bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Self-adapting Machine Learning-based Systems via a Probabilistic Model Checking Framework
Authors: Casimiro Maria , Soares Diogo , Garlan David , Rodrigues Luís , Romano Paolo 
Published: March 2024

This article focuses on the problem of optimizing the system utility of Machine Learning (ML)-based systems in the presence of ML mispredictions. This is achieved via the use of self-adaptive systems and through the execution of adaptation tactics, such asmodel retraining, which operate at the level of individual ML components.To address this problem, we propose a probabilistic modeling framework that reasons about the cost/benefit tradeoffs associated with adapting ML components. The key idea of the proposed approach is to decouple the problems of estimating (1) the expected performance improvement after adaptation and (2) the impact of ML adaptation on overall system utility.We apply the proposed framework to engineer a self-adaptive ML-based fraud detection system, which we evaluate using a publicly available, real fraud detection dataset. We initially consider a scenario in which information on the model’s quality is immediately available. Next, we relax this assumption by integrating (and extending) state-of-the-art techniques for estimating the model’s quality in the proposed framework. We show that by predicting the system utility stemming from retraining an ML component, the probabilistic model checker can generate adaptation strategies that are significantly closer to the optimal, as compared against baselines such as periodic or reactive retraining.
Transcriptomic Profiling of Plasma Extracellular Vesicles Enables Reliable Annotation of the Cancer-Specific Transcriptome and Molecular Subtype
Authors: Bahrambeigi Vahid , Lee Jaewon J. , Branchi Vittorio , Rajapakshe Kimal I. , Xu Zhichao , Kui Naishu , Henry Jason T. , Kun Wang , Stephens Bret M. , Dhebat Sarah , Hurd Mark W. , Sun Ryan , Yang Peng , Ruppin Eytan , Wang Wenyi , Kopetz Scott , Maitra Anirban , Guerrero Paola A. 
Published: March 2024

Abstract

Longitudinal monitoring of patients with advanced cancers is crucial to evaluate both disease burden and treatment response. Current liquid biopsy approaches mostly rely on the detection of DNA-based biomarkers. However, plasma RNA analysis can unleash tremendous opportunities for tumor state interrogation and molecular subtyping. Through the application of deep learning algorithms to the deconvolved transcriptomes of RNA within plasma extracellular vesicles (evRNA), we successfully predicted consensus molecular subtypes in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. Analysis of plasma evRNA also enabled monitoring of changes in transcriptomic subtype under treatment selection pressure and identification of molecular pathways associated with recurrence. This approach also revealed expressed gene fusions and neoepitopes from evRNA. These results demonstrate the feasibility of using transcriptomic-based liquid biopsy platforms for precision oncology approaches, spanning from the longitudinal monitoring of tumor subtype changes to the identification of expressed fusions and neoantigens as cancer-specific therapeutic targets, sans the need for tissue-based sampling.

Significance:
The development of an approach to interrogate molecular subtypes, cancer-associated pathways, and differentially expressed genes through RNA sequencing of plasma extracellular vesicles lays the foundation for liquid biopsy–based longitudinal monitoring of patient tumor transcriptomes.
Therapeutic Targeting of TIM-4-L with Engineered T Cells for Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Authors: Cieniewicz Brandon , Oliveira Edson , Saxton Mike , Torabi Damoun , Bhatta Ankit , Kukutla Phanidhar , Arballo Alexander , Yang Zhuo , Yu Bi , Fate Maria , Ning Hongxiu , Corey Lawrence , Maiti Abhishek , Corey Daniel 
Published: March 2024

