bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Multi-omics analysis reveals interferon-stimulated gene OAS1 as a prognostic and immunological biomarker in pan-cancer
Authors: Yang Runyu , Du Yue , Zhang Mengyao , Liu Yi , Feng Hui , Liu Ruimin , Yang Bingyu , Xiao Jiayi , He Pengcheng , Niu Fan 
Published: October 2023

IntroductionOAS1(2’-5’-oligoadenylate synthetase 1) is a member of the Interferon-Stimulated Genes which plays an important role in the antiviral process. In recent years, the role of OAS1 in tumors has attracted attention, and it was found to be associated with prognosis in several tumors. However, the mechanism by which OAS1 affects tumors is unclear and pan-cancer study of OAS1 is necessary to better understand its implication in cancers.MethodsThe expression, prognostic value, genetic alteration, alternative splicing events of OAS1 in pan-cancers were analyzed using TCGA, GTEx, HPA, GEPIA and OncoSplicing databases. OAS1 associated immune cell infiltration was evaluated using the ESTIMATE, xCell, CIBERSORT and QUANTISEQ algorithm. Single cell transcriptome data download using TISH database. Finally, the roles of the OAS1 on apoptosis, migration and invasion were investigated in two pancreatic cancer cells.ResultsOur results revealed significant differences in OAS1 expression among various tumors, which had prognostic implications. In addition, we investigated the impact of OAS1 on genomic stability, methylation status, and other factors across different types of cancer, and the effects of these factors on prognosis. Notably, our study also demonstrated that OAS1 overexpression can contribute to CTL dysfunction and macrophage M2 polarization. In addition, cell experiments showed that the knockdown of OAS1 could reduce the invasive ability and increased the apoptosis rate of PAAD cells.DiscussionThese results confirmed that OAS1 could be a prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target for its potential role in CTL dysfunction and macrophage M2 polarization.
Immune cells are associated with mortality: the Health and Retirement Study
Authors: Seshadri Gokul , Vivek Sithara , Prizment Anna , Crimmins Eileen M. , Klopack Eric T. , Faul Jessica , Guan Weihua , Meier Helen C. S. , Thyagarajan Bharat 
Published: October 2023

IntroductionAge-related immunosenescence is characterized by changes in immune cell subsets and is associated with mortality. However, since immunosenescence is associated with other concurrent age-related changes such as inflammation and multi-organ dysfunction, it is unclear whether the association between age-related immunosenescence and mortality is independent of other concurrent age-related changes. To address these limitations, we evaluated the independent association between immune cell subsets and mortality after adjustment for age-related inflammation and biologic age.MethodsData for this study was obtained from the 2016 interview of the Health and Retirement Study (N=6802). Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to estimate the association between 25 immune cell subsets (11 T-cell subsets, 4 B-cell subsets, 3 monocyte subsets, 3 natural killer cell subsets, 3 dendritic cell subsets, and neutrophils) and 4-year mortality adjusting for covariates such as the Klemera-Doubal algorithm biological age, chronological age, gender, race/ethnicity, BMI, smoking status, comorbidity index, CMV seropositivity, and inflammatory latent variable comprising C-reactive protein, and 4 cytokines (interleukin-10, interleukin-1 receptor antagonist, interleukin-6, and soluble tumor necrosis factor).ResultsFour hundred and seventy-six participants died during the study period with an overall median follow up time of 2.5 years. After controlling for covariates and adjustment for sample-weights, total T cells [HR: 0.86, p=0.004], NK CD56LO cells [HR: 0.88, p=0.005], and neutrophils [HR: 1.22, p=0.004] were significantly associated with mortality.ConclusionsThese findings support the idea that an aging immune system is associated with short-term mortality independent of age-related inflammation or other age-related measures of physiological dysfunction. If replicated in other external cohorts, these findings could identify novel targets for both monitoring and intervention to reduce the age-related mortality.
Mechanical response of masonry structure strengthened with ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC): a comparative analysis for different strengthening tactics
Authors: Jiang Zhimei , Yang Jun , Su Hao 
Published: October 2023

