bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Does time‐restricted eating add benefits to calorie restriction? A systematic review
Authors: Ezzati Armin , McLaren Christian , Bohlman Carly , Tamargo Javier A. , Lin Yi , Anton Stephen D. 
Published: February 2024

AbstractObjectiveA growing body of evidence has supported the health benefits of extended daily fasting, known as time‐restricted eating (TRE); however, whether the addition of TRE enhances the known benefits of calorie restriction (CR) remains unclear.MethodsPubMed, Scopus, the Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar were searched through April 2023. This systematic review includes randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that compared CR + TRE with CR alone in energy‐matched conditions of at least 8 weeks in duration that assessed changes in body weight and cardiometabolic disease risk factors in adults with overweight and/or obesity.ResultsSeven studies were identified (n = 579). Two studies reported greater weight loss and reductions in diastolic blood pressure with CR + TRE compared with CR alone after 8 to 14 weeks, whereas one study reported greater improvements in triglycerides and glucose tolerance with CR + TRE (3 days/week) compared with CR alone following 26 weeks. One study reported significant increases in homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA‐IR) levels with CR + TRE versus CR alone after 8 weeks. There were no statistically significant differences in any other outcome variable between the two interventions.ConclusionsThe addition of TRE to CR regimens resulted in greater weight loss and improvements in cardiometabolic risk factors in some studies; however, the majority of studies did not find additional benefits.
Effect of Laryngopharyngeal Reflux and Potassium‐Competitive Acid Blocker (P‐CAB) on the Microbiological Comprise of the Laryngopharynx
Authors: Zheng Xiaowei , Zheng Yujin , Chen Ting , Hou Chenjie , Zhou Liqun , Liu Chaofeng , Zheng Jingyi , Hu Renyou 
Published: February 2024

AbstractObjectiveTo probe the microbiota composition progressing from healthy individuals to those with laryngopharyngeal reflux disease (LPRD) and subsequently undergoing potassium‐competitive acid inhibitor (P‐CAB) therapy.Study DesignProspective case‐control study.SettingAcademic Medical Center.MethodsForty patients with LPRD and 51 patients without LPRD were recruited. An 8‐week P‐CAB therapy was initiated (post‐T‐LPRD), and 39 had return visits. In total, 130 laryngopharyngeal saliva samples were collected and sequenced by targeting the V3‐V4 region of the 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene using an Illumina MiSeq. Amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) and clinical indices were analyzed.ResultsAlpha and beta diversities were compared among the non‐LPRD, LPRD, and post‐T‐LPRD groups, and the Observed_ASVs were not significantly different. At the same time, the Shannon and Simpson indices, unweighted Unifrac, weighted Unifrac, and binary Jaccard distance were significantly different between non‐LPRD and LPRD groups. In addition, significant differences were found in the abundance of Streptococcus, Prevotella, and Prevotellaceae in the LPRD versus non‐LPRD groups, and Neisseria, Leptotrichia, and Allprevotella in the LPRD versus post‐T‐LPRD groups. The genera model was used to distinguish patients with LPRD from those without, and a better receiver operating characteristic curve was formed after combining the clinical indices of reflux symptom index, reflux finding score, and pepsin, with an area under the curve of 0.960.ConclusionLaryngopharyngeal microbial communities changed after laryngopharyngeal reflux and were modified further after P‐CAB treatment, which provides a potential diagnostic value for LPRD, especially when combined with clinical indices.
Treating lower lip fistulas in Van der Woude syndrome using inverted‐T lip reduction: An experience
Authors: Narita Rika , Saijo Hideto , Kashiwagi Miki , Oshima Sachi , Taniguchi Asako , Hoshi Kazuto 
Published: February 2024