AbstractPurpose:Disruption of lipid bilayer asymmetry is a common feature observed in cancer cells and offers novel routes for therapeutic targeting. We used the natural immune receptor TIM-4 to interrogate for loss of plasma membrane phospholipid polarity in primary acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) samples and evaluated the anti-leukemic activity of TIM-4-L–directed T-cell therapy in preclinical AML models.Experimental Design:We performed FACS analysis on 33 primary AML bone marrow specimens and correlated TIM-4-L expression frequency and intensity with molecular disease characteristics. Using Kasumi-1 and MV-4–11 AML cell lines, we further tested the anti-leukemic effects of TIM-4-L–directed engineered T cells in vitro and in vivo.Results:We found that 86% of untreated AML blasts displayed upregulation of cell surface TIM-4-L. These observations were agnostic to AML genetic classification, as samples with mutations in TP53, ASXL1, and RUNX1 displayed TIM-4-L upregulation similar to that seen in favorable and intermediate subtypes. TIM-4-L dysregulation was also stably present in AML cell lines. To evaluate the potential of targeting upregulated TIM-4-L with adoptive T-cell therapy, we constructed TIM-4-L–directed engineered T cells, which demonstrated potent anti-leukemic effects, effectively eliminating AML cell lines with a range of endogenous TIM-4-L expression levels both in vitro and in vivo.Conclusions:These results highlight TIM-4-L as a highly prevalent target on AML across a range of genetic classifications and novel target for T-cell–based therapy in AML. Further investigations into the role of TIM-4-L in AML pathogenesis and its potential as an anti-leukemic target for clinical development are warranted.
Still in the ‘Waiting Room’
Authors: Jayawardena Pavithra 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
Voting is predominantly understood through resident citizens’ viewpoints. Many resident citizens are nervous about the perceived consequences of voting by resident noncitizens. Although New Zealand is the only Western democratic host country that currently allows noncitizens to vote in national elections, citizens have concerns about how noncitizens use this right. This study investigates noncitizen voting from noncitizens’ viewpoints, by exploring the journeys and experiences of Sri Lankan immigrants in New Zealand. Based on 26 interviews with Sri Lankans in Auckland and Wellington, the study found two dimensions—temporal and transnational—that shape immigrants’ views in a different way from those of resident citizen voters. Building on Bridget Anderson’s methodological de-nationalism, the study suggests that we need to recognise the differences between resident citizens and resident noncitizens in order not to homogenise groups and wrongly assume that they share motives and behavioural and decision-making patterns.
Turkstroi: Soviet-Turkish Industrial Cooperation and the Dialectics of Divergence and Convergence in Interwar Statism, 1931–1941
Authors: O’Sullivan Michael 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
Turkstroi was a Soviet trust that, in partnership with Turkey’s state-owned Sümerbank, constructed several industrial enterprises in the Turkish Republic in the 1930s. By situating the trust in the context of Soviet, Turkish, and multilateral economic development, this article argues that the trust was an expression of patterns of both convergence and divergence in Soviet and Turkish interwar statism. As one of the few transnational industrial enterprises to materialize during the first two Soviet Five-Year Plans, Turkstroi was an impressive feat. But the volume of industrial plant and expertise that the trust was able to send to Turkey was largely predetermined by the dynamics of Soviet hard-currency restraints, and the trust’s managerial staff was later annihilated during the Stalinist Purges. Still, Turkstroi necessitated the formulation of a transnational wing to the Soviet planned economy and showcased Soviet technical expertise outside the union. In comparison with their respective trading links with Western industrial powers, Soviet-Turkish industrial collaboration was of limited in scope. Nonetheless, to a degree disproportionate with its actual economic contribution, Turkstroi generated intellectual debate within Turkey about the character of Turkish development, Soviet boasts about the international dimensions of its industrial prowess, and a host of new Turkish state-owned and bilateral (Ankara-Moscow) institutions to ensure the running of the trust’s subsidiary operations.
From Western India to Eastern Africa—the Rise of the Parsis in the 18th and 19th Centuries
Authors: Yazdani Kaveh 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
The present paper examines the socio-economic conditions for the ascendancy of the Zoroastrian community in Western India between the 18th and 19th centuries. This study reinforces the well-established thesis on the role played by the Parsis in the development of capitalism in India. What distinguishes it from other narratives is the periodization of this development and the consideration of Parsi agency in the Western Indian Ocean region and East Africa, especially Mozambique. The cooperation of the Parsis with the European trade companies and private European traders as of the mid-17th century—most notably, their links to the English East India Company, which boosted the Zoroastrian communities of northwestern India—is investigated. I try to show how the Parsis, who had been predominantly peasants, farmers and artisans from the 10th to 17th centuries, increasingly embarked upon trade, moneylending, brokerage and production. Because of their accumulated wealth, their numbers as well as their influence augmented throughout the 18th and 19th centuries.
In Search of the Phoenix in Eighteenth-Century Naples
Authors: de Ceglia Francesco Paolo , Maraschi Andrea , Monno Alessandro , Tempesta Gioacchino 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
Raimondo di Sangro (1710–1771), Prince of Sansevero, is renowned for having made experiences on mineral palingenesis, among other things. This multidisciplinary article brings together approaches and methodologies of the history of science and of mineralogy, and presents innovative results obtained during two distinct surveys at the Museo Cappella Sansevero. It focuses on the techniques Raimondo implemented to create the blue and red pigments which he used to adorn the family chapel, as well as on his choice to use fluorite as a sculptural material. Our analyses confirm for the first time that the Prince of Sansevero was able to create artificial ultramarine. As of today, this seems to be the earliest ever recorded example of the production of this artificial pigment. Consequently, this study suggests that historical sources documenting di Sangro’s experiences should be seriously reconsidered. This article also contextualises Raimondo’s efforts within the Neapolitan networks of Freemasons, engravers and antiquarians.
How Concrete Is Confucian Liberalism?
Authors: Jiang Dongxian 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
This commentary evaluates whether Roy Tseng’s Confucian Liberalism provides an attractive normative political philosophy for modern East Asia, compared with existing Confucian political theories. I argue that Tseng’s Confucian-Hegelian theory operates at a highly abstract level, without outlining institutional structures and policy orientations that embody his philosophical ideals. In contrast, leading Confucian political theorists in the past two decades, be they progressive, liberal, or traditionalist, have offered multiple “Confucian-inspired regimes” for modern societies. It is therefore doubtful whether Tseng has advanced a new alternative to existing proposals, and whether the theory of Confucian liberalism is truly sensitive to the “here and now.”
Large-Scale Dust–Bioaerosol Field Observations in East Asia
Authors: Huang Zhongwei , Dong Qing , Xue Fanli , Qi Jing , Yu Xinrong , Maki Teruya , Du Pengyue , Gu Qianqing , Tang Shihan , Shi Jinsen , Bi Jianrong , Zhou Tian , Huang Jianping 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
The long-range transport of bioaerosols by dust events significantly impacts ecological and meteorological networks of the atmosphere, biosphere, and anthroposphere. Bioaerosols not only cause significant public health risks, but also act as efficient ice nuclei for inducing cloud formation and precipitation in the hydrological cycle. To establish risk management for bioaerosol impacts on the Earth system, a large-scale investigation of bioaerosols must be performed under different environmental conditions. For this purpose, a Dust–Bioaerosol (DuBi) field campaign was conducted to investigate the distribution of bioaerosols by collecting ∼950 samples at 39 sites across East Asia from 2016 to 2021. Concentrations and community structures of bioaerosols were further analyzed using fluorescence microscopic observations and high-throughput DNA sequencing, and these factors were compared to environmental factors, such as PM10 and aridity. The results indicated that microbial concentrations at dryland sites were statistically higher than those at humid sites, while the microbe-to-total-particle ratio was statistically lower in drylands than in humid regions. Microbial cells per microgram of PM10 decreased when PM10 increased. The proportion of airborne particles at each site did not vary substantially with season. The richness and diversity of airborne bacteria were significantly higher in drylands than in semiarid regions, while the community structures were stable among all sampling sites. The DuBi field campaign improves our understanding of bioaerosol characteristic variations along the dust transport pathway in East Asia and the changes of bioaerosols under the trend of climate warming, supporting the efforts to reduce public health risks.
The effect of virtual reality glasses applied during intrauterine device insertion on pain, anxiety and satisfaction: Randomized controlled study
Authors: Öz Tuğba , Demirci Nurdan 
Published: March 2024