Rehabilitation and strengthening of existing masonry structures can improve their safety, prolong life and save economic costs. In this study, a total of eighteen masonry column specimens strengthened by ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) were fabricated and tested in compression. The effects of strengthening method, strengthening thickness and loading eccentricity were investigated. The failure mode, bearing capacity, strain, ductility, and energy dissipation were discussed in before and after strengthening to evaluate the UHPC strengthening effectiveness. A three-dimensional numerical model established using finite element analysis (FEA) was validated with the experimental results. Results indicated that the brittle failure of masonry columns in compression could be significantly avoided using UHPC strengthening. Among three methods of strengthening, hoop strengthening was the most effective in increasing the ultimate load, ductility, and dissipated energy of masonry columns by 185.81%, 49.09%, and 297.12%, respectively. With the strengthening thickness increased from 0 to 20 and 30 mm, the ultimate bearing capacity of masonry columns was respectively increased by 29.17% and 117.26%, while the corresponding lateral displacement was decreased by 32.44% and 37.24%, respectively. The horizontal buckling of masonry columns can be relieved by UHPC, and the increase in eccentricity did not weaken the contribution of UHPC in strengthened masonry columns. The numerical results were in good agreement with the test results, with errors below 7.6%.
MRI BrainAGE demonstrates increased brain aging in systemic lupus erythematosus patients
Authors: Kuchcinski Grégory , Rumetshofer Theodor , Zervides Kristoffer A. , Lopes Renaud , Gautherot Morgan , Pruvo Jean-Pierre , Bengtsson Anders A. , Hansson Oskar , Jönsen Andreas , Sundgren Pia C. Maly 
Published: October 2023

IntroductionSystemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune connective tissue disease affecting multiple organs in the human body, including the central nervous system. Recently, an artificial intelligence method called BrainAGE (Brain Age Gap Estimation), defined as predicted age minus chronological age, has been developed to measure the deviation of brain aging from a healthy population using MRI. Our aim was to evaluate brain aging in SLE patients using a deep-learning BrainAGE model.MethodsSeventy female patients with a clinical diagnosis of SLE and 24 healthy age-matched control females, were included in this post-hoc analysis of prospectively acquired data. All subjects had previously undergone a 3 T MRI acquisition, a neuropsychological evaluation and a measurement of neurofilament light protein in plasma (NfL). A BrainAGE model with a 3D convolutional neural network architecture, pre-trained on the 3D-T1 images of 1,295 healthy female subjects to predict their chronological age, was applied on the images of SLE patients and controls in order to compute the BrainAGE. SLE patients were divided into 2 groups according to the BrainAGE distribution (high vs. low BrainAGE).ResultsBrainAGE z-score was significantly higher in SLE patients than in controls (+0.6 [±1.1] vs. 0 [±1.0], p = 0.02). In SLE patients, high BrainAGE was associated with longer reaction times (p = 0.02), lower psychomotor speed (p = 0.001) and cognitive flexibility (p = 0.04), as well as with higher NfL after adjusting for age (p = 0.001).ConclusionUsing a deep-learning BrainAGE model, we provide evidence of increased brain aging in SLE patients, which reflected neuronal damage and cognitive impairment.
The effect of the dietary approaches to stop hypertension diet on total antioxidant capacity, superoxide dismutase, catalase, and body composition in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a randomized controlled trial
Authors: Zare Zahra , Hosseinzadeh Mahdieh , Sharuni Fatemeh , Rohani Fatemeh Sadat , Hojjat Hashem , Rahimpour Shahab , Madadizadeh Farzan , Zavar Reza Javad , Wong Alexei , Nadjarzadeh Azadeh 
Published: October 2023

AimNon-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a condition characterized by the accumulation of fat in the liver without excessive alcohol consumption. Lifestyle modifications, such as adopting a healthy diet, represent the standard treatment for NAFLD. However, the impact of the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet on oxidative stress biomarkers in patients with NAFLD remains unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the effect of the DASH diet on total antioxidant capacity (TAC), catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels, and body composition in overweight and obese patients with NAFLD.MethodsA total of 70 overweight and obese patients aged 1870 years were randomly assigned to either the intervention (DASH diet, n = 35) or the control group (control diet, n = 35) for 12 weeks, with both groups following a calorie-restricted diet.ResultsThe mean age of participants was 43.1 ± 8.1 years in the DASH group and 45.1 ± 8.6 years in the control group. At the end of the study, a significant difference was observed in the mean TAC and SOD levels between the two groups (p = 0.02). After adjusting for potential confounding factors, such as age, sex, diabetes, smoking, physical activity, and baseline values, the DASH diet maintained its significant effects on TAC and SOD compared to the control diet (p = 0.03). However, there were no significant differences in CAT levels between the two groups. Moreover, a significant reduction in visceral fat (p = 0.01) and a marginally significant decrease in BMI (p = 0.06) were observed in the DASH group compared to the control group after adjusting for potential confounders.ConclusionIn conclusion, our study showed that following the DASH diet for 12 weeks in overweight and obese patients with NAFLD has beneficial effects on TAC, SOD, and visceral fat. These findings support the use of the DASH diet as a potential therapeutic intervention for the improvement of oxidative biomarkers in patients with NAFLD.Clinical trial registrationwww.irct.ir/, identifier IRCT20170117032026N3.
PCG-net: feature adaptive deep learning for automated head and neck organs-at-risk segmentation
Authors: Luan Shunyao , Wei Changchao , Ding Yi , Xue Xudong , Wei Wei , Yu Xiao , Wang Xiao , Ma Chi , Zhu Benpeng 
Published: October 2023