AbstractObjectiveVan der Woude syndrome is characterized by the concurrence of cleft lip and palate with lower lip fistulas. During fistula resection, care must be taken to maintain the function of the orbicularis oris and restore the normal shape of the lips. Several reports have documented various resection methods; however, the most appropriate surgical resection is controversial. In this report, lower lip fistulas were resected using an inverted‐T surgical design.MethodsOf the six patients with Van der Woude syndrome who underwent resection of the lower lip fistula in our department between January 2007 and December 2015, three patients who underwent inverted‐T lip reduction were included. The postoperative position‐dependent morphology of the fistulas was examined.ResultsFive years postoperatively, no complications such as postoperative infections, mucous retention cyst formation, a dysmorphic appearance of the lip, or fistula recurrence were observed. Moreover, a stable wound morphology was evident.ConclusionsThe inverted‐T lip reduction seems to be promising technique for the excision of lower lip fistulas in patients with Van der Woude syndrome, yielding good results.
Castor oil‐based polyurethane ternary composites with enhanced thermal conductivity and mechanical properties by using liquid metal as second filler
Authors: Xu Cui , Du Jun , Jia Xiao , Wang Shijun , Liu Bin , Deng Yamin , Huai Xiulan 
Published: February 2024

AbstractWith the miniaturization, high frequency of electronic devices, and low‐carbon and sustainable development, higher requirements are put forward for thermal conductive polyurethane composites in terms of comprehensive performance and renewable raw materials. Herein, choosing bio‐based polyurethane (PU) derived from castor oil as matrix, and liquid metal (LM) and aluminum hydroxide (ATH) as hybrid thermal conductive filler, castor oil‐based PU composites were developed via high‐speed rotation and in‐situ polymerization method. The LM‐ATH hybrid filler displayed a synergistic enhancement effect on the thermal conductivity of composites due to the presence of LM‐bridging significantly improved the effective contact probability between ATH fillers. The thermal conductivity of 50LM‐ATH/PU reached 1.69 Wm−1 K−1, which was 9.9 times and 1.4 times higher than that of pure PU and 50ATH/PU, respectively. Notably, the 50LM‐ATH/PU exhibited outstanding mechanical properties including tensile strength up to 4.0 MPa and adhesion strength up to 7.9 MPa, especially elongation at break up to 120% which was improved by 200% compared with 50ATH/PU (40%). Additionally, the composite possessed excellent electric insulation, thermal stability, and inflaming retarding properties, showing great application potential in the electronic devices field.Highlights
Castor oil‐based PU composites with ATH‐LM hybrid filer were developed.
LM‐ATH hybrid filler of 2:8 promoted the thermal conductivity of composites.
Hybrid filler than ATH‐endowed composites with better mechanical properties.
The ATH‐LM/PU exhibited excellent electric insulation.
Interfacial engineering of glass fiber‐reinforced vinyl ester resin composites: Using polydopamine‐SiO2 for property enhancement
Authors: Feng Xuhuang , Shao Lingda , Qiu Yingjie , Tian Wei , Tao Fengyi , Zhu Chengyan 
Published: February 2024

AbstractTo enhance the flexural properties of glass fiber‐reinforced vinyl ester resin (GF‐VER) composites, this study focused on the influence of the duration of surface treatment on the flexural properties using polydopamine (PDA) and nanosilicon dioxide (nano‐SiO2). The GF‐VER composites were prepared via hot pressing. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were utilized to characterize the microstructural and chemical attributes of the GF and GF‐VER composites. The mechanical properties of the GF‐VER composites were characterized using the flexural strength test. Furthermore, thermogravimetry was employed to investigate the thermal stability of the GF and the content of PDA nanoparticles on the GF. The results demonstrated that upon extending the treatment period, a greater quantity of PDA‐SiO2 nanoparticles adhered to the surface of the GF. The analysis of these results established that the optimal treatment duration is 12 h. This duration facilitated an enhanced adhesion between GF and VER owing to PDA‐SiO2, resulting in an optimal flexural strength of 562.8 MPa and signifying a 8.86% increase compared with the flexural strength of the untreated GF‐VER composites. Overall, the findings indicate that PDA‐SiO2 treatment greatly improves the flexural strength of GF‐VER composites.Highlights
The method for modifying the GF surface was simple and mild.
Silica nanoparticles were grafted onto GFs using dopamine as a reaction platform.
The effect of the duration of PDA‐SiO2 treatment on the flexural strength of GF‐VER composites was examined.
SEM revealed an improved GF‐VER interface.
The flexural strength of the GF‐VER composites improved by 8.86%.
Optimal redundancy allocations for series systems under hierarchical dependence structures
Authors: Guo Man‐Yuan , Zhang Jiandong , Zhang Yiying , Zhao Peng 
Published: February 2024