Background and aim This study was carried out to determine the effect of the use of “virtual reality glasses,” on anxiety, pain, and satisfaction level in order to reduce anxiety and pain during intrauterine device (IUD) insertion, which is a painful and stressful procedure for women and to divert attention to increase satisfaction. Methods This randomized controlled study in the gynecology clinic of a state hospital with 80 women who were accepted to participate in the study. Data were collected using structured patient information form, numerical pain rating scale, state-trait anxiety inventory, patient satisfaction evaluation form, and virtual reality glasses. Results Post-procedural pain scores in the control group after IUD application were higher than post-procedural pain in the virtual reality group. Measurements of post-procedure anxiety in the control group were higher than measurements of post-procedural in the virtual reality group. Satisfaction levels of women with virtual reality glasses during IUD insertion were also found to be high. Conclusions It was determined that the use of virtual reality glasses, one of the methods of distraction during IUD insertion, was effective in reducing pain and anxiety and increasing patient satisfaction.
Outcomes of conservative management in patients with nutcracker syndrome
Authors: Sarikaya Sabit , Altas Ozge , Ozgur Mustafa Mert , Hancer Hakan , Ozdere Betul Ayca , Ozer Tanil , Aksut Mehmet , Rabus Murat Bulent , Topcu Kamile Ozeren , Bas Tolga , Kirali Kaan 
Published: March 2024