IntroductionRadiation therapy is a common treatment option for Head and Neck Cancer (HNC), where the accurate segmentation of Head and Neck (HN) Organs-AtRisks (OARs) is critical for effective treatment planning. Manual labeling of HN OARs is time-consuming and subjective. Therefore, deep learning segmentation methods have been widely used. However, it is still a challenging task for HN OARs segmentation due to some small-sized OARs such as optic chiasm and optic nerve.MethodsTo address this challenge, we propose a parallel network architecture called PCG-Net, which incorporates both convolutional neural networks (CNN) and a Gate-Axial-Transformer (GAT) to effectively capture local information and global context. Additionally, we employ a cascade graph module (CGM) to enhance feature fusion through message-passing functions and information aggregation strategies. We conducted extensive experiments to evaluate the effectiveness of PCG-Net and its robustness in three different downstream tasks. ResultsThe results show that PCG-Net outperforms other methods, improves the accuracy of HN OARs segmentation, which can potentially improve treatment planning for HNC patients.DiscussionIn summary, the PCG-Net model effectively establishes the dependency between local information and global context and employs CGM to enhance feature fusion for accurate segment HN OARs. The results demonstrate the superiority of PCGNet over other methods, making it a promising approach for HNC treatment planning.
Importance of metabolic and immune profile as a prognostic indicator in patients with diabetic clear cell renal cell carcinoma
Authors: Cheng Xiangyu , Hou Yanlian 
Published: October 2023

BackgroundccRCC, also known as clear cell renal cell carcinoma, is a cancer that is highly metabolically active and has a strong connection with the immune system. The objective of this research was to investigate the correlation between pathways associated with metabolism, diabetes, immune infiltration, and their impact on the prognosis of ccRCC.MethodWe conducted an extensive examination utilizing ssGSEA, ESTIMATE algorithm, WGCNA, and GSVA for gene set enrichment analysis, gene co-expression network analysis, and gene set variation analysis. An established prognostic model, utilizing immune-related WGCNA findings, was evaluated for its association with clinical characteristics and the tumor microenvironment (TME).ResultThe ssGSEA effectively categorized ccRCC into groups based on low and high metabolism. Strong associations were observed between scores related to metabolism and immune scores, ESTIMATE scores, stromal scores, and gene expression related to HLA. The analysis conducted by WGCNA revealed a module called the ‘yellow module’ that exhibited a significant correlation with the infiltration of immune cells and the survival rates of patients. A risk model was developed, demonstrating reliable predictive performance for patient survival outcomes. The risk model also correlated significantly with immune scores and HLA-related gene expressions, suggesting potential immune evasion mechanisms. The analysis of mutations in TCGA data revealed the mutational patterns of ccRCC, and there was a significant correlation between the risk score and clinical characteristics. The GSVA analysis revealed a notable enrichment of pathways associated with cancer in patients at high risk. Finally, in order to evaluate the role of CX3CL1 in renal cell carcinoma cells, we then performed the cell proliferation assays. The results demonstrated that the over expression of CXCL1 could promote the cell proliferation ability in renal cell carcinoma cells.ConclusionOur findings provide a novel perspective on the interactions between diabetes, metabolic pathways, and the immune landscape in ccRCC. The predictive value of the prognostic model established in this research has the potential to guide the development of new therapeutic and prognostic approaches for patients with ccRCC.
Pharmacogenomics in clinical trials: an overview
Authors: Nogueiras-Álvarez Rita 
Published: October 2023

With the trend towards promoting personalised medicine (PM), the application of pharmacogenetics and pharmacogenomics (PGx) is of growing importance. For the purposes of clinical trials, the inclusion of PGx is an additional tool that should be considered for improving our knowledge about the effectiveness and safety of new drugs. A search of available clinical trials containing pharmacogenetic and PGx information was conducted on ClinicalTrials.gov. The results show there has been an increase in the number of trials containing PGx information since the 2000 s, with particular relevance in the areas of Oncology (28.43%) and Mental Health (10.66%). Most of the clinical trials focus on treatment as their primary purpose. In those clinical trials entries where the specific genes considered for study are detailed, the most frequently explored genes are CYP2D6 (especially in Mental Health and Pain), CYP2C9 (in Hematology), CYP2C19 (in Cardiology and Mental Health) and ABCB1 and CYP3A5 (particularly prominent in Transplantation and Cardiology), among others. Researchers and clinicans should be trained in pharmacogenetics and PGx in order to be able to make a proper interpretation of this data, contributing to better prescribing decisions and an improvement in patients’ care, which would lead to the performance of PM.
Evaluating relationships between seed morphological traits and seed dormancy in Chenopodium quinoa Willd.
Authors: McGinty Emma M. , Craine Evan B. , Miller Nathan D. , Ocana-Gallegos Cristina , Spalding Edgar P. , Murphy Kevin M. , Hauvermale Amber L. 
Published: October 2023

