bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Colonial Confessions: An Autoethnography of Writing Criminology in the New South Africa
Authors: Dixon Bill 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
This article is an autoethnographic account of a 20-year engagement with South African criminology. It is written from the perspective of someone from the Global North, a beneficiary of Britain’s colonial past and the present dominance of northern ways of thinking and being. The aim is to encourage other criminologists from a similar background to reflect on their histories and the impact of their work in the present, and to be open to ideas from outside the Euro-American mainstream of the discipline. The evolution of South African criminology, and its gradual adoption of a more southern or decolonial sensibility, is traced in the work of the author and others.
How do we get from hyperexcitability to excitotoxicity in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis?
Authors: Odierna G Lorenzo , Vucic Steve , Dyer Marcus , Dickson Tracey , Woodhouse Adele , Blizzard Catherine 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a devastating neurodegenerative disease that, at present, has no effective cure. Evidence of increased circulating glutamate and hyperexcitability of the motor cortex in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis have provided an empirical support base for the ‘dying forward’ excitotoxicity hypothesis. The hypothesis postulates that increased activation of upper motor neurons spreads pathology to lower motor neurons in the spinal cord in the form of excessive glutamate release, which triggers excitotoxic processes. Many clinical trials have focused on therapies that target excitotoxicity via dampening neuronal activation, but not all are effective. As such, there is a growing tension between the rising tide of evidence for the ‘dying forward’ excitotoxicity hypothesis and the failure of therapies that target neuronal activation.
One possible solution to these contradictory outcomes is that our interpretation of the current evidence requires revision in the context of appreciating the complexity of the nervous system and the limitations of the neurobiological assays we use to study it. In this review we provide an evaluation of evidence relevant to the ‘dying forward’ excitotoxicity hypothesis and by doing so, identify key gaps in our knowledge that need to be addressed. We hope to provide a road map from hyperexcitability to excitotoxicity so that we can better develop therapies for patients suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
We conclude that studies of upper motor neuron activity and their synaptic output will play a decisive role in the future of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis therapy.
A predictive model for medication adherence in older adults with heart failure
Authors: Oh Eun Ha , Kim Chun-Ja , Schlenk Elizabeth A 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

Aims
Although many studies have examined the predictors of medication adherence (MA), further empirical research is required to clarify the best model for predicting MA for older adults with heart failure (HF). Thus, we hypothesized a model in which information (knowledge), motivation (social support and depressive symptoms), and behavioural skills (barriers to self-efficacy) would be associated with MA in patients with HF.

Methods and results
Using a cross-sectional survey, 153 adults aged ≥ 65 years taking medication for HF were recruited from a university hospital in Korea. Data were collected based on the information–motivation–behavioural skills (IMB) model constructs and MA. In the hypothesized path model, self-efficacy was directly related to MA (β = −0.335, P = 0.006), whereas social support was indirectly related to MA through self-efficacy (β = −0.078, P = 0.027). Depressive symptoms were directly related to MA (β = 0.359, P = 0.004) and indirectly related to MA through self-efficacy (β = 0.141, P = 0.004). The hypothesized MA model showed a good fit for the data. Knowledge, social support, and depressive symptoms accounted for 44.3% of the variance in self-efficacy (P = 0.004). Left ventricular ejection fraction, knowledge, social support, depressive symptoms, and self-efficacy explained 64.4% of the variance in MA (P = 0.004).

Conclusion
These results confirmed the IMB model’s suitability for predicting MA in older adults with HF. These findings may guide and inform intervention programmes designed to alleviate depressive symptoms in older adults with HF and enhance their HF knowledge, social support, and self-efficacy, with the ultimate goal of improving their MA.
More than Putin: managed pluralism in Russia's foreign policy
Authors: Strycharz Damian 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
The Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine took most experts by surprise, but before the war, there were numerous voices in the Russian public debate calling for much tougher policies towards Ukraine and the West than the ones pursued by the government. This article challenges explanations that prioritize external factors or focus solely on President Putin and shows that examining opposition, state media and government discourses is necessary to understand Russia's foreign policy properly. The article contends that the concept of managed pluralism (defined by Harley Balzer in 2003), which has not yet been used in the analysis of Moscow's international behaviour, is a useful tool that can address the gap in the literature and shed light on important mechanisms behind Russia's foreign policy-making. Consequently, the article reveals mechanisms that, by allowing certain voices while eliminating others, steer Russia's foreign policy in a specific direction, which in this case made the invasion of Ukraine possible. Finally, it indicates that observing actors admitted to the public debate and their propositions may be a clue to the direction of Russia's future foreign policy. More broadly, this article points to policy implications and theoretical benefits of managed pluralism for our understanding of other states' foreign policies.