Objective This study aims to evaluate outcomes in nutcracker syndrome patients with tolerable symptoms and treated conservatively without invasive interventions. Methods This prospective study included patients treated conservatively. Promoting weight gain, the endpoint of the study was spontaneous resolution of symptoms. Results Sixteen patients (75% female and mean age 24.4 ± 3.5 years) underwent conservative management. Over a mean follow-up of 27.3 months [13–42, interquartile range (IQR)], the diameter ratio (5.5 [5–6.5, IQR] vs 4.3 [4.1–6], p = NS), the peak velocity ratio (6 [5–7, IQR] vs 4.8 [4.8–5.8], p = NS), beak angle (27° [24–30, IQR] vs 29° [24–32]; p = NS), and aortomesenteric angle (26° [23–29, IQR] vs 28° [24–30]; p = NS) exhibited no statistically significant changes. Complete resolution and improvement of symptoms were 28.5% and 31.4%, respectively, while 68.5% remained unchanged. Conclusions This study shows that a conservative approach contributes to the spontaneous improvement or complete resolution in young adult patients with mild symptoms.
A Generalizable Decision-Making Framework for Selecting Onsite versus Send-out Clinical Laboratory Testing
Authors: Schroeder Lee F. , Rebman Paul , Kasaie Parastu , Kenu Ernest , Zelner Jon , Dowdy David W. 
Published: March 2024

Background Laboratory networks provide services through onsite testing or through specimen transport to higher-tier laboratories. This decision is based on the interplay of testing characteristics, treatment characteristics, and epidemiological characteristics. Objectives Our objective was to develop a generalizable model using the threshold approach to medical decision making to inform test placement decisions. Methods We developed a decision model to compare the incremental utility of onsite versus send-out testing for clinical purposes. We then performed Monte Carlo simulations to identify the settings under which each strategy would be preferred. Tuberculosis was modeled as an exemplar. Results The most important determinants of the decision to test onsite versus send-out were the clinical utility lost due to send-out testing delays and the accuracy decrement with onsite testing. When the sensitivity decrements of onsite testing were minimal, onsite testing tended to be preferred when send-out delays reduced clinical utility by >20%. By contrast, when onsite testing incurred large reductions in sensitivity, onsite testing tended to be preferred when utility lost due to delays was >50%. The relative cost of onsite versus send-out testing affected these thresholds, particularly when testing costs were >10% of treatment costs. Conclusions Decision makers can select onsite versus send-out testing in an evidence-based fashion using estimates of the percentage of clinical utility lost due to send-out delays and the relative accuracy of onsite versus send-out testing. This model is designed to be generalizable to a wide variety of use cases. Highlights The design of laboratory networks, including the decision to place diagnostic instruments at the point-of-care or at higher tiers as accessed through specimen transport, can be informed using the threshold approach to medical decision making. The most important determinants of the decision to test onsite versus send-out were the clinical utility lost due to send-out testing delays and the accuracy decrement with onsite testing. The threshold approach to medical decision making can be used to compare point-of-care testing accuracy decrements with the lost utility of treatment due to send-out testing delays. The relative cost of onsite versus send-out testing affected these thresholds, particularly when testing costs were >10% of treatment costs.
Subcutaneous injection of lidocaine around ischemic ankle provides safe and effective foot analgesia in patients with critical limb ischemia
Authors: Kanai Akifumi , Ara Masatomo , Saito Ryusei , Mishima Toshiaki , Takahashi Yuichiro 
Published: March 2024