IntroductionQuinoa is a high-value, nutritious crop that performs well in variable environments, marginal soils, and in diverse crop rotations. Quinoa’s many attributes make it an ideal crop for supporting human health in global communities and economies. To date, quinoa research has largely focused on traits in adult plants important for enhancing plant phenotypic plasticity, abiotic stress, disease resistance, and yield. Fewer studies have evaluated quinoa seed dormancy and suggest that most modern quinoa varieties have weak or no seed dormancy, and a narrow window of seed viability post-harvest. In other crops, diminished seed dormancy is a major risk factor for preharvest sprouting (PHS; germination on the panicle due to rain prior to harvest) and may also pose a similar risk for quinoa.MethodsThis study (1) developed a dormancy screening assay to characterize seed dormancy strength in a large collection of quinoa varieties, (2) investigated if morphological variables including seed coat color, seed coat thickness, seed shape including eccentricity which evaluates the roundness or flatness of a seed, and other agronomic traits like crude protein content and seed moisture, contribute to quinoa seed dormancy, and (3) evaluated the use of a phenetic modeling approach to explore relationships between seed morphology and seed dormancy.ResultsDormancy screening indicated seed dormancy ranges in quinoa varieties from none to strong dormancy. Further, phenetic modeling approaches indicate that seed coat thickness and eccentricity are important morphological variables that impact quinoa seed dormancy strength.ConclusionsWhile dormancy screening and phenetic modeling approaches do not provide a direct solution to preventing PHS in quinoa, they do provide new tools for identifying dormant varieties as well as morphological variables contributing to seed dormancy.
Peer victimization and children’s internet addiction in China: a moderated mediation model
Authors: Zhou Pingyan , Cai Jinping , Cui Jiaxin , Liu Jian , He Wenguang , Zhang Cai , Chen Fumei , Wang Zhe 
Published: October 2023

BackgroundPeer victimization used to be considered as a crucial risk factor for children addicted to the internet. Whereas some victimized ones are function better than would be expected. Variability across individuals indicates that it is necessary to understand how children cope with being bullied and why they do not exhibit maladaptive outcomes.ObjectiveWe explored the underlying mechanisms by testing whether subjective well-being was a mediator between peer victimization and Internet addiction and whether the mediation effects conditioned on the levels of parent–child relationship (PCR).MethodsData were collected from 65, 868 elementary school students in China (Mage = 9.56 years, SD = 0.62, 54.0% male) using four questionnaires.ResultsWe found that: (1) subjective well-being can partially mediate the relationship of the two variables; and (2) PCR can moderate direct path and second half of the intermediary process. These moderating effects were stronger for children with higher PCR vs. lower PCR, as a strong PCR can help children to deal with intense emotions and to access effective resources to obtain support.ConclusionThis study deepens our understanding of how peer victimization leads to internet addiction, identifies a supportive PCR as a crucial factor that strengthens the resilience of child victims, and highlights the value of focusing on improving the relationship between parents and children in intervening internet addiction related to peer victimization.
Neuromyths and knowledge about intellectual giftedness in a highly educated multilingual country
Authors: Schmitt Anna , Wollschläger Rachel , Blanchette Sarrasin Jérémie , Masson Steve , Fischbach Antoine , Schiltz Christine 
Published: October 2023

IntroductionUnderstanding brain functioning and intellectual giftedness can be challenging and give rise to various misconceptions. Nonetheless, there seems to be a widespread fascination and appetite for these subjects among the lay public and diverse professionals. The present study is the first to investigate general knowledge about the brain, neuromyths and knowledge about giftedness in a highly multilingual and educated country.MethodsStarting from and extending two seminal studies on neuromyths, several novel statements on intellectual giftedness have been included in order to explore knowledge and misconceptions concerning giftedness. Our sample (N = 200) was composed of Luxembourgish education professionals, including students in educational science and cognitive psychology, thus allowing to analyze responses in general and according to training and professional profiles. Specifically, Group 1 consisted of teachers and futures teachers (n = 152). Group 2 consisted of other education professionals and psychology students (n = 48).ResultsDespite the size and the unbalanced distribution of the sample, our findings indicate a good level of general knowledge about the brain and learning (71.3% of correct responses in average) which does, however, not preclude the presence of the typically observed original neuromyths. Thus, we replicate the classical finding that misconceptions on Learning Styles (70% of error rate) and the Multiple Intelligence Theory (71.5% of error rate) are the most represented, both in (future and in-service) teachers and other education professionals. Moreover, the present sample also revealed a high presence of misconceptions on intellectual giftedness.DiscussionLimitations and future directions are discussed.