowledge.
Determining the Relativity of Word Meanings Through the Construction of Individualized Models of Semantic Memory
Authors: Johns Brendan T. 
Published: February 2024

AbstractDistributional models of lexical semantics are capable of acquiring sophisticated representations of word meanings. The main theoretical insight provided by these models is that they demonstrate the systematic connection between the knowledge that people acquire and the experience that they have with the natural language environment. However, linguistic experience is inherently variable and differs radically across people due to demographic and cultural variables. Recently, distributional models have been used to examine how word meanings vary across languages and it was found that there is considerable variability in the meanings of words across languages for most semantic categories. The goal of this article is to examine how variable word meanings are across individual language users within a single language. This was accomplished by assembling 500 individual user corpora attained from the online forum Reddit. Each user corpus ranged between 3.8 and 32.3 million words each, and a count‐based distributional framework was used to extract word meanings for each user. These representations were then used to estimate the semantic alignment of word meanings across individual language users. It was found that there are significant levels of relativity in word meanings across individuals, and these differences are partially explained by other psycholinguistic factors, such as concreteness, semantic diversity, and social aspects of language usage. These results point to word meanings being fundamentally relative and contextually fluid, with this relativeness being related to the individualized nature of linguistic experience.
Political uncertainty and litigation efficiency: Evidence from China
Authors: Huang Yuexin , Li Ruijing , Luo Danglun , Yuan Rongli 
Published: February 2024

AbstractIn this article, we investigate the influence of local official turnover on litigation efficiency using manually collected data from listed companies in China from 1995 to 2013. Our findings indicate that official turnover leads to a decrease in litigation efficiency, with a 16.3% increase in the duration of litigation cases. This effect is more pronounced when newly appointed officials are working in different locations. It is more significant when the involved enterprise is a private entity, suggesting that political cycles contribute to the selective enforcement of private enterprises. Further analysis reveals that the adverse impact of official turnover on litigation efficiency is short‐lived. The conclusions contribute to the existing literature on official turnover and litigation efficiency and hold potential implications for judicial independence reforms.
Helminth ecological requirements shape the impact of climate change on the hazard of infection
Authors: Vanalli Chiara , Mari Lorenzo , Casagrandi Renato , Gatto Marino , Cattadori Isabella M. 
Published: February 2024

AbstractOutbreaks and spread of infectious diseases are often associated with seasonality and environmental changes, including global warming. Free‐living stages of soil‐transmitted helminths are highly susceptible to climatic drivers; however, how multiple climatic variables affect helminth species, and the long‐term consequences of these interactions, is poorly understood. We used experiments on nine trichostrongylid species of herbivores to develop a temperature‐ and humidity‐dependent model of infection hazard, which was then implemented at the European scale under climate change scenarios. Intestinal and stomach helminths exhibited contrasting climatic responses, with the former group strongly affected by temperature while the latter primarily impacted by humidity. Among the demographic traits, larval survival heavily modulated the infection hazard. According to the specific climatic responses of the two groups, climate change is expected to generate differences in the seasonal and spatial shifts of the infection hazard and group co‐circulation. In the future, an intensification of these trends could create new opportunities for species range expansion and co‐occurrence at European central‐northern latitudes.
Governing schools in times of pandemic: A set‐theoretical analysis of the role of policy capacities in school closure
Authors: Salazar‐Morales Diego , Pineda Pedro , Amaral Lucas 
Published: February 2024

AbstractPolicy capacity plays a pivotal role in shaping the extent of global governmental responses to the COVID‐19 pandemic. While scholars have primarily examined this phenomenon through individual case studies, focusing on demographic variables that influence governments' COVID‐19 responses, little understanding exists regarding how existing policy capacities (systemic, organizational, and individual) have either constrained or empowered governments to navigate the pandemic diversely. To address this gap, our study focuses on the worldwide patterns of school closures and re‐openings during COVID‐19. Utilizing configurational analysis on data from 110 countries, we reveal that factors such as less professional organizational capacities, flawed individual leadership capacities, and contextual factors such as heightened political polarization serve as quasi‐sufficient conditions for longer school closures, while their significant presence leads to extended periods of schools remaining open. The research is supported by detailed case studies of the US, Colombia, Israel, and South Korea, elucidating diverse policy trajectories and combinations influencing prolonged closures or swift re‐openings.
Educational actions about good manufacturing practices of canned fruits and vegetables for health inspectors: a partnership between university and health surveillance
Authors: Tomé Luana Leal , Zanin Laís Mariano , Stedefeldt Elke , Capriles Vanessa Dias 
Published: February 2024