Objective It is often difficult to alleviate foot pain associated with critical limb ischemia (CLI) using common analgesics. Neuraxial block is contraindicated in anticoagulant therapy. This study was designed to determine the response to subcutaneous injection of lidocaine around the network of peripheral nerves around the ankle in patients with CLI pain on anticoagulants and antiplatelets. Methods Sixteen patients with CLI pain in the foot were enrolled in this double-blind placebo-controlled crossover study. Patients were randomized to receive either 2% lidocaine or saline via catheters inserted into the subcutaneous area around the ankle. After recurrence of pain, the patients were crossed over to receive the alternative treatment. Pain was assessed with a numerical rating scale (NRS) before and 15 min after injection. Patients used a descriptive scale to grade pain control and were asked to determine the duration of analgesia in each arm of the study. Results No serious complications including protracted bleeding occurred. Lidocaine significantly decreased the NRS on movement from 10 (6, 10) [median (range)] to 2 (0, 10) ( p < .001), and the differences in the Δ change in NRS between lidocaine and placebo were significant ( p = .009). Of the 16 patients, 14 patients were very satisfied after lidocaine but only one described the same after saline. The effect of lidocaine and placebo lasted 11 (0, 28) and 1 (0, 22) h, respectively. Conclusion Subcutaneous injection of lidocaine around the ischemic ankle affectively alleviated pain in patients with CLI without serious adverse effects under anticoagulant therapy.
Factors associated with chronic pelvic pain in women with endometriosis: A national study on clinical and sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyles, quality of life, and perceptions of quality of care, during the COVID-19 pandemic
Authors: Cofini Vincenza , Muselli Mario , Petrucci Emiliano , Lolli Chiara , Pelaccia Erika , Guido Maurizio , Marinangeli Franco , Fabiani Leila , Necozione Stefano 
Published: March 2024

Background: Endometriosis is a persistent inflammatory condition that affects women of reproductive age and causes pelvic pain. Chronic pelvic pain is a chronic regional pain syndrome involving the pelvic area. Objectives: This survey aimed to characterize the clinical and sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyles, quality of life, and perceptions of quality of care in women with endometriosis who reported chronic pelvic pain during the Covid pandemic. Design: We conducted a cross-sectional survey among the Italian population from July to September 2021. Methods: Snowball sampling was used to interview a large sample of adult women who reported a diagnosis of endometriosis, through a self-reported questionnaire. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to identify the factors associated with chronic pelvic pain. The primary outcome was describing women who reported chronic pelvic pain. Results: A total of 661 out of 1045 (63%) women who responded to the survey reported chronic pelvic pain. The multivariable analysis evidenced that chronic pelvic pain was related to physical and mental quality perception, pelvic floor disorders (adjusted odds ratio = 1.58; 95% CI = 1.10–2.27; p = 0.012), dyspareunia (adjusted odds ratio = 1.87; 95% CI = 1.31–2.65; p < 0.001), adhesions syndrome (adjusted odds ratio = 1.49; 95% CI = 1.05–2.11; p = 0.026), and the delay in diagnosing endometriosis (adjusted odds ratio = 1.04; 95% CI = 1.00–1.09; p = 0.034). The only social factor associated with chronic pelvic pain was marital status (adjusted odds ratio = 0.66; 95% CI = 0.46–0.93; p = 0.019). Conclusion: In the pandemic period, there was a very high prevalence of chronic pelvic pain in women with endometriosis in Italy. The pandemic highlighted the need for careful attention to diagnose endometriosis and the need for psychological and partner support, which would allow better pain management and prevent chronicity.