AbstractRedundancy allocations strategies are commonly used in reliability engineering to enhance the performance of reliability systems. This paper makes use the hierarchical copula to characterize the dependence structures among the components and hot/cold standbys in series systems. Optimal allocation policies of hot and cold standbys are presented for series systems with dependent components and redundancies under certain conditions imposed on the hierarchical copula as well as the components and spares reliabilities. It is shown that, under certain mild conditions imposed on the copula function and lifetimes of components and redundancies, the optimal allocations should be following the way that the resultant lifetimes for all nodes should be balanced as much as possible to enhance the system's performance. The results extend some related ones well‐known in the literature from the independent case to the dependent setting. Some numerical examples are presented as illustrations. We also present a real application in optimal allocations of redundant wires for improving the reliability of high‐voltage electricity transmission network systems.
Matched Redox Kinetics on Triazine‐Based Carbon Nitride/Ni(OH)2 for Stoichiometric Overall Photocatalytic CO2 Conversion
Authors: Wang Jing , Sheng Ren , Xiao Juanxiu , Lu Li , Peng Yuhao , Gu Dong , Xiao Wei 
Published: February 2024

AbstractMismatched reaction kinetics of CO2 reduction and H2O oxidation is the main obstacle limiting the overall photocatalytic CO2 conversion. Here, a molten salt strategy is used to construct tubular triazine‐based carbon nitride (TCN) with more adsorption sites and stronger activation capability. Ni(OH)2 nanosheets are then grown over the TCN to trigger a proton‐coupled electron transfer for a stoichiometric overall photocatalytic CO2 conversion via “3CO2 + 2H2O = CH4 + 2CO + 3O2.” TCN reduces the energy barrier of H2O dissociation to promote H2O oxidation to O2 and supply sufficient protons to Ni(OH)2, whereby the CO2 conversion is accelerated due to the enhanced proton‐coupled electron transfer process enabled by the sufficient proton supply from TCN. This work highlights the importance of matching the reaction kinetics of CO2 reduction and H2O oxidation by proton‐coupled electron transfer on stoichiometric overall photocatalytic CO2 conversion.
Optimizing Energy Levels and Improving Film Compactness in PbS Quantum Dot Solar Cells by Silver Doping
Authors: Li Jing , Zhang Xiaoyu , Liu Zeke , Wu Hua , Wang Anran , Luo Zhao , Wang Jianxun , Dong Wei , Wang Chen , Wen Shanpeng , Dong Qingfeng , Yu William W. , Zheng Weitao 
Published: February 2024

AbstractPbS quantum dot (QD) solar cells harvest near‐infrared solar radiation. Their conventional hole transport layer has limited hole collection efficiency due to energy level mismatch and poor film quality. Here, how to resolve these two issues by using Ag‐doped PbS QDs are demonstrated. On the one hand, Ag doping relieves the compressive stress during layer deposition and thus improves film compactness and homogeneity to suppress leakage currents. On the other hand, Ag doping increases hole concentration, which aligns energy levels and increases hole mobility to boost hole collection. Increased hole concentration also broadens the depletion region of the active layer, decreasing interface charge accumulation and promoting carrier extraction efficiency. A champion power conversion efficiency of 12.42% is achieved by optimizing the hole transport layer in PbS QD solar cells, compared to 9.38% for control devices. Doping can be combined with compressive strain relief to optimize carrier concentration and energy levels in QDs, and even introduce other novel phenomena such as improved film quality.
Monodispersed and Monofunctionalized DNA‐Caged Au Nano‐Clusters with Enhanced Optical Properties for STED Imaging
Authors: Qi Liqing , Xiao Yating , Fu Xiaoyi , Yang Hongwei , Fang Le , Xu Rui , Ping Jiantao , Han Da , Jiang Yifei , Fang Xiaohong 
Published: February 2024