Populism, Collective Narcissism, and Support for War
Authors: Zhai Yida 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
People’s pro-war attitudes provide an important lens for understanding the various conflicts and wars taking place around the globe. The present research bridges the social psychological insights on ingroup identity with the macro realism theory of international relations studies. It examines the association of populism and collective narcissism with support for war under the conditions of offensive and defensive realist foreign policies. The research comprises two studies. Study 1 shows that populism is linked with offensive realism, whereas collective narcissism is associated with defensive realism. Study 2 further demonstrates that the perceptions of threat mediate the relationship between collective narcissism and support for war, rather than mediating the relationship between populism and support for war. Both populism and collective narcissism are related to authoritarianism. This research contributes to a theoretical understanding of the effects of populism and collective narcissism on resorting to military actions in international politics.
The One Step Malliavin scheme: new discretization of BSDEs implemented with deep learning regressions
Authors: Negyesi Balint , Andersson Kristoffer , Oosterlee Cornelis W 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
A novel discretization is presented for decoupled forward–backward stochastic differential equations (FBSDE) with differentiable coefficients, simultaneously solving the BSDE and its Malliavin sensitivity problem. The control process is estimated by the corresponding linear BSDE driving the trajectories of the Malliavin derivatives of the solution pair, which implies the need to provide accurate $\varGamma $ estimates. The approximation is based on a merged formulation given by the Feynman–Kac formulae and the Malliavin chain rule. The continuous time dynamics is discretized with a theta-scheme. In order to allow for an efficient numerical solution of the arising semidiscrete conditional expectations in possibly high dimensions, it is fundamental that the chosen approach admits to differentiable estimates. Two fully-implementable schemes are considered: the BCOS method as a reference in the one-dimensional framework and neural network Monte Carlo regressions in case of high-dimensional problems, similarly to the recently emerging class of Deep BSDE methods (Han et al. (2018 Solving high-dimensional partial differential equations using deep learning. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., 115, 8505–8510); Huré et al. (2020 Deep backward schemes for high-dimensional nonlinear PDEs. Math. Comp., 89, 1547–1579)). An error analysis is carried out to show $\mathbb{L}^2$ convergence of order $1/2$, under standard Lipschitz assumptions and additive noise in the forward diffusion. Numerical experiments are provided for a range of different semilinear equations up to $50$ dimensions, demonstrating that the proposed scheme yields a significant improvement in the control estimations.
Operator Space Complexification Transfigured
Authors: Blecher David P , Kalantar Mehrdad 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Given a finite group $G$, a central subgroup $H$ of $G$, and an operator space $X$ equipped with an action of $H$ by complete isometries, we construct an operator space $X_{G}$ equipped with an action of $G$ that is unique under a “reasonable” condition. This generalizes the operator space complexification $X_{c}$ of $X$. As a linear space $X_{G}$ is the space obtained from inducing the representation of $H$ to $G$ (in the sense of Frobenius). Indeed a main achievement of our paper is the induced representation construction in the category of operator spaces. This has been hitherto elusive even for Banach spaces since it is not clear how to norm the induced space. We show that for a large class of group actions the induced space has a unique operator space norm.
Distribution of quetiapine between serum and whole blood in therapeutic drug-monitoring specimens
Authors: Breivik Håvard , Tunset Mette Elise , Schou Morten Brix , Frost Joachim 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Quetiapine use is on the rise, leading to a corresponding increase in acute intoxications, some of which have fatal outcomes. When assessing whole-blood quetiapine concentrations during forensic autopsies, interpretations are primarily based on toxicity data from studies of serum concentrations. To our knowledge, there are only two previous studies that have attempted to establish the ratio between whole blood and serum quetiapine concentrations with limited populations and high variability of results. Paired specimens of whole blood and serum from 16 quetiapine users recruited from the Psychiatric Clinic, St. Olav University Hospital were analyzed using LC–MS-MS. Quetiapine concentrations in both matrices were determined and compared. The mean blood:serum ratio of quetiapine was 0.74 (standard deviation (SD) = 0.05, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.71–0.76, P &lt; 0.001), range 0.66–0.85. Simple linear regression showed strong linear correlation between quetiapine concentrations in the two matrices (B = 0.774, P &gt; 0.001, r = 0.999). Our results imply that quetiapine occurs at lower concentrations within erythrocytes than in plasma. This is most likely due to a high degree of plasma protein binding. Other factors which may influence the distribution of quetiapine between these compartments are solubility, metabolism and passive or active efflux mechanisms. We did not observe any covariation between blood:serum ratios and serum concentrations. Quetiapine was consistently present at lower concentrations in whole blood than in serum. If so inclined to, a conversion factor of ∼0.7 may be considered for extrapolation of concentrations from serum to whole blood, at least in cases with therapeutic quetiapine concentration levels.