SummaryEducational actions in the food sector can contribute to monitoring, deciding on the best interventions, and defending consumer health. We aimed to develop and implement educational actions for health inspectors about good manufacturing practices of canned fruits and vegetables based on the health risk. This quantitative and qualitative study was carried out in six stages: (1) document analysis, (2) preparation of a preliminary questionnaire, (3) focus group and validation of that questionnaire, (4) application of the preliminary questionnaire, (5) the educational action itself, and (6) application of the post‐educational actions' questionnaire. In Stage 4, 121 inspectors answered the preliminary questionnaire, and 140 were involved in the educational actions (Stage 5). The data obtained from the document analysis (Stage 1) and the preliminary questionnaire (Stage 4) informed the education actions, which were carried out in two stages: a video lesson and a remote, synchronous meeting, enabling the participation of inspectors from different regions of the state of São Paulo. The educational actions were based on active learning methods using interactive online tools, addressing case studies, and reflecting on professional practice and its problems. The quantitative and qualitative data from the preliminary questionnaire demonstrated that the critical control points of the canned fruits and vegetables manufacturing process and the production flow should be emphasised in the educational actions. The qualitative analysis of the active learning activities demonstrated that ‘acidification and heat treatment’ were the critical points identified by the participants, attesting to the education actions' relevance. The approach proposed in this study provides health inspectors with a model of active educational actions in food safety based on active learning methods that can be adapted for future in‐service educational actions at health surveillance centres worldwide.
Enhancing the techno‐ and bio‐functionality of wheat germ fermented by Lactobacillus plantarum
Authors: Aghagholizadeh Roya , Dokouhaki Mina , Condict Lloyd , Daneshgar Sara , Brennan Charles S. , Kasapis Stefan 
Published: February 2024

SummaryThis study explored the fermentation of defatted wheat germ (DWG) using Lactobacillus plantarum, leading to the release of bioactive peptides with improved technological and health properties. Proteomic analysis of fermented defatted wheat germ (FDWG) and DWG revealed a higher abundance of functional peptides in FDWG, with 27 peaks ranging from 503–1391 m/z compared to 22 peaks ranging from 537–1362 m/z for DWG. The peptides identified in FDWG were enriched in hydrophobic amino acids, known for their antioxidant and radical scavenging capabilities. Furthermore, FDWG‐based bread demonstrated the lowest gliadin content, making it a promising option for coeliac patients. The bread also exhibited a soft texture and higher consumer acceptance, positioning it as a viable alternative in reduced‐gluten bakery products. Overall, fermented wheat germ presents an exciting avenue for obtaining bioactive peptides with diverse potential applications in functional foods and nutraceuticals.
Comparison of water mobility and distribution in Dioscorea opposita Thunb. cv. Tiegun during hot‐air and microwave drying processes
Authors: Pang Lingyun , Guo Shuihuan , Zhan Lijuan , Zhu Chaozhi , Qu Shanshan , Pan Siyi 
Published: February 2024

SummaryLow‐field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF‐NMR) was employed to investigate changes in mobility as well as distribution of water in yam slices in the course of hot‐air drying (HAD) and microwave drying (MD) processes. Moisture content, effective moisture diffusivity, and water activity were also analysed. According to the results, a total of three water fractions with various T2 relaxation times were observed in fresh yam slices: T21 (0.9–2.6 ms), T22 (30–130 ms), and T23 (130–1245 ms). With the increment in drying temperature and the rise of microwave power in the course of drying, there was a significant decline in the transverse relaxation time and peak amplitude of T23. The overall moisture content exhibited a good correlation with Atotal during both HAD and MD processes, with coefficients equivalent to 0.9194 and 0.9024, respectively. With rising drying temperature and microwave power, there was a corresponding rise in effective moisture diffusivity. In comparison with HAD, the rate of water diffusion and evaporation in yam slices dried by MD was higher. Taking into account the drying efficiency and moisture state, MD was suggested as a preferable drying technology for dehydrating yam slices.
Selected physicochemical and morphological properties of Gamma‐Irradiated tapioca flour, rice flour, and pea flours
Authors: Theprugsa Prapasri , Vatthanakul Suteera , Limroongreungrat Kullaya , Khwansakool Pitchalai , Wongmaneepratip Wanwisa , Sajjabut Surasak , Prinyawiwatkul Witoon 
Published: February 2024

SummaryThe effects of gamma irradiation on selected physicochemical and morphological properties of tapioca, rice, and pea flours were studied. Treatments by gamma irradiation at different doses (0, 2.5, 5.5, and 7 kGy) caused changes in structure and physicochemical properties of starch granules of those flours. Generally, the solubility of tapioca, rice, and pea flour significantly increased (100.69%, 116.72%, and 15.18%, respectively) whereas swelling power (19.61%, 10.16%, and 25.08%), pasting parameters (peak viscosity, trough viscosity, final viscosity, breakdown, and setback), enthalpy of gelatinisation (34.26%, 83.54%, and 84.80%) and syneresis (68.21%, 58.79%, and 26.91%) significantly decreased (P ≤ 0.05) as the dose of irradiation increased. Irradiation affected the pasting temperature and syneresis of pea flour more than those of tapioca and rice flours. Gamma irradiation did not change starch granule surface of the flours. This study demonstrated that the gamma‐irradiated flours had significant changes in physicochemical properties depending on the radiation dose; these changes will affect their uses in food formulations.