AbstractThe performance of Stimulated Emission Depletion (STED) microscopy depends critically on the fluorescent probe. Ultrasmall Au nanoclusters (Au NCs) exhibit large Stokes shift, and good stimulated emission response, which are potentially useful for STED imaging. However, Au NCs are polydispersed in size, sensitive to the surrounding environment, and difficult to control surface functional group stoichiometry, which results in reduced density and high heterogeneity in the labeling of biological structures. Here, this limitation is overcome by developing a method to encapsulate ultrasmall Au NCs with DNA cages, which yielded monodispersed, and monofunctionalized Au NCs that are long‐term stable. Moreover, the DNA‐caging also greatly improved the fluorescence quantum yield and photostability of Au NCs. In STED imaging, the DNA‐caged Au NCs yielded ≈40 nm spatial resolution and are able to resolve microtubule line shapes with good labeling density and homogeneity. In contrast, without caging, the Au NCs‐DNA conjugates only achieved ≈55 nm resolution and yielded spotted, poorly resolved microtubule structures, due to the presence of aggregates. Overall, a method is developed to achieve precise surface functionalization and greatly improve the monodispersity, stability, as well as optical properties of Au NCs, providing a promising class of fluorescent probes for STED imaging.
FvKex2 is required for development, virulence, and mycotoxin production in Fusarium verticillioides
Authors: Wu Limin , Bian Wenyin , Abubakar Yakubu Saddeeq , Lin Jiayi , Yan Huijuan , zhang Huan , Wang Zonghua , Wu Changbiao , Shim WonBo , Lu Guo-dong 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Fusarium verticillioides is one of the most important fungal pathogens causing maize ear and stalk rots, thereby undermining global food security. Infected seeds are usually unhealthy for consumption due to contamination with fumonisin B1 (FB1) mycotoxin produced by the fungus as a virulence factor. Unveiling the molecular factors that determine fungal development and pathogenesis will help in the control and management of the diseases. Kex2 is a kexin-like Golgi-resident proprotein convertase that is involved in the activation of some important proproteins. Herein, we identified and functionally characterized FvKex2 in relation to F. verticillioides development and virulence by bioinformatics and functional genomics approaches. We found that FvKex2 is required for the fungal normal vegetative growth, because the growth of the ∆Fvkex2 mutant was significantly reduced on culture media compared to the wild-type and complemented strains. The mutant also produced very few conidia with morphologically abnormal shapes when compared with those from the wild type. However, the kexin-like protein was dispensable for the male role in sexual reproduction in F. verticillioides. In contrast, pathogenicity was nearly abolished on wounded maize stalks and sugarcane leaves in the absence of FvKEX2 gene, suggesting an essential role of Fvkex2 in the virulence of F. verticillioides. Furthermore, high-performance liquid chromatography analysis revealed that the ∆Fvkex2 mutant produced a significantly lower level of FB1 mycotoxin compared to the wild-type and complemented strains, consistent with the loss of virulence observed in the mutant. Taken together, our results indicate that FvKex2 is critical for vegetative growth, FB1 biosynthesis, and virulence, but dispensable for sexual reproduction in F. verticillioides. The study presents the kexin-like protein as a potential drug target for the management of the devastating maize ear and stalk rot diseases. Further studies should aim at uncovering the link between FvKex2 activity and FB1 biosynthesis genes.

Key points
•The kexin-like protein FvKex2 contributes significantly to the vegetative growth of Fusarium verticillioides.
•The conserved protein is required for fungal conidiation and conidial morphology, but dispensable for sexual reproduction.
•Deletion of FvKEX2 greatly attenuates the virulence and mycotoxin production potential of F. verticillioides.
FDG imaging with long-axial field-of-view PET/CT in patients with high blood glucose—a matched pair analysis
Authors: Mingels Clemens , Weissenrieder Luis , Zeimpekis Konstantinos , Sari Hasan , Nardo Lorenzo , Caobelli Federico , Alberts Ian , Rominger Axel , Pyka Thomas 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Purpose
High blood glucose (hBG) in patients undergoing [18F]FDG PET/CT scans often results in rescheduling the examination, which may lead to clinical delay for the patient and decrease productivity for the department. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether long-axial field-of-view (LAFOV) PET/CT can minimize the effect of altered bio-distribution in hBG patients and is able to provide diagnostic image quality in hBG situations.