Analysis of homemade cannabis edibles by UHPLC–HRMS after standard addition method
Authors: Thiebot Pauline , Magny Romain , Langrand Jérôme , Dufayet Laurène , Houze Pascal , Labat Laurence 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
With recent evolution of cannabis legalization around the world, cannabis edibles are booming, and determining their concentration in Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC), the regulated psychoactive substance, remains a challenge for toxicology laboratories, which must prove whether the product has legal status or not. Cannabinoids are a large family of structurally similar and lipophilic molecules, requiring dedicated pre-analytical methods, as well as efficient chromatographic separation to differentiate cannabinoid isomers which are distinguished by their psychoactive properties and their legal status. Here, we present two independent cases of cannabis edibles, for which we performed analysis of homemade cannabis chocolate cakes and of the resins and herbs used for cooking. Quantitation was carried out with a new developed standard addition method, to avoid matrix effects and matrix-dependent calibration. Extraction by QuEChERs method, followed by targeted and non-targeted analysis by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography hyphenated to high resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC–HRMS) allowed the identification of several phytocannabinoids, mainly Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC), cannabidiol (CBD) and their acid precursors Δ9-THC acid (THCA) and CBD acid (CBDA). Δ9-THC was identified in significant concentrations (mg/g) in both edibles, even though one was prepared with CBD herb. This work highlights the need to analyze cannabis edibles, as well as the resins and herbs used in their preparation if it is homemade, and it proposes a reliable analytical method for toxicology laboratories.
Understanding the onion aphid Neotoxoptera formosana’s (Hemiptera: Aphididae) interaction with Allium (Asparagales: Amaryllidaceae) crops: a comprehensive study of feeding patterns and life history traits
Authors: Zhang Long , Zhang Haiyan , Zhang Keshi , Qin Yaoguo , Yang Maofa , Liu Jianfeng 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
The onion aphid, Neotoxoptera formosana, poses a significant threat to Allium crops worldwide, causing considerable economic losses and quality degradation. To develop effective pest management strategies, it is crucial to understand the feeding behavior and life history of this pest on different Allium crops. In this study, the electrical penetration graph (EPG) technique was used to monitor the thorn-feeding behavior of the onion aphid on 4 Allium crops: leek, chive, garlic, and shallot. The EPG data revealed distinct feeding patterns, with garlic and shallots being more preferred hosts than chives. Additionally, the aphids primarily fed on the phloem in garlic and shallots. Analysis of life history trait showed that chives provided the most favorable conditions for aphid development and reproduction, while leek exhibited relatively unfavorable conditions. Examination of leaf histology also revealed differences among the crops, which may influence aphid feeding behavior. This study provides valuable insights into the interaction between the onion aphid and different Allium crops, aiding in the development of comprehensive pest control strategies to minimize crop damage and economic losses. The use of advanced techniques like EPG contributes to a more detailed understanding of aphid behavior and shows promise for improving pest management in other plant-pest interactions.
The Aarhus Convention and the Latent Right to a Healthy Environment
Authors: Barritt Emily 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
The Aarhus Convention is an ambitious environmental agreement that recognises the right to a healthy environment in its opening article. However, the ambiguous language surrounding this right gives the impression that it is ornamentation and not something requiring serious legal attention. At the same time, the procedural environmental rights which are the centrepiece of the Convention are being eroded, either by design on the part of Contracting Parties or because of a broader malaise about the value of public participation in environmental decision-making. This contribution suggests that closer attention to the legal significance of the substantive right contained in the Convention can help to reinvigorate the procedural Aarhus rights. In so doing, it draws attention to the radical vision of the Aarhus Convention to protect the right of present and future generations to live in an environment adequate to human health and well-being.
Life-history traits of Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus) distributed across a latitudinal range of 23 °N–6 °S
Authors: Neoh Kok-Boon , Bong Lee-Jin , Silalahi Christina Natalina , Panthawong Amonrat , Chareonviriyaphap Theeraphap , Ahmad Intan 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
The growth and associated traits of Aedes aegypti (L.) mosquitoes may adapt and evolve in response to the costs associated with body size in relation to latitudinal variation. We analyzed the life-history traits and energy reserves of field-collected mosquitoes from Taiwan, Thailand, and Indonesia along a latitudinal range spanning from 23°N to 6°S. A U-shaped relationship between body size and latitude was observed. Our study demonstrated the role of latitudinal temperature variations in determining the body size patterns of Ae. aegypti. Notably, the body size of the northern populations (from Taiwan) was significantly larger than those of the tropical populations from Thailand and Indonesia. Models have demonstrated that regional precipitation levels may contribute to body trait variations in certain high-latitude populations in Thailand. However, Indonesian populations have high development rates and large body sizes, indicating the involvement of other physiological traits in determining mosquito body size. The reproductive output of the adult females in this study was positively correlated with body size, but our measure of longevity did not covary significantly with the body size. By contrast, the reproductive output of mosquito-tested populations was in inverse proportion to longevity. Additionally, the mean teneral glycogen levels in the Indonesian and Thai populations were 2.5 times higher than those in the Taiwanese populations. The Indonesian and Thai populations had low mean generation and doubling times, resulting in a high intrinsic rate of increase compared with that of the Taiwanese populations, despite the Taiwanese populations having the highest net reproduction rate.
A custom next-generation sequencing panel for 1p/19q codeletion and mutational analysis in gliomas
Authors: Qi Peng , Yao Qian-Lan , Lao I Weng , Ren Min , Bai Qian-Ming , Cai Xu , Xue Tian , Wei Ran , Zhou Xiao-Yan 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
The World Health Organization has updated their classification system for the diagnosis of gliomas, combining histological features with molecular data including isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 and codeletion of chromosomal arms 1p and 19q. 1p/19q codeletion analysis is commonly performed by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). In this study, we developed a 57-gene targeted next-generation sequencing (NGS) panel including 1p/19q codeletion detection mainly to assess diagnosis and potential treatment response in melanoma, gastrointestinal stromal tumor, and glioma patients. Loss of heterozygosity analysis was performed using the NGS method on 37 formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded glioma tissues that showed 1p and/or 19q loss determined by FISH. Conventional methods were applied for the validation of some glioma-related gene mutations. In 81.1% (30 of 37) and 94.6% (35 of 37) of cases, 1p and 19q were found to be in agreement whereas concordance for 1p/19q codeletion and no 1p/19q codeletion was found in 94.7% (18 of 19) and 94.4% (17 of 18) of cases, respectively. Overall, comparing NGS results with those of conventional methods showed high concordance. In conclusion, the NGS panel allows reliable analysis of 1p/19q codeletion and mutation at the same time.
Skin nerve phosphorylated α-synuclein in the elderly
Authors: Donadio Vincenzo , Fadda Laura , Incensi Alex , Furia Alessandro , Parisini Sara , Colaci Francesco , Defazio Giovanni , Liguori Rocco 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
To determine the incidence of phosphorylated α-synuclein (p-syn) in skin nerves in very old subjects who are prone to developing incidental Lewy bodies, we prospectively performed skin biopsies on 33 elderly subjects, including 13 (&gt;85 years old) and 20 patients (&gt;70 years) suspected of having an acquired small fiber neuropathy. All subjects underwent neurological examination prior to the biopsy. Two screened female subjects (ages 102 and 98 years) were excluded from the study because they showed evidence of a slight bradykinetic-rigid extrapyramidal disorder on neurological examination and were not considered healthy; both showed p-syn in skin nerves. We did not identify p-syn in skin nerves in the remaining 31 subjects. A PubMed analysis of publications from 2013 to 2023 disclosed 490 healthy subjects tested for skin p-syn; one study reported p-syn in 4 healthy subjects, but the remaining subjects tested negative. Our data underscore the virtual absence of p-syn in skin nerves of healthy controls, including those who are very elderly. These data support skin biopsy as a highly specific tool for identifying an underlying synucleinopathy in patients in vivo.
Physical interaction with Spo11 mediates the localisation of Mre11 to chromatin in meiosis and promotes its nuclease activity
Authors: Aithal Rakesh , Nangalia Kuldeep , Spirek Mario , Chen Doris , Klein Franz , Krejci Lumir 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Meiotic recombination is of central importance for the proper segregation of homologous chromosomes, but also for creating genetic diversity. It is initiated by the formation of double-strand breaks (DSBs) in DNA catalysed by evolutionarily conserved Spo11, together with additional protein partners. Difficulties in purifying the Spo11 protein have limited the characterization of its biochemical properties and of its interactions with other DSB proteins. In this study, we have purified fragments of Spo11 and show for the first time that Spo11 can physically interact with Mre11 and modulates its DNA binding, bridging, and nuclease activities. The interaction of Mre11 with Spo11 requires its far C-terminal region, which is in line with the severe meiotic phenotypes of various mre11 mutations located at the C-terminus. Moreover, calibrated ChIP for Mre11 shows that Spo11 promotes Mre11 recruitment to chromatin, independent of DSB formation. A mutant deficient in Spo11 interaction severely reduces the association of Mre11 with meiotic chromatin. Consistent with the reduction of Mre11 foci in this mutant, it strongly impedes DSB formation, leading to spore death. Our data provide evidence that physical interaction between Spo11 and Mre11, together with end-bridging, promote normal recruitment of Mre11 to hotspots and DSB formation.