Materials and methods
Oncologic patients with elevated blood glucose (≥ 8.0 mmol/l) and normal blood glucose (< 8.0 mmol/l, nBG) levels were matched for tumor entity, gender, age, and BMI. hBG patients were further subdivided into two groups (BG 8–11 mmol/l and BG > 11 mmol/l). Tracer uptake in the liver, muscle, and tumor was evaluated. Furthermore, image quality was compared between long acquisitions (ultra-high sensitivity mode, 360 s) on a LAFOV PET/CT and routine acquisitions equivalent to a short-axial field-of-view scanner (simulated (sSAFOV), obtained with high sensitivity mode, 120 s). Tumor-to-background ratio (TBR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) were used as the main image quality criteria.

Results
Thirty-one hBG patients met the inclusion criteria and were matched with 31 nBG patients. Overall, liver uptake was significantly higher in hBG patients (SUVmean, 3.07 ± 0.41 vs. 2.37 ± 0.33; p = 0.03), and brain uptake was significantly lower (SUVmax, 7.58 ± 0.74 vs. 13.38 ± 3.94; p < 0.001), whereas muscle (shoulder/gluteal) uptake showed no statistically significant difference. Tumor uptake was lower in hBG patients, resulting in a significantly lower TBR in the hBG cohort (3.48 ± 0.74 vs. 5.29 ± 1.48, p < 0.001). CNR was higher in nBG compared to hBG patients (12.17 ± 4.86 vs. 23.31 ± 12.22, p < 0.001). However, subgroup analysis of nBG 8–11 mmol/l on sSAFOV PET/CT compared to hBG (> 11 mmol/l) patients examined with LAFOV PET/CT showed no statistical significant difference in CNR (19.84 ± 8.40 vs. 17.79 ± 9.3, p = 0.08).

Conclusion
While elevated blood glucose (> 11 mmol) negatively affected TBR and CNR in our cohort, the images from a LAFOV PET-scanner had comparable CNR to PET-images acquired from nBG patients using sSAFOV PET/CT. Therefore, we argue that oncologic patients with increased blood sugar levels might be imaged safely with LAFOV PET/CT when rescheduling is not feasible.
Diagnostic capabilities of artificial intelligence as an additional reader in a breast cancer screening program
Authors: Seker Mustafa Ege , Koyluoglu Yilmaz Onat , Ozaydin Ayse Nilufer , Gurdal Sibel Ozkan , Ozcinar Beyza , Cabioglu Neslihan , Ozmen Vahit , Aribal Erkin 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Objectives
We aimed to evaluate the early-detection capabilities of AI in a screening program over its duration, with a specific focus on the detection of interval cancers, the early detection of cancers with the assistance of AI from prior visits, and its impact on workload for various reading scenarios.

Materials and methods
The study included 22,621 mammograms of 8825 women within a 10-year biennial two-reader screening program. The statistical analysis focused on 5136 mammograms from 4282 women due to data retrieval issues, among whom 105 were diagnosed with breast cancer. The AI software assigned scores from 1 to 100. Histopathology results determined the ground truth, and Youden’s index was used to establish a threshold. Tumor characteristics were analyzed with ANOVA and chi-squared test, and different workflow scenarios were evaluated using bootstrapping.

Results
The AI software achieved an AUC of 89.6% (86.1–93.2%, 95% CI). The optimal threshold was 30.44, yielding 72.38% sensitivity and 92.86% specificity. Initially, AI identified 57 screening-detected cancers (83.82%), 15 interval cancers (51.72%), and 4 missed cancers (50%). AI as a second reader could have led to earlier diagnosis in 24 patients (average 29.92 ± 19.67 months earlier). No significant differences were found in cancer-characteristics groups. A hybrid triage workflow scenario showed a potential 69.5% reduction in workload and a 30.5% increase in accuracy.

Conclusion
This AI system exhibits high sensitivity and specificity in screening mammograms, effectively identifying interval and missed cancers and identifying 23% of cancers earlier in prior mammograms. Adopting AI as a triage mechanism has the potential to reduce workload by nearly 70%.

Clinical relevance statement
The study proposes a more efficient method for screening programs, both in terms of workload and accuracy.

Key Points
• Incorporating AI as a triage tool in screening workflow improves sensitivity (72.38%) and specificity (92.86%), enhancing detection rates for interval and missed cancers.
• AI-assisted triaging is effective in differentiating low and high-risk cases, reduces radiologist workload, and potentially enables broader screening coverage.
• AI has the potential to facilitate early diagnosis compared to human